Common sense and details of home improvement What are the precautions for home improvement?

This topic is a bit big and general. I can only give you the following advice. Excerpted from my home improvement book-Home Improvement Guide.

What preparations do you need to make for the decoration?

Basic principles of home improvement: applicability, practicality, beauty, economy, environmental protection, health, safety and comfort.

First, psychological preparation.

As the saying goes, nothing is unexpected and impossible. For home improvement, home improvement is a special process control product. Most people who have experienced decoration often talk about decoration, and you will find that among the endless topics, there are not only the proud works of their own decoration design, but also the "regret" and "bitterness" in the decoration process. Decoration, for many owners who bought a new house and got the key to it, is more exciting and novel, while ignoring the difficulty and complexity of the decoration project. Therefore, before the decoration, we must not treat it lightly, thinking that the decoration is a very easy thing, and we must be psychologically prepared to meet all kinds of difficulties and problems that may arise at any time during the decoration process. Only in this way, can we see the move in the decoration process, improvise and deal with it flexibly. The owner who is about to decorate may wish to ask himself the following questions:

1. What do I know about the decoration process?

2. Do I know enough about the selection, installation and layout of building materials and furniture?

3. In the process of buying building materials and furniture, I am always faced with price trap, quality trap and promotion trap. Do I have enough countermeasures?

If you are not satisfied with the design scheme, do you want to start all over again when the project has already started?

5. What if the decoration company delays the construction period or endlessly adds?

6. Does rainy weather or cold climate affect the construction quality during decoration?

7. Which workers should pay attention to when the decoration construction process is on site?

8. What should construction workers do to cut corners and be lazy? How to deal with them?

9. What are the hidden works in the decoration process? How much do I know?

There are many such problems. After reading these problems, people who are eager to decorate may not be able to relax. But seeing problems and difficulties does not mean that we are afraid of difficulties and retreat. As the saying goes, there are always more methods than problems. In short, strategic contempt, psychological attention. After we have enough psychological preparation, let's start decorating our home.

Support and share

Some decorators have summed up the 16-character motto: "attach great importance to it, make full preparations, maintain a correct attitude and be cautious."

Attach great importance to it? Despise the enemy strategically and attach importance to the enemy tactically. This sentence also applies to decoration. Only by paying enough attention to the decoration can we seriously study and understand the problems that may be encountered in the decoration from the details.

Are you ready? It is not enough to pay enough attention to it. We should make full preparations for the decoration from all aspects. If you eat, walk and sleep, your mind is full of big things and small feelings, then congratulations, you are already in the initial state. Of course, don't overdo it, it's harmful to your health.

Correct your mind? Anyone who has been decorated has an experience. In the process of decoration, no matter how perfect and thoughtful your plan is, there will still be problems, and you will still encounter all kinds of troubles and unexpected things. At this point, we must correct our mentality. Don't think that everything has been thought out in advance. In the process of decoration, there will always be places you didn't expect, because you are not only facing a pile of materials, but people who have a direct impact on your decoration effect. It is normal to have all kinds of problems in dealing with people. Therefore, it is necessary to put a correct attitude, the enemy must stop, and the water will overflow. It's no use complaining. Solving problems is the only way to deal with decoration troubles.

Cautious? In the process of decoration, it can be said that there are traps and misunderstandings everywhere. Moreover, from the preparation stage, let's talk about the preparation of decoration knowledge. You may fall into a misunderstanding when you listen to the words of one family on the Internet, because what suits others may not be suitable for you.

Second, the preliminary preparation:

If it is an old house, you should first carefully understand the structure of your room. Measure the actual area and draw a detailed structural diagram (you can ask a designer from a regular decoration company to help you do it), mainly to understand the specific layout (including reasonable changes to the original structure) and the total decoration cost (including the prices of materials and artificial accessories), so as to have a general understanding of how to decorate your house.

If it is a new house, we should also consider exploring the house, inspecting the house and collecting the house. In the process of building a house, under the premise of safety and permission, exploring the house is to enter the construction site to check the internal structure of some rooms and take photos to prepare for the later decoration design.

Simple inspection of several places that are most prone to problems during house inspection;

1. Can the water level gradient in the bathroom and kitchen run away the stagnant water?

Inspection method: that is, on-site water spraying inspection.

2. Is the bathtub leaking?

Inspection method: Some tiny cracks may be hard to find with naked eyes. Put a can of water in the bathtub and leave a mark near the horizontal line. Check the water level the next day. The water level may drop slightly due to evaporation, but if the drop is too obvious, it may be that the bathtub is leaking.

3. Is the platform straight?

Inspection method: you can't just look at the surface, especially the long wooden floor, which may cover the uneven platform. Tap the floor carefully. If there is empty echo, it may be that the platform is uneven.

In addition, there are some details that need attention, such as door keys, electrical appliances, doors and windows and windowsills, balconies, walls, floors, ceilings, kitchens, bathrooms, faucets and pipes, electrical devices, telephones and antennas. When the owner repossesses the building, he should also bring the sales brochure and the sales contract to check the materials, equipment and brands inside and outside the building.

If there are conditions when inspecting the house, it is best to invite friends or experts who have experience in repossession to help provide advice and find problems.

Necessary tools for house inspection

1. Camera with date display function, so as to take photos of the problem as proof.

2. Paper and pen, write down the problems found in time.

3. It is easy to post a stack of notes, write down the problems and maintenance opinions, and post them where there are problems, so that the maintenance personnel can find them.

4. Flat small appliances with three plugs (such as hair dryers and razors). ) plug it into various power outlets in the house and check whether the power supply has been completely connected.

5. A ruler for measuring the straightness of walls and floors.

6. Sales brochure, while looking at the kitchen, bathroom and other ancillary equipment, in line with the original commitment of the developer.

Third, capital preparation.

Generally speaking, the total decoration cost should be 10% to 20% of the house price. Usually divided into basic decoration, economic decoration and luxury decoration. According to the different decoration costs, meet the needs of different customers. Nowadays, people focus on the pursuit of comfort, giving consideration to environmental protection and health. Usually, the reasonable allocation ratio of material cost is: bathroom and cupboard room account for 45% (even higher), lobby accounts for 35%, and bedroom accounts for 20%. Generally speaking, due to the individual needs of the owners, different materials and techniques are required for different renovations, and the cost will vary greatly. Designers of professional decoration companies can check the budget and cost allocation for you.

Fourth, the construction period preparation

Because decoration is related to the quality of life of a family in the future, most people still look for professional home improvement companies or professional construction teams to decorate. No matter what form it takes, we should pay close attention to the construction site and control the construction progress. This is a contradiction for office workers. Therefore, how to arrange the construction period reasonably is a problem of planning in advance. If there are only two people at home, how to reasonably arrange their time to stare at the scene should be determined in advance.

Generally speaking, under normal circumstances, the renovation period of two rooms and one living room is about 30 days, and if other factors, such as changing design scheme, adding projects and Party A's delay in providing main materials, are counted, it is also about 45 days. The renovation period of three bedrooms and two living rooms is about 50 days. If other factors are included, such as changing the design scheme, adding projects and Party A's delay in providing the main materials, etc. It's also about 60 days. During the two-month renovation, there will be countless problems waiting for you to solve, which may affect your normal work. In order not to be fired by the company, you must arrange your work in advance.

Five, professional knowledge preparation

Before home decoration, we should do some necessary professional knowledge accumulation. For example, you can buy some books, newspapers or professional books and periodicals on home improvement. It is also a very good way to understand the knowledge of home improvement to attend the "home improvement class" and home improvement lectures of regular home improvement companies. You can also accumulate some experience through the internet, or ask people who have been decorated to share some practical experience cases. Knowing the professional knowledge of home improvement can solve some common problems to a great extent. At the same time, it can communicate with the relevant personnel of the decoration company more conveniently and accurately.

VI. Market Survey

■ Basic price survey

Family decoration is an economic activity, and price is an important factor. In terms of design and construction price, it is also necessary to have a preliminary understanding of the family, so as to be aware of it and be able to cope with it freely in the decoration operation. It can be said that the cost-effective decoration is one of the goals we are all looking forward to.

■ Market survey

Have a general understanding of the situation of the home improvement market. You should go to a professional organization, unit or organization, such as decoration association, decoration service center, formal home building materials market and so on. You don't have to know everything, but you must choose a more targeted decoration company according to your own needs. Sometimes the home building materials market will be dazzled if you look at it too much, which will affect your effective judgment.

■ Analysis on Selection of Operation Mode of Family Decoration

(1) Go directly to the decoration construction team: This method is usually risky, mainly because you don't know the construction team, or you realize that to a certain extent, even acquaintances and friends introduce you, you can't save face. At the same time, the owner must also understand the relevant decoration knowledge and professional knowledge such as process construction flow, otherwise it will be easily fooled by the construction team, and in the end, it will not only fail to achieve the expected decoration effect, but also spend more money for no reason. On the surface, it seems that it can really save some money, which has always been the main way for road guerrillas and smaller decoration companies to decorate.

(2) Looking for a regular decoration company in a regular home store: it is a relatively energy-saving, safe and cost-effective decoration method. Usually these companies have professional design and construction qualifications and have accumulated many years of experience in design, construction and management. (It is the main business model of regular brand decoration companies in the home improvement industry at present).

(3) Determine the construction team through the intermediary: there are generally two situations in the intermediary. One is introduced by relatives, friends and acquaintances. This way is limited by the breadth and depth of intermediary contact with the home improvement industry; The other is through the introduction of professional service organizations, and the imported team should be guaranteed (depending on the integrity and authority of professional service organizations, there will be great differences).

(4) Determining the construction team through the network: This is a brand-new way, which can save some expenses and time. However, it is essential to inspect the strength of the decoration company on the spot (many such companies will "change one place at a time", and it is difficult to get long-term effective guarantee for the later service and warranty of the decoration).

(5) Go directly to the headquarters of the regular home improvement company: As far as the current situation is concerned, the design ability and construction ability of the headquarters of the decoration company are usually slightly different from their design strength in the market (there are exceptions). Under normal circumstances, the headquarters only does middle and high-grade luxury decoration.

(6) Go directly to a high-end luxury decoration company or design studio: Generally speaking, in order to ensure high-grade design and high-quality service, and for the long-term interests of their own brands, they will not set up a design department (storefront) in the home building materials market. These companies generally only provide relatively comprehensive value-added services for a very small number of customers who are not short of money, and the total cost of decoration per unit area will generally be extremely high.

Seven, the way to save money

1. Careful pre-planning and perfect design planning are prerequisites for saving money.

2. Relying on a regular decoration company is a shortcut to save money. Decoration companies have fixed allies and manufacturers in material selection, and the advantages of integrating materials are relatively strong. They can get preferential policies that consumers can't directly enjoy through group procurement. Rich construction experience and exquisite workmanship, which can save the owner's decoration expenses through the improvement of new materials and new processes; There are corresponding service supporting measures, perfect quality assurance and related service system.

Therefore, it is best not to directly invite scattered workers to carry out construction. Saving money on the surface may actually cause greater economic losses and potential risks (such as concealed works and unattended maintenance in the later period). ) Because of your wrong choice.

3. Use the method of "making the finishing point". For key decoration places, you can choose high-grade materials and fine workmanship; Other parts of the decoration is simple and lively, with ordinary materials and simplified workmanship. In other words: spend money on the cutting edge.

4. Follow the rules and close the budget. There will inevitably be changes and modifications in the construction process, so the process records should be made with reference to the original project list, so as to clean up the increase or decrease items in the final accounts, so as to know fairly well and avoid blindly adding unnecessary items.

8. How do home improvement owners communicate with designers?

It is the common goal of owners and designers to make the bedroom space beautiful, comfortable and fashionable. They should have a harmonious cooperative relationship. However, in actual work, some contradictions often occur between the owners and designers, and even the phenomenon of canceling the contract sometimes occurs in real life, mainly because some owners and designers have problems in communication during the decoration process.

Then, in the home decoration, how should the owner communicate with the designer?

To solve this problem, the owner should pay attention to the following points:

Determine the investment intention. Owners should make a more detailed plan for decoration investment, such as how much is the decoration reserve expenditure and how much is the furniture and household appliances reserve expenditure. In this way, designers can make corresponding design plans according to the owner's investment plan.

To understand the lifestyle and daily habits, the owner should tell the designer about his occupation, family demographic structure, daily social interaction, gathering methods of relatives and friends, etc. , so that designers can plan the space according to the individual needs of the owners during design. At the same time, it is necessary to explain to designers the materials, colors, shapes and layouts that family members don't like (such as taboos of some ethnic minorities, etc.). ).

It is clear that the space layout owner should inform the designer of his own space layout plan. For example, the function and layout of each room, the area of the room and whether the non-bearing wall has been changed. Only in this way can the designer design according to the requirements of the owner. For the decoration scheme that needs the approval of relevant departments, the owner shall go through the corresponding approval procedures in time.

Identify the location of household appliances. The owner should inform the designer of the location of household appliances such as TV, stereo, telephone, refrigerator and washing machine in advance, and also inform the designer of the brand, specification, model and color of the kitchen and bathroom equipment to be purchased and the style, material and color of the old furniture to be kept. Designers will reserve sockets, space locations and other related matters in the preliminary design scheme.

Collect relevant data Owners can collect some examples of home improvement before decoration and provide their favorite styles or styles, such as Nordic style, Japanese style and Chinese style, for designers' reference.

Understand the operation process of home improvement. Owners should have a general understanding of the routine procedures of home decoration, be able to roughly distinguish the types of decorative building materials, and understand some common sense and standards of building materials environmental protection. In this way, owners will not have conflicts with designers in the choice of decoration building materials because of environmental protection and other issues.

Respect and understand the work of designers. Every home decoration is the original work of the designer. In order to make the decoration scheme unique, the owner should show respect and understanding for the designer's work. After the designer completes the first draft, he should carefully review and study with his family, put forward suggestions for revision as soon as possible, and then negotiate with the designer to determine. In the future, I would rather spend more time on drawings than rework, and don't change the design scheme casually, which will affect the overall style and cost of decoration design.

Properly handle the contradictions between the two sides. Before inviting a designer, the owner should first understand the designer's works and his design style through his works, and then decide whether to sign an agreement with the designer. After the agreement is signed, the owner should respect the creative work of the designer and avoid blindly chasing the wind and making changes at will.

If there is any disagreement or contradiction between the designer and the design details, the owner should listen to the designer's opinions and suggestions as much as possible. Under normal circumstances, designers are professionals after all, and their design vision is usually professional, fashionable and advanced, and their experience in home improvement is generally more than that of owners.

9, the general process of home decoration

Pre-consultation → field measurement → design scheme → signing contract → pre-return visit → on-site disclosure → material acceptance → concealed engineering acceptance → mid-term acceptance → mid-term return visit? → Pay the interim payment → Final acceptance → Pay the final payment → Warranty → Return visit later.

Pre-consultation: after the owner selects the decoration company, he agrees to communicate with the home improvement designer in the early stage. Let the designer know the owner's basic design needs and use needs. The designer made a preliminary design idea according to the owner's demand. After the owner approves the designer's preliminary design concept and comprehensive ability, he can agree on the time to measure the house. If possible, visit the exhibition hall of materials and main materials of the decoration company (preliminary investigation of auxiliary materials and main materials, experience of environmental protection decoration materials and main materials products, etc. ).

On-site house measurement: On-site house measurement is very important. The drawings provided by general developers do not fully meet the design requirements, and the dimensions of some drawings and the labeling of special parts will be wrong and missing. At the same time, the designer will further modify and improve the preliminary design concept through the understanding of the surrounding environment of the living room. The designer measures the renovated room on site, records the main data of the house, and draws complete, accurate and standardized design drawings.

Design scheme: The designer issues the design scheme according to the data in the field measurement room. The scheme specifically includes design drawings (including drawing catalogue, renderings, room layout, top view, elevation view, contact diagram, etc. ) and home improvement budget quotation. If the owner is not satisfied with the design scheme, he can discuss with the designer to modify it at any time until the scheme is finalized.

Sign a home improvement contract: The owner can sign the Beijing Family Room Decoration Project Construction Contract if he is satisfied with the design scheme (see page 2 12 of this book for the text). When signing a home improvement contract, relevant supplementary agreements (such as some additional home improvement market agreements, etc. ) will be signed because of different decoration companies and because some supplementary terms are not fully expressed in the construction contract of Beijing family room decoration project. When the owner signs a home improvement contract, he needs to pay the down payment for decoration according to the contract.

Follow-up visit in the early stage: Some decoration companies will also set up special customer service specialists. After the owner signs the contract, the customer service specialist will promptly remind the owner to pay attention to relevant matters, do a good job in relevant construction procedures and some precautions for purchasing the main materials in the early stage, and ensure that the project starts as scheduled.

On-site disclosure: the owner, the person in charge of the design and construction site will make disclosure at the construction site. Communicate with drawings, construction projects and technical practices. Sometimes at the disclosure site, the design scheme will be changed according to some ideas and needs of the owner or designer, and the change registration needs to be carried out in time at the site, and the change registration needs to be signed by relevant personnel at the site for confirmation.

Material acceptance: standard decoration companies have their own material display and sales centers. The sales center of the material exhibition hall will deliver the main materials ordered by the owner to the construction site according to the agreed time, and the owner himself will sign and accept them.

Acceptance of concealed works: the wood foundation, circuit reconstruction project and waterway reconstruction project shall be accepted by the project quality inspector, and the construction can be continued only after the owner signs and approves. The acceptance of concealed works is very important, which is related to many factors, including water, electricity, fire safety and so on. Car owners must attach great importance to it. Remember to ask for the wiring diagram of the water circuit to facilitate future maintenance.

Mid-term acceptance: quality inspectors, designers and the person in charge of the construction site will jointly check to ensure the progress and quality of the project.

Mid-term return visit: the customer service specialist will ask the owner's opinions and suggestions, and timely reflect the related problems to the relevant departments of the company for follow-up and solution.

Pay interim payment: when the carpenter closes, the owner must pay interim payment and extra payment. The money must be handed over to the finance department of the decoration company headquarters or the personnel designated by the company. It is strictly forbidden to give the decoration money to any other personnel (such as site foreman, workers, etc. ) In private.

Project completion acceptance: the owner, the quality inspector and the person in charge of the site jointly check the construction quality, and if the inspection is qualified, the three parties will sign for confirmation.

Payment of the final payment: after the project is completed, the owner shall pay the final payment of the project and the later supplementary payment according to the contract, obtain the receipt or invoice, and go through the relevant warranty procedures. Finally, the owner chooses a professional cleaning company to clean the construction site and prepare for occupancy.

Warranty: The decoration company provides two-year warranty and lifelong maintenance service for the owner's decoration project. The warranty period of home improvement project is two years, and the waterproof project is five years.

After the return visit: the customer service specialist will regularly consult the owner's opinions and suggestions on the project quality and service attitude, and sort out the feedback to the relevant departments of the company, so as to strengthen management in time and serve more home improvement customers.

Instructions for collecting deposit in home improvement service

In the process of home improvement service, with the deepening of communication between designers and owners, many times it will involve the business link of paying the "deposit" in the early stage. This is because the pre-service process of home improvement will also involve the investment of some service projects, such as design planning, housing measurement and budget and final accounts. Most home improvement companies will include the normal deposit in the decoration project after signing the home improvement contract. Generally, except for the unilateral breach of contract by the home improvement company, the home improvement deposit collected is non-refundable.

See the book for more details. I hope you are satisfied with this answer.