Hong Kong new towns

Hong Kong's new towns experienced a population increase of almost 2.4 million people between 1976 and 2001, about 1.9 million of them residing in public housing.

Unlike garden cities in Britain or suburbs in North America, Ma On Shan's residential buildings are primarily highrise, most of them 35 stories or higher.

Like other new developments in Hong Kong, it has been planned as a self-contained environment and balanced community with a mixture of public and private housing, dependable utility services, a well-organized transportation system, open space for recreation, and a broad range of community facilities for health, education, and social welfare.

While architects enthuse...

Solvents and birth defects

Solvent exposure linked to birth defects in babies of male painters

Painting for a living, if you're male, may be place unborn children at increased risk of birth defects and low birth weight.

A study of construction workers in the Netherlands, conducted in part by the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada, links low birth weight and birth defects to paternal airborne exposure to organic solvents such as paints, thinner and cleansers.

read more

...only male painters?

LED lighting

TheLEDLight.com is a catalog of everything made with LEDs.

LEDs will not readily attract bugs and other insects.

Stainless Steel Restoration Kit

This kit allows you to restore scratched stainless steel surfaces on refrigerators, ranges, dishwashers, sinks, countertops, and backyard grills to their original luster (view before & after examples).

Safe for use on soft-metal grained surfaces, the kit includes an ergonomic grip tool, small- and broad-scratch abrasive pads, coarse reconditioning pad, fine finishing pad, 3/4 oz. bottle of UltraShine polish, a microfiber towel, and an instructional DVD.

Not a filler or cosmetic patch, the kit repairs up to 30 scratches and the polish will not leave a bright spot typical of other stainless steel repair kits. Not for use on clear coat su rfaces, synthetic, or easy care imitation stainless steel finishes. About $50 Hammacher Schlemmer

via redFerret

DIY solar air furnace

Gary Reysa of BuildItSolar.com takes the home handyperson through detailed steps to create a $350 thermosiphon air collector ready for installation on the south-facing wall of a home or building. via treehugger

Roads clean rainwater

Carparks, patios and other paved areas could one day collect rainwater, purify it then channel it to underground tanks for reuse, say researchers.

Special porous pavers made of concrete containing specific additives would purify the polluted run-off, says Professor Simon Beecham, a civil engineer from the University of South Australia.

The water could then be captured in large underground tanks and be used for irrigation, cleaning and flushing the toilet, he says. "We're trying to harvest a resource that we've not been able to tap into before," says Beecham.

Roads, driveways, pathways and the like make up 60% of impervious urban surfaces. And run-off from them causes flooding and pollutes our waterways.

via News in Science

Stairway Design Innovation

SnipURL says:

HOME DESIGN IDEA OF THE WEEK
We should all have one of these! [ http://snipurl.com/w39i ]

Open source solar roof?

Here are solar designs unlike any known solar home, greenhouse or biosphere project that do not use any previous structures, such as glass or plastic greenhouses.

And designs are open source.

Steam drives out moisture

The process that converts premium Scandinavian softwood to Finnforest Thermowood® is straightforward: each piece is steam heated in a kiln. The heat goes to the core of the wood, driving out moisture and resin. The result is a timber with a reduced moisture content and enhanced physical properties.

Finnforest Thermowood® is 50% more stable than untreated softwood. It suffers less shrinkage, swelling, and distortion in response to atmospheric changes. It is easy to work with and lightweight. The improved stability of Finnforest Thermowood® reduces the potential for shrinkage, warp or twist ensuring your deck or cladding looks great for years to come.

Finnforest Thermowood® doesn’t need to be treated with preservatives.

Climate forcing us back to wax

Not to be confused with traditional oil finishes, OSMO Polyx-Oil is an engineered finish made with plant oils and waxes, plus just enough highly refined mineral spirits to allow easy application. Polyx-Oil has open pores that "breathe." This allows any moisture that does get through to get back out again without pushing off the finish.