Germ-Laden Places You Probably Don’t Know

Some people are just so obsess about their cleanliness that they even won’t touch bus poles. In fact, a lot of places are infected by germs where they are hiding. You might be surprised where you can find them. Read more and find out.

Crack in crockery

Well, you can see how clean an old dish is. However, the cracks in your old dish and in chopping boards can get all the germs and bacteria. In case your chopping boards began to get deeper knife cuts, better get a new one.  

Fridge seals

As much as we want to keep our foods clean and fresh in the fridge, we want to maintain the cleanliness of the fridge. It’s the same story with your dishwasher’s rubber cushioning. Do a weekly inspection and cleaning of the edges using bleach solution.

Reusable shopping bags

Using reusable shopping is environment-friendly. On the other hand, you also need to make sure that you are using a paper cloth with all-purpose cleaner or white vinegar to avoid contamination.

Vacuum cleaner

Though Hoover is usually associated with cleanliness, it’s actually the appliance loaded with most germs. According to a study from the journal of Applied and Environmental Microbiology, a number of spreadable bacteria fill brushes and vacuum bags. Using a dish soap and water, clean the compartments and attachments completely, clean the brush with an old comb and get rid of the residue from the filter.

Welcome mat

You probably don’t know but every time you put your bags on the welcome mat you are as well attracting germs. The dirtiest part of your house is the area around the door and you would realize this if you remember where you step and scrape your shoes all day. About 96% of shoes have found to be contaminated with coliform and fecal bacteria according to one study. People are carrying with their footwear a huge number of germs. Remember to have your shoes at the door. If possible, apply disinfectant on your welcome mat.

Smart Steps to Select Valuable Kitchen Appliances

Buying kitchen appliances should be done carefully for they are important investments. Think for your budget and do some research which appliance sizes, shapes, styles or setups will fit in your kitchen.

Ranges

For most kitchens in both function and style, this excellent oven-cooktop combination is compatible. Fix your budget, free space and style in advance for you to decide between a vintage cast iron range or a stainless steel commercial-style range and many more.

Ovens

You have to look for find a separate cooktop and oven for the kitchen if you prefer the standard range arrangement. For people wish to be chefs, this could be a great idea. This arrangement offers a wide range of possibilities such as wall ovens, warming drawers, double ovens, and steam ovens. This could all possibly find a good spot in your kitchen.

Cooktops

In order to get more in cooking and design, have a separate cooktop. In case you like separated baking and cooking space or wall ovens, look for an individual gas or electrical range.

Refrigerators

Much of the visual space can be consumed by refrigerators. Before you start shopping, think well regarding how much room are actually needed for food storage.

Microwaves

When you have your dream kitchen, you want to ensure sure that everything is perfectly in the right space, of course, including the microwave. Thought it's not the most attractive appliance but it’s a very necessary one. Some people like spend more with built-in models. Others are satisfied with countertop versions.

Universally Designed Appliances

Though your kitchen is a place for you to dwell for eternity, it’s important to consider the mobility inside the kitchen. Everyone should be comfortable in your kitchen including elderly visitors or young children. This means that you should have chosen appliances that for universal use and safe.

For moreinformation please visit us at info@youplumbing.com.au 

Great Steps to Get More Energy Efficient Windows

Replacing your current window with energy-efficient windows can be so costly. Though the windows share about 30 % of heat loss for a typical home, you can do something to enhance your home’s comfort and reduce your energy bills. You can try sealing air leaks, investing in better insulation and repairing windows. You may also try the following simple steps to make your windows even more energy efficient.

Preparing Your Existing Windows

To decide if it’s necessary to add storm windows or not, examine every existing window to make sure that there’s no rotting wood, missing or broken glass or air and water leakage. Weatherization and rehab would be necessary if you see evident leaks around the windows frame prior installation of the storm windows.

Install High Efficiency Low-E Coating Storm Windows

If you’re still concerned regarding the comfort, air leakage and heat loss, you may set a low-e storm window as the existing window’s exterior attachment. All kinds of storm windows which are constructed and installed properly, whether it’s coated or not, can decrease air infiltration through the window. But, low-e coating lessens more radiation and conduction heat losses as well as improving overall energy savings by 10-15% over standard storm windows with no coating.

Where to Find Low-E Storm Windows

Several big-box retailers store storm window of standard sizes. To make sure that the storm windows could fit well to your existing windows, it should be custom ordered. Low-e storm windows have to be customized too and are available for order from big-box retailers and independent window dealers.

If you have issues with water leakage aside from your windows, you can go to any plumbing shop in Australia.

For more information, kindly visit us at info@youplumbing.com.au.

We’ll be glad to help you.

Smart Steps in Setting up Your Kitchen

Setting up a kitchen is an essential part in cooking and other kitchen works to put up easy and efficient movement. Given the sizes and arrangements of the kitchen nowadays, setting up your kitchen could be useful as working zones. To guide for a better kitchen set up, here are the following tips that you may apply to your kitchen irrespective of size or shape.

1. Divide the kitchen into 5 working zones.

The following are basic working zones for your kitchen:

·         Consumables zone - this area for storage of most food.

·         Non-consumables zone – This area is for storage of daily dishes such as plates, glasses, bowls and silverware.

·         Cleaning zone - this area contains the sink and dishwasher.

·         Preparation zone – this is where you do your kitchen prep.

·         Cooking zone – this area is for the stovetop, range or oven and maybe microwave.

2. Store items as close to their related zone as possible.

The reason why we make divisions in your kitchen is to store kitchen things in the proper place to hasten cooking procedures. For instance, cooking utensils, pans, and bake ware should be stored near the stove or oven.

3. Store everyday dishes in the cabinet nearest to dishwasher or the sink.

You should store your daily dishes, the non-consumables, right next to the cleaning area, or the place where you store sink and dishwasher. Well, obviously, you unload your everyday plates, silverware and glasses most often. So, find a cabinet closest to your dish rack or your dishwasher and store your dishes in that cabinet.

4. Make prep space as close as possible to the stove.

One of the most essential things for your kitchen set up is securing enough counter space near to the stove. As much as possible you should have taken just few steps in putting your prepped food into a cooking pot on stovetop or in the oven. In case you don’t have available countertop space located next to your stove, you can have any space and save it for your prep space.

You might need some tool and materials in setting up your kitchen; you may come to any plumbing shop in Australia. For more information, please visit us at info@youplumbing.com.au

The Disadvantages of Using Liquid Drain Cleaners

For clogged or slow draining, people often use commercial and cheaper liquid drain cleaners. These can be easy to use, however, there are a lot of reasons not to do so. Read the following:

Mind the Pipes

Basically, the majority of liquid drain cleaners operate through a chemical reaction which happens within the drain pipe and usually with the help of hydrochloric acid. The reactions produce heat which can cause unexpected damage to the pipe. This is even more damaging if the cleaner failed to complete the task of dissolving the clog. The liquid chemicals will only sit on top of the clog and the chemical reaction happens on one small part of pipe.

Think of your Health First

Think of yourself before you think of your pipe. Drain chemical cleaners can do harm to you the same way it harms your pipes. Using these products can give off fumes that are proven to cause nose, eye, throat and lung irritations.

Drain cleaners come in various formulas but some of them can cause burns if they contact your skin and even worse if it contacts your eyes. It is a good safety precaution to wear safety goggles and rubber gloves at a minimum. Buy these from any plumbing or hardware shop in Australia.

Consider your Money’s worth

There’s no assurance that using a drain cleaner will be effective enough to solve your drain problem, especially if the cause of the problem is quite serious. The best thing about hiring a licensed plumber to clear a drain is their capacity to diagnose the real cause of the problem. If a part of the pipe is broken this can lead to more problems, that no drain cleaner will be able to fix. If you have blocked drains, please don’t hesitate to contact the licensed plumbers at You Plumbing, and we’ll get to the real issue.

For more information about this issue please visit us at info@youplumbing.com.au

Steps in sanitizing your kitchen sink

One of the items that are frequently used is the kitchen. For the entire day, a common sink handles messy dishes, leftover, and standing rinsing water. This everyday chores cause waste to accumulate inside and on the sink leading to stains and odor making it a community for gems.

In order to get rid of these problems and avoid the danger they pose to you and to your family, learning a kitchen sink well will resolve the dirty issue.

·         Get rid of all dirty dishes and food leftover from your sink first before you start scrubbing your sink.

·         Wash down the sink’s whole surface with the use of soft cloth, gentle soap and warm water to sanitize the faucets, the drain as well as the outer rim. Do this cleaning every after you use the sink.

·         Pour down hot plain water into the drain to help eliminating foul odor and soften hard and sticky materials that clogged in the drain. Make sure to wash down the whole part of the sink by this process. Do the same process a number of times every week.

·         Pour 1 tsp. of baking soda and a quarter cup of lemon juice over the sink’s surface and down the drain weekly. Allow the mixture to stand for about 10 minutes and use hot water in order to rinse away the remaining residue.

·         Mix together a half cup of baking soda, a quarter cup of lemon juice, and directly pour the solution into the sink drain. When the mixture is already in the drain, pour down a half cup of white vinegar. Use the mixture of these ingredients every week to loosen and remove clogs and clean the drain. You can find these ingredients in any plumbing shop in Australia.

For more information about kitchen sink cleaning, please visit us at https://www.youplumbing.com.au

Tips to Achieve a Contemporary Kitchen Design

image source: www.dekrisdesign.com

Today, a lot of Australian families are spending most of their time in the kitchen whether it is cleaning, cooking, eating or just helping the kids with homework. If you’re one of these families, you might already ask yourself if your current space work for all these various functions.

Contemporary kitchen designs provides a space that is not only attractive, but also conducive to cooking and entertaining. It also has storage that is convenient and well-planned. As they say, the kitchen is the heart of the home. Contemporary designs will make you feel that it really is.

If you are planning to transform your current kitchen into a contemporary one or want to install a brand new contemporary ktichen, some of the important factors to consider are ergonomics, spatial practicality and efficiency, suitability, aesthetics, quality, and budget.

Meanwhile, take a look at the following elements to achieve a contemporary design in your kitchen:

Door style
Less is more is one of the characterisics of modern designs. Modern kitchens typically have very minimalist doors. Your goal here is strong and clean lines. Some examples of door styles with a modern feel are Broadway, Chandler, Fifth Avenue, and Metro.

Wood choice
To have a contemporary flare in your kitchen, try to opt for darker wood species like walnut and mahogany. An eco-friendly vibe is also great. Thus, bamboo cabinets or even a super-sleek, all-white look will suit well.

Hardware
When it comes to hardware, finger pulls are often favored instead of more traditional decorative pulls.  With finger pulls, you have a cut into the actual lip of the door, which preserves its sleek look.

Integrated, enclosed appliances
One of the trends in modern kitchens is integrated appliances that blend well into the surrounding cabinets. Here, you’ll have clean lines of the cabinets by appearing to simply be part of them.

Great islands
One of the highlights in a modern kitchen is a large, multi-purpose island. An island can accommodate both prep work and dining. Thus, reducing the clutter in the area.

On the other hand, redesigning or installing a new kitchen for a contemporary look may also require some plumbing tasks. As you are trying to achieve a sleek and minimal look, your plumbing system must be installed properly as well. For high quality service, work it out with one of the best plumbing services in Sydney. Visit this website at http://www.youplumbing.com.au for more info of their services. They deliver high quality service that’s worth your money.