Winter Weather Report: Cold and Snowy!

 As we move closer to winter, home owners need to consider approaches for snow removal.  The Old Farmer’s Almanac suggests that this season, like last season, this winter will be cold and snowy.  Specifically, the Almanac suggests:

• Super cold temperatures will be especially significant along most of the Atlantic coast and in the Great Lakes, Ohio Valley, Southwestern States and the Pacific Northwest.
   
• The Pacific Northwest, Northeast, Northern Plains and Ohio Valley should brace for a great deal of snow.
   
• “Super cold is coming,” says editor of the Almanac Janice Stillman, “but also the good news is that areas with record-shattering snow last winter—like Boston—won’t have to deal with quite so many flakes.”  Whatever that means!

How does The Old Farmer’s Almanac come up with these predictions, when local weather reports can’t seem to get a good forecast for the next 24-hours?  According to Time Magazine, The Old Farmer’s Almanac’s predictions are based on a top-secret formula, involving a complicated mathematical formula devised by founder Robert B. Thomas in 1792 that takes sun spots, planetary positions and tidal patterns into account.

For those who be wondering about feedback from other sources, the Weather Channel also works to put together a seasonal forecast.   They predict a colder than average winter may be in store for sections of the country, including: the Southwest, Southern Plains, Southeast and East Coast. 

Despite these dire predictions, no one really knows what the actual weather will bring.  What we do know is that if you don’t make the investment in gutter protection, you may regret it.  Fall leaves and debris, covered by snow, are a recipe for home owner disaster.  Make sure you don’t get caught this season!  Plan ahead. 

Back Up Power For A Safe & Secure Home

The potentially disastrous effects of a power outage can go unnoticed until you experience a disruption firsthand, during the most unexpected and inconvenient time. Unlike food, water, clothing and shelter, energy is among the basic requirements of impacted by an emergency that is often overlooked.

Hence, the importance of getting a reliable backup generator in case of emergency. Having one installed by a licensed electrician forms an integral part of preparedness, whether for short or long-term power loss. It provides you with comfort, and more importantly, ensures your family's safety when you need it most.

Even the smallest generator can make a huge difference in your daily activities during power outages. Ample power is supplied for keeping a few lights on, powering your refrigerator as well as frequently used appliances, running a TV or computer and other electronic entertainment devices, maintaining HVAC, and ensuring security systems remain engaged. 

Larger generators provide enough voltage for a substantial amount of load for the continuous operation of electric hot water heaters, electric stoves, air-conditioning units, and are sensibly necessary for bigger homes. They can go beyond serving as a source of occasional backup power, but can perform multipurpose use with its capability of powering up a sizable load for longer periods of time.

While backup generators provide enhanced security to any home, installing a gutter guard system is likewise essential towards protecting your property. It keeps debris out and lets water seamlessly run through, channeling it away from your walls and seeping in to cause destruction in other areas of your house. You can rely on it to prevent clogs, overflows, basement or home flooding, and preparedness too in case of calamities or disaster.

Rather than a faulty gutter being an added burden to your worries, it should be durable and reliable in giving you the safe, clean, beautiful home you have worked for. The best gutter guard system ensures all these protective measures while entailing less maintenance and making life easier for every homeowner.

The Official “End of Summer!”

The Fall or Autumnal equinox in the Northern Hemisphere (U.S, Canada) occurs every year on September 22, 23 or 24. In 2015, the Fall Equinox or the first day of Fall/Autumn will occur on Wednesday, September 23. With its sparkling colors and bright days, Fall is a favorite season for most people. 

But how do these seasons change? Each solstice and equinox is an astronomical event caused by the Earth’s rotation on its axis and its ceaseless revolution (orbit) around the sun. 

Seasons (summer, fall, winter and spring) are defined according to the position of the sun in relation to the winter and summer solstices. According to astronomers, the sun rises along the horizon in the Northern and Southern hemispheres in June and December respectively, regardless of your location on earth. 

Astronomers use solstice points to define the start of winter and summer seasons. For instance, June marks the start of winter solstice in the Southern Hemisphere while it marks the start of summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere.

Equinoxes and Seasons

The equinoxes fall almost halfway between the winter and summer solstices. This is the reason why fall and spring are defined in terms of equinoxes. However, the Earth’s orbit is not really circular but elliptical because it tilts on its axis by 23.5 degrees. As a result, the fall and spring equinoxes do not fall exactly halfway between the summer and winter solstices. 

This means that during the two equinoxes (March and September), the sun shines directly on the equator because the Earth’s tilt and orbit is perpendicular to the sun. On other days of the year, either the Northern or the Southern hemisphere tilts more towards the sun. 

Day and night have almost the same length (12hours) during the equinox. This is why it is known as equinox, a Latin word meaning “equal night”. In reality, equinoxes don’t have precisely 12 hours of daylight. 

Fall is the perfect time to enjoy the cool temperatures and watch the colorful leaves fall. However, these leaves can damage your roof and lead to costly roof replacements or repairs. That’s why you should install rain gutter guards before the end of Fall.

Brief History of Labor Day

Labor Day in the United States was created to celebrate the American Labor Movement and has been dedicated to the workers, the social and economic achievements of the workers and unions. This movement started the effort to reduce the workload from 12-16 hour days to the standard eight-hour working days which are now more common.  The objective was to leave more time for leisure forms of recreation, and eight hours for rest time. 

While Labor Day is celebrated in various countries around the world, for Canada and United States, it is celebrated the first Monday of September.  It is often viewed as the “unofficial” end of summer and beginning of the new school year. 

In the United States, Labor Day is a Federal holiday. In Canada, it has been celebrated since it began as a small parade in Toronto in the 1880s. The co-founder of American Federation of Labor, Peter J. McGuire, spoke at a Labor Festival in Toronto Canada in July 1882. McGuire started the United States Labor Day parades in New York City on July 1894.

Labor Day was started by workers and unions concerned about being taken for granted and made to work long, hard hours. The holiday shows respect for all hard-working employees and organizations. 

Now that Labor Day has passed, you should be thinking about getting your home ready for fall rainstorms and perhaps snowy weather. Getting in touch with a local business, such as gutter companies, is very important for installing gutter guards. Gutter guards are important for almost all types of buildings, and fall is a great time to review your home for repairs and upgrades.  Gutter guards can be an important addition to that effort.  

My Clogged Gutter Problem

What a frustrating situation it was when I came home from work on a heavy rainy day and saw water spilling over the edge of my gutter on the front of my house. It was almost spraying like a water fountain from the gutter. On further examination, I noticed that there was no water flowing out the bottom of the downspout at all that lead me to believe that something must be blocking the water flow. It was amazing how much water was spraying and just spilling over the gutter all over the place.

When the rain finally ended and I was able to climb up on the ladder to peek at the gutter, it turned out that the downspout cage on the gutter was completely missing. Without a downspout cage in place leaves, twigs, and anything at all is able to get trapped in the gutter since the wire strainer is not present to trap the debris while allowing the water to flow through the downspout. Apparently, I had so many leaves and other debris that had gotten trapped in the gutter that they clogged the gutter system completely. With this clogging the rainwater was not able to flow through the gutter at all and therefore the water was just accumulating and flowing over the edges of the gutter as well as spraying all over the place as I had witnessed when I got home.
The Fix
In order to fix this problem I had to climb up on the ladder to clean out all the debris that had accumulated in the gutter. Since my downspout cage was missing altogether, once I completed the cleanup I had to go out and buy another downspout cage that I firmly reseated into the downspout hole to keep this same scenario from happening again.
Conclusion
From what I understand there are new no-clog rain gutter systems on the market today that will alleviate these types of problems from ever happening again. Just think - no more climbing ladders, cleaning out yucky debris, or unsuspecting problems with gutters. Now that would be a system well worth looking into. I plan to research and find the best gutter guard system on the market today and, once I do, there is no doubt in my mind that I will definitely purchase it!!

Story shared by Gerry Adcock, Michigan

Fun Summer Activities for the Family

Summer is the best time to travel with the family to a new destination that will keep the children engaged and active. The most interesting summer fun could comprise a balance of exercise and fun outdoor activities. Family activities don’t need in-depth planning nor do they require to be expensive, particularly during the summer. Here are a number of fun summer activities for the family.

Explore Nature 

Every ecosystem is unique with hidden secrets and fun. Identify both plants and animals in the habitat and their unique qualities. At night, find the most captivating sights such as the stars, moon, and constellations are very vital in navigation lessons. You and your family could keep a diary, so that you can record your findings or observations, which can be used for future reference. 

Make and Fly Kites

Making a kite is easy and simple. It is one of the fun summer activities for the family that allow your little ones to design and make a kite that will be used for fun while discovering the forces of nature. The most crucial aspect of this activity is to boost connection with the children, whereas providing everyone a breath of fresh air.

Hit the Water 

During summer, the afternoon is very hot and cool water can help alleviate the situation. Just take some time to do some research about the available beaches, lakes or even pools in your location. Remember to bring along your family’s water gear and enjoy cool water as you swim with the children.

Playing 

Playing any ball activity can be thrilling since it is enjoyed by people of all ages. It is worth noting that it promotes social, emotional and physical development. This will help the children to relate well with the outside world and thus foster family ties.

Enjoy It While It Lasts!

Fun summer activities will conclude before you know it, especially as fall approaches. For this reason, it is important to install gutter leaf guard to protect your home during autumn and winter. A good gutter guard system, installed by a savvy professionally, will help make sure that your summer fun isn’t ruined by a work-filled fall!

Gutter Protection Reviews: How Some Gutters on the Market Are Tested

The gutter protection reviews being done by the NC Review Consumer Advocacy Group is dedicated to testing the different gutter guards on the market today, and looking for the best and most reliable system that can ensure that your gutters remain unclogged by any debris. Their testing goes through three phases: strength, water throughput and durability. For the strength test, weights of 2, 3, and 5 pounds are dropped on the gutter guards to simulate the scenario of a tree branch falling on the gutters. This test is important because it can determine the safety of your gutters from accidents.
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