Category: Exterior

Exterior Keeping it Clean
2014 March Keeping it Clean

Living in a dense urban area like Chicagoland can be something of a dirty job. And the task of cleaning off months (or years) of accumulated grime and dirt from the exterior of a building takes much more than a scrub-brush and a bottle of …

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Exterior Don't Neglect Essentials
2013 March Don't Neglect Essentials

 It's a common enough story: the condominium was relatively new, but from the  start its board of directors was stingy with maintenance and repair dollars.  Then the recession struck, and the percentage of unpaid maintenance fees  spiked. …

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Exterior Side by Siding
2013 March Side by Siding

 As spring dawns anew on a frigid Chicago landscape, many condo dwellers will get  their first prolonged looks at Mother Nature’s wintery ravages. Nowhere is this better seen than on a property’s exterior siding, much of which might need c…

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Exterior What Lies Beneath
2013 March What Lies Beneath

 They say a house is only as strong as its foundation. While it's true that a bad  roof or shoddy plumbing can set your building back a lot of money, a foundation  in disrepair can put the entire structure at risk, and can cost tens—even h…

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Exterior Keeping the Rain Off
2013 March Keeping the Rain Off

 After the four walls of a given structure, the roof is sometimes referred to as  the “fifth plane”—and just like the walls that hold it up, the roof is an all-important structure  that can make or break a building’s performance. Chicagola…

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Exterior Concrete Concerns
2012 March Concrete Concerns

In Chicago, urban high-rises with sidewalk frontage and suburban HOAs containing walking paths, parking lots, and service roads are reliant on their paved surfaces for conducting their everyday business. Therefore, it's crucial that bu…

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Exterior Let There Be Light
2012 March Let There Be Light

There was a time when most large residential developments relied on glaring floodlights to brighten parking lots, front porches and entryways. Today, there is more to exterior lighting than just chasing shadows away and discouraging cr…

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Exterior Deck it Out
2012 March Deck it Out

When you consider all the different exterior components that a condo association has to deal with, decks are sort of like the Rodney Dangerfield of the list—they rarely get any respect. “Decks are definitely something that peop…

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Exterior Green Exteriors
2012 March Green Exteriors

More often than not, when boards or associations broach the issue of their buildings “going green,” images of bamboo flooring, hemp drapes, or solar panels on the roof suddenly spring to mind. The impression seems to be that in a condo,…

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Exterior Q&A: Fighting a Board Alone
2011 March Q&A: Fighting a Board Alone

Q How can condo owners contest a condo board without hiring a lawyer? Are their rules impeachable? Can we contest a fine? They assess owners to pay legal fees if we start proceedings. Is that fair? —Amazed and confu…

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