Blog Post for August

Did you know that supplying your employees with ergonomical headsets to answer the phone can actually boost productivity and save you money at the same time!

 Studies have found that In 2000, 1.8 million workers in the United States reported work-related musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) such as carpal tunnel syndrome, tendonitis, and back injuries. MSDs accounted for 34% of all lost workday injuries and illnesses (nearly 600,000 cases annually), and $1 of every $3 spent for workers' compensation was for MSD related injuries (nearly $20 billion annually).


Also the costs associated with injuries are significant (workers' compensation insurance carrier for Carpal Tunnel injuries in particular and neck pain associated with Phone use). With the majority of the work force in administrative and customer service positions, ergonomic factors are an important concern. 
 
 One customer I know declined the request from an employee for a headset for use with telephone sales. About a year later the employee ended up on sick leave and eventually had to switch job functions as the individual could not handle the neck pain associated with long hours on the phone. Eventually this person ended up with neck issues similar to whiplash and needed an operation on her neck. Adding more sick time and loss of work!
 
Overland Communications caries a full line of head set products for both cellular Phones and Office workstations. WE are a distributor for Headworks a high quality and reasonably priced head set and base station with amplifier and or dial pad. Headworks is a very popular brand over seas for call centers. Overland Communications became an importer of Headworks products back in 2000 and has been very happy with the quality of workmanship and reliability. Overland is also a reseller for Jaraba, Blue Ant, Plantronics, Bluetooth, PhoneLabs, Parrot, Panasonic, and RCA.

 

 For elderly and visually and or hearing impaired people we have a great line of amplified phones with big buttons, large displays, and visual ringers that flash and or ring loud.
 
We also have Visual Flash ringers good for noisy environments! Give us a call and one of our sales Representatives can help you find the right solution for your needs!

Even the President needs a good phone and Headset! So don't leave the president of your business on the line with an old static and faulty phone!

Call the "Wiring Gurus" and let us help you clear up the noise.

http://www.wiringguru.com/

Awsome, Large Security Door Viewer "Peep Hole"

Security Door Viewer

Wide Angle 2 3/8 Door Viewer Scope in Gold ABS plastic.
Our Wide Angle Door Viewers are the highest quality on the market today.They are manufactured with the highest quality prism available and an optical lenses which provide a clear undistorted view, unlike competitors which use ordinary glass lenses and an inferior prism which makes a clouded image. Our Door Viewers are made of high quality ABS Plastic and the color is Gold metal to match any decor!

This Super Wide Peephole is made of space age revolutionary material. It has a optical lens and highest quality prism on the market today. Mounted on an entrance door, it allows you to have a clear view of the outside of your door even if standing 7 feet away from your door. This has No Need To Put Eye Up To Door. Clear Viewing Up To 7 Feet Away Suitable For All Exterior And Interior Security Doors clearest view for its kind.

Easy To Install, Do It Yourself Maintenance Free

Buy Now!
$75  metal housing made of Aluminum and anodized in a Gold Color to match most door hardware
$35  ABS Plastic version slightly smaller with nearly 2" viewing area. Also Gold in color. Both models are awesome, and available in Gold. Additional colors available on bulk orders of 4 or more: Black, White, Silver and Bronze.

New High Power Long range Day/Night Camera

Features:

High Power 260ft Long Range IR Camera, 540 TV Lines, 1/3 Sony Super HAD CCD, Extended Range

5-50mm Varifocal Lens, Day & Night Weather-proof IP65, Cable Managed Bracket

This Camera is great for Day Night vision where the location requires coverage a large yard or long distance for example to read the license plate at night of Vehicles entering work area or yard. Features Verifocal Len's, all weather protection and Super powerful IR night vision illumination of an amazing 260 feet.  Camera retails for $600 and our price is $400 plus installation.

Energy Saving Suggestions

Some energy saving suggestions I have accumulated over the web with some research!

The Paint on your walls The color you paint the walls in your home can cost you Money! Paint the walls of your home a light color. Dark colors tend to absorb light, requiring you to use more energy from light bulbs to achieve the same effect.

Not only do light colors on your walls help conserve energy in your home, they also make your rooms feel brighter and more cheerful! If you are about to paint the walls in your home we suggest you use a low or zero VOC paint. Check out this site from TLC for more information about how low-VOC paint works.

Dish Washer A dishwasher that is 90% full uses 4 units of electricity. If it is only 50% full, it still uses 3 units of electricity. Fill the dishwasher to save on your electric bill.

Energy Efficient Light Bulbs Replacing a single incandescent bulb with an energy-efficient compact fluorescent bulb (one of those "squiggly bulbs") can save up to $50 over the bulb's lifetime. Check out www.greenlite.ca  They have great Light bulbs to replace your old inefficient bulbs and save money being green. Site also has a great savings calculator!

Water Heater Set your water heater to the “normal” setting or 120 degrees unless your dish washer requires a higher setting. Buy a water heater blanket and keep your water heater insulated. You'll save $40 per year. Water heater insulation blankets are designed for gas, oil or electric heaters. White vinyl backed fiberglass blanket. Includes adhesive tape for easy installation. Easy to install with scissors, measuring tape and pencil. Fits up to 60 gallons. *Be sure to leave the air intake vent uncovered when insulating a gas water heater! Insulate the hot water pipes leading from your hot water heater. Easy to do but might be hard to get to all the pipes! Take shorter showers. Wash clothes in cold water.

Energy Efficient Windows Up to 16% of your heat can escape through unprotected windows. Close your drapes at night or install insulating shutters to retain heat. If you have a large expanse of glass that doesn't receive direct sun, keep the drapes closed as much as possible. You can also use Packing Bubble wrap and plastic draped in your window. May not be attractive but the energy savings could please your budget.

 You can also purchase and install a vinyl coating on your windows. This is less expensive than new windows and  a reasonable investment for renters and smaller budgets. The film is applied to the inside window.

Its benefits are:

• Crystal Clear
• Reusable
• Saves Heat
• Easy To Install
• Heavy Duty
• UV Stabilized

Check out this site for more information

 

 

Other Drafty areas of consideration Doors! You can buy inexpensive foam rubber insulation to easily seal out the warm sun and cold winter drafts around your doors.

Electrical Outlets can also transfer heat and cold from within the wall. You can use the same Foam rubber tape to seal the air from flowing through. Also you can use Spray Foam. But I don’t like this option as it makes it hard to rework on the fixture in the future.

Fire Place! Close the damper vent tightly when not in use.

Air conditioners and Swamp coolers! Don’t forget to winterize (seal temporarily or cover) your cooling units to keep the cold out!

Furniture? The placement of your furniture is a consideration. Make sure your not sitting in the hot sun shining through the window. You’ll end up wanting the Air conditioner turned on! Also don’t block your heating and cooling system from doing its job just because the Armorer fits best in the spot covering the AC vent!

Vampire switch! 75% of electricity used by home electronics is consumed while "off". By using a power strip and switching off when not in use, you lessen CO2 emissions and reduce your energy bill. Its simple and cheap to buy a Power strip and plug your electronic devices into it. It can protect your equipment from harmful Power surges (if you buy one with Surge protection). And when not in use flip the switch to OFF!

What Kind of Washing Machine is More Energy Efficient? When choosing your next washing machine, pick one with a front-loader. Front-loader models use 25% less energy than a standard model.

Also, simply switching from a hot/warm cycle to a warm/cold cycle when washing laundry can save you 10 cents a load. That adds up when you think about how many loads of laundry you do a year!

Don't forget to look for the Energy Star before making those big purchases!

Check out this TLC site!

Heat and Air Conditioning Filters Check your furnace and AC filters regularly. Cleaning or replacing filters once a month during periods of high use will insure proper air flow, promote better health, increase efficiency, and save money too.

Don’t use your Dryer! During spring and summer months, line dry your clothes instead of using a clothes dryer. This can save you a lot of money each year.

Energy Efficient Thermostats Save You Money Why pay for heat or AC you don't need? You can save energy and money by using a programmable thermostat. It can reduce your energy needs from heat or AC when you are at work, away at vacation, or asleep.

 

Attic and wall insulation Take a look into the attic and see how much insulation you have. I bet you’ll notice how hot it is up there too. That is why you need a solar attic Fan. Anyway, take a ruler with you and see how much insulation you have. It should be light and fluffy! If it is squashed or settled in, than it is more likely to transfer heat and cold into your house. Here is a rating system I have come up with.  

12 inches or more Excellent!

9-12 inches Very Good!

6-9 inches Good!

3-6 inches Fair!

Under 3 inches POOR!

Blow in Cellulose is an option for the do it yourself Handy man. You can rent the machine and buy the Cellulose blocks from many Hardware stores! Doing walls is a little trickier but if you have some Sheet rock skills and not afraid to paint, then you can do it! Also for exterior walls you can give your home a major modernization and a protective thermal coat by adding Poly Styrene Sheets followed by a new Stucco Coating. But this is a skilled project that will require a contractor and a bit more money. Check this site out. Detailed DIY How to step by step!

 

Check out PG&E new online tools for information on your energy usage.

Here is the results of what PG&E’s new savings calculator says I could save from making some simple changes in my home. There new tool is pretty cool and intuitive.

Im sure the savings would be a bit different from house to house and especially for me in the Water heating area. I have 8 people in my house!

Savings Opportunities Annual Savings

Weatherization Doors and Windows:

      Control air leakage $139 - $231

Water Heating:

      Insulate water heater tank and hot water pipes $4 - $7

Install efficient shower heads $71 - $118

Lighting:

   Use compact fluorescent bulbs in recessed fixtures $65 - $80

   Replace halogen trochees $159 - $194

   Use compact fluorescent bulbs in high-use lamps $52 - $64

Heating and Cooling

   Install a programmable thermostat $65 - $108

   Replace your central air conditioner $222 - $370

   Replace your heating system $294 - $490

   Seal leaks in ducts $85 - $142

Information taken from PG&E Smart energy Analyzer on-line.

Wayne Rinehart

www.WiringGuru.com

Great resource websites:

www.ConservingSaves.com Ways to conserve energy and save you money

www.FreeCycle.org  Recycle your unwanted items to someone else in your community.

www.simplysellular.com These people will help sell or donate your old cell phone.

www.SwapTree.com Swap Books, CD’s, DVD’s and Video Games.

www.greenlite.ca  Great Light bulbs to replace your old inefficient bulbs and save money being green. Site also has a great savings calculator!

www.solar-components.com A neat site with some good resources and ideas.

www.windsun.com  www.greenpowerscience.com

www.tlc.howstuffworks.com  www.diynetwork.com

OC Inc. Green Initive 2010

Our Green initiative for 2010.
Unfortunately the building trades have been terrible about waste and trash for years! So back in 1996 we wanted to be better about waste. So we would recycle scrap wire! We found it actually put a little money back in our pocket as well. So it was easy to recycle copper wire and plastic bottles. But now moving into the future we want to do more. So we decided to try and be one of the most "green" communications Low Voltage contractors in California. Not easy to do but worth it as we love our country and want to leave the planet in good shape for future generations. So here is what we are trying to do moving forward and we challenge you to do the same or even better! And we can help you with green consulting as well.

We recycle! All left over copper, plastic and paper are taken back to our facility and recycled! We use a custom made solar powered evaporative cooler to cool down the office, shop and home. We are adding Solar Photo Voltaic Panels to offset our energy consumption. We are lighting our work space with DC lights powered by the sun. We are installing Vampire switches to completely turn off unused electronics in the office shop and home! We also hope to move toward better energy efficient Vehicles or Bio Fuels in the future (as funds permit!). We also use power inverters in the trucks to power electronic devices and Lap Tops. We use to need to run the engine so not to drain our car battery. Now we installed extra Deep Cycle marine Batteries that are charged by the vehicle and a solar trickle charger panel on the vehicle. So we don't need to waste the gas anymore. We are running Energy Audits with our new energy meter to see where we need to upgrade to newer Electronic devices to save money on our PG&E and to be more "green". We also offer removal and recycle old electronics. We will also help you with disposal of old batteries. Some manufacturers offer cash intensives to trade up and recycle old equipment!

If you’re mad about the rising Fuel Costs or Oil Spills and the damage done to the environment, do something about it! It all starts with the need for fuel to feed our energy demands!
Get rid of energy hungry devices or unplug when there not needed! Did you know that many appliances still use electricity when turned off! Coffee pots can add $15 dollars a month just to tell you the time and keep the pot warm! Brew and then unplug! Buy A thermos to keep the pot warm and use your cell phone to tell what time it is. Some of the most demanding appliances are Clothes Dryer, refrigerators and Air Conditioner. Buy an energy star Refrigerator, Dry your clothes outside like grandma did (the clothes come out even more fresh smelling), don’t use the Air conditioner until you really need it. Instead, install solar powered Attic Fans, Whole House Fans, and window box fans to cool of the house. Use Solar powered Security lighting! It’s not as expensive as you might think!

Your old unused Phone and Computer Equipment can not only be expensive, but dangerous too! A client in Northern California, building burned to the Ground in March allegedly due to old UPS system Batteries overheating and catching on fire in the Telephone Closet. The entire building burned to the ground before The Fire department was able to contain the fire. Everything that wasn't ruined by fire ended up being ruined by smoke or water!! So seriously, we all need to look at what we can do to save energy, money, and our God given home...Planet Earth!

In this picture: Here you can see where the Phone room was. The metal door is burned in half! The large wood against the building is to temporarily brace the walls of the building so that it is some what safe while fire investigators work in the building. The roof top of the building is completely gone! Photo by Wayne Rinehart

Here is a look at the rest of the utility room. This is the electrical closet for the building.

Another look at the door to the telephone closet. It is believed that the cause was by an old UPS power back up battery bank and debris in the closet. The battery over heated and caught on fire. Thank God on this project I came in after the fire had already happened. The client was advised previously about replacing there old equipment and store the old junk in a different closet. But they failed to follow through with the advice! Photo taken by Wayne Rinehart.

Ask me about our new energy consulting services! We now offer Energy Audits and soon to offer Infer Red Camera Surveys to detect how well you’re building is insulated or where the hot spot is on your server rack!



Not just clean work but in depth knowledge on multiple technologies too! We excel while others fail That's why were called the "wiring gurus" www.WiringGuru.com

New and Old Services we provide

Overland Communications Inc. Is proud to announce the addition of restaurant paging systems and Nursery paging systems to our intercom and paging solutions. These systems are great for churches to page parents to pick up a fussy child or for restaurants to use for customers waiting for a table during busy restaurant hours. Other paging and intercom solutions include loud and visual ringers for phones in noisy environments, Paging horns for large warehouses car lots and storage yards, Intercom for schools, apartment complexes, security gates, large buildings with after hour or remote access and more!

Also Now offering Energy Audits and Green Consulting Solutions! We will help you find a "green" alternative to your energy needs.

 Don’t forget our other service solutions:

 Phone Systems and Voice mail
  Phone solutions for Motels, Home Office, Small office to enterprise solutions. Also able to connect multiple locations.  New Voice over IP solutions available. Servicing ALL Phone Systems!

Computer Network Cabling:
 From a single outlet to Enterprise Networks. Server Rooms and racks, Distribution Centers, NOC (Network Operation Centers) and DR (Disaster and Recovery) sites,

Wireless Network and Microwave Radio solutions:
 Wi-Fi, Hot Spots, Wireless point to point and point to multi-point, WAP (wireless Access Points) Campus Communication Back Bones, Multiple Buildings, Cross County or Cross streets wireless solutions,
TVRO Satellite Antennas, Weather Station Satellite Systems, Satellite Broadband, Wireless Phones And More!

Cell Phone Signal Boosters:
 We can extend cell phone signal reception in buildings with "Dead Zones".

Call Centers:
 We offer Corded and cordless Head Phones to add to your Phone System or Call center

Audio and Video solutions:
 Motel TV systems, Home Theater, Video advertising systems, Computer to TV, Computer audio to Stereo, Whole House Media Servers! Projection TV: Board Rooms, Churches, Residential Homes, Sports       Bars! Video Phones!

Security Camera Systems:
Wired and Wireless cameras, Remote controlled, Digital Recording Systems, Hidden Cameras.

Access Entry Systems:
 Building Security, Zone Control, Security Gates and doors

Public Address/PA:
 Concert sound systems, Board Room, Paging, Grocery Stores Lecterns and Podiums many to choose from including some with built in PA systems!

Background Music:
 restaurants, Dental Offices, Credit Unions and Banks, Counseling offices, Medical Offices, Grocery Store, Retail Stores, Residential Homes, Privacy control to keep other people from hearing discrete conversations like in a small office. We can place a speaker just outside an office or cubical to help dilute private conversations.

Uninterruptable Power Supply/UPS Battery Back Up:

 Solar and Battery Back Up Solutions. Solar Trickle Chargers with Battery Supply and DC to AC Power inverter for remote power solutions. Battery Back Up for Power Failure Solutions.

Marketing systems:
MOH Music/Marketing on Hold, Audio ads for in store advertising over the PA. Video advertising on your store and Restaurants TVS. Hospitality Information Systems. We can professionally record personalized message for your MOH systems! 

Custom Installations:
 High end Homes, Home automation, Home Theater, Technology Systems wiring, Fiber Optics, ALL Low Voltage system cabling  from door bells to Network Operation Centers. You Name the technology we will work with you to install it!!

Technical Help! We can help resolve issues with your equipment or service providers. We have equipment to troubleshoot your Phone System, Your DSL and T-1 network, DS-3, Broadband, your Phone Lines, Your computer Network. We can even certify your wiring to prove how fast your network is on a particular outlet. We also do energy audits! Want to know how much it costs to run your server or old Phone system! We can tell you!

Providing the best craftsmanship in Nor Cal, the "Wiring Gurus" since 1996!

Wayne Rinehart
"The Wiring Guru"
OVERLAND COMMUNICATIONS
(925)351-8750