Lots of stuff is being thought of, anyway.
The Shower Curtain Rod
The King's Bathroom is a triumph, if I do say so myself. But I still have to buy the new shower curtain rod. Many have been considered. I saw an angled shower curtain rod, and realized that might be the best. But it's only made by one company, and they don't stock the 5 foot size. So back to curved rods. I've decided on the Proflo curved rod in brushed nickel. Unlike the Kohler and Moen shower rods, the Proflo rod is a single piece, so no transition in the middle (ever notice how makers of these rods also try to sell you ball bearing style shower curtain hooks…you might need those). There is a bit of adjustability in the end pieces, which are relatively large. Fortunately, the large end pieces also have a bump beyond which you can hook the last curtain hanger. It looks well designed, and in addition to coming in the Brushed Nickel finish I like (many others only offer stainless finish) it comes in two model numbers, one having 304 stainless steel and the other using 445 stainless steel. This was an interesting opportunity to learn about stainless steels. Mico Metals makes 445MR and discusses it here. The 300 series (304 and 316 manly) have the largest amount of nickel and are non-ferromagnetic. The 400 series have more Chromium and are mostly magnetic. It is sometimes claimed that the magnetic stainless steels aren't as resistant to rust, but it varies by the exact composition, and recent alloys are getting better. Stainless in the new 440 range has so much Chromium that it may be better than 316, which is better than 304. (Here's a another discussion of all types, though not including 445 specifically, only 446 which has the max processable chromium.) So I chose the 445 stainless over the 304 stainless model on the belief that it is better (despite less of the now expensive nickel). The 445 stainless is also "more like steel" though I'm not sure if that means it would be stronger. But overall the Proflo rod looks as good as any. Commercial supplier Bobrick makes straight 1 piece shower rods in 304 with simple end pieces. FWIW Signature Hardware (a retailer) also has a one piece curved rod, but with much smaller end pieces than the proflo--which is possibly an advantage. It almost looks like they just simplified the end piece of the Proflo (or took part of it off). With that unit, they say you may have to cut the rod, equally on both sides, to get it to fit any particular shower. While my builder might do that OK, he might also be angry about having to do it. I've also seen a number of other rods that look similar to the Proflo, but usually more expensive. I'm beginning to think of Proflo as one of the best brands btw, even though it is "just" the Ferguson house brand. My builder says he can install the rod for me this month.
I've started the bath and shower a little even without the rod. The 32x60 Bellwether is the perfect size for me, at 5'6" tall, and it is wonderfully comfortable for me. But unlike my previous thinking, it might not be so good for someone just a few inches taller. I can spread my legs out flat but only if I'm sitting somewhat up. So if you are 5'9" or taller, you might be well advised to get the 32x66 Bellwether. And if you're over 6'3", you'll have to get a 72" Tea for Two.
The Delta shower head is all I hoped for. It gives marvelous wetting without being too harsh or sloppy. It doesn't have a needle adjustment AND it doesn't need one--it's just right.
The Delta controls are nice, but the shower control is adjusted so I can just barely get the water hot enough. If I replace the water heater and go for higher temp (I don't think I should change the temp in my 8 year old water heater for reliability reasons) it would be just right.
The Bathtub Spout
When the bathtub spout is run the water goes straight to the drain. At first I was very disappointed and was thinking I might get a shorter spout. But when taking bath you put in the stopper anyway, and the metal stopper I have is ideal. The water hits the tippy top of the stainless stopper…and spreads around like a daisy. It couldn't be better than that. If I had a rubber stopper, however, I worry that the water might leach out oils in the stopper and pollute the bathtub a little (probably too small to measure with the most sensitive instruments). When I was first obsessing about this for a long while, I then laughed "and to think I'm not worried about the miles of scale the water travels past in the water piping!"
Anyway, I removed the lift-and-twist stopper (ProFlo) from the tub by turning it. So I can put a drain strainer over the bathtub drain as I usually do. Then I removed the stem from the stopper, and now I can use it just like a regular stopper. It works great…kept the water in the tub for a whole day without losing an inch. However it's slightly unstable when you are in the tub, and a glancing brush might cause it to tilt enough to start leaking water. Also I'm slightly worried about dropping the metal stopper on the tub…that could cause a nick. But I plan to be very careful with it.
My intent was that the water would shoot past the stopper. I had been thinking about a straight line from the spout (which tilts at a 30 degree angle from vertical). But the water doesn't have enough pressure to travel in a straight line…it curves down right into the drain.
Anyway, with the spout like it is now, the spout can also pour water on my feet, which is nice. If I got a shorter spout, I'd have to stretch to reach the water flow.
LED Lights
I've been playing a lot with LED lights. I got a set of hue adjustable and color temperature adjustable bulbs from LimitlessLED. They work very well, and I can adjust the color temperature to something I like better than most LED's. But the 9W Dual White was not really bright enough for the single lamp in the living room (though it didn't seem much different in total light output from the Verilux 20W fluorescent it replaced). I'd often noticed during my parties that when the sun goes down and the living room light automatically switches on with the Verilux bulb, everyone's faces looked even harder to see. The Limitless was a bit better, but not much. So then I got a CREE 100W equivalent LED (less than 20W actual) and immediately it was a revelation--so much brighter mainly--and it outputs as much light to the ceiling as around which is more helpful than anything (since the lamp is in a frosted torchiere). I think the Verilux output too much light to the sides and not enough to the top. I didn't really like the yellowish tone of the CREE at first. But my friend loved it and insisted that I keep it. I've be studying spectrograms of light bulb outputs and hope to write an article about just that. Bottom line, neither color temperature nor CRI as usually stated are as useful as I used to think. Pure incandescent bulb output (which has CRI of 100 at 2700K, fwiw) actually isn't as bad as I used to think. The CREE seems to have a much better spectrum than the first generation Philips LED bulb (which I hated), though I didn't think so at first. Funny the Home Depot website said they were Outdoor rated…it doesn't clearly say that though it does say they are not to be exposed to water or the elements. Inside a pair of floodlight shields…I think that's not considered "exposed to the weather" though you might also argue that it is. Only the 90W equivalent Philips said it was designed for outdoors on the box…and it had an awful plastic looking top where the GE is glass. They are wet rated but not to be "exposed to water." I may be pushing it. Once again I think that's true of most bulbs put into floodlight holders. The base of the bulb is protected from the elements by the enclosure and a rubber boot, pointed downwards.
For better security, for both me and my outdoor cat, I've changed the motion detector light on the north side to dusk-to-dawn. I'm replacing the halogen bulbs with 12W GE Reveal BR30 floods. These get higher marks than the CREE flood lights for reliability. I know the Reveal method doesn't actually give you anything like daylight (nor do "daylight" bulbs, though at least they try in a straightforward way) but I find I like what the Reveal does, and a less yellow looking security light is a plus IMO, I think it may make the yard look better inside and out at GE but I can't seem to link to it (combined sun and sky peaks in the blue green, very unlike incandescent which rises from blue to red in a straight line…and of course on into infrared with even more output), compared to Reveal, which is weird looking, but closer to sunlight than incandescent in having yellow about the same rather than vastly above blue green.
I finally ordered some Solux 3000k halogen edison style bulbs for the house. These might be great for vanity lighting. I had been thinking about trying the living room also. But I wouldn't go through very many for routine dawn-to-dusk security use as the living room lamp does now. An LED of some kind is bar far the best choice for that. Possibly I could have a separate fixture for the Solux.
Cat Safety
I've been making small changes to make the house more cat safe. I removed the old AV wires that used to run underneath the kitchen cabinet (cat liked to mess with those). Actually, they hadn't been used since I installed the new whole house A/V/D networking in August (!) 2013, but it just took until February 2015 for me to get around to removing the old wires. I also removed the package opening knives I used to keep at the bottom of the living room bookcase. I put those inside the kitchen HVAC cabinet.
I've discovered the need for locks for the bifold closet doors in the Queen's room, as the cat opens them when left in there. Kid'sRUS has nice bifold door locks that go at the top of the door. But my closet doors are actually much thicker than those must have been made for. Even adjusting the knob to the widest depth, they still fit too snugly to be moved easily. So I took out the inner adjusting piece, and replaced it with one or two strips of Velcro, which has about the right thickness and slides easily but not too easily.
The precarious "system" I had of "temporarily" suspending the Ethernet-to-HDMI extender from the TV via a pair of rubber bands gripping around the extender and through the hooks of the release cables of the TV wall mount…failed spectacularly, then was recast and kept losing one or the other bands due to slippage under consistent cat play.
My computer club friends came up with the solution…velcro. Actually I used the strongest grippy fasteners from Scotch, which seemed appropriate to simply holding something on hard (though, I did spend a lot of time pressing on the plastic of the TV…maybe Velco would have been as safe with less pressing, enough so I might have pressed less). I had to buy more because I mounted in a bad spot for attaching TV to wall. On Monday I reattached and rewired the ethernet and HDMI cables.
Kohler Toilet Seats…that sinking in feeling.
I love my new Kohler toilet with Flushmate. But the seat is horrible. It makes me feel like I'm falling in to the toilet, which raises my legs (the front edge of the toilet being the fulcrum) so that my legs can barely reach the floor. (After writing this, I decided the worst aspect of the seat is actually the raised front part because it hurts my legs, not the sinking in behind.)
Now I recall the plumber asking if I was sure I really wanted at comfort height toilet. (Of course…what a silly question.) Well perhaps Kohler designed these seats so it's almost like having a 2.5 inch taller toilet. So many people could get away with the shorter toilet with these seats.
But what a way. I hate it. The perfectly flat, thin, and smooth seat on my American Standard Champion 4 is far superior. I ordered a special Kohler "ergonomic" seat. It seemed better but still too edgy and falling in. So I ordered an American Standard, in the "Bone" color which Terry says is the matching color to Kohler Almond.
Update: The American Standard seat is everything I hoped for. The Bone color matches Kohler Almond perfectly. It fits OK though seems a mm or two smaller than the Kohler seat, which is fine. The seat is perfectly comfortable with no gratuitous slope. It seems like American Standard has not changed the design since I bought the Champion 4 toilet in 2009. And that's good, because it is just right.
I previously complained about how seats (the old wood and plastic kind) could have a bottom inward edge, and how that would hurt. Well, now, it almost seems Kohler has gone over backwards to avoid that…the bottom edge is a wrap around curve. But way way too much of a good thing, and it really isn't an issue with plastic toilets anyway due to the edge rounding.
Notably I started the King's Bath upgrades over a decade ago with a Kohler faucet, and now I have Kohler tub and toilet. But if they can't do the seat right, and I know American Standard does. At least I hope they still do.
Otherwise I like the color, style and massiveness of the Kohler toilet. It reminds my of a rich friend's house in the 1960's. But also, the detachable tank rests on the bottom plate leaving a 1/4 gap underneath the tank. Crud might build up under there and never get cleaned out. I like one piece toilets which avoid this issue (my plumber chose this toilet model after I told him I wanted comfort height and elongated bowl). Apparently my plumber likes two piece toilets and isn't worried about cleaning the gap--that's a customer issue. In the two-piece American Standard Champion 4 in the Hall Bath the back edge of the bowl rises so that the junction between seat and bowl is elevated and tight, removing the cleaning issue. Though for actually cleaning what's visible, the Kohler gives you a nice space to clean, and in use the bowl tends to stay cleaner than my Champion 4 (the Kohler has Flushmatic). I think the Kohler has a better porcelain. But no reason not to have better toilet seat design.
Here's an interesting Shaving Mirror.
The Shower Curtain Rod
The King's Bathroom is a triumph, if I do say so myself. But I still have to buy the new shower curtain rod. Many have been considered. I saw an angled shower curtain rod, and realized that might be the best. But it's only made by one company, and they don't stock the 5 foot size. So back to curved rods. I've decided on the Proflo curved rod in brushed nickel. Unlike the Kohler and Moen shower rods, the Proflo rod is a single piece, so no transition in the middle (ever notice how makers of these rods also try to sell you ball bearing style shower curtain hooks…you might need those). There is a bit of adjustability in the end pieces, which are relatively large. Fortunately, the large end pieces also have a bump beyond which you can hook the last curtain hanger. It looks well designed, and in addition to coming in the Brushed Nickel finish I like (many others only offer stainless finish) it comes in two model numbers, one having 304 stainless steel and the other using 445 stainless steel. This was an interesting opportunity to learn about stainless steels. Mico Metals makes 445MR and discusses it here. The 300 series (304 and 316 manly) have the largest amount of nickel and are non-ferromagnetic. The 400 series have more Chromium and are mostly magnetic. It is sometimes claimed that the magnetic stainless steels aren't as resistant to rust, but it varies by the exact composition, and recent alloys are getting better. Stainless in the new 440 range has so much Chromium that it may be better than 316, which is better than 304. (Here's a another discussion of all types, though not including 445 specifically, only 446 which has the max processable chromium.) So I chose the 445 stainless over the 304 stainless model on the belief that it is better (despite less of the now expensive nickel). The 445 stainless is also "more like steel" though I'm not sure if that means it would be stronger. But overall the Proflo rod looks as good as any. Commercial supplier Bobrick makes straight 1 piece shower rods in 304 with simple end pieces. FWIW Signature Hardware (a retailer) also has a one piece curved rod, but with much smaller end pieces than the proflo--which is possibly an advantage. It almost looks like they just simplified the end piece of the Proflo (or took part of it off). With that unit, they say you may have to cut the rod, equally on both sides, to get it to fit any particular shower. While my builder might do that OK, he might also be angry about having to do it. I've also seen a number of other rods that look similar to the Proflo, but usually more expensive. I'm beginning to think of Proflo as one of the best brands btw, even though it is "just" the Ferguson house brand. My builder says he can install the rod for me this month.
I've started the bath and shower a little even without the rod. The 32x60 Bellwether is the perfect size for me, at 5'6" tall, and it is wonderfully comfortable for me. But unlike my previous thinking, it might not be so good for someone just a few inches taller. I can spread my legs out flat but only if I'm sitting somewhat up. So if you are 5'9" or taller, you might be well advised to get the 32x66 Bellwether. And if you're over 6'3", you'll have to get a 72" Tea for Two.
The Delta shower head is all I hoped for. It gives marvelous wetting without being too harsh or sloppy. It doesn't have a needle adjustment AND it doesn't need one--it's just right.
The Delta controls are nice, but the shower control is adjusted so I can just barely get the water hot enough. If I replace the water heater and go for higher temp (I don't think I should change the temp in my 8 year old water heater for reliability reasons) it would be just right.
The Bathtub Spout
When the bathtub spout is run the water goes straight to the drain. At first I was very disappointed and was thinking I might get a shorter spout. But when taking bath you put in the stopper anyway, and the metal stopper I have is ideal. The water hits the tippy top of the stainless stopper…and spreads around like a daisy. It couldn't be better than that. If I had a rubber stopper, however, I worry that the water might leach out oils in the stopper and pollute the bathtub a little (probably too small to measure with the most sensitive instruments). When I was first obsessing about this for a long while, I then laughed "and to think I'm not worried about the miles of scale the water travels past in the water piping!"
Anyway, I removed the lift-and-twist stopper (ProFlo) from the tub by turning it. So I can put a drain strainer over the bathtub drain as I usually do. Then I removed the stem from the stopper, and now I can use it just like a regular stopper. It works great…kept the water in the tub for a whole day without losing an inch. However it's slightly unstable when you are in the tub, and a glancing brush might cause it to tilt enough to start leaking water. Also I'm slightly worried about dropping the metal stopper on the tub…that could cause a nick. But I plan to be very careful with it.
My intent was that the water would shoot past the stopper. I had been thinking about a straight line from the spout (which tilts at a 30 degree angle from vertical). But the water doesn't have enough pressure to travel in a straight line…it curves down right into the drain.
Anyway, with the spout like it is now, the spout can also pour water on my feet, which is nice. If I got a shorter spout, I'd have to stretch to reach the water flow.
LED Lights
I've been playing a lot with LED lights. I got a set of hue adjustable and color temperature adjustable bulbs from LimitlessLED. They work very well, and I can adjust the color temperature to something I like better than most LED's. But the 9W Dual White was not really bright enough for the single lamp in the living room (though it didn't seem much different in total light output from the Verilux 20W fluorescent it replaced). I'd often noticed during my parties that when the sun goes down and the living room light automatically switches on with the Verilux bulb, everyone's faces looked even harder to see. The Limitless was a bit better, but not much. So then I got a CREE 100W equivalent LED (less than 20W actual) and immediately it was a revelation--so much brighter mainly--and it outputs as much light to the ceiling as around which is more helpful than anything (since the lamp is in a frosted torchiere). I think the Verilux output too much light to the sides and not enough to the top. I didn't really like the yellowish tone of the CREE at first. But my friend loved it and insisted that I keep it. I've be studying spectrograms of light bulb outputs and hope to write an article about just that. Bottom line, neither color temperature nor CRI as usually stated are as useful as I used to think. Pure incandescent bulb output (which has CRI of 100 at 2700K, fwiw) actually isn't as bad as I used to think. The CREE seems to have a much better spectrum than the first generation Philips LED bulb (which I hated), though I didn't think so at first. Funny the Home Depot website said they were Outdoor rated…it doesn't clearly say that though it does say they are not to be exposed to water or the elements. Inside a pair of floodlight shields…I think that's not considered "exposed to the weather" though you might also argue that it is. Only the 90W equivalent Philips said it was designed for outdoors on the box…and it had an awful plastic looking top where the GE is glass. They are wet rated but not to be "exposed to water." I may be pushing it. Once again I think that's true of most bulbs put into floodlight holders. The base of the bulb is protected from the elements by the enclosure and a rubber boot, pointed downwards.
For better security, for both me and my outdoor cat, I've changed the motion detector light on the north side to dusk-to-dawn. I'm replacing the halogen bulbs with 12W GE Reveal BR30 floods. These get higher marks than the CREE flood lights for reliability. I know the Reveal method doesn't actually give you anything like daylight (nor do "daylight" bulbs, though at least they try in a straightforward way) but I find I like what the Reveal does, and a less yellow looking security light is a plus IMO, I think it may make the yard look better inside and out at GE but I can't seem to link to it (combined sun and sky peaks in the blue green, very unlike incandescent which rises from blue to red in a straight line…and of course on into infrared with even more output), compared to Reveal, which is weird looking, but closer to sunlight than incandescent in having yellow about the same rather than vastly above blue green.
I finally ordered some Solux 3000k halogen edison style bulbs for the house. These might be great for vanity lighting. I had been thinking about trying the living room also. But I wouldn't go through very many for routine dawn-to-dusk security use as the living room lamp does now. An LED of some kind is bar far the best choice for that. Possibly I could have a separate fixture for the Solux.
Cat Safety
I've been making small changes to make the house more cat safe. I removed the old AV wires that used to run underneath the kitchen cabinet (cat liked to mess with those). Actually, they hadn't been used since I installed the new whole house A/V/D networking in August (!) 2013, but it just took until February 2015 for me to get around to removing the old wires. I also removed the package opening knives I used to keep at the bottom of the living room bookcase. I put those inside the kitchen HVAC cabinet.
I've discovered the need for locks for the bifold closet doors in the Queen's room, as the cat opens them when left in there. Kid'sRUS has nice bifold door locks that go at the top of the door. But my closet doors are actually much thicker than those must have been made for. Even adjusting the knob to the widest depth, they still fit too snugly to be moved easily. So I took out the inner adjusting piece, and replaced it with one or two strips of Velcro, which has about the right thickness and slides easily but not too easily.
The precarious "system" I had of "temporarily" suspending the Ethernet-to-HDMI extender from the TV via a pair of rubber bands gripping around the extender and through the hooks of the release cables of the TV wall mount…failed spectacularly, then was recast and kept losing one or the other bands due to slippage under consistent cat play.
My computer club friends came up with the solution…velcro. Actually I used the strongest grippy fasteners from Scotch, which seemed appropriate to simply holding something on hard (though, I did spend a lot of time pressing on the plastic of the TV…maybe Velco would have been as safe with less pressing, enough so I might have pressed less). I had to buy more because I mounted in a bad spot for attaching TV to wall. On Monday I reattached and rewired the ethernet and HDMI cables.
Kohler Toilet Seats…that sinking in feeling.
I love my new Kohler toilet with Flushmate. But the seat is horrible. It makes me feel like I'm falling in to the toilet, which raises my legs (the front edge of the toilet being the fulcrum) so that my legs can barely reach the floor. (After writing this, I decided the worst aspect of the seat is actually the raised front part because it hurts my legs, not the sinking in behind.)
Now I recall the plumber asking if I was sure I really wanted at comfort height toilet. (Of course…what a silly question.) Well perhaps Kohler designed these seats so it's almost like having a 2.5 inch taller toilet. So many people could get away with the shorter toilet with these seats.
But what a way. I hate it. The perfectly flat, thin, and smooth seat on my American Standard Champion 4 is far superior. I ordered a special Kohler "ergonomic" seat. It seemed better but still too edgy and falling in. So I ordered an American Standard, in the "Bone" color which Terry says is the matching color to Kohler Almond.
Update: The American Standard seat is everything I hoped for. The Bone color matches Kohler Almond perfectly. It fits OK though seems a mm or two smaller than the Kohler seat, which is fine. The seat is perfectly comfortable with no gratuitous slope. It seems like American Standard has not changed the design since I bought the Champion 4 toilet in 2009. And that's good, because it is just right.
I previously complained about how seats (the old wood and plastic kind) could have a bottom inward edge, and how that would hurt. Well, now, it almost seems Kohler has gone over backwards to avoid that…the bottom edge is a wrap around curve. But way way too much of a good thing, and it really isn't an issue with plastic toilets anyway due to the edge rounding.
Notably I started the King's Bath upgrades over a decade ago with a Kohler faucet, and now I have Kohler tub and toilet. But if they can't do the seat right, and I know American Standard does. At least I hope they still do.
Otherwise I like the color, style and massiveness of the Kohler toilet. It reminds my of a rich friend's house in the 1960's. But also, the detachable tank rests on the bottom plate leaving a 1/4 gap underneath the tank. Crud might build up under there and never get cleaned out. I like one piece toilets which avoid this issue (my plumber chose this toilet model after I told him I wanted comfort height and elongated bowl). Apparently my plumber likes two piece toilets and isn't worried about cleaning the gap--that's a customer issue. In the two-piece American Standard Champion 4 in the Hall Bath the back edge of the bowl rises so that the junction between seat and bowl is elevated and tight, removing the cleaning issue. Though for actually cleaning what's visible, the Kohler gives you a nice space to clean, and in use the bowl tends to stay cleaner than my Champion 4 (the Kohler has Flushmatic). I think the Kohler has a better porcelain. But no reason not to have better toilet seat design.
Here's an interesting Shaving Mirror.
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