Guide to Mounting your Satellite Dish

By: Adam Maywald

Be Nice To Everyone Including Your Building Inspector
Whole House Remodel Problems
Remodeling Your Home On A Budget


The Dish Network satellite dish is only about 2 feet in diameter. Very much a space saver when it comes to mounting the satellite dish on a wall, fence or garage!

Since the satellite dish is small, it is also light and not bulky in size, this also makes it easier to mount.

Satellite dishes have two antennae's which are pointing back to the dish and shooting off into the blue sky.

These 2 receiver antennas help bring in a signal to your dish and display the signals they receive on your television.

If you purchase a satellite dish brand new, you won't have to worry about mounting it, because your local satellite installation crew will do all the installing for you. They don't want you trying to climb up a 10 foot ladder to mount their dish, so they'll do it for you, which is usually free anyways.

But if you do have to mount your dish yourself, make sure you have the Dish Network satellite pointing directly into the sky away from trees, little children and buildings.

By following this step, you will be able to receive the most premium possible signal from your satellite dish. This will also provide quality viewing on your television screen!

If you wish to not mount the dish on your home you can also go another route. Most satellite dish providers have tripod stands for you. This is a great alternative if your apartment or condo complex doesn't allow you to nail anything to their exterior walls.

One downfall with the tripod is it can be very finicky. Make sure you put the tripod and satellite dish in an area away from people and dogs or any animal of either species for that matter.

I have had some problems with guests bumping and every so gently tapping the tripod and the TV goes blank..."Looking for signal" is what you'll see on your television. Even the slightest nudge could result in you jumping out of bed in your pajamas and slightly tapping the satellite dish until the signal is received again.

What's funny about that is the slightest tap can effect the signal its receiving, but rain, snow nor wind won't usually effect the signal...go figure?

About The Author


Adam Maywald
For more great information on a satellite dish and providers of the services mentioned, go to http://www.DishNetwork-vs-DirectTv.com for more information.

Home Tips On Fixing Up Your House

Things That Add Value To Your Fixer-Upper Home
by: Sarah Miller

http://homebuyerguide.blogspot.com/ http://houseideas4u.blogspot.com/

Things that add value to your fixer-upper home

Fixer-upper homes apparently need a lot of work to increase their market value. What things should you do to really make the most out of your renovation efforts thus increasing the value of your fixer-upper home?

Pristine walls – Fixing up your walls is an inexpensive way to increase the value of your fixer-upper homer. You can do the paint job yourself. Choose colors that will make the house “look expensive”.

Renovate the bathroom – It is known fact that a great bathroom will increase the value of any house. Homebuyers tend to take a look at the bathroom first so focusing on renovating this part of the house is a must. Adding another bathroom in the house can further increase its value.

Renovate the kitchen – Aside from the bathroom the kitchen is another part of the house that can increase its value. Home buyers, especially the ladies, take this as a major factor when considering buying a home.

Improve landscaping – Taking care of the lawn and making it look attractive will add to the value of your fixer-upper home. You don't need to hire professional landscapers to improve its appearance.

Don’t overlook the garage, closets and laundry – These three parts of the house are most of the time overlooked. As simple as them may seem, they can increase the value of the fixer-upper home because it adds convenience. Bedrooms with spacious closets are always attractive. Garage and pathway maintenance is also important. Lastly, a house with a laundry room will also increase its value.

Maintain windows – Cleaning your windows every now and then will help maintain its good condition. This won't increase the house’s value but it will help in maintaining its current value.

Change carpets – Nothing is more unappealing than dirty and stinky carpets. Carpets tend to acquire a lot of dirt and cleaning old carpet may not do the trick. What you want to do is change the entire carpeting for the house. This will make a big difference.

Remove clutter – Throw away excessive things that are eye sores. Excessive junk can make a house less appealing and lower its value.

In general, you should fix up the exterior first because this is what people see first and it will give them an impression that your house is a keeper and is of high value. This doesn’t mean that you should ignore the interior. Bottom-line, the most important part of the house that you should focus on to increase a fixer-upper home’s value are the bathroom and the kitchen.


About The Author

The above article was written by Sarah Miller on behalf of a buzzing online Home Improvement community where homeowners easily and painlessly find the right contractor for their home improvement projects and in turn, contractors can find the right Home Improvement Leads! Also check out the http://quotecity.com/ Blog for more related Home Improvement Articles and Ideas.

Cavity Wall Insulation

– How It Works And How You Can Get It Installed For Less
by: Alex Perry

One of the best ways to save on your heating bills and make your home warmer in winter is to install ‘cavity wall insulation’. Plus if you choose the right installer you can get the job done professionally for a very low price, with a 25 year guarantee. In fact some people can get it done completely free. The following article explains all about cavity wall insulation and how to get it installed for less.

In most UK houses built after the 1920s, the external walls are made of 2 layers with a small air gap or cavity in between them. If your home has unfilled cavity walls, a considerable slice of your energy bills will be spent heating the air outside. In fact it is estimated that around 35% of the heat from your home is lost through the walls.

Filling the gap between the 2 walls of a house with an insulating material massively decreases the amount of heat (and money) that is escaping through your walls. This could save you between £130 and £160 a year on your fuel bills for an average house, according to the UK’s Energy Saving Trust, and pay back the cost of installation in under 2 years. It will also prevent around 1 tonne of CO2 emissions each year, so makes a significant contribution to fighting Climate Change. Plus having your cavity walls insulated will make your home more comfortable by evening out the temperature in your home, help reduce condensation, and also keep your home cooler in hot summer weather.

This is a job that is definitely best done by a professional, as it can be quite technically demanding and requires specialist equipment. However, despite paying a contractor, it can be done for little money. This is because the large UK gas and electricity companies heavily subsidise the cost of insulation through certain contractors, in order to reach their carbon reduction targets set by the government. Typically they pick up 30 to 70% of the bill, no matter what your income. The contractor will also take care of all the paperwork, so that you automatically get these subsidies. In addition, if you receive certain state benefits, the government will pick up the rest of the cost so you can get your home installed completely free. When you get a quote from a contractor, they will be able to tell you whether you qualify for these grants.

How is cavity wall insulation installed? The cavity wall is injected with insulating material by drilling small holes in the external wall through the mortar joints. The holes are generally around 2cm wide and are made good after the injection by the installer. The material injected is normally ‘mineral wool’ (fibres made from rock or glass), polystyrene beads or white foam. All materials have a similar insulation performance. The insulation normally takes about 2 hours to install, but the time does depend on the size of the house and other factors such as access.

How do you know if your house has cavity walls? Most houses built after the 1920’s have been built with cavity walls. An easy way to check is to look at the brickwork in your outside walls. If all the bricks are laid the same way, with just their sides showing (rather than their ends), then you have cavity walls. But you don’t need to make sure of this yourself. All good insulation contractors will offer you a free no-obligation insulation survey, when they can check for your and let you know what is possible.

All reputable cavity wall insulating contractors in the UK are members of the Cavity Wall Insulation Agency (CIGA) guarantee scheme. This scheme gives you a 25 year guarantee on your cavity wall insulation, so that you can be completely confident in the quality of the work. Plus you will be able to pass this guarantee on to any future purchaser of your house, which will help contribute to your house’s value.

If you are interested in installing cavity wall insulation, you should contact a reputable contractor to request a free no-obligation survey. You can do this through the site mentioned at the bottom of this article (go to the page about insulation), or else several contractors advertise on the Internet (if you type in ‘cavity wall insulation’ into Google)



About The Author

Alex Perry is a founder of http://www.downwithco2.co.uk/ , a site dedicated to making it easy for people to save energy and cut their personal contribution to Climate Change by giving them information and putting them in touch with companies that can help. http://worldofstairs.blogspot.com/http://stairart.blogspot.com/

Wood Decking Tile

How To Choose An Interlocking Wood Decking Tile

By: Malcolm D Kay

Interlocking wood decking tiles or patio pavers are rapidly becoming a very popular product for quickly and easily covering drab concrete patios with an attractive solid wood surface. They have the big advantage that you don't need to rip up the old concrete and can simply lay them over the top, without any special surface preparation. And the beauty of these convenient patio pavers is that you don't need to be an expert handyman and you won't need a special set of power tools to install them. They just click together like a jigsaw puzzle. However there is now a increasing number of manufacturers offering such products, so making an informed choice between what's available is becoming more difficult. In this article, we discuss some of the main features of the tiles that you probably should consider before making a final decision on which tile would suit you best in your particular circumstances. Wood species This is probably one of the most important aspects in choosing a decking tile. Ideally you would choose a wood species with the highest natural durability, but there is the colour aspect to consider as well. Wood species can range tremendously in colour, from light straw through chocolate browns to deep orange red colours. But based on durability considerations alone, then one of the most durable and hard wearing species is undoubtedly Ipe wood from South America. Under this there are then a number of other wood species also from South America and a few from Southeast Asia. Rather than listing all the individual species, we suggest that you check the durability and other characteristics from an authoritative web site such as the USDA Forest Service at http://www2.fpl.fs.fed.us/Menu.ssi .

Note that some species, although they may be durable in respect of climatic considerations, may still be subject to insect attack such as termites which could be an important consideration in your particular region. Other considerations when choosing the wood species of course are whether the wood has been responsibly harvested or comes from managed forests. Wood thickness Most tiles on the market use wood slats which are approximately 5/8” (15mm) thick. Some manufacturers supply tiles with 3/4" thick slats and others with ½” thick slats. The product you choose to some extent depends on the location where you intend to lay the tiles. For interior situations such as basements, covered patios and other areas not subject to extreme weather conditions, then the ½” thick slats maybe entirely suitable. However in areas with more extreme climatic variation, we would suggest that the thicker wood is a better choice. Plastic base composition Plastic tile bases may be made of many combinations of plastic including polypropylene, polyethylene or other plastic materials. Whilst different manufacturers have their particular reason for choosing a specific plastic compound, the main considerations you should be aware of are the brittleness of the plastic, the low temperature characteristics (if you happen to live in a very cold area), and the UV stability of the plastic used. The latter point is extremely important as unless a plastic product used in exterior conditions contains a UV stabiliser, it can degrade very quickly. Interlocking mechanism Broadly speaking, there are only two types of interlocking mechanism used on decking tiles currently in the marketplace. Firstly there is the type that has female connectors on two sides and male connectors on the other two sides. Generally speaking, the female connectors are a series of loops which mesh with the pins on the other two sides. The other type of locking mechanism is completely symmetrical so that any side of any tile will lock with any side of any other tile such as SwiftDeck tiles from http://www.swiftdeck.com/. The disadvantage of the loop and pin style is firstly that it requires a bit more thought in laying the tiles as you must effectively only start in one corner of the area to be covered and keep on moving from that corner. It is difficult to install or remove one of these type of tiles in a central area without disrupting at least three of the tiles around it.

The other problem is that on the outer edge of final row you will have one tile with loops on the edge and the next tile with pins on the edge. There are also tiles on the market which are effectively one way connectors. Once you click the tiles into position, you cannot easily lift them up again. Whilst this may not be a disadvantage if you have no intention of changing the tiles at any time, it does limit your options if you intend to move your home or if you wish to change the design of the deck. The other problem with the loop and pin design is that if the manufacturer provides an option of clip-on transition strips, then you need two types of these - one which will connect with the pins, and one which will connect with the loops. And similarly if corner transition pieces are supplied as an option, then you also need two types of these as well. Availability of different designs Some manufacturers only supply one design of deck tile, generally with four slats of wood running in the same direction. Sometimes there is an option of a five or six slat tile. With other manufacturers you may have an option of more than one design. The advantage of this is that you can then mix and match the different designs to make attractive borders, centrepieces etc. Optional accessories If you are using the tiles to cover an existing concrete patio, you would probably have at least one open side. Thus on the final row tiles, you would be able to see the plastic base and the connecting pins unless they are hidden somehow. Some manufacturers therefore provide clip-on transition strips which also have the advantage of reducing the danger of shipping on the outer row of tiles. Corner transition strips are also normally available from such suppliers for the external corners. This covers the main design and material factors that you should consider when choosing a wood decking tile / patio paver. Of course as well as the above factors you would probably also want to take into consideration the price of the tile, the warranty being offered, any trial period being offered, the after sales service, return policy etc

About The Author
Malcolm Kay is the CEO of HandyDeck Systems Inc. a supplier of DIY exterior home improvement products including interlocking wood patio pavers. For more information see http://www.swiftdeck.com/.

Caring For Your Vinyl Siding

By: Henry Gallant



A low maintenance and durable material, vinyl siding is an increasingly popular home exterior. Even though it is a low maintenance material, you will still want to clean your vinyl siding from time to time. Just make sure you know about the best cleaning methods before you get started.

Simple maintenance cleaning of your vinyl siding is fairly straightforward. Use a long-handled brush with soft bristles or a soft cloth to wipe it down with soap and water. If your vinyl siding has textured surfaces to it, you will want to use only the brush with soft bristles so as to avoid wiping stains into the grooves with a cloth. Start with the vinyl siding at the bottom of your house and work your way up. This will help to prevent streaking from the soapy water running down your house. If you have other materials, such as brick, on parts of your home, cover them so that runoff from your vinyl siding will not affect it. Lastly, always make sure you rinse the area before the cleaning solution dries.

If you want to speed the process of cleaning your vinyl siding along, you can buy or rent a power washer. First of all, however, make sure you have read the instructions on the power washer thoroughly. Second, always make sure you use the power washer at eye level. If you try to point upward, you may end up with water and cleaning solution behind the vinyl siding. These can later leak and cause streaks that can eventually lead to decay.

From time to time, you may find spots of mold or mildew on your vinyl siding. If these spots are small, then you can simply use a name brand household cleaner. Just always be sure to test it on a small portion of your vinyl siding in an inconspicuous place to make sure it will not damage it at all. If, however, the spots of mold or mildew are a little larger, you can use a solution of 30% vinegar and 70% water. Another common homemade solution is mixture of powdered laundry detergent, powdered household cleaner, liquid bleach, and water. It is best to just find the one that is most convenient and effective for you.

Not all vinyl siding stains, however, are mold or mildew. You may end up with dirt, soot, or even animal stains on the outside of your home. If that is the case, there are a number of general cleaners that are approved for use on vinyl siding. Check your local store for simple household cleaners, and then read the containers carefully to find out if they are effective and safe for use on vinyl siding and specifically on whatever the stain is that you have found on your vinyl siding.

Increasingly, vinyl siding is a common home exterior. It is low maintenance, attractive, and easy to install. You may, though, from time to time need to clean your vinyl siding in order to keep it in good working condition. Before you do, make sure you understand what is necessary and what the proper procedure is so that your vinyl siding will look good and last a long time.

About The Author


Henry Gallant is an expert author at http://www.vinylsidingetc.com, a comprehensive resource on vinyl siding. Visit http://www.vinylsidingetc.com/ to get more information for your next vinyl siding home project.