Summer is the perfect season to do exactly what you want to do, especially if the things you want to do aren’t possible in the other months of this year. For some people, this means going to beaches, laying on the sand, and listening to the waves all day. For others, this means finally crossing home improvement projects off of their to-do lists. There are plenty of projects to do in the summer, ranging from small repairs to major remodeling endeavors.
If you’ve been thinking about what home improvement projects to do in the summer, wonder no longer. Read on to discover the projects that are best to do during the warm summer months and how you can start crossing them off your list.
Improving the Landscaping
The spring and summer represent nature’s time to shine. Bare branches fill out with green once again and colorful blooms dot local landscapes. Homeowners can take advantage of mother nature’s beauty by focusing on their home’s landscaping during the summer. Not only does great landscaping enhance your enjoyment of your home, but it also adds value to your property. Your home’s curb appeal is what makes the first impression on visitors and potential buyers in the future and your property’s yard has a huge impact on that. The impact is so significant that good landscaping can add about 28% to your home’s overall value.
Better yet, you don’t have to spend a large amount of money to see that increase in value. Landscaping is one of the best projects to do in the summer for any family because you can easily customize it to your budget. If you don’t want to spend too much, you can plant a few flower beds yourself and focus on making your simple landscaping look beautifully maintained. If you want to put more money into your home’s landscaping, you can work with professional landscapers to create an intricate landscape with patios, walkways, or decks that complement your greenery. No matter how elaborate or simple your project is, be sure to have a plan in place to get the project done on time and within your budget.
Investing in New Windows
One of the best home improvement projects to do in the summer is installing new windows in your home. This project is perfect for homes with old or damaged windows that tend to let out your home’s heating and cooling. By replacing drafty windows, homeowners can boost their home’s energy efficiency, see long-term savings on their heating and cooling costs, and get a return on investment when they sell their home.
When you’re investing in new windows, consider choosing dual-pane windows. These are the most efficient type of window, keeping your home’s air conditioning and heating inside, where you need it to be. Dual pane windows will also help eliminate outside noise and make your home look and feel better. Depending on the number of windows being installed, these windows typically range from $600 to $5,000. While installing new windows is fairly easy, especially when you work with professional installers, keep in mind that you will need to obtain a permit if you’re cutting a hole in a wall to create a brand new window. If you’re simply replacing existing windows in your home, you won’t need to go through the permit process.
Refacing Cabinets
After years of living in the same home, your kitchen may start to appear stale and tired to you. While some homeowners may be tempted to remodel their kitchen from top to bottom to give it a fresh look, tackling the entire kitchen can cause more disruption to your daily routines than your family is prepared for. Instead, try focusing on a smaller kitchen remodeling project, such as refacing the cabinets. By only focusing on the cabinets, you can make a big difference in the appearance of your kitchen but you can still use your kitchen during the project.
Cabinet refacing is one of the easiest projects to do in the summer and, like landscaping, is a project that you can cater to your family’s budget. For those looking for an affordable DIY route, you can paint your cabinets to give them a new look. If you’re willing to invest a little more, you can work with a remodeling company to pick out new kitchen cabinets that enhance the style of your kitchen. Many companies are able to bring samples of cabinet veneers to your home, allowing you to see how the new cabinets will look against your kitchen’s countertops, backsplash, and appliances. By refacing your cabinets, you can give them an updated look without going through the more arduous process of replacing the actual structure of the cabinets.
Replacing Countertops
Much like refacing cabinets, this is a home improvement project that can make your kitchen look significantly different without having to renovate the entire space. It’s also a good option if you reface your cabinets and think that your kitchen still looks outdated. The reason this is one of the best projects to do in the summer is that the remodelers installing your countertops will need to haul the old countertops out of your home and the new ones into it. Both sets will be rather heavy and the clear weather of summer will make it much easier for them to move these heavy objects than the snow and ice of the winter.
There is a wide variety of countertops to choose from, so be sure that you consider what materials will look and function the best in your home. The price of installing new countertops will also vary depending on the material that you choose, so keep that in mind as well. To ensure that your new countertops match the other design elements of your kitchen, bring samples of the countertops you’re interested in to your kitchen so that you can easily see how everything would look together.
Installing a Programmable Thermostat
This is one of the simplest projects to do in the summer, but it can help you save a good chunk of money on your energy bills. Programmable thermostats connect to a home’s HVAC system and allow homeowners to customize the temperature of their home throughout the day. This means that you can spend less on cooling or heating your home when you’re not there. Programmable thermostats can save homeowners an average of $180 on heating and cooling costs every year, according to Energy Star. They can also increase the value of your home, as potential buyers will be looking for convenient, energy-efficient features like this.
If you’re willing to spend a little more on your thermostat, you could invest in a smart thermostat, such as Nest. Smart thermostats are wi-fi enabled, allowing homeowners to control them from their smartphones. Not only have these thermostats been proven to save 10% to 12% on heating costs and 15% on cooling costs, but the connectivity of them will allow you to turn down your home’s air conditioning while you’re at work and then turn it up again just before you leave to come home, giving you the perfect temperature when you walk through the door. With the intense heat that summer can bring, optimizing your home’s cooling with a programmable thermostat can make you more comfortable and keep more money in your pockets.
Replacing the Roof
Replacing a home’s roof is one of the most popular projects to do in the summer because new shingles need heat to form a weathertight seal. The colder temperatures and inclement weather of the fall and winter make roof replacement rather difficult and many roofers won’t offer their services during these seasons. If your home’s roof is getting leaky, missing shingles, or approaching the end of its 20-year lifespan, contact roofers in your area to replace it this summer.
The cost of replacing your roof will depend primarily on the materials you choose and the size of your roof. Be sure to consider the pros and cons of the many different types of roofing shingles and choose the ones that best suit your budget as well your home’s practical needs. For instance, homeowners in areas that are prone to severe storms may want to prioritize the strength of the shingles and their ability to prevent damage. Homeowners in areas with milder weather may be able to focus more on the aesthetics of the shingles over their ability to hold up in high winds and rain. As you’re considering the price of replacing residential roofing, be sure to leave room in the budget for making repairs to the roof deck. There could be underlying damage to the roof deck that can compromise the structural integrity of your roof and you’ll need sufficient funds to repair the structure in addition to installing a new roof.
Fixing the Plumbing
If the plumbing in your house works perfectly, you probably don’t give much thought to it. If it doesn’t work perfectly, however, you likely feel the struggle every day. The summer is the perfect time to take care of your plumbing so that you don’t face the same troubles for the rest of the year. Cold temperatures tend to freeze pipes, making performing repairs or replacements within your plumbing system rather difficult.
Unless you’re a trained plumber yourself, its best to contact professionals to take care of any problems in your plumbing system. They’ll be able to determine what the exact issue is and take the appropriate steps to remedy it, whether it involves simple drain cleaning or more involved repairs to your home’s system of pipes and valves. Once you cross this task off of your home improvement list, you can spend the rest of your summer free from the struggle of dysfunctional plumbing.
Swapping out the Front Door
We discussed the importance of curb appeal when talking about your home’s landscaping, but even the best landscape design can’t boost curb appeal if the front door looks old and worn. Your home’s front door is one of the first things people see when they look at your property and it represents the entry point into the house. If the front door is cracked, chipped, or warped, visitors will likely assume that this type of wear will be inside your home as well, giving them a poor first impression of your skills and dedication as a homeowner.
An old front door can also create practical problems. It may let in drafts through a loose seal in the door jamb, causing inefficiencies in your home’s heating and cooling system. It could also stick whenever you open or close it and even have issues locking properly. By replacing the front door, you can prioritize home security while also improving the appearance and efficiency of your home. Be sure to pick out a door design that complements the rest of your home’s exterior and interior. If you already have a home security system in place, remember to contact security professionals to discuss how you can connect your new front door to the rest of the system.
Whether you want to focus on just one area inside your home or you want to boost the overall look of the exterior, there are plenty of home improvement projects to do in the summer and keep you busy. If you’re interested in doing some of these projects but are concerned about how much they’ll cost, remember to think outside of the box and get creative with what you can DIY. You may not be able to replace a roof yourself, but you can reface cabinets on your own and then redirect your cabinet funds to take care of the roof’s needs. Most importantly, remember to have fun with these summer projects. If you don’t enjoy the process and the final outcome, then there’s not much of a point to doing the projects in the first place. Pick out one of these projects to do in the summer and get started today.
