With temperatures falling and meteorologists predicting a colder than normal winter, the easiest and most cost efficient way to keep your home’s heat inside, while keeping your heating bill respectable, is to add fresh insulation to your attic, ceilings, basement, and walls. Mark Wolf (of the National Energy Assistance Directors’ Association) states that these do-it-yourself home upgrades could cause instant energy savings between 10 and 20%.
Here is a list of four cheap and easy tweaks to seal up and insulate your home that will surely lower your heating bill this winter.
- Update Your Thermostat – Cost $80, Yearly savings $200+
According to Consumer Reports, a memory management thermostat unit can cut 20% from your heating and cooling bill. You can program the thermostat unit to save heat while you sleep and wake up to a warm and toasty home in the morning by upgrading to a programmable thermostat.
- Weatherize your Doors and Windows – Cost $100, Yearly savings $200+
This is an important, yet easy step to insulating your home. First, apply water-based acrylic caulk to seal small leaks around doors and windows. Second apply weather stripping to your doorframes to seal air leaks around movable joints. Last, apply shrink film to old windows, single-pane windows, or unused openings (like a small pet door) to keep cold air out and warm air inside.
- Insulate Water Heater (Pipes) – Cost $30, Yearly savings $200
Exposed hot water pipes can lower water temperature at the tap by as many as four degrees. Insulating these exposed pipes on your water heater with fiberglass or foam sleeves costs less than $30 in most cases and can save you five times that amount yearly (via heating bill). An insulating blanket for the tank of your water heater costs $20 but will save you nearly 9% on your heating bill.
- Cover Wall Openings – Cost $50, Yearly savings $150
Spray insulating foam sealant around the holes for outdoor faucets, wiring, and outlets. Nearly 15% of air leakage manifests at wall openings. Foam sealant will keep the cold air from entering through these small openings.
Inflation is elevating the cost of living in many facets of life, but a lower heating and cooling bill can be obtained through the methods listed above. Insulate your home properly and beat the winter chill with lower heating bills.
Federal energy tax credits were eliminated on December 31st of last year, meaning, home improvements on insulation can no longer qualify for the $1,500 tax credit.
There are many things a home owner can do to increase the value of their home. This can be done on the interior or the exterior of the home, from do-it-yourself for the smaller projects to hiring a contractor for the larger jobs. You can give your home a face lift a little at a time. Most home owners don’t have the finances for a complete over haul done all at once. To most people, their home is their largest investment and they would like to keep it in prime condition. Although the price of your home is mostly determined by the current market conditions, there are several things you can do to maximize your homes value.
- Decorative moldings can be used throughout the home for interior to exterior, to trim doors, floors, walls, windows, fire places and ceilings. These moldings can be found at practically all home improvement stores and are fairly easy to install to enhance the look of any room.
- Kitchens tend to be the greatest investment many potential buyers look at the most. Replacing cabinets and counter tops, can be done gradually at your own discretion or you may choose a more creative way to improve the old ones by painting the cabinets and replacing the knobs or handles.
- Vinyl windows are a great way to increase the value of any house. These windows function better than the old wooden windows by opening for easy cleaning and they conserve more energy in the months when heat or central air will be used the most. They do not require painting and they can really make a house look beautiful.
- Adding a new roof can make a very strong impression. The roof is the first thing people see and this can play a strong role in how much your house will sell for. A new sturdy roof provides protection from leaks that make ugly stains on the ceilings in your house that can lead to more damage.
- Installing vinyl siding, if you don’t already have it, this can add up to $10,000 to the value of your house. If you have fairly decent vinyl siding already, you can hire a power washing company to clean the siding and give your house a fresh new look.
- Painting the interior or exterior of a house can transform a house completely with a few coats of paint. You can be as colorful and creative as you like and you can take your time doing so, one room at a time.
- Flooring absolutely makes the difference in any room. Whether you use linoleum, tiles, wood or carpet, a new floor can make all the difference.
- Adding new appliances such as a refrigerator, stove, dishwasher, washer and dryer can greatly improve the value of your home. Along with adding a new water heater, furnace and central air unit.
- Exterior landscaping can enhance a homes value by keeping a well maintained yard to adding strategically placed flowers and shrubs. You can also plant an attractive garden or install a small fish pond. Deciding to install or replace a fence along your property line will also be a great attraction to potential buyers, especially the ones who have children.
- Adding a new deck is a great asset to the exterior look of your home. These can be made from a variety of wood and sealed to preserve the natural appearance. A new deck will provide the outside recreational area to grill out, while relaxing in a comfortable patio set and enjoying the great outdoors and fresh air.
Adding value to your home can be as simple and as affordable as you want it to be. Most improvements can be accomplished a little at a time, all depending on your time and budget. Smaller improvements can be made by simply adding potted plants along the stairs up to your freshly painted front door or by adding a small table or work of art in your foyer.
A visit to the home improvement store or looking through magazines can spark creativity when remodeling your home. Even if you have no idea where to start, one spark can lead to another and another, until before you know it, you have created a beautiful home you may never want to leave.
There’s a saying that goes, “Concrete comes with a guarantee. If you have concrete, it’s guaranteed to crack.” Home improvement expert Danny Lipford covers how to repair and resurface old concrete steps so they look as good as new.
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Depending on where you live and the local climate, the summer months can be an ideal time to do home renovations, especially if outdoor work is involved.
Here are ideas for projects that can be completed more efficiently in the summer and may save you time and money along the way:
Driveway paving
If you have an asphalt driveway that’s loaded with patches of grass growing through the cracks, summer is the best season to have it redone. The main reason is that asphalt is much easier to work with in higher temperatures, so you can avoid problems and additional costs by doing it right the first time.
Creating a smooth asphalt surface requires time and high temperatures to prevent the material from prematurely hardening. The lower the temperature dips, the less time the contractor will have to evenly spread the asphalt to form a level surface. Otherwise, you may be left with an irregular surface with bumps and valleys.
Home addition
Adding a room or an upper floor will require you to open up your home to the elements. Doing this during the summer will likely minimize the exposure and allow the work to be completed more quickly. It will also probably save you money in the process.
Finish the design work and find a contractor several months before the work will start. You don’t want to be held up because materials aren’t available or the permit process hasn’t been completed. If there isn’t time to get something this major done this summer, think about postponing that major addition until next year.
Kitchen
If you plan to gut your kitchen and do a complete remodel, you may be faced with eating in restaurants until the work is finished. Since that can get expensive, another alternative is to cook outdoors. If you have a grill and burner, you’ve already got what you need to cook a majority of your meals.
Move your refrigerator to another room or into the garage. Use paper or plastic plates and utensils if you don’t have access to your kitchen sink or dishwasher. If you’ve ever considered adding an outdoor kitchen, this would be the time to do it. It will add to your enjoyment of the outdoors once your inside kitchen is completed.
Prepare for your kitchen remodel early in the year, after the holidays. Once you have a plan, purchase the materials that you will need. Many retailers conduct some of their best sales in January and February to clear out their unsold Christmas inventories. It’s a good time to buy appliances, tile, fixtures, lighting and new cabinetry. If any of your items require special ordering, this will ensure that everything arrives in time for the work to begin on schedule. You’ll also get more attention from design consultants who can help you put your kitchen layout together.
Again, just like with the major addition above, if there isn’t enough time left in the warm season to do this, think about better planning next year, and take advantage of times when you can catch things on sale and not pay full price for them.
Landscaping
The summer months are also a good time to upgrade your landscaping and home exterior. If you’re thinking about saving time and money maintaining your yard, consider a landscape design that incorporates native plants that don’t require much water or fertilizer. It’s also a good time to install an automatic sprinkler system that is timed to turn on and off at the best times of day.
Incorporate a wide variety of flora that will enhance the look and texture of your landscape. If you enjoy wildlife, consider plants that attract the types of birds and other animals that you’d like to see. You might add some solar-powered lights to accentuate walkways and decks.
You can also save money and add color and diversity by planting your own garden. Initially, you may incur some cost to create the right soil conditions, but the long-term payoff is enjoying your own fresh fruits, vegetables and flowers.
In-ground pool and deck
If you live in a climate where the ground freezes, you have to wait for the thaw before you can do any serious digging in your yard. Start this project during spring and finish it in time to enjoy for most of the summer.
Warmer temperatures are also needed for properly installing and curing the materials used to construct the pool. These include gunite, plaster, cement and certain polymer compounds.
One way to save on a pool is to find one or more neighbors who want to install a pool similar to yours. Since pools are constructed in stages, it’s more efficient and less costly to a contractor to simultaneously build more than one. The savings could be applied to installing a new deck area around the pool. Beyond the enjoyment value, it will add to your home’s resale potential.
Bottom Line
Summer is a good time to get things done outside, when some contractors may be looking for work. Accomplish common maintenance items such as caulking windows, applying weather stripping, cleaning gutters, washing windows, repairing fences, treating wooden decks, painting the exterior or adding siding. Do your homework and get multiple estimates before you commit to anything.
Home improvement expert Danny Lipford gives you some tips to help you decide what kind of mulch to use and how exactly to use it.
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