Home improvement! Those endless tasks end up making your house into a comfortable, beautiful home. They also help you keep in shape. Here are some words of wisdom on how to do those tasks successfully and as economically as possible. If you read these tips before you pick up the hammer or the pipe wrench, we think you will be glad.
A basic handyman’s toolbox should contain the following things: hammer, nails, adjustable wrench, vice grips, one interchangeable head screwdriver, a set of Alan wrenches, 3 and 1/2 inch screws, a drill, glue or epoxy putty, a metal file and/or sandpaper, and a handyman belt. These essentials will get you through most basic jobs.
Even if you are an expert and home improvement tasks, leave the plumbing to the professionals. With many people wanting to do a majority of home improvements themselves, they get tempted to going into areas that are meant for professionals. Plumbing is one of those areas that should be left to the professionals because they can be far too difficult or even dangerous.
Before making renovations on your home, you should determine the amount of time you plan on living in your house. Your budget improvements will vary according to this estimate. If you plan on selling your home in the next year, you should make sure you renovate the parts of your house that interest potential home buyers.
Make your bathroom or kitchen back-splash, sparkle with brand new tile. You can purchase the tiles relatively cheaply and do it yourself or hire a tile guy to do it for you, if you just do not feel like it. Either way, the end result will be clean, sharp and very attractive.
Painting the outside of your house may seem like a simple, easy task, but don’t let it fool you. Most home exteriors are actually much bigger than the look, which means that this is an expensive and time consuming project, albeit it one that can have a great many benefits for any home owner.
When trying to fix up a house to flip it, pay attention to the kitchen. If has linoleum floors, replace them with tile. It makes the place look much better. You should examine the counters and look at replacing them. They don’t have to be granite, but granite counter tops increase the value of the home and up your chances of selling it.
If you realize that your heating costs are a bit more than you expected to be paying, you should have someone install some better insulation to your home. While this may be a bit pricey, it is much less than you would have to pay for inflated utility bills, over time.
Make the most of your laundry room by adding cabinets, shelves and other storage and stacking your machines if possible. You can also build custom pedestals to go under your machines to hold empty laundry baskets, jugs of detergent, or other items. A clutter-free laundry room not only looks nice, but gives you more room for folding, ironing and sorting clothes.
Keep yourself covered by building to code. If you secure the necessary permits prior to the start of construction you will have peace of mind down the road. If you decide to sell your house in the future you may be required to disclose whether your remodel has been built to code. It also covers you against shoddy work by contractors. If you have a permit, an inspector will make frequent visits to make sure the work is being done properly.
Your head may be spinning from all the advice and expertise you have just read. But take these tasks one at a time. Step by step, you can transform the problems and shortcomings of your home, into reasons for pride. Yes, you fixed those things. Better yet, when the tasks are finished, you can sit back in your favorite chair with a feeling of pride.