Renovations: A Home Owners Nightmare
By: Sami
Singh, PR Intern at the Home Depot.
Posted On
September 22nd, 2013 at 4:30PM
Is your home
slowly breaking down? Are you coming to a realization that contractors make
some real good money? Well homeowners; here is the formula to reconstruct your
living conditions and transform those nightmares into a pleasant experience, without
forking over your entire savings. Just like the famous saying ‘if you want something done right, you have
to do it yourself” and that is exactly what you should do.
Luckily for
you, everything is available at your fingertips with a simple drive to your
local hardware store. Do-it-yourself workshops are offered all over your city
and more importantly offer personal step-by-step tutorial of how to recapture
the elegance of your home.
Buying a
home and issuing out mortgage payments will likely be the most costly expense
you’ll ever have. Therefore, attending do-it-yourself workshops will help
counter act dishing out all that unexpected cash.
Some of the very
easy and simple upgrades that a modern day homeowner can accomplish consist of:
Laminate Floor Upgrade
In recent years, laminate flooring has become
a popular choice for builder’s community wide. It’s easy to install and to
maintain. Therefore, it becomes a simple upgrade that homeowners can complete without
that professional price.
With the recent
introduction of glue less laminate, the flooring industry and more importantly
homeowners have gained a further level of ease when installing the floor. The
new element called “floating floor” allows installers to go over the existing
floor. Which means, no need to strain that back or damage those biceps
while tearing up your previous floor!
Refinishing Cabinets
To refinish
your cabinet doors, it’s mandatory to know what they’re made out of. Real wood? Particleboard? Wood laminate?
Refinishing
your cabinet doors is a very affordable and simple way to give your kitchen a
facelift. Here are the three easy steps!
Step 1-
Apply a pre stain (let it sit for about two hours)
Step 2- Sand
down the entire cabinet
Step 3-
Start Staining.
Here’s a
video clip explaining the steps.
Despite
being an easy three-step procedure, common mistakes homeowners make during the process,
include having pre-existing scratched doors. First rule, don’t sand them! Secondly, try cleaning them with dish soap then
apply a PRO
SHOT Cabinet
Restorer and Protector. That product alone will restore the areas where the
scratches are and allow them to blend in when you complete your entire
refinishing.
Backslash Titling
Everyone
knows backsplash tiling is an important element to your appearance of your
kitchen. However, many people are unaware of how simple the installation
process is.
First you’ll
need
·
Any
Backsplash tile.
·
Adhesive
to set the title on your wall.
·
Notched
trowel
·
Non-
sanded Grout
·
Grout
sponge
·
Finishing
edge
·
1/8th
spacers
Step 1: Turn off the power and remove the
light switch and plug covers.
Step 2:
Use the flat side of the notched trowel and at a 90-degree angle spread
the adhesive on your wall. After the adhesive is in place, drag the notched
side of the trowel on top of the glue. This will get rid of all of your air
pockets.
Step 3:
Start Tiling!
It really doesn’t matter where you start but
personally I like to start from the bottom so I know how much headroom I have
to apply the trim. Use the 1/8th spaces to help establish the required space
between the tiles and press down on the tile once it’s in place.
Step 4: Grouting!
Before
grouting, I recommend protecting your work surface.
Use the float and apply the grout in an even
manner. Make sure to hold it at a
45-degree angle. While applying your grout have a wet cloth handy. Some of your
access grout will be visible on your tile; therefore you must instantly wipe
off the access in order not to have any grout stains on your title. If not, get
familiar with those stains; cause THERE NEVER COMING OFF.
Step 5: Apply your trim.
I personally
like to start from the bottom to ensure that I have the required room to apply
the finishing touch. Apply the adhesive to the back of the trim and have the
thicker side towards your wall. Once it's in place, hold it for 15 seconds and
voila! Your trim is official installed.
So after
reading all of that, feel inspired yet?
If the
answer is yes, I’ve done my job. These are just a FEW projects you can easily
do without needing the professional touch. No need to fork over endless amounts
of hard earned income and still feel unsatisfied. Adopt the do-it-yourself
lifestyle and kiss goodbye those unnecessary expenses.
Now with all that money saved, what are you
going to do with all that extra cash? Cuba is awfully nice at this time of
year...
