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Archive for December, 2009

How to Upgrade Your Home’s Worth

How to Upgrade Your Home’s Worth
By Beverly Manago

There are so many advantages that you can get from home improvement. Increasing the value of your home will help you refinance your home easier, secure a bigger loan, or sell it faster than any other property comparable to it. Aside from all those marketing benefits, you will be able to enjoy a new and improved household. That is a pretty good giveaway, isn’t it?

But wait, home improvement is not all about spending money. Not always, at least. There are things you can do to increase your home’s worth without having to spend money or lots of it as opposed to the common impression. If you have the money to splurge, however, do not be afraid to spend because that would come back ten-fold. Then again, be careful as to where you put your money on. Some home improvement projects prove to worth more than the others. Here are some tips on how you can upgrade your home and increase its market value:

Tip #1: Disinfect, unclog, and unclutter. In simple terms, clean up your house, inside and out. Although it is important to pay special attention to the outside because it spells your home’s face value, you must never take the insides of your home for granted. Get rid of stains, mildew, and bad odors. For sure, your home’s value would escalate to great heights.

Tip #2: Do the repairs. Anything that is broken makes for an ugly sight. It would mean a lot to your home’s worth if you fix even the smallest crack or damage.

Tip #3: Upgrade your appliances and furniture. Anything that’s outdated should not have a place in your home. Do not just buy new appliances or furniture to replace the old ones. Make sure that your acquisitions will help your household function more efficiently.

Tip #4: Improve your home features. Installing efficiency and beauty in every corner can make a whole lot of difference in your home’s current value. Pay special attention to the flooring, bathroom fixtures, windows, and doors.

Tip #5: Paint your house anew. Whether it’s a different color or just like the old one, a bucket of paint can create a substantial difference in making your home look fresh and now. Choose your color well. Muted tones are the way to go; going bold is not advisable.

Tip #6: Use up your extra space well. If there is a basement that has been lying around futile for years, maybe it is time that you turn it into a family room or an extra guest room or even a gym area. If you have a huge space in your garden that looks empty, you may fill it in with a swimming pool or a playground for the kids. Look around your household. See where you can make improvements or additions that will increase both the efficiency of your household and the comfort that it can provide its dwellers. In this case, you will be required to spend a good sum of money. But if it is to increase your home’s worth and help you enjoy living in your home more, why not?

December 17, 2009 at 11:34 am Leave a comment

How to Pay a Contractor

By Steve Frasher

Depending on the nature of your home project you may need to determine a payment schedule with your contractor.

A payment schedule is a written document that states when you will make payments to the contractor at certain stages of your project. Payment schedules are common for large jobs in order to allow the contractor to purchase materials and pay workers during the course of the work. A payment schedule can also simply state that payment will be made in full at the completion of a small job.

Don’t let a contractor talk you out of needing a written payment schedule. A payment schedule ensures everyone is on the same page as well as protects you from paying for work that has not been performed. It also serves as motivation for the contractor to complete their work in a timely fashion.

Here are a few tips on developing payment schedules:

• Always get payment schedules in writing. The dollar amount and timing of payments needs to be clearly written.

• Be wary of contractors that ask for a large upfront payment. They may have financial problems or be worried that after you see their work you will not be happy.

• If you are hiring a contractor for a long, expensive job you may want to get some proof that they are in good financial standing. An example of this is a reference letter from their bank. This helps ensure that the company is able to pay their bills and their subcontractors during the course of your job. This is an important step in avoiding a nightmare contractor situation!

• For large projects a typical payment schedule is as follows: 10% at contract signing; 3 payments of 25% spaced evenly over the project’s duration; the final 15% when the job is TOTALLY completed.

• When deciding on payment timing you can specify a date, but more importantly make sure that work milestones are specified too. In other words, something like: “25% of total on July 23 if rough plumbing is completed, electrical is installed, and flooring is completed”. This ensures you are paying for work to be done in a timely matter. Do not pay on the date unless the work is completed.

• STICK TO YOUR PAYMENT PLAN. Over the course of a long project you will get to know a lot about your contractor. You may even become friends. However, don’t ever let them talk you into an early payment. Do not pay them on a specified date if their work is not following your payment plan. This is a BIG MISTAKE that trusting homeowners often make. You NEVER want to get into a situation where you have paid for more work than has been accomplished. If you do, you may find yourself waiting for the contractor to finish work…but they have no motivation to finish because they have already been paid! This can lead to a nightmare of a situation.

• Give the final payment when your final checklist is TOTALLY completed. The small details may never get completed if the contractor has been paid in full…they have moved on to the next job.

• Never pay the contractor unless the work is satisfactory. We have had many homeowners write us with questions on what to do about poor contractor work. You would be surprised how many of them have already been pressured into paying the contractor for the work they are unsatisfied with. Once you have paid the contractor it is hard to get the situation corrected. Payment signifies that the job is completed…if it is not done to your satisfaction then it is not complete!

• Always pay contractors with check or credit card. This documents your payment. Ask for a receipt.

Following the above suggestions can help you not get burned when paying your contractor.

December 15, 2009 at 11:05 am 1 comment

Make an Eco-Friendly House For Yourself

Make an Eco-Friendly House For Yourself
By Anna Peacocks

An eco-friendly home is a home which uses very less materials that may harm to our environmental. Make an eco-friendly home is a good practice to everyone since the world is discussing on environmental friendly topic most of the time. Making an eco-friendly home is not only to make your home green, but it is also make your house has a better selling value. Some of us may think that it is not easy to make a green home and it will need a lot of investment. In fact, making an eco-friendly is just easy by using few simple steps and changes.

The first simple improvement on your home is to use eco-friendly paint. This is the easiest home improvement step that you could do in order to have an eco-friendly home. There are variety types of eco-friendly paints with low VOC levels in the market. This kind of paint is proven that it does not contain any harsh chemicals which can harm our environment. Basically there are 3 basic kinds of eco-friendly paints which are clay based, milk based and recycled latex. All these paints can be applied on different surfaces of wall. The quality of this paint is as good as the non eco-friendly paint. Therefore, there is no harm to use this eco-friendly paint.

After eco-friendly painting on your wall, you may go to the flooring of your home. The idea is to use natural flooring materials which have nice finishing as well as giving the low environmental impact. Generally, cork and bamboo are the most frequent material types of eco-friendly flooring that used in eco-friendly home. Both of these materials have their own advantages. Cork is a durable material; you will feel comfortable when you walk on it. It is normally mixed with non-toxic adhesives and there are many choices in color. Bamboo is another good option too. This is because it looks similarly with conventional wood flooring. Bamboo grows faster that traditional hardwood floors. This makes it more eco-friendly compare with the traditional one.

There is a part of your home which can turn it into eco-friendly easily, which is roofing. Solar roof system is the most famous used in eco-friendly home. Normally this kind of solar roof system needs higher budget for improvement project. Anyhow, you can have a lot of benefits throughout this system. Basically, this solar system receives light from the sun and it will convert the light into energy. The converted energy will generate electricity which can be supplied to the entire house. This solar system provides good energy saving and it becomes a good choice of eco-friendly product although it is not created by recyclable materials. On top of that, a solar roofing system can last long in about 30 years.

Our mother nature is crying! Please do something on it. Every one of us can contribute in helping our environmental. Therefore, the above guides can be used to build a better environment and it also benefits to us by having an eco-friendly home with a lot of advantages. Let’s work together on helping our earth to have a better future for the next generation!

December 14, 2009 at 11:28 am 2 comments

Featuring New ALP pricing for Power Tools For the Holiday Season

Tessier’s is now implementing a more aggressive pricing structure for their power tools.
ALP Pricing is now in effect. ALP stands for Absolute Lowest Price. This price is close to or at our cost, so we can’t go any lower. This guarantees you an excellent and competitive price for you to get that tool you’ve been eyeballing for the holiday season.

December 11, 2009 at 12:38 pm Leave a comment

New Brands In Stock For the Holidays! Leatherman and Victorinox/Swiss Army

Due to a recent addition in our wholesaler lineup, we are now very excited and proud to offer two of the industries oldest and most well known brands in Knives and Multi Tools!!!

We are starting off with a small assortment and it can only grow if sales go well and they are well received.

We can also special order any unit available to us.

We have an assortment of brand knives!

We also have an assortment of brand multi tools!

Come on in and get yours today.

December 10, 2009 at 3:29 pm 1 comment

Don’t Let Frozen Pipes and Other Winter-Related Mishaps Disrupt Your Homestead

Don’t Let Frozen Pipes and Other Winter-Related Mishaps Disrupt Your Homestead
By S. L. Robertson

Protect your property with these thoughtful tips and look for other ways to keep your home free from cold-weather mishaps.

The last thing you want to deal with in your home — new or old –is frozen pipes or other winter related mishaps! Here are helpful home safety and maintenance tips to make sure winter doesn’t disrupt your year-round enjoyment of your homestead.

Be sure to use weather stripping around windows and doors — anywhere cold air might get in (and that expensive warm air might get out).

If you are in an older home, adding new double-paned windows is a very worthwhile investment. Not only will they insulate your home in cold weather, they can be a cost-saver in hot summer months as well. They improve your property value, too and some utility companies will even help with the cost to purchase and install double pane windows.

Clear out those rain gutters. Make sure you remove wet leaves and other debris so they don’t freeze (if gutters do get overloaded, icy and heavy, they could even pull right off your house).

Repair any roof leaks fast! Be sure to replace damaged or missing shingles too. Roof leaks can have far-reaching results that lead to very costly damage.

Do you have a small barn, chicken coop or outdoor dog run? Ventilate these spaces so fresh air is available; this is essential to both the animals and to anyone working in these out buildings. Put clean, correctly fitted blankets on your animals* (dogs or horses) when it gets too cold (usually below 30 degrees). *No need to blanket the chickens; they hate that.

Cut back any tree branches that could fall onto your home or out buildings if high winds or other storms blow in. Have you thought about putting up a windbreak? Those can really help keep your place warmer, and prevent property damage.

Cover any exposed pipes with insulating foam wrap. You can pick it up at most home improvement stores at a very affordable price. There are insulated bags available for hoses, too. If you need to keep hoses outdoors (for watering livestock, for example) these can offer a great deal of convenience!

Of course, adding the protection of a home security system (security lighting, house burglar alarms and motion detectors on your windows and entry doors) is a smart way to add home safety no matter what time of year. A home security system can be, quite literally, a real life saver.

Making sure your home is insulated from winter weather can save you time, money and frustration. Protect your property with these thoughtful tips and look for other ways to keep your place free from frustrating cold-weather damage.

December 9, 2009 at 11:48 am 1 comment