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NUMBER 4 - FALL 2009
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In The Issue
Pennsylvania Home Improvement Contractor Registration
Fall: Time to Install Low-Voltage Landscape Lighting
Have you noticed an Increase in Mosquitoes this year?
Project Spotlight: White Horse Village, Newtown Square, PA
In the News and Staff Updates
Pennsylvania Home Improvement Contractor Registration
Effective July 1, 2009
If you plan on hiring a home improvement contractor in Pennsylvania, you need to know this ...
Question:
Does this new registration apply to anyone who completes residential work for more than $500.00 in a person's primary home? (i.e. plumbers, electricians, painters, landscapers, blacktop contractors, building contractors, etc.)
Answer:
Yes. Anyone who owns and operates a home improvement business or who undertakes, offers to undertake or agrees to perform any home improvement. The term includes a subcontractor or independent contractor who has contracted with a home improvement retailer, regardless of the retailer's net worth, to provide home improvement services to the retailer's customers. (Definition of "Contractor")
To comply with the new registration requirements, proof of liability insurance covering personal injury in an amount not less than $50,000 and insurance covering property damage caused by the work of a home improvement contractor in an amount not less than $50,000 must be provided to the Office of Attorney General upon registration.
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Fall: Time to Install Low-Voltage Landscape Lighting
Installing a landscape lighting system is relatively easy. "It's a single process and it doesn't disturb the landscape. A small trench is dug and the wire is laid in the dirt," says Rall. Why not do it yourself? Because landscape designers come with the knowledge of the various products on the market today and how to create lighting effects with them, for the best results, it's a project to leave to the professionals. "Not everyone can just install lights. It's the art of placement," says Alberto. Installing a lighting system also requires a degree of electrical experience, as the use of a transformer is necessary.
Landscape lighting can be as simple, or as complex, as you want it to be. Most homeowners spend between $2,000 - $12,000 plus. And it doesn't have to part of a landscape installation project, lighting can be installed at any time. So for those of you who want to add some hours to their summer and autumn evenings, there's no better time to see the light.
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Have you noticed an Increase in Mosquitoes this year?
Mosquitoes have been a significant problem this year due to wet weather across the United States. The numbers have been climbing due to home neglect and foreclosure rates from Florida to Wisconsin to Maine to California. Swimming pools left untreated have been a major problem. There are numerous methods to control and keep them at bay. Emptying containers that hold standing water is one such method.
White Nose Disease
The decline in bat populations could be another reason for the increase in mosquitoes. Bats can eat up to 300 insects per hour, including mosquitoes.
White-Nose Syndrome has caused "the most precipitous wildlife decline in the past century in North America," according to biologists. It has devastated bat populations across the northeastern.
Since WNS was discovered in a New York cave in February 2006, an estimated million or more hibernating bats of six species have been killed by the disease in nine states. |
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Project Spotlight:
White Horse Village, Newtown Square, PA
E.G. Rall, Jr. Landscape Design is wrapping up a project at the White Horse Village, a retirement community. We constructed a courtyard for assisted living residents.
Benches will be placed to enjoy the shade of the large weeping willow.
The new plantings were chosen to attract birds and butterflies, for the enjoyment of staff, residents and visitors.
"As Vice president/Director of Facilities at White horse Village Retirement Community, I need contractors that are in tuned to our needs and are able to solve problems. In the case of this courtyard project, we had major storm runoff issues, and a slope that was impossible to maintain. The Rall Company turned an unusable area into an oasis for our residents to enjoy." - Robert Higgins
Click here to learn more about this and other E.G. Rall Jr. Landscape Design projects.
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In the News and Staff Updates
E.G. Rall, a member of The Chestnut Hill Rotary took part in the presentation of a contribution to the Jenks Elementary School in Philadelphia for Reading Initiative Project. Joining E.G. is (left) Mark Petteruti, owner of Botanical Expressions in Flourtown.
Joseph Grayer, CLT (certified landscape technician)
Joe runs our grounds maintenance division and he recently judged the landscape management certification exam. |
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