Browse Month

September 2019

Design Granny Flats

In recent years the government has become a little more lenient with the construction of granny flats, quite a far cry from the old days when there weren’t many areas that allowed its construction due to zone restrictions. Even if they are not meant to house your elderly relatives, these flats have also become a great solution to housing site shortages and allowed property owners to have an extra source of income because they could be rented out.

So if you’re planning to construct a granny flat on your property, there are many things you need to think about before you can be able to do so like reviewing your local building codes, permit application procedures and zoning laws and occupancy regulations. In addition, you will also need to think about how you will build and design your structures so that your elderly relatives will be able to move about easily, without fearing or worrying that they will hurt themselves.

To start, you can make inquiries in places developed especially for elderly living. You can ask senior citizens about what they like and don’t like as far as living arrangements are concerned, what they liked about their current home and … Read the rest

Professional Roofing Contractor

Emergency or not, following are a few things to consider before choosing a professional roofing contractor;

  • Credentials: Are they accredited to an association or a manufacture contractor program? Make sure that the contractor that you choose is a member of a local trade body or contractor program. This provides better accountability when things go wrong. It also ensures that all roofing jobs are in accordance to local codes.
  • Inspection: Most roofing contractors offer a free inspection to determine the scope of the project and make an estimation of the costs involved. Does the contractor undertake a thorough inspection by checking your attic, chimney and other places where the roof penetrates? The inspection process should give you an idea about how the contractor’s work mechanism.
  • Explanation: The contractor should explain the job process in detail. Would he be charging for the defective shingles on a prorated basis or otherwise? What would be the labor charges? Is there a warranty for his service? Would the job also include a thorough clean up of the roof? Who would be responsible for the cleanup after the job’s done, including cleaning of the yard and disposing surplus material.
  • Quality Materials: If choosing a contractor who
… Read the rest

Decorative Window Shutters

Shutters typically coordinate with a home’s design to bring out a certain style in its appearance. For example, you can get shutters that are rectangular-shaped, or those that come in other forms. Here are some things to consider when selecting shutters for your home.

  • Does the home’s exterior paint or paneling come with matching shutters? If so, consider using these to match the existing design, even if you had the siding done first and now want to add shutters. If not, check with the home supply provider for suggestions about the type of shutters that will go well with your current outdoor siding. You may be able to look at a print or online catalog, or view samples at the store. Some stores provide references of previous customers who have purchased these shutters, and you may be able to talk with them about their level of satisfaction or drive by their homes to have a look.
  • Choose a coordinating design and color. If your home’s siding or finish does not come with matching shutters, check out several possible options before selecting one for your home. Popular styles are made of aluminum and vinyl, along with other materials that are weather-resistant,
… Read the rest

Advantages of Metal Roof Coating

Metal is no less vulnerable to the ravages of weather and time than any other material that might adorn your roof. There are metal roofs that have been applied with sealant or paint at the time they are manufactured in the factory. Even these roofs may not be able to withstand the adverse effect of the weather without being properly coated after installation.

Advancement in the field of science has brought about durability and effectiveness in metal roof coating in recent years. These roofing solutions are non-toxic, safe and entirely odorless. Metal roof coating consists of several different substances, however, the most common of them is polyester. The best thing about these products is you can apply them to the already existing roof without having the need to remove the previous coating. This, however, does not include roof penetration line vents, chimneys and air conditioners. Since these are vulnerable points, they need to be caulked and scraped for better results.

Metal roof coating is presently considered one of the best roofing solutions available in the market. There are several advantages of applying it on your roof. First of all, it assists in conserving electricity by providing a protective layer and, … Read the rest

Advantages To Building New Homes

Greater Efficiency

Existing houses don’t just come with creaking floors and undesirable wallpaper; they come complete with drafty windows, energy-hungry appliances, and gas-guzzling furnaces. All of these issues contribute to one very inefficient residence. This lack of efficiency is bound to rob the homeowner’s wallet, whether it’s through the need to remodel or because of sky-high energy bills.

New homes guarantee greater efficiency. This is especially true if they are built in a neighborhood or community with a green initiative. Within such communities, preexisting plans for new homes entail energy-saving strategies. These plans may include solar panels and maximum insulation, for instance.

Better Resale Value

Though most home builders are not likely to sell their abodes anytime in their near future, it is worth noting that the resale value of new homes is higher than that of older ones. Each customized blueprint is unique, and each one has attractive features that cookie-cutter houses lack. This makes such new homes irresistible and more valuable to potential buyers. If circumstances change and selling the newly constructed place becomes necessary, then you’ll at least have the consolation of being able to ask for a high selling price.

A Healthier Alternative

Older houses are … Read the rest

Outdoor LED Lamps

These lights have been used both for general lighting and for decorations; examples are in the interior lighting of club houses and restaurants, street and parks. The outdoor lighting is a common trend since the camp fires and torches in the stone age. However, it has been used more for enhancement and decoration purposes. The type and the color of lighting used depends on the use.

Advantages of LED lamps

  • The diodes usually produce light of a single color; this allows these LED bulbs to be perfect decoration tools mostly where colored lighting is required.
  • The light beams generated are more focused and more taper.
  • The LED bulbs are more durable and therefore best to use in both indoor and outdoor lighting.
  • The led lamps have higher electric energy efficacy, in that they generate more light with the similar amount of current, compared to other bulbs.
  • LED bulbs are more compact and smaller in size, allowing lighting fixing and well even apportion in a room or outdoor.
  • The diodes light up immediately and do not require warm up time.

Types of outdoor LEDs

  • Street lighting, LED lamps are better over the other model of light bulbs due to their energy
… Read the rest

Use LED Bulbs In Decorations

There are different types of LED bulbs based on various aspects such as colour, which is the different light colour emitted by the bulb, the lumen, which is the level of brightness as perceived by the eyes, shape size and energy consumptions among other differences. However, each lamp comes with its advantages aligned with its best use. The strip-shaped LED bulbs are more common for the decorative purposes, as they fit all the necessary features to create different indoor and outdoor decor.

Tips on how to decorate with them.

  • Outline the area of interest that you want to give that new look, the most common areas are the door area, the foyer and the window frames. These are likely to draw attention and indeed shed a whole different look to the room as create the aspect of view.
  • Choose a more infusing color shade, and that is calmer. Flashing lights and brightly colored lights are obnoxious to the eyes unless it’s a club and you looking to give the occupants some sort of a high. Use colours that blend with the entire look of the house and that encourages calmness.
  • These bulbs are flexible and can be turned into any
… Read the rest

Steps To Determine Door Handing

  • First start with a fresh mind. Go back to basics.
  • Look at the door; it should be pretty easy to tell what side of the door is the outside, and what side is the inside. Outside of a bedroom door you would be standing in the hallway, if you are in the bedroom you are looking at the inside of the door. If you are standing on your front porch looking at the front door, then your are looking at the outside of the door. Know this before installing door levers and handles.
  • Door handing is always done from the OUTSIDE of the door. Whatever side the hinges are on, when viewed from the outside is the same as the door hand. If the hinges are on the right, it’s a right hand door. If the hinges are on the left, it’s a left hand door. It does not matter if the door pulls towards you or opens away from you. If you don’t know your left from right, ask someone. You only need to determine what side the hinges are on from the OUTSIDE. Forget the “reverse bevel” term.
  • Now you are ready to install your doors handles or
… Read the rest

About Slab Foundations Primer

There are many different types of slab foundations. Most are built with footings which are thickened areas of slab located under load bearing walls. A load bearing wall is a wall that holds up the structure. If a wall isn’t load bearing, it is called a curtain wall. Most curtain walls are used for dividing rooms.

Foundation footings are wider than the foundation’s base and often reinforced with steel. They transfer the load of the building to the foundation and help distribute the weight of the building over the soil or rock.

How the foundation and footings are constructed depends on several factors, including soil and climate. In places where the ground freezes, footings are created first, below the frost line. After the footing has been placed, the building’s walls are constructed. Once the walls are in place, the slab is created.

A slab-on-grade foundation is used in locations where the ground doesn’t freeze. The slab, which oftentimes rests on gravel, is poured all at once. There is no space between the slab and the ground, and the edges of the slab are made thicker than the inside of the slab.

Some slab foundations have a portion of the foundation … Read the rest

DIY Gazebo Plans

You can choose from a variety of price ranges, colors, designs and styles. Select the piece that matches the best with the style of your house. The accurate instructions and cut out pieces of raw materials which come with the kit are quite helpful when constructing a gazebo on your own.

Assemble the frame: Start by fastening the boards together using 3 ½” screws. Now stick the joists at the corners and raise them at the center of the base. Drill holes and secure the joists to the core block. Now attach anchor cables to the joists and secure them.

Decking and walls: Layout the boards and screw the corners together and then secure the frames with 2 ½” screws. Now lay down the next circle and fasten them using screws and repeat the process for each circle of the deck boards. Stick the 1″x4″ bottom brace into the dado and the second fillet to the other end of the spindles. Raise it and flip the spindle over and staple the rail cap into the other fillet.

Now it’s time to focus on the walls. Raise two walls and attach them to each other using screws in each corner. Attach … Read the rest