Better Living sunrooms can offer you a relaxing place to hang out or a wonderful place to entertain. This creates an extra room that you can use for just about any purpose that you can think of. The Better Living Company will build you a sunroom conservatory that you have always dreamed of. Choosing vinyl for the outside of your sunroom can give you a low maintenance room that you will be able to enjoy, instead of maintaining. Just using a cloth and warm water to occasionally wash it will keep it looking beautiful. The glass panels that you can have installed to serve as the ceiling and sides of your sunroom will allow the sunshine in so that you can enjoy the outdoors, while being in the comfort of an indoor room. If you are creating a room for relaxation, then you will want to make sure that you choose materials that can help reduce the noises and sound from the outdoors. By planning and designing your sunroom carefully, you will be able to create a sunroom that will fit your needs and the design of your home.
If your budget will not be able to stretch enough for one of the many Better Living sunrooms, then you do have other options. This includes a patio cover that you can use to create a carport or covered porch area for you to enjoy. These are permanent structures that are constructed of sturdy materials to stand the test of time. If you add screen panels to your patio cover, then you will have a screened-in porch very inexpensively. A retractable awning cover from Better Living is another option that you can consider. This will give you a convertible area that you can choose to pull out or not. This is a great idea if you will only be using it occasionally. By choosing from one of the 200 different fabrics available for your retractable awning, you will be able to have a custom area for you to enjoy.
Adding one of the many different Better Living sunrooms that are available can give you the extra space that you need to devote to relaxation or to entertain. You will enjoy the fact that these areas are easy to take care of and maintain for you and your family. The many memories of fun times that you will have will far outweigh any budgetary considerations.
Adam Peters is the editor and journalist of many information websites, who has written more articles and newsletters on house additions . A website with allsunrooms.com/betterliving.html tips on better living sunrooms.
Millions of American homeowners plan to remodel instead of move. If you plan to remodel your home, here are some of the most effective projects when it comes to recapturing more of your hard-earned dollars by lowering your home’s energy usage.
1. Insulation
The first one, though it won’t show on the outside, is adding a layer of insulation to your attic. To decide if your home could use an upgrade, check to see how much you already have. If it’s less than twelve inches, adding another layer will lessen your energy bills significantly.
2. Windows
Replacing wood windows with energy-efficient vinyl windows can also offer a relatively quick payback in energy costs. If the cost of replacing all your windows at once is beyond your budget, start by replacing south and west-facing windows first, to save on summer cooling costs. Then replace your east and north-facing windows to reduce heating expenses.
3. Furnace Filters
A very inexpensive upgrade is simply to change your furnace filter regularly. It can improve your cooling system’s efficiency by as much as ten percent when combined with making sure your registers are clear, as well. You can save even more, while helping the environment by not having to recycle your old filter, by buying a washable filter for about $20, which can last for as long as five years if properly cared for.
4. Lighting
Changing incandescent lighting to fluorescent can also provide a strong return on investment. For instance, replacing just one quarter of your incandescent bulbs to compact fluorescents can reduce your home’s electricity usage by 50 percent. As energy costs continue to rise, this is a great way to fight back.
5. Appliances
Finally, many of today’s new appliances can save large amounts of energy when compared to their ancestors. They’re also an excellent way to give your kitchen a dramatic new look while you’re saving money on energy costs.
Energy costs are going to continue rising. Of that, there is no doubt. However, there are many projects that you can do yourself that will provide significant energy savings around your home, all of which will eventually pay for themselves by reducing the amount of energy your home uses.
As energy costs continue to soar, it will be well worth your while to look around your home, take stock, and see if any of these relatively easy and inexpensive projects will be right for you. You’ll be pleased with the difference, and with the money you’ll save.
Check out the home remodeling projects donated by the fauxcontractor.com/ Faux Contractor Mark Mason for the Habitat for Humanity project house featured on flipthathousewithfaux.com Flip That House with Faux
If you have a sunroom you are probably wondering how much airflow is needed to maintain reasonable temperatures. If you’re using a fan you will notice the difference between the inside and outside the room. For example, if it’s only 40° outside any fan can cool a room fast, but if it’s 90° inside and 80° outside is going to take a lot longer. Some other factors that affect cooling of rooms are the type of sunroom ventilation that you use as well as the number of hours of sunlight and the thermal mass space. When the sun is directly overhead is the hardest time to control the temperature in your sunroom. If the sun is at a steep angle it is reflected off the glass and therefore the room stays lot cooler.
The materials you have in your sunroom can affect the heat that your sunroom retains. Slab floors and moist earth planters are very good at absorbing heat and they usually absorb heat each morning and help keep the room cool. Then in the evening they will give off this heat to help warm the room again. This is the main reason that even big fans can’t cool down a room. You have that have a good ventilation system in order to keep your room at a comfortable temperature all during the day
To ventilate a sunroom properly you have to have some kind of ventilation system installed. Ventilation is meant to move the air through your sunroom while keeping it cool and refreshing. It should also clean the air in your sunroom. Ventilation should be considered for both supply and exhaust. There are many kinds of ventilation installations on today’s market that can help you with the ventilation in your sunroom, to keep it cool when it’s hot outside and keep it warm when it’s cooler. You just have to do the research to find the one that will work best for you.
Since the early part of the 20th century lighting designers have created lamps and fixtures to captivate our senses. Much like the tranquility one feels staring at a warming fire or the excitement one feels staring at the spectacle of a lightening storm, accent lamps – those with colorful stained glass patterns, mythical figures, pastoral scenes or action, evoke our emotions.
While illumination is a function of lighting, many of the lamps of the sensory ilk, including lava lamps of the 50’s and 60’s, and animated action lamps of the 20’s and again in the 1950’s, favor more the sense of accent, entertainment and decoration than the practical function of task lighting.
Static yet colorful stained glass lighting appeals as eye candy. Beautiful patterns of Wisteria, Iris, and nature captivate, whether lit or not. Not much has changed since pioneer Louis Comfort Tiffany introduced his first stained glass art lamps more than 100 years ago. Vintage original Tiffany fixtures can be bought for more than the cost of a down payment for a San Francisco home.
Motion lamps, like the animated lamps of the 1920’s, feature popular scenes such as water cascading over Niagra Falls or flames burning around a log. It’s no wonder why advertisers sought to reintroduce action lamps again in the 1950’s. In the 50’s these moving lamps were brought back to life featuring Cole Swimwear models or popular snacks and drinks such as popcorn or coke and would rest upon the counter of a bar for all to enjoy!
Lava lamps also captured our fascination with colorful lighting and movement. Today, these, and the above mentioned vintage lamps, continue to be popular. Collectors may seek higher valued originals, whereas the homeowner may be just as happy with a modern day reproduction. Adding to the feel of a place, these kinds of fixtures are here to stay!
Nicole Martins is a contributing author and publisher to chandeliers-and-home-lighting.com chandeliers-and-home-lighting.com an online resource providing you with information, articles of interest and reviews of popular and name brand chandeliers, floor lamps and table lamps.
The bathroom is an individual’s personal comfort zone to unwind after a long day at work. It is a place where individuals can shed their tensions and worries for awhile, and relax and pamper themselves. Many interior designers have been inspired to create bathrooms in stunning designs and stylish décor to make it the most relaxing retreat for people. Bathrooms can be given a specific look by decorating them with suitable furniture pieces. The list of bathroom furniture can be endless, but the most essential items are bathroom vanities and other forms of cabinets. Bathroom vanity covers all the ugly plumbing pipes and the basin and simultaneously creates space for keeping private items in a concealed manner. It may provide drawers and small racks in which to keep bathroom essentials. Individuals can purchase furniture items from small manufacturers or from leading bathroom furniture manufacturers in the country. Some of the leading manufacturers include and KraftMaid, Woodpro, and Thomasville cabinetry.
KraftMaid is synonymous with quality and style, and is a major manufacturer of furniture and stunning bathroom cabinets. KraftMaid provides cabinets made from natural woods such as Cherry, Birch, Hickory, Maple, Oak, and Pine. It also offers laminated cabinets in contemporary designs. Woodpro is one of the best manufacturers of bathroom cabinets and vanities. It produces fine wooden furniture items made from some of the best quality woods such as Cherry, Red Oak, Hickory, and Maple. Thomasville is a renowned name for bathroom cabinets and has been in this business for a very long time. Their vast experience and a passion for timeless designs have made them a very popular brand. They have a huge network of stores and excel in quality and service. Other leading bathroom vanity manufacturers include Privy Pine and Mill’s Pride.
Almost all the manufacturers have a virtual presence and sell their products through their web sites as well. Their web sites also include information pertaining to other aspects of bathroom furniture such as installation and maintenance. They assure fast delivery and unequalled quality. These websites have enable customers to obtain furniture pieces from their favorite manufacturers from all over the world.
e-BathroomFurniture.com Bathroom Furniture provides detailed information on Bathroom Furniture, Bathroom Storage Furniture, Contemporary Bathroom Furniture, Wicker Bathroom Furniture and more. Bathroom Furniture is affiliated with e-bathroomvanities.com Bathroom Vanity Sinks.
Whether you are a business tycoon or a reasonably rich person with a kitty of valuable possessions, you sure do not want them destroyed by a fire or stolen by someone who probably does not value them as much as you do. On the other hand, what you want to protect may not be your hobby but official documents, jewelry and the like.
In both of the above cases, some means or another probably already protects your valuables. However if you have decided on buying a safe to protect your valuables from fire because you think your prized possessions have increased in number and value then read on to get an idea of the options available to you.
You also have to keep in mind that no amount of protection can last indefinitely. What this means is in the event of a fire in your home or office there is a certain period during which a safe can keep your valuables from being destroyed in the fire!
Heat Intensity in a Fire
Now when you go searching for a safe one thing to keep in mind are the fire ratings of the safe. Do not be fooled by claims of safes that are expensive because they provide protection at very high temperatures.
Average house-fire temperatures are in the range of 1200°C, so if the sales person claims to give better protection at higher temperatures he is probably telling you the specification of the heat resistant lining of the safe or the temperature range of fire endurance tests that safes are put through!
Protection Ratings
Protection ratings are nothing but the temperature and time for which the safe will provide safety in the event of a disaster. The general ratings are 1200 degrees for 20 minutes to 1700 degrees for 1 hour. More expensive cement fire safes can provide up to a 2-hour rating however, they weigh twice as much as the normal home or office safe.
Basic safe types according to their location
Wall safes
These are embedded into a wall preferably into a thick wall to avoid the safe from protruding out at the other end of the wall, which obviously will make it visible! And if it is imperative that you install your safe into a thinner wall then you can install it so that there is a cabinet on the other end hence concealing the safe.
Floor safes
These as the name suggests are installed into the floor of your home or office.
Now unless these are installed in your den or basement they are in danger of falling through the floor once the floor material has collapsed due to fire.
Therefore, the ideal place to install your safe would be at the lowest point in your home and the most exterior, not only because it is less likely to fall through but also because the intensity of heat during a house fire is less concentrated in this area.
Size of the safe
The size of the safe you want to buy will depend on the number of valuables that you want to store and their collective size. You also have to consider future possessions and collectibles because a safe is not something you will buy repeatedly as your collection increases. It is also not economical to buy one all the time meaning safes are quite an expensive commodity owing to the fact that they are made to protect your valuables that are important to you!
Another point to consider while deciding the size is its location in your home! I mean if you do not have enough space to accommodate a big safe it does not make sense buying a one that big right! Moreover, if you have decided on installing it in the bedroom or family room it cannot be too large lest it spoil the interiors! For a big safe the garage or basement is good place.
Thickness of the safe
By the term thickness of the safe, it means the thickness of the safe walls. The sizes available are from 14 gauge thick steel to ¼-inch steel thickness. Now the thickness again depends on you. In the event of a fire, it is not the thickness of the steel but the quality of the fire protection lining that is important because that is what will protect your documents and other valuables from being charred!
Certifications in the UK
Certification of a product by national and international standards gives the customer the satisfaction that what they are buying ensures high quality and reliability.
Some European standards that safe manufacturers adhere to are as follows
Serial numbering by the ECB•S – for the identification of manufacturers and the prevention of unauthorized use as well as they are in accordance with ISO 9000 (EN ISO 9000).
EN-1047-1 and VDMA 24991Means that the safe is tested against fire according to the European standard EN-1047-1. Thereby today’s and future demands for fire protection is achieved. It is the most complete test with production control, certification, drop test, remaining heat etc.
Fire protection P = for paper documents Means that the safe is tested to protect all paper based documents against fire. The end temperature must not exceed 175ºC. The fire class is stated in 60P, 90P alt. 120P which means that the contents in the safe remains intact in 60, 90 alt. 120 minutes.
Fire class DIS = for all types of data media
Means that the safe is tested to protect the most heat sensitive data media in a fire. The end temperature must not exceed 55ºC. The fire class is stated as S60DIS alt. S120DIS and means that the contents in the safe remains intact in 60 alt. 120 minutes.
Warranty
Another important factor to consider is the warranty on your safe in case it is damaged in the event of a fire or break-in. You will not wish to spend more money on buying a brand new safe after incurring so much loss!
Most safe manufacturers provide warranties in the event of a disaster; however, this excludes the freight costs. However if your safe is insured you can claim the freight charges from your insurance company, for which you will have to get in touch with your insurance firm.
Therefore, when you go safe shopping if you have at least some idea of what you are looking for you can expect to get a good deal on protecting your valuables!
Anthony Neary works for thesafeshop.co.uk thesafeshop.co.uk who provide a wide range of security and fire proof solutions for your home and business. Visit thesafeshop.co.uk/Categories/fire_document_cupboards/ thesafeshop.co.uk/Categories/fire_document_cupboards/ for fireprrof cupboards or alternatively visit thesafeshop.co.uk thesafeshop.co.uk for more information on protecting your valuables from fire.
With full time work schedules, slow commutes, and after school activities, many moms and dads are turning to drive through take-out as a way to get dinner on the table. That is one way to feed a hungry crowd but it’s not necessarily the most economical or the most nutritional. With a small microwave oven and frozen pre-cooked dinners, your entire family can eat fast and healthy, even on those two or three days a week when dinner time is a rolling event.
That small microwave oven in the corner is not just for popping popcorn or heating up leftovers. You can cook entire family meals in a small microwave oven with just a little planning and preparation. Depending on the age of the kids, and your charm quotient, meal preparation can be a fun family activity.
Some parents find it easiest to pick one night a week when they have a little extra time. They use this night to make meals for several other days or even for the week if there is room in the freezer. One pot meals work the best. Pasta dishes, stews, and almost everybody’s favorite – meat or vegetable lasagna, all warm up perfectly inside a small microwave oven.
For those few days each week when family schedules are completely disconnected meals can be subdivided into individual portions before freezing. That way each person can heat up their own portion when they have a few minutes to eat and nobody feels like they’re getting leftovers.
College kids seem to have a penchant for eating unhealthy foods. Even with a full meal plan ticket in their pocket they will choose the drive through window over the dining hall if it’s closer and more convenient after that late afternoon class.
With a small microwave oven and mini-freezer, they can eat all kinds of healthy frozen dinners including cheesy pastas and vegetable casseroles. The only consideration with college age students is that not all dorms allow for small appliances.
If you’ve always owned a full size microwave you may have to take some time to get accustomed to a smaller version. The wattage on a small microwave oven may be less, which means that food takes longer to cook or heat. You will have to experiment with the cooking times and make adjustments.
Keep the inside clean by spraying with an antibacterial cleaner and wiping it down with a damp cloth. Bacteria can grow inside a small microwave oven, especially if you forget to cover a dish and the food splatters. If food is caked on, a good trick is to place a mug of water in the microwave, and turn it on high for a minute or two. The steam will loosen any food particles that are stuck making them that much easier to wipe away.
(C) Peter Boston. Learn how to evaluate and compare kitchenamerican.com/cookware/cookware-basics.htm cookware sets and kitchenamerican.com/ small appliances.
It doesn’t seem to matter how big your garage is: you can always fill it up with stuff. Sure, you can hire some professional organizer to come help you clear a path to the car doors, but that costs money. How about I just give you some tips instead? You don’t even need to pay me $100 an hour, or whatever it is de-clutter-ganizers are making these days. So, without further ado, here are five ways to clear up space in the garage:
1. Hang things from the ceiling.
Garages usually have plenty of headroom, so that leaves many cubic feet of space you can exploit. Is your family full of sports fanatics? You can buy ceiling-mounted racks designed specifically for outdoor recreational equipment, everything from snowboards and bicycles to canoes and kayaks. You can also get platforms that go up and down with a crank of a lever. These allow you to tuck hundreds of pounds of junk–er, valuable family heirlooms–up amongst the rafters.
2. Make use of wall space.
You’ve probably got at least one pegboard in the tool area of your garage, but there’s no reason to limit yourself. You can attach your own homemade brackets, nails, and pegboards, or you can buy special panels designed to support hooks, baskets, and shelves.
3. Cabinets are for garages too.
Most garages have enough room on the sides or in the back to accommodate banks of cabinets, while still leaving enough space to get in and out of the car. Even if there’s only enough room for 12″ deep cabinets, that’s still a lot of extra storage if you run them from floor to ceiling. Also, cabinets look nice–all your clutter gets hidden behind the doors, where you don’t have to look at it every time you drive inside.
4. If you have too many vehicles, try a car lift.
You’ve got a good 10-12 feet of height in your garage, right? And the average car is less than five feet high, right? Well, there are systems out there that let you stack them. Granted, these are pricey, and raising and lowering the top car can be a hassle if the vehicle is driven every day, but if there’s a car you don’t drive that often but that takes up space, it might be something to look into. Car lifts can make a lot of sense in houses with one-car garages.
5. Think garage sale.
If you’ve tried your hardest to find storage space for everything, but you’re still tripping over stuff, it may be time to clean the garage out. Chances are you have toys, boxes, tools, etc. that you bought many moons ago (and which your family probably hasn’t used in almost as many moons) that you don’t need to keep around. So, clean it out and throw it out, or better yet, have a garage sale. At least then you make some money and are rewarded for your efforts.
TC Thorn is a writer, blogger, and webmaster who specializes in the home improvement sector.
For more information on the subject visit the luxuryhousingtrends.com/archives/garage/index.php Garages area of the author’s luxuryhousingtrends.com/ Home Improvement blog.
Not everyone can afford to completely change the look of a bathroom by switching out the tile. Most people can, however, handle the costs involved in adding a bit of pizzazz to the tile design that’s already present.
The look and feel of a bathroom design can be completely altered for the better when decorative tile is added to the mix, even sparingly. The options of places to consider adding new tile without having to totally redo the entire job include four main areas. These are:
* Shower/tub stall edging. It is possible, in some cases, to remove the edging line of tile in the stalls and add something with a decorative flavor. A nautical-themed bathroom, for example, might sparkle with anchor or lighthouse tiles added to the outer edge of the shower design. It might be necessary to hire a pro to remove the old edge and add the new one without damaging the existing inner tiles.
* Backsplash. The sink backsplash presents another option. This area may or may not already have tile present. If it does, chances are it isn’t very high or involved in design. This can either be fully removed or a new layer of tile can be added on to create the designer theme desired.
* Walls. The actual drywall bathroom walls can really be spruced up with a tile design. This can be created to take on a theme that can blend in with the shower walls. Some bathrooms, for instance, use plain white tiles for the stall and have elegant, imported clay tiles on the walls themselves. The contrast between the two types of tile can actually be rather spectacular to behold.
* Borders. Adding tile to create a chair rail-like look in the center of a wall or even at the ceiling line where border wallpaper might go can also look fantastic.
Some people might also choose to remove select tiles in the floor or bath stall to add a design flare, but this in many cases does require a pro or a really skilled handy person!
When choosing tile to jazz up the bathroom design, it’s important to keep focus on the overall look that’s desired. Some potential themes to consider include:
* Splash of color. This works really well for accent tile, such as the edging. This use would involve nothing more than creating a row of solid color tiles to add sort of an outline to the look.
* Theme tile. Many people choose to use patterned or designed tile to add accents to an existing theme. Those lighthouse tiles mentioned earlier, for example. A child’s bathroom might have yellow ducks added to the mix or other bath toy type tiles. For an edging job in a baby’s bathroom alternating white tile with a designed tile can look spectacular.
* Atmosphere desired. This is another consideration that can be very important. An elegant old world-style bathroom might benefit greatly from imported clay tiles mixed in with stark whites. A romantic or floral bathroom might get a boost from a soft colored outline or delicate print pattern.
While it’s not always possible to completely change the tile in a bathroom, it is possible to add to the design or alter it slightly. When a new feel is desired, accent bathroom tile can really deliver.
For more information on bathrooms, try visiting bathroomdetails.com bathroomdetails.com – a website that specializes in providing bathroom related tips, advice and resources including information on bathroomdetails.com/bathroomtile.html bathroom tile
There’s no two ways about it, the Internet is a powerful phenomenon, attracting more and more users every day.
Whether searching for the latest news or aimlessly surfing stories of interest, the web never fails to provide.
I have to admit, I enjoy surfing the net as much as the next person and, given the choice, would most likely forfeit my television for the sake of the Internet.
But has cyberspace stepped over its boundaries providing too much information? I’m specifically talking about websites selling lock-picking tools and offering informational videos on how to get the job done.
Granted, these websites are harmless to the average law-abiding citizen, but what about the person hinging on a life of crime?
Sites like these could be contributing to the criminal element by teaching dangerous practices to unidentified and unqualified individuals.
So where are website standards?
Who is responsible for policing and reporting sites with inappropriate content?
There should be standard practices in place for web content that prohibit the promoting and selling of break-and-enter tools online.
I realize information such as this could be attained through different resources, however the fastest and easiest way to access information these days is via the ’Net.
Criminal minds gain information on subjects best left under lock and key – crooks too lazy to seek honest work in our communities, losers with a what’s-yours-is-mine attitude.
It’s because of these people web police need to sift through content and goods.
If a site is offering information or content that could be used against the general public in a criminal way, it’s time to take action in the form of fines or website closures.
Setting specific guidelines for posted information and products would have an enormous effect on the safekeeping of our communities.
So why are there not any guidelines in place? Why are the screening rooms for web content closed?
How can it be that the only two requirements needed to purchase lock-opening tools are a computer and a credit card? I don’t have the answer to these questions, but I can tell you if something isn’t done to control this situation we will once again have to open our pocketbooks, paying higher insurance premiums as well as elevated city taxes due to increased policing requirements.
If we want to be successful at curbing websites capitalizing on security shortcomings, we need to implement strong governing standards that evaluate the content and functionality of sites assuring security policies and guidelines are followed to the letter.
