Top Sumer Home Improvement Projects

Summer has arrived. That means you need to prep your home for the heat and long days. Here are some helpful home upgrades that will help you beat the summer heat:

#1 Think about natural air with ceiling fans.

Depending on where you live, your utility bill could skyrocket over the summer with the use of your A/C system. To avoid this, consider investing in ceiling fans. Fans are a great way to cool your home during the day with airflow. You can also keep your fans on at night to filter in the cool air. The cost of a ceiling fan is about $240, though you need to consider additional expenses like electrical wiring.

#2 Upgrade your windows.

During the summer, old windows can make a difference in your utility bills and temperature of your home. If your windows have improper sealing and cracks in the frame, your bill could increase from all the escaping cold air. Keep your cool air indoors with double-paned, energy-efficient windows. Updated windows also help to block the home-heating sunlight from coming inside.

#3 Scrub the pool clean.

You’ll want to take advantage of your pool during the summer heat. But before you jump in, make sure your pool is clean. If you want to DIY your pool maintenance, expect to pay:

• $7 for a skimmer
• $8 for a pool vacuum
• $10 to $80 for a pool filter (if your old one is worn down)

Chlorine and other water-cleaning chemicals are an additional cost. Be sure you’re familiar with pool maintenance before you begin your prep.

#4 Get rid of those pests.

Pests are out in force during the summer. While you can set temporary traps for most household vermin, permanent solutions are always best. Call in an exterminator for long-lasting pest prevention. Exterminators have equipment and chemicals that can take care of your problem. Be sure to keep children and pets away from treated areas.

#5 Renew exterior surfaces with power washing.

During the fall and winter, your home’s exterior endures a lot of inclement weather. Snow, hail and ice weathers your deck, siding and porch. With summer ensuring mostly sunny weather, think about renewing these areas. The best way is with a power washer that can blast away grime from any surface. A pressure washer will cost anywhere between $180 and $381, though you can also rent a washer and do some of the work yourself.

#6 Restain the deck and fence.

It’s important to keep your wood deck or fence properly stained. Staining helps to protect against pests and damage from climate conditions. For hardwood fencing and decking, restaining can make a huge difference in how long the wood lasts. Restaining is a simple DIY job and costs very little. The results are worth your investment and time.

Conclusion

Preparing your home for the summer can be quick, simple and show immediate results. The summertime home upgrades listed are just some of the projects you might consider. Some additional updates might include painting your interior, sprucing up your landscape or replacing your HVAC system with a more efficient model. It all depends on the time and money you want to spend to be ready for summer.

Turn Your Grill Into a Top-Notch Smoker!

The Trick That Turns Your Grill Into a Top-Notch Smoker

​It's called the snake method, and it's free!

Weber

By Matthew Jancer

May 27, 2016

834

They say that a great charcoal grill is just a so-so smoker. But do you really need to buy a $600 smoker to give your brisket the delectable flavor you seek? Weber's all-in-one chef, cookbook author, and food blogger Jamie Purviance says you don't have to splurge or hack apart your grill to make it a smoker. You just need to know the snake method.

"Innovations are happening in barbecue all the time," he says. "The snake method is one the more recent innovations, and it is just now going mainstream."

Weber

The method involves building a stacked wall of briquettes leaning against each other like dominoes in a semicircle. Light the charcoal on one end and let it burn like a fuse down the path of briquettes over the course of half a day. Snake method works on any circular charcoal grill, like the one you might have at home or the small one you take on camping grills. It'll hold a steady temperature all day and slow-cook ribs, brisket, pulled pork, fish, and whole turkeys and chickens. By dinner you'll have tender, fall-off-the-bone barbecue.

"It's good for meat that you want to smoke for several hours at low temperatures without having to add more charcoal," says Purviance. "It is not good for anything you want to grill over direct heat."

Be the first on your block to learn snake method by following these steps, courtesy of Purviance:

Building the Snake

Use charcoal briquettes for the main body of the snake. Lay two rows of briquettes around the perimeter of half the charcoal grate (the lower grate), one row inside the other, making sure to neatly pack them against one other. Stack another layer atop each, so you end up with a semicircle two briquettes wide and two briquettes high. Because the snake is essentially a charcoal fuse, the longer you build it, the longer it'll burn. Now take four of five chunks of wood (for flavor) and stack them next to each other on top of one end of the Snake. Leave four or five inches of space from the very end before you place the first piece of wood.

Lighting the Snake

Don't go for lighter fluid; if meat were supposed to taste like a parking garage smells, then people would marinate with this stuff. Instead, use a chimney starter. It looks like a Thermos with a wire rack inside. It's going to get hot, so find your insulated glove or mitt.

Fill the space under the rack with paraffin wax lighter cubes drop the rack in place, and put ten or so briquettes on top of it. Light the wax cubes, then watch for the briquettes to ash over and turn light gray. When they do, remove them with tongs and pile them atop the head of the Snake where you left space next to the wood. Now you've got a fire, even if it doesn't look like it. It's slow, but it's there.

Setting Up the Water Pan

Place a disposable foil water pan three-quarters full of water on the charcoal grate inside the semi-circle of the snake, as shown. "The water will help to keep the temperatures steady, and it will create a nice, moist environment for the meat to cook," Purviance says. Set the cooking grate in place over the charcoal grate, pan, and snake, and close the lid. Upper and lower vents control the airflow, and therefore the temperature, of the fire. Open the lower vent fully, and half-open the upper vent. Hang around until the temperature hits 250-300 degrees Fahrenheit.

Adding the Meat

Place the meat in the center of the cooking grate. Make sure none of it is directly above the Snake. Unlike hamburgers and thin cuts of meat that you cook directly over burning charcoal (direct grilling), you want to slow-smoke thick cuts of meat by placing them away from the charcoal (indirect grilling). Trying to cook a rack of ribs or a turkey like you would cook a steak turns it into a mess burnt on the outside and raw on the inside.

Maintaining the Fire

"The beauty of this method is you shouldn't have to do much adjusting," says Purviance. Check the thermometer every hour, and keep it between 250 and 300 degrees. Manage the fire as needed by opening vents to raise the temperature and closing them to lower it, but never close the vents completely. Leave the lid on as much as possible. Every time you open it for a look, you let all that perfectly heated air escape. If you need to extend the life of the fire, add unlit briquettes to the tail of the snake. 

"People ask me all the time, 'How long should I cook meat and when will I know it's done?'" Purviance says. For slow-cooked barbecue items, like pork ribs, tenderness is a better guide than temperature. For example, with ribs, the meat should tear when you push the tips of exposed, adjacent bones in opposite directions. The other way to check is with the bend (or bounce) test. Lift a rack at one end and let it bend (or bounce) in the air. If the meat in the middle tears open, it's done.