Home Builder Developer - Interior Renovation and Design

Daylight System for Outdoor Lighting in 3DS Max
This tutorial will show you the basics of using a daylight system to light outdoor scenes with Mental Ray.

By: Clint DiClementi

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Daylight System for Outdoor Lighting in 3DS Max - Video

Video for beginners with outdoor lighting
Making your own videos can be tricky with outdoor lighting. This shows you what happens in bright sunlight. See more like this when you subscribe to this cha...

By: Lindsay de Swart

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Video for beginners with outdoor lighting - Video

Q: I want to improve my outdoor lighting for better security and when entertaining guests. I want to do it efficiently and do some of the work myself to lower the cost. What are some outdoor lighting tips?

A: It is important to plan your outdoor lighting scheme or it may increase your electric bills significantly. Keep in mind that the best lighting plan for security is not always the best for entertaining. It would be wise to make two lighting layouts on different switches.

To calculate how much it costs to operate outdoor lights per day, first total the wattages of all the bulbs. Multiply this total by eight hours and then multiply by your electric rate ($ per kilowatt-hour). Divide this by 10 to get the number of cents per day. You might be surprised at the total.

People often think that brighter lights provide better security.

Actually, lower lighting levels are more effective. This is because it is difficult for the human eye to quickly adjust from a very bright area to a darker area. If the lighting is less bright, it is often easier to see and pick up movement in the darker areas where someone might be hiding.

The best security lighting plan is ineffective if your house is not reasonably secure. If someone can break into your house in a few seconds, he or she probably won't be concerned about the possibility of being seen.

Make sure all your windows have latches and lock them when the windows are closed, even when you are at home. Install good-quality, bump-resistant deadbolt locks on all the doors. These are more difficult to pick. Plant thorny shrubs under windows and install an alarm system.

Walk around your house and look for spots where someone might hide that may need some security lighting. Do this at night because street lights or neighbors' lights might already provide adequate brightness. Try to minimize light pollution by using only as much brightness as is necessary.

CFL (compact fluorescent lights) and LED (light-emitting diodes) produce much more light output per watt than standard incandescent bulbs. For example, an L22 array LED fixture uses less than 25 watts to produce the same light output as a 100-watt incandescent bulb. LEDs are not affected by cold temperatures. CFLs are and take a little time to reach full brightness.

Motion-sensing lights are the most efficient and effective for security.

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JAMES DULLEY: Keep costs down; plan outdoor lighting

Philadelphia, PA (PRWEB) April 25, 2014

Warning signs that a tree has health problems and needs tree service are unmistakable. Giroud Tree and Lawn urges Philadelphia homeowners to be alert for poor leaf development, excessive deadwood or any of the Top 5 Tree Problems for Spring.

As we roll into Spring, deciduous trees should have new bud and branch growth and eventually a full crown of lush green leaves, explains Lou Giroud, President of Giroud Tree and Lawn and ISA Certified Arborist. Evergreens should have new buds and vibrant color. Trees with health problems will present a much different picture.

The five major Spring warning signs of tree health problems are:

1.Delayed or Partial Leaf Out: When a tree leafs out later than others of the same type, has lack of new growth, dwarf leaves or only some sections of the tree leaf out, the tree may have health issues.

2. Damaged Leaves: Chewed, yellowing or discolored leaves may be signs of insect activity or disease.

3. Borers: One of the biggest concerns is Emerald Ash Borer which recently invaded our area. Emerald Ash Borer is 100% fatal to Ash trees. Professional treatment is the only way to protect Ash from this deadly pest.

4.Decay: Mushrooms and shelf fungi are symptoms of decay when growing out of the root system or trunk of a tree. Another sign of decay is a cavity. If the decay is extensive, then the tree may be hazardous.

5.Excessive deadwood: Dead branches can be a serious safety hazard to people 5nd property. Brittle branches tend to break more easily in wind, snow and ice.

The following are the key tree service actions Philadelphia homeowners can take now to protect tree health and safety.

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Tree Service is Needed for Trees with Deadwood, Poor Leaf Development or Any of the Top 5 Tree Problems for Spring in ...

The Kingwood Garden Club is proud to select the lovely yard of Barney and Cecily Ryan as the April Yard-of-the-Month.

The lovely garden is located in the Kings Crossing subdivision at 2818 N. Strathford Lane. Cecily shared, Since reorganizing my front garden last year, Ive taken a new position on gardening use annuals for lots of color and use perennials as filler. Trial and error has directed me many times, and now I stay with what works.

Her landscape combines hardscapes with the softscapes. The rock bordered beds are flanked with dusty miller and planted with pots in the beds containing tightly packed annuals (impatiens), bulbs, nerines, amaryllis, anemones, gardenias, variegated flax, camellias and blooming trees (bottlebrush). She has also added individual pots and hanging baskets shadowed by ironwork fixtures. Cecily shared, Gardening is social for me, as I meet all my neighbors who stop and chat. Finally, at the end of my day, my daily meditation consists of dead heading a wonderful way of winding down. Go by, take a stroll and see her lovely meditation garden its simple and social.

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Kingwood Garden Club April Yard-of-the-Month

by LAUREN ZAKALIK

WFAA

Posted on April 24, 2014 at 8:26 PM

Updated yesterday at 10:16 PM

COCKRELL HILL -- Hovering high above the tiny town of Cockrell Hill, a tree - or something like it - has a lot of people talking.

"I said, 'Honey, they're putting branches on that huge pipe up there!'" said Leo Landin of Cockrell Hill.

What appears to be an incredibly tall, skinny evergreen is actually a 140-foot cell phone tower.

"It's much more aesthetically pleasing than just a pole in the sky," said assistant city administrator Bret Haney.

Haney told News 8 that a few years ago, cell phone service in the small city near Dallas was dismal. So when a company offered to build a tower and blend it into the landscape as best they could, council signed on.

"We havent had any complaints," he said.

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Cell phone towers disguised as trees grow in North Texas

Surgical Land Clearing-drone footage of Headland, Al. mulching
Phantom Vision 2 video-Terex PT 110 / Loftness G3 mulcher devouring volunteer oaks and sweet gums.

By: John Pierce

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Surgical Land Clearing-drone footage of Headland, Al. mulching - Video

Surgical Land Clearing-drone footage-mulching 15-20 #39; trees is a breeze
Phantom Vision 2-Terex PT110 forestry/Loftness G3 mulching head has no problem with this volunteer growth.

By: John Pierce

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Surgical Land Clearing-drone footage-mulching 15-20' trees is a breeze - Video

Updated: 5:45 p.m. Thursday, April 24, 2014 | Posted: 4:24 p.m. Thursday, April 24, 2014

By Molly Bloom

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

A Gwinnett County judge dismissed Thursday an attempt by Peachtree Corners residents to block the sale of one of the metro areas largest undeveloped tracts of land along the Chattahoochee River.

This story continues on our new premium website for subscribers, MyAJC.com. Continue reading/get access here

Updated every Friday, Mark Arum tells us where we can find construction, events and anything else to slow us down on the roads this weekend.

The states third largest university is on lockdown, officials said. According to an emergency alert on Kennesaw State Universitys website, there is a possible armed man on the campus green.

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Judge dismisses attempt to block sale of Simpsonwood land

They say theres no such thing as a free lunch. But on Marco Island, there might just be a free vacation home.

Thats what Jim and Lara Hicks are soon to discover after participating in a new show on cable network Home & Garden Television.

Vacation House for Free, which launched earlier this year, aims to help homeowners find and renovate a home that can then be used as their own vacation property and also to generate additional income as a rental, ideally enough to pay the mortgage on it.

The Hickses live in Ohio but had rented seasonally near Marco in the past. Jim Hicks said they wanted to visit the area again, but also wanted to find a home that complemented their lifestyle a place they could let friends use, and which would be a good fit for their family of four children.

They also wanted to act mindfully. Jim Hicks is the founder of a Thirst Relief International, a nonprofit that explores long-term, sustainable clean water solutions around the world. He and Lara also work with DoTerra essential oils. Jim Hicks describes himself and his wife as frugal people who are very conscious of the needs around the world.

It wasnt long before the Hickses found a home on Marco Island that would fit their needs, but was also in want of some updating.

We found this awesome place that needed a complete renovation, Jim Hicks recalled of his Island home.

While Jim and Lara dreamed about how to make the renovation a reality with their home-buying budget, their oldest son 12-year-old Ashton got online and started doing some research. Ashton found the HGTV Vacation House For Free online casting call and encouraged them to complete it.

At first, the Hickses dismissed it, but when they read the fine print, they realized the house they hoped to renovate was a great fit for the show. The concept of Vacation House for Free is to take a fixer-upper in a tropical United States destination and work with local renovation experts as well as the HGTV team to improve the property so it becomes not just a vacation home but also a income-generating rental.

We said, man, thats exactly how we want to do it, Jim Hicks said.

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HGTV selects Island home for new remodeling show