Monthly Archives: June 2010

Welcome back to our Blog. New information is added weekly. Your comments and suggestions would be appreciated.

We are constantly referred to as a throwaway society for apprehensible reasons, but this is never more evident than in our treatment of mobile phones in today’s society.

This small and remarkable piece of technology has evolved far more speedyly over the last twenty or so years than most of us would ever have believed, and already most of us are ineffective to endure without our mobile phone. We pay many hundreds of pounds over a typically two year period for the newest handsets and gadgets. Despite this huge expense, upon their replacing, they are frequently consigned to a dusty drawer until they contract of truly nominal economic value or they do simply get disposed of as waste once their working life is over. It seems super unconvincing that any other high value, high powered modern tool is so on a regular basis disposed of without any try to understand ###PW2###. its leftover value.

This behaviour is simply not sustainable or realising the most of both your own personal assets and the resources of the planet. The vast majority of the cost of a mobile phone is representative of the development investment that has supported this rapid technological evolution. There is still very real value in the component parts and materials used in their construction, and  these retain to be of value after the phones life appears to be over.

Mobile phone recycling offers two very real benefits. In cases wherever you sustain a fairly modern handset, you can encounter cash for your phone while it still possesses resale value. Depending on the condition of your phone, you can get more money back. Mobile phone recycling is not dependent to modern handsets though. Old handsets are still actively recycled as the valuable components can be recycled in a more staple form. This helps to reduce our contribution to landfill and unsustainable behaviour.

Welcome back to our Blog. New information is added weekly. Your comments and suggestions would be appreciated.

How to Replace lots of your shop Bought Chemical cleaning products with White Vinegar. It kills Mould, Bacterium and Germs. It doesn’t give off any harmful chemical odours, it’s a lot less expensive and environmentally friendly as well .

White distilled vinegar is now a very popular house cleaner , efficient for killing most germs, mould and bacteria , due to its level of acidity. Cleaning with white distilled vinegar is a great way to avoid using harsh chemicals.

Wodden Floors .

Hardwood flooring professionals will tell you don’t put anything on your floors but vinegar and water. Mix 1 cup of white vinegar with 3 cups of water. You already know to make sure the floor has been swept first. Then use the water and vinegar mix on the mop head or, use a cloth soaked in the water and vinegar . Wrap this around the head of a swiffer. Wash and let dry.

Glass and Mirrors .

Add one cup vinegar to 3 cups of hot water. Clean the window or mirror well, then just before dry. Sprinkle some vinegar directly onto a clean dry cloth and polish, for a smear free shine. It works great on glasses and glassware too .

Dishwashers.

As a rinsing agent for blasting through scum and lime scale build up, vinegar can be rather useful. Run a cup of vinegar through the dishwasher once a month to clean it and remove Soap scum. Set the empty dishwasher to a fast cycle, let it run for around 5 minutes, open the door and pour in the vinegar, then just let it run through . You will be very pleased with how clean your dishwasher is. This will save on buying de scaling tablets or using salt and vinegar works better all the time .

Coffee makers

Depending on how often you clean your coffee machine , you may need to run vinegar through it a few times to completely remove the stains and residue . When you are done don’t forget to run clean water through your coffee maker to remove any vinegar . Use warm water and vinegar to clean your coffee pot. If the pot is really coated in film or coffee has accidentally been burned in it. Fill the pot with vinegar and water using half vinegar and half hot water, leave through the night . next morning wash the pot in hot soapy water.

Scaled up Shower Head?

Scaled up shower head . Make up a mixture of 2 cups vinegar and 2 cups warm water in a jug. Put the head of the shower into the jug of vinegar and water and leave for two hours . If the shower head is attached to the wall. Put the water and vinegar in a plastic bag and tape it around the shower head or use a rubber band. Let it soak for at least an hour. Spray some vinegar on the shower walls after a bath or shower to get rid of soap scum from the tiles. An old trigger type bottle is perfect for this.

Washing Machines.

Replace your wasteful and enviromentally unfriendly laundry softener with clear distilled vinegar in your washing machine. It will soften the clothes every bit as well because, it is soap residue and scum that make clothes hard and vinegar removes soap scum and residue. Pour the distilled vinegar into the compartment wherever you normally pour fabric softener, ½ to 1 cup is fine, but don’t worry about pouring in too much . The vinegar is de scaling your washing machine anyway, so it’s helping your washing machine anyway .

Cleaning copper.

Did you know you can Clean tainted copper with vinegar and salt? Use a paste made of salt and vinegar. Pour some salt into a bowl and add some vinegar a few drops at a time. You are aiming to make a paste. Stir up the mixture, if it is too runny then add more salt. Then rub the paste onto the dull or tarnished copper. Let it sit for a moment and polish off with a clean dry cloth.

Lime Scale On Basins, Baths and Toilets .

Remove Lime scale on baths, basins, toilets. Just soak a cloth in pure vinegar and lay it on to the lime scale stain, leave overnight, rinse and repeat if required. Or, use a paste of 1 teaspoon white vinegar and 2 tablespoons salt. Apply the mixture to the lime build-up, let sit over night and rinse away.

Anti electrostatic for use with your Tumble Dryer.

Keep a trigger spray bottle with some vinegar in it, near your Tumble Dryer. Instead of using anti static sheets. Load your laundry into the dryer as normal and before closing the door/lid, spray 2 or 3 good squirts of vinegar on to the laundry . No more nasty static.

Dentures.

Here is a Tip from a Dental Technician . If you have any kind of dentures, keeping them overnight in a weak vinegar solution keeps them disinfected and clean.

Dandruff.

Pour clear distilled vinegar onto your hair at the beginning of your shower. Massage in and rinse off when finishing your shower. Do this minutes before you shower, then wash your hair as you normally would, while showering. You will notice a difference within a week or so. Let it stay on your scalp and then wash your hair as normal.

Vinegar can be used to safely clean just about anything in your home. It’s is one of the oldest cleansing products. Simply pour full-strength white vinegar into a trigger spray bottle and you are ready to tackle most soiled surfaces around your house . Hold the spray trigger bottle 15 – 20 cm (6 – 8″) away from the soiled surface, spray, and then wipe clean with a clean cloth or paper towel.

Welcome back to our Blog. New information is added weekly. Your comments and suggestions would be appreciated.

Dryer Balls help you save time and electricity.

Use your dryer for less time and save power.

Being a Tumble Dryer Engineer in addition to a user of a dryer in my own home, I’m constantly looking for ways to minimize tumble dryer running costs and also the amount of additives or detergents required to clean as well as dry clothes.

I’ve been using and recommending dryer balls now for a couple of years, with good results.

So what on earth are dryer balls?

There’re similar in size to a tennis ball and they are covered with spikes and nodes. Packaged as a set of 2, usually one is blue the other is red or even pink. One will have rounded type spikes and nodes, one has more angular spikes and nodes.

First Saving.

Simply load the dryer balls in to your tumble dryer with all the washing. The theory is that when the laundry in the clothes dryer tumbles round, the clothes are continually getting massaged because of the dryer balls. They’ve been specially designed to break up stiffness produced through water drying out. This means there will be no call for for clothes softening or conditioning sheets.

Second Saving.

Since the dryer balls are constantly massaging the your washing during the tumble cycle, there is no need for fabric refresher in the washing machine either. The clothes dryer balls breakdown any hardness in the washing and also soften the laundry as they tumble around.

Third Saving.

The dryer balls pick up and separate your laundry whilst drying, that minimizes drying time and lessens creasing, that means you can dry a full load in a shorter period and less creases require much less ironing.

Fourth Saving.

Typically the dryer balls also retain the heat and transfer this to the clothes as they tumble, further speeding up the entire drying program.

Fifth Saving.

Because a regular load of laundry will now be dry in less time than you are used to, all of the moving parts within the dryer will be operating for much less total time, cutting down on wear, friction, and also on costly tumble dryer repairs.

How to use Dryer Balls.

Dryer balls are re-usable. When you come to lift out your dry washing, simply leave the dryer balls inside the tumble dryer, so the very next time the clothes dryer is used, they’ll begin working their magic as soon as the drier is switched on. Run your machine at the usual temperature setting for those materials you are drying, but make sure you select a shorter drying time.

How about Sensor type dryers?

Sensor dryers will just work out the shorter drying time automatically. Tumble Dryer Balls really are reusable for 100′s of times, so you will get the huge benefits time and time again!

Are there any disadvantages?

Sure there are a couple of things to understand.

1st Like many items today, there are fakes for sale which appear the same as the originals. Therefore buy from a trustworthy company and look for the dryer balls with the unconditional two year exchange or refund guarantee.

2nd Dryer balls will increase the noise from your dryer because they sometimes rebound of the steel drum when they tumble about, this really is harmless.

3rd On a few really old tumble dryers, there may be white paint inside the drum, as these dryers are usually older this paint can begin to flake off and get mixed in along with your clothes. In certain rare cases dryer balls could make this worse. If your dryer is less than ten years old, there will be no trouble with this. If it is older, make sure that the painted drum is in good shape.

Welcome back to our Blog. New information is added weekly. Your comments and suggestions would be appreciated.

An electric Tumble drier can use a large amount of  power to dry a load of washing ,  For most people the only maintenance we do , is to clean the dust filter every week or so. There are lots of things you can be doing to cut on running costs and squeeze more life out of your Clothes Dryer .

The simplest thing to do, is Clean The dust Filter, each Time You Use Your Dryer.

Why? Tumble Dryers work by forcing hot air through the drum and around the clothes in order to dry them. Every bit of hot air has to go through the fluff filter. If it’s not clean , then that slows down the air flow. That slows down the drying process, wastes electricity and means the clothes dryer has to run for longer to dry a load of washing.

More use, means it will wear out sooner. More use, means it will waste electricity . Clean The lint Filter Each Time .

Because I must be lazy, I keep an empty detergent carton near my Drier . So instead of having to go to the Dustbin every time. I just clean the old lint into the old detergent box. I empty it a couple of times a month. That’s only 2 trips to the Dustbin a month, instead of 40 or 50 . If your Tumble Dryer is the “Vented” type. That’s the kind that blows the warm wet air out through a flexible hose, or through a vent or pipe in the wall. Here is some advice for you .

Vent pipes clog up over time with old wet fluff and lint . This has the same affect as a blocked filter. It lowers the Dryer’s performance, wastes electricity and because your tumble dryer needs to stay on for longer. It will wear itself out sooner A couple of times a year , remove the vent pipe and wash it out. A garden hose works fine, or put some water into the bath and swish the vent pipe around till it’s clean. I have One user who uses the shower to do the same job. Most important , is that the vent hose or pipe is clean and not clogged. Some Dryers are connected to “Through The Wall Vent Pipes” Same thing applies, these get clogged as well. A Tumble Dryer is not very heavy , so it’s not too hard to move it out and disconnect the vent pipe. Clean it and refit it .

the Dryers attached to “Through The Wall Vent Kits” use far too much flexible vent pipe to connect to the wall. The result can in many cases  be that the flexible vent hose kinks when the Dryer is pushed back into place. You might never know, as often you won’t be able to see it. A kinked hose is worse  than a clogged filter. A quick way to check. When your Dryer is working. Go outside and hold your hand in front of the vent exaust . If you can feel a good amount of hot air blowing out, it should be ok. On the outside of “Through The Wall Vent Systems” There is often a wire mesh filter behind the cover . They are known to become blocked in a matter of months. This external filter just clicks off. Clean and refit it. If you have never cleaned it, you will be appalled at how dirty and blocked it is and how much quicker your Dryer will now dry a load of laundry.

If you are washing small “Quick” washes in your Washing Machine, these are around 2.5 kg. Turning the Dryer on for a small load is wasteful. Most family size Dryers will be rated at or above 5Kg. So why not wait and combine 2 small loads into one load. This saves on running costs and running time. Saving you money and cuts down on the total Dryer running time over a couple of separate loads. This is fine as long as you remember a golden rule. Don’t cram your Dryer with too much Laundry or over load it. Which brings me to the next point. Over Loading your Tumble Dryer is false economy.

Tumble Dryers blow hot air through the laundry as it tumbles around. If it is over loaded, the hot air can’t get at all the clothes. You will end up with some damp clothes and some over dried clothes. It is also very hard on the drum drive belt and front and rear bearings. Don’t do it. It’s not smart and it’s costing you money. So to Recap.

Clean the Fluff filter Each time you use your machine . Clean the vent pipe at least twice yearly . Check the outside vent filter is not blocked up . Don’t dry lots of separate small loads if you don’t need to. A large load (as long as it’s not an overload) is much cheaper. Don’t be tempted to stuff your dryer too full. You will only end up spending more on Tumble Dryer repairs and it’s false economy.

In my next article. I will cover more ways to cut down on Dryer running costs and offer more advice on how to get the best from your Tumble Dryer.

Welcome back to our Blog. New information is added weekly. Your comments and suggestions would be appreciated.

Purchasing a more pellet energy flexible pellet furnace can help to diminish the payback time of the furnace with the ability to use cheaper fuel. As you can see from the video above, we have experience combustion a wide collection of wood energy pellets along with how they burn. We summarised our experiences into this guide to help you purchase a better pellet furnace, and save on your pellet fuel costs. Over the last few years the need to replace existing dwelling along with business heating solutions has become apparent. The cost of fuel is very unstable as well as our responsibility to diminish our carbon emissions is more crucial than ever. Biomass pellets stoves have become a well-liked alternative, plus their popularity continues to grow. Pellet stove fuel is produced from unrefined waste resources, which burn very efficiently in pellet form. Pellet stove fuel is also carbon neutral, plus therefore there are now a selection of tax incentives to start using pellet stove fuel. As the world develops as well as global population increases rapidly, in China for instance. The demand for oil is high, as more people seek a modern habits. Experts expect prices to continue to rise as well as increased carbon taxes.

Learn more about Pellet Stoves Pros and Cons

Russia plus the Middle East hold most of the accessible resources of oil and gas, plus at our increased rate of global consumption, our reliance on these resources is not without obvious complications. Therefore a move on to alternative fuel sources such as pellet stove energy can give the country more energy independence, as well as help to keep prices more stable, while at the same time helping to support along with grow the national economy at a time of recession. Pellet stove energy can be produced from a wide range of biomass resources which can be cultivated along with collected locally. These include sawdust waste, other none contaminated waste woods plus even fast growing willow, which can be planted on un-used land. These resources can be processed into pellets locally plus then sold to local consumers at affordable prices due to reduced raw material and pellet energy transportation. Helping to support the local economy.

Read more about Pellets Stoves

However a wide assortment of biomass materials can be compressed into pellet stove energy which may look very similar as well as generate a comparable amount of heat, not all pellet stove energy burns the same. Various issues of higher ash content, corrosion, clinker along with slag formations may occur. Yet the significant costs savings of using other biomass pellet stove fuel has its advantages. Many pellet stoves yet cannot use many pellet stove fuels, in addition to are limited to expensive premium pellet stove energy. Therefore this guide has been developed to aid in choosing a more pellet stove energy flexible pellet stove.

More information on Quadrafire Pellet Stoves