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Category Archives: Home Tips
Home interior : Remodeling projects that will increase the value of your home
by Starla Ross
When remodeling, wise choices can quickly increase the value of your home. Not only will you receive added value in the equity of your home, but in beauty and style as well.
In the decision to choose where to add extra value to your property, consider these options:
CURB APPEAL
What you have inside your home won’t really matter, if potential buyers, appraisers, or your friends are turned off by the exterior of your home.
Replacing old aluminum siding and weathered windows will not only increase the attractiveness of your home, but add energy efficiency as well for families wanting to control energy costs.
The addition of landscaping or flower beds helps the home look more attractive and softens the look of the yard.
“GREEN” MATERIALS
More and more, families are becoming concerned about their “ecological footprint” or the amount of energy and “stuff” they are using from their environment.
Updating your home so that it’s better able to conserve energy or water, as well as heating and cooling costs, makes a big impact on your monthly energy usage and therefore your energy bill. Money spent on energy conservation will benefit your family now and another family that may purchase your house in the future.
Posted in Home Interior, Home Tips
Tagged aluminum siding, Bathroom, counter tops, dramatic difference, ecological footprint, energy, energy efficiency, energy usage, family, flooring, flower beds, Home, home improvement projects, improvement, Kitchen, Money, Ross, Ross When, value, wise choices
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Home Cleaning : How to clean a chimney
by Betty Carew
Everyone that has wood fires needs to know how to clean a chimney. A residue from the wood causes a creosote buildup in chimneys and can cause of house fires if not maintained properly. A build up of creosote in a chimney is a fire hazard and can start a fire inside your chimney which can easily spread through the roof of your home before your even aware you have a problem. Chimney cleaning should become a part of your house maintenance to keep your family and belongings safe if you have a fireplace or a wood stove.
Make sure your fire is out,
You should wait at least 48 hours after your last fire before you attempt to clean your chimney, this will ensure there are no live embers. If you have a fire place, remove the grate that is in front of it. This is where you will clean out your residue when you’re finished. If you have a wood burning stove there should be a clean out at the bottom of your chimney, usually a brick that can be removed easily. Take out any ashes or residue you find in your fireplace or woodstove and place it in a fireproof container. You can find these at any hardware store.
Posted in Home Cleaning, Home Tips
Tagged Betty Carew Everyone, chimney, chimney cleaning, creosote buildup, dust, fire, fire hazard, fireplace, fireproof container, Home, live embers, pole, roof, stove, wood, wood burning stove, wood fires, wood stove, woodstove
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Home and garden : How your yard pond vision can come to life
One of the most exciting and rewarding outdoor projects our family has ever undertaken was the building of our backyard pond! What a great family project. It has been educational, fun, and provided hours of entertainment. Our pond has been in existence for the past 4 years and gets more beautiful each year!
The first step in building a pond is choosing an ideal location. Avoid excessively shady areas or areas under trees. Your pond will need sun in order for successful plant growth to occur. Excessive amounts of leaves will result in too much bacteria and will be deadly to fish. Obviously, your location should provide a good view of the pond and maybe a place to sit nearby and watch it. Be sure to check with your utility companies to insure you won’t hit an electric, gas, or water line when you start digging.
Posted in Gardens, Home, Home Tips
Tagged backyard pond, building a pond, channel, concrete mix, dirt, excessive amounts, filter, liner, Lowe, outdoor projects, plant vegetation, pond, pump, shady areas, sprinkling water, water, water fall, waterfall, way
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Home and Garden : Xeriscaping explained
Xeriscaping is a method of landscaping that focuses on water conservation. It is an ecologically friendly method of landscaping that needs to gain a wider focus from the public. It is in the best interest of anyone who chooses to landscape to begin to follow the practices described below. Xeriscaping is not exclusive to area’s that are desert or have water restrictions. It is a practice that can be followed anywhere.
There are seven principles of Xeriscaping, which if followed will benefit the local community,(by reducing the funding needed in water recycling, processing, and delivery), the home owner, (Xeriscaping can potentially add retail value to a home, the yard is lower maintenance), and the environment.
Principle One: Hydrozoning
Hydrozoning refers to proper planning and design regarding grouping plants. The groupings can be separated into low water use, (little to no watering), moderate, (requires some watering), and high water use, (plants are given as much as they need). Areas that require high water use tend to be the smallest and are generally in high visibility areas.
Posted in Home, Home Tips
Tagged area, Don, grouping plants, high visibility, landscape, necessary additives, plant selection, Principle, proper soil, soil, soil analysis, turf, use, water, water recycling, water retention capacity, water zone, watering, Xeriscaping
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Home and Garden : How to get rid of poison ivy rashes
Getting rid of a poison ivy rash is no easy task, anyone that has contracted it in their life can testify to that. There are countless old wives tales surrounding what does and doesn’t work and many are just that, tales. Once you have come in contact with poison ivy there are some tips to try to get rid of the urushiol oil before it sets in, but that isn’t always possible. While I will touch on prevention very briefly, the focus of this article will be on treating an already active poison ivy rash.
Very briefly if you come in contact with poison ivy wash your hands as soon as possible. Use soapy water and get between the fingers and under the nails. Repeat the process several times, and use isopropyl alcohol or a like solvent like witch hazel to help separate the oil from your skin. This part applies in every case- remove all your clothing and wash it separately from all other clothes. Washing it twice isn’t always necessary but it certainly doesn’t hurt. The last thing you want is the oil finding it’s way back onto your body after you have just gotten rid of the rash. Second, anything you may have been using which came in contact with poison ivy should be scrubbed down to help prevent re-contamination.
Posted in Gardens, Home, Home Interior, Home Tips
Tagged Amanda Fox, area, burning sensation, burrows solution, contact, doctor, Don, infection, itch, ivy, magic bullet, oil, old wives tales, poison, poison ivy rash, rash, soapy water, urushiol oil, Vera, wash your hands, whole milk
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