Do it yourself

Hi, I'm a new member hoping for some advice on how to...where to... find info/plans on screening in our porch with a screen door at each end. I like to paint there in the summer but the "skeeters" ran me indoors last year. It's about 6x20 with 3 posts. Marie

Here's a delemma which I've got a vague idea about how to deal with, but thought maybe some of you could offer some helpful advice. My 80+yo Mom-n-law lives in a small house built in the 50's and has recently found it difficult to climb over the side of the small tub in her bathroom. She has requested that it be replaced with a shower stall. A trip to Lowe's gave us a good idea of the capital involved, but we noticed that while the drain port on the tub is to one side, the drain port for the shower stalls are centered, and this is our delemma. how do we make the centered drain port meet the drain pipe in the foundation. The only way I can see this happening now is to raise the stall up about 6 inches to give us room to make the connection. Does anyone here have any ideas?

I had a 12v DeWalt that a thief recently relieved me of. I was very happy with it, and still have 2 batteries. I want to replace the tool, and see that Amazon has one for $125. It is model dw935k-2, and is described as "compact". My question; are all 12v DeWalt batteries interchangeable? Thanks, Wayne

My summer project is to fix the "master" bathroom. Right now, the shower is about a 32 inch square, a 32" tiled vanity and a toilet between the two. The entire space is aprox 8'x4' On the contrary, we also have a walk in closet right next to it and that is about 8x6. My plan is to enlarge the shower by taking out a 3x3 section of the closet. (of course, i will also have to reorganize the closet, but that will be easy. Here are my questions. 1. I have to move water from one side of the shower to the next, should I go up and over (attic), or around or under? The water pressure is already pretty low, will this make it worse? How can I get my pressure better? 2. I am plannig on using ceramic tiles for the entire shower, could I put a radient floor heating system in the shower alone? Or is that actually mixing electric and water? 3. How hard is it to build a "seat" ito the shower? 4. Precautions/advice for a first time tile project? Leslie (the one with water and electric problems)

OK,,,new to the site and haven't had time to adequately explore everything yet. My question may have already been answered. We bought the house we are presently in AFTER the subfloor had been laid. Of course they nailed it off instead of screwing and it's safe to say they saved money on the amount of nails used. Now we've got the squeaky floor syndrome every winter when the humidity drops. Now I could wait until the humidity goes back up and the floors quiet back down, but I'm looking for some of the most effective, and least destructive to the carpet, vinyl,etc., ways to pulling the subfloor down tight again. I've seen the clips that you can buy from the DYI catalogues, but they can get expensive when talking about the number of squeaks that we have. I've toyed with a few other ideas, but I'd like to hear what you, guys, have found most effective. I'd like to do this only once. Thanks for the input. Mike

Hi, I have a leaky refrigerator problem. I noticed water in the veggie bin and a little standing water on the shelves. I also saw water running out of a tube on the back wall of the fresh food section. I have 3 year old freezer on top model. I am guessing this is some type of defrosting issue. What can I (a novice) do before calling for service repair. Please be as specific as possible. Thanks, -John

Hi, everyone... I have what is probably a pretty easy project for most of you, but I'm a total newbie to this. I have a kitchen with paneling halfway up the wall. I want to remove the paneling and put up wainscotting at a lower height than the original paneling. There is some molding at the top of the paneling, but I want to replace that with a chair rail, and replace the baseboard. This is a small kitchen, btw, and there isn't that much to do, so I want to try to do this myself. I have NO saws or miter boxes or anything, and if I did, I'd have no idea what to get or how to use it. How difficult of a job is this? What tools would I need to cut the wainscotting? How about to cut the chair rails? There is only one corner I need to make "match" with the chair rail, so I'd really would like to NOT spend a fortune. My boyfriend (who has made it really clear he'd rather get dental surgery than do this job) said I have to make sure the corner is straight first (the house is 40 years old) or else the wainscotting won't line up. He said I need to get a T-square or something like that to make sure the wall is straight and true to make the wainscotting fit without problems. I thought of taking off the paneling and using that as a template to cut the wainscotting. I know that sounds cheesy, but I want to get this DONE, and making it simpler is fine with me! ANY help with what tools I'd need (what saws, miterbox, etc.) and how to use them, or links to sites with PICTURES for dummies like me, would be tremendously appreciated! Thank you! Debby

A good razor knife - stanley model # 10-499 is one of my favorites - it holds about 5 blades in the handle and one in the carriage. The blade in the carriage is very easy to change and with no tools just press and push and the blade is easily remove and turned around to use the other end. I have a knife like this and I love it. I have tried others in a past job and I would never use any other type other then this one. I have found though,that everyone else that has tried to use my knife has all kinds of problems with it. They alwasy push the blade out too far and it falls out. They just cant understand ;-) not to push the blade to that final notch.But it makes me happy because I know that I will always know where my knife is and what kind of shape it is in, since no one wants to use it anymore. ;-) Tami A fight to the death between zombies has a few inherent problems.

I only use pencils on construction projects, like framing or decks. When accuracy is the goal I prefer to use an Exacto knife and cut on the mark, this is especially true when working with hard woods. The knife mark also does not leave a black mark to smear of needing to be sanded off. Dale

I've just got some details through about Thermacell wall board - it looks pretty cool, more sturdy than plasterboard, easy to cut and fit, sound and waterproof (ish) and doesn't need plastering (although I s'pose you could claim the same about plasterboard). So...has anyone had any experience of the stuff, I'd be keen to give it a go, unless anyone wants to put me off! They've got a lovely website but unfortunately I can't speak German...www.fermacell.com Dav

Group I added a photo album for myself, and put a couple of photos in it. One is my idea of how to end "some" borders, when you don't want it to run all of the way around the room. The other is an artistic attempt of mine that my wife (suprisingly) allowed me to put on one of the walls in our dinning area of our condo. We are having a modular home built, and I'm going to attempt a larger one when we get moved in. black_dragon_45069

Hello group. I am new to the group and also new to anything "do it yourself"! I am wanting to start to do some easy woodworking...bookshelf, small patio table, etc. I am wondering, in your opinions, what the most essential tools are to have. I am looking at buying a miter saw (on sale). Can't really afford to jump in and buy alot of items but will add as I go. Any ideas would be helpful. I do have the smaller items, electric drill, hammers, screwdrivers, etc etc etc...want some POWER though! Thanks for any advice. Cheryl

We are building a kitchen and I'm at the point where I need to select under-cabinet lighting. I HATE flourescent and strip lighting, so I'm looking more towards the little round halogen lights. I'm wondering if anyone has found some cool under-cabinet lighting that they are happy with, or if I should just go ahead and get the round halogens... Thanks, Shane

plants and such. i have some big a** rocks as a border in my front yard. i am interested in planting some perennials in between them to soften them up a little. i get a lot of sun there and was thinking of hostas, but the sun might overrule me on that. or maybe even some nice grass to fill in the spaces. does anybody want to throw some suggestions my way on what would be cool to plant? cheers, phil

Looks like I'm going to need to replace a washer in a bathtub faucet (it totally bypassed "drip" and went straight to "constantly run" and of course it's the hot tap). Do I need to turn off the water to disassemble the faucet? I want to take the "guts" to the home store to replace but don't want a gusher :) Thanks!

Hello Everyone, Does anyone have or know where I can find plans to build a sofa. I have always wanted to make and upholster my own but I can't find any instructions on it. Thanks CK

Hi again, Does anyone know any good sites to get information on and purchase solar paneling and other solar products? Thanks CK

This may be a stretch, but does anyone have any experience with building retaining walls? Here's what I want to do - my backyard slopes towards our alley pretty good - it's probably 14-18" from level once it gets to the alley. I'd like to build a retaining wall on our rear property line where it meets the alley and build a retaining wall, and then bring in dirt and "fill up" the backyard (it's quite small) until it's level. Actually, I'll leave a bit of a grade so water will run away from the house. Has anyone done something like this before? Do I just build a stone retaining wall, fill up the backyard with dirt, and level it out? Seems like it should be more complex than that. What will keep my retaining wall from toppling over? Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks, Shane

Hi all, I am new to the group and pretty much new to do it yourself. My husband and I just bought a house and are going to be doing quite a few projects. My first one was going to be to refinish the bath tub. I stripped the paint off of it that the previous owners had brushed on and it was peeling and going down the drain. :-( So I stripped it and thought,instead of rolling/brushing the paint on,why not use spray paint? After much looking and investigating I have found that was a bad idea. Thankfully I didnt do it before I looked around. So now my option is to just leave it and settle with a tub that looks rough but isnt peeling or to go ahead and refinish it. I think I am going to go with leaving it, since my husband wants to tear it out completely this summer and just put in a shower.I will then have to learn how to refinish with an old claw foot tub when I finally find one. We are going to be stripping the woodowork and revarnishing and painting teh walls and whatever else we can think of. We are getting ready to tear a wall down in a week or so.There was a wall built into the hallway to make a closet.Problem is there was once a window there in the hallway and the closet turned out to be an old alcove with the priginal wood,so we will be putting in a window this summer.We have already tore out the basement stairs and rebuilt them and now we are hanging drywall in the basement to brighten it up. So as you can see,I have a ton of projects and little know how and lots of time. I am looking forward to learning alot here. Tami A fight to the death between zombies has a few inherent problems.

Lar & Others FYI: The heart of those inexpensive little dimmer units is a solid state device known as an SCR or Silicone Controlled Rectifier and they work like this. When you adjust the knob on the dimmer, you are setting the point on a sine wave at which the SCR will begin to conduct. Once the device begins to conduct it will continue to conduct until the applied voltage passes through zero. The nature of AC current is that it will pass through zero twice in every cycle, once when it begins the positive swing of the cycle and again as it passes into the negative portion of the cycle. The rapid rise in current at the point of cut-in is very rich in RF harmonics and that is the reason you can hear the 60 hz hum from these units in any AM radio that is not tuned to a station. Actually what you are hearing is a 120 hz hum rather than 60 hz, because you hear the transition on both the positive and negative portion of the sine wave. Some of the more expensive devices have filters built in that reduce or eliminate this RF component of the dimmers operation. That is why I specified that cheaper is better. Just keep in mind that the radio must be on AM and if you are in a building that is wired in conduit you may not be able to pick up the signal but if a junction box is left without a metal cover the signal will be heard at the box. Dale

hmmm.. where is the grope page located? Rich It's easy to go to the grope page

Where are you going to get the new valves. It was my impression the new "OPD" valves were only available at the tank refiller. After April 1 they will not refill tanks with the old valves. I have 4 20 pound tanks to update @ $20 each + the gas. Bob Message: 5 Date: Mon, 11 Mar 2002 02:54:52 -0000 From: "cntry383" <cntry383@... Subject: Propane Bottle Can someone give me ideas as to how to hold a cylindrical propane bottle/tank so as to remove/unscrew the valve. I was given two bottles and both need new valves.

I'm coming out of lurkdom as this GFCI-thing touched a button! In our old apartment, the upstairs bath and a bedroom light were not working after a power outage. When almost to the point of calling an electrician, we discovered a "reset" button in the basement near the breaker box! (there was not a gfci outlet in the bathroom). Who would have thought!! Also, just as a comment - if your power goes out be sure to check the reset buttons in the basement or garage which give power to your freezers or extra fridges! A neighbor's house was struck by lightning last year. They reset all the buttons in the house, but forgot about the garage and lost an entire freezer of food! Kim

Can someone give me ideas as to how to hold a cylindrical propane bottle/tank so as to remove/unscrew the valve. I was given two bottles and both need new valves.

Hi: I have a thick meshed futon zip cover on my futon (no base covering) and I want to make handles for easy moving. I bought a sturdy strap material and want to make sure I sew it on correctly without the possibility of them tearing. I really wish there was a solution to not sew them on (I'm waiting for a quality used futon frame to become availible, as presently my futon lays on the floor). So: How long should the straps be? Should I put a base material atop, behind and/or inside the sewn area? What kind of thread should I use (i.e. fishing line grade)? Thanks for your help, ny

FYI most GFCI receptacles and circuit breakers use an Op-Amp to determine that the currents in the hot and the neutral are equal. In short what goes in must come out, however if they are not equal it must mean that another path to ground has been found, that being someone's tender nervous system and it trips. I have one that is designed to be used at the end of an extension cord and it sure can be handy when you're under a house or in a damp location. Dale

I have to build a retaining wall under my house where I dug out the basement to within 2 feet of the foundation. If I do a concrete wall on top of a foundation do I have to form both sides of the wall to pour concrete? Or can I just form the outside of the wall and pour with the inside of the concrete poured against the exisitng dirt? I suspect the dirt will prematurely dry the concrete by leaching moisture and the concrete will not be right when hard? What if I poured agaisnt plastic sheeting between the dirt and the form? What is usually done in these cases?? picture is: dirt <---- Form ^ ^ no form????? Thanks, Rich

Hi Dave: I am a mom of an ardent 18 month old who does EVERYTHING with me (laugh). Here are my suggestions: First off, you should go and buy your daughter a little tool box at Home Depot. They come in plastic! She can keep her tools in it. Then, think hard about things that SHE can do. She can, as mentioned, pound nails into a board. Or she can attach a latch between two pieces of wood and even hinge them so that they really work. Did you know that they actually sell something like that? It's about sixty dollars and it's a block of wood with different types of metal attachments on each side. Well, maybe she can make her own. If I were you, I'd think a bit about the projects that you're going to be doing, and then plan something that she can do for HER project. Maybe something that's similar. She can sit right down next to you and do hers while you do yours. For example: She can make a crude barn for her little toy animals. She can paint it. She can attach a door. Or perhaps you can get her started with trains, and she can learn how to make the hills and stuff for trains. I think that the key here is that, at that age, they need to feel CONTROL, so if you think about it and give her projects that will end up being something that she can use and have, that is a wonderful, wonderful teaching tool. Perhaps a stage, and you can teach her how to make puppets to use with it? It would be nice if she had a project that was portable, so she could have it around while you were doing your stuff. Even just screwing pieces together to make, say, a doll closet, would be neat. Just an idea. cat -- My 18 month old is out in the garden with me every single day. He has a little baby wheelbarrow, but he much prefers the bigger carts, and he has a little rake and a little hand spade, although he loves his brooms!!! Teaching your kid that when they use their hands, magic happens, is the absolute best legacy that you can give your child. It is the key to being able to make yourself connected to the world, and being able to make things and be happy. A love of work is great, too. These are COMPANIONS for the rest of her life. TV has spawned a bunch of little tiny bored kids -- scary. I was NEVER bored as a little kid!! ps: restoration hardware had the wheelbarrow. It's a hoot.

We raised 8 of the "little darlings" and although there were times when we would have liked to have run away from home, it really was a fun time for the most part. There were 4 girls and 4 boys. Every child had a job depending on their age level and I can still see the twin girls when they had to take the clothes in off the line. One would stand on a chair to reach the clothes pins and then hand the clean laundry down to her sister who would fill the basket. It would take the two of them to carry the filled basket into the house to be folded. They were about 5 at the time. I used to do just like my grandfather did for me and bring home some piece of junk for the boys to play with by taking it apart to see what was inside. There were certain rules regarding the care of their tools and cleaning up the mess. One of our sons found one of my wrenches which was a 1/2 by 9/16 and spent the whole day playing under his mothers car. Only when she started the car sometime later did she learn that he had removed the entire exhaust system. Clayton was 4 at the time. It took me several hours to put it back together again, and I still don't know how he did it without breaking half the clamps. We raised our kids out in the country and there was always wood to cut, gardens to work, canning and freezing to be done, not to mention the planting and picking involved. The cord to the TV would mysteriously disappear during the summer and most of the school times only to be relocated in time to watch the Christmas specials after which it would get lost again. My wife bought an incubator and there were always baby ducks and chickens to be held, loved and cared for. Of course there was also the chicken house to be cleaned once a year but that was all a part of the learning curve. We had pigs that they would name and get attached to and shed a tear or two over when it was time to take them to the packing house, but they were quite eager to sample the bacon, ham and sausage that returned. I suppose what I'm really saying is that we were so poor during those years that the only thing we could afford to give the kids was some of our time, and in the end it turned out to have had the greatest value. Dale

OK....as new homeowners we are getting to experience all the dubious *joys* of owning a home: trees that need trimmng or taking down, a driveway that needs patching, neighbors who leave their dogs out 24/7 thru all weather conditions * grr* and now...INVASION! A furry, grey, nut eating, rodent * or mroe than one* has romoved a piece of soffit and is tryign to nest in the eaves, if not the attic of our house! Tonight and tomorrow is eviction time for this uninvited visitor.... Anyone have some advice? I am PRAYING it is early enough in catching them that they haven't given birth * oh please oh please * because I know if I scare out the mom and move the babies she will abandon them. But I will risk it cause they have already pulled out insulation. I saw insulation lying on the ground about a week ago...but didn't think much of it cause the neighbor is doing some renovation. But now I know it is coming from OUR house. ACK. TO make things even MORE fun, the electric line runs RIGHT to where the squirrels have gotten into the house. This is obviously their method of entry. We are goign to check the attic and see if they have gotten in ....that part has a low roof and will be accesable only by crawling on hands and knees. If they have, and we can scare them out we will replace the soffit piece and glue it in place with Liquid Nails or caulk to keep them from getting back in. I just saw them this morning....first time I have seen on in there. Any advice on erradicating the varmits??? *grump* Kathie * aka aquirrel killa*

T[Debbie Blythe] his posting makes me smile, because it reminds me of an old home movie of me "helping" my dad in the backyard. I obviously was having a great time "helping" and was also obviously accomplishing nothing at all. I think I was about 4 then, but perhaps I was younger. I don't have kids, so don't have much concrete advice, but it seems to me that while it is great you are involving your daughter in what you are doing, you obviously can,t let her get her hands on anythng that will actually accomplish something. I'm guessing for her the thrill is just being with you and feeling important and needed. I know kids are smart and you don't want to be underestimating them - I just wondered if you couldn,t have given her a paint brush and water, or something like that - and asked her to "prep" the fence for you. I suppose this wouldn't be in line with your goal of bringing her up in your footsteps, but I think 4 and a half is a bit too young to be using tools. One final thought: My dad never taught me anything at all about tools - seems that was boy stuff, and my older brother was the only one really allowed to do hands-on stuff. As a result, I am now trying to figure things out at 47. So hooray for Dads who teach their daughters how to do repairs! Debbie

I like Tapcons. They are a screw designed to be used in concrete. You have to drill a hole to put the screw in. At my local store if you buy by the box it comes with a masonry bit. You can also use plastic inserts to give a standard wood screw something to bit. The Tapcons will not work well in mortar. Robert

Well- the live and dead and in between loads have been calculated and I inserted in a 4x8x 5' beam into my stud-cutout (after supporting the house with 8 each 4x4's for safety..) Lo and behold== nothing came crashing down and my telltale tape, after 3 days, tacked next to the beam, shows a whopping goose egg for deflection!! --0-- **0** nada nothing. zilch!! zip!! Maybe casue I added a 33% safety margin in my load calcs! Thanks for the thoughts everyone.. I am now the proud over of a 4' x 6' *huge* crawlspace/soon-to-be my new partial basemetn workshop! Adding about 200 useable sq feet to the house.. the washer and dryer go out here.. the snowblower, shovels, workbenchs.. One Happy Camper! Rich and thank you for the hearty laugh you provided when i got home, had kids toss tantrums during a delicious meal of lentil soup... then i got to chuckle with the group of DIYers and The Blonde...

I am going to run 220v to a detached garage approximately 50 feet from the main box in the house. Can anybody tell me where to go to find the right gauge and type of wire. I want to make sure it is big enough to handle to draw from my welder. Thanks

Hello Guys We have baseboard electric heat in our house. They are pretty ugly, and we want to replace them. My mom mentioned she saw a product that you can "paint" your baseboard heaters to make them look like wood. Have any of you heard of this product? If so, what is it, and does it really work? Thank you Andy

Liz, Ever since I found out about 'google', I've decided this is going to be my personal search engine! It's fantastic! I especially find the phrase: I'm feeling lucky today' to be cool! Kindest regards, Heidi At 20 years of age the will reigns; at 30 the wit; at 40 the judgment

I'm passing this along from my sister -- she can't figure out why the 3rd floor toilet in her townhouse makes a 1/2 flushing noise long after it's been flushed. It happens at various times not related to flushing and sounds like a small amount of water is flushing -but not like a real flush. Her other 2 toilets don't do this - can you help? Thanks, Allison

My contractor told me that if I don't get rid of the moss on my house, it will cost me 30K to replace the wood shingles. Well, since I'd rather live underneath a large plastic bag than spend that type of money, can anybody please tell me how you kill moss on your roof? I'm tempted to just climb up there with a big bottle of bleach.... thanks! cat

Has anyone heard anything from Kevin in Belgium? I tried to send an e-mail to the address I last had and it came back saying that they could not resolve the IP server address. I do know that his mother and father were having health problems in England. Dale

I'm afraid that septic tanks have gotten some undeserved negative publicity when the problem is really the leaching field. The water carried off into the laterals often contains some sediment residues which will eventually clog the pores of the material placed around the laterals to carry off the water. In this part of the country they have started requiring a percolation test to insure that the soil can in fact absorb the run-off. The rate of percolation determines the length and number of laterals required as well as the grade and amount of the back fill rock and sand that is placed around them. Some localities have started to use a half-pipe lateral system that is placed on a thick bed of crushed rock which contains the laterals. the whole length is then covered with a second plastic barrier to keep the dirt from filtering down into the rock causing premature failure of the leaching field. I don't have any information of the success of the half pipe system but do know that the heavy plastic barrier is an excellent idea. The half pipe actually forms a kind of roof over the lateral bed. Dale

Hi all, What is the difference between Roll Roofing and Shingle Roofing. When would you use one rather than the other. Is it mainly cosmetic, or does one last longer than other. Also, I have never seen any house with Roll Roofing, does it look presentable? Thank you for any info. you may provide. Jeff

There has been a bit of discussion on several lists of late concerning the re-facing and/or building of cabinets. In either case the following method might be of interest. For several years now I have build and refaced cabinets, boxes, table-tops, etc using 1/4 inch oak and birch plywood. The trick is two fold. First is the bonding to the existing surface and second is what to do with the exposed edge. For bonding I use Acrylic/Latex clear caulking, and either pin nail or clamp. The caulking sets in about 30 minutes and does not cause the wood to warp as do some other glues. An added advantage is that it is water soluble until set at which time it is water proof, and also remains flexible so that there is no cracking over time. Small mistakes can be wiped away with a wet rag. To apply the caulk I use several sizes of plastic syringes that are available at any good farm store, the trick is filling them. I cut the tip off the caulking tube so that the tip of the syringe is a snug fit and then squeeze in the caulk until the plunger is pushed near the top. The syringes are cheap and so I keep several filled at a time. When finished and before the caulk in the syringes dries, just flush with warm soapy water. To treat the raw edges of the re-faced surface I cut thin strips of oak or birch, which ever I'm working with. And pin-nail and glue them around the edge. I often make my own mini moldings by running the edge of the board through the router before ripping each thin strip. Painted surfaces are cleaned and roughened with thinner and sander to insure a good bond. The "glue" is applied along the edge about 1/4 inch back and in the centers in thin beads. On larger surfaced areas I use a cross hatch of beads of caulk. The thin beads insure that there are not nasty looking bumps and ridges showing through the finished surface. A decent table saw and power miter saw are necessities to get a good looking job. For a surface like a table top, contact cement is the best route to follow. You might be pleasantly surprised what can be done with a bit of scrap and some oak, birch or perhaps maple 1/2 inch ply-wood. Dale

Trinity, The house we live in was built in 1989. The previous owners who used to live here unfortunately weren't 'home owners' if that makes sense? They would just do much better living in a high rise in Manhattan and if anything needs to be done, to just call the maintenance guy... well... we wanted to buy this house because of its incredible potential and living in Atlanta, you see more cluster homes that would look like townhouses/condos to the north (from where we are originally from). After house-hunting 6 months and trying to stay within the perimeter, it wasn't terribly easy... but I wanted *land* without having to move so far away. So, when we saw this house (traditional) and how much land came with it... we decided a couple of problems we saw was worth it... however, never having experience with septic tanks, we asked our agent to inform the sellers to have it cleaned out and they refused. Unfortunately the seller can refuse... now, the tank has never been cleaned since the house was built. So, when you say, if it ain't broke, don't fix it!... Trinity, if I can safely say without getting into trouble, that alone isn't wise. When my youngest daughter had to run to the bathroom, she tiptoed out barely even unzipping her pants, she had this unbelievable 'wrinkled look' on her face and I said what on earth is wrong? She said it's a swimming pool in the bathroom. My heart just then and there, totally sank. It was especially right in the midst of Chanukah and Christmas when all of this happened. Quite fortunately we took care of the problem *immediately* but it took a good LONG 3 to 4 hours just to vacum up all of the water from the half bathroom. We have berber carpeting in the bathroom as well and we thought that was basically doomed, but to our complete surprise, it turned out OK. Most people aren't as lucky, because once the tank backs up, you really don't know it until you walk right into it and the damage has already been done. I did a load of wash (darks)... I remember it like it happened yesterday... never will forget it... and there was no more room in the septic tank (1500 gallons is what we have)... so, it 'pumped' into the bathroom I guess.... I'm not entirely specific how it works but it just made one major mess. It's been 12.4 years since the septic tank has been cleaned out. I will personally spend the money on having the tank cleaned out so we don't have to spend so much and go through what we went through. Kindest regards, Heidi Never ask for someone's opinion if you're not going to like it if it disagrees with what you want to hear. in the 13 years we had the tank, didn't ever have to have it pumped out... rule of thumb is every 3-4 years, but my philosophy is "if it ain't broke,don't fix it!"

What is your price on a 4x4 Redwood (true redwood, not pressure treated fir) for 8 ' long? Mine in Sonora, California is 16.99 Ill put a table together if u want to answer off-line... Burning with curiosity! Rich

Dear Marc S.: First, welcome to our group and happy house repair. As to your comments about the roto-zip: I own 3 or 4 of these tools and have for about a year. They are great for demolition and removing pieces of soffit instead of a saber- saw or other difficult to handle tool. Even my cordless reciprocating saw is not as well endowed in this venue. I too saw the recall advertisement, but have never experienced any problems with any of my tools. The handles do indeed come loose but only when I want them to. This is a versatile tool and can be used for many types of cutting. The last one I bought came in the case and has a circle cutter as well as an attachment to turn the tool into a small load grinder and disk sander / polisher. Using the correct bit you can cut all the type surfaces the advertisement claims. The one problem I've experienced is that the bits tend to "burn and loose their sharpness. But then perhaps it is because I place them under sever duress. They are however a superb cutting instrument. You can also purchase the dremal bits and use them in this tool. I use mine any time I need to fix a strike plate so the door will stay latched. Provided readjusting the door is not feasible. I use several burr bits that cut brass or light steel easily, provided you move slowly. Be careful because this tool's mandrel is moving at approximately 25,000 rpm's! If you move the bit in the wrong direction the bit will grab the material you are cutting and jerk the tool away from your hand, trying to "jump" clear of the hole it is in, thus causing you bodily damage or the piece you are working on great damage. :- This tool is not quite like a router where you have great control over the cutting and shaping capacity. This tool is difficult to use if you are trying to do finish work. I would suggest that you give it a 30-day test run to see if you can use it the way you would need. Marc S. Wrote But the reason I write is this: Several people have mentioned this "Roto Zip" tool (someone even mentioned the recall). Well I checked out their website and boy do those tools look cool. Like a Dremel but ten times better. Of course, I'm not really knowledgable with respect to power tools, so I could be missing the point. I'm just wondering, are these tools as great as they look (assuming the handle doesn't fly off)??? I want to make some very simple furniture. I want to sculpt plywood (cutting bulbous oval shapes and such), stain them lightly, and polyurethane them into tables. (Attach a few metal legs and boom!) Bookshelves would be killer too! I'd also love to be able to cut through drywall and concrete and etch on glass. The Roto Zip looks like it might be the tool for me. Am I right? Do I need anything else? Am I crazy? What model should I get? The best one with all the attachments? :) Thanks all. Marc S.

I'm looking for step by step instruction on how to add a farmers porch to my cape. I have most of the information I need but would feel better having back up from a professional. This is my first time tackling anything like this. Does anyone know where I could get this info.? Or if you've done this job before do you have any helpful tips?

Hi everyone, I'm in trouble! I'm working (designing) a child's bathroom, which the tile needs to have certain colors. I've done research all week, and still can't find that certain color match. It should be a 10cm x 10cm "bright red". So, I've been thinking, is it possible to paint ceramic tile into desired color? Is it wise? What type of paint and ceramic tile I need, if it is possible to do so? I heard it needs to be burned down... Is it? I'm lost here... Thanks in advance... Cliff+

Suzi - I checked out www.qualitydoors.com - they look like really nice doors and it seems like a moderately easy way to go. Have you done your cabinets this way? Or have you seen them done? How good do they look? Just how difficult is it? Lee-Ellen

Thanks to all of you for your input on the HD/contractors for kitchen cabinets. I really want to do something with my kitchen cabinets, but of course I'm looking for the most economical way. I'd love to have completely new cabinets designed at a place like HD - it's the cost that's keeping me from doing that. I'm interested in hearing more about the refacing. You mentioned that HD change out the doors? You mean I could just order doors and drawer fronts instead of all new cabinets? Or what did you mean? It sounds like refacing would be tough - exactly what would be involved and what are the challenges? I'm also thinking about an even cheaper approach - just painting. My cabinet doors are simple frames with recessed panels. I'm interested in ideas for faux painting the panel or, as Sarah mentioned, perhaps wallpaper? Ideas, anyone? Thanks for all the advice! (Reeder - I wish I DID live in Atlanta - I'd call you for help!) Lee-Ellen

Hi, New to the list. Living in 85 Comodor 14x70 moble home.Looking for guidence. We need to redo roof in spring-can we put new shingles over old, how does one measure to order shingles...Bacisly i know nothing about this...any info appriciated. we also need to replace both fiberglass tubs. we are thinking of replacing the bathtub in masterbath with a shower unit..is this a job for a doit yourselfer? My DH has limited carpentry skills. also some of the floors are buckled due to waterleaks, anything short of new subfloor etc to make it ok? any and all advise appriciated!!! Thanks, Michelle

Wow you guys all have huge crawlspaces, more like basements. Our crawlspace under the front of the house is just that.....a crawlspace, looking through the ventilation holes on the sides of the house I *might* be able to fit inside but it'd be on my belly and Id have to dig out the dirt to go under the floor beams! But there's no way on earth Id do it, I know there are snakes under there.... Someone at some point did crawl under there though cause there are vents in the rooms... Brenda Ont Can ~You can't have everything, where would you put it?~

Hello Guys We are having a problem with our shower water control. We have the one knob shower control (turn the know left, it is cold, right it is hot). About 1 week ago, it started. Everytime we use the shower, I have to tighten the screw holding the knob on. If I don't do this, I can't adjust the water temperature. I took the know off, and noticed that beneath the knob, is a plastic thingy (have no idea the real name) and that is where the screw screws into. A piece of that broke. My question is: Can I buy just this little plastic piece (if so, what is it called?), or do I need to buy a whole new shower control system? I hope you understand what I am saying, as I don't know the exact names of the parts...... Thank you Andy

Liz, I have e-mailed you 2-3 times about your kitchen and had no reply? What's up? Suzi

I've been trying to figure out what to do in my kitchen, and I think that I'llk eep the 40 year old icky cabinets, because I don't want to spend 10K on new ones. These are painted off-white. Does anybody know where on earth or how on earth or even what keyword you use on the net to find people who sell you new cabinet faces? Or doors? Whatever they're called. And has anybody done this? Does it look ok? thank you very much. cat

Hello, We are building a kitchen and would like to have glass in the upper cabinetry. However, I don't want typical glass - I would like to find glass with a "distressed" look - in other words, not clear and see-through. Any ideas where I can find glass of this nature? I don't know the right terminology to use when searching on the 'net. Home Improvement Centers tend to only have normal glass. Thanks, Shane

Dear Carl I inherited a seventy year old tallboy with a mirror on top. After varnishing the wood, I wanted to resilver or replace the old mirror but was advised not to because it contributed to the antique value. I left it as it was and subsequently grew to appreciate its uniqueness. Peter. From: "Carl" <crazyeyes@... Subject: Silvering A Mirror We have an old mirror that we want to resilver because the silver backing is coming off. Where would we get the stuff to do that with ? Or would it be cheaper/easier to buy a new mirror? Carl

Anyone recall the chart for suggessted beam span lenghts versus size of beams? It goes like 2x4 can span 6' 2x8 can span 10' ???yes no??? meaning add the number 2 to the ending number in 2x4 and 2x8 to get "safe" loading span for single story house?? so if that is true wouild a 4x4 span 8'??? I am builing a door to the crawl space (which is a BIG space 10' high) under my house and need to put an header in...I think 3 2x4's for a 4' span should do it?? with is a 4x6 then..I want at elast 50% or even 100% safety margin. TIA, Rich

Hello Guys In the next week or two, I am going to start Polyurathaning (sp?) our kitchen cabinets. I have sanded them down, and they are prepared. My questions are this: 1). Should I use a paint brush, or one of those foam brushes to apply the Polyurathane 2). Should I apply more than one coat? If so, should I steel wool after each coat? Should I apply wax after the final coat? 3). I was going to do the doors and cabinets outside in our garage. How cold is too cold to apply the polyurathene? I live in Southern PA, and it gets around 30degrees at night here, is this too cold? If so, worst case scenerio is in our basement. It is chilly there, but doesn't freeze. Will this work? Thank you for any help you can give. Andy

Can someone explain to me how rotary antennas work? I hooked up the one that came with the house so I can try to pick up a local channel (satellite doesn't have "local" in my area--I'm apparently about 4 miles of of the service area and the most local channel I can get in NH is NY. I really don't care what's happening on the Long Island Expressway! LOL) Anyway, the antenna is working. There is the dial and it has 2 lines on it. One I guess "sets" the direction you want to rotate to, and the other is showing which way the antenna is actually rotating and it's position? Am I on the right track here? Thanks, Marylee

Our driveway is made from asphalt and some of the edges are disintegrating. Someone told me that you could rent something that you could use to cut the edges off. Does anybody know anything about this? thanks! cat

Hello, Go to the bookstore and get this book called, This Old House: Essential Paint Techniques. I bought it and cannot live without it. I think next year (If I'm still here)... will try to tackle this project with our windows. This book doesn't just discuss painting techniques. You get an awful lot of invaluable information and the book only cost $14.95. This book has it all... from General preparation, interior painting, goes on to explain everything you need to know about sandpapers, how to read sandpaper, also gives paint problems expert advise, putty buddies, damaged wood, house washing, pressure washers, stripping paint, historic paints, you get it... its an excellent book to have! ISBN: 0-9666753-2-0. HTH, Heidi previous coats

Hey gang, Has anyone here had any experience with concrete staining? We are thinking about trying this in a rather large portion of our house (the carpet and linoleum are basically shot throughout the house). I'm not talking about the type of stain you can get at Home Depot, but rather the type available through companies like Kemico, that are actually acid-based. These react with the chemicals in the concrete and "etch" somewhat into the surface. The stain reacts to varying degrees with different portions of the concrete slab. This makes for a very nice mottled appearance. You may have seen some of these finishes in some commercial or retail buildings. We have been all around the web and looked at the various sites and info available, but I would really like to hear from some do-it-yourselfers regarding their experiences. Has anyone on list actually done any of this type of staining? If so, please let me know how things went. Thanks in advance, Dave

Dave, We purchased slate tiles, a little over 13 X 13... we bought it because we fell in love with its natural look/appearance. We asked what is used to clean it and they said just soap and water???? I was surprised by that. I also asked about cutting... they do *not* recommend cutting to be done by the tile slicers... I don't know the proper word for those tile slicers. They highly recommend slates be cut with a wet saw simply because of the thickness of it and there's a lot less breakage/splintering going on. I'm not sure what she meant by splintering? We aren't going to be tiling for a while because we need to get the shower going before we do anything else and we need $$ *mulah*... to get some things... so it's going to be a long term project for us. I wanted to *thank* you for making the comment about countertop tiles. I do a lot of rolling for pastry, breads, etc and I can't believe I never thought about that! I like the appearance of tile countertops... not anymore! It would kill me if I couldn't do all of my work. I'm a chef by heart and kitchen is very important to me. Thank you for throwing that 'rolling' bit in! You saved me from a possibly terrible decision in the long run. We aren't doing the kitchen for a while. First things first! Heidi

I have numerous areas of my red/off-red brick that are stained with white hard-water marks. Has anywone had any luck removing them with something. I have tried a pressure washer, but I couldn't use that much pressure since I was afraid of removing the mortar between the bricks with stray spray. Any help appreciated. TBF

Good Morning All: :- Not only is Liz right, but the masonry industry has what looks like a decorating bag specifically for this propose. However, my mason uses a pointing trowel and his board for most re-pointing jobs. Says he has better control of the amount of mortar being placed exactly where he wants it. Usually the pointing trowel is very narrow, approximately 1/4" wide so that the hawk (lightweight aluminum board approximately 12" x 12", with a wooden handle underneath) can be held against the brick wall and the mortar "pushed" into the joint and tooled. Your arms will think your pastry bag or mortar bag has become fairly heavy after a while. :- irregular joints such as the stone work mentioned in an earlier post. You would normally use a mortar board to mix small amounts of mortar, however if you are going to be doing a lot of this type "fun", a 5 gallon bucket, a 3/8" or ½" drill motor, and a paddle are most helpful. ::::: grin """""" If you're not careful you will burn out a 3/8" drill motor, there is a heavy load mixing mortar if you do much of it. The mixing paddle can be purchased at HD in the masonry dept. Be sure to remove all loose debris, and yes dampening the existing mortar as you re-point is essential. Hope this helps :- your new friend Reeder that sawdusty guy - the carpenter IMH Remodeling, Repair, and Handyman Services Atlanta Ga. 770-652-2883

Hello everyone! In Atlanta, Reninsiance Bath & Tile have a huge warehouse sale once a year for 3 days. The first day is only opened to decorators/contractors and they are able to bring in their clients. Unfortunately I don't have the luxury of hiring a contractor. My husband and I went to the warehouse on Friday and we were *extremely* fortunate to find the exact tiles we wanted. Very fortunate! They were originally $4.25 per sq. foot (13 X 13 ceramic tiles)... on sale for $1.07 per square foot. We were just very lucky to find exactly what we've been looking for and for that price. We saw something else... there were about I think 4 or 5 murals already done and set on a very dark piece of wood. One I liked and it was about $1500.00. I asked if the mural could come off so that it could be placed on the wall... the gal there said that we would have to saw it off. Forget it. I have decided then and there that I could perhaps find patterns where I could do mosaic work (strip) around the shower walls. I just don't know where I could find small pieces of mosaics. I went to the Atlanta Tile Company off of Live Oak Pkwy (I *think* that's what the street is called)... it's an industrial area directly off of Jimmy Carter Blvd in Norcross... they sell 1/4 inch mosaic pieces by the sheet at... would you believe $20 a sheet? Forget it. I *know* I can do much better than that. I just want to get a bunch of it, go outside and work on the edging and finish it, put it around the bathroom shower walls. I think I'm confusing myself and others... it isn't a picture mural. No. It's more of oh goodness... very neutral and it's like a figure 8 ... not an upright '8' but sideways... and wavy... very intricate and eligant. Just lovely. We also bought a nuheat mat. I'll have to call the company for instructions how to use it. Anyone have this? Do you like it? We ran into a drawback though. The ceramic tiles we bought isn't enough for the shower. Our bathroom is 18 feet by 6 feet... so, the tiles we got is just enough for the floor and the tub area. We are going to try to see if we can get the same tiles for the shower. If not, we'll see if we can at least get matching tiles or something that very closely resembles it. Question here... edges, bullnose, etc are all very costly and I've been doing a bit of research today at the bookstores... some of the bathrooms have tile edges, some have absolutely no edges, just the wall straight to the floor... some had wooden base boards around. I was intriqued with the wooden baseboard but realize if we do go ahead with that idea, we'll have to go to great lengths to protect it from water. I just think the drawback for a wooden baseboard is that it might make the bathroom look 'closed in'. I really *like* the open look. Oh! Another thing... Our door when we open it all the way, opens to right where the shower area is... So, if we extend the shower to 6 feet. (4 1/2 by 6 feet), the door will basically touch the new shower... I bought a magazine by Tauton Press (Love that Comapny)... it's an annual magazine on Kitchen and Baths... in one part of the magazine, they showed a door that is the 'sliding' kind of door, however, I like the idea of total privacy. We've got teenagers, so privacy is something very nice to have. Anyhow... I'm wondering if this can be done? Will the electrical outlet box, etc be in the way of the sliding door? A friend of ours who works at Home Depot on Piedmont or Ponce de Leon works in plumbing... but obviously doesn't know much... we showed him what we would like to do with the shower... and all he kept asking was what kind of pipes we have... I told him I think we have pvc... he looked into the shower head area and said it looks like we have copper pipes, he called it cpvc or something like that... he said we can simply remove the copper pipes (pressure thingie for water) and add ... (something different)... I don't remember what he said. He couldn't help... he just helps people find what they need. We know we'll need quite a bit of plumbing done because we have to install a rain shower head from the ceiling, and we also have to install a few shower heads, so there's a lot of plumbing there. I'm wondering if we do all of this, we might end up having to get another water heater (possibly smaller) to deal with all of this. We are also *thinking* of adding a steamer into the shower, but that's all it is, thinking! This is going to be a long, slow project for us. When finances allow it, we will do the work little by little. I purchased a wet saw via ebay and will get it perhaps this week or next week. The gal at the warehouse said they only work with wet saw with the tiles they get. I asked about the slim tile cutter thingie... she said not with the thickness of the tiles we have.... I just hope this all works out well! I do have lots of *before* pictures... I'll have the process as well and the after pictures and when its done, I'll share them with you all. Thanks *everyone* for your continued help! Heidi (Wind Rose)

Hi all, I just joined your group...hopefully you can give me some good tips. I have a 1200 sq. foot redwood deck that was built by the previous owners and finished with an opaque type deck finish probably 5-7 years ago. Needless to say, it needs refinishing. The various boards are not too smoth and the finish is worn off in many areas. How should I go about it? Here is what I was thinking of doing, tell me what you think. I would like to go with a transparent finish so I thought I would first go around and tighten down the deck screws and replace any missing or stripped screws. Then, I was thinking about taking a floor sander normally used for hardwood floors and sand the entire flat surface of the deck. Then I would use a belt sander and orbital sander to hit all of the bench and side surfaces. Then I would finish it off with the Behr Transparent Redwood Stain/Protector. Is there an easier way? More appropriate tools? Let me know what you think. TBF

Yes, but the survey isn't there any more. I wonder if the responses were too rabid??? <laugh At any rate, I'm wondering just how much they're going to charge us (sigh). cat

I pulled it back further last night and found that the wall is not really recessed as I had originally thought... (It's in one small section a couple inches wide - not too deep that it can't be fixed with drywall compound or plaster). And what I found is that the wall is plaster and it's not in too bad of shape. The current paneling was only nailed, and there was no adhesive used however it looks as if there used to be another type of paneling up and there are remnants of old adhesive still stuck to the paneling in various spots. There is also a very thin top layer (2mm) of plaster that seems to be chipping away from the wall. Other than that it's not nearly as bad as I expected. I'm hoping I can repair this with drywall compound or plaster and sanding so that I can paint the walls again. But I'm not sure exactly how to tackle it. Like someone just said a second ago, I probably won't get it right the first time.... Sarah

I pulled up the hideous carpeting that the previous owner of our house had to reveal the beautiful hardwood floors. One problem, upstairs there are a couple of spots where the old padding (it seems to have been some kind of foam rubber) must have had something spilled on it or something. In any case, I have these two patches - about 2'x2' each - where the old padding has become petrified and stuck to the floor. I've tried carefully chipping it off -- no luck, and I've tried some mild solvents, also to no effect. Any suggestions? Thanks - Brian

Just joined the group about 30 minutes ago, and I'm impressed. I'm the type of DIY that usually gets it right the second time. I believe that one must learn from one's mistakes, but it's nice to learn from others experience before one makes those mistakes. I have a 22 yr. old house, and it's time to pump some new life into the old hacienda. I don't plan on doing all the remodling/upgrades my self, but the ones I choose to take on myself, I now feel a little better there is a place I can go and ask some really stupid, uninformed, and how the heck do I do this questions, and get a straight and honest answer. My experience is not totally limited, and when a question pops up that I've experienced, I think this is a forum where I can say " Hey ya know what, that happened to me a few years ago and this worked for me." I truly look forward to this group, and any tips that I can gather or give.

Portraits sounds like what i would look for....... Good Luck!! On Tue, 19 Feb 2002 19:42:23 -0600 "Liz Armon" <ArtsyLiz@... hey, I need to know this from all my buddies - If you were going to look online for an artist to paint a picture of your wife, dog, child etc . . . would you look for portrait? or portraits? "I try to take one day at a time but sometimes several days attack me at once." Denise Hayward

I had to stop receiving emails for awhile because I didn't have the time to read all of them so I'm sorry if this question as already been answered. We just but a 1922 house that has had tons of poor, sloppy do it yourself projects done to it. In several rooms they have done patchwork paneling. Two different panelings on the walls, and another kind on the ceiling. Well that mess is aside from the point. My first project is in the kitch and the only kind of paneling that is up is somethign that is supposed to resemble brick. The breakfast nook (about 6 x 8) is the only part of the kitchen that is paneled. The two 6' walls have paneling from the center of the wall to the floor and then the walls are painted to the ceiling. The one 8' wall is entirely paneled with a large window in the center. I pulled back a piece of the paneling to see what was behind and it just looks like painted wall. but there is a major difference in the depth of the wall from the upper 1/2 to the bottom 1/2 on the two 6' walls. I forsee that as a problem if I remove the paneling and paint, or if I try to paint over the paneling. The other downfall to painting over this paneling is the texture of it. It's not smooth anywhere.... because it's copying brick. I read a lot of info about painting paneling, etc. But how much work would it really entail to put up sheet rock? And if there is a painted service already underneath the paneling and I don't have to sheet rock, how could I get the walls all to the same smooth service again before repainting? I really want to get a professional look. And this is only a small part of my entire kitchen remodeling process.... I'm interested in any ideas/tips that are out there. I'm such a novice at this. Thanks... Sarah

Dear Beth: The answer to your question is yes, but you need to do some research to make sure your finished product is as durable and pretty as you would want. Paste this web-site into your browser and you will find some very helpful information about your question. alsnetbiz.com/homeimprovement/faq3.html also here is some additional information about painting surfaces that one would not normally consider painting. Painting Formica/CeramicTile/Vinyl Flooring:...a great product for painting surfaces that paint normally will not stick to is a product from Benjamin Moore Paints called "Bonding Primer". This stuff literally GLUES the paint to the non-stick surface. It is ,however, very nasty stuff chemically....you must work with VERY good ventilation but it drys very quickly and you can get on with the decorative painting ASAP. In addition to the Primer you must also get the special Thinner as it takes a very thin layer of this stuff to do the job. Benjamin Moore also makes a 2 part water based epoxy sealer that really protects your decorative finish in high traffic or high use areas. here is yet another link that will give you some helpful infomatin about types of coatings that can be used www.integritycoatings.com/integritfaq.htm for a more complete list of helpful informtion go to your browser and type in www.google.com this is a rather comprehensive search engine. When there type in the words - painting formica surfaces - and you will get a rather large listing of places that you can go to to do more research. your new friend Reeder that sawdusty guy - the carpenter IMH Remodeling, Repair, and Handyman Services Atlanta Ga. 770-652-2883

Just built a real nice 75 gallon aquarium stand. I used 3/4" oak plywood and oak molding. Last night around 10pm, I plugged the finish nail holes with minwax brand oak puddy. This morning as of 11am the puddy is still like play-doe. This is greatly dissapointing. The shop got pretty cold when I closed it up and came upstair to bed. Did the old ruin the puddy? the stand is now in a nice toasty warm warm. Will the puddy harden for me? The minwax jar gives no clue as to the drying time. I have never had this problem before. Thanks for your thoughts and experience. Dave

I joined the group today and decided to immediately introduce myself and the project I'm about to start. My wife, Sheila, and I are both retired from work so have much time on our hands. We have a three-bedroomed house in Cape Town, South Africa, and live here with our two puppies, Champ and Lady. Weeds grow in the paving to the front and on the two sides of the house and every four or five months I destroy them with weed killer. This time I've decided to get rid of them permanently. I shall pull them out one by one then fill the gaps between the bricks, in which they grow, with mortar. I'm wondering whether I should mix the mortar with as little water as possible to the consistency at which I can squeeze it in my tightened fist without any drop of water appearing, then use a stick of suitable size to press the paste into the cracks, or whether I should mix the mortar with a lot of water then simply pour the runny mixture over the brick paving perhaps simply sweeping it into the cracks with a broom. The second method would be much quicker but probably messier. Do you have an opinion as to the better way to handle this project? Peter.

I'm going to install some recessed lighting in an upstairs office. I have crawl access above the ceiling through my attic. My question is this, what should I wire the lights to? I have these options. There is a switch next to the entry with 2 switches. 1 switch connects to a wall outlet in the office, while the other connects to a lighted ceiling fan. It seems like I should wire the new lights to the ceiling fan but I was looking for confirmation. In a perfect world, I would like to have the new lights controlled by a dimmer switch. Thanks in advance....

Hi everyone. Happy February! We have to build a fence in front of our property. My hair is turning more gray every day as I watch my 17 month old dash around in the yard (toward the street) as I'm gardening. We would like to put in an electrical gate and in our area (the silicon valley), prices seem to be astronomical for almost anything. What do I expect? Steak is $15 a pound, lemons are $1 apiece ... ack. I am from a rural area, though, and I cannot believe that I can't buy an electrical gate mechanism for a wooden gate (that I can drive through) at a reasonable price. I have only spoken with fence building companies, and the last one quoted me (I kid you not) $15,000 for a gate. I MUST be describing it wrong!!! Has anybody ever bought one of these? A mechanism that opens the gate like opening arms, not the sliding type. Although, heck, if they're cheaper, I'll take almost anything! My contractor can build a fence for it, I'll bet. cat ps: I'd even appreciate any tips on how to find someone who could sell me one of these! I have a contractor who will build my fence, but he doesn't know anything about gates, he says. pps: Maybe this isn't totally "do it yourself," but my tendonitis prevents me from hammering!! So I have to hire people.

I am new on this group and just wanted to say "hi" and let everyone know I am looking forward to sharing and learning new tips and techniques. I own and operate a small home improvement business in rural Tennessee (www.geocities.com/riverratt38559) and while I know a little, I don't know everything. I am hoping this group will increase my knowledge in this field and help make my business more sucessful.

My sump alarm went off to let me know that my pump isn't working, what do I do to fix it???

I'd put myself in the middle of both of you....surprisingly for a woman ;-) Im a pretty bare-bones sort of person when it comes to appliances, as long as it freezes, cleans, cools, dries, cooks Im pretty happy. What really bothers me is when you buy a basic appliance and because you didnt want all the extra bells and whistles you get a piece of garbage! Thats what happened with our stove from hell....so sometimes even if you dont want the extra junk you have to buy it in order to just get a usable appliance. Personally, unless they make a washer/dryer that loads itself, carries the laundry upstairs, folds and irons it and puts it away for me (LOL) I will stick with my basic machine..... Now, the other side of me is absolutely drooling over an Elmira reproduction stove....guess thats a womans perogative..... Brenda

Hello Guys We removed some paneling in our dining room. I have patched all the holes in the wall, and are getting ready to paint. Here are my questions: 1). They had a two-tone wall: The upper half was a dark green, the bottom a light green with trim seperating the two colors, but underneath the trim wasn't painted (about 2" wide). As a result, this left a little bump between the painted part and the non- painted part. Will this little bump be noticable when I complete painting the entire room one solid color? Should I put in drywall compound to seel this little gap? 2). We are going to paint the room red. Will normal white primer work in covering up the darker colors, or should I get some red tainted primer to help? Any thoughts or suggestions are welcomed. Thank you Andy

Hi all, I've not posted before, but have enjoyed reading the messages. My husband & I are planning to convert our carport into a den. The problem is the carport is lower than the foundation of the house, and water comes in on one side when it rains.... A friend of ours says we can just pour more concrete on top to raise it. He also offered to help us do the conversion so we don't have to hire someone to do it for us. I am all for doing it ourselves if possible, but have never tackled a project this big. I guess my questions are Can we raise the floor by adding new concrete to the old? Having never attempted anything like this is it advisable to do this ourselves? I want to have large windows in the 2 outside walls, and a door. I am not sure just how difficult all this will be. Our friend is knowledgable in carpentry, but I am unsure about the foundation. Any advice??? Denise

Heidi: I saw on one of the many home improvements shows on HGTV, or was it that show called "Home Matters" on the Discovery Channel about how you could buy plain tiles for like $.50 each at the hardware store, and paint your own. That way, maybe you could find a pretty stencil you like and make a border around your ceiling, or around your edge of the floor, and maybe you could make your own "Designer" tiles that you would like rather than buying the expensive ones. Or maybe you could just buy a few of the expensive ones and improvise with your own painting with the color to match on the others. Just an idea. Try the web sites hgtv.com and Discovery.com Lynn Wells Selbyville, Delaware

I moved into a 6 year old house about a year ago, and have come across an aggravating problem. My kitchen light is a ceiling fan with a 5 globe light fixture attached. One of the globes is burning out the light bulb about every 3 months. On several occasions when I tried to change the bulb, it would break in the socket, and I have to work out the broken pieces. I don't have this problem with the other globes, but I've noticed the other light bulbs are difficult to get in and out - as if the screw part of the fixture is rusted or something. Is there anything that can be done - outside of replacing the entire light fixture? I thought I remembered reading a hint somewhere about rubbing a little Vaseline on the screw part of the light bulbs to prevent rust & make them go in and out easier. Is this safe to do? Jo

Hi all! How does one put nails, screws, things to hang with into a concrete wall? ML

Does anyone have any ideas about how to remove layers of paint from cast iron radiators withOUT draining the heating system? I am cetain that removing them is beyond our strength and having it done would likely cost more than installing new radiators that aren't half as nice as the old ones. I know they would be much more efficient at heating if they had only one coat of mat black instead of multiple coats of pale colours. Modern hot water radiators are not an option. Where could the cats lie on those thin things? Dreaming of my dream house, Jessica-Jean - last shift!

This is a Test:

Just Testing:

Heres my pet peeve about my fridge (I covered my stove from hell in a post a looooong time ago...lol), its covered in this textured coating, pain to clean cause the dirt catches in all the little crevices, the handle is THE WORST!....yes you can only see it up close but arent you usually up close when you're opening the fridge? AND, on the side of the fridge, there are kazillions of teeny tiny rust spots, Im assuming the coating wasnt applied right and the metal underneath is rusting? Now, if I had been as assertive when we bought it as I am now, that and the stove would not be here right now......next time I will be. Brenda

Hi, I have a bathroom remodling issue that I could use some input on. I want to replace a vanity top with a new marble top. The current top has a 4 inch backsplash that is directly under a single horizontal line of bath tile. I am worried that I will break these tiles when I remove the old top. Does anyone have any ideas on how to preserve these tiles? I don't think I can find replacements exactly the same type. I fear that my only option may be to remove the tiles paint the wall just above the new vanity top.

Hi all.... I think this discussion took place a few weeks ago, but I'm having a sr. moment and don't really remember what was said. I'm thinking about replacing my kitchen flooring with stick-down tiles. Does anyone have any feedback on this? Pros? Cons? Suggestions? Any and all will be appreciated. ML (Marylee)

Hi all, after I sent that last message last night, I sat down to watch some TV, well the "culprit" decided he wanted some lovin' and jumped in my lap. After enduring several minutes of dough kneading, I wanted to see how he'd react to getting his claws trimmed. I took my finger-nail clippers, and found a claw. SNIP! he was watching what I was doing, and then watched the tip of his claw go flying. He looked up at me as if to say "oh thank you! now do the rest!" Needless to say, after I trimmed all his front claws, he seems happier. Now I only hope he'll start using the proper scratching post. TTFN; (gotta get back to work) Jeremy

Hello Guys I have a small bathroom I just remodeled and instead of one sheet vinyl flooring, I decided to use those vinyl tiles. I haven't put any sealer on the floor, but my father-in-law (who is a contractor) told me I should put a sealer on the floor to keep water out of the cracks, but he didn't tell me what kind to use. I haven't talked to him in a while, but wondered if anyone here knew what I am supposed to use. He said it is like putting 5 coats of wax on the floor, but he didn't give me much else to go on, and didn't know the exact brand or what it was called. DOes anyone here know? Thank you Andy

Hi all! We are getting the kitchen measured today...think I passed the hurdle with DH about extending the kitchen, now we are on to the appliance fight. I want a cooktop in the island, and double wall ovens, he (of course) doesn't. Can anyone direct me to resources for pricing appliances, other than the given places, like sears and bestbuy? I'm guessing we need to have an idea of what we want before we put cabinets in LOL! Thanks! Karyn Todd Breathe new life into your home one room at a time! www.shopwithme.net ktodd@...

Hi Group, After 28 years as tenants, we bought our first house. I've been to city hall in search of previous permits or plans. None on file since 1928. The house was built about 1914. There are visually obvious major alterations made to it in the intervening decades. So far as we know (information from the previous owner and the house inspector) the place is concrete framed, double brick sheathed. So, first question: does anyone on the list have any experience with concrete framed private homes? That's plain poured concrete, no steel reinforcement in 1914 that I know of. 2nd question: is it possible to get someone to make drawings of a built house? What would I look for in the yellow pages? 3rd question: is it at all possible to insulate the walls from the inside? Insulation was unheard of when this was built. Heating was central, as in the wood-burning stove in the kitchen heated the entire place! Enough for one day. Thanks in advance for any help anyone is able to offer. Jessica-Jean - only one shift to work before retirement!!!!

Thank you all for the varied remarks/comments/suggestions. First off, let me say this. De-clawing this cat, will be a very remote last resort. I'd rather find him a new home, where he can enjoy the outdoors, than cut off his claws. Also getting a dog is out of the question. :-) I'm not a dog person. Keeping him out of the room is difficult at best. I don't want to restrict him and his brother to the basement during the day either because I've got rather expensive A/V equipment down there, and I don't want him cooped up all day and seeing the TV as another scratching post. :-) To all who've suggested spraying something on the sofa, I just haven't had a chance to look for something yet. Someone suggested praising him, when he uses the newly bought rope scratching post, he doesn't seem to like that, yet. The past couple nights I've kept him, and his good little brother downstairs so I can sleep restful. The saga continues, Jeremy

Dear Jeremy, We once used a product called "NO". It's at the pet store in a big orange spray can. But, we sprayed it on a towel, then put the towel next to the furniture. I wouldn't spray it directly on the couch. It worked for awhile, but our cat got used to it after awhile and the effectiveness wore off. I also tried lots of positive feedback, telling the cat how great he is when he's clawing his scratching post, etc. A little catnip there wouldn't hurt. Then move him to the scratching post any time he is about to claw the couch, etc. That seemed to help with us. Good luck! Allison E. Beatty www.renovatorsplace.com

This may be too easy but what about not letting them loose in the house during the day? Like keep them in a "safe" area of the house like the kitchen or a laundryroom/basement?? We have a dog that cant be alone, he scratches the heck out of our doorframes, so we built a dogrun and they both go out there. Brenda

I work for a company which usually has a booth at the major Home&Garden Shows. I love volunteering for those, especially for the first shift on Saturday, since our booth usually has lots of volunteers (good commissions), and I have enough free time either during my shift or afterwards to wander around. Most of the exhibitors are way to expensive for me, but I have run across some great ideas, which I can either do myself or get done a lot cheaper. But you do come up with great ideas - from decorating to landscaping!! Jo

kitchen designer for HD so I am naturally a little prejudiced in their favor (OK, I admit it, I bleed orange.) : be glad to answer any questions you have . LOL! Think my DH bleeds orange as well, a true HD fan. They are the closest for us, and the only home improvement store I am really familar with, glad to know you are here :o) own kitchen, so again, I'm a little prejudiced, LOL. Are you looking at Kraftmaid, Thomasville, Shrock or American Crafters? Debating between kraftmaid and thomasville (mushroom glazed) you can layout your kitchen yourself; however, you can have this done at HD if you make an appointment and bring in good measurements. If you are serious, you should pay to have the kitchen measurer come out, it's a minimal charge and they refund it when you buy the cabinets. That way you can see how it's going to look and the designers will probably have some good suggestions about storage options and how to transition the flooring change. We went to HD, and were totally clueless about what we wanted, so we poked around, made an appt for a measurer to come out (this Thursday), took some brochures home, and decided to start at step one. I sat up 1/2 the night playing with ideas on layout and style. Hit my husband over the head in the AM with my great added storage idea....his first reaction was NO WAY (typical), by the time he got home, he was thinking right along with me *very big grin* I did go to millspride web site and did the layout, but the picture they gave me was so cartoonie, it was rediculous! I found another site that was so above my skills, when they gave me the rendering, I cracked up laughing! cabinets just tosssed here and there! Will see if I can find the link if anyone wants to test their skills, but I warn you, be prepared to laugh at yourself! However, the rendering (had I been able to place things properly) was 3-D and very realistic! I called our local home depot and talked with someone for quite a while about the kitchen. She was helpful to a certain degree, but overall, it was almost more work than it was worth, we just weren't on the same "wave" and to explain everything 3 times in 3 different ways to get, OH, so, you're saying this..... and then have no real suggestion really tested my patience, but I DID appreciate that she tried. I am getting so excited to get this done! Now that we have taken the first step, I want to rip out what is there TODAY! I hate it so much LOL! I look forward to any other suggestions anyone has, if you need any more info, let me know! THanks~ Karyn

Greetings all: (Long time reader, first time poster) Allow me to give a little background: I have two male (fixed) cats, they used to be in/outdoor cats. I have recently moved to the other side of town, to a place that frowns upon letting your cats roam outside. For the past 3 months they've behaved themselves. But this afternoon I come home from work to discover one of them has used the sofa as a claw sharpener. (sofa has replacement guarantee) Before I take advantage of the guarantee, I need to know if anyone knows of something I can put on the sofa that one, won't harm the leather, and two, keeps them away from it. Now that I think about it, I guess the place where I bought it would have an idea. If worst comes to worst I can always de-claw them. Thanks in advancel Jeremy

To become one with someone or something is to share a mutual respect and dependency as in marriage or friendship. The native Americans were said to be one with nature. Thy cleared meadows in the forests so deer and the like would come to feed. Thy took what thy needed no more. Thy took care of natuer and nature took care of them. My grandfather and every craftsman that were kind enough to teach me toled me {you take care of your tools and thy will take care of you}. Show them the care and respect you would your best friend. You see anything wrong with that reeder? If you were a reader instead of a reeder you might have noticed I DIDNOT mention Zen or Buda. I did mention ones propensity to move in the direction of ones stronger mussels. And hay I'll admit it if your replies weren't so long and boring I may not have gone that route. Do you have to copy the book verbatim? Now Tell me what's so wrong with telling someone to do the best thy can and if thy are happy that's all that should matter? The truth is you don't like me becass I know what you are. I read your first reply but cut you some slack anyway, cass I'm a nice guy and why make waves? But lets see how you as a finish carpenter makes a titer miter joint, message 1940. Apparently whenyou find a doorjamb that is out of square you use a angle finder? or a bevel square to duplicate the angel of the crooked jamb and transfer the angle to the casing and with a glue that somehow works on end grain you glue and use your brad nailer and nail it together. So then you take your crooked casing with the tit miter joint and nail it to the crooked jamb. Now the next step would be to cut the door to fit the crooked jamb, grab your money and run. And the sucker doesn't know his wall is sinking till he sees a crack in the plaster from the corner of your crooked jamb that has started to separate to the ceiling. Ok cracker now lets you and me get down to it. You name the time and the place. This soft minded 52-year-old Army NCO would love to hear you talk about Jasus. And I can tell you how Col. Hanna 4th stu. bat the stu. brg. U. S. Army Int.school F. Benning Ga. got me and my friends out of the Columbus jail after a little fight we had with townies after jump school. If any of you ladies think I owe you an apology mea culpa, sorry bout that.

Hi! I stumbled across your list while looking for a group related to my business, decided to join your list and pick your brains! My DH and I are remodeling certain things in our home. We bought this house 3 years ago from the orginal owners/builders. The house is only 17 years old, but was not taken care of by the originals. We are currently fighting over the kitchen as it was built with a "country" kitchen, and I am tired of having no doors on my cabinets. Let me explain the layout of the house briefly, then ask my questions... We have a pretty much open floor plan. From the kitchen, I can see through the breakfast nook (that has a woodstove) to the living room. We have wide pine floors, and all the trim (around the windows, and baseboards) is the same medium brown. The kitchen is laid out L shaped. Tile covers most of the kitchen floor. There is a doorway, and a "walkway" that runs along the edge of the tile on one side. The fridge and stove are on wall A, the sink & dishwasher are on wall B, there is no wall C but there is an island, wall D is on the other side of the walkway, not an option to use for anything. The breakfast nook continues along wall B, there is a 6 foot wall that is wall C equivalent to kitchen, the rest of wall C is just open space to the living room. Wall D has the woodstove on it. (no wall A, as that is where the island is) We have agreed that we want to redo the kitchen. We have agreed that we want enclosed cabinets (so far so good). I think I would rather have a lighter cabinet color than natural wood because we already have to much wood color in the house. I am looking at a taupe/mushroom/way off-white (creamy tan?). If you are still with me, here are my questions... 1. Would that color brighten up the house, without over powering it with more wood color? 2. I want to combine