Archive for September, 2011

Stanley FatMax TLM 100 Product Review

September 28th, 2011

I have used sonic measuring devices for years in my cave survey projects and have been waiting for the price to come down on the laser measuring devices. At last I have one that cost under a hundred dollars. Leica has made laser measuring devices for several years in the three hundred dollar price range, and now they are building one for Stanley that retails for $89.00.

Specifications:

Accuracy: ± 1/4″ (± 6mm) at 100-ft (30m)

Range: 2′-100′ (0.6m – 30m)

Laser: 650 nm, Class IIIA

Display Size: 2-line

Units of Measure: FT/1/8″, FT/100ths, IN/10ths, Metric

Size: 7.5 oz. 2 1/2 X 4 3/4 X 1 1/4 inches, Splash and dust proof

Low Indicators: Low Battery, Message Codes, Measurement reference (front / rear), and more

Battery: 9V (included)

Includes: Soft Carrying Case with Belt Loop.

Cave Survey
For a cave survey, this is the ideal tool, the measurements are easy to read and the laser spot is ideal for the darkness in the cave. Measurements can be made from the front of the instrument as well as from the back of the instrument by the touch of a button.

Simple
The TLM 100 is simple to use with only four buttons, on/dist gives you the distance with two quick clicks of the large red button. The laser then goes out to prevent danger of shining it into someone eye. Unlike the sonic tape measure, there is no waiting for the reading, it is instant.

The unit of measure can be changed by holding down the center button, and the TML 100 will remain in that mode until it is changed. With the sonic device I was always having to select Ft/100ths after each measurement. The unit will remain on for 60 seconds after making a measurement. The laser will remain on for 30 seconds, waiting for the second press of the button, giving you plenty of time to find the survey station.

By holding down the left button, the measurement can be changed from the front to the back of the device, with an indicator on the screen showing which is in use.

It will keep a running total, but only if the measurements are made within 60 seconds of each other. This is not much help in surveying as I cannot move that fast between stations. It can also make quick measurements of square feet and volume.

When making measurements from the survey station, it is very easy and quick to get the up, down, left and right distances for the survey.

I am looking forward to my next cave survey using the TLM 100.

About the Author: Hubert Crowell, Cave Explorer

I have started writing as a hobby and plan to write about my life, work, hobbies, religion and many other things of interest to me and maybe others will enjoy also.

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How to Generate Beautiful Backyard Walkway Ideas

September 27th, 2011

Backyard Walkway Ideas from the Professionals

Backyard walkway ideas are out there whether you need them for a porch project, a patio or even a garden, here are some ways to get the ideas flowing.

Backyard walkway ideas fall under the category of masonry and landscaping. One of the best ways to get a professional opinion is by hiring a landscape architect. Talk to a professional about their previous work. Ask for photographs if available or if they can point you in the direction to check out completed projects in person.

For other beautiful backyard walkway ideas you can look through home or garden magazines. Your local home improvement center also has building books you can browse through to get your creative juices flowing.

Simply take a drive through historic parts of your town. There you will find walkways and materials used that have stood the test of time. These historic sites are great places for ideas and the materials you might consider for your area.

Backyard Walkway Ideas

After you are done with the historic areas, swing by some of the upper scale neighborhoods. There you are more likely to find professionally designed walkways and landscaping.

Once you begin finding beautiful backyard walkway ideas you should photograph them, scan pages and even check the measurements of the walkways you like. Write down all your thoughts about the project in a notebook for future reference. Keep a written record of any ideas you think of as you’re browsing.

You want to make sure everything is perfect on paper before buying material and trying to put anything together. Take your measurements, sketches and other parts and make a final more accurate drawing for you and your landscape artist to use.

At this point it is important to involve a professional, to make sure your additional landscape items are placed for proper drainage and will endure the test of time as plants and trees that might be in the area grow.

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Using Rocks In Your Landscaping Project

September 26th, 2011

Using Rocks In Your Landscaping Project

You can find a large range of stones that can be used for landscaping. As they come in many shapes, sizes and colors they are an exciting way to add some fun to your design scheme, and are guaranteed to make the result compelling.

The Right Stone In The Right Place

With a bit of luck and some digging around in your own backyard you may be able to find interesting rocks to use as design features. This is most likely if you live in a rocky area as the ground will undoubtedly house plenty of stones ripe for the digging. If you cannot find the rocks yourself there is no need to worry as many companies sell landscaping rocks and stones commercially, sometimes even offering home delivery.

Buying Rocks

Indeed, in addition to mail-order companies that sell stones and rocks and can delivery direct to your house, you should be able to find a decent selection in local stores. Try a building merchant or your nearest garden center to check out the product selection they have on offer.

All Shapes And Sizes

Stones and rocks used for garden design are available in a very vast rand of colors, so you will be able to find the right shade to match the style and design of your landscaping project. Shape-wise there is also a huge variety out there, from the traditional look of the natural cuts through to man-made geometric shapes.

Building Walls

Landscaping rocks and stones can be used for much more than just laying garden paths. For instance there is no better material than stone to enhance the look and feel of a retaining wall, adding to the overall effect and solidity of your project.

Delimiting Areas

Another great way to utilize landscaping rocks is to lay them as borders to your flowerbeds. They also look great around water features and will enhance your design scheme. A little creativity and interesting colors can go a long way!

Types Of Rocks

There are many different types of stones that you can use for your project, from pebbles to larger specimen there is bound to be the right color, shape and size out there to suit your needs exactly. Flagstones are usually available in a great variety of shades while the smaller-sized river rocks can prove very useful indeed to add texture and fill up a empty space. You can also use them to keep weeds at bay between plants!

Whatever the choice you end up making in terms of size and color, adding rocks to your garden design project is sure to make a strong statement and add to the overall style of the end-result.

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Stretch Your Carpet The Right Way – An Important Step For Keeping Beautiful Carpets

September 25th, 2011

Don’t you just hate it when you trip over the wrinkles in your carpet? Such wrinkles or loose carpeting comes about over time, when various activities contribute to loosen the carpet from the moorings at the edges. When a carpet is first installed, it will be properly installed and secured at the edges with tacks to keep it in place. But with constant wear and tear, such as dragging heavy furniture across the carpet, vacuuming that pulls at the carpet constantly, it can loosen the carpet somewhat.

In order to remove the wrinkles from your carpet, all you would need to do is to perform a simple carpet stretching procedure and your carpet will be back to looking as new in no time. Of course, it is always best to engage professional help as there are technical issues involved: such as moving the heavy furniture away before the tacks can even be taken out.

The entire procedure is relatively painless and fuss free, usually taking less than an hour to complete, although the size of your room would have to be a consideration as well. Do remember that for the carpet to be stretched, it tends to require more than one sole person attempting to do all the manual work, so starting the job all by yourself is usually not advisable.

The cost for stretching a carpet would cost approximately $0.50 cents a square foot or more depending in the size and quality of your carpet. The general rule of thumb is that thicker carpets require far more strength and labor to be stretched and thus the cost will be proportionately higher. Should your carpet require trimming, the professional team will also handle it as well.

How would you know when you need to stretch your carpet? A simple test can be conducted. The simplest way is to try and pull at the centre of the carpet and if it is possible, to hold if for a couple of minutes before releasing it. Should it bounce back neatly and tightly in place, chances are, you do not need to call in professional aid for carpet stretching.

However, when the carpet does not return to its original elasticity and forms wrinkles instead, it is time for your carpet to be stretched. Another method is to monitor the condition of your carpet whenever you vacuum it. Should there be wrinkles forming whenever your are vacuuming, it is a sure sign that your carpet needs stretching.

For those who still think that they are up to the job of stretching the carpets themselves, there are some guidelines to follow to ensure that the procedure is as painless as possible. Do ensure that there are more than two people to render help. It would be best if someone in the group has a talent for carpentry as the tacks would need to be first removed and then replaced.

At times, the carpet might need trimming and a steady hand would come in useful for the task. Of course, manual labor is needed as all the heavy furniture must first be shifted away before the carpet stretching can commence, and that is the laborious part!

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3 Simple Ideas to Make Your Own Inexpensive Curtains

September 25th, 2011

When we decide to spruce up our house, one of the first things that come to mind is a curtain. There are many types of curtains on the market. Lots of fabrics, colors, designs and styles to chose from. But sometimes, regardless of the vast variety available, we simply can’t find what we’re looking for, and often times when we do, we can’t afford it.
The truth is, you don’t need anyone to do it for you; you are as capable as it takes, to do it yourself! Let’s see how we can become designers of our own space using basic tailoring techniques.

Let’s start by the most prominent, the material. The fabric. Choose a fabric that you like. Avoid quilted fabrics as they can stretch or shrink over time. Fibers like cotton and linen and especially those with polyester and micro fibers, hold up better than others. Also avoid silk or silk blends, because they tend to rot and fade very quickly. Make sure you buy enough fabric; you don’t want your curtains to look poor. Double height of the window and three times width, should be fine.
In this article, we will examine the three simplest sewing and hanging techniques for curtains.

For curtains with rings, you need to stitch an approximately 3-inch hem at the edge of the curtain panels that are going to be hung. Now, sew each ring to each curtain panel leaving small distances between the rings so that the curtain is pulled easily. You can also use clip-on rings that don’t need to be stitched and are easier to apply.

For tied tab curtains you will need to create the hangers. Simply stitch horizontal buttonholes at the top of the curtain panel. Now you can make the hangers using the same fabric as the curtains, or another but suitable fabric for a little diversity. Make threads and place through the buttonholes.

No Sew Curtains are also a smart and easy way to make curtains and decorate a window. In this case the fabric should be 3 inches more than double the height of the window and 2 inches more than the width of the window. Pull the fabric through the rod and fold evenly. Now stitch the two ends of the fabric at the bottom and at the sides together. When the curtain is ready, place a single fabric band in the center of the curtain or use two purchased tiebacks evenly spaced along the width of your window. Then adjust folds of fabric panel as desired.

Gather your supplies, fabric, scissors, screws, rings or ribbon, and use your imagination. In less than an hour you will manage to decorate that empty window effectively and inexpensively. But the most important thing is that you will have your own personal work to show off in your house.

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The 39 Essential Guidelines Of Kitchen Design

September 25th, 2011

1. Your kitchen should not be a main thoroughfare to the rest of your home. This means traffic should not cross the work triangle.

2. The total length of the work triangle (the cumulative distance between the cooktop / fridge / sink) should not exceed 7000mm (23′). The ideal length of the work triangle lies between 4000mm (13′) and 6000mm (19′).

3. The minimum opening between cabinets in a doorway should be 800mm (31 1/2″).

4. Appliance doors or entry doors should not interfere with the work centres.

5. You should not place a full height cabinet or appliance between any two of the major work centres.

6. A minimum of 1000mm (39″) of floor space between countertops is recommended (1200mm or 47″ is preferred). 900mm (36″) would be the minimum distance between a run of cabinets and a kitchen island in a one cook kitchen.

7. If there are two cooks in the kitchen a minimum of 1200mm (47″) is required for one person to edge past the other by turning and passing with bodies parallel.

8. For two people to pass with ease, a 1500mm (59″) between countertops is required.

9. The sink should be in the centre of the work triangle is it is the most used area in the kitchen.

10. At least 300mm (12″) of counter space should be allowed from the edge of the sink to the inside corner of the counter top.

11. The sink area should have counter space either side of it. The total workspace should be a minimum of 1050mm (41″).

12. When placing a dishwasher near a corner, allow at least a 500mm (20″) space from the corner for ease of access.

13. You must allow standing space in front of the dishwasher for unloading.

14. The cooktop should be placed at least 300mm (12″) from a window for safety.

15. The minimum landing space either side of a cooktop is 300mm (12″).

16. At least 300mm (12″) of counter space should be allowed from the edge of the cooking surface to the inside corner of the counter top.

17. Extraction of air is required at cooking surfaces.

18. A minimum 400mm (16″) setdown space is required beside an oven. If this is not possible then a benchtop within 1200mm (47″) of the oven is OK. (except where this crosses a major walkway)

19. The same goes for microwaves, 400mm (16″) setdown space beside the microwave.

20. Try and keep the microwave within the most active part of the kitchen.

21. The height of the microwave (base) above the floor should be between 900 (36″) and 1250mm (49″).

22. A minimum of 400mm (16″) landing space is required on the door opening side of a fridge. If this is not possible then a benchtop within 1200mm (47″) of the fridge is OK. (except where this crosses a major walkway)

23. Consideration to the location of services requires careful planning. To prevent appliances (i.e dishwashers etc) projecting past the countertop you must place the services in a cabinet beside the appliance.

24. Smoke detectors should be installed in the appropriate location for the type used.

25. Consider installing a fire extinguisher and fire blanket which is easily accessible in the kitchen.

26. The preparation area should be a minimum of 900mm (36″) in width.

27. Likewise, the serving area should be a minimum of 900mm (36″) width.

28. If there are two cooks and you dont have 2 separate 900mm (36″) wide preparation areas, a consolidated area of 1500mm (59″) wide is good.

29. Store regularly used items between eye and hip level.

30. 1800mm (71″) from the floor is considered to be the maximum safe storage height.

31. You should consider items to be stored at the first or last place of use. Heavy equipment should be stored near floor level.

32. When considering the countertop height, it should be designed for the cook to work without raising the hand above the elbow.

33. The minimum chair pullout distance from the table to the wall is 600mm.

34. A minimum of 900mm (36″) in depth allows another to person to edge behind a seated diner.

35. A minimum of 1100mm (43″) in depth provides walking space behind a seated diner.

36. Always comply with manufacturers installation instructions for appliances.

37. All kitchen designs should comply with national kitchen standards.

38. When working out natural lighting for the kitchen a good rule of thumb is no less than 10% of the kitchen floor area.

39. Natural ventilation should be provided by windows, doors or other devices that can be opened and closed. Allow for a minimum of 5% of the total floor area.

So there you are. Print this list out and use it conjunction with your own kitchen design layout. These guidelines are not set in concrete and you can vary the distances but they should be considered minimum workable distances.

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