Some benefits of having a control and automation system installed in your home are:

• All equipment can be in an out-of-sight and central location and routed to many different rooms.
• The Prodigy system by Crestron allows you to have one, easy-to-use remote for audio and video controls (and others, as mentioned) in each room.
• You can check the status and adjust the settings of your HVAC, lighting and security systems, from any room or from your mobile device, if you’re away from home.
• Conserve energy and lower electricity bill by programming lights to dim or turn off when room is vacant.
• Affordability: systems are much more affordable than in the past, starting at $1000 and up.

For more information on whole house control and automation systems, audio, video, media room, security and any other low-voltage needs, please contact us.

Jesse Korsban
Stafford Home Service
Click here to contact Stafford Home Service

Letting Stafford Home Services choose the right furnace for you is not only easy, it’s green as well! –We’re talking environmentally conscious, 90-95% AFUE Bryant units that lower utility bills, and are so technologically advanced that they use computer generated algorithms to know how long to run and how much heat to produce. Many of us consider the environment when making renovation decisions, and choosing a furnace is no exception. According to bryant.com, one of the best ways to protect the environment is to purchase energy efficient products that require fewer energy resources to operate. Not only will you make a difference to the environment, you’ll also save on operating costs. Make sure your heating and cooling products have high energy efficiency ratings such as SEER and AFUE.

Another great way is by using Energy Star products.  Stafford Home Service use many Energy Star products in their work. “ENERGY STAR promotes energy efficiency among residential appliances, because household appliances have the potential to contribute a great deal to air pollution. ENERGY STAR promotes energy efficient furnaces, heat pumps and air conditioners, and thermostats, among other products.” (source: www.bryant.com)

The 80% rating that used to be a great is now a thing of the past. Now units can be rated 90-95%. AFUE means Annual Fuel Utilization Efficiency. Your furnace’s AFUE tells you how much energy is being converted to heat.  For example, AFUE of 90 means that 90% of the fuel is being used to warm your home, while the other 10% escapes as exhaust with the combustion gases.

We all want lower bills, right?  Having Stafford Home Service install a Bryant gas furnace in your home you could lower you utility bill by 50%?  By knowing when to turn on and how much heat to produce Bryant Brand furnaces can reduce the amount of heat and energy you use. Dan from Stafford Home Service will help chose the right model for you.

These Bryant brand furnaces are so advanced they use computer generated algorithms to know how long to run and how much heat to produce. Older model furnaces used to run for a set amount of time even if the house was warm enough. These energy efficient furnaces are also multi-stage and are able to tell how long they should run, in order to be most efficient.  Let’s say it’s a sunny day in December, your furnace might never reach its highest heat stage, it can tell that it only needs to stay in stage one, the lowest amount of heat. However, as the sun goes down it will also be able to tell if it is more efficient to jump to stage three, the highest amount heat, rather than going through all three stages.

Rain Water Cistern detail

Landscape Architecture, Inc. Residential Rainwater Collection Cistern Detail

This section drawing shown is from a project we designed in Edina, MN.  This project collects all the water from the downspouts of the roof and discharges them directly and via overland flow to the rain garden shown above the cistern.  Once 6 inches or more of storm water pools in the rain garden it then is captured by the inlet shown and enters the cistern where it is stored for another day.

Cistern Installation at Eco Builders Site

This project is currently enrolled in two green certification programs and is on track to achieve both (MN Greenstar and LEED for Homes accreditation).  In this project we were able to collect enough water from the roof of the house and landscape areas utilizing this 2,500 gallon cistern (which is locally manufactured) to irrigate the entire greenspace on the property and operate the water feature represented in section without the use of potable water.  As for this project and any other project where you are proposing to install a cistern on-site consult with your local building official during design and complete the permit process prior to installation if required.

With increased awareness in the both the residential and commercial markets we are finding that the use of both natural water impoundments and cisterns are becoming a norm on most of our projects as a way to conserve this valuable resource.  Also, as we all learn more about best management practices with stormwater it has been found that these practices will help prevent flooding down stream in spring snow melts and large stormwater events by storing this extra water on-site for a not-so-rainy day.

If you are considering this or any other type of rainwater storage technique, please contact us. –we would be excited to share our passion and experience to ensure success on your project!

Stephen Mastey, ASLA, CLARB, LEED AP

Landscape Architecture, Inc.
856 Raymond Avenue, Suite C
St. Paul, MN 55114
651.646.1020 office
651.246.1151 mobile

www.landarcinc.com

stephen@landarcinc.com

Recessed lighting has a nice clean look and can be very effective at making small rooms feel bigger. Rather than installing chunky light fixtures, that take up room and clutter spaces, Stafford Home Service can install recessed lighting in your home for a simple, sleek look.

Recessed lighting can be installed in any room and is a great way to highlight works of art, mantels, photographs, or an interesting painted wall or Italian plaster feature.  Another useful way to use recessed lighting is for task lighting: Reading areas, desks, and various work spaces can all benefit from recessed lighting.  Imagine your desk free of hot, inconvenient lamps –with a flick of a switch your desk can be washed with focused light from recessed fixtures strategically placed for maximum effect.

There are four bulb options available for recessed lighting:

• Incandescent
• Halogen
• Low-emitting diode (LED)
• Compact fluorescent light (CFL).

Incandescent bulbs:
Incandescent lights are the standard lights with which we are all familiar. They have the least expensive up-front costs of the four options, are the least efficient, create more garbage and run very hot. They will also be phased out, according to federal law by 2012-2014 [http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d110:h.r.00006:].

Halogen bulbs:
Halogen lights are also incandescent, but they last longer and provide a greater quantity of light, per watt. They are a step up from standard incandescent but have all the same fundamental problems and will also be phased out along with standard incandescents.

LED bulbs:
If your looking for a Green lighting option, LED lights are the way to go.  According to energystar.gov, an ENERGY STAR qualified LED uses, at the bare minimum, 75% less energy than incandescent lighting and also reduces maintenance costs, by lasting 35 to 50 times longer (and more) than incandescent lighting and about 2 to 5 times longer than fluorescent lighting. LED bulbs also contain no mercury (which CFL’s do.) By using LED lighting you won’t have to replace bulbs more then once every several years (or more), which, in the long-term, is good for your pocketbook and the environment. (not to mention if you have limited mobility and have difficulty replacing bulbs)

Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs (CFL):
CFL bulbs are another green solution. An ENERGY STAR qualified compact fluorescent light bulb (CFL) will save about $30 over its lifetime and pay for itself in about 6 months. It uses 75 percent less energy and lasts about 10 times longer than an incandescent bulb.” (www.energystar.gov) Stafford home Services uses Energy Star qualified products. The toxic mercury contained in CFL’s is an issue, but is offset by the infrequency of replacement and proper waste disposal programs that are currently in effect across the US.

While LED or CFL recessed lighting fixtures are far more efficient than a standard incandescent fixture, they are a significantly higher up-front investment.  Keep in mind, If every American home replaced just one light with an ENERGY STAR light, we would save enough energy to light more than 3 million homes for a year, about $700 million in annual energy costs, and prevent 9 billion pounds of greenhouse gas emissions per year, equivalent to the emissions of about 800,000 cars.  (www.energystar.gov).

In conclusion, recessed lighting is a great option for any room in any home. With options for every price range the possibilities are endless. For your next renovation project, let Stafford Home Service install Energy Star qualified products in your home.

Before I turned on the jack, my friend stood back. We thought all hell would break loose as the jack hammered the old floor into rubble. We thought the very foundation would shake and we would have trouble staying upright. Well, it turns out to be quite a bit mellower then that. It may have been the fact that the concrete floor was 4-5″ thick, it may have been that there was more Portland cement in the original mix then a sane man would specify. Whatever the reason, the floor barely budged. After a few hours of trial and error, I started to get the hang of it, with the last hour cruising by. Needless to say, it was not a walk in the park, but it was better then just using an 8LB hammer like the first time (I felt like I was going to die from strain.) After 6 hours we had a 12′ diameter hole. That was enough for one day.

The next day my girlfriend and I laid down some foam (for a little insulation) and 17 bags of sand mix cement. That’s over 1,200lbs of concrete. It took us 6.5 hours. And man is laying concrete hard (especially when you care about how flat it is. One thing I learned was that sand mix can be easily smoothed out when dry, so about 1.5 hours of back-breaking work perfecting the skimming was wasted time. Live and learn.

Three quick advantages with using dimmer switches:

• Reduced Energy Consumption, Dim your lights by quarter & save up to 20 percent Dim by half and save up to 40 percent.
• Increased Bulb Life, If you are dimming the light by just 10 percent it more than doubles the life of the bulb.
• Mood, A softer light is more comforting and sets a relaxing atmosphere.

We can install many different kinds of dimmer light switches. 3-way dimmable light switches are also available.

Call Stafford for more information on going green in your home.

Kris Thompson
Stafford Home Service
Office:   952.927.7194
Fax:      952.927.7192
Direct:   612.328.3989

1. If your home has a outdated circuit breaker panel or fuse box (usually located in your basement) –e.g. Federal Pacific circuit breaker panel.
   1. How does one identify an outdated panel? –Because there are so many brands/styles its probably best to contact us for a evaluation.
2. If your circuit breaker panel or fuse box does not have a main fused shut off switch.
3. If you are planning significant lifestyle changes in your home that will put added demand to your electrical system.
4. If you have a 60 amp service. Typically you can have only one 220 volt appliance on a 60 amp service. A demand load calculation should be used to determine this.
   1. How can someone easily identify their “amp service”? –Typically there is a listed label on the  panel
5. If your main fuses blow or main circuit breaker shuts off.
6. If you are planning on having your wires buried from your local power company you will need to change your meter socket and usually this is a good time to upgrade your circuit breaker panel or fuse box to a more modern and safer system.If you do not have adequate room for additional circuits, Such as adding air conditioning, electric water heaters, electric clothes dryers, electric heat, hot tubs, ect.

Kris Thompson
Stafford Home Service
Office:   952.927.7194
Fax:      952.927.7192
Direct:   612.328.3989

In looking for an HVAC contractor, I recommend finding one that will give you many options and thoroughly discuss the pros and cons. Since renovation projects require so much on the fly changes and so many compromises, you want to know that your HVAC contractor can think creatively as well as aggressively protect your interests. In the case of Stafford Home Service’s HVAC installation, they have went to the trouble of splitting ducts to get around a beam, tucking things in hard to reach areas and placed the returns in the attic to give more headroom in the basement. Now that’s some great HVAC service.

Add to all that, just the other day I come in late, just to check up on the place and Stafford is still there, working overtime to get the furnace in. Nice!