Are Eco Friendly Pools Really Safe for Humans?

Are Eco Friendly Pools Really Safe for Humans?

If you have a pool that uses chlorine or salt as a sanitiser you may be wondering if there is a more eco friendly alternative as you plug in your robotic pool cleaner and skim leaves from the top of the pool. There are several alternatives but are they really safe for humans to use? There are at least four alternatives for swimming pools, but you may not like all of them.

For instance, take what is touted as an all natural pool. This is made with clay and gravel and uses water plants to keep the water clean, so you won’t need an automatic pool cleaner. If you are designing your own garden, it is certainly good for the environment as the pure water offers insects and frogs a place to live. Frogs may be attractive and relatively harmless if their name is Kermit.

Otherwise they will croak all night and keep you awake. And they may well come and visit your house. Then there is the problem of snakes, who love to eat frogs and will chase them wherever they go; into the pool or towards your house. Don’t think snakes can’t swim because they are very good at it.

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5 Ways to Add Value to Your Property with Limestone

5 Ways to Add Value to Your Property with Limestone

People have been using stone of various kinds for hundreds of years as building supplies. There are many types of stone and each has a distinctive look and colour to it that creates a beautiful surface and enhances its surroundings. Limestone blocks especially have a unique texture and colour that make it one of the most popular stones for building, even though it is not as hard as some other types.

In fact, limestone is so popular that it has been developed into a more durable and hard stone by crushing it and mixing it with cement and sometimes an aggregate such as small pebbles is added to the mix. These then show up through the surface adding texture and interest and creating a mix of colours that are pleasing to the eye.

There are many ways to add value to your home with limestone, but not only will its use add value to the property; it will also enhance your lifestyle by adding pleasure and purpose to many areas. This can be an even more important reason to go ahead with building a project using limestone bricks or blocks.

  1. Adding an outdoor dining and entertaining area with pavers of limestone will not only look beautiful, it will give you and your friends many hours of pleasure as you enjoy alfresco meals or simply relax in the cool of the evening. To add life and colour back into the paved area you can use big or small garden pots with a variety of plants, this makes it easier to maintain and gives you the chance to move them around when needed.

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10 Pool Enhancement Errors to Avoid

10 Pool Enhancement Errors to Avoid

To save you from figuring out all the pool remodeling mistakes after completion of the task or while you are halfway through it, we have lined up 10 errors. Read on to avoid yourself from committing these pool enhancement mistakes and save ample time and money.

Error 1: Forgetting the Work Permit

Yes, proper work permit is a must and cannot be avoided at any cost. Before beginning any work, make sure you avail a permit that confirms with all the necessary formalities of your locality.

Error 2: Purchasing Cheap Supplies

One of the worst money-saving tactics is buying cheap supplies. In the long run, you will end up spending double the amount on repairs and automatically regret your decision. Best quality materials will make your pool last long and look fabulous.

Error 3: Not Employing a Contractor

A professional pool builder plays a significant role. He is acquainted with the right permits to have, the right supplies to purchase and to apply the accurate solution whenever there is a problem.

Error 4: Overlooking Home Design

Overlooking your home design isn’t a great idea. Your pool should be an extension of your home style rather than being something so different that it ends up looking odd.

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10 Key Questions You Must Answer When Choosing Glass Balustrading Fences

10 Key Questions You Must Answer When Choosing Glass Balustrading Fences

The use of glass balustrading fences inside and outside properties has increased significantly in recent years. Their appeal is their modern appearance, as well as their practical use, given that they are durable, lasting for many years and can be easily installed by glass company. Glass balustrading fences are also important safety features in certain locations such as around pools and balconies.

If thinking of glass balustrading fences for your home, we hope you have asked yourself and answered some important questions. These questions ensure you make the right choice relating to your glass balustrading fences including who is going to install them. Here are ten of those key questions you must be able to answer before proceeding.

What Locations Around Your Property Do You Want Glass Balustrading Fences?

It should be obvious that before you make any other decision, you must first decide which locations around your property are suitable for glass balustrading fences. If you need some ideas do some research online or call a local glass balustrading company for advice.

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Six Points You Should Know About Scaffold Hire

Six Points You Should Know About Scaffold Hire

Many building and other companies hire the scaffolding they need to get their projects done rather than buy the materials and erect it themselves. This is because scaffolding is really in a genre of its own and needs professionals to design and erect it, especially when it is for building skyscrapers or other huge projects. If you are seeking a scaffold hire company, here are six points to consider: –

    • Does the scaffold hire company have a good reputation in the industry? You will be able to find out by contacting other building companies that have used them. You can also look at their website to see which other companies have used them or to look for testimonials. A good reputation is not only about providing quality products, but also about being on time and within budget. If the scaffolding is late going up, your project completion will be delayed

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Does Your Landscape Architecture Firm’s Website Design Have These 7 Essential Features?

Does Your Landscape Architecture Firm’s Website Design Have These 7 Essential Features?

Whether you are building a car, a house, or a website, they each have core elements or features which they must have regardless of what they look like or how they function when completed. In the case of building a website for your landscaping architecture firm, the expert web designers will advise you that whether it is the most complex of websites, or the simplest, it must have certain essential features.

The question now is if you feel that your website is not performing in a manner that you believe to be beneficial to your landscaping architecture firm, then is it the case that it is missing one or more of the core features necessary for it to do so? To help you identify what these core features are, and confirm if they are present or not, here is a brief explanation of each of them

All Onsite SEO In Place: If your website is not appearing on the first page of the search engines and there is no sign of its rankings improving then there is something wrong with your SEO. Check that the onsite SEO of a quality website is all in place, 100% accurate, and optimised for all of the keywords that you want to rank for.

Simple Navigation Throughout: A great website will never have a confused visitor, wondering what page they are on, and unsure how they can navigate, either to another page or back to the home page. This is achieved using simple navigation, with the most common being a menu appearing at the top or the side of each page of the website.

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Why Your Carpet May Need Dry Shampooing

Why Your Carpet May Need Dry Shampooing

The two primary ways to clean carpets are steam cleaning and dry shampooing. Neither name describes the cleaning action correctly. Professional carpet cleaners often use steam cleaning, with chemicals sprayed onto the carpet and hot water injected into the rug. Usually, a rinse cycle is done. The machine then extracts most moisture so the carpet dries quickly, at least in less than 24 hours.

But dry shampooing is not dry; it uses less water and chemicals, but the residue of shampoo and chemicals dries quickly. Dirt sticks to it, so it must be vacuumed out the next day by the homeowner. Since less water is used, the carpet will dry in a few hours. Even though the professional carpet cleaning method is not quite as good as steam cleaning, there are times when choosing a professional service, such as commercial cleaners, is better.

  • After you have finished renovating and want to get the dust and grunge out of the carpet.
  • If you expect visitors the next day and realise the carpet looks grubby.
  • You’ve had tradespeople in and forgot to cover the carpet.
  • You’ve had a party, and the carpet got sloshed as well.
  • You need to freshen the carpet up but don’t have time to wait for it to dry.

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How to Set Up a Perfect Home Office?

How to Set Up a Perfect Home Office?

With the changing times, the question arises: why is our generation so different from all other generations when we think about the home office? The answer is that the routines have changed drastically. Our ancestors have to spend their 8 hours of working in an office. They must travel through various transports to reach their office and on the same vehicles after work.

But if we talk about our generation, the paradigm has shifted drastically. We don’t want to get stuck in traffic, weather, and all other hindrances to work as we can work from home. Many have not renewed their office leases, called in the removalists, shed some excess office equipment, and set up offices in their familiar surroundings – at home.

According to a survey, more people are working from home than ever. Regardless of what we do, our generation has figured out how to accomplish our daily tasks from home. The advancement of technology has gifted us with this comfort, and we can even work in our pajamas.

Advantages of Working from Home

  • We can save time traveling.
  • We can work efficiently because of the environment and comfort.
  • The office talks are long forgotten at home.

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Maintenance Guidelines for Colorbond Roofs

Maintenance Guidelines for Colorbond Roofs

All homes need maintenance of some kind to keep their value throughout the years. If you don’t maintain your property you will find that when you want to sell it, the price you had hoped for may not be there. Meanwhile, your home is going to pieces around your ears and a big storm could well bring it crashing down.

The roof is one of the most important parts of the home, but unfortunately it is also one of the most neglected, mainly because getting up on it is beyond many people. They either don’t have the agility any more, or they don’t have the time, or the right equipment. This need not be a problem; there are many professionals out there who can do the job.

The cost of having your roof inspected for damage is much smaller than the cost of replacing the ceilings or the frame that has rotted due to leaks that were not found in time. It is also cheaper than having to replace a roof that suddenly blew off in a storm because the screws holding it on were rusted and no one knew.

Maintenance for Colorbond roofing is not difficult. You simply have to keep sticks and debris such as leaf litter off it and check the screws to make sure they are not rusted. If there is a build up of mould or moss on it, this should be cleaned off after wetting, with a soft bristle brush such as  a household broom – not a straw broom, though.

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How To Compare The Different Soil Types Available For Your Landscape Garden

How To Compare The Different Soil Types Available For Your Landscape Garden

Whilst landscape designers have excellent skills when it comes to designing the layout of a landscaped garden, their knowledge also extends to matters related to horticulture. By that, we are talking about them knowing which plants are suitable within a design and the best conditions for each one.

If they did not have that knowledge, whilst they might initially create a great-looking garden, it would fail due to plants not growing, lawns looking discoloured due to poor drainage, and any other problems that can occur in gardens. Thankfully, most landscapers are reputable and will ensure any landscape design they create will produce a park that is an aesthetic joy and that everything that grows within that garden will thrive.

A garden that thrives is only possible if the soil within it is suitable for the plants that grow there, which brings us to one of those specific areas of knowledge that landscapers have. It is essential to know the types of soil within a garden and, where necessary, what soil needs to be added to allow the plants that are planned for it to have the best chances of thriving.

Although we cannot cover every possibility, we have highlighted below some soil types you might find in your garden and their various facets. This should allow you to compare them to ascertain which suits your garden and your plans.

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