Price : $69.99

Features

• 12 Amp electric blower/vacuum provides power and versatility to tackle every clean-up chore
• Leaf shredder reduces 16 bags of leaves to 1 bag
• Rugged metal impeller and infinite variable speed motor
• Exclusive cord-lock system holds power cord firmly in place
• Powerful handheld blower delivers up to 235 mph of air flow

Customer Reviews

Review date : 2008-09-20
I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this piece of equipment. No messy (and expensive) gas, no need for upper body strength to pull start, not too noisy, and light weight. It makes the whole leaf blowing thing almost pleasurable. Thanks Toro!

Review date : 2008-09-14
Toro Ultra 12 Amp Electric Blower/Vacuum #51599

Product as a blower works great (A ), as a vacuum/mulcher it is ok (C-). Dealing with extension cords (D-) excellent power, excellent price, excellent delivery.

Review date : 2008-09-10
Awesome! Blower/vacuum are strong. Coupled with the variable
speed control, this unit is a great addition to the tools you
want for those lawn/garden chores.

Review date : 2008-09-08
I bought this toro because I have a big piece of land and wanted a machine that would get the job done . So far i have only used it as a blower and it works very well. Its quiet, and i don’t need to even use it at full power. Plenty of air to move debri. I got a 100 foot electric cord and suggest you get at least a 14 gauge electric cord so you will have full power with no drop in voltage and you wont overheat the wiring. I will be using it as a vac a little later in the season. So far i’m very happy with my purchase. If you are looking for a tool that just works, you won’t go wrong with this one

Review date : 2008-09-07
this blower is an effective alternative to most gas powered products. while it doesn’t have the capacity of a top-of-the-line, professional-grade, gas-powered blower (it won’t blow away small rocks) it is certainly strong enough to clear my deck and driveway of the acorns my oak tree sheds four months out of the year. it is light in weight, well-balanced, and has good ergonomic design. the variable power knob allows me to match the blower output to the task at hand. controls are easy to use. the blower can get loud at top power but it’s still less noisy than gas-powered units. using extension cords is a great trade-off for the noise and pollution that a gas-powered blower puts out. i have not yet used this product as a vacuum, so i can’t comment on that.

There are lots of problems with home improvements: they?re a lot of trouble to arrange, they can be expensive, they often decrease the value of your home or at least don?t make back what they cost, and you have to put up with weeks or even months of noisy, dirty building work being done on your home.

Also, houses were usually planned the way they were because of space restrictions, especially in larger towns: if you just go around building extensions in unusual places, the look and layout of your home can both be compromised. Is it really worth converting a garage into a bedroom? No, it isn?t ? the garage is much more valuable, often adding as much as 10% to the value of a property.

Another thing you might not have considered is that if you improve your house too much, no-one who wants to live in your area will be able to consider it. In general, expensive houses are in expensive areas for a reason ? there are plenty of people who want to buy a cheap house in an expensive area, but very few who want to buy an expensive house in a cheap one.

Given all this, there is an alternative that you might not have considered: why not just move? Many people extend their homes to avoid the costs and troubles of moving, but when you compare them to the costs of extending, moving actually often comes out ahead ? especially if you move to a larger house that is just down the road.

While you won?t get your extension designed exactly to your specifications, moving works out much cheaper in the long run, as other people?s ?used? extensions will be cheaper than your new one, and rooms that were built with the house will be cheaper still. Who knows, you might even find something you like even better than your own plans.

John Gibb is the owner of Home-Improvement resources For more information on home improvements check out http://www.Home-Improvement-resource1k.Info

Sandstone light is unique nice. Not only because it is the flexible sandstone. Sandstone light is also a visual sensation - Rock formations naturally grown in 40 million years bestow every object with an exclusive and unmistakable character. Timeless fascination even in minutes detail.

Our environment- friendly procedure has made it possible to slice sandstone from stone blocks in thin layers of just 3 mm. The resulting Sandstone Light is incomparably light, weighing just 5 kg/m². Ideal for any building project. Special base layers render Sandstone Light mouldable and make it decidedly practical for further processing. It can be perfectly adapted to any perceivable shape - curves, domes, depressions or edges. Continuous and joint less.

Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-size mineral or rock grains. Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth’s crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any color, but the most common colors are tan, brown, yellow, red, gray and white. Since sandstone beds often form highly visible cliffs and other topographic features, certain colors of sandstone have been strongly identified with certain regions.

Some sandstones are resistant to weathering, yet are easy to work. This makes sandstone a common building and paving material. Because of the hardness of the individual grains, uniformity of grain size and friability of its structure, sandstone is an excellent material from which to make grindstones, for sharpening blades and other implements. Non-friable sandstone can be used to make grindstones for grinding grain.

Rock formations that are primarily sandstone usually allow percolation of water and are porous enough to store large quantities, making them valuable aquifers. Fine-grained aquifers, such as sandstones, are more apt to filter out pollutants from the surface than are rocks with cracks and crevices, such as limestones or other rocks fractured by seismic activity.

a rock for any occasion

With Sandstone Light all wishes come true: the design possibilities are endless, because of very good environmental compatibility Sandstone Light can be used anywhere - and the processing is conceivably simple. Use Sandstone Light for surfaces and moldings. The warm character of the natural sandstone harmonizes with almost any ambiance…

… In the living area:

doorways, hallways, staircases, work spaces, saunas, kitchens, bathrooms, living rooms, bed rooms, children’s rooms, terraces and many more.

… In the business areas:

banks, offices, reception areas, restaurants, hotels, conference centers, stores, indoor pools, wellness and saunas and many more.

please visit sc-media.org sc-media.org

Imagine returning from your holiday to find your windows broken, your cars and possessions stolen and your pets gone. Your space has been violated.

Relax it shouldn’t be necessary to answer that because with the proper preparation you can discourage intruders and have a carefree vacation.

Worry shouldn’t be on the agenda when you are vacationing. Your holiday is a treat that should be enjoyed without stressing about the safety of your home. By planning ahead you minimize your risk of something going wrong while you are gone.

Depending on how long you will be gone there are a few common sense things you can do for your home, pets and possessions.

Discourage thieves by getting a house sitter. This is the best way to ward off trouble. If you know someone who will regularly stop by your house - water your plants and turn on the lights you are lucky. If you have animals you might want to think about hiring a house sitter for while you are away. This way your pets are properly cared for and your home is safer. Peace of mind is worth some extra money. If you are going to hire a house sitter - make sure you use reliable and trustworthy service! Ask around.

If you can’t get a house sitter the goal is to make your house look lived in. It’s a good idea to have a trusted neighbor to look after your home. Someone who can keep an eye on your property and who has a contact number for you should anything go wrong.

There are all kinds of timers you can buy that make it seem like there are people in your house. Light timers and radio timers can be very effective in deterring criminals.

Think about the state of your lawn before you leave. Overgrown grass is a loud signal that there is nobody home.

If you are going to be gone long enough for your post to pile up make an arrangement with a neighbor to pick it up - a pile of unopened mail is an obvious signal to criminals that nobody is home.

Even if you aren’t going away for a long time there are some things that you need to do every time you leave the house.
- Always lock your door and leave a key with someone to check on your home while you are gone.

- Turn on the radio/TV and leave some lights on

- Do not leave your spare key under the doormat or in any of the equally obvious hiding places. Rather give a copy to someone else and don’t have a spare key anywhere in your garden while you are home. If you MUST hide your key on the property be creative! That blue rock in the backyard under the tree behind the shed is a better/safer bet.

-Develop a reciprocal relationship with your neighbors. Watch their houses when they are away; keep your eyes and ears open for strange happenings and ask them to do the same for you. Group together and form a neighborhood watch of some sort.

If you follow these tips you can be sure your chances are good that you will return to a secure house. If something has happened while you were out; here are some signs to look for

- Broken windows or door should be a major alert that something is wrong. Don’t go inside! Call the police and have them check the property.

- If you think you have been broken into don’t touch anything; you want to keep the scene preserved for investigation.

Christine Bettridge has loved writing since childhood. She has written Plays, poetry and many articles on several topics. She is the editor of the article directory

The Stone Fireplace can provide a mysterious look to an interior of a house, using stone structures to add warmth and depth to a room is not an uncommon feature in interior design. People who choose to have a stone fireplace in their house should be aware that the stone has a very dramatic and strong presence in the room, and it will not go un noticed, some feel that the stone gives a room a medieval feeling and does not compliment modern furniture and style, but this is obviously a choice of the home owner.

Adding extra features next to a stone fire place will combine the elements into a solid design statement, if the people living in the house would not object to having more stone or iron furniture placed in the vicinity of the fireplace you can create a flow of stone and iron elements and create a sort of medieval, 1500’s sort of look, which can be great in some spaces, especially if it is a room that is not used on a daily basis.

In the past fire places designs were very traditional, and usually comprised the same material and same basic building plan, this made most of the fire places to look the same and feel the same in any given room. In the last 20 years there have been enormous changes to this market, especially due to the fact that people wanted a unique fireplace, this is especially true to places where winter is hard and long and the fireplace is a focal point in the house.

There are modern designs that combine stone, wood and metal, to create a very plain and strong industrial look, emphasizing the usability of the features in the space and letting unique and specially designed parts to speak for themselves, this is why a stone fireplace will be perfect in this kind of an environment, it is also possible to paint the stone, or bleach the bricks so they will not appear dark but have a more bright color, this will bring more luminosity into the room and will also allow the home owners not to break to color theme if they got a light colored living room.

Combining wood and stone can create a very impressive fireplace, both natural materials and are also the base of the fireplace essentials, a wood frame to a stone fireplace base will create a feeling of warmth and will probably not disturb any existing design statements that may already be in the room.

Last but not least, stone made fire places sound great but not everyone likes them, you should make sure that you can live with a stone fireplace before you even start shopping around for one, for those who already know that stone designs are their favorites there is not a question here, but what kind of stone fireplace will it be.

Winter is almost here, and a Fire Place is just what you need to add character and warmth to your home. Discover how to plan, buy and place your Fire Place in your home by following Daniel Roshard’s fireplace.advice-tips.com/Cultured_Stone_Fireplaces.html Stone Fireplace articles and Fireplace related articles and tips.

Nowadays, there are specialized disc printing devices called thermal DVD printers that are used to label and personalize DVDs. There are different types of thermal DVD printers available in the market: those that are run manually and those that work automatically.

The manual thermal DVD printer is used for manual printing of a small number of DVDs. However, when there are many DVDs to be printed, it is better to use an automatic thermal DVD printer that prints on hundreds of DVDs at a time.

In a thermal DVD printer, unlike the inkjet printers, the printer conveys solid pigment from a coated ribbon onto the surface of the disc under the influence of a combination of heat and pressure. Thermal DVD printers, which do not require special coated discs to accept the ink in the printing process, do give durable results. However, there are some DVDs that come out better after thermal printing, as the surface here is optimized for thermal transfer printing.

Writable DVD discs tend to have a raised ring in their center hub that may hamper the thermal DVD printer?s head, so be aware of this. To overcome this obstruction, it is advised to print above and below this area. However, there are some discs specially manufactured without this ring for continuous thermal printing. Thermal printing is best for text and line art colors on silver or white thermal discs. As the resolution and color processing of thermal is not that long, it is considered a cheap printing method. Moreover, as thermal printing does not require any drying time, the image here has no possibility of smearing or peeling off.

A thermal DVD printer works with a Windows or Mac compatible computer. The thermal DVD printer is connected to the computer through a USB port, and then using the supplied software, you design the appropriate design to be printed on the DVD. Once the design has been decided upon, all that is left is the printing process.

e-DVDPrinters.com DVD Printers provides detailed information on DVD Printers, CD DVD Printers, Inkjet DVD Printers, Thermal DVD Printers and more. DVD Printers is affiliated with e-DVDBurners.com DVD Burner Software.

Price : $179.99

Features

• 18-volt cordless lawn care tool collection
• 12-inch string trimmer/edger, 22-inch hedge-trimmer, broom hard surface sweeper
• Durable, lightweight plastic shells
• Includes trimmer, hedge-trimmer, sweeper, 3 Ni-Cad batteries, 3-port charger, wall-mount
• Sweeper 5-1/2 pounds; trimmer/edger 7 pounds; hedge trimmer 6.4 pounds; 2-year warranty

Customer Reviews

Review date : 2008-09-18
These items are all a great improvement over the corded tools that I have used for years. All 3 are powerful and lighter than I expected. I’ve had no issues with battery life. This kit comes with 3 batteries which more than covers my weekly routine. I can load a battery into each yard tool and go from one to the next without interruption. These are every bit as good as advertised.

Review date : 2008-09-17
As long as you realize you are purchasing battery powered tools, you will be SO happy. It takes about 2 batteries for me to trim my whole place. (I have a lot) The hedge trimmer is great. It trims everything for me very nicely. (doesn’t trim roses…thought I would try.) The blower…def not high powered but does work better than trying to pick up by hand or sweeping. Over all, I am extremly impressed with this product and would recommend it to anyone even if you are used to gas tools. Either I had to mix fuel and fill a gas powered trimmer everytime I mowed or I have to change a couple of batteries…I will go with the batteries!

Review date : 2008-09-16
I purchased the set in July 2008. I’ve been using if almost three months now and I like it. The edger does a great job. The Trimmer is a little weak, but for the smaller simple trimming it does a pretty good job. The blower clears the clippings from the lawn and does a pretty good job blowing out the garage. It’s not very powerful, but it does what I need it to do.

I have a good size front lawn and a medium size back lawn and if I use all three items, it will drain all the batteries. But if I only use two of the tools, I can pretty much get through everything without a problem.

I highly recommend this for someone just starting out. It’s nicely priced and stores great. You can mount it to the wall and it doesn’t take much space at all.

Well worth it!

Review date : 2008-09-09
This is a great alternative to the task of storing / mixing fuel for gardening chores. A great valvue as well, buying in the complete set. It comes with a handy storage rack for the tools and charger for the batteries. They are wall mount so they take up little valuable floor space. I cant think of a better tool for an apropriate size yard.

Review date : 2008-09-08
Well, living among major petrolheads, they looked at us very strangely when we mentioned that we wanted a battery operated trimmer and blower for our 1 acre of land. We looked at all the major stores (Home Depot, Lowes, etc.) and couldn’t find them anywhere. This was exactly what we were looking for, with a hedge trimmer thrown in for good measure. Sure, you actually have to remember to charge the battery, and each battery is good for about 25 minutes, but you get three batteries - do the math. The trimmer is brilliant, and the blower works well (could be a little more powerful, but a good start.) At least we are not always running out of petrol, and doing our bit for the environment.

When building a home, insulation is one of the major aspects that can cut future heating and cooling costs. Fiberglass insulation has been the primary choice, but not anymore.

Alternatives to Fiberglass Insulation

People have become much more sensitive to environmental and energy savings issues when building homes. Whereas such subjects were rarely discussed 20 years ago, they are now on the front burner for many of us. This transition has been so extensive that homebuilders now incorporate both issues in their projects and use their solutions as selling points. If these subjects have become part of the marketing, you know the transition to more environmental and energy consciousness has come full circle.

Have you ever wondered what happens to the newspapers you haul out to curb with the other recycling every week? Since I am mentioning it in this article, it is probably obvious the newspapers are being turned into insulation products. This relatively new insulation product is quickly overtaking fiberglass insulation in new home building projects, remodels and additions. Known as fiber insulation, it is more environmentally friendly than fiberglass, less expensive and just as good at sealing homes.

Fiber insulation is typically made up of recycled newspapers. Yes, those newspapers you haul out to the curb each week with the trash. Small amounts of ground up cardboard can also be included in some products. The material is shredded and then treated with acrylic binders to make the material hold together. To prevent fires, it is treated with various forms of fire retardant materials.

Fiber insulation almost always comes in a loose fill form. The loose fill is typically blown into cavities requiring insulation instead of being stapled up as seen with traditional fiberglass rolls. The material usually goes in dry, but there are wet versions that are sprayed on much like more traditional spray on insulation products.

As you may know, recycling newspaper is something everyone does these days. Just take a look down the street on garbage day. Recycle boxes of newspapers are on every driveway. This massive recycling produces tons of shredded newspaper material. Frankly, it can?t be turned into usable materials fast enough. This inventory problem means the material is extremely cheap. As a result, fiber insulation can cost up to 25 percent cheaper than fiberglass insulation.

Whether you are building new, doing an improvement or just adding on, fiber insulation represents a good deal on all fronts. Just tell them you want the stuff made out of recycled newspapers.

Rick Chapo is with SolarCompanies.com, a directory of solar energy companies. Visit us to read more articles on solar power and renewable energy.

Solar panels are unique among energy platforms in that they are fairly simple. Still, you can have issues with them, so let’s point out common problem areas.

Solar energy is the most promising source of renewable and sustainable energy on the horizon. It is both clean and easy. But it is not perfect. Many of the articles and advertisements you see that tout solar energy leave out the potential problems. The problems with solar panels can be categorized into issues with materials/cost and issues with efficiency/space.

Solar panels are expensive to install, about $7 per watt of needed output or $700 per 100 watts. If you consider that most single-family homes use several thousands watts per day, then the cost is clearly high. For apartment and condo complexes, the amount of wattage used increases exponentially, and the use of solar panels would probably not be sufficient. Maintenance costs must also be factored in as a potential problem when considering solar energy. All this being said, installation costs can be serious offset with government incentives including rebates and massive tax credits.

Solar panels are made from fragile materials – semiconductors and glass. They must be maintained and occasionally elements must be replaced. Even with Plexiglas shields, the panels are subject to severe weather conditions and can be damaged by winds, hail, lightning or other inclement conditions. Solar panels are not practical in areas prone to hurricanes, which means you need to take them down if hurricane warnings are issued. Flying solar panels are not good for one’s health!

Another issue with solar panels is efficiency. Each one is only 8 to 15 percent efficient. Therefore, single solar panels do not produce enough power in and of themselves. They also do not work well enough if the sunlight is even partially obstructed. Houses are rarely at the ideal angle for maximum exposure, which further cuts efficiency. Trees and other houses can create unwanted shade. Long stretches of bad weather can render the solar panels nearly useless. These efficiency issues have been addressed by creating solar arrays. But solar arrays are part of the space problem because they take…well, a lot of space. There have been recent breakthroughs in solar technology that bounce their efficiency rating up to 40 percent. Once on the market, solar will become a power player in the energy market.

A solar array is the linking of many panels to creating a bigger unit. This obviously takes up more space. As mentioned above, large buildings would not have enough room to place the amount of solar panels needed to generate their electricity. Power companies could overcome this by creating their own solar power generators. But to generate enough energy to meet the United State’s electrical needs, solar panel farms would be needed and these would take up about the space of New Mexico’s desert. So, while it is unlikely that solar power will ever be the sole source of our power due to the obvious constraints, it is likely that we will move more towards a mixed-use system where the traditional electrical grid is supplemented by solar power and both systems compensate for the problems of the other.

Rick Chapo is with SolarCompanies.com SolarCompanies.com - learn more about solarcompanies.com/solar_panels solar panels.

You’ve made the decision to go with solar energy for your energy needs. In going solar, you need to know who is who. Let’s take a closer look.

Who is Who?

Companies in the solar energy industry come in two main forms. One set provides the systems you need to produce solar energy on your own. A much smaller subset will sell you a form of clean energy.

If you want to skip putting solar panels or shingles on your home, you need to find a company that will sell you power just like a utility. Unfortunately, there isn’t any nation wide company that solely provides solar electricity to customers. If you’re willing to look a bit broader, Green Mountain Energy Company may be for you.

Green Mountain Energy Company is a “cleaner electricity” company. It only buys power produced from wind, solar, biomass, water, geothermal and natural gas. The power is then fed into regional power grids and you tap it from there. The advantage of Green Mountain is you are using cleaner power than a typical utility company, but not completely clean as you find when generating solar power yourself. The biggest downside to Green Mountain is you are still paying utility bills, often more than you would pay to the utility company in your area. That being said, Green Mountain is really the only company of its type.

When people refer to providers, more often they are discussing manufacturers and installers of solar energy systems. In the case of solar energy, there are a few big industry leaders.

BP Solar is one of the largest producers for solar energy solutions for residential, commercial and industrial platforms throughout the world. The company is a true leader in the field and provides simplified solutions for homeowners by combining the sale of solar energy systems with full installation. A very popular company with many homeowners.

Somewhat surprisingly, General Electric is one of the biggest producers of solar energy solutions. The company offers high end commercial solutions and custom made solutions using crystallized silicon solutions. It also offers pre-packaged systems for residential homes.

On the other end of the scale, Uni-Solar is the creator the new solar roof shingles that are gaining popularity with consumers, businesses and government agencies. The shingles sit flat on homes like regular roof shingles, getting rid of the bulky solar panel appearance. The Uni-Solar product is considered a fairly major break through in solar power.

Solar companies come in all types and forms. You can visit our site in the byline of this article to find companies in your area that provide the particular solar solutions you need.

Rick Chapo is with SolarCompanies.com, a directory of solarcompanies.com solar energy companies. Visit us to read more articles on solarcompanies.com/articles solar power and solarcompanies.com/renewable_energy renewable energy.