Easy Ways to Make Your Home Warmer

Used with permission © Eternal Image Photography

Here we are, still in November, and the winter winds have already blown in, creating a “polar vortex” that chills to the bone. Even the coziest of homes can seem a bit like a refrigerator in below freezing  temperatures. And turning up the heat means an even larger utility bill—and that’s already hard enough to afford.

A little bit of grunt work can help even the least handy person trap a little more heat in his home over the colder months. Try any (or all) of these tricks.

Thermal Curtains

Windows and doors are the main way that you lose heat in your home. Anything from bad seals to poor insulation or old windows can mean the heat has a clear escape route. While HA Construction can certainly fix leak problems, thermal curtains will help regardless of how snug the seal on your windows is. They’re thick and keep cold air from coming in and warm air from going out. Of course, if you have single-pane windows from the ‘70s, the assistance thermal curtains provides will be hardly noticeable against the draft those windows let in. You’d better start saving up to replace them! In the meantime, a window sealing kit might help too.

Of note, if you have high quality, energy efficient windows, open the curtains on sunny days and let the sunlight assist in warming your home. But as soon as dusk hits, closes those thermals to keep as much of that daytime heat in as possible.

Also, cover the floors. There’s a reason carpet came to be—bare floors suffer heat loss (as you likely know from how cold the floor is in your bathroom after that perfectly pleasant hot shower). It’s not a bad idea to use rugs in the winter months to keep that heat loss down.

Build a Fire

If you have a working fireplace, use it. Though we have a few recommendations to protect your home and family:

• Have the fireplace cleaned each fall before you put it to use (do it now, if you haven’t already!) – the soot buildup from months of use last year can cause a fire when you light it up again.
• Use dry, clean wood – if you keep your wood on hand, make sure that it’s stored in a dry place and covered because wet wood causes lots of smoke. And make sure you know where you got the wood from. Any number of exposures can cause the wood to burn differently and increase risk of home fire.
• Clean out the ash each morning before you build a new fire to prevent build up and decrease risk of out-of-control flames.
• Make sure there is an adequate amount of tile or other hard surface space in front of your exposed fireplace. Tile and rock don’t burn, but carpet and hardwoods that catch a spark sure will!

And, if you’re fireplace is simply for looks, make sure you install a chimney balloon to close off the open chimney hole and prevent further heat loss.

Block the Draft

Take an old pair of stockings and stuff them full of socks or old, torn up towels, and lay them in front of exterior doors. Regardless of how good you think the seal is, there may still be a draft at the bottom. Also, spend a few bucks on outlet insulators. Have you ever put your hand in front of an outlet on an exterior wall during those cold winter months? Poorly insulated ones will allow cold air in. All you have to do is remove the cover, slide the pre-cut insulator on and reattach the cover. 

And if the seals on windows and doors aren’t great, but you can’t wretch up the funds to do much about it right now, buy adhesive window insulation tape (foam strips that come in rolls, found at any big box store) and run that along the interior seal of doors and the frames around windows.

Protect Your Pipes

Speaking of insulation tape, you may also want to wrap your water pipes in the crawl space, if they’re not already, to help keep them from freezing in the really cold nights. The general rule is to start where the pipe meets the ground and work your way back to where it enters the home. Obviously, the thicker the insulation, the better.

Heat tape is another option, but use this with caution. Leaving something plugged in under your house, without regular supervision, always carries some risk. But if you pipes freeze frequently, even with insulation, this may be the best alternative.

And, if worse comes to worse and none of these measures seem to help make your home cozy (or at least bearable) during the winter, give Andy at HA Construction a call. He’ll come do an assessment and let you know if something else is sucking the heat out of your home. 

Choosing a Plumber You Can Trust

You caught your toddler playing in the bathroom… and now the toilet is overflowing. Where did the hand towel go? And the spare rolls of toilet paper? And your son’s shirt?

Time to call a plumber! But that’s almost as daunting and trying to fish your son’s shirt out of the toilet. Plumbers are expensive and we all have that fear that they’re going to tell you far more is wrong than really is. Or charge you an arm-and-a-leg per hour…. And who knew it took two hours to unclog a toilet?!

Hopefully our tips will give you a little more piece of mind so you can make that call before water starts seeping through the floor.

Licensing

First and foremost, anyone you consider for a plumbing gig needs to provide you with verification of their license. This isn’t a typical request, as most people don’t think to ask. You can first try looking up the plumber’s name in the Missouri Professional Registration Search. But there are basically three levels of skill: apprentice, journeyman and master plumber. Apprentice is what you want to avoid because, as one might assume, these are folks in training.

A journeyman’s license means that apprenticeship is complete. According to the Missouri Revised Statute for plumbers, applicants for a journeyman’s license must be at least 21 years old and have at least five years experience as an apprentice under a master plumber. A master plumber must be at least 25 years old and have at least three years experience in the field with a journeyman’s license.

What You Need to Ask For

There are a few items that you should request – in addition to licensing proof – to make sure your plumber is legit and will charge a reasonable rate:

• References – Ask for them and then actually contact them to see what they have to say. Wouldn’t be a bad idea to check out reviews online, but remember that most people only get online to complain, not appreciate, so it’s an unbalanced ratio.
• Estimate – Be sure to get your estimates in writing.
• Insurance – Ask for insurance verification and clarify what it covers.
• Payment Schedule – If you’re hiring a plumber for a bigger job, such as a renovation, ask for the payment scheduled in writing so you know how much will be due from you and when.
• Office Address – There are many great reasons for a company to have a post office box, but this is also a way for fake contractors to take advantage of people. Ask where their office is located and verify that it’s actually there.

Other Important Items

As you look at plumbing companies, you may also want to consider the services they offer as part of your assessment. For example, plumbers that offer 24/7 services or guarantee a fast response time sound great, and are sometimes necessary, but a often very expensive. HA Construction recommends that you not use these companies outside of an emergency situation.

Often, the way that a plumber dresses and conducts himself – and even the condition of his work truck – say a lot about his reliability and the overall experience you’re going to have. A plumber that puts time and energy in appearance means that his company is important to him.  

Also, cheaper doesn’t always mean better. Everyone is on a budget these days, but it’s probably better to go with the master plumber that charges $75 an hour than the journeyman who just got his license and charges $50 an hour – because you may end up spending far more in the end if they don’t get something right.

Who We Recommend

While we absolutely encourage you to support any locally owned plumber service, HA Construction has working experience with and highly recommends the following companies:

• Accro Plumbing
• Farr Better Plumbing
• Lorenz Plumbing

Springfield City Utilities Solar Initiative

Did you know that solar energy is available in the Springfield City Utilities service area without spending up to $25,000 on solar panels and other equipment?

The City Utilities Solar Initiative took effect October 1st and the hope is to move many Springfield residences to a conservative approach to energy consumption. While pre-enrollment started back in August, some spots still remain available. But now is the time to sign up, as spots are limited for the time being until the program really takes off.

How it Works

CU has installed a solar farm East of the McCartney Generating Station. The farm is owned by Strata Solar and CU is under a 25 year purchase power agreement with the owner, with the option to buy. This adds solar power to CU’s current power generation portfolio, along with natural gas, landfill gas and coal. The output from the solar farm generates enough power for over 900 homes.

CU customers who sign up (which could be anyone from a home owner to someone living in an apartment complex and even businesses, as long as you are in the CU service area) pay an extra fee to have solar power. Basically, it’s a way for the environmentally conscious to participate in eco-friendly way to produce energy.

So, the mechanics of it might be a bit confusing at first, but here’s the gist of it: customers subscribe to kilowatt (kW) blocks of energy. You can get a minimum of one block, up to 200 blocks. One kW block produces an average of 162 kWh per month, and, at CU’s current rates, would average out as $7.67 per month for that block, which would be in addition to your regular monthly bill. Of note, the amount of energy produced depends upon the season and weather conditions – for example, a rainy day obviously produces less solar energy, as do the shorter days in the winter compared to the long days of summer.

To best determine what this would cost you, have your CU bill handy and utilize the Solar Calculator on the CU website.

Why Do It

Tree Hugger arguments aside, you might be wondering why you would want to pay extra to use solar power through CU. Well, consider that solar power provides energy reliability. The sun rises; the sun sets. These are facts no one can dispute. There is also security in the fact that no one country can monopolize solar power over another – we won’t have to fight over it – yey for energy independence!

Additionally, the rates should stay relatively the same over a long term because there isn’t ever going to be a shortage of sunshine. In fact, when you sign up for the solar program with CU, you lock your rate in for 20 years. And, the management of solar energy creates twice as many jobs as coal energy management (and more than twice as much as natural gas).

And let’s talk about those rates. Yes, it costs more than your current utility bill to add solar energy. However, should you decide to install your own solar energy, it would be far more expensive. Do you think my number of $25 grand is high? Not according to Sunrun, a solar power company dedicated to helping families install solar panels on their home. Let’s look at the numbers, shall we? Sunrun says:

Depending on the location and design of your system, the typical home installation ranges from 3 to 7 kilowatts and costs between $18,000 to $40,000 to purchase. Solar panels: About a third of the cost of a residential photovoltaic system comes from the cost of solar panels, which can cost around $4,500-$12,000.

What it comes down to is, if you’re interested in helping the planet and local economy, and don’t have upwards of  $40,000 to install a system as efficient as the one CU built, then CU’s access is the way to go.

Broken Water Mains and Sleep Deprivation

Cue the rattling noise of a jack hammer crunching the asphalt of a busy street… at ten o’clock in the evening. Children nestled in their beds with visions of pounded rock dancing in their heads.

When Sally asked City Utilities why they chose to work on the street directly in front of her house so late in the evening, she was informed, with sincere apologies, that the water main under the street had burst. Failure to fix it immediately would result in the entire street out of water by morning.

Disturbed sleep aside, what would cause the water main to bust? And how would all of the water for the neighborhood run out so quickly? And if it hadn’t been fixed, what else could happen?

How it Works

A water main is the chief source for providing water from a water treatment plant to city neighborhoods. According to the EPA website:

Water distribution systems consist of an interconnected series of pipes, storage facilities, and components that convey drinking water and meeting fire protection needs for cities, homes, schools, hospitals, businesses, industries and other facilities.  Public water systems depend on distribution systems to provide an uninterrupted supply of pressurized safe drinking water to all consumers. It is the distribution system mains that carry water from the treatment plant (or from the source in the absence of treatment) to the consumer.  Spanning almost one million miles in the United States, distribution systems represent the vast majority of physical infrastructure for water supplies.

A broken main means a major disruption in the water system. There are several possible causes, but since most water mains are several feet underground, breaks are typically the result of worn out pipes. Cold weather conditions cause pipes to expand and contract as the water within gets colder and warmer with temperature changes, which weakens pipes over time. Additionally, changes in soil conditions, pipe corrosion, and movement underground can cause pipes to lose stability.

Immediate Attention Required

In order to limit disruption in the water supply to residence, or to prevent flooding and possible property damage, City Utilities must address a broken water main immediately. When the break occurs, water starts to find its way to the surface and flooding may even occur. This is typically how the break is discovered – when a resident reports water flow in a place this is unusual, especially when there is no rain or other precipitation in the area. Typically, the repair process occurs as follows:

• Crews respond to a report of water seepage and look for the source of the problem
• If necessary, water valves are closed to stop water flow to the damaged area and contain the leak
• Electrical equipment is used to obtain the exact location of the leak
• Crews dig to the section of the water main that is damaged and repair the leak as needed
• Valves are turned on and water is restored so the repair can be tested
• The hole is backfilled and sod or pavement replaced over the water main

So, even if the jack hammer resounds through your neighborhood all night long, it’s better than having flood damage or no usable water, wouldn’t you say? Maybe sleeping with some headphones on can keep the pounding at bay.

The Fluctuating Housing Market and You

Reports came out last week that home construction in the U.S. is down by 14 percent. Several factors are to blame, but the most prevalent is that the recovery of the housing market is moving at a snail’s pace. In other words there are too many homes already available for sale and not enough buyers.

Weren’t they just saying a few months ago – maybe even in July – how the housing market was seeing an upswing? How is it that we’re here again? And what does all this fluctuating mean for you?

First, the Why

There are any number of factors that contribute to how well the housing market is doing, including:

• The Season – Generally speaking, home sell better in the spring and summer months because that is, ideally, when most people want to move. There are more buyers during these seasons, which means sellers will get better offers from interested parties.
• Construction – More new homes means more options for buyers to choose from.
• Lending Restrictions – There appears to be an increasing number of home buyers who think they qualify for a certain loan amount, only to find that they can’t. This leaves them buying smaller homes within their loan budget, meaning the larger, more expensive homes are left. 

For the Buyer

As a buyer in a fluctuating housing market, you have the advantage when supply outweighs demand because sellers get desperate and reduce the price in order to sell the home sooner. It also means that you have many more options to choose from and are more likely to find what you’re looking for in a home.

Then again, you may not be able to find what you’re looking for because in a slow moving housing market, the best homes tend to get swiped up quickly, leaving you to settle for a home that doesn’t quite hit the mark. But this is an opportunity that you can easily take advantage of if you’re able to visualize the potential a home has to offer.

If you can find a great deal – and typically you can these days because of the seller desperation – then you can make it your own quite readily with the help of a local contractor like Andy and his team. Outdated bathrooms in your dream home? No problem. HA Construction kind of specializes in bathroom renovation.

For the Seller

As a seller, you tend to benefit when the housing market is consistent, with supply and demand on a more even footing, and especially when there are more buyers than homes. Unfortunately, we haven’t really seen that much of a “seller friendly market” since historic 2008.

So, what can you do to make your home more appealing in a buyer’s market without plummeting your asking price? Make it more appealing to the buyer. This may take some additional investment on your part, but it may be worth it.

For example, let’s say you have carpet in your living room that, while not an eye sore, could stand to be replaced. You’ve resolved to leave that to the buyer, as is often the case. But in a buyer’s market, you’d see more success if you went ahead and replaced the carpet for them – because your providing incentive for the purchase of your “move-in ready home” over the house they saw that is also great, but needs more work.

Or, if your relocating for reasons like you’ve outgrown your current home or simply want something different, consider hiring a contractor to put on an addition or make changes so that the home you have is more you in the first place.

For the Contractor

You might be thinking that the contractor benefits regardless of the housing market’s condition, but this isn’t always the case. These days, a construction company has to show versatility in its services in order to keep work consistent. For example, a construction business that only does new construction could obviously be struggling with a 14 percent decrease in home construction around the country last month.

Whereas, a company like HA Construction, that provides a broad range of services from bathroom renovations to new construction… from commercial work to replacing windows… (and does a great job) will see success regardless of the housing market. Work may fluctuate as the housing market and seasons change, but consistency can be found in diversity. 

Reliable Contractor References

Let me tell you a story (the names have been changed to, well, you know… protect folks).

Steve needed a new roof on his home. So he did some research online and picked a few local contractors with a strong rating on the Better Business Bureau website and several years of experience. After meeting with a few, he chose A+ Roofing.

However, Steve’s new roof turned out to be a dud, with several leaks, wrong sized guttering and a number of other issues. Countless attempts to call A+ Roofing led to an irate owner yelling obscenities at Steve and his wife over the phone. It turns out that one of the contractors for A+ Roofing was pocketing the money from several jobs that he did poorly and then took off. And A+ Roofing didn’t feel the need to rectify the situation.

Don’t Put all Your Eggs in one Basket

Despite the cliché, as a consumer, you should never solely depend upon a BBB rating to determine if a construction company is reliable.  Granted, in Steve’s case, the owner of A+ Roofing was certainly handed a rotten situation (pun intended), but it’s how he handled it – allowing the stress of it all to make customer service non-existent – that reveals his business practices.

It’s almost a guarantee that this isn’t the first time the owner of A+ Roofing treated a customer horribly. So you need to first get references from a company.  In the interest of full disclosure, you shouldn’t trust all of the reviews you read on the Internet about a company either – at least not without a little more research. Because, unfortunately, we live in a society that is more than willing to plaster bad reviews all over the Internet when someone does them wrong (often before they’ve even tried to resolve the situation with the company), but those treated well rarely take the time to proclaim that in a public forum. It’s better to talk to several previous clients one-on-one to get an accurate assessment of a company’s strengths and weaknesses before you hire them.

Keeping in mind, however, that they are only going to give you contact information for happy clients (of course!). In which case, references still aren’t enough. What you really need to do is go beyond the commonly sought after sources and find out what else the company is involved in.

Memberships Mean Devotion

Another thing to consider is that, like any other service, in order to be listed on the BBB website, a company must pay annual dues. This doesn’t mean a lot, other than the fact that a company that can’t afford that fee won’t be listed, but could still be a viable company. This also means that a company that can afford to maintain a listing with the BBB is successful. And, such a company should have listings with other reliable sources to balance that out.

For example, HA Construction has a listing with the Better Business Bureau, but also with the Home Builders Association (HBA) of Greater Springfield, the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce and the Springfield Contractors Association. All of these require membership, and HA Construction is happy to oblige in order to show current and potential clients how dedicated we are to providing quality work and customer service.

So it’s important to remember that you shouldn’t rely on just the Better Business Bureau to give you a complete picture of a company’s success rate, customer service and reliability. Consider the BBB as one in a number of reviews and association memberships you will verify before you hire a contractor, so that you’ll avoid being in a situation like Steve.

The Hassle of Connecting to the City Sewer System

Kelly, a Springfield, Missouri resident, received a letter from the City of Springfield a few months ago that she wasn’t prepared for. Her family was growing and attempting to move into a larger home to accommodate that, but the letter put a damper on plans. According to the letter, the city would be connecting Kelly’s northside home, and several others in the Woodland Heights neighborhood, to the city sewer lines. And Kelly’s family had few options.

Construction is to begin in October of this year, and the estimated cost per household is $16,000. While the city’s assistance program implemented in 1999 will put a cap on that cost at $8,300 (plus the expense of connecting their home to the sewer line through a plumbing service), this is still a large, unplanned expense for Kelly’s family (and likely many others).

While one would concede that connecting this homes to the city sewer line is probably a good idea, and that doing so is a strong recommendation (requirement?) through the EPA and Missouri Department of Natural Resources, it certainly isn’t without significant drawbacks. Inconvenient construction, torn up yards and a large bill make it virtually impossible for Kelly’s family to sell their home until the project is done and, even then, it will still be difficult.

The Cost

Let’s talk about the most obvious downside to a new sewer system: the wad of cash home owners have to pay out.  Upon completion of the project, the City of Springfield a tax bill to homeowners/business owner within that sewer district. The cost to each customer is calculated with the following formula: (District Cost / District Square Footage) * Property Owner Square Footage = Property Owner Cost. The City does offer repayment options, in addition to the cost cap, which are:

• Pay the tax bill in full within 30 days
• An installment plan that basically treats the tax bill like a 15 year loan, including interest. Property owners pay 1/15th of the bill once a year after the issuance of the tax bill. Payment in full can be provided at any time.
• Apply for a grant to cover the cost of the sewer line. However, if Kelly’s family qualifies for this option, they cannot sell the home within five years, or they have to pay back the grant.

The Need

As much of a nuisance as this is, if you live within the city limits of Springfield, or any other municipality for that matter, it really is to your benefit and the benefit of those around you to be connected to the city sewer system. Being a part of the city sewer system has the following benefits:

• According to the City of Springfield, it reduces the potential for health hazards and ground water contamination.
• The geology of the Ozarks is generally considered intolerable of septic systems, causing them to fail frequently.
• Scientific America points out that most people prefer to be hooked up to city sewer because, once you are, the burden of keeping the system running properly outside of your property falls on the municipalities.
• Less chance of backup (which can happen frequently with a septic system) because the water is sent to a treatment plant rather than resting in a tank on your property.
• City systems are better equipped to handle extended or heavy periods of precipitation that a septic system may not be able to bear.

Because of the risk of ground water contamination, Springfield and Greene Country require a minimum 30 acre tract size of land for septic systems and, obviously, most homes in the Woodland Heights neighborhood don’t meet that criteria. So, while Kelly and her neighbors are somewhat backed into a corner both legally (see our article on Easements) and, and the sale of their home will likely have to wait, being on a city sewer system is better in the bigger picture.

One might argue that the financial burden should solely fall on the city, with the exception of hooking a home or business up to the new system. But that is a post for another day.