Broadcaster Press 11 April 10, 2018 www.broadcasteronline.com pring S Home Improvement Transform Bathrooms With Technology Technology is infiltrating every room of the house. Many new home buyers are millennials, and this techsavvy demographic covets technological innovations. A recent survey by Better Homes & Gardens Real Estate indicates 77 percent of Generation X and Y home buyers want their homes equipped with the tech capabilities they have grown accustomed to. Many of these involve smart innovations, including those that can transform one of the most private rooms in the house,the bathroom. Automated home theater rooms and Wi-Fi-enabled home security systems have become the norm, but what tech improvements are available to make the powder room more in touch with today’s digital lifestyle? According to the home improvement resource The Spruce, bathrooms have the most potential of any rooms to be improved with technology. The following are just some of the bathroom gadgets and gizmos no one should resist before giving a try. • Automatic faucets: Infrared sensors have been helping keep public restrooms more hygienic for years. The same technology can be used in home bathrooms to curtail water waste and keep faucets and sinks from becoming infested with germs. In addition, faucets with built-in timers can be programmed to set tasks for brushing teeth or washing your face. • Musical shower: Instead of having to blast the volume on the portable speaker you use in the bathroom, a wireless speaker is built into some showerheads. This enables those who like to sing in the shower or listen to podcasts while washing up to enjoy this luxury effortlessly. • Smarter weight management: Bathroom scales have gone hightech as well, with various options enabling users to measure weight, BMI and body fat percentage before sending the data wirelessly to a phone, tablet or computer. This can put you in greater control of fitness goals. • High-tech toilets: Borrowing ideas from bidets and trends around the world, modern toilets do not require hands or paper. These toilets have temperature-controlled water, spritzing wands and air dryers to clean and sanitize. Self-cleaning toilets help busy professionals save time and are ideal for those who always want their bowls as clean How To Create an Effective Workflow in the Kitchen Bathroom and kitchen makeovers are some of the most coveted and profitable improvements that can be made to a home. Installing new cabinetry, countertops and appliances can transform the look of a kitchen, but homeowners also must consider the functionality of design when renovating. The National Kitchen and Bath Association suggests applying the kitchen ‘work triangle’, which is a concept used to create efficient kitchen layouts. The triangle comprises imaginary straight lines drawn from the cooking appliance, sink and refrigerator. These are where much of the work in the kitchen takes place. The general idea is that when the work triangle is positioned accordingly, with the three components in close as possible. And if you desire extra proximity to one another, the kitchen is easier and more comfort, toilet seat warmers are efficient to use. Homeowners will be able to move freely available, while LED lights can make among these elements when they are placed at approprinighttime restroom visits easier. ate distances, reducing wasted steps. • Soaking tubs: As fast as standThe NKBA suggests following these guidelines to crealone showers were introduced ate efficient kitchens. to the modern bathroom, tubless • No major traffic patterns should cross through the designs have been replaced with triangle. streamlined soaking tubs. Tubs • The sum of the work triangle’s three sides should come with different features, includ- not exceed 26 feet. Each portion of the triangle should be ing chromatherapy, which employs between four and nine feet. colored lights to enhance mood. Air • Avoid cutting through an island or a peninsula. baths are controlled electronically • If the kitchen has only one sink, it should be placed and provide different levels of sensa- between or across from the cooking surface, preparation tion for those who are skipping the area or refrigerator. hot tub. The work triangle is a suggestion, not a law of design. Round out these innovations with As kitchens evolve and more people use them simultaneautomated lights, chilled medicine ously, designers may take certain liberties, even havcabinets and aromatherapy, and ing multiple triangles at play. Homeowners should also your bathroom will indeed become a design their kitchens so they function best for their own technological spa. individual lifestyles. Kitchen layout can be just as important as the decor ?Metro Creative Connections and appliances within the kitchen. ?Metro Creative Connections Carbon Monoxide Remediation Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless gas that can be deadly. Because carbon monoxide is found in the fumes produced when fuel is burned, it is present in and around homes. As a result, homeowners should be aware of carbon monoxide and make every effort to detect its presence. CO forms most readily when there is insufficient oxygen to complete combustion and produce carbon dioxide. Hot water closets, furnaces in crawlspaces, heating appliances in attics, and other contained areas are common areas where CO can form. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that thousands of people visit emergency rooms and are hospitalized because of CO poisoning every year. While CO is a risk for just about anyone, infants, the elderly, those with breathing problems or chronic heart disease, and people with anemia are most likely to get sick from CO. CO has earned the moniker ‘the silent killer’ because it cannot be identified without the presence of a carbon monoxide detector. If a person believes he or she is smelling carbon monoxide, that person is probably mistaking the odor for other combustion byproducts that the human nose can sense. CO is a byproduct of vehicle exhaust, boat engines, stoves, lanterns, grills, furnaces, and fireplaces. CO is produced anytime something is burning. That is why it is essential that products designed to be used outdoors are used exclusively outside, and that indoor appliances are properly vented to the outdoors. CO can build up indoors and poison people and pets who breathe it in. Some people may not recognize that CO is problematic in a home until multiple residents start complaining of similar symptoms. Common CO poisoning symptoms include nausea and vomiting, dizziness, chest pain, confusion, headache, and other flu-like symptoms, advises the consumer advocacy group Carbon Monoxide Kills. Those with repeated exposure to high levels of CO may eventually develop cerebral edema, which is a swelling of the brain. CO can compress brain cells and destroy them, leading to neurological issues and death. CO poisoning is actually the result of the head and heart not receiving sufficient oxygen. CO detectors can save lives and should be installed in all homes and apartments. The National Fire Protection Association says CO detectors “shall be centrally located outside of each separate sleeping area in the immediate vicinity of the bedrooms.” Individuals should follow the manufactur- er instructions regarding where on the wall or ceiling the CO detectors should be mounted. As an added safety precaution, CO detectors should be placed on every floor of the home. Gas sensors in CO alarms have limited life spans, so they should be replaced generally every five to six years, because calibrating and testing for CO is more difficult than simply replacing the alarms. Installing or replacing carbon monoxide detectors is an easy improvement that can help save lives. ?Metro Creative Connections CALL ALL TYPES OF DIRT WORK - FREE ESTIMATES Bobcats • Crane • Dozers • Excavators • Grader Grain Trailer • Scrapers • Side Dumps • Trenchers Irrigation Sales & Service Vermillion, SD (605)670-9567 Hartington, NE (402)254-2568 - ROOFING - Asphault Shingle - Steel - Flat - EPDM - SIDING - LP Smart - Cement - Vinyl - Stone - GUTTERS - Heavy Duty Seamless - Gutter Guard - EXTERIOR PAINTING Sherwin-Williams Pro STORM RESTORATION - HAIL OR WIND Certified Installation Experts Call Steve or Karl TODAY! 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