Hiring a contractor to build your house might be some tricky business, especially since there are so many factors involved, but it does not have to be a nightmare if you do your research and know what to look for.
First of all, the contractor that you choose needs to be a licensed one. After you discover that they are licensed, find out if there have been any lawsuits or claims filed against that license. They should also have the appropriate levels of insurance so if anyone is injured while they are on your property, you are not liable for their medical bills.
Second of all, you need to talk to each contractor you are considering in person and make sure that you can get along with this person. You both need to be able to get along so you can concentrate on the process of building the home instead of arguing about this or that. This person will be in your life for at least a few months, so hiring someone that you can tolerate is important.
Next, you need to get references from each contractor that you talk to and talk to those references at length and make sure that the contractor does good work. Ask if they have had any mold or water damage issues since their home was constructed or since their remodeling work was finished. Mold may be the most important issue to look for, since this gets built into new homes more often than most people think due to materials being stored directly on the ground or because they have been rained on.
You should also consider what your contract with this person is going to have in it. You should schedule a date for when the project will start and an approximate date that you want it to have been completed by. If you are expecting a baby or any other major event that will require you to have the home completed, take this into account when hiring your contractor. Find out when they can start on the project and if you do not have any room to be flexible (this is rare), consider hiring someone else.
The contract also needs to contain exactly what materials you want your home to be built from, from the kitchen counter material to the type of finish you want on all the hardware. Be very specific and do not give room for any substitutions, since some contractors will substitute lower grade materials without you noticing if they can get away with it.
Showing posts with label electricity. Show all posts
Showing posts with label electricity. Show all posts
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Space Heater Fire Prevention
While a large number of people use space heaters in their home during the winter to avoid having to pay the gas bill during that time, most people are not completely aware of just how much damage these little conveniences can do to their home if they are left unattended or used incorrectly.
Any homeowner with children should be wary of using space heaters, depending on how old the child is. Small children tend to touch things they are unfamiliar with or things that look “cool” and this can be a really big hazard. It is a bad idea to use a space heater in a child’s room at night, especially since smaller children tend to have stuffed animals and toys all over the room that could easily get too close and start a fire.
Something else that you should know about space heaters is using extension cords with them is a very bad idea if you do not have access to a heavy duty one. The smaller extension cords that are used for lamps or other electronics simply cannot stand up to the high amount of electrical current needed to power a space heater and they will eventually melt. You may or may not realize it, either, since sometimes you will be able to smell the melting plastic, but other times you might not. Use an extension cord that is marked as being at least a 14 gauge or higher cord. This should be able to handle most space heaters.
A great number of fires concerning space heaters happen at night when people are sleeping. If you can help it, try to leave space heaters off at night. Cover yourself with more blankets or anything else you have to do in order to stay warm, since a space heater may catch on fire and end up causing you and everyone else in the house to be much, much warmer than you intended.
Space heaters should never be used as dryers for any kind of wet clothing, even though some people have done this by setting something they want to make warm on top of it. Do not do this even for a few seconds and even if you are right there watching it. It is a bad practice to get into and once you become confident that nothing will happen, you will let your guard down and a fire will eventually happen. It may not happen the first, second, or third time, but fires are unpredictable and you never know when one may start.
Keep at least one smoke detector in your home and have one located on each floor, whether you use space heaters in your home during the winter or not. Fires can break out no matter what kind of heating system you may use.
Any homeowner with children should be wary of using space heaters, depending on how old the child is. Small children tend to touch things they are unfamiliar with or things that look “cool” and this can be a really big hazard. It is a bad idea to use a space heater in a child’s room at night, especially since smaller children tend to have stuffed animals and toys all over the room that could easily get too close and start a fire.
Something else that you should know about space heaters is using extension cords with them is a very bad idea if you do not have access to a heavy duty one. The smaller extension cords that are used for lamps or other electronics simply cannot stand up to the high amount of electrical current needed to power a space heater and they will eventually melt. You may or may not realize it, either, since sometimes you will be able to smell the melting plastic, but other times you might not. Use an extension cord that is marked as being at least a 14 gauge or higher cord. This should be able to handle most space heaters.
A great number of fires concerning space heaters happen at night when people are sleeping. If you can help it, try to leave space heaters off at night. Cover yourself with more blankets or anything else you have to do in order to stay warm, since a space heater may catch on fire and end up causing you and everyone else in the house to be much, much warmer than you intended.
Space heaters should never be used as dryers for any kind of wet clothing, even though some people have done this by setting something they want to make warm on top of it. Do not do this even for a few seconds and even if you are right there watching it. It is a bad practice to get into and once you become confident that nothing will happen, you will let your guard down and a fire will eventually happen. It may not happen the first, second, or third time, but fires are unpredictable and you never know when one may start.
Keep at least one smoke detector in your home and have one located on each floor, whether you use space heaters in your home during the winter or not. Fires can break out no matter what kind of heating system you may use.
Remodeling the Kitchen and Bathroom
The favorite and most frequented rooms of the house tend to be the bathroom and the kitchen and while these are the rooms that can add or subtract the most value from your home, most people do not realize just how important it is to take care of them. A great deal of time in everyone’s life will be spent in one of these two places in the home and making them the most comfortable and pleasant rooms in the house to be in can be quite a task, especially if you have just moved into a home where they need a bit of TLC.
Some of the giveaway signs that a kitchen needs a little remodeling are the cabinets and the flooring. If these are out of date, water damaged, or otherwise unpleasant to your eyes, you will want to replace these as soon as you can. Sometimes all they need is a simple coat of paint or a drawer or two replaced, but any cabinet that shows signs of severe water damage such as rotting need to be thrown out. It is hard to make a kitchen look new and modern with old, partially rotten cabinets still in it.
The same goes for the bathroom. A water damaged or molded vanity needs to be thrown out and replaced with a new one if you want your bathroom to look brand new.
Something else that you need to think of when you are remodeling your kitchen and bathroom is the existence of a steam vent so the moist air in the room can escape. Bathrooms and kitchens that do not have ways for steam to escape will be the victim of mold growth and a sagging ceiling if the problem is not dealt with. These are not too difficult to install, but will cost you maybe a couple hundred dollars and half a day’s time. If you are unsure how to do this yourself, you can hire someone to do it for you.
The floor of both these rooms should be waterproofed, but the bathroom floor is more important than the kitchen since a much larger amount of water flows through the bathroom every day. Rotting floors in the bathroom is a big problem, since there are a number of cases every year where the bathroom floor completely gives out due to the amount of water the floor joists have soaked up over the years.
Some of the giveaway signs that a kitchen needs a little remodeling are the cabinets and the flooring. If these are out of date, water damaged, or otherwise unpleasant to your eyes, you will want to replace these as soon as you can. Sometimes all they need is a simple coat of paint or a drawer or two replaced, but any cabinet that shows signs of severe water damage such as rotting need to be thrown out. It is hard to make a kitchen look new and modern with old, partially rotten cabinets still in it.
The same goes for the bathroom. A water damaged or molded vanity needs to be thrown out and replaced with a new one if you want your bathroom to look brand new.
Something else that you need to think of when you are remodeling your kitchen and bathroom is the existence of a steam vent so the moist air in the room can escape. Bathrooms and kitchens that do not have ways for steam to escape will be the victim of mold growth and a sagging ceiling if the problem is not dealt with. These are not too difficult to install, but will cost you maybe a couple hundred dollars and half a day’s time. If you are unsure how to do this yourself, you can hire someone to do it for you.
The floor of both these rooms should be waterproofed, but the bathroom floor is more important than the kitchen since a much larger amount of water flows through the bathroom every day. Rotting floors in the bathroom is a big problem, since there are a number of cases every year where the bathroom floor completely gives out due to the amount of water the floor joists have soaked up over the years.
Making Mistakes With Fire and Water
Everyone makes mistakes and that is just a fact of life, but the reality is that a lot of the mistakes that you can make that are the most devastating to your home can be completely avoided simply by paying attention to what you are doing. Some of the worst accidents conceivable can happen while you are inside your own home and no matter how careful you are, accidents will always happen, but one of the most important things that you can do while you are working in your home is to pay attention.
For example, when you are cooking in the kitchen, the worst thing that you can do is put something on the stove and leave it unattended. Maybe you get occupied doing other chores around the house or you have to answer the phone or tend to the kids in another room, but if you can put that off until later, never leave anything unattended on the stove for more than a few seconds. Houses have been badly fire damaged and even completely burned to the ground by leaving things unattended on the stove, especially grease. You should never begin heating grease on the stove and leave it alone. A relative of mine did this and sat down on her couch, fell asleep, and her entire house burned to the ground. Never leave the kitchen when cooking with grease unless absolutely necessary and never let yourself get preoccupied with other chores. It is just not worth the risk.
Another less immediate threat to your home is water. Water does not do the devastating immediate damage that fire can do, but this could possibly make it even more of a risk simply because you do not realize any damage is being done. Whether you are filling up the kitchen sink to wash dishes or filling up your bathtub, this is another area where getting preoccupied with other activities can get you into trouble. Doing your best to keep the sinks and tubs in your home from overflowing should keep your kitchen and bathroom floor pretty safe from water damage and mold growth.
Even if you do slip up and let a container of water overflow, you can keep it from doing too much damage to your floor by making sure the floor is waterproofed. You can do this by making sure that there are no cracks in the flooring, whether it is tile, linoleum, or anything else, no missing areas of grout, and no missing areas of sealant around the base of the cabinets.
For example, when you are cooking in the kitchen, the worst thing that you can do is put something on the stove and leave it unattended. Maybe you get occupied doing other chores around the house or you have to answer the phone or tend to the kids in another room, but if you can put that off until later, never leave anything unattended on the stove for more than a few seconds. Houses have been badly fire damaged and even completely burned to the ground by leaving things unattended on the stove, especially grease. You should never begin heating grease on the stove and leave it alone. A relative of mine did this and sat down on her couch, fell asleep, and her entire house burned to the ground. Never leave the kitchen when cooking with grease unless absolutely necessary and never let yourself get preoccupied with other chores. It is just not worth the risk.
Another less immediate threat to your home is water. Water does not do the devastating immediate damage that fire can do, but this could possibly make it even more of a risk simply because you do not realize any damage is being done. Whether you are filling up the kitchen sink to wash dishes or filling up your bathtub, this is another area where getting preoccupied with other activities can get you into trouble. Doing your best to keep the sinks and tubs in your home from overflowing should keep your kitchen and bathroom floor pretty safe from water damage and mold growth.
Even if you do slip up and let a container of water overflow, you can keep it from doing too much damage to your floor by making sure the floor is waterproofed. You can do this by making sure that there are no cracks in the flooring, whether it is tile, linoleum, or anything else, no missing areas of grout, and no missing areas of sealant around the base of the cabinets.
Carelessness Concerning Electricity and Water
All homeowners have been careless at one time or another concerning water or electricity in their homes, but unfortunately negligence is one of the leading causes of damage to homes in the country. You should not fail to take care of your property and do maintenance whenever needed, but you should also make it a point not to take unnecessary risks when concerning water and electricity. While water does not do much immediate damage to a property, fire certainly does and carelessness with electronic items can cause fires much more quickly than anything in the natural world.
Most house fires are caused by either failing to make sure that an appliance used on a daily basis is not in danger of having electrical shorts or due to an electrical device being left unattended when it should not be. Space heaters are particularly dangerous in this regard and should not be left on overnight or used with an extension cord that is not a heavy duty gauge of at least 14. They should also not be left on overnight unless absolutely necessary, since most house fires tend to happen when people are sleeping.
This is also the case when you are cooking with grease or oil of any kind in the kitchen. Houses have caught on fire and burned completely to the ground due to leaving oil or shortening to heat in the kitchen unattended. You should never leave anything you are cooking unattended on the stove, especially if it is grease or solid shortening. It catches on fire much quicker than you would think, so no matter what reason you may find to leave the room, you should either stay in the kitchen or turn the stove off.
Water damage occurs mostly when there are leaks from the outside of the home or the plumbing, but sometimes damage occurs due to carelessness, too. This can happen when you are running a tub of bath water or filling up the kitchen sink to wash dishes, but the fact is that people often become preoccupied with other chores or phone calls and allow them to overflow onto the floor. Whenever you run a large quantity of water into a container, you should always watch it to make sure that it does not overflow, since allowing it to do so on a regular basis can cause damage to the floor, especially if it is not waterproof.
Most house fires are caused by either failing to make sure that an appliance used on a daily basis is not in danger of having electrical shorts or due to an electrical device being left unattended when it should not be. Space heaters are particularly dangerous in this regard and should not be left on overnight or used with an extension cord that is not a heavy duty gauge of at least 14. They should also not be left on overnight unless absolutely necessary, since most house fires tend to happen when people are sleeping.
This is also the case when you are cooking with grease or oil of any kind in the kitchen. Houses have caught on fire and burned completely to the ground due to leaving oil or shortening to heat in the kitchen unattended. You should never leave anything you are cooking unattended on the stove, especially if it is grease or solid shortening. It catches on fire much quicker than you would think, so no matter what reason you may find to leave the room, you should either stay in the kitchen or turn the stove off.
Water damage occurs mostly when there are leaks from the outside of the home or the plumbing, but sometimes damage occurs due to carelessness, too. This can happen when you are running a tub of bath water or filling up the kitchen sink to wash dishes, but the fact is that people often become preoccupied with other chores or phone calls and allow them to overflow onto the floor. Whenever you run a large quantity of water into a container, you should always watch it to make sure that it does not overflow, since allowing it to do so on a regular basis can cause damage to the floor, especially if it is not waterproof.
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