Doing a renovation the other day  - old house you know how it is once you touch one thing you find a million more.  Well I came across a great little resource.  The Demolition Yard.  It has the largest range of windows and doors I have ever seen  and of course the normal bits like timber and VJ's.  The guys that run the show are characters as well which makes the visit even more fun.  I loved that they even have the quirky thinks like pink Basins and yoyo's.  

I guess the moral of the story is not to forget the small out of the way demolition yards for that bit of molding, or door or casement.  When you are dealing with an old house you will find most things there and at a cheaper price than the generic hardware.  (I paid $5 for my 3m piece of scotia!)

The retro look has really made a come back and you can get away with keeping some old fittings and modernising everything around it.

If you are in Brisbane I can highly recommend The Demolishion Yard at Coorparoo - call Peter or John on 3397 0166

How to get a free new laundry when you purchase a new kitchen!  As a RenoSave Card devotee, now that I'm undertaking a reasonably sizeable renovation on my PPOR (principal place of residence or 'own home') I'm replacing a very tired old (and rat-smelly) kitchen with a brand new one from Kitchen Connection.  With the 25% discount that RenoSave Card Holders get with Kitchen Connection, I saved $3,391 on my kitchen, without any compromises in my needs and wants whatsoever.  My house badly needs a new laundry as well, so I asked Kitchen Connection to design me an attractive neat and functional one, and according to the design, gorgeous it is going to be!  The cost of my laundry is $2,278 (including cabinets, benchtops, laundry tub and mixer), so it's essentially free!  And I did choose Caesarstone benchtops for the laundry.  Some people might go on holidays with a spare $3000.  Some might buy some great home theatre equipment, or have a fashion spending spree.  Me, I buy a laundry.  Perhaps my love of renovating has gone a little to far!  Still, the value of the house will have increased nicely by the time these all-important areas have been beautifully remodelled and improved by Kitchen Connection, and that's a pretty good feeling.

Just a classic example of how RenoSave saves you serious money on your renovations and home improvments.  The full details of the design, the process, the cost and results, all accompanied by photos and videos, will be available to RenoSave Card Holders in the Card Holder Secure Log-In vault as the project progresses. 

Do you remember as a child being told to "Go and clean up your room.  It looks like a Rat's Nest."  (I hope I'm not the only one....)  Well, did you ever wonder what a Rat's Nest actually looked like?  I often did, and today I saw one - a real Rat's Nest!  There were no rats at home and I suspect there hadn't been any at home for a long time, as there was no smell around the nest, as you might expect.

Pulling out a 25 year old kitchen today, in preparation for floor sanding next week, we uncovered this beautiful specimen of (what we presume) is a Rat's Nest.  Lovely and warm, and dry, and cosy, with a ready food source nearby!  They're not silly. 

So not only are there termites, spiders, ants, cockroaches fleas and wasps to keep out of our living spaces, there are also rats to keep at bay!

To avoid rat problems, put all food and food scraps away in the fridge or in the bin outside, close off any possible entry points (keeping in mind that vermin only need very small holes to squeeze through if they want to access a warm, dry and cosy home...) and pick up any windfalls (fallen fruit from trees) in the garden.  There are DIY solutions, from rat traps loaded with tempting, tasty morsels, to poison to owning a cat.  And if all else fails, pest extermination companies will be only too happy to help.  Do you have any best remedies to share?  Comment below, if so!

I have fallen in love with a steam cleaner!  Over all of the years that I have been renovating, I have often thought to  myself that at least 50% of 'renovation' is just cleaning up other people's messes.  If something is cleaned and maintained, it looks 100% better than something that is grotty and falling apart.  Does anyone else have the same theory?  Well, yesterday I was shopping in ALDI for some bikkies - you know, those delicious ones that have a chocolate topping?  I came out with two packets of those bikkies, two blocks of chocolate, two shirt and tie sets, a new pram, a grumpy toddler AND a fabulous little steam cleaner for not very much money.  I'm just embarking on a renovation and since, in my opinion, cleaning is the first step of any serious renovation, I figured that a steam cleaner might just make my life easier.  Well, it is just the bee's knees!  I'm sure there are steam cleaners and there are steam cleaners and the likes of Choice Magazine reviews will help the purchaser select the right one for their needs, but I am in love.  I love renovating and delight in swooshing out someone else's grime and making a tidy profit from it, but at the same time I am a bit squeamish about - ugh - dirt.  I don't mind my own dirt, but I swoon at other people's, well, uncleanliness - especially when I have to live with it!  So anything that cleans, shines and disinfects a secondhand living surface is a friend of mine!  The little steam cleaner I bought cleaned, shone and blew away quite a bit of dirt, grime, mould, toothpaste, scum, scale and I don't like to think what else and now I'm much happier to live in that 25 year old bathroom!  The fittings and fixtures still need to be replaced before we move on and sell the place, but for the short term, the master bedroom ensuite looks 100%!  And all it took was a jolly good clean.  Steam cleaning is evidently known for powerful, hygenic cleaning without harsh chemicals.  Elbow grease is all very well, but it wears one out after a short while!  Great for kitchens and bathrooms, windows and glass, I can't wait to have another go and see just what else I can clean with my trusty little home improvement helper!

Hey! Look who we ran into at the recent Spring Home Show in Brisbane!  TV personality and the face of CUA (Credit Union Australia), Scott Cam, was at the recent Home Show signing copies of his new book and meeting and greeting with visitors to the Show.  RenoSave’s very own Vivienne Halliday had her copy of Scott Cam’s book personally signed and a happy snap taken with the very personable and easy going former carpenter.  Viv confidently reported back to the RenoSave stand that Scott thought the RenoSave Card was ‘a good idea’!  Well, we did already know that, but thanks for the thumbs up, Scotty, and all the best with sales of the book “Home Maintenance for Knuckleheads”.

To watch this Video on YouTube, click here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P8FDqAdb4Os 

 
This video shows you why the RenoSave Card is the most important item you can have in your toolkit.  This unique discount card is jam packed  full of bargains that will revolutionise the way you do your home maintenance, home improvements , DIY projects and renovations. If you live in a house, a flat, a unit or an apartment (and  doesn’t that cover most of us?), you will make your renovation dollars go further with the RenoSave Card.  By watching this short video you’ll know how to save buckets of money on everyday stuff for home maintenance & renovations.

The RenoSave Card Saves You Money
Need to paint something? Get a genuine trade discount with Wattyl Paint.
Need a new kitchen?  Get 25% off top quality kitchens with the latest international innovations in kitchen design & fast turnaround.
Got leaves clogging up your gutters?  Making them overflow & rust & your ceilings leak? Get 20% off Guttershield products.
Need electrical goods? Get ‘lowest price guarantee’ with Clive Peeters , nationally!

Having a RenoSave Card leaves More Money in Your Pocket
More money in your pocket allows you to spend the money you’ve saved on life’s little luxuries. There are heaps and heaps of these fabulous deals and they are only available with the RenoSave Card.   We’ve done all of the leg work and haggling for you – all you have to do is get on with your project.  We save you valuable time and reduce the stress of home renovation projects for the whole family.  And what’s more…

We Guarantee It
That’s Right.  RenoSave offers a 100% money back guarantee.  If you don’t save the purchase price of your RenoSave Card during your 12 months of membership, we give you your money back.  You can’t get better than that.  So you have nothing to lose, and much to gain.  It’s a win-win for you!

So start work on your home maintenance and renovation projects.  Pay less for your maintenance and renovation materials with your RenoSave Card, and you will more than likely increase the value of your home.

Go to www.renosave.com.au and get down to the nuts ‘n’ bolts, click to purchase a RenoSave Card now and start saving right away!

You could always practice on someone else’s house!  There’s a great international volunteer organisation called Habitat for Humanity.  In Australia they’ve built over 80 houses for the Country’s most underprivileged families since they started in 1988.  The houses aren’t just hand-outs – the recipient families have to put in 500hrs ‘sweat equity’ and be willing to be educated in how to maintain the house and financially manage their special low-interest loan, so they’re really ‘hand-ups’.  All of the details are on the website www.habitat.org.au .  Volunteers are needed to help build these houses and Habitat for Humanity Australia is in Qld, NSW, VIC, SA and WA. In Queensland a special project called Brush with Kindness has been launched to help get flood victims back in their homes.  Yes, the floods were in January, it’s June, and people’s homes are still unliveable – volunteers needed!  In Victoria, bush fire victims are being given a ‘hand-up’ by Habitat.  So if you’ve got the renovating bug and can’t wait to get into it, but don’t have your own place to build or renovate, lend a hand and help out and get some great hands-on experience at the same time!

“Soft-close” drawers in kitchens used to be a luxury option, but not any more!  Kitchen Connection, one of RenoSave’s founding Partners, now includes soft-close drawers as a standard item in all of its kitchens.

There is no extra cost to purchasers to have soft-close drawers as part of their kitchen renovation and so slamming kitchen drawers are now a thing of the past for Kitchen Connection customers! 

For those of us with young children, this is a blessing as soft-close drawers protect children’s fingers from rapidly closing drawers.  The drawers also last longer if they’re not continually slammed shut.

As Australian consumers were increasingly demanding soft-close drawers in their search for improved design features, Kitchen Connection listened and delivered.

Another reason to love Kitchen Connection...

RenoSave Card Holders save 25% on kitchens at Kitchen Connection.

Someone I know just recently saw the local hardware store having a closing down sale - a massive 25% off all floor stock.  He happened to have to go to the hardware for some minor home maintenance items anyway and whilst there noticed a garage floor painting kit - at 25% off.  Knowing that painting gives the 'biggest bang for your buck' and knowing how happy his wife would be to have a contemporary-looking, easy to keep clean and attractive garage floor, he snapped up two kits for the double garage and got to work over the long weekend.  (Keep an eye out for the Case Study in an upcoming RenoSave newsletter . . .) No one likes to benefit from someone else's misfortune. However in the case of a closing down sale, if customers don't purchase the discounted products then the store owner hasn't recovered any money for the stock and someone further down the process will benefit from low-priced products.  Keep an eye out for business closures and closing down sales.  Snap up any well priced, quality renovation products and deals and take the opportunity to improve the value of your property with some renovations.

Apparently residential renovations accounted for around $31billion worth of building industry work last year, according to the HIA (Housing Industry of Australia) National Outlook.  At $31billion that is the highest level of expenditure on renovation in four years and predictions are that this figure will continue to increase over the next two years. In a couple of years time the figure is expected to be more like $35billion expenditure - making it close to a record high according to HIA Chief Economist, Dr Harley Dale.  That’s a mighty lot of renovating!  He said the renovation side of the residential building industry looks in ‘relatively healthy shape”.  That’s for sure!  And this is while residential construction of new homes appears to be waning.  Whilst renovating sure is the ‘in-thing’ right now, it’s still important not to do just ‘any old’ renovation.  Renovations should be sympathetic with the style of the house, preferably of a style that won’t ‘date’ dramatically as fashions change, sensibly not over-capitalized for the value of the house they’re applied to (unless money is no object), and should be carried out to any applicable building or construction or other codes.  Check out more about the HIA report : http://www.bpn.com.au/article/Renovations-soar-while-new-home-builds-dip/528807.aspx