Milton Ma: Check Your Deck

Protect your family and friends
By: Allison Q Guido, CS

May is Deck Safety Month® A NADRA DECK SAFETY PROGRAM a Consumer Checklist

Decks and porches can be a great place to spend time with friends and family, but in some cases it can be the place where the fun day comes to a screeching halt. According to the NADRA* website, “The number of deck failures and resulting injuries has been increasing at an alarming rate. Between 2000 and 2008, there were at least 30 deaths reported as a direct result of deck collapses, and more than 75 percent of people on a deck when it collapses are injured or killed. With 40 million decks in the United States that are more than 20 years old, it's important for homeowners to check their deck

 Almar Building & CAT Exteriors has an in depth Deck Evaluation Checklist provided by the North American Deck and Railing Association that we use to look for any potential problems on existing decks. But there are also some quick things you can do on your own as well.

 
      1.      Check for splitting or decaying wood.

2.      Is the Flashing sound and firmly in place?

      3.      Are there any missing, loose or corroded fasteners.

4.      Check that railings and banisters are secure and not loose.

5.      Check that stairs and handrails are secure.

6.      Check that stair treads are in place and there are no open stairs.

      7.      Clean away any leaves or debris, and make sure there is no mold or mildew.

8.      Make sure any source of fire or heat is places away from flammable surfaces.

9.      Lighting: make sure there is adequate lighting and that it works properly.

10.  Make sure there are no limbs or branches that might fall on the deck. 

So when you are ready to review all of your options for your deck or porch give Almar Building & CAT Exteriors a call. Our full service remodeling team can help you every step of the way thru any renovation project you are looking to tackle: Addition, Kitchen, Bathroom, Basement, Sunroom, Siding, Windows, Decking, and even roofing.

As a third generation family owned and operated company for over 50 years we have all the benefits of a small company with the options of a larger company including financing. We service the entire South Shore of Massachusetts including: Hanover, Hingham, Pembroke, Norwell, Scituate, Cohasset, Duxbury, Hanson, Abington, Rockland, Holbrook, Braintree, Weymouth, Milton, and many more towns.

 * The North American Deck and Railing Association is dedicated to increasing public awareness of the necessity for regular inspection and maintenance of existing decks and proper installation of new decks.

Selecting and Maintaining Your Water Heater

Most homeowners don’t give a second thought to their water heater—until the hot water stops flowing. Here’s what you need to know when selecting a new one and maintaining the one you have.

Storage tank water heaters have an insulated tank where water is heated and stored until it's needed. They're available in electric, propane and natural gas models.

1. Tank size is an important consideration.
Base your decision on household size. One to two people will need a
30-gallon tank. Three to four people will use a 40- to 50-gallon tank.

2. Also think about the recovery rate — the number of gallons of water the water heater can heat in an hour. The greater your demand for hot water, the higher recovery rate you need.

3. Know the dimensions of the space where your water heater will be stored and ensure that the one you want will fit.

Tankless, or on-demand, (Like the Rianni Systems) heats water as it passes through a series of coils in the unit instead of storing it.

1. These units only heat water as you use it, so they are usually more energy-efficient than a traditional storage tank water heater.

2. They’re available in electric, LP and natural gas models.

3. Most tankless units can provide up to 3.5 gallons of heated water per minute. They are best for homes that demand only one or two areas of water use at one time, say the shower and the dishwasher or the kitchen sink and the washing machine.

Energy-efficiency
Whichever fuel source you use, a water heater can be the third largest energy user in your home, so you’ll want a unit that offers energy and cost savings. Research the energy-efficiency and yearly operating costs of a water heater before you decide which one is right for your needs. You can find this info listed clearly on the Energy Star label.

Maintenance tips
Many new water heaters come with a self-cleaning feature that automatically fights
lime and sediment build-up to lengthen tank life and maintain peak efficiency
for a longer period of time.

As water is pumped into your water heater tank, sediments settle on the bottom. Depending on the water quality, these materials can rob your water heater's efficiency. If left unchecked, they can not only make your water heater work harder but also allow your tank to rust and slowly be corroded until you need to replace the entire unit.

Almar Building & Remodeling Co Inc, was started in 1959. For over 50 years our third generation family business has been serving homeowners on the South Shore Ma (Hanover, Pembroke,
Scituate, Hingham, Norwell, Duxbury, Cohasset, Hanson, Abington, Rockland, Plymouth and more) For more information about on how you can work with Almar Building on your upcoming Renovation (Addition, Kitchen, Bathroom, Basement, Sunroom) then please give call us at 781-826-2577

Request more information: Click Here

"Consumer confidence hit a five-month high"

I subscribe to this great e-newsletter for Remodelers called daily5Remodel. They spend all day searching for the best and most important new articles in the Remodeling world and send them to me in an email everyday. Yesterday morning the first article in the list caught my eye and really caught my interest.

It was title: Consumer confidence hit a five-month high. And I thought GREAT! I love good new – lets hear more.

So the article came from Bloomberg.com and was really entitle: U.S. Economy: Confidence Improves, Businesses Expand By Courtney Schlisserman and Bob Willis - Nov 30, 2010

This article stated that US consumer confidence rose again in November to a 5-month high, that spending increases are already giving retailers like Wal-Mart a boost early in the holiday season, and that it looks like this trend will continue as “households sense that job and income prospects are improving”.

It went on to talk about both positives and negatives that are happening right now in our economy, that manufacturing is still growing because of exports and investments in new equipment, and a lot of foreign and business demand, but that housing is still proving to be a “weak link”. But it also referenced anticipation that Dec 3rd report from the Labor Department will show another 145,000 jobs were created in November, on top of the 151,000 that were added in October. I heard on the news this morning that 2 major car companies just announce plans to hire, and Cnn.com reported today that Cyber Monday was the biggest ever with an estimated just over $1 billion dollars being spent. (a 16% increase over last year).

So why do I care about all of these good and bad reports? Because as I combine this information with my Remodeling Magazine Cost V Value report for 2010…(which pretty much said that despite lower construction costs, slump home values pulled down some of the cost-to-value rations this year) I have to try and make plans for Almar for next year. What do I think will happen? Well based on this year, and feedback from my fabulous clients I think next year will continue the growth trend.

What’s going to be “hot” and important for my Almar clients next year? Replacement and repair projects, because they will be more affordable than a larger scale project and help your home hold value. Also projects that people have been holding off on and don’t want to wait any more.

According to Remodeling Magazines Report almost all of the Top 10 projects are exterior replacement projects.

1. Entry Door Replacement
2. Garage Door Replacements
3. Fiber Cement Siding
4. (tied) Minor Kitchen Remodel
4. (Tied) Deck Addition (wood)
5. Vinyl Window Replacement
6. (tied) Foam-Backed Vinyl Siding
6. (tied) Vinyl Siding
6. (tied) Wood Window Replacement
7. Attic bedroom remodel
8. Window replacement (vinyl - Upscale)
9. Basement Remodel
10. Garage Door Replacement - upscale


Things are looking up – I hope you’ll take a few minutes this holiday season to look beyond Dec 25th and start planning your projects for next year.