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Most people treasure their trees. There is not a whole lot of reasons to cut one down unless it is becoming an actual problem on your property, and for many households, a tree is something that will last for literal generations of the family. 

However, in some cases, trees need to be cut down. Whether it is a disease, death, or something else entirely, a tree can end up in a state where your best option is to chop it down and start from scratch.

We rent dumpsters to customers in Somers Point, New Jersey and the entire 08244 ZIP code used in this part of Atlantic Count.

One of the details that most people overlook is when they cut the tree down: so, when should you cut down a tree on your property? And how can you tell if you actually need to cut a tree down yet?

When should you cut a tree down?

Cutting down a tree is a big job, but knowing when to do it is far more important. Here are some things to consider before you start chopping down a huge old tree.

Property Damage

If a tree is likely to fall on its own and hit your home – or anybody’s property nearby – then it is often a good idea to cut it down. The closer it is to falling, the more urgent it becomes: there are ways to cut down a tilted tree so that it falls in the opposite direction, saving your home from harm.

Of course, this all depends on the direction that the tree is falling and why it is falling. If it is not going to fall for an estimated 20 years, and it is falling onto open ground, then you have plenty of time to leave it be. If it is going to fall in a year, then cut it down as soon as you can.

Falling Risk

Beyond the damage to your property, it is also a good idea to look at how likely a tree is to fall at all. A tree might be perfectly upright while suffering from viruses or diseases, but it only takes a little bit of time for the bark to weaken and the structural integrity of the tree to fail.

A seemingly-fine tree could easily begin to fall if something goes wrong with its structure, and when most of the ‘meat’ of the tree is gone, you are left with thin bark that can easily fracture under the weight of a large trunk. A high falling risk is often grounds for a tree to be cut down immediately.

Other Reasons

Really, there can be plenty of reasons to cut a tree down, with most of them tying back to the tree falling over due to internal damage. You need to consider the risks and consequences involved in letting a tree fall, especially if there is an obvious direction that it will likely fall in.

How to tell if a tree is dead

In most cases, a dead tree is worth removing. Unfortunately, it is not always easy to tell if a tree is dead, let alone if it is actually fully dead or only dead in specific spots and branches. In some cases, a tree can be dormant without actually having died, either.

The specifics depend on each type of tree and the way that they grow or behave, meaning that not all trees will be the same. However, you can often use some common warning signs to tell if a tree is dead or dying and judge how dead the entire tree actually is.

Stress

Physical stress will usually lead to trees growing small branches near the bottom of the trunk, often called shoots. This can often mean that the tree is suffering a major problem and is really trying to keep itself alive but does not have a way to do it.

If this happens, then there is often a larger issue going on, so you can’t really cure it all by yourself. However, it can also be a good indicator of something physically altering the tree or the land that it isgrowing on, whether that is root damage or something more obvious with the trunk.

You can see similar issues by scratching the bark. If there is not any green underneath, then the cambium layer is dead – that part of the tree is no longer getting nutrients.

Fungi

While moss does not mean anything, since it can grow up any tree at any time, fungus is a different story. If you can see groups of fungi growing near the base of the tree, then there is a chance that your tree might be dying since they are feeding off the decay going on beneath the bark.

The more mushrooms you see, the worse things are since it is a very clear sign that something is rotting. If that rot continues to get worse, then it is likely to kill the tree if it is not dead already. Usually, this rot comes from something like a virus, which you can’t easily cure on your own terms.

Roots

When roots start to grow across the soil, it can be a sign of the tree actively struggling to exist on the land that it is growing on. This often happens if the tree is finding it hard to navigate the land or if something has washed the soil away from where the roots were.

Not only does this make it less stable, but it can mean that the tree itself might have issues with how it leans or how it is able to grow. More importantly, exposed roots mean more chances of damage from weather, which is likely to kill most trees if left unchecked.

 

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As a dumpster rental company, our job is very obvious to our clients. We provide them with the dumpster rentals they need to get a project done, whether that is clearing out an old house that is no longer being lived in or simply dumping a lot of construction debris with ease.

However, many people might look at our work and think that it will never change or improve. We at Eagle Dumpster Rental are just one part of the entire industry, and we are committed to seeing our offerings expand along with our consumer base – creating the best dumpster rental experience possible.

Rent a dumpster in Smithton and the 15479 ZIP code from your local specialists at Eagle Dumpster Rental of Westmoreland County

Dumpsters are invaluable

A dumpster can be an extremely useful tool for countless projects, and we offer a massive selection of options that can fit into nearly any situation. If you are doing a large-scale construction project, then we have large dumpsters to match, but we can also offer more compact choices for personal home projects.

A dumpster is a tool meant entirely for convenience. Our dumpster rentals allow the average homeowner or contractor to easily handle (and dispose of) a massive amount of waste and debris with ease, all without needing to actually make a permanent purchase that could turn into a burden.

While most people think that dumpsters are meant purely for demolition and construction purposes, they can have a huge range of uses. You can clear out furniture, move earth and grass, or even just use them to hold parts of trees that you have cut down on your property, all depending on the type of dumpster used.

Beyond that, there are simply situations where having a dumpster is a convenient option for any project. Even if you do not fill a dumpster to maximum capacity, it means that you are not having to juggle a large amount of waste in a single vehicle or carry things to a recycling site by hand.

Everybody can find dumpsters useful

Dumpsters are multi-purpose and allow for a lot of time-saving measures, especially during larger projects. This makes them ideal for larger companies that have multiple ongoing projects at any one time, and they can easily be rotated out if they fill up and need to be replaced.

On a smaller scale, individual people who have their own personal projects (or who work as contractors) can rely on our dumpster rentals to speed up the disposal stage of the process. A rented dumpster bypasses the need for you to dispose of the contents yourself.

All of this means that a decent dumpster rental like ours can go a long way. Not only does it make everything a lot faster, but it allows you to skip having to collect the waste, bag it, put it in containers, carry it to the disposal site and then sort it properly.

Instead, our rentals involve us collecting the dumpster and handling it for you. Companies, contractors, and DIY lovers can handle the work without needing to worry about the waste that they are creating (or thinking about how they will have to dispose of it later on).

The industry has not stopped

While it might seem like dumpsters have always stayed the same, there are always more and more options being made available to customers. As our business expands, we are able to offer more variety, options, and tweaks to the way that our dumpsters are provided.

While this might not be apparent to one-time customers, dumpsters as a whole have become better over time. They can hold more, deal with different chemicals well, be delivered more efficiently, and are often very reliable pieces of equipment to have on standby.

On top of that, we have become better at storing the contents of dumpsters, disposing of it when we need to, and making sure that it is all handled safely. A dumpster rental now is far more efficient and effective than one from ten years ago.

Since dumpsters have gotten better, they are also more suitable for a range of different projects. Dumpsters are ideal for personal use, and we have a lot of dumpster rental options that are suited to different levels of project scale or complexity, meaning that there will always be one that suits your current project.

Looking for a dumpster?

If you have got an upcoming project that you might need help with or are just trying to think about the disposal part of the process when the work is all done, then consider looking into our dumpster rental options. We can ensure that we will give you what you need, no matter how specific your requirements might be.

A rented dumpster is not just a time-saver but a valuable tool for any kind of major project. Dumpsters can help you skip the boring process of bagging up waste, they can contain scrap that would be dangerous to leave around in piles, and they can let you get rid of your debris or waste in one single trip.

Our rentals are all meant to be as convenient as possible for our customers. We deliver the dumpster and collect it at whatever time works best for you, and you do not even have to lift a finger once it is back on our truck. 

We at Eagle Dumpster Rental have a wide range of different dumpster varieties on offer, from large industrial dumpsters to smaller-scale household waste containers. All of them are perfect for different situations, so no matter what kind of project you are handling, we can offer you something that helps.

Staging your home – the process of getting your house set up in a way that makes potential buyers interested in it – can be a tough process. The better you stage your home, the easier it becomes to sell it in a reasonable amount of time, but that can still take a while if you are not sure how to start.

Slickville and the 15684 ZIP code are within our delivery range from multiple Eagle Dumpster Rental offices in the Westmoreland County area.

When it comes to staging your home, you need to focus carefully on the parts of your home that might be most valuable. It is all about making sure that your home looks desirable and that prospective buyers are going to see the things that will make them willing to buy in the first place.

Clean

This one should be common sense, but many people misjudge how effective a simple clean can actually be. Brushing up dirt and dust, especially on furniture that people are likely to see up close, makes a significant difference to how your home is perceived by new arrivals.

Cleaning carpets and floors can make a big difference, too, as can tidying up clutter. You might be used to the level of clutter in a room if you spend a lot of time there, so bring a friend in and ask them for advice on where the piles of clutter or dirt are, then clean it all up before the buyers arrive.

Declutter

Removing clutter and organizing your home can make a massive difference when you are about to put it up for sale. Donating or throwing away unwanted furniture is important since a cluttered house will immediately look messy to anybody that is walking in for the first time.

Do not be afraid to pull furniture away from the walls, make furniture sit symmetrically, and generally ‘beautify’ your home so that it looks better to visitors. Even some small changes can quickly begin to add up, and it only takes a little extra effort to make your home look much more desirable and spacious.

Tidy the Yard

If you have a yard or lawn out front, make sure that you tidy it up and clear it of any debris. This can be a small thing, but it really adds up if you are cleaning it properly. Not only does it show off the outdoor space, but it also has a huge impact on how your home looks as a whole.

Do not be afraid to rearrange outdoor furnishings to make it look tidier, too. That is always an option, and it does not usually take much time.

Update the Garden

It is not a bad idea to improve your garden shortly before staging your home, especially if you want to try and attract possible buyers. Even something small, like some quickly-set-up hanging planters, can add value to an empty space and make buyers more likely to take an interest in your home.

You might also want to consider hiding anything that looks cheap or tacky. While you can easily move cheap plastic furniture back inside, visitors might see it as a sign of a poor garden – on the other hand, you can set up a hammock that yo have never used or wheel out an old grill.

Show Off

It is not a bad idea to leave certain appliances or desirable items out if they are things you are selling alongside the home. For example, you might want to leave a coffee machine and toaster out rather than putting them away – the slight clutter shows off things that buyers might actually want.

This is a very powerful technique, and it does not just extend to appliances. The right decorations, items, appliances, or tools in the right place could capture the attention of visiting buyers and might nudge them over to your side if they were on the fence about the house.

Deep Clean Problem Rooms

Bathrooms and kitchens are the most likely places in your home to get dirty, and that means that you will often want to deep-clean them. You might not notice any dirt or grime, but visitors certainly can, and they will not be impressed if there are obvious places that still need cleaning.

Do not hesitate to start cleaning the more obnoxious parts of your home, like awkward corners or areas that are not easily reachable but still visible. The dirtier a home looks, the less inclined people are to buy it, even if the actual cleaning process would be fairly easy for them to manage.

Remove Personal Items

Anything that is too ‘personal’ should be hidden away until after the showings. This could be toothbrushes, personal photographs in prominent places (unless they are part of an appealing display), towels, clothes, and anything that makes a home feel like somebody is actively living there.

Most potential buyers do not want to think about the fact that people still live there and will not enjoy feeling like they are intruding. Even under the best of circumstances, it can be discouraging for them to still see signs of people living there, so hiding your personal items can have a massive impact on the number of buyers you get.

Use Common Sense

Buyers want a clean, nice-looking home that does not swing too far in any specific style. Use common sense when selling your home: rent one of our dumpsters to dispose of excess trash, move furniture in a way that looks nice, and be sure to clean every inch where possible.

You do not necessarily have to do anything special to your home. You just need to make sure that it is presentable. If you are selling your home anyway, then your own personal preferences are not as important – you need to think about what a general buyer would like to see.

A driveway is a near-permanent fixture of most homes, but it can be removed with some hard work. Whether it is because of major changes to your property or just out of personal preference, digging up a driveway can actually be done as a mostly DIY project to save some extra money.

Eagle Dumpster Rental is the preferred junk hauling company for homes, businesses, churches, municipal organizations, and others in and around Shiloh, New Jersey and the 08353 ZIP code.

However, it is not easy. Knowing what you need to do before you start is important, so here are some core tips on the process that you will want to keep in mind. The more you understand about what is involved, the easier it becomes to avoid costly mistakes.

Why DIY?

Removing a driveway can cost anywhere between $2,000 and $2,500, on average. This does not include the costs of anything else that you do, like replacing it or filling in the hole that it leaves behind, making it a very costly process.

If you can do the bulk of the work yourself, then you save a lot of money and earn some new skills along the way.

• Checking your driveway

It is important to check your driveway’s current state before you try to remove it, just in case it overlaps with anything important. In general, most of your electrical and water lines run directly under the driveway, which means that there are certain digging depths that you will want to avoid.

Try to get an inspector to visit. They can mark out the location of the lines and help you avoid rupturing any pipes or cutting any cables while you are digging up the drive, something that can save you a lot of accidental repair costs.

It also helps to estimate the total volume of your driveway, if possible, so that you know how much you will have to throw away. Our dumpster rental options can help you dispose of the debris that is left behind after the project is over and will provide a good place to dump it during the driveway removal itself.

• Plan ahead

Think about what you are going to do during each step of the process. Even if you do not know the specifics yet, you should be aware of some basic things: have you scheduled a dumpster rental for when you plan to start the project, how much free time you will have.

If you go into a project like this without any kind of plan, then it can quickly become a mess. Even something small, like moving your car to the bottom of the driveway so that you do not have to drive across the broken materials to get to work, can be something that you might not initially think of.

• Gather your tools

For an asphalt driveway, it helps to have a jackhammer and/or circular saw. For concrete driveways, you will just want a jackhammer since the saw might not be as effective. You can rent both if you do not already own them, which saves on the costs of having to buy outright.

It is a good idea to try and practice with your equipment, or at least review the manuals and controls, before you start. This can help you avoid making any major mistakes and might also make the project easier in the long run.

Face coverings and protective clothing are important, too. Never assume that you are safe in casual clothing, especially when dealing with potentially toxic materials.

• Break the driveway

Your first step should be to break into the driveway. How you do this depends on the materials that the driveway is made out of.

With an asphalt driveway, try to find a damaged area and cut (or jackhammer) it into smaller pieces, then shove it into a pile (or dumpster). You can either do this in sections or just break up the entire driveway at once and then dispose of it later.

Asphalt driveways are easier to break up overall, so you can usually start to crack it anywhere as long as it is weak enough. This makes it easy to begin breaking it open if you do not have any obviously damaged spots to start with.

Concrete is harder and less likely to be damaged initially, so you will want to start at a top corner and jackhammer the concrete into smaller pieces. This can take a while, so do not hesitate to enlist help if you have a lot of concrete to move – or if you have extra tools and want to break it up faster.

Since it is so tough, you will want to try and choose the weaker corners instead of starting in the middle. This can require some extra planning, so be sure that you have an idea of how you want to break up the driveway before you begin, just in case you end up using an inefficient method.

• Dispose of the driveway

It can take a while to fully clear up a driveway. If you are using one of our dumpsters, then you can always toss each ‘pile’ of materials into the dumpster itself between periods of breaking up the driveway, meaning that you are clearing it at a regular pace. You can always let the pile build up, then throw the rest away at the end. 

Either way, it is a good idea to get help from friends or family, especially if you have a large driveway. The more you need to throw away, the longer it will take, so having more pairs of hands to move it around can really speed things up when you have a lot of debris to move.

A dumpster can be a vital piece of equipment, but you want to be sure that you are using the right dumpster for the job. There are multiple different common dumpster sizes, as well as various inter-sized dumpsters that all have their own dimensions and particular designs.

Roll-off dumpster rentals in Sharptown, Maryland are affordable and hassle-free because of your local experts at Eagle Dumpster Rental.

When you are handling some important construction work or trying to set up a DIY project, it helps to have the right dumpster size for the situation. Something too small might not be able to hold all of the debris in one rental, while something that is too large can be an unnecessary hassle (and expense).

How do I know what size I need?

Choosing a good roll-off rental dumpster for your clean-up or DIY job depends on what kind of debris and trash you will be dealing with. The capacity of a dumpster is measured by cubic yards, a rough measurement of how much they can safely contain before the debris begins to spill over the edge.

You want to keep the total capacity of your dumpster higher than the amount that you are throwing away. Even if you can fit more into a dumpster than the total capacity, you still shouldn’t since dumpster rentals come with weight and capacity limits that control how much they can hold.

For example, a dumpster that holds 10 cubic yards of debris can generally hold around 50 to 70 bags of trash. If you overload it and let the bags pile up too high, then you might be directly violating the dumpster rental since the contents are spilling over – earning you a fine.

Estimated Dumpster Sizes

There is not a single direct way to estimate how much debris a dumpster can hold in practical terms, especially if you are taking debris from multiple projects at once. However, you can at least get a grip on the rough estimates of how much they can take, as well as the limits you might be under.

• 10 cubic yards is about 50-70 bags of trash.
• 15 cubic yards is about 80-100 bags of trash.
• 20 cubic yards is about 110-130 bags of trash.
• 30 cubic yards is about 170-190 bags of trash.
• 40 cubic yards is about 230-250 bags of trash.

This can be a good way to estimate the overall amount of trash that you will be able to fit inside a dumpster, based on the total capacity it offers. Of course, this is only the capacity – not the dimensions.

Why Dumpster Dimensions Matter

The larger a dumpster is, the more it can hold, but the more expensive it will become. A larger dumpster also takes a larger vehicle to deliver it, and it can be harder to fit into tight spaces or areas that other vehicles need to pass through on a regular basis.

This means that some people with limited available space will hire two smaller dumpsters, one after the other, instead of a single larger dumpster. On the other hand, a larger dumpster can work better for fast-paced and debris-heavy projects.

The wider and/or taller a dumpster is, the more it can hold on average, so larger dumpsters tend to have increasingly higher limits for what they can contain.

Which Dumpster Should I Use?

Knowing the basic types (or sizes) of dumpsters available at companies like ours can help you make the right choice when the time comes. If you are getting an Eagle Dumpster Rental dumpster delivered, then you want it to be the option that suits your needs best.

10 Cubic Yards

A 10-cubic-yard dumpster is meant for short-term and smaller-scale projects, whether that is cleaning out a room, remodeling your bathroom, or getting rid of concrete from paved areas. These are best for one-person DIY jobs where there is not much to throw away.

They can also work for getting rid of old furniture or just for clearing large amounts of trash and debris away if it has begun to build up.

15 Cubic Yards

15 cubic yards gives you enough space to remove some bulkier items and materials, as well as larger amounts of debris. This might suit a room renovation or something more specific, like the complete removal of a larger area of flooring. 

20 Cubic Yards

20 cubic yards is one of the more popular choices for people doing major work, whether that is replacing roofing, landscaping, or even doing smaller construction projects. There is enough space here to easily get rid of a lot of materials at once, but the dumpster is not too big for solo projects.

Dumpsters of this size are the first step into the ‘oversized’ range: the kind of dumpsters that are usually meant for multiple people or for larger-scope projects.

30 Cubic Yards

At 30 cubic yards, you have enough room to clear out entire houses or offices. This is best for any situation where you are focusing on more than just a specific area, like renovating an entire home or trying to get rid of a lot of debris scattered throughout your own property.

40 Cubic Yards

40 cubic yards is the highest that most people will need, and all but the largest companies can make do with these dumpsters as well. These fill up slowly and are perfect for larger projects, as well as multiple smaller projects that might all be taking place over a month or two.

It is important to choose the right dumpster for the job. Just like any tool you can choose, it needs to match your work. Otherwise, you will run into problems further down the line.

Most of us have precious little time to relax due to how busy life can be. The worst thing when trying to relax in your backyard is to have passersby able to see onto your property and ruin the peaceful atmosphere. 

We have gathered some ideas to help you to protect your privacy. Even better, all of the ideas we have are quick, easy, and relatively inexpensive to execute. 

If you need a rental dumpster ASAP, then we’ll work hard to meet that need, delivering the right construction dumpster for your jobsite in Sewickley, Pennsylvania and area.

Increase Foliage

Our favorite way to increase your privacy is using trees or plants. This way will help you to keep out prying eyes and will also help the environment too. You can either plant trees or bushes along your property line or use plants instead. 

Depending on where you buy them, trees may be more expensive; however, they can last year-round depending on the species you plant. You should always be aware of how high the tree could grow at full height and ensure you have appropriate permissions to plant them. 

The only negative aspect of planting trees is that it will encourage birds and create shade at certain times of the day. If you are happy to encourage local birds and wildlife to your property line, then trees can provide a more definitive privacy screen than plants. 

Using plants, however, can provide a home for local insects, especially if you plant wildflowers. We recommend that you plant some taller plants and use large planters at different heights to build a privacy screen. 

Depending on the type of tree you buy, it could result in the cost being the same for trees as for plants. When using plants to provide the privacy, you will need to buy planters, soil, and then the plants in addition. Whereas, when using trees, you only need to buy the trees themselves. 

Fencing

Although you can often see over or through fences into a garden, you can add to a fence to provide extra privacy while also making the fence more attractive to look at. Our favorite addition to a fence is to use planting boxes and attach them at intermittent heights and stretches of the fence. With plants or flowers inside, you can transform a plain fence into a mix of colors with added privacy for your backyard. 

The benefit of adding plants and flowers in this way is that, again, by including specific flowers, you can encourage wildlife. You can also include trailing plants to cover the area between boxes. 

If you do not already have fence panels in place, this option will be a higher expense than plants or trees. However, if you either have a fence in place or were planning to install one anyway, this is an easy addition. The initial cost will be higher when you buy the plant boxes and holder for the fence, but it is a very low maintenance privacy option. 

An alternative to a flower box addition is you could install a simple lattice fence around your property line. This is a relatively inexpensive option, and you can put it up yourself instead of paying for installation. 

The installation is easy, simply sink posts into the ground and hang lattice panels to the posts. You can stain or paint the lattice and posts prior to assembling the fence to ensure it suits your garden décor. 

Depending on the size of the lattice you purchase, passersby will still be able to see into your backyard, but the lattice pattern could allow more light into your garden than a panel fence. 

Privacy Screens

Privacy screens or even curtains around the area you will be sitting in are becoming an increasingly popular option. You could either build a permanent privacy screen that is anchored to the floor in case of bad winds. This is a great option if you will always need privacy in the same area, around a patio or deck, for example. 

However, if you sit in different areas of your backyard, a permanent screen would not be suitable. Therefore, you may be better off buying a portable privacy screen. You can source a screen that matches your existing garden furniture and move it around your backyard as you sit in different areas. The great benefit of the portable screen is that it is lightweight to move and can be easily stored in an outbuilding or garage, using it when needed. 

An increasingly popular privacy option is outdoor curtains. This is an effective privacy option if you have a backyard porch or covered area. You can use any sturdy surface to hang the curtains, such as the patio roof. Using curtains will protect your privacy from both those walking past your home but also from neighbors looking out of their upstairs windows. 

Outdoor curtains can be useful around a sitting area you would use during the evening as the fabric will help to hold in the heat and keep out the cold as the temperature drops. 

All of these options will vary in cost depending on the materials you are using to build a screen or buy a portable screen or curtains. So you can make this option as expensive or inexpensive as your budget will allow. 

Summary

If you are still unsure of which privacy option will best suit your needs, we recommend you take a walk in your local area and see what your neighbors are using in their backyards. If you can see through into their garden, you will know this is not a good choice to protect your privacy. 

There are a number of reasons why you may gut your house yourself prior to a remodel, but do you know the right way to do it? If you are at all unsure, we have pulled together a quick and easy-to-follow guide to help you. 

One of the main reasons to gut your house yourself before a remodel is the cost of a contractor completing the job for you. The cost of a contractor to complete a remodel for you can be between 10% and 20% of the cost of the remodel added on. This can, of course, vary, but it is very worth doing whichever parts of the remodel job you can do yourself. 

Sewell, New Jersey customers depend on Eagle Dumpster Rental to provide transparent rates on rental dumpsters with no hidden fees.

Gutting your House: How to

We recommend you first have the right tools for the job. The tools you need will depend on how much of the house you are going to be gutting, but for our purposes, we are going to advise based on a full house gutting back to studs. 

For this type of house gutting, you will need as a minimum: 

• Sledgehammer
• Crowbar
• Circular saw

You will also need some standard safety items; eye protection, protective shoes (preferably steel-toe capped), and a hard hat. 

Once you have all of the equipment in place, you should ensure you have a detailed plan of everything that needs to be done to gut your house. The method we most prefer for this is to make a plan room by room. 

When making this plan, you should detail what needs to be done to gut the room to the level you need it to be and then add what the remodel will look like in that room. By planning the remodel into the plans for gutting the room, you can estimate the total amount of time you will need for each room. You can also work out your estimated expenses and budget to stay on the plan once the work gets underway. 

Prepare the Demolition Space

Before you start swinging the sledgehammer at the walls, you will need to ensure it is safe to do so. Ensure you check that each room is structurally sound and that you will not be impacting any load-bearing walls. We also recommend checking where electrical wires and pipes are in the walls also. This will prevent a costly and time-consuming job to correct any mistakes once demolition begins. 

Contacting a plumber or electrician at this stage is necessary if you are not fully confident. A professional being paid to mark out these important areas on the walls will be considerably cheaper than calling them out to fix a pipe that has been damaged or a wire that has been cut. 

You should also cap your water and suspend your utilities to reduce the chance of accidents once work gets started. If you are planning a full remodel, including flooring, we advise you not to worry too much about damage. However, using a dust sheet can make cleaning up afterward much easier in our experience. 

Bringing Down the Walls (but not the House) 

Now that you have established which walls are load-bearing and marked off your utility and water lines. It is time to make a start with gutting your house. We advise you to make a start with the interior walls. This will make moving around as you proceed to the next step much easier as you will have more space to work within. 

Removing walls within your home is often the biggest job when gutting your home, so it is also good to get this completed early to help to build momentum. If removing interior walls is not part of your remodel or if there is another job to do that is bigger than this one, we recommend you start with that for the same reason. 

It is imperative that you remove any walls safely and in a controlled manner. If you are unsure how to do so, we suggest discussing this with a professional prior to attempting it. 

Clean as you Mean to go on

Cleaning should be done systematically and periodically throughout any home remodel, and this is no different when gutting your house. Regular cleaning of the area you are working in can prevent accidents and also help you to see how much more work needs to be done. 

A cluttered workspace is a hazard in any construction job and even more so when completing a DIY project. One way to keep your workspace clean is to hire a dumpster from EagleDumpsterRental.com. Hiring a dumpster allows you to dispose of large or small construction waste as you work and gives an external area for rubbish to be stored. 

 

Begin the Remodel

Now that you have gutted the house back to the level you need it to be, you can begin to think about starting the remodel. We recommend that you review your plans again, going around the house room by room to ensure all of the gutting work has been completed fully. After this confirmation, it is time to put the remodel plans into action. 

Several things can change during the lifetime of a home remodel or any DIY project. So we advise that if anything has changed at the point of beginning the remodel that you work up a full new set of plans, so that you are working to the latest information. 

 

Owning a home means there is a never-ending list of chores to be done and DIY projects which need to be completed. This is something all homeowners can attest to, and while it can be fun to make a property your own, there is a lot of work that goes into it.

In this guide, we are sharing the 11 tools that every homeowner needs in their toolkit so they are prepared for any DIY issue that may arise. 

Eagle Dumpster Rental delivers to the town of Secaucus in Hudson County, New Jersey, including all addresses in the town of Secaucus and every community in the greater Secaucus area.

These are basic tools that even a beginner to DIY can make use of.

Essential Tools For Homeowners

• Tape Measure

A 25-foot tape measure is a great place to start when you first get into the world of DIY, as this will cover a wide range of projects and home improvement chores.

If you have no experience with this field or have just bought your first home, you will be surprised by how often you will reach for a tape measure, so it is best to have one on hand in your toolkit. 

The best tape measures to buy are those which will last a long time so consider those with a nylon or acrylic coated blade.

• Utility Knife

This is a great basic tool to have, and it will come in useful for a whole range of tasks.

Make sure to spend a little more money when it comes to utility knives, as cheaper blades may snap or will not lock into place, making them dangerous to use. Consider a mid-range knife that has an anti-slip rubber grip.

• Claw Hammer

While there are several types of hammers you could have in your toolkit, a claw hammer is the most versatile and, therefore, the best place to start.

This is the kind of hammer you will most commonly use around the home as it is used to pound nails into wood or claw them back out. To make sure you choose a hammer that will last, find one with a rubber or vinyl handle, as this offers an easier grip.

• Screwdriver Set

A screwdriver set is a must-have for all DIYers, even if you are just starting in this field.

They are fairly accessible and can be purchased cheaply, which is why we would recommend getting a set of screwdrivers instead of just one or two.

Make sure you are choosing a set that has multiple heads, like both a flat head and a Phillips head, as well as sets with multiple sizes so you will always be prepared.

• Hardware

Having an assortment of hardware, like screws and nails, in your toolkit is always a good idea. You will want to have hardware in various shapes and sizes to cover all kinds of tasks, from the final touches of hardwood floor installations to securing drywall.

You can purchase hardware sets that offer multiple types and sizes in one container. Make sure to keep this organized so you can always find what you need when the time comes.

• Tape

There are several different kinds of tape that you should consider for your DIY toolkit, and all of these will work better than the standard masking tape you may already own.

You can consider the kind of tape you will need the most as a starting point and always choose the better quality version so it will last. Tape will have different qualities of fabric, polyethylene, and adhesive, which makes them better suited to specific purposes.

• Adjustable Pliers

The angled jaws of this tool make it incredibly useful in turning nuts and bolts, but this is not all that this tool is good for. Adjustable pliers can also be used as clamps or wire cutters, meaning they will be required in all kinds of circumstances.

This tool may also be known as plier wrenches, tongue and groove pliers, or locking pliers, which is something to consider when shopping.

• Adjustable Cresent Wrench

Adjustable wrenches have a moveable jaw which means they can be used with different sized nuts and bolts.

When you are just starting in DIY, as a first-time homeowner, you will not need a full set of wrenches. An adjustable one will work with most of the tasks you will be doing yourself, and it is cheaper to just buy the one.

Once you have found the right adjustable wrench for your needs, make sure to store it in a cool, dry place to prevent rust.

• Allen Wrenches

An Allen wrench is a simple tool that is used to drive hardware with hexagonal sockets in the head, like screws and bolts, into surfaces or furniture. 

Allen wrenches, also known as Allen keys or hex keys, come in sets of varying sizes so they can be used in various circumstances.

•  Level

Levels are used to ensure that surfaces or lines are entirely straight, which means they come in useful more times than you may imagine.

This tool usually consists of small tubes containing a liquid and an air bubble. To check that the lines are straight, the bubble will need to be in the center of the tube.

•  Stepladder

Not only will a stepladder be useful during DIY projects, but you will find yourself reaching for it more times than you can imagine whenever anything is out of reach or needs to be stored away.

Eagle Dumpster Rental has ranked at 3391 in the Inc 5000 list of fastest-growing private companies in the US for 2021. 

This award for 2021 made it the seventh year running that Eagle Dumpster Rental has been awarded by Inc 5000, as our company has continued to hold onto the same title since 2015.

The awards in 2021 were significant for many reasons, but following the covid-19 pandemic when many companies were forced to close, this was of special significance for Eagle Dumpster Rental and others in the industry to be thriving. 

Eagle Dumpster Rental has two decades of experience delivering rental dumpsters across Cape May County, including to customers in Sea Isle City and the 08243 ZIP code.

As the seventh consecutive year of winning this award, Eagle Dumpster Rental has a firm place in the history books for small businesses in America, and the impact of our company spreads further out of the state. 

Humbling News, Claims Founder 

CEO and Co-Founder of Eagle Dumpster Rental, John Fenn, expressed his delight at the award following the ceremony. 

He claimed that he is humbled to be named alongside other innovators of industries by Inc 5000 and appreciates that all the hard work of the Eagle Dumpster Rental team is being recognized on a national scale.  

Following the closure of many other businesses during the global pandemic, the founders have praised the hard work of the team and the local communities for pulling together to help the growth of Eagle Dumpster Rental during this time. 

Recognizing Small Businesses Across America

The Inc 5000 list offers a unique look at some of the most successful companies in the United States independent business circuit, of which Eagle Dumpster Rental is now firmly part of following seven years of awards.

Independent small businesses make up America’s most dynamic segment of the economy, and the market continues to grow.

The small businesses that were recognized by Inc 5000 in 2021 achieved an incredible three-year average growth of 543%, which translates to a medium revenue of $11.1 million. 

Together, these small businesses not only contributed greatly to the economy but also added over 610,000 jobs to the US market over the same period. 

It is clear to see why small, independent businesses like Eagle Dumpster Rental are so important to the American economy, and Inc 5000 wants to highlight the top movers and shakers in the field for their hard work, dedication, and opportunities generated. 

One Of The Greatest Achievements In Recent Years 

The market in the US is saturated with businesses of all sizes, which can leave smaller independent brands feeling neglected as their efforts go unrecognized.

This is why the Inc 5000 awards were created in the first place, as this establishment understands the importance of small businesses and the role they play in the greater economy. 

As the figures of the 2021 nominees show, small businesses like Eagle Dumpster Rental contribute largely to the US economy, not only in profits but also in jobs generated for the public. The Editor in Chief of Inc, Scott Omelianuk, echoes this sentiment regarding the value small businesses hold in the US and claims the awards in 2021 were some of the most important across industries.

Following the issues many businesses have faced in the past two years during the global pandemic, being able to award companies for being the fastest growing in their industry is something Inc 5000 is very proud to achieve, he claimed.

It has been an incredible achievement for Eagle Dumpster Rental to build one of the fastest-growing businesses in the US throughout 2021 when so many others could not. 

Being able to not only maintain but build a business in the current climate is something to be proud of, which was something claimed by Inc 5000 to the holders of the awards.

The 2021 Inc 5000 awards for the fastest growing companies in the US not only recognize the hard work of the team but also the smart pivots and great leadership demonstrated in Eagle Dumpster Rental and other winners, according to Omelianuk. 

Award-Winning Dumpster Rental Services

In 2021, the Inc 5000 fastest growing company was not the only award obtained by Eagle Dumpster Rental.

In the same year, the company was also recognized as one of the highest-grossing haulers by Waste Today and as one of the top workplaces in Northeast Ohio by The Plain Dealer.

Eagle Dumpster Rental is proud to serve Ohio and the surrounding counties, offering award-winning waste management services. The company was founded at a time when dumpster rental was not as accessible as it is today, and it is clear to see that this brand has paved the way for many more companies over the years.

Our company not only works to provide reliable and affordable waste management solutions to those in Ohio but continues to work with local communities in their environmental efforts.

As a waste management company, Eagle Dumpster Rental is concerned with sustainability and recycling, which is why we continue to work to make things easier in Ohio state for residents. Our waste management services are flexible and affordable, so they can be accessed by all, and we continue to work with local conservation companies to improve the overall landscape in the area.

Our dumpsters can be rented at a time that suits your needs, and we offer containers in varying sizes to accommodate this. 

If you require dumpster rental in Ohio, Eagle Dumpster Rental should be your number one choice. 

Your sidewalk is something you use every day but it is very likely do not give much thought at all. Perhaps you jog on it, you walk the dog on it, and the kids play on it, but you will not notice it is there at all until something goes wrong with it.

Like anything else, sidewalks will deteriorate over time, and they need regular maintenance to make sure they stay in good shape.

Scotch Plains and the areas surrounding the township are within our delivery radius at Eagle Dumpster Rental.

If you notice that your sidewalk has started to crumble or that things are not looking as they used to with the concrete, it is time to do some work. But the kind of work you need to do will vary based on the situation at hand.

Assessing The Damage Of The Sidewalk

The average lifespan of an asphalt sidewalk is 20 years, whereas concrete can last a little longer with an average life of 25 to 30 years. While you may not be hitting these milestones just yet, signs of damage could already be appearing on your sidewalk, which needs to be addressed.

There are various causes of sidewalk damage, including weather conditions, heavy traffic or ground movement, as well as general wear and tear. It can be dangerous to leave things to chance when your sidewalk becomes damaged, so you need to get it repaired as soon as possible.

The following are some common signs that it is time to either repair or replace your sidewalk:

• • Cracks: These will appear over time in asphalt and concrete sidewalks. When left unattended, they can grow due to substances like water, ice, or automotive grease getting inside of them
  • Uneven or Lifted Slabs: Roots from nearby trees can cause slabs of the sidewalk to be lifted or displaced. In this circumstance, the damage will need to be repaired as soon as possible as lifted slabs can be dangerous to those using the sidewalk. If this is what you are dealing with, you need to have a plan in place regarding the tree and decide whether you are going to remove it or move and extend your sidewalk to prevent the issue from happening again

• Pooling Water: While water alone will not cause damage to the sidewalk, those with prior damage can have water pool in the cracks, which will make things worse over time

Repairing Vs. Replacing The Sidewalk

Assessing the damage on the sidewalk is the best place to start because what you find can be used to determine your next actions.

Even if you are not a concrete expert, you should be able to determine whether the damage to your sidewalk is major or minor and, therefore, what the best next steps should be. 

Repairing the sidewalk is the right solution for:

• Normal wear and tear
• Small chips or cracks
• Damage to less than two inches of the concrete  

Replacing the sidewalk is the right solution for:

• Fully broken slabs
• Deep cracks which may impact the subbase of the sidewalk

Who Is Responsible For Sidewalk Replacement?

In most cases, the homeowner is responsible for the sidewalk that runs adjacent to their property, so if you see the damage here, then it will be up to you to fix it.

However, you cannot just get straight into working on your sidewalk as most cities require a permit and inspections to take place on the sidewalk before any changes can be made. 

To see what the rules are in your location, make sure to check with your city’s Public Works department or your homeowners’ association and obtain a permit if required.

How To DIY A Sidewalk Repair

If your sidewalk has small cracks, holes, or hairline breaks, you can repair them yourself by following these simple steps. Make sure to obtain permission from the necessary authorities before doing any work on the sidewalk.

What You Need

• Chisel
• Sledgehammer
• Wire or Fiber Brush
• Trowel
• Paint Brush
• Putty Knife
• Patching Mix
• Bonding Agent
• Safety Glasses and Gloves 

 

Steps 

1. Cut out the damaged areas

Using a chisel, put it in the crack and angle it slightly outwards. A sledgehammer will be needed to tap the chisel so the crack will become bigger on the bottom.

1. Clean out the debris

Any remaining concrete will weaken your patch, so make sure this is removed before filling in the cracks or holes. Use a wire or stiff-bristled brush to do this, then use a damp sponge to moisten the concrete that is left. 

When moist, it will bond better to the new patch.

1. Fill with patching mix

Once your patching mix is ready, smooth it into the crack in the sidewalk using a trowel.

1. Apply bonding agent

Using a paintbrush, apply a bonding agent over the crack and wait for 10 to 15 minutes for it to get tacky. 

With your trowel or putty knife, pack the anchoring cement into the crack. The crack will need to be kept moist until it is fully cured, so cover it with a sheet of plastic as it sets.

How Much Does It Cost To Repair Sidewalks?

The cost to repair sidewalks can vary based on the damage and, therefore, what needs to be done with the concrete. 

With this in mind, it can cost between $5 and $100 to repair broken sidewalks depending on what you have available, the damage you are working with, and whether you can DIY it.

 

If you are throwing away a couch, then it is very likely that you will have to break it apart before you can get it out of the house and into the trash pile. 

Taking apart a couch will make it easier to throw it away on the curbside, where it can be picked up by local waste management services instead of breaking your back trying to lift the whole thing. If you instead have rented a dumpster for your clear-out session, then breaking apart the couch will save space in the container and can prevent overflow charges. 

Yes, we deliver rental dumpsters in the community of Scenery Hill, Pennsylvania.

Luckily, breaking a couch into pieces is easier than you may think. In this guide, we are going to help you through the process. 

Tools Needed To Dismantle A Couch

Before we can move into the dismantling of your couch, there are some tools you need on hand so you can tackle it properly.

While each sofa is different and therefore can take different levels of effort to break it apart, there are a few tools that come in handy for all couches that you should gather before doing this work.

These include:

• Screwdriver
• Allen wrench
• Box cutter
• Staple puller
• Handsaw
• Hammer with a claw (for nail removal)

 

How To Take Apart A Couch

1. Set the cushions aside

The first thing you need to do before you can take apart a couch is to remove the sofa cushions. If your sofa has loose cushions, set them aside for now as they will get in the way.

If the cushions are attached, you can leave them this way until it is time to deal with the upholstery.

1. Remove the mattress

This step only applies to those who are working with a sofa bed, but much like removing the cushions, the mattress will need to be removed before you can dismantle the bed.

To do this, you will need to pull out the bed and take the mattress off. Once the mattress has been removed, unscrew the hinge arms, which connect the metal frame of the bed to the rest of the sofa.

1. Start removing upholstery

Before you can break down the couch frame underneath, you first need to remove the upholstery on the top.

Most of the upholstery on couches is done using staples, which is why you will need a staple remover to do this step if you plan on reusing the fabric elsewhere. If you do not need to protect the fabric as it will be thrown away too, you can simply cut or rip it away from the frame.

If cushions are attached to the sofa, now is the time to use the box cutter to separate them from the rest of the fabric and throw them aside.

1. Remove the legs

Once the upholstery has been removed, you should be able to see the frame of the couch.

Flip the sofa onto its side so you can begin removing the legs using a screwdriver or saw. If your sofa has legs with screwtops, they will be easy to remove by hand as you simply need to grab them and twist them counterclockwise.

1. Take apart the rest of the frame

As every couch is made differently, this step can vary for everyone, but the aim remains the same.

Depending on the kind of couch you have, you may only need one tool for this step or a whole kit. Regardless, it is likely that this part of the process will take a while to get done right, so make sure to be patient and safe when dismantling the couch.

You should work through this step by working with one piece at a time, using a handsaw to cut larger pieces into more manageable chunks.

For the couch frame, look at the fasteners that are used to keep everything together and see what shape they are. This will help you determine what kind of tools are needed in dismantling, it and can save you time if you do not want to handsaw everything.

1. Save any upholstery you want to reuse

If the fabric and pillows from the couch are still in good shape, you can reuse them in some way around the home. 

Once you have completed taking apart the couch, spend some time looking through the scraps of fabric to see whether anything is salvageable as it can be used in other ways.

How To Reuse Old Couch Cushions

If your old couch cushions are still in good shape, there is no need to throw them away with the rest of the trash.  

Instead, get creative and use them in other ways such as:

• Floor pillows, such as in the kid’s playroom 
• In the dog’s kennel as additional bedding. If you do not have a dog of your own, donate the cushions to your local animal shelter, where they will be used as bedding
• Add a waterproof covering to the cushions so they can be used as outdoor seating

Find The Right Disposal Option For Your Couch

Once you have dismantled the couch, it is time to get rid of the trash. 

Furniture disposal methods will vary based on your location, and some cities may offer a curbside pick-up. You can also rent a dumpster for your household waste which will hold the dismantled couch along with other trash.  

 

Expecting a new baby is a time to be excited, but there are also things you will need to do to prepare for your new arrival. This is important whether it is your first child or a happy new addition to the family. 

Getting everything ready can be daunting, whether this is because of not having done so before or because you are trying to get organized to minimize disruption for other children. To help you get your home in order for your impending arrival, we have pulled together some practical tips for getting everything done. 

Sarver, Pennsylvania homeowners, business owners, contractors, and others rely on Eagle Dumpster Rental of Butler County to supply top-rated waste management solutions.

Organize your Rooms

The first thing to decide is where will the baby be sleeping after they leave your bedroom? Will they have their own room, or will they be sharing with an older sibling? Either way, we suspect you may need to make some space in the room the baby will be moving into or remove everything entirely. 

We, therefore, recommend that the first step you make is to sort through the room the baby will move into when they leave your room. It may seem counterproductive to not make a start in your own bedroom since that will be where the baby will sleep to begin with. However, the amount of space that a crib by your bed will take up in comparison to all of the items needed in the baby’s room is negligible. 

The baby’s room is the biggest task you will take on when getting your home ready for their arrival, so we have broken it down into steps, so you do not do too much all at once. 

 

Buy and Assemble your Furniture

After you have decided which room will become the baby’s nursery, it is time to begin planning the nursery. Whether you are planning a gender-neutral or gender-driven color scheme in your nursery, there are certain items you will definitely need for either comfort or safety. 

We advise you to make a list and separate it into categories: 

• Must-haves
• Safety items
• Like to have

This will help you to prioritize which items you need to purchase first. We recommend you get furniture first as this will take the most time and space to get it into place. Once the essential furniture is in place, you will be able to see what space is left in the nursery for the items you would like to have. 

 

Make Space in your Room

Once the baby’s room is in order, you can then move on to your room. As we have already pointed out, the amount of space needed in your room will be much less. So, first, you need to decide where in the room the crib will go. This should be within easy reach of the bed to save you from needing to get up and out of bed frequently throughout the night. This could involve having to move furniture in your room, so it is best to make this decision early. 

 

General Decluttering

Nesting is an inevitable part of later pregnancy, so this is a great time to have a clear out of things you had forgotten you owned or that no longer feel necessary to keep. Even if you do not have a wishlist of items for the baby, you will likely receive more than you anticipate after you bring your baby home. This is why we recommend a general declutter in the weeks or months leading up to their arrival.

Trust us when we say it will be much easier to donate and throw away items before your baby’s arrival than afterward when you may be short on time, sleep, and inclination to do so. We advise you to ensure that items are in the rooms you want them to be in after the baby’s arrival. Anything you wish to keep but do not need regularly is stored away to give you more space in every room. It is astounding how quickly you will find baby items in every room, so the more space, the better. 

 

Organize your Nursery

We recommend you prepare the nursery well, even though the baby will be in your room for a while at the beginning. Preparing before the baby is at home with you gives you more time to enjoy with them when they are here. 

Organization is important to make your adjustment to having a newborn as easy as it can possibly be. Some simple, inexpensive ways to organize the nursery are: 

• Clothes dividers – not everyone will buy you newborn clothes, so dividers on the clothes rail with the age of the clothes is an easy way to quickly put your hands on the age you need. 
• Drawer organizers – we love drawer organizers to keep socks, vests, and other small things together. You will likely go through several of these items daily at the beginning, so drawers can quickly become messy and items hard to find. 
• Shelves – shelves are a great way to organize certain items in a room and have the added bonus of being visible at all times so you can easily see what you need.

 

Summary

Once your house is in order and your bag packed for the hospital, all there is to do is relax and wait for your new bundle of joy to arrive. We, therefore, recommend that the sooner you can get your home ready, the better as the further into your pregnancy you are, the more tired you may become. 

 

The most common reason for needing to remove the baseboards in your home is when changing your flooring. Baseboards are the (usually) wooden finishings that go around each room between the wall and the floor. 

Baseboards are a nice touch in any home as they will hide the edged of carpets and some of the joins in laminate flooring. If you regularly change carpets or floors, you may already know that removing and replacing baseboards is not a difficult job once you know how to do it well. 

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For those of you who have not done this in the past, we have created an easy-to-follow guide for your convenience. 

Have the Right Tools

Before starting any home improvement project, you should ensure that you have the tools you are going to need. Removing baseboards is no different. You need to ensure you have; a hammer, both a putty and a utility knife. You may also need a small pry bar and pliers in case any of the baseboards are difficult to remove. 

Prepare the Work Area

Before beginning to remove the baseboards, you should inspect each board for sealant or adhesive. If sealant or adhesive has been used, this is easy to rectify by cutting through it with the utility knife. However, if you do not cut through this and try to pry the baseboards from the wall, you could damage both the wall and the boards. 

You should then cut each corner to ensure that the strips of wood are easy to separate. This is only required if the corners are coped and overlap. If they are coped, the piece of wood which overlaps on top is the piece that should be removed first. 

Begin to Remove the Baseboards

The next step is to begin to loosen the board from the wall. The easiest way to do this is to slide the putty knife between the wall and the baseboard. You should always ensure you do this next to a nail as if there is no nail for leverage, you could damage the baseboard noticeably and beyond repair. 

Once the boards have been loosened and you can fit a pry bar or other implement between the board and wall, you can begin to pry the baseboard from the wall. This should always be done slowly, and you should work from one end of the baseboard to the other. You should ensure that the pry bar is pushed down to the middle of the baseboard to avoid damaging the top edge. 

You can also use the putty knife behind the bar to protect your wall. The putty knife in this position helps you to avoid using the wall directly for the leverage to get the boards removed. 

Now that the baseboards are removed from the wall, you should get rid of any nails still attached to the baseboards. The correct way to do this is to remove them from the back with pliers. Do not try to push them back through the front of the baseboard, as this will chip and damage the baseboard. 

Replacing the Baseboards

After the work you need to do has been completed and you are ready to put the baseboards back in place, follow these steps.

Prime the Baseboards

This could be with varnish or paint. It is worthwhile doing this even if you are not changing the color of the baseboards. It may not be very often that you are in a position to repaint the baseboards without worrying about the floor or wall while you paint. 

Using a nail gun, you should then nail the baseboards back in place. If your baseboards are coped, this should be the reverse of removal, with the bottom piece of each interlocking corner being installed first. 

Finishing the Replacement

After the nails have been put into the baseboards, you will need to sink them lower than the level of the baseboard. This is done for two reasons; firstly, it looks better as you will often be able to disguise the nails (more about that below). Secondly, sinking the nails in the baseboards will help to avoid accidents and injuries. This is especially important if you have small children or indoor pets, as if the nail is further out than the level of the baseboard, it is easy for little fingers or curious pets to run past a nail and hurt themselves. 

Sinking the nails can be easily completed using a nail set. If you are unsure of what this is, you can search for this online for practical demonstrations. 

With the baseboards now back in place, it is time to disguise the nails. You can do this simply by filling in the nail holes with putty and painting over them. This method can also be used for any damages to the wood. The touch-ups will be extremely difficult to notice if you have just painted the full baseboard as it will blend in. However, if you have not, then these paint touch-ups will be noticeable.

Summary

Repainted and reinstalled baseboards will be the final touch to offset your new flooring and will give a professional finish to any DIY flooring project. The process itself is not a difficult one, but it requires patience. When removing and reinstalling the baseboards, rushing can cause unnecessary damage to the wood, meaning increased expense to buy more wood for new baseboards. 

If you are working on home renovations, landscaping, or construction, then you have probably noticed that the debris and waste from your project can pile up quite fast – possibly significantly faster than you expected, particularly if this is your first major project like this! You have probably seen two different types of waste management systems in use at other sites: the standard roll-off dumpster, and the dumpster bag, otherwise known as a bagster. But what is the difference between roll-off dumpsters and bagsters? And which one is best for your project? Well, the answer might surprise you. Read on below to learn more about the differences between roll-off dumpsters and bagsters, including the differing strengths and weaknesses of each option. 

Saint James, MD and the Washington County area are within our delivery radius at Eagle Dumpster Rental

Roll-Off Dumpsters and Dumpster Bags: What is the Difference?

The similarities between the roll-off dumpster and the bagster are obvious: they are both containers that you set up on your property, fill with debris, junk, and other waste as needed, and then have them hauled away for disposal once they are full. Easy. The differences between them are less obvious, though, and just as important. 

Firstly, the sizes available differ. Roll-off dumpsters come in a wide range of different sizes: 10, 15, 20, 30, and 40 cubic yard sizes. Each size has its own weight limit, with larger dumpsters able to hold a higher weight than smaller dumpsters. A dumpster bag, meanwhile, comes in a standard size: 3 cubic yards, with a maximum weight limit of 3,300 pounds. That is much smaller than even the smallest dumpster, which is great for a small project, but larger projects can end up using a very large number of bags.

The dimensions are also worth considering, particularly if you have a relatively small site and are unsure what size of dumpster you can fit. Roll-off dumpsters vary depending on the size you have chosen. Typically, they are 8 feet wide, between 10 and 20 feet in length, and between 4 and 7 feet tall. Dumpster bags are smaller, with a standard size of 8 feet long, 4 feet wide, and 2.6 feet tall.

Roll-off dumpsters require a large flat area for placement, and it is important to check local regulations before you rent one. If local regulations allow dumpsters to be placed in the street, that should be ideal, but otherwise, you will have to find a suitable flat area on your property. Dumpster bags are easier to place, as long as you can find some space within around 18 feet of the street.

Pickup is another area with significant differences. Dumpster bag pickup is not available in all areas, so it is important to research whether or not you can access this before you purchase your dumpster bags. Roll-off dumpster pickups can be booked online or via phone and need to be booked in advance, as moving a full dumpster can take a fair bit of effort!

The biggest difference between the traditional roll-off dumpster and the bagster is in the materials from which each is made. A roll-off dumpster is a heavy-duty piece of equipment made from solid metal, designed to take a beating. It is tough, reusable, and designed to be filled with all sorts of heavy, sharp, or otherwise awkward debris. A dumpster bag, meanwhile, is made from a tarpaulin-like canvas, with strong handles mounted on the sides. Dumpster bags are fairly durable, but if you overfill them, they can tear when picked up, so you need to be careful when filling them up.

Cost Comparison of Bagsters and Roll-Off Dumpsters

The big advantage of dumpster bags is the cost. The most affordable brands can be bought for as low as $30 per bag from major outlets like Amazon, Lowes, or Home Depot. However, the cost of the bag itself is not the only cost you are going to need to consider. Pickup costs for dumpster bags can be high, averaging around $140 per bag for a full bag. That is a total of around $170 total for a full 3,300 pound bag of debris. These costs may vary depending on your location and which company you use, but the numbers given here are a reasonable ballpark. 

Renting a roll-off dumpster, meanwhile, can be harder to predict the cost of. This is because the length of time you rent for and the size of the dumpster chosen can have an enormous impact on cost. On average, dumpster rentals range in price from around $300 to around $500. 

This means that in most cases, a roll-off dumpster will be the cheaper option. However, if you are doing a smaller project that will only require one or two dumpster bags, the total cost of buying and uplifting dumpster bags might be lower.

Which is Best: Buying a Dumpster Bag or Renting a Dumpster?

Dumpster bags are great for smaller projects, such as minor partial home renovations or garden landscaping. For larger jobs, however, the cost of multiple bags can add up fast, while dumpster rental scales much better. Renting a dumpster from a reputable company such as Eagle Dumpster Rental is likely to be the better bet for all but the smallest jobs.

It is also worth noting that roll-off dumpsters are designed for long-term use, while bagsters are single-use objects. That makes them a bit of a problem from a sustainability standpoint, as every bagster used adds to the amount of waste generated by a project.

Conclusion

Bagsters and roll-off dumpsters are both valuable options to have available for any major DIY or home renovation project, each with its own strengths and weaknesses. In most cases, though, the traditional roll-off dumpster is likely to be the better option. There is a reason the standard dumpster design has remained virtually unchanged for so many decades!

Dumpsters are a ubiquitous fact of life in the modern world, but where did they come from? They are not naturally occurring objects, so somebody must have invented them. In fact, up until the early 20th century, cities were filled with piles of waste and trash piled up in the streets. Until the dumpster was invented, waste management was a very haphazard and ineffectual thing. So what happened to change that? Below, we will take a look at the history of the dumpster, answering important questions like “who invented the dumpster?”

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People do not often think about the origins of the dumpster, but the story behind this ubiquitous waste vessel is an interesting one. Let’s take a look.

Before the Dumpster

For most of human history, waste was just abandoned in piles by the roadside. This was messy, unappealing, and extremely unsanitary; piles of trash are an ideal breeding ground for public health hazards ranging from bacteria to rats, and their impact on city life can be enormous.

Eventually, cities realized how much of a public health hazard this casual garbage disposal was and set out to do something about it. When the first sanitation departments were created, they made a huge difference to the cleanliness and safety of streets, in one of history’s biggest advances in waste management. However, the process of waste collection was a slow and high effort process, with entire teams of men loading waste into carts or, later, trucks. The next leap in waste management would be focused on making that waste collection quicker and easier and reducing the manpower required. Enter George Dempster.

George Dempster: Inventor of the Dempster Dumpster

The man who would invent the dumpster was Mr. George Roby Dempster. He was a businessman, an inventor, and at one point even the mayor of Knoxville. As the owner of the Dempster Brothers Inc construction company, he was familiar with both the complexities of waste disposal and the use of heavy machinery. Combining these two skills, he came up with a way to deal with collecting, transporting, and eventually disposing of garbage that was far more efficient than any previous approach: the dumpster.

In 1935, George Dempster trademarked the Dempster Dumpster, an invention he had devised purely for the personal use of his own construction company. However, when other members of the construction industry became aware of the Dempster Dumpster, they were so impressed that they started to order their own from him. Soon, the company was receiving so many orders for Dempster Dumpsters that they decided to abandon their original role in the construction industry completely and pivot to manufacturing Dempster Dumpsters for anyone who wanted one.

The important thing about the Dempster Dumpster was that it reduced the manpower required for waste disposal by around 75%. Instead of a team of four waste disposal staff hauling a load of debris into a truck with shovels, the same amount of garbage could be dealt with in the same amount of time by a single sanitation worker. The Dempster Dumpster just has to be picked up and hauled away – no loading and unloading of loose garbage required.

But the dumpster was not the end of George Dempster’s dreams of hygiene and public health. Over the next few decades, he would improve on the design, refining it for better durability and ease of use, and inventing new things to use alongside it. Soon, the Dempster Dumpster would be the central part of a new system of efficient and effective waste disposal that would change the world.

After the Dumpster: Dempster’s Next Steps

It was not just the dumpster that George Dempster invented. In the 1950s, his company launched what was then known as the Dempster Dumpmaster. This would later become known, much more generically, as the garbage truck. Dempster’s Dumpmaster was the first successful front-loading garbage disposal vehicle to be launched in the US, notable for being fully controlled within the cab of the truck. The driver no longer had to get out of the vehicle, and multiple dumpsters could be fitted into a single truck. This cut down on the number of trips to the dump needed, increasing the speed of garbage disposal by an impressive amount. 

Some variant of the Dempster Dumpmaster design has been available at all times in the last 70 years. The basic design of the Dempster Dumpmaster has never been replaced. Other manufacturers have tried to redesign it, but they have never managed to make something more efficient than that original design. Dempster’s impact on the world of waste management cannot be overstated.

Conclusion

The dumpster really is the work of a single man with a dream of hygiene. Without George Roby Dempster, cities would still be piled ankle-deep in garbage, and rats and disease would be even more common than they are now. Dempster’s inventions changed the world of public health, and we are all better off for it. Dempster may be an unsung, unappreciated hero, but we all know his inventions and benefit from them every single day.

Introduction

Everyone ends up with piles of unused items, broken things, or other waste material lying around at some point. DIY projects are some of the best ways to use those up, and with a little creative energy and some elbow grease, it is easy to turn unwanted old trash into treasures that you will treasure for years. Below, you will find 10 ideas you can use to start you off on your upcycling journey.

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• Pallet Table

Many DIY projects are built from pallets because they are sturdy, easy to get hold of, and often just lying around, taking up space. Leftover pallets are a great material to use for a table, bringing a rustic charm to indoor or outdoor spaces. They are also easy to paint to match any color scheme you need! Tutorials for DIY pallet tables are easy to find across the internet, as this type of furniture is very popular.

• Ladder Bookshelf

Many people have an old ladder or two leaning against a wall somewhere, getting no use at all. Ladders can be large and bulky, but they can make a great bookshelf design with a little bit of work. A standard ladder can be hung sideways as a segmented bookshelf, or a stepladder can be stood in a corner as a vertical bookcase. The options are endless!

• Bathtub Couch

This one can take a bit of work, but the end results look amazing. By cutting out one side of an old bathtub and refinishing the exterior, you can transform a bathtub into a unique couch for your home. This only works with plastic or fiberglass tubs, but these are usually fairly easy to get hold of at almost no cost.

• Bicycle Garden Planter

Even the sturdiest old bicycle will eventually wear out and become unusable from overuse, rust, or just general wear and tear. An unrideable bike can make an amazing accent for your garden, particularly if you freshen it up with a new lick of paint. If your old bike has a basket, this can make a great planter for flowers or long, trailing plants. Either place a planter in the basket or line it with some sort of mesh or cloth before filling it with compost and plants!

• Skateboard Chair

An old, battered skateboard has more uses than you might expect. With a bit of work, a tatty old board that nobody rides anymore can be used as part of the back or even the seat of a rustic chair. Old, battered skateboard paintwork may look tatty on a skateboard, but it brings a quirky charm to wooden chairs.

• Dresser Drawer Shelf

Dressers are very versatile pieces of furniture, so there is no need to throw out an unwanted old dresser. There are several different ways you can upcycle an old dresser, but one of the easiest is simply to remove the drawers and use them as hanging shelving units. This is an affordable option for building rustic, stylish storage elements for your home or garden.

• Suitcase Side Table

Old suitcases are often used for outdoor garden elements, but why not use them for indoor furniture as well? Suitcases are durable, sturdy objects with a very appealing vintage charm, and they can easily be fitted into a wide range of different settings. While there are many different upcycling options you could try, one of the best and easiest is to attach legs to one side and turn a suitcase into a side table with inbuilt storage space.

• Door Picture Frame

An old door with multiple panels can be a great foundation for an artistic centerpiece. Remove the individual panels, and each of those empty spaces can be used as a picture frame. The worn paint of an old door makes for a unique picture frame style, and an entire door filled with family pictures and hung sideways on the wall can make for an amazing talking point.

• Bed Frame Planter

The wood from an old bed frame can be incredibly useful to an experienced DIY hobbyist. This is one of the harder and more ambitious projects on our list, but if you have got the time to be able to commit to a long project, this can be very worth the time and effort. The slats of a bed frame are ideal for building a large garden planter from, with drainage slots and sturdy construction. This is not a project for novices and will take a long time, but the results can be amazing if you put in the necessary time and effort to do it properly.

• Cable Spool Table

The wooden spools around which large cables are wrapped are invaluable materials for a keen upcycler. The internet is filled with fun reimaginings of these objects, but you do not even have to put much work in to get great results. Sand down and varnish a spool, and you have got a great table all ready to go. This is a very simple way to bring a characterful style to your garden furniture, and it is much more affordable than buying a purpose-built table.

Conclusion

Almost all trash is useful to the enthusiastic upcycler. The ideas above are just a few possibilities to start you off, and the more projects you try, the more ideas you will probably start to have. If you have got the time to try more DIY projects, you can furnish your entire house using only waste materials from other projects!

Playing in the backyard is great for kids, but sometimes it can seem unappealing to them – simple outdoor play has to compete with all sorts of other entertainments. Building a kid-friendly backyard play area can make the outdoors far more appealing, but it can be hard to think up what to build. We have put together some ideas for kid-friendly backyard play areas that you can build as DIY projects – just read on below to learn more about our top tips and suggestions for play area ideas.

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Backyard Play Areas for Kids aged 0-2

Children under the age of 2 are still figuring out how to interact with the world. They will benefit most from an outdoor play area that exposes them to a wide range of different and new sights, sounds, and textures while they play in a safe and constrained environment.

From around the age of 1, children love to play in sand. A simple backyard sandbox can provide great entertainment for small children, as well as help significantly with the development of muscle and motor skills, as well as simple hand-eye coordination. It is also a valuable introduction to a texture they might not encounter without this form of play! Sandboxes are easy to make as a DIY project, even if you are not particularly experienced with DIY. 

Contrasting against the sandbox, a water table can also be a great way for small children to develop. This is a fun way for children to play and experiment with water, and it teaches them to stand up properly from an early age. A water table is a slightly more advanced DIY project, but it is still entirely doable if you do not want to buy one.

Baby swings are great for toddlers, as long as you have some sort of secure place to hang one from, such as a solid tree or a porch. A bucket seat design is safe and secure, and small children love the repetitive movement of swinging.

Climbing tires are an affordable, fun option for older toddlers. All you need is a large tire and some colorful paint, and both of those can be found for almost no cost at all on sites like Craigslist!

Backyard Play Areas for Kids aged 3-5

By the age of 3, kids are starting to learn more about constructing things and developing abstract thought a bit. That means that they will enjoy and benefit from play areas that support them in playing pretend and building structures.

If you are prepared to put in a huge amount of effort, building a DIY playhouse for your kids can give them an incredible space in which to let their imaginations take flight. If you would prefer something a little simpler, though, you can easily build a den or a fort for them using plywood, boards, sticks, and canvas. 

Messy play is fun for kids and can help them to learn about the world around them. With an old kitchen sink and some pallets, it is easy to build an outdoor mud kitchen for messy outdoor fun on warm days. 

If your children love to play with toy cars and other vehicles, why not build them their own road to play on? With affordable concrete pavers and some simple white paint, you can lay a miniature road around any outdoor play area for fully immersive driving-based play!

If your kids are keen on camping but are not old enough for the real thing yet, then setting up a backyard campsite can give them all the fun and excitement in the safety of your own backyard. Find a level area of ground, free from rocks, roots, and other uncomfortable lumps, and pitch a tent there to give them their own little space in the backyard.

Kids at this age are often engaged with creative activities, so why not encourage them to bring that creativity outside? With some backing boards and chalkboard paint, you can build an outdoor chalkboard wall where they can practice writing, drawing, and generally expressing themselves in an outdoor environment.

Backyard Play Areas for Kids aged 6-12

Older kids are more coordinated and more interested in physical activities and formal games. That means they might want some slightly more advanced backyard play areas, but there are still plenty of things you can do for them yourself as DIY projects in the yard.

A large-scale playset is one of the best things you can do for kids in this age range. Either buy a swing set kit from a home improvement store or build a DIY playset yourself. Larger equipment like this takes a bit of maintenance, though, so you should keep an eye on it to ensure there are no splintered beams, rusty bits, or other snags that could cause issues.

If you have got a large, solid tree in your backyard, why not make full use of it and build a treehouse? A DIY treehouse is a fun project for you that older kids can help with, and the end result is a classic space in which they can play all summer, away from the rest of the family.

Conclusion

There are many different DIY projects you can try your hand at in order to build a fun, safe, kid-friendly play area in your own backyard. You do not have to break the bank to make a beloved play area that your kids will love and remember for the rest of their lives.

If you are looking for ways to add a bit of style to your home without breaking the bank, then beadboard might be a great option. This is an affordable decorative trim that can add some beautiful decorative accents to any room of your home, and it is easy to install as a DIY project! If you are not aware of this decorative boarding, we will explain it below! Read on to find out more about beadboard and its various advantages.

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What is Beadboard?

Beadboard is a thin layer of decorative wood, kind of like a veneer. It can be applied in panels to your walls, adding color, texture, or just surfacing. There are several different types of beadboard available, all with their own different looks and costs. Beadboard can be purchased in varieties, including real wood, medium-density fibreboard (MDF), and paneling.

How Much does Beadboard Cost?

The cost of beadboard varies depending on the type you are trying to buy. The cheapest is paneling, which ranges from around $0.50 to $0.75 per square foot. MDF beadboard usually costs around $1 per square foot, but real wood is much more expensive. This depends on the type of wood – cheap woods like pine will only cost around $1 per square foot, but more expensive woods such as cherry could set you back as much as $22 per square foot!

How to Install Beadboard

Beadboard is easy to install and can simply be nailed into place or glued like any other type of paneling. Exactly how you attach it will depend on where in your house you are putting it – bathrooms and ceilings will need a different approach from hallway walls, for example. 

In general, the tools you will need for installing beadboard include wall adhesive, a nail gun, a jigsaw, a hammer, a tape measure, and some finishing nails.

Kitchen Beadboard Projects

Beadboard is a great and affordable option for kitchen backsplash surfacing. You can use it on its own for a more unconventional look, or you can combine it with tile for a classic look. 

Alternatively, the vertical ridges on beadboard look great on a kitchen island. Beadboard makes for great side panels for your kitchen island, and adding a bit of molding on the corners, and outer edges will add a bit of texture, depth, and visual interest to this central feature of your kitchen. 

Bathroom Beadboard Projects

The bathroom is one of the most popular locations for beadboard decoration, and for a good reason. The raised lines of beadboard help a bathroom to look a bit more characterful than a plain wall, and you can use it wherever you want. Either apply a full panel of floor to ceiling beadboard for a rustic look or use it as a form of trim around specific areas. You can even put panels around your bath or other bathroom furniture, boxing it in and helping to unify it with the rest of the bathroom décor. 

Alternatively, beadboard is a popular material for use on bathroom ceilings. This can be a little fiddly to actually install because you will probably have to do all of the installation work with large panels of beadboard while standing on the top of a stepladder for the entire project, but the payoff will be well worth it in the end. If you are willing to put in a bit of effort, beadboard paneling can bring texture and style to an otherwise featureless area of your bathroom, helping you to achieve the perfect look for your bathroom.

Bedroom Beadboard Projects

The bedroom is one of the best rooms in your house to get started with beadboard installation because it features one of the single easiest possible projects in the entire world of DIY: headboard building. Beadboard is an ideal material to use for a headboard for your bed, and with a bit of molding and trim, you can make your own headboard that looks better than half the commercially available headboard options, all for a fraction of the price. 

If you are looking for something more ambitious than a simple headboard, you could try using beadboard for shiplap wall paneling. Shiplap paneling is a simple type of wall paneling made by turning beadboard on its side, so the ridges go across the wall instead of up and down. This gives a classic vintage farmhouse look to any wall and can help your bedroom feel rustic and cozy. This is an easy way to get a unique style, and all you will need is a nail gun, some spackle, and a few sheets of beadboard!

Getting Started with Beadboard

If you are new to DIY, beadboard is one of the easiest materials to use, and you can get great results easily. Even if you know this, though, the prospect of paneling an entire wall or ceiling can be quite intimidating. It is usually best to start with a small project, such as building a headboard, and work up to larger DIY tasks once you are a bit more confident with the techniques involved.

Conclusion

Beadboard is a great option for bringing a simple, characterful style to your home without having to shell out large sums of money for professional designers or expensive materials. All you need is a few sheets of beadboard, some tools, and some elbow grease, and soon you will be redecorating your home to fit the perfect style of your dreams, all on your own!

Donating your old clothes or other possessions to charities and businesses like Goodwill can be a great way to declutter, all while minimizing the amount that you have to actually throw away. But while it is effective, there are some things that you shouldn’t donate.

Not only can bad donations become a hassle for the staff to manage, but they can actually cost them money and time that they can’t get back. Even if you have good intentions, you can cause major problems with their donation system that will take them a while to fix.

Here are some things to understand about your donations, whether they are going to Goodwill or another group entirely.

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Broken Items

It goes without saying that unusable electronics shouldn’t go to Goodwill, but you really need to consider the amount of repair involved. A chair that is flimsy in one leg might still be usable, but the risk of it collapsing could mean that it is not suitable as a donation item.

The same goes for a lot of similar items that might need repairs. Goodwill (and most other donation groups) are not going to have the time or manpower to repair every single item. They may not even have the skills or tools necessary to make those repairs in the first place.

Always check clothing for rips and tears and test appliances to make sure that they function properly. You want to be sure that every item works as intended – if you want to repair them, you can try, but never donate anything in a broken state.

Unsafe Items

Some items will simply be unsafe, no matter what they are. There are many cases where an old appliance might have been recalled or may actually no longer comply with the country’s current safety standards. If this happens, then the item shouldn’t be donated.

For example, you might want to look out if you are donating old toys or child and baby-related items in general. They have much higher safety standards, meaning that it is very likely that a lot of them will end up recalled due to issues with small parts or particular materials.

You can check the recall status of most items online, even if the original company that made them has gone out of business, so be sure to double-check before donating anything. This could put people at unnecessary risk and make it harder for the donation to be processed properly.

Fireworks and Ammunition

This should be fairly obvious to most people, but you should never donate explosives, ammunition, or weapons to Goodwill. Not only are these hazardous, but there are multiple legal routes to dispose of them instead, all without putting people in a lot of danger for no real reason.

Ammunition and weapons should be surrendered, sold, or otherwise legally given away to somebody that has the authority and license to handle such a process. Hunting items like knives and bows can often be sold directly.

Fireworks should be soaked, wrapped up in a safe material, and thrown away normally. Remember that this includes actual explosives, like old hand grenades kept as war souvenirs or anything that could function as a genuine bomb – never donate anything that might blow up for obvious reasons.

Chemicals

Chemicals, ranging from paint to major household detergents and cleaning options, shouldn’t be donated. They can be a huge hazard and might even put the staff in direct danger when they receive the donations, so you should always dispose of them carefully and follow any instructions on the packaging or container.

Remember to not pour them directly into the drains unless you are getting rid of a chemical that is meant to flow in there anyway. Paint should be donated to dedicated paint groups, used up, or disposed of correctly. Gasoline should be used up whenever possible. Look up each specific chemical to figure out how you should dispose of it safely.

Debris and Scrap Materials

Any spare materials you might have gotten from construction, renovation, or DIY work should be donated elsewhere rather than to normal donation sites. This is because they are usually impossible to re-sell under normal circumstances and are not suited for a regular shop environment.

If you can’t donate them elsewhere, consider contacting local independent building suppliers to recycle them instead, or even use them somewhere else in your house. If you want to move them quickly, then you could use one of our dumpster rentals to speed things up dramatically.

Large Items

Anything that is too large can create major problems for the group that you are donating to. Kitchen appliances, outdoor play equipment like swing sets, and basically any other large furniture type can become an issue unless you have already arranged the donation ahead of time, and it has been agreed.

There are dedicated places to drop off your larger items, and you can always break them down into their component parts and recycle them if needed. Large things are hard to move, though, so you might have to rely on one of our dumpster rentals to get them to a recycling location easily.

It is always important to consider the amount of time and effort involved in moving the donation. If it takes you a lot of time to get it out of your house and into your car, then it will be even harder for Goodwill to do anything with it. Do not assume that they can handle large items any better than you can.

Bugs can be an annoyance at best and a genuine hassle at worst, often leading to all kinds of both minor and major issues around the home. If you are in a bug-heavy area, then you might need to take measures against them directly, especially if they could kill plants or spread diseases.

Thankfully, plants are a deceptively simple solution to a horde of annoying bugs. With the right plant combinations in the right places, you can easily thin the pack and make it harder for them to invade your life, all without buying any specialized gear or bug repellents.

Citronella Grass

Citronella grass is at the top of this article for a reason. The lemon scent of their stalks, combined with the ability to create your own DIY repellent through their oil, makes them one of the most effective ways to both passively and actively repel bugs from your home.

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You can grow this grass in containers and in a natural outdoor space, meaning that they work as both indoor and outdoor options under the right conditions. Since they can repel mosquitoes, they work very well in areas where you are constantly harassed by those little menaces.

Note that citronella grass is not the same thing as citronella geraniums – they smell similar, but the geraniums will not keep bugs away from you.

Chives

Chives are a very useful herb for keeping bugs away, thanks to their strong, almost onion-like smell when they are crushed. Chives do not smell good to be around, so you want to place them carefully, but they can help ward off numerous little critters as well as the Blackspot fungal disease.

You can grow these both indoors and outdoors, making it a versatile option for people who are constantly plagued by bugs that they can’t get rid of. They also make a great companion plant for anything that is normally targeted by flies, aphids, or even slugs.

Garlic

Garlic is very versatile, being easy to grow, staying hardy in bad weather, and having multiple different uses. While garlic is best grown outdoors, thanks to its overwhelming smell, you can use them to create garlic spray when you add water and some soap to a few cloves.

Naturally, you can also eat garlic, meaning that it is worth growing some if you already grow your own fruits and vegetables in your garden. This gives you another edible ingredient that will also protect the rest of your plants from common threats.

Rosemary

Rosemary is a great garnish, but it is also a useful evergreen herb that can provide near-constant protection from bugs. The herb itself has a lot of oil, meaning that it  is great for cooking up your own bug repellent sprays, but the shrub variant lasts longer and works better indoors.

Like chives, you can rely on rosemary as a companion plant, meaning that it will work well alongside other plants that you are actively growing. It is also great for growing indoors year-round, giving you a constant repellent to work with – and a regular source of oil.

Basil

Basil is another plant that serves a dual purpose. Not only can it be used in countless different recipes, but it can also provide you with crushed basil leaves that you can put on your skin to keep mosquitoes away. As an added bonus, you can turn it into a bug spray for on-the-go repelling.

Unfortunately, basil can struggle in cold or dark weather. Replanting it annually is the best idea unless you are growing it indoors, in which case it will usually survive just fine.

Marigolds

Marigolds repel bugs and look great. They have the additional benefit of feeding hoverflies, meaning that they will stick around longer – and since hover flies eat pests without harming humans, they can devour anything that threatens your plants.

Since they can keep many kinds of beetle away, they work well for plants that are grown low to the ground. Marigolds are also very easy to grow and resist both pests and diseases, allowing them to last throughout a warm summer in perfect health as long as you water them properly.

Catnip

Catnip can seem like an odd option, but it is actually a very potent and reliable way to repel all kinds of bugs – including mosquitos and cockroaches. It can also attract local cats, which is not necessarily helpful, but it is definitely a nice way to meet some new furry friends.

The nepetalactone in catnip is the repelling chemical, and you can extract it to make your commercial-level bug spray. Since it is technically an invasive species, you should put it in a separate container, ideally one that cats can’t roll in or otherwise damage and destroy.

Cedar Trees

Cedar trees are often used as a privacy aid, but they can also repel quite a lot of insects. In fact, they contain a lot of ingredients that you would find in commercial insect repellents, and you can extract the cedar oil from their bark (or berries and leaves) to create your own sprays with ease.

Since they are actual trees, they are very durable and will last a long time. However, unless you are getting a pre-grown tree planted in your yard, expect them to take a long time to grow on their own.

Growing any of these plants can mean restructuring your garden to build up a bug-repelling network of new herbs. If you are ready to completely overhaul your garden, then consider one of our dumpster rentals to speed up the process.