page 2 — Spring Home improvement guide –– Thursday, april 12, 2012
After renovating, chances exist to help out others
Spring Home
improvemenT pUBLiSHer Elizabeth Gorske
By Tim Barnum When someone replaces furniture or appliances, rather than setting a couch out on the curb or putting a refrigerator out as a back yard “decoration,” why not help someone in need? Donating furniture or appliances to the Habitat For Humanity ReStore in West Branch or St. Vincent de Paul in Skidway Lake can be a blessing for a family struggling financially. Jamie Stout, executive director for Ogemaw County Habitat For Humanity, said the ReStore accepts furniture, appliances and other household knickknacks and décor. Businesses or individuals donate about 90 percent of the ReStore’s inventory, Stout said. “All the items that we accept are in gently used condition, or at least repairable,” she said.
managing ediTor Eric Young ediToriaL STaff Sherry Barnum Tim Barnum Greg Buckner Kevin Bunch Jeff Patrus Jessie Tobias adverTiSing SaLeS Jama Gates Anthony Kachiros Tracy Pardue-Smith Lisa Saunders Carla Reeves CompoSiTion Sharon Ehlert Adam Thompson
Sp r ing C le a n ing Tip
phone: 989-345-0044 email: reporter3@ogemawherald.com
St. Vincent Manager Dave Norup said his store loves furniture and appliances that can be resold. “It needs to be something someone else can use,” he said. “If an appliance doesn’t work, then we have no way of fixing it. If it’s a couch that’s ripped, tore or stained real bad, we don’t take it.” Items at both stores are much less expensive than retail prices. “Normally, everything is 50 percent or more, off of the retail price,” Stout said. “Our couches here average probably about $65,” Norup added. According to Stout, if you have furniture or appliances that are still in decent condition, but cannot transport them to the ReStore, Habitat For Humanity can help you out. “We offer free donation pickup in the county,” she said. Even when the store is closed on
Wednesdays, Stout said someone will still go out and pick up a donation. Items donated to St. Vincent are sometimes given away for free, Norup said. “We get what we call referrals from different organizations like the (Department of Human Services),” he said. Norup added referrals from the American Red Cross, or from people who come into the store, can lead to furniture or appliances being given away for free. Some cases deal with people who have been displaced due to fires, who are forced to move and lose many of their belongings. Norup said donating to St. Vincent de Paul will definitely help someone out. “It will either go inexpensively, or it will go for free,” he said. To contact the Habitat ReStore, call 989345-7085. Contact St. Vincents de Paul at 989-873-5797.
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• When cleaning windows use a long handled squeege instead of a ladder • Hire someone else to do the job and don’t rely on your husband or kids to do their chores!
Tips courtesy of the Ogemaw County Herald staff
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Spring Home improvement guide –– Thursday, april 12, 2012 — page 3
Kitchen remodel, not for the faint of heart By eric Young
that would cost approximately $27 million, which we determined was a little higher than our budget. We had discussed the project for a few months leading up to it, with much of that discussion revolving around how much of the project WE (read: me) could do ourselves, and me arguing that if we wanted things to actually look nice, we should hire someone to do it. So we did, for much of the project. We had someone come in and install the new cupboards, the dishwasher, and the floor. But we determined that we were qualified enough to strip the paint from our cabinets, remove the wallpaper from the walls, and repaint. And so the project began. It started with us removing wallpaper that I’m pretty certain was installed at approximately the same time as the extinction of the dinosaurs, based on its lovely, “antique” (read: ugly) patterns. My wife, Kay, had a clothing steamer she used to remove the wallpaper. Seeing as we only had one steamer, and she was such a pro, she ended up doing most of the work. I also “had to work late” many of the nights she was doing this. Fortunately we had a few helpers who were able to lend quite a bit of assistance
Before I begin, I must issue a disclaimer. I am not a handyman, in any sense of the word. I highly respect people who can build a house, run wiring for a light, or fix a dishwasher. But I am not one of those people. I am capable of breaking the aforementioned things, but when it comes to working on them, I’m as clueless as Tim Tebow would be if you put him in as the pitcher in the World Series. Several months ago (it feels like years now), my wife and I made the decision to remodel our kitchen. Since we had moved in two years prior, we wanted to replace the old, worn out carpeting, among other things. We had also purchased a dishwasher, but didn’t have any counter space to actually put it in. So we decided to put in new laminate flooring, install extra cabinets, move our refrigerator, and install the dishwasher. Of course, when you’re putting in new cabinets, it means the old ones you have will look outdated unless you update them as well. Originally we thought it might be a good idea to look at the option of having a professional come in and reface our cabinets. However, after looking into it we discovered
with the wallpaper removal, as well as painting afterward. There was one wall, which we refer to as “the wall from hell,” which without our helpers, we’d probably still be scraping. And then there were the cabinets. Our nemeses. Obviously in order to paint the cabinets, we needed to remove all of the doors. Not to mention they’d been nicked and incurred light damage over the years, so they would need to be sanded down and repaired before they were painted. Kay will often tell me about projects she would like done, and if I don’t get to them within a couple of months, she will suddenly start them, without me knowing, usually around 2 in the morning. Such was the case with the cabinets. She removed the doors of all our upper cabinets so they could be sanded and painted. The problem is, the people who built our house and installed our cabinets were not exactly careful with measurements and leveling and lining things up. So the way the cabinet doors are installed, they probably wouldn’t fit in any other location. Yet when Kay removed the cabinets, she didn’t label which ones went where. And they were all down before I could say, “Wait!”
She did inform me the other day that she actually did label the hinges. But then she removed the hinges from the doors, so that doesn’t exactly help. In the meantime, we found out that Kay was pregnant, which meant we instantly had to start working in other portions of the house. So now, six months later, our cabinets still have no doors. Well, they do; they’re just not very effective, as they are sitting on the floor in the other room, waiting to be painted. Needless to say, even though we were only actually doing a very small portion of the project on our own, it still ended up being a lot more work than what we originally planned. Our kitchen is much nicer now, despite the fact that it isn’t technically finished. But it would be nice to have it done. My advice to you is, if you have a lot of time and don’t mind your kitchen being torn apart for months, and if you have actual building skills, you can save a lot of money by remodeling your kitchen on your own. However, if you have the handyman skills of a donut and work long hours without much free time, it’s definitely worth the money to hire someone else to do the work for you. It’s totally worth it in the end.
: Sp r ing C le a n ing Tip Move your furniture: Move all your furniture and appliances and clean under and around them. Tips courtesy of the Ogemaw County Herald staff
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page 4 — Spring Home improvement guide –– Thursday, april 12, 2012
Bringing the theater home
You want to buy a home theater system, but where do you start? By greg Buckner So you’ve just purchased your new home and you’re moving into a new place. After you fill the new pad with furniture and bad wall paintings, you soon look to the empty TV stand and realize there’s no TV to sit upon it. Like any good American, you figure you’ll go all in and go with a home theater system to really tie the room together. But where do you start? Do you buy a TV first? What about surround sound? Do you buy a Blu-ray player, or just get a DVD player? These questions can be daunting, but a little research and a hands-on approach makes purchasing a home theater system a little easier. “It really helps to have an idea of want you want when you start shopping,” said Brandon Jackson, assistant manager at Continental Home Center in West Branch. “It’s good to go online and look at products beforehand and read user reviews to get a good idea of a product.” Jackson said purchasing a TV is the first part of the process. Today, high-definition TVs have quickly become a staple of households, with local channels only broadcasting an HD signal. When looking to set up a home theater, Jackson said HD is the only choice. “If you’re looking at the home theater experience, HDTVs are the way to go,” Jackson said. “The picture quality is just better, and if you’re committed to getting as close to a movie-theater picture at home, HDTV is your best option.” For screen size, Jackson said anywhere from 32-50 inches is a good size, especially if you want to be able to see the screen from
different angles. But then you have to figure out what resolution you want your HDTV to have, and with numbers like 1080 and 720 sounding like snowboarding tricks, it can be confusing. According to Jackson, the general rule is the higher the number, the higher the resolution, and the higher the resolution, the better picture you will have. The three main resolutions are 720p, 1080i and 1080p, and Jackson said a 1080 resolution is the best choice if you want the best picture. “A 720 resolution will provide you with a good picture as well, but you’re going to want to go with a 1080 resolution if you’re going to have a Blu-ray player or other highdefinition devices,” Jackson said. Once you have your resolution and screen size down, then you have to figure out exactly what kind of HDTV you want. The three options you have are plasma, LED and LCD. Jackson said plasma HDTVs offer the best picture, but can use more energy than the other two choices. He said LCD TVs typically have bigger screens than plasma, sometimes going up to 80 inches, and are a little more energy-efficient. LED TVs are thought to be the best of both worlds, offering a plasma-like picture while being more energy-efficient like an LCD TV. Cost-wise, factoring in all of the different kinds of HDTVs and screen sizes, Jackson said the price range you will be looking at can range from $500 for a 32-inch HDTV to upwards of $2,000 for screens approaching 80 inches. “The biggest thing I can tell people is to come in and look at TVs in person,” Jackson said. “You need to see the TV in person and figure out if it fits your needs, and just like
with anything else, you typically get what you pay for.” Now that you have a TV picked out, it’s time to find a sound system and a movie player for your home theater. When looking at sound systems, Daniel Law, manager of Radio Shack of Standish, said there are a variety of sound options. “People who aren’t looking to go with a full sound system typically like to go with a sound bar,” Law said. “Those can range from $100 on the low end and sometimes up into the over-$200 range. But if you’re looking for the full surround sound experience, you’re looking at a five- to seven-
speaker setup with a subwoofer.” Law said if you’re looking for just the speaker set, the prices can range anywhere from around $170 to close to $1,000$2,000 for higher-end models like those from Bose. “I’ve listened to some of the Bose systems, and in my opinion, it’s even better than being at the movie theater,” Law said. “Like a lot of things, you really end up getting what you pay for. It’s also important to just come in and listen to the systems and see what works for you.”
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page 6 — Spring Home improvement guide –– Thursday, april 12, 2012
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Get started early on spring planting By Kevin Bunch As the strange winter of 2012 recedes into memory, gardening enthusiasts are preparing to clear their property and breathe new life into the ground. For those new at it, however, specialists with two local landscaping companies have some advice. Billie Jo Scheid, owner of the Indian Summer Landscaping and Garden Center in Standish, said when it comes to transplanting plants in a person’s yard, the key is doing it while the plant is still dormant. “A transplant depends on the variety of plant,” Scheid said. “Some you want to do in the late fall, and others in the early spring.” The key, especially for perennials, she said, is getting them moved before the hotter weather of late spring comes up. The warm weather that has permeated this winter has shifted the timetable a bit, Scheid said, but overall she said it is still early enough in the year that the plants can be moved safely. The mild winter also meant that many
plants survived despite the low snowfall. As an insulator, Scheid said snow can help plants survive a cold winter, but a cold and dry winter is a bad combination for many plants. “A lot of stuff didn’t really die off (over the winter),” Scheid said. “Some are flowering already.” Eric Green, manager with G H Lawn Care and Landscaping, said when moving a plant, the key is making sure there is enough soil around the ball of roots. His rule of thumb is making sure to include enough dirt to fill double the amount of root space the plant has. “If the plant has a 12-inch root ball, you want to dig out 24 inches,” Green said. Once replanted, he said he personally uses organic fertilizer or potting soil to help the plant adjust. He stressed, however, that the transplanting season is different for every plant, and if a person is unsure they should do some research or call a local gardening or landscaping shop to find out when to do it.
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Spring Home improvement guide –– Thursday, april 12, 2012 — page 7
Gas, pellet grills becoming equally popular By Jeff patrus With the temperatures rising, many people will want to take advantage of the warmer weather by cooking outside. Paul Ressler, owner of Fairview Hardware, said while barbecue grills may be expensive to purchase, getting a reliable grill is a good investment. “We like what we have,” Ressler said. “We don’t have cheap ones. We have good ones.” Ressler said while gas grills are still very common, wood pellet grills are becoming increasingly popular among customers. He said neither one has a distinct advantage versus the other in terms of sales. “Both are pretty evenly split,” he said. Ressler explained how pellet grills work. “It uses wood pellets instead of gas,” he said. “That’s a good flavor. Pellet grills are gaining momentum.” Ressler said one of the reasons pellet grills are becoming more common is because people can use them in a variety of manners. He said people can use them for slow-cooking purposes, or they can turn up the heat on them when necessary. “They can do it all in one grill,” he said. As an example, Ressler said someone may want to cook a large roast, and they may need to cook that roast for about 10 hours. In that instance, he said a pellet grill would be ideal. As far as gas grills are concerned, Ressler said Holland grills are the most common at his store. “We’ve sold Holland gas grills for many years,” he said. Ressler said one of the appeals of the Holland grill is that it is guaranteed not to flare up. He said customers have enjoyed the flavor of items they cook using a Holland
grill. “The meat comes off very juicy,” he said. “You can put a pretty good-sized turkey on there.” Ressler said whether customers are using gas or pellet grills, they usually select largesized grills. According to Ressler, one of the more common grills among the Holland brand is one that is 16.5-by-24.5 inches, which equates to 400 square inches. Meanwhile, Ressler said Fairview Hardware carries a pellet grill that is 36-by19.5 inches. According to Ressler, one of the main selling points when a customer decides to purchase a grill is how the food tastes. To that end, he said the store has demonstrations each Saturday morning of the various grills at the store. Ressler said if customers are simply looking to purchase the cheapest grill available, then they are not making a wise decision. “People are looking for the longevity of the grill and the flavor,” he said.
Pruning trees and shrubs By Kevin Bunch With plants warming up in the spring weather, pruning season has reopened, according to area gardening specialists. Anytime after a tree has warmed up is generally a good time to consider pruning, according to Billie Jo Scheid, owner of Indian Summer Landscaping and Garden Center in Standish. If the tree blooms and flowers, however, Scheid suggested waiting until after it finishes flowering before doing any pruning. Dead, decaying, or spread out branches can make for a tree that is not nearly as healthy as it could be with proper and periodic pruning procedures. Scheid said pruning could help promote new growth and keep plants healthy, notably by helping with airflow. “A lot of plants go downhill if they’re old,” Scheid said. “The new growth would have to go through the old.” Scheid said when pruning, it is important to watch for bugs — or on a shrub, white spots — which indicate disease. If these are spotted, she said your pruning equipment should be disinfected with alcohol to prevent any contamination from spreading. For evergreens, Scheid suggested pruning around July, after the new growth has hardened. She said new growth comes in soft and light green, but as the leaves darken and harden, it becomes ripe for pruning. Eric Green, manager with G H Lawn Care and Landscaping in West Branch, said smaller plants, such as shrubs and hedges, are usually best cut during their dormant season, after the blooming has finished. He suggested cutting tree branches at angles, and using clean cuts. Furthermore, Green said he uses notch cutting techniques to make sure the cuts are clean, which is safer for the tree. He
said notch cutting involves making a small cut midway through the tree, cutting completely through farther down the branch to relieve the weight, and cutting where the branch collar on a tree — the swollen area — transitions into the smoother branch bark. However, he recommended against cutting to the split in the trunk or otherwise cutting too short, lest the plant’s regrowth take too long, causing it to miss that year’s growing season. Whether it is a tree, grass, hedge, or shrub, however, he recommends keeping sharp tools available. “You want sharp blades,” Green said. “You don’t want to cut your hair with dull scissors, and it’s the same with hedges.”
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page 8 — Spring Home improvement guide –– Thursday, april 12, 2012
Must-haves for man caves By Tim Barnum According to mancavesite.org, a man cave is “A dedicated area of a house, such as a basement, workshop or garage, where a man can be alone or socialize with his friends.” If you are looking to create your own personal space to celebrate all that is manly, there are a few essentials. “The first thing you need is a giant TV,” said Ryan Drabek, zone merchandise supervisor for entertainment at Walmart in West Branch. “I never saw a guy that says ‘I want a smaller television,’” he added. Kevin King, of Standish, has had a man cave, which he dubs “the man’s room,” for about four years. His man cave sports a 54inch television. “You got to have a large-screen TV,” King said. Drabek said a person building a man cave should think about whether they want a wallmounting television, or one they can place in an entertainment center. Of course, loud, clear sound is important from whatever type of TV you choose. “You’re probably looking at some sort of surround sound for it,” he said. But a television isn’t much good if there’s no place to sit and watch it. Drabek said comfortable furnishing is a must. “You have to have, of course, comfortable furniture,” he said. “We’ve got leather furniture,” King said. To customize the space more extensively, King, who coaches the Standish-Sterling girls basketball team, said he decorated the room with pictures of past championship teams from SSC. “A lot of photos (are there) that bring back a lot of memories of great teams at StandishSterling,” he said. Although King calls his man cave the man’s room, it is sometimes the place the whole family hangs out, he said. “We call it the man’s room, but oftentimes
my whole family of seven ends up in there,” he said. “We use it for entertainment. Whenever we have family over, we end up there.” Others have different purposes for their man caves. Tammy Jo Kirven-Ahearne posted on the Ogemaw Herald’s Facebook page that her husband uses his for video games. “I won’t let him play his video game in the living room,” she wrote. Kirven-Ahearne added the man cave at her house includes movie posters, movies, an Xbox and a futon. Krystian Huizar said her father, Francisco Huizar, has many of the essentials, as well as some hunting trophies. “He has a huge flat-screen TV, fluffy couches, and deer heads on the walls,” she posted on the Herald’s Facebook page. King said the man cave has become a spot where family and friends spend a lot of quality time, and where he holds parties or gettogethers. Between his room’s bar, desk and television, there are several purposes for King’s man cave. “We enjoy a lot of sporting events on the big screen, and a lot of episodes of ‘Law and Order,’” he said. “It’s just kind of a place where people mingle. A lot of cards are played at the bar.” A desk in the room, which King said is the quietest one in the house, gives him a place to take care of paperwork for his driving school, he said. If one was to go back in time five or six years, though, there would be no sign of King’s man’s room. “It was a one-car garage, and we added a three-car garage onto the house, and converted that one-car garage into a man’s room,” he said. The process was done over one summer, and King said the cost to renovate was about $20,000. However, he doesn’t regret it one bit. “It’s probably the best investment I ever made,” he said.
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Spring Home improvement guide –– Thursday, april 12, 2012 — page 9
Theater Continued from page 4 If you’re looking for a full bundle with the sound system and a Blu-ray player, Jackson said a bundle can run from $399 into the $1,000 range as well. “If you get a bundle package, you’re looking at getting the Blu-ray player, and typically five to seven speakers,” Jackson said. “Some people like having all the same brand for their home theater system, but I personally like to buy everything separate because some brands just make certain products better than others.” When hooking all of these products together, Jackson said using an HDMI cord is the best option, because it is made of high-quality material that allows for one
cord to transfer both the audio and visual signal to the television, instead of having to hook up a mess of traditional AV cords to your TV. While there are multiple options for HDTVs and home theater systems, it all comes down to doing your research and seeing the products in person to find out what will work for you. “Online research can help out a lot during the process, but you have to see and hear the products yourself,” Jackson said. “You can have an idea of what you want, but seeing and hearing it for yourself is the best advice I have for anyone looking to purchase a new home theater system.”
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Specializing in all phases of remodeling
AUGER FORKLIFT
Carl Buck: 989-685-3686 • Mark Williams: 989-329-1526
VISIT OUR WEBSITE: www.westbranchfurniture.com
on Recliners, Sofas, Dinette Sets, Bedroom Sets, and so much more!
Garages Garage Doors Windows Vinyl Siding Entry Doors Decks Additions
Visit our Log Furniture Showroom Check out our great prices on Serta Mattresses!
136 S. Fifth St., West Branch located one block south of Firstbank off Houghton Ave.
989-345-5326
Sunday 11-3; Mon.-Fri. 10-6; Sat. 10-5
“The Outlet Store That Saves You More”
WEST BRANCH