Home Improvement Tips

Home Projects

Best Plumbers — Wed, 25 Jul 2018 12:05:16 -0600

Home Projects to Complete in the Year Your home needs maintenance from time to time.…

When Should I Get a Plumbing Inspection Before Buying a New Home?

Best Plumbers — Fri, 11 Aug 2017 07:18:46 -0600

A plumbing inspection can help protect a homebuyer from making a bad investment. If you’re…

Sewer Line Repair… Should you dig?

Best Plumbers — Sun, 09 Jul 2017 07:21:24 -0600

Often, drain cleaning and routine plumbing maintenance can be performed by a homeowner. However, sewer…

Amazing Fact: Type O Blood Attracts Mosquitos

Best Plumbers — Wed, 26 Apr 2017 21:35:31 -0600

Did you know that people with different types of blood secrete different scents? Extensive studies have…

Backyard is in need of overhaul. Sloped yard and completely weeds.

Mon, 05 Sep 2016 16:12:51 -0600

http://ift.tt/2cuD0VT

Zone 6a

Bought the house this year and planning on laying sod next spring. We have two dogs so I’d like to find something that will be a little more durable. Planning on putting in a sprinkler system and figured I could just till up the dirt to make it easier to lay the lines.

What is the best way to get rid of all the weeds? I’ve heard glyphosate works well but I don’t know if that’s the best option. Could I just till up the whole yard and pull them out?

Also I would like to put in some kind of wall to help with the slope on the east side. (the house faces north). And flatten out the lower part near the fence at the south end.

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Landscaping Ideas

Mon, 05 Sep 2016 13:40:35 -0600

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How can I fix the crumbling mortar between these pavers?

Mon, 05 Sep 2016 13:40:35 -0600

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Installed some LED lights on my Zero Turn mower!!

Mon, 05 Sep 2016 13:29:19 -0600

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The Billy Goat

Mon, 05 Sep 2016 10:20:06 -0600

Residential Landscape Design Experts! We have serviced businesses and homeowners in the Miami and South Florida and surrounding areas for over 8 years. Call for a free quote (305) 666-0111 or visit thebillygoat.net

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Artificial Turf as alternative to patio?

Mon, 05 Sep 2016 08:44:47 -0600

I have an area that I’m trying to figure out a solution for in the backyard, and I’m wondering if artificial turf is a good option.

The area is mostly covered by a gazebo and is in the root zone for a large red oak. I don’t want a patio there because I’m concerned what that would do to tree roots (digging down 8-10" & backfilling with road base, then using polymer sand between the pavers means almost no water/air exchange for the roots in that area). So I’m looking for alternative options.

One idea is faux turf - artificial grass. I think this can be installed by just skimming the grass that is there off the ground, adding an inch or two of coarse sand, weed block fabric, then the turf. I know it will look fake, but it would be mud-free & feel stable under foot.

The gazebo is one of those screen-house things without a floor, so nothing will grow under it normally. Has anyone seen artificial turf hold up well over time? Is it a huge PITA to clean/manage?

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What kind of edging is this?

Sun, 04 Sep 2016 21:55:02 -0600

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Help with ugly back alley area?

Sun, 04 Sep 2016 19:45:44 -0600

This is the area behind my house. The fence cuts my yard off from the alley, but there is still this strip of land I have to maintain. I just bought the house so it was all full of weeds when I moved in. I’m wondering what I could do to make it a little bit nicer looking. This area faces south, I am in central Canada, pretty beginner level experienced and I don’t have a ton of cash for it. More pictures in comments.

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Dog-friendly alternatives to mulch?

Sun, 04 Sep 2016 19:21:01 -0600

Hi there,

Our standard landscaping filler in our neighborhood is mulch, so that’s what our house had when we moved in. I’d like to switch to rock for the long-term.

No concerns about doing this out front, but we also have mulch around the trees and some bush ‘feature’ areas in the backyard, which is fenced for our dog. My dog, in his infinite golden wisdom, has found random rocks in the yard before and broken a tooth gnawing on them.

I’d like to avoid this in the future, but want to replace the mulch.

Any ideas for how to handle this? I’ve considered training my dog better or pulling out the mulch and trying to reseed those areas with grass, the former will be time consuming and potentially imperfect, the latter is also difficult and long-term could be a challenge since a couple of our trees are evergreens with some low branches, so maintaining grass under those seems next to impossible.

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Weeds always grow between my walkway pavers. Is there a special sand I can put between to suffocate the weeds. I see a lot of walkways with no weeds at all. Do they put cement in between?

Sun, 04 Sep 2016 19:00:19 -0600

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DIY backyard sprinkler

Sun, 04 Sep 2016 18:10:30 -0600

I went through the full tutorial on irrigationtutorials.com to design the irrigation in my backyard. I have 3 anti siphon valves planned. 2 anti siphon valves will be connected to sprinklers to cover the lawn. 1 valve will be connected to a drip irrigation line.

I wanted to add a faucet as well to run a drip irrigation to another part of my backyard the first drip irrigation cannot reach. Is it safe to connect the faucet to the first 3 valves? I was planning on using 4 Tee fittings on the main water supply and capping it off. The first 3 fittings would be going to the anti siphon valves and the 4th tee fitting connected to a faucet. How do I plan for back water prevention?

Question 2 is if I dig a trench for the main water line to the valves can I run my lateral pipe in the same trench? The reason I’m doing this is because I want to put all the valves in the back corner and need to go through the lawn.

Thanks!

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soggy grass in the low parts of the lawn, how to fix.

Sun, 04 Sep 2016 17:40:12 -0600

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Concrete under topsoil

Sun, 04 Sep 2016 15:25:47 -0600

We just bought a new house and some neighbors mentioned that years ago one of the previous owners put concrete pieces down and then covered it with topsoil (I guess he was thinking of developing the land for a commercial project). We want to plant a bunch of trees but are not sure how to deal with the concrete. Can we plant trees where there is concrete below the topsoil? How do we find out where the concrete is located? Any ideas?

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Replace lawn with gravel - 2 big dogs

Sun, 04 Sep 2016 15:06:07 -0600

Hi there. Looking for some input!

I live on Vancouver Island where we get quite a bit of rain. We have two big dogs and they’ve destroyed our front yard over the past year or two. They end up bringing a lot of dirt/mud into the house and we’re looking to improve the situation by replacing the lawn with gravel.

The yard has two very large trees, one cedar and one cherry. The cedar tree drops a lot of debris and cones throughout the year, especially in the winter time when it gets windy. The cherry tree drops a few cherries, but mostly leaves.

My questions are:

1) How deep should the gravel be?

2) How can I keep it clean of debris?

3) What kind of gravel should I use? I was thinking something round/smooth for the dogs (pea gravel), but it occurred to me that a blower might be useful for cleaning debris and I’m worried pea gravel might be too light.

4) Should I use landscape fabric under the gravel? Cardboard?

5) Any other tips or input?

Thanks in advance!

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My dahlias started growing horizontally instead of vertically and are killing off other plants in my garden. Is that normal?

Sun, 04 Sep 2016 13:35:31 -0600

Well, they wouldn’t have killed off the other plants had they grown up instead of 3 feet outward. Two of them stayed upright but the other two decided they wanted to be vines. I’ve never planted them before so I’m not sure if they are normally this unruly. I’m wondering I maybe planted them too close together? I had them in a raised flowerbed made of wood that finally fell apart and had to replant them in a new stone flowerbed with different dimensions.

Either way, I pretty much love dahlias. So I guess I’m going to remove what’s left of the other plants so the dahlias have more room to go wild. These flowers are perennials right? I bought them in the annual section of my local nursery. Maybe they wont make it through my 7a winters?

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Re-doing the Garden

Sun, 04 Sep 2016 10:29:30 -0600

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How do I care for these until I plant them in a few days?

Sun, 04 Sep 2016 07:30:14 -0600

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Patio made from the stencil you pour concrete in to look like stone

Sun, 04 Sep 2016 01:30:41 -0600

So this fall and winter I plan on doing an over haul to my back yard. I made a make shift garden that ended up becoming to overwhelmed with weeds and other vegetation, and realized I would like a nice patio. Just moved in to the house Christmas day of last year so been busy just getting settled and such.

This fall winter to celebrate 1 yr I want to overhaul the entire landscaping aspect, where I can have friends and we can sit and enjoy conversation around a fire pit and such.

I am curious from a cost stand point I saw this plastic roughly 3-4'x3x4’ stencil that looks like stone but you just pour concrete in. Not only from a cost stand point I was also curious about durability over using regular flag stone. This seems like a way better option on multiple aspects.

Sorry for the ramble of a post just found this sub and excited with a moderately cheap hobby that seems productive

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Any idea that this vine is and how I should kill it? I am in Dallas TX.

Sat, 03 Sep 2016 18:55:10 -0600

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Landscaper over-charged me. How to respond? (input from owners of small landscape companies appreciated)

Sat, 03 Sep 2016 11:45:24 -0600

I’m a new homeowner and had quite a bit of hassle finding landscapers in my area to help with my yard - finally got my neighbors crew to do a spring clean up for me. I knew their hourly rate was $39 (which to me seems ridiculous), but I wasn’t sure how much time it would take.

I watched the 3 man team closely throughout the day as I wanted to see what they were doing (I want to handle this lawn myself eventually) - I have been maintaining most of it myself (all lawn cutting, bush trimming, weed pulling) and was surprised they took 7 hours and another 2 hours the next day, but they did seem to constantly be working - except during their lunch and a few smoke breaks.

The bill came a month later - charged for 40 labor hours - ~$1700 with tax. note - I am not in an expensive market! I am in Cleveland Ohio.

I won’t be arguing the $39/hour charge, as I new that when I took them on, but I do take issue with being charged 40 hours when they were physically on my property 27 hours, 3 of those hours were for lunch.

So my questions: 1) Curious if $39/ hour seems like a reasonable rate for general maintenance on a lawn. Not like I hired a tradesman to install a pergola, or some complex flower bed.

2) Anyone who is a small business owner of a landscaping company - how do you track the hours of your employees dedicated to a property? Do you just take their word for it? Is there check-in/productivity software/apps you use to make sure your customers are billed appropriately?

3) What would be the best way for me to address with the owner (who is a nice guy and seems very honest)? Besides being direct about my concern on the billing, should I offer him chance to provide free labor for the time he billed me or something? - My concern for him is he already paid his crew (and I think they either lied to him about the hours, or he is clueless).

Thoughts?

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Severson Plumbing | Repiping, Slab Leak, Leak Detection Repair & Service Mission Viejo

0241223175 — Wed, 31 Aug 2016 22:27:24 -0600

LOOKING FOR A PROFESSIONAL AND RELIABLE PLUMBING SERVICE? Severson Plumbing is a locally owned and…

Key Facts About Water Heater Repair

Best Plumbers — Mon, 25 Jul 2016 20:31:43 -0600

Your water heater is an important part of your home. After all, it’s the only…

Houzz Tour: A New Farmhouse Makes Room for a Growing Family of 5 (23 photos)

Nora Burba Trulsson — Wed, 13 Jul 2016 16:00:12 -0600

After more than five years in their suburban Alabama house, Katherine and Clark Bailey and their three young boys were getting squeezed for space. When the property next door went on the market, the couple jumped at the chance to remain in their beloved neighborhood and build the perfect-size home from...

The 4 Stages of a Remodel: The Honeymoon Phase (5 photos)

Hannah Kasper — Wed, 13 Jul 2016 14:00:02 -0600

As with anything in life, a remodeling project can come with its ups and downs. Certain phases seem to go a mile a minute, while others feel like they’ve lasted a lifetime and a half, all while it looks as though nothing is being completed. Fear not — this is pretty typical. And, while every project...

The Polite House: How Do You Deal With Loud Neighbors? (4 photos)

Lizzie Post — Wed, 13 Jul 2016 13:00:10 -0600

Maximize Harvests With Square-Foot Gardening (7 photos)

Abundant City — Wed, 13 Jul 2016 11:00:08 -0600

Want to maximize your edible-garden yields? Many vegetable gardeners are thinking inside the box and planting square-foot gardens. Different from traditional garden rows, this design system makes it easy to enjoy intensively planted harvests within a small space.

Shop Houzz: A Spa-Like Bath (115 photos)

Houzz — Wed, 13 Jul 2016 10:00:07 -0600

Conjure that ever-coveted day at the spa in your own bath, creating the perfect space for relaxation and serenity using soft light, pieces with clean lines and warm wood finishes. Light a candle, sit back and unwind by soaking in your own spa-inspired oasis, bringing peace to your mind and home....

The Case for Keeping the Midcentury Modern Kitchen Layout (8 photos)

Flavin Architects — Wed, 13 Jul 2016 10:00:03 -0600

The kitchen can be among the most challenging projects when remodeling a midcentury home. The large, open kitchens we often dream of can far exceed the floor plan of the original space. Expanding the layout can be expensive, as space will have to be carved from adjoining rooms or an addition will need...

Room of the Day: An Ombré Nursery Inspired by a Cold-Weather Babymoon (8 photos)

Erin Carlyle — Wed, 13 Jul 2016 08:00:04 -0600

When designer Rebecca Zajac was pregnant with her first child during the summer of 2015, the weather was “about 180 gazillion degrees,” in Las Vegas, she says. For their “babymoon” trip before the baby was born, Zajac wanted nothing more than to get away to a cool place. So she and husband David Zajac...

Easy Ways to Spruce Up Your Summer Vacation Rental (15 photos)

Becky Harris — Wed, 13 Jul 2016 07:00:10 -0600

It’s happened to all of us — that glowing summer-share description from pals who were desperate for you to chip in, or that online rental listing full of photos you realized upon arrival were less than truthful. Sometimes that walk across the threshold into your summer vacation getaway is, well, musty....

Nail Your Curb Appeal: Rustic Style (9 photos)

Laura Gaskill — Tue, 12 Jul 2016 17:00:06 -0600

This series offers curb appeal tips for different home and architectural styles. This week: ideas for rustic homes.