OUR BLOG
OUR BLOG
Check out what’s happening with Myers Constructs as well as the latest news and trends in home renovation.
The Sweet Smell of Home Improvement
Most people don't know that their houses smell new and much nicer after they renovate. It's kind of like "new house smell" gets sprayed on their home. The first week or two of construction is dusty and may not smell very good. In fact, it can uncover many BAD smells, like mildew, rot or sewer gases. It's icky. No two ways about it. But after that phase, NEW STUFF is installed. So you smell all the new pine lumber, plywood, drywall, primer and paint, adhesives and polishes. The new cabinets often still smell of varnish or paint. Floors can smell terrible during the varnishing process, but after that they smell fantastic. In fact, two of my favorite scents include new cement and fresh wax -- a fine old-time finish. The experience of finally being able to see, touch -- and smell! -- so many thousands of dollars of shiny, new,[...]
Home Changes, Life Changes
Many of our customers of replica handbags have older homes, in which large, complex or expensive projects have been delayed. Sometimes, the needed renovations are really overdue, but we are glad our customers waited until they found us to work on their homes. Renovating a home is stressful. It costs money — sometimes a lot of it. Just to remind ourselves of these facts, we renovate our own homes from time to time. […]
And on the Subject of Our Heat Wave Newsletter…
Let's not forget that PECO's rate caps will expire this December. And, says GridPhilly.com, PGW is negotiating for a 10 percent rate hike. In short, staying cool (or warm, come winter), isn't going to be getting any cheaper. Improving your home's energy efficiency is "the way forward," as the saying goes.
Chestnut Hill Kitchen/Powder Room Reno
Today, we are beginning the construction portion of a small kitchen and powder room renovation in Chestnut Hill. This cute, Tudor-style twin is home to two adults, two kids, and a senior-age dog. The kitchen was no longer functioning well for this family. Here is their wish list: Better flow/space function/circulation Better/more prep area New location for the fridge, which is currently in the unheated shed area out back Better storage Better work surfaces Better kitchen efficiency Open plan kitchen/dining room to engage the whole family Better venting of cooking area Better lighting A more discreet powder room Better pantry use Staging area for lunch boxes, keys and things that need charging Better organization of the many doors in the room that access powder room, pantry and basement Stay tuned for updates on how this project is coming along!
A Stylish DIY Project
Many people think of furnishing their home as a single expedition to a big-name supplier where they can buy a “set” of furniture to fill their rooms. They plop down their credit card and call their room “done.” […]
The Heat Wave and Your Home
Temperatures of 100-plus degrees hit the Philadelphia area this week — and they’re only predicted to cool slightly in the days ahead. Not surprising for this region during the dog days of July. Nevertheless, conditions like these test not only our bodies’ ability to regulate temperature, but also our homes’ ability to do the same. So, just how energy-efficient is your house’s cooling system? Here are some symptoms of poor performance to look for: […]
Unforeseen Conditions
Many a customer will ask us what “unforeseen conditions” means. They ask because “unforeseen conditions” are explained in our contracts as something that can cause a “change order extra” to take place -- and no one wants to spend money on something they don’t understand. On this project, our plumbers encountered a cracked bend in the soil line. Here are some snaps of the problem: You can see the old rusted pipes are in the basement ready to go to the scrapper. The new pipe is on site waiting for the change order extra to be approved. One snap shows the cracked bend where the toilet sits. The bend is in the bathroom floor under your toilet. You can see the large ugly hole in the living room wall the plumbers had to make to get at the pipe. The last image is from the bathroom looking down[...]
EPA Busts RRP Illegal Contractor
Under the EPA/RRP regulations, all contractors MUST inform their customers of the risks for lead exposure. Contractors must also maintain on file records showing that their customers and tenants have been informed. Here is what happens if they do not follow the regs. The story here
What Can You Learn From a Brick?
The brick is an iconic building element to those of us who live on the East Coast, where old cities are built from millions and millions of red bricks. Therefore, a brick seems like a good place to start when considering what it costs the environment to build a house. In fact, readers may remember an article previously posted on our fake Rolex website, entitled “New Construction Pollutes!” In that post, we asked folks to speculate about the size of the carbon footprint made by the bricks used to build an average-sized Philadelphia rowhome. We explained that to make just one brick, 1.4 pounds of carbon is burned and released into the atmosphere. […]
Chaka Fattah and NASA Chief Technologist Visit West Philly Hybrid X Team
Our company has been very excited to watch the incredible successes of the West Philadelphia High School "X Team" as they take on other competitors with very deep pockets and many years experience for the coveted "X Prize" for high efficiency vehicles. In fact high end Tesla Autos recently dropped out of the competition, perhaps because they couldn't compete against the West Philly High School team! We are excited to see our local congressional representative Chaka Fattah also supports these kids. We would like to see Philadelphia as a city get behind these kids and others in our city who are also passionate about learning. City kids get a bad rap when it comes to their performance in school. The West Philly High "X Team" is proof that urban kids want to learn. The are smart, hard working, successful people. And our company supports the notion that "learning with your[...]
