1000 Kitchens to Recycle!

The Re-Use People sent an appeal today in their newsletter.

They have 1000 condo kitchens coming into their Oakland California warehouse shortly that they need to find homes for.

They look pretty nice if you need a small kitchen for an in-law unit, apartment or condo.

Below is the scoop:

Peggy



















One Thousand Kitchens!
Logistics Moves to the Front Burner
By Ted Reiff

A couple of weeks ago one of our Northern California TRP-certified deconstruction contractors handed us a real test of our logistical capabilities: a contract to partially deconstruct two separate apartment complexes, one in Sunnyvale and the other a few miles away in Santa Clara. Each complex contains approximately 500 units, and the contractor's job is to remove all interior doors, kitchen cabinets and appliances, bathroom vanities, and some light fixtures, including fan lights.

The kitchens are typical apartment size, consisting of three base cabinets, three wall cabinets, floor-to-ceiling pantry cabinet, sink, countertops, stove, refrigerator and dishwasher. Some units also have washers and dryers.

TRP has known since its inception that salvaging building materials is only half the challenge in this business, and frequently not the most formidable half. The most difficult task can be finding a satisfactory way to dispose of the materials — to get them into the hands of people who can use them. This conundrum includes handling at the point of salvage, shipping to markets, interim storage or warehousing, consolidation, breaking bulk, trans-loading, and final delivery to the customer.

Our projected solution is to open a network of reuse facilities throughout the U.S. If we can easily ship materials from one location to another as supply and demand dictate, we can push the envelope regarding the size and scope of the projects we undertake. Only in this way will we become more effective at what we do and achieve our mission on a grand scale. The long-term goal is to have 20 to 25 regions in major metropolitan areas of the country. If we had these now, this project would be a slam dunk. But we don't.

So, how do we plan to manage the challenge at hand? With trailers — relays of them. At each site, over a period of about five weeks, the contractor will fill a 48-foot trailer with all the materials from approximately 20 to 25 units. TRP will take delivery of two semi-trailers every five weeks, at the same time returning two empty trailers to the sites. TRP is arranging for the rental of the trailers and the contractor is reimbursing us for the local drayage.

We estimate that our Oakland store can sell two of these kitchens per week. (They will have to compete for customer dollars with the kitchens and other materials we receive on a day-to-day basis.) Our Los Angeles outlet might be able to duplicate this volume, and our Colorado location can probably sell one per week. Consequently, at the end of one year, these two projects will add 150 to 250 unsold kitchens (and other items) to our inventory, and by the conclusion of the projects the number will be 300 to 500.

Assuming our warehouse sales estimates are correct, we will require space to store 10 to 15 trailers until the last of the materials have been moved to the floor of the warehouse.

TRP will be contacting nonprofit organizations throughout the Bay Area to offer these materials free of charge, as donations. However, we will be asking interested organizations to accept a minimum of one complete trailer load and to pay the transportation expenses to their location.

Can you help us find homes for these materials? If you have any solid suggestions, please phone Joe Feller, Operations Manager, The ReUse People of America: 510.383.1983 or 888.588.9490.

Special of the Month
At the Oakland warehouse this month we are featuring – you guessed it – kitchen cabinets. Receive 50% off on any complete kitchen (without appliances) until November 15. Normally a complete kitchen sells for $280 – we are offering them at $140.

Location and Contact Information

TRP ReUse Bazaar
9235 San Leandro Street
Oakland, CA 94603
(510) 383-1983; toll-free 888-588-9490
Hours: Mon through Fri 10:00 to 6:00; Sat and Sun 10:00 to 4:00

Whole wheat dosa

This time I am posting a dosa out of whole grain.

Whole grains are believed to be nutritionally superior to refined grains, richer in dietary fiber, antioxidants, protein (and in particular the amino acid lysine), dietary minerals (including magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, and selenium), and vitamins (including niacin, vitamin B6, and vitamin E).
Source-wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whole_grain

Whole wheat - 2 cups
Raw rice (Pacharisi) - 1 cup
Cumin seeds - t tspn
Salt

Soak wheat for 8 hrs.
Rice need to be soaked for 3 hrs only. Soak then separately.
Grind both wheat and rice together to a smooth batter. Since we are using whole wheat, u may find the skin of the wheat not grinded fine. Thats alright.
Add salt and allow it to ferment.
Before making dosas, add a tspn of cumins seeds and start preparing dosa.
The dosa will not be very thin but not like uttappam also.

You can serve dosa with any chutney of your choice

Kitchen Design vs. Kitchen Space Planning

There's a post over at Northjersey.com where Tim answers a question by a consumer, Sheila, looking for design help with her kitchen.

DEAR TIM: I need some help with the kitchen design for my home. I'm pretty sure I know what I want, but kitchen designs are as varied as faces in a crowd. How will I know what is the best design for this kitchen remodel job? What is the best way to approach a fresh kitchen design project? -- Sheila B., Hardeeville, S.C.

DEAR SHEILA: Kitchen design is very important, but it is sometimes confused with kitchen planning. Both planning and design are critical, and ignoring either one can lead to disaster and heartbreak. Let's make sure we are on the same page with respect to what you need...

The distinction between kitchen design and kitchen space planning deserves further explanation and discussion here:

Kitchen design is the placement and selection of cabinetry and appliances within an existing, or proposed, kitchen space. Your designer will help you choose a cabinet line, wood, door style, finish and accessories and some attendant interior decorating selection of finishes and surfaces and colors. Most kitchen designers are employed by cabinet dealers, lumberyards or big box stores, so their focus is on selling cabinetry. Many designers work from customer supplied measurements and have little or no concern about how the kitchen relates to the surrounding rooms.

Kitchen design training is rigorous in the areas of cabinetry and appliance planning. More emphasis is given to fitting the pieces together properly and minimizing mistakes, which can be costly.

Kitchen space planning is practiced by some kitchen designers with the aptitude and more education or experience than the typically trained kitchen designer.

As a designer gains experience, some designers progress from kitchen design to space planning by furthering their education. Or the designer starts out with an interior design degree and specializes in kitchens and baths. Either way gaining the requisite experience and becoming certified by the National Kitchen and Bath Association are usually the goal.

I would say more kitchen space planners are CKDs than not, although there are some pretty famous designers in the US who have never pursued the designation. It is still a pretty good way to determine who is serious about their career and experienced.

There is study of the elements and principles of design, how a building is built, codes and standards, ergonomics, accessibility and Universal Design. Then a rigorous exam and ongoing education requirements.

A kitchen space planner looks at the kitchen as it is and how it relates to the rest of the home, especially the rooms directly adjacent to the kitchen. Traffic patterns are very important in space planning.

I have moved a kitchen to an entirely different area of the home to correct space or traffic problems. Such upheaval is not usually necessary, but most kitchens can greatly benefit from a critical look and some element shuffling, or moving a door, tearing down a wall, or adding on in the form of an addition.

A good space planner will see the opportunities in a dysfunctional space and how to capitalize on them. Correcting deficiencies during a remodel can vastly improve a home for its occupants, and (happily) increase value at resale (sometimes remarkably so).

Kitchen space planners also provide complete plan sets for a remodel, just like an architect does. Kitchen design plans provided by a cabinet dealer, lumberyard, or home center, don't necessarily include electrical and mechanical details that are required for a major remodel.

Architects and building designers also do kitchen space planning, but kitchen designers who do so are the specialists. We bring together our knowledge of cabinet systems, appliances, all the surfaces that go into a modern kitchen, and the ability to transform a dysfunctional kitchen into one you would proudly display to all.

This goes for other rooms in the home too. A good space planner doesn't usually confine themselves to the kitchen or bath alone.

Peggy