Before beginning a bathroom remodeling project you need to decide two things. What will it cost? How will you finance it?
Cost for a bathroom remodeling varies depending on the size of the remodel and the materials and fixtures you select, and whether you do most of the work yourself or decide to contract the job out.
A remodel on a do-it-yourself basis usually runs between $5000 and $9000. If you contract it out the average cost runs $10,000 to 20,000. But, of course, these are only general estimates since each job is a different size, and the selection of materials can vary widely.
The first thing to determine is how much of a remodel you need or want. Bathroom fixtures are very durable if cared for, and possibly some of them don't need replacing.
What is the source of dissatisfaction with your current bathroom? Does it simply need some updating, or is it really beyond salvaging, and you need a whole fresh start?
Begin to consider what you want in your new bathroom. Do you want a seperate tub and shower, or a shower only? If you want both as seperate units, will you have enough space? Shower-tub combinations are not as popular as they once were, but if you want both and you are limited for space it is a practical solution.
If the cabinets in your bathroom are wood and showing some signs of wear, they can possibly be reclaimed by putting in a little sweat equity and sanding them down and adding a colored stain. There are many stains other than just wood stains. You may be able to refinish both your vanity base and any other cabinets in your bath and replace the knobs and drawer handles and give it a whole new look. Then all you need is a new vanity top.
Tile, Wood Laminate, and vinyl are popular for bathroom floors
Tile is very durable and you can save a bundle if you install it yourself. It isn't difficult to install if you have good instructions and follow them. Allow time for each process and know what materials and tools you need before starting the job.
Wood laminate is popular, and one advantage is that it also is fairly easy to install, and once it is down, the job is done since it is a finished product. Make sure your building supply knows it is to be installed in a bathroom, and follow the manufacturer's instructions to the letter, so you don't void the warranty. Keep in mind that bathrooms are moist environments.
Vinyl is also very popular. It is easy to clean, easy on the feet and holds up well in the moist environment of a bathroom. Prices vary widely from inexpensive to pretty pricey.
Decide what extra bathroom amenities or accessories you want
There are lots of extras for bathrooms these days. Showers can have massaging jets, sound systems, phones, steam and more. There are heating grids that can be installed under your flooring, towel warmers and many other extras.
Do some thorough shopping, make some choices, decide if you can do all or some of the work yourself, and you will have the information you need to determine what a bathroom remodel will cost.
I find it is wise once you have a figure in mind that you add 20% so you have some leeway in case a situation arises you didn't count on. If it turns out you don't need the extra money, maybe you can use it elsewhere in your household, or if you borrowed the money, you can apply it on the loan, but things often do happen that you don't expect when you are remodeling a bathroom so it's better to be prepared.
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Sunday, May 20, 2007
Bedroom Hidden TV Cabinet
Finding the right furniture sometimes requires a lot of research. Especially when you are trying to find a piece for your bedroom that you want to fit seamlessly into your existing decor.
One household item that has found it's way into the bedroom is the TV. Often it's left on even after we are sound asleep. But when you want it hidden from sight then you really are in need of a bedroom hidden TV cabinet.
There are two different type of bedroom hidden TV cabinets that we will discuss. The main difference between the two bedroom hidden TV cabinet is the type of doors that it uses.
One type of door swings open from the center and the doors come to rest flat against the outside of the cabinet. This has it's advantages in that there is no blockage at all by the doors on the cabinet. The disadvantage of this type of bedroom hidden TV cabinet is that it needs to have ample room on both sides of the unit or else the doors will be stopped by a wall.
The other type of bedroom hidden TV cabinet is one with pocket type doors. The doors open 90° to the unit and then slide inside the unit on either side of the TV. This has it's advantages because you do not need any additional wallspace to place your bedroom hidden TV cabinet since the doors go inside the unit. However, the doors may stick out a bit past the front of the cabinet, blocking the view of the TV to an extent if it is viewed from an extreme angle. The way to get around this is to find a bedroom hidden TV cabinet with pocket doors and a sliding shelf that pulls the TV out in front of the face of the cabinet to allow full viewing.
One household item that has found it's way into the bedroom is the TV. Often it's left on even after we are sound asleep. But when you want it hidden from sight then you really are in need of a bedroom hidden TV cabinet.
There are two different type of bedroom hidden TV cabinets that we will discuss. The main difference between the two bedroom hidden TV cabinet is the type of doors that it uses.
One type of door swings open from the center and the doors come to rest flat against the outside of the cabinet. This has it's advantages in that there is no blockage at all by the doors on the cabinet. The disadvantage of this type of bedroom hidden TV cabinet is that it needs to have ample room on both sides of the unit or else the doors will be stopped by a wall.
The other type of bedroom hidden TV cabinet is one with pocket type doors. The doors open 90° to the unit and then slide inside the unit on either side of the TV. This has it's advantages because you do not need any additional wallspace to place your bedroom hidden TV cabinet since the doors go inside the unit. However, the doors may stick out a bit past the front of the cabinet, blocking the view of the TV to an extent if it is viewed from an extreme angle. The way to get around this is to find a bedroom hidden TV cabinet with pocket doors and a sliding shelf that pulls the TV out in front of the face of the cabinet to allow full viewing.
Sunday, May 13, 2007
Is it Time to Refinish Your Hardwood Floor?
How do you know when the time is right to refinish your hardwood floors? Hardwood floors tend to be quite durable and the stains long lasting. There are, of course, places in high traffic areas that will begin to show signs of wear long before the floors have worn out their beauty of usefulness. With that in mind, how do you know when the time is right for refinishing?
Refinishing hardwood floors doesn’t have to be the stuff that nightmares are made of. In fact, if at all possible this is the kind of chore you should really entrust to professionals (this way someone else is responsible if something gets messed up). Another reason to entrust this to professionals is that they have access to the best of power tools for this specific job. And using the right tools is sometimes all the difference in the world. While it wouldn’t be cost effective for the average home owner to purchase these tools for a one time project, a professional floor person would often have cause to use these tools.
So what is the difference between a floor that simply needs to be cleaned and one that needs to be completely refinished? One way to do this is to go to one of the high traffic run down areas of your floor and spill a few drops of liquid onto the floor. If the liquid beads up there is still some life left in your original finish and you are not quite ready for a major overhaul. If on the other hand, the wood soaks the water right up, it is time to refinish.
One of the great things about refinishing is that you can choose to go lighter or darker than before or even to use the exact same finish. If you’re looking for a way to change the look of a room, changing the finish of your floors is definitely a way to make a large impact on a room. Keep in mind that stain samples will look different when they are on the entire floor and that different stains react differently to different hardwoods, you definitely want to choose a stain that is compatible to the hardwoods of your floors. The age of your floor also has a tremendous impact on how the stain will look when the floor is finished. A good place to try stain samples is the floorboard of a closet.
Hardwood flooring comes in many different stains and colors, the more popular stain options include stains that appear natural, light stains that don’t significantly altar the look of the wood, medium stains, which bring out a darker tint in the grain of the wood, and dark stains, which provide a rich, velvety feel to the floor.
If you haven’t something that reaches out and grabs you, you can also go to a local hardware store and have a stain custom blended for your floors. You can get really creative for these stains and have a lot of fun in the process, but remember this is your home and you have to live with the floors once they are finished.
Refinishing hardwood floors doesn’t have to be the stuff that nightmares are made of. In fact, if at all possible this is the kind of chore you should really entrust to professionals (this way someone else is responsible if something gets messed up). Another reason to entrust this to professionals is that they have access to the best of power tools for this specific job. And using the right tools is sometimes all the difference in the world. While it wouldn’t be cost effective for the average home owner to purchase these tools for a one time project, a professional floor person would often have cause to use these tools.
So what is the difference between a floor that simply needs to be cleaned and one that needs to be completely refinished? One way to do this is to go to one of the high traffic run down areas of your floor and spill a few drops of liquid onto the floor. If the liquid beads up there is still some life left in your original finish and you are not quite ready for a major overhaul. If on the other hand, the wood soaks the water right up, it is time to refinish.
One of the great things about refinishing is that you can choose to go lighter or darker than before or even to use the exact same finish. If you’re looking for a way to change the look of a room, changing the finish of your floors is definitely a way to make a large impact on a room. Keep in mind that stain samples will look different when they are on the entire floor and that different stains react differently to different hardwoods, you definitely want to choose a stain that is compatible to the hardwoods of your floors. The age of your floor also has a tremendous impact on how the stain will look when the floor is finished. A good place to try stain samples is the floorboard of a closet.
Hardwood flooring comes in many different stains and colors, the more popular stain options include stains that appear natural, light stains that don’t significantly altar the look of the wood, medium stains, which bring out a darker tint in the grain of the wood, and dark stains, which provide a rich, velvety feel to the floor.
If you haven’t something that reaches out and grabs you, you can also go to a local hardware store and have a stain custom blended for your floors. You can get really creative for these stains and have a lot of fun in the process, but remember this is your home and you have to live with the floors once they are finished.
Tuesday, May 08, 2007
Choosing The Right Portable Lawn Sprinkler For Your Lawn
You know that watering your lawn is an important part of lawn care but you have limited time to do it. Other than hiring someone to do it for you, you can set up a portable sprinkler to do the job for you.
A portable sprinkler is particularly useful if you have a small lawn since it can be chore to move it around by hand for a large lawn. If you live in an area with reasonable amount of rainfall, the portable sprinkler can be use to supplement rainfall when the occasional drought period arise.
You can shop for a portable sprinkler easily in any well-stocked nursery or hardware store. Review the information on the sprinkler box. It should indicate the size and shape of the area it can cover.
There are many designs for portable sprinkler and you should evaluate carefully which one will meet your needs. Some models allow you to cover odd-shaped lawn while other may have a tractor system that can move along the water hose.
After you purchase your portable sprinkler, you will want to do a test to see how it performs. In particular you want to know how much water it is using to cover your lawn. First, place the portable sprinkler at the center of your lawn and turn it on for about ten seconds. You want to know exactly how much area it can cover. After ten seconds, turn the portable sprinkler off and place about seven or eight empty cups in the area covered by the portable sprinkler. Turn on the portable sprinkler again and leave it running for ten minutes.
After ten minutes, turn off the portable sprinkler and check the amount of water for each cup. The amount in each cup will vary, as portable sprinklers tend to have uneven water distribution. However, the variation should not be more than 0.25 inch. You will use the cup that has the least amount of water for your estimation. Lets assume that there is 0.2 inch of water in the cup with the least amount of water. If you want to apply 0.5 inch of water, you will have to leave the portable sprinkler running for 25 minutes.
A good hose is also vital for your portable sprinkler to work efficiently. A good hose will roll up easily in any weather and does not kink or crack. A cheap hose will give you more maintenance headaches down the road as it tend to kink and crack after using it for some times. You will also waste precious water due to leakage from the cheap hose.
It is also advisable to hook up a timer between your faucet and your hose. You simply set up the timer and it will shut off the sprinkler automatically after the set amount of time has elapsed. This will prevent any wastage of water.
Once you have everything set up properly, you will want to monitor the response of your lawn and adjust the water application accordingly. The portable sprinkler may not cover a few spots in your lawn and you will have to do the watering manually for these spots. Nevertheless, with the introduction of a portable sprinkler, the time you spent watering your lawn will be dramatically reduced and you can have more time to relax and do the things you want to do.
A portable sprinkler is particularly useful if you have a small lawn since it can be chore to move it around by hand for a large lawn. If you live in an area with reasonable amount of rainfall, the portable sprinkler can be use to supplement rainfall when the occasional drought period arise.
You can shop for a portable sprinkler easily in any well-stocked nursery or hardware store. Review the information on the sprinkler box. It should indicate the size and shape of the area it can cover.
There are many designs for portable sprinkler and you should evaluate carefully which one will meet your needs. Some models allow you to cover odd-shaped lawn while other may have a tractor system that can move along the water hose.
After you purchase your portable sprinkler, you will want to do a test to see how it performs. In particular you want to know how much water it is using to cover your lawn. First, place the portable sprinkler at the center of your lawn and turn it on for about ten seconds. You want to know exactly how much area it can cover. After ten seconds, turn the portable sprinkler off and place about seven or eight empty cups in the area covered by the portable sprinkler. Turn on the portable sprinkler again and leave it running for ten minutes.
After ten minutes, turn off the portable sprinkler and check the amount of water for each cup. The amount in each cup will vary, as portable sprinklers tend to have uneven water distribution. However, the variation should not be more than 0.25 inch. You will use the cup that has the least amount of water for your estimation. Lets assume that there is 0.2 inch of water in the cup with the least amount of water. If you want to apply 0.5 inch of water, you will have to leave the portable sprinkler running for 25 minutes.
A good hose is also vital for your portable sprinkler to work efficiently. A good hose will roll up easily in any weather and does not kink or crack. A cheap hose will give you more maintenance headaches down the road as it tend to kink and crack after using it for some times. You will also waste precious water due to leakage from the cheap hose.
It is also advisable to hook up a timer between your faucet and your hose. You simply set up the timer and it will shut off the sprinkler automatically after the set amount of time has elapsed. This will prevent any wastage of water.
Once you have everything set up properly, you will want to monitor the response of your lawn and adjust the water application accordingly. The portable sprinkler may not cover a few spots in your lawn and you will have to do the watering manually for these spots. Nevertheless, with the introduction of a portable sprinkler, the time you spent watering your lawn will be dramatically reduced and you can have more time to relax and do the things you want to do.
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