Q&A / 

Efflorescence or White Mold? 99% Of The Time It's Silly Salt The seasonal tumblers are all clicking into place here at my home. The same thing might be happening where you live. My central New Hampshire town, much to my dismay, uses rock salt to fight ice and snow on the roads. Yes, it works, […]

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Infrared Photos of Electricity - They Could Save Your Life I grew up reading Superman comic books. One of his superpowers was x-ray vision. He could see through opaque objects to detect danger. I was mesmerized by this power as were many children and no doubt adults. What would you say if I told you […]

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Filter Fabric for French Drain - Don't Waste Your Money! Filter fabric for french drains is not required. It's a myth. Websites and YouTube channels promote it with reckless abandon. Here's why it's a waste of money. Water drainage is misunderstood by many a homeowner, builder, YouTube personality, and building inspector if my incoming email […]

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DIY Drywall Secrets That Make You a Pro I’ve been helping my son finish the basement in his three-year-old home sharing DIY drywall secrets. We can only work on Saturdays, some Fridays, and any paid-time-off days he can burn up. It’s been a lifelong dream of mine to help my kids work on their homes. […]

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Virtual General Contractor - Will Work for Food & Money Were you 100 percent satisfied with all of the work done on your last large project? I’m talking about near perfection. If you did an autopsy on all the problems, errors, delays, etc. on the big job, what do you think would be the top […]

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Iron Pipe Handrail Disaster - DIY Inexperience Creates Danger Several weeks ago I shared a story about a young woman with you. She attends our church, and my wife and I are friends with her. A week ago she reached out to me with a new problem. She was attempting to install a new iron […]

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Oldest Home Improvement Channel on YouTube - Ask the Builder Ask the Builder was the first home improvement channel on YouTube. Ask the Builder was part of Google Video before Google purchased YouTube. Tim Carter is the founder of Ask the Builder, one of the first home improvement websites on the Internet. The Ask the […]

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Rusted Joist Hangers are Dangerous One of my newsletter subscribers, Robert, does handyman work on the weekends for friends and other homeowners. Eleven years ago, he wanted to learn how to frame a large shed including common roof framing. He volunteered to help me build my 16x24-foot two-story shed. We’ve been fast friends ever since […]

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Repair Concrete Cracks - Many Bad Options Several days ago I had a texting exchange with a very smart single woman who attends my church. She reached out to me the day before with a photo of water inside her garage and another showing a crack in the garage foundation wall near the water puddle. […]

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