Energy Star and Water Sense Sales Tax Holiday

There’s a sales tax holiday this weekend for Energy Efficient Appliances and Water Sense Products September 19 – 21, 2014 starting at 12:01 a.m.

Floridians will pay no sales tax on purchases of up to $1,500 of ENERGY STAR appliances and WaterSense products. However, a person is limited to a single purchase of each specific type of Energy Star or WaterSense product that has a sales price of $500 or more. There are no quantity limits for qualifying items with a sales price less than $500.

Qualifying ENERGY STAR products:
Air purifiers
Ceiling fans
Clothes washers
Dehumidifiers
Dishwashers
Freezers
Light bulbs
Refrigerators
Room air conditioners
Swimming pool pumps
Water heaters

Qualifying WaterSense products:
Bathroom sink faucets
Faucet accessories
High-efficiency toilets and urinals
Showerheads
Weather- and sensor-based irrigation controllers

Dryers are not listed because they do not meet Energy Star qualifications. Installations Charges may be tax exempt too. It get’s a little tricky but if you purchase a qualifying product that does not become part of the home and remains tangible personal property when installed, the item plus the labor are exempt if their total is less than $1,500.

Example: An Energy Star window air conditioner unit for $350 plus $100 install. The $450 total purchase qualifies.

Example: A WaterSense toilet is sold by a contractor for $465 with installation for $125. The $590 total does not qualify.

If you want to buy a Service Warranty on your new Dishwasher, it too may be exempt. If the retail sale of an item is exempt from tax, the charge for a service warranty sold with the item is also exempt when the total is less than $1,500.

Understanding Coupons and Rebates. The price of a qualifying item is not limited to the amount paid by a customer.

Example: The Energy Star refrigerator you want is $1,795. The retailer is offering 10% off. Your purchase of $1,615.50 qualifies for the first $1,500 to be exempt. You pay sales tax on the remaining $115.50

Example: You purchase an Energy Star freezer for $1,549. The manufacturer is offering an instant $50 rebate at the time of purchase. Although you pay $1,499, the price remains the same for the retailer. They will receive $1,499 from you and $50 from the manufacturer. The first $1,500 is exempt and you pay sales tax on the remaining $49.

If the retailer – not the manufacture;, were offering the rebate in the example above, the $1,499 purchase would have been tax exempt.

If you like to shop on the internet the good news is that if your order is accepted within the holiday period for immediate delivery, it qualifies for exemption – even if it ships after the tax holiday ends.

Shipping and handling charges are part of your purchase total and follow the same exemption rules. If you purchase multiple items on a single receipt, the shipping and handling charges must be fairly assigned to each item to determine if an item is exempt during the holiday.

September 14, 2014

AirRenew Gypsum Board

With all the talk about VOCs, tighter homes and the need for make up air, who isn’t concerned about indoor air quality (IAQ) these days?

Many things in a home’s interior can off-gas — including new furniture, paint, carpeting and cabinets. New aldehydes can also be brought into the space through air fresheners, cleaning agents, clothing and other daily household items. Breathing in these chemicals on a regular basis may be dangerous to one’s health.

CertainTeed offers a drywall that actually improves indoor air quality. AirRenew’s new technology takes VOCs out of the air and converts them into safe, inert compounds. Once they are captured in the board, they cannot be released back into the air.

Rather than off-gassing formaldehyde and other VOCs, AirRenew Gypsum Board has industry-first VOC-scavenging technology that removes these chemicals from the air, breaking them down and storing them inside the wall through a process that’s effective for about 75 years, the company says.

The gypsum board also features M2Tech technology, which provides enhanced protection against moisture and mold.

There’s no practical way to eliminate all mold and mold spores in the indoor environment, but using AirRenew with dual technologies greatly reduces the potential for mold problems.

AirRenew continues to effectively clean air even when used with multiple coats of water based acrylic or epoxy paints and breathable wallpaper.

The AirRenew portfolio of products includes a wide range of performance attributes, such as resistance to fire, mold, moisture, abuse and impact. The product line up features: AirRenew Essential, AirRenew M2Tech®, AirRenew M2Tech Type X, AirRenew Extreme Abuse as well as AirRenew Extreme Impact. Each product handles the same as regular gypsum board and does not require special tools to install or finish.

AirRenew Essential comes in a 1/2-inch gypsum board, and AirRenew Essential Type X, a 5/8-inch fire-resistant gypsum board.

AirRenew boards are GREENGUARD® Gold Certified, can contribute to LEED building credits and contain up to 99% total recycled content.

Improves indoor air quality and protects your walls from everything life throws at them.

Recently, celebrity remodeler Mike Holmes and son Mike Jr. featured the product in his two-hour episode “Mike’s Ultimate Garage” on HGTV Canada.

Holmes used CertainTeed AirRenew Extreme Impact Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) Gypsum Board as the interior walls of the 1850 square foot garage.

“I’ve been planning my dream garage for years. My son MJ went over and above what I’d even envisioned to make sure I ended up with an amazing man cave. I know I’ll be spending every minute of my downtime there,” said Mike Holmes. “With the cold Canadian winters I’ll have to keep the garage doors closed most of time. It’s good to have peace of mind that AirRenew will help keep pollutants out of my lungs. And the extra durability is a great thing, in case I am hard on my workshop.”

Mike knows the ultimate man cave requires quality materials.

July 6, 2014

The Reveal Collection from Plyboo

The Reveal Collection from Plyboo, manufactured by Smith and Fong Co., is a series of carved and textured panels constructed of bamboo. When carved, the grain of the inner layers are revealed, creating a play on shapes and grain pattern.

Additionally, Plyboo bamboo is 100% FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) Certified, as the material comes from well-managed forests, and the final product is manufactured without the use of formaldehyde, (no VOC’s) making it an eco-friendly choice for the home.

This artistic collection is available in 8 different patterns and color options. Sheet sizes are 4’x8′ X 3/4″ thick and available pre finished or unfinished. Reveal panels are fabricated in the USA with domestic and foreign components.

“Reveal is one of the most visually dynamic products we’ve ever introduced, It’s ideal for modern retail, hospitality and commercial projects that seek a cutting-edge design with a warm, natural look.” – Angus Stocks, president

If you are not familiar with the many offerings in the Plyboo Family, you may want to also check out PlybooSound, a collection of carved acoustical bamboo panels.

PlybooSound acoustical panels with QuietWall™ technology helps to reduce ambient noise and are great for large open spaces. These panels are so pretty you may just want to use them for their looks and get the added bonus of sound dampening.

About Smith and Fong:

Founded in 1989 and headquartered in San Francisco, Smith & Fong Co. was the first U.S. company to manufacture bamboo flooring for sale in North America, offering its initial product under the brand name Plyboo in 1993. In 1996 the firm began producing bamboo plywood, followed by coconut palm flooring and plywood products in 2000. Today, the company’s product range is distributed and sold throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, Europe and the Middle East.

March 30, 2014April 14, 2019

Green Light

If you’ve ever been told you needed live plants in your home but just felt like you didn’t have the space, this may be the solution you need.

Designed by Toronto-based multidisciplinary design studio O/I (Object Interface Inc.), Babylon is a plantable light fixture inspired by the legends of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world.

The suspended light is made of powder coated aluminum with a removable ABS plastic liner. You can choose between the single light or a three light cluster. Pricing starts around $500.00

If you prefer a more enclosed option – especially if hanging over your kitchen table – this next light from Greenworks may be what you need. Also called Babylon, this light designed by Alexis Tricoire is a suspended terrarium of sorts.

The suspended light fixture is about 19.5″ wide with 5 openings for stems to grow through. The bottom of the globe is covered with pumice that contains minerals and micro nutrients that feed the plants. Due to the high water holding capacity of the pumice, plants need watering and maintenance only every third week.

I love this photo with the orchids. I will admit I’m not the best when it comes to keeping orchids but If I had this fixture, I’d try to improve my skills.

The last option I found for Green Lights is from the Bocci 38 Collection. This collection is an extension of the 28 series by Omer Arbel that features a series of distorted spheres filled with cavities that double as planters.

“This chandelier object, in production, uses a technique Mr. Arbel had previously used to create 28. It takes an hour for three people to make one; 10% to 15% of them break in the process, says Mr. Arbel. This piece, 38, has cavities deep enough to contain earth and succulent and cacti plantings.”

Within the spheres there are 4-6 cavities, 2 or 3 of which house either a 10 watt xenon or a 1.5 watt LED light source. Electricity and suspension are achieved with stiff copper tubing, which is allowed to tangle and skew, seemingly without regard for gravity.

Due to the hand crafted nature of the 38 series, the pendant size as well as the number and location of interior satellites, pendant diameter, and sometimes shape may vary.

Based in Vancouver with a satellite company in Berlin, Bocci is a contemporary design and manufacturing house that follows sustainable practices. Bocci’s 38 Collection is made from recycled glass, lit by energy-efficient LED lights, and shipped in recyclable packaging.