Should You Install an Outdoor Kitchen?

It’s extremely popular to find people cooking outdoors in the Mediterranean. Nowadays, in the US, this type of outdoor cooking has become a common trend. A lot of people understand the benefits of cooking outdoor in their own backyard.  

Having a place to cook outside can be an excellent investment to make, whether you are looking for ways to better use the extra space you have or you are building a new home. If you do want to install an outdoor kitchen, it’s best to visit the contractor’s site such as https://www.wacooutdoorkitchens.com/, for more info.  

Should you install an outdoor kitchen? Let’s find out.  

Enhance the Taste of Food 

Aside from improving the taste of food, grilling is also better for your health. The reason for this is that when meats are grilled, their fat drips off. Thus, your meals will contain few calories from fat and will be healthier.  

Enhance Your Living Space 

You don’t have to add a room with a roof and walls. You only have to integrate the extra space you have on your backyard. You are all set to bring in appliances and have the outdoor kitchen you desire if you’ve got a covered patio. You and your family members can simply enjoy the great outdoors, celebrate holidays, or birthdays in your outdoor kitchen.  

Keeps Odors Outside 

While you are cooking, several foods will smell tasty. On the other hand, others will emit foul odors. These odors can linger for days. This is particularly true if you are cooking odiferous foods like deep-fried meats or fish. Your home will stay smelling fresh if you prepare your meals outside your house. 

Saves on Utility Bills 

Your A/C unit will not have to work hard to keep your home cool if you grill outside during the summer. For those who don’t know, the temperature inside your home rises several degrees whenever you broil, roast, fry, and bake foods inside your kitchen. If this happens, your A/C will have to do more work to keep your house cool. This means that you’ll save on energy consumption if you cook outside the house.  

Improve the Value of Your House 

Remodelers gain a high rate of return on their financial investment due to the trend of this landscaping design. Nowadays, almost every BBQ grills and other outdoor kitchen appliances are made of stainless steel. This means that they can handle the shifting temperatures with the seasons. In addition to that, since they are very simple to clean, stainless steel appliances are very desirable. You will have an investment you can enjoy and use for a lot of years to come whenever you’ve got an operational outdoor kitchen.  

Excellent for Entertaining 

Being an ideal area for entertaining is one of the main advantages of an outdoor kitchen. Visitors can gather around the area and socialize while you are preparing the food when you are cooking outside. When everyone hangs out with the cook, an indoor kitchen might get easily crowded. However, there is much more free area outside. By adding some mood music, strings of lights, outdoor furnishings, and patio heaters, you can improve the comfort of your visitors.  

How to Lower Your Energy Bills

Every month, almost all homeowners fear one thing. That is seeing their monthly energy bills. This is particularly true if you’ve noticed your previous bills have tripled or doubled.  

Energy bills can be a pain on our bank account, especially if your energy bills are too high. There are a few reasons why this might happen to you. This includes faulty appliances to poor insulation.  

To help you, here are several ways to lower your energy bills.  

Add an Air Seal to Your House with Insulation 

You probably have to update your insulation if you’re noticing air leaks in your house. When it comes to insulation for your house, you’ve got a lot of options to choose from. This includes foam, cellulose, and fiberglass. It will be up to you to pick the ideal insulation for your house. Thus, you have to do some research. Fortunately, several sites such as https://www.wacosprayfoam.com/ can help you.  

Seal Leaks Around Windows and Doors 

It is costing you money if the air is leaking around your doors and windows. If you want to do this as a DIY project, you can buy a can of spray foam at your local hardware shop.  

Extreme Weather 

When it comes to monthly energy bills, the weather is one thing that you cannot control. For those who don’t know, 50% of your energy bill comes from your cooling or heating costs.  

There is not much you can do if you are experiencing an extreme heatwave or a cold snap. To help you, you should keep your thermostat 65 degrees during winter and 75 degrees during summer. You should also wear appropriate clothing.  

Clean and Maintain Your Appliances 

You can end up spending a lot of money if you do not maintain and clean your appliances. This can still be applied even if you have appliances that are energy-efficient.  

Almost every homeowner does it. We tend to forget to change out the air filters or lint filters for our furnace or AC system. You will have to remember to maintain and clean your appliances if you want to lower your energy bills. This will help them operate more efficiently.  

Replace Your Appliances and Light Bulbs to Energy-Efficient Ones 

For those who don’t know, around 1/3 of the energy in your house is utilized for your appliances and lighting. This includes your dryer, washer, oven, fridge, and dishwasher.  

You can save around $35 up to $70 every month on your energy bills if you use energy-efficient light bulbs such as LEDs and CFLs. In addition to that, these light bulbs also last a lot longer compared to their counterparts.  

Don’t Leave Electronics on Standby 

Your electronics are slowly consuming energy. For those who don’t know, if you don’t properly shut off your electronics, your tablet, gaming system, computer, and other devices are just going to sleep.  

These gadgets are still sucking up energy while sleeping. According to the Department of Energy, around 10% of your energy bill can be associated with your electronics. 

Guidelines in Fixing Exposed Tree Roots

A sustainable root system is essential to the longevity and growth of all kinds of plants, such as trees. On top of the intake of nutrients, water, and air through the soil, tree roots can also assist in anchoring the plant to its place and they’ll keep on laterally spreading underneath the ground as the tree gets older. As the majority of roots usually be situated between 12 up to 18 inches underneath the soil’s surface. Several aspects might result in exposed tree roots that could place danger to your lawn tools or turn out to be a trip risk. Here are some Rowlett lawn care tips to fix exposed tree roots to prevent having such risk: 

Possible causes of an exposed tree root 

When we see an exposed tree root, we tend to believe that they have breached the soil. However, that’s not the case. In fact, there’s a great possibility that the soil that once concealed them has damaged. Deep root feeding could assist to minimize erosion and encourage a sustainable root system and must be counted as a preventive gauge. Below are some of the typical causes of root exposure: 

Heavy traffic 

One of the things that could wear and compact the soil is foot traffic. Because of foot traffic, the soil uncovers the roots underneath. 

Lack of structure 

Those trees having massive canopy offer a shady area to rest. However, this area might prevent the sun from extending the grass at the trunk’s base as well. If the grass has died and there’s nothing to attach the soil, it might keep on eroding until the tree’s roots become exposed.  

Erosion 

Runoff, rain, and wind might contribute to insufficient soil in both flat and sloped spots. 

 Poor soil 

Clay-based or compacted soil could limit the flow of moisture and oxygen, which forces the roots to go beyond the ground so that the tree will thrive. 

Space restrictions 

In urban places, where trees could be placed next to a sidewalk or roadway, tree roots could be pushed upwards because of insufficient space. 

Do’s and don’ts of fixing exposed tree roots 

Never grow new grass 

Though it’s possible to nurture a new grass layer, it could take time to be initiated. If the problem is lack of sunlight, the new grass might also wither and the roots will eventually reappear 

Never eliminate exposed tree root 

Pruning or cutting tree roots is a hazardous task that might kill or injure the tree once it’s incorrectly performed. Aside from the fact that it deprives the tree’s water and nutrients, pruning the roots of your tree might make your tree unstable, which will cause it to fall over during a severe storm. 

Do Place a layer of mulch 

This is the easiest and the most recommended option to consider. Thoroughly eliminate the remaining grass over the tree’s base and substitute it with a layer of mulch that would insulate and cushion the roots, remove the need for mowing, and deter foot traffic.