LED Growing Lights

Jan 18, 2012 Posted Under: Home Design Tips  

LED growing lights produce hardly any warmth. The benefits for this are three part. First is that you could grow subtly, since no heat footprint is left behind. Second, crops won’t die with the lights being too near. Finally, it’s easier to control the climate of your grow area. Therefore, a lesser amount of irrigating as well as air flow is needed.

The main benefit of utilizing LED growing lights is they use considerably less electricity as opposed to other grow lighting, like high pressure sodium or metal halide. In fact, unbelievably, they use up to 80% less. This is usually a serious financial savings on your power payment. Not just that, but you are also placing a smaller stress on mother nature.

LED plant lights have a lot greater life span than other lights. In many instances they will survive over six times as long. Nev

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Are You At Risk for Radon Exposure?

Jan 14, 2012 Posted Under: Home Improvement News  

You can’t smell it, you can’t taste it, and you can’t see it—but you may have a serious air quality problem on your hands.

Radon, a cancer-causing gas that can reach toxic levels in your home, is responsible for approximately 21,000 lung cancer deaths in the U.S. each year. Many victims never even picked up a cigarette. And even more frightening is the idea that at this moment, you may not even know you have a problem. That’s why it’s so important to test your home for radon. January is National Radon Action Month and there’s never been a better time to find out if you’re at risk.

Radon is formed when the chemical element uranium naturally decays in soil, rock, and water. As it breaks down, tiny radioactive particles are released into the air. These particles

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Growing subtropical plants

Jan 13, 2012 Posted Under: Gardening Notes  

Edible subtropical plants offer fruit and are handy screens, writes Meg Liptrot.

We’re lucky in the warmer parts of Aotearoa that we can grow wonderful subtropicals. On the occasions I’ve visited the South Island and have been tempted to move to Riverton, or maybe Oamaru, my big stumbling block (apart from it being a little expensive to visit family in Auckland) is “what about my bananas and cherimoya?” What about the warmth and rain we have in the north that allows us to grow the most wonderful array of lush subtropical plants? Which is why I’ll be staying in Auckland.

Most of the gardens I’ve designed have featured subtropicals. They are particularly suited to filling awkward spaces quickly, and make dull fencelines look lush, or quickly block views that you don’t want to see.

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Some hummingbirds nest in winter

Jan 11, 2012 Posted Under: Home Design Tips  

Winter seems like an unusual time for any bird to be nesting, but in Southern California, our non-migratory Allen’s hummingbirds get an early start.

Already this season, a hummingbird returned to nest in a rosebush in Irvine, laying two eggs in November. The little hen sat faithfully for 17 days until they hatched. Then she kept her chicks warm and fed even when a December cold snap threatened frost.

Joe Dellwo of Irvine uses a web cam to capture Allen’s hummingbirds nesting in winter. MARK RIGHTMIRE, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

Joe and Erica Dellwo, who host the popular Webcam at phoebeallens.com, declared “fledge watch” on Dec. 31 as the two chicks practiced buzzing their tiny wings in preparation for flight.

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Share Your Home Building Experience & Win $250

Jan 9, 2012 Posted Under: Home Improvement News  

Share Your Home Building Experience

We would like to invite all our home plan purchasers to share their home building experience and rate our house plans to assist others in choosing their dream home.

Send us your photographs of your new home and share your experience building one of our house plans by DECEMBER 20 and you’ll receive a $250 AMEX card if we use them on our home page. First 25 customers who send us photographs (we love interior shots) will receive $50.

Sharing your comments is quick and easy – .

We would like to extend our thanks for purchasing house plans from The House Designers and hope you will share your story with us!

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