Summer
can't get here fast enough. I've been
thinking that I can just put
off those home improvement chores for just a
few more days until the weather
starts to turn. I should just really tackle
them now so I can enjoy the
weather when it does get warmer. Of course
it is easy to say that until the
sun comes out... and then all bets are off.
What has made me start longing
for the warm weather... it is the number of
stories that are dealing with
outdoor topics this week. From the Kitchen
Herbs at Drakes, and the Terra
Casa bubblers, to the outdoors lights at
Al's Garden Center and even the
window cleaning tips from Champion Windows
(I look longingly outside as I
clean) everything seems to be drawing me to
the sun! Oh well, back to the
chores...
Terra Casa
Bubblers
The sound of water is wonderful. In your
yard or garden it can
make a soothing area for you to relax and
enjoy your time outdoors better.
We caught up with Diana at
Terra Casa (503-577-8242)
to check out how easy it is to
add one of these to your backyard. Terra
Casa is an expert in building
these water features and with their huge
selection of pots, they can help
you build a custom feature with your
favorite container. The first one we
saw was a self-contained one that had been
drilled with a hole in the side
so all the pumps could be hidden inside.
Diana recommends that you don't
drill the hole yourself. It requires a
masonry bit for the drilling and it
is very hard to drill without damaging or
destroying the pot. She
recommends that Terra Casa do it for you so
they can face the consequences
of the broken container. The next one was a
stacked self-contained pot.
The top 2 containers were designed to flow
over the edges while the bottom
one became the reservoir for the water.
These self contained ones can go
anywhere in your yard and all you need is an
extension cord.
The next few were ones with an in-ground
reservoir. This
reservoir doesn't require a lot of digging
and they can hold a lot more
water so you don't need to check the water
level so often. You will only
need to dig a shallow hole of about 1 foot
deep. The only thing that would
change the size of the reservoir would be
the size of the vessel; the larger
the pot the larger the reservoir.
Once you have your fountain up and running
you will notice how
much wildlife it attracts to your garden
too. Birds, dogs and cats all like
the sound of water and the easy access to
drinking water as well. If you are
looking to add water to your patio or garden
just stop by Terra Casa. They
can do it all or they can set you up with
the drilling and give you a
do-it-yourself sheet so you can build your
own.
Outdoor Patio Lights
As the seasons change we find
ourselves heading outdoors to enjoy the warm
evenings of summer and fall. But to really
enjoy the atmosphere and create that
wonderful ambiance most of us seek a little
soft lighting. We found a large number of
choices at
Al's Garden Center (503-726-1162) in
Sherwood. Jeanette showed is how easy it can
be to create that ambiance.
First we saw the Patio Umbrella lights that
can be attached to the spokes of
the umbrella. These are great because they
still allow for the closing of
the umbrella. If you don't have access to
power or you don't want an
extension cord to trip over there are other
options. Jeanette showed us the
battery operated lights that can be attached
to the pole of the patio
umbrella. These can last up to 8 hours when
fully charged. Another option
are the Firepots which use a jell type of
fuel to burn. The flames stay
nice and low and give off a very soft light,
plus they come is some really
decorative pots too. The final items we saw
were candles. There are lots
of choices here including citronella candles
which help keep the mosquitoes
away and ones that will not blow out even in
a breeze.
Kitchen Herbs
There is nothing like the flavor of fresh
garden herbs in your
best dishes. A twig of this, a sprig of
that, and your meal has more zest
and zing. We stopped by
Drakes 7 Dees
(503-256-2223) to learn about growing herbs
in your kitchen from Lynn. First, the choice
of herb is important. Some
herbs do better outside and others are
perfect for indoor use. Lynn
recommended using Italian parsley,
peppermint and thyme. She also told us
that basil was a good indoor herb that you
will find many uses for. The
important thing is to remember the growing
conditions that are required by
each plant, mainly enough sunlight and
enough water.
Teflon
Cookware
If you are cooking in the kitchen you need
to have good cookware. One of the most
popular styles of cookware is the Teflon
coated cookware. Chef David did some
research and shared some information with
us. A reminder, Chef David is not an expert,
so if you have questions you may want to
check out the
Teflon webpage.
What Chef David was able
to find out was that Teflon is safe when
used in normal conditions. Under
certain extreme circumstances, like extreme
high heat, it can release a gas
that can be harmful. How to avoid that? Use
your exhaust fan when cooking
and never leave your pan unattended on the
burner. If you are cooking at a
very high heat, you may want to use a
different pan.
Avoid using metal spatulas with your
cookware. Use plastic,
wood or bamboo. These won't damage your
cookware or the coating and your
cookware will remain 'non-stick'. If you do
notice flaking or bubbling of
your cookware you may be worried about
ingesting some of the particles of
material from the pan. We have found out
that the material is inert and
should be safe. If you are worried, then you
should replace your pan with a
new one. If you still have concerns then you
can go to a stainless steel,
enameled or a cast iron pan.
Hardwood Floor Choices
A lot of home improvement projects start
from the ground up and
we are talking about floor coverings, and
for some people they are looking
at choices in hardwood floors as a
replacement for their current flooring.
We caught up with Tyler Paulson from
Paulson's Floor Coverings
(503-620-7080) to learn about the new and
different choices available on the
market. The first choice had us fooled. We
thought it was a wood product
but it turned out to be a laminate. Tyler
called it an updated version of
the Pergo flooring of a few years ago. It
can handle the wear and tear of
kids, pets and other abuses better than the
old laminates and even better
than some wood products. Next we moved to a
true hardwood floor. It was
hand-scraped to give it that weathered look.
There are various ways for
manufacturers to get this look. One way is
by using machines and the other
way is to send it to prisons and let the
inmates beat up on the wood to get
the desired effect!
Next we moved to the newest in 'green'
products. We started
with bamboo. This is one of the most popular
materials because it is very
durable, is sustainable and is easy to care
for. They can now caramelize it
(slightly toast it to darken the grain) and
stain it so you can use it in
many different applications. Finally we
moved to cork, another sustainable
product and one that can be used in many
different applications. Cork is
good because of its ability to absorb sound.
It is a softer material that
is also durable. Because of its porous
nature it shouldn't be used in
bathrooms or anywhere there could be excess
moisture. If you have any more
questions about these or any other floor
coverings, check with the experts
at Paulson's.
Quick Tip - Window Cleaning
We are going old school when it comes to
window cleaning. We
have pulled out the Windex and newspaper for
this must do chore. Jon Holman
of
Champion Windows (503-624-2678) uses his mother's method.
Jon joined Robin to show her what
they recommend at Champion. First of all you
must use a quality product to
do the job. At Champion they offer a really
nice cleaner to all their
customers when they buy new windows, but he
said you can also use a Windex
product as well. Then you just wad up a
piece of newspaper and, using a
circular motion, wipe your windows clean.
Jon also shared his mother's
recipe of using an apple cider vinegar and
water mixture. This avoids
streaks and seemed to repel the dust too. To
get answers to all your window
questions, check with the experts at
Champion.
Cleaning
Your Countertops
You have spent the money to buy and install
those new counter
tops in your kitchen or bathroom, now you
need to protect that investment by
use the correct cleaners and techniques to
clean them. Fabio from
Parr
Cabinet Outlet (503-614-2655) joined us to fill us in on
the best products. The first top we looked
at was Corian. This type of
material can be cleaned with the harshest of
cleaners because it is a
non-porous, single material countertop. It
is used in restaurants and
hospitals because of that. Granite
countertops used to be difficult to
clean, but have become much easier. Newer
granite styles come with a
lifetime sealer that can protect your
countertops if cleaned correctly.
Don't use a highly acidic cleaner or bleach
and you should be fine. You
will also want to reseal the granite about
every 2-3 years. It is not a
hard process to reseal these either. It is a
2-step process that can be
done in a half hour. Laminate countertops
can be damaged very easily, so
you will want to be very careful when
cleaning these. Do not use acidic
cleaners or bleach. Soap and water or a
'Windex' type of cleaner are the
best for this countertop. Laminate is just
compressed paper, so you will
want to avoid placing hot pans on it too.
Budget
Kitchen Makeover - Structure
You don't have to break the bank to redo
your kitchen. If you
take small steps, get creative and do some
of the work yourself, it can be
pretty inexpensive. Linda from
Rejuvenate
Your Home
(503-803-8000) is redoing her kitchen and she
walked through the first steps
of dealing with structural issues. The
reasons for changing her kitchen
were to add room, create a more open space
and to make it easier to use. To
get started you need to do a lot of shopping
and planning. We said
shopping, but not buying. The shopping is to
help you narrow down choices
in new appliances and countertops and to get
measurements and ideas. Next
you want to get your plan into writing. If
you are looking at major changes
you will need to have a more formal and
detailed plan and you may need to
get a permit.
The major considerations include gas, water,
power and
load-bearing walls. Moving any of these will
require an expert and we
recommend that you contact a licensed and
bonded contractor to do the work.
You can avoid future problems if this work
is done right the first time.
This will also become your largest expense.
For Linda, unforeseen problems
with a major electrical move cost more than
she budgeted for, but they had
also penciled in a contingency fund for cost
overruns. Linda used Mike
Nicoletti from 'One Last Caress Construction
(503-810-5870) as her
contractor and he was able to help her
determine what needed an expert and
what she could do on her own.
Finally, you have to be prepared to live
with a mess for awhile.
While having a full-time contractor can make
the job go faster you will
still need to deal with the noise and the
dust for a few days or weeks (or
months in some cases) so have your microwave
and outdoor grill ready for
use. By doing most of the work themselves,
Linda and her husband are
spending $5,000 instead of $50,000. But if
you are willing to take the time
and put out the effort you could have a new
kitchen in no time and still
have money in your pocket.
