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If you own a seasonal business, you know there are times when there aren’t enough hours in the day to do all your work, and times when no one is calling. Once the busy season ends, there are proactive things you can do to ensure your business booms when the seasons change again. Here are some productive ways to build your seasonal business during the off-season. Ask Customers for Online Reviews Customer reviews are a key deciding factor for many potential customers when hiring any service....

It’s no secret that gardening is tough on the knees. A good quality garden kneeling pad can help cushion you from stray rocks and sharp pieces of mulch, and even keep your knees from getting quite as dirty (maybe). I find that many of the kneelers sold in stores are a little small, and not always very durable. So I decided to spend a little money and make my own garden kneeling pad using a kitchen floor mat and some colorful duct tape....

I’ll be honest — sun protection, except for a little sunscreen at a ballgame or beach, wasn’t even on my radar for much of my life. But my perceptions changed after with a couple of recent eyebrow-raising dermatologist visits and a new addition to our family. These days, we never plan a family outing without an escape route from the elements. Whether we’re en route to the playground, a sporting event, a nearby brewery or a friend’s weekend cookout, we always keep the conditions in mind, especially the sun....

IrinaK/Shutterstock Do you hear scratching in walls at night? Mice love to seek out warm, cozy spots where there’s plenty of food—like inside your home. Mice seek out the darkest spots, such as inside air ducts and wall cavities to set up residence. And where there’s one mouse, there are likely more. Here’s why having a mouse problem is worse than you thought. Here’s how to get rid of a mouse in a wall First, try positioning some snap traps along the bottom edges of the walls where you’ve heard mice....

Cats are known for their tidy bathroom habits, practically litter training themselves. But despite their usual cleanliness, a cat peeing outside the litter box is not unusual. Messes are unfortunately an unavoidable part of pet ownership. But there are some steps you can take to keep the damage at a minimum. If you’re dealing with cat accidents, here’s why your cat pees outside the litter box, and what you can do about it....

There’s an autumn chill in the air, which means it’s time to close the pool for the winter. And while in-ground pools and many above-ground ones don’t need to be drained, they should be “tucked in” properly for their long winter hibernation. Here’s how to drain a pool for passive winterization. Among the steps to winterizing your pool is balancing the pH level. The “pH” stands for “potential of hydrogen.” In pool water, it measures the acidity on a scale from 0 to 14....

As the name suggests, a water heater turns cold water into hot water so you can shower, wash the dishes and do the laundry. Modern water heaters do this much more efficiently than their predecessors. Water heaters last from 10 to 15 years on average, so if you’re moving into a new home, the one that’s already there could be close to the end of its service life. That gives you a golden opportunity to upgrade....

What is a coping saw? Coping saws have a thin and narrow blade, which makes them highly maneuverable and able to cut tight turns in wood and other materials. Coping saws are used by trim carpenters to create coped joints, and by woodworkers to create curved shapes and to finish the bottom of dovetail joints. The blades on coping saws are approximately 6-1/2 inches long. Here are the basic parts of a coping saw: Handle Frame Blade Slotted Pin Round knob or turn pin The coping saw gets its name due to the way it’s used to cut/cope trim....

Purchasing a home with an underground oil tank is one of riskiest moves a home buyer can make. That’s because complete decommissioning and remediation if the tank were to leak, or if oil contamination is found in the soil, can be extremely expensive. We’re talking upwards of $100,000 if a tank ruptures, which your homeowners insurance may not cover. The good news is, properties with underground oil tanks are becoming rarer, because more homeowners are removing them or filling them in....

Why Dogs Kick Up Your Lawn It’s safe to say that dogs have some pretty weird behaviors, most of which are coming from instincts that these animals used to experience in the wild. Dogs can track smells, sense danger, and even use their bark to communicate particular messages. These behaviors are very easy to deal with, but when it comes to kicking up chunks of the lawn after going to the bathroom, their instinctual nature doesn’t seem so cute anymore....

Painted walls in a home are durable, attractive and mostly maintenance-free. Once pictures and furniture are in place, we tend to forget about them until it’s time to move stuff around. But chips, scuffs and holes add up over time. And once we notice them, they’re all we see. The good news is, you don’t have to hire a professional painter to freshen those walls. But you can’t just start flinging paint on the wall, either....

Menards is a family-owned home improvement retail chain with more than 300 locations, primarily in the Midwest. Their slogan, “Save Big Money!” is legendary. And their employees will tell you there are ways to save big money that not everyone knows about. Here are 10 examples. When is the Next 11 Percent Rebate Sale? Menards is best known for their 11 percent rebate promotions. During these sales, everything in the store is eligible for an 11 percent mail-in rebate, in the form of a store voucher....

We all know how even a simple clean-and-declutter session can suddenly make a room feel new and more spacious. So what if a few décor and furniture fixes could take it to the next level? We asked Realtors and stagers how to avoid 10 of the most common design mistakes to maximize space — or the illusion of it — in your home. Too Much Furniture Homeowners often overestimate how much furniture they need....

In the forest, trees absorb more than half of their nutrients from fallen leaves. But trees in town often miss out on that. So rather than throw away all of that free fertilizer and mulch, here are some ways to repurpose your yard full of dry leaves. Not only will you save time on raking and money on yard care materials, you’ll make a dent in the eight million tons of fallen leaves that end up in landfills every fall....

Moving is a worry-inducing and expensive time for anyone. But while packing up your whole life into boxes can be stressful, getting your hands on those boxes should not be. There are many convenient places you can go to find sturdy and inexpensive (if not downright free) moving boxes. Here are some of the places you should check out if you’re looking for boxes for your big move without breaking the bank....

Do you know what the three most terrifying words in the English language are to a homeowner? “You have termites.” It’s been estimated that damage to homes and forests caused by termites runs into the billions each year. Wreaking havoc on crops, homes, wooden landscaping features and other man-made structures, termites can be extremely problematic for anyone who has to deal with them. Damage to homes by termites, whether minor or invasive, can affect their resale value considerable....

Jessie Casson/Getty Images When the coronavirus pandemic reached the U.S. in early 2020, it created an immediate air of uncertainty about how the rest of the year would play out. As government shutdowns and social distancing slowed business in the construction industry to a crawl this spring, a doom-and-gloom outlook for the summer ahead seemed reasonable. Instead, this summer was an incredibly busy one for contractors and home builders across the country....

Brakes are your vehicle’s most important safety system. Under normal conditions, a driver exerts about 70 pounds of force on the brake pedal (about the same amount of effort it takes to bite into a steak) to bring thousands of pounds of moving metal and plastic to a quick and controlled stop. A flawless brake system is absolutely crucial to driver, passenger and pedestrian safety. Read on to learn how a modern automotive brake system works and some of the most common brake system problems....

via Disney Parks Blog What’s twice the size of Disney’s Magic Kingdom, stretches over 270 acres, and can power two Disney theme parks? It’s Disney’s newest and largest solar farm. Just think of all the energy needed to power the rides, the lights and the vehicles at Disney World in Florida. It’s estimated that these four theme parks use enough energy annually to power up to 80,000 homes. So, it’s not surprising that with a commitment to cutting its greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2020, The Walt Disney Company is looking to solar energy to help meet its vast energy needs....

What is a Home Security System? The first “home security systems” in the U.S. gained popularity when crime rates rose after World War I. They were mostly rudimentary. Some involved electromagnetic locks and ringing bell alarms. One consisted of a group of men called “door shakers” who would go house to house every night making sure doors were securely locked. On This Page Needless to say, home security systems have come a long way....