Interior Design Compared With Interior Decorating Interior design and interior decorating are often mistaken for the same thing, but the terms are not completely interchangeable. Interior design is a profession that requires specific schooling and formal training, including space planning, furniture design, and architecture. An interior decorator does not have that formal training and focuses on the aesthetics and the surface appearance of a space. Who you would hire depends on whether you have any structural work or space planning to be done or you need someone to plan the decor only....

Junction Box in Action The junction box serves as the communal meeting spot for electrical wires, where they connect before moving on. These boxes protect hot (black), white (neutral), and grounding (green or copper) electrical wires and may contain some other wire colors for secondary functions and lighting. An encased Romex wire runs from the main electrical panel (or a subpanel) to the junction box. Romex is the trade name for a non-metallic sheathed electrical wire that is most commonly used for residential branch wiring....

If your residence is on the second story, ask for permission to plant the vine in the soil of the first-floor tenant. You can train annual vines like morning glories or hyacinth beans discreetly up a post or other support, making it unobtrusive to the first-floor resident. Annual vines can grow along shrubs without consuming them, as the root systems are shallow and the plants are only large for a couple of months....

There are three different styles of wire. Bare wire is just what the name states, non-insulated. Insulated solid wire is a solid piece of wire that is coated and encased in a plastic coating. The last is insulated stranded wire. This has many smaller sized strands of copper and is also wrapped in a protective plastic coating. Type NM cable, as it is often referred to, is sold in pre-cut lengths like 50’, 100’, 250’, and 1,000’ spools....

Should You Feed Birds in Summer? A persistent bird feeding myth is that feeding birds during the summer will make the birds dependent on handouts or lazy when seeking natural food sources. This is simply untrue—studies have shown that wild birds typically receive no more than 25 percent of their daily food from feeders, and for many backyard species the total is even lower. In fact, summer is an ideal time to feed birds because of the following:...

Even using kits I received as gifts and following the instructions to grow basil, chives, parsley, and six different kinds of peppers resulted in varying results: My parsley thrived, my basil had one sprout, the chives did nothing, and only one type of pepper seed germinated. I really didn’t understand why this was happening so I reached out to an expert for tips on growing herbs from seed on windowsills and countertops....

Made of steel-reinforced concrete that forms a shell, concrete and plaster are the most common in-ground pool-building materials and were the first ones used when residential pools became popular. The reason: Concrete is durable and porous, which allows the plaster-coated shell to hold water, provide stability, and be replastered when needed, adding to its longevity and durability. Even though concrete has a higher up-front cost (as opposed to vinyl, for instance), it is considered the most cost-friendly option long-term as it can be maintained for years and likely will never have to be replaced if properly cared for....

Like clockwork, right around the beginning of May, the bedrooms of my old, Colonial-style home in Portland, Oregon, start to get stuffy at night. You’d think we could just crack a window, and sometimes we do, but the uptick in temperature aways dovetails with a yearly explosion in pollen, which makes opting for a fresh air solution tantamount to asking for a sneezing attack. This year, my husband and I went on the hunt for an air conditioner for each bedroom, settling on the Frigidaire FFRA0511R1 Window-Mounted Air Conditioner for our daughter’s....

What Is a Ground Fault? An electrical system can experience a number of different types of faults—defined as any abnormal flow of electricity. A ground fault is a type of fault in which the unintentional pathway of the straying electrical current flows directly to the earth (to the ground). Here, too, the circuit is “short,” in that it has bypassed the circuit wiring, so a ground fault can technically be defined as one type of short circuit....

Latin Name The scientific name assigned to this species is Prunus serrula. It is included with the other Prunus trees and shrubs in the Rosaceae family. Common Names Names that you may see associated with this tree are paperbark cherry, Tibetan cherry or birch bark cherry. Preferred USDA Hardiness Zones Paperbark cherry grows best in zones 5-8. It is native to China, Japan, and Korea. Size & Shape This tree grows 20-30’ tall and wide and has a round shape....

Laundry Machine Capacity How much laundry makes a “full load” depends on the size, or capacity, of your washing machine. Low-capacity top-loaders may accommodate only 6 pounds of clothing to be full. Medium-capacity top-loading washing machines can usually tolerate 7–8 pounds. The highest capacity top-loaders might do well with as much as 12–15 pounds. Front-loading washing machines often can hold as much as 18 pounds of clothing. Refer to your machine’s owner’s manual or contact the manufacturer for specific load-weight recommendations for your machine model....

Filtration systems can be composed of many different individual filters. The most common filter—plus, the one that needs to be replaced most frequently—is the sediment pre-filter. What a Whole Home Water Filtration System Is A whole home water filtration system is a water treatment system that is installed where the main water line enters the house. It treats all water within the house, filtering out chlorine taste, odors, zinc, copper, cadmium, and mercury, plus other impurities....

Ejector Pumps in Homes Most commonly, ejector pumps are used in homes with basement bathrooms or laundry rooms. Not all basements require them, but when the municipal sewer lines running to the street are at a higher level than the fixture, the ejector pump serves to pump both liquids and solids up into the sewer line so it can flow properly. Ejector pumps are also very common in septic drain-field systems, such as are found in rural locations where the septic drainage field or holding tank may be considerably higher than basement plumbing fixtures....

Key Questions to Ask When Choosing Edging Plants Choosing the right edging plants can be tricky, but a good place to start is with some key questions: Purpose of Edging Plants Perhaps the most important consideration when choosing edging plants is their purpose. For example, if you have a frequently used stone path, you might wish to soften the hard, cold lines with edging plants, but it’s also important not to interfere with its function as a walkway....

Sandpaper has a variety of uses in home repair activities but is most often used to clean and smooth wood or metal in preparation for finishing or painting. But to determine what type of sandpaper grit you need requires knowing the project you will be using it on and which grade of grit will work best for it. This guide will walk you through the different categories and help you navigate the finer points of sandpaper grit....

Therefore, it can be quite important that living room floor is soft, comfortable, and cozy. Beyond that, though, durability, ease of cleaning, construction, and even color can make a big impact on choosing the besting carpeting for the living room. Here are six factors to consider when choosing a carpet for your living room. When shopping for the best carpet for the living room, quick test the quality of the product by bending the sample backward....