Improve Your House By Doing These Simple Strategies
For everyone that owns a home, home improvement is an interesting and engaging topic. Everyone wants to have a beautiful home, but the thought of going through with home improvement projects is horrifying. The information in this article will help you gain the knowledge needed to take on some basic home improvement projects.
One of the quickest, easiest and cheapest ways to improve your home is paint. Whether it is the outside or the inside, both areas will look new and transformed. Pick neutral shades and brighter trim colors. Plain white walls tend to make your home look like a rental and not owner occupied.
Update the lighting in your home to add brightness. Changes in lighting fixtures and adding additional wall lighting can bring a entirely new look to your home. Buy energy saving bulbs to reduce your overall energy costs and consider investing in a smart lighting system that will automatically turn off lights when not in use.
If you don’t want to refinish your old and weathered wooden floors, you can instead, give your home a cottage style boost. Buy some oil based paint and choose some affordable stencils. Use the stencils and paint to re-design your wooden floors. Add some cute designs in varying patterns, to give a full on-cottage look to your home.
TV entertainment stands cost quite a bit of money. A great viable alternative to those expensive stands is buying a nice dresser. You can put your TV on top and use the dresser drawers to store your DVDs and CD’s. Your remote controls and electronic manuals can also be stored in a drawer preventing it from being an eyesore.
One simple home improvement that is often neglected is gutter and chimney maintenance. However, without regular inspections, you may not discover if there is an issue with how these items function. Chimneys are more prone to fires when they are not cleaned at regular intervals. Likewise, debris often clogs gutters and downspouts, and this can cause water damage if it is not taken care of regularly.
If you live in a rural area, consider purchasing a power back up generator. When the lights go out and sometimes your heating even depends on it, you can be without power for hours or even days in seriously harsh weather. A power generator can help you take care of the necessities that you can’t do without when the electricity is out.
Consider turning an old used luggage rack into a side table. Take the glass from a large picture frame and secure it to the luggage rack with permanent adhesive. Accessorize your new tables with a lamp, books or knickknacks.
Install smoke detectors in every room of the house. Smoke detectors are cheap, and they can save your family’s life in the event of a fire. All you need for installation in most cases is a screwdriver. At a bare minimum, make sure you put one in the kitchen and one near the door of every bedroom.
Copper pipe is the best choice for plumbing home improvements, if the money is available for it. While safe and effective plastic plumbing exists, it still falls far short of copper, in terms of durability and reliability. All plumbers are familiar with copper and have plenty of experience working on it. Copper will also match the existing plumbing of older houses being renovated.
If you feel your home is too small, consider a basement renovation. In many cases, a basement can be turned into a second living room or climate-controlled storage space. If your basement has exterior access, you could even renovate it into an apartment for rental income or a mother-in-law suite for family members and other visitors.
If you are re-painting a small space, such as an undersized bedroom or living room, make use of light colors. Lighter colors on the walls will reflect more light, making the room feel brighter and larger. Also, consider using two shades of the same color in stripes, which can make the room feel longer or taller.
A shower is a must for any home, so add one if there is not one in existence in one of your bathrooms. A shower is better when you have children and is easier to use than a bathtub. The numbers don’t lie. A quick shower consumes only 25% of the water that a full bathtub does.
To increase the safety and value of your home deck or patio, you can add metal or wooden railing to the edges or even an ornamental gate leading into the yard. Railing can also enhance the appearance of your outdoor living area by serving as a place to attach decorative lighting or gardening containers.
Before you order you new kitchen cabinets, draw a plan of your kitchen that shows the location of all plumbing, outlets, appliances, windows, and all other obstacles. This will ensure your new cabinets are a perfect fit. Many retailers will develop a design plan for you free of charge if you purchase your cabinets from them.
If you have thought about adding an extra room to your house, then adding an extra bathroom, family room, or den to your home. Recreational areas add value as extra space, and they are a great area for entertainment needs. Have the blueprints drawn up for a family den or entertainment room, and see how it could benefit the value of your home.
Building a dog house in ones backyard can provide a fun home improvement project for one to do with their family. It will also provide a place for the family dog to go when it is outside and wants to get some shade, get a drink or take a nap.
As you can see, making home improvements is not always difficult. Besides increasing the value of your home, a well-executed home improvement project also helps you cultivate skills you can use in more ambitious projects in the future. Keeping the tips shared here with you in mind will help you get started on the right path quickly!
