Tips Before You Start the Next DIY Project

I have never been what some would call a handyman. There are plenty of my friends that know their way around a toolbox much better than myself. That being said, occasionally I like to try out a couple of do-it-yourself projects from time to time, in order to learn more about that kind of thing and also to help fix stuff around the house.

Fortunately, this experimentation usually goes alright. However, we've all run into those snags and unexpected developments while trying to fix something on our own. You know, when the simple DIY project throws you a sudden curve ball and things take a turn for the worse. That's usually when the DIY project takes on a life of its own, a Frankenstein's monster that becomes hard to cull.

In order to keep from animating your next fix around the home, here are some tips before your start the next big DIY project:

• Take reasonable bites. We've all heard of the phrase "don't bite off more than you can chew", and we all know that it applies to DIY projects especially. If you are an entry level guy like myself, trying to redo all of the electrical or plumbing for the entire house might be a leap too far. Instead, gradually work your way up to those larger projects.
• Do your homework. Before jumping in with both feet without knowing how to address the problem, do some research beforehand. There are plenty of resources online that can help whether you're dealing with lawn care or fixing the garbage disposal. In addition, figure out how much it's going to cost to fix on your own, and match that with quotes from contractors.
• Get a friend to help. Not everything has to be a one man job. If you know someone who is handy or has done the same kind of repair recently, invite them along. They might spot something you would have missed on your own, and can save you a world of headaches.
• Finish the job. Sometimes life takes over and it gets difficult to finally finish that project, but the satisfaction makes all the toil completely worth it. It's easy to leave things half finished around the home, but take the time to get it done and get it done well, and it will pay off in the long run.

Money Saving Tips as Summer Comes to a Close

It may still be sweltering outside here in Houston, but I assure you that we're finally reaching the end of summer. The kids are back at school, the summer vacation memories have been made and the cold weather is only a matter of weeks away.

Here are some tips to help you save during the end of summer:

• Get a jump start on natural gas – With cool weather comes big heating bills. Start shopping for a low natural gas rate today to lock in the best deals.

• Find a deal on TV service – All of your favorite TV shows will soon be back on the air for the fall television season. Also, football is getting into gear and the baseball postseason is just around the corner. Find a great low rate on HD TV service and watch your favorite shows and sporting events for less.

Is Your Home Ready for the School Year?

Believe it or not, we're already getting into the middle of August, which means the new school year is just around the corner. "Back-to-school" tends to be a stressful time for parents, but with a little planning, it can be a breeze.

Here are some tips to help get this school year off to a smooth start:

• Set up your calendars – Between class projects, sports, school events, music lessons, tutoring sessions and all of the other things that make up kid's schedules, there's going to be a lot to keep track of. Map out your calendars now and put them somewhere you'll always see them.

• Create a homework area – Without a dedicated area in your house for schoolwork, kids will can end up easily distracted. By setting up a special area in your house for them to study and work on homework, you can cut down on distractions.

How to Find the Right Mover

We're well into the move season now, and millions of Americans are preparing to move. Moving can be one of the most stressful events in a person's life, so taking some time to make sure you make the right decisions is important.

One of the biggest decisions a mover has to make is what moving company to go with. Ask your friends and family and you're sure to hear horror stories about terrible movers. Making the wrong choice here can transform your move from stressful to .

Here are some top tips to make sure you find the right mover:

• Shop around – You wouldn't buy a car or television without getting a few different prices, right? Moving service is the same way. Get mover quotes from at least three companies to make sure you're not overpaying.

• Get referrals – Ask your friends and family if they have any companies they'd recommend.

• Ask for references – Remember, these people will be handling your most valuable possessions and spending time in both your old house and your new house. It's best to make sure someone has been happy with their service in the past. Also, check with the Better Business Bureau and any local licensing agencies to make sure the company doesn't have a history of poor service.

You Can Now Use Microsoft Hohm Without a Smart Meter

Still don't have a smart meter but want to use Microsoft's popular Hohm application to manage your home's electricity usage? Now you can. Similar to how you can use Google's PowerMeter software with a TED device, you can now use Hohm with a Blue Line Power Cost Monitor WiFi Edition.

Microsoft has partnered with Blue Line Innovations to develop an energy monitor optimized for Hohm. The device tracks energy usage in real-time, allowing consumers to monitor their usage down to the minute or dollar without having to wait for their electricity provider to install a smart meter.

The raw data collected by the Power Cost Monitor is received by Microsoft Hohm and then instantly collated into easy-to-understand charts and graphs. With this information, it's easy for consumers to get a good understanding of their energy habits and track the impact of any improvements they have made to lower their electricity bill.

The Blue Line Power Cost Monitor WiFi Edition is available now with an MSRP of $268. Check the Blue Line site for a list of retailers.

Microsoft Hohm is free and you can get started now at the Hohm homepage (Hohmpage?).

Image via Microsoft

Saving Money on Cooling Costs

I'm not sure what it's like in your corner of the world, but in Houston, the sun is trying to melt our homes a bit more everyday, it seems. While it's not quite as hot here as it has been in past summers, the heat continues to soar onward and upward as the calendar year rolls on.

What's just as bad as the heat itself is the way it affects energy expenses. For some, it could easily send their electricity bill straight through the roof. However, even though we're getting to the hottest point of summer, there are still ways to cut back on the bills.

Check out some of our tips for saving money on cooling costs:

• Maintain your air conditioner. Be sure to have your AC unit serviced at the start of each summer in order to keep it running up to par. I know from experience that it would be bad to have it give out right in the middle of the heat. Also, change your filters regularly.

• Install a programmable thermostat. This is one of the easiest ways to start saving money right away on your cooling costs. Setting a thermostat to warmer while you're not at home can help cut your energy bill significantly.

• Use trees to shade your home Never underestimate the value of a good tree or shrub to provide shade over parts of your home, especially windows facing direct sunlight. If you are not able to do this, consider installing awnings over the windows, as they will help keep as much heat from entering your home.

• Close the leaks. There are no doubt air leaks all around the house. This could be from the weather stripping around a doorway or a window, as well as sealed places where utilities enter the home. Keep all the cool air inside!

• Avoid generating heat inside. There are a variety of things that add heat to your living space, such as ovens, dryers, dishwashers, computers and more. Use air dry settings on your dishwasher, and hibernate your computer if it is not in use. In addition, turn off lights in rooms that are not being used, and grill outside if you want to cook. All of these things can significantly reduce cooling costs.

• Use fans. While fans won't lower the temperature of a room, they blow heat away from you. This means that you can set the thermostat a couple of ticks warmer, which will save you money in the long run. Fans cost less to operate than your AC unit, so utilize them as much as possible.

Do you have any additional ideas for how to save money on cooling costs? Feel free to share them with us in the comments!

How to Choose a Contractor

Like Eddy, I love watching the HGTV show Holmes on Homes. If you haven't seen the show, it's basically just a Canadian superhero (Mike Holmes) visiting people who have been burned by bad contractors and fixing the job. The show's mantra is "make it right" and they indeed always make things perfect.

As someone who can be a little obsessive about my house, I can't get enough of the show. The man is one of my personal heroes. So, you'd think after watching umpteen hours of the show, I'd never end up with a bad contractor, right? Wrong.

Despite seeing so many people get burned by not doing their due diligence when picking a contractor, when my wife and I choose a contractor to install slate in our new house last year, we fell into the same traps. It's easy to trust contractors and get swept up in what they say. Now we're stuck with a bad installation and there's no one to blame but ourselves.

Take it from me, picking a contractor is a very important process. Take the time to do a little research though, and you can ensure you get quality work. Here are the top tips for choosing a contractor:

• Get recommendations – Ask your friends, family, whoever is selling you materials or even people on the Internet if they know of anyone that might work for what you need done. 

• Ask for references – While the contractor is only going to give you the contact details of people that were happy with their service, it's still important to make sure someone was happy with the service. Make sure you get references for the specific job you are working on and get pictures or a visit in person.

Cut Down on Wasted Water with a Soaker Hose

One of the things that becomes fairly common in places like Texas is extended periods of time without any rain. This keeps plants from staying healthy and green, especially in the hot summer months. Obviously, the best way to help prevent these guys from dying off is to get off the couch from watching HGTV and actually water them yourself. However, were you aware of how much water that wastes?

According to Re-Nest, only a small amount of water from traditional hoses is actually absorbed by your plants, because it is often hit with too much at one time. The rest becomes runoff and becomes wasted water that you are paying for in your monthly bill. One of the best way to water your plants and save money is through soaker hoses, which can save you up to 70% of the costs of watering your plants.

Wrapping a soaker hose around the plants and parts of the yard that you want to water allows them to get moisture at a pace slow enough for them to benefit fully. If you use a timing system for this as well, and run it at a trickle, you can save both water and money, while still allowing your plants to say healthy. Soaker hoses are also great for watering the foundation of your house, which is a necessity in dryer parts of the country to help keep it from cracking.

To learn more about soaker hoses and how they can save on your water bill, visit Re-Nest. If you're interested in hunting for lawncare service, check out WhiteFence!

How to Secure Your Wireless Network

Earlier this year when I explained how to set up a wireless network, I urged you to set up a password and consider additional security measures. After all, what's the point of ordering a smoking-fast broadband package if all the neighborhood kids are hijacking your signal and slowing everything to a crawl with their blasted Justin Bieber music videos?

With that in mind, I thought I'd get a little more in-depth on wireless security today and give you a list of basic precautions you can take along with some more advanced pro-tips that can help keep your Internet service Bieber-free (unless you're into that sort of thing, which is totally okay).

• Lock down your router – Your router and wireless network both have passwords. To change your network's settings, you need to log in to your router. To keep anyone else from changing your network settings, you need to protect your router. Check your instruction manual to learn how to log in to make changes. Usually, you simply enter a URL into your browser and enter the default user-name and password to gain access
  
  If for some reason you have lost your router instructions, check out this site and you should easily be able to find out what URL to type and what the default user-name and password for your router is. Once in, make sure you give your router a new user-name and password. Stay logged in, as we'll be making the rest of the changes from here, too.

How to Prepare for Your Move This Summer

Summer is on its way, and that means moving season is too. We’ve all had the stressful, thrown-together move experience where you just start throwing things in trashbags and random boxes, hoping everything works out in the end. If you’re moving this summer, you can probably hear that little voice in the back of your head saying “Start preparing now, we promised the next move will be different.”

I have to agree with the voice in your head, a little planning and preparation now can save you the heartburn of a stressful move. Here’s how WhiteFence can keep your move from becoming a nightmare:

• Plan if you’re going it alone or hiring the pros – The first thing you need to do is work out if you’re going to be moving everything yourself or if you’re hiring a moving company. While you’ll save a little money doing it yourself, it can be quite the headache. Unsure if you can afford to hire a mover or just looking for the best price on moving service? Check our Mover Quotes page to get quotes from all of the top movers.

• Put together a checklist and stick to it – The most important thing you can do now is to blueprint everything you’re going to have to do for your move. Not sure what you’re going to need to do? No problem, just head over to our Moving Checklist page and we’ll build a checklist customized for your schedule and needs for FREE!

• Order your home services in advance – The only thing worse than unpacking all day, is not having any TV to watch when you’re done for the day! Unless you’re planning on going without TV, Internet, a phone line, electricity and natural gas for a while once you get to your new place, you’re going to have to order your services in advance. With WhiteFence, you can shop all the top providers at once to find the best plans for your needs. Just head over to the WhiteFence homepage and enter your address to get started!