The Powertool Shed

As the price of home heating oil, natural gas, electricity and other forms of energy continue to rise, many concerned people are burying their heads in the sand. Some homeowners however are turning to the installation of the solar power equipment that will allow them to channel the energy of the sun to provide energy for their needs.

When fuel prices were low, it was often difficult to justify the upfront investment of cash required to install photovoltaic equipment, solar water heaters and similar equipment. The reason was simple to understand - it would simply take too long to recoup the cost of the equipment in the form of lower energy bills.

But that was then. As energy prices continue to go up, the amount of time required to recoup the upfront cost goes down. In addition, a number of state and local tax incentives make it even easier for homeowners to go solar and save money right away.

Solar power has already proven itself and its ability to lower energy costs substantially, and more and more homeowners are taking a serious look at converting their residences to solar power. The costs of installing solar panels is still high, with a typical two kilowatt installation of OVR Solar solar panels costing about £10,000 / ($20, 000) in most cases, but special tax incentives and long term energy savings can help homeowners recoup those upfront costs faster than ever before.

Encouragement for our governments is now forthcoming. This tax savings can help eligible homeowners recoup some of the costs of installing solar panels and solar water heating systems up front, in addition to the energy savings they will enjoy down the road.

Any homeowner considering the installation of a solar system should be sure to check with his or her state and city to determine what types of tax breaks are available. It’s sensible to look into what help your local authorities are willing to provide. Just Google it to find out what help is available to you.

Breakeven point for your outlay may seem far away at today’s prices - but what about at tomorrow’s? However, as the prices for heating oil, gas and other forms of traditional energy continue to soar, so too will the desire for energy freedom.

Take the first step to energy self sufficiency with OVR Solar.

You’ve grown tired of paying monstrous electric bills and have decided to go solar. Solar panels, however, aren’t exactly your taste. Don’t worry, you can go solar without them.

Solar panels are used to convert sunlight into electricity, which can be used to light and heat a home. They are not, however, the only method for accomplishing these goals with the sun. A simple experiment you can try in your driveway will show you why.

Park your car in a sunny spot on your driveway. Get in, mark the time, close the vents and roll up the windows. It starts getting pretty warm pretty quick, eh? You’ve just experience a concept known as direct gain energy. The power of the sun is more than sufficient to create heating and lighting if it is manipulated to hit your home in the right way.

Direct gain is a concept that has existed for thousands of years. Before electricity was in abundant supply, ancient societies planned entire structures around the concept. You can learn from their experience.

The first rule of direct gain is to focus on the south facing side of your home. In the Northern Hemisphere, the south side of any structure will receive the most sunlight during the year. If the sun is not striking the south side of your home, you’re going to need to move some trees and what not. Failing to do so will kill any direct gain heating options you have available to you. The sun must have a clear path to the south side of your structure or you can stop reading this article.

Once gardening issues are resolved, you need to take a close look at the surface areas. Much like a car, it is important that the sun has a method for penetrating the exterior of the home. The primary issue concerns windows. Are there any and, if so, how big are they?

The easiest method to generate solar heat in your home is by placing large windows on the south side of the home. Home Depot, here we come. To truly maximize the effect, you should also have two additional components.

The first is a fan system that will help circulate air out into the rest of the home. The temperature differences from room to room will eventually equalize, but a few ceiling fans can help.

The second issue to consider is your flooring. Windows are great and all, but what happens when the sun goes down? No more sunlight and no more heat. To overcome this problem, you can make improvements to the flooring below the windows. Yank up the carpet and put in some material that soaks up the sunlight. Certain ceramic and masonry products will hold significant amounts of heat. As the sun beats down on them, they slowly heat up during the day. Once the sun sets, they start giving off heat which allows you to maximize your passive solar system.

While this strategy will not replace your traditional heating costs, it can act as a supplemental system to take care of heating issues during the day and early evening. Break out your hammer and you can cut a chunk out of your utility bill!

Rick Chapo is with SolarCompanies.com, a directory of solar energy companies. Visit us to read more articles on solar power and renewable energy.

Often people get confused regarding the type of garden furniture to buy. And many get disheartened when they get to know about the exorbitant prices at which garden furniture is sold by the garden furniture stores. However, it is possible to get quality garden furniture at discounted prices.

First method is to approach the stock clearance section that is present in almost every major garden furniture store. In this section, outdated designs and slightly damaged furniture are sold at discounted prices. While buying damaged furniture, one should always make sure that the damage is just a scratch, a dent or a small hole that can be easily filled. These stores also provide discounts and rebates on certain brands so as to promote their market value. Apart from these, some manufacturers have their own specialized outlets in certain selected cities. Price of furniture at these outlets is generally outlets in comparison with retailers and distributors. Also, certain manufacturers also arrange for year end sales at discounted prices in order to sell of the stock that is out of fashion. Since fashion styles change every year, one can obtain a variety, which was once a top seller, at almost 50% of the price during these sales. Another good thought is to opt for online shopping sites that sell quality garden furniture. Since these online stores need not spend any extra penny on infrastructure development, they usually sell items at a very less price.

You’ve finally found the home of your dreams, 3 bedrooms, attached garage, great neighborhood. You fix sights on the freshly painted walls, new carpeting, beautiful cabinet and a huge back yard. What are you forgetting? Everything else! Don’t forget about the plumbing, heating, A/C, electrical, insulation, ventilation, exterior and roof. These are the most overlooked items because most people know very little about these types of items, or what to look for. You decide to make an offer on the home.

What’s next?

Don’t forget about getting the home inspected. When you made the offer, your realtor should have gone over the inspection contingency in your contract. Simply stated, it’s a clause in the contract that your offer is contingent upon a home inspection, and you have a certain amount of time to get the home inspected. It allows you to have an unbiased professional look beneath the cosmetic items into the complex working components of a home. It also allows you to either renegotiate your offer based on the inspection, or at the very least know what lies ahead of you if you do decide to purchase the home. A seller’s disclosure statement is nice and most seller’s are honest, but don’t even realize that problems exist in their home.

Ask your realtor for a list of home inspectors in your area. Most will be happy to provide you with a list of inspectors in your area. If not, pull some brochures from the realtors lobby, try the phone directory or the internet. Most inspectors these days have a website where you can read about the services they offer. Take the time and call a few from the list to form your own opinion. Some realtors will offer to hire an inspector for you on your behalf. Be sure your realtor has your best interests in mind if you go this route. This is your money and your lifetime investment you’re talking about.

When you call a home inspection company, here are a few important questions to ask:

1. Are you licensed by the state? If the answer is no, say thank you and politely hang up the phone. All home inspectors are required to be licensed in the State of Wisconsin, and to keep their license are require to attend 20 hours of continuing education per year.

2. Are you affiliated with any organizations? Most good home inspectors are associated with a National organization like NACHI (National Association of Certified Home Inspectors) NAHI (National Association of Home Inspectors) or ASHI (American Society of Home Inspectors) and/or a local organization like WAHI (Wisconsin Association of Home Inspectors)

Each organization has is pro’s and con’s and like any organization, are suited to that inspectors specific needs. Most importantly however, these organizations have strict guidelines to a code of ethics and continuing education.

3. How long will your inspection take? A thorough home inspection should take between 2 1/2-4 hours or longer depending on the size, age and condition of the home. In some cases a smaller home (1000sft or less) can be inspected in 2 hours. If the inspector says he can do it in less time, think about how thorough the inspection is going to be.

4. What type of report do you use? Some inspectors use computer generated onsite reporting, some use a handwritten checklist, some do computer generated reporting and send you the report after they’ve had time to look it over twice before sending it out. Each has their pros and cons. Computer generated onsite reporting is nice and you get your report right away. The downside is the inspector doesn’t have time to look any items up that may be in question or be very descriptive in their report. A hand written checklist in my opinion is the most incomplete type of report. You do get your report right away, but it is usually something like: Kitchen countertop: poor. This doesn’t give you much of a description of the defect, like what exactly is wrong with it. The computer generated report is in my opinion the best style. You get a neat, professional looking report, the inspector has had time to be descriptive and to look up any items that he may have had questions on (no, we don’t know everything and if we say we do, take that as a sign). The downside is you don’t get your report for a day or so, but the report can get to you quickly if he/she emails it to you.

All inspectors should be able to provide you with photo’s of the problem areas in their reports. A picture is worth a thousand words. If they don’t include photos in their report (digital or otherwise) you may want to find an inspector that does.

Ask for a sample report. Most good inspectors will be happy to send you a copy.

5. What is your experience and background? Most home inspectors started out with a construction-based background. This is very useful in home inspections. Attending a University with emphasis on construction, or attending a Home Inspection School is almost a necessity in this trade. If an inspector tells you he was in retail (for an example) this may be a time to look elsewhere, or ask a follow-up question as to why he went into the profession and what he has to offer that others inspectors don’t.

6. How much do you charge? This is a very important question. The question you really should be asking yourself “how much are you willing to spend on the most important investment you’re ever going to make?” Think about this. Do you really want to price shop on something this important? Yes, you don’t want to pay too much, but you don’t want to scrimp either. You’re paying $100,000+ for your home and now is not the time to go with the lowest price. Inspectors have overhead costs like any company; Insurance, vehicle, gas, equipment training, professional organization dues, a home, etc. Regardless of what any might say, they don’t work every day of the week, every week of the year.

An average inspection is between $250 and $400 or more depending on the size, age and condition of the home. Some inspectors base their fees from the listing price. Based on what is uncovered in the inspection, you will probably be able to save that much and maybe more. For example: A new water heater will cost you in the neighborhood of $800, and if the inspector finds that the one in the home is nearing the end of its useful life, the inspection just paid for itself and then some. Its money spent wisely.

Most good home inspectors encourage you to follow them on the inspection, and I highly recommend it. It will give you a chance to see what he sees, and ask questions. Be sure to ask questions! The inspector will usually to be happy to answer them for you or if he doesn’t know the answer right then, he should offer to look it up and call you with the answer. This is also a time to find out where key components like shut-off valves or the breaker panel is located in case of an emergency, or get tips on routine maintenance items.

A home inspection is a visual, non-destructive examination of a home. It is not technically exhaustive. Inspectors cannot see defects behind a wall, ceiling or furniture.

He or she will just use their knowledge and experience in their visual examination. If a component doesn’t work by normal means of operation the inspector won’t try to get it operating by any other means. He/she will only open those panels that are normally used to service a piece of equipment. If a danger exists to the inspector, he/she will not inspect that piece of equipment. They will just defer to a professional more experienced in that type of application. They do not move furniture to inspect, so having the home ready for the inspector prior to the inspection will not only speed the process, but give you a more thorough inspection.

You will more than likely not get the chance to meet your inspector before the inspection, so asking these important questions will help make your decision easier.

Having the home inspected is the best thing you can do to have a more informed decision on the purchase or sale of your home. After all, this is probably the biggest investment you will ever make.

For more information on the regulations that govern home inspection industry, visit the Wisconsin Department of Commerce website at: http://drl.wi.gov/prof/homi/def.htm .

Kevin McMahon is a licensed and certified home inspection professional, and owner of ABC Home Inspection based in Stevens Point, WI. Questions or comments can be directed to him at abc@certified-inspector.com or by visiting his website at http://certified-inspector.com
Copyright©2004
This article may be reproduced only in its entire form. No editing may be done without the written consent of ABC Home Inspection, LLC.
All references to email addresses or links must be included.

Good kitchen design online means having a layout for your kitchen that provides an efficient and pleasant area in which to prepare meals and do related tasks. Understanding the kitchen work triangle concept and basic kitchen layout types is a valuable starting point to design a kitchen online that you like.

The kitchen work triangle consists of the distance between the sink, refrigerator and range or cooktop. Each one of these areas becomes a focal point in the kitchen and forms the three points of a triangle with different distances between them. Done correctly, proper kitchen design online will give you the most efficient food preparation area layout in your kitchen.

Whether you’re remodeling an existing kitchen or building a new one, an efficient kitchen design online means that your work triangle minimizes the number of steps the cook must take between the three areas during meal preparation and cleanup. The total distance from the sink to the stove to the refrigerator and back to the sink should be not less than 12 feet total nor more than 27 feet. Each triangle leg should measure between 4 and 9 feet in length. The kitchen isles should be at least 42 to 48 inches wide to allow people to move around easily and for appliances to be opened with ease.

When selecting the floor plan for your kitchen design online, here are basic kitchen layouts to consider:

* L-Shaped Kitchen - this is the most popular kitchen design. It consists of a long leg and a shorter one and this type of design can be used in small and large kitchens. The L-shaped kitchen gives you the possibility of having a center island depending on the space available. In general, this design will have 2 or 3 appliances on one wall. The usual arrangement is to have the refrigerator at one end, the range or cooktop at the other end with the sink located in the middle. This shape of kitchen generally provides good traffic flow.

* Double L-Shaped Kitchen - this kitchen design has a lot of cabinet space and plenty of counter space. This design is used in large kitchens with two cooks, and it has two or more entering areas, which can cause traffic flow problems. To avoid some of these problems, create two separate working areas on each L of the kitchen so that work flow does not get interrupted by human traffic.

* U-Shaped Kitchen - this kitchen design online shape has three walls instead of two, and the sink usually is located in the middle wall section. The refrigerator and range or cooktop are usually on the side walls opposite each other. The U-shaped kitchen design gives room for ample countertop space, and you have three walls for cabinets and appliances. This kitchen layout tends to create a working triangle that is very efficient.

The working triangle for the U-shaped kitchen should be around 26 feet or less. The only problem with this type of kitchen design online is that sometimes the two U corners are not used appropriately. Make sure you buy the appropriate storage items for the corner cabinets created by the U shape design. The U shape design can also create dark kitchens because of the shape and the quantity of cabinets. Using skylights, large windows, lots of under-cabinet task lighting and light colors will help keep the kitchen bright with sufficient light to see what you’re doing.

* G-Shaped Kitchen - this type of kitchen shape is becoming very popular, and it gives you a fourth wall to use. The G-shape can be used if you have more than one cook in the house. This fourth wall section can be used for a counter, island and storage space. With this kitchen layout you can have two sinks, perhaps two cooktops or two ranges. You could have two working triangles — one for sink, cook top or range and refrigerator and a second working triangle with another sink, built-in grill and cooktop. It allows two cooks to do different things at the same time and entertain large groups of people.

* Single-Wall Kitchen - if you do not have much space, you may only be able to have an I-shaped kitchen. No problem. Just be sure the sink is placed between the refrigerator and the stove. Locate the refrigerator so that the refrigerator door opens away from the kitchen sink. This is a very common arrangement for small kitchen design online where narrow spaces exists.

* Galley-Shaped Kitchen - this type of kitchen design is more common in apartments or in homes where space is limited. It is often called the corridor style. The kitchen cabinets and the appliances can be located on opposite walls for better work flow. Place the range or cooktop on one side of the kitchen along one wall and the refrigerator and sink on the opposite wall.

To eliminate traffic issues in this type of kitchen design online, one entry is often closed off. This type of layout should only be used by one cook. If you want to maintain both exits, place the refrigerator near the end of the galley kitchen for easy access. This way, your family and friends can reach the refrigerator without interfering with the person who is cooking.

If you need extra storage in the galley kitchen, install tall kitchen cabinets that go all the way to the ceiling. Wall storage is crucial. Buy a stepladder to use when you need to reach the upper shelf of the cabinets, and place the items you use less frequently on the upper shelves.

By understanding the kitchen work triangle concept and how you want your kitchen to function, you’ll be more likely to create the kind of kitchen design online you’ve always wanted. Today, kitchens are often viewed as the hub of the home as well as a social center for family and friends. Planning your kitchen and doing kitchen design online can be a challenge, but the rewards you’ll receive are very much worth the time and effort.

Copyright 2005 InfoSearch Publishing

Read more about how to design a kitchen online that’s right for you at kitchen design online. David Buster is webmaster of http://www.yourdreamloghome.com and VP of InfoSearch Publishing - visit the website and learn more about home decorating and remodeling, bathroom design and décor tips, home plans, storage, fireplaces, log cabin rentals and more.

Bedroom is a place in your home where you can relax and unwind after a days work. Most people come home tired after work and like to remain in there bedroom for the rest of the day. This can be difficult at times if your bedroom closet is not organized, you don’t want to come home and see a lot of things fallen out your closet. The advantage of having bedroom closet organizer is that it matches any layout. The only thing that can stop you from having the right bedroom closet organizer is your imagination.

They are available in many colors and made out of materials like laminate, wood and metal. Purchasing the right bedroom closet organizer is completely up to you, you can buy closet kits or organizer systems. If you are purchasing an organizer kit then always remember that if will have to be assembled. On the other hand purchasing an organizer system gives you a pre assembled unit. Both of these bedroom closet organizers have different prices and can easily be purchased from a local furniture shops. The price differs according to the material, the life and durability of the closet and the brand you are purchasing.

When we think of bedding, we often recall the flannel sheet sets
we slept on as a child. This site is dedicated to providing you
with the latest information on sleep sets. When we think of bed
linens, we often think of 200 - 600 threat count Egyptian
cotton, bridal quality satin, polyester woven satin, polyester
knit satin, 100% cotton and flannel. But the truth is, pure
linen fabric actually comes from the stalk of the flax plant
making it one of the strongest materials on the market. You can
find an array of bed linens online that are both exquisite and
luxurious, a deadly combination. Check out the selection of
fantastic table lines for the dining room while you’re at it.

You have two options for cleaning your bed linens. You can dry
clean them which is not very convenient and can be very
expensive or you can simply machine wash them. Washing them is
highly recommended because the more they are washed, the softer,
more absorbent and luminous they become. The same is true for
your table linens. You can either hand or machine wash them but
make sure to use the gentle cycle and a mild detergent. Use cool
or warm water, never hot water as this can damage the linen
fabric. If you stain your bedding, be sure to wash it
immediately before the stain sets. Feel free to hang or machine
dry but take it out while it is still damp to preserve natural
moisture and flexibility.

You will enjoy you bed linens for years. They are beautiful,
durable and luxurious. By the way, they are 2 to 3 times
stronger than cotton sheets. You will also enjoy your table
linens for generations as they are often passed down over time.
They actually get softer and finer with every washing. There are
a number of fantastic retailers online that offer a wide range
of products at great prices. Feel free to check them out and you
can decide for yourself about the quality and choice they are
offering.