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How To Care For Your Carpet
The Lost Art Of Vacuuming
By Veronica Steers
(NU) —Like most other household
investments, carpet ages. It loses co'or
and luster long before the individual
carpet fibers begin to wear down,
and the carpet appears “old” or
“worn out.”
One way to slow the carpet aging
process is through proper care and
maintenance.
Soil- and stain-resistant treatments,
such as Scotchgard Carpet Protectors,
add durability. Combined with proper
cleaning techniques, these treatments
enhance the lifetime of the average
residential carpet.
Vacuuming
Carpet sweepers are good for
occasional spot cleaning. Sweepers
pick up strings, crumbs, paper or other
loose, dry litter from the carpet’s
surface. But to really prolong the life
of your carpet, regular, thorough vacu
uming is needed. These cleaning tips
will help:
• Vacuum cleaners with a motor
driven brush and a beater
bar raise the carpet’s pile and
Smoothtop Ranges
Complement Any
Kitchen Decor
The new hot look in American
kitchens is the smoothtop range.
Whether the style is modem, con
temporary or traditional, smoothtop
ranges and cooktops complement
any kitchen decor.
Besides being good-looking, these
popular new ranges heat up quickly,
cook marvelously and clean up with
ease. The key to their success is the
remarkable Ceran glass-ceramic
panel, which was developed by
Schott Glaswerke specifically for
smoothtop cooking. Ceran glass-ce
ramic panels are smooth, non
porous and stain-resistant. Spills
wipe up easily with a paper towel
and a recommended cleaner, while
bumed-on spills clean up quickly
with a razor-blade scraper. The
Ceran panel is also amazingly
tough. Even ice water spilled on a
red-hot cooktop causes no damage.
Smoothtop cooking systems,
while still relatively new to the
United States, were introduced
nearly 20 years ago in Europe and
have been thoroughly tested and
proven. Millions of smoothtops
with Ceran glass-ceramic cooktop
panels are now in daily use.
There are a number of features you
should ask about when shopping
for a smoothtop range or cooktop.
For example, heating elements.
There are two primary types-radiant
and halogen-and a third more exotic
and expensive type, induction.
Radiant elements are the most
common and least expensive. They
use electrical resistance to create
heat, and reach maximum tempera
ture in seven to 10 seconds. Heat is
conducted through the Ceran cook
top panel into the pot or pan.
Halogen elements use halogen
TF.N TIPS FOR TASTY TOMATOES
When tossing your next garden salad,
remember this... for extra color and
flavor, nothing beats homegrown
tomatoes. Backyard varieties of just about
any tomato are healthier and tastier thin
their supermarket counterparts because
they can be picked at the peak of freshness
and grown without harmful pesticides and
chemicals.
If you’d like to grow your own tomatoes,
try following these ten helpful hints from
the experts at The Scot is Company,
manufacturers of Peters Professional*
Ibmato Food
• Purchase only high -quality seeds; avoid
low-yielding “bargain" specials
• Start seeds indoors in nays of loose
well-drained soil about eight weeks
!>efnre transplanting them outdoors.
• Keep the temperature of the seedling
mixture around 80° 85° until sprouts
are up; then turn heal down to about
65° - 70 0
• (live seedlings at least 12 hours of
bright light daily.
• Move grow n transplants outdoors when
air and soil are warm, and there’s no
sign of frost.
• Plant roots deeply, straight down or
“trench” style, covering as much stem
as possible to promote additional
sprouting
• Feed tomatoes with Peters
Professional* Tomato Fix id every seven
to 14 days depending on the growing
rvde. This water-soluble plant food has
an NPK of 17-17-22 plus a full minor
elements package to give tomatoes the
nutrients needed for healthy root
systems, strong stems and great
budding and fruiting Remember,
transplants and established plants need
different amounts of fixid. so follow
package instructions for recommended
(loses.
4 Apply an organic mulch of stiaw or
leaves to warm (or c<x>!i soil, pievcnt
weed growth and help retain moisture.
• I 'sc five fixil high wim cages or stake
and-weavc trellises to support the
glowing plants.
• T> encourage fruiting higher up on the
. trellis, prune plants oner, removing all
branches below the first flower cluster.
can more effectively remove dirt
and soil.
• Carpet experts recommend that
you DO NOT use a beater bar
vacuum for wool carpeting
because it will loosen and
weaken the individual fibers.
Experts suggest using a suction
vacuum instead.
• For maximum results, use either
an upright or canister-type vac
uum cleaner set at a height that
gives slight resistance to pushing
and pulling over the carpet.
• Lightly vacuum heavy traffic
areas, such as entrance ways
and hallways, daily. Vacuum
the entire carpet thoroughly
at least once a week, being
sure to reach areas underneath
furniture.
• To avoid “spot crushing,” or
indentations caused by heavy fur
niture, periodically shift the posi
' tions of larger items in the room.
• Household traffic causes cut-pile
carpet fibers to assume different
angles, making the carpet appear
darker in places. For a uniform
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Ottering good look* end easy cleaning, smooth eurface cooktop* and
ranges featuring Ceran glass-ceramic panels are becoming a signifi
cant trend In new and remodeled kitchens. The Ceran panels are easy
to-clean, remarkably resistant to Impact amd are translucent to show
the glowing heating element beneath the surface.
lamps to generate heat. The halogen
elements themselves light up im
mediately and reach their maximum
temperature almost instantly.
Most quality metal cookware will
work with either radiant or halogen
elements. As is the case with any
electric cooktop, you will get best
results by matching the diameter of
your cookware with the cooking
zone. You will also increase the ef
ficiency of your range by using
pots and pans that have heavy,
smooth, flat bottoms.
Induction elements are the third
and most expensive type of heating
element used with smoothtops.
NARI Introduces Homeowner Hotline
The National Association of the
Remodeling Industry, (NARI),
headquartered in Arlington, VA, has
announced a new toll free number
to assist homeowners planning a re
modeling project.
An industry first, NARI’s
"Homeowner Hodine," 800-440-
NARI, serves as a resource for
homeowners who are considering a
remodeling project or have decided
to remodel their home.
"This is the first time any organi
zation involved in the remodeling
industry has offered a free call-in
service specifically for homeown
ers," said Polly Evans, CR, CKD,
association president. "We recog
nize that die Associadon needs to
be available to a group indireedy
involved in but direedy affected by
our industry-homeowners."
Homeowners who call the hodine
KUBOTA TI4OO
LAWN TRACTOR
• 13.5 horsepower
• Air-cooled gasoline
engine
• Overhead valve design
• Hydrostatic transmission
gives one pedal control
for speed and forward,
reverse changes
• Easy to operate
• A variety of implements
to choose
Kubota
Walker-Rhodes
912 Jernigan • Perry
987-1173
40408055.EPS
appearance, vacuum all final
strokes in the same direction.
Don't be afraid to vacuum too
often. According to the Association
of Specialists in Cleaning and
Restoration, an organization for carpet
cleaning professionals, daily vacuum
ing does not weaken carpet fibers. In
fact, clean carpet wears longer
because soil particles can wear down
and damage carpet yarn.
For additional tips on carpet care,
send a self-addressed, stamped enve
lope to Carpet Care, 3M, Dept. NU,
530 Fifth Ave., 15th Floor, New York,
NY 10036.
(Veronica Steers is a carpet care
and styling consultant based in New
York City.)
40408045.TXT News USA
With an induction unit, a wire coil
under the smoothtop generates a
magnetic field which in turn creates
heat within a ferro-magnetic pot or
pan and cooks the food. These units
provide quick heat-up and very pre
cise temperature control, but will
not work with non-magnetic mate
rials such as stainless steel.
For more information about
smoothtops, you can get a free
brochure by writing for "Your
Pocket Guide to the Ceran-Top-
System", c/o Schot Corporation,
Technical Glass Division, 3 Odell
Plaza, Yonkers, NY 10701.
and inquire about professional re
modeling contractors will receive a
Please see NARI, page 4C
Spring has sprung!
/ |\
For top quality and
3SZS low prices, It pays to
H buy from a grower!
DIXIELAND FARMS
2600 Watson Blvd. • Warner Robins, GA • (912) 328-0916
2754 Riverside Drive • Macon, GA • (912) 741-1970
Broxton Hwy. • Fitzgerald, GA • (912) 423-7508
Shed Macon Farmers Market • Elsenhower Pkwy.,
SPRMffi m MtIVEDI
•de vup&it SelecUtM &
‘Penetutiald, *)tt 'TJtccCctte tye&uput
Starting at S 2 (HI ea.
Roses! Starting at *7 95
• Hybrid Teas • Climbers
• Grandifloras • Shrub Roses
• Tree Roses • Old Garden Roses
• Floribundas • David Austin English Roses
New Shipment of Azaleas - *3 5 " ea for 1 gal.
Get your flowering trees and shrubs now.
Beautiful flowering geraniums - all sizes,
starting at*2" i '
New Trailing Petunias in hanging baskels
Super Petunias s ß 9; ’ ea.
Flats of Bedding Plants - *l2'"' ea
Blooming Hydrangeas - *8 9r ' ea.
Harrell’s
Greenhouses & Nursery, Inc.
Hours: 8-5:30 Monday - Saturday - dosed Sunday
13d Gunsmoke ltd., • Warner It obi ns • SM2-923-7495
They Do Everything
But Start Themselves
(NU) —When mulching mowers first
arrived on the scene in 1987. they were
considered a luxury. In just a matter of
years they’ve become a must for the
majority of homeowners.
The latest sales numbers tell the story.
Mulching mowers make up 70 percent
of total lawn mower sales.
So overwhelming has been the
public’s reaction, in fact, that the com
pany that invented the mulching mower
no longer offers any other kind of
mower.
■ ■ 'JhL Hi
Proper Insulating
Can Reduce Your
Normal Utility Costs
Utility bills are a fact of life for
many of us. We all wish we could
pay less. Most of us resign our
selves to high bills because we
think that is the price we have to
pay for a comfortable home. Many
of us run around turning off lights
and appliances but would not think
off adding insulation to the attic.
Why is it foolish to postpone an
insulation project? Because lighting
and appliances account for a very
small proportion of the energy
used. Approximately 50 to 70
percent of the energy used in the
average American home is for
heating and cooling. Another 20
percent of the average is used for
water heating. Everything else
combined accounts for just 10 to 30
percent of your utility bills. It does
not make sense to leave lights and
appliances on when not needed, but
if you want to substantially reduce
Please see INSULATION, page 4C
• bedding plants
. ♦ vegetable plants
i • perennials • herbs
I * trees * shrubs • roses
I. , . -■ |
Beautiful
I Hanging Baskets |
hundreds to choose from I
Wednesday, March 23,1994 Houston Times -Journal- Special Edition -
“It’s a matter of responding to the
public demand,” explained a spokes
man for The Toro Company.
However, Lawn-Boy mower special
ist Jean Nordgren says simply building
mulching mowers is not enough. Just as
in other product areas, success for a
lawnmowermanufacturer comes down
to who's got the best high-tech system.
For example, Toro outfits its Recy
cler II with a device called “Smart
Wheel” which guides the operator to
Classic lines for modern times.
For timeless lines and construc
tion quality, choose the Classic
double hung primed wood win
dow from Caradco. Natural West
ern primed frames are fitted with
double-paned insulated glass and
dual weatherstripping for energy
efficiency. Our removable divided
lite grilles and tilt-in sash make
cleaning a breeze.
When you're building or remod
eling, Classic primed wood double
hung windows have the look and
quality you like from the past...at a
price you'll like today.
TOLLESDIUtm “
SUPPLY COMPANY, INC. 987^334
HAR 7 BRO7 H€RS
nußsawes
BEDDING PLANTS ARE HERE
AND READY FOR PLANTING
* .« $1()95
per trav of 36 plant:
• Impatiens
• Petunias SQ9S
_ 3 or more flats
• Begonias
_• Many Others $ 8 or morejats
FERNS - $ 11 95 or 2 for 93
10” Hanging Baskets
HANGING BASKETS
• Impatiens $
• Begonias / ea
• Wandering Jew $£J95
• Swedish Ivy ea 2 or more
AZALEAS 1 Gal ' ..JL
- *9 9J
CLEMATIS VINES - $ 5 99
CENTIPEDE FOOD
Sta-Green 15-0-15 S U 99
Weed & Feed s ls"
Perry Store Homs Fort Valiev
987-1278 8^ t F 825-8807
Come See What Silk Forest
Has For You!
Potted Pansies starting at $7 95
Potted Mini Ivy Topiaries starting at $15 35
Potted Azaleas and Mums for Outdoor Use,
starting at $20 !,r>
Hanging Baskets starting at $32 or>
Wide Selection of Ficus Trees and Greeneries
1098 Russell Pkwy Store Hours
Kroger Shopping Ctr. Mon - Sat 10-6
Warner Robins 328-0062
the most advantageous mulching set
tings based on the “feel” of the grass
beneath.
Computers also help manufacturers
design more efficient mowers. Recy
cler 11, for instance, features a com
puter-designed cutting chamber. This
special chamber substantially reduces
the volume of the debris collected by
chopping it up as many as 30 times
with the mower’s double-blade sys
tem.
Nordgren says some top manufac
turers also offer attachments that shred
debris even finer than will the mulch
ing mode.
Mulching rider mowers offer the
same features, and today ’ s riding mow
ers are considerably more maneuver
able, making it easier to get between
obstacles such as shrubbery.
Riders have also been redesigned in
many cases to give the blade a dramati
cally increased upward angle. This
system pulls grass up for easy cutting
aid propels it into the bag. The greater
the vacuum effect, the more efficient
the lawn mower.
Prices for lawn mowers have gener
ally risen compared to several years
ago, but not nearly as much as on other
consumer goods.
Mowers in the middle range are
priced from S3OO to more than SSOO
these days, and buyers can expect to
spend over S6OO for a state-of-the-art,
brand-name lawn mower with an over
head valve engine, rear-bagging, elec
trie starter and blade brake clutch.
Compare the quality.
Compare -|
Garadco
A Kusan, Inc. Company
■mill
page 3C