Understanding Air Purifiers
November 13, 2007
Purchasing an air purifier can be confusing, and you do get an awful lot of information thrown at you when you visit the different manufacturing websites, don’t you? How can you tell what’s what, and why do we need air filters anyway? And how do air purifiers work? Is the air really that bad? Haven’t we been breathing the same air for thousands of years?
Yes and no. First of all, we’ve been breathing the same air for thousands of years, but we live in a symbiotic relationship with the plants around us ? that is, we rely on each other to survive. We breathe oxygen to live, and give off carbon dioxide. Plants exchange carbon dioxide for oxygen, effectively "exchanging" the air in a healthy relationship with us. This makes plants the first primitive air purifiers on earth, and explains why scientists are so concerned about the ecological balance on earth and the need for the survival of rain forests and plants ? they ensure our own survival as well by preserving oxygen in our atmosphere.
Nature cleans the air in other ways as well ? ozone (positively charged oxygen molecules) is generated by waterfalls and thunderstorms. Ozone also cleans impurities and particulates from the air naturally.
Clearing the Air on What to Look for in an Air Purifier
November 12, 2007
If you are dedicated to improving the indoor air quality of your home, you’re aware that there are certain steps you need to take to reduce the amount of allergens and airborne particles. Two of these, source control and ventilation, you may have already addressed. But the third, finding a good air purifier, can be confusing if you aren’t sure what to look for in this type of home appliance.
Fortunately, once you understand the basic types of air cleaners and how they work it becomes easier to select the right style of air purifier for you and your family. There are also organizations like the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers (AHAM) who review and certify air purifiers annually using a standardized testing and ratings system to make it easy for you to compare different models to one another.
What Kinds of Air Purifiers Are There?
- Ozone Air Purifiers These release small amounts of ozone (positively charged oxygen molecules) into the air to reduce airborne pollutants. They also are very effective at reducing odors, and will sometimes give off a fresh, sharp scent rather like the odor after a thunderstorm.
Top Ten Air Purifier Questions
November 11, 2007
1. Do I really need an air purifier in my home?
It depends on several factors, including your own comfort level and what the indoor air quality is in your home. There are several factors to take into consideration, however.
First and foremost, many health organizations agree that indoor air quality is often worse than outdoor air quality. In fact, for many people, indoor allergens and irritants such as dust, smoke and pet dander may be two to five times as bad in their homes as outdoors!
There are several indications that you may benefit from an air purifier in your home. Reasons to get an air purifier include:
- Allergy symptoms such as itchy, watery eyes and runny nose
- Itchy, dry skin or frequent skin rashes
- Asthma or other breathing problems
- Being or living with a smoker
- Owning indoor pets
- Mold or mildew in your home
2. Do all air purifiers clean the same kinds of pollutants from the air?
The Benefits of Radiant Heat, Comparison
November 11, 2007
What are the Benefits of Radiant Heating and how do they compare to other heating applications?
You maybe be considering radiant heat to install into your existing or your new home but don’t quite understand the advantages or the differences between heating applications? Well we would like to inform you of the benefits and the comparisons to other heating applications available.
Some of the benefits of radiant heat are:
Comfort: Let your bare feet soak up the warmth of soothing heat without the dust and noise associated with other heating sources. Enjoy evenly distributed heat throughout your home kitchen, bedroom, bathroom and basement.
Custom Designed: Whether for supplemental floor warming, or total space heating, every system is custom designed to fit all rooms independent of their shape or size. These systems will heat under any surface including marble, slate, carpet, hardwood and tile. The compact Control Box will hang on the wall of your garage or in a utility room. No heating vents or ducts will be seen, and no furnace or boiler is required.
Book Shelf Decorating Idea & Tip
November 10, 2007
If you have book shelves in your home, and lots of books, you’ve probably discovered that bookends don’t always keep everything in order. Sometimes your collection of books on the shelf are just too much for the bookend to hold.
Here’s a great tip that also doubles as a wonderful decorating idea: Use curtain rod finials as your bookends! A finial is a carved or shaped decorative detail used as ornaments to spruce up all sorts of items in a room. Curtain rod finials are used to make curtain rods more decorative, and also to keep curtains from sliding off the ends of the rods. Regular architectural finials are often used as enhancements to a room’s decoration and style. Sometimes you’ll see them for instance, at the top of a staircase post or on the tops of bedposts.
Curtain rod finials usually come with a screw set inside. All you have to do is drill a starter hole in your bookshelf, then screw the finial into place. You can also use standard wood glue on the bottom of the finial, to be sure it stays in place at all times… by doing so of course though, you won’t be able to change the finials to a different style later.
Are Showers Harmful to Your Health?
November 9, 2007
The last thing you would think about when you are taking a nice, refreshing shower is, “Am I jeopardizing my health”?
Chlorine is used by many municipalities to disinfect their water supply.
Unfortunalely, according to many health experts, chlorine has been linked to breast, bladder and colon cancer.
If chlorine is so bad, why do they continue to use it?
It’s a matter of economics.
Chlorine is probably the cheapest way to disinfect water.
When I first read about this, my first thought was, “I don’t drink the water in the shower, so what is there to worry about”?
What I didin’t know was, our skin can absorb 7 - 10 times more chlorine than from drinking water that contains chlorine.
When showering, chlorine can vaporize and form chloroform gas, which is inhaled, affecting those with respiratory problems such as asthma and bronchitus.
Showering in chlorinated water can also cause excess drying of the skin and hair.
Does this mean we should stop taking showers?
No!
There is an easy solution. Using easy to install shower filters will alleviate the chlorine problem.
Buying the Right Garage Door Opener
November 8, 2007
If you have recently built a new garage you might be having a difficult time deciding on the right garage door opener. It is certainly something that seems simple at first. Once you start looking around you will find there is allot of choices. Here is a buying guide to help you along.
There are three different types of door openers. There is chain driven opener, belt driven, and screw drive openers. This might sound a bit confusing so lets sort this out.
A chain driven garage door opener is great for heavy doors. A common type of garage door is now wooden. This is a perfect place to use one of these. Chain drives are usually built with a more powerful motor. They are also very rugged and handle different weather conditions well. The downside is that they are noisy. Although, noise isn’t as big of an issue as it once was.
Screw drive openers have been around for along time and are very common. They typically work buy having a lifting mechanism that moves along a threaded steel rod. These are quite powerful and come in variety of different horse power motors.
An Affordable Shortcut To Designing Your Dream Home
November 7, 2007
You have likely been making mental notes for years. Every book or magazine that you read and each home that you visit has become a source for pieces to the puzzle that can become your new home. You don’t know a thing about architecture, designing or drafting but that shouldn’t stop you from taking the dream house that you have pictured in your head and making it a reality.
There are two ways that you can approach the creation of new house plans from which a builder can work:
1. Hire an architect
2. Make alterations to an existing house plan
There are many benefits to working directly with an architect. You will be able to sit down with an experienced designer and review, very specifically, all of the ideas and requirements for the home that you have in mind. The architect can give suggestions and help you to avoid problems that you may not have anticipated. However, be prepared to pay handsomely for this service. A good architect does not come cheap.
Update Your Home Decor Using Colorful Rugs
November 6, 2007
Retro, checks, black and white…looks like MOD is back. A color explosion - bright tomato red, tangerine, lime green and even yellow - is what’s hot. In Europe, designers are using opt-art checkerboard patterns. The 60’s mod influence that practically defined fall has gone back in time about 40 years and it’s now very much a 20’s thing. Patterns and prints are back in a big way. Color prevails.
How can we integrate these trends in our design process? There are several ways to liven and update the look of your room. Today, people want something colorful, bright and fresh. Contemporary design is gaining popularity with more & more individuals opting for the clean lines and sleek furniture.
So, where does one without expert design skills and limited budget begin? Here are three simple & inexpensive ways to revive your room decor.
Colorful Accessories
Lets start with a room that has a basic solid color couch or furniture with sparse pattern fabric. Rooms need not be limited to pale colors; color palettes in various combinations can speak volumes. By simply hanging picture frames with abstract art that compile color and geometric shapes, one can change the look of the room instantly. A low-cost approach would be to visit websites selling framed art of impressionist artists such as Mark Rothko, Wassily Kadinsky, David Bailey and others. Once you have selected a painting, choose a rug that complements the painting.
Draught Proofing Your Home
November 6, 2007
This article takes a look at a number of ways of preventing or reducing draughts in your home. There are areas we look at are doors, windows and double-glazing, garage doors and finally some of the furnishings you could use to prevent draughts. Draughts are obviously caused by the cold air from outside being drawn into the house and replacing warmer air. The knock on effect of preventing draughts is a reduction in your heating bill and a warmer home. Draughts can be identified in a number of ways such as identifying obvious gaps, feeling for moving air around doors and windows and looking out for moving curtains.
As we mentioned earlier double-glazing can reduce draughts. It can also reduce heat loss, noise pollution and condensation, and all of these benefits reinforce the decision to get double-glazing. Reducing heat loss will obviously reduce heating bills and by making heating your property much more efficient. This in turn means you are making a contribution to reducing pollution and so benefiting the environment. The reduction in noise will give you a greater sense of privacy, particular if you live alongside a busy road, plus condensation can damage soft furnishings and create a damp atmosphere. By buying sealed units which fit perfecting onto their frame you are ensuring a draught free environment.
