Moving into a new part of a year can mean a lot of necessary changes for your home. Between unpacking your outdoor furniture from its long winter hibernation to performing any repairs that may have sprung up in the great thaw, transitioning into spring can be hectic. Despite the ever-growing list of things you need to complete as spring approaches, a few tasks should take priority. Learn what you include on your seasonal to-do list and, ultimately, how to update your house for spring.

Install New Gutter Systems

With the snow starting to melt and inevitable spring showers on the horizon, a functioning gutter system is crucial to preventing water damage and costly repairs. Every homeowner should take the first glimpses of spring as a sign they should repair or replace their current gutters. When doing so, make sure that they’re properly secured to the home and that they provide an airtight seal, which prevents water from leaking down your siding.

Repaint a Room or Two

Another way to freshen up a home for a new spring is to repaint a few of your rooms. Something as simple as a new coat of paint can bring a room back to life and provide it with a unique look. This also gives you the chance to experiment with different color schemes and find something that complements your style.

Add Some Greenery

If you want to take your makeover a few steps further, then bring some of the outdoors inside with a few plants or flowers. These things not only provide a home with characteristic pops of color, but also allow you to embrace spring in a natural way.

Repair Damage from the Winter

One of the best ways to say farewell to winter is to repair all the damages it inflected on your home, whether it’s cracked windowsills or weathering from the intense cold. Correcting these problems early into the season sets the tone for the productive months ahead. By handling these fixes early, you also allow yourself more time to enjoy your home without worry.

At Bear Mountain Custom Painting, we understand that home renovations are the last things on your mind as you move into spring. That’s why we can take on any project your home might need—from custom house painting to quality gutter installation services in Cumming, GA—as you prepare for a new season. In fact, with our experienced professionals in charge, transitioning into spring just became a lot smoother.

2020 is a big year for various reasons. Not only is it the beginning of a new decade, but it’s also an opportunity to embrace the popular design changes coming to homes across the nation. However, this doesn’t just apply to your home’s interior. There are also several trending exterior house colors for 2020 that you should consider going into your renovation projects.

For the Front Door

Since the front door should be eye-catching and bold, it’s the perfect place to try out a new color scheme. Though in the past, homeowners have opted for a dark and neutral vibe for the door, it’s more common to see bright, vibrant colors donning the entryway. Yellows, oranges, and reds are particularly common, as they create a warm and welcoming atmosphere.

For the Garage Door

In contrast to the front door, garage doors are seeing more of an emphasis on architectural design and color blending. Rather than going bright and bold, many are making their garage doors darker to draw attention to the rest of the home. For this purpose, hues such as dark blue, black, and natural green or brown are often the most effective.

For the Siding

The garage door isn’t the only area of the home going darker. In fact, darker colors are used more and more on home siding for their ability to add a personal touch to the architecture. This is especially the case for shades of blue and gray. Because dark colors do tend to be more of a personal preference, be sure to repaint with a lighter value if you plan on selling your home.

For Window Trims and Accents

If you ultimately decide to go with a darker color for your siding, make sure that you use a complementary color scheme for your exterior trims and accents. This will often mean choosing a lighter color to offset the siding’s darkness. For this reason, many homeowners choose to go with lighter blues or whites.

For assistance applying your colors of choice to your home, or even help choosing the colors themselves, reach out to Bear Mountain Custom Painting. Our home painting professionals in Cumming, Georgia, know the ins and outs of various trending color schemes and can provide you with insight into what colors best complement one another.

You can employ a variety of methods to update and redesign your home—but installing crown molding is one of the most effective. Though they may not seem like much, these architectural design pieces can take an ordinary room and make it extravagant and inviting for you and your guests. However, this isn’t the only advantage that crown molding offers a home. Read on to learn more of the key benefits of having crown molding in your home.

Hides Imperfections

Older homes can shift and expand with time, creating inevitable cracks and blemishes along our walls—especially in tight corners. Because crown molding is installed where the wall and the ceiling touch, these blemishes can be a thing of the past. By placing crown molding around the perimeter of a room, you’re providing it with an instant upgrade that shields these cracks from sight.

Enhances Visual Appeal

While blocking your view of any wall imperfections, crown moldings also enhance a room with their own designated structural design. These styles are what make a room appear more elegant and inviting to those spending time in that space. Depending on which you choose, you can find a style that works with your décor to create a cohesive look throughout your home.

Diversifies Design Options

Crown moldings come in a wide range of design options for you to choose from. This ensures that you’ll be able to find one that complements the established style of your home. Remember, however, that when in doubt, going with a simplistic design is a great way to enhance a room without overpowering it.

Increases Home Value

Because of the benefits that crown moldings offer your home, they also have the additional perk of raising its overall value. The more visually interesting a home is, the more likely it is that buyers will want to pursue purchasing it. This makes it more desirable on the market and raises the potential for greater profit upon selling.

At Bear Mountain Custom Painting, we don’t just provide professional painting services. We’re also well versed in the craft of wood-rot removal and crown molding installation. With our carpentry services in Cumming, Georgia, we’ll be sure to complete your projects in a timely and effective way.

If you’ve ever rented an older apartment or bought an older home, you’ve probably been warned about lead exposure and its associated risks. At the time, this may have seemed like a standard piece of paper you needed to sign before you could move in, but lead is a very real threat for many residents across the nation. As such, it’s important that you’re informed about the signs and risks of lead poisoning and how you can protect yourself and your family. Here is everything you need to know about lead paint in your home.

The Dangers of Lead-Based Paint

Initially used in early paint products to accelerate drying time and the overall durability of finished products, lead is a heavy metal mined from beneath the Earth’s crust. These paints were stronger and longer-lasting than anything else on the market, making them the logical choice for home painters for several years. However, as knowledge of chemicals’ effects on the human body grew, people came to realize these products could be harmful in various ways. Lead paint was officially banned from home application in 1978, but many homes built before that date still utilize them. As such, it’s important that you’re aware of the signs you could be at risk and how you should respond.

The primary health hazard associated with lead exposure is lead poisoning. We illustrate some of its potential consequences here:

Lead Poisoning

Lead poisoning results from the ingestion of high quantities of lead over time and can lead to potentially serious damage to a person’s vital organs and base functions. Once lead makes its way into the bloodstream, an individual will often begin experiencing symptoms such as frequent headaches, stomachaches, nausea, tiredness, and irritability. All these traits are common signs that your body is fighting off a foreign chemical. As more lead concentrates in your blood, these signs will worsen and make you vulnerable to other ailments.

In severe cases, lead poisoning has been known to cause a series of lasting physical conditions such as hearing loss, slowed development, fertility struggles, and even nerve disorders. Unfortunately, these cases also worsen with an increase in lead concentration, and they can lead to permanent health issues later in life. Because this condition also results in high blood pressure and bone marrow problems, it can also make you more susceptible to developing other illnesses after the fact.

How to Protect Yourself

Among everything you need to know about lead paint is how to properly remove it in order to protect the health of yourself and your family. Paint isn’t the only household product that contains lead, but it poses the most risk with frequent contact. As such, be sure you follow these steps to ensure your safety.

Determine Whether Your Walls Have Lead Paint

Since lead paint isn’t used in current renovation projects, you may never even have to worry about exposure. However, if your home does end up having lead paint, you’ll want to be aware of it so that you can respond to any problems. Many homeowners or renters ask when their residences were built for this reason. If your own home was built prior to 1978, you’ll need to be conscious of the possibility of the presence of lead paint. Though landlords are legally required to tell their tenants if lead is present in the building, homeowners may need to get an official inspection to be able to tell for sure.

Regularly Check Your Paint for Damage

Fortunately, lead paint only poses the above risks if it’s been damaged. If your paint has remained intact, harmful lead particles don’t have the opportunity to be ingested. However, if you notice that your paint is beginning to peel, chip, chalk, or crack, you should take immediate action to remove yourself from the environment and to properly remove the product from your walls. When inspecting your walls, be sure to keep an eye out for excessive levels of dust in certain areas as well as any locations where the paint is thinning or becoming brittle. If you’re pregnant or have young children, it’s especially crucial to remain informed on the condition of your walls to ensure your safety and health.

Clean Areas Where Paint Dust May Collect

Dust can easily form in sections of a home where painted surfaces commonly rub together, such as doors, windows, and stairways. To ensure that your home is clean and that lead particles aren’t floating freely, take some time to wipe this dust away by wetting the area with a spray bottle to reduce any fly-away debris, making sure to wear the proper safety equipment when you do so. Keep up with your regular chores to rid your home of any additional dust and dirt that could harm you.

Wear Protection When Altering the Paint

Whether you’re repainting or performing construction work, altering the lead paint in your home can release harmful lead particles into the air. This makes them very easy for you to ingest in high amounts, putting you in danger. However, this doesn’t mean you can’t complete these projects at all. Wearing protection such as a facemask, gloves, and HAZMAT suit is key to maintaining your safety during these endeavors. If you must alter the paint in any way, it’s crucial that you wear these items to keep the lead from infiltrating your system—especially during winter interior painting projects. Ultimately, if you don’t want to take the chance of exposing yourself to lead, consider reaching out to a professional to remove the paint for you.

Hire Professionals to Remove it

The best way to protect yourself from damaged lead paint in your home is to have professionals take care of it for you. Trained and experienced enough to handle these situations, these individuals know the ins and outs of lead paint removal and how to best protect themselves while completing the job. Many house painters are even specially qualified to take care of your lead paint as part of their initial painting services.

For more information about lead paint and about how you can protect yourself and your loved ones, reach out to Bear Mountain Custom Painting. Our experienced, EPA-certified house painters in Cumming, Georgia can further inform you of the risks as well as help you remove the problem. We aim to make your space just as safe as it is beautiful by assisting you in eliminating lead paint particles from your home.