Hosted by Bob Vila, Steve Thomas, and Kevin O’Connor, the series follows the remodel of a house — typically in the New England area — over the course of several episodes. The longer timeline allotted to each flip allows for an in-depth look at different aspects of the process and lends the show more of a how-to feel in comparison to many of its competitors. You’ll more than make your money back with a loft conversion, too, but it’s not quite as lucrative as other means of extending because of the costs involved. You’ll need to add some windows and a staircase, too, which can rob you of space elsewhere. Grab bars are one of the simplest ways to make an existing bathroom more accessible.
- They are pricey, they last much longer than incandescent or CFLs and they are more energy efficient…
- Spice up your cabinets and drawers by replacing factory-issue handles and pulls with designs that reflect your personal taste.
- Most of your home’s exterior walls will be load-bearing.
- Rather than flipping an entire house, Olson focuses on renovating and refurbishing single rooms and bringing the owners’ visions for interior decor to life.
This means that you could add in a central air unit, move the location of a door, or change the types of windows you have. Our remodeling experts will help you choose from a wide selection of doors that fit the look and feel of your home. We only install the highest quality doors and back it up with 103 years’ reputation in the business. Taking down a wall between the kitchen, living room, or dining room can expand your entertaining area, and make the footprint feel larger while you’re not actually adding square footage. However, to remove a wall safely, it needs to be non-load-bearing, meaning a wall that isn’t integral to the structure of your home.
You Can Do Some Plumbing Repairs
While you have the painting supplies out, brighten trim with a light-colored, high-gloss paint. If two tests give a high reading, consult a radon mitigation contractor . These contractors can professionally test the house and install a mitigation system for reducing radon to a harmless level. The most effective system is a vent pipe placed in the sump pit or a hole made under your concrete floor slab. The vent runs up through the house and out the roof, or out the side of the house and up to the eaves. A special in-line fan for radon is placed in the attic or outside the house to suck air through the vent.
Install a Ceiling Fan
Currently operating a home repair and DIY consulting service, he empowers his clients to be self-sufficient in their home repair and remodeling endeavors. Earlier, we talked about repairing your own plumbing. Part of the trick in plumbing is to avoid scratching fragile chrome or brushed nickel finishes on faucets or exposed drain parts. Plumbers use smooth-faced pliers and wrenches to achieve perfect results. You can avoid buying special tools for one-time use by wrapping your soft-leather work glove around the fitting and using your standard pliers or pipe wrench over the protective cover. It also comes with a long list of things to do to keep the home in working order or improve our surroundings.
From 2010 to 2019, homeowners largely relied on professional contractors, and remodeling activity was heavily concentrated in coastal metros. To quickly and easily rehabilitate your existing fireplace, a gas or wood-burning insert adds energy efficiency to your home without tearing apart your hearth and mantel. Equipping your fireplace with glass doors blocks heated and cooled air from escaping and amplifies the fire’s heat, which in turn reduces energy costs.
Home improvement was popularized on television in 1979 with the premiere of This Old House starring Bob Vila on PBS. Tom Kraeutler and Leslie Segrete co-host the nationally syndicated The Money Pit Home Improvement Radio Show. Turning marginal areas into livable spaces such as turning basements into recrooms, home theaters, or home offices – or attics into spare bedrooms. Concrete and masonry repairs to the foundation and chimney. At the very end of the show, after Tim deposits the large branch into the sink, he turns the tap to let the water run. At the core of the series was husband and wife squaring off against each other.
Many utility companies provide free energy audits for their customers’ homes. However, you’ll have to spend a few hundred dollars for a company to do one in some places. Even newly constructed homes can see huge benefits from having an energy audit performed. The Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies advances understanding of housing issues and informs policy.
Use recessed lighting to bathe the walls of your room in light, making the space appear larger. Check out the publication’s comprehensive guide to tackle this project in a weekend. This neutral off-white is one of Benjamin Moore’s top-selling paints for a reason.
Calling a contractor to repair or improve every single thing gets expensive fast. What if there were a way to know what they know about home improvement? Here are 17 of the best time and money-saving home improvement and care hacks that only a contractor would know about. Good levels of insulation can make room interiors more comfortable as well as dramatically reduce your energy bills – by up to as much as 90 percent. A relatively small investment can pay back quickly, and add to the value of your home when you choose to sell.