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Robert Robillard
Carpenter and Editor
"A full service renovation company sharing its knowledge and experience to share information and educate on remodeling best practices."
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What's new at Concord Carpenter
The nice thing about working in the trades is you never know what project will come next. There have been many "firsts" and this week is one of them. We are building a third floor dormer addition that will house a high tech rooftop telescope dome. This should be interesting.
I had a chance to spend some time in the shop this weekend reviewing and filming two multi-tool video reviews. Both tools are new to market and interesting:
2. BOSCH 18-Volt Multi-X Brush-less Oscillating Multi-tool - Video Review
Fall Is Approaching!
Fall is here and that means getting my house and my plow truck ready for the winter season. My truck was easy, it only took $1400 [OUCH!!] and the dealership to make that happen. Now I have new tires, brakes, lube and a whole lot of other stuff to keep my truck reliably pushing snow.
My house is a different story. . .
In the meantime, here are a few reminders:
If you have a fireplace, make sure you
schedule a chimney cleaning and have you chimney and fireplace checked
out by a professional chimney cleaner before starting the first fire. [click link to learn more on this topic]
Prepare for The Heating Season:
What better time than now to insulate and prepare your home for winter weather. Click the link to learn 3 energy saving
tips to save heat to ensure your home is tuned up for Fall efficiency.
Lack of attic insulation and air leaks are usually the biggest offender for heat loss in a home.
Many people think that just because a house is insulated that the insulation is effectively performing it's job. The truth is that in order to improve the energy efficiency of your insulation you seal air leaks to prevent heat loss.
Insulation works best when air is not
moving through or around it. Sealing air leaks is not hard, you just
need to know where to look. [click link to learn more on this topic]
When to Remove Leaves
Leaves need to be removed in the fall because they block the sun - an
essential ingredient to maintaining growth and development of the lawn's root
system. In the cooler months, the lawn is making food to store in the
root system so that it can continue to grow underground in the dormant season.
It is recommended that you remove leaves weekly so that the lawn isn't
deprived of sunlight.
While raking is the most common method, there are alternatives. You
can use a leaf blower or attach a material collection or mulching system to
your mower to make the job easier.
Riding lawn mowers with mulching decks chop up leaves and blow them
back into the turf. This has the benefit of not only taking the work out of
leaf removal, but the mulched leaves provide a nutrient-rich boost to the
soil.
Composting is the breaking down of organic matter for use as
fertilizer in the future. Anyone can build a compost pile in their yard or buy
one at a local hardware store. If you build one, it should be three feet
in diameter and four feet high in order to build up hot internal temperature
that gets the material "cooking." It is recommended that you fertilize it
with 10 parts each of nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus. Compost piles can be
made of any organic materials like leaves, grass clippings, straw and other
disease-free vegetable matter.
FALL Into winter . . . Are you Prepared?
Do you have enough business lined up for the Winter months? With the Fall months upon us look to these tried and true autumn projects to keep business moving at the Summer's pace:
I know what you're thinking, I'm a remodel-er, what good does that do me if I'm not a painter?
Well, if your not a painter, be sure you keep in touch with your subcontractors and offer them some referral incentives. A good painter will know not to touch rotten or failing wood and with the right motivation you may be the first person they call.
The source of that rotten or failing wood may keep you busy for a few weeks!
Window Replacement Projects:
While the weather is still mild and consumers are thinking about replacing their rotted or old single pane windows before winter you can get a jump on the competition and streamline your window replacement take offs.
Think through a generic window replacement job and give yourself a solid baseline for a competitive quote. Consider additional materials, staging, availability of your crew, and sub-contractors.
With a well thought out and competitive bid and a quick turnaround on an estimate can help you land a profitable window replacement job to keep the revenue flowing.
With the dry cool air that comes with Fall the weather is ideal to work on a roof. The temperature on a roof can be unbearable so a cool day with little chance of rain or snow is ideal for roofers, line up those subcontractors and you can find yourself managing plenty of quick roofing jobs!
When it comes to installing hardwood flooring temperature and moisture can impact how the floor looks over time. The fall presents a great opportunity where the air is cool and dry, which will prevent the floor from developing visible seams in the extreme dryness of winter. Not a bad advertising approach in your emails or newsletter.
Now's the time to line up a kitchen remodel, between design and planning and working with subcontractors and the clients, there is a lot to consider in a kitchen job.
Most importantly you'll want to submit a detailed proposal and scope of work and complete the job quickly to keep your customers happy. Regardless of when you start these jobs plan on finishing well before the holidays, NO ONE wants to live through a renovation and the holiday season.
Kitchen jobs can be very profitable, but take great care to plan well and get in and out before the Holiday season!
Concord Carpenter's Photo Of The Week
This curved walkway connects the house to a two car garage. It belongs to a friend of mine who was confined to a wheelchair 20 years ago in a ski accident. My friend is very active and likes to get out of the house, but an inch of snow can make him a hostage in his own house.
The crew at Concord Carpenter, Lawn Barber Landscaping Inc and WarmlyYours Radiant, Inc., have gotten together and decided to donate and help out by installing a snow melting system under this walkway.
My friend has neighbors that snow blow the walkway when it snows but he often has to wait for them to do it. Sometimes an inch of snow falls and makes the walkway a sheet of ice, again folks eventually get to him but it may take a whole day before that happens.
WarmlyYours designs durable, high quality indoor and outdoor snow melt
and heating products. Their heating cables are designed for concrete
slab floors of new homes, outdoor driveways, walkways, stairs and
patios. The product is well suited for large areas like basements,
garages, additions and driveways.
Now my friend does not have to wait for other people to come take care of the walkway - he can get out regardless of the weather.
Stay tuned for coverage on this worthwhile and fun project.
The Carpenters Pencil - Tips and Techniques
Angle Drilling Trick:
Need to get a somewhat precise angle on a pilot hole or screw?
Check out our quick and easy way, using a SpeedSquare, for drilling precise holes, or installing screws at an certain angle.
Should You Hire A Contractor or DIY it?
Whether remodeling your kitchen,
building a bathroom addition or simply repairing a screen door repairing
things yourself can be rewarding and cost effective.
Depending on your level of expertise
you need to decide whether or not it makes sense to tackle a project
yourself or to hire a contractor to do it. In this article we discuss the Pros and cons to both.
Create a Fast and Easy Door Dust Barrier:
Containing remodeling dust and keeping that dust out of the
non-remodeled portion of your clients home is often more important than
the quality of your work.
It's a fact that construction transports fine dust particles into parts of your home that are not being worked on.
Let's face it we all know it's a pain to clean, not to mention that
remodeling dust may result in health concerns so why not take steps to
avoid it?
Enter To WIN This Cordless Sawzall
The folks at Milwaukee Tool recently introduced their new Milwaukee M18 cordless Sawzall 2720-22 that actually has the power to compete with a corded reciprocating saw.
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