Three Great Winter Home Improvement Tips

When temperatures drop, there’s nothing cozier than curling up inside with hot cocoa. Plus, between the holidays and winter sports, who has the energy or desire to do any home improvement tasks?  Well, give it a second though as the winter month turn out to be a great time to do certain home improvement projects.  Plus, if you’re looking to do a spring or summer home sale then it’s never too early to get started with home sale prep and repairs.

Another reason to consider having a contractor work on your home improvement needs during the winter: according to HomeLight’s Top Agent Insights Survey for Q3 2019, 91% of agents believe builders and contractors are busiest in spring and summer, while less than 8% say these professionals are busiest in the winter. Plus, 67% of top agents say that building materials and labor for home renovations are the cheapest between October and March. All of this adds up to doing certain projects during the “offseason” because they genuinely cost less.

Having said that, it’s always best to know some of the best ways to work on your home with a contractor in the winter.  Below are the top three winter home improvement tasks you can have a contractor do for you:

  1. Seal Up Cracks Around the House

    First, you could work with a contractor to help seal up cracks around the house.  Think of your outer-walls, your windows, doors or vents as an envelope, and this envelope constantly has air seeping in through cracks and failures.  Sealing leaks can help keep energy costs lower, and keep air out.  Sealing leaks alone around windows and doors, through the foundation, and in the attic can reduce this airflow by about 25%.  In addition, with a shift in paradigm going towards having a home with green features, this is a no brainer addition that anyone should consider.
  2. Insulate Your Attic and House

    Second, in connection with the sealing cracks, you could work on insulating your attics, ducts and foundation.  It’s a proven fact that if you live in a cold, winter environment and you don’t have an insulated attic you are almost guaranteed to lose air and heat.  The U.S. Department of Energy recommends air sealing any areas of your home that might need it first before tackling insulation.  But, in doing this, you will make sure that you will have a very warm and welcoming home during the long, cold, winter months.

  3. Replace Your Windows with New Ones

    Finally, you could replace your windows in winter.  Are you sensing a theme for this post?  We are looking to make sure that you save as much money as possible with your heating and energy bills, and replacing your windows is one of the best ways to do that.  Replacing old, faulty windows that have air leaks with newer, energy-saving windows you could see the difference year over year in your energy bills.understand and navigate. We take pride in helping our customers see their basement remodeling projects come to life, and we look forward to always serving our customers by being the best. We separate ourselves from everyone else because every inch matters, and respect is valued!

As with all construction projects, finding the best contractor to help you with these is key. Be sure to give Inch By Inch Construction a call, and see how we can help you create heat in your home this winter.

Great Basement Remodeling Ideas for Your Home

Are you thinking about finally completing your unfinished basement? Typically, the average basement remodel cost can range from $6,500 to $18,500; but, the return on investment can be up to 69%. Having a finished basement is not only great for entertaining guests, but it’s also incredibly profitable for you because it’s a home feature many home buyers want. Plus, with winter right around the corner, now is an excellent time to have this interior project done in your home. Here are some ideas to help get your creative juices flowing!

  1. Double-Up with Living Rooms

    It’s true what’s said: two is better than one. Remodeling a basement is the perfect opportunity to give your home two places where you can relax. Your children can play and watch movies in the basement living room, while adults can interact in the more formal living room upstairs! This is definitely a must add for those that enjoy hosting parties and interacting with people.
  2. Create a Small Apartment

    This is a wonderful idea. In today’s culture, children are graduating college and coming back to live with their parents for a little while. So, taking a basement and turning it into an apartment suite helps create a space to utilize. Go with a kitchenette with updated appliances and an island, a small space to put a couch for lounging, a half wall to create the boundaries of a bedroom, and a bathroom. Even if you children don’t end up staying there, you could rent the space out to earn some extra money. This is one basement remodeling project that becomes profitable almost immediately if you decide to rent out the space!

  3. Create a Gym or a Theater Room

    A basement provides plenty of room to make a workout room tailored to your interests, and this remodeling idea certainly applies. Creating some space to build that sauna you’ve always wanted, or use multiple floor types to divide up workout stations, such as wood floors for yoga and carpet for cool-down stretches. Rubber mats are an affordable and smart basement flooring option. Creating that gym in your basement gives you ample opportunity to get in shape! Or, if you’re more into the leisure than the active, what better feature to include in your basement plans than a home theater? Basements often have little to no windows, making the dark space ideal for that movie theater vibe. You can raise the flooring to add rows of recliners, invest in recessed fixtures with soft lighting you can dim, and swap out large a TV for a projector and screen! Create this in your basement and everyone will want to spend their Friday nights with you at your place relaxing and binge-watching their favorite movies or shows.

  4. Create a Play Room for Your Children and Their Friends

    If you’re a parent of young children, this is a basement remodeling project you simply must consider. Having young children, who are always full of energy, bottled up inside during the cold, winter months is never a key to success. Creating a safe and secure space away from the cold will allow them to run around all they like and let them burn off their energy each and every day, no matter what the weather is like outside! We highly recommend this basement remodeling for any family to help keep the sanity of the parents!

  5. ONE FINAL TIP:

    Always be mindful of rules and regulations in your area. Certain codes could make your remodeling project more challenging if you don’t spend the time and energy to figure out what can and cannot be done. That’s one of the areas that Inch By Inch helps their customers understand and navigate. We take pride in helping our customers see their basement remodeling projects come to life, and we look forward to always serving our customers by being the best. We separate ourselves from everyone else because every inch matters, and respect is valued!

    Inch By Inch Construction can help you with your basement remodeling project. We help take the hassle off of you, and make your basement remodeling project simple and easy. Call to get your free quote today, and get more value out of your house by finishing your basement.

Basement Remodelling

One of the best ways to increase the livable square footage of your home is to finish out your basement. A finished basement not only increases the livable space, but it can help increase the resale value of your home. Before you start a basement finishing project, be sure to read through these tips to help you get the greatest value possible:

  1. DRY IT UP:

    If your basement is damp, or gets wet easily, that has to be fixed before you start any basement finishing work. There is great news: most water problems should be easily fixed with two different measures. First, you could regrade the soil to slope away from the house and the foundation. The second measure is to repair your gutters or your downspouts. More extreme measures can be taken, such as adding exterior drain tile, installing an interior drain tile that leads to a sump basket attached to a pump, or waterproofing your basement walls. These measures can become time-consuming and costly, but they are part of the most important step to ensure your work finishing your basement isn’t ruined by leaking water.

  2. KNOW THE CODE:

    If only it was simply as easy as doing the work and living with the results then life would be smooth! In all seriousness, check with your local municipality to see if you’ll need to purchase any building permits, or if there are any restrictions to what you can do for your basement finishing project. This is of upmost importance if you are planning on installing plumbing, or having electrical work done in your basement finishing project as they need to be inspected and approved. This may seem like a waste of time, but trust us, you don’t want to be the one to break any rules and have your basement finishing project delayed or cancelled because you didn’t check with the proper agencies before beginning.

    If you are planning on adding a separate bathroom for your basement finishing project, then you might as well check on the current pluming and wiring systems. See what expansions or upgrades you’ll need to do. Remember, check with your local municipality for permits that you’ll need, and have the proper inspections done. Remember – Prior Proper Planning Prevents Poor Performance.

  3. KNOW YOUR SPACE:

    You may think that your basement finishing project will be an easy-todo process, thinking you could just work away. However, you need to know your space and how much you are working with. Height is of particular importance because a number of local regulations on turning a basement into a livable area require the basement to be a certain number of feet tall. These numbers vary so, again, CHECK YOUR LOCAL MUNICIPALITY TO BE SURE!

  4. SEAL CRACKS AROUND PIPES AND WIRES:

    You’ll want to fill larger openings with a flameresistant expanding foam to help protect your basement. Close off any other larger openings by nailing some sheet metal over them, and seal off the edges with caulk. This will help prevent any fire spreading from the basement to the upstair, and will also help you save a lot of energy from leakage and transfers. Plus, doing this will help keep sound transfer at a minimum!

    Another area to consider sealing are the rim joists. Uninsulated rim joists are huge energy drainers on a basement finishing project, and during your project is the best time to seal the rim joists. Check with your municipality on coding to see if there are any particular restrictions on what type of insulation you should use. Once that’s done, be sure to fill in small gaps with caulk, and for the larger holes be sure to use some expanding spray foam.

  5. ONE FINAL TIP:

    The utility room is not for finishing! This is an important key to remember when you are doing a basement finishing project. Keep the space housing HVAC units and water heaters clear and open. You don’t want these to be finished because these spaces have specific codes requirements for framing and spacing. Also, keeping it unfinished allows for an easier access to do inspections and/or repairs. Remember, always check with your municipality and their codes!

    Inch By Inch Construction can help you with your basement finishing project. We help take the hassle off of you, and make your basement finishing project simple and easy. Call to get your free quote today, and get more value out of your house by finishing your basement.