Winter Doesn’t Have to Mean the End of DIY Home Improvement Projects

Completing many home renovations, improvements and repairs yourself can not only save you time, it can also give you more control over the materials that are used in the project. DIY projects are activities that can be both very frugal and very green and environmentally friendly.

With the arrival of winter, many Do-It-Yourselfers mistakenly believe that they will have to wait for warmer months to complete home improvement or maintenance tasks. Over the years, I have found that the winter months are the perfect time for a few specific DIY projects that involve working with a home's often neglected and over-looked ceiling area.

Installing Insulation

While you will begin to reduce heating and cooling costs the sooner that you complete this common task, winter is the perfect time to install additional insulation in the crawl space or attic above your ceiling. Most homes do not have adequate ventilation, or climate control features, in the area above the ceiling. It is simply too hot and stuffy to complete this task comfortably in the warmer months. Take advantage of the cooler temperatures and add insulation during the winter.

Installing Lighting Fixtures and Ventilation Fans, Retrofitting Homes for Electronics, Adding to or Repairing HVAC Ductwork

Adding additional insulation above your home's ceiling is not the only activity that is best to complete during the cooler winter months. For similar reasons, it is best to wait until winter to install ventilation fans, and new lighting fixtures in the ceiling, particularly in-ceiling recessed lighting. In addition to being cooler, the winter months are darker so less light enters your home. The winter months are the perfect time to try out new lighting to make certain that you are best eliminating all of your home's areas of low light. While newer homes often come pre-wired for electronics, and there are wireless solutions for homeowners that do not want to climb among the rafters above their ceilings or cut into their walls, winter can be the perfect time to install cables above the ceiling to retro-fit your home for an entertainment center or home office. Similarly, if you need to make a repair to any in-ceiling ductwork, the reduced temperatures of winter make it the perfect time.

Painting and Decorating

Many of us forget about the "wall" above our heads, but winter is the perfect time to try out a new color on this "wall" or simply freshen up the existing color. The cooler, darker months of winter can feel oppressive to many who find themselves indoors more often than they wish. I was surprised by how much lighter and brighter my home looked and felt once we painted the forgotten "wall" that is our ceiling one winter.

While winter is seen as the "end" of the seasons, its arrival does not have to be the end of your DIY projects.

This article was originally written by Lyn Brooks and published on the Yahoo! Contributor Network

Photo Credit: Nomadic Lass

Avoiding Chemicals in Everyday Products

Photo Credit: Horia Varlan

By Lyn Brooks, Founder and Contributor to The Frugal Green Thumb

Are you concerned about the amount of dangerous, hidden chemicals in your everyday products?

A UN report released earlier in 2014 says that the man-made chemicals in products we use in everyday products such as toys, perfumes, beverage containers and more, are likely responsible for at least some cancers, birth defects and psychiatric problems. How do parents approach the use of chemicals in their homes? Here is our story of how we reduce the use of chemicals in our home.

UN Report Simply Confirms My Concerns

A recent UN report detailing the dangers to our health from the chemicals found in many everyday products comes as little surprise to me.

I have four children and have always been concerned about the chemicals and compounds that my family could be exposed to. Who really knows what leaches into our food from Teflon, or into our water from plastic bottles? What is in many soaps and cosmetics, or even most of the pre-packaged foods found in restaurants and grocery stores? Due to my concerns about the effects of long term exposure to these compounds, I've always taken steps to reduce our exposure, and this report simply confirms that my concerns and precautions were well founded.

Steps My Family Takes to Avoid Chemicals in Everyday Products

To avoid chemicals, we've always used cast iron and stainless steel cookware. We also grow some of our own produce and we buy produce from trusted local sources to avoid pesticides. We also prepare most of our meals from whole foods. We even buy the more expensive free-range meat and eggs, from local sources when possible. I've always tried to choose soap and cosmetics made from natural ingredients and preservative free. 

As awareness about the potential dangers of hidden chemicals in common items has risen, it's become a bit easier over the years to reduce our family's exposure to these dangerous compounds. When dining out, we try to choose restaurants that are smaller, family run enterprises that use whole foods rather than frequent the mass chains that have drive-thrus. I make homemade laundry detergent without dye or harsh chemicals, and use vinegar, baking soda, and lemon juice to clean.

I worry about my older children in college, and the chemicals they must be exposed to living in the dorms and eating highly processed food from the school's cafeteria or restaurants. No matter anyone's age, everyone should be concerned about the dangers from chemical exposure in everyday products.

What steps do you take to reduce your exposure to dangerous chemicals that might be lurking in our food, water and household items? I love receiving feedback from my readers, so please be certain to use the comments section below to share what steps you take to avoid chemicals in everyday products.

This is an update to an article by the author that was originally published on Yahoo! in early 2014.