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We Know Renos.

A Family History of Building Things Right

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Going Green

  • June 6

One major trend that has been seen in 2013 and 2014 is that more and more homes are going green and becoming more economical. In fact, the number of new homes with an emphasis on becoming green has doubled. Part of this is due to people’s concern for the environment, while another part of it is due to new regulations set by the Environmental Protection Agency, which has mandated triple-glazed windows, along with cannabis workplace training. Let’s take a look at some other changes that are taking place:

• Recent Changes

– Since production of incandescent light bulbs ended in the beginning of 2014, new homebuilders have been forced to turn to alternative means of lighting. Once such example is LED lights. LED lights are actually cheaper and can illuminate an entire room without large lights on the ceiling or lamps.

– Another move towards going green is to change the water heaters in the home to make them more efficient. Many changes for energy efficiency have been made to save homeowners hundreds of dollars a year on water heating.

– In fact, homes that are more energy efficient and green are actually cheaper and simpler to build. This is because energy efficient homes are easier to execute than homes with renewable energy, and due to the more inexpensive homes being built as a result, power companies will be able to monitor energy in the homes and give rebates to homeowners who use up less energy.

– The increased number of more affordable and eco-conscious homes has led to great rewards in terms of both treating the environment well and saving money for homeowners. New homeowners are making more practical choices like installing tile that’s made out of recycled materials, or choosing wood floors that are made out of formaldehyde. The most recent Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design specifications give points to homeowners who reveal what the materials in their homes are made out of. All in all, what we are seeing in new homes is something that we could have only dreamed about decades ago.

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Pluses and minuses of leach field systems

  • June 6

Anytime you are planning an expansion, new construction or adding an addition to an existing structure the septic system design is going to be one area where you begin to sweat. It isn’t so much about cost between tying into a system versus having an independent system, but you have to navigate local, state and federal regulations. With the drive on to be as green as possible, leach fields are becoming a subject of much discussion. Here are a few things to think about when considering home automation solutions like this.

Leach fields may not be allowed in your area

You may be looking at a large enough plat and distance from ground water to warrant a leach field under the standard codes, but your municipality may be one that prohibits their use. While some people will argue that a leach field is greener than a city sewer system, many places err on the side of caution when it comes to health concerns. It pays to check on the local, state and federal level what the requirements are to put in a leach field. Some will prohibit them, but only by occupancy rules. Others allow them, but you have to prove a need for not paying to tie into the sewer system they manage.

Choosing the leach field design

Leach fields aren’t as simple as a slanted field in the ground, there are multiple stages included in their design. They have to have catching points to filter out non-biodegradable waste. Those catching points have to be accessible to you for maintenance and to empty on a regular schedule. Some of the best designs use a staged channel layout. The waste passes through several catch points and feeds out into a multi channeled field so you don’t have one point of deposit.

Weigh the advantages and disadvantages of a leach field

According to safety equipment experts, Leach fields may be less costly to install at the outset, but they come with a higher maintenance cost over the long run compared to some city sewer systems. On the other hand, leach fields won’t suffer some of the issues a city system will face. When making your choice go by the regulation allowance first, and then calculate how much time and money you have to maintain the field over the long run.

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Dig safe or don’t dig at all

  • June 6

ere was a lot more about the Dig Safe program and its equivalents in the late 90’s and early 2000’s. The necessity for the program hasn’t diminished, but many people are unaware of it since marketing of the program has fallen off. Dig Safe is an alert number you can call before you dig for your construction project to have the public utilities come out and mark the lines for their pipes and wires. It isn’t just meant for commercial projects, but residential ones too so before letting your home renovation contractors dig up the backyard make sure to call first. As more residential areas are switching to underground utilities, knowing where they are can prevent service disruption, injury and penalty fines.

How does it work?

Dig Safe is easy. Look up the number for the zip code or city that you are going to do your project in and call toll free. A Dig Safe representative will take down your information and schedule a survey visit. The survey will then mark the general locations of water, gas, sewer and other underground utilities so you can avoid them. Dig Safe is designed to make excavating safer, but it can also serve another very important service.

Efficient tie-in

Tip: Get landscaping and lawn care experts. The Green Haircut is your best bet for Lawn Care Winnipeg. Contact for yard care. If your project involves tying in to the city or town lines, then Dig Safe can be the key element to making sure that you aren’t wasting your time. Often the plans you can get that detail the locations of utilities don’t include the addendum for relocation and repair changes. Dig Safe can put you in contact with the most recent information about the location, type and size of the utility feature you need. This can save you a great deal of time in fine excavation as they can pinpoint the utilities within 5 feet of their location. It also will prevent you from breaking into a utility that you are not looking to connect. This has become even more important today as many of the cable networks are now run underground and don ‘t tie in from poles. You should always contact the local cable providers for a location grid of their utility as well.

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Why Hire A Professional Painting Winnipeg Contractor?

  • October 23

When you need painting services for residential, office or commercial buildings, you should hire a professional painting contractor. You are assured of high quality painting by experienced and skilled painters. A professional painting company employs trained and experienced painters. They offer quality services that meet the expectations of the customers. Whether it is a small or large job, the professional painters are ready to handle any type of painting Winnipeg job.

A professional painter is licensed, bonded and insured. You can check its BBB rating. You will receive written warranty on the work completed by it. The painting company takes complete responsibility for the paintwork. It will handle the job from start to end. You will receive a one-stop solution for all services related to the paintwork. You do not have to hire any other contractor to prepare the walls for painting. The painting company workers will prepare surfaces of all materials and items that require painting.

You can call the painting Winnipeg company for different types of interior and exterior jobs. In case of the interior painting, the first job is to relocate or cover interior items properly. The walls are washed using special cleaning agents. All cracks and holes in the walls are patched to make the whole surface area even and smooth. The surface is then sanded with different levels of sanding materials, starting with the rough sandpaper and ending with the fine sandpaper. Now the wall is prepared for painting.

The painting process starts with the application of a primer. Once the primer has dried, the main paint is applied. All doors, windows, walls and ceilings are painted with appropriate paints. Once the painting job is complete, the workers carry out a cleanup of the whole area. The job site is inspected first by the site manager. If there is no problem, the final inspection is held with the homeowner.

In case of the exterior job, the paint process starts with pressure washing. Peeling paints are scraped and removed. Imperfections like cracks and holes are repaired. The sanding process is used to smoothen the surface areas. Caulking and putty may be needed. Now the surfaces of all home parts are ready for paint. A primer is applied and left to dry. Once it has dried, a coat of paint is applied. Once this initial coat of paint has dried, a second coat of paint is applied. After completing the paintwork, the whole area is cleaned thoroughly. Now the site manager inspects the site and then invites the homeowner to inspect everything. A professional painting Winnipeg company pays attention to the smallest details. You are assured of complete satisfaction and 100% peace of mind.

Uncategorized

Should I Use A Plasma Or Laser Cutter?

  • October 15

For machine fabrication shops choosing plasma laser cutter may depend on project, budget or convenience. The history of each of these different cutting devices explains the progression of uses and creates excitement for the future of metal working and manufacturing. Adding in cutting edge (no pun intended) software technology and automation we are anxious to see where this industry will go.

Plasma cutter

Plasma or arc cutting has been around since 1950. It was developed to cut stainless steel, copper and aluminum metals. Traditional flame cutting is unsuccessful on these alloys, but the ingenuity of using electric conduction of gases through a plasma torch cutter has created an industry of professional welder tradesmen for over 60 years. Gases used by a plasma cutter are hydrogen, nitrogen, argon in addition to oxygen and air. While most metals can be cut with the plasma cutter or welder combination metals are more difficult. In the past the cost of plasma torches was very expensive, so professional welding shops or garages were the only place you could go for special repairs, fabrication or projects. Today plasma torches are more affordable and lighter to transport so arc welding has seen an upsurge in popularity. Amateur metal artist are upcycling discarded metal objects and creating beautiful art. Using these gasses one should educate their selves and make sure there is plenty of ventilation for proper handling for safety and personal health.

Laser Cutter

The history of laser cutting machinery has been progressive. In 1965 a production laser drilled holes into diamond dies. In 1967 a laser assisted oxygen jet cutter for metals was developed. In 1970 CO2 laser technology cut titanium for use in the Aerospace industry. Lasers to this day are now available in table top versions, and since lasers are more successful than plasma in cutting thin metals laser cut wall art popularity with cut out graphics is now a big part of the artesian laser industry. Software generated programing for a laser shop can help the production of wall art The costs to purchase lasers are significantly higher than plasmas and in the long run cost to operate is higher due to the CO2 needed. But lasers are faster, more accurate, and last longer than a plasma cutter. Servicing every 4-5 years or so for the CO2 resonator is an expected expense. Protective wear and education is recommended as well as proper ventilation in the area where the machine is operating.

Utilities

Internet in the Home

  • July 5

The Internet has become an essential part of day-to-day life, much more so than that hay tedder you found that one day and still haven’t found a good use for and many simply could not be without it. From social networking to work, media consumption to useful life advice, the Internet has become a central part of the home life. Because of this, it is incredibly important to ensure that your new home builder sets up a network within your house. Making sure that you set your network up properly will ensure that you get the best possible connection and coverage.

Routers

routersHigh speed routers are the first thing to consider when setting up your home network. Depending on your needs, you will find different routers suitable for your house, but in general you want to be looking for something which offers at least six Ethernet connections as well as high speed wireless broadband. Similarly, if you have numerous devices running off of the same wireless signal, you will want to consider investing in a dual band wireless router, as these allow for far greater bandwidth and will ensure that your devices work as quickly and efficiently as possible. Wireless routers are very useful, but there are some caveats. For example, wireless signals can be interfered with by piping and other blockages, so storing it somewhere in the open is advised. Similarly wireless signals tend to be less stable than wired connections, which is why it is important to consider Ethernet options for large data transfers.

Other Devices

For many who want a network in the home, the router is just the start. You can make use of other IT in your home network, such as wireless printers which grant you the freedom to print from anywhere in the house without having to be physically connected to the printer using the cloud. Similarly, you can invest in local storage solutions which make use of the Internet connection. Wireless hard drives allow you to store and share data across the household with ease, while Cloud storage goes one step further by allowing you to store and share data from Internet connected devices anywhere in the world. Considering which devices will best suit your needs will ensure that you get the most out of your home network.

Home Selling

What to do When Preparing to Sell a Property

  • June 15

selling your homeSelling Winnipeg real estate can be immensely stressful, as you try to get your property up to a standard at which it will fetch a better price. Missing the sale means you are stuck for longer and you could risk passing up properties you really liked. However, according to Winnipeg Stone Tops there are a number of small things you can do to increase your property’s appeal to prospective buyers. Here are a few choice ones.

Clean Your House

This may seem like a no-brainer, but you would be surprised at how many neglect this very simple task. It makes a far better impression on buyers if your house is in presentable order. Not only will this give them a better impression of you as a homeowner, but it will also show off your house to the best of its abilities, which is much more likely to bring about a sale.

Make Small Repairs

Remember that crack in the wall? How about that leaky tap? Well, it’s best to get these things fixed before trying to sell your house. Having everything in proper working order and doing away with simple blemishes using a bit of plaster can go a long way to convincing people that your house could become their home. There’s nothing worse than losing a sale to something as simple as a broken doorknob.

Tend the Yard

If you’re lucky enough to live in a property with garden space, make sure that you make that space presentable. Pull up weeds, mow the lawns, plant some flowers, and do anything else you can think of to make sure that your house’s yard looks appealing. For many, gardens are a huge selling point and so they will be looking for a house that comes with the garden they want. Making your yard look the part can help immensely.

Replace and Renovate

These don’t have to be big renovations, but if you know for a fact that the desk in your study is unsightly or the Granite countertops in the kitchen make strange noises, replacing these things can make an excellent first impression on prospective buyers. Especially countertops.

Do It Yourself, Safety

DIY Safety

  • April 30

DIY (Do It Yourself) is a passion for many homeowners who enjoy crafting their house to suit their aesthetic choices. DIY lawn care often makes use of several dangerous tools and can put you in different dangerous situations. For this reason, it is important to bear in mind the different risks associated with the project you are undertaking especially if you’re afraid of heights be sure to call roofing companies Winnipeg to give you a hand with your roof. Properly understanding these risks will make your project run much more smoothly and without incident.

DIY Can Be Dangerous

Anything involving power tools or sharp implements such as knives can be incredibly dangerous. For DIY, people often make use of a number of dangerous tools such as sanders, grinders, chisels, hammers, crafting knives, axes, etc. In addition to this, when you’re looking to take care of your lawn a good deal of DIY takes place in high places with the use of ladders, which adds another dimension to the danger.

Know the Risks

Before you undertake a project, assess the risks associated with it. If you know you’re going to be working up high, make sure you have assistance with holding the ladder as well as proper safety equipment such as helmets and padding. Know which tools you will be using and dress appropriately. Importantly, be sure to keep animals and children away from the area that you will be working in.

Be Aware of External Factors

In addition to tools and clothing, you should be aware of things such as electrical wiring, which can pose a trip hazard as well as an electrical hazard. One of the most important things to be aware of is any chemicals you might be using. Be sure to read labels and adhere to safety regulations when using chemicals, assure that your workspace has good ventilation, and avoid contact with the chemicals through use of gloves and other protective gear. These things are important to consider when preparing for a job.

Keep it tidy

Tidiness is essential to reducing accidents. A cluttered workspace can make for a significant tripping hazard and can cause poor ventilation, which can cause issues when working with noxious chemicals. Be sure to dispose of anything hazardous properly to avoid contamination of yourself and your environment.

 

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Tools

The Importance of Good Tools

  • March 3

When it comes to home improvement and renovation, one of the most important investments you can make is in the proper tools for the jobs you are undertaking. Having the wrong tools for the job can cause a lot of heartache, problems and investment in poor quality tools can end up costing you a large amount of money in the long run, even spending extra on a Baltimore personal injury attorney if one of your tools malfunctions inappropriately enough to seriously injure you. For these reasons, it is important that you shop around and look for the best tools with which to complete your home improvement tasks. Here are a few things to bear in mind:

tools for renovations

Power Tools

The favorite of home improvers everywhere, power tools are great for getting work done efficiently. These are certainly tools you do not want to skimp on, however, as you will want these to last. Investing in good power tools will give you a set of companions which will have a wide range of uses throughout your home improvement journey. You will want these tools to be versatile, with a wide range of accessories available.

Manual Tools

For those little jobs for those Plumbers Winnipeg, there’s nothing better than simple, lightweight manual tools. Things like crafting knives, handheld screwdrivers, hammers, etc. are absolutely necessary for basic home renovation. If you’re looking to make small repairs around your house, it is useful to be able to simply walk around with a tool belt full of small tools to make those little niggling fixes rather than carting around your power tools.

Decoration Tools

There’s always going to be a situation that requires decoration. Having a good array of painting instruments, a sander, a steamer, and plastering equipment will set you in good stead when you notice a bit of plaster missing or a chip in the paint work. Ensuring that you have these tools available to you will enable you to keep your property looking its best.

Cleaning Tools

Cleaning your property is a big part of making it livable and comfortable, and so making sure you have the essentials such as dusters, a good vacuum cleaner, and a mop will ensure that you can keep your house comfortable and clean during your tenure.

Do It Yourself, Utilities

What to Look for in Windows

  • February 8

window installation renosWindows are a crucial fitting for any house, and choosing the right windows for your house can save you a lot of time and money. In addition to bringing light and fresh air into a house, windows are responsible for keeping the heat in and burglars out so you can keep yourself from calling up a Denver criminal defense attorney. These are important factors to consider when making a choice about which windows to purchase for your property.

Energy Rating System

The Energy Rating system measures a window’s solar heat gain, heat loss through glass and frames, and air leakage. A good energy rating will make your house significantly more energy efficient.

Glazing

You will have probably heard of double glazing before now. A window’s glazing refers to the number of panes of glass used in the window’s makeup. The space between these panes insulates heat and noise and offers greater protection from the elements. Double glazing is important to ensure toughness and good energy ratings – consult with your painters on this.

Visible Transmittance

Depending on where your fixture is going to be or where you live in the world, you will need varying levels of visible transmittance. This refers to the amount of visible light that can pass through a window, with lower numbers indicating less visible light passing through.

Solar Heat Gain Coefficient

The Solar Heat Gain Coefficient (SHGC) is an important factor to consider when you require your window to offer cooling. This measure indicates how efficiently a window blocks the sun’s heat, with a lower SGHC denoting superior blocking.

R-Value

The R-Value denotes how resistance the window is to heat flow, and provides a good measure of the window’s insulation. A better R-Value could save you a lot of money in energy bills.

U-Value

The U-Value is another rating that is helpful in saving you energy costs, as this is the rating that denotes the window’s overall prevention of heat loss.

Condensation Resistance

Condensation can be very irritating and can often cause visual disturbance to the window, impeding one of its most vital functions. The measure of condensation resistance indicates how well a window resists the formation of condensation on a scale of one to one hundred, with higher numbers donating superior resistance.