Appliances

The track lighting had been installed and you'll see glimpses of that over the next couple of weeks. I bought a very simple style of track light spots — the least expensive, too — at the local Home Depot where they had set me a special chair by the customer service counter (just kidding, but barely). Then the fan! I spent a lot of time selecting just the right fan and finally selected a beautiful Minka-Aire Concept 1 fan with an optional center light and reversible directions. I love it.

I also had to find the right air conditioner / heater. I needed a unit that would easily heat and cool the large space, be energy and cost efficient and relatively quiet. I was happy to find a good Fedders model AEY 18F7G from a great company in California, Genie Air. Even with shipping, I paid a lower price than I would have anywhere else with any sort of discount. It's not rated the most efficient but not the least either. It's a 9.7 and considering the high ceiling and the cement slab foundation does a damned good job. I think that radiant floor heat is the way to go but for this project that was not an option. I turn the unit off after it cools down or heats up the place. Under 40 degrees, especially down around freezing, I have to keep it running when the sun is not shining. I have good passive solar on sunny days from the south windows and door in the back room.



For hot water at the sink, I bought an Ariston GL2.5 Point-of-Use Electric Mini-Tank Water Heater through Amazon where I found it at the best price. It's perfect and gives me just the right amount of hot water to wash the glasses and plates.