Freshen Up Your Home

Here are some inexpensive ideas on how to freshen up your home.

1. Buy new towels for the bathroom
2. Upgrade outdoor lighting
3. Install new doorknobs and cabinet handles
4. Make a centerpiece for your dining room table
5. Buy a new mailbox
6. Polish or replace your house numbers
7. Place fresh flowers or houseplants around the home
8. Buy color-coordinated pillows for the sofa and bed
9. Replace your worn doormat
10. Set out subtle potpourri or scented candles

A few simple touches can make your home seem like a different place.

I would be glad to help you with any of these projects or others that you may have. Give me a call and your home can be fresher, better maintained and an easier place to relax.

Philip

Thanks to Garland Thurman for the list.

What About the Warranty?

I worked for a long time customer today. The job was to replace the p-trap under the bathroom sink and to replace the stems in the faucet. It was a fairly simple job although I had to make a run for some specialized parts.

After I was done, we were looking at some repairs that she wanted done in the future. One was that her kitchen faucet was loose. It wasn’t that the faucet was loose from the sink but the body was loose from the mounting plate. Sometimes there are screws that can be tightened and other times the mount has broken. We talked about seeing on the next trip if it can be repaired or if it needs to be replaced.

After I talked to her I remembered that the faucet should have a warranty as it was a good brand. I looked it up and found out that it had a lifetime warranty. I gave her a call and asked if she has her receipt or other paperwork. That will come in handy if it needs to be replaced.

This brings up the subject of warranties. Most products have them but you need the receipt or another proof of purchase for it to be honored. It’s a good idea to have a specific place where you keep paperwork like that. Even if you throw it in a box without any organization it will be there if you ever need it. In the case of this particular faucet the replacement cost is about $50.00. Of course they don’t usually cover labor charges but at least she wouldn’t have to pay for the faucet itself.

On another subject, I talked to a new customer this week about some sprinkler heads she needed moved. As we talked she told me about how she had hired someone to do various work after he came to her door giving his sad story and told her he was willing to do any work to support his family. She said he did several repairs okay and then he asked for some money upfront for some painting he was going to do. Of course you can guess the rest, the painting was never done. Another reminder to be very careful of who you hire and especially if they ask for money before the job is complete.

Philip

History Builds Trust

I had similar conversations with two customers in the last week. Both recalled that when I first worked for them, their oldest children were infants. One of those kids graduated from High School last week and the other is in college.

It’s that history that enables the trust they have in me. The customer whose daughter graduated from High School left me a blank check that I filled out when I was done with her jobs. We met in the morning to go over the list and then she left for work.

While we were looking at the jobs she had, she told me that she had recently hired someone to build her a new fence. She paid him up front for the materials and after that he didn’t do the work. I could tell that she was very upset by the loss of the money but more importantly that she had trusted someone and then been ripped off.

When I work for someone it is very rare for me to ask for any money ahead of time. My custom is to complete the job and then collect for labor and material costs at that time.

If you are asked to pay money ahead of time you better be very careful. Why does the person need the money and what assurance do you have that they will buy the materials and complete the work. It seems that when many people get money up front, their motivation to do the work evaporates.

History builds trust both that the job will be done right and in so many other ways. Customers trust me in their homes when they are gone and they trust me to be honest with what I charge them.

It really meant a lot to me when I received a call from my customer who had been ripped off saying how glad she was to have someone who not only does a good job but who can be trusted. I can’t imagine doing business any other way but I know that in this day it can be very hard to find trustworthy workers.

I have been in business since 1984. I have an excellent rating with the Denver BBB and have many customers ready to vouch for my work ethic.

Let me know how I can be of service to you.

Philip

Tax Credit for Home Buyers

I came across some information that I wanted to pass on to you. If you or someone you know is in the market to buy a home as a first-time homebuyer, you could get a big boost with a tax credit.

The following is courtesy of Jeff Galligan who is a realtor in the Harvey Park area.

The government stimulus package recently gave real estate a big shot in the arm with the introduction of the tax CREDIT for first-time home buyers.

The plan works like this:

Qualified First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit

• Must Buy and Close on a New Residence Before 12/1/2009
• Enjoy Up To $8,000 in Federal Income Tax Credits

How to Qualify:

I. If neither you nor your spouse has owned an interest in a principal residence (in the U.S.) during the last 36 months ending on the date of the purchase of your current residence (if you owned one).

a. But you do NOT buy:

i. From a related party (such as a family member)

ii. Property located outside the U.S.

2. You are buying the property to become your primary residence (not an investment property).

3. Property may be a single dwelling, condominium, houseboat, or mobile home.

How Much of a Credit:

1. Up to $8,000 (not to exceed 10% of the home price) and if your 2009 adjusted gross income (AGI) does not exceed $75,000 for single and $150,000 if you are married filing jointly.

2. No credit if your 2009 AGI exceeds $95,000 for single and $170,000 if you are married filing jointly.

3. Partial credit if your AGI is between $75,000 and $95,000 for single and between $150,000 and $170,000 if you are married filing jointly.

4. If you have no tax liability for 2009 and have a credit, the IRS will actually pay you the credit amount when your 2009 tax return is filed.

Important:

You must continue using the property as your primary residence for 3 years. If the property is sold or no longer your primary residence you are liable to compute and payback the portion of the credit that was not earned and report it on your tax return for the year of change.

Philip

Tub and Shower Caulk

Tub and shower caulk is an item that is on my list of jobs to do on a fairly regular basis. That’s good because if caulk and grout is neglected it can lead to a much larger problem.

The trouble usually starts with a very small spot where a little water gets through the tile. The water will start to loosen up the tile from the wall. As a result, more water gets through. If there is a room below the tub, you may notice damage to the ceiling. Sometimes it doesn’t show up there and you may notice the problem when tile start falling off the wall. When that happens, you have a big job on your hands and it’s going to cost a lot more than regular maintenance would have.

Mold and mildew can be a problem in showers as well. Good ventilation helps prevent it but some bathrooms don’t cooperate very well. A good product to use for mildew is Tilex. It is a bleach based cleaner that kills the mildew. It’s available in most grocery and home supply stores. If you use it you want to be careful not to get any of it on carpet as it will bleach it. Provide some good ventilation as well, the fumes can be strong.

Sometimes mildew will get into the caulk and then the only option is to remove and replace the caulk. It’s usually not a huge job and the shower looks so much better after.

It’s a good idea to check the grout and caulk in your showers on a regular basis. As a handyman, I know what to look for. Give me a call and I will be glad to help you. In the long run, it will cost you less than if you ignore it. Also, having a professional doing the job will insure that the right kind of caulk is used and it will look good when it’s done

Philip

25 Years as a Handyman

I worked for a long time customer this morning. She recalled that when I first worked for her, her sons were in junior high school. One of them is now 40 years old.

I remember the first job I did for her. It was rebuilding a mail box that had been hit by a car. It was made of 6x6 timbers. Today the mail box needed another repair. It had been hit by a car again. Thankfully the main post was okay and it just needed a few screws to tighten the crossbeam and put the mailbox itself back on.

Having been in business for 25 years, I have many customers that go way back. It’s interesting to think of how much has changed. Some have moved to new homes, children have grown up and left the home and some customers have passed on.

The customer I worked for this morning lives in an area where most of the older homes are being torn down and replaced by mega-mansions. It’s sad to think that someday this wonderful home, where I have done so much work will be no more. The customer feels the same way. She knows that when she and her husband sell the home it will probably meet the same fate as so many of the other beautiful homes in the neighborhood. She said that it only takes about 48 hours and the old homes are completely gone.

The new mansions sure are impressive in their size but the area seems to be losing the charm it once had. The old homes had plenty of room but they seemed to fit into the country setting better. I guess that’s progress.

Well anyway, I’m glad that I have been able to help keep this home in good repair through the years.

Philip

Do It Yourself?

When it comes to home remodel and renovation, should you “do-it-yourself”?

Over the years I have had the opportunity to see a lot of do-it-yourself projects. Some look real nice and others scream amateur. If you are going to live with it and don’t care, then amateur is okay.

What about when you get ready to sell your house? That’s when the less than perfect job can become a liability. If a prospective buyer, looking at the surface sees that it wasn’t a professional who did the work, they may wonder what is going on with plumbing and electrical hidden inside the walls.

Sometimes the work doesn’t hold up very well. I have seen a lot of tile jobs, both floor and wall, suffering from premature failure. There are paint jobs that have almost as much paint on the surrounding areas as on the intended walls. In the long run, those types of jobs may end up costing you more than if you had went with a professional in the first place.

As a handyman, I do a very wide range of jobs. There are many times I turn down work because I know that it’s going to require someone else with the skill to do it right. Sometimes that may require the swallowing of pride but I would rather do that than have a job end up not being done right or not looking right. The reality is that no one can do everything.

Just today, I ended up declining some tasks for a customer I was working for. One was a drywall repair on a ceiling. If it was not done perfect, it would always show. I thought it would be better they get a drywall expert so it was done right the first time. If a repair is not done right it can be very hard to do a second time.

So there are some things to think about as you consider do-it-yourself work. Make sure you have the right skill and equipment. Speaking of equipment, there is a big difference between a $2.00 and $20.00 paint brush. Many times that bit of advice would have made the difference between a good and horrible paint job.

Philip