Posts

A foundation must distribute the weight of your home and all its contents to the soil beneath, as well as secure the property in place. Your foundation also has to prevent cracking, stop leaks, and stand up against environmental factors like blizzards and floods. Without proper foundation care, your entire home could experience significant damage or possibly collapse. Minneapolis homes mainly feature basement and crawl space foundations. When these foundations are paired with the Twin Cities’ loamy soil and continental climate, they might experience leaks or mold development....

Gone are the days of honing your budding construction skills on patching together tunnels and forts with castoff cardboard boxes and sheets. Now, pro-level carpentry skills and permanent structures are making their mark on Pinterest and our envy, among other places. Click through for a glimpse at a pirate ship in a bedroom, interior rock-climbing walls, and more inspiring playrooms. Year-Round Play Places for Imaginative Kids Playhouse Within a House This quaint playhouse design from Myefski Architects can be enjoyed year round....

Homeowners are often in it for the long haul, but not many of them get in shape for a major renovation by long-distance running. “I ran a marathon when I was six months pregnant,” says Sarah Madeira Day, one half of the brains and brawn behind the kind of whole-house reno that would give pause to a seasoned general contractor. “I have energy like a ten-year-old!” Shown: The core of the original house, believed to be nearly 300 years old, was built around three back-to-back fireplaces....

You could be working on an old lawn mower, a washing machine, or maybe you’ve begun restoring a classic little red wagon. At some point in a do-it-yourselfer’s career, you will find yourself staring at a bolt whose head or nut is rusted in place, rounded off, or, in the worst-case scenario, the bolt itself is broken off below the surface. But wait! Before launching your wrench into the neighbor’s bushes, there are ways to remove that stripped or broken bolt....

NO PURCHASE IS NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. Sponsor: The This Old House Leviton Sweepstakes (“Sweepstakes”) is sponsored by Leviton and This Old House Ventures, LLC, 262 Harbor Drive, Stamford, CT 06902 (“Sponsor”). Sweepstakes Entry Period: The Sweepstakes starts at 12:00:01 AM Eastern Time (ET) October 4, 2020 and ends at 11:59:59 PM ET on October 10, 2020 (“Sweepstakes Period”). Eligibility: Sweepstakes open only to legal residents of the 50 United States or the District of Columbia and Canada (excluding Quebec) 18 years of age or older at time of entry....

Fairfield County, CT, October 5, 2020 – Come one, come all! This Old House is hosting a virtual tour on Wednesday, October 14th at 12pm EST to reveal the completion of its second 2020 Idea House – The Farmhouse in Fairfield County. And you’re on the guest list! This Old House’s 7th Idea House is a modern farmhouse set on a rolling lawn overlooking Long Island Sound and the 14th green of Norwalk’s Shore Haven Golf Club....

Time was, the backyard shed served simply as a storage unit for such rugged gear as garden tools, mowers, ladders, and maybe some sports equipment—skis, bikes, and the like. If it was a bit of an eyesore, well, it was just a shed. Now, largely due to our growing desire to blur the line between indoor and outdoor living, these small structures are a pretty big deal. The shed has evolved to be an adjunct, not only to the home but to the homeowner, with impressive functionality to facilitate all kinds of activities: carpentry workshop, fitness studio, second kitchen, pool cabana, media room, whatever supports your passions....

Driveway sealcoating creates a membrane that protects the concrete or other substrate from the damaging effects of the sun, gasoline, rock salt, oil, and ice. How Long Does it Take to Sealcoat a Driveway? Sealing a driveway should be no more than a weekend affair—with dry weather and temperatures above 50 degrees required. Steps for Sealcoating a Driveway Park in the street before starting this job, because you’ll have to wait a period of time while the sealant sets up, whether that’s an hour for foot traffic on a quick-dry or up to 48-hours with two coat system....

With a toilet snake (also known as a drain auger or plumber’s auger), you’ll be able to reach into the bowels of the toilet and either push the blockage through or pull it out. What is a Toilet Snake? The tool basically consists of a long cable, sheathed in a rubber tube. A coiled tip on one end goes into the drain and grapples with the clog, while an angled handle on the other end acts as a crank for extending the cable....

Steps: Before partnering with a contractor to work on your house, consider some of the unexpected disruptions or uncomfortable circumstances that could arise between you and the contractor during the project that are worth being prepared for and having appropriate conversations about. Start by doing as much research as possible on the project to try and understand the scope of the work you’re asking for. Talk to neighbors who have done similar projects, go to the home center and look at the cost of desired materials, etc....

As Painter on This Old House and Ask This Old House, Mauro Henrique helps teach the correct materials, tools, and techniques for painting and staining projects to millions of homeowners across the country. Mauro served as an on-camera painter during the This Old House Auburndale project in 2010, but his experience with the team goes back further. He was first hired by the daughter of show creator Russ Morash to paint her kitchen....

Above-ground pools have plenty of advantages: They’re less expensive to build than in-ground pools, less permanent, and they generally require less work than their in-ground counterparts (if anything, because they’re usually smaller in volume). But they have their downsides, too, one being that they’re slightly difficult to get in and out of since you have to climb a ladder—it’s just not as simple as jumping in, or as relaxing as sitting along the side and dangling your legs in the water....

In some neighborhoods, creating the perfect holiday yard display is serious business—the stuff holiday movies are made of. Whether you live in such a place, or just want to give guests a preview of the festive fun to be had inside, here are our top 9 do-it-yourself outdoor Christmas woodworking pattern and kit picks for a memorable holiday yard. Stock up on pattern-transfer paper, plywood, and paint, get your jigsaw ready, and keep reading to find the project that’ll put your DIY skills—and holiday spirit—on display....

Summer is right around the corner, and the exterior of our Cape Cod cottage is just about complete, with most of the roofing, siding, and trim now installed. Inside the house, heating and cooling systems, ventilation, insulation, and floor warming are in place, and with the walls getting primed and ready for paint, the individual spaces are beginning to take shape. Read on to take a quick tour! Keeping with Classic Cape Cod Curb Appeal There’s a reason white cedar shingles have become the classic siding choice on coastal Cape Cod....

As every homeowner knows, spring waits for no one. Procrastinate your mulching or planting for one too many warm weekends, and the once-barren winter landscape changes to a thicket of fresh foliage. “Always work a season ahead,” advises horticulturist Gail Read, who has spent decades tending the public gardens at Blithewold Mansion in Bristol, Rhode Island. “The prep work done in spring sets us up for a successful summer.” Dig in and clear away dried leaves, prune out winter damage, and bring in fresh compost and plants, ideally before weed seeds catch on that there’s bare ground to spare....

When looking for a brick for a masonry project, bricklayers have a lot of choices. Between colors, textures, and shapes, brickyards can consist of twenty different types of bricks. What is Brick Made of? Regardless of the type of brick chosen, the main ingredient is clay. Clay is unique to the area from which it comes, causing bricks from different regions to consist of different colors. Bricks made in the southeast tend to use red clay, causing the bricks to be a very prominent shade of red....

Steps: Project details Skill Cost Estimated Time Professional painters avoid standard canvas drop cloths, as they’re not great at preventing paint spills from absorbing and staining the floor. Instead, they prefer canvas backed, plastic lined drop cloths. Thick plastic drop cloths should be used outdoors, particularly for covering plants, shrubs, etc. Mauro recommends not using them on the ground or on the floor because they can get slippery. Thin plastic drop cloths are used for protecting furniture and other materials that can’t be removed from the room being worked in....

Steps for Replacing Pedestal Sink Parts: Start by shutting off the hot and cold water valves to the sink. Open the faucet to ensure the shutoffs hold.2. Disconnect the hot and cold water supply lines using pliers. There will still be a little bit of water in these hoses so be prepared with a small bucket or a rag to catch the water. 3. Remove the basin of the sink from the base of the pedestal....

From a distance, the house in Winchester, Mass., site of the 2002 This Old House TV project, was a picture of yellow siding and white trim. Closer inspection revealed a craggy clapboard landscape of cracks, chips, and flakes where 10 coats of paint, applied during the 80-year life of the house, were failing by degrees. “The clapboards are cypress, I think—a full 10 inches wide and 7/8 inches thick at the butt,” said TOH general contractor Tom Silva....

Top 5 Bathtubs Best Small Freestanding: FerdY Acrylic Freestanding Bathtub Best Large Alcove: Kingston Brass Alcove Bathtub Best Small Alcove: American Standard Apron Bathtub Best Large Freestanding: WOODBRIDGE Bathtub Best Walk-In: Empava Freestanding Walk-In Bathtub Best Small Freestanding: FerdY Acrylic Freestanding Bathtub Pros and Cons ✔ Made from acrylic that’s reinforced with fiberglass for long-lasting durability✔ Has a high load capacity of 1,750 pounds✔ Comes with a drain that you can purchase in different finishes...