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How to Create the Ultimate Home Office

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If you work from home then you’re probably aware of difficult it can be to stop your work life from spilling into the rest of your home. One of the best ways to help contain and separate work from personal life is to set up a home office you feel comfortable spending the day in. And while everyone’s home office is going to look a little bit different based on your needs and the type of work that you do, there are a few key components that go into creating it that just about everyone should follow.

How to Create the Ultimate Home Office

Creating the Ultimate Home Office

No matter where in your home you’ve designated your work space, or how much space you have, there are a few things you can do to ensure you get the best office set up possible in your Richmond home addition.

Ample Space and an Empty Room

The first thing you need to do is start with a totally empty space. Clean everything out of there from your desk to anything that might be stored or displayed there. This is crucial, because you’re probably used to thinking of the room in a certain way. And that way might not be the best setup for your needs. By starting with a completely empty room, you get a fresh perspective on what it is you can do there.

Now take a look at what you need in terms of space. Do you need storage? Work tables? Extra seating? Do you use more than one computer during your day? Start to plan out the room according to your needs. For example, if you use multiple screens how can you best position them in the space – does it make sense to hang one the wall or do you need an L shaped desk set up that lets you swivel between them? With an empty room, you can see the many different possibilities for laying out your things so you can get the best configuration for your needs, rather than trying to cram everything into the existing layout of the space.

Use Your Walls

Desks, chairs, and filing cabinets are pretty much a given in the home office, but what are you doing with your walls? By tapping into this previously unused expanse of space, you can gain a lot more function and storage out of your home office.

Consider covering one board in cork to allow you to pin things right at eye level. Or get your computer up off the desk and hang the screen on the wall so you can see it better. Shelves, white boards, cubbies, and peg board racks are all great ways to help you organize your home office without taking up a lot of space. So even if your home office was once a walk-in closet, you can still fit in everything you need into the space as long as you look up rather than down.

Home Office

Lots of Light

On average most people who work from home spend about 10 hours a day in their home office. That’s a lot of hours to be squinting in a poorly lit room. Every well lit room needs three types of lighting:

  • Ambient lighting that lights the whole space – overhead or recessed lighting fits into this category
  • Spot lighting that illuminates things on the walls, such as your bulletin board, or things you store on your shelves
  • Task lighting that illuminates your desk and work area, such as desk lamps, under cabinet lighting, and even under desk lighting

With all the time you spend in your home office, you need to make sure it’s well lit. Use a combination of all three types of lighting, and invest in some good full spectrum light bulbs to help you feel as though you’re working in natural light – even if you never get the time to go outside.

And while you’re working on the lighting, be sure to invest in some additional power strips or outlets as well, so you can keep everything in the room running at once.

Home Office Photo

Invest in Good Seating

The type of desk or work table you use in your home office should come second to your seating. Get a good office chair that supports your back and lets you adjust the height for optimum comfort no matter what height of table you’re working at. If you work at more than one desk, or at an L-shaped station, make sure the chair rolls easily, and adjusts height easily as well. Remember that no matter how great your office looks, if you aren’t comfortable working there, you more than likely won’t be in there for long.

Bring in Some Personal Touches

Finally, make sure you bring in plenty of things that make you happy in the space. From the color of the walls to what you display on your desk, you need to personalize your office. Remember that despite being in your house, your home office is where you go to work each day; if you aren’t happy there, you’ll just find excuses to be somewhere else. So take the items you need, from a coffee maker to some posters to ensure you get what you need out of the space.

Set Up Your Office

Your home office is more important than you may think it is. While technically all you may need is a work station and a chair, a well laid out home office can help increase your productivity, while enhancing your enjoyment of the work. Take the time to set up your home office using this guide and find yourself enjoying the freedom of working from home more than ever before.

For any other tips on how to make your home remodeling a breeze, Classic Construction
is available for all your Richmond remodeling services. To learn more, give us a call at 804-776-5070 or fill out our online form for a free consultation.

 

Author: Classic Construction

Established in 2001, Classic Construction has since become one of the leading Richmond remodeling companies. With decades in the home improvement industry, Brian Holder, company president, is intimately involved with every project and works with our vendors and installation crews to ensure every job runs smoothly and meets our high standards of quality and customer satisfaction.

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3 Reasons to Get Rid of Your Hardboard Siding

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Hardboard siding or Masonite, was a popular siding option for many years. An alternative to wood or Richmond vinyl siding, hardboard is a composite material made to look and feel like real wood. And while it has improved dramatically over the years, it’s often still plagued with problems, particularly after it’s been up for a while. The fact that it’s a low cost option drove many people to install it early on, before many of these issues came to light. So if you’ve had hardboard siding installed on your home, you may want to take a look at some of the newer products on the market, particularly if your hardboard is experiencing any of the following.

Rotting and Deteriorating

Masonite was supposed to be a low-maintenance, low cost version of real wood siding. It’s made of a mixture of wood and resin or wood and glue, and is usually formed in a mold made of actual wood to give it a natural looking texture. Unfortunately, it turned out to have many of the same problems that actual wood did, plus a few more.
Rotting and Deteriorating
While today’s hardboard is a little more forgiving, the early stuff usually begins to rot after a while, as well as deteriorate. You can sometimes find large chunks of it missing from each board, or a touch will find it crumbling beneath your hands. This is because once the glue or resin begins to wear out, the wood can now decay and fall to pieces. It can also become susceptible to things like insects, and if you don’t keep up with the priming and painting, moisture can get in there and cause a number of problems as well.
During a yearly inspection of your home’s exterior, look for boards that seem to be deteriorating, missing pieces, or falling apart. If you see these signs, it’s a good indication that you ought to yank it all and start over with something new.

Buckling and Blistering

Rotting and deteriorating boards are probably the most obvious problem, but there’s a couple of other issues that can crop up before these happen. Buckling and blistering are two conditions that affect a lot of older hardboard siding. These typically take place before the deterioration and rot set in, so if you find them, be prepared for your siding to begin falling apart in the near future. So while you have a little more time to get your siding replaced if you see these issues occurring, you’ll still need to schedule an appointment with a contractor fairly soon. Not to mention the fact that while you wait, your home is going to look unsightly.
Buckling is the warping of the boards due to moisture and expansion. What you’ll see is the boards no longer laying straight and flat against your home. So not only is your siding going to begin deteriorating soon, it’s going to look kind of funky in the meantime as well.
Blistering is the condition where the interior layers begin to fail and separate. This causes blisters to form inside the boards. If you feel your boards and they aren’t uniformly hard, it’s probably due to blistering and the beginnings of deterioration.

The High Maintenance

You were probably told that hardboard was a lower maintenance option than wood. Unfortunately, this just isn’t true. Hardboard siding needs to be primed and painted just like wood. Failure to do so can lead to moisture and insect infiltration that will in turn lead to rotting and deterioration of the boards.
You also need to stay on top of the caulking. The spaces between each piece of hardboard and along the edges need to be filled with caulk. Caulk has a tendency to crack over time, particularly if your house moves or settles a lot. So if the caulking is cracking or coming out, you need to take the time to dig it out and replace it. Failure to do so can lead to moisture and insects getting into your boards. Even newer types of hardboard still need to be coated and caulked, although they may last a little longer than the older varieties.
If you want a truly low maintenance option, you need to look to vinyl or to wood coated in a vinyl-based “paint”, rather than sticking with what you’ve got.
Out with the Old
Out with the Old
If you have hardboard siding on your home that is showing signs of eventual rot or deterioration, or you’re having trouble keeping up with the maintenance, consider replacing it. There are a lot of great new siding options on the market today that don’t have the same problems, and can even last for as long as you own your home. So consider getting rid of your old hardboard siding today to find an option that truly works for your home.
Are you ready to get rid of your old hardboard siding?
Contact us today and get your free quote!
Click here to learn more about your options.

For any other tips on how to make your home remodeling a breeze, Classic Construction
is available for all your Richmond remodeling services. To learn more, give us a call at 804-776-5070 or fill out our online form for a free consultation.

Author: Classic Construction

Established in 2001, Classic Construction has since become one of the leading Richmond remodeling companies. With decades in the home improvement industry, Brian Holder, company president, is intimately involved with every project and works with our vendors and installation crews to ensure every job runs smoothly and meets our high standards of quality and customer satisfaction.

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Top 3 Reasons You Will Love Fiber Cement Siding For Your Home

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Top 3 Reasons You Will Love Fiber Cement Siding

When it’s time to choose new siding for your home, you have a lot of options. Wood is still a popular choice, and for those that want something a little more low maintenance, plenty of people are still opting for vinyl and aluminum. And while these are fine choices for some homes, if you haven’t considered fiber cement siding for your home yet, you may want to give it a look. It has many of the benefits of other siding types, plus a few more. So if you want a realistic looking, long lasting, and low maintenance siding option, look no further than fiber cement siding for your home.

Hardie Richmond

With all the choices on the market today for siding, you probably have heard about older types like vinyl and aluminum before. Our Richmond fiber cement siding is different, and while it doesn’t get the kind of press that other types do, there’s actually a lot more to love here than there is at first sight. 

1. Realistic Texture and Appearance

Have you ever seen a house cladded in aluminum or vinyl siding? Chances are you could tell what it was from the street. Aluminum has a smooth, flat appearance – except where it’s dented – and a color that tends to fade over time. Vinyl may have more a groove or grain look to it, with color that goes straight through, but that doesn’t change the fact this siding is plastic, and looks like it.

Fiber cement siding has a much more realistic look and texture to it than either vinyl or aluminum. In fact, you may have trouble figuring out that it isn’t wood. That’s because the boards are molded using actual wood planks to get a more realistic texture.

Fiber cement siding can also be painted in any color – just like wood – so you aren’t confined to what’s currently on the market like vinyl.

2.  Durable and Low Maintenance

Wood siding is one of the best looking options available, but it also has a lot of drawbacks in terms of durability and maintenance. It peels, is susceptible to insects, and can also crack and warp over time. Aluminum is supposed to be lower in maintenance and more durable, but it still fades, leaving a chalky residue all over your foundations, while also denting at the slightest pressure. Then there’s vinyl, which can crack or break, as well as fall right off of your home.

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Fiber cement siding gives you the look and texture of real wood without the maintenance issues. It doesn’t peel, fade, dent, crack, or warp and it isn’t susceptible to insects either. In fact, it’s so low maintenance that many homeowners find that it pays for itself over the years, simply because they don’t have to worry about scraping, painting, and repairing over time. 

3. Environmentally Friendly

Green building has been the watch word of the industry for several years now, and more and more homeowners are beginning to join in. Fiber cement siding is considered a green product, meaning that it’s environmentally friendly, containing natural, renewable resources and no chemicals. In fact some manufacturers even include recycled material such as glass in the reinforcing mixture, to help further improve its green status.

That means no harmful VOCs are given off either during production or once it’s installed, so it’s not going to hurt your home or the environment. Add in the fact that fiber cement siding is also flame retardant without chemicals, and you can get some added protection for your home at the same time that you’re protecting the environment.

Make the Smart Choice

Fiber cement siding may not have been around as long as some other materials, but when you consider its looks, durability, and environmentally friendly legacy, it’s one of the best choices you can make for your home. So when it’s time to invest in some new siding for your house, consider fiber cement siding to do the job.

For any other tips on how to make your home remodeling a breeze, Classic Construction
is available for all your Richmond remodeling services. To learn more, give us a call at 804-776-5070 or fill out our online form for a free consultation.

Author: Classic Construction

Established in 2001, Classic Construction has since become one of the leading Richmond remodeling companies. With decades in the home improvement industry, Brian Holder, company president, is intimately involved with every project and works with our vendors and installation crews to ensure every job runs smoothly and meets our high standards of quality and customer satisfaction.

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4 New Trends in Kitchen Countertops

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The kitchen is arguably the most important room in your home. Your kitchen is where you cook, eat, and entertain. In many families, this is also the place where you gather for things like homework, chore planning, and just spending time together. So when it comes for your Richmond kitchen remodel, each decision that you make has equal importance, from the color of the cabinets to the type of countertop you use. Thankfully, you now have more choices in counters than ever before, so it’s easy to find the right countertop to suit your family’s needs and your personal design and style.

Natural Stone Trends

granite

For a long time granite reigned supreme in the kitchen, then began to cool off a little as other, newer materials began to come out. With newer trends appearing in natural materials and finishes for the kitchen, however, natural stone has begun to make a comeback.
The difference is that while granite can still be found in new kitchens, the emphasis is on softer finishes, such as honed stone, rather than a hard polish. And for those that want something a little more out of the ordinary, but with the strength and easy maintenance of harder stones, consider quartzite. Quartzite is a metamorphic stone made primarily of quartz, and it’s nearly indestructible – even in lighter colors like white. Quartzite can have veins like marble, or it can be more mottled like granite. It has a sugary look to it that is very appealing, especially when the edge is left raw – another trend in natural stone counters just now.

Ceramic Counters

For those that want a low maintenance, durable, and man-made counter move away from the quartz counters that were vying with granite for popularity a few years ago, and look to new ceramic counters instead. These smooth, matte counters are heat resistant, scratch resistant, and stain resistant so you don’t need to worry about their use even in the busiest of kitchens. With their monotone colors, they also work particularly well in modern and transitional designs where a lot of color or movement on the countertop would be unwelcome.

Copper

copper countertops

Say goodbye to stainless steel as the answer to the need for a metal countertop and consider copper instead. Copper is hitting kitchen trends in a big way right now with copper bespoke appliances, cabinet hardware, and even countertops. This warm, rich metal will patina and age differently depending on how you use it, giving your kitchen an authentic look over time. Treated well, a copper countertop can even outlast your home. It also matches well with the other trends in kitchens now, such as natural materials and finishes, as well as warm colors.

Tile

Believe it or not, tile countertops are back and in a big way. Move over granite tiles that are meant to look like a slab, today’s tile countertops are a riot of color and interest. In addition to natural tones and colors in kitchens, one of the biggest trends just now is color – particularly the color blue. One way to bring some color to your kitchen, while still preserving the natural and authentic look that is so key right now is to use some tiles on your counter. Consider handmade ceramic tiles that have varying glaze tones and textures, as well as larger matte porcelain tiles. Treated well, a tile countertop is nearly indestructible, and with new pre-sealed grouts, you don’t have to worry about things like staining either.

Consider Your Counter

With all the new choices on the market today, you’ll have an easier time than ever deciding on your new counter. Trends are moving toward lower maintenance, durable, and less ostentatious counters than those that have been used for the last several years, giving you some new things to consider. So take a look at the style of your kitchen, and how you intend to your use your counter to get the perfect, on trend countertop for your home.

For any other tips on how to make your home remodeling a breeze, Classic Construction is available for all your Richmond remodeling services. To learn more, give us a call at 804-776-5070 or fill out our online form for a free consultation.

Author: Classic Construction

Established in 2001, Classic Construction has since become one of the leading Richmond remodeling companies. With decades in the home improvement industry, Brian Holder, company president, is intimately involved with every project and works with our vendors and installation crews to ensure every job runs smoothly and meets our high standards of quality and customer satisfaction.

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3 Secrets to Create the World’s Best Master Closet

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It’s something that nearly every homeowner dreams about at one point in time or another; a well-organized and spacious master bedroom closet. No matter how much or how little space you have, it is possible to achieve this dream. All you need to know are the three secrets that all great Richmond master bedroom closets have to get the closet you’ve always wanted.

You may think that you need to wait until you can renovate your existing space to get the closet you’re after, but there’s a lot you can do with the space you already have, provided that you’re using it wisely.

master closet

Compartments

No matter how much space you’re working with, dividing it up into compartments is one of the best ways to organize and maximize your space. Start with dividing up your belongings and making groups of everything that you need to store in the closet. For example, divide up your pants, your shirts, your sweaters, and your belts until you have a good grasp on how many different compartments you need, as well as the size and configuration of each one.

You can now start planning out the space. For example, you can purchase foldable pants racks that let you store numerous pairs of pants, all in perfect uncreased rows. These racks fold back out of the way when not in use to take up less space. You can also find belt racks, tie racks, shoe racks, as well as baskets and shelves for storing things like folded sweaters and accessories.

compartmentscloset

By carving your closet up into compartments each designed to hold a separate set of items, you can gain a lot of unexpected space in the closet. Remember that compartments can be built from floor to ceiling, as well as on the short walls of the closet, so you can get more things in there.

  • Shelving

A lot of people get hung up on creating the perfect closet by coming up with compartments for hanging clothes with lots of pull down bars and possibly some drawers for storing shirts and sweaters. The very best closets, however, may use these things, but also make very good use of shelves.

Shelves are far more versatile than rods or drawers. They allow you to see everything at a glance, and they give you a lot of different storage options. For example, you can put up a shoe rail, or place storage baskets on the shelves. You can also often place a shelf or two in areas that a rod or drawer just won’t go, such as at the very top of the closet or down toward the bottom beneath hanging clothes.

  • Good Lighting

It doesn’t matter how big or how well organized your closet is if you can’t see anything inside of it. Good lighting can make all the difference in a closet, enabling you to find things easily, and see the true color of items like socks, belts, and blouses, so you don’t need to remove them from the closet to find out if they’re going to match.

closet lights

Start by investing in some good overhead lighting for the entire space. This is your overall or ambient lighting, and it will help brighten the space all together. Next, have some specific lighting to the larger cubbies, compartments or areas of the closet. For example, if you have a separate hanging area for pants, put a specific light above them to illuminate them better.

Finally, if you have small or out of the way areas of the closet, consider some small task lights. You can turn these on individually as you need them, so that you can better see things like ties or socks. You can also find some task lights that turn on automatically when you need them, such when you slide open a drawer or open a door.

Design the Closet of Your Dreams

With all the many different closet organization systems and components on the market today, it’s possible to create a closet that can suit your needs no matter what size you’re working with. Just be sure to include these 3 secrets to ensure your success.

For any other tips on how to make your home remodeling a breeze, Classic Construction is available for all your Richmond remodeling services. To learn more, give us a call at 804-776-5070 or fill out our online form for a free consultation.

Author: Classic Construction

Established in 2001, Classic Construction has since become one of the leading Richmond remodeling companies. With decades in the home improvement industry, Brian Holder, company president, is intimately involved with every project and works with our vendors and installation crews to ensure every job runs smoothly and meets our high standards of quality and customer satisfaction.

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Why You Will Love Radiant Heat in Your Sunroom Floor

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Richmond sunrooms are a popular addition to many homes. Sometimes used as a three-season room, and sometimes used year round, the sunroom is designed as a place where you can relax to enjoy the light and warmth of the outdoors through walls made primarily of windows. Because sunrooms are often afterthoughts – added to the home long after it’s built, heating the room to become an all-season space can be a challenge. Instead of adding ducts to nonexistent walls or ceilings to try to add forced hot air, or lining the spaces below the windows with baseboard heaters, consider a better way to heat your sunroom – radiant heat. Radiant heat can keep you warm and toasty in your sunroom year round, and for a fraction of the cost of what it would take to heat the room using other methods.

Debartalow sr int 2

What Is Radiant Heat?

Radiant heat is technically defined as heat that is transferred from the heating source directly to an object. In this case, radiant heat refers to the method used to warm up the floor of the room. When you stand on the floor, the heat gets transferred directly to you – not into the air of the room. This is a more efficient method of heating, and keeps you more comfortable than other heat sources.

You can install radiant heat in your sunroom in a few different ways, such as running forced hot water through pipes beneath the floor. Because most sunrooms are built on a slab, however, the most common method involves installing electric mats beneath your flooring. These thin fiberglass mats have wires embedded in them that are laid directly on the slab or subfloor. Your finished flooring is installed directly on top of the mat, which is hooked up to a thermostat. When the mats are turned on, the radiant heat energy is transferred from the mat to the floor, and from the floor to the objects in the room such as your furniture – and you.

Why Radiant Heat Is So Beneficial in a Sunroom

Radiant heat can technically be installed in any room of your home, but it makes the most sense in a few specific areas – such as your sunroom.

photo

Less Heat Loss

For the most part, the majority of sunrooms are made with three outside walls filled with windows, if they aren’t made entirely out of glass. In some cases, your ceiling may also be made of glass or may have windows installed as well. This makes insulating the room very difficult, particularly because windows can account for as much as 40% of the energy you use to heat a room being lost through the air.

Because radiant heat is transferred directly to objects, it doesn’t heat the air. This means that you need less insulation in your sunroom to stop heat loss. In fact the air temperature in the room can be significantly lower in a room with radiant heat and still keep you warm because your chair and body are coming into contact with the radiant heat – and getting the heat transfer – rather than the air.

Easy Install

Some people originally install sunrooms as three-season rooms or porches. The biggest reason for this, rather than originally creating them as four-season rooms, is because it can be so difficult to install decent heating in the room. Forced hot air requires ducts that often can’t be run into the thin walls or slab floor of the room. Forced hot water and oil heat require pipes to be run to the room, which means opening up other walls and floors, and electric baseboard heaters can often be expensive and inefficient.

Sunroom additions richmond, va

Radiant heating is very easy to install, even on a slab. The mats or wires can be laid anywhere, and are even easy enough for a DIY homeowner to put down themselves. The wires hook up to a thermostat on the wall so you can control the heat of the sunroom separately from the rest of the house, and you can install any flooring you want right on top from tile to hardwood, letting you customize the look and feel of the room while remaining warm and comfortable. You can also easily retrofit an existing sunroom with radiant heat, so even if you have a current three season space you want to convert, you can do so without too much time or expense.

Low Cost to Run

Many of the radiant heat mats on the market today take about as much energy to run as it costs to run a single light bulb. This means that you can heat your sunroom for significantly less money that it would cost you to try to heat it using other methods. And because you have less heat loss, and often feel warmer in a room using radiant heat, you need less energy to be comfortable in the same space. All of this translates to you being able to enjoy your sunroom year round for just pennies on the dollar.

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Add Some Radiant Heat to Your Sunroom

Whether you’re building a new sunroom onto your home, or just looking for a more efficient way to heat one that’s already there, give radiant heat a try. You’ll find that for your money, there are rarely more efficient methods out there that can keep you as warm and comfortable in the space year round.

For any other tips on how to make your home remodeling a breeze, Classic Construction
is available for all your Richmond remodeling services. To learn more, give us a call at 804-776-5070 or fill out our online form for a free consultation.

Author: Classic Construction

Established in 2001, Classic Construction has since become one of the leading Richmond remodeling companies. With decades in the home improvement industry, Brian Holder, company president, is intimately involved with every project and works with our vendors and installation crews to ensure every job runs smoothly and meets our high standards of quality and customer satisfaction.

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Key Features of a Roof That Will Last a Very Long Time

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Your roof is one of the most important components of your home. Not only does it contribute to your home’s curb appeal, it helps protect your home from the elements, keeping out the rain, wind, sun, and snow that could damage your belongings.

newroof

Everyone knows that roofs are also one of the more expensive things to repair or replace on your home. Therefore, when it’s time to take care of your roof, you may want to consider investing in Richmond roofing materials and installation methods that will ensure it lasts as long as possible. After all, with everything you have riding on it, it only makes sense to ensure your roof returns the investment you put into it.

Your Roof’s Longevity

There are many factors that can contribute to how long your roof lasts. These include:

  • The material your roof is made of; slate, copper, and aluminum roofs will last longer than asphalt roofs.
  • The location you are in; areas with more moderate climates tend to have roofs that last a little longer than those in areas with a lot of sun, wind, hail, or rain.
  • The kind of maintenance you put in; regular roof maintenance is key to ensuring that your roof lasts the maximum lifespan. Maintenance includes regular inspections, removing snow in the winter, keeping your gutters clear, removing moss and algae, and replacing missing, broken, or curling shingles.

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Ensuring Your Roof Lasts

When the time comes to repair or replace your roof, there are several things you can do to help ensure that it lasts as long as possible.

Get Attic Ventilation

You may wonder what your attic has to do with how long your roof lasts, but proper attic ventilation can go a long way toward maintaining the integrity of your roof. Attic vents help keep air moving. This ensures that your attic doesn’t become super heated in the summer, or that the warm air rising in your home doesn’t become trapped there in the winter.
Without the buildup of heat below it, your roof will not get as overheated in the summer, which will help prevent early deterioration of your shingles. And without a warm attic in the winter, the snow on your roof is less likely to melt, run to the edge of your roof, and refreeze into an ice dam that will force water to back up under your shingles.
Most attics are under ventilated, and many roofing contractors will also install attic vents at the same time they replace your roof. Investing in additional vents will not only help your roof last longer, they’ll help your home stay more comfortable as well.

Stripping Old Shingles

It is possible to layer a set of asphalt shingles over an old set. And some homeowners choose to do this to cut down on the cost of roof replacement. Unfortunately, this can cause some problems that may eventually lead to your roof deteriorating faster.

shingle removal
First, you can only layer shingles once. So if you already have two layers, you risk the third layer not adhering as well to the roof, and causing problems with leaks.
Second, many roofs aren’t redone all at once. So if you only need a partial reroofing, the newer section and the older section probably won’t match one another at the peak. The ridge cap has to be modified to help disguise this, which can lead to potential leaks in this area down the road.
Finally, if the original set of shingles was in poor shape, you won’t know what was going on below them if you don’t pull them up. Wood rot, mold, and mildew are all issues found with a leaking roof. When you seal all that in with a new layer of shingles, you could be risking the integrity of the roof deck, and leading to much higher repair bills down the road.
By stripping the old shingles, you can ensure that there are no problems with the roof deck before you reroof. You can also ensure that the new shingles go on properly and that the correct underlayments are used so you have fewer leaks in the future.

Using Good Materials

Depending on the type of home you live in, and the climate your house is in, you may want to consider one of a few different roofing materials to help ensure the longevity of your roof.
Architectural shingles, for example, last on average about 10 years longer than standard shingles. They’re thicker, with a different installation method than the standard three-tab shingles, which gives them a better appearance and a longer life.
Standing seam metal roofs are also growing in popularity amongst homeowners for the simple reason that this type of roof can last for a lot longer with less maintenance than a traditional asphalt shingle roof. If you have a modern or rustic home, this style of roof fits right in and can last twice as long as an asphalt roof. Metal shingles are also available to give you a more traditional look, but with the same longevity as well.
If you have an historic home, and want to put the money into it, copper and slate roofs can last for a hundred years or more. These materials are expensive and difficult to find a contractor for, but their longevity and relative low maintenance combined with their beauty makes them well worth it for many homeowners.

Invest in Your Roof

There’s a lot riding on your roof, from the way your house looks to how well it holds up to the elements. Make sure your roof lasts as long as possible by investing in these methods. Over time, you’ll find it more than worth the effort.

For any other tips on how to make your home remodeling a breeze, Classic Construction
is available for all your Richmond remodeling services. To learn more, give us a call at 804-776-5070 or fill out our online form for a free consultation.

Author: Classic Construction

Established in 2001, Classic Construction has since become one of the leading Richmond remodeling companies. With decades in the home improvement industry, Brian Holder, company president, is intimately involved with every project and works with our vendors and installation crews to ensure every job runs smoothly and meets our high standards of quality and customer satisfaction.

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Super-Smart Lighting Ideas to Brighten Your Home

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Everyone knows that lighting is one of the most important parts of an interior design. A room without a lot of natural or artificial light can feel dark, cramped, and oppressive. In other words, it becomes a place that no one wants to be in.
There are three general types of lighting that you need to consider when designing a room’s interior
1.  Ambient lighting
2. Accent lighting
3. Task lighting
Using all three together is the best way to brighten up any room. To ensure that your room’s design is as bright and functional as possible, try combining a few of these super-smart lighting ideas throughout your home.

1. Ambient Lighting Ideas

Ambient lighting permeates the entire room. Richmond replacement windows give you ambient light, as do lights that are installed on or in your ceiling. This is the light that you turn on as soon as you enter a room, and no matter what other light you may have installed there, ambient lighting is usually always on when you’re using a space. Good ambient lighting should illuminate the entire area evenly, yet be in the background of the design at the same time.

kitchen lighting
A few tricks to ensuring that your ambient lighting is up to the task of brightening a room include:

  • Using mirrors opposite natural light sources in dark rooms to double the amount of natural light in the space
  • Using a combination of recessed lighting and domed ceiling lighting fixtures within the same room – recessed lighting gets you some of the best ambient lighting around, while a few well placed domed fixtures give your room a little extra style and interest
  • Using dual fixtures in one room – this used to be a no-no, but new trends in lighting are emerging that say that it’s totally fine to install two fixtures – even if they don’t match – at opposite ends of a room to bring in more light
  • Using decorative track lighting in modern homes – follow the lines of your furnishings, counters, or cabinets with the track to add style as well as light

2.  Accent Lighting Ideas

Accent lighting is the additional light that brightens a room while decorating and highlighting the space at the same time. Accent lighting can take on a few different personas. Sconces on either side of your bathroom mirror, pendant lighting above a kitchen peninsula or dining room table, and recessed spot lights above wall art are all examples of accent lighting. They are illuminating a specific spot in the room to help show it off and brighten a smaller area.

accent lighting
A few new trends and smart ideas in accent lighting you can try in your home include:

  • Hanging drum pendants in sleek, minimalist designs as part of the trend sweeping through kitchens and dining areas of modern and transitional homes
  • Using sconces and pendants that have a white finish to them – the white color is not only unobtrusive and unlikely to go out of style, it also makes the entire space look brighter
  • Making your accent lighting part of your décor by using industrial and global inspirations such as art glass, etched metal finishes, and warmer metal tones to draw the eye to the fixture and make it more than just a source of light
  • Using lanterns designed for the indoors – people have been bringing outdoor lanterns in for years and manufacturers have finally listened with a brand-new line of indoor lanterns that really cast a lot of bright light, while adding a unique accent and style to a room

 

3.  Task Lighting Ideas

Task lighting is one of the most important, and yet overlooked types of lighting in the home. This is the light that illuminates only the area that you are currently working in – and nowhere else. Under cabinet lighting in your kitchen or a reading lamp on your desk are great examples of task lighting. The idea behind task lighting is that you while you could use the space without it, why should you have to? Task lighting makes it easier to see areas that may get cast into shadow, particularly during times of day when there isn’t any natural lighting around such as in the evening.

taks lighting
Smart ideas and trends in task lighting include:

  • Using bright white light fixtures in areas such as under cabinet lighting to provide the most natural looking light to darker areas
  • Installing long lights or tube lights beneath cabinets rather than small recessed or touch lights, because they give you more even lighting over the entire area
  • Installing adjustable sconces on or just above the headboard of your bed to give you perfectly placed reading light
  • Using bathroom sconces that have long, flexible necks to allow you to move the light closer or further from the mirror so you can get the right amount of lighting for the task at hand

Enhance Your Interiors

Lighting is one of those areas of design that don’t get nearly as much emphasis as they should. The best lights are the ones that illuminate your home so perfectly that you never feel like you’re in the shadows, regardless of where or when you’re working in the home. In addition, good lighting should complement the rest of your décor, fitting seamlessly into your interior design. Pay a little extra attention to your lighting choices throughout your home and make better use of your entire space.
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For any other tips on how to make your home remodeling
a breeze, Classic Construction
is available for all your Richmond remodeling services. To learn more, give us
a call at 804-776-5070 or fill out our online form for a free consultation.

Author: Classic Construction

Established in 2001, Classic Construction has since become one of the leading Richmond remodeling companies. With decades in the home improvement industry, Brian Holder, company president, is intimately involved with every project and works with our vendors and installation crews to ensure every job runs smoothly and meets our high standards of quality and customer satisfaction.

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How to Create a Tech-Ready Home

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How to Create a Tech-Ready Home 
As home technology becomes more and more important to day to day living, have you given any thought to how tech-ready your house is? Many people assume that all they need is a wireless internet connection, maybe a cable and phone connection, and they’re set. This is far from the case, however.
tech ready home
Today’s tech-ready home opens the door to dozens of different possibilities, including giving your TVs and gaming systems internet access without the restrictions and lag time that wireless can bring. Best of all, making your home tech-ready is much easier – and less expensive – than you may think when you work with our Richmond home remodelers.

What Does It Mean to Make a Home Tech-Ready?

Despite the massive changes in home technology that have occurred over the past 30 years, most homes are still being wired to regulations and standards set in the mid 1980s. This means that you have electrical outlets in every room, probably a minimum of five phone jacks, and maybe a few cable outlets as well. One of these cable outlets may be dedicated for your internet usage, allowing you to plug a modem into the wall that you can then use to either get wireless internet from, or to plug your computer into.
A tech-ready home is different. These homes have hard-wire internet capabilities in every room of the house, letting you plug your computer, TV, or gaming system straight into the wall. No more lag time when you’re playing a game, and no more buffering when you’re streaming on Netflix; hard-wired internet connections have far fewer delays when processing large amounts of information.
In addition, tech-ready homes are also optimized for other home technologies, including:

  • Audio systems that lets you play music through speakers in any room of the house and send new music to any of your collections seamlessly
  • Integrated security systems that help protect your home
  • Automation of your security cameras, lights, and heating cooling systems with access from your Smartphone
  • Home networking that lets you connect all the devices and printers in your home on one network so you can get things done faster

What’s Included in a Tech-Ready Home?

To ensure that your home is tech-ready there is a basic set of components that you should have installed. This ensures that no matter where you go in the home, you can access the technologies you need. At a minimum, a tech-ready home will have:

  • A cabinet or HUB, with many homes having two
  • Five telephone wires or five phone jacks
  • Five television wires or cable ports
  • Six internet or data wires or internet jacks
  • One prewire for a security system

Getting Your Home Tech-Ready

If you’re ready to get the latest in home-technology, the whole process is much easier than you may think. The national average cost to get your home tech-ready runs around $5 a square foot, with fluctuations occurring depending on where you live and what additional services you may require.
Most electricians and home technology contractors can wire your home in less than a day. That means that you could wake up one morning and have trouble streaming the news, and go to bed that night listening to music from your hardwired bedrooms speakers while you effortlessly stream Apple TV.

Get Tech Ready

Having a tech-ready home means that your home is wired to the specifications made by companies like Panasonic, Sony, and Apple so that you can make better use of their devices. Don’t settle for home wiring systems that are stuck in the 20 century; make better, smarter use of your home technology by having your home tech-ready, and be prepared for the future. 

For any other tips on how to make your home remodeling a breeze, Classic Construction is available for all your Richmond remodeling services. To learn more, give us a call at 804-776-5070 or fill out our online form for a free consultation.

 

Author: Classic Construction

Established in 2001, Classic Construction has since become one of the leading Richmond remodeling companies. With decades in the home improvement industry, Brian Holder, company president, is intimately involved with every project and works with our vendors and installation crews to ensure every job runs smoothly and meets our high standards of quality and customer satisfaction.

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6 Ways to Reduce Energy Costs In Your Home

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6 Ways to Reduce Energy Costs In Your Home
As energy prices continue to rise and authorities predict another winter with record cold temperatures, your thoughts are probably turning to your energy bill and what it’s going to look like in a few months time. But what if your bill could be lower in just a few months, rather than higher?

According to studies done on home energy improvements, for every dollar that you spend on home improvements to reduce energy costs in your home, you’ll save about seven. That’s a big savings in your pocket every month just by investing in these six home energy improvements.

Energy improvement can be made throughout your home. The type of returns you’ll see will depend largely on the age of your home and the shape it was in prior to the improvements. These six energy cost reduction methods should help you see lower bills year round.

Improve Attic Insulation

Most homes have inadequate insulation. Some older homes never had enough to begin with, and in many homes the insulation has degraded, been moved by contractors, or been rearranged by pests and animals. This means that you’re probably losing heat from the places you need it most.

Attic insulation can help your home hold onto heat in the winter. It can also prevent the super-heated attic air in the summer from sinking through the ceiling and into the rest of your home. You’ll notice lower energy bills and a more comfortable temperature year round just with this one improvement.

Don’t Forget Crawl Space Insulation

Crawl spaces, nooks, crannies, and walls all need to have adequate insulation as well, or your hard earned money will just pour out of the house. If your home is older, chances are these places have no insulation in them at all, so adding some will give you a major boost in energy efficiency and comfort.

Newer types of insulation can be blown right into your walls and crawl spaces as well, so the whole process is minimally invasive and less time consuming than you may think.

Install Thermal Windows

Windows are one of the biggest sources of energy loss in the home. It’s estimated that poorly insulated and sealed windows could be losing you as much as 40% of the energy you use to heat and cool your home. New advancements in window technologies can lower your energy bill by 20% just by switching out your old panes for new thermal versions Richmond replacement windows.

photo

Thermal windows have double or triple paned glass, often with a Low-E coating that helps them insulate better. Windows with argon gas between the panes also insulate better to help save you more money.

If you already have thermal windows, make sure you check them for air gap. Air gap or a poor air seal accounts for the other 20% of energy lost through windows and doors. Having them sealed up will seriously lower your energy bills.

Use High Efficiency HVAC Systems

The system you use to heat and cool your home is responsible for a large portion of your energy bill. If yours is 10 years old or older, you can see a very significant reduction in your energy bill by upgrading to a new model.

For air conditioning units, look for a high SEER number. SEER stands for Seasonal Energy Efficiency Rating and each point you go up in SEER saves you about 10% on your energy bill.

For your furnace, look for the Energy Star logo. Every certified furnace is guaranteed to save at least 4% on your energy bill over older models.

When you have your system installed, be sure to have your ducts checked and cleaned as well. Dirty and leaky ducts can lose as much as 20% of the energy your HVAC system is putting out. So get them cleaned and sealed to stop the energy loss.

Replace Your Toilets

Think about how many times you flush your toilet each day. Now consider how much water your toilet is using with each flush. Most toilets use about 1.6 gallons of water with each flush, but if your toilet was installed before 1994, it could use 3 gallons or more per flush. Newer models use roughly 1.3 gallons and some high efficiency models by Toto use only 1 gallon per flush. This may not sound like much of a reduction, but by switching you can save up to 4,000 gallons of water per year in a normal household. That’s a major savings on your water bill each month.

Replace Your Showerheads

Think about how long you stand in the shower each day. Now think about how long each member of your family uses the shower for. Multiply every minute of shower use by seven – the average number of gallons per minute that most older showerheads put out. That’s a lot of water going down the drain each day.

Newer water saving showerheads use 2.5 gallons of water per minute. Do the math again, and you’ll find a major reduction in water usage each day from this one small change. And don’t worry; new shower technology means that you won’t notice a reduction in pressure or flow from the switch, although your wallet certainly will.

Reduce Your Energy Costs in Home Today

Most of these changes don’t take a lot of time to do, and remember that nearly every investment you make in improving your energy usage will pay for itself over a very short period of time. Make the change today to start improving your energy usage and see what kind of savings you can accrue.

For any other tips on how to make your home remodeling
a breeze, Classic Construction
is available for all your Richmond remodeling services. To learn more, give us
a call at 804-776-5070 or fill out our online form for a free consultation.

Author: Classic Construction

Established in 2001, Classic Construction has since become one of the leading Richmond remodeling companies. With decades in the home improvement industry, Brian Holder, company president, is intimately involved with every project and works with our vendors and installation crews to ensure every job runs smoothly and meets our high standards of quality and customer satisfaction.

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