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Door Security Tips

Filed Under (gardening) by Justin Cramer on 19-04-2009

by Justin Cramer

Door security should not be taken lightly. Many home intrusions occur through sliding doors. So it’s better to prepare yourself than end up in great regret after. Here are some sliding door security tips that you can use to ensure peace of mind at home:

Use the right installation - there are 25% of sliding glass doors within America that are mounted the wrong way hence leaving room for accidents to take place. Furthermore, this attracts intruders to simply lift up the panel. Always be sure to install your sliding door the right way. In case they are not mounted in the correct manner, hunt the contractor for the mess.

Make use of fitted pole - grab yourself a pole that fits rightly. If you carelessly left some space, the intruder will easily be able to slip a finger to lift the pole up.

Get a broomstick - another one of the sliding door security tips is using a broomstick that will stop the door from eventually sliding on the track.

Employ wood framing - you can use 2-foot length of wood frame into the upper channel of the doorframe. See to it that the wood frame is similar in width with the channel. Afterward, you can screw it firmly to the channel of the doorframe although you should not fail to check if the door could still slide.

Use metal screws - make use of metal screw so it can protrude just before the door can slide.

Utilize track locks - using this as one of your sliding door security tips to consider will help hold the sliding door on its proper place so intruders will not be able to lift the door. This part is sometimes known as pin or stop locks.

Make use of jamb bar - these are especially made to be burglar-proof hence protecting you from the trouble.

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Measure and build stairs

Filed Under (gardening) by Larry Angell on 17-04-2009

by Larry Angell

Let’s learn how to make a beautiful and precise stairway for homes or decks. Building stairs seems difficult, but it’s really fairly simple if you use the right formula. This is how you measure and construct professional-looking stairs with accuracy.

Before we can start the process of building stairs, we’ll need to take some measurements of the stairway area. We can think of it this way: we have a certain amount of height that we need to reach and we need to do it within a certain length or distance. The part of the stairs that helps us accomplish the height is the stair riser. The length part is the stair tread. The part of the stairs that will hold all the weight is called the stringers. The stringers are the most important part of the stairway.

The treads are usually a standard size of around 10-inches. The risers completely depend on the measured height from the bottom floor to the top floor.

Now we need to get an exact measurement from the bottom floor to the second floor, including the second floor particle board. Now, we use the formula for getting the height of each stair riser. Suppose the distance from bottom floor to top floor including the thickness of the second floor is about 9 feet or 108 inches.

108 divided by 7 equals 15.428. That tells us that 15 risers will be needed. Next, let’s divide 108 by 15 and we’ll get right around 7 inches or the exact height each riser needs to be. The treads need to be right around 10 inches. The amount of treads will be one less than the amount of risers, so to find the total run or length of the stairs, we just multiply 10 by 14 and that tells us that our stairway will be 140 inches long.

Now, try to find a knot-free 2×12 board for the stringer. We can also use prefabricated wood made for stair stringers or an even cheaper selection is strong softwood like Pine or Fir. It will need to be around one foot longer than the distance of the stairs. This would need to be 120-inches or twelve feet long.

Next, while the board is lying flat, measure up about 8 inches to mark the first stair tread. Use a carpenter’s square to measure 10-inches over (tread) and 7-inches up (riser). We’ll do this on every step. Once that is done, we’ll go back to the bottom of the board and measure and cut the first riser. We’ll use the carpenter’s square to make it exactly 7-inches.

When weve finished marking the stringer we can cut out the stairs with a handsaw or a Skilsaw. We will cut really close to the inside corner, but we’ll need to complete the cut with a handsaw to get completely into the corners. When we finish that we can use the stringer as a pattern or a template for the other stringers by it on top of the other boards and tracing in the steps.

Once everything is all cut out and the stringers are identical, we can stand them up and secure them with screws or nails. Once the stringers are screwed or nailed securely in place well put the tread plates on and then the riser plates if we want enclosed stairs. There are special tread boards available that are rounded in front. Theyre made for carpeted stairs. Many people like to have hardwood stairs that are exposed; in that case we would want to use high quality oak or some other quality hardwood. That’s how we make stairs for our home interior or our decks.

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Installing a bathroom fan

Filed Under (gardening) by Larry Angell on 16-04-2009

by Larry Angell

Putting in a bathroom fan is important in homes to reduce excessive moisture that can damage paint and walls. The time to plan for a bathroom fan system is while the walls and ceilings are still open from remodeling or new construction.

Most bathroom fans have a light metal box that can be installed between the ceiling rafters or floor joists. The bathroom fan assembly will fit into this box as part of the final electrical work or appliance installation.

The attic or ceiling is the best place to run the exhaust vent. A dryer hose makes the best vent because of its low cost and flexibility. One end of the flexible hose attaches to the exhaust outlet in the metal box with a big hose clamp. The other end of the vent will go to an opening in the roof or the soffit.

There are different types of exhaust fans available for different needs. If its a simple bathroom fan, then you can use a single light switch to turn it on and off. If theres a light and heater with the fan, then youll need to use three different switches to control each component. There are some nice looking triple switches that work well for these types of fixtures.

Be sure to disconnect the electric breaker at the breaker box and make sure that other people in the home know what youre doing with the house electrical system to avoid electrical mishaps.

Lets say were wiring a fan and light combination. We can use 12-3 non-metallic sheathed cable which has three conductor wires and a ground wire. From the switch well need to have the house circuit wires to provide the power. Well run the 12-3 cable from the switch box to the fan. Therell be a red wire, a black wire, and a white wire, along with a copper ground wire in the cable sheathing.

Well use a double switch that fits into a normal switch box. The 12-3 electrical cable that runs from the exhaust fan to the switch can be wired first. You will need to wire the red wire to one of the hot screws on the switch. The black wire can be connected to the other hot screw. These will usually be on the same side of the switch over and under.

The switch will also have a screw that attaches to the house circuit power. The black wire that comes from the power circuit will connect to the switch giving it power. The white wire from the circuit power and the white wire from the fan can be joined together with a wire nut. You can also attach the copper ground wires together with a wire nut. Tuck all of the wires into the switch box and secure the switch in place.

Next, youll wire the light and fan with the 12-3 cable. There will be four wires with this fixture. The red wire from the fan will connect to the red wire from the 12-3 cable. There will be a black wire from the fan light. It will connect to the black wire from the power cable. The white wire can be combined with the other white wire and the ground copper wire can be combined with the cable ground wire with a wire nut.

Secure the fan in place with the attachment screws. Turn on the breaker to make sure that each component works when you flip the switch.

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How to build your own house

Filed Under (gardening) by Larry Angell on 15-04-2009

by Larry Angell

I built my own home back in 1995 without the help of contractors. I didn’t do it to prove anything or to make a point at all; I just wanted to make a nice place to live for my family without the high mortgage payments. I paid cash or traded labor for as much of the materials that I could. Most of the time, I used whatever money I could get from credit cards.

I did my own excavation with a pick and shovel. I made all the cement forms and had the cement delivered and poured. When the foundation was all dry and completed, I started putting on all the floor joists and covered them with wafer board and plywood. I then built the outside walls that included the rough openings for doors and windows.

I also did most of the plumbing and electrical systems while the walls were open and exposed. I constructed the stairs and started the second floor. After the second floor was finished I built the roof and enclosed the whole house to keep the snow and rain out. I put on metal roofing and installed all the windows and doors.

Next, I put up all the interior walls and finished the electrical wiring and the rough-in plumbing so I could have those systems inspected before the sheetrock walls were hung. After the first inspections passed, I enclosed the walls with drywall.

I also covered the outside of my home with vinyl siding and trim. It looked really good. I had kitchen cabinets built and started all of the inside finish work and trim. I installed all of the electrical systems and appliances.

I passed my second inspections with the building inspector, electrical inspector, and the plumbing inspector.

I had all of the flooring and carpeting installed by professionals. When my house was finished, I still had one final inspection to get the occupancy permit. After we got the occupancy permit we moved into our home. We consolidated all of our debt from credit cards into one home mortgage loan with low interest. We had a good amount of equity in our home from our hard-earned labor.

My cost of materials was around $60,000. The final appraised price of my home was $140,000 when we moved in.

After all of my building experience, I realized how much the cost of hired labor is and why contractor built houses are so expensive to build. The price of contracted construction labor has gone up so much over the last two decades that people earning average incomes cant afford average-sized homes.

Banks have had to get really creative and take a lot of chances so people could have homes. Wages haven’t kept pace at all with the inflation of homes or anything else and that’s the biggest reason why we are in the financial crisis.

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Sliding Door Security Options

Filed Under (gardening) by Justin Cramer on 15-04-2009

by Justin Cramer

Door security should not be taken lightly. Many home intrusions occur through sliding doors. So it’s better to prepare yourself than end up in great regret after. Here are some sliding door security tips that you can use to ensure peace of mind at home:

Use the right installation - there are 25% of sliding glass doors within America that are mounted the wrong way hence leaving room for accidents to take place. Furthermore, this attracts intruders to simply lift up the panel. Always be sure to install your sliding door the right way. In case they are not mounted in the correct manner, hunt the contractor for the mess.

Make use of fitted pole - grab yourself a pole that fits rightly. If you carelessly left some space, the intruder will easily be able to slip a finger to lift the pole up.

Get a broomstick - another one of the sliding door security tips is using a broomstick that will stop the door from eventually sliding on the track.

Employ wood framing - you can use 2-foot length of wood frame into the upper channel of the doorframe. See to it that the wood frame is similar in width with the channel. Afterward, you can screw it firmly to the channel of the doorframe although you should not fail to check if the door could still slide.

Use metal screws - make use of metal screw so it can protrude just before the door can slide.

Utilize track locks - using this as one of your sliding door security tips to consider will help hold the sliding door on its proper place so intruders will not be able to lift the door. This part is sometimes known as pin or stop locks.

Make use of jamb bar - these are especially made to be burglar-proof hence protecting you from the trouble.

About the Author:
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Build your own house

Filed Under (gardening) by Larry Angell on 14-04-2009

by Larry Angell

I built my own home back in 1995 without the help of contractors. I didn’t do it to prove anything or to make a point at all; I just wanted to make a nice place to live for my family without the high mortgage payments. I paid cash or traded labor for as much of the materials that I could. Most of the time, I used whatever money I could get from credit cards.

I dug the foundation out with a pick and shovel. Then I constructed the cement forms and poured the cement. When the foundation was finished, I started the first floor by putting on the floor joists then covering them with plywood and wafer board. I then built the walls that included the door and window openings.

I also did most of the plumbing and electrical systems while the walls were open and exposed. I constructed the stairs and started the second floor. After the second floor was finished I built the roof and enclosed the whole house to keep the snow and rain out. I put on metal roofing and installed all the windows and doors.

I then built all the interior walls and finished the electrical wiring and the rough-in plumbing so I could have it inspected before the sheetrock walls were put on. After the first inspections passed, I closed in all the walls with drywall.

I also sided the outside of the house with vinyl siding and trim. It looked great. I built kitchen cabinets and started all of the interior finish work. I then installed all the appliances and electrical systems.

I passed my second round of inspections with the plumbing inspector, electrical inspector, and the building inspector.

I had all of the flooring and carpeting installed by professionals. When my house was finished, I still had one final inspection to get the occupancy permit. After we got the occupancy permit we moved into our home. We consolidated all of our debt from credit cards into one home mortgage loan with low interest. We had a good amount of equity in our home from our hard-earned labor.

My total cost of building materials was right around $60,000. The final appraised value of our home was $140,000 when we moved in.

It was only after all of my building experience that I realized how much the cost of labor is and why contractor built homes are so expensive to buy. The price of construction labor has increased so much over the last twenty years that people who make average to good incomes cant afford average homes.

Banks have had to get dangerously creative and take many chances so people could have homes. Wages haven’t been able to keep pace at all with the inflation of homes or anything else and that’s the main reason why we are in this financial crisis.

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Securing Sliding Doors

Filed Under (gardening) by Justin Cramer on 14-04-2009

by Justin Cramer

Even if you are inside your house, dangers and emergencies could happen. So it’s better to prepare yourself than end up in great regret after. Here are some sliding door security tips that you can use to ensure peace of mind at home:

Use the right installation - there are 25% of sliding glass doors within America that are mounted the wrong way hence leaving room for accidents to take place. Furthermore, this attracts intruders to simply lift up the panel. Always be sure to install your sliding door the right way. In case they are not mounted in the correct manner, hunt the contractor for the mess.

Make use of fitted pole - grab yourself a pole that fits rightly. If you carelessly left some space, the intruder will easily be able to slip a finger to lift the pole up.

Get a broomstick - another one of the sliding door security tips is using a broomstick that will stop the door from eventually sliding on the track.

Employ wood framing - you can use 2-foot length of wood frame into the upper channel of the doorframe. See to it that the wood frame is similar in width with the channel. Afterward, you can screw it firmly to the channel of the doorframe although you should not fail to check if the door could still slide.

Employ wood framing - you can use 2-foot length of wood frame into the upper channel of the doorframe. See to it that the wood frame is similar in width with the channel. Afterward, you can screw it firmly to the channel of the doorframe although you should not fail to check if the door could still slide.

Utilize track locks - using this as one of your sliding door security tips to consider will help hold the sliding door on its proper place so intruders will not be able to lift the door. This part is sometimes known as pin or stop locks.

Make use of jamb bar - these are especially made to be burglar-proof hence protecting you from the trouble.

About the Author:
Add this to : Digg! Digg it Bookmark! Save to Del.icio.us Subscribe to RSS Subscribe to My RSS feed