SmartPhone Apps For Home Improvement

When it comes to room décor and home improvements, social networking sites like Pinterest are known to be the initial destination for inspiration; but what about the more utilitarian capabilities of the Internet? “Apps” short for “applications”, are small programs you can download for your Android or Apple-based Smartphone, and believe me, there are more helpful and valuable tools than the newest version of Tetris. Some cost between $1-5, but most are free and facilitate projects so that you can make progress. Whether you’re redoing your counter tops or adding a new porch, the following are the best home improvement apps for your devices.

Houzz – Free

To compose your living space, Houzz connects millions of homeowners, home design enthusiasts and home improvement professionals with over 3 million beautiful photos uploaded by professionals. Not only does the app connect people from around the world, you’re able to message and review architects, designers, contractors and landscapers in your area. Fall in love with a fixture, curtain or bookcase? Many of the pictured items are for sale and can be purchased directly through the site. Also free, apps like Digs by Zillow and DesignMine have similar “pinning” platforms that allow you to search professionals for more complicated projects.

Benjamin Moore Color Capture – Free

This handy-app allows you to take a picture of any color inspiration, from flowers to tapestries and find its match from more than 3,300 existing paint colors. When you’re renovating multiple rooms with multiple color-schemes, saving color codes, adding notes and connecting you to the nearest Benjamin Moore retailer are some of the helpful highlights.

RoomScan – Free

By literally scanning your rooms and creating an accurately measured floor plan, my favorite app and secret weapon is RoomScan. This app has a multitude of uses and I’ve used it when replacing flooring, landscaping outside, or even determining the size of an air conditioning unit. The software works like this: place the phone on each wall, and magically, the phone is able to gauge the approximate, but eerily accurate, measurements. You can save and email your floor plans, and on RoomScan Pro, you can add windows and doors on your blue prints for $5. Another app, My Measurements & Dimensions, costs $2.99, but is an industry standard amongst real estate agents, carpenters, architects, and landscapers, Although it isn’t magic like RoomScan, it is very efficient in storing and sharing object measurements. Add angles, arrows, measurements, text and send as a PDF or graphic.

iHandy Level – Free

Carpenter recommended, O’Reilly Media voted this the best iPhone App and said, “Not only are these tools functional, they’re also gorgeous.” Since everyone’s Smartphone can have a variation with the sensor, the app walks you through calibration so your personal-phone-level is acutely precise.

 

With mobile technology assisting us in design, composing and completing projects, daunting home renovations are a thing of the past and adding value to your home is on the horizon. Although Smartphones sometimes have a tendency to help us procrastinate, there are incredible advantageous apps that continue to aid us in productivity for designers and remodelers; at amateur and professional levels.