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 …

Tips For Implementing a Successful Home Improvement Project

It’s a fact that most homeowners in the US do at least one home improvement project in their lifetime. And regardless of whether you chose to remodel the kitchen or the front porch, home renovation analysts stress that planning is the key to a successful makeover activity. To generate innovative home remodeling ideas, you could get these at showrooms, trade shows, as well as on the Internet. It helps that you give yourself considerable time for getting a clear idea of what you want, as well as for planning your budget and for finding ways of financing your remodeling activity.
Before embarking on a major home remodeling activity, take a more proactive, knowledgeable, as well as patient approach to your home improvement project, so that you’ll be able to reduce the risks of encountering any miscommunication or major disagreements with your contractor. Being patient and proactive also helps to increase the chances of completing your project ahead of schedule, as well as help to reduce its total overhead cost.
According to home improvement experts, the best home remodeling ideas should be the ones that fulfill your goals of improving the quality of life. Among the remodeling tasks that get the highest average financial return on investment include remodeling the bathroom and kitchen. However, any home remodeling project should help to boost your property’s overall value, as well as make it feel more comfy and extra spacious. While you need not have all the answers, it still helps that you know which tools and tricks are needed to ensure an efficient and hassle-free home remodeling project. If you’re still quite unsure of where to start, it would be best if you get the services of an interior designer, as this individual will have the trained eye and the capacity to feed you with helpful ideas for the home that you probably would never have thought of.…

Tips for a Successful Kitchen Renovation

It is a well-known fact that the kitchen and the bathroom are the most expensive rooms in the house, so a bit of research and planning ahead of your renovation will help to keep costs and stresses down, and have the project go as smoothly as possible.

Budget. As with any project to be undertaken, the first thing you need to do is fix your budget, and please, please, please remember to allow for overruns – you do not known what will be found in the walls or the floor that will result in additional costs to the project.

Layout. Does the existing layout work for you? Are you taking out any walls to make a bigger space, or adding windows or doors? These kinds of changes need to be taken into account when considering the layout of the kitchen. Remember the triangle between sink, stove and fridge!

Electrical Outlets. A very common problem in a kitchen is an insufficient number of electrical outlets, particularly at countertop level. If your large appliances are all to be built-in, each will need a dedicated outlet. How much countertop space will you have? Do you have small appliances that live on the counter like a coffee machine, toaster or toaster oven? Do you have other appliances that live in a cupboard and are used only occasionally? Additional outlets should be provided to accommodate these appliances.

Countertop. There are numerous choices for the countertop, from tiles to granite or polished stone, to concrete, stainless steel and various molded surfaces. And the price range is equally huge, with unique custom-made surfaces costing thousands of dollars. Be careful that you don’t overspend on the finishes as you might not get it back on reselling your property. Also think about wear and tear on the counter – do you have kids? Might there be frequent spillages that might cause staining?

Cabinets. The choice of finishes for your cabinets is limitless, from natural wood to laminates, stainless steel, glass, synthetic finishes and various combinations of them all. Do you wish your upper level cabinets to go right up to the ceiling – the advantages of this include more storage space though high up, no dust can collect on the top of the cupboards, plus it gives the illusion of a higher ceiling, which is particularly good if your ceiling is a little low.

Floor. Are you installing a new floor covering? If yes, it needs to be something that is very durable to withstand the wear and tear of traffic in the busiest room in your house! Hardwood, tile, stone or even polished concrete fill this role effectively and efficiently.

Appliances. The kitchen is often described as the “heart of the home”, so you don’t want to skimp on appliances. Stainless steel is more expensive but it will last longer. Having appliances that match is also very important to the overall look of the finished kitchen. Do you want a dishwasher and where do you want it to be located? Do you want a built-in microwave or wine cooler, and where should they be located. Now is the time to think about these things.

There you have it. Lots to think about before your project gets started, but planning ahead will more than pay for itself in the successful completion of the project.…