Hi Larry the mulch is labeled "Native Texas shredded hardwood mulch", and is locally produced by Austin Wood Recycling. I believe it is mostly ashe juniper that has been run through a chipper/shredder twice to get that consistency. It's ubiquitous here; we can buy it in bulk or bags from local gardening centers. It's soft to the touch, with pieces up to 2" long, but thin and flexible, similar in consistency to some cypress mulches I have seen. Perhaps that's more available in your area? and hello again, steamyb, you got right on that! Yeah, they are heavy; be good to your back moving it around. Sorry to hear the sinks have gotten pricey. They are pretty sturdy, though, and have held up well for years now. Don't know if you have a Habitat for Humanity Re-Store in your area, but if so, they might be a good resource for a used one. When I was a kid going to the lakes in east Texas, it seems like a lot of gas stations sold worms for fishing bait, and had long, galvanized troughs to raise them in. I would love to get my hands on one of those one day! Or one of those old Coca Cola drink coolers to sell cokes on ice; anything built to last with a drain in it. Guess you could even use an old bathtub if you had a way to get it up high enough and make it look presentable. Just a little harder to build a nice screen with the rounded corners. (I'll bet my aesthetics-conscious husband just felt a ripple in the force and cringed without even knowing why!) Would love to hear how these work out for both of you. cheers, Cathy

Laura12, I have looked heavily at many of the floorplans, our builder we will likely go with already has it and lucky us my really cool sister in law is an architect. We plan on trying for a solid LEED certification as well "sola tubes, green foam, new roof sealing technology, stained concrete etc" I am stoked about adding the folding rear doors to the pool, think it will make the house. A floor drain is a pretty cool idea for the mudroom. You could almost have a "Italian style" shower drain if you have the room to wash off boots etc, people with reef saltwater aquariums use these a lot and plumb skimmers directly to them. I want to have a large cabinet under the center island for all of the appliances, the only caveat I will have to add is a way to run the cables up the top and close the door still for things like a crockpot or breadmaker. This is a basic DJ control panel, would create stickers for the switches to label them, and probably wire a manual switch underneath to turn the unit on, so two switches and go. http://www.amazon.com/American-Pc-100A-Mount-Power-Switcher/dp/B0002GL50Q Cheap vampire timer http://cableorganizer.com/belkin/conserve-socket/ http://www.igo.com/other-power/power-smart-tower-with-igo-greenr-technology/invt/pm000110004/?source=165_75 Things like this should in theory allow me to plug in nearly all my appliances and just about cut vampire wattage. Thank you for the option on the sinks, I am checking them out vs dark copper. I am thinking of the eletrostatic non replaceable air filters that are washable, any thoughts? If so I could wash it monthly and that would cut down on dust etc. I am also thinking green foam insulation and ceiling up the attic totally, as we have more of a heat issue and leaving the attic floor wo insulation resulting in heat rising "all our cost are in cooling here in Texas". Have talked to an owner that did that and his attic is amazingly cool/home.

4 candidates- from Highest $ to Lowest Elkay PLA2 Pursuit Single Bowl Laundry Top Utility Sink Type: Faucets, Sinks Part #: PLA2522125 more ..., PLA252212-5, pla2522125 Lowest Price: $729.87 ................................ Kohler River Falls K-6657 Kohler Coralais® laundry sink about $500 ............................................... $175.45 and up Sterling (Kohler Co) Made of solid Vikrell® material, the durable, easy to install Latitude utility sink offers subtle, contemporary style.The unique quarter-deck design provides shelf space for storage and cleaning, and adds to the overall modern appeal. Self-rimming 25" x 22" x 12-1/4" ............................................. Product Description $80-$100 Crane Plumbing DL1 Laundry Tub (single dropin), White Crane Plumbing LLC is one of the best-known manufacturers and distributors of plumbing fixtures and specialty plumbing products in North America. The Company offers various products and product lines that comprise all aspects of bathroom fixtures from a small porcelain sink to a luxury acrylic bath. Fiat's quality laundry tub line is made from a Sheet Molding Compound (SMC). SMC is a plastic composite made up of filler, fire retardant, thickener, and internal mold release that have been mixed with liquid resin and a catalyst, and molded under extreme heat and pressure to create a laundry tub. Crane Plumbing DL1 Laundry Tub (single dropin), White Features:  Dimensions: 22-1/8x17x12-3/4" ID  Fiat Products uses a specialized SMC process (Molded Stone®) to manufacture all laundry tubs. Moldings are manufactured in matched metal dies under heat and pressure resulting in a homogeneous molded unit. Drain(s) with stopper(s) are furnished as standard equipment. Capacity shall be 76 litres (17 Imp gal) for the single tub sink and 152 litres (33 Imp gal) for the double tub sink. Laundry sinks available in white only.  Wall mounted tubs are provided with a heavy gauge galvanized - steel bracket capable of withstanding 600 pounds. The side fillers and bottom tub support, which are assembled in field to the mounting brackets, are made of white molded plastic polymer. Crane Plumbing DL1 Color: White UPC: 088754031723

My bf has had granite in her kitchen since the late 80's, well before it became mainstream. It is much thinner than is typically used for counter tops today, and the edge is completely straight, not eased in the least. She hasn't sealed it since it was installed, and uses/abuses it regularly (it's not babied, in other words). With the exception of a very few slightly less-than-smooth spots on the edges, felt if your feeling for them, rather than seen, and some epoxy filling in around the seam, you'd swear the granite was newly installed. Again, this was installed over 20 years ago. My granite, Labrador Golden Flake was installed in the spring of 2007. It still looks terrific and is easy to maintain. It does have a lot of mica (pearling) which is more prone to scratching (because it is relatively soft compared to other parts of the stone), but the one or two scratches it's gotten are superficial and by no means take away from its beauty. I recently wiped on/off some sealer (hadn't done so in a couple of years) but it doesn't seem to be necessary to use it on our stone (although the stuff we have does make it uber-shiny!). I use alcohol-water (mixed with a few drops of lavender oil) and a microfiber cloth to clean our granite. Easy, and no streaks (if the counters are particularly dirty/greasy, or the cloth is wet, it might take another few spritzes and wipes to clean-up completely, as would many other counter materials). Our moderately hard water sometimes leaves deposits/rings on our black granite that I buff off with a piece of 000 (or 0000 or even 00) steel wool--again, takes less than a minute and is easy to do. It also leaves deposits in our white porcelain sinks, so it's certainly not a granite-specific "issue." The ONLY thing we try to be careful about is wiping up BKF splashes (we put the can on a piece of paper towel or something to prevent rings)--that can etch many stones, incl ours. We have found that with our particular granite, acid-oil mixtures (oil and vinegar or oil and lemon juice) can sometimes leave marks if left to sit for long periods, so we try to wipe up spills/rings sooner rather than later. Vinegar or lemon juice by itself don't appear to have any effect. So, with the exception of taking a one-second precaution when using an acid-based cleaning product(s) in/on our SS sink and when mixing up acid-based marinades/dressings, we really and truly don't find our granite difficult to maintain in the least.