How to shut down a leaking water heater?


Stumbling upon a puddle of water on the floor of your basement where your water heater is located usually means only one thing: you have a leaking water heater, and it’s something that you have to deal with immediately to avoid any water damage. In most cases, you will have to replace the water heater itself, especially when the water heater is leaking from the bottom.

However, before you can call on a plumbing professional to replace your water heater, you need to shut your water heater down first before the leak and the flooding gets any worse. Come to think of it, you will also need to shut your water heater down if it starts acting up for any reason. If you don’t have any idea how to shut down a leaking water heater, here are the steps you need to follow to do it safely.

Read more

How To Renovate Without Reducing Your Home’s Value

renovate without reducing your home's valueSo you’re about to do some home renovations because you intend to sell your property shortly. That’s perfectly normal, and in most cases, a brilliant idea. Home renovations can certainly help add value to your property, but it’s also a fact that some renovations, particularly DIY ones or too “trendy” ones can actually cause property value to plummet. There are certain factors that you need to consider so you can renovate to increase property value, not pull it down. Here are some tips on how to renovate to increase your property value and profits, especially if you are planning to sell it.

Read more

HIA Predicts 2014 Will Be Good For Housing Industry


Australia’s housing industry is looking good this year based on the recently released Summer 2014 edition of the National Outlook report by the Housing Industry Association (HIA).

Read more

The Importance of Re-keying Your New Home

re-keying your new homeWhen we move into a new home, it is but natural for the home owner to do a cursory check if everything about it is working. We try the lights, we check the kitchen and bathroom for any issues or just about anything that pops into our concerned heads. One thing that many freshly moved-in home owners forget to check, however, are the locks to the house.

Now we don’t mean you have to check if your keys work, because you wouldn’t have made it into the house if they didn’t. What we mean is you should be concerned that other people might have keys to the property that you don’t know about. After all, you’re probably not the first person to live in that property, and you should always assume that those former residents still have keys of their own to the property that you now own. If anything, re-keying your new home should be a priority for the following reasons:

Read more

5 Factors to Consider When Choosing a Builder

You are going to need a builder for when you decide to construct a new house or renovate an existing one. However, if you want to avoid the risks and mistakes other home owners make by simply selecting the first builder they come across from a local directory service, you will need to consider a number of other factors to ensure your project ends up exactly the way you envisioned it. To help you navigate the process, here are five tips offered by our team at Tradebusters to take into consideration when choosing a builder.

Read more

Six Questions To Ask A Good Bathroom Renovator

good bathroom renovatorA bathroom renovation is perhaps one of the more complex renovation projects a home owner can undertake. Some home owners, however, take the “undertake” part of that statement a bit too seriously, and take on the project in DIY fashion.

The reason why a bathroom is complex to renovate is because it involves multiple operations that need to be carefully sequenced. Aside from a plumber to take care of the water pipes, drains, showers, toilet and other fixtures, a bathroom renovation is also going to entail the services of a good electrician, a waterproofer and an expert tile setter, among others. For this reason, your best option when it comes to a bathroom renovation is to find a good experienced bathroom renovator for the project. A good expert bathroom renovator can also deliver a higher quality job and help raise the value of your property significantly. However, before hiring one, you have to ask some key questions upfront to make the best selection. Here are some of those questions.

Read more

How to Maximise Space at Home

maximise space at homeWe could be living in a small apartment or a humongous mansion, but there will always be that seemingly insatiable need for more space. That’s why people who live in houses big or small are always trying to find ways to maximise space at home in order to make it feel more spacious and welcoming.

You’ll certainly be surprised how much space you really have once you make an effort to maximise space at home, even if you’re just living in a studio apartment. To help you out, we’d like to offer these tips to maximise space at home.

Read more

Find a Painter in Sydney – From Bondi to Manly Tips

professional painterAre you looking to find a painter in Sydney?

It is quite tempting for a home owner to go the DIY route when it comes to a painting job. However, many home owners prefer to hire a professional painter for the simple reason that they can actually do a much better painting job. Painting, after all, is a trade that requires a high level of skills and considerable experience to do perfectly. More often than not, those who start to do it themselves end up making a mess or do such a poor quality job that they eventually end up spending more time and money to later find a professional painter to get it done again.

If you have a painting job that needs doing but you have no idea where to find a professional painter in Sydney, here are some tips that could help you out.

Read more

What to Ask Before Buying Blinds and Shutters

ask before buying blinds and shuttersSo you’re thinking about getting shutters and blinds for your windows, which is a great decision on your part. Blinds and shutters, after all, aren’t just there for making your windows more visually appealing. They’re also there to help keep your home cooler and therefore save you money in the long run.

If this is the first time you’re buying shutters and blinds, it pays to do a little research before going ahead with the purchase. There are a lot of factors you need to consider first before making a decision. Here are some of the things you need to ask before buying blinds and shutters.

Read more

Preparing Your Home For Sale? Tips Direct From a Sales Agent

Selling your home can be one of the most stressful things you can do especially when you think of what is involved even before your home hits the market such as:

  1. Choosing which agent or agency to sell your home
  2. Organising your contract of sale with your solicitor or conveyancer
  3. Deciding on renovating or styling your home
  4. Basic preparations inside and outside the home
  5. Communicating the possible sale of your home with your finance institution

Read more