Hot Tub Maintenance Tips

14th March 202013th March 2020

Need a few hot tub maintenance tips? At Douglas Forest and Garden, we provide a range with some of the best hot tubs as well as accessories for maintaining your hot tub throughout spring and summer. Follow these guidelines to keep things pristine.

Hot Tub Maintenance: Keep your hot tub cover clean

Use some warm water and stain remover (or a little bit of bleach) to remove the mildew from the surface of your hot tub cover. Just be sure to use a minimal amount of bleach and rinse thoroughly afterwards. Wipe the inside of the cover once or twice a week at most. This will remove any mildew and accompanying odours.

Keep the hot tub – and its water – clean

Use a cleaner for your hot tub such as our range of hot tub cleaners. These effectively remove stains, algae and help clear the water. Or if you want you can also use white vinegar to clean around the jets and at the waterline to prevent staining and mildew, this is also very effective. Use the cleaning liquid, or about 5 or 6 jugs of vinegar added into the water to soak in the heated water for a couple of days to remove any build-up of slime that can occur during the periods when the hot tub is not in use. If you’re in an area with hard water, the cleaning fluid or vinegar can also remove the build-up around the filter and anywhere where the water is likely to accumulate.

Drain and clean your tub every 3-4 for months, or more frequently if you use it every day. Think of it as a bathtub. You want to clean it regularly (and not use the same water the whole time). It’s essential to change the water frequently and also to shower before using it to reduce the build-up of grime.

Clean the filters

Remove and rinse the filters on the hot tub with a hose while you’re cleaning the hot tub. And be sure to keep cleaners on hand so that they’re always there and easy to use when you think of it. This will encourage you to maintain the hot tub as you’re using it, preventing the build-up of stubborn stains and keeping everything pleasant and enjoyable the whole time you’re using it.

If you have any further questions about hot tub maintenance, call us on 021 4965 132.

Garden Scarifiers: How To Maintain Your Lawn

22nd February 202018th February 2020

Garden scarifiers can help with three problems that might affect your lawn: grass thatching, moss, and lack of aeration. A scarifier, like the Stihl RL 540, works by digging up debris and dead matter, bringing air and water flow back to the roots of your lawn so that it can flourish. You’ll be amazed by the amount of dead matter that a garden scarifier will bring to the surface. It picks up moss and thatch but leaves the grass intact.

Garden Scarifiers: What is Lawn Thatch

Lawn thatch is commonly believed to be the discolouring on the surface of the grass. In fact, it’s a layer of dead grass which clumps and solidifies an area of turn. When rain falls, thatch acts like a sponge and soaks up water without the water getting to the roots. If you use fertilisers, thatching will also prevent nutrients from getting to the roots. As a result, grass suffers, and by summer, the grass will discolour and eventually die when the thatching becomes too thick.

De-thatching and aerating

We’ve all had the experience of leaving a garden unattended for a few months only to find it develops thick clumps of moss and thatch. Moss has very similar effects to your lawn, so keeping it under control is essential for maintaining a great looking yard. Aside from using a scarifier, if you have a tractor mower you can also aerate your lawn using a Lawn Aerator.

A garden lawn might look okay other than some areas that look slightly matted or discoloured. These indicate where thatching or moss is causing a problem. These are areas where, under the surface, lie large masses of thick, dead grass. This will build up over time, cutting off oxygen and water from the soil and roots and eventually killing the grass.

After you’ve passed over the area with the scarifier, you’ll have a substantial volume of matter which you can rake up. You should find your grass otherwise healthy and unscathed, and once it heals up, you’ll find the garden begins to flourish once again.

You can view our other lawn care tools here. For further questions, or to order online, you can contact us today on 021 4965 132.

Stihl Kombi For Sale

18th August 201912th August 2019

If you are looking for a Stihl Kombi for sale, we have three recommendations with free shipping. As all Stihl Kombis will power KombiTools, your choice is down to whether you need one for professional or domestic use. The higher-end models are more powerful and have less vibration and are built for long-term or professional use. You can also view our full range of Stihl Kombi engines.

The Stihl KM 131 Kombi for Sale €696.00 €599.00

The Stihl KM 131 is suited for professional use. As Stihls highest range kombi engine, it has significantly reduced vibration while providing excellent power output at 1.4/1.9 kW/bhp. This current sale puts the KM 131 at a lower price than the 111R. The KM 131 uses the updated 4-MIX engine. Naturally, as a kombi engine, it will power many different attachments for property and garden maintenance. The KM 131 is compact and easy to transport. As with all the other Stihl Kombis, it weighs in at just four and a half kilograms before adding extensions or fuel. The KM 131 can take up to .75 litres of petrol at a time while maintaining a comfortable weight and balance during your workday.

Stihl KM 94 RC-E €599.00 €499.00

The KM 94 is a domestic power tool. Its powerful engine outputs 0.9/1.2 kW/bhp. The kombi only weighs four kilograms, this is a great weight-to-power ratio for around the home. The KM 94 does not have the newer engine of the KM 131, and so there is roughly 15% more vibration levels. But since this is more for domestic use, this isn’t going to be much of an issue unless you’re doing extended periods of work day-in and day-out.

KM 56 RC-E Stihl Kombi For Sale €428.00 €299.00

The KM 56 has a power output of 0.8/1.1 kW/bhp. A little less than the KM 94 and roughly 50% less power than the professional level KM 131. It weighs in at 4.3 kilograms, which makes it .3 kilograms heavier than the 94. This model works best in domestic use cases without prolonged intensive use.

We hope this gives you a sense of some of our Stihl Kombi range. Remember that all Stihl Komibis for sale come with free shipping anywhere in Ireland. Be sure to check out the Stihl Kombi Attachments to see just how versatile these power tools can be. And if you have any further questions, please feel free to contact us on 021-4965132 and we will do our best to assist you.

Loading Ramps

10th August 20197th August 2019

Loading ramps are essential if you’re using a small vehicle for work, such as a tractor mower. At Douglas Forest and Garden, we provide a range of small vehicles that may require carriage for a job. We sell small vehicles like tractor mowers, and Forzaline’s aluminium curved van ramps are ideal for this task. As you’d expect, they come as a set of two. The van ramp’s length is two metres, and each ramp is .2 metres in width. The max load of the combined ramps is 400kg which is more than enough to handle most tractor mowers.

Forzaline Loading Ramps

The arched aluminium loading ramps are very lightweight. This makes it easy to load your tractor mower or vehicles up onto your trailer. Straps that come with the ramp are used to keep your ramps secure to your trailer without them sliding away when you’re loading and unloading. The loading ramps are ideal for heavier vehicles that are lower to the ground. It has a rough surface to maintain grip while you’re travelling up.

The aluminium is corrosion resistant, it’s easy to load up, take off, store away. And it has far less weight than the typical steal ramp but still able to handle a large capacity of up to 400kg. You can use the ramps with a van or a trailer. If you use something like an American-style pickup truck with a tailboard, be aware that hinged doors can slip or break under a load. Ensure that the tailboard is fully secured and able to handle the weight before you use the ramps.

Loading Ramp Safety Tips

Never drive a vehicle up the ramps. Your vehicle’s wheel torque may pull the ramps away from underneath it. The vehicle must be put in neutral and towed onto the vehicle. Take extra care to ensure nobody is directly behind the vehicle when you are pushing it onto the trailer or van, and ensure there is ample space behind you so that no persons or property are at risk. Once your ride-on mower or vehicle is loaded to your trailer or van we recommend you strap it down.

We hope this helps. If you’d like to view the ramps or speak to someone about your needs, please give us a call today on 021 4965 132.