Archive for the ‘Decks and Fences’ Category

It may be too late where you live to have an Indian Summer barbecue, but many Americans live in mild climates with seasonally warm winters. For them, and for those of you saving up to improve your patio come springtime, let’s have a look at outdoor patio heaters.

Most consumers choose natural gas power to stoke their outdoor heaters. Models come fired by gas, wood, and electricity. There’s a dizzying assortment of heaters on the market, from free-standing table heaters to pole or column heaters, to mobile rolling models. Along with the wide range of models comes a broad range of prices. You can land a portable, table-top model for around $70, or pay upwards of a hefty $900 for standing heater with accessories.

Choosing the Model for Your Patio
There’s  an assortment of models for large jobs, similar to ones you encounter in restaurants with outdoor dining. In Britain, outdoor heaters are installed outside bars and pubs to keep patrons warm when they’re banished outdoors to smoke their cigarettes and cigars.

Depending on your model and BTU output, an outdoor patio heater can blast out a circle of radiant heat for up to 20 feet, increasing temperatures in their zone by as much as 25 degrees. That’s toasty. There are also strip heaters that focus their warmth directly where you hang or aim them.

Most portable units are powered by propane, allowing you to move them where you need them. Fixed, in-ground heaters can have a greater BTU output and are connected to a natural gas line. You’re looking at installation costs along with these more pricey models.

Safety First on the Patio
Standing-model patio heaters come fitted into a heavy foundation, resisting tipping and wind.  Some are constructed with tilt shut-off switches that disconnect the power supply when the model leans over too far.

You’ll find that many outdoor heaters powered by propane or natural gas are lighted by igniters, much in the way you fire up outdoor barbecue units.  You’ll get around 12 hours of heat from a 20-pound propane tank.

Depending on your model, you can also choose overheating shutoff switches and adjustable pilot lights. Even models with heavy bases mounted on wheels usually have disconnect sensors in case you bounce them into something. Manufacturers carry hoods and covers, too. But it’s up to you to know when the winds are simply too strong to power up your heater.

Laundry rooms are designed for utility, not decor. But so many laundry rooms become catch-all enclosures for clutter, storage, and other pack-rat activities. After a while, they can become home to hazardous chemicals or firetraps with over-extended electrical outlets, or danger zones for young children.

If you’re going to remodel your laundry room, consider replacing outdated or worn parts on your washer and dryer, as well as electrical and plumbing features that are either in disrepair or require efficient upgrades. And a nice coat of paint or wallpaper can make this often dingy room more pleasing to the eye.

Basements Are Best
If you currently have your laundry in the basement, you should consider keeping it there. The small convenience you gain by moving your laundry room to an upper floors is easily offset by the potential water damage to your home from leaks or flooding. One insurance company reports $170 million in water damage from washing machine hose failures.

A simple laundry room remodel project can include new flooring, expanded cabinets with utility drawers or storage, shelving, new lighting, and, if there’s a window, fresh treatments.

Size Matters
If you need more space, think before breaking out a wall.  There are stack-able and compact washing machines that may be more cost-efficient than breaking out walls. That’s if those models can serve your family.

You may also need to consider room for a new sink or ironing space. Installing new cabinets can double your existing storage and add comfort to working in the room.

Safety First
Using 2002-2004 data, the U.S. Fire Administration division of FEMA reported 15,600 fires, resulting in 15 deaths and 400 injuries-–attributed to faulty clothes dryers. That means, in addition to renovating your laundry room, you should renovate your maintenance routine on washers and dryers.

If you have foil or plastic ducting attachments to the dryer, replace them with modern, fire-resistant corrugated metal to increase the air exhaust. Make a habit of not only cleaning lint traps on the dryer, but cleaning behind the traps and behind the entire unit.

Go Green
And if you want to save energy costs when replacing your washer and dryer unit, shop for Energy Star appliances that can cut your water and energy costs in half. By washing in warm or cold cycles you can also slash your electric bills.

Another tip: Paint your renovated laundry room in light colors so you won’t feel like you’ve been banished to the cave whenever you do the wash.

Given all the cost and planning that goes into most every renovation or remodeling project, you want it all to go right. Practically everyone I know that has had to camp out in their living room or eat out in fast food joints while the hammers banged away in their kitchens or baths understands. And they have a story to tell, no matter how it all turned out.

Sharing your nightmares and your victories can spare others from renovation hell.  That in mind, the editors over at Repair-Home.com have launched a Share Your Project section on their website.  You can share your own experiences as well as garner tips from those who have been there.

Share Your Project Details
According to the site, you can write a post, upload project photos, and receive ratings for your home improvement project.  Categories include:

* Kitchens
* Cabinet Refacing
* Bathrooms
* Landscaping
* Outdoor
* Home Decor
* Flooring
* Windows
* Doors
* Plumbing
* Electrical
* Heating & Cooling
* Siding
* Roofing and Gutters
* Painting
* Home Building

I took a test drive through postings and found a great idea for completing a quick and effective bathroom makeover, made possible by changing out lighting, cabinets, and mirrors.

The homeowner describes an effective and inexpensive way to remove fluorescent lighting in the bath and lay in fresh sheet rock and textures to get plenty of bang for your renovation dollar.

Help With Renovating Bedrooms and Kitchens
Other homeowners posted details and photos of their efforts to remodel a small kitchen, choose a pergola over a deck, and install an effective coffered ceiling treatment in the bedroom.  The ceiling project involved plotting and installing coffer boxes in a ceiling that was not perfectly square.

Project galleries at the site enhance the homeowner stories and fire fresh ideas for your own project. One homeowner provided excellent views of the 1926 marina-style home in San Francisco where they remodeled the original, tired kitchen to open it up and add light. The renovation project involved adding space, knocking out a wall, and installing fresh cabinets and flooring.

The web is a sad repository of plenty of awful projects, too. In searching for additional victories and disasters, I discovered Dark Roasted Blend, a site that gathers photographs of renovation disasters.  Several commercial and home construction designers and contractors should have lost their jobs, since it’s clear they lost their minds when building doors or stairways to nowhere.

I need to change my opinion about hardscaping. When I was young, my neighbor ripped out his lawn and paved the front yard–to my dismay. But for people with severe allergies or those living in severe weather conditions that prevent green growth, hardscaping is a boon. Plus, most landscaping designs are complemented by judicious use of hardscaping materials like masonry, fountains, bridges, walls, trellises, wells, statuary, and patios.

Stone walls make exceptionally fine additions, whether to fortify a bank or garden terrace, or to set apart a patio or walkway from the lawn. Adding mortar caps can also dazzle, supporting bird feeders or ornamental elements.

Hardscaping and Landscape Design
As the saying goes, there’s no accounting for taste. But you can’t go wrong if you keep balance in mind between natural and man-made elements. A complementary arrangement of hardscape and landscape components can lead the viewer’s eye toward a central point of beauty: a patio, gazebo, rose garden, waterfall, bridge, or bubbling fountain.

Hardscaping materials give homeowners an exceptional range of decorative options. You can have your work done in brick or stone, or well-crafted wood. And it doesn’t mean you have to spend a fortune. Many pre-made flagstone sets, fire pits, pergolas, and topairy frames cost less than custom-built hardscaping accessories. Your project does not have to depend on a massive budget.

Tying Landscape and Hardscape Together
Hardscape can provide an effective means of transitioning between your lawn and garden elements, or between your indoor and outdoor settings. By bringing greenery into your patio or screened porch, you invite nature into man-made space. And the symbiotic effect is created in the garden by introducing furniture or lighting.

If you live in a drought-stricken area or find water at a premium, consider the use of low-maintenance native plants, cacti, or grasses in concert with stone walls, tiled patios,  and wooden decks. Varying the colors and textures of your hardscape materials can also lend pleasing variety without creating a garish, urban eyesore.

Stone archways also provide deft transitions between lawn, vegetable garden, barbecue pits, outdoor kitchens, or swimming pools.  It’s not a bad idea to visit garden shops or peruse online landscape design sites for ideas in developing a theme.

For example, the use of red brick, wrought iron, and terra cotta tiles, combined with junipers, lavender, azaleas, and olive trees can create a delightful Italian landscape design. Traditional brick or modern concrete pavers have their own personalities. The latter can be cut or shaped to fit your motif.

Life in this part of the county so easily solicits the input of the great outdoors.  That’s why I’ve been on the lookout for creative and functional ways to connect indoor and outdoor spaces.  Because we all know that when the weather turns, any amount of sunlight is going to need to be maximized as much as possible.

We don’t want to give up life on our decks and patios for the winter months, but sometimes the weather has other plans.  However, if you’ve got the wherewithal, you can outsmart at least a little bit of what mother nature has in store for us. 

Photo Credit: Sunset

Enclosed decks, patios and sunrooms are great places to start, but the really tricky part comes in connecting your indoor and outdoor spaces so they flow and fit the feel of your home.  One way I like that seems to help the transition is pocket doors.  Now, I know that sometimes these sliders get labeled with a bad connotation, either for generally malfunctioning or just looking a bit sloppy, but you may be surprised by what you find if you take a look now.

Sliders and pocket doors have changed a lot in recent years however, and you can find perfectly crafted additions for your home to create the look that fits you best.  French doors are also another great way to create a connected feeling between your patio and your home, and they’re also available pretty much anyway you can think of.

Just stumbled across this amazing backyard on Design*Sponge. It’s the home of Meredith Kleinman, an interior designer and painter, and she has truly made me covet her home.

The interior is beautiful, but it’s the exterior that really got my attention.

The wood deck is complete with shaded sitting area. The three sided bench is a great use of custom carpentry, and takes the outdoor patio to a whole new level, perfect for family use or social gathering. Of course there needs to be a convered dining area too. And don’t miss the concrete work making the floor. 

Then there is the small sunroom with amazing tiny tile work just behind the sitting area. I love the return of tiny tile installation like this.

Then there’s the Japanese style bathhouse complete with outdoor shower. The sunny California weather is perfect for outdoor showers. And this one, complete with wooden Japanese inspired hot tub creates the perfect space.

If this doesn’t inspire you to start creating your own backyard oasis, I don’t know what will!

(Photo Credits: Design*Sponge, Meredith Kleinman)

Fences these days aren’t all about keeping the neighbors out.  Besides, what if you like your neighbors?  There are a lot of new ideas for fencing, and we think they’re great ways to manage your yard and landscape.  The right fence can set the stage for a great garden and an enticing entry to your home. 

Take a peek at some of our favorite fencing ideas: 

Photo Credit: HGTV

You don’t have to take your fencing all the way modern to enjoy the benefits of a new fence.  Classic fences can have the same great effect on your landscape to give your home the face lift it needs to make the transition from summer to fall. 

What we don’t like is chain link.  This style of fence just has to go.  In our opinion, no fence is better than a chain link fence.  When there are so many other options available, you deserve better than to settle for a chain link fence.  Look at wood, stone, iron, composite materials to start; you’d be surprised at how many choices you have to stay away from chain link to border your yard:

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I’ve been basking in the beautiful sun non-stop for the past few days. In Portland, with almost 300 days of the year being grey, rainy, and cold, it’s essential to enjoy the sunny days while I can.

So while living it up on my front porch, I often wish I had a more ideal set up for enjoying the outdoors.

What would that ideal set up be? Why, an outdoor kitchen of course!

(Photo Credit: Cosmopolitan Horticulture Services)

It’s entirely possible to create a home away from home in your backyard. No need to keep walking in and out of your home to entertain outdoors, you can install and create everything you need right there in your backyard.

Outdoor kitchens can include everything from a gas grill, a refrigerator, wet bar, ice maker, sink, built-in stereo or TV, and pretty much anything else you can think of. You’ll need to call in a professional to make sure you have the right plumbing, and wiring, but the end result will be worth it when you can spend endless hours enjoying the sun and warm weather.