Smoking:
Per the rental agreement, there is no smoking (or vaping) allowed in the apartment, balcony or on our property. Violators of this rule will be asked to leave immediately, and if there is a security deposit, it will be forfeited along with your rental payment. So if you are a smoker, this is an excellent time to quit.
Parking:
You may park under the apartment in the carport. The overhead light comes on for a few minutes when you are near it. If you park on 35th Street (or have guests that need to do so), please use the Residential Parking hang tag that is in the top drawer under the oven/microwave. Do not park blocking the sidewalk or with the car aimed the “wrong way” when parallel parked. We have seen tickets doled out for both of these infractions.
Entry (READ THIS!):
The keyless entry is keyed to the last four digits of your cell phone. Locking is NOT automatic.
TO UNLOCK: Pull the door knob firmly closed (toward the street). LET GO OF THE KNOB. Enter the code, then open the door. Turn the door knob all the way to open. Some people have had difficulty just because they didn’t turn the handle all the way.
TO LOCK: Pull the door knob firmly closed. LET GO OF THE KNOB. Press the LOCK button. NOTE: Entering the entry code is NOT required to lock the door.
HINT: Pushing/pulling the door knob too soon while it is in operation prevents it from working. Waiting after the sound stops does nothing. Turn the handle fully. If it does not open, repeat the unlock proceedure above.
Hint two: if you enter the incorrect code, press the LOCK button to clear the memory. re-enter the correct code to open the door. This is also helpful at night if you can’t see the numbers, press the lock button and the pad will illuminate, then enter the code to open the door.
There is also a KEY TO THE DEADBOLT in the top drawer under the microwave. The entry light will come on automatically when you are near it. If you have any problem getting in, ring the doorbell or call Rice at 512-560-7711. Most guests don’t use the key, but feel free to use it if you are more comfortable with that method.
Lights, Plugs and chargers:
All interior and exterior lights on the building are LED. Most are labeled. One or two may flicker if the dimmer (on wall switch, NOT the Philips Hue dimmers) is turned down too low, so just turn it up a bit (slide by the switch) and it will stop flickering.
Philips Hue Remotes:
3 are mounted by the end of the bookcase near the TV and the couch. One controls ALL HUE LIGHTS in the apartment, one for the CEILING, and one for the TV ZONE (back of the TV). With these you can control the color of the lights, and brightness levels in addition to on/off.
FLOOR LAMP remote is mounted on the bookcase beside it. On/off, color, and brightness level.
HEADBOARD light (by the bed). Pro tip: This remote will also turn off ALL of the Philips Hue lights in the apartment if you PRESS AND HOLD the off button. A quick single press will ONLY turn off the HEADBOARD.
BALCONY remote is mounted to the right side of the refrigerator next to the door. On/off and brightness level
PENDANT “smart button” on the left side of the microwave to control this light. Press quickly for on/off, press and hold to dim the light. No color controls. It WILL NOT WORK if you turned off the switch on the backsplash that is marked “LEAVE ON.”
The wall plug just below the microwave has built-in USB-A ports, no adapter needed; there are several by the bed too. More advanced USB charging ports are by the couch on the floor (white), two 12w USB-A, and one 30w USB-C port , and can be turned off with the center button.
The black floor lamp (Aukey) that extends over the couch, has a multi-function on/off button. One press turns on the light, rotate the knob to change the brightness level, press the knob quickly to jump through the three color temperature settings, and lastly to turn it off use a LONG press on the knob.
The white reading light extending over the lounge chair has touch controls for on/off, and will dim or brighten with longer presses.
Bathroom and vanity:
Pantene™ shampoo (white color) and Neutrogena™ body wash are in a dispenser in the shower. There is a silver touch-free hand soap dispenser by the vanity with Meyer’s Hand Soap (same as the pump bottle by the kitchen sink). There is additional bar soap in the drawer under the vanity sink in the basket; also a hair dryer, extra hand towels and washcloths. Ladies, please use the makeup remover tissues in the resealable container or the dark “Makeup” washcloths. Also in the center secton some are white adjacent to the embroidered “Makeup” cloths but they are aso for makeup). Pure white washcloths are best for all other purposes. Other amenities can also be found in these drawers including beach towels. Please do not take the white bath towels out of the apartment. Fresh towels will be provided every 3-4 days. Bed linens are changed weekly.
Wardrobe:
You will find hangers, and extra blankets. In the corner closet is an ironing board, iron and a small clothes steamer are just above them on the next shelf. Also in the corner cabinet is the yellow pole for raising and lowering the balcony shades (has a hook on the end) by rotating the eyelet on the end of each shade. Please use some of the red/black shock cords to attach to the end of the shades and hook onto the steel railing. This will prevent them from wildly flapping in the wind. Another pole is blue, this one is to reach across the stairs and raise or lower the window blinds. Additionally two umbrellas and a “beach mat” will be found to take to Barton Springs or wherever.
Murphy Bed & Convertible sofa:
It is a queen-sized bed, I usually leave it down when people check in for simplicity. it stores vertically but be sure to snap the restraining strap into place if you fold it up into its enclosure. Please remove the four foam blocks forming the headboard before trying to put the bed into the vertical position. Above the bed are two down feather pillows. The pillows on the bed are synthetic. There is a white duvet & synthetic blanket in the top of th wardrobe. There is a sound machine just to the left of the bed. It has many selections, adjust as needed for white noise or leave it off.
The convertible sofa has ample bedding in the storage hidden by the wall. Just raise up the left side by the wall, 2 duvets, 1 flat sheet, 2 pillows, and a soft synthetic blanket.
Kitchen:
The microwave is new July 2024. Please see the directions in the drawer below it for full instructions. Pots, pans, cooking & eating utensils are all located under the two-burner cooktop. The cooking surface gets very hot, so be cautious. There is a dish-drying rack under the sink, and a gray absorbent pad (to go under it) for drying dishes adjacent to it on the door. There are also bins for trash and recycling under the sink. Trash and recycle pick up is on Friday mornings (recycling is 2x a month). We will collect your trash if you are out and request that we do it on Thursday; otherwise please put your trash in the tan City of Austin container adjacent to the carport. Recycle goes into the larger blue container (paper, glass, cans, plastic, cardboard, but NOT plastic bags or styrofoam). You’ll find extra trash bags under the sink for bathroom and kitchen containers. In the lower cabinet just to the left of the refrigerator are extra paper towels & a blender. A sliced bread toaster is in the far bottom left drawer, close to the dining table. There is a toaster oven in one of the bottom kitchen drawers. Make sure it’s cool before you put it back! On the counter is the coffee maker and a small supply of fresh ground coffee. Coffee filters are in the drawer under the coffee maker. There is a gold screen metal filter sitting in the coffee maker. You may put the coffee grinds directly in this OR use one of the paper filters. Don’t use BOTH! Don’t throw away the metal filter!! A tea selection is in the back of the drawer under the coffee maker with the filters & dish towels, plus some hot chocolate packages. Rummage around, and if you can’t find what you need, call us! If you run out of any of these supplies, call us (or text).
The fire extinguisher is just to the right of the refrigerator by the balcony doors.
Please do not turn off the refrigerator!
Balcony:
Depending on the weather, we’ll need to access to the apartment every week at a minimum to tend to the plants. If you are staying more than a week, we can water these plants when we change the bed linens and towels. The balcony lights can be controlled by the Hue Dimmer switch on the side of the refrigerator facing the balcony doors (it’s magnetic and removable too). DO NOT TURN OFF the wall switch for the balcony lights that is just to the right of the doors (it’s taped down to prevent it’s use).
In the corner wardrobe, there is a yellow pole for raising and lowering the balcony shades, it has a hook on the end. Rotate the eyelet on the end of each shade to your preference. Please use some of the red/black shock cords to attach to the end of the shades and hook onto the steel railing. This will prevent them from wildly flapping in the wind. If it’s windy, please raise the pleated interior shades on the French doors so they are not damaged by the wind movement. If you open the doors fully flat against the exterior walls, the door stop can latch to the door by a hook and the wind cannot blow it open or shut. It does require your finger to gently latch it to the hook on the door.
Sonos Speakers:
I principally use these just for the Sony TV. The Sonos Beam sound bar is integrated with the two back speakers for a surround effect.
