Home Design By Dave

Things to Consider When Upgrading Your Bathroom

The bathroom is one of the first things many people upgrade when they purchase a doer-upper property. It holds some of the most value in your home, and bathroom renovations can sometimes be necessary just to use the space comfortably.

Although, before you start hauling out the tools and putting the plumber’s number on speed dial, here are a few things you may like to consider first.

Plumbing
Will you be leaving the plumbing where it is? Will you be upgrading the pipes? These are factors to consider while you’re in the middle of removing showers, toilets, and sinks. Sometimes, upgrading standard 1.5-inch pipes to a larger size can be an ideal way to prevent blockages in the future.

You may also like to reconsider the positioning of your piping if you are adding new appliances or taking some out.

Lighting
Lighting is far easier to adjust during bathroom renovations than it is after the upgrades. Consider your lighting needs and factor them into the entire renovation process. Some people like functional lighting that’s both simplistic and easy to install. Others prefer recessed lighting, dimmer switches, and even shower lighting to reduce shadows.

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How to Spot Low-Quality Kitchen Cabinets

A new kitchen is possibly one of the most significant decisions you’ll make regarding your home. It requires you to talk to experts like cabinet makers, look at different materials and colours, and consider the most desirable option for your home.

But a hurdle you may also encounter as you navigate this new and exciting world of renovations is determining quality. How are you supposed to know whether or not a kitchen you are thinking about installing is low-quality and, therefore, not worthy of your time? You’re about to find out.

The Construction Materials

Ask any cabinet maker, and they will tell you that one of the most dramatic differences between a custom-made kitchen and one you can purchase off the shelf is the construction materials. Many cabinets for bathrooms, kitchens, and laundry rooms are made with plywood. However, some also feature MDF and particleboard, which are not as strong.

The best material type for cabinets is one that’s strong enough to handle daily wear and tear and will be resistant to heat and moisture. When you are having your cabinetry custom-made, a cabinet maker can walk you through the best options.

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Does Your Design Firm Need Digital Marketing?

As the owner or manager of a design firm, you already know that gaining new clients is essential to the success of that business. Knowing that is the easy part, but what is not so easy is knowing how to gain those clients, which is why the marketing professionals at www.slinkydigital.com.au recommend to all the businesses they consult with that digital marketing must be at the core of their client acquisition strategy.

Digital marketing has many benefits some of which we have listed here:

Improved brand awareness
Better targeting of prospects
Enhanced trust and reputation
More clients
Increased revenue
Outsell your competition
Huge ROI
Greater ability to adapt to trends
Long term results

There are additional benefits of digital marketing, so which business would not want to take advantage of them? Well, in truth there are indeed some business owners that remain unsure whether or not their business is one that should adopt digital marketing as a strategy, and that includes design firms.

So, if you remain on the fence, here are some ways in which you can assess your business and whether your design firm is one of the millions of businesses that will benefit from digital marketing.

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How To Avoid Carpet Cleaning Bait And Switch Scams

The word ‘scams’ in the title might have alarmed some of you so let us start by clarifying that the overwhelming majority of carpet cleaning companies – like Brilliance Carpet Cleaning – are honest, legitimate, and will provide a service that is professional and excellent value for money. Now that we have the disclaimer out of the way let us turn now to operators for whom we use the words carpet cleaning company very loosely.

They may have carpet cleaning equipment, and to an extent, they will clean carpets for you, but it is the way that they operate and sell you their services that is the problem. One of the most common is what is known as a bait and switch scam. If you have never heard of this term before, let us explain what it means.

First, bait and switch is not unique nor specifically an issue relating to carpet cleaning, and in fact, we are sad to say that it is a tactic used in just about every business sector and industry you could imagine. The way it is used is the ‘bait’ comes in the form of an offer or a promotion that you might think seems too good to be true. The simple fact is you would be right.

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How to Get Rid of Moss

If there’s one thing that often drives homeowners batty – especially those who make lawn care a priority – it’s moss. It turns up uninvited, can be tricky and messy to remove, and it can prove hazardous on footpaths and in patio areas.

Moss thrives in moist, shady areas, on rocks, soil, wood, and grass. It has thread-like stems and creates a thick mat of greenery that often gets in the way of the plants you do want to have around. So, once it takes up residence on your property, what can you do to give it its marching orders? Here’s how you can make sure your property is as moss-unfriendly as possible.

Improve Your Lawn’s Drainage

Experienced landscapers will tell you that Moss loves moisture, so don’t give it any. If there is a part of your lawn that attracts moss because it’s quite wet, then improve the drainage. Lawn care must be your priority. Aerate your soil, dig trenches, and divert water away into a different area of your property. The less water you have, the less desirable it is for moss.

Use a Lawn Spreader to Add Lime

By using lime in a lawn spreader, you can increase your soil’s pH level and create more favourable growing conditions for your grass, rather than the moss. Talk to your local gardening or lawn care expert about how to do this properly for best effect.

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How to Landscape on a Budget

Not everyone has the experience, knowledge, or inclination to work on creative garden makeovers themselves. And that’s okay because there are plenty of landscaping experts to lend a helping hand. However, if you are trying to bring your property up to scratch on a budget, a landscaping business owner who’s trained in that very task may not be within your reach.

If that’s the case, then you must try and battle through on your own. While it’s going to be tough without the help of someone with years of experience, it’s not impossible. Here are a few helpful hints to help you landscape on a budget.

Use Spreading and Sprawling Plants

The larger your yard, the more plants you have to use. The bigger the number of plants you have to buy, the more money you need. The problem is, not everyone has a massive budget to spend on plants alone. Therefore, you may like to consider purchasing spreading plants that take up a lot of space as a single plant. You can then buy fewer of them, however the garden maintenance of them should also be considered.

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Easy-Care Plants to Enhance Your Landscape Design

While landscaping and landscape design is important to many people, very few would want a yard that seems to use up all their spare time. But how are you supposed to strike a balance between a beautiful yard and one that takes minimal effort to maintain? Easy-care plants could be the answer. Here are a few easy-care plants in Australia that are worth considering to enhance your landscape design.

Liriope

Liriope is a landscape design expert’s best friend. Not only is it beautiful, vibrant, and full of life, but it’s low maintenance, affordable, and versatile. You can use Liriope for border planting, green walls, and mass planting, and grow it from a cutting. As soon as you have one substantial plant, you can then split it into smaller plants and grow those to your heart’s content too.

This easy-care plant is robust, ideal for sun or shade, and you can cut it back to allow for new growth. What more could you want?

Rhoeo

If you’re all about attitude, colour, and a little bit of pizzazz, then you’ll get that with Rhoeo. Also known as Moses in a Cradle, it’s a beautiful purple and green plant that both looks attractive and doesn’t need a lot of care. It will fill any area you plant it in – be it sun or shade – and will not ask for much love or your time. The only thing to consider is that this plant does not like wet soil and will sulk if you place it somewhere sodden. (more…)

The Importance Of Always Using High Quality Stainless Steel Pool Fence Fittings

A lot of people forget just how important fittings are to high quality glass pool fencing. Although the glass panels are the main component of the fence, and probably the one which people notice the most, the fittings and other hardware that holds the panels together needs to be installed right.

If you use poor quality fittings to put your pool fence together, they will be obvious. They will corrode or rust, will gather dirt and will lose their shine in no time at all. This will result in pool fencing that looks average at best, even if your glass panels are clean and well maintained.

Below thanks to ClearAzGlass we’re going to look at a few reasons why it’s so important to make sure that you always use high quality glass pool fence fittings that are made from a tough, durable material like stainless steel.

High Quality Fittings Will Last

If you’re spending money on a glass pool fence – and most glass pool fences aren’t cheap – then there’s really no point trying to save by using poor quality fittings and other hardware. They will wear out and lose their shine within a couple of years, and will detract from your entire fence.

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Getting The Most Out Of A Small Space

Designing a new garden can be both fun and rewarding. However, it can be hard to know exactly what to do with small spaces. Should you ignore landscape design and just throw a few plants or a fruit tree in, or should you spend time and money employing a professional to come and sculpt it to perfection?

Unfortunately, there’s no real correct answer. Some people will prefer not to waste their time and money on a good quality, experienced landscaper, while others would jump at the chance to turn their small outdoor area into more than wasted space. With this in mind, I’ve put together a few things for you to think about with respect to getting the most out of small outdoor spaces.

Start With A Clear Plan

Planning becomes essential when you’ve only got a small outdoor space to work with. Before you do anything else, you need to sit down and think about the following questions:

What sort of elements do you want to include in your landscape design?
Who’s going to be using your outdoor area? Do you need to make it child friendly, or should it be designed for adult entertaining?
What sort of budget do you have?
How much time do you have for garden maintenance?

The answers to these questions will help you clarify exactly what sort of things you should include in your landscape design.

Don’t Waste Space

If you’ve only got a small area to work with, whether it be inside to create a small home office or outside to create a garden, it doesn’t make any sense to waste space. Make sure that you use every bit of your yard wisely. Having a clear plan in place before you start landscaping is the best way to make sure that you can fit everything you want in your backyard.

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Plumbing: Air Quality and Your Health

It’s the air that you breathe

It’s no secret that the quality of air you breathe has an impact on your health. Think pollution and its effects. You are at home more than anywhere else, so the air you breathe at home is super important. Is your air clean or is it like many homes a poorer quality than the air outside?

An expert installation by a plumber of a HVAC system ensures its efficiency is responsible for reduced air leaks and has also eliminated the exchange of air with the outside. This means that odours, chemicals, particles and micro-organisms can build up over time and are trapped inside the home. The filter on your system can keep out larger particles, but it’s not able to truly purify the air inside your home. There are specific air purifiers these days that can bring the natural energy of the sun indoors and keep your air clean to ensure greater well-being.

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