When it comes to transforming your basement into a gameroom, the possibilities are truly endless.  After enlisting the help of a basement finishing contractor, the fun begins.  Do you want a theme room, like your favorite sport, a casino lounge, or pub decor?  To be wise, it is best to avoid a cluster of posters, street signs, and beer logos.  You don’t want your final, finished space to look like an adolescent bedroom.  Even if you do not want a single theme, a gameroom should be well put together and organized, with a professional design.

For lighting, consider touch lamps, clap machines, and hanging florescent fixtures over any game tables.  You might want to invest in pub lamps or lava lights.  For game rooms with a bar, look for lights that advertise your favorite drink or pub fare.  Vintage and antique machines are available if you are willing to pay extra.  Or if you’re thinking beach bar, buy some Tiki lamps and rattan bar stools.  You want to be strategic with the lighting in your basement gameroom.  Games like pool and ping-pong need a fairly bright light.  Arcade machines will light themselves.  Dim or colored bulbs will be great on top of the bar, or in a fixture above a poker table.

Will the gameroom be for adults, or will kids be joining in the fun?  It is wise to get mixed age-appropriate activities.  A real poker table is great for adult-night, so it is best to distract the kids with an arts and crafts table, indoor hockey net, bowling set, basketball hoop, or board game area.  Otherwise, kids will be too tempted by the adult game fun.

Wall color schemes for basement gamerooms include the use of complimentary colors.  These are two colors on opposite ends of the color wheel that create a striking affect.  Complimentary colors are often used on sports uniforms—blue and orange, purple and yellow, green and red.  It is best to use the darker color as trim, and the lighter color on the main wall.  The lighter color will make your pictures, clocks, and signs stand out more.  Or try a large diamond-shaped design across the walls.  Create a geometric mural if you are artistically inclined.  Paint your favorite arcade character, sports star, or muscle car.

You can always mask the functional components of your basement with moveable paneling if you want to hide a rattling furnace and water heater.  An unfinished ceiling will have an industrial effect, or install panels and a handsome ceiling fan for ventilation.  You can still access any pipes or ceiling ducts with drop ceiling panels.

A basement gameroom has fun meeting functionality, and who can argue with that?  A finished basement will also significantly raise the price of your home.

Article originally published here: http://www.totalbasementfinishing.com/basement-finishing/basement-finishing-ideas/articles/turning-a-basement-into-a-gameroom

However, forfeiting some renovation projects and important repairs might not be the smartest choice. That outdated HVAC system, the old windows, and cold basement might be costing you big bucks. The next rainstorm may flood your basement. In other words, the money you’re trying to save in repairs might be being spent instead in utility bills or depleted in bigger repairs later on due to the lack of proper preventive measures.
Even in tough times, there are some improvements that actually pay off, lowering your energy consumption, preserving or increasing the property value, and giving you much-needed peace of mind.
Below is a list of the five of the most cost-effective home improvements and the best investments you can ever make in your home.

Basement Finishing
Finishing your basement will do more that just add living space to your home. It will actually pay you back and eventually, even prove itself profitable! To sweeten the deal, it can be done at half the cost of building an addition.

Remodeling Magazine’s Cost vs. Value report lists basement finishing as one of the few investments in which you will be recovering most of your money right away in added property value. You can recover an average of 75% of the cost if you sell the property immediately.

However, the most significant benefit of a finished basement is the ability to improve the home’s energy efficiency. The U.S. Department of Energy reports that an average 1,500 square-foot home that has a finished basement with R-10 insulation, and is heated by natural gas (at $0.72/therm) can save anywhere between $200 to $400 a year.

Add to that the fact that, even considering ups and downs in the housing market, the U.S. Census Bureau shows home prices tend to increase in average 251.69% every 20 years interval. Therefore, in 20 years, the added value to your property will not only fully cover the remodeling costs; it will prove profitable!

Crawl Space Encapsulation
That moldy, filthy, rotten crawl space is more than just unsightly and unpleasant. It’s a black hole in which not only your money disappears, but also your home’s value, structural integrity, indoor air quality, and your family’s health.

Because of the way the air moves inside buildings, everything that goes on in the crawl space has significant impact on how structurally sound, comfortable, healthy, and energy efficient your home is.

As the air in the house is heated, it rises and escapes through any openings in the upper floors. To replenish the air supply, new air is sucked from the lower levels, mainly from your basement or crawl space. That is called the “stack-effect” and because of it, everything that is in that filthy crawl space air, including mold spores and dust mites, is consistently entering your home.

It is estimated that 1/3 of the air you breathe inside the home is crawl space air. In addition, the typical crawl space moisture that is also being carried in with the air makes your home harder to cool and heat. During the winter, cold air is also sucked in through the floor. If air ducts run through the crawl space, energy losses can amount to as high as 50% – half of the money you pay in to heat and cool your home is literally wasted.

Crawl space encapsulation is a relatively inexpensive new technology that can control moisture and prevent moisture-related problems in this space. It protects your floor joists and wooden structures from mold and rot, and keep dust mites and other moisture loving pests at bay. Furthermore, according to studies conducted by Advanced Energy and Habitat for Humanity, sealing and conditioning a crawl space can make your home an average of 18% more energy efficient.

Battery Operated Backup Sump Pump
Say that you have a very good drainage system and a quality sump pump, which is well maintained and in great condition. Nevertheless, one morning, after a big storm, you wake up to a flooded basement and thousand of dollars in damaged property. The storm knocked down the power, and with it, the sump pump was rendered useless.

There is no way to fully protect your basement from flooding without a backup sump pump system, preferably one that does not run on electricity or depend on a generator.
During a long-lasting power outage, you will want the generator to spend its energy keeping your refrigerator, appliances and lights running.

A battery-operated backup sump pump is, in that case, your best option. If you have a finished basement, or you store anything of value in your basement, a battery-operated backup pump is a must. It saves you a lot of money and lets you sleep better, knowing that your basement is protected.

Replacement Windows
Replacing your old, obsolete windows with new Energy Star rated windows can help save a lot of money in energy bills.
According to the Alliance to Save Energy, a non-profit coalition of business, government, environmental, and consumer leaders, installing energy-efficient replacement windows can reduce your heating and cooling bills by up to 30 percent! New double-hung, wood-clad windows with double-pane low-E glass, can reduce drastically your heating and cooling costs, besides improving significantly the looks of your home and adding value to the property.

HVAC Upgrades
Replacing obsolete furnaces, which usually operate at only 60 percent efficiency or worse for a new, high-efficiency two-stage unit, that rates at least 90% efficiency, can save you hundreds of dollars each year.

Likewise, replacing your old A/C system with a new unit that achieves a minimum of 13 SEER (Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio) can save you big bucks in cooling costs during summer. In addition, most new models use non-ozone-depleting refrigerants, making them more environmentally-friendly than older units.

In addition to all the benefits, some of these improvements, such as basement insulation and HVAC upgrades, may qualify for loans, grants and tax incentives under different local, state, and federal government energy efficiency programs.

In conclusion, a good assessment of your home’s overall condition is fundamental in times like these. You can’t afford to let your property, which is probably your most valuable asset, lose value. Sometimes, the best way to save money is to invest in technologies and repairs that will keep you from wasting it.

One of the easier outcomes for your garage is to turn it into a home gym.  This process will create a more convenient situation to exercise, as there will no longer be a need to drive to the gym.  It can also save you loads of money in the long run when you no longer have to pay the monthly gym fees. Some ideas to make your garage more appealing for this are to put down a carpet, put up a television or install a radio system, or install shelves and hooks to store less heavy equipment.

Some people might find it a more useful and pragmatic approach to turn their garage into a home office.  For people living in warmer climates around the country, putting an office in the garage is a great way to spend a day because garages tend to be naturally cooler than the main portion of the house.  Additionally, one can always put an air conditioner in one of the garage windows or a heater for those cooler winter months.

The most obvious choice for any garage is to create a workshop.  As the garage is a place where many people already store their tools, one needs simply to organize their supply and create a few additional tables, hangers and storage units.  The first thing to do is create a list of all of your tools and equipment.  Maybe write down some categories on a piece of paper in a way that makes sense to you.  Then, you can use that list to organize your tools accordingly. If you need cabinets, shelves, hooks or racks, plan for them first and the process will be easier in the end.

Once you’ve created your plan, it’s important to clean out the entire garage to get it ready.  When that’s completed, it’s time to work on the main ingredient for any workshop: the bench.  As you can imagine, a work bench can expect to hold a great deal of weight, so this step is not as simple as throwing some plywood over a couple of hobby horses.  You must create a framework with a bracing system designed to hold whatever weight you think will suffice.

Remember, garages today no longer need to be four walls and a roof where you keep your car and other random items.  The garage can easily become a second home for your health, your office, or your favorite hobby.  All it takes is a little time, a little energy and a little commitment and your garage remodeling job can be a success!

Article originally published here: http://www.homeremodelingct.org/connecticut-contractors/19-garage/90-garage-remodeling-in-connecticut.htm

Before you start on any painting project, remember: don’t skimp on preparation. Sand off flaking paint and fill holes with spackle. Cover all surfaces you want to protect with a good drop cloth, wipe down your walls and remove any grease, handprints or dirt and tape all trim edges, switch plates, outlets and knobs before you open that first can of paint. And if you have any doubts in how to complete the job, contact a professional painter to help you.

Rag rolling
The rag rolling technique uses a special fabric cover for your roller to either apply color (ragging on) or to remove paint that has already been applied to the wall surface (ragging off). Some painters prefer to use damp rags loosely balled up and held in the hand to apply or remove paint, instead of using a roller cover.

Sponging
Like the handheld rag technique, sponging uses the ragged texture of a dampened natural sea sponge to achieve a mottled effect on walls and ceilings by adding or removing layers of paint. Both sponging and ragging techniques require practice to make sure you are able to achieve consistency over a large surface.

“Leather” look
This technique can be a little more difficult to master than ragging or sponging, but with a little practice, the results can be spectacular. The key is to work in small areas – no larger than 3′ by 3′ for best results. In this method, while glaze or paint is still wet in the treatment area, sheets of plastic wrap are applied to the surface and then removed to achieve the lines and wrinkles common in aged leather. This effect can also be achieved using strips of chamois cloth, stacked up and tied in the middle. Holding the strips up by the center, the appearance is that of a loose mop head. Dampen the chamois mop head and scrunch it gently in your hand, applying the ends of the chamois to the wall to remove some of the paint or glaze.

Color glazing
One of the simplest techniques to complete, color glazing involves the use of a base coat of one color of paint, with one or more layers of different colors of paint, thinned with glaze, on top. By thinning the upper coats with glaze, the base coat can show through, creating the illusion of depth. Color glazing is often combined with ragging or sponging on the uppermost layer of color.

A fresh, interior paint job can change the look of a room and create a completely different feel for your home. And one of the best things about paint is its relative low cost: even if you don’t achieve the look you want with one technique, it’s a simple matter to cover it up and start all over again.

Article originally published here: http://www.homeremodelingct.org/connecticut-contractors/28-painting-staining/91-interior-painting.htm

Energy Efficient Homes

Can you imagine a house that is able to warm itself without the need of a furnace or any separated heat contraption?  Paying less for your monthly electricity than you pay for a pizza?

The creators of German Passive Houses Project go beyond imagining it. They actually made it a reality and proved it is indeed  possible to have a home that is so energy efficient that you need no separate heating system to keep the house warm and there is no loss of comfort.

The Passive House is the world’s leading standard in energy efficient construction: Energy saved on heating is 80% compared to conventional standards of new buildings. The energy requirement for heating is lower than 10 to 20 kWh/(m²a) (depending on climate), adding up to a low cost of 10 to 25 € ($15 to $36 USD) per month.

For you to have an idea on how energy efficient those houses are, keep in mind that the average home in ths U.S. spends 40 kWh a day. Almost twice of what a passive house spends in a month!

According to the website, such efficiency is achieved through a combination of the following:

• Proper insulation methods
• Design without thermal bridges
• Air tightness
• Ventilation with heat recovery
• Proper comfort windows
• Innovative Heating Technology

This technology can be easily applied in new construction as well as existing buildings.

The next step? The Self-Sufficient Solar House, conceived by the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy in Freiburg, Germany.

The wrong contractor, a bad weather spell, an unclear contract clause or last minute changes can all can contribute to turn a dream project into a  homeowner’s worst nightmare.

As more homeowners prepare to tackle home improvement projects this year, Consumer Reports, which recently conducted a poll on Home Remodeling, points to the 5 most common mistakes homeowners make when dealing with contractors and conducting the project:

1. Don’t rush in. Make sure you carefully plan the whole project, and are 100% sure that you will be satisfied with the final result. Making changes to the project “on-the-fly” is the costliest mistake homeowners make. It can add in average of $1,500 to kitchen projects and $650 to bath remodels.
2. Prepare for the unexpected. As the work begins some new problems might be uncovered. When walls are stripped, things like water damage, mold or pest infestation may surface.  Good contractors are able to anticipate some of the problems and allow the homeowner to adjust the budget. Consumer Reports reveals that water damage was an issue with 17 percent of bathroom remodels, and structural problems delayed 10 percent of kitchen projects.
3. Don’t chase the lowballs. What seems to be cheap initially may end up costing more. To compete in a tight market contractors lower their profit margin, but will make up their costs in labor or other areas. According to the Consumer Report poll, readers who went for the lowball spent in average $1,500 extra on their kitchens and $1,000 extra on their bathrooms. Make sure the contract specifies amounts for products and materials before you sign. Avoid signing contracts with too many  “allowances”.
4. Get the paperwork in order. Have the contractor attach copies of his up-to-date license, insurance and workers’ compensation policies to the written contract. He also should get permits and provide a lien waiver when the job is done; this will keep suppliers from contacting the homeowner for unpaid bills.
5. Focus on the boring bits. The tedious details no one wants to think about are the ones that will usually make a difference between a successful remodeling experience and a tragic one. Things like the proper placement of outlets for appliances and electronics,  task lighting, the proper fan for a bathroom, or even determining a place for the garbage can are usually overlooked in projects but will prove to be fundamental later on. Changes made after the remodeling job is concluded are usually a costly hassle.

Sources:

• Shop Smart: Top five remodeling headaches.
• http://www.consumerreports.org/

According to a recent poll conducted by Consumer Reports , over the next 12 months, 54 percent of homeowners are planning a remodeling project.

Although 65% report planning to to do at least some of the work themselves, there is still good news for the remodeling industry as a whole, especially during tough economic times.

The economic downturn, however, is at the very core of this trend as it forced 67% of the interviewed to reconsider their housing plans with 39% of them choosing to fix and improve the property they already own.

To cut down costs, 42% will do the work themselves while 36% will remodel in phases. Also, 46% of the interviewed reported the need to cut down expenses because they don’t have enough money.

The most popular remodeling projects include painting (56%), designing (39%) and flooring (34%).

Consumer Reports Remodeling Poll Methodology
The Consumer Reports National Research Center conducted a telephone poll of a nationally representative probability sample of telephone households. 1,002 interviews were completed among adults aged 18+. Interviewing took place over April 16 – April 19, 2009. The margin of error is +/- 3.2% points at a 95% confidence level.

Source: Info-Zine

Painting is a quick and budget-friendly home improvement

Painting is a good way to spruce up a room without breaking your budget or taking up too much time. When it comes to painting, there’s nearly an endless array of types, colors, styles and techniques to use. There are paint types that work best for certain rooms in your home, and a professional painting contractor can help you figure out what options will work best for you.

Specialists will be able to tell you exactly which types of paint and painting techniques are right for your bathroom, bedroom, living room, kitchen or any other room in the house. Professionals know that rooms like bathrooms or kitchens typically get moisture buildup, so a mildew-resistant satin or semigloss paint is the best choice and makes walls easy to clean.

Don’t be afraid to ask for help

Painters can take care of the steps needed to prepare walls for painting. They can take on large or small, interior and exterior paint jobs, as well as helping you with color selection and using environmentally friendly coatings.

They also know certain painting techniques to add some style and sophistication to your walls. Whether you’d like to have a brightly colored accent wall in your living room or a checkerboard print in your kitchen, there’s a paint color or technique you help you do it.  Get creative!

Expert siding contractors have the knowledge and skills to make your home look like new!  Let them increase the value of your house with the curb appeal and easy maintenance of siding.

Common types of siding include vinyl, wood, various composites and stucco.  Each of these requires specific preparation of the area between the siding and your house’s exterior sheathing, which is best left to the experts. Good siding contractors are highly trained professionals with knowledge of the proper installation techniques.

It’s been reported that over two billion square feet of vinyl siding is produced each year in the United States. Siding can give a home a natural woodgrain look, but you won’t have to paint it. It will continue to look bright and beautiful for many years to come. You can purchase siding in neutral white and beige colors, but more colors beginning to be manufactured now.

Wind can cause siding to rattle, and the sun and heat can cause vinyl siding to grow or expand so the siding must be secured properly by a professional. Contractors can also use vinyl siding to replace aluminum siding or cover up old wood siding already on your house.

Floorplanner.com allows you to easily  build  (and share!) 2D floor plans like a pro and then visualize them in 3D.

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