What Is Baseboard Heat, Anyway?

Keeping your house warm is important during the colder parts of the year, and there are a few different heating solutions you can rely on to get the job done. One option that’s often overlooked is baseboard heat. While some older baseboard heat systems may have had their flaws, modern baseboard heaters do a good job of keeping your home warm while maintaining reasonable heating costs. If you’re not sure about baseboard heat or whether it’s right for your home, here are a few things that you should consider.

Baseboard Heaters

As the name implies, baseboard heaters are heating units that are installed near the floor around the baseboards of your wall. These heaters produce heat at ground level, allowing the natural properties of air to circulate the heat around without the need for a fan unit or other elements of a forced-air heating system. Depending on your needs and the layout of your house, these heaters can be used either as a supplement to other heating solutions or as the sole source of heat in your home.

Electric vs. Hydronic Heaters

There are actually two distinct types of baseboard heating units, electric units and hydronic units. Electric heating units work similar to space heaters, using heating elements within them to generate heat when electricity is applied to their filaments. These units are often hardwired into a home’s wiring, though plug-in variants do exist. Because these heaters are less energy efficient than other heating options, electric baseboard heaters are often used only part time, such as turning the heater on at night in occupied rooms and then turning them off at bedtime or in the morning.

Hydronic baseboard heaters are a much more energy efficient option to use as an overall heating system. These units feature containers of oil or other fluid which are warmed, similar to radiator heaters, by an electric heating element. The fluid retains heat for much longer than an electric heating filament would, allowing the heater to only be actively using power for a small amount of time while the heater itself radiates heat into the room for hours.

Advantages of Baseboard Heat

There are several positives to using baseboard heating units in your home. Since they don’t use forced air to move heat around, the heaters are quiet and don’t require nearly as much annual maintenance or filter changes as heating units. There is also no ductwork to install since each heater only heats the area around itself instead of trying to heat the whole house. Baseboard heat provides even heat as well, as opposed to the cycle of heating and cooling that’s experienced in forced-air systems where the overall air temperature in one location determines when the unit is turned on and off.

Positioning Baseboard Units

While it’s not always the case, many baseboard heating units are placed below windows or other areas where cooler air might enter the home. The reason for this is that cold air is denser than warm air, causing that cool air to sink. The heater then takes in this cooler air, warming it up and letting it radiate out into the room. This helps to prevent drafts and cold floors, creating an air current in your home as the warmer air rises and is replaced by cooler air yet again.

Is Baseboard Heat Right for Your Home?

There are a lot of things to consider when trying to figure out if baseboard heating is right for your home. The layout of your home, the height of your ceilings, and even the portion of the year in which you actively need to heat your home can all play a part in your decision. Think about how your current unit works, how much you pay to heat your home in an average year, and what it might cost to install and use baseboard units instead. The more consideration you put into it, the more surprised you might be at how well baseboard heat could work in your home.

Ready to Refinish Your Cabinets? You Have Options!

It’s been a long year, and it’s ok if you’re tired of staring at those kitchen cabinets you’ve frankly hated for years. 2021 is a year about promise and change, and you can start the process in your very own home. There are lots of ways to give your cabinets a new look, whether you prefer something more classic or super contemporary. There’s an option for every budget, and most of the time you won’t even need to replace your cabinets or counters, unless you just really want to.

Remake Those Cabinets to Create Your Dream Kitchen

When it comes to giving your cabinets new life, you have options. Some are pretty simple and don’t require a lot of effort; some are quite challenging and may generate a great deal of mess and confusion. They’re all valid options, though, depending on just how much time you’re willing to put into the project.

You’ll have the most flexibility if you’re working with wooden cabinets, whether or not they’ve been painted previously. Laminated cabinets (also sometimes called MDF) are a bit of a different beast, and are very difficult to change once they’ve been installed. Here are a few things you should consider, depending on your cabinets:

• Swapping Hardware. Sometimes, the thing making your cabinets feel old and dated is the hardware. It might sound like a small thing, but heavy cabinet hardware from the 1970s has a whole different feel than more streamlined contemporary hardware. If you’re on a small budget, or you can’t have your kitchen torn apart for an extended period, investing in new hardware could give you a whole new look.
• Repainting. This is generally only a trick to try on cabinets that are made of wood, but if you use specially designed paints and primers, you can often make paint stick to laminated or metal cabinets. Choose a paint that’s self-leveling and dries hard, like a latex-based enamel cabinet paint, along with a bonding primer, for the very best results.
• You’ll need to take the doors down, sand the existing finish just enough to rough it up, and allow for plenty of dry time, but because these paints are tintable, the sky is really the limit. It goes on just like other high grade paint, so mix and match colors, paint two-tone designs on your existing cabinetry, or freehand it with fancy designs for a look you really love.
• Restaining. This will only work with wood cabinets, but you can really change the look of a room simply by restaining your existing cabinets. It’s possible to strip old paint off of painted cabinets, but be warned: it will be a lot of work and mess, so do it outside as much as you can.
• Once you have all the old stain or paint sanded off, apply your new stain per package directions. Today’s stains come in a lot more than traditional “wood” colors; many can create simulated whitewash or aged wood, or add a thin tint of color that will still allow the wood grain to show through.

If redoing your cabinet doors seems like it may be more mess than you’re prepared to deal with, or you want to change the actual design of your cabinet doors, another viable option would be to order all new cabinet doors. You may still need to paint or stain the cabinet bases to match, but a whole new design is a lot easier to achieve with new doors, and replacing those doors is a lot simpler than replacing all your cabinets.

Should You Spring for an Insulated Garage Door?

It may seem like a small thing to replace your garage door. After all, it’s just a door, isn’t it? Well, according to Remodeling Magazine, which has kept tabs on the value common home repairs and remodels can return yearly since 2002, a garage door replacement is 2020’s second best returning project, recouping a whopping 94.5% of the costs involved. That’s huge! So maybe a garage door isn’t just a garage door after all.

Why Buy an Insulated Garage Door?

When it comes to choosing your next door, there’s a lot to consider, but one of the biggest decision points is whether or not to opt for an insulated garage door. Insulated garage doors can be a huge benefit to your home, whether you’re getting ready to sell or intend to stay the course for many more years.

Here are just a few of the reasons to choose insulated:

A more durable design. In order to insulate a garage door, additional layers are added to the somewhat thin materials that standard garage doors are made from. These extra layers include both insulation and, generally, a panel to cover the insulation and protect it from damage. Along with these elements, you will often also see additional braces along the door’s length, creating a significantly stronger door.

While it may not seem like a garage door needs to be strong, one of the major causes of garage door damage is wind storms. In fact, the right kind of winds can take an uninsulated garage door and basically crush it like an aluminum can, exposing everything inside your garage to the storm that’s in progress. The more durable materials also help to deter criminals, since the door is much heavier and more difficult to force open.

Improved energy efficiency. With all that insulation comes benefits you’d probably expect, like improved energy efficiency. Although many garages don’t get connected to climate control systems, they still influence the temperature inside your home’s envelope. When it’s very cold or very hot in your garage, air leaks and basic thermal radiation through walls can become extra obvious.

Even if you don’t notice temperature changes due to your garage’s wild temperature swings, your car and other machines probably will. Even though they’re indoors and protected from rain, wind, and snow, temperature extremes can still cause a fair amount of damage over time. Insulated garage doors even out these temperature swings, extending the life of sensitive tools and machines.

Quieter garage spaces. Depending on how your home is set up, adding an insulated garage door can also help reduce garage door noise. If your garage is off of a main living area or isn’t even connected to the house, noise from door vibrations may not be noticeable, but when you have a sleeping baby in a bedroom just above or next to the garage door, you’ll be able to tell. Along with reducing door vibrations, an insulated garage door will help reduce road noise that comes into your home from the outdoors. The thick door is a great sound dampener both ways, though, so your garage band can also make a little bit more noise without anybody outside being the wiser.

Of course, the benefits of an insulated garage door are better realized when your door is properly installed and gaps are eliminated. After all, putting insulation next to a big gap without covering it really does no one any good.

Top Siding Options for 2021

Homes both old and new face a determined foe: the elements. One of the only defenses against moisture, wind, and heat is the siding your house is clad in. You can think of it a bit like house armor. So, when it comes time to choose your home’s main line of defense, what will it be? The cheapest option you can possibly come up with, or a well-considered siding that is both durable and attractive? It’s time to look at your siding options.

Siding Choices for 2021

Although you can side your house in an amazing array of materials, from metal barn siding to asphalt shingles, there are definitely options that are far more effective and attractive than others. Siding options haven’t changed a lot this year, but there’s plenty to be said for the materials that are widely available today. Common siding choices include:

• Vinyl. Although vinyl is final, it’s not always the most durable material out there. There are a range of grades of vinyl siding, and which you choose matters. Look for a heavier option, with a longer warranty, if you want to ensure your siding will be around a while. Higher end vinyl siding comes in a wide range of patterns, too, including imitation shakes and fish scales (rounded shingles), plus it can be oriented either vertically or horizontally, depending on your home’s style and your personal preference. On the other hand, while vinyl may be the most versatile material for the money currently on the market, if you live in an area where high winds are a problem, it may be difficult to keep vinyl siding attached.
• Fiber cement. Made from a combination of cement and wood fibers, fiber cement siding is durable and long-lasting. Unlike its predecessor, modern fiber cement no longer contains asbestos, but does still retain the same unrelenting strength. It’s a heavy duty siding, however, so expect to pay more for installation. You’ll also likely be needing to repaint it occasionally. Fiber cement costs more than vinyl siding in general, but has a useful lifespan of 50 years or more, so if you plan to stay in your home and are looking for an alternative to stone or brick, it might be the answer.
• Wood. Good old-fashioned wood siding has been a popular choice for generations, but modern homes have steered away from it for a variety of reasons. Because wood siding requires a lot of maintenance, many homeowners simply don’t have the time to reseal or repaint it often enough to maintain the original look, and over time this lack of care can lead to insect infestations. Wood siding is great for some applications, but it’s only as good as the care you give it. If you’re prepared to go the long haul on your home, or just want a small accent, wood might be a great option. The cost will vary considerably depending on the thickness, style, and species of wood you choose.
• Composite. Composite, also known as engineered wood, is a compromise for homeowners who want a wood look, but don’t want all the upkeep of real wood. It’s still going to need more care than other types of siding, but you can still expect to get 20 or 30 years of use from it. Unlike real wood, which can be sanded and refinished if you get lax in maintenance or simply want to give it a different finish, composite siding is kind of a set-it-and-forget-it option. It will be the color or stain you chose initially unless you remove it all and start again.
• Brick or Stone. Brick and stone go hand in hand when it comes to siding choices. Both are sturdy materials that require an expert mason to install properly, so if you’re considering a DIY siding job, these may not be the right option. Considerable skill goes into properly creating a stone or brick siding, and without the proper prep work, your siding can simply slip off your house. It’s not a pretty picture. On the flip side, stone and brick are pretty much forever, requiring only minimal tuckpointing for maintenance. So, as long as you don’t decide to paint brick or stone, you’ve got siding you can trust for a lifetime.

Cha-Ching Check: Cash Beyond Your Down Payment

Shopping for a house can leave you exhausted and spiritually broken, especially when that dream home is proving tricky to find in your price range. Even though you’ll eventually find the right one, you may also find yourself cutting it close on cash if you didn’t properly prepare financially. So it’s time for your pre-purchase cha-ching check.

What It Costs to Close

For sellers, closing is a fairly simple process, and most of the time they walk away with a check in hand. But for buyers, closing can be one of the largest expenses of their lives. You know it’s going to be pricey, but it’s a much easier pill to swallow if you’re totally ready for everything that’s going to go into that transaction. And there’s a lot more to paying for your new home than just coming up with the down payment. If you’re like most borrowers, to cover additional expenses on the big day, you can expect to add an additional three to six percent on top of that big chunk you’ve saved.

Those costs include, but aren’t limited to:

• Real estate-related expenses. Your lender should have already disclosed the fees they collect in order to actually do the work of creating your home loan, but there are other fees related to your loan that may or may not have been covered. These include potential lender requirements like appraisals and home inspections, as well as any repairs you’ve chosen to pay for at closing.
• Loan-related fees. If you haven’t talked to a lender yet, you may be surprised at some of the fees that are charged to take your loan from a little dream to a big investment in your future. An application fee is generally required to begin the process, as it covers the costs of things like your credit report and the initial loan processing. Other fees include prepaid interest (interest that accumulates between closing day and the day of your first payment), loan origination fees, discount points, and mortgage broker fees. These can really add up!
• Prepaid escrow expenses. Because items like your taxes and homeowner’s insurance are generally paid out of an escrow account, you’ll have to put some money into it at the get-go to kick things off. The actual initial deposits will depend on where you live, but count on at least two months, if not a full year, of each being collected to establish that account. If you have mortgage insurance, the same would also apply.
• Title-related fees. Although it would be wonderful to live in a world where you could trust that a seller was absolutely, without question, capable of guaranteeing you could buy and own their home without complications, that world doesn’t really exist. But that’s why title searches and title insurance do. These different fees pay to ensure that you will be able to buy a house without anyone else having a legal claim to it later, which would complicate your ownership considerably. Before a bank will loan you money, they want to know that a home has a clear title. Title searches track all the people who have owned the property before, and title insurance protects against any problems that might have accumulated on the title over time.

Is It Time to Replace Your Windows?

People don’t always appreciate all the roles that windows fill in the home. They provide natural light, give you a way to open up and let in some fresh air, and even help regulate indoor temperatures. Many homes even use windows to add a decorative element that is hard to achieve with other forms of decoration. With that said, not all windows are created equal. Some windows use cheap materials to keep costs down. Your old windows may have started out in good shape but ended up showing their age as time goes by. They may have even become damaged or otherwise in need of repair. Regardless of the reason, you might have windows in your home that just aren’t doing what you need them to do. Should you replace them? Here are a few things that you should consider to help you make this decision.

What’s Wrong With Your Windows?

Before rushing in and replacing windows, stop and think about the actual reason that you want to replace them. Do you simply not like the way that they look, or is there a bigger problem? Do the windows leak or have drafts? Is there visible damage to the glass or the window frame? There are a lot of viable reasons why you might replace windows in your home, but if you’re on the fence then it’s worth taking the time to articulate what those reasons are.

Repair or Replace?

In some cases, you might not actually need to replace your windows to take care of your issues with them. If you’re dealing with cracked glass, damaged window frames, or other forms of damage, you might be able to repair the windows at a lower cost than replacing them outright. If repair is an option, try getting some quotes to see whether it’s cheaper in your case to repair than replace.

Consistent Styling

It’s possible that at some point in the past, one or more windows in your home was replaced for some reason. Unfortunately, when that happened there may not have been a lot of care put into matching the replacement with the existing windows. This usually leaves the home with a few windows that stick out like sore thumbs. If you’re tired of certain windows being an eyesore, you might replace them and upgrade to something that more closely matches the other windows in your home. As an alternative, you could also replace all the windows and create a new style that’s all your own.

Improving Energy Efficiency

One big reason for replacing windows is to improve the overall energy efficiency of your home. Modern windows tend to go a lot further toward keeping things warm in the winter and cool in the summer than older windows do. By upgrading your windows to more energy-efficient models you can not only eliminate drafts and take care of other issues, but you can also save yourself a significant amount of money over time.

Replace One or All?

One thing to consider when looking at window replacements is whether you want to only replace certain windows or if you want to upgrade all the windows in your home. Replacing all the windows creates a more uniform style, but it also comes at a significantly higher cost. It’s certainly an option if it fits your budget, but if the price tag is a bit steep then you might also look into only replacing certain windows with similar styles that will closely match the existing windows in the home.

What’s New in Water Heaters?

Your water heater is an important part of your home, especially if you have a family. Between cooking, cleaning, doing dishes, washing clothes, washing hands, and all the other things you use hot water for throughout the day, knowing that your water heater can handle your needs is vital. If your trusty old water heater has seen better days, it may be time to look for a replacement. Chances are a lot has changed in water heaters since yours was installed, though, so here are some of the more recent advancements in water heaters that you should know about.

Improved Efficiency

Water heaters are a lot more efficient than they used to be, which is good news for your wallet. Because of updates to efficiency standards, smaller water heaters tend to be around 4 percent more efficient, and large water heaters can be up to 25 to 50 percent more efficient. That means less time and energy spent heating water up, more hot water available at any given time, and possibly a significant savings when it comes to how much you spend each year on keeping hot water available in your home.

Changing Sizes

As a result of the improved efficiency of water heaters, most water heater models feature more insulation than older water heaters did. In some cases this isn’t really noticeable, since more efficient insulation can be used to keep size differences minimal. Depending on how old your old water heater is, though, you may find that new water heater models are simply larger and thicker than your current one is. This may not be a big deal, but if your current water heater is in a tight area without much extra room around it, then it’s definitely worth keeping this in mind.

More Tankless Options

For a long time, tankless water heaters seemed to occupy something of a niche corner of the market. In recent years, though, they have become much more common in homes, and more manufacturers are offering tankless options. Since these water heaters don’t feature a large tank that has to keep water hot, a tankless water heater might be worth considering if you have a limited amount of space in your home.

Hybrid Water Heaters

If you want to save space but are worried about going completely tankless, a hybrid water heater might be right for you. These water heaters use a small tank of water that’s kept hot, and also feature heating technology similar to tankless heaters to supply additional hot water beyond what the tank offers. This lets you save space, time, and money, since the small tank heats faster than a large tank would and ensures that you won’t have any unfortunate lapses that might occur if you have more demand than a tankless heater can manage.

Smart Water Heaters

As with many home appliances, water heaters are available with a number of smart options as well. You can control these water heaters from your smartphone, performing actions such as adjusting water temperatures and even turning the heater off and on without having to touch the water heater itself. On top of this, many smart water heaters also feature options such as Vacation Mode which reduces water temperatures while you’re away to save on water heating costs. You may even be able to sync this with other smart home features to set Vacation Mode as part of a larger overall routine for when you’re at work, traveling, or otherwise away from the house for more than a few hours.

Eye-Catching Painting Tips for Homeowners

The way your home is decorated says a lot about you, your family, and your lifestyle. Not only does choosing the right colors set the mood in a place, putting those colors in the right spots can also dramatically change the features of a room. There are so many ways to use color to change your home!

Using Paint to Change the Game

The possibilities that new paint creates are literally endless. And the great part about playing with paint is that it’s really easy to change if you decide you’re not thrilled with the results. Unlike building projects, changing the paint in your home can be done with limited expense or hassle.

Here are just a few ideas to enhance the details of the house you already have:

• Pay close attention to the door. Your front door is one of the best spots for setting the mood for your whole home. It says something that your windows never could, so it’s important to paint it like it matters. Matching the house trim is old hat; today’s front doors feature bold or fun colors that complement the rest of your outdoor color scheme. Some houses can also see a bump in interest when homeowners try the same trick on their garage doors.
• Choose bold trim colors. Your trim doesn’t always have to be white, though it shouldn’t be the same color as the wall. Instead, you can make a huge statement by highlighting some of the more decorative elements of your home with paint colors that have something to say for themselves. Pair light gray walls with black trim, or choose several different colors to accent ornate trim work in older homes.
• Rethink built-in cabinets and shelving. Plenty of homes have built-in shelving or cabinets, but most homeowners opt to paint these the same color as the trim in their homes, effectively hiding a potentially eye-popping element. Instead of blending your built-ins into the background, choose colors to highlight them. Painting doors a different color than walls and trim, or selecting a bold or bright color for the back wall of an open shelving unit can really make a statement. This trick can also work for the risers on wooden staircases.
• Why not white? A lot of people shy away from white walls because they feel like the color lends an institutional feel to a room, but white doesn’t have to be hospital-grade. There are a range of barely there colors within the white spectrum, and you can enhance them with color pops in the room itself. It’s your house; if you want a white, don’t let anyone tell you you’re wrong. Choosing a trim color that complements your white is also vital to success with all-white walls.
• Color on the ceiling? Sure! There’s been a long tradition of ceilings being painted a flat white, but that wasn’t always the case. In the past, ceilings have been havens of color in rooms of various sizes and shapes. Depending on the effect you’re looking to create, you can use lighter or darker colors to visually raise or lower the ceiling, or accent decorative ceilings with color for added dimension.
• Try textured paint. Wall texture comes and goes as a trend, but it’s a great way to deal with older homes that may have irregular or downright rough walls. Today’s texture paint goes well beyond Venetian plasters, giving you a huge range of options in texture and more ways to get an end result you’ll absolutely adore. Use a heavy texture as an accent, or go a little lighter for interest throughout your living space.