Watering your lawn with the proper amount of water is essential for a thick, healthy, weed resistant lawn.
For an established lawn, 1" of water, once a week is the rule. During very hot or dry periods, it may need more.
An easy way to figure out how long it takes your sprinkler to give your grass 1" of water, is to use a rain gauge. Put the rain gauge under your lawn sprinkler and time how long it takes to get to one inch. A rough guide is about 3 hours for 1"of water with most sprinklers.
One deep watering is better than frequent shallow watering. One deep watering per week will promote longer and healthier roots. Light, frequent watering produces shallow roots subject to drying out as the surface dries. More frequent watering can cause pooling of water that encourages lawn disease, insect populations and shallow roots to drown.
The best time to water is in the morning. Water pressure is higher and evaporation is low. The soil will accept more water before it is baked by the afternoon sun. Night watering can allow the grass to stay wet too long and promote lawn disease.
By overseeding a lawn every few years, you will have a thick beautiful yard that not only looks great, but can easily be kept virtually weed free with very little effort.
As grass gets to be 5 years old or so, it drastically slows down the rate of reproduction. This can cause your lawn to get thinner and more susceptible to weeds. By adding new seed to a lawn every few years you can easily revitalize your lawn. The best time to overseed a lawn is spring and fall when temperatures are between 45 and 75 degrees.
The first step to overseeding is to clean up any debris and weeds. Then rake the lawn to remove all loose thatch and grass clippings. The new seeds need to make contact with soil to germinate.
The second step is to mow your grass to the lowest setting that your mower will allow. Use a grass catcher if you have it and bag the clippings. By doing this, the seeds can drop easily to the soil. This is also the perfect time to aerate your lawn. This involves punching small holes throughout the lawn. This allows more oxygen and water to penetrate into the ground and more opportunity for the seeds to get into the soil.
The third step is topping your lawn with a light coating of topsoil or a seeding soil. A seeding soil will help the seeds germinate and has a starter fertilizer added to speed root development. Seed must come in contact with soil, or they will not germinate.
After topping the lawn with some type of soil, you should water the lawn thoroughly, giving it 1 inch of water. This will help keep the lawn moist for germination.
The fourth step is to put down the seed. You can use a full size spreader or a hand held one. The spreader and the bag of grass seed will have the settings for correct dispersal.
If you did not use the seeding soil, make sure to use a starter fertilizer. This is a must to develop strong roots quickly and has a blend of nutrients to help not only the seedlings but the established lawn.
The fifth step is to water. You need to mist the lawn twice a day for at least 2 weeks. The first few weeks are the difference between success and failure for the seedlings. The seeds need consistent moisture to germinate. Then as the roots start to develop, if they dry out before they get a good root hold into the soil, they will die. This is one of the most important steps, a light misting twice a day for at least 2 weeks.
A light misting, rather than a soaking will also help keep the seeds from pooling and bunching up.
So the key steps are;
Rake and clean up the lawn of any debris.
Mow the grass to the lawn mowers lowest setting. (set it back to high for the rest of the year)
Water the lawn thoroughly, at least 1 inch of water.
Put down seed using a spreader.
Put down a seeding soil or starter fertilizer.
Mist the lawn twice a day for 2 weeks.
Do this every couple years. Fertilize and water regularly and you will have a lawn that will be the envy of the neighborhood.
If you have a large hole in a wall and a scrap piece of drywall, I like using a drywall clip kit.
The clips will hold a drywall patch in place so it is easy to compound and tape.
Tamper resistant receptacles are now required for all new homes. If you have kids in the house and you are changing outlets, it makes sense to change to the new tamper resistant outlets.
Turn off the power to any circuit you are working on. Remove the old outlet and make sure you can identify what wires go to the gold colored screws. Mark these wires with tape if needed.
If you are working on a 15 amp circuit, replace the outlet with a 15 amp outlet. If you are in a kitchen or an area that has a 20 amp circuit, you would replace that outlet with a 20 amp outlet.
Connect your hot wires to the gold colored screws and the neutral wires to the silver screws. If you have a ground wire, connect it to the green screw.
Friday, July 19, 2013
To keep laminate floors clean, you should invest in a good dust mop and a microfiber mop. Laminate floors are very durable, but they will scratch and wear if not maintained properly.
For daily cleaning you should use a broom or a dry mop to keep dirt from scratching the surface of the laminate. You have to be careful using a vacuum on laminate. The beater brush and wheels can scratch the surface.
Once a week, or when needed, you can use a laminate cleaner on the surface to keep dirt and spills from damaging the top coat. One product I like is the Bona laminate cleaner. It is a ready to use, non toxic cleaner. Just spray it on a microfiber mop and clean the surface. I would use a reusable microfiber mop that can be cleaned. If you are cleaning the surface and it starts to streak, you need to rinse the mop. Once it is rinsed, wring out the water. You can use it if it is slightly damp.
You never want to use water and a wet mop on laminate. It will swell and warp the fiberboard under the surface.
If you are doing drywall projects, here are some drywall tools you should have.
For all small projects around the house. For filling small holes, repairing settling cracks and fixing nail pops, you should have...
2 drywall knives. A 6 inch knife and a 10 or 12 inch knife. This alone will allow you to do most repairs.
Drywall hammer. To repair nail pops and to set drywall nails, a drywall hammer, with its beveled face, does a great job of dimpling nails just under the surface without tearing the paper face.
Drywall sanding sponge. I like a sanding sponge with a fine side and a medium side. It does a nice job on flat surfaces and in corners.
For all larger projects that involve cutting and installing drywall, you will want to have these tools...
Drill with an adjustable clutch. Makes setting and dimpling screws fast and easy.
Dimpling bit. If you have a regular drill, a dimpling bit will set your drywall screws just under the surface without tearing the face.
Stud finder. If you are cutting out drywall, a stud finder will help find the center of the studs for attaching drywall.
Drywall saw. For fast accurate cuts, a drywall saw does a much better job than a utility knife.
Drywall rasp. To smooth rough edges, this tool is a time saver. Not a must have, but it is convenient.
Tape Measure.
Utility knife. I like a fixed blade.
Mud pan. If you are doing a lot of work on a ladder, a mud pan makes compounding seams much easier and faster.
Drywall T. If you are cutting a lot of drywall, a drywall t is an excellent tool. You can use it to mark all your lines and as a guide for your utility knife.
If you are tired of pulling weeds, don't like weed trimmers and are scared of chemicals, I found a great way to kill weeds. A weed torch.
A weed torch uses propane to create heat
around 2,000 degrees to quickly kill weeds and undesirable grass.
A weed torch will kill most weeds in seconds by destroying the cells in
the leaves that create food for the plant. The high temperature is enough to
kill the weeds or unwanted grass, you don’t have to burn the plants to a
charred stump.
When killing weeds, it is most effective with weeds that are 1 to 4 inches
tall. When plants are this small, you will get a very effective control with
one pass. Most weeds only need to be exposed to the high heat for a second. You
can usually work on an area with a slow walking pace to kill unwanted weeds and
grass.
Killing weeds in a problem area like a chain link fence is very simple and
effective with a weed torch. It is also excellent for brick patios, landscaping
stones and sidewalks. For gardens, it is easy to use in the space between
plantings.
You can also use a weed torch for melting ice on sidewalks and concrete steps.
You can use the torch for paint removal, starting charcoal, burning stumps and
other high heat projects.
