Understanding Your Renovation Timeline: A Professional Builder's Guide to Project Planning

Understanding Your Renovation Timeline: A Professional Builder’s Guide to Project Planning

With 16 years in construction and my experience running Northside Developments, I’ve learned that successful renovations rely on careful timeline planning and management. Today, I’ll share insights about project planning based on real experiences and proven results.

Setting Realistic Expectations

Let me start with Lisa Loaring’s comprehensive renovation experience, which demonstrates our commitment to timeline management:

“We did a large renovation on our home with NSD and they were flawless in all aspects of the job. We added on a bedroom, ensuite and walk in robe. We also renovated the old kitchen, laundry and bathroom including taking out walls to open it all up… all the time frames we were given were met, the quality of workmanship was extremely high.”

This project showcases several crucial timeline elements:

  • Multiple room coordination
  • Structural modifications
  • Service relocations
  • Trade scheduling
  • Quality maintenance

Professional Planning Process

My background supervising crews of up to 30 workers has taught me the importance of detailed planning. Jordan G emphasizes our communication approach:

“Northside have been upfront with all decisions since day one and carefully explain the process to ensure we understood the work that was involved, why it was happening and the costs associated… communicate fantastically, hearing from James several times a week.”

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Plumber

Interesting Stuff to Know about Plumbing

Call a plumber when a water line breaks or the sewage is backed up. These days, plumbing has become a reasonably primary industry and requires more qualifications than carrying a couple of wrenches and a pocket screwdriver. It’s a profession or a trade that has qualified people performing critical tasks.

What do plumbers actually do?

Becoming a Plumber

Perth-based plumber Plumb It Right offers us the following information;

To become a plumber, you need to do a trade apprenticeship, which will include the theory of piping systems and practising the use of tools, standard and specialized, and a course in troubleshooting.

A trade apprentice works with a licensed plumber or plumbing service and gets on-the-job training in real-life experiences that may crop up on daily jobs.


There are many different fields in which a plumber can become involved.

Commercial plumbers – install, maintain, and repair systems such as heating, food conveyance piping, and large commercial hot water systems. Plumbers involved in hospital and medical centre facilities or food manufacturing need to know about bacteriology and sanitation controls that prevent contamination of systems that deliver food to people. If the plumbing work involves steam fittings, further equipment and safety training are required.

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Home Theater Installation in Perth: A Guide to Budgeting Your Dream Entertainment Space

In Perth, where the skyline meets the ocean and life bustles with energy, residents are embracing the luxury of home theatres – a trend rapidly transforming living spaces into hubs of cinematic joy. If you’re contemplating this upgrade, understanding the cost landscape of audio-visual installation in Perth is critical. Let me guide you through it with insights from those who’ve made this dream a reality.

The Factors That Shape Your Home Theater Cost

Embarking on the home theatre journey, it’s essential to consider what shapes the cost:

  • Room Dimensions: The size of your theatre room dictates the scale and type of equipment needed.
  • Choice of Tech: Opting for high-end brands or the latest technology will naturally affect the budget.
  • Installation Complexity: Desire hidden wires or custom-built features? These details, while enhancing the experience, also add to the cost.
  • Personal Touch: Custom seating or thematic designs make your space unique but require a more significant investment.

Tales from Perth Homeowners

Take it from Suzanne Ward, who embarked on this journey with excitement, “We were expecting a hefty quote, but the affordability and quality we got were beyond our expectations.” Stories like Suzanne’s highlight how budget-friendly options can still offer excellent results.

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7 Essential Qualities To Look For When Choosing Landscapers In New South Wales

If anyone living in New South Wales decides to upgrade their garden with landscaping, they have multiple decisions to make. Of them all, it is the decision as to which landscape design company is going to be employed to facilitate the new garden which is arguably the most important. Get that decision right, and you will have the garden of your dreams. Get it wrong, and it could be more of a nightmare.

Now, we have to say that most landscaping companies in New South Wales are highly competent, professional, and dedicated to what they do. Hence, the chances of hiring someone who does poor work are slim. However, there may still be differences in the services they offer, the timescales they can work to, and their pricing, which are just three factors that differentiate them.

This means doing all you can to select the right landscapers for your garden is paramount. As such, you want to look at each landscaping company you are considering and evaluate several essential qualities to ensure they have them and to what extent. Below are seven of the most important qualities we have just referred to.

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7 Little-Known Hacks For Keeping Carpets Clean

The cleaning of carpets, just as every other cleaning task you can think of, has more than its fair share of secret hacks, tips, and tricks, many of which are well-known by those who work as professional carpet cleaners. That is not to say professional cleaning companies such as Perth Home Cleaners will always use these hacks, as they will more likely rely on tried and tested professional carpet cleaning methods.

However, for everyone else, the carpet cleaning hacks which exist can be handy because not only can they help you keep your carpets cleaner than otherwise, but they can also be the difference between a stain ruining a carpet and you being able to remove that stain, or at least minimising its effect until you can call in a professional carpet cleaner to obliterate it.

There are carpet cleaning hacks for all kinds of carpets, and many relate to specific stains. We will list several of them and note that we have not put them in any order of preference or effectiveness. Read through them, and report any that appeal to you.

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7 Benefits Of Adding Shade Sails To Your Property

7 Benefits Of Adding Shade Sails To Your Property

Anyone whose property receives a lot of sunshine during the day and who wishes to find a solution that will create shaded areas around that property should seriously consider shade sails or even pergolas. Of all the possible solutions you could use, they are one of the simplest and most cost-effective, plus they can add some colour and style to the exterior of your home.

Shade sails have several benefits for those who add them to their property, and if you read on, we will outline in some detail no fewer than seven of those benefits.

Benefit #1 – Protection From The Elements

The elements we are referring to are sun, wind, rain, and even snow if you happen to live in an area that has snowfall. The sun’s rays are not only harmful to your family if they receive too much, but the sun also causes damage to the exterior of your property such as fading the paintwork. Shade sails are the ideal way to create shade and protection against the sun, wind, and rain.

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10 Tips To Get The Most Out Of A Storage Unit

10 Tips To Get The Most Out Of A Storage Unit

Renting secure storage spaces for your business, like this one from www.brilliancestorage.com.au – can be a great solution if you need more space to store equipment, inventory, or extra office furniture. However, renting a storage unit alone may not be enough to be of help if you do not effectively maximise the space available, organise it properly, and from the outset, ensure that the storage you are renting is suitable for your business needs.

To ensure you get not just those three points correct but take further steps to get the most out of your business’s commercial storage unit, in this blog post, we are going to outline ten tips you can follow to achieve these.

Tip #1 – Choose the Right Size Storage Unit

Choosing the right size storage unit is crucial because, if you select a unit that is too small, you won’t have enough space to move around or add more items later. Conversely, if you rent a storage unit that is too large, you will be paying for storage space that you do not need.

The best way to choose the right size unit is to create an inventory list of everything you plan to store and select a unit size based on that. The staff at the storage facility you plan to rent from will be more than willing to advise you on storage unit size selection.

Tip #2 – Protect Your Inventory

While your items are in storage or being transported there, it is important to protect them from damage. Make sure to use appropriate bubble wrap or packing paper to protect fragile items and items of high value. If you are storing items that are sensitive to temperature and humidity changes, it is best to invest in a climate-controlled unit.

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Air-Con-Unit-Service

Why You Need To Have Your Air Con Unit Serviced Regularly

An air-conditioning unit that is functioning well can save you a lot of discomfort in hot and cold weather. Just like a car, these units must be serviced regularly to get the best bang for your buck and ensure they last as long as they are meant to. Major servicing should only be done by a professional. Between this, you can clean out the filters and ensure there are no grass stems, bushes or any other rubbish growing up around the external part.

Cleaning the filters is not difficult; it is reaching up to them that is the hardest part. Use a safe ladder and always wear shoes that fit well, not house slippers, when you get on the ladder.

  • For ducted systems, slide the filter out of the grille in the ceiling after you pull it down. Then wash it in warm water and allow it to sun-dry.
  • For split systems, open the fascia and remove the filter. Then vacuum the dust off it.

Even though you may not see the need for professional servicing, things can happen of which you are unaware. For instance, with the ducted air conditioning system found on many homes’ roofs, insects, mice, rats and possums can get into the ceiling cavity and cause damage. They can eat through or tear the ducting from the unit to each room. This allows air to escape, making your unit work harder than it needs to and reducing its efficiency, so you must turn it up. This costs more to run.

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Using Pantry Labels To Help You Properly Organise Your Pantry

Using Pantry Labels To Help You Properly Organise Your Pantry

In most homes, the pantry will be in one of three states of order: entirely unorganised, somewhat organised, or well organised. For many of those managed well pantries, it is pretty pantry labels that have contributed massively to that level of order being possible.

For anyone wondering what pantry labels are, they could not be any simpler as they are durable, easy to apply, and can be used to label just about anything you can think of in your pantry. Whether your pantry is tiny or so big you could almost classify it as an additional room in your home, pantry labels are an ideal resource to help you keep that pantry tidy and organised.

If you have never used a labelling system before to organise anything, including your pantry, you might be unsure how to use them. Fear not, as we are about to explain the best ways you can use pantry labels to help organise your pantry correctly and keep it organised so that whenever you need to retrieve something from it, you can find it almost instantly.

Decide How You Want Your Pantry To Be Organised: Whilst you are more than welcome to follow our suggestions, you will be using the pantry, so you are free to organise it in a way that suits you. Whether you do it by food type, how they are packaged, or even alphabetically, as we know some people prefer, the important point is that you use an organisation and pantry labelling system that you understand and can follow.

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5 Tips For Choosing The Right Glass Balustrading For Your Home

5 Tips For Choosing The Right Glass Balustrading For Your Home

It is a fact that when you mention glass balustrading to some people their eyes glaze over because they have genuinely never heard of it being called by that name. That being said it is almost certain they will have seen it given that it is used a great deal in homes, offices, and commercial properties in every town and city you could name.

Glass balustrading might be seen often in public places, but its use in domestic properties is also widespread. It has many benefits such as enhancing both the appearance and the practical aspects of a home, but how you choose and select your glass balustrading can impact how much they are enhanced. If you have been considering glass balustrading but are not quite sure where to start, here are five excellent tips for choosing wisely.

Tip #1 – Carry Out Proper Research

No matter what significant changes you plan to make to a home, the outcome will always be all the better if you have done proper research to start with. That especially applies to installing glass balustrading. You should research what options for glass balustrading there are, where it can be used in and around your home, and what styles are available.

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A Beginner's Guide To How Solar Panels Work

A Beginner’s Guide To How Solar Panels Work

Solar systems to generate electricity in homes are becoming increasingly popular with homeowners, not just for the financial benefits but also as the focus intensifies on the desire for increased use of renewable energy sources. However, many people still need to learn how solar systems work, mainly how solar panels can transform light from the sun or any other source into usable domestic electricity.

In this beginner’s guide, we will discuss the basic principles behind solar panels and how they can be used to produce electricity for homes. Fear not; we will not make it so technical that you would need a solar energy or electrical engineering degree to understand it.

What Are Solar Panels?

Let us start with the absolute basics: answering the question, “What are solar panels?” just in case anyone reading is unaware of them. Solar panels are devices within a solar power system that convert sunlight into electricity and can be used for residential and commercial properties. They comprise numerous photovoltaic (PV) cells, composed mainly of silicon and some other materials.

When sunlight hits these PV cells, it causes electrons to move, creating an electrical current. At this stage, the electricity produced is direct current (DC), akin to the electricity supplied by the battery and alternator within your car, so it has to be converted into alternating current (AC) for use in domestic properties.

How Do Solar Panels Work?

The whole process of converting sunlight into electricity has three functions: collection, storage, and usage, and these require four components: solar panels, charge controllers, inverters, and storage batteries. Solar panels act as collectors, and they work by transforming sunlight into direct current (DC) electricity.

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5 Ways To Get Rid Of Weeds From Your Landscape Garden

Whether you are into landscaping, rock gardening, vegetable gardening, or indeed any other kind of gardening, there is one blight on the landscape which every gardener must face up to, and that is weeds. Weeds are a phenomenon that grows just about anywhere you can think of such as growing out of brickwork, through your stone cladding from www.meteorstone.com.au, and of course, in just about every garden on the planet.

It might seem wrong that we give weeds such a hard time as, after all, they are a natural entity, in the same way our plants, flowers, and grasses are, however, that is like saying we should treat poisonous snakes in the same we treat our pet dogs. Weeds are no friends of the living plants in our gardens, and here are some reasons why.

  • Weeds Hide Our Beautiful Plants
  • Weeds Are Unsightly
  • Weeds Compete With Our Plants For Nourishment
  • Weeds Promote, House And Nourish Bugs, Pests, And Diseases
  • Weeds Can Hinder The Germination Of Other Plants
  • Weeds Make Harvesting Edible Pants More Difficult

In the spirit of even-handedness, we must point out there are some gardening enthusiasts who claim that weeds are actually a positive presence in gardens as they protect the soil from the sun, and in doing so aid the insects and other organisms on the ground by shielding them from too much sunlight.

If you agree weeds are not a problem, then there is no need to read on. However, if you are one of the millions of gardeners who are fed up with their garden being ruined in multiple ways by weeds, then here are 5 ways you can control and get rid of weeds, some of which you might find surprising.

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Does Your Landscaping Company Need Digital Marketing?

Does Your Landscaping Company Need Digital Marketing?

As an owner of a landscaping company, doubtless, you will have tried several ways to acquire new landscaping clients. According to the SEO specialists, SEO Perth there is no better way to find and gain those customers than through digital marketing, so let us look at 7 ways in which digital marketing can benefit your landscaping company.

#1 It Can Target Your Desired Audience

Many marketing campaigns fail simply because they did not know how or where to target those who might actually benefit from the product or service being marketed.

One of the first tasks within a properly planned digital marketing campaign will be the identification of the desired target audience. This then allows any specific marketing strategy to target those potential customers and clients that are likely to be interested in landscaping designs and thus ensuring that no resources are wasted.

#2 Builds Trust and Reputation

One of the biggest assets any business can have, including a landscaping company, is its good reputation. A close second to that will be trust in its brand. Digital marketing can help enhance both of these by ensuring that your brand can be seen, that wherever possible online your reputation is further enhanced, and that clients have the means to give glowing reviews about your landscaping service.

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3 Cat Behaviours That Suggest They Need A Cat Enclosure

3 Cat Behaviours That Suggest They Need A Cat Enclosure

If you have a cat we are sure you love them dearly, although if you are the same as any other pet owner, there will doubtless be times where your cat’s behaviour does not always please you. Cats may behave strangely for a number of reasons, and the point might come where you have to consider if it would best for them to have their own backyard cat enclosure.

Making that decision might be tough for some cat owners, and that is understandable. However, unless your cat’s behaviour improves, the risk is that it gets so bad that both you and your cat become distressed. Thereafter, the most likely outcome is that you may want to be rid of the cat, and is not the right solution for them, nor for you.

There are a number of signs that your cat’s well-being may be served by them having their own cat enclosure. This could be a cat enclosure that is permanently assembled in one spot or a portable cat enclosure that can be positioned wherever it seems best at the time.

Before you choose which one, you need to identify which behaviours are the ones that are leading you towards having to make a choice. We should point out that if any of these behaviours give you cause for concern with respect to your cat’s health, then you should certainly book an appointment for them to be examined by a vet.

As for those tell-tale signs and behaviours that suggest a cat enclosure might be a solution, here are the main ones.

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Does Your Renovation Company Need Website SEO?

Does Your Renovation Company Need Website SEO?

For many renovation companies, an increasingly important source for their leads and ideally, clients, is the internet. For this reason, SEO professionals advise many of their clients, including renovation companies, that a carefully thought out, and strategically implemented SEO plan that takes into consideration all the SEO local ranking factors is the best way to take advantage of the increasing use of the internet.

An SEO plan is designed to ensure that a website is positioned as high as possible for a related search that might be entered in the search engines. A typical example might be ‘renovation company in’ and then any district, town, city, or local area, where that is where the person lives or wants the renovation to take place.

If you are a renovation company that operates within that area, and if your website has been fully optimised for that particular search term, then when the person sees the results on their screen, it is highly likely that yours will be one of the top results. This is hugely significant, and more importantly advantageous for your business with regards to how many people might click through to your website from those results.

Studies have shown that in the top 10 positions on Google, which is the largest search engine online, in total they will receive 92% of all the traffic for any single search term. This means that while being ranked on page 2 might be regarded as credible by some, in terms of the traffic it is a desert, and you might as well not be ranked on page 20, for all the benefit it is to you

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Giving Your Soil a New Lease on Life

Lawn care can often be one of those things you’ll ‘get around to’ eventually. However, it can end up being something you combat sooner rather than later, particularly if poor soil health contributes to a pretty disastrous looking lawn.

But if you know your soil health is suffering, what do you do next? Read on to find out. The lawn care experts at www.lawncareman.com.au tell us it can be a lot easier than you think to bring your soil or lawn back to optimum health.

Identify Your Soil Type

To know the best course of action, it pays to know what soil type you have. The three most common are loam, clay, and sandy. Loam soil tends to be the most desirable for lawn health.

If your soil doesn’t appeal to be healthy, you can add a soil mix of sand and clay with heavy soil and composted material to give it a health boost. The sand and clay will form a base, while heavy soil on top can aid in moisture retention and water movement.

You can then add chicken manure and green waste, along with other nutrients, to create a balanced pH level for premium grass growth.

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Pool Design

Best Pool Design When You Have Children and Pets

Every year for the last decade or more, an average of 30 Australian children have drowned. What’s more, swimming pools make up the most substantial proportion of drowning-related incidents. With these sobering statistics in mind, it’s essential to always factor your children’s and pets’ safety into your pool design. Their danger sensors are not as refined as yours.

Pools can be fun to enjoy family time, but they can also be deadly. Take note of these design ideas, and consult your local landscaping expert for more.

Invest in Fencing

Looking at your pool design options, you might think fencing will ruin your property’s appeal. Not all swimming pool fencing is the most attractive, but it’s a life-saving and legal requirement. What’s more, frameless pool fencing minimises the interruption of your landscape.

Before installing full fencing around your pool, determine your legal requirements. Any pool design expert should know them, but it doesn’t hurt to be aware of them yourself. Most states require up to 1200mm tall pool barriers, with a 1500mm self-closing and self-latching gate.

Try Splash Decks

If you want your children and pets to enjoy the water with you, ensure they feel comfortable by providing a shallow area to splash in. A splash deck could fit this bill. A splash deck is an external pool part that lets you sit at the edge and dangle your feet. It’s also an excellent starting point for children and pets with full supervision.

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Terrain against You

What to Do When Your Terrain is Against You

Those who find themselves with sloped and hilly sections will probably be in no hurry to undertake landscaping. Instead, they’ll be glaring at their neighbours with envy, wondering why their yard looks so dramatically different.

Dealing with elevated sections, slopes, and hills are no easy tasks. It can take even the most experienced landscape design expert a lot of pencil-chewing to work out the best approach for managing them. If you’re in the same boat, then read on. Here are a few of the many things you can do when your property’s elevation or terrain is against you.

Build a Retaining Wall

A retaining wall can solve many problems. It can strengthen your slope, add aesthetic appeal, and also allow you to plant in the various nooks and crannies surrounding it. A retaining wall can also help reduce the risk of mudslides and land erosion in heavy rainfall.

Try Terraces

If one, solid wall is not going to work for your terrain, then why not give terraces a try? If you have several short walls at various levels, you can create a tiered back yard that adds plenty of appeal and value to your property. One level could be for entertaining, while the others could contain an eclectic mix of plants and hardscapes for ultimate appeal.

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Garden Lighting

Garden Lighting: Turn Your Garden Into A Nighttime Wonderland

According to professional landscape designers, outdoor garden lighting is one of the most under utilised landscape design features out there. A lot of people put thousands of dollars and hours of their time into creating the perfect garden, but they forget that it’s dark half of the time.

If you truly want to develop an outdoor space that you can take advantage of in any weather and at any time of the day or night, you need to include lights in your landscape design. Clever use of lighting can help transform your garden from a bleak, dull area to a nighttime wonderland. Who would say no to this?

What Are The Benefits Of Outdoor Lighting?

Installing outdoor lighting in your garden and around your entertaining areas comes with a wide range of benefits. These include:

  • Clever use of lighting will allow you to make use of your yard at any time of the day or night. This is especially useful for people who live in warm climates where the nights are often the most comfortable part of the day.
  • Outdoor lighting can help create a warm, comfortable atmosphere – this is perfect for entertaining guests!
  • Cleverly positioned lights can make your home safer and more secure, deterring potential burglars.
  • Additionally, outdoor lighting can even help improve the value of your home.

As you can see, you would be stupid not to at least think about including at least some sort of lighting in your outdoor spaces!

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Commercial Cleaner

5 Questions You Should Ask Your Commercial Cleaner

If you are looking for office cleaning services for your business, you might be finding it difficult to choose the right company. There are plenty of options out there, and most companies seem as good as each other.

Although it may be tempting to simply choose the cheapest cleaners and use them, this isn’t always the right choice. There are a few different things you should consider first, otherwise you might run into problems down the track. Our top 5 questions you should always ask when choosing a professional service include:

  1. How Experienced Are They?

When it comes to something like cleaning, industry experience isn’t necessarily essential. However, it certainly helps. If you want to be comfortable with the cleaner that you choose, make sure that you ask them how much industry experience that they have. Try and find someone who has done a lot of cleaning in your industry, and who knows exactly what they are doing.

 2. What Sort Of Equipment Do They Have?

There is absolutely no point choosing a cleaner who charges a low hourly rate if they are going to take twice as long to do the job as one who charges a higher rate. In the end, you need to make sure that the commercial cleaner that you choose has the right tools and equipment to do the job quickly and efficiently, such as pressure washers for high pressure cleaning.

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Cabinet Maker

Fitted Kitchens by a Cabinet Maker

Bespoke kitchens, while costing a bit can certainly add significant value to any home, and they make it more efficient and pleasant to cook and clean. Kitchens are not a cheap renovation job and therefore any decision to improve your current setting and style must not be taken lightly. All you need is a designer or at least a cabinet maker.

Appliances

Your standard appliances are really what makes your kitchen. You will need a cooker, fridge, dishwasher and a microwave. All of these appliances can be custom-fitted into the kitchen as part of the design. 

Appliances occupying a made-for space will instantly make your kitchen look much more stylish and fashionable. This is something you need to think about when planning as you should buy the right types of appliances that will look good as well as fit in with your current décor.

Extractor

All kitchens should have an extractor fan which is essential for removal of cooking odours, steam and smoke. These fans are installed over the top of your oven area to capture rising fumes. These are available in many different styles and look very fashionable.

They are fitted with filters which will require periodic cleaning of fat deposits and grime that accumulates after some times. Your cooking time will be a lot more comfy with this appliance properly fitted.

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Landscape Designing

4 Reasons why Landscape Designing is Important

Art and creativity are what makes our world a nice place to live in. Life might still go on without it, but it would surely be dull and bland. This reality can be pretty much applied to everything — including your gardens.

Your garden is what brings freshness and beauty to your home. It is also what connects you with nature. Thus, it’s important to ensure that it’s well taken care of. That’s where an experienced landscape architect and their landscaping design skills kick in.

  1. Make your home more livable

We all want to live in a home that’s conducive to living. A home that’s cozy, comfortable, and relaxing is everyone’s dream, and landscape designing can help you achieve just that. Compare a yard that’s surrounded by tall weeds to a landscaped garden. Wouldn’t it be better to have the latter? That’s what landscape designing is all about. It lets you feel that you’re in your own home and have full control of it.

  1. Feel the outdoors

Houses might be built to protect us from the outdoors. But if that’s their only use, then there’s no doubt we’re going to feel constrained with them through time. Yes, its main purpose is to put us under a roof and keep us safe from the elements, but we’ve always got a choice to feel the gentle breeze and sunlight in our backyards. After all, isn’t it our home?

Make use of iCoat WA and get your outdoor concrete floor coated. You can also put a bench, or perhaps place a dining table in it. This gives you a place where you can enjoy the beauty of nature. And it’s not just about the experience, but it also makes you healthier because you can breathe fresh air anytime you want.

  1. Connect with nature

We might be living in the modern age, where everything’s surrounded by buildings, computers, and who-knows-what. Living in a metropolitan jungle might be cool at first, but it slowly seeps away your energy. So why not get in touch with nature? You can do that by designing your landscape.

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White Picket Fence

Dreams Come True with a White Picket Fence

For years now, generations in fact, people have imagined living in a beautiful home that has a garden surrounded by a white picket fencing. To some it’s the epitome of the trappings of success. If you already have your home, and the white picket fence is still in your mind’s eye, then you may want to work out how you will go about getting one done.

Proper Planning

Like anything that will cost you money, planning is the key. It prevents stress and usually prevents loss of money.

Your Boundaries

Survey of your boundary, that is exactly where it is, not going by existing fence and property lines, is important. Check your title and if necessary, if there is a slight doubt, then have the property surveyed. Another item on the ‘to do’ list is to chat with your neighbour about your plans for a fence. When it’s fence erection time, access will be needed to their property. Don’t assume that just because they are good neighbours that it will be okay.

Digging Holes and Permits

Digging holes? Check where the utility lines are – water, gas, power and communications. There is usually a sign, but if you are unsure, don’t risk it. The relevant companies are able to come out and mark exact locations for you. What are the local council rules about building a fence? Do you need a permit? Better to check and make sure that you have the right to go ahead. If you live on an estate, there might be some fencing rules regarding style and type. Check. Assumptions can cost money, so in all these aspects, do your planning and do the legwork so you can go ahead without worrying.

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Shade Sails

How to Avoid Legal Issues with Your Shade Sail

While you may think that council permission will not be needed to erect a Shade Sail from One Shade Sails on your property, there are many rules and regulations to look at – and to make it more difficult they vary from state to state and sometimes from council to council within the same state. Most of those regarding shade sails are aimed at them not causing a public nuisance or causing an annoyance to your neighbours.

However, if you intend to install a shade sail it is imperative you discuss the matter with your council and adhere to their rules and regulations to avoid any legal issues. One of the main requirements is that the material of the shade cloth should be permeable material if you want to skip getting permission. Nearly all councils are agreed on this one point.

While an actual building permit is not normally required for the installation of a sail shade structure, there are often other regulations regarding size and height.

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Hardwood Timber Floor

Here’s the Wood on Wood

Your Friend, the Floor

Do you ever talk to a floor? It’s not silly because a hardwood timber floor is a living thing. You can say: “Hello friend” when you see your foot every morning. Who wouldn’t want to be friends with wood floors? They’re the best. Folks have been using wooden planks as flooring for centuries, and from observation, no one seems to be changing their mind. Indeed, some things never go out of style.

Standards Used in the Flooring Industry

If you ask any professional timber suppliers, they will let you know that wооdеn flооrѕ соmе іn ѕtrірѕ, рlаnkѕ аnd tiles.

How much timber flooring do you need? Measure the area of the space.

Species: Wood vаrіеѕ grеаtlу іn how it looks and depends on the species оf trее frоm which it is cut. Thе mоѕt common vаrіаntѕ іnсludе оаk, maple, bamboo, jarrah, blackbutt, birch аnd сhеrrу. There are some more exotic woods available if you ask. Each hаѕ dіffеrеnt соlоrѕ аnd grаіn patterns.

Cоlоr: Wood nаturаllу varies іn соlоr frоm light уеllоw tо dаrk brоwn, but іt can bе ѕtаіnеd and dyed any соlоr.

Grаіn: Different varieties and cuts of wооd will hаvе different раttеrnѕ іn thеіr grains. Sоmе wіll have mаnу knоtѕ, оthеrѕ will have intricate veins and striation.

Cut: Thеrе аrе a vаrіеtу оf cuts аvаіlаblе fоr wооd flооrѕ. Thе nаmе rеfеrѕ tо how the рlаnе wаѕ сut frоm thе timber lоg. Certain сutѕ waste mоrе wood frоm thе lоg and аrе more expensive. Because of hоw thе grаіn appears іn thе рlаnk, еасh cut rеѕultѕ in bоаrdѕ оf dіffеrеnt strength аnd appearance.

The Fitting Room

Apart from looking at the new flooring trends, it’s a good idea to talk about the basics. If you do not know how wooden flooring is installed, you should learn. We are talking about ‘tongue and groove.’ It may sound like a rather risqué move on a dance floor, but it is, in fact, a very clever, ingenious way that floorboards are fitted together. The boards used to be butted together, but as the boards dried and aged, huge gaps would appear, creating mini canyons filling with dirt.

Laying the Boards

The installation involves nailing the planks to a subfloor which might be plywood or particleboard. The nail should be hammered into the tongue, which is then covered by the next board. Invisible nails are the aim. To reduce sound, a membrane can be added under the boards. The ends of the board’s butt against the wall and any irregularities in length are covered with a bit of trim.

Different styles are available, and these can be wood panels in parquet-type patterns. Engіnееrеd wооd flооrѕ are аlѕо ѕtаndаrd nоw, and these look the same. You can’t tell the difference from solid hardwood; they are usually more robust and durable. Specific wood imitations are made from linoleum or ceramic tile and closely match the look of the natural timber flooring but are a lot cheaper. It’s worth exploring all the options.

Finding the perfect wooden floor for your project might involve a lot of online searching, but eventually, you will need to visit the supplier and see what you are buying in person. Photos rarely do justice to timber flooring.

pool fence

Advantages of a Glass Pool or Balcony Fencing

If you have a pool, you’ll certainly need to have some kind of safe pool fencing around it. The simple thing to do is contact fencing contractors to do the job, but first, consider what kind of fence you’d like to have. There are several options, but toughened glass is not only sustainable, it has several advantages, some of which other kinds of fences lack.

  • You can see right through glass pool fences meaning it is easier to keep an eye on the children in or out of the pool.
  • Because of its transparency, a glass fence does not appear to cut your yard in half, thus making it look smaller that it really is.
  • You can still enjoy the look of your garden through the fence without any hindrance.
  • Glass can be used for other fences in the area, for instance a protective wall along the edge of a patio, along an outdoor stairway or across a balcony, so all the fences will match offering a cohesive look and feel to your property.
  • Glass is sustainable. It is made from sand of which there is plenty and it can be recycled completely, with no breakdown in strength of the recycled products.
  • A glass fence needs no maintenance, which will save you a lot of costs over the years.
  • Glass is not prone to white ants, rot from getting wet, rust, warping or many of the other disadvantages of other materials such as timber and even steel.

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Green Lawn

Speak to the Lawn

Let’s say your lawn could talk to you. What would it be saying? Most lawns put up with a certain lack of care and attention over the years, so it might start a real whinge about being abused, underappreciated and a bit hungry. Lawns add value to your property so you might be wasting a big asset.

Virtual Reality Lawn

Technology has leapt ahead to the point where you could put on one of those Virtual Reality head pieces and transport yourself to a yard with a beautiful, healthy green lawn. But it is ‘virtual reality’, so you can’t simply flick a switch to change your poor existing lawn. A well cared for and healthy lawn for instance, looks rather stunning. It’s great to look at, fun to play on, and there’s no doubting its ability to dramatically increase your property’s curb appeal. As an added bonus, a lawn is healthy for the environment.

KISS

Achieving that beautiful lawn is not something that requires you to have a Master’s degree in agronomy. You just need to adjust the way you are doing some of the things and make sure that you continue with the changes in the future.

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Moving Your Refrigerator

Removalist Tips for Moving Your Refrigerator

Refrigerators are some of the more sensitive appliances that you should exercise care when moving from one place to another. Here are some removalist tips from Emmanuel Transport for preparing your refrigerator for a move:

  • Begin by removing all the contents from your refrigerator. Everything from food to ice in the freezer should be removed to avoid having any object stirring and causing damage inside the fridge during the move. It is advisable to consume all perishable items ahead of time to avoid any wastage.
  • All shelves, drawers, and trays should also be removed to make the refrigerator not only lighter and easier for moving. This will also prevent your trays, shelves, and drawers from unnecessary cracking during the move. These parts should be wrapped in bubble wrap or towels and stored in a box during transport. Otherwise, you can apply non-sticky tape on the shelves if you don’t want to remove them for the move.

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Small Garden

7 Landscaping Trends for the Small Garden

As house blocks become smaller, so do gardens and outdoor spaces, so to make the most of the alfresco area, it’s a good idea to have professional landscaping done. Professionals have had a great deal of experience and training and know the best way to ensure every tiny corner is put to use so your garden not only adds value to your home but enhances your lifestyle at the same time.

Here are seven of the latest trends for small gardens.

  • Most people enjoy some kind of greenery in their life, so small gardens are really taking off. Even if your courtyard is only big enough for a shrub and a chaise or two, you can have it designed to make it look larger. Potted plants and raised gardens don’t take up much room and will enhance your courtyard, and the time spent there will be more pleasurable.
  • Edible landscapes are becoming trendier. Add some herbs for cooking, one or two tomato plants, peppers or snow peas in your flowers for a great garden that tastes great and looks good. Remember to only plant your favourite food, though.
  • Not everyone wants to mow and water lawns on their days off, so increasingly, small areas are being paved. Whether you choose fake turf, decking, limestone, tiles or bricks, or perhaps gravel with pavers is up to you. Replacing the lawn is also eco-friendly as you will save on water and fertilisers.
  • Creating a garden that reflects elements of your latest overseas holidays is also trendy. Think what you liked best on your holiday and work it into your landscape: a fish pond, bridge over running water, white gravel and pavers or a row of brightly coloured garden pots.
  • Going vertical with your gardening, with a particular grow wall that faces the sun, will enable you to have even more plants and can hide ugly brickwork. Remember to choose vines that are not rampant growers, so you don’t have to keep cutting them back. You could even espalier a fruit tree. Many modular systems have all you need for watering and fertilising, making maintenance a breeze.

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Recycled Timber

7 Hot Trends for Interior Fitouts

You don’t have to be an interior designer such as Sorgiovanni Interiors to make some trendy changes to your restaurant or cafe the next time it needs a fit-out.  Simply knowing what is trendy and incorporating it into your present decor is often enough to give your hospitality space an edge.  These days, so many people are interested in going green, being sustainable and saving the environment that they will even choose a cafe where they can see such themes in action.

So here are 7 hot trends some of which also incorporate sustainability, making your cafe of interest to many such patrons.

  • An open plan kitchen. This won’t suit every cafe model, but when it does the result is magical. People love to be able to see how chefs work, especially when they are creating meals with natural ingredients, all part of sustainability.
  • Using recycled materials somewhere in the building ensures that those who are into recycling will feel satisfied to know you are trying to conserve the earth’s resources. This can be as simple as finding used bricks to use as part-walls or for the front of your reception counter, or finding some distressed timber to add in for a counter or for ceiling beams or other decorative elements.

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Home Renovation

How The Right Financial Planning Can Pay for House Repairs

Whether you’ve paid off your home or not, financial advisors such as andep will tell you there are sure to be many other expenses such as house repairs. Some of these can be quite unexpected; for instance, a car might run into your home and wreck the foundations or stability of it, or a sudden storm might mean a tree falls across your roof. How do you pay for these major repairs and still afford to pay the mortgage off? Financial planning right from the start is the best way.

Even if you have never sought advice from a financial planner, it’s not too late to start now. Most financial experts will advise you on the ways to minimise your risk and get more from your dollars. One way to minimise risk of loss is through insurance. Even though it might seem like money down the drain, having insurance for your home is essential. Then any kind of damage can be paid for.

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Carpet-Cleaning

11 Carpet Cleaning Secrets

Carpets are found in nearly every home and office as they reduce noise levels significantly. No matter how hard you try, eventually, the carpet will become a victim of spills, drips and accidental dirt.  However, by implementing some tips from Brilliance Carpet Cleaning Perth your carpet will look its best for longer in between that essential professional clean.

  • When liquid is spilled onto the carpet, blot it with a soft towel, cloth or paper. But be sure to spot from the outside towards the centre so the stain doesn’t spread.
  • Never rub the carpet; this can break the fibres and spread the dirt.
  • Club soda can be used as an effective stain remover. Place some on a cloth and start blotting as above.
  • Another good stain remover is equal parts of white vinegar and water. Put it into a spray bottle to make applying it easier. Spray, let it soak for up to 15 minutes, then blot. Repetition will bring success for stubborn stains.
  • Shaving cream applied directly to stains is also effective. Leave for 30 minutes, then clean off with your vinegar and water spray solution. Remember to blot, not wipe.
  • Have the kids left chewing gum on the carpet? Use ice cubes to freeze it solid, then lift and cut off trapped carpet fibres as close as possible to the gum.  Don’t try to pull it off, as that will tear the threads out from the base of the carpet.
  • If you get grease or fat on the carpet, use a water solution and dishwashing liquid. Spray it on and blot it several times over for the best result, and contact the professionals at Carpet Cleaning Perth.

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Colorbond-roofing

Reasons to Choose Colorbond for Your Re-Roofing Renovation

The time usually comes when those tiles are old and leaky and do nothing to make your home look good or keep its value. It is time for re-roofing but what material should you choose? Staying with tiles will eventually give you the same problem that makes your home look rather old and awful right now; namely, mould.

This black growth over your roof is one of the major problems of tiles. It is hard to remove and often keeps coming back. This is because the roots penetrate into the tile and cannot be scrubbed away. After you have gone to the cost or time of having it all washed down and treated it will end up back on your roof as bad as ever.

Tiles are not good for another reason. Because they are so small they need to have a lot of infrastructure underneath to support them.  And because they are quite heavy it needs to be strong, so no cutting costs there. In addition, the very shape of tiles and the way they have to be aligned means that there are many niches in and around each one. In bushfire season, this allows red hot embers that are blown onto your roof to lodge there securely, thus your roof is most likely to catch on fire, so installing fire protection with the help of Fire Services Perth would be advised.

Happily there is a great alternative to tiles. Steel roofing does not have any of the above problems. It is light and the sheets are large, so less infrastructure is needed and it is quick to erect. No mould can grow on it because it does not absorb moisture; the spores cannot get a hold in it.

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Decorating-Stairway-Space

8 Tips for Utilising and Decorating Stairway Space

If you have a stairway in your home there are many ways in which you can utilise the space above or below it to add character and space to your home. That said, stairways are often rather dark areas, so they should have specific lighting either on the stairs or the wall to ensure you don’t overbalance and fall. A qualified electrician can do this work for you and give you advice on where the best place is to install the lighting.

Decorating-Stairway-Space

So how can you use the space around a stairway?

    • Use the wall where the stairs go up to hang a family album of photos or several beautiful landscapes. Make sure the frames all have something in common such as toning colours, but they don’t all have to be the same shape or size. You can have round, square rectangular or oval shapes to break things up a bit.
    • For a really modern look, you could have all the frames the same colour and paint the landing and/or stair rail to match. Try bright green, red or yellow for some eye popping fun. Match the colour with some other nearby accessories such as a table lamp or rug.
    • If you are not into photo displays you can create visual interest and a most elegant look by displaying a wall of mirrors with gold and silver frames. These can be found at op-shops or flea markets and you can spray on the gold paint yourself. An electrician can install pendant lighting to match.
    • Replace the plain banisters with a filigree of wrought iron lacework to lighten up the area and make it really eye-catching and decorative.

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Veranda-Furniture

How Veranda Furniture Should Differ from Outdoor Furniture

Many people these days design their home to include a beautiful and relaxing outdoor area complete with comfortable outdoor furniture so they can entertain or have family meals outdoors if they want to. If you home doesn’t have one of these areas, it is easy to renovate the home to include a deck or verandah, or add a gazebo or outdoor dining area to the backyard.

The kind of furniture you purchase for this area will differ, depending on where it is and what your dining or relaxation area consists of. Basically, whether it is weatherproof or not. A veranda or deck that includes a roof and is enclosed on at least three sides can be considered mostly weatherproof.

Veranda-Furniture

However, a gazebo with a roof but no walls is not weather proof because the wind will blow rain straight in. Even if there are one or two walls and a roof it is still not exactly weatherproof from any but the lightest shower and that only when there is no wind.

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Fencing-Hobby-Farm

Security Fencing for a Fencing for a Hobby Farm

With an increasing number of people moving into country areas on small acreage, there comes a need for training about caring for the animals they have on their hobby farm.  Even though it’s a hobby, such a farm really needs security – whether it be an alarm system to alert you if an unwelcomed guest enters the premises or some type of security fencing to keep the stock safe from wandering onto the road.

This doesn’t have to be the same kind that you would find in the city. The kind of fence for a hobby farm would depend on what kind of animals were kept. 4-5 strands of barbed wire will keep cattle in, but horses would be likely to injure themselves on it because of their flighty nature. They tend to kick out when frightened and if they do it near the barbed wire it could result in nasty cuts.

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Patio-floor

How to Floor It – the Patio That Is

Not all patios have floors, but you might want to floor yours so it can be used more like a room. Without a floor the base of the structure will eventually get wet, no matter how dry your climate is. This means that the furniture or anything else sitting under the patio will also get wet from the ground up.

Chair and table legs made of timber will end up rotting, while cupboards will the ruined, especially if they are clad with MDF, which absorbs moisture and expands, then falls to pieces. So what kind of floor will you have for your patio? Much depends on how you want to use it. If it is just to park the car under, there is no real need for any floor.

Patio-floor

But if you want to use it during rainy weather or put furniture in it, then a floor of some kind is advisable. Here are 7 suggestions for a patio floor.

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Protect-Mattress-when-Moving

How to Protect Your Mattresses When You Move

While it is easy to wrap and pack smaller items into boxes, mattresses are different. A mattress is made from fabric, so it needs to be protected from dirt and dust. Even the packing provided by removalists is likely to be too dirty or leave a lot of unwelcome lint and dust on the mattress. So, what can you do to protect it? There are a few options.

Use old sheets

Your old fitted sheets are the ideal way to protect the mattress. You can put one over the top and another one over the bottom. If you don’t have old sheets, use new ones; they are easily washed after all. If you don’t trust them not to come off during handling, pin the edges together, or tie twine around the mattress like you would a gift box. You could even staple the edges together if the sheets are relatively old.  Sheets are also good protectors for fabric lounge chairs or the sofa. Even flat sheets can be used to wrap the mattress in, albeit not as easily as fitted ones.

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built-in-pool

What Kind of Pool do You Need?

Pool builders will tell you there are many different kinds of pools and different types of building materials for them. If you are considering adding a pool to your backyard it’s important to ensure it is suitable for your children and this will depend on their age. If your kids are still toddlers, they won’t get much use from a pool that is six feet deep.

You may think that installing a deep pool now will at least enable you to have a nice swim, but how many times can you get outside without those little ones toddling along after you? Mum in the deep pool while toddlers sit and watch is an unrealistic expectation. It is far better to have a small above ground wading pool for the little ones and you can sit in it with them while they have fun. It will be enough to cool you off on a hot day.

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Pool Maintenance

8 Easy Pool Maintenance Tips

When you have a pool, cleaning it is essential and for major clean-ups automatic pool cleaners of some kind are ideal. There are several types of cleaner that make the work less of a drudge, the best of all being the robotic cleaner that picks up all kinds of debris both large and small. But in between these major cleans, you still need to do maintenance so the water is less likely to get algae and bacteria in it. Here are 8 easy tips to help.

  • Use a pool skimmer to remove surface debris every day. Most such rubbish floats for a few hours before sinking, so it is easier to remove it at this time and it will not then have time to start decomposing to any great extent, making your pool water pH out of balance. You should also empty the skimmer baskets every day.
  • It is not only the leaves and twigs blowing into the pool that causes a problem with water purity; sunscreen and body oils wash into the water also. These can’t be lifted out with a scoop, but if you throw 2-3 new tennis balls into the pool, the oil in both will get caught on the fur as they bob around. Take them out and run them under the hot tap every so often to remove the oil.
  • Having an automatic pool cleaner or brushing the pool once a week to prevent mould or algae build-up. Everything that is under the water needs to be brushed, including steps, rails, ladders, walls and base. Vinyl, fibreglass and tiles need a soft brush; concrete and plaster need a stiffer brush.

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Removals and Storage

Removals and Storage

According to professional moving company, Brilliance Removalists Perth sometimes the date you have to move out of your home doesn’t coincide with the date you have planned to move into your new property? It’s a common enough problem. It will require new instructions to your removals company, that’s for sure.

The obvious solution is that all your household possessions will have to go into storage for as long as it takes until your new residence is available. Some people have an innate fear about storing their precious household possessions. But they shouldn’t really worry. Let’s take the time to address some of the concerns that are more fiction than fact.

Fiction: Your goods are plonked in the middle of a warehouse

Fact: No, they aren’t (well they shouldn’t be)!

A reputable and professional company providing furniture rеmоvаlѕ wоuld not contemplate simply “dumping” уоur hоuѕеhоld goods іntо the mіddlе of a gеnеrаl рurроѕе wаrеhоuѕе.

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