What To Do When Your House Starts to Crack

Cracked drywall and other signs of structural damage within the home are never an issue that property owners can afford to take lightly. Knowing what to do when your house starts to crack could end up making a world of difference.

Take Action Quickly

Failing to determine the source of a crack as quickly as possible could be nothing short of a disaster. Homeowners who choose to ignore the problem or who fail to take effective steps to address it could soon find themselves faced with more extensive damage and much higher repair costs. Documenting the crack thoroughly, inspecting the home for additional cracks, and calling in the professionals at the first sign of trouble are all steps that should be taken without delay.

Look for Additional Damage

A damaged foundation can place considerable strain on drywall, supports, and other construction materials. While a single crack can be caused by physical damage to a wall or other interior surface, a damaged foundation can typically cause multiple cracks throughout the home. Taking a look around the house and carefully inspecting walls and ceilings for other cracks and signs of visible damage can be well worth the time and effort involved.

Document the Damage

Documenting any cracks that appear within the home would be to your advantage. Taking a few photographs and writing down details about cracks measurements or the date when they first appeared can provide foundation repair professionals, ones like the people who can be found at Du-West Foundation Repair, with valuable information. Being able to accurately determine when structural problems first arose or knowing how long it took for cracks to grow in size can make determining the nature and scope of the underlying problem much easier.

Call a Professional

Few home and property owners possess the tools and technical skills needed to assess the state of their foundation or to conduct any repairs that may be required. Experienced professionals who are able to provide both comprehensive assessments, as well as quality repair services, often prove to be an indispensable resource. Should you notice a crack or have any concerns regarding the state of your home's foundation, calling in professionals is often the best approach to take.

A damaged foundation can undermine the structural integrity of the entire home and taking swift action to deal with the situation will be crucial for ensuring that repair costs do not get out of hand. Knowing what to do when your house begins to crack is never an issue that should be left to chance.  

The Design Benefits of Having a Beautiful Roof

Believe it or not, your roof can do wondrous things for the aesthetic and style of your home. In fact, with a bit of vision and creativity, you can use bold colors, textured roofing materials, and existing features to enhance your roof and accentuate your home’s design. Scan this guide and delve into some simple methods that can help you make the most of your roof.

Architectural Elements Accentuate Exterior Features

The architectural elements of your rooftop may not be something you think about often. But the truth is, features like the pitch and general shape of your roof can dramatically enhance your home’s curb appeal, value, and overall style. It doesn’t matter if you choose tile, slate, or asphalt, either.

The right architectural design will help you define your home’s personality and accentuate its other exterior features, such as window shutters or a wrap-around porch. For instance, if you air on the side of understated and dignified, you can choose simple rooflines to express that style.

On the other hand, suppose you’re looking for something more extravagant. If so, you could opt for a more complex roof with features like cross-gables to demonstrate a more elegant aesthetic. Either way, considering your roof’s architectural features can help you accentuate and add style to all of your home’s exterior features.

Bold Colors Serve as Captivating Accents

Of course, we can’t discuss the design benefits of having a beautiful roof without mentioning the opportunity to play around with color. In decades past, homeowners were given a minimal array of rooftop colors to choose from.

But nowadays, boldly colored roofing is all the rage. Because of this trend, homeowners are exploring the possibility of using their roofs to create captivating and stylish exterior accents. With vibrant options like green and blue, people are finding innovative ways to coordinate the color of their roofs with other external fixtures. Inherently, roofs are quickly becoming an opportunity to create charming exterior accents.

In doing so, they’re making their home’s appearance more dynamic and cohesive. These roofing options aren’t just exclusive to traditional materials like shingle and slate, either. Even if you have a metal roof, you can enjoy the benefits of a brightly colored roof by simply painting your existing roof a new color.

Roofing Materials Add Style and Texture

The roofing materials that you use can significantly impact your roof’s design. For instance, shingles and slate can help you achieve a more classic and modest style. On the other hand, stucco-finish tiles can help you accentuate the look of a modern Mediterranean design.

Or, if you’re looking for a way to update your classic Victorian, you can try asphalt or metal roofing meant to look like wood or clay tiles. In any case, the materials you choose for your roof can help to add some texture while accentuating the stylish features your home already has. So explore the possibilities of different textures when you’re trying to figure out the design benefits of a beautiful roof.

What To Do With All That Holiday Garbage

Just when you have your home looking its best for the holidays, an eruption of gifts, food, and toys throws it all out of whack. Holiday get-togethers, even small ones, generate gift wrap, boxes, and leftovers everywhere.

How do you derive order out of this happy chaos? Here’s what to do with all that holiday garbage. In fact, if your sustainability skills need a boost, the holidays are a great time to pick up responsible waste management habits.

Trees and Other Organic Decorations

What came from the earth can usually return to the earth. Check with your local forest preserve agency or municipality to see if they run a tree recycling program. Many agencies designate a drop-off area where they’ll collect natural trees, garlands, and other decorative evergreen branches. They’ll run these through chippers to create mulch to use along woodland paths and in gardens.

Wrapping Paper and Cards

If paper and cards have flourishes like glitter, mini pom-poms, or plastic pieces, don’t put them in your recycling bin. The same is true for ribbons and bows; these can tangle up recycling equipment and ruin a bale of recycled material with impurities.

Save bows and ribbons to reuse next year. With greeting cards, tear off the part that doesn’t have any embellishments for recycling, and get crafty with the rest. Use glittery holiday scenes from greeting cards in glass jar centerpieces or cut them into jigsaw puzzles for the kids.

Leftovers

Reduce plastic waste by investing in reusable silicone food storage bags for leftovers. These can go in the dishwasher and come out clean to pack up the remains of next holiday’s feast. Of course, the best way to deal with leftovers is to eat them! Don’t store them for so long that the food goes bad and you have to throw it away anyway.

Boxes, Bottles, and Cans

Cardboard is recyclable, and you’ll get a lot more of it into your bin if you break the boxes down first. In fact, recycling a ton of cardboard saves as many as 17 trees!

Recycling centers can usually remove packing tape. What recycling centers don’t want is food waste. If you toss a can, carton, or bottle into the recycling bin without rinsing it out first, your good intentions may end up in a landfill regardless. Food residue creates impurities in recycled paper products, making them less attractive to buyers.

Lights, Foam Packaging, and Defunct Electronics

These can’t go in your recycling bin, but your local solid waste agency may offer an alternative option. City or county recycling centers will often accept holiday lights, Styrofoam packaging, and used electronics. If you took advantage of holiday deals to replace an old television, ask if you can drop it off at a recycling center in your area.

When you know what to do with all that holiday garbage, getting your organized home back will seem much less daunting!

Guest Post - The Benefits of Having a Multifunction Printer in Your Home Office

Working from home often leaves you without access to vital equipment such as scanners and printers. These devices can be installed in a home office, but they take up an enormous amount of space. A much more practical solution is to equip your workspace with a versatile multifunction printer. But what are the benefits of a multifunction printer?

1. Organized Multi-Tasking

We love the way a multifunction printer (MFP) combines everything you need in one easy appliance. It prints correspondence and photocopies documents. You usually have the choice of setting these functions in black and white or color. You can even use it as a scanner to upload paperwork or photographs into your PC. An MFP also includes email facilities and a fax machine for transferring documents. Whatever your work requires, a versatile MFP can provide the solution.

2. Perfect for Small Home Offices

Most of the home offices we've organized for clients are small. They often must be incorporated into the corner of a living room or bedroom. Space is at a premium. It's vital to avoid clutter to keep your space more liveable and comfortable to use. An MFP usually has a width of around 15-19 inches (40-50 centimetres). It's similar to the size of a single-function printer, yet you get multiple functions all in one tiny space. It's ideal for any home office.

3. Versatile and Convenient

Maximizing your productivity is important when you work from home. Choosing a versatile MFP can certainly help you be more organized. It usually has a simplified operation with easy to understand instructions. Many have sleek, touch screen control panels. You can even switch between functions by simply pressing a button. An MFP saves you from having to familiarize yourself with several machines and multiple modes of use. A small home office can't usually accommodate separate machines, requiring some to be placed in another room. An MFP is so convenient as it saves you from having to leave your desk.

4. An MFP is less Expensive

An MFP is the perfect piece of equipment when you're setting up a home office on a budget. Purchasing individual items such as a scanner, printer and photocopier can work out expensive. An MFP provides you with multiple functions in one purchase. The cost of an MFP can sometimes be similar to the price of just one individual device such as a fax machine. You might not even need every function regularly. Therefore, an MFP saves you from wasting valuable funds on little-used pieces of office equipment.

5. Reduces Your Carbon Footprint

It's important to run your home office as ecologically as possible. An MFP helps prevent excess carbon emissions from escaping into the atmosphere. You only must run a single device instead of many. Most MFPs are built to a streamlined design that is economical with energy usage. A common feature is inkjet printing technology. It uses less energy than laser printing, which must rely on pre-heating an infuser to operate. The money you save on electricity is a long-term advantage.

6. Smart Technology

Many of today's MFPs are sophisticated home office appliances that are compatible with Smart technology. You can easily find MFPs with wireless and Bluetooth connectivity. It means you can usually integrate an MFP into a smart home automation system. It allows you to operate an MFP through your mobile even when you're not at home. You can be more organized by sending remote instructions for different functions. For example, documentation can be already prepared by the time you arrive back at your home office.

7. Economical Servicing and Repairs

Keeping your home office equipment in good condition can be costly if you have multiple devices. However, an MFP is usually economical to maintain. You only must pay one service charge to keep your MFP operating correctly. Repairs are also less expensive if you call for professional help. Inkjet MFPs are usually made to high standards with a streamlined design. They don't usually include complex components such as transfer belts or imaging units. Any MFP repairs are nearly always quick and easy to fix, allowing you to recover a good work productivity level.

8. Speed and Efficiency

But how does the performance of an MFP compare to separate devices? Many MFPs use the simplicity of advanced technology. It makes them smooth-running and very competitive when compared to individual machines. Typical printing speeds can be around three seconds for one page. For batches of multiple copies, you can expect up to 50 pages in one minute. More expensive models achieve commercial office rates with up to 100 pages in a minute. Scanning and photocopying results are usually just as impressive. An MFP can make your home office maintain fast and efficient standards.

Conclusion

Equipping your small home office with a multifunction printer has many benefits. You can make a small space comfortable to use. It's an economical investment that reduces your carbon footprint and saves on maintenance and repair charges. A multifunctional printer is convenient and versatile. You can even integrate some models into smart home automation. Your home office can be highly organized and efficient when you choose a multifunctional printer.

Author Bio:

Greg Tuohy is the Managing Director of Docutec, a business printer and office automation software provider. Greg was appointed Managing Director in June 2011 and is the driving force behind the team at the Cantec Group. Immediately after completing a Science degree at UCC in 1995, Greg joined the family copier/printer business. Docutec also make printers for family homes too such as multifunction printers.