DIY Vertical Wind Generators - Are They Worth It?

With the ever increasing need for everybody to be more careful with the environment (and in today's climate their money) have you ever thought about building your own DIY Vertical Wind Generator? These units are much like the usual wind generators except the blades are positioned vertically rather than horizontally.

It is easy to build a DIY Vertical Wind Generator from plans for normal wind generators. All that is needed is to turn the blades vertical. All the components need to build a DIY Vertical Wind Generator can be found in your local DIY store for as little as $200.

So why build a DIY Vertical Wind Generator rather than a normal wind generator? Since the blades are positioned vertically rather than horizontally you have the option of putting more blade units on the generator since there is more space. It won't necessarily generate more energy but it will allow the blades to become more sensitive to wind, allowing for power to be generated even in slight breezes; something that is not always possible with the conventional wind units.

The units can also be built to be much more compact that the usual wind turbines. This makes them ideal for people who do not have a lot of outside or roof space and can even be set up to sit on apartment balconies or outside walls. You don't even need a stand that rotates with the wind as the blades are sensitive even in a fixed position. The electronic side of setting up the DIY vertical wind generator is not all that complicated either. There are plenty of electronic blueprints out there that will show you how to set this up.

If self-sufficiency is what you are after then you will probably need at lease three to four units. If you want to ensure that you will still have power during a power outage then you will need to fit batteries to the unit. This allows electricity to be stored and be readily available to use. The downside is that these batteries can increase the cost of building the units. My suggestion would be to have a few units with batteries and the other directly connected to the grid. This would allow essential energy to be provided in cases of power outages.

DIY Vertical Wind Generators are ideal for supplying your household energy needs for a fraction of the cost of commercial units. They are easy to build and don't cost the earth.

http://www.squidoo.com/DIY-Vertical-Wind-Generator

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Building Homes With Creative Appearance Using Marble

A Beautiful home is made of many elements. One of the major ones is marble. It is just a natural stone but with proper use and finish, it becomes astonishing and breathtaking in numerous shades. Its natural beauty and color panorama makes it the right choice for flamboyant users in home construction. People with a different style sense always prefer to have marbled homes due to the stunning look and feel it provides.

Homes can be enhanced with vibrant colors, inviting stonework & beautifully carved marbles. Different style and shades of marble can bring attractive ranges that can be floored to encompass living rooms, drawing arrangements, dinning spaces, hotel lobby's, pool sites, wall ladings, lounges and many more. Experienced designers and artisans provide artistic and innovative shapes to the stones in form of artistic marble pillars, marble columns and marble fireplaces. Constant introduction of new technologies helps them to deliver some thing new to bring more variety to the market.

Marbles are used for beautiful carving which display the architecture in many countries. Many breathtaking monuments masterpieces have been made from this prime & beautiful stone marble.

However, in home you can always bring the best out of the marble variety. Following are a few tips to give a vibrant look to your house:

• Glazed marble tiles - Glazed marble tiles are the ones created with liquid glass coating, glazing provides numerous colors, mix of natural hues for a warm and organic look.
• Balance contrast colors - like mustard, red, orange blues
• Hilly cool look - watery blue with greenish cool mint marble tiles
• Natural look - Natural material contains hints of colors- as mustard, olive, and orange, Suck kind of marbles always create fresh look and looks like natural.
• One should use colors in splashes and everywhere to create an energetic look and feel inside your house.
• Choose marble hues that echo undertones found in natural elements.
• Marble tiles and granite slabs installed in your kitchen and bathrooms can change the whole appearance and stylishness of your home.

The wonderful flexibility of this natural marble material has enabled ancient and modern artisans to put their creativity in reality and make astonishing monuments.

Please feel free to contact us with any questions, bid on your projects, or schedule an appointment to learn more about us. Visit us at: http://www.pacificbedrock.com

All About Copper Gutters

The need for gutters and downspouts is just a fact of life for nearly any homeowner. Unless you want to get wet coming out your front door or worse yet, get a leaking basement or major home damage, then you'll need rain gutters. One form of gutters that are quite popular are the copper gutters. Here's a look at everything about this type of rain gutter.

Copper gutters are good to have for many reasons including the fact that they will never rust or rot away. They can stand up to whatever Mother Nature throws your way better than any other type of gutter system.

Copper gutters add a distinctive style and flare to your home that is unlike your standard run-of-the-mill gutters. Their style is immediately noticeable and recognizable. It adds a sense of visual appeal that can only be found with copper.

They also add value to your home and require less maintenance than aluminum or other materials.

The one area you will only need to keep an eye on is with oxidation. Copper gutters will oxidize and turn green over time unless you treat them. There are several sealants available that can be applied to keep your copper gutters looking golden and shiny.

On the other hand many people prefer the greenish look, especially in older homes made from stone or stucco. It gives them a stately appeal. You'll see them on homes that grow ivy as well.

Copper gutters are not cheap as you might imagine. Prices run about 75% - 100% more than standard aluminum gutters. The upside is that due to their longevity you will make the money back over time.

Leaving the gutter installation to professionals is advised with copper. It is trickier to handle and you should really know what you are doing in order to avoid costly mistakes.

If you are looking for a beautiful gutter system that will stand up to the elements and last a lifetime, copper gutters may be your best solution.

By the way, you can learn more about Copper Gutters as well as much more information on all types of gutters and downspouts at http://www.GuttersA-Z.com

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Senior Life Settlements: An Introduction

A Senior Life Settlement means the sale of an insurance policy to a third party at a value less than the face value of the policy. The buyer of the policy is liable to pay all future premiums on the policy, while the original holder of the policy gets a lump sum in cash. This lump sum is an amount that exceeds the cash value of the policy accrued till that date.

Senior Life Settlement is opted for by senior people (above the age of 65 years) who do not have any further intention of maintaining their policy premiums. Once they communicate with a life settlement provider regarding their policy settlement, the provider buys the policy from them and collects their premiums in an escrow account. As soon as a buyer is available, the policyholder stops paying the premium and the new buyer continues from that point on. The accumulated amount till that date, along with all applicable interests, is given to the original senior policyholder.

People usually take policies in their younger days when they are building homes and expanding their policies. The express purpose of holding a policy is to create security in the unfortunate circumstance of a persons demise. However, when people reach old age, they no longer have the obligations they had in their younger days. They also may not be able to pay future insurance premiums due to retirement or some other reason. Naturally, it makes sense to settle the policy rather than to allow it lapse. This realization is compelling several senior citizens today to get their policies settled.

Elderly people who wish to explore new cost-effective avenues like higher paying policies or care insurance policies may also opt to settle their old policies. Another reason may be an urgent need for funds to start some profitable enterprise.

Senior Life Settlements are often confused with viatical settlements. Viatical settlements are provided to terminally ill people, regardless of age. To be qualified for a viatical settlement, the person must have a life expectancy of less than two years from that point on. But Senior Life Settlements are provided to anybody over the age of 65 years. Their life expectancies could be 10 to 15 years, depending on the policy of the company. Senior Life Settlements also require a minimum amount on the face value of the policy held, which again differs from company to company. Also, the policy must be more matured than the contestability period, which is often two years from the date the policy is made.

Senior Settlements provides detailed information about senior settlements, senior life settlements, senior life settlement providers, licensed senior settlement company and more. Senior Settlements is the sister site of Cash For Annuities Info.

Home Improvement Software

Colors play a very important role in your home improvement project. They widely express your nature and influence your mood. Deep and dark colors, for instance, depict deep and energetic feelings while light smooth colors develop a calm environment. But often times, you are confused about what color to choose. People don't know what colors would be best for their hallway, bedrooms, dinning rooms or bath and the kitchen. These are the people who ask for professional advice even when they have to paint their walls themselves.

This problem can be solved very easily with the help of home improvement software. It saves you the hassle to do and redo your home; and it brilliantly extends your visions. If someone has selected a color that doesn't seem to satisfy his mood, he will have to repaint his room with a new color and possibilities remain the same if the person is not very creative or if he has lack of experience. All this hassle will cost him a lot more than the budgets. Wastage of time is another related story. However, things are completely different when it comes to home improvement software.

With home improvement software, you can simply do wonders. You don't need any professional advice; you don't need anything else as well. All you are going to need is a piece of sharp brain and basic computer skills. From your bedroom to you kitchen and garage, take a preview of everything you want or do not want using home improvement software. One of the most acknowledged features of home improvement software is that you can adopt eclectic decor style and paint your room with different colors. If they suit you fine, get yourself working on them from out of your computer.

This software is simple in use and anyone can be able to decorate his/ her room, in fact, entire home with the help of this software. Besides being a magnificent tool for consumers, home improvement software has also been widely accredited among the contractors, builders, architects and designers. Because it's not just for colors, its uses are manifold. So, if you are planning any home improvements, get home improvement software in first chance.

For more about painting, designing, remodeling and everything that links together to result in a perfect home improvement, you can visit http://www.theyarelocal.com/articles/home_improvements/index.php

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Top Ten Causes of Global Warming (Part 2)

4. Pollution from Airplanes

Airplanes are indispensable to todays society. Businessmen fly across the country on a daily basis to meet the demand of industry. In less than 24 hours, you can fly across the circumference of the planet traveling from the US to China. So how can you possibly blame these amazing gravity defying machines of global warming? 10% of the green house gas emissions come from airplanes. You might be going to a vacation or to a business meeting but those airplanes you travel on are releasing their pollution directly into the air they fly in.

According to the Christian Science Monitor, during the 3 days after 9/11, there was a difference of 4F in the average highs and lows compared to other days. What caused this change? It is believed that the contrails of the air crafts are the cause of this. Following 9/11, all airplanes were grounded. This allowed scientists to see the difference in the temperatures with contrails in the sky and without them. Although airplanes do pollute the sky, they accidentally reflect some sunlight.

5. Pollution from Buildings

Although many believe those large SUVs and Airplanes are the cause for all the commotion going on about global warming, the houses we live in may be a larger contributor. Unlike cars and airplanes, homes have a long lifespan of 50- 100 years meaning that changes in this area may be difficult to accomplish. Houses are mainly built to burn oil, or run on coal. In most houses, coal is used for electricity because it is the cheapest and most abundant resource.

To assist with this problem, architects will have to start using materials that can reduce the consumption of fuels by making them better ventilated or better at holding in heat. Government regulators must pass laws forcing contractors to follow stricter guidelines when building homes to reduce energy consumption. Finally, individuals can reduce the amount of frivolous energy they use on a daily basis.

6. Methane Stored in Water and Ice

With the increase in temperature, a fear of methane being released into the air arises. Methane is approximately 60 times stronger than carbon dioxide as a green house gas. According to scientists, in the past, a rapid release of methane has led to immense heating of the earth. In the past, when the earths temperature rose to a certain level, such as 8 degrees above normal, the earths temperature then increased an additional 14 degrees.

Methane is stored in the earths oceans and is released when the temperature increases and pressure reduces. Also, methane can be found in ice. When ice melts, methane stored in the ice is released. Scientists fear that if the earth reaches a certain temperature, it would be impossible to turn back and prevent a massive increase in temperature.

George Christodoulou,

If you want more information about the top 10 causes of global warming,
please visit http://globalwarming-online.com for more information.

10 Simple Actions That Reduce Your Environmental Impact

There is a big difference between knowing how to live green and actually living green. Being green isn't always easy and it isn't always cheap but the world you live in becomes a better place for your efforts.

"Greening" your own life starts with a single step. If you are ready to take that first step then consider the following 10 simple actions that you can apply in your own life to reduce your impact on the environment.

1. Support local green businesses. Do you have a local Co-op or Farmer's Market you could be shopping at?
2. Install Energy Star products such as compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) or a Cool-N-Save(tm) Air Conditioning Pre-Cooling System. Doing this can provide a 30-75% energy savings.
3. Always remember to check and maintain your tire pressure at least once a month. Doing this can save you about $840 a year on gas and reduce approximately 250 lbs of carbon dioxide.
4. Add low-flow aerators to any sink you have that may have been manufactured before 1994. In 1994 the government mandated that sinks could have no more then 2.2 gallons per minute of flow, before 1994 sinks could use between 3-4 gallons of water per minute.
5. Purchase green power from your electric company. This reduces demand for fossil fuel based power.
6. Plant a tree. Tree's offer shade and reduce CO2 from the environment.
7. Bring your own utensils into work - it's an easy way to avoid throwaway plastic ones.
8. Bring your own coffee mug to coffee shops - it's an easy way to avoid disposable coffee cups.
9. Reduce the amount of red meat you eat. Why? The production of animal-products has an expensive environmental cost, so the less you eat, the less the environment incurs.
10. Unplug power adapters, like your cell phone charger and MP3 player charger, when not in use. These chargers use energy 24/7 even when your item is not charging.
    

While this is far from a comprehensive list I hope these tips help you become a bit more "green" in your own life. As the world keeps getting bigger it's more and more important we each do our part.

Sam Greyhawk is an energy efficiency evangelist who works for Cool-N-Save(tm), an Energy Star Partner, in Huntington Beach, California. When you want to reduce your impact on the environment remember Cool-N-Save(tm).

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