The Villages Insights with Steven Hoover: Landscaping & Lifestyle

The Villages Insights with Steven Hoover: Landscaping & Lifestyle

Exploring Solar & Landscaping in The Villages with Steven Hoover

In this episode of 'Open Forum in The Villages, Florida,' host Mike Roth talks with Steven Hoover, who recently relocated from California and brings extensive experience in floor covering, solar, and landscaping. Steve shares his journey from floor and window covering to solar energy and public relations for Sun Life Lawn and Landscaping. Discussing his hobbies in water sports and golfing, Steve also dives into practical tips on maintaining landscapes in Central Florida and explains the benefits and considerations of solar panels and pool heating. Expert Alzheimer's tips from Dr. Craig Curtis and information about the Mediterranean diet to improve brain health are also featured.

00:00 Introduction to Open Forum Season Seven
00:33 Meet Steven Hoover: From California to Florida
01:13 Diving into Water Sports
02:16 Splish Splash Volleyball and Golfing Adventures
03:59 Landscaping Insights with Sun Life Lawn and Landscape
10:27 Alzheimer's Tip from Dr. Craig Curtis
11:30 Exploring Solar Energy Options
13:56 Innovative Pool Cooling Techniques
14:30 Federal Tax Credits and Photovoltaic Panels
15:02 Solar System Maintenance and Costs
16:09 Energy Surplus and Credits
16:48 Solar Heating for Pools
17:33 Flooring Choices and Installation
20:10 Garage Insulation and Cooling
24:31 Contact Information and Closing Remarks

If you are a Villager, I wanted to remind you about our great new improv show coming up on September 29th at six 30 at Rohan Recreation Center. 

We only have about 20 tickets left, so please get your tickets now and don't be disappointed.

The show is for Villagers and folks who have a Guest Pass. It's going to be the funniest show ever with two new improv players heading the cast.

 Get Your Tickets at: My.AllEvents.in/improv92925

Have you heard about mature adults with Donna Hoover and Mike Roth? Yes. This is my second podcast and Donna and I are going to be addressing subjects which are significant for seniors, especially seniors living here in the villages.

The easiest way to hear the show is to look it up on Apple Podcasts. Look for mature adults with Donna and Mike. We'll be looking for you there. 

You can also find us on mature adults with Donna and Mike. All spelled out. Dot buzz sprout.com

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Transcript

Exploring Solar & Landscaping in The Villages with Steven Hoover

[00:00:00] Nancy: Welcome to Season seven of Open Forum in The Villages of Florida. In this show, we talk to leaders of clubs and interesting folks who live in and around the Villages. We also talk to people who have information vital to seniors. You will get perspectives of what is happening in The Villages, Florida area.

We are a listener supported podcast. 

[00:00:30] Mike Roth: This is Mike Roth on Open Forum in The Villages, Florida. I'm here today with Steven Hoover. Thanks for joining me.

[00:00:36] Steven Hoover: Thanks.

[00:00:37] Mike Roth: Steve was born and raised in California before relocating to Florida a year and a half ago. He met his wife at their high school reunion in 1999. Steve spent 33 years in his family's floor and window covering business before transitioning to the solar industry for 11 years.

He handles public relations today for Sun Life lawn and Landscaping. When Steve isn't working, he enjoys softball, golf, water 

sports. improv comedy and bringing humor and energy to everything he does. Thanks again for joining me, Steve. Now in water sports. What water sports do you do? 

[00:01:15] Steven Hoover: Yeah, water, volleyball, swimming, walking in the pool enjoying The Villages lifestyle. I'm also scuba diving. loved scuba diving. Got involved years ago.

[00:01:29] Mike Roth: Those tanks are heavy, right? 

[00:01:30] Steven Hoover: They float.

[00:01:30] Mike Roth: I'm thinking, those tanks look very heavy when you lift them up 

[00:01:34] Steven Hoover: When you're on land.

And that's why you don't wanna spend a lot of time on land to get in the water. Jump in the water. Especially if you're boat diving, it's much easier to just jump off the boat and not, you're not carrying the weight of the tank that long. But then getting back on the boat, 

[00:01:51] Mike Roth: oh, you get out of the water and that tank, is still heavy.

[00:01:54] Steven Hoover: Yeah. 

[00:01:54] Mike Roth: Someone to help pull you into the boat. 

[00:01:56] Steven Hoover: True. 

[00:01:57] Mike Roth: Where do you go diving 

[00:01:58] Steven Hoover: The Caribbean's close by 

[00:01:59] Mike Roth: Just the hop, skip and jump. No problem. 

[00:02:02] Steven Hoover: The last dive I did was off a cruise in the Eastern Caribbean St.

Kitt's we did two tank dives there. And saw a shark. I got pictures .

[00:02:10] Mike Roth: How close did the shark get 

[00:02:12] Steven Hoover: About 10 feet. 

[00:02:13] Mike Roth: That's too close for me. 

[00:02:14] Steven Hoover: Dun. 

[00:02:15] Mike Roth AI4: We need a bigger boat. 

[00:02:16] Steven Hoover: Oh 

[00:02:16] Mike Roth: How many days a week do you play Splish Sphash volleyball? ?

[00:02:19] Steven Hoover: Recently I haven't been playing Splish Splash or water volleyball. the difference is Split Splash is more fun being in the water hitting the ball around. in Splish Splash, they have Jungle Ball.

where you can hit the ball as many times as you want before hitting it over the net. 

[00:02:39] Mike Roth: Oh,

it's not that. Three times. an ordeal, 

[00:02:41] Steven Hoover: if you've ever seen this take place, it's a riot.

It's fun. I had a good time doing that.

[00:02:48] Mike Roth: We have a core of splish Splash volleyball players coming to the improv show on September 29th. they bought 32 seats. 

[00:02:57] Steven Hoover: We'll have to entertain them.

[00:02:58] Mike Roth: We'll have to do an improv on Splish Splash volleyball 

[00:03:02] Steven Hoover: Definitely. I golf two times a week.

Wednesdays and Thursdays 

[00:03:08] Mike Roth: What time do you golf? 

[00:03:09] Steven Hoover: I try to get out early It's been hot. 

[00:03:11] Mike Roth: Yes. 

[00:03:12] Steven Hoover: humid. 

[00:03:13] Mike Roth: Yes.

[00:03:14] Steven Hoover: yesterday I golfed. Our tee time was 9 44 but they got us out early, 

[00:03:20] Mike Roth: Yeah.

[00:03:21] Steven Hoover: I was supposed to be there at nine 30. They got us out at nine 30. I don't like showing up for golf and not be prepared. Gimme 15 minutes to get focused, get everything lined up. 

[00:03:32] Mike Roth: If I was gonna play golf I'd want to get out on the course at six 30 or 7:00 AM.

[00:03:37] Steven Hoover: Five. sun's not up yet. 

[00:03:39] Mike Roth: I'll wait for the sun to go up. I wanna see where the ball goes. It's too warm. I learned on one of my trips, I bought a bucket of balls and went to the driving range.

drove balls at one o'clock in the afternoon, in July. 

that's when I said not gonna play golf in July. 

[00:03:55] Steven Hoover: Nope. 

So 

[00:03:56] Mike Roth: the first year I was here, I did a lot of golf with the Rotary Club. So Steve, let's talk about landscaping.

How long have you worked with these guys? 

[00:04:04] Steven Hoover: I started with Sun Life lawn and Landscape about four months ago in April I'm new at landscape design. 

I know how to mow a lawn and trim shrubs, and I'm learning. more about plant life here.

 it's a learning process for me. 

[00:04:23] Mike Roth: That's a

big business. a lot of people have palm trees.

I think they look beautiful. But what type of palm trees should people have? I've noticed there's several different varieties. 

[00:04:33] Steven Hoover: First decide if you want palm trees.

If you do I recommend robis. you can maintain them yourself. as they don't get much taller than your roof. 

About eight feet.

 Another popular palm tree is sylvesters.

[00:04:50] Mike Roth: Never heard that name. 

[00:04:51] Steven Hoover: It's a palm tree that's really pretty. nice umbrella forming a Sylvester I dislike is it can get really big at the bottom. It's called the root ball.

depending on where it's planted, it could push things out of your area 

[00:05:09] Mike Roth: It takes over. 

[00:05:10] Steven Hoover: Yeah. It's intrusive.

Once a year. trim the nuts They look like little dates.

[00:05:17] Mike Roth: What happens if you don't?

[00:05:19] Steven Hoover: Then they fall in your yard and make a big mess. 

[00:05:22] Mike Roth: In California, we had olive trees like that and sprayed them. to prevent olives from forming, if they fell on the cement, they made awful black stains. 

[00:05:32] Steven Hoover: Have you ever tried an olive right off the tree? 

[00:05:34] Mike Roth: No. We already sprayed our trees. 

[00:05:36] Steven Hoover: But you picked it 

[00:05:37] Mike Roth: No,

I never cleaned it up

[00:05:39] Steven Hoover: put it in your mouth. 

[00:05:40] Mike Roth: We had a couple of olive trees right in front of the house 

[00:05:42] Steven Hoover: Try it and let me know.

[00:05:44] Mike Roth: You've never done it? 

[00:05:44] Steven Hoover: done 

[00:05:45] Mike Roth: like it? 

[00:05:46] Steven Hoover: No, 

[00:05:46] Mike Roth: the 

[00:05:47] Steven Hoover: Went outta my mouth faster than I put it in very bitter. 

[00:05:50] Mike Roth: Very bitter.

[00:05:51] Steven Hoover: I found out recently, fun fact. one palm tree, it's beautiful. called a Christmas palm.

It doesn't hold up to the weather here. 

[00:06:00] Mike Roth: It's one of those trees you gotta cover 

with a tarp. when it gets Cold in January 

[00:06:05] Steven Hoover: They get. 10, 15, up tall. it'd be difficult to cover it up when it's tall 

[00:06:10] Mike Roth: What kind of low maintenance plants would you recommend for Central Florida? 

[00:06:14] Steven Hoover: Low maintenance succulents. You don't have to trim 'em much. They can survive without much water.

Another thing may be a Rose Bush. It has some trimming to do, but it's very hearty. It can go without water. Similar to a cactus. 

[00:06:31] Mike Roth: Rose bush.

[00:06:31] Steven Hoover: Distinct look 

[00:06:32] Mike Roth: We had roses in Cincinnati and the roses attracted 

wild animals like deer. We had a herd of deer in our backyard

for years. 

[00:06:42] Steven Hoover: And did they 

[00:06:43] Mike Roth: eat The, rose bud? Yes. 

[00:06:45] Steven Hoover: leaves. 

[00:06:45] Mike Roth: Just the flowers. 

there were other plants they ate the leaves too. 

[00:06:50] Steven Hoover: Luckily we don't see too many deer here. 

[00:06:53] Mike Roth: Yeah.

[00:06:53] Steven Hoover: Eating rose bushes 

[00:06:54] Mike Roth: I've never armadillos, 

[00:06:55] Steven Hoover: maybe. dig, 

[00:06:56] Mike Roth: I don't want any of them either. thoughts on ground cover

rocks versus pine bark or shredded? Redwood. 

[00:07:04] Steven Hoover: My thoughts. I like rock and if I had my yard to do over again, it would be smooth. Like river rock rather than what I have, which is crushed granite.

[00:07:17] Mike Roth: 's the white rocks.

[00:07:19] Steven Hoover: It's whiteish, salt and pepper. Look. 

[00:07:21] Mike Roth: Okay. 

[00:07:21] Steven Hoover: The reason I don't like what I have is that trying to blow leaves out of this rock, is really difficult. 

[00:07:28] Mike Roth: They stick, 

[00:07:29] Steven Hoover: Hurricane, blow 'em out.

[00:07:30] Mike Roth: What is gorilla hair in landscaping? 

[00:07:33] Steven Hoover: Funny you should ask gorilla hair. That is shaved redwood bark. If you Grind it up. It turns into this, I call it gorilla 'cause it looks like an orangutan.

[00:07:45] Mike Roth: Is that better than pine needles? 

[00:07:47] Steven Hoover: It looks better than that pine straw A lot of The Villages 

 the same thing. Over time, it greys out.

That's the downside of pine bark gorilla hair. pine

straw, it greys out over time, 

[00:08:02] Mike Roth: I think the pine replenish it.

Yeah.

We've had to replenish pine straw.

not only does the color change, but it also

biodegrades. 

[00:08:10] Steven Hoover: Yeah. 

[00:08:11] Mike Roth: it disappears. 

[00:08:12] Steven Hoover: The rock stays round. 

[00:08:14] Mike Roth: Yeah. 

[00:08:15] Steven Hoover: It's good. pretty. 

[00:08:17] Mike Roth: You can't 

[00:08:17] Steven Hoover: Don't worry about that.

[00:08:18] Mike Roth: So the real question. is can you get away with that in some areas, but notothers? 

[00:08:23] Steven Hoover: If you're in a villa or a veranda 

you can have, half rock, half grass, 

around here, having a nice lawn is an accomplishment.

it's an ongoing battle with the craters bugs, insects and weeds.

[00:08:39] Mike Roth: Then the reclaimed gray water they give us for landscaping It's,

terrible. 

[00:08:45] Steven Hoover: IF where we are. it doesn't have too much silt but has all the minerals, which

I think would be good for your landscape.

[00:08:54] Mike Roth: Is your landscaping water,

potable or separate

gray

water pipes? 

[00:08:58] Steven Hoover: water out of retention ponds. 

[00:09:00] Mike Roth: it's in the pink pipes. 

[00:09:02] Steven Hoover: Yep. 

[00:09:02] Mike Roth: Does your company maintain the sprinkling systems?

[00:09:05] Steven Hoover: If we're installing landscaping and need to adjust the irrigation, we can do that. we don't help customers with irrigation problems that's another company you'd call?

We do pavers, All types of hardscape 

softscape, and can relocate your irrigation if needed. 

[00:09:28] Mike Roth: You redo driveways? 

[00:09:30] Steven Hoover: we can install pavers over your existing driveway or rip

The driveway out and put pavers on

A

bed of sand and gravel.

I 

[00:09:43] Mike Roth: just paint 

[00:09:43] Steven Hoover: That's what I did. It's a product called Valspar.

I get it at Lowe's. 

it's called Semi-Transparent concrete Stain. 

If you want something low maintenance. I don't have to power wash my driveway anymore. 

It looks good and was inexpensive. I bought five gallons to do a driveway and a walkway up to the front door.Is 

[00:10:04] Mike Roth: it all the same color?

no designs 

[00:10:06] Steven Hoover: the way it's put on you get light and dark areas.

[00:10:09] Mike Roth: Mm-hmm. 

[00:10:09] Steven Hoover: But yeah, there's no swirls or designs, I just rolled it on with a roller and take a, picture and send it to you. 

[00:10:19] Steven Hoover: It's an inexpensive way. I bought five gallons at $45 a gallon. do the math. 

[00:10:24] Mike Roth: Okay. That's not bad. 

[00:10:26] Steven Hoover: you gotta power wash it 

[00:10:26] Mike Roth: Okay, good. Let's take a short break and listen to a Alzheimer's tip from Dr. Craig Curtis.

Dr. Curtis, can you give, our patients a tip on keeping their brain healthy? 

[00:10:42] Dr. Craig Curtis: Absolutely. My favorite tip is, involves a change in eating patterns, but it's not a drastic change. It's simply increasing the amount of fresh fruits and vegetables, fish, other white meats, and lowering the amounts of red meat.

sweets and sugars, and also carbohydrates. It's essentially following a Mediterranean type diet plan. 

[00:11:13] Warren: With over 20 years of experience studying brain health, Dr. Curtis's goal is to educate the village's community on how to live a longer, healthier life. To learn more, visit his website, craig curtis md.com, or call 3 5 2 5 0 0 5 2 5 2 to attend a free seminar.

[00:11:29] Mike Roth: Thank you, Dr. Curtis.

I am back with Steven Hoover, and we're gonna be talking now about solar. Steve spent a lot of years in the solar business.

Steve do you recommend solar heating

and panels on. Be installed on people's homes here in The Villages. We got a lot of sun 

[00:11:46] Steven Hoover: solar heating. For a swimming pool?

[00:11:49] Mike Roth: No solar for electricity. 

[00:11:50] Steven Hoover: Okay. PV solar. photovoltaic. 

[00:11:53] Mike Roth: Big words. 

[00:11:54] Steven Hoover: I don't have it I moved here from California. 

[00:11:56] Mike Roth: Yeah. 

[00:11:57] Steven Hoover: I had 45 panels on my house. the electricity cost, where we were is five times what it is here.

[00:12:06] Mike Roth: The payback, right? 

[00:12:07] Steven Hoover: If you have panels on your home and your roof needs replacing in 15 years. 

[00:12:14] Mike Roth: You gotta 

[00:12:14] Steven Hoover: My home is 15 years old. 

[00:12:16] Steven Hoover: if I put solar on I'd have to replace the roof in about 15 years.

[00:12:20] Mike Roth: Yeah. 

[00:12:21] Steven Hoover: The roof. 

[00:12:22] Mike Roth: You have a cost of removing the panels. Removal or reinstallation, damaging a panel, chances of a

[00:12:28] Steven Hoover: It could 

[00:12:28] Mike Roth: connections

might

break

If,

they have to take 'em off. 

[00:12:32] Steven Hoover: When they reinstall, they're Reusing those. The mounting system is all new. And the copper wire and conduit 

[00:12:39] Mike Roth: The connector, at the panel 

[00:12:40] Steven Hoover: But your inverter, if you have one, would be. Okay. That wouldn't be replaced. 

[00:12:45] Mike Roth: Okay. 

[00:12:46] Steven Hoover: I just found out talking to my guys in California that the federal tax credit, is currently 30% 

[00:12:56] Mike Roth: on installation cost. 

[00:12:57] Steven Hoover: every dollar you spend, you get

A 30 cent credit, 

[00:13:01] Mike Roth: each dollar is worth 70 cents. 

[00:13:03] Steven Hoover: That's going away at the end of the year.

[00:13:05] Mike Roth: 2025.right. 

[00:13:06] Steven Hoover: Yep. 2026. no federal tax credit anymore. So think about that. At this point it's more of a bill swap, the cost of electricity here. The last bill I got, was 14 cents per kilowatt hour 

[00:13:20] Mike Roth: Good price.

[00:13:21] Steven Hoover: Back in California you're paying about five times that.

[00:13:26] Mike Roth: What about using solar to heat your pool? 

[00:13:29] Steven Hoover: that's really good, but right now you don't. You wanna cool your pool 

[00:13:34] Mike Roth: Do they have heat pump solar for pools to heat or cool the water?

[00:13:40] Steven Hoover: The pools around here we got family pools. and neighborhood pools 

We have sports pools, Those are the three I've visited. I haven't been to the paid pools. ' The one at Rohan Rec Center. They're cooling that sports pool.

[00:13:56] Mike Roth: They

are, 

[00:13:57] Steven Hoover: They've been cooling it, using a device that shoots water into the air at night 

[00:14:02] Mike Roth: I've seen that. wondering why they were doing that. 

[00:14:04] Steven Hoover: Pretty unique, huh? Pretty inventive. if they were to run that water through a chiller,

it would drop the pool temperature, Here we are in the middle of August. It's 95 degrees in the afternoon. It's like a sauna. 

[00:14:18] Mike Roth: I, 

[00:14:18] Steven Hoover: hot tub.

[00:14:19] Mike Roth: I jumped in the pool this morning, and the water was probably 80, 85 degrees, 

[00:14:25] Steven Hoover: It's, cool at night, but if you go out after the sun's been hitting it.

[00:14:28] Mike Roth: Okay.

[00:14:29] Steven Hoover: Got off track, didn't we? 

[00:14:30] Mike Roth: Federal tax credits go away. 

[00:14:33] Steven Hoover: Photovoltaic? 

[00:14:35] Mike Roth: The cells getting cheaper or more expensive.

[00:14:39] Steven Hoover: They've gone with tariffs. Any panel coming out of China 

[00:14:43] Mike Roth: Has 

[00:14:44] Steven Hoover: a lot of manufacturers have moved out of China and into Vietnam. 

They don't have to worry about paying the, tariffs. 

[00:14:52] Mike Roth: more effective producing electricity?

[00:14:54] Steven Hoover: Over the years They have been more efficient.

[00:14:57] Mike Roth: And 

[00:14:57] Steven Hoover: prices,

have gone up Just like everything else. 

[00:15:00] Mike Roth: Who

maintains an 

electric

system? If you put photo cells on your roof to charge batteries in your garage, or have electricity at night, 

[00:15:11] Steven Hoover: Get a solar system

Through a lease or power purchase agreement (PPA). Those are maintained by the company that owns the system. You don't own it. If anything goes awry, the company replaces components at no cost 

No labor or equipment cost.How 

[00:15:28] Mike Roth: quickly would they be replaced if needed 

[00:15:30] Steven Hoover: If the system's not working 

that company's not producing electricity at your house. You're only paying for what is produced. ── So if it's not producing anything.

you won't get a bill, from them, but you will get one from the power company. 

[00:15:45] Mike Roth: if the system goes down 

An inverter brakes, electronic component

can happen.

[00:15:50] Steven Hoover: Yep. 

[00:15:51] Mike Roth: It takes three weeks for a new inverter. 

 During those weeks, you're buying electricity from the power company.

[00:15:56] Steven Hoover: Correct. 

[00:15:57] Mike Roth: you're not gonna be paying for the solar system. 

[00:16:01] Steven Hoover: Correct. '

[00:16:02] Mike Roth: You're paying for the solar system based on the electricity generated. 

[00:16:06] Steven Hoover: That's on a lease or power purchase agreement. 

[00:16:08] Mike Roth: the 

electricity generated, in excess of what you need to run your house,

gets sold to the power company?

[00:16:15] Steven Hoover: Correct. 

[00:16:16] Mike Roth: The operator gets that money not the homeowner. 

[00:16:18] Steven Hoover: If you have surplus energy over a year you true up with the power company? 

you get a credit for surplus energy, which can offset future power.

costs. if you use more electricity than produced, you pay the power company for the extra power.

[00:16:35] Mike Roth: Okay. Is that true with SECO here and Duke? 

[00:16:38] Steven Hoover: Yes. 

[00:16:39] Mike Roth: not sure. 

[00:16:40] Steven Hoover: I don't know if both are a hundred percent credit but I know there are credits 

[00:16:47] Mike Roth: So

if you have a house without a pool, 

[00:16:50] Steven Hoover: okay. 

[00:16:50] Mike Roth: Don't put in

solar

because there's no payback

 with a swimming pool, it seemed solar heating

could

save money.

[00:16:59] Steven Hoover: Okay. there's a lot in depth to this. ' because you're talking pool 

[00:17:04] Mike Roth: Okay. 

[00:17:05] Steven Hoover: is heating your swimming pool. if I had that, I wouldn't be using it. 

[00:17:08] Mike Roth: If you had a swimming pool right now.

You wouldn't be using your pool heater. But you'd still use your filtration motors heavily. 

[00:17:15] Steven Hoover: They're running 

12 hours a day. 

[00:17:18] Mike Roth: I was gonna say 15, 17 hours a day.

[00:17:20] Mike Roth: you hear 'em more all the time at the pools. 

[00:17:22] Steven Hoover: Yep. using that electricity to run the pool pump 

[00:17:26] Mike Roth: Solar power.

[00:17:27] Steven Hoover: You can use it to run the whole home.

[00:17:29] Mike Roth: right?

[00:17:30] Steven Hoover: Your air conditioner, washer dryer, and electric water heater. 

[00:17:33] Mike Roth: You got to California, involved in window 

and floor covering business? a family business, Were you in sales or, installations 

[00:17:40] Steven Hoover: Mostly sales. I did some installation, but as you can see, I'm not designed 

[00:17:48] Mike Roth: Yeah, 

[00:17:48] Steven Hoover: for

[00:17:49] Mike Roth: You're very tall.

in The Villages, did you change the floors in your home? 

[00:17:53] Steven Hoover: I changed the flooring 

[00:17:55] Mike Roth: she was taken. 

[00:17:56] Steven Hoover: we changed the flooring in our lanai. we were gonna put LVP Luxury Vinyl Plank. 

It's a newer product.

that's replaced laminate. 

[00:18:04] Mike Roth: I never liked laminate 

[00:18:06] Steven Hoover: And the luxury vinyl plank or luxury vinyl tile. It's the component's all the same just the looks. You got tile or a plank wood look. 

[00:18:16] Mike Roth: Yeah. What I didn't like about the

original

ones

is there

was a styrofoam layer underneath them.

Does luxury vinyl tile go right on the cement or on a layer of styrofoam? 

[00:18:28] Steven Hoover: I misspoke I started talking about Luxury vinyl plank. ' because it's a hot product.

We put ceramic tile in our lanai. 

[00:18:36] Mike Roth: There's nothing under it except adhesive

or

cement.

[00:18:40] Steven Hoover: What's underneath? Yeah, it's thin set. That's what they set tile in. what was underneath that? The reason we put the tile in was they had this slurry. I've seen it on driveways. It's like a slurry with pattern 

[00:18:52] Mike Roth: Oh really 

[00:18:53] Steven Hoover: nooks and crannies.

[00:18:54] Mike Roth: Yeah.

[00:18:55] Steven Hoover: you won't believe it, but the way I was cleaning this is I brought in my power washer and a push broom and pushed everything out the back door. That's the only way you could really clean this. I wouldn't recommend it for indoors .

[00:19:09] Mike Roth: It's like a Shark coating 

Shark?

Is a brand 

[00:19:12] Steven Hoover: So that all had to be ground down. that was a big can of worms, dust ball going on. 

[00:19:18] Mike Roth: A mess. 

[00:19:19] Steven Hoover: But then we got the tile in and it works well you gotta make sure and seal the grout really well.

Especially if you have cats, 

[00:19:27] Mike Roth: Your lot the eye enclosed in glass or just open with screens? 

[00:19:31] Steven Hoover: It's enclosed with glass, 

[00:19:33] Mike Roth: Okay. 

[00:19:33] Steven Hoover: That was already in the house. 

Nice feature.

[00:19:36] Mike Roth: Nice

feature. It's that double pan.

[00:19:38] Steven Hoover: Yep. 

it's got a coating They put the tent on it for privacy during the day. 

Not so private at night 

[00:19:45] Mike Roth: you got lights on the inside. Yeah. did

you use air conditioning in the

lanani?

[00:19:50] Steven Hoover: Yes, that was installed when we bought the house.

People before us. had the lanai closed and put a mini split.

[00:20:01] Mike Roth: That work well. Great. Especially in the late afternoon. it faces south and we kick that on to help cool it off 

I understand you put a mini split in your garage 

[00:20:13] Steven Hoover: yeah. 

[00:20:13] Mike Roth: you said you really enjoy 

[00:20:14] Steven Hoover: That's the way to fly here.

[00:20:16] Mike Roth: is the mini spirit strong enough to overcome engine heat in a hot car parked in the garage 

[00:20:21] Steven Hoover: Oh yeah, the car goes in the garage. When it's hot, I don't park it in there when it's wet. ' I painted the floor with epoxy. 

if you park or any water on there 

You step on it, especially barefooted. Oh it is like ice. 

[00:20:37] Mike Roth: Ice. 

[00:20:37] Steven Hoover: It's slippery. we parked the car. 

[00:20:40] Mike Roth: some people paint driveways with that stuff. It's slippery when it rains. 

[00:20:44] Steven Hoover: So the car, we can park it in the garage when it's hot. It changes the temperature for a bit, but the cold compensates and the car cools down. If you have food in your garage, We have a refrigerator and it's a man cave with a TV from the ceiling.

It was worth the cost. 

[00:21:03] Mike Roth: Got some furniture to watch tv? 

[00:21:05] Steven Hoover: if you call a, camping chair furniture.

[00:21:08] Mike Roth: Do you have a workbench in there too Oh Yeah. Keeps the garage cool. Even on the hottest day. 

What did you do on garage door insulation.

[00:21:16] Steven Hoover: I insulated the garage door, bought a kit from Lowe's took off the hurricane straps and installed about one inch of styrofoam.

[00:21:26] Steven Hoover: it's, designed to insulate a garage door. It works really well, you might have seen it on Jerry and Linda bubble wrap.

They have a guy who shows how it's done. 

[00:21:36] Mike Roth: Did. you personally take off the hurricane bars or did you have someone? you did.

one person. 

[00:21:43] Steven Hoover: I'm handyman Hoover, Between myself and my father-in-law, we've accomplished a lot at that house.

[00:21:49] Mike Roth: So your father-in-law lives in the area as well? That's an extra set of hands. 

[00:21:54] Steven Hoover: Especially on the garage, the big door. They're 16 feet long. 

[00:21:58] Mike Roth: Heavy. 

[00:21:59] Steven Hoover: tricky to handle. I did that myself 

[00:22:01] Mike Roth: I did. 

[00:22:01] Steven Hoover: I did. 

Lower it to the ground, then take the last bolt off. 

[00:22:05] Mike Roth: Did you insulate the actual hurricane bars themselves? I thought, if they're bolted, steel to steel, they become a radiator to radiate heat back in 

[00:22:18] Steven Hoover: The door there's no insulation

[00:22:21] Mike Roth: On the

hurricane bars?

[00:22:22] Steven Hoover: No. Or the bars that go down the garage itself? each little Panel? Yep. 

 my garage currently is 77 degrees.

[00:22:34] Mike Roth: Okay, good. Temperature for the garage. But you don't have a car 

[00:22:38] Steven Hoover: My car's in your driveway. 

[00:22:39] Mike Roth: Okay. 

[00:22:40] Steven Hoover: when I go home, I might set the 

[00:22:43] Mike Roth: thermostat down 

[00:22:44] Steven Hoover: Set it to 73.

[00:22:45] Mike Roth: To 

[00:22:46] Steven Hoover: To get a bit more cool air. But I'm not gonna be working out there, 

[00:22:48] Mike Roth: doesn't

matter. 

[00:22:49] Steven Hoover: Yeah. 

[00:22:50] Mike Roth: Have you noticed any

dramatic

increase in.

the cost of electricity more kilowatts used because of the split 

[00:22:58] Steven Hoover: I'm not worried 

[00:22:58] Mike Roth: It's cheap. 

[00:22:59] Steven Hoover: I want it better on my refrigerator. 

And my chocolate doesn't melt. in the pantry. 

[00:23:05] Mike Roth: You keep chocolate

in the pantry, in

the garage 

[00:23:08] Steven Hoover: yeah. 'cause it's cool in the garage. 

before the chocolate had to go in the refrigerator.

[00:23:12] Mike Roth: ' Cause you go into my garage now it's 91 degrees. 

[00:23:16] Steven Hoover: 94 degrees at our house. 

[00:23:18] Mike Roth: Outside. 

[00:23:19] Steven Hoover: outside. 

[00:23:20] Mike Roth: You have a remote outside 

thermometer or is that reading from the garage door? 

[00:23:24] Steven Hoover: Can you hear me 

[00:23:24] Mike Roth: What's 

[00:23:25] Steven Hoover: the cat read? 

[00:23:26] Mike Roth: Where's the cat house? 

[00:23:27] Steven Hoover: That's in the lanai.

[00:23:29] Mike Roth: Okay. 

[00:23:29] Steven Hoover: That's Tiki and Totalle's house. 

[00:23:31] Mike Roth: Okay. 

[00:23:32] Steven Hoover: Okay. Now here's the kick. There's a sensor in the garage attic. It's 107 degrees. 

[00:23:39] Mike Roth: That's not unusual 

[00:23:41] Steven Hoover: with the heat index of. 123. 

[00:23:44] Mike Roth: That's accurate.

[00:23:45] Steven Hoover: wouldn't want to be up there 

[00:23:46] Mike Roth: I throw stuff up there when I have to this time of year 

[00:23:49] Steven Hoover: we have a wind speed of three miles per hour. 

 if you wanted to turn on your irrigation right now, which probably wouldn't be a good idea 'cause it's so hot out. my wife calls me the weatherman.

[00:23:59] Mike Roth: ah, 

[00:23:59] Steven Hoover: I got these weather sensors and she calls us the weather family. 

 my parents were from Nebraska.

Farming community. a lot of their crops depended on rain, 

[00:24:12] Mike Roth: and humidity. different. 

[00:24:15] Steven Hoover: We talked about the family business.

[00:24:17] Mike Roth: We're talking about the

window

covering

and the 

[00:24:20] Steven Hoover: For several years I worked there for a total of 33 years. mainly in floor and window covering sales.

We mainly did Hunter Douglas. text me if you wanna know about window coverings.

[00:24:31] Mike Roth: Steve, if someone wants to get ahold of you after the show to ask questions about landscaping solar Window coverings, or flooring, how do they do that? 

[00:24:39] Steven Hoover: The best way is email or text. Don't call me. 

if I don't recognize your number, it goes to, 

[00:24:48] Mike Roth: we have area codes from all over the world here in The Villages.

[00:24:51] Steven Hoover: I'll, send you a message back that says, if this is a robocall, lose my number. 

[00:24:56] Mike Roth: good tip. 

[00:24:57] Steven Hoover: Yeah. 

[00:24:58] Mike Roth: What number 

[00:24:58] Steven Hoover: My number is 707-330-1762. email to use would be SteveH@SunLifeLawn.com SunLifeLawn.com 

[00:25:12] Mike Roth: Good.

Spell that out for listeners? 

[00:25:14] Steven Hoover: Steve, 

[00:25:15] Mike Roth: So there are no periods between Sun Life and Lawn? 

[00:25:18] Mike Roth: That is a.com. Steve, thanks for being on the show today. 

[00:25:22] Steven Hoover: My pleasure. I enjoyed it. 

[00:25:24] Mike Roth: This is Mike Roth. Listeners, I'm thrilled to share with you this podcast, which is my passion project, to bring knowledge, inspiration, and things you need to know about The Villages and the people living here. Be sure to hit the follow button to get the newest episode each week, or you can hit the purple supporter box.

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