Do you ever feel bad about your home repair skills (or lack thereof)? Take heart, at least you are not the person who did this. Not many people would think to funnel all the water collected by their gutters into the crawl space under their home. But this person did.
The inspector who discovered this tragedy does not mention the cost of repair. He did say that there were several feet of standing water. Anyone want to venture a guess at how much this would cost to repair?
About five years ago we did a major renovation to our house and the architect suggested we use spray foam for insulation. There were many benefits; it was a green technology, it provided a vapor barrier, it added some rigidity to the structure, it filled every nook and it could get wet without growing mold. The down side: In those days a truck showed up at your house with 55 gallon drums of chemicals and a very loud machine used to mix the foam and to power the sprayers. They did a great job, they were pros, but I was not about to call them for my newest project, a small basement room makeover.
Step in "Foam it Green" from sprayfoamdirect.com, which has a DIY version of the big truck. For $330 I got two small canisters connected to hoses which meet and mix at a spray gun. The kit also came with extra nozzles, safety equipment (gloves, glasses etc) and instructions. Note: It's important to read these even though it is against every guy's better judgement. With things like temperature of the foam and spray force, you don't want to waste the product or the applicators.
The process went well and after a minute of spraying I got pretty good at it. (You can see the finished product in this picture.) After the foam cured -- about four minutes -- I added a second layer, where needed. The best part: I've insulated the whole room and I'm not itching! Next up: Drywall.
Winter has forced most projects indoors. In that vein, Popular Mechanics followed the crew of HGTV's Rip & Renew as they did a major basement renovation in Brookhaven, Penn. The project involved demolition on the entire basement and putting in a completely new one. The difference between the before and after pictures is astonishing. Read it for some inspiration and tips on how to deal with basement masonry and drop ceilings.
Our basement used to be a scary place. I knew that the hot water heater could be found down there, but I wasn’t quite sure what other creatures I might stumble across. Thankfully, we decided to clean it out and completely remodel it. Here are some steps that we took and some tips that might help you during the remodeling process.
First, decide what you want to turn your basement into. Ask yourself if you need more living space, a game room, an office, a hobby room, etc. Then, plan as if this project were a small version of a home, and determine the answers to questions like: When will you have time to work on the remodel? How much space do you have to work with? What jobs will you need a contractor for?.
After you have planned the project and begun working, it’s easy to get wrapped up in the big changes. Don’t forget about these two details, though! 1) It’s hard to enjoy your new room if it doesn’t have a good heating/cooling system. 2) You might need new storage space for whatever used to be in your basement. For us, the basement worked best as a game room/entertainment center. The main goal, though, is to transform your basement into something useful. It might have taken a lot of work, but we were able to achieve that with our basement. Now I can hardly stand to leave it. For more examples and information about basement renovation, check out more articles and videos here.
If you live in a state with a perpetually wet basement like me, you're probably running a dehumidifier year-round. Ours sucks the moisture out of our always-wet walls and drains it into the sump pump.
If you're luckier than me, you may only use a dehumidifier for humid summer days and are dragging yours out of storage right about now. If you have an older model, you may want to consider upgrading to an Energy Star qualified one. It removes the same amount of moisture as a unit of the same size but uses 10 to 20 percent less energy, which could actually power your refrigerator for six months. Visit Energy Star's page on dehumidifiers for more information as well as a list of approved models.
Watching paint dry, waiting for a pot to boil, watching grass grow—these are the tedious moments of our lives. But at least with Rock Solid Floors, the time spent waiting for your floor sealant to dry has been cut from four days to 24 hours. No more moving all your junk out of the garage to the front lawn and having it sit there for days on end. It's environmentally friendly and has a lifetime guarantee not to yellow or fade. The Rock Solid Flooring mixture is made entirely of polyurea and 100 percent solids and contains absolutely no VOCs.
Case Handyman and Remodeling Services, LLC, the nation’s largest full service remodeling organization, announced 8 emerging home improvement trends for 2008. Here they are:
1. Attic transformations 2. Skylights 3. Soaking tubs 4. The walk-in closet suite 5. Faux stone 6. Creating home offices 7. Living green, particularly in the kitchen 8. Basements
Are you planning on making your home trendy this year?
