Here's To A Healthy Home

The air in your home can be seven to ten times dirtier than the air outside and the surfaces in your home are the starting point for spreading many germs and virus.

If you've heard the story about putting cut onions around your home to trap germs and viruses think again.  Hoax-Slayer says it doesn't work.



As a side benefit to reading this blog, here's a link to Hoax-Slayer that clears the air about some of the suggestions that arrive in your  inbox or your friends post on Facebook.

Save your onion for a salad or cooking and try a few of these tips to reduce the spread of germs in your home.

Take out the trash "Daily." Harmful germs can be transmitted into the air from your household garbage.

Clean your kitchen counters and cabinet handles with vinegar "Daily."  A quick wipe down with vinegar works wonders to reduce the spread of germs in the kitchen.  Some commercial cleaners can work even better than vinegar,but if you are concerned about harsh chemicals vinegar is a great alternative because it contains 5% acetic acid.  Some believe boiling water with vinegar on the stove once per week helps to kill germs in the air, but it is more likely that boiled vinegar is better at eliminating some odors in the air than it is for killing germs in the air.

Clean your bathrooms with hospital-strength liquid Lysol. Bathrooms serve as a breeding ground for lots of germs. This product kills germs quickly and the liquid minimizes the harm to allergies because you do not have to spray it.

Use alcohol to clean windows, mirrors and faucets. Rubbing alcohol is cheaper and does a better job than glass and mirror cleaners.

Full details on these tips and more can be found at 6 Ways to Reduce Germs In Your Home found here.

The best tip for reducing the spread of germs (that doesn't need to be searched at Hoas-Slayer) is to  WASH YOUR HANDS a lot.

Here's to a healthy home this winter and check Hoax-Slayer or Snopes to learn if it's fact or fiction.

Who says this is the "In" colour?

Here are some thoughts on where design and colours are suppose to be heading in 2013. 

Will the 50's style come back?  And, I ask the question, are colour trends something the colour experts try to drive us to do to sell more paint or does the consumer drive this bus?

Click here for Countryliving.com 2013 colour trends.

Click here for the REMAX "New Ideas for the New Year."

Kitty Litter and Furnaces

Many times when listing or showing homes I have noticed something, but never thought much about it, until now.  That something is the kitty litter box in the furnace room.

I came across an interesting piece of advice from Reliance Home Comfort in an article about "Furnace Room Dos and Don'ts."  The article stated, "Don’t place kitty litter near the furnace. The ammonia fumes from the litter can actually corrode the furnace’s heat exchanger and the odours can circulate throughout the home." 

Some homes do have a very strong odour and it makes sense that some of that smell might be because of where the litter box is, but the news about the heat exchanger being corroded because of ammonia fumes is something I never thought about.

If you have a cat and use the furnace room as the area for the litter box, it might be time to find a new location.  It could extend the life of your furnace and help to reduce odours throughout your home.

The full article from Reliance Home Comfort titled Furnace Dos and Don'ts can be found here.