Is Your Deck Safe?

Part of our job as affordable licensed building contractors in the Bronx and other Burroughs is making sure your home is safe. And one area that you might assume is safe and sound is your deck—but how can you be sure?

According to This Old House, decks are a common do-it-yourself construction project. If you want to tackle the project yourself that’s great, but read A Real Advantage Construction’s tips for making sure your deck doesn’t have dangerous structural defects.

Decks commonly collapse when they have been merely nailed on. Decks should be attached with bolts, rather than nails. While nails can stand up to the downward force of a crowd gathering on a deck, they can’t stand up to the outward force, which acts as a lever (forcing the deck away from the house). As a result, nails tend to loosen as wood swells and shrinks with moisture—making them offer less resistance to the prying forces.

A screwed-in connector, on the other hand, gains increased frictional strength courtesy of the wedging action of wood fivers along the shaft’s length. A lag bolt (think: a giant screw) has nearly nine times the pullout resistance of a nail (per inch of penetration). A true bolt, which is inserted into a drilled hole and fitted with a nut, boasts even more strength due to its metal-to-metal connection. With that said, these connectors may loosen over time, so look for signs like a widening gap against the house.

One tip to keep the connection between the house and deck dry is to add flashing to drain away, which will protect both entities. Of course, a freestanding deck eliminates this problem. 

How To: Powerwash Your Walkway

{Does your walkway look like this? We can help!}

As affordable residential contractors serving Brooklyn and beyond, we are full of tips to making your home truly shine. If your walkway is covered with dirt and grime, it’s time to powerwash it. Your walkway is one of the first things people see upon arriving at your home, after all.

First, attach a garden house to the inlet port on your powerwasher. Then, connect the spray-wand hose to the powerwasher and attached a low-pressure nozzle to the spray wand. Hold the nozzle a few inches away from your walkway and start the power washer. Squeeze the trigger and direct the water at an angle. If that doesn’t do the trick, replace the low-pressure nozzle with a stronger one and continue spraying. Mix a solution of nine parts water, one part chlorine bleach in a bucket and scrub your walkway using a brush with course bristles. Repeat once a month!

Check back for more tips from A Real Advantage Construction Inc.

{Photo Credit: Patrick Chondon}

In-Case-of-Emergency Tips

We may be best known for our affordable rain gutter services, but our expertise doesn’t just lie in exterior household repairs! Check out more in-case-of-emergency tips below!


Make a Plan

The best way to get through an emergency is to have a plan and stick to it:

• Choose a contact person—a family member or friend—who lives out of state. In the event of a disaster, it might be easier to call long distance than locally

• Choose not one but two meeting spots

Frozen Pipes

We know, we know, it’s summertime and frozen pipes are the last thing on your mind. Humor us anyway and read our trips for preventing frozen pipes:

• Before the cold weather arrives, cut off the water supply to outdoor faucets and leave the faucets turned on so the pipes are drained before the wintertime

• Regularly let a little bit of hot or cold water run through the pipes—even during freezing spells

• Insulate vulnerable pipes using heat tape or heat cable

Fire Extinguishers

What’s the use of having a fire extinguisher if you don’t know how to use it! Squeeze the lever and then sweep the nozzle from side to side at the flames until the fire appears to be extinguished. Other tips:

• Regularly inspect your extinguisher and if the gauge doesn’t read 100 percent, have it serviced (if rechargeable) or buy a new one if not

• Replace old extinguishers. Enough said!

More Home Safety Tips from A Real Advantage Construction

Did you read our latest post about emergency preparedness? Well, welcome to the next installation of A Real Advantage Construction’s guide to preparing for an emergency!


Power Outage

If anyone in your home relies on electrical medical equipment, make sure your power company knows so that your home will be priority when electricity is being restored in the event of an outage. Other tips:

• Make sure your microwave, toaster and coffee machine aren’t sharing the same outlet!

• Store a flashlight in each bedroom to avoid using candles—which can cause a fire—in case of an outage

• If you use a laptop, back up files regularly and purchase extra batteries and a DC-to-AC auto adapter so you can operate your computer from the cigarette lighter of your vehicle in case of an emergency

Escape Routes

Is your address visible? Make sure emergency-aid vehicles will be able to locate your home quickly in case of an emergency. Also take these precautions:

• Plan at least two escape routes out of every room and make sure that each family member is aware of them

• Place preassembled flame-resistant safety escape ladders near a window on each floor of your home

• Pick an outdoor meeting space located at a safe distance from your home

Stay tuned for more tips from A Real Advantage Construction Inc!

Are You Prepared for an Emergency?

As affordable commercial contractors, we know the ins and outs of your home perhaps better than you do—which is why we want to help you make sure you are prepared for an emergency! Read A Real Advantage Construction’s tips for preparing for possible emergencies and rest easy.


Gas Leak

First thing’s first: if you or anyone in your home smells that unmistakable rotten-egg odor and can’t identify its source, get out of the house immediately! That is the basic rule of gas safety, but there are other things you can do to make sure your home is safe:

• Don’t hang anything heavy on your gas pipes

• Make sure the gas connections to your gas appliances aren’t cracked or frayed

• Consider installing a natural-gas detector

Smoke Alarms

Mount a smoke alarm on every level of the house and make sure they are located outside of each bedroom. Here are more tips:

• Test the batteries of your smoke alarm once a month and replace them once a year

• If your smoke alarms are connected to the household electrical system, test them monthly as well

• Buy new smoke alarms every decade

• Even if you’re annoyed at the noise it makes when you burn dinner, don’t disable your smoke alarm!

• Dust or vacuum alarms on a regular basis