gulf coast property owners

Gulf CoastProperty Owners

InsideFun & Games.................2

Trivia Questions............2

DIY................................3

County Projects..............4

Water Damage...............5

Alternative Homes.......8,9

Home Inspection......10,11

November 2015 FREE EditionNews for property owners

NEW CONSTRUCTION IN THE AREA!

Welcome To The Neighborhood

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Page 3Page 2 Gulf Coasts Property Owners Gulf Coasts Property OwnersOctober 2015 October 2015

Gulf Coast Property Own-ers and the rental prop-erty owners and permanent wresidents...30a, Front Beach Road, Scenic 98

Preparing to sell your home? Purchase your slice of Paradise? Home mainte-nance and improvements? Do-It-Yourself Projects? Please support the trades-men who advertise in this publication. Theyre here to help.

How To Clean Cork Flooring Must Read Tips For All

The basics:

There is a right way and a wrong way to take care of your cork floors. Cork is a finished surface and should be treated in the same way a hardwood floor is treated. Forna cork products are factory finished with water based polyurethane. Polyurethane is a tough, surface finish that sits on top of the cork and protects it from damage and stains. The poly-urethane is in the same category as hardwood floors finished with urethane or polyurethane. That means there can be no harsh chem-icals, no wax based, no oil based, no solvent based products used on these floors. If the bottle does not say pH Neutral Hardwood Floor Cleaner then do not buy/use it on cork or hardwood.

The RIGHT way:

1. Sweep dust/dirt/sand off of the floor on a regular basis (3-5 times per week)

2. Vacuuming is fine so long as you TURN OFF the beater bar

3. Dry mopping with microfibre material or push mops that use static electricity to hold the material is acceptable

4. Damp mopping with water is normally all these floors re-quired (1-4 times per month)

5. For a deeper clean or to remove stubborn dried on food/mud a pH Neutral Cleaner for Hard-wood Floors is acceptable (1-2 times per month)

6. For natural cleaning products we ONLY allow a water:vine-gar mixture of 10:1 ratio (1-2 times per month)

7. For very stubborn greasy floors the water:vinegar mixture can have 1 DROP of Dawn dish soap added; if you proceed with this method the floor must be rinsed with hot, clean water to remove any trace of the soap. Sev-eral rinses (2-3 rinses) are normally required for this procedure which is why most people choose not to use this method of cleaning; this format is recommended only a few times per year (2-4 times per year)

8. After a damp mop, it is wise to wipe the floors dry to remove any concerns about water spots left behind on the floor

The WRONG way shows how these products will damage your floor:

#1 WORST thing to use is Murphys Oil Soap will ruin the most expensive finish in-

side of a year or two and there is no way to apply more finish to save the floor; the only cure for Murphys = new flooring

All Purpose cleaners are not to be used on finished wood floors; they can to be used on glass, ceramic/porcelain/ce-ment tiles and metal but NOT WOOD!

Natural All Purpose cleaning products are as bad as their chemical cousins; they are

not meant for anthing other than glass, cement or metal

Natural Cleaning products are often derived from oil based soaps which puts these products in the same floor killing category as Murphys Oil Soap; best to avoid these products

Oil Based cleaners or shine products such as Mop&Glo or Orange Glo; these prod-

ucts leave heavy residues that rank in the same category as Murphys Oil Soap and should never be used on wood surfaces ever!

Steam Cleaners will cook the finish to the point where it will turn white and hazy; this is quite common and often requires the floor to be fully sanded and refinished which means you will loose the pretty pattern and the colour of the cork you paid plenty of money for; or the cheapest option is to rip out the floor and install another floor while at the same time throwing out the steam cleaner Swiffer style spray mops are not designed for polyure-thane or urethane floors; they are allowed on ceramic/porce-lain/cement tiles, linoleum and sheet vinyl but NOT WOOD! Oil, wax or polishes should

be avoided They are inappro-priate for Forna cork flooring products

These are the basics of How to Clean Cork Floors. Most of these products are heavily advertised with pretty pictures of the product being used on wood floors but the reality is that very few are accepti-ble for use with wood or cork.

TRIVIA(Answers are Everywhere)

01. This state has the high-est median price homes of any US metropolitan area ($360,000.)

02) Considered the worlds oldest castle.

03) Log cabins, a style that originated in...

04)....... is the most common city name in the US.

05) What is Floridas State flower?

06) What famous author is said to have penned his best

works while living in Key West?

07) What famous inventor wintered in Fort Myers, where his home still exists today?

08) ................is the oldest European settlement in North America.

09) The United States city with the highest rate of lightning strikes per capita is

10) The largest lake in Flor-ida is

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T Z Z U W R U S K K S B V S P H H X B D W A T E R S O U N D E X A W I C T F A U T X Q K Z N E T E A I N W V T A M B I N D Y C F B T Y C C D T P O F I E V X R E G Z N V T F Z H O A O A E D N B I O W A M N H C A E B Y R A M E S O R N L Q T L N B I H T X U O M G Q H P Y P O E J Y L R Q Z A C J S E U I L O T D C T V T R E S N F R T A S L S P R P R R N Y O E F N C U A H B N F A K G O A E X X A R C F R X N F E E P U B N L E T M N F R G D S T J T A T L M H O O D A P S A P G A M E T C C O A F Z H O M W E R A H R N E W A T H Z C T E L N I X E F S I C K S S G S G U E D U N E S I D E U J T T S J Q E I I H C A E B S Y L A W L L S I O A R W D M R X S U H I N C M Y O Q B Q N C E I E A F N Z V Y D X V U K U F X N A M H S G Z S E H F K Z L H U B K U N E S G Z Y W A J V E L K H L X H V E V S K W H E O E J

ALYSBEACHBEACHBLUEMOUNTAINDUNEALLENDUNESIDEGRAYTONBEACHGULFPLACEINLETMIRAMARROSEMARYBEACHSANDESTINSANTAROSABEACHSEACRESTSEAGROVESEASCAPESEASIDEWATERCOLORWATERSOUND

WORD SEARCH - THE HOODS

(05. The Orange Blossom)

Page 4 Gulf Coasts Property Owners Gulf Coasts Property OwnersOctober 2015 October 2015

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South Walton County Projects Simple Steps to Safeguard Your Second Home(NewsUSA) Water damage is the second most common reason for homeowners to file claims with their insurance companies; only home fires are associated with more damage and more claims. Water damage can stem from a variety of sources, including leaking water heaters, ruptured washing ma-chine hoses, leaky pipes and failed plumbing systems. These leaks can cause flooding that can stain ceilings, warp floors and destroy personal property anywhere in the home.

Another consequence of leaks and water damage: mold. Indoor mold is an additional source of damage that, according to the Insurance Information Institute, costs the average $3,000 to $4,000; while water damage combined with mold yields homeowner insurance claims

ranging from $15,000 to $30,000.

Mold can damage walls, stain ceil-ings, ruin carpeting and damage home ventilation systems.Mold also has the potential to damage personal items, includ-ing personal electronics, clothing with sentimental value (such as a wedding dress) and fine art.

Not only is mold almost impossible to remove, it contrib-utes to poor air quality in the home, which can cause health problems for homeowners with allergies or asthma. Even non-aller-gic individuals may experience skin

and eye irritation or respiratory problems in moldy environments. Although visible mold can be cleaned from walls, and moldy rugs can be replaced, homeowners with mold problems must consider how to reduce or control the moisture

content in the home.

An auto-matic water shut-off system can help stop mold before it starts by identifying

leaks before they lead to major water damage. One example of such a system, FloLogic, acts as a circuit breaker for home plumb-ing. The System shuts off the water when it detects a leak, whether it

is a pinhole leak, running faucet or malfunctioning appliance caus-ing a flood. The FloLogic System automatically shuts off the water and alerts the homeowner with an alarm so the leak can be identified and repaired as soon as possible, limiting the water damage.Homeowners who install and use a system such as FloLogic may be able to avoid the costly insurance claims associated with water dam-age. Some homeowners insurance companies recognize the benefits of such systems and may offer dis-counts to homeowners who install devices to protect against water damage.

Visit www.flologic.com for more details about how the FloLogic System works.

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County Project:US 98 & CR 395 ImprovementsProject Manager: Greg GrahamEmail: [email protected] Phase: Will start construc-tion after Labor dayLast Update: August 19, 2015PROJECT DESCRIPTION____________________________

Operational Issues have been identified over the last several years with the existing traffic volumes be-ing experienced at the intersection of CR 395 & US 98. This four-way intersection is currently controlled by overhead mast traffic signals.

Public Works has had an opera-tional traffic analysis done on the intersection and the following has been determined: A) Southbound: a free flow right turn lane on CR 395 and B) Northbound: an ex-clusive left turn lane on CR 395 will relieve operational issues currently being experienced.

This project provided Board ap-proval, is to be funded through the use of US 98 Proportionate Fair Share monies.

www.co.walton.fl.us

Road Improvement Projects Sched-uled for Betty Street, Buddy Street, and Vicki Street

Walton County Public Works is scheduled to begin road improve-ment projects on Betty Street, Bud-dy Street, and Vicki Street begin-ning September 8, 2015.

These roads are located in the Gulfview Heights Subdivision south of CR30A and east of Gulfview Heights Street. These road improve-ment projects will include drainage improvements, utility relocations,

and paving of the existing unim-proved roads.

The roads to be improved are scheduled to remain open to traffic during construction; however, some minor delays may be expected. Weather permitted, these projects are scheduled for completion by late December or early January. The public is encouraged to use caution while traveling in this area.

If there are any questions regarding these projects please call Walton County Public Works at 892-8108.

(06. Ernest Hemingway)


A NAME YOU CAN TRUST

The Premier Group is an innovative full-service real estate company based in Destin, Florida. The companys reach ex-tends from the beach to key markets in the Southeast includ-ing Nashville, Birmingham, Atlanta, Dallas and Houston to name a few. The Premier Development Group, a subsidiary of The Premier Group, is one of the most substantial devel-opment companies along the Gulf Coast with five significant developments in various stages stretched from Destin, Florida to the east end of Highway 30A.


Are dome homes the next big thing?Look at most any home in America and they all have at least one thing in common: Four walls.

There is, however, a growing sector of housing that bucks this most basic structural element -- the dome home.

The domes shape and inherent structural integrity make it both stronger and more energy-efficient than a typical family home. Domes can withstand powerful winds and strong earthquakes. Concrete domes have been known to sur-vive flying debris as big as cars and direct hits from bombs.

They are practically indestructi-ble, said Johnny Delirious, spokes-man for Monolithic Dome Institute in Texas, a company that has been building the domes for nearly 50 years. Anyone who wants one wants it for the protection first.

Concrete monolithic domes are the safest of the dome homes. Built out of concrete over an air form, these homes can look as simple as a bubble over the earth or as complex as a luxury mansion with a curved roof.

The Federal Emergency Manage-ment Agency rates them as having near-absolute protection from F5 tornadoes and Category 5 hurri-canes. They have withstood wild-fires in Arizona and California and survived direct hits from Hurricane Katrina and tornadoes in Oklaho-ma and Texas.

Geodesic domes, made by assem-bling triangular building mate-rials, are similarly protective but with so many seams dont have

the exact same strength as their cement counterparts. They are just as energy-efficient, offering owners savings of around 50 percent, said Blair Wolfram, general man-ager of Dome Incorporated in Minnesota, a company that builds domes.

What attract-ed me to the geodesic dome is that it is simply the most energy-efficient home you can build, he said.

Wolfram, like Monolithic owner David South, was inspired by prolific architect Buckminster Fuller, who first pop-ularized the geodesic dome in the 1940s and 1950s and inspired the most well-known geo-dome, the

Spaceship Earth dome at Disney World. Advocates of Buckminsters idea went on to build their own dome homes before selling the con-

cept to the public.

The buildings are economical, costing about $120 to $150 per square foot, which is in line with the cost to build an average house, though their build-ers say they would cost less if they were mass-produced like the average home.

The problem with the unusualness of the dome is all the

custom work that goes into it, Wolfram said.

The custom parts and custom

work drives up their cost. Besides that, domes simply dont look like the home most Americans dream about.

The dome home is an oddity and

despite the great strides the indus-try has made in mixing in common architectural elements to smooth out the domes unique look, there is no hiding the distinct look of a curved building that the eye thinks should be square.

The construction industry is like the fashion industry, they want things to follow trends, Deliri-ous said. Neighborhoods have homes looking a certain way and thats what we want. We dont want neighborhoods to drop in value by building something weird like a dome.

Getting financing for a home like this, as well as pricing it for resale, can be difficult.

The comparable sale is the prob-lem, Wolfram said. You dont want to get pigeonholed into a category of housing, so I tell people

to list it as a custom home.

The homes attract a group thats willing to stretch their imaginations as to what a home looks like, and that means that those with dome homes have a niche audience to sell to. That may be one of the reasons that builders are mostly seeing people buying them as second homes that they intend to live in throughout their lives, and can typically finance themselves.

Despite the limitations, both companies have seen steady growth.

This is the home of the future, Wolfram said.

Worlds First 3D Printed Office Building, Complete With 3D Printed Furniture & Interior To Be Built in Dubai[3dprint.com]

By now the thought of a 3D printed structure like a home or an apart-ment building doesnt surprise most of us. After all, we know for a fact that several ambitious projects to construct such struc-tures are currently underway. With that said, the majority of these buildings only utilize 3D printing for their exterior walls, as sort of a replacement for the use of concrete block or wood framing.

This morning, however, the United Arab Emirates National Innovation Committee has revealed a project which will take things a step or two further. The committee, as well as Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice-President and Prime Min-ister and Ruler of Dubai, wants to transform the UAE into a technological center of the world when it comes to architecture and design, and has set forth a plan to 3D print an entire office building. Not only will the exterior walls be printed, but so too will the interior walls, and furniture.

Leading this project will be WinSun Global, a company who has 3D printed an apartment building as well as a home late last

year in China, as well as Gensler, Thornton Thomasetti, and Syska Hennessy, all which are leading engineering and architecture firms.This project reflects the vision of

our leadership here in Dubai, Al Gergawi, the Chairman of the UAE National Innovation Committee explained. The idea of 3D print-ing buildings was once a dream, but today it has become a reality, he added. This building will be a testimony to the efficiency and cre-ativity of 3D printing technology, which we believe will play a major

role in reshaping construction and design sectors. We aim to take ad-vantage of this growth by becoming a global hub for innovation and 3D printing. This is the first step of many more to come.

To print the 2,000 square foot building, engineers will use a 20-foot tall 3D printer, which will

be assembled on the build site, located at a busy intersection right in the heart of Dubai. They will use Special Reinforced Concrete (SRC), Fiber Reinforced Plastic

(FRP), and Glass Fiber Reinforced Gypsum (GRG) to fabricate the various structur-al and decorative components of the structure. Total construc-tion time will be just a few weeks,

while labor costs will be reduced by 50-80% and construction waste will be reduced between 30-60%.d3

Once complete, the building, will be used for a variety of purposes and will feature its very own 3D printing exhibition inside. This is the first major project undertaken by the Museum of the Future, a

museum that began construc-tion earlier in the year, with the promise that 3D printing will be utilized in its creation.

It will be very interesting to

see just what else spawns from this project as Dubai aims to make a statement to the world about its technological prowess. It is also interesting to note that Winsun will be printing this office on-location rather than printing single walls and shipping them to the construc-tion site, like they did with their other printed structures.

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(02. Castle at Gomdan, Yemon)

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www.elizabethbell.net


Brick masons and block masons Carpenters Tile and marble setters Cement masons & concrete finishers Electricians RoofersInsulation Painters, construction and maintenance Plumbers Plasterers and stucco masons Heating, air conditioning

These are just some Construction Trades.

As a homeowner or rental property owner finding qualified tradespeople can sometimes feel like an art more than a skill.

Theyre out there and well find them and when we do theyll be featured here.

Skilled construction Trades

5 Ticking Time Bombs Every Homeowner Should Know AboutYouve done everything you can to make your house picture-perfect, but dont forget about the real big picture. Maintenance and repair issues that may lurk beneath your beautiful facade could turn any dream home into a nightmare on Elm Street.

There are some maintenance and repair issues that homeowners just hate to deal witheither because they take time, or cost money, or just dont seem, well, urgent.But some of these problems can be-come ticking time bombs, poised to explode if theyre not defused early, when they are more like firecrack-ers than bombs.

Here are some of the top structur-al and mechanical time bombs in your home that experts say have the potential to blow up and are worth squelching nowbefore the big boom.

THE FOUNDATIONWhy Its Explosive: Houses settle. But not all settling is the same. A lot of times people will ignore the cracks in the brick veneer on the outside of the house, even when they get to be a half-inch or more, says Bill Loden, incoming president of the American Society of Home Inspectors (ASHI). Even though that brick is often just the skin of the house, a crack that large can signal much deeper problems with a moving foundation, Loden says. Caught early, a repair might cost a few thousand dollars. Caught too late, the tab could run $20,000 to $50,000.

Snuff the Fuse: Some cracks in your house are essentially cosmetic, the result of natural settling. When is a crack something more? If you see a crack big enough to put a No. 2 pencil in, youre looking at a problem, says Loden, owner of Huntsville, Alabama-based Insight Building Inspection. Other signs of trouble: a tilting chimney or win-dows and doors that stick or jam, which can be caused by a moving foundation that is twisting their frames. If you suspect foundation issues, hire a structural engineer to evaluate your house, Loden says.

THE ROOFWhy Its Explosive: Most people dont pay any attention to their roof until they see water coming through the ceiling! says Bill Jacques, outgoing president of the American Society of Home Inspec-tors (ASHI) and owner of Ameri-can Inspection Service in Charles-ton, S.C. But if you see drips in your living room, the problem is already far gone. A new roof could cost you probably $8,000 to $10,000, Jacques says.

Snuff the Fuse: Some people say, Ive got a 20-year shingle, its gonna last 20 years. Well, no its not, Jacques says. I would just recommend that about every five years they have the roof inspected. One of the telltale signs of a wearing roof is coarse sand pooling at the base of gutter downspouts; the sand is most likely the granules of the shingles wash-ing off. If you see a lot of it, then its a good idea to have someone climb higher. If you can safely get on the roof (be careful!) and the surface feels slippery, thats another sign that the shingle material is coming off, Jacques says.You can find evidence of additional problems under the roof. Water will usually enter the attic first. Hire an inspector, or look for stains around the chimney and the stack vents, or around other venting pipes that exit the house. Those are places where the metal flashing can fail, says Jacques. Also, look around the attic for wet and/or damaged insulation. Discovering issues early on could mean the difference be-tween repair and replacementor a few hundred dollars rather than thousands.

THE SEPTIC SYSTEMWhy Its Explosive: Homeowners who have septic tanks dont always like to think about them, Loden says. Thats a mistake. A septic

tank is gonna work until the day it quits, he quips.

Generally speaking, a septic system breaks down the solids and lique-fies them. The liquid then goes out into lines and is dispersed into the surrounding ground. But other ma-terials also reach the septic tankfrom sanitary napkins and cigarette butts to foodstuffs such as coffee grounds and grease (particularly if you have a garbage disposal). Over

time, the baffles that stop the larger solids from going into the lines can get blocked. If that happens, the system can back up into your house. Thats not a check engine light; thats an engine failure light, Loden says. Thats when you end up with a backhoe in your yard.Snuff the Fuse: If you have a sep-tic tank, have the tank pumped every five yearsand if you have a garbage disposal, you might want to have it done every three years, Loden says. In Lodens area of the South, the cost is between $300 and $500, he says. Its really relatively inexpensive to have it pumped. A lot of those guys will pump it and inspect it at the same time. Its particularly cheap when compared with the cost of digging up your yard to repair your system, which can run thousands of dollars

OLD ELECTRICAL SYSTEMSWhy Its Explosive: Homes built af-ter World War II, as well as homes built earlier, didnt have the same requirements for power that we do now, Loden says. Homes built today cant have more than 12 lin-ear feet of space between electrical

outlets. This stipulation was intend-ed to minimize the use of extension cords, which can cause fires. The electrical systems of older homes, particularly those outfitted with lots of appliances and amenities, just cant handle modern electrical demands. Sockets can actually wear out, and switches, too. Breakers be-come less reliable as they age. The upshot can be a fire.Snuff the Fuse: Probably every 20 years, a home should have a

thorough inspection of its electrical system, Loden says. Homes built prior to 1980 should definitely be looked at, and an-other break point in my regionthe Deep Southis 1965. There were a lot of improve-ments in the 1960s, he says. You could call an electrician, although Loden cautions that an electrician may see it as a sales call. Like any trade, theyre there

to fix things. Another alternative: Consider calling an experienced home inspector.

THE CRAWL SPACEWhy Its Explosive: Few homeown-ers ever pay attention to their crawl space, that often dank, dirt-floored area beneath many homes. And why would they? says Jacques, of ASHI. But you should, because the crawl space is sort of a window into the belly of your home and all its inner workings, he says. It could reveal all sorts of problems before they get bigger:

You might have a leak in the bath-room under the commode or in a supply line that could be weak-ening the floor, Jacques says, and youd never know it until the day a sag appears in the floor and you need major repairs. Termite damage can usually be seen there before it appears else-where.

Many crawl spaces carry the heat-ing and air-conditioning duct work that runs throughout a house. But when repairmen clamber about in

this cramped space, over time they might cause some damage to the insulation or to the duct work. So you could be pumping your nice

cold air into the crawl space itself, Jacques says.

Snuff the Fuse: Jacques recom-mends that a homeowner periodically

spend a few minutes with a flash-light looking inside the crawl space as a precautionary measure.He also recommends occasionally hiring a home inspector to do a more thorough examination of the space. An inspector can look for leaks in plumbing and find faulty or damaged duct work and worri-some wiring. As well, while often not licensed to inspect for termites, an inspector usually knows enough to point out suspected trouble and recommend treatment or repair.

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(03. Finland)

(07. Thom

as Edison)

(08. Saint Augustine)

(09. Clearwater)

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