Pets are a wonderful addition to a family. They’re cute, lovable and more than anything, they give their love unconditionally to each and every family member although they might have a favorite. While many adults might think they need a pet for their children, pets also fill a void for people without children, young and old.

If you’ve got a dog or cat, you’re not alone. Sixty-three percent of US households have a pet – 39% own at least one dog and 33% have at least one cat and yes, lots of families own multiple pets. My husband and I grew up with dogs so we’ve had one ever since we bought our first house and once our boys got older, we added at various times — fish, birds, a guinea pig and a rabbit. READ MORE

We store lots of stuff in our attics – old furniture we’re not willing to part with, boxes of clothes and children’s artwork, holiday decorations and so much more. We’re lucky to have this space to store things until the day we realize it’s also a burden.

We forget what we’ve put away and one day, we go looking for something in the attic and give up after an hour because there’s too much stuff. We’ve packed away so many boxes without labeling them and we don’t have the time or patience to find what we’re looking for.

This article provides ideas for deciding what’s worth storing in your attic (basement or garage), how to keep track of what’s stored so you can find it when you need it, and most important, fun ways to clear out the clutter when you’ve got the time to enjoy the memories they hold. READ MORE

Unless you’ve got a finished attic, you probably only climb into your attic to put away holiday decorations or store things you might need for a few years. That little access panel isn’t easy to crawl through and even the pull down stairs aren’t fun.

The real point here isn’t how you access your attic. The important story here is what your attic can tell you about the condition of your home. This article is shared by an experienced home inspector, someone who visits several attics every week. He’s going to reveal the secrets you might uncover in your attic, secrets that can save you time and money. READ MORE

Laundry is one of those chores you do that NEVER ends! Your laundry room might be right next to the kitchen but it seems like you’re always running around to gather the dirty clothes, wash and dry them, iron (yes some people still iron), hang the clothes up or fold and put them away. Once you’re finished, it’s time to do it all over again … tomorrow or next week, and the week after, and every week forever. If for some reason you miss a day or three, the laundry pile can look like a monster – the kind that makes you want to run.

According to the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers (AHAM), the average American family does 8 to 10 loads of laundry each week. A single load takes 1 hr, 27 minutes from wash to dry so the average family spends 12 to 15 hours per week doing laundry. This article explores ways to organize laundry so it takes you less time … READ MORE

We assume the air in our homes is clean because we can’t see any pollution. Sadly our indoor air quality is declining as we make our homes more airtight and soon we’ll need to install mechanical ventilation systems (fans) to insure a certain number of air exchanges happen every hour. You already have mechanical ventilation in your house — in your kitchen, the vent you turn on when cooking and your bathrooms  have exhaust vents to remove moisture when you take a bath or shower.

Why is this important? Maybe you have a family member with allergies or worse, asthma which is increasing in the US even though smoking and air pollution are dropping. This article outlines what homeowners can do to reduce air pollution inside their houses, and introduces the top 10 pollutants commonly found in our homes. READ MORE

Doors are fascinating as they’re used for 2 opposing functions — to expand our view when open and to hide or close off our world when we want privacy in our homes, or need to hide a messy closet (we’ve all got these). Doors were originally used for safety and they’ve evolved over thousands of years to fill many roles, both functional and more aesthetic with the personality we give our homes.

Barn doors are rather unique as they don’t swing when you open and close them. This probably has a lot to do with their weight as they’re typically very wide and really heavy so finding hinges to support the weight is a challenge. So let’s explore the benefits of doors that slide versus swing, and the many ways in which we can use these to save space in our homes. READ MORE

Insulation is like the lining of your coat, it stops the heat your body generates from escaping and by doing so, keeps you warm. Our home’s insulation works the same way to keep us comfortable, by reducing the amount of conditioned air leaving our homes — warm, heated air during the winter and cool, air conditioned air on hot summer days.

Insulation isn’t a new concept although the focus on insulating our homes really started after the oil crisis in the 1970s.  Houses built hundreds of years ago had thick, solid walls made of timber (think of log homes), adobe, plaster, etc and these materials offered insulation in addition to their structural value. READ MORE

The storm door is one of my favorite doors and it has nothing to do with … storms! Like sliding patio doors, storm doors allow you to keep your exterior doors open during reasonably warm weather, and this means more natural sunlight in the house. That’s a good thing as most front doors open into a hallway that doesn’t have windows or lots of lighting.

Besides enjoying my open door, there are lots of practical reasons to install one or more storm doors at your house. Storm doors protect exterior doors from the elements which is great if you’ve got a beautiful wood door. Storm doors act like double pane windows, with the air between the 2 doors adding an insulating layer to reduce the loss of heated or cooled air.

Most of the storm doors you buy today come with screens so when the weather is nice, you can use the screen door to circulate fresh air through your home without risking flying insects coming inside. READ MORE

What happens when a homeowner wants to hold band practices at their house? Theses Exeter, NH homeowners had an extra room in their house (versus the traditional basement approach) but weren’t sure if they could add enough soundproofing to contain the noise for others in the home, and the neighborhood.

Eric wanted to hold band practice at and Marguerite wanted to explore what their options were and how much the project might cost. They were existing clients of my handyman business so they gave us a call to see what advice we could offer. READ MORE

Once a prospective buyer enters your home, the key selling points are the kitchen and bathrooms. Great kitchens start with a great design so it is important that you highlight the best features of your kitchen. Windows can be showcased with new curtains, an island can be staged to illustrate its varied uses, and lots of storage capacity helps you  hide many of your belongings to create the appearance of boundless storage.

Preparing your home for sale is challenging. If you need to sell your home quickly and want to get top dollar, you should hire a home stager to help you remove clutter and personal things. They can also identify each room’s key selling features and help you rearrange furniture to create a feeling of spaciousness. READ MORE