Most people think of spring and summer as the perfect time to undertake a remodeling project. It is quite true that warmer temperatures and sunny days are beneficial when it comes to working outside – or rather hiring other people to work outside – but temperature is far from the only consideration when deciding when is the right time to begin your remodeling project.

In many cases, knowing when to remodel is likely to save you money as well as time during your project. Spring and summer may be the most popular times to call in a contractor but they may not be the right option for you.

Avoiding Contractors’ Busy Times

If you go to your favorite restaurant when they are very busy you are unlikely to get the same careful level of attention as you would at off peak hours and you are far less likely to get the extra side portion of salad dressing or any other extras you want the first time you ask for it. The staff are simply going to be too busy to give you all the attention they probably should.

The same can often hold true for renovation or remodeling contractors of all kinds. If they are juggling several projects at once they may simply not have the resources or time to pay as much attention to yours, especially if it a smaller project, as they usually would if they were less pressed for time.

Additionally, when every contractor within a ten mile radius is putting in orders for hardwood flooring , paint, lumber and all kinds of other building supplies there is a much greater chance that orders will suffer stock shortages, get delayed, or even  mixed up, causing everyone involved extra headaches. Remodeling projects are already a bit of a hassle anyway so these types of extra delays can become a real annoyance.

Some outdoor remodels just cannot be completed in bad weather of course, but an indoor project like a kitchen remodel can certainly be commissioned in the fall without any problems and you will still have a nice new kitchen by Christmas – which might be the perfect excuse for commissioning one in the first place.

By working with remodeling contractors in their “off season” you may also get a more favorable to you price estimate as when they have less projects on their books they may well prefer to offer you a sizeable discount to get a job rather than be left sitting around with no work coming in and having to pay staff with nothing to do.

The best possible scenario for many remodeling and home maintenance projects is to schedule them a few months earlier than everyone else is likely to be doing.

Have the HVAC company come out to check your air conditioning in early spring, so that you beat the rush in June. The same holds true for having your furnace checked. Ask for an early fall checkup appointment so that you are not left in the cold when the first snows strike and the HVAC companies are too busy to get to your broken furnace for days.

Although the U.S. housing market is still rather slow the one upside to that is that there are plenty of bargains out there for people who are ready to buy. The biggest deals are often found on homes that are considered fixer uppers. Or as you might see it phrased in a real estate ad, “handyman specials”.

If you find such a property and are even seriously considering making the investment it is important that you have a good idea of what the required renovation and remodeling is really going to cost. There is little use getting excited about a home that is $50,000 less than others in the neighborhood if it is going to cost you $75,000 to make it livable.

A building inspection can only tell you so much. The inspector will point out major faults and obvious structural damage but he or she cannot tell you how much they will cost to fix. Then there are issues like a damaged hardwood floor, mold, outdated wiring, the list goes on.

The smartest course of action is, when you are really interested in a property but it needs lots of “TLC”, consult a good remodeling contractor. Ask them to come with you to the property, help assess what needs to be done and give you a realistic estimate of what it might cost to fix it all.

Whilst the figure they give you will not be an exact one you will at least have a way to gauge whether or not the asking price on the property really is a bargain and exactly how much work is going to have be put into that “handyman special” before it becomes a home that someone might really want to live in.

If you are considering a sizeable kitchen remodeling project, spending time planning how exactly the new kitchen is to be laid out is every bit as important as shopping for the new cabinets, counter tops and appliances to go in it. A poorly laid out kitchen can be a nightmare to live with, even if all its fitted elements are the best that money can buy.

There are a few types of basic kitchen layout that you should know about:

The L Shaped Kitchen

An L-shaped kitchen layout features cabinets and appliances that are all lined against two adjoining kitchen walls. Many contractors will suggest variations on the L shaped kitchen to those who want an eat-in kitchen. The L-shaped layout allows room for a table and chairs and there is still enough space to walk around the room without bumping into things.

The U Shaped Kitchen

A U-shaped kitchen utilizes three of its walls for fittings, which usually adds up to a kitchen that has more functional workspace. The refrigerator, range and sink can all be laid out so that there is a decent workspace between each of them, giving the cook ample prep space. The U shaped layout also reduces the distance the cook has to walk around the kitchen to get everything done.

The Island Kitchen

Building a new kitchen around a central kitchen island is a design option that is becoming more and more popular with homeowners. An island focused kitchen is wonderful both for entertaining and bringing the family together.

Kitchen islands can be as simple or as complex as you want them to be. Some are merely a wide countertop with storage cabinets underneath while others feature bar sinks, extra prep areas and more.

The three kitchen layouts detailed here are far from your only options, they are just the most popular ones. To really get the kitchen layout you want work with a good kitchen designer. Most good kitchen remodeling firms have a kitchen designer on staff these days so you will still only have to choose a single contractor.

A good kitchen designer will take the time to sit down with you and figure out what you really need from a kitchen and help you plan it from there. Everyone has their own personal sense of style and every family has their own way of using their kitchen. Working with a kitchen designer helps a homeowner understand what their own real needs and wants are and a functional yet fabulous kitchen design plan can be created from there.

A kitchen designer can also help prevent homeowners from making expensive kitchen remodeling mistakes.

Certain cabinets, countertops and/or appliances may have you falling in love at first sight when you see them in the store or in a magazine, but will they look as good once they are installed in your kitchen space?

A kitchen designer can help you visualize what these things will really look like in your home so you can decide if they work there or would simply end up being a rather expensive eyesore.

You have probably heard that replacing your windows is one of the smartest and most energy efficient home remodeling projects you can invest in. And, if you are really looking for energy efficiency, good looks and you like all things “hi tech”, the new breed of smart windows may be just the thing for you.

Smart glass – also known less glamorously as switchable glass – is a  new breed of  windowpane that literally dims and brightens at your command. When you want the sunlight to come flooding in through the windows flick a switch and the built in tint turns off. Night falling? Switch the tint back on and make it as dark as you like. You can even make your smart windows appear opaque for extra daytime privacy.

There are a number of different kinds of smart glass hitting the market and it is helpful to talk to a professional window installer to figure out which would be right for your home. Some smart glass contains liquid crystal (yes the same stuff as in your TV) while some other models are powered by a small electric current. On the lower end of the market there is glass available that acts just like those sunglasses that transition according to how bright the light hitting them is.

If the windows you have are structurally in good shape, a good window installer will be able to simply replace your current window panes with new smart glass ones with very little mess or fuss.

As they are still very much an emerging technology smart windows do cost more than their more traditional counterparts. If you like the idea why not go one window at a time if your budget is tight? Over time, like all technology, the prices will drop and then you can have all the windows in your home made a little smarter!

Here’s the scenario – you wake up in the middle of the night and you are not quite sure why. The light in the hall flickers a bit but comes right back on so you assume all is well and go back to sleep. The next morning however you wake up at 10am, an hour late for work already, and your trusty alarm clock is blinking a bright red “12:00″ over and over again. You have been the unfortunate victim of a power surge – and hopefully your boss will understand.

Voltage surges are annoying at the very least and, in a worst case scenario, can be downright dangerous. There are several things you can do to stop them though.

A voltage dip is a relatively minor loss of power. It usually occurs when a larger appliance like a dishwasher or a washing machine or even a hairdryer is turned on and it “steals” too much power from the rest of the house.

A voltage surge on the other hand is rather more of a problem. It can be caused by by storms, by those greedy appliances again, or even by problems at the electricity board. Whatever the cause they can irreparably damage sensitive electrical devices like computers and televisions and on rarer occasions even damage the central wiring of your home.

There are several ways you can protect your home from these power problems. The easiest way is to buy a number of surge protectors – those long power strips you see in the stores , which can handle surges of up to 6,000 volts. Keeping your sensitive appliances plugged into one of these affords them a decent amount of protection from voltage surges.

Surge suppressors on the other hand are designed to handle those power ups and downs that occur when a hairdryer is plugged in or a dishwasher started. Many of us have experienced the annoyance of losing power in three of the adjoining rooms when a hairdryer is turned on so it is quite easy to see why they are so useful.

If you want to really control the problem though, the whole house surge arrester is the answer. Designed to protect switches, outlets, appliance motors, the circuit breaker box and, in fact, all the wiring in the home, surge arresters pick up where mere surge suppressors leave off.

A good quality surge arrester can cut voltage surges in the home to 330 volts while surge suppressors can usually only manage 600. So if your home has a lot of sensitive electrical equipment in it – and most do these days – they are the ultimate way to protect them all. It is a larger investment to make but when you consider how much it would cost to replace that computer, that big TV and/or those three gaming systems it is an expense well worth considering.

A whole house surge arrester can only be installed by a licensed electrician of course. Not only do they have all the necessary skills to alter the home’s whole electric panel but they can also help you determine which type and size of surge arrester your home needs.

To get help with your home’s electrical safety, use our no obligation free service to get free quotations from reputable local electrical contractors. Free In-Home Consultations from Local Contractors

If you can already visualize your new dream home in your head then the best thing you can do to make that dream a reality is to hire a good architect to put all those visions of yours into a blueprint that can actually be built.

Having an architect do something like that may sound like it is a far more expensive proposition than opting for a ready-made plan that vaguely matches the home you are looking for but it is actually far more affordable to do than you might think.

A house plan is a lot more than a sketch on a piece of paper. A complete custom home plan has to include a site plan, floor plan, exterior elevations, an electrical plan, wall sections, door and window plan, roof plan and a foundation plan. As you can now see, an architect does a great deal more than draw some pretty pictures.

You can hire an architect to design your custom home building plans from scratch but, if your budget is really tight, simply spending an hour or two just consulting with a good one can help a great deal. Maybe you have found a pre-made house plan that is almost right except for a few little tweaks here and there. A consultation with a good architect will allow you to understand how plausible your ideas really are and he or she will be able to offer alternative suggestions if they really are not.

Having a custom home built is a major financial undertaking but you will be doing yourself – and your family – a real disservice if you decide to “settle” rather than get the home you really want. Working with an architect makes sense in the long run and you will find that there are great ones in your area, wherever you live.

To remodel or not to remodel? That is the question…

Aside from being the place we call home for most of us our house is also our single largest financial asset. As a place to live, our home’s layout, design and function affect our lives on a daily basis and, as an investment, looking for ways to enhance or protect its value are important as well.

So if you are still deciding whether or not a certain larger remodeling project is really worth undertaking, you do have to look at both sides of the equation to make the best final decision.

The best starting point is to examine your own needs and desires. How much better will your day to day existence be if you go ahead with this remodeling project?

For projects like adding a second bathroom, the benefits are clear and easy for anyone to understand. No more waiting in line outside the bathroom door, no more tripping over your kids’ dirty clothes because they never remember what a laundry hamper is – they will still mess up their own bathroom but at least it won’t ruin your own morning routine!

Other remodeling projects are harder to figure out though. Cork flooring looks nice in all the brochures and it’s very green (and we all want to be green) but will it really be all that different to the ceramic tile you have now? Are you better off sticking with what you have a while longer and spending the money elsewhere? These trickier questions are the ones that are harder to answer clearly.

Then there is the financial half of the equation to consider. If your home is the only one in the immediate area that still has just a single bathroom then you would be at a disadvantage should you ever want to sell. Therefore that proposed bathroom addition makes a lot of sense in terms of adding to your home’s overall market value as well as your continued sanity.

But that new cork floor? It depends. If your current kitchen flooring is in less than great shape and would be likely to put off any future buyers (the way a kitchen looks is always a very big deal to potential homebuyers) then upgrading it makes sense. The fact that cork is a very eco-friendly and beautiful flooring option will add to the perceived value of your home as well.

On the other hand if the floor you already have is still in great shape and is a high end material like ceramic tile or laminate, then installing cork may make very little difference to the overall value of your home. It just might make you a little happier though, which can also count for a lot.

In the end though it is worth remembering that home remodeling is really all about making the home you currently live in a better place for everyone, whether you are going to stay in it for the next five or the next fifty years.

To help you make the final decision on the costs and benefits of remodeling your home, consult one of the qualified home improvement contractors in your area. Free In-Home Consultations from Local Contractors