Jute Zak's Profile

Some low-flow heads are awful, but some actually make th emost of a low flow water heater as well. I use one that has the spary holes in a circly inside a cup. It is designed to spray larger drops primarily on the outside, so there won't be this one drizzle to the side that feels extremely cold. Being inside the cup means that the air pulled in by the shower stream comes from inside: warm air.

In contract, the trend to larger heads means that more cold air is pulled in, leading to less comfortable showers.

The trick is not saving water (smaller holes will accomplish this) but saving water while maintaining comfort. In my case, the limited water supply and the more efficient head actually meant more comfortable showers.

I remember these as using too much energy and water. Maybe that has changed, but the older machines were severely compromised as dryers, heating the clothes against the hot washing drum, fanning away the steam to be condensed in a stream of tap water flowing somewhere in the machine.

The hot drum could melt synthetics, and the whole process was rather wasteful.

Also, they handle 5 kg of laundry when washing, but only half that when drying. So either wash half loads, or empty the machine and dry in two batches.

My street in Amsterdam (the original in Europe) scores only 46. Why? Google doesn't know about most facilities in my area. The nearest drugstore is at 17 kilometers according to Google, while it is really at 300, 350 or 400 meters whether you mean to go to a general store, a druggist or of pharmacy (the US drugstore is not really a Dutch thing). Neither is 80% of bars, cafe's or shops on the Google map (there are a normal supermarket, a turkish and a moroccon one within 300 meters). I'm pretty sure it should be 100 % here: doctor, dentist, taxes, groceries, bakery, general store, pharmacy, cafes, restaurants are all within 500 meters.

Still, the idea is pretty nice. If only the source of the material was better.

Burlap looks nice (IMO) but on these chairs it doesn't.

Why not a birlap bean bag? Burlap gives off lots of dust, and smells as well. The food grade sacks are oiled with vegetable oil, so they don't have the petroleum smell of other burlap, but still...

ChristopherB, plastic foil is polyethene, which should not emit harmful substances.

Bisphenol and formaldehyde are ingredients of hard plastics. Bisphenol is expensive, used for polycarbonate and epoxy. Formaldehyde is inexpensive, and used in glues and bakelite.

PVC would be a possible plastic for foil, but again it would be too expensive.

I suppose Ikea is worried that painting will make the wood of the Bekvam slippery, the owner will fall, and maybe sue.

However with dry feet there should not be a problem. It takes paint very well, though it is wood and is not easy to get really smooth.

If your telco skimps on emergency power you may not have phone service in a blackout. We discovered that in the Netherlands.

At least with cell, there are 3 networks to choose from. Some of these rely on undergound cables, others on radio links between towers. But as you can call the emergency number on any network that is still in the air, cell is not so bad as it looks.

I'd get one or two baskets that fit the shelves and put the miscalleneous item in them.

The rest of the shelves will go wonderfully with stacks of folded towels (if your towels match).

Love the ways the shelves are because of their rhythm. Painting in various colors would be a pity.

Bad idea indeed. Epoxy (depending on quality) is also not the nicest material for food contact. Zinc or copper would be infinitely better materials.

I like to have a choice of cleaners. Most jobs are handled nicely with dishwashing soap: powerful and not too toxic. Some jobs need an alkaline or acidic cleaner. Good to have those (I once used limescale remover to get rid of metal 'dirt' that was on an etched glass lampshade) when needed, and they do not do any damage when you already purchased them. Then there is the limonene 'citrus' cleaner, for when I need a solvent.