Garden Windows Add Light To Your Home

Does your home have a window that needs to be replaced? Wouldnt it be great to add space and light to your living room? If you are looking for a simple solution to window replacement that also gives you light and space then you may want to consider garden windows as a potential solution. You can do it yourself and even a home repair novice could install a vinyl garden window that will make your house look great and make it more comfortable for you and your family. With a garden window you can:

-Open your home to make it feel bigger

-Add a decorative flair with flowers or an herb garden

-It will make your home more valuable

-You will feel better with greater light in the winter

-They are energy efficient to save you money too

Since garden windows are energy efficient you will save more money on your gas or electric heating and cooling. Garden windows are also designed to hold your favorite plants, flowerpots, or even a lovely herb garden. They are well insulated so you will also keep your plants alive longer. The window catch a great breeze by extending outside your home and will help keep you cool in the summer with less need for AC. In the winter you wont worry because they are so airtight you will never let in cold air.

You have a ton of option with a garden window. You can have a side opening, double locks if you need extra burglary protection, or even have front awnings. This way if there are rain showers you can still keep your window open. Dont forget these are also great for storm protection.

Usually a vinyl frame is a popular choice and in all kinds of colors. Try white, tan or brown for some traditional. You can also paint over then and need hardly any maintenance. Vinyl will stay great for years and never corrode or rust. It is also a great insulator, better than even wood. You can get ones that are filled with foam if insulation is a big concern where you live.

Since its fast and easy to add a garden window, consider it for your home. You will receive so many great benefits and they will give you that lovely look youve been searching for. Shop around today and youll be on your way to better home.

Johnathan Bakers very often pens detailed reports on topics associated to home improvement. You might find out more about his contributions on gardening and garden windows at http://www.replacement-windows-tips.com .

Home Mold Repairs

Bring Focus To Your Stained Glass

Patinas are used to color or darken solder lines. The most common patina colors are black and copper. Using patinas brings the focus on the glass and the design of your stained glass piece. This makes the glass colors, textures and designs of the stained glass piece the main focus.

Before you apply patinas, be sure all flux residues is removed. This can be done using a commercial flux remover or washing the stained glass piece with dish soap and baking soda.

Steps for Applying Patinas

Use a brush, rag or cotton ball to dab patina on to the zinc frame. Do not use a brushing action, as this can leave streaking or patchy coverage.

Next, apply patina to solder lines. Be sure all edges of solder lines have been covered.

Then, turn project over and repeat the process on that side.

Lastly, thoroughly rinse the patina off the stained glass piece. After it is completely dry, a minimum of 24hours, finishing compound can be applied.

Tips and techniques for Applying Patinas

Safety - Always wear rubber gloves when applying patina.

If patina appears spotty, use super fine steel wool to clean the area, and then re-apply the patina.

To avoid oxidation, clean and apply patina immediately after project is soldered.

While patina will mask some inconsistencies in you solder lines, others will still be noticeable and take away from the professional look of your piece. With patience, practice and the correct tools and supplies, you can have professional solder lines.

Most patinas come in an 8 oz bottle. Avoid contaminating the liquid in the bottle by never re-dipping your applicator back into the bottle. Pour out a lid full and use this as your re-dip point.

You may experience different end results with the use of different brands of patinas. One common brand and easily found on store shelves and on line is Novacan. It is available in different formulas for different metals i.e. lead vs. zinc. As you experiment with different brands, you will notice that the more expensive ones do seem to shine more. Sometimes simple wax and compound can help this situation too.

Usually, if need be, patinas can be removed by using steel wool and some elbow grease. So don't fret if you think the application has made your art work look bad or if you just don't like the shiny lines dark.

I was not a fan of most patinas; however, I now know that by using this product, you do experience brilliant colorful glass. All attention is quickly turned from solder lines to the subject of your glass creation - the glass.

Another note of concern applies to patinas as well as other chemicals used in stained glass production. That is evaporation. Be sure and keep the lids tightly screwed on your bottles of supplies as some do seem to disappear into thin air. This will also avoid waste if tipped over accidentally.

I started out as a stained glass admirer. After a class in stained glass, I became addicted. At first I made stained glass to decorate my homes, which lead to friends asking me to make stained glass for them. Now I am a full time professional making stained glass as well as instructing others on how to make stained glass. My studio is located outside of Chicago, Illinois. For more information on making stained glass go to http://www.creativity-in-glass.com

Crawl Space Repairs

Flip That House With Cheap Fixes

Perhaps you have been watching those shows that tell you how to flip that house, but you don't have the tens of thousands of dollars they seem to inevitably spend. What can you do that is fast and cheap to increase the appeal and selling price of a home? Here are six cheap fixes to give you some ideas.

1. Mailbox

While you can't get a great price with major problems, buyers will excuse minor ones if they have already fallen in love with the house. That means you better make a good first impression. The first thing they'll likely see is the mailbox. Install a new one with a few flowers around it. This will cost you less than fifty dollars.

2. Front Yard Landscaping

Another fast and cheap way to a great first impression is to clean the front yard, mow the lawn, trim the trees, throw some grass seed on any bare spots if you have time, and plant a few flowers. Neat, clean and green is the idea. Do this part yourself and you'll be surprised how far a hundred dollars can go.

3. Clean The House Outside

It is amazing how often the front of a house is dirty - even when the home is for sale. If you want to flip that house fast, make it look good! Power-wash it if necessary, and make sure there are no stains on the the front wall nor leaves hanging from the gutters. Shine up any doorknobs or other metal fixtures. This step might cost you nothing but your time, but less than $100 in any case.

4. Stage The House

A house that is empty never feels or looks quite right. Now, it's true that some people can easily imagine what their furniture will look like in those rooms, but not all of us are so good at such visualization. Make it easy on those buyers by having some tables, couches, chairs, and even a few paintings on the walls. If you really want to keep this part cheap and you have nice things at home, borrow them!

5. Use A House Inspection Checklist

It is not only embarrassing to be standing their with a buyer explaining why the toilet doesn't flush, but it is little things like that which can lose a sale. Have a list of things you would check if you were buying a home, and go through your house with it, testing everything, and looking at every room as objectively as possible. Better yet, have a good friend do this for you as though he was interested in the home.

6. Make High-Return Improvements

Repairs have to be done, but many changes are debatable. Should you replace the perfectly good but somewhat ugly carpeting? Maybe. Paint the rooms? Think of the over-all look of the house if you make a set of changes, and do your best to estimate how much they will add to the sale's price. They should add double or more what they cost.

There are often opportunities for improvements with much higher returns. A friend of mine once spent about $1,500 and increased the home's value by about $8,000. How? The basement had big windows, so he added two walls in a corner, along with a cheap paint job and a piece of carpeting to create a bedroom. If you want to flip that house for big profits with little investment in time and money, get creative and look hard for opportunities like this.

Copyright Steve Gillman. For more on how to Flip A House, go now and subscribe to the free 'Fix and Flip' course at: http://www.TipsForFlippingAHouse.com

Wood Beam Repairs

Concrete Fastening

Fully Automatic

Fully automatic gas nailers for concrete are the fastest ways to fasten to concrete. Fully automatic tools are available from Hilti, Powers and Ramset. These tools were originally designed for fastening drywall track to concrete, hence the names "Trakfast" and "Trak It" but they have evolved into useful tools for many different trades How are these nail guns different from standard powder actuated tools for fastening to concrete and what can they be used for?

Basic Principles of Gas Tools

Gas tools are basically an internal combustion engine with a cylinder, piston, spark plug, fuel source and an ignition source. Both Ramset and Powers utilize a battery while Hilti's tools function without one. As you depress the tool against the work surface, a measure of fuel is injected into the cylinder and as you pull the trigger, a spark ignites the fuel, driving the piston and in turn the fastener.

Most of the tools have a magazine holding 40 pins allowing you to fasten almost as fast as you can pull the trigger. Some tools such as the Ramset T3 SS are single shot tools that are used with a variety of single pins and assemblies such as EMT straps and ceiling clips .

Uses For Gas Tools

As mentioned earlier, drywall track is the most common use for these tools. Consider the other uses for these tools. For waterproofing membrane on to foundations. For electrical work, fastening EMT straps, ceiling clips and hangers. With the variety of pins now available, general contractors can shoot on furring strips, Powers now has the C-4 tool that will shoot down a 2 x 4, Ramset has a pin that will shoot plywood down to heavy studs. Stucco and lathing contractors can use the tool to install metal lathe by using a metal disc that mounts to the probe on the tool.

Distinct Advantages

Beyond the speed of these tools, you will find some definite advantages over powder tools for fastening to concrete. Unlike powder tools, these tools require no certification. Make no mistake, you can still put a pin through your hand, but no operators card is required. You can't overdrive these tools, they have an internal bumper to prevent it. You don't have to select different power levels like the powder tools. For the most part, they are trouble free. In theory you can put through 20,000 pins without service. This amount drops with hard applications, such as outdoor use of from lack of regular use.

Finally......

Due to their cost, these tools might not be for everyone, but I have always felt that any tool that will save you money is a free tool after a job or two, and who doesn't like free tools?

Find out more about gas tools at http://www.protoolguide.com/automatic_gas_tools.html including where to buy and tool specific information. You can purchase Ramset tools and supplies at http://constructionfastening.com/ramsettrakfasttf1100.html including fuel cells and batteries.

A Common Kind Of Wall Coating

Wainscoting -

For over hundred years wainscoting has been a famous type of wall coating. Basically, in your house on the lower half of the drywalls this wainscoting or paneling is used. Wainscoting can be made of heavy fabric, marble, wood, ceramic tile or the newer materials such as plastic or the wood combinations. Even today, wood is the most famous of these. In groove boards, the tongue is the most famous among the wood constructions but in terms of serving this purpose any kind of decorative panel or even in some cases the old doors can also do.

Wainscots are the extension of the baseboard at its lowest level, which runs through the length of the room and you can get wainscoting at any height. Many of the baseboards can run up to the wall height of eight inches. Normally along with a decorative upper edge they are one board. The rooms that require something more although the home builders think that it is easier and better to complete the top along with a different piece that is where the wainscoting comes in action. The houses that are built before eighteen forty this style was seen there commonly.

Although it has been seen normally that wainscoting in its traditional form is slightly on the higher side. Generally it goes in height anywhere from 48 to 54 inches. It is used for protection as well as for decoration purposes. In the mid-nineteenth century the taller style of wainscoting started its popularity.

Even the higher levels of wainscots are there. In the nineteen hundreds these started to appear as fashion in the dining rooms. As high as sixty inches to seventy inches they can run. Cloth at the time for these was the most famous building material. Normally, it was a heavy linen material, grass cloth, or burlap and many of them are in rich colors as well.

Future for the wainscoting looks still good as the history of the wainscot has some of the interesting points. People love using reasonably priced wainscot. For only one hundred and fifty dollars a full room of superior wood wainscot can be supplied. People also love the look of the drywall and wainscoting Recently many costly houses utilize it in the original construction as it offers elegance. People identify along with it as one of the older building material as so many houses have wainscoting. Thus it can give a rich historical look to a newly constructed house. It has also been seen that people love the wainscoting's durability. Normally it cleans up along with a damp cloth and within few minutes it can look good just like the day of installation. It can also protect the walls from having damp in your older homes.

In the famous spotlight wainscoting had spent more than one hundred years and it seems that in the next hundred years also its fame will be continued.

The writer Leroy Calstard is really passionate about subjects related to taping techniques. You can find his work on drywall and taping techniques at http://www.insidewoodworking.com

Why Choose Wood and How To Do It

By: Sarah Miller

Wood, as a durable material, does more good than just staying in our rainforests and providing homes for the animals in the wild. Wood provides lumber that is used for building homes and installation; hobbies such as sculpting and making furniture and a whole lot more. Techniques involving with woodworking as an art are carving, sawing, sanding, painting, laminating and finishing. So why choose wood? Lumber is readily available and it's a replaceable resource which can figure into plenty of resale value.

This material never goes out of style. Some materials like vinyl may be pretty and are prominent on the market; however it is costly and lacks artistic detail. Using metal would mean having lack of strength causing it to dent, and in time it may rust. Wood, as a choice, offers a sophisticated and personal look. Each section is as exclusive as ones fingerprints. Each variety has a diverse feel and a clear-cut personality. From an entirely aesthetic point of view, nothing matches the elegance and appeal that wood offers. Synthetic materials mimic wood, but they can only try. How can the quality, intensity and beauty be captured? Unprocessed, untreated, natural or organic wood has massive ecological benefits against building materials that exist today. Wood is a hundred percent biodegradable, it functions as an excellent insulator, it is easier to process and uses a reduced amount of energy to manage than does steel, aluminum, concrete or plastic.

Many high class efficient construction techniques exist today. Conventionally, the use of wood framing isn't the most efficient in house production. Although it is undeniable that it has certain advantages. Constructing homes using wood is also inexpensive and cost-effective. What's more is that experienced contractors aren't difficult to find when building framed walls. In choosing the right flooring for a house, would you rather choose carpet, tile or wood? What are the advantages of having carpet? Sure it is slip resistant, comes in beautiful colors, and has a nice feel on the toes. Carpet may be all that but it can cause allergies especially with children. Given its texture, it traps in bacteria, dust and mold. Tile is easy to clean, but it can have a cold feel when walking barefoot.

Hardwood is pretty easy to maintain and can cut down the number of allergy causing particles inside the home. Stepping on to any flooring made out of wood will make you appreciate the welcoming tones and shades. Using wood isn't the only thing there is. The most important part is how to choose the material carefully for the purpose of protecting it from termites and from rotting. Outdoor decks or those used for landscaping are mostly unprotected and are housed by termites and therefore will decay. There are types of woods that are naturally resistant. These types include the cedar, cyprus and redwood. Problems with pest infestation is the result of a wood with soil contact. Treated wood made of composite materials is advisable when constructing wooden decks or porches or anything that may come in contact with soil. There are lumbers that are pressure-treated and are very much resistant to termites, other insects and rotting.

They are processed with a sequence of pressure cycles forcing the wood preservative deep into the pores of the wood, therefore developing a chemical barricade against insects and decay. There is available treated wood that has been observed to be successful with its performance. Its durability depends on its location and its use. The use of treated wood is determined by the retention of the wood, or the quantity of wood preservative placed. The lowest retention property (0.15 plus water repellant) mostly are used for gazebos, fence boards, hand rails, trellises, and decks. Retention property of 0.25 is used for trim and fascia, framing, flooring and sill plates. A retention property of 0.40 is mostly used with deck fence posts, deck support posts, and landscaping. Lastly, retention property of 0.60 is used for making permanent wood foundation and building poles.

About The Author
The above article was written by Sarah Miller on behalf of a buzzing online Home Improvement community where homeowners easily and painlessly find the right contractor for their home improvement projects and in turn, contractors can find the right Home Improvement Leads! Also check out the http://quotecity.com/ Blog for more related Home Improvement Articles and Ideas.

Chinese Good Luck Symbols

- Part 2, Attract Love, Romance With Feng Shui

By: Keiko Entwistle

What Chinese feng shuisymbols attract love and romance ?
In feng shuicompass school method, Southwest is the place for love, romance, marriage and family . and it is believed that an image of a couple in the Southwest side of your home or room can attract love, romance and happy marriage.
I have very good experience using this area for my relationship.
What I did was to display the image, picture of my favorite type of person on the wall at the Southwest area of my room .
Also an image of a love couple, of a dream house surrounded by a beautiful flower garden. Also a pair of rose quartz figurines. In the southeast corner of my room, I placed a small plant with red ribbon around the plant's bowl which was given by my friend as a wedding favor.
As a result, when I was single , I had so many opportunities to meet people who look like the image picture of my favorite person.
Here are some Chinese feng shuisymbols for love, romance and happy marriage and also mystical symbols to increase your love opportunity.

Pair of love birds ( or mandarin ducks )
Love birds symbolize happy marriage and couple. Placing pair figurines show that you are not alone, you always have a partner in your life.
Dragon & phoenix couple
Dragon & Phoenix couple image represents emperor and empress ( husband & wife ) which symbolizes happy marriage with a lot of wealth, and brings luxury ife.
Peach tree
Peach tree symbolizes longevity in Chinese tradition, however in my experience, displaying a peach tree image or peach flowers brought great love opportunities. I was placing fake peaches ( fruit ) in the Southwest corner of my room.
Pink flowers & plants
Placing live pink color flowers in the southeast corner of your house is believed to bring alot of new relationship opportunities. Also placing alot of plants in the southeast corner can get the same. Basically, according to feng shuicompass school method, southwest is the place for relationship & family, and southeast is for wealth , but I realized this area ( southeast) also has the power to increase new relationship opportunities when you place colorful flowers or plants with red ribbon.
Flower design blanket and curtain,
Colorful flower design symbolizes love and romance. Avoid to use dark color flowers such as blue flowers.
Rose quartz happy buddha
Rose quartz symbolizes love, romance and good relationship. Happy buddha ( laughing buddha) also is called " Hotei " symbolizes joy and happiness. The combination of rose quartz and happy buddha are a powerful good luck symbol for love opportunity & marriage.

Phoenix , horse, bird
If you want to bring popularity into your life, displaying the image of phoenix or galopping horse or bird at the south corner of your home can help .
Chinese double happiness symbol
Double happiness is an excellent feng shuisymbol for wedding luck.
The meaning of the word is " Joy, Happiness " in Chinese and it is written twice.
If you wish to find romance and a future partner, great to placethe double happiness symbol in the southwest corner of your house or room or carry it in your handbag or purse.
Wedding favors
Wedding favors are a very powerful item when you receive it from your friend or family who are full of happiness at the wedding party. Place the wedding favor in the southwest or southeast corner of your house or room.
Joining happy events is always good luck, unless you don't get negative mind when you are by yourself.
Crystals
Natural crystal quartz is extremely effective to activate earth energy of southwest corner and it will attract romance into your life. Especially when you place crystal ( or hang it ) by the window which catches sunlight , it will expand yang energy around the space.
Travel to good direction for love
To go traveling in the love direction ( you will need to check this, because every year, every month , it's different. ) can bring you love luck , during traveling and in your close future. If you want to change your love luck, this is also very effective.

About The Author
Keiko Entwistle is an asian astrologer using her original taoism methods that she learned in Japan. She runs feng shuiand good luck Chinese symbol charms website http://www.mercurytreasures.com.