Home Improvement in Boston: The Full Dormer

Posted by: Tim White
Posted on: Monday, April 20, 2009 at 9:33 am
Categories: Developments, Zoning, Education, Curb Appeal, Lifestyle, West Roxbury
Home Improvement in Boston: The Full Dormer

Hi Folks! This week Isellboston.TV begins the first in a series of home improvement videos which will focus on a variety of home improvement topics over time. This week, and for the next 2 weeks, our attention will focus on the process a homeowner in Boston must go through to place a full dormer on his or her home. Robert Holley of Sturges Rd. in West Roxbury has been kind enough to let us chronicle the project at his house and videotape the event from start to finish. Here is episode 1. Enjoy.

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How to Make Your Home “Green”

Posted by: Veronique Mendelson
Posted on: Friday, June 1, 2007 at 5:51 am
Categories: Home Buying, Education, Lifestyle, Curb Appeal, Education, Curb Appeal, Lifestyle, Likestyle, Home Buying, Curb Appeal, Education, Home Buying, Jamaica Plain

Clearly, the environmental movement has gone beyond tree huggers, Al Gore and your Dad telling you to turn off the lights because he didn’t own the electric company.

We generally seem to be more aware of the environmental impact when it comes to our cars, and a lot of manufacturers are already building eco-friendly vehicles, but some states also build green homes.  In fact, more than 25% of re-modelers say consumers sought environmentally sensitive upgrades last year, compared to just 6% the year before, according to a study by NAHB (National Association of Home Builders) almost 80% of Americans consider themselves “green minded”.

The U.S. Green Building Council defines a “green home” as one that incorporates features that result in it:HomeGreen

  • using less energy
  • using less water
  • using fewer natural resources in construction
  • creating less waste
  • having better indoor air quality

Here are a few ways to make your home greener:

ENERGY EFFICIENT WINDOWS

By replacing windows with Energy Star windows, you save on energy bills by helping to keep heat inside during the winter and outside during the summer.  These windows may have two or more panes of glass, warm-edge spacers between the windowpanes, improved framing materials, and Low-E coatings (microscopically thin metal or metallic oxide layers deposited on windows to reduce heat flow).

ECO-FRIENDLY FLOORING

Bamboo, cork and eucalyptus flooring products are all excellent choices for the home as they are sustainable alternatives to the slower growing hardwoods.  These products mature in roughly half the time that it takes hardwoods to grow.  They are also stylish and affordable.

COMPACT FLUORESCENT LIGHT BULBS (CFL)

This type of light bulb is a simple way of making a big change at a low cost in the energy efficiency of your home. Most home improvement stores carry these bulbs, which use 70% less energy than regular bulbs and can save $30 or more in energy costs over each bulb’s lifetime.

ENERGY STAR PRODUCTS

If you are in the market to upgrade any of your major appliances, consider purchasing an Energy Star-rated product.  Qualified refrigerators, dishwashers and vent fans incorporate advanced technologies that use 10-50% less energy and water than standard models, more than making up for their slightly higher costs.

TANK-LESS WATER HEATERS

Tank-less water heaters provide hot water on demand at a preset temperature rather than storing it.  Alternatively, replacing an electric water heater with a solar model can reduce costs by up to 80% a year, and over the 20-year lifespan of the appliance will prevent more than 50 tons of carbon dioxide emissions.

MORE EFFICIENT TOILETS

New toilets have redesigned bowls and tanks that use less water but function more efficiently than first-generation low-flow models.  In the average home, flushing toilets accounts for some 30% of water usage.  New efficient models can reduce that use up to 25%.

HOME INSULATION

Increasing the amount and R-Value (the measure of thermal resistance) of insulation is a cost-effective way to save energy and help reduce heating and cooling bills, which account for at least half of the energy use in the home.

To learn more about energy innovation, you may download the illustration above at: http://www.nahb.org/fileUpload_details.aspx?contentID=62120

As Spring is all around us and everything looks green and beautiful, it is easier to think about the environment and what we all may be able to do to preserve it!

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Preparing for that open House–Tips for Cleaning the Garage

Posted by: Maureen Hayes Rossi
Posted on: Thursday, May 31, 2007 at 6:06 am
Categories: Curb Appeal, Home Selling, Curb Appeal, Home Selling, Curb Appeal, Jamaica Plain, Home Selling, Uncategorized

“Honey, the garage needs to be straightened out for the open house next weekend!”

O.K., so what does “Honey” do now?

For folks selling their property, a scenario like this one and the question of how to prepare the whole property for showing (including the garage if you have one) is common.  Often, homeowners use their garage for additional storage so cleaning it up and preparing it for a public showing can indeed be a huge undertaking.

Let’s break it down into manageable steps.

Take out the car, lawn mowers, bikes, assorted sports equipment, gardening tools, snow implements, etc.

  1. Sweep the floor, wash the windows.  Decide on the items returning to the space. Before refilling put items into 3 piles:
    • return to garage or shed items that you will keep
    • give away/return to “real” owner
    • sell or consignment shop.

Will you be purchasing or making storage shelves or bins?

Organize items returning to the space that are similar, sports together, tools on another wall, etc.  If you are moving this is the opportunity to box and label. 

Well done!

Now, step back and decide if the exterior needs attention.  Do the gutters need to be cleaned and have leaves removed? The doors working properly, hinges oiled, does the outside need a paint job or touch up?  Provided you have followed these steps, you have now taken care of a very valuable asset to your property–and are ready to showcase it to he world….

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