Protect Your Car From Road Salt – Auto
Protect Your Car From Road Salt
Marilyn Pokorney
Every winter drivers should take active steps to protect their car from road salt.
Road salt is necessary for safe transportation when snow and ice accumulate on roads and highways and cause dangerous driving conditions.
Salt was first used in the 1930s in snow and ice control to make roads safe and passable by creating a lower freezing temperature of the water. It is the most available and cost-effective de-icer. It is easy to store, handle, and apply.
Some 15 million tons of de-icing salt is used each year in the U.S. and about 4-5 million in Canada.
Salt keeps snow and ice from bonding to the pavement and to allow snowplows to remove accumulations quickly and efficiently.
Studies show that salt use reduces accidents by 88%.
Washing your car during wintertime is one of the best things you can do to maintain the value of your car. Mud, salt, rain, sleet, and snow can damage your cars clear finish. Mud and salt caked on the undercarriage promote rust, especially in older vehicles, and can also affect how well your car drives.
To prevent winter damage, it is recommended that you wash your vehicle every 10 days. Wash your vehicle whenever the temperature is 40 degrees F. and above. Do it during the day so that it dries completely before freezing evening temperatures begin.
Immediately after washing the vehicle, open and close all doors, the trunk, and other parts of the car with locks several times before parking it to prevent locks from freezing.
Always wash your car right after a snow or rain shower. Rain and snow collect pollutants in the air and drop them as acid rain which can damage the cars protective finish. Snow and sleet also include the corrosive road salt.
Wash the underside of your car often during the winter months in car washes that do not use recycled water.
Avoid driving through large puddles of standing water which is saturated with road salt.
Any paint chips that are larger than the tip of a pen should be taken care of immediately.
Wax your car at least every six months. Put a good heavy coat of wax on your car before the winter storms hit. This heavy coat will protect your paint from the corrosive salt and cold temperatures.
More frequent waxes are needed if your car is red, black or white because these colors are more susceptible to acid rain and UV rays.
When spring time rolls around, treat your car to a good wax job again. Be sure to remove all road grime and salt off of the car before you begin waxing.
For more information:
http://www.apluswriting.net/gasmiles/5starshine.html
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About The Author
Marilyn Pokorney
Freelance writer of science, nature, animals and the environment.
Also loves crafts, gardening, and reading.
Website: http://www.apluswriting.net
marilynp@nctc.net
To Salt or Not to Salt Your Pond… – Home
To Salt or Not to Salt Your Pond...
Brett Fogle
The important question of whether or not to add salt to your pond is often confusing for beginners and forgotten by experienced pond-keepers. To newbies and pros alike we have this to say:
"Add Salt Today to Keep the Fish Doctor Away"
True, there are some negative effects of higher salt levels on plants in the pond, but overall we think it is absolutely the very best thing you can add to your pond in terms of keeping your fish happy and healthy. Salt acts as a natural stress coat and essentially thickens the slime coat on the fishs body - which is its own natural defense system against bacteria and parasites.
Salt is also very effective in killing bacteria and parasites in the pond. When added in proper doses, salting your pond can dramatically reduce the threat of disease affecting your fish.
Its just like with humans - we are always exposed to the common cold cells in their body, but can usually resist if their immune system is strong. Similarly, pond fish and KOI are always exposed to some degree of parasite and bacteria presence in the pond, but by keeping their immune system strong and their slime coat thick, you shouldnt have any problems.
Pond fish actively maintain a natural balance of electrolytes in their body fluids. Electrolytes such as potassium, sodium, chloride, calcium and magnesium are removed from the water by chloride cells located in the gills. These electrolytes are essential for the uptake of oxygen and release of carbon dioxide and ammonium across gill membranes.
The lack of electrolytes can cause serious health problems to the fish. Pond Salt is an all natural salt, providing the essential electrolytes fish need to survive. Pond Salt is not just a table salt sodium chloride . It is made from evaporated sea water. Evaporated sea water contains the necessary electrolytes pond fish need.
How Pond Salt helps Improve Gill Function to Reduce Stress....
During periods of disease and stress, healthy gill function is disturbed. This can lead to the loss of electrolytes through the gills, sometimes called osmotic shock. Osmotic shock interrupts healthy gill function by reducing the intake of oxygen and the release of carbon dioxide and ammonium from the fish. Pond Salt reduces the risk of osmotic shock by supplying natural electrolytes through the chloride cells in the gills.
Nitrite Toxicity
Overcrowding and overfeeding can lead to elevated nitrite levels especially in newly set-up ponds. The nitrite ion NO 2 enters the gills and prevents the blood from carrying oxygen resulting in nitrite toxicity or "methemoglobinemia". Pond Salt will temporarily block the toxic effect of nitrite.
All natural Pond Salt is safe and non-toxic to all pond fish when used as directed. Pond Salt can be used safely with Pond Care water conditioners, filtration materials and fish foods.
Directions for Use:
1. When used as a general tonic for fish, and as a stress reducer, add 2 -1/2 cups full 728g of Pond Salt for each 100 gallons 378 L of pond water. Sprinkle salt evenly around the perimeter of the pond. Avoid any contact between salt crystals and pond plants. If this is not feasible, pre-dissolve salt first.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Once added to a pond, salt does not evaporate and is not filtered out. Pond Salt should only be added as directed; with each water change, or when fish have been treated with medications.
2. When used to reduce stress in separate treatment tanks or during fish transportation, use 4 tablespoons full 95.2g of Pond Salt for each 10 gallons 37.8L of water.
For the health of your pond and environment, it is important that you test pond water regularly. We recommend Aquarium Pharmaceuticals Dry-Tab Master Test Kit for Ponds to test for pH, ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate.
For more information about Pond Salt, click here:
http://www.macarthurwatergardens.com/Additives/pondcare_pondsalt.html
About The Author
Brett Fogle is the owner of MacArthur Water Gardens and several pond-related websites including macarthurwatergardens.com and pond-filters-online.com. He also publishes a free monthly newsletter called PondStuff! with a reader circulation of over 9,000 pond owners. To sign up for the free newsletter and receive a complimentary New Pond Owners Guide for joining, just visit MacArthur Water Gardens at www.macarthurwatergardens.com.
Low Salt Diet Tips for Kids and Adults – Diet
Low Salt Diet Tips for Kids and Adults
Laura Bankston
Our bodies only require a small amount of salt for proper nutrition. But the fact is that we all, including our children, consume way more salt -or rather, the sodium - than we should.
Why should we care how much salt sodium our children consume
Too much salt sodium creates risk for high blood pressure and higher risk for heart attack. And, we women know salts affect on bloating!
The eating habits of our children will continue in their adulthood - and all too frequently less healthy than they were reared when they face busy schedules they havent expereinced before.
What is the recommended daily intake of salt sodium
The adult recommended daily intake of sodium in the U.S. is less than 2,400 mg. But, you may be interested to note the the daily recommendation in the UK is less than 1,600 mg! Thats quite a difference.
So, who do you trust
It doesnt take much shopping and looking at the nutrition information on foods to find that they hold a LOT of sodium.
I personally think that the governments recommendation of sodium intake is influenced by prepared food production.
I think that theyve taken into account how Americans can reduce sodium intake without too much impact on the economy.
But, then again, depending on which association you check, youll find different recommendations from them all.
There are no intake recommendations for children, but I think that they are important due to the formation of eating habits that I mentioned above.
So, whats a person to do
Of course, a person should follow the advice of his/her doctor.
But, for me - a healthy adult with great blood pressure - I just use my common sense to guide me.
Tips for easy, common sense salt reduction:
Use less salt than recommended in a recipe. Ive never found it to affect the taste. Most of the time I totally leave it out - especially if its accompanied by a product that already contains salt/sodium.
Dont let your kids salt at the table. The only time salt is on my dinner table is when company is over. I think that my two younger kids dont even realize that people salt their food at the table. If you do decide to let your kids have additional salt - put it on for them. It comes out faster than they realize and its hard to see!
Check the nutrition label of every food that you buy. You will quickly become aware of how much sodium is in cereal, bread, canned goods, bacon, frozen foods, etc. Having an awareness of how much sodium you are consuming will make reduction much easier
Buy low-salt or low-sodium versions of a product. Why eat the extra sodium when youll adjust to the difference in taste if any in a few bites
Eat more fresh fruits and vegetables.
Substitute salt with other spices that will give food flavor without adding sodium
Forming good "salting" habits now, will make things a lot easier for your children in the future. Do it for them, and youll be doing it for you too!
About The Author
Laura Bankston is author of Internationally selling Cooking with Kids Curriculum: