Durable Renovation Projects to Help Protect Your Home
Renovations are one of the best or worst things you can do for a property: depending entirely on how well you plan and execute them! From understanding what causes a high return on investment to knowing the line between DIY and hiring a pro, the right renovation can make a huge difference in your home.
These are the top durable renovation projects for you to try on your property and why they could make such a large difference in your home’s security.
1. Fun Exterior Entertainment Spaces
Exterior entertainment spaces are one of the best things to add to any property. Although it’s obviously great for fun: this type of structure can also be awesome for security. If you use roof deck pavers correctly, you can completely shift the way the exterior of your home looks while also leaving people who would break in unsure if anyone is able to see them.
Having entertaining outdoor spaces makes your home look more lived in and can leave you looking like an owner that would notice the moment someone stepped onto their property.
2. Diverting Water Down and Away
Over a sixth of all households in America are at risk of flooding within the next ten years. This is a huge risk that can cause untold thousands of dollars of work to correct and put your home back to what it was before this happened. To make drainage better, you can lead water down and away by using in-ground trenches that will help keep your soil as dry as possible.
Make sure to install trench covers, or you could have to spend more time than is necessary clearing these trenches and getting rid of debris. Have the pitch of your lawn measured and level it where necessary.
On the exterior of your home, you can use crystalline waterproofing, which will also work to keep moisture out.
3. Treating Your Pavement or Concrete
Although tiny cracks and lines in pavement may not seem like a big idea, these can quickly spell disaster for your driveway, sidewalks, or even patio. When water gets into these cracks and lines and then freezes, you’ll soon see these materials crack.
Repair these and seal them as soon as possible. You don’t want to have to deal with replacing your entire driveway because you let a small crack get out of hand.
4. Trim Trees to Stop Vermin
A large issue that many homeowners overlook until it’s too late is how close to their home trees and other plants are. When these come within a foot of your home, they can quickly become a highway that leads everything from squirrels to roaches into your attic or upper floor.
Raccoons are especially dangerous since they’re known to tear away siding or lose parts of your home to find a warm place to nest within the wall or attic. Trim your trees often, and pay attention to signs that something could be damaging your home.
5. Protect Yourself From Large Storms
Storms can be extremely damaging to any property, more than vermin, water, or freeze, because they come in hot and bring extremely fast winds with them. This can cause debris to crash into your home or can shift your home enough that it’s no longer livable.
Installing hurricane ties and adding details like stone veneer siding may feel like small changes, but they can go a long way when it comes to updating your home and protecting it from future storms. Hurricane season keeps getting wilder, so it’s good to be prepared.
6. Look At Your Windows’ Health
How old are your windows and doors? These areas of your home are where water and air are let in the most and drive up your heating and cooling bills. You can check if there’s an air leak by walking by your windows while they’re closed with a lit candle. If the flame pulls one way or another strongly: you have an air current moving through your home.
You can update your windows altogether, but it’s generally more cost-effective to simply update and repair them.
7. Add Smart Exterior Lighting
Exterior lighting is one of the best ways to protect your home, making your neighbors more aware of it. Burglars and vandals won’t want to mess with a home in the spotlight, and you’ll quickly notice if something goes wrong on the exterior of your home.
This means you’ll avoid people sneaking onto your land, and you can also count on the exterior lighting to keep you informed about your land at any time of the day.
Every Property Could Use More Security Measures
Whether you’re updating your home to add value and protection at the same time: there’s nothing quite like it.
Max Shafer is a freelance writer that loves sharing his knowledge and expertise on real estate. He lives in Land O’ Lakes, Florida where he enjoys spending time with his wife and researching real estate trends in his free time. Max’s work as a freelance writer can be found on Building Product Advisor, a new construction industry resource launching in Fall 2022.