General Home Development

It is 2:30 a.m. and you were sleeping soundly in your bed. Your husband is away on a business trip. Suddenly you are jarred from slumber by the sound of glass breaking. You immediately spring up thinking of your children sleeping down the hall. Practically paralyzed with fear you summon the courage to open your bedroom door and immediately see a man coming up the stairs straight towards you. Sounds like one of the spine-tingling movies that you have seen previews for, right? Not this time. It is something that happens more often than we would like to think. Home break-ins are on the rise. According to FBI statistics, 23% of home break-ins occur at a first floor window and 22% are at a back door. The Department of Justice reports over 3 million break-ins in the United States in an average year.

What can we do to protect ourselves, our loved ones, and our possessions? One thing to think seriously about is installing a home security system. These systems have become quite affordable recently and there are lots of places to find them. If you have the skill to install your own system, there are online stores that you can order from. Also most larger retail stores have simple systems that come with instructions on how to install them. From sensors that are installed on windows and doors with alarms that sound when these sensors are breached to cameras that can be installed virtually anywhere there are systems for the protection you need. Some cameras come with monitors so that you have a first hand look at any area outside your home. If not, you can purchase the monitor separately. They also have recorders so that all activity is monitored and recorded to a tape for preserving your proof that a break-in did occur. There are keypad security systems that can be set when you leave or at night so that if someone else attempts entry an alarm will sound and the police or a monitoring company can be called. If you want to get even fancier, there are entry devices that will only open to your palm print.

If you are not a handy person and would prefer to leave this to the professionals, there are several methods to utilize to find the right home or business security system that could quite possibly save your life. There are numerous security stores online, in the yellow pages, and word of mouth is one of the best ways to find a company that you feel comfortable with and can trust your needs to. Talk to family, friends, and co-workers to find out how they rate someone they have dealt with.

With home burglaries, company break-ins, and even our children being kidnapped from their beds, the wisest decision you can make today is to either purchase or have a home security system installed for the protection of your family. We all hear about it on a daily basis and tend to fall into that “It can’t happen to me” syndrome. However, it can happen and the best offense is a good defense.

You can find more great information about homesecurity.best-info-on.com/which_home_security_system.html home security systems by visiting homesecurity.best-info-on.com homesecurity.best-info-on.com

When you think about, the bathroom is one of the most used rooms in the home. As a result, it only makes sense that you should choose a great bathroom design for your home. The current trends in bathrooms is to make them a personal retreat for home owners and family members, reward yourself and come up with a great bathroom design for your home.

Today’s bathroom designs leave fairly limitless options to homeowners seeking to create their own personal retreat from the world and the rigors of daily living. The truth is that with all the options available it’s fairly difficult not to have an awesome bathroom. If you are still having difficulty envisioning the finished product here are a few suggestions to get the creative juices flowing.

Rather than going with tired wood or metal shelves in your bathroom, consider a bold move such as wicker or clear plastic shelving. You might also consider creating a palette of colors that have been mixed and matched when it comes to paint and flooring or other decorations. Additionally go with designer colors for your porcelain fixtures if that floats your boat, it is your retreat after all. You do want to make sure that the colors you select are complimentary and that you can find decorative touches, towels, shower curtains, and other accents that will also work well with the colors you’ve selected.

You can add a more intimate atmosphere to your bathroom by adding potted plants, flowers in vases, or some sort of seating (consider a rocking chair with pillows) or materials such as leather or fur to give your bathroom a more exotic appeal.

If you’d love a new look for your bathroom but are operating on a very limited budget, try a new shower curtain. You’ll be amazed at how much of a difference this one touch will make to the overall look of the room. You can find shower curtains to suit all kinds of tastes, interests, and quirks on today’s market.

If you’re really willing to get creative, consider a theme for your bathroom. Popular themes for bathrooms include beaches or rivers. These are very natural themes that can be quite attractive. For a rive theme you could buy tiles that are made from river rock or for an oceanic or beach theme you could elect to go with seashells in acrylic. For a tranquil touch, try adding a fountain.

If you are seeking inspiration for the perfect bathroom design you shouldn’t have to look very far. There are wonderful ideas all over the place simply waiting for the creative eye to catch. The next time you are out and about for an evening on the town take a moment to check out the restrooms and see what ideas present themselves for decorative spice. Magazines concerning bathroom remodeling abound and are excellent resources for current trends in bathroom design. If you’re really savvy you’ll find a magazine that is devoted to redesigning your bathroom on a budget. You can also check out television shows that focus on do it yourself projects for remodeling bathrooms—there are plenty from which to choose.

Rob Buenaventura is a successful webmaster and publisher of BathroomVanityIdeas.com. He provides a website on bathroomvanityideas.com bathroom vanities and bathroom decoration ideas. For more ideas on what makes a bathroomvanityideas.com/sink/ bathroom vanity sink unique, check out bathroomvanityideas.com bathroomvanityideas.com

Lighting fixtures and fittings have more of an effect on your home and your enjoyment of the time you spend there than you might realize. Proper lighting makes the difference between a harsh uninviting glare and cozy and intimate lighting. The challenge is balancing the lighting in order to have bright lights in areas that need it and lower lighting in areas that aren’t going to be used as workspaces.

Lighting has many purposes other than providing light. With the correct level of light or fixtures and fittings, light can be used to create a certain atmosphere within a room, to display a certain feature or piece of art within a room, or to enhance a particular work area with extra lighting will leaving the remainder of the room bathed in a soft glow. Lighting fixtures and fittings in addition to lighting levels go a long way in setting the tone for a room.

Soft warm lights with fixtures that look antiqued rather than modern will result in a very intimate space that is both appealing and inviting. Indirect or recessed lighting features are very effective at providing soft light within a room. Another great way to wash a room in soft light is the use of wall sconces. Lamps are another great way to provide warmer, softer lighting within a room. Lamps are also great for decorative touches Experts recommend using 3-way bulbs in lamps and dimmers and dimmer switches for the remainder of your lighting if all possible.

You want to be careful however, that you do not have too little light in areas where more lighting is needed. Dimmer switches as mentioned above will help with that as will installing tract lighting in areas where work is often done, whether this work is computer work, puzzles, models; anything that requires brighter lighting in order to achieve. Brighter lighting can be achieved through higher wattage bulbs, halogen bulbs, and fluorescents. Buying fixtures that accommodate these bulbs is important in the areas that you will be using brighter lighting.

Another thing to consider with light fixtures and fittings is energy consumption. Lighting your home accounts for a good portion of your monthly energy bill. Choosing bulbs that are Energy Star qualified will not only save money on lighting because they use less energy, they will also help you save on your cooling costs because they produce less heat.

Compare your lamps and light fixtures and fittings with others that offer the same overall look. Be sure to compare Energy Star qualified fixtures in your comparisons, keep in mind that using Energy Star qualified lighting will save you money each and every month on your electric bills. Another benefit for Energy Star bulbs is that you will not have to change them nearly as often as regular light bulbs. In fact most packages claim that their bulbs last on average 7 years.

Choosing the right fixtures and fittings for your home lighting effects so much more than the things you see, or don’t see. Selecting energy efficient lighting and fixtures will have an even greater impact on your pocket book. Take care to choose lighting that will set the mood you want in your home, provide adequate lighting in project areas, and will provide a nice comfy cushion for your wallet.

Allen Maccey is a writer and DIY enthusiast. He writes for househobby.com House Hobby DIY in the househobby.com/fixtures/fixtures-home.html Fixtures and Fittings section.

Long Used in Europe…

Electric fires are growing dramatically in popularity in the United States. All sizes, styles, colors and types of electric hearth products are now available including stoves that mimic a wood or coal burner, electric fireplaces complete with mantels, inserts to retrofit into an existing fireplaces and wall-mounted electric fires that require no floor space and offer a fun, contemporary style.

FLICKERING FLAMES

Technology continues to develop electric fires into a mesmerizing, believable fire. A visitor to your home may have no idea that the gently flickering flame is actually made by electricity!

GOES ANY WHERE!

Old, disabled chimneys are not a problem with electric fireplaces. No venting is required - installation literally is as easy as plugging in a television. And unlike vent-free gas products, electric fires have NO fumes. So if you have a room that could use a bit of extra charm, think electric! There’s a size and style that’s right for any size, any decor.

WANT A FIRE WITHOUT HEAT?

The dancing flame produced by an electric fire provides a warm, soothing glow in any room. Enjoy a “fire” no matter the season by using the fireplace with the heater turned off, then flip a button for variable heat settings to remove the chill.

ECONOMICAL

No special preparation is needed to install an electric fireplace. Electric fires use a regular household, 3-prong electrical outlet. Spare the expense of running gas lines and chimneys with a plug-in fire. They’re cheap to operate too - about 2-3 cents an hour on the “flame only” setting, about 7-8 cents an hour when you run the heater. When you do the math for cost per btu for wood, oil or gas, you’ll likely find that electric fireplaces, at 100% efficiency, may be your most economical choice to heat small rooms or to supplement central heating at a lower thermostat setting.

SAFETY

Most electric fires have no hot surfaces so they’re a safer choice to use around pets, children and seniors. Add an electric fireplace to baby’s nursery or grandma’s room to keep the temperature cozy for them while lowering the thermostat in other parts of the house.

HEATS GREAT

Electric fires provide enough heat (4500-5000 btu average) to serve as the sole source of heat for a room size of about 400 square feet. They’re great for sun porches that lack central heat. They also may help you save money - turn down your central heating thermostat then turn up the electric fire in the family room, den, bedroom - where ever you find yourself cozying up on a chilly day.

PORTABLE

Small electric stoves that look like their woodburning counterparts are available in light-weight resin or wood construction that enable you to move them from room to room when needed. An electric fireplace insert can be used to convert your wood burning fireplace to electric, and can easily be slid out and stored away if the mood strikes and you’d like to burn real firewood, or if your power goes out and emergency heating is needed.

Think of All the Places Where These Fireplaces are the Perfect Answer

Where there is no operable fireplace or chimney.

Bedrooms, bathrooms, nursery, sun porch, foyer or kitchen.

Nursing Homes, high rise buildings: offices, boardrooms, reception rooms.

Rental properties, condos & apartments.

Small rooms that don’t have large heating needs or where a little supplemental heat is needed.

*This article copyrighted by THE FIREPLACE CHANNEL

Karen Duke is a fireplace, chimney and hearth industry expert of over 25 years in both the retail and service sectors. She is a CSIA Certified Chimney Sweep and has numerous hearth industry certifications. She is the founder and webmaster of TheFireplaceChannel.com TheFireplaceChannel.com and she is the co-founder and webmaster of TheVictorianFireplace.com TheVictorianFireplace.com, which is one of the largest online fireplace retailers in the world. She makes her home in Mechanicsville, Virginia. Karen’s contact information can be found on either of the above sites.

So you have decided to beef up your home security and are wondering what are the benefits of having solar power security lights. There are some obvious benefits and some more obscure ones. For instance the obvious plus might be that you do not need to pay to power them, see I told you it was obvious. As for obscure, how about the fact you will not need any permits or permission for installing them as after all there are no power cables involved.

So if that is your only concern then why not use gas powered lighting? The answer is easy. Cost! If you were to place 8 or 9 gas powered lights on your property then maybe you would not realize that the gas used is the equivalent to that used for heating a house through the winter!

So now you realize that solar powered lights are for you now to decide where they are best placed and most useful. For instance you may have an outside area like a deck or patio where you like to sit and watch the sun go down. This is an ideal location as you can have them set to come on when the light quality drops to a certain level, then you can continue to enjoy your cocktails or barbecue or whatever it you like to do on your patio or deck.

Obviously you should place the lights where they will get direct light to as you want to be able to power the little beauties, right. Remember though it does not actually have to be sunny for your solar power light to get charged, if it is cloudy or even cold like in the winter they will still receive a sufficient charge as long as they are not in shadows all day.

The beauty is that you can place them where you can not actually get electricity. It is not just the point that you do not need to pay for electricity. This makes them ideal for security purposes. Just place them on your roof or high walls anywhere near entry points. Connect them up to a motion sensor and you have an instant burglar deterrent. In addition these lights also prove useful if you are moving around your house after dark, no torch required.

As you can see solar powered lights have a multitude of uses and there are many more which I have not had time to mention.

Kerry Gibbs is an interior designer in Phoenix, Arizona.
Check out these great

Chandeliers have a classical elegance about them, and of all the chandeliers available, the candle chandelier “takes the cake” because of its lighting. Whatever the make of the candle chandelier—wrought iron, crystal or antler—candles are fitted to it create a warm, romantic and inviting atmosphere. An incandescent candle chandelier, with shadows flickering around it, is truly a spectacular sight. These chandeliers also give a medieval look to the place.

More than illumination, candle chandeliers are used more as mood pieces. It is as appropriate in a stately ballroom as in the sleeping quarters. It doesn’t belong either above the dinner table or above the bathtub.

What the candle chandeliers are not suited for are cramped living quarters, sleek furniture with clean cuts and lines or furniture with hard edges. This is because the candles exude a certain softness and do not look at home with such furniture.

Candle chandeliers require a bit of maintenance in the sense that apart from the regular cleansing and polishing of the chandelier frame, one has to also ensure that molten wax from the candles does not seep into the nooks and crannies of the chandelier carvings. Accumulation of the wax will give the chandelier a mottled appearance. Another thing to consider is that if the chandelier is made up of glass or crystal, then you have to clean the surface thoroughly or the fumes from the candles will blacken them.

A candle chandelier glowing in all its exquisite beauty is a fragile object. It has a timeless appeal, but care and nurturing are necessary in order to sustain its glory.

e-Chandeliers.com Chandeliers provides detailed information about chandeliers, crystal chandeliers, antler chandeliers, candle chandeliers and more. Chandeliers is the sister site of i-Curtains.com Kitchen Curtains.

As technology continues to develop, life becomes easier and there are more choices. Not only are computers developing at breakneck speeds, but even household appliances such as vacuum cleaners are evolving. Have you even heard of a robot vacuum, well you will soon enough. What are robotic vacuum cleaners, these battery powered creatures roam the floors of your home or office looking for dust and debris. They are designed to make life easier for you by vacuuming any dirt in its path.

Robot vacuums were invented by Electrolux and introduced into the consumer marketplace in 2001, then came Roomba vacuums, they perfected these cordless vacs and took them to the next level. So what can these types of vacuums do for you? Imagine this scenario, you come from a hard day at work, the kids come home with dirt all over their shoes tracking it all over your clean carpets. That would drive most parents crazy, but with the help of the Roomba vac you can read your newspaper and lets the robot do all the work for you.

You’re probably wondering how this all work? Roomba’s vacuum cleaners use a 3 stage cleaning system, that are designed to clean the edge of your walls, under neath all types of furniture and anywhere else it detects dirt. That’s right these robots can actually detect dirty areas on your carpet or floor and do extra cleaning in those areas to clean it effectively. And these vacuums actually have a brain, they can detect areas such as stairs and actually avoid them! They use infrared sensors to detect the stairs in your home and stay away from them.

And after the room is cleaned, Roomba goes back to a recharging station to charge its battery for the next time you have a family disaster. You should know that Roomba isn’t the only company manufacturing robotic vacuum systems, other models you might want to check out include, Electrolux Trilobite, Karcher RC 3000, EVac and the Samsung VC-RP30W. The most popular of all robot vacs is the Roomba Discovery SE.

Why stress out if you don’t have to, let the robots do the work for you. Long gone are the days of vacuuming after the children. Oh, and if you’re wondering about the price of a robot vac it will run you about $350. Check prices out online to find the best deals and cheapest prices on all your cleaning needs.

C Vorelli is a writer, providing articles on all types of best-vacuum-cleaners.net/ upright vacuum cleaners, such as best-vacuum-cleaners.net/3-miele-vacuum-cleaners.html Miele vacuums, best-vacuum-cleaners.net/64-electrolux-vacuum.htm Electrolux vacuum models , Panasonic vacuum. and even central vacuum systems.

By building an addition, you can make your home more livable, while increasing its value. It also allows you to stay in a home and neighborhood you like without incurring the expenses and inconvenience of moving. But before you start, there are many things you should know.

Find out about building restrictions

While you are still in the thinking stage for your home addition, find out from city hall if there are any local zoning ordinances that could affect your project, such as lot setbacks (i.e. the minimum distance required from the adjacent property lines or public right of way to the outermost portion of the structure) and height restrictions. Also, check with the local building department to see if your home addition will require a building permit, and ensure that you or your contractor gets one prior to starting the project. You could be forced to tear down any work completed without a permit, which would be a major inconvenience and very costly.

Additions come in all shapes and sizes Home additions are becoming increasingly popular across the U.S. to accommodate aging parents (and, unfortunately, in-laws), or even as rental units to generate a monthly income. These additions can include a bedroom, bathroom, sitting room and a private entrance, although the most popular home additions involve adding an extra room onto an exterior wall. Sunrooms, garages and extra bedrooms are common additions, as well as living rooms, dining rooms and home offices.

You may want to consider building up instead of losing lawn and garden space, or building a two-story addition that will accommodate an office or bedroom on top of the garage to maximize space. Other additions, such as carports, porches and decks often require less disruption of your home, yet will still increase its functionality and value. You can use the Cost Estimator to help you gauge the cost of certain types of home additions.

Continuity works best

Something to think about with a home addition is consistency - within your own home and with the neighborhood. First, you want your addition to “fit in” with the rest of the house, both inside and out. That is, you don’t want the addition to look like an “add-on,” either structurally or in terms of decor. Similarly, a huge addition to a house in a modest neighborhood will surely give you more space, but when it comes time to sell you may not get the return on your investment you were hoping for, as those who can afford a bigger house will likely look in a more expensive neighborhood.

Choose a contractor that’s right for the job

When planning your addition, remember that the less impact there is on your present structure, the more cost-effective the addition will be. For example, moving plumbing walls, radically altering the floor plan and making changes to the roofline will all increase your costs significantly.

The complexity of your addition will often determine the type of contractor you need to hire. For example, if you’re adding a simple sunroom, a remodeling contractor or a general contractor can do the job. But if the expansion will affect many parts of your home, or involve significant structural changes, you’ll probably need an architect or structural engineer.

Assess impact for heating and air conditioning

Your head contractor will likely bring in affiliates or subcontractors for specialized jobs, like electrical and plumbing. If you’re adding indoor space, make sure that a heating and air conditioning (HVAC) professional is brought in to assess the increased demand that the addition will place on the present system.

Stu Silverman is a home improvement advice columnist and freelance writer for Contractors.com Contractors.com and ContractorGuide.com ContractorGuide.com You can find this and many other articles in the

What is the purpose of blackout curtains? The purpose of these curtains is to blackout a room while the lights are out. They are great about not letting in any light from the outside at the window when you have them shut.

Why would someone want blackout curtains? Someone who maybe slept during the day, or have a home theater room would want these curtains that keep the light out of the room. This is so that they will not have a glare on the television, nor will the light keep them awake if they have problems sleeping during the day.

Are blackout curtains thick or multilayered? Usually these curtains are just a made out of a special fabric that will blackout the light with one single layer. However, you will also find that there are other versions of this curtain that does have more than one layer. The choice would be up to you, and what you can afford.

Are blackout curtains expensive? They are usually a little more pricey than a normal curtain, but this is because of the special fabric that is used to make them. If it is worth it to you to go to sleep during the day and not have the sun peering through the window at you, then you would not think about the price. However, if you are thinking you might want them for looks or decoration, yes they might seem a little expensive.

Are blackout curtains black? You will find that this style of curtain can be found in many colors. Just because they have the name with black in them does not mean that the curtain itself is black. You can find them in red, green, brown, and many more colors.

Where can you purchase blackout curtains? You will find that these curtains are sold anywhere that any other curtains are sold. From your local retail store to your favorite department store, you are sure to find this style of curtain that will blackout the sun and light from any window that you have.

Gayle is an independent interior designer in his local community. He had worked in a local fabric store for more than 10 years before starting his own venture. Currently, he specialized further by jumping into the home curtains industry. At his weekly updated website, anycurtains.com anycurtains.com , he shows home owners simple ways to use your curtains to spruce up the look of your interior. Visit the anycurtains.com curtain ideas website to learn more.

Once we decide we want a home theater design for our very own - what then? Do we have room for it in the basement, or in a spare room? Will our electricity have the power to handle it? Most professional designers will tell us that the design of our home theater system has to meet specific requirements in order to place it inside our home. For example, our theater system set-up must fit with the size and shape within our home, with the sound likely to be off if this is not done correctly - causing it to be less than the high quality sound system we originally purchased. Without much trouble, the theater design can be created within our home if done correctly. Seeking to reproduce an actual theater or cinema quality environment, the fact is that a large-screen high definition television or projection system requires certain things to work correctly.

Basically, the technical description of a home theater system is a television, VCR, DVD, and a set of speakers. When we are selecting a home theater combination, our first considerations should be about the design elements in the home. If we will be purchasing a theater set-up that is going to fill a larger room, we may need to consider additional elements, such as the amount of speakers that are needed. Quite possibly, a sales person or a designer in the store we purchased our set-up from, will help us with the layout. This can be the sales person, a professional designer, or obtaining professional services from someone else. We may find that the design aspect of the theater is not as complicated as we originally thought. In fact, many adept home owners are able to do this on their own when they take a home theater kit out of the box in their living room.

Most research have found that when setting up the home theater system within the home, if the homes have a complete home cinema set-up the layout of the speakers is common to use the speakers integrated within the TV instead of playing the sound through the surround sound system. Spend a few extra minutes to make sure that you have the right home theater for your home and it is hooked up correctly. The design of it should be easy to install, but by far the most important thing is that the quality of the sound system should be as close to perfect as possible. When we take the time to do this, we will have created the perfect theater for our home. If we find we cannot do this, we can work with a movie theater specialist to help us to come up with specific needs, based on our home’s shape and needs. The other option is to follow the directions that are provided to us with our movie theater system.

Check out hometheaterreviews.net/ hometheaterreviews.net/ for more articles on hometheaterreviews.net/designing_a_home_theater_room.html designing a home theater room and hometheaterreviews.net/home_theater_chair.html home theater chair.