Home Related Questions and Answers

Monday, February 4, 2013

How to replace one of the three regular outdoor lights for motion sensing light?

Q. I have three outdoor lights operated by one switch and I'd like one of them to replace with motion sensing light. I do not want the rest two lights to be ON all night, i just want one light to bi sensor operated over the night. And again, all three are on the same switch. How do i do this?

A. Well.........since all 3 are currently on a switched system (all the same) then you need to rewire the one you want to be "constant" as not to be on the same switch control.

You first need to determine if the wiring goes directly to the switch or to a basement/attic junction box.

If you can locate the wiring that goes out to the one you want seperate, you are halfway home. Now you need a voltage meter for the next part as you need to find a 115vac that is not on the load side of that switch. If all 3 go to the switch box, its as simple as removing the one you want constant from the wire nut (or however all 3 were tied together) and instead place it on the line side of that switch instead (the other side of the screw.

If they do not go to the switch, but instead to a junction box,....then its the same process as in the switch box except you dont add it to the line side of a switch but merely wire nut it to the constant hot (which can be determined by measuring the voltage with the switch off and the one that still reads 110~120vac is your "constant"). If none give a reading with the switch off then you only have the switchlegs in that junction and you will need to run a new wire to get the constant 115vac. Difficulty varies but this is a job best suited for an electrician.

If this seems foreign to you then DO NOT DO IT YOURSELF as it is something that should be done by someone with electrical understanding.

Does anyone know where I can buy an outdoor lighting fixture?

Q. I want to replace my outdoor wall-mounted light by my front door. The one I have now also has an outlet on it. I find this very handy to plug in my weed whacker, etc. I can't seem to find an outdoor light that comes with the outlet. Have they been discontinued?
Thanks HVAC, I did check in those stores. I guess they don't make them anymore.

A. I have not seen one in a long time. Check at Lowes? home depot? Another thing you could do is when the light is replaced have an outlet wired into the light circuit in the wall, it should not be very difficult for an electrician

Why does turning my outdoor lights on trips my circuit breaker ?

Q. I have 4 outdoor lights, 2 lanterns and 2 recessed lightings. The switch is part of 3 switches that controls indoor lights and sockets. Whenever I turn on the outdoor switch, it triggers the circuit breaker. The other 2 switches don't do this. The 2 lantern lights worked when checked individually. But I didn't check the recessed lights yet. What could be the problem?

A. The easiest way to figure it out is to try the process of elimination. The easiest to eliminate and the most likely source is one of the light fixtures. Remove one fixture at a time and recheck the circuit to see if it trips. If the circuit stops tripping, the problem is in the last fixture removed. If that doesn't help you find it, try reinstalling one of the fixtures and messing around with the switches. It's not uncommon for the 4-way switches to go bad. Like the other contributor said, never upsize a breaker without the recommendation of a licensed electrician. It goes without saying that if you're uncomfortable working around electricity, leave this one to the professionals. If the 120 volts doesn't kill you, the fire will.

Sunday, February 3, 2013

Exploring Options for uising a General Contractor for a kitchen remodel?

Q. We are considering a kitchen remodel. We've hired a general contractor and a kitchen designer for the DESIGN PHASE (a seperate agreement will be presented for the BUILD PHASE). We would like to explore other paths in lieu of hiring a GC.

We are interested in hearing from homeowners who have done kitchen remodels as to the options they pursued? How many served as their own GC's? How did that go? How many worked with the local home center for cabinets, floors, etc and left the structural stuff to someone else? How did that work? We're not interested in being our own GC, but there has got to be a less expensive way! We're making quality decisions and downgrading OUR choices for OUR kitchen just to pay the GC's fee and overhead costs. For example, we did all the work to select over $10K worth of appliances (which will be delivered and installed) and the GC will stand to earn quite a bit for what appears little work (enough for another appliance). Are there any other options?

A. best thing is go to places research your materials price them out & compair prices through differant places to save money, then go home measure then measure again! sometimes sandpaper, new paint & hardwear, with some ellbow grease goes a long way man save alot of money to then you can buy new appliances lol to go with new look!

Is it normal for contractors to include a fee on cabinets as a part of a kitchen remodel?

Q. The quote from our contractor includes an 8% contractor's fee. This fee is applied to all aspects of the kitchen remodel-the demo, electric, etc. and it even includes the cabinets although the cabinets are ordered through a separate company and that company is responsible for installation. Just curious if it's normal to pay this as we could save over $1,000 if the fee was removed for that portion of the project!

A. Sounds like he is being upfront that he is charging 8% for being you contractor on each area. Do it yourself and save that plus you can hire who you want, not his buddies?

What color kitchen cabinet finish would best go with mahogany flooring?

Q. Kitchen Remodel

A. Go to this web page http://onlinedesigner.hgtv.com/visualizer/GettingStarted.do;jsessionid=23152D44CA959BEB25FC6832BB81A3D0 and look at all the options...it may help you. I am partial to colored plastic front cabinets...go wild! You can do mahogny cabinet with glass fronts too...that would be pretty...

How long should I wait to refinance my home? We bought it 2 years ago.?

Q. I pay extra principle each month on it and would like to refinance enough to pay off my vehicle and to do some remodeling on my home, painting, etc. I would appreciate all insight. Thanks!!

A. There is a great chance you have built up enough equity over the past two years to make this possible. Keep in mind your rate will more than likely go up and so would your payments but it may still save you some money. If your not sure if you have a prepayment penalty you can always check your original documents you signed. Many home owners do debt consolidation like you are considering as the interest you pay on your vehicle is not tax deductible like the interest on your home is. Make sure you consult a CPA to go over the pros and cons. If you need any help or have any questions feel free to email me tadgeman@yahoo.com.

How do you remove paint from ceramic tile?

Q. The previous owner of our home painted all the ceramic tile in the bathroom and now it is a peeling mess. Is there any way to remove this paint without damaging the tile?

A. try not to damage the tiles so use a putty knife or razor blade to scrape the offensive paint off the tile surface. use harsher abrasives only as the very last alternative. when the paint has been removed they may look very dull. so insted of replacing them you may want to try using some tile wax. this site has some very helpful advice if you plan to take that route

Removing paint overspray on interior home windows?

Q. we had the interior of our home painted several years ago and are planning on selling it now but there are some bad paint overspray sections from a paint gun on the sides of the interior windows. will paint thinner work or is there another way to do it? what about on the bathroom tile?

A. Use nail polish remover (acetone) on a soft cloth, You could also try alcohol. Don't let it run & drip on Painted or varnished surfaces or set the cloth down on anything painted or varnished. It won't hurt the glass.

Federal Home Improvement Grants, how do they work, how do you apply?

Q. I see advertisements for federal grants that do not have to be paid back that are for everything from small business funding to home improvements. I was wondering if anyone has ever received a grant for home improvement and how you apply and/or qualify to receive one. Basically, how do I get one to do home improvements and renovations??

A. Most of the home improvement grants are for renovating property in low income areas, and you have to use the property for section 8 rentals, not your own home. google search it, I found the site that way. There are grants for everything you can think of. It's a .gov website. Don't subscribe to any service that wants to charge money for finding grants for you, those svcs. are just a scam. Anyone can research and apply. I spent two days scrolling through all of the grant information just to find out that I didn't qualify for anything. Some of them are pretty funny, I saw one grant for immigrants from Africa to study ancestrial drumming. The comedian David Letterman has set up a grant for " mediocre students with little ambition". The only grant I was eligible for was down payment assistance for first time homebuyers, the application process was so long I closed on the house and moved in before I heard anything.

When doing taxes can you deduct home improvement expenses every year or only the year you sell?

Q. I was told that you could deduct home improvement expenses until the year you sold your house. Is this true?

A. Home improvement costs generally increase your adjusted basis to your house and not deductible during current year. If you took a loan to pay for these improvements, the interests you paid are deductible. Also, if your home improvement is only repainting the house, it is not considered home improvement and you cannot add the costs to your adjusted basis regarding capital gain taxes. But if the repainting job is part of a bigger home improvement project, then it's ok to add the costs to the your adjusted basis.

Now make sure you keep very good records on the costs for home improvement so you don't run into problems when you sold your home and report it to the IRS.

why don't i have varited items and home improvement on virtual families on my ipod?

Q. on virtual families on my ipod when i click the store the only thing i have is food,upgrades,and some medicines the varied items not there and the home improvement items are not there either..how do i get them?

A. Making home improvements not only creates beautiful upgrades to your home but can also increase its overall value. Updating an old bathroom is one of the most profitable home improvements you can make.Adding casual living areas like a den or family room is a smart home improvement.Adding a second bath to a house can be a significantly profitable home improvement. I recommend you to visit :
http://newleafinvestment.com/
It may be helpful to you .

How is the home design center experience?

Q. My parents & I are having a house built & we have an appointment at the home design center. They say it should take about 4 hours. Does it really take that long to pick out countertops & molding? What kinds of things should we be looking for?

A. It usu. takes that long as you will be bombarded with many, many questions and faced with many design combinations. Make sure to eat before going to insure that you blood sugar doesn't drop and you become moody and anxious. Get plenty of rest. Check with the home design center to see if you and mama nem' can walk through the center just to see the different finishes, hardware, etc. It is a bit daunting to have to make a decision having not seen the choices until the day, hell, minute before you have to make them.
In terms of what you should look for keep an eye on price as you can face cost overruns without batting an eye. Those selections add up to big dollars real fast. Don't skimp on counter tops, cabinets, sinks and floor finishes. These items can increase the re-sale value of your home and they are the most costly to change. I would go with the least expensive fixtures like door handles, faucets, light fixtures, etc. as any handyman can change them for you after you're in the home and the handyman's cost will most likely be lower than that of your builder. Good luck to you and Mama nem'

How do I give a presentation for a new home design?

Q. I have to write a paper in English and basically make a presentation for a panel of judges. I picked that I will create a new home design for a sub division for my "job" and I need to know how to go about creating this?

A. I would first draw a floor plan for your new home design...Be sure to include some neat features that you would want to include in your home.....then, in your paper, describe the floor plan with all of these neat features. Pretend you are talking to a potential buyer and are trying to sell them this house. The more that you can describe about these neat features, the better your paper will be!!!!

Should I order home design software or have an architect draw my 3d plans?

Q. My wife and I are building a house this year. We've come up with a rough sketch of what we want. Our architect is going to turn our idea into plans for $3000. I want to see a 3d version of our design. He charges $1000 to add a 3d version of the plans via disc. I can buy the most elite home design software for less than $200 and sell it for almost as much when I'm done. Which should I do? The house we are building is a simple 2000 sq ft ranch with a finished basement.

A. no just order home designs only then it's cool

Is there a way to coverup the harmful effects of exterior paint on interior walls?

Q. I painted my grandson's room with left over exterior paint to save $ and thought it would be more durable. Because of the strong smell it got me thinking it could possibly be harmful and so looked up info on the internet. I feel like such an idiot! Could I possibly cover it up with paneling?

A. At this point I think the best thing to do would be to leave it and make sure that you get good ventilation in the room for a while. The odor is from the solvents in the paint which will eventually evaporate. If you tried to cover them up, all you would be doing is slowing them down and spreading out the exposure over a longer period of time. Admittedly, the exposure at any given time would be lower but you would probably want to do something about the ventilation over that time period as well so it would only be making this take longer. If it's possible to keep the window open or at least cracked and run a fan blowing out the window, it will draw the odor out. If you have the option for your grandson not to sleep in there until the solvent odor is gone, that would be the safe thing to do.

As for calling ourself an idiot....don't. You are certianly not the first person to bring up this exact thing on this mesage board. You made a mistake but it shouldn't be a problem in the long run.

When is it too cold outside to do exterior painting?

Q. How cold does it have to be for the temperature to affect the drying process of exterior paint? It is supposed to be in the fifties this weekend and I want to do some outside painting, but the temps are going to drop back in to the thirties again. Should I just wait til spring? If I paint now, what could happen to my paint job if it gets too cold?

A. I would wait till spring. The temp needs to stay above 50 for at least 48 hours straight for the paint to dry properly.

How to deal with small hole in wood when doing exterior paint?

Q. Hi, I am doing exterior paint by myself, paint wood trim, door. In some place I find there are small (very small) holes. How should I deal with it? Leave it there? Or use something to fill it before I paint? Thanks!

A. I would use an auto body filler for an exterior door. You can find it at any hardware store like a home depot or Lowe's. You can put more hardener than the directions say. This will make it dry faster and allow you to keep working. Careful not to add to much hardener because you will make the filler week and will cause it to fall out. You can sand the extra off with some 80 or 120 grit sandpaper. It comes in two different sizes. One gallon and quart size. From the size of your project a quart will be plenty enough. Good Luck!

Who has decorating tips for choosing sofa & love seat colors?

Q. I already own a nice black dining set, black accent furniture, and a black entertainment center. The living room and dining room are both one large room, so the black furniture seems connected. I really love black leather sofas, but it seems like it may be too much black. I'm also considering deep brown, tan, or beige leather. Suggestions?

A. have them be the same or variations of the same color. And choose that color in relation to the walls, carpet or another color that is prevalent in that room.

Ok will this theme work and and where can i get it?

Q. Ok I want to re-do my room. I want to the walls to be red, the comforter to be black, the sheet set to be white with red and black plaid on it and black accent furniture. Does that go together nicely? Where can I get that stuff CHEAP? Are there any sites that have a virtual room-put-togetherer? Any answers are appreciated.

A. look here

http://kidsthemebedrooms.com/skater/punk-bedroom-decorating.html

http://teensthemes.com/black-and-white-contemporary-bedrooms.html

Where can I find a TV Bed? Where the TV pops out of the footboard?

Q. I want a black or white tv bed really bad!!! Where can I order one from in the U.S.? I have mirrored nightstands and accent furniture, so I want something to go with it. Any suggestions?

A. If you can afford a bed like that this is how much the lift cost they have some here

http://www.importadvantage.com/Uplift-3500