How To Replace The Rollers On Your Patio Door
June 30, 2008
Have you noticed your patio door is getting harder and harder to open? Maybe it’s time to change the rollers on the door. They generally last from ten to fifteen years but they do wear out and its a job that a do-it-yourselfer can accomplish with a little advice and some strong arms to get the door out!
Sliding patio doors are usually aluminum but there are many wooden and vinyl models on the market. All of them use ball bearing rollers to slide easily back and forth. The aluminum and some vinyl doors have a door bottom that is held in place by 2 screws on either side of the door near the bottom. Beneath the screw is usually an open hole in which there is an adjusting screw to raise the roller up and down. The wooden doors often have pairs of rollers due to their extra weight. The adjusting screws are accesible through plastic caps covering holes in the front of the door bottom.
I mention the adjusting screws because you need to check them before deciding to pull the door out and replace the rollers. Slide a big flat blade screwdriver underneath the door on one side and lift slightly to remove the weight from the roller. Use another screwdriver to turn the adjustment screw. See if that makes the door slide better.
Invite Spring Early - Grow in Your Basement
June 29, 2008
Now’s the time to get ready to grow your own seedlings! It’s not really difficult, and can extend your growing season by many weeks. For example, by planting brassica’s (cabbage, broccoli, and cauliflower) in February in your basement under grow-lights, you can put large, sturdy transplants into your garden by the end of March or early April, and be eating them when others are just seeing them come up! However, remembering that photosynthesis, using light, heat and moisture causes plant growth, you must follow a few key natural principles very carefully, or you will be disappointed.
First, seeds must have moisture to germinate and grow. And the soil mix must be moist, but not soggy, or you’ll drown the new plant, since it must also have oxygen!
Second, while heat is essential, temperatures must be maintained in a narrow range for ideal germination to occur. Most vegetable seeds germinate quickly between 75 and 80 degrees Fahrenheit. After plants are up, many of them will grow in cooler temperatures, but most all will become dormant (stop growing) at temperatures below 50 degrees.
Alarm System Keypads
June 28, 2008
The keypad is the device you and your loved ones will interface with daily. It is typically placed at one or more of the following locations:
* House to garage door hall. * Front door * Master bedroom * Inside garage
You need at least one keypad to communicate with the control panel. If you elect to have only one keypad you should have it installed as close to the door you use most often as possible. Even if you or others sometimes use a different door, you can put it on its own delay zone and have a longer entry time to get to the keypad from that door.
There are different levels of keypads available for each model of control panel. The one that the dealer uses as their basic model varies by company. The choice of keypads is usually made for you as sales persons tend to stay away from technical discussions even if they do know the difference. If you know that you have a choice and find out what your options are you can make sure that you get the keypad that will work best for you. Following is a general list of the main differences:
Marble Information
June 28, 2008
Marble is any limestone or dolomite that can take a high polish and still be usable. Marble is generally formed from limestone undergoing metamorphism. When exposed to extremes of pressure or heat limestone turns into calcite or dolomite crystals, which are the primary materials in marble.
Marble has a famous history. The ancient Greeks built their architecture, cities, and sculptures often from Pentelic and Parian Marbles, quarried in Greece. The romans later used marble in their buildings as well, quarrying in the Greek spots and finding roman marble quarries of their own. Marble is, in a lot of ways, what the classical and Hellenistic age was built from.
It is still used heavily today in construction, and can be quarried all over the world. The uses for this stone are almost endless. It’s used in flooring, counter tops, pillars, stair cases, colonnades, paneling, and facing stone in architectural structures. It can’t however be used outdoors, since water would corrode its crystalline structure. It is also very smooth and therefore tends to be slippery, which makes it unfavorable to use in high traffic areas.
Unadulterated Truth About Black Mold: What You Don?t Know Is Destroying Your Home And Your Health
June 27, 2008
With today’s new building procedures, our homes are more dangerous than ever before!
Scientific evidence now shows that the air inside our homes is 2-5 times more polluted than the air outside. And because we spend about 90 percent of our time inside, indoor air quality has become one of the top environmental health threats in the country.
With today’s new construction practices, buildings are no longer made to breathe. Pollutants trapped inside our home can cause chronic symptoms such as coughing, sneezing, skin rashes and itchy eyes. Some pollutants may have more serious effects, including asthma and cancer.
While this seemed like a good idea at the time, buildings are now made so air tight that the pollutants produced in the building accumulate and have no way to escape.
On of the major problems to arise in recent years is black mold, and it’s become a nationwide epidemic. It’s now responsible for destroying the lives of thousands of unsuspecting victims. And until we find out how to control this menace, the situation is only going to get worse.
If you want to find out how to wipe out the black mold threat in your home, be sure to sign up for this upcoming no-charge, consumer awareness teleseminar.
Tips For Buying a Whirlpool Bath Online
June 26, 2008
So you’re building the bath of your dreams but find the prices you have been quoted for the Whirlpool Bath way out of your budget.
Don’t despair and settle for a Whirlpool Bath you don’t want!
Go online and save by buying direct from a Whirlpool tub distributor. Here’s how. (more information at http://www.maxsvr.com/Buying-whirlpool-bath-spa-online.html)
There are three choices in Whirlpool baths;
1) Hydrotherapy - Jetted Water Whirlpool Baths
2) Air Bubble - Heated Air bubbles distributed over entire body
3) Combo - Both Hydrotherapy and Heated Air functions combined
Hydrotherapy is the more traditional Whirlpool you have probably experienced. It is great for relaxing muscles, lowering blood pressure, and relieving stress. It is however a hazard to young children and adults with medical conditions, in which case the more gentle Air Bubble Whirlpool bath is suitable.
The Combo gives both whirlpool choices but at an additional cost of course.
Two key factors in choosing your whirlpool are fit and fit;
1) Fit - Whirlpool bath suits your body and ease getting in and out
2) Fit - getting the Whirlpool bath into your house and bathroom!
The Perfect Yellow Roses for Your Home or Garden
June 25, 2008
Yellow roses are beauties, aren’t they? Don’t they look beautiful on a sunny morning? Yellow roses say spring just their look and color. The yellow rose, while somewhat rare in its natural habitat, is becoming a popular item in the floral shop. Yellow roses might be what you are looking for, and if so, there are several ways to find the perfect yellow rose for your home or garden.
Yellow roses are one of a number of different colored roses that are available in garden centers and even discount department stores. But, there are so many varieties to choose from that you shouldn’t limit yourself to whatever those places have on hand. Check out your local garden center for an idea of what they offer, but then explore the yellow rose varieties online as well. It is not a difficult task to find rose distributors who are able to supply yellow roses to the average customer. And, in doing so, you allow yourself to have many choices at your fingertips!
Installing Vinyl Replacement Sliding Glass Doors
June 24, 2008
Last week I told you how to remove your old sliding glass door in preparation for the installation of the vinyl replacement door. Let’s go through the installation procedure for both the Retrofit style and replacement style frames.
Let’s start with the retrofit frame. Like the retrofit window, the door will have a 2″ lip flush with the outside edge of the frame. The difference between the retrofit window frame and the retrofit door frame is the absence of the lip on the bottom of the door due to the sill track. Your door will have the lip on both sides and across the top. The majority of the installation process is the same whether it’s a retrofit frame or replacement frame. The first thing you want to do is check the floor for a level condition. If the base is not level, add shims to create a level base. This step is very important, because if you have a sloping bottom, the whole frame will be thrown out of square. You will have problems locking the door as well as air infiltration trouble. So, put down shims to make the base level. If possible, use one long shim to create a solid base for the weight of the door. Before setting the door in place, put down a bead of liquid nails from end to end, set the shims on top of the liquid nails, and run a generous bead of caulk on the outside face of the opening, where the retrofit lip is going to contact the exterior surface. Caulk the sides and the top.
Removing Your Old Sliding Glass Door
June 23, 2008
Last week I explained how to measure your existing sliding glass door so you can order the vinyl replacement door. This week I am going to go over the steps required to remove the old sliding door before installing the new door.
First, you have to remove the sliding panel and the stationary panel. The vast majority of doors out there have the sliding panel on the inside half of the track, and the stationary panel is on the outside. Whatever the case in your particular door, the outside panel has to come out first. To remove the fixed panel, you need to remove the sill cap that snaps into the bottom track and runs from the fixed panel to the side jamb where the sliding panel locks. Force a screwdriver into the crease and pry the cap up. Then, look for screws on the inside side jamb holding the fixed panel in place. These screws prevent someone from prying up the sill cap and pulling out the fixed panel in order to gain entry into the home. In addition to the side jamb, be sure to check across the top header and bottom track for screws there as well. Once all the screws have been removed, you need to pull the fixed panel away from the side jamb. You can start by simply grabbing the side rail of the fixed panel and pulling as hard as you can. If you’re lucky, the panel will pop free. Then you can lift the panel up as far as it will go into the top channel and swing the bottom away from the track, and remove the panel.
The Exotic Rose of Sharon
June 23, 2008
Perhaps you were browsing the pages of a catalog and found a beautiful picture of the Rose of Sharon (Hibiscus Sriacus)? Or maybe you were lucky enough to see a Rose of Sharon in person at a local garden center?
Are you wondering whether these will make a beautiful addition to your home? Getting a little knowledge of these beautiful plants will allow you to make a decision.
Although once somewhat uncommon, the Rose of Sharon has become a widely loved plant. Not your typical rose bush, these are more like shrubs. Other names for Rose of Sharon include althea and shrub althea. Some can grow up to 10 feet tall, while most maintain a height of 5 feet. Sounds like a tree? It looks like a beautiful shrub with blooms of a variety of colors. The Rose of Sharon makes for a great fence as well. Placed several side by side in a row, they create a natural fence that will enliven any landscape.
