Top Home And Garden Retailers in Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301
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Beautiful Windows Inc
By MikeToress November 08, 2014
Had continuously bad experiences with them. We ordered Hunter Douglas blinds for our whole home. They missed the appointed times for installation over and over. When they finally showed up, they said they were too busy and left the work half done. As far as the install goes, it was so poorly done, full of excuses why they could not install them properly, we had to call Hunter Douglas directly to find out if this is normal. Hunter Douglas said that all the issues were due to a very bad installation job. Its been 5 months and "Beautiful Windows" has not come back to correct the issues. We are now having to go to Hunter Douglas directly. Hunter Douglas asked the owner of Beautiful Windows to correct the issues and to call me as well. Beautiful Windows still has not called me. After they sell you the product, it seems they also have very poor customer service. Must be because they locked you into the order and moved on. I would not recommend using Beautiful Windows. Wish we would have went to someone else. It cost us a lot on money and it looks awful. ...read more
Abbey Carpet & Floor
By Lewis (Allied Kitchen and Bath) R at Customer Lob September 20, 2013
My business is in high end remodeling, and we have been working with Paul's Abbey Carpet & Floor for over ten years. All of my clients are very happy with them. Remodeling is too tough of a business. If they didn't continue to satisfy my clients and me, I would have stopped using them a long time ago. They are the longest running flooring company in the Fort Lauderdale area, maybe even in Broward county. The showroom is nice and clean. Their selection is current and versatile. Prices are very fair and competitive. Their entire staff is friendly, knowledgeable, and highly experienced in their field. Jerry is my main point person, and he takes care of everything for me. He's been in the business for over thirty years, and his expertise speaks for itself. The installations are great. No company is perfect, but if there is ever an issue, this company takes full responsibility to restore their integrity. I have recommended them to my colleagues and my family. With their selection, competitive prices, and excellent customer service, they are just an impeccable company. ...read more
Abbey Carpet & Floor
By Tim at Customer Lob August 14, 2013
Was a pleasure to work with Paul's Abbey Carpet and Floor. The service was very good, Jerry was very helpful to complete the sale. Great price, very competitive. No problems with coming to measure and held the carpet until I was ready for installation. Did a great job, looks good, happy with the carpet. Would defiantly use them again. ...read more
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Aeroponics
Aeroponics is the process of growing plants in an air or mist environment without the use of soil or an aggregate medium (known as geoponics). The word "aeroponic" is derived from the Greek meanings of "aero" (air) and "ponos" (labour). Aeroponic culture differs from both conventional hydroponics and in-vitro (plant tissue culture) growing. Unlike hydroponics, which uses water as a growing medium and essential minerals to sustain plant growth, aeroponics is conducted without a growing medium. Because water is used in aeroponics to transmit nutrients, it is sometimes considered a type of hydroponics. Methods The basic principle of aeroponic growing is to grow plants suspended in a closed or semi-closed environment by spraying the plant's dangling roots and lower stem with anatomized,nutrient-rich water solution. The leaves and crown, often called the "canopy", extend above. The roots of the plant are separated by the plant support structure. Many times closed cell foam is compressed around the lower stem and inserted into an opening in the aeroponic chamber, which decreases labor and expense; for larger plants,trellisingis used to suspend the weight ofvegetationandfruit. Ideally, the environment is kept free frompestsanddiseaseso that the plants may grow healthier and quicker than plants grown in amedium. However, since most aeroponic environments are not perfectly closed off to the outside, pests and disease may still cause a threat. Controlled environments advance plant development, health, growth, flowering and fruiting for any given plant species and cultivars. Due to the sensitivity of root systems aeroponics is often combined with conventional hydroponics which is used as an emergency "crop saver" - backup nutrition and water supply - if the aeroponic apparatus fails. [edit] Benefits and drawbacks Many types of plants can be grown aeroponically [edit] Ecological advantages Aeroponic growing is considered to be safe andecologicallyfriendly for producing natural, healthy plants and crops. The main ecological advantages of aeroponics are the conservation of water and energy. When compared to hydroponics, aeroponics offers lower water and energy inputs per square meter of growing area. When used commercially, Aeroponics uses one-tenth of the water otherwise necessary to grow the crop but this can be reduced to as little as one-twentieth. [edit] Increased air exposure Air cultures optimize access to air for successful plant growth. Materials and devices which hold and support the aeroponic grown plants must be devoid of disease or pathogens. A distinction of a true aeroponic culture and apparatus is that it provides plant support features that are monomial. Monomial contact between a plant and support structure allows for 100% of the plant to be entirely in air. Long-term aeroponic cultivation requires the root systems to be free of constraints surrounding the stem and root systems. Physical contact is minimized so that it does not hinder natural growth and root expansion or access to pure water, air exchange and disease-free conditions. Close-up of the first patented aeroponic plant support structure (1983). Its unrestricted support of the plant allows for normal growth in the air/moisture environment - still in use today [edit] Benefits of oxygen in the root zone Oxygenin therhizosphere(root zone) is necessary for healthy plant growth. As aeroponics is conducted in air combined with micro-dropletsof water, almost any plant can grow to maturity in air with a plentiful supply of oxygen, water and nutrients. Some growers favor aeroponic systems over other methods of hydroponics because the increasedaerationof nutrient solution delivers more oxygen to plant roots, stimulating growth and helping to preventpathogenformation. Clean air supplies oxygen which is an excellent purifier for plants and the aeroponic environment. For natural growth to occur the plant must have unrestricted access to air. Plants must be allowed to grow in a natural manner for successful physiological development. The more confining the plant support becomes, the greater incidence of increasing disease pressure of the plant and the aeroponic system. Some researchers have used aeroponics to study the effects of root zone gas composition on plant performance. Soffer and Burger [Soffer et al., 1988] studied the effects of dissolved oxygen concentrations on the formation of adventitious roots in what they termed "aero-hydroponics." They utilized a 3-tier hydro and aero system, in which three separate zones were formed within the root area. The ends of the roots were submerged in the nutrient reservoir, while the middle of the root section received nutrient mist and the upper portion was above the mist. Their results showed that dissolved O2 is essential to root formation, but went on to show that for the three O2 concentrations tested, the number of roots and root length were always greater in the central misted section than either the submersed section or the un-misted section. Even at the lowest concentration, the misted section rooted successfully. [edit] Other benefits of air (CO) Plants in a true aeroponic apparatus have 100% access to theCOconcentrations ranging from 450ppmto 780 ppm forphotosynthesis. At onemile(1.6 km) above sea level the CO concentration in the air is 450 ppm during daylight. At night the CO level will rise to 780 ppm. Lower elevations will have higher levels. In any case, the air culture apparatus offers ability for plants to have full access to all the available CO in the air for photosynthesis. Growing under lights during the evening allows aeroponics to benefit from the natural occurrence. [edit] Natural disease-free cultivation Aeroponics can limit disease transmission since plant-to-plant contact is reduced and each spray pulse can be sterile. In the case of soil, aggregate, or other media, disease can spread throughout the growth media, infecting many plants. In most greenhouses these solid media require sterilization after each crop and, in many cases, they are simply discarded and replaced with fresh, sterile media. A distinct advantage of aeroponic technology is that if a particular plant does become diseased, it can be quickly removed from the plant support structure without disrupting or infecting the other plants. Basil grown from seed in an aeroponic system located inside a modern greenhouse was first achieved 1986 Due to the disease-free environment that is unique to aeroponics, many plants can grow at higher density (plants per sq meter) when compared to more traditional forms of cultivation (hydroponics,soiland NFT). Commercial aeroponic systems incorporate hardware features that accommodate the crops expanding root systems. Researcher du Toit, L.J., H.W. Kirby and W.L. Pedersen (1997). "Evaluation of an Aeroponics System to Screen Maize Genotypes for Resistance to Fusarium graminearum Seedling Blight." These researchers describe aeroponics as a "valuable, simple, and rapid method for preliminary screening of genotypes for resistance to specific seedling blight or root rot." The isolating nature of the aeroponic system allowed them to avoid the complications encountered when studying these infections in soil culture. [edit] Water and nutrient hydro-atomization Aeroponic equipment involves the use of sprayers, misters, foggers, or other devices to create a fine mist of solution to deliver nutrients to plant roots. Aeroponic systems are normally closed-looped systems providing macro and micro-environments suitable to sustain a reliable, constant air culture. Numerous inventions have been developed to facilitate aeroponic spraying and misting. Aeroponic hydro-atomized water/nutrient spray, 1996 The key to root development in an aeroponic environment is the size of the water droplet. In commercial applications, a hydro-atomizing spray is employed to cover large areas of roots utilizing air pressure misting. A variation of the mist technique employs the use ofultrasonicnebulizersor foggers to mist nutrient solutions in low-pressure aeroponic devices. Water droplet size is crucial for sustaining aeroponic growth. Too large a water droplet means less oxygen is available to the root system. Too fine a water droplet, such as those generated by the ultrasonic mister, produce excessiveroot hairwithout developing a lateral root system for sustained growth in an aeroponic system. Mineralizationof the ultrasonictransducersrequires maintenance and potential for component failure. This is also a shortcoming of metalspray jetsand misters. Restricted access to the water causes the plant to lose turgidity and wilt. [edit] Advanced materials NASAhas funded research and development of new advanced materials to improve aeroponic reliability and maintenance reduction. It also has determined that high pressure hydro-atomized mist of 5-50micrometresmicro-droplets is necessary for long-term aeroponic growing. For long-term growing, the mist system must have significant pressure to force the mist into the dense root system(s).Repeatabilityis the key to aeroponics and includes the hydro-atomized droplet size.Degradationof the spray due to mineralization of mist heads inhibits the delivery of the water nutrient solution, leading to an environmental imbalance in the air culture environment. Special low-masspolymermaterials were developed and are used to eliminate mineralization in next generation hydro-atomizing misting and spray jets. High-pressure devices High-pressure aeroponic techniques, where the mist is generated by high-pressure pump(s), are typically used in the cultivation of high value crops and plant specimens that can offset the high setup costs associated with this method ofhorticulture. High-pressure aeroponics systems include technologies for air and water purification, nutrient sterilization, low-mass polymers and pressurized nutrient delivery systems. Aeroponically grown food In 1986 Stoner was the first person ever to market fresh aeroponically grown food to a national grocery chain. He was interviewed onNPRand discussed the importance of the water conservation features of aeroponics for both modern agriculture and space. Stoner is considered the father of commercial aeroponics. Stoner's aeroponic systems are in major developed countries around the world. His aeroponic designs, technology and equipment are widely used at leading agricultural universities worldwide and by commercial growers. ...read more
By Misting Direct April 28, 2010
Cool any outdoor area up to 20 degrees !
High pressure mist cooling systems cool any outdoor area up to 20 degrees, control odors, smoke and mosquitoes. Great for patios, outdoor dining areas, pools, tanning zones, yachts, tennis&golf; courts,green house, horse cooling, barns Do it your self kits available! visit http://mistingdirect.com ...read more
By Misting Direct May 26, 2009