Month: June 2021

Home Remodeling

Eight Crucial Aspects of a Great Bathroom

It is usually one of the first rooms we see when we get up in the morning, and one of the last rooms we see before we go to bed at night. The bathroom is one of the, if not the most, sacred rooms in our home. It is surely among the most private rooms in the home. So to take in consideration the bathroom is such a much used room, it makes sense to equip it with the most up to date fixtures and lighting you can install. Here are ten suggestions on how to make your bathroom as inviting as possible:
1. Create an entrance transition. Not counting the master bath, most bathrooms will serve several users and need to be placed in a location that is central to those users. You can create a space outside the door, such as an alcove off of the hallway that can give some privacy from your main room and high traffic areas.
2. Give the bathroom room like proportions. Many usual bathrooms are really just hallways with the fixtures that line one side of the hallway. It is hard to make a comfy room out of that shape.
3. Install a beautiful window. Bringing natural light and a nice view of the outside is very important. Think about it this way, when we go into the bathroom in the morning, most of us look out the window, that is to see how the weather is doing and provides us with a somewhat look at how the day might progress weather wise.
4. From the least intimate places to the most intimate places. This basically means that in the residential design of the bathroom, keep in mind the most intimate place should be the farthest from the door.
5. Position your shower to have a “borrowed view”. In a small space such as a bathroom, sometimes it is difficult to get a decent view to the outside from each area. A shower is a nice example since you can position the shower to give you the view that you want or need.
6. Paying attention to the vertical and horizontal dimensions is critical to have a people friendly bathroom. Certain minimum clearances around bathroom fixtures are required by every building code. You want your family and guests to have enough room to wash their hands for example without bumping into other walls and so forth.
7. Having water resistant finishes are another aspect that needs to be taken into account for. The last thing you want is for your bathroom to have a leakage problem due to poor workmanship or a poor choice in picking the correct water resistant materials to install in your bathroom.
8. Picking out and installing fixtures that really work and will last the test of time, you need to make sure that you are really getting your money’s worth. Having the peace of mind of having these fixtures installed in your bathroom will keep your bathroom looking and performing in top notch performance.…

June 29, 2021 Suzana Mikolova

Home Improvement Contractors

Bathroom Remodeling – Top 10 Tips For a Successful Bathroom Remodel

1.) Choose the Right Contractor:
Selecting the right contractor for a bathroom remodeling project in Dayton, Ohio is the crucial first step and can make the difference between a successful enjoyable process and a never ending nightmare of regret. Make sure the bathroom contractor you select is qualified and capable. Apples to Apples estimates often differ since outstanding quality and customer service costs more to provide you then low attention to detail and no customer service.
Remember often times in life you get what you pay for. Be sure to compare more then just Scope of Work when comparing estimates and investigate and verify their Better Business record.
2.) Proper Prior Planning:
Sound familiar from college? Well it applies to everything including bathroom remodeling. There is a lot of coordinating to be done in typically small spaces when bathroom remodeling. Sure a good contractor will do most if not all the coordinating for you but it is a good idea to go over the steps yourself prior to construction.
Planning the process yourself will not only allow you to be more educated about it, but also make you more informed and better capable of making good decisions with regards to your bathroom remodeling project.
3.) Functional Work Triangles:
Work triangles typically apply to kitchen remodeling but also have value when Bathroom remodeling. “Work triangles” refer to the distance between the functional amenities of your bathroom such as toilet, lavatory sink, showers and tubs, and storage. Creating the right amount of space between these items can make your bathroom functional and comfortable as well as create a feeling of openness and space.
4.) Choose the Right Materials:
With the increased popularity of the big box stores came a gambit of new choices, consequently making selecting materials a nerve racking experience for some remodeling novices. A good contractor will help you select the right stuff for the right spot keeping esthetic appeal, texture, durability and cost in mind.
By properly installing the right materials, they should last the lifetime of your home. The right materials can make all the difference in the world and its painfully obvious when you select the wrong ones.
5.) Waterproofing and Concrete.
By properly waterproofing the concrete board it will create a durable long lasting medium for the tile setting. Reputable contractors only remodel bathrooms using moisture resistant drywall for dry painted surfaces, and concrete board for any areas to be tiled or exposed to wet conditions. However hanging cement board alone is not enough.
The joints and corners need to be taped and finished with ASTM approved mortar in a similar fashion as one finishes drywall. Doing this waterproofs the system allowing your walls to not rely solely on the finished tile for water proofing characteristics and, creates a second moisture barrier.
This simple, low cost step will add decades of time to your bathrooms life span. Ask your proposed contractors how they intend to waterproof the cement board. If they leave this step out of the answer, or say, “the tile is the waterproof system.” move onto the next guy.
6.) Get Great Lighting:
Proper lighting is essential for bathrooms. The right lighting can dramatically improve the appearance and function of your newly remodeled bathrooms. Utilizing a diverse selection of lighting such as 6 inch can lights, 4 inch cans lights, flush mounted lighting, wall sconces, under cabinet lighting, and vanity lights truly livens the space and adds a sense of elegance only great lighting can. The more lights and type of lights you use the more dramatic the aesthetic appeal.
7.) Select the Right Trim:
A bathrooms trim is very important. Types of bathroom trim include; baseboard, casing, chair rail, wainscoting, crown molding, and around mirror trim. The correct combination of trim separates good bathrooms from great bathrooms. There is a fallacy that all of a home’s trim must match. It just isn’t true. Upgrading a bathroom’s trim package can provide huge design dividends while remodeling a bath room and separate it as the most elegant room in the house, which it should be.
8.) Hardware and Fixture Fluency:
Not many things can destroy a bathroom remodel like mismatched hardware and fixtures. There are several finishes to choose from when considering which one is best for your project such as, chrome, brass, brass and chrome, nickel, brushed nickel, stainless steel, brushed stainless steel, antiqued bronze, brushed bronze, and oil rubbed bronze. It is imperative that all items in your bathroom have similar finishes. Disregarding this will confuse the eye, create an un-unified look and take away from your bathrooms appeal.
9.) Remember the Small Stuff:
The small stuff is commonly overlooked then thrown together in the end. One of the largest consumer complaints with regards to bathroom remodeling is that the contractors did not …

June 25, 2021 Suzana Mikolova

General Article

I Hate a Backyard Fence, But I Needed One

Being from the country, I was never inclined to like nor need a backyard fence. I thought they were ugly and made me feel locked in and shut other people out. After I moved into an urban area, I started to feel differently about them and saw more of a need for a backyard fence.

While I still didn’t like them, I was forced to come up with a backyard fence plan of some sort, if for no other reason than to keep my pets in my yard and my neighbor’s critters in theirs. I really didn’t know where to start. I knew I needed a backyard fence for privacy, but what kind? I certainly didn’t know how to build a backyard fence. Should it be made of wood? Brick? Chain link? On top of that, I didn’t know anything about fence gate hardware!

I didn’t even want the stupid thing in the first place, and now I was forced with a big decision, not just about a privacy fence, but about what type would increase the value of my home. One of my neighbors had a backyard decorative fence wire woven, and it seemed to keep in the good and keep out the bad, but not obstruct the view.

The only thing I did know for sure was that our neighborhood was changing. The kids were cutting through the yard and snooping around, and even strangers would occasionally pass through. It started to get a bit creepy, so I was forced to quit putting it off and I had to make a decision on what kind of fence I was going to put up.

The problem is that I thought the type of fence that I wanted didn’t exist. I was a kid once, and I understand how easy it is to jump some backyard fences. Chain-link fences can be jumped. A wood backyard fence would probably be no good because the kids could knock a hole in it and go on through. Then I’d be stuck doing fence repair. The last thing I would ever consider for a backyard fence is a barbed-wire fence. Even though I didn’t want the neighborhood kids coming through, I didn’t want them getting hurt either.

One day while my family and I were out for a casual drive I saw the answer I was seeking – a wrought iron fence! I thought it was beautiful. However, there was one problem; I’m kind of a do it yourself landscaping guy, and I had no idea how to go about putting that kind of backyard fence up.

So, I went to Home Depot for some pointers. There was a really knowledgeable guy there and we talked about it for quite awhile. After he explained most of the details to me. I hired a contractor that he recommended and I watched football and drank beer while the contractor built the fence. Problem solved:)…

June 22, 2021 Suzana Mikolova

General Article

Small Garden Green House Design

As far as the framework of your garden green house is concerned your choice is really between wood and aluminum, although a third choice – plastic piping – is currently being developed and may prove cheaper than the others.

Aluminum will not rust or rot, but it is generally agreed that it reacts more strongly to hot and cold than wood and therefore cools the greenhouse in winter; my own belief is that this is not a significant factor. Aluminum looks ugly, is hard to work yourself and is fairly expensive. If you decide on aluminum you have really got to buy your garden green house ready-built.

Wooden garden green houses must be made from a decay-resistant wood like cedar, redwood, 01 cypress. It is pointless using soft wood or any wood that requires constant painting to stop it from rotting. Wood has a tiny disadvantage in that it obscures more light than aluminum, but it looks nicer and you can work it yourself. And a cedar garden green house should last as long as you will.

The choice of transparent sheeting for green houses lies between glass, and three kinds of plastic: fiber reinforced, which is a transparent form of fiber glass; PVC or acrylic modified plastic, which is a fairly stiff plastic; and polyethylene which is flimsy.

Glass lets in a lot of light, looks good, lasts a very long time, is seldom broken by wind and can easily be mended, but it costs a lot and requires a strong framework to carry its weight. Fiber reinforced plastic comes in large sheets; it is easy to fit and does not need extensive framing. It also takes some of the heat out of a hot sun, which is a very good thing. However, it does not admit as much light as glass and this is a serious disadvantage in winter. It is also inflammable, and will only last twenty years.

PVC and acrylic modified plastic are cheaper and transmit light well, but they will last only five years and can be ripped by a gale. Polyethylene is very cheap – about a tenth the cost of glass – and transmits light very efficiently. But it will only last one or two years, and is very easily ripped by gales. Transparent plastics are becoming very popular all over the country, and as long as plastics remain cheap relative to glass, they are well worth using. Glass is, of course, better in the long term, but -it represents a substantial capital investment nowadays.…

June 16, 2021 Suzana Mikolova

General Article

Privacy Screen Fence Options

The first image that comes to mind when discussing privacy fences is that of a high-rising, solid wood or stone wall. While that, in a very literal sense, is a definitive privacy fence, there are myriad options that should also be considered.

Materials that run the gamut from cloth to green-growing fencing, from lattice to bamboo, or from PVC to concrete provide viable privacy screen fence options. There are advantages and disadvantages to each, and applications for which some are suited while others are not. Many of the best privacy fence designs incorporate a combination of two or more options.

The first of these is the “green” screen fence. That buzzword may intimate either a growing, shrub or plant-based divider or an eco-friendly concept. In as many instances as possible, eco-friendly considerations should form a part of your decision-making. However, pure green-growing fences have the advantage of being almost maintenance free, and generally more economical to plant. However, long growing times may mean that your “fence” may not be truly private for a decade or so! In winter, all but evergreens will shed their foliage and leave you exposed to the outside world.

Eco-green fences are a bit more nebulous, with some claiming that only a wood fence is “green,” while others insist that the materials used must be recycled and reclaimed, as well as requiring sustainable installation processes. The reality is that even PVC fencing can claim to be “green,” due to its very low maintenance regimen, the dearth of painting required, and the low demand for equipment for installation.

Bamboo is one of the “green material” choices that has exploded in popularity recently.

Bamboo is used for dinnerware, window shades, flooring, walls, fences even clothing. In the proper climate and environment, it is durable, and offers a distinctive natural look. However, simple bamboo pole construction is not as sturdy as is needed in extreme environment conditions, and requires special care in design and installation.

Shade cloths and semi-transparent natural cloth or manufactured materials are excellent choices for patio dividers and for toppers on fence segments. While great accent pieces, they are not generally recommended for exterior standalone fencing.

Commonly, homeowners are choosing lattice fencing, lattice fence toppers or lattice used as a net for climbing plants. The choice of materials runs from softwoods to light low-grade wood to vinyl. Low-grade wood lattice is inexpensive, but very fragile. While vinyl materials often are 400-500% more expensive than inexpensive wood, they are far more durable, low maintenance and equally easy to install.

Stone, manufactured stone, concrete or cement decorative block fences can be quite costly, labour-intensive to install, and sufficiently heavy to result in sag and shift over a period of time. However, there is such a range of attractive materials and design that many homeowners prefer these types of privacy structures.

One of the considerations when contemplating a solid, transparent or semi-transparent “privacy” fence is the impact it will have on the surrounding vegetation, if sunlight is blocked. The concept of “privacy” is, for the most part, a two-way street, and if the fence blocks out views from the outside looking in, it will similarly block views from the inside looking out. When planning your fence, consider to what purpose it will be put, and what the ramifications of your chosen deign will be.…

June 14, 2021 Suzana Mikolova

General Article

Home Improvement Ideas – Upgrading Your Home To Enhance Looks and Value

Are home improvement projects really as easy to accomplish as shown on television shows by do-it-yourself amateurs? That would depend on whether you have the creative ability to address the various issues that crop up when upgrading your home. Home improvement involves a tremendous amount of planning and an eye for details.

Every home improvement project starts with a detailed plan. You must have the details broken down to the basic and advanced requirements of each and every room. It is not entirely possible to do it all yourself. Professional help will be required at many stages if the final result has to look good. You can identify a group of contractors, plumbers and other service providers for assistance whenever the situation arises.

Kitchen and bathrooms are two areas of your home that demands the maximum attention and best effort. A kitchen improvement can look like a truly daunting task but once you break down the tasks to its simplified form, handling them on a time-bound basis can make the task seem more manageable. Kitchen flooring, countertops and wall tiling requires special attention. The cooking area must be designed, taking care of the provisions for proper ventilation and exhaust.

Bathroom improvement is all about choosing the right tiles and color shades. If you are going to retain the fixtures, them your color scheme must complement the fixtures to enhance the looks of the bathrooms. Tiles can be laid in a creative style using striking color combinations and textures. Using the same color for the walls and the ceiling can create a feeling of continuity. If you do have to change the fixtures, you can focus on replacing the faucets, showers, taps and other similar fittings with the latest styles available in the market.

Other areas where you can concentrate on to give your home a new improved look are the windows, doors, and its accessories. Something as simple as new stylish curtains and freshly polished windows can make your home better than before. Using contemporary hard wood flooring or laminate flooring can be great to enhance the looks of your living room and bedrooms. Vinyl, linoleum and textured rubber are also some of the attractive options that you can consider for the flooring.

Choosing the best modeling and redecorating options can not only improve the looks of your home but also add to their long-term value.…

June 11, 2021 Suzana Mikolova

General Article

Learn Some Great Tips To Make Your IPad More Useful

Having a lot of iPad tips can be helpful when you are using this device. However, looking over the whole Internet for such ideas can take time, and you may not be able to spend time searching for all these useful ideas.The below article is a handy little compilation of a few of the most popular tricks you work your new iPad.

If you want to stream movies, listen to music, you may get less usage time out of a battery charge. Adjusting screen brightness is a great way to extend battery life. You will probably find that you do not always need a very bright screen to use your iPad.

You may need to reboot the iPad when it freezes by doing a soft reset if it freezes. This will restart your device to restart. If you need to close an app, hold your home button down for a couple of seconds.

Did you unintentionally open an application that makes a noisy app? You can quickly mute the sound down by pressing the volume-down button. The lock button can also be configured to mute button as well.

You don’t need not press the small camera roll icon on your screen to view your photos. Just swipe to see your content will appear. Swipe left in the other direction to see photos you took earlier.

Go to mail settings and then preview. You can change this to 5 lines.This will allow you time by letting you skim your email at an accelerated rate.

The iPad’s default iPad setting shows two written lines from each email prior to you selecting it. You may want to see more content. You can select mail icon in settings.

You can make it much easier to send messages more easily when you use shortcuts. This automatic method will save you time so you can be a useful way of speeding up your messaging.

A fantastic way to keep the pages open is by opening them in a new tabs. When you’re in the Safari browser, simply tap on the link and hold it until you see a pop-over menu appear.

Taking a screenshot on your iPad is quick and simple. Just hold down the home and sleep buttons together. This takes a picture that filters into your stored photos.

If you are wanting to do a fast copy and paste, push on the wording that you want and hit Select. Then press copy, go where you want to paste, then press and hold again. A menu will come up that will let you can press paste. You can easily copy an entire paragraph in four times.

It’s fun to use the iPad, which is an amazing tool in its own right. The experience is improved when you have a few important tips to turn to, and finding those tips can sometimes be frustrating. Use the ones that fit how you use the device. Your iPad can be even better. Try out some of these iPad tips.

June 6, 2021 Suzana Mikolova

MANGAMOFO

MANGAMOFO

Month: June 2021

Eight Crucial Aspects of a Great Bathroom

Bathroom Remodeling – Top 10 Tips For a Successful Bathroom Remodel

I Hate a Backyard Fence, But I Needed One

Small Garden Green House Design

Privacy Screen Fence Options

Home Improvement Ideas – Upgrading Your Home To Enhance Looks and Value

Learn Some Great Tips To Make Your IPad More Useful

About Us

Recent Posts

Categories