Home Improvement Tips & Ideas
Find out how to maintain a healthy home and avoid allergens that lead to asthma, dust, mold, mildew, chemicals and prevent sick homes
For the health, safety and cleanliness of your family, it’s important to actually wash your washing machine, and clean your dryer! Here’s how.
Homeowners are taking steps to live greener lives and make their homes more environmentally friendly. Zero-carbon homes are a way to achieve just that.
Imagine having fresh vegetables all year – it’s cheaper, healthier, and fresher than buying them at the grocery store. While this sounds ideal, most of us who live in a 4-season climate don’t have the option to grow vegetables in our gardens during the chillier months. Building or buying a backyard greenhouse can solve that …
Grow Fresh Veggies Year-Round with a Backyard GreenhouseRead More
Home renovation has become an activity that many homeowners are tackling in one way or another. With television shows and tutorials at the palm of your hand, the ability to perform projects on your own has become increasingly popular. However, what these fun do-it-yourself tutorials and television shows do not glorify, are the many toxic …
Toxic Renovation: How to Avoid Stirring Up Lead Paint, Asbestos and MoldRead More
Throwing away food is something that nobody intends to do, but the reality is that many people waste food quite often. According to a survey conducted by the American Chemistry Council, the average household throws out $640 worth of food each year. This number equates to throwing away around 16% of the food that we …
Stop Wasting Food at Home with These Preservation TipsRead More
Do you appreciate hardwood that has unique, even “one of a kind” qualities? Do you want to contribute to a sustainable environment and maybe even save a few bucks along the way? If your answer to those questions is “Yes,” then reclaimed lumber may be the perfect fit for your next home improvement project! What …
4 Reasons to Love Reclaimed Lumber for Your Next ProjectRead More
Learn the recipes for several natural cleaning products including copper polish, glass cleaner, sink and toilet bowl cleaner, disinfectant, oven cleaner, furniture polish, and mildew and brass cleaner.
If your home suffers from drippy, wet condensation on the inside of windows during cold weather, you’ve probably noticed it can make a real mess of everything below. In the 20 years I spent as a professional home inspector, I’ve noticed all sorts of so-called DIY “solutions” for this problem, from rolled up towels strategically …
Whether you’re planning a kitchen overhaul or a partial redesign, it’s not hard to create an eco-friendly kitchen for healthier and sustainable living
If you have a finished, or unfinished basement, or even a crawlspace, it’s always a challenge to keep that space dry. And with all that moisture, those spaces can be breeding grounds for mold and a wide variety of allergens. Taking steps to stem that moisture is important and one product that can help is …
Improve Air Quality, Reduce Moisture and Avoid Allergens with EZ Breathe Ventilation SystemRead More
Easy ways to avoid lead paint poisoning by replacing old windows and become more energy efficient, here are few steps to completing a “lead-safe window replacement strategy” for the home
Finding mold in your home can be pretty scary. But while many molds are generally harmless, some can contain mycotoxins and be harmful, which is why it’s smart to identify the source of a mold problem and take steps to remove it. But is removing mold a DIY project or one that requires the specialized …
Got Mold? Get Rid of it Yourself With These DIY HacksRead More
What rating should indoor air filters have? Many intake filters don’t list the MERV rating.
Improving indoor air quality through green home remodeling should start with a homeowner choosing low- and no-VOC products that are green and clean. To improve indoor air quality when remodeling, purchase an inexpensive air quality kit that will test building materials for various air pollutants.
Using white vinegar for common household tasks can save you around $100 per year. How? Well, white vinegar can replace many of the common cleaning products you have in your home… the ones you are always repurchasing throughout the year. A gallon of vinegar will cost about $2.50. This gallon will come in handy for …
Household Cleaning with White Vinegar: 10 Money Saving UsesRead More
Many people plant just enough in the garden to eat fresh all summer and into fall but what if you want to do more? Maybe you want to provide enough food for your family to get through the winter. Or what about just enjoying the goodness of summer all year long? Both are fantastic ideas …
Have you heard chickens clucking contentedly in your neighborhood? How about a hen proudly announcing her egg? These sounds are no longer relegated to rural farmsteads. Referred to as “city chickens” they’re becoming more common in urban & suburban areas around the country. Keeping backyard chickens has become a popular hobby and an important part of the ‘slow food‘ …
City Chickens: How to Get Started Raising a Flock in Your BackyardRead More
Your garden is probably up and growing by now but instead of seeing a healthy garden is it looking a little sad? In the spring, seedlings are bright and healthy and you’re looking forward to the beautiful garden to come. But then you’re faced with some of the more disappointing aspects of gardening. Weeds start outstripping your …
An aromatherapy humidifier can be a great addition to your home for a wide array of different reasons. However, before you can understand the aromatherapy benefits of one of these types of humidifiers, it’s important to fully understand aromatherapy. What is Aromatherapy? Aromatherapy is a scientific process that involves the use of a variety of …
8 Benefits of Having an Aromatherapy Humidifier in Your HomeRead More
As the saying goes, when life gives you lemons – make lemonade. But did you know with a lemon garden, you can make refreshing, lemony drinks even if you don’t live in California or Florida? With these lemon-flavored plants, you can have a ‘lemonade garden’ in any state and grow lemonade ingredients from coast to coast! From …
With these effective allergy-relief tips, you will most certainly breathe a lot easier through the entire allergy season. Here is a checklist for making your home an allergy-free zone this spring.
Stop Sniffling and Sneezing! 10 Tips for Allergy Relief at HomeRead More
When older homes were constructed, they had lots and lots of natural ventilation, also known as drafts. Older homes provided as many as six to eight air changes every hour, meaning that the home was so drafty that all the air inside was exchanged with outside air that many times in an hour. While this …
Breathe Easy: How to Keep The Air in Your House CleanRead More
Is your home plagued by hard water? If so, you’re in very good company. In fact, about 80% of the homes in America have hard water – and it can really impact everyday life – from cooking to cleaning to doing laundry. Hard water makes it difficult to rinse the shampoo from your hair, and leaves …
There are few things more disgusting than having to clean up a house or apartment that been saturated to the core with cigarette or another tobacco smoke smell! If you’ve ever spent time around a smoker, you know the odor lingers – long after they’ve left the room. But for homes or apartments where smokers …
How to Get Rid of Tobacco Smoke Smell and Stop GaggingRead More
