Choose One Neutral Trim Paint for the Entire House
-Rather than buying a gallon of a particular color for each room and using only a fraction of each can.
You have to forgo the trendy color combinations in the paint manufacturer brochures, but you can save around $50 on paint for three rooms. Crisp white trim is always in style, and you'll never have to rummage around for the right can for touch-ups.
Install a Ceiling Fan
In the winter, run it at low
speed in a clockwise direction to recirculate the warm air that rises to
the ceiling. This will allow you to lower the thermostat a couple of
degrees.
The fan might cost you around $200 dollars, but you will end up saving around $100 per year off your heating bills.Reverse the fan direction in the summer and the airflow creates a windchill effect, making you feel cooler.
Install a Shower Timer for Kids
The battery-operated device limits showers to 5, 8, or 11 minutes.
You can install it yourself for around $120, then save over $200 per year. Speeding
your kids' morning routines may also ease the struggle to ensure they eat
breakfast, brush their teeth, and make it to the bus on time.
Use Your Laptop
It runs on batteries, which use 80 percent less electricity than a desktop computer. Be vigilant about unplugging the battery charger once your computer is juiced so it doesn't sap unnecessary energy.
You will save around $30 per year off your electric bill.
House Smart Home Improvements
Phone: 604 945 1904 / Fax: 604 581 1985
Email: info@housesmarthomeimprovements.com
Showroom: #4 120 Glacier St, Coquitlam BC V3K 5Z6
604-945-1904 (office hours) - 604-585-2020 (24-Hour)
Get Fall Deals
Wait to replace your grill, lawn mower, or patio furniture until the fall, when stores mark down their inventory to make room for holiday decorations and snow blower. You can save yourself $150 or more per item. Retailers—especially online ones,—often provide free shipping on leftover warm-weather gear.
Sleep Not Doze
Set your computer to sleep—not just the monitor, but the hard drive, too—so that it automatically dims after 10 minutes of non use. It may doze off when you don't want it to and you'll have to punch a key to wake it up. But you can save up to $75 per year off your electric bills. Like people, screens and hard drives age more gracefully with plenty of rest.
Recharge the Batteries
Buy a deluxe battery recharging station and stop using disposables. A combo unit keeps a supply of AA, AAA, C, and D batteries at the ready.
Save As much as $100 per year on disposables for dozens of tools and gadgets.
Never again will you have to raid your kid's battery-operated toys to power up the TV remote.
Go Low-Flow
Reduce hot-water consumption (and energy needs), federal
legislation mandated improved showerhead efficiency for models made
after 1994. Replace older models with ones that spray no more than 2.5
gallons per minute. Potential annual savings: $145, plus 370 pounds of
emissions
Adjust Your Water Heater
Lower your water heater's thermostat to 120 degrees to restrict
heat loss. The exception: dishwashers. Check if yours has a "booster
heater" for sanitizing 140-degree rinsing. Your potential annual
savings: $450 and 215 pounds of emissions.
Replace Your Aging Water Heater and be Eligible for a Rebate up to $1000
This great Fortis BC Rebate Program has now been extended through 2014!! Replace
your aging water heater with a qualifying natural gas ENERGY STAR model
and you could save on energy costs, plus you’ll be eligible for a rebate of up to $1,000.
Not sure which water heater is right for you?
Call House Smart Home Improvements Today at 604-585-2020
House Smart Home Improvements
Phone: 604 945 1904 / Fax: 604 581 1985
Email: info@housesmarthomeimprovements.com
Showroom: #4 120 Glacier St, Coquitlam BC V3K 5Z6
604-945-1904 (office hours) - 604-585-2020 (24-Hour)
Fireplace Tune-Up
Proper inspection of a fireplace is vital to ensuring its safe operation -- even if it is rarely used.
An experienced chimney sweep will check wood for flammable buildup (known as creosote) and chimney blockages such as bird nests. A chimney or fireplace professional should also check for
these red flags: improperly functioning dampers, damaged brickwork and masonry, and missing or damaged flue caps (the screen covering the top of the chimney).
Touch Up Paint
No time for a full-blown exterior painting project? Hit the trouble spots, such as the cut ends of all boards, especially fascia boards, where paint peels first. If you have a little more time, apply a coat of fresh paint to all trim pieces.
Clean Your Carpets
If your wall-to-wall carpeting
harbors dirt and musty odors, here is a homemade environment-friendly solution you can make to clean them:
Non-toxic Carpet Cleaning Solution Recipe (my second favorite carpet cleaning recipe)
1/2 part Vinegar
1/2 part Water
5-6 drops essential oils, or more as desired (optional)
Add to your carpet cleaner machine and shampoo. It will smell like
vinegar pretty strongly while you shampoo them. But after it dries you
will be left with a nice clean smelling house.
Throw open the windows to let it dry before the weather gets too cold. Also consider renting a steam cleaner to get out ground-in stains and odors for as little as $25 per day.
Manage Drainage
If you live in an area that gets
more rain than snow during the winter, dig a French drain to prevent a
downspout-fed lake from forming in your yard. A hole that's 4 feet deep
and 4 feet wide should do the trick. Dig it under your downspout, line
it with heavy plastic sheeting (or whatever your local building code
requires), and fill it with gravel.
You can add plants on top of the French drain, but cover the gravel
with landscape fabric before adding dirt. Another option is a
trench-type French drain, which will move water away from your house
rather than directing it deep into the ground.
House Smart Home Improvements
Phone: 604 945 1904 / Fax: 604 581 1985
Email: info@housesmarthomeimprovements.com
Showroom: #4 120 Glacier St, Coquitlam BC V3K 5Z6
604-945-1904 (office hours) - 604-585-2020 (24-Hour)
posted by Sound Marketing for House Smart Home Improvements
Casement
- Have a crank out hardware mechanism to open and close the windows
- One key feature to look for is a multi-point lock that will lock your window in multiple locations, ensuring a tight seal.
Awning
- Similar to casement, these windows have crank out hardware, but are hinged at the top
- Often used in places where it’s difficult to push or pull open a window, for example, above a kitchen sink
Bay
- Come with a seat or walk-in option (you walk into the bay area)
Bay/ Bow
- Bow windows are similar to bay, but have softer angles
Bow
- These windows have sliders that are either vertically or horizontally placed
- Two formats; single and double hung
- Single hung:has a fixed sash on one side and an operating sash on the other
- Double hung: two operating sashes
- Often these windows lift out or tilt out for easy cleaning
Picture/Fixed Windows
- Don’t open or operate
- They come in many different formats
At House Smart Home Improvements, We Use Energy Star Windows! Energy Star Windows come in all styles, are of the highest quality, offering you the greatest comfort with less energy used.
ENERGY STAR® windows offer these benefits:
- Double glazing with a sealed insulating glass unit, not only reducing energy costs, but also increasing comfort.
- Low-emissivity (Low-E) coatings, which are like insulation and
sunscreen on windows. This thin layer of transparent protection, applied
in the gap between window glass panes, improves your family’s comfort
by reducing the quantity of heat passing through the windows.
- Inert gas, such as argon or krypton, sealed between windowpanes
results in reduced heat transfer and minimized condensation, increasing
the windows’ insulation U-value and energy efficiency.
- Low conductivity spacer bars that prevent heat loss and minimize drafts.
- Lower overall heat loss ratings (U-values), meaning greater comfort with less energy used.
- Heat transfer between the inside and outside of a home is slowed.
- Heat reflection that keeps the sun out during summertime and keeps rooms from feeling drafty
during the winter.
- Reduced fading of fabrics and wall coverings.
House Smart Home Improvements
Phone: 604 945 1904 / Fax: 604 581 1985
Email: info@housesmarthomeimprovements.com
Showroom: #4 120 Glacier St, Coquitlam BC V3K 5Z6
604-945-1904 (office hours) - 604-585-2020 (24-Hour)
