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Nick and Cindy Germann

Gadgets that Make Our Life Easier

by Nick and Cindy Germann on July 26

We’re not really “gadget” type people. It seems like every gadget promises to make your life 100% easier in half the time for five easy payments of $25.99. And then by the time you’ve made the last payment of $25.99 the gadget is either broken, missing a piece, or lying forgotten on the floor of a closet. But even though we’re skeptics we’ve found that there are some pieces of technology that really do make our life that much easier and enable us to spend more time doing what we love and less time worrying about chores around the house.

First up – Roomba. I was as skeptical as anybody when I heard about these magical robots that vacuumed your floor unassisted. I also made a comment or two about what kind of lazy person needed that. And then I adopted two heavy-shedding dogs and traded carpets for dark hardwood floors. And suddenly I was the lazy person who needed a Roomba. We love this little guy. While I certainly could sweep my floors every single day, it’s worth it to me to have Roomba take care of that task so I can spend the time playing fetch with the dogs instead.

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Keeping Cool – Cooling Your House Without Central Air

by Nick and Cindy Germann on July 12

We live in an 85-year-old, two-story home. Our house is heated through radiant heat, which means there is no duct work in the house. Which means we have no central AC.

Tower Fan - O-Digital.com

The first summer we lived in the house we only used fans to stay cool. “Cool” being a very relative term. The second story (where all of the bedrooms are!) often hits a roasty-toasty 95* and there’s only so much a fan can do to combat that kind of heat. Fortunately, by year two in our house we installed a handful of window air conditioner units. However, we’ve found that there are many other options to stay cool without central air. [click to continue…]

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Pouring Your Own Concrete

by Nick and Cindy Germann on June 28

Pouring your own concrete can be intimidating, but it can also save you thousands of dollars. We’re usually ones to jump headlong into any DIY project, but faced with pouring our own garage slab we wavered. Could we do it? Would we have to rip out the whole thing and start over? Concrete isn’t terribly forgiving and you’re on a tight timeline to get the job done. In the end, the savings won out and we poured our own pad. We learned a lot along the way and now that it’s done we can say we’re glad we went the DIY route! If you’re thinking of pouring your own concrete here are some things to keep in mind.

Shoveling and Leveling Before Concrete

First – you’ll do more work before the truck shows up than after. We spent a solid week prepping for the concrete. Between digging out the foundation and working with Class 5 rock we had our work cut out for us! The crushed rock serves as a base for the concrete and it needs to be solid. We shoveled rock, tamped it, checked to see if it was level, shoveled, tamped, checked, shoveled, tamped….well, you get the idea. It’s incredibly time consuming but so worth the effort once the concrete shows up! When you’re planning out the project be sure to plan for the prep work. You’ll need plenty of time to make sure you’re ready for the concrete.

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Seed vs. Sod – Pros and Cons

by Nick and Cindy Germann on June 14

Last year we were faced with a blank slate for a backyard. No grass, no flowers, no plants. The possibilities were definitely exciting, but also overwhelming! Our first decision was a big one – plant grass seed or lay sod? Everyone’s situation is unique, and our decision won’t be the best one for everyone, but here are some factors that can help to make the seed vs. sod decision a more simple one.

First – what’s your timeline? If you’re planning on hosting a backyard BBQ in two weeks then sod is probably the way to go. It takes about 3 weeks for most grass seed to start coming in, and even then it’ll probably take a couple over-seeding sessions before you have a nice thick lawn. Realistically, it’s going to take most of the summer to get a lush lawn from seed. But once it’s in it’s absolutely beautiful! Sod, on the other hand, is an instant gratification project. After a couple hours of hard work you have an instantly green lawn!

Second – what’s your budget? Sod is a more expensive option than seed. We recommend making quite a few phone calls to sod farms before you place an order, though, as prices can vary wildly. We were quoted anywhere from $1.50 to $3.49 a roll! Be sure to ask about delivery fees as well. We have a small yard and friends with a big truck, so we were able to pick up the sod ourselves. If that’s not an option for you, definitely be sure to ask what they charge to drop it off. And once you have the sod be ready to move! You want to get it on the ground as quickly as possible, as the sod will start to rot if left on the pallet. You’ll definitely keep the tab down by planting your own seed! Just be sure to grab an extra bag or two to fill in thin areas as the grass grows.

Third – how much traffic will your yard see? When planting seed you want to keep the traffic as low as possible in your yard. If you have a dog (or dogs) that will be running around the yard several times a day you’ll want to keep that in mind, as it could disturb the seed you’re working so hard to grow. Sod will take the abuse more easily.

We were a little impatient for our yard to take shape and with a very active dog running all over we decided sod was the best route for us. Our small yard meant the sod was very reasonable and we decided to install it ourselves. It was a great decision for us, but yours maybe different! Sod is certainly a tempting route to go because of the instant results, but the savings of planting your own seed might be enough to sway your decision.

Whether you go with sod or seed it’ll take a lot of water to get the green lawn you’re looking for. Just set the sprinklers and let ‘em go! Sod and seed will both eventually lead to a beautiful green lawn that your family will enjoy all summer long. Here’s to a summer of barbecues and games of frisbee on an impeccably green lawn!

Nick and Cindy Germann are young DIY-ers living in St. Paul, Minnesota with their two English Springer Spaniels and one feisty rabbit. They blog at The Flipping Couple, where they talk a lot about messy projects and old houses while posting pictures of their four-legged pets. They’re turning their 86-year-old Craftsman into a beautiful home one overdue project and smashed finger at a time, all while dreaming of finished walls and clean floors.

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Function Over Fashion: Kitchen Remodel Edition

by Nick and Cindy Germann on May 31

While many of us decide to remodel for aesthetic reasons, there’s typically a lot of room for functional improvement to our kitchens as well. So before you jump to the fun part and pick out countertops and paint colors, give some thought to the layout and function of existing elements.

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First – take your time! It’s often one of the first thing homeowners want to tackle when moving into a new house, but waiting 6 months or so can have a huge impact on how happy you are with your remodel in the long run. You’ll learn things about the way you live how you use the space that will help you determine where everything should be and how it should work. Maybe the island that seemed like such a great idea will actually just get in the way, or the track lighting doesn’t fit the space and needs to be redone. It can take time to figure out the nuances of your space!

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Second – reconsider the layout. Even if you’re not completely gutting the kitchen it’s often surprisingly easy to move things around so that they work for you. We’re in the middle of remodeling our kitchen (for the second time! It’s a long story…) and we realized that while the position of the refrigerator made sense on paper, in real life it made it difficult to use the two feet of counter space next to it and it kept us from opening the cupboards to the left. By moving our fridge across the room and rearranging our breakfast bar we made our kitchen a hundred times more functional. As an added bonus, it looks much more open and inviting! Don’t be afraid to ask your contractor how difficult it would be to move appliances or fixtures. It’s often easier than you think and it can mean the difference between a good remodel and a dynamite remodel.

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Finally, get inspired! Take a stroll through some kitchen stores and designer magazines to see what you might want to add to your kitchen. Maybe it’s a pull-out pantry or an in-cabinet garbage can. Do you want a built-in fridge? Or maybe drawers instead of lower cabinets? How about a stove-top pot filler? Ask lots of questions and dream a little! Even with a limited budget you can often make an upgrade or two that you’ll end up loving. Once the functional part of the kitchen is in place the aesthetics are even more fun to pull together.

Nick and Cindy Germann are young DIY-ers living in St. Paul, Minnesota with their two English Springer Spaniels and one feisty rabbit. They blog at The Flipping Couple, where they talk a lot about messy projects and old houses while posting pictures of their four-legged pets. They’re turning their 86-year-old Craftsman into a beautiful home one overdue project and smashed finger at a time, all while dreaming of finished walls and clean floors.

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