Kater, I mostly have OGRs and just a few HTs on Dr Huey bought at Lowe's (cheap). My Mrs BR Cant is on fort from the Apopka nursery (forget the name). Personally, (and I think I must be outnumbered) I don't like the growth habit and I don't think it's necessary re nematodes when the garden is well composted. (The most important reason I water the whole bed is to create a moist and healthy environment for the microbes which feed the plants and repel the nematodes.) OGRs typically come only on their own roots, although Dr Manners buds them and puts them up for sale at the Lakeland meetings. If you google nematodes/roses/Florida, you'll find articles by the FL IFAS on the subject. Apparently, the acids put out by the decomposing organics repel the nematodes. Organics create a hostile environment for them, countering the effect of hot, dry sand. That's what I've read, and I hesitate to contradict anything that Dr Manners does. His USF garden is all fort-budded roses. Another consideration for me was the expense which is about double if you can find them. Roses on fort get very large. HTs get to 6 to 8 feet tall. I installed my micro system from parts bought at Lowe's. A semi-strenuous process and only sort of like rocket science. Do it in the winter when it's cool. With the 180-degree heads you can cover the whole garden by spacing them accordingly with little or no wasted water. My beds are generally 6 feet wide which is the spread of the sprinklers. Spacing of roses when planting is crucial. Roses start out tiny and grow quite large at maturity here, so the temptation will be to space them close, but be strong and resist the temptation or you'll be digging them up and moving them. No fun. Six foot centers are minimum, and your tea roses can get to a width of 8' in 3 or 4 years plus you need access room for pruning, etc. It may look funny for a while to have so much space between your roses, but you can fill in with annuals or perennials until the roses get bigger. That will give you a cottage-y look anyway. Pine bark mulch is good. It will decompose and add to the organics. Roses like alfalfa. I get the 50-lb bags of pellets from the feed store for horses. Rose Tone is good, and there are recipes for making your own organic fertilizer. Just google it. A soil test from your county extension service would be good. This is a great forum full of great, lovely people. Welcome! Sherry Here is a link that might be useful: Good info at Marion County Rose Society

I have the exact same computer and I run several spyware scanners along with Avast anti-virus. No problems at all. One program I highly recommend that combines anti-spyware, temp file cleaner, registry cleaner, and a couple of other things is Advanced Windows Care. I keep it updated and run it about once every 10 days or so. It is not an anti-virus program. Give it a try and see how you like it. The link is for the free personal version. Here is a link that might be useful: Advanced Windows Care

I think you have the right idea of what system you're looking for--a conventional split system air conditioner and gas furnace. You probably want to look into a high-efficiency gas furnace (90+ AFUE) with a variable-speed blower and 2-stage (or more) heating for more comfort. When you contact these companies, you'll want to make certain they do the proper calculations necessary to size the equipment and choose the equipment correctly. Before you even have them come out, tell them that for a new installation, you want a Manual J load calculation done. You might even want to tell them you'd like a Manual D calculation done to design the ductwork since those will also be new. Having it all done right in the beginning may cost more and be harder to find a contractor to do so, but in the long run it will be well worth it. With the removal of the existing radiator system, new equipment, new ductwork, new electrical, etc., you're looking for a company who will take the necessary steps to do it right. Look for competence, but know that a salesman is sometimes just that. Post back here once you get a couple estimates for comparison. Good luck.

There are so many things to consider. First is your local market. Watch a few homes and see how quickly they are selling. I have 2 nephews and 2 nieces that have recently purchased their first homes and a nephew who is in the market. None of them are as superficial as the HGTV House Hunter buyers. They weren't looking for a white kitchen or stainless steel appliances, they were looking for the nicest home they could buy based on their ability to pay that was within their geographic boundaries. Each had different top priorities, different budgets, different geographic areas. The other thing I often reminded sellers when I sold real estate was that you don't need to appeal to all the buyers - you need one buyer to fall in love with your home. When I sold my last home several realtors who wanted the listing told me all the things I should change to make my home sell faster. Instead of spending a bunch of money trying to make my 50 year old home look like the new builds a few miles away, I kept my bolder colors and marketed my home as family friendly with a large lot. My yard was 4 times the size of the new homes. My house sold in 3 days at full price when the average market time was over 30 days. I love the idea that some of the others suggested of offering the buyer the option to finish the home to their taste based on an allowance to complete that renovation with their choice of cabinet colors, counter tops and flooring. Any one of my nieces and nephews would have loved that opportunity. If insurance demands that you complete the work I would want to target a warm and welcoming interior. The outside of your home is beautiful and has that feeling of days gone past where friends and neighbors were always welcome and hot coffee and sweet treats were always in the kitchen. I would not go overly cool or modern, but would look more for the warmer, creamier whites and neutrals and wood. Mid toned wood / wood look floors (depending on your budget and what the other homes in your area have), and lighter wood cabinets.