Woodcraft Sweepstakes
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Gutterbrush Promotion
For a limited time only our friends at Gutterbrush are offering a 25% discount to Today’s Homeowner listeners. Just go to www.gutterbrush.com to order and use the promo code DANNY25. Or, call their toll free number at (888) 397-9433.
Hour 1
David in AL
How can I stop water from seeping into my basement during heavy rain? And how can I seal the concrete from inside? We discovered this problem after hurricane Nate and it’s wreaking havoc on my wife’s asthma.
Mike in AL
I have a cabin in the woods with pine floors and now, after 12 years without any issue, most of them have bowed or warped. There’s no water leak or obvious cause. What could have done this?
Deborah in NC
We are adding a bath and closet to our home. We want to use the dirt from the foundation holes to help build up an area near the back of the yard that we may use later to park vehicles. Should we add sand or another material with it? Water currently drains well because the house is seated on a slight incline.
Buddy
We want to put in a backsplash in our kitchen but the countertop extends farther down the wall than the cabinets do, so there isn’t a natural place to stop the backsplash. Do you think the backsplash should end at the cabinets or at the end of the counter?
Lori in TX
I hired a painter to paint a wall. He used a sprayer. He sprayed too many coats without letting each coat dry in between. The result is a crackling effect on the paint. Can I just prime that wall and repaint it or do I have to sand it down? The paint is not peeling or chipping off.
John in ME
I want to install old barn boards horizontally to the walls of my poured-concrete basement. I’ve framed 2×4 stud walls against the concrete walls, but want to make sure that moisture doesn’t affect the barn boards. What kind of insulation should I install?
Sandy in NY
I’d like to add a washer and dryer to my mom’s ranch house, but there’s no plumbing set up for it, and there’s no basement. What would you suggest?
Hour 2
Lynda in NY
The handyman that I hired removed two damaged Italian tiles from my bathroom. He also removed the backer board leaving me with nothing but air and insulation. I have replacement tiles but no ideas how to glue them to air.
Allison in AL
We’re removing wallpaper in our kitchen and we have some wallpaper stuck to the bare drywall. We won’t want to wet it for fear of ruining the drywall. What should we do? Paint over it?
Margaret in IA
I have some primer and some paint from 2010. Is that still good or should I go get new paint? I want to touch up some window frames.
Angie in WA
Whenever it rains the concrete floor in my metal shop gets wet and I can’t figure out why. There are no leaks that I can see. The building is 15 years old and it’s completely closed up with overhead doors and walk-through doors. It is built on sandy soil and there are no drainage problems. The downspouts drain into dry wells about 10 to 15 feet from the building. I live in western Washington so we have a lot of dampness here.
Claire in AL
Our kitchen cabinets are stained a dark color, and I’d like to lighten them up by painting them white. And I would really like to replace the cabinet doors with shaker-style doors. Should I buy new doors and keep old cabinet boxes, or should I just replace the cabinets altogether?
Rashonda in AL
I’m looking for suggestions for getting moist air out of a rental bathroom with no fan, especially in winter. Opening the window works slowly, but leaving it open makes heating less efficient. Installing an exhaust fan in the wall or ceiling is not an option. I’d put a fan in the window, but it’s inside the shower.
Alan
I have air handlers for my AC in my attics. One of the systems has flex ductwork for the cold air return the other has sheet metal and neither of the plenums is insulated. Question: should they have insulation wrapped on both the plenum and the cold-air return for each and does it really work? What kind of insulation wrap would you suggest?
