making home improvements? use these standard steps

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Making Home Improvements? Use These Standard Steps. Making repairs or improvements to your family home can be a scary undertaking if you don't have much experience in doing it. This article will take you through some of the more important things to consider and tips to make the whole process easier. Sit back and soak in some knowledge. If you have a major project in mind, consider hiring a professional designer to help you out. If you lack formal training in this area, the plans you create may be heavy on esthetics and light on functionality. Professionals are well qualified to create successful plans and to adhere to local building codes as well. Many tenants who are renting an apartment or home are in a pickle when landlords don't allow tenants to paint the walls in a different color or take off the wallpaper that doesn't suit their tastes. A great way to get around this is by purchasing flat bed sheets (the unfitted kind) and tacking them in a pleasing design on the wall. This will not harm the underlying wallpaper or paint and can add a touch of personality that won't displease the landlord. Windows and doors make a perfect home improvement project. You can add an indoor window box or change out your old patio doors for French doors. It is often possible to find good deals on these types of materials at the home improvement store. You won't have to spend a lot of money to make a dramatic change. To repair a larger hole in your walls, use sheet rock. First make the hole into a uniform square or rectangle by cutting away a measured area. Doing this will make the hole bigger, but will allow you to get exact dimensions for repair. Then cut a piece of sheet rock that is the same size as the square or rectangle you just cut from the wall. Place the newly cut piece of sheet rock in the hole and secure in place with drywall nails. Then apply joint compound to the seams. Cover the seams with joint tape, then apply another layer of joint compound and smooth it out. When dry, paint over it with any color. If you have popcorn on your ceiling, get rid of it. The popcorn ceiling look was very popular in the 60's and 70's but now it just looks dated. You can find solutions that will soften the texture allowing you to scrape it away. It's a simple change but it can really bring your house firmly into the new century. Remodel your closet by using closet organizer kits. These kits are designed to maximize usable space in your closet. A basic kit usually comes with a closet rod and enough components to give you multiple shelves that you can adjust. Additional components can be purchased to customize your closet even more. This is a great way to add storage space in your home without a major remodel. When it comes to home improvement, consider adding more fans to your house to help during the warm months. This is important because running fans will cost considerably less than air conditioning, and provide a cooling benefit as well. Remember also that a fan only provides cooling benefit when you are in the room, so turn it off if the room will not be occupied. A home improvement task does not have to be long and complicated. In fact often quick and easy jobs can improve things a drastic amount. Changing light bulbs, door knobs, or even replacing

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Page 1: Making Home Improvements? Use These Standard Steps

Making Home Improvements? Use These Standard Steps.

Making repairs or improvements to your family home can be a scary undertaking if you don't havemuch experience in doing it. This article will take you through some of the more important things toconsider and tips to make the whole process easier. Sit back and soak in some knowledge.

If you have a major project in mind, consider hiring a professional designer to help you out. If youlack formal training in this area, the plans you create may be heavy on esthetics and light onfunctionality. Professionals are well qualified to create successful plans and to adhere to localbuilding codes as well.

Many tenants who are renting an apartment or home are in a pickle when landlords don't allowtenants to paint the walls in a different color or take off the wallpaper that doesn't suit their tastes.A great way to get around this is by purchasing flat bed sheets (the unfitted kind) and tacking themin a pleasing design on the wall. This will not harm the underlying wallpaper or paint and can add atouch of personality that won't displease the landlord.

Windows and doors make a perfect home improvement project. You can add an indoor window boxor change out your old patio doors for French doors. It is often possible to find good deals on thesetypes of materials at the home improvement store. You won't have to spend a lot of money to make adramatic change.

To repair a larger hole in your walls, use sheet rock. First make the hole into a uniform square orrectangle by cutting away a measured area. Doing this will make the hole bigger, but will allow youto get exact dimensions for repair. Then cut a piece of sheet rock that is the same size as the squareor rectangle you just cut from the wall. Place the newly cut piece of sheet rock in the hole andsecure in place with drywall nails. Then apply joint compound to the seams. Cover the seams withjoint tape, then apply another layer of joint compound and smooth it out. When dry, paint over itwith any color.

If you have popcorn on your ceiling, get rid of it. The popcorn ceiling look was very popular in the60's and 70's but now it just looks dated. You can find solutions that will soften the texture allowingyou to scrape it away. It's a simple change but it can really bring your house firmly into the newcentury.

Remodel your closet by using closet organizer kits. These kits are designed to maximize usablespace in your closet. A basic kit usually comes with a closet rod and enough components to give youmultiple shelves that you can adjust. Additional components can be purchased to customize yourcloset even more. This is a great way to add storage space in your home without a major remodel.

When it comes to home improvement, consider adding more fans to your house to help during thewarm months. This is important because running fans will cost considerably less than airconditioning, and provide a cooling benefit as well. Remember also that a fan only provides coolingbenefit when you are in the room, so turn it off if the room will not be occupied.

A home improvement task does not have to be long and complicated. In fact often quick and easyjobs can improve things a drastic amount. Changing light bulbs, door knobs, or even replacing

Page 2: Making Home Improvements? Use These Standard Steps

furniture knobs can greatly improve the look of a room. These simple jobs will make homeimprovement easy and rewarding.

Excess blind vinyl wood flooring planks cords can be cut off or tied. Children and pets have bothbeen known to become tangled in these dangling cords, sometimes leading to strangulation. Makesure you have enough of a length so you can still effectively use the blinds, but you do not need avery long cord. Either tie it or cut it, or else an accident might occur in the future.

Increase your homes efficiency to improve your personal finance. A lot of the heat you pay for isescaping out of cracks in doorframes, windows, and through poor insulation. By investing in ways tomake your home more efficient, you can cut your bills down tremendously. LED Light bulbs areanother easy way to save extra money.

An average-sized home that is poorly insulated can lose as much as 25 percent of its heat during theautumn and winter months. While updating your attic with glass fiber insulation materials may seemlike a significant cost up front, you will quickly break even with the amount of money saved on yourmonthly heating bills.

Create space with cabinets. Building new cabinets in your home is a simple home improvementproject that has multiple uses. Not only are handmade cabinets useful space-makers, they can alsobe beautifully stained to match any home's decor. Adding your own unique viewpoint can give yourhome a personal touch without harming any value it may have.

Exterior lighting will give you peace of mind at night, and add beauty to your landscaping. Considermotion sensor lighting, as this will reduce the amount of energy used when the outdoors are notoccupied, and can also frighten away unwanted animals or even prowlers. Install the lights instrategic places, such as the exact area visible to you from a window, and the path from your vehicleto the front door.

Installing new shelves in a garage or other area can give one much more space to store whateverthey choose while also clearing space off the ground. This will open up the walking areas of the roomand also make things look more organized. Shelves can be used for home improvement needs.

There are many tutorials that can be found on any type of home improvement, probably more thanyou could possible imagine. Whether you find these tutorials online, in books, or from a friend, it is agreat help to review these before and during the home improvement process. If you do not have theknowledge you need, you could be stuck with not very functional work.

If one is looking for a way to improve their home as well as provide themselves with a supply of freshfood then building a small chicken coop may be the thing to do. Not only will it provide one with asupply of eggs but it can even bring in money if one sells the eggs.

Page 3: Making Home Improvements? Use These Standard Steps

Choose stains, paints, glues, and sealants which areproduced in a manner that won't release chemicalsinto your air when you use them. Look for low No-VOC items, but also try to find paints made with milkprotein, clay, earth pigments, or lime. Stains can bemade with linseed orhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laminate_flooring citrusoil.

Inspect your fencing regularly for holes and placeswhere it may have come loose in a storm. This is

particularly important if you have young children and pets. Remember that fencing works two ways.It works to keep your children and pets in your yard and it works to keep other people's children andpets out of your yard!

A home improvement project not only gives immediate benefits, but also benefits down the road,especially by increasing the value of your house. Don't be afraid to take initiative and renovate yourhouse. If you apply these simple tips, you might be making a very wise decision that could be reallybeneficial not only now, but also in the future.