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Tips Contractors - If you want to save money having work done on your home that you cannot do yourself, find a highly recommended handyman with a wide range of skills do the work. Just be sure they are licensed and bonded. It is also a good idea to inspect their work and talk to their clients. Find out if they start a job only to wander off to another job for more  than a day or two, and if they complete their work in a timely manner. Paint - Be sure and check out the "opps" paint at stores like Lowes and Home Depot. You will find a lot of heavily discounted cans where they mixed the wrong color. As far as storing paint, you have a couple options to make it last as long as possible. One thing that helps is to store it upside down- making sure the lid is closed tightly. Another is to put it in a smaller jar. Glass jars, that you can see through, are very convenient when you need to touch up the walls. Paint Brushes - Invest in good quality paint brushes, take good care of them, and they will last a long time. Keep them clean and the bristles soft. Clean your brushes thoroughly after each use. If you have concerns about rinsing out latex paint in your sink, immerse them in a a mixture of water and liquid fabric softener. Use about 1/2 cup of liquid softener to a bucket of water. Agitate the brush to remove the paint. Then hang them upside down to dry. If you have a paint brush that has been neglected, try soaking it in paint remover for 10 minutes. Use a comb to brush out any paint, and rinse with turpentine, and then soap and water. Plumbing - If you are unlucky enough to have a home that was plumbed with galvanized pipes (as we were), you don't have to spend an enormous amount of money to replace them with copper . You can piggyback plastic on top of the old pipes. It will save you a lot of money. Roofs - If you have to replace your roof, remember that your roof will affect your energy bill. Dark roofs absorb the sun, and make a home warmer in the summer A light colored roof will reflect more of the sun's rays. Tile roofs also keep your home cooler, which is why you see so many of them in warm climates.

 

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