Posted in Things That Need Fixing
The first question to ask yourself is, “Do I want this item fixed or am I tired of it?” Some modern products never die completely; only parts or pieces of them die. The oven timer doesn’t work anymore, but you’ve learned to watch the clock. Your stereo system doesn’t play tapes anymore, but it still has a fine FM radio.
We tend to forget exacdy how long we have owned an appliance and how different its replacement is going to be. The one obsolete
Posted in Planning Process
Planning occurs in two phases. The first is the dream phase, which may have been going on for years as you visited your friends’ newly remodeled or newly purchased homes or as you subscribed to magazines
such as House Beautiful, House and Garden, Home, or Colonial Homes. You’ll know you’re moving toward phase two, reality, when you start marking the pages containing layouts or decorations you like or even tearing out pictures and filing them in folders.
Posted in How to Select a Contractor
One consideration that you should take into account before you make elaborate plans for remodeling and/or renovations is the selling price of buildings or homes in and around your neighborhood. Let’s say that buildings in a given area sell for $150,000 to $200,000, and your renovation marks up the value of your property to $300,000. You might very well end up with a “white elephant” - a difficult property to sell. In fact, the chances are that you will only recover approximately 20 percent of the money that you put into it.
Posted in Roof Leaks
The worst-designed roofs are those that are relatively flat such as a shed roof or a built-up roof. Because these types of roofs do not shed rain or snow quickly, water ponds and/or ice dams can develop.
Ponding water will eventually find its way into the building. Ice dams, as you shall see later in the category, are not only caused by flat roofs but also by inadequate insulation and insufficient ventilation. Both of these causes are discussed in detail in category 6. Suffice it to say that because they are such a problem in some parts of the country, a brief discussion as to how to cope or, better still, how to avoid them is included in this category.
Posted in Wet Basements
You might have a wet basement because of condensation, seepage, or leakage. The difference between seepage and leakage is one of degrees. In the case of seepage, water seeps in through joints slowly; in the case of leaks, water can flow rapidly through holes and cracks.
Posted in Condensation
How will you know if your building has problems associated with having too much vapor in the air? An easy way would be to purchase a relative humidity gauge that could be mounted on your desk or on a wall. The best method would be to have more than one that can be placed in strategic locations, such as your basement and attic.
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