Our DIY Corner on the website is back online!

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Our DIY Corner on the website is back online!

Just wanted to let everyone know that the DIY Corner on our website is back up.

Got a bunch of folks letting me know that links were broken. I fixed them, added some new stuff, and it’s back.

If you’re not familiar with the DIY Corner, it’s a place on our website where we recommend tools, materials, and plans for your own DIY projects on the outside of your home.

It might seem like we’re giving away business doing this, but, to be honest, we can’t always fit in smaller projects in time or it’s just not something we can do at a reasonable price for you.

A great example would be trying to build a she shed for your wife’s birthday and you waited until the day before. We just wouldn’t be able to help you with that…but we can sell you the materials.

The way I figure it, if you’re gonna do a DIY project, I’m just as happy selling you the materials for it.

Check it out, and if you need something you don’t see, feel free to give us a call.


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Who likes credit card points?

A lot of our materials are purchased with company credit cards. It’s the easiest way for us to buy fuel or pay for lumber, because well, who has enough cash on hand to pay for lumber these days?

Our company has been a loyal customer of Chase credit cards for years. They’ve treated us well, and the bonus points from purchases converts easily to a credit on a statement.

Every so often, they send us a special offer to send out to friends and family, so I wanted to pass this one on to you. It’s for the Chase Ink card. Full disclosure, if you sign up, both of us get bonus points.

If you need a new card or your first one, there’s a link below for the special offer. I don’t know all the specs on it, because I think the offer is tied to your spending or income or something, maybe even your dog’s name.

Hint- If it’s tied to spending, you’re welcome to use your new card for a sunroom or deck from us.

Now, on the flipside, we pay off our credit cards every month so we don’t pay interest. It’s a tool, not a debt machine. If you’re not able to pay your card off every month, don’t get another one.

If you’re trapped in this cycle, there are ways to break free. Here’s a resource for the program we follow to stay debt free. It works for business and on the personal level.

Here’s to the beginning of another awesome summer!

Dave Jr.


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Build Your Own Outdoor Projects Virtually

There’s a ton of project visualizers out there for the types of projects we do. I wanted to send out an updated list so you could take a try at it.

Most of these are really good and produce detailed plans and material lists. Feel free to build your dream project here and e-mail it over for us to look at and price out for you.

Note- There are a couple of these for projects that we don’t install, but I included them anyway just in case your dream project requires things outside our product line.

As you get into the process, feel free to get in touch with any questions.

Thanks, Dave

Fiberon Decking. Fiberon is our go-to brand for composite lumber and the makers of the one you can see in our outdoor showroom.
Deckorators
. Their railing line is among our customer favorites for accenting a deck.
Boral Building Products. We use some of their product line on our sunrooms.
Envision Decking
Royal Building Products. We use Royal for a lot of our siding, soffit, and trim.
Feeney Deckbuilder
. These are the folks that make Cable Rail.
Belgard Hardscapes
Duradek
Fortress Building Products
Simpson Strongtie. Although we don’t use their pergola materials, Simpson’s is one of the only manufacturer’s that has a pergola visualizer.
Timbertech Decking
Trex Decking


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DIY Deck Building- We’ll Help!

We get quite a few customers come to us wanting help with do-it-yourself projects. Because of our 30 plus years in business, access to wholesale material pricing, and experience with code enforcement, they often ask for a range of services, including:

  • Help drawing up plans or getting engineering
  • Selling materials
  • Onsite help getting a job started or fixing one that they messed up

We do all of the above, and more, but it’s not our favorite way of working. The vast majority of the time, a DIY project of the type we do (sunrooms, decks, awnings) turns into a disaster that costs a lot more when we have to come out and fix it or bring it up to code. 

Seth Godin wrote a blog about DIY surgery. You can find his original post HERE. I modified his blog to apply to DIY construction-

Here’s a drill and a hammer from Lowe’s.

Here’s a video I saw on YouTube once.

Here are some instructions I read on Quora…

Okay, how hard can it be?

Actually, it might be very hard. Actually, expertise has value. Actually, just because someone said it on the internet doesn’t mean it’s true. Or useful.

Experts aren’t always right. But I’d rather live in a building built by an expert, fly in a plane designed by an expert and yes, have surgery done by an expert.

Even barbers get trained.


Dave, the guy that would prefer to build your project instead of fixing your project


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Win the $20,000 Backyard Upgrade Contest from Fiberon!

New contest sponsored by Fiberon, our main deck supplier.

$20,000 Backyard Upgrade!

Enter soon, as the contest closes in a week or so. The entry flyer is below or click on THIS LINK to go to the entry page-


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Write a review and enter for a chance to win!

I love getting e-mails like this…


But I need your help.

Everyone has unhappy customers sometimes, and those are the folks that tend to leave reviews the most (I’m guilty of this too!).

I need your help with social media reviews. Follow the links below. For each review you leave, e-mail me a screenshot of it, and I’ll enter your name into a monthly drawing for a chance to win a $50 gift card.

If you review on more than one site, send in screenshots of all of them for multiple entries.

Thanks!

Dave, the best guy in town for sunrooms, decks, and drinking coffee


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Doctors are Writing Prescriptions for Outdoor Time

Our goal as a business is to build projects that help you enjoy the outside parts of your property as much or more than the inside.

We spend way to much time inside, and it’s begun to affect us medically. It affects us so much so that doctors are now prescribing “outdoor time” as a treatment for some illnesses.

Check out this article from a newspaper in Oregon for more information on how physicians are responding to inside-itis. Click HERE for the article.

If we can do anything to help you get outside more, give us a call. We build projects that…

  • Provide shade for your patio
  • Keep bugs from ruining your outside time
  • Protect your home in a hurricane and still allow you to see outside
  • And more!


You can find us at…

Ocean Breeze Exterior Remodeling – 843-238-4798 – www.oceanbreezeexteriors.com

Our showroom is located at 739 Sandy Lane in Surfside Beach, SC


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We now offer financing!

I wanted to let everyone on the list know that we now offer financing.

For years we avoided it. So many of our customers have been asking for it. Now it’s here!

Building materials have gone up in price steadily year after year, which makes sunrooms more and more expensive. Now you can finance the cost of any project with us, which will allow you to build the outdoor project of your dreams and stretch your money out better.

Just ask our salesman about it when he visits or call the office. It can be done in just a few minutes with the app. No pesky paperwork to fill out like at a car dealership.

Our various payment options now include:

  • Financing
  • Credit and debit cards
  • Check
  • Cash

In addition we’re now offering a discount for cash and check transactions.

Thanks!

David, the 12 months no interest plus a few other options to pay for your sunroom guy


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What Happens When County Code Enforcement Doesn’t Protect You?

Here’s a scary item that just hit the news recently even though the actual incident is a couple of years old.

So what happens when county Code Enforcement doesn’t do their job?
Short answer- It causes a lot of trouble and sets up a dangerous situation.

As any contractor does, we have our own issues with Code Enforcement. Each inspector does their own thing. Reliance on strict codes is always ‘open to interpretation’. If you complain, they make things worse on you. Etc, etc.

Not only that, but, for the most part, permits represent a revenue source for the municipalities. The more permits, reviews, and revisions they ask for, the more you end up having to pay for them. It’s in their best interests to make the process harder and more expensive for any homeowner or contractor to navigate.

There’s not much you or I can do about any of this, because it’s a retribution-based system. Imagine Soviet Russia  in the 1980’s. If you complain, the bad guys crack down on you and deny everything, unless you grease the right wheels or know someone. That’s pretty much how it is.

But this item is scary!

A local contractor was given permits for multiple projects even though they didn’t have a license? Even worse, they didn’t have a license because it had been denied for some reason?

You have to wonder if there was a simple mistake (four different times!) or who made some money on this deal.

I wanted to tell you about this because it’s one of the main reasons I always get the permits for our projects instead of making a customer do it. You don’t want to go through the process unless you have to.

I suppose another lesson is this- just because your contractor gets a permit doesn’t mean he has a license.

Dave, the guy who hates paperwork but will fill out permit applications for customers


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Turns Out We’ll Do Just About Anything for a Customer

I’m always really proud to say that we won’t do just anything. Some contractors do that, but what ends up happening is that they do a few things really well, and some things really bad.

We prefer to stick to the kinds of projects that we enjoy, we do a lot, and that we do better than most everyone else at a fair price.

Moving hot tubs is certainly NOT one of those things.

But we did it anyway.

Many times our customers give us stuff on projects. Old patio furniture. A nearly new stove, fridge, and huge TV from one. Lots of times fresh veggies from an outside garden.

They give us things because they like us, they bought new stuff for their new sunroom, and also because there’s a bunch of my guys working there who can move heavy objects into the back of our trucks. If no one on the job wants whatever it is, then it goes into the warehouse where another employee snatches it up.

One of our recent pretty awesome customers in Market Common asked if someone wanted a hot tub for free. Haul it off, he said, and it’s yours.

Three hours, six workers, a lot of rope, and a slow pick up truck ride later, it’s in our secretary’s backyard.

On jobs, we’ll stick to what we’re good at. On the free stuff, just ask one of my guys if he wants it. But, please, no more hot tubs.

Thanks,
Dave, the guy who’ll just head over to the someone else’s house to enjoy a hot tub soak


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