Threasa Brown lives in an Irving, Texas neighborhood that has a perplexing mystery. Many houses have one sole gold brick in the front wall. Here's what Threasa says: "Most of the houses (built in the 1970's) in our neighborhood (including ours) has a single gold brick on the front exterior wall by the porch. I have […]
Dale Hanson is thinking of purchasing a condo in Champaign, IL. His inspector may have given him bad advice: "I am purchasing a condo and the inspector said he could not find a return air duct in the basement. Is it necessary to have an air duct in the basement?" Dale, I assume you mean is it […]
When you think of a man up in the mountains digging with a mattock and shovel, you probably conjure up a vision of a prospector looking for gold, silver or other valuable mineral. I doubt you'd imagine a man creating caves full of sculptured art. When you watch this video, I hope you take away […]
Bob Monninger had a shed built at his Antioch, Illinois home. Let him finish the tale. "I had a shed built this summer by a company called Tuff Shed. It's a very good one, 10 X 14, all wood. It sits on a concrete slab. I have installed insulation on all four walls, the ceiling, and the […]
Sewer Smell When Using Fireplace Tom Grote, who lives in Ivoryton, CT, has an unpleasant experience when he starts a fire in his fireplace. It's not a smoking issue, it's a sewer smell. Read what he sent me: "I live in a two-story colonial with a bathroom and fireplace on the first floor. Every time I […]
Basil Pallone lives just south of me in Sudbury, MA. But he's got a problem with his older home he's trying to improve. Here's what he wrote to me: "I recently installed spray foam insulation in the attic of my two story colonial home, built in 1968. Since I installed the spray foam insulation, the windows […]
Margaret Hilpert, who's got the pithy writing style down pat, lives in North Carolina and wrote to me: "Vapor barrier over studs and insulation. Is that all we need before installing a shower kit and tongue and groove paneling?" Margaret, yes, that's all you need! But be SURE to do it right! CLICK HERE to […]
David Roll lives in a very new home in Battle Ground, WA that had a water line MELT and caused a flood. You'll not believe Dave's story. Here it is unedited: "Hi Tim. I am in a brand new home for 1.25 yrs. House flooded this past weekend, significant damage. Plumber cut open wall to find […]
John Sneddon, who hails from Glasgow, Scotland, in the United Kingdom, just purchased a metal shed and realizes he could have an issue with condensation. "Hi there, I have just purchased a Yardmaster 10ft x 13ft Metal Shed but have just found out that these are prone to condensation inside. What I am looking to do […]
Glen and Sandra Schweickert built a new home twelve years ago. Let them fill you in. "We bought a brand new home in 2002 from a regional builder. They went bankrupt in 2007. We would like to build a new home using the same plans and blueprints from the house we now have that was built […]
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