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 There are two basic ways of thinking about old windows in post-Katrina New Orleans. On one hand, old windows are rich with history and architectural detail. On the other hand, they can be cracked, broken, rotten and leaking.
It's the latter category that causes the contractors, workers, homeowners and volunteers who are rebuilding New Orleans to toss old windows out and replace them with new ones that are watertight and weather resistive.
But it's the former way of thinking — with reverence for century-old handiwork — that causes people like Ariane Wiltse to salvage old windows from the piles of demolition materials tossed alongside so many storm-ravaged streets.
Above, on the left, you see some of the windows Ariane has collected to use in the 1870s cottage she bought and is restoring in the Holy Cross neighborhood of the Lower 9th Ward. Anywhere Ariane can preserve history in this house, she is determined to do so.
Also, see the stacks of old bricks Ariane has collected for future projects.
See more of Ariane's story.
(Photos: Kathy Price-Robinson)
At the urging of reader "tarbubble," I asked the designers at Pamela Burton & Company what lawn substitutes they used on their award-winning Malibu landscape (which was featured previously on this blog).
I got a response from Burton associate Stephen Billings. First of all, regarding grasses in lieu of lawn, he recommends referring to the Sunset Western Garden Book for a list of alternatives to turf for lawns.
As for this particular landscape, three of the ornamental grasses we used are:
• Muhlenbergia capillaris
• Miscanthus sinensis 'Morning Light'
• Nassella tenuissima
And here's more info I dug up:
Muhlenbergia capillaris (left): As summer is winding down and with it your blooming annuals and perennials, Muhlenbergia capillaris (Pink Muhly Grass) is springing up — giant puffballs of cotton-candy pink, so airy you expect a breeze to carry them away. A source of late-season color, this native grass is effortless to grow and tolerant of just about anything Mother Nature throws its way. The grass forms a nice little hedge, edging, or middle-of-the-border ribbon of color from spring through summer, but when the rosy-pink plumes arise on 4-foot stems, it grabs the garden spotlight. Tolerates heat, humidity, poor soil, and even drought. See a white version called White Cloud. (From home Depot)
Miscanthus sinensis 'Morning Light' (right): A beautiful grass whose white margins on its very narrow leaves give it a creamy-pale green from a distance. Blooms late and doesn't tend to self-sow, although it may do so moderately in moist areas. Grows to 6 feet tall. (From Home and Garden TV)
Nassella tenuissima (left): Also called Mexican feather grass, it is soft and shiny in the spring garden. Nassella tenuissima should be trimmed severely in the later part of the summer as the seed heads start to dry. Once matured the seed is very fruitful and can become something of a pest. The florets are very prone to sticking in socks or the fur of your pets. This is not recommended for gardens near wild areas as the Mexican feather grass can easily escape. Sometimes sold as Stipa tenuissima. (From California Gardens.com)
(Photos: Muhlenbergia capillaris: Home Depot; Miscanthus sinesis: HGTV; Nassella tenuissima: California Gardens)
 A fellow reader sent in this query. Do you have any suggestions?
"I live in Eagle Rock, Calif., and I am looking to replace our knob-and-tube wiring. I have had a number of bids. Some who bid didn't seem trustworthy. With others, I thought: "WOW! Really? That much?"
"I have yet to find anyone who seems trustworthy and affordable. If you know of anyone or any good source to go to, please let me know. It would be greatly appreciated."
Thanks, Paxon
(Photo: Wikipedia)
 A couple of weeks ago, I blogged about a newly built Craftsman-type house whose pillars never received the rock facing I expected. I had watched this house go up in a local golf course community as I took my daily walk.
Trouble was, as some astute readers (POD People) pointed out, I was watching the rear of the house. It felt like the front to me because I could see it from the street where I walked. But there was a more important question: What's going on in the front of the house? Can I hear a duh?
So yesterday I made my way into the gated enclave and saw that, indeed, the four pillars in the front did get stone. Well, maybe faux stone, it looked like to me. It was quite similar to the stone you POD People voted on in the poll.
But here's what I thought: Where's the front porch? As Brent pointed out, the pillars in the rear look vestigial, which means they represent something that once had a purpose but no longer do. In the front, two pillars hold up the overhang for the grand entrance. But the other two pillars have no purpose.
Instead of that garden area on the right, that could have been a lovely covered porch for future owners to sit out and drink tea and wave to the neighbors. As it is now, the only choice is to drive up to the house in a car, go in the house and stay there. Think how many decades of front-porch experience will be lost.
With no front porch, and no virtually backyard (other than vestigial pillars that face another street), I think the exterior design of this house, while it has many assets, missed the mark. No wonder it's taken so long to sell.
 Question: Hello there Kathy. You seem to be the source on all things remodeled, redecorated and staged, so I am writing to you to ask if you have any information about how to rent a staged home? My cousin read an article recently in the Los Angeles Times about owners of staged homes who want to rent them out to a responsible party for low rent so that the house is lived in while it is on the market. I am very interested in this concept, and would love to find out how to rent a staged home! I am the perfect candidate. :-) Please let me know if you have any information about this! Thank you, Abby
Answer: Abby, thanks for the kind words. That excellent article ran a few weeks ago in the Real Estate section. The article is no longer available online, but I used my connections (don't I sound important?) and requested the article for you from Real Estate Editor Lauren Beale. She came through and I think it has the answers you seek:
Los Angeles Times
Sunday, May 4, 2008
A sweet place to bunk
Home managers can give for-sale properties that important lived-in look.
By Frank Nelson, Special to The Times
Pockets of people across the Southland are living like royalty without it costing them a king's ransom. Take Jim and Laura Fisher, currently basking in about 5,000 square feet of luxury on the water in upscale Huntington Harbor.
Their Italian-style two-story house has four bedrooms -- the upstairs master overlooks the harbor -- five bathrooms, a library-study, an office, a huge formal living-dining room, a cherrywood kitchen, a laundry room, an outdoor spa and a barbecue. And, of course, somewhere to tie up a boat.
The Fishers don't have a boat; nor do they own the property, which has just been listed for $4.25 million. They do, however, pay only $2,800 a month to live there, less than one-third the going market rate.
Similarly sweet deals are available in mansions, upscale condos, luxury high-rises and even more modest dwellings . . .
See more Q&A
(Photo: Yahoo News)
Continue reading "Ask Kathy: How can I get a deal renting a home that is for sale?" »
 * POD Person: a member of the Pardon Our Dust blog community; one who fixes up a home; one who creates dust
I'm looking for a POD Person to review the new Home Designer Suite 8.0 software, a Chief Architect product sold by Better Homes & Gardens.
The box says it's for home design, remodeling, interior design, kitchens and baths, decks, landscaping and cost estimating.
First of all, you need to be a regular reader and commenter on this blog, and have these minimum system requirements — Windows XP or Vista, a 1.2 GHZ processor, 2 GB disk space, 512 MB of memory and a DVD-ROM drive.
In exchange for being sent this software to keep, the POD Person would write a review for this blog.
Interested? Send an e-mail to podblog@aol.com and tell me in 100 words or less why you are the right POD Person for the assignment. Deadline: Thursday, May 29, at 5 p.m.
NOTE: While many may apply, only one can be chosen. There will be more software-review opportunities in the future.
 Question: I need a new water heater, and because my home's gas bill is so high, it occurred to me that it might be a good idea to get an electric water heater. My husband is not in favor of an on-demand water heater, so I've got to decide between gas or electric with a storage tank. Would putting in an electric water heater be a good move? And what is involved?
Answer: From Pardon Our Dust's "resident builder" Alon Toker:
Going the electric route would be more costly, both in initial costs (you would need to run a dedicated 220V line for it) and in the long run (gas, as expensive as it is, is still a cheaper energy source compared with electricity).
A 220V line, which is needed to power such an electricity-gobbling appliance, could add $500 to $2,500 to the cost of a water heater, depending on several variables: the type of wiring mandated (Romex or conduit) and whether an upgrade to the electrical panel might be needed.
A better idea is to install a high-efficiency gas water heater. But the best choice of all is a tankless gas water heater.
Though more expensive initially, the tankless model would save energy as compared with the tank unit. At my company, we have installed virtually nothing but tankless water heaters for some years with great feedback from clients. These units are more complicated and finicky than tank models, and a water softener should really be considered. But in my opinion, tankless heaters are the way to go.
Alon Toker is president of Mega Builders in Chatsworth. If you have a building-related question, e-mail it to podblog@aol.com and include "Resident Builder" in the subject line.
(Photo: Factricity; illustration: Kathy Price-Robinson)
 The story I read today about the demise of Tim Davis' remodeling company played out in Lakeland, Fla., but it could have happened anywhere.
Davis started his company 19 years ago with a pickup truck and a toolbox, according to the article in the Lakeland Ledger newspaper, and grew to a $4-million company. Here's what happened: The problems started in early 2007 as construction activity began to dry up in Polk [County]. Clients backed out of jobs as the economy worsened and Davis' annual sales were soon 40% below projections.
By the start of 2008 he had laid off roughly two-thirds of his 24 employees and was under intense pressure from his bank, which froze his accounts and gave Davis a month to pay back $350,000 in outstanding credit. Without enough contracts to keep the business afloat, he finished his remaining jobs and shut down Davis Remodeling, vacating the firm's Harden Boulevard offices two months ago.
So who suffers? As a homeowner, you want to make sure you're not the one holding the bag if a business fails. Even if you don't have money out for work not yet done, having to start in the middle of a job with another contractor would be a major hassle, as best.
Here are the bouquets and brickbats I offer for this story:
Bouquet: Davis is the president of the Polk County Builders Assn. In the world of builders, this is a high-profile, high-esteem, high-falutin' position. You could expect someone in his position to have maximum integrity, and it seems to me that he does, as evidenced by the fact that he finished his remaining jobs before shutting the doors.
Brickbat: According to the article, the company recently did a big remodel of its offices, and that cash outlay was part of the reason the company lacked funds to continue when business turned south. Many in the construction industry knew the crazy rate of growth in 2005 and 2006 was not sustainable. It was probably not the best time to do that remodel.
Brickbat: The story notes that Tim was a high school dropout who later went on to get his GED. That is commendable. But it also makes me appreciate the new type of remodeler I've seen in recent years who comes out of business school rather than up through the trades. Some people are just not cut out for organized education and intuitively know how to manage the ups and downs of the economy. But I can't help thinking that someone with more formal business education could have seen the downturn coming and prepared for it.
Bouquet + Brickbat: Part of the problem seems to be that Tim held on to his employees past the time it was financially wise, according to the story. That's a bouquet to him, for caring about his employees, but also a brickbat for putting himself out of business. Could there be anything more difficult than letting go of a hard-working carpenter with a family?
This story shows why so many contractors have streamlined their companies to use fewer employees and more subcontractors. Then, when business is slow, nobody gets fired.
Observing the photo of Tim Davis above, I have two thoughts: 1) This experience is very personal and very painful, and 2) Tim will rise again.
(Photo: The Ledger)
 As Joni waits for her new backsplash tile to be delivered, and we all wait to see how it will look installed, clever POD Person* Mike did some computer magic to show us the end result.
Above, on the right, you can see a representation of what Joni's tile might look like up on the wall.
Also, Mike suggests a mustardy wall color instead of the cream or terra cotta colors being considered.
Thank you, Mike!
See the project so far
* POD Person: a member of the Pardon Our Dust blog community; one who fixes up a home; one who creates dust
(Photos: Kathy Price-Robinson; photo illustration: Mike Johnson)
Which TV design star owns this Los Angeles kitchen?
What to notice:
Ikea cabinets.
Carrera marble counters.
Subway tile backsplash.
Cork flooring.
Vintage stool.
Really cool stove.
Give it your best guess, then click here for the answer.
 Question: My daughter, who lives in Westchester, has a house with coved ceilings and wants to paint the rooms but is wondering if there is a crown molding that breaks up the ceiling and accommodates the rounded ceiling and corners? — Greg
Answer: From Reseda licensed general contractor and author Gary M. Katz:
There isn't a manufactured crown profile that fits a cove ceiling. However, there are still two ways of doing it.
First, you could install a crown molding with a small shelf above. I've done this before and have seen the detail in historic homes,too, though I'm not always thrilled with the design. The shelf doesn't really hold much, because of the coved ceiling, so it becomes a dust shelf.
Another choice is to cut a new top "shoulder" on a standard crown molding, so that the crown will fit against the ceiling, but often the cove is too large a radius and a small shelf is still needed.
Probably the best alternative is to skip the crown and install a picture rail molding. Picture rail is the architecturally authentic way to terminate a cove ceiling; it provides a termination line for the ceiling color.
You can mount the picture rail at the beginning of the cove or even a few inches lower.
Gary M. Katz is the author of many carpentry books and DVDs. His newest DVD, with Jed Dixon, is on wainscoting and paneling and is the sixth in a series called "Mastering Finish Carpentry."
(Photos: From top: HGTV, HGTV, Kathy Price-Robinson)
 Sunday evening, after watching the "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" team blow up a house with a radon issue, I began thinking about the whole concept of the show.
When the series began in 2003, I thought the idea was to give houses a makeover. But as I would learn, it's really about annihilating the old house, as violently as possible it seems, and then putting up something completely new.
No matter what the problem — mold, radon, lead paint — the solution is the same: raze the house.
I can't help but be happy for the folks who got a new home, but I wonder if the show gives the wrong message to the rest of us. What if we have mold, radon or lead paint? Should we dissolve in tears in front of a video camera in hopes the "EM: HE" people will save us?
Or should we find a way to fix what's wrong, to prevent radon from getting into the house, to solve the moisture and ventilation problems causing mold? I believe so.
Members of the National Paint & Coatings Assn. had similar thoughts recently. In reaction to a May 4 show that focused on the dangers of lead paint, the association president, J. Andrew Doyle, wrote a letter to the show that said, in part:
"The misconceptions conveyed during the show were so glaring that they surely warrant a broadcast and web site correction prior to airing your next episode, so as to avert putting millions of viewers at risk.
"First, the show gave the impression that any home containing lead paint would require total removal of lead paint from all surfaces before the home could be safe. This absolutely is not true in the majority of cases. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) acknowledges that intact lead-based paint is not a hazard, when preventive maintenance such as paint stabilization or repainting is properly done. In such cases, lead cannot 'seep through 20 layers of paint' as show host Ty Pennington claimed!"
Plus, the show's team made a big deal of scooping up several feet of soil, which, according to Doyle, is not a typically required precaution.
I contacted "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" to get a reaction to this letter, but did not get a reply. The whole issue got pushed to the back of my mind until Sunday, when I saw the house with radon gas being blown up (the show was a repeat).
So I'm wondering: Is "Extreme Makeover" too extreme? Would it not be in our best interest to understand some of the alternatives to a tear-down? Wouldn't it be responsible for this show to at least mention some alternatives?
With the economy and home prices still in the toilet, most of us are not moving anytime soon. I'd like to think we can fix the things that are wrong with our homes to make them safer.
Because here's the big news: No matter what the problem with your home, chances are that the "Extreme Makeover" team is not coming to the rescue.
What do you think? Is the show too extreme? Or does it get a pass because it's "just" entertainment?
(Photo: Turbo Squid)
 What's the best part of a vacation? It's coming home, right?
So why not make the whole vacation the best part and stay home in the first place. You save $50 to $120 on each tank of gas you don't use. You save $15 on each piece of luggage you don't put on an American Airlines plane. And think of the carbon credits! Get out the halos.
But staying home for vacation — a staycation — requires a little preparation to make the place feel special. Here are some tips to make your home a destination:
• Wash the windows. That alone could make many homes feel resort-like.
• Place pots and vases of flowers around the place. Act like some company's coming that you want to impress with your gracious lifestyle.
• Plan a few creative projects: Make the gumbo you've always wanted to attempt, or a stained-glass window, or a gravel pathway through the garden.
• Buy a new outdoor grill. You could spend your tax rebate on this. And when you cook on this throughout the summer, and avoid heating up the house with indoor cooking, the carbon credits just keep on coming.
• Stock up on books and read them. Maybe that's why people fly so much, to justify a few hours reading. Just calculate how much time you spend packing, driving to the airport, parking, standing in the ticket line, going through security, waiting for your flight, getting your flight cancelled, waiting in line to reschedule your flight, waiting for that flight, missing your connecting flight, waiting to use the restroom, and so on. It adds up to quite a few chapters.
• And finally, set out some bird seed and watering dishes and sit back and enjoy the show.
Read more on staycations at MSNBC, Consumer Reports and the Wall Street Journal.
Your plans?
(Photo: Kathy Price-Robinson)
 Pamela Burton & Co. won an Honor Award from the American Society of Landscape Architects for the gardens and hardscape (seen above) at a Malibu beachfront home.
At first, the owner wanted lots of bright green turf. But the designers explained how that would be out of place with the sand and chaparral of the local natural geography and would need gobs of water. Eventually, the design team —Pamela Burton, Stephanie Psomas, Andrea Zurik and Stephen Billings — persuaded the owner to plant a sustainable landscape with sandy trails and low-water-use plants.
See more pictures and the whole plot plan, which includes a permeable driveway.
(Photos: Bruce Botnick)
 Progress is being made on Joni's condo kitchen remodel.
See Joni and her nurse-friend Patti in their scrubs working on the kitchen.
See the kitchen before any work was done.
So far, the overhead cabinet that blocked the natural light has come down, and a fun s-curve track light has gone up. The boring wood cabinets have been sanded, painted brown, glazed green and coated with polyurethane.
Plus, the backsplash tile (right) has been chosen, ordered and paid for. It comes to a whopping $641 out of the $1,000 budget.
"We were found to have very expensive taste," Patti noted.
The latest indecision revolves around the wall color, which surprised Patti: "I thought the wall color would be pretty easy to chose," she said. "Well, it's not!"
As you see in the photos (click to enlarge), a coating of a terra cotta/mocha color went up on the wall (center left photo) and Joni loves it.
Patti, though, feels it takes away from the excitement of the green cabinets and of the very expensive glass tile for the backsplash.
So Patti found some cream-colored paint that Joni had used in her hallway and brushed some on to see if it worked better (center right photo). She leaned a sample of the tile up there to see how it looks.
Me? I like the lighter wall color. I think it sets off the tile better.
On the other hand, why not get the tile installed and then play around with the wall color?
What do you think?
The spending so far:
Sanding sponge: $5.38
Track lighting: $54.65
Paint: $71.60
Paint containers: $6.02
Polyurethane & brush: $36.61
Foam board for paint testing: $2.80
Sandpaper: $15.19
Drop cloth (plastic): $3.21
Glaze (2nd can): $8.57
Paint application tools: $5.87
Flat polyurethane (satin was too shiny): $18.31
Staining pads: $2.67
Coolest backsplash tile ever (Patti's words): $641
(Photos: Kathy Price-Robinson)
 Recalls for these products were announced recently by the Consumer Product Safety Commission:
Product: Kenmore wall ovens
Manufacturer: Frigidaire Canada, a sister company of Electrolux Home Products Inc., Cleveland, Ohio
Number recalled: 7,500
Problem: During extended broiling, gas can build in the oven cavity and escape when the oven door is opened. This poses a burn and possible fire hazard to consumers. Electrolux has received 16 reports of incidents involving gas build-up, including flames escaping from the oven door, burns to the hands and face and singed hair.
Product: Fireplace gas valves
Manufacturer: American Flame, Fort Wayne, Ind.
Number recalled: 12,000
Problem: Gas can continue to flow into the fireplace pilot light area after the switch has been turned “off,” posing a fire or explosion hazard.
Product: Sun-shaped candle holders
Importer: Home Depot
Number recalled: 14,000
Problem: Sunlight passing through the glass portion can cause nearby flammable materials to ignite, posing a fire hazard.
Product: Carbon monoxide and carbon monoxide/smoke combo alarms
Manufacturer: Maple Chase Co., Plain City, Ohio
Number recalled: 280,000
Problem: The recalled alarms can sound a “double chirp” in the presence of CO, prior to going into full alarm. Upon hearing a double chirp, the owner’s manual instructions recommend that a consumer take the alarm out of service, which could expose consumers to hazardous levels of CO and suffer injury or death.
(Photo: Consumer Product Safety Commission)
 Perhaps the 348,000 visitors to the recent Salone Internazionale del Mobile in Milan, a showcase of new domestic furnishings, are way more arty than me.
I say this because the wacky way this new kitchen is displayed, with green food-looking stuff strewn all over, does not appeal to me at all.
Rather, I have a powerful urge to get in there, haul that green garbage to the compost pile, close the drawers and doors, get those two countertop ovens off the counter, and then see what we've got. It's probably not a bad-looking kitchen.
Here's another display that looks as if the cook went on a drunken rampage.
See more expensive-looking kitchens displayed in really bizarre ways in the New York Times Magazine, if you dare.
What do you make of this? What kind of person is energized by this kind of staging? Or am I just a fuddy-duddy?
(Photos: New York Times)
 Ariane Wiltse is restoring a Katrina-damaged 1870s home in the Lower 9th Ward of New Orleans, and she is sharing her journey with us. Here's her latest installment:
The Altar
In the front room of my house, the room I tell visitors will one day serve as my library, sits a wood-burning fireplace with an Arts & Crafts-engraved slate face. It's quite fancy. A real eye-catcher, that fireplace. So much so that I figured it for just the right spot to place an altar.
I hadn't planned on putting an altar on my fireplace mantel, although no one in New Orleans would question my judgment. It's a fairly natural thing to do here. But I'm not from New Orleans. Michigan by birth. Virginia from there on out. And up North, people don't put altars on their fireplace mantels; they put fancy candles and knickknacks, family photos in fine silver frames, and during the Christmas season they cover 'em in all manner of evergreens. This doesn't leave much space for the dead and gone.
I don't know if the people who were living in my house when the Storm struck are dead. But I do know that they are gone. Gone so far and for so long that the neighbors don't know where to find them. We've tried. They don't return calls to their pre-Katrina phone numbers. City Hall says they still live at my house, but they don't come around anymore.
The banker has no answers. Foreclosures have a way of dehumanizing people, treating them as if they never existed. Even Google can't locate them. It's as if they disappeared.
Seeing as I can't find them to return the items they left behind, I decided to show my respects by placing their smallest belongings on the fireplace mantel. It seemed only right. I couldn't bring myself to throw away the common remnants of past lives. So I put them on display to remind myself and any visitors that a family once lived here, a family which likely lost all they had in the flood.
I catalogued the items I found. They include:
• A Zippo lighter
• A CD of the movie "The Wedding Singer"
• A 2-lb. hand weight
• Several large, primary-colored Legos, the kind used by toddlers
• A stick of women's concealer, just like the one I use to hide dark circles under my eyes
• A black barber's comb
• A plastic figurine of the cowboy from the Disney movie "Toy Story"
• A bottle of peach-flavored Cisco, the same "liquid crack" we used to drink in high school once we'd graduated from Boone's Farm wine coolers
• A 9mm bullet
• Little girl hair ties with large red balls on the tips used to hold ponytails in place
• A sugar dish made in Japan
• A tarnished silver spoon
• A prescription bottle of Orphenadrine, used to treat the painful muscle spasms so common with Parkinson's disease
• A rusted set of keys
• A boomerang
• A form letter from a class-action lawsuit for "clients who sustained a stroke, heart attack, or any other cardiovascular or heart-related injury while, or soon after, taking Bextra or its generic equivalent, Valdecoxib"
• A plastic green tiger
• Two spools of thread, one blue, the other pink
• A Hibernia bank card
• A pitchfork-looking utensil used for barbecuing
• A golf ball
• Comedy & tragedy masks, just like the kind my aunt used to give me every Christmas when I was a little girl
I pulled down bigger, perhaps, more significant items from the attic. There was furniture, all kinds of wall treatments, a cream-colored and beaded mother-of-the-bride wedding dress, reams of upholstery fabric and boxes. Boxes and more boxes. Overstuffed with paperwork and family photos, Christmas ornaments and toys. I had to put those boxes out for the trash.
A woman can only look at Easy-Bake Ovens and remote-control race cars for so long. Soon enough they begin to they make her crazy wondering what happened to the children to whom they belonged. Maybe one day they'll pass by for a visit and tell me.
See the story so far
(Photo: Ariane Wiltse)
 A proposed amendment by the Canton City Council in Ohio could put homeowners who let their weeds and grass grow too high in jail.
As the law stands now, according to The Repository in Canton, more than 8 inches constitutes high grass or weeds and first-time violators face a minor misdemeanor, which carries up to a $150 fine and no jail time.
The new law would make a second offense a fourth-degree misdemeanor, which is punishable by a fine of up to $250 and up to 30 days in jail. Ouch!
But here's the rub: With an increasing number of homes in foreclosure, and owned by the bank, there's no one to throw into the pokey.
I mean, you can't jail a bank. Can you?
What do you think about this proposed law? Do you have a few neighbors who could use a wake-up call on their weed issues?
(Photo: Kathy Price-Robinson)
 From Barry Stone's "Ask the Inspector" column in the Real Estate section:
Question: The neighbors who live behind us have three large, dead trees that border our fence. A few years ago, our insurance company informed us that they would no longer insure our roof because it has wood shingles. If our neighbors' trees should fall on our roof, who would be responsible for the repair costs?
Answer: The exclusion of the roof by your insurance company may only involve fire damage or rain leakage. You should contact them to see if you would be covered for damages caused by a falling tree.
As for your neighbors, their dead trees constitute a significant public-safety hazard. Notify them immediately that you want these trees removed and will hold them legally and financially responsible for any personal injuries or property damage that may be caused by their failure to do so.
If they do not respond, the municipal authorities should be notified. The appropriate agency should then give notice to your neighbors to have the trees removed. If your neighbors still fail to act, the municipality can remove the trees and bill your neighbor for the work.
Read the whole column
(Photo: Botanic Gardens Trust)
 Not too long ago, I came home from my evening walk to find the power in the neighborhood was out. Did I panic? I did not, thanks to various bits of technology.
I sat in my favorite chair with three items not immediately dependent on the power grid: my cellphone, my laptop computer and my hand-held, hand-powered flashlight/radio combo.
The first thing I did was look up the power company's number, then called to find out what the problem was. I learned that a car had hit a power pole nearby and that power would be restored in about an hour.
And so I settled in for a very pleasurable hour working on my laptop and listening to NPR on my hand-cranked flashlight/radio. It was not dark and bleak in my living room, due both to the glow from my laptop (which feels like a hearth to me) and the flashlight, made by Safety Cross, by my side.
This little device gives me a small sense of security. It never needs batteries, so there's no danger of grabbing it after a disaster only to find that it's out of juice. It gets its power from a crank on the side, so as long as I have the energy to turn a crank, I have both light and FM radio. The bright LED flashlight has three modes: medium power, high power and flashing. There's also an antenna, a compass and a button for a high-pitched 130-decibel siren.
Perhaps the best feature is a connection for charging a cellphone. According to the instructions, 30 seconds of cranking will provide enough power to make an emergency call.
But although the company offers adaptors that fit some 200 cellphones (with the adaptor mailed to you at no cost), there is no adaptor offered that fits my particular model. So when it's time for me to get a new cellphone, I'll make sure it's compatible with my emergency power center.
I purchased this device for about $20 at Orchard Supply Hardware (OSH). Someday I'll have solar panels and be able to generate and store energy at home. Until then, I'll be cranking away when the grid goes down.
 I've read it, heard it and seen it too many times lately to ignore this new reality: Wallpaper is making a comeback.
Here you see Cole & Son's Woods wallpaper used in a bathroom at a decorator showcase house in San Francisco.
Locally, the Wallpaper Bin in Northridge and other shops have been waiting for this moment. You can find amazing books of wallpaper swatches at any paint store.
While the rest of us have gotten involved with trends like sponging and glazing and faux finishes, the wallpaper people have patiently tooled along, designing and manufacturing a plethora of wallpapers. And now, we may turn our eyes in that delightful direction and wonder: Where has wallpaper been all our lives?
Here are some other recent articles that talk about this new happening:
Wallpaper — Not just for walls anymore! [CBS — The Early Show]
Hanging in there with wallpaper [Baltimore Sun]
Shopping for wallpaper less daunting with a style — and price — in mind [The Oregonian]
Wallpaper makes a comeback [Oprah.com]
Decorative wallpaper makes a comeback [Business Daily Africa]
However, not everyone appreciates the beauty of this re-emerging decor trend. Paris Hilton was reportedly banned for life from the Hyatt Hotel in Moscow for signing her name in black marker on some very expensive wallpaper. On the other hand, maybe she was just in the discovery stage of designing her very own line of wallpaper.
(Photo: San Francisco Chronicle)
 According to a press release from the California State Contractors License Board:
"The Contractors State License Board (CSLB) and partners from the Palm Springs Police Department and the Riverside County District Attorney's Office are warning Coachella Valley residents to be aware before hiring people for home improvement projects. The warning comes after a two-day undercover operation in the Warm Springs area of Palm Springs led to the arrest of 32 suspected phony contractors."
Earlier this month, "members of CSLB's Statewide Investigative Fraud Team (SWIFT) posed as homeowners at a sting house and invited suspected unlicensed operators to bid on projects including landscaping, fencing, concrete, swimming pool plastering and decking, flooring and painting. When suspects bid more than $500 for a job they were arrested and given a Notice to Appear (NTA) in Riverside County Superior Court to answer misdemeanor charges of contracting without a license. California law requires a state contractor's license for home improvement jobs that are valued at $500 or more in labor and materials."
Also: "28 of the suspects will also face a misdemeanor charge of illegal advertising. CSLB investigators also gave administrative citations to 26 suspects. Those carry total potential civil penalties of $46,750. One of those arrested is a three-time offender. Another was a repeat offender. Several suspects showed up without a valid drivers' license and had to arrange for someone to pick them up."
According to CSLB Registrar Steve Sands, "Unlicensed operators will often underbid legitimate contractors. It is not unusual for these individuals to have other run-ins with the law and not be qualified to do the work they are hired for. Homeowners may end up paying twice for a job when they have to hire a professional to fix the problem."
See a list of suspects cited in the sting.
 Attic and foundation vents are a contradiction of sorts. The vents are necessary to allow free movement of air, which helps prevent mold inside. On the other hand, these vents can also allow in burning embers during a wildfire. Thus, the requirement that wire mesh be installed over the vents.
But here is the dilemma: The smaller the mesh on the vent cover (quarter-inch mesh is required by many building codes), the better the protection from embers. But the smaller the mesh, the worse for air flow and greater the tendency to get clogged.
And even the quarter-inch mesh does not prevent some firebrands (chunks of burning wood) from burning through the mesh.
"Quarter-inch mesh cannot stop embers and flames during wildfires," said Stephen Quarles, a wood durability advisor for University of California Cooperative Extension. "This is an example of conflict in code preferences between building and fire officials. Smaller mesh screens would do a better job of keeping out fire and embers, but these same screens plug up more easily."
Brent Berkompas, a city of San Bernardino firefighter, has had many occasions to think about this issue, particularly when fighting big wildfires in 2003 and 2007 and watching homes burn from the inside out after embers got into the attic or crawl space. So he came up with a solution.
Berkompas' invention, Brandguard vents, are baffled vent covers, made of 26-gauge galvanized steel, that allow air to flow freely but block embers from passing through, he says.
Here's a story on the vents in Fire Engineering magazine.
 As much as I regret missing "60 Minutes," I will do so this evening in order to catch the two-hour season finale of "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition," which begins at 7 p.m. (6 p.m. CST) on ABC.
This show is the culmination of a 50-state tour by the Extreme crew, and storm-torn southern Louisiana seems a fitting locale for that.
In this episode, a tornado-ravaged house is rebuilt for an extended family and a flooded church is rebuilt for a congregation. Read the full press release.
Here's what I'll be looking for:
• Some sense of how very hard it is to rebuild down there with the shortage of skilled workers and materials, rising crime rates and the rain, heat and humidity. I mean, you can't just run down to the corner hardware store for some extra nails because the store is boarded up and abandoned and the owners relocated to Houston or wherever.
• A sense of historic preservation. Most "Extreme Makeover" homes are simply mowed down. And if a house is totally ruined, that's fine. But with buildings from the 1700s and 1800s in southern Louisiana, too much of that would be a national tragedy.
• Ever more blatant product placement. Have you noticed how the long, lingering shots of store names and manufacturer logos have become more pronounced on this show over the years? Someday, this might be how all TV is done: You pick the products being advertised, and then build the script around those.
• And finally, the emotional payday with tears and cheers. You can't help but feel for people whose lives are changed with a new home. (I'd love to write a book about what happens to these homeowners when the cameras have left. Here's an Extreme Makeover home for sale in Atlanta.)
If you watch the show tonight, come back here and share your impressions.
 Here's what I need: an entirely separate room for my Newfoundland mix Zeus -- to bathe and dry him, feed and water him, and give him the high self-esteem a dog gets with his own space.
This story, in the Hartford (Conn.)Courant, is about a kitchen remodel in which half the space was given over to the needs of soap opera writer Megan McTavish's five Bernese mountain dogs, a breed I totally love.
I know, I know, we're supposed to be scaling down our homes, not adding dog rooms. But as a dog nut, I can't fault this.
From the article:
"The dog room has a bank of Shaker-style cabinets that organize all the dog supplies. There's one drawer just for leashes, another for grooming supplies, still another for dog bowls. There's storage space for towels, and recycling pull-out cabinetry. Instead of plastic bottles and glass jars, the cabinets house bins of dog food."
And: "In one corner of the room is a raised grooming bathtub and a fold-away grooming table. The floor was tiled for easy clean-up and durability, and portions of the walls near the tub were tiled as well so they can easily be wiped down when the dogs shake after a bath."
See the whole story
(Photos: Hartford Courant)
Deb and Vern Jahnke, pictured here, are way too nice to brag.
So let me do it for them. Even on the hottest days, their home in Claremont stays cool and comfortable without artificial air conditioning.
See how it works:
This home stays cool most of the day because the walls are made of super-insulating Rastra block, a lightweight foam and concrete mix. See Deb holding a chunk of block.
In the afternoon, when the sun has finally started to heat up the indoor air, the Jahnkes open the French doors in the kitchen and the afternoon breezes sweep the hot air through the house, up this stairwell . . .
. . . and out through the clerestory windows at the very top of the home. The design for this house (which was rebuilt after a fire) started at the top to make it compatible with solar panels and natural air flow. And then the rest of the design flowed downward from there. See operable skylights in a contemporary Hermosa Beach home that perform the same function.
See more of this story
 As shocking as it may seem to fans of young, hip, cool, midcentury contemporary design, this style will not be popular forever.
Stick around on the planet for a few decades, and you'll understand all too well that today's "modern" is tomorrow's "hopelessly dated."
Whenever I find homeowners denigrating Mexican tiles or avocado green appliances from the 1970s, I caution: Think about your karma. Thirty years from now, in a kitchen remodeled today, a young person may gaze upon the stainless steel appliances, glass tile backsplash and sleek cabinets and declare them "totally gross."
I started thinking about the end of our contemporary era when I studied this photo from Architectural Digest. I'm using this luminescent white kitchen (which is in a New York penthouse) as inspiration for my own kitchen update.
Notice how the living room furniture and the railing on that staircase in the background are very contemporary. But look at the kitchen itself. The beadboard on the cabinet doors, the white-washed table and floor, and those metal, farm-style chairs look suspiciously country in flavor.
In another magazine, I read that poofy drapes are coming back into style. And another article asked if it's not time to reconsider growing herbs.
This is all starting to sound like Mother Earth News to me. And if we are headed for a transition from contemporary to earthy, this kitchen says it all.
 Six weeks into the part-time remodel, the two friends and co-workers at a surgical clinic — Joni and Patti — are getting down to the final touches on Joni's kitchen.
So far, they have:
• Taken down a cabinet over the peninsula that was blocking natural light.
• Added a mod s-shaped track light.
• Stripped the cabinets and doors and applied a brown base with a green glaze.
• Chosen, ordered and paid for the glass backsplash tile.
Of all these jobs, of course, it was the cabinets that took the most time. Patti suffered a setback (and suffered is the perfect word) when her "guru" at the paint store told her to sand against the grain when a certain look she was after was not coming about.
Patti knew intuitively that you're not supposed to sand against the grain. But she had gotten so much good advice from this expert that she went ahead and sanded the doors, ALL the doors, in that manner. Big mistake, it turns out. And another paint guy said you should, of course, never sand against the grain. I won't even go into how much extra staining and painting this necessitated, as it would be just too painful for Patti to have to relive here. Suffice it to say: Trust your instincts and question authority!
So, on other side of that debacle, the big deal now is: What should Joni do about an updated window treatment? Above, you see Patti at the beginning of the project explaining the issues, which are: Joni wants maximum natural light with maximum privacy. The way this condo is set up, her window looks right across the front porch and into her neighbor's front porch.
My idea: I'd tackle that wooden trellis separating the two porches rather than muck up the window. Think about it: If she installed a translucent panel over the white grid, just enough to block views but clear enough to allow light through, the window wouldn't need any covering at all. I mean, the only people who could see into the kitchen would be those standing at the door.
Any other suggestions for Joni's window?
The project so far:
1. Watch a video of Patti explaining the remodel goals
2. Check out Joni's lighting choices
3. See a slide show of the track light going up and the cabinet coming down
4. Choosing cabinet color and considering backsplash tile
5. Getting started on the painting
6. Loving the glazed green top coat
7. Picking the palette
SoCal swimming pools don't seem as popular as they once were. Maybe it's the $40,000 to $80,000 or higher price tag?
But how about looking at a photo of a pool? That I can afford. And color studies have shown that we are tremendously affected by the colors we observe. Blues and greens make us feel cooler, while oranges and reds make us feel warmer.
So in honor of today' scorching temperatures, I present you with the pool in the Los Olivos backyard of Michelle Griffoul and Michael Byrne. I feel cooler just looking at this, and I welcome you to use it as a screen saver.
And no, those aren't real stingrays, but ceramic tiles that Michelle made (she's a tile designer and manufacturer) and embedded in the bottom, along with other ceramic critters. If Michelle is not traveling, I'll bet money she's in this pool today.
If this was my house I'd be really fit, and here's why: Every evening, I'd walk back and forth, from street to front door, over and over again, just to enjoy the sensation of this lit walkway.
I'm sure this would make the folks at the International Dark Sky Association happy. After all, this is where you need nighttime light, on the ground, and not shooting out into the sky.
Read the whole story of this Westwood remodel in the Home section.
(Photo: Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)
 Is it just me, or does anyone else see the connection between these two stories in the L.A. Times?
May 8, 2008: Tejon Ranch pact would allow 26,000 homes on the range
May 14, 2008: L.A. prepares massive water-conservation plan
I'm all for conservation. Really, I am. But what's the real point? Those 70,000 people who could move into the proposed new Tejon Ranch city-sprawl will need some water, and guess who's going to sacrifice for them? Tag, you're it.
The new water-conservation plan calls for fines for watering lawns and washing down sidewalks. And it calls for sending treated wastewater back into the aquifer.
My favorite idea is rewarding homeowners who put in permeable driveways that allow rainwater to percolate down into the aquifer rather than running off into the gutter. We don't yet have a "subway to the sea," but we certainly know how to send our rainwater that way.
L.A. Times readers have even more ideas on how to save water:
— We should all stop eating meat, one reader wrote, as the monumental amount water needed to produce beef is the real culprit. (Another reader said we'd all start eating our pets if the meat was cut off.)
— Control population, another wrote, and heavily tax people who have more than two kids.
— "I'll just dig up my lawn," another reader wrote. "It is not worth all of this."
See all reader comments
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There are two basic ways of thinking about old windows in post-Katrina New Orleans. On one hand, old windows are rich with history and architectural detail. On the other hand, they can be cracked, broken, rotten and leaking.
