VickieV's blog

Our pets can’t talk, so it’s often up to us to determine when they’re experiencing pain so we can help them live a pain-free life. Many older pets show signs of chronic pain that may not be obvious to the untrained eye. Classic signs include lameness and difficulty rising from a sitting or lying position.

Dry rot is a problem that can come up on any construction project and it has even reared its ugly head here at Save Energy Company. As explained in the last blog, we had decided to repaint the building and during our preparations we found several trim boards that had dry rot. As you can see in the photo below, we were able to apply the new brown base color on the body of the building but several trim boards between the front door and window have been removed and need to be replaced.

A federal law passed more than two years ago finally takes effect on (appropriately enough) April 22, Earth Day. On that day the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will begin enforcing its regulations covering work performed in homes that might possibly contain lead paint. Because the vast majority of houses in San Francisco were built before 1978, this law is set to affect nearly every homeowner. The 1978 date is critical because that is when the government finally banned the use of lead-based paints.

While the government has long offered tax credits for green home improvements like solar panels, federal tax credits are also available again this year for other home improvements such as window and door replacements. The credits were available last year as well and those credits are still available at a deduction of 30 percent of the cost of materials. Labor costs are not included. So if your project cost say $10,000.00 and $2,000.00 of that total was for the labor to install it you would be eligible for a tax credit of 30% of the $8,000.00 balance or $2,400.00.

I recently got off the phone with a potential client who at one point during our conversation had asked me, “So how much are replacement windows going to cost, just a ballpark figure.”