Are you happy with your job? If you’re a fire fighter, a member of the clergy or, funnily enough, a teacher, then according to a national survey carried out by the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago you’re among the 47 or so percent of the working population who like their job and who therefore, because of the impact that work has on our sense of self-worth and identity, generally lead a happier life. I am none of the above, yet I still consider myself to be even more fortunate than even the 87 percent of those men and women of the cloth for whom work is not just an endless toil that brings little or no job satisfaction but something which makes them feel that they have a purpose in life. I enjoy writing, I enjoy working as part of a highly-motivated and creative team and I enjoy rising to new challenges and achieving the goals that we have been set and that I also like to set myself.

What I don’t like are some rather irritating and annoying side effects: Because I spend so much time working in an office and sitting in front of a computer, I often suffer from eye irritation.

My eyes are dry and reddened and sometimes they sting. The situation only gets worse in the wintertime when humidity levels in the office start to dip because of the dry central heating air, which, incidentally, is also a major cause of colds because it dries out the mucous membranes in the mouth, throat and nose thereby making you much more susceptible to infections and viruses and therefore the common cold.

So what can we do to counteract these very unpleasant side effects which office life invariably brings with it?

• Tip No.1 – Make sure your eyes get enough moisture!
  Makes sense, doesn’t it? Your eyes, nose and throat need moisture, so why not give it to them? The solution is painfully simple. A bottle of water placed within easy reach of your PC. All you have to do us unscrew the cap and take a big gulp every now and again during the course of the day!
• Tip No.2 – Make sure you have the right room climate!
  When you’re standing at your office window on a cold winter’s day as you watch the world pass by, then the chances are that the heating in your office is already doing overtime.  By hiking up the heating in the room, you are automatically lowering the relative humidity. This means that the air is too dry. Too dry for our eyes and too dry for our mucous membranes. Help is only the press of a button away: an electric humidifier can change the climate in your room or office by increasing the relative humidity to much more bearable and comfortable levels. And because the humidifiers from Trotec are equipped with a built-in humidistat which constantly measures and controls the relative humidity in the room, you yourself can decide which room climate setting suits you most.
• Tip No.3 – Give your eyes a break!
  Sales assistants are usually on their feet all day. That’s why they like to conserve their energy and give their legs a rest whenever the opportunity arises. It’s no different when a lot of the work you do is done with the help of your eyes. Don’t stay glued to your monitor all day. Allow your mind and eyes to wander simply by focusing on something far off in the distance or something – or perhaps someone – that could take your fancy a little closer by. Fresh air also makes a welcome change. Even when you’re bogged down with work. Because when you return to your desk refreshed and invigorated, then this can only have a positive effect on your work.
• Tip No.4 – If you have to wear glasses, then wear them!
  Sometimes it’s forgetfulness, sometimes it’s vanity and sometimes there’s no excuse at all which could justify not putting on your glasses when you’re sitting in front of your monitor. If your eye doctor has prescribed them or your optician has recommended them, then you really should wear your glasses. Otherwise you can not only end up having dry eyes, you could also end up with a splitting headache and a number of other nauseous side effects. Contact lenses may look better on some people, but they can also exacerbate the problem of dryness and cause even more irritation.
• Tip No.5 – Give your eyes a helping hand!
  If your eyes are extremely sore and dry, you should consider applying a few eye drops to soothe the irritation. It’s always best to make sure that the drops do not contain any preservatives as this would only dry out your eyes even more.

By the way, according to the survey carried out by the NORC, roofers labourers, handpackers and cashiers are apparently least happy with their jobs. But what about traffic wardens, call centre operators and sewage workers?

But you know what they say: Never trust a statistic if you didn’t forge it yourself.

Trotec. A sight for sore eyes.

A piano – be it an upright piano or a grand piano, a Steinway or a Yamaha – is often the most prized possession and most highly-valued musical instrument in hundreds of thousands if not millions of homes and households. Pianos, and piano music, are extremely popular all over the world. Which other instrument, apart from perhaps an exquisitely-tuned violin, is able to capture the hearts of those listening and strike the chords that touch the soul and move and uplift the listener to higher spheres, or drag them down – deep, deep, down – into the darker realms of despondency, grief and gloom?

So why then do so many people who own such a beautiful instrument not look after their valuable possessions the way they ought to?

Wood is full of life. It has a history, a story to tell and it still lives on long after the wood that has been hand-picked by experienced and dedicated piano makers has been crafted into a fine musical instrument. Wood, as we all know, reacts very strongly to its surrounding conditions. It can contract and expand – and even crack and tear apart – depending on how moist or dry the air that surrounds it is. That’s why it is so important that you spend enough time selecting the right place for such a skillfully mastered instrument. And it’s not just the acoustics you should be focusing on – on the contrary, the right place for your piano is the room, chamber or parlour where the relative humidity and the temperature are evenly balanced and within certain limits. Strongly fluctuating temperatures or humidity levels that are too high or too low can not only put your piano out of tune, they can literally ruin your masterpiece making costly repairs necessary or even rendering it worthless.

So what can be done to ensure that the relative humidity remains within certain limits and the temperature does not drop below or exceed certain thresholds?

Dehumidifiers are highly sophisticated and highly effective pieces of equipment which are designed to monitor and regulate the relative humidity in your home, workplace or office so as to provide you with just the right amount of humidity that you need. Depending on their size and the application which they have been built for, dehumidifiers can extract up to 20 litres of moisture from the surrounding air in just one single day. This means that they are easily able to reduce high moisture levels that could otherwise cause the wood of your piano to swell up or split and maintain a desired indoor climate with a relative humidity that lies ideally between 50 and 65%.

If, on the other hand, the air in the room is not too moist but far too dry, then you need to be able to rely on a humidifier to prevent you the wood of you piano from cracking to the point that it is beyond repair. A humidifier increases the moisture in the air, but only as much as you would like and enough to create a pleasant indoor climate and an overall sense of well-being.

The right temperature also plays a vital role regarding the position of your piano. Make sure that it is not too close to any heat sources like a radiator for example, and that your room thermostat is set to between 15 C and 24 C. You will also need to provide for some form of insulation if you have underfloor heating and be careful to keep it away from cold spots and draughts.

There are some people who say that a piano is as sensitive as a human being. They think that you should never keep your piano in a climate which you yourself would not feel comfortable in. You may of course not wish to leave anything to chance and therefore decide to use a piece of professional measuring equipment to check that the temperature and the relative humidity are at the right levels. A thermohygrometer is such a professional, high-precision device. It is practically two devices rolled into one. And it is robust, reliable and very reasonably priced.

Perhaps not quite as valuable as your average piano, but it does do its job just as well.

It’s the same story every year. No sooner have you turned up the heating to keep the biting cold at bay than your nose dries up, your eyes start to smart and everyone in your family develops an uncontrollable tickly cough and cracked, itchy skin. These are symptoms which can be linked directly to the dry air in rooms, which, for example, causes the mucous membranes in your nose to swell up and become irritated – and more susceptible to germs and bacteria, leaving you and the other members of your family open to colds and viruses. So isn’t there anything you can do to stop getting ill this coming winter?

Well, yes there is actually. Here’s a list of invaluable tips that will help you get through the colder winter months and make life less of a misery and more of a joy:

Tip No.1 – Make sure that you drink enough. Hot beverages like tea are just right at this time of the year. There are hundreds if not thousands of varieties to choose from. Spice up your day with green, white, red, herbal or flavoured teas and experiment with what Mother Nature has to offer. Camomile or sage tea, for example, possess anti-inflammatory properties that work wonders to soothe your sore throat.

Tip No.2 – Humidifiers. Air that has been heated becomes less humid. In other words it is dry – too dry for the average person. Humidifiers add moisture to the ambient air and even filter airborne allergens like household dust, pet hairs or mould spores out of the air if they have a built-in air filter. This does our nasal mucosa, the tissue lining our nose, no end of good. You can also treat your air passages to a deep and relaxing experience by adding a few drops of essential oils to the tank of your humidifier. In fact by varying the type of oil you use, you yourself can determine whether you wish to relax or sharpen your senses – simply let your imagination guide you.

Tip No.3 – Gargling and nasal rinsing. Gargling may be something you only normally do in the mornings when you have finished brushing your teeth. And nasal rinsing is something that you may only have read about without thinking that it would ever catch on. But both household remedies rank high among the effective things you can do to prevent your sinuses from clogging and your throat from swelling. There are either ready-mixed solutions which are available at your local chemist’s or pharmacist’s – or you may feel the urge to concoct your own mixture using ample measures of sea salt and tap water. You will find there are like-minded people out there who swear by it.

Tip No.4 – Nasal sprays. You need only to go to the chemist’s to see for yourself just how many different brands there are on the shelves. But not all are designed to combat the common cold – there are also the less controversial ones, ones which can be used to ensure that the mucosa in your nose remains pleasantly moist and therefore less prone to itching and swelling. You should of course choose the sprays that do not contain decongestants or preserving agents – sprays with seawater or hydro-sprays with essential oil extracts are all the rage. Your nose will thank you for it.

Tip No.5 – Fresh air. Yes, your mum was right! Remember how she always used to get on at you when you didn`t feel like setting a foot outside? A breath of fresh air still works wonders for your immune system – you could try walking to work or going out for a stroll during your lunch break. And don’t let the weather stop you. Drizzle is especially good for your mucous membranes.

So as you can see there are a number of things that can help to relieve a broad range of irritable complaints and stop you from catching a nasty cold this winter: lots of tea and other hot beverages, gargling and nasal rinsing, certain nasal sprays and lots of fresh air too. And, oh yes – a humidifier. Like the ones from Trotec.



But were these GPs to dig deeper, they would soon discover that contrary to common colds whose symptoms normally subside after 7 to 10 days at the latest, what they often have on their hands is an allergic reaction which can generally last a lot longer and often recurs within a very short period. Here it would perhaps pay for doctors to listen a little more intently to their patients’ woes – and for the patients to open up and even quiz their GPs on certain points instead of just swallowing the medicine.

But once the doctors – or the patients themselves – have got it right and pinpointed the source of their suffering, then action must be taken to not only relieve the symptoms, which the sufferers themselves are understandably acutely interested in easing, but more importantly still to eliminate the actual cause.

People who react to pollen, pet hairs and house dust can protect themselves and their home by using a dehumidifier, or in the winter months a humidifier, to clean the ambient air. Not only do both types of appliances regulate the relative humidity in the rooms in which they have been installed, more importantly still for allergy sufferers perhaps they are all equipped with efficient, easy-to-remove and easy-to-clean air filters which effectively filter airborne particles like pollen, pet hairs and house dust out of the air thereby nipping the cause of the allergy in the bud. This would make these appliances a more than sound investment as they do not only improve the quality of life, they also save money that is often ploughed into often unnecessary medication.

So don’t wait for your GP to get it right – or wrong – buy a humidifier or dehumidifier today and make life that much more livable.

Simply popped into the tank of a humidifier, for example, it prevents the water from bacteria, algae and unpleasant odours. Bio-neutral and drinking water certified one single SecoSan Stick 10 is sufficient for 10 litres (2.2 gals) of water.

The worldwide patented working principle with a auto-dosing retardation system allows a usage of up to 12 months – with just one stick and even if the water is changed every day!

Relating to our professional humidifiers the SecoSan Stick 10 already became a very famous accessory. And due to our latest special offers you can yet get this highly efficient technology at a special reduced rate.

So why don’t you get more information on the SecoSan Stick now and buy one today?

Get more detailed information below:

Order the SecoSan Stick 10 online.

Order the SecoSan Stick 10 in a package of 5 and save!

Also have a look at our humidifier special offers:

Used B400 humidifier plus two free SecoSan Stick 10.

New B400 humidifier plus two free SecoSan Stick 10.

Get a good bargain with used B400 humidifiers and save approx. 30 % !

And there’s yet even more to get: every humidifier comes with two Ionic Silver Sticks for free! Convince yourself of our large-scale appliances and benefit from cutting-edge humidification for rooms of up to 900 m³.

And because the B400 is not only a very powerful humidifier, but also an energy-saving appliance you won’t regret to buy one even when you get your electricity bill.

The B400 also stands out due to its easy-to-use design. All you have to do is switch on the appliance and select a degree of humidity to be reached.

This offer is valid for a short time only. Be quick off the mark and buy your premium humidifier for a nice price now.

Simply click the following link for more detailed information:

Used B400 humidifier with free accessories.

If you prefer to buy a brand-new humidifier you can also follow the link below:

New B400 humidifier with beneficial accessories.

To make your choice much easier the Trotec company of groups offers different capacity calculators as guides for the estimated performance calculation helping to find an appliance to suit your individual needs.
Have a look at the new category „CALCULATIONS” in the sidebar on the right side of this blog to find several links to the different capacity calculators.

Save time and money by choosing the right appliance due to our beneficial capacity calculations. Simply determine the needed performance for your requirements fast and easy online.

You can find the capacity calculators on the website of our sister company TKL:

Air conditioners: determine the required cooling capacity both preliminary and professional.

Air purifiers: benefit from the easy-to-use air purification capacity calculator.

Dehumidifiers: determine the required dehumidification performance for your needs.

Fans: which ventilation performance do you need? Simply calculate online now.

Heating units: calculate your heat requirements for rooms of up to 1,000 m³.

Humidifiers: calculate the required humidification performance quick and easy.

All you have to do is buy a B400 humidifier and we’ll send you two free Ionic Silver Stick 10. So you can lean back while the large-scale appliance humidifies rooms up to 900 m³ and the Ionic Silver Stick 10 eliminates more than 650 different types of bacteria and viruses in the humidifier’s tank.

A B400 large-scale humidifier is equipped with a built-in hygrostat, has a maximum performance of 60 litres in 24 hours and a very low power consumption of 45 watts. Due to its quiet operation and hygienic accessories like the Ionic Silver Stick 10 the easy-to-use appliance is well-suited for the use in occupied rooms. And best of all – in addition to high-quality technical standards and a low price you even get free accessories for clean water!

Don’t wait any longer to purchase a humidifier with beneficial free accessories.

Order a B400 humidifier with free accessories right here.

Click here more information on the B400 humidifier.

See more information on the Ionic Silver Stick 10.

Go for your Ionic Silver Stick 10 value pack to make not only a savings if you already bought a humidifier, but also if you’re up to purchase one soon! Provide clean water in the humidifier’s tank for up to 12 month with only one stick.

See for yourself!

Purchase the Ionic Silver Stick 10 in a package of five right now.

Click here for fabolously low priced Trotec humidifiers.

The new year is off to a cold start! And true to the promise we made at the end of last year we at Trotec have come up with another super special offer with a special bargain price and a matching gift. Buy a low-price B400 humidifier and get a BX10 energy meter absolutely free!

Save money on a power-packing B400 large-scale humidifier which allows you to create just the right indoor climate while improving the air quality in your home or office and lean back and enjoy the comfort and the control that only a fully-automatic humidifier can really afford. And because the B400 is equipped with a humidistat you can control the relative humidity and regulate the moisture in your rooms and at the same time stop dry air from affecting your comfort and your health  – all year round.

The B400 is easy to use and as reliable as you would think: it can be refilled with normal tap water or connected to a water supply and thanks to the two-stage 3M™ Aircare™ filters you can always count on it to keep the air in your rooms clean and healthier by getting rid of unwanted dust particles and unpleasant odours.

Buy a B400 today and get a BX10 free. Control the relative humidity in your home and enjoy the benefits of an ideal indoor climate while checking and managing the exact amount of energy you use to power your various household appliances.

Find out more about our super special offer: B400 plus free BX10…

Unmask the enrgy-guzzlers in your home: BX10 energy meter…

900 m³ of power-punching performance: B400 large-scale humidifier…

Hurry, hurry, hurry – get your B400 humidifier super savings package here…