News
Winter 2025: three simple tricks to keep your home warm and cut energy bills
Oliver Hartwell
•
As the year turns amid expensive energy and persistent cold, small choices made at home are beginning to matter as...
News
Scented candles, incense and essential oils: what they do to indoor air
Oliver Hartwell
•
Cosy rooms, low lighting and a “clean” scent in the air. The setting seems ideal, until someone asks what people...
News
How Homemade Hot-Water Systems Beat Boilers by Cutting Heat Loss
Oliver Hartwell
•
On a dull Tuesday morning, Sam stood in his garage looking at a jumble of copper pipework, a used hot-water...
News
The one-minute cola trick that saves your shower drain
Oliver Hartwell
•
Steam clouded the mirror, the water edged closer to my toes, and a peaceful morning suddenly became a scramble. I...
News
Why Warmth Lives in the Layout, Not Just the Heating
Oliver Hartwell
•
You know that mildly infuriating moment when a friend says, “But the thermostat says 21, it’s warm,” while your body...
News
How to Keep Dust Off Skirting Boards for Longer
Oliver Hartwell
•
You tend to spot it on an ordinary Tuesday, often while searching for something completely different. Sunlight falls across the...
News
Why Closing Vents Costs More Is an HVAC Myth
Oliver Hartwell
•
The HVAC engineer looked from the living-room vent to the homeowner and gave a quiet laugh. “Yeah, you really don’t...
News
Baking Paper as Limescale Protection for Shiny Taps
Oliver Hartwell
•
Many people clean and clean, yet the tap looks dull again after only a few days. A simple kitchen aid...
News
19 °C or 20 °C: The Best Temperature for Heating Your Home
Oliver Hartwell
•
For years, one almost magical figure has dictated how homes should be heated: 19 °C. Yet the reality indoors is...
News
How Moving Furniture Off the Wall Prevents Condensation Marks and Mould
Oliver Hartwell
•
In brief 🌀 Leaving a modest 30–60 mm space behind furniture encourages airflow, breaks up the boundary layer and keeps...
News
Lidl tower clothes airer for €19.99: compact drying for small flats
Oliver Hartwell
•
Standfirst: Many flats lack room to dry laundry – a new tower clothes airer from the discounter aims to solve...
News
How Drying and Stacking Firewood Can Nearly Double Your Heat
Oliver Hartwell
•
Many people pile up their firewood, light the stove and think the job is done. However, changing how logs are...
News
How Perceptual Coherence Calms the Brain at Home
Oliver Hartwell
•
In a nutshell 🔍 Hidden mechanism: perceptual coherence and predictive processing help spaces feel understandable and internally consistent, reducing cognitive...
News
How Baking Soda in Air Vents Freshens Musty Homes
Oliver Hartwell
•
Dust-laden rooms, stale corridors and that slight “old house” odour lead many homeowners to spend on costly devices and perfumed...
News
Resin flooring over old tiles: a new floor without demolition
Oliver Hartwell
•
Many flats look dated solely because of their old-fashioned tiled floors – yet these can now be transformed without any...
News
Pre-Sunrise Rug Shaking: How Low Humidity Removes Dust Faster
Oliver Hartwell
•
In brief 🌅 Before sunrise is ideal: calmer air and low humidity limit moisture coatings on fibres, so dust comes...
News
Why electricity-free pellet stoves are winning over French homes
Oliver Hartwell
•
In isolated villages, on the outskirts of medium-sized towns and even in outer-city neighbourhoods, a quiet flame is finding its...
News
How to Keep a Home Liveable Long-Term
Oliver Hartwell
•
You rarely notice a home has begun to age badly because of flaking paint or a worn-out sofa. Instead, it...
News
Limescale Cleaning With Vinegar: Why Contact Time Beats Scrubbing
Oliver Hartwell
•
In a nutshell 🧪 The science: acetic acid in vinegar breaks down calcium carbonate limescale; sufficient contact time softens deposits...
News
Keter Eden 2-in-1 Bench Storage: Garden bench and storage in one
Oliver Hartwell
•
Toys, cushions, a watering can – and nowhere to put them? A straightforward garden bench can hide all of this...
News
How to Store Cleaning Tools So Cleaning Feels Almost Automatic
Oliver Hartwell
•
Your mop is probably sulking in the darkest part of the cleaning cupboard. The vacuum cleaner is trapped behind a...
