Home Improvement Weatherization Tips

Weatherization is an important home improvement project that every home owner should know something about. Weatherization serves a few purposes. It will help you save money on heating and cooling, protect your home from the weather and improve the look and feel of your home. Weatherization mainly focuses on finding and fixing air leaks, but it can also include replacing old heating and cooling units, windows and doors.

The first step[ in weatherization is focusing on finding air leaks. The most common air leaks will occur around windows, doors and along walls. Any air leak found should be noted so they can be fixed. The easiest time to check for air leaks is on a windy day when the temperature is mild. That way you can easily hold your hand up to the area and feel the air leak. It is important to also note when an area feels very cold. It may not have a small air leak, but a large one that just lets huge amounts of cold in.

Once all the air leaks are found you should go back and decide how to fix them. Windows are usually covered in plastic or caulked, if they are in otherwise good shape. Any broken or damaged windows should be fixed or replaced. Doors can usually be sealed with special tape or other product designed to help doors seal better. Wall leaks can usually be easily caulked to stop air leaks.

Other weatherization you may want to do is to check the siding and fix any broken or missing pieces. You might consider upgrading your furnace or heating unit if it is old. Pipes should be wrapped or well insulated to prevent water freezing in them, which can lead to even bigger problems.

The bottom line of weatherization is locking the weather out. Heating and cooling is not cheap and by sealing a home against the outside weather can help keep costs down. There are many products on the market that make weatherization simple. It is a home improvement project that is money well spent because in the end it will save you money.

Planning a Fencing Home Improvement Project

Many home owners wish to add a fence to their property. Fences serve many purposes and in order to choose the type of fence that you want to build you need to know why you want to build a fence in the first place. Once you determine the purpose of your fence you need to decide on the style. By doing your fencing home improvement project this way you will ensure that the fence you build will meet your needs and your desires.

There are a variety of reasons people build a fence. Sometimes it is for protection or to keep a dog in. It may be for privacy or to block strong winds. You may want to build a fence just for looks, too. Chances are that you already know why you want to build a fence, but be sure you consider all the reasons a fence would be nice. You may be building a fence to keep your dog secure, but you may also decide that blocking a strong wind is a good idea ,too. So you will need to build a fence that will both keep your dog in and block the wind.

Once you have your purpose in mind you need to consider the style of your fence. There are some common styles people choose. There are privacy fences, which are very tall and sturdy fences. They are solid, block wind and serve to keep your yard private and off limits to others. There are picket fences that are usually used for their traditional look. They are easy to get around, though, since they have space between the boards and are usually no taller than four feet. Besides these two common types there are a range of fences that offer privacy, protection and security, as well as, being pleasing to the eye.

Now that you have decided on the type of fence you are going to build, all that is left to do is purchase materials and start building. Depending on the size and length of the fence, it could take as a little as a day to as much as a month to build the fence. You should keep in mind that good weather is a must. It is very hard to dig into frozen ground, so plan ahead for easy building.