Home Owners Resource Guide

In this changing, sometimes frightening world we live in, it seems that things are not getting any better. Just look at our economy, as prices go up it often seems that quality goes down,  the money doesn’t go very far and nothing lasts as long.  So in times like this we all could use a helping hand with some helpful and timely tips on housecleaning and money-saving ideas.

Would you believe that today’s housewife and mother spends an average of over 90 hours a week on maintaining and running a home?  So I’m going to share with you a few tips to help you cut your work load and take a little of the burden off your overburdened pocket book.  Let’s start in the kitchen.  We all know that oven racks are just as hard to clean as your outdoor grill, but they don’t have to be.  An easy and safe method that I have found and works great is to soak those racks in your bathtub.  Just filled it with hot water, add dishwasher brand detergent like Dawn and a little white vinegar to cut the grease.  Now put your feet up for an hour or so while that dirt and grime soaks away!  Rinse and presto you’re all done.  But now that your racks are clean, how about the oven  itself?  For those of us who don’t have a self cleaning oven, an easy and efficient method is just to sponge on a generous amount of household ammonia before you go to bed and close the oven door.   Please be sure and wear some gloves.   The next morning, let the oven air out, and then wipe it clean with no fuss or mess.

If you’re like me, you hate scrubbing your blender because it is there a time consuming and frustrating.  Why not try this simple solution. The next time you use it and are ready to clean it , just fill the blender about half way full with very hot water and a generous amount of dish washing liquid.  Then toss in a couple of medium sized ice cubes which will dislodge any insistent pieces of food and turn it on and watch the magic.

How about those cutting boards,  are they stained and ugly?  All you need here is common laundry bleach to do the trick.   Just put your cutting board in the sink full of warm water and a couple teaspoons of liquid bleach and scrub away.  Be sure you wear gloves and rinse  the board several times with very hot water to alleviate any and all traces of the bleach and your cutting board will look like new.  While on the subject of bleach, try using some on those stains on your kitchen vinyl flooring.  You’ll be surprised how easily the bleach lifts out food stains you’ve  been trying to scrub away for months.

Did you know that your frost free freezer gets dirty?  Just because it doesn’t ice up doesn’t mean it doesn’t get dirty or collect odors.  So here is a fast and easy way to clean it.  Just mix 1/2 cup of  isopropyl alcohol with a dish pan full of lukewarm water.  The alcohol will loosen any ice matter and sponge away dirt and odors.   But best of all, because alcohol evaporates rapidly, you don’t have to dry!

The exterior of your house is looking pretty shabby, but you’re not sure exactly what or how you want to refurbish it to make it look new again.  No doubt there are several ways to go about this.  So you decide that you will just go for the cheapest route and get out the old pressure washer or paint scrapper and remove all the old loose paint and give it a new coat of paint.   Well, what you thought was going to be an easy job turns out to be something you were not expecting.  You discover that underneath all that old paint the original wood  is in really bad shape  due to the atmosphere, termites and other bugs that were living in your wood.

Now you have to decide whether you want to replace the original wood siding with more wood or perhaps even go with maintenance free vinyl siding.  After thinking about it a while you decided that by putting on vinyl siding you would be losing most of the original detail and character of your old home, so vinyl was out of the question.  Then you had the realization that if you went back with wood siding you would eventually have the same problem as you do now with your paint chipping off  and your wood eventually rotting again.

So after some research you find that there is a  material available that can reproduce all the details found on your old house and even drastically reduce the amount of maintenance.  It’s been on the market for about 25 years.  Needless to say this  material is more expensive than either the paint job or the vinyl siding,  but in the long run you feel the cost is lower than having to frequently repaint your house whether it be vinyl or wood.  This  siding that you discovered is called fiber cement board siding.

Fiber cement board siding is made from a fiber material, cement, sand and other additional mixtures of products.  Moisture can’t penetrate through it,  nor do you have to worry about termites  or other bugs.  Cement siding is  a wonderful choice if you live in an area where there are high winds and fire prone areas because of its high resistance to these conditions.  It is almost fire resistant!   Another plus for deciding on cement siding  is that it weighs half as much as composite siding that is the same size,  therefore making it much easier to install, especially if you are doing this on your own.

Although fiber cement siding can be installed in several different ways similar to how normal wood siding is installed, a popular method is that of fastening it onto a wood frame with either wood screws or nails.  A big difference in installing your fiber cement is when it comes down to the actual cutting because the cement siding is harder to cut and so therefore takes a little longer to work with,  yet it can be made into complex shapes often found on older homes and can be installed using a roofing nail gun.

You will find that fiber cement siding holds paint very well so the paint will last up to 4 times longer than when painting wood or vinyl siding.   Also,  unlike vinyl siding which is usually only available in lighter shades of color,  fiber cement siding can be painted in darker colors if you like.

Now that spring has sprung, it is time to think about that dreaded job of cleaning your windows.  Most of us think that this job requires a professional to come in.  But that really isn’t necessary anymore.   True, this can be a tedious and trying task, but it doesn’t have to be.   even though there are a wide variety of window cleaning solutions at your local stores that claim they do a wonderful and streak free job, you can do it your self for a fraction of the cost by making your own homemade solution.  This requires only two or three items which you probably already have your kitchen.

You will need a large spray bottle, white vinegar, and water for your cleaning solution.  If you use distilled water to mix the window cleaning solution it will cut down on the minerals in the mix and prevent water spots from appearing later on.  You will also need some old newspapers.  To make your solution simply add about 2-3 tablespoons of white vinegar to very warm water in your spray bottle.  If you don’t like vinegar, you may also use lemon juice of club soda.    If you like, you may also add a couple of drops of antibacterial dish soap to your solution.   This will actually remove any wax buildup that may be on your windows from previous cleaning where commercial type cleaners were used.  If you are seeing streaks on your windows, that is why.  There is a wax buildup.  So add the soap!   You may also want to wear rubber gloves to protect your hands from getting overly dry and cracked from the solution. The gloves also help keep the black newspaper print from getting on  your skin.

If you have a lot of windows you may want to choose to do the front of the house one day and then the back the next day to break up the job.  You also want to take a day when it is not too sunny as the sunlight will tend to make it more difficult to tell if the windows are clean therefore avoiding streaks.  Another good idea is before you actually start washing the windows you may want to wipe any dust and debris from the windows seals and the frame.

Once you are ready to start washing your windows, it is a good idea to do the outside in one direction (horizontally) and the inside the opposite direction ( diagonally) as this will help you see if there is any streaking going on.  To use the newspapers, just spray your windows and wash away and then use a different newspaper to dry until all streaks are gone.   If you don’t like the idea of using a newspaper because of the ink coming off, another alternative would be to use large coffee filters as they are lint free and relatively cheap.  If you really want your windows to shine after you have finished drying them, invest in a blackboard erasier (the real one made with wool, not the cheap one that comes with inexpensive children’s toys) and give it a really nice shine.

As the season gets colder and you want to keep the frost down during the winter,  in the fall sponge on some rubbing alcohol and polish with newspaper.   Be sure and use the news or the classified not the shiny advertisement part.  Ad if you want to get road grime off your car windows…try hydrogen peroxide straight out of the bottle.  You’ll be surprised at what comes off your windows!

If you own a home with a garage, and if you are like most people you will find that it is usually used for storing everything except your car.  And of course all of those things are things that you just can’t seem to part with.  Usually when you need to find one of these articles you have no idea where it is.  Yes, you’re pretty sure you kept it for that rainy day, and now that that day is here where did you put it… because there has been no organizational practices put to work!

You would be surprised what a difference some shelves, plastic containers, and hooks could make in organizing your storage space in your garage.  It is highly recommended that you clean out your garage at least once a year by removing everything in it.  By doing this, you would be surprised how easy it is to decide what to keep and what to trash.  This might be a good time to think about having a garage sale!  You could probably make enough money on the things you no longer want or need to buy those containers and shelves!   Once you have decided what to keep, put everything according to its kind in a container and label it and either put it up on a shelf or you can easily stack them on one side of the garage up against the wall.    It is a good idea to keep an inventory of everything that is in each container making it easier to find when needed.

You can purchase premade or prefabbed cabinets for your garage as well. These cabinets usually come with doors, drawers, shelves, peg board, durable formica countertops and all the hardware needed to put them together and hang them. Formica countertops are great for garages because they are cheap, dont scratch to easily and are light weight allowing them to be installed by one person as apposed to two or three when dealing with other countertops.

Like most of us , you probably have a collection of screws and nuts and bolts and nails.  an easy way to store these small items is to put them in jars so that you can easily see what is in each jar and then label each jar.  If you want to get it a little crafty you can get a piece of plywood  and screw or nail the lids of each jar to it and then nail the plywood to the wall and you can screw each bottle on and off whenever you need it.

Of course by using large hooks you can easily hang any gardening tools such as rakes, hoes, brooms, etc.   If you have children with bicycles a good idea here is to get extra large hooks which are made precisely for this and hang them from the ceiling.  (The bicycles of course).   You can find these hooks at just about any hardware store and they are fairly inexpensive.

If you have cans of paint,  bottles of pesticides or cleaning supplies it is a good idea to put them in a cabinet with a lock for safety purposes.  Now that you have everything up and off of the floor it should be easy to get your car in with plenty of room to walk around without stumping your toes on all that clutter that used to be there.  Not only will this give you a feeling of satisfaction but you will also be proud to invite your neighbors over for a back yard cookout and have them come through the garage entrance and see your work of art.

No matter whether you are a first time home owner, own more than one home or have several homes, when disaster strikes, what will you do?  Whether it is from a storm, flood or fire you will need to take immediate action.  Can you do the needed repairs or are you going to have to call in the professionals?

Home owner insurance is just as important as investing in you and your families life. A natural disaster can not only wipe out a home but can wipe out a family. If you happen to be home when one strikes, don’t you want your family will be taken care of if something were to happen to you? Life insurance, should you or your family ever need it, can really save a family that may have lost a loved one. There are many life insurance policies that can cover a wide array of situations. Take the time to research a policy before its too late.

Regardless of the choice you make, the first step is contacting your insurance company and letting them know what happened and they will send out an agent to get you started on what you should do.  Of course if this is a major disaster you will more than likely have to call in the pros.

You were informed by your insurance agent that you would need to get 2 to 3 written estimates.  When finding a contractor for doing these bids, make sure he is bonded and insured.  Maybe ask him if you can go and look at some of his work he has done in the past.

Always keep in mind that just because you hire a professional contractor to do the job there is still things that you can do to save money.  One way is by doing some of the demolishing work yourself, like maybe ripping up the old carpet or flooring that is needing replaced.  You can also tear down old cabinets or take out appliances and fixtures that need to go.  How about that damaged sheet rock, surely you can that.  You might be pleasantly surprised at how much money you could save by just doing things like this.  Home Depot and Lowe’s usually offer free classes on home do-it-yourself projects.   This is certainly something worth checking into!

Think about maybe cleaning up afterwords yourself.   Most contractors include in their price a clean-up fee.  This is for the interior part of the house, such as wiping out cabinets and window seals and things of this sort.  This is a job you can to with just a bucket of soapy water and a little elbow grease!  Of course they will have a big dumpster sitting in your driveway where they will be putting all the debris as they are doing their job.  Let them do that by all means!

Now that the actual house is taken care of and it looks like a brand new house, what about all the landscaping that was maybe damaged or something that you have just been putting off doing for a really long time.  Now would be a good time to tackle that job too.

Again you are thinking can I really do this or do I need some help?  Chances are you can do most of it by yourself, therefore saving even more.  Most all cities and towns have local nurseries where they have landscaping artists who are very knowledgeable and more than willing to give you advice on what kind of plants, shrubs and tress that grow and do well in your area.  They will even deliver if you don’t own a truck!

Wanting to freshen up your kitchen doesn’t have to be a major money spending event. You’ll be surprised to find out just what you can do with less expense then you thought possible. So if you are on a small budget, just a couple hundred dollars can do a lot to brighten the space and give it a new look. Or if you have between $500.00 and $2000, you can really add some pizazz to your somewhat boring or outdated kitchen.

So here’s a few suggestions for you to look at and decide for yourself what you can do to update your blah kitchen. It will be money well spent. One thing you might think about doing is installing new countertops and back splash. Older homes often have outdated tile countertops, these can cheaply be replaced with laminate countertops, concrete countertops or butcher block countertops that can match any homes decor. If you have an older home, no doubt your kitchen probably has a 4″ band of tile above the counter on the wall, right? Well why not update that look by removing the tile and filling the entire space between the counter and upper cabinets with either wall paper, glass tile or a contrasting color or even decorative paneling painted to coordinate with the room. This is a job you can do yourself. Once you have removed the old tiles, just smooth the surface, prime the space and install your choice of filler.

Now what about your appliances? Do you still have a mismatched refrigerator and stove? Well believe it or not, you can have these refinished at a local workshop. They will pick them up, apply enamel in your choice of color or with a brushed steel finish and then return them to you looking just like new. The cost for this is generally around $100 to $500 per appliance. Be sure to check on the warranty.

For your floors, a good choice would be laminate flooring because it comes in a variety of patterns that imitate natural materials like wood grains, stone, granite of tile. This can also be a great project that you can do yourself if your floors are level with the adjacent rooms making it a really easy task. Be sure to get an accurate measurement of your floor and buy enough flooring plus a little extra in case of boo-boos or replacements down the road. Once you have purchased the flooring you need to open the boxes and put them in the room where they are going to be placed to let them “season” for the recommended period of time. Once ready, you can place the flooring plank by plank right over the old floors. No need for nails or glue as these boards snap right together. By the way, if you are renting your house, you can easily lift up the flooring and remove it when you move out if need be.

A small budget can go along way in a kitchen remodel if time, research and planning plays a role. Kitchen flooring, kitchen countertops and paint are some of the tasks you can do yourself if you have the motivation and the patience to learn and achieve. With persistence, your efforts will pay off and you will be living in a remodeled kitchen, although on a budget, that suits your family and homes wants and needs.

If your house is an older home, chances are that under that flooring is some hardwood floors. If you prefer the hardwood over the laminate, you’d be surprised what beauty and warmth they can add to your kitchen. You will need to remove the flooring on top of course and then clean off all the old adhesive, fill any nail holes, sand the floors and then seal with the proper hardwood varnish. This will take a little while and can be a little harder then just covering what you have with the laminate. You can rent the proper tools and find the supplies you will need at any hardware or home repair store like Lowe’s or Home Depot. You will get years of wear and tear while enjoying the rich look.

You have a nice place you call home, but because of your busy schedule  it seems like you can never find the time to give it a proper cleaning or at least keep up with the cleaning at hand.  So now you have a major decision to make…should I just give in and hire someone to come and do the dirty work for me and if so, whom?

Should you hire a professional cleaning company or maybe just an individual who has their own business?  There are so many professional companies who hire out individuals and then there are so many individuals who hire out themselves!  Well first things first.  Get out the old yellow pages and and let your fingers do the walking!

There are several questions you should ask while trying to locate the perfect person.  Always ask for a specific checklist of the work that will be done, and also if all the tasks being done will be done with each cleaning or if some will be rotated from cleaning to cleaning.  Do they provide the cleaning products, or do you, this is very important to know.

If considering using a professional cleaning service, you might also ask them if they and bonded and  insured in case of damages done to your home while cleaning, or perhaps something might come up missing after the services had been done.  Also, would it be just an individual coming to do the cleaning or several persons?  You would of course want to know how much they charge, and if they charge by the hour or by the job itself.

Now lets talk about maybe hiring just an individual you found in the want ads.  He or She may be a little less expensive than that professional you talked to.  Of course you want to ask her the same questions you asked the professionals.  In your discussion you may find that this individual who is working for herself seems to do quite a bit more “dirty” work such as cleaning windows, ceiling fans and fixtures, base boards and window seals!  Wow, what a deal! However, you may find that some individually owned cleaning services may not own some of the higher end cleaning equipment you may find with a commercially based cleaning service. Some of these tools may include pressure washers, a floor steam cleaner or carpet shampooing machines.

Keep in mind that you would also want to build a relationship with whichever service you choose.  Communicate openly and honestly about what you want from a thorough house cleaning.  Be open minded about anything that they may suggest when it comes to keeping your house in tip top shape.  After all, they are trying to make your life a little less hectic!

Now after being mentally exhausted after interviewing  these individuals, you start to think that well maybe it’s just not worth it to hire someone.  You start  wondering if they would really do as good a job as yourself  if you only had the time.  Then you remember…that dear sweet girl even said she does the laundry and the ironing.  How can you resist that.

Since a third of American homes were built more than 50 years ago, home buyers and folks living in an older home should be aware of how wiring changed during the last century. During the 20th century as new appliances appeared on the scene  electricity evolved from a luxury to a mainstay, causing residential electrical wiring changes.  More appliances also led to safety improvements and an increased number of room outlets leaving older home wiring to play catch-up.  Although most older home electrical systems have been upgraded over the years, safety shortcomings may still exist.

An estimated average of 32,000 home fires are caused by household wiring and lighting each year resulting in 950 injuries, 220 deaths and nearly $674 million in property damage according to the National Fire Protection Association.  Residential electrical systems are seldom inspected after they are installed and tend to be destroyed in house fire, so needless to say, homeowners should not assume all is well simply because fuses aren’t blowing, circuit breakers tripping or they’re not receiving shocks or smelling burnt plastic.

If on the other hand, anytime you receive a shock from an electrical appliance, outlet, or wall switch in your home, it’s a warning that you should talk with a qualified electrician.  If a fuse blows or a circuit breaker trips right after you replace or reset it, you have trouble somewhere.  Also, flickering or dimming lights could mean loose connections, overloaded circuits, improper wiring, or arcing and sparking inside walls.

Another issue associated with older home wiring systems is the number of receptacles in each room.  Today’s electrical code requires outlets be placed every 12 feet of running wall space, about one per wall in the averaage 10-by-12-foot room.  Houses built before 1956 were required to have outlets placed every 20 feet, while homes built before 1935 weren’t required to have wall outlets at all!  Another hazard is one of using extension cords as a permanent solution.  These are meant for temporary use only.

Proper grounding, meanwhile, prevents painful or even deadly electrical shocks when electricity flows through an improper path.  Newer homes are wired with cables that include a ground wire.  The ground wire allows for use of three-pronged receptacles needed to power certain appliances, particularly ones with metal shells, such as refrigerators and washing machines.

Many wiring systems installed in the 1950’s and earlier used non-metallic wiring, which lacked a ground wire.  Homes from this era boast only two-pronged outlets, unsuitable for many modern conveniences.  Simply replacing two-pronged receptacles with three-pronged receptacles violates the National Electrical Safety Code if no ground path exists.

In some cases, older homes may feature newer wiring systems.  But the era when the wiring was upgraded impacts electrical limitations.  So if you are in the market for buying a home whether it be a new one or an older one, be sure you have someone certified in electrical work inspect the system to be safe.

Now that you’ve graduated college and have a somewhat nice job, mom and dad tell you it is now time for you to move out on your own!  You find yourself delightfully happy and yet scared all at the same time.  So you decide to opt for buying a house rather than trying to rent an apartment or house knowing that you would essentially be throwing your money away – so to speak.  Well after quite a bit of searching, you find that you can only afford a small house and will have to  downsize from most of the furnishing you had while living at home.

However, your mom convinces you that even small spaces can be made to appear more spacious and beautiful if you utilize your space just right.  So through a lot of research I found that people living in smaller spaces could opt for a contemporary style of decor and transform the areas into more stylish places where they could live comfortably and yet be trendy.

Of course planning would be essential for saving and utilizing space to make the most of the elements of any decor.  It is a really good idea to opt for sleek and slim furniture, preferably armless as it is less bulky and it allows you to seat more people.  Nesting tables are also a  good investment and a perfect solution for a small living room.  A set of three can be used as an end table and then if used separately, they offer extra table space for entertaining.  You can usually find these for under $200.00 for a set of three.

Folding chairs come in handy as well.  Now you can buy them in models that are actually stylish and comfortable.  You can store them in a closet or under the bed when not using them.  You can maximize wall space with a tall bookcase filled with uniform boxes for storage.  You’d be surprised at what all you can get into those boxes which helps to cut down on clutter.

You might also think about putting up a few nice mirrors as they are a great way to make a room not only look bigger, but it makes it feel bigger as well.  Just make sure that you hang them where they will reflect something pleasing to the eyes such as a favorite painting or a nice view out of the window.  You don’t want them to reflect a cluttered corner!

In the kitchen, you might think about using modular kitchen cabinets which can be used to store things like utensils, crockery and cutlery items.  This in turn helps to organize your space wisely.  You can even have hooks inside the cabinet for holding your larger cooking spoons, measuring cups and lightweight utensils that you use on a regular basis.

If your living room is small, you might consider putting a round table and chairs in the kitchen to make a dining arrangement to enjoy a meal with family and friends when they come for a visit.

Now for the bedroom.  Consider getting a storage bed.  These help a great deal for stacking all your bedspreads and linens together.  You can even store your extra clothes there.  Your bedroom would be another great place to think about hanging a mirror or two.  If you are considering changing the colors on the walls, be sure to keep in mind that darker colors make a room seem smaller.  So go for light and subtle colors.  You can also add some small area rugs which will add extra appeal to most any room.

So go ahead and have fun decorating your new home and invite all your friends and family over to see what a great job you did!

There are so many flooring choices to choose from today. What about if you have nice floors, that just so happen to look old, beat up or almost to trashed to salvage? Ever wondered how in the world you would be able to make your old wooden floors look new again?  Well, not to worry!  You’re not the only one and this is a job you can pay someone else to do or do by yourself  for a fraction of the cost.  So here are some step-by-step tips to help you get this dreaded task under way.

The first step is going to be that of stripping the old floor.  More than likely there is probably going to be more than one layer of old finish that has to come off.  This may sound like a really difficult task, but if you have the right equipment, it really isn’t all that bad.

To tackle this task, you are going to need a sander.  Keep in mind that for an average size room you will need to allow yourself at least 4 to 6 hours.  When deciding on what type of sander to use, remember that a random-orbit floor sander is much easier to use than a large drum sander and can be rented for about $60.00 to $100.00 at most any rental equipment company.

To strip the floor, you want to slowly work the sander back and forth across the entire room using a 36-grit abrasive disk. After  completing this, you will want to turn the sander at a 45-degree angle and proceed to go over the entire room again.

Next you will want to vacuum up all the dust and fill in any holes and cracks in the floor with water-based wood filler.  Now you need to put a 60-grit abrasive disk on the sander and sand the entire floor.  Now change the disk to an 80-grit abrasive disk and sand the floor for the final time.  Once again give it a good vacuuming and you are ready for the next step.

You want your floor to be clean before applying the polyurethane.  A good way to clean them is to make your own cleaner using 10 parts water to 1 part white vinegar.  Use a terry-cloth mop or a a towel wrapped around a mop head and gently go over the floor.

It would be a good idea to cover your shoes with booties and your nose and mouth with a respirator.  The first step is the cut in along the edges by brushing a 3-inch-wide strip along the baseboards at a point farthest from your exit door. To avoid lap marks as the stripe starts to dry, stop after about 10 minutes and go to the next step

Now pour about a 1-inch-wide stripe of finish in line with the grain, just enough that you can spread in a 10 minute period and with a long-handled roller with a 1/4 inch nap, roll out the finish with the grain, then across it.  You will want to overlap each pass quickly to keep the edge wet.

So after about 10 minutes, go back and brush more finish along the edge, then pour and roll again for 10 minutes and continue this pattern until the floor in completely covered.

You should wait at least 3 hours before putting your second coat of finish on.  Just for good measure, I would wait about a week before replacing the furniture.