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Archive: Remodeling and repair
Feds link Chinese drywall to 'corrosive environment' in homes
The Consumer Product Safety Commission's unsettling advice to people who live in homes made with Chinese drywall: "Spend as much time outdoors in fresh air as possible." On Monday, the CPSC reported there is a "strong association" between homes built with Chinese drywall and levels of hydrogen sulfide in the air and corroding metals around the home.
By Elizabeth Razzi | November 23, 2009; 04:14 PM ET | Comments (1)
Remodelers: "It will die if you don't take care of it."
Remodeling is not dead--but it's a much more modest endeavor these days, when more homeowners are paying the tab out of their savings instead of a cheap and easy home equity loan, according to remodelers. Officials of Case Design/Remodeling, which is based in the Washington area, had some interesting things to say about remodeling in Nation's Building News, an online publication of the National Association of Home Builders. Their average project now costs about $100,000, half of what was typical in 2007, said Mark Richardson, Case co-chairman. And they're focusing much of their pitch to homeowners on the need to keep up their properties, pointing out maintenance issues that ought to be taken care of. "It will die if you don't take care of it," is Case's message.
By Elizabeth Razzi | November 10, 2009; 06:00 AM ET | Comments (0)
Act fast to cash in credit card rewards
If you have a Home Depot Rewards MasterCard--and have been counting on tapping that line of credit for a big job--you need to go shopping, and fast. Citi, which issues the card, has announced that cardholders can use them to make purchases only through Saturday, Oct. 31. And Rewards Points must be redeemed by Jan. 31, 2010, or they expire.
By Elizabeth Razzi | October 27, 2009; 08:00 AM ET | Comments (2)
Germany Takes Top Honors in Solar Decathlon
Team Germany--led by students from Technische Universitat Darmstadt--won top honors overall in the 2009 Solar Decathlon, the Department of Energy announced today. Second place, overall, went to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and third place went to Team California, which was a partnership of Santa Clara University and California College of the Arts.
By Elizabeth Razzi | October 16, 2009; 03:36 PM ET | Comments (1)
Solar Winners, Chat Day and The Weekend Poll
A couple of early winners have been announced at the Solar Decathlon still underway through this weekend on the National Mall. So far, Team California has taken first place for architecture and communications; the University of Louisiana at Lafayette has taken first place for market viability, and the University of Minnesota has taken first place for lighting design. The rest of the winners will be announced Friday.
By Elizabeth Razzi | October 16, 2009; 06:00 AM ET | Comments (0)
Low-Tech Sustainable Houses and The Weekend Poll
I chatted about the way we've drifted away from old, low-tech solutions the other day with Lance Davis, a member of the American Institute of Architects' environmental committee. We were looking at the "dogtrot" -- a traditional Cajun breezeway that's part of the University of Louisiana's Decathlon house. I have to paraphrase here, but he noted that technology, in many ways, has allowed architects and designers to drift away from sensible solutions. A room can be built without operable windows, for example, thanks to the availability of air conditioning.
By Elizabeth Razzi | October 9, 2009; 02:30 PM ET | Comments (0)
Early Peek at Solar Decathlon Houses
Twenty prototype solar houses are taking shape on the National Mall, racing to be ready for the contest's opening on Thursday, and public viewing starting Friday. I haven't been inside any yet but picked up a few interesting tidbits.
By Elizabeth Razzi | October 8, 2009; 06:00 AM ET | Comments (1)
Sidewalk Superintendent Browses Solar Decathlon
The village of solar-powered prototype homes was going up rapidly on the National Mall over the weekend. Though the exhibit doesn't open for public viewing until Friday, passersby were allowed to stroll down a corridor cutting straight through the construction sites. I wandered through on Friday evening to the sound of drills and cranes and, at some, the aroma of fresh drywall mud.
By Elizabeth Razzi | October 5, 2009; 09:49 AM ET | Comments (1)
A Flood of Solar Events and The Weekend Poll
The 19th Annual Metro Washington, D.C., Tour of Solar Homes and Buildings is scheduled for this weekend, Oct. 3-5. And the National Mall is in the process of turning into one solar-powered housing development.
By Elizabeth Razzi | October 2, 2009; 06:00 AM ET | Comments (0)
What Boomers--and Others Want in a Home
A story about designing homes for "aging" (ahem!) baby boomers in Nation's Building News brought to mind a thought that hits me every time I buy contact lens solution, of all things. I buy the stuff made especially for "sensitive eyes" and always wonder: Who would choose anything else?
By Elizabeth Razzi | September 29, 2009; 06:00 AM ET | Comments (1)
WHO Urges Lower Threshold for Acting on Radon
The World Health Organization just recommended that countries set an action level for getting rid of radon that's lower than the one established by the U.S. Environmental Protection agency.
By Elizabeth Razzi | September 24, 2009; 06:00 AM ET | Comments (3)
Chat Plus: Questioning the Appraisal
We had a particularly active online chat on Friday. This was one of the questions I couldn't get to within that hour. Next chat is scheduled for Friday, Oct. 2. Outside Annapolis: Hello, and thank you for the chats! I am desperate for some advice right now. It's another of those "appraisal came in too low" type questions, but with a twist. I tore down the old house I'd been living in for 10+ years, and the new house is under construction. I guess I should have anticipated cost overruns, but I was naive.
By Elizabeth Razzi | September 21, 2009; 06:00 AM ET | Comments (0)
Labor Day, Jobs and the Weekend Poll
This Labor Day finds nearly a 10th of the U.S. workforce looking for a job. We in the Washington area have it easier than most, considering our 6.2 percent unemployment rate, but as The Post reports, pay raises are likely to be scarce and skimpy.
By Elizabeth Razzi | September 4, 2009; 06:00 AM ET | Comments (3)
...And You May Find Yourself in a Beautiful House..
I recall a vivid dream I had--more than once--while in the midst of building a home addition. In my dream I found a new door in our unremodeled home, opened it, and discovered a great big room that I hadn't known was there. Why remodel with all that unfinished space? After the work was done, the dream went away. An architect friend of mine told me he's had a very similar dream while in the throes of remodeling.
By Elizabeth Razzi | September 2, 2009; 06:00 AM ET | Comments (2)
When the Tree Branch Hits the Power Line
I'll tell you, it looked harmless. My husband and I looked out the front window on Sunday to discover a very long, dead maple branch resting against the electric wire running to our house. One end of the dead branch touched the ground, and it looked almost as if someone had deliberately propped a long pole against the power line. Our power was still on. My husband considered moving it; I considered the prospect of our children being orphaned and called Dominion Virginia Power's emergency line.
By Elizabeth Razzi | August 11, 2009; 06:00 AM ET | Comments (0)
Chat Plus: Finding the Right Balance in a Remodel
From Alexandria: We have a nice four-bedroom, 2 1/2 bath home, about 2,000 sq. ft., that was built in 1984. We bought in 1988. The family room and the living room are both about 19' x 11 1/2', in other words long and narrow. We have often wished the family room were about twice the width, but if we expand, the fireplace, now centered on one of the shorter walls, will be very much off-center. Do you think it's a good idea to add square footage like that, even if it throws off what was previously a symmetrical arrangement? People around us have added on sunrooms and porches, and a few have expanded their family rooms, so looks like it's an okay thing in the neighborhood in general to add space.
By Elizabeth Razzi | August 10, 2009; 06:00 AM ET | Comments (1)
Think Snow! A Very Early Winter Forecast
Remember years ago, when the Washington area got cold, snowy winters, how ice dams along the house's eaves caused water damage? How you wished you had a little shed for the trash cans or fire wood? How you really, really needed a mud room for all the boots and coats? Or how drafts rolled down from that wall of windows? Consider yourself warned: Real winter is coming back, according to meteorologists at Accuweather in State College, Pa.
By Elizabeth Razzi | July 20, 2009; 06:00 AM ET | Comments (0)
Taking Stock of Your Stuff, Plus the Weekend Poll
Okay, this one would have to be a project for a really rainy weekend, but the IRS has published a free guide, Publication 584, Casualty, Disaster and Theft Loss Workbook, that can help you inventory all your belongings--and their values. It's info that becomes invaluable if catastrophe, say a flood, fire or hurricane, were to hit and you have to file an insurance claim--and to report your losses on an income tax form.
By Elizabeth Razzi | June 26, 2009; 06:00 AM ET | Comments (0)
Chat Plus: Perils of a Damp Basement
Question: After nine months of looking, a house just came on the market in our dream location and in our price range, with newly remodeled kitchen and baths. Heaven, right? Well, apparently the basement is "damp," which is common along that street. Do you think it's reasonable to ask the sellers to fix this?
By Elizabeth Razzi | June 1, 2009; 06:00 AM ET | Comments (2)
Inching Toward a Remodeling Comeback
The scream of a circular saw in my house this weekend might have convinced a passerby that there was a whole lot of construction going on inside. Actually, it was just a tiny do-it-yourself job that might more appropriately be considered decorating rather than remodeling. But it still represents the first home-improvement spending we've done since late last summer when it became clear that the economy was starting to fall apart. Looking at the news I see that we're not alone taking baby steps back toward spending. On May 14, the National Association of Home Builders reported a jump in its Remodeling Market Index--improving from abysmal to simply bad.
By Elizabeth Razzi | May 19, 2009; 06:00 AM ET | Comments (2)
Foghorn Leghorn in the Yard; Weekend Reading
know this will draw clucks from folks who think I'm not nearly as earthy as I ought to be, but I'm glad there aren't chickens roosting in my neighborhood. I figure if your neighbors are close enough to know you're keeping them, then you probably shouldn't have them.
By Elizabeth Razzi | May 15, 2009; 06:00 AM ET | Comments (0)
Exploit Your Surroundings
Over the weekend, I got together with some old college friends for a reunion in a vacation rental near St. Michael's, Md. It was an aesthetically talented group consisting of about a dozen architects, interior designers, architectural engineers and yours truly, whose training in design is limited to the layout of newspaper pages. Let's just say everything about the layout and construction of our rental house was thoroughly picked-apart.
By Elizabeth Razzi | April 22, 2009; 06:00 AM ET | Comments (1)
Winning Renovations and the Weekend Poll
Yes there was remodeling going on in the Washington area during the housing bust. Area remodelers and architects just won Contractor of the Year awards from the National Association of the Remodeling Industry. Here's a peek at two local winners, plus The Weekend Poll: What's the right time for your next remodel or repair?
By Elizabeth Razzi | April 3, 2009; 06:00 AM ET | Comments (0)
New Tax Credit, New Windows
I have been meaning to replace a couple of 60-year-old rusted-shut basement windows for years, but other priorities always nudged the job lower on my to-do list. Now I'm thinking that it would be a shame not to take advantage of the 30 percent federal tax credit for energy-efficient windows and finally get that job done. Here's how the search for the right windows is going so far. The tax credit covers up to 30 percent of the window's cost (but not the installer's labor), up to $1,500. But they have to be super-efficient windows to qualify. The standards for the tax credit are higher even than the government's Energy Star rating. For the Washington area, where blocking summer sunshine is as important as reducing winter chills, we need windows with a "U-Factor" (for keeping cold out) of 0.40 or less, and a SHGC (short for solar heat gain coefficient)...
By Elizabeth Razzi | March 25, 2009; 06:00 AM ET | Comments (13)
