Home Improvement Blog

Posts Tagged ‘home planning’

Attic rooms can have an advantage over those in other parts of the home; because of the shape of the area and the effect of large windows, they often have a feeling of light and space difficult to achieve elsewhere. But this unique position at the top of the house can also create a problem, because of the temperature of the room. To prevent this area being freezing cold in winter and unbearably hot in summer, you need to  insulate your roof.

There may well already be some sort of insulating material laid between the ceiling joists. This is the best left in place, which means you will either have to extend the present heating system into the loft or provide an extra, separate source of heat for this area. You should also install roof insulation to conserve warmth in water and provide a surface which will reflect the powerful rays of the sun in summer, since plain black roof tiles will absorb the heat and pass it through to the attic room. There are three ways of doing this; you can fix a layer of glass fibre or expanded polystyrene between the rafters and cover this with aluminium or foil-backed plasterboard nailed to the underside of the rafters; you can tape aluminum foil between the rafters and fix insulating board on top; or you can fix aluminium or foil-backed plasterboard and cover this with specially made insulating tiles which you can decorate.

It is a good idea to have the new windows or skylights double-glazed for extra protection; but make sure you comply with the Building Regulations concerning ventilation if you install windows which will not open.

Hare are some Power Tools you might consider in Home Planning.

Heating
It is unlikely the heating system installed to cope with the original size of your home will stand the additional burden of heating the loft without showing considerable strain and you will probably have to provide a separate system. In addition you may appreciate a totally separate system if the loft will get only occasional use. Some of the methods of space heating would be suitable in the loft, such as gas-fired warm air or electric ceiling panels. Read the rest of this entry »

To give a new look to the room in which the cook in the family may spend anything up to eight hours a day deserves more than a quick attempt to copy the neighbours or the latest kitchen brochure. It all comes down to a question of pre-planning rather then panic buying. There will always be discount offers and sales bargains in the kitchen field so don’t rush into buying an ill-assorted collection of units and appliances.

The aim is to minimize the amount of movement required between the three major work centres: sink, cooker and food preparation/ storage area. These centres should be position about 1200 – 1800mm (4-6ft) apart in the form of triangle, with the work centres at the three angle points, enclosed by lines of worktop surfaces and storage cupboards. If work centres are in one long line you will find yourself walking considerable distances to get from one to another. The total walking distance between sink, cooker and food preparation/storage areas should be no more than 6m (20ft). Try measuring out your existing layout and see how it mathces up to this ideal.

Safety is a point often overlooked in a favour of convenience. Your cooker should not be opposite your sink as the dangerous situation of carrying scalding liquids across the kitchen will arise several times a day. Cooker and sink should be along the same wall or at right-angles on adjacent ones. And even if your kitchen is spacious, the arrangement of units is largely dictated by the shape of the room, the position of windows and doors and to a degree the plumbing and other service points.

On a more modest scale moving a door, or even rehanging it to open outwards, can make a big difference to a kitchen layout. Try changing an internal door for a space-saving folding concertina type, a fold-aside or sliding door. A semi-open plan can be achieve quite easily by introducing a pair of saloon bar swinging louvre doors between living/dining room and existing kitchen, although these are not suitable where small children are running around.

Although you do not want too many windows in a kitchen as it cuts down on a storage space, you do need good light. It is often possible to enlarge a small window or make a new one facing a good view at the sink area to make wahing-up more of a pleasure. Picture windows should have opening top lights or louvres while small, self-actuating plastic ventilators can easily be fitted to any windows. Before making holes in the walls for a new windows, consider the problems of condensation and where extractor fans or hoods will be most needed. Read the rest of this entry »

All to often the bathroom is the coldest and bleakest room in the home. With a little tought and a minimal cash outlay, you can transform it into the comfortable and efficient place it should be. But before planning too far, check that any major plumbing or structural alterations comply with current building regulations.

First consider the number of people who will be using the room, their ages and their needs. If you have space for only one bathroom, try to stretch its capacity by adding a separate shower or an extra wash-basin to ease the morning rush when everyone wants to use the facilities at the same time. Remember that the basic fixtures are costly so it is worth investing a lot of time and thought in finding the most suitable ones for your way of life. Visit bathroom showrooms and study manufactures’ catalogues. It could be, for instance, that by using a corner bath instead of a long one, you have room for something extra like a bidet. Read the rest of this entry »