Kitchens are no longer rooms unto themselves. They are part of a larger multipurpose room, which allows families and friends to gather, entertain, cook, confer over homework and watch television. The kitchen is the heart of the home and people have finally realized that you are not going to get everyone out of the kitchen.
Kitchen layouts and cabinetry have changed to meet these needs. The advent of dual-chef households also changed the way in which kitchens are used. Husband and wife often want their own prep sinks and other food preparation areas so that they are not tripping over each other.
Islands are becoming more important. Effective storage is also necessary
Aesthetically, homeowners are gravitating toward contrasting cabinets within the kitchen with the island cabinets looking totally different from the perimeter cabinets as a focal point to accent stained wood cabinets elsewhere are very popular now. Islands and stove cabinets are the areas most commonly chosen to be painted accents.
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Monday, January 9, 2012
Point, Click, and Cut Remodel Bills
For high-end appliances
A new Viking, SubZero, or other commercial-grade appliance can run $10,000. Greendemolitions.com sells used units with years of life left in them. Some well-off homebuyers tear out two- and three-year-old, high-end kitchens. 50% to 90% below the cost of buying new.
For remodeling
Diggerslist.com is a Craigslist for do-it-yourselfers, selling all sorts of renovation castoffs from other weekend warriors' projects. Pick up bricks, door, tiles, lumber,and cabinet hardware for 50% to 70% discounts. Everything is sold as is; go see it and make sure it's in good shape before you buy.
For stone counters
When you need only a small stone countertop - for a kitchen island say - you can save about 50% by buying a remnant instead of a full slab. Thestonebroker.com lets you search local yards' remnants. The site tacks on $200 for any stone you end up buying. But you save $500 or more on the $1,000- to $2,000-and-way-up cost of using a full slab.
For Luxe lighting
High-end light fixtures make your home distinctive, a single chandelier can cost $800 to $1,500 or more. Buy factory direct from one of the finest manufacturers at rejuvenation.com. It offers dozens of lighting styles, made to order in your finish and size needs, for 20% to 30% less than what you'd pay for a similar fixture at a specialty shop.
A new Viking, SubZero, or other commercial-grade appliance can run $10,000. Greendemolitions.com sells used units with years of life left in them. Some well-off homebuyers tear out two- and three-year-old, high-end kitchens. 50% to 90% below the cost of buying new.
For remodeling
Diggerslist.com is a Craigslist for do-it-yourselfers, selling all sorts of renovation castoffs from other weekend warriors' projects. Pick up bricks, door, tiles, lumber,and cabinet hardware for 50% to 70% discounts. Everything is sold as is; go see it and make sure it's in good shape before you buy.
For stone counters
When you need only a small stone countertop - for a kitchen island say - you can save about 50% by buying a remnant instead of a full slab. Thestonebroker.com lets you search local yards' remnants. The site tacks on $200 for any stone you end up buying. But you save $500 or more on the $1,000- to $2,000-and-way-up cost of using a full slab.
For Luxe lighting
High-end light fixtures make your home distinctive, a single chandelier can cost $800 to $1,500 or more. Buy factory direct from one of the finest manufacturers at rejuvenation.com. It offers dozens of lighting styles, made to order in your finish and size needs, for 20% to 30% less than what you'd pay for a similar fixture at a specialty shop.
Insulation choices to consider when what's in the walls isn't up to par
If you're looking to take advantage of a renovation to add or replace insulation, you've got a lot of choices - fiberglass, shredded paper, even plastics, denim scraps, and wool - in several forms. Which material is best for you?
Things to consider: site conditions, your budget, the material's efficiency (expressed as an R-value that measures resistance to heat transfer), and the skill level needed for the installation; insulating with rolls or batts, for example, can be a do-it-yourself project, while filling walls with spray foam is a job for the pros. To get a handle on some of the options that may best suit your renovation, read on.
Rolls or batts
They are fluffy blankets in long strips or precut pads that fit between studs. These are most commonly made of fiberglass, but you can also find ones made from cotton, mineral wool, and real sheep's wool. It is best used in walls gutted down to the studs or in attics. This is a job you can handle
Loose fill
These are dry bits of insulation that get blown into attics. The material is also injected into wall cavities through holes about 2 inches wide. It goes in either from the exterior, which requires prying up siding and drilling through the sheathing - adding to the cost of professional installation - or from the interior walls, which require patching holes. There are three main types: fiberglass, either treated with formaldehyde or untreated; cellulose, which is about 80 percent ground-up newsprint and 20 percent borate, a mineral added as a fire retardant; and mineral wool. It is best used to beef up attic-floor insulation, or inside existing walls when the budget is tight. If you decide to do it yourself, you can rent a blower from a home center.
Expanding foam
This is made of either open-cell or closed-cell polyurethane, or a special cement, this insulation goes on as a soft foam or foaming liquids, filling all spaces, then stiffening in place. Applied only by professionals, it's more costly than other options but is the best at plugging air leaks. Open-cell polyurethane is a low-density, spongy foam. It's sprayed between exposed studs and expands to 100 times its volume in seconds. For finished walls, installers pour a tamer version through small holes; it expands over minutes to 60 times its volume. Closed-cell polyurethane foams to 30 times its volume and dries to a very hard shell. Cementitious foam, which goes on like shaving cream but hardens over days into a meringue-like consistency, requires mesh across the studs to contain it. This is best used when you can look beyond initial cost to long-term comfort. You should most likely let the professionals do it.
Things to consider: site conditions, your budget, the material's efficiency (expressed as an R-value that measures resistance to heat transfer), and the skill level needed for the installation; insulating with rolls or batts, for example, can be a do-it-yourself project, while filling walls with spray foam is a job for the pros. To get a handle on some of the options that may best suit your renovation, read on.
Rolls or batts
They are fluffy blankets in long strips or precut pads that fit between studs. These are most commonly made of fiberglass, but you can also find ones made from cotton, mineral wool, and real sheep's wool. It is best used in walls gutted down to the studs or in attics. This is a job you can handle
Loose fill
These are dry bits of insulation that get blown into attics. The material is also injected into wall cavities through holes about 2 inches wide. It goes in either from the exterior, which requires prying up siding and drilling through the sheathing - adding to the cost of professional installation - or from the interior walls, which require patching holes. There are three main types: fiberglass, either treated with formaldehyde or untreated; cellulose, which is about 80 percent ground-up newsprint and 20 percent borate, a mineral added as a fire retardant; and mineral wool. It is best used to beef up attic-floor insulation, or inside existing walls when the budget is tight. If you decide to do it yourself, you can rent a blower from a home center.
Expanding foam
This is made of either open-cell or closed-cell polyurethane, or a special cement, this insulation goes on as a soft foam or foaming liquids, filling all spaces, then stiffening in place. Applied only by professionals, it's more costly than other options but is the best at plugging air leaks. Open-cell polyurethane is a low-density, spongy foam. It's sprayed between exposed studs and expands to 100 times its volume in seconds. For finished walls, installers pour a tamer version through small holes; it expands over minutes to 60 times its volume. Closed-cell polyurethane foams to 30 times its volume and dries to a very hard shell. Cementitious foam, which goes on like shaving cream but hardens over days into a meringue-like consistency, requires mesh across the studs to contain it. This is best used when you can look beyond initial cost to long-term comfort. You should most likely let the professionals do it.
Safety First - Protecting your devices from online attacks.
Those who own a computer, smart phone, or tablet likely understand the importance of protecting their favorite digital device - and perhaps more important, the information that resides on it - but only a third of us are actually taking the proper precautions to do so. Our PCs, Macs and mobile devices today house a larger number of valuable digital assets - everything from photos and music to personal and financial data. Losing these assets can be devastating, given the money and time we invest in acquiring them. Also, a growing abundance of cyber-criminal activity, perpetrated by people out to pilfer sensitive information like credit card, bank account and Social Security numbers, with the goal of stealing your identity for financial gain. Potentially damaging software is infecting mobile devices through websites or downloaded apps that might contain hidden files, on top of the many voice-, email- and text-based scams.
The following is a short checklist that should help you protect your devices, your information and your family.
Back up your data.
Back up your important files on a regular basis just in case they're compromised due to a malware attack, theft, fire or flood, or hardware malfunction. For your computer, pick up an external hard drive and make a backup of your irreplaceable digital photos and camcorder footage, documents, important emails, contacts, calender appointments, Web bookmarks and so forth. To back up info on your smartphone or tablet, synchronize your device with your computer via USB cable or back up data to an online "cloud" service where it can be easily retrieved, if needed.
Use anti-malware programs.
Invest in good anti-malware software, which includes antivirus and anti-spyware tools, and a two-way firewall. Updates are usually handled automatically and pushed to your device, which will protect you from the latest threats as soon as they're identified.
Be safe and sensible.
Along with regular backups, this includes using strong passwords, downloading only from trusted resources and not leaving your devices unattended. Also, don't be tempted to act on email or text messages that ask you to reveal personal or financial information - they are likely a "phishing" attempt from a scam artist. Rather than placing an Internet-connected computer in a child's room, keep it in a central location in the home, such as a kitchen, family room or any other highly trafficked area. Kids can feel independent while surfing online but not be "alone." Remind them to never give out their address, phone number or other personal information, such as where they go to school - or upload and photos that might reveal this info. This applies to social networking sites (such as Facebook), instant messaging programs, chat rooms, and emails.
Limit Tracking.
To limit tracking, enable your browser's privacy setting, which prevents websites from installing "cookies" that can monitor your movements. See the browser's "Help" menu for details. Use different passwords for sites that require them, and change them every few months.
The following is a short checklist that should help you protect your devices, your information and your family.
Back up your data.
Back up your important files on a regular basis just in case they're compromised due to a malware attack, theft, fire or flood, or hardware malfunction. For your computer, pick up an external hard drive and make a backup of your irreplaceable digital photos and camcorder footage, documents, important emails, contacts, calender appointments, Web bookmarks and so forth. To back up info on your smartphone or tablet, synchronize your device with your computer via USB cable or back up data to an online "cloud" service where it can be easily retrieved, if needed.
Use anti-malware programs.
Invest in good anti-malware software, which includes antivirus and anti-spyware tools, and a two-way firewall. Updates are usually handled automatically and pushed to your device, which will protect you from the latest threats as soon as they're identified.
Be safe and sensible.
Along with regular backups, this includes using strong passwords, downloading only from trusted resources and not leaving your devices unattended. Also, don't be tempted to act on email or text messages that ask you to reveal personal or financial information - they are likely a "phishing" attempt from a scam artist. Rather than placing an Internet-connected computer in a child's room, keep it in a central location in the home, such as a kitchen, family room or any other highly trafficked area. Kids can feel independent while surfing online but not be "alone." Remind them to never give out their address, phone number or other personal information, such as where they go to school - or upload and photos that might reveal this info. This applies to social networking sites (such as Facebook), instant messaging programs, chat rooms, and emails.
Limit Tracking.
To limit tracking, enable your browser's privacy setting, which prevents websites from installing "cookies" that can monitor your movements. See the browser's "Help" menu for details. Use different passwords for sites that require them, and change them every few months.
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