Category Archives: Useful Tips

Advantages of Using Paper Bags

Although paper bags were introduced in the year 1852, it was not widely used for packaging until recently. Most of us are accustomed to the use of plastic bags to carry food, clothes, and other items, even though we are aware of their toxic features. The ever-increasing use of plastic bags is choking the planet as it takes millions of years to decompose. Due to the consistent threat posed by plastic bags, people are gradually shifting from the use of plastic to paper bags.

Benefits of Paper Bags

Recyclable and reusable

Unlike plastic bags, which tend to remain on the surface of the earth forever, paper bags that are made from renewable resources are completely recyclable. As it is biodegradable, it can be reused. Moreover, paper bags can be easily recycled with the minimum amount of energy. Since it is biodegradable, it hardly poses any threat to the environment.

Inexpensive and practical

Paper bags are less expensive in comparison to their counterparts. Today these bags are used in schools, colleges, shopping malls, and even grocery stores, as it is affordable. It is quite similar to the use of newspapers and books as they can be recycled too without spending a fortune on recycling techniques. Most of the stores pack clothes and other accessories in paper bags due to eco-friendly reasons. It has emerged as the most practical choice among millions of consumers all around the world.

Variety of sizes and styles

With the surge in the use of paper bags, there is a sudden increase in the availability of diverse kinds of paper bags in all styles, sizes, and colors. These bags are trendy and stylish apart from the fact that are free from toxic chemicals and safe for the environment. Paper bags are available in stylish colors and designs to carry clothes and other accessories. It is also used to brand clothes, jewelry, and other items to promote business.

High quality and aesthetic appeal

Most of the paper bags are designed with glassine liners to ensure the freshness of food products such as coffee beans, tea leaves, and nuts. As these bags guarantee quality and resilience, it is widely used to pack all kinds of food products. Some of the companies also ensure that their paper bags have a unique aesthetic appeal to promote brand awareness. Bags made of paper are easy to hold and can accommodate a plethora of accessories.

Retains freshness of food items

Paper bags are now largely used to pack and store food items as it helps to retain their freshness. These bags are designed to store items such as coffee, tea, nuts, and snacks, which tend to lose their flavor and quality with the passage of time.

Paper bags are the best pick for those who care for eco-friendly, affordable, and safe products.

Nine Tips for Choosing a Video Production Company

A video production company makes all differences in video style, quality, and effectiveness of the final video. Even though you have the concepts, purpose, and overall video look, a video production agency has the right tools to interpret those in the video. They include various elements in video like sound effects, animation, etc. Also, they have the relevant knowledge and experience to meet your video marketing requirements. If you are looking for a video production company in Pittsburgh, type in the internet search using the keywords video production in Pittsburgh and you will get quite a lot of them. Comparing the various resources, work, and capacities of various video production companies, you can get a better insight into the requirement of time and budget. You can choose the company as per your demand and work closely with them to get the perfect video matching your brand.

Let’s discuss a few tips to choose a video production company.

1) Work quality – Most video production house has employees to save on overhead expenses and you get the right result. When you decide to hire a video production company, ensure that you are aware of their working style and that are apt for your working requirements and understand your requirements.

2) Video’s destination is most important – It is important to keep in mind where your videos will be shown as it impacts the video duration. For example, if the video destination is YouTube, then it can be more than two minutes. However, in other social media channels like Facebook, a shorter video is suitable to retain the viewer’s attention. Ensure that the video production company you select is adaptive to your requirement of video duration according to the destination.

3) Don’t depend too much on demo reels – Video production companies use demo reels to project their services. However, it is safe to check the company’s portfolio and its latest work. This gives you an idea of what you should be expecting when you give them your video production work. If their latest work does not match your requirement, then discuss with them your requirement to attain the right final video.

4) Select and get bids from a minimum of three production companies – Pricing is an important factor for any company. Hence, shortlist three production services and request quotations. Evaluate each one of them for your quality. Every company might not have the right equipment to meet your expectations. Request bids for the kind of video you require from them.

5) Have a detailed discussion – Once you have narrowed down the companies, get into a discussion with them. Set up a face-to-face meeting and assess where they can fit your requirement. Understand their working style and strength, and set clear expectations of yours. Give them your requirements clearly for the video production.

6) Check the timelines – When you work with vendors, managing deadlines is a must. Check on their deadlines upfront and in what fashion they will deliver. Set up some buffer room when you give a deadline as there can be some area for edit. Set the deadline expectations clearly on them.

7) Increase your budget – Most video production companies think that they get requirements only for a single video. However, this should not be the case. When you connect with them, prepare many materials for multiple videos. Paying for one day shoot, you can utilize it for shots.

8) Be involved – Ensure that you are actively participating in the video production, right from the shoot day. This is because you spend a lot of money on your video production. If you participate right from the beginning, then the editing process takes less time. Keep a designated person to communicate with the production team.

9) Long-term plan design – If you have multiple project requirements, then you can save time by hiring the same video production team. By working with you, they would have understood your video style and it is easier for them to take subsequent videos.

Conclusion – These tips will help you next time you are looking for a video production company.

Questions (and Answers) About Kitchen Hood Cleaning

Restaurants or other locations that have commercial kitchens are a lot of complex systems working together in order to make a relatively efficient business. It’s important that none of the systems fall into disrepair, and something that can be forgotten by many is the fact that commercial kitchen hoods have to do a lot of work. They push steam, smokes, and smells out of a kitchen, and build up grease and gunk in the process. Any commercial kitchen manager should search for a “commercial kitchen hood cleaning near me” before even opening the kitchen initially, so they are ready for the day they need the cleaning. There are probably many questions a commercial kitchen manager may have before they find the right cleaning company. Below are some questions (and answers) about kitchen hood cleaning.

Do Most Commercial Kitchen Managers Know About Kitchen Hood Cleaning?

Yes, in fact most do know about it, because if they have gotten to the point of being a manager, they should have either experience in previous kitchens, or have taken extended education courses for the management of restaurants or commercial kitchens.

What Causes Kitchen Managers to Look for Commercial Kitchen Hood Cleaning Near Me?

The number one reason that causes a manager to look for hood cleaning is the fire department, or fire marshal inspections. Inspections in commercial kitchens are semi-regular occurrences, and if the inspector is not happy with the amount of grease and grime build up in a kitchen hood, they will immediately inform a manager they need a kitchen hood cleaning, or risk being fined, or shut down.

Hood cleaning will also be required by insurance companies (with proof of paperwork), if the kitchen starts experiencing exhaust issues, or if a property manager requires it regularly.

How do Estimates Work?

Estimates are generally started by calling the commercial kitchen hood cleaning near me service, or filling out an online form on their website. The company will then contact the manager and set up a site inspection, which will result in a cost estimate, and recommendation for cleaning frequency.

What Affects Estimate Pricing?

There are numerous factors that will affect an estimate from a commercial kitchen hood cleaning near me company such as: Size of kitchen hood, and quantity of kitchen hoods. Some locations may only have 10-12 feet of duct, a single fan, and only a few filters, while other locations could have hundreds of feet of ductwork, and dozens of fans and filters.

How Often Should Kitchen Hoods Be Cleaned?

The cleaning company will make recommendations for cleaning schedules. However, at bare minimum for any commercial kitchen, it should be done at least once a year. Insurance companies, fire marshals, local, state, and federal regulations will all factor into the frequency.

What is the Best Time for Kitchen Hood Cleaning?

Ideally kitchen hood cleaning should be done during hours in which the kitchen is not in use. For some places this may mean the morning, while others it’s a specific day of the week they are closed. For businesses open 24/7, the cleaning company will ask for the least busy time of the week, and provide a 3 hour window for the cleaning.

How Long Does a Kitchen Hood Cleaning Take?

The length of time for a hood cleaning depends on the amount of duct work, and number of units that needs to be cleaned. For most restaurants this will be somewhere between 2 and 3 hours for a team of technicians to complete.

What Gets Cleaned During a Kitchen Hood Cleaning?

● The back wall up to the equipment line

● The hood itself

● The canopy of the hood

● The filters

● The plenum

● The duct work

● The exhaust fan

Pictures will often be taken before and after for record keeping purposes.

What is Type-II Hood Cleaning?

Type-II hoods are those that don’t have grease, such as wood burning pizza ovens, but do get covered in soot that can be very easily ignited. These hoods should be cleaned every month by being brushed out.

What is the Manager Provided with After a Hood Cleaning?

From a trustworthy commercial kitchen hood cleaning company, the manager should expect photographic evidence of the cleaning, as well as allowed a visual inspection before the cleaners leave. They will be given a signed tag or sticker with the time and date of cleaning, and when the next cleaning is scheduled for.

Commercial Kitchen Hood Cleaning Near Me

Commercial kitchen hoods are susceptible to kitchen fires when they get too greasy, as well as causing the backup of exhaust that can be terrible for the air quality of both the kitchen and eating area of a restaurant. It’s imperative that any kitchen manager should have a commercial kitchen hood cleaning company on file and come out at regularly scheduled times to keep the ducts, fans and filters clean and safe.

Commercial HVAC Service? Here’s the Things to Look For

One common issue that is easy to trivialize is the effect of dust and dirt build-up. This is a source of efficiency loss over time. Dirty or clogged heat exchangers will prevent heat from flowing down the ductwork and through the vents. The thermostat will respond by increasing heat output to achieve the desired air temperature. Because debris often compounds to increase the size of blockages over time, not keeping heat exchangers and air conditioning coils clean can result in a 10% loss in energy efficiency per year. Commercial HVAC companies that reach out to you on an annual maintenance schedule are good, because it is easy for building managers to lose track of what was done last, and when.

Monitoring the flow

Another problem is excessive resistance to airflow from dirty filters and clogged diffusers. All filters will impose some resistance to airflow so that they can capture airborne particulate. The problems start when the filters are not cleaned regularly and replaced at the end of their working life. It is not uncommon for contaminates found in dirty filters and diffusers to get dispersed into the air again. This is not good. It can trigger asthma flare-ups and allergic reactions (especially if there is dust mites and mold spores) which can cause absences from work due to illness. Commercial HVAC companies who take filter integrity seriously are ideal. It is also important to have them scrub the ductwork itself, so that there are no pathogens stemming from rust or hardened deposits that will go into the air.

Another notorious HVAC culprit are dirty blowers. Usually this is seen in either the fan base or the motor belts. When dust and dirt collect near the base of the fan, this will prevent the blades from turning as quickly as they are supposed to. Reduced fan speed is another source of inefficiency because it means that regions far away from the main furnace or air conditioner that are serviced by the blowers will not get as much cold or warm air delivery. This will set the stage for temperature discrepancies in different areas of the building.

This puts especially high strain on your system in the summer when air conditioner loads are high. Because the fans can sometimes overheat when they are forced to run in such a state, the residual heat will counteract the cooling effect of the air conditioning. If enough of the fans become compromised, all of the resulting heat may affect the indoor air temperature. Once this happens, there is often a feedback loop effect – the system will work harder to counteract the heat, which in turn will generate more heat from the overworked motors, and so on. Dealing with commercial HVAC companies who have enough experience to know when a fan might be clogged is pivotal in the long-run.

Brought to a standstill

The worst case scenario that managers want to avoid is having to stop onsite activity outright due to HVAC failure. This is the thing that all commercial HVAC companies are in business to prevent. Failure can result from a few things. If there is an intolerably high resistance to airflow from blockages, and this is not dealt with, the furnace can become overloaded and quit working, leaving the building without heat. When the building goes without heat, the space must be vacated until the furnace is repaired or even replaced. Locating the right model with the right outputs can take time.

Another issue is problems with the belts that move inside the blower motors. If they get dirty or become compromised in some way and cannot move smoothly, the motor will fail. Without blowers functioning to disperse hot and cold air, the HVAC system must be shutdown, and remain so until the motors are replaced. Blower motors tend to be expensive. Also, they are not a common part that is replaced frequently, which means they are often not kept in stock. They can take months to arrive. Using commercial HVAC companies that are good at servicing blower motors is what separates a good manager from and average one. Blower motors have the most moving parts and are therefore the most vulnerable to wear and tear. Many amateurs will not take the time to inspect them or run the necessary tests on them to see how they are doing. Anybody can scrub ducts or replace filters but finding someone capable of looking after the motors is what you really want. These kind of inspections are worth the money.