Australian-American Houses

Quatum Quatrz as a kitchen benchtop

Engineered stone is a man-made product that dates back to the late 1980’s. The main component in engineered stone is quartz which is one of nature’s strongest minerals. Quantum Quartz engineered stone contains more than 93% natural quartz, the remaining content consists of a bonding agent, pigment and additives that creates the over 50 different varieties of stone on offer. The most popular applications for Quantum Quartz are kitchen, vanity and other bench top applications as well as flooring. Quantum Quartz is the designer’s and architect’s choice for an application that is stylish, low in maintenance and ultra hygienic. It is i

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8 Fab Places to Retire Abroad. Check Out Gorgeous Interiors

Lets face it, our economy is and has been in turmoil. With the cost of living continuing to spike, so many are finding basic survival difficult. Retirees are among one of the groups who find themselves having to re-enter the workforce due to high costs of medical insurance and prescriptions. Seeking solace and a way to make their money stretch, thousands of retirees are packing up and heading overseas.

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Smaller space, bigger projects #1: Can more be done in less space?

For years I have read those articles about the ideal shops in the various wood magazines. Ive kept copies of ingenious fixtures, storage units, tool plans, etc. Now the time has come to build my dream shop, but I have half the room I had hoped for to do it in. So, in this blog, I plan to chronicle the challenges of downsizing a shop, while maintaining the same (or greater) level of production expectations.

I have built a room in our walk out basement that is 16 x 14. But thats deceiving. There is a 5 x 5 closet in one corner, on top of which I have built my lumber storage area. The shop is not done yet, but it is in working condition. Im planning to take some photos and post them.

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Energy and Water efficiency measures

Reduce over heating by shading your windows with large eaves, awnings, external blinds, low E{emissivity} glass or double glazing. Carefully, consider window placement, North is great for the southern hemisphere, with less western or colder southern windows. Conserve light and heat by using the northern light window. Minimize required air conditioning with good design, thermal mass, insulation and cross ventilation. In colder areas, Hydronic heating using piped hot water is very efficient.The heat is usually generated by a gas boiler. The advances in design and new products is proceeding every day, so watch out for cheaper double glazed windows and double glazed skylights.

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Counter depth refrigerators or full depth: Which do you need?

There is no standard size in appliances and certainly not in refrigerators.

Knowing the maximum height, depth and width of your opening is crucial in selecting a new refrigerator. In fact, size is the No. 1 factor in narrowing down your options.

Most refrigerators today fit either a 30, 33 or 36  wide opening and a 66, 68 or 70 high opening. You should also also allow 1 of clearance on each side of the refrigerator for breathing room.

But because refrigerators have become deeper within the last 10 years, you also should consider the depth of your space. M

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