Comfortable House

Maybe you think you have to do some major renovating — or even move, to get that home office, workshop or laundry room you’ve always wanted. But with the Full Access Folding Door Hardware Kit from Johnson Hardware, that dream room can be found right in your own closet.

This unique, easy-to-install kit allows you to fold closet doors back completely out of the opening, freeing up every inch of usable closet space. Suddenly, a spare room appears.

Applicable for remodeling or new construction, Johnson’s Full Access Folding Door Hardware enables folding doors to fold back 180 degrees and lie flat against the adjoining walls. You get the full access of a swinging door with the space-savings of folding doors. It’s a fast way to get more space out of your closets.

Home organization experts suggest that you store out-of-season clothes under your bed in special rolling drawers. Use clothes organizers in your other closets and then free up the remaining closets to create the room space you’ve needed.

The room created here shows how easy it is to make closet space work more efficiently. With a few shelves and Johnson’s Full Access Folding Door Hardware, you’re in business.

You’ll also find this Full Access Folding Door Hardware Kit a practical solution for converting closets into laundry areas, wet bars, toy rooms or even hideaway workbenches. It can also be used on utility rooms, pantries, wardrobes, anywhere you need more room at the doorway.

Installation’s a snap, too. The patented jamb hinges require no mortising. They simply attach with screws as do the control arm and panel-connecting hinges.

A screwdriver and tape measure are the only tools you’ll need for installation. An experienced handyman can mount the hardware and install the doors in about 10 minutes.

Johnson’s Full Access Folding Door Hardware Kit comes with a lifetime guarantee. Each kit contains control arm assembly, hinges and all the necessary mounting hardware. The kit can also be used with standard mortise-type butt hinges to match other interior doors.

For ideas on how to convert the hidden room in your closets, write to: Full Closet Access Ideas, L. E. Johnson Products, Inc., 2100 Sterling Avenue, Elkhart, Indiana 46516 or call 800-837-5664 or visit our web site at http://www.johnsonhardware.com

Few home projects do more to enhance the overall beauty of family homes than clean, sparkling, windows. Although generally affordable, easy enough to perform, and requiring little in the way of materials, the window-washing project is perhaps the easiest chore to put off for another day. Here are some suggestions for maintaining classy glass inside and outside your home:

Organize the scope of the project and the options for getting it done. How many windows? How often would you like to have them cleaned? What are the options for getting the job done?

If you live in old three-story house with 92 windows, the options are fairly straight forward. You can ask the local window cleaning service for a quantity break, or divide the windows by the number of week’s year, and then tackle them at a rate of two or three each week. A third option involves renting a scissor lift at your local home store annually or semi-annually to make the outside part of the job as safe as possible.

New houses with even large numbers of windows often have the advantage of lift out panels that can be quickly cleaned and replaced. Again, a workable schedule can be a big help if you plan to do it yourself. Professional window cleaner’s can do the job for less than you probably imagine when working on a continuing contract.

Outside windows suffering from long-term neglect may challenge the skills of professional or do-it-yourself window cleaners, but are clearly worth the extra effort.

Materials:

Window cleaners come in all sizes and shapes. Spray-ons are perfect for a quick clean up with no muss or fuss. Vinegar water and steam cleaning are favorites for removing residue from past cleaner formulas. Also, there are commercial products that can be power sprayed onto outside windows. Be careful about power spraying in areas that might cause paint peel in nearby trim.

For the really dirty outside windows your will want to try a commercial window-cleaning solution or strong sudsy-ammonia solution in hot water. It can be applied with a padded telescoping applicator or brush, and removed with a rubber squeegee from ground level or from a platform ladder. Rinsing will prevent the dull film that sometimes follows heavy-duty use of cleaners.

Window Dressings:

Curtains, drapery, cornices and blinds can change the look of a room dramatically. While wide wooden slats blinds can make rooms on the sunny side of the house habitable, reducing glare and helping to control the room temperature, sheer curtains or sheer drapery let in the sunlight for fully brightened rooms, and open the possibilities for a full spectrum of color. Likewise, matching blinds, whether vertical of horizontal unify large rooms and give an orderly look inside and out.