Wood shutters are a great addition to any home. Shutters are typically found on older homes. You will find them on old farmhouses and Victorian style homes especially. You can them made from a variety of materials besides wood. You can purchase them in vinyl and materials that look like wood but are not.
Wood shutters are more expensive than vinyl or fake wood. They can be custom made or standard sizes bought off the shelf. If you have an older home and need your existing shutters replaced then there are companies that can make them look authentic. You would not likely get that from vinyl shutters.
If you are installing your wood shutters yourself then you only require a few tools. In addition, it is not a difficult job to undertake. If you were not a do-it-yourselfer, plenty of contractors would do the job exactly as you want. People install shutters on the inside of the home as well. These are usually referred to as Plantation shutters. They are installed in the place of regular blinds. The main benefit of this type of window covering is that they look good and offer a good deal of privacy as well.
You can find wood shutters available in cedar, pine, and maple and oak. Other woods are used but not as often. Some of the styles include paneled, raised paneled, louvered and etched. The style of shutters you choose depends on what looks good on your home. In addition, it depends on what matches the exterior of your home.
Most do-it-yourself home centers and building supply stores should carry a vast array of different wood shutters. Before heading to the store make sure you have taken the measurements of the windows where you want the shutters installed. You can also do some research online to gather as much information as possible before making your final decision.
By: David Karlson
Archive for January, 2010
Wood Shutters For Your Home
January 25th, 2010How To Achieve High Home Improvement Value
January 22nd, 2010
People think of their homes in different ways. The old adage – a man’s home is his castle – can be true for many men and women. Your home is also likely to be your biggest investment and as such it is deserving of continued upgrade to increase the home improvement value of your investment.
Or perhaps you’ve bought your home with a view to making some quick improvements and on-selling it.
Whatever your reasons for buying your house you will expect to see a rise in your home improvement value.
Estimating your home improvement value is a simple process and increasing that value can also be easy if you plan well. Regardless of where your home is located, or its amenity or size, it will have the potential for home improvement value. A simple rule of thumb in home improvements is that every dollar you invest should return you two dollars.
D-I-Y Improvements
Planning is the secret to increasing your home improvement value. Spend time in the planning stages and you’ll be rewarded in the renovation stage.
Start with pen and paper and two columns. In the first column list all the features that your house currently has, for example: two bedrooms, one bathroom, combined lounge/dining area, etc. In the other column write down the features you’d like to have in your home; for example four bedrooms, two bathrooms, rumpus room.
You may not be able to achieve everything you’ve written down in the second column; however, writing down the features that you desire is the first step in achieving your home improvement value.
Gaining Another Bathroom
Many people desire an en suite bathroom and this can be a great way to add value to your home. If the main bathroom is located adjacent to the master bedroom – as it frequently is – it can be a relatively inexpensive job to know a doorway between the two rooms. This will give you and immediate home improvement value!
Often a well-located closet can be turned into a toilet area, providing another boost to your home’s value.
Adding A Bedroom
Before you go to the expense of calling in a contractor, take a look at the present bedrooms. Do you have a large bedroom than could easily be divided into two smaller bedrooms by installing a stud wall? These bedrooms may be small but can give children or teenagers some much needed private space. What about a sun room or a veranda that can be closed in to provide a bedroom?
Adding bathrooms and bedrooms to a property is a great starting point to improving your home’s overall value.
If adding additional rooms is outside of you price range, then something as simple as a fresh coat of paint can transform a house or apartment. Keep the wall colors light and the ceilings and trim white if your aim is to make the rooms look larger.
In the bathroom and kitchen the addition of new taps and cupboard handles can brighten and add a contemporary touch to the rooms.
Remember the basic rule that a small investment now will turn into a big investment in the future. Keep making those small improvements and you’ll be able to watch your home improvement value grow over time.
By: Alison Stevens
Home Sauna Kits – Do It Yourself
January 22nd, 2010
Used to be that, if you wanted a sauna, you’d either have to join a gym or book some time at your favorite health spa. Because of a growing awareness of all the healthy benefits that come with using a sauna, the demand for private saunas has increased to the point that now there are “Do-It-Yourself” ( or DIY ) sauna kits available.
Before jumping up on the DIY bandwagon, it’s important that you look into the following and use them as your guidelines when considering which sauna kit is right for you:
What type of sauna do you want or need? Where are you planning to place it in your home or office? What type of materials will work best for you? How much “sweat equity” do you plan on contributing to it’s construction? What design are you considering?
Before you get overwhelmed with all of the different types of saunas out there, keep in mind that saunas basically fall into two different general categories: Infrared and Traditional.
The Traditional Saunas employ a separate energy source which will heat rocks that are placed within the structure as well as providing a way of circulating the heated air within the sauna chamber. Additionally, many sauna devotees feel that the true core of the entire experience is to sprinkle the heated rocks with water to generate body cleansing steam. These other energy sources are supplied by electric, gas, even wood burning stoves. With any of these steam-type saunas, you must make sure that there is an approved ventilation system installed and with the gas and wood burning stoves, you must also make sure that safety codes are adhered to implicitly.
On the other hand, there are the state of the art Infrared saunas which use infrared wave emitters that are very effective in making you sweat. Instead of expending additional energy to heat the entire sauna, these emitted waves actually go right to the heart of the matter, by penetrating your skin, without wasting as much time and energy that the Traditional Saunas do.
The difference is that the Infrared Saunas do not produce steam: they are a dry-heat sauna, so any type of exhaust or ventilation needed as with the Traditional Saunas is not necessary.
Now that you’ve decided which type of sauna you want, you need to decide where you want it to be set up. If it’s for your office, then the next point may not be as much of a consideration for you, but if it’s at home, do you want it to be an indoor or an outdoor sauna? Many enthusiasts say there is nothing like walking out of your hundred plus degree sauna into the “great outdoors”. If that’s not for you, then you will probably want the advantage and convenience of having your sauna installed indoors, where it will not only be more readily available: the operating costs involved in heating and maintaining a high temperature will be much less than the outdoor location.
Besides being able to get dressed without shivering and to relax after your sauna if you’re indoors, it’s also much easier to connect to an indoor power source, so that should also be taken into account.
The next most important thing is to ensure that you have the right type of materials to construct your sauna. Most saunas are made of wood, so it’s very important to inspect every piece before you buy your sauna, especially what will be used in the inner chamber.
Whether or not you choose to go with the Traditional or the Infrared Sauna, keep in mind that the wood used for the sauna interior needs to be knot-free. Cedar is the most commonly used wood for this part of the sauna as it stays relatively cool and will absorb moisture as needed. If the planks are not of uniform length and width or there are any knots in the wood, you do run the risk over time not only of having the wood split, but it may also start seeping sap. Not a good thing to have happened after all your planning and hard work.
Speaking of which, just how much time can you invest in this DIY project? If you are an accomplished handyman, there are kits available that can challenge your skills for a week or more. But if you’re like most people, you are a “Weekend Warrior” and there are kits designed with you in mind: they have a modular design and will require much less time to assemble. Pop onto the internet and you will be sure to find the perfect kit, price wise and otherwise, for you.
While you’re browsing the internet there, you also need to keep in mind the overall sauna design that will work best for you. You’ve decided where it’s going to be place, how it’s going to be heated and how many people you want it to be able to accommodate. Most kits have a pre-set design so make sure that the one you buy has all of the “amenities” you deem necessary.
If you’re more experienced with DIY, you can let your creativity work overtime by buying individual components to customize your sauna. Either way, don’t feel overwhelmed by all of the available choices and options: sauna construction is very forgiving in that as long as you can produce heat and contain it, you’ve got a working sauna!
By: Radoslaw Czajkowski