Painting is one of the most common home improvement jobs that homeowners choose to do themselves. While it may take you a more time than a professional, if you don’t mind hard work, you can refresh the look of your house and protect the surface of your home’s siding and trim from harmful weather damage.
Here are the basics:·Watch the long-term weather forecast, and if it’s bad, don’t paint - even if it means you have to wait a few weeks. There is no sense in spending money on paint only to watch it all wash down the storm gutter. ·Surface Preparation will make or break your paint job. If the surface isn’t clean, dry, and free of debris, then your new paint won’t stick. It won’t matter if you buy the most expensive paint with the best guarantee if you don’t prepare your house for painting. Use a heavy scraper and remove all loose flakes of paint. Take a wire brush and scrub off any old cobwebs on siding and use it to break loose the mildew that tends to grow on the shady side of your house. Rent or borrow a pressure washer and remove all of the dirt from the foundation. ·Use the same paint that is currently on the house. Paint sticks best to itself. If you can’t find a partial can from the original product, make sure that you know if the paint already on your house is latex or oil based. Do not put one over the other. If you do, it can peel off in sheets in a very short amount of time. Rub a sheet of sandpaper over an inconspicuous place on the house. If the paint begins to roll up into little balls on your sandpaper, then it’s latex. If it gets dusty and chalky, then it’s oil-based. ·Use a brush on siding and a roller on brick or stucco. On a house with horizontal siding, a big 4″ brush is the way to go. It allows you to work paint into all of the crevices and creates a much more even coat than a roller would. It also allows you to work up underneath the bottom edge of the siding. For stucco or brick, roll the surface. Get a roller head with a thick nap like 3/4″ to 1″. This will allow the head to hold a lot of paint and will also allow it to work a little better into the natural pits that occur in rough surfaces. You will always need to use a brush on any trim work. A 2″ angle brush works well for window and door trim. ·Use high quality drop cloths. If you think cleaning paint from carpet is no fun, try wire-brushing it off of a sidewalk. This is a step in the painting process where even a beginner can do like a pro. ·Know how to clean up. Take the time to read all your labels before you start and make sure that you have the necessary cleaning supplies before you begin. If you don’t, you probably won’t clean your tools at all. A brush or roller that is left sitting around for a few hours full of paint will be tomorrow’s trash.
Belt and Suspenders: Maintain two copies of your home insurance records: One copy should be stored at home in an easy to locate place. The other should be stored in your safe deposit box. These records should include your insurance policy, and the phone numbers for your agent or insurance company for reporting claims, as well as an inventory (photographs are great to supplement this). If you need to evacuate your home, you should take insurance records stored at home with you. If for some reason, your records at home are damaged or lost, you’ll be thankful for the copy in the safe deposit box.
The summer season generally means hot days, but there are ways in which we can stay cool and make our lives a little more energy efficient. Try these tips for an energy smart season! · Maintain room temperature at 77 degrees F. This is a comfortable temperature while lessening AC running time and operating costs.· When outdoor temperatures drop below 77 degrees F, shut off your air conditioner and open the windows.·Use a box fan, ceiling fan, or fan in a room to further circulate cooled air.·Purchase the most energy efficient air conditioner possible within your price range.·Avoid setting the air conditioner at a colder setting than normal when it is first turned on. This will not cool the room faster. It will only cool to a lower temperature than required wasting energy and money.·Schedule heat generating activities such as doing laundry and baking for the coolest part of the day.·Cook using a microwave oven, small appliance, or outdoor barbeque.·Close your drapes during the hottest part of the day to block out the sun.· Surround your home with a green belt – trees and shrubs that offer shade in the summer, but gives way to allowing the sun to heat in the winter after the leaves have fallen.
Summertime is here meaning it is playtime outside.But this is also the season for many unintentional injuries in the home.The Home Safety Council dedicates the month of June – Home Safety Month – to educate and empower both families and businesses to take actions that will make homes safe.
Standard summertime maintenance & safety suggestions:·Install grab bars in the tub and shower.
·Install bright lights over stairs and steps and on landings.
·Install handrails on both sides of the stairs and steps.
·Use a ladder for climbing instead of a stool or furniture.
·Use baby gates at the top and bottom of the stairs, if babies or toddlers live in or visit your home.
·Lock poisons, cleaners, medications and all dangerous items in a place where children and pets can’t reach them.
·Install carbon monoxide detectors near sleeping areas.
·Build a shed with a lock for storing your lawn equipment, gasoline, pesticides, and pool and/or spa chemicals.
·Install a fence around your pool and/or spa with a locking gate.
·Keep your hot water at or below 120 degrees F to prevent burns.
·Make sure smoke alarms are working or even install fire sprinklers if building a new home.
·Cover the ground under playground equipment with a thick layer (9 – 12 inches) of mulch, wood chips, or other safety material.