The ABCs Of Home Renovation: An Alphabetical Guide To All The Terms You Should Know
Renovating your home in New Orleans has a ton of merits. It will improve your house’s beauty, safety and energy efficiency. It can also reduce the cost of your utilities, saving you money over the long term. Modernizing your property will increase its value and help drive up the prices of the houses on your block, making you a terrific neighbor!
If it’s your first time renovating your home, the job’s magnitude may overwhelm you. To advance your knowledge of renovation, here’s a quick alphabetical guide.
Asbestos is a carcinogenic mineral fiber used in many building products for insulation and fire retardation. It may be in vinyl floor tiles, hot water pipes, walls near a wood-burning stove and other parts of your home. Unless labeled, asbestos is invisible to the naked eye.
If you suspect a part of your house has this dangerous material, assume it’s contaminated, leave it undisturbed and let a qualified professional handle it.
A building code is a law that defines the minimum requirements for the design and construction of residential and commercial properties. It exists to keep you safe during natural disasters and fires.
The Big Easy uses the International Building Code — save for some amendments — and has a zoning ordinance. The city government considers the two when reviewing non-structural and structural renovation permit applications.
A contractor is a person or company you hire to handle your home improvement. With more complex projects like a kitchen renovation, you may need a general contractor to manage the big picture and look for subcontractors to take care of specialized tasks, like plumbing and carpentry. You can directly contract with specialists — like a roofer or a siding installer — for more straightforward jobs.
Drywall is a finishing material for interior walls, ceilings, eaves, arches and other architectural features. Plasterboard, wallboard and Sheetrock are some of its many names. Drywall sheets come in gypsum, plywood, wood pulp and asbestos-cement board.
An estimate is an educated guess of how much a home project will cost. Its accuracy depends on the contractor’s competence and credibility. The estimate is subject to change since construction jobs rarely go as planned.
The total bill is almost always higher than the original quote because some expenses are difficult to predict. Although a written estimate is as legally binding as a verbal agreement, a signed one detailing the job and its cost can be an actual contract.
Fenestration is the industry term for building openings with glazing — such as windows, glass doors and skylights. It used to refer to the arrangement of glazed areas in a property.
Glazing is a fancy word for windowpanes. Single-, double- and triple-glazed windows are the same as single-, double- and triple-pane windows. Glazing pertains to the glass used in fenestration products in general, not to any specific type.
HVAC is the abbreviation for heating, ventilation and air conditioning. Furnaces, boilers, heat pumps, air conditioners, humidifiers and dehumidifiers can comprise HVAC systems. Centralized HVAC systems regulate the indoor climate of the whole property, whereas decentralized ones focus on specific rooms.
An inspection is when a qualified professional checks whether the construction work is up to code, which you may need to secure a building permit. It’s important to have a home inspector assess the project after every major renovation step to spot errors early and correct them without wasting too much time and material.
Good contracts have an inspection clause, and reputable contractors agree to fix workmanship defects at no extra cost.
A Jack and Jill bathroom is a full-sized bathroom in the middle of two bedrooms. It’s a space- and time-saving way for multiple siblings who sleep in different rooms to use a common toilet and shower. Most Jack and Jill bathrooms have two doors, but some have three to provide access from the hallway.
A kilowatt hour is 1,000 watts of power consumed in 60 minutes. You can use it for monitoring the amount of electricityyour home appliances use and comparing the energy efficiency of products on the market.
A load-bearing wall supports the floor or roof above it. It can be an exterior or interior wall. It’s possible to remove it during your renovation, provided that an alternative support system — like a structural beam, a post or a combination of the two — takes its place and shoulders the weight it carries safely.
Millwork is the umbrella term for construction materials made at a mill or a factory. Many home improvement professionals are using it interchangeably with molding — narrow wood strips that hide and embellish angled and surface joints inside and outside the house.
Net zero energy means you generate the same amount of power you consume in one year. If you have solar panels that satisfy your electricity needs, your household’s net greenhouse gas emissions are zero.
These initials mean oriented strand board. Wall sheathing, roof decking, floor underlay and furniture are of this engineered wood’s many uses. Compared to plywood, OSB is more popular because it’s more affordable and sustainable, comes in larger panels and performs well in hot climates.
A punch list details the concerns your contractors should address before the final payment. Any flaw you notice — whether or not you’re in the right — should appear on this list so you can discuss it with your contractor. Alternatively, you can do a rolling punch list and have periodic walkthroughs with your renovation crew’s head to spot and correct flaws early instead of doing it at the project’s end.
Quartz is an engineered stone made of roughly 90% ground quartz — a natural hard mineral — and approximately 10% polymers, resins and pigments. It’s a popular countertop material, but it also makes sleek showers, elegant tub surrounds and striking furniture.
R-value measures insulation performance. A higher R-value indicates less heat can pass through the insulated area and more energy savings. The ideal insulation R-values vary by home location and region.
In New Orleans, targeting these minimum acceptable R-valueswhen renovating your home is a must:
Storm windows are additional coverings you mount outside your home’s openings to protect your primary windows from the elements. You can install them temporarily if you only need them for extra weather resistance and insulation seasonally. If you affix them permanently, you can lessen outdoor noise, eliminate drafts and preserve the look of your windows all year round.
Buying storm windows is an affordable way to increase your comfort inside the house until you can replace your old or broken primary windows.
A time-and-materials contract is an agreement that includes the renovation team’s fixed hourly wage and the cost of materials. It’s the opposite of a fixed-price contract that describes the project’s final price before the work begins.
A time-and-materials contract makes sense when it’s impossible to determine the job’s scope or duration. Likewise, you may consider it when material prices are likely to fluctuate significantly during the project.
U-value — also known as U-factor — measures the ability of an insulating glass unit to retain heated or cooled air in a room. A lower U-value means less heat flow through the glass. It’s one of the pieces of information you’ll read on the National Fenestration Rating Council label that shows how energy-efficient a window is.
A vanity is bathroom furniture that combines a sink, a countertop and a storage unit like shelves and cabinets. You can pair it with a mirror and design it with lights to make it more functional.
A warranty is an explicit or implied promise another party makes to appease any apprehension you may have regarding your renovation. Callbacks and vendor warranties are explicit because they’re written, comprehensive and legally enforceable. On the other hand, workmanship and habitability warranties need not be in black and white because you expect your contractor to do the job well and your renovated home area is suitable for use.
A construction warranty differs from a home warranty — a service contract that acts like general wear and tear insurance.
Xenon is one of the gases used for insulating windows. Compared to argon and krypton, xenon is the densest and promises the highest energy savings, but it’s the least popular. Xenon-insulated products’ prices can seem unjustifiable because of their marginally superior performance.
A yard is the area of your property outside your house. It can include a garden — a place where you grow plants, flowers and crops — and a lawn — a grass-covered area. A landscaping service is for beautifying your outdoor space, whereas lawn care is for maintaining your yard’s grassy section.
Zoning is an ordinance or a regulation that governs what you can do with your real estate property in your area. In the Crescent City, the Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance governs land use within its borders. It spells out citywide standards and individual regulations for different zoning districts.
Are You Excited for Your Renovation?
Planning a home renovation is challenging no matter how you slice it. Although experience will teach you the most valuable lessons, this guide gives you a head start on your project.
*This post was written by Rose Morrison of renovated.com
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