Home Improvements

Safety and Security First for Home Repair and Maintenance

When setting priorities for potential home maintenance and repairs, it’s important to organize projects based on what tasks are most critical to your family’s safety and security.

Probably even more important than security would be safety – these items should be repaired as soon as you identify the problem. If it could adversely affect your family member’s health or well-being, schedule these projects right away.

Here are some of the most commonly needed “safety” home repairs:

• Electrical outlets should be tested to make certain ground-fault circuits are functioning.
• Lighting in areas where you may slip or fall – quickly replace any burnt out bulbs in walkways and stairwells.
• Make sure that all hardware is securely fastened to appropriate support structures for railings and banisters to avoid falls.
• Uneven walkways and cracks on outdoor paths may be overlooked. They can lead to slip and fall injuries.
• Secure loose porch steps as soon as a problem arises and repair them as soon as they show any signs of wear or problems structurally.
• Smoke detectors should be tested monthly and batteries replaced twice a year.

Here are some of the most commonly needed “security” home repairs:

Protecting your home and family is another top priority for maintaining your property. Some may be found indoor and outdoor, and include:

• Garage doors could allow robbers to gain entry into your home – if they aren’t closing properly or have become unreliable this creates a security issue and makes your home vulnerable. Be sure and handle repairs in a timely manner.
• Adequate outdoor lighting adds to your overall security. Motion sensor lighting offers a way to illuminate the area outside your home when someone enters the area. Replace burnt out bulbs or solar lighting on porch lights, walkways and security lights as soon as you become aware.
• Check exterior doors to be sure knobs are tight, deadbolts are turning properly and any other issues with doors and repair immediately.
• Repair or replace faulty or loose window latches, especially those that can easily be accessed from the ground, but don’t overlook those on a second floor or outside what you believe would be an intruder’s reach.
• Add an alarm system, even something minimal will add to your level of security and bring peace of mind to everyone. Check to be sure they are functioning properly at all times.

Roof Maintenance

Keeping your roof in repair can protect you from water leaks that lead to more costly future repairs. A roof inspection should be performed as a part of your normal home maintenance program. Depending on the age and style of your roof, normal inspections will help guard your home and family from many disastrous situations.

Water Damage

One of the most costly repairs you may ever face, water damage can create problems with walls, floors and ultimately your home’s structure. Fixing potential sources of water leaks should be a top priority to avoid this type of damage.

Common repairs include:

• Caulking – or re-caulking around sinks, toilets, tubs and showers can help keep water from spreading to walls and floors.
• Window – check and repair or re-seal leaky windows to prevent structural damage and possible mold issues.
• Keep gutters and downspouts clean to prevent overflows. Look for bent, cracked or twisted spouts that may be misdirecting water towards your home.
• Replacing cracked, outdated exterior paint with even just a touch up can help prevent wood rot and other water related problems.

Laura MacDonald is a top St. Louis REALTOR serving the St. Louis Metropolitan area from the #1 Coldwell Banker Gundaker office in the State of Missouri. Laura ranked 3rd in her office for 2010 and was #1 in sales units taken and closed in 2010. The Laura MacDonald team specializes in marketing and selling homes in the St. Louis, Chesterfield, Ballwin, and Town & Country areas with Integrity, Resources and Results. Contact MacDonald for a complimentary, no obligation, Comparative Market Analysis of your home at 314-605-2896, or info@thelauramacdonaldteam.com

Stylish Bathroom Makeover

Enjoy this stylish bathroom makeover done in an afternoon for under $100.00!

Warm Up a Cold Corner in an Afternoon

Let HGTV show you how to warm up a cold corner in an afternoon for about $100!  Enjoy…

Do Your Part! Making Windows More Efficient

By Terri Bennett

With all the money we spend this time of year on presents, parties, and everything else — who really can afford to let money fly right out the window? Do Your Part during these chilly months to make your windows more efficient to cut down on your utility bills.

In the winter, drafty windows can account for up to 25 percent of our heating bill.

However, there are some fixes that will make all the difference. Common choices include insulating drapes, interior storm windows, and plastic window insulation kit. Each of these solutions has its own pros and cons, but they all insulate the same way. They create an insulated air buffer between your home and the window surface.

Insulated drapes are considered the most attractive option, but experts stress the importance of proper insulation. Drapes must be flush with the wall to effectively create an air space between the window surface and the curtains. Improperly installed curtains that let air pass through the sides of the drapes can actually pull heat away from the room.

Drapes, of course, can be reused and will help reduce utilities costs in every season.

Interior storm windows can be fitted to your windows and are effective at reducing air infiltration. These units use a fitted pane that often clips into a frame. Pane materials range from the more expensive glass to polycarbonate plastic. The advantage to interior storm windows is that they can be reused for several years. Many favor interior storm windows over exterior varieties because they are easier to install will require less maintenance. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, interior storm windows can reduce heat loss by 25 to 50 percent.

Plastic insulation kits are a very economical choice. Kits include a plastic sheet that is attached to a window frame with adhesive tape and then stretched tight by applying heat with a hair dryer. The plastic film is made of vinyl, polyester or polyethylene and can technically be removed and stored for next winter’s use. Most homeowners, however, find these kits to be single season items due to tears in the plastic and the milky appearance created by the aging plastic.

So which is your best choice? Go with a reusable option like interior storm windows or insulating drapes. Homeowners that want to realize long term savings should consider upgrading to Energy Star qualified windows. Energy Star-rated windows will have a substantial upfront cost but are the most efficient way to reduce home heat loss around windows.

Whether you go big or small, do your part to keep the warm air inside your home and more money in your wallet.

Source:  RISMedia/Lowe’s

(c) 2010, The Charlotte Observer (Charlotte, N.C.).
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.

Low Cost Floor Coverings

Have a floor that needs to be replaced? Check out this low cost floor covering video to give you a comparison of what’s available to you and what price. Enjoy!

Source:  HGTV.com

Before and After Bath

Romantic Modern Bathroom – Before and After – Enjoy!

Source: www.HGTV.com

Still Time to Register for FREE Green Living Seminar

Reminder to reserve your seat for the first of a FREE four-part Green Living series  

Wednesday, October 27 at 6:30pm.  

JUST ADDED: Announcement of the newly released ENERGIZE MISSOURI HOMES PROGRAM.  Attend the Basic Green Living seminar on Wednesday, October 27th to learn how you can receive a FREE energy audit and improvements through this just released State of Missouri funded program. 

Home Green Home, Coldwell Banker Gundaker, REA Homes,  and Sustaining Spaces have teamed up to offer a FREE four-part seminar to help you easily integrate “Green” into your home, lifestyle and daily habits.  Attend one or all sessions.

LOCATION: Des Peres Lodge
                     1050 Des Peres Rd.

Wednesday, October 27, 2010     6:30 – 7:30
Basic Green Living – Simple and Inexpensive Solutions to Greening Your Home and Lifestyle
    Kathleen Engel – Home Green Home  www.homegreenhome.us
Landscaping for Energy Efficiency
    Marla Esser – Sustaining Spaces  www.sustainingspaces.com

Wednesday, January 26, 2011     6:30 – 7:30
Green Building, Better Building – A Perspective from a High Performance Luxury Home Builder
    Jeff Bogard – REA Homes  www.reahomesllc.com

Wednesday, Feb 23, 2011     6:30 – 7:30
Energy Audits and Home Performance Improvements
   Marc Bluestone – Home Green Home www.homegreenhome.us

Wednesday, March 23, 2011     6:30 – 7:30
Landscaping for a Healthier Lawn and Garden

To reserve your seat, please call:
Kathleen Engel ­­­­­­­­­­­­
Marketing and Outreach Manager
Home Green Home

314-288-5568 (cell)

How to Choose a Color Scheme

Fall is a great time for interior painting projects.  Brighten up your home by choosing a room for a splash of new color.  Here are some tips compliments of HGTV.com and Kathy McCleary. Enjoy!

By Kathy McCleary

Pick a color, any color.

If only choosing a color palette for your interiors was that easy. It can be, thanks to designer Mark McCauley. The author of Color Therapy at Home: Real Life Solutions for Adding Color to Your Life, he offers eight tips to help you discover your color preferences and take on white walls.

Tip #1. Choose a color scheme from the largest pattern in the space.
If you’ve got patterned upholstery, an Oriental rug or large piece of artwork, pluck colors you like from the pattern. For a neutral wall paint color, look to the pattern’s whites and beiges.

Tip #2. Start with the formal areas of the house.
Specifically, the living room, dining room and entry way. Choose a color scheme for those areas first, then pull one color from the scheme. For example, take the red sofa and tone it down (say, to burgundy) for an accent in more private spaces such as the den, office or bedroom.

Tip #3. Decorate your space from dark to light, vertically.
A real “cookbook” way to make any space look good without much risk, McCauley says, is to use darker color values for the floor, medium color values for the walls and light values for the ceiling.

“Any interior space replicates the outside world,” he says. “The exterior environment is generally darker below our feet (the earth itself), medium-valued as you look straight ahead (buildings/trees) and lighter values skyward.”

Tip #4. Study the color of your clothes.
Most people buy clothes in colors they like to wear and think they look good in. Similarly, you should decorate your rooms in colors you look good in. “If you don’t wear yellow, don’t get a yellow sofa,” McCauley says. “You’re going to look sickly on it.”

Tip #5. Use the color  wheel.
In general, analogous color schemes — colors next to each other on the color wheel, such as blue and green — are more casual and relaxing, and work best in informal or private spaces. This is a good strategy for a bedroom, where you want to rest and recover.

Whatever color scheme you choose, McCauley advises to put something black in every room. “The black clarifies all the rest of the colors in the room,” he says. Try a black lampshade, a black vase or a black picture frame.

Tip #6. Use the rule of 60-30-10.
“When decorating a space, divide the colors in the space into components of 60 percent of a dominant color, 30 percent of a secondary color and 10 percent of an accent color,” McCauley says. The walls will most likely be the majority, the upholstery would represent the secondary color and accessories such as a floral arrangement or throw pillows would make up the rest. “Works every time!” he says. “The colors are properly balanced and there is a shot of color (the 10 percent color) for interest.”

Tip #7. Go with the architecture.
If you have a small room in your house, don’t paint it white to make it seem bigger. Instead, cozy up to its architecture with a rich, warm color scheme. Let your big rooms expand with light, and your small rooms wrap you up and nurture you.

Tip #8. Follow your personal style.
If you decorate honestly, other people will appreciate it because it’s you, even if they’d never decorate their own house in the same way. That means if you want to make every room in your house red, white and blue, go for it. You can make any color look good as long as it’s your taste.

Source:  HGTV.com

Installing a Tile Backsplash In Your Kitchen

The Nunez family, with help from Steve Watson and the Don’t Sweat It crew, continue their kitchen makeover with the installation of cabinet door inserts. Below is a summary of steps, as well as a list of tools and materials used, as seen in this project.

Before

Materials and Tools:

tile backsplash
1 bag thinset
1 bag white grout
hammer
chisel
trowel
grout float
screw gun
mixing bit

Steps:

1. Using a flat scraper, remove the old backsplash tile.

2. Before starting, be sure that the old tile is adequately demoed and the surface is clean and clear of debris. You may want to use backer board to ensure a good clean surface.

3. First, begin by applying thinset adhesive to the wall. You don’t want to apply more than you can tile in five minutes. Use a 3/16″ square-notched trowel and comb the thinset at a 45-degree angle. This will set the proper thickness of the adhesive. Smooth over or knock down the thinset to get rid of the comb marks. Otherwise, you’ll see the comb marks through the glass tile. The trick is to do this without changing the depth of the thinset on the wall. Use spacers to make sure the tiles are set in a uniform pattern.

4. Once the tiles are installed, let the mastic set up overnight.

5. When the mastic has dried, mix some grout together to a peanut-butter consistency. Using a grout float, apply to the backsplash. Use the same 45-degree angle to work the grout into all the crevices. Allow at least four hours so the grout can cure.

6. Use a tile sponge to gradually remove the haze off the tiles until only the grout between the tiles remains. Then step back, and enjoy the look of your new backsplash.

Source:  HGTV.com

Paint Roller Tips and Techniques

Source:  Lowes.com

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