Well, after reading all of the messages from the "learned heads" here, i have finally figured out how to make lawn mowers as safe as possible. I don't know why you folks haven't found the secret to having safe lawn mowers. Go buy a goat, or several sheep, tie them out in the yard, and let them go at it!;0) As for the manufacturers--simple--sell mowers without blades! And, don't sell blades to fit their products. Just think how safe lawn mowers will then be--no more chopped off toes, feet, fingers, hands, or any broken windows, and no more kids chopped up by mowers! Why, a man can buy a safe mower, take it out of the box, and push it around, looking like he owns the world, smiling at the neighbors, and knowing he is perfectly safe, in his yard, and knowing he can never injure anybody by using his perfectly safe lawn mower! Or, he could ride around on his lawn tractor, happy as a lark, and full of the knowlege that he won't be sued by anybody who might have been injured by thrown objects, like his old tractor or push mower used to do. He could even let his young kids ride safely on the tractor, while he simulates mowing his lawn! OOOHH! Just think of the possibilities. And, no more worries about blade tip speeds! By: Rusty Jones, The Mower Man! PS: I knew what PI was/ is--learned it in high school! And, Grand-ma knew what it was back then--she made the best tasting ones! A thought just occured to me---why doesn't some egg-head invent grass that doesn't grow any higher than 3-4 inches? Problems solved.

I apologize for being dense but Iam just lobbying for people to build to code.. at the least. Prescriptive minimums are not arbitrary. They are the intent of the code. I understand and approve of alternative compliance and performance modeling as I use it on my passive solar projects to get around the fenestration requirements among other details. I also understand its limitations and how widely misused and abused that it has become. Yes, houses and climates are complex and the people who created the software are largely the ones setting the prescriptive minimums and ventilation standards. They have done a marvelous job for the most part. The software and results can be amazingly accurate in the hands of the right professional. Its the occupant behavior variable that tends to throw some things off. For example, take leaving all the windows open with the heating and cooling running.. Be careful about using software or alternative compliance paths yourself or hiring those outside of their area of expertise. Hopefully, people can identify the correct team in their area to make the appropriate choices. I hope what we've covered here will help. Bungalow14 and others who may still be considering a vented crawlspace on the East coast. The paper trail of substantiation on vented crawlspaces is immense. The level of research and evidence of poor performance with vented crawls in humid climates, mainly on the East coast, is overwhelming. The building industry is notoriously stubborn about accepting improvements to the code. I find this to be especially true with older, experienced professionals with little education in building science. Advanced Energy in Raleigh has done a lot of good research for your specific area but unfortunately, the links they used to provide on it have been taken down. I strongly suggest you talk to a building science professional in your area before building an attached cave (vented crawlspace) below your home. I imagine that you could probably get in touch with someone about this at Advanced Energy. Have you considered Energy Star or NC Green Build certification? Here is a link that might be useful: Advanced Energy website homepage

The gambrel scheme would require a week of intensive design work that is probably beyond the capability of those who are helping you. As a fall back to avoid the unfortunate original design I recommend using regular gables as tack-ons at the sides and a real cross gable on the front and rearranging the front rooms so the windows work. Flaring the front gable shingles over the windows and at the bottom would add a great deal to the design. The house should have shingles and no corner boards. I would consider trim colors other than white. You might be able to dress it up a bit with more gables but the framing would be slightly more complicated.

I have found that grills enhance the architectural experience both inside and outside the home. And by using the term "grills" I am including leaded glass and stained glass. Outside a viewer first sees the pattern of the grills which helps define the character of the home, and rarely does the viewer see past the grills to see what is inside the home. Grills can be use in this way to provide a degree of privacy. Frank Lloyd Wright used this in the dining room of his home and studio. Inside a viewer looks through a window visually ignoring the grills. Sometimes the grills are more complex or numerous making them more difficult to ignore, therefore creating a greater sense of enclosure. Other factors are involve such as lighting and time of day, but the grills in a window help create the architectural experience of the design of a home and can be orchestrated to give the user a desired experience. Each space is evaluated to determine the need for grills at the same evaluating the design and continuity of the exterior architecture.