Recycled Glass Countertops

Have you seen the look of recycled glass product countertops?

I really love the look of these and considered it for our kitchen remodel, but we ended up with granite. However, we WILL be using recycled glass countertops in our downstairs bathroom remodel.

Here are a couple of manufacturers that I like and am considering myself.

Icestone - Recycled glass and concrete mixtures. One sample I like:

Vetrazzo - A little more wild in looks due to a higher ratio of glass in the countertop than others. I like Hollywood Sage and Glacier Blue.

Eco-Terr - Uses recycled materials from different sources such as recycled granite, recycled glass, and more.

Enviroglasproducts -  Enviroglasproducts has recycled glass tiles and slabs, but get this, their new product Enviromode is made with recycled porcelain from toilets, bathtubs, and sinks! Pretty cool to put those materials back into a bathroom.

Kitchen Remodel Steps

I know we’ve been talking about this for a while, but we are finally really knee-deep into the process of remodeling our kitchen.  I’ll post about each step individually in more detail, but for now, I wanted to post a list of all the steps we’ve been taking and still need to complete in order to finish this entire project! It definitely takes a lot of time and energy, but I know it will be worth it.

1. First of all, we had to come up with a kitchen design.

2. Pick out kitchen cabinets. The hardware can essentially come later, but needs to be done at some point too.

3. Buy new appliances. This needs to be done in order to measure correctly for the cabinetry.

4. Find contractor(s). J and I are working as the general contractors, but we needed to find people to do the actual work. I wrote about this step here.

5. We figured since we would be replacing our cabinets with taller ones that go up to the ceiling, we needed to scrape the popcorn off the ceilings and of course repaint.

6. Pick out granite for the counter tops.

7. Pick out tile back splash.

8. Choose new sink and faucet. We are going to keep our current garbage disposal and let it run it’s course.
9. Decide on whether or not we are getting new lighting fixtures and get an electrician for some other minor electrical changes.

10.  Speak with phone company to see about adding a new phone jack. We changed things when doing the design and need to make sure that what we planned will actually work.
11.  Empty all of the current kitchen cabinets to get ready for demolition. What a job!!!

12. DEMOLITION

13. Install the new cabinets, reconnect all of the appliances, sink and counter top installation.

14. Putting it all back together……..

Stay tuned for photos and updates.

Questions To Ask Contractor And His References

 We are currently in the market for a contractor to install our new kitchen cabinets. We have looked up different contractors on Angie’s List and Craigslist. I prefer Angie’s List since it is legitimate. People need to pay for their listings. They are based on a rating system and are reviewed by customers. Anyone can place an ad on Craigslist and it’s up to you to make sure they are legit.  We are speaking with people from both lists and getting estimates. One major thing I intent on doing is asking for and speaking to references.  I’ve come up with a list of questions to ask the contractors and their references.

To ask contractor:

Does your company carry workers compensation and liability insurance?

Are you licensed and registered with the state?

Do you give written warranties?

How long have you been in business?

To which professional associations do you belong?

To ask references:

Were you able to communicate well with the contractor?

Were you happy with the job?

Did the crew show up on time? Were they pleasant?

Was the project completed on schedule?

Were there unexpected expenses?

Would you use the contractor again and refer them to others?

Did workers clean up after finishing the job?

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I know many people suggest asking to see a finished project that the contractor has done, but I’m not sure how I feel about going to someone’s house and seeing their kitchen? I suppose it is the only real way to get a feel for the quality of work, since quality is relative and you really do need to see for yourself to decide if it is up to par.

What do you think? Would you mind having strangers come to your house to check out the work that a contractor did? Can you think of any questions I’m missing?

HowTo Clean Laminate Floors

Personally, I prefer the look of hardwood over laminate flooring, but after doing some research we decided to get rid of our ugly tile and go with a nice wood laminate.  I love it and am very happy with the result, but I must say it looks dirty very easily. Granted, I am not the best cleaner and don’t maintain it as I should, but laminate floor is made to look good for many years with a minimum of effort.  I’ve read that all you really need for cleaning are a broom or dry mop (like a swiffer), vacuum cleaner, and a damp towel for more difficult stains. I would add to that list a swiffer wet-jet with the wood floor cleaning solution.

Big pieces of furniture or toys can cause visible scratching. Also, dirt, sand and rocks that you may bring in with your shoes. These are usually easy to catch by having floor mats and foot brushes at outside doorway entrances. Dirt which gets past the mats and brushes can cause invisible scratching that eventually leads to dullness.  We are having this problem right now. To prevent the grit, you should vacuum and mop regularly.  Microfiber pads are also quite effective for cleaning and picking up dirt and dust.

Damp clean laminate flooring using a vinegar or ammonia-based solution.  If you don’t have the pre-made solution, you can pour 1/4 cup of vinegar into a 30 to 32 ounce empty spray bottle filled with plain water for a quick solution. Then, dampen a terry mop or a swiffer with water and mop, spraying the floor as you go along. When damp mopping, avoid standing fluids so you do not saturate the floor and wipe dry immediately.

Sometimes you will find hard to remove spots or stains. I have found many on my floor and have not yet been able to remove them all. To remove oil, paint, permanent marker, tar, rubber heel marks, use a neutral cleaner on a clean light colored cloth. If needed, use alcohol or a nail polish remover containing acetone. To remove blood, fruit juice, wine, beer, soda pop, pasta sauce, use warm water. If needed use a neutral cleaner on a light colored cloth. To remove candle wax or chewing gum, first harden with ice and then scrape very gently. Wipe the rest with warm water on a clean light colored cloth.

Have any floor cleaning tips I may have missed?

Sell Or Recycle Your Old Gadgets

My husband and I both recently got new cell phones. In the past, I think I would’ve just left my old one to lay around or gave it to my kid to play with. Not anymore. The new phone came with a recycling bag that I can just send it back to the company to be recycled. Love that idea. I could also sell it back and get a credit to my account. Either way, I’m doing something with it, rather than ignoring it and collecting more unneeded and unwanted junk.

Everything from cell phones to laptop computers are full of hazardous materials that pose serious risks to human health and the environment. The growing concern is that gadget hoarders will eventually run out of space and “take a bunch of stuff at once and fill their landfill.” Don’t do it. Resell or recycle them instead.

Get more info on how to do this….you will be reading a good article too.