Tuesday, January 10, 2012

Renovate your pediatrician's office


Are you a doctor or dentist who sees a lot of children? Is your office child-friendly? Does it have all the safety features an office with crawling and running children needs? Does it look the part? Are parents delighted to bring their kids to see you and wait with them in your offices? Is everyone talking about how great your office is?

If you answered no to any of those questions, it's time to remodel your office to be the perfect place for kids, and get yourself some nice press and referrals at the same time!

Let us walk you through each step, from planning to completion to make your office the perfect place for every patient.

Friday, January 6, 2012

Greener Kitchen


Thinking of remodeling your kitchen to be more eco-friendly? Try these tips:

Step 1
Replace appliances with green products. Appliances that are certified by Energy Star may use up to 66 percent less energy than other products, according to Green Home Guide. Visit the Energy Star website to search for approved products.

Step 2
Improve lighting in the kitchen. Install skylights and windows if possible to use natural light. If you must use artificial lighting, choose compact fluorescent lighting, which provides excellent light conditions with minimal energy usage.

Step 3
Replace flooring and countertops with renewable materials. This Old House recommends using cork floors, a sustainable, natural material, to replace outdated flooring. For countertops, consider concrete, which is recyclable and very durable.

Step 4
Rearrange your kitchen layout. Place food preparation countertops close to windows, to provide natural lighting and reduce lighting costs. Install a compost bin near the work area to provide immediate, convenient recycling for organic materials.

Step 5
Install a new plumbing system. Green Home Guides recommends an on-demand hot water pump, which heats water electrically in order to reduce kitchen dependence on a whole-home pump.

Step 6
Ventilate your kitchen with high-efficiency exhaust fans and ceiling fans. In addition to providing natural light, windows are also a free way to increase ventilation in the kitchen area.

Source: Home Guides