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Health & Fitness

Kick-Off The New Year With Simple, Yet Effecitve Home Updates

Start 2012 with easy projects to improve your home's style, value and functionality.

With the New Year in full swing, many resolutions have already come and gone. The best resolutions are ones you see benefits from all year long, like completing simple yet essential updates to add value to your home.

“Completing several basic home improvement projects is a fantastic way to begin a new year,” suggests Jeff Leopold, owner of the new store at the former Sizzler in Terra Linda. “Updating the inside and outside of your home with things like new lighting and flooring and more storage early in the year will inspire you to continue home improvement projects throughout the year.”

Here are his effective and accessible tips and project ideas that will increase the efficiency, fashion and safety of your home.  

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  • Toolbox Upkeep – Create a toolbox of essential items or update the one that you have. For all basic home improvement projects, ensure that you have a screwdriver, hammer, tape measure, utility knife and pliers available at home. If you are doing more extensive work, making a basic electrical tool kit is also a good idea. This should include needle-nose pliers, electrical tape, fish tape, wire connectors, an insulated screwdriver, a combination tool, keyhole saw and a neon circuit tester. 
  • Organization Maven – Kick-off the New Year by creating a clutter-free garage. Organize your tools, lawn equipment, cleaning products and all other items with style. Creating an effective storage system, with stack-able tote bins, will preserve your belongings, provide easy access for products when they are needed and create more space in your garage for your car.
  • Energy Savings – An inexpensive and effective way to cut energy costs is to install weather-stripping around your doors and windows. Weather-stripping can boost the energy efficiency of those drafty openings by up to 70 percent.
  • Indoor Lighting  - Replace the six most-used bulbs in your home with CFLs and save up to $60 a year on your electric bills. To soften the glow of a CFL light bulb, cover it with a linen-colored fabric shade or an opaque glass shade.
  • Outdoor Lighting - Consider night-scaping your home. Outdoor lights not only provide security, but they can also create an inviting new look to your home at night. A couple of well-placed spotlights shining up against the house, or a more elaborate design of landscape lighting, can change the look of your home in the evening. Solar lights are an easy innovative option too, as they don’t require an electrician or wiring.
  • Carpet Cleaning - Since you stay indoors more in the winter, you need to properly remove mold, allergens and dust mites from your carpets using a steamer. The heat will kill dust mites and other organic bugs that you don’t want in your carpets. This is especially helpful for allergy-prone members of the family.
  • Filter Replacement – With the heater running more often, more dust and allergens are being collected in the heater filters. Replace your heater filter regularly, especially during the winter, so your heater runs more efficiently, and also to help cut down allergies.
  • Floor Fix-Up - If your hardwood floors look dull, use a convenient water-based, non-toxic spray designed for polyurethane-finished hardwood floors that will not leave behind residue or dulling ingredients. These will enhance the shine in your floors and add a layer of protection as well.

“By starting off the year with several basic renovations, you not only will improve the look and feel of your home, but will also ensure that you are prepared for the events that will take place in the coming months,” explains Jeff. “What’s more, spending even just a weekend on these DIY tasks will have a big impact on your home’s efficiency in the long run and will add lasting value to your greatest asset, your home.”

Michelle Leopold is the co-owner of Marin Ace, located at 180 Merrydale Road in Terra Linda. Visit www.acehardware.com to learn more about Ace products as well as DIY tips and project ideas from Lou Manfredini, Ace’s “Helpful Hardware Man.”

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