You may choose which promo coupon to use or we will apply the biggest applicable discount to your job. Don’t forget to let us know that you would like to utilize this with our electrician when we’ve scheduled a crew to your job location.
Don’t hesitate to let us know if you have any questions about pricing, scheduling, or anything at all! Thank you for the opportunity to work with you and we hope to hear from you soon!
Making improvements to your home can mean a lot of different things. When you have an older home, it’s important to consider how your home’s age can impact the costs of your upgrades. It’s also important to understand what you can feasibly DIY and know what projects are better left to the professionals. So, take these things into account when planning your renovations.
Research and Plan
Older homes provide their own unique charm, and they also provide unique challenges. With that in mind, you need to be smart about your improvement projects. Sure, if you’re handy, there are plenty of things you can manage on your own. However, older homes often mean hidden renovation concerns, which are better handled by professionals. Homes built prior to the late ’80s often contain lead and asbestos, materials which should only be handled by professionals. Damage from termites, mold, or mildew should also be repaired by a pro, and if your home needs plumbing or foundation repairs, you should hire someone to do the work. Radon requires specialized mitigation services, and many older homes have outdated electrical systems which should be rewired by a professional, licensed electrician.
Any time you have a project where you lack expertise, or that is well beyond your comfort zone, consider hiring someone to tackle the job. If you try it yourself, sometimes you can create a bigger mess through lack of knowledge, leaving you worse off for your time, energy, and money. Some situations can even get you hurt or killed. Still not sure? Research suggestions for home improvement projects to avoid. Just remember to leave some room in your budget; for example, a typical rate is about $150 per hour for a crew of two electricians while the national average to hire a plumber is between $45 and $65 per hour.
Protect Your Investments
Whoever does the work, if your older home is decorated with antiques or original furnishings, ensure your belongings are out of the way so they don’t become damaged during renovations. With that in mind, consider renting a storage unit to keep your things safe. Self-storage units booked in Los Angeles over the past 180 days hit an overall average of $144.98, which is a low price to pay for peace of mind and the protection of your belongings.
Value-Savvy Suggestions
Certain projects can make a can make a big impact on the value of your home, as well as providing a more comfortable environment for you.
Here are some ideas:
Owning an older home can mean needing to make improvements, whether it’s for your comfort, safety, or the value of your home. Make sure you hire a pro for projects beyond your skill level. Older homes have special appeal, and being smart about renovations can make all the difference for you as a homeowner.
You may choose which promo coupon to use or we will apply the biggest applicable discount to your job. Don’t forget to let us know that you would like to utilize this with our electrician when we’ve scheduled a crew to your job location.
Don’t hesitate to let us know if you have any questions about pricing, scheduling, or anything at all! Thank you for the opportunity to work with you and we hope to hear from you soon!
Have you ever noticed how smoke detectors seem to give most of their false alarms at about 2 o’clock in the morning when you’re sound asleep? If you’re anything like us, you don’t appreciate getting out of bed, groping around for a ladder or a chair to stand on so that you can fix the problem and get back to sleep.
One way to avoid being bothered by untimely alarms of your smoke detector is to make a point of changing the batteries in your smoke detectors once a year, at a specific time of your choice. We recommend making it a Christmas tradition of replacing your batteries sometime between Christmas and New Year’s, and it works great. No more low battery false alarms!
Also on the market now, smoke detectors come with batteries that last up to ten years. If you’re interested in browsing your options or purchasing some for yourself here’s a link to some 10-year smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors.
LED decorative lights are a fantastic option for your home decorations this Halloween, Thanksgiving and Holiday Seasons. They are safer than non-LED lights, consume less power and produce less heat. There are numerous types for both indoor and outdoor use.
1. Be sure to plug your holiday lights into an outlet that is protected with a GFCI receptacle.
GFCIs are there for safety, they’re particularly important outdoors since rain or any water present where electricity flows can become a serious electrical hazard or safety concern. GFCIs protect anyone who gets anywhere near the lights in wet conditions from the chances of an accidental shock.
2. Consider installing an additional receptacle in a location near to where you plug in your holiday lights.
Many people use extension cords to get power to their holiday lights, which may be hazardous when the extension cords aren’t adequately protected, instead of using extension cords, another option is to add a receptacle or receptacles at the location where the lights plug in so that they can connect directly to a receptacle rather than an extension cord.
3. Consider putting in a switch or time clock for your outdoor holiday lights
Rather than having to plug in and then unplug your Holiday lights each night, it’s a lot easier to set your lights up on either a switch or a time clock that automatically turns them on and off each day. Switches, especially timer switches, can make your holiday lighting easier and pleasant to manage.
Give us a call if you’d like our help with any of you holiday lighting needs. We’re here to help!
