How Renovations Can Enhance Your Vancouver Home
For most people a home is much more than a place to live, it’s a long-term investment. Your renovation decisions will have important consequences for your future living costs and quality of life, so you want to get it right. Home renovation is an exciting process, but it can be daunting too. There’s so much to consider, sometimes it’s hard to know how to do it right to enhance the value of your home. Whether you’re planning a major renovation or upgrading a portion of your home, you should always look for helpful suggestions from a Vancouver renovation expert for how to go about a renovation that meets all your needs and provides the best value for money, now and for a long time to come.
Entrance to Your Home
The first impression on approaching your home is very important. A clean, light and welcoming entrance to your home can give a positive impression to the guests. If the entry is dark then an optical illusion like using half strength paint of the same colour used in other houses in this area is helpful to give the appearance of it being lighter. Installing a new front door, knocker or handle and placing architectural plants on either side of entrance will provide a fresh look to your home entrance.
Living Areas
Surely the most lived-in part of your home deserves extra special attention! The clever design of space is crucial in a living area. Design your outdoors as an extension of your living room, effectively getting more usable living space. If using sliding or folding doors, make sure they seal properly when closed. Use light-coloured surfaces to maximize natural light. Make sure you have openings on more than one side of your living area, to allow cooling breezes through in summer. High open-able windows or skylights work well to get rid of hot air as it rises and let in winter sun. But make sure they’re double glazed with good seals to keep in winter warmth. Choose skylights with built-in shading, unless your roof is already well-shaded.
Kitchens
A good kitchen gives you room to move but is compact enough to allow easy reach between different activities. Leave generous bench space between the sink and the cooktop, as this is the most convenient space for food preparation. Consider using drawers instead of cupboards for easier access. Locate dishwashers near sinks to allow easy loading. This also concentrates your plumbing in one space and saves money. Multi-bin sorters under sinks are a great idea— you can separate your rubbish for recycling straight away. For safety, avoid sharp bench top corners and have at least one lockable cupboard for harmful substances. The fridge usually uses more electricity in a year than any other appliance, so when replacing your fridge choose one with a high energy star rating. Make sure cabinets allow an air gap all around the fridge of at least 50 mm for good ventilation.
Paint and Floor Finishing
Painting can dramatically change the look and feel of a property, as well as substantially increase its value. Choose only a few colours and keep them light and neutral. Light surfaces are the quickest way to create a light, bright, and clean looking space.
Floor polishing can add fantastic bang for buck. If you have lighter floorboard such as baltic pine, it’s a good idea to darken them using stain. Darker coloured floorboards such as dark red and dark chocolate have a higher perceived value than lighter ones.
At the end of the day, there’s nothing more rewarding than watching a space be transformed by good design decisions with great renovation efforts. Better still is the day when the work is done and you can enjoy the results in the peace and quiet of your new space.
Working with a Vancouver Construction and Renovation company, EA Renovations Ltd., is your best bet for quality assurance and a job done right. If you are looking for ways to enhance your home and increase the quality of living through a Vancouver home renovation, please be sure to message us with any questions you have.