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Teresa’s Timely Tips Newsletter
| Read my Summer 2008 newsletter below: | Click on the desired content to be directed to that information without having to scroll down.
| Newsletter Contents: How To Save Energy and Save The Planet Little Things That Make a Big Difference Part I Little Things that Make a Big Difference Part II Unique and Useful Tips Part I Unique and Useful Tips Part II Teresa's Real Estate Update Archives: Spring 2008 Newsletter | | For outdoor savings Longer days mean shorter nights. Don't forget to adjust your outdoor lighting timers. You'll save money and extend bulb life. Low-voltage outdoor lighting systems are inexpensive to buy and operate, simple to install and safe. Soft reduced-voltage lighting will highlight the attractiveness of your home and garden. Avoid excessive lighting levels on the patio and in other outdoor living areas. Illumination should be just bright enough for safety and for relaxing on summer evenings. Install a timer, or better yet, use patio lights only when needed. Grass is a fast-growing, high-maintenance ground cover that "browns off" quickly in dry weather. Other ground covers such as clover and other low-growing, spreading plants require less maintenance and are more drought resistant. Your local garden center can advise you on alternatives to grass that will thrive in your area. Gas lawn mowers are a major source of air pollution and smog in many areas. Electric mowers pollute less and are much quieter too. Consider using electric grass and hedge trimmers instead of gas-powered trimmers. Well-maintained manual trimmers are preferred by many expert gardeners and professionals. A broom will clean your driveway and walkways as effectively as a gas-powered leaf blower; it will also save money and boost your popularity with the neighbors. Plan your garden with the changing seasons in mind. Shelter the south side of your home from summer sun with deciduous trees. Evergreens will protect the north side of your home from icy blasts. For indoor comfort Keep your home comfortable without air conditioning on all but the hottest days by minimizing heat penetration into your home. Shelter sun-exposed windows with awnings and shrubbery. Keep your blinds and draperies closed on hot, sunny days. Keep windows closed in the heat of the day. Open windows in the cool of the night. Your attic gets hot in the summer – temperatures of up to 65°C (150°F) are common. Insulation in your attic protects your home from excessive heat penetration in summer and cold penetration in winter. Invest in attic insulation for year-round comfort and efficiency. Make sure roof ventilation is adequate to prevent heat buildup in summer and moisture buildup in winter. Use floor and ceiling fans to create gentle breezes to keep you and your family comfortable. If your basement is dry, use the furnace fan to circulate cool basement air throughout your home. Maintain your furnace air filter at peak efficiency to reduce indoor pollen levels. Use compact fluorescent lighting wherever you can. Compact fluorescents use very little energy and produce much less waste heat than incandescent and halogen lights. In general, you will find lower indoor lighting levels more pleasant in warm weather. When in the kitchen Turn on your range hood when cooking to exhaust waste heat from your home. Coordinate meal planning with the seasons. Remember, nothing tastes better than a cold salad on a hot day. Keep your oven door tightly closed. Use the oven light to check on progress when baking or roasting. Timers and meat thermometers save energy and help you avoid overcooked meals. Select right-sized pots and pans with tight-fitting lids and cook at lower temperatures to reduce energy use. A six-inch pan on an eight-inch element, for example, wastes 40% of the element's heat output. Make full use of microwave ovens in hot weather. Microwave cooking can reduce energy consumption by two-thirds and produces much less waste heat than your stove. Toaster ovens and slow cookers are also a great way to reduce energy use in the kitchen. Convection ovens consume up to one-third less energy than standard ovens. Heated air is continuously circulated by the oven's fan, for more even heat and reduced cooking times. Full loads only, please, when you run the dishwasher. Use your range hood when the dishwasher is operating to vent excess heat and humidity outdoors. Vacuum your refrigerator’s cooling coils every three months. Excessive dust buildup will reduce the energy efficiency and life expectancy of the compressor. Make sure there are no gaps in the door seal. Don't overfill your refrigerator; cool air needs to circulate freely throughout the interior of the appliance. Defrost frozen food in the refrigerator before cooking. Use food storage containers with tight-fitting covers to prevent excessive moisture buildup in your refrigerator and to reduce energy consumption. Covered containers will prevent unwanted flavor transfer too. Get rid of that old beer fridge in the basement. An inefficient refrigerator with an ill-fitting door can cost hundreds of dollars per year to operate. Your freezer works best when it is filled to capacity. Place covered plastic water-filled containers in your freezer for maximum efficiency. and buy the smallest model to meet your needs. Label frozen food clearly to minimize the amount of cold that escapes when searching for specific items. Upright freezers are generally more expensive than chest freezers and are 10-25% less energy-efficient. Defrost your freezer whenever ice buildup is more than 1/4 inch thick.
| Little Things That Make a Big Difference Part I | 1. When preparing your meals, clean up as you go, washing by hand or putting appropriate items right into the dishwasher. Put away ingredients that need to be stored in the refrigerator or pantry immediately after you use them.
2. Take out your clothes the night before work or school. This way you don't waste valuable time in the morning looking for the right thing to wear. If you can, choose the entire week's worth of clothes for the little ones who can dress themselves or have them choose. No more morning arguments over what to wear.
3. Fill up your gas tank when it hits the quarter of a tank level. In case of a delay in traffic, you won't have to worry about running out of gasoline.
4. Have a routine each week for the days you do errands and shopping. It will save you gasoline since you won't have to keep running out for forgotten items. A shopping list is a MUST, and bring coupons if you use them.
5. Put the perishable groceries in the refrigerator right away directly out of the grocery bags, rather than placing them on the counter first. Wash and cut fruits and veggies before putting them away. Enlist the kids to put away the canned goods.
| Little Things That Make a Big Difference Part II | 6. Cook some meats ahead of time and store in the freezer. For those nights you are too busy to start from scratch, this will help you get dinner on the table in a jiffy.
7. Pick a regular day each week to do your bills or any desk-related items. If you don't have bills that week, work on your budget or bank statement. With debit cards , and a few people in the family using them, just a bit of disorganization can lead to overdrafts. Avoid this at all costs.
8. If you are comfortable having bills paid online, sign up for this service. Mark your calendar on what particular day the bills will be paid so you can keep track of what's happening.
9. When making appointments, mark your calendar right away--along with any necessary contact information. If something changes or you have questions, you'll have the information you need to call right there with the date and time of the appointment.
10. Have the family work on planning the weekly agenda, so that there is no one left in the rain waiting for a ride. Try and arrange car pools with other family members and friends whenever possible.
11. Have colors for each family member for towels, toothbrushes, hair care items and more. It can save a lot of time and prevent confusion. Even match the hampers and baskets if possible.
12. Have a place for tote bags and items that are needed every day for various classes and activities, and fill these bags with needed items so you can just 'grab and go. | | Reheat Pizza-Heat up leftover pizza in a non-stick skillet on top of the stove, set heat to med-low and heat till warm. This keeps the crust crispy. No soggy micro pizza. It really works!
Easy Deviled Eggs-Put cooked egg yolks in a zip lock bag. Seal, mash till they are all broken up. Add remainder of ingredients, reseal, keep mashing it up mixing thoroughly, cut the tip of the baggy, squeeze mixture into egg. Just throw bag away when done easy clean up.
Expanding Frosting-When you buy a container of cake frosting from the store, whip it with your mixer for a few minutes. You can double it in size. You get to frost more cake/cupcakes with the same amount. You also eat less sugar/calories per serving.
Reheating refrigerated bread-To warm biscuits, pancakes, or muffins that were refrigerated, place them in a microwave with a cup of water. The increased moisture will keep the food moist and help it reheat faster. | | Newspaper weeds away
Start putting in your plants; work the nutrients in your soil. Wet newspapers, put layers around the plants overlapping as you go, cover with mulch and forget about weeds. Weeds will get through some gardening plastic they will not get through wet newspapers.
Broken Glass
Use a dry cotton ball to pick up little broken glass pieces of
glass- the fibers catch ones you can't see!
No More Mosquitoes
Place a dryer sheet in your pocket. It will keep the mosquitoes away.
Squirrel Away!
To keep squirrels from eating your plants sprinkle your plants with cayenne pepper. The cayenne pepper doesn't hurt the plant and the squirrels won't come near it.
Flexible vacuum
To get something out of a heat register or under the fridge add an empty paper towel roll or empty gift wrap roll to your vacuum. It can be bent or flattened to get in narrow openings. | | There has been a decrease in both the volume of sales and the percentage of sales of homes in the Pee Dee region of South Carolina from January 2008 to mid May 2008. In the Florence area 45.22% of the homes on the market sold with a average price of $176,613 and an average of 88 days on the market and in the Lake City area only 32.14% of homes sold with an average price of $83,811 and an average of 144 days on market. The slow down is mainly due to the problems in the credit industry, but economic forecasters say the credit and housing slump will probably come to an end by the end of this year. So while there has been a slow down in the market I have been using my time wisely and attending real estate classes and working on my own website where I can offer my clients more information and an interactive experience. |
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