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Bright Ideas – Are Velux or Solatube Skylights Right For Your Home?

Skylights aren’t always the first thing on people’s lists when it comes to installing new lighting in their home, but that doesn’t mean that these lighting styles won’t work in their ceilings. Skylights are a longstanding feature in many people’s homes, and they effectively reduce energy usage and heat in the house during the warmer months of the year.

Finding a business in your home city that installs skylights is as easy as searching “ skylights in Brisbane”, for instance, and making a booking. However, it is worth noting that installing skylights in a rental property is only possible with the written permission of the owner of the house. We have put together some points to explore whether or not Velux or Solatube style skylighting systems are right for your home, and we hope this will help to further open your eyes to the wonderful possibilities afforded by these often under-utilised lighting solutions.

Velux

To start with, it’s important to understand the difference between the two aforementioned types of lighting. Velux lighting is a form of skylighting that includes some ventilation features as well, and is more effectively described as roof windows. This means they have larger panes of material, often a shatter-resistance perspex to aid with weather-proofing, and several all in one area.

This allows a lot more light directly into your house from above, but doesn’t allow for much to enter from lower-angled suns, such as at dawn or dusk. This is a good idea for houses that are in less hilly areas, as it allows more light into one main room, such as a living room or dining room. These windows can be opened electronically, allowing the hot air to rise straight out of your house and away, proving environmentally-friendly cooling as well as power-free light.

Solatube

Solatube, on the other hand, is a good solution for people in more hilly areas, and it differs radically from Velux style sky lighting. A Solatube is like a bubble placed on top of a hole in your roof, which then connects via a reflective tube to another bubble mounted on your ceiling inside. These bubbles are usually made of hardened acrylic or perspex and can be large distances away from each other, meaning you can pipe natural light into a dark side of your house from a side that faces the sun.

The tubes inside are usually 99.7% reflective, meaning little to no loss of light in “transit”, and this means that almost any room of your home can be brilliantly lit up with natural sunlight. The main drawback to this system is a lack of ventilation through these tubes, as they are sealed to ensure correct weatherproofing.

Other Options

Your only other significant skylight option is the old-fashioned, single-window sized hole in the roof that is covered with a notoriously breakable plastic dome. These do wonders to diffuse the light they capture, but hardly provide the benefits of the others. As well as this, in the unlucky event of wild weather in your neighborhood you might end up with a large hole in your roof that can’t be fixed all night, likely leading to water damage beneath the skylight.

The choices are fairly clear in this case.

The older, outdated method of using natural light to illuminate your rooms has been surpassed by the newer methods to the same end. Both of the methods mentioned here have benefits and drawbacks, but one will be more suited to your home than the other. It’s up to you to weigh the options and settle on one that will properly fill your house with the brilliance of the sun.

September 4, 2017
What to Consider When Installing an Inground Pool to Avoid Stress

An in-ground pool is a permanent installation that may increase the overall value of your home – especially if you live somewhere with predominately warmer weather. As a bonus, it adds a water element to the landscaping of your home which creates a gorgeous view for you to enjoy from the patio or deck. While an in-ground pool offers both entertainment and a medium for exercise, there are several things to consider before breaking ground on your new permanent installation.

The Design

The design of your in-ground pools involves several different factors including the size, shape, depth, color, and material. You have to make decisions such as whether you want poured concrete, gunite, fiberglass, or vinyl-lined. You even have the option of additional features such as a waterfall, diving board, or tanning edges. Obviously, the more detailed the overall design is – and the more additional features you want – the more expensive the in-ground pool will be to install. So, making these choices is a balancing act between what you want and what you can afford.

The Security

Outside of installing the typical fence and gate, most don’t even think about the benefit of installing a home protection or security system. An in-ground pool is a truly incredible and relaxing addition to any home. It, however, can also be an extremely dangerous one. This is especially true if you happen to have neighbors with small children who are curious and might sneak in at night. Search the term “attractive nuisance.”

In addition to exploring different types of fencing options for pools, installing a home security system with infrared motion sensors is also a great idea. The motion sensors will alert you any time someone is approaching – or getting into – the pool. This kind of security system could be the difference between saving a small animal – or even a child – who sneaks into the pool without knowing how to swim.

The Water

The water of an in-ground pool (or any pool for that matter) needs to be properly circulated to keep the water clean and healthy. A pool circulation system is made up of a filter, pump, and sanitation system. During the circulation process, the pool water gets forced through the drain of the pool into a skimmer. Then, the water passes through the filter before being treated in the sanitation system. One of the bigger choices to make with the pool’s circulation system is what type of filter you want to use.

The Timing

While it also isn’t something most give a lot of thought to, when you build your in-ground pool matters. The fall and winter months are not ideal for designing and building pools, but contractors don’t close down during these months. In fact, they usually offer promotions and lower their prices as summer and spring are the months during which everyone wants to build a build in their backyard. So, you can really save some money by waiting till winter or fall. If you have your heart set on an intricate design or want a lot of additional features, building during the slow seasons in the pool industry makes sense for your budget.

Preparation is a vital step any time permanent installations are being added to your home. By knowing what to consider and how to prepare, building and installing your new in-ground pool should be a (mostly) headache and stress-free task.

August 29, 2017
Decorating your home with vintage furniture – Top tips and tricks

There is a large number of people that thoroughly enjoy being surrounded by antique pieces. For them, vintage furniture is more than just a fashion or design statement, but about creating a home environment, they are completely comfortable in.

Whether they had inherited this love of old from vintage movies or just like the design aesthetics regardless of where or when they were invented, they will try and fill their homes with such items of great beauty. However, there is danger lurking in this sort of attempt, as it can be straightforward to take beautiful pieces and to use them the wrong way. This creates an imbalance in the design concept that anyone visiting will notice.

More than that, it just won’t look right, and it won’t be a pleasant environment to call home. And since for many that last bit is the whole point, you can see why it’s so important to take note of a couple of details when engaging the vintage furniture market. To make sure you can enjoy pieces like your new Mid Century Bed, we are going to provide these tips for you.

Prepare ahead of time with measurements

One of the worst things that could happen is buying something only to figure out later on that you don’t have the room in the house for it. For that reason, it is advised to take space measurements before setting out to buy stuff. Measure the free space in your home and see exactly what amount of room you can spare. With that preparation on your side, you can quickly know whether or not a beautiful piece you see in a shop will have a place in your home.

Decorate more than one room

Do you have a list of antiques that you want to purchase? In your mind, do they all go in the same room? If the answer is yes then you should better get to fixing it because it’s a problem. If you put everything in one place, it will become less impactful in the grand scheme of things. Not to mention that all your visitors will probably start referring to it as the “antique room” or something similar. Usually, those that want a vintage design in their homes want it as an overarching theme, not just the subject of one room’s design. However, it’s easy to lose your way once you get into the excitement of putting everything in place. The difference between a great vintage design and a bad one, however, is being able to make that assessment anyhow.

Do your furniture pieces have any unique qualities? Use them

Don’t just randomly choose what goes where. Aside from the obvious aesthetic reasons, you must also sort out what goes where based on unique qualities that the pieces might have. For instance, if you have furniture that’s grand and makes a room look bigger than it is, you might be better off assigning that piece to a room that’s smaller in size and otherwise feels crowded on a regular basis. Additionally, if you get some decorative vintage mirrors, you can put them in rooms that look depth and view, to create these qualities practically out of thin air. This kind of advantageous mixing and matching is what drives a great design.

August 29, 2017
Possibilities for collecting the rental fee from your tenants
If you are a landlord, one of the things to take into consideration is to find the best way to collect rent online from your tenants and for them, to easily do it. If you manage the cash flow well and collect the rent on time, handling rental properties can be a profitable business for you.

First of all, you should think of all the possibilities and also determine your policy for rent payment and also inform the tenant during the vetting process.

There are several aspects to take into consideration when you choose the way to collect the rent such as how far away you live from the rented property, the number of your properties, how much you like to relate with the tenants, how relaxed you are with technology and so on.

Here we will give you some suggestions from which you can choose, in order to receive the rent on time and get rid of concern linked to this:
- Automatic online transfer.
You can choose the automatic online transfer with direct deposit or auto withdrawal. In that respect, you need to talk to the bank and set up an automatic transfer from your tenant bank account or their paycheck to your own checking account.
- Online payment service
One of the easiest way for a landlord to accept rental payments and for a tenant the best way to pay his rent is online. There are many online rent payment services that offer such facilities, each with different fees depending on the plan selected. The payment service sites could include an online rent roll, the possibility to upload forms or documents for your tenant and also the ability to send messages. These sites are a great choice if you don’t want to give your banking information to your tenant.
- Direct rental payments by bank deposit
If you require the payment by bank deposit, the tenants will directly deposit their rent into your banking account. Many landlords are susceptible in using this method because this involves giving your tenants your account number and if you have concerns regarding the tenant’s integrity this may be an extra care.
- Hiring a property management company
A property manager can collect the rent or manage maintenance requests in your place. You can choose to hire a property manager especially when you have several properties rented or in case you have other business to look after.
- Collecting the rent in person
If you want to collect the rent in person from your tenants, you will have the payment in your hands immediately and you can also see the condition of the property if you have written into the lease, the possibility for a monthly property inspection. The negative aspect of this way is that collecting the rent in person is time-consuming and annoying when you try to organize the pick-up time with a tenant.

Receiving the payment from your tenants each month or at a certain period of time and the method used for payment is an important aspect that must be specified in the lease. All matters concerning the lease must be discussed with the tenant beforehand to be more apt to pay fully and on time, and for each party to be satisfied.
August 28, 2017
4 Ways to Go Green and Save Energy
One of the best things you can do for the environment is to work towards being more eco-friendly. Every little bit adds up, and you can do your part too by going green. The good news is doing this can assist you in saving long-term energy costs in the process. The main thing is getting started and taking action to make the world a safer and more livable place. Here are things you can begin doing today.

Installing solar panels

One effective way for you to reduce your environmental footprint and your electric costs at the same time is by relying on Residential Solar power. Placing solar panels on your property is a great thing to do and can end up saving you a lot of money over time.

According to Neeeco’s mass save home energy audit, It’s a good idea to install these panels on top of your home, and there are many types that can offer a sleek and attractive look by doing so. Reducing your electric costs during the summer and winter is one of the biggest advantages of installing these.

Intuit TurboTax states you may qualify for credit up to 30% of your total costs for choosing alternative energy equipment. This is savings that can significantly add up dependent on the total amount of your installation costs.

Rely on energy efficient windows

Working to avoid letting the outside air in your home is one of the best ways for you to help heating and cooling costs to remain low. These can be found in a variety of locations, and you can even have these put in place for you by a professional.

Listed below are some other benefits of selecting this window type:
1. Greater comfort – Having windows that are thicker can help you remain more comfortable in your home. For instance, you may have fewer UV rays when sitting inside your house and this can be ideal.
2. Less fading – One of the things that can cause your carpet and furnishings to fade fast is direct sunlight. Energy efficient windows can reduce the glare of the sun on your belongings.
Wash clothes in cold water

If you have a large family, you may find yourself washing clothes a great deal. Keeping items clean for all your family members is sure to be something you do on a daily basis

You can reduce your energy costs substantially by using cold water only when washing your clothes. Running your washing machine can use gallons of water with each use, and you will want to avoid using hot water to save money.

Additionally, when drying your clothes, you may want to use a drying rack rather than running your dryer a great deal.

There are numerous ways you can work to save money and help you go green in the process. The good news doing this will be advantageous not only for you but the world you live in, as well. Get started today doing what you can to assist the environment in being a better place to live for tomorrow!
August 26, 2017
Making your house a home: 9 easy ways to transform your living space
Whether you have just bought your first home or you are living in a rental – you will want to turn it from a house to a home. However, you may not be financially ready to do redecorate or maybe living under a landlord doesn’t allow it.

But, sometimes the simplest changes can have a dramatic effect on a room. Here are nine easy ways to transform your living space and really make it your home.
1. Add houseplants
Having plants around the home is not only beneficial because they will purify the air but they will also brighten up your rooms. Bakker offer some beautiful flowering houseplants that will instantly add a splash of colour to the space or how about going for a larger, leafier one that stands on the floor.

As well as houseplants, beautiful, bright flowers in a pretty, colourful vase will really add to the space and can be updated regularly.
1. Create a print wall…
Hang prints, photos and artwork in mixed frames to create a feature wall anywhere in the house.
1. … or hang some fabric
Indian wall hanging tapestries come in a range of designs and colours and unlike wallpaper, can be switched up to match your mood or the season.

Similarly, wall decals are both cheap and simple to remove and replace when you outgrow them but will instantly transform the wall they are stuck to and, as a result, the whole room.
1. Choose a rug
Outgrown your carpet? Or bored of laminate flooring? Then cover it up and transform it with a rug. This could be as bright and bold or plain and subtle as you like.
1. Light it up
Lighting can make a huge difference to a room, so replace your lamps and lighting. A warm light will give the room a cosy feel, while fluorescent lights can make it feel bright and modern.
1. Upcycle your furniture
Give your furniture a new lease of life by giving it a lick or paint or transforming it into something brand new and unique. Take a look at Pinterest for some inspiration and then the only limitation is your imagination!
1. Update your pillows
Is your sofa looking a bit old and tired? Then update it with some new pillows. Go for a bright colour or a wacky design that will make it really stand out or opt for pastel colours that will smarten it up.
1. Give everything a ‘home’
If your house is cluttered it will quickly become somewhere that stresses you out and you don’t enjoy spending time when it should be a calming and tranquil space. But, by purchasing a few items – such as key holders for the wall or shoe racks for the floor, you will keep the space tidy and organised.
1. Consider how it smells
A house doesn’t become a home just by changing how it looks, you need to consider how it smells as well. The flowers will provide a sweet scent and taking the bins out regularly will avoid any bad odours but you might also want to also purchase a few diffusers to scatter across the house.

You don’t need to spend hundreds of pounds or put a lot of effort into transforming your home. A few small changes could make a very big difference.
August 26, 2017
We found the best Interior Designer from UrbanClap

After a lot of struggle in our respective careers, I and Rishabh decided to settle down in a Multi National Company in Mumbai. I have always been someone, who loves art and artistic things a lot. So, when we rented a beautiful house together, I just wanted it to look perfect and designed. I am the person who is more addicted to beautiful things rather than long lasting things.

My kitchen seems to be the perfect example of well designed cooking spot. Floral motifs’ dinner sets, standard cook ware and serve ware with precious glass ware decorated my kitchen, the way I wanted. But to design and decorate our new house we needed one among the best interior designers in Mumbai.

Interior designers are those who can design your home in the best possible way, according to your needs and demands. In Mumbai, you get to come across lot and lot of Interior designers, but the most important question is how to find the best among them? You can’t move one by one to their respective offices, in order to go through their portfolios; which sometimes are so pathetic that you think you can do this designing stuff on your own.

Rishabh told me to settle down casually as we could have done this interior designing on our own. But I wanted to spend my savings which I just saved for this purpose. I always dreamt of a house, well designed and perfect in all manners.

We spent almost a week just to find the perfect interior designer, but it was quite tough to get the best among the interior designers in Mumbai. Rishabh and I had a small fight too but again my cute and puppy faces made me come to me, hug me and pamper me. I told him calmly that it is my dream and I have already sacrificed a lot of my dreams but this was something I really wanted to stick to. He hugged me, kissed me on the forehead and told me not to worry and promised me that he will help me out.

UrbanClap was the Best Thing we came Across

After the day we fought, we were sitting and watching a boring daily soap streaming on Zee TV, a channel who is watched worldwide by all the aunties. Just then, an advertisement of UrbanClap streamed in which they were promising to deliver the best service providers to your home and that too just at one tap. I was amazed and tried to find out the app on the Play store. I found the app UrbanClap and installed it on my android device. It just took me a few seconds to download and install the same on my device.

I took my phone and went to Rishabh with a sheepish smile on my face. He was sure something was going in my mind so he didn’t take a second to sit straight in front of me and I started telling him every good thing about the UrbanClap. At first, he doubted the app then it was my turn to sue him off with my sharp words that he is always fearful regarding the online services, but these services are better and most fruitful at times. Most importantly, I had a valid point that we don’t need to travel to various places just to meet those filthy interior and designers and come up with nothing. He agreed to me on this point.

We opened the app and filled up few of the details they required, in order to provide us with the best service person. It merely took a minute or two to enter those details and then we were ready to go. When we searched for the best interior designers in Mumbai, there was a huge list of service providers which flashed on the phone’s screen. At first, I thought Rishabh was right and the confidence of “I said this!” ran into my beloved eyes. Then I ignored him and sent personalised messages to few of the interior designers whom I thought, will bring the best work along them. I was happy and Rishabh was surprised, when we got to receive their quotes along with their amazing portfolios. Now it was my turn to boast, I asked him, “So, isn’t it easier than your traditional method of moving to their offices one by one?” He smiled and came to hug me with praise for saving him from all the worries.

UrbanClap is worth your Trust

Many people all around don’t trust the online stuffs and services, but I must say UrbanClap turns out be different. If you are smart enough and you knows what you need then there could be no better place than this to find the best service person for you to manage and complete all your service needs. So, we ended up calling the ones with the best quotes and the best portfolios, to our home for a face to face meeting. After a lot of enquiries and explanations of what we needed, we ended up finalising the one with the best portfolio and charging a decent amount.

I was really very happy with his designing instincts and the way he took care of my wishes while designing each and every room of mine. Before hiring him I was living in a misconception that my kitchen is well designed. But when he redesigned my kitchen, I was just stuck with the beauty and the way he organised everything. I just kept staring at the beauty of my house and off course Rishabh was mesmerized too.

How to find the best Interior Designer from UrbanClap

If you are trying the online services app the very first time during your existence then indeed it is one among the most important questions which will pop-up in your mind while searching for the best service providers online. UrbanClap is very easy to use, even for the beginners. You will just need to check out the reviews and ratings of the firm or the person you are hiring.

It is always advisable to interrogate them very precisely about what you need and what they can deliver, in order to avoid and mistakes and blunders from both the sides. You can also ask them about their previous client base and any proofs they can show up. UrbanClap turns out to be the best app providing a platform where service seekers meet the service providers and vice-versa.

I am very thankful to UrbanClap as I got Mr. Saurav Gupta as our interior designer and I must say he was the best among all the interior designers in Mumbai, whom we gave a visit. He was amazing at his work and I was really satisfied with his work, even Rishabh was also very happy and soothed when he returned home. I am very thankful to Saurav who works as a Senior Interior Designer at Vaastuye located in Navi Mumbai and obviously he is highly recommended for everyone who is looking forward to get their homes well designed and well organised.

August 26, 2017
The Key Elements of a Perfect Master Bathroom

It may seem beyond your reach right now, but creating the perfect master bathroom is something you can definitely have if you put your mind to it. And in fact, it only requires a few must have features to make your master bath ideal for just about everyone in your family.

Doing a beautiful master bathroom is usually done when you buy your own house and want to do something special for your family. If you are, however, undertaking this for your house you are planning to rent to another family, you may want to monitor if they are subletting it and potentially risking the remodeling you just invested in.

If you’ve been dreaming about revamping your master bathroom for a while, we’d like to tell you about a number of incredible features that we feel should make your ultimate wish list.

Hidden Storage Spaces

For some reason, we never seem to have enough storage space in our bathroom. We always need additional room to put things like towels, toilet paper, additional bars of soap, toothpaste, tooth brushes, and anything else that you might need to store in this room.

If you plan on redoing your entire bathroom, you have to consider your storage options.

And since bathrooms have definitely evolved since the days of the double vanity, there are certain things that you can add that you may have never considered.

Some fantastic options include: recessed niches, pullout shelves, and wall cubbies.

By adding them to your bathroom, you’ll have more than enough room to store everything that you could ever possibly need in your bathroom.

A Bathroom with a View

For some of you, having a bathroom with a view is unfortunately going to be a pipe dream if your neighbors live really close to you. And that’s unlucky because it’s always nice to peer out the window at a gorgeous view while leisurely soaking in the tub.

On the other hand, if you have a home with a lot of privacy, you should definitely add large bathroom windows so you can enjoy the view outside. It’s a lot more pleasant to have a great view that you can enjoy and appreciate as you look out your window in the bathroom.

How about Adding a Sauna?

Every bathroom needs a sauna, right?

Some people love to build up a great sweat. Others live in a really cold climate and could benefit from the heat on those cold winter days and nights.

The great thing about saunas is that they really aren’t even that expensive. And typically, they do not need to take up a whole lot of space.

You can put one right in your bathroom and it would be very effective.

So, if you’re afraid that it’s going to cost an arm and a leg to put a sauna in your bathroom, think again. This inexpensive option is something that just about everybody can afford.

Adding a Japanese Soaking Tub

If you are adding a bathtub to your bathroom, instead of just having a shower, we highly recommend choosing a Japanese-style soaking tub instead of a traditional full-size version.

Why do we recommend this?

It’s the ideal type of bathtub for smaller spaces, for starters, but this kind of bathtub is perfect because it allows the bather to fully submerge under the water.

These Japanese soaking tubs can help remove the stress and strain from your day as you soak in the tub and let all your worries float down the drain.

How about Live-Edge Wood?

This excellent feature is perfect for modern and rustic bathroom interiors alike. It really helps bring your bathroom to life and makes it look absolutely amazing.

Conclusion

When you are looking for luxury bathroom fixtures, make sure to choose the best for your bathroom, such as gorgeous bathroom accoutrements that are designed and handmade in Italy.

At the end of the day, you know better than anyone what your key elements should be for the perfect master bathroom. Please use our guidance and add features and amenities as you see fit to make your bathroom divine.

August 26, 2017