Angela McKeller, kookbook author of Passion on a Plate: Affordable & EASY Gourmet, hosts Culinary Event June 4 & 5, 2010

Asheville, NC - Angela McKeller has been a guest on the Food Network, asked to appear on several reality cooking shows, just published her first kookbook and now celebrates by hosting a culinary event in Asheville, NC, June 4 & 5, 2010.


McKeller teams up with local micro-breweries and offers an exploration of tastes featuring seasonal, local ingredients, and an Iron Chef Competition with prizes.

On Friday, join Chef McKeller for a Beer and Truffles tasting with Pisgah Brewing (didn’t think beer and chocolate went together? Think again!) and Soufflés Made Simple Friday evening. Sample Simple Summer Desserts and a Brew Tasting on Saturday afternoon and join the Iron Chef Competition Saturday night.

Weekend-long activities also include live performances by local musical talents, Davin McCoy, a book signing, and a silent auction benefitting The Hope & Light Foundation, a foundation working hard to find the cure for Spinal Muscular Atrophy, the leading genetic cause of death in children under age of 2.

The “Kick Back and Kook," Feasting with Brew” weekend takes place at The 1847 Blake House Inn. For weekend packages that include accommodations, please contact the Innkeeper, Leslie Kimball at 888.353.5227. Each kooking class is capped at 25 students, and classes are filling up fast. For a complete list of classes and pricing please visit, KickBackKook.com. To reserve your space in a cooking class, please email Angela McKeller directly at angela@kickbackkook.com.

For more information on Angela McKeller’s culinary event in Asheville, NC, please visit Angela’s Kick Back and Kook! Blog. To schedule an interview or request additional materials please contact Bethany Bengtson


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I was approached by a colleague this past Friday afternoon. He had been on a hike a few days prior in the area of Swannanoa where the chronic leak I have reported on is located. He informed me of his discovery of an additional and much larger leak just a short distance further through the woods. I went to this location and indeed he had found a leak of much greater concern; or so it appears. I have contacted Asheville Water Maintenance and informed them of the discovery. They were going to investigate today and do a follow up thereafter to keep me posted on the matter.

Typically in a situation of this nature I would do some simple testing of the water to verify whether or not it is municipal water or a fresh water spring. It would not be unusual for a spring to have found it's way along the underside e of a pipe this size. The previous several years of drought conditions and recent influx of water from the heavy snows we have experienced this winter could have contributed to this scenario. I did not test the water for chlorine (the tell tale signature chemical in our city water supply) and instead contacted the maintenance department to investigate. I expect to hear from them within a day and we will know their findings.

Regardless of what they report, when we know leaks of this nature are very common on infrastructure as old as the systems in these mountains and many others places across the country; why don't we see extensive infrastructure repair with stimulus funds? We certainly hear this idea expressed in the media. It has been a topic in President Obama's public position. What is being done with all this money? There are lots of local folks in need of� work, and this kind spending would create jobs in many areas of the market. Manufacturing, distribution, transportation, sales, management, food, labor and more would all benefit from the spending of money on infrastructure repair and upgrading. This would be good for the country, good for the people and makes complete sense for supporting a growing population.

What I know is that we lose much more water from leaking infrastructure than we do from inefficient everyday use, so if we're going to preach water conservation we need to look at the big stuff along with the little stuff; otherwise we're never going to get it right.

What do you think?

AP











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AquaPro@AskaquaPro.com�

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In January, a new community center opened in Asheville, offering much-needed services to children and adults with autism and their families.

The Autism Community Center was founded on the premise that people with autism should have a quality of life worth celebrating. There is no typical person with autism; their strengths and weaknesses, skills and struggles vary greatly, just as in the "neurotypical" community. The Autism Community Center is here to help people on the autism spectrum celebrate their unique gifts and explore their own interests while they build valuable social skills and increased self-confidence.

When someone has autism, it can sometimes feel like everything in his life revolves around therapies, schedules, and sensory diets. And while those things are all important, the Community Center gives people a break from that and lets them simply hang out, have fun, maybe try something new.

The Autism Community Center offers activity groups for youth, teens and adults-topics range from cooking to hiking to video games, and each group is led by someone with a true passion for the topic. Participants can interact and participate as little or as much as they're comfortable with-whether you simply sit and listen the whole time or jump right in and help run the show, you're welcomed in the group. Groups cost $65 a month, and some need-based scholarships are available.

Autism doesn't just affect the individual; it affects the entire family. The Community Center allows parents to have a break with their parents' night out program, staffed by trained professionals and volunteers. It's open to all kids, not just the ones with autism. Kids can choose between a variety of structured activities or just do their own thing; they're welcome to bring their favorite things from home to enjoy. The cost for two and a half hours of child care is $15 for the first child, and just $5 for each additional.

The Community Center's parent seminars focus on ways to enrich the incredible experience of raising a child with autism. They cover topics like finding and making the most of available resources, and building a successful home program that can evolve to meet the needs of your child and family. The leader of the seminars uses real-life examples and experience to make sure the information is relevant and keeps you interested.

For more information about the Autism Community Center, visit their website or call (828) 919-9313. You can also email shelley@autismcommunitycenter.com or sylvia@autismcommunitycenter.com. Since it's a non-profit organization, donations are always needed. If you'd like to help, they could use all sorts of costumes, art supplies, and sports equipment; office supplies, especially a fax machine; and food-call or email the center to see what the cooking group has planned, and what ingredients they need.

Two of my boys just joined groups at the Community Center. Jeremy thought it was a little cold to go hiking last week, so he'll have his first outing tomorrow, but Sebastian went to the cooking group and absolutely loved it. He was welcomed right in by Sylvia, and an hour later emerged with a huge grin and a bag full of delicious sugar cookies he made. He's excited to be part of the Community Center, and so am I. Nobody can predict the future, but with the Autism Community Center up and running, I think it's looking better than ever for these amazing kids of ours.

april is a freelance writer and mother of three boys on the autism spectrum, and three neurotypicals who are anything but typical. read more of her work here or follow her on facebook.

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I am so very happy and I have you to thank: the wonderful people of Asheville. You helped me find my forever home. A week ago I was united with my forever family!

I have a big fenced yard, a couple of dogs to play with and some wonderful kids I already love so much. My mom and dad are normally home so I never have to miss them. What can I say? I am in heaven.

Thank you, thank you, thank you!



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This week, Public Relations Association of Western North Carolina announced expanded member benefits and a new luncheon site at the Asheville Chamber of Commerce. Both decisions cement the organization's unspoken, yet implicit showcasing of its members-as-opinion-leaders.

At the group's March luncheon, the first in the Chamber location, communications industry leader Justin Wight, senior partner with TerraNova Strategies, LLC, will share his next generation insights on "Fully integrating the internet into broad communications strategies." Wight is expected to extend and expand upon traditional communication vehicles, creating new understandings attendees can use to maximize returns in the new digital frontier.

The luncheon is Thursday, March 25, 11:30 a.m. – 1 p.m. at Asheville Chamber of Commerce. Members $15; Non-members $25. RSVP at finance@prawnc.org.

In a move representative of the unexpected sort of thing we're seeing from this organization, PRAWNC launched its new profile on foursquare, a late-breaking social media phenomenon.

According to foursquare, the service "is a cross between a friend-finder, a social city-guide and a game that rewards you for doing interesting things. We aim to build things to not only help you keep up with the places your friends go, but that encourage you to discover new places and challenge you to explore your neighborhood in new ways."

Insiders speculate foursquare, with its unique "To-Do" postings, has interesting implications for public relations practice, especially for use in vertical project planning and audience engagement across regions, audiences, or venues. The origination of the foursquare profile augments the organization's now taken for granted use of social media outlets such as Facebook, Twitter, and Linked In.

What's left to tweet, fan, friend, post, and now, To-Do?

March is also PRAWNC's membership renewal month: $50 professionals, and $25 students. In addition to seriously hooked-up networking, we hear the group's expanded benefits include access to perks from the organization's new membership in the Asheville Chamber of Commerce, and special programming for students and job seekers. For more information, go to www.prawnc.org.

Sherri L. McLendon is a freelance writer near Asheville, N.C. Check out her media blog at www.sherrimclendon.com, or email her directly at sherri@sherrimclendon.com.

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Asheville, NC.. THE Annual Extreme Leather Workshop of the Southeast is
happening Friday, Saturday, Sunday, March 19, 20, 21 at the Doubletree in
Biltmore Village.

FREE CLASSES FOR YOUTHS. Supplies and Materials FREE

Tandy Leather Factory of Charlotte, NC will sponsor and teach free leather classes during the 3 day workshop. These slots are first come first serve, so reserve early. Each slot is open to only 20 students. All open class students under the age of 12 must be accompanied by an adult. Go to www.hidestoart.com and click on Free Classes to see schedule and register.

Adult Classes Available:
Locally owned, Hides to Art, is hosting The Extreme Leather Workshop in Asheville, N.C. There will be master instructors from all over the Southeast coming to the workshop providing in depth leatherwork instruction
for 3 days.

Award Winning Instructors include: Bob Beard, Chan Geer and Al Gould

Workshops include:
Beginning to advanced leather carving techniques such as swivel knife control, basket / geometric stamping, Sheridan Style carving, embossing, leather coloring, buck stitching and other assembly techniques.

At Least 3 Project Based Classes:
Sheridan style photo album, leather jewelry as only Bob Beard can do it and a western style breast collar for the horse lovers out there.

Price: All classes are $195. That is only $65.00 per day for hands on,
personalized, custom tooled leather instruction.

Skills learned during this leather workshop can be used on virtually any leather project from custom leather wallets / checkbooks, notebooks, embossed floral & scenery, to custom hand tooled saddles and holsters.

Hides to Art hopes you will join us in the mountains of Western North
Carolina for an informative and fun weekend.

The Professional Women in Building Council of the Asheville Home Builders Association is announcing our intent to award students with a source of financial aid up to $500.00 for senior high school students of Buncombe County entering college or a technical school. Scholarships will be awarded to students attending school in North Carolina and studying in a construction related field (many fields of study relate to the home building industry) - please check the AHBA Directory for examples of construction related job categories.

Deadline for entries is May 1, 2010� Awards to be made in June 2010
2010 Scholarship Application and requirements can be found at the Asheville Home Builders Association - under the Professional Women In Building Council ( PWB)� or call the AHBA office at (828)299-7001


The Professional Women In Building Council of the Asheville Home Builders Association is the premier professional organization that provides strategies and solutions for the professional women in the building industry serving Western North Carolina.� We are dedicated to promoting industry professionalism and supporting women at local, state, and national levels by offering networking, educational opportunities, legislative awareness, community involvement and outreach, as well as personal development. Our council members are individuals who are members of one of the Region 10� Home Builders Associations of North Carolina and represent many aspects of the building industry.

�We are also accepting donations to our scholarship fund - please contact the AHBA office or one of our 2010 Board Members:

Chair:�� Amanda Ballew �� More Space Place Asheville
Vice-Chair:� Maria Aponte�� Hi-Tech Integrated Systems
Secretary:� Gina Kidder Core Installations, Inc.
Director: Jenny Brunet� Cool Mountain Construction

Thank you for reading my blog. I am passionate about the home building industry and the people involved. I am also passionate about other things you can read on my blog, or connect with me on Facebook or @AVLCustomCloset on Twitter.�



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Hello, I am Chris Hanson; Founder of AquaPro Solutions LLC, Founder H2O Easy Water Quality Products, Volunteer Dir of Education @ AERC.


AquaPro Solutions LLC (APS); Parent company of H2O Easy water Quality Products, Aqua Environmental resource Center (AERC), and Asheville Green Plumbing (AGP) on 46 New Leicester Hwy, Asheville, NC.

The�key people involved in this business are:
Kelly Hanson, CEO AquaPro Solutions LLC, Jason Rector, Dir of Sales AquaPro Solutions, Davie Robinson Dir of Operations AquaPro & General Manager Asheville Green Plumbing, Peter Bartolomeo Service Manager Asheville Green Plumbing

-AquaPro Solutions LLC and current division therein are the culmination of 18 years of plumbing and water quality service to the Asheville community. We started business in the WNC area in 1991. My favorite things about Asheville and WNC are cultural diversity, beauty and sanctity of these ancient mountains. Asheville and WNC is home for my family; and I think it always will be. AquaPro’s primary goal is to provide for and help improve our community

Businesses in Asheville or WNC that you regularly network with and why:
1. G Social Media for building business relationships.
2. Asheville Chamber of Commerce for building community relationships.

Twenty years ago a local business man that had been in business in Weaverville for 25 years took a chance on my intensions, sold me his business; That was the launching point for what we are today.

The top 3 products�we offer and/or sell at our business are:
-Water conservation & efficiency products & services,
- Water filtration & conditioning products
- Environmentally conscious plumbing services

We�also�provide Community education and awareness services.

AquaPro Solutions LLC
Divisions of: Aqua Environmental Resource Center
H2O Easy Water Quality Products
Asheville Green Plumbing
APS- Water Conservation, Purification & Management Products & Solutions
AGP- Plumbing Today For A Better Tomorrow
AERC- Preservation Through Education
H2O Easy- You Know The Waters Clean
AskAquaPro blog- Because Water Matters

46 New Leicester Hwy, Asheville, NC 28806

Website: http://www.aquaprosolutions.com/
Website: http://www.ashevillegreenplumbing.com/
Website: http://www.h2oeasy.com/
Website: http://www.aquaenvi.org/
Blog- http://www.askaquapro.com/

Email: info@aquaprosolutions.com
Email: AquaPro@AquaEnvi.org
Email: AquaPro@AskAquaPro.com
Email: info@AshevilleGreenPlumbing.com
Phone #: 828-255-0772


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Hello, I am Wally Capps, President of Hi-Tech Integrated Systems, Inc located at 215 Haywood Street Asheville, NC 28801 (downtown beside Three Brothers Restaurant). We have a showroom along with our office at this location.

We’re a mid-sized company of 13 and we consider ourselves a Team. Everyone within our organization plays a Key role from the President (Wally) who also handles Sales and Client Relations, Engineer/Programmer Jacob, and IT Specialist Sam, to our experienced Technicians in the field; our office staff and Marketing & Sales assistant. We strive for everyone to fulfill their roles excellently so that if reflects positively on the entire Team.

I opened a division of the Houseman Alarm Systems in Asheville area in 1993. I saw the need to branch out into the audio and video and other aspects of low voltage rather than only offering security systems. I then started Hi-Tech Integrated Systems in 1996.

Weaverville is home to the Capps family. As we studied the demographics, we saw the need to provide solutions and service for contractors, home owners and businesses as well. The small town atmosphere is great. Asheville has such a diverse culture and great people. Asheville is a beautiful place to live, and raise a family. It’s large enough to offer the diversity that’s appealing to many, yet the atmosphere gives a feeling of community closeness. We are blessed to have the opportunity to do business in the WNC area. I have the benefit of dealing with people from different backgrounds and different areas. I enjoy the opportunity to meet their needs with a customized system from Hi-Tech.

Companies that help and network with us: Goforth Builders Inc, Biltmore Farms LLC and Citizens Fuel Co.—We partner with Goforth Builders and Biltmore Farms on their construction projects. Citizens Fuel Co. is a client of ours.

Mountain BizWorks and SCORE both assisted us through a period of growth and offer continued support and or training ongoing.

We sell Audio/video and home theater equipment, security systems and lighting control systems. We offer solutions for diverse low voltage situations. Whether it be for business or home, large or small we can help. We can assist with energy management and monitoring services for a home or business, saving you money, time and energy!

Hi-Tech Integrated Systems, Inc - Let us help make your home a Hi-Tech home.
Address:�215 Haywood Street Asheville, NC 28801
Web: http://www.hi-techsystems.com/
Email:�info@hi-techsystems.com
Twitter: http://twitter.com/hitechsystems
Phone: 828-252-6001


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The monthly business publication, the Western Carolina Business Journal, has quietly closed the door on the "one stop for news about business in WNC."

The journal maintained offices on Haywood Street.

The privately held corporation registered to Publisher Rick Corbitt allowed its domain name wcbj.biz to expire on Jan. 12, 2010, ending a six year bid to cover regional business news.

Online, the publication logged 10 IP addresses and name servers over the past six years, and generated 26 ownership records. Today, a party and entertainment booking agency has begun to use the domain name.

Attempts to reach Corbitt for comment were unsuccessful, as the email and phone addresses were no longer in service.



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For the last several years I have participated in classes and seminars on the green building movement in Asheville, WNC and NC to educate myself about the products and methods used to create a "green home". One consistent theme of these green informative seminars has been that not one singular element can make a home or project become "green," but rather a series of selections and choices focusing and working in unison with the global picture in mind.�The�concept is to always consider the impact on the environment and people when you make choices. How long will your product last and how does it impact our earth when its shelf life is over? Classes discuss phrases like "sustainable design" and "crib to cradle" all green ideas that make recommendations on how to make these choices. We now have several agencies in Asheville and beyond that regulate the Green Building Industry and programs that help builders and homeowners make choices when building to make their home more green friendly. You can even hire green designers or consultants�and green certified builders and eco-realtors.


Many of the choices and changes that can make your home "green" start long before you purchase the first 2x4. Most of them are not even associated with the flashy green eco-friendly logos because they are design related not product related: preparation of the site, how you locate the building to maximize the sun exposure, managing storm water run-off, creating a natural backyard habitat that keeps or benefits wildlife, designing multi-purpose rooms so the footprint of the home can be smaller, lower ceiling heights so you aren't heating a 12 foot or vaulted ceiling, and managing moisture in the crawlspace. These are all design features that affect the ability of your home in Asheville, Western North Carolina or Worldwide to be eco-friendly.
Of course, the most attention in the marketplace goes to the green products. Almost every item in a home now has a standard and a green friendly choice, many of which will "pocket book you" right away. Premium prices are found for items that are labeled green. Sometimes the upgrade charge is minimal but sometimes it is up to 40 percent more. Be cautious and do research to see what makes them green and is that a value for you and your family. You�should also ask yourself when considering the various choices "What is green to me"? Do I want a low impact home? Do I want to conserve energy and lower my energy bills? Do I need a cleaner air environment for a special allergy related reason? Am I looking for tax-incentives? Do I want to have my home certified as a HealthyBuilt or LEED home in Asheville NC or elsewhere? Many other green options are available like solar, geothermal, rain water collection and barrels, recycled materials and reclaimed materials.

More Space Place Asheville�helps with creating a more efficient greener home in several ways. By nature our space saving products allows areas of the home to be multi-purpose and more efficient allowing for a smaller footprint of the house. Amanda's closet designs create a maximum efficiency of the space provided. Our standard melamine and wood products are EPP certified because they are a recycled content board. They have a Low-VOC rating that exceeds the current California standards for Formaldehyde emissions. We also have available a no-urea formaldehyde added product�for special order. We are members of the Western North Carolina Green Building Council�and Asheville Home Builders Association. We have custom closets installed in many of the healthy built homes and several LEED certified homes in the�WNC area.

Thank you for reading this blog, please leave comments. You can read more of�Amanda's blogs at closetasheville.blogspot�or connect with me�on Twitter or Facebook.
�
�
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Lead in our water supply is certainly something to be concerned about. The reality is if a water line or service tap is old enough, there is a fair chance that it is Lead. I discovered this to be the case at a neighbor’s home just a few years ago. They had excavated near the road to install a cleanout on a sewer line. The sewer happened to be located near enough to the water meter that they uncovered the water service tap. Much to our surprise the tap was a 4 foot long Lead pipe that fed from the water main in the street to the water metered that served their home; scary to say the least. Asheville water Maintenance responded quickly to the discovery and replaced the tap with 48 hours.
Lead is a very toxic substance even in low quantities. It is pervasive throughout the environment due to misuse and poor management. Lead toxicity causes very serious health disorders as well a death. It is the responsibility of a Water Purveyors to ensure the quality of the water they distribute to a community.
Aside from the potential of a Lead water service tap there are other potential sources of Lead contamination between the water meter and the home as well as within the home or business. Some of the more obvious are:

-Pre 1985, copper piping was installed using solder that was mostly Lead�
-PVC piping that carries hot water (or warm for that matter) leaches a considerable amount of Lead from the piping.
- Older faucets are also a risk for higher Lead content.

I highly recommend taking responsibility for the water you drink, shower & bathe in. The only way to be sure of the quality of your water is to care for it yourself. It’s has been shown that even bottled water can’t be trusted to be any better than the water from your tap. It is also far less expensive to do point of entry or point of use filtration than it is to buy bottled or filtered water. The added benefit is that you know the water you shower in is also filtered. I have found that most people only think about the quality of the water they drink. It is as important if not more important to have clean water to shower/bathe in and cook with. it ahs been documented that the body takes in as much as 10 times the amount of toxins from a ten minute shower as it would from drinking the daily recommended amount of water. This is done through dermal absorption and vapor inhalation. You would be amazed at how much of a difference using a shower filter to remove heavy metals and chlorine can have on the health of your skin and hair.

It is well worth the cost of investing in a filtration system that fits your needs. You'll notice the difference immediately.
There are many options out there, some of which are a great value and perform very well others that will cost you more than they are worth. Contact me for recommendation.

Next week we'll discuss Mercury.

AP











www.AskAquaPro.com
AquaPro@AskaquaPro.com�
www.AquaProSolutions.com, www.AquaEnvi.org, www.AshevilleGreenPlumbing.com,

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Despite the recent snow and chilly temperatures, it's time to think about baseball again. North Asheville Little League recently held sign-ups, and they're still looking for kids who want to play. Boys and girls born between May 1, 1997 and April 30, 2005 can get out in the sunshine, meet new kids, and have some fun chasing balls and running around in circles. For more information, visit the NALL website at http://www.northashevillelittleleague.com/. From there you can print out an application and mail it, along with a check for the registration fee, to NALL, PO Box 8624 Asheville NC 28814. The registration fee is $50 for Asheville city residents, $55 for non-residents. You can also bring the form to the 3-A and 4-A evaluations at Weaver Park on March 13 at 9:00 a.m.

Just a little info about the NALL-I'm not into competitive sports at all. We've all heard stories about rabid parents and coaches taking the joy out of what should be a carefree, fun time for the kids. When my Zac decided to play ball, I was nervous about it, but he was so into it and his dad had played when he was a kid, so I signed him up and hoped for the best. I was pleasantly suprised by the atmosphere at North Asheville-while the kids all want to win and the coaches try to make that happen, the real point of the whole thing is to have fun. This will be Zac's fifth year playing for NALL, and the coaches we've had have all been great. All the kids get to play, and the parents keep the negativity to a bare minimum, if you see any at all. The kids reflect their parents' and coaches' good attitudes and show great sportsmanship. I'm impressed with the program, and it's pretty hard to impress this old cynic with anything, especially something like this.

april is a freelance writer from asheville. read more of her work here or follow her on facebook.



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"Connection is an essential vitamin. You can't live without it." ~ Edward Hallowell

Full disclosure: I love Twitter. I use the social media tool every day to share my sunrise blog and love-labor website dailycelebrations.com. I have spent many hours sharing ideas and reaching people throughout the world. They call it building my brand. I call it creating meaningful connections.

Building stronger relationships, Twitter introduced me to AskAsheville and gave me this unique forum to share my love of the Asheville community.
Rebecca & Charlie, Tomato Jam Café


Twitter also introduced me to the Tomato Jam Café, a Biltmore Avenue haven serving comfort food since 2005. Via regular tweets, the folks at Tomato Jam Café post food photos, and write Haiku. They share recipes and menu items. They praise their customers. They create online buzz and audience engagement... And with their clever tweets, they created a meaningful connection with me.

One day out of curiosity, I examined their online menu and discovered they made specially-prepared pot pies. “Could you make me a veggie pot pie?” I tweeted. They tweeted back “We WILL make you a pot pie. We will even pile it high. We will make it without meat. We will make it. Eat, eat, eat!”

I was hooked. By the time I called owners Charlie Widner and Rebecca Daun to place my order, they were like old friends. Shoot, thanks to the intimacy of Twitter, they were old friends. And trust me, the mile-high pot pie they made for me yesterday—they called it “Aloha-filled Veggie Pot Pie” in honor of my Hawaiian heritage—was the most delicious, satisfying meal I’ve had in a long time.

As I write this, I am finishing off one of their carrot cupcakes and remembering that decadently sinful brownie that I ate on the car ride home. With Twitter, Charlie and Rebecca posted a photo of my pie fresh from the oven. And now with the magic of Twitter I can tweet this story with the question, “Have you tried the delicious food at Tomato Jam Café?”

(@mscator welcomes your Twitter follow and posts Asheville sunrise photos daily off her blog http://mosway.blogspot.com/)

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Can I improve my toilet rather than throwing it away?

The short answer is yes, you can. I am a big fan of minimizing the amount of waste that goes into our local landfills. There are plenty of “do it yourself tricks” out there that can be more trouble than benefit. The good news is there are simple, effective, affordable options for improving the efficiency of your existing toilet. First let’s look at a couple things to consider;

1) If your current toilet uses more than 3.5 gallons of water per flush it’s probably best to go ahead and replace the whole toilet. You will recover the cost of buying a new toilet pretty quickly by replacing that old water monger, so just get rid of it.

2) If you have a pressured assist toilet it can not be modified.

One of the easiest ways to improve the water efficiency of a toilet is by converting it to a dual flush. I know this sounds complicated but trust me, it's not. The DualFlush Pro toilet conversion kit makes this easy to do and cost’s less than $55. This kit comes with everything you need to turn your existing toilet into a Dual Flush water saver, high efficiency toilet in about thirty minutes.�
The handle incorporates a dual function; push the lever one way for ½ flush to remove liquid waste or the other way for full flush to remove solid waste.
For a typical 1.6 gallon per flush toilet the kit is pretty much set up right out of the box to provide the expected 0.8 gallon half flush and 1.6 gallon full flush. Not all toilets are created equal. Some models will require some minor adjustments to the factory settings. These adjustments are simple with the Dual Flush Pro kit.


AP






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AquaPro@AskaquaPro.com�


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Friends... Daryl Rantis, Asheville architect along with his trusty side kick Robert Stenhouse have entered a house design in a national design competition that requires on-line voting. The deal is that half of the points for the contest will come from public and friends like you voting for our design (just like American Idol). The house is located in Chicken Hill and if we win it will be a big deal for Asheville.

To vote, you will have to go to the following link. Then you'll have to validate your vote through your email account. Please send the link to all of your friends so that we can get the jury's attention with lots of votes and views of our design.

WE NEED YOUR VOTE DURING THE FINAL VOTING PROCESS STARTING ON MARCH 2, 2010:� http://bit.ly/avlarchitect

Traffic is slowed to a crawl on I-26 (or 19-23, as it's known to us oldsters) at exit 24, headed toward Asheville. It looks like a pretty serious wreck; fire trucks and police are on the scene. You may want to take an alternate route until it clears up-I'll post again when traffic is moving.

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As you can see I am as cute as they come. I am a year and a half old Beagle who loves people and life. They say I was the runt of the litter. Not sure what they mean because I may be small in size but I have a huge personality. I am what you say "a big dog in a small package".

I am sweet and loving... specially with the ladies, although I like the guys too. I love all other dogs, they are great to play with, especially when the humans are busy.

My foster family has 4 other dogs and I especially love one of the Goldens... maybe because she is cute. I told you, I like the ladies. I follow them around and take naps close by them. But from time to time I also hang with the guys. They can be cool too.

I have a big voice and let you know what's up. If you let me loose I am gonna think you want me to explore and that I love to do; but I prefer to go walking and explore with my human friends.

I don't like to be alone at all. I get quite upset about it, but that's my only flaw and I'm working on it... I'm OK as long as I have someone with me, other dogs do just fine.

Check what they say about me at http://www.petfinder.com/petnote/displaypet.cgi?petid=14957050

Would you be my forever family? Please :-) I will love you so. Just meet me and you'll fall in love with me. Guaranteed!

Contact the Animal Compassion Network (828) 258-4820. The name is Grover :-)


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Are sections of Asheville's 130 year old�water distribution system at risk of a catastrophic failure? Although it is possible it is highly unlikely.
I have received several inquiries in response to a post from a couple weeks ago so it seems a follow up would be appropriate. The chronic water main leak that was the topic of my blog post seems to have raised some concerns about the condition of the system. The attached video is of my most recent inspection on February 19, 2010.
�
As reported in my initial post this leak has been reoccurring over at least a six year period that I have been aware of it. At times the leak has been significantly greater than its current rate of approximately 200,000 gallons per year. As you can see in the video it has leaked aggressively enough and long enough to have eroded away a section of the earthen bank and large root structure of a tree directly in the spray path of the leak.��

The original water system in Asheville dates from the 1880s when Asheville constructed a reservoir on Beaucatcher Mountain, collecting water from various springs and branches. Pipes were laid and unfiltered water distributed by gravity flowed down into the town. The distribution system currently consists of approximately 1600 miles of piping, 32 pumping stations and 27 reservoirs. Some sections of the system are indeed very old. The leak that I refer to is from an exposed joint in a section of 24" diameter cast iron pipe with Lead packed joints. This is one of three primary transmission lines that feed from either the North Fork or Beetree reservoir.

Although Asheville water maintenance is aware of the leak�and responds quickly to reports of an increase in the flow rate, repairs typically only last than a few weeks to a couple months.
This is by no means a unique condition. The probability of water distribution infrastructure failure is a growing concern throughout the country. I can assure that this leak in the Swannanoa valley is not the only one on the Asheville system nor is it the worst leak. It is however, visible; and thereby presents a consistent reminder of the need for greater attention to a very real problem that is not typically on the minds of most people.

Asheville has an annual budget of 5.8 million dollars for water system maintenance and improvements. The budget funds are derived from taxes and fees charged to commercial and residential water customers.

This past fall I had an opportunity to visit with Mayor Bellamy while attending the grand opening celebration of the Aqua Environmental Resource Center in West Asheville. Mayor Bellamy is a strong advocate for improving water efficiency throughout the region. I look forward to working with her further in developing community awareness programs.

Repairing the leak in Swannanoa would be quite an undertaking to say the least. I'd like to think this leak will be corrected in the near future, but after six years of monitoring, it doesn't seem to be a priority. I hope it doesn't take a catastrophic failure to become one.�

AP









www.AskAquaPro.com
AquaPro@AskaquaPro.com�

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Closet organizational systems are coming more and more into style as the "green" mentality sets in and we start making better use of our space, in addition to our time and lifestyle. In Asheville North Carolina, More Space Place offers some great "systems," meaning they are re-customizable for future changes in your closet organization. You can view the video below to see some of the useful space that can be gained from customizing your closet.



More Space Place in Asheville specializes in Custom Closets and Murphy Beds. This means that they are not a "we do everything" place where it is just one of their areas of service. They put 100% into perfecting these key areas, and they do it very well. Another thing to keep in mind is the materials that are being used. Many other companies use melamine and other inferior specs while More Space place uses 3/4" furniture grade premium melamine materials and wood products. They have 2 in-house Asheville crews so if there are any questions and concerns, you can deal directly with the store, and not with subcontractors outside the company.

You can contact Amanda at More Space Place by calling 828-665-9665.

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