Archive for Re-purposing

Eliminate Static this Winter

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What Is Static Electricity?

Static is the buildup of an electrical charge on the surface of another object. As the charge moves from one object to another, it releases electricity, producing a shock. It is directly affected by humidity. Static increases when the air gets cold and humidity drops. To stay warm in your home, you turn up the heat, further adding to a decrease in humidity and increasing static. While static can be annoying and sometimes painful, there are some simple things you can do to reduce it.

Add Humidification

Probably the most important tip is to add water back to the air circulating in your home. This can be done in a few ways. First, a humidifier can be used to produce a continuous stream of moisture. This can be a unit placed in the room you are in or a humidification unit added to your home’s heater.

If you don’t have a humidifier, you can place a pot of water on the stove and let it evaporate, adding moisture to the air. This can be particularly nice if you also add things that smell good – like evergreen sprigs or a drop or two of essential oils like lavender. Just be sure not to let the pot get dry. It’s a good idea to set an alarm so you can move freely away from the stove.

Use Fabric Softener

Another major source of static electricity is fabric – whether it is your clothing, your upholstery, or your carpet. Dryer sheets can go a long way to reduce static in these instances. While you can’t get your furniture in your dryer, you can rub a dryer sheet over the surface of the upholstery.

For your carpet, you can either use liquid fabric softener or static elimination sprays. If you use liquid fabric softener, dilute with water and spray just a little on the carpet – you don’t need to soak the surface to get a good result.

For reducing static in your clothing, try wearing natural fabrics, such as cotton. Anything synthetic will build up a charge faster, and therefore create the shock when you touch something.

Carry Something Metal

To stop the dreaded shock when touching the doorknob – touch it with something metal first, essentially grounding yourself. This can be a key, a thimble, or a safety pin that you keep with you for just this purpose.

Clean Floors

And finally, keeping your floors tidy and clean through vacuuming, sweeping, and mopping can also help reduce static electricity by reducing the amount of dust. The Cleaning Authority is here to help with that – get an estimate today.

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Posted in: Around the District, Community, Customer Infomation, From the Office, Re-purposing, Uncategorized, Weather

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Water is the earth’s most vital resource

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The amount of moisture on Earth has not changed. The water the dinosaurs drank millions of years ago is the same water that falls as rain today. But will there be enough for a more crowded world? How we use and reuse water will help define the future of our planet. Water is life. It’s the briny broth of our origins, the pounding circulatory system of the world. We stake our civilizations on the coasts and mighty rivers. Our deepest dread is the threat of having too little – or too much.

People use water in many ways at home: drinking, cooking, bathing, brushing teeth, washing clothes, dishes, and cars, flushing toilets, watering gardens and lawns, and filling swimming pools. Most people do not think much about how much water they use. Perhaps this is partly because they don’t all pay for it each time they use it, except when they buy bottled water.

There are many ways we can conserve water in our homes. Some are easier than others. Leaky faucets and leaky toilets waste very large amounts of water, because even though the flow rates are small, they leak all the time. New designs of toilets and washing machines use much less water than older designs, but replacement may be expensive. Water-saving shower heads save a lot of water, and they are relatively easy and inexpensive to replace. The most effective ways to reduce water use, however, might be the most difficult. Taking “navy showers” (turning off the water while you’re soaping yourself), not planting lavish lawns in areas that are normally arid, and not washing cars so often are examples of effective and simple ways to conserve water.

Furthermore, PCWD does offer a rebate program to our residents! All Rebates must be approved by the General Manager and must include proof of purchase and installation and there will be no repeat rebates allowed for a minimum of 5 years. Within any fiscal year, the maximum total rebate is $250.00 per property. Proof of Purchase is a copy of the receipt that shows the cost of the item. We will not accept a copy of a bill from the person installing the item as proof of purchase. Their bill is for proof of installation only. Labor and Installation are not included in the rebate.

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Posted in: Around the District, Community, Company News, Conservation, Customer Infomation, Freebies, From the Office, Leaks, Pine Cove Water District, Re-purposing, Recycling, Uncategorized, Water Conservation

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Free Wood Chips!

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Spring cleaning and gardening season is here or for others right around the corner. Thinking of getting in the gardening spirit here soon?

PCWD offers free wood chips to our customers. If you are interested in wood chips just come on by the Dutch Flats location anytime. It is great for gardening, holding in moisture of soil and makes a nice added touch to spruce up your yard or potted plants.

You must bring your own materials to gather or shovel and haul the mulch or wood chips away. If you are planning on gathering a large amount on your own, please let us know in the office as we want to be sure there is enough for everyone.


Check out this great video of a brief overview of our Dutch Flats location.

Making Dutch Flats Healthy on Vimeo

Also, if you need a larger load of wood chips, call the office and we can deliver a dump truck load for $125 delivery charge.

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Posted in: Around the District, Community, Company News, Compost, Customer Infomation, Freebies, From the Office, Garden, gardening, Homesteading, Mulch, Pine Cove Water District, Re-purposing, The Garden, Upcoming Events, Wood chips

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Today’s Decisions Affect Tomorrow’s Reality

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The world that we live in today is a world where an ever-increasing population places larger demands on the earth’s finite resources. The manner in which we use these resources, determines the kind of world we leave to our children and future generations.

Water is a precious commodity in southern California. More than 70% of California’s total precipitation falls in the northern half of the state, however, 80% of California’s water demand is in the southern portion of the state. Southern California largely depends on water imported from northern California and from the Colorado River. Both local and imported water sources can be severely affected by drought, and imported water supplies have become increasingly uncertain as a result of demands by other regions. Currently, all mountain communities are facing water shortages that make water conservation increasingly important! Over demands have caused many residents to realize that preservation of our mountain environment and quality of life depends substantially on how we manage our limited water resources.

Conservation must become a way of life!

The situation today is crucial. The quickest, most certain way to begin to save water immediately is to conserve water at home. Less than half the water you use is used inside your home. The rest is used outdoors, mainly watering home landscaping. Most families can reduce water use by simply changing and learning to reduce water waste inside and outside our homes.

Outdoors:

  • Scale back and limit landscaping
  • Water your lawn only when it needs it (in the morning or late afternoon)
  • Reduce or replace lawn areas with spaces like patios and walkways
  • Review, repair, and retrofit irrigation systems so they are water efficient and deliver only water that is needed
  • Re-landscape with plants that use less water and retrofit or install appropriate irrigation to match
  • Pick up wood chips here at Pine Cove Water District; Adding a layer of mulch around trees and plants will help reduce evaporation and keep the soil cool
  • Instead of a water hose, use a broom to clean driveways and sidewalks

Indoors:

  • Limit your showers. Also, fill the bathtub halfway or less
  • Turn off the faucet when you brush your teeth
  • Install low-flow shower heads in the bathroom
  • Install a water-efficient toilet
  • When it’s time to replace appliances, choose a water-efficient dishwasher and washing machine
  • Run ONLY full loads in the dishwasher and washing machine
  • Fix leaky faucets and toilets as quickly as possible

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Posted in: Around the District, Community, Company News, Compost, Conservation, Customer Infomation, Drought, Freebies, From the Office, Garden, Homesteading, Leaks, Mulch, Pine Cove Water District, Rain, Rain Water Harvesting, Re-purposing, The Garden, Uncategorized, Water Conservation, Wood chips

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Self Watering Raised Bed Gardens

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In an effort to reduce water usage out of doors, but still be able to garden, one option is a self watering container.  They are an excellent choice because the water is contained under the plant and therefore does not evaporate and is available to the plant 24/7, which makes over or under watering impossible.  As long as the water reserve has water in it, the plant takes what it needs when it needs us and pretty much cuts the human out of the equation all together.  Which brings me to my next point.  Self watering containers free up your time.  Instead of being a slave to watering the garden, you just make sure the containers are kept full and that is all you have to do.  While you can use a drip or soaker system on a timer, these methods take more effort to install and the squirrels love to reek havoc on drip system parts.  Luckily, they cannot do much damage to a self watering container.

So if these self watering containers are so fabulous, why isn’t everyone using them?  Well, price is a big obstacle.  They are fairly expense when compared to other types of containers of a similar size.  Plus, what if you want to make a raised bed veggie garden for instance?  The amount of containers you would have to buy would be extensive.  So what is the solution?

A self watering raised be garden of course.  I found this video over at mylittlehomestead.com, where they show how they made a self watering raised bed garden using a 55 gallon drum cut in half.  Genius!  Why didn’t I think of that?  Here is the video.
 

I think this is a fabulous way to have your cake and eat it too. All the benefits of a raised bed garden combined with the benefits of a self watering container. What could be better? If you try this in your garden, let us know! Send us pictures or video and we will post it here on the blog. Also if you discover how to make any improvements to this design, let us know. I will be trying this in my own garden. I think it would be great.

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Posted in: Edible Landscaping, From the Office, Garden, gardening, Raised Bed Gardens, Re-purposing, Recycling, The Garden, Water Conservation

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Frugal Friday

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Time for another Frugal Friday tip.  I have talked a lot about raised bed and container gardens.  But there is one other way to grow a few veggies or some flowers.  Window boxes.  Window boxes are a great way to grow cherry tomatoes, lettuces and other small or mini varieties of vegetables. They are also perfect for flowers and ivy and add a charm to your home that not much else can.   They are  also excellent for making an herb garden.  What could be better than the smell of mint or basil or rosemary wafting through your kitchen window from a window box full of herbs.  Plus your cooking will improve as you will be able to just walk outside and snip fresh herbs to add to your dishes.

Window boxes are very easy to make and you can use scrap wood you have laying around or can find cheaply.  Old fence boards, plywood and other things like dresser drawers, can all be used to make window boxes.  They can be as plain or as fancy as you like.  Add trim or appliques for a shabby chic look or leave them plain for a more rustic approach.  You can even buy them pre-made and just hang them.  There are as many styles as there are budgets. Let your imagination run wild and just remember to design them so that they will co-ordinate with your home’s décor.   Here are a few examples:

Shabby Chic window boxThis example is from the blog My Shabby Streamside Studio and was made from scrap wood.  An applique was added and then the whole thing was painted shabby chic white.  Plastic window boxes tucked down inside the wooden box,  hold a variety of plants and can be changed out from season to season.

Rustic window boxHere is an example of a rustic wooden window box that was hung on brackets.

Window Box CottagesAdorable cottage style window boxes on a shed give it charm.

dresser-drawer-window-boxesHow’s this for creativity?  Old dresser drawers make perfect window boxes!

I am sure if you do a quick search online, you can come up with many more ideas, especially on sites like Pinterest.  So why not go out and rummage around  in your garage or at the local thrift store and see what scrap wood you can come up with to   create some lovely and useful window boxes for your cabin, cottage or castle and then get planting!

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Posted in: Customer Infomation, From the Office, Garden, Homesteading, Raised Bed Gardens, Re-purposing, Recycling

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Frugal Friday

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The cleverness and imagination of some people never ceases to amaze me.  I just love when someone finds a new use for an item that would otherwise end up in a landfill.  Take automobile or truck tires for instance.  We all have the odd friend, neighbor or relative that plunks an old tractor tire in their yard and plants flowers in it.  Some even go so far as to paint the tire first, and while there is nothing wrong with this as a tire is essentially a raised be garden,  you have to admit that they just aren’t that attractive.  To me, if I am going to upcycle something into my garden, it has to not only have a useful purpose, but it has to look good and add to the overall aesthetic of my garden.  After all, the whole point of upcycling is to give a new purpose and life to old items and create a unique and useful garden space.  Making your garden look like the neighborhood dump isn’t part of the plan!

With that in mind I set out in search of new uses for old tires.  I chose tires because they are easily available and most everyone has them or can get their hands on them and usually for free or very cheaply.  Plus unlike wooden items, they last for a very long time, so you don’t have to keep redoing them as they rot out.

One word of caution.  The jury is still out on whether or not it is safe to use old tires to grow edibles.  Here is an article about it and then you can do your own research and decide for yourself if you want to use them to grow edible crops or not.   However,   there are plenty of other things you can do with them and you can always plant other types of plants in them, such as annuals,  should you decide to use them for planters.

I thought these were adorable, although I am not sure if you can actually sit on them since the sign says “Please do not sit”.  But with a little imagination you could make them so that you can sit on them and I think they would be great for kids.

Tire Seats

Of course, there is always the traditional tire swing.

tire swing 3

tire swing 4

tire swing 2

tire swing 1

How about a sandbox?

Tire Sand Box

A vinyl shower curtain or table cloth would be the perfect cover for this when it is not in use.

This is very clever.  Stair treads made from old tires.

Tire stair treds

And of course, you can always make a hanging planter.

Tire Planters

Hopefully, this will give you some ideas to get your own creative juices flowing!  There are many more ideas and a quick Google search will yield lots more than I can put into a post.  If you do decide to use tires for growing edibles, there are some great tutorials on line for growing potatoes in tires, making raised bed gardens, planters and retaining walls.  The sky seems to be the limit with what you can do with old tires!  If you decide to give them a try, drop us an email and a picture of your project.  Send it to Vicki at pcwd . org.  Have fun!

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Posted in: Frugal Friday, Garden, Raised Bed Gardens, Re-purposing, Recycling, The Garden, Upcycling

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