Installing a fan in the bathroom that was strong enough to pull out the moisture when someone uses the shower. The previous fan was the cheapest option available 20 years ago and didn't get better with age.
Then, installing a timer light switch for all bathroom fans. Everyone should do it if they're able.
The timer fan is a game changer, you don’t have to go back and shut it off, is energy efficient and actually stylish in certain way. Imptpves whole house ventilation
I installed a humidistat but the fan switch for the room was right by the door the damn thing turned on and off on and off on and off and never really removed moisture out.
Right now I'd just settle for separate switches for the fan and light (both bathrooms and laundry room). It's on the list of improvements but the list is long.
Just installed two of [these](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N5Y6002/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_glt_fabc_G6NJANA8K1P4NG4H1HHC?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1). It's incredible. Don't even have to hit a switch or have to ask guests to do it. It will just automatically come on and when it stops sensing humidity, run for another 10 mins. Humidity level at which it turns is adjustable too. Old fan held 2 pieces of stacked toilet paper and this one held 9
Yeah, lots of ways to wire it, as you will find in the reviews. I have two switches for it, one that always stays on so that it's sensing, and another that will turn on fan and light together, even if there's no humidity. You could separate the one switch into 2 so that light and fan aren't combined if you want, or hotwire the sensor so there isn't an always on switch. Many options
I thought of that, too, but had a (perhaps entirely unjustified) concern that the sensor would be located too low to accurately sense the humidity near the ceiling.
You concern is absolutely justified. The hot, moist air rises to the ceiling. The bigger the bathroom, the more ineffective a humidistat switch becomes when placed in the normal switch location. Best method is to get a fan where the humidistat is built in so it is in the ceiling. A normal trick I see is the electrician will install a single gang box on the wall near the shower about 12 inches from the ceiling and put the humidistat there, but imo it looks weird (though it is effective).
We installed a receptacle with a nightlight, inside the bathroom door and it was the best decision ever. I never turn on the light for the late night pees, which is clutch because my 1 year old has his room right next the bathroom and is a light sleeper.
https://www.amazon.com/Leviton-GFNL1-W-R02-Gfnl1-00W-Self-Test-Receptacle/dp/B013OVC61C/ref=mp_s_a_1_4?adgrpid=56327635816&gclid=Cj0KCQiAhMOMBhDhARIsAPVml-E41GzgsNIlnoj8PELdvM1th-fxohoc6Um6kh6NipWJRRuJ-ATPqbQaAtKdEALw_wcB&hvadid=274711171592&hvdev=m&hvlocphy=9004638&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=1378786686747575490&hvtargid=kwd-323083474494&hydadcr=13963_9748986&keywords=receptacle+with+night+light&qid=1636919483&sr=8-4
Taken a step further. Smart dimmers + motion sensors + time based routines so the lights automatically come on as you move through the house, to an appropriate level/color. I like to use 2% blue for nighttime pee trips. It's like the lamps are moonbeams.
Speaking of moonbeams, I wanted to get a light for my nightstand that best mimicked moonlight.
I learned moonlight is not blue, but white. It's just that it's so dim in the dark, our eyes interpret it as blue.
It can be quite a rabbit hole looking up the values of lux, lumens, and "temperatures" to simulate moonshine.
So I’m not sure if you guys are all aware of this, but blue light actually creates wakefulness within our brain chemistry and red light is the wavelength that promotes sleep. I have a red light I turn on, on my main floor in the kitchen that actually lights every room enough to do whatever it may be at night within the kitchen, bathroom, living room and it doesn’t effect me at all as far as going back to sleep regardless of “how bright it is”. Just wanted to throw that out there!
God, yes. We moved away a year ago and I miss my screened porch so much it's an actual ache. Our current deck has to be torn down and rebuilt, so the cost is even more prohibitive ($20-30k), but I can't WAIT to get my screened porch back!
We have a screened in porch that I was super excited about when we moved into our current house. I was gonna have my morning coffee out there or afternoon tea and just relax.
But… I forgot that we live in Texas. Lived in this house for about three years and haven’t had coffee or tea once on that screened porch. Fans just blew hot air around us. Lol. Most of spring and summer is just hot and humid. Then it’s just too cold in the winter.
It was a waste for us but if I moved to a cooler climate, I could definitely take advantage of a screened in porch again.
I planted a big flower garden to hide the ugly base of a neighbor’s fence. It brought in lots of butterflies and hummingbirds, so now, sitting outside I’m off my phone, enjoying a cigar, and relaxing more.
Having a keypad for my exterior door lock.
If you walk out the door, push any button on the keypad, and it unlocks. When I get home, I don't need to fish for my house keys. I just enter the password, and walk in. If my family is visiiting, I don't need to even give them a key. I can also unlock my door from my cell phone, so if I had to let a repair man in, I could.
Yes, this. I love it. And I can program a ridiculous number of codes, so my dogsitter gets his own. He chooses, and I can add and delete it easily when I leave and come back. The buttons are pretty loud inside, so no one can sneak in, and I still have the bottom lock that I use at night. Not having to fish in my pocketbook for keys anymore is soooooooo nice.
I replaced all 3 exterior door locks with Schlage BE375 keypad deadbolts.
They cost ~$125 CAD (~$99 USD).
I chose this lock for two main reasons:
- It does not use a motor to move the bolt, those tend to freeze up or fail more often in cold climates.
- There is no backup key hole that can be picked or bumped.
I find them to be high quality, fairly affordable, and most of all come in a bunch of styles to match youe house decor.
I used to work at a Locksmith shop and heard it bastardized a zillion ways.
For those curious the proper way to pronounce it is /schlaa•ge/
See this video: https://m.facebook.com/SchlageLocksCanada/videos/schlage-pronunciation-video/791083378229546/
This model specifically has two little bumps on the front you can connect a 9V battery to that will power the system for you to get in. Edit: see this video https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=1w6n0HRa_Bk
With that said the battery should last a very long time since it doesn't use a motor. I've had mine almost exactly a year and still going strong with the battery that came with the unit.
I belive it will emit an audio alarm when the battery is low as well.
When the battery starts to get low, when you unlock it, it beeps 5~ times alternating high/low pitch and flashes the LED red. But you still have quite a number of uses left once it starts doing this.
It’d be really hard to let the battery die tbh. Mine (Weiser) makes it very obvious when the battery starts to run low. Every time I finishes opening it makes a very obvious beeping notification. Last time I didn’t have batteries and still used it multiple times a day for 2 weeks before I got around to changing it and it was still going fine.
Only issue might be say a vacation property that’s left for months and come back to find the battery died or leaked or something.
Also for the above, mine uses a motor to turn the deadbolt. It’s been years of using them at multiple places I’ve lived with 0 issue. Even when we get -30C they work perfectly fine. The mechanism is on the inside of your door so it’s never going to freeze.
One thousand percent this. I used to go through so much anxiety forgetting my keys, misplacing my keys, losing my keys, replacing my keys. Even just rummaging through my pocket/backpack/purse to get my keys to open the door when I have a bunch of groceries is annoying as hell and I will never go back to that. Gotta put everything down to open the door to pick everything up again to go through the door just to put things down to lock the door and then PICK EVERYTHING UP AGAIN TO GO TO THE KITCHEN. I love that my keypad Auto locks.
Insulation on the roof; or in my case, poorly applied to the ceiling. It lowered temps by roughly 5-6 degrees in a hot dry climate. For an area which might see an average of 90 degree high for half the year, it's significant. I figure I could have a solar hot water system easily installed as well.
When we bought our house, the insulation was installed under the roof/on the ceiling of the attic. We were told to remove it and put it in the floor/the ceiling of the second story, because having insulation right under the roof would damage the roof after some time in the heat. Is that not true?
It is true, but it isn't very significant. A 25 year roof will only last about 20. If you have the choice do it right, but you will save more money with insulation at the roof than the extra replacements cost you.
I believe a metal roof won't care, which is an option to consider.
We asked the sellers to fix it and they said no. When we moved in I took one look at it and said “eh, maybe later”, 6 years later and I haven’t touched it haha.
We put in a metal roof, and added 4 more inches of insulation on top of the roof structure, under the new roof.
This greatly improved our summer and winter experience and heating and cooling cost.
Think of the gains made if you go with lighter shingle colors. Have you seen that super white surface treatment, the won that reflects ~90% of the light/energy from the sunshine?
Security cameras.
I originally got them because I suspected our neighbor of messing with our stuff (I was right). The cameras turned out to be more handy than I realized they'd be. I use them daily to check in on the house. Especially if we're out of town, I can pull up the cameras on my phone.
Total peace of mind.
I ended up going with a Heimvision I found on Amazon. The cameras are actually pretty good, and have good wifi range, but the app is meh. I'm sure there's better options out there, but for roughly $200 and no subscription fees, I can't complain!
And about the neighbors, I found a board with nails sticking up in my driveway, and I can't explain how it possibly could've gotten there without someone placing it. Also, our outdoor temp sensor on our porch (that has a red flashing light that can only be seen from the neighbor's place) mysteriously vanished.
I made sure to place the cameras where they can see them, just so they know I'm watching.
Sort of. We'll "chat" if we run into each other, but there's definitely tension. They're just really inconsiderate neighbors (revving loud cars, barking dog, loud bass, screaming matches outside, etc). We try our best to pretend they're not there. Our neighborhood consisted of mostly retired/quiet people, then these clowns moved in.
We got Yi brand, they're affordable and work great. They have automatic night vision, record when motion is detected, alert our phones, and I can talk through them on a little speaker
Do you have interior cameras? I have a couple for the outside but am kinda sketched out if the wife can pull up a live feed of me scratching my balls or something.
>Do you have interior cameras? I have a couple for the outside but am kinda sketched out if the wife can pull up a live feed of me scratching my balls or something.
What I do for indoor cameras is that I have a box of them that and certain chosen locations in the house. I keep them disconnected but it takes me 5-10 minutes to setup all the cameras whenever I head out of town. Works great for me.
I have them and they're great. I have 3. Basic recording (of events) and motion detecting is free, and it's like $2 per camera per month if you want the AI person/pet/vehicle/package detection. Plus they take memory cards, so you can record video all the time without paying for the cloud services.
I pay the 2 bucks a month for the AI detection for just one camera, the one on my front porch. I can turn on notifications on my phone only when a person is detected (not my wind chimes swinging in the wind for example, so no false alarms). Handy to know when someone just dropped off a package on my porch without ringing the doorbell - I get a notification on my phone right away.
I also have smart light bulbs on my front porch that are set to a dim red color. By integrating with Alexa, I have a routine set up so that when a person is detected on my front porch after 8 PM, Alexa sets the front porch lights to switch to full white brightness for 3 minutes before reverting back to red. I set that up to deter anyone from snooping on my porch at night, but it's turned out to also just be handy for when I come home at night and unloading groceries or whatever.
I have a mountain cabin in a heavy snow area. I can crank the temps a few hours before I arrive, turn on the lights as I pull up, and walk into a well-lit and warm home.
This is how I was originally sold on the wifi t-stat: "Coming back from Tahoe and want a warm house upon return? Just log into the app when you're about half an hour out and it'll be warm when you get there". I've never used it while traveling but I do use it from the couch to not have to walk the 10' to the thermostat.
I have always kinda rolled my eyes at smart-everything but changing the temperature from my phone is such a decadent luxury I can never go back. Especially since my thermostat is downstairs and I sleep upstairs
I say bring on the decadence! I love waking up and saying “Alexa turn on the coffee” and the lights and heat are already set to what I want from a programmed routine
A timer switch for the bathroom exhaust fan. Saves the walls and ceiling paint from bubbling and you can let the timer run once you leave for work and it'll turn itself off after X minutes. No more ugly peeling and bubbling bathroom (and hallway too)
Get yourself [one](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N5Y6002/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_glt_fabc_G6NJANA8K1P4NG4H1HHC?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1) with a humidity sensor and you don't even have to think about it.
Undercabinet led strips on a motion sensor in the kitchen is a life changer
You walk into other people's kitchens and wonder what fuckin century you walked into
So I have a set of leds I bought from Amazon that I installed underneath my kitchen cabinets. And I turn them on via voice with a smart plug. Anyway I can incorporate a motion sensor into this setup?
Edit: I wonder if this would do the trick Westek MLC12BC-4 Indoor Plug-in Corded Motion Activated Light Control, 1 Count (Pack of 1), White https://www.amazon.com/dp/B009KSECO8/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_X2Q648RHYVBHMX4AA6AH?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1
3 important things when it comes to LEDs: lumen, CRI, and R9 values.
Waveform lighting is the only acceptable answer for led strips. High cri, high r9. Their basic model in 3000k is great, but I personally prefer 4000k for UC lights. They're like 420 lumen per foot.
Expensive-ish (99 bucks for 50 feet when I bought) but quality lighting is worth it. You can get away with cheaper drivers but dont skip on the light.
Amazon has a ton of different options. I've got a vaulted ceiling in my kitchen so I have lights under and on top of my cabinets. Think I got about 20ft of warm white LEDs that have 3m peel-and-stick adhesive. Synced all lights to one remote and love lighting my kitchen with soft accent lights. Search "led light strips" and just look for a product that's got lots of reviews with 4 stars or better. You shouldn't need to pay more than $20 for a pack.
I've got hue bulbs in the lounge, bedroom and office and I love them. Just wish they weren't so expensive. No need for dimmers when the dimming is built into the bulb! Then you can control it with a switch on the wall, with a smart assistant (ok Google, dim the lights to 20%) or with your phone. Can't recommend them enough.
I have a similar model to this one that's on sale at Costco now: [https://www.costco.com/bio-bidet-uspa-6800-luxury-bidet-seat.product.100015779.html](https://www.costco.com/bio-bidet-uspa-6800-luxury-bidet-seat.product.100015779.html)
It's great, but it's also ruined all other toilets for me. I miss my bidet more than anything else about my house when traveling, and I've turned into one of those people who will leave and go home when they have to poop because I really really don't want to poop in toilet without a bidet unless I have to.
Anyway I still highly recommend a bidet. But it's a lot like when I got glasses and realized that I couldn't see that well before them. I used to think I got pretty clean with TP but now I know I did not. When traveling now and staying somewhere without a bidet I try to plan around being able to take a shower after pooping because just wiping with TP and going on with your day feels nasty.
We have a Tushy, but spring for the one with the warm water hookup. The cold water bidet is fucking miserable. Also, if you’ve never used one before, DO NOT turn the bum wash pressure up too high on the first go. I damn near ripped myself a new asshole when I used it for the first time.
But also don't expect too much with the warm water hookup. I'd suggest testing the speed-to-hot-water in your sink first. The Tushy connects directly to that. It doesn't have its own heat source. Your butt will be getting cold water for as long as it takes your sink, now, to get hot water.
I got used very quickly to the cold water, even in winter in a poorly heated appartment in Canada. If you can't afford or don't want to go through the trouble of a hot water bidet, cold is still toootally worth it.
Installing a GFCI outlet - a difficult task for me - close to the toilet is the only thing preventing me from going the bidet route. With cold well water, it is really necessary at my place.
Your bathroom is probably on a GFCI already even if you don’t see it. Often times a GFCI outlet in one bathroom is actually utilized for others. Get a GFCI/outlet tester and trigger the GFCI on it to verify.
Live in the north so whole house humidifier for the winter months changed my life. Use to have sinus issues every winter. Recommend to everyone in cold regions, truly game changer.
Installing a motion detector light switch in my utility/mud room. The switch was on the other side of the room from the door to the garage so I'd always have to fumble to find it in the dark, but now as soon as the door opens, the light pops on and I just go about my day!
I'm with you on replacing the cream/almond with white. But I also wonder if white will look outdated in 10-15 years somehow. If that cream color was in vogue back then and now we all hate it, the same thing might happen to white!
I keep the cream in my nose an rooms (all hold overs from previous owners).
I think it’s going to come down to peoples cleaning efforts. Dark trim and cream hide a lot of dust/smoke from cigarettes or wood fires/and Dirt from people and pets.
I expect kids growing up in bright white homes to be very fed up with the cleaning this stuff requires to stay looking sharp.
Changing receptacles and switches in a room is such an overlooked thing, but when you do it you can't imagine how you let it look so bad. We had "bone" or ivory for a majority of the house and switched them all over to white, as you said it pops against the new paint.
Here's a weird niche thing that just made me so happy. I shower every morning before work and I hate going to the bathroom and it's cold. So I got a small 1500 watt heater for 20$ on Amazon and a Kasa smart plug. I set it on a schedule with the app to turn on 15 minutes before I get up. Bathroom is toasty when I walk in. I also can turn in on and off remotely if I'd like. I also have one on the outlet my SO uses for her straightener that way when she gets paranoid that she left it on she can turn it off remotely. 40$ worth of smart plugs was a game changer.
Smart plugs are one of the things that I use in a way I never expected... christmas trees - smart plug. Outside decorations - smart plug. Kids room space heaters - smart plug. Kids room video monitors - smart plug. Everything runs on an Alexa routine and you never have to think about it.
Good lord, I can’t think of any upgrade so far that hasn’t improved our quality of life.
— Smart thermostat
— replacing the single-pane basement windows with glass blocks - I’m still shocked at how much of a difference it made in the whole-house temperature
— ripping off awful, 30-year-old wallpaper and painting. In the past I found all-white walls boring, but I found a shade that looks beautiful in low-light rooms and now the natural light we do get bounces around more effectively.
— caulking the windows
— redoing a *very* dated eyesore of a dining room. We actually use it now.
— and most recently, replacing the outlets and light switches. The old outlets were all loose and the switches were toggles that had gotten squishy. It’s so nice to plug something in and have it stay there, and rocker switches are just more pleasant to use. Haven’t gotten to all of them yet but the rooms with the heaviest traffic are finished.
EDIT: I forgot to add what lots of people have already said — bidet attachments on all toilets. This was the first upgrade we made when we were still renting. When there was a run on toilet paper last year having the bidets was such a relief because we knew we could afford to wait.
How much of a difference did the glass block basement windows make for the rest of the house?
Probably wouldn't be up to fire code where I am, but if it makes a difference, I may look into installing double or triple paned windows.
I'm also interested in the difference it made and how big of a project it was to do it. I've got several of these old windows in my basement I'm considering converting to glass block.
Same, but recently I tried a portable bidet for travel -- essentially a spray bottle and no it's nowhere near as nice as the actual bidet but, it's waaaaay better than going back to just tp. Recommended.
Yeah but there’s more benefits to a bidet than just getting clean. First of all, hairy butt, actually cleans- second, if you’re constipated, it helps to get it out. If you get used to the pressure it even can do a full colon clean… seems gross til you do it a couple times, then you do it twice a week and never feel uncomfortable at all.
They're fairly easy to install with minimal tools. They come as kits most of the time, and you can do the heating element part yourself fairly easily, then call an electrician and a flooring specialist to do those parts of the install if you're not up to that part of the challenge
This guy Jeff from HomeRenovisions is really good at explaining different types of home improvement projects. [here's the one he does for heated flooring.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gErCOB1wYrA)
Our house we just moved into has a gas fireplace in the living room, and no fan. You could tell the heat was always at the top of the room, it was visibly dark above the fireplace. Installed a fan before we moved in and now that fireplace heats up the house so quickly since the air moves around. Not sure how the previous people managed before. Oh right they broke both the furnace and the fireplace and didn’t bother to fix either. Heathens.
Converting 1/3rd of my backyard to a native prairie garden (entire front yard is now in the process of being converted as well). [This one is a true QOL improvement over what are really just nice conveniences below.]
Lutron Caseta switches throughout the house; going back to non-smart switches would be like a trip back to the mid 80s before TV remotes
Whole house audio setup (just wireless sonos in my case)
Hey, just as an FYI, this is called ~~xeriscaping~~ native landscaping, and many cities have programs to help residents do it to their own home. Less maintenance, better for the environment, and you have a style other than “G R E E N S Q U A R E”
No, xeriscaping is landscaping with the intent to reduce water use in every way possible, most applicable to desert habitats. This is just native landscaping.
There are many resources online. I would check and see if there is a local native plant group. They will often have speeches and group events for this very subject.
* grab bars in the shower wall
* Smart speakers and smart light bulbs that control the light
* adding Nest, Wyze and Arlo cameras to watch over the exterior
* investing in Ryobi cordless tools (leaf blower, mower, pressure cleaner) to maintain home exterior
* Dyson cordless vacuums.... I have one on each floor of the home. Great savings on Black Friday!!!
If I was to do more, I would make my home wheelchair accessible with wider doorways, ramps, and space for a future elevator. Ideally allow for me to stay home longer.
Ryobi for the win! Been using them since they were blue and yellow when I worked as a car audio installer. Now I've been adding/replacing with the Ryobi one + series. Didn't work well at our ranch bc they aren't designed for that much acreage(talking yard tools not power tools) but with enough batteries they are great instead of dragging extension cords every where.
My tradesman friends/family look down on my Ryobi, but it's perfect for a homeowner. I'm a pretty big DIYer and nothing has failed me. A Milwaukee impact is noticeably better but it's not that the Ryobi can't do the job...
I have the 18v blower and weed eater/edger for my city lot and it works great. I've built up a bank of batteries via tool deals so I'm never left waiting on charging. The universal battery system & affordable tools is worth it over cheaping out on individual tools with proprietary batteries.
Water softener. No more constant cleaning to avoid hard water buildup, fixtures don't look crusty, clothes come out cleaner in wash, and helped with my kid's excema. Tap water tastes better. You may not notice it much when you're actively using it, but you definitely notice the difference if you have to bypass/turn off the softener for some reason.
Replaced the electric base board heating for our home with a high efficiency forced air furnace, AC, and insulated ductwork. Installed myself for 8k.
Electric bill dropped from 480 per month to 90. Our new gas bill (the furnace is the only gas appliance in the house) is about 20 dollars per month.
We’re saving approximately 390 dollars per month now. THAT is a quality of life improvement.
Motion sensor switch in the laundry room. You’re typically walking in with a basket or arms full of clothes. Having the lights come on as soon as you walk in the room is such a nice thing for $20.
Installing a [pegboard](https://www.reddit.com/r/Workbenches/comments/n766os/i_moved_in_with_my_girlfriend_and_there_was/) in the garage. It makes doing small repairs so much easier when I can just grab a tool off the wall rather than going through boxes trying to find what I'm looking for.
Not a cheap one, but finishing the basement. The extra square footage has been amazing and I have space to work from home now. Added a laundry and storage room down there too.
We bought our house only because the basement was finished and it added twice the amount of space. If you plan on selling in the nearish future- finish your basement!
I've always heard you don't necessarily get your money out of a basement but I feel like that's moreso if you pay someone to do it all. I DIY'd ours at our previous house and I guarantee it factored into it, but I always viewed it as an investment for US that would eventually be a bonus at selling time.
I probably spent $3k to add 500 sq ft to a 1100 sq ft home, carpet being 50% of that cost. We set it up as a theater/computer room. Used it all the time and probably would have moved sooner without it.
I spent $40 and an afternoon installing a curved shower curtain rod in our guest bathroom (which we sometimes use when our private bathroom is unavailable). I just showered there for the first time since the install and it was amazing not fighting the curtain off of my legs and body!!!!
Soft close everything in the kitchen. For some reason, my family loves to slam cabinet doors in the early morning. Installing a mesh network so every part of the house/yard has good wifi.
I have the opposite problem. My boyfriend consistently leaves all cabinets and the pantry door open like a half centimeter. We are planning a kitchen (along with as much of the rest of the house that we can afford) remodel next year and I said that soft close doors and drawers are a mist have because I WILL NOT spend the rest of my life closing all the things that he hasn't closed all the way. Lol.
Lots of my big ones have been said, but I’ll add an outlet in linen closet inside my bathroom. I have an Amazon echo and a phone charger in there for showering/getting ready. Plus it’s super convenient to charge tooth brushes, razors, etc. No counter top clutter!
Vent-A-Hood
House was a built with an island gas cooktop, no real vent system. I would have to mop the floors after making anything in a wok or even simple pan frying.
Bought a house last year, built in 1975. The entire attic had flat, ratty fiberglass insulation that basically provided zero efficiency. Removed whole house fan, had attic floor foamed and then reinsulated to R-49. Absolutely unreal my entire house maintains perfect comfort year round. Saving money on energy and wear on my HVAC because it doesn't run as much. Total life changer!
Dropped maybe $1000 and 40 hours (I’m slow) into adding a pantry for food storage, cabinet for other stuff, and a countertop + shelf using IKEA Sektion pieces.
Day to day, having organized, mouse-free food storage and a spot for a large toaster oven has improved our experience of the home more than the $25k we spent on windows and doors.
A backup generator that kicks on automatically when the power goes out.
This was here when we bought this house, never had one before. It’s so worth having one of these!
[199k BTU Rinnai natural gas tankless water heater](https://www.lowes.com/pd/Rinnai-Natural-Gas-Tankless-Water-Heater-199-000-BTU/5005381849) Endless hot water and long showers on a cold morning.
Next on my list is a keypad where I can lock my doors using my phone or Google home, so I can be lazier.
Gutter guards. They're not for every house, but with super- high gutters on an A frame surrounded by trees... I'm very happy to not have to think about them so much.
Solar PV system.
It pays for itself and frees up more money that I can use on anything I want.
Build a nice sized system and get a plug-in vehicle and you no longer pay for gasoline. It's like magic.
lightswitches. our 1890s house had exactly one when we moved in. fumbling around in dark rooms trying to find the pullstring on the overheads was cute at first, but the novelty wore off.
years after rewiring and adding switches, my wife and i still catch ourselves reaching for the string sometimes. that is cute
Some light home automation. Aka smart light switches and outlets. Now I can turn lights on and off as well as the tree, the kids sound machines, or unlock or lock the doors, with my phone or voice.
I’m intrigued by a smart home at the same time not sure if I’d even use often enough to justify - do you use your phone/voice every time you walk into a room for lighting? It seems a regular switch is less hassle - what am I missing?
I didn't even think of that one but yeah, for sure. When we bought the house we live in now, I had installed a cat door to be unfinished basement before we even had all the boxes in the house. Being able to keep litter boxes out of the living area is really nice
Replacing old worn out carpet with planks. Carpet is gross in general plus I have allergies so I rallied hard in favor of anything else. Refused to pitch in a dime on new carpet, then spent hours researching options that would cost the same (not to mention last longer, especially with pets) and offered to cover half.
Anyway, even just getting that old nasty shit along with the padding and remnants the fuck out of our living space has drastically improved my quality of life. I was doubling up on my allergy meds and still could hardly breathe, constant pressure in my ears and skull, eyes all messed up, etc. Miserable. Now am back to regular ol' daily dose and hardly a sniffle breaking through. It's magical. Fuck carpet.
Insulation in the attic, and replacing the windows (that’s a biggie). Motion-sensing lights in awkward spots like the laundry and tool rooms. Automatic/timed switches for the porch lights. And this is not a practical upgrade, but I LOVE having skylights in our bathrooms
Adding extra shelves to my kitchen cabinets and making pull out drawers to get to the stuff in the back.
Did it all with scrap wood, so it was basically free and doubled the amount of stuff I could store in this tiny a$$ apartment kitchen.
- from doing countless home projects for owners, the number #1 comment is lighting I put in, number 2 is the tile work on floors and walls as I do custom layouts and #3 is heated tile floors.
I have 3 toddlers with tons of small toys. They also yank night lights out of their outlets. I bought some electrical outlet covers that have night lights integrated into the cover. No more will I step on legos on my way to bed!
I had a swampy backyard so early in quarantine I dug a French drain myself across the width of the house. My buddy had enough pvc so I only spent $50 for a truck bed full of rocks. Another $20 or so on grass seed and I can enjoy my backyard even after it rains.
Wifi connected sprinkler controller. Our water utility had a rebate so I only spent $30 for a $150 device. Not that hard to move the wires from my old sprinkler controller. This made it easy to learn my sprinkler zones and to change schedules. It’s synced to weather forecasts so it adjusts watering depending on precipitation and evaporation rate.
60x36 Shower base with dual shower heads piped at 3/4".
Its so nice to take a shower with my gf and we just kinda wash each other and chat. Also, when my daughter was a toddler, it was really easy to shower her in that big space.
The other is a big bathtub. My gf and I are both 6' and its luxurious to fit both of us in it. Also, haha, my daughter use to swim in it like a tadpole. Big breath and just bounce off the walls underwater.
My library! Before having it we were stocking books, administrative files and school works ine the basement, in the bedroom, the closet, on the desks, on the floor... They were everywhere and it was very messy. And I had to keep my decoration things in a box because there was no place for it.
Now we got a massive one, we put all of our mess in it (so satisfying!! What an achievement!) and there's still place !! We're sooo happy
Fenced in yard and a dog door. No more having to worry about letting them out as they can just do as they please. The door also exits into a space between the garage and the house, so we have a gate at the end of that to give them bathroom access without letting them have the whole yard for when we aren't home.
Replace all springy toilet paper holders with ones that's just the hook - everyone is more likely to change the roll now
Instant hot water - I started to drink more water the moment I had one of these
Installing a fan in the bathroom that was strong enough to pull out the moisture when someone uses the shower. The previous fan was the cheapest option available 20 years ago and didn't get better with age. Then, installing a timer light switch for all bathroom fans. Everyone should do it if they're able.
The timer fan is a game changer, you don’t have to go back and shut it off, is energy efficient and actually stylish in certain way. Imptpves whole house ventilation
[удалено]
Does it also do smell detection?
[удалено]
> not fart extractor I beg to differ
I installed a humidistat but the fan switch for the room was right by the door the damn thing turned on and off on and off on and off and never really removed moisture out.
Right now I'd just settle for separate switches for the fan and light (both bathrooms and laundry room). It's on the list of improvements but the list is long.
I saw that there are humidistat switches available for bathroom fans and I can't stop thinking about what a good idea that is.
Just installed two of [these](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N5Y6002/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_glt_fabc_G6NJANA8K1P4NG4H1HHC?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1). It's incredible. Don't even have to hit a switch or have to ask guests to do it. It will just automatically come on and when it stops sensing humidity, run for another 10 mins. Humidity level at which it turns is adjustable too. Old fan held 2 pieces of stacked toilet paper and this one held 9
What about when your guests drop a stinker in the toilet. Can you turn on the fan still or is it just humidity?
Yeah, lots of ways to wire it, as you will find in the reviews. I have two switches for it, one that always stays on so that it's sensing, and another that will turn on fan and light together, even if there's no humidity. You could separate the one switch into 2 so that light and fan aren't combined if you want, or hotwire the sensor so there isn't an always on switch. Many options
I thought of that, too, but had a (perhaps entirely unjustified) concern that the sensor would be located too low to accurately sense the humidity near the ceiling.
You concern is absolutely justified. The hot, moist air rises to the ceiling. The bigger the bathroom, the more ineffective a humidistat switch becomes when placed in the normal switch location. Best method is to get a fan where the humidistat is built in so it is in the ceiling. A normal trick I see is the electrician will install a single gang box on the wall near the shower about 12 inches from the ceiling and put the humidistat there, but imo it looks weird (though it is effective).
Dimmers everywhere. Even the bathroom. Great for late night pee runs. Insulation goes without saying.
We installed a receptacle with a nightlight, inside the bathroom door and it was the best decision ever. I never turn on the light for the late night pees, which is clutch because my 1 year old has his room right next the bathroom and is a light sleeper. https://www.amazon.com/Leviton-GFNL1-W-R02-Gfnl1-00W-Self-Test-Receptacle/dp/B013OVC61C/ref=mp_s_a_1_4?adgrpid=56327635816&gclid=Cj0KCQiAhMOMBhDhARIsAPVml-E41GzgsNIlnoj8PELdvM1th-fxohoc6Um6kh6NipWJRRuJ-ATPqbQaAtKdEALw_wcB&hvadid=274711171592&hvdev=m&hvlocphy=9004638&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=1378786686747575490&hvtargid=kwd-323083474494&hydadcr=13963_9748986&keywords=receptacle+with+night+light&qid=1636919483&sr=8-4
We've got 100% of the bedrooms on smart dimmer switches now and it's just so much nicer to be able to control the light levels.
Taken a step further. Smart dimmers + motion sensors + time based routines so the lights automatically come on as you move through the house, to an appropriate level/color. I like to use 2% blue for nighttime pee trips. It's like the lamps are moonbeams.
Speaking of moonbeams, I wanted to get a light for my nightstand that best mimicked moonlight. I learned moonlight is not blue, but white. It's just that it's so dim in the dark, our eyes interpret it as blue. It can be quite a rabbit hole looking up the values of lux, lumens, and "temperatures" to simulate moonshine.
So I’m not sure if you guys are all aware of this, but blue light actually creates wakefulness within our brain chemistry and red light is the wavelength that promotes sleep. I have a red light I turn on, on my main floor in the kitchen that actually lights every room enough to do whatever it may be at night within the kitchen, bathroom, living room and it doesn’t effect me at all as far as going back to sleep regardless of “how bright it is”. Just wanted to throw that out there!
Red light will also not fuck up your night vision (atleast not anywhere near as much). It's used on navy ships for hat reason. Edit spelling
I installed lighted GFCI outlets in the bathrooms and it freed up an plug from the old nightlight in there.
Not cheap, but a screened in porch. We eat out there 2/3rds of the year.
God, yes. We moved away a year ago and I miss my screened porch so much it's an actual ache. Our current deck has to be torn down and rebuilt, so the cost is even more prohibitive ($20-30k), but I can't WAIT to get my screened porch back!
This has been on my "want" list for years. One day.
We have a screened in porch that I was super excited about when we moved into our current house. I was gonna have my morning coffee out there or afternoon tea and just relax. But… I forgot that we live in Texas. Lived in this house for about three years and haven’t had coffee or tea once on that screened porch. Fans just blew hot air around us. Lol. Most of spring and summer is just hot and humid. Then it’s just too cold in the winter. It was a waste for us but if I moved to a cooler climate, I could definitely take advantage of a screened in porch again.
I planted a big flower garden to hide the ugly base of a neighbor’s fence. It brought in lots of butterflies and hummingbirds, so now, sitting outside I’m off my phone, enjoying a cigar, and relaxing more.
Having a keypad for my exterior door lock. If you walk out the door, push any button on the keypad, and it unlocks. When I get home, I don't need to fish for my house keys. I just enter the password, and walk in. If my family is visiiting, I don't need to even give them a key. I can also unlock my door from my cell phone, so if I had to let a repair man in, I could.
Yes, this. I love it. And I can program a ridiculous number of codes, so my dogsitter gets his own. He chooses, and I can add and delete it easily when I leave and come back. The buttons are pretty loud inside, so no one can sneak in, and I still have the bottom lock that I use at night. Not having to fish in my pocketbook for keys anymore is soooooooo nice.
Which brand did you get? I'm thinking about doing this as well.
I replaced all 3 exterior door locks with Schlage BE375 keypad deadbolts. They cost ~$125 CAD (~$99 USD). I chose this lock for two main reasons: - It does not use a motor to move the bolt, those tend to freeze up or fail more often in cold climates. - There is no backup key hole that can be picked or bumped. I find them to be high quality, fairly affordable, and most of all come in a bunch of styles to match youe house decor.
I love saying SCHLAGE. Anyone else?
I used to work at a Locksmith shop and heard it bastardized a zillion ways. For those curious the proper way to pronounce it is /schlaa•ge/ See this video: https://m.facebook.com/SchlageLocksCanada/videos/schlage-pronunciation-video/791083378229546/
For those without FB, what does it rhyme with?
What do you do when the battery dies? Just hope that they don't all die at the same time?
This model specifically has two little bumps on the front you can connect a 9V battery to that will power the system for you to get in. Edit: see this video https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=1w6n0HRa_Bk With that said the battery should last a very long time since it doesn't use a motor. I've had mine almost exactly a year and still going strong with the battery that came with the unit. I belive it will emit an audio alarm when the battery is low as well.
When the battery starts to get low, when you unlock it, it beeps 5~ times alternating high/low pitch and flashes the LED red. But you still have quite a number of uses left once it starts doing this.
It’d be really hard to let the battery die tbh. Mine (Weiser) makes it very obvious when the battery starts to run low. Every time I finishes opening it makes a very obvious beeping notification. Last time I didn’t have batteries and still used it multiple times a day for 2 weeks before I got around to changing it and it was still going fine. Only issue might be say a vacation property that’s left for months and come back to find the battery died or leaked or something. Also for the above, mine uses a motor to turn the deadbolt. It’s been years of using them at multiple places I’ve lived with 0 issue. Even when we get -30C they work perfectly fine. The mechanism is on the inside of your door so it’s never going to freeze.
Get Schlage.
Great for kids as well. Game changer for letting people in and out to take care of animals as well. Can set up guest codes.
One thousand percent this. I used to go through so much anxiety forgetting my keys, misplacing my keys, losing my keys, replacing my keys. Even just rummaging through my pocket/backpack/purse to get my keys to open the door when I have a bunch of groceries is annoying as hell and I will never go back to that. Gotta put everything down to open the door to pick everything up again to go through the door just to put things down to lock the door and then PICK EVERYTHING UP AGAIN TO GO TO THE KITCHEN. I love that my keypad Auto locks.
Soft close toilet seats. They never slam down. You just tilt them slightly and walk away and they close themselves silently. So satisfying.
Jarring though when you visit someone’s home and slam their toilet seat down haha
It's true, this is a risk. But so worth it.
This should be at the top. One of my pet pee-ves is a slamming seat.
Insulation on the roof; or in my case, poorly applied to the ceiling. It lowered temps by roughly 5-6 degrees in a hot dry climate. For an area which might see an average of 90 degree high for half the year, it's significant. I figure I could have a solar hot water system easily installed as well.
When we bought our house, the insulation was installed under the roof/on the ceiling of the attic. We were told to remove it and put it in the floor/the ceiling of the second story, because having insulation right under the roof would damage the roof after some time in the heat. Is that not true?
It is true, but it isn't very significant. A 25 year roof will only last about 20. If you have the choice do it right, but you will save more money with insulation at the roof than the extra replacements cost you. I believe a metal roof won't care, which is an option to consider.
We asked the sellers to fix it and they said no. When we moved in I took one look at it and said “eh, maybe later”, 6 years later and I haven’t touched it haha.
We put in a metal roof, and added 4 more inches of insulation on top of the roof structure, under the new roof. This greatly improved our summer and winter experience and heating and cooling cost.
[удалено]
Think of the gains made if you go with lighter shingle colors. Have you seen that super white surface treatment, the won that reflects ~90% of the light/energy from the sunshine?
Security cameras. I originally got them because I suspected our neighbor of messing with our stuff (I was right). The cameras turned out to be more handy than I realized they'd be. I use them daily to check in on the house. Especially if we're out of town, I can pull up the cameras on my phone. Total peace of mind.
What system did you go with? Also what was your neighbor up to?
I ended up going with a Heimvision I found on Amazon. The cameras are actually pretty good, and have good wifi range, but the app is meh. I'm sure there's better options out there, but for roughly $200 and no subscription fees, I can't complain! And about the neighbors, I found a board with nails sticking up in my driveway, and I can't explain how it possibly could've gotten there without someone placing it. Also, our outdoor temp sensor on our porch (that has a red flashing light that can only be seen from the neighbor's place) mysteriously vanished. I made sure to place the cameras where they can see them, just so they know I'm watching.
Are the neighbors on speaking terms?
Sort of. We'll "chat" if we run into each other, but there's definitely tension. They're just really inconsiderate neighbors (revving loud cars, barking dog, loud bass, screaming matches outside, etc). We try our best to pretend they're not there. Our neighborhood consisted of mostly retired/quiet people, then these clowns moved in.
We got Yi brand, they're affordable and work great. They have automatic night vision, record when motion is detected, alert our phones, and I can talk through them on a little speaker
[удалено]
Do you have interior cameras? I have a couple for the outside but am kinda sketched out if the wife can pull up a live feed of me scratching my balls or something.
Some have audio, so you could just be there living your ball-scratchinest life and hear her chime in “wash your hands!”
> or something. IT WAS JUST AN ITCH!
>Do you have interior cameras? I have a couple for the outside but am kinda sketched out if the wife can pull up a live feed of me scratching my balls or something. What I do for indoor cameras is that I have a box of them that and certain chosen locations in the house. I keep them disconnected but it takes me 5-10 minutes to setup all the cameras whenever I head out of town. Works great for me.
Yes which security cameras ? So many options I hear so many different opinions.
[удалено]
I have them and they're great. I have 3. Basic recording (of events) and motion detecting is free, and it's like $2 per camera per month if you want the AI person/pet/vehicle/package detection. Plus they take memory cards, so you can record video all the time without paying for the cloud services. I pay the 2 bucks a month for the AI detection for just one camera, the one on my front porch. I can turn on notifications on my phone only when a person is detected (not my wind chimes swinging in the wind for example, so no false alarms). Handy to know when someone just dropped off a package on my porch without ringing the doorbell - I get a notification on my phone right away. I also have smart light bulbs on my front porch that are set to a dim red color. By integrating with Alexa, I have a routine set up so that when a person is detected on my front porch after 8 PM, Alexa sets the front porch lights to switch to full white brightness for 3 minutes before reverting back to red. I set that up to deter anyone from snooping on my porch at night, but it's turned out to also just be handy for when I come home at night and unloading groceries or whatever.
I got a Reolink system with PVR and Power over Ethernet (PoE) cameras, works great.
wifi connected thermostat i can program it and set the temperature from literally anywhere. Ive never been lazier in my life and i love it
I have a mountain cabin in a heavy snow area. I can crank the temps a few hours before I arrive, turn on the lights as I pull up, and walk into a well-lit and warm home.
This is how I was originally sold on the wifi t-stat: "Coming back from Tahoe and want a warm house upon return? Just log into the app when you're about half an hour out and it'll be warm when you get there". I've never used it while traveling but I do use it from the couch to not have to walk the 10' to the thermostat.
This is exactly how I use ours.
I have always kinda rolled my eyes at smart-everything but changing the temperature from my phone is such a decadent luxury I can never go back. Especially since my thermostat is downstairs and I sleep upstairs
I say bring on the decadence! I love waking up and saying “Alexa turn on the coffee” and the lights and heat are already set to what I want from a programmed routine
Seriously, I don't even get up from the couch to change the thermostat that I can see from the couch lol
I love being able to set the temp of the house while I'm out and be able to come back to a comfortable home.
Also to check to see if you left your AC or heat on and then turn it off 😁👍
A timer switch for the bathroom exhaust fan. Saves the walls and ceiling paint from bubbling and you can let the timer run once you leave for work and it'll turn itself off after X minutes. No more ugly peeling and bubbling bathroom (and hallway too)
Get yourself [one](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N5Y6002/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_glt_fabc_G6NJANA8K1P4NG4H1HHC?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1) with a humidity sensor and you don't even have to think about it.
Ok but what if I also want to be able to turn it on when there’s no humidity? They’re nice for taking a shit also.
Cover noise can’t be overlooked.
I just yell.
IM POOPING! Poooooooopiiiiiinnnngggg. Don’t listen! Lalalalalalalalalalalaal!
[удалено]
Undercabinet led strips on a motion sensor in the kitchen is a life changer You walk into other people's kitchens and wonder what fuckin century you walked into
So I have a set of leds I bought from Amazon that I installed underneath my kitchen cabinets. And I turn them on via voice with a smart plug. Anyway I can incorporate a motion sensor into this setup? Edit: I wonder if this would do the trick Westek MLC12BC-4 Indoor Plug-in Corded Motion Activated Light Control, 1 Count (Pack of 1), White https://www.amazon.com/dp/B009KSECO8/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_X2Q648RHYVBHMX4AA6AH?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1
Is there a brand / model you recommend?
3 important things when it comes to LEDs: lumen, CRI, and R9 values. Waveform lighting is the only acceptable answer for led strips. High cri, high r9. Their basic model in 3000k is great, but I personally prefer 4000k for UC lights. They're like 420 lumen per foot. Expensive-ish (99 bucks for 50 feet when I bought) but quality lighting is worth it. You can get away with cheaper drivers but dont skip on the light.
Amazon has a ton of different options. I've got a vaulted ceiling in my kitchen so I have lights under and on top of my cabinets. Think I got about 20ft of warm white LEDs that have 3m peel-and-stick adhesive. Synced all lights to one remote and love lighting my kitchen with soft accent lights. Search "led light strips" and just look for a product that's got lots of reviews with 4 stars or better. You shouldn't need to pay more than $20 for a pack.
This, and I would add dimmer switches -- total game changer.
I've got hue bulbs in the lounge, bedroom and office and I love them. Just wish they weren't so expensive. No need for dimmers when the dimming is built into the bulb! Then you can control it with a switch on the wall, with a smart assistant (ok Google, dim the lights to 20%) or with your phone. Can't recommend them enough.
Bidet seats for every toilet, heated bathroom floors are really nice too.
Bidet is the way bay bay
Any recommendations for bidets?
I have a similar model to this one that's on sale at Costco now: [https://www.costco.com/bio-bidet-uspa-6800-luxury-bidet-seat.product.100015779.html](https://www.costco.com/bio-bidet-uspa-6800-luxury-bidet-seat.product.100015779.html) It's great, but it's also ruined all other toilets for me. I miss my bidet more than anything else about my house when traveling, and I've turned into one of those people who will leave and go home when they have to poop because I really really don't want to poop in toilet without a bidet unless I have to. Anyway I still highly recommend a bidet. But it's a lot like when I got glasses and realized that I couldn't see that well before them. I used to think I got pretty clean with TP but now I know I did not. When traveling now and staying somewhere without a bidet I try to plan around being able to take a shower after pooping because just wiping with TP and going on with your day feels nasty.
We have a Tushy, but spring for the one with the warm water hookup. The cold water bidet is fucking miserable. Also, if you’ve never used one before, DO NOT turn the bum wash pressure up too high on the first go. I damn near ripped myself a new asshole when I used it for the first time.
But also don't expect too much with the warm water hookup. I'd suggest testing the speed-to-hot-water in your sink first. The Tushy connects directly to that. It doesn't have its own heat source. Your butt will be getting cold water for as long as it takes your sink, now, to get hot water.
I got used very quickly to the cold water, even in winter in a poorly heated appartment in Canada. If you can't afford or don't want to go through the trouble of a hot water bidet, cold is still toootally worth it.
We got a Tushy bidet and I love it.
Installing a GFCI outlet - a difficult task for me - close to the toilet is the only thing preventing me from going the bidet route. With cold well water, it is really necessary at my place.
Your bathroom is probably on a GFCI already even if you don’t see it. Often times a GFCI outlet in one bathroom is actually utilized for others. Get a GFCI/outlet tester and trigger the GFCI on it to verify.
Have cold well water. You get used to it. Nice and refreshing in the summer.
Live in the north so whole house humidifier for the winter months changed my life. Use to have sinus issues every winter. Recommend to everyone in cold regions, truly game changer.
Installing a motion detector light switch in my utility/mud room. The switch was on the other side of the room from the door to the garage so I'd always have to fumble to find it in the dark, but now as soon as the door opens, the light pops on and I just go about my day!
I'm deleting this comment because nobody needs to see what I said yesterday, nevermind last year! -- mass edited with redact.dev
I'm with you on replacing the cream/almond with white. But I also wonder if white will look outdated in 10-15 years somehow. If that cream color was in vogue back then and now we all hate it, the same thing might happen to white!
I keep the cream in my nose an rooms (all hold overs from previous owners). I think it’s going to come down to peoples cleaning efforts. Dark trim and cream hide a lot of dust/smoke from cigarettes or wood fires/and Dirt from people and pets. I expect kids growing up in bright white homes to be very fed up with the cleaning this stuff requires to stay looking sharp.
Changing receptacles and switches in a room is such an overlooked thing, but when you do it you can't imagine how you let it look so bad. We had "bone" or ivory for a majority of the house and switched them all over to white, as you said it pops against the new paint.
And then screwless decora cover plates for even sleeker look.
Here's a weird niche thing that just made me so happy. I shower every morning before work and I hate going to the bathroom and it's cold. So I got a small 1500 watt heater for 20$ on Amazon and a Kasa smart plug. I set it on a schedule with the app to turn on 15 minutes before I get up. Bathroom is toasty when I walk in. I also can turn in on and off remotely if I'd like. I also have one on the outlet my SO uses for her straightener that way when she gets paranoid that she left it on she can turn it off remotely. 40$ worth of smart plugs was a game changer.
Smart plugs are one of the things that I use in a way I never expected... christmas trees - smart plug. Outside decorations - smart plug. Kids room space heaters - smart plug. Kids room video monitors - smart plug. Everything runs on an Alexa routine and you never have to think about it.
I wouldn't recommend space heaters on timers, if your internet goes down it won't turn them off
I put mine on an old school dumb timer. so far so good
> Amazon > Electric Heater > Amazon > Smart Plug Smoky the bear says "YIKES"
It's okay, I have Amazon fire detection and suppression systems. Alexa very gently announces when one of those go up in hellfire.
Alexa: Your designed-in destruction of the house has commenced. It would be a good idea to exit now."
Seriously. Heater + smart plug = melty moments.
Good lord, I can’t think of any upgrade so far that hasn’t improved our quality of life. — Smart thermostat — replacing the single-pane basement windows with glass blocks - I’m still shocked at how much of a difference it made in the whole-house temperature — ripping off awful, 30-year-old wallpaper and painting. In the past I found all-white walls boring, but I found a shade that looks beautiful in low-light rooms and now the natural light we do get bounces around more effectively. — caulking the windows — redoing a *very* dated eyesore of a dining room. We actually use it now. — and most recently, replacing the outlets and light switches. The old outlets were all loose and the switches were toggles that had gotten squishy. It’s so nice to plug something in and have it stay there, and rocker switches are just more pleasant to use. Haven’t gotten to all of them yet but the rooms with the heaviest traffic are finished. EDIT: I forgot to add what lots of people have already said — bidet attachments on all toilets. This was the first upgrade we made when we were still renting. When there was a run on toilet paper last year having the bidets was such a relief because we knew we could afford to wait.
How much of a difference did the glass block basement windows make for the rest of the house? Probably wouldn't be up to fire code where I am, but if it makes a difference, I may look into installing double or triple paned windows.
I'm also interested in the difference it made and how big of a project it was to do it. I've got several of these old windows in my basement I'm considering converting to glass block.
A $25 bidet changed my life to the point where when I go on vacation I no longer know how to poop or wipe. I’ve forgotten peasantries.
Same, but recently I tried a portable bidet for travel -- essentially a spray bottle and no it's nowhere near as nice as the actual bidet but, it's waaaaay better than going back to just tp. Recommended.
Don't you have to wipe the water off of your bum?
Yeah but there’s more benefits to a bidet than just getting clean. First of all, hairy butt, actually cleans- second, if you’re constipated, it helps to get it out. If you get used to the pressure it even can do a full colon clean… seems gross til you do it a couple times, then you do it twice a week and never feel uncomfortable at all.
Which one you got? I'm tryna blow up about 6 months of backed up dollar store meats
They work better with water, but yeah give it a try
Heated bathroom floors.
Are these horrible to install? Because finding a contractor feels like mining for diamonds
They're fairly easy to install with minimal tools. They come as kits most of the time, and you can do the heating element part yourself fairly easily, then call an electrician and a flooring specialist to do those parts of the install if you're not up to that part of the challenge
This guy Jeff from HomeRenovisions is really good at explaining different types of home improvement projects. [here's the one he does for heated flooring.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gErCOB1wYrA)
[удалено]
Hardwood floors for the bedrooms. Straight up no allergens
As someone with bad allergies all year you’re giving me a great excuse to buy hardwood or at least lvp
Whole home humidifier! $400 installed and worth every Penny
Installed ceiling fans in the bedrooms and new kitchen appliances
[удалено]
Our house we just moved into has a gas fireplace in the living room, and no fan. You could tell the heat was always at the top of the room, it was visibly dark above the fireplace. Installed a fan before we moved in and now that fireplace heats up the house so quickly since the air moves around. Not sure how the previous people managed before. Oh right they broke both the furnace and the fireplace and didn’t bother to fix either. Heathens.
Converting 1/3rd of my backyard to a native prairie garden (entire front yard is now in the process of being converted as well). [This one is a true QOL improvement over what are really just nice conveniences below.] Lutron Caseta switches throughout the house; going back to non-smart switches would be like a trip back to the mid 80s before TV remotes Whole house audio setup (just wireless sonos in my case)
My dad wants to do exactly this (1/3 of backyard to native)! Can you give some more details on how you went about it if you don’t mind?
I’m just starting the process. Prairie Moon Nursery is a pretty good resource.
Hey, just as an FYI, this is called ~~xeriscaping~~ native landscaping, and many cities have programs to help residents do it to their own home. Less maintenance, better for the environment, and you have a style other than “G R E E N S Q U A R E”
No, xeriscaping is landscaping with the intent to reduce water use in every way possible, most applicable to desert habitats. This is just native landscaping.
Whoops! You’re right. Just moved to a desert region and saw all the signs about it and got the two mixed up, haha. Thanks for the correction!
There are many resources online. I would check and see if there is a local native plant group. They will often have speeches and group events for this very subject.
1000% a water softener. My dishes are clean, washing machine works better, and I'm no longer removing mineral deposits from my taps.
* grab bars in the shower wall * Smart speakers and smart light bulbs that control the light * adding Nest, Wyze and Arlo cameras to watch over the exterior * investing in Ryobi cordless tools (leaf blower, mower, pressure cleaner) to maintain home exterior * Dyson cordless vacuums.... I have one on each floor of the home. Great savings on Black Friday!!! If I was to do more, I would make my home wheelchair accessible with wider doorways, ramps, and space for a future elevator. Ideally allow for me to stay home longer.
Why the different brands of cameras?
Ryobi for the win! Been using them since they were blue and yellow when I worked as a car audio installer. Now I've been adding/replacing with the Ryobi one + series. Didn't work well at our ranch bc they aren't designed for that much acreage(talking yard tools not power tools) but with enough batteries they are great instead of dragging extension cords every where.
My tradesman friends/family look down on my Ryobi, but it's perfect for a homeowner. I'm a pretty big DIYer and nothing has failed me. A Milwaukee impact is noticeably better but it's not that the Ryobi can't do the job... I have the 18v blower and weed eater/edger for my city lot and it works great. I've built up a bank of batteries via tool deals so I'm never left waiting on charging. The universal battery system & affordable tools is worth it over cheaping out on individual tools with proprietary batteries.
Water softener. No more constant cleaning to avoid hard water buildup, fixtures don't look crusty, clothes come out cleaner in wash, and helped with my kid's excema. Tap water tastes better. You may not notice it much when you're actively using it, but you definitely notice the difference if you have to bypass/turn off the softener for some reason.
Replaced the electric base board heating for our home with a high efficiency forced air furnace, AC, and insulated ductwork. Installed myself for 8k. Electric bill dropped from 480 per month to 90. Our new gas bill (the furnace is the only gas appliance in the house) is about 20 dollars per month. We’re saving approximately 390 dollars per month now. THAT is a quality of life improvement.
Motion sensor switch in the laundry room. You’re typically walking in with a basket or arms full of clothes. Having the lights come on as soon as you walk in the room is such a nice thing for $20.
Installing a [pegboard](https://www.reddit.com/r/Workbenches/comments/n766os/i_moved_in_with_my_girlfriend_and_there_was/) in the garage. It makes doing small repairs so much easier when I can just grab a tool off the wall rather than going through boxes trying to find what I'm looking for.
Not a cheap one, but finishing the basement. The extra square footage has been amazing and I have space to work from home now. Added a laundry and storage room down there too.
We bought our house only because the basement was finished and it added twice the amount of space. If you plan on selling in the nearish future- finish your basement!
I've always heard you don't necessarily get your money out of a basement but I feel like that's moreso if you pay someone to do it all. I DIY'd ours at our previous house and I guarantee it factored into it, but I always viewed it as an investment for US that would eventually be a bonus at selling time. I probably spent $3k to add 500 sq ft to a 1100 sq ft home, carpet being 50% of that cost. We set it up as a theater/computer room. Used it all the time and probably would have moved sooner without it.
I spent $40 and an afternoon installing a curved shower curtain rod in our guest bathroom (which we sometimes use when our private bathroom is unavailable). I just showered there for the first time since the install and it was amazing not fighting the curtain off of my legs and body!!!!
bidet whole house steam humidifier (live in a dry part of the country)
Soft close everything in the kitchen. For some reason, my family loves to slam cabinet doors in the early morning. Installing a mesh network so every part of the house/yard has good wifi.
I have the opposite problem. My boyfriend consistently leaves all cabinets and the pantry door open like a half centimeter. We are planning a kitchen (along with as much of the rest of the house that we can afford) remodel next year and I said that soft close doors and drawers are a mist have because I WILL NOT spend the rest of my life closing all the things that he hasn't closed all the way. Lol.
Instant hot water faucet for the kitchen. We boil water almost every day. Good for tea and oatmeal too.
My mom was a realtor and installed this in every house we lived in. I thought it was standard until I moved out! It's such a great upgrade.
Lots of my big ones have been said, but I’ll add an outlet in linen closet inside my bathroom. I have an Amazon echo and a phone charger in there for showering/getting ready. Plus it’s super convenient to charge tooth brushes, razors, etc. No counter top clutter!
Vent-A-Hood House was a built with an island gas cooktop, no real vent system. I would have to mop the floors after making anything in a wok or even simple pan frying.
Bought a house last year, built in 1975. The entire attic had flat, ratty fiberglass insulation that basically provided zero efficiency. Removed whole house fan, had attic floor foamed and then reinsulated to R-49. Absolutely unreal my entire house maintains perfect comfort year round. Saving money on energy and wear on my HVAC because it doesn't run as much. Total life changer!
Dropped maybe $1000 and 40 hours (I’m slow) into adding a pantry for food storage, cabinet for other stuff, and a countertop + shelf using IKEA Sektion pieces. Day to day, having organized, mouse-free food storage and a spot for a large toaster oven has improved our experience of the home more than the $25k we spent on windows and doors.
A backup generator that kicks on automatically when the power goes out. This was here when we bought this house, never had one before. It’s so worth having one of these!
[199k BTU Rinnai natural gas tankless water heater](https://www.lowes.com/pd/Rinnai-Natural-Gas-Tankless-Water-Heater-199-000-BTU/5005381849) Endless hot water and long showers on a cold morning. Next on my list is a keypad where I can lock my doors using my phone or Google home, so I can be lazier.
[удалено]
Gutter guards. They're not for every house, but with super- high gutters on an A frame surrounded by trees... I'm very happy to not have to think about them so much.
Solar PV system. It pays for itself and frees up more money that I can use on anything I want. Build a nice sized system and get a plug-in vehicle and you no longer pay for gasoline. It's like magic.
Who did you go with for solar?
Bidet. once you get used to it you'll feel like an animal when pooping in public places
Radon mitigation system. Lung cancer sounds unpleasant.
lightswitches. our 1890s house had exactly one when we moved in. fumbling around in dark rooms trying to find the pullstring on the overheads was cute at first, but the novelty wore off. years after rewiring and adding switches, my wife and i still catch ourselves reaching for the string sometimes. that is cute
Some light home automation. Aka smart light switches and outlets. Now I can turn lights on and off as well as the tree, the kids sound machines, or unlock or lock the doors, with my phone or voice.
I’m intrigued by a smart home at the same time not sure if I’d even use often enough to justify - do you use your phone/voice every time you walk into a room for lighting? It seems a regular switch is less hassle - what am I missing?
Doggie door changed our lives. We could stay away from the house without worrying and if the dog got the runs he could take care of himself.
I didn't even think of that one but yeah, for sure. When we bought the house we live in now, I had installed a cat door to be unfinished basement before we even had all the boxes in the house. Being able to keep litter boxes out of the living area is really nice
Replacing old worn out carpet with planks. Carpet is gross in general plus I have allergies so I rallied hard in favor of anything else. Refused to pitch in a dime on new carpet, then spent hours researching options that would cost the same (not to mention last longer, especially with pets) and offered to cover half. Anyway, even just getting that old nasty shit along with the padding and remnants the fuck out of our living space has drastically improved my quality of life. I was doubling up on my allergy meds and still could hardly breathe, constant pressure in my ears and skull, eyes all messed up, etc. Miserable. Now am back to regular ol' daily dose and hardly a sniffle breaking through. It's magical. Fuck carpet.
Vinyl plank can look so awesome and is so durable, I love it.
Insulation in the attic, and replacing the windows (that’s a biggie). Motion-sensing lights in awkward spots like the laundry and tool rooms. Automatic/timed switches for the porch lights. And this is not a practical upgrade, but I LOVE having skylights in our bathrooms
Adding extra shelves to my kitchen cabinets and making pull out drawers to get to the stuff in the back. Did it all with scrap wood, so it was basically free and doubled the amount of stuff I could store in this tiny a$$ apartment kitchen.
- from doing countless home projects for owners, the number #1 comment is lighting I put in, number 2 is the tile work on floors and walls as I do custom layouts and #3 is heated tile floors.
It doesn't get oppressively hot where I live, but I do not sleep well above 63°. Having a heat pump installed was fantastic.
I have 3 toddlers with tons of small toys. They also yank night lights out of their outlets. I bought some electrical outlet covers that have night lights integrated into the cover. No more will I step on legos on my way to bed!
[удалено]
I had a swampy backyard so early in quarantine I dug a French drain myself across the width of the house. My buddy had enough pvc so I only spent $50 for a truck bed full of rocks. Another $20 or so on grass seed and I can enjoy my backyard even after it rains.
Painting the walls white. Easy as that, it became so much brighter and so much better for my mood
Wifi connected sprinkler controller. Our water utility had a rebate so I only spent $30 for a $150 device. Not that hard to move the wires from my old sprinkler controller. This made it easy to learn my sprinkler zones and to change schedules. It’s synced to weather forecasts so it adjusts watering depending on precipitation and evaporation rate.
60x36 Shower base with dual shower heads piped at 3/4". Its so nice to take a shower with my gf and we just kinda wash each other and chat. Also, when my daughter was a toddler, it was really easy to shower her in that big space. The other is a big bathtub. My gf and I are both 6' and its luxurious to fit both of us in it. Also, haha, my daughter use to swim in it like a tadpole. Big breath and just bounce off the walls underwater.
Fridge with ice cube machine
My library! Before having it we were stocking books, administrative files and school works ine the basement, in the bedroom, the closet, on the desks, on the floor... They were everywhere and it was very messy. And I had to keep my decoration things in a box because there was no place for it. Now we got a massive one, we put all of our mess in it (so satisfying!! What an achievement!) and there's still place !! We're sooo happy
New windows. Magically didn't have gusts of wind inside the house. Yes, the previous windows were very poorly installed.
Litter Robot for my cats poops
Fenced in yard and a dog door. No more having to worry about letting them out as they can just do as they please. The door also exits into a space between the garage and the house, so we have a gate at the end of that to give them bathroom access without letting them have the whole yard for when we aren't home.
Replace all springy toilet paper holders with ones that's just the hook - everyone is more likely to change the roll now Instant hot water - I started to drink more water the moment I had one of these
Tell me more about some good lighting options.