home improvement guide 2013

My grandmother wasalways about springcleaning and that was amajor, major deal, whichmany years meant re-painting a room or wallpa-pering.

I remember how shemanaged to paper ceil-ings with homemadepaste and a broom. All therugs were aired outsideand beaten. Curtains were

taken down and washed.Spring cleaning was a bigdeal and a lot of work. Butremember, back thenhomes were heated withcoal, oil and/or wood.

Thank goodness to-day’s centrally heatedhomes don’t collect thatintensity of dirt, but stillsomehow the winter din-gies seem to creep inside.Spring instinctually

makes us want every-thing to look fresh andbright again. Here aresome suggestions foryour 2013 cleaning proc-ess.

Clear it out: Start bygetting rid of the thingsthat are needlessly fillingup your home.

» Recycle. Many peo-ple still prefer printnewss over the online ver-

sion. Gather up any news-papers and toss them inthe recycle center. Do-nate magazines to seniorliving centers, and someschools use them for artprojects.

» Sell. Having a ga-rage/yard sale or takingitems to consignmentshops is a great way to riditems in excellent condi-tion that you no longer

need. » Donate. Give to com-

munity organizationssuch as NeighborhoodHelp Centers, Home Safeor Good Will. Manychurches also have aclothes closet to help oth-ers. Many times you canreceive a receipt for yourtax purposes.

GUEST COLUMN

Spring cleaning a task that really matters

THERESA ALLAN

If vintage furniturecould speak, there is noknowing the stories itwould tell.

That’s something tokeep in mind as spring un-folds and the time is rightto rejuvenate the housewith a piece of aged or re-purposed furniture thatwill resonate quality andgive the home a new look,local experts say.

“Furniture from thepast has so much history,character, style and a sto-ry,” said Gina Gann, own-er of Junk 'N' The Trunk inGallatin, which offers vin-tage and repurposed fur-niture and décor in addi-tion to custom work. “Re-member that bed you

slept in, or that table youate on as a child in yourgrandparents’ house?”

Perhaps such a piecewas passed down throughgenerations of family butdoesn’t quite fit withwhat’s currently in thehome. That’s not a prob-lem but rather an opportu-nity for a creative project,which is exactly whatGann’s husband, Jeff,sees in an old bed. Theskilled carpenter took anold bed and transformedit into a bench with a dis-tressed look in one of thestore’s most popular col-ors: kiwi-kissed green.

“You can use it for ex-tra seating in your livingroom or at the entrance ofyour house to sit and putshoes on, and you canstore seasonal items un-

derneath it such as hats,gloves, scarves, shoes andthe dog’s leash,” GinaGann said.

In late March, CliftSlaughter bought thebench for his 10-year-olddaughter Molly, who sawthe piece and liked that ithad been repurposed.Molly plans to place thebench at the end of herbed.

“She’s trying to re-vamp her room, which hashad the same furnituresince she was 4 years old,so it’s time for a change,”Slaughter said.

‘From trash totreasure’

An old table still usablebut worn by time can findnew life with a little elbowgrease. Jeff Gann foundone such table in a barnand though it looked be-

Repurposed, restored pieces offerquality, character and stories

By Dessislava YankovaSumner County Publications

Gallatin historian Kenneth Thomson stands next to his 1835 Tennessee bench-made cherrywood sideboard. DESSISLAVA YANKOVA/SUMNER COUNTY PUBLICATIONS» NEW LOOK, 2C

Old furniture can give new look

» ALLAN, 4C

2013 SUMNER COUNTY

Home Improvement GuideAn exclusive publication of the Gallatin News Examiner and the Hendersonville Star News

The 2013 Spring Home Improvement Guide ispublished by The Tennessean and Sumner CountyPublications as a team effort involving the staffsof the Gallatin News Examiner, Hendersonville

Star News and Sumner A.M.

General Manager/Editor: MikeTowleEditors: Sarah Kingsbury,Alexander QuinonesReporters: Jennifer Easton,Tena Lee, Sherry Mitchell,

Dessislava Yankova, Josh Cross,Ken AtkinsonGuest columnists: TheresaAllan, Bob AryRetail ad manager: RobynWilliams

Advertising sales: David Ford,Jenn Peden, Christopher Ladd,Lindsey Patton, Emily Ander-son, David FordOffice manager: KimberlyBlount

2013 Spring Home Improvement Guide

Setting up a home en-tertainment center is seri-ous business. After thekitchen, families proba-bly spend most of theirtime in the living roomwatching TV. Maybeyou’re lucky enough tohave a spare room thatyou can convert into adedicated entertainmentroom.

Bruce Boling, fromHendersonville-basedThe Home Pros, whichspecializes in preventa-tive maintenance and ren-ovations, was recentlycreating a bonus room fora family in Cross Plains.He said whether your set-up will be large or small, ithelps to plan it out.

LCD versus plasma

The biggest cost willprobably be the TV. Truth

be told, gone are the daysof the “tube.” Modern TVsare sleek and thin. Theprices have also comedown in recent years.There are still a lot ofterms flying around thatmight not be clear.

The most populartypes of TVs are LCD andplasma sets. Briefly, LCDdisplays use liquid crys-tals made up of threesmaller color dots (red,green, blue) to create col-or at each point. Plasmasets use electricallycharged gas plasma cellsto display the image. Plas-ma TVs are usually moreexpensive than LCD TVs,but it’s not a simple case ofone is better than the oth-er because it’s more ex-pensive.

LCD TVs work betterin rooms with lots of light-ing and windows, whileplasma screens work bet-ter in dimly lit rooms.Plasma TVs do offer more

of a cinema feel becauseof their fluid motion andtrue-to-life colors.

Mounting the set,cables

The idea of hangingyour TV, which cost hun-dreds of dollars, maybethousands, on the wall canseem worrisome. Whilethe task may be daunting,the results will give you acleaner, more profession-

al look than just puttingthe set on a table.

The simplest solutionis to buy a mounting kit(and follow the direc-tions). You’ll want to findthe studs behind the walland anchor the bracketsto them.

As you add pieces toyour entertainment sys-tem, you’ll start noticingthat cables start addingup. Use cable ties to givethe setup a clean look, or aprofessional can help yourun wires behind the wallfor the cleanest look pos-sible.

Turn up the sound

For a truly immersiveexperience, you’ll want toadd a surround sound sys-tem.

“It does make a big dif-ference if you’re watch-ing a movie and you havethe sounds coming frombehind you, as opposed to

having it come from be-hind the TV set,” Bolingsaid. “It does give it thatmovie theater effect.”

If you want to avoidhaving cables running allaround you, there arewireless speaker sets youcan buy.

Cater to the kids

If you have children,an inclination might be toban video games from thehouse. Boling said, how-ever, a lot of parents arenow seeing the benefits ofsetting up an entertain-ment system that includesa gaming system.

“I’ve heard a couple ofpeople saying that theywould rather have theirkids playing, and theirneighbor’s kids playing, attheir house than wonderwhere their children are,”he said.

Boling recommendstalking with your children

about what they mightlike in an entertainmentcenter. Reach a compro-mise between what theywant and what you think isacceptable. Some gamingsystems like Wii evenhave games the wholefamily can enjoy.

Family fun

The cost of setting upan entertainment systemmay at times seem high —depending on what youget — but a good enter-tainment center will bringthe family together. Bol-ing, a family man himself,said he treasures mo-ments like watching amovie together with histwo daughters.

“For me personally,anything I can do to get achance to spend time(with my daughters), it’sprobably worth,” he said.

Contact Bruce Boling at 590-7991.

Set up full home entertainment center for family use

Bruce Boling stands in thebonus room he was settingup for his client. SUBMITTED

By Alexander QuinonesSumner County Publications

yond repair at the time, itis now a unique piece offurniture. Gann replacedthe top with an antiquewhite door creating a ta-ble that offers a wholenew dining experience.

“The only thing that’snew on it is the skirt andthe screws; that’s it,” hesaid. “Everything else isrepurposed. We take trashand make treasures.”

The table’s new topcould also be custom

styled and personalized.“It can be painted or

have glass put on the top,”Gina Gann said. “We sug-gest under the glass peo-ple put black and whitephotos of the family mem-bers who passed it on, orChristmas cards or post-cards of places you’vebeen. Keep those memo-ries alive and with you al-ways. There’s no tellinghow many people havegone through this door.”

A vintage furniturepiece, however, doesn’t

have to be repurposedwith the skills of a carpen-ter. With a few simple in-structions and materialssold at most hardwarestores, restoration can bea viable solution for anyenthusiast.

Gallatin historian Ken-neth Thomson Jr. has re-stored 95 percent of hisantique furniture. One ofhis favorite pieces is an1835 bench-made cherrywood sideboard custommade for his family inGallatin.

“You store your china,silver, linens and wine init,” Thomson said. “Theservants served the tablefrom the sideboard.”

Antique furniture,Thomson said, is usuallyof better quality thanmodern-day furniture,which in turns gives ahigher-quality look to ahome. Older furniture,particularly pre-1900spieces, were made out ofwood from trees 15 to 18feet in diameter growingin forests that were cut

down in the 1890s andearly 1900s.

“When you made asmall table or a chest, youmade it out of one board,”Thomson said. “Now, theytake four or five boards tomake one piece of furni-ture, which is not desir-able.”

Investing in vintagefurniture can be a good in-vestment, too. In Tennes-see, and Sumner Countyparticularly, cherry andwalnut trees were consid-ered the most valuable be-

cause of their colorful redand brown tones. Poplarwas also considered valu-able but was secondaryand mostly used for lin-ings of drawers and kitch-en furniture.

“If you compare theprices of new furniture tothe antique, you can findantique quality furniturefor a lesser price,” Thom-son said. “Also, while newfurniture depreciates, oldfurniture appreciates be-cause of its quality.”

Gallatin historian restores most of his antique Tennessee wooden furniture»NEW LOOK FROM 1C

2 SPRING HOME IMPROVEMENT GUIDE • April 12, 2013

April 12, 2013 • SPRING HOME IMPROVEMENT GUIDE 3

Inventory your sup-plies: Before you startcleaning, be sure you haveall the necessary suppliesonhand. The basics shouldinclude an all-purposepowder or liquid cleaner,an abrasive cleaner (to re-move heavy amounts ofsoil in small areas), a non-abrasive cleaner (for gen-tle cleaning on easily

scratched surfaces, in-cluding porcelain sinksand ceramic tile), chlo-rine bleach, glass cleaner,furniture-dusting prod-uct (such as spray and aclean cloth, or a microfib-er cloth, mitt or duster)and toilet bowl cleaner.

Check your supply ofvacuum cleaner bags andtrash bags. You may alsoneed to add cleaners spe-cific to your surfaces,

such as metal polishes andgranite cleaners.

Make a plan: Somepeople find it more effec-tive to clean one room at atime. Others prefer togroup tasks, such ascleaning all the windowsat once or leaving all thevacuuming until the end.

» Prioritize. If oneroom at a time is yourstyle, decide on the order.If time is limited first do

the rooms that need themost work.

» Consider the bigstuff. Do the curtainsneed to be laundered?What about comforters,blankets, bed skirts, slip-covers, shower curtains,draperies and area rugs?Once these items are re-moved, it’s easier to tack-le the rest of the space.

Recruit help: It’s notnecessary to do every-thing yourself.

» Enlist family mem-bers. You have to ask, anddon’t assume they are go-ing to volunteer. But as-sign tasks according toage and ability. Establisha Spring Cleaning Dayand make it fun.

» Invite friends. » Call in professionals,

if your budget allows.

Theresa Allan is family & consumersciences educator with the Univer-sity of Tennessee, Sumner CountyExtension. Contact her [email protected].

Don’t hesitate to enlist help for cleaning chores»ALLAN FROM 1C

Each spring I receivemore calls than ever frompeople interested in grow-ing vegetables in a homegarden. Homeownerswant to experience the joyof growing and eatingfresh vegetables theygrew themselves.

Vegetable gardensshould be placed in an

area that receives at leastsix hours of sunlight perday – eight or more hoursof sunlight is even better.A 1,000-square-foot gar-den can produce most ofthe vegetables for twopeople for one year.

For homeowners withlimited space, growingvegetables in raised bedsor in containers might bebest. Gardeners shouldplan ahead to be preparedfor planting desired vege-tables at the correct time.Different vegetables alsohave different space re-quirements, and enoughspace should be providedfor plants to achieve max-imum production.

Select varieties recom-mended for our area.Many people are growingheirloom varieties as well

as hybrid varieties. Gar-deners enjoy the flavor ofmany heirloom vegeta-bles, even though heir-loom varieties might nothave the disease resis-tance of hybrid varieties.Always purchase healthytransplants.

Tennessee’s long grow-ing season provides threeperiods for producing avariety of vegetables.Many cool-season cropssuch as salad greens, Irishpotatoes, broccoli, andseveral other vegetablesmay be planted in Febru-ary and March. Warm-season vegetables – in-cluding tomatoes, pep-pers, beans, and squash –may be planted when thedanger of frost is past.Warm-season vegetablesdo best when planted in

May and June.Vegetable gardeners

may continue productionwith additional plantingsin July, August and Sep-tember for a fall garden.A complete fertilizer,such as 6-12-12 or 10-10-10,is required for vegetablegardens for healthygrowth and developmentof plants. Gardenersshould have the soil testedto determine the amountof fertilizer and limeneeded before plantingbegins. UT Extension pro-vides the service for a feeof $10 per sample. Orga-nic fertilizers are alsoavailable.

Vegetable crops needone to one and one-halfinches of water per week.Gardeners should be pre-pared to water vegetables

as needed during extend-ed dry periods for plantsto remain healthy and pro-ductive. Watering withsoaker hoses works well.

Vegetables may needinsect, disease and weedcontrol. Weeds competewith vegetables for water,nutrients and sunlight. In-sects and diseases reducethe amount and the quali-ty of vegetables pro-duced.

Want more informa-tion? Everyone is invitedto attend a “From the Gar-den to the Table” programprovided by UT Exten-sion in Sumner County onApril 20. Call 452-1423 toregister.

Bob Ary is an extension agent at UTExtension, Sumner County.

GUEST COLUMN

Grow your own veggies at home with ease

BOB ARY


When it comes to se-vere weather, one of themost important things inbeing prepared is to knowabout a possible severeweather event before ithappens.

While the TennesseeEmergency ManagementAgency (TEMA) is on thelookout for severe weath-er events throughout theyear, spokesman DeanFlener said the agency be-gins talking about severeweather preparedness inFebruary.

“You can’t wait untilthe flood is in your yard toget ready for it,” Flenersaid.

The Federal Emergen-cy Management Agency(FEMA) suggests that

each household have a ba-sic emergency supply kitin their home in case of se-vere weather.

One important item tohave in order to be readyfor an emergency is a bat-tery-powered NationalOceanic Atmospheric Ad-

ministration (NOAA)weather radio in casepower goes out and youcannot access the radio ortelevision, Flener said.

“When you think aboutbeing prepared, the most

Tips to help storm-proofyour home year-roundBy Josh CrossSumner County Publications

» STORMS, 7C

FEMA BASIC EMERGENCY SUPPLY KIT» Water, one gallon ofwater per person per dayfor at least three days, fordrinking and sanitation» Food, at least a three-day supply of non-perish-able food» Battery-powered orhand crank radio and anNOAA Weather Radiowith tone alert and extrabatteries for both» Flashlight and extrabatteries

» First aid kit» Whistle to signal forhelp» Dust mask, to help filtercontaminated air andplastic sheeting and ducttape to shelter-in-place» Moist towelettes, gar-bage bags and plastic tiesfor personal sanitation» Wrench or pliers to turnoff utilities» Can opener for food » Local maps


important thing is to beable to access and haveaccess to information,” hesaid.

In addition to havingextra water and food sup-plies, Flener also suggestsmaking sure you haveenough medication to lastthree to five days as wellas extra cash or traveler’schecks in case local ATMsare down.

“One of the things wealso advise families to dois sit down and talk witheach other about what youneed to do in case of se-vere weather,” he said.“Talk about where youwould go in your house ifsomething were to hap-pen and you needed totake shelter.”

Severe weather eventscan also occur when afamily is separated or notat home. Flener suggestshaving a designated fam-ily friend or someone outof town that everyone cancheck in with and relaymessages between. It isgood to agree on a locationto meet in case you getseparated during a disas-ter.

TEMA also has a freesmartphone applicationcalled “ReadyTN” that isavailable for iPhone, iPadand Android devices. Thelocation-based app notonly can give users cur-rent weather information,road conditions and shel-ter locations, but it in-cludes a checklist to helpbuild your own disasterkit.

“(The app) is just an-other information pointfor people to use to havesituational informationabout the weather aroundthem, road conditions andalso to know what to do tobe ready for the next di-saster,” Flener said.

Additionalmeasures

For additional protec-tion in case of a tornado orsevere weather, a stormshelter or safe room pro-vides additional security.

Cindy Anderson, co-owner of Providence SafeRooms, said she has seenheightened interest insafe rooms in the pasttwo-and-a-half years that

the Old Hickory businesshas been open.

The solid steel enclo-sure is mounted to con-crete and can withstandan EF-5 tornado. While thesafe room can be placedanywhere in a house un-der construction, existinghomes can typically haveone added in the garage.

“Many people are stillnot aware that there is an-other option outside of go-

ing into a hole in the flooror going out into theweather to escape aweather event,” she said.“Therefore, you’re morelikely to use it instead ofwaiting until the last min-ute.”

The most commonlysold safe room sizes are 4feet by 6 feet, which canhold four to six people,and 4 feet by 8 feet, whichcan hold six to eight peo-ple. Anderson said thesafe room is wheelchairand walker accessible,with no steps or laddersinvolved for entry/exit.

Homeowners shouldalso inspect trees on theirproperty . When torna-does ripped through Sum-ner County on Jan. 30, JeffHerder, owner of HerderTree Service, said he gothis first call at 3:30 a.m.and the phone continuedringing all day.

The best pre-emptivemeasure a homeownercan take when it comes totrees, Herder said, is tohave them pruned insteadof topped, which is not

healthy for the tree.“A tree is not danger-

ous because of the height;it’s dangerous because itgets so full of foliage andeverything that it cancatch wind,” he said. “It’slike a kite; if you punch abunch of holes in it, it’s notgoing to fly.”

Herder also said thateven if a tree is not closeto your house it can stillcause damage.

“I’ve seen them spearinto roofs from a farawaytree ,” he said.

While having a treepruned does not guaran-tee it from falling, Herdersaid he wishes more peo-ple would take steps tohelp their chances of nothaving a tree fall in se-vere weather.

“Anything can happen,of course, but on the otherside of it you’re still goingto get a much better ap-pearance, better yardgrowth from letting moresunlight in and you’re notgoing to be picking sticksup every weekend,” hesaid.

Familyplanning isa must»STORMS FROM 6C

Home owners are increasingly turning to storm sheltersand safe rooms for their homes. Pictured is one byProvidence Safe Rooms installed in a home being built.SUBMITTED


Thinking about puttingthat tax refund checkback into your home? Lo-cal interior design andhome improvement ex-perts say a little extramoney might go furtherthan you think when itcomes to updating an old-er home.

“Of course a fresh coatof paint can go a longway,” said Natalie Bur-dette, who has owned herMs. Fixit home repairbusiness since 2011.

Burdette says thereare several things a homeowner can do both insideand out to update or fresh-en the look of an olderhome without turning itinto an expensive remod-eling project.

For example, one canreplace carpeting in aroom or two relatively in-

expensively. Wall paper isalso making a comeback,she said.

In newer homes, manyof the amenities are uphigher, according to Bur-dette. As a way of updat-ing, a lot of people are re-placing things such asvanities and even toiletswith higher or taller fix-tures. Burdette said onecan replace a toilet, for ex-ample, for around $175.

Even changing theknobs on cabinets, a rela-tively inexpensive en-deavor, can help changethe look of a room, shesays. So, too, can updatinglight fixtures throughoutthe home.

If your older home hasthe recessed lights oncepopular 20 years ago, Ka-ren Snyder, an interior de-sign consultant and ownerof Metal and Petals inHendersonville, suggestsremoving the lights and

covering the holes withceiling medallions readilyavailable at a home im-provement store such asLowe’s. Snyder wouldthen paint the medallionswith a base color thatmatches the room.

Snyder also suggestspainting the ceiling of aroom in a shade lighterthan the walls to freshen it

up.For those thinking

about a color make-overin general, Snyder saysmany are painting the in-terior of their homes withsome variation of gold.Her favorite is Blonde bySherwin Williams, a warmversatile color.

Snyder also suggests atrick for creating the illu-

sion of expensive crownmolding. Install two-inchmolding, leave a gap ofseveral inches, and theninstall a smaller sizemolding. Paint the wholearea one color and it lookslike one thick area ofmolding, she said.

Furniture can be up-dated with a fresh coat ofpaint as well. Snydershowcases several an-tique pieces in her storethat have been paintedwith one of the latestcrazes in home decorat-ing -- Annie Sloan chalkpaint. While the paint it-self might seem pricey, alittle bit goes a long way.And when you subtractthe headaches of strip-ping and sanding once as-sociated with such an en-deavor, it turns out to be atrendy and even economi-cal way to update tired,older pieces.

Painting isn’t the only

way furniture can betransformed, she notes.She also suggests turningolder dressers into, say, avanity by placing a vesselsink in it. Or turning adoor into a table. She haseven taken a dresser andturned it into a bench.

Burdette, who has beenin the home constructionbusiness for over 20years, adds that severalthings can be done outsideof the home as well to up-date and freshen up anolder home.

From sealing or pres-sure washing a drivewayto adding fresh mulch andtrimming up trees andbushes, Burdette sug-gests several projectsthat might take a littletime and energy, butprove to be fruitful whenupdating one’s home on atight budget.

When updating, a little money can go a long wayBy Tena LeeSumner County Publications

Karen Snyder of Metal and Petals in Hendersonvilleshowcases an antique piece she painted with Annie Sloanchalk paint. TENA LEE/SUMNER COUNTY PUBLICATIONS


Every year hundredsof Sumner County homesare burglarized, but po-lice say there are simplechanges many residentscan make to avoid becom-ing the next victim.

Gallatin Police Depart-ment Officer Bill Stor-ment recommends start-ing a security assessmentwith the outside of thehome: look for trees,bushes or any type of ob-ject or landscapingaround windows or doorsthat would offer cover fora would-be burglar. Whenplanting shrubs, keep inmind how high they willgrow and either keepthem trimmed or go withsomething smaller.

“Someone that wants tobreak into your house canhide behind bushes andwait for it to be clear to

break a window and getin,” he said.

Lighting is also impor-tant. Make sure the pe-rimeter of the home is ad-equately lit. Henderson-ville Police DepartmentDetective Sgt. JimVaughn recommends mo-tion lights as a theft deter-rent.

“If someone is prow-ling around outside yourhouse and a light comeson, typically they’ll runaway,” Vaughn said.

Make sure windowsdon’t easily display valu-able items like televi-sions, jewelry or comput-ers that might lure crimi-nals. Take a walk aroundthe outside of the house toget an idea of what can beviewed from the outsidelooking in.

Home security doesn’thave to be expensive –sometimes the best way toprevent burglary is also

one of the easiest.“I would think today

most people could locktheir front door, but be-lieve it or not some peoplestill don’t,” Storment said.

Vacation

If no one will be homefor an extended period oftime, consider setting

lights to a timer to give theappearance that there arepeople inside. And beforevacation, don’t forget tohave a neighbor pick upthe mail, or have the postoffice hold it until your re-turn. Close drapes andblinds before leaving, es-pecially in rooms with ex-tensive electronics.

Be mindful of socialmedia posts. Unless youraccount is set to private,your message to friendsand family about youramazing beach getawaycan also be an easy wayfor thieves to target anempty home.

For longer bouts of va-cancy, such as the time ittakes for an estate to besettled after the death of ahomeowner, don’t cut offutilities.

Keep the lights on, pre-vent mail from piling up,trim back landscaping,and make sure the lawn

doesn’t become over-grown.

“Anything that givesan appearance that some-one’s not there is an invita-tion for someone to vic-timize that house,” Stor-ment said.

If you’re considering ahome security system,consider your budgetfirst. Not every alarm hasto be capable of summon-ing police to be effective.

“Sometimes a betteroption is getting an alarmwith an outdoor bell oralarm on it that makes alot of noise and scares thethief off,” Storment said.

Vaughn, who calledhimself a “firm believerin cameras and burglaralarm systems,” agreedthat at a minimum suchequipment should be ableto make a “very loud audi-ble” noise when activated.

“In other words, youneed something that,

when it sounds off, italerts the neighbors andanyone inside the house,”he said.

There were 806 bur-glaries reported by lawenforcement agencies inSumner County to theTennessee Bureau of In-vestigation in 2011, ac-cording to the most recentdata from the state’s Sta-tistical Analysis Center.(Those numbers includecities that straddle twocounties.)

Not included in thatcategory are thefts fromhomes of outdoor proper-ty such as lawnmowers,trailers or bicycles. Avoidleaving these items in theyard or unlocked in plainview, Storment warns.

“If somebody losestheir lawnmower, it’s not aburglary, it’s a larceny,but that’s as big a problemas burglary sometimes,”he said.

Police offer inexpensive ways to improve securityBy Sarah KingsburySumner County Publications

Police recommend a homesecurity system that makesa noise loud enough forneighbors to hear. NEWSUSA PHOTO


For adults, an outdoorpool is a nice getawayfrom the daily grind, andfor the kids it’s prettymuch non-stop summerfun. Whether looking tobuild or update an exist-ing pool, homeownershave several options.

“We do new construc-tion on custom gunite andvinyl liner pools, bothcommercial and residen-tial,” Brian Belser, ownerof CastleRock Pools inHendersonville, said. “Wealso do renovations on ex-isting pools, vinyl liner re-placements and poolopenings.”

Residents wanting tohit the water soon need toallow several weeks forinstallation, Belser said.

“The average length oftime for a new pool instal-

lation is usually four to sixweeks for a vinyl linerpool and six to eightweeks for a gunite pool,”Belser said.

Standard pool sizes are14 feet by 28 feet, 16 feetby 32 feet, 18 feet by 36feet, and 20 feet by 40 feet,Belser said.

“The sizes and shapescan be customized to eachhomeowner’s individualtaste and preference,”Belser said. “We offer 3-Ddesigns so that you cansee your pool in real timebefore we even breakground for construction.”

Today’s backyard poolsaren’t just rectangular-shaped water holes.Homeowners are wantingall kinds of extras, Belsersaid.

“Some of the more pop-ular trends in swimmingpools right now are tan-ning shelves – an area in-

side the perimeter of thepool that allows you toplace a lawn chair in thepool and only be sitting inabout 4 inches of water,”Belser said. “Other thingsthat are popular now arebenches, water featuressuch as sheer descents ordeck jets, salt systems,and LED colored light-ing.”

Benefits of owning a

swimming pool are the ex-ercise venue that it pro-vides and the tranquilityof having your own per-sonal backyard escape.Plus, it’s less expensivethan other activities, Bel-ser said.

“Being in the sameprice range as a boat orRV, there is no expense ofhaving to buy gasoline ev-ery time you use it,” Bel-

ser said.Each new pool comes

with a salt chlorinationsystem, a cartridge filterand a robotic automaticcleaner for vacuumingand cleaning.

“We also have automa-tion systems which allowyou to control anything onyour pool from yourphone or iPad,” Belsersaid.

CastleRock offersplans for weekly cleaningand maintenance. Theyalso install outdoor kitch-ens, fireplaces and livingareas.

Plants and colorfulflowers can also add an in-viting appeal to an out-door pool space.

“A lot of people do con-tainers of flowers or liveplants,” said HartleyScott, landscape architectwith Long Hollow Gar-dens and Nursery in Gal-

latin. “We do lots of cus-tom containers with a lotof sun-loving plants andflowers, even some tropi-cal plants. The key is agood potting soil and fer-tilizer and making yourdifferent plants matchwith sun and water re-quirements.”

Scott said the mainthing customers ask for inan outdoor pool is privacy.

“We do a lot of Japa-nese cedars and theGreen Giant Arborvitae,which are pretty neatplants and grow up to 5feet tall,” Scott said.

For more information, visit Castle-Rock at 242 W. Main St., Ste. 304 inHendersonville, call 615-983-0790,or visit www.castlerockpool.com.Visit Long Hollow Gardens at 2064Long Hollow Pike, call 452-2666, orlonghollowgardens.com.

Backyard pools offer cooling summer entertainmentBy Sherry MitchellSumner County Publications

Gunite pools like this one installed by CastleRock Pools area popular choice, adding ambiance and serenity to anybackyard space. SUBMITTED


Thinking of getting ridof your drab old carpet?Why not a fresh new lookfor your living space?

With many new floor-ing options on the markettoday, brothers Mark andScott Cain have severalproducts to match cus-tomer needs as well assome words of wisdom fordo-it-yourselfers.

“Were selling a lot ofthe hardwood productswith the distressed lookright now,” said MarkCain, who along with hisbrother, Scott , owns Car-pet Sales and Service Inc.in Goodlettsville.

“The disadvantage ofhardwood is if you slide apiece of furniture acrossit, you’re gonna scratch it.Distressed hardwood is

gonna camouflage wearand tear better. I’ve gotthis in my house.” MarkCain said.

Mark Cain said one op-tion for people with petsor floors in high-trafficareas of your home is lam-inate flooring, which re-tains the look of hardwoodwhile offering more dura-bility.

“I sell laminate to peo-ple who have animals be-cause this won’t scratch,”Mark Cain said. “If you’vegot a 100-pound lab run-ning around on this stuff,it’s not gonna bother it.Now a real wood floor, it’sgoing to ruin it.”

Scott said he once hadhardwood in his home buthas since made the switchto laminate to accommo-date his animals.

“Big dogs are gonnascratch a wood floor,”

Scott Cain said. “I have aboxer and a Jack Russell.”

Scott and Mark bothsaid the installation proc-ess was a lot less time con-suming with laminatethan with hardwood. They

also had some cautionarywords for customers whodecide to do it themselves.

Scott said starting aproject is easy. But finish-ing the project, he said,might be a bit tougher

than customers think.“Once they start it, it’s

easy,” Scott said, “butonce they get to a backwall or a hallway or a door-jamb, they tend to notknow what to do. And a lotof times they’ll end up cut-ting around the door-jambs and calking it,which is a no-no.

“When you do thatyou’re pinning a laminatefloor that’s supposed tofloat down. Then it has noroom to expand. Andwhen that happens yourfloor will buckle. So youhave to leave space for itto actually expand andcontract.”

Mark also had some ad-vice for anyone starting anew flooring project intheir home.

“If you’ve got halfwaydecent skills, you can laymost of the products we

sell,” Mark said. “ Ifyou’re halfway decentwith a knife or a saw, thenyou might do alright.”

Mark said one benefitof having your floor pro-fessionally installed isthat most self-installersdon’t have the right tools.

“When you’re in the in-dustry you’re constantlybeing shown new tools,”Mark said. “If you wwnt todo it yourself, you mightnot have half the tools youneed.”

Scott said one otherbenefit of having it in-stalled verses doing italone is the warranty.

“We’re not going to doanything that’s gonna voidyour warranty,” ScottCain said. “If you install itand you have an issue,then the company won’twarranty the material.”

Replacing carpet with hardwoods easier than it soundsBy Ken AtkinsonFor Sumner County Publications

Mark Cain demonstrates how easily laminate pieces snaptogether. KEN ATKINSON/FOR SUMNER COUNTY PUBLICATIONS


home improvement guide 2013

Documents

spring cleaning

years old

repurposed furniture

spring unfolds

trash totreasurean old

new look

table youate

anold bed