Tag Archives: New Beginning

Home Improvement That’ll Get Your 4-Legged Friends’ Approval

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There’s nothing that says home is where the heart is more than pet-friendly living. When you’re considering making an investment in your own space, it might be worthwhile to consider some of these doable projects for your furry friends. A new dog bed, a cat tower, or maybe even a whole suite designed just for them? There are lots of ways to make sure you and your four-legged family members are happy at home!

Keep their safety in mind

Your pets are part of the family, so it’s important to make sure your home improvement projects take their safety into account. If you’re doing any renovations that involve saws, hammers, or other dangerous tools, be sure to keep them out of reach! And never leave a lit candle unattended with a pet around—the results could be disastrous.

Create a pet-friendly space

If you’re not sure where to start, why not create a designated pet area in your home? This could be as simple as installing a gate in an unused doorway to keep them out of the living room, or as elaborate as building them their own special bed and scratching post. You might also want to consider a cat litter box enclosure for the bathroom.

Keep their environment clean

Cleaning up after your pets can be something of a hassle, especially if you have more than one critter in need of care. To make things easier on yourself, look into purchasing or building pet washing stations that will give them a place to get clean on their own. You can also install a pet-specific vacuum cleaner to make short work of any hairballs or accidents.

Make your exterior pet-friendly, too

Not all pets are allowed inside, but that doesn’t mean they have to suffer! Make sure your yard is just as inviting for them as the inside of your home, with plenty of places to curl up in the shade or sun. You might also consider building them a little outdoor space, complete with their own doghouse!

Aesthetic home improvements

Most pets are more than happy to curl up on the floor rather than sit pretty in a seat, but there is one place where they might be willing to make an exception: your pet bed. If you want something cute and cozy for them (and stylish enough for guests) consider opting for a plush microsuede-style bed.

Be mindful of the messes

Cats and dogs are wonderful animals, but they can be a bit dirty at times. Be sure to keep their litter box smelling fresh with some absorbent crystals or pellets that will make cleanup easier on you! You might also look into purchasing an air purifier for your home if pet odors are a problem.

Use a Pressure Washer to Bring Tired Surfaces Back To Life

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Maintaining the cleanliness of your home is a full-time responsibility. It seems to be a lesson in futility as you begin to realize just how much time and effort will be required to complete the entirety of your cleaning to-do list. Luckily, there’s a tool on the market that can drastically reduce the time and effort you spend on your large cleaning chores. A pressure washer will wash, rinse, and polish almost any of your tired, dirty surfaces and restore their original color to bring them back to life.

1. Vinyl Siding Cleansing

The siding on the outside of your home endlessly collects deposits of dirt, grime, and debris blown by the wind and other elements. It is a time-consuming nightmare to wash vinyl siding by hand, especially considering that vinyl siding has many grooves and crannies in which for dirt to hide. A pressure washer is a highly effective tool that will make washing your vinyl siding a breeze. One of the benefits of using a pressure washer to tackle such a gargantuan chore is that its flexible hose and extendable arm can clean difficult to reach areas of your siding with minimal effort on your part. A pressure washer will bring your dirty and tired vinyl siding back to life in a single afternoon.

2. Driveway Makeover

Your concrete driveway will endure many stains, spills, and interactions with harsh substances such as road salt. As time passes, these stains and spills will begin to turn into dark blemishes on your once pristine and uniform driveway surface. A stained and dirty driveway can ruin the beautiful aesthetic of the outside of your home. If it’s time to give your driveway a good cleaning, invest in a pressure washer. The pressure from the water has the ability to rip up accumulations of dirt, dust, and particulates. Stains can also be removed through the use of a pressure washer and a special type of detergent designed for concrete. With the correct nozzle, you can easily use a pressure washer to clean and revitalize your driveway before dinnertime on a weekday evening.

3. Wooden Deck Revitilization

Years of walking, playing, gatherings, pets, rain, and muddy feet can really take the shine and vivid color out of your wooden deck. Depending on how long it’s been since you’ve given your wooden deck a proper washing, the surface of your deck could have years of filth layered on the surface. A simple mopping with hot water will not suffice to clean such a saturated amount of grime and residue. The right pressure washer can be a great solution for working the dirt and stains out of the grooves of the wood and from between the planks.

Cleaning a wooden deck with a pressure washer is a balancing act because if the pressure is too high, it could peel the stain from the wood or leave dents. If the pressure isn’t high enough, it won’t clean the dirt and stains from the surface. It’s best to find information online that will help you to acquire the perfect settings to properly clean your deck without risking permanent damage. A gentle cleanser that won’t dull or strip your stain coating is also recommended for such a task. Once you’ve achieved the perfect cleaning pressure and detergent, you will watch your wooden deck sparkle like it did when it was first built.

4. Automobile Maintenance

Although having an automobile is a cherished access to freedom, there are many costs and responsibilities that come with owning one. A commonly occurring responsibility is keeping it washed. Automobiles manage to get dirty quite easily. Vehicles become caked in layers of pollen during spring and summer months. The icy conditions of the winter season will lead to layers of dried road salt coating the bottom portion of your car and its undercarriage. This salt can prove to be highly corrosive to the metal parts of your automobile and should be removed regularly.

A pressure washer should be your tool of choice when it comes time to wash your automobile. With a combination of the proper nozzle, detergent, and pressure setting, you can pressure wash your automobile quickly and thoroughly. There are even polishing cleansers you can purchase to place inside of your pressure washer that will rinse and polish your automobile simultaneously.

Fixer Uppers: How To Find A Home That You Can Bring Back To Life

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Like a perfect sunny vacation, our home needs to be just as special and life changing. Our home is more than just a place you go to sleep at night, our home is a place where life long memories are created. How do you transform a building made out of walls and paint, into a fortress of solitude and security where families gather and grow? How do you make a simple house, become a home? The answer, make it truly yours; so original and unlike any other home around. In a world where pre-manufactured homes are around every corner, the dream of the perfect home can be difficult to find, but not impossible. One of the best solutions around, is the idea of the “fixer upper” home. A fixer upper home has a lot of options. Perhaps, it means transforming an older home into your dream home or even finishing an incompletely built home. Whatever the choice, the fixer upper option is the ultimate DIY a home owner can embark on. Yes, it is true that the fixer upper process involves a decent amount of work, however, the results are life changing. The results are the creation of your dream home. So how does one begin the fixer upper process?

HUD HOMES or Incomplete Building projects

Financing a house is an expensive and complicated process. Unfortunately, many people struggle with the finically aspect of building a home, and this leaves a unique option open for the fixer upper. One type of house the fixer can look for on the market is a what is called a HUD home. In short, A HUD home is a home that needs to be sold fast. Often time these homes are foreclosures or homes that hit some sort of unforeseen financial set back. Whatever the case may be, the goal for the HUD home seller is the same; sell the house fast. Often times, HUD homes that are being sold are in need of serious renovation or perhaps are even incomplete. A HUD home almost always needs some kind of work. This is not desirable for a lot of people looking for turn key homes, however, for the DIY fixer upper, a HUD home can be a gold mine. Not only are these homes in a state of renovation already, but also, many time they are priced extremely low. HUD homes are not always easy to find because they sell fast, however, if planned correctly a HUD home is a perfect start for a fixer upper DIY home.

Older Homes

As cities grow and develop, older neighborhoods are often times forgotten and overlooked as an option for buying a home. Many individuals prefer the look and smell of a brand new home, and don’t even bother looking to purchase in older parts of a town. This trend creates another unique opportunity for the fixer upper individual. The older home market offer an array of advantages. First, they are almost always priced lower than the new home market. This low price leaves plenty of finically wiggle room for renovations. Lastly, older homes provide more unique designs that newer homes, that allow for more interesting renovation options. Purchasing an older home as a fixer upper home is a solid and smart option.

Demo Day: Important Precautions to Take When Gutting Your Fixer-Upper

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Buying an older home or living in one requires special precautions before you can start the gutting process. There are a lot of variables to consider and for homeowners with no construction experience, this guide will be a useful tool to help you safely gut your old fixer-upper. Older homes hold all kinds of hidden secrets in the walls, attics, and foundations. Before you start the demolition process, you should read this guide fully in its entirety.

Important Precautions

 Building Permits: It is illegal in a lot of states and communities to undergo a construction project without a building permit. You can go to your local city hall or town office and apply for a building permit. Building permits are dated with an expiration date, so you only have so much time to get your project done or you’ll have to go back and get an extension on your permit.

 Historical Buildings: There are a lot of old fixer-uppers that are classified as historical landmarks by the state you live in. Before construction begins you need to know if your project falls under these guidelines because any alterations to your project need approval from elected officials in your community. In most cases, the exterior of a historical building must remain the same. Professional restoration contractors in this sector are highly advised.

 Structural Safety: A certified home inspector should be called in to access the structural integrity of your building. There are a lot of older buildings that have wood framed exterior walls and interior support walls in older buildings that are subject to termite damage, rot, and water damage. If you start gutting wall coverings, it could weaken the structural integrity and unexpected collapses can occur with the possibility of bodily harm.

 Mold Spores/Asbestos/Lead Paint: All three of these are very dangerous substances that can cause serious internal injuries and even death. Call a professional remediation business and have your building inspected for dangerous airborne contaminants that are magnified tremendously when disturbed. This can be a very costly mistake and one that needs to be taking seriously.

 Debris Removal: Gutting your fixer-upper is going to generate a significant amount of waste materials. If you have access to a truck with a universal open box-style trailer this is one option of removing your debris; however, there are a lot of landfills that will charge you per load by unit weight for disposal at their facility.

You can also call your local waste management providers and order a contruction dumpster to place at your job site. This is the best method for removing construction debris because once you put the debris in the dumpster, you’re done. There’s no need to handle it a second time and in most cases is more cost effective.

The Rewards and End Results

Gutting your fixer-upper can be a lot of work, but in the end it’s one of the most rewarding experiences. Restoring and modernizing an old house has a lot of long term benefits as it pays homage to the time period it was constructed, gives your community a classic look, and is a reminder of when most of these houses were built with hand tools.