Contracts

All contracts for home improvement in NYC must include address and phone number of contractor, contractor and salesman license numbers, estimated dates when work will start and be substantially complete, description types of material, a notice that all monies received will be deposited in contractors account and be used for no other propose than to provide payments as stated in contract, a schedule of progress payments showing amount or each payment and application of that payment in some relationship to progress of project completion or materials to be purchased, all limitations, representations and warranty, a statement and insurance certificate .

Project

Contractors will give a schedule of work to be performed. Building guidelines can have a great affect on project timeline. Over course of job many man-hours are lost just getting in and out of a building. Building Hours are often 9AM-4:00 or 4:30. Building may have restrictions on amount of time any job can last. There may be restrictions on service elevator usage or water shut off times and planning. Buildings are careful concerning site protection. Good contractors take extra steps to protect building and clients living space. Site Protection includes protecting existing floors and dust control with exhaust fans for example. .

Projects are divided into two phases. The first phase includes behind scenes construction including walls, floors, ceilings and everything that is behind these surfaces. The second phase is “Finish Work”, which is woodworking, cabinetry, final skim coat, marble tile and moldings. A majority of work will be behind scenes. The first phase is often most costly and time consuming. As mentioned earlier planning is very important. Many rooms are defined by any changes including wall locations, plumbing and water supply locations, electrical requirements and HVAC installation.

Sample Renovation Project Tasks:

  Repair and prep behind scenes areas with any needed protective installation or sealants.

Keep following points in mind during a renovation:

  The finish items will affect way rough plumbing and electrical work will proceed

  Walls cannot be closed until inspection is performed.

  Changes, deletions, additions, client approval and any missing specifications or items will cause delays in job completion date.

To go in for a really coordinated design scheme, you can use same effects you used on walls of room on furniture or other accessories in room. For example, if your kitchen walls have leaf design, then you can use same design on cupboards, tabletops, and refrigerator door and bread box too! I hope that was a fun set of frugal ideas to spruce up your walls this summer. But before you rush off to start, make a note of following tips too: 1.Make sure surface to be decorated is clean and dry. 2.Keep your supplies [sponge, paint, rags, scraps of paper or tissue, stencils, vegetables or fruits etc] on an old newspaper so you don’t have a messy floor to contend with at end of your project. 3.Use acrylic craft paint instead of oil based stencil paint because it is brighter and easier to clean. Now that just reminds me, there are a whole lot of people staying in rented homes who aren’t allowed to paint their walls! Guess what? You can still decorate with any design you want! Here’s what you do: Using any of tips given above, paint, stencil or block-print designs you want on cheap sheets or old bed sheets. Make sure you use good quality fabric paint.

Let it dry thoroughly. Then cut out these designs and soak them in a solution of liquid starch and water [2 tsp starch to one cup water]. Now place them on walls wherever you want. They can be peeled off easily when you get tired of them or when it’s time to move!