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Archive for the ‘Garage’ category

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Roll-up Garage Door: Fix-it Or Replace It

December 13th, 2010

Your roll-up garage door been acting up on your recently? Do you find it getting stuck and not opening and closing smoothly? More than likely, you are experiencing debris build-up on the tracks. Debris is all the old oils and lubricants that tend to “gunk” up over time on the tracks.

Fortunately, all it takes is an hour or two, a bucket of warm water, a sponge, and some new lubricant to fix the problem. Make your garage door is closed, and climb on a ladder to clean the tracks. Once you are done cleaning up the old “gunk”, it is time to apply the new lubricant. Voila, your tracks should be working like new. Make sure you check your tracks every six months to prevent this from happening in the future.

Now if that does not work, and you notice some bumps and bends in the track, you can try to repair them yourself with a block of wood or some other straight object, and a hammer. This is only for bumps and bends on the track. Do not, I repeat, do not try to repair the springs that actually open and close your garage door. These are incredibly dangerous, so make sure you hire a professional contractor to repair or replace them.

If your garage door is beyond repair, you have a few options that can fit into most people’s budget. It all really depends on your needs and how you plan to use your garage. If you live in an area where it gets pretty cold during the winter, and you want to use your garage as a work/relaxation space, you are going to want to make sure your door has sufficient insulation to keep the cold weather out. » Read more: Roll-up Garage Door: Fix-it Or Replace It

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How Concrete Floor Paint Should Be Applied For Success

December 5th, 2010

A number of people are a bit puzzled and perform some things incorrectly when they apply concrete floor paint.  It can be slightly hard attempting to comprehend which paint to apply, which techniques to use to apply it, and what needs to be done while using it to obtain the preferred outcomes.  There are some things that you will want to check to do whether you are painting your garage floor or a floor in another area of your home and there are also some that you do not need to do.  Here are a number of guidelines to remember that will get you on your way to getting a fantastic looking concrete floor.

When people are painting their concrete floor they can spoil it by doing a number of various things.  Sealing the floor first and then painting over the top of it is one thing that they attempt to do. This is not right for a number of reasons.   The major reason that you should not do this is because the paint will not bond to the sealer.  All you have to do so as to detect if the floor already has sealer on it is to spray a light coat of water down on the floor. There is sealer on the floor if the water beads up and you will have to remove that sealer prior to painting. » Read more: How Concrete Floor Paint Should Be Applied For Success

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Posted in Basement & Attic, Garage

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DIY Carport

August 30th, 2010

With the economy being in the condition that it is, especially the housing market, many people are finding it increasingly difficult to do any type of home remodeling or renovation due to the costs of the current economic climate that many are being presented with. This is particularly the case for a family, or other home owners who may need to add additional storage onto their home or property via a traditional garage, but these can be fairly expensive to build when you consider the cost of materials and the cost of having to hire a contractor and the laborers. Thankfully, there is a fairly affordable and practical alternative in the form of a carport, and for those of you who feel comfortable assembling these types of structures on your own, a DIY carport is an even better option.

These carports can be made from a number of different materials, but typically most people end up going with a metal carport which can either be made of steel or aluminum. There are a number of advantages to going with either type of material, many people feel like the best bet is to go with a mixed metal carport which can provide advantages of both steel and aluminum. However, if you find yourself on a really tight budget, you might want to consider going with an aluminum carport » Read more: DIY Carport

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Designs that Work for Your Garage

August 30th, 2010

In building our house, we are very meticulous to the very last detail. Of course, we want our homes to be livable, and since we spend most of our time inside it, we cannot just take for granted how it was designed. We even pick out the best architects and engineers to build our house using quality—even imported—materials. However, some of us think that in building a garage, it is enough to build a roof over a free piece of land. That is not enough.

There are several garage designs that are available to homeowners now. Many construction companies are offering affordable plans for the budget-conscious homeowner, and more ambitious plans for the design-conscious. Nonetheless, you do not have to sacrifice a beautiful design for the amount of money you can dole out. There are affordable designs that you can plan out by yourself (And all you’ll need is someone to dig out the foundation for you!)

Your garage must complement your home. If you have a Victorian style house, your garage must follow the same design concept. Else, your garage will look out of place and will totally destroy your house’s regal image. Colors must follow this principle, too. A peach garage will look very lively next to a beige-colored house.

Single-detached garage makes for those with limited space. Although the space can be regarded as enough for a single car, a second level may be constructed to make more room. Think of ways of how to expand your garage: can it be expanded sideways, backwards, or upwards? This will give you an idea of how it would look like next to your house. Or, you could opt for an attached garage with the loft and the second level of your house merged together into one single livable space. However, this is more ideal to construct while still constructing your house. » Read more: Designs that Work for Your Garage

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Keeping the Garage Organized With Storage Cabinets

August 26th, 2010

The garage is one of the places where we can find some of our hazardous things. We would like to keep them safe and hidden, away from the curious hands of our kids. Open shelves can be great storage places in our garage, but due to its easy-access make, it can be unsafe especially if we have some items there that we prefer to be out of our children’s reach.

If you are doubtful of your wooden garage shelf, then maybe you should try acquiring garage storage cabinets. There are several types of cabinets available in the market, and each one offers security which your ordinary shelf cannot give. Molded plastic cabinets are the most affordable in the market. These can be easily cleaned, are rust proof and are waterproof. There are available designs in the market that are easy to set up. These can be great for cleaning and gardening materials. Another type is the laminated-surface cabinets. These can be made from particleboard, fibreboard, or plywood. Last are the metal cabinets. These are usually the most durable and the most expensive ones, but there are companies which offer lighter and more affordable metal cabinets to the consumers. They can be bought either fully assembled or in parts. These are great for keeping simple garage tools such as hammers, nails, screws and screwdrivers.

Now, if you would like to save up a little, you can also opt to use your old kitchen cabinet. This may not be as sturdy as the three types mentioned above, but they are good enough to keep your garage items safe and sound. You can even customize these cabinets yourself. You can check books and online sources about how to design and remodel your kitchen cabinets. » Read more: Keeping the Garage Organized With Storage Cabinets

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Posted in Garage, Household Tips

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Automated Garage Door Repairs

August 4th, 2010

A garage door malfunction is a serious threat to your home. Security-wise, you cannot afford to have a door that does not guarantee an efficient locking system. On the other hand, whether your door is manually or electronically operated, a failure to stay on its supposed position may cause harm to you or your car if it suddenly slides down and hit something.

There are usually three things involved when doing a garage door repair on an automated door. This includes an improperly fitted hinge, a blocked sensor, or a difficulty with its programming. Sometimes, a garage door problem can easily be solved by shutting down all the circuits for a while then letting it resume a few minutes after. Rebooting may seem like an easy task, but yes, they do work in few instances. However, have your system checked by a technician if these circumstances occur too often. There may be something in its programming that short-circuits once in a while. Such scenario is best left for the professionals so do not let your curiosity get in the way for it may cost you a new digital programming device.

For mechanically simple problems such an unfit hinge or a blockage in the sensor, make a simple assessment first before you decide calling a technician. Take a look at your tracks and see if dirt or grease has accumulated on it. They may be the reason for the blockage. Sometimes, just a simple cleaning will do. » Read more: Automated Garage Door Repairs

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Features Available on Sectional Garage Doors

April 30th, 2010

Sectional garage doors are one of the most popular styles of doors today. They work by being split in to many sections so that they may be retracted up in to a track that goes back in to the garage. Retracting is how the door opens and it is lowered to close it. Sectional doors can come in a variety of different shapes and sizes. There are many different features available for this popular style of door.

When buying a sectional overhead garage door it is a good idea to be aware of the different features available. These doors have the option of coming fully insulated. If the home garage itself is insulated it would be a good idea to get the door insulated too. Otherwise, your insulated garage will be opened to the elements and the other insulation will be for nothing. These doors can also come with window accents in them. There are many different windows available for the doors » Read more: Features Available on Sectional Garage Doors

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Garage Organization Guide

April 19th, 2010

Is your Garage organized? or is it the most cluttered, stuffy, and messy room in your entire home. It’s a black hole that you throw all of your junk and stuff you no longer use in there and quickly lock the door. Nope, it’s not your bedroom or bathrooms… it’s your garage!

Yeah, got you a little flustered right. You know it’s a nightmare in there, but you keep telling yourself you’re going to go out there one weekend and clean everything out. The only thing is once you open the garage door, you immediately close it because it seems like an overwhelming task.

Well, I’m here to tell you there’s nothing to be freaked out about or to feel overwhelmed. I’m going to guide you through a process that will allow you to get your garage organized without feeling overwhelmed.

Step 1: Quadrants

My garage is probably one of the messiest that you’ll ever find. I had a car that no longer worked parked in there with a whole bunch of old computers, printers, clothes, boxes, school books, shoes, etc. piled up all around it. There was no way I was going to make any progress if I looked at it as one huge project.
» Read more: Garage Organization Guide

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Posted in Garage, Household Tips

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Tips For Planning a carport

February 18th, 2010

Unfortunately, due to my wife and I collecting various items over the years we are no longer able to get the car in the garage. The ideal solution would have been to have built a storage shed years ago, but unfortunately I didn’t.

Most of the time the car is fine outside but it does get dirty quickly and birds mess on it which just makes more work for me. Therefore, I decided to resolve this problem by building a carport and search for some good plans.

I initially started to draw my own plans but this soon turned into a bigger job than I thought it would. I decided, therefore, to go online and find some plans for carports that would produce a good looking structure, would be simple enough for me to build myself and would meet the local planning codes.

With the plans comes a comprehensive list of all the tools and materials needed. It also lists the quantities required and all the hardware to ensure that the project would go without a hitch.

In my area, we experience high winds and hurricanes are infrequent but a distinct possibility. I therefore had to ensure that the carport would withstand heavy winds. This involves making sure the posts are anchored down properly. The carport has no side wall, therefore, without correct anchoring they can easily be lifted by powerful winds and destroyed.

Another factor was the collection of snow on the roof in winter. The roof had to be able to support the extra pounds in weight of snowfall. This is achieved with a correctly pitched roof that allows heavy collections of snow to just fall away. » Read more: Tips For Planning a carport

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