Each year, thousands of children are rushed to emergency rooms after falling from the top bunk of their bunk beds or loft beds, while many more receive less serious injuries that are not seen by a medical professional. Typically, the main reason of injury involving bunk beds or lofts beds is horseplay and not from improperly installed beds. Before you purchase bunk beds or loft beds for your child, consider the age of the child and plan to make rules regarding the use of the bed. Although younger children are thought to experience more injuries, the most problems occur with older children who are more apt to disregard rules and exhibit unsafe or risky behavior.

For the most part, bunk beds and loft beds are just as safe as conventional beds. For smaller children, consider designating the lower bunk as their bed instead of allowing them to regularly climb to the top bunk. Also, ensure the bed is properly maintained and meets all current safety regulations and standards. Additionally, approximately eight percent of bunk bed related falls and injuries that must seek medical attention are related directly to the ladder. In addition to ensuring the ladder is properly installed, instruct your child on the correct method of ascending and descending the ladder.

When you begin searching for an appropriate bunk bed or loft bed for your child, choose a bed that appeals to all the safety standards. A bunk bed should have guard rails that have no more than three and one-half inches of space between the rail and the mattress. This will prevent children from falling through the space and potentially injuring themselves. If necessary, you may need to install extra boards if the space between the guard rail and the mattress. Furthermore, the guard rail needs to extend no less than five inches above mattress so that your child will be unable to roll off the top bunk.

Another thing to keep in mind is that the bunk bed or loft bed your purchase has guard rails on both sides. Even though one side of the bed will be placed next to a wall, a guard rail is essential due to a child potentially falling next to the wall and becoming trapped between the wall and the bed frame. Again, the guard rail should be no greater than three and one-half inches above the bed frame. Also, you should ensure that the mattress purchased to fit the bunk bed or loft bed properly fits the frame. Many parents choose to use a preexisting mattress used on a child-sized bed that is smaller than a traditional twin bed frame. Children can potentially fall between the mattress and the frame in this situation, so you should ensure the mattress is of the proper size.

In addition to ensuring the mattress is of proper size, you should also check that the mattress foundation is properly suspended above the bottom bunk or the space below. If the bed sits on a wooden platform, consider reinforcing the mattress with wooden slats or metal straps. This will prevent the top bunk from collapsing, especially if the lower occupant is kicking or pushing the above mattress.

By purchasing a quality, well constructed bunk bed or loft bed that meets all safety guidelines, you can make certain that your child will be safe and free from injury from the bed.

Author Bio
John Marcus specializes in Beds www.1-loft-beds.com

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More than 100,000 people injure themselves each year doing home improvement jobs. So add medical bills to your DYI budget, and you ending up spending the same, or more, than if you hired a pro.

We’re not suggesting that you call a plumber each time you need to plunge a toilet. But think twice about what DYI might really cost you. Here’s how to decide.

Stick to routine maintenance for savings and safety

Seasonal home maintenance is ideal work for the weekend warrior because you can tackle these jobs when your schedule permits. Because these are routine maintenance projects, your savings will add up. Mowing your own lawn, for example, saves $55 to $65 a week for a half-acre lawn. The bigger the lot, the bigger the savings: with two acres, you’ll pocket around $150 per week.

When it pays:

• Snow removal

• Pruning shrubs

• Washing windows (be careful on that ladder)

• Sealing decks

• Painting fences

• Fertilizing lawns

• Replacing air conditioner filters

• Cleaning gutters

When it costs: Unless you have skill and experience on your side, stay off any ladder taller than six feet; according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, emergency rooms are filled with people with ladder injuries. The same goes for operating power saws or attempting any major electrical work—it’s simply too risky if you don’t have the experience.

Become your own general contractor

If you’re more comfortable operating an iPhone than a circular saw, you could act as your own general contractor on some home improvement projects. That means you hire, schedule, and pay the carpenters, plumbers, and other tradesmen yourself. You’ll save 10% to 20% of the job cost, which is the contractor’s typical fee.

When it pays: If it’s a small job that requires only two or three subcontractors, and you have good relationships with top-quality professionals in those fields, consider DIY contracting.

When it costs: When you don’t have an established network of reliable workers, time to supervise, construction experience to spot problems, and the skill to negotiate disputes between subcontractors, your project and budget are at risk.

Invest sweat equity on big jobs

Contribute your own labor to big jobs being handled by a professional crew and cut hundreds, even thousands, off construction costs. For instance, tear out kitchen cabinets and appliances before the contractor gets started, and you might knock $800 off the cost of your remodel. Make sure you negotiate cost savings with your contractor before pitching in.

When it pays: Jobs that are labor-intensive but require relatively little skill make perfect sweat equity jobs. Perform minor interior demolition, such as pulling up old flooring, daily job site cleanup, product assembly, and simple landscaping.

When it costs: If you get in the crew’s way, you may slow them down far more than you help. Make your contributions when the workers aren’t around; mornings before they arrive, or nights and weekends after they’ve left.

Add finishing touches

Unlike the early phases of a construction job–which require skilled labor to frame walls, install plumbing pipes, and run wires–many finishing touches are comparatively simple and DIY-friendly. If you paint a basement remodel yourself, for instance, you can save up to $1,800.

When it pays: If you have skill, patience, or an experienced friend to teach you, setting tile, laying flooring, painting walls, and installing trim are good DIY jobs.

When it costs: The downside to attempting your own finish work is that the results are very visible. Hammer dents in woodwork, or sander ruts in hardwood floors will annoy you every time you see them. So unless you have a sure eye and a steady hand, don’t perform the tasks that only a skilled tradesperson will get right.

By: Oliver Marks

Published: March 8, 2011

First of all, it’s unlikely that you’ll be able to just remove the linoleum and adhesive all at once. The surface under the linoleum and the damage you might cause it needs to be considered – especially if that surface is wood. Concrete floors can take a lot more in the way of rough treatment. The type of scraper you use has a lot to do with your success as well as the damage to the floor underneath. Many people use paint scrapers but those with a razor blade are usually more efficient. Be prepared to break some blades it if the adhesive is hard, and you’re working on concrete.

Try cutting the linoleum into strips or sections instead of removing the whole chunk at once. This will make it easier to get an edge to pry up. Of course, the linoleum probably won’t come up in nice neat sections so be prepared to deal with a lot of left over backing and glue that is still attached to your floor.

One way to deal with those remnants that just won’t come up is to apply some kind of solvent or remover. A popular brand is Krud Kutter, which appears to work very well from the customer feedback comments. Follow directions on the label of whatever product you employ, and wear gloves to protect your hands. Do a small section at a time, and then move to the next one.

Another technique is to use boiling water and pour it directly on the backing and adhesive. Let it soak and then scrape up. If you don’t want to use water, you can try to heat up the glue with a hair dryer or heat gun. Pick a very inconspicuous area, such as behind a door, to try it. Heat the adhesive with the hair dryer and scrape it up with a straight-blade scraper (like a stiff putty knife with a beveled edge). Move the scraper in the direction of the grain of the wood if you are uncovering a hardwood floor. Have a pan or some other container handy to drop the scrapings into – one that is unlikely to either melt or ignite when coming in contact with hot materials. Be very careful if you are using a heat gun as this can easily damage the floor underneath if it is wood.

If worse comes to worse and you are left with some stubborn adhesive on the floors, it might be time to sand. Of course, if your floors are wood and you plan to refinish them you would need to sand anyway, but during this step you must be careful not to damage the particular area by keeping the sander on it for too long.

Once you finally get the linoleum and all traces of adhesive up, you are ready to seal the floor as recommended for the type of flooring and apply the new floor as recommended!

Author Bio
Lee Dobbins writes for A Kitchen Decorating Idea where you can find more tips on kitchen remodeling and decorating on a budget.

Article Source: http://www.ArticleGeek.com – Free Website Content

Great for Resale

No groups could ever appreciate the cliché on decorating in neutral style more than that of the builders and real estate agents.  Fact is, neutrals make just any home more salable.  When staging and selling a home, it is important to make it easy for potential buyers to imagine the house as their own.  Incorporating colors and designs that personally suit you may not work the same magic with buyers.  With colors and designs that are universally appealing, you are keeping safe and decreasing the chances of turning off potential buyers.

Capturing a Timeless Look

One great thing about going neutral when decorating your home is that the look never goes out of style.  Unlike the ever-changing trendy and bold designs, you are not bound to change anything as soon as a new fashion swings in.  This lasting appeal makes the home improvement investment a cost-efficient one.

Versatility

Just as you should never go without any neutrals in your wardrobe, this same reason makes them a hit in home improvement and remodeling.  Selections of this category serve as the best foundation for whatever personal style you want to inject into just any room or the entire house.  As styles and hues in neutral complements with just any other color and décor addition, you can easily capture a modern minimalist, chic and elegant, sophisticated, vintage, homey country, conservative, old-world and just any style that can be considered your signature.  Let your creativity work and enjoy the many unique combinations you can explore.

Maximized Comfort and Relaxation

Today, with all the stresses that one is exposed to, the psychology of colors in homes is getting more and more attention when it comes to selection.  Neutral colors can considerably affect the mood within the house as well as hold a relaxing ambiance that soothes some of that big-city stress.  This can transform your house into a peaceful haven that you definitely would want to go home to.

An Atmosphere to Live with and Enjoy

Depending on your personal preferences and how expansive or limited the available space is, you can use various shades of neutrals to create an intimate or airier feel to the room.  Dare to get creative with accents and bring out the fun in any space.  Get as luxurious as you feel like by integrating materials and textures that can bring out the richness that the family would lavish at.  You see, neutrals can also be anything but boring.

Here are some examples:

•Reconditioning old kitchen & bathroom cabinets instead of replacing them with new ones. Often just replacing their old handles can update the look of a room.
•Steam-cleaning old carpets can often bring them back to life and prevent having to take them to the dump.
•Old wood, even if it has been badly scratched, can be quickly restored with a mixture of equal parts double-boiled linseed oil, natural turpentine and white vinegar.
•Kitchens and bathrooms can be tiled with ceramic flooring rather than vinyl — it is much longer-lasting and is completely non-offgassing.

Volatile organic compounds, or VOC’s, are increasingly being found to cause respiratory problems such as allergies and asthma, especially in babies and children. They can even affect the health of your pets!

As much as possible, we use natural materials such as wood, clay-based paint and natural finishes — instead of vinyl flooring, synthetic carpet and chemically-formulated paints. This not only ensures the best possible indoor air quality, it also minimizes the environmental impact when these materials are eventually disposed of.

Old construction materials are a major contributor to landfill. Synthetic carpets in particular are non-biodegradable, bulky items that are one of the biggest single sources of landfill waste. By avoiding these materials, and by recycling old construction supplies, we try to keep our waste products to a minimum.

Here are some of the materials we use:

•Recycled construction materials and supplies: Habitat for Humanity ReStores
•Clay-based paints: Farrow & Ball
•Recycled paint: Paint Plus Reuse Program
•All-natural carpets: EarthWeave
•Bamboo flooring
•Linseed oil wood finishes
•Metal roofs

“We had a couple quarters where it ticked up, so it’s nice to see it come back down,” Martin said. “That should be what happens the rest of the year, so we’re hopefully on the path of improvement now.”
TransUnion’s analysis is derived from a sample of 10 percent of U.S. mortgage holders.
Before the housing bust, mortgage delinquencies were running at less than 2 percent nationally. It took about three years after the housing market crashed for the delinquency rate on mortgages to climb to a peak of nearly 7 percent in the fourth quarter of 2009. The rate has been trending down since then.
Seasonal patterns – such as homeowners skipping payments to spend money elsewhere in the last three months of the year – were likely a factor in the uptick last fall.
Still, the national delinquency rate remains well above its historical range, an indication many homeowners are still struggling five years after the housing downturn.
“It’s coming down a lot more slowly than it went back up,” Martin said.
The delinquency rate won’t likely get back down to its normal 2 percent level until housing prices recover.
Home prices dropped in February in most major U.S. cities for a sixth-straight month, according to the Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller home-price index.
Still, there have been some bright spots in housing and economic trends this year that could point to further improvement in the mortgage delinquency rate.
The U.S. unemployment rate has fallen a full percentage point since August to 8.1 percent last month – the lowest level since January 2009. Hiring has strengthened, despite posting weaker-than-anticipated gains in March and April. And the economy grew at an annual rate of 2.2 percent in the first quarter, aided by stronger consumer spending.
And while sales of previously owned homes fell in March, a mild winter drove gains in January and February making this year’s winter the best for home sales in five years.
As long as the economy, housing market and jobs outlook continue to improve, it’s likely fewer homeowners will fall behind on their mortgage payments, Martin said.
Another factor: Loans made between 2008 and 2011, after the housing crisis had begun, have a lower delinquency rate than older loans.
“As time goes on, they become a bigger and bigger percentage of the total, so that helps bring the rates down as well,” Martin said.
All but eight states saw their mortgage delinquency rate decline in the first quarter versus the last three months of last year: Montana, Hawaii, Maine, North Dakota, New York, Maryland, Washington and Delaware.
Florida led the nation with the highest mortgage delinquency rate of any state at 13.87 percent, down from 14.27 in the fourth quarter of last year.
The Sunshine State wasn’t the only foreclosure hotbed where mortgage delinquency improved in the first quarter.
The mortgage delinquency rate in Arizona was 6.86 percent, down from 7.50 percent in the fourth quarter of 2011. California’s declined to 6.66 percent from 7.14 percent, while Nevada’s fell to 11.16 percent from 12.08 percent.

Thomas Atlas

Houston. 713 545 2429

Website. www.atlasgreenhomes.com
E Mail . info@atlasgreenhomes.com

203k Certified Contractors of Houston, Austin, San Antonio

This overlooked feature can really bring pizzazz to your décor and needs to complement both the window and the curtains you have chosen, as well as be appropriately functional.

Hardware for window treatments is available in a wide variety of styles. Some curtain rods are designed to be covered by the curtains, while others are best displayed prominently due to their highly decorative nature. If the rod is meant to be featured you could hang the curtains from decorative rings sewn into the top panel. Considering both the curtain and the rod at the same time will save you the disappointment of having pieces that don’t complement each other.

Today’s Lesson: Do you know what finials are? They are the decorative ends on the curtain rod. I didn’t know their official name for several years. I just called them “ends of the curtain rod.” They can be wooden, wrought-iron, glass, or plastic.

The most standard types are:

Finials can range widely in price, from the $2 plastic pieces to $100 very heavy fancy pieces. Consider your budget but also know that what you choose will make a certain statement in the room and that statement will last longer than the effects of spending a little extra money. You also have to be sure the finials will fit where you are hanging the curtain. Consider the shape of your window and the molding around it. In some cases there just isn’t room for large fancy finials, nor is it always appropriate for the style of curtain you’ve chosen.

Author Bio
Visit curtains.topicreviews.com/curtain-rods.html for more information on curtains, rods and finials.

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