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TOM: Making good homes better, this is The Money Pit Home Improvement Show. I’m Tom Kraeutler.
LESLIE: And I’m Leslie Segrete.
TOM: And what are you doing on this beautiful summer weekend? We hope it involves a lounge chair and a nice, cool drink, just some chill-out time around the old money pit. We did plenty of that this past weekend but also did a little bit of home improvement. And if you’re mixing some of that in and maybe you need a hand, don’t quite know how to start, where you’re going with it, whether you can do it yourself or you need a hire a pro or you just want to get some tips and advice to get the whole thing on the road, well, that’s what we are here to do. And you can help yourself, though, by calling in your question, 24/7, to 888-MONEY-PIT. Does not matter when you are hearing this show. We answer those calls, 24/7, at 888-666-3974. And if we’re not in the studio, we’ll call you back when we are.
Hey, coming up on today’s show, summer-vacation season is in full swing. But when you leave your house, it is very susceptible to break-ins. That’s when a lot of burglaries happen. When homes are vacant and folks are away, the burglars love to play. We’re going to have an update on some surprisingly simple ways to keep burglars out of your house, plus info on the wireless home security-system marketplace. Right now, it is so competitive, it’s fantastic because it’s keeping prices down while it’s raising the bar on keeping your home secure. We’ll have that info, in just a bit.
LESLIE: And also ahead this hour, trees are great for shade and they’re super fun for kids to climb. But on the downside, a tree can block a view or even damage sidewalks and driveways with roots that grow out of control. Well, we’re going to have a solution other than cutting it down.
TOM: And if you’re thinking about updating your kitchen but you’re concerned about the costs and the complications of that project, we’re going to have tips on easy updates you can do over a weekend that can totally transform your space without the hassles or the expense.
LESLIE: But first, we want to hear from you. Give us a call, let us know what you are working on. We’ve got a few weeks left in the summer. I know. I’m not trying to rush it but let’s get these projects done while the weather is fantastic and enjoy the outside while we’re doing it.
TOM: The number is 1-888-MONEY-PIT, 888-666-3974.
Let’s get to those phones. Leslie, who’s first?
LESLIE: Terry in Alaska is on the line and has some questions about kitchen design. How can we help you?
TERRY: I’m working on my third house. Third house is supposed to be free when you build them yourself but that ain’t working out. But at the point here we’ve got the kitchen cabinets all brand new from factory, in boxes. And now we’re at the countertop dilemma before we really get going. And every one of these TV shows, if they ain’t granite, the people are like, “I ain’t buying the house,” and that kind of stuff.
TOM: Hmm. Yeah.
TERRY: But I was thinking granite and that stone stuff’s over $100 a square foot around these parts. So I’m trying to – the last laminate that we had was pretty darn good. And kind of wondering at what – in the future here, is laminate dead?
TOM: I don’t think so.
What do you think, Leslie?
LESLIE: I mean I do not think so. I use them a lot on projects for work and I use them on my TV-design shows. I actually just did a bakery in Brooklyn for our design show on the Bravo network. And I used a laminate that looked just like a Carrara marble. Granted, it had seams in some places and you knew it wasn’t the real deal but it looked gorgeous. And it was a fraction of the cost. It’s really amazing how many options there are.
There’s a couple of brands you should look at. It’s Formica. It’s Laminart and Wilsonart. And you can order sheets from them. You might find a better option than what you might find at your local home center. I don’t know how much shipping might be to Alaska but there’s a ton of great options out there, from things that look like a natural surface to just completely outrageous things. So, I wouldn’t be afraid of a laminate.
TERRY: I did see they started having better – I don’t know – the edge trim and then they tried to make the 45-degree miters go way better. I’ve got 50 square feet of this stuff and I was thinking if I buy granite, I’ve got to stare at granite the rest of my life because it costs so much. But if I buy laminate and I don’t like it a couple years down the road, I can rip it out and put some new without too much work.
LESLIE: Yeah.
TOM: All those people that get granite, they love it when they first get it. And then they slowly but surely begin to hate it because it’s hard to take care of. Because it’s stone and it soaks up …
LESLIE: I hate mine.
TERRY: Yeah.
TOM: Yeah, it soaks up everything.
LESLIE: I don’t hate it for the maintenance reasons; I just don’t like the look of it anymore.
TERRY: Yeah. When they’re doing the open houses around here, I kind of run through some of them. And I see that they basically put the granite countertop in there but they got the cheapest cabinets you could possibly buy.
TOM: Right. Yeah.
TERRY: So they’re making up for it somewhere but I’m not (inaudible) to me. So I’m not playing that game.
TOM: I guess. Alright. Well, thanks for calling, Terry. We hope that helps you out.
TERRY: Yep. Thanks. Bye.
LESLIE: Maryann in Tennessee is on the line and has some concerns about asbestos. Tell us what’s going on.
MARYANN: Working on an older house. It was built in 1937. I know that there – I was told that there were concerns with maybe the linoleum that’s on the floor. There’s just a little bit in the kitchen and in the bathroom. And before I took it up, I didn’t know whether I needed to check it for asbestos, if there were any other places I needed to check, as well.
TOM: So this is old linoleum? We aren’t talking about tile here? It’s sheet linoleum?
MARYANN: Yes.
TOM: I’ve not heard that sheet linoleum contains asbestos. I’m not going to say it’s impossible. It’s more a tile.
LESLIE: And it’s a 9×9 tile and it’s always in very specific colors, that you’ll know when you see it that that’s an asbestos tile. They don’t make a 9×9 anymore. This is it.
TOM: Yeah. The only way to really know for sure is to have it tested but linoleum is generally not something that’s associated with asbestos. And even if it did, it would be contained inside of a binder, which makes it less likely to be removed – well, to exposed to the air.
Now, once you take that up, though, you also don’t know what’s underneath it. You could be revealing some other tile, like that 9×9 that Leslie was talking about. But that said, it generally is a good idea to pull up old floors before you put down new ones. So, hope that helps you out.
MARYANN: OK. Is there any place else I need to be concerned about on the asbestos?
LESLIE: Well, you would generally find it wrapping water pipes. And it looks almost like an old-fashioned cast. You can see it’s a flaky substance that’s wrapped with almost like a plaster of Paris. And you’ll know that, also, when you see it.
MARYANN: OK.
LESLIE: And that’s asbestos. And while that has very low levels, I would not tackle it myself. You should get a pro, always, to do it if you see it.
MARYANN: Alright. Well, thank you very much.
TOM: Alright. Good luck with that project. Thanks so much for calling us at 1-888-MONEY-PIT.
LESLIE: You are listening to The Money Pit. Give us a call with your home décor or your remodeling question, right now, to 888-MONEY-PIT presented by HomeAdvisor, the fast and easy way to find the right pro for any kind of home project, whether it’s a small repair or a major remodel.
TOM: And just ahead, we’ve got tips to help stop break-ins without breaking your budget. That and more when The Money Pit continues, after this.
Where home solutions live, this is The Money Pit. I’m Tom Kraeutler.
LESLIE: And I’m Leslie Segrete.
TOM: Give us a call, right now, with your how-to question at 1-888-MONEY-PIT presented by HomeAdvisor. They really have the best local pros for any home service.
LESLIE: That’s right. Doesn’t matter what the project is, they make it fast and easy to find top-rated pros.
TOM: And there are no membership fees. It’s 100-percent free to use. HomeAdvisor.com.
So, Leslie, I mentioned that I was doing a bit of home improvement this past weekend. And I thought I’d talk a little bit about one of the projects. I had a tree that I had to take out that was about 15, 16 inches in diameter.
LESLIE: Big tree.
TOM: Pretty good-sized tree but it was a maple tree and had some insects that had gotten into it. And it just was sort of stealing light from another adjoining tree. Decided it was time to thin in out.
So I took it out myself and I got the stump cut down to a little bit below grade. But of course, I still have a stump. Now, I wasn’t about to go out and rent a 1,000-pound stump grinder for this one little tree. Plus, I got it somewhat below grade. So what I did – I took an approach that will let the stump rot much faster than if I didn’t do anything at all.
And what you do is this: you drill holes in that stump. And you want to drill them – I drill them with about a 1-inch drill bit that I had.
LESLIE: OK.
TOM: And I drilled about 30 holes in there, the full length of the drill bit which, in my case, was about 10 inches. Had a big drill. So now I’ve got this stump full of holes. Then what you do is you fill all of those holes with Epsom salts. Fill it all the way to the top. Get some hot water – as hot as it comes out of the tap – and then saturate all those holes with that Epsom-salt melt and get down into the wood. What it does is it dries out the stump and it accelerates the rotting. And I know that that stump now, within just a few months, will be really soft and gooey and rotted at the top and I’ll never see it again.
LESLIE: I mean that’s pretty cool that that’s a great way to do it. I’ve heard all sorts of crazy things. I remember one time my Uncle Pat, he said, “Oh, I heard that you kind of pour some gasoline on it and set it on fire and it will burn the whole stump out.” Well, apparently, that does not work so do not do that. I know he had a very good-sized yard fire when he did that project.
TOM: Yeah, I bet. You know, there is an approach that does work where you actually can burn a stump out but it’s not quite as simple as what old Uncle Pat did. You have to drill holes in and they have to actually have intersects with coals that go down the side of the stump so it creates this sort of Venturi effect, this place where ventilation and air can kind of flow through. And it can burn down and burn slowly.
You can also put hot charcoals on top of it. But again, they’re all kind of dangerous approaches. And so I would take this very safe approach of just letting Mother Nature do it with a little help from Epsom salts. Or if you really absolutely, positively got to get rid of it, then just have a tree pro come in and grind it out and you’ll be done with it in a jiffy.
Hey, if you want to be done with your home improvement projects in a jiffy, give us a call right now. We’ll give you the tips you need to get those projects done fast, get them done right so you won’t have to do them again. The number, again: 888-MONEY-PIT.
LESLIE: John in Virginia is on the line with a question about building a deck and maybe a pool someday. This sounds like a great yard. What’s going on?
JOHN: Yeah, thinking about – or I’m going to be building a deck and thinking about eventually building a pool to lap underneath of it. And I was just curious as far as what I need to consider initially building the deck enough to put the pool underneath and/or just if that kind of concept will just add a ton to the cost.
TOM: I’ve not seen too many decks that had pools underneath. So you’re talking about a second-story deck with a pool that extends underneath of it? Is that the idea?
JOHN: That’s the idea.
TOM: Yeah. Hmm. Well, let’s think about this. First of all, if you have a deck on top of it, you’re going to have a lot of rain that goes through the deck. You’re going to collect tree droppings and things like that through that deck that are going to drop into the pool. Supporting that is going to be tricky because you’re going to have to have some sort of a beam that extends the width of the pool and then all the support structure for the pool, to hold it up. And if you build the pool after the deck, you probably will have to take the deck apart to get that done, because that whole area would be excavated.
Are we talking about a below-grade – an inground pool here?
JOHN: Yeah, that’s right.
TOM: Yeah. Well, the order of events would be to do the pool first and then the deck, because I don’t see how you’re going to be able to have a deck out and build a pool around it. You need a lot of heavy equipment to get in there, for one thing. And you’re not going to be able to do it when you’re trying to worry about a deck.
Plus, as I said, the support for that is going to have to be very, very long to span the width of the pool. I think this is the kind of project that I would go to an architect for, frankly. I wouldn’t try to figure this out on the back of a sheet of paper.
JOHN: Right, right. OK. No, OK.
TOM: I would design this very carefully to make sure that we’re enabling – our plan enables us to do the work that we want to do, whether we have to do it before we put the deck in or after. But I would definitely have this designed before I even thought about picking up a hammer and a saw.
JOHN: Thanks for the advice. I appreciate it.
TOM: You’re welcome. Good luck with that project. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-MONEY-PIT.
Sounds like a cool idea but man, it’s tough from a design perspective.
LESLIE: Yeah, it’s tough. You want to make those decisions early so that it’s not a big project down the road. Plus, making those decisions now ensures that it’s a beautiful project that’s going to last and then you can really enjoy it.
TOM: Well, midsummer is a top getaway season. But if you’re leaving an empty house behind, the way you leave that house can make it more of a target for burglars.
LESLIE: Yeah. Here’s an example. I think people have always thought, “Oh, we’re going away. Close the shades, close the shutters. But don’t do that. That’s kind of a dead giveaway that the place is empty. Instead, leave some of those first-floor drapes drawn to avoid outsiders casing your home through the windows and leave those upstairs shades up.
TOM: Yeah. And better yet, just leave the shades at varying levels of open and closed, as you normally would. You also want to use timers for lights but also for music players and TVs so that there appears to be some activity at different times of the day and the night.
LESLIE: And there’s no better deterrent than a good security system. And right now, there is a ton of competition from brands, big and small, seeking to make you their customer. Now, the nice thing is that this has created a lot of choices for you.
Now, it used to be that when you wanted a home security system, you kind of had to sit through a high-pressure sales presentation and then getting an expensive monitored system. It’s not like that anymore.
TOM: Yep. But now, there are a lot of great systems on the market that take care of both those concerns without the electrical work or the drilling. It makes it a very easy project you can do yourself. The systems are completely wireless and professionally monitored. And even the monitoring expenses come way, way down. We’re talking not $40 a month, like $10 a month or $15 a month. So, a lot of options today in wireless home security, all of which can help keep your home safe when you’re there and most importantly, when you are away.
888-666-3974. We are not away. We’re here, right now, taking your calls, your questions. You can also post them to The Money Pit’s Community page at MoneyPit.com.
LESLIE: Lynn in Mississippi is on the line and is having an issue with a pear tree. What is going on that doesn’t involve a partridge?
LYNN: Hey. Yes, ma’am. I have a Bradford pear tree but I think I made a mistake. I’m not sure. But I let it grow up right next to my house.
TOM: OK.
LYNN: My foundation is concrete. And the tree has now gotten probably, I’m guesstimating, maybe 15 feet tall and it’s got to like three trunks. It’s very, very pretty and it looks good but now I’ve gotten concerned. My concrete foundation is pretty thick but do Bradford pear trees have a tendency to try to grow up through concrete foundation?
TOM: You know, pear trees don’t get that big to a point where they typically impact foundations. And if they did, you would probably see some evidence of that. So, while it sounds big to you, pear trees – standard pear trees – get to be 18 to 20 feet tall or so. And that’s just not big enough to really do much foundation damage. So I think you can live with that for a while and just keep an eye on it. I wouldn’t tear that out.
LYNN: That is wonderful news. OK. What should I look for? Can I go on the outside, where it’s right there close to the house? Is there something that I can look for that will kind of tell me it could be a problem before it actually starts buckling my concrete?
TOM: Actually, you would see it on the inside. If you saw any cracks forming in the concrete opposite where the pear tree is, that would be a good indicator of it. But boy, it takes an awful lot of force to do that. And trees are going – the roots are going to try to find the path of least resistance. So I just don’t think it’s very likely that you’re going to see that. But I’d see it – you’d see it on the inside first. OK?
LYNN: Thank you so very much. I’m going to leave it alone.
LESLIE: Don in Colorado is on the line with a window question. What is going on at your money pit?
DON: My house has a window. It’s a vinyl, double-pane window that, somehow or another, collects lots of condensation. And this happens, typically, in the winter. And what happens is this condensation has kind of created some mold and some mildew in the channels of the window inside. And I’m wondering, what’s the best way or what’s the best solution or a powder product that I could use in that thing to clean that mold and mildew up?
TOM: Well, first of all, the cause of this is that the insulated glass in your windows is not really doing a very good job. So when you have the temperature from the outside basically chilling that entire window, making its way across that insulated space to the inside and then the warm, moist air inside your house strikes the glass and condenses, that’s what causes the steady stream of moisture. And one of the things that can happen when things get wet is it can grow mold.
So, basically, what you have now is kind of a maintenance headache. And it’s just going to be a matter of keeping that clean. You asked what can you use to clean that, to treat that. You can use something natural like vinegar or you can use something natural like Borax. But it’s basically a maintenance job. You’re always going to have to be cleaning and drying those spaces out. Because unless you change your windows or reduce the amount of humidity inside the house, you’re always going to have this problem.
Now, what you might want to think about doing, if you decide to tackle windows, is just do the ones that are the worst first. Typically, they’re on the north and east sides of the house; that’s usually the coldest sides of the house. And use replacement windows instead of new-construction windows, which are going to fit into the old window openings. And they’re a lot easier to install than new-construction windows, where you have to tear off siding and reflash all around it.
So, that’s really your option here. That’s what’s causing it and that’s kind of what you’re up against. It’s basically going to be a maintenance issue until you replace those windows.
DON: Thank you very much for the suggestion.
TOM: You’re very welcome. Good luck with that project. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-MONEY-PIT.
DON: Thank you. Bye-bye.
LESLIE: Well, sometimes plans for your yard or for your house change. And a tree can become an obstacle instead of a beautiful piece of landscaping. If that tree is small enough, however, you can transplant it instead of chopping it down. Roger Cook from This Old House is stopping by to tell you how, in just a bit.
TOM: And today’s edition of This Old House on The Money Pit is brought to you by ADT. Introducing ADT Go, the new family mobile safety app and service. Go to ADT.com to learn more, today.
Making good homes better, this is The Money Pit Home Improvement Show. I’m Tom Kraeutler.
LESLIE: And I’m Leslie Segrete.
TOM: Give us a call with your how-to or décor question at 1-888-MONEY-PIT.
Took on a project this weekend to help Mom out, Leslie.
LESLIE: You did? What are you working on over there?
TOM: She had one big step to get into her house, because the porch had kind of settled over the years. And it was a 9-inch step. That’s kind of a big step for anybody, let alone a senior citizen. So what I did is I built a platform, like a stoop, that was half that height. With a 2×4 and a piece of 5/4 decking, I basically made a small stoop that cut that step half in height. So now she steps on the stoop and then up into the house much easier and most importantly, safer for my mom, so …
LESLIE: Safe. I mean that’s really super important.
TOM: And a really easy project and kind of a fun project. Like a mini-deck that was 2 foot by 3 foot.
LESLIE: That’s really great. You did a good job, Tom.
TOM: Thanks.
LESLIE: Catherine in Rhode Island is on the line with a leaky roof.
Tell us about the problem, Catherine.
CATHERINE: I have a small hole in the ceiling, in the corner of the back end of the house. And I was just wondering if when I go to have it replaced, how much of the plaster they’re going to have to take down.
TOM: So you say it’s a small hole. So this is a hole that was caused by water damage?
CATHERINE: Yes. It’s coming from the roof. I’m going to have to have a new roof, also.
TOM: How old is the roof that you have now?
CATHERINE: The roof is about 20 years old.
TOM: OK. Well, it might be at the end of a normal life cycle.
In terms of that ceiling space, you don’t have to take a lot down. How big is the hole that you have right now?
CATHERINE: I would say it’s about 8 inches across.
TOM: Eight by what?
CATHERINE: It’s just like a slit.
LESLIE: So there’s nothing open; it’s just like a crack.
CATHERINE: Yes, it’s like a crack. And water drips but just from one area; it’s just like a little drip.
TOM: If it’s not swollen or deformed in any way, then what you can do is you can add drywall tape across that crack, which would be perforated. You use – it looks kind of like a mesh; it’s a little sticky and it’s like a mesh. And then you spackle over the tape. And so you can basically spackle this crack closed and then prime it and paint it without having to replace any of the drywall.
CATHERINE: Oh, really? Oh. Well, thank you very much. I thought I’d have to replace the whole ceiling.
TOM: Nah, don’t let the contractors tell you it’s any more than that. It’s a real simple repair. If it’s just a crack, it can be spackled, primed, painted and you’re good to go.
CATHERINE: Well, thank you very much. And I just want to add I love listening to your show. I learn so much. I listen to it every Saturday night.
TOM: Well, thank you very much, Catherine. We really appreciate it. Thanks, again, for calling us at 888-MONEY-PIT.
LESLIE: Alright. Let’s face it: sometimes, plans for your yard or even your house change and a tree can become an obstacle instead of a beautiful piece of landscaping.
TOM: Well, if that tree is small enough, you can actually transplant it instead of chopping it down. Landscaping contractor Roger Cook, from TV’s This Old House, is here to tell us how.
And Roger, you’ve planted a lot of trees on the show and not all of them came fresh from the nursery. So what are the keys to a successful transplant and how big of a tree can we actually hope to move?
ROGER: You can move as big a tree as your wallet can afford.
TOM: Spoken like a true contractor, Roger.
ROGER: There you go. Time of year is critical.
TOM: OK.
ROGER: We like to move things early in the spring before they leaf out or in the fall when the leaves are falling off the tree. Both good times to put a tree in the ground and get it reestablished.
TOM: So what are we talking about? Like a 3- or 4-inch trunk? Something like …
ROGER: You can do that. You can – in some situations, we’ve brought in tree spades and moved 30- or 40-foot trees that were growing on the site to a new location. Because unfortunately, we don’t plan well enough; we don’t plan for that tree to get as big as it did achieve, so we have to move it.
TOM: Now, a tree spade is obviously a very heavy piece of landscaping equipment. But if you’re a homeowner and just want to move a small tree, what’s the key to doing that successfully? Do you have to make sure you take enough of the root?
ROGER: That’s the key to the whole thing is the more roots you can take, the better off you are.
The first thing I’d do is evaluate the tree. Is it in good health? Is it structurally sound? Is it worth spending some money on and moving? If that’s the case, then we go ahead and we’ll dig the tree.
Now, when we dig a ball on a tree, we like to have 10 to 12 inches of root-ball diameter per inch of tree.
LESLIE: OK.
ROGER: So if I have a 4-inch tree, I want to dig a 40-inch root ball.
So, we just lay that out on the ground, we’ll go and dig a trench around, we’ll very carefully cut any roots we come across. Because roots that are cut clean heal faster. So when we go down …
TOM: Oh, interesting. So don’t rip out the root; just slice it, essentially
ROGER: Right. If you cut it with a shovel, it’s real ragged. It can get disease or just rot in the end of it.
LESLIE: So are you just exposing the root and then using a good snipper or a saw?
ROGER: Not a good snipper and not a good saw, because you’re in the dirt. We use our old loppers and our old tree saws for this type of work, just to make a good, clean cut on it.
LESLIE: Mm-hmm. OK.
ROGER: Now, what we’ll do is we’ll dig down until we find no more roots. We usually go down 12 to 18 inches, on the average tree, in depth. Once we dig all the way around and we dig underneath the tree, we’ll take some burlap, wrap it and pin it around the ball to hold the soil in place. And then we put twine – jute twine – around it and tighten it and that even holds the soil together more.
LESLIE: Now, how do you plan for the weight on something like this? I mean that’s got to weigh a ton. You’ve got a 40-inch-wide by 12-inch-deep root ball. It’s not something Tom and I are going to go and be able to pick up this tree.
ROGER: Well, it is if you have the right equipment. On a small, tiny, little tree, you could use a dolly; you know, slide it underneath, tip the tree back. But we have what’s called a “tree dolly” and that’s set up with big tires and a lip on the front so if you tip the tree down one way, slide the dolly underneath and then tip the tree back, it sits right up on the dolly and we can move it anywhere in your yard. And then if all else fails, I have a Bobcat; I can move just about anything with that.
TOM: Now, I’ve seen those tree dollies; they kind of look like hand trucks but with an extended sort of lift gate, so to speak, or lift.
ROGER: Right, right. And a lot of times, you can rent those at a garden center. They’ll rent them to you for the day and that’s a great way to move trees around.
TOM: Now, once you’ve actually removed the tree and you’ve balled it up, do you have to plant it right away or could it sit, say, for the winter?
ROGER: We’ve taken some out of houses that were having additions put on. And we do a process, which is called “healing in.” We deal a – dig a slight hole in the ground maybe 3 or 4 inches deep, we set the tree down and then we put mulch around it or wood chips. And that encases it and helps it get through the season. And you can leave them there for a year or even two years, as long as you water them.
LESLIE: And that’s while it’s still wrapped.
ROGER: Right. Leave it just wrapped; don’t unwrap it. Just leave it just like it is, water it and then when the addition’s done, you can take them all out and put them right back in your new addition.
TOM: And when it’s time to actually replant, any special steps you need to take?
ROGER: No. Just like you would any other tree, new or old – meaning a new plant you bought or a transplant – big hole, good soil, fertilizer, water.
TOM: Alright. Great advice. Roger Cook from This Old House, thanks so much for stopping by The Money Pit.
ROGER: Thanks for having me.
LESLIE: And of course, you can catch the current season of This Old House and Ask This Old House on PBS. For your local listings and a step-by-step video on tree transplanting, you can visit ThisOldHouse.com.
TOM: And This Old House and Ask This Old House are brought to you on PBS by GMC Trucks and SUVs.
Just ahead, if you’re thinking about updating your kitchen but are concerned about the costs, we’re going to have tips on easy updates you can do over a weekend that can totally transform your space without the hassles, in today’s Building with Confidence Tip presented by Rocket Mortgage by Quicken Loans, next.
Where home solutions live, this is The Money Pit Home Improvement Show. I’m Tom Kraeutler.
LESLIE: And I’m Leslie Segrete.
TOM: Call us, right now, at 1-888-MONEY-PIT presented by HomeAdvisor.
LESLIE: Alright. Next up, we’ve got Sandy calling from Ohio who’s working on a painting project. How can we help you today?
SANDY: Yeah, I was looking for a product that you can take the varnish off your old kitchen cabinets without having to sand them. I was told there might be some new products out.
TOM: Well, there’s actually a product that’s been around since 1936 that works and that’s called Rock Miracle. So not exactly new but does a great job. They’ve got a couple of different versions of it but it’s designed specifically to take off varnish. There is a liquid, no-wash remover that basically removes paint, finishes and varnish that you can use. You can check out their website at RockMiracle.com.
But if you want to avoid most of the sanding, that’s a good place to go. And they have some environmentally-friendly versions of the product, too.
SANDY: OK. Sounds good. Alright. Thank you very much.
TOM: You’re very welcome, Sandy. Good luck with that project. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-MONEY-PIT.
LESLIE: Well, if home is where the heart is, then kitchens are clearly one of the vital organs that convert a house into a home. So it’s no surprise that kitchen renovations are among the most popular remodeling projects tackled every year. But while any home improvement project can be complicated, major kitchen remodeling can turn your life completely upside-down, not to mention all of that fast-food poundage you’re going to be putting on waiting for the kitchen to welcome you back in.
TOM: That’s right. Now, to avoid the home improvement hassles, it makes sense to break down the projects into modules: you know, small parts that can be completed independently of one another. Not only does this make the project more manageable, these smaller changes can have a big, visual impact and cut down on the need for more major makeovers.
LESLIE: For example, changing your kitchen countertop, painting the cabinets or just replacing all of that cabinet hardware are projects that can be done in hours, not weeks, and result in a very attractive and quite frankly, big transformation.
TOM: Yeah. And replacing the kitchen floors, improving the kitchen lighting and just painting the room can give you a fresh, new look in that space. And you can also just replace faucets with water-efficient models, as well as switch out old appliances for more ENERGY STAR-certified products. And those will lower utility costs across the board.
LESLIE: And today’s Building with Confidence Tip has been brought to you by Rocket Mortgage by Quicken Loans. It’s completely online, reduces annoying and time-consuming paperwork and gives you a real, accurate and personalized mortgage solution based on your unique financial situation, with no hidden fees or hassles.
TOM: Rocket Mortgage by Quicken Loans. Apply simply, understand fully, mortgage confidently.
LESLIE: Alright. Gene in Tennessee is up with a roofing problem. Tell us what’s going on.
GENE: About 12 years ago, I built me a screened-in porch on my house. I’ve got a ranch-type house.
TOM: OK.
GENE: And I used the metal clips – the little hangers – to hang my rafters. And I went in beside of my rafters coming off my existing house and it only gives me a 1-inch drop per foot. And I had a little trouble with it leaking and so I had the regular asphalt shingles put on and it leaks.
So, when I had my new roof put on about two years ago, I – seven years ago, I roofed the house and they recommended I put a rubber roof on a 10×30 addition to my house so the water would run off regular. And here, recently, about two years ago, I had one of the new shingles put on my roof. And I noticed that while I was up there, that the rubber seems to be kindly breaking down a little.
TOM: OK. So, a couple of things. First of all, you have a low-slope roof. You originally had asphalt shingles on that, which was a mistake because asphalt shingles, you really need at least like a 3:12 pitch to put those on. If you’ve got a 1:12 pitch, that’s not enough.
So now you replaced that with a rubber roof, which was the right thing to do. But now you’re seeing the rubber roof start to crack. So your question is: “How do I stop that? How do I protect it? How do I preserve it?” Correct?
GENE: Yeah, well, I want to add a few more. It was guaranteed 10 years but it’s about 7 years old now and I want to make it last a little longer, yeah. Some kind of coating?
TOM: So what you want is simply roof paint. Now, roof paint is a very specialized type of paint. It’s usually aluminum in color and sometimes they call it “fibrous aluminum.” And what it does, it has a high degree of UV reflectivity, so it reflects the UV from the sun back out again. And that keeps the roof cooler and makes it last longer.
So, I would definitely give it a coat of roof paint. And if you go to a home center or a roofing-supply center and look for roof paint, you shouldn’t have any problem finding it. It’s very, very specialized. And we’re not talking about the kind of paint you put on your walls; it’s a roofing product. OK?
GENE: OK. Thank you.
TOM: Thanks so much for calling us at 888-MONEY-PIT.
LESLIE: Next up, need a new closet but don’t know where to begin? Well, begin with us. We’re going to have tips, after this.
TOM: Making good homes better, welcome back to The Money Pit. I’m Tom Kraeutler.
LESLIE: And I’m Leslie Segrete.
TOM: Give us a call, right now, with your home improvement question or your décor dilemma. The number is 1-888-MONEY-PIT presented by HomeAdvisor, where you can find top-rated home service pros, compare prices and book appointments online, all for free.
LESLIE: You can also email us or post your question in the Community section on MoneyPit.com. We’re jumping into those questions right now. And I’ve got one here from Jack who posted: “We do not have a closet in our bedroom. I want to build one but I’m not sure how large it should be. Any rule of thumb for closet size?”
TOM: Well, I don’t think anybody ever complained about having a closet that was too big.
LESLIE: Yeah.
TOM: Right? In older homes, it wasn’t unusual to come across bedrooms that did not have closets. That’s why …
LESLIE: Yeah. You had armoires and fancy furniture to put your stuff in.
TOM: Yeah. That was used to store clothes and accessories. And that’s a trend that’s somewhat on the rise with customizable wardrobes. But even in homes with added wardrobes and armoires, closets are never a bad idea, especially from a resale standpoint.
Now, in terms of size, you need to balance your storage needs with the right amount of square footage the room is going to lose. Because closets do add value but not if they reduce a room to the size of a postage stamp. So it’s kind of a balancing act.
But to build them, it’s pretty straightforward. You usually start in a corner and you’re going to come out about 3 feet and then across the width of the closet, depending on the size. Just remember work around the door size, work around the depth and then just construct it and build it. And if you don’t want to have to worry about a door because it cuts into your room too much, you could easily use an accordion door or you can even use a curtain.
LESLIE: Or you can use one of those awesome barn doors with that really cool hardware and make it a feature.
TOM: Yep. Oh, that’s right. That slide, yeah. Those are cool. Mm-hmm.
LESLIE: Yeah. So many things you could do and you’ll be so happy to actually have a place to put your things. You could just throw them in and close the door and no one will know that there’s a big mess.
Alright. Next up, we’ve got a post here from Charles. Now, Charles writes: “Our master bathroom’s window has a crank attached to the window frame. The window is in good shape and the frame is, too. My situation is that the crank doesn’t operate the window to open or close anymore. It’s almost like it feels as if it were stripped. Is this something I can fix myself?”
TOM: It sounds like you found yourself, Charles, in the unfortunate situation where the window’s hardware has actually worn out faster than the window itself. I mean I can relate to this; I think a lot of us can. A few years back, I had the same issue with a bathroom window. And it got so bad that I went so far as to caulk it shut, until I got around to actually replacing it, so that it wouldn’t get stuck in the open position, which is really bad in January, by the way.
But a few months later, I did replace it. So, my question to you is: do you know what brand of window you have? If you do, you might be able to get ahold of replacement hardware for the crank. If not, you will have to replace the entire window.
But there is a silver lining. If you do find yourself in that scenario, all replacement windows are custom-made by their very nature. That is it’s going to be designed to fit the exact size of the specific opening. And it might not be as an expensive or complicated project as you would expect.
So good luck with it. Try to find that manufacturer first. If not, opt for a replacement window. It’ll be much more energy-efficient, anyway.
Alright. Geralyn (sp) from New Jersey is writing in. And Geralyn (sp) says, “I grew up in a house that had awnings. I have fond childhood memories of these beautiful awnings on my grandparents’ home. We went and visited every summer. I see a lot more homes are popping up with awnings today. Is it a trend that’s coming back and something we should consider?”
LESLIE: You know, I love the look of an awning. And I think with the right type of home, it really does dress it up kind of adorably. And you don’t have to spend a ton of money. I was recently doing a project for a Bravo show and I found one online from a company called Awntech. Came in a variety of sizes. Shipped it in two days. And it was a black-and-white stripe, super cute. A ton of different styles. Really easy to put up and you don’t have to spend a ton of money.
TOM: This is The Money Pit Home Improvement Show. Thank you so much for spending this hour with us. If you’ve got tips, we give advice, 24/7, at 1-888-MONEY-PIT. Now we let you go back to your lawn chair and your cool drink for the remainder of the afternoon.
I’m Tom Kraeutler.
LESLIE: And I’m Leslie Segrete.
TOM: Remember, you can do it yourself …
LESLIE: But you don’t have to do it alone.
END HOUR 1 TEXT
(Copyright 2018 Squeaky Door Productions, Inc. No portion of this transcript or audio file may be reproduced in any format without the express written permission of Squeaky Door Productions, Inc.)
The post Home Security for Summer Travelers appeared first on The Money Pit.
LESLIE: Mark in Illinois is on the line with a question about what dirt to use around house foundation. What’s going on at your money pit?
MARK: I have a 10-year-old house that, as with a lot of houses, the ground around the foundation is settling. And I need to put some fill-in to keep the rain from – or to drain the rain away from the house.
TOM: OK.
MARK: And I was wondering if there is a particular type of mixture of soil to use to do that.
TOM: Yeah, it’s called “clean fill dirt.” Basically, it’s not rich, like topsoil with a lot of organic material in it. It’s a good type of dirt to use around house foundation. It’s very compactable. I always think it looks kind of like the pitcher’s mound. It has that sort of medium-brown color to it and you can really pack it down well.
So, what you want to do is to sort of rig back some of the topsoil that’s there, add the clean fill dirt, establish slope with that. And if you want to prevent moisture problems, then I would slope the dirt about 10 percent or about 6 inches over 4 feet – a 6-inch drop over 4 feet. Then on top of that, you can add topsoil and replant the grass or add mulch or whatever other groundcover. But clean fill dirt is all you need, Mark.
And I would be careful when buying this from the gravel yard, whoever is selling it, to make sure it doesn’t have glass in it. Ask about that. Make sure it’s really clean. Because sometimes, when you buy fill dirt, it has broken glass in it and you don’t want that to happen.
MARK: Alright. And how far out from the foundation should you fill?
TOM: Well, you want to have that first 4 to 6 feet be sloping away. And then after that, it can have a gentle slope after that.
MARK: OK.
TOM: And just as important, since we’re talking about drainage issues, is to make sure your gutters are clean and your downspouts are significantly extended away. A lot of times, these gutter installers like to just turn them out about 2 feet at the bottom. You want it to go out 4 to 6 feet.
MARK: Oh, OK. Alright, alright. Well, thank you. I appreciate it.
TOM: You’re welcome. Good luck with that project. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-MONEY-PIT.
The post Type of Dirt to Use Around House Foundation appeared first on The Money Pit.
TOM: Coast to coast and floorboards to shingles, this is The Money Pit Home Improvement Show on breeze and online at MoneyPit.com. And we are broadcasting today from the biggest home improvement industry event of its first year: the 2019 National Hardware Show in Las Vegas, Nevada. And today’s broadcast is presented by Greenworks.
And this is the trade show that’s unique. It’s because it’s where makes like Greenworks roll out their newest and most successful produces for the season onward. So, should be considered it as a style display for home improvement and decor. And commonly, you wouldn’t know about this stuff until you find it in the home centers and hardware stores. But today, we’re giving you a sneak peek of all that the indicate has to offer. We’re kind of your eyes and ears.
And it is a lot like the Disney World of residence improvement. There’s over 2,800 exhibitors, plus 500 brand-new exhibitors together with 110 discoverers covering 15 product lists, including everything from hardware to homewares to smart-home concoctions and more. A batch happening and a slew of merriment to cover.
And today’s broadcast is presented by Greenworks, we are therefore thought, “Hey, why don’t we give away some very fine Greenworks products to both those here and those at home? ” We’ve got two Greenworks 2,300 -PSI Pressure Washers, two Blower/ String-Trimmer Combo Kits. We’ve couple of Greenworks Hedge Trimmers and two $50 Lowe gift cards, where that’s where you’re knows where to find lots of other breathtaking Greenworks tools. So, for those present at the depict, stop by the media stage, discontinue your credit card into The Money Pit hard hat. And for those at home, intelligence on over to MoneyPit.com and participate the Green Your Home Giveaway presented by Greenworks.
Well, are you ready to pick up a paintbrush and spruce up your dwelling for spring? If so, you’d better not hop-skip a few key gradations that originate the distinction between a job to do and one you need to do over and over again. With us with tips-off is John Kacedan. He’s the vice-chairman of merchandising for True Value.
Welcome, John.
JOHN: Thanks for having me.
TOM: Hey, so before we get into the depict topic, I imply True Value is an iconic label with over 70 years of know. Merely a lot of history in your company.
JOHN: Yeah, for certain. As you mentioned, 70 years of suffer. We have over 3,000 -plus places nationwide, independently owned and operated. And that’s our mission to support them.
TOM: And I anticipate one of the interesting things about the True Value places is everything of those proprietors have relationships with the community. They’re the trusted professionals inside cities all across America, right?
JOHN: Yeah. Big focus on service, which differentiates them, you are familiar, from the Amazons of the world and even a lot of the big-hearted caskets. And they tailor their hodgepodges based on regional advantages of their consumers.
TOM: It’s someplace you can go and get good, impartial information and the tools and materials that you need to get the job done.
JOHN: Yeah. Very versed, very credible in definitely pointing DIYers in the right direction.
TOM: Absolutely. Now, when you come to a display like this, what do you learn? What do you - why do you experience coming to a trade show like the National Hardware Show?
JOHN: For me, it’s enormous to engage with a lot of vendors. Obviously, we’re always looking for new ideas and inventive commodities. And then "were having" our own two displays, as well, on an annual basis. Ever ogling for new ideas.
TOM: So let’s talk a little bit about decorating. Now, one thing that’s unique about True Value is you are pretty much, I see, the only hardware retailer that has its own paint-manufacturing facility, right?
JOHN: That’s correct.
TOM: Why’d you guys go into that business?
JOHN: We examine it as a competitive edge. We’re very passionate about coat. Our EasyCare brand we view as a highest-rated product with- at a great value. And it’s also allergy& asthma friendly certified. And it’s based on even researches by third parties and everything else. It’s high rated and highly qualified, we are therefore ...
TOM: Yeah, I’ve actually been to your paint-manufacturing facility many, many years ago.
JOHN: OK.
TOM: And I watched them originate the paint and I repute you were impelling touches at that time, very. And mortal, I tell you what, you have a lot of people that have been there for many , many years.
JOHN: For sure.
TOM: They’re the craftsmen of the paint-manufacturing business, those folks that are there work days in and epoch out, to create these products that are going to give us beautiful results.
JOHN: We’re ever looking to innovate. One latest example is we’re going to a total recyclable plastic can, so no more rusting which will be huge.
TOM: Truly?
JOHN: Yeah.
TOM: Yeah. Hey, that’s immense not only for the milieu but also for additional decorate, you know.
JOHN: Yeah, for sure.
TOM: A slew of epoches, when you place paint and you get a little rust on the boundary, then that changes the color of the paint which I, as many, have learned the hard way wondering why- “Why wasn’t it quite as white as it was when I kept it down? ” When you try to do a touch-up, it’s because of that rust.
JOHN: Yeah, for sure.
TOM: So that’s a great advantage.
So, when tribes are tackling paint projects and they’re coming into the places and they’re telling these fables of maybe happens that didn’t become so well, what are some of the most common mistakes that people are clearing?
JOHN: Yeah. So what we hear, and I think in all our surveys and conversations, it firstly starts with just how do you prep the room and did you get it on correctly, right?
TOM: Right.
JOHN: I believe beings are in a rush to start painting. But in addition to taping everything off- which most people don’t necessarily experience, and handling the floor, especially if you’re not key experts painter- it’s actually cleaning the walls, which is a step that’s a lot of times missed, and allowing it to baked because depict will adhere a little better to a clean surface.
TOM: Let’s talk about that, because there is a lot- even if it looks like it’s a clean wall, time with the years of only the dust in the air and the wear and tear of those faces from happenings that wipe against them, from babies to people to furniture, you get a lot of lodges in there that can really interact with the ability of the colour to persist, right?
JOHN: For sure.
TOM: When you do wash the wall, what procedure would you postdate?
JOHN: Mainly only leech, soap and spray and ...
TOM: Like TSP or something like that? Would you use Borax? What would you use to wash with? Anything in particular?
JOHN: General soap. There’s concoctions available for actually bathe walls, as well.
TOM: Right. OK.
JOHN: Yeah.
TOM: So let’s talk about the depict information. I mean all decorate is not created equal. There’s a wide variety of differences in the quality of colour, right? So let’s talk about some of those inconsistencies. How do you- how does a consumer know what they’re buying?
JOHN: Yeah, it’s a good question. You ever are looking for a high-quality dye and primer. Certainly, we stand behind our EasyCare and we think it’s some of the most wonderful interior and exterior paint. But then you too have some guiding national symbols, as well, high-quality paint.
I think I learned the hard way, extremely early on in my adult life to- in looking to cut corners. But you obviously had wished to buy a high-quality make, for sure.
TOM: And what sees the distinction between a product that’s a higher or lower excellence? Is it the amount of colorant in the paint, for example, which I believe is titanium dioxide in most cases?
JOHN: Yeah. So colorant would definitely be one and two, time in terms of how does it flow and how does it cover, right? So, higher-quality draw typically is going to adhere 1) better and 2) you are able to need less coats. So even though something could be cheaper, by the time you actually start putting the proper quantity of coatings on there, you might be at a similar price point.
TOM: Right. And when we’re talking about adhesion, we talked about cleaning the walls. But what about the primer? I think that’s a step that numerous kinfolks love to skip. And I think they don’t understand the difference between the chemical makeup of a primer versus a dye. It’s like that adhesion quality is what the primer has, right, and the colorant excellences that the make-up have.
JOHN: Yeah.
TOM: Now, of course, you can get these paint-and-primer-in-one commodities today. But you really can’t skip that primer step because if you don’t do that, you may not get this paint to last-place very long or certainly not go on as well, right?
JOHN: Yeah, sure as shooting. And it potentially could bleed through, as well, over age, right? So if you have a good primer bed to begin with then, yeah, the cover adheres better. And then, in addition to, it’ll look better going forward.
TOM: So any quirks for surfaces that particularly difficult to cover like, let’s say, water discolorations or even smoking grimes?
JOHN: Putting primer on top of a lot of those will be good. Water grimes are somewhat challenging and you might need a special product to do that, only to prep it ahead of time, right, depending on the length of it. It can bleed through.
TOM: It has this uncanny course of bleeding through.
JOHN: It does show back up instantly, yes. For sure.
TOM: And( inaudible) happens but it time happens. It time pulls it right through.
JOHN: Yeah.
TOM: And you’re like, “Oh, my God, I just drew that,” and there it is again.
JOHN: Yeah.
TOM: Just about the time you articulated all your substance apart and took all the drop cloths down, you’re like, “Now I’ve got to make love again,” title? So the priming is really, genuinely key for those types of stains.
Let’s talk a bit about the tools. A brush is not a brush is not a touch, right? If you don’t have good cleans, you’re not disappearing to get a good finish.
JOHN: Yeah. And you actually might lose some of the brush in the make-up( inaudible) ...
TOM: Oh, that’s the worst part, when you go picking out those brush- those bristles after the fact, right?
JOHN: Yeah. Mm-hmm. Right. For sure.
TOM: Are you still in the brush-manufacturing business?
JOHN: We’re still in the brush-manufacturing business.
TOM: Yeah.
JOHN: From a better quality perspective, I required to get you in touch with our cover person to tell you about all the specifics about the paintbrushes.
TOM: Oh, that’s OK. Yeah. Right.
JOHN: But high-quality paint supplies in the market. We also have, in addition to some of our own and our Master Painter brand, we have Purdy and Wooster, as well.
TOM: Yeah. Purdy makes a great brush. I interviewed them once. They actually ratify every brushing that the make.
JOHN: Oh, wow.
TOM: The brush-maker mansions it and "youve seen" their initials on the brush.
So you guys have also done a lot to help employed information in the handwritings of consumers through your website and social-media channels. Talk about what’s available out there.
JOHN: We do has only one easy color-design mobile app, which’ll allow you to see those colors in your office and how they would look when they’re on your walls. The other thing I’d want to point out, for those that don’t have the time to do DIY programmes, if you’re looking for prescreened local professionals- because you should get some mentions - you can go to TrueValue.com. And we do already have some recommendations out there and someone that we’ve previously screened.
TOM: Excellent. TrueValue.com.
John Kacedan from True Value, thanks very much for stopping by The Money Pit.
JOHN: I appreciate it, Tom. Thank you so much.
TOM: Thank you, sir.
You are listening to a really special live program of The Money Pit presented by Greenworks.
And exactly ahead, when brand-new products are launched, they very often help solve a problem or provide a solution for pros invited to take part in the day-to-day home remodel business. We’re going to highlight an cunning newly make that does only that, in a bit. Plus, if your driveway be prepared for a refresh, we’ll share gratuities on how to do precisely that, in today’s Pro Project was put forward by HomeAdvisor.com, next.
Making good dwellings better, welcome back to The Money Pit broadcasting from the 2019 National Hardware Show in Las Vegas, presented by Greenworks.
We are thrilled to be here checking out the best of the best of home improvement makes thumping the market. It’s kind of like Comic-Con for residence improvers but it’s exclusively open to industry insiders, so we are here to introduce the establish to you.
Now, asphalt driveways take a shaping from Mother Nature. I represent the sun, humidity, certainly this winter’s freeze/ thaw repetitions and all that weather combined to cause fissures and deteriorate the asphalt ring-binder that regard your driveway together. If it seems that the driveway at your home is ready for replacement, we’ve get tips-off on your alternatives in today’s Pro Project presented by HomeAdvisor.com.
Now, first, you’ve got to know what you’re buying. Digression from driveway shutting, which is when a very thin coating of asphalt sealer is applied, there are really three ways to redo your driveway. First, a pro can add a mantle to what you already have. Or if the aged driveway is in really bad appearance, they are able to absolutely tear it off and start from scratch. But if the driveway is just worn, it doesn’t have large-hearted potholes or sounds, a topcoat could be an option.
Now, for driveway replacing, the most important thing is the formulation, the basi. Once that old-fashioned asphalt is removed, a brand-new gravel cornerstone is added. It’s normally about 6 inches thick but this is the key: it have to be able to then flattened with a tool that weighs about 3,000 pounds. That’s why you can’t do this at home. This roller is going to pack that down until it’s almost as solid as the finished road. And if the component is well done, you are able to expect that your brand-new driveway is going to look like the day it was put down for many, many years.
Now, lastly, it’s important that you use the right type of asphalt. Some asphalt has more aggregate in it than others. That’s the stone. And "if youre using" one that’s too soft or too sandy, the driveway is not going to be as strong and you could have troubles in as little as got a couple of years. But you put one down that has more aggregate, it can last-place 10 times or more.
And that’s today’s Pro Project was put forward by HomeAdvisor.com. With HomeAdvisor, you can get matched with top-rated home service pros in your orbit and equate rates, predicted validated reviews and book appointments online, all free of charge. No content the type of job, HomeAdvisor does it fast and easy to hire the best regional pros.
Well, one of "the worlds largest" amusing parts of attending the National Hardware Show is the chance to see brand-new concoctions that are propelled, and very often done so to help solve a problem or finding a solution for pros that are engaged in the day-to-day home remodeling business. And for example, if you’ve ever remodeled a lavatory and manufactured the smart-alecky decision to use a HardieBacker Fiber Cement Backer Board for the purposes of the floors and walls, you may know that one of the more annoying parts of working with this material is trimming it. You can generate a lot of dust and it could be hard to cut straight or arched or circle cuts, like when you need to procreate punctures for tub-and-shower faucets or for lavatory plumbing.
PacTool has a solution, though. It’s called Snapper Shear Pro. It’s designed to fit on any cordless drill, acquiring backer-board gashes fast and easy indoors with less mess and airborne dust. With me to talk about that is Joy Rebustes from Packer Tools.
Welcome, Joy.
JOY: Hi. And it’s nice to be here.
TOM: So, while there are other cutting tools for HardieBacker, these are largely very large tools and costly tools, right?
JOY: Especially if you’re expending something like a shear, it can be very pricy, it can be very heavy. Your two alternatives would be to use a utility pierce or a scoring knife to actually merely click it. And that can take a long time.
TOM: And you have to deal with the dust, very, right? That’s somewhat distasteful where reference is kind of get in your face.
JOY: Exactly.
TOM: And those capability tools generate a lot of dust because they’re operating very fast.
JOY: Yeah. And you obviously don’t want to get all that dust into a person’s home.
TOM: Yeah. Or make a mess of the whole thing. So that’s where Snapper Shear Pro comes in. Now, this is not a standalone tool; this is an attachment.
JOY: That’s correct.
TOM: And it goes on a cordless instruct? Is that right? Or electrical drill?
JOY: Yeah. So any of your cordless instruct, whatever your favorite artillery stage is, you are able to simply snap it on. It’s basically like a beings flake. You switch it out, do your strokes and whatever you need. You already have it on hand.
TOM: So a great option for a pro that maybe doesn’t do bathrooms every day, so he doesn’t have the standalone dominance tools for this, right?
JOY: Right.
TOM: So this style, he was able to just buy the attachment and have the same kind of pro results.
JOY: Exactly. And it’s lightweight and portable. Certainly easy to impart it.
TOM: Yeah. Doesn’t take up much room at all, yeah.
Now, I did get a chance to see a demo of this and man, it can chipped circles like it’s butter.
JOY: Right.
TOM: It actually worked well. So how fast is it actually operating?
JOY: We recommend squandering it on an 18 -volt but I entail it departs moderately swiftly. It’s as good as what you would use with a normal-size shear.
TOM: And is there a limit, in terms of the size of the holes that we are able to trimmed with it? Can you use it( inaudible )?
JOY: It can go down to a 3-inch diameter.
TOM: And it’s perfect for a plumbing locate, right?
JOY: Exactly.
TOM: Yeah, for a lavatory basi, I should say.
JOY: And right now, it’s very painful to create circles in sponsor committee without creating a huge mess.
TOM: Yeah. Mm-hmm.
JOY: This definitely saves a lot of time.
TOM: And a lot less expensive tool. The blades on it, eventually you’re going to want to replace those. Or do you sharpen them? How does "whos working"?
JOY: They’re fully replaceable.
TOM: OK. Well, that’s pretty sweet, right?
Now, you guys are a part of the General Tools Company and you’ve been a real leader in innovation for a lot of years.
JOY: Yes. And back in 2017, we really acquired PacTool International. They once had what was "ve called the" Snapper Shear Backer-Board Shear. And then we became- when we are took over, we decided, you know, keep on innovating. And we created the Snapper Shear Pro.
TOM: And you guys now have over- did I predict right?- 1,200 tools?
JOY: Correct.
TOM: Wow. That’s a lot of tools.
JOY: Range in anything from ...
TOM: Yeah, what’s the reach?
JOY: From woodworking to plumbing to moisture meters, IRTs. We have it all.
TOM: That’s huge. So what’s your favorite part of this new tool? You were the produce manager on this, is that right?
JOY: Correct.
TOM: Yeah. So, you’ve- this is like the birth of your child.
JOY: It obviously is.
TOM: Yeah.
JOY: It’s enormous to see a chink in the market where we can stir concepts better.
TOM: Right.
JOY: In talking to contractors and trying to find easier ways to install something that can be a bit of a sting and imparting that solution to the market, it’s obviously very great.
TOM: Right. What’s the response been from the contractors that you’ve shared this with?
JOY: Definitely very positive. Sometimes, when we show them a demo, they - "youre seeing" the evident mouth divergence. It’s like, “Wow. This could shape my work a whole lot easier, a whole lot cleaner.”
TOM: Wow. Yeah. “How fast can I get it? Where can I get wise? ” Right?
JOY: Right.
TOM: Yeah. Now you have an answer to that.
JOY: Yes, I do.
TOM: So what is it?
JOY: You are now able to find this on Amazon. It’ll retail at $99. You can exactly position it on your drill and then you’ll preparing for and go.
TOM: Yeah, perfectly. That’s fantastic.
So, Joy, thank you so much for stopping by The Money Pit. That’s a great, new innovation and merely another example of what we’re seeing here: tools that continues to evolve, they continue to become refined and they continue to provide solutions for the day-to-day tasks that pros was therefore necessary to tackle.
JOY: Right. So, cut HardieBacker a good deal faster and cleaner.
TOM: Joy Rebustes from General Tools, thank you so much for stopping by The Money Pit.
The company is called PacTool. Their website is PacTool- that’s spelled P-a-c-T-o-o-l-. us. PacTool.us.
This is The Money Pit Home Improvement Show on the road today in Las Vegas, Nevada at the 2019 National Hardware Show. I’m Tom Kraeutler and we’d love for you to join the conversation. Just call in your home improvement or decoration question now to 888 -MONEY-PIT presented by HomeAdvisor. They genuinely have the best neighbourhood pros for any home service. Doesn’t matter what the project is, they make it fast and easy to find those top-rated pros. And there are no membership rewards. It’s 100 -percent free to use. Go to HomeAdvisor.com.
And just onward, with summertime approaching, we’re all going to be spending a lot more time outdoors. And that’s where we’re going to be joined by millions of disease-carrying mosquitoes and tickings. We’re going to highlight a natural commodity that can effectively hinder those imperfections away, after this.
Making good homes better, this is The Money Pit Home Improvement Show. I’m Tom Kraeutler coming back you today from the 2019 National Hardware Show in Las Vegas, where we’re highlighting some of very good of very good innovations in home improvement and DIY products.
If you’d like to join the conversation, call in your home improvement or decoration question, 24/7, to 888 -MONEY-PIT presented by HomeAdvisor, where it’s easy to find top-rated local home improvement pros for any residence activity. Go to HomeAdvisor.com.
And we’ve got a couple of determines of giveaways to talk about today, thanks to our friends at Greenworks: one for the industry insiders here at the National Hardware Show and another for you at home. We’ve got two of the new Greenworks 2,300 -PSI Electric Pressure Washers, a superb, brand-new tool for cleanup lots of places around your mansion. We’ve likewise got two Blower/String Combo Kits and a hedge trimmer and two $50 offering placards from Lowe’s, where you’re going to find lots of other awful Greenworks products.
You can discontinue your card in The Money Pit hard hat here at the show or for those at home, pate on over to MoneyPit.com and register the Green Your Home Giveaway presented by Greenworks.
Well, with time approaching, we’re all going to be spending a lot more time outdoors where we will be joined by millions of disease-carrying clicks and mosquitoes. And if that troublesome speculation isn’t enough for you, it may not help to know that the main ingredient for most insect repellants is DEET and not a product you should take lightly or apply lightly.
Beaumont Products volunteers a better alternative called Bug Band. With us to talk about that is Rob Wade, Vice President of Sales.
Welcome, Rob.
ROB: Thank you for having me, Tom.
TOM: So I’m one of the rare tribes that really had reason to read the instructions and warnings in the fine print of mosquito repellant. And I was always surprised to find that when it contains DEET, there’s two rules that I think are never preceded, one of which is you should only put it on uncovered bark. But folks do that with their kids and they introduced jackets on, right? Then they go outside and of course, they never wipe it off.
ROB: Correct.
TOM: And the other instruction is that when you come inside, you’re supposed to immediately wash everything is off. Now , nothing does that, freedom?
ROB: Nobody.
TOM: But the instructions are there to get it on and they wouldn’t be approved by the EPA if those instructions weren’t there, right?
ROB: Mm-hmm. That is correct.
TOM: But that’s something that "youve been" need to know. If it’s that hazardous- that maybe you ought to be following that guideline. The alternatives, though, that you volunteer are much better than that because I dream you could settle it on and forget about it.
ROB: Absolutely. And the thing is you’ll never hear me say a bad situation about DEET. It was made a long time ago for the military as an effective insect repellant.
TOM: Right.
ROB: But we have seen the market change in the past 30 times where the natural-products consumer has become- to the forefront of shopping.
TOM: Right.
ROB: And what they’re looking for is alternatives to chemical-based makes. And what we do with the Bug Band thread is we render them a naturally-derived insect repellant that is effective for repelling mosquitoes and ticks.
TOM: Now, I’m reading about this and the key part is- and you tell me how this is enunciated- geraniol?
ROB: Geraniol oil.
TOM: Geraniol oil. Geraniol oil. OK. So, I guess, because it comes from geraniums?
ROB: That is correct.
TOM: Oh, OK. Alright. Well, that’s about as natural as it gets, yeah.
ROB: It is. And they did a 17 -year study on it to prove the effectiveness as a repellant for mosquitoes.
TOM: OK. So how does it compare against picaridin and DEET?
ROB: Well, DEET, again, is- DEET is effective whereas this is just as effective with the naturalness of it. You might not watch the eight-hour length of era for it but you’re still going to be efficiency of two to three hours before you are required to reapply.
TOM: OK. Alright. Now, how do you apply it? Is it basically exactly a spraying liniment or are there other ways to sort of have that same protection?
ROB: We have several different hodgepodges of application, from wrist bands to towelettes and spray creams. We have the wrist bands as kind of the light-duty. We see people set that on their wrists, on their ankles. Parents will situate that on strollers to employ in various regions of the children. The towelettes we adore having because that’s one of the fastest-growing certain segments of insect-repellant application.
TOM: Let me stop you. So you say you settled it on a stroller. So it’s not the body heat that’s releasing it.
ROB: No, it’s the vapor that it’s emitting.
TOM: OK. Got it. Mm-hmm. And what does that do? Sort of give you a bit of a protective sort of personal force field around you to keep those insects apart?
ROB: In a roundabout sort of way.
TOM: Yeah.
ROB: What it does is the mosquitoes pick up on the scent and it precisely various kinds of mostly drives them away.
TOM: OK. Now, what happens if you apply this and maybe go swimming in the ocean or a pool or something like that?
ROB: The same with any product like this. You get out- it is somewhat water-repellant. The wrist bands are great because you don’t was therefore necessary to reapply. But with any insect repellant or any sunscreen or anything like that, you’ll still have to reapply.
TOM: That’s interesting. Now, you said you have the towelettes, you have the rebuff band. Did I see that you have an approved produce now that was recognized by the Boy Scouts of America?
ROB: Mm-hmm. That is correct. We ought to have providing the Boy Scout Kits for fairly some time.
TOM: That’s unusually handy to have because we do get in the lumbers quite often.
ROB: Yes. And being a Boy Scout myself, it’s something nice to have.
TOM: Mm-hmm. Well, that’s great.
Now, let’s talk about the spray creams. So that’s, I guess, if you really need heavy-duty protection, that’s when you can apply that?
ROB: That is rectify. And we have an application. It’s a continual spraying. So a lot of insect repellants on the market have the little finger-pump scatters that become very inconvenient when you’re trying to bend down and get your ankles.
TOM: Right. Right. Mm-hmm.
ROB: So the continual scatter is necessary that no matter which way you’re bracing the can, you can still get a perpetual brook of insect repellant on your skin.
TOM: So this is good for boys, for scout events, tenting, really marching in the woods, gardening and yardwork. We’re doing a lot of that now, right?
ROB: Yes. It’s something that as- I mean we’re at the Hardware Show because this is where people are working around their homes. And that’s when you’re going to come in contact a lot with the insects. And this is a great way to repel them.
TOM: Alright. Now I "ve been informed that" Bug Band is a brand of Beaumont Product. You guys are also the makers of Citrus Magic, a concoction that we know well and have used only for numerous, many years. And we like it because it’s, again, an all-natural air freshener.
ROB: All natural, 100 -percent active ingredients and one of the best ways to freshen the breeze around your home.
TOM: Now, Leslie has always said that it’s the only way to renew the napkin pail. She generated her minors up with that stuff.
Alright. Fantastic. Rob Wade from Beaumont Products, thank you so much for stopping by The Money Pit.
You can learn more about Bug Band at BugBand.net or announcement 1-800-451-7096.
Thanks, Rob.
ROB: Thank you.
TOM: This is The Money Pit coming back you today from the 2019 National Hardware Show in Las Vegas, Nevada. I’m Tom Kraeutler. Meet those discussions. Call in your questions to 888 -MONEY-PIT was put forward by HomeAdvisor, where you’ll discovery top-rated home busines pros. You can compare prices and book appointments online, all for free.
And still ahead, if you enjoy working on the lawn and the garden until bugs or disease get in the way of all your good work, we’re going to highlight a 90 -year-old company with a national network of no-cost expert resources to help you figure out the best way to get your garden back on track, after this.
Making good dwellings better, welcome back to The Money Pit Home Improvement Show. I’m Tom Kraeutler coming to you from the 2019 National Hardware Show in Las Vegas, presented by Greenworks.
And if you enjoy working on the lawn and garden and then sitting back to appreciate the fruits of your strive, you are probably also one to become super irked when insects or disease get in the way of all your good work. Fortunately, there’s a enormous library of solutions for practically anything you’ll run into, that’s been assembled by a company who recently celebrated their 90 th anniversary.
With me to talk about that is Rick Speer, the national marketings director for Bonide.
Welcome, Rick.
RICK: Thank you very much, Tom.
TOM: You guys had some humble beginnings, from 1926, when you got started, right? Two brethren got the company croaking?
RICK: Two brothers got together, are of the view that they could make a go of it in the Upstate New York area. And would build concoction and then go and sell the product and then come back and clear some more.
TOM: I think it was amusing. I predict on your website that these people started in the second floor of a hotel.
RICK: Well, the bar, actually.
TOM: The barroom, OK.
RICK: Yeah, the bar of the hotel.
TOM: Well, that’s amazing. And you had a awfully rapid transition over the years. And today, you guys are providing slews and lots of resources. Because let’s face it, you framed a lot of work into creating beautiful yards and plots and countrysides. And then the insects set into it and gentleman, it’s just hard to figure out exactly what to do. And you guys addressed that because you have the commodity learning, you have the expertise. And you’ve determined it highly accessible for customers to get that intelligence through your relationships around the country.
So let’s talk about some of the things that you’ve done to help provide that message, commencing with your website. You’ve got a lot of concoction intelligence there and names on how to use stuff there. But you’ve also got a problem solver. That must be a quite popular area.
RICK: It is. We have- in our website, it’s a vast website of concoction report. But also on that problem solver, which is on the website, you are able to ogle or sought for your pest- which could be an insect, could be a disease- and then find the solution for that trouble, which may be several different items.
TOM: Yeah. And I see that you can search by pest or by seed. And then you can also dive into some quick navigates that kind of cover it all. You’ve got a quick guide there to grass, which is something a good deal of folks are facing right now.
RICK: Exactly. And weeds are growing very rapidly with all the precipitation.
TOM: Weeds are proliferating like weeds.
RICK: Exactly. There you go.
TOM: Yeah. So you’ve got the weed info and then, also, the bugs, the bugs.
RICK: The bugs and disease, as well.
TOM: Right. So, how does somebody "know what i m saying" disease to even start with when they’re exploiting these guides?
RICK: Well, generally, when you appear, you’ll have- relate an illness or a gras. You can either capture the picture with your smartphone and then liken it to some of the grass that we will have on the problem-solver website.
TOM: OK.
RICK: And then that will point you in future directions of solutions for that weed.
TOM: OK. So you mostly kind of do your own comparison and figure out what’s going on there. What do you think the- what is sort of the first signed of disturb that beings should be looking for? What are the signs that parties miss when they’re looking at their lawn and their garden that maybe if they discerned it earlier, they may be able to prevent some of the damage?
RICK: One stuff that they’ll see is the grass or turf is not proliferating thick, which could be a sign of a disease, because the grass is dying in a given area.
TOM: OK. Mm-hmm.
RICK: Or you may have a pest. You may have squirrels, or something digging in the garden, that you need to get rid of or unattractive gras that are taking over the lawn.
TOM: You could also have scarcities, right, in the nutrients, for example, if the lawn’s not getting what it needs to foster its rise?
RICK: You could. You could have that, as well. And you could do a clay test and take that- sometimes they have soil experiments at your neighbourhood garden-variety center.
TOM: Right.
RICK: They could race a soil-sample test for you and then support the solutions there, as well.
TOM: Now, you likewise have a Q& A midst, so I guess that’s a good plaza because you get to see the problems kind of firsthand that people are coming at you with, right?
RICK: There is a Q& A or FAQs- often asked questions- with mixtures that are provided on our website, as well.
TOM: Right. Now, you guys have also developed what I think is an interesting system, the action that you sort of leveraged the affinity you have with these garden-variety centers across the country. You have a diagnostic hub which is very, really unique, I envisage, to Bonide. And this is an opportunity for beings to get that next tier of detail. Talk about how that works.
RICK: Well, what it works with the diagnostic center is it’s a collect of answers, Bonide produces. When they purchase that assortment of goods, they get the diagnostic middle be used to help help their customers. Within the diagnostic core, there’s a microscope that they could employ the gras or insect underneath, of course, to exacerbate it for individual consumers to see it.
TOM: Right.
RICK: And that’s connected, also, with a database with our difficulty solver, as well.
TOM: Great. So that’s sort of that next height of detail. So if you making it into the center, if you can’t link it maybe off the website, you can bring it into the center and then sound into this up-to-date information with these advanced tools, to really sort of look at that next height of detail and figure out what’s going on there.
RICK: That’s exactly right.
And that problem solver, by the way, Tom, is also offered in the App Store, whether it’s iOS or- and likewise the Android.
TOM: Yeah, that’s genuinely handy. What various kinds of feedback are you getting from consumers? Are you sounding any interesting stories?
RICK: Well, there’s always an interesting one where a user wants to share his or her pest or question and their own personal solutions.
TOM: Right. Yeah.
RICK: But the majority of cases, when they’re contacting us is that those personal solutions aren’t welcome.
TOM: Haven’t drove, right? Yeah.
RICK: So they demand the real people at Bonide to help.
TOM: Yeah, like the person or persons that believe that they can kill all their weeds with vinegar, you know.
RICK: There are some of those.
TOM: Yeah. Well, it’s nice to have the skills required of Bonide, 90 years of history and invention, to be there to help you with these issues. Because let’s face it, we placed a lot of work into this. We had wished to enjoy it when it’s done.
RICK: We do. We will sit back and loosen and experience the outcome of the our labor.
TOM: Alright. Well, great work. Rick Speer from Bonide, thank you so much for being a part of The Money Pit’s 2019 National Hardware Show broadcast.
You are listening to The Money Pit broadcasting from the stage at the 2019 National Hardware Show in Las Vegas, presented by Greenworks. To watch what we verify while shielding the substantiate, all you are required to do is follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, #NHShow.
We’ll be back with more from Las Vegas, Nevada and the National Hardware Show, after this.
Making good dwellings better, welcome back to The Money Pit Home Improvement Show. I’m Tom Kraeutler. And we are coming to today from the 2019 National Hardware Show in Las Vegas. We’ve assembled all of our favorite inventions. You can check them out online at our hashtag #NHShow.
Well, from demolition to decor, we’ve got you are covered under tip-off and admonition to help you get the job done. Call us now with your home improvement questions at 888 -MONEY-PIT presented by HomeAdvisor, where we’ll instantaneously match you with the privilege pro for the job, for free.
Well, smart-home makes prevent get smarter and simpler and they give more that you can do while becoming easier to be established. The C by GE line is a great example of that. With us to talk about inventions in lighting is Rochelle Hartigan.
Welcome, Rochelle.
ROCHELLE: Hi, Tom. Thanks for having me.
TOM: So, folks are getting a lot more of their lighting today. It used to be that we could just turn them on and off, maybe from an app. But with developments in GE’s C by GE line, you’ve actually come a long way from that. Talk to me about that.
ROCHELLE: We have. So, GE has been working hard over the past few years. We’ve been really developing our C by GE line, which is our connected portfolio.
TOM: Yep.
ROCHELLE: And this year likewise rolling out a whole various forms of new ways to expect more from your light bulb. So, light bulbs are no longer only a stuff to light the chamber of representatives but they can do so much more. So at this show, we’ve been sport our LED+ direction, which includes light bulbs that have a loudspeaker built in, light bulbs that have artillery backups so when the supremacy disappear out you can actually still get light out of your apps.
TOM: OK. Very cool. So the artillery backup is in the bulb itself?
ROCHELLE: It’s in the bulb, yes.
TOM: Wow. That’s pretty cool.
ROCHELLE: So when the capability proceeds out, your beacons still ...
TOM: Built-in emergency illuminate. Yeah.
ROCHELLE: Yes. And you can take it out of the lamp and use it as a flashlight. We’ve too expanded what we can do with the light-footed spectrum, so we’ve inserted a entire argument of originate lights.
TOM: Yeah, I’ve heard about these. You have the color bulbs and the tunable bulbs. That’s really fascinating. So how does that work? How do I- I tune in the excellent flame for the need that I want to use it for, whether it’s ripening or predicting or whatever?
ROCHELLE: Sure, yeah. So we’re capable of doing so within our C by GE line precisely. We’ve got a whole line of color-changing bulbs. So we’ve got a tunable white bulb that allows you to change precisely the right perfect ambiance of lily-white light-headed that you prefer, whether you require a cozy feeling or something that’s bright and energizing or just something that are actually enhances your decor.
And we’ve also included a line of RGB color bulbs. So if you want to do something more festive or celebrate a holiday, you can certainly do that with a great color.
TOM: Can I get those illuminations pumping during a party?
ROCHELLE: You could, yeah.
TOM: Well, the tunable daylights are superb because as our eyes change and the room’s changing, the types of light bulbs that are sort of participating, likewise, with maybe simply the smart bulbs that you have, you really want to be able to kind of narrow down that light-colored to be able to make it easier for you to read or just relax or get to sleep, right?
ROCHELLE: Sure.
TOM: You’re sort of vie with all of those different influencers in the interests of fixtures in your live, to be acknowledged that right compounding. And with this functionality, you can really do that. You can get it just right.
ROCHELLE: Yeah. You can aria the colour of the light.
The other really interesting thing that you can do with connected igniting is set schedules and truly customize to your specific lifestyle. So if you come home at the same time every day and you don’t had wished to come home to a night room, you can rectified a schedule that they’re ever on and waiting for you. And that’s just one example of something that you can do to make light genuinely live for your lifestyle.
TOM: And you can talk to these through all of your smart-home connected machines, as well?
ROCHELLE: Yes. So you can use your articulation assistants, whether that’s Google or Alexa. Or you can just plain use the app, whether it’s C by GE or one of those voice-assistant apps. You "ve got a lot" of control of the lane that you control the lighting in your home.
TOM: Heaps and lots of options in igniting. Rochelle Hartigan, where can we learn more?
ROCHELLE: GELighting.com or CByGE.com.
TOM: Thank you so much better for stopping by The Money Pit.
ROCHELLE: Thanks, Tom.
TOM: This is The Money Pit Home Improvement Show continuing from the 2019 National Hardware Show. We’re just about out of time but don’t forget to check out our selects in the Top Products Gallery at MoneyPit.com and on Twitter, exercising that hashtag #TopProductsNHS.
I’m Tom Kraeutler. Remember, you can do it yourself but you don’t was therefore necessary to do it alone.
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