Making Sure Your Home Is Ready for the Winter

It is important to have your home ready to withstand the cold before winter arrives. This means ensuring areas around your house like the pipes are insulated, your gutters are clean, and your heating system is working.

Service Your HVAC

The ability to heat your home will make the cold winters more bearable. Your heater will be less likely to fail on you when you need it the most if it is serviced before the winter arrives and you’re not left shivering while you wait to get it fixed. Your hvac contractor will make sure that all of the components of the system are working properly. They will also perform basic maintenance, such as an air filter change.

Insulate the Pipes

Your pipes are prone to freezing any time the temperature dips below 32 degrees Fahrenheit. Your pipes freezing means there’s a potential for them to burst, especially if you try to heat them back up too quickly. Insulating the pipes beforehand can prevent this, and save you the worry or hassle of figuring out what to do next. The most important ones for you to insulate are the ones that are in the crawl space, basement, or any area that does not receive a lot of heat.

Clean the Gutters

Clogged gutters have the potential to trap water and lead to ice damns. This can break your gutters and lead to damage for the rest of your house, such as the walls and roof. Before winter falls, either you or a professional should clean out your gutters and then keep an eye on them throughout the season.

Seal the Furnace Ducts

The furnace ducts can waste anywhere from 20 to 30 percent of the heated air that they transport. If your ducts are leaking, then your house won’t be able to heat adequately and you will never be able to get as comfortable as you want to be. Your energy bills can also increase due to the wasted heating.

You can prevent this by sealing the furnace ducts. You will not be able to seal all of the ducts because many of them are in places that you cannot reach, such as the ceilings, floors, and walls. However, you can seal the ones that are in the crawl space, garage, and basement. Talk to a contractor before you decide to seal the ducts. You may need to get a combustion safety test done first.

You should have your home prepared for the winter several weeks before the cold weather arrives. You can prepare for the winter by making sure that your HVAC system is working properly. You should also clean the gutters and seal the duct leaks. Additionally, you should make sure that your pipes are insulated to prevent them from freezing.

Why You Should Invest in a Metal Roof

You've been paying attention to your roof for some time, and you're not happy with what you've noticed. There are missing shingles, some damaged patches beneath the surface, and a few leaks creeping inside your home. It's time to get your roof replaced. This is going to be a substantial investment. You want to get it right the first time. Before you hire a contractor, find out why you should invest in a metal roof.

Metal is Built to Last

If you choose a metal roof, you can expect it to withstand the passage of time. Asphalt roofs usually last about 25 years. Quality metal roofing could endure at least 50 years. You may even get closer to the century mark with 70 years with proper maintenance. Choose wisely and you will only be installing a roof once in your lifetime.

Your Roof Will be More Resistant to Fire

A house fire is every homeowner's greatest fear. You can defend your home from the ravages of a blaze by choosing metal for your roofing material. Metal roofing and the materials that are layered beneath the top layer are less likely to catch on fire than traditional roofing materials. Metal will not combust. If the risk of a fire comes from the outside, such as a lightning strike, fireworks, or sparks from a nearby blaze, your roof can give you a vote of confidence.

You Can Save Money on Your Energy Bills

A metal roofing installation may cost a bit more money compared to other roofing options. However, it will offer you returns over the years when you see lower utility bills. You can expect your roofing material to reflect the sun's rays back toward the sky in the warmest months of the year, keeping your home cooler. At the same time, your metal roofing can also insulate your home in the colder months. Pay attention to the difference your choice of roofing can make in your energy bills. You'll be happy when your savings start to add up.

Metal Roofing Offers You More Options

Go with metal when you want more flexibility. You can find a variety of colors to complement the color scheme of your home or try a bold contrast. You can also try alternatives that are textured to mimic traditional roofing materials. Be sure to explore your options before selecting your favorite.

Metal roofing can help you to breathe new life into your home. At the same time, you can trust your roofing material to endure for years to come. You may even increase the resale value of your home when you spare future homeowners the burden of installing a new roof.

Storage and Cleaning Tips for a More Organized Work Space

Creating a comfortable work environment for yourself is one of the best things you can do to increase your productivity. While a cluttered desk is not necessarily a sign of a cluttered mind, too much distraction can make it difficult for you to focus on the task at hand.

A clean and well-organized workspace is a pleasant place to be, which means you’ll enjoy your time at work more. Your workspace should also be functional, arranged and organized in a way that makes your workflow logical.

This article walks you through the essential steps to cleaning and organizing your workspace and keeping it harmonious to encourage your best possible workflow.

Visualize Your Ideal Work Environment

It can be tempting to browse Pinterest for office organization ideas hoping that someone’s beautiful office will inspire you to keep yours tidy. Unfortunately, even the most curated idea board isn’t going to motivate you to keep your space tidy if it doesn’t work for you.

The things that make those offices beautiful may not be functional in your space or practical for the kind of work that you do. That’s why you must take a moment to reflect on what you want your office to do for you. Creating a personalized vision will help you to set up a functional office that makes your work easier and more enjoyable.

Categorize Work Tasks Into Zones 

Consider the primary tasks you do for your work from one day to the next. Then, arrange your office in zones that allow you to complete those tasks efficiently. Consider the supplies you need to do those tasks and plan to have them in their respective zones.

For example, if your work involves a lot of time spent at the computer, designate a portion of your desk for computer use. If you print or mail a lot of documents, establish a printing station with your printer, paper, inks, envelopes, and stamps. 

Some jobs require a lot of reading and research out of physical books. A reading station with bookshelves, a comfortable place to sit, a reading lamp, and a pen and paper for note-taking will make reading much more enjoyable.

Aside from making your work more efficient, dividing your work tasks into zones will help you get into the right mindset for a particular task. When you sit down at your computer station, for example, your brain will begin to prepare for computer work, helping you stay present within the task at hand.

Clean and Organize

Once you have a concrete idea of what tasks you do regularly and the supplies required to do them, it’s time to organize those spaces. You first have to get rid of everything that doesn’t belong in your ideal office. Then you’ll find a home for everything that does belong.

Declutter Your WorkSpace

Gather up everything in your office - yes, everything! Pull all the random items out of your desk drawers. Take everything off your shelves, including your books. 

Chances are, you’ve accumulated a lot of unnecessary supplies. Maybe they were helpful to you at one point, but they don’t fit your workflow anymore. You won’t know what those things are until you’ve brought them out into the open and examined them.

Throw away or relocate anything you don’t use at all, as well as trash. Sort what’s left by zone, putting the necessary supplies for a particular task in that task’s zone. Note that you’re not putting any of the supplies away yet. Right now, just focus on getting them to the correct zone.

Some things are notorious for cluttering up offices. In particular, you’ll want to tackle:

• Paper. Organize all your paper into piles. Pull out any to-do lists so that you can compile them into one master list later. Put receipts in an envelope and store them in a file folder. Throw away anything you have a copy of on your computer, unless you’ll need to print it again later.

• Pens. Pens. You probably have more pens on, around, and on top of your desk than you could ever use. A lot of them may be out of ink anyway. Gather them all and scribble with them on a scrap piece of paper. Throw out any pens that don’t work and any that you don’t enjoy using.

• Personal items. In an office, people tend to accumulate clothing and other personal items from home. When your office is in your home, however, this clutter can start to take over. Gather any clothes (dirty or clean) and take them out of the office. Take home (or remove from your office) anything that doesn’t have to do with your work.

Deep Clean Your Workspace

Wipe down your desk with a disinfecting solution or cloth, then dust your shelves and any other visibly dirty surfaces. You’ll want to pay close attention to your keyboard, which accumulates dust, skin cells, food, and germs over time. Shake it upside down, then use a compressed air canister, special putty, or a folded sticky note to get any leftover dirt between the keys.

Consider your work surface and how you can keep it clean once you’ve wiped it down. If you spend a lot of time at your desk, a desk blotter or other pad can keep your fingerprints off the surface. Blotters are especially helpful for keeping clear acrylic or glass desktops clean, which can be particularly frustrating.

Sweep or vacuum your floor, taking care to get into the corners where your furniture meets the floor. The decluttering process tends to leave a lot of debris on the floor. No matter how well you organize your workspace, it won’t feel truly clean until you’ve swept up all the mess. While you’ve got the vacuum, use the hose to suck out any dirt from inside your desk drawers.

Give Everything a Place

Once you’ve decluttered, cleaned, and disinfected your workspace, you can get started organizing what’s left. Keeping your office organized is going to require you to put things away regularly. Choose a home for every single item that you keep as you put things back. 

For some items, this is a simple task. Your computer’s home is on your desk, and if you’ve divided your office into zones, your printer’s home is in your printing zone. Books go on the bookshelf, and if you really want to keep your office tidy, that means all of the books. As cute as a pile of books may look sitting on the corner of your desk, it’s still clutter.

Other items might not be quite so simple to give homes to. For example, your top drawer might be home to your pens, paper clips, sticky notes, and a calculator. To avoid a mess, put smaller containers inside the drawer to keep things separate. You can buy a dedicated organizer if you’d like, but an old cell phone box (both the top and bottom) works just as well.

Make sure to find homes for items that tend to move around your office a lot, too. Things like staplers, sticky notes, and tape dispensers tend to start at one corner of your desk and end up scattered in completely different places over time. If you give them a home in a drawer or on a shelf instead, your desk will look tidier and you’ll be more likely to keep them there.

Plan to Stay Organized

Having a clean and organized office will make you more efficient and your workday more enjoyable, but only as long as you keep it that way. For some people, this is harder than getting it organized in the first place. Here are a few tips to make it easier. 

Don’t Eat At Your Desk

It can be tempting to sit down at your desk on your lunch break to get a little extra work done. This temptation is even greater when your office is in your home and the line between home and workspace is so blurry. But eating food at your desk will make it that much harder to keep your office clean.

For one thing, your keyboard and mouse are covered in germs, and eating while you’re working means you’re putting those germs in your mouth. Plus, you’re getting crumbs, sauces, and all sorts of other ickiness all over your computer, and managing that can make work unpleasant.

You also have to be sure to pick up and throw away your various takeout containers or take your dishes back to the kitchen. Save yourself the headache and take your lunch break in another room, at least. You should take a mental break from work while eating anyway.

Clean Every Day

This may sound like overkill, but daily cleaning is the best thing you can do if you want to keep your office clean and tidy. Set aside ten minutes at the end of your workday to give your whole space a reset. Put all of your items back in their homes, and if your desk is visibly dirty, wipe it down.

If it doesn’t take you ten minutes to get it done, great! You just bought yourself a few more minutes at the end of your day. Either way, you’ll have a tidy office to get started on the next day, and the day after that.

Building Materials That Give Your Home a Luxe Look at an Affordable Price

There's something enchanting and upscale about a home that features certain materials. But building with components such as marble, gold, or other expensive materials isn't exactly practical for everyone's budget. So here are a few building materials that can give your home a luxe look even while on a budget.

Metal

Metal can be quite affordable and can make a statement, especially with modern, industrial,m or farmhouse design styles. For example, corrugated metal has a wavy look that can be used as the surface of a wall, roof, ceiling, or even the sides of your kitchen counter. If you need something more durable, steel can be a fantastic option. It can also be used structurally for added support. Copper, on the other hand, is used more often in plumbing than it is in the actual building of a home. However, it's still a beautiful, luxe-looking metal that's affordable when you're on a budget. It’s recently become a popular choice for light fixtures, so it’s a great way to incorporate modern trends.

Wood & Wood Alternatives

Reclaimed wood can be great for those that want to use real wood on a budget. Even timber that's second-hand can provide an amazing and high-class look. If you don't love the color of the reclaimed wood, you can easily and affordably use wood stain to change it. If you can’t get your hands on this, some companies make attractive, smoother-looking plywood that can be used as an inexpensive way to enjoy a luxe wood appearance. Another wood option is composite wood. Made from a blend of recycled wood and plastic along with other additives, this wood-alternative is a great material for decking, cabinets, and more.

Alternatively, if you want to lean away from using lumber altogether, bamboo can be an excellent choice. It is one of the most environmentally friendly materials available due to its fast growth time. It can provide a wood-like appearance both affordably and sustainably.

Stone & Stone Alternatives

Real stone always provides a beautiful and luxurious appearance, but not all stone has to be expensive. For example, with its light color and heavy-duty strength, limestone makes beautiful tile flooring or fireplaces. Granite is also a durable and versatile option that gives an amazing and luxe look to countertops, showers, and even mantles.

If stone is not your style, there are other options that can be just as long-lasting. Brick, for instance, is one of the most common and traditional building materials that won't break the bank when you're looking for a luxe look. White or light-colored brick is especially popular right now. And while you may not think of concrete as a luxury product, it can be sealed for a classy look that goes great with modern and industrial decor. 

Conclusion

The possibilities are endless when it comes to building materials, but most of us can’t afford luxury price tags. Keeping these affordable options in mind will help you achieve the luxe look you want at a much more attainable price.