Pros and cons of installing a steel door

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The primary entrance to any house deserves an attractive aesthetic with reliable security. Property owners often select thick, hardwood materials because they provide curbside appeal and durable strength. Steel doors remain something of an afterthought because they are more closely associated with commercial buildings, which may not appear to have the same design prowess.

But the advanced technologies and design elements integrated into today’s steel doors place them on an equal footing with others in their class. Today’s steel doors provide a wide range of proven benefits as well as concerns. If you are considering replacing an existing exterior door, these are things to consider about steel options.

Energy efficient

Steel doors rank among the most energy-efficient compared to leading materials such as wood or fiberglass. Steel doors can effectively prevent air leaks, and quality products generally include secure foam insulation.

Structurally sound

Except for extreme heat, steel doors are generally not affected by weather conditions. Wood tends to fluctuate as seasonal temperatures rise and fall, and they can warp when wet. Steel, by contrast, remains an immovable object.

Sturdy

Steel ranks among the most secure materials when deterring break-ins. Many products are integrated into a metal frame and robust locking systems. Wood and fiberglass doors, while typically secure, may not be as secure as a stainless steel door.

Finishes

Contemporary steel doors can be ordered with a wide variety of finishes, mimicking natural wood and other textures. Consumers can also select from wide-reaching color options or pre-primed products, leaving the final color up to DIY homeowners to decide after installation.

Damage

Although steel doors resist showing ordinary wear and tear, hard impacts can leave dents and scratches. Unlike wood doors, property owners cannot easily fix these imperfections with putty and paint.

Rust

The flipside of wood doors warping or peeling is steel doors can show rust after scratched protective coatings come in contact with rain and moisture. This possibility tasks people with sometimes sanding and repainting scratched steel doors.

Installation

A handy DIYer typically possesses the tools and carpentry skills to install wood and fiberglass products, largely because they come with wood casings that only require leveling and screwing into 2×4 framing lumber. Steel doors generally employ metal casings that often require advanced skills to install.

By conducting a little research and considering the pros and cons of different materials, you can make an informed decision about the best door for your home.

Conserve water with these gardening ideas

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If you’re trying to find eco-friendly gardening ideas. to sprucing up your Texas Home for, the best place to start is with water conservation. Recycling and reducing your water use in the garden is simpler than you might think, too. Here are some ideas for DIY garden projects to help you save water:

Go with ground covers

Grass lawns are a major source of water waste and require a ton of maintenance. Instead of a grass lawn, consider using ground-cover plants for any exposed areas of your garden. Stonecrop is one of the best options for low-water usage ground cover, since it’s a succulent with a natural spreading growth pattern.

Build a dry stream

A dry stream built out of smooth river rocks makes a beautiful statement in any garden. For a fun DIY garden project, dig a shallow channel to naturally divert excess moisture to the plants that need it most. The rocks will form a natural filtration system and create a charming desert oasis aesthetic.

Opt for drought-tolerant plants

You can still have garden beds full of diverse and colorful plants while still saving water. The key is to choose drought-tolerant plants that can go longer periods of time without being watered.

Some beautiful ideas for raised garden beds are shrubs like butterfly bush, red bird of paradise and bougainvillea. Prefer succulents and cacti? Create a garden bed or vertical garden full of colorful succulents in a plethora of colors, shapes and growth patterns.

Try a rock garden

Rock gardens are another beautiful way to decorate an outdoor living space without adding extra need for water. Rock garden designs range from sparse to elaborate, and can be both artistic and natural in appearance. Create an area of the garden with different sizes and types of stone planted with drought-tolerant ground cover crops for an eco-friendly DIY garden project.

Collect with rain barrels

If you live somewhere with frequent rainfall, it might seem like saving water isn’t as important. However, using rain barrels to collect extra rainwater for later use is a more sustainable practice than turning on the hose every time, which costs you money. You can create budget friendly DIY rain barrels out of basic materials, or check out the offerings from your local garden center.

By using any of these garden projects to conserve water, you’ll experience the benefits of a lower water bill and the peace of mind knowing you’ve reduced the amount of wasted water – and time spent on labor – in your garden.

Environmental Art Explained

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Environmental art became popular in the late 20th century because of growing concern and awareness for the environment. Environmental art has several overlapping characteristics as land art or earthworks, but comments or establishes an opinion on environmental issues. As artists continue to think about the environment as a cohesive system rather than a living space, the appeal and spread of environmental art continues. Here are the basic elements of environmental art to help gain a better understanding of the term.

Exploring Humans’ Relationship With Nature

Environmental artists try to establish their relationship with the natural world in several ways. One way is through bringing their creative workspaces out of the studio and into the environment. This challenges the static concept of a specific place for creating art and instead allows a more integrated relationship with a variety of settings.

Maintaining Harmony With the Environment

Environmental art is all about working with nature instead of against it. Artists who create environmental art take special care in their processes and material usage in order to minimize damage to the surroundings. The health and wellbeing of the environment takes precedence over the artistic process, which also means environmental art is vulnerable to the same changes (such as erosion, flooding and decay).

Using Natural Materials

Besides natural settings, environmental artists use natural materials in creating art. Common examples include sticks and branches, stone, gravel, sand, flowers and leaves. The goal of environmental art is to encourage the viewer to look at the natural environment differently through art. Ultimately, the idea is to create a greater awareness of small but important details of the natural world and our effect on them.

Rethinking Exhibition Space

Taking its cue from land art, environmental art exists outside of the commercialized art world. While you may find environmental art in urban areas, you won’t find it in a museum or art gallery. This creates an enhanced accessibility for viewers and allows them to participate in art even if they have never considered or been able to visit an established institution before. A lot of environmental art means to send a message as activism and this denial of the more traditional art world factors into that by giving ownership of the art to nature rather than gallery owners and other organizations.

As science advances and environmental awareness grows, so does the power and popularity of environmental art. Artists who want to send a message about the importance of humanity’s relationship with the natural world can do so in a variety of ways through art. While environmental art exists in many facets and forms, these key elements are the most important in understanding the term.

Create a Rustic Walkway with Native Stones

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Image by Nancy Buron from Pixabay

If you’re like many homeowners who prefer a natural landscape plan, your outdoor living space undoubtedly features lush vegetation and bright, blooming flowers. However, you might also have the sense that something is missing but can’t quite put your finger on what it might be. If this describes you, the missing element is probably hardscaping. Hardscaping refers to elements of landscaping that aren’t plants, such as water features, statuary, gazebos and garden paths.

At its best, hardscaping brings functionality to the table as well as enhances aesthetics. Few things do this better than a rustic stone walkway meandering over the property. Here’s how to make it happen yourself over the course of an average weekend.

Select Your Stones

Stones used for walkways should be flat, wide and thick enough to withstand foot traffic. Choosing stone that is found naturally in your area cuts down on retail and delivery costs. Avoid using polished stones because these present potential slip-and-fall issues due to their slick surfaces. Stones that are between two and three inches thick offer better stability than their thinner counterparts and often come with a more attractive price tag as well.

Lay Out Your Walkway

The first step is to determine your walkway. Avoid straight lines — stone walkaways are meant to meander. Garden hoses are ideal for marking garden paths that curve. Use a sod cutter and a flat spade to cut and remove the grass, and dig out the soil where you want to place the stones to about a depth of five inches and make sure it’s firmly tamped down before placing landscape fabric and adding a two-inch layer of sand over it.

After smoothing down the sand so it provides a flat surface, it’s time to lay down the stones. This part is a little like putting together a jigsaw puzzle, so take your time to figure out the placement. Be sure to use a carpenter’s level to make certain that the stones are at the same height, and add or remove sand as needed. However, if you live in an area that receives significant amounts of precipitation, slightly sloping the larger stones toward the outside of your walkaway helps prevent standing water issues.

Landscape the Walkway

Some people prefer the clean, austere aesthetic of pebble or oyster shell mulch in the gaps between the stones, while others like the rustic, tousled look provided by low-growing herbaceous plants. Corsican mint is an excellent choice because it has a bright green color all year round and releases a divine, minty aroma. Other choices include creeping thyme, rock cress, artemisia and sedum. You can also mix it up with a variety of ground covers for a classic, cottage garden look.