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9-11-14 Edition

Smart, Safe & Sound

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Table of Contents

Thursday, September 11, 2014 HOMESTYLE 365 Recorder Community Newspapers

3BE AN EXTERIOR EXPERTDecks, gutters, driveways, oh my! Stay on top of outdoor upkeep

6DUSTING FOR DOLLARSRegular cleaning can prolong an appliance'slife and prevent repairs

8UPGRADE YOUR TOOLBOXGet serious about home improvement – graduate to grown-up tools

12SMART, SAFE & SOUNDNew security system options abound.Choose the right one

14CLEVER CLIMATE CONTROLKeep away the drafts and hot spots with these temperature tips

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J&S DESIGNER FLOORING...................................................512 Mt. Kemble AvenueMorristown, NJ 07960973-605-5225 • www.jsdesignerflooring.com

MEDITERRANEAN TILE & MARBLE....................................107 Olcott SquareBernardsville, NJ908-953-9990 • www.medtile.com

MONK’S HOME IMPROVEMENTS..........................................41095 Mt. Kemble AvenueMorristown, NJ 07960973-635-7900 • www.monkshomeimprovements.com

PERMANENT PAINTING.................................................... ....11113 Morristown RoadBernardsville, NJ 07924908-766-0099 • www.permanentpaintingnj.com

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INDEX of Advertisers

{ HOME MAINTENANCE GUIDE } -- H O M E S T Y L E 2 0 1 4

Recorder Community Newspapers HOMESTYLE 365 Thursday, September 11, 2014

The outside of your home needs as much attention as the components inside. Here’s a rundown of the most important exterior elements to maintain

Be an Exterior ExpertBY DAN RAFTERCTW Features

More people will see the outside of a home than will ever see the interior. Beyond pure vanity,

though, maintaining a beautiful home exterior will keep the structure sound and ensure a healthy resale value.

It’s puzzling, then, how it can be so easy to neglect the home exterior. One culprit could be a lack of atten-tion, says Sabine Schoenberg, founder of Greenwich, Ct.-based home improvement site SabinesHome.com.

“You don’t catch whether your driveways or gutters are in bad shape because you go into ‘auto mode’ when you come home for the day,” Schoenberg says. “You come home so often, that you don’t pay attention to what’s around you.”

Fortunately, there is an easy way to solve this: Every month or every quarter, view your home as if you’re a first-time visitor.

“Every so often you should go around and perform your own visual home inspection,” Schoenberg says. “I know we are all busy, but if you look

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ters but then forget to unscrew their downspouts and clean out any clogs in them. A clogged downspout can also result in large pools of water around the edge of a home.

Underground drain linesSchoenberg says that 99 percent of homeowners forget to check their underground drain lines. This could be a costly mistake. In older underground systems, especially those made of clay material, tree roots can clog pipes enough so that they are only working at 20- to 30-percent effectiveness.

“That works during most rain events. But if you get a real heavy rain, your whole drainage system might back up into your basement,” Schoenberg says.

Homeowners should hire

at your home like a visitor would, you’re more likely to find the cracks in the foundation, the cracks around the windows and the stains in the driveway.”

Here, home maintenance experts give tips on how to stay on top of exterior issues:

DrivewaysLynda Lyday, a contractor, carpenter and home-improvement author who splits her time between New York and St. Petersburg, Fla., says that driveways are often one of the most neglected areas of a home. That’s because they are outside in the heat or cold 24/7.

“I’m a big believer in the pressure washer,” Lyday says. “That’s especially true for the concrete driveway.”

Lyday recommends that home-owners should pressure-wash their driveways every few months to wash away oil stains and other unsightly messes. It’s equally impor-tant for homeowners to apply new sealer to their blacktop driveways every two years to keep cracks from forming.

GuttersIt’s important for homeowners to clean their gutters at least once every season. Stopped gutters can cause water to puddle along the edges of a home. It can be costly if that water leaks into a residence’s basement.

Lyday says not to forget the down-spouts. Many owners clean their gut-

Clogged gutters aren't just an aesthetic problem. If water puddles near the home, it could lead to costly water damage.

To fully enjoy an outdoor wood deck, homeowners should seal the wood every few years and power-wash it when the seasons change.



plumbing experts with drain cameras to look for blockages every few years, she says. Owners with older drainage systems should do this every year.

DecksWood decks suffer when they are exposed to either too much sunlight or too much shade. Schoenberg recom-mends that homeowners seal their wood decks every few years to pre-serve the material and make it last lon-ger.

WindowsIt’s easy for windows that face north to become overgrown with mold and mildew. That’s why Lyday recommends that homeowners every season use a push broom and garden hose to scrub around the base of their windows. This should remove any vegetation or mil-dew that builds up around them.

For Lyday, taking care of a home’s exterior mostly requires common

sense. She believes, for instance, in the power of binoculars.

“Say you need to check on your gutters,” Lyday says. “Get a pair of bin-oculars and look up into those gut-ters. See what is inside them. You might be surprised at what you find. Exterior maintenance is often about this kind of common-sense approach. You need to keep up with it to pre-vent it from becoming a bigger job.”

© CTW Features

“Exterior maintenance is about a common-sense approach. You need to keep up with it to prevent it from becoming a bigger job.”— Lynda Lyday, contractor, carpenter and home-improvement author


NO SPOT!NOT ON THE NEW RUG!

So your doghad an accident or your kidsspilled juice or dinner guests

spilled wine on your rug and nowyou’re in panic mode. But no needto worry, most stains are treatable ifaddressed quickly!

First thing with any liquid stain is toblot it up with a damp paper towelas quickly as possible. Remember toblot not to rub it in (rubbing will ex-acerbate the problem by pushingthe stain further into the carpetfibers).

There are home remedies and oldwives’ tales to get stains out of yourcarpet yourself but it is usually pre-ferred you call J&S (973-605-5225),your local care specialist with thestain type, carpet fiber (silk, wool,

or synthetic) if there’s time. Otherwise try some of these tips:

1. For solids, scoop them up with aspoon or the back of a knife

2. Do not over wet the area, use adry paper towel to blot dry thearea once the liquid is picked up

3. Always blot, never rub4. Always use white towels, any

colored towel could just add dyeto the problem

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BY ALYSSA KARASCTW Features

If regular clean-ing tasks sound tedious to you, imagine a home

appliance giving out while your in-laws are visiting.

“The hot water heater will usu-ally expire when you need it the most, during the holiday season when every-body’s using it,” says Glenn Haege, host of the popular radio program “The Handyman Show with Glenn Haege” in Michigan.

Regular cleaning habits will keep your home running as smoothly as a well-oiled machine

With some regular upkeep, many of these disruptions can be avoided. “Preventative maintenance is always less expensive … than when some-thing breaks down,” Haege says. “It usually breaks down when it’s a stress period, like extreme weather.”

Here are some items that need reg-ular cleaning, plus a few of the unex-pected materials (Tang and food col-oring?) you can use to make them shine.

Dryer VentsCleaning out the dryer vent is impor-tant for the machine, but it’s also a necessary safety precaution. Lint can build up and clog the dryer vent, which can cause fires. “That’s one of the largest reasons for insurance claims in the United States,” says Char-lie Schloegel, general manager at Schloegel Property Solutions, Kansas City, Mo.

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H O M E S T Y L E 2 0 1 4{ HOME MAINTENANCE GUIDE } -- H O M E S T Y L E 2 0 1 4


sweep the line from the back of the dryer to the exterior, and then run a vacuum hose to pull out additional lint, Schloegel says.

DishwashersIf dishes are coming out of the dish-water streaked or filmy, it’s time for a deep cleaning.

The product for the job is surpris-ing: Tang orange drink mix.

The citric acid breaks down excess deposits in the dishwasher, Haege says. Dump the entire jar of dry mix into the dishwasher and run it. Do this two to four times a year, he says, depending on whether or not you have a water softener.

Drains“Obviously people should be careful [of] what goes down their pipes so that you’re not putting excessive food or grease down there,” says Julia Strze-sieski, marketing coordinator at Cole Hardware, based in San Francisco.

In addition, maintain the diameter of the drains, where things like hair and soap can build up. Drain openers can be too harsh for this job, so pour one cup of a solution containing bac-teria and enzymes down the drain once a month, Haege says, to keep drain walls clean.

Driveways and Walkways If you live in a cold climate, melted snow can seep into cracks in drive-ways and sidewalks. If it refreez-es, it can break up concrete even more.

Maintenance doesn’t end with winter weather. “Hose down

your driveway and those flatwork areas to get the salt out of them so they don’t continue to break up over the summer,” Schloegel says.

Toilets Here’s a fun one. Take leftover food coloring from baking or cooking proj-ects, Haege says. “Pour it in the back of the toilet and wait three hours.”

Then, if the color leaks from the tank into the toilet bowl, it’s time to replace the flapper ball. Maintaining this will save households a few dol-lars every month.

Refrigerators “One of the biggest culprits of failure on a refrigerator is a condenser motor,” Haege says. At least twice a year, clean the dust off of the condens-er coil, which is located underneath or on the back of the refrigerator, depending on the model. Don’t forget to disconnect the power first.

Locks In the wintertime, use a dry lubricant on car and garage door locks. This will keep moisture away and allow locks to move freely, Haege says. This is par-ticularly useful for garage doors. “The hinges of the door need lubricity in the wintertime, or it puts a strain on the motor.”

© CTW Features

Keep grease and food out of the drain as much as possible. Regular drain cleaning can prevent expensive plumbing costs down the road.



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No room for specialty tools? These multi-pur-pose tools have uses that you never imaginedMost homeowners don’t have the space for a huge assortment of tools. Save space and get more out of your toolbox with these mul-tipurpose objects you proba-bly already have laying around.

and pliers are the trifecta of multipurpose toolbox basics. A screwdriver turns into a putty scraper or mini pry bar. Both a hammer and

pliers pull out nails, while the latter keeps them in place.

more than just touch-ups. Sweep up debris around your workspace and use the end to poke through small spaces.

your toolbox is a pencil. Small markings (easily erased) can be the difference between hanging a shelf cor-rectly or doing it twice. Use it as a general tool to scoop, scrape and prod.

duct tape’s uses. Patch up

holes, reinforce binding and make a number of temporary repairs.

be a lifesaver. Lay out pieces of string to outline your proj-ect or measure objects that don’t neatly fit around a ruler. Bring out the rope for planks of wood and larger materials.

perform dozens of other actions with a real “multi-tool” like a Swiss Army knife.

— Julia Haskins

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Our family-owned and operated businesshas been operating in Fairfield for overtwenty years, and now as unbelievable as

it seems to all of us, Mediterranean Tile & Marblehas been in Bernardsville for seven years! Thanksto the patronage and loyalty of the people in theGreater Bernardsville community, we have experi-enced continued growth through what was avery difficult economic time!

Last year we began a major revamping of ourshowroom displays. Floor tile pads, full wall vignettes, and window vignettes have all been redone to display the most cutting edge new materials in the industry. If you haven’t driven by our beautiful storefront lately, you really needto check out the magnificent “Estrella” silver,black, & grey glass leaf mosaic! The new“Granada Smoke” waterjet cut stone & glass vignette is also quite remarkable. The uniquecheckerboard floor pad of pure white Thassos & Italian Carrara marble looks phenomenal.

Two new lines of bathroom furniture working inconjunction with the new vignettes help you tovisualize what the transformation of your spacewill look like before you even begin construction.Stop in our Bernardsville location and receive acomplimentary design service with Anna or Liz,our fantastic design sales team who are alwaysready to help. Both are true professionals, edu-cated and experienced designers with a back-ground in interior design. If you want to see realprojects done by our designers for real people,check out the new Medtile.com Gallery, and youwill see examples of what we can do for you!Now is a great time to begin that project that youhave been thinking about, but haven’t acted on.

After seven years, we look forward to a bright and exciting future in Bernardsville. The Mediter-ranean team, as always, promises to offer you thebest design service, the best materials, and thebest customer service. Thank you for your busi-ness in the past and we look forward to being of service to you for many years to come!

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See the LightWhether the power goes out in a storm or a project calls for investigat-ing a hard-to-see corner, a good flash-light is crucial. Especially in the event of an emergency, you don’t want to find yourself without a reliable light source.

Reliability is one reason that tool experts say you shouldn’t skimp on a cheap flashlight.

CTW Features

Pry It Open Got a stubborn door that won’t stay shut or open wide enough? A good pry bar should do the trick. Its skinny flat blade gets into the toughest spots around the home.

“You always have a door sticking where you have to pry something off,” Ruffman says. The same goes for tricky cabinets and drawers. A pry bar also does double-duty by remov-ing nails from objects.

Home improvement blogger Mag Ruffman knows that many people fear power tools.

But as an expert well versed in all things home improvement and renovation, she encourages everyone to give power tools a shot.

An electric drill gets the job done faster, and it also can be used for more than one purpose. Shut off the power and it becomes a manual screwdriver. Add a paddle attachment, and mixing paint becomes a breeze.

Neither will break the bank for most DIYers.

Ruffman especially likes cordless tools for the freedom that they allow users. “You’re not tethered to a workbench,” she says. — Julia Haskins

Power to the People

– H OME S T OYL 2 0 1 Y4 Y[ HOME MAINTENANCE GUIDE ]{ HOME MAINTENANCE GUIDE } -- H O M E S T Y L E 2 0 1 4


BY ERIN CHAN DINGCTW Features

A burglar damages a door. A thief steals a television in a neighboring house.

Often, it’s only after an unfortunate event that homeowners decide something must be done.

With the wide array of home secu-rity options nowadays and more advanced technology than ever, the choice can be overwhelming.

“I think that everyone, somewhere inside, knows that they need some matter of home security,” says Zac Sutton, the director of marketing for iSmartAlarm, which began shipping its systems last summer.

The tricky part may be how to choose between what’s available. Here are three major options, and who may be the best fit for each.

Choosing the right home security system is an important but daunting task. New options sprout up every month, but which type of protection system will be best for you?

Established CompaniesHomeowners who want a compre-hensive and customized security plan may want to invest in a system from an established alarm company.

Local companies, as well as home security giants like ADT and Brinks, usually send representatives who give homeowners detailed options based on house layout and lifestyle. For families with kids, that could mean a camera by the door that will allow parents at work to check that their children came home safely.

“People are looking for systems that are not intrusive to their lifestyle or to the aesthetics of the home,” says Marshall Marinace, the owner of Marshall Alarm Systems in Yorktown Heights, N.Y., and the incoming presi-

Smart, Safe &

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Stay Safe No toolbox would be complete without the right safety products. Protect your eyes with high-quality goggles, your ears with earplugs, your hands with thick but pliant gloves and your nose and mouth with a mask, depend-ing on the project.

Think ahead for which safety supplies you’ll need in a bind – electrical tape, for example. “Very often you see a live wire you don’t know what to do with. The best thing to do is take the electrical tape to cover it up,” says Sindi Landman, Shapot’s partner at The Think Tank.

Have a little one at home? Keep chemicals, blades and pointed edges tucked away with child-safe locks, and always have a first-aid kit nearby.

{Odds and EndsDon’t forget to stock your toolkit with the vital bits and pieces to com-plete your projects. Always keep enough fasteners, nails, screws and bolts on hand, and place them all in separate compartments to keep them neat.

Shapot calls Elmer’s Glue an indispensible tool, but your project might call for rubber cement, which is perfect for paper, or heavy-duty super glue that can bind materials like metal and wood.

{



dent of the Electronic Security Association. “Being able to remotely arm and disarm is the most popular.”

Lewis Long, vice president of mar-keting communications for ADT, says roughly one out of every two sys-tems the company sells has a home automation feature that allows for remote access.

A major advantage of going with an alarm company, he added, is the call monitoring centers that can ring police or fire departments.

“We have professionals in our call centers who are used to dealing with people in distress,” Long says. “We have experience in calmly walking customers through how to protect and save their families.”

On the other hand, there are monthly fees. For ADT, they start at about $48 monthly for a home auto-mation system.

“We’re not the cheapest guy in town,” Long says, though he added that ADT representatives will work with customers’ budgets because “they would like to see someone have some type of protection rather than not see anything.”

GOOD FOR: People wanting home customization and constant monitor-ing that connects to police and fire.

Home Security BundlesIf you already have a company manag-ing your Internet and cable services, it

may make sense to add home security to the palette. It could prompt signifi-cant cost savings.

Xfinity Home from Comcast, for instance, offers its Chicago-area cus-tomers packages that include cable, Internet access and a home security system with a touch screen control-ler, three door or window sensors, one motion sensor and a wireless keypad for $99 a month (with a three-year contract).

In comparison, just a television and Internet bundle from Xfinity in the same area would also cost $99 a month.

Users can mix and match their remote-access building packages that include controlling the alarm system while away from home, turning on and off thermostats, lights and small appliances like irons.

Marinace, of the Electronic Security Association, says bundles “sound attractive,” but cautions peo-ple to make sure they’re confident that customer service is adequately suited to their alarm systems. Costs and availability of security systems also depend on where you live.

GOOD FOR: People who want more of their home services on one bill and the ability to control several devices remotely.

DIY SystemsThe rise in remote access technology

has prompted new do-it-yourself alarm systems to stream into the secu-rity market. They can be controlled via mobile app after installation.

For instance, Silicon Valley-based iSmartAlarm offers a $199 “preferred package,” which includes a CubeOne (the system’s brains), two door or win-dow sensors, a motion detector and two remote tags that allow for tracking of kids and pets. The “premium pack-age,” which includes a surveillance camera, costs $349.

There are no monthly monitoring fees.

This kind of do-it-yourself, remote-access system is suited for “anyone and everyone who is put off by the long-term contracts and monthly fees charged by the kind of ‘old guard’ home secu-rity systems,” says Sutton, the marketing

director for iSmartAlarm.The trade-off for the attractive pric-

ing is the lack of a call-monitoring center. If there’s an intrusion, a high-decibel alarm will sound, but it’s up to homeowners or neighbors to call police and fire departments for help.

GOOD FOR: People who do not want to pay monthly fees. People who want to move their alarm sys-tems with ease.

© CTW Features

An established security company with full-service plans and systems can send a representative to your home to give a detailed picture of your options.

DIY systems like iSmartAlarm (above) are a better choice for tech-savvy buyers who want more flexibility.

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BY ERIK J. MARTINCTW Features

Running your HVAC system regularly during the cold and hot months of the year can be expensive but often

necessary to achieve comfortable temperatures indoors. However, cranking up the thermostat doesn’t always result in a just-right tempera-ture. Your house may suffer from drafty spots and thermal inefficiencies that are not only uncomfortable but can lead to high utility bills.

Luckily, these issues are simple and

Climate Control

These temperature-control tricks can help keep your HVAC system in tip-top shape, maintain a comfortable temperature in your home and save money on utility bills

C ever

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relatively inexpensive to fix withouthaving to replace your furnace orair conditioning system.

“Thermal inefficiencies aremuch more common in older-con-struction homes built prior to the1990s,” says Jason Hite, president ofDIY Heating and Cooling Supply inClermont, Fla. “Drafts are caused bymany things, such as gaps or smallspaces under doors, older ineffi-cient windows, faulty seals onnewer windows, poorly sealed atticaccess and basement doors and airinfiltration from a crawl space intothe living space. Old, deterioratedattic insulation can also let heat inor out of your home.”

Justin DiPego, senior editorat DoItYourself.com in El Segundo,Calif., says hot and cold spots inyour home may also indicate littleor no insulation in the walls anddamaged exterior siding.

“First, to check for air leaks,use a smoking stick of incensearound your windows, exteriordoors, power outlets and lightswitches,” says DiPego, who addsthat you can confirm a leak if the

smoke is sucked out or blown intothe house. “Windows and doors caneasily be resealed with new weath-erstripping or paintable latex caulk,and the outlet covers and light-switch plates can be removed sothat gaps can be sealed with sprayfoam, latex caulk or spackle.”

Next, keep your furnace filter clean.

“As the filter gets dirty, theair isn’t distributed as efficiently asif it were clean. You should bechanging your filter every one totwo months, but sometimes moreoften is required,” Hite says.

Adding extra insulationwithin your attic and walls can significantly improve your heatingand cooling efficiency. You can buybatts or rolls of blanket insulationthat you can apply in floors, ceilingsand attics; in closed areas like fin-ished walls, you can opt to have cellulose or foam insulation blownin by a professional.

It’s also wise to upgrade toa programmable thermostat, if youdon’t already have one, which canbetter regulate your home’s temper-

ature while you’re home and away.“Other practices, such as

shutting off vents in parts of yourhouse that are seldom used – likebasements and guest rooms – willhelp heat and cool other areas ofthe house more efficiently,” saysDave Quandt, vice president of fieldoperations for American HomeShield, a home warranty and protec-tion company.

“If you use the wholehouse, it’s recommended that youturn down all the vents by one-thirdto balance the static pressure of theductwork and system and help evenout the temperature in the home,"he adds. "If it’s still uneven, a profes-sional can often add dampers topush air to parts of the home lack-ing airflow.”

Additionally, ceiling fanscan improve airflow and haveswitches that allow the fan to spinin either direction. Fans should spinclockwise during winter monthsand counter-clockwise in the warmmonths.

“Homeowners should alsoconsult with local utility compa-

nies. Often, they will conduct freeenergy audits for customers andrecommend ideas specific to eachdwelling that can make heating andcooling more efficient,” Quandtsays.

Quandt says the right com-bination of do-it-yourself caulking,insulation and weatherstripping canbe completed for $300 or less, inmost cases, which is much more af-fordable than replacing the entireHVAC system.

“The only thing a new furnace or air conditioner is goingto get you is more efficient opera-tion. A new system can’t fix draftproblems and hot and cold spots,”Hite says. “But by making theseother improvements … a home-owner could expect to save a signif-icant amount on their utility bills –maybe as much as 10 to 15 per-cent.”

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