Redneck Smoke Detector

We love all of our friends, clients and family.  So, we'd like to remind you to install a fresh battery in each smoke detector in your home(s).

And, for our special friends in Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi - Please, please give your Jiffy Pop Smoke Detector a good shake to keep it fresh...

Anyone else is sales?  Anyone?  Anyone?

SAVE MONEY, instantly, on your energy bill.

House A - Good attic insulation - White frosted roof

House B - Poor attic insulation - spotty frost

On an early frosty morning, take a look at your roof and other roofs as you drive through your neighborhood.

Some roofs will be frost or snow covered and others will appears to have melted the frost away.


In our area of Coastal South Carolina, this is mainly due to heat escaping through the ceiling and into the attic because of poor ceiling insulation.  The escaping heat warms the roof shingles & melts the frost & snow.


Be friendly to your wallet. Your local Electric Company is charging more and more for the gas & electricity to heat your home.  When  your heat escapes through the ceiling, you spend more money to replace the lost heat.


An immediate and inexpensive solution to help you keep more of your money is to add attic insulation.


A confident DIY'er can tackle attic insulation as a fairly simple one day project.  If you'd rather hire someone, then use a licensed contractor or insulation company to help you.  (see our website www.strockenterprises.com for the 10 things to know before you hire someone to work on your home).

What are your choices for attic insulation?
You have several good choices for insulation in your attic.
Blown fiberglass - Quick, cost effective, good r-value if installed properly.
Blown cellulose - Same as above, but can compress quickly, especially in humid attics
Fiberglass batt - Good r-value, but more intensive labor required for proper install on existing attics.
Expanding foam insulation - Good energy savings with significant upfront cost and other drawbacks.
Recycled denim & water bottles - Newer "green" products.  I haven't used these yet.


With a little time & money, you can significantly reduce your energy bill.

Note:  The photos above were taken on 12/27/2010 at 8am.  Each roof is the Northern facing roof.  And, each house was built around 1950.  House A has had blown fiberglass installed in the attic within the last 8 years.  House B hasn't had any improvements within the past 10+ years.  The heavy frost seen of House A indicates that heat from the occupied space is not conducting into the attic because of insulation.  The melted frost seen on House B indicates that quite a bit of the heat from the occupied space is conducting through the ceiling and into the attic.  This raises the ambient air temperature in the attic, the roof framing & sheathing & shingles which causes the frost to melt.

HVAC Maintenance

Changing the air filters in your home air conditioning units is the least expensive thing you can do to maintain your cooling system. Dirt and air pollutants can damage your health and damage the equipment requiring expensive repair or replacement of the system. 


A clogged air filter not only allows more dust to circulate throughout your house it also makes your HVAC system work harder to pull the air through the filter therefore causing your power bill to go up.  There are many different types of filters available now - Everything from the cheap old blue filters to fancy Hepa type filters that are supposed to clean everything out of the air.  If you have sever allergies the expensive filters may be the thing for you...However keep in mind those filters are much thicker than the average filter - therefore causing the unit to work harder to pull the air through.  The filter we like to use, and think is the best thing for HVAC maintenance are actually the chespest ones you can buy.  They do the job perfectly, and still allow air to easily pass through.


Filters should be changed out every 30 days.  It's the easiest way to maintain your HVAC unit.

Something Nice

Every now and then you get a thank you out of nowhere.  It's always a great feeling.  Just wanted to share....See email below

-----Original Message-----
From: Chris Nicholas [mailto:chris@charlestonstumpstompers.com
] 
Sent: Friday, December 03, 2010 11:22 AM
To: trey@strockenterprises.com

Subject: Thank you for the wonderful job

Dear Trey, 

I want to tell you how impressed I am with your company and the job that 
was completed for me.  I could not be more pleased.  

The men who worked on this project could not have done more to make it 
easy and comfortable for me to get through my remodeling.  Herman was so 
kind and helpful, something he obviously has passed on to his young 
workers, as they, too were so nice to have around as they worked.  
Thomas did a perfect job of overseeing things and making it all flow.  I 
could not have asked for a more positive experience. Before running into 
your company at the Home Show, I thought this whole process might have 
been a headache.  It turned out to be a pleasure.  Without hesitation, 
for any future projects, you will be the company I call.

Thank you so much,

Ann McGinnis

We finished this project up almost 3 months ago, so to recieve this email was quite a nice surprise.  We truely do have the most wonderful clients.

Unlimited Possibilities...

Well after several years of studying, test taking, filling out forms, and filling out MORE forms we have a newly Licensed contractor in our midst.  Today Trey found out that the State has finally approved his licensure as an Unlimited General Contractor.  Stay tuned for more exciting news in the coming weeks.  Congratulations Trey!