People enjoy DIY home improvement for a lot of reasons. Some are tired of the old look. Other people do it because they want to increase their property value. A few more just like getting their hands messy. Regardless of why you are interested in home improvement, you should read these tips and start planning your next project.
Fans are a must in the hot summer months. A ceiling fan does an excellent job of circulating air, thereby making any room much cooler. Room fans and ceiling fans will reduce your home’s energy consumption when compared with air conditioner use. This means lower utility bills for you.
An addition can increase the value of your home. Consider a wine cellar in the basement or a library, full of built in shelving. You will impress guest and potential home buyers.
Use some aluminum tape to help you patch cracks in the roof. Aluminum tape requires application to a surface that is clean once you’ve removed the backing. The seal it creates will be waterproof.
Replace your standard porch light with a motion sensor porch light, as this will reduce electricity costs. The light can still be turned on manually, and you can adjust the sensitivity on most models.
You can realize great savings on your kitchen remodel by simply refinishing existing cabinetry, rather than buying new cabinets. Repaint the cabinet base and replace the doors and fixtures to get an updated new look. It can give your kitchen a more modern appearance for a reasonable price.
You can create a higher ceiling appearance by using simple and clever techniques. Add a funky lamp to your room or paint your walls in more than one color. This creates an optical illusion that adds height to a room. You will focus on the lines, and you will create the illusion of a bigger room with higher ceilings.
Cover power outlets using aluminum foil before you paint the walls. Aluminum foil is easier to use compared to tape, and it protects your floors from unintentional splatters. It is quick and easy to remove, too. Just let all of the paint dry prior to removing the foil, then recycle it.
New furniture may be costly to purchase. You don’t have to buy brand new furniture to have new furniture. To revamp your space, check out thrift stores, garage sales, and consignment stores. You can find some great deals among things that someone else didn’t want. Although some of these items may need a little work, with a little elbow grease, they could become your most prized possessions.
Stay away from busy fabrics when picking out furniture. Upholstery with complex patterns such as floral prints or geometric shapes will make it hard for you to find decor that matches. If you stick to solid, neutral colors in upholstery, (e.g. beige, brown, green, or black) you’ll have plenty of flexibility when you start to accessorize. You can mix and match patterns with your throw blankets and pillows, while keeping the effect of the patterns at bay.
When improving your home, give the most visible areas the most attention. If you are trying to sell your home you do not want people to be put off by unattractive features. While many important improvements aren’t visible, you must focus on the ones that are if you’re selling your home.
Take a sample of the nut or bolt that is in each of your storage containers and hot glue it to the top. You can tell at a glance what is inside the container and keep your shop area organized. Even the best labeling system can get confusing, so to make it easy use the above tip.
Sometimes the only solution to a squeaky door is to replace the actual door hinge. Your local hardware store will carry what you need. Just take the hinge apart and screw each section into the appropriate area of the wall and door frame. Then, align the hinge parts and replace the pins.
Write down all the items that you need prior to shopping from a home improvement project. Having a list helps you cut down on the number of store trips, and it will keep you much more organized.
A touch of spackle and a little paint will freshen up walls that look the worse for wear due to lots of nail and hanger holes. Pick up some spackle first. If the holes are small, you won’t need that much spackle. You can use a bobby pin to put spackle in the tiniest holes. Smooth the spackle when have successfully filled in the hole. Paint the walls. The hole in the wall should disappear.
It’s normal for the caning in chairs to sag. It is relatively simple to restore form to your caning. Use a wet sponge to dampen the underside of your chair;s caning. Be sure that the water you’re using is warm. Let the caning dry overnight. Keep doing this until you completely fix the caning.
Floor Joists
You should keep small jars to organize your supplies. The tops of these jars can be used under a wall shelf. Have small items put into these jars, including jewelry parts, nails, screws, and beads. Then, simply twist the jars into the lids to hold them under the shelf. You will make use of every inch of your shelf, and you are recycling the jars as well.
You can use your floor joists or ceiling rafters as a good place to store building materials. Larger materials can even be stored without problems. Simply nail a couple of furring strips across two of your exposed floor joists or rafters and slip in the material to be stored.
Never hire an unlicensed contractor for a home improvement job. All states require general contractors to have some kind of certification. These laws help to cut down on fraudulent contractors, but a homeowner still has to use their own good judgement. The most important thing to remember is a contractor without his license is most likely without insurance as well.
Before paying for brand new hardwood, talk to a professional about your current floors. Your home might be one of the many that has potentially-attractive original hardwood lurking beneath multiple layers of tile, linoleum, vinyl, or carpet. If that’s the case, you can save money and have better flooring this way.
You can add on another room to your home to make it more functional. Consider a play room, a living room or a den. More space will make your home nicer to live in, and will also boost its value. When you can afford the project, dive in.
Whenever you hire a handyman, make sure you are on the same page by creating and agreeing to a contract. This ensures you don’t get overcharged in the end. If you do not have a contract, then it is easy for someone to take advantage of you.
Figure out how long you plan to stay in your home before tackling projects. If you plan to move in less than five years, it makes no sense to spend a lot of money on huge changes. Repairs should be made, but skip the upgrades; they can be done by the next owner.
Check out nearby open houses for inspiration. Styles and colors that appeal to you will be used, and give a better sense of how they look in application. By far, a better option than just the hardware store. Often, model homes will have been decorated by a professional who has incorporated many style options to bring the home together. Simply follow their designs to give your home that same level of appeal.
Drapes are an easy change to improve the look of a room. You can save hundreds by making your own, and you can give your space a new lease on life. It is possible to create custom, seasonal looks by using appropriate color pallettes.
Baby food jars can come in handy as small organizing tools. Screw lids onto the bottom of your cabinets or a shelf. Insert small items into the jars, such as: beads, jewelry parts, screws or nails. Then, twist these jars into their lids under the shelf. This helps take full advantage of a wall shelf and small jars you didn’t think you would ever need.
When taping sheetrock, use a well-made stainless steel taping knife. This will allow for easier clean-up. As long as you clean the knife well, it should last you for years and years.
Though you may be getting bored with your present home, some home improvements can add some life into the home, as opposed to buying a new place. Renovations let you create the home you really want, instead of simply buying a home that fits another person’s design. A well-planned renovation is far more affordable than purchasing a new home; it also gives you a greater degree of control over your surroundings.
For frequently used rooms, add ceiling fans for air circulation. The fans will decrease your dependance on your air conditioner during the summer. They also help push the warm air down during the winter, increasing the efficiency of your furnace. The majority of fans have the ability to change their direction in order to draw the air up or push it down whenever you need.
Everyone has been bitten by the DIY bug at one time or another. We might all start with different reasons and purposes, but at the end, we are all driven by one motivating factor. From property value to aesthetics, these changes will be for the better.
Look online for video tutorials on your intended project, and be sure to use specific search terms. An amazing number of people may have already solved the same problem you are dealing with and posted their solution online. When you watch the video yourself, you can take the help of those who had the problem before you.
