Genie Garage Door Openers Review

Genie Garage Door Openers have been around since ... forever.

Genie Promax Garage Door Opener

Genie Garage Door Openers have been around since George Washington chopped down the cherry tree. Well, okay, that’s not quite true. Genie built their very first garage door opener in 1954. Formerly, known as the Alliance Manufacturing Company and founded in 1923, Genie garage door openers used to build military products while America was at war. Alliance Manufacturing Company built things like voltage regulators, canteen handles and generators. After building their first garage door opener in 1954, Genie quickly became one of the innovators in the garage door opening industry. I recently replaced a Genie garage door opener in my home. Not because it conked out, but because it lasted so long that it lacked some of the modern innovations of electric garage door openers that were 10-15 years old! This is one of the reasons I was sold on Genie Garage Door Openers. But, there's a little more to the story...

Genie Garage Door Openers: Parts

I moved into my home three years ago, so I inherited the Genie Garage Door Opener that came with the double-sided door of my three-car garage. I also inherited the newer, Stanley Garage Door Opener for my single-car garage door. Because the Stanley garage door opener is newer, it included the more modern, garage door sensors safety feature. My Genie opener had held up well, but it lacked the safety of the garage door sensors on the sides to prevent the dangerously heavy door from closing on objects, animals or people that might get in the way. My house was built in 1989, so I suspect this was the original Genie garage door opener that came with the house. So, when the Genie garage door openers torsion spring broke on the right side of my single-car, garage door, I decided to get a new Genie for my double door while I was getting the garage door spring replacement on the opposite side. Knowing this current Genie lasted 16-years, I’m a believer in the quality of Genie garage door openers parts so Why not go with another Genie product – but this time - with the safety of those mandatory garage door sensors? Read the rest of this entry

What is Patanase?

Does Patanase Really Work?

Patanase is a prescription Allergy Nasal Spray used to treat seasonal allergies. In medical terms, Patanase is described as an H1 Receptor Antagonist. Basically, this means that Patanase is an antihistamine that blocks allergy symptoms. Patanase is unlike Nasonex, Flonase and Rhinocort which are steroidal nasal sprays. These older prescription, steroidal allergy medications have have been on the market for quite a number of years, and I have a little bit of experience with all of them. Patanase was approved for market by the FDA in April of 2008, making it the newest prescription, nasal allergy spray on the market. What all of the other steroidal prescription nasal, allergy sprays have in common is that they need to be used for a few days or more before they become effective at reducing seasonal allergy symptoms. Unlike an over-the-counter antihistamine which goes to work on your allergy symptoms within an hour, these prescription steroidal nasal sprays require regular use for 1-2 weeks before they become effective at blocking your allergies. Steroidal sprays, seemed well suited for people like me whose allergies persist through every season. They are used to prevent allergy symptoms over long periods of time. One of their advantages is is that they do not cause the drowsiness associated with over-the-counter antihistamines. Patanase, on the other hand, will go to work right away on your stuffy or sneezy nose, without the risk associated with long-term side effects of nasal steroids. The other over-the-counter choice for nasal allergies

Decongestant Nasal Spray

are Decongestant Nasal Sprays which have short-term side effects that are even worse than antihistamines. Prolonged use of these decongestant nasal sprays will almost always result in an addictive, chronic stuffy nose. Once you've started using a decongestant nasal spray, it is extremely hard to break the habit. Over-the-counter antihistamines are a choice that should never be used if you plan on being active or need to stay awake. Most of us just can't function during the day when using these non-prescription types of antihistamines. I frequently suffer from sinus congestion regardless of the season or time of year. When I first heard about Patanase I was curious as to how it compared to these other prescription nasal sprays. How effective is Patanase at relieving allergy symptoms and what kinds of side effects or long term risks are associated with using this new, allergy drug? Read the rest of this entry

Bourbon Review

Ezra Brooks Bourbon

Ezra Brooks Bourbon is Cheap on Price, but Expensive on Taste

While, I am really more of a scotch drinker, Bourbon is a whiskey I enjoy during the colder months. There is something about the cold, dark evenings that sometimes put me in the mood for the darker, sweeter, heavier bourbon flavor. A couple of years ago, a friend of mine had me do a blind taste test of three different bourbons: Ezra Brooks (Green Label), Jack Daniels, and Evan Williams. I rated the Evan Williams last, and a close draw between the Ezra Brooks Bourbon (green) and Jack Daniels. My friend exclaimed that Ezra Brooks was his favorite. He preferred it over the more expensive Jack Daniels. I had to agree that it tasted good enough that I wouldn't spend the extra money on Jack either. So, Ezra Brooks Bourbon has kind of become my household standard for Bourbon. I've always considered the more expensive Bulleit Bourbon to be a very good brand, so I decided to do a little bourbon review and comparison.

Bourbon Bulleit History

bulleit burbon

There is some interesting history behind Bulleit that makes it worth mentioning in this bourbon review. Bulleit Bourbon was actually invented by a Frenchman who developed a liking for Bourbon after moving from France to New Orleans, than Kentucky (Bourbon-Land). Being from France, Augustus Bulleit developed a recipe which was a little different than popular bourbons. His recipe contained a higher percentage of rye. This could explain some of what I describe in Bulleit's taste and characteristics below. The other interesting thing is that the maker of Bulleit bourbon vanished in the 1860s. With no family or close friends nearby to take over the recipe, Bulleit Bourbon was no longer made for well over 100 years. In the late 1980's, a great, great grand-son of Augustus, Tom Bulleit decided to get his hands on the recipe and re-invent his father's famous bourbon recipe. I'll never forget the commercials when Bulleit was introduced back in the U.S about 10 years ago. Thinking it was an odd, unfamiliar name to me, I decided to look up a bit of this fascinating history which made me eager to try it. I liked it, but not being much of a bourbon connoisseur, I decided I would stick with the cheaper, reputable brands for my winter bourbon cravings. About 10 years later, I was sold on Ezra Brooks. Now, 10 years later, I thought it would be fun to try Bulleit Bourbon again and compare it to my standby favorite house brand, Ezra Brooks Bourbon. Read the rest of this entry

Cookware Review

Stainless Steel Pan

If you're like me, you're tired of searching for not-stick cookware every 3-years. Stainless Steel Pots and Pans are very expensive. Knowing that my cookware is going to get banged up, scratched and lose it's protective non-stick coating after 2-3 years, I wouldn't mind paying a little more to get a set of pots and pans that will hold up a little longer. Consider this review on Stainless Steel Pots and Pans a work in progress. I intend to continue to research what's best for my needs in my own kitchen and update the content on the stainless steel pots and pans. There are some Teflon, and non-stick pans in this group, as I feel they do have some redeeming features, as well.
For this review, I will be researching All Clad Cookware Sets, Calphalon Tri Ply Stainless, Bialetti, T-Fal, Mirro Cookeware and Kitchenaid Cookware. Pots and Pans have always been a sticky subject with me (excuse the pun). I want cookware that is not only durable and non-sticking, but convenient, easy to handle, cook with and clean. Let's see how these brands of stainless steel pots and pans stack up against each other.

All Clad Cookware Sets

All Clad Cookware Sets

If All Clad Cookware sets look very expensive it is because – well, they are very expensive. You can expect to drop close to a grand for a 14-piece All Clad Cookware set. However, you can find the 10-piece sets for much, much cheaper, below. All Clad Cookware is made from shiny Stainless Steel with an aluminum layer in-between to help conduct heat. The advantages to All Clad stainless steel cookeware, or any stainless steel pots and pans for that matter, are beauty, durability and consistently even cooking temperatures. There are a few disadvantages to stainless steel besides the price tag. I’ve been told by some user of All-Clad Products that they don’t like having to use an oven mitt for the stainless steel lid handles. Because the aluminum middle layer conducts heat, the lids get darn hot! Touching the handle of the lid while it’s cooking is like touching the bottom of the hot pan! This doesn’t bother me too much because I quite often use a Cast Iron Pan to cook and am used to being careful with the handle. One of the other disadvantages of All Clad Cookware is that stainless steel takes a little more effort to clean. Supposedly there are some products out there to make cleaning easier. One final complaint, and for me, it’s a biggie: I absolutely cannot stand the rivets which fasten the handle on the inside of the cookware. We purchased a cheaper set of T-Fal last year that has these rivets. Food tends to stick on them and they are a real nuisance to clean. Is there not a better way to fasten the handle on such an expensive set of cookware? Besides the few complaints I’ve mentioned, All Clad Stainless Steel pots and pans are definitely on my recommended list for long term, beautiful cookware. Read the rest of this entry

Home Coffee Roaster Review

A Home Coffee Roaster can help you make coffee the way you like it. Coffee beans are green before they are roasted. It fascinates me how a hard, odorless, flavorless, green bean can be turned into something so deliciously aromatic and tasteful merely by roasting it. There is such a huge variety of coffee on the market. The way the coffee is roasted can vary from extremely light, to medium-dark, to coal black and anything in between. The fact is, no two gourmet coffee drinkers prefer it exactly the same way. Yet, we certainly spend a lot of money on coffee trying to match our tastes. Then, when we finally believe we've found that perfect coffee - the one variety or brand that we like better than all others, we get curious and wonder what it would be like to try something new? Inevitably, we waste money buying coffee we don't like before we find another one that matches our preference. It's a never-ending process that makes me wonder: We mix our own drinks, make our own beer and wine, cook, fry, boil and roast our food. Why don't we do the same with our coffee? There are three reasons to consider your own Home Coffee Roaster: Read the rest of this entry

Autosocks vs Rud Centrax Chains

What's Better? Autosocks or Rud Centrax Chains?

Better Tire Traction

What do you do when you car has no traction in the snow?
I live at the bottom of a very steep cul-de-sac in Colorado where it can get quite snowy and icy in the winter time. In fact, I consider my street the benchmark for testing whether or not any car is equipped to handle the winter streets. For two years, I've been able to negotiate my street - just barely, in my rear wheel drive BMW. This last week, my 1997 RWD, 540i with Traction Control finally met it's match. The single digit temperatures combined with the icy snow-packed accumulation of the last two December snow storms were too much. I was unable to get my car up the street and nothing I tried worked, including backing into my driveway, revving up the motor and attempt at speeding up the hill full charge. Due to the continued cold temps, along with the fact my street never gets sanded, I was forced to car pool for a couple of days while I did some research on tire traction. My conclusion basically came down to four options: Read the rest of this entry