The site basically price compares Kohler sinks across several online stores so you can price compare without having to scour the Web.

Great pictures, descriptions and pricing for any Kohler sink and very easy to navigate.

I also noticed it contains handy tips and articles re decorating which will help any kitchen/bathroom remodelers.

When choosing your glass contractor, reputation is always a good start. A satisfied referral from a friend, family member or contractor/tile company is usually a safe choice. If you don’t have that option, make up a list of important questions and concerns.

Examples : Do you have a show room or web photo gallery of shower enclosures installed by the contacted company? What is the estimated lead time for installation? This should never be more than seven days from day of final measure. Ask them how they plan the construction of all components, glass as well as hardware. All glass companies do not use the same techniques and you may not agree with some types of connectors each uses.

If you don’t ask, you may end up with something other than what you are expecting. Some will recommend costly unneccessary parts, and some will cut corners.

BE CAUTIOUS!

At least two quotes of similar construction and cost would be a smart way to shop.

Always inquire about warranties on both workmanship and hardware. They should be well into the future.

Hardware info: Shower hardware finishes are typically pretty close between many of the bath fixture companies your glass contractor will use. But keep in mind these companies are not related and the more exotic the finish you choose, the more of a chance that the shades will vary slightly. It is wise to ask for samples if you are unsure.

Glass info: All glass in any shower areas are required by law to be heat tempered for safety issues and you can identify tempered glass by a small logo close to one of the four corners. All heavy shower glass should have a high machine polish on all edges. Glass should fit snugly around all notches and glass-to-marble/tile joints. Sometimes, additional support bars are required when using larger free standing panels of glass, for your safety’s sake.

Care and cleaning: There are a number of different glass patterns and textures to choose from, but keep in mind these patterns may distort the look you’ve created when you picked your tile/marble. Care and cleaning of your shower require little attention.

But to keep that new look for years to come, use these tips. Keep a small squegee on hand to use after showering. Rain X type products or grocery store versions of shower glass cleaners work well. The typical white stains we’ve all experienced on shower glass is mainly caused from the amount of calcium in your city’s water, also referred to as soft andhard water.

The amount of calcium varies widely from city to city. The more calcium, the more attention that is required. Some calcium may be filtered with special shower heads that are becoming more widely available in stores.

Keep these suggestions in mind when choosing your shower and installation experts, and you’ll be enjoying a timeless, classic frameless shower that you can be proud of.

Yet there’s a shadowy underworld that came into play with this one. We recently wrapped up a job in Dallas where we came across this:

The homeowner advised no water had gotten onto the floor from the top and no unusual liquids or cleaning products had been used. I glanced to the adjacent room and sure enough, there was a bathroom there.

A leak from two areas (shower and sink) had caused moisture to seep through and run down the room causing this gradual mutation of the floors.

As you can see, this started spreading in one part of the floor and migrated down.

Destruction by stealth.

You see the floor dying, but you can’t see why or where because it’s all happening in the underworld.

Wood is a product of nature and will do what comes naturally if faced with too much moisture. So if you see this symptom on your floor, just be assured your wood is normal and is doing what wood is supposed to do.

One guy handed his contractor a check for five figures.

Never saw him again.

Here are some tips to help you weed out dishonest/shoddy flooring contractors BEFORE any work begins:

• You MUST not only ask for a few references – ask for 10. You don’t necessarily have to call all 10 but someone who is reputable and trusted who has done this for a while should easily be able to furnish 10. The trick here is they have no idea which of the 10 you’re going to call (mouwahaha!). If they are unwilling, reluctant or unable, move on and find someone who will.

• Ask to see samples of their work by way of portfolio. Whether it’s pictures, videos or site visits (for larger jobs), you will instantly get an idea of the workmanship, creativity and detail they put into their work. Again, anyone who is proud to showcase their work is someone worth considering.

• Transparency is everything in this business. You gotta feel comfortable. If you get that gut feeling you don’t like this guy or “there’s something about him” that just doesn’t sit right with you, don’t hire him. If he smells bad, spits while he talks, scratches his ass in front of you, picks his nose, farts or pervs at you in a creepy way, send him on his way. Don’t be bullied or intimidated into working with anyone you don’t trust in your home.  Any contractor with honesty and integrity will be upfront since they have nothing to hide. This is the most often overlooked point that comes back to haunt people later.

These are just three things that can immediately weed out a lot of Resident Evils. You’ll know right away after putting them through this three-point check, if they’re honest or flat out liars.

What have been your nightmare contractor experience/s?

Please share so others can take heed.

Next post, I’ll share some tips on how to ensure you are getting what you ordered.

Would you believe it if I told you some shady contractors…

Until next time!

Same bat time, same bat channel.

Apparently, this lady had “a friend of a friend” do her bathroom and he royally screwed it up. Everything that could possibly have gone wrong did – and then some.

Now I’m not talking about do it yourselfers who know what they are doing and do a relatively fine job. I’m talking about people who don’t know what they’re doing giving it to other people who don’t know what they’re doing.

From experience, friendships shouldn’t overlap your home improvement projects. I mean, I’ve heard countless stories of how this one guy who knew this person’s husband or a brother in law or a neighbor or this or that ended up shortchanging the customer.

I don’t service my own car because although I have *some* idea of the basics of how a vehicle operates and main parts, that doesn’t qualify me as an expert nor does it mean I will be able to do it and back my workmanship up.  It’s the same thing with flooring. There are actually several details one needs to factor in when installing hardwood. Same thing with tile, particularly on walls/edge areas.

Some have the knack for it, others simply don’t.

My advice: As with anything, call a reputable professional for a much smoother experience.

What have your friend of a friend flooring project experienced been like?

Would love to hear your thoughts.

Well worth the couple minutes of your time.

Master Plumber Aaron Greene of Best Choice Plumbing shares his thoughts:

Which color tile? What color hardwood? Will it look funny if I put this color here? I hear these questions daily.

Here’s quick guideline to help you select your flooring colors:

• Think of color choices like a funnel with the lighter colors at the top and the darker, bolder tones at the end. Colors like beige, whites, off-whites, creams and other light/er shades are boring yes…but they are safe. That is, if you are remodeling the place in order to sell it, you can’t go wrong with these safe colors. More people (wider funnel) are likely to find these shades acceptable when inspecting a home than dark navy carpet or banana yellow wood (yes it does exist!).

• Medium tones/shades are warmer and really give the place some character, especially when well combined with fabrics and other pieces of a room.  These include your browns, greens, taupes and other medium tones.

• Dark colors like the deep reds, violets, charcoals, blacks, etc. are very personal and are usually only used in a custom setting since they make a very imposing impression. If you plan on moving or selling anytime soon, do not use these colors. If however you want to build your own little retreat in your home, these are perfect and when done correctly, look out of this world.

Don’t get pigeon-holed into having to select just one color, especially when redoing your bathroom or kitchen. Combine different colors for contrast and to highlight different areas of your room and/or walls.

A final tip on selecting hardwood colors: Some woods are photosensitive (change color over time with light exposure). Since hardwood already has a natural variation within each box, you will get a mixture of intensities of the same color you selected. So if you chose a color that has more red in it, your floor will be a spectacular mixture of auburns, scarlets,  burgundies and even strokes of brick. That’s the way natural hardwood shows.

I personally reckon it adds authentic character to your floor but some like a more consistent or still look. If that’s the case, go for either a maple (very low shade variation) or a laminate where you get a predictable color pattern.

If you’re unsure how it will look at night, please see my post:

At Night, Your Floors Look Black.

Happy coloring.

Check it out:

http://www.youtube.com/user/DallasFlooring

It’s really cool since you can watch a playlist of videos and subscribe to automatic feeds. I try and upload as many as possible but it’s a lot more work than it looks.

Need to be at the job site daily/frequently to get images of the job progressing, and that’s not half of it. Putting it together then editing it and finally uploading it takes ages. Hardest part? Finding the right soundtrack to go with it, haha.

Any suggestions are always welcomed.

Anyway, hope the videos inspire you to greater and better things in your own home!

Sammer

“What do you think will be better, tile or natural stone?”

Here are a few quick tips that can help you in your bathroom remodeling decision. First, let’s define what we’re talking about here in the form of pictures:

_______________________________

The first couple are a travertine and granite slab shower respectively. The last is a standard tile shower.

When we refer to natural stone, it can be travertine, marble, slate, granite or anything else God makes.

Ok so which do you go for?

Natural Stone Bathroom Pros:

• Unparalleled beauty
• Timeless
• Resale buzzword
• Unique aura/feel

Natural Stone Bathroom Cons:

• Must be sealed periodically otherwise will stain permanently
• More expensive than other options
• Come in different grades – easy to be duped into commercial grade thinking you’re getting premium

Since every piece/slab is a work of nature, it has it’s own distinct beauty. Stone bathrooms really stand out and create a spa-like aura that cannot be replicated with man mad materials. Their timeless beauty however must be maintained with a penetrating stone sealer to keep them in pristine condition, otherwise they can dull and lose their appeal in a short few months.

If your bathroom doesn’t get much traffic/usage (in other words, if you smell), then you can seal them once a year. Standard bathrooms should go for a bi annual application. If you want to invest in a stone bathroom and really get a one of a kind look, nothing will come close to matching it. The sheer amount of colors and materials to combine is virtually limitless.

Just keep in mind it does need to be maintained.

If you’re household is fairly civil and you don’t have a problem with rowdy kids or feral pets that piss everywhere, there’s really no better choice.

One final word on natural stone: It’s VERY easy for unsuspecting folks to get duped into buying cheap, commercial grade materials when they are paying for premium/select grade since an untrained eye really can’t tell the difference. Premium quality has less filler, better clarity and easier to install whereas commercial is well…let’s just say I’ve never put commercial in anyone’s home and don’t have any pressing plans to do so anytime soon.

Porcelain/Ceramic Tile Bathroom Pros:

• Harder than natural stone
• Custom pieces more readily available
• Exceptional durability
• No sealing required
• Come in wide range of shade/color options

Porcelain/Ceramic Tile Cons:

• Can’t quite replicate the beauty of natural stone (but getting there fast!)
• Lines get dropped pretty frequently
• Cheaper lines are actually poor quality ceramics

Porcelain tile has decimated all in it’s path the past few years since it offers unmatched hardness, beauty and everything one would want in a tile at a great price. They now come in product lines that simulate natural stone exceptionally well with advanced printing technology. In fact, most people can’t tell the difference between these newer lines and natural stone. So you get the look of stone, without the added material and installation cost or maintenance. This explains why it’s done so well and is the go to choice for most homeowners.

The only thing to take note of is since there are literally thousands of these products, less popular lines get dropped very quickly and if you want to add to an area or make a repair down the road, then you’re SOTL. The other option is to store extra boxes but that’s not going to be feasible for most people.

Also keep an eye out for the “cheap porcelains” – you know the ones you see advertised for like $2 or $3 installed? LOL – yeah right. Many of these are actually called “dirty porcelains” in the industry because they are not good enough to pass US standards on what a true porcelain is. The Chinese make these things en masse without really putting too much emphasis on quality.

Aside from that, stay on the safe side and visit a reputable tile showroom. Their products are right up to standard.

Hope this helps.

I’m outta breath and need some tea.

Just uploaded a new introductory video on the homepage.

Tell me what you reckon.

YouTube channel coming soon!

Enjoy your Sunday and remember to sleep as much as possible.