Comfortable House

Fiberon, a leading manufacturer of composite decking, has created the ultimate marriage of beauty and durability with its new tropical hardwood colors for Horizon™ composite decking. These new colors have the dramatic wood tones of highly desirable tropical hardwood, and Fiberon offers the industry’s first 10-year Stain and Fade warranty, demonstrating the products ability to provide lasting beauty.

“This is hands down the best composite decking product I’ve ever seen,” said Tom Kraeutler, a nationally syndicated radio host for The Money Pit Home Improvement Radio Show (www.moneypit.com) and the Home Improvement Editor for AOL. “I’ve reviewed many composite decking products over the years and none have been able to achieve both the natural look and top performance of Fiberon’s Horizon.”

“This additional tropical hardwood look for Horizon decking represents the marriage of the highest beauty to the best performance, clearly demonstrating Fiberon’s commitment to bringing innovative products to the marketplace,” said Chris H. Beyer, Vice President of Marketing for Fiberon. “Homeowners are looking for products that are an extension of their home, raising their interest in the appearance of ipe or mahogany, but know they need an easy-to-maintain composite decking product. This perfectly provides that exotic look but with the best stain, fade, mold and scratch resistance in the wood alternative and composite decking category.”

Charged with creating the ultimate in beauty and long-lasting performance, Fiberon’s product development team united the exceptional stain-, fade-, mold- and scratch-resistant attributes of their leading Horizon composite decking, made possible through its PermaTech™ surface technology, with the multi-chromatic tropical hardwood look of its composite decking with stunning tropical colors.

Horizon is now available in two exotic hardwood colors, Ipe and Rosewood. Horizon decking will continue to be available in four solid colors, including Sand, Brick, Bronze and Slate. Boards can be ordered in square edge or grooved profiles. Grooved boards allow for the optional Phantom™ hidden fastener system for fastener-free deck surfaces.

Fiberon Horizon composite decking is sold to professional contractors and dealers through a national network of distributors. To learn more, visit www.fiberondecking.com, call 800-573-8841 or send an email to info@fibercomposites.com

About Fiberon

Fiberon is a leading manufacturer of composite and PVC decking, railing and fencing products used in homes and light commercial construction across North America. Part of the Fiber Composites, LLC family, the Fiberon brand product line is designed specifically for professional contractors. Fiberon’s polymer chemists and extrusion professionals employ the latest technology to constantly innovate, using the finest raw materials coupled with leading manufacturing processes to ensure best-in-class quality. The company was founded in 1997 and is privately owned with manufacturing operations in North Carolina and Idaho.

As homeowners increasingly desire greater comfort, enjoyment and control—especially in an economy that encourages cocooning—new technologies in home automation continue to emerge.

“Electrical contractors around the country are increasingly specifying, designing and installing home automation technologies and systems that can help lower energy costs in addition to enhancing lifestyle and appearance,” said John Maisel, publisher of Electrical Contractor magazine at www.ecmag.com, published by the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA), Bethesda, Md.

According to a recent Electrical Contractor article, new and emerging residential innovations include:

• self-powered, wireless light switches that can be placed anywhere and moved anytime for a whole-house lighting control system—each battery-free switch houses a small “energy harvester” that converts mechanical energy at the flip of the switch into a radio signal that controls the home’s lights;
• wireless tabletop lighting keypads;
• new generations of solar tubes that capture, reflect and disperse UV-filtered sunlight;
• UL-approved dimmable outlets and plugs;
• wireless, motorized blinds and shades in combination with a an intelligent controller to reduce heat gain and fabric damage from UV rays;
• solar collection systems that integrate with the electric system to help save on energy and lower energy bills;
• wired and wireless fan speed controls;
• residential lighting that is thoroughly integrated into appliances and located closer to the task, replacing architectural downlights which needlessly illuminate the entire room;
• home offices with simple, direct/indirect lighting fixtures for computer areas;
• LEDs that can be easily mounted in areas otherwise considered off-limits, such as stairs; and
• wine displays highlighted with low-heat source LEDS without impacting wine aging.

According to Electrical Contractor, electric lighting control and motorized shade systems make the energy-saving benefits of daylight harvesting possible—including reduced maintenance and replacement costs over the home’s lifespan, energy conservation, improved occupant health, productivity and greater design flexibility.

Published by the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA), Bethesda, Md., Electrical Contractor magazine reaches 85,000+ electrical contractors and more than 65,900 electrical contracting locations, more than any other industry publication. Telephone: (301) 657-3110. Web site: www.ecmag.com.

Adding shutters is among the most effective and simple ways homeowners can elevate curb appeal, create an inviting façade and provide colorful accents. With today’s highest-quality shutters, uncommon architectural detail and customized designs offer even greater enhancements.

More homeowners are choosing to create exceptional looks with distinctive shutters, such as those from Atlantic Premium Shutters™. Handcrafted to an individual window’s specifications, these shutters provide beautifully-balanced symmetry, perfectly matching the scale of windows and walls to create a picturesque scene.

Available in 40 colors and numerous styles, Atlantic Premium Shutters make a dramatic visual statement, adding an elegant touch to exteriors that feature brick, stucco, stone veneer, premium vinyl or fiber cement. From homes in historic neighborhoods to pristine estates near the water’s edge, shutters like these add vibrancy to a variety of architectural styles ranging from Neocolonial, to Tudor or Spanish. Discerning homeowners can also choose to have colors customized for their shutters.

Offering much more than typical immobile shutters, those from Atlantic are historically-accurate and architecturally-correct, mounted with handsome matte-black finished stainless-steel hardware that delivers simple elegance and functionality. The hardware adds striking dimension by setting the shutters off from the home, also allowing a hint of the home’s exterior cladding to be visible between the shutter and window to provide a noticeable fine touch.

“Many of today’s new home designs point toward a return to a bygone era – one in which certain homes evoked an architecturally significant ambience,” said Jonathan Wierengo, Director of Marketing for The Tapco Group™, maker of Atlantic Premium Shutters. “In cities like Charlotte and New Orleans, as well as regions such as the Northeast or Atlantic Coast, functional shutters are part of the local motif. It’s important to respect that design continuity, while offering upgrades in the newest technologies.”

Combining traditional character with modern design, Atlantic’s shutters provide enhanced durability. Unlike wooden shutters, these composite shutters require no maintenance or worrying about warping, rotting or painting. Atlantic’s Architectural Collection shutters are crafted from marine-grade fiberglass, structural-grade PVC and composite wood, offering a limited lifetime structural warranty and a 15-year finish warranty. The Classic Collection of composite wood shutters offers a 10-year limited warranty for structure and finish.

All Atlantic Premium Shutters deliver uncompromising detail with crisp lines and smooth surfaces. The Architectural Collection’s Raised-Panel and Louvered-Colonial designs capture attention with their deep dimension and interesting shadows. In addition, these styles can be personalized with options like custom rail locations or arch tops. The option of rabbeted edges with beading is also available, to provide a perfectly-matching fit when shutters are closed. The Architectural Collection’s Bahama Shutters showcase tastefully simple style, allowing cool breezes and soft diffused light to pass through. Popular in coastal and desert areas, these shutters are crafted of pultruded fiberglass and are mounted with aluminum hardware.

Atlantic’s Combination-style shutters allow homeowners to express their full creativity, by mixing and matching Raised-Panel and Louvered-Colonial design elements for a one-of-a-kind appearance. Options include vertical mullions, faux tilt rods or extra panels. The possibilities with Atlantic’s colors and styles are virtually endless. In fact, cut-out shapes such as a heart, cactus or anchor can be custom-ordered.

Atlantic’s Classic Collection features the popular Board and Batten, and Faux Louver designs. Classic Collection options include z-bars, an extra batten and arch tops to add personalized touches for the stylish Board and Batten look.

From neutral colors like Driftwood and Chelsea Gray, to bold shades like Cascade and Roycraft Copper Red, Atlantic’s available spectrum features a full array of expressive colors. The 40-color palette includes Tricone Black and Evergreen at the dark end, while rich shades like Plum Creek, Stratford Blue and Garnet are offered. Light colors include the softness of Sand and Classical White. For a one of a kind appearance, custom colors are also available.

Both Architectural and Classic Collection shutters are offered in hurricane storm-rated options that add a level of protection for coastal homeowners. Atlantic Premium Shutters are products of The Tapco Group. For more information, visit www.atlanticpremiumshutters.com or call 1-866-288-2726.