Things to consider when building a pool

Having made the decision to install a swimming pool in your backyard there are still plenty of things to think about and plenty of steps to take before you can take your first refreshing dip. Before you even contact a pool builder it is a good idea to research a little about design and construction options. You also need to think about how you will maintain your pool. Without the right pool pump and cleaner, your lovely crystal clear oasis will soon be less than appealing. Here are a few of the things you need to consider when planning your backyard pool.

Pool type

There are a number of different types of swimming pool available, each one with its own pros and cons. Above ground pools are cheap and simple to install, but are less aesthetically pleasing than other options. Fibreglass pools are good for complex designs, but are expensive to install and have limitations in terms of size and depth. Concrete pools are another potentially pricey option, but they are hard wearing and offer flexibility in terms of design. Vinyl lined pools are not as long lasting but they are cost effective solution and are very easy to maintain. No one type of pool is better than another. The key is to work out your priorities and match them to the right pool option.

Pool design

With the variety of pool types and materials available these days comes increasing flexibility in terms of design. You may decide that you want to opt for a simple conventional rectangular pool, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. However if the shape of your backyard, or your creative vision, dictates something different you will almost certainly be able to find a pool builder to bring your design to life. This is a very important step in the process that will dictate the appearance of your pool, and most likely your entire backyard.

Additional features

Do you want to include any additional features in your pool, such as a water feature or spa. This kind of decision needs to be made at the same time as the overall pool design and it will impact significantly on the type of pool you choose.

Saltwater or traditional chlorine

In recent years saltwater pools have become more popular and they certainly do have some advantages over traditional chlorine pools. Many people find the relative lack of chlorine (saltwater pools are not completely chlorine free) makes for a more pleasant swimming experience that is gentler on the skin. On the other hand maintaining a saltwater pool can be expensive and the salt can cause damage over time to the lining of your pool, as well as cement, masonry and underwater lights.

Pool maintenance

Once your pool is ready for use you will want to keep it in good condition and make sure that the water is clean and clear. Therefore you need to choose the right pool cleaner, cover and pump for your swimming pool. 

Landscaping

Will you be integrating the pool into a wider landscaping project? If you are planning to landscape your backyard, it is a very good idea to put the pool in at the earliest stage, as it is a very disruptive process. You can take the opportunity to incorporate your pool design into a wider design aesthetic, so that it blends in effortlessly with the landscape in your backyard.

Bathroom Remodeling Project of University City by dRemodeling

An old bathroom need to remodel in order to keep it's modernity while still keeping the basic architecture, here are the project of dRemodeling that renovate and remodel the old bathroom of a historic 1894 home in the University City neighborhood of Philadelphia. You can see the picture of before and after remodeling process. here are the pictures. 

dRemodeling undertook much more than a mere cosmetic makeover - They undertook a complete structural renovation to bring the bathroom up to the most modern codes and standards and to ensure the bathroom would last for decades to come. Simply put, the homeowners wanted a guest bathroom that was built as solidly and as elegantly as a master bathroom.

The homeowners wanted the bathroom to exude a Zen-like atmosphere, so dRemodeling undertook several measures to ensure that they would get exactly (and beyond) what they wanted. The room was stripped down to the bare lath and then completely rebuilt and refinished into a modern bathroom. The process involved replacing the dingy old bathtub with a modern frameless glass-enclosed shower whose floors and walls were covered with pebble-like tiles to add a naturalistic flair to the modernist bathroom. via

7 Reasons Why You Should Update your Pool's Filtration and Cleaning System

 

Thinking about replacing your pool's filtration and cleaning system? If you haven't considered it then it's time to start thinking about just how old your current filter and pump is. Letting this one slide may not be the best idea. Here's a few good reasons to think about replacing your current system:

1. Your pool filter and pool pump work hard to keep your pool shining and fresh almost year-round. Having something running for that long over such a large period of years is cause enough to replace it. Think about the appliances in your house that you've recently replaced and how much life they had left in them at the time. Not much? A pool's filtration system needs to be in top working order. If not, then it's likely to be not cleaning your pool as efficiently as it needs to be cleaned.
2. It's expected that one day they'll give up the ghost and you'll have to replace them. There's a danger that they'll both go at the same time, when you'll have no funds behind you to sort out the mess. Your pool pump, filtration and cleaning system are the reason it looks so sparkling clean. As a pool owner, you may well have let your duties slide a little bit from time to time. Imagine if you had no choice but to wait for a replacement, and all the while your pool is descending into something resembling a green primordial soup.
3. New technologies are constantly being created and developed specifically to make your life a lot easier. If you're using an old-fashion vacuum that you have to push around the bottom of a pool with a pole then it's definitely time to move on. Newer models of automated pool vacuums are efficient and more hands-free than ever before.
4. The time you spend on your pool maintenance is only going to grow the more you put off replacing your system. With innovations such as leaf eater attachments for your vacuum and salt water chlorinators, the time you spend on pool cleaning and maintenance can be cut down to a fraction.
5. As with all new technologies, the pool maintenance industry is creating more environmentally friendly products. A new cleaner and filtration system uses less energy (saving you money) and is more efficient at its job.
6. If your pool pump is old and cranky, it's likely that it's making a lot of noise. You could simply replace the motor, but it's only a matter of time before the rest of the pump begins to perish.
7. If you're replacing one part of your pool's system, perhaps installing a salt chlorinator or new vacuum, think about its compatibility with your current system. Old and new technologies will not necessarily mix well. Replacing the whole system may seem costly at the time, but it will ensure that all parts of your system are running smoothly and at their best.

There are multiple reasons to replace your current system, but it boils down to the simple idea that a new, more efficient cleaning and filtration system will do the job far better than your old one, leaving you with more time and energy to enjoy your pool.

Modern Prefab House Residence by Progetto Arquitetura & Interiores, Brazil

I love modern home design, It usually designed in prefab house style, this is my favorite residence design, located in Rio de Jeneiro, Brazil. this stunning residence has been designed by Progetto Arquitetura & Interiores. The idea of this project was to combine both the indoor and the outdoor areas using a contemporary architecture, and the result is an expanded area for different activities that feels part of the entire residence. This residence has three main levels: the kitchen, living and dining areas on the bottom floor and the bedrooms and private areas on the top.

Get Wamrth and Beauty Living Room Designs with Hardwood Floors

 I love a simple and natural living room designs, designing a simple house can be start from choosing the materials of the floors, one of the best choice on floor plan is the hardwood floor. Hardwood floors are popular and it is easy care and cleaning, great style coupled with durability and as always, they’re natural and safe for the environment. They are extremely good and have some great benefits as well as being impressive to look at as well. Hardwood can also improve the warmth and the beauty of the living room. If you take proper care of your hardwood floors, they will last for years and years. A lot of homeowners make the choice of using hardwood floors in their home compared to using traditional carpets or other material’s flooring.

 In order to get a natural but modern look of the hardwood floor, you can choose a hardwood with tile style, a hardwood that designed in a special style so the hardwood looks like a tile. Its can reflects the traditionally warm aesthetics and high-performance, making them the favorite choice of homeowners, its also can

enabling a unique antique look once the floor is installed.

 Now we need to know about the various hardwood floorings available in the market.

The original form of hardwood flooring is the solid wood where strips, parquets and planks of solid wood are available. But laying them is a tough job and there is no chance that you can do it yourself. It is very hardy and if maintained with just a little bit of care, it can last generations.

But people avoid original hardwood flooring because of its cost and difficulty in laying. So they go for engineered wood. Engineered wood is wood and not wood at the same time. It is layers of wood veneer fused together. Good quality wood and bad quality wood are used in manufacture of this material and hence the lower cost. Other advantages are that you can get many designs and textures and these floorings are especially engineered to withstand different weather conditions, chemicals, temperatures and humidity.

Among the toughest of the engineered hardwood floors are the ones where planks of hardwood are given an acrylic coating. This coating makes them resistance to scratches. So the surface stays intact for a long time. So this flooring is very useful for areas with high footfall. Hardwood flooring is also available in two types – the pre-finished and unfinished types. The pre-finished type of hardwood flooring is easy to lay and you can even do it yourself with proper tools.

Green Bedroom Decor for Small Bedroom Designs

Green is a fresh color that can be applied in any interior painting, make the interior looks gorgeous and cozy decorating ideas. A green color on bedroom designs can be well combined with white and natural wicker. Its a dreamy bedroom design.

 

Verandas and landscapes- How to create a beautiful exterior and a great living space

Landscaping has become one of the favorite DIY and design trends in recent years, and it’s also become an area of design which is considered somehow unaffordable. That’s way off the mark. You can add a lot to your home environment, with just simple but versatile verandas or pergolas. You can also do your design in affordable stages, and reduce outlays to suit your budget.

Landscaping and verandas
Landscaping is actually based on features. The elements of design will be relatively simple.
For example:
• Lawn
• Garden beds
• Rockeries
• Fountain
• Border features and fencing
The idea is that a veranda will complement these features, and provide a transitional environment from the house to the garden landscaping. The designs are naturally interlinked.
If you’ve seen those fabulous old style verandas which seem to create another part of the garden, all decked out with hanging pots, the faithful old family table and bric a brac, you’ll know the design mix a veranda can achieve. It’s not as difficult as it looks. Modern verandas have morphed into a design feature of much the same kind, just slightly more complex.
The modern veranda is now part veranda, part living space, and often enclosed to some degree. This is the “sunroom effect”, based on the fact that many sunrooms usually started as verandas, and people liked them so much they evolved into home extensions.
Design structure
Whatever sort of veranda you have, you can reinvent it into any form, and scape around it as you wish. Forget the mythology of massive expense and unspeakably fashionable bruises to your house budget. The design structure for mixing landscaping and verandas is extremely simple and you can do it at your own speed and on any budget.
You need:
A concept and a look to work with. Pro landscapers work with a plan from the start, and they just develop it into a landscape design.
For example:
The veranda faces south with a nice view. It’s a solid timber design, aged treated pine. It gets heat in one season and cold in another. The basic concept is to provide screening while keeping the view. The homeowner starts by installing some box frame covers with adjustable screens, very cheap, made to measure.
The screens also shield the house from hot and cold. The landscaping, external, now uses plantings to create further cover, like an ivy trellis, a few Chinese pines (small trees which as so beautiful they fit any design and are absolutely zero maintenance.)and some trees outside the view which also function as flower beds while blocking out the hot glare and sun angles and the cold blasts.
Net cost? Some time, but not a lot of money. The result is a beautiful landscape, made to personal tastes, and an upgraded, all-weather veranda.

One of the most loved landscaping icons, pergolas are an additional cover feature, and you can produce the most beautiful covered paths with a pergola, using roses, bougainvilleas, and other climbers.
If you want your place landscaped your way, start with your veranda, and consider what you’d like. The rest is incredible fun