Outdoor Living Space: Create the Perfect Garden Oasis in Brazos Valley, TX

October 12, 2015 by ·

Outdoor Living Space: Create the Perfect Garden Oasis in Brazos Valley, TX

With all the wonderful sunny weather in the Brazos Valley, Texas, homeowners like to spend a lot of time in an outdoor living space. That sunny weather can become excessively hot, however, and force people back inside the air-conditioning. Creating a perfect garden oasis can help you enjoy the outdoors more often without risk of sunburn or heat stroke.

Choose a section of your backyard or a corner near and angle of the house to turn into a comfortable spot for relaxation and entertaining.

Your Home is the Backdrop

Always remember that the wall of your house provides the backdrop for any garden or landscaping style. Start with a home remodeling service in College Station, TX for painting or other wall cover installation. Stone facing and Hardie-Plank siding are two very popular choices in this region of Texas. They are both durable and very attractive.

Construct an Outdoor Living Space

What type of structure build in this section of your yard depends on what you intend to do with it. Decks and patios are both popular as solid surfaces for outdoor tables, barbecue grills and sunbathing. A professional deck builder in College Station, TX can survey the area and tell you the best options. One level and multilevel decks are able to be built in almost any yard.

Because of the hot sun and highest temperatures in the Brazos Valley area, a garden oasis should include some structure to provide shade. This will not only make it more comfortable for you to sit outside, but will also help shape the house and possibly reduce power bills. Arbors/pergolas are excellent choices for this purpose. In fact, pergolas in College Station, TX are built very frequently above flat decks and patios to extend the living area outside of the house.

Choose Texas Style Landscaping

Once the painting or Hardie-Plank siding is complete, the patio or deck laid and some sort of shade structure installed, it is time for landscaping. Because Texas has a hot climate, it is good to choose plants that are native to the area and very heat and drought tolerant.

If you want more privacy and shade in your backyard garden oasis, consider a creeping vine to climb up and over the arbor or pergola covering part of the deck or patio.

Some decorative tree options that do well in Texas include oaks, desert willow, althea and hollies. Bushes or shrubs can be used for more privacy and shade. Popular options include Texas mountain laurel, flowering spirea, desert-style yucca and Texas sage. Liven up garden beds or position large flowerpots along the edges of your deck and patio. Great plants for these options include showy hibiscus, marigolds, roses and the ever popular Texas bluebonnet.

The hot Texas weather invites people to enjoy the outside, you can get oppressive if no shade is provided. Through clever planning and planting, you can create a garden oasis perfect for your family and entertaining guests in your outdoor living space.

Filed Under: Porches Decks Pergolas ·

Five Steps to Kitchen Home Remodeling in College Station, TX

October 5, 2015 by ·

Five Steps to Kitchen Home Remodeling in College Station, TX

Kitchen Home Remodeling

Kitchens are the rooms in a house that people most want to remodel. It is one of the most used rooms in the house, other than the bathroom, and people come together in the kitchen for family meals and fun times. If you want to undertake a kitchen remodeling in College Station, TX or Bryan, TX, there are five basic steps you will take to transform either an empty space or an old, out of date kitchen into a new style you can be proud of.

1 – Get Inspired and Plan Your Dream

Cut out pictures from home magazines or browse online to get ideas about what styles and accents you would like in your dream kitchen. The first step is inspiration. The next step is tempering those dreams with your working budget.

2 – Hire Someone Who Can Make Your Dream a Reality

Even the best kitchen home remodeling in Bryan, TX cannot make the impossible happen when it comes to the design of kitchens. Within the bounds of reality, however, there are innumerable options to turn this most popular room of the house into a place where cooking and spending time with the family is perfect.

Always hire professionals who are licensed, insured and experienced in the type of kitchen remodeling you want done.

3 – Floors, Walls, Ceiling and More

Whether you are faced with an empty room in a new construction house or have had your old kitchen torn out for a complete remodel, the floors, walls and ceiling comes first. Flat painted ceilings are popular these days, but an expert home remodeler may suggest exposed beams or other accents to make the space more unique.

The floor should be durable and easily cleaned, which means that stone, ceramic tile and wood planks should be sealed properly. Other less expensive options include vinyl tile and laminate flooring. Painting the walls allows you to be more creative. Perhaps you would like a bright accent wall, paneling and a chair rail or even an extended backsplash that spreads the tile across more of the wall surface.

4 – Cabinets: Make Sure Everything Will Fit

The professional home remodelers in Brazos County, TX understand how to arrange the cabinetry in a kitchen to leave plenty of room for standard size appliances. If you have an extra-large stove or fridge, cabinets must be designed around them. Work closely with the cabinetmaker or home remodeler to make sure you have enough cabinets that are easily accessible. There are many options for drawer or shelf styles and inserts that that you get at things even at the back of the shelf without a problem.

5 – Appliances, Plumbing, Fixtures and Hardware

When the floors and walls are completed and the cabinets installed, the movable parts of a great kitchen are added. An expert from professional handyman services can help switch out old appliances for new and add fixtures and hardware like overhead lights or ceiling fans and cabinet handles and drawer pulls.

These five steps will guide you through the kitchen remodeling process whether you are having a home built from the ground up or tearing out an old kitchen that needs revitalization.

Filed Under: Kitchen Remodeling ·

Improve Curb Appeal With Home Exterior Renovation

September 28, 2015 by ·

Improve Curb Appeal With Home Exterior Renovation

When you drive home after a long day at work and turn into your driveway, you want to be able to look at your house and feel a sense of pride and welcoming even before you get to the door. Having good curb appeal is important even if you don’t intend to sell your home anytime soon. After all, the front of your house and the entryway are the things everybody sees first when they come over to visit. Home renovation in College Station, TX can refresh the look of your home to make it the jewel of your neighborhood.

New Painting and Siding Comes First

If your budget is not that big, you can add new siding or repaint just the front of your house to increase curb appeal without painting the side and back walls as well. Of course the finish on the front walls should match or complement what is already installed in the back, but it does not have to be exact to look good.

Painting your existing siding is always a great, more affordable option for revitalizing the front façade of your home. Durable, weatherproof exterior paint comes in a wide variety of colors and finishes. Today’s paint is designed not to fade or chip in the sun or rain for many years to come. Instead of chasing trends in home color, choosing a timeless, neutral shade may be your best bet.

For fabulous style and easy maintenance, nothing beats Hardie-Plank siding. This cement fiber siding has been recommended by home renovators, handyman services, design crews and consumer groups for many years. It’s top-quality construction and attractive finishes are perfect in the hot Texas weather and suit many different styles of home. Multiple color options are available as well as simple primed siding that can be painted with regular house paint.

Windows and Skylights

Upgrading to new windows can also increase the curb appeal of your home. Painted trim that is flaking or wearing out, or is discolored by the sun or rain is a maintenance nightmare that necessitates hiring handyman services regularly to keep the windows looking like new. Buying and installing vinyl windows can get rid of this problem and keep the front of your home looking great for many years.

Windows are mainly used to allow light into the home and, while this factor has nothing to do with the exterior appearance, it is important for your overall impression of the entryway and front hall of the house. Another way to introduce beautiful sunlight into the home is with Sun Tunnel Skylights. These tubular lighting access points provide a great flash of sunlight to the interior without marring the exterior roof style with bulky mechanisms or large pop up fixtures.

Exterior home renovation in the College Station, TX and Bryan, TX area can encompass everything from replacing all the siding on your house to painting window trim and the porch railing. Depending upon budget and condition of the exterior fixtures, simple and effective things can be done to improve curb appeal and make your home something truly to be proud of.

Filed Under: Remodeling ·

Top 5 Remodeling Jobs to Increase Property Value

September 21, 2015 by ·

Top 5 Remodeling Jobs to Increase Property Value

Even if you do not plan to sell your house soon, increasing the value of your property can be very beneficial to the enjoyment of life and maintaining the neighborhood’s style and value. The best company for home remodeling in College Station, TX help you decide which projects undertake based on your properties particular needs and your budget.

When it comes to home remodeling in Brazos Valley, TX, the following list encompasses the top five jobs you should consider undertaking to improve your home:

1 – Revitalize and Refinish the Exterior

Curb appeal is a real estate catchphrase that describes the feeling a person gets when they look at your house from the street. It is always important to make a good first impression. Repainting, installing new siding or windows, buying a more attractive front door and adding things like flowerpots and porch lights go a long way to increasing the value of your property.

2 – Interior Floors, Walls and Ceilings

After formulating an opinion about your house from the exterior, people walk inside and want to see a fresh and clean interior as well. Get rid of out of date finishes like popcorn ceilings and flowered wallpaper. Instead, go for neutral walls, colorful or dark accent walls, stone, ceramic tile, natural wood and other quality materials.

3 – Increase Living Space

Besides having an addition built, there are other, less expensive ways to increase the living space of your home. On the inside, finishing an attic or a basement is a great idea. You could potentially add another bedroom and greatly affect your home value. To extend the living area outside, sunrooms, screened in porches, patios and decks work as well.

4 – Kitchen and Bathroom General Remodel

The two most important rooms in the house when it comes to remodeling and increasing property value are the kitchen and the bathrooms. They are also the two rooms where out dated materials and designs occur most often. While a flat a painted wall will never go out of style, a Formica countertop and linoleum floor can definitely affect other people’s impression of your kitchen. New tile, new countertops and new cabinetry can completely change the appearance, feel and value that these rooms bring to your house.

5 – Energy Efficiency

Any home remodeling in Bryan, TX should focus on not only looks and low maintenance, but also energy efficiency and environmentally friendly materials. With all the interest in going green these days, installing energy friendly appliances and utilities an increase home value. Using sustainable materials for siding, decks or other construction products can decrease maintenance costs in the future and thus make the property more attractive in the market.

Although you may intend to stay in your current home for many years to come, keeping it up-to-date and marketable can help in the long run and increase property values for the whole neighborhood. You do not need to have an excessively large budget to undertake some home remodeling projects that can improve the interior and exterior of your home.

Filed Under: Remodeling, Uncategorized ·

Extend Living Space With Porches, Decks and Pergolas in College Station, TX

September 14, 2015 by ·

Extend Living Space With Porches, Decks and Pergolas in College Station, TX

Homeowners in the College Station, TX area would miss out on all the fabulous weather if they relaxed and entertained inside their home all the time. Even if you have a large house, it can get boring staring at the same walls all the time. The backyard may be lovely with professional landscaping, but it does not become very useful without some help. Why not extend your living space with the addition of a sunroom, porch, deck and pergola?

Sunrooms/Screened Porches

These home additions create a zone that shares characteristics from both the inside and the outside. Sunrooms use many large windows to allow the sun and cool breezes into a comfortable space that is protected from the weather. A screened porch moves you closer to the outdoors. The walls of screening allow sun, wind and sometimes rain to come in while protecting you from biting insects. These rooms and porches will quickly become favorite spots for relaxation and entertaining.

Decks

With all the varieties offered in decking these days, a deck builder in College Station, TX can help you choose a design that is perfect for your home style, backyard size and the intended use. Decks are usually made from wood with a railing around them. Seating can be built in or they can be left flat for use with outdoor furniture. Many people enjoy grilling on the deck and having family and friends over for a fun cookout. They are one of the most common ways to extend living space of a home into the great outdoors.

Arbors/Pergolas

The Texas sun can be quite hot and protecting yourself from it can help prevent painful sunburns as well. If you have an existing deck or patio on the backside of your house, adding an arbor or pergola can be an excellent idea. Builders who design and install pergolas in College Station, TX understand the best options to get the most benefits in sun protection and cooling comfort.

Because arbors and pergolas are not solid like an actual roof, rain and some sun was still come down through the slatted boards. They do add architectural interest to the backyard and afford some measure of cooling to make it easier to enjoy the outside in this hot region. Additional sun protection can be had by installing overhead screens or allowing lush vines to climb up the arbor and over the top.

Decorating and maintaining a beautiful home provides ample space for a family to relax and entertain their family and friends, but nothing beats getting outside to enjoy the warm temperatures, a bit of sun and a great view of your landscaped backyard. Building sunrooms, porches, decks, arbors and pergolas can extend your living space and increase the value of your home with less cost and mess than a total renovation.

Filed Under: Porches Decks Pergolas ·
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