Home Improvement – Healthy Flat

7 steps to remodel houses

The paint on the walls is fading, the tiles are cracked, and the kitchen sink is leaking. All this, and other things, indicate that it is time to remodel your home. If this is the first time you decide to do this, questions such as how much the remodel will cost, how long it will take or how to proceed properly may seem a bit difficult to answer. In truth, it is not a complicated matter.

1. Check what needs to be done

Before you begin, it is best to plan carefully what is necessary for your remodelling success. This is because you have to have a perfect plan from the beginning to avoid setbacks. Create a list of what to do, and then follow each step you have set out for yourself.

Important: Make sure you focus on completing each step and don’t do anything in a hurry. This can save you money and time because if you rush, you can cause an accident or forget to do something important.

2. Think about the style

As styles change frequently, you must inform yourself and choose the one that you like the most. Don’t try to copy too much. Get inspired! This will prevent you from having the feeling, after a while, that the style you adopted has already gone out of style and you have to remodel again.

Important: Do not mix many styles. This can have a disharmony effect.

3. Your budget

Once you are clear about what you have to do, you will have to take care of the budget that you will require. First of all, what you have to know is the limit that you can pay. Consider the higher prices of the essential things you will need. Then you can take care of the cheapest and least necessary. Thus, if it seems pertinent, you can spend more on the basics and less on the complementary.

Important: Do not use cheap material for what you think is really important. The quality is usually poor, which can create problems for you in the future.

4. Try to have all the exact measurements

When remodeling, a lot depends on the measurements. You do not want to buy an object or furniture that does not fit in the place you want. Consequently, you must measure accurately.

Important: If it is a question of cutting something, you can cut a little less than what the measurement suggests since you will always have the possibility to cut more, but you will never be able to add length.

5. You always have to prepare all the steps

Making the proper preparations for each step of the remodel can mean wasting some time. However, this is very necessary and advantageous. Consider that, if you do not prepare everything properly before, for example, painting walls, once you have completed this task, you will have the arduous work of crawling on the floor to clean all the paint stains. On the other hand, yes, anticipating this, you protect your floor and your objects, you will save a lot of time.

Important: Put everything you might need later in another room. It is often difficult to find objects when everything is covered with plastic or other material.

6. Personal safety

If possible, always try to wear safety glasses and gloves if you use sharp or heavy tools. This will reduce the risk of accidents while you work. Remember that a circular saw doesn’t just cut wood or tiles.

Important: It is best not to have the electricity on when remodeling in areas with electrical cables.

7. Just dedicate yourself to what you can do

Suppose you have no experience in tasks that require specific knowledge. For example, electrical installations, NEVER try to work on it yourself; hire a professional. Important: If you have hired someone, make sure that the entity or person is trustworthy. The same can be said regarding the materials you buy.

The art of replacing sealant.

There comes a time in every bathroom’s life when it reaches the stage of replacing the sealant. You can clearly tell when this is as it becomes discoloured and also black. This is an indication that mold is possibly growing at worst. At the very least it shows that moisture is getting in behind the tiles. Whatever the situation it is most definitely telling you it is time to change it.

Winter STORM Hits Texas, Tips For Preparing For A Winter Weather Emergency

Four million peoples already lost electricity across the south during the winter weather emergency. According to CNN WEATHER, about 78 million Americans are still under a winter storm threat. Many people are still fighting to survive in their own homes. Meanwhile, freezing temperatures continue to burst pipe across the state flooding people’s homes.

The crisis is worse than the previous storms. The heating system doesn’t work without electricity. People who don’t have installed backup power generators are dying to stay warm. Hence, 38 people died nationwide from frigid conditions in the last few days.

Tips To Preparing For A Winter Weather Emergency

So you got to get ready, therefore you need to do a lot of things for preparing for a winter weather emergency.

Weather-Proof Your Home

Firstly, You have to find out all the gaps in your home and you must apply weather striping on those gaps. If your home is new however often has cracks around the windows and doors. Therefore you have to apply weather stripping around your windows and doors. Cover the windows with plastic from the inside. How to detect leaks?

Turn off the ac unit.
Close windows and doors.
Turn on bath fans and stove vents.
Check for leaks using incense.
Caulk the leaks.

Cut Away The Tree Branches

If you have big branches trees around your home, it could fall on your home during the winter storm. It can damage your roof consequently and this can be a big risk for the life of your family. So you should cut away the closest branches.

Food And Water Backup

If your power goes out however the water pump won’t work. Make sure you have some fresh water stored up in clean containers if the electricity goes out. Store at least five days’ worth of water in your underground basement. If possible make sure you store enough food at least for one week. You will never regret having it in your store. This is like insurance, if you store enough food you can help your poor neighbor.

Best Power Generator For Home Electricity Backup

What are your heat sources? But what happens if the electricity went out like the Texas situation. You need a backup to run your heating system or to pump water. Consequently, this is really a life-saving decision to install a standby generator. Read more about the best power generator for your home.

Create An Kit In Your Car For Preparing For A Winter Weather Emergency

It is important to have some type of kit in your car for an emergency situation when you are traveling or stuck in the middle of a storm. According to the centers for disease control and prevention (CDC), there is a suggested list of kits you must keep in your car. Consequently, if you’re stuck in your car, you will need this specific list…

You must have a few extra batteries and a power bank for your mobile phones.
Most importantly, the essential one is winter apparel to stay warm such as towels, extra coats, and blankets.
You must keep a battery-operated flashlight for an emergency situation. So that you don’t have to use your cell phone battery for light.
Keep some dry foods, water, and protein bars for preparing for a winter weather emergency.
Emergency flares for the rescue situation.
Keep a can and a waterproof lighter to survive. Firstly a Can can be used for melting ice. Secondly, you need a lighter to heat the can and to light up the flare.
Always keep some cash for this kind of pandemic because ATM will be disabled if the power goes out.
A first aid kit is basic and the most important essential for preparing for a winter weather emergency.

Best Power Generator For Your Home 2021

Buying the best power generator is the cheapest insurance you can get to protect against power failure in your home.

A quiet running home generator system is a big advantage for enjoying life. What is the point? A loud generator disturbs your neighbor. Need help choosing the best home generator system? In this article, I am going to write about some best power generators.

Best Whole Home Generator

GENERAC 10KW GUARDIAN SERIES HOME STANDBY GENERATOR- MODEL 712– This generator combines all the benefits of automatic operation with beneath of a feature people love about Generac guardian series and the price is really worthy.

It includes automatic backup for a central circuit up to 10kw. This model is lightweight and installation is very easy. You can install it eighteen inches away from your home wall. This is a perfect generator for powering sensitive appliances and electronics.

It can be controlled from any mobile device with an internet connection. In conclusion, apps are available free for IOS and ANDROID from the app store.

Best Budget Standby House Generator

GENERAC 7.5KW POWERPACT SERIES AIR HOME STANDBY GENERATOR, MODEL 6998 – If you are looking for the best power generator on a good budget, investing in this best power generator will bring you peace of mind.

There are two aspects to discuss this generator. Firstly this standby home generator protects your home appliance’s central circuit automatically. Secondly, If you are staying away from home, you can generate it through the app.

Best Quite Home Generator System

CUMMINS 13KW QUICKCONNECT SERIES STANDBY GENERATOR, MODEL RS13A – This standby system is a great and reliable solution for power supply after a big storm or climate crisis power disconnection. Most importantly it is a real automatic system. Above all, you can control this generator through monitors, smart devices, and from the monitor of the generator.

Moreover, this generator is quiet and peaceful when it runs. Above all, it doesn’t disturb your neighbor.

Best Power Generator For Small Homes

BRIGGS AND STRATTON 10KW AUTOMATIC HOME STANDBY GENERATOR, MODEL 040375. Firstly this power generator is suitable for tiny houses or for those who are living in small houses. Secondly, this system is portable and affordable. Above all, This home generator can be an impressive investment in protecting your family and home during a power crisis.

Best Power Generator For Large Homes

BRIGGS AND STRATTON 17KW HOUSE GENERATORS, MODEL 00630- If you own a large home importantly, you will need a generator with a large capacity. This is a large and reliable generator of 17kw above all, it can produce power of whole home requires. Importantly, you can run the fridge and freezer with the lights on as well.

Generator Safety

Using a generator indoors can kill you in a minute. Because the generator exhaust contains carbon monoxide. Moreover, this is the ghost poison you cannot see or smell. Therefore never use a generator inside your home or garage. Most importantly, never starts or stop your generator with the electrical devices still plugged in. after starting your generator let the engine stabilize and warm up for a few minutes before plugging in any electrical devices.

Most importantly, make sure you read the operating manual and safety precautions from the manufacturer manual. READ MORE ABOUT HOW PHOTOVOLTAIC CELLS WORK IN SOLAR PANELS

Oak is incredible to build with

Oak is recognised as one of the most strongest and insulation woods that you can use. It has natural strength properties that set it apart from others. It has been the backbone of our Navy, in fact the HMS Victory has never been decommissioned so it can still see active service if need be!) where it was said it could resist direct hits from Cannonball fire, and it has been used in the building of our homes for supports like roof eaves.

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One of the most popular choices for the use of wood as a building material is with the construction of Oak Garages. Not only do they look amazingly stylish and full of heritage but they provided an excellent place to store the car as well.

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The thickness of Oak is what gives it the best properties for building. It is also excellent and begins to be treated with preservatives and paint that keep it looking rock solid and stop it from showing signs of decay and mould. Like many woods it has a natural resistance to this change. This is why you will see it in many stages of construction to do with support. For example it was always the go to wood for pit props and for railway sleepers. This is also why you see so many of the sleepers cropping up again in the garden for raised beds.

How to make homemade baking soda air freshener

There are many applications that sodium bicarbonate has in the cleaning and disinfection of the home. Still, perhaps you did not know that it is also an excellent ingredient to make effective and very cheap home air fresheners. Its absorption capacity makes bicarbonate the perfect base element to make your air freshener, ideal both for small spaces such as cabinets or drawers and for more open spaces such as a room.

If you want your house’s rooms to give off your favorite aroma, pay attention to the steps that we suggest in the following article, as we explain how to make homemade baking soda air freshener. Take note!

How to make homemade baking soda air freshener?

Steps to follow:

1
Take a glass jar that you have at home and wash it thoroughly so that no remains of its original content remain. A jar of jam or one that contained canned vegetables (peas, green beans, etc.) can go very well. Once clean, dry it completely.

2
Pour 3 large, heaping tablespoons of baking soda into the jar (about 70-90 grams). This is an approximate amount since it will always depend on the size of the bottle chosen. To give you an idea, the baking soda should take up 1/3 of the total capacity of the container you use to make this durable home air freshener.

3
Once the bicarbonate has been introduced, add 10-12 drops of the essential oil you like best. As a suggestion, lavender is great to place your air freshener inside a closet or on a shelf in the living room. The essential oil of citrus fruits such as lemon or that of aromatic plants such as basil, for example, leave a pleasant aroma in the kitchen. Simultaneously, if you prefer an air freshener for the bathroom, that of rosemary or eucalyptus is perfect for neutralizing the smell that they can dislodge sumps and pipes.

The bicarbonate will absorb bad odors and the oils will gradually release their pleasant perfume. Of course, keep in mind that the number of essential oil drops can be increased or reduced depending on whether you want a more or less intense aroma.

4
With the two ingredients in the jar, stir well with a spoon or rod for a few minutes so that the bicarbonate is diluted, soaks well and absorbs the essential oil you have chosen. With this little trick, the fragrance of the chosen oil will be released over the weeks.

5
To finish, you will have to close the container so that the aroma can come out well. The best option is to place a piece of cloth that is not very dense, like a sack (raffia, linen …) that gradually releases the aroma. Place it in the bottle’s opening and secure it with the help of a string or duct tape.

One trick to increase your air freshener’s effectiveness and intensity is to add some aromatic herbs or plants to the mix. Lavender, mint or basil leaves, rose petals … all these options give excellent results. With the jar closed, shake the inner mixture very carefully to not leak out of the container. Finally, you will only have to place your home air freshener where you consider it most necessary.

6
If your air freshener will be in a public place, you can also leave an aesthetically more beautiful bottle open with the mixture inside; Place some typical air freshener sticks in it and let it aromatize the whole place. Also, another option is to make natural air fresheners with baking soda in the form of a spray so that you can spread it throughout a room, cooling it immediately.

In this case, make your air freshener as we have indicated, that is, mixing the bicarbonate and essential oil in a glass container. When you have the mixture ready, do not close the container; Pour into a bottle or spray bottle until full.

7
Remember that the spray bottle you use has to be very clean, so whether it is new or you have used it previously, we recommend you wash it well with water and neutral soap and dry it completely before adding your air freshener mixture with bicarbonate.

8
To transfer the air freshener from the glass bottle to the spray bottle, it is best to use a funnel to do it safely and without wasting a drop.

Close the bottle and … voila! You will already have your home air freshener to give an extra touch of perfume to any room whenever you want.
Do you want to make a homemade baking soda air freshener even more easily? Substitute essential oils for a few drops of your fabric softener and prepare it as we have indicated.

Protect your Home from Christmas Burglars

It is the most wonderful time of the year once again and whilst we are all relaxing and looking forward to fun and merriment at Christmas, there are also people who are looking forward to it for less wholesome reasons – burglars.

Christmas is a favourite time for burglars to operate – it offers a lot of opportunity from the selection of gifts, like games consoles, Farah menswear from EJ Menswear, expensive jewellery and toys in our homes, to the dark evenings, it is particularly important to make sure you look after your home at this time of the year and be more vigilant when protecting it from burglaries.

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One of the best things that you can do is to install a home alarm system. This also works as a great deterrent that will help to prevent burglaries.

Don’t forget your car – never leave gifts and valuables in your car no matter how near your house it is, and if you have a garage use it to store your car in!

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It is also good to secure your garden as this is a popular route for burglars who have less chance of being spotted at the back of the house. High fences that are secure and spiky plants will keep your garden safer from intruders.

If you are going to be away around Christmas, make your home look as if someone is in. Get a neighbour to pop in ad out and also put lights on a timer.

How to deal with a smelly sink

Have you ever been washing your hands or perhaps loading up your sink and had an unpleasant smell rising up from your plughole? Unfortunately we have all been there at one point or another and it is not a nice experience. It is even more embarrassing if it is someone else who notices the aromas rising from your sink.

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There are a few reasons as to why your sink might be starting to smell and most often this is to do with a blockage that means that the water can not flow freely. Stagnant water is one of the worst culprits for creating unbearable smells. It can be incredibly difficult to find out what is causing your drain blockage and so using a Drainage Cleaning such as Wilkinson ENV is a good idea as it allows them to investigate and hopefully solve the problem for you.

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One of the best ways that you can help to prevent horrible odours from coming from your sink is to be mindful of what items you place in them and ensuring that fats, oils and hair do not get flushed down the drains. You can do this by thinking about using a mesh or catcher that is placed over your plughole to prevent food and other items from reaching the plughole. They are relatively easy to use and inexpensive, but they could save you lots of money in the future should they cause a large blockage in your pipes.

COVID19-Safe Strategies for Home-Based Businesses

This year, people who run their businesses from home have had to make several changes to the way that they do things, particularly when working with customers or clients. If you run a home-based business that serves clients from home, making sure that everybody is protected from COVID19 has become a priority. Keeping yourself and your customers safe from the pandemic needs to be a theme running through every decision that you make for your home business – and it’s even more important when you are carrying out services from the same place that you and your family live. Here are some of the main strategies for protecting your home-based business from COVID19.

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Sneeze Guards:

If you offer a service to your customers that doesn’t involve any close physical contact, it’s worth considering investing in sneezeguardez.com products to add an additional layer of safety for both yourself and your client. Sneeze Guards can be used in home-based business settings where you hold meetings with clients, or even to provide additional protection when you are offering certain beauty services such as nail treatments, where you can place the guard between yourself and the customer with a small gap that they can place their hands underneath.

Masks:

Wherever possible, it is worth asking any customers that visit your home business to wear a face covering for the duration of the visit and wear one yourself. Face masks have been proven effective in reducing the spread of the coronavirus by providing a barrier to collect microscopic droplets that come from your mouth and nose when you speak, laugh, cough, and sneeze. Paired with additional protective measures such as sneeze guards, wearing a facemask can dramatically reduce the risk of either you or your customers passing COVID19 on.

Social Distancing:

While it might not always be possible with some home-based businesses, such as those offering hairdressing, massage services, and other personal care services, those business owners who can social distance during meetings with clients or customers should do so wherever possible. If you use a certain room in your home for visiting with your customers, it might be worth setting it up differently to put as much space as possible between yourself and your customer.

Cleaning and Hygiene:

Finally, good personal hygiene for both yourself and your customers, along with more frequent deep cleaning of your home business space, is important for reducing the risk of spreading the coronavirus as you work. Offer hand sanitizer or allow your customers and clients to use your sink to wash their hands when they enter and exit your premises, and stick to a good hand-washing routine yourself. Deep cleaning your business space after each customer is also a wise idea, paying particular attention to high-touch and high-traffic areas such as door handles and seats. If you normally see customers by appointment, it’s worth spacing appointments out to add enough time for cleaning in between.

This year, home-based business owners have found themselves in a situation that they didn’t expect. With COVID19 still a real risk to health, it’s important to ensure that your home-based business is COVID19 safe in order to protect yourself, your customers, and your livelihood.

Flood damage and buying a house in a high risk area

With our evolving environment, news storeys and images of flooded homes are becoming more prevalent. The Environment Agency has estimated that there is some flood risk for one in six houses, and house-hunters need to consider and assess the risks. It is why you have to have House Surveys done before you purchase. Sam Conveyancing can help with that.

The most common causes of flooding are burst riverbanks, exceptionally high tides washing ashore, flooding of groundwater, where a rising water table causes flooding of basements, and flooding of surface water, where water during heavy rain does not drain rapidly enough.

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Home insurance rates may be heavily influenced by flood risk, especially if flooding has occurred in the past. Some insurers would want the Environment Agency’s approval of the extent of flood risk. Such clarification is also useful when applying for mortgages in an area of flood risk, as lenders would need to be assured that they can insure the land.

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For a property in a flood risk area, expect to pay higher insurance premiums. Checking the flood risk elements can also impact the cost of your solicitor – to get an idea, you may request conveyance quotes online. Should the worst arise, you may need to invest in products such as sandbags. The selling price of at-risk assets is however, going to be lower.

Although protecting your home from flooding is extremely hard, there are some measures you can take to mitigate damage. For example, in rooms at risk, avoid using carpets and ensure that power points are placed on the walls at a high level.