Printed from www.MarbleInstitute.org on October 31, 2006
Florida Association of Realtors
Orlando, Fla., Oct. 25, 2006
The natural stone your have purchased for your home or office is an investment that will give you many years of beautiful services. Stone is a natural product and simple care and maintenance will keep it looking beautiful. Here are some recommendations for routine care and cleaning.
Precautions
Use coasters under all glasses, particularly those containing alcohol or citrus juices. Many common foods and drinks contain acids that will etch or dull the stone surface
Do not place hot items directly on the stone surface. Use trivets or mats under hot dishes and placemats under china, ceramics, silver or other objects that can scratch the surface.
Cleaning Procedures & Recommendations
Floor Surfaces Dust mop interior floors frequently using a clean non-treated dry dust mop. Sand, dirt and grit do the most damage to natural stone surfaces due to their abrasiveness. Mats or area rugs inside and outside an entrance will help to minimize the sand, dirt and grit that will scratch the stone floor. Be sure that the underside of the mat or rug is a non-slip surface. Normally, it will take a person about eight steps on a floor surface to remove sand or dirt from the bottom of their shoes. Do not use vacuum cleaners that are worn. The metal or plastic attachments or the wheels may scratch the surface.
Other Surfaces Clean stone surfaces with a few drops of neutral cleaner, stone soap (available at hardware stores or from your stone dealer) or a mild liquid dishwashing detergent and warm water. Use a clean rag mop on floors and a soft cloth for other surfaces for best results. Too much cleaner or soap may leave a film and cause streaks. Do not use products that contain lemon, vinegar or other acids on marble or limestone. Rinse the surface thoroughly after washing with the soap solution and dry with a soft cloth. Change the rinse water frequently. Do not use scouring powders or creams; these products contain abrasives that may scratch the surface.
Bath and Other Wet Areas In the bath or other wet areas, soap scum can be minimized by using a squeegee after each use. To remove soap scum, use a non-acidic soap scum remover or a solution of ammonia and water (about 1/2 cup ammonia to a gallon of water). Frequent or over-use of an ammonia solution may eventually dull the surface of the stone.
Vanity Top Surfaces Vanity tops may need to have a penetrating sealer applied. Check with your installer for recommendations. A good quality marble wax or non-yellowing automobile paste wax can be applied to minimize water spotting.
Food Preparation Areas In food preparation areas, the stone may need to have a penetrating sealer applied. Check with your installer for recommendations. If a sealer is applied, be sure that it is non-toxic and safe for use on food preparation surfaces. If there are questions, check with the sealer manufacturer.
Outdoor Pool & Patio Areas In outdoor pool, patio or hot tub areas, flush with clear water and use a mild bleach solution to remove algae or moss.
Do's and Don'ts
Do dust mop floors frequently
Do clean surfaces with mild detergent or stone soap
Do thoroughly rinse and dry the surface after washing
Do blot up spills immediately
Do protect floor surfaces with non-slip mats or area rugs and countertop surfaces with coasters, trivets or placemats
Don't use vinegar, lemon juice or other cleaners containing acids on marble, limestone, travertine or onyx surfaces
Don't use cleaners that contain acid such as bathroom cleaners, grout cleaners or tub & tile cleaners
Don't use abrasive cleaners such as dry cleansers or soft cleansers
Don't mix bleach and ammonia; this combination creates a toxic and lethal gas
Call your professional stone supplier, installer or restoration specialist for problems that appear too difficult to treat.
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Florida’s Existing Home Market in September 2006: Sales Down, Median Price Softens
By Marla Martin, Communications Manager Florida Association of Realtors Orlando, Fla., Oct. 25, 2006
Florida's housing sector continued to adjust to a more sustainable pace of sales in September with many markets reporting higher inventory levels of homes for sale; however, still-low mortgage rates also sparked buyer interest.
A total of 13,485 existing single-family homes sold statewide last month, a decrease of 34 percent from the 20,451 homes sold during the previous September, according to the Florida Association of Realtors® (FAR). Statewide, the existing-home median price slipped 1 percent to $243,900 last month; a year ago, it was $246,100, according to FAR.
Real estate is cyclical in nature, housing industry analysts note, and current market conditions arrived after five years of record-level growth. The U.S. housing market is showing signs of life and sales may be leveling out, according to NAR's latest market outlook, which expects 2006 to be the third strongest sales year on record nationally. Sales activity should pick up early next year, given a positive economic backdrop of lower interest rates and job creation, says NAR Chief Economist David Lereah.
Looking to Florida's existing condominium market, sales of existing condos also decreased in September, with a total of 3,819 condos sold statewide compared to 6,930 in September 2005 for a 45 percent decrease, according to FAR. The statewide median sales price for condos last month was $201,900; a year ago, it was $215,500 for a 6 percent decrease. The national median existing condo price in August 2006 was $223,200.
Florida Sales Report for September 2006 of existing single-family homes shows 566 agent sold homes in West Palm Beach - Boca Raton. This is 53% lower than the same period last year. Median prices also dropped 9% from last year to $365,500. Read the complete articles
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When to Turn Off Personal Computers
By U.S. Department of Energy
Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
If you're wondering when you should turn off your personal computer for energy savings, here are some general guidelines to help you make that decision.
Personal computers use about the same amount of energy to startup as they use when they are on for about two seconds. For energy savings, consider turning off
the monitor if you aren't going to use your PC for more than 20 minutes
both the CPU and monitor if you're not going to use your PC for more than 2 hours.
Make sure your computer is on a power strip/surge protector. When the PC is not in use for extended periods, turn off the PC with the switch on the power strip. Even when you turn some PCs off with the switch on the PC itself, it may consume a small amount of power. If you don't use a power strip, unplug the CPU and monitor.
Most PCs reach the end of their "useful" life due to advances in technology long before the effects of being switched on and off ten or more times have a negative impact on their service life. The less time a PC is on, the longer it will "last." PCs also produce heat, so turning them off reduces building cooling loads.
Many PCs available today come with a power-down or sleep mode feature for the CPU and monitor. ENERGY STAR computers power down to a sleep mode that consume 15 Watts or less power, which is around 70% less electricity than a computer without power management features. ENERGY STAR monitors have the capability to power down into two successive "sleep" modes. In the first, the monitor energy consumption is less than or equal to 15 Watts, and in the second, power consumption reduces to 8 Watts, which is less than 10% of its operating power consumption.
Make sure you have the power-down feature set up on your PC through your operating system software. This has to be done by you, otherwise the PC will not power down. If your PC and monitor do not have power-down features, and even if they do, follow the guidelines below about when to turn the CPU and monitor off.
Note: Screen savers are not energy savers. Using a screen saver may in fact use more energy than not using one, and the power-down feature may not work if you have a screen saver activated. In fact, modern color monitors do not need screen savers at all.
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