CaseStudy Design, has become locally popular for their unique light fixtures that are made out of … wait for it … books! If you’re as surprised as I was when I first learned about CaseStudy Design and its owner/founder/designer Chall Gray, who are engaged in the practice of upcycling old things like books into lovely light fixtures, then read on for an interesting interview with a book-lover turned lamp designer.

1. Hello, Chall, and thanks for talking with me. First, can you tell me a little about your background and upbringing?

I’m a native of western North Carolina, and grew up on a farm out in the country. Design was something that gradually became more and more central to my life and predilections the older I’ve gotten.

2. So you’ve grown up surrounded by upcyclable things. That makes me wonder: Why books? Why not make lamps out of tissue boxes, skulls, or aluminum cans?

4. What are your goals with Case Study Design? What does the future look like?

I currently work full-time as VP at Thirsty Monk, where we have a series of beer and cocktail bars and a brewery, so I’m only able to devote so much time to CaseStudy, but it’s a central passion of my life, and luckily production doesn’t depend on my schedule because our Production Manager crafts the lights in our shop in West Asheville. As of this week our lights will be on display in Downtown Books & News, a great used bookstore in downtown Asheville, and we’re also working on a design collaboration with a local audio company on a set of home speakers, actually, which is a fun side-project. I’d love to grow the business to having a larger retail presence over the next couple of years, but really, we’re having a blast just designing and building lights.

6. Who are some of your favorite designers, lighting or otherwise?

My influences are pretty varied, but a few touchstones are the architect Tom Kundig, whose work I go back to time and time again, the shoe designer John Fluevog, and watchmaker George Daniels. The great modernists of the 20th Century, Frank Lloyd Wright, Saarinen, Eames, etc. And in terms of lighting, Ingo Maurer and Ilse Crawford immediately spring to mind.

Conclusion: Chall Gray and his CaseStudy Design Firm are doing impressive things with upcycled materials and here!

Outdoor lighting of many varieties can effectively keep your space well-lit, safe, and inviting for you and your guests. These lights are typically reliable and long-lasting, but if they stop working and leave you in the dark, it can be a frustrating experience. Having an understanding of your lights and their potential issues can help you if you need to conduct outdoor lighting troubleshooting. There are several types of outdoor lights, all with different looks and objectives. Spotlights provide bright, direct light onto a specific area. Uplights are installed at or below ground level to shine upwards onto objects while downlights are installed high in a tree or structure to shine down. Floodlights use a motion sensor to shine directly onto an area when they sense someone there. Path or walkway lights are installed as individual fixtures along a walkway to illuminate it. Solar lights gather energy from the sun throughout the day, then turn on at night. These lights are installed in a variety of areas such as on a home; on a deck;  around a patio, deck, sitting area, or pool; or on the ground. There are also a variety of bulbs including halogen, incandescent, LED (light emitting diode) and bug light, each with their own uses and benefits. Each of these fixtures has several parts and can be susceptible to different issues depending on their parts and assembly. If your lights aren’t working properly, it can be concerning, and create potentially dangerous situations.

water and vinegar to remove residue and keep your lights shining brightly.While some outdoor lighting troubleshooting can easily be done on your own, outdoor lights are complex fixtures that aren’t always easy to diagnose and fix.

Custom Electrical Services was recently voted for first place for the best Urbandale electrician!  The pole was taken by USA Today Best, and was presented by the Des Moines Register.  The voting is segmented into different areas by city.  Not all areas have the polls closed as of date.  The Urbandale closed on September 27th, 2016.  The Des Moines metro voting closes on October 11th, 2016.  Custom Electrical Services would like to thank all the Urbandale and residence who took the time to vote.  We are proud to serve the Urbandale area 24 / 7 as well as all of central Iowa!  Custom Electrical Services is a member of the Urbandale Chamber Of Commerce.

We take pride in our work.  Our track record supports this.  Our electricians are not only licensed.  They receive special training that gives them superior customer service skills compared to other electricians.  We work hard to provide the best customer service experience possible.  Our electricians understand that your home is your castle.  They show respect for you and your property.  We are not your typical electrician that comes out and says your project is going to cost X.  We take the time to evaluate your entire electrical system as well as perform our full page safety inspection.  This provides a TON of added value to our service.  When is the last time someone took your panel cover off and inspected all your connections?  Most customers say not since I have lived here!  Electrical connections can loosen over time.  Wiring can expand and retract as loads fluctuate on the circuits, this expansion and loosen the connections inside your panel or breaker box.  Loose connections can leave to excessive arching and can cause fires.

Who are you letting into your home?  Our electricians receive an extensive background check.  We are not going to send a criminal into your home.  We realize the delicate nature of having strangers come into your home.  While you may not personally know the electrician you can rest assured we do!  Our background checked electricians are team members, not sub contractors.  We employee them full time and work one on one with them on a daily basis.  We work with them to develop the best customer experience possible.  We want you to feel comfortable with having our trained service technician in your home so you can be just as comfortable as we are with them.

In addition to a 3rd party background check our electricians receive drug testing.  You would not a person on drugs drive your kids to school!  So you defiantly don’t want an electrician on drugs performing wiring in your home!  Are drug tested and background checked electricians were the seal of safety.  This seal is worn with pride and taken very seriously.  When you see the seal of safety on our electricians uniform you know that you are working with a safe professional.

We proudly serve Urbandale and all Des Moines metro customers 24/7.  We understand that your electrical emergency may not take place during regular business hours.  That is why we have a never close policy. Our phone is always answered by a live person regardless of the time or day.  You can also contact us online by clicking here.

Custom Electrical Services is your first choice for an electrician serving Urbandale Iowa.  We perform countless service calls and wire new homes in Urbandale Iowa.  Our projects in Urbandale are some of our favorites.  We loving helping people such as your self with all there electrical needs.

We offer all electrical services for Urbandale.  Our electricians in Urbandale carry many of the parts necessary on their service trucks for that emergency repair.  Have an electrical problem in the middle of the night?  We our electricians in Urbandale offer 24 hour service for those unexpected emergencies.  We realize that your electrical emergency is unexpected.  Our electricians are trained to help you get your home or business back up and running safely!  Our electricians love to help!

Our Urbandale Electricians can handle any task.  From changing that high light bulb to totally rewiring and updating your electrical in your entire Urbandale home.  Many of our customers have simple jobs, while others need an complete electrical update!  Need an new electrical panel or breaker panel?  Our electricians can replace that old electrical panel correctly and to code.  Many Urbandale customers who replace there panel ask us to install a whole home surge protector.  This device when installed properly in your home can protect your entire electrical system and electrical appliances.

Have some smoke alarms not working properly?  Our Urbandale electricians carry top of the line smoke alarm units as well as carbon moxide units on there service vans.  We can handle any smoke alarm call.  From changing a smoke alarm battery to updating and replacing all the smoke alarms in your entire Urbandale home.  Don’t have any smoke alarms?  Our Urbandale electrician can fish in the necessary wiring in order to add high quality smoke alarm units in your Urbandale home to offer you the earliest detection possible in the event of a fire.

Have worn out and failing plugs and switches in your home?  Our Urbandale electrician can replace some or all of your plugs and switches in your home.  We carry the latest styles and colors of electrical devices to complement the style and colors of your décor.  We install the most reliable child resistant / tamper resistant plugs.  These plugs help to reduce the chance of electrical shock by preventing a foreign object from being inserted in the electrical receptacle.  Have plugs by water or in your kitchen, bathroom, or garage?  We can install GFCI receptacles in the proper areas to offer you and your family the best electrical protection possible.

The good news is that heating systems in modern homes are safer than they’ve ever been before. But while many people never experience any major risk to their safety due to a furnace or boiler, it’s still a possibility. Any heating system that uses combustion to work, like a natural gas furnace, could potentially leak a dangerous gas called carbon monoxide (CO, for short) into the home.

The heat exchanger is where combustion produces a flame as natural gas ignites. This heat is contained within a heat exchanger made of aluminum or steel. It is essentially a curved tube, and the smoke and carbon monoxide byproducts vent through the other end and out of the house. Air blows over the heat exchanger to heat up and is sent to the ducts running throughout the home.

Unfortunately, over time, the heat exchanger can become damaged. This is especially true if you have anyone but a professional technician work on your furnace, but it can also happen with time. You should have HVAC technicians inspect your heating system each and every year to check for leaks and cracks.

Carbon monoxide is an odorless, colorless gas. That means you wouldn’t have many ways to notice if it were in your home. It is poisonous, and sometimes people don’t know about it until people in the house start to get sick.

Carbon monoxide detectors save lives. A CO detector near each room where people sleep (and throughout your living spaces) should be tested each month and replaced every 5-10 years. You should also replace the batteries for your CO and smoke alarms every 6 months (even if the test works).