Make a Pit Stop on Your Home's Exterior
While the pit crew for the No. 48 team makes their improvements in less than :14 seconds, there are some smart improvement you can make to the exterior of your home very quickly that will put you at the head of the field for home value, all without putting a dent in your wallet.
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Hit the deck running.
If you’ve got a deck underfoot, take time now to do a basic deck safety check before inviting a hundred of your closest personal friends over for the race.
Check decks for cracked or rotted floor joists, and especially check the connection between the deck and the house to be sure it’s secure. For cracked floor boards, remove and replace them, or just flip them over for a fresh start. Brighten decks up with an application of
Cabot Problem-Solver Wood Brightener
and protect them for the year with
Cabot’s Deck and Fence Finish
.
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Go green and weed out the competition.
Weeds compete with your grass for sunlight, food and water, resulting in a less than healthy looking lawn. Beat them to the finish line by applying a weed and crabgrass preventer like
Spectracide Weedstop with Crabgrass Killer
to ensure your lawn stays beautiful all season long.
Leave mildew in the dust.
Mold, moss or mildew…no matter what you call that greenish deposit on your siding, trim or sidewalks, it’s disgusting and devaluing to your home sweet home. Cleaning away the crud is a two-step process. First, apply a mildicide like
Zinnser Jomax House Cleaner and Mildew Killer
to destroy dirt, mold or mildew on contact. Next, rinse it off with a pressure washer like the
Troybilt Gas Pressure Washer
to permanently strip away the grunge.
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Painting makes perfect.
If your home is looking a bit worse for wear, Spring is the optimal time to pick up a paint brush. Freshen up your front door, trimwork, porch railings and window trim to make your home look crisp and clean. First step, make sure the home is free of mildew. As suggested above, it’s simple to strip it away. Next, scrape away any loose paint and spot prime to be sure the next coat sticks. Then, apply a good quality exterior paint like
Valspar Ultra Premium Exterior Latex Semi-Gloss House and Trim Paint.
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Show off.
Make your home stand out from the competition by trimming all bushes and shrubs back away from the house. Lowes offers several great tools that can help, including the
Black and Decker 22" 18V Cordless Hedge Trimmer
, along with the
Troybilt 17” Straight Shaft Gas String Trimmer
.
Lightscape.
Adding a combination of direct and indirect lighting to the exterior or your home not only improves your safety and security, it improves the look of your house. For security, mount flood lights as high up on your home as possible and be sure they’re equipped with motion detectors. For safety and curb appeal, add attractive landscape lights around a path. Solar lights kits, like the
Yard & Beyond Solar 12-Pack Solar LED Landscape Light Kit
, make for an easy installation without the need to run wiring and they use zero electricity.
With these affordable improvements, you’ll be leading your neighborhood in great exterior looks and curb appeal. For more information on how Lowe's can help, visit www.Lowes.com.
Tom Kraeutler
delivers
home improvement tips
each week as host of The Money Pit, a nationally syndicated
home improvement
radio program. His latest book
My Home, My Money Pit: Your Guide to Every Home Improvement Adventure
, is available at bookstores nationally.
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