by Milcarsky's Staff | Oct 1, 2019 | Appliances
No longer merely a utilitarian space where food is prepared, the kitchen countertop has become an important part of the overall decor of the room. For some homeowners, the countertop is so important that they design the rest of the kitchen around it. Here are three common kitchen countertop materials that make any kitchen look amazing.
Granite
While granite is often chosen for its beauty, it is as hard and durable as it is attractive. Though it comes in the familiar salt-and-pepper design, granite also comes in many colors, shades, and patterns. Granite is easy to maintain and needs to be dusted once or twice every week and wiped down with a damp cloth at the end of the day. One con of granite is that it is hard on dishware, and it can crack. As it’s a natural stone, a chip or crack can be hard to repair. Granite also needs to be sealed every other year or so because it’s porous.
Quartz
When people refer to a quartz countertop, they’re most often thinking of engineered stone. This material is made from powdered quartz that’s mixed with resin and a pigment. The great thing about these countertops is that they do not need to be sealed, and they’re easier to repair if they are chipped as long as the homeowner knows the batch number. Quartz countertops require less maintenance than granite countertops, needing little aside from wiping the surface of spills to keep it clean. As for the drawbacks, some homeowners don’t think that engineered quartz countertops look as raw and organic as natural stone.
Marble
Marble is unsurpassed in its beauty. White marble seems to sparkle and reflect light, and the stone often features beautiful veins and clouds. Marble is cool to the touch, which makes it a great choice for making pastries. Marble is extremely durable, but at the same time, it’s also softer than granite or quartz and it needs to be sealed every so often to protect it from stains. People should be aware that marble can be expensive, and it’s so soft that it etches and scratches more readily than other types of stone.
Granite, quartz, and marble are only three of the materials that can add beauty to any kitchen countertop. Not only are they beautiful, but they are also long-lasting and easy to care for. A homeowner can’t go wrong choosing any of them.
by Milcarsky's Staff | Oct 1, 2019 | Appliances
In a home, the kitchen is a very popular place to congregate. This is where you gather with family for dinner each day, you host your extended family during the holidays, and you have friends over for a fun time. A kitchen is a happy place, but the kitchen is a much better gathering spot when it’s clean. You’ve likely invested a lot of money in your appliances. That’s why you should learn how you can properly maintain these items and keep them clean. When it comes to your oven, this is an area that can get dirty quickly. All it takes is one messy meal to spill over and you’ll be stuck with a pretty stubborn mess. So let’s talk more about ways to keep your oven clean.
Why You Need to Clean Your Oven
When you have an extremely messy oven, this can end up being a danger for your home. About 1 in 10 homes is estimated to have a kitchen fire, so it’s important to regularly clean your oven to avoid causing a fire. Not to mention, you could be affecting the flavor and quality of your food when you have too big of a mess going on in there. You’ll be protecting your investment by keeping your oven clean.
Cleaning Your Oven
There are several products that you can purchase in a grocery store or other retail store, that are designed for cleaning a very messy oven. Once you have heated up your oven with food residue in the bottom, you’re essentially baking on that mess. You’ll need some heavy-duty products to cut that grease and grime. Some ovens have a self-cleaning function. You set the function to start. It will heat the oven up to a very high temperature, which should loosen up and clear off some of the mess in the oven. You must be careful with this process. It can produce quite a smell, so make sure you have all your windows open while your oven is being cleaned.
However, if you have exotic pets like birds, it’s best not to use the self-cleaning function at all, as the fumes will kill them!
Keeping Your Oven Clean
You can keep your oven clean in the future by using a few simple tips. Regardless of what you’re cooking, you’ll want to place a cookie sheet underneath the baking dish that you’re using. If you have any kind of spill-over occur, you can simply clean off the cookie sheet. This will be much easier than trying to clean out the bottom of your oven.
Look for a stove that has a steam clean function. You pour a small glass of water into the bottom of your stove. Set the steam clean cycle. The oven will heat up, causing the water to turn to steam. The concept revolves around the oven cleaning itself.
Also, if you’re looking for new appliances for your kitchen, pay attention to the type of oven that you’re selecting. Some oven interiors are designed to be easier to clean. There are also a variety of cleaning functions you may or may not get with your choice. Remember, it’s easier to keep an oven clean than it is to clean an already messy one.
Looking to buy a new oven? Check out our selection here!
by Milcarsky's Staff | Sep 30, 2019 | How To's
The use of natural sunlight has become a popular design concept used by top interior design artists. Many homeowners wonder if they should incorporate natural light into their culinary space. There are some pros and cons regarding this design strategy that all everyone should consider before making the change.
The Pros
According to House Logic, letting more natural sunlight into a kitchen or other interior area can help ward off the wintertime blues brought on by that season’s reduced sun and dreary days. Light from outdoors can foster feelings of well-being, and this kind of illumination is usually better for the eyes than the artificial light emitted from indoor lighting fixtures. Natural light offers better visual acuity. That could be a benefit for older individuals whose vision has begun to dim. Since it will automatically showcase certain focal points in a room, the use of natural light is also a great aid when decorating.
The Cons
Even with all the advantages of bringing more natural light into a kitchen, there are still some cons that need to be considered before proceeding. According to JC Wiley & Sons, the UV radiation from the sun can damage countertop surfaces. There may also be other materials in your kitchen that are prone to fading or warping when overexposed to bright sunlight. Homeowners can easily protect their vulnerable countertops, wooden cabinets, wallcoverings, and curtain fabrics through careful placement of windows, applying UV-resistant coatings to them or utilizing light-filtering window blinds.
An Alternative: Brighten with Color
As Coldwell Banker suggests, another simple way to lighten your normally dark and dreary kitchen area is by using bright colors to redecorate. Choose lighter shades like pale lemon, creamy ivory or other airy hues for walls, and select a lighter wood such as ash, birch or oak for hardwood floors instead of the typically darker alternatives. Paint kitchen cabinets a seafoam green or bright blue for an instant burst of expression that raises the spirits immediately. Choose metals in lighter tones for fixtures and accents. Add pops of vibrant colors on dining room chair cushions or tablecloths. Opt for breezy and airy window curtain fabrics in shades that better reflect light. These include tans, whitewashed blues and lighter hues of grays or purples.
To lighten up your kitchen naturally, select windows that contain protective finishes to keep the sun’s UV rays at bay while allowing plenty of light inside. Consider utilizing skylights, innovative window shapes, adjustable blinds, or shade awnings. Any of these things will help you to make your kitchen brighter when remodeling it so that you can feel cheerful whenever you walk inside of it.
by Milcarsky's Staff | Sep 20, 2019 | How To's
When it’s time to update your kitchen flooring, it’s a good idea to consider your future in your current home. Are you planning to sell in a few years, or will you continue to live in the place? Do you have children now, or do you plan to start a family? The answers to these questions will help determine how you should handle your kitchen. Your kitchen is a hard-working room, so your flooring choices will need to be both practical and durable.
Vinyl
Sheet vinyl is a great choice for kitchen flooring. Sheet vinyl is now available in a wide variety of patterns and tones, including stylish wood tones and patterns. Spills are easy to clean up, and a quality sheet vinyl product will tolerate children and pets. Best of all, sheet vinyl products are often built with a bit of a cushion, so dropped items may survive the fall. Replacing a sheet vinyl floor can be done quickly, so you can upgrade this product if it becomes damaged or worn.
Laminate
Click-together laminate flooring is a great choice for kitchens as well. If you have an area that’s prone to stay wet, such as because of a dog watering dish or a plant stand, you’ll need to put a rubberized mat under the water dish to avoid water seeping under the laminate sections. However, the layered construction is designed to tolerate a great deal of traffic. This construction style gives this flooring product a great deal of spring and bounce, so if you like to go barefoot, this may be the floor for you. Laminate flooring is quite durable and is resistant to scratches, stains, surface burns, and fading, in addition to being easy to clean.
Marble and Tile
Solid-surface products such as marble and tile are an ideal choice for kitchens that need to stand the test of time. Designers are using marble to great effect in many homes. You will need to make sure that your floor is extremely level if you are installing large tiles or pieces of marble. It should also be noted that this is a very hard surface, and some people, especially the elderly, may have trouble standing on it for long stretches of time. Stain-resistant grout makes keeping these floors looking great a snap.
Your kitchen floor will need to take a lot of wear, tear, and spills. By investing in a flooring product that serves you and your family’s needs, you can make your life easier. Sheet vinyl is a great option for growing families whereas laminate or tile can be a great choice for singles and empty-nesters. Choose the flooring that is right for your family and lifestyle.
One of the most important parts of upgrading a kitchen is choosing new appliances. If you’re on a hunt to find the finest appliances, look no further than Milcarsky’s Appliance Center!
by Milcarsky's Staff | Aug 30, 2019 | How To's
Rethinking how you use your kitchen will allow you to leave a smaller carbon footprint. Unfortunately, many people who want to have a more environmentally-friendly kitchen don’t know where to start this process. If you count yourself among those who could use a little coaching in this area, you’ll appreciate the following three tips.
Choose Energy-Efficient Appliances
The kind of appliances you select makes a big impact on how much energy you use in the kitchen. You should consider investing in appliances that are energy-efficient, but you should also do more than that. For example, if you have a stew to prepare, don’t cook it on the stovetop. Instead, pull out the slow cooker and do it in there. It requires less energy than the stove does, and the clean-up could be easier as well.
When you’re considering appliances for your kitchen, look not only at your big appliances but also the secondary items like the toaster. Careful selection of these items could save a lot of energy.
Composting
Composting has a number of significant benefits. If you plant a garden and add your own compost to the ground, the soil will be much richer in nutrients. Less of your garbage will go into landfills. In light of these benefits, it’s worth it to set up a composting system.
If you’re not yet composting, your garbage disposal offers you an alternative for getting rid of food waste. However, that doesn’t mean everything should go in there. SouthGate Companies says that non-food items such as bones and popcorn kernels shouldn’t be put through the disposal. This causes a lot of wear and tear on the system, which makes it break down sooner.
Embrace Reusables
Richly Rooted advises that employing reusable containers</a> means that you won’t automatically turn to throw-away sandwich bags and the like. However, there’s more to it than that. If you use items like beans and rice, buy them in bulk and store them in glass jars or metal containers. This saves you from having to continually bring small, disposable bags of these items home. Those bags create excess waste that eventually ends up in a landfill. To prevent even more waste, you can also wash and reuse sponges and invest in a lunchbox and thermos.
Making your kitchen more environmentally friendly takes some forethought. It also takes some investment. Good energy-efficient appliances make a big difference when your utility bill comes each month. Additionally, composting and employing reusable items can save you money while helping keep your waste to a minimum.
by Milcarsky's Staff | Aug 28, 2019 | How To's
Smart home gadgets are increasing in popularity, ease of use and quickness of setup. What many people may not initially realize is that smart home gadgets are not just for indoor use anymore. While indoor gadgets like thermostats are still a great idea, your outdoor areas can now become an important part of your smart home. From security devices to keep you and your family safe to gadgets that can help you maximize your space and fun, outdoor gadgets are a smart investment.
Sprinkler Controller
If you have or are considering an irrigation system for your lawn, a smart sprinkler is a clear choice. Just like smart thermostats can give you precise control of your HVAC system from anywhere, so a smart sprinkler system will provide for your irrigation controls. Gone are the days of your sprinklers spraying water while mother nature also rains down. App control, auto-scheduling and up-to-the-minute weather alerts will give you full control of your system, saving you time and money, according to Skydrop. Additionally, some smart sprinklers can be advanced enough to give you water metrics, root depth on your grass, predictive analysis and more.
Porch Camera
According to Safety.com, outdoor cameras are built to withstand the elements and permit you to communicate with people at your door. Whether an overhead angle smart cam or a smart doorbell cam, these devices can help enhance your home security in a big way. Many smart cameras and doorbells will allow you to get real-time visuals on your porch and front door area and even allow you to talk with someone on the outside, regardless of where you happen to be. Additionally, these cameras can usually be hooked up to some type of digital storage, allowing you to view or review footage in the case of a problem or accident. It’s even possible that installing security features such as a smart camera system could reduce your home insurance rates.
Smart Grill
Digital appliances are a hot commodity for cooking inside your home, and now they can also be found outside with smart grills. Now your phone joins tongs as an essential grilling tool, as you can fire up your app to help you cook and barbecue perfect. Available in a wide variety of grills and smokers for a range of price points, the smart grill can revolutionize your backyard cookouts. With abilities such as remote starting, alerts to flip or remove your food, heat control and remote monitoring, you are now able to more freely move about instead of being tied down as you flip those dogs and burgers. Smart grilling can make the whole process of an outdoor cookout easier and safer.
Smart Lock
Standard doorknob and deadbolt locks have been a standby for home security seemingly forever. However, even these long-time technologies can be upgraded to become a part of your smart home using smart locks. The smart lock replaces your old deadbolt with a digital version that opens and closes the bolt via an app. No more needing to hide a key for strangers or thieves to find, and you can even open the lock remotely to let people in, such as kids, housekeepers or dog-sitters, according to ZWave. Combine with a home cam system as mentioned above to have complete front door security and peace of mind.
Smart Bulb
This smart feature can be both indoor- or outdoor-capable. When using these advanced lights outdoors, make sure that your smart bulb is rated for outdoor use. Smart bulbs are simply a Wi-Fi-capable light bulb that you can connect to your smart home setup. Plug it into the socket and it will give you the ability to control the bulb through a handy app. Features such as scheduling, dimming without needing dimmer switches, remote access and turn on, color changing and even the ability to function as a speaker and use voice controls are all options, depending on the bulb.
As technology marches ever onward, it helps to be up to date on the latest and greatest home innovations. Whether you need security upgrades or just want to make a space easier to use, smart gadgets can get the job done for you. Just remember to follow proper Wi-Fi and internet security protocols with your gadgets and you will be all set towards some major upgrades to your exterior environment.
