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Recently Written
- References are King – and a Must!
- How Painters Tape Can Save You $1000′s
- Vinyl Tub Surrounds – Expensive May Not Be Better!
- The Best Router – Period!
- Tint Your Plaster For Touch Ups on Primed Walls & Trim
- Do Not Use Pens, Felt Pens or Chalk Lines!
- Hard To Find Reproduction Antique Hardware
- WCB Coverage – It’s a Must…Sometimes Even as a Homeowner
- Cutting a Hole In The Ceiling? How To Keep Drywall Dust Contained!
- The Secret To Buying Name Brand Power Tools Dirt Cheap!
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"The Bitterness of Poor Quality Remains Long After The Sweetness of Low Price is Forgotten"
Website Terms of Use
Disclaimer
Does Your Contractor Have Insurance?
Never let a contractor do any work on your home, property or commercial space without proof of current and valid insurance. Even a small job can result in serious accidents and damage. If your contractor is not insured, you may be left holding the bag! For example, you may think little can go wrong when hiring a fencing contractor or landscaper, but what if they back into the corner of your home with a bobcat, or dig up a gas line when digging holes for fence posts, who pays for the damage or repairs.
Keeping The Job Site Cleaned Up
Next to poor quality materials or workmanship, there is nothing more irritating and dangerous in construction than a messy job site…
How clean should a job site be? “Clean”, simple and sweet. There is no reason for any contractor to allow a site to become messy. It does not take to much extra effort to keep things tidy while you work – especially at the end of the day. No mess should ever be left when a contractor leaves the job site for the day. A messy and cluttered job site is dangerous to you, your family and friends, and anyone working on the site.
There should always be a garbage area, bin or trailer on site at all times where trades can dump garbage when they are done, especially at the end of the day. This ensures no tradesman has an excuse for not cleaning up. Even a temporary pile in the middle of a floor area is better than debris all over the floor.
I always have a cleanup clause in my contracts that requires every trade to keep their work area clean and all of their debris cleaned up and removed when they leave for the day or finish the job if it is less than a days work.
Should You Use Aqua-Board & Durock Cement Board in Your Bathroom?
The picture on your left shows the correct areas to use Aqua-Board drywall (green) and Durock NextGen Concrete Backboards (gray). The open framing above and below the tub will also get covered with Durock. Ceramic tile will go over the Durock panels and the Aqua-Board is to be painted.
If you are planning a complete bathroom renovation and looking for ways to save money, the one area you do not want to skimp on is the drywall and concrete backer boards (for tub and shower areas to be tiled). Considering that the average 5′ x 8′ bathroom will only require about 8 sheets of drywall (4′ x 8′) the extra cost to use Aqua-Guard drywall throughout the entire bathroom will only be an additional $80. The cost to tape and finish the Aqua-Baord is the same as regular drywall.
With bathroom renovations costing upwards of $5000, does it make sense to go cheap on drywall and save the $80? Absolutely not! Get the good stuff and do it right. Areas with ceramic tile, marble or granite should have Durock NextGen Concrete board installed (or equal type of concrete board if Durock is not available in your area).
What are these products? See below for more information…
Is Your Vinyl Siding Talking to You?
It’s early evening and you are out on your deck enjoying the last sun of the day… almost perfect except for that occasional squeaking and creaking noise in the background – is your vinyl siding trying to tell you something? Maybe that it was not installed properly?
When vinyl siding and trim is not installed correctly it will usually make noise and possibly buckle. The usual culprits are poor nailing (off center in nailing grooves and nailed too tightly), fitting panels and components too tightly, and over stretching panels when locking them into place – in general, it usually comes down to…
How Much Should You Pay a Renovator?
What is a fair price to pay a professional renovator?
If you want the renovation contractor doing the work on your home to be available for warranty work and future renovations he will need to make at least $50 to $55 per hour if he works on his own, and upwards of $65 an hour if he runs a crew. The cost of running a legitimate business today is expensive and this is reflected in the hourly rate charged by professionals. The average rate for plumbers, electricians, HVAC contractors and so on runs about $75 to $85 an hour.
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My Favorite Magazines!
When it comes to woodworking and home repairs, two magazines stand out from all the others, Fine Woodworking and Fine Homebuilding. I have collected these for years and always enjoy going back to old issues and checking out various projects and tips. The quality is high and you'll find these magazines feel more like book quality.
Turning the pages of Fine Woodworking or Fine Homebuilding is like a kid in a candy store - so much cool stuff you just have to try. Over all I give these magazines a rating of 10/10 - some issues 9/10.
Don't buy these in the store, you can save over 30% using my links above (images) to grab a subscription. -
NEW! Holmes Magazine
If there is one guy who's opinion you can trust for construction and renovation advice it is Mike Holmes from Holmes on Homes. Now you can get his advice delivered right to your door with the launch of his new magazine!
If you've been wondering where you can subscribe to his new magazine? Look no further, you can get a subscription right now for only $18.95 Cdn and save up to 52% off the newsstand price (6 issues). I got mine and am looking forward to the first issue. Visit HolmesMagazine.com to get yours today!
