Come See Us At The Show!!

We will be attending several Spring Home Shows this year. Please come on down and check us out.

Grand Rapids HBA Spring Home Show at the Delta Plex

Holland HBA Spring Home Show at the Scoccor Stop

West Michigan Home and Garden Show at the DeVos Place

Women's Expo at the DeVos Hall

Lakeshore and Cottage Living Show at the DeVos Place

Strange People
November 9, 2006

If you ask anyone I know, they will agree that there aren't many stranger people than me.

We usually define strange as "out of the ordinary". That is why I whole-heartedly embrace being labeled strange. I believe that we need to push the boundaries of "ordinary" the opposite direction than most people think of, however:

Specifically and intentionally polite.

Genuinely caring for other's well-being

Making sure that your benefit also benefits others as well - "For the good of the whole"

Doing the right thing even when it is not the most beneficial or comfortable to you.

So me, I'm strange. That is the approach to business that I take as well and try to embody here at American Pride Design and Construction.

As you near the time that most people make resolutions, start a revolution now to "be strange".

I hope that your fall season is blessed.

TS

What Are You Waiting For?
October 25, 2006

Since getting into this business, I am amazed at how many people have trouble being creative, or lack vision, and top it off by not being adventurous enough to at least check things out.

We are building an absolutely beautiful new SIPs addition onto a condo this week. The condo is located near the entrance to the condo association, so it is generating some interest from neighbors. Every single one will say: "Wow. That is really going to be nice". You know that they are all jealous, but how many will actually go further? How many will even ask "How much is that?" They will automatically assume that it costs too much.

It is sad. They will be missing out on having the most enjoyable personal space that anyone can have. The rooms are completely personal by customizing them any way you want. From no frills at all (drywalled and painted inside with a chair) to cedar ceilings and/or walls, ceiling fans, hot tubs, integrated home theater systems built in, large windows, small windows, sliders, decks coming off, open to the rest of the house, or closed off from the rest of the house. We even have one that is half garden shed for the John Deer and half spa room for the hot tub.

So, stop being one of those party-poopers and check things out. What are you waiting for? Interest rates are still low, and adding a room to your house is the best investment that you can make in your home. Just Do It.

Personal Space. Don't you deserve it?

Have a blessed week.

TS

SIPs - The New Wave in Building Materials
September 7, 2006

Structural Insulated Panels = SIPs. Put it in your vocabulary as a word because it will soon become household language.

SIPs is not "revolutionary" on it's own. What it is, is the age old practice of sandwiching an insulating material between two other materials to give it form and structure. Think Coleman Cooler, or fiberglass boat.

Where SIPs is revolutionary is that we can now build you a room or a whole house that blows away standard framing houses in time-to-complete, material usage and waste, but most importantly, in insulating factors.

We can build a cathedral style ceiling with an R factor of 43.7!!!!! Can't touch this: do do do do.

Sound interesting? Touch base with us and we can show you what it's all about. "Michigan" rooms, four season additions, wings, entire homes MUST be built with this technology, or you will loose tons of dough in heating and cooling costs. Call us first.

Thanks for reading and have a great week.

Tom

Benefits of the Hudsonville Fair
August 28, 2006

I spent the weekend "manning" our display booth at the Hudsonville Fair. This fair is a big weekend for most of the people in the West Michigan Area. I met people from as far away as Lansing, Grand Rapids, Nunica, and even one couple from Ohio.

What were the "benefits", you ask? Well, the obvious was that the fair did produce some leads. However, the longer range benefits were that we supported our local community by being an exhibitor, we made a lot of networking contacts from the community, and we met a lot of great people, and ate too much food from the local booths. I particularly liked the Hudsonville Christian Schools' Mountain Dew for $1.25 in a styrofoam cup that stayed cool longer, as well as their Pig in the blanket, and Beaverdam Christian Schools Hot dogs.

Next year, we'll be there. Look for us. We'll be the one's flying the flag and willing to help you with all of your construction and improvement needs, from patio rooms, to room additions, to glass block and siding and windows. Best of all, we promise to be straight with you and get you what you need, not what we want to sell you.

Call us for a free in-home estimate that will only take 15 to 20 minutes most of the time.

Have a great day!!!!

Thomas Start - Sales Manager

Windows
February 20, 2006

There are a few things to consider when replacing windows in your home. The first thing to decide is how long you plan on living in your home. This is important because when you purchase a window upgrade, you want to be sure to get a return on your investment. Right? Right. Now, for example: if you only plan on staying in your home for another 5 years or so, you don't really want to purchase the best window available. Simply because when you sell the house you will not get as great of a return on investment. Now, if you plan on being in this home for the next 20-30 years, then spending a little more up front to get a better window will save you money on heating and cooling costs in the long run. We do offer a "super awesome" window: triple pane, double lowE, and double krypton gas (yes krypton like superman  ), but really for Western Michigan that is overkill. With the heating costs on the rise, investing in energy saving product for you home is very wise. In regards to windows try to look for at least a double pane window and for more energy savings look for low-emittance (lowE) coating, and either argon or krypton gas fill between the two panes. LowE coating is a film that covers the glass and aids in blocking u-v rays. Argon and krypton gases are insulators that are colorless, odorless, and non-flammable. During the winter months they help keep heat in your home and during the summer months they help reflect the suns heat from entering your home. Krypton gas is a little better insulator because it is more dense than argon gas, but honestly argon gas works very well.

What does American Pride have to offer in regards to windows you may ask. Well I have good news! We want our customer to have the best available product for their needs. Our head installer has been installing vinyl windows for 30 years, which is before the consumer market knew what vinyl windows where and two of our employees have Alside vinyl windows in their homes. I believe that speaks for itself. Thanks for reading and please feel free to post or email any questions regarding windows or any other product.

Audrey

Hello to Everyone Out there!
February 7, 2006

Good day to all of you. We are a home remodeling company in Hudsonville, MI. I am going to put new-important home remodeling and building information in a blog every two weeks. I hope you all find this helpful. I will be having our sales staff and our installation manager (who is a mechanical engineer) write up different blogs as they refer to their expertise. If you have any questions about a specific project please feel free to ask and I will be sure to do a section on it.

Thank you,
Audrey Tensen
Office Manager