Home Automation Systems
May 2, 2012 by Home Services Link · 1 Comment
If you are thinking about installing a DIY Home Automation system, one of the first decisions you will need to make is which type to buy. There are four different types of systems and each has its advantages and disadvantages. Be sure to consider all to find the one that is best for you.
4 Basic Types of DIY Home Automation
- Hard wired monitored systems-With this type of DIY Home Automation system, a minimum of three sensors are attached to doors and windows which may be breached by an intruder. The sensors are connected by wires to a main unit which alerts the police if the sensors are set off. The system is turned on and off through the use of a keypad and code. The alarm for this type of system may be audible or it may be silent.
- Hard wired unmonitored systems-This type of DIY Home Automation was very popular when home alarms first came out. They are installed using the same methods as seen with a hard wired monitored system. The main difference is that this type of system does not alert law enforcement directly. An alarm will go off to alert neighbors to the breach and they will then need to contact law enforcement for you.
- Wireless monitored systems-When you choose this DIY Home Automation system, infrared lights and remote sensors are installed. These lights and sensors communicate using radio waves with a central unit. The main difference between this and a hard wired monitored system is that a different type of technology is used to detect intruders. Many choose to go with this option as it is not dependent on electric or telephone service.
- Wireless unmonitored systems-A DIY Home Automation system of this type works much as a hard-wired monitored system does. There is no need for telephone or electrical access with this DIY Home Automation system and you may find that it is easier to install than its wired counterpart. New wiring can be expensive and you will need to run this which can lead to wall repairs.
Consider the four types when choosing your DIY Home Automation. Your budget will play a role in which type of system you choose along with many other factors. Any system will add security to your home so keep this in mind when choosing which is right for you.
As always, HomeServicesLink can assist you with your home automation project. We’re your connection to reliable, screened and insured home repair and improvement contractors in Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky.
Article from DIY-Home Automation.com, 02/24/12.
Learning thermostat adjusts to your habits
April 23, 2012 by Home Services Link · Leave a Comment
Provided by Nest Thermostat
The new Nest learning thermostat is taking home automation to the next level. By sensing your movements, it learns your habits and automatically adjusts the temperature thereby maximizing its efficiency.
With Apple and Android interface, the nest can also be controlled remotely with a smartphone or tablet.
According to the EPA, a properly programmed thermostat can save up to 20 percent of a home’s annual heating and cooling costs.
The suggested retail price is $249. Installation and programming costs will run about $119 according to Chris Gallagher, owner of EcoEnvironments, a local Nest Certified Professional.
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Wi-Fi Versus Your Walls
March 27, 2012 by Home Services Link · Leave a Comment
Photo: Tim Bradley
It’s the challenge that comes with every great step forward in home technology: How to retrofit the old house with pipes for those newfangled gaslights. What to do with the steam lines that replaced the coal stove long after the walls were plastered over. Where to put wires for electricity and telephone and cable television and computers and surround-sound home theater.
Well, as for the gas pipes — people just drilled through the basement beams supporting the upper stories and ran them right up through the floor. And no hiding the steam pipes, which poked through a corner of the room and snaked along the surface of the wall from floor to ceiling. Ditto for TV cables, which got tacked to every piece of visible trim in the living room.
But computers are another story. With today’s Wi-Fi technology, you can beam a high-speed Internet connection anywhere in the house without a single unsightly wire. But getting a Wi-Fi network to perform its best is more complicated than just unpacking the hardware and plugging it in. You have to deal with the quirks of your house — room layouts, what the walls and floors are made of, where that Mexican mirror is hanging — which can get in the way of a clean Internet signal the same way 2-inch-thick horsehair plaster blocks those stereo wires.
Placing The Router
The first step is figuring out the best spot for the router, the heart of any Wi-Fi system. Plugged into your cable or DSL modem, the router sends signals to any device equipped with the requisite Wi-Fi hardware, including computers, PDAs, and even video-game consoles.
Since a modem can be hooked up to any cable or phone jack in the house, you’ve got lots of options for placement. (The only limiting factor is if you’ve got a desktop computer plugged into the router with a conventional networking cable — though with a special adapter, your PC can be equipped to function wirelessly.) It helps if you think of the router as a cordless phone’s base station. When you’re on the phone and wander too far, your calls might drop out or get staticky. When you get out of range with Wi-Fi, your laptop’s connection speed will slow to a crawl, or you might lose your link to the Internet altogether.
Wi-Fi routers generally work about 100 feet in every direction, so you need to think about where family members are most likely to be logging on. “Instead of placing your router at the center of your home, place it at the center of your livable property,” advises David Henry, a product manager for Netgear, which manufacturers home routers. For instance, pool and patio lovers should position the router so they can work outdoors. Similarly, in a two- or three-story home, it’s best to set up the router on the second floor to maximize its reach. Basements are generally a bad idea — not only because the signals would have a hard time reaching all the way to the top floor, but also because they could be blocked by the concrete foundation and the solid earth beyond.
That’s the second big challenge when setting up a Wi-Fi network: making sure the radio waves don’t run into any obstacles. Everything blocks Wi-Fi signals a little. Wood, plaster, cinder blocks, and glass don’t interfere much, but brick, stone, and water (think of that 30-gallon fish tank) can be more problematic. Worse still are ceramic, concrete, metal, and mirrors, which reflect visible light and radio waves alike.
Hardware Options
Make sure the router you buy supports the latest version of Wi-Fi, known as 802.11g. A basic router costs between $60 and $90; if your home is particularly large or has a lot of natural interference, consider upgrading to a “long-range” router, which bounces radio waves in all directions to find the best possible path through your house. Most new laptops have Wi-Fi capability built in, but older laptops, most desktops, and video-game consoles need adapters, which typically run $60 or less.
Article Courtesy of This Old House by Wilson Rothman.
If you’re not tech savvy, let HomeServicesLink assist you. We’re your home technology contractor connection in Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky.
DIY Apps Help With Remodeling Projects
March 15, 2012 by Home Services Link · 3 Comments
The great shade of yellow paint that turns to mustard on the wall or the snatch of carpet with the “oh so slight” tinge that once installed morphs into a sea of violet are examples of do-it-yourself (DIY) projects gone wrong. DIY-TV shows make renovations seem easy but anyone who has worked on their home knows the inherent angst and amount of planning even the simplest job entails. Yet a new group of handy tablet and smartphone apps aim to guide homeowners to more successful DIY projects and, of course, to enable mobile purchases of paints and other materials or services.
Visualizing tools for exteriors enable do-it-yourselfers to preview building materials on photos of their own home. Photo: The Tapco Group
Working with your uploaded photos, apps such as room planners and virtual design tools make it possible to preview materials, try out paint colors or explore different combinations of counters, floors, and cabinetry all within the context of an existing room. New design tools also spark creative juices, enabling even the most uninspired to envision a potential makeover.
But is the growing number of free smartphone & tablet apps worth downloading? For example, it’s possible to snap a photo of almost anything with color, upload it to a paint manufacturer’s site and match the color with paint or even build an entire palette around that color. And it’s no coincidence that these DIY apps make shopping a lot easier too. Both Lowe’s and The Home Depot have Android and iPhone apps so potential customers can see what’s available in local stores and compare prices.
How-to guides are also plentiful both online and via Smartphone. Other apps turn a phone into a measuring device and allow you to keep tabs on dimensions and required quantities. Many of these apps are free or offer a free trial or charge a nominal fee for an upgraded version.
Here are a few examples of what’s available:
Paints
Explore palettes, match colors to an architectural style, even create and coordinate a custom look for a room, all
Behr Mobile's ColorSmart Smartphone app enables a photo match with any Behr Color. Photo: Behr Process Corp.
without dipping a brush into a can thanks to new color design tools from paint manufacturers. Sherwin Williams and Behr Paints enable consumers to virtually paint rooms in their own houses using an uploaded photo of their room. With Sherwin Williams Color Visualizer tool, they can select surfaces to paint including walls, trim, windows and doors and use a different color for each. Color options range in the thousands but suggested palettes narrow the options. Projects can be saved and revisited later.
Sherwin Williams Chip It tool, allows consumers to select any online image and the tool automatically finds corresponding paint colors. finds a matching paint color and even suggests a custom palette. Behr has a mobile tool called ColorSmart, which allows consumers to match colors, share projects online and virtually paint their room.
Virtual Design
Manufacturers are integrating virtual design tools into their sites, but they have only just begun to tap the potential of virtual design for DIYers. Shaw Flooring’s Try on a Floor, allows users to upload a photo of their room and explore a variety of types and colors of flooring including carpets, tile, a number of different hardwoods and laminate. They can even add an area rug or change the color of walls or nearby surfaces. Mannington Floors offers a similar Web tool called Virtual Decorator.
Armstrong’s design resources include preset designs for kitchens, bedrooms, family rooms and bathrooms in four different aesthetics — casual, contemporary, traditional, eclectic and European country. Potential customers can explore different home styles, and also try out various floors, cabinets and can coordinate colors from Pittsburgh Paints. GE’s interactive kitchen designer tool offers four different styles and gives consumers the option of changing cabinets, countertops, flooring and appliances.
Virtual Exteriors
Revamping the façade or simply updating the roof is expensive and time consuming. Here too new tools will give you a fix on how these additions or changes will look. Simpson Door’s “Test Drive a Door” app allows homeowners to upload a photo of an interior or exterior door and try out different doors and new configurations. Exterior products manufacturer Ply Gem has compiled an image library of the most popular home styles of the last 40 years. Users can find their home’s style and change various exterior features and add windows, gables and other elements. The Tapco Group’s Virtual Remodeler enables owners to upload a photo of their home’s façade and then gives them the options to experiment with a range of textures, colors and designs.
Smartphone Apps
Some of the best almost turn a Smartphone into Swiss Army Knife. Construction Buddy, available on both iPhones and Android phones and tablets, offers 35 timesaving tools including wallpaper, concrete, base trim, carpet and heating calculators. These tools are also available individually for $.99 but the full set can be had $2.23, after a free trial. A toolkit in your phone, iHandy Carpenter, incorporates a level, surface level, plumb bob, steel ruler and steel protractor. Taking a measurement is as easy as swiping the phone left and right along a surface. Even if you’re not into home improvement this is a nifty app and especially handy for anyone shopping for furniture. Lastly, what could be more convenient than iLevel (available for both android and iPhones), which turns the phone into a virtual, yet functioning level for balancing pictures and objects.
Article featured in YAHOO! Real Estate
Technology – The Trends Continue
December 27, 2011 by Home Services Link · Leave a Comment
Did you get some cool tech toys for Christmas? There are probably some really great sales on to step your home up a notch or two making it more convenient. What are some the latest trends in technology available to consumers you ask, where do I begin? You could look at the recent popularity of 3D and HDTVs that are becoming as thin as your new iPhone. Maybe it is the trend that all this technology out there is getting better and the prices continue to drop. Add to that the current explosion of people wanting and being able to control everything from everywhere and you have some interesting trends developing.
The days of technology being expensive and complex are steadily becoming but a memory. More and more products are coming to market, which offer the value and simplicity folks are looking for. Custom home control used to be reserved for the wealthy. Now with the help of products like Control 4 the days of needing to be a multi-millionaire to afford a control system and a rocket scientist to understand it have come and gone. With affordable home control systems like Control 4 we can enable your iPad or smartphone to control audio, video, lighting, HVAC and doors, including the garage door. And the trend toward faster cell phone networks and the growing number of Wi-Fi hot spots allow you to maintain control (no pun intended) while on the go. Now you can send a signal to turn down the thermostat, turn off the lights and lock the door – the one you forgot to lock while running late this morning – from your phone or iPad. Having the ability to send this signal just ensured your home is secure and saved you a little money on your utility bill. And I don’t know about you but I’ll take saving money, even a little bit, anywhere I can get it.
As trends in home control have changed so have trends in other areas such as controlling and listening to music. In my day the cutting edge technology for listening to music was a CD player. I am not seeing too many people buying CD players these days. Instead we use Rhapsody or that little known about company and their iTunes software. iTunes allows us to download, control and listen to all of our favorite music from a computer, iPhone or iPad. Add a company like Sonos to the mix and you have a very affordable, easy to control audio system that will work with all of these and many more.
From the way we listen to music to the way we interact with our home, the current trends in technology have enhanced our lives. A client once asked me when he would be able to have a “Jetson’s” home with all of the futuristic marvels. Well, other than having a robot for a housemaid we’re getting closer!
This week’s feature was provided by our audio, video and home control industry expert, Brian a 15-year veteran in the field. If you would like to tap into his vast array of knowledge and experience just drop us a line at info@homeserviceslink.com. He can also help hook-up that new equipment you got from Santa. Brian is offering free in home consultations to all HomeServicesLink client members.
What’s the greenest light bulb?
October 31, 2011 by Home Services Link · Leave a Comment
So what is the greenest bulb to use? The article featured on emagazine.com responds to a reader question regarding the best light bulb to use for energy savings. Read and learn.
Reader Question – What are the greenest light bulbs to use? I hear there has been a lot of backlash against compact fluorescents because they contain mercury.
Response – Just a decade ago, incandescent bulbs were just about the only game in town, despite their inefficient use of electricity to generate light and their primitive technology that had not changed since being invented some 125 years ago. But now that is all changing fast, with phase-outs of incandescents going on in Australia, Brazil, Venezuela, Switzerland and the European Union, with Argentina, Russia, Canada and the U.S. following suit shortly. The U.S. passed legislation in 2007 to increase the efficiency of light bulbs sold in the U.S. by 25 percent or more by 2014, and then by as much as 60 percent more by 2020.
Image courtesy of emagazine.com
For decades, those concerned with energy savings have been touting the benefits of compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) over incandescents. CFLs use only one-fifth of the electricity of incandescents to generate the same amount of light, and they can last six to 10 times longer. But CFLs’ cooler color and inability to be dimmed have made them less desirable. Another hindrance to the widespread adoption of CFLs has been their higher cost (though most consumers would save plenty in energy costs over the life of a bulb). Also, CFLs contain mercury, a dangerous neurotoxin that is released when the bulbs break. And once CFLs do burn out they must be disposed of properly to avoid releasing mercury into the environment.
Given the issues with CFLs, LEDs (short for light emitting diodes) are beginning to come on strong. These highly efficient bulbs don’t generate heat like incandescents (which helps to keep air conditioning costs down as well) and can last five times longer than CFLs and 40 times longer than incandescents. Tiny LED bulbs have been around for years in specialized applications (such as stadium scoreboards), but lighting engineers got the idea to cluster them and use reflective casings to harness and concentrate their light for residential use. In recognition of the LED’s potential, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) set up a special “solid-state” (LED) lighting R&D program to hasten the advance of the technology.
In comparing the total cost to run three different types of 60-watt equivalent bulbs for 50,000 hours (factoring in the cost of the both bulbs and electricity), the EarthEasy website found that LEDs would cost $95.95, CFLs $159.75 and incandescents $652.50. The 42 incandescent bulbs tested used up to 3,000 kilowatt hours of electricity compared to 700 and 300 for CFLs and LEDs respectively. However, despite the savings most consumers are loath to spend $35 and up for an LED bulb (even though it will save more than $500 in the long run) when a traditional incandescent bulb right next to it on the shelf costs $1.
There are other newer technologies in the works. Seattle-based Vu1 now sells highly efficient bulbs based on its Electron Stimulated Luminescence (ESL) technology, whereby accelerated electrons stimulate a phosphor coating on the inside of the bulb, making the surface glow. One of Vu1’s 65-watt equivalent bulbs retails for under $20 and uses a similar amount of energy as an equivalent CFL. And incandescents aren’t out of the efficient lighting race altogether just yet. Top bulb makers recently released new versions that use as much as a third less electricity to operate (complying with 2012’s new federal standards) and are promising newer models still that will run on even less energy.
Home Services Link encourages homeowners to review products and to look for savings not just in the short term, but as a long term investment in reducing your consumption and energy bills. Let us know what topics that you’d like to know more about. As always, we’re here for you with contractor referrals for all your home repair and improvement needs.
Easy Ways to Secure Your Home
October 24, 2011 by Home Services Link · Leave a Comment
To get started securing your home, here are 16 projects:
Add security doors: Screen doors with decorative bars and heavy locks allow you to leave your entry doors open when the weather is nice or when you want to talk to visitors outside but don’t want to invite them in. Choose a model that suits the design of your home so it will say “style” instead of “scary neighborhood” to friends and neighbors, while adding a layer of protection.
Ask for identification: Don’t open your door to unknown contractors or other strangers. Even when your service tech arrives, ask to see identification that bears the company’s name. Look out the window at the truck. Does it have a company logo painted on it?
Shed light: Leave your outdoor lights on overnight. Burglars don’t want anybody to see them as they crawl through your bedroom window, so they’re more likely to target a house with a dark yard. Motion-sensitive lights save energy but illuminate when anyone skulks past. And solar lights can be an affordable way to keep your property lighted up from dusk to dawn.
Install a better door: Replace your hollow entry doors with solid-core or sturdy steel models. You can get steel doors stamped with a wood-grain pattern or choose a smooth surface to go with the style of your house.
Add a mail slot: Cut a mail slot into the door. More homeowners who send and receive mail through an outdoor mailbox are reporting stolen checks and credit-card numbers.
Upgrade windows: If you’ve been thinking about replacing your old, single-pane windows for more energy-efficient double-pane models, don’t put it off. Double-pane windows – especially if you opt for tempered or security glass on the first floor – can be harder to break into than single pane. Plus, your new locks are likely to latch better than the worn-out hardware on your old windows.
Add smoke detectors: Protect against nonhuman invaders. Equip your house with carbon-monoxide and smoke alarms. If you have a security system, opt for a service that will notify authorities if it detects fire, gas or a plumbing-induced flood inside your home.
Secure yard equipment: Build or buy a small shed with a sturdy lock where you can store your lawnmower, blowers and trimmers.
Add a peephole: If you don’t already have one, drill a peephole into your front door. That way, you’ll never have to open the door without knowing who’s standing outside.
Change the locks: Through the years, you’ve given your front-door key to pet-sitters, baby-sitters, housekeepers, contractors and relatives – and chances are, you’ve lost track of where some of those keys are. Know who has access to your house. Consider going high-tech with your new lock. Instead of keys, choose a lock that operates electronically, either through a pass code entered into a keypad near the door, by recognizing your fingerprint or by responding to a command from a key fob or cell phone.
Install a safe: Build a safe into a wall or floor. That way, it becomes part of the structure of the home and can’t be removed. In addition to having sturdy locks, built-in safes are easy to conceal under furniture or rugs. Wall safes can hide behind panels that are designed to look like and blend into the wall.
Add a “safe” room: The rooms, usually about the size of a large closet, often are hidden behind another closet. They’re temperature-controlled for storing jewelry, furs, heirlooms and other valuables, and often have thick walls and ceilings and fire-rated doors that serve as a fire barrier.
Display warning signs: If you have a dog, put up a sign letting would-be intruders know he’s a big one.
Advertise your security system – although safety experts warn against using decals with the system’s brand name. A smart thief could go online to learn how to bypass your model if he knows what it is.
Install a security system: New, wireless models are easy to install in existing homes because they don’t require the contractor to tear your walls up to hide wires. Plus, they’re portable. Unlike hard-wired systems, you can take a wireless model with you when you move. A wireless system that runs via the Internet won’t lose power when the electricity goes off during a storm.
Secure the pet door: Rethink your dog door. Not only can raccoons and the neighbor’s cat walk through it any time, a small teenager could squeeze through if he wanted your Xbox or Vicodin badly enough. If you really need a pet door, arm it with a wireless window security sensor or alarm system to make a racket whenever it opens.
Do some landscaping: Remove tall shrubs and trees from around your house so bad guys won’t have any place to hide. Keep hedges trimmed beneath windows. Make sure all of your home’s windows and doors are visible from the street.
Keep in mind that simple yet effective changes can secure your home and family. Contact HomeServicesLink anytime that you need a home improvement or home repair. We’re here for you!
Content Courtesy of The Cincinnati Enquirer, 10/22/2011, republished from The Arizona Republic by Rosie Romero
Small Home Improvement Projects; Big Returns
October 20, 2011 by Home Services Link · Leave a Comment
In tough economic times, homeowners must choose which home-improvement projects are worth the investment.
Home-improvement budgets are almost half the size they were in 2010, dropping from $6,200 to $3,400 this year, according to the American Express Spending and Saving Tracker.
As families decide what to upgrade and where to renew, cost-savings projects should make the top of the to-do list.
The Home Depot suggests homeowners get started with four simple and inexpensive projects that can reduce energy costs by more than $400 annually.
Install a programmable thermostat
Give your heating and cooling units a break by upgrading to a programmable thermostat. With installation time under 30 minutes, this is a perfect project for anyone who wants a quick solution to reducing energy costs.
Preprogrammed settings regulate temperature based on the user’s schedule, giving the heaters and air conditioners a break when the home is empty.
Upfront investment: $50
Spend payback: 3 months
Average annual savings: $180
Replace incandescent light bulbs with Energy Star CFLs
Lighting represents 20 percent of the home’s energy use, which can add up quickly on monthly energy bills. Energy Star-qualified CFL bulbs use 75 percent less energy than standard incandescent bulbs, while still emitting the same amount of light. The CFL bulbs last 10 to 15 times longer than incandescent light bulbs, reducing the purchasing need for the consumer as well.
CFL light bulbs contain small traces of mercury and must be disposed of safely. Consumers can recycle their bulbs at any The Home Depot store.
Upfront investment: $58
Spend payback: 6 months
Average annual savings: $125
Change your air filters every three months
It takes only a few minutes to change a home’s air filters to lower energy costs and prolong the life of the heating and cooling system. A small investment now means big long-term savings on repair costs. Air filters also provide a way to improve air quality inside the home. According to the EPA, levels of air pollution inside the home can be two to five times higher than outdoor levels.
With The Home Depot’s Filter Performance Rating (FPR) System, consumers can choose which air filter best fits the filtration needs of their home.
Upfront investment: $44
Spend payback: 6 months
Average annual savings: $100
Insulate your conventional water heater
If the water heater feels warm to the touch, it may be losing up to 3 degrees of heat per hour. A water-heater blanket will help maintain constant temperature and keep the heat inside, increasing the energy efficiency of the unit. Wrapping a water heater in an insulating jacket can take less than 15 minutes to complete, making this both a simple and affordable project for homeowners.
Upfront investment: $25
Spend payback: 10 months
Average annual savings: $30
Article featured in The Cincinnati Enquirer, 10/14/2011
Home Gadgets That Can Save You Money
October 11, 2011 by Home Services Link · Leave a Comment
An ever-increasing array of modern gadgets may be making our lives easier, but all these gizmos are also taking a toll on monthly utility bills. While most gadgets are energy hogs, an increasing number of products can actually help you slash your home energy costs.
Electricity Monitors
First and foremost, it’s difficult to cut your energy use if you’re not clear about which devices waste the most energy. Plug an appliance or electronic device into the P3 Kill A Watt electricity monitor ($26), and you’ll get realtime feedback about how much juice you’re using. Armed with this information and your electricity bill, you’ll be able to figure out how much it costs to run your home theater for an hour, or whether it’s time for an air conditioner upgrade.
Draft Detectors
Hunting for a weak spot in your insulation or a slight draft creeping through a windowpane can be a tough task, but Black & Decker’s Thermal Leak Detector ($64), an infrared thermometer that detects slight shifts in temperatures, makes this job a lot easier. Now if only they made an electronic device that could actually insulate a drafty attic or chilly basement for you.
Vampire Power
Even while devices are in standby mode, they continue to use electricity, and this so-called “vampire power” can cost you hundreds of dollars a year. Simply unplugging a device when not in use is one way to cut this cost, but you probably don’t want to go rooting around behind the TV every time you want to watch a show. Energy-saving sockets like the Belkin Conserve Socket ($10) and the Bye Bye Standby system ($40) act as intermediaries between the device and the wall socket and eliminate a device’s vampire effect.
Smart Power Strips
Alongside your desktop computer, you likely have a whole host of peripheral devices plugged in — everything from a monitor to speakers and a printer. While you probably power down your PC on a regular basis, there’s a good chance you leave these other devices running night and day. Smart power strips like the Smart Strip LCG4 ($37) solve the problem of power-pilfering peripherals. With your computer plugged into the master socket, all the other sockets only turn on when you power up the computer, and they shut down when you power down.
The Future of Energy-Saving Tech
The Intel Home Dashboard hasn’t quite hit the market yet, but the demo the company has been touting offers a lot to get excited about. Sporting an iPad-like touch display, the dashboard monitors individual devices for power consumption, boasts a smart thermostat that responds to the day’s weather and produces weekly reports on overall utility usage that even offers customized tips on how to save money. Home Automation is a great way to connect your home gadgets and save. Let us help, contact us.
Drive Smarter
Cutting home energy bills is a great first step, but you can also save while you’re on the road away from home. Garmin ecoRoute HD, which runs on all Garmin nüvi devices ($150-$400), produces real-time diagnostics to make sure your car is running in top shape. But the machine is only as good as the driver behind the wheel, so it also monitors your driving habits in order to show you how to increase fuel efficiency. If you already own a Garmin nüvi device, ecoRoute is a free software upgrade, which you can download here.
Article by Adam Verwymeren of FoxNews.com, 03/09/2011
Back-Up Electricty Options
October 3, 2011 by Home Services Link · 2 Comments
With power outages come the decision to install a back-up generator, but where do you begin? James Dulley,a contributor to The Cincinnati Enquirer answers that question as posed to him.
What are my options for back-up electric power which are not extremely expensive to purchase and install?
The best and most convenient emergency back up system is a whole house generator powered by natural gas, propane or diesel. It comes on automatically when the electricity goes off and can power everything in your home. Unfortunately, one costs thousands of dollars and you cannot install it yourself.
A smaller gasoline-powered generator is a more reasonably priced option You can buy these at any home center store. Various appliances plug directly into the generator outlets. Don’t try to connect to the electrical wiring in your house. It likely cannot produce enough electricity output and it can be a hazard for electric utility repairmen.
Another simple and inexpensive option is in an emergency portable battery pack. These battery packs have 12-volt lead-acid batteries inside. These batteries are somewhat similar to the battery in your car, but these are designed to be completely discharged without harming the battery. These are available at most automotive supply retail outlets.
Most battery packs have a 12-volt DC (direct current) outlet similar to a car cigarette lighter and jumper cables to start a car. Many electric appliances that are designed to run on 12-volt DC power are available at camping supply outlets.
Battery packs also have a 120-volt outlet which you can plug standard household appliances. They use an inverter which converts the 12-volt DC battery to 120-volt AC (alternating current). The amp-hour rating of a battery pack determines how much electric power it can store.
Although batteries can usually produce large electric current flow, the 120-volt power is limited by the maximum output of the AC inverter. Most have a maximum output of only 400 watts so check the wattage of the appliance before plugging it into the battery pack. If the appliance electricity usage is too great, it will trip a circuit breaker in the pack, but not damage it.
To keep food fresh in a refrigerator which usually needs more than 400 watts, purchase a UPS (uninterrptible power supply) for your computer. Select one with maximum output greater than the wattage requirement of your refrigerator.
Article Courtesy of The Cincinnati Enquirer, James Dulley, 10/01/2011
