5 facts you need to know about heating your home

How to give your kitchen a facelift without breaking the bank

(NC) What if you could remodel your kitchen without the headache of a major renovation and, depending on your scope and selection, for a fraction of the cost? Rose Difonzo, kitchen and bath installation expert at The Home Depot, suggests a simple way to make your dream a reality.

“One economical way to give your kitchen a visual overhaul involves cabinet refacing,” she explains. “Not many homeowners know that they have the option to veneer the exterior of their cabinets and just replace the cabinet doors and drawer fronts. If you are satisfied with the current kitchen layout and the interiors of your cabinets are in good condition, cabinet refacing might be the service for you.”

The process. After an in-home consultation, a team of insured and licensed installers remove all existing doors, drawer fronts and hinges from your kitchen. Surfaces are then prepared and applied to all visible cabinet exteriors in either laminate, vinyl or matching veneer. Once they apply and trim all coverings, they install new doors, drawers and hardware. To finish the look, you can add mouldings and accessories to make your new kitchen pop.

The possibilities. If you want a more customized look, cabinet refacing projects can be combined with other kitchen updates for a one-of-a-kind space. For example, you can transform a standard door base cabinet into a set of pot and pan drawers or increase storage space with additional cabinets.

The advantage. Get the look of a kitchen makeover with less mess and time. With installation of between two and five days, a wide variety of traditional and contemporary styles to choose from, and no surprise plumbing or electrical costs, cabinet refacing is the perfect solution to getting the kitchen you want for the budget you have.

(NC) As Canadians, we rely on heating systems more than most nations in the world. But our need doesn’t necessarily translate into knowledge. If you’re unhappy with the comfort or cost of keeping your home warm in winter, here are some things to consider.

Insulation is key. While the kind of energy source and heating equipment you have can affect annual costs a lot, don’t even think about upgrading your system until you’ve optimized insulation levels in your home. For most places in Canada, 22 inches of batt or loose-fill insulation in the attic makes sense. This is more than many homes have, but it pays to go beyond the basics when it comes to insulation.

Choose natural gas if you can. Natural gas is abundant in Canada and also burns cleanly in furnaces and boilers that operate at efficiencies greater than 95 per cent. Although prices fluctuate, natural gas always averages out to be the cheapest and most stable source of energy for home heating.

Consider heat pump technology. If you don’t have access to natural gas where you live, electric heat pumps make sense because they offer the next most economical source of heat. For every dollar you spend on electricity for a heat pump, the system delivers $2 to $3 worth of heat, compared with electric baseboard resistance heaters. Most heat pumps can also operate in reverse, cooling your home in summer.

Explore smart controls. We’ve had programmable thermostats for a long time, but the electronics that control heating systems are advancing beyond these basics. Wireless thermostats, for example, make it easy to control the temperature of different rooms independently. Why heat a room you won’t be using at certain times of the day? Today’s best control systems also deliver temperature levels that are more stable and consistent than ever, especially with hot water heating systems.

Hydronic heating conversion. “Hydronic” is a fancy word used to describe hot water heating systems. Hot water radiators and infloor heating provide some of the nicest and most even heat you’ll experience. Since there are no fans involved, there’s no moving air to kick up dust. Hydronic heating is also one of the best options for converting from electric baseboard heaters to natural gas.

Regardless of what insulation or heating system changes you want to make to your home, be sure to hire a qualified contractor to do the work. Home heating systems are not DIY projects — you need an expert who knows all the safety requirements. Electrical and gas contractors need to be licensed, so never hire someone who isn’t.

Find more information at www.getitinwriting.ca.