Your home suffers a lot of wear and tear each day. It’s normal to see hints of damage here and there – but wouldn’t it be nicer without them. What can you do to clear up after a minor domestic catastrophe? Whether it’s damage that comes from repeated use, or a one-off accident that’s left…
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Tools & Tutorials
7 Home Hacks to Start 2017 Off Right
Whether you hope to do a big remodel or simply need to deep clean, the beginning of the year is always a popular time to check off some of those pesky things on your household to-do list. Luckily, not every project has to be a big chore. Tackle the list head-on using some of these…
How to Replace or Install a Bathroom Fan
From moisture removal to odor control, bathroom fans perform several important functions that enhance the quality of the air in your home. Modern units come in a variety of styles, some of which don’t even look like fans, and they operate quietly and efficiently to exhaust humidity and heat, keeping your home comfortable. Although homeowners…
How to Lay Sod – A Complete Guide
Sod offers a fast and easy way for you to create a new lawn or rehabilitate a scraggly one. While growing grass from seed takes months of time and ongoing care, a newly sodded lawn typically takes a little longer than an hour to install (depending on the square footage of your yard) and about…
Wallpaper Calculator
Tips on Measuring for Wallpaper Before you begin, take the room measurements in the list below – round to the nearest foot. 1. Wall Height Measure from floor to ceiling. 2. Wall perimeter for areas you plan to wallpaper Measure the length of each wall. Add all lengths together to obtain the total horizontal distance,…
Sheet Vinyl Calculator
Tips on Measuring for Sheet Vinyl To determine a floor’s square footage, multiply length times width. When measuring, round off inches to the nearest foot. For irregularly shaped floors, divide them into individual sections, calculate the square feet in each one, and then add them together. Homeowner Tip – Sheet vinyl, like carpeting, is normally…
Roofing Calculator
Tips on Measuring for Roofing To accurately calculate the area of your roof, you must first determine its slope, or pitch. Roof pitches are described in terms of rise and run. The run is the distance from the outside edge of a perimeter stud wall to the center of the house. The rise is the…
Resilient Tile Calculator
Tips on Measuring for Resilient Tile Enter the size of the rooms to be covered and then select the size of the tile you plan to use. The calculator will determine how many tiles you need, including a standard 10 percent waste allowance. Homeowner Tip – Individual tiles are commonly 12 inches square, but also…
Paint Calculator
Tips on Measuring for Paint Before you begin, take the room measurements in the list below – round to the nearest foot. If you have cathedral ceilings that create sloping walls, follow the special case instructions on how to derive this square footage. To ensure you will have enough paint, do not worry about excluding…
Lumber Calculator
Tips on Measuring for Lumber Lumber is sold in lineal feet – the total length of the lumber you are buying – or in board feet. Lumberyards normally deal in board feet, particularly on large orders, but they work in lineal feet equally well. For many homeowner projects, lineal feet are the easiest way to…
Drywall Calculator
Tips on Measuring for Drywall Before you begin, take the room measurements in the list below round to the nearest foot. If you have sloping walls, follow the special case instructions on how to determine this square footage. A 10 percent waste allowance is automatically added to the total. 1. Wall Height Measure from floor…