Don't Let the Bed Bugs Bite!

They are real, they are a nuisance, they DO BITE, and they are a bugger to get rid of.

There has been some recent news about bed bugs being a problem at the UNL campus in Lincoln.  Students returning for the holidays and spring break could bring these pests into the family home if some precautions are not followed. 

Most folks will revert to the professionals, an exterminator or try to DIY with some chemicals from one of the big-box stores. I have another solution that is very effective and very safe. The ONLY precaution is breathing of the dust when applying. It is Diatomaceous Earth, or DE. It can be purchased at any local health food store and is fairly inexpensive. There is no chemical smell and it is an all-natural "green" product.

Wear a dust mask and apply a ring around your bedposts, in any wall or floor cracks near your bed and dust along the decorative piping at the edges of your mattress. The DE will cut these little critters each time they crawl through the fine powder and they will eventually dry-up and die. You can put it down even with no known bed bug problem.  There are no side effects or safety concerns.

If you have visitors or students returning from Lincoln I would dust all areas where they could unknowingly bring these awful critters into your home. There were huge outbreaks in the Manhattan, Chicago, Denver and Detroit areas as well as other cities recently so any traveler should be cautious.  

When you travel and stay in a hotel I would take some precautions to ensure you do not pick up a hitchhiker. Inspect the bed you will lay your head down on. Keep your suitcase on the countertop or table top and vacuum it when you return. I would put out the DE just to be safe.

 

Water Trees in Winter

We’ve enjoyed a mild, warmer winter thus far in the Omaha area but it has been very dry with very little snow and rain. There is one very glaring precaution while we have been enjoying such a mild winter….your landscape. Trees and shrubs need water to survive and the climate just has not produced.

To keep your trees and shrubs healthy this winter you will need to supplement the moisture they are not getting naturally. Break out that garden hose and allow a slow stream of water to saturate the ground for several hours in and around your trees and shrubs. The ground is frozen so it will take a long time to soak in. 4-5 hours of a mild trickle to the edges of the drip line should save the trees from winter kill. Maybe try to water 2 trees a day ensuring the whole drip line is saturated.

DO NOT forget to remove the hose from the spigot each night prior to the nightly freeze.

Most of us don’t think about the fact that trees need water during the winter. They drop their leaves and go into an apparent dormant state, so we tend to forget about them. What we don’t realize is that beneath the ground there is still plenty of activity going on. The roots continue to grow throughout the winter and need adequate water to survive.

There are few outward signs of drought stress on deciduous trees during the winter. During months when they have leaves, drought is noticeable because of leaf yellowing, wilting, curling at edges, brown tips, and dropping leaves. During the winter though, there are no leaves to act as drought indicators. Evergreens on the other hand, may turn yellow, red or purple. They also may turn brown at the tips of the needles and the browning may progress through the needle towards the twig.

Often times, drought stress may not kill a tree outright but it will set it up for more serious secondary disease and insect infestations in following years. To insure a good growing season, care must be taken to supplement the water needs of the trees throughout the year.

Trees should be watered to a depth of about twelve inches below the soil surface. The soil should be saturated within the drip line which is the area out to the outer edges of the trees branches. This will ensure that water is dispersed to all of the roots. On evergreens, water should be distributed 3 to 5 feet beyond the drip line on all sides of the tree.

Preventing Home Fires

Dryers: If you have to run the dryer a second or even third time to get clothes fully dry, your dryer vents may need cleaning. While most homeowners clean their lint traps between every load, dryer vents must also be cleaned regularly. It is recommended that dryer vents be cleaned every 1-2 years, depending on the frequency of dryer use and the distance from the back of the dryer to where the vent exits the home. Lint buildup in vents increases the risk of fire and reduces the efficiency of the dryer.

It’s a fact: Thirteen thousand fires start in laundry rooms in the U.S. each year, causing 10 deaths and $97 million in property damage. One-third of these fires arise from lint buildup.

Besides reducing the risk of fire, clean vents allow for efficient drying. Savings estimates range from $.50 to $3.00 a load, depending on the size of the load, the energy efficiency of your dryer and the severity of obstruction in your vents. Reduced wear on the dryer will also extend its life.

In Bennington a dryer caught fire causing a lot of smoke damage to one couples home.  See the related KETV account of their story:
http://www.ketv.com/news/29354435/detail.html

Looking to Sell your home?

National syndicated columnist Liz Pullman Weston's article titled "Speed your home sale with these fast fix-ups" is a must read. Spending limited funds in the right way will make your home selling experience more enjoyable.



Read the article here:

CONTROLLING HOME MAINTENANE COSTS

Home repairs can break your bank. Keeping your home maintained is a less-costly way to keep ahead of the repair costs.

Experts in the home repair industry typically recommend spending 1-3 percent (per year) of the home's value on maintenance tasks alone, not considering repairs. Repair cost estimates could be 5-10 times that amount. The trick is to spend as little as possible in home repairs while you live there so you end up in a positive cash situation if/when you sell your home. The only way I know to keep repair costs down is to spend properly and efficiently on your home's seasonal maintenance tasks. As stated many times before "Spend hundred$ now in maintenance or spend thou$and$ later in repairs." It is generally about a 10:1 ratio. Spending that $100 keeping it maintained will save you thousands in future repairs.

A new year is upon us, plan to put up some of your tax return for home maintenance and add to the kitty with each paycheck. If you do not have cash on hand for some of the smaller maintenance tasks you certainly will not be able to afford the future repair costs.

If you follow Mr. Handyman’s seasonal maintenance tips on our blog site your monthly maintenance and repairs costs will go down. If the maintenance involves tasks that you cannot complete yourself or if it requires a professional (replacing wood trim around the windows, HVAC maintenance, or properly caulking around the tub, kitchen sink or around windows) then give Mr. Handyman a call. We have the expertise and knowledge to accomplish most home maintenance tasks.

With the tightening of the money belt in today's economy and the possibility of inflation causing your hard-earned dollar to buy less in the future, saving where you can just makes great financial sense. We have offered several tips to save with energy-efficiency items on our blog site as well. Just look for a related article on the right side of the main page.

Whole-house humidifiers can make your home more comfortable

Winter weather can be harsh outside of the home. Heating your home can remove so much moisture from the air that it can be somewhat uncomfortable. Low moisture content in the air can cause excessive static electricity, dry coughs, dry skin and can dry out your sinuses to the point of causing bloody noses. Dry air is not good for furniture, pets or people with allergies.

Getting enough moisture into the home can be a daunting task when your heater cycles on so much in the coldest parts of the winter.  Room humidifiers can help maintain the moisture level in individual rooms. Requires filling daily and cleaning very often to ward off bacteria, mold and other contaminates. Usually $30-$150.

A whole-house humidifier may be your 2nd best investment for winter conditioning of your living space, right behind that heater unit itself.

What are the benefits of a whole-house humidifier?

1. Can save costs in making your home more comfortable
2. Easy annual maintenance
3. Set and forget, no bottle filling, no chemicals, whole-house coverage
4. Cost to have one installed would run $350-$700 depending on the model

If you have a whole-house humidifier you should perform the maintenance NOW

1. Turn on the water source and verify the water line is not plugged
2. Inspect the water pad (filter looking element) and replace if mineral deposits are evident
3. Turn on the switch or humidistat (thermostat looking device in main living area)

OLD HOME REMEDY TRICK
Hang a sheet or towel in the shower area and keep it wet and the shower curtain open. Moisture evaporates and gets into the air. Swap out the sheet or towel at least every week. This trick may make the coldest, driest months more comfortable.

Keep the Chill Out! Shrink-Wrap your windows

Several listeners have asked how effective shrink-film is on windows.

I can attest that shrink-film does work! I have used it for several years on leaky, drafty windows. The extra layer of plastic adds another barrier to the harsh winter cold infiltrating into your home.

Not to tout one brand over the other but my service technicians contend that 3M sells the better product. The reasoning is they have the better quality double-stick tape for attaching the film on the window trim, which is the usual point of early failure.

To have a great installation that will last throughout the winter season follow these simple guidelines.

1. Purchase more than what is stated on the box. The box I bought stated it would cover ten windows. It actually only covered six. You can always save the extra for next year.

2. Wipe off the trim where the tape will go with denatured alcohol or the alcohol pads that come with the kit.

3. When you cut and install the film onto the tape do not pull it tight, allow some sag. Make sure that the film does not bunch up at the tape lines though.
4. When using the hair dryer to shrink the film do not hold it too close. If the film shrinks too much it will pull the tape off of the trim.


Sealing up the windows for winter is a great way to make your living space more comfortable and cut down on your heating costs. That cold, harsh "Old Man Winter" will be here soon enough!

This is just one very inexpensive way to take a bite out of the harsh cold weather while enjoying the warmth of your home. Go GREEN and save a little green at the same time. It should cost just a couple of dollars to cover each window.