Show Notes for April 11, 2009

What the Carey Bros. & Rebecca Cole are Talking About:
This week’s edition of On The House was jam-packed full of tips and topics. The Carey Brothers and Rebecca Cole covered lawn and garden care with tips for low energy use. The hosts also shared a list of 3 essential plants needed for complete fresh air indoors and continued the theme of spring cleaning with stories on the do’s and don’t’s. As we found out there are plenty of things not to do when it comes to home improvement. Check out the rest of the show notes for easy ways to improve your home and your life.

Also:
All You Need for Fresh Air: 3 Essential Green Plants
These three plants can provide a human with all the fresh air they need indoors to be healthy. If you have sufficient quantities of these plants, you could live in an air tight bubble and have enough fresh air to live.
(NOTE: On The House has not tested this theory.)
1. The Areca Palm (or Chrysalidocarpus lutescens) does great air cleansing work during the day. About 4 shoulder height plants per person should do the trick.
2. The Mother-in-law’s Tongue (or Sansevieria trifasciata) takes over by converting CO2 to O2 at night. You want about 6 to 8 of these waist high plants per person.
3. The Money Plant (or Epipremnum aureum) does the job of filtering out removing Formaldehyde and other VOC’s.

5 Tips for Low-Energy Lawn Care
1. Let the grass grow longer on your lawns. Cutting it short encourages growth, which needs lots of water. Plus, longer lawns last longer!
2. Aerate and spike lawns early in the season to promote deep roots.
3. Don't feed your lawn fertilizers; this encourages excessive growth and requires lots of water.
4. When you cut your lawn, leave the cuttings on it. This will reduce moisture loss and return nutrients to the soil--making next year's lawn greener without chemicals. (If your lawn is really overgrown, compost the first cut.)
5. Exercise, not engines! Using a push-mower will cut your carbon emissions, discourage over-cutting, and get you some exercise.

Simple Spring Cleaning Tips
— Carpets musty? Sprinkle it with baking soda, let it stand for 24 hours and vacuum thoroughly. Your carpets will smell fresher and so will your house.
— Dirty grout can be brightened with straight chlorine bleach or hydrogen peroxide - you know - the stuff you clean cuts with. If these tricks don't work, you will probably have to replace the grout.
— For dirty window screens and greasy range-hood filters, a steam cleaner can do wonders. Get together with your neighbors and rent a unit for the day. Working together can make this task cost less than $15 each. Remember: a clean home is a happy home!
— Your ceilings are also probably in need of cleaning. Heat rises. Year after year it carries dust and cooking residue straight up to your ceiling. So wash them: Cover furniture and floors with old sheets or plastic drop cloths. Then put a little liquid detergent in warm water. Using a floor mop with a clean sponge head, squeeze out as much excess water as possible and wipe down the ceiling. Then repeat using a clean-water rinse. Clean around lights and wall switches by hand using a damp cloth. When you're done, you'll be surprised how much it brightens up a room.

More Information:
• The Family Handyman - The #1 Do-it-Yourself Magazine, on newsstands everywhere.

• Serious Windows - Learn about the most energy efficient windows on the market.

• EZ Framing Collar by Grabber - Quickly frame round support columns for finishing with drywall, paneling, etc.

• Bondo - Find a wide variety of patching materials for home applications.

• On The House Green Tip of the Week - Presented by Serious Materials, easy ways to become more energy efficient.

• Digging, Decorating, & Design Tip of the Week - this week learn how to control weeds in your garden.

• In The Kitchen with Dom DeLuise - Dom DeLuise shares his weekly recipe, and this week is Tiramisu.

• On The House E-mail Lists - sign up to have the On The House weekly features sent directly to your e-mail box.

• Wisconsin Man Tells Police He Was Just Cleaning - With Gasoline - While Smoking - From the Associated Press.

• Recall of the Week - Atico International USA Recalls Coffeemakers Due to Fire Hazard.

If you need any more information about today's program, please contact us or post on our new Home Improvement Forum and we'll try to help you find what you need. Thanks for listening to On The House with the Carey Brothers!