Here is a house that doesn’t need air conditioning!
Wishing all New House enthusiasts a
The photo is from the Third Annual Snow Sculpture contest in Breckenridge, Colorado, which attracts contestants from all over the world.
I will be having a few days off from blogging from Christmas until the New Year but will be back on 2nd January 2015.
Nothing exceptional?
If you don’t believe me check out 368 W 2nd St, Dixon, Illinois (it’s actually a ‘House of God’)
These are plastic tubes that fit over the cables and provide mechanical protection and visual warning on power lines and conductors.
Getting ‘Tiger Tails’ installed isn’t cheap and can be in the order of $1000/month.
A twelve month build and that’s $12,000.
It sounds a lot as the tiger tail itself is relatively inexpensive, but the cost can include:
So when you start looking at blocks, Look Up and remember the potential extra costs!
Also I have noticed many visits to my web site are referred from Australian based Chinese language website oursteps.com.au
So for all my fellow Gweilos’ (Ghost men) here is a quick guide to checking if the street number of the new house block you are buying is, or isn’t, auspicious.
Could add thousands to your house price!
Get in some lifts in china and you will find no fourth floor, or 14th floor!
3 三 – The Mandarin word sounds like “life”.
9 九 – Sounds like the phrase longlasting, also associated with the emperor.
5 (五 Associated with the word “Not”
13 – Although a Western Superstition this has been adopted by some Chinese
A repeated auspicious number like 88 is extremely auspicious
The first number can multiply the effect of an auspicious number – 28 means “Double Money” and 38 means ‘Triple Money’.
5 can negate the effect of an inauspicious number so 54 can become ‘Not Death”
Here is one of the most photographed houses in Victoria, ‘The Pole House’ at Fairhaven, near Lorne.
Lots of people love it.
A lovely stretch of natural coastline and someone puts up this concrete pimple to spoil everyone else’s view so they can marginally improve their own view.
Its not as though they made any great effort at architectural merit, a very plain, minimal cost ‘pole’ and an unexceptional looking house on the top.
If you really must find out more check out www.visitgreatoceanroad.org.au
Would you worry if you saw this guy (from Jim’s Jihad?) mowing the lawn next door?
Unlikely. . . but it does illustrate the fact that neighbours can have a big effect on your enjoyment, or otherwise, of your house.
In fact 20% of us have fallen out with a neighbour in the last 5 years, and only 1% said all their neighbours were great.
Domain recently carried out a survey, and here are the top 5 reasons why people had problems with their neighbours:
Its often said “Tall fences make good neighbours’. . . . but with the top four problems being noise related perhaps it should be “Tall fences and Good Sound Proofing make good neighbours!”
If you are buying on a new subdivision who your neighbour will be is always a lottery . . . . so corner block have always been attractive to me as it means one less neighbour.
If I was looking at a vacant block (or Knock down rebuild) in an established suburb I would aim to make visits:
If you want better sound proofing two things you should consider are:
Smaller Windows – As solid walls have better sound reduction than Glass
Double Glazing – Much better noise insulation than single panes
Photo courtesy of neighborshame.com where you will find more bad neighbour photos.
Guest post by Hubert Dwight
Neither is it a place just to take a shower nor a place to stock your towels.
The modern bathroom is a place of rejuvenation, relaxation and meditation; the ultimate me-only place and a real pampering zone at its best.
Whether you are after an energized shower before going to work, or you want to relax your mind while in a warm Jacuzzi, or you desire a long candle-lit soak in the bath before going to bed, the bathroom is arguably one of the best rooms in your home.
However this is only the case if it is well structured, using some of the best and most exotic brands that can be found on the internet..
If you are living in Australia and are interested in a technologically advanced bathroom that is classically and elegantly designed, then you are bound to look through an assortment of brands.
You want brands that offer you convenience, simplicity, enjoyment and innovation within the confines of your beautifully made bathroom.
Below are some of the best brands that will offer the best in bathrooms.
Caroma is without a doubt the best bathroom brand that can be found in Australia, but also compares well around the world.
The brand’s commitment to top-notch excellence in design and water conservation is unrivaled in the bathroom market.
Structured around the philosophy of high efficiency, beauty, excellence and innovation, Caroma is the undoubted industry leader in terms of high efficiency toilet suites, as well as technologically advanced bathroom basins, bidets, and showers.
As a company, Caroma employs highly educated, advanced, experienced and creative engineers to ensure that your bathroom is structured not only to suit your needs, but also to offer ultimate style that can only be dreamed of by others.
Whether you are in need of a simple and traditional bathroom or an ultra modern bathroom that comes with 21st century technology, Caroma is, without a doubt, your only solution. Their flexibility ensures that their design suits both residential and commercial bathrooms.
As one of the best bathroom tap ware and mixer brands in Australia, Grohe has an extensive portfolio of bathroom products.
From showering solutions to bathroom accessories, Grohe has an extensive selection of the best products for you to choose from.
They are among the best when it comes to creating consistent and stylish bathroom designs that revolve around crisp and chamfered detailing that is ideal for modern bathrooms.
Even though there are a whole lot of bathroom brands available in Australia, Caroma and Grohe and JustLuxe are among the best brands that cannot be ignored. Whether you are after luxury, modern advancement, simplicity or elegance, these are definitely your options for the best brands in bathroom matters.
You should, however consider the most widely available brand first, as there is a better chance of being able to get hold of these products, rather than having to wait for a long time until such time as stock has landed in Australian outlets. Choosing Caroma is a great choice for this reason, as you won’t have to wait long for delivery.
The heating cables are fixed to the top layer of slab reinforcement, before the slab concrete is placed. The system heat up the whole slab, which then heats up the room above.
This system has a long warm up time making it suitable for ‘Off Peak’ tariff electricity, with the concrete slab heating up during the night and releasing the heat steadily during the day.
With this system the heating cable is fixed on top of the slab using a light steel mesh, or fixing strips. The cables are covered with 15-25mm of screed.
In screed system which tend to heat less of the slab have faster warm up times than ‘In Slab’ systems and can be considered as ‘direct’ acting system with some storage characteristics.
Under Tile heating consists of a thin heating cable pre-laid on a self adhesive fibreglass mesh which is then covered with the tile adhesive.
This system has the fastest heating up time but the least amount of heat storage.
I can’t say I am keen on underfloor heating as I used to work in an office that had it many years ago. . . It caused my feet to sweat excessively with predictable effects when I went home and took my shoes off!
If I was going to use it at all I would probably favour just a ‘Under Tile’ system for bathrooms.
What do you think about this Alien / Predator themed Theatre Room?
and this Attic Music Room that looks like the deck of a Starship?
All hidden in the ordinary looking Swedish House.
Could be yours for under $400,000..
The photos are from www.pontuzlofgren.se
Thanks to ‘SaveH2O’ for the tip about this house.
If you see an unusual house why not let me know, and we can let others marvel at what some people build.
