Katie Hamilton

Articles & Books From Katie Hamilton

Step by Step / Updated 03-27-2016
Before refinishing a hardwood floor, you need to know how to get the floors ready for sanding. The way you get floors ready for sanding affects the final finish, so prepare carefully. The sanding process also creates fine sawdust that can permeate the house if you’re not painstaking in your preparations.Thoroughly clean the hardwood floor.
Cheat Sheet / Updated 03-27-2016
A home improvement project that involves new flooring means using simple math to find the right amount of vinyl or carpet needed for the area you want to cover. If you are planning to paint or wallpaper, use easy formulas to determine how much paint or paper to purchase.
Step by Step / Updated 03-27-2016
When laying floor tiles, getting the room ready is the hardest part. Preparing the room for floor tiles is grunt work, but you’ll soon get to the fun part: laying tiles. You need a pry bar, hammer, nail set, floor cleaner, and lots of pizza for bribing friends and family to help.Remove all the furniture in the room.
Step by Step / Updated 03-27-2016
Knowing how to stain and seal a hardwood floor properly pays off in having a beautiful finish and enduring protection. Staining and sealing hardwood floors the right way — whether you’re refinishing, refurbishing, or stripping the wood floor — results in years of enjoyment.Clean the surface of the floor.Carefully vacuum up dust and grit from the sanding process, and then wipe down the floor with a tack cloth to pick up any remaining dust.
Article / Updated 04-20-2022
Buying ceramic tile for floors requires measuring and math. Estimate how many ceramic tiles to buy by calculating the total floor area you plan to cover and dividing that number by the size of one tile. Ceramic floor tiles typically come in 4-, 6-, 9-, 12-, and 18-inch squares. First, determine the square footage of the room (don’t forget the closets!
Article / Updated 10-11-2022
Before you begin painting your home's interior walls, ceilings, woodwork, doors, or windows, you need to estimate the amount of paint you'll use. Estimates require specific calculations for each surface you want to paint. To estimate the amount of paint you need in order to cover the walls of a room, add together the length of all the walls and then multiply the number by the height of the room, from floor to ceiling.
Article / Updated 03-26-2016
Does your home improvement project involve a new vinyl floor? To figure out how many vinyl floor tiles, or sheet vinyl, you need, follow these simple formulas: Vinyl floor tile calculator To figure out how many vinyl floor tiles you need to buy, calculate the floor area you want to cover and divide that number by the size of one tile: Floor Area: [Length of Floor] × [Width of Floor] = Floor Area Tiles to Order: For 9" Tiles: Floor Area ÷ 0.
Article / Updated 03-26-2016
To avoid having too much leftover wall paint, use these formulas to determine how much paint to buy when you start your home improvement painting project. Total Wall Area: [Total Length of All Walls] × [Wall Height] = Total Wall Area Unpainted Areas: [Window Height] × [Window Width] × [Number of Windows] = Wi
Article / Updated 03-26-2016
If you’ve decided on wallpaper for your home improvement project, you want to make sure to buy the right amount for your needs. These formulas help you determine how much wall paper to purchase: Wall Area: [Total Length of All Walls] x [Wall Height] = Wall Area Unpapered Areas: [Window Height] x [Window Width] x [Number of Windows] = Window Area [Door Height] x [Door Width] x [Number of Doors] = Door Area Wallpapering Area: [Wall Area] – [Unpapered Areas] = Wallpapering Area Wallpaper to Order: [Wallpapering Area] ÷ [Usable Yield] = Number of Single Rolls Needed Usable Yield Charts: Pattern Repeat (Drop) Usable Yield (American Rolls) Usable Yield (European Rolls) 0 to 6 in.
Article / Updated 03-26-2016
If your home improvement plan involves a new ceramic tile floor, how do you determine the amount of ceramic tiles you need? Simply calculate the area you plan to cover and divide that number by the size of one ceramic tile. Total Area (Floor, Wall, Countertop): Length (ft.) × Width (ft.) = Total Area (sq. ft.) Tile to Order: For 4" Tiles: Total Area ÷ 0.