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Even if it’s currently cold concrete and crammed with boxes of off-season duds, the lowest floor of your home probably has loads of potential. Treat it just as you would any of the rooms aboveground, and it might just become the most popular spot in the house—for a lot less cash than adding on. Where Do You Start When Finishing a Basement? Here’s our bottom-line advice for turning this underutilized space into a place you’ll be eager to spend time in....

Over time, every carpet becomes worn, dirty, and—if you have pets—at least a little foul-smelling. It may be tempting to head to the store and purchase a carpet cleaner, but it can be hard to gauge the exact type you need. You can save yourself a trip by hiring a professional carpet cleaning service. Choosing the best carpet cleaning service for your needs can be tricky since companies can differ in terms of types of carpet cleaning, cost, availability, quality of customer service, and more....

Compare Top Bidets Top 5 Bidets Most Features: TOTO Electronic Bidet Toilet Best For Beginners: LUXE Mechanical Bidet Toilet Attachment Best Handheld Bidet: Purrfectzone Luxury Handheld Sprayer Kit Best Remote: ALPHA BIDET JX Elongated Bidet Toilet Seat Most Slim: Veken Bidet Seat Attachment Most Features: TOTO Electronic Bidet Toilet This bidet toilet seat comes equipped with drying, oscillating, temperature, positioning, and pressure settings, giving you a relaxing cleaning experience. It also has a contoured heated seat to provide maximum comfort....

Easy Porch Swing Drop into a breezy ceiling-hung bench seat, set it in motion, and feel your blood pressure start to fall. This sleek, squared-off version, created by bloggers Kim and Scott Vargo, comes together fast using 2x4 and 1x6 lumber. Another plus: If you’ve got the tools on hand, you can build it for under a hundred bucks. Here’s an overview of how the couple made this 5-foot swing; see how they adapted ana-white....

When it comes to garage storage, a sturdy set of DIY garage shelves are pretty tough to beat. They’re easy and inexpensive to build, and they take advantage of unused vertical wall space. And, since they’re a DIY project, they’re even customizable. Best of all, these shelves will keep tools, totes, equipment, and other items neatly organized and off the floor. Here’s how to tackle this DIY garage shelf project for your space....

In this video, we walk you through how to shingle a roof so it is straight and water-tight. These project guidelines are for low roofs that allow easy access, such as those on porches, sheds, or doghouses. For larger roofs, hiring a professional roofing crew with proper fall protection is advised. Project details Skill Cost Estimated Time How Hard is it to Shingle a Roof? Adding shingles onto a roof can be challenging and dangerous....

In this video, This Old House plumbing and heating expert Richard Trethewey silences squeaky, creaky pipes. Project details Skill Cost Estimated Time Steps to Fix a Knocking Baseboard Heater Remove the front cover and adjustable damper from the baseboard heater. Check for a plastic slider beneath the heating element at each metal carrier. If a slider has shifted out of position, center it on the carrier. If a slider is missing, replace it....

Eating healthy on-the-go can be a challenge, especially on hectic construction and building sites. Make it easier for your favorite tradesperson to eat right with one of these handy kits. The ECO Adventure Kit (shown above) doubles as a useful addition to any camping trip, too. It comes with components for packing, warming, and storing food. The ECO Adventure Kit comes with a Tri Bento (shown in video above), a stainless-steel spork, and a clamping pot grip handle....

Top 5 Kitchen Faucets Best Pull-Down Faucet: Delta Faucet Essa Single-Handle Kitchen Faucet Best Commercial-Grade Faucet: Kraus 18-Inch Commercial Kitchen Faucet Best Touch Control: Delta Faucet Leland Single-Handle Touch Kitchen Sink Faucet Best Small-Footprint Faucet: Peerless Single-Handle Kitchen Sink Faucet Best Value: HOTIS HOME Two-Handle Kitchen Faucet Best Pull-Down Faucet: Delta Faucet Essa Single-Handle Kitchen Faucet Available in chrome, black, bronze, or stainless steel, this faucet features a magnetic pull-down sprayer that reaches up to 20 inches to help you wash dishes of any size....

Packing tape is designed to seal boxes and containers when you’re moving from one house or apartment to another. Its heavy-duty design ensures that your belongings stay secure in their boxes. Compare Top Packing Tapes Best Adhesion: Scotch Packaging Tape Best Basic Pack: P PERFECTAPE Packing Tape Best Pack Options: Duck Packaging Tape Best For Extreme Weather: Gorilla Packing Tape Best Bulk Pack: Tape King Packing Tape Best Adhesion: Scotch Packaging Tape Pros and Cons ✔ Meets USPS shipment regulations✔ Each package contains six rolls✔ Adheres to various surfaces, including recycled materials...

Kevin O’Connor meets plumbing and heating expert Richard Trethewey for a run-down on common plumbing emergencies and how homeowners can control them. Richard explains some of the important valves, as well as some techniques for emergency water stoppages. He then shows Kevin a basic kit of fittings that most homeowners should consider putting together for emergency leaks. What to Do During a Plumbing Emergency Shut Down the Water Supply Homeowners might start to panic if a serious leak occurs, but there’s a simple solution for stopping the water flow: the main shut-off valve....

In this video, plumbing and heating expert Richard Tretheway demonstrates how siphons work. What is a Siphon? A siphon is a tube that allows liquid to travel upward, above the surface of the origin reservoir, then downwards to a lower level without using a pump. When a certain amount of water moves over the bend in the siphon, gravity pulls it down on the longer leg lowers the atmospheric pressure in the bend of the siphon....

Looking to build a table? We rounded up some of our favorite DIY table projects to inspire you. We’ve selected some great classic options such as picnic, coffee, and dining tables as well as more unique options like a rolling grill table or a poker table for you to choose from. 1. Picnic Table with Benches Rather than tangling chairs around teetering folding tables in your backyard, devote an afternoon to building this beauty....

Atlanta is a major cultural hub of the South thanks to its thriving music and film production scene. Atlanta serves as the headquarters for huge international companies like Delta and Coca-Cola, and its sprawling metro area has been called the “city in a forest” because of its unusually dense tree coverage. While this makes for a beautiful place to live, it can be rough on your home’s gutters when those leaves start to fall....

If you’re uneasy about leaving your home unattended or can’t fall asleep at night due to the possibility of a break-in, consider investing in a home security system. Protection with professional equipment can give you peace of mind, and you can opt for technology that’s convenient in other ways—some systems have smart home integration, and others have cameras with two-way talk. There are a lot of home security systems on the market in Kansas City, MO, but they all come at different prices with different features....

Homeowners often worry about how to protect their home when they’re not around, whether they’re out to dinner or out of town on a trip. Many turn to home security systems for peace of mind, finding comfort in options like professional video monitoring, two-way talk security cameras, and more. There are a wide variety of home security systems available in Virginia, each offering distinct packages, equipment, contract periods, and more. To help our readers find a high-quality security solution for their home, The This Old House Reviews Team created an in-depth review of the best home security companies, evaluating factors like packages, customer service, affordability, and more....

Do-It-Right Deck Building Putting a deck on your house is like adding another room—just one without walls or a roof. That makes it the most affordable addition you can build. A deck project can range from about $10,000 to $20,000 depending on the design, layout, and materials you choose. Read on for inspired ideas, tips and techniques to help you get the deck of your dreams—from planning to installation to paying for it....

Steps: Richard has a submission from Danny in Florida. For starters, Richard isn’t a fan of this corrugated drain pipe, but it’s not technically “wrong.” But when the drain line started to leak, Richard thought this solution of using a latex glove was novel. Mark shares a submission from Nancy in Indiana. Her chimney in her 1920s Craftsman takes a turn when it gets to the attic. Not only did she find this crooked chimney, but several beer cans on the floor, which she thinks may explain it!...

Steps for choosing a kitchen countertop Visit a showroom that has full-scale kitchens on displays. There you’ll see various countertop materials in realistic kitchen settings. Laminate counters are composed of thin sheets of plastic laminate glued to a particleboard substrate. Plastic laminate comes in a wide range of solid colors and patterns, including ones that resemble stone. Wood counters are available in several hardwood species, including teak and maple. Don’t use wood counters near sinks or other wet areas....

Whether you’d like to partition your basement into more functional areas or you’re just tired of looking at those concrete walls, framing is the first step to putting up drywall and creating a more attractive, comfortable, and useful space. The trick is in making sure you build and install frames that are plumb and strong. Here’s how to go about it: Project details Skill Cost Estimated Time Check Basement Walls for Moisture Start by checking the basement walls for excessive moisture....