Eco Friendly Homes

Archive for the ‘Remodeling’ Category

If you are doing cosmetic remodeling or your old bag don’t be astonied if you find surface walls under layer upon layer of wallpaper. If you are wondering if you can makeup surface walls instead of wallpapering again the answer is a possible yes.

Step 1: Remove some cover or cover cement residue. You can either use a cover adhesive remover in liquid form or you can use a steamer. Steamers are only machines that you modify with mediocre tap water. The steam is pumped through a hose to a rectangular dispenser. You hold the dispenser against the wall long enough to fill the area. The cover will begin to bubble and peel as it becomes saturated. If you are working with several layers you may requirement to treat the area with either the steamer or the cover paster remover several times. Steamers can be purchased from your local bag transformation store or you can rent them.

Step 2: Repair some surface damage by using a surface repair compound. Using drywall compound will not work correctly. Drywall compounds are designed to work with drywall covered in paper. Your surface walls are porous and requirement a compound designed to bound with a porous surface.

There are various type of Natural stones available in INDIA. Main categories are: GRANITE, MARBLE, TRAVERTINE, SLATE, QUARTZITE, SANDSTONE AND LIMESTONE.We should choose the stone depending upon the area environment (Look of the area) and its usage.
SLATE STONE: These are the softest stone and can be pealed out with any regular pressure. These are recommended for wall cladding and low activity floors with proper sealing. Slate stones are available in Natural, Tumbled and polished finish, but the beauty of this stone is more visible in only Natural finish. These are available in Tile and small slab size.
QUARTZITE STONE: These are harder then slate, due to quartz particles in it and are mostly used for interior cladding and flooring. Used also for Table tops.
TRAVERTINE STONE: It is a soft stone and mostly used to give an antique look to the wall. It look antique in the natural finish and mostly available in tile size.
SANDSTONE: It is a soft stone and mostly advised to use outside the building in Natural finish for Cladding and garden/pathway flooring. Interior walls in Natural, polished, sandblasted n brushed finish.
LIMESTONE: Harder then Sandstone, used as sandstone but it is more brittle. The flooring interior is recommended in Polished/Honed finish and exterior in Natural finish.
MARBLE: Marble is a type of Limestone, it is basically more smooth in Natural and give an attracting antique look to the floor, wall or any top. Polished and Brushed Antique finish is available.
GRANITE: Very Hard stone, Used in interior n exteriors. These are available in Tiles, small and gangsaw slabs. These have varies finishes, like, Honed, Polished, Brushed, leather and flammed. These are recommended based on the area of use.

While refacing your cabinets, consider other cost-effective renovations throughout your home. Laminate is an inexpensive and versatile remodeling material, and it’s not just for kitchen countertops and bathroom floors.

Laminates Throughout the Home

A new laminate countertop would complement your newly refaced cabinets, but why stop there? Laminates are available in a wide variety of colors including greens, blues, and beiges that can balance many areas of your home. Laminate is resistant to nicks and scratches, and is easily maintained with soap and water which makes it an ideal renovation material for high-use areas like:

1. Craft/hobby rooms * Garages * Kid’s rooms * Family rooms * Snack areas * Cabinets and bookshelves
Other less obvious areas in the home where laminate remodeling may be beneficial:

2. A laundry room countertop. The countertop would be ideal for folding clothes and easy to clean in case of any detergent spills.

3. A durable laminate built-in desk. Many homeowners store mail and paperwork near the kitchen, a built-in kitchen desk would be an ideal way to complement your cabinet refacing selections and kitchen décor.

4. Laminate storage enclosures, table tops, and decorative moldings. Ideal for increasingly trendy home theaters, computer work stations, and video console areas.

Laminate is a popular remodeling material for many areas of the home because of the wide array of design options. Rounded custom edges on tables and countertops make them a safe alternative especially if you have children running through the home. In tougher, high-traffic environments, it makes sense to renovate walls and doors with laminate. Laminate can also play a big part in rooms with dual functions; a laundry room can become a craft or hobby room, or a family room can double as a homework station or computer room.
Hire a contractor to reface your cabinets and remodel with laminate around your home. Laminate is not just for kitchen and bathroom renovations. Be creative and complement your cabinet decor.

People looking for a new home are not only looking at the price tags prospective homes carry but on several other factors. Most would try to look at such factors and elements whenever they conduct ocular inspections on a prospective home, and most would simply be turned off and walk away if they see that the home they are looking at failed to satisfy their expectations.

* Curb appeal or what the external areas in your house would look like would be the first window that prospective homebuyers would look for in a home. Great landscaping and an awesome lawn never fails to catch the attention of people passing by and those seeking for a new home would definitely want to set foot inside a home with a great looking exterior such as the one you have.

* Part of the curb appeal that homes could give to prospective buyers would be the external sections of the house. An intrinsic part of your home renovation work should also focus on the exteriors of the house including walls, windows, terraces, etc. Home improvements may include repainting of surfaces or a complete change of exterior material including stone or marble.

* A big increase to your home value can be achieved by improving your roof. Investing on a totally new roof would not be such a bad idea if you have the finances for it. The quick returns in terms of raising the home value significantly may be well worth the investment.

* From the exteriors, your home remodeling project to increase the value of your home should now move to the interiors. Walls and other surfaces would be the first eye-catchers so you definitely have to invest in repainting, change of materials or enhancing surfaces and countertops.

* Home renovation would not be complete if there would be no significant change in the flooring. It would be wise to consider moving away from the use of carpets and linoleum as floor covering and move on to ceramic tiles, stone, laminated floors or the natural beauty of hardwood. Such changes would swell your home value significantly.

* Kitchen remodeling and bathroom remodeling are some focus areas that you would need to consider to drastically lift the value of your home and catapult it to the next level. Custom home builders can help you design and build such awesome changes in your home that can be competitive against most modern and stylish homes.

Home renovation will definitely cost the homeowners a significant amount for investment but the returns would be far more significant in terms of raising the value of the home to a much higher level.

First, the cost depends on how much energy your household requires. More energy you require means more solar panels and higher cost of installation. The good thing is, the technology to harness the power of the sun is relatively cheaper than it was several years ago.

Second, the government is offering a rebate to those who will switch to alternative form of energy. That means, the government will shoulder a portion of the total cost of the system.

Third, you can get tax credits when you switch to solar energy system. The amount of tax rebate depends from state to state but the range can go from $1000 to $2000.

A photovoltaic system can cost roughly at $8000 to $10000 per 1kW system. This equates to $8 to $10 per Watt. An average American household with 3 bedrooms requires at least 1.5kW to as much as 3kW. Thus, installation can cost from $14000 to $30000, before rebates and tax credits.

Solar energy is best for houses that are located far from the existing power lines.