Episode #1997: Why Quarantines Make Allergies Worse | Easy to Build Fire Pits | Tricks for Cleaning Shades
In this occurrence …
Have you noticed that your allergies are particularly bad this year? Well it is about to change that quarantines can actually make allergies worse! Learn why from one of the nation’s best experts on indoor air quality. Plus, learn some sits allergens secrete we guarantee you never would have thought of! Also in this episode š TAGEND
Want to enhance its outdoor cavity by adding an outdoor kitchen, fuel excavation, grill enclosing, planters or even a terrace? We share a way to do that which is as easy as stacking blocks! If you shed open your windows for fresh air and then choked on the dirt that came off…you may have noticed your shades need a little of tending! When it comes to Spring cleaning, cellular or pleated canopies often get dismissed because they’re delicate. Tom& Leslie share tricks-of-the-trade to clean shades without damaging them.If you’re moving into a brand-new home soon, painting is one really important thing to do after you buy it and before you move in.Plus, as the saying starts, if it resonates very good to be true, it probably isn’t! We share a painting product that manufacturers claimed to last decades- but doesn’t. Plus, a brand-new class of durable deck painting concoctions that come as close to those claims as possible, and can drastically improve the ogle of old, worn floors and piers.
All that along with answers to your dwelling improvement a matter of, repairing a sump run, acquiring chemical free boards, installing radiant flooring, plans for garage conversion .
Do you have a home improvement or decor question? Call the show 24/7 at 888 -MONEY-PIT ( 888 -6 66 -3 974) or post your question now.
Read Transcript
TOM: Coast to coast and floorboards to shingles, this is The Money Pit Home Improvement Show. I’m Tom Kraeutler.
LESLIE: And I’m Leslie Segrete.
TOM: We’re now to help you with activities you’re doing or campaigns you’re dreaming about. Give us a bellow because we’d love to help you get those jobs done. The multitude is 1-888-MONEY-PIT, 888 -6 66 -3 974.
We are, at our core, dwelling improvers. Well, I’m more of a dwelling improver and I would say, Leslie, you’re more of a home painter. We various kinds of have both sides of this covered, right?
LESLIE: I make improvements when necessary.
TOM: Yeah, that’s right. To get the decorating done, you’ll cook stuff.
LESLIE: Correct.
TOM: And to get home betterments finished, I’ll occasionally even embellish. But we don’t claim to know it all but we probably know fairly, between the two of us, to help you with projects that you’d like to get done. So, “ve been thinking about” that and apply us a request. The list is 888 -MONEY-PIT. You can call us any time of the working day or light that you hear this program, whether it is live or it is by podcast. You’re welcome to contact us at 888 -6 66 -3 974 and we will call you back the next time we’re in the studio.
Well, coming up on this edition of The Money Pit, if you propel open your windows for fresh air and then suffocated on all the dust that came flying off, you may have noticed that your canopies need a little bit of courtesy. And when it comes to spring clean, they are often ignored because they’re so fragile. We’re going to have some gratuities, though, on how you can clean-living those shades without damaging them.
LESLIE: And speaking of dust, have you noticed that your reactions are particularly bad this time of year? Well, it is about to change that quarantines have been able to make allergies worse. We’re going to explain why and ply gratuities on homes allergens disguise, that you may never have even though of, in precisely a bit.
TOM: And if you’d like to improve your outdoor space by adding an outdoor kitchen or maybe only a fire pit or a grill enclosing or a planter or a workbench, there is a really easy way to do that that is as simple as stacking blocks. We’re going to tell you what that is.
LESLIE: But first, we want to know what you want to know. What are you working on this week? If you’ve got a project that you’d like to get done but there is a requirement some assistant, you’re stuck on a certain part, maybe you need some assistance solving a problem, whatever it is “were here to” lend a hand.
TOM: The multitude is 1-888-MONEY-PIT, 888 -6 66 -3 974. Or post your questions at Facebook.com or Instagram, The Money Pit.
LESLIE: Renee, you’ve went The Money Pit. How can we help you today?
RENEE: My question is concerning my sump run. Undoubtedly, a sump pump in the vault. And for a long time- for several months, I had not heard the sump run going on. A few weeks- months before, when it was raining very hard, I went down to the basement to see why the sump shoot wasn’t kicking on and it was the well was filled with water. So, I disappeared ahead and I drained the sea out by bucketing- making buckets of this, spouting barrels of ocean out until I got down to see where the bullet was. And it still wouldn’t come on. So I sounded the ball and eventually, when the water rose, it did knock on again.
But then now I’m hearing this gurgling phone in my kitchen-sink piping. And I want to know why.
TOM: Where is the sump pump discharging? Is it discharging into this basement sink?
RENEE: The sump spout fulfills- it’s connected to the outside sewer line. And that’s- I guess that sewer- the line is connected to the basement- the kitchen sink.
TOM: OK. So first of all, it has to go through a trap. If it doesn’t go through a bait, you may get sewage gas that comes back into the basement. So that’s the first thing.
Secondly, the rippling has the potential to- because it doesn’t have enough water in the sump itself. You’re probably plucking a lot of air in there.
And thirdly, because your sump pump was crowding up when you had heavy rain, the source of that ocean is easily within your ability to repair and stop. Generally, when your sump spout loads up after a heavy rain, it’s because your sewers are blockage or overflowing or your downspouts are not exhausting away from the foundation. Or the grunge around the house is not sloping away from the outside walls. That’s what causes problems with water fill up in cellars and spates in a sort- because that outside surface sewage is just not set up right.
So I would focus on improving your exterior sewage. There’s a great article on MoneyPit.com about how to solve wet basements. A lot of that suggestion applies to this. And then you’ll find that the sump spout will have to run that much less.
RENEE: OK. That’s immense news.
TOM: Renee, thanks so much for announcing us at 888 -MONEY-PIT.
LESLIE: Steven in Texas needs some help with a cabinet project. What can we do for you?
STEVEN: Yes. So my partner has challenges with chemicals, like formaldehydes and glues and paints that they put in kitchen cabinet, the brand-new ones. And I was wondering if you had any idea what a person could use that you could get away from those types of substances in cabinets.
TOM: So you’re looking for a cabinet manufacturer that is sort of formaldehyde-free and VOC-free? Is that correct?
STEVEN: Yeah, that’d be right. Yes.
TOM: Steve, that’s an interesting question because when it is necessary to kitchen cabinets, so many of the products that go into kitchen cabinet have the potential to have VOCs or volatile organic complexes in their own homes. Because you could start with the boards that are used to build the cabinets. If they’re a pressboard or a composite board of some sort, that may have formaldehyde in it, for example. Then you have the finishes and on and on and on.
I think what you want to do is you want to look for kitchen cabinetry that is built to meet the brand-new CARB2 standard. That’s C–AR-B-2 standard. That expressed support for the California Air Reserve Board and that’s a standard that measures the level of those types of virus in cabinetry. And so if you sought for kitchen cabinets that encounter that standard, I think that’s a good sit to start.
STEVEN: Well, generally, I do like maybe some metal cabinets, you know. That would look nice in a kitchen. Would you have any feelings on something like that?
TOM: Well, you’d still have finishes on metal boards that would have some of the same issues.
STEVEN: Yeah.
TOM: I haven’t envisioned metal lockers in a kitchen in forever. The Gladiator kinfolks at Whirlpool are doing a really good job these days with metal cabinetry for laundry rooms and utility areas and rooms like that. But I don’t know if that cabinet path is going to extend to the point where you’d have enough flexibility to do it in a kitchen.
LESLIE: Well, I can share with you a merchant of a no-formaldehyde-added cabinetry. They’re actually beautiful, handmade, wooden closets. I’m not sure this is right their rate point but I am familiar with the fact that they are not adding any compounds to it. And they are very responsible in how they implement the lumber and the products that they use to make their closets. It’s a company out of Portland and their figure is Neil Kelly. And it’s N-e-i-l-K-e-l-l-y.
And then, there was a metal-cabinet manufacturer that I was familiar with a while ago. It’s Fillip Metal and it’s F-i-l-l-i-p. It’s sort of this new revival of some interesting, repurposed textiles. And you might want to check them out, as well.
STEVEN: OK. Well , thank you very much for the information. I appreciate it.
TOM: Good fortune with that campaign. Thanks so much for announcing us at 888 -MONEY-PIT.
LESLIE: Paula in Missouri is on the line and wants to get a heated storey in her home. How can we help you?
PAULA: We have an old farmhouse, which is over 160, 170 years old. And the only floor that- downstairs- that is over a cellar is the kitchen floor. And if you go down in the cellar and look up, you experience clods of trees on which is wooden floor. And then if you go up to the kitchen, there’s some kind of linoleum tile on top of that. And I’m wondering if it’s possible to heat the flooring before putting on new tile or …
TOM: Well, it’s certainly possible to segregate the flooring, for one thing. And a good option for this type of floor might be spray-foam insulation, because it sounds like it’s sort of a non-traditionally formulated floor. Spray foam can fill in all those nooks and crannies, stop drawings from coming up from the cellar and give you a really warm surface.
In expressions of putting, say, a radiant-heat product down, you absolutely can do that. You have to have a nice, flat smooth face. But there are radiant-floor products that are designed to go under tile, for example, that are low-voltage and they’re amazingly affordable to run, especially if you run them on a timer so that they’re not on all the time. And that can stir that storey a lot more comfortable.
So I study the solution, Paula, is an association of isolation and beaming hot , not just radiant heat itself. Because if you don’t shield it, it has to work that much harder to warm the floor up.
PAULA: OK. Thanks a lot.
TOM: Alright. Good fortune with that job, Paula. Thanks so much for announcing us at 888 -MONEY-PIT.
LESLIE: Charlie in Texas is on the line and has a question about a porch. What’s going on?
CHARLIE: I contributed a portion to a hall. I had it done. I had a pergola put on it. And the concrete has risen up about an inch from the other part- segment- that was already rained. You have any ideas what I can do about that?
TOM: So it rose up? Do you have expansive clays in your part of the country?
CHARLIE: No, it’s reasonably clay grunges. And I did have a sprinkler system underneath it but I had entirely sounded it off and everything. And then, I had a company come in there and pour this slab so I could give a pergola on it. And it has risen about an inch above where the original foyer was poured.
TOM: So it didn’t crack. It only- it basically exactly elevated up above the old grade? Is that correct?
CHARLIE: That’s correct.
TOM: And the reason I ask you about expansive grimes, there’s a type of soil called “expansive clay soil” and there’s a fairly good amount of it in Texas. And when swelling clay grunges get wet, they expand. And that could cause this heaving. I don’t think it’s frost gasp, because you don’t have this type of swings.
CHARLIE: Oh , no. It’s not that at all.
TOM: But it may be the clays. And you’re not going to be able to get it to settle back down again, I can tell you that.
So, if you do redo this, right- if you dig it out and redo it- one of the things that you might talk to the contractor about is they may be able to insert- instruct- some rebar into the old-fashioned specific and mostly have a physical connection between the two, to keep them in- mostly in line.
CHARLIE: Right.
TOM: It’s going to be not an easy- and it’s going to depend on how dense that old- the original skin-deep is and whether they can do it without cracking and so on. So that’s one thing I would say.
Then the other thing I would talk- I would is i pay careful attention to how you prep the base underneath this slab that you’re now going to replace, to make sure that it’s dug out fairly, it’s went stone in it, it’s well tamped. Mechanically tamped would be smart. You know, “if youre having” 6 inches of stone before you threw the concrete in and then you situated rebar on top of that to keep it all in one piece, when it’s swarmed that’s going to be a lot harder for that to move, even if you do get some expansion. And then precisely be very cautious of liquid collecting in that area.
So, what I signify by that is if you have downspouts that may drain towards that area or if there’s anything else that’s causing spray to gather in that area and you could minimize that, that enables you to if, in fact, you do have these types of swelling grunges that I’m talking about.
There’s a produce called Re-Cap that will stick to age-old concrete. What if he were to make a band of- mostly, sort of trowel yourself a ramp, right? I would make it 12 inches wide, where it made the high-pitched shape of the brand-new slab and then tapered it down to the old-time porch so that it wasn’t a stumble peril there. Because replacing this thing is going to be really expensive and it’s a lot of work.
CHARLIE: Yes, it is.
TOM: If you don’t- yeah, if you don’t mind trying this in the interim, you might want to pick up some Re-Cap. Essentially, the practice it works is you clean the concrete and then you dried it down. You trowel on this Re-Cap.
If it was me, what I would do is I would probably snap a chalk line that- about 12 inches from the end from the brand-new advantage so that I had something to aim towards, right? And then I would build it up even with the new boundary and I would trowel it down to made that chalk indication at the brand-new edge.
CHARLIE: Yes, right.
TOM: And then you mostly- the reason that you’re use Re-Cap is because it deposits to the old-time concrete surface. Any other type of mortar is going to split off, right? This will stick to it and then you won’t have the above-mentioned issues with a tripping luck. And then, frankly, if that works out for you, you could just paint the whole thing- old and new- and it wouldn’t be very obvious what you did.
CHARLIE: I appreciate it very much, sir.
TOM: Alright. Good fortune, Charlie. Stay safe.
Well, when it comes to spring cleansing, one thing that often gets dismissed are the colors. And that’s because today’s cellular or pleated colors are fragile. So, you need to be careful.
LESLIE: A good dusting with a vacuum cleaner is usually all that those pleated or cellular shades truly need. But the stunt is you’ve got to take them down and sit them down, fully lengthened, on a clean bedsheet spread out on the floor or a table.
Next, you’ve got to be sure that you lower that vacuum-clean suction, if possible. Now, most vacuums have a port on the extension that you can open up. And that’s going to reduce the suction at the touch end.
TOM: Now, to keep those blinds directing smoothly, precisely vacuum-clean away the junk inside that open top or headrail. That’s where all the mechanical sides are and those paraphernaliums are. And then spot-clean stains by dabbing those smudges with a cloth dipped in merely mild, soapy irrigate. Rinse it, blot it and you are good to go. You can place all those blinds back together and you will no longer have sneezings each time you cause and open them.
LESLIE: Sandy in Pennsylvania, you’ve came The Money Pit. How can we help you today?
SANDY: Yes, I was calling to ask about constructing a garage. My husband and I really bought a home. It’s a two-story Colonial but there’s no garage and we’re trying to decide detached, fixed, with or without a breezeway. We know we want it to be oversized but we’re trying to decide which would be the most efficient and convenient option to go with.
TOM: So, it’s as much an architectural question as it is a structural question, because you’re trying to figure out what’s going to fit best with the asset. So that quantity- that involves looking at the house itself in terms of its design and likewise looking at the neighborhood to determine what’s going to fit in well. Because it’s OK to have the nicest house on the block but it’s not OK if it’s that much nicer that the rest of the neighborhood draws it down in price. Does that make sense?
SANDY: Yes. And I conclude the rest of the dwellings are very, very similar except they have garages.
TOM: OK. Well, then that’s a good example for you to follow.
SANDY: OK.
TOM: Now, if “youve had” the breezeway, then apparently you’re going to have more functional space. So I’m not quite sure what we can do to help you with this question, because it’s truly a layout that you have to kind of agree on with your partner and then set apart building it. When it does get built, it plainly has to be built by a pro, in conformity with the requirements of all of the neighbourhood regulations, which are going to probably require that you have a set of architectural plans.
SANDY: OK.
TOM: So, you might just want to start with that because an designer- architects can help you look at the options very easily with the computer programming they use today and give you a chance to look at it from several different directions, both outside and inside, in areas of available storage opening and in different configurations.
SANDY: OK. Too, we need to replace the roof on the residence, so I was thinking attaining it an attached or with a breezeway kind of manufactures it a little bit more efficient. As we oust the roof on the dwelling, we’d be putting the roof on the garage, as well.
TOM: OK. Well, it would make sense for you to do the entire ceiling and have that folded into the same project. And then you have been able, in fact, fold it into the same financing, too, if you’re financing the project. So, yeah, I’m all for scheming those projects to be done together. Because when the roofing team is on site, that’ll be the most cost-effective way to get it all done.
SANDY: OK.
TOM: And to have it match.
SANDY: OK.
TOM: We did our ceiling in the last year and we did exactly what but the garage. And the garage certainly didn’t need it but seeing that brand-new, beautiful roof on the members of this house, I precisely decided that I would neglect the fact that I had a few years of life left on my garage roof. And we did that, as well, which is why we ever say that the three more expensive names in home better are “might as well.”
SANDY: Right. Right.
TOM: Alright? Good luck with that campaign. Thanks so much for announcing us at 888 -MONEY-PIT.
LESLIE: Bob in Tennessee, you’ve get The Money Pit. How can we help you today?
BOB: I have a friend who has a house with a metal roof on it. Their cell service is pretty sternly impacted every time somebody tries to call him on his cell phone when he’s inside his house.
TOM: First off, your cadre is probably always- very often, I “re saying”- inside houses that have metal roofs. Think about it: your faith, your post office, your bank, eateries. There’s a lot of metal ceilings out there. And if he’s having a problem only in his own house, I would suspect that the signal is weak to begin with. And I conclude the solution is a little manoeuvre called a “cell-phone booster.”
A booster can be mostly plugged into the house- inside of the house- and it can double or triple the array of the telephone. So if I was having that issue, I would just get a cell-phone booster, install it in my home- it’s not a very expensive piece of material- and solve my difficulty once and for all.
BOB: OK. Interesting. Well, I just wondered about that.
TOM: Alright. Good fortune with that campaign. Thanks so much for announcing us at 888 -MONEY-PIT.
Well, it’s time to talk about the impact of quarantine on allergies. Let me tell you how this story came about. So I have a very good friend, Jeff May. I’ve known him for probably 20 years. And Jeff is an indoor-air quality expert. He’s a building scientist. He’s written four volumes for Johns Hopkins University Press on all sorts of issues concerning indoor-air quality, from mold and up.
And Jeff was telling me that he’s getting more and more calls from his purchasers, during quarantine periods, than ever before. And we’re talking about tribes that are having allergic reactions, which beg the issues to: why is that? We’re going to find out, right now, from Jeff May.
Jeff, welcome to the program.
JEFF: Thanks, Tom. It’s a pleasure.
TOM: I’ve got to tell you- so, this is the conversation that we just had with Jeff when we called him for this interview. He said, “Oh, I was just doing an experiment. I was taking my particle monitor and trying to figure out if I employed a neckerchief in front of it, how much specks could get through. Because I’ve been telling people to wear masks.”
Only you, Jeff, would be doing that: having a particle monitor to research that. So, what- I have to ask you, what’d you find out? Are bandanas effective?
JEFF: Well, it should have been me in the CDC. But actually, the- I haven’t is being done it long enough, because there’s so much dust on the bandanna itself that when you first turn the thing on, it’s actually higher than the ambient air.
TOM: Oh, boy.
JEFF: But it’s truly- I convey if you are eligible to positioned anything over your face, it’s certainly going to be helpful, either frustrating parties evaporating onto others or inhaling from others.
TOM: So, the secret is just start with a clean bandanna.
JEFF: Yeah. But you can’t even make it that clean. So I have to figure out a mode to do the – you are aware, season it differently.
TOM: OK. Alright. So, Jeff, let’s talk about this idea on how come allergies are a lot worse this time. What are you examining from your clients and from others in the industry?
JEFF: Most people focus on outdoor-air quality and now, there is some attention being paid to indoor-air quality. But in fact, a great deal of parties are sick because of what they breathe from skin-deeps and heating and cooling in the members of this house. So, most- what’s interesting is we find dames are often sicker and kids sicker than subjects, because the men aren’t home as much. So , now, adults are residence more and so we’re starting to see more actions in the girls and the mommies, as well.
TOM: So, mostly, you’re watch a connection between the rise in time spent at home and allergy sufferers.
JEFF: Correct. It prepares ability because you have that much more exposure. And some of the worst things- and I think we mentioned that in one of the articles- in that article we did for you. Basement parts. A heap of parties have departments. They exercise in the cellar and often, those are the places that are very polluted. And so, spend more time in a cavity like that can really affect your health.
LESLIE: Now, I imagine people who have more tribes that are home throughout this are really seeing higher instances of irritants. Does it truly change it, the quantity of people that are home?
JEFF: Oh, yeah, that’s a good point. I never thought of that. Sure, the more people that are home, the higher the level of carbon dioxide emissions from breathing. But I repute the more serious exposures would really come from the furnishings and from the healing-and-cooling system, though. At this pitch, it will be heating chiefly but …
LESLIE: Now, Jeff, do you think that the number of beings at home influences the quantities of allergens that are in the house? Because I will say three of us at home, over these weeks of quarantine, I am vacuum-clean, dusting, cleansing far more often. More often than I reputed I was doing before.
JEFF: Yeah, well, that concludes sense because people molted skin flakes and that’s chiefly what dust is made up of. So, it’s a very fine, white-hot pulverization. And so the more beings you have, the more dust and likewise the more lint you have. Clothing secretes a lot of lint into the air as you are moving, so you’ll too be getting more dust that way.
TOM: We’re talking to Jeff May. Jeff is a building scientist and an indoor-air quality expert with four diaries that he’s written for Johns Hopkins University Press. Long-time contact and friend of The Money Pit.
And Jeff, you wrote a fib for us, which is on the home page of MoneyPit.com, about this issue of how the quarantine is impacting the number of allergens in our homes and what to do about it. And “youve had” some actually surprising things in that. So I want to go through these tips-off promptly so that we kind of cover some of the things that beings maybe have not thought about.
Now, the first one you mentioned, of course, is to wash robe and bunking in hot water and turn your dryer to the hot specify to kill dust mites. We’ve talked about that before. The next one, though, is your dryer hose. You mentioned the amount of lint in the house and venting to the exterior. Good trick now. You say if there’s lint behind your dryer, the hose may be leaking? I have never connected those two and that makes a lot of sense.
JEFF: There will always be a small amount of lint but there should not be a lot of lint. And if there is a lot of lint, that means that you’re breathing in the compounds that’s on the lint, that’s left over from the cleanser. And that can be irritating.
TOM: Now, I love this next one because I don’t see anyone’s ever thought of this. You say that if you’re sitting down for an extended period of time – you’re reading a book, you’re binge-watching Netflix- it’s better to use a leather or vinyl-covered chair or sofa. Why is that?
JEFF: Because the moisture from your torso, where you sit for a long period of time, goes into the cushion. And basically, there’s fairly bark proportions or dust in any cushion to feed the dust mites. All they actually need is humidity from our bodies. And so if you sit for a long time in one place, there’s a lot of sweat. And so the dust touches are extremely happy.
LESLIE: Geez. Now, what can we do to sort of minimize these dust tinges? Is there a certain way we should be laundering our cloak, a certain spot I should be looking to clean extra?
JEFF: The best thing you can do for dust mites is have dust-mite covers on the couches and even the cushions, as well. The dirt mites, as I said, they need that moisture. And if you settled the type of dust mite encasing on the bunked that has a polyurethane liner on it, then it doesn’t let much moisture in.
A lot of the liners, dust-mite covers- here’s a good tip-off, actually. If you can breathe through a liner- if you articulated it up to your cavity and then exhale or breath- if the breeze goes through quickly, then allergens from the dirt mites can also go through. So, that’s why I always recommend one liner that has a little, thin plastic film at the inside. And they’re highly soft and comfortable.
And another thing to think about, actually, if there’s boys where they- if they have a child with asthma and he has a dust-mite cover and you have another kid who does not have asthma and no dust-mite cover, you can still get allergens from one child’s bunked to the other. And so, you really have to- if you have children with asthma, you have to have those extends on all the beds.
TOM: So, Jeff, you also have a great tip here about scavenging in the kitchen.
Now, I’m sure we’re all- we’re cooking more and we’re cleaning more in that room. But you recognize one room in the kitchen that is one that I speculation no one is thinking about and that is the kick space under the cabinet. So what happens in that little opening?
JEFF: I check with a mirror and a flashlight when I do my investigations. And when you look underneath, in the kick room there’s lots of- there’s tons of junk and pet “hairs-breadths”. And very often, the dirt get moisten and so you often find mold grown in the kick space, because nobody ever cleans them.
TOM: Wow. That’s a good point. So if you determine those recognizes of molding, you just wipe the surfaces with a diluted bleach mixture?
JEFF: You can- yeah. Or simply any detergent. But for somebody that “ve got a lot” of allergies, it’s best to vacuum-clean it firstly with a HEPA vacuum and then you are eligible to mop it.
TOM: Yeah. And that’s another good point. Always use a HEPA vacuum- it’s a high-efficiency particulate vacuum- because if you use a regular vacuum, you’re mostly going to be regurgitating all of that dust freedom back into the air. So, HEPA vacuums are really important now. That would be an appliance, if you don’t have one, merit investing. You can certainly order it online and have it delivered.
Well, Jeff’s article is called “Can Quarantine Make Allergy Worse? ” It is live on MoneyPit.com on the home page. You’ve got more tips in now about toilets and toilet paper and how to cleanse and how to empty and shun even more allergens, so I inspire you kinfolks to predict Jeff’s story on MoneyPit.com. He’s also available at MayIndoorAir.com. That’s Jeff’s website. MayIndoorAir.com. If you need an expert and “youre in” the Boston area, that’s where Jeff is based.
And I’m sure- I don’t know, Jeff- even if you’re not in the Boston area, you’re doing some teleconferencing these days and teleconsulting?
JEFF: Yep. Phone consults. Very helpful. People email me envisions and then we talk about that. So, it can be very helpful.
TOM: You know, so many folks that are in this business have a conflict of interest. They’re there to find something wrong and get you to pay them to fix it. That’s not Jeff. Jeff is a true expert, one of the best experts in the country on indoor-air quality. And if you’ve got a serious issue with your live, I cannot recommend him enough.
Jeff, thank you for coming in for the great post and for stopping by The Money Pit today.
JEFF: Thank you, Tom.
TOM: Keep up the good work.
LESLIE: Well, if you’d like to improve your outdoor space by adding an outdoor kitchen, a barrage pit, a grill enclosing, planters or even a bench, there’s a really easy way that you can do that with a produce called RumbleStone.
Now, these are made by Pavestone and are rustic-looking stones that come in project packages. And you simply stack them together, like Legos, in a predetermined pattern to build all kinds of popular outdoor aspects. And because they’re modular, they certainly make it easy and fast and affordable to upgrade your backyard with amenities like an outdoor kitchen, a shoot quarry, even a bench.
You can find some of these RumbleStone gears. They start at about $250 and they can also be used for traditional paver assignments, like patios, walls, even landscaping borders.
TOM: And if you want to strengthen the finished product, you are eligible to even use the QUIKRETE Polymer Construction Adhesive between the stones. So you, basically, are gluing them together. There’s no mortar expected whatsoever.
Now, right now, if we’ve motivated “youre going to” maybe think about this project, there’s a great step-by-step video of a beautiful outdoor kitchen transcended with a QUIKRETE concrete countertop. It’s available online, so you can head on over to MoneyPit.com and realise precisely that.
RumbleStones can be a really beautiful addition to your outdoor-living space. Learn more about them at Pavestone.com. That’s Pavestone.com.
LESLIE: Wilson in North Carolina is on the line dealing with a funky odor coming out of the sag. What’s going on?
WILSON: Yes. I have a water-smelling problem. I’ve came well water. And we’ve got a lot- strong reek. It’s like rotting eggs, particularly in the hot water. We altered the sea heater. Still, it smells. Do I need to change the- also the plumbing, all the pipe in the house or only flush it? If I it is necessary even, what kind of cleans do I needs to have?
TOM: So, you’ve superseded your ocean heater and you’re still having this smell of sulfur. So that eliminates one possible, which is the anode rod. Sometimes, if the anode pole becomes worn out inside the water heater, you will get a sulfur smell.
I think the next best thing for you to do, Wilson, is to add a charcoal filter to the system. But I don’t want you to add it at the faucet. I want you to add it where the primary sea valve comes into the house. This is a good opportunity for a whole-house water filter. And if your water’s not been researched, I would also have it measured at the same time, exactly to make sure that there are not any added contaminants in that ocean apart from that sulfur odor.
LESLIE: Whatever you are working on this spring season, perhaps it’s an outside project and you need a hand. Well, Jerry writes to us with one of those questions now and he says, “I’m hearing from deck-painting corporations who claim that the products they use can discolour and protect a grove deck for 20 times or more. Can I get this commodity and merely make love myself? ”
TOM: Wow, that’s pretty impressive, 20 times. I don’t think that that is accurate, Jerry, but I do have a sense as to what they’re talking about. They’re probably referring to a category of commodities that- it’s still reasonably brand-new, as far as I’m concerned, because I’ve only really seen them around on a regular basis for a few years. And they’re announced “high-build elastomeric coatings.”
A high-pitched erect is tech talk for thick-witted make-up. And elastomeric is the type of product, because it expands and contracts with the substrate which, in such cases, is your wood deck.
Now, there’s a little history now you should know about. 20 years ago, we began hearing about fellowships who would move similar stability claims for commodities announced “liquid vinyl siding.” And they had hard-selling contractors who are capable of claim they are unable to apply this depict to your wood-sided home and it would previous and accomplish like vinyl siding.
It have only just that- except for months , not decades- and then it began to peel off or worse yet, it would allow water to get behind it and rot to set in. And then when they started claiming it also added to the building’s ability to insulate, well, that’s when the Federal Trade Commission stepped in and put the kibosh on all of that. So, today, we don’t examine much about the liquid vinyl but there are good finishes that can protect and regenerate decks.
I would work with name firebrands. The Sherwin-Williams Company has the SuperDeck and then Rust-Oleum has the Deck& Concrete Restore product. These can fill gaps as large as about 1/4 -inch and they adhere really well. Just keep in mind that the coverage is really about a quarter of what it is for a gallon of cover because they are so thick. You know, a gallon of colour- a gallon of these thicker, high-bonding primers- is merely going to cover about 75 square feet.
So perhaps you start with a small area like, say, your staircase. Make sure it works for you and then you can go for the rest.
LESLIE: Alright, Jerry. Good luck with that. I to be expected that your brand-new- well, I suspect we can call it “new” because it’ll be freshened-up- floor looks good.
TOM AND LESLIE: Like new.
TOM: Well, spring and summer are peak season for real-estate auctions. And if you’re the owner of a residence that’s brand-new or maybe really new to you, it’s tempting to move in now and decorate later. But painting before you move in is hands-down the best bet. Leslie has got the reasons why, in this week’s edition of Leslie’s Last Word.
Leslie?
LESLIE: Oh, so many reasons.
Listen, chaps, I get it. After months of dreaming about your new home, it’s finally yours and you miss nothing more than to get in there and get your things inside. But before you schedule those movers, consider these reasons to start with a few coats of coat instead.
Now, the simplest reason? Interior painting is a lot simpler when you can move freely in an empty space. I make “ve been thinking about” it, guys: move the furniture in, then is moving forward around again, then is moving forward around again. No one wants that. Painting first is also going to save a lot of go. Your painting project is going to take so much longer moving that furniture, hanging artistry, rehanging prowes, repairing the walls.
It’s too going to save a lot of coin. If you’re working with a professional painting contractor, they’re going to finish that much faster in an empty space. And that’s going to keep those dollars in your pocket.
Now, decorating firstly likewise streamlines interior decorating. If you’re designing a seat from scratch, commencing with that fresh hair of draw can actually help you drive all your other decisions so that you end up with that picture-perfect result.
And lastly, it feels good. There’s nothing like a brand-new coat of cover to make a home seem clean, fresher, more welcoming and more yours. Make sure you use a top-quality, 100 -percent acrylic-latex paint and you’ll get a stain-resistant finish that’ll look new for years to come.
TOM: This is The Money Pit Home Improvement Show. Coming up next time on the picture, backyard honeybee hives are becoming a huge DIY trend. We’re going to share the buzz on this very sweet project, on the very next edition of The Money Pit.
I’m Tom Kraeutler.
LESLIE: And I’m Leslie Segrete.
TOM: Remember, you can do it yourself …
LESLIE: But you don’t “re going to have to” get it on alone.
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