Basement Remodeling Ideas

Remodeling your basement is an excellent way to add extra living space, plus extra value, to your home. By planning carefully before you begin you can maximize the space and get the most for your money. When planning, consider a bathroom and wet bar area if the plumbing is available. This will ad extra value and make entertaining in this room easier and more enjoyable. A small refrigerator, a microwave, and coffer maker are good to include. A full bath is a great value, but even a half bath adds to the value. If the plumbing is there, or you can add it, do so.

The first step is to make sure the basement is, a1C84nd will remain, dry. Water seepage will completely undo all your hard work, so it is very important that you don't overlook this first step. There are many products sold in your local hardware stores that you can just paint on the walls to keep your basement dry and leak free. It's very much worth the time and effort.

There are certain elements in the basement that you can't move or change, so plan around them. Beams, support columns, furnace, water heater and any existing plumbing can be incorporated into your plan by building around them. Build a separate room for the furnace and water heater. Box in beams and columns that you want to cover and then drywall around them. Do the same with plumbing pipes, but remember to leave a way to access this plumbing in the future, either by adding a small hinged door, or a removable piece of drywall that can be latched into place.

The duct work for the heating system will be running between the floor joists. You can add a couple of heat ducts from the existing system to the new space to direct heat where you want in the room.

Frame the walls with 2 x 4's, with a header and footer, the studs being 16 inches on center. Attach these to the cement walls in the basement and also to the floor.

Next, it's time for the wiring. This is something that should definitely be installed by a professional certified electrician. Electrical outlets should be plentiful to allow you free use of the space for whatever you choose later. Also, the wall switches should be the type that can be operated from two different locations. You don't want to come upstairs only to have forgotten to turn off one of the lights and have to go all the way back down to do it. Putting one of the switches near the entrance to the basement from the first floor will save many steps and aggravation. This is also the point at which you should install the wiring for telephone lines and surround sound speakers.

If you don't already have plenty of insulation in the walls, now is the time to put it in. It never hurts to have extra, and doing this will help lower your energy bills in the future.

Hang and finish the dry wall. This is a job that can be done by most do-it-yourselfers, with a little practice. Use drywall screws to attach the sheetrock to the 2 x 4's. You can also use wood paneling if you prefer, but drywall produces a more professional appearance.

After the drywall is finished, it's time for the ceiling. Using a dropped ceiling is the choice of most people, for a couple of reasons. One is that hanging and finishing overhead drywall is a tough job. The main reason is that a dropped ceiling will allow easy access to those plumbing pipes and any wiring that is running overhead. If there is a breakage or a leak, you can access it easily and will not need to replace the entire ceiling, just the panels that may be damaged.

Put insulation between the floor joists before you hang the ceiling panels. This acts as a sound barrier to the overhead rooms. When you're in the basement enjoying loud music with the surround sound at full blast, anyone upstairs will not be disturbed by the noise.

The flooring is the last step. Carpeting with good padding is a good choice because it keeps the cement floor warmer and helps with insulation from the ground up. Tile floors in the bathroom and wet bar area allow for quick clean up of any spills that occur in those areas.

Bathroom Signs - Not Just For Public Rest Rooms Anymore

Bathroom signs are not only for public rest rooms anymore! If you have a taste for the whimsical, the humorous, the unusual, you can now find bathroom signs that will suit your particular taste. If you wish, you can even build the entire theme of your bathroom around this new, lighthearted trend.

Humor

While some people like to have small, framed portraits as a basic part of their bathroom decor, others will get quite a sense of whimsy by instead adding one or more well-placed signs which bear humorous designs and sayings.

Signs For Kids

Children may love to have their favorite cartoon characters in their bathrooms, while teenagers would delight in showing their friends their favorite celebrities, hobbies, and sports on their bathroom walls.

But this new idea in bathroom decorating does not have to stop with the youngsters, as many adults would also enjoy adding a bit of humor to their everyday lives. Catchy little phrases can brighten anyone's day! You can also find signs of a more serious nature, if you would prefer quotes or themes that can give you and your family members something positive to think about as they begin each day.

Be Sensitive To The Feelings Of Others

If you are thinking about adding bathroom signs in your room, it is a good idea to keep in mind that while humor is wonderful, sticking to what is appropriate is best. In other words, it is unwise to display something in your bathroom which your guests or even other family members are likely to find offensive. While you yourself may consider it to be nothing more than personal taste, your grandmother or your boss may disagree.

A good way to go about selecting what you would like to display on your walls is to consider in advance the people who will be using your bathroom. If you have more than one bathroom in your house or apartment, you have much more leeway in how you decide to decorate it than if you have only one which is shared by your entire family and all of your guests. For the latter, tasteful is generally the best way to proceed with any type of decorating themes; and, again, what one person may see as dry or outrageous humor, another may see as being in poor taste.

To Each His Own

If you love the idea of bathroom signs, how can you solve these dilemmas and keep everybody happy? One idea is to keep your mutually-used bathrooms decorated in a tasteful manner in which no one could possibly find any objections; another is to have a separate bathroom where the only appropriateness you will need to consider is your own.

If your sense of humor extends to the truly outrageous, and you want to display it on your bathroom walls, it is a good idea to keep in mind who you will be sharing it with. Or, as a way to both be on the safe side and still express your sense of humor and creativity, you can find bathroom signs that everyone who uses the room will enjoy.

Ernest Jarquio is a successful Webmaster and publisher of Bathrooms-And-Showers.com. He provides more resources on topics such as ion foot bath, corner showers and Premier bathrooms that you can research on his website even while lounging in your living room.

Materials and Practices in High Performance Homes

In my last article I defined High Performance Homes; A High Performance Homes is one that uses sustainable materials, is energy efficient, and uses value added green building practices that causes it to be friendlier to the environment. In the next few articles we will look at some of the materials and practices used to produce the High Performance Home.

The single biggest heat sink or energy robber in a home is the windows. There are several things to consider here. First and foremost is the total square footage of windows. Ive never had someone come to me and say Ronnie build me a home thats dark and doesnt have many windows. Always it goes like this,I want a home that is light and airy. Then of course the buyer covers all of the windows with blinds, shades, shutters, drapes, curtains, or heaven forbid foil and seldom opens them due to excessive heat, cold or allergens in the air.

What should you do when designing or selecting a new home? Be realistic. The more windows, the bigger the windows, the bigger the utility bills. If you can, keep your windows down to 15% or so of the exterior wall square footage. Strategically place them to maximize views and limit the direct exposure to the sun. Keep the windows from facing the East or West this will help tremendously. If the windows can be located under a porch or patio so that it has a large overhang protecting them they will perform much better. Also, a larger Cornish overhang will help protect windows as well as shade the exterior walls.

There is an organization that evaluates windows and scores them as to how you can expect them to perform; giving the consumer a chance to be sure they are getting the best product for their money. It is The National Fenestration Rating Council. They subject windows to testing and prescribe how they must be built to obtain a certain score. The scoring speaks to the ability of the windows to block the transmission of heat and ultraviolet rays.

Look for windows that have a low U-Factor score. This score indicates the windows ability to block heat. A lower score is better. Many builders are using good windows with scores in the .50 range. I like those that are .35 or lower. The next score to look at is Solar Heat Gain. Again many windows are being installed with a score around .50. We install those with a score of .32 or lower. Lower is better here as well. Then, the window coverings mentioned before will add additional protection from heat and ultraviolet penetration.

Let me briefly mention doors. Most doors today are made of steel, fiberglass, wood or glass. Nothing insulates like insulation. Hollow doors like steel or fiberglass can be filled with insulation. Wood is not a particularly good insulator and glass is worse. Generally I prefer steel with fiberglass a close second. These doors dont rot or warp and provide the most security and energy efficiency.

Try to avoid sliding glass doors, after all, what are they but large windows and therefore a big heat sink. And double French doors are hard to keep from leaking heat in or out of your home. If you need that look think of placing a window close to a door or 2 separately cased doors close to each other.

In my next article we will continue to explore best building materials and practices and talk specifically about insulation.

Copyright 2007

Ronnie Godfrey, Certified Graduate Builder
For more information about this article and other energy saving tips, visit our website http://www.RGodfreyHomes.com

Solar Energy Use In Home Design

The sun is a constant source of energy. Everyday it provides us with 5000 times as much energy as the whole world needs. (Unknown)

In the 1950s and '60s efficient energy use was often neglected in constructing buildings and houses, but the high energy prices of the 1970s changed that. Some buildings built in the 80s use only about 20% of the energy used in buildings constructed just ten years earlier. Techniques to save energy include designing and siting buildings to use passive solar heat, avoiding overlighting, and using better insulation. A life-cycle approach, which takes into account the total costs over the entire life of the building, rather than simply the initial construction cost or sales price, is encouraging greater efficiency.

SOLAR ENERGY IN SOUTH AFRICA

Climate
South Africa is one of the areas in the world with the highest count of sunny days per year in the world therefore making it also one of the most appropriate places in the world to use solar power energy should that be the only reason for using them.

A photovoltaic sell uses the suns light to create an electric current and not the heat of the sun as is commonly thought. A photovoltaic sell actually decreases in efficiency when the sell is heated extremely because of the resistance building up in the material. Because of the above fact, one can see that these photovoltaic panels is actually less efficient in very warm climates. South Africa, in summertime, can be extremely hot and could cause a photovoltaic panel on certain summer days to work less efficient although not as significantly as 25% less efficient as it is said can be lost in desert-type climates.

Cost efficiency & economy
Eskom South Africa provides our country with some of the cheapest conventional unsustainable electricity costs in the world, and that is the main reason for Solar Energy technology not taking off in South Africa. Although a number of solar thermal panels is in operation, even in residential buildings in the country, photovoltaic panels was up to date just not cost effective enough to justify the money saved using conventional electricity for manufacturers making them available on a large scale. Because of the uncommonness and unavailability of these panels the prices of theses panels has not significantly decreased in South Africa as it has in other more technologically advanced and environmentally aware countries.

Also, because the electricity has been so inexpensive in SA, the cost of paying off a solar electricity system that provides the same amount (or sufficient amount) of electricity as a conventional system, will take an extremely long time to pay off with the money saved without using conventional electricity, and most home owners in South Africa doesnt stay long enough in one home to justify the cost saving. Another factor is that the technology is becoming more advanced day by day, and one might purchase a system today which will reach the end of its life before the system has paid for itself with money saved from not using conventional electricity is over.

Sustainability & the environment
Eskom might well be one of the cheapest electricity providers in the world, but it is also a fact that eskom releases some of the most pollution in the atmosphere by burning coal to generate electricity. Although air pollution doesnt seem to be that big a problem here than in other countries where acid rain etc. is huge concerns for the community, it would be wise to sooner rather than later start to concentrate on the environment in South Africa and that is when solar power could start playing a big role as an energy provider.

Appropriate for us?
Solar panels can be used very effectively and appropriately in the remote areas around the country because the cost of connecting to the conventional power grid by laying cables might be even more expensive and once a solar PV system is installed one does not need any tools or technicians to maintain a PV panel regularly.

There are a number of places in our environment where solar power could be (and are already) used very effectively for example water pumps to dams in nature reserves. PV panels have also been used to power electric fencing in game reserves very successfully for interruptions in electricity is eliminated and big mammals like elephants has no chance of breaking through a fence as could be the case in an normal power interruption.

In conclusion, the use of solar power in South Africa isnt that far fetched when one look at the very appropriate weather conditions and the need to look at a more sustainable and renewable energy source for the future.

Written by Jere Botes, architect & founder of http://www.dreamhouses.co.za, a website dedicated to provide home builders, home renovators, home owners & developers with free professional advice on all aspects of home design, building & diy. Reproductions of this article are encouraged but must include a link pointing to http://www.dreamhouses.co.za

Home Improvement Product - Bargains Galore

Find the right home improvement product for every occasion. If you enjoy adding new things to your home or changing the look and feel you may be one who shops yearly for home improvement products. You will rarely find just the item you need when you need it so it is a wise to pan out your projects ahead of time and begin shopping now.

Plan Ahead and Save Big Bucks

If you have a home that will need several home improvement projects in the future you may want to sit down and put together a long term plan of action and them start shopping or be on the look out for bargain deals for all the home improvement product that you may need to complete the job.

Check with the Local Guy

You can find many bargain deals on home improvement items by checking with local builders and asking them to let you know when they have overstock items. It is very common that builders and contractors will have too much of many items left over from a job. They may be willing to sell you their left over home improvement product for a very good price if the timing is right.

The Big Boys Lose Money Too

You might be surprised to know that many larger retail stores are often selling items well below their cost just to clear it out. Often times when they are faced with too much inventory they will pay stocking penalties and it makes it more advantages for them to unload the inventory at a drastically reduced price to the consumer. If you are lucky enough to find the great home improvement product deals you will find some real bargains for sure.

Find more helpful home improvement tips by visiting http://best-home-improvement-projects.com where you will find helpful home improvement tips, advice and resources including information on easy home improvement projects, kitchen repair and Home Improvement Product.

Bathroom Faucets - Facts To Consider Before Shopping II

Selecting bathroom faucets requires some thought, and the mechanics and installation types of bathroom faucets was covered in my previous article. If you missed it, you should take a minute to read the first article.

Once you have decided whether you need a centerset, widespread, or single hole faucet, and have chosen between compression, cartridge, or a disc type bathroom faucet, there are still some things to consider.

Style Preference in Bathroom Faucets

This is bound to be an easy choice. Most of us seem wired from birth to a preference for one style or another. You know what you are comfortable with whether it is Country, Victorian, French Provincial, Tuscan, or C2233ontemporary. This to some degree will impact the finish you choose, but many of the finishes cross style lines.

Bathroom Faucets-Fit and Finish

There are so many style options in bathroom faucets these days, that it is important to see how they will coordinate and fit with other elements in your bath.

* Consider spout height. Many bathroom faucets are available with longer spouts these days, and the height and reach should be considered. For instance, the height of the spout may make a slight difference in how high you mount your mirror or medicine cabinet above it. Consider splash and make sure you have adequate clearance.

* When thinking about the splash effect, consider the depth of the sink and whether it is up to absorbing the water from the spout without splashing out or up. This is an important consideration especially in a household with children.

Bathroom Faucets and Finishes

* Bathroom faucets are available in shiny finishes. Chrome has long been the overwhelmingly popular choice, but there is polished chrome, polished brass, and French gold, just to name a few. These finishes do require more ongoing care to keep them polished and shiny. They are more likely to show water spots and finger smudges, so just realize that before making a choice.

* Many of today's homeowners prefer the brushed or satin finishes in bathroom faucets. Although stylish and attractive baths are what homeowners want, they prefer to spend more time enjoying them and less time with intensive care and maintenance.

* Satin nickel, matte chrome. brushed bronze, brazen bronze and other of the less shiny bathroom faucet finishes are becoming increasingly popular due to the ease of care they require.

* And of course, many more finishes such as oil rubbed bronze, Venetian bronze, black iron and weathered copper are being made available for great diversity in bathroom faucet finishes. Some of these are considered living finishes, and will change with time and use. They are designed to change, and if you purchase a faucet with a living finish you just need to recognize this as a natural process and be able to live with your choice in later years.

When selecting the style and finish of your bathroom faucet, keep other bathroom elements in mind. Consider how it will look with your countertop, backsplash, lighting etc. By planning and coordinating all the elements in your bathroom carefully, you should be proud of your choice in bathroom faucets for years into the future.

More tips on shopping for bathroom faucets, as well as purchase tips for medicine cabinets.

Log Home Products

Take advantage of these remarkable Log Home Products.

Before you grab your first tool, you should have a good idea of how log cabins are made, how they are assembled and how everything fits together. That's why there are many log cabin DVD sets on the market that show you exactly how a log cabin is built, from clearing the land to putting up your mailbox. Even if you have hired a company to put your log cabin home together for you, this is one useful product that will help to demystify the whole home building process. These DVD sets usually range anywhere from $100 to $200 in price and contain as many as eight separate DVDs.

If you are looking to have your own log cabin home, chances are, you are looking for lighting fixtures that present a certain style and grace. While the average lighting store offers dozens of different styles, you might have to go online to find exactly the style you are looking for. There are dozens of sites online that offer log cabin products such as specialized lighting fixtures that blend in perfectly with the natural appearance of a log cabin home. Don't settle for outdoor lighting fixtures that don't match the dcor you are going for, get the products you want for your beautiful new home.

One set of wood working tools you will need for sure, so you can add any final touches to your beautiful new home all by yourself. From durable chisels and saws to other handheld woodworking tools, making sure you have the right tools for your personal projects is very important. Don't approach the various jobs you have planned for your home with worn out woodworking tools, get the best new tools available for less online.

These are just a handful of the many outstanding log home products available to each and every new log cabin owner out there. The log cabins is the most beautiful, durable and striking style of home in the world; make sure you are ready to turn your new house into a home with the best in log home products this season.

Mountain Home Building Products offers the highest quality Log home products for your Log Cabin.

Wood working tools, solid wood siding, artistic antler castings, hand forged lighting and a complete line of log finishing products that works to clean, preserve, stain, protect and seal your log home.

Visit us at: http://www.mountainhomebuildingproducts.com