How to Draw a Building Floor Plan to Scale : Architectural Drawings
Subscribe Now: http://www.youtube.com Watch More: http://www.youtube.com Drawing a building floor plan to scale means paying close attention to the proportions of your drawings. Draw a building floor plan to scale with help from a registered interior designer in this free video clip. Expert: Alan Hilsabeck Contact: http://www.hilsabeckdesignassociates.com/ Bio: Alan Hilsabeck is a Registered Interior Designer (RID) in the State of Texas, is NCIDQ Certified, and is a CMKBD (Certified Master Kitchen and Bath Designer) with over 20 years of experience. Filmmaker: Alan Hilsabeck Series Description: Architectural drawings are often used during the design phase for things like room remodeling jobs or even entire houses. Get tips on architectural drawings with help from a registered interior designer in this free video series.From:ehowathomechannelViews:1 0ratingsTime:02:25More inHowto Style

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How to Draw a Building Floor Plan to Scale : Architectural Drawings - Video

Beyond Construction & Remodeling, Highlights a Description of Services, for Light Industrial, Residential and Commercial as well as Company Philosophy

Wenatchee, WA (PRWEB) October 23, 2012

Establishing a set of motivating values, keeps the company focused on providing high quality service to our customers, said Ruben Ornelas, owner of Beyond Construction & Remodeling. Additional values the company adheres to include; respect, thoughtfulness, responsibility and fairness.

Some of the services featured include:

Light industrial work, which includes construction management and general contractor services. They can accommodate a structured working environment, with well laid out circulation space for safety and increased productivity. We provide quick, accurate preliminary proposals and competitive costing, resulting in substantial savings of time and expense. Our core principles are putting the financial interest of the client above all else. We understand the production continues uninterrupted, explains Ruben.

Residential services are treated uniquely, with the clients desires and needs in mind. New construction, kitchen and bathroom remodeling, home improvement, renovation, room additions, basement finishing, painting, concrete work are among the services offered to homeowners. We like to educate the customer on the process as well as work with them on the smartest and most efficient ways to build, remodel or renovate their home, said Ruben.

Beyond Construction and Remodelings commercial services offer design build out, office remodeling, additions and commercial renovation services. They work closely with architects, engineers and design firms to make sure the client's project will be completed to their desired specification while achieving a cost effective and efficient product.

We offer complete design build services, where we retain the designer or architect and assume responsibility for both the design and construction, this results in the ability to control project cost, quality and scheduling and allows for a single point of contact, said Ruben

We are a family business, my uncle trained me and between the two of us we have over 40 years of combined industry knowledge and experience, said Ruben. We do not price gouge but offer, fair and competitive prices and can usually beat out our competitors by 10%.

For more information about this company, call (509) 393-3210, or check out their website at http://www.wenatcheeremodelingcontractor.com/.

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Wenatchee General Contractor, Beyond Construction & Remodeling, Announces Launch of New Website

NEW YORK Glenn Bridges can tell that the market for home remodeling is picking up when hes hanging cabinets or laying a floor in a customers house, a next-door neighbor is bound to knock on the door and ask if hes available for another project.

Theyll look at his handiwork and then say, We have something were interested in doing, Bridges says. Its quite uplifting.

The collapse of the housing market decimated business for contractors like Bridges, most of whom are small businesses with just a handful of employees. But many are seeing business improve as home sales slowly recover and homeowners who had put off projects during the recession are feeling better about the economy. Still, the improvement is gradual and projects arent typically as lucrative as they were back when homeowners were able to borrow against a large amount of equity in their houses.

Bridges was so optimistic about the remodeling market that, in February, he restarted the contracting business he was forced to shut down in 2007. When he closed, he had to lay off his three full-time workers. But at the start of 2012, things began to change.

I had people that needed work done and all in one weekend they said to me, Why dont you help me ... why dont you get active again? says Bridges, owner of Eagle Ridge Contractor Services in Naples, Fla. He had spent the intervening years working on projects with other business owners.

Hes worked steadily since February, installing new kitchens and bathrooms that range from $10,000 to $25,000, depending on the size of the room and the quality of the cabinets and appliances.

Where I was pricing one or two (projects) a month, I might now price five or six a month. And I think Im not unusual for our market, theres more optimism.

Bridges isnt alone. Sales of previously occupied homes are up more than 9 percent this year, and spending on residential construction has risen 16 percent. People who track housing trends see signs that remodeling is on the rise and that the improvement will continue. Harvard Universitys Leading Indicator of Remodeling Activity suggests that annual homeowner improvement spending could rise 12.2 percent in the first quarter of 2013, up from levels reached in the first three months of 2012.

Some of the uptick is coming from new homeowners fixing up and some is coming from people who put off work during the recession.

Even though its a down market, homeowners are always having to do certain projects roofing, siding, heating systems, says Abbe Will a research analyst with Harvards Joint Center for Housing Studies. When were moving into a recovery phase, were going to be looking to the discretionary projects, like kitchen and bath remodeling. Were expecting to see lots more of that as the housing market stabilizes.

Continued here:
A remodeling resurgence

NORMAL Town leaders hope to attract favorable bids to remodel the former city hall since the work will take place inside over the winter months.

The outcome will determine how much work can be accomplished, because the town only has $100,000 budgeted. Mark Clinch, director of facilities management, said needed work amounts to $434,684.

We will have to see how aggressive the pricing is, said City Manager Mark Peterson at Monday nights city council meeting. If bidding is competitive, we may come back and ask for more money. If not, we will have to lower the scope and do some projects later.

The plan would move the parks and recreation offices from the Linden Street annex to the former council chambers and administrative offices at 100 E. Phoenix Ave., with remodeling estimated at $55,600.

Space formerly used for finance and information technology departments would be used by the police criminal investigation division, with remodeling costs about $100,000.

The bid also would include bringing restrooms in line with Americans with Disabilities Act standards at a cost of $13,073; and remodeling and expanding the police departments womens locker room for $19,516.

Clinch also would like to remodel the police vice unit on the third floor, $132,097; replace carpet, about $26,000; create offices, about $32,000; screen a mens restroom, about $1,500; and upgrade the reception counter, $3,819.

Architectural and engineering costs would amount to about $50,000.

Peterson said the space does not allow much room for growth, even with the work. Were basically catching up and meeting needs, he said.

Councilman Adam Nielsen said if the projects are on a wish list I would become less enamored with it.

Read more from the original source:
Normal hoping for 'aggressive' bids for old city hall remodeling

You will find this hard to believe. I did. You can furnish your home, or a room in your home, beautifully for one-third of what it would cost buying the same furnishings retail -- and help provide housing for others who need it, and help the planet.

Get out!

That's what I said when I learned how Habitat for Humanity ReStores work. Folks like us donate home furnishings and building materials to ReStores. The stores then resell them to other folks at incredibly low prices. Profits go back into the community in the form of decent housing for low-income residents.

Although I have donated items -- extra lumber, drywall, trim, paint and other fallout from my remodeling projects -- to Habitat ReStores, I never considered shopping in one. Was I ever wrong.

Earlier this month, to celebrate World Habitat Day, three Orlando, Fla., decorators teamed up with Steve Thomas, former host of TV's "This Old House" and "Renovation Nation," to take on a design challenge. Using only furniture acquired from local ReStores, they created a showcase room.

I was invited to help moderate the event, but I was dubious about how the room would turn out. But, hey, it was all for a good cause, so I played along. Well, my friends, I ate sawdust. Any homeowner would be proud to have the room -- in this case, a man's den -- put together by the design team. It was classy, warm, harmonious -- and inexpensive!

How did they do it? They independently

"It was like being on a treasure hunt," said Luisa Padilla, one team member, "but you had to act fast. The good stuff goes."

They delivered the furniture to a ReStore in Casselberry, Fla., where they arranged it in a three-sided, 12-by-12-foot showcase room.

Besides adding celebrity pizazz, Thomas and some volunteers assembled a wood floor, put up moldings and did the heavy lifting.

Read more from the original source:
Marni Jameson: At Habitat for Humanity's ReStores, donations and purchases help others

The noise started in Taylor Church's room early Friday morning, tucked away in an otherwise quiet northeast Escondido neighborhood.

It was the welcome sounds of hammers and pry bars, men demolishing the shower and carrying the old toilet from her bathroom to the Dumpster.

In a week's time, dozens of volunteers will have finished their work to make life a little easier for the young mother, who lost parts of all four limbs during a months-long battle with sepsis this summer.

The project represents the third year in a row that the National Association of the Remodeling Industry has rallied its members to volunteer for a good cause in North County.

"It's extremely rewarding," said Sheen Fischer, an Escondido resident and president of the association's San Diego chapter. "As challenging as the economy has been the last four or five years, sometimes we get wrapped up in what we're doing, trying to survive, and a project like this gives us an opportunity to use our skills for something bigger than just paying the bills."

Church, 22, was admitted into the hospital in mid-May. She wouldn't be released until July 27, and in that time, doctors administered a regimen of drugs that prevented the blood infection from killing her, but cut off circulation to her hands and feet.

On Friday morning, she rolled her wheelchair into the hallway of her parents' house, around the corner from where the crew was beginning its renovation. Aiden, her 22-month-old son, sat calmly in her lap, waving at three television cameras pointed at him.

"I didn't know anything about it until it was set in stone ---- my dad was like, 'Hey, guess what they're doing for you?' I'm so excited," she said. "I'm letting them have free rein. They can do whatever they want."

That free rein includes improvements such as widening doorways and retrofitting the bathroom with an $8,000 toilet.

When it's all done next weekend, said Chris Church, Taylor's father, a large measure of his daughter's dignity will have been restored.

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ESCONDIDO: Remodeling for a good cause

By DEBORAH GERTZ HUSAR Herald-Whig Staff Writer

BASCO, Ill. -- Brad and Cindy Koehler know there's no place like home.

Even better will be a wheelchair-accessible home for Koehler, a Basco farmer who was paralyzed from the waist down after a July 15 car accident.

"It will be absolutely wonderful," Cindy Koehler said.

The house, like harvesting the couple's crops, turned into a project for friends and neighbors.

"We got help getting the house ready for us -- carpenters, the local lumberyard. Everyone's helped out a lot. It's just the community," Brad Koehler said.

Tammy Koehler, a distant relative, spearheaded the effort to raise $10,000 for the remodeling work.

"We're right at $9,000," she said. "There's people from Iowa, somebody from Florida who sent money. We do have a wonderful community that supports each other."

The Koehlers and their daughters, Katy and Anne, live in an older farm home that had no bedroom or bath on the first floor -- a stumbling block now for Koehler.

Within days of the accident, contractor and neighbor Andy Finch was talking with Cindy Koehler about changes needed at the house.

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Home remodeling turns into project for friends, neighbors

NEW YORK - Glenn Bridges can tell that the market for home remodeling is picking up - when he's hanging cabinets or laying a floor in a customer's house, a next-door neighbor is bound to knock on the door and ask if he's available for a project.

They'll look at his handiwork and then say, "We have something we're interested in doing," Mr. Bridges says. "It's quite uplifting."

The collapse of the housing market decimated business for contractors like Mr. Bridges, most of whom are small businesses with just a handful of employees. But many are seeing business improve as home sales slowly recover and homeowners who had put off projects during the recession are feeling better about the economy. Still, the improvement is gradual and projects aren't typically as lucrative as they were back when homeowners were able borrow against a large amount of equity in their houses.

Mr. Bridges was so optimistic about the remodeling market that in February he restarted the contracting business he was forced to shut down in 2007. When he closed, he had to lay off his three full-time workers. But at the start of 2012, things began to change.

"I had people that needed work done and all in one weekend they said to me, 'Why don't you help me ... why don't you get active again?"' says Mr. Bridges, owner of Eagle Ridge Contractor Services in Naples, Fla.

He's worked steadily since February, installing new kitchens and bathrooms that range from $10,000 to $25,000, depending on the size of the room and the quality of the cabinets and appliances. He hired one full-time worker when he started his business again and says he may take on as many as three more if business is good enough. And he's optimistic that it will be, because he's getting more requests for bids on projects. "Where I was pricing one or two (projects) a month, I might now price five or six a month. And I think I'm not unusual - for our market, there's more optimism."

Sales of previously occupied homes are up more than 9 percent this year, and spending on residential construction has risen 16 percent. People who track housing trends see signs that remodeling is on the rise - and that the improvement will continue. Harvard University's Leading Indicator of Remodeling Activity suggests that annual homeowner improvement spending could rise 12.2 percent in the first quarter of 2013, up from levels reached in the first three months of 2012.

Some of the uptick is coming from new homeowners fixing up and some is coming from people who put off work during the recession.

"Even though it's a down market, homeowners are always having to do certain projects - roofing, siding, heating systems," says Abbe Will a research analyst with Harvard's Joint Center for Housing Studies. "When we're moving into a recovery phase, we're going to be looking to the discretionary projects, like kitchen and bath remodeling. We're expecting to see lots more of that as the housing market stabilizes."

But while the upturn is encouraging, it hasn't yet turned into the boom that some had hoped for. After rising from a low reached at the end of 2008, remodeling activity rose sharply but then fluctuated since the end of 2009, according to the National Association of Home Builders' index of remodeling activity. It's "improving, but not as much as we thought it had been earlier," says Steve Millman, director of economic services at the NAHB.

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Resurgence in remodeling boosts sales for contractors

Just the thought of remodeling a room can be overwhelming. Where to begin? What is the cost? What stays and what goes? These are some of the most complicated questions homeowners face when choosing to remodel. The fear is that once the hammer begins to tear away at your comfort zone, there's no turning back.

Tile plays a large part in remodeling when considering a kitchen or bathroom remodel. These two living spaces are the most expensive to remodel. If you're contemplating changing the layout of the space, a plumber, electrician and kitchen/bath designer have to be commissioned, which adds to the cost of the remodel job.

In order to keep remodeling within your budget, consider working with the existing cabinets and countertops if the project allows. Here are a few scenarios where this practice was implemented.

Using existing cabinets: The homeowners of this

The solution: An 18x18-inch ceramic tile, light

Debbe Daley goes over the tile selections at the Nashua Tile Center. (sun/jon hill)

Outdated bathtub solution: In this bathroom, the existing baby blue tub/shower unit was to stay. Again the cabinets were a golden finish and in great shape. The existing countertop was a white Corian. The existing wall tile was 4x4-inch square with blue tiles the same size placed in a design in the center of the wall and topped off with a blue bullnose tile. This design and color were considered to be outdated.

The solution: Working with the cabinets, countertop and tub, a white 12x12 inch tile was chosen with gray veins in a high gloss to mimic the look of marble, with a companion wall tile to complement the floor tile. Tying it all together would be tiny, multicolored subway glass tile in light soft frosted blues, clear glossy glass pieces and iridescent blue tiles. This combination of deco accent tiles was the key piece needed in updating this bathroom and providing a more modern look.

Updated tile tips: Try incorporating accent glass tiles into your tile design. There are so many shapes and sizes, 1-inch mosaic and mini-subway tiles, glossy and frosted. Natural stone combinations of tumbled marble, granite and glass can be used as an accent strip in a shower, on a wall or as a border on a backsplash. The possibilities in tile design are endless.

Debbe Daley is an interior designer with more than 25 years of experience. Follow her blog at blogs.lowellsun.com/daleydecor

Read more:
Swapping out tile remakes a room

NEW YORK Glenn Bridges can tell that the market for home remodeling is picking up when hes hanging cabinets or laying a floor in a customers house, a next-door neighbor is bound to knock on the door and ask if hes available for another project.

Theyll look at his handiwork and then say, we have something were interested in doing, Bridges says. Its quite uplifting.

The collapse of the housing market decimated business for contractors like Bridges, most of whom are small businesses with just a handful of employees. But many are seeing business improve as home sales slowly recover and homeowners who had put off projects during the recession are feeling better about the economy. Still, the improvement is gradual and projects arent typically as lucrative as they were back when homeowners were able borrow against a large amount of equity in their houses.

Bridges was so optimistic about the remodeling market that in February that he restarted the contracting business he was forced to shut down in 2007. When he closed, he had to lay off his three full-time workers. But at the start of 2012, things began to change.

I had people that needed work done and all in one weekend they said to me, why dont you help me ... why dont you get active again? says Bridges, owner of Eagle Ridge Contractor Services in Naples, Fla. He had spent the intervening years working on projects with other business owners.

Hes worked steadily since February, installing new kitchens and bathrooms that range from $10,000 to $25,000, depending on the size of the room and the quality of the cabinets and appliances. He hired one full-time worker when he started his business again and says he may take on as many as three more if business is good enough. And hes optimistic that it will be, because hes getting more requests for bids on projects. Where I was pricing one or two (projects) a month, I might now price five or six a month. And I think Im not unusual for our market, theres more optimism.

Bridges isnt alone. Sales of previously occupied homes are up more than 9 percent this year, and spending on residential construction has risen 16 percent. People who track housing trends see signs that remodeling is on the rise and that the improvement will continue. Harvard Universitys Leading Indicator of Remodeling Activity suggests that annual homeowner improvement spending could rise 12.2 percent in the first quarter of 2013, up from levels reached in the first three months of 2012.

Some of the uptick is coming from new homeowners fixing up and some is coming from people who put off work during the recession.

Even though its a down market, homeowners are always having to do certain projects roofing, siding, heating systems, says Abbe Will a research analyst with Harvards Joint Center for Housing Studies. When were moving into a recovery phase, were going to be looking to the discretionary projects, like kitchen and bath remodeling. Were expecting to see lots more of that as the housing market stabilizes.

But while the upturn is encouraging, it hasnt yet turned into the boom that some had hoped for. After rising from a low reached at the end of 2008, remodeling activity rose sharply but then fluctuated since the end of 2009, according to the National Association of Home Builders index of remodeling activity. Its improving, but not as much as we thought it had been earlier, says Steve Millman, director of economic services at the NAHB.

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Remodeling resurgence: Contractors see boost from uptick in housing market