Tag: diy

Five Tools You Definitely Need In Your Toolbox

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Whether you’re a die-hard do-it-yourselfer or you just tackle a project occasionally, here are five tools you definitely need in your arsenal:

1.  Multi-bit Screwdriver.  A screwdriver with interchangeable bits will tackle pretty much any job you will encounter and is a definite necessity in every homeowner’s tool kit.

2.  Cordless Drill.  Second only to the interchangeable screw driver in usefulness, the cordless drill is a versatile and necessary part of any tool kit.

3.  Tape Measure.  A tape measure is the first tool you use in many projects, but you don’t just need any tape measure.  A quality tape measure is worth its price in the time it saves with improved accuracy.

4.  Quality Level.  A weighted level/straight edge is a definite must for all kind of projects from hanging photos to heavy repairs, and a magnetic level can be even more useful.

5.  All Purpose Saw.  There are many options for a small, power saw, so you just need to find a versatile one that you are comfortable with and learn to use it.

Thinking of buying or selling a home in Sussex County?  Give us a call at Cooper Realty Associates and put us to work for you – 302-644-2266.

5 Ways To Make Your Laundry Room Work For You

The laundry room is an often underutilized part of the home. Here are 5 ideas to give your laundry room more life and function:

The laundry room is an often underutilized part of the home.  Here are 5 ideas to give your laundry room more life and function:

1.  Add storage.  Add as many shelves and cabinets as you can and your laundry room can store not only cleaning supplies and toiletries, but also craft supplies, a gift wrap station, inbox for household mail, office space, and really anything that would benefit you that doesn’t need a huge amount of square footage elsewhere.

2.  Make it a mudroom.  Install durable flooring, a sink for washing grungy hands, a bench for removing shoes and a rack to store them on, and some hooks for coats.  Voila! You’ve got a great transition area between the outdoor living space and indoor living space of your home!

3.  Make it pet friendly.  If you’ve got to keep your pet confined during the day, the laundry room is a great place to do it.  If it would work for your situation, you could even add a doggie door so that Fido can let himself in and out during the day!

4.  Add amenities.  Adding things like a drying rack, hanging rod, and counter space for folding can help speed up the chore of laundry and cut down on your ironing.

5.  Boost your appliances.  If you have a front loading washer and dryer, put them on pedestals so that loading and unloading them isn’t so back-breaking.  But not only should you put them on pedestals, make those platforms work for you by building drawers or other storage into them!

Thinking of buying or selling a home in Sussex County?  Give us a call at Cooper Realty Associates and put us to work for you – 302-856-6434.

Update Your Kitchen This Weekend

I’m tired of my kitchen! But, since I don’t have the budget to redo my entire kitchen, I’ve been looking for some smaller scale ideas. Here are a few of my favorites:

Fix a leaky faucet. Okay, this isn’t really an update, but leaky faucets are annoying, so it’s nice to know they are an easy diy fix! Once you turn off the stop valves to the faucet in question remove the handle by unscrewing it. After the handle is off remove the chrome cylinder and the nut that holds it in place. Pull out the stem, replace the washer, put everything back together and voila! the leak is gone! If you have a newer faucet, you will need to purchase a “seat” which is basically a special washer specially made for your particular faucet.

I’m tired of my kitchen!  But, since I don’t have the budget to redo my entire kitchen, I’ve been looking for some smaller scale ideas.  Here are a few of my favorites:

Fix a leaky faucet.  Okay, this isn’t really an update, but leaky faucets are annoying, so it’s nice to know they are an easy diy fix!  Once you turn off the stop valves to the faucet in question remove the handle by unscrewing it.  After the handle is off remove the chrome cylinder and the nut that holds it in place.  Pull out the stem, replace the washer, put everything back together and voila! the leak is gone!  If you have a newer faucet, you will need to purchase a “seat” which is basically a special washer specially made for your particular faucet.

Install a new faucet.  Purchasing a new faucet for your kitchen sink can instantly change the look of your room.  Just make sure it matches your sink unless you want to replace the whole thing!

Update your cabinets.  If you’re looking for an easy way to dress up your cabinets, try swapping out the door inserts.  Glass, tin, painted or stained wood, and stainless steel just begin the list of options.  Replacing just some of the cabinet inserts is also a good option if you don’t want to go all the way.

Update your hardware.  Another way to breathe new life into your kitchen quickly and for relatively little money is to replace the hardware on your drawers and cabinets.  With virtually limitless options this is somewhere that you can really let your personal taste shine through.

Thinking of buying or selling a home in Sussex County?  Give us a call at Cooper Realty Associate and put us to work for you – 302-644-2266.

Home Repairs You Can Do Yourself

If you’re not the handiest of people, you may not realize that you can probably do a lot more fix-it projects around your house than you realize. Here are a few small projects you can probably take on yourself.

Replace a broken tile. If you’ve got a cracked tile in your kitchen or bathroom, fixing it probably isn’t as hard as you think. All you need to do is get yourself a grout saw, remove the broken pieces, and glue a new tile in place. This is easy enough for most people to do.

If you’re not the handiest of people, you may not realize that you can probably do a lot more fix-it projects around your house than you realize.  Here are a few small projects you can probably take on yourself.

Replace a broken tile.  If you’ve got a cracked tile in your kitchen or bathroom, fixing it probably isn’t as hard as you think.  All you need to do is get yourself a grout saw, remove the broken pieces, and glue a new tile in place.  This is easy enough for most people to do.

Remove stain from grout.  If the grout around your kitchen or bathroom tiles is a mildewy or moldy mess all you really have to do is clean it.  What, you say?  You’ve tried cleaning it and it is still stained and moldy?  You probably aren’t doing it right!  You need a strong tile cleaner (like Tilex), but after soaking the stain well you need to let it sit for at least a few days without getting it wet, etc.  Mold and mildew will turn white when they die, but it takes time to kill it.  If your grout is stained with something other than mold or mildew this method won’t work.

Defrost a frozen ice maker.  If your icemaker isn’t making any ice, the solution could be an easy fix.  Remove the ice bin and find the tray where the water freezes into ice cubes.  Once you get that opened, find the pipe that brings water to the tray.  If it’s frozen you’ve got yourself an easy fix.  Just dethaw the pipe (a hair dryer works best!) and within minutes you should have yourself a working ice maker again!

Tighten a loose countertop.  If you have laminate countertops an adhesive (like Liquid Nails) specially marked for projects can work wonders.  All you have to do is apply it beneath the countertop, press down, and put something heavy on top of the spot until it dries.

Replace loose or dirty caulk.  If you have yucky, dried, dirty, or worn caulk in your bathroom you can replace it by using adhesive remover (apply with a damp sponge and allow time to soak in), removing the caulk, and cleaning the area.  After it dries, all you have to do is recaulk!

Fix scratches in wood (cabinet, table, shelf, etc.).  This one is so easy even a child could do it.  All you need to do is head to a hardware store and buy a scratch filler which is basically a brown pencil/crayon looking object.  (They also sell pen versions which are filled with colored ink if you prefer that route.)  Find the shade that is closest to the wood you need to fix (it would be helpful to bring a piece of the wood if possible, or at least a blown up picture).  When you get home color in the scratch and rub it in to smooth it out.

Thinking of buying or selling a home in Sussex County?  Give us a call at Cooper Realty Associates and put us to work for you — 302-629-6693.

5 Ways To Maximize A Small Bathroom

If your home has a small bathroom, but you are constantly dreaming of renovating and making something a bit more spacious, then this is the post for you! Here are a few easy tricks to make a small bathroom seem larger!

If your home has a small bathroom, but you are constantly dreaming of renovating and making something a bit more spacious, then this is the post for you!  Here are a few easy tricks to make a small bathroom seem larger!

Replace the cabinets under your sink with a vanity.  Although it won’t give you as much hidden storage, utilizing baskets or open shelving under the vanity sink will provide storage while making the room feel more open.  A pedestal sink is also a great option for opening up floor space and giving the illusion of square footage!

Create a focal point.  Change out the existing lighting for a beautiful chandelier.  Switch some of the tiles out for colorful tiles or mosaics.  You could even pull several tiles from the same area to create a mosaic mural or redo a whole wall in beautiful glass tiles.  Replace your existing “boring” sinks with an eye catching bowl and faucet.  There are many ways to create a focal point in the bathroom, and no matter which one you choose, drawing attention to a gorgeous feature will definitely draw attention away from the fact that you are in a cramped space.  Just be cautious not to overdo it… you just want one focal point.  Too many will just make the space feel busy and even more cramped, and that is not the feeling you’re going for!

Creative storage.  Adding a tall, skinny cabinet behind the toilet or a pedestal sink can add storage to your space without adding bulk.  Alternatively, cutting some recessed shelving in between wall studs can make the most of unused space and won’t take up even an inch of floor space!

Create an illusion.  By trading your shower curtain for clear glass doors, you will create an illusion of space.  Hanging a larger mirror is also a great way to give the illusion of space, just be sure to hang it so that it reflects one of your bath’s assets, or if you want to be really daring, hang two mirrors across from each other!  Alternatively, using light colors throughout the whole room and allowing as much natural light into the space as possible will also give the illusion of space.

Replace your door.  Trading out a standard door for a sliding pocket door opens enough floor space to make it worth the switch!

Thinking of buying or selling a home in Sussex County?  Give us a call at Cooper Realty and put us to work for you – 302-856-6434!

Update Your Bathroom On A Budget

It’s bathroom week here on the Cooper Realty blog! Everyone spends time in the bathroom every day, so shouldn’t it be a room that you enjoy? If you’ve been dreaming of updating your bathroom, but you don’t have a huge budget, consider these tips.

It’s bathroom week here on the Cooper Realty blog!  Everyone spends time in the bathroom every day, so shouldn’t it be a room that you enjoy?  If you’ve been dreaming of updating your bathroom, but you don’t have a huge budget, consider these tips.

Go white to save green!  Sticking to traditional white features such as sinks, tubs, and toilets will save you a ton of money because they are more readily available than their colorful counterparts.

Change out your hardware.  If you don’t have the budget to replace cabinets, give them a low-cost face lift with new hardware.  For a more dramatic impact you can paint or otherwise refinish cabinetry and then replace the hardware!

Organize your cabinets.  Adding pullout shelves to cabinets will maximize your storage space and ease the frustration you feel when you can’t find what you’re looking for!

Go for style.  Keep most of what already exists, but change out a few key pieces to add style and drama to your space.  For example, replace your faucets and/or showerhead with a lovely new piece or switch out existing lighting for a dramatic chandelier.

Change the color.  Painting is a fairly inexpensive weekend project.  Follow-up by replacing hand towels and adding colorful accents such as vases, candles, and soaps.

Save on tile.  If you love a specific tile that is far too expensive for you to afford, consider using a more affordable alternative (or keeping your existing tile!) and using the tile you love for a border or randomly placing a few here and there to create an interesting pattern.

Pinpoint your complaint.  Sometimes changing just one aspect of a room will make you feel like you’re in a whole new space, so determine what it is that really bothers you about your space.  For example, if your sink is in good condition, but the vanity bothers you, would replacing just the counter do the trick?  Could you keep all of your features and just replace the floor?  Keep the tub but replace the shower head and faucet?  Specifically identifying problems and addressing them individually will save you a ton of cash!

Thinking of buying or selling a home in Sussex County?  Give us a call at Cooper Realty and put us to work for you – 302-644-2266!