Reliable Remodeler Blog » Working With Contractors

Is it time for a garage-door tune up?

woodrow — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 05:15:13 +0000

Of all the doors or gates to your home, your garage door and opener probably experience the greatest amount of wear and tear during a year of ordinary use. Imagine how many times that door has opened in the last 365 days; how many round trips have you made to work, school or the local [...]

Is it time for a garage-door tune up? is brought to you by the home remodeling pros at Reliable Remodeler. Get more of your questions answered at Ask the Contractor.

Simple, routine vinyl siding maintenance

woodrow — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 02:15:06 +0000

One of the top selling points for vinyl siding is the ease of maintenance. But that doesn’t mean there’s “no maintenance” involved in extending the life of your product. Vinyl siding has come a long way since it caught on as a relatively inexpensive alternative to wood and stone. It’s more durable now and holds [...]

Simple, routine vinyl siding maintenance is brought to you by the home remodeling pros at Reliable Remodeler. Get more of your questions answered at Ask the Contractor.

The Home Affordable Refinance Program and Remodeling

woodrow — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 19:11:19 +0000

The federal government has enacted changes to The Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) that may assist about one million troubled homeowners to qualify for refinancing. The jury is out whether sparing so many homeowners from losing their homes to foreclosure will positively impact the economy, but for our purposes, I wonder whether the elimination of [...]

The Home Affordable Refinance Program and Remodeling is brought to you by the home remodeling pros at Reliable Remodeler. Get more of your questions answered at Ask the Contractor.

Winterizing for everyone: Insulation tips

woodrow — Sun, 23 Oct 2011 23:10:22 +0000

Come winter, consumers and homeowners have questions about the kind of insulation that works best in their homes. Of course, the answer varies based on your location, existing insulation, how much space you have to insulate and whether the area to insulate is accessible (for hand installation) or inaccessible (requiring spray-on products). Before you even begin, [...]

Winterizing for everyone: Insulation tips is brought to you by the home remodeling pros at Reliable Remodeler. Get more of your questions answered at Ask the Contractor.

Pile carpet repair made simple

woodrow — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 14:57:03 +0000

You’re not really a perfectionist, you just can’t stand that torn, burned, ripped or stained section of pile carpet right in the middle of your living room. Even if you’ve performed routine carpet care and maintenance you can still end up with a damaged piece. What you need to do now is cut out the [...]

Pile carpet repair made simple is brought to you by the home remodeling pros at Reliable Remodeler. Get more of your questions answered at Ask the Contractor.

In the pink: Home improvement tools for women

woodrow — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 17:35:13 +0000

Out here in the West, it’s not uncommon to see a woman with a work belt going into the hardware store. My friend Sally thinks nothing about scaling a ladder to repair the roofs on her rentals. She’s as adept in operating a table saw as she is in handling a garden spade. Unfortunately, the [...]

In the pink: Home improvement tools for women is brought to you by the home remodeling pros at Reliable Remodeler. Get more of your questions answered at Ask the Contractor.

Plan ahead: Remodeling spending may dive further

woodrow — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 18:03:52 +0000

Homeowner spending on remodeling and home improvement projects is expected to take a major dive going into 2012, according to the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University. The plunge is daunting, given the small bubble of increase during the spring of this year. At the same time, a consumer slowdown on ordering projects [...]

Plan ahead: Remodeling spending may dive further is brought to you by the home remodeling pros at Reliable Remodeler. Get more of your questions answered at Ask the Contractor.

Protect your health while remodeling

woodrow — Fri, 29 Jul 2011 19:29:39 +0000

It’s a known fact that people who work in green buildings have greater productivity and less absenteeism. The Green Building Advisor reports nearly a 50 percent increase in on-the-job time and productivity in buildings designed to cut the worker’s exposure to allergens. So, why shouldn’t home improvement enthusiasts consider taking green measures when they embark [...]

Protect your health while remodeling is brought to you by the home remodeling pros at Reliable Remodeler. Get more of your questions answered at Ask the Contractor.

Old home exteriors: Should you use paint or stain?

woodrow — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 23:59:19 +0000

Home improvement or maintenance projects for historical homes naturally bring up issues that never surface with newer or new retro designs. A major concern among owners of historical homes is retaining the original period look without compromising on the cost and preservation qualities of modern materials. A great many historical homes have wood exteriors that, [...]

Old home exteriors: Should you use paint or stain? is brought to you by the home remodeling pros at Reliable Remodeler. Get more of your questions answered at Ask the Contractor.

Four quick kitchen upgrades that you can afford

woodrow — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 21:13:37 +0000

Enough complaining about the sad state of affairs. You want to perform a home improvement now and you don’t want to finance it with new debt. Besides, in response to the housing crisis and economy, big lenders are dropping the top end on home loans, reining in most homeowners to projects that simply cost less [...]

Four quick kitchen upgrades that you can afford is brought to you by the home remodeling pros at Reliable Remodeler. Get more of your questions answered at Ask the Contractor.

Greening-up vintage and historical homes

woodrow — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 10:01:02 +0000

In my last blog, I wrote about performing an energy audit of your existing home to find ways to make it more energy efficient. There are quick fixes that enable you to improve your home, add lasting value and at the same time cut back on your energy bills. An energy audit helps you spot [...]

Greening-up vintage and historical homes is brought to you by the home remodeling pros at Reliable Remodeler. Get more of your questions answered at Ask the Contractor.

Vinyl siding options: chat with Bob Vila

woodrow — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 20:39:53 +0000

Discussing vinyl siding is a lot like bringing up politics or religion at a family gathering. You’re sure to get an earful of conflicting opinions. I’ll say this: if vinyl siding isn’t in your home improvement conversation, it ought to be. The material has become the first choice among an estimated 32 percent of the [...]

Vinyl siding options: chat with Bob Vila is brought to you by the home remodeling pros at Reliable Remodeler. Get more of your questions answered at Ask the Contractor.

Improvement projects to consider during the housing crisis

woodrow — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 21:20:45 +0000

It comes as no real surprise to those of us who own homes that today’s housing crisis—which began in 2006—has now officially been called the worst since the Great Depression. According to CNBC, prices have plummeted by 33 percent, some three percent deeper than the plunge in the late 1920s. Foreclosures continue to depress housing [...]

Improvement projects to consider during the housing crisis is brought to you by the home remodeling pros at Reliable Remodeler. Get more of your questions answered at Ask the Contractor.

Beware: Mold is not limited to bathroom environments

woodrow — Fri, 11 Mar 2011 09:00:24 +0000

Most homeowners believe that the worst household mold originates in the bathroom. Truth is, mold is all around us in the home. Spores travel through the heating and cooling system and your vents. They enter on a fall day when a breeze stirs them up from a pile of rotting leaves or cut grass. Once [...]

Beware: Mold is not limited to bathroom environments is brought to you by the home remodeling pros at Reliable Remodeler. Get more of your questions answered at Ask the Contractor.

Small kitchen remodeling options for new cooktops

woodrow — Sun, 06 Mar 2011 21:33:48 +0000

If you’re considering remodeling your kitchen, think about ways to do it in modular fashion, improving the overall space one step, one appliance at a time. There are countless ideas for the small kitchen that make sense when you don’t have a fortune to spend. Adding a new cooktop or stove within your budget is [...]

Small kitchen remodeling options for new cooktops is brought to you by the home remodeling pros at Reliable Remodeler. Get more of your questions answered at Ask the Contractor.