With winter rolling in, plumbing and heating expert Richard Trethewey and home technology expert Ross Trethewey explain cost-effective ways to save money on heating to Kevin O’Connor. After presenting the tendencies and physics of heated air, Richard and Ross discuss the importance of insulating the roof of a home. 3 Tips to Help You Save on Your Heating Bill Tip 1: Heated Air is Predictable Specific physics applies to heated air....
If you want a place to relax, eat, or entertain that’s at one with your yard, a floating deck fits the bill perfectly. These ground-level decks are the ideal addition to your landscape, and they’re easy to build. What is a Floating Deck? Detached from a house or other structure, a floating deck “floats” right above the ground without the need for steps or supports. Floating decks aren’t attached to a house like the typical “back deck” off a kitchen or family room....
The idea is simple: Foundation plants should enhance your home, make it more welcoming, and tie it to the surrounding landscape. Unfortunately, these house-hugging plantings frequently consist of stiff evergreen shrubs that do little for the house they adorn. Even worse, they’re often sheared into something closer to green loaves of bread than to anything found in nature. Here are some ways to rethink that timeworn row of clipped evergreens....
Whether you’re a gardener who lives to get your hands dirty or you crave a dedicated space for tending houseplants and cut flowers, an efficient—and attractive—workroom is a pleasure to have. This one, located just off the kitchen in a 1929 brick house, was designed around a 6-foot-long vintage nickel sink inspired by the kind of potting shed found in the French countryside, crafted from leftover boards and bricks and filled with weathered, moss-covered pots....
From determining how many volts and amps that a shed needs, to knowing whether the existing electrical service can provide that, to digging a code-compliant trench for conduit, powering an outbuilding is probably a job for a pro. Project details Skill Cost Estimated Time In this video, This Old House’s electrician Scott Caron shows us how he does the job. Steps to Run Power to a Shed: Determine what the power needs of the outbuilding will be....
Half-lap joints are commonly used when building with framing lumber, especially on long runs and for 90-degree intersections. They keep the mating surfaces flush and the wood thickness uniform. Although there are several ways to cut a half-lap, here’s how to quickly mill one using nothing more than a portable circular saw and a chisel. Steps on Making a Half-Lap Joint 1. Clamp two boards side by side with their ends even....
Stately Federal Price: $60,000 Location: Averasboro, NC Contact: Cathleen Turner, Preservation North Carolina, 919-401-8540 The History: Around 1835, William Turner Smith and his new wife, Mary Campbell Smith, built this plantation house just a short distance from the Cape Fear River, where William’s father conducted a lucrative ferry operation. Six children and a second-story rear addition followed. In 1865, 10 years after William’s death, the home served as a field hospital for Union troops during the Civil War’s Battle of Averasboro....
If you’ve ever warmed yourself in front of an open fire, you’ve experienced radiant heat. Unlike rising hot air, radiant heat travels in all directions, warming cooler objects around it. Delivered via warm water in plastic tubing installed in a floor, radiant floor heating moves out from there, making the room feel warm and comfortable. Though installing a radiant floor heating system can run up to 50 percent more than, for example, conventional forced-air heat, it saves 30 percent in energy costs, eventually paying for itself....
A cordless vacuum can be easier to use than an upright, corded model because you don’t have to worry about how far from an outlet it is or how long its cord is. The small size and maneuverability of a cordless vacuum also make it ideal for vacuuming underneath furniture or around other tight spaces. Top 4 Cordless Vacuums Most Trusted Vacuum: Dyson V8 Animal Cordless Stick Vacuum Cleaner Best Multipurpose Vacuum: Shark Navigator Freestyle Upright Stick Cordless Bagless Vacuum Best Handheld Vacuum: BLACK+DECKER Dustbuster Handheld Vacuum Best Runtime: Eureka Stylus Lightweight Cordless Vacuum Cleaner Most Trusted Vacuum: Dyson V8 Animal Cordless Stick Vacuum Cleaner This cordless vacuum comes from Dyson, a well-known vacuum manufacturer....
Cleaning the rough and porous grout that’s wedged between your kitchen and bathroom tiles can be a difficult process, particularly without the right cleaner. Grout cleaners have a specialized formula that penetrates grout and removes embedded dirt and grime, returning your grout to its original color. Best Spray: Black Diamond Ultimate Grout Cleaner For easy, fast cleaning, this spray has you covered. You apply it to your floors with the spray nozzle, let it sit for one to three minutes, agitate it with a scrub brush, and rinse it with water....
Like our knees and shoulders, our hips are crucial joints that we may not appreciate until it’s too late. Every movement can become more challenging or painful if we don’t take care of our hips. Restorative and properly supported sleep is essential in maintaining the health of our hips and joints. For example, you may sleep on your side and exert pressure on your hips throughout the night, developing inflammation and further damaging your hips while preventing your body from healing....
In 2017, The Home Depot Foundation launched a pilot trades training program for separating military members in partnership with nonprofit Home Builders Institute (HBI) on Ft. Stewart and Ft. Bragg. The first set of students will graduate this March. The 12-week pre-apprenticeship certification program, which is provided at no cost to students, uses an industry-based curriculum recognized by the Department of Labor that integrates work-based learning with technical and academic skills....
CONCORD, MA., April 6, 2021 – As part of its Generation Next program to encourage and empower young people to join the skilled trades, This Old House is pleased to announce a partnership and collaboration with YouthBuild USA, a nonprofit organization that champions opportunity youth who aspire to improve their lives and communities but lack the knowledge, skills, and resources to reach their full potential. Through hundreds of YouthBuild programs in the United States and around the globe, these young adults between the ages of 16 and 24 who are neither in school nor employed pursue their education, prepare for future careers, and grow into community leaders – building brighter futures for themselves, and their neighborhoods....
Each product we feature has been independently selected and reviewed by our editorial team. If you make a purchase using the links included, we may earn a commission. WinkBeds has something for everyone, whether you’re seeking the all-foam comfort of the GravityLux, the hybrid support from their Original mattress, or something eco-friendly like the EcoCloud. This WinkBeds mattress review covers each of their American-made mattresses and their top-notch materials that are good for you and the planet....
Each product we feature has been independently selected and reviewed by our editorial team. If you make a purchase using the links included, we may earn a commission. Looking for a simple way to make your bedroom more eco-friendly, or want a sleep space that’s allergen-free? It may be time to replace your bed with one of the best latex mattresses available. Bedding products made with organic latex (that is, materials made from a rubber tree) represent some of the safest, cleanest, and most environmentally friendly options available today....
If your books and photographs are still displayed on a couple of boards held up by a pile of bricks, here’s some good news: It doesn’t require a master carpenter, a workshop full of tools, and thousands of dollars to add built-in bookcases to your home. All it takes, essentially, is some sturdy veneer plywood and a circular saw. By laminating a series of short support pieces to a longer strip of wood you can create the appearance of thick boards that have been routed to accept shelves....
Steps for Fixing a Broken Beam: Use the jack and the temporary post to support the structure before removing any posts. Remove the old lally column with a grinder. Measure and mark the replacement column and cut it to size with the large pipe cutter. Smooth out the bottom of the new cut with a hammer and cold chisel. Put the post in place on metal plates and slowly remove the temporary post....
Many viewers have asked if their vinyl siding can be painted over, and Paint expert Mauro Henrique is happy to answer “Yes, it can!” In fact, vinyl siding can paint really well. Project details Skill Cost Estimated Time In this video, Mauro demonstrates how to do to prep and paint vinyl siding. He also shares some helpful information about choosing your paint. useful techniques, and the tools he uses. Related How to Clean Vinyl Siding Before You Begin: The most important part of painting vinyl is making sure it is very clean....
Go big without going overboard. Here, graceful curving shapes and muted colors soften a bold design enough to suit bedroom walls. “The simple sweeps, dots, and swirls form a recognizable Scandinavian pattern that’s really easy to use,” says Nikki Kent, who created the design for The Stencil Studio Ltd. “The stencil also comes in five sizes; you can adjust the scale.” To re-create the look at right, though, go all in with the XL stencil, which measures about 19 by 26 inches....
Four-Season Appeal: Conifer Foundation Chalk it up to all the negative press about traditional water-hogging, chemical-laden turf grass—or possibly, all the high praise community gardens have received—but more and more homeowners are trading in front lawns for flower beds. The trend is especially noticeable in suburban and city neighborhoods, where postage-stamp-size plots of land keep maintenance demands in check, and sidewalk foot traffic brings a steady stream of encouragement. Shown: Mature conifers along the foundation—a juniper on the left and a cedar—offer privacy without blocking views of the garden from inside....
