Fall Home Improvement
Home improvement projects perfect for fall
Home improvement projects can add value to a home and do-it-yourselfers know the sweat-equity that goes into such projects can give homeowners a greater sense of pride in their homes. But no two home improvement projects are the same, and homeowners should know that certain projects are best tackled during certain times of the year.
Fall is a great season to work on your house, as the weather is often at its most agreeable once the summer heat has gone and before winter weather arrives. The following are a handful of fall-friendly home improvement projects for homeowners looking to improve their homes.
Roof repair
Whether you’re repairing or replacing the roof, fall is a great time of year to dust off the ladder and get some work done on your roof for a variety of reasons. First and foremost, fall is ideal for roof work because you won’t have to be up on the roof with the summer heat bearing down on you. This can make the project move along more quickly, which is especially beneficial if you are paying laborers to work on the roof. The fewer hours workers are fixing your roof, the less you will be paying in labor costs.
In addition, fixing up the roof in the fall ensures those winter storms, be it rain or snow, won’t find their way into your home via leaks. A leaky roof in winter is hard to fix, as the roof surface could be treacherous in the winter and winter winds can make it dangerous to be up on the roof at all. Addressing leaks in the fall can prevent damage to your home’s interior, which can mount up if a leaky roof is not addressed until the following spring.
Window work
When the weather outside gets frightful, poorly insulated windows can allow cold air into the home. That often has a trickle-down effect on finances, forcing you to turn up the thermostat in an attempt to offset the cold air pouring into the home. Whether you need your windows replaced or simply need to patch up any leaks, a proactive approach to leaky or older windows in the fall can save you from unnecessarily high heating bills come the winter. Addressing leaky windows also makes a home more comfortable for its inhabitants.
Fall is the ideal time to address a home’s windows because the temperature outside tends to be pleasant. This means you likely won’t have to make much of an effort to offset the elements, and open windows in the fall won’t make your home’s interior very hot or cold like they might if you were to tackle the project during the summer or winter.
Fixing the floors
Wood flooring is a hot commodity for many homeowners. But not all flooring can be added to a home at any time of year. That’s because certain types of flooring employ adhesives that need temperatures inside the home to be within a certain range, and that range is often within 70o to 80o F, which makes fall a great time to install such floors. Colder temperatures can make it difficult for the flooring to dry and bond, which will prove problematic down the road. What’s more, many people entertain friends and family come late fall and into the holiday season, and it can be difficult to do so if you are busy installing new flooring.
Painting projects
Painting is another home improvement project that seems tailor-made for fall. A fresh coat of paint or a new color scheme around the house can give a home an entirely new look and feel. But paint can be pungent and the aromas may last if it’s applied at a time of year when it can’t dry while the windows are wide open. Paint fumes inside a home can make the home uninhabitable, but painting at a time of year like the fall, when you can keep the windows open during and after the project, can help air the home out.
But interior painting isn’t the only painting project homeowners can tackle in the fall. Many exterior paints are temperature-sensitive and need the temperature outside to be above 40o F. Paint that freezes won’t dry properly, and homeowners might be left with a costly and unsightly mistake on their hands. Fall temperatures tend to be amenable to both interior and exterior painting projects, just be sure to check the weather forecast before making your first brush stroke.
Lead Paint Hazards and Older Windows
If your home was built before 1978 and you still have the original windows, it’s time to seriously consider replacing your windows — especially if you have young children or a pregnant person living at home.
According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the routine opening and closing of windows in homes built prior to 1978 can disturb lead-based paint around the windows, causing paint dust and chips to be released into the air.
“Research indicates that the everyday activity of opening and closing windows creates friction that then allows invisible lead dust to enter the air,” says Rick Nevin, a consultant to the National Center for Healthy Housing (NCHH). “Young children, who crawl on the floor where the lead dust has settled, can be especially at risk.
According to Nevin, one of the most important long-term investments a homeowner can make for the overall safety of a family is to replace older windows, using the EPA-approved lead safe renovation guidelines.
“Replacing older windows is one of the best ways to reduce lead risks,” says Nevin. “Make sure to use only a contractor that is certified in lead-safe work practices and strongly consider the use of ENERGY STAR(R) qualified windows, like the vinyl replacement windows offered by Simonton Windows(R). These windows are a healthy choice for replacing older single-pane units. They’re energy-efficient and a good value for the investment.”
Nevin explains that, according to his research funded by the National Institute of Health (NIH), homeowners need to understand there are four key steps to completing a “lead-safe window replacement strategy” for the home.
“First, they advise replacing all single-pane windows with ENERGY STAR qualified windows,” says Nevin. “Second, stabilize any significantly deteriorated paint. Third, perform specialized cleaning to remove any lead-contaminated dust. And finally, perform dust wipe tests to confirm the absence of lead dust hazards after the clean up.”
Research results can be obtained at www.ricknevin.com/windows.
Experimenting With Color Pays Off
Color has the power to transform any room in the home. Experimenting with color can be one of the most fun aspects of decorating and design, although it can sometimes lead to second thoughts. When that happens, Valspar Paint experts tell us to first allow a couple of days to go from varying degrees of doubt, to falling in love with it. This often happens when you let the new color flirt with you for a while. If, after that, you still feel you made a mistake, don’t be discouraged. The joy of getting the color just right can give you pleasure for decades. This season, there’s a unique program that takes the fear out of trying that new color. From now until October 7, 2013, Valspar Paint is offering a complimentary replacement color to anyone who has a change of heart about their first choice. Details and offer terms are available online at loveyourcolor.com.
Prep work important before painting
Painting a home’s interior can give it a completely new look and feel. A fresh coat of paint can make a room feel more vibrant and up-to-date, creating a whole new attitude within the room without breaking the bank.
• Holes or cracks in the wall will need to be patched with spackle, which then must dry before the wall can be given a new coat of paint. In addition, sand down any bumps until the walls are smooth and free of any unsightly abnormalities.
• Wash the walls. Walls can get dirty, and that dirt may or may not be masked by paint.
• Apply primer. Primer can serve many functions, not the least of which is its role as a bonding agent between the wall and the top coat of paint. Primer can also help conceal dark colors, prevent stains and increase the life expectancy of the paint job you are about to undertake.
• Prepare your paint. Preparing the paint is a simple task, but one novice painters may not be aware of. When opening a new can of paint, stir the paint before using it.
• Purchase painter’s tape.
