Electric pool heaters are definitely going to cost you. They have a high cost for keeping them in working shape and they will run your electric bill up quite a bit as well. This can be reduced and still give you the warm swimming water you desire if you know what you are doing.

You will want to get a solar pool heater as well as an electric one. The solar heater will cost you much less and will save you on your energy costs. Run it during the day, when the sun is out and is shining brightly down on it. Then, run your electric heater at night.

You can put both of them on a timer so that your water stays nice and warm for swimming. You should shut the solar heater off as soon as the sun has reached a spot that it will no longer heat the tubes of your solar pool heater. Then, wait about 6-8 hours to have your electric pool heater turn on. There is no use in wasting energy when you are asleep, but if you plan to swim by about 10 or 11 in the morning, then having it kick on around 7 or 8 would be great.

This toothbrush is the king of toothbrushes, 41,000 pulses that go in and out and 8,000 that go side by side per minute, leaving the Sonicare’s 31,000 pulses per minute in its dust. It also has never before seen features, the wireless LCD display that has a pressure sensor that tells when you’re brushing too hard, a timer that helps you clean each quadrant of your mouth completely, and the display even alerts you when to change your toothbrush head (my personal favorite). Not enough? Try a four speed brushing function that allows you to select a clean mode which really removes plaque, a sensitive mode for effective cleaning for those with sensitive gums and teeth, a massage mode to stimulate healthy gums, and a polish mode which really whitens your teeth!

I always had a problem with plaque developing behind my lower front teeth. I decided if this toothbrush was going to be the best out, it had to accomplish and defeat my troubled lower front teeth. For the experiments purposes, it worked out because I had visited the doctor only 2 weeks before starting the Oral B Triumph 9900. I used the Triumph 9900 twice a day for six months and just by running my tongue over my teeth, I could feel the difference. I was confident in going to the dentist, and I was right. The hygienist told me how my plaque build up had drastically improved from my last visit and told me “whatever you’re doing, keep doing it.”

I’ve used a great number of electric toothbrushes but this one blew me away. Every feature on it has a useful purpose, a definite keeper!

Nowadays, most new pools are built with a chlorinator system and system costs are now cheaper than ever. Chlorine has a bad smell, heavy and worrisome to handle. You don’t have to put up with the harmful effects of chlorine i.e. degrading costumes, more friendly to hair and skin. Salt is softer on skin and naturally feels better to swim in than standard chlorinated water.

As technology has moved on, newer chlorinators can clean themselves and built in controllers and timers regulate the Chlorine production. The amount of salt needed to effectively chlorinate a pool is only about one fifth of seawater salt levels and it never evaporates.

Getting the salt levels correct for your Chlorinator and size of pool can extend the life of your salt cell. The salt cell can wear out over time or calcium deposits build up and they need cleaning. Replacing this salt cell is the biggest single maintenance cost. Shock treatments and other balancers are still needed but manual maintenance is usually less than a same size chlorine pool. Overall cost comparisons vary but in general with costs coming out roughly similar or slightly less for saltwater.

There are many different brands of salt chlorinator on the market and it is a bit of a minefield to chose. Self cleaning require least maintenance and automatic timers are useful. Finding the right replacement salt cell can be tricky. Cross checking photos and cell lengths and other dimensions are a good idea if buying online. There are many generic salt cells on the market now for popular brands. This can save money and better quality cells come with warranties and are made of high quality components.

It’s not difficult to maintain a pristine pool, but it does take a bit of effort. As long as you take a few minutes each day to care for your pool, you’ll be rewarded with water that’s always ready for you to take a dip. In order to keep your pool in tip-top shape, simply follow these simple pool maintenance suggestions:

1. Run your filter at least eight hours a day. In a perfect world, your pool filter would run 24 hours a day. However, this is unnecessary and excessive for a few reasons. First, it’s bad for the environment because it requires a lot of electricity. Second, it’s bad for your wallet because you have to pay for that electricity. Eight to ten hours is plenty of time for your pool filter to do its job. Remember to set the timer so that it runs at optimal times.

2. Clean your skimmer basket at least once a day. This only takes a few seconds, but it can make a big difference. If you skimmer is full of leaves or other debris, it becomes much less effective.

3. Test your pool’s chemical levels twice a week. Use a testing kit to check your pool’s pH level (it should be between 7.4 and 7.6) and free available chlorine level (it should be between 1 and 3 parts per million).

4. Replace your chemical test kits regularly. Testing kits don’t last forever. If you’re using an old kit, you may not be getting accurate readings of your pool’s pH and chlorine levels.

5. Shock the pool once a week. Add one bag of shock per 10,000 gallons of water. After a rainstorm or a prolonged period of very hot weather, you may need to use additional shock.

6. Vacuum your pool and brush the walls regularly. Whenever you have a few free minutes, step outside and show your pool some love!

When it comes to technology, the pool industry is moving right along. There is wide variety of automatic equipment available to control almost every aspect of pool maintenance. Some automatic pool controls even incorporate a salt water chlorination system. While some may find it quite relaxing to know that their pool equipment is relieving them of many routine maintenance chores, the cost involved in some of these setups may seem a little steep to the average pool owner.

While fully automatic systems may be nice, you may not have the need for such extravagances. One on a smaller budget can find some very good alternatives that are lees expensive. there are several brands of timer controls that can handle the job of running your pool pump and automatic pool cleaner

One popular unit Intermatic controls markets houses a circuit breaker panel as well as dual timers. With this setup the filter pump and cleaner booster pump can be controlled independently, allowing you to run your cleaner pump for for a shorter cycle than your filter pump.

Use care when configuring a control setup like this to always ensure that you have the cleaner pump interval running inside the filter pump interval. Damage to the booster pump could occur if it is not supplied with a constant flow of water from the pool pump

It’s a good practice to operate your pool cleaner a few times when you will be present to attend it. This way you can ensure that it performs as expected and does not get hung up on objects in the pool. After you are sure that everything is running properly, set it up on the timers and let it take care of the cleaning at night or any other time that the pool will not be in use.

Obviously your new above-ground swimming pool will come with instructions which you should follow but here is a brief summary of the steps you will need to follow.

Setting out

Dry assemble the bottom layer of the timber frame in-situ so that you can see any access problems and whether new paths need building or services diverting.

Excavation

Even if the pool is going to be entirely above ground, you will still need to remove the topsoil for the base. Mark out a rectangular area at least 60cm bigger than the swimming pool and remove all topsoil (typically at least 15cm).

Concrete base

You will find this easier if you do it in two stages. First, lay a thin (5cm) layer of blinding concrete over the excavated surface – this will give you a clean and level floor to work on. Then set in position the steel uprights that provide the ‘ribs’ of the swimming pool‘. Lay strong reinforcing mesh 5cm above the blinding concrete and, if the ground is poor, another layer of mesh 5cm from the finished top surface of the concrete. Pour in at least 15cm and possibly as much as 30cm of structural grade premixed concrete thoroughly vibrating it to remove all of the trapped air.

Timber superstructure

When the concrete has cured (about 2 days), start assembling the wooden frame being careful to follow the manufacturer’s instruction regarding jointing.

Pipework – Phase 1

Fit the skimmer unit and cut holes in the wall of the timber frame to accommodate the drain, pump inlet and any lights. Use a proper hole-cutting saw and be careful not to cut too oversized a hole.

Sub-Liner

Thoroughly sweep and vacuum clean the floor of the swimming pool since any detritus left behind is a potential hole in your liner. When the floor is clean, spray it with adhesive and cut and fit the sub-liner. This provides a cushion effect to the floor and walls and also protects the main liner from damage.

Pipework – Phase 2

Fit the gaskets and frames for the pump inlet, the drain and the lights cutting through the sub-liner where necessary to expose those holes. Be careful not to over-cut.

Main Liner

Expose the liner to sunshine for an hour beforehand in order for it to warm up and become pliable. Starting with one corner of the timber frame, snap the liner to the swimming pool wall gently stretching and smoothing it as you do so. Leave the last 10 cm open, insert a hose from a powerful vacuum cleaner and seal up. Suck out as much air as you can from between the liner and the sub-liner. Anyone who enters the pool from here on must do so in socks or go barefoot.

Pipework – Phase 3

Fill the swimming pool to a depth of about 15cm to stretch the liner into its final place. Operate the vacuum for the last time, remove it and seal up the final part of the liner top. Get into the pool and install the final pieces of pump inlet, drain and lights being careful to keep the electrics of the latter free of the water.

Electrical Work

You will need an electrician to fit a circuit-breaker for you and to put in a power supply. It is a good idea if they also fit a timer control and a spare socket (you may wish to invest in an automatic pool cleaner). They can also wire in the lights – you may want to get an extra switch fitted for these.

Pipework – Phase 4

Carefully assemble the pump and filter unit filling the latter with clean, fine sand. Install all in-flow and out-flow pipework to the pump being careful to make sure the joints are watertight. Fill swimming pool to half-way up the skimmer unit. Prime pump, operate backwash and set pump timer.

Chemical Dosing

Using a pH and chlorine testing kit (available from any swimming pool accessories stockist), add acid or alkali to bring your swimming pool to a pH of typically 7.4 and a chlorine level of about 3ppm. Add algicide once a week and test and top up if necessary the water, the acid or alkali and the chlorine at the same time. If you use solar heating rings, you will save on evaporation of water and chemicals as well as extending your swimming season.

Access

Fit steps and ladders as appropriate.

Maintenance

Drain down the water to a low level and cover over the winter, operating the pump occasionally to prevent stagnation of the water. Treat timber with teak oil annually to keep it free of rot and looking good.

Now you’re ready to enjoy your above-ground swimming pool.

When we think of solar energy, many of us think of the complicated pieces of equipment that are needed to convert the power into usable energy, and while that is true if you want to power some lighting for instance, many of us make use of passive solar energy in the form of skylights or windows without giving it a second thought.

It is true that in order to actually develop a useful supply of active solar power, there is an amount of technology to be installed, but don’t let that put you off, it is nowhere near as complicated or inefficient as it was a few short years ago. You can now buy something simple such as an outdoor solar powered light which comes as a complete all in one unit. The solar cell is built in to the top of the unit which in turn converts the solar rays into light that will be emitted at night. Hell… you don’t even have to switch them on and off anymore, they have in-built timers – things are much simpler than they used to be.

The main argument used against the use of solar energy as a mainstream source of sustainable power, is the lack of sunshine at night. While that was a serious issue a number of years back, solar technology has moved on leaps and bounds, to a point where storing solar energy, to be released at night, is now an economically viable option.

As with many areas of life it sometimes takes a moment of crisis for people to start seriously searching for alternatives to the status quo. Solar energies ‘crisis’ dates back to the early 1970’s, when the world was plunged into chaos by OPEC oil embargo. We face an even greater level of threat today from global warming, so it will be interesting to see just how far the technology takes us this time.

You’ve probably seen them: six-wheel box vans with billboard-size ads on the sides, sometimes displaying a blown up picture of a white-toothed smiley-faced middle class woman on the phone, suggesting everything in life is better for her, now that she’s found a disposable-booties-wearing plumbing & HVAC company. Or perhaps you’ve called one of those colorful full-page ads in the Yellow Pages. You know the kind, they make you feel warm and fuzzy, and define everything you thought you wanted to hear. And what about their application of every credit card logo under the sun? Did that reassure you that if your unplanned plumbing emergency caught you short on cash, then you should, without further thought, simply use your plastic? Did the 800-number, blazing red as fire, subliminally suggest: “hotline straight though to the Maytag Man, who sits patiently awaiting to soothe your flustered mind”? Welcome to the world of Flat Rate plumbing and HVAC advertising!

I bet there’s something you don’t know, unless, of course, you did hire one of these companies – they charge between $125 and $400 an hour. If you didn’t know they charged that rate, you are not to be ridiculed for your ignorance, as that rate is disguised in the sell price of every part that they say (wink) you need.

Well, I am going to shed some light on the dark magic behind the M.O. of the Flat Rate model, then maybe you won’t go into cardiac arrest from sticker shock should you find yourself paying one of these companies after your next plumbing or HVAC emergency.

The Background

Among the self-employed in the HVAC and plumbing trades are those who have long struggled to eek out a decent living, myself among them. Traditionally, we’ve charged an hourly rate, plus a modest mark-up on materials. As a service technician for two 2nd generation fuel companies – Tenney Fuels, and Ferns Energy Centers – in the early ’80s, I was paid $3.75 per hour to start, ten cents above minimum wage. Those companies charged $25 per hour and made a profit on parts, furnaces, burners and boilers, and the sale of fuel oil, the latter bringing in the lion’s share. Then, in 1983, Tenney sold out to a hot shot “petroleum marketer” and my pay was raised to $6.90 an hour. In parallel, the new fuel oil conglomerate raised Tenney’s rates, and started charging the customer for everything from pipe thread compound, and a few sprays of parts cleaner in a can, to speedy dry (kitty litter) to absorb oil we spilled on the floor. It didn’t matter that I spit-cleaned the burner electrode porcelains, the customer still was charged for noxious spray cleaner. The name of the game changed from, service and installation work of the utmost quality (at a fair price), to slap-it-in-as-fast-as-you-can, and maximize profit in every conceivable way, irrespective of quality. The new company even brought in technicians already trained on their new method at other branches, to show our service department how it would now be done. It was a shock to me, a green horn, as every traditional practice bestowed upon me over the previous 2 years was clearly and painfully on its way out. The shock on the faces of the customers, some who had been with the company since its inception, was a poignant experience for them and me. Steadily through the 1980s and ’90s, the endangered Old School slid closer to ultimate extinction, along with the family-run feel that we were all used to. The Big Boys made their entrance with slick, grand, unimaginative signage, sporting corporate logos that left us – the employees and the customers – feeling like an invasion was underway.

In 1988, I’d nearly had it with the new model that I felt imprisoned by, and resorted to recanting positive affirmations I placed on my service van console – anything to affect peace of mind so I could make it through another soul-wrenching day working for The Man. By this time I was employed by a plumbing contractor who seemed to embody the New School philosophy of taking the customer for all they were worth. Though I had been in the trade for 8 years, a co-worker and junior technician – experience-wise – set out to “show me the ropes” my first day on the job. By noon he’d managed to bill for 8 hours, per man, charging each customer for the time it would hypothetically take to travel to their home and back to the shop. It didn’t matter if 3 of the customers lived on the same street, they still got charged the full hour round trip, as if they were the only service call out their way that day. During the course of our rounds, the profit-motivated technician charged one customer – my dentist – for a light bulb in the furnace room that he bumped his head on and broke. While there, he only wiped the dust from the furnace. The bill came to over $300. Next, he charged a customer for an ignition transformer that was not defective. Then, he charged a 93 year-old woman in a mobile home $285 dollars for wiping the dust from her furnace, and a new oil burner nozzle, despite the woman’s plea that she could barely manage on her deceased husband’s Social Security check. (A month later, when the woman called with a no-heat emergency, she got me, the on-call technician. I went to her house, after normal business hours, and found that the burner master control had failed, so I replaced it…free of charge, as recompense for the bath the technician gave her months earlier. I’d lied on my report, stating that call was a non-chargeable callback due to improperly adjusted electrodes.)

I was paid piecework for the exact time I billed a customer. Otherwise, if I didn’t charge them for, say, a trip to the supply house for parts, or travel to their home and back, or for completing the day’s paperwork, I didn’t get paid for that time. I thought the company owner was a criminal for making his living the way he did, and nostalgically pined for the early days at Tenney and Ferns – honest and ethical companies. I felt the present company not only ripped off (in many ways, not fully explainable in the context of this writing) the customer, but also ripped off me, the employee, by illegally docking my pay for not filling out the daily paperwork correctly.

The last straw for me was when the company charged Kay O’Brien, an elderly woman of 84, for several service calls by a plumber-employee who had no knowledge of oil burners. When I was finally sent to straighten out the original problem, and the additional ones he managed to create with a bountiful helping of sheer ignorance, I suggested that she call the main office and explain (complain). The owner’s daughter (the company bookkeeper) told her to “pay the f-ing bill, or we will take you to court!” This unbelievably disturbing and aggressive lack of gratitude upset me as much as it did Kay, and profoundly affected my attitude, unlike anything I’d felt working for any prior company. I withdrew from participation in company meetings and events and, ultimately, I was fired. The boss man said I “wasn’t a team player”, and I agreed, at least not on his team, which lead me down the solitary road of self-employment…and hard knocks.

5 excruciating years had passed and I realized I could have been making more money working for a New School employer during that forlorn period of pure angst. My earnings peeked over the poverty level barely enough to see the other side, gazing at what the Joneses had that I couldn’t muster from no matter how hard I’d worked. Soon, my wife left me for a lawyer. (Whatever happened to for richer or for poorer? I think she opted for richer.) Instead of giving in to working for The Man”, I chose to risk everything on my luck as an inventor (see my essay, “Lessons In Invention Development”), which, by the way, is like jumping out of an airplane without first checking to see that the chute on your back is not really a backpack full of bricks.

Just prior to falling like The Old Man of The Mountains, I was approached by a company wanting to sell me a Flat Rate franchise and poured on the sales pitch in equal parts to the, aforementioned, over-the-top, advertising on the sides of certain trucks. I rejected their solicitation because their business model and methods seemed like voodoo. Bankruptcy seemed a more attractive option. A local plumbing company owner did buy into the franchise, and soon he was focusing all his efforts on service, all the while his excessive drinking showed his behind-the-scenes stresses that apparently forced him into his decision to change his business model to the Holy Grail the Franchiser sold him on. He had a great many service vans with inventory levels I had not seen since the old days. He had a huge color ad in the phone book that must have cost upwards of a $1,000 a month. (I paid $250 for my black & white quarter-page ad.) He had an 800-number, in bold red ink, and slogans that I knew he wasn’t clever enough to dream up by himself. The ad, with credit card logos all in a row at the bottom, convinced me he had gone Flat Rate. I visualized him with voodoo dolls that resembled his customers, squeezing them until their wallets spilled out of the pockets, cash flowing from them for him to seize – the how-to instructions printed on some secret page in his Flat Rate pricing book. I was skeptical of his ethics, as it seemed he had bought into something that suggested profit trumped quality, fairness, and full disclosure. I thought, “If it quacks like a duck…”

I pondered the methodology behind the new buzzword, Flat Rate. Being a creative thinker, and problem-solver, I thought the method was ingenious, juxtaposed to that of the Old School way of generating revenue. I examined the core problems in the trade, but also the lack of fulfillment associated with being self-employed, from my humbled and beaten down point of view. Competition was fierce, and there seemed no way to go up on rates without losing bids, customers, and sales. I felt I was on the precipice of defeat, the sanctified martyr for the cause of doing honest work at a fair price, which seemed passé. Also, there seemed no way to afford employees, and the requisite benefits package they routinely demanded. I held back my spiteful tone with retained thought so as no interviewee would notice when he uttered demands like “vacation”; “insurance”; “holidays”, like so much lava from a volcano, scorching my patience to cinders. He didn’t know, nor would I reveal, out of certain embarrassment, that I had none of these bennies. Once upon a time, I enjoyed all that he asked for at the family-owned fuel companies. Nonetheless, it seemed ironic to provide others with the very things I was missing by not working for The Man.

An established company with 15 technicians in the field can generate sufficient revenue by the Time & Materials model, but I was beginning to see the employee prospects that I interviewed demanded a full compensation package, and that I would never become the company that could afford to pay them. And with customers questioning, “What, you charge $35 an hour? I can get so and so for $25 and hour!” the pressure to suppress the urge to charge more was what I feared and loathed the most, but was ever present. The over arching problem in the trade, that desperately needed fixing, was the perception in the mind of the consumer that no matter the hourly rate, there was always someone out there who should be sought for a “competitive” bid. That sounds like Free Market Competition at work. By not charging by the hour, rather charging for ‘materials only’, albeit, with a hefty price tag that obscures the true cost of the parts, the Flat Rate model appeared to have offered up a solution to the problems I experienced. I’ll explain.

The Way it Works

When you call a Flat Rate Company, typically it’s because you are desperate to have your no-heat, no-hot-water, or worse, “no water” problem remedied, quickly. The typical Flat Rate customer gravitates to the “Yellow Pages” like steel to a magnet, and dials the number in the most eye and emotion-catching ad. The company behind the ad anticipates them coming, and, in a sense, is like the Maytag Man who sits waiting for the unsuspecting and desperate voice on the other end of the phone line. The troubled voice is a common one, and the prepackaged mantras of the Flat Rate Company – “Honey, just call ________.” (Fill in the blank with a name of Flat Rate Company.); “Repairs and maintenance on all systems”; “You get firm, up-front estimates and fair, competitive prices”; “Better quality guarantee”; “90 days no payments, no interest financing”; “At last, a serviceman who is always on time, or you don’t pay a dime”; “Never an overtime charge”; “You know the price, before we start”; “Clean, professional technicians”; “Immediate response”; “Our prices are based on established standards”; “_______ solves over thousands of residential problems a year and we can solve yours now” – are like valium to ease the caller’s anxiety. Those lines hook you fast in your greatest time of need. Hey, if you can get an experienced, neat, clean, and professional plumber who allows you to approve the price before he does the work, and he smells nice (yes, there is an ad for nice smelling plumbers), and you can slap the repair on plastic, then who wouldn’t call? It’s true, the Fat Raters are usually there in short time, have the parts in their warehouses-on-wheels necessary to solve your problem, and you do approve the price before they begin work. However, there’s more to their formulae, and intent by some, than catches the eye.

The Catch

Many Flat Rate companies tell you over the phone when you call, not in the ad, that there will be a trip charge (leverage) if you don’t “approve the price” for remedying the diagnosed problem when they arrive. By then you’ve already done all the hunting for a technician in the jungle of ads that you can stand. When they assure you they can speedily solve your problem, you agree to pay the trip fee should you disagree with their price. Shortly, the technician arrives, and in time he tells you that your problem is such and such, and the cost to fix it is…well, on page 7 of his Flat Rate pricing book. The price seems like a lot, but you have no way of knowing if it is too much – it’s not like comparing brand names to generics side by side on the shelf of the supermarket. Besides, you are in a hurry to get your kids off to school, and get to work, and everyone needs to brush their teeth first. YOU WANT WATER, NOW! So you whip out your Visa card and he swipes it before you, and then busies himself in the basement for a while. Once the repair is made, your nice smelling plumber comes upstairs, utters niceties, and when he is positively out your door, removes his disposable booties, hoping you’ll notice he didn’t dirty your floor, which might be the most profound thing you remember about his visit.

On his way to his next service call, the technician whistles with glee, knowing he just made a 7% commission (an incentive to sell as many parts as possible) on the gross sale, on top of his $75,000 salary. Some of these guys make over a hundred grand a year!

[As a salesman for the last company I worked for, in 2002, I made 2% commission on net profit, which was determined by the owner of the company, though I wasn't privy to his calculations. I quit a year later and they refused to pay my commission check.]

The Math

So how do they arrive at their high prices? Hypothetically, the well pump pressure switch at the root of your no-water problem cost the Flat Rater $12, but you paid $379.25 (the charge that you ‘approved before they did the work’). $379.25 – $12 (their cost of the switch) = $367.25, the Company’s mark-up. If you hired a time and materials guy, say, at $85 for the hour in your home and one on the road, plus $24 – an average sell price for the switch, you’d pay $194. Now, subtract $24 from the Flat Rate price of $379.25 and $355.25 is the labor amount you’ve been charged. But wait, there’s more. Divide their labor amount by two (hours) and their equivalent hourly rate is $178 per hour – more than twice that of the time and materials guy! You think, “How can this be? He was only here for 45 minutes?” Then you suck it up and remember his booties and your clean floor, rationalizing away your concerns, especially about the new balance on your credit card, which you can make minimum payments on anyway. But don’t forget to factor in the interest, bringing the total cost of the Flat Rate Company’s repair to new heights never before seen in the Old School model. What is the Flat Rate technician’s cut? 7% X $379.25 = $26.55, but that’s in addition to his salary, or high hourly pay.

These are average numbers, of course, but you get the idea.

Some Flat Raters take price-setting to an extreme, raking in up to $400 and hour, then laugh through their admission of guilt to fellow tradesman at the supply house. I’ve actually heard them there, at the counter.

It’s all about their marketing, paired with the desperate consumer’s emergency, otherwise, the entire business model wouldn’t hold up. The consumer pays a premium for the company’s means of letting you know he can have a technician there with the requisite parts, within an hour. But that doesn’t mean that a wholly qualified technician will show up at your door. Anyone can change parts. Besides, the more parts they sell you, the more often you pay that premium…until finally he fixes your problem. It’s almost always a net gain for the company, but a loss for the consumer. If the unqualified technician sells you 3 parts, or more, depending on the true problem and how long it takes to replace parts until the right one is found, the equivalent hourly rate quickly skyrockets to the aforementioned $400 an hour range. It’s math 101.

There is an army of these companies now canvassing the populous neighborhoods all supported by their big ads, hoping to add new customers, as many are one-timers, given the unwanted economic bath they took the last time. Speaking of being taken to the cleaners, how does $950 for a plastic Zoeller sump pump suit you? Maybe $1,900 for a 40-gallon electric water heater sounds attractive? I think not! Check Home Depot’s prices for those items the next time you are there. Flat Rate pricing seems to save the consumer from information they shouldn’t see. What they don’t know won’t hurt them?

More often these companies are franchises and they are popping up around the country, from California to New Hampshire. But a local company (though I suspect it is only a matter of time before they sell franchises) boasts of having 35 fully stocked trucks on the road, in New Hampshire! Surely there must be as many dead moose on the road.

Two Schools Collide

With pricing like that the Flat Rate Company can afford to pay their employees better than the non-Flat Rate competitors, thereby attracting the labor pool away from the Old School guys like me. However, guys with talent, skill, and ethical fortitude tend to work for themselves. The dilemma is omnipresent. I ask, why would anyone work for me if all I paid them was $40K a year, and meager benefits? The Flat Rate method answers this question, as it addresses the quandary of how to make self-employed tradesmen profitable, so they, too, can have the same benefits that their employees demand.

The New School, and Flat Rate have convinced me of the direction the trade has been headed in for some time, and that it will never return to the days when I began as an oil burner technician for fuel companies that had been around since the beginning of oil burners themselves, and coal-fired systems before them. Still, I choose to work by the traditional ethics that I was fortunate enough to be taught, at a time when the winds of change were shifting. I’ve let go of the idea that I would employ many and reap the profits they generated for me. Now I work alone and hire another self-employed guy when I need a second pair of hands to complete a job that requires more than one, rather than go Flat Rate and take advantage of the customer. I do believe in business ethics (surely some of you are laughing at my naiveté). Maybe I’ll never sway from the Old School approach, as I still have zero patience for the sub quality work done by the bottom of the labor pool barrel, and by some of these Flat Rate companies. Call it ego, or call it nostalgia, I call it freedom, freedom to choose to feel great about the work I did today, without having to scam anyone.

Presently, where once I charged only for the time on the job, I charge for the total time that I commit to my customer, including travel time both ways. Also, I charge for diesel fuel to get there. After all, the time and expense of traveling to my customer’s site is not for my benefit; it’s to solve their HVAC problems – my primary business.

I know every task required to complete any HVAC job, and the order in which they should be performed. With 28 years experience, I feel unlike many of the Flat Raters who often only have a few. Really, many are simple parts changers in a neatly pressed uniform, behind the wheel of a moving billboard / warehouse, carting around 25 grand of inventory…and a Flat Rate pricing book.

Despite my many complaints about them, I feel the Flat Rate innovators were very creative and insightful when they formulated their solution to the ills in the trade. However, I feel their method is fraught with deception, and opportunity for fraud. Not all are bad, but take the following as example:

The Fraud

A case in point is my customer Cheri Whittaker’s experience with a Flat Rate company. Cheri called me for a “free estimate” to change the boiler in her home, in Exeter, after seeing my ¼-page black and white ad (that cost $450 per month), in the Portsmouth telephone book. Being a savvy and knowledgeable salesman, I knew enough to get a lot of information up front, before I agreed to give a free estimate – something everyone calling ads in the phone book expects. Estimates take a lot of time, if done carefully and accurately. The answers Cheri gave to my queries – namely who the (Flat Rate) company was that condemned her old boiler two weeks earlier – caused me to suspect she just needed an honest and experienced technician to diagnose the problem correctly. I felt I was her man, and agreed to give the estimate.

Upon arrival in her basement, I noticed that the air gate on the oil burner had been intentionally shut, causing the fire to burn incredibly dirty. Black smoke spewed from the chimney, and the boiler was plugged with soot. Before long, damage to the oil burner would result. Cheri showed me the invoice and recommendations the technician had left with her. There were many reasons listed on the invoice for condemnation of the boiler – every one false and designed to pressure Cheri into buying a new boiler from a “Comfort Advisor” they planned to send out to give an estimate. Had she gone along with their diagnosis and prescription, the technician would have received a $700 commission in his paycheck that week. Imagine him doing this more than once a week, and you can see how he would easily approach a $100,000 annual salary.

The last time the boiler and burner had been serviced, prior to the Flat Rate Company’s visit, was over a year, so I knew the Company technician had sabotaged the boiler intentionally. Otherwise, an oil burner starved of air would have caused it to fail in a matter of weeks, and it was nearing that point. In a way, the technician’s statement on the invoice was correct: “the boiler is due to imminently fail”.

Cheri and her husband asked me to confront the Flat Rate Company, in their presence, so no surprise, I agreed. Soon, the technician and his service manager arrived at their home and we converged in the basement. Within 15 minutes, I proved false the Company’s claims in their invoice and of no wrongdoing. The Whitakers were not impressed with the hollow answers and guilty looks from the two, and evicted them from their home, telling them they would never return. I proceeded to clean the very dirty boiler and bring it back to good, safe operating condition for a few hundred bucks – a far cry from the $10,000 it would have cost to replace the boiler.

The Summation

Cliché’s abound for situations like the aforementioned such as, caveat emptor – “buyer beware”. And, “if it seems too good to be true, then it probably is.” Think of all the claims, promises, and guarantees in the phone book ads, then recall what they charged you. Was it a steep price? Had you ever been charged that kind of money for a service call in your past? What about the so-called Trip Fee, did you opt for that and disapprove of their Flat Rate? Did the technician fix the problem correctly the first time, or did you have to call him back? Gimmicks like disposable booties, and surreptitious slogans – “you approve the price” – are devised to dupe the layperson from thinking about the price for a repair. These companies are clever, and getting rich without doing much quality work for the money, but they do sell a lot of parts, which I suppose bolsters the economy.

My Mom and her husband in California were just hosed by a Flat Rate Company, paying twice the price for outmoded air conditioning equipment that is being phased out because its refrigerant destroys the Ozone layer. I wished I could have saved them from the wolf-in-sheep’s-clothing Comfort Adviser that sold them on the idea of replacing their functioning furnace and condensing unit, before that company loosed their disposable booties in their home. I don’t blame the one’s who’ve been bitten; I hold the snake charmer responsible for allowing the snake to bite.

But, hey, at least the owner of that one-hour flat rate company is content with not having to work for The Man – something we do have in common

Excuse 1. “Why pay someone else when I can do the writing myself?” Next time you sit down with a writing project, pay attention to how you feel. Mentally, are you quickly and effortlessly able to extract the essence of what makes your consumer offering worthwhile? Or do you find yourself mired in extraneous details, unable to focus on what should be crystal-clear to an outsider? Bring a copywriter into the mix, and get a fresh perspective on your product or service, and a clear focus on your product benefits.

Excuse 2. “I know my product/business better than anyone else.” This may in fact be true. But when was the last time you analyzed your own target audience? As society evolves, so do the needs of the average consumer. A great product can weather the winds of change and stand up to the test of time – but competition is stiff, and who is to say your good name will stay in the mainstream? A good writer will analyze the way people live in today’s world and then add your product to that scheme in a way that makes it indispensible.

Excuse 3. “I find it difficult to work with someone in a remote location.” Let’s face it: it’s the year 2004 and the world’s greatest minds are linking up remotely in ways that are advancing them by light years. There is nothing more convenient than doling out a day’s work with a quick click of the mouse, checking your Inbox later and to find five projects awaiting your review. Electronic information transfer is the ideal way to save money, time and resources while making use of a freelance copywriter or graphic artist’s greatest strengths.

Excuse 4. “My business is in too great a state of flux for an outsider to keep up.” While it may be true that you can typically “expect the unexpected”, there is one thing that doesn’t change: you’ve still got a message to convey and a family of products that compel you to put your best face forward. While you’re dealing with market fluctuations, a writer can tap your potential buyer pool and harness that purchasing power with an advertising message worth its weight in gold.

Excuse 5. “We already have existing copy and it works just fine.” Your current advertising may have served its purpose well once, but how many times have you recycled this same campaign? Another season means another reason to spend money! Let your writer do a little homework and find out what people are responding to of late. Great advertising uses the amazingly persuasive power of the written word to generate an actual psychological need for your product or service.

Excuse 6. “I can’t afford such ‘luxury business services.’” Many people view hiring independent contractors as a “big business” practice only. Not true! Think about how many times your full-timers worked overtime this year. If you paid them time-and-a-half, can you honestly say their output was up to snuff and worth the extra dime? Eliminate the headaches brought on by a disheartened group whose novice advertising attempts are gropings in the dark at best. Hire a professional writer to write ads that will turn your business around and pump up your sales volume!

Excuse 7. “We plan to bring on a full-time writer in the near future.” Hiring someone new means another salary, another employee benefits package–and another set of commitments. While all this may seem like a worthy investment in the long run, there’s no telling how the market will affect the future of your firm. Employ a Power Writer on a temp basis that you have the luxury of controlling, and work out a business deal that you’re comfortable with.

Excuse 8. “Who needs fancy words? My product sells itself.” Nowadays, you’re competing with the entire world. It’s called the global market, and if you want your name to be within the top rungs of the hierarchy, you must take steps to get yourself noticed. Ignoring the internet is the quickest way to lose your stronghold in your key market segment. Invest in a writer who can isolate your target audience and implement a killer ad strategy that will permanently burn your brand into the consumer mind.

Excuse 9. “Copywriters are for campaign work. We don’t have a need for that.” Copywriters earn their livelihood writing copy–not just awe-inspiring headlines, but plain everyday language as it’s used in every aspect of your business. Crisp, professional writing lends polish and credibility–and establishes your corporation as one run by intelligent, exacting people… the kind others want to do business with! Don’t let your reputation suffer at the hands of a poorly written piece! Call in a seasoned copywriter to get the message across with clarity, professionalism, and style.

Excuse 10. “My marketing person writes all of our promotions and ads already.” If your marketing person is doing your writing, then who is doing your marketing? Ideally, your marketing guru should be conducting surveys and focus groups, planning long and short-term selling strategies. For those of you have a marketing expert who can do this AND flesh out the creative for all your compelling ads–well, please introduce me to this Super Human! For the rest of you: let the marketing guy focus on his area of expertise–and leave the writing to the writer.

Excuse 11. “I’m not comfortable revealing my business secrets to an unfamiliar outside party.”

Most writers create for the personal satisfaction that goes along with crafting a message that produces tangible results. By nature, a writer, or a graphic artist for that matter in fact has more to lose by sharing what they already know about effective advertising and mastering the tricks of the trade. An ad writer is happiest when she can deliver your message in the most succinct way possible, and yield incredible results for your business… in the way that you always imagined it could happen… but EVEN BETTER!

Copyright 2005 Dina Giolitto. All rights reserved.

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, Swimming pools lose energy in a variety of ways, but evaporation is by far the largest source of energy loss. Evaporating water requires tremendous amounts of energy. It only takes 1 BTU (British thermal unit) to raise 1 pound of water 1 degree, but each pound of 80ºF water that evaporates takes a whopping 1,048 BTU of heat out of the pool.

Outdoor Pool Energy Loss

Losses to Ground and other 10%
Radiation to Sky 30%
Evaporation 70%

The evaporation rate from an outdoor pool varies depending on the pool’s temperature, air temperature and humidity, and the wind speed at the pool surface. The higher the pool temperature and wind speed and the lower the humidity, the greater the evaporation rate. In windy areas, you can add a windbreak-trees, shrubs, or a fence-to reduce evaporation. The windbreak needs to be high enough and close enough to the pool that it doesn’t create turbulence over the pool, which will increase evaporation. You also don’t want the windbreak to shade the pool from the sun, which helps heat it.

Here are some suggestions to follow allowing for a more environmentally friendly swimming pool:

First of all, use Solar Covers also called a solar blanket. Solar Pool Covers or Blankets resemble giant sheets of bubble wrap. The bubbles trap heat from the sun and transmit the heat to the pool, keeping the water temperature warm and inviting. The solar cover also helps to trap the heat of the water and prevents its escape into the cool night time air. Solar covers float freely on top of a pool without tie-downs or anchors to hold them in place. Solar covers are usually folded and stored or rolled-up on a large reel and wheeled out of the way. Solar Blankets are ideal for use in sunny climates because the more heat they can gather, the longer they can extend the swim season. Solar pool covers can raise water temperature by as much as 10-15 degrees.

Besides offering energy savings, pool covers also do the following:

Conserve water by reducing the amount of make-up water needed by 30%-50%
Reduce the pool’s chemical consumption by 35%-60%
Reduce cleaning time by keeping dirt and other debris out of the pool.

Using a Solar Pool Heater is another way that you can take advantage of the sun’s free energy. Solar Heaters are extremely efficient, inexpensive to operate, and are the ultimate in environmental friendliness. When combined with a solar pool cover, Your Solar Pool Heater will maintain a comfortable water temperature well into the cooler months.

Most solar pool heating systems include the following:

A solar collector – the device through which pool water is circulated to be heated by the sun
A filter – removes debris before water is pumped through the collector
A pump – circulates water through the filter and collector and back to the pool
A flow control valve – automatic or manual device that diverts pool water through the solar collector.

An Example of a solar pool heating system: Pool water is pumped through the filter and then through the solar collector(s), where it is heated before it is returned to the pool. In hot climates, the collector(s) can also be used to cool the pool during peak summer months by circulating the water through the collector(s) at night. Another way to save energy is by using a Pool Filter Timer. Automating a pool’s filter operation pays for itself in energy savings within the first month or two. Except for during times of heavy use, most pools only need to filter 12 hours per day. Pool Filter Timers save money on electricity and chemicals. Most Pool Filter Timers are rugged, weather proof and have up to 50 settings to allow you to make your pool turn on and off whenever you want. Most Pool Timers are easy to program.

Installing and Operating a Swimming Pool Pump for Energy Efficiency

You can save energy and maintain a comfortable swimming pool temperature by using a smaller, higher efficiency pump and by operating it less. In a study of 120 pools by the Center for Energy Conservation at Florida Atlantic University, some pool owners saved as much as 75% of their original pumping bill when they used these energy conservation measures. These savings represent a typical pool in Florida. The average pool pump energy bill is probably higher in Florida than in many other areas of the country because of the long swimming season. While the absolute savings here will be greater there than elsewhere, the percentage savings should apply nationwide. Note that the savings for the combination of measures are not simply the sum of savings for the individual measures. When both are implemented, the energy use is 60% of 40% of the original use-percent savings.The Florida study shows that a 0.75 horsepower or smaller pump is generally sufficient for residential pools. Smaller pumps, which cost less, can be used if you decrease the pool circulation system’s hydraulic resistance by doing the following:

Substituting a large filter (rated to at least 50% higher than the pool’s design flow rate)
Increasing the diameter or decreasing the length of the pipes, or replacing abrupt 90-degree elbow pipes with 45-degree ones or flexible pipes.
By decreasing the pool circulation system’s hydraulic resistance, you can reduce the pump’s electricity use by up to 40%.

References from the US Department of Energy