Kitchens & Baths
I’m often asked why some brands of pre-fabricated cabinets are so expensive when they are made of particle board. Most quality cabinets use a material that does resemble a low-grade particle board but is actually much more durable.
Organizing your kitchen cabinets to make it easy to find your food items is easy. We found that you can actually make small steps inside your kitchen cabinets to display canned goods so that you can actually see what’s in the back of the cabinet.
Wouldn’t it be great to see exactly how much space a kitchen island will take up before it’s actually installed? An inexpensive way to get a realistic sense of this space is to construct a full-scale model of the island out of cardboard.
Full kitchen remodels-where you replace everything including cabinets and appliances– now cost at least $25,000 … and frequently run $50,000 or more. But many kitchens aren’t worn out or dysfunctional, they just look tired and out-of-date. The answer is a cosmetic upgrade. These are things that improve the look of your kitchen and make it more current without breaking into walls, changing cabinets, redoing plumbing and electrical, or installing new appliances.
Countertop appliances such as coffeemakers and standing mixers are often stored pushed back under cupboards or shelves. In order to use the small appliances, you will need to pull them away from the wall. Self-adhesive felt pads, such as those used to protect floors from furniture scratches, have another handy application. To prevent marring the counter-top, stick the small felt pads to the bottom of your kitchen appliances.
Watch this video for some tips on how to caulk around a tub by filling the tub with water to weigh it down, then creating a guide for the new caulking by applying masking tape to the wall and the top of the tub.
There are a variety of home remedies for clogged drains that don’t require commercial products. One of the easiest drain cleaning solutions makes use of an ordinary plunger.
Sometimes it’s just as easy to repair something as it is to replace it. A spring loaded shower rod that has fallen down is a great example. These types of shower rods work under tension, and if the mechanism inside has snapped there will be no tension to hold it. To fix the problem simply set the rod to the correct length, mark it with tape and then drill two holes through both pieces of the rod. Place stainless steel screws in the holes so that they won’t rust. This will lock the rod into position, but once it’s in place there won’t be any reason to adjust it. Instead of $10-$15 for a new rod you pay for the screws.
