By: Lanny McInnes
With the school year winding down and summer officially here, many Manitobans have their plans for the season already set.
Enjoying outdoor activities as much as we can, taking some well-earned vacation time or enjoying a weekend getaway is always high on people’s priority lists over the summer, which actually makes July and August a great time to get indoor renovations out of the way before the fall and the return of shorter days and colder weather.
Usually we think of summer home renovations as tackling outdoor projects such as new decks, new windows, yard landscaping, new siding or painting and so forth. Such projects add to the functionality and appeal of the exterior of our homes.
But the summer months are a great time to schedule any major interior renovations that you may be planning.
For example, if you are planning on hiring a renovator to build your dream kitchen, remodel a bathroom or create the ultimate rec room in your basement, having that work done when it causes the least amount of disruption in your home makes tremendous sense.
It’s during the summer months when you usually use these parts of your home the least.
For most kitchen renovations, it is the time you spend without a fully functioning kitchen that is the biggest inconvenience. Usually, you try to make the time you don’t have full access to your refrigerator, stove and kitchen sink as short as possible.
But it can be far less of an inconvenience during the summer.
Many people enjoy barbecuing and eating on their patios or decks during the summer months.
This takes the sting out of losing the use of your oven and stove top while renovations to the kitchen or dining room are being done.
For renovations to indoor entertaining areas such as a family room or basement rec room, the same idea would apply.
Summer evenings lend themselves to entertaining outside or spending time enjoying outdoor activities. This reduces the need to entertain in your basement rec room in August.
The need for indoor entertaining certainly becomes far greater during the colder fall and winter months.
So, for those who don’t spend much time in their basement during the summer, August is the perfect time to give it a makeover.
Tackling a bathroom renovation or plumbing project during the summer will also ensure you avoid any issues that a sudden drop in temperature can cause at other times of the year.
And if you are able to get away for a week or two of summer vacation, any inconvenience that a home renovation project may cause becomes non-existent.
The summer months are also usually the most convenient time to have any furnace maintenance or duct cleaning done. Ensuring your furnace is in tip-top shape before the temperature dips is always a smart idea.
For a whole host of reasons, summertime isn’t just for sprucing up the backyard or giving the house a fresh coat of paint. It can be the best and most strategic time to tackle that indoor project you’ve been planning.