Broken window theory and how it can help you have a more beautiful home
Many people may have a hard time understanding a connection between a theory about crime prevention and how they maintain their residences, but if we dig a little deeper, its easy to see that such a connection exists.
Broken window theory was proposed in 1982 by two social scientists. It stated that a building that had a few broken windows that weren’t fixed would be more likely to have more of its windows broken, and would inevitably spiral down into dereliction. The idea was that if things looked bad and were allowed to stay that way, the tide would continue in this direction until the process reached its end.
The social scientists wrote about the theory as a method of explaining why bad neighborhoods got worse over time, but also as a way to show how a small imperfection (when seen as part of the whole structure) could have large consequences by triggering a process.
We see the same thing with a more personal space, our email in-boxes. Once we allow an email to sit for a certain time, and it hasn’t been answered, the next email that comes along is now that much less likely to get answered, because the previous one sitting there has lowered the bar just a little bit. Soon, a third and a forth have joined it, and before we know it, gmail is showing 10,000 unanswered emails.
What has this got to do with a beautiful home? Extrapolating the idea further, we can imagine a newly built house that is immaculate from top to bottom. The owner has spared no expense in its construction and decoration, and has every intention of keeping the house well maintained and as clean as when he or she moved in.
But weeks pass and a small amount of oil begins to accumulate where they park their car. The oil seems into the virgin cement, and no amount of scrubbing will remove it. The owner shrugs, and accepts it as an inevitable part of life. Weeks go by and the oil spot gets bigger, and before you know it, the owner feels less and less pressure to keep the garage in its pristine state because the oil spot makes them feel like “why stress? It’s dirty anyway.”
Over time and garage falls into disarray and the house follows. A couple of years later the owner is thinking about building a new house, feeling like this one just got away from them somehow…
The creeping threat of lowering our standards is always with us. We must remain ever vigilant in maintaining the levels of quality and cleanness we have committed to.
An epoxy garage floor and other garage floor coverings can help us maintain that high standard, and keep our homes pristine.
Testimonials
My garage was so cluttered and a total mess, I was always embarrassed to have the door open! Not anymore!! Floorguard® helped me design a perfect system for my family, it’s amazing!! Now I keep my garage door open for all to see, it’s organized, and absolutely beautiful!!!
- Pam Orland Park, IL
Really Pleased! Our garage needed some major help – not only was it a mess but the floor was just ugly with all the stains and such. I will agree with the reviewer below – do not go with the cheap imitators! Floorguard not only has a great product, but their installers and service is well worth any extra cost, which is minimal anyway. Our neighbors have commented on how good our garage looks and we’ve recommended them to Floorguard without hesitation.
- Nathan
The garage looks so good! A+ company on every level. Wish I had another garage to resurface!
- Chelsea
My neighbor had a floor done by another company that was new to the industry, boy were they sorry. I went with the experts, Floorguard did an incredible job!!
- Tom T., Orland Park
When it comes to adding value to your business, you can’t go wrong with the superior technology and materials from Floorguard
- Jenny P.
Covering our old, gray garage floor was a great aesthetic and functional improvement. This project requires 2 days: first day preparing the surface (major job requiring right equipment), putting down first coating and sprinkling the flakes. This requires about 4 hours. After this dries, they come back next day and apply the topcoat. They notified us when they would start the work and arrived as promised. They worked diligently, completed the work efficiently, left the work areas and our driveway clean. The owner Steve is a great guy to deal with.
- Bob H.
It was a pleasure dealing with the company’s owner Steve Chaloult. When we called him to give us an estimate, he arranged to come within a few days. We have a very large two car garage. His estimate was a bit more than the first company we called but he seemed very well prepared in showing us samples and very knowledgeable about his product and we just liked him. For personal reasons , we had to delay installation for about a month and he could not be more accommodating. we finally we able to have it done this past week and it was worth the wait. The garage floor is just beautiful and I never would have thought I would say that about a garage floor! We also had the lower walls around the floor done and very glad we did. At one time we were thinking we could do this ourselves using a kit. WHAT were we thinking? This is a job for a professional and we are so glad we used Steve.
- Moira J.
The owner Steve Chaloult was easy to work with and he’s very good at what he does. I highly recommend Floorguard as your contractor if you’re wanting to have a garage floor finished with a durable epoxy like colored finish. Floorguard came when they said they would and cleaned up after they were finished. Floorguard also installs garage storage cabinets.
- Andrew A.
Very responsive, good communicator. Was on time and did a top quality job. Very happy with the outcome.
- Anonymous Homeowner
Great eexperience. Quick and dependable service. High quality. Fair cost.
- John H.