All Posts in "Harry Newman"

The Five Best Home Upgrades for a House

Considering an upgrade for your home? You’re making a smart decision. Home renovations can dramatically increase your home’s value and make the years you spend there more pleasant. However, not all home upgrades are created equal. Choose the upgrades for your situation that will pay off the most. The following five home upgrades will give you the biggest return on investment (ROI). 

The Five Best Home Upgrades for a House

Improve Energy Efficiency 

While it won’t necessarily do anything for the looks of your home, improving your home’s energy efficiency will give you more bang for your buck. Even by just adding more attic insulation, a homeowner can recoup more than 100 percent of the cost by saving on heating and cooling costs while making the home more attractive to potential buyers. Since more energy efficient homes are now on the market, you will be better able to compete. In addition to upgrading the HVAC, don’t forget about replacing older windows and water heaters. 

Minor Kitchen Remodel 

If you can only renovate one room in your home make it the kitchen. The kitchen is a focal point in your home and an upgrade can pay off handsomely. Don’t think a kitchen upgrade has to break the bank. Expensive new appliances aren’t necessary. Focus on cabinets and countertops instead. If cabinets are in good condition, they can be refinished or painted instead of replaced. You can make an impressive kitchen by merely adding new knobs and an attractive backsplash. 

Upgrade the Bathrooms 

After kitchens, bathrooms are the second most important selling point for your home. Only a minor bathroom upgrade can result in a 100 percent ROI. Regrouting tile is a minor project that makes a major difference in your bathroom’s appearance; so, can removing and replacing caulking around the tub and shower. Replace … READ MORE

Harry Newman by — January 5, 2019 in Home Design Tips
5 Simple Home Improvement Projects that Lower Utility Bills

Each year, Americans let hundreds of dollars in heating and cooling fly out the window, and quite literally. However unintentional it may be, most homes are not operating at a high-efficiency level. Whether it be due to outdated appliances and entryways, or improperly insulated outer walls an inefficient home is just a wasteful home. Finding ways to reduce your wasted energy costs can lead to lower utility bills and a smaller carbon footprint.

Let’s take a look at some ways to achieve this.

1. Programmable Thermostat

One simple way to lower your utility bills is to install a programmable thermostat. A basic programmable thermostat can be installed in about an hour and comes with preset temperature settings for different times of the day. Some of the latest models offer greater control, easy programming, sophisticated displays, and control via Bluetooth or smartphone app. They can offer separate programs for each day of the week, and can even alert you if service is required.

5 Simple Home Improvement Projects that Lower Utility Bills

These programmable thermostats can be very useful for people who work long hours during the day and may not need their heating or cooling running while they are gone. Your smart thermostat can lower the temperature as you leave and keep it down until an hour or two before you get home. This reduces energy consumption, and thereby reduces your bill. Why run the heat if you are not there to enjoy it?

2. Switching to Energy Efficient Appliances

5 Simple Home Improvement Projects that Lower Utility Bills

Image source: energystar.gov

If you have extra cash to invest in new energy efficient appliances, you should do so. The old school appliances that you use every day can rack up your home’s gas and electric usage. If the appliances are old, they may be in need of maintenance, and even require outdated parts that are no longer … READ MORE

Harry Newman by — December 18, 2018 in Home Appliances

A durable, well-built deck is a structure that can be added to any home and bring the increased enjoyment of the property. It’s perfect for areas that get too wet to plan a feasible patio area. You can place outdoor entertainment furnishings where they are elevated to prevent water damage.

Increase Your Usable Living Space With a New Deck

Expand Enjoyment of Your Property

A deck can be added to many areas of your property to help increase overall enjoyment for outdoor activities. You can add them near an above-ground pool, the side of the home, back of the home, or extend them from an upper level of the house. Comfortable take in fresh air and sunshine with a new deck created by expert Chicago deck builders.

Outdoor Living Space Uses

A deck is a great location to add extra table seating for large gatherings of friends and family, summer barbecues, birthday parties, or just kick back and relax in the fresh air. You can add outdoor living room furniture, patio tables, grills, or complete outdoor kitchen equipment. Make it the outdoor living space you’ve always wanted.

Improve the Looks and Value of Your Property

The addition of a deck will immediately improve the value of your home and make it a more inviting property if you ever need to sell. You can choose from a variety of styles and materials to match and complement the looks of your home.

Get All-Season Use Out of Your New Deck

A deck can prove useful any time of the year. It gives you an elevated surface that allows snow to melt faster and keeps you out of muddy patches in the yard. Barbecues can be enjoyed any time of the year, even in Chicago. You can have a designated area to enjoy outdoor time for you and the whole family.… READ MORE

Harry Newman by — November 8, 2018 in Home Design Tips

home product centre thailand The war left females to do the work of the men gone to war. A lot of regiments left house with a silk flag made by local women. Boxes and letters from house eased the dullness of a soldier’s life. The Ladies Union Help Society and the Western johnson Funeral Residence Obituaries home product centerSanitary Commission supplied the troops with vital supplies of clothing and food. Several Illinois ladies nursed wounded and ill soldiers. Mother Bickerdyke of Galesburg, Aunt Lizzie of Peoria and Louisa Maertz of Quincy and a lot of others served in the field hospitals. The only lady to earn a Congressional Medal of Honor was Dr. Mary E. Walker, who tended soldiers and served 4 months in a southern prison. Some traveled to visit wounded husbands. Mrs. Carter Van Vleck of Macomb reached Atlanta in time to see Colonel Van Vleck of the 78th Illinois Infantry for the final time and arrange for his physique to be returned residence. Numerous have been not so fortunate.

Sidney Mosely, a 54-year-old, African-American man, owned his home at 1512 42nd Street. The home was valued at $two,000. He was the head of household and lived with his wife, Harriet, and 3 youngsters, Thomas, 26, Sidney Jr., 22, and Moments, 17. Mosely, who had completed elementary college, worked as a brakeman.” His wife, Harriet, and son Thomas, had graduated higher college and son Sidney Jr., was in college. His daughter, Moments, was in 8th grade at the time of enumeration.

When Lydia Moss Bradley decided to discovered Bradley Polytechnic Institute as an institution for the education of each young males and young ladies, she became destined to cross the path of an additional influential woman: Nellie Sawyer Kedzie Jones. Regardless of whether Mrs. Bradley tried to pursue Mrs. Kedzie to come to Bradley … READ MORE

Harry Newman by — October 28, 2018 in Home Product Center

Sliding doors offer quite a few benefits. They are energy efficient and can be great insulators. They help to keep your home warm in the winter as well as cool in the hot summer months of the year. Depending on the type of sliding doors that you have in your home, they can even be fitted with gaskets that help to keep out dust, drafts, and rain as well as provide a sound barrier against the outside world. This makes it easy to come and go, and they also offer a picturesque scene that can be enjoyed from inside your home, especially if your sliding doors are facing a landscape or backyard. They are also very secure and can be engineered forms ability and will often have a hook-over locking mechanism that will prevent the sliding leaf form lifting out of the frame.

Get Your Sliding Door Repaired Pronto with a Professional Installer

If your sliding doors are not working properly, all of those great benefits are compromised. You will not have the security that you desire or the ease of use that makes sliding doors so great to use as you come and go. So, are you in need of sliding door repairs? There are a few ways to tell if your sliding doors need repairs. If they are difficult to open and shut there may be an issue with the rollers. It could be a simple fix if the rollers have come out of their tracks or it could be a more complicated issue such as if the doors need to be aligned.

Sliding doors are often extremely heavy and unwieldy, and it is often difficult to know what the issue is. It is wise to get a professional installer to look at your sliding doors if they are giving you trouble. They will have all the … READ MORE

Harry Newman by — October 23, 2018 in Home Repair