Some types of home improvement can increase the value of your home, like enhancing the curb appeal. Others have far greater benefits, including keeping your family safe and healthy.
If you’re living in Virginia, these are the home remodeling ideas that you should consider:
1. Plant Natural Mosquito Repellants
Geography and weather are just two of the many factors that allow mosquitoes to breed and bite in Virginia. In this state, frozen winter often doesn’t last long, which means eggs can remain intact.
If that isn’t enough, these pests can thrive better as the temperature increases. In the summer, Virginia can be both hot and humid—a perfect time for incessant breeding.
Mosquitoes themselves are not the problem, but they can be potential carriers of viruses that can trigger diseases like West Nile and encephalitis (or inflammation of the brain). These can be potentially life-threatening to individuals with compromised immune systems.
If you already have a mosquito infestation, you need help from a mosquito control expert. It usually takes only one to three days for eggs to hatch after being laid, and mosquitoes can produce up to 200 eggs every third night.
You can imagine how fast they multiply. A mosquito control expert can prevent these mosquitoes from breeding once and for all.
Then you can complement this measure by planting flowers, greens, and bushes that may help repel mosquitoes. These can include garlic, catnip, lemongrass, rosemary, and citronella. As a bonus, some are fragrant to human smell!
Note: While you can do the gardening yourself, you may still be better off working with a landscaper. It turns out that Virginia is actually prone to spontaneous mulch fire, which means the decomposing material found in mulch can ignite without an external source. The risks are higher when the weather is dry. A seasoned landscaper can prevent this significant problem from happening.
2. Improve Your Ventilation
Virginia receives about 35 inches of rainfall each year. The national average is only 30 inches. While the sound of the pouring rain may rock you to sleep, it may invite a persistent problem in the state: molds.
Molds are fungi that grow and breed in moist or damp environments—places that are almost always wet. Heavy or consistent rainfall will only make it worse, at least for you and your home.
Although molds are not as life-threatening as people think, they can increase the risk of respiratory problems, such as allergies. They may also worsen the feeling of sick building syndrome.
Although it is not an official diagnosis, the symptoms can be both annoying and frustrating. These can include fatigue, odor sensitivity, irritation of the nose and throat, and dry and itchy skin.
One of the best ways to reduce the growth of molds is to improve ventilation at home. If you have an attic, you may ask your remodeling or HVAC team to add vents on the eaves or a ventilation system near the peak of the roof.
Good airflow will help bring the humidity levels down, which may aggravate mold growth. Even better, it may help keep roaches and dust mites away.
3. Inspect and, if Necessary, Replace and Improve Electrical Wiring
Electrical-related problems are ranked as one of the most common causes of home fires. According to the National Fire Protection Association (FNPA), it placed second as the leading cause of structure fires after unattended equipment between 2012 and 2016. However, electrical failures accounted for the highest percentages of direct property damage and civilian death.
While electrical connections can have many issues that lead to fires, arcing seems to be the most plausible explanation, impacting as many as three of five reported home fires due to electrical malfunction.
Arcing happens when loose, frayed, or worn wiring connections lead to intermittent contact between conductors that lead to sparking. And this can be extremely common in old houses, which Virginia is abundant of.
If your Virginia house has been built before 1999, you may want to have your wirings ASAP. This is because the property is less likely to have an arc-fault circuit interrupter (AFCI). This will also give your electricians ample time to assess if your home needs partial or complete rewiring, including replacing outlets in certain circuits.
For most homeowners, their house is their refuge, where they should feel safe. But when not properly taken care of, a much-loved property can be lead to a variety of problems that lead to poor health and damages.
If you’re living in Virginia, these home improvement ideas can help give you peace of mind and a long time to enjoy your house.
