Sandboxes are an great way to provide backyard entertainment for your kids. Not only are they easy to build, but they cost a lot less than a playset. If you’re preparing to build a sandbox for your kids, there are several things to consider before beginning:
Size - How big of a sandbox do you want? This should be based on how many children will be using it. Remember, you don’t want too small of a sandbox, or you’ll likely end up with toys and sand strewn across your lawn.
Location - Try to choose a shady spot that’s out of the way. This will confine the kids to one area, you won’t be tripping over the sandbox, and it will keep them from getting sunburned. If you don’t have a shady area, consider a covered sandbox.
Budget - How much money do you have to work with? If you’re on a small budget, you’ll probably build something pretty basic, using some cheap 2×4’s. If you have a little more money to work with, consider using a plastic resin board that won’t splinter or decay over time. Another great option to make the project go really fast is to just buy a childrens sandbox kit that’s ready to assemble. This will turn a 2 or 3 day project into a 2 or 3 hour project.
Imagine this: You arrive home from work to find your door unlocked and your home robbed. No signs of forced entry, so you assume you must have forgotten to lock your door. Right? Not so fast…
If you’ve never heard of lock bumping before, now is the time to educate yourself. Lock bumping is a method of forced entry that is gaining in popularity among thieves and criminals. What’s so unique about lock bumping? Three things: it requires just a few inexpensive tools, it leaves behind no signs of forced entry, and it’s so easy a child can do it.
All that’s required to bump a door open is a bump key and a tool such as a screwdriver or hammer. Bump keys look a lot like a regular key, and anyone can easily purchase them online for about $25. The bump key is inserted into the key cylinder, tapped a few times with the hammer or screwdriver, and voila! The key turns and unlocks the door. The brief news commentary below demonstrates the problem:
There are a couple options for protecting yourself and your home against lock bumping. There are a number of bump proof locks available on the market today, ranging in price from as little as $80 to as much as $200. Price shouldn’t necessarily be the deciding factor in which one you choose. Consider ease of use and maximum security. A truly “bump proof” lock should have no keyway on the outside. No place to insert a bump key means it can’t be bumped.
A less expensive option would be a retrofit product that can be added to your existing deadbolt. There are a number of different products like this on the market. The one we recommend is the Lock Jaw, which retails for about $30. This product is attached to the inside of your door, just above the thumb turn of the deadbolt, and it essentially turns any ordinary deadbolt into a bump proof lock.
Please visit Home Products ‘n’ More for more information on lock bumping or to purchase the Lock Jaw.
During the warm summer months, our outdoor plants thrive in the hot, sunny conditions. But inside a greenhouse, where temperatures are often 30 to 40 degrees higher than the outside air temperature, the sweltering heat can threaten your plants’ very survival.
So what’s a greenhouse gardener to do? Don’t sweat it! An easy and fast solution is a shade cloth. Any greenhouse containing plants during the months of June, July, or August should have a shade cloth covering all or part of the roof. Shade cloths will cool down the inside of your greenhouse by reducing solar gain. This means your plants won’t get burned, and you’ll be a happy gardener!
Visit Home Products ‘n’ More for lots more tips and info on greenhouse gardening.
