Luxury Housing Trends & Home Improvement Ideas

Do you know how to care for your septic tank? Well, if you don’t, you could cause expensive and serious damage to your backyard. Maintaining your septic tank might not be something you consider a home improvement, but if you neglect it, all of your hard work to enhance your backyard will have gone to waste.

To prevent sewage backup in your yard, it’s important to have your tank pumped every three to five years. Also, beware of the drainfield, because this is where your wastewater is filtered by the soil. Since this section of your lawn is a crucial process to your water management, avoid planting any trees or shrubs. Planting close to the drainfield is risky, because the roots can destroy the septic tank or clog the drainfield.

Monitoring and managing your septic tank can prevent costly repairs. After a septic tank fails, it can take months or years before your yard looks normal again.

When you have extra pieces of plywood lying around your garage, don’t let them go to waste. Instead, you can give them new life and even enhance your yard in the process.

Using the extra wood to create a few homemade bird or bat houses is an easy way to reuse your wood scraps. All you need is a handsaw, nails, a hammer and paint. Remember, the more bats you have nearby, the less insects such as mosquitoes will be around to annoy you.

Another simple project is to create a small seat to attach to trees so squirrels can eat corn. Just remember to add a nail to stick the cob on.

For more creative projects, make ornaments and decorations for the upcoming seasons. Also, larger sheets of wood can be turned into trays or cutting boards. If you have been meaning to mulch your yard, chip your supply of wood into mulch to revive your flowerbeds. Once you start thinking of ways to reuse your wood, unique ideas will come to mind.

Even though a backyard is behind the house, it doesn’t mean that it has to lack the personality and grace that the front yard has. There are so many different structures that can make your backyard more interesting, convenient and useful.

A shed that mimics your home’s design can decorate your yard and also provide storage space. If you have an abundant amount of garden tools and holiday or seasonal decorations, a shed provides an accessible and attractive way to store these items.

Gazebos can make your yard more peaceful and magical. These buildings can even be turned into spa-like retreats for you and your significant other, or they can serve as an enclosed lounging area when friends visit.

Decorative bird feeders, birdbaths and hummingbird feeders can bring around the local wildlife. Adding a swing can enable you to enjoy the birds, deer, squirrels and other animals that come around your yard.

Outdoor lighting should consist of primary lights that illuminate the space and secondary lights that set the mood. To incorporate both of these in your patio or deck, it’s best to determine the outdoor lighting before you build.

Some primary lights include wall-mounted sconces on the sides of doorways, pole-mounted fixtures along the path to the garden, floodlights for late night hot tub or pool parties and motion detectors for security purposes.

Secondary lights include lanterns strung near the patio furniture, strings of small lights for trees and shrubs and soft glowing landscape lights.

This tall Moroccan-style candle lantern has a unique look, which would provide a subtle glow around the outdoor dining area. The dimensions are 6 1/4” x 5 3/8” x 19” high. White Barn Gifts sells other Moroccan-style lanterns in blue, yellow and amber glass. Lanterns like this call for a relaxing dinner with friends or a romantic night with that special someone.

Doghouses are no longer simple backyard structures that just provide shade for your dog. Some dog shelters are replicas of the owner’s home, so they have porches and even “swimming pools” (a.k.a. large water bowls). So how can you make your pet’s doghouse more like an outdoor suite without going to the extreme?

Osborne & Little has a variety of outdoor fabrics and wallpapers. Their Walk in the Park wallpaper features silhouettes of different dog breeds, and if you have a female dog, the fuchsia on graphite colourway might be perfect. Wallpaper is an easy way to add color and style to your doghouse. Also, as long as you know the basics of sewing, you can create a couple doggie pillows to make the home cozy.

Instead of installing a pooch-sized porch, you can purchase some patio stones and create a foundation in front of the shelter. During the evening, your dog will enjoy lying on cool bricks.

Hammocks are a relaxing way to enjoy your backyard. In the same regard, they can be a pain to get into, and it’s easy to land on the ground instead of on the hammock. So what is your option if you love hammocks but not the part where you get in them?

Outback Chair Co. has created a deluxe woven hammock lounge chair. It costs almost $360, but at least you know that you will be able to use it.

After you set it up, all you have to do is sit down as if you would on a chair. You can easily read a book and adjust your position. Oh, and it has a drink holder too!

When you have to replace the wood flooring or carpet in large rooms, it can be a costly endeavor. But before making the commitment to buy new materials, check out your reclaimed flooring options for better deals.

Pioneer Millworks carries reclaimed wood flooring that is manufactured in the U.S.A. They have a large selection of species, grades and widths, and the flooring is 100% reclaimed or FSC certified. Although the wood in reclaimed floors is sometimes less than perfect, it gives the floor character. If you have already replaced your wood flooring and have extra wood from the project, contact Pioneer Millworks to see if they will buy it from you.

Maybe carpet is more your style, so use your creative freedom to work with recycled carpet tiles, which you can get from FLOR. These tiles can give a room more personality and color. Plus, if a few tiles become worn, you can replace and return them to the company.

When you have a serene backyard atmosphere, it can be tempting to just stay outside all day long. Placing multi-functional pieces in your outdoor lounge area, can keep essential items within reach so you can stay outside even longer.

The Electrolux Jeppe Utzon Barbeque doubles as a grill and patio table. On the days when you’re not cooking, you can slide the top covers back in place and have a drink at your modern patio table. In additional to its sleek design, Jeppe Utzon made the grill so that it uses natural gas, which is more eco-friendly than traditional charcoal pillows.

Also, unique items that have a story can be conversational pieces for your porch. The Stave Back Storage Bench is made from old wine barrels, and it has a chestnut stain. Its dimensions are 35”h x 37”w x 26”d. You can store towels, blankets, toys, etc. right under the seat.

Having an outdoor refrigerator next to your backyard grilling unit can be a lifesaver during the summer when friends unexpectedly drop by. Plus, you can store food and beverages in it to have on hand when your family has time to sit down and eat together.

Cal Flame’s Pull Out Refrigerator Drawer has three deep drawers perfect for storing meat, vegetables, marinades, condiments, beverages, etc. The dimensions of this refrigerator unit are 25 5/8” x 23 5/8” x 32”. The chrome finish can accent most outdoor kitchens, and you don’t have to worry about running in and out of the house or carrying supplies outside from the main refrigerator.

If you prefer an outdoor refrigerator that has a similar design to your indoor fridge, Cal Flame also has a an Outdoor Beverage Cooler, which can store food and drinks. In addition, the glass doors enable you to see your groceries, and it’s a high-efficiency model too.

Bird houses are a fun addition to the yard, especially if you’re a bird-watcher from way back. A lot of the ones available at the store are on the flimsy side though and tend to look shoddy after a year or two of being out in the elements.

For an alternative, check out this handmade stone birdhouse from Etsy seller, DuckabushWoodworks. The artist operates a small organic farm and woodshop within the Olympic National Forest in Washington state. This stone bird retreat is one of her projects:

The little house is made from small rock chips from the Penny Creek Quarry. Built with thorocrete, a wire reinforced frame, and cedar, the house has a wooden roof that features tiny, hand-split, pre-weathered cedar shakes.

As the artist says, “This house is over-the-top as far as detail. It features hand split shakes, hand pointed and laid stone walls, and a full cedar casing on the inside. It’s entirely functional and tough as nails…but you would not see the detail if it was perched high enough for the birds to find it attractive. It’s your decision though! Bowing to the beauty of wet stones, I have sealed the house with a higher gloss cement sealer which makes the stones look wet all the time.”

$125.