Brain Wave, Family and Home living, Society at large

Contractors: Why They Are Better Than DIY

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Home renovations can be hard work and a very stressful job. Getting the job done to a high standard should be your number one priority, but you will also want to think about how fast you can get this work carried out.

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DIY, A False Economy?

Cost is also an important factor for anyone, and you may be tempted to cut the expenses by doing the job yourself. But, before you head off to the DIY store to buy all of the things that you think that you may need, consider whether that is the best idea. Yes, you can work for free and when labor costs represent a large proportion of the cost of the job, then you will be justified in wanting to remove this cost from the task.

But, think again. Are you experienced enough to carry out this work? You may be quite good at a lot of handy work around the home, but are you going to be any good at doing a major project that you may not have any previous experience of doing?

Calling a contractor to do the job will probably be the best option. If things go wrong for you while you get the job done, it may cost you in replacing damaged or wasted materials. You may find the finish that you achieve is far from professional either, and you will regret not getting a professional to do the job every time you look at it.

Get Recommendations And Quotes

You will need to find someone who will be able to do the job to a high standard and who will be easy to deal with, but with so many contractors out there, how do you know that you are going to get a good one? Ask around friends and family or put a post on Facebook asking for recommendations. The best way to find a reputable contractor is through word of mouth. You may also want to check out ratedpeople.com for recommended local tradespeople.

Once you have found contractors that you have heard good things about, get them to quote you for the job that you need doing. Be specific about everything that you want, for example, if you want panels from Nichiha.com let them know so that they can quote you based on the specifics.

Getting The Job Done

Once you have a quote that you are satisfied with, then you can let the contractors get to work. It can be very difficult to allow other people to set to work on your home, but you need to have faith and trust that they will complete the job in a professional manner. Avoid being an armchair foreman, and let them do the job.

When they have completed the task there may be some snagging issues, this is normal so do not be alarmed if you have to get the workers to fix a few small things that are outstanding, or that crop up in the days or weeks after completion.

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Brain Wave, Health and medicine

How To Find That Get-Up & Go When The Winter Bugs Hit Your Home

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There’s nothing worse than feeling out of sorts and thanks to the colder weather making its way in, cold and flu bugs are lurking at every corner. Unfortunately, resting up while you get over any winter illnesses isn’t always an option and if you’ve got to try and find the strength to soldier on, then check out these tips on how to find that get-up and go when the winter bugs hit your home.

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Stock up on essentials

When illnesses hit your home you’ll need to stock up on plenty of essentials to make it through the coming days. Things such as:

  • Tissues
  • Vicks vapour rub
  • Anti diarrhoea tablets
  • NSAIDs (paracetamol and ibuprofen/Calpol for the kids)
  • Hot water bottles
  • Throat sweets
  • Healthy and nutritious food
  • honey

Can really help improve the way you’re feeling. Make sure that you’re dosed up as much as possible to take away the gruelling symptoms of a fever or a sore throat, and use as many relief options as possible so that you can feel the best you possibly can.

Starve the bug, feed the flu

An important rule to remember if you do fall sick is to starve the bug and feed the flu. A vomiting stomach bug will thrive on food and make you unwell for longer than needed. Avoid eating for as long as possible and isolate yourself for at least 48 hours to prevent passing it onto those around you.

Whereas the flu symptoms that come with a cold resolve faster if you’re well-fed with healthy and nutritious food and drinks. Add a spring to your step by eating meat for breakfast and adding some well-needed protein into your body to last through the day. Other foods that will make you feel better quickly are warm and softer/liquid foods such as chicken soup.

Give yourself time to relax

While you still may need to go to work, look after the kids and keep up with the housework, remember that it’s perfectly okay to give yourself time to relax and get over your illness. Leave the housework and put your feet up as soon as possible. You’ll feel like a whole new person after some much-needed rest!

Another great tip for a cold is to take a very warm bath in eucalyptus. This helps ‘sweat’ out your illness while freeing up your airways that were feeling oh-so-blocked up. Putting vapour rub on the soles of your feet and wearing socks to bed can also help relieve a nasty cough when you’re trying to sleep.

Go and see your GP

Finally, while most illnesses last between 24 hours and a week, sometimes you can find yourself feeling unwell for longer periods of time. If you’ve been feeling out of sorts for over a week without any improvement, make an appointment with your GP as you may have an infection. If you are one of those people who feel you don’t need to see the doctor, but the problem won’t go away, there may be something underneath. Common signs of uncontrolled asthma are exacerbated in the winter, but not noticeable during the summer months. If you struggle to breathe during the winter, a prescribed asthma pump may help you through the gruesome winter months. Remember, if you’re not sure, always consult your GP or pharmacist for advice.

With these tips and a whole lot of stocking up to do, you’ll battle through any illnesses that hit you or your home and feel better in no time!

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Brain Wave, Family and Home living

Should You Renovate Your Home Before Selling Or Not?

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When you are selling your house, you need to make sure that it’s in good condition. If it’s not, you may have trouble getting somebody interested in it. Some people insist that you absolutely have to renovate your home before you sell, while others say that it’s not worth it and you should try to sell it as it is. In truth, there are pros and cons on both sides and it depends on quite a few factors. Here’s how to decide whether you should renovate your house before selling it or not.

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Is There Serious Damage?

If your home has serious damage, like structural problems or a big hole in the roof, that’s not good news. It means that the house may be dangerous to live in and it’s likely to develop a lot of expensive problems further down the line if that damage is not fixed. Even a buyer that is looking for a place to fix up and is willing to do some work will be put off because it’s going to be expensive to get the house into a livable condition again. It’s important that you get a roof inspection and check out any cracks in the walls to make sure that there is no structural damage. If there is serious damage to the house, you will probably need to renovate before you sell because no buyer will be interested.

Are Buyers Willing To Do The Work?

If there is no serious damage, but there is a lot of cosmetic work and small repairs that need to be done, you still need to consider whether a buyer is willing to do the work, and there are a lot of factors here. Firstly, what is the scale of the work? If the house is looking a bit worse for wear, but a few coats of paint will bring it back to life, you should be able to find a buyer that is interested. But if you are trying to sell the house of a hoarder, for example, you have a much bigger job on your hands. It will be tough to find a buyer that is willing to clear out and decorate the entire house from top to bottom, so you may have to do a lot of the work beforehand, unless you find a company that will buy a house as-is.

The other thing to consider is the location because it has a big impact on the amount of work people are willing to do. If the location is great but the house needs work, you should still be able to find a buyer. But if the location is not very desirable, people will expect the house to be in perfect condition.

Will It Add Value and Appeal to Your Home?

Of course, when people come to view your home, they’re looking for a space that they want to live in and that appears in the best light. So, additional features really will help to make your property stand out from others on sale in the neighbourhood and could see your home tick more of their boxes and encourage them to put an offer in. All sorts of features can be appealing. A Richmond Window, a loft conversion creating an extra room, an en suite, a garage – the list goes on. It’s always a good idea to browse property sites and check in with estate agents to see what features other homes nearby have. You want to match or one up them!

Will You Make Sacrifices On Price?

When you are trying to decide how much to sell your home for, you need to consider the work that needs to be done on it. If you are going to leave it for the buyer, that will push the price down. But if you do the renovations and budget them well, you will make more money overall from the sale, so you need to consider whether you are willing to make sacrifices on price or not.

If you think about these things, you should be able to decide whether you should renovate your home before selling it or not.

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Brain Wave, Family and Home living, Life in general, Money matters

When Family Life Is Put To The Test

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Family life is never going to be easy, it’s a lesson we learn right from the end. But family life is one of the best things to happen to us all. Even if you never get to the stage of having your own family, you will no doubt cherish the hundreds of memories that you’ve been able to make with the family you’ve grown up with. From the family holiday’s, to the parties that you’d have each time a special occasion comes around. But that doesn’t mean that family life isn’t out to throw a few tough times at us, and when the calm is put to the test, it can often be hard to deal with. Some people are crippled with family issues that are going on at the minute. So we’re going to try and give you some advice with some of the problems that you might be facing at the minute. Just keep on reading, and see if you can relate to any of these problems.

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Family Fall Outs

Family fall outs are bound to happen at some people. As a family you’re such a close unit that’s around each other a lot of the time, and often that can lead to so many clashes that cause arguments. Time usually get tough when the family is strained. But there’s nothing quite like a family fall out, because those are the people who you need the most. So to get through family arguments like you should be doing, rather than dragging them out, you should be thinking about the different ways of communication and how you can approach it. Often people mistake communication with confrontation when a family is trying to resolve a problem, so always make sure that it doesn’t feel like an attack, and just get things back on track. Having a close family unit is so much better than having a distant one.

The Elderly Getting Older

The elderly getting older is a sensitive subject that nobody likes to talk about, but it’s definitely one that we should all be thinking about. Their lives are so important to us, and when their health starts to go downhill, your heart can really sink. Medicare Nationwide is just one of the sources you could go to for insurance that would make the whole process easier. No doubt they’ll need medical care at some point, and good insurance is going to mean the difference between good insurance and great insurance. But most importantly, make sure that you’re the support system that they need.

Family Money Problems

Pretty much every family can relate to money problems, because as soon as you go from having to pay for just the two of you, to having to pay for another little human to pay for, things can get tight. One good bit of advice we have is to use apps that help you to manage your money, so you can better understand where everything is going and how to put it to better use.

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Brain Wave, Shopping and Merchandise

How Can You Find The Perfect Gift For Your Partner?

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When you’re in a relationship, there’s are a few occasions throughout the year that can fill just about anyone with dread: the times of the year when you exchange presents. Whether it’s a birthday, Christmas, or anniversaries, buying presents for the man in your life can be seriously intimidating. Sure, most guys will tell you that they don’t really care that much, and it doesn’t matter what you get them, but we all know that’s not true. After all, who doesn’t like receiving a thoughtful gift from someone they care about? But in order to make sure that you’re not constantly worrying, here are a few simple tips to help you find that perfect gift for the man in your life.

Listen for hints

When it’s getting close to a time when you’re going to be exchanging gifts, that’s what you should be listening particularly carefully to the things they’re saying. There’s a decent chance that they’ll be dropping a few hints here and there about what it is that they really want. If you find that they’re bringing something up over and over, or there’s something that they’re really trying to draw your attention to, then there’s a good chance that they’re trying to give you a subtle hint as to what you can get them. Whether they’re constantly talking about vape coils or they’re fixated on some new piece of clothing, it’s always a good idea to pay attention to these kinds of hints. Otherwise, you could end up missing something obvious.

Think about their interests

If you’re in a relationship with someone, then there’s a good chance that you’ll have a fairly decent knowledge of their interests. That’s great because then you’ve already got a built-in set of options for what to get them. Are they a sports fan? Then why not get them tickets to see their favorite team. Big into a certain band? Take them to a concert! Whatever your man is into, if you can base your gift around it then you’re almost certainly onto a winner.

Ask people who know them

One of the biggest mistakes that you can make is to spend time beating your head against the wall when you really don’t know what to get them. Instead of doing that, why not reach out for a little bit of help. Talk to his friends, his parents, his co-workers. Not only will these people be able to give you a better idea of the kinds of things that he might like but he might even have spoken to them specifically about something he wants. That way you can get him exactly what he wants without sacrificing the element of surprise. Sure, the choice of the gift should be yours, but there’s nothing wrong with getting a second or third opinion.

Of course, as much of a cliche as it might be, the truth is that it really is the thought that counts. Just think about what your man will like and don’t worry too much. Even if your gift isn’t totally perfect, the fact that you’ve put time and effort into it will show through and your man is almost certain to appreciate that above anything else.

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Brain Wave, Money matters

6 Ways To Protect Your Savings

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When you start making an effort to be more responsible with your money, you will soon see the benefits. If you have a strict budget, you can afford to put more aside each month and your savings account will begin to grow. When you start to build up more savings, it’s important that you protect that money. If you don’t, you may end up undoing all of your hard work in the future. But a lot of people don’t realize this and they just let their savings sit in the same account, which can be a big risk. If you are starting to build up some savings, these are the best ways to protect that money.

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Stick To Your Budget

This sounds obvious, but a lot of people start to be a bit more relaxed with their budget as the savings account grows. They don’t think that they need to worry so much about it because they have a healthy amount in their savings and it doesn’t matter if they go over budget and contribute a bit less this month. The problem is, it soon becomes a habit and you are going over budget more and more each month. Eventually, you may end up taking money out of your savings account instead of contributing to it, and you will slowly chip away at it until it’s all gone. That’s why it’s so important that you continue your good spending habits and stick to your budget. If you are in a much better financial position, you could consider writing a new budget that allows for a few more luxuries, but make sure that you are still making good contributions to your savings account each month.

Build An Emergency Fund

Unexpected bills can really put your savings at risk because if you don’t have the money to cover those expenses, you will have to dip into your savings. If it’s something big like car or home repairs, you can wipe out a big chunk of your savings in one go. The best way to avoid that is to build a separate emergency fund. Each month, when you are contributing to your savings, you should also put some money into a separate emergency fund. That way, you can use that money and leave your savings alone if you are hit with any unexpected bills. This is one of the most important things if you want a long term savings plan.

Write A Will

If you have a lot of money in a savings account, you need to start thinking about where it will go if something happens to you. If you don’t have a will in place, your money may not necessarily go to the people that you want it to after you are gone, so it’s important that you make the arrangements now. Get in touch with a probate attorney and see what your options are in terms of a will or a trust, so you can protect your money and have more control over what happens to it after you are gone. A lot of people neglect writing a will because they don’t think that they need to worry about it until they are older. In most cases, that is true, but you never know when something bad could happen to you, so it’s best to be prepared for any eventuality.

Set Up Some Investments

If you just let your savings sit there in an account, they are not really working very hard for you. There is also the chance that you could actually be losing money in real terms because of inflation. If the rate of inflation is higher than the rate of interest you are getting, the purchasing power of your savings is actually going down and your money is worth less in real terms. That’s why it’s a good idea to set up some investments instead of letting the money sit there doing nothing. If you put money into stocks and shares, you can earn money on your savings. You could also consider real estate investments if you have a larger amount of money in your savings. Just make sure that you spread your money out and you don’t put all of it into a single investment because you need to protect yourself against investments that go bad.

Move Your Savings Around

You can also protect your money from inflation and maximize your savings by moving them around on a regular basis. It’s important that you shop around for the best interest rate when you first open your savings account, but the deals are always changing and there may be a much better interest available right now. That’s why you should always keep an eye on the different savings accounts that are available and if you can, open a new one with a higher interest rate. Moving your money around regularly is the best way to offset the impact of inflation and increase your savings. If you can put it in an account that is not as easy to access, you will find it easier to avoid spending any of it.

Stop Using Credit Cards

If you are using credit cards on a regular basis, you are cancelling out any interest that you make on your savings. The interest payments on your credit cards will be a lot higher than the interest that you earn on your savings, which means that you are probably losing money. That’s why it’s a good idea to put the extra money into paying off your debts instead of putting it into savings to start with. Once your debts are cleared, you can start saving more money each month without wasting anything on credit card interest.

When you have paid off your debts, you need to avoid using credit cards again in the future if possible. Having a strict budget is an important part of that, and you should stop carrying them around with you so you are not tempted.

Building a healthy savings account is the first step, but now that you have the money there, it’s important that you take these steps to protect it.

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Brain Wave, Life in general

Getting Through Life’s Difficult Spells

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It is no secret that life can be a challenge at times. We all go through our ups and downs, and when things go wrong for us in one aspect of our lives, it can have a knock-on to other parts.
That one bump in the road could cause you many more problems later on, and you may find it hard to get back on track again. These problems could come in the form of financial issues, relationship breakdowns, legal concerns, or even medical worries. It is easy to see how one can affect the other. But when problems consume your life, you can end up feeling depressed, stressed, and anxious. You may struggle to be able to think about the future in a positive way and it can be hard to see a way out.

Reach Out And Talk

The first thing that you should do whenever you feel the weight of the world is on your back is to reach out and talk with a friend or family member. Sharing your worries and concerns with those that we are close to helps us to unburden ourselves of the weight that we are carrying. Distressing feelings can often feel physically uncomfortable to carry, and we may feel trapped under the weight of our emotions.

Loved ones may be able to offer advice or provide fresh perspectives on our individual situations. They may demonstrate a level of care and support that we really need, especially if we are not feeling able to care for ourselves.

Speak With The Professionals

There are of course plenty of professional organizations that exist with the sole purpose of helping people out in specific situations. Visit your doctor if you have health concerns, or go and speak with a lawyer at https://ericpalacioslaw.com to understand any legal issues you may be facing.

You will not be judged if you need to reach out to any organization. That is after all that they are there for.

Practise Self Care

Often, during times of personal hardship, we start to neglect ourselves. We ignore the need to sleep and eat properly, drop out of social activities and avoid exercise. Our motivation can really fly out of the window and we may well find that we start to feel run down and very miserable after a period of time in this situation.

Pulling yourself back up can be very hard. People may say that you should pull yourself together, or try and get back up and on it. You need to avoid being hard on yourself and try and learn to be kinder to the most important person in your life; yourself.

Try and do a few small things for yourself each day. No matter how small it is, letting yourself enjoy something that used to make you feel good can help some positive thoughts to grow again. Then, as things start to improve, you can begin pushing yourself to get out more and eat better. Getting better takes a long time, and you will need to be patient with yourself.

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