Home Improvement Blog

Tired of that old kitchen and need a facelift for your home? Any of us owning a home will go through this at one point or another and if you don't I'm sure your significant other will make you a part of it. So you have decided you need a new kitchen but don't really know the steps involved. This where you should take a step back and do your research. Realize once your kitchen has been gutted you are at the mercy of your contractor. No joke, I have seen customers in tears and their lives upside down after experiences with a unprofessional contractor. With this in mind you should really inquire about impeccable references from the contractor you plan to hire before you remodel.

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A few key tips when hiring a contractor to remodel your kitchen:

• Depending on the size of your kitchen average start to finish time can be 2-4 wks. Talk to previous customers to verify because months without a kitchen will be quite the inconvenience.
• Contractor should install the proper blocking in walls to ensure cabinets will have proper support when fastened.(shown in picture above)
• You should obtain a 3-D image of your kitchen before the start of project.
• Ask if your contractor will sub contract any of the work. If so inquire who and what background in the field they obtain. You need your contractor to have an established relationship with their sub contractors to make the job moves faster and more efficently.
• Ensure that your contractor is experienced in all the installation aspects of your kitchen and doesn't rely on sub contractors in differents trades to figure it out. Lighting placement, tile work, plumbing, electrical, sheetrock, etc. Your general contractor should execute the job foreseeing every issue before the completed project.

Most of us with homes have a basement and I'm sure most of these basements have little or no windows for natural light or ventilation. Now a window in your basement probably isn't at the top of your priority list but if you put it in a life and death situation you might have a different outlook on it. In the case of a fire you or your loved ones could be left with no escape and incinerated alive. Many instances of these cases have occurred in the past which has forced the national building code administration to enforce violations to protect people from danger. In any finished basement you must install a egress window as a fire escape. The window must have a minimum net clear opening of 5.7 square feet, minimum net clear opening height of 24", minimum net clear opening width of 20" and a maximum 44" sill height from finished floor. Outside the window you must construct a window well with a minimum net clear area of 9 square feet with horizontal projection width of 36 inches. If the window well depth is greater than 44" a permanently affixed ladder needs to be installed. Exit through a garage is not accepted. Basement egress window installation is an excellent precaution to take before it is too late. Better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it!

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What you gain by installing a basement egress window:

• Peace in mind that you and your loved ones will be safe during a fire.
• Added natural lighting.
• Ventilation.
• Less mold and mildew problems in moist basements.
• Get your basement up to current building codes.

I find that most of my customers wait until they sell their home, only to be hit in the face with the reality that they are required to have one. When you perform a finished basement now is the time to install an egress window. The installation is way more complex down the road.

Problems when you go to sell:

• 90 percent of customers call me for an egress window because they are in the process of closing. This creates massive holdups that can take up to months to resolve if you are in violation of code.

• If looking to sell and transfer to another home, you may lose your lock in mortgage rate.

• You already closed on your future dream home but need the money from your old home to stay a float.

• Your purchaser may be in the same boat and needs to close to get into their next dream home.

• Inspectors do not care, you are in violation of code and your priorities are not theirs. 

• Buyer backing out of the deal

• Loss of money layed out already

Here in the northeast we experience a great deal of ice damming on the roof of our homes during the winter season. A leaking roof, especially during the winter time, is a complete hassle to deal with. Ice damming occurs when heat transfer through your attic begins to melt the snow on your roof. As melted snow makes it over the unheated soffit area it begins to refreeze causing a water back up under your shingles and into your home. The process usaully could take a few days or weeks to occur depending on outside temperature and the R-value of your attic insulation.

Ice damming can all be prevented with ice dam material that is applied to the roof deck before shingles are applied. It prevents water from penetrating your roof deck and seals around the nails used to fasten your shingles. Ice dam material is applied on the lower edge of your roof and three feet up(sometimes doubled to six feet). It should also be applied in valleys and around chimneys and skylights. In some areas building departments have made it code to install ice dam with your new roof. It is the cheapest and most effective way to eliminate the chances of ice damming. If you experience ice damming the best course of action is to leave it be and correct the problem when it warms. If you try to break the ice on the roof you will 99 percent of the time do more damage to the roof shingles and not to mention a dangerous practice.

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You have finished remodeling your bathroom and now you are looking into shower doors. With many different brands, styles and finishes on the market you may become easily confused what direction to go in. From my personal experiences it pays to spend the extra money for a quality shower door. I have found that Century makes a very quality door that will give you many years of use. With the many different styles and finishes they offer, your bathroom design ideas become unlimited. Also highly recommended is a DFI glass treatment that protects glass and cuts maintainance time in half. To learn more visit www.centurybathworks.com

Water damage is responsible for trillions of dollars of descruction world wide and I'm sure that we have all experienced some form of water related damage in our lives. If you have a basement in your home then your home should be equipped with adequate footing drains. Footing drains are located at the base of your concrete footings. Most homes we have worked on with water issues I found that improper installation was the cause of failure and we have done quite a few. While as water has a mind of its own I'd like to go over a few key factors for good drainage.

Five key factors for proper drainage:

• Very common issue is the installation of the 4" corrugated pipe. The pipe is equipped with holes on one side to catch the water and remove it quickly away from the footings. Most people think the holes face up, this is absolutely wrong. The holes face down and as the water table rises in the dirt it relieves into the pipe.
• Gravel is natural drainage. Use as much as possible to keep the water flowing.
• Install filter fabric around gravel. This will keep any dirt or debris from silting into the gravel and the pipe.
• Install filter fabric around pipe itself. I call it a condom and it slides right over the pipe protecting the holes from silt. If the holes in the pipe get clogged your footing drains are useless.
• Make sure you have pitch! Without pitch water goes nowhere. Use a level on the pipe or better yet a transit.

As we all know heating and cooling costs across the country are constantly on the rise. Families feel the impact every year and most don't know that there is a solution for lowering your heating costs. Most of the homes when they were built were installed with a single pane window. This means the glass in the window is only one piece as todays windows are a double pane consisting of two pieces of glass. Windows make up a large percentage of square footage of your home and makes it very important to have a quality window to increase your R-value.

I have strongly worked with Certainteed window products over the years and have had tremendous success with their replacement window line. A replacement window fits inside of your existing window frame which saves a great deal of time and money as opposed to a complete window replacement which involves a great deal more work and expense. You can search Certainteed window products @ www.certainteed.com and explore the entire window line available and all the added features you will obtain with installing new windows.

In the meantime, here are a few tips to save energy costs with your old windows :

• Most hardware stores sell plastic shrink wrap that can be installed on the interior of the window frame to insulate and help keep drafts out.
• In the summer open your windows at night to allow the cool air in. Close the windows in the morning to keep the warm air outside.
• Make sure all window locks are locked.

Considering a new facelift on the exterior of your home? Well vinyl siding is a good choice for a almost maintainance free home. While greatly improving the appearance of your home you will also increase the value of your home. So once you have decided you want to reside your home the next step is finding a qualified contractor to install your siding.

Here are a few tips for a quality installation:

• Removal of all old siding is the best method. Many contractors go over the old existing siding saving time and dumping fees. Removal of all existing siding will reveal any water damage and/or dry rotting that lies hidden. If any damage is found contractor can correct the problem. Problems will not dissappear with new siding, like capping a rotten tooth.
• Determine if your home could use more insulation. If the exterior walls are constructed of 2x4's your home is only carrying a R-11 or R-13 insulating value. Styrofoam insulation installed on the exterior of your home will give you an added R-value cutting down your heating and cooling costs.
• Find out what siding will be installed on your home. We use Certainteed siding "Mainstreet" or "Monogram" brands. All siding companies carry different grades of siding. Differences include thickness of siding, quality of locks, UV protection, wind ratings, studfinders, etc. The product you choose will greatly have a result in the final product. Visit www.certainteed.com
• Tyvec paper is used to wrap the exterior of home before siding is installed. Excellent product that I strongly recommend. It protects the home from any water and is also a vapor barrier. You can check out this product @ www. tyvek.com
• Inquire that your contractor knows how to bend aluminum well. A bad aluminum job can be hard to tell if not fimiliar. An installer must understand the flow of water in order to protect the surfaces being protected. This is extremely important because water damage will go unnoticed for years until severe damage has been done. I have had many experiences where capping and/or flashing has been installed incorrectly and the damage is usually severe and insurance will not cover damages due to a poor siding job.

If you might not already know, installation of crown moulding should usually be left in the hands of an experienced carpenter. Out of all moulding applications, crown can be the most confusing. Even most carpenters rely on the caulking gun to achieve the appearance of a tight mitre. Most ceilings are not perfectly level and/or square and this is where a qualified installer is necessary. Installations where stain is to be applied to natural wood instead of paint requires a professional installer that knows and understands the aspects of wood.

Here are some quick tips to a quality crown moulding installation:

•  A mitre box equipped with crown moulding braces is the best possible feature on a mitre box. It ensures a proper and exact cut from piece to piece in that crown moulding is not cut flat but on a 45 degree angle.
• When cutting inside corners coping creates the best and tightest seams. Coping is performed by hand with the use of a coping saw.
• When installing crown mouldings, apply construction adhesive to top part of moulding where moulding meets ceiling. This eliminates any questions of crown moulding sagging from ceiling in the future.(without adhesive it is sure to happen where nailing into ceiling joists are not present.

Hope article will help you on your next remodeling project.

When choosing a General Contractor to be in charge of your project, you the customer should know whom you you are dealing with and what experience they have in the entire project. For instance you want an addition added to your home. You call a General Contractor because you feel he knows every step of your project. This usually is not the case though. Most General Contractors are experienced in only a couple of trades and rely on sub contractors to finish the rest. 

Things to look for when hiring a General Contractor:

• Referrals are very important. If you are spending thousands of your hard earned money you should spend the time to know who you are working with and the quality of work they produce.
• Ask questions. Make sure that your contractor knows all the aspects of the job being performed. A good contractor should be able to for see the entire project before it has been started.
• If sub contractors are to be used inquire what the companies names are and make sure they are reputable.

Many years in the painting industry have given us the do and dont's for a professional paint job that adds long lasting beauty to your home at a fraction of the cost of vinyl siding. Paint also always leaves the option open to change the color and appearance of your home at any given time. At any given time you can change the facade of your home within days without the mess of a full exterior renovation.

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Five key factors to a successful and long lasting exterior paint job:

1) Powerwashing surface is a very crucial part of preping the surface to remove all dirt, grime, and mildew from surfaces to be painted. Paint will not adhere to surfaces correctly if this step is skipped.

2) Use of a good exterior caulk holding at least a 25yr. warranty is necessary. Caulk is used to fill all voids before paint is applied and keeps water from penetrating areas that are open to rot. Most rot in homes go undetected for years before noticed usually leaving devastating damage especially if carpenter ant or termites are involved.

3) Before paint is applied it it usually recommended to add an ingredient called Emulsa-Bond to paint. This product increases the adhesion of paint dramatically especially when paint is being applied to aluminum, concrete, or espestos sidings.

4) For the best possible application of paint is still the brush and roller method. Sorry to all the guys that like to spray homes but it is tried and true that by hand you get a better and thicker coat, doubling the life span of the job.

5) The most important is to apply a good quality paint. We always use Benjamin Moore products and have had great success over the years with their product. Just keep in mind that even Benjamin Moore carries different grades of paint with qualities that range in price so inquire which one is being applied to your home. 

A recent customer wanted to replace their entire staircase because of the ugly apperance to the front entrance of their home. WMB Construction also specializes in carpentry so we could have replaced the staircase at a much higher cost. Instead, after inspecting the staircase we found that it was structurally sound.

 Many times we run into decks that are in poor condition and we bring them back to life and get you many more years out of your wood deck. We can inspect your deck and most of the time your deck can be salvaged.

Services we offer:

• Exterior painting
• Interior painting
• Powerwashing
• Concrete staining
• All phases of home improvement