Snow and Winter Maintenance Tips

As Nebraska welcomes back the days of old with numerous inches of snow and wind, here are some maintenance tips:

Snow blowing in the roof vents.

Snow blowing in through the roof vents can happen anytime there is snow and wind.  Snow can sift in through your roof vents and then it is in your attic.  As the temperatures warm up and the snow starts to melt, the water will condense and drip through the drywall.

Snow blowing through back vents and plumbing stacks.

Keep in mind that whenever something is vented to the outside,   air and snow can get to the inside of your home.  This happens in the same manner as the roof vent situation.

High efficiency furnace vents.

The vent to your high efficiency furnace must be kept open and clear of snow so that your furnace can breathe and operate smoothly.  If snow covers this, your furnace can stop working.  If this happens, remove the snow or obstacle from in front of the vent.   (This can also happen with the dryer vent as well.)  Also, please remember to continue to change your filter every month.

Snow Pile or drifts around windows and doors.

You should clear snow from windows and doors because when the snow melts it can leak into areas around these openings.

Ice Dams on Eves and Gutters

Snow and Ice should be removed from roof edges and gutters.  If this is not done ice dams can occur. Ice dams can cause leaks not only into soffit areas but also into the roof .  It is not recommended that you get on the roof to remove snow and ice.  Instead remove snow and ice while standing on the ground or safely from a ladder using a snow rake.  See picture below for further explanation of ice dams.

      

-Mark Reinke                                                                                                 Warranty Manager

If you have any topics you would like to see covered, please let us know!  Email us.

Hartland Homes’ 10th Annual Chili Feed

I just posted pictures from our Chili Feed.  We fed over 130 subs, suppliers and business partners!  This is an awesome Christmastime tradition.  To see the pictures click on the link!

Hartland Homes' Chili Feed

Don't wait until after the holidays....

 

There has never been a better time to buy a home!  I know it sounds cliché, but it is so true.  Allow me to explain...

1)  Prices will be going up! For the past couple of years demand has been pent up due to the negative media and concerns about the economy.  Because of this, prices have stayed low!  However, home sales have been increasing steadily and the prime home buying season is after January 1. The law of supply and demand tells us that as demand goes up, prices will too!  As the prime home buying season starts, demand increases, supply decreases and prices will go up!   Buying now ensures lowest price.

2)  Interest rates are at an all time low!  (NOW)  Rates change daily and they really only have one way to go - UP!  Did you know you can get a rate of 3.50% that is fixed for 5 years??? (APR 3.025%)  That is incredible!

3)  $8,000 or $6,500 tax credit. They won't be extending this. This is a once in a lifetime offer of FREE money!  If you can buy now, you should take advantage of this tax credit.  For more information on this see the link above on the Homebuyer Tax Credit.

4) Through December, Hartland Homes is offering $2,500 off of options and upgrades. This will end December 31, 2009.

5)  Do you really need another reason? Give us a call and we will help guide you through the home buying process.  Can you buy now?  How much home can you afford?  What are your options?  Hartland Homes can help make your home buying dreams come true!

25 Years Ago

A 25th Anniversary Memory

Here are some fun facts about 1984:

• Michael Jackson was at the top with his album “Thriller”
• Popular movies:  Terms of Endearment and Ghostbusters
• Popular TV shows:  Dynasty and Magnum PI
• Vanessa Williams wins then looses the title of Miss America
• Apple introduced the Macintosh
• The Soviets boycotted the Los Angeles Olympics
• The Space Shuttle Discovery had its maiden voyage
• $.20 was the price of a first class stamp

Our Beginning:  In 1984, Duane Hartman started Hartland Homes with just 3 employees, including himself.  Duane was the salesperson, Jim Kuper was in charge of construction and the 3rd employee was an administrative person. 

Our Employees:  Our construction and office staff have a combined 166 years working at Hartland Homes.  That is an average of 15 years per employee!   The experience and loyalty of our employees has made Hartland Homes successful.  Thank you employees!

Our Locations: The office for the company was in the model home on Briar Rosa Drive.  Eventually, Hartland Homes moved out of the model home and into an office.  This office was located at 10th and Van Dorn right next to Oak Creek flowers.  Both have been torn down and now that area is slated for commercial development.  Hartland Homes moved to its current location in May 1992.

Our improvements: 

• Central  Air, dishwashers and space saver microwaves weren’t always standard
• We switched to cement board siding around 1997 because of all the class action suits on the old siding.  We love the cement board siding.
• Started out with one framing crew and at our peak we had 9 framing crews!
• upgraded to 92% efficient furnaces  (from 80%) , saving our buyers money on utility bills! 
• Added the 20 year dry basement guarantee in the last 2 years.  This system works!! 
• Computerized
  • - blue prints  (we used to draw them ….it took a long time to make changes!
  • Sales contracts (used to write these by hand and some people’s handwriting made it difficult to interpret what the customer wanted!)
  • Scheduling and Warranty (our Builder Trend program makes it easy for customers to see what phase their home is scheduled for next, see current pictures of the home and also. after closing, allows the customer to input warranty requests and let us know when the work is done and if the work is satisfactory.
  • 15 years ago we started using oak woodwork standard in all our homes.  Prior to that we used a softer wood like pine and poplar.  The oak is beautiful and it holds up much better to kids, pets and other abuses.
  • We have updated all our fronts… the homes used to have vertical siding and trim boards.  See picture:

Here is the updated look:  Notice this one has lap siding and no trim boards giving it a cleaner more modern look.

Every year we add new designs and improve our homes, above is just a few of those ways.   We are constantly striving to improve our homes either by updating the plans, inventing new plans or upgrading  products that don’t meet our standards.  This is one of the many reasons we are Lincoln’s Largest Home Builder and plan to be around for another 25 years serving the Lincoln community.