Few people enjoy house cleaning.  Maybe it’s therapy for some people, but for most of us, it’s a dreaded chore.  Check out a robotic floor cleaner.  There are several on the market, but iRobot’s Roomba is a popular one.  These things are great.  You turn them on and they do the work.  Whether it’s wood, tile, carpet or any flooring surface – you can check this chore off your list.

In the same house cleaning arena, there are shower cleaning systems.  The Scrubbing Bubbles Automatic Shower Cleaner simply hangs from the shower head and sprays a cleaner 360 degrees to clean the full shower.  They have a similar product for toilet bowls.  Just press the button and walk away.  I like that.

I’m no cat person, but how about a gadget to take care of the dreaded cat litter box.  Although cats are generally clean animals, you can get a serious smell in the house if the litter box isn’t cleaned regularly.  There are several self-cleaning systems. 

If you are determined to take care of your own yard and not use a service, you may want to check out the RoboMower.  This electric, cordless mower is similar to the floor cleaner.  You turn it on and it goes to work while you sit back and relax.  Check out the video below.

Seems like more and more gadgets come out each year to ease our home maintenance.  Let us know if you’ve found any great gadgets that you can’t live without.

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Just to be clear, I’m not lazy.  My dad instilled in me a solid work ethic and I live by it, but I generally abhor home maintenance.  It always takes longer than I expect, and more importantly, it takes me away from my limited time with my family.

It seems the more people I talk to, the more I realize that I’m not an alien on some isolated planet.  Given a choice, most people would like to eliminate or at least minimize the time they spend doing home maintenance.

So how do you do it?

Certainly, outsourcing (e.g., lawn services) is a viable option, but why not simply minimize the amount of home maintenance that’s required in a home. As much as you might enjoy fixing a running toilet, older homes tend to have more maintenance requirements.  Sometimes, it’s the natural life cycle of major systems (e.g., appliances, AC), but other maintenance is simply due to the age.  Fading paint, leaking roofs or plumbing, and wood rot are all typical ways that homes age due to our Florida weather conditions.

There’s a simple solution – get a new or newer home.  Sure, we’d love to build you a new custom home in Tampa, but the simple fact is that a home that is less than 5 years old has significantly less maintenance than a 20 year old home.  The beauty of a Javic custom home is that the 1^st year is virtually maintenance free.  Our homes have a 1-year material and labor warranty.  Additionally, we provide a 10-year structural warranty, so the foundation, trusses and other structural elements are covered for an extended period.

So with apologies to all the Handymen, stay away from my new home, I just don’t need you.

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In certain style homes, these high volume ceilings really make sense.  Mediterranean homes tend to gravitate towards this design element in family rooms, living rooms and dining areas.  Many homes, regardless of style, use two-story foyers, since the stairs lend themselves to this design.

For all it’s beauty and drama, we often get negative feedback from customers after they have lived with the tall ceilings.  The typical comments focus around high energy costs, sound issues and challenges decorating.  On the energy efficiency, I think it makes sense that if you go from 10’ to 12’ ceilings, you have 20% more space to cool and heat.  Given that AC systems are a significant portion of each home’s electric bill, this can be a real eye opener.

When it comes to sound, noise in a two-story volume room is just…different.  There are a lot of walls for noise to bounce around.  Often this problem is compounded by using tile or stone flooring, which lends to the echoing bathroom effect.  Another sound challenge is that two-story family rooms are frequently designed so that the second story looks down on it.  This means that the upstairs wrestling matches and screaming kids can be heard a bit too clearly downstairs.

Lastly, when you have tall ceilings, guess what, you get tall walls.  It can be tricky to decorate those large wall areas.  Leaving them bare isn’t helpful from a design standpoint or if you want to dampen the noise.

In spite of all these issues, I have to admit that I love the look of tall ceilings, but it’s good to set some expectations when you are considering tall ceilings for your Tampa home design.

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I know that I often use my email as a defacto to do list or a way to manage follow up.  I realize that it means that I have a lot of emails in my inbox and it’s not the best way to use it, but it works for me.  I’ve decided this morning to clear those to do items out, so I’m looking at 23 emails – no wait, make that 25 – two more just came in.

I plan on doing some filtering of emails to manage what actually hits my inbox.  How about you?  I’d love some suggestions on how to manage my email inbox better.  Any helpful hints would be appreciated.

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Reception Area

Work Area

In addition to updating the look and making our space more efficient, our showroom is much improved.  In addition to more samples, we have installed new technology to truly make it a virtual showroom.  An interactive projector, similar to what many classrooms have, makes it much easier for us to show products and conduct our design sessions.

Our Showroom

We hope that you’ll get a chance to stop by to see our newly remodelled space.

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First, any new home submitted for permitting after March 15th will have to adhere to the new code.  Although there are many changes, the most significant are in the area of energy efficiency and items that deal with wind and storms.  On the energy front, the code includes changes on how spray foam insulation is installed to include a thermal barrier.  Another energy efficiency change impacts Air Conditioning systems.  These changes include duct and vent testing, as well as improved energy efficiency requirements for the overall systems.  These items will add additional costs, but it’s expected to be returned quickly in energy savings.

Possibly the most significant change has to do with the new wind maps.  It’s not a big change for Pinellas, but now virtually all of Hillsborough is in the wind born debris zone.  This requires many changes to building practices, such as the installation of hurricane impact windows or storm panels.  In our experience, these windows cost 2.5 to 3 times as much as standard windows, so this will certainly add cost to the Tampa new homes.

We realize that our state building code changes from time to time to ensure that we are building the best homes possible.  For years we have met and exceeded these requirements and we intend to continue that practice for many years to come.

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Did you know that the average household does 6-8 loads of laundry per week?  The laundry room used to be placed in a spare closet near the kitchen or in the garage.  As a custom builder in Tampa and St. Petersburg, we work with our clients to design a floor plan that has the laundry room in more practical locations, typically by the bedrooms.  And, laundry rooms today on average have more than 50 square feet of space and are filled with organizational storage, new technology, and great design.

New technology has made washers and dryers less noisy, so it is common to have a Laundry Room serve double duty. It can be paired with a mud room, home office, or craft room.  We also find that people are asking for “zones” within the laundry room.  It makes the chore of doing laundry a little less daunting if you have a place for folding, hanging clothes to dry, and ironing.  If your laundry room is in a cramped space – use the walls!  It is a big square footage saver to stack the washer and dryer or have a built-in ironing board that folds down from the wall.  Check out www.ironaway.com for ideas.

Let’s be honest, doing laundry is still a chore, but you might hate it less in an organized, bright, cheery room!

I Love A Geeky Piggy Bank - Bet It'll Save Energy Costs

Beyond the advice of adjusting your thermostats and turning off lights, here are some meaningful ways that we cut energy costs as a Tampa home builder:

• Appliances:  Selecting energy-efficient Energy Star rated appliances is the easiest way to ensure that you’re saving yourself energy.  Compared to standard appliances, Energy Star refrigerators are 20% more efficient saving about $100 each year.  The same is true for dishwashers, clothes washers and many other appliances.  Go to www.energystar.gov to learn more.
• Gas:  Whether it’s propane or natural, both are more energy efficient than electric for water heating and clothes drying.  Sure it’s nice to cook with it and fireplace starting and cleaning is easier, but it’s the water heater and clothes dryer that will cut your energy costs.  An average home will save 40% or $200 per year with gas tankless water heating alone (Read More).
• HVAC:  When it comes to your cooling and heating systems, Tampa custom homes have a lot of options.  There is increasing the efficiency or SEER of the system (Read More) or installing variable speed air handlers (Read More).  All of these will significantly reduce your energy spend.
• Insulation:  One of the most cost efficient ways to reduce your energy spending.  R Value is the way insulation’s efficiency is rated.  As an example, on block walls you can go from the standard R-5 foam board to an R-15, which will pay for itself in less than a year (Read More).
• Windows:   Today’s windows and doors are dramatically more energy efficient than windows of the past.  Whether vinyl or aluminum, windows with double pane glass and a Low-E film will save you big.
• Energy Monitor:  Lastly, we are testing energy monitors for the first time.  They won’t cut your energy costs by themselves, but they will help you learn where you are spending money on energy.  Research has shown that just by knowing this information, your behavior changes and you’ll cut your energy spending by 10-15% (Read More).

Just a few of the ways you can cut your energy costs.  Hope you enjoy Cut Your Energy Costs Day!

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• Access To Home Information:  Whether you are at home, work, on the road or on vacation, each of our customers have access to a secure website with all the details of their home.  It provides the ability to see all the selections that have been made; View important files such as signed agreements & home plans; and get up to date budget information.
• Organize Communication:  This website also improves communication by intelligently organizing email communication.  It also provides a great place to ask questions and get quick answers.
• View and Share Photos:  As the home progresses, we regularly post photos of the home on this website which our customers can view and share with their friends via Facebook.
• Efficient Home Design:  We utilize an interactive projector, similar to what many classrooms use, so we can make changes quickly and speed up the design process.
• Technology Enabled Staff:  We all seem to have iPhones and iPads and our field superintendents are no different.  Each of them is equipped to access this same information in the field remotely so we can ensure we have up to date information and the best communication.

We have definitely come a long way from the spreadsheets and phone calls of just a few years ago.  There is no doubt that today’s technology is improving our service and communication.  I just can’t wait to see what the technology of tomorrow brings us.

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