Maintaining Your Sleeping Bag

at Home

On the field there’s only so much you can do to care for your sleeping bag. Just remember to keep it clean and try to keep it away from anything wet including wet and dirty clothes.

At home you can do a lot more to maintain your sleeping bag so that it can last a little bit longer. These tips cover how to wash, dry, store and repair your sleeping bag in the proper way.

Washing and Drying

- Keep your sleeping bags clean by washing it frequently but only when it is necessary. Washing too much can break down the properties of both down and synthetic fills.

- Always follow the manufacturer’s instructions manual and use mild soap. You can hand wash or wash in the gentle cycle of a washing machine. If your sleeping bags are too large, bring them to a launderette and use a larger machine but never dry-clean a sleeping bag.

- When using the tumble dryer, use the lowest setting . Put a tennis ball into the machine to prevent the down from clumping. The ball will help dissipate the clumps.

- When wet, handle with extreme care. Do not dry on a clothesline. Find some place to that can support the weight of the bag so that the delicate baffles do not tear. Hanging it on the dryer is a common practice.

Storing

- Store your sleeping bag in a large cotton storage sack. Make sure the bag sit loosely in the sack. Avoid putting the bag in a stuff sack for long periods of storage because compressing it too much will reduce its loft.

- Don’t store the sleeping bag in a plastic sack as the moisture will be trapped and hence provide a suitable breeding ground for mould, mildew and bacteria. Only store your bag when it is completely dry.

Repair

- Tears need to be repaired immediately especially the ones on the shell and lining.

- For temporary repairs use a duct tape or Gaffa tape. Instead on cutting the tape in a square, cut it in a circle so that it doesn’t snag the fabric.

- Permanent repairs can be made with a nylon repair tape or patches that are sold in most outdoor stores.

- You can also ask a professional company that can do repair jobs for tears, separating seams and zip problems. There are quite a few of these companies around and they might even throw you a discount if you ask nicely.

On the Field

Remember that you should always keep your sleeping bag clean. Obviously washing your sleeping bag on the field would not be practical.

Even so, it is better to always have a dry sleeping bag. Give your sleeping bag a daily shake to keep it fresh and ensure that the filling remain evenly distributed.

When airing a sleeping bag, never put it on bare ground, which is likely to be dirty or wet. If you can find a large, dry and clean rock, use it to dry your sleeping bag.

Keep the sleeping bag away from anything wet including your rain gear.

By: Jonsky

About the Author:

www.shcri.com — Building Integrated Photovoltaic (BIPV) refers to the installment of PV modules which can supply electric power on surface of external supporting structure. Those PV modules can not only replace part of such traditional structures as roof slab, tile, window, building elevation and rain-proof shelter, but also can be made to own various functions, such as PV/thermal system, combination with illumination and sun shade, etc.

 

At present, BIPV is widely applied on exposed walls, sun-shading shelters, patios, tiles, roofs, sound-proof walls, as well as in fields of private apartments, schools, hospital buildings, airports, platforms of subway stations and large workshops.

 

With the changing fields of PV power generation, China has made great progress in research and development of BIPV system. In 2002, 10KW integrated grid system was built in Fengxian, Shanghai, which realized automation. In 2003, an ecological demonstration project was established in Shanghai and the 5KW integrated grid system combined well with construction with international top technologies.

 

Shanghai Solar Energy S&T Co., Ltd (SSEC) also established integrated demonstrative office building with six first-initiated technologies of directly combining solar electrical power generation and construction. Today, the total installed capacity can reach 40KW and energy self-supply can basically realized with integrating geothermal air condition technologies.

 

It is said in the 40th article of “Energy Conservation Law of the People’s Republic of China” which took effect on April 1st, 2008 that Chinese government encourages to adopt energy-saving materials and devices and to apply renewable energy resource system in the energy conservation reform of newly-built constructions and existing constructions. It is also stated in the 61st article that enterprises which use energy-saving technologies and products listed in the law can enjoy favorable policies, such as tax incentives.

 

Although a series of laws and standards have been launched, such as “Renewable Energy Law”, “Civil Building Energy Saving” and “Energy-Saving Design Standard of Various Regions”, high cost (cost of photoelectric curtain wall jumps to over 1,000 USD/m2 today) will be a big barrier for BIPV projects, apart from limited ideas and technologies. Neither enterprises themselves nor government can afford such a high cost in the long run. Therefore, BIPV captures considerably small market now in China and is mainly used in some demonstrative projects which enjoy government subsidies.

 

It is clearly regulated by Ministry of Construction of China that 50 percent of design standards should be applied in newly-built constructions. It is predicted that the area of energy-saving constructions will exceed 2.16 billion m2 from 2006 to 2010, with newly-built area of 1.6 billion m2 and rebuilt area of 560 million m2. At present, area of constructions in China reaches 40 billion m2, over 13 billion m2 of which are to be rebuilt. In order to fulfill this goal, enterprises must adopt such energy-saving technologies and devices as solar illumination, integrated system of solar energy and construction (solar tiles and glass curtain wall), etc. Thus the BIPV market will see a bright prospect in future.

 

Readers can get more information as follows:

- Present State of China’s BIPV Industry

- Main Applications of BIPV in China

- Related Policies for China’s BIPV Industry

- Investment Opportunities of China’s BIPV Industry

- Forecast for Development Trend of China’s BIPV Industry

 

To get more details, please visit http://www.shcri.com/reportdetail.asp?id=314

Source: China Research and Intelligence

Tel: 86-21-5842-6733

Email: report@shcri.com

By: Alice Chen

About the Author:

When you are choosing a sleeping bag, one of the major things to consider is the insulation fill type. sleeping bags are typically made with either synthetic fill or down fill. Each type has its own advantages and disadvantages, but a down filled sleeping bag is usually the best choice.

Down Down Sleep sleeping bags Weigh Less

The weight of your backpack and its contents is crucial when hiking the trails or even climbing a mountain. The more weight you carry, the sooner you will tire out and need a break. A down sleeping bag can make your pack a little lighter. Since a sleeping bag is one of the biggest items you will carry while hiking, this is definitely a good place to save some weight.

A Down Filled Sleeping Bag is Warmer than Synthetic Filled

Surprisingly, no synthetic fills can match down’s weight to warmth ratio. Down traps more air and acts as a better insulator than any manmade fibers. When you are camping in cold weather, a warm sleeping bag is a must. You don’t want to lose sleep shivering through the night, especially if you need energy for an early morning mountain ascent.

Down Bags Are More Compact

Pack space can be an importance factor when choosing camping gear. A down sleeping bag will compress more to take up less backpack space than a synthetic sleeping bag. That leaves you more room for things like food and extra clothes.

The Disadvantages of a Down Sleeping Bag

Although Down Down Sleep sleeping bags have a lot of benefits, there are some drawbacks such as price and versatility.

In wet conditions down may be a poor choice. This is because a wet down bag becomes very compact, providing little insulation. This essentially leaves you with no sleeping bag for the night. To prevent this problem there are Down Sleep sleeping bags made with water resistant or waterproof material. So you can still get a down bag for kayaking trips or rainy camping.

The only other real drawback is that Down Down Sleep sleeping bags tend to be much more expensive than Synthetic Sle sleeping bags > You are usually paying for a higher quality sleeping bag when you choose down though.

Conclusion

Unless price is a big concern, down insulation is usually the best choice for sleeping bags . When you choose down, your bag weighs less, you have more room in your pack and you are warmer.

By: Jeremy Biberdorf

About the Author:

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One of the quickest and most affordable ways to insulate your home is to dress your windows with thermal or insulated curtains. But… isn’t it boring – Thermal Curtains ? Sounds like something industrial. As for me, when I first time heard about this window dressing, I imagined dull heavy drapes hanged on my windows, transforming the home into an awful place, where I don’t want to live anymore. I was so mistaken! Thermal Curtains can be really beautiful, suitable for any home, and there are so many variations of them!

You dress your windows with Thermal Curtains and along with a fine-looking window treatment you get an additional comfort of warmth in cool weather and cooling in hot summer days. And all this without additional money, spending on air conditioning!

Many people think that insulated curtains only keep the warmth in the room. If you also think so, you will be surprised. Thermal Curtains have many others advantages: they provide a nice coolness in the room in hot weather, they can reduce noise that comes outside, and in addition, many of them have blackout feature, which is really great for a bedroom, a nursery or a home theater.

So what are actually Thermal Curtains ? They are just regular curtains, but with one difference: they are made of fabric that has foam thermal backing. There are various fabrics for such curtains, but most common are cotton, polyester and a blend of them. This blend allows easy cleaning – curtains are machine washable. Thermal drapes come in so many colors and styles that you have a lot of choices and can easily find a thermal window dressing that suits the style and the color scheme of your interior. The additional advantage of them is its really affordable price.

Another type of insulated window treatment is curtains with insulated liner. Such liner provide the same functions as a thermal backing: reduces noise coming outside, keep warmth or coolness depending on weather and also blocks extra sunlight. You can shop for insulated curtains or make them by yourself if you like do-it-yourself projects and know how to sew.

Both thermal curtains and insulated drapes are heavy weight and require sturdy drapery hardware. Because of insulated backing or liner they are quite thick and don’t drape easily.

The insulated curtain liner can be also attached to existing drapes or can be hanged separately as additional window treatment. (That means you will need an additional curtain rod, or double curtain track for them.) There are some advantages of such separate liner: you can add it to drapes you already have, it perfectly protect drapes from dirt and dust coming from the window and you can easily remove and clean it. Since your curtains are separated from the liner, they can drape easily and in more attractive way then ones with an attached liner.

Thermal Curtains and insulated drapes aren’t the only types of insulated window treatments. So, if you are still not sure about Thermal Curtains , consider window blinds, shades and shutters. There are many types of them that provide great insulation also.

By: Alina Belchikov

About the Author:

One of the most economic and easy to apply methods of insulating your home is to dress your windows with insulated or Thermal Curtains . This thought probably drums images of dreary looking drapes that will do nothing for the appeal of your home. The term Thermal Curtains sounds dull and responsible causing you to envisage something industrial; these were exactly my own thoughts when I first came across the term Thermal Curtains . It will be a relief to hear that I was mistaken and Thermal Curtains are anything but boring; there are so many variations of beautiful thermal curtains available that something suitable can be found for any home.

When you dress your windows with Thermal Curtains the main advantage is that the curtains, as well as looking good will provide warmth in cool weather and cooling in hot weather. It is commonly known that Thermal Curtains will help keep the warmth inside a room; there are other benefits that Thermal Curtains provide. During hot weather -decoration: none; border-bottom: 1px #0e9500 dashed; color: #0e9500;" target="_blank" >Thermal Curtains provide a nice coolness that can save on air conditioning costs, also they provide noise reduction from outside, as well as this many manufactures provide Thermal Curtains with blackout features which can be very useful for bedrooms and nurseries.

So what makes Thermal Curtains thermal? They are basically the same as ordinary curtains with one major difference; the fabric they are made from has a foam thermal backing. Most Thermal Curtains are made from cotton or polyester or a blend of the two, these fabrics give the curtains easy cleaning qualities with most of them being machine washable. One of the biggest advantages of Thermal Curtains is the price and they are in close competition with ordinary curtains and with the wide ranges of colours and styles available in ready made curtains and curtains made to order, why wouldn’t you opt for a thermal pair.

Another type of insulated window dressing on the market is curtains with insulated liners, these curtains offer the same benefits as the foam backed versions, they help retain heat in cool weather, provide coolness in hot weather, reduces the effects of outside noise as well as blocking out extra sunlight. Curtains with insulated liners can be bought readymade or made to order, it is also possible to attached a thermal lining yourself if you are DIY minded and confident in your sewing ability.

It should be remembered that both insulated drapes and Thermal Curtains are heavy and thick and can be difficult to hang, you may require a fitting service which many curtain retailers provide. It is quite possible to attach a thermal liner to existing curtains or hung completely separately to the curtain. Another benefit of lined curtains is that the lining can help prevent fading caused to material when hung in direct sunlight for long periods of time. A separate liner also acts as a barrier and prevents dust and dirt from the window dirtying the curtain fabric. A separate liner will also enable the separate curtains to hang more attractively due to the reduced thickness and you will be able to clean the liner separately when required without having completely bare windows.

By: Jenny Austin

About the Author:

http://termostore.com

amily is fond of travelling, taking adventures outdoor like camping and simply moving from one place to another, it is best when you have ready items for such cases. This includes owning sleeping bags . It could be sleeping bags for children or adults like you. It could be microfibre sleeping bags that are easy to tag along and provides comfort on the actual use. Microfibre sleeping bags are not actually hard to find because these are popular materials for sleeping bags . It can be bought both online and offline stores. For offline stores, you can simply purchase it by walk-in from the many designs available. It could be also be bought from online stores, which offer microfibre sleeping bags. Just like any ways of shopping commodities, it is best if you can find microfibre sleeping bags from wholesale stores. This way you can get microfibre sleeping bags in affordable prices, which are practical w ay of shopping for the needed sleeping bags these days. sleeping bags wholesale can be bought from various bargain stores. One of the stores that offer discounted sleeping bags is Scorewell Leisure Ltd. Here, you will be able to find affordable microfibre sleeping bags. The prices are offered wholesale so you can definitely buy enough for your family, whether you are a small family or big family. In fact, the sleeping bags wholesale would cost cheaper in volumes rather than in few purchases. The more sleeping bags wholesale you buy, the more discounts you will get. Need For Sleeping Bag Liners When you own sleeping bags, you might also want to buy sleeping bag liners. This is used to keep the sleeping bag in tact when not in use. It could be a sleeping bag liner for single, queen size or king size sleeping bags . The sleeping bag liner can also be bought in affordable price especially if you buy it at the wholesaler with the sleeping bags wholesale. Where You Can Buy For easy reference of where you can buy sleeping bag liners and sleeping bags wholesale, you can buy it at Scorewell Leisure Ltd. You can definitely buy cheap textile in this store since this is the main objective of their business, which is to offer sleeping bag wholesale and other beddings and textiles in general. The prices offered in the site is more affordable compared to other stores that offer the same product. Other Offers Aside From Price Affordability is not the only benefit that you can get in Scorewell Leisure Ltd. Wide range of products and designs for sleeping bags are also available. Likewise, when it comes to sleeping bag liners, you can find different colours and sizes for your needs. Because of the variety, you will surely find what you are looking for. So whether it is about microfibre sleeping bags and sleeping bag liners, you will surely find it beneficial when you get these items from Scorewell Leisure Ltd. You will not only get sleeping bags wholesale for any number or volumes of sleeping bags that you need to buy. You will also be able to find a variety of products and choices. Plus, since Scorewell Leisure Ltd is an online store, you can surely order it right from their website. The details of their products are in the websites, so you do not really have to be in their on-site store to see what their products really look like.

By: Vikram kuamr

About the Author:

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LEDs are solid-state semiconductor devices that convert electrical energy directly into light.

Thermal sources of light such as flames and incandescent filaments emit light when heated, either by chemical reaction (flames) or electrical heating (filament lamps). LED “cold” generation of light leads to high efficacy because most of the energy radiates within the visible spectrum.

Other common high efficiency light sources, such as fluorescent lamps and electro luminescent devices, also produce light without much thermal radiation outside the visible spectrum.

Because LEDs are solid-state devices, they can be extremely small and durable; they also provide longer lamp life than other sources.

Light is generated inside the chip, a solid crystal material, when current flows across the junctions of different material compositions.

An LED consists of two elements of processed material called P-type semiconductors and N-type semiconductors. These two elements are placed in direct contact, forming a region called the P-N junction. The composition of the different materials determines the wavelength and therefore the colour of light generated.

LED resembles most other diode types, but there are important differences. The LED has a transparent package, allowing visible or IR energy to pass through. Also, the LED has a large PN-junction area whose shape is tailored to the application. The device shown in Figure 1 is an AlGaInP LED because the semiconductor layers are aluminum (Al), gallium (Ga), indium (In), and phosphate (P).

Main LED materials

The main semiconductor materials used to manufacture LEDs are:

*Indium gallium nitride (InGaN): blue, green and ultraviolet high-brightness LEDs

*Aluminum gallium indium phosphide (AlGaInP): yellow, orange and red high-brightness LEDs

*Aluminum gallium arsenide (AlGaAs): red and infrared LEDs

*Gallium phosphide (GaP): yellow and green LEDs

 

Why LEDs?

LEDs have a range of benefits which is fast making them the best solution for real energy efficient lighting. Over the course of the next few years some aspects are expected to change significantly.

Lifetime

As solid-state light sources, LEDs have a very long lifetime and are generally very robust due to no mechanical or moving parts.

Incandescent bulbs have an expected lifetime of 1k to 5k hours, while good quality LEDs are often quoted of having a lifetime of 50k hours, more than 5 years continuous use. However it is important to to understand that the performance of LEDs degrades over time, and this degradation is strongly affected by factors such as operating current and temperature.

Low maintenance

The long lifetime of LEDs reduces the need to replace failed lamps, and this can lead to significant financial and environmental savings, particularly in maintenance, labour and recycling. This makes LED fixtures useful for installations in inaccessible locations, but if tasks like cleaning the light fixture are required, then the light sources could be replaced at the same time, negating the “low maintenance” advantage.

Efficiency

As a semiconductor device, LEDs are highly efficient. Current device technology is allowing the performance of these to be pushed to limits that exceed that of standard lighting.

The directional nature of light produced by LEDs allows the design of luminaires with higher overall efficiency.

Low power consumption

The low power consumption of LEDs leads to large energy savings that can often drive the installation of LED-based systems. Initial purchase costs start off higher, but can be proven to return the investment cost in a short period of time.

Brightness

Light outputs are constantly being increased and there are several products that have higher lumen output than traditional lighting.

Heat

LEDs do not produce heat in the form of infrared radiation (IR) unlike incandescent bulbs which makes them hot to the touch.

This lack of heat production allows LED fixtures to be used in locations where heating from conventional sources would cause a particular problem e.g. illuminating food, textiles, artifacts, etc.

However, LEDs do produce heat at the semiconductor junction within the device and good thermal management must be employed on high power devices to maintain operation life

Cost

In many applications, LEDs are expensive compared with other light sources, when measured by metrics such as “£-per-lumen”.

LED manufacturers continue to work towards reducing their production costs while at the same time increasing the light output of their devices.

However, the high initial cost of LED-based systems is offset by lower energy consumption, lower maintenance costs and other factors.

The initial cost may seem high, but take into account the electricity usage that is saved, they pay for themselves.

Electricity Cost savings from switching to LED Direct replacement bulbs

10W LED Bulbs Vs 75W halogen bulb running cost comparison

 

Small form-factors

LEDs are very small – typical high-brightness LED chips measure 0.3 mm by 0.3 mm, while high-power devices can be 1 mm x 1 mm or larger. There are many examples where the availability of small, high-brightness devices have enabled significant market advancement. The obvious example is in mobile phone handsets, where blue, green and white LEDs are now used in most models to back light keypads and liquid-crystal display (LCD) screens.

Instantaneous switch-on

LEDs switch on rapidly, even when cold, and this is a particular advantage for certain applications such as vehicle brake lights.

Colour

LEDs are available in a broad range of brilliant, saturated colours (although performance varies across the spectrum), and white devices are also available. Modules containing different colored LEDs (typically red, green and blue, or RGB) can be tuned to a huge range of colours, and easily dimmed. RGB modules provide a much wider gamut of colours than white LEDs or other traditional white light sources, which is a particular advantage in applications such as backlighting liquid-crystal displays (LCD’s).

RGB LEDs and colour mixing

LED characteristics change with time, temperature and current, and from device to device. For RGB LEDs, the performance of different colored devices changes at different rates. This can result in variation of lamp colour and intensity, and poor reproducibility.

LED Vs Halogen

LED Lighting Types

 

Now the LED bulbs are widely applied in household, office, street, shop, park etc for decoration and lightings LED lighting family mainly includes:

1. LED ball lamp

2. LED spot lamp

3. LED ground lamp

4. LED tube light

5. LED rope lamp

6. LED pool lamp

7. LED curtain lamp

8. LED Christmas (festival) lamp

9. LED ceiling lamp

10. LED road light

11. LED Solar light

Etc.

In a word, LED lightings will be the future of lighting, and it will definitely replace the halogen lights in soon future.

By: ELECOSN

About the Author:

TURNING YOUR HOME INTO A SOLAR HOME

There a lot of choices when it comes to making your home a solar-energy-powered home.  You can get heat, cooling, and natural light from passive solar design. Solar energy can be used for powering home appliances and a solar water heater can give you hot water for laundry and normal household use (bathing, preparing meals, cleaning). Look for the most efficient and cost effective options for your solar home.

You can have a passive solar home without having to use special equipment.  You can use the environment to accomplish great reductions in energy use.  Passive solar homes use material to use the sun’s heat during the winter and block the heat during the summer. Radiant heat, indirect gain, thermal mass, and passive cooling define the four ways a home owner might employ solar energy within a home, and each has its benefits: With radiant heat, the sun flows through the southern facing windows and is absorbed by the inanimate objects it shines upon, like furniture, floors, curtains, etc.; An example of indirect gain would be a solar wall installation which collects and distributes heat throughout the home; Thermal Mass describes the use of natural elements, like brick and stone, advantageously placed in a home’s structure to store heat and Passive Cooling describes measures used to cool a home and block the sun during the warm summer.

Solar panels produce energy, but it must be converted to DC   (household power) with the help of an inverter.  Solar electricity can be used to supplement metered power or use on its own, provided you have a battery storage bank to store it.

Solar energy is often used to heat water in the home.  Two kinds of solar water heating exist. First, there is the closed loop system which should be used in areas that won’t freeze. This kind of system uses the sun’s energy to heat water-filled tubes directly.  The definition of a closed loop system is one that is able to use an anti-freeze type of liquid which is able to absorb heat from the sun; in turn this heated liquid can heat your household water by the use of a heat exchanger.

Energy efficiency is the most important consideration when converting your home to solar power, regardless of which option you choose. This kind of passive energy diminishes the need for heating, cooling and electricity. You will save yourself a lot—in both energy and money – by using better insulation and more energy efficient windows than are normally used. These changes that may not be possible for you to use when you are trying to convert an already existing home into a solar home, but you should make as many changes as possible to turn your existing home into a solar home by adapting some of these solar ideas.

 

By: Jean Morse

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