New Instant Home Improvement Quote Widget goes live

We've been busy developing our fantastic new widget that lets you enter a few details and get straight into our clever online quoting system for the home improvement of you choice.

Give it a go now and see how easy it is to get a FREE online quote for everything from double glazing to fitted kitchens, driveways to loft conversions from the comfort of your own home, at a time to suit you, without the need for a salesman to call.

If you'd like your own home improvement widget on your website or blog, click here for more information.

Fixing the Roof While the Sun Still Shines

It’s the first law of thermodynamics – heat rises. All the warmth from your radiators and fires will inevitably, at some point, end up at the top of your house. It happens with the crushing inevitability of death, taxes and computer errors.

You may not be able to change the laws of physics, but when you’re readying your home for the winter you can certainly take them into account. So, where better to start, when looking for ways to reduce your winter fuel bill, than with your roof.

Problems with the roof are often not obvious until they start causing further damage. You won’t notice leaks in sunny weather, and noticing that your roof has no snow on it while next door has a two-inch-thick coating of the white stuff is not necessarily the best way of finding out you’re haven’t got proper insulation. Because of this, it’s worth being vigilant and constantly keeping an eye out for potential issues with your roof.

Things to look out for include loss of heat from your house when the central heating turns off or discoloured patches on upstairs ceilings. If water has already entered the house, though, you may have a bigger job on your hands than you think. Before you reach that stage you could perform a cursory inspection of the roof yourself – stand back from the house, or get up a ladder, and take a look. Are there any shingles broken or missing? Is the roof straight, or does it warp? Are there trees or pants growing against the roof? Catching these issues in their early stages will save you huge amounts of money in the long run.

Another thing to keep on top of is clearing out your guttering. It takes surprisingly little to clog up the average guttering, and if water isn’t draining properly it could be seeping into your beams and causing problems with damp and mould.

Remember, it’s always best to find these problems before they become serious. A leaky roof, if not properly dealt with, could mean having to replace insulation, beams, wiring, heating pipes and ceilings. And the absolute worst time to have to cope with all this is in the middle of winter when it’s cold and wet enough already.

A well installed roof should last at least 20-25 years, but once you start having roof problems they’re likely to keep coming back. Getting your roof repaired is a notoriously troublesome business: you need to be wary of the cowboys who will sit on your roof for an hour and then demand cash payment for work they didn’t even do.

Luckily for you, when you get an instant online quote from roofquoter.co.uk, we’ll help you find up to three local roofers that you can trust. All the companies in our network are individually vetted and we receive all sorts of feedback from homeowners who use our service, so we can deal with any problems which arise.

Get checking now, and get fixing the roof while the sun is still shining.

Painting the exterior of your house

Painting the exterior of your home needn't be a chore any more. Exterior painting and rendering technology has moved on with the latest coverings not only making your home look fresh, they actually act to inhibit mould and fungi as well as forming a tough weather-proof barrier to the elements.

The key to a successful and long lasting exterior painting of your home is in the preparation so it's worth spending the time filling in any cracks or missing rendering / pebble-dashing as well as cleaning the old surface before applying the new coat.

Then there's the balancing act atop ladders, coping with tight spaces and those hard to reach corners.

So small wonder that more and more home owners are turning to professional exterior rendering and decorating companies to come and complete the work for them.

A typical job involves cleaning down the surface, removing any flaking or damaged rendering or old coats of paint, before repairing as required. Then the area is masked off and finally, the new coating applied.

Did we mention that in many cases, not only is their a choice of colours, but also a choice of textures too.

Home Improvement Quotes has developed its own online rendering quote website - just enter a few address details, type in the approximate measurements of the surface to be rendered or painted and our clever website will generate an quote for you in seconds, giving you a rough expectation of cost.

It's completely free and only takes a few moments to complete and get an online quote. Why not try it today? - Click here.

Same Home Improvement Blog - new URL

Hi!

If you've been used to clicking on http://homeimprovementquotes.blogspot.com for your daily dose of Home Improvement tips then we have some news for you.

We finally got around to giving our blog it's own URL (web address). It's only taken us 250+ posts to get around to it!

The new URL that you need to replace our bookmarked link with is:

http://www.home-improvement-blog.co.uk - catchy isn't it?

Don't worry if you forget, the old web address will still get you to the same place.

Our popular and well subscribed RSS Feed address remains unaffected.

Double Glazing - What You Need To Know

In readiness for winter you need to think about keeping your house warm, and one of the quickest ways to lose the heat you are paying for is to have large single pane windows letting it out. According to the Energy Saving Trust, double glazing can reduce your heat loss by half, and can save over £100 a year in energy costs.

Pictures Courtesy of Thames Valley Windows

When you add to this the problems of condensation, of rotting window frames and of drafty windows with no locks, double glazing seems an obvious improvement to consider while readying your house for the winter.

Luckily for you, double glazing is very much a buyer’s market, with huge competition between suppliers. This means that searching around and keeping your options open can really save you money on your double glazing. If that sounds too much like hard work you can let us do it for you by heading over to windowquoter.co.uk for a free quote, and we’ll help you get in touch with the best local suppliers in your area.

Before beginning your double glazing project, it’s worth having a look at the Home Improvements Quotes Double Glazing Checklist to see if you’ve thought of everything.

• What frames do you want? Double glazed windows can be fitted with wooden, aluminium or uPVC frames. Try and think about which material will most suit the style of your house, and if your house is listed make sure you find out if you need planning permission from the local council before altering the exterior.

• How many windows do you need? On a shoestring budget it might be worth considering just having your largest windows replaced, or sticking to the rooms that you use the most. The great thing about glazing is that it can be done in stages, so you can tailor the size of your project around the funds you have available now, and sort the rest out when you have some extra cash available.

• Case Study As well as standard casement windows, many companies offer tilt and turn or sash case options which allow you to let air into the house without opening a large window up.

• What About ‘Low-E’ Glass? Low-Emissivity (a.k.a. Low-E) glass is coated with a special substance that allows heat and light to pass into the house, but blocks it from leaving. In most cases this will lead to an increase in the efficiency of the glazing by up to 30%. Many suppliers now provide Low-E Glass as standard in their double glazing installations, so be sure to ask about it.

• Something Extra? Frosted or leaded glazing can make your windows look gorgeous, and if your windows face east or west it might be worth considering having them tinted to keep the sun out of your eyes.

Head over to WindowQuoter.co.uk today and save money on your double glazing with a free, instant online quote.

I haven't heard from any Home Improvement Companies!

We get a few emails a week from people who've used one of our quoter sites, but not been contacted by any home improvements companies to back up the quote we've given them. I thought I'd just try and give an explanation of why it is that this sometimes happens - and what you can do to help us make our service even better in the future.

Here at Home Improvement Quotes we offer, through series of easy to use websites, an instant online quote for your intended home improvement project, whether that's double glazing, a fitted kitchen, a driveway or even exterior rendering.

Our quoter service, though, is just the start of our FREE and IMPARTIAL service to home owners. Once you've got your quote, we'll give you a call to discuss your project in more detail, and then we'll help you find up to 3 local home improvement companies that can give you a written quotation. We never pass your details on to more than 3 companies, and we monitor feedback on the companies in our network constantly - if they don't continue to meet our high standards, we stop working with them.

Why do you pass my details to up to 3 companies?

We set ourselves up, nearly 8 years ago now, to try and take the 'cowboys', the pushy doorstep salesmen and the dodgy quotes out of the business of getting a home improvements quote.

When we pass your project details on to three different companies (we they know that they're each competing against two other local companies. It's common knowledge that you can find a lower quote by shopping around and asking several different companies, but often it's a real hassle and most people don't bother. When you use the Home Improvements Quoter network, shopping around is no hassle at all.

I used your service and no home improvement companies contacted me. Why not?

We're constantly developing our nationwide network of home improvement companies, all vetted and approved by us. It's an ongoing process of vetting new companies who want to join us on a daily basis. If you didn't receive a call in response to your request, it's often because we don't have a company in our network in your area selling the product you were interested in.

The main reason for this is that our approved companies all have complete control over the service we provide to them - so if they're catching up with their order books, won't receive further home owner details until such time as they wish to be 'available' again.

In cases where we don't have anybody in our books already, we'll often go trawling through local directories to find you a local company that wants to do the work for you - but sometimes even this doesn't work.

You can also verify if a company has been recommended to you by us via your own secure online customer area where you can see which companies we've managed to place your quote request with, review their contact details and if you accept one of their quotations, download your own deposit protection certificate which covers a 10% deposit. You can also leave your own feedback on the companies - how they conducted themselves and if applicable, how the installation went. You'll receive an email with your own login details after we've passed your details to the first recommended company.

We're sorry if we weren't able to get you a written quotation from a local company on a particular occasion, however please be assured that we will always try our very best to get you the written quotation we discussed over the phone with you. We'll never pass on any details you give us, whether that's online or by phone, to any companies without talking to you first and gaining your permission to do so.

Gutted By Your Guttering?

It’s no good having a beautiful home spoiled by fascias and soffits that needed their fair share of tender loving care a long time ago. Cracked, worn and peeling fascias are an eyesore – and who wants to have to climb up and down ladders repeatedly for days to strip, prime, coat and re-coat their fascias in the knowledge that they’re just postponing the inevitable and come next year they’ll just have to do it all over again?

Thankfully, Home Improvement Quotes can give you a instant quote on any fascia work you need done, for free! Rather than getting up your ladder again (and hoping the weather holds out while you’re up there) you could get brand new fascias and soffits which won’t need any further maintenance for five years or more. Just head to fasciaquoter.co.uk now to take advantage of this free service.

Even better, you could consider having low-maintenance PVC fascias installed, which look great and can be made in any colour to suit any building. Most houses already have PVC guttering, so why not do away with the hassle of moulding wood and get some fascias that will remain in good condition for upwards of 25 years.

Insulation: Are You Eligible for a Government Grant?

When preparing for the winter, it's a good idea to think about insulating your house, in particular the roof and the walls. One thing that's definitely worth checking is whether you are able to claim a government grant to cover the costs of insulating.

Through a number of regional schemes, the UK government will pay nearly £3000 towards insulation work. In England, this is called Warm Front, in Wales it's the Home Energy Effieciency Scheme (HEES), in Scotland, Warm Deal, and in Northern Ireland the Warm Homes Grant.

You could be eligible if you are a homeowner or private landlord and:

• You are over 60 and in receipt of one or more benefits


• You have a child under 16 or are pregnant and on benefits such as Income Support or Council Tax Benefit


• You have an income of under £15,460 and claim Tax Credits, Disability Living Allowance or other benefits.
  

Grant levels may vary depending on your circumstances and the type of work which needs to be done. You can find more information on government grants at the Energy Saving Trust website.

Give Your Home a Facelift

A rendered exterior can make your house look truly stunning, adding extra value to your home and making it a nicer place to live in. What’s more, with the latest addition to the ‘Quoter’ family, renderingquoter.co.uk, you can get a free instant quote on any rendering or exterior work you need done.

Pictures courtesy of Render Exterior Wall Coatings.

Brick walls may look nice at first, but after a few winters you’ll start seeing cracked, blown and discoloured patches over your walls. Painting over them might work for a while, but within a few years the paint will crack, it peel, and it discolour in the sun.

A rendered wall coating will last for upwards of 25 years, and with a well maintained exterior, your house will weather the weather even better than ever. Proper rendering can also alleviate rising or penetrating damp – which can be a major cause of colds and sniffles (and we all want fewer of them over the coming winter months!)

If your house is looking old and tired, perhaps it’s time to give it a facelift. A rendered coating will save you money over the long term – and to save even more money, get an instant quote for rendering your property by heading over to renderingquoter.co.uk now.

Designing Your Bathroom

It’s Friday night – the end of a hard week of work. You’re exhausted, and you deserve to put your feet up. So, you draw a deep, hot bath. Sweet aromas waft gently through the steam-filled room as you climb in, take a deep breath, and relax…

Doesn’t that sound good?

Then why are you still making do with that ancient and grimy bathroom? Why are you still coping with a shower that gives out less water than the leaky tap? Why oh why have you not sorted out the buzzing noise from the extractor fan?

If this sounds like you, you need to start thinking about what your bathroom says about you. Thankfully, we can help – with bathroomquoter.co.uk you can get a free instant online quote – and we’ll help you get hold of up to three local tradespeople to come round and give you their own estimates, saving you money!

Get Planning

A new bathroom is going to last you many years, so you want to start by thinking seriously about what you want, and what you can achieve with the space you have. One thing to consider is that baths don’t have to be the classic rectangle shape – you could think about a square or round bath instead. Since a shower could be placed above the bath, you could save even more space by doing away with a separate unit. For the ultimate relaxation experience, maybe a whirlpool is just the thing you need!

There’s more to bathrooms than just the basic utilities, too. make sure you’ve taken into account where to put the extractor fan, and any storage you need (no more running out across the landing because you’ve forgotten to take a towel with you!) Make sure you look into what fittings you need so you don’t end up confused when a contractor comes round.

Get a Quote

Thankfully, this part is the easy part! With bathroomquoter.co.uk, getting a feel for how much your new bathroom will cost is easy – just fill in the simple form and we’ll give you a rough estimate instantly, for free! We don’t stop there, though – as part of the free service we provide, we’ll go one step further and get in touch with up to three tradesmen in your area, so that you can make a comparison between different contractors.

Get Relaxed

When you have your new bathroom, you can relax like never before. Slip away into the luxurious bliss of a serene soak, you’ll be left feeling refreshed, energised and ready for whatever else life might throw at you.

Time for a Conservatory?

October is drawing in, and it can be a tough challenge to keep your house feeling light and airy all through those long winter months. A conservatory can bring in light you didn’t even realise was there, and even better, you can get free, instant online quotes for Conservatories with windowquoter.co.uk.

Pictures courtesy of Homeshield Group.

A conservatory can make a wonderful multi-purpose room, and is an impressive alternative to just extending an existing room. Conservatories can make gorgeous lounges, dining rooms, playrooms, or just provide you with a peaceful space to read a book or listen to some music.

You’ll remember the 5th of November forever if you watch the fireworks from the warm confines of your new conservatory – and a double glazed exterior will keep those bangs, whizzes and pops quiet enough that even your dog can enjoy the show!

Conservatories can be made to fit almost any house and garden, so check out windowquoter.co.uk. now to get a free instant online quote and save money on your dream conservatory.