Its cover is affected both by the heat and cold of the summer and by the precipitation of winter. Fortunately, there are things you can do to mitigate the effect of the elements. Read on for deck builders tips to prepare your deck to survive the winter unscathed.
Preparation
Winter deck care starts during the warmer months, long before winter hits, because the best winter deck care tip is preparation. If you prepare your deck correctly, it will survive the harsh winter months.
First, make sure your deck is properly sealed. Sealing or staining your deck is part of maintaining having a wooden deck, which will prevent moisture from seeping into the wood. Moisture is the most common cause of warping, cracking, splintering, and rot. Once these problems start, pests can enter and cause even more damage. Make sure your deck is completely sealed.
Second, before winter hits, check for mold or other signs of damage. If you see something, even a little damage, fix it. While the damage you’ve found may seem like nothing to worry about right now, it will be a big deal once winter is over. Small problems become big problems, especially when those problems are left at the mercy of frost, rain, hail, and snow.
Third, keep it clean. This is a simple thing to do, and when done regularly, it can really extend the life of your deck by preventing buildup and rot. Keeping it clean means removing dirt and debris and cleaning holes and crevices, or any other places that can collect debris and make a hiding place for critters.
Lastly, take cover! Winter and colder months can bring really harsh weather: heavy rain, hail, or snowfall. For heavier weather days, when you won’t be able to use your deck anyway, most deck builders makes sure you have some protection for your deck and anything that lives there, such as furniture covers or barbecues.o
Before winter
- Remove all leaves and debris.
- Clean the deck with a pressure washer. If you don’t have a pressure washer on hand, use a hose and clean off any sticky dirt with a broom.
- Seal the deck before it gets too cold outside; use a protective wood sealer with a water seal.
In the winter
- Remove the snow from the deck with a plastic shovel and do it gently; do not use a metal shovel as it can scratch the wood.
- Use an unsalted deicing agent to melt the ice on the deck. Do not use salt as it can damage the wood.
- Do not cover the deck because moisture can seep in and cause condensation, which can linger for a long period of time and will damage the wood and create the perfect breeding ground for mold growth.
Before winter, sweep your terrace.
Piles of leaves retain moisture and begin to rot. That moisture decomposition process will damage your deck and contribute to rotting.
After cleaning your deck, apply a sealer to keep moisture out. Moisture and wood decking don’t mix. The sealer will prevent water from penetrating the wood. Just as the freeze-thaw cycle creates potholes and cracks in your driveway, it can also weaken your deck if it penetrates the wood.
When it snows, do not use a metal shovel because metal can scratch the deck surface, which is not only unsightly but also creates a weakness in the deck where water can settle.
Re-treat your cover as needed
You must make sure to treat your terrace during the winter. Anything that prevents moisture from seeping into the wood will help. However, it is not infallible. No chemical solution will get you out of trouble for basic maintenance on your deck. You should monitor it for signs of water damage, bowing, rusty screws/nails, and any other issues that may be caused by winter weather.
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The small area did not prevent the designers from making the entrance areas stylish and ergonomic.
Snow-white hallway in a minimalist style
The designer has created a laconic interior with a lot of light and little decor. We chose white as the main color and added small accents in the form of an ottoman, a black and white painting, and a tile with a pattern.
The built-in closet provided a place for clothes and shoes and also hid a washing machine and a storage water heater.
Gray hallway with bright details
In this cozy apartment, the partition had to be demolished in order to make built-in wardrobes in the hallway, according to the designer’s sketches. A large mirror was placed next to the entire width of the wall.
For the decoration of the walls and floor, we chose universal colors – gray and white. The interior turned out to be light and laconic; bright colors are added by an ottoman of a powdery shade and a picture above it.
Cheerful hallway
The walls were covered with light gray paint, and the designers chose porcelain stoneware for the floor: it reaches the bathroom door to avoid water getting on the board.
The clothes hanger looks stylish and brings bright notes to the interior.
Bright entrance hall with a lot of storage systems
At the entrance, a spacious 120 cm wide wardrobe was built-in; it was made up to the ceiling. A shoe rack was installed opposite, and a mirror cabinet above it. Everything is painted in the color of the walls – this helps to dissolve the furniture in the space.
The soft ottoman is a stylish and functional interior detail – there is storage space inside.
Stylish entrance hall with mezzanines
The room was decorated in a calm color scheme. Marbled porcelain stoneware was laid on the floor. Despite the small footprint, there is no storage problem here.
A wardrobe with mirrored doors was placed in the hallway, plus mezzanine cabinets were added above the doorway – the entrance to the room.
Spectacular hallway with a textured wall
The designers managed to create an ergonomic space with beautiful decor. For storing clothes, paneled cabinets with a comfortable seating niche were installed.
The opposite wall and the door to the pantry were decorated with moldings – an interesting geometric pattern that echoes the tiles on the floor.
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So, you are a hardened, tough man. You change the oil yourself, you shave with a straight razor, and you can lift 500 pounds. Wonderful! However, there are no real men without honed financial skills.
Many people refer to financial planning as something, “which I’ll do sometime later.” To some, this process seems too complicated. For others, the idea of sitting at a table cluttered with books, blog materials, and other sources is already discouraging. After all, financial experts are a dime a dozen; how to separate the wheat from the chaff?
By following their recommendations, you will soon be able to become a real expert in money management yourself.
Plan your budget wisely and put every dollar into action (John D. Rockefeller)
Let’s start with the basics. Before you decide what to do with your money, you need to understand your current situation. And there is no better example of this than John D. Rockefeller, who came from the simplest family and became the richest man in the world.
From an early age, Rockefeller was used to carrying a small ledger with him everywhere. He wrote down every dollar received, spent, donated, and invested. Bookkeeping became a way of life, and even after becoming a millionaire, he spent a lot of time on financial reporting. Here are his own words (from a speech at the Fifth Avenue Baptist Church):
“Let me give you a little advice. Get yourself a little ledger like mine. Write down what you get there, and do not be ashamed to record all your expenses. Write it down as if your parents could look into it and understand what you did with your money. This will help you save them, which is what you should do. “
It all starts with planning a budget. This is not a tedious compulsory duty but a means to start mastering yourself. Rather than simply recording income and expenses, budget planning allows you to see your prioritization. How to budget effectively? First of all, learn to clearly and clearly write down where your money is now going. The easiest way is to carefully read your account and bank card statements and record how much you actually spent in the last three months. This is the only way to really analyze your buying behavior.
Depending on your habits, the result may be unpleasant or embarrassing. And if you do this analysis with your “significant other,” very unexpected things may surface. However, this procedure is the key to your future success.
The next step is to prioritize. Your actions in the past should not influence future decisions. You can start using money in a different way.
What is important to you? Do you want to save up for a new home? Going on an amazing journey? Finally, pay off your student loan? The choice is yours. It is only important to make a clear conscious decision and act in this direction. Working with your own budget allows you to start taking control of your financial life and building your future the way you want it to be.
The plus is that you no longer need to carry a notebook with you, as in the days of Rockefeller (of course, if you want to, please!). There are many useful websites and apps that can make budgeting much easier and help you start looking at your financial flows from a different angle. My wife and I use You Need a Budget, and it’s an amazing tool. Some people prefer Mint.com, which is quite effective too. But whether you use a book, envelopes, or a smartphone, budgeting can change your entire life.
Pay Yourself (George S. Clayson)
So, the budget is perfectly planned out according to your priorities. The time has come for the next step – you need to strengthen your ability to achieve these goals. To do this, let’s turn to an idea that many, perhaps, have not heard of. George Clayson was a soldier, writer, and entrepreneur and is best known for his parables about frugality and the road to wealth. Even if you don’t know his name, you probably know his most famous book, The Richest Man in Babylon.
It was first published in 1926 and contained many wise thoughts. The most popular of these maxims is quite simple: first, pay yourself. Instead of rephrasing, let’s go back to the original:
From the first ten coins that you put in your wallet, take out only 9. Your wallet will start to get fat almost immediately, and its increasing weight will be pleasant to feel in your hands and delight your soul.
Don’t reject what I am suggesting because it is too simple. Truth is always simple. I promised to tell you how I amassed my fortune. This is how I started. I had a skinny wallet that I cursed because I had nothing to pay for my needs. But when I started removing only nine out of ten pieces of its contents from the wallet, it began to get fat. As will yours. “
Sounds almost primitive, right? It may seem that this is impossible. Save and not spend 10% of your income? Yeah, of course. It’s time to pay for utilities, for rent, the Internet won’t pay for itself either. And when the upfront costs are covered, you always want to have a hot latte, go to the movies, upgrade your phone.
With a few exceptions, this maxim applies to almost any income level. Your standard of living will practically not differ from the current one if you start spending only 90% of your salary, but you will finally have the initial capital to move towards your main goals. Don’t believe me? Run the experiment for at least three months.
Again, there are many modern tools out there to help you with this noble endeavor. Set up your bank account so that at least 10% of receipts are transferred to a less accessible “directory.” Or use any of the apps I mentioned above to share your earnings. The first couple of months will not be easy, but then you will notice positive dynamics on your account.
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Renewing the interior without repair and cost is real. If you resort to life hacks for home decor, you can quickly, and budget change the usual environment.
Everyone will be able to apply these techniques in their kitchen all year round.
Invisible shelves
Narrow, almost invisible shelves for pictures will allow you to change the decor according to the season, event, and mood. Create new compositions depending on the situation and needs.
An additional advantage is that there is no need to mount a wall mount for each frame.
Changeable posters
Do not miss the opportunity to change the work in the frames for wall decoration – this is a great way to quickly and cost-effectively update the interior for the new season.
Seasonal bouquet
Use seasonal plants in the decor – flowers or branches. It is not at all necessary to spend money on fresh flowers from florists; it is enough to go for a walk and collect a seasonal bouquet yourself.
Candles for comfort
Candles and compositions with candles – in any season, they will create the right mood and add comfort to your interior.
Each season has its own textiles
Create your collection of seasonal textiles. Table and kitchen textiles will instantly change the mood of your interior, depending on the season.
Organization of order
Use a variety of trays and stands to sort and organize. Such compositions from smaller objects both visually look better and are functionally more convenient to use.
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Consider five common mistakes in a business organization that expose an interior designer to harm and prevent them from earning more.
Communicating with colleagues in the field of interior design, we have noticed many times how the same mistakes lead to a dead end and a crisis for those who build and develop their business. The saddest thing is that these mistakes go unnoticed in the daily routine. However, when a problem is discovered, the designer feels confused and defenseless against the blow of fate.
Today, firstly, we want to support you: you are not alone! Mistakes are made not only by beginners but sometimes by experienced specialists. Secondly, having found this or that error, you already see the light at the end of the tunnel. After all, you understand what can be corrected and improved in order to come to new results already next year.
Mistake number 1 – Taking on unnecessary functionality and load
Designers often don’t understand or forget how the responsibilities of a project manager differ from their own. How often have you overestimated your capabilities and tried to pull the whole project as a whole? Naturally, at some point, you start to get bogged down in organizational minutiae instead of doing the part of the job that you do best.
We recommend that you differentiate between roles in the project. Delegation and a correctly written job description for the project manager will help in this.
Mistake # 2 – running without a system
Remember how often your working day ended with the fact that you were distracted by some secondary business, and most importantly, you did not get off the ground. A huge amount of a designer’s personal time is spent on unplanned actions.
Systematization of all work processes will help you save time and resources: from the first contact with the client to his housewarming. By the way, only by registering the processes you will understand that you can delegate now.
Mistake number 3 – working without a contract
Legal ignorance, let’s not be afraid of this word, is the cruelest scourge of interior designers. Without a contract or with an incorrectly drawn up contract, designers take on an unreasonably high risk. A relationship with a client can start out just fine. It will seem to you that you have found the customer of your dreams, that you understand each other perfectly.
How painful it will be later when the customer abruptly interrupts the work, you do not receive full payment for the project, and, of course, we are not even talking about photography. Let us remind you that all your relationships, including with contractors, should be closed by contracts and acts.
Mistake number 4 – blurred boundaries of architectural supervision
Sometimes designers themselves refuse this service, although experienced specialists perfectly understand: without the supervision of the author of the project, builders will implement it in a different form than originally intended. Expectations will not converge with reality. Things won’t look like this. Out of false economy, perseverance, or unknowingly, the customer may refuse supervision. Your task is to make a firm decision on this issue and stick to your position.
The other extreme of designers is to confuse field supervision with general contracting. Designers again assume no responsibility, which ultimately leads to disputes and conflicts with the customer and contractors. Our advice is to study what is included in architectural supervision, what the studio is responsible for, and what the general contractor is responsible for.
Mistake # 5 – not investing in your professional development
If you think about it, then all of the above errors stem from this one – from a lack of knowledge in the field of organizing an interior design business. After all, creating a functional and aesthetic project is one thing, but bringing together all the parts of the story: finding a customer, negotiating with him, delegating tasks, and managing employees, effectively and intelligently building all business processes in your studio is a completely different skill. He is practically not taught in design schools, leaving everything at your mercy: “Start practicing and figure out what’s what.”
We are convinced that many mistakes can be avoided if you borrow solutions, learn, gain knowledge from someone who is an order of magnitude more experienced than you in many issues. The design community, unfortunately, is in places a closed and fragmented environment. Therefore, both beginners and experienced professionals often feel lost and lonely.
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