March 9th, 2010
Many people are choosing to line dry instead of putting clothes through an clothes dryer. This can be largely attributed to clothing styles that fit closer to the body, which means they can’t shrink or they won’t fit! The selection of indoor and outdoor drying racks in the US is slim. On the other hand, Europe is no stranger to having to air dry their clothes. Because of their older infrastructure and smaller living spaces many residents do not have drying facilities in their homes. As a result, Europe has a large selection of companies that tailor to the drying rack market. Brabantia is one of the leaders in combining function, durability and style in their drying rack product line.
Brabantia Topspinner
Brabantia’s Topspinner Drying rack provides a great value for customers interested in an entry level drying rack from Brabantia.. Unlike less expensive comparable products, Brabantia’s drying racks are made from a durable, weather resistant construction that is meant to stand the test of time. In addition, Brabantia’s Topspinner comes with a heavy duty metal ground stake to hold it securely in the ground.
The Topspinner comes with four extendable arms that extend to provide a 4.33’ x 4.33’ area to dry clothes. The drying space includes 9 total clotheslines strung through the Topspinner’s arms at equal spacing that are adjustable to 3 different tensions. A rotating top makes hanging your clothes easy.
When you’re done drying, the Topspinner’s arms will collapse with one simple release button. Next, simply secure the arms with the plastic strap. Then lift up on the drying rack and you can take it inside to safely store between uses.
Brabantia Lift-O-Matic
Brabantia’s Lift-O-Matic and Lift-O-Matic Advanced have all of the features that the Topspinner has, plus a larger drying surface and an adjustable hanging height. Despite being the most expensive, the Lift-O-Matic Advanced is our most popular seller, because it has the largest drying surface and adjustable drying heigths.
Brabantia WallFix
If you don’t have much space or would rather have something that hangs from the wall, Brabantia’s WallFix mounts to your wall! When extended, the WallFix opens up to provide 79 feet of drying space, but can collapse down to take up almost no space!
Check out how easy it is to use with our Brabantia WallFix video demo.
Tags: Brabantia drying rack, brabantia lift-o-matic, brabantia lift-o-matic advanced, brabantia lift-o-matic advanced drying rack, brabantia topspinner, brabantia topspinner drying rack, brabantia wallfix, lift-o-matic, lift-o-matic advanced, wallfix
Posted in Brabantia, Housewares | No Comments »
March 5th, 2010
Many of you may be familiar with Simple Human. Their line of trash bins and kitchen storage products directly competes with Brabantia. Distribution and availability of Brabantia is nowhere close to Simple Human in the US, but in Europe it is the name brand by choice.
We carry Brabantia’s line of products because it is harder to find sources in the USA to purchase their products and replacement bin liners and ironing board covers, although that is not their only advantage. Brabantia stocks a lot of items that are tailored to the European lifestyle, which usually means fitting things into smaller spaces. As more individuals in the US move into smaller apartments in densely populated areas, they are finding it hard to find certain size trash bins, drying racks, etc. Brabantia can help fill that void.
This month we will feature a series of articles that will highlight some of Brabantia’s more unique products. No matter what product you select from Brabantia’s line you can be sure that it will combine functionality with high end style in products that are designed to last 20 years!
Tags: Brabantia, brabantia bin liners, brabantia bins, brabantia ironing board covers, brabantia laundry care, brabantia solid company, brabantia us, brabantia usa
Posted in Brabantia, Housewares | No Comments »
February 27th, 2010
Rain Barrels are all the rage these days as the world moves more and more in the direction of going green. Only 3 percent of the world’s water supply is fresh water and around 2 percent of that is in the form of frozen glaciers. That leaves only 1 percent of the world’s water that is safe for humans to use. Factor in that many countries, such as China, India, etc. are moving to more industrialized economies, the need for water conservation is more prevalent than ever.
How much rain water can I expect to catch?
For every 500 square feet of catch area, you can expect to collect 300 gallons for every inch of rain water that falls. To figure out how much catch area you have, measure around the perimeter of your home, plus an additional overhangs that will collect water that will drain into a gutter and then finally to a downspout. Keep in mind that every house has multiple downspouts, so the total catch area for each downspout will be less than the total catch area of your house.
For example, let’s say your home measures 28′x38′ with a 1 foot overhang around your home. If you add the overhang to your original dimensions and you now have a 30′x40′ area. Multiply 30 x 40 = 1,200 square feet. Then divide by .6 (ratio of gallons collect/ square feet of catch area) and you come out with 720 gallons/inch of rain fall. Most major US cities get between 25′ to 40′ of rain fall per year. Let’s assume the median city gets around 33” of rain fall per year. If you are collecting all the rain water from all you downspouts you would catch approximately (720×33=23,760) 23,760gallons of water!
Tips on setting up a rain barrel
Unlike water coming out of your hose bib, the water inside a rain barrel is not pressurized. This means that you will need to rely on gravity to do the work. That’s why we recommend that you elevate your rain barrel on some concrete blocks or anything that will bring it further off the ground. That way when you go to use the hose on your rain barrel, or if you are just filling up a watering bucket, you can get adequate pressure.
Another question that we encounter quite often is, how do I get the water to drain into my rain barrel? One way or another you will need to cut your downspout with a hacksaw to redirect the flow of the water into the rain barrel. Some rain barrels have an attachment that hooks up to the downspout. With this type of connection you can get the water to drain into your rain barrel until it is full. Then the water will redirect and continue to drain down the downspout. Most rain barrels don’t offer this feature. Instead they come with an over flow tube that allows you to redirect the water to run off in a particular direction, so it doesn’t just overflow over the top of the barrel. Some rain barrels come with attachments to connect one barrel to another. When the first rain barrel fills up, the water starts filling up the next unit.
Some people are concerned about using a rain barrel because it will collect standing water. Most rain barrels have screens or something along the top that will prevent all large debris and some mosquitoes out of the standing water. To ensure you don’t get any mosquitoes breeding in the water we recommend that you use mosquito dunks. They are an inexpensive way to keep your water safe.
We offer a wide variety of rain barrels. When they first became popular a couple of years ago, there was not a lot of selection. Now there are even decorative rain barrels!
Tags: plastic rain barrels, rain barrel, rain barrel how to, rain barrel tips, Rain Barrels, water rain barrel
Posted in Lawn & Garden, Rain Barrels | No Comments »
February 20th, 2010
Flat Twine is best known for its products that shrink wrap pallets, but they also make smaller rolls of flat twine that work great for wrapping up everything from bundles of garden stakes to carpet, etc. Being in business we use shrink-wrap for all of these purposes and more. If you have ever ordered a liquid product from us, it was most likely shrunk wrapped with flat twine to hold the cap on tightly.
Besides for Flat Twine’s traditional business purposes, it works great for homeowners as well. I’ve personally used the larger roll and the medium size roll for moving. When I went to move my dresser and clothes, I just pulled the drawers out and wrapped the shrink-wrap around the drawers. This protected my clothes from falling out and prevented dust and dirt from collecting all over my clothes!
If you traditionally would use twine or string to tie a bundle or hold a roll of something together, consider using Flat Twine instead. It’s quick and easy to use and holds things together much tighter than string or rope can. Once you start thinking creatively about where you can use shrink-wrap, you’ll find yourself using it more and more.
Tags: flat twine, flat twine shrink wrap, shrink wrap
Posted in Hardware, Shrink Wrap | No Comments »
February 15th, 2010
Have you ever gone through potty training a pet? Did your previous homeowner or tenant leave you with foul smelling urine stains?
Urine is comprised of three substances.
- Urea (sticky substance)
- Urochrome (produces urine’s yellow color)
- Uric Acid (produces urine’s smell)
Traditional cleaners can only remove the urea and urochrome, but not the uric acid that produces urine’s foul odor. Instead these cleaners utilize a masking agent to cover up the smell, which doesn’t last for forever. Plus, if the stain absorbes into your hardwood floors, the uric acid crystals will start to burn/break down your wood floors. Urine Off’s enzymes effectively remove the urea, urochrome and the uric acid!
Below we have detailed the steps you will need to take to locate and remove urine stains. For stains on hardwood floors you will need follow an additional set of steps detailed at the end of the article.
Step 1: Locate the urine Stain
Urine Off sells a UV black light that enables you to quickly locate urine stains. Unlike most low end store black lights, Urine Off’s UV black light is specifically designed to emit the proper wavelengths that are necessary to easily detect urine stains. While Urine Off’s UV Black Light only emits a small amounts of UV light, they do recommend that you wear a pair of UV glasses to protect your eyes against harmful UV rays. (FYI- most sunglasses have UV protection).
Step 2: Removing the Stain
The age, penetration of the stain and whether other cleaners have been used will affect your results. Therfore, more than one application of Urine Off may be necessary to completely remove the stain. Urine Off must contact every part of the urine stain, so that it’s enzymes can do their job. For this reason, Urine Off recommends that you liberally apply their product. Generally speaking the more absorbent the material, the more Urine off will be needed. In some cases, a second application may be necessary.
Application Tips
If other cleaning products were used at some point to try to eliminate the pet stain, Urine Off recommends flushing these fabrics or carpets with water. This will dilute any leftover cleaning solution that could adversely effect Urine Off’s performance.
Sometimes stains can work their way down into the carpets padding and subfloor. As a result, it can make it much more difficult to remove the urine stain. In this case, Urine Off suggest applying their product at a heavier rate to make sure it’s product comes into contact with all parts of the stain. If it’s possible, pull the carpet and foam padding up to make it easier to saturate the whole stain.
If applying to a delicate fabric, test an inconspicuous area before applying to the whole area. In most cases, Urine Off is non staining, but it’s always best to test first!
Removing Urine Stains from Hardwood Floors
If a urine stain is left untreated, the uric acid crystals can start to burn the fibers of your wood floors. This burning action will turn those spots blackish. Urine Off can stop the burning process, but it cannot remove the blackish stain, because the wood has been permanently stained. As long as the stain is not too deep you will be able to sand away the burned area after removing the uric acid crystals (step 7 and 8 cover this).
Step 1: Apply Urine Off and cover with plastic wrap for 30 minutes. This combination will start to pull the stain to the surface.
Step 2: Pull the plastic wrap up and wipe the floor with a paper towel.
Step 3: Apply Urine Off again, but do not cover with plastic. Let it stand for 30 minutes.
Step 4: Repeat step 3
Step 5: Repeat step 3
Step 6: By now the odor should be gone and the floor should be much lighter. If it is not, continue repeating step 3 until the desired result is achieved.
Step 7: Sand the stained area with a piece of steel wool to remove the remaining black staining.
Step 8: If the stain was too deep, steel wool may not be abrasive enough. In this case you will need to use sand paper or an electric sander.
Tags: pet stain remover, pet stains, pet urine, Urine Off, urine off stain remover, urine remover, urine stain remover, urine stains, urineoff
Posted in Pets, Urine Off | No Comments »
February 10th, 2010
Selecting a personal defense spray can be difficult. Before we get into the specifics you should know that many personal defense spray companies use the word “mace” in their brand’s title. For example, at www.hardtofinditems.com we sell “Mace Brand”, but none of their products have mace in them. Most have a combination of pepper spray, tear gas and some type of dye.
Mace
Mace irritates human eyes and is very close to tear gas. Actual mace, not the brand name, was taken off the market about 15 years ago after police officers found out that it was ineffective against humans under the influence of drugs or alcohol. The name Mace is still the most common term used for personal defense sprays, despite it not actually having “mace” in the contents.
Pepper Spray
Pepper Spray is an inflammatory agent that will incapacitate a person for 15 minutes to 1 hour. Pepper Spray causes coughing, choking, nausea, dilation of the capillaries causing temporary blindness, swelling of the mucus membranes causing trouble breathing and burning of the eyes!
Many of the personal defense sprays on the market today have pepper spray in their mix or only contain pepper spray, because it is effective against anyone, including people under the influence of drugs and alcohol.
Tear Gas
Tear Gas’ effects are immediate and very powerful. It is comprised of white crystals suspended in a delivery medium, usually sec-butanol along with various other chemicals. Tear Gas causes the eyes to immediately shut and start to tear up along with repeated coughing to try to protect against the extreme burning of the eyes and mouth.
Which “Mace” or Personal Defense Spray should I buy?
While we carry a wide variety of products to meet almost anyone’s needs, the most effective and popular sprays are the ones that combine the benefits of pepper spray and tear gas. Pepper Spray works against people under the influence of drugs and alcohol and incapacitates individuals for up to 1 hour. Tear Gas has a stronger, quicker effect. Combined they provide a very powerful mixture.
Most sprays also include a dye or gel. The main purpose of this is to allow the user to see where they are spraying the product, improving accuracy. We also carry a pepper gel which clumps up and sticks to the eyes, increasing the effects of the spray.
If you’re looking for a general all purpose spray I would recommend the Triple Action Pepper Spray. If you looking for something with a more specific purpose we have a jogger pepper spray, a muzzle spray, and a larger home mace spray. Plus for those that don’t feel comfortable with a spray or want additional protection we do carry a screecher alarm, a flasher light with arm band for joggers and an emergency whistle.
A couple of final points
All mace or personal defense sprays do have a shelf life. When you purchase the product it will have an expiration date listed, which is generally about 2 years. Finally, the sale of certain types of pepper sprays and other personal defense sprays are restricted in a few states. These states are shown in each of our product listings.
Tags: mace, mace pepper gel, mace spray, mace vs. pepper spray, pepper gel spray, pepper spray, personal defense sprays, tear gas
Posted in Mace vs. Pepper Gel vs. Tear Gas, Personal Care Products | No Comments »
February 3rd, 2010
Musher’s Secret was originally developed for sledding dogs, who needed protection against the extreme conditions and temperatures they were facing in upper Canada. Once the founders saw how effective it was at protecting dogs paws they started to market their product to specialty retailers.
Musher’s Secret is an all organic paw wax that can be applied to the paws of dogs, horses and many other animals to provide a barrier against all sorts of harsh conditions. The paw wax dries in seconds to provide a semi-permiable layer between your animal’s paws and salt, snow, ice, hot pavement, sand, etc. It can also be used to help animals heal from wounds to their feet.
The great thing about Musher’s Secret is it is made from only food-grade, organic wax, so you don’t have to worry about your pet getting sick from licking the wax off it’s paws. It also won’t stain your furniture and it’s non-allergenic. Generally speaking Musher’s paw wax will last about a week. If you have a dog or horse that does a lot of walking and running then it may wear off in as little as 2-3 days.
Check out our selection of Musher’s Secret Paw Wax on our store side. If you have any questions just give us a call!
Tags: musher's paw wax, Musher's Secret, musher's secret paw wax, paw protection, paw wax
Posted in Musher's Secret, Pets | No Comments »
January 18th, 2010
Did you know?
Most ice melters sold by retailers have salt in their formulas, which can irritate the paws of your pets. You may think Rock Salt is the only ice melter that has sodium chloride (Na) in it’s formula, but you would be wrong! One of the most common examples is Safe Step. Most of Safe Step’s products contain Potassium Chloride (KCl), which is safe to use on most concrete surfaces. Safe Step also claims it is safe for kids and pets. The fact is their formula contains more than just Potassium Chloride (KCl). They still use small crystals of Sodium Chloride (NaCl) in their formula to keep the cost down.
While Safe Step’s formula may not hurt some larger dogs paws that are tougher, most pets will still be irritated by the small salt crystals (NaCl) getting up between their paws and nails leading to dermatilis inflammation. In addition, dogs tend to walk around and ingest snow and ice melter products. This can lead to serious gastrointestinal problems including vomiting and internal burns of the mouth and digestive tract.
What should I use?
Safe Paw is a 100% salt free solution that is pet, kid and environmentally safe! It is comprised of crystalline amide core infused glycols, which provide a non-corrosive time-released action. Unlike other ice melters, Safe Paw gives off no heat. Safe Paw has been recommended by veterinarians, animal hospitals, groomers, humane societies and shelters for years.
I don’t know if I want to spend this kind of money on ice melter.
While Safe Paw is more expensive, it is a 100% salt free solution. Plus, unlike rock salt and other cheaper ice melters that you need to apply heavy amounts of product to melt the ice, you only need to use a small amount of Safe Paw to get the same results!
Tags: pet ice melter, pet safe ice melter, safe paw, safe paw ice melter, safepaw
Posted in Hardware, Safe Paw: Pet Safe Ice Melter! | No Comments »
October 30th, 2009
There are plenty of moth products on the market, but finding the right ones and using them properly is critical to your success rate. At www.hardtofinditems.com we stock a full spectrum of moth products to help you eliminate and keep moths away for good!
First Diagnose The Problem
Which type of moth do you have? Clothes moths go after your clothes, especially wool products. Pantry moths or grain moths are usually found in your “pantry” or anywhere you store any type of food products (including bird seed).
Treatment Options for Clothes Moths
First pull out all of your clothes from your closets, storage chests, etc. We recommend that you spray down your closet with SLA Moth Spray. This is a water based pyrethrin spray that is non-staining (to almost all surfaces). Pay particular attention to the cracks and crevices. This is where moths will lay a lot of their larvae. After you finish spraying down the closet, close your doors for a couple of hours. Then you can open them up to vent the area.
Next, take a look at your clothes. Normally clothes moths go after wool clothing. In order to kill all of the moths and their larvae you will need to either spray your clothes down with SLA Moth Spray, the water-based pyrethrin spray (test in an inconspicuous area first to make sure it doesn’t stain your clothes), or have them dry cleaned (if wool). (Washable items can be put through your clothes washer.)
At this point you have likely eliminated most of the moths and their larve. The best way to get rid of the rest of your moths is to use Safer’s Clothes Moth Traps. These traps utilize a pheromone (female mating scent) to attract the male moths. Once inside the trap they will get stuck to the sticky inside.
Prevention of Clothes Moths
As mentioned above clothes moths are usually attracted to wool clothing. Therefore it’s your wool clothing items that you must pay particular attention to. If you don’t mind using moth cake products, we recommend Reefer-Galler’s line of moth repellent products. If you don’t want to use a chemical to repel moths then you should check out our non-toxic line of Moth Away products that use a unique herbal formula of peppermint, rosemary, thyme, and cloves. Moth balls and moth cakes may also be used; however, please be sure to use only the recommended amount (More is not always better in this case!). Moth balls and moth cakes are a pesticide that when used too heavily can emit enough fumes to cause someone to get sick.
In addition to the repellents listed above, we recommend that you store your wool clothing inside zip up bags. This helps to prevent moths from being attracted to your wool clothing. One last tip. Moths tend to be attracted to food particles and human oils. Most people don’t wash their wool clothing that often so these items tend to collect a lot of food particles. Also, to prevent human oils from collecting on your wool clothing always wear something between your body and wool sweaters, etc. when possible.
Treating for Pantry Moths/Flour Moths
Treating for Pantry or flour moths is similar to treating for clothes moths with a couple of differences. First pull all of your food items, dishware, etc out of the infested area. Next we recommend using our SLA Moth Spray and spraying down the whole inside of the infested area. SLA Moth Spray is a non-Staining water-based pyrethrin spray. It is non-staining, but SLA recommends testing in an inconspicuous area first to avoid discoloring or staining. Make sure to pay close attention to cracks and crevices, because this is where the moths will lay their larvae. After you finish spraying, close your doors for a couple of hours and then you can air it out.
Next, throw away any food that is infested with pantry or flour moths and wash all dishware, etc. Make sure all of your food products that you put back in the cupboard are sealed well. Finally, to eliminate the last of your moths place Safer’s Pantry Moth Traps up inside/around the infested area. These traps utilize a pheromone (female mating scent) to attract the male moths. Once inside the trap they will get stuck to the sticky inside.
Tags: clothes moths, flour moths, grain moths, herbal moth repellent, moth away, moths, no-moth, non-toxic moth repellent, pantry moths, refeer-galler, SLA
Posted in Housewares, Moth Control | No Comments »
September 7th, 2009
Fall is a great time of the year. In many areas of the US the leaves start to turn and we are met with a nice cool brisk feeling in the air. For those who love gardening there is one downfall. The dreaded early frost. All it takes is one night when the temperature gets down to 32 degrees Fahrenheit and all your delicate plants are killed off for the year.
Now you can extend the life of your plants with FreezePruf. All you have to do is spray your plants at least 12 hours before an anticipated frost. FreezePruf protects the plant’s externally and systemically by enhancing both its natural “anti-freeze” like properties and its ability to survive ice crystal damage! By doing this, FreezePruf improves a plants natural cold tolerance by up to 9.4 degrees Fahrenheit!
One spraying lasts up to 6 weeks. FreezePruf is brand new to the market. Developed by the makers of Liquid Fence, who are industry leaders in animal repellents. Check out our online shopping page for FreezePrufproducts. If you have a comment or question, we would love to hear from you. Thanks, the Satterfield family.
Tags: Freeze Pruf, FreezePruf, frost inhibitor, frost protection, Liquid Fence, plant frost spray
Posted in Lawn & Garden, Plant Protection | 2 Comments »
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