Arrival:
Please park only in the driveway. There is room for the equivalent of up to 7 vehicles in the driveway if parked in an organized manner. There is a septic tank and septic field in the yard. And furthermore, the only real issue we have had with neighbors has been when our yard has been made to look like “a used car lot”.
Prior to arrival, you will be given a keycode for the front door lock. This code will be valid for the length of your stay. Press the "Schlage" logo, the keypad will light up. Enter the code on the keypad. Lock should disengage. To re-lock, hold door firmly closed, repeat the same process, and make sure you get a green checkmark. Once inside you lock the door by turning the knob.
Adjust the thermostat by tapping the screen then dragging the blue circle to a comfortable A/C setting. If heat is required, drag the orange circle.
The current Wifi network name is: “Favorite canine palindrome”
The current Wifi password is: Noelleon
During your stay:
There will be no daily cleaning as in a hotel. If you are staying for an extended period and want to arrange for a cleaning during your stay, our housekeeper has left her card.
If you have properly arranged to bring your pet(s). Please note that they must be crated anytime they are left in any room of the house alone. Bedrooms and bathrooms are not dog crates. They are strange places that call for escape by any means – including scratching doors and floors. Get my point?
Hopefully, by now you realize that staying in a home with a pool is different than staying at a hotel or a resort. Along with the convenience and relative privacy come a few of the chores that home owners get used to. There is no one coming to do them for you. The pool is the best example. Yes, we have a pool service. They come once a week. Their primary objective is to maintain the water chemistry. Even that can need more attention than once a week, especially if it rains much. We now have the housekeepers start our robot pool vacuum prior to your arrival. Please remove it before using the pool. Below are some specific instructions.
Pool and Lanai:
We now have a removable child/pet fence available between the lanai and the pool. It will only be set up by request of those with small children or pets. If it is set up, you can put it up and down as needed. Also, it is possible to open up the end panels while leaving the rest in place. Watch out, the safety hooks that connect the sections to each other are a two-person job. You'll see what I mean.
Pool guy will usually be here on Friday. He won’t come in the house. He has a key to the screen door. He’ll usually be here less than a half hour.
At the southeast corner of the pool, near the ladder is a water level control device attached to a hose. This works the same way as a toilet tank. It has a float that starts and stops as the water level changes. The hose is attached to the valve just outside the pool screen. It should always be turned on and at a moderately low flow level. If the pool is low, it means someone has turned off that hose. Please don’t let anyone play with or disturb the device.
Use net on pole before swimming or anytime to remove floating debris. Use brush on pool bottom to direct sunken items to floor drain – or use Mr. Scrubby (see below). The floor drain is the rightmost of the three valves in front of the pool pump as you are facing it. It is usually turned off to allow the skimmer to function as the primary return.
Never touch the set of two valves next to the Heat pump. They are the returns to the pool. They should always be completely open.
If you are here for an extended stay, or just notice debris collecting at the bottom that you are unable to remove by the method above, you are welcome to use the robot vacuum. We call him Mr. Scrubby. Do not swim while he is in the pool. Here are the instructions:
- Lower him into the pool connected to his hose
- Submerge the hose as much as possible to eliminate air pockets
- Remove the skimmer basket and connect the other end of the hose to the inlet under the basket through the skimmer opening
- Directly in front of the pool pump there is a bank of 3 valves. Make sure the one in the middle is completely open – straight up and down – and only then make sure the others are closed. (Always make sure at least one is OPEN first or you will damage the pump)
He should start crawling around the pool as long as
- you have a good hose connection at the skimmer,
- the other 2 valves of the set of 3 are closed,
- the pump is running (usually 8 am to 8 pm). (if you want to run him later, let me know, and I’ll keep the pump going)
- The pump filter is relatively clean (I can talk you through fixing this if necessary)
Remove Mr. Scrubby before getting in the pool. Simply, disconnect his hose from the skimmer, use the hose to pull him out, wind up the hose and put him in the corner. Then replace the skimmer basket and lid. You can leave all the valves and controls the way they are. Use him as often as you like.
Pump/filter is set to run 8-12 hours per day during daylight hours. Let us know if you need the schedule altered to allow Mr Scrubby to work without human competition. We can remotely change the schedule. The pool pump and heater controls are off limits and controlled remotely.
We keep test strips and pool shock to use if there are any noticeable issues with the water appearance. Please contact us if you need to test the water. We’ll have you dip a strip (as deep as you can reach), shake it off, and immediately take a photo of it (HAVE YOUR PHONE CAMERA READY) and send it to us to quickly review and tell you whether a bag of shock is called for.
If you want to spray the pool deck, use the hose on the south side of the house. There should be a nozzle. Please don’t spray the rug and furniture area.
No smoking in the house includes no smoking on or near the lanai. Ash is not fun to clean out of the pool.
Grill Deck:
We have a gas grill and a charcoal grill for your use. The gas grill is located on a patio on the north side of the pool. The charcoal grill is in the shed. Please clean the gas grill thoroughly after it has cooled. The entire drip tray comes out from the back for easy cleaning.
We added a retractable umbrella so that the grill can still be used if it is raining. To use, unfasten the velcro strap, raise to desired height with handle, and extend umbrella with crank. The foot pedal will release the base so that the umbrella can be turned in any direction. Keep the umbrella retracted when not in use.
Fire Pit:
We have created a relaxing campfire area at the back of the yard in front of the woods. The centerpiece is a firepit complete with charcoal pan and cooking rack. There are camp chairs in the shed along with shepherd's hooks for citronella candles. There should be plenty of marshmallow sticks in the pantry. One more thing, there are decorative lights in the trees around this area. They are battery operated and the controllers are hanging from a tree on the north side. It really creates an awesome experience - like you're in the middle of the woods! – Turn them off when you’re done.
Sauna:
There is a wet/dry sauna in the master bath. It is controlled by the 2 dials on the lower front of the heater. The dial on the left is a thermostat. It is set about right to reach 95 – 100 degrees. There is a thermometer on the back wall. The dial on the right is a timer. Turn it clock wise to start the heater. Once at full temperature you can add drops of water from the bucket to create steam. Be conservative with the water or it will create more rust than steam. Not considered safe for children under 10.
Spa:
Make sure the tub is filled above the highest jet before engaging the jets. There is a package of cleaning tabs under the sink if the jets are expelling debris. Follow package instructions.
Kitchen:
You are welcome to use any of the food in the cupboards or refrigerator. Please leave a note on the fridge if you finish off anything.
Please hand wash pots and pans and wood handled knives. Nearly everything else can go in the dishwasher. Check the labels on the cupboards for microwave and dishwasher compatibility. Soap pods are under the sink. Kitchen towels are in the pantry.
Other:
The garage and a closet in the master bedroom have been reserved as private areas. The rest of the house is available for your stay.
In the master bedroom, the windows are very unique, but hard to cover with room darkening shades. There are special cutouts to fill the half circle window portions. They are behind the bench at the foot of the bed.
For your security (and ours) we have installed rods at the bottom of the sliding doors. Remove them while you are in residence, (trying to open the door with them at the bottom can throw the door off its track a little.)
We like nice towels. But we seem to lose a lot of them. So now for accountability we are providing the equivalent of 2 towel sets (bath towel, hand towel, wash cloth) for each person up to six people. Then one set for each additional guest. Also, we have provided additional ‘makeup’ wash cloths. Please make sure they’re all still here when you leave.
There will be one pool towel per person in a bin on the pool deck.
We may from time to time have beach towels available for your use, but you may want to bring/buy your own. Available beach towels will be stored in the linen closet.
You are welcome to use the laundry facilities and any cleaning supplies. We’ve tried to provide enough supplies (toilet paper, shampoo, dish sponges, etc) for a short stay. Don’t overuse laundry soap. We try to provide soap 'pods'. Medium load needs only one pod. Medium loads are best for the sake of getting things dry. Check the guidebook for where to buy additional supplies.
Television. There are smart TVs in all the bedrooms. All have ROKU functionality. Only the living room is set up with live TV through our YouTubeTV subscription. If you have your own TV service, Netflix, etc., you will be able to log in on any TV
Trash pickup is on Monday and Thursday. There are two black bins outdoors on the north side of the garage. Please roll the can out the night before. There is no recyclables pickup, but we do have a receptacle for cans. Please rinse them before depositing. Do not use the BLUE bin for trash. Do NOT take the BLUE bin to the street. Please keep lids on the trash cans.
Our home is on a septic system. Please only flush toilet paper.
There are games in the ‘game room’ along with an Xbox 360 with some preloaded games.
Smarthome automation. In addition to the lock that makes things easy, we are adding more automation over time. For example, the lights in front of the house turn on when motion is detected. The foyer light comes on when the door is unlocked. Check for updates in the folder provided at our home.
Also, there is an Amazon Echo in the house. It is attached by Bluetooth to the soundbar in the game room. If it is not currently connected, just say “Alexa, connect to the Bluetooth speaker”. You can ask her to play music, etc. We have Amazon Music Unlimited. It sounds much better through the soundbar.
There are beach items in a shed in the backyard. Beach chairs and beach toys at this time. The key to the shed is hanging in the pantry. Please make sure it is locked and the key is back in its spot.
There is a hammock stand in the grove of trees in front of the house. It is set up with strings of lights and a drink holder for a nice private getaway spot. The hammock is stored in the master closet. Please don't leave the hammock outside in the rain or if rain is forecast.
There are folding chairs in the master bedroom closet and an air mattress. There is a porta crib in another closet. If you think you will need additional sleeping places such as sleeping bags, another porta-crib, or a toddler bed, please let us know ahead of time and we’ll make them available. There is no place in the house to store them normally.
The sofa beds are premade. There are memory foam pads in one of the closets that you can add if you like (the pads make a big difference!) but the sofas don’t shut with them on.
Enjoy your stay!
Departure:
We pass along what is truly a very small amount for 'resetting' a house of this size. That is because we rely on you to clean up after yourselves. Please try to leave the house the way you found it.
Please leave unmade but do not strip the beds that you used. (housekeeper has found this the best routine). If sofa beds were used leave them open.
Wash and dry as many towels as you can, but don’t worry about folding them unless you want to have fun practicing the special fold we use!
Set the thermostat to 75 cool and 67 heat. Do not turn it off.
Please dispose of any perishable items that you can't freeze.
Please roll the trash cans out when you leave, even if not a trash day. Do NOT roll out the BLUE bin for aluminum cans. We will take those for recycling
If you need to run the dishwasher one more time, do not overfill it and make sure it is running when you leave. Please wash all dishes.
Please wipe everything down and sweep to disappoint bugs and critters.
Please make sure there is nothing left outdoors (lawn furniture, toys)
Turn off all lights and ceiling fans.
Make sure all windows and exterior doors are closed and locked. Including screen doors to pool cage.
Check one more time to see if you left anything! Almost everyone does!
Lock the front door by closing firmly and pressing the lock button. Wait for a green checkmark. If red X, try again with slightly different door pressure. Please test it to make sure it locked.
This manual and a local guidebook will also be available in a printed book when you arrive.