3D Home Plans

Home additions increase the quality of your life by extending your living space, increasing the value of your home and making your day-to-day lifestyle more convenient. Your home will quickly become enhanced when you add a kitchen, bathroom, bedroom or study. Just imagine having those extra rooms where family and guests would no longer have to share rooms and fight over bathrooms.

When it comes to the possibilities for home additions your options are only limited by your imagination and your budget. You can easily get what you want if you take the time to calculate costs and put the right amount of time into proper planning and designing. A rushed project will end up costing you more in the end and you may not end up with what you had hoped for. Below we have gone over some of the first steps to adding living space to your home:

Determine Property Lines: Locating your property lines and developing a plot plan are the first steps that need to be taken. The plot plan should include your home, landscaping and the location of your utilities. You should also become award of any local building codes at this time. Certain local codes have restrictions with regard to how close you can build to surrounding homes.

Develop a Design: It is important to develop a design that complements your current floor plan. Carefully review the structure and the floor plan of your home. You may want to hire a residential designer or architect to develop a plan for you which will provide the most eye-catching, useful and economical addition to your home. A professional has the experience and skill to develop such designs.

Detail Your Plans: It is important to be detail oriented when it comes to a home addition project. Make sure to have detailed descriptions of the materials and the scope of the work to be done. The more detailed you are, the more likely you will be to end up with what you want.

When it comes to the cost of a home addition the price will vary, even among the same floor plans. This often confuses homeowners because it is assumed that the same floor plan will cost roughly the same amount. However, the truth is that the price will vary depending on the specific details of the project. If you decide to use high-end products you should expect your project to cost more than someone who opts to have inexpensive products used. It is important to put these details in writing because it eliminates any confusion about the products to be used. Doing so allows builders to give accurate bids and buyers can then compare them easily.

You should also specify in your writing the person who will be responsible for each portion of the job. These details should include who is paying for the building permit, where the workers are allowed to use the bathroom, where the lumber will be delivered, etc. Specifically writing down all of the agreements regarding the details to your project, before the work begins, will eliminate most of the problems that result in an exasperating and stress-inducing job.

Liz Wood
http://www.articlesbase.com/home-improvement-articles/steps-for-building-an-addition-onto-your-home-85715.html

Concrete, it’s practical, sturdy and has been used in the construction of buildings since the early Roman times. However, without a decorative or protective coating most concrete patios, driveways, walkways and garage floors are unattractive. In fact, more than likely, they’re stained, drab, dull, possibly, even ugly.

A porch or patio can be one of the most useful exterior areas of your home if covered with an attractive concrete coating, cleared of all excess junk and with a little thought given to landscaping the area. Unfortunately these spaces are all too often covered with bland concrete which as well as looking rather dull and dreary, may have developed cracks or become stained with moss, grease, oil etc over time. Restoring such areas to a place you would be proud to use for entertaining, outdoor dining or just relaxing may seem like a mighty big job. If the concrete is badly cracked and the surface uneven, generally there is no other choice than to rip it up and re-lay it. Here are a few thoughts to consider before moving forward with your plans to apply concrete coatings.

1. If your floor is inside the house, do a little checking before you decide to coat your floor. Is the concrete damp? Is there any ponding water? (If so, then you have a larger problem than an ugly floor!) Let the concrete dry thoroughly before painting (this may take a while during the wet seasons!)

2. Thoroughly clean the concrete with TS 695 Rynolite Etching Cleaner. If there is any grease on the floor you will want to remove it before painting or the paint may not adhere. To remove grease, put down cat litter to absorb the majority of oil, then scrub again with TS 695 Rynolite Etching Cleaner. Rinse well and wait until the floor is thoroughly dry.

3. Sand off any loose or peeling paint or other residue with a sander or 80 grit sandpaper. Vacuum or sweep up the residue. Then go over the floor with a tack cloth (a sticky cheesecloth available at any hardware or home improvement store).

4. Use a paintable cement filler to repair any cracks and holes and allow it to dry completely before moving forward.

5. Now to begin the painting process. You will want to brush the edges and roll the rest of the floor surface. Let each coat dry between 12 and 24 hours before recoating. Repeat the process with the second or third coats as directed.

Now you have applied Top Secret quality concrete coatings that are beautiful, colorful and durable!

Peter Harrett
Top Secret Coatings

Peter Harrett
http://www.articlesbase.com/home-improvement-articles/how-to-paint-concrete-like-a-pro-79567.html