Japanese Beetle Solution...and it's Organic!

This is not a building or remodeling topic, but it is green and very timely.  Japanese Beetles and their grub stage is becoming a huge problem for gardeners in southern Wisconsin.  The beetles devour many plants and trees and the grub stage in the ground destroys lawns.  Japanese Beetles produce at an alarming rate of 50,000 grubs for every 1,000 beetles each year, so your problem will get alarmingly worse every year unless you do something about it. 

I discovered an organic product made by St. Gabriel Organics, called Milky Spore Powder.  It is a powder that is applied to your lawn and gardens with a special applicator (for ease of application).  Milky Spore is a bacteria that kills the grubs from the inside out.  The best thing about this stuff is that it is harmless to people, animals,and other (wanted) insects.  It can be applied any time of year except when the ground is frozen.  Although grubs' most active feeding time is in the fall and that is a great time to apply Milky Spore, you may apply it anytime of year (other than when the ground is frozen).  The spores do not go bad, in fact they reproduce and multiply with time.  The grubs do feed in the ground in Spring, just not as much as in the Fall.  So, you will kill many grubs in the Spring before they become beetles in the Summer.  You might not get all of them the first year, but the next Fall the Milky Spore in the ground will be even more powerful and at that time you will likely be rid of all or most of the grubs. 

Talk to your local gardening expert about Milky Spore.  It is available in local garden supply stores and online at Amazon, Ebay, and others.  There are two forms that I know of, powder and granules.  The granules are less expensive but you need to apply it 2-3 times per year for 2 years.  The powder is a one time application.  It will cost anywhere from $85 (includes $9 applicator) to $100.   Like anything else you apply to your lawn you do need to avoid doing it just before a downpour to avoid run off of the application.

I know all of you Carl Spacklers (Bill Murray's character in Caddie Shack) out there are thinking "ya right, an organic product is going to kill these incessant vermin that I've been trying to kill using countless other methods (including explosives) for the past 4 years."  It is true, it works!  It is guaranteed for 10 years and may be effective up to 20 years. Then you are thinking "Well, what good does it do me if all of the beetles from my neighbors yard will come over and devour my plants?"  My solution to this is to ask your neighbors to apply the Milky Spore.  I don't really know of anyone who likes Japanese Beetles or grubs, so I think they will be on board.  Worse case scenario is that the Milky Spore in the ground in your yard will eventually spread underground to your neighbors and within a few years the grubs will be under control in their yard too. 

Please contact Hammer Builders for information about building or remodeling your dream home.  I would also love to talk to you about controlling the relentless Japanese Beetle.  I have the applicator tube if you would like to borrow it to apply Milky Spore.

What is a 203(k) Fixer-Upper Rehab Loan?

If you are looking to buy a home that needs some work (from minimal to major rehab), there is a special FHA loan out there that could really help you do that.  One of the nicest things about this loan is that it builds up to 6 months of your mortgage payments into the loan so that you can purchase the property and have all of the repairs/changes made before moving in...without paying two mortgages (or rent plus a mortgage) while this is being done.  These loans take more time to process, so instead of closing within about 30 days of accepted offer to purchase, you might be looking at 60+ days. 

I came across this excellent article titled "The FHA 203(k) Loan: A Home Repair Loan And Mortgage All In One" on Forbes.com.  You will find a very good explanation of the 203(k) loan here.  The article is two years old, but contains most of the information in a nutshell.  For more information on rehabbing, remodeling, additions, and new construction contact Hammer Builders.  We can also assist you in locating lenders that offer this type of loan.

Green Built Home on a Budget

Here are four ways to affordably design and build green into your home.  Many of us want to use green methods and materials but our budget gets in the way.  We always advocate energy efficiency first and foremost, and that is part of the suggestions offered here by Professional Builder's Housing Zone article.  The article mentions making efficient use of the land, meaning only use what you need and try to leave it in it's natural state as much as possible.   I suggest taking this one step further and make sure you position and design the house to take full advantage of passive solar design (very affordable way to save energy and money...and have much more comfortable living space.  They have some interesting examples of what some builders are doing around the country to incorporate green and keep prices affordable.  Most of these examples are not in our climate, but interesting nonetheless.  For more suggestions on design build using green and energy efficient methods, contact your Madison Area Green Home Builder, Hammer Builders.

Home Small Scale Wind (Turbine) Energy

We all would like to use free or cheap energy either to save money or reduce our environmental impact, or both.  No matter how much I try to talk myself into solar power, I just can't get myself to buy into it here in the Midwest.  The cost and payback period is just too high.  It makes sense in the south/south west, but do we get enough sun here to make it feasible?  One thing we do have in excess in the Midwest is WIND, particularly if you are on the edge of town and/or on an elevated location.

Thanks to the great minds and technology out there, we have smaller wind energy systems available for small scale.  Home or Farm scale wind energy systems produce less than 100 KW.  They are suitable for use with single homes, small businesses, family farms, agricultural operation, cabins, etc.  The average household could rely on wind power alone with a 10 KW turbine with an average wind speed of 12 miles/hr.  The systems aren't cheap, but less expensive than PV solar sytem and the initial investment would be paid for in a fraction of the payback time of a solar system (with technology available today that is...this will change and hopefully both will be much more affordable in the near future).

For more information on small scale wind energy, go to Windustry, a non-profit organization working to increase wind energy opportunities for rural landowners and communities. Windustry promotes wind energy through outreach, educational materials, and technical assistance to rural landowners, local communities and utilities, and state, regional, and nonprofit collaborations.  For more information on local suppliers, installers, and costs contact Hammer Builders, your Madison Dane County Home Builder.

Sometimes Simple is Better-Pathways to a Simple Home

Photo from Fine Homebuilding Magazine

Pathways to a Simple Home - Fine Homebuilding Article

Nice article by author Sarah Nettleton from her book The Simple Home, with more good ideas on creating a not so big functional home...with character.