15 Best Home Improvement Shows

At 40 pounds a bag, she hauled them from the store in four trips. Anderson says that rock-bottom interest rates also make home improvements more attractive. And he says that in unsettling times, spending on one’s home can be a comforting investment. “My partner and I, we like to travel quite a bit,” Taylor says, smiling.

  • HomeLight analyzes millions of home sales to find real estate agents that sell homes faster and for more money.
  • Passive house designs enable us to build houses that save energy, improve air quality and reduce noise pollution.
  • Victoria Araj is a Section Editor for Rocket Mortgage and held roles in mortgage banking, public relations and more in her 15+ years with the company.
  • The set designers set out to make the home as normal as possible.

Renovate your home using primarily neutral colors on walls, floors and ceilings. Add color with furniture and accents that are far less expensive to replace later when they fall out of favor. If you’re considering replacing an appliance, replace it with an energy-efficient product.

Best Home Improvement Shows to Inspire Your Inner Interior Designer

The most effective system is a vent pipe placed in the sump pit or a hole made under your concrete floor slab. The vent runs up through the house and out the roof, or out the side of the house and up to the eaves. A special in-line fan for radon is placed in the attic or outside the house to suck air through the vent. Any openings in the slab or foundation are sealed to keep out radon. Motion detector lights are a proven crime deterrent, and standard hard-wired models cost as little as $15.

Your rights when you apply for help with home improvements

Perfect for a kitchen or den entrance, a sliding door provides privacy when needed or acts as eclectic decor when not in use. They are relatively easy to install; all it takes is assembling and mounting the hardware and door to a doorway. With just a stud finder and a drill, you can install a medicine cabinet in less than an hour. For quick installation, choose a flush-mounted cabinet that can mount directly to the wall above your bathroom sink, rather than cutting away drywall and recessing the cabinet between studs. A flush-mounted cabinet will probably be shallower than a recessed cabinet and will protrude into the bathroom space. For good looks, paper the back of the cabinet with adhesive shelf liner.

Now You Can Actually Live in MIT’s $10K Robotic Apartment in a Box

Installing a hardwood floor can take longer than a weekend, so choose a material that’s less time-consuming. Start with anything that comes in a roll, such as sheet vinyl, which looks better and lasts longer than it used to. Loose-lay sheet vinyl is unique because it doesn’t require adhesive.