You can call it sulphate of lime, or even use the technical term of calcium sulphate dihydroxide.á Either way, you?re talking about gypsum. Gypsum is a mineral compound that's increasingly being used as a component in interior drywall boards, and with very good reason. Interior gypsum panels have a number of ideal uses, and they consistently outscore traditional drywall boards in all of them.

Standard Gypsum Panels

Gypsum panels come in a variety of different types to suit individual needs. Standard panels are typically the least expensive choice, and their features are found in all gypsum panels across the board. Features include:

• Resistance to mold, moisture and mildew
• Resistance to fire and heat
• Durable yet easy to cut without elaborate, heavy-duty tools
• Easy to install and finish
• GREENGUARD Indoor Air Quality Certified: Many gypsum panels carry GREENGUARD certification, which means they meet the strict chemical emissions limits required for indoor use. This can contribute to a healthier, safer air quality in the home or business.

Gypsum boards? resistance to moisture makes them particularly well-suited for bathrooms, kitchen sink areas and damp environments. Their ability to resist fire and heat help them serve as a buffer between a room?s interior and the structure?s wooden framework behind the walls. If you're used to working with traditional drywall, you'll find gypsum panels just as easy to cut, install and finish. You'll also be helping to maintain a healthier interior without the risk of the panels emitting high levels of harmful chemicals.

Specialized Gypsum Panels

Sometimes your clients may have specialized needs for specific areas of the home or business, which is where other types of gypsum panels come in. In addition to enjoying all the benefits of the standard panels, specialized panels come with an array of additional features.

Sound Control

Rooms which are either particularly noisy or need to be kept quiet can benefit from gypsum boards designed to control sound. Such boards can reduce the amount of noise that filters in and out of the room.

Residential uses can include bedrooms or nurseries to keep sound out. They also work well in game rooms or family rooms to keep noise from penetrating to other areas of the home. Using a sound control board on specific walls, such as one between a bedroom and the family room?s wall-mounted TV set, is another ideal option. Commercial applications for sound control boards can include yoga and meditation studios, broadcasting and recording studios, classrooms and areas used for band or choir practice.

Resistance to Heavy Abuse and Impact

Two more types of panels include those designed to withstand heavy abuse and others that stand up to high impacts. While the two types are similar, heavy impact boards have an additional layer of durability over panels designed for heavy abuse.

Heavy abuse panels feature a high-density gypsum core encased in abrasion-resistant paper. This gives them to power to stand up to scraping, scuffing, abrasions and slight indentations that may otherwise mar the standard board. Residential uses can include hallways, game rooms or children?s play areas. Commercial uses run the gamut from schools to hospitals, day-care centers to office corridors.

Heavy impact boards are for areas likely to be subjected to impact from hard objects. Even more durable than the high-abuse boards, heavy impact panels are designed to resist impact and penetration through the drywall. The garage is an ideal place for heavy impact boards, especially in areas where tools or gardening implements are stored. They also work well in weight rooms, kickboxing studios or other areas where potential impacts from hard objects may otherwise make a hole in standard drywall.

Outfitting a home or business with several different types of interior gypsum panels can ensure specific needs are met while keeping projects economical. Even the standard gypsum panels give you an edge over traditional drywall, helping to ensure high quality, performance and customer satisfaction rates.

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Sources:

http://www.wisegeek.org/what-is-gypsum.htm

http://nationalgypsum.com/resources/faqs/xp.htm#a3

Whether you dream in color or walk to the beat of a different drummer, you want your business to reflect that. Beyond the average, ho-hum designs that everyone uses, you want an exterior that goes above and beyond to make a stylized, vivid impression on áyour customers, clients, vendors and visitors. These beautiful designs will blow your mind and provide you with some amazing inspiration on what you'd like to do with your own commercial building.

1. The Wavescape Pavilion

The Wave Pavilion was designed for the Yeosu Expo to reflect the city's close ties with water. The large expanse of glass on the water side reflects the waves onto the glass, making it appear to always be in motion. The skin translates the ocean's motion into the appearance of a rippling facade that soothes the mind and calms the spirit.

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2. The Energy Cube Structure

Don't let the flashy exterior of The Energy Cube Structure in Konstanz, Germany fool you - it's actually a net energy producer. The four-story structure incorporates numerous solar panels and a variety of energy-saving features that weren't even thought feasible five years ago, which is appropriate since it's the municipalityáutility's customer call center.

3. The UNStudio Gallery Cheonan

The UNStudio Gallery Cheonan may be an average if beautiful monotoneábuilding facade by day, but at night, it comes out to play with a wide range of colors, images and themes. This beautiful Korean work of art serves as a multi-level funhouse with a central stairwell designed around a propeller to facilitate easy access and traffic to the different floors.á

4. The KNN Media Center

The KNN Media Center may look like something out of "Back to the Future," but it was actually designed to represent the change from traditional broadcast to streaming media as our world becomes more and more connected. Located in Busan, South Korea, it holds a variety of broadcast studios, retail stores and a museum ofáteddy bears. The soft-surface base geometry blends the interior and exterior spaces at the building's base.

5. Anisotropica Busan Opera House

Sydney's got nothing on theáAnisotropica BusanáOpera House, the second beautiful structure from this lovely South Korean city. With a whimsical approach based around fluid music themes and piano parts, the building features a filigree exterior based on a piano piece that reflects the piece's repetitive musical elements in the elements of the structure.

6. Liege-Guillemins Station

In an attempt to allow for maximum permeability, the Liege-Guillemins Station in Liege, Belgium has no facade. Servingáthe country's high-speed railway, it features a steel and glass vaulted canopy covering five train platforms and reaching a height of 145 meters - no small feat for a vaulted ceiling.

7. The Perfomance Center Alexanderhoehe

The Performance Center Alexanderhoeheálooks like a something dreamed up by a science fiction writer, but it's actually built to create a single access point for visitors between the performance center and the town's Parktheater in Iserlohn, Germany. It combines the lobby for both structure while adding beautiful, modern space to the facilities.

8. The Kansas City Library

The Kansas City Library knows how to get the point across in terms of advertising what you'll find inside. The larger than life facade provides a nine foot by 25 foot cover for the parking spaces behind it, creating a much more interesting visual appearance than the usual assortment of sedans, SUVs and crossovers.áá

9. The Barcelona H20áBuilding

The Barcelona H20 Building was built to house the bottled water brand H2O, but goes well above and beyond your average office space. The six-story facade is constructed from a polymer composite that is suspended on steel trusses that are attached to the existing building.á

10. Hanoi Museum

Frank Lloyd Wright's influence in cantilevered structures and water featuresáis very apparent in the design of theáHanoi Museum. The upside-down pyramid reflects a right-side-up pyramid in the beautiful reflecting pool.

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Sources:áhttp://www.trendhunter.com/slideshow/architecture-exteriors

Finishing is an important part of the overall look and feel of your new or remodeled door. Choosing the appropriate trim and hardware can add a unique and personal feel to the job.Your choices are a reflection of your experience and your professional understanding of how the options contribute to the finished product. Many door manufacturers try to do it all, but it is important to have various sources with different specialties to consult.

Huttig

Huttig is one company that provides many varying options for doors and the associated finishing. Indoor, outdoor, and patio doors all have separate purposes and designs. It is vital to determine the type of door needed for a specific job and the purposes behind the distinctive designs. For garages, PDQ Doors provides specialized products that meet the needs of your new garage door. From wood to steel, different materials serve distinct functions.

Wholesale Doors Inc.

For commercial applications, Wholesale Doors Inc. has a range of products including bathroom stalls, pre-hung doors, partitions, and temporary doors. BCS Sales provides hardware and security options for these applications and others that prioritize security. Their doors are famous for their durability, and they can withstand the abuse many industrial and commercial doors receive.

BROSCO

BROSCO has countless options for inside the home. The available doors and moldings provide many original looks. Your choices in wood, molding, and trim allow for the freedom to create a truly delightful and unique home entry way. The heavier woods offer greater protection and energy efficiency.

Cendrex

Cendrex produces doors for security compartments and access ways. These doors are simpler in design, prioritizing security and material strength over fashion.Many are rated to withstand fire. They are often used for wall safes or for crawl spaces. Remember to verify with the manufacturer that the door is applicable to your environment. Steel doors, for example, have a brief life in coastal regions with a sea breeze. Salt corrodes them faster than other options. This problem isn't applicable to other climates.

Knowing what you need is only half of the battle. The other half is finding it. These companies provide dependable services to contractors. These companies are not only for contractors: Smart and enterprising individuals with a knack for do-it-yourself construction also take advantage of these resources.

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Photo credit: woodleywonderworks / Foter / Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0)

Photo credit: kerinin / Foter / Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic (CC BY-SA 2.0)

We all enjoy summer days, but one thing that is never enjoyable is humidity. Most homes that have a basement also have a dehumidifier to help control the humidity in the air to help keep the clothes from stickingto your back. While they're a handy little tool to have, it can be quite annoying to have to go downstairs and empty the back of the dehumidifier multiple times a day, especially on particularly wet days. Luckily, there's a way that you can pipe up your dehumidifier so that it empties automatically, and it won't cost you an arm and a leg to rig up. Here's how:

You'll need:

• A drain for the water to run into (a sink, sump pump drain, HVAC drainage line, or condensate pump)
• Something level to elevate your dehumidifier from the drain (A shelf. box, skid, milk crate. Etc)
• A hose or a piece of PVC pipe
• A dehumidifier

*In order for the dehumidifier to drain properly, it'll have to be higher than the drain hole. You can place your dehumidifier on any elevated surface you'd like, just make sure that it's level and will hold the dehumidifier at least six inches off the ground.

Step 1:

Place your dehumidifier in an optimal position. Make sure that it's close enough to your drain hole for the hose to fit comfortably and not cause a tripping hazard.

Step 2:

Make sure the drain hole you're using is big enough for the hose to fit in.

Step 3:

If you've chosen to use PVC pipe instead of a hose, bend two 90 degree elbows in it: One to face the pipe toward the ground from the humidifier, and one at ground level to face the pipe to the drain (you'll need to use glue if you've choose this, so if you want to keep it simple just stick to the hose).

Step 4:

Attach your hose or pipe to the dehumidifier by screwing it into the hole in your dehumidifier. Some dehumidifiers even come with an adapter for you to attach the hose to.

Step 5:

See if the system works. If there isn't enough water in the back of your dehumidifier to test it, you can fill the tank with water from a sink.

Doing this will not only save you countless trips up and down the stairs, but you won't have to worry about your dehumidifier overflowing if you're away for any extended periods of time.

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For homeowners who want to give their home's exterior a "magical makeover", opting for an alternative or upgraded siding can often provide just the boost needed to make the home look and feel new. In today's marketplace, there are several options to choose from, and each option offers its own unique characteristics and needs. Here, we will delve into some popular exterior siding options.

Wood

Due to its beauty and undeniable natural charm, wood siding has been a popular siding choice for many years. Wood is available in such a vast number of grades, finishes and species that no two wood exterior renovations will look exactly alike. Less expensive grades of wood work well if the homeowner intends to use an opaque stain or regular paint for finishing. By contrast, semi transparent stains are developed to highlight the wood's grain; therefore, a more expensive grade of wood is desirable in this scenario.

Wood is considered a highly sustainable raw material, and is often used in green building projects. It can also last for multiple generations with, of course, proper maintenance. The general rule of thumb: Semi transparent stains should be reapplied once every three years, while a new coat of paint should be applied in five year increments.

Engineered Wood

Created with exterior resins and wood fibers, engineered wood is built to give the appearance of natural wood siding along with exceptional durability. Available in a number of styles and textures, engineered wood is usually available in both factory finishes and in ready to paint shingles.

Engineered wood is easy to work with and is marketed as a cheaper alternative to the real thing. However, when it was initially introduced in the market, moisture problems created a number of complaints among early adopters. These early challenges have now been corrected.

Stucco

The beauty and durability of stucco siding has long made it a favorite building material among contractors and homeowners alike. The beautiful, organic colors and finish associated with stucco generally does not need to be repainted. Further, stucco is both fire and pest resistant.

Stucco requires a great deal of prep work and should only be attempted by well trained and highly skilled contractors. Well maintained stucco siding can last for a lifetime.

Synthetic Stone

Made from a unique mixture of sand, cement and aggregate, synthetic stone can be formed to look like a number of natural stone sidings including limestone and granite. Synthetic stone is used most often as an accent material, rather than as siding covering the entire exterior.

Synthetic stone is lightweight and marketed as a less expensive alternative to genuine stone sidings. However, critics assert that synthetic stone does not mimic the original well.

Fiber Cement

Made to look like real wood, fiber cement has quickly earned a stellar reputation for stability and very low maintenance. Fiber cement is manufactured using clay, sand, wood pulp and cement. Interestingly enough, it can also be crafted to look like stucco, brick masonry, shingles and wooden clapboard.

One of the most remarkable features of fiber cement is its ability to resist the expanding and contracting commonly associated with real wood. Those changes in either temperature or humidity does not cause the material to move, and exterior paints tend to adhere to fiber cement very well.

Drawbacks of using fiber cement include its weight (it is a rather heavy material) and the fact that special tools are needed to install it. Only contractors specially trained to install fiber cement should attempt to use this material for your next remodeling project.

The typical manufacturer's warranty for fiber cement is a 30 year warranty, and the material is both termite proof and fire resistant.

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