Hi Surfers at the Glowhouse!

    We welcome you to our abode and appreciate you being in our community for your visit to DC! We welcome you as fellow room-mates with us for the time that you are here!  Here are answers to a few common questions we get ahead of time:

• Darrell (He/Him/His), a Drupal web developer and Blockchain Consultant who is also the owner of the house and resides in the back room of the 2nd floor in the Library room.
• Marta (She/Her/Hers), a Law student from Mexico who loves Nick Cave!
• Jess (She/Her/Hers), who lives in the basement and is a techie. 

Pets:

• We have two cats: Violet and Gatalina, who all may show up at any time and leave just as suddenly.

Gifts!

Sometimes Couchsurfers want to bring the house a gift in appreciation, and it is not at all required or expected. We appreciate the thought, and, if you do want to give a gift, we kindly request you don't bring any sweets, candy, crackers, cookies, cakes, danishes, or other carbohydrates or sugary items as a gift. We are challenged by the high amount of sugar already in the American diets and don't need any more.

Help!

Living in a group space requires a lot of coordination and maintaining of organization, and we'd love your help in keeping the Glowhouse Glowing, leaving the place nicer than you found it:  If you're up for it, there are often some special projects that we need assistance with in the house including gardening, plant care.

Dishes:

We are appreciative of your help with putting dry dishes away from the dishwasher and from the drying rack. &nbspWe're also hoping you'll help with washing dishes, either by hand or putting them in the dishwasher and starting it.  Please start the dishwasher when its 3/4 or more full, you can find dish soap packets under the sink and put one in the tray, sliding the door closed and pushing the start button after the dishwasher door is closed.

Trash & Recycling:

We're thankful for your help with taking trash bags and recycling bags outside to the trash cans.  Trash goes in green or silver trash cans, Recycling goes in the blue cans which are accessible by bringing the bags downstairs and out through the back door thru the laundry room.  Please replace the inside receptacle with a trash bag (dark green) or recycling bag (translucent blue) which are stored in the bottom shelf in the bathroom next to the kitchen.  This is also where you'll find paper towels or toilet paper if you need to replenish these house items.  Washington, DC does single stream recycling.

Compost:  (All food except for: • Meat, poultry, or fish, including bones, fat, gristle, skin, etc..  Dairy products, including cheese, butter, yogurt, sour cream, etc.  Grease, oil, or sauce of any kind)

We collect compost in the white circular bin next to the stove.  Compost Cab picks up the bin from our front porch on Wednesday morning, if you come home and find the bin emptied, plese bring it in and set up the bag with the large rubber band to hold it in place.  Please avoid screwing the top lid tight as it cuts the bag and makes it hard to be picked up by Compost Cab.

Kitchen:

The kitchen is available for your use, and we enjoy sharing meals should you feel called to prepare additional food or beverage.   You’re welcome to keep food in our refrigerators, the white fridge outside of the kitchen is the best place to keep your food, preferably on the top shelf. Please help yourself to any of our common consumables such as milk, butter, condiments, spices, sugar, tea, coffee, etc, and replace anything that we run out of. There are more details about local shopping here. Please help by keeping the stove, dining table, and kitchen surfaces clean and organized.

Water:

The tap water in DC isn't super clean; hence, we have a built in reverse osmosis filter for the house. Please get your drinking water from the tap to the right of the sink or from the chilled water dispenser inset into the silver fridge. This is the best way to get water for making tea or coffee. We typically use a French press for making coffee.

Stove:

Please keep the iron skillets put away in the oven below the range after you're done with them. You're welcome to use the hot pot to make hot water, free to use these at any times.  Note that you shouldn't use soap to clean the iron skillet, just use a paper towel to wipe it clean when it has cooled.

Commons:

The commons has three couches, a video projector with HDMI & VGA inputs, and is the main social area for the Glowhouse. You're welcome to hook your laptop up to the projector and to the sound system and watch / share video and music. Please help keep the common area clean and organized. We typically don't have couch surfers stay in this area because we like to keep this area available for residents to use day and night. Typically, you'll stay in the Yoga room if its not being used by Sara, or in your hosts' room.

Laundry:

The GlowHouse has an extra large washing machine and a dryer which is available for your use in the basement.  Please feel free to use these machines while you’re here, and mark how you want the laundry handled in case someone needs to move your laundry from the washer to the dryer.

Toilets:

All of the toilets (except for the Toto Neorest) have a Dual Flush System installed which allows for saving water for liquid waste.  If you pee, lift (pull) the lever up to flush (or don't flush at all).  Otherwise, please push the lever down.

Security:

The front door and the three back doors all have combination locks set to the same combination.  Please get the current combination from your host.  To enter or leave the front door, you need to turn both the top handle and the bottom handle at the same time.  Please close doors completely once you go through them.

WiFi:  We have 3 or more Hotpspots you are welcome to use, all named Glowhouse, with some digits after them.  Please select the one with the strongest signal and use the password  that is on the donation box to the right of the white refrigerator.

 

Hot Tub

The Hot Tub is on the 3rd floor out on the deck accessed through the back door thru the Yoga room.  It is kept warm and is available for use most any time. After opening the insulating cover, please latch the clip that is attached to the post to secure the cover in the open position, in case a gust of wind comes and would blow it shut if it isn’t latched.

The hot tub has a red valve that puts out cold water and is nice to have when you get too hot.  Please feel free to use it, but ensure that it gets fully closed after you’re done with it.  It isn’t enough to lower the handle to the point where the water stops, the handle belongs in the lower closed position so that no water is coming anywhere into the valve.

After you’re done using the hot tub, please turn off the jets, close the hot tub cover and turn off the lights.  You can leave your damp towels on the hooks or on the stair rail on the landing of the 3rd floor.