Mine House Ideas, Tips and Reviews » Home improvement

Tips for Home siding

upendra singh rathore — Sat, 05 Nov 2011 17:31:10 +0000

Home siding plays an important role in protecting your house from the natural elements. There are many house siding materials to choose from when considering replacing your home’s existing home siding. Make sure that you installed the weatherproofing correctly. It wouldn’t be a bad idea to see if the manufacturer of these products also have installation instructions. The last thing that you’re going to want to do and this seems to be the biggest problem for do-it-yourselfers, is to install the weatherproofing material incorrectly. As you are cleaning your home siding, don’t get into too much of a hurry. The reason for this is that, when you are in a hurry you can easily find yourself skipping over sections of your home because they “don’t look too bad.” Those areas of the home that don’t look to bad right now, can later on look even worse, and become a huge problem. Go over every bit of your house at least two times to ensure that you are cleaning it the right way, and that you don’t miss anything. Cut edges must be caulked, primed or painted before installation. If possible, plan the placement of non-factory cut edges to terminate into the trim pieces for extra protection from the elements. If the siding isn’t installed properly, there’s a good chance that your home siding guarantee won’t be any good. Again, read the manufacturer’s installation instructions if they have them.

How to replace your toilet

upendra singh rathore — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 12:48:07 +0000

Before purchasing your new toilet, measure the distance from the rearmost bowl hold-down bolts to the finished wall behind the toilet. This is called the toilet’s rough-in. Most toilets are designed with a 12″ rough-in. Ask your retailer for help if your rough-in varies. Turn off the water supply valve at the toilet or the main shutoff valve for the house.
Once the water supply is turned off, then flush the toilet, Measure the pipe that comes out of the floor so that you purchase the correct size. You will need to buy a new flange, a new section of pipe with the same diameter as the old pipe, a pipe coupling, a new wax ring and PVC glue if you do not have any. Place washers over the flange bolts, then hand-tighten the nuts on the flange bolts. Use a wrench to turn the nuts another half-turn. Do not over-tighten or you risk cracking the porcelain. Put the washer and nut back onto the flange bolt and tighten. Reconnect the water supply hose and turn the water supply back on.Flush and refill several times then wait awhile to make sure there are none of these undetected leaks before you go through the trouble of connecting the water supply hose; for many the hardest part of the job. A waxless connector also made this process much easier when I determined my new toilet was leaking.

Duct cleaning tips and trick

upendra singh rathore — Tue, 30 Aug 2011 16:50:29 +0000

Air ducts vary in sizes and lengths all over a house and building. They start with large ducts near the source of the air and end in small ones where they are distributed into rooms and offices. The larger ones which are in a horizontal position are probably the easiest ones to clean. All you must do is get a small, lightweight person inside and wipe them of clean. If no one in your household suffers from allergies or unexplained symptoms or illnesses and if, after a visual inspection of the inside of the ducts, you see no indication that your air ducts are contaminated with large deposits of dust or mold (no musty odor or visible mold growth), having your air ducts cleaned is probably unnecessary. It is normal for the return registers to get dusty as dust-laden air is pulled through the grate. This does not indicate that your air ducts are contaminated with heavy deposits of dust or debris; the registers can be easily vacuumed or removed and cleaned. Duct cleaning has never been shown to actually prevent health problems. Neither do studies conclusively demonstrate that particle (e.g., dust) levels in homes increase because of dirty air ducts or go down after cleaning. This is because much of the dirt that may accumulate inside air ducts adheres to duct surfaces and does not necessarily enter the living space. It is important to keep in mind that dirty air ducts are only one of many possible sources of particles that are present in homes. Pollutants that enter the home both from outdoors and indoor activities such as cooking, cleaning, smoking, or just moving around can cause greater exposure to contaminants than dirty air ducts. Moreover, there is no evidence that a light amount of household dust or other particulate matter in air ducts poses any risk to health.

Bedding Tips

upendra singh rathore — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 17:09:38 +0000

Bed sheets are the most visible part of a bed, high quality bed sheets can make quite a difference to the visual appeal and comfort level of the room. Here are a few tips on choosing the right kind of bedsheets:
The duvets and comforters look so inviting in the photos, and it’s an easy look to get at home. Duvets are usually folded down and placed at the end of the bed and comforters usually folded down not quite as far. White sheets are used to set off their colors better, and they don’t show through at all to ‘muddy’ up the color. Thread count per inch or TPI is an important factor to be considered while buying a bed sheet. Bedsheets with higher TPI (more than 250) are softer, more comfortable and last longer. The bedsheets having lower than 200 TPI are not recommended for daily use.
Cotton bedsheets are the most popular ones though one can use flannel and cotton mixed fabrics as bedsheets depending on our taste.
On the high end of fashion and comfort level, satins and silks with their soft feel on skin win almost every romantic heart.

How to Place your Furniture

upendra singh rathore — Thu, 12 May 2011 11:11:29 +0000

A helpful tool we found for arranging furniture pieces without lifting a finger were these cardboard furniture templates and grid. Furniture arrangements should have a purpose. Activity areas should be reflected and distinguishable in each area of your room. A small room should have at least one conversational area, while larger rooms may incorporate additional furniture groupings. A good rule of thumb is to seat at least six people comfortably.

Placement of your living room furniture should center around a focal point which may be an entertainment center, fireplace or large window. After selecting your focal point, group your furniture around it, being sure to take the size of your space into consideration. If you are living in a small space you may only need a sofa, arm chair and a few end tables. Larger spaces may include coffee tables a few more chairs and a larger sofa.

Select Exterior Shutters for your home

upendra singh rathore — Fri, 01 Apr 2011 17:23:32 +0000

Installing shutters can be as simple as affixing the panels directly to the house. It is also possible to install operable shutters, which can be closed over windows for protection against storms, and a number of hardware options are available. Look for heavy, solid hardware with a finish resistant to decay, such as zinc-plated hardware with a wrought iron black finish. Shutter caps can be another useful piece of hardware to keep water off the top of your shutters, protecting against moisture damage. A very important first step is determining the style of the shutter. This can be based on your own personal preferences and possibly the age of the house if you’re doing a historical landmark remodel. You can with no trouble handle the same because hey are extremely lightweight. What is more, the newest improvement and equipment have made these shutters much more advanced. You can control these shutters with the use of a remote control. This way, you do not even need to go near to the doors and windows in order to open or close the same. You can do this with no leaving your computer table or bed. Shutters now come in a variety of natural and synthetic materials. The more inexpensive types of shutters include vinyl and plastic, but keep in mind that you get what you pay for when it comes to durability of the product. The biggest advantage of wood shutters over synthetic materials such as vinyl or plastic is that they last long-term (in some cases even decades in good condition), making them a better value for the money. So in other words you may end up replacing cheaper shutters more often over time, which turns out to be even more expensive than if you just bought for quality from the beginning.

Sofa

admin — Sat, 19 Mar 2011 16:42:46 +0000

There is no doubt that the sofa beds are very useful because it can be used as a bed and a sofa, making it a great addition for fans of accommodation for guests, A sofa table is basically a furniture piece that will rest against your sofa or couch. This table is usually placed in the living room near a sofa and it gives the room a nice, organized look. There are two types of sofa beds. First, the sofa-bed that the holder can be opened longitudinally. Second, the back support sofa bed can be put to sleep, so it looks like a bed. Buying a folding sofa is also a good decision if you have small budgets. In choosing the right sofa, make sure that it can provide comfort when you are using it. Choose the one that is unique and can lead your home into a certain unique theme. As you search in the different furniture store near your home place, you will have the chance to know all the different kinds of modern sofas that you can install in your home, but internet is great way to find such kinds of things. The SofaSofa website is a great place with over 60 different sofa styles in hundreds of cover options which all handmade in the UK.

Home Faux Finishes Tips

upendra singh rathore — Thu, 30 Sep 2010 15:51:23 +0000

Faux finish painting is one of the hottest trends in home décor in recent years (and deservedly so!). A faux finish can do so much for a space…create texture and depth, add a splash of color or elegance to an otherwise boring room, or simply create a mood. It’s affordable. And it’s easy. Color washing, sponge painting, rag rolling—these are just three of the many available paint application techniques that can give a home’s interior walls stunning color, tone, and texture. Light, bright, animated, subdued, aged— whatever mood you want for a room, you can use paint and decorative techniques to help create it. These effects can be subtle, with translucent color layered over a similar shade of opaque paint, or bold and brassy, thanks to new metallic paints. Perhaps best of all, paint is not only inexpensive but also forgiving, making it a perfect do-it-yourself project for even the inexperienced. If you make a mistake or simply do not like the results, you can wipe the slate clean, so to speak, and start over. By the same token, should you tire of a color or effect, or your mood simply changes, you don’t have to worry about breaking the bank to accommodate even the slightest whim.

curtain rods

upendra singh rathore — Sat, 24 Jul 2010 17:11:50 +0000

A curtain rod or traverse rod is a device used to suspend curtains, usually above windows or along the edges of showers, though also wherever curtains might be used. When found in bathrooms, curtain rods tend to be telescopic and self-fixing, while curtain rods in other areas of the home are often affixed with decorative brackets or finial. New “pin-on” curtain finials are an example of a decorative curtain finial for use on any “curtain rod” or “traverse rod”.Hold up the rod to the wall or casing to determine the proper height. Place the brackets anywhere from 3 to 6 inches beyond the edge of the window, based on your personal preference.. Place a carpenter’s level over the rod to make sure the rod is level.

Backyard landscaping ideas

upendra singh rathore — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 18:40:47 +0000

Backyard landscaping does not have to be hard work. There are many, many ideas for a low maintenance back yard.A tropical backyard is mostly composed of sharp colors and numerous shapely elements. In the tropics, sunlight is prevalent therefore different kinds of life forms can be found. To mimic this effect, include colorful flowers with several shapes. Large leaves, thorny branches, thick roots and creepy venous stems are signatures of tropical forests. Make sure to include these elements in your backyard landscape.Test the soil in your backyard. Do this in several places, as it can vary depending from one location to another. For instance, soil under pine trees has a higher acid level. Note the test results on one of the outline copies.Want to give your backyard an enhanced look. Erecting a walkway from the private seating area of your backyard to your home can be a great way to spruce up the area. You can embed little pebbles for a neat, beautiful look. They will save your feet from getting drenched by wet grass on rainy days. The beauty of paving stones will add to the picturesque appeal of your backyard. You can use colored pebbles for enhanced effect.