The holidays are long gone and spring won't be here for ages, so it's finally time to get some stuff done around the house. Here are a handful of apps to help you chip away at that ever-growing honey do list of yours.

Make sure Houzz Interior Design (Android, iOS) has a spot in your collection. For starters, there's absolutely no manual labor involved. The app merely features ideas by way of some four million photos of rooms in houses that are far nicer than yours, along with products to buy, ideabooks to flip through and project articles to read. Hopefully you'll be inspired to finally re-tile your bathroom. At the very least, you can procrastinate for a few weeks while you make your way through this gargantuan app.

Take Paint Harmony (Android, iOS) for a spin. You take a photo of the room you're looking to recolor and the app lets you slap a virtual coat of paint on the walls. You can choose from built-in color swatches or the app will grab the colors from a favorite image of yours, should you want to paint your bedroom the exact color of those mountains you saw in Switzerland. Paint Harmony's technology is able to "paint around" mirrors and shelving you have on your walls and automatically adjusts how your paint job will look based on the lighting conditions in the room.

Load up PlanGrid (Android, iOS). The app stores all your blueprints, letting you create punchlists and track issues room by room. You can attach photos to each room, along with accompanying descriptions of what needs to be done (or fixed).Your notes sync to the PlanGrid site and any other devices running the app, so everyone working on your project is on the same page. You can upload up to 50 PDF-based blueprint sheets for free to the site, which should be plenty for most projects.

Multi Measures(Amazon,Android) might do the trick. The app sports 12 measurement tools, including a compass, a sound meter, a stopwatch, and even a vibration-sensing seismometer. But we're most interested in the plumb bob, surface level, bubble level, ruler, and protractor tools for putzing around the house. The rest are just icing on the cake. Whatever the case, it sure beats downloading 12 different apps. Note that thereis an iOS version, but it costs 99 cents, and this is Free App Friday. So this is awkward.

Use Smith (Android, iOS) to hire someone who knows what the hell they're doing. You snap a few photos or shoot some quick video of the work you need done, and the service collects bids from pre-screened contractors. Within 24 hours, you get the three best bids to choose from, at which point you can schedule the job. The service is available in 24 major U.S. cities, and you can read reviews of potential contractors or have a staffer guide you through the process if you're on the fence.

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Free App Friday: 5 Home Improvement Tools For Putzers And Pros Alike

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The reconstruction of Barrie's Essa Road could be fast-tracked.

City councillors will consider a motion Monday to pre-approve certain projects in the 2015 capital budget, and widening Essa to five lanes from two between Ferndale Drive and Coughlin Road is on the list.

The cost is more than $5.5 million, and the work would begin this year and finish in the spring of 2016.

Coun. John Brassard, chairman of the city's infrastructure, investment and development services committee, says it's about time Essa was done.

(It) is the first of what I expect to be several roads in the city that will be brought up to a standard that it should (have) years ago, after council made modernizing our road infrastructure a strategic priority over the next four years, he said.

Barrie's 2009 intensification policy fingers Essa Road as one of five intensification corridors and nodes. This policy identifies appropriate areas in the city and related policies to guide intensification initiatives -- to encourage growth through increased residential density and mixed-use development.

This project includes municipal water and sewer services to the area, a multi-use trail on the west side and a sidewalk on the east side, along with curbs and gutters.

Whats particularly important as we begin to populate Essa with more infill and intensified development, is the need for sidewalks on both sides for pedestrian safety as well as bicycle options that dont currently exist, Brassard said. Lights at Harvie (Road), Mapleton (Avenue) and Coughlin (Road) will improve traffic and pedestrian safety.

Staff say pre-approving the Essa Road project could save the city money. Tendering earlier in the year generally results in greater competition among bidders, as contractors are more available.

If the project isn't approved until March, when council debates its 2015 operating and capital budgets, there's a risk fewer contractors will be available, reducing the level of competition and potentially resulting in higher prices.

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South-Barrie road project could be moved up

Allegheny Valley Joint Sewage Authority board members are hoping for an early end to winter.

The board on Thursday night voted to give Port Vue Plumbing an extension to May 8 to finish painting and rehabilitating tanks at the authority's treatment plant in Harmar.

Board members said that most of the work on the three tanks has been completed, but winter weather forced workers to halt the project.

Port Vue officials said the company will continue coating and electrical work when weather permits.

A $200,000 payment will be withheld until the work is done.

The board also authorized KLH Engineering to do a $7,500 study on what is needed to replace the 25-year-old sludge holding tank.

Parts can no longer be bought for existing equipment.

The holding tanks are used to form sludge from waste that is trucked away from the treatment plant.

The authority also is looking into improving the alarm system for the authority's pump stations.

Officials said the Acme and Duquesne pump stations are outdated and need the most attention.

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Allegheny Valley sewage authority work put on hold because of winter weather

Scott Dare was out to dinner around 7:30 Friday night when he got a call that police had found two storm-sewer grates missing from a Fort Washington shopping center.

"By 9:30 p.m., it was up to eight; by the end of the night, it was a total of 13," said Dare, vice president of Dare Living Associates, which manages the center and other commercial properties.

Copper pipes, metal shopping carts, air conditioners, bronze mausoleum doors from grave sites - all have been recent hot targets for thieves, and police believe that drugs are the motivating force.

This week, two Montgomery County brothers were charged with theft and related offenses in the theft of about 1,000 storm-sewer grates, valued at $500,000, in several towns in the region and selling them for about $9,000 as scrap over a six-week period.

Police said the brothers sold the grates, which weigh about 100 pounds each and cost $475, to two Philadelphia scrap-metal yards.

Kevin Steele, Montgomery County first assistant district attorney, said his office is investigating the case and is working with the other jurisdictions involved.

Determining that the firm's operators broke the law, police said, isn't a simple exercise.

"They could be contractors that legitimately have" the grates, said Lt. Michael Martin of the Upper Merion Township police.

A charge of receiving stolen property would require evidence of knowledge that the materials were stolen, officials said.

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Increase in metal thefts tied to drugs

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Havenbridge House and Haven Bridge, Great Yarmouth. Photo: Andy Darnell

Lucy Clapham Friday, January 16, 2015 12:52 PM

Great Yarmouths Haven Bridge will be closed every night for eight weeks as essential maintenance work is carried out.

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The bridge will be shut from 7pm to 6am from the beginning of February to allow for the 230,000 worth of work to be carried out.

Throughout this period it will remain open to pedestrians but cars will be diverted via North Quay and Breydon Bridge and Pasteur Road.

Contractors will be replacing an area of timber blocks, which form the running surface on the bridge on the eastern section - which lifts - as well as the supporting timbers.

The deck surface repairs are being carried out under a separate contract to the bridge painting works, which are currently in progress. The painting work is being done from beneath the bridge and is not affecting motorists.

Both schemes are being managed by Eastport acting on behalf of Norfolk County Council, which owns the bridge.

The work is due to start on, or as soon as possible after, Monday, February 2.

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Great Yarmouth bridge to close every night for eight weeks to allow for essential works

Gardening Service and Fencing in Swansea

Not everyone has time to care properly for their garden. With busy schedules, outdoor areas can quickly become overgrown and messy, giving your house a dilapidated appearance.

Based in Swansea, Mark's Garden Services offers a comprehensive range of gardening services available across the South Wales area.

General Garden Maintenance & Specialist Services

Alongside general garden maintenance, we offer some specialist services to ensure that your garden looks the best it possibly can.

From lawn care and rubbish removal, to all fencing work, hedge cutting and tree work, there's no need to get numerous contractors in. If you need a job done, we can take care of it for you, saving you time and money.

Painting works are also undertaken, so if your external or internal walls need a little upkeep, we can keep your whole house looking its best.

OAP discount is also available; don't let your lawn become overrun and unruly even if you can't manage to cut it yourself.

For more information, call us today on 07907 042530.

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