Senate Bill 704 was passed during the 2012 Legislative Session and was approved on April 6, 2012 amending the definition of “Contractor” set forth in section 489.105(3), Florida Statutes. Section 489.105(3), Florida Statutes, defines “Contractor” in pertinent part as:

A person who is qualified for, and is only responsible for, the project contracted for and means, except as exempted in this part, the person who, for compensation, undertakes to, submits a bid to, or does himself or herself or by others construct, repair, alter, remodel, add to, demolish, subtract from, or improve any building or structure, including related improvements to real estate, for others or for resale to others.

The bill amended the statutory language revising the term “demolish” to now include the demolition of all buildings or residence, regardless of height or number of stories. Previously, the term “demolish” only included demolition of buildings or residences that were over three stories tall. The bill became effective on July 1, 2012.

After July 1, 2012, any person or entity who wishes to contract for building or residence demolition must have an appropriate Division I contractors license or a local certificate of competency for demolition contracting issued by your local licensing authority. Demolition companies may continue to subcontract demolition work from a certified or registered contractor when the contractor is supervising all work, the work is within the scope of the supervisor’s license and provided that the person being supervised is not engaged in construction work which would require a license as a contractor under any of the categories listed in s. 489.105(3)(d)-(o).

Certification of Registered Contractor’s Licenses (Grandfathering) 
House Bill 897, which passed during the 2012 legislative session, was approved by Governor Rick Scott on May 4, 2012. This bill will re-open and extend the time period for contractors to request that their registered contractor’s license be grandfathered to a state wide certified contractor’s license. The time period requesting grandfathering of registered licenses has been extended until November 1, 2015. The re-opening of the grandfathering time period will take effect on October 1, 2012. Registered contractor may submit their application for grandfathering of their licenses beginning October 1, 2012.

Please see  Grandfathering FAQs  for more information.

All Florida Contractors need a website. But what exactly do we need on our website. It can get confusing with all of the gimmicks and new technologies. Here are three simple things that you MUST have on your website.

• Who are you?
• What are you offering me?
• How can I contact you?

Even if it’s just a static 1 page business card, that is more than most contractors have . But let’s look at more that just an online business card.

 Your Domain Name:

What are you going to call your website? If possible your business name is what most people choose. If not try to get something that is easy to spell and remember. When someone sees your web address on the side of your truck you want them to remember it.

Make it very specific. If you are a general contractor, what kind of work do you do? Industrial? Commercial? Residential? Do you specialize in new construction or remodels?

Make it obvious who you are and what you do.

Your phone number:

This may seem obvious but a lot of contractors simply make it too hard to find their phone number. A lot of times it is buried in a “contact us” page.

It is imperative that your phone number is visible on every single page of your website. It is best if you prominently display your number in the header of your website, right next to your name.

You should also add your phone number and contact info to the footer of your website. Don’t stop there, make sure it is at the bottom of every single post, blog or article that you have written. This is the one thing that you can’t have too much of. Put your phone number everywhere and make it visible.

Your Email Address:

Your email address should be simple, you@yourdomain.com. It shows professionalism and is used to promote your company. When you add your email to your business cards and jobsite signs it tells a customer that email is an acceptable form of communication with you, so remember to check your email daily.

Blog(s):

You will need a blog. It is a simple way to boost your search engine results and it helps you connect to your clients. It keeps your site updated with current information and lets people know that you interested and active in your business. Don’t skip this one. You can post hints, ideas, videos, or anything else that is useful information.

Testimonials:

You must have testimonials on your website. It there is one thing that I can’t stress enough, it is testimonials. Place them everywhere and make sure to get new testimonials from every client.

Online appointment scheduler:

This is my secret weapon. My website generated four times as many leads when I added this baby.

A lot of contractors have a “contact us” form. This is next to worthless. Prospective clients will not use this form because it is way to generic. They simply don’t know what to do with it. On the other hand, if you have a “schedule an appointment now” button, your clients will use it. A lot. Ideally this system will automatically book an estimate at a time of your clients choice. You can set up blocks of time that you are available and the system will let your client choose the best time.

Make a quick follow up call the day before the scheduled appointment to verify that you are still on.

The best thing about this system is that it automatically collects all of the clients info and adds it to your database. You now have a hot lead ready to enter into your marketing machine.

Petitioner (Robert Koning) asks the board (Florida Construction Industries License Board) whether home inspection services are within the scope of licensure of a Certified Division I contractor, provided the Division I contractor is not holding themselves out specifically as a home inspector

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The board hereby issues a declaratory statement that home inspection services as described in the petition are within the scope of licensure of a Certified Division I contractor, provided the Division I contractor is not holding themselves out specifically as a home inspector licensed under Chapter 468, Florida Statutes

LINK TO DECLARATORY STATEMENT

Board Increases Time Limit to Pass of All Examination Parts. 
The Construction Industry Licensing Board has amended Rule 61G4-16.009, Florida Administrative Code, to grant candidates more time to complete all portions of the initial licensure examination. Beginning November 1, 2011, examination candidates will be permitted four years from the date he or she initially sat for the initial licensure examination to pass all portions of the examination and will not be limited in the number of times they may re-take a test during the four year period.

House Bill 517 passed during the 2012 Legislative Session and was approved by Governor Rick Scott on April 6, 2012. This bill reduces the number of continuing education credits an inactive or delinquent contractor licensee must complete prior to reactivating his or her license. Effective July 1, 2012, an inactive or delinquent licensee will only need to complete the continuing education requirements for the renewal cycle immediately preceding license reactivation.

When we think of home improvement projects, such as a bathroom remodeling job, we tend to think of what that project can do for us, personally.  While you can easily benefit, a number of different ways, from having your bathroom remodeled. Did you also know that your home can benefit as well?  The truth is that your home, itself, can benefit from a bathroom remodeling project, often in more ways than one.

Before you can begin to understand the benefits that your home may get from a bathroom remodeling project, it is a good idea to focus on what a bathroom remodeling project is. Depending on who you talk to, you may get different definitions of a home improvement project.  Although there are some who say that a bathroom remodeling project can only be considered remodeling if all of it is changed, there are others who claim that simply replacing your bathtub is enough to constitute a bathroom remodeling project.  Whatever your bathroom remodeling plans are, whether they only involve replacing your bathtub or changing around your whole bathroom, your home can still benefit from the changes made.

Perhaps, the greatest bathroom remodeling benefit that your home will see will be an increase in value.  The majority of homes that undergo a bathroom remodeling project end up seeing an increase in value. This is because almost all bathroom remodeling projects result in something better. Even though a small bathroom remodeling project may result in an increase in value, the larger projects are often ones that produce the biggest differences in value. Despite the fact that most homes do see an increase in value, after a bathroom remodeling project has been completed, it is important to note that not all homes to. If your bathroom remodeling project was poorly done or never got completed, you may actually find that your home’s overall value decreases.  That is why it is important that all projects not only get finished, but that they get finished right.

Aside from an increase in value, a bathroom remodeling project may help to improve the appearance of your home.  As previously mentioned, most bathroom remodeling projects are done to improve a bathroom, in other words, make it better than it was before.  Whether your home just didn’t look attractive or if your bathroom needed repairs to make it safe again, your bathroom could greatly benefit from a new facelift.  In fact, you may find that your bathroom not only looks better, but so does the rest of your home.

Although it is nice to know what a bathroom remodeling project can do for your home, you may also be wondering what it can do for you.  As stated above, homeowners often end up benefiting, in a number of different ways, from a bathroom remodeling project.  Many of these benefits are, in a way, related the appearance of your home or bathroom.  Since bathroom remodeling projects almost always result in something better, you, as a homeowner, may feel proud of your new bathroom. In fact, you may feel as if you got a whole new bathroom. Since there is a good chance that you will be pleased with the changes, you may find yourself more willing to invite your friends or family to come into your home; thus resulting in a whole other set of benefits.

As you can easily see, there are an unlimited number of benefits to having your bathroom remodeled; benefits that may not only apply to you, but to your home as well.  If would like to reap many of the above mentioned benefits, you are advised to get started today. The sooner you start your bathroom remodeling project, the sooner you can be pleased with the end result.

Every pool owner has to deal with chemicals at some point in time. When dealing with chemicals, there are a few things that you should know. No matter how many chemicals you have, you should never attempt to mix them together. Also, you should never try to add water to dry chemicals of any form. Last but not least, you should never under any circumstances attempt to handle chemicals with your bare hands.

Throughout your time of owning a pool, there are 3 chemicals that you simply must have for your pool. These chemicals are very important, as you’ll be using them quite frequently.

1. Chlorine tablets
Chlorine tablets come in dimensions of either 1 inch or 3 inch. Chlorine tablets go in your skimmer, normally 3 – 4 tablets at a time. During the summer, when you run your pool on a daily basis, you’ll need to change out your tablets every week or so. If you are planning to use 2 skimmers, you’ll need around 8 tablets each week. You can buy chlorine tablets by the bucket, containing 30 – 50 tablets. They can tend to get expensive, around $80.00 a bucket, so you’ll need to have plenty of money to invest in your pool during the summer.

2. Alkaline powder
Even though chlorine in your water will help to kill off germs, it can also raise the level of acid in your pool. If you aren’t using enough alkaline, parts that contain metal will begin to corrode, turning your water a misty green color. On the other hand, if you are using too much alkaline powder, the water will get very cloudy, raising the level of germs in the water – which can lead to very dangerous health issues. In order to get the right about of alkaline powder in your pool water, you should always use brand name alkaline powders in the amount recommended by the package.

3. Chlorine powder
Chlorine powder is essential to killing germs such as algae and bacteria that exist in your pool and multiply at very fast speeds. To kill off these germs, you’ll need to use a large amount of chlorine powder in your water. Depending on the size of your pool, you may need to use more powder than others. Chlorine powder can tend to be expensive, so you should always check how much you need before you buy. This is a chemical you must have, as it’s impossible to keep your pool free of germs without it. If you have already bought it or if you plan to buy a large supply, you shouldn’t worry as you’ll always have the need for it – meaning that you can never buy enough chlorine powder.