Category: Guest Blog Posts

7 Tips on Furnishing Your Orlando Apartment on a Budget

Posted on by John Conde

Do you want to change the way your apartment looks, but you don’t have so much money to make the changes? Well, in a city like Orlando where rent can get high, you might want to redecorate on a budget. Luckily, there are some easy ways to do this:

1. Combine Your Coffee Table & Storage

Swap out the coffee table for a small table with storage drawers. There, you can put a few books or some personal items, and easily hide them away when company visits. This way, you will have a coffee table and storage space rolled into one.

2. Accent Walls with Plates

If your walls are drab, hang colored plates on the walls. This can give your apartment a punch of color without spending hundreds of dollars on painters. Arrange the plates in an asymmetric pattern to compliment an accent wall.

3. Create a Comfortable Seating Area

Lighten the feel of the room with some light chairs or fluffy pillows. This way, when your friends come over for drinks, they have a comfortable seating area for gathering.

4. Add Wood Décor Pieces

Look for neutral colors and earthy decorations if you want to create a welcoming atmosphere. Wood is beautiful, and if you have some furniture pieces made of it you don’t have to paint it.

5. Bring in Warm Colors to the Bedroom

The bedroom is your retreat from a stressful day. Here you can create a comforting atmosphere by selecting warm and comforting colors for the walls. It’s best to stay away from dark colors when it comes to the bedroom.

6. Hang Up Family Photos

Create a photo gallery by framing some of your favorite prints and hang them on an accent wall. This spot can become a great place for you to curl up and reflect on some good memories.

7. Light Some Candles

For romance, add some candles into the equation. Candles are great for relaxation, and allow you to forget about the stressful work-day.

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The different kinds of roofing

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

A very important part of constructing any building is deciding on the kind of roofing to be used. This decision is important since roofs would not only protect your family but the kind of roofing you choose would also decide on the amount you have to spend later on maintenance ad replacement. The kind of roof differs not only by the materials but also by shapes and structures. The area or the geographical location of the building for which you are deciding the roofing for has a big role to play in making the decision. Let me explain.

For example, suppose you are staying in a geographical location that experiences heavy snowfall every year. For such an area, it is not only best but the only practical solution to go for a slanted roofing structure. The reason is if you choose a flat roofing structure, heavy snowfall can result in the breaking of your roofing. A slanting roof would ensure that there are no accumulations of snow on the roof. The same is true for areas that experiences heavy rainfall as well. You can go for flat roofs in areas that usually have a moderate weather throughout the year.

There are different materials of roofing too like concrete, asbestos, and so on to name a few. You can choose the material of your roofing based on your needs, budget as well as the exterior décor of your home or office. The kind of roofing material you choose would ensure the kind of maintenance effort and money you have to put in later on. Hence it is advised that you collect as much information as possible on the different kinds of roofing available in the market in your locality and make a well informed decision. You can take the help of the Internet to collect information or visit the local roofing shops as well.

After you have decided on the kind of roofing you want to go with for your home or office, you need to hire contractors for installation. You can do it yourself as well. But it would not only take much time and effort but the work might not be as per your own liking standard. It is better to hire a professional contractor company specializing in installing roofs since it would be safer for the people who would be staying under the roof as well. Make sure you hire a contractor who is experienced in the work of installing roofs and has all the licenses as well as insurances in place.

For maintenance of your roofs, you can either ask your contractor for information or the homestead roofing company from where you have bought your roofing material from or take the help of the Internet. The contractors and the stores can advise you on maintenance of the roof since they deal with the roofing materials and hence have all the knowledge. The Internet too has blogs and discussion forums where such knowledgeable people can help you as well.

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How to Fix a Faucet Like a Plumber

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

Plumbing is not easy. That’s why you pay considerable amounts of money to hire a plumber when your home’s plumbing system encounters a problem. And this demand for plumbers will only increase as the trend continues of less and less men teaching their sons (or daughters) basic household maintenance techniques. So what if you can’t afford to drop the coin when your faucet springs a leak. Don’t worry! We have you covered. You’ll just need a pocket knife, metal washer, and a screwdriver to get the job done.

1) Turn off the water source

First things first: you’ll need to cut off the source of the water supplying your sink. In some cases, this might be as simple as opening the cupboard under your sink and turning a knob. You might, however, have to turn off the entire house’s water supply. If you don’t know quite how to do this, there’s a full guide here.

2) You might have to pry off the handle insert

This won’t be necessary for every faucet, but in some cases, the handle insert prevents access to the faucet’s screws. Pry this off using the pocket knife, digging up under the front panel of the insert to release it from the faucet base.

3) Unscrew the handle

As you might have already guessed, this is where the screwdriver comes into play. You will have to unscrew the handle from the wall. The handle has a tendency to get stuck, but heating the area, either through hot air or water, can help in removing it.

4) Replace the old washer

The source of leaky faucets tends to be a faulty washer, so you will probably have to replace yours. This is an incredibly cheap part to replace, and your local hardware store can help you find the correct washer size for your specific faucet. After you have acquired a new, correctly sized washer, replace the old one with the new one.

5) Put the handle and insert it back on

Now that the hard part is over, we are just backtracking. Screw the handle back in and firmly place the handle insert back into place. Take care not to screw the handle in too tightly. Think snug fit rather than a vice grip.

6) Turn on the water

Once everything is back in place, test your newly found plumbing prowess by turning the water back on. If the leak is gone, you’re good to go. Congratulations! If the leak remains, the joke is on you (sorry); you’re going to have to call a local plumber after all.

Best of luck!

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