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Dryer Grow Tent

Does anyone have any advice with regards to removing/cleaning mold or mildrew from a canvas tent???

My partner and I were going to pay $800 for a new canvas tent, until I pointed out one that was already set up that looked identical. Apparently the previous owners returned it after a weekend away, and packed it away damp, so there's a little bit of mold or mildew. ANyhoo... The store guy at Aussie Disposals has sold it to us for $150, however we need to figure out the best way to clean it. Its currently dry but all packed up, can the mold and mildew still grow ?? its dry, I just need to know if we need to act soon or not...
Any advice would be appreciated~

DO NOT USE BLEACH!!! It will destroy the thread and it will fall apart faster.

Use the same stuff I use to clean the canvas on my boat. http://www.jamestowndistributors.com/userportal/show_product.do?pid=8964&familyName=BoatLife+Mildew+Remover

My guess is you can find something simular local to you at any marine store.

Tips to Consider When Planning a Summer Wedding

There are many factors that need to be considered when planning a summer wedding. Besides the usual details such as wedding attire, the location, the flowers, the photography, and choosing who will be in your wedding party, with a summer wedding you also need to be involved with factors such as the weather, the location, the season, tourists, storage and travel.

The Weather

By far, the biggest factor to consider as you plan a summer wedding is the unpredictable weather. In many locations, the weather during the summer months is considerably hotter and dryer than it is during the rest of the year. If you plan to host your summer wedding somewhere outdoors, such as a beach, the weather could greatly effect how your wedding day goes. You and your guests could grow extremely uncomfortable if there is little to no air flow during your wedding, and if it rains, it could become an even less enjoyable experience.

Therefore, if you plan on having your ceremony somewhere that is extremely warm or a place that could get an impromptu rain storm, consider the things you can do to make the event more comfortable for your guests. Providing seats for everyone in shaded areas could offer a suitable atmosphere that would allow everyone to enjoy themselves as you and the love of your life pronounce your nuptials. Shortening the ceremony, and holding your reception under a tent that enables air flow, can combine the perks of having both an outdoor and indoor wedding.

If you are having a summer wedding, you also need to consider how the weather can affect planned details such as reception locations, wedding photographs, and travel accommodations for you and your guests. Many couples like to book a back-up plan, or a rain venue, just incase your reception can not be held outdoors as you had originally planned. You will also want to discuss with your photographer beforehand specific locations where you can take photos in case of inclement weather. You may also want to suggest to friends and family to plan their travel accommodations as close to the wedding date as possible, just in case the weather prohibits them from making it to your wedding on time. If you are having a summer wedding, it is a great idea to have back up plans for all of your details.

The Location

The location of your wedding is always important, but during the summer months they are even more important. During the wedding planning process, it is important to question if your venue has air conditioning, and if it is prepared for handling unpredictable weather issues such as flooding or thunderstorms. Being prepared for the worst, and having back up options, will allow your wedding day to continue smoothly and without chaos. Having a back up venue will also be beneficial if a bad storm or spring flooding occurs before your wedding day, forcing you change your location ahead of time.

On or Off Season

The on and off seasons of certain locations can play a huge role in planning a summer wedding. For example, if you plan on reciting your vows at a beautiful ski resort during June, be sure to consider first if any resorts are even open during the off season. Many locations will hold different or shorter hours during their off season, in which you can visit them to see if they can accommodate your event.

Tourists

If you are having your summer wedding at a popular location, tourists may be a factor to consider beforehand. For example, if you and your fiancé met in Disney World, and want to get married in front of the Magic Kingdom, it is important to know beforehand that there will be a good amount of tourists watching as you say “I do.” The amount of tourists in an area can also impact details such as hotel reservations, and photographs. However, if you are planning on having a rather large wedding, certain locations will be glad to accommodate you since your contributions can help them flourish.

Storage and Travel

During the summer months, storage and travel accommodations will need to be strongly considered beforehand. For example, if you and your husband are planning to head off to your honeymoon directly after the wedding, you want to make sure you have a temperature controlled storage unit available. This unit can safely hold items such as your dress, flowers, gifts, and other items that you might not have time to deal with until you get home from your vacation. High heat temperatures can severely destroy keepsakes that you will have wanted to keep forever. Therefore, planning a safe place for them to be held before you leave for your trip can be extremely beneficial.

About the Author

Tiffany Jordan is a freelance writer who writes about weddings, usually focusing on a specific aspect of a wedding like wedding dresses.

Media Bulk

Cheapest method of shipping used school books to Mexico

I've been presented with an idea for a charity project which involves shipping old, near pulp value text books from areas in the USA to kids who need them in Mexico and Latin America.
A primary issue is shipping costs.
Is there an international bulk media mail rate or any other cheap shipping methods that could be used.
Figured I'd post before I start googling around.

Thanks,
eb

Check with your local post office. They should have (but may need to order some if you are in a small town) what is called an M-bag. That is the cheapest way to send books internationally however, it is not very secure since it is just a big bag with a drawstring closure that can be opened at any time. Hope this helps!

Caroline van den Bulk chats with the media crew

Muscle Media Buying

If you’ve got a strong e-mail campaign going but you’re looking to expand your direct-response tactics to include online ads, chances are you will do some media buying. Why? Because purchasing banner, text or other display ads can be a very cost effective way to attract customers.

As a multi-channel marketer, many of my responsibilities over the years have required me to buy ad space in magazines, newspapers, radio, TV, and the Web. Along the way, I’ve become an expert (especially with online media), and picked up a few techniques that could save you hundreds, maybe even thousands, of dollars

But before I explain further, I’d like to point out that there are differences in online advertising.

You can focus your ad to be direct-response-oriented, which includes lead generation (acquiring e-mail names) and product sales. Or you can focus your ad on branding. Branding isn’t direct-response marketing - meaning it doesn’t require an immediate action from the consumer. Its goal, rather, is to build awareness and name recognition of a product over time and help it stay in the minds of prospects. In the offline world, think the battle of the cola giants. In the online world, it’s typically video ads like the ones you see for a new car or truck.

Because results are harder to measure with branding, many online marketers lean toward the direct-response model.

Your job as a media buyer is simply to try to get the best bang for the buck when purchasing media units. It involves allocating money for advertising in various outlets, print or online, and negotiating the actual advertising agreement with the publisher. This agreement is known as an IO (insertion order), and will cover the ad unit cost, size, placement, and other critical components (which I’ll address shortly).

Here are some helpful hints to keep in mind when buying media for your sales campaigns.

Hint #1: Keep up with the industry.

Sign up for free industry trade papers, such as DM News, Response Magazine, and Target Marketing, and as many free e-letters as you can read. One of my favorite e-letters is Clickz.com, because it covers the online marketing world in a comprehensive and dynamic way. I also like mediabuyerplanner.com, which keeps you abreast of the latest media-buying news, and DoubleClick.com, which provides some of the marketing industry’s best practices, trends, and forecast reports.

One current trend is flash banners. These ad units support audio/video use (which engages the viewer and is great for branding), but they are more costly than standard flat (no animation) or animated banners.

Hint #2: Know the ad units.

There are many types of banner ads to choose from: leader boards, skyscrapers, buttons, micro banners, and more. You can find a full list of types of ads, as well as industry guidelines for how and when to use them, at iab.net. All of these ad units are available on most websites, but not every type is effective.

For instance, it has been my experience that leader boards (ads that run horizontally across the top of a Web page) or skyscrapers (ads that run vertically along the side of a Web page) are the least effective. The best placements are typically LRECs - large rectangles, such as 300 x 250 IMUs, at the top or middle of a page or within the content. (IMU stands for Internet Marketing Unit.) Putting an ad inside the body of an article is a great placement, since the reader must breeze over the ad while absorbing the content. A recent eyetracking study by The Poynter Institute supported this observation, indicating that banner ads at the top left of the page, as well as ads close in proximity to the body of an article, garnered the most attention from viewers.

This is where you want your message to be!

Hint #3: Master the art of negotiation.

You will be required to analyze many proposals when you’re looking for the right ad space. You’ll need to determine if the prices are cost effective and comparable to industry rates. If you’re looking into buying ad space on CNN.com, for instance, check out the prices for that same ad unit and timeframe on similarly ranked news websites. Also, check out various ad networks to see if any include CNN.com in their coverage. (For more on ad networks, see Hint #7.)

Since many variables can affect ad prices, I recommend starting an "ad unit matrix" to keep track of rates. Break down a spreadsheet into columns for ad unit type, size, placement, website, impressions (how many times the ad unit appears on the website), and CPM (cost per thousand impressions). Click here to se a great tool that easily calculates the CPM for you.

Another factor that can affect pricing is seasonality. Internet traffic typically drops during July and August (because so many people are on summer vacation) and, depending on the industry you’re in, can be slower around the holidays as well. So, when you’re negotiating your media buy, try to get lower rates during those times. If you’re running near a typically slow time, let’s say around Thanksgiving, you may want to pause your ad unit the day before the holiday and the day after so you don’t waste impressions.

To help ensure that you’re getting a comparable rate, check out each site’s traffic ranking and page views to see where it stands in relation to its competitors in terms of popularity and reach. It’s best to get this information from a subscription ranking service, like Nielsen//NetRatings or ComScore - but if you don’t have access to such services, consider the free Alexa ranking website (Alexa.com).

Hint #4: Reporting rules.

Make sure, especially if you buy media from an online ad network, that you have full access to the OAS (online ad server) reporting system. Look for key performance indicators, such as impressions served (ad units that ran), and click-thru rate (the percentage of people who saw your ad and clicked on a link in it). If you are testing various ad units and sizes, each one should have a unique tracking code. If your advertiser doesn’t give you access to their OAS, ask about getting daily or weekly reports from your account executive. These reports will be critical in refining your ad to get maximum results.

As a general guideline, the average click-thru rate for a banner ad/text ad is 0.5 to 2 percent, and the average click-thru rate for a dedicated e-mail (an e-mail ad that a third party sends to their subscribers on your behalf) is 7.5 percent.

Hint #5: Know when to hold ‘em and when to fold ‘em.

In your insertion order, have a clause that allows you to terminate your advertising commitment without penalty at a given time (an "out clause" or "termination right"). For instance, most online campaigns can be optimized in about a week. If you’re watching your reporting daily (which I suggest you do for the first two weeks) and notice that not many viewers are clicking on your ad, then you should switch to a different ad. If the second ad is not working, you may want to initiate your termination right, end the campaign, and pay only for the impressions you were served.

Not all advertisers will offer this option, but you should certainly ask for it.

Hint #6: There are no stupid questions.

If you’re buying banner ads or other advertising spots on a website, it’s key to find out a few things from your account executive:

--Will your ad be ROS (run of site)? Typically, this means your ad will randomly appear on a site’s home page and most (if not all) subpages within the site. This is more cost effective than a targeted ad in a specific section of the site.

--Will your ad position be fixed or rotated (shared) with anyone else’s ad? If shared, what percentage of impressions will your ad receive?

--If you’re considering buying a dedicated e-mail from a third-party, find out the size of their e-mail list, how often the list gets mailed, the AUS (average unit sale) per subscriber, and whether or not there will be an introduction or implied endorsement by the list owner. (According to copywriting genius John Forde, this can often help boost response rates by 25 percent or more.) All of these factors will help determine the value of the list and, ultimately, the cost you’re willing to pay to access the people on it.

Hint #7: Be on the lookout for low-cost options.

If you’re targeting a specific audience or a niche buyer, go directly to the website’s publisher for an advertising quote. Cutting out the middleman (ad broker) may get you a better rate. PLUS, it will help you build a relationship with the publisher - which can be advantageous for you down the road.

If your goal is to reach the biggest, broadest audience possible, and you want to run an ad on various websites that have a distinct "channel" or genre (such as entertainment, finance, health, etc.) within the broader subject range of the site, consider an ad network.

Ad networks have an agreement with a variety of popular websites to serve up their ads, and they can sort by website type. Since they typically buy their ad units in bulk from the publishing sites, the networks can pass the savings down to the advertiser and charge a lower CPM rate. Some popular networks include Advertising.com and ValueClick.com. You can find a full list at iwebtool.com.

Just remember to get proposals from more than one network. Some of the lesser-known (Tier 2) networks are looking to make a name for themselves, and may offer better rates. But be wary of "micro" sites, which have little traffic or Web presence. Be sure to ask for a sample of the network’s site listings. I always go for quality over quantity.

Depending on how many impressions you buy from these ad networks, your average cost for an LREC can range from $2 to $5. For blog ads and blog networks, you can often find CPMs lower than $1 or even 50 cents. And if you’re looking to save even more money, ask if remnant inventory is available. Remnant inventory is simply an advertising unit that is not as popular as other ad units on a site and is unsold. Depending on your marketing goal, these ad units may accomplish your objective - and to make them more attractive, networks usually offer them at a lower rate.

Hint #8: Show your poker face.

In this industry, it’s all about confidence and knowledge. If you come across as someone who is savvy to media buying, you’re less likely to be taken advantage of.

Do your homework and follow some of the recommendations above… but your best lessons will happen as you buy.

About the Author

Wendy-Leigh Montes de Oca, MBA,
Vice President of Marketing and Business Development, www.earlytorise.com.
Ms. Montes de Oca’s diversified background includes over 15 years of experience in law, financial services, and marketing. She has a proven track record with both acquisition and retention efforts as well as has both editorial and copywriting experience. Her background includes multi-channel marketing (print, email, direct mail, radio, TV) with expertise in direct response marketing for the web, where her search engine optimization and lead generation tactics generated growth of more than 1,500% and 162% year-over-year, respectively. In addition, her marketing initiatives helped bring in millions of dollars in revenues. She was also the editor of a quarterly investment newsletter and had several investment articles published in Hometown News. Ms. Montes de Oca has worked as a consultant as well as for entrepreneurial companies and global leaders. She has been recognized throughout her career with awards for quality, innovation, teamwork, and new product/new business dev.

Pack Seed

What are the ingredients in a microwavble heat pack? I would like to make one as a gift for a friend.?

I know some are filled with rice or flax seed and herbs such as mint or peppermint, but I'm not sure of proportions.

Contrary to popular belief, you can make your own. Typically, a microwave heat pack is several layers of muslin with long grain rice in it. Note: do NOT use minute rice or any other quick cooking rice, as it will burn in the microwave. Ordinary rice will work, but I find long grain rice holds the heat longer. You can use flax seed, but I find rice is cheaper and doesn't add its own smell to the mix, like flax does. Flax (linseed) puts a varnish sort of back odor (linseed oil is used for oil paintings as both a painting medium and as a varnish) to the pack that I find objectionable in some cased.
As for proportions, experiment. Start out with small amounts of herbs and work it up to your tollerance level. At first, you can leave one small opening in your pack until you get the right mix of aromatics. Then seal it once it's where you want it. I find about a tablespoon of most herbs works well, but you have to be careful on really strong smelling herbs (notably, rosemary) and use about half as much to avoid being overwhelmed by the odor. Size and shape depend on where you want the heat. Shape to fit the area you want to warm. If you get good at making these things, you may have a source of extra income. Think: flea markets, yard sales, and local health food stores (where you might be able to put some up on consignment at places that don't want to buy them outright for retail).

1/144 HG Seed NX Custom Astray Green Frame Flight Pack

Health Benefits of Pumpkin Seeds – Get Rid of Health Problems

Pumpkin seeds are one of nature's almost perfect foods. They are a natural source of beneficial constituents such as carbohydrates, amino acids and unsaturated fatty acids. They contain most of the B vitamins, along with C, D, E, and K. They also have the minerals calcium, potassium, niacin, and phosphorous. Pumpkin seeds have mainly been used to treat prostate and bladder problems, but they have also been known to help with depression and learning disabilities.

Pumpkins are very high in potassium, and have good amounts of beta carotene and vitamin C. They are also a good source of calcium and fibre, and as well as other vitamins and minerals. Pumpkin seed oil and pumpkin seeds are a good source of zinc and unsaturated fatty acids (good fats).

Fresh and cooked pumpkin is chock full of vitamin C, vitamin E, vitamin A, potassium, alpha-carotene, zinc, beta carotene, and lutein. It’s easy to add pumpkin to your favorite baked goods and dishes during the colder months, and the vitamins and minerals can help keep your health in tip-top shape during the winter. Pumpkin is rich, satisfying, and can be used in a number of recipes as a meal or in dessert; if you cook it in a healthy way, it might also give you an excuse to indulge in an extra slice of pumpkin pie this year! Still, eating pumpkin isn’t the only way to enjoy its natural benefits.

Nutritional Value of Pumpkin Seeds

Snacking on ¼-1/2 cup of pumpkin seeds can deliver the nutrients mentioned at the outset of this article, as well as calcium, vitamin K, protein and important omega-3 fatty acids. Pumpkin seeds can be eaten raw, baked, roasted or toasted.

Because pumpkin seeds and good health share such an important relationship, plan to make pumpkin seeds a regular part of your diet. Keep a supply on hand and store the seeds in a tightly sealed container in your fridge.

Pumpkin seeds and onions mixed together with a little soy milk make a great remedy for parasitic worms in the digestive tract. To make this remedy, liquefy three tablespoons of pumpkin seeds that have been soaked three hours, one-half of a small onion, one-half cup soy milk, and one teaspoon honey. Take this amount three times daily, three days in a row.

Pumpkin seeds, also known as pepitas, are flat, dark green seeds. Some are encased in a yellow-white husk, although some varieties of pumpkins produce seeds without shells. Like cantaloupe, cucumber, and squash, pumpkins and pumpkin seeds belong to the gourd or Cucurbitaceae family.

Nutty and salty with a crisp-chewy texture, pumpkin seeds make a nutritious and flavorful snack. Boiled, baked, or even raw, pumpkin seeds are packed full of vitamins, minerals and amino acids. Just one serving (about 1/4 cup) gives you almost half the recommended daily amounts of manganese, magnesium, phosphorus, iron, copper, vitamin K, and zinc. Pumpkin seeds are a good source of protein and monounsaturated fats.

Pumpkin seed oil has an excellent ratio of those Omega 3 and 6 fatty acids. Often flax and hemp oils are rated as the best with pumpkin seed also offering a great source of these valuable plant fats important for cellular function and many of the systems in the body. Basically keeps your coat glossy, skin clear and a puts a spring in your step.

About the Author

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