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All About Cupolas

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Cupolas are dome-shaped like structures installed in homes to achieve a certain look. They originated in Islamic architecture in the 8th century. In the past, they were seen over roofs where wives would peek into to wait for their seafarer husbands and also became revolutionary structure in the 1920s.

Cupolas have many purposes. They can be used as a ventilation system or a light system depending on their make-up and the way they were installed. Both styles add decorative elements in a home. In farms, cupolas should provide both ventilation and light.

Additionally, they look really good in the skyline and are the first ones people recognize from a distance. Cupolas are the small buildings perched on top of roofs or on top of larger buildings. Cupolas adorned churches, homes, palaces, and mosques which adds elegance and sophistication. Over the years, cupolas along with weathervanes serve as architectural enhancements that add a country vibe.

Cupolas are made up of different styles, sizes, colors, and materials. Some cupolas are very big that they make up the entire rooftop of a building. Cupolas can be made from woods, brass, vinyl, or stone and the most popular are wood cupolas because they can complement a house in an instant.

There are also a variety of cupolas; round, dome-shaped cupolas are traditional cupolas. However, there are more styles that emerged that can complement the way the house or building looks. Cupolas also differ in the kind of their roofs; they can take the shape of pagodas or bells. Pagoda style cupolas looks good on center barns and French country homes while bell cupola are determined by the architectural look of the building it will be perched on. These give character and accentuate a rather dull-looking building. Bell cupola complements colonial style homes or buildings with gambrel roofs. They are made of marine plywood and can be painted to match your house.

Aside from serving as ornamentation, bell cupola also serves as roof ventilation. It vents out warm and moisture air out and lets air circulate inside. There are two kinds of bell cupola, the first one is a classic bell cupola and the other is a louvered bell cupola.

So if you opt to put cupola on your home, you can also put a weathervane on top of it. Weathervanes and cupolas go well with each other and they create an old world charm, early American vibe on your home. They can make people be envious of your home just by adding them on top of your roof. However, you should look for the right cupola and weathervane to put on it. It should be proportioned to your roof, otherwise they will look funny. If smaller, it will look like a bird house, especially if you will use the popular rooster weathervane on top of it; if larger, it will look awkward.

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Source by Angela Schultz

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Maintain A Healthy Lifestyle

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Our modern, urbanized lifestyle relegates most of us to a sedentary lifestyle. Sitting or working behind the computer is commonplace. While it is almost impossible to give up our jobs, there are ways in which we can incorporate exercise into our hectic schedules. If you live in an apartment, make the effort to walk your way up to your residence. If you take public transport to work, try alighting from the train or bus one stop earlier and walking the rest of the way. Take time off to exercise at least twice a week, 30 minutes each time. Vigorous exercise engages your cardiovascular muscles and improves blood circulation, reducing the risk of high blood pressure.

Maintain A Healthy Diet

Our food intake today includes some form of processed food. Increased affluence has led to demand for better lifestyle and with it, food that looks appealing and tastes good. While it will be impossible to eradicate processed food altogether in your diet, try replacing some of it with fresh food. Replace sausages and bacon with fresh meat. Use natural seasoning like species and herbs instead of pre-packed condiments. If you need to snack, choose apple slices or cupped corn over potato chips. When eating out, ask for reduced salt or go salt-free. Cutting down on salt goes a long way towards giving yourself a healthier body.

Reduce Stress

We live in a competitive world. The pressure to perform both in the workplace and at home brings stress to us at a level never witnessed before. If you feel that you are burning out, drop your work and go for a walk. Take a stroll through the park or sit quietly by the beach. Breathe some fresh air. Find a moment of solitude and let your mind enjoy some peace, even for a short 30 minutes. Better still, set aside at least an hour every week to spend some quiet moments by yourself. Do not wait till the stress starts to build up. Prevention is better than cure.

Avoid Excessive Alcohol

Research has shown that excessive alcohol consumption has the effect of increasing your blood pressure level. In addition, alcohol contains calories, which leads to weight gain, one of the factors leading to high blood pressure. If you are a heavy drinker, aim to reduce your intake gradually over time. If you must drink at social functions, limit yourself to just one or two drinks. Having less alcohol cleanses your system and puts your body on a path towards normalcy.

Quit Smoking

Smoking is one of the foremost contributors towards the increase of blood pressure. Smoking increases your blood pressure temporarily but instantly. Frequent smoking increases the frequency of increased blood pressure and the long-term effects of such temporary blood pressure increases cannot be ignored. Aim to quit smoking over time. Reduce your number of cigarettes gradually till you have quit totally. There is another benefit to be enjoyed: The gradual absence of nicotine also reduces your chances of getting narrow arteries and hardened artery walls, two major factors leading to blood clot, which in turn causes heart attack or stroke.

Summary

In summary, exercise, eat healthily and remove stress from your life. Also aim to reduce your alcohol intake and quit smoking. A few simple changes in lifestyle not only greatly reduces your chances of getting high blood pressure but also makes you more fit and feel good!

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Source by Dipak Majumder

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Overview of Thermostats and Advanced Air Conditioning System Controls For AC and Heat Pumps

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Thermostats: Tools That Manage HVAC Performance

In basic definition, thermostats and advanced A/C system controls function as simple on/off switches. The switch trips whenever changes in the indoor air temperature of a structure nears the associated thermostat’s set point. But modern HVAC performance involves much more the simplicity of an on/off thermostat control function.

The following overview reviews the power of thermostats and advanced A/C system controls.

Basic Thermostat and A/C System Control Processes

In 1883, Warren S. Johnson invented the first electric room thermostat. The Johnson Controls technology used mercury and electrodes inserted directly through the glass. The systems were accurate within one degree of temperature.

Skip ahead. In modern technology, most 2014 air conditioning and heat pump thermostats operate on low voltage control circuits that pull 24 volts AC from a control transformer installed within the home’s heating or cooling equipment. Low voltage control technology provides a safety advantage that enables the thermostat to operate multiple electromechanical contractors, relays and sequencers at inherently safe voltage. Modern systems also include an integrated “anticipation” function that activates the contacts in a manner that prevents room temperatures from overshooting the desired temperature settings. And all this excludes the growing range of features associated with modern programmable thermostats & controllers.

Pre-digital Heating and Air Conditioning Thermostats

In 1953, Honeywell introduced the T-86 “Round” thermostat technology. This bimetallic-spring regulated room thermostat still controls millions of home heating and cooling systems throughout the world.

Typically mounted on a central wall within the home, the traditional Honeywell thermostat uses a basic dial-type round-controller design that includes two temperature scales and two temperature pointers. The top scale and pointer provides the adjustable components of the system. The bottom scale shows the actual physical temperature in the chosen area of the home. Rotating the pointer in the top scale to the right increases the desired heating requirements. Rotating the pointer in the top scale to the left decreases the desired temperature setting.

In the early years, thermostats designed to control both cooling and heating included a manual setting switch at the base of the unit. This switch, also seen in rectangular units of the pre-digital era, can be moved from heat-to-off-to-cool or back again. The temperature sensor within the units compare the air temperature near the thermostat to the settings of the system and turn on or off the associated heating or cooling equipment as appropriate. The heat/cool/off control switch assures that only the selected equipment can activate at any one time.

Digital Era Thermostats and Controllers

By the year 2005, nearly 97% of U.S. households used installed heating systems. During the same time frame, only 75% of the U.S. households used air conditioning. But the world is changing and the changing climates associated with global warming continue to press upward the demand for installed air conditioning.

Modern programmable thermostat and controller technology bestows a dramatic increase in features and capabilities. From simple on/off heating and cooling to controlled ventilation systems and from manual settings to controllers that respond to electricity price-signals the home air conditioning and heat pump management system engages in a whole new arena of thermal comfort and energy savings.

And then along come thermostats and advanced air conditioning controls that link directly into the home Internet networking system. Wonder what comes next?

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Source by RM Harrington

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Easy Peezy Ice Cream Recipe

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Many people do not own an ice cream maker, but would like to know how to make home made ice cream. This simple recipe will show you how. Be warned it takes several hours to make, but the end result is well worth it.

Ingredients:

1 cup caster sugar

1 cup water

1 cup double cream

What ever you wish to put in the mixture.

Examples: 1 Cup melted chocolate (for chocolate ice cream)

1 Cup Strawberries/raspberries etc

If you want to make a vanilla ice cream just had a few drops of vanilla essence or some vanilla pods etc.

Basically you can put any flavour you wish into the mixture, try experimenting. I make a chocolate and peanut butter ice cream using this recipe.

Instructions:

1. Mix the water and sugar in a saucepan. Heat until the water is boiling and all of the sugar is dissolved.

2. When the sugar has dissolved add the cream and the rest of the ingredients. Stir constantly throughout to prevent the mixture from burning.

3. Bring to the boil again.

4. When mixture is boiling, reduce the heat and simmer until the mixture has reduced a little.

5. Once reduced take the mixture off the heat and pour into a container and let the mixture cool stirring repeatedly until mixture has thickened up.

6. Place container into your freezer (if you have an ice cream maker, put the mixture into the maker now).

7. Every half an hour take the mixture out of the freezer and stir it thoroughly.

8. Repeat step 7. until the mixture has frozen to chosen consistency.

9. Eat you ice cream.

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Source by Dave Loftus

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Healthy & Helpful Tools in the Kitchen

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So you are interested in trying a special autism diet, but you’re concerned about how much time it will take. You can successfully follow a special diet in the same time that you are already spending in the kitchen, and the tools described here can help make things easier.

If you watch someone build a house you’ll see the specialized tools they use to make their job of measuring, cutting, and constructing so much simpler. The same thing goes for cooking-cookware, specialized equipment, and storage materials-make cooking easier and healthier (by less exposure to harmful materials). This doesn’t mean you need fancy, expensive equipment to cook, but it’s certainly helpful to have a few good tools to make things more efficient and help specialized cooking fit into your lifestyle needs.

Here are some common cooking and storage tools that are helpful-and how to avoid the toxic ones.

Cookware

Cookware is the first thing people ask about regarding food safety. Do not use aluminum (where the cooking surface is aluminum), Teflon-coated, or copper. Especially, do not use Teflon. I know they are easy and non-stick, but there have been many studies showing how toxic this material is. Even if they are new and unscratched, I would not use them. Teflon is also toxic to produce. There are also newer varieties of cookware, all claiming to be non-stick and non-toxic. Because some of these are so new, I have not yet seen enough research to make personal recommendations.

As with most areas of nutrition and cooking, I prefer to stick with the traditional and classic options. Cast iron and enameled cast iron are good options for cookware. Stainless steel pots and pans are also good; however, stainless steel can contain high levels of nickel. Purchase stainless steel that attracts a magnet-these are much lower in nickel. If you can find the old VisionWare by CorningWare, they are also great to cook with.

For bakeware, you can use glass such as Pyrex, ceramic stoneware such as CorningWare, and natural stoneware such as Pampered Chef. Pyrex and CorningWare are old stand-bys. The stoneware by Pampered Chef is great for gluten-free pizza crust and butternut squash fries.

Helpful Tools

In addition to cookware, there are other tools that are very helpful in the kitchen:

Slow Cooker/Crock-Pot: Slow cookers, also commonly referred to as crock-pots (based on the brand name Crock-Pot), most frequently contain an enameled ceramic crock. Typically, these crocks are made with non-toxic materials, although you’ll want to check the specific brand. Slow cookers are great because they allow you to cook without requiring attention, so you can leave them all day while you are working or out running errands without concern for burning the food or a fire hazard. You will want to use recipes that are tailored to a slow cooker because the amount of water varies (less water is typically required for stews and soups).

Vita-MixTM: Vita-Mix is a high-powered blender that blends with ease – no more need to struggle with ice cubes in the blender. This blender can blend anything. I suggest the grain attachment too. Grinding your own grain allows the flour to be very fresh and makes easy nut flours. You can blend vegetables with liquid in the Vita-Mix-this differs from juicing where the pulp is extracted. Both ways of consuming vegetables is acceptable. The Vita-Mix makes a more fibrous thick juice.

Juicer: There are several different types of juicers: centrifugal and masticating being two of the most popular. I prefer a centrifugal because masticating heats up the juice a little too much – but there is much debate on this, and many options available. No matter the juicer you choose, juicing is a great way to get nutrient density in your diet.

ExcaliburTM Dehydrator: Great for making crispy nuts, dried fruit, Specific Carbohydrate Diet acceptable crackers, even yogurt. A dehydrator makes the best yogurt maker because you can adjust the temperature very specifically. The “dehydrator” doesn’t actually “dry the food out” but it gentle heats it to remove the moisture from the food. This allows you to use it as a warming oven for yogurt and other foods that you want to heat at a low, consistent temperature.

Harsch Crock: Unsurpassed for making lactic acid fermentations (cultured vegetables!). This fermentation crock makes delicious raw sauerkraut every time. The Harsch crock is well worth the investment, but not necessary to make cultured vegetables. You an also make cultured vegetables in a straight-sided, plain crock. Cultured vegetables are loaded with natural probiotics, a common tenet of autism diets.

ThermosTM: Great tool to storing hot lunch, so no heating or microwaving is required while out or at school. In addition to using a Thermos for soup, get creative with snacks and lunch. Look for a Thermos that is short and jar-shaped (rather than a tall cylinder). Foods that taste better hot such as chicken nuggets, gluten-free pasta, and chicken pancakes, often fit nicely in this shape and are easier to eat.

Avoiding toxins

Here are some storage and cooking tools to avoid, and safer alternatives.

TOXINS AROUND THE KITCHEN TO AVOID:

1. Canned food. Aluminum cans either put your food in contact with aluminum or plastic lining.

2. Avoid storing in plastic. Do not put hot food or fats (oils, butter, cheese) in plastic.

3. Avoid Teflon, copper and aluminum pans.

4. Avoid the microwave and never reheat with plastic in the microwave.

5. Avoid freezing in plastic when possible.

SAFER COOKING ALTERNATIVES

1. Buy in glass. Beans, tomato sauce, and other foods can be purchased in glass jars.

2. Store in glass with plastic/rubber lid, or in stainless steel.

3. Use stainless steel (attracts a magnet), cast iron, enameled cast iron, glass or ceramic.

4. Heat in oven, on stove, or in toaster oven.

5. Use wax paper, or glass with lid. If you use aluminum foil, wrap food in wax paper first to avoid contact with aluminum.

6. Store frozen food in glass mason jars or Pyrex storage containers. Mason jars can be frozen-you may get an occasional broken jar at the beginning, but once you get the hang of it, it’s uncommon to have the glass break. Just be sure not to fill the jar too full-allow plenty of room in the jar. If possible, don’t screw lid on all the way until completed frozen.

You can do it!

Learning to follow a special diet and cooking to heal takes patience and persistence. Try one new tool, recipe, or technique each week or month. It is much more attainable and less overwhelming to start with one thing at a time, and then build. Here’s an example. I consider myself a fairly beginner/intermediate knitter, but people are often surprised by the things I’ve created. My strategy (mostly because I get bored doing the same thing all the time) is to try one new stitch or technique with each new project. Learning one new skill is easy to add, and then before I realize it, I have quite the list of knitting tools and skilled attained (and can make things!).

I hope my experience with these kitchen tools over the years has provided helpful tips make your cooking and food prep easier. Having a child on the autism spectrum makes time very precious. However, since eating healthfully is such an integral part of healing and recovery, learning how to balance healthy food and time is important. Having some tools and tips can make food preparation easier and healthier.

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Source by Julie Matthews

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Free Soul Food Recipe Sites Pushing Healthier Eating

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Increasing numbers of free soul food recipes continue to reflect a more balanced diet while sounding the drum for healthier eating. The evidence is in the number of menu changes, ingredients and cooking methods used to prepare the recipes. As public demand builds, more industry insiders are heeding the call for dishes that are healthier than traditional southern dishes have been in the past.

Traditionally known for rich tasting and filling dishes, but loaded with fat, calories and sodium, soul food is changing its ways thanks to a group of creative cooks, publishers and website owners. “If we don’t change our menus we may run out of customers to serve.” Claims one soul food restaurant owner, who wished to remain anonymous. That’s the feeling of many people in the industry.

“It’s not just a profit motive, but a genuine concern for our customers, because most of my customers are friends and family.” Claims Chef Richard Booker, Executive chef for a famous Las Vegas Casino restaurant specializing in healthy soul food.

More consumers welcome the healthy changes after they taste the food. At the start of this healthier menu movement many consumers balked at the possible changes. It was especially hard winning over the older consumer who is used to the traditional way of cooking, seasoning and preparing soul food recipes.

But the new school way of cooking healthier continues to win more converts who turned their noses at the idea of eating their favorite southern dishes with low or even no salt. Before they would have never believed they could enjoy chicken without it being deep fried in animal fat, or lard to be more exact. In addition, most would have thought cooking black eye peas or collard greens in anything but fat back as worst than blasphemy.

Eating is believing. To the surprise of many food critics and experts, the tasty but healthier dishes continue to win even the harshest critics. After all, who can argue with the fact many people are overweight and experience other health issues because of bad diet, especially African Americans. In addition, with the high cost of medical care, more people see the handwriting on the wall and are starting to change their eating habits.

Experts and insiders see healthier soul food recipes as the answer to those who love the robust taste of southern cooking.

Here’s some of the popular secrets to keeping food tasty and healthy at the same time,

1. Use Creative Substitutes

For example, replace salt with natural herbs and spices, such as onion and garlic powder, chili peppers, lemon and lime juice, apple cider vinegar and more.

2. Healthier Way To Cook Collard Greens and Other Southern Vegetables

The traditional and most unhealthy ways to cook southern style vegetables have always been to flavor with fatback or ham hocks. However, these high fat and sodium seasonings have proved to contribute to high blood pressure, obesity and other ailments. A healthier substitute for flavoring vegetables and beans is smoked turkey. It contains low or even no fat if you remove the skin. In addition, the sodium level is often a fraction of fatback or ham hocks.

3. Salt Less and Marinate More

A key component in making meats more flavorful has always been salt. However, a healthier alternative many creative cooks use is to marinade meat. This gives it flavor and tenderness, many have learned to love better than salt. A good natural marinade is apple cider vinegar, olive oil, pepper, garlic powder and onion powder.

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Source by Roy Primm

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Evaporative Water Cooler – This Water Cooled Condensing Unit Is No Swamp Cooler

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This unique cooling technology from Freus, shouldn’t be confused with a swamp cooler. Although water is used to assist with the cooling, it is sprayed over condensing coils rather than pads.

The water cooled condensing unit is a residential application of the 250 ton split system chillers already used by commercial buildings. Think of this technology as a mini-chiller for residential use.

Evaporative water cooler units for split system air conditioners have a number of advantages over air-cooled units. Water removes heat from the condenser coils far more efficiently than air. This reduces the temperature of the compressed R-22 refrigerant, which in turn reduces the work load of the scroll compressor. Not only will the compressor last much longer, there is only a minimal loss of cooling efficiency when the outdoor temperature exceeds 100 degrees.

Typical air cooled units can lose as much as 25% of their efficiency at the same temperature.

How much can you save with a water cooled condensing unit?

Charles Mullin, a casino worker who lives in North Las Vegas is also single. So every utility bill comes from his lone paycheck. That’s why he switched the air conditioning system on his 1,500-square-foot home to a water cooled condensing unit.

“Before I installed it, I had my thermostat set at 75 to 78 degrees to try to keep my electric bills down,” he said. “I tested the new system at 65 degrees – felt like a meat locker. My bill went down to $86. That’s about a 45-percent savings and the house was set cooler.”

Mullin told all his friends about the units and the savings he’s seen. He figured the Freus system will pay for itself in about two years.

Richard Waite, president of Hal Mechanical, installer of Mr. Mullin’s water cooled AC, said they are specifically made for the desert climate.

“The only extra that’s needed to swap out an old air conditioning unit for a new water-cooled one is to run a water line to it. The unit has an automated system, similar to a toilet tank, keeping the water at the correct capacity. The system also flushes itself to avoid calcium buildup.”

Due to the almost constant capacity, the condenser size does not need to vary due to climate zones, like air-cooled units. The Freus is installed in much the same manner as an air-cooled condenser and has the unique ability to service multiple air handlers. This provides the space saving convenience of housing two or three compressors (up to 10 total tons) in a single cabinet.

Jim Kilby of Green Valley, a casino management professor, replaced his 10-year-old air conditioning units, one 5-ton and one 3-ton, with two water-cooled ones of roughly the same capacity. He figures his electric bills dropped by a third.

“The hotels have been using this technology for years,” Kilby said. “When you think about it, water does a better job of cooling the air than air. It just makes sense.”

Whether you call them evaporative water coolers or water cooled condensing units, this mini version of the 250 ton chiller is sure to revolutionize desert cooling.

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Source by Sam Streubel

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I’m Looking to Start a Restaurant, What Kind of Commercial Refrigeration Do I Need?

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One of the biggest challenges starting up a restaurant is getting everything ready. It gets very stressful, there’s so many things to take care of! Licenses, furniture, an epic restaurant design, an awesome menu, but let’s not forget what you need the most! You need commercial refrigeration! Without refrigeration, where will you store all your inventory? Truth be told, your commercial refrigeration should be on your high priority list, if it isn’t right now you should definitely move it up to the top.

If you are looking to start up a restaurant, are you educated to make a positive decision about your commercial refrigeration? Through this guide, I want to educate you on commercial refrigeration. After reading through this, you should be confident and know exactly what refrigeration equipment is best for you, how you can save lots of money and energy, and the benefits of scheduling preventative maintenance.

Choosing a Refrigeration Model

Not every restaurant sells the same food, nor does each use the same restaurant refrigeration equipment. Building up your restaurant depends hugely on your refrigeration and how you organize your inventory. It seems silly to have a walk-in freezer and use half of it shelving soft-serve ice-cream, or store sodas in a blast chiller, yet stuff like this still happens. Not using your refrigeration equipment correctly or for the right merchandise can damage and/or decrease its efficiency. To make sure you are using the right refrigeration equipment in your restaurant, take a look at the different types of refrigerators.

Reach In Refrigerators –

These are the most common refrigerators found in almost every single kitchen. This is where you should put your food you frequently prepare. Typically, each reach-in refrigerator is divvied into 3 sections by shelves or panels, and are designed to store mostly anything – from sodas to fresh produce.

Glass Door Merchandisers –

Typically, glass door merchandisers are used to show off your goods openly to your customers. They have self-closing, swinging, or sliding doors, and most have bottom-mounted refrigeration systems, making them simple to access for cleanup and maintenance.

Under-counter Refrigerators –

An under-counter refrigerator provides space-saving storage for cold items you’d like to keep handy. This is great if you have a bar, where you can store beer underneath the counter, or at a frying station, where you can have your ingredients on-hand and cool.

Deli Cases –

Show off your recently sliced meats and cheeses in a deli case. These are great to show off your produce in a sandwich shop. There are many options – straight glass, curved glass, and countertop units – that you can choose from that best matches the style and layout of your entire restaurant.

Blast Chillers –

The cook/chill process is a revolutionary refrigeration product. If you are starting up a fast food restaurant, or one that you need only to heat up your food prior to serving your customers, you need to get one of these. Food safety regulations state you have to have cooked food brought from 160° to 40° Fahrenheit within 4 hours. A blast chiller is able to accomplish this in a simple manner, and are designed to store food until re-thermed for consummation.

Walk-In Freezers –

This is the epitome of commercial refrigeration. Walk-in freezers are essential to most restaurants, as they allow you to store much of your inventory in bulk and keep it cold. You can walk into many different sized freezers, from 6′ sq. to others that are custom built and have no size limitations. Since you are able to walk into your freezer, you can be very organized with your stock, and not have to dig behind other items to get what you need.

Picking a Model that Matches Your Needs

Now that you know what type of refrigeration models there are, it’s time to decide which ones are best for you! Here are some really great tips you should take into consideration when shopping around for your refrigeration equipment.

Trust the Best Brands –

As you would with any other product you’re shopping for, you want to compare brand names to one another and see which ones is best for you. There are many refrigeration manufacturers, so it is very important that you find and zero in on one company you can rely on.

Every company has its strengths and weaknesses. Some companies’ main goal is to produce high quality units; others are going to cut their quality short in order to be the cheapest on the market. Your best bet is to check out True, Turbo Air, and Delfield. These three companies are well-known and highly respected in the commercial refrigeration industry, and are definitely worth getting your equipment from.

Take a Look at the Warranty –

Whatever goes up, must come down. That applies to everything in life, including your refrigeration. Eventually, you will have to get commercial refrigeration maintenance.

Most refrigeration brands offer 3 year warranties on their products that covers labor and replacement fees. Oftentimes, you’ll be insured by a large network of certified technicians that are on hand and are ready to get your restaurant refrigeration back up and running as soon as possible.

Should your commercial refrigeration ever break down, you want someone on top of it to fix it immediately. You don’t want to wait long, else you could be looking at some seriously spoiled food and large replacement costs. If you ever require emergency repair, there is always an option available for you.

Choose a Size –

Commercial refrigerators and freezers come in all sizes and shapes. Depending on what type of commercial refrigeration model you need, you will need to measure out the space you have for your refrigeration and work from there. Don’t forget to measure out and make sure there’s enough room in your restaurant for your refrigeration equipment to open and close.

Now that you made sure you have room for your commercial refrigeration, you need to take a look at the interior dimensions. How much food are you looking to store? Do you know how much storage space you require? Some refrigeration units may have the same exterior dimensions, but will widely vary inside due to different designs. Consider what food you will regularly store inside it, and choose the best unit that will accommodate your restaurant’s needs.

Remember About the Condenser Unit –

Don’t overlook the importance of a condenser unit in your refrigerator unit. The condenser unit is the part of your refrigeration that works nonstop to keep your stored food cold. You can get a refrigerator with either a top-mount or bottom-mount condenser unit.

There are advantages and differences between the two positions. Bottom-mount condensers are often easier to clean, maintain and cause less strain on the refrigerator during the summer days. On the other hand, top-mount condensers are preferred by most restaurant owners because they don’t get caught up with much dust and debris, and don’t cause hot air to circulate inside the refrigerator when it’s open. While the two locations have their own pros and cons, you should take into consideration which one is best for your restaurant needs, and make a good judgement call from there.

There are several options you have to look at when you are shopping for your commercial refrigeration, so by applying these tips above, you’ll make a great buying decision.

Saving Energy

Once you have your refrigeration units, what then? You just spent a lot of money on getting awesome refrigeration equipment that’ll last a long time through proper usage and maintenance, so how can you save money to make your refrigeration equipment worth it? The easiest way is to save on energy!

Here are some awesome tips you can practice that will save a lot of money annually on your refrigeration costs. By benefiting off of these savings, you can totally put that money towards promoting your restaurant and getting more customers!

Turn off Door Heaters –

Most walk-in freezers have a door heater so it’s easier for you to open and close and not have super cold hands afterwards. However, unless there is a lot of frost on the door, or a bunch of condensation building up along the sides or the front of the unit, you don’t really need to have the door heater on. By turning off door heaters, you can save yourself over $75 annually.

Give your Refrigeration Room –

When you are taking measurements to see what sized refrigerator you can place, you want to give it some wiggle room. Make sure that you aren’t installing your refrigerators or freezers in tight spots. Doing so will allow better air circulation and waste less energy. You are preventing heat from building up in tight spots, which would cause your commercial refrigeration to work harder, use more energy, and consequently, unnecessarily raise your energy bill.

Monitor Your Refrigerant Charge –

If you have a walk-in freezer, you want to make sure you don’t run low on refrigerant. Having too little will cause extra strain on the compressor. Each walk-in freezer is built with a sight glass, which is used for this very reason. If there are visible bubbles building up on the glass while the unit is running, you should schedule a maintenance check with a HVAC company as soon as possible. Not taking action can cause your walk-in freezer to cease up and not work, which is way worse and more costly than getting the help you need.

Add Night Covers to Display Cases –

While open-case refrigerators are a great way to show off your food, they can become a huge energy expense, especially during closed hours. By investing in night covers, you can trap the cold air inside the case so your unit doesn’t have to work as hard at night.

Install Electronically Commutated Motors (ECMs) on evaporator fans –

ECMs are more efficient evaporator fan motors than existing standard efficiency shaded-pole motors, and once ECMs are installed, rebates between $35 and $50 may be available to businesses that apply with PG&E. This simple add-on to walk-in refrigerators and freezers can reduce restaurant costs substantially over the long term, with lower monthly utility bills and less need for maintenance

ECMS are evaporator fan motors that are more efficient that standard shaded-pole motors. On average, you can be getting back $35 to $50 in rebates from PG&E if you have your ECMs registered. This is an easy upgrade for walk-in freezers that can lower your restaurant costs by a lot in the long run, with lower monthly costs and a lesser need for commercial refrigeration maintenance.

The Benefits of Scheduled Preventative Maintenance

So far I’ve gone over refrigeration models and choosing the ones that work best with your restaurant. I’ve gone over how to save money and energy with some simple, easy to do tips. The only thing left to talk to you about is how to protect your commercial refrigeration and keep it running for a long time.

Your best option to protect your commercial refrigeration is to schedule preventative maintenance for it. You wouldn’t want your car’s engine to cease up halfway down the freeway, so why would you not treat your commercial refrigeration the same? Both a car and your commercial refrigeration are important assets, and you wouldn’t want either one of them to suddenly stop working. That’s why you should be taking your car in for regular maintenance, and have a certified HVAC technician come by and thoroughly inspect your commercial refrigeration system.

What’s so great about commercial refrigeration maintenance?

First off, you’ll know about any refrigeration problems before they become a real problem. One nightmare you don’t want to live through as a restaurant owner is to come in and find your entire stock spoiled and smelling profuse.

Second, you won’t have to worry about making repairs yourself. If refrigeration repair is not your thing, you don’t need to spend hours watching how-tos online, stressing about whether you’ll mess up and ruin your entire unit. There’s a reason there are certified, highly-skilled technicians available to help you!

Lastly, getting help will save you money over the long run. Having regular maintenance almost guarantees an extended lifetime for your commercial refrigeration system, and you don’t have to worry for a very long time the need to replace your refrigeration units.

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Source by Darren Lowrey

/ By edd / spiral-freezers/ / 0 Comments

The Rationale for Personal Development and Training

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The basic rationale for personal development can be understood from the necessity to understand one’s own human needs, together with spiritual, emotional and social development, because a failure to understand this about one’s own self is unthinkable if trying to understand and relate to other human beings in any meaningful way.

A person’s development can be perceived in many different ways; for instance as in Freud’s Psychosexual Development Theory (Marshall, 2004) which looks at stages of sexual development and the frustrations connected to each stage, or Havighurst’s Developmental Stages (Sugarman, 1986) and Tasks which identifies:

Tasks that arise from physical maturation

Tasks that arise from personal values

Tasks that have their source in the pressures of society

or through Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs(Maslow, 1998).

Or indeed through any of the other methods and theories that have been developed, and which may be studied and related to the needs of a counsellor in training,e.g.:

Erikson’s Stages of Psychosocial Development Theory

Piaget’s Phases of Cognitive Development

Kohlberg’s Stages of Moral Development

Gilligan’s Theory of Moral Development

Which is to name but a few, and some of which will mean more to one person than to another.

What is really important is the core condition of recognising ourselves and others as human beings with developmental needs and developmental constructs, the understanding of which is paramount to enabling a real understanding of the human development processes and the requirements necessary in order to work towards living a contented and fulfilled existence for ourselves, and for engaging meaningfully with others working towards the same.

An individual’s decisions are often influenced by social construction, by adapting our personality to fit in with the expectations of friends, family and employers; whilst in relation to any other person we may act in response to our own unconscious and emotionally fuelled expectations. The person we are depends upon our life experiences and feedback from others about how we inter-relate with those people with whom we come into contact, as well as the physical, cultural and spiritual worlds in which we find ourselves. If we are to be able to relate to others whose personal construct and developmental processes that have led to what they have become with any real empathy and congruence, we must first understand our own construct. In taking responsibility for learning about our own emotional and social actions, understanding and development, we act authentically; but allowing our social construct to make choices for us could be seen as acting un-authentically.

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs takes a premise that once the most basic human needs are met it becomes possible to progress through successively more advanced levels of need, to culminate in ‘self actualisation’. If we engage in exploring this process we allow ourselves the opportunity to develop a relationship with one’s self which leads to and enables the establishment of a more understanding relationship with others.

This hierarchy of needs is based on a ‘Humanistic’ approach and the concept of ‘self actualisation’ as described by Carl Rogers, who stressed that self-awareness of the person, on a conscious level, is the most important way to work in understanding behaviour by making reference to the internal framework (Rogers, 1961).

Looking at Kohlberg’s stages of moral development (Kegan, 1983) helps us to understand where a person might have difficulties if they have not undergone such moral development through lack of cultural or social contact, or through lack of understanding.

It is only by developing our own understanding of personal development theories and practices that we can develop the skills and practices to help others who are suffering from some lack of personal development or some misguided thinking developed during their upbringing.

Hazel Johns in her book on personal development in counsellor training (Johns, 1996) states what her minimum outline for development in counselling should include:

To learn and unlearn

To have enough sense of identity to survive and flourish in personal development and personal relationships

To love and be loved enough

To have sufficient self esteem and personal power to cope with dependence, independence and interdependence

To be resourceful and creative

To notice and oppose oppression in whatever form it comes

To be strong and vulnerable, tough and tender as needed

To understand and apply theory and skills relevantly to themselves and others

To grow in clarity about ethical standards and never be complacent

To be aware of their own and others need for support and challenge

To have a range of effective ways of being alone and in a group

To see and feel connections with a wider society and world; to be political and care about change, however they live that out.

I would take this further and state that these are things that every enlightened individual needs as an outline for their personal development in order to be a success in any form of relationship, no matter if that be personal or business based and I would add to this list:

To communicate clearly

To have an understanding of the spiritual

To understand basic mental health issues and how they affect themselves and others

and:

To understand the linkages between physical, mental and spiritual needs

It would be easy for a non-spiritual person to ignore or overlook what may be a very strong support or conversely a very damaging practice for another person. Understanding the difference between on the one hand spirituality or spiritual practices and on the other hand religion and religious practices is essential, as the first can be extremely supportive and the latter decidedly destructive when teachings and practices are restrictive and/ or unnatural.

Everyone entering into a working relationship with you has the right to expect you as a professional, in any context, to be capable and well enough equipped to be able to attend to their specific needs, and this places great demands on the professional’s emotional resources.

Professionals obviously have needs of their own and those drawn into the ‘helping professions’ are often more comfortable giving than receiving, so it is essential that we recognise from the outset that self-awareness, self-motivation, choice and the capacity to consider alternatives are intrinsic to the human condition of identity and change; hence we need the opportunity to engage with and focus upon these things in order to be fully equipped for any role we are aiming to undertake.

Personal development is essential to the professional no matter what sector they work in, and the opportunity to engage not only in personal reflection but also in working on this personal development with someone having the understanding of the various developmental theories, at both a personal level and in relation to a group of people with various backgrounds, cultures and upbringing who are brought together through attending a developmental course is a vital opportunity.

The advantage of engaging in a personal development training course is that the course provides: A safe place to learn, the opportunity to explore different understanding and approaches to theories and explore the relational personalities of a diverse group of people willing to engage in the same subject matter along with the support of knowledgeable trainers to remedy incorrect understanding and practices and an opportunity to be introduced to theories that may not have previously been encountered.

It is therefore essential to commit to personal development at the outset of and throughout training and professional practice of any sort in order to be the best we can be. It is also important to actively seek and engage with such training after beginning a professional career by attending conferences and workshops dedicated to further personal development, and opportunities for this are available through Indulgence Un-limited as well as other professional organisations.

References

Johns, H. (1996). Personal development in counsellor training. London: Sage.

Kegan, R. (1983). The Evolving Self: Problem and Process in Human Development. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press.

Marshall, S. (2004). Difference and Discrimination in Psychotherapy and Counselling. London: Sage Publications Ltd.

Maslow, A. H. (1998). Maslow on Management. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons.

Sugarman, L. (1986). Life-span Development: Theories, Concepts and Interventions. Oxon: Routledge.

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Source by Richard L Moriarty

/ By edd / spiral-freezers/ / 0 Comments

Wireless Network Installation and Configuration

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You might just be at that point, where the small, wired home network you created a few months ago just is not doing it for you anymore and you want to extend it with a wireless network. Of course, you might as well be at that point, where you want to build a completely new network. Whichever the reason may be, the problem is the same – you need to know exactly how to do a wireless network installation.

Most of the time, you will find it necessary to install a wireless router. Now, you will only need to install one of these if you either are building your first home network or simply want to keep the wireless network installation at the simplest level as possible. Remember to install the router in a somewhat central location in your home so this way all receivers will be almost in the same line of sight. You see, with wireless internet, the speed depends on the distance from the router to the receiver. All you have to do now is connect your router to a power source, and of course an Internet source. Nowadays many routers support broadband modems and even dial-up connections. Still, when you buy a router make sure that it has an RS-232 serial port if you need the dial-up connection, because otherwise you will find yourself having a useless router. Last, but not least, you can also connect a wired router (called a switch or a hub) because wireless routers generally do contain built-in access points.

Now choose the name of your network. Often with Wi-Fi the network names are generically called SSID. Of course, this SSID has to be identical with all computers that are sharing the same wireless router. For your own protection, it is recommended that no matter what name your router manufacturer set to change it to something else. In order to find a network name for your router all you have to do is consult the product documentation. Finally, read the documentation to find out how to handle WEP security and also how to turn on firewall features and how to set other options.

Wireless Access Points

One wireless type network connection is supported by only one access point. It is very important to remember this further on. It is recommended to use this type of access point only if you indeed need the features that only a wireless router can provide and also you want to have more than three or four computers around the house that will be connected to the internet. You can read more at http://www.howtosetupwirelessnetwork.com

The positioning rule is the same as with wireless routers – access points have to be placed in a central location so that all receivers will be in the same line of sight. Plug in the power cord and if necessary the dial-up internet connection as well. Now cable the access points to your hub or switch. In this case, you will not have to configure any firewalls at all, yet you will still have to set a network name and enable the WEP function.

Giving these two options of installing a wireless network in your house, from this point on, all you have to do is install them in your own operating system and you’re good to go.

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Source by Dean Forster