Saturday, March 22, 2014

Time to Start Thinking Outdoor Home Improvement Projects

With Winter Finally and Officially Behind us It's Time to Start Thinking about Outdoor Home Improvement Projects

By Mark J. Donovan

Winter is officially over. Thank God. It's been one heck of a winter. So much for having to listen to the Global Warming politicians and all of their hot air. Now that I think about it, it's probably their own hot air that's been the leading cause and concern for their fears of global warming. Being an Electrical Engineer since my college days I've always believed in James Joule's "Conservation of Energy" law and the related "Conservation of Mass" law by Antoine-Laurent. Basically they mean that the amount of energy and mass in a closed loop system, e.g. Earth, remain constant. Thus, there could be periods of time of increased heat, or cold, on the Earth depending upon various conditional changes in the Earth's closed loop system. Yes, there could be outside forces that influence the Earth, such as the Sun or a meteorite hitting the Earth, but factors such as those are certainly not man-made, no matter how much the politicians try to argue it is. Enough said on that subject though.

The main reason I started to write this blog post was that I wanted to remind people that with the warmer weather it's time to start acting on those outdoor home improvement plans you've been formulating this long, cold winter. Weather you are planning to grow a garden this year or start your lawn off on the right foot, it's time to start buying the seed and fertilizer now. It's also a good time to break out the yard tools, particularly the lawn mower and give it a tune up. If you can't do it, then send it to a shop that can. One of the most frustrating things is to go out to mow the lawn and find you can't start the lawnmower.

Outdoor home improvements are not limited to the yard. Spring is also a good time to take a look at your home's roof and house siding. Check if the asphalt shingles have been damaged during the winter months and if they are in need of replacing. Also check the house siding for damage and whether or not it is in need of a paint job. If so, start ordering paint now so when the weather gets a bit warmer you can tackle the project promptly, before the weather gets too hot.

Check your deck as well. Make sure the deck boards are not rotting and have any popped nails or fasteners. You may also need to refinish the deck, particularly with the brutal winter we just went through.

So get those outdoor home improvement plans out and start to rev your DIY engines. Spring is here and its time to go outside and get to work!