Mirror Installation Tips

March 21, 2012 By 2 Comments

Mirror installation sounds a lot harder than it is. If you have thought about installing a mirror, I have some great tips for you. Mirrors are striking and classy. I love a home with nice mirrors. Proper installation is important, and everyone wants the best results. Two-three people would be ideal for installing the mirror perfectly.

First of all, as always, safety comes first. Get yourself some good gloves before starting. Before installing the mirror, lay it out somewhere with enough room for you to see it clearly and do more work to it if need be. This way, mess ups are easier to notice, and then you can act accordingly, whether it is resizing it or cutting more of the edges.

After measuring correctly, set the mirror on the wall with enough space between the mirror and the wall, so that you have enough room to work with. Use a mechanical fastening unit with mastic, if you decide to use mastic. Proper ventilation is important while installing the mirror and for some time after. Lastly, mirrors should be the final installation when building/construction is done.

There are professionals who know a lot more than some mirror installation tips, and would be glad to help you install your new and beautiful mirror. If you don’t have the time, or simply do not want to do it yourself, maybe hiring a professional is a good idea. I did, but I am lazy. Good luck!

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Tips on Building a Carport

March 5, 2012 By 58 Comments

It rained and you left your windows down, it hailed and you left your car outside, it snowed and now your car is snowed in. I am sure all of us have said something like this at least a couple times a year. Save yourself the hassle and damage, and build a carport. There are many different building options. The options go on and on, and setting it up is easy as pie for almost any homeowner.

Always remember, planning is everything. First, you will need to check with your city’s municipality building department on the regulations, and also your utility company to clear the way for the digging. You wouldn’t want to hit any pipelines. Second, measure where the carport will go, then figure out what supplies you will need. Third, you will need to choose which design you would like, and if you are connecting it to your house, make a decision on how tall you want it to be. Buy the extra supplies you will need to build this specific design. Also, there are carport kits available to purchase! I didn’t even know this until I did my research. Oh, the wonders of doing research.

Like I mentioned, there are so many different choices you can go with, and each have their own instructions. I have read up on a lot of them, and it is generally the same idea, but different supplies sometimes require tactics. Pay attention to detail, especially measurements.

If you want to protect your car, boat, four wheeler, whatever it may be, and it is not in your budget to build it yourself, click here for some bids on carports that are cheaper and hassle-free.

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How to Stop an Overflowing Toilet

December 28, 2011 By 3 Comments

If the toilets in your home are consistently backing up or overflowing, you’ll want to call a plumber in case there’s an issue with your sewer lines or septic system. However, toilets can occasionally overflow due to heavy use, or if the system can’t handle certain items that have been flushed (see preventative maintenance below for a list of these items).

You can stop an overflowing toilet by following these simple steps:

1. Stop the Water by Pushing Down the Flapper Valve

To prevent the wastewater from overflowing onto your floor, you’ll want respond as quickly as possible. Remove the lid from the tank and look for a rubber valve at the bottom of the tank, near the middle. This is the flapper valve, which controls the water going into the bowl. Reaching in and pushing it down will prevent the water from going into the bowl and overflowing onto the floor. The flapper valve is not the same as the flush valve, which is connected to the handle by a chain; the flapper valve is underneath the flush valve. The water in the toilet tank is clean, so don’t worry about sticking your hand in to push the flapper valve.

2. Lift the Float to Stop the Tank from Refilling

Next, you’ll want to cut off the water from the toilet supply line so that the tank doesn’t continue to fill with water and overflow. Hold up the tank float until the water level recedes. Once the water is at a normal level, let go of the float; the tank should not continue to fill at this point.

3. Shut off the Main Toilet Water Supply Valve

If the tank continues to fill, shut off the toilet supply valve, which is also called the stop valve and is usually located near the floor behind the toilet. Once you’ve turned off the water supply, the toilet should not overflow. If the stop valve is stuck, don’t force it because it can break easily.
If you can’t turn the water supply valve, or you can’t find it, the next alternative is to look for the refill tube, which is the flexible tube connecting the water supply line (connected to the stop valve behind the toiled) to the vertical overflow tube in the middle of the tank. Pull the refill tube off of the overflow tube and let the water pour into the tank instead of the overflow tube. This prevents more water from going into the bowl. Call a plumber if this doesn’t work, or if other toilets or sinks in the house are backing up.

Preventative Maintenance

To help prevent backups and overflowing toilets, here a few of the common items that should not be flushed down the toilet. In general, you should never flush anything that could cause a blockage in your sewer lines.

• Cat litter
• Cigarettes
• Diapers
• Feminine products
• Food
• Harsh chemicals (including cleaning agents that could corrode soft metal pipes)
• Paper towels

A little common sense can save you a lot of trouble and help you avoid major plumbing problems in the future.

Pat writes for plumbers all across the country and tries to provide the average person with home improvement and DIY tips to make their lives easier. Check out Orange County, CA plumber Saddleback Plumbing, Heating & Air Conditioning’s blog for more information about how to handle plumbing emergencies.

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Cabinet Install

August 29, 2011 By 57 Comments

cabinet installationI recently purchased a rental property that needs some major rehab. Most of the home was in decent condition, but the kitchen was in disarray. Now I’m not sure what comes to your mind when you think of a kitchen in disaster state, but allow me to set the stage for you. The floor sparkled with 1970′s peel and stick tile. The walls were merely sheet rocked and there wasn’t a cabinet or fixture in site. When I tell you it was creating a space from scratch, I mean we were challenged with having to build a new kitchen.

I had never installed cabinets before and was a bit anxious. If I got this wrong, I could pull off half the wall, or worse, break someones fine china when my cabinet work came exploding off the shelf if installed improperly. Luckily, I had a few friends over who were a bit more familiar with cabinet hanging. One friend had a particularly genius idea. Trying to find studs in a wall can be like trying to find gold in the ocean… it’s possible but you might spend your entire life looking. What complicates this further is trying to hold up a solid wood cabinet and remembering where the studs were you found to begin with.

My friends solution was simple. Take a 1 by 4 and cut it in half at a 45 degree angle. Take one half of the board and drill into the wall securing it to the studs. Attach the other half of the board to the back of the cabinet. (Be sure to use a level here as your boards will need to be perfectly level and the height per-determined) Finishing us is a piece of cake. All you have to do is fit the cabinet into it’s partnering board on the wall and wa la! You cabinet is not sitting flush on the wall attached to studs. You job is not done however, be sure secure the cabinet to the wall so it’s not dangling waiting on a disaster.

This entire project took me a little over a week. If you don’t have patience or the skills to install your own cabinets, there are tons of good sources out there for you to look at. Click here to get 3 free bids on your next cabinet installation project!.

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Make Your Guests Say WOW

August 10, 2011 By 38 Comments

Clean Living RoomI’ve been traveling all week and have had a lot of time to my thoughts. I was wondering what changes I could make to my home to get a nod of approval from those who visit. After thinking about houses that impressed me, I came up with 3 easy, cost effective solutions that will get your neighbors talking.

Simple and free first. It’s time to get rid of your clutter. Think back on homes that have impressed you. Think about the nicest homes you’ve seen on TV. One thing in common with the two is NO CLUTTER. We all get busy in our day to day lives. Worst, after seeing piles of clutter over and over again, they become staples in our home. We don’t even notice them anymore. Try this, invite a friend over and ask them to be honest. Tell them you want them to point out areas that seem crowded or cluttered. Then, Get rid of those areas!

Second, landscape your yard. Your yard is the first thing people see when they arrive at the door. Overgrown landscaping (or worse, no landscaping at all) can really put a sour taste in your guests mouth. While you may like the natural look, most see un-kept, under landscaped yards as a sign of laziness. So stop being lazy and landscape already.

Finally, lighting. Central lighting is out. As a matter of fact, I almost prefer fans without lights. Decorate your home with track lighting or lamps. Use a lower watt bulb or use a spot light on areas you’d like to highlight (like a picture above your fireplace) Ambient lighting is an easy way to set a mood and make your home inviting and warm.
Do these 3 simple things and you’ll have your guests never wanting to leave!

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Countertop Installation

July 25, 2011 By 37 Comments

countertopOne aspect of a home that is often overlooked are the kitchen counter tops. For more clarification here, they are often overlooked simply because the presumed cost exceeds what we are normally wanting to spend when trying to give our home a facelift.

I recently spent sometime researching various cost effective options for new kitchen countertops. Option 1: If you are looking for granite or other types of stone, there are several avenues to save you money. First, there is a thin (1/4″) slabs of granite available. They are obviously much much thinner than traditional stone, but install easily. They are pre-cut and lay over your existing countertop.

Option 2 requires a bit more effort, but can save you tons of money. I currently have a Formica countertop. It is hideous and by far the biggest eye sore in my home. I recently decided to re-do these countertops by tiling over them. I wanted a mosaic of tile, so I picked out tiles ranging from 1X3′s to 3X3′s.

I chose compliment colors and randomly started a pattern across the countertop. Because it is such a small area and doesn’t require me walking on the tile, I was able to tile and grout all in the same day. This project literally took me 4 hours and has made a dramatic difference to my kitchen. It is easier to clean, easier to maintain and cost thousands less than the alternative of stone.

If you are looking for counter top installation, be sure to check out all of your options. Depending on your individual taste, you can have a new counter-top without breaking the bank.

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Paint like You’re Michelangelo

June 27, 2011 By 36 Comments

Accent wallsLets face it. Painting is never a fun way to spend your weekends. It is often tedious work and when it comes to edging and detailing the corners, you would rather spend a weekend with your in-laws. With that being said, if you are looking to spruce up your home and don’t have a huge budget, painting might just be the way to go.

Here lately, I have gotten into “accent walls.” My entire home is painted in white. I often feel like I am trapped inside of a hospital by the lack of color that is seen on my walls. Depending on your decor, there is a wide array of possibilities to make a room pop and become a conversation starter. There is a bit of a warning that comes along with painting bright colors. That conversation starter might start with someone telling you that the color choice it is “unique” or “odd.”



I chose to paint my downstairs bathroom in bright blue. Surprisingly, this has gotten a lot of compliments. It makes the room look clean and takes a small space and opens it up. I painted an accent wall in my dinning room a forest green and I paint a wall across from this space in a red. After staring at this project for approximately 30 minutes, it occurred to me that I had created a Christmas wonderland. Not a good idea so my red wall is back to white.

I tell you this for one reason. When painting accent walls, it is very easy to get a bit carried away. Be sure you plan ahead and don’t over accent. Choose colors that fit your tastes… don’t worry about what other might think. Truth is, accent walls are a unique style to you and your home. It would impossible to ever find an accent wall that is considered universally acceptable.

TenList Painting Contractors

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Ceramic Tile Installation

June 6, 2011 By 38 Comments

Tile ShowerI am embarrassed to admit that under my “do it yourself” hat, I have a bit of a horror story.  I have laid tile in a lot of different homes, but typically it is flooring or counter tops.  Recently, I decided to try my hand at laying tile in a bathroom shower.

The bathroom was your standard bathroom with a built in, pre-fabricated, shower.  We removed the shower and framed the walls where we wanted the new boundaries.  We laid the drain pan and prepared the surfaces for tile.  What I didn’t count on was the difficulty of laying tile on a vertical wall.  While it wasn’t difficult to lay the mortar or even put the tile up, it was a nightmare trying to keep the spacing in tact and tiles from sliding/shifting.



After two solid days, we had completed our project, took three steps back and decided that it was the most pathetic looking thing we had ever done.  Now I don’t mean to toot my own horn here, but I am very proud of every project I have ever taken on.  I typically don’t take on projects unless I know I have the ability to complete it well…. this was a risk I took on myself, and it was a risk that spit in my face.

Take my advice, if you have laid tile before, don’t connect the dots from shower tiling to floor tiling.  It is a different beast and might yield you the same results I got.  It ended up costing me double the money to have a professional come back behind me and fix my work

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Time to Remodel that Bathroom

April 16, 2011 By 1 Comment

Recently, a friend and I decided to tackle my downstairs bathroom. As it is the only bathroom in the downstairs area of the house, I felt it was necessary to give it a face lift from the previous 1970′s look. The vanity was golden yellow, the fixtures gold as well, and the walls covered in wallpaper… something had to be done.

I was working on a budget. I didn’t want to spend more than $250 on this project and was a bit concerned about my options on such a low budget, but with a little creativity, we got the job done, and on budget. Here’s how…

We first applied Spackle to all the walls to give it a cheap new textured look. We chose a bright blue paint to make the room look bigger. We pulled out the vanity and fixtures and knew this would be the majority of our budget. After searching some of the discount home improvement stores, we ended up at the home depot. There, we found vanities within our price range that would give the bathroom a fresh look. (pictures to come)



With the walls re-textured and new vanity installed, we were close to our budget. We decided to focus on the little aspects of the bathroom. We replaced the light fixture above the sink, put on a new toilette lid (this will really make a difference) and most importantly, put a TV above the toilette to entertain our guests while using the restroom.

The most disappointing thing about adding a TV to your bathroom, is your guests do not notice all the work you put into the remodel.. but I promise they will go home talking about your bathroom…. You win.

Bathroom Remodel

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My Bathroom Remodeling Story… AKA “Costly Expense”!!

October 15, 2010 By 60 Comments

I was thinking about what I wanted to write about today and thought it would be a good idea to tell everyone about one of my “great idea” projects. This is a bathroom remodeling story that will hopefully shed some light and wisdom for the non-handyman out there that may think they are handyman!

We bought a new house about 3 ½ years ago and wanted to redo the bathroom. It was just a plain jane white bathroom with white tiles and gold fixtures and shower door, not the best thing on the eyes to say the least. There are 2 guys in my family (brother and brother-in-law) who think they are pretty handy when it comes to anything. For the most part they are however when this project was over I would have taken their licenses away from them if they were in fact professional contractors!

In a nutshell we took out the shower door and decided to build a wall where you would not need a door anyway… what were we thinking?!?!?!?! We also ripped out all the shower tile and the floor tile and replaced it with slate so the entire bathroom was slate (dark slate in a not very big bathroom)… another what were we thinking!! By the time the project was coming to the end we were so lazy that we did not clean wipe up the grout good enough. Soooooo my bathroom looked like it was done by my 3 ½ year old… and did I mention that because we did not “protect” the slate good enough in the shower it looked like ghosts died on our walls because of all of the soap stains!!

People if you do not know what you are doing please do not attempt a bathroom remodeling project with out the help of professionals… not family members but PROFESSIONALS!! I am trying to save you $7,500 (what it cost me to have it redone by a professional). Check out bathroom remodeling pros and get quotes here.

Cheers – Barc

P.S. I will try to find some before and after picture to give you a better idea of what I am talking about so check back for the updated pictures.

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