The open living room and 48" hallways is easily accessible for a wheelchair users in the Gill family's ADA-compliant home in Naperville, Illinois. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune/TNS)

The open living room and 48" hallways is easily accessible for a wheelchair users in the Gill family's ADA-compliant home in Naperville, Illinois. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune/TNS)

The open living room and 48" hallways is easily accessible for a wheelchair users in the Gill family's ADA-compliant home in Naperville, Illinois. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune/TNS)

The open living room and 48" hallways is easily accessible for a wheelchair users in the Gill family's ADA-compliant home in Naperville, Illinois. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune/TNS)

Homes with accessibility are in great demand, but that doesn't mean they're easy to find

Matthew Gill, 25, was 19 years old when he jumped into the Rock River in Wisconsin. He dove in, not realizing the depth of the water he was diving into, and hit his head, according to his father, Bill Gill.

Matthew's spinal cord injury put him in a wheelchair for the rest of his life.

The accident changed the trajectory of the Gill family in many ways, including in terms of housing. Matthew's childhood home in Lisle, Illinois, was no longer conducive to his new mobility. The split-level, five-bedroom, three-bath residence was too small.

"I am in a wheelchair, full time we got a chair lift put in. I would transfer to that and use that up the stairs and someone would have to bring up the wheelchair," Matthew said.

"That led to a lot of frustration for my son early on," Bill said.

And despite Bill being in the real estate industry for 32 years, his experience and expertise did not make it easier to find a home that was compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

When the Gills started looking for homes, they wanted to stay in their current school district for their youngest daughter (then in elementary school). But after looking at "hundreds of homes online" and viewing about 80 homes in person -- seeking residences with first floor masters or ranch homes that could be remodeled -- and not finding anything suitable with the help of colleagues and competitors, Bill, Baird & Warner's branch manager in Naperville, Illinois, decided to design and build their own home.

"Some of the homes just needed so much work," he said. "And we were doing all of this with everything else going on -- trying to work, a sixth grader, three kids in college, and then Matt. The entire family was just devastated at this injury."

But before their custom home was built, a six-bedroom, 4.5-bath home in Naperville became available. The Gills remodeled and moved in during March 2015.

"The house was about the same floor plan that we were designing and yet buying it was half the cost of building a house," Bill Gill said. "And the modifications we did were about half the cost of what any other house we looked at would have been."

The modifications entailed:

Taking out a pantry to add a vertical platform lift for Matthew's wheelchair (A cross between an elevator and a forklift, it doesn't require inspections like an elevator).

Hardwood floors.

A bedroom with a fan, thermostat and lights controlled by Matt's phone

A video-monitoring system to see who is coming up the walk/driveway.

A roll-in luxury shower.

Custom bathtub.

Custom-built vanity.

Hallways and doorways that are wider than his 28-inch chair.

No steps in the house, including to the outside deck.

A refrigerator with shallow shelves and wide doors, so he can reach all the shelves.

A kitchen island that allows Matt access to the oven and stove.

A three-car garage with a ramp that allows Matt direct access to the house.

Bill says these are all things that you don't think about until you have to.

"This is where the real challenge lies: Accessible means different things to different people. To some people it means a ranch home, but it might be a ranch home with steps down to the family room. The biggest problem is defining what exactly an accessible home is. Here, Matthew can get into every room in the house," he said.

Options for aging in place

The Gills aren't alone in their search for a home centered around a loved one's mobility needs. While they were looking for a home that provided a new normal for them, others may be looking to age in place and add features to their living space. According to the Housing America's Older Adults 2019 report released by Harvard University's Joint Center for Housing Studies (JCHS), just 3.5% of all U.S. homes had basic accessibility features, including grab-bars or handrails in the bathroom, extra-wide hallways and doors, and a bedroom on the entry level, in 2011. Given that mobility and other difficulties increase with age, the report projects many older homeowners will need to make accessibility improvements if they want to remain in their homes.

"We have been doing a lot more jobs where we're basically getting houses more accessible as our clients age," said Bob Zuber, a partner at Morgante Wilson Architects. "I think we're also seeing a lot of in-laws staying with clients and getting that ready to go. We're talking about bigger bathrooms, elevators, wider hallways, and first floors that are closer to ground level with the possibility of ramps integrated into the landscape or into the front porch."

Knowing a client's needs means fewer broad strokes and more specificity when it comes to finding or designing for one's accessibility, says Dave Ernst, a principal with Morgante who designed Susan and Jon Newsome's Winnetka, Wisconsin, residence to adhere to Jon's myotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) needs. Their home includes:

A ceiling-mounted lift system that uses a sling to transport Jon between the master bedroom and bath, which features an ADA-compliant vanity and tub/wet room area.

Wide halls and doorways that accommodate wheelchair accessibility.

An elevator that accesses the basement and second floor.

A main hallway that transverses the center of the home and provides access to all major first-floor living spaces. (A reinforced handrail is gracefully incorporated into the hallway's wainscot paneling chair rail.)

Jon, 77, was diagnosed in 2010 and is completely immobile now. Susan said that although they had some idea of what adaptations the house would need, architects were helpful in the research that they provided. Communication is key too.

"It's important that they find out what that person is going to need based upon their lifestyle and what they want to do," she said.

Ernst said the Newsomes brought the idea of the lift system to Morgante when designing. He also said Morgante is currently working on homes for 30-somethings that will leave room for accessibility features to be added when the time comes.

Matthew is now working toward becoming a full-time financial adviser; and "getting ever so slightly tolerant of his situation," per his dad. Matthew said he and his brother are talking about eventually moving into a Chicago apartment together. One possibility for an accessible space is 640 N. Wells St., which has 30 ADA-compliant units with roll-in showers, kitchen countertops and cabinetry that can be lowered to fit the needs of the resident and electrical wiring to allow for notification systems for those who are deaf, according to Ericka Rios, leasing director and co-founder of Downtown Apartment Co., a matchmaker for buildings and renters.

Bill looks back and says networking with more people in the same situation is essential when looking for and preparing to buy an accessible home. Finding out what worked and what didn't work for other individuals and their different experiences would have prepared the Gills a bit more for their circumstances.

"Finding resources to help you -- people who have gone there before -- that's the biggest thing," Bill said. "I felt like we were doing that, but the bottom line is we were not doing it enough. You need more perspectives and input and that's going to be the best help you can get. You'll see themes. If you talk to six people and they tell you the same thing, you better listen. The more you interact and the more you network, the more it helps you."

When looking for accessible homes, Zuber recommends focusing on properties with most of the living space on one level; doorways that are oversized; and 5-foot diameter spaces for wheelchair turnaround.

"A lot of people aren't familiar with what the requirements are, so we educate them so that they know why we are providing those extra spaces," Ernst said. "Giving clients exactly what they want and need, making it less of a house and more of a home."

See the rest here:
Homes with accessibility are in great demand, but that doesn't mean they're easy to find - Manistee News Advocate

If youre looking to add smart connectivity to your Christmas tree, any holiday lights, or pretty much anything else in your house that isnt already connected to your phone or a voice assistant, this is the deal for you. Use the coupon code 40BG3TCZ at checkout and you can snag a 4-pack of Aoycocr Mini WIFI Smart Plugs for an all-time low of just $19.79. At that price youre paying just $4.95 apiece for smart plugs that work with an iPhone or Android app, Alexa, Google Assistant, and IFTTT without the need to buy a separate hub. This price is absolutely unheard-of, and the deal wont be around much longer. Make sure you use this link to get them though, because the seller has to be XZLB-US or else the coupon code wont work.

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Follow @BGRDeals on Twitter to keep up with the latest and greatest deals we find around the web. Prices subject to change without notice and any coupons mentioned above may be available in limited supply. BGR may receive a commission on orders placed through this article.

Follow this link:
Grab these Alexa and Google enabled smart plugs $4.95 each before they sell out - BGR

Along with Genie, Chamberlain is one of the big two garage door opener manufacturers, offering equipment under its own brand name as well as the popular LiftMaster and Craftsman brands. As such, it stands to reason that it would have some idea of how to make high-quality smart garage door technology. Turns out, that instinct is correct.

The Chamberlain myQ Smart Garage Hub supports a wide range of openers from a multitude of brands, but youll need to check myQs fine print to determine exactly whether your opener is compatible. Since I have recent-model Liftmaster openers in my home, I encountered no compatibility issues.

Unlike some other brands, the myQ Smart Garage Hub is completely wireless. You only need to plug it into wall power and attach a sensor to the door. In essence, the myQ system works just like any other add-on garage door remote control, pairing directly with your opener hardware via the learn button. Once paired, you can communicate with the hub via myQs mobile app in order to send a wireless signal to the opener, telling it to open or close.

Because no additional wiring is necessary, setting up the myQ is quite simple. Unbox and plug in the hub unit, mount the wireless sensor on the door with Velcro and sticky tape, and press the learn button when instructed. After also creating an account through the myQ mobile app and pairing the hub with your Wi-Fi network, the process is complete. I didnt experience a single hiccup along the way.

Chamberlain provides a mounting bracket and screws to let you affix the controller to the ceiling, but it works just as well in a less permanent configuration.

The myQ app is relatively self-explanatory, though it provides two ways to organize your garage doors, either with a single large opener button front and center or with all the openers on the same page. This isnt exactly unusual, except for the fact that in order to open a door, you must tap the open icon just once in one of these views, and double-tap it if youre in another view. At first, I thought the system wasnt working when single taps failed to open the door, only to realize my error after a little experimentation.

One myQ hub can manage two compatible garage-door openers, but the price tag for the second sensor is a whopper.

The myQ system feature set includes the ability to set up alerts when a door is opened, closed, or stopped in between, as well as the ability to set up schedules. There is no automatic close feature included. My only complaint is that each alert must be manually configured, and the interface for setting up these alerts isnt the friendliest. If you want alerts to warn when a door has been opened, closed, and left open for a certain amount of time, you must manually create three different alerts.

The good news is that these all worked fine in my testing, and myQs logging system made it easy to keep track of everything that was going on.

When you use the app to close a garage door, youll immediately discover the most common complaint about the system: A loud beeping that lasts for a full 30-plus seconds (in my case, continuing until well after the door was completely shut).

This is of course a safety feature designed to alert anyone standing under the door that its about to shut on them, but it is nonetheless a grating nuisanceand many homeowners will find it simply unnecessary given the safety features that may already be built into their opener. As there is absolutely no way to turn the alarm off, some owners have actually taken to cutting the wire to the speaker to shut the thing up.

Thats a small drawback on an otherwise amazingly capable controller, and its list of additional features is impressive. Key among these is the fact that you can use a single hub to control two doors. Be wary when you shop for that additional sensor, though, as there are two models. This $25 model (at Amazon) controls this garage hub and another model, but it was out of stock at press time. This other model costs $60 at Amazon and controls only the garage hub reviewed here. I tried the former configuration in my home and had no trouble at all with it.

If you dont mind giving a delivery person access to your garage, the myQ system is compatible with the Amazon Key in-home delivery service.

The myQ system also supports the new Amazon Key delivery platform, and its building its own ecosystem of myQ-branded gear and third party products that work with the system. With add-ons like the myQ light switch, you can sync a switch to activate along with the garage door. In other words, you can have a light in the stairwell illuminate when you come home in the dark. (These accessories are a bit more liberally priced.)

Its also worth noting that myQ works with HomeKit and Wink, but not SmartThings. The system is also not compatible Alexaat least not officially. Both IFTTT and Google Assistant support are now free for a limited time. (Previously you had to pay $1 per month to use myQs IFTTT channel or connect to Google Assistant.) Heres hoping that limited time remains in place for the long haul.

In the final analysis, myQs outstanding capabilities and rock bottom price make it a no-brainer, top-tier choice in the smart garage controller field. If your system is compatible, I wouldnt hesitate to recommend it.

Read the original:
Chamberlain myQ Smart Garage Hub review: The smart garage controller to beat is also the least expensive - TechHive

A Hixon-area couple is struggling to get their lives back in order after a fire burned their home to the ground last Saturday evening.

Bruce Brady was sitting in the hot tub when he heard his dog barking long and loud inside the home - a trailer on a rural property about 15 kilometres north of the community. He went to investigate and discovered thick, black smoke.

The home is located outside the Hixon fire protection area but even then, it was doubtful firefighters could have saved it, it went up so quickly, Brady's stepdaughter, Kristin Bonner, said.

"He was thinking it was a chimney fire but it's really hard to tell because there is nothing left," Bonner said.

"He said he went to where the fireplace normally is and he said there were flames in between the floorboards and he tried putting that out with his fire extinguisher but he didn't stop it so he just got what he could and got out."

Brady and his wife Lorraine, who was in Vancouver at the time, are grandparents to 15 children and were hoping to hold a family get-together at their home over Christmas. Now they're living in Prince George with Bonner and her husband.

The home had been insured up until about two years ago when the insurer told them they needed to upgrade the wiring to get their policy renewed. They were in the process of gathering the material they needed when the fire broke out.

Bonner said the Hixon community has been "amazing" supplying the couple with basic items like clothes and shoes. But they a long way to go - a page has been posted on GoFundMe seeking donations and a fundraising event of some kind is being mulled for February.

Read more:
Fire puts Hixon-area couple out of their home - Prince George Citizen

They are scattered all over the UK. Industrial estates, big and small, often found on the edges of towns and cities, and each of them pretty much alike. They provide space for production and storage. They are practical places, well-lit but tucked away, unromantic and anonymous.

But behind the doors of buildings on two such sites, in Scarborough and Beverley, there is, quite literally, an Aladdins cave of delights: strident colours, eye-boggling costumes and sets, and a round-the-clock hive of twinkling activity. Welcome to the world of pantomime.

These units are home to the biggest panto production company in the world. This is the magical realm that is Qdos productions. Qdos isnt just the panto king, it also one of the largest broad-based entertainment groups in Europe. The pantomime division alone has about three dozen full-time workers, and there are many other employees across the company, which has offices in Covent Garden, but the company is very firmly based on the Yorkshire coast, and owned by husband and wife team of Nick and Sandra Thomas.

A Yorkshire theatre has banned plastic toys from its family Christmas pantomime

The couple met, he reveals with a laugh, in rather unusual circumstances. Nick is a long-standing fan of the late Ken Dodd, and went to see the master comedian when he was headlining a summer season in Scarborough. Sandra was in the cast as one of Doddys Diddymen. I rather think that she was playing Mick the Marmaliser. I fell in love with Kens devotion to show business, his unique take on the world, and his brand of comedy. And I also fell in love with Sandra. That was the golden bonus.

But this isnt the story of a shrewd young businessman sensing a good business opportunity. Nick was already immersed in performance, since he started out entertaining visitors on the seafront with his skills in puppetry. His office today is lined with cabinets full of puppets, marionettes and ventriloquists dolls. Some people dont like clowns, he says pragmatically, and if you dont like puppets, my working space probably isnt the place for you.

This year, Qdos will be presenting more than 70 pantomimes in theatres right across the UK. They own a few of the venues, but have strong links to some of the nations finest theatres including the Bradford Alhambra (where the panto this year is Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, starring Billy Pearce, Faye Tozer and Paul Chuckle) and the New Theatre in Hull, which is doing Aladdin.

It is also returning to the prestigious London Palladium, presenting panto right in the heart of the West End. So successful have its Palladium productions been that it is contracted for four more, with Julian Clary among the stars.

Qdos has something like a 100m yearly turnover, so it is forced to be reckoned with. Walking into its West Yorkshire units, theres a real sense of camaraderie in the air.

All you need to know about Screen Yorkshire - the team who backed Peaky Blinders, Official Secrets and All Creatures Great and Small

Nick who won the TV talent show New Faces back in 1975 knows his pantos backwards, and has an astonishing private (and priceless) collection of theatrical ephemera and memorabilia. Nick and Sandras shows move with the times, but here is one of the most curious things about pantomime. In the 300 years since it was born on the stages of Georgian London, it has changed out of all recognition, and yet at the same time retains its unique spirit of fun.

Shows move in and out of fashion, says Nick. At the moment, Disney titles drive panto along Beauty and the Beast, for example, with dozens of theatres offering that one a couple of years back. Aladdin, of course, and Snow White. Some titles are perennial favourites, with Cinderella being right there at the top of the list. Some have slipped in popularity for some reason, but, for the first time in years, we are offering a Humpty Dumpty next year and, surprisingly, Goldilocks is enjoying a revival, while Robin Hood is coming up, just as The Babes in the Wood (which is essentially the same story) is going down. Robinson Crusoe used to be in the top ten, but not any more.

The modern pantomime is a repository of theatrical styles, forms and conventions, and it has always appropriated elements from every other form of entertainment. What works is retained and adapted, what doesnt is discarded. Thats what makes it survive. It doesnt run for as many weeks as it once did, perhaps.

I can remember one season and it was with the blessed Ken Dodd, that ran so far into the New Year that he was actually tossing Easter Eggs into the audience! he jokes.

The first panto he saw was Cinderella, or Aladdin, at the Bournemouth Pavilion Theatre. What I can remember is that the star was Adam Faith. One of the happiest relationships that this company has is with the Alhambra, and weve been involved there since 1998, he says.

I try to get to see every one of our shows over a Christmas season, but it isnt always possible. However, I will never, ever, miss an Alhambra opening night, because the civic reception is such a joy. Its the best anywhere, no question about it.

Rather further from home, Qdos has expanded overseas there used to be quite a pantomime tradition in some of the cities that were once part of the British Empire. That slowly ebbed and died. But Qdos has revived it in South Africa and Australia, where the panto is alive and positively thriving but in the middle of the year, when it is wintertime over there, and summer over here.

Pictures of the productions are sent to the overseas venues, and they select what theyd like to use. Then a team will come over to Yorkshire to talk through the production and how it will be staged, and what the logistics are for getting A over to B. It is all packed and then it returns, to be counted, checked and, if needed refurbished. Thats on the international scale. Nationally, it is also a meticulous logging of what goes where and what returns. Every costume has to be cleaned and inspected.

The quiet times for the company are in late January and early February, when the pantos are either finished, or just about to close. But then everything explodes back into life again. The subject for the coming season is announced, and the counting begins. A London Palladium show will not fit on to the space at the Hull New, for example, and will have to be adapted. There are always new costumes being made Billy Pearces outfits are handmade every year, and that goes for many of the star names. Their measurements are all recorded, and every detail is kept.

How Yorkshires theatres are beating austerity cuts for the arts

In the Scarborough units colour bursts from the racks and shelves, and there are dresses in all shapes and sizes, Cinderellas ball-gowns dozens of them Captain Hooks brocaded topcoats. Who knows why Qdos has acquired some of Danny la Rues spectacular gowns, but here they are, rather incongruously adjacent to the Little Indian costumes from Peter Pan. The former requiring rather more upkeep and effort than the latter. Around the corner are more than 300,000 pairs of boots and shoes in all sizes and styles.

There is rack upon rack of rich cloth and fabric. And there is something new being added every day. Ask for something specific, and all of the wardrobe ladies (there are only two lads in that department) will know precisely where it is.

In Beverley, long-necked giraffes from a Goldilocks production look down on scenery being painted on the vast floors below. There are magic carpets, minarets and an electrically-powered skateboard alongside all kinds of paraphernalia. We are a huge collaborative effort, says Nick. From the guys who write the scripts, to the electricians wiring up the scenery, to the lovely people sewing on the sequins. We are all just little cogs in a huge wheel. And when I hear the applause at the end of a show I can cheerfully say, Job done.

View post:
The costumes and sets inside the Scarborough and Beverley units home to the biggest panto production company in the world - Yorkshire Post

TORONTO -- Owners of Ford F-series pickup trucks should take extra care to lock their vehicles because it appears theyre a primary target for thieves.

Once again, Ford F250 and F350 trucks from the 2000s topped the Insurance Bureau of Canadas annual ranking of the most stolen vehicles in Canada. In 2019, Ford pickup trucks took up eight of the top 10 spots on the list with the 2007 Ford F-350 claiming the unenviable title of most stolen vehicle for the year.

Its unsurprising news for anyone who has been following the IBCs annual ranking, which is based on insurance claims data collected from nearly all automobile insurance companies in Canada. Ford pickup trucks have consistently dominated the list since it began in 2003.

According to the IBC, Ford pickup trucks are prime targets because they lack ignition immobilizers, which are devices that can prevent thieves from hot-wiring them.

The lack of an ignition immobilizer is the number one reason this series of Ford trucks continues to take up the majority of spots on the list, the association said in a press release Tuesday.

Interestingly, the Ford pickup trucks featured on the list were earlier models from before 2008 when new safety technology was installed in the vehicles.

As some of the most popular vehicles on the road, the prevalence of Ford pickup trucks in Canada, particularly in provinces such as Alberta, also contributed to the high rate of theft.

THE TOP 10 MOST STOLEN VEHICLES IN CANADA IN 2019

With auto thefts costing Canadians close to $1 billion each year, the IBC warns that thieves are becoming more sophisticated and using new technology to bypass security systems and electronically gain access to vehicles.

According to the bureaus findings, technology had a major impact on vehicle thefts in 2019.

Electronic auto theft is on the rise across the country as more vehicles are equipped with technology like keyless entry fobs, said Bryan Gast, the national director of investigative services at IBC.

The IBC said thieves can use wireless transmitters to intercept the signal from keyless entry fobs and open a locked vehicles door.

TIPS TO PREVENT VEHICLE FRAUD

To protect your vehicle, the IBC advises owners to avoid leaving their keyless entry fob in a vehicle or in an unprotected area near the entrance of your home.

If you want to leave your fob near the front door, the IBC said to place it in a protective box or bag that blocks the signal instead of in an exposed bowl or on a hallway table.

Additionally, if your vehicle isnt already equipped with one, consider installing an immobilizing device to prevent thieves from hot-wiring it.

The IBC said Canadians should install a tracking device in their vehicles that can emit a signal to police or a monitoring station if a theft occurs.

OTHER TIPS

Read more:
These are the 10 most stolen vehicles in Canada - CTV News

A High Point Family was told it was safe to move into their new home, after an inspection by the Housing Authority.

The house caught fire a few days later. High Point Firefighters blamed faulty wiring.

The question is - who is responsible for making sure the home is safe to live in?

This home was inspected three times. Once by a private inspector when it was bought by its current owner, and twice by the Housing Authority.

High Point Fire Marshal Chris Weir said the chances of a home inspector finding something like that are pretty slim.

"This one instance was really kind of a fluke thing with the wires left in contact with combustible materials," Weir said.

He said inspectors usually check things like outlets and breaker panels, and they usually don't go into concealed areas.

Weir said this is a good reminder to always use a certified electrician for any kind of work you want done.

"Sometimes as our homes get older, things get used constantly and just for a peace of mind it won't hurt to have an electrician come in and inspect your home," Weir said.

RELATED: 'It's Heartwrenching,' High Point Womans New Home Catches Fire After Failing Then Passing Inspection

See the original post:
How Did Three Inspections Miss Exposed Wiring That Led To High Point House Fire? - WFMYNews2.com

I ran a handyman-type business part time for 35 years until health problems caused me to quit. I put an ad in the paper for just one week and was busy until the day I closed it out. It surprised me that I would be so busy but in retrospect I know why.

My customers would pass my name around to their friends and family because I treated them like I wanted to be treated. Apparently this concept has gone the way of black-and-white television and rotary dial telephones. I have now reached the age where I am the one who needs some help.

I sided my house several years ago but a wind storm caused one piece to come loose. I called several people and the first person who showed up nailed it back up with the nail heads showing, and the next windstorm pulled thenails through the siding, leaving holes. So he went on the S list and I tried again.

One man showed up in the back seat of a car driven by a relative. He looked over the job and asked if I had a ladder to get up there. What? You dont have a ladder? He then said he would have to go on the internet to see how to do the repairs I needed. Another entry to the list. Finally I had a man from Lancaster do the job and he did it the right way. The siding hasnt been blown off since.

One day, the automatic garage door opener stopped working. Investigation revealed that the underground wiring I had installed more than 30 years ago had shorted out. Because I had a concrete patio installed right over the in-ground conduit, I decided to call an electrical contractor to install a new underground feed. They dug up my yard, burrowed under the sidewalk and put the new wiring into the back of my garage, instead of the side where I had originally installed it.

Shortly after that, after it had snowed, Donna came into the house and asked if there should be sparking where the old wiring entered the garage wall. I looked out the window and saw that the siding was melted and had black marks on it. I quickly ran to the basement and shut off the circuit breaker before my garage and two vehicles inside burned. If it wasnt for the fact that there was snow piled against the wall, I probably would have lost the building and my cars.

Seeing as they were a licensed electrical contractor, I never inspected the job they had done. I figured they would do it right and to code. Wrong!My investigation revealed the old wiring had never been disconnected and they didnt install the National Electrical Code required disconnect. So I called and read them the riot act including quoting the specific code they violated when wiringmy garage. Then I presented them with two choices: Fix the problems including the burned and melted siding, or be reported. They were out the next day to repair the wiring.

I needed my gutters cleaned. I called several outfits that were recommended on Facebook but only one sent a crew. I would have called them Curly, Larry and Moe but I think Moe was still in prison. They did do what I asked. They cleaned the gutters but left the downspouts plugged tight as a duck's arse. I didnt find this out until the next time it rained and they all overflowed. My list is getting longer.

I wanted my exterior doors replaced. They had been here since 1919 and they wouldnt close in the summer and leaked so bad in the winter that the breeze would blow out a candle. One person showed up, from a large company that advertises on TV. They gave me a price but because my doors were oversize doors, they would only install a standard door, leaving a 4-inch gap at the top for me to deal with. I am running out of paper. Finally I found a person to do what I wanted: Replace two doors and two storm doors. All for the low, low price of $6,000.

I wanted a digital thermostat installed in the master bedroom suite. So again I went to Facebook for suggestions. A man contacted me and we agreed he would come over the next day. When he arrived, he had our new thermostat and his tools in a plastic T-shirt bag.

I had left the bedroom and was sitting in the living room when I heard a zap, saw sparks and all the lights in the bedroom went out. So I got up to see if the contractor was laying on the floor. Four and a half hours later, after several zaps, damns and F bombs and after he reinstalled the old thermostat that was not working now, I told him to go home. He took some of the pieces with him and left a pile of spare parts. My list gets even longer.

It was cold that night and its going to be a cold for a few more nights. We still have no heat.

Norb Rug resides in Lockport. Contact him at nrug@juno.com.

Read more:
NORB RUG: Good help is hard to find - Lockport Union-Sun & Journal

The couple who bought a Frank Lloyd Wright house in Wilmette this month plan to rehabilitate it extensively over several years, calling the effort just the kind of project they were looking for.

It doesnt scare us, said Amy Bauer, who with her husband, Eric Bauer, bought the five-bedroom house on Lake Avenue from a family that had owned it since 1957. The 4,800-square-foot house, on about six-tenths of an acre, has exterior stucco damage, utilities that are more than half a century old, a somewhat awkward floorplan in the bedroom sectionsand other deficits, but we have a sense of pride that we can be the ones who bring this house back up to where it should be, she said.

The plans includeoverhauling all dated mechanicals, installing a new kitchen in the style of the houseand possibly re-creating a lost mural in the dining room.

I love the way you can tell the time of day from the way the light moves through the house, Amy Bauer said. The original house, builtin 1909 for the family of Frank J. Baker, has a run of diamond-patterned leaded-glass windows spanning roughly 75 feet across the front. The house was expanded around 1919 with a rear addition that Wright also designed.

See the original post:
Wright house in Wilmette to get major rehab - Crain's Chicago Business

PowerShadess new smart shades can be controlled and powered using a single cable | TechHive The motor in these shades draws electricity from a low-voltage ethernet cable, eliminating the need for disposable batteries or an ugly wall wart.

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One of the biggest headaches of installing smart window shades is figuring out how to power the motors. Relying on AC power requires an ugly wall wart and hiding the resulting wires, but relying on battery power is just not environmentally friendly. Now theres an alternative.

Missouri-based PowerShades says its latest smart shades come with a motor that supports Power over ethernet (PoE), a technology that allows for the transmission of both power and data over a single low-voltage ethernet cable.

PoE support is common in such networked devices such as security cameras, network switches, VoIP phones, and wireless access points, but this is the first time weve heard of a PoE-enabled smart shade, and its a clever alternative to snaking bulky Romex electrical wiring through your walls.

The PoE smart shades are compatible with standard CAT5e and CAT6 ethernet cables. You can connect the shades to an ethernet switch with PoE-enabled LAN ports, or you could use a separate PoE injector to add power to your ethernet cabling if youre using a non-PoE switch.

PowerShades new line of PoE-enabled smart shades are compatible with standard Cat 5 and Cat 6 ethernet cables.

The PoE-equipped motors that comes with the new shades features a low-voltage design (less than 50V, PowerShades says), which means they can be installed without the help of an electrician.

Like PowerShades other smart shades, the new PoE shades are compatible with Amazon Alexa, Google Home, Samsung SmartThings, Creston, ELAN, Control4, RTI, and other smart home systems.

The shades, which are available in roller, pleated, horizontal, and honeycomb styles (among others), can be grouped together, allowing you to control all the shades in a room at once.

You can also create schedules and scenes that automatically open and close the shades depending on the time of day. Other features include soft start and stop and a favorite position setting.

Ben has been writing about technology and consumer electronics for more than 20 years. A PCWorld contributor since 2014, Ben joined TechHive in 2019, where he covers smart home and home entertainment products.

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PowerShadess new smart shades can be controlled and powered using a single cable - TechHive