Oh to live in Darwin at this time of the year! Temperatures in that city this week are expected to average 32 degrees, with overnight lows of 21.

For the rest of us, the pre-winter chill is certainly starting to bite. As we move into the colder months, here are 10 ways to warm up your home.

1. Prune those sun-suckers

Shady plants are great in summer, especially on the north and western sides of your property. But at this time of the year you want to get as much sun into your house as you can. Now is the time to prune plants blocking out your sunlight, if possible.

2. Let the sun in

When the sun is shining, remember to open curtains and blinds during the day, especially on the northern side of your home, but also the east (in the morning) and the west (in the afternoon).

However, you might consider leaving south-facing blinds and curtains closed on days when it is colder outside than in as the sun won’t hit those windows.

It’s very common to see homes shut up all day long with the curtains drawn. But before you head off to work or out for the day, opening the blinds and curtains on windows that get the sun can mean coming home to a much warmer property.

3. Block the cold out

Overnight you want to stop the warm air from inside your home being lost through the glass of your windows. It’s important to cover the windows to do this.

Either use thick curtains and a pelmet overhead to stop the air from getting to the window, or consider good-quality honeycomb (also known as cellular) blinds, which pull up almost out of sight during the day to let maximum sunlight in, but do a fantastic job of blocking the windows overnight, or on colder days when there is a lot of cloud cover.

The great thing about honeycomb blinds is you don’t end up with the heavy look of thick curtains but still get the insulating effect. They do look a bit like they belong in an office and not a home though, and if that bothers you, you can layer them behind a very light sheer curtain to soften their impact. Or of course, for even more insulation, a heavier curtain.

4. Fan-tastic

If you have ceiling fans, now is the time to switch them over to winter mode so that they run backwards. Put them on their lowest speed and they will direct the warm air from across the ceilings where it sits high up, and down the walls.

If you get condensation on your windows overnight, you’ll probably notice that leaving a fan on in winter mode during the day can help to dry the windows out faster.

5. Draughts be gone

Gaps around doors and windows can let in a lot of draughts. Block them up with an appropriate draught-sealer. Your local hardware store will have plenty of options.

Consider also a good old-fashioned door snake if you find it hard to seal the bottom of doors, which is often the case in older houses where steps may have worn, or doors are not quite square.

If you have particularly cold rooms in the home – the spare bedroom or laundry, for example, consider draught-sealing the door that separate that room or rooms from the rest of the home.

However, it is important to note that if you use unflued gas heating or an open fire, you will need to ensure you have adequate ventilation at home.

6. Monitor it

If you happen to be someone who is at home during the day, you’ll have the opportunity to throw open the windows and let the warmth in on the days when it becomes hotter inside than out, which can often happen at this time of year.

It can be helpful to have a thermometer with an outdoor sensor set up in a prominent spot in the home to let you know when it is warmer outside than in. Hardware stores often stock them – I have one a bit like this.

It will also come in handy in summer when you’ve got the opposite problem and you want to know when it has cooled enough to open the windows in the evening.

7. Go passive

A few months ago we installed a solar heater, which draws the warm air from the roof cavity into the home. You can read about it here.

I’m pleased to say it seems to working well at this time of year (when we hoped it would) helping to raise the home’s temperature by a critical three-four degrees, meaning the heater has pretty much stayed off so far, even on cooler nights.

Because our home is well-insulated, draught-sealed and has honeycomb blinds on almost all windows, when it warms up during the day it manages to hold the temperature overnight.

8. They mightn’t be pretty but…

Okay, I’ll admit that old-style aluminium roller shutters are butt-ugly.

When we inherited two shutters on the ’50s brick box we bought a year or so back, I was tempted to rip them off. But instead we gave them a paint job (a marginal improvement) and now find in winter, we wouldn’t be without them.

When the shutter goes down about the same time as the sun it’s like instant double-glazing, you can feel the difference because the shutter helps to provide an air pocket between our old single-pane glass windows and the cold night air.

They work so well I’m even tempted to put them on a few more windows.

9. Cook up a storm

It really is a time of year for baking and slow cooking. The house will definitely warm up, but will you be able to resist all that yummy food?

10. Control the thermostat

Running your heater at 18-21 degrees will keep you comfortable without toasting, and will also keep your winter heating bills down. Just one degree more in temperature can increase your heating costs by 15 per cent.

Story by Carolyn Boyd is a property journalist and keen follower of Australia’s housing market.

Source: www.domain.com.au

We’ve been so worried about plastic shopping bags, but what about the plastic we use to wrap our lunches?

As a Mum there are some things I am not imaginative enough to work out. What do you suggest as substitutes for freezer wrap to put meat or cakes etc in, and for lunch?

Like their shopping bag counterparts, plastic products such as freezer bags and cling film are not environment-friendly.

While technically it’s possible to recycle plastic bags, the reality is not simple.

Linda Edwards from the National Packaging Covenant explains: “No Australian plastic is biodegradable. Traditionally in Australia it’s been very difficult to recycle because of the sorting and collection system needed. Also there is a lack of plants able to reprocess it.”

Fortunately, there are alternative, environment-friendly options.

Substitutes such as 4MyEarth Wraps (www.4myearth.com.au) are a good choice for keeping sandwiches fresh. These reusable wraps are machine washable, and they not only wrap sandwiches but also act as a placemat to eat them off! The wraps come in sandwich and snack sizes.

A sandwich-sized hard plastic container would also do the trick.

When storing food in your fridge or freezer, consider investing in plastic containers rather than plastic bags – containers are endlessly reusable so you don’t need to discard the plastic every time you take something out of the freezer.

Multiple use freezer bags can be found in your local supermarket, although these have to be thrown out eventually.

Look out for biodegradable freezer bags that have recently come onto the market. They’re made of cornstarch, a renewable resource.

But if you can’t give up the cling wrap, remember that you probably don’t need to use very much – it only needs to cover the food, not mummy-wrap it!

Story source: www.yonderr.com.au

We’re on a roll with environmentally-friendly work tips and here are five more great ideas if you have the ear of the boss.

1. Cleaning Products
Whether you’re using an independent cleaning person or the building management has staff in place, now is the time to switch cleaning products to greener versions to drastically reduce indoor air pollution and to avoid adding questionable chemical residue to our waterways. Obviously this is easier to do when you don’t have to go through building management. But even if you can get a building to change one product to green, you’ll really be making a difference.

2. Energy Initiatives
Change light bulbs to energy efficient ones and put up signs reminding staff to pull the plug at the end of the day on things like coffee makers and microwaves, and to turn their computers off at the power point. Standby on many computers equals energy guzzler.

3. Paper Products
Set up a digital file sharing system and make an initiative to print as little as possible. Paper should be 100 percent recycled, and either unbleached, or bleached without chlorine. When you do print, set up your printer to automatically print double-sided. Speaking of printing – refill ink cartridges rather than buying new and if that’s not possible there are plenty of places where you can take them for recycling.

Reuse anything that is printed on one side only as scrap paper, reducing the need for new notebooks in the office. New notebooks, toilet paper, paper towels, business cards and more can all be found in eco-friendlier versions. If you send out lots of mailings at work, choose eco packing materials. Reuse boxes, use shredded papers for packing material and look for padded envelopes containing recycled fibre.

Consider cancelling all your newspaper and magazine subscriptions and go online instead.

4. Stock Your Kitchen
Much of the waste that is created during the day in an office is takeout food containers, coffee cups and water bottles. If you have a kitchen, use it. Simple things can make a huge difference. Fill a cupboard with reusable mugs, plates, glasses, and utensils. Stick a bottle of eco dish soap by the sink. Put in an under the sink water filter. Plug a coffee maker into the wall. Take it a step further by filling it with Fair Trade/organic coffee and putting organic milk in the fridge. You don’t need plastic or wooden stirrers when you have spoons in the cupboard. Sugar and tea also come in Fair Trade/organic versions. Bulk sugar has less packaging than individually wrapped paper packets. Coffee filters, like all paper products, now come in unbleached versions. If you have a microwave, put a few microwave safe glass containers in the cupboard (it’s not a good idea to put plastic in the microwave). If you have a bottle of hand soap or sanitizer in the kitchen, make sure it doesn’t contain an antibacterial (like Triclosan).

5. Try carbon offsetting your business

Whether you’re a unique boutique, a mobile business or a large company – or something in between, you’re impacting the environment and if you want to do more about carbon emissions and the boss thinks it’s a good idea, try offsetting.  Carbon offsetting is a way for businesses (and individuals) to invest in projects that prevent or reduce greenhouse gas emissions from being released into the atmosphere. 

Check out the various options and pricing at Yonderr.com.au

If you have any other tips to help create greener workplaces we would love to hear from you – drop us a line today.

For more information on this article, click here.

Story source: www.yonderr.com.au

Last week we talked about being green on the cheap, and this week we thought we would focus on the work place.  Here are 5 ways to give your office a green tinge – and some might even save the boss some money.  Here goes:

1. Bring your lunch
Pack your lunch in reusable containers. As well as contributing less to the already overwhelmed landfills, you will save money and your health. Don’t forget to pack a bottle (reusable of course!) of water, real utensils, and a cloth napkin. If you prefer to eat take out, try bringing reusable containers with you for your over-the-counter soup, salad or whatever.

2. Get involved
If your boss isn’t interested in making overall changes, you can still bring in a green cleaner for your desk, or put a bottle of eco dish detergent in the kitchen. Bring your own plate/cup/mug/bowl/utensils and store them in a desk drawer. People will notice and it might start a (good) trend. Find an electronic waste recycling place and help facilitate the office to take old stuff there. Put signs on office and bathroom doors reminding people to recycle and to shit down their computer at the end of the day.

3. Wash more, dry clean less
What are you wearing? Perc (perchloroethylene) the main chemical in dry cleaning solvent is a classified hazardous chemical and has been linked to cancer in lab animals. You know the smell. The chemical gets trapped in the plastic bags. Then we put those trapped items in our closets, close the door, and sleep next to the closet with the windows shut all night long. Bad idea. If you have perc-cleaned clothes you need to remove the plastic and air your clothes for several hours to let the chemicals evaporate. Better alternatives to conventional dry cleaning include sponge cleaning or hand washing. This works, even for wool. Speaking of wool, avoid mothballs. The vapours are carcinogenic and if a child swallows one, it could kill them. Use things like lavender, cedar, and temperature (stick sweaters in your freezer) for moths.

4. Transportation
How do you get to work in the morning? Public transportation is preferable to driving. Carpooling is a good option where public transport is unavailable. Walking or biking are obviously the best options, as is telecommuting (you’ll save money on petrol, too).

5. Open Windows
Studies show indoor air to be worse than outdoor air. Ventilation is key, especially if you’re sitting near a photocopier. And put a plant on your desk – some are known to act as air filters (aloe vera/ficus for formaldehyde; spider plant for carbon monoxide, and several others).

To read the full story, click here

Story source: www.yonderr.com.au

Have you noticed the word eco has started to crop up in ads for houses? We’ve seen it on consumer products – just walk down the cleaning aisle and check out the hundreds of claims for biodegradable, environmentally friendly, green and renewable. And I couldn’t help but notice this week, that the word eco is cropping up more and more. It’s not a flood but it definitely looks like the beginning of a trickle. And that’s how streams usually start.

Of course, not all green claims apply to houses. For example, you wouldn’t expect to see a home being advertised as biodegradable. Although some tenants might be able to claim they are renting something that fits the bill because it is crumbling before their eyes.

I contacted the consumer affairs departments in a couple of states, as well as the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission to see if they had received any complaints about unsupported green claims on houses for sale or rent – but it seems if it’s happening, it’s not yet in big enough numbers to get noticed by those kinds of bodies.

Christopher Zinn, of consumer advocacy group Choice, says products on supermarket shelves are awash with green claims, so he wouldn’t be surprised to see it emerging in the housing market too.

"I can say my house is green or eco or anything," Zinn says. "Anyone can make [that claim] because there really is no measure or standard."

However, there is a ceiling to green claims on houses – informed buyers. It’s not quite like buying a spray cleaner, where you dash wildly through the supermarket, potentially with a trolley crammed with a couple of toddlers whose little windmill arms try to grab at all manner of colourful products as you whiz past. There’s little time or head space to give much thought to the price of the thing you end up buying, let alone the veracity of its environmental claims. But with a residential property you take a lot more time to decide – usually – have more time to investigate claims the home is somehow green or kind on the environment. And then there are building inspections that can give you some professional insight too.

There are always going to be agents who try to put a green spin on things though. Like the guy who told me the other day without a quiver in his voice or a shift in tone that it was great the unit he was selling faced west because it got lots of afternoon sun. Um yes, the type that hits you in the eyes, blinds you, and turns your place into an oven.

It begs the question. What makes a green house? Is it green if it meets the newish five star energy minimum that many new houses and major renovations must be built to? Does whacking on a couple of solar panels, or a 2000-litre water tank make it green? How about a couple of draught stoppers? Or building a whopping big house that is filled with downlights and nary a ceiling fan in sight. It might face north (a good thing) but it doesn’t pay attention to too many other details that could make it tread more lightly on the environment. Should there be some minimum standard that properties have to meet to use the label "eco"?

As flagged a few weeks ago, the Council of Australian Governments is proposing a national energy ratings scheme from next year, which could look something like the one already in place in the ACT. If the scheme is introduced, that could help shine some more light on whether houses can really be called eco, or just plain old energy and water guzzlers.

As Christopher Zinn says: "Wherever you see the word eco or green or natural you need to get out a very accurate ruler. It could mean anything and nothing."

Story by Carolyn Boyd, a property journalist and keen follower of Australia’s housing market.

Source: www.domain.com.au

Every year at exactly this time ‘Spring Fever’ hits the real estate market as owners all over Australia shout “enough!” and put their homes up for sale. Your Investment Property looks at how you can make your place stand out from the crowd in this frantic selling season. The ‘stay at home’ nature of a long, cold winter can lead to some life changing thoughts and deeds. There’s nothing like spending a great deal of time in your home to make you feel dissatisfied with it.

The vast majority of niggling irritations can be eliminated by the simple application of a new coat of paint to the living room walls, or a radical change of curtains. Some homeowners, however, emerge from winter with plans for a more permanent cure for their dissatisfactions. In real estate parlance, among those in the know, this is referred to as ‘we gotta sell this place and get something bigger/ smaller/closer/cheaper/in better condition … (insert your own personal gripe here, as appropriate.)’

Spring has always been the traditional time for properties to appear on the market in a rush. Recent mini-boom conditions in parts of our bigger cities have, however, led to a pretty healthy winter selling market as well.

But for those owners who are particularly garden conscious, or whose homes only look their best when the natural light starts reappearing through the windows, spring is the peak time to show their homes to their best advantage. In the 16 selling weeks between 1 September and 24 December, the race is on to sell and re-buy as fast as ink can dry.

Hands up those who can spot the obvious problem with the above scenario. Gold stars to those who said ‘oversupply’! If masses of houses are launched onto the market in one short period of time, how will yours be noticed? Will your aspirations for a wonderful new dwelling be skittled in the rush? How can your home stand out, be noticed, be loved and, above all, be bought?

It’s a jungle out there, and you need to start wielding your machete, today.

The view from the street

The sign is about to go up. People are going to be openly invited to notice your place. Human nature dictates they will also be judging it on some pretty tough criteria. Let’s look at some of them.

How’s your front gate looking? Need a coat of paint, a replacement of a paling, new hinges? Will it creak when it’s opened unless it’s oiled?

Would weeding help in the front patch of garden or paving? Are your edges neat? If winter winds have killed off your plants, get them out and put in some ‘potted colour’, such as petunias, which are inexpensive and look welcoming. Don’t forget to take their identification tags off! You want to make them look older than yesterday.

Take garbage bins out as late as you can and take them in as soon as they’re emptied, if possible. When they’re out, make sure they’re well closed so that no marauding cat or dog can get into them.

A flowering pot by the door is an attractive touch. If your finances won’t run to anything grand, borrow something grand from a friend or concentrate on filling a pot with an attractively scented shrub.

Your front windows should gleam, and don’t ignore the front door. Washing the front door may look odd to the neighbours but a good scrub will quickly remove street grime. Polish the door knob while you’re at it. Security doors have a habit of squeaking so get the oil can to it. If your doormat’s ratty, buy another one.

A side driveway should be free of clutter, such as skateboards or bikes, and any garage door should be shut. If there is evidence of mould on a pathway or driveway, get in the experts to wield one of those high pressure water jets or ask your hardware store for a solution you can paint on and sweep off.

View from the back

Around the back of the house, repeat the tidy-up plan, mow the grass and put outdoor furniture into configurations that suggest you use and like the backyard.

If you have a pool, you know about grief. If it has emerged from winter looking like something only a frog could love, start an improvement program right away. You don’t want the pool smelling of chemicals on your first open for inspection, so tackle the job slowly and systematically. Some sellers are tempted to give the house a lick of paint all over. This can be a very expensive idea, and half the potential buyers will hate the colour. The other half will be wondering what damp, cracks or other atrocity the paint is hiding. Unless it’s really bad, hose accessible walls down and leave the paint job to the next owner.

Sheds, storerooms, lean-to laundries, any room at the back of the house must be very neat. Gardening equipment should look organised; pool equipment tucked away. Rakes, brooms and other long-handled items can be clipped into storage units nailed to a garage or shed wall.

The inside story

Look at each room as if you’re seeing it for the first time. Now we need brutal honesty.

• Is it as clean as it could be?

• Is it cluttered? (90% of the people reading this would say ‘yes’ to that one)

• Do the carpets need cleaning?

• Boards need polishing?

• Curtains need dry-cleaning?

Natural light is a vital selling point for Australian homes, so concentrating on this aspect of every room is your first priority.

• Clean the windows

• Pull back curtains

• Pull up blinds

• Open the slats of the venetians

• Are your hallways or staircases Black Holes of Calcutta? You will be amazed at what a skylight can do, and for a very reasonable price of around $500– $1,000 per skylight

• If a room’s light will be enhanced by a coat of paint, go for a few shades lighter. This has the added benefit of making the room look bigger

A common ruse used by many sellers, which also relates back to light, is timing the open inspections for the hour when the most light appears in the most rooms. This may take a few days to figure out, but it’s worth the trouble. A cold, damp or stuffy house is a turnoff. Get the heaters into action or open the windows, as appropriate, before your inspection times to get the right ambient temperature and smell into your house.

Speaking of smell, at some inspections you go to, there will be the distinctive smell of fresh coffee brewing or of a cake baking. And Vivaldi’s Four Seasons playing in the background seems almost compulsory at some of the more up-market inspections. Fresh flowers will help. Freesias have a wonderful scent that will fill a room – but don’t overdo it. Back to clutter. Why do you think God invented garage sales? This is your big chance. The acid test for differentiating between ‘clutter’ and ‘precious’ is ‘do I want to spend hours of my life wrapping and boxing this stuff, unwrapping it at the other end and finding somewhere to put it?’ If the answer is ‘no’, it’s clutter. Sell it. Give it away. Remove it from your life. If you have been ruthless and your house is still museum-like, start wrapping and boxing some items and store these boxes with family or friends.

Coverings and cockroaches

Threadbare or worn carpets can be covered by borrowed/bought rugs. If carpet cleaning looks like a must, give yourself a good week after the cleaning appointment before your first ‘open’.

Give yourself at least two weeks after the pest sprayers have been in to remove dead bodies, or you’ll find would-be buyers finding bugs on their backs in every cupboard they open.

Floorboards, lino, tiles and cork floors can all be made to look like new. Ring the manufacturer or umbrella organisation (eg, a timber industry body) for care instructions.

Now, turn your thoughts to dirt, often a close relation of smells. Small children’s fingermarks on the walls, dog or cat fur, stains on the sofas, grey tile grouting, a fat-trap griller – all these are terrible turnoffs to would-be buyers, even if their homes look just as bad, if not worse!

Dirt and smell

Here are some quick solutions for getting rid of dirt and bad smells:

• Sprinkle some baby powder on the carpet before vacuuming for a fresher smell.

• Restrict your pets’ movements for ‘the duration’ so that you don’t have to vacuum every cushion or check in every corner for dead ‘treasures’ they’ve brought in to show you.

• A scrub with sugar soap will remove fingerprints, and it’s also good for those greasy rooms like the kitchen and any adjoining family room.

• Stains on sofas that will not come off call for a throw-over cover or slip cover. These are available in chain stores.

• A mouldy shower curtain should be replaced, and solutions to the perennial tile grouting nightmare include scrubbing it with a toothbrush and bicarbonate of soda (not a lot of fun), attacking it with an anti-mould solution or applying new grouting.

• The smell of damp can be eliminated, or at least disguised, with a product such as Damp Rid. If you have blocked drains, invest in a plunger or get the plumber out to visit.

Little maintenance jobs you’ve been putting off, like another coat of enamel here, or a touch-up on the skirting boards there, should be next on your list.

Lastly, tidy the places you think nobody would ever look, because people look everywhere these days, including in cupboards, wardrobes (even if they’re not built-ins!), medicine cupboards, inside the oven – nothing should surprise you. Leave these tidying and cleaning jobs for last, but don’t neglect them.

A common experience of sellers who’ve gone through the major spring clean outlined above is to fall in love with their homes all over again! If that happens to you, remember, there’s always next spring.

Selling your home checklist

• Have you informed your neighbours about inspection times? They may keep the noise down and even help you by sprucing up their gardens
• Have you cleared the bedrooms of clutter and removed unnecessary furniture? This will help highlight large bedrooms and make smaller ones look bigger
• Have you washed the curtains and blinds?
• Have you cleared all the junk from your verandas or the side of your home?
• Have you remembered to clean the windows?
• Have you checked that your home and contents insurance covers household items damaged or stolen during inspections?
• Is the garden looking the best it can?

Have you arranged for the pets to be looked after during inspections

This article has been republished with permission from Your Mortgage

Your pets will always be aware that something new is happening. As with humans, your pets enjoy comfortable and familiar surroundings. Moving away from routines will increase the stress levels.

Quotify has an excellent site detailing some of the measures you should consider when moving with your pets. Among the main concerns are:

> Keeping pet routines regular.

> Ensuring animals are registered and have all their identification tags available – especially during the moving period in case they get lost.

> Have your pet checked by the vet before you move.

> Ensure your pet meets local laws and regulations if you have moved interstate – some states have curfews (and in some cases outright bans) for different animals.

> Make sure your pet is accustomed to its familiar surrounding such as bowls and toys, etc, soon after they have arrived at your new address.

> If you’re travelling by car, ensure you have the correct size animal carrier for your pet.

> It’s a good idea not to feed pets substantial meals during the trip, but rather have snacks and plenty of water.

• Incorporate breaks and exercise time for pets into the trip.
• Take a litter box for cats and scoop and plastic bags for dogs.

> Dogs should be acclimatised to their new surroundings as soon as possible – take them for a walk to familiarise themselves.

> With cats, in particular, it is a good idea to leave one room where they feel completely at home and are not upset by the sight of packing boxes and furniture out of place.

> At a cat’s new location, it is likely to feel out of place for a while and may be happy being kept inside until it’s ready to venture forth.

• A good solution is to leave the cat in cage outside to check its new surroundings – with you not far away of course.
• Making sure your cat is allowed to look outside through windows is a good way of letting them acclimatise.

> Animals such as guinea pigs, mice, birds or reptiles, should be kept in their cages, covered and cool.

• Ensure they have access to water as soon as you arrive at your location.

> You could consider rubbing a towel around your cat’s or dog’s body at your old address and rubbing this around prominent surfaces at your new address to ensure your pet gets a feeling of ‘home’ at its new location.

> Some companies might move pets – always ensure you have up to date vaccination and vet records.

Story by Alice M –realestate.com.au