Monday, October 5, 2009

Replacing Shower Faucets - Avoid the Traps - Get Expert Advice

It's the same old story all over again. The drip-drip saga of your shower faucet threatens to rock the boat. Tired of those countless fitful bouts of sleep, you have pulled out all stops in repairing that wretched fixture. But, to no avail. The constant, and now extremely grating leak, has wrecked havoc in your life.

Now before you begin to sound like the protagonist of a Shakespearean tragedy, you better put an end to this Himalayan battle. And how does one achieve that? Does replacing shower faucet sound like a plausible solution? It may be music to the ears of faucet manufacturers and suppliers, but it's the only way you can enjoy the soul-stirring silence of solitudes all over again.

Eight Tips That Attenuate Concerns

But replacing an old shower faucet is not something that one greets exultantly. And the grounds for this kind of trepidation are not that risible too. The possibility of replacement of the valve from behind the wall or through the closet or even a change in the surround is enough to deflate the optimism of a seasoned veteran.

But things are not as complicated as they seem. Here are a few tips that ease your concerns quite a bit:

  • Don't select the new faucet in haste. Remember the saying, size does matter?
  • Be very clear about the measurement of the holes for the fixture. Take the old faucet along when you venture out to purchase the new one.
  • Style is not something you can be utterly cavalier about either. Make sure the new fixture manages to get you out of your blue funk.
  • The instruction manual must be treated like the Holy Grail. Follow it religiously.
  • While dealing with that recalcitrant old faucet, make sure your efforts are ably buttressed by the right tools. So a pipe wrench is used only on pipes.
  • Switching from iron pipes to copper or plastic is a nifty choice since they come without any kind of threading.
  • While bathtubs have a two-valve faucet assembly, a two-valve shower assembly is common place among showers. This means the installation of the faucet is detached from the taps that supply water.
  • However, the internal mechanism of tub and shower faucet assemblies is strikingly similar to those installed in sinks.

With the faucet replaced, you better get used to the silence that resonates from every pore.

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The Damage One Small Water Leak Can Do

What I'm about to explain to you, cost the homeowner about $1200 and it could have been fixed, with a two dollar rubber washer. When I say two dollars, it could have been even less than that, but we'll stick with two dollars.

The story you are about to listen to, deals with the renters, the owner of the rental house and the water damage repair contractor. The water damage repair contractor makes the money, the owner of the home, loses the money, and the renters, really don't care, because it's not their home anyway.

If you own property, and rent it out, I would like to advise you to, do a walk-through on your properties at least every two months. If this homeowner, would've seen the water heater damage, he could have simply went down to his local home improvement center, or plumbing supply Center and purchased a new water heater connection pipe or the rubber washer, that was leaking and repaired it.

Instead of checking up on the property, regularly, I don't really believe that the homeowner, ever went back to check on the property, once it was rented. I always feel sorry for these guys, I have to repair, all of the water damage, replace all of damaged materials, and the homeowner needs to fork out the money. The water leak ruined the water heater and it also needed to be replaced.

This is the damage that one small leak can do. I often hear people joking about it, and I even seen it on a television show one time, when the entire house collapsed and at the end of the show, the plumbing repair contractor, held up a $.15 rubber washer and told the homeowner's, that this was the problem and if they would've replaced it, their house would still be standing today.

I understand that this is the movies, but things like this really happen. So pay attention, inspect your homes on a regular basis and save yourself hundreds if not thousands of dollars in the future.

If you're really interested in basement remodeling and repairs, you should click on this link Home Repair Advice. Get some great home repair advice that can make a big difference on any of your home remodeling projects.

Click Here To Learn More About Water Heater Damage and Repairs

Greg Vandenberge is working on the internet to promote the education for creating simple to follow guides and home building books to help professional building contractors as well as the weekend warriors. He has just finished a Home Buyers Guide to take some of the frustration out of home shopping.

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Sunday, October 4, 2009

Bathroom Cabinets For a Clutter Free Bathroom

Bathroom clutter is not only unsightly but can also be in the way. We all need quick and easy access to our things when bathing and getting ready in the morning, but with space in most bathrooms at a premium, how do you find room for everything you need to be at your fingertips without tripping over it?

The answer could be with bathroom cabinets. If you have existing cabinets, you may want to install an extra shelf within to hold more, more efficiently. You can also freshen the look of your existing cabinets with a new coat of paint and some new handles and drawer pulls. You can also mount a towel rack to the side of one, creating more space to hold fresh towels or dry damp ones without using up wall space.

If you do not have cabinets in your bathroom, or simply do not have enough, your options are near limitless. There is a wide variety of pre-made cabinetry that will fit into almost any room, dcor and budget. A cabinet installed under the basin will conveniently hold toilet rolls, towels, makeup and toiletries for getting ready in the mornings, and even a few cleaning supplies. Another very attractive way to accomplish under basin storage is a bathroom vanity cabinet. These can also be found in any style, from traditional wood to contemporary glass and metal, and can house many kinds of basins.

A floor to ceiling shelf, with or without doors, can be tucked in between the basin and toilet or bidet to hold towels, washcloths and other necessities out of sight while keeping your bathroom counters and surfaces free of clutter. Don't forget behind the bathroom door as well! Instead of this area gathering dust, you can install a slim cabinet to gather your daily supplies together, out of sight but not out of reach.

There are also many custom cabinet makers out there. You can find a reliable contractor to build you the bathroom storage of your dreams, in both functionality as well as style. A custom job will ensure that everything fits perfectly, even in an oddly shaped or hard to fit room. You will also be able to pick and choose each element with your carpenter, from materials to color to how many shelves you'd like to have in each piece.

If you can't afford custom cabinetry, you can still get a custom look by adding fancy handles or drawer pulls, or painted accents to a pre-made cabinet. No matter how you get there, adding new cabinets to your bathroom is a stylish and efficient way to reduce clutter and add beauty.

Written by James Chapman, a director of Bella Bathrooms who supply Bathroom Cabinets for the UK market.

Bella Bathrooms is an online retailer formed by 2 plumbers from the North East of England. Having hands on experience of custom bathroom installation and products has enabled Bella Bathrooms Ltd to only select quality bathroom products for their online shop. They sell bathroom furniture, bathroom suites, showers and bath related products for consumers through the United Kingdom.

Pest Droppings in the Attic - Pest Problems

Sometimes I wonder how these large animals can get through such small holes in our homes and into our attics and crawlspace's. A few years ago, I was working on a home that had water damage to the siding that needed to be fixed. The homeowner of course didn't want anymore water damage and this required repairing roof, the original cause for the siding damage.

When I bid the job, I had no idea what I was about to run into. The first day on the job, went smoothly as I repaired some damage fascia board, but the next day I was in for a surprise, as I removed the damaged siding, I found what looked like dog poop in the attic.

I was looking around in the attic and trying to figure out how a dog could of got up there. I know that I shouldn't have, but I walked around the home inspecting it for a large hole, any holes, something that a small dog could have wiggled his way into. I got my latter off of the truck and then went on the roof, trying to find a place where a dog could have got into the attic.

I couldn't find any holes and after wasting about an hour, I decided it was time to get back to work and since the homeowner wasn't there, I couldn't show him my new findings or ask him any questions. I cleaned up the mess and repaired the water damaged siding, but in the back of my head I kept thinking about how in the heck a dog got up in the attic.

To make a short story even shorter, when the homeowner arrived home that day, I showed him my findings and he informed me that he didn't have a dog. He did however inform me that he has been hearing something walking around in his attic for about a year now. He had a pretty good idea that they were raccoons.

I told him, that I had inspected his home and only found one small hole on top of his roof underneath the roof eave, but there's no way that a small raccoon could fit through that hole. He told me that you would be surprised, what these animals were capable of squeezing into and out of.

Well that's about it, the mystery was solved, I repaired the small hole in the attic and have never heard from the homeowner again. Hopefully that meant I did my job well and not that he was embarrassed about the poop in the attic.

Pest Control Ideas, House Pest Pictures

Greg Vandenberge is working on the internet to promote the education for creating simple to follow guides and home building books to help professional building contractors as well as the weekend warriors. He has just finished a Home Buyers Guide to take some of the frustration out of home shopping.

Creating the Perfect Home Remodeling Priority List

Home remodeling is one of those projects that can be fun or a pain in the -- you know what. It is best to start your home remodeling plan with one room at a time and decide on the value of each room to prioritize where to save and where to spend. This article will look at the value of each room to help you deiced the type of home remodeling project you may consider.

The big debate on what room is the most used room in the house could go on forever. Some say it is the kitchen others say it is the living room while others say the master bedroom. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, and you can use some basic rules to see what the highest priority is for you.

If you have kids then you probably spend more time than you like in the kitchen cooking. If you have a smaller family maybe the kitchen is just a place where you are in and out. If you cook allot then the kitchen should get some very high consideration for your home remodeling project.

Do you like to play games and watch TV? If you find yourself or your family watching television often and you perhaps enjoy family night games then you should place the family room at the top of your list. Maybe it is time to add family room to your home remodeling ideas. Perhaps you could remodel a spare bedroom or add a new room to the house.

Do you have guest spend the night often? You may want to think about making a nice guest bathroom with all the luxuries of a five star hotel for your guest. Do not do this unless you love to have people stay awhile and come often. They are likely to really enjoy visiting you.

When planning your home remodeling ideas you will find that they become much easier with a good priority system. Once you know which rooms are the most important to you and your lifestyle then that is where the money should be spent on nicer upgrades. On rooms that are not high on the list, but still need some fixing you could use less expensive things to fix them up.

Find more helpful remodeling tips by visiting http://best-home-improvement-projects.com where you will find helpful remodeling tips, advice and resources to include Home Remodeling.

Saturday, October 3, 2009

Basic Home Electrical Wiring - For the Do it Yourself Home Electrician

The Green Bay Packers were one of the most successful football teams and Vince Lombardi said something to them that I will never forget," This is a football." All the football players laughed and he said that we're going to start with the basics and that's what I'm going to do, with this article.

Let's start with our electrical wire, the two most common electrical wire sizes, that will be used in most homes, will be 14 and 12 gauge electrical wire. Let's clear something up, right off the bat, the smaller the number, the larger the wire. In other words a 12 gauge electrical wire is a little bit larger and will carry more electricity, for longer distances than a 14 gauge wire.

What about electrical outlet plugs? These plugs are usually the same, except for the fact that they come in different colors. When I said that most electrical plugs are the same, I'm talking about your standard wall outlet plug. There are different electrical plugs that will be used for air conditioners and some kitchen appliances like 220 Volt electric stoves and ovens.

What about your home's light switches? Your standard two way light switch will usually turn a one light on or a group of lights on, from one location. A three way light switch will usually turn one light on or a group of lights on from two different locations. A four way light switch, will usually turn one light or a group of lights on from three different locations.

It doesn't get any more basic than that. I hope this gives you a better understanding about your home's electrical system.

If you're really interested in learning more about remodeling, new home construction, home maintenance, home repairs and really want to get the nuts and bolts of home improvement. Visit our web site and select from the best-selling home building books on the Internet.

Greg Vandenberge is working on the internet to promote the education for creating simple to follow guides and home building books to help professional building contractors as well as the weekend warriors. He has just finished a Home Buyers Guide to take some of the frustration out of home shopping.

If your looking for some more home inspection pictures or home building ideas.

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Getting the Whole Family Involved in Bathroom Remodeling

Too often, we shut our families out of our modern bathroom remodeling projects. While they might use the bathroom everyday, we think that it's only our ideas that matter and our work that counts because we're the one in there slaving away at the design. By involving your family and letting them be a part of the process, not only can you lighten the workload, but you can also help create a room that everyone was a part of creating from the bathroom walls to the bathroom vanities. Get everyone to buy into the design and you will have a family who not only enjoys your new bathroom, but will take pride in ownership.

Drawing out the plans together

To begin, everyone should sit down and come up with a plan for the new bathroom remodeling project. If you have a lot of family members, you can make this simpler by having options already available to everyone - like pictures or catalogs that you will shop from. Let everyone come up with their ideas for the bathroom and then discuss what compromises everyone can make in order to come up with a final design. When you already have certain bathroom vanities in mind, maybe some of the family can choose what goes on the bathroom walls or what tiles might look good. Let everyone have a say in the process and you might have a better plan than you could have even come up with on your own.

Shopping together lets everyone help

Of course, when you're doing any bathroom remodeling project, you will need to go shopping to get the things that you have picked out. During this trip, have everyone come along to help with carrying things and transporting them back home. Just being able to see what bathroom vanities area available and what other accessories can be picked will help old and young children feel like a part of the process. You can also look at other bathroom designs to get more ideas as to what you can do.

Have the younger children click the mouse when you shop online
Have your children 'pay' for the things you've bought
Have older children lift things and carry them into the house

Heavy lifting for the older children, easy tasks for the younger ones

While you will have to leave the major tasks of modern bathroom remodeling to the adults in the family - like installing bathroom vanities - you can let the younger children take part too. Have them sponge paint designs onto the walls, for example, or paint the cabinets of the bathroom vanities. If they are older, they can help with the caulking of the tiles or with the installation of the toilet or the sink. Younger children can also help by cleaning up after the mess or by wiping down the floor so that no one slips during the remodel.

Younger children can also help arrange things when you are done with the heavy labor
Older children can organize the cabinets

Safety for everyone

And because you will have a lot of people in a small space for this modern bathroom remodeling project, you will need to make sure everyone is staying safe with safety goggles, face masks, and sturdy shoes.

Remodeling your bathroom doesn't have to be a solitary affair. By getting everyone involved, you can spend more time together and finish a great modern bathroom remodeling project.

For more ideas for bathroom remodeling as well as plenty of supplies, head to www.discountbathroomvanities.com.

Dave Robert is a VP at Discount Bathroom Vanities Publishing, and an avid fixer-upper who's been restoring old houses for more than twenty years. Readers can tap into Dave's knowledge about home remodeling, and kitchen and bathroom design, at: http://www.DiscountBathroomVanities.com