Web Content Example

Article written for home design website: www.designingyourperfecthouse.com

A Fire Door from the Garage to the House

Today's question is, "Does the door from my garage to my house have to be fireproof or different from the other doors in my house?"

The answer is definitely, "Yes." Garages along with kitchens, are the places most likely to initiate a fire. Think about it. Your garage has gasoline in it along with paints, thinners, cleaning fluids and other flammables. If your car leaked some gasoline onto a hot engine, a fire could start. Or a bundle of rags with paint thinner might spontaneously ignite when bundled up on a shelf or in a cabinet. It happens all too frequently. You need a good door to keep the fire from spreading from the garage to the house too quickly.

If your garage is separated from your house, you have a built in fire separation by virtue of the space between the buildings. However, most garages are connected to the house and a fire could spread to the house in minutes. So in these cases, the door to the garage must be able to resist the fire for some period of time so you have a chance to escape and avoid injury or death. Most Building Codes require this. The International Residential Building Code, which has been adopted in many locales, requires a 20-minute fire rated door, or a solid wood, or solid or honeycomb core steel door of not less than 1 3/8" thickness.

I recommend choosing the 20-minute door. The door should have a label that says this. Doors, along with many building products, are tested by the Underwriters Laboratory for safety. A 20-minute rated door has been tested to withstand penetration by a fire for at least twenty minutes. If you want more security, you can always exceed the minimum rating and install a door with an even higher rating.

Fire-rated doors, a

From "The Human War"--2010 Sundance Film Festival entry

230 PM TIME SLOT

FOR PETER, BINGHAM, BOARDMAN

Welcome back to the Jerry Williams Show—the only place to find the voice of the people. I am your humble host Jerry Williams

Last time I checked, folks, the Ohio Valley is part of these United States of America.  Americans—our president is pre-empting primetime television presumably to declare war. He is doing this on behalf f of the American people. He didn’t ask me what I thought we should do…Did he ask you? PETER in BOARDMAN? Did the President ask what you thought, PETER?

FOR KRISTI, AUSTINTOWN

We live here in the twenty-first century; the Age of Information.  With the touch of a button-BOOM-you’re talking to someone in China. All at your fingertips—every Joe, Mike, and Suzie across our great nation has access to the largest database of information in the history of the world. Despite all this knowledge, we’re more confused than ever. KRISTI’s in her car---Have you filtered out the truth, KRISTI?

FOR STEFANIE, 724

I can’t help but wonder—how many of these anti-war champions have actually been to Ground Zero? How many had their lives destroyed on that day in September a year and a half ago? STEFANIE in the 724…drop some knowledge on us.

FOR JIM, BOARDMAN

Invading Iraq -- does this count as the war on terror? Or is Bush trying to finish what his daddy started 12 years ago? Why does the UN constantly drag their collective feet? What is an American’s duty when personal freedoms are being compromised in a distant land? So much to talk about—But what I really want to know——What I really need to know is..how are your March Madness brackets holding up?

I picked Pitt to go all the way.  JIM from Boardman—help me out JIM…

6 pm TIME SLOT

FOR PAUL, DAYTON

You’re listening to the one and only—The Jerry Williams Show

When our young Americans were called on to put an end to that evil threat in Germany named Hitler, did anyone say, “Hey, I never met Hitler. Why should I kill these people?”

No! Of course not.  They went over there and the country was proud. What about Vietnam? Doubt was running rampant---we all know how sloppy that turned out. If we put our faith in the government, this could all be over in a couple of weeks. I have an American flag on the back of my car. How about you, PAUL in Dayton?

FOR GINGER, PITTSBURGH

Where are all of the college students?!? When similar events transpired thirty-five years ago, our most innocent idealists stood up and said, “Wait a minute!” “Why do we have to go to Vietnam?” Students were literally dying to be heard.  Just down the road in Kent, our young American protesters gave their lives for freedom.  Why the apathy now, America? Is your silence a gesture of consent? Ginger in Pittsburgh won’t remain silent.  Go ahead, Ginger, exercise your first amendment right of free speech…

FOR PAUL, BOARDMAN

The war hawks in Washington have sold the president as to the threat that a Saddam-ruled Iraq poses. It seems clear that war is inevitable. How will the terrorists respond after the President speaks to the nation?  Swiftly? Violently?  Will you be scared to go to the Southern Park mall? What about the Final Four? Seems like a nice, big target in the context of war. How scared should we be? Maybe PAUL in BOARDMAN can tell us. What say you, PAUL?

FOR ERIC, HUBBARD

Saddam Hussein is said to be actively procuring Uranium…He’s not trying to light up his digital alarm clock. I don’t want this information to be confirmed by the leveling of Cleveland. How can we wait when our enemy is getting stronger? Maybe they know it Hubbard; let me hear you ERIC ….

awaiting publish at new home design website

Physical fitness is an important part of modern life. More and more, people are looking for ways to incorporate an exercise regimen into their daily routine. Many people will join a gym or go for a daily run. These are decent options. However, with time and opportunity at a premium, often these options are impractical. A solution for a busy lifestyle or an unforgiving climate is to have a room in the home devoted to exercise, a home gym.

It can be difficult to accommodate a home gym within a home’s aesthetic, while still allowing for full function and capability. Home gym design is an area of concern often brought up when I design a client’s home. There are many factors to consider when designing an in-home gym. Among these are room size, layout, flooring, lighting, heating and air conditioning, acoustics and equipment.

There are different kinds of gyms. This is determined by the level of use desired. Some may simply want a place to stick a treadmill and a TV. Others will seek out equipment for the full body workout, complete with muscle training, cardio, free weights and full-length mirrored walls.

Determining the exact equipment and machines that will be utilized will largely dictate the dimensions required in your home gym. Be sure to take into account not only the length and width of the room, but the ceiling clearance height and the size of the entry ways if you have large, bulky equipment. Also consider the amount of free space that will be needed to perform your desired exercises. If you leave just enough space for your Bow-flex, and you intend to also do yoga and pilates, you could find yourself stuck between a wall and a hard place.

Remember that your home gym is also another room in your home. You should decorate and coordinate accordingly. While function is a key component of the gym, it also must be inviting and fit with the rest of your house design.

Be conscious of your space. Become a minimalist, and don't buy any more than you absolutely need. A gym cluttered with equipment isn't just an eyesore, it's dangerous and hard to navigate. And if you can't easily get to your workout equipment, chances are you're not going to use it.

More examples of Web copy after jump

Article written for home design website: www.designingyourperfecthouse.com

A Fire Door from the Garage to the House

Today's question is, "Does the door from my garage to my house have to be fireproof or different from the other doors in my house?"

The answer is definitely, "Yes." Garages along with kitchens, are the places most likely to initiate a fire. Think about it. Your garage has gasoline in it along with paints, thinners, cleaning fluids and other flammables. If your car leaked some gasoline onto a hot engine, a fire could start. Or a bundle of rags with paint thinner might spontaneously ignite when bundled up on a shelf or in a cabinet. It happens all too frequently. You need a good door to keep the fire from spreading from the garage to the house too quickly.

If your garage is separated from your house, you have a built in fire separation by virtue of the space between the buildings. However, most garages are connected to the house and a fire could spread to the house in minutes. So in these cases, the door to the garage must be able to resist the fire for some period of time so you have a chance to escape and avoid injury or death. Most Building Codes require this. The International Residential Building Code, which has been adopted in many locales, requires a 20-minute fire rated door, or a solid wood, or solid or honeycomb core steel door of not less than 1 3/8" thickness.

I recommend choosing the 20-minute door. The door should have a label that says this. Doors, along with many building products, are tested by the Underwriters Laboratory for safety. A 20-minute rated door has been tested to withstand penetration by a fire for at least twenty minutes. If you want more security, you can always exceed the minimum rating and install a door with an even higher rating.

Fire-rated doors, along with smoke alarms, will let you sleep at night knowing your family is safe.

I'm always interested in hearing your comments and experiences. Please feel free to post them and I'll answer as many as I can.

Press Release for Dalsimer Press

DALSIMER PRESS, INC Publisher of : Designing Your Perfect House: Lessons From An Architect www.designingyourperfecthouse.com

PMB 209, 1939 High House Road Cary, NC 27519 Phone:  919-469-3153 e-mail: maureen@dalsimerpress.com

Press Release

Contact: Maureen McKay Phone: (919) 302-6552 (mobile)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 9 A.M. EDT, May 19, 2009

Author wins “next generation Indie book awards” gold medal

·         Cary, Nc May 19, 2009:Author and Architect Bill Hirsch, AIA, has been selected as a Gold Medalist in the Home and Garden division of the “Next Generation Indie Book Awards.”  His book. Designing Your Perfect House: Lessons from an Architect, was first chosen as a finalist and was then bestowed the gold medal. The Indie Book Awards are open to independent authors and publishers worldwide. The recognition gives Bill exposure to over 60 literary agents as well as the honor of the top prize over all other entrantrants published within the year.  This is one of many honors the first-time author has received.

blog example #2

I have lived all over the East Coast and quite frankly, I am sick of it.  From the North to the Mid-Atlantic to the South, I’ve seen it all.  And I’ve seen enough.  Certainly I am not the first to feel the westward pull, just the most recent.  You are all witnesses to my Manifest Destiny.  The goal: Colorado.

Currently, I live in the South.  The “New” South they call it. It is the land where northern transplants migrate in search of greener pastures and warmer winters.  It is the land where the good ol’ boys, their heels stuck in tar, cling to an increasingly obsolete way of life.  The cultures clash like tectonic plates grinding together in a societal earthquake.

The famous “Southern Hospitality” keeps things civil.  But Yankees are hardly welcomed with open arms.   And the thing we’ve noticed most about “Southern Hospitality,” is its lack of depth.  You often get smiles to your face and snide remarks when you turn your back.  The sting of losing the War can still be felt.

If this is indeed the “New” South, I shudder to imagine the Old South.  The thought of raising my kids, the unfortunate natives, in this sticky mess of humidity and ignorance makes me sick to my stomach.

Neither my wife, nor I chose to settle here.  But circumstance brought us together as kindred outsiders on this Bible belt, along Tobacco Road.  We’ve made it work now for a dozen years.  Recently we took a break from the rigors of everyday life.  We both had the same epiphany:  Why do we still live here?  Other than the proximity to our families, we could think of no reason.  So we decided to make it happen, to get out of this place.

blog example #1

                So  I’m on Facebook.  And just like that, every friend I’ve ever had magically appeared.  Amazingly, eerily, coincidentally, the majority of the people I grew up with all joined within the span of two months.  It’s very much like the first time we all came home from college.  We met at the old school football game.  “Hey you got e-mail?” we said.  The underclassmen said, “What’s that?”  With a knowing smile, we exchanged our “.edu”s.   And my friends from high school went back to college with me and lived in my dorm room…in my computer.

We moved around the country. Our addresses expired.  The Internet exploded.  The Internet told us again and again that it could reconnect us with our old friends.  We were not very eager to believe the Internet.  It had burned us before.  We wouldn’t let it burn us again.

Then for various reasons---mine was different than my wife’s--- we joined Facebook.  Then the seemingly omniscient Facebook showed us exactly where we might find our friends.  And did Facebook ask for anything in return.  Absolutely not.

And so my generation continues on into the future.  We are the first of a kind.  We move globally and are connected locally.  The precedent is for us to set.