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Gary Marsh, a much-published deck designer and builder in Northern California, still gets calls from people who want curves. When Marsh—trained as an artist, designer, draftsman, and builder—first launched his business, All Decked Out, curves were curiosities. That was 1979. Though design in California, where the biggest trees on the continent grow, has always made innovative use of wood, Marsh’s signature curves and organic shapes put his deck designs in another league. In his original mission statement, the contractor/designer announced that he was “striving to reshape the image of a deck.” Platform Blues Fast-forward 38 years and the image of...

Pressure washers have been very popular in recent years --and with good reason. They are extremely versatile tools that save a lot of time, often with great results. A lot of cleaning can be accomplished in a little amount of time. Some jobs can be accomplished so quickly in fact, that when renting a pressure washer it may be a good idea to line up a couple of jobs to get the most for your money. For example, after pressure washing the deck, why not give your driveway the treatment? For lawn and garden uses, pressure washers are ideal for...

As the temperatures rise, your living space can finally extend to the outdoors once again.  As you venture outside and begin your spring cleanup, in addition to taking care of what winter had left behind and making whatever repairs are necessary to your patio, why not take the time to consider different outdoor lighting options? Not only can this extend your use of the patio into the evening hours, a properly lit patio can be a safe and attractive alternative to the typical outdoor light usually attached to the side of the house. How you light your patio depends on how you use your...

As most homeowners know, replacing kitchen cabinets can be a huge investment in time and money. Maybe your cabinets are a bit outdated and dingy. Perhaps they are just too dark and you wish to brighten up your kitchen. As long as they are structurally sound and solid, there’s no reason why you can’t keep your cabinets and simply refresh them with a shiny new coat of paint. You can hire a pro to spray paint them and you would still save money over installing new cabinets, but the reality is, if you’ve painted walls and trim in your home,...

Without a doubt, the best marketing for a small contractor company starts with a job well done. That alone can showcase your company’s dedication to quality, professionalism and reliability. Quality work is the foundation that word-of-mouth is built upon. In many cases, that alone is enough to generate the leads your company needs to keep busy. For companies starting out, or those that just need a little marketing nudge, there are a few things that can help: Take it online Establishing a web presence is essential nowadays. For many, websites and social media are now the “go to” source for...