M/I Homes Unveils New Model Townhome at Ashton Place in Lisle, Ill.

Read article : M/I Homes Unveils New Model Townhome at Ashton Place in Lisle, Ill.

M/I Homes, one of the most active homebuilders in the Chicago area, announces it is unveiling a decorated model home at Ashton Place, a new community of 26 maintenance-free townhomes in Lisle, Ill., just east of Naperville Road at the intersection of Warrenville Road and Leask Lane.

Prospective buyers will have the first opportunity to tour the new decorated model home at a special celebration on Thursday, August 17, from 4:30 to 8 p.m. The event is open to the public and will include complimentary refreshments, the opportunity to enter a free raffle and tethered hot air balloon rides*.

“We’ve had terrific traffic at Ashton Place since pre-sales started earlier this summer, which speaks volumes about the appeal of this community’s highly desirable location near downtown Lisle, the Morton Arboretum, neighboring Naperville, and the western suburbs’ corporate corridor, not to mention major transportation arteries like Interstates 88 and 355,” said Curt VanHyfte, area president of M/I Homes. “Now, with our new model home available to tour on site, prospective buyers can see for themselves how our home designs are the perfect match for this sought-after area and the beautiful surroundings they’ll enjoy at Ashton Place.”

VanHyfte noted that Ashton Place offers an extremely picturesque setting, with lavish landscaping, winding roads entering the neighborhood, wooded streetscapes and a private cul-de-sac at the back of the development. Additionally, a selection of townhomes in the community back up directly to Leask Lane Park, a new on-site 3-acre neighborhood park that is owned and maintained by the Lisle Park District.

According to Cheryl Bonk, vice president of sales and marketing for M/I Homes, three available floor plans at Ashton Place present a variety of price points, home sizes and design features. Base-priced from $349,990 to $379,990, homes range from 1,866 to 2,231 square feet and feature two to three bedrooms, 2½ baths, an attached two-car garage and a basement. The three plans are available in traditional three-unit townhome buildings and in pairs.

“The groupings of these homes and the overall intimate size of Ashton Place, with just 26 residences, creates a wonderful residential enclave on a lovely property,” said Bonk. “When we unveil our new model home at Ashton Place at our grand opening event, buyers will experience one of these floor plans, our popular Cortland design, firsthand.”

Measuring 2,203 square feet and base-priced from $379,990, the Cortland is a two-story design with two bedrooms and 2½ baths. “The centerpiece of the Cortland is an extremely open family room and dining area configuration, filled with abundant sunlight from lots of windows,” said Bonk. “The model also shows this floor plan with an upgraded gourmet kitchen and optional private patio, which create a great setup for casual family gatherings or simply comfortable day-to-day living.”

The Cortland also features a large kitchen pantry, under-staircase storage area, and foyer powder room on the first floor. An extra-wide staircase leads to the second level, which opens into a large loft that is showcased in the model as a home office with an expanse of built-in cabinetry as well as a beverage cooler. “The loft could just as easily be used as a second family room, theater room or workout space, or buyers can choose an alternate layout with a third bedroom in lieu of the loft,” said Bonk. “Buyers really appreciate this type of flexible space since it allows them to tailor the home to their own lifestyle.”

In the Cortland model, hardwood flooring runs through the loft and into the adjacent master suite, which includes a luxury master bath with oversized shower, and a walk-in closet with a door to the second-floor laundry room. The secondary bedroom also has a walk-in closet, and an en suite bath with a double vanity.

Other options and customizations on display in the Cortland model include a brick fireplace in the family room; built-in cabinetry, with apothecary spice drawers and a quartz top, in the dining area; and kitchen upgrades including stainless steel appliances, quartz countertops and 42-inch maple cabinets.

Ashton Place offers residents the convenience of maintenance-free living, with exterior maintenance snow removal, landscaping and lawn service provided.

The community is located in School District 202 featuring Tate Woods Elementary, Lisle Jr. High School and Lisle High School. Residents of Ashton Place will enjoy being in close proximity to downtown Lisle, a pedestrian-friendly hub of dining and retail outlets surrounded by a prairie-style streetscape inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright. Walking distance from downtown is the Lisle Metra BNSF Railway, providing easy access to Union Station in Chicago as well as neighboring suburbs. Lisle also offers unique attractions such as the Museums at Lisle Station Park where visitors can learn about the heritage and culture of 19th century Northern Illinois. Lisle is home to the popular Eyes to the Skies Festival, a three-day event that includes hot air balloons, musical performances, a carnival and fireworks.

For more information or to RSVP to the August 17 grand opening event, visit www.mihomes.com/ashtonplace or call Nicole Skrocki at (630) 296-9774. The event will take place in the new Cortland model and sales center at 1989 Fiona Lane in Lisle (for GPS, please us 2010 Warrenville Road, Lisle). *Tethered hot air balloon rides are offered based on weather conditions and availability. Rides are on a first-come, first-serve basis from 6 to 8 p.m. Participants must register and sign a tethered-balloon passenger waiver agreement.

Homes at all M/I Homes communities come standard with the builder’s industry-leading 15-Year Transferable Structural Warranty, which not only allows buyers to purchase with confidence, but also adds value if the home is sold in the future. All homes are also WHOLE HOME Certified, an M/I Homes designation indicating the builder’s superior approach when constructing homes. Upon testing, an M/I home will receive a more favorable HERS (Home Energy Rating System) score than an Energy Star-certified home, which can save buyers upwards of 30 percent on their energy bills. A lower HERS Index means lower energy costs, and on average an M/I home achieves a HERS rating of 57, considerably lower than other resale homes and other builders in the market.

About M/I Homes:

M/I Homes has been building new homes of outstanding quality and superior design for over 40 years. Founded in 1976 by Irving and Melvin Schottenstein, M/I Homes has fulfilled the dreams of over 100,000 homeowners. From its start as a family business, M/I has grown into a national leader. M/I Homes of Chicago is one of the top four builders in the market, with 24 active communities across the region. All M/I Homes are 100% WHOLE HOME certified and are backed by the company’s landmark 15-Year Transferable Structural Warranty.

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Originally published Aug 11, 2017.

Home Tour: Remodeled Anderson Township barn becomes gorgeous modern dream home

Read article : Home Tour: Remodeled Anderson Township barn becomes gorgeous modern dream home

ANDERSON TOWNSHIP, Ohio — Jerry Whitney wasn’t looking to move, but he was looking for a clear route from his Anderson Township home to the airport on a day when interstate traffic was heavy. So he cut down Five Mile Road toward Kellogg Avenue.

“I didn’t want to miss my flight,” he said. “And then I saw this place and said, ‘Oh, my god, look at that barn.’ And then I saw a ‘for sale’ sign and Five Mile Creek behind it.”

He fell in love. When his wife of 14 years, Karen, saw it, she fell in love, too.

On Dec. 31, 2012, seven days after that first sighting, the Whitneys bought the 30-year-old horse barn and its seven acres at a 30 percent discount from a motivated seller. It cost them $300,000.

Fast forward 18 months and the Whitneys – who had no previous home construction experience – moved out of a 300-square-foot trailer on the property into a home like no other, a dream house they played a big role in designing and decorating.

The shock of the unexpected experience has worn off, but not the excitement and contentment they feel for their fully modern, energy-efficient barn house. Also still strong is their appreciation for their project partners – among them architect Marc McConnell, builder Paul Kapitula, Keidel Supply, A&S Lighting, Tate Builders Supply, Cooknee Cabinets, KBR Countertop Specialists, Home Depot, IKEA, The Container Store and Peoples First Savings Bank.

All these forces came together to produce a four-bedroom, three-bathroom showcase of modern architecture and engineering that surprisingly fits inside a big, old, round-top home originally built for horses.

Not only does the place run on a geothermal energy system that held down last summer’s utility bills to $90 per month, it is designed to be the Whitneys’ "forever home." The couple asked for and got what architects call “living in place” features that will allow the Whitneys, who are in their 60s, to stay in their home permanently.

The house’s hallways and doors are extra-wide. There’s a 4-foot-wide shaft just behind a door off the entry hall where an elevator to the second floor and its master bedroom can be installed if and when it is needed. Next to the shaft is a laundry room with a chute from the second floor. The master bathroom’s shower door is wide and wheelchair-accessible. Even the landscaping is designed to require minimal maintenance and no chemicals.

There are picture windows in every main room through which the Whitneys, for the rest of their lives, can watch the water rush down Five Mile Creek, lots of wildlife – deer, cardinals, doves, woodpeckers, nut hatches, tufted titmice and blue jays – and the moon and stars.

Take the Tour

The Whitneys – she’s from Bridgetown and is a University of Cincinnati graduate, he is from Lima, Ohio, and is a Xavier University graduate – wanted to retain the bones of the barn. And there’s no mistaking what it used to be when you turn off Five Mile Road onto their curved driveway. The house’s Quonset hut shape is enhanced by two second-floor dormers, a glassy grand entrance and the original cupola poking out at the roof’s center.

The barn’s industrial-strength foundation passed inspection with flying colors and was retained, but most of the interior – the stables, tack room and hayloft – was gutted to the arched laminated beams that support the rounded roof. To keep it water-tight during a 100-year flood, the entire house had to be raised 14½ inches.

Architect McConnell was so inspired by the place, Jerry Whitney said, that he sketched the floor plan in eight hours and then started marking off the layout with blue tape.

What strikes visitors upon entering the Whitneys’ home is its whiteness, its angular walls and windows, and its uncluttered, modern décor. Yet hints of the barn are there in the entry in the form of a frosted two-paneled sliding door that leads into the living room and a long, floating ledge made of chocolate walnut Jerry Whitney picked up on a one-day drive to Kansas City, Missouri, and back.

The Whitneys had hoped to repurpose two sliding wood doors in the old stable, but their condition was too poor.

“So we were in IKEA one day, and we saw those panels on some cabinets and said, ‘There’s our barn doors,’” said Jerry Whitney, a sales executive with a logistics software company.

The doors might leak a little heat, but the gas fireplace and heated, polished concrete floors keep the living room warm.

“My parents came here for two weeks in October, and they were so warm. My mother learned how to work the thermostat and kept it at 70 degrees. We practically had to kick them out,” joked Karen Whitney, a longtime physician’s assistant.

To the left of the entry hall and beyond the elevator shaft, laundry room and mechanicals closet are two bedrooms that share what the Whitneys call their “spa room.” The bathroom features sparkly, speckled gray quartz countertops, a dual-sink vanity with matching mirrors, a standalone soaking tub and a glassed-in shower with grass-like textured tile. Chrome is the metal of choice for the hardware and fixtures.

To be added to the “spa” features later this year is a fenced-in outdoor shower.

While family photographs in the bedroom at the front of the house stir memories, the bedroom in the back is filled with a mix of family-made art and heirlooms and images from vacations the couple and their four adult daughters have taken.

A glass door from the back bedroom leads to a covered concrete deck that stretches almost the entire length of the house. The deck faces Five Mile Creek and the woods of Withrow Nature Preserve and is accessible from the living and great rooms as well as the 2½-car garage.

Walking back to the entry hall, visitors pass a colorful Campari liqueur poster and a large portrait of an 11-year-old Jerry painted by the late College of Mount St. Joseph art instructor John Nartker.

Across the hall is a stairwell that reaches to the roof. It features a light oak staircase with stainless steel chords and rail and leads up to two more bedrooms, the kitchen and a beamed great room. The vaulted room includes a sectional couch and two stuffed chairs, a glassed-in wine closet, recessed lighting and one floor lamp, a 9-by-6 picture window, a gas fireplace, a big-screen television and a separate dining area with chandelier that faces the front yard.

The great room is where they wind down on weekends with wine and the Wall Street Journal or watch birds – on sunny or gray days.

“Even if it’s raining, we don’t care. With all these windows, it doesn’t matter,” Karen Whitney said.

Three bird feeders hang off the fully plumbed, second-story deck where the couple grills out with friends and watches the ever-running creek and forest.

The 30-foot-long deck is party central when the weather is nice, but the kitchen fills the bill in the winter. Stainless steel appliances, a long, two-tiered white quartz cooking and eating island and glossy white and textured gray European-style cabinets give the kitchen the modern feel Karen Whitney prefers.

“It’s a fun, fun, fun kitchen to cook in,” she said. “We hosted Thanksgiving last year, and I couldn’t believe how easy it was to cook the meal. There’s so much space and convenience.”

To the side of the kitchen and overlooking the stairwell’s cathedral-shaped window is a quartz-topped desk that the couple uses as command central, to pay bills and handle other household business. 

Two bedrooms are situated down a hall behind the kitchen, but before them is an inviting, steel-railed spiral staircase. Karen Whitney uses the slanted-wall and naturally lighted bonus room – which has two large cubbyholes behind doors for storage –for yoga, Pilates and TRX workouts. The third floor’s balcony hovers over the kitchen and great room and provides an up-close view of a special light fixture suspended inside the windowed cupola.

“My parents gave us that,” she said of the brass and crystal chandelier. “It came out of the old Shubert Theatre in Cincinnati.” It lights up the great room like a stationary disco ball, her husband said.

A guest room with full bath and the master with bath and massive walk-in closet are back down the spiral staircase and below the bonus room. The couple outfitted their closet with a system purchased at the Container Store that holds all their clothes and accessories. There is no dresser or wardrobe in their room, just open space and a clear view from the bed of the backyard and the rising moon.

“It’s the most wonderful bed to sleep in, until you have to get up,” Karen Whitney said.

'We Took a Gamble on it'

The Whitneys had just remodeled their contemporary house on Little Dry Run Road, which sat on a half-acre and was what they thought they always wanted. Leaving it was far from their minds – until they spotted the old horse barn on Five Mile.

“We took a gamble on it,” said Jerry Whitney, whose experience rebuilding vintage cars equipped him with mechanical skills and gave him confidence they could build their own home.

“Our financial adviser said, ‘You guys are crazy if you don’t do it,’” he said. So they did, but not without sacrifice. Living in a trailer during the treacherous winter of 2013-14 and storing their belongings in a nearby 20-by-30-foot shipping container for 18 months weren’t the only challenges they faced.

“We’d never built a house before or made all the decisions we had to make, sometimes instantaneous ones like when your builder asks, ‘What do I do now?’ and you’ve got to have a decision right then,” he said.

“We turned it into an adventure that we could write a book about,” Jerry Whitney said. “Karen’s quote is, ‘We never thought we would live in a dream house, and now we own one.’ To go from a normal house to this is just amazing. I swear we were meant to be here.”

Chance to See the Whitneys’ House

The 2016 green living tours by the Cincinnati chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council includes the Whitney house on Sept. 17 ($15 for non-members). To join the Green Living Member Circle, click here. The group will tour a modern house in Northside on Jan. 16.

Gower Self Catering Accommodation - Penrice Castle Cottages

Read article : Gower Self Catering Accommodation - Penrice Castle Cottages

The origins of the Penrice Estate can be traced back to the twelfth century when a Norman knight took the name of de Penrice and was gifted the land that became the Estate. A mile from the coast, Penrice Castle has panoramic views over Oxwich Bay.

On the Estate are fifteen lovely self catering Gower holiday cottages, sleeping between three and eight. Bookings are from Friday to Friday. A few are described below: For full details on each cottage please go to our main address.

Bayview Cottage Prices from £455pw to £1025pw in high season.

Situated in Penrice Village. Sleeps 6-7. Private parking. Gas central heating. A typical detached Gower cottage overlooking the village green. It has a lovely enclosed garden with wonderful sea views. Beamed ceilings and an open fireplace, flat screen tv and DVD.

One double bedroom, one twin bedded room, one single room and a single room with a pull out bed.

The stable outside has a ping pong table and darts board and there is an outside additional toilet.

Church Cottage Penrice Village prices from £355pw to £870pw in high season. Sleeps 4. Gas central heating.

Church Cottage is the oldest of all the Penrice cottages. It is on the green facing the church. The village clockmaker used to live here. It has a lot of old fashioned charm and atmosphere with a lovely enclosed cottage garden and large grounds.

One double bedded room and a twin bedded room with a downstairs bathroom with shower over bath. Open fire the dining hall and a cosy sitting room with beams and a flat screen tv and DVD.

Penrice Old Farmhouse Prices from £580 to £1320 in high season.

Sleeps 8. Gas-fired central heating. An imposing detached large farmhouse with extensive lawns and attractive outbuildings, including a listed Granary on staddle stones. A good holiday home for families who like plenty of space. This house also has the added advantage of an additional second sitting room and a games room where table tennis, darts are available.

Two king size bedded rooms and two twin bedded rooms. One bathroom and one shower room.

Back Field - Prices from £525 to £1195 in high season. Three bedrooms, sleeps up to 6.

Originally Back Field belonged to the adjoining Penrice Old Farmhouse as the animal sheds. During 2008 the property has been lovingly converted into top quality holiday accommodation. It is an 'L' shaped property with a very interesting exposed vaulted ceiling. There is a large kitchen/dining room and a good sized sitting room with a log burner and a flat screen television. The bedrooms have en-suites, two with baths with showers above and one of the doubles has a shower room. Both the doubles have king size beds. The house is light and bright with a mix of old and modern. Outside there is a large lawned area, a small patio with seating and a barbecue. There is a separate driveway to that of Penrice Old Farmhouse and a fence between the two properties. The garden is quite private with seasonal views across Penrice Top Park. Short breaks are available form October to Easter but not school holidays. Ideal property for children and the elderly as it is all on one level.

Garden House - Penrice Park Prices from £575 to £1320 in high season.

Sleeps 8. Gas central heating.

An enchanting detached house set in the park with its own private enclosed garden. Garden House was originally the head gardener's house. The old walled kitchen garden lies behind.

Two double bedded rooms and two twin bedded rooms. One bathroom and one shower room.

Hillside Cottage - Penrice Village. Prices from £365pw to £840pw in high season. Sleeps 4. Gas central heating.

One of the original Gower Cottages built by the Penrice Estate at the end of the eighteenth century. Hillside is a small cottage with two bedrooms and lots of charm. It has a small garden at the front and a larger raised lawn at the back with a lovely view of the countryside.

One double bedded room and one twin bedded room. Shower over the bath and additional downstairs cloak-room. Very traditional, cosy cottage.

Marsh View - Penrice Village. Prices from £450pw to £1020pw in high season.

Sleeps 5plus1. Gas central heating. The Estate's head carpenter used to live here. The views overlooking Oxwich Bay are wonderful and there is a large enclosed garden.

One double bedded room, 1 twin bedded room and one single bedded room with a pull out full size guest bed. Bathroom with shower over bath. Cosy sitting room with open fire, flat screen tv and dvd. Farmhouse kitchen with log burner.

Pitt Soggs Cottage- outskirts of Penrice Village. Prices from £395pw to £895pw in high season.

A recent conversion of an old building with a traditional exterior but a more modern interior.

Sleeps 4. Underfloor gas central heating.

Open plan layout downstairs. One double and one twin bedded room upstairs. one bathroom and one shower room. Very pretty traditional cottage outside with a modern twist inside.

The Kittles Prices from £395pw to £895pw in high season.

A recently renovated cottage built in the twentieth century with beautiful views over Penrice Park and Oxwich Bay in the distance. Sleeps 4. Gas central heating. One double and one twin bedded room upstairs with a bathroom with shower over the bath. Additional cloakroom downstairs.

Rose Cottage Penrice Village. Prices from £500pw to £1150pw in high season.

Beautiful views of Oxwich bay. Formerly the village inn called The Rising Sun where Dylan Thomas spent many school holidays.

Sleeps 6. Gas central heating.

One double bedroom, one bedroom with a king size bed and one twin bedded room. Bathroom with shower over bath. Additional downstairs cloakroom.

Sea View Cottage Penrice Village. Prices from £370pw to £860pw in high season.

A typical detached Gower cottage that was once thatched. Overlooking Penrice Village Green.

Sleeps5. Gas central heating One double bedded room, one twin bedded room and one single bedded room. Downstairs bathroom with shower over bath.

Estate Office Cottage Prices from £375pw to £855pw in high season.

A one storey two bedroom cottage, overlooking Penrice Park. Originally the Estate Office where tenants would come to pay their rent.

Sleeps 3. Gas central heating. Suitable for poor mobility.

One double bedroom with twin beds and one single bedroom with a 3ft 6 inch adjustamatic bed. Large bathroom with bath and separate shower.

Martha's Cottage Hayes Lane. Prices from £350pw to £815pw in high season.

One of a pair of semi-detached cottages up a little lane surrounded by fields and woods.

Sleeps 5. Gas central heating and an open fire, flat screen tv and DVD. Shared enclosed garden.

One double bedroom, one twin bedded room and one single bedded room. Downstairs bathroom with shower over bath. Very pretty cottage recently updated.

Shepherd's Cottage Hayes Lane. Prices from £350pw to £800pw in high season.

The second of a pair of semi-detached cottages up a little lane overlooking fields and a wood.

Sleeps 4. Gas central heating and an open fire, flat screen tv and dvd. Shared enclosed garden.

One double bedroom and one twin bedded room. Upstairs bathroom and additional downstairs toilet.

The Towers- New for 2010 is a one bedroom gatehouse that looks like a mini- norman castle. Both the bedroom and sitting-room are round as they are located in the tower itself. The Towers has just undergones extensive restoration to a very high standard and would be ideal as a honeymoon or romantic break location. Sleeps 2

Local Area:

Oxwich Bay, which lies in front of Penrice Castle, has a beautiful enclosed sandy beach that stretches east for about two miles from the village of Oxwich.

Cottage visitors have free parking for the beach, which is owned by the Penrice Estate and is ideal for swimming, fishing, waterskiing and windsurfing. Oxwich beach is the only bay in South Gower that allows dogs during the summer months. The secluded church on the rocks by the bay is one of the most romantic spots in the whole of Gower. There are tennis courts available within the grounds of the Estate for visitors use and fishing and a small rowing boat is available on the lake by prior arrangement with the owner.

Between the beach and Penrice Castle is Oxwich Marsh, a National Nature Reserve which is interesting for bird-watchers and nature lovers. Recent sightings have included the extremely rare Dartford Warbler.

Other attractions in the area include several golf courses, many other nature reserves and some wonderful castles and gardens. There are also numerous attractions for children in and around Swansea. Good pubs and restaurants are all nearby.

Area information

Gower was the first Area of Oustanding Natural Beauty, and has hardly changed since. There are beautiful beaches all within a short distance. Some fanatstic moorland and woods suitable for long walks. What could be better than at the end of your walking enjoying lunch in one of the local country pubs we have to offer. If you are into watersports there are beaches for surfing, wind surfing, swimming and boating plus lots more. Oxwich also has a company called Euphoria which hires out specialist water equipment, and Oxwich Beach was voted Best Beach in Britan by the Travel Magazine in 2007. Boat rides around the peninsula are always very popular and there is plenty of wildlife to see. Birdwatching, horse riding and golf are also very popular in the area. On a rainy day then just 30 mins away is Swansea itself, with art galleries, museums, a new leisure centre, marina,ten pin bowling, cinemas and of course one of the biggest indoor markets in Britain plus all of the usual department stores and lots of smaller shops.

Mumbles, a few miles from Swansea, is also great for individual shopping with lots of boutiques and restaurants plus the famous Joe's icecream parlour.

Local attractions

Penrice Estate owns Oxwich Bay which was voted the best beach in Britain 2007. We have a lovely sandy beach which is safe for children. There is a large car park which is free to our guests. Euphoria watersports work from the beach providing boat trips, wind surfing, water skiing and many more activities. Ideal for families there are two beach shops supplying snacks etc and toilets available. There is also a hotel on the beach offering bar meals.

At Perriswood just 5 minutes away there is an Archery centre that also has a number of birds.

Parkmill Heritage centre has plenty to offer for the younger members of the family and is no more than 10 minutes drive.

Catering

We have an in-house chef who will prepare meals which can be delivered to your cottage and be waiting for you in the fridge on your arrival. A menu can be supplied on request of the delicious dishes Julie can prepare. Food is available on a Tuesday and a Friday.

Payment information

Gas and the electricity are included in the price, as are the logs for the fires. We also supply all bed linen except cot linen. A travel cot and high chair are included in the cost. Additional cot and high chair sets are £10 extra. Dogs, a maximum of two, are £10 each per week. Towels are not supplied normally but are available to overseas visitors at a cost of £5 per set (one bath and one hand towel). Full use of the park and gardens at Penrice Estate and free entry to Oxwich Beach car park is also included. If more than 6 weeks before arrival a one third deposit is taken on a debit card. If less than 6 weeks before we take full payment.

Home-improvement dilemmas answered

Read article : Home-improvement dilemmas answered

Kamla and Alex Millson took inspiration from a distinctive hotel suite to transform their space.

Fact file The owners: Kamla Millson (right), a contract officer for adult social care, lives here with her husband Alex, who runs his own joinery business The property: A four-bedroom converted bungalow, built in 1928 The location: Leeds, West Yorkshire What they spent: The couple’s bathroom project cost around £11,500 as part of their loft conversion

A renovation project

After five years of making do with an original 90-year-old bathroom, we were ready for a bit of luxury,’ explains Kamla. ‘But it wasn’t until we stayed in a hotel with a fabulous open-plan bedroom and bathroom suite that we knew how we wanted our bathroom to look.’

Having put their modern townhouse on the market, Kamla and husband Alex looked for a project that would give them more space, and creating an opulent bathroom was at the top of their wishlist. A detached bungalow they found on the outskirts of Leeds, dating back to 1928, fitted the bill perfectly. ‘The house was like a time capsule, and hadn’t been touched for years,’ recalls Kamla. ‘The old lady who sold it to us had been living there since it was built – in fact, her father had built it. The property had lots of potential and, as Alex is a joiner, we were keen to take on a big renovation.’

It was five years, however, before the couple were ready to start work on creating a new master bedroom and en suite, plus a small home office next to the triangular window in the gable.

Hotel inspiration

‘We’d been to our friends’ wedding in nearby Harrogate, and the fabulous loft bedroom and en suite in the hotel gave us the inspiration to start work on ours,’ says Kamla. ‘Originally, we had planned to open up the loft to create two bedrooms, each with its own en suite, but the hotel suite we had stayed in made us rethink this. We thought it would be better to have one luxurious bedroom and bathroom space, with no door between the two areas.

‘We already knew that we wanted a dark bathroom, as we liked the idea of contrasting white sanitaryware with dark tiles,’ she continues, ‘but we decided that if we were going to use dark tiles, we wouldn’t want the space to feel confined.’

Before they could start thinking about the décor and fittings, there was some major work to be done in the roof space. With a background in design and boat building, self-confessed perfectionist Alex was confident about tackling the loft conversion himself. ‘By doing all the work, I could be sure that we got exactly what we wanted,’ he says. ‘Kamla and I had a shared vision and we didn’t mind putting in the effort because we knew we would get something great at the end of it.’

Planning the design

Before starting the project or ordering fixtures and fittings for the new bathroom, Alex used the online planning tool SketchUp to make sure he knew exactly how the space would look when it was finished, and to ensure that key components were in the correct position. Although not one to settle for an easy option, he explains that the high-gabled roofline made planning the loft conversion much simpler. ‘Most of the purlins were high enough to walk under, and we designed the space so that the bath was under the lowest beam,’ he says.

Alex did all the building work for the loft conversion and most of the plumbing himself, but enlisted the help of friends and other tradespeople when needed. ‘Putting up plasterboard is definitely not a one-man job,’ says Kamla, ‘so Alex got a friend to help him. In fact, I also helped before going off to work in the morning. There was no staircase, so it was just a question of me putting on my grippy gloves and passing up the huge boards into the void!’

Alex marked out the positions of pipes and electrics on the plasterboard, before laying tiles straight on to it. ‘You achieve a better fix that way,’ he says. A friend then plastered the ceiling and the couple employed an electrician. Kamla and Alex decided to position the rooflights directly above the bath – perfect for combining bathing with stargazing. All the work in the loft had to be completed before a spiral staircase went in, so Alex found himself running up and down a ladder with all the materials he needed, including the couple’s choice of dark brown wall and floor tiles. It took one month of working late into the evenings to finish the tiling alone. Besides looking stylish, the large-format tiles and tile spacers also had the advantage of limiting the amount of grouting that was required.

Decorating the space

With the dark tiles covering the walls and floors, Kamla and Alex wanted to make a contrast of colour and materials, and commissioned bespoke bookmatched walnut cabinets with three drawers to house twin basins. Finished with a red Silestone countertop, it makes a stunning feature and adds further interest to the space. Two angular basins are set into the countertop and a third basin is fitted in the separate WC area.

Coming in at around £1,500, the whirlpool bath, complete with massage jets and radio, nearly pushed the couple over their budget; they avoided any cash flow problems by completing one area at a time. Kamla also reasoned that they had managed for so long with the old bathroom downstairs that a touch of extra luxury was long overdue. Getting the new bath up to the loft, however, proved to be quite a challenge. ‘We wrapped up the bath in bubble wrap so it didn’t get damaged, and Alex and two friends had to carefully lift it through the void where the staircase was going to go. It was really heavy with the motor for all the jets and electrics,’ she explains.

The finished room

More delicate manoeuvring was required to get the shower screen in place. ‘We wanted just one solid piece of glass with no joins, so we ended up having to use the scaffolding to put it through the triangular window at the front of the house,’ explains Kamla. Happily, the glass stayed in one piece, ready for Alex to install the rainwater showerhead and hand shower. Last to go into the new space above the vanity unit were two mirrored bathroom cabinets, which have integrated LED lighting, creating a soft glow in the bathroom. This has proved essential for minimising disturbance at night, as there is no door between the bathroom and bedroom areas, although there is one separating the WC.

Now that their loft project is finished, Kamla and Alex are proud of what they have achieved. It has amounted to hundreds of hours of labour for Alex, but the couple have saved tens of thousands of pounds by doing the build themselves. Ever the perfectionist, Alex concludes: ‘You get the best results and the best finish by doing things yourself.’

The costs
Bathroom fittings and fixtures	£8,843
Tiles	£2,000
Labour costs (electrics, plumbing and plastering)	£600
Underfloor heating	£200
TOTAL	£11,643

Featured image: Rooflights by Okpol have been positioned directly above a freestanding back-to-wall Hydra Pro bath from Taps4less. A white tripod chair from Christopher Pratts sits perfectly against the dark interior

Top RVs, campers and tents of 2014

Read article : Top RVs, campers and tents of 2014

Another year, another few dozen ways to escape urban life and set up camp in the wild ... 2014 has been an interesting year for campers. From the heavy-duty off-road machines of Overland Expo to ultralight bicycle campers, and from familiar campground designs to new concepts of sea and air camping, the year has seen a large variety of innovative designs from around the world. Here are our picks for the best tents, camper vans, trailers and mobile homes of 2014, in no particular order.

Tentsile Vista multi-story tree tent

Since we first featured Tentsile in 2012, the company has continued to impress us with its suspended tents. Other manufacturers offer hammock-based tents, but Tentsile makes large, spacious aerials that are more like canvas treehouses, none more so than the all-new Vista. The non-weather-sealed nature of the design isn't for everyone or all conditions, but the available multi-floor layout is certainly an interesting twist on the tree tent. The primary Vista tent protects three campers with a combination of detachable insect mesh and removable rain fly. The really cool part of the design is that you can add extra floors to make a suspended, multi-level "portable treehouse" for nine or more people. The basic tent without extra floors costs US$595.

SylvanSport GO-Easy ultralight camping trailer

A compact, 275-lb (125 kg) gear trailer, the SylvanSport GO-Easy is designed to give the smallest cars and motorcycles the ability to haul all kinds of sports gear and tools. To add overnighting capabilities, SylvanSport teamed with Roost tents to create a flip-top tent camper with underbody storage. When you don't need a tent, remove the foam mattress and canvas sides and Roost's innovative two-person clamshell becomes a gear box. To add some of the comforts of home, SylvanSport offers options like Goal Zero solar power systems and the Road Shower. Combine the $2,000 price of the GO-Easy with the $3,000 price of the Roost tent, and you have an ultralight, ultra-versatile camping trailer for around $5K.

Tonke Fieldsleeper International expedition vehicle

Prior to 2014, we knew Tonke as the Dutch company behind some the most stylish wooden trailers we've ever seen. This year, it added one of the most stylish aluminum trailers on the market not named Airstream. The Mercedes Sprinter-based Fieldsleeper International is built as an expedition vehicle, available in both 4x2 and 4x4 drive options. Its aluminum skin creates a more modern exterior style, but the interior still features the warmth of mahogany wood.

Tonke attempts to give Fieldsleeper International owners more off-grid autonomy by eliminating the liquid propane systems typical in RVs in favor of a roof-mounted solar array and auxiliary diesel tank. The 400- to 600-watt solar system powers onboard equipment like the refrigerator, stove, lighting and even air conditioning. The five-person camper includes a washroom with sink, shower and cassette toilet.

When we covered it earlier in the year, the International was offered with a 190-hp Mercedes Sprinter 519Cdi for $192,000, but now it's listed with a 160-hp Sprinter 516Cdi base for a bit cheaper – $154,576.

XVenture XV-2 penthouse trailer

Simple problem, simple solution. The military-grade Xventure XV-2 makes the most of its small trailer form by pushing the pop-up tent high above the cargo box below using an elevated rack system. The adjustable height opens up more storage space in the cargo box – enough for an ATV, even – and makes everything inside that cargo box easier to access. As a few astute readers pointed out, it looks like the configuration could prove quite chilly in the winter, when the thin floor of the XV-2 could use the added insulation value of a trailer directly below, but that shouldn't be as much a problem in the popular warmer months, or with a heavier sleeping pad. And if it is, you can always adjust it to one of the lower settings on the six-setting rack. The pricing information we received earlier in the year put the XV-2 with elevating rack system and roof tent at around $14,500 to start.

Wide Path bicycle camper

There are dozens upon dozens of camping trailers on the market, but the overwhelming majority of them are designed to be towed by vehicles with motor. The slim, 88-lb (40-kg) Wide Path Camper, on the other hand, is built to be towed by leg power alone. The bicycle camper offers enough sleeping space for two adults and one child and includes a basic but functional interior with a folding table, convertible bed/seats and 300 liters (79 gal) of storage capacity. Add a few select pieces of gear like a propane stove and portable toilet and suddenly you have a fully functioning mobile home on the back of your 12-speed.

The Wide Path Camper was still in the prototype stages as of last month, but its Dutch designer hopes to have it ready for sale next year, starting around $2,500.

Amok Draumr hammock tent

While not quite as common a sight at the campground as a dome tent or RV, the hammock shelter is a widely available camping option offered by brands like Hennessy Hammock and Grand Trunk. Typically, these hammocks are strung between trees end to end, but the Amok rotates the Draumr around 90 degrees, creating a side-to-side hanging structure. This construction creates a flat, sleeping pad-cushioned bed designed to deliver a more comfortable night of sleep. With a few tugs of the adjustment straps, it also turns into a suspended chair.

The ISPO BrandNew Award-nominated Draumr is available now for $379, which includes mosquito netting, straps and a rain fly, but not the required sleeping pad. All in, the Draumr weighs less than 4.5 lb (2 kg).

MVP Aero MVP seaplane camper

We're already suckers for amphibious vehicles, so throw in a convertible overnight package, and you get one of our favorite vehicles of the year. Billed as the "world's most versatile plane," the MVP, which we checked out at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2014, is part seaplane, part fishing boat and part floating/flying camper. The tri-phibious plane can land on dry land, snow or water. On water, it can motor along and act as a boat, and slide the canopy back and it offers a flat deck for fishing and observation. The wings also fold up, adding to its maneuverability on water.

At night, the MVP's instrument panel lifts out of the way, creating a large, flat floor with the help of a four-panel origami deck that slides over top the seat wells. Tent fabric secures over the entire cockpit area, providing shelter for two occupants. A fitted inflatable mattress offers added comfort, and there's also a hammock that sets up between the engine pylon and the tail.

The MVP isn't exactly a practical camper for the masses, but one can certainly dream of using it on some pretty epic adventures. The aircraft is still in the prototype stages, but for those that simply can't wait, it's available for reservation at a price of $189,000. Delivery is not expected until 2018/19, however.

Audi-Heimplanet Q3 tent camper

Two innovative German brands teamed up for something a bit different at Volkswagen's 2014 Wörthersee festival. Heimplanet custom-fit its inflatable tent technology to the hatch of an Audi Q3 2.0 TDI. The design created an extended car-tent living space with vestibule and also allowed for a freestanding tent set-up. The inflatable tent and Q3 combo certainly wasn't the most rugged camper design of the year, but it was rated up to wind speeds of 43.5 mph (70 km/h).

The Audi-Heimplanet inflatable car camper was clearly designed as an eye-catching showpiece (a role it filled quite nicely), and we don't expect to see Audi dealerships advertising the Q3 "overnight package" anytime soon.

2014 EarthRoamer XV-LTS xpedition vehicle

A beastly, intimidating contradiction on wheels, the 2014 EarthRoamer XV-LTS combines one of the more rugged 4WD expedition vehicle platforms out there with a carefully-detailed, luxury-level interior and front porch. In designing the truck, Colorado-based EarthRoamer fortified a commercial-duty F-550 chassis for rough, off-road use, bolted a composite living module to the back and outfitted it for comfortable off-grid living. The design includes a cozy six-seat living room, sleeping space for four to six and a bathroom with a sink, full-height shower and cassette toilet. Occupants are furnished with utilities by way of a solar-driven electrical system, engine-powered dual alternators and a 90-gallon (340.7-L) fresh water tank. It appears to be an extremely cozy space to retire to after hard days of fighting through mud, boulders and dust with the 300-hp V8 turbo diesel and 37-in tires. The model we stepped inside at Overland Expo even included luxuries like a wine cabinet with engraved wine glasses, slide-out Keurig coffeemaker, and exterior tailgating package with retractable 46-in TV.

The 2014 XV-LTS sold out, but EarthRoamer is now advertising the 2015 model at prices between $312,000 and $560,000.

ADAK Trailer

It's not at all rare to find a gritty, all-terrain expedition vehicle furnished like a luxury apartment on wheels. In fact, there are two on this list, including the EarthRoamer we just looked at. When you're spending six or seven figures on a large, motorized toy, there's no reason you can't have it all.It is rarer to find that mix of any-terrain readiness and luxury in the far more modestly priced camping trailer segment. Most off-road trailer manufacturers we've covered seem to put all their R&D money into building a bombproof chassis and body ready to take on everything Mother Earth can throw at it, leaving live-in accommodations to a simple fold-out tent or small, spartan teardrop interior.Built by a group of outdoorsman tired of inferior campers quitting when the road got rough, but too seasoned for a skimpy, uncomfortable shelter, the ADAK Trailer offers an admirable combination of rugged exterior and spacious, comfy interior. The design uses a mix of aluminum and composite to hold up to rough, choppy roads and off-roads. Inside the trailer's 116-sq ft (10.8 sq m) cabin, campers find three beds, a bathroom with toilet and shower, a tankless hot water system designed to work in the middle of winter, and available wood flooring and cabinetry. When we originally covered the ADAK earlier in the year, pricing started at $49,000.

Volksleisure T5 camper van

After more than a decade of focusing on camper conversions for vans from manufacturers other than Volkswagen, Wellhouse Leisure presented its first production-ready VW camper van this year. The first offering from the brand's VW-centric subsidiary Volksleisure, the little people mover packs enough versatility for both everyday and holiday use. It's Wellhouse's electric rear bench that makes the Volksleisure camper a van that you can overnight in on the weekend and get the kids to school in come Monday morning. The bench slides the length of the cabin, allowing it to work as a live-in camper, regular people mover or big-item hauler. The camper van offers sleeping space for up to four people, along with a kitchen area, refrigerator, dining table, and 35-L (9.2 US gal) fresh and waste water tanks. Volksleisure's T5 camper is currently listed at a £47,850 ($75,000) base price.

Safari Condo Alto R1723 teardrop pop-top

Combining two timeless camping-trailer concepts into one seamless family tag-along, the Alto R1723 by Safari Condo is a pop-up teardrop camper designed to get the family outdoors. The 83-in-high (2.1-m), 1725-lb (782-kg) teardrop design gives the Alto R1723 drag-cutting aerodynamic performance on the road and garage clearance during storage. The electric aluminum roof pops up at camp to offer 82 inches (2.08 m) of interior headroom, more than enough for the average person to stand up and walk around, a convenience that smaller, lower teardrops lack. The trailer sleeps three or four and includes home-like comforts such as a flush toilet and shower. The large windows let you experience the grand scenery of the outdoors while remaining under the roof.

The Alto R1723 starts at around CAD$28,500 (US$24,500), and Safari also offers the smaller R1713 for CAD$1,000 less.

Knaus Travelino camper concept

Much like automakers do at every major auto show, German manufacturer Knaus Tabbert has been using the annual Düsseldorf Caravan Salon to showcase ideas for the future of the industry. It followed up last year's much talked about Caravisio concept with the 2014 Travelino trailer.

While we aren't really sold on the odd, broadsided shape of the black-and-white Travelino, the real highlight is the interior. The caravan offers very versatile use of its limited space through carefully designed and placed equipment. In place of a dedicated bathroom, a folding-panel wall and slide-out cassette toilet provide indoor privacy without permanently occupying floor space. The indoor and slide-out outdoor kitchens share a portable camping stove, eliminating the need for fixed cooktops.

The Travelino launched as just a concept, so there was no accompanying price information, but it's easy to see how some of its features could find their way into production camping trailers.

Marco Polo Activity light camper van

Manufacturers around the world have come up with very clever ways of packing all kinds of amenities and comforts into small, portable vehicles. But there's really only so much equipment you can fit into a camper while keeping it light, spacious and comfortable. And not every overnight trip requires a full bathroom, kitchen and living room. If you're sleeping in a ski resort parking lot or adjacent to a surf break so that you're in prime position to take advantage of first tracks/early morning waves, you don't necessarily need a fully equipped RV, just a roof and a comfortable place to sleep.In that spirit, Mercedes-Benz dropped some of the usual camping equipment to make a lighter, simpler camper van in the form of the Marco Polo Activity it revealed in Düsseldorf. The Activity has a three-seat bench that extends clean across the width of the van thanks to the absence of the kitchen unit. That bench folds down into a bed for up to three, and two more people can sleep below the pop-up roof. If you need to cook your own meals, you can slide the bench forward on its rails and store a stove, cookware and plenty of other gear in back, then eat on the included folding table in the cabin. What you give up in equipment and amenities, you gain in versatility and spaciousness. The Activity was released at a starting price of €38,960 (US$49,000).

Action Mobil Global XRS 720 6x6 camper

Our second rolling, all-terrain luxury apartment, the Action Mobil Global XRS 7200 introduced at the 2014 Düsseldorf Caravan Salon was this year's exercise in no-expense-spared expeditioning opulence, the type of vehicle one only considers if the very thought of "roughing it" is a much bigger deterrent than a seven-figure price tag. The 720-hp, 18-ton MAN-chassised 6x6 is eager to travel to any part of the world and stay there about as long as its occupants can handle. Once inside the spacious, climate-controlled cabin, they'll immediately forget about whatever harsh, desolate reality surrounds the exterior walls. The cabin is appointed in materials like stone and metal, includes a master bedroom, is hydrated by a 720-L (190-gal) fresh water tank, and keeps everyone entertained with a multimedia system that's more impressive than what many people have in their living rooms – 40-in HD TV, satellite internet, Apple TV, Bose audio, and a large-capacity hard drive for storing multimedia content. There's even a bidet and washer/dryer. Not a bad living situation for the middle of $#@#$in nowhere.

Pricing info out of the Düsseldorf show put the XRS 7200 at €850,000 (US$1.1 million) to start.

Look through our gallery for a closer look at the interiors and features of each of these campers and tents. And if you're wondering how this year's designs compare to last year's, take a trip back in time with our best of 2013 camper round-up.

View gallery - 108 images

Eero WiFi System Review | Digital Trends

Read article : Eero WiFi System Review | Digital Trends

One of the biggest recent movements in the networking industry is the introduction of mesh technology. This tech made its debut in 2016, promising a blanket of wireless connectivity that fills every inch of a home or office. These systems are typically sold in kits of two or more identical devices that can be spread out vertically and horizontally to create a connected web of coverage.

We’ve taken a close look at several solutions over the last several months, and now we have the Eero system in-house. This system hit the market in February of 2016, selling as a three-pack for $400, a two-pack for $300, and as a single unit for $200. That may seem rather expensive, but feature-packed, high-performance routers can cost up to $300 and broadcast from only a single point in the home or office.

Eero’s initial setup focuses on simplicity

The Eero kit we received was the three-pack shipped in a rectangular box. After opening the lid, the unit on the left sported a pull-off tab printed with the word “Start.” We lifted the unit out of the box to see a cardboard insert with instructions to download the Eero app from Google Play or Apple’s App Store. The unit’s power adapter was found sitting under this cardboard insert.

Once the app was installed on an Android device, we created a free account, positioned the first Eero unit next to the ISP’s modem, plugged the provided Ethernet cable into one of the two ports on the Eero, connected it to the modem, and fired it up. The app then proceeded to connect to the Eero unit through Bluetooth, which honestly caused us a few headaches later. However, with the initial unit, we didn’t have any problems creating the network name, password, and device location description.

Eero WiFi System review" />

Eero WiFi System review" />

The second unit is what caused the headaches. This was planted in the same location we used for other mesh network setups, but for some reason the Eero app said we were getting a poor connection to the first unit. To make matters worse, the app wouldn’t let us proceed with installing the second unit despite the connectivity issue, forcing us to relocate the unit. However, no matter where we planted the second unit, we received a poor connection message, even when it was seated next to the first Eero unit and modem.

Awesome customer support saved the day

After yanking out buckets of hair, we broke down and called technical support. A technician had us connect the second unit to the first unit via an Ethernet connection so that the two could communicate and verify they were connected. After that, we disconnected the second unit, placed it back into its original location in the next room, and balance returned to the Force. The third Eero unit gave us no problems whatsoever.

Eero is a good system for mainstream customers, but enthusiasts may want to look elsewhere.

So, what happened? The technician said it was a bad Bluetooth session. Based on his comments, this wasn’t the first case of bad Bluetooth connectivity, and drives home the point of relying solely on a Bluetooth connection to establish a network is not without problems. Customers should have access to a web-based interface via a wired connection just in case the setup process hits a roadblock. However, several of the mesh-based networking setups sold on the market seemingly ignore this type of user control.

When all was said and done, we had the first unit connected to the modem in the Dining Room, which is in the center of the house. We moved the second unit into Bedroom #3, and the third unit was placed in Bedroom #4. Thus, we created a straight line throughout the house instead of a C-shaped layout as we used for the Luma system.

While there is a lot of wireless activity in the Living Room, we wanted to make sure the blanket covered every aspect of the house, including Bedroom #4 that’s — one of two rooms converted from a garage. Since we don’t have a second floor, we wanted to create a large horizontal blanket.

Eero’s mobile app offers easy management

With everything set up, we headed back into the mobile app. The home screen shows the current internet speed, the active Eero units, and all the connected devices. Tap on an Eero icon and users will see details like broadcast strength (in bars), IP address, firmware version, model number, serial number, and more. Tap on a connected device icon to see its current activity, connection strength, which Eero it’s connected to, its IP address, MAC address, and so on. There’s a menu button on the home screen for accessing network settings.

As previously indicated, the Eero system isn’t exactly feature-rich when it comes to network customization. There’s no web-based interface here to dig into the gritty details, but rather a simple app for switching on/off a guest network, adding additional Eero units, getting help, and adjusting basic network settings. The app can be used to establish profiles, which can be used as makeshift parental controls.

For instance, parents can create a profile assigning a child to a specific connected device. The profile is locked to the device’s MAC address so that Eero can associate the child with the device no matter what IP address it uses. Thus, the parent can pause the child’s internet access or set a scheduled pause, blocking access at night, or during homework time.

As for the actual customizable network settings, these are rather slim. Users can use a custom DNS rather than the ones provided by the router, customize the DHCP server, assign a static IP address to a device, create port forwarding rules, and switch on/off Universal Plug and Play. Users have no control over switching channels, establishing channel widths, and so on.

And that’s a shame, as users should have complete control over their network. But this isn’t the first mesh-based network we’ve seen with semi-closed settings. The whole point of systems like Eero and Luma is that customers plug-and-go without having to think about the ideal channel for 2.4GHz or which security protocol to use. For the novice user, the “advanced” settings may be more than they can chew, but experienced network tweakers will find very little meat to nibble.

Eero WiFi System Compared To

Eero’s simplicity extends out to its appearance

Each Eero device is identical, sporting two gigabit Ethernet ports, a USB 2.0 port, and a power connector. They measure just 4.75 (W) x 4.75 (D) x 1.34 (H) inches, making them capable of fitting in just about anywhere in the home or office. The upper casing is a shiny white with rounded edges, while the bottom half and built-in curved “feet” feel somewhat rubbery. The USB 2.0 port, according to tech support, can’t be used at the time of this publication, but will eventually serve a purpose in the future.

The whole point of systems like Eero is that customers plug-and-go without having to think about channels or security.

Inside the Eero you’ll find a dual-core processor clocked at 1.0GHz, 512MB of system memory, and 4GB of internal storage used solely by the operating system. They also each have a Bluetooth Smart Ready component, and two internal incoming and outgoing antennas providing 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands. Each unit is capable of up to 300 megabits per second on the 2.4GHz band and up to 867Mbps on the 5GHz band.

Based on the company’s FAQ, Eero seems to believe that coverage is more important than offering the fastest wireless speeds, and that makes sense. Until the mass population has a gigabit connection to the internet, crazy fast wireless speeds are unnecessary. As Eero points out, streaming Ultra HD content to a single device requires a connection at 25Mbps.

Note that the connection issues we had with setting up the second unit had nothing to do with its ability to broadcast a network signal. Instead, the problem was with the unit trying to register itself to the account through the smartphone’s Bluetooth connection.

There’s a few other things we need to point out before we get into performance numbers. Eero supports a very basic Quality of Service capability, which may be expanded in the future to provide configurations that match specific needs for gaming, video streaming, and so on. The system does not support Point-to-Point Protocol over Ethernet (PPPoE), which is used for DSL connections. The system currently isn’t supported outside the United States either, as Eero is certified to only work on 120V power outlets.

So how does the Eero network perform?

We used four devices to check their connection speeds: one smartphone, two tablets, and a notebook. Here is what we found:

	Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge	Samsung Galaxy Tab E	Microsoft Surface 3	Lenovo Ideapad Laptop Internal	Lenovo Ideapad Laptop External
Eero Max 5GHz Speed:	867Mbps	867Mbps	867Mbps	867Mbps	867Mbps
Device Max 5GHz Speed:	867Mbps	450Mbps	867Mbps	Not Measured	433Mbps
5GHz Tested Speeds:	650Mbps	150Mbps	790Mbps	Not Measured	433Mbps
Eero Max 2.4GHz speed:	300Mbps	300Mbps	300Mbps	300Mbps	300Mbps
Device Max 2.4GHz Speed:	400Mbps	300Mbps	400Mbps	150Mbps	150Mbps
2.4 GHz Speeds:	Not Measured	150Mbps	Not Measured	72.2Mbps	Not Measured

The tested speeds are based on numbers provided by Android and Windows 10. As shown above, the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge smartphone doesn’t hit the theoretical 867Mbps Wireless AC speed, but it didn’t reach that ceiling on similar mesh-based network setups either. Meanwhile, the Samsung Galaxy Tab E tablet is bottlenecked by having only two internal antennas (1x output, 1x input). If anything, the device with the best performance was Microsoft’s Surface 3 tablet.

As for the Lenovo laptop, the 72.2Mbps speed on the 2.4Ghz band isn’t anything new. That’s because the internal Wireless N component has one antenna for output and one for input, so the width of the wireless connection is important. Eero is likely broadcasting a footpath-sized narrow connection, and we know the laptop doubles to 150Mbps when it’s connected to a wide, freeway-like connection (we saw this with Netgear’s Orbi system). The external, dual-band Wireless N adapter we connected to the Lenovo in our test was Trendnet’s AC600 Mini Wireless USB Adapter that’s capable of up to 433Mbps on 5GHz, and up to 150Mbps on 2.4GHz.

Of course, the Lenovo laptop originally hit the market in 2013. It’s not that old, but in terms of how fast technology advances, it’s way out of date. But not every customer will have a sparkly new laptop connecting to a sparkly new mesh-based wireless network. The bottleneck suffered by the Lenovo laptop is a good example of why customers need access to the roots of the network to squeeze every drop of speed out of their wireless connection.

Mesh-based networks tend to limit customization

Unfortunately, the trend to lock down most of the settings in mesh-based networking setups appears to be a common factor save for Netgear’s Orbi system. Thus, systems like Eero and Luma may not be ideal for gamers who need full control over where data packets travel across their network. And without a real QoS service to dictate what device has priority over others, even mainstream customers may experience issues streaming content on multiple devices.

Now here are the speeds and signal strengths picked up by the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge smartphone at various locations throughout the house:

Location	Speed	Strength	Signal
Dining Room	650Mbps	100 percent	-34 dBm
Living Room	351Mbps	62 percent	-73 dBm
Front Porch	585Mbps	91 percent	-57 dBm
Bathroom Shower	468Mbps	100 percent	-46 dBm
Laundry Room	585Mbps	82 percent	-63 dBm

The dining room is ground zero, as that’s where the first unit is connected to the modem. However, the living room took the biggest performance hit because of two walls that blocked the connection. The front door is made of glass, thus the connection to the front porch stemmed from the living room unit and the unit in bedroom #3. The laundry room had a good connection due to a somewhat direct line of sight to the unit in bedroom #4.

Eero isn’t feature-rich when it comes to customizing.

As a reference, we saw different numbers with Netgear’s two-unit Orbi setup. Using the same Android device to test the connection speeds and strengths, we saw 780Mbps in the dining room, 650Mbps in the living room, 97Mbps on the front porch, and 260Mbps standing in the bathroom shower. That said, the numbers may have everything to do with the positioning of the satellite systems, as the Orbi satellite was previously placed in the living room whereas we chose to move the second Eero unit out of the living room and into bedroom #3.

For better coverage, we presume that an additional Eero unit placed in the far corner of the living room might provide connectivity in that area, and perhaps even an additional unit located in the far corner of bedroom #1 as well. The drawback to purchasing additional units is that they cost a hefty $200 each, which isn’t cheap.

Our Take

Eero appears to be a great system for customers who want a plug-and-go solution. There’s no back-end web-based interface or detailed settings to deal with, just a mobile app to manage some of the generalized details. However, PC gamers and enthusiasts who want to control every aspect of their network may want to look elsewhere, such as Netgear’s Orbi system, which provides better detailed manageability.

Is there a better alternative?

The DT Accessory Pack

Honestly, we’ve tested quite a few of the new mesh-based setups and they appear to be similar in nature save for the Netgear Orbi system. We liked the Orbi specifically due to its robust customization capabilities. However, our current top pick in this arena is the Securifi Almond 3 router, which can be used as a mesh networking device even though it doesn’t ship as a kit. The Almond 3 also as a nifty built-in touchscreen and solid smart home support.

How long will it last?

Mesh-based networking appears to be here to stay. It may eventually replace the router due to the coverage capabilities of multiple units creating a web of connectivity as a single access point. It’s also better than adding a wireless extender to a network for filling dead spots because the signal has already degraded to a point when it’s picked up by the extender. Mesh networking promises full coverage no matter where users move throughout the home or office.

Should you buy it?

Only if budget is not a factor. The Eero three-pack kit is rather costly, and extending its coverage means shelling out $200 per additional unit. That’s a huge investment given that the mass availability of faster Wireless AD devices and networks will be in full swing by the end of 2017. Still, for now, the Eero is a good system for mainstream customers.