Real Estate

A swimming pool at a residence can be a fantastic amenity for the entire family to enjoy. However, accidents and injuries may occur in and around a pool, and there are several safety precautions that homeowners and residents may choose to follow. Here are four helpful tips to stay safe around a residential pool.

1. Be Cautious While Walking

The ground area around the water will likely be very wet, very often. It is important to exercise caution while walking near the edge of a pool to avoid a slip-and-fall accident. It may be advantageous for a homeowner to consider installing mats or slip-resistant flooring in the backyard to help prevent any accidents. (And it may also be beneficial to shy away from running near the water.)

2. Schedule Regular Maintenance

It may be useful to schedule regular upkeep of the pool – such as maintenance by a pool service company Sarasota Fl – for example. It’s a good idea to ensure that certain cleaning chemicals like chlorine are consistently evaluated to protect the health of swimmers.

3. Install Security Gates

It is critical for security gates to be installed if small children are in or around the residence. Pool safety gates may significantly help prevent accidents that could result in a tragedy. It may be important to note that even if a family does not have children, a safety fence could protect a child or an individual in the neighborhood who is unable to swim, if they unexpectedly wander near the pool.

4. Avoid Swimming Alone

Finally, it may be beneficial to swim with a partner and avoid swimming alone. Even the most experienced swimmers could have an accident, or a health-related issue could arise while alone in the water. Therefore, err on the side of caution and enjoy

Replacing the roof on your home usually requires a significant investment, and it can be easy to prioritize other home improvement projects over getting a new roof. However, your roof is one of the most important parts of your home in terms of security, insulation, and protection for the weather. In certain cases, replacing your roof may be the project that offers the highest return on investment.

1. After a Storm

Some of the most common weather events that lead to roof damage include hail, heavy snow, wind, and long-term sun exposure. It’s generally a good idea to go up and check on your roof after a storm to see if there are broken or missing shingles. If you notice damage, you may want to consider replacing instead of repairing your roof. Talking to your home insurance provider and roofing littleton co contractors can help you understand the overall cost and benefits of a replacement roof.

2. When You Notice Leaks

If you start noticing water damage on your ceiling or in an attic, it’s important to check on your roof right away. Leaks can come from a variety of sources including missing shingles, cracks, and rotten wood. Before you can decide if you need to replace your roof or just schedule a repair, you need to know what is causing the problem. If you aren’t able to see any major issues, you may want to call a roofer to ask for an inspection and quote.

3. If You Want to Reduce Utility Bills

Many modern roofing materials are more energy-efficient than older shingles. If you are looking for ways to reduce your energy consumption, you may want to consider a new roof. Energy-efficient roofing materials can improve your home’s insulation, reducing the need for heating and air conditioning.

Even

If you purchase a new home, you may want to think about the dangers of radon gas. Radon gas is an odorless and radioactive gas. It is the breakdown of uranium and may be found in rock, soil and water. When broken down, uranium builds up in the air and causes negative health effects. Fortunately, as a homeowner, there is something that you can do about it.

The Dangers of Radon

Radon is incredibly damaging and dangerous to humans and animals alike. Radon gas enters the body and exposes the lungs to radiation. In small quantities, this may not cause any damage. However, in persistent exposure or in large quantities it can pose a risk. It can damage the cell lining of the lungs and increases the chance that a person may develop lung cancer.

How to Protect Against Radon

The best way to protect against radon is to have the radon test performed. Is there radon testing Atlanta GA residents can depend on? There absolutely is! While you can purchase radon testing kits for your home, it may be more through and beneficial to hire a service to perform the test for you. There are two types of testing. There is long term and short term testing.

Once you know that radon is a problem, you can get rid of radon by hiring a specialist. The radon levels can be lowered through ventilation. Specialists may use passive or active methods to reduce the radon levels in your home.

While radon may sound scary to new homebuyers, there are options to take care of it. With radon testing, you can find out if your property has radon. If it does, don’t worry, there are ways that you can take care of it. As long as you take care of the

Winter weather brings cold days and nights, but do you know what the cold weather terms mean and how to protect yourself against the damage the harsh weather can cause? Here are five ridiculously cold weather conditions you should be aware of.

Sleet Possibility

When rain freezes, it can become freezing rain, sheet ice, or sleet. All of these conditions can cause downed power lines, damage to homes, dangerous driving situations, and hazardous living conditions. Utilities are often knocked out when rain freezes.

Severe Weather Warning

No matter where you live, severe weather can occur, and often it happens at a moment’s notice. With the warning comes dangerous climate situations that can cause deadly conditions. To stay safe, when a severe weather warning is declared, stay inside out of the emergency conditions that could kill you.

Blizzard Warning

When winds gusts at 35 miles an hour and are accompanied by heavy snow, it is called a blizzard. When blizzard conditions continue for more than an hour, a warning is often issued to prevent you from moving into a dangerous driving situations.

Extreme Cold Advisory

When winter weather becomes colder than normal for the area, an extreme cold alarm or warning is issued to warn residents of possible frostbite, hypothermia, and heart attacks. The extreme cold conditions can snap utility lines, disrupt communication, and freeze water pipes. If you experience plumbing issues due to cold weather, call the plumbing companies Geneva IL as soon as possible.

Avalanche Alert

An avalanche can occur any time there is a surplus of heavy snow in an area with a 30 degree or greater slope. The top snow begins to move, and as it slips down the mountain or hill, it can build up speed until it becomes a solid entity that can hit like

When you’re working on site, you have a lot to balance. Not only does your crew need to stay on project, you need to make sure you’re complying with any local regulations, environmental concerns, and conditions of access to the land you’re on. If your business takes you onto public property with resource extraction contracts, these concerns are even greater. Whether you’re operating on a site you own or leasing access to land, you’re going to need to be ready to deal with each of those obstacles. Luckily, industrial wastewater treatment is easier than ever, with portable treatment units you can bring to your project so you remain in compliance with everyone’s expectations for your operation.

Dewatering Services

If you’re concerned about the process of treating your wastewater or dewatering areas you need to work in, there is an option that takes it out of your hands. You can always take a step beyond just leasing equipment and hire a service provider. This does come with some obligations to oversee the operation, but oversight is usually a simpler process than having to design and implement your own treatment protocols. You’ll need to make sure you understand the tolerances you’re working with for each class of contaminant to know whether or not your contractor is in compliance, after all. There’s also recycling and reclamation to consider.

Reclaim Materials

Proper water treatment does more than just protect the environment, it can also be a way to reclaim spent materials that could be recycled into another useful form. Often, processes that create sludge leave rare elements in it, and proper dewatering is the first step toward getting access to those elements so they can be put to use in other operations. The most efficient way to get value from this reclamation tends to

Looking to refresh your outdoor space? No matter the season or space limitations, check out these quick and easy ideas to turn your backyard into a year-round oasis.

Furniture Refresh

Do your weekends consist of grassy games of fetch out back with your pup? Or perhaps a glass of wine with friends on a covered patio? Regardless of your outdoor uses, every living space needs furniture. If you are tired of your current outdoor style, a simple fix is to upgrade your seating. Outdoor furniture is easily accessible at a variety of stores, all at various price points. Determine the sort of seating you need, whether it be a large sofa or a space-saving swinging chair, and then start shopping. Keep in mind comfort and practicality while searching, along with color tones that will last year-round. For example, consider neutral sofa cushions that you can re-style all year long with seasonal pillows. Throw in some all-weather blankets to keep you and your guests comfortable and on-trend.

Turn Up the Heat

Regardless of the season, everyone loves to gather around the fire for a warm and cozy night. Consider adding a fire pit, outdoor fireplace, or decorative fire screen to your backyard to increase both style and ambiance for year-round nightly entertaining. You can also increase the heat with an outdoor kitchen salsa bar, or stoke the flames with spicy chops atop a grill.

Natural Improvements

Enhance your backyard with natural landscape upgrades. Consider replacing old patches of grass, planting fresh beds of flowers, or installing a new sprinkler system to keep things green and healthy. If you aren’t a natural green thumb, consider adding a few low maintenance hanging plants to your patio area instead.

Bring your family and friends together all year long with a refreshed outdoor space.

When you think of security for your home, you may envision cameras or an expensive anti-theft system. While those are effective ideas, there are other ways to create a sense of security and privacy to your property while adding to its allure. Here are several ways to secure your personal space while improving the look of your home.

Strategically Placed Outdoor Lighting

Installing outdoor lighting Orlando is an easy and effective way to increase security around the outside of your house. Not only can you add the customary floodlights with motion sensors, but consider spotlights and landscaping lights. These types of lights look beautiful at night and also illuminate all areas of your yard providing peace-of-mind.

Vinyl and Wood Fencing

One of the most popular ways to protect your yard is to put up fencing. Today’s vinyl and wood fences come in many different designs. You can place solar lights on post caps and stain wooden fences whatever color you desire. Adding hanging plants to the fence gives your yard a secret garden feel. A locking gate will keep everything safe.

Hedges and Greenery

Many people opt for a natural barrier to enclose an area. Planting a hedge line, or a row of cypress or arborvitae is reminiscent of Tuscany, a look that inspires many. On a similar scale, you can also construct a trellis that will form a dense wall of greenery, filled with lush vines.

An Iron Gate

Adding a wrought iron gate to the outside of your front door instantly creates elegance and security. With a locked gate, you can leave your front door open allowing fresh air to flow through the house without worrying about a break-in.

A Sense of Security

Instilling a sense of security and privacy at home is important for you and

Have you ever become violently aware of just how outdated your home is? For example, as you lie in bed and gaze around your shabby chic bedroom set, you might suddenly realize that you bought it in 1997 — and that it’s looking more shabby than chic these days. Looks like it’s time to start making changes in your decor!

Color Swap

The first step to making your home feel fresh again is getting a new color on the walls. Sure, the dark Tuscan brown might have been in style fifteen years ago, but today it makes your kitchen feel like a cave.

• If you’re not sure what color combination works well together, check out an online color swatch generator. These are fun little widgets that can help you pick accent colors that flow.
• Check to see what’s trending in decor colors if you want to be fashion-forward. Remember that trends come and go, so be wary of being on top of it every second of the day.

Replace Furniture — Slowly

Unless you feel like dropping a lot of money all at once, it’s best to pace yourself when you’re buying new furniture for your home. Look at all your pieces and decide what is in the worst shape and needs replacing most urgently.

• If you inherited your sofa from your mother (who bought it in 1984), it’s probably time for a new one. Your furniture needs to be brought to this millennium, so pick old, worn-out pieces and replace those first (so long as they are not cherished antiques).
• Your mattress is an essential piece of furniture because it determines your overall quality of sleep. If yours is old, creaky, uncomfortable and an overall annoyance, get rid of it.

Bringing your home into the 21st century

If your kitchen needs an upgrade, there are endless possibilities for refreshing its look. Whether you’re aiming for style or function, it’s important to create the renovation plan that caters to all of your goals and wishes. Here are some kitchen remodeling ideas that can give you the inspiration you need to get started.

Refresh Your Counters

There are many options for changing up the look of your counters. Whether you opt for granite or marble countertops Tampa, choose a design that accents your kitchen cabinets, walls or floors. By tastefully designing your counters, you can add a nice touch to the rest of the room and grab the attention of anyone who enters.

Add an Island

A kitchen island can be useful in many different ways. Besides preparing food on the island, you can add seating around it or even store some of your dishes inside it. When choosing the right island for your kitchen, be sure to consider the size of the room as well as the layout. An island can also give your guests an extra place to sit and enjoy the food that you’ve prepared for them.

Focus on Storage

The key to creating a polished space is minimizing as much clutter as possible. Instead of leaving your various tools and appliances out on the counters, make sure that they have a designated place to go. As you work on your renovation project, create ample space for your belongings that you can easily access at any time.

Upgrade Your Appliances

A kitchen renovation project won’t be complete without a new set of appliances. Whether you’re searching for a new refrigerator, dishwasher or microwave, be sure to choose efficient appliances that can make your job easier. You can even look into energy-efficient appliances that may help