Helpful Hints

Homeowner Helpful Hints

Topic	Information
Crawl Spaces	Units in Lakebridge #4 have a small screen vent in the crawl space under the unit. This vent should be covered with insulation in the fall to keep cold air out of the crawl space.. Please remove the covering in the spring for ventilation. There is a shutoff valve for outside water pipes in the crawl space. This faucet should be turned off in the fall and turned on in the spring to prevent pipe freezing during the cold months.
Watering Lawns	Homeowners who water the lawns near their unit may be reimbursed for the cost of watering over their regular bills. Please submit your summer bill, along with the 2 previous bills. The association will pay the difference between normal usage and summer watering.
Bird Problems?	Want to discourage birds from nesting on window ledges? There are caulk-like products which can be put along the top of the window ledge to keep birds off. Ace Hardware sells one called "Bird Repellant" by Tanglefoot
Outdoor Lighting	Choosing lights for your outdoor fixtures...Articles in the Star Tribune have included the following tips for choosing compact fluorescent lights (CFL) which may not always perform best in cold weather. There are special CFLs which have a cold weather ballast. Labels should have a temperature rating. Even the cold weather rated bulbs may not give as much light in the winter as in the summer. Watch packaging for CFLs you use in your home as well. Different bulbs are suited for different purposes such as dimmer switches, contained or recessed fixtures, chandeliers, and appliances. Please recycle used CFLs.
Gutters	Gutters are a homeonwer option and responsibility. If you have gutters, please maintain them and clean them as needed. Submit an Architectural Control Committee (ACC) form if you want to add gutters to your building.
Exterior Groundswork	Our grounds are enhanced by the many plantings done and maintained by individual homeowners. Please remember that any work done to the exterior of your building or the area around your building must be approved by the Architectural Control Committee (ACC). There is a form to submit elsewhere on this website.
Garbage Pickup	Please keep your garbage containers inside your fence or garage when not out for pickup. Our pickup day is Monday. Garbage in covered or tied containers or bags can be put out on the curb after 5pm on Sunday. Make sure that everything is secure and will not blow around before pickup time. When Monday is a Holiday, garbage will be picked up on Tuesday.
Sanitary Sewers (Tips from Roto Rooter)	GARBAGE DISPOSAL NO-NO'S Do not dispose of any stringy vegetables such as celery, asparagas, rhubarb, artichokes, corn husks, carrot tops, or beet tops in the garbage disposal. For rice or pasta be frugal with the quantities and feed plenty of water for one minute after the disposal has stopped grinding. The same goes for peelings such as carrots, potatoes, turnips, parsnips, apple, bananas, oranges and pineapples. Absolutely positively NO GREASE should EVER go down the kitchen sink drain line! It will harden in the pipes. Put grease into a jar and throw it out. Wipe greasy plates and pans off with a paper towell before washing them. Use a lint trap on laundry discharge hose. Use a hair snare for the bathtup abd shower drains. ONLY TOILET PAPER should go into a toilet bowl. No pre-moistened towelets, baby wipes, feminine hygiene products, kellenes or tissues of any kind, paper towerls, Q-tips or dental floss.
Some Notes on Plants	I am not sure what the source of this information is, but it is available in a Word document and as a PDF file. If someone would be willing to retype these three pages and email them back to me it would be appreciated. Presently they are just scans of typed pages.