Show Notes
- Sealing Drafts: Tracking down and sealing drafts is the first step in keeping your home warm.
- Stone Countertop Refinishing: Get the look of natural stone countertops with an easy and affordable weekend project.
- Textured Surface Repairs: Fix textured walls and ceilings without the fuss and mess.
Table of Contents[Hide][Show]
Plus, answers to your home improvement questions about:
- Mailbox Stains: Those stains on Louise’s brick mailbox are probably mineral deposits from water splashes. A vinegar solution will clean the surface easily.
- Reversing a Door Swing: Scott wants to reverse the swing of a door that blocks the light switch, but it would be simpler to run the light switch to a different spot.
- Sealing Windows: Linda is paying high energy bills but has limited options in her rental apartment. We recommend using shrink film or weatherstripping caulk on her windows.
- Replacing HVAC System: Sal needs recommendations for replacing his HVAC unit. He should start by checking references of local contractors and seeking out good brands, energy efficiency ratings, and available rebates.
- Uneven Subfloor: New flooring can’t be installed over an uneven subfloor. Diane needs either a carpentry solution or a floor-leveling compound.
- Toilet Water System: Darren has questions about converting his toilet to rain barrel water. We have answers about filtering, water pressure, and toilet efficiency.
- Log Home Walls: There are cracks in the walls of Nina’s log home. A wood filler could be colored or stained, but she’s better off accepting the rustic log look.
- Flooring Over Concrete: What kind of flooring should be installed over concrete? John’s best options include laminate or engineered hardwood.
Podcast Transcript
Read Transcript
| 0:00:31 | TOM: Coast to coast and floorboards to shingles. This is the Money Pit Home Improvement show. I’m Tom Kraeutler. |
| 0:00:37 | LESLIE: And I’m Leslie Segrete. |
| 0:00:38 | TOM: And we are here to help you check on the projects you’d like to get done around your house. So what are you planning for this weekend? You got a project you’d like to get done. You need help solving a repair problem. Do you have a decor dilemma? Reach out to us with your questions at Money Pit E-commerce Ask or call us at 1-888-Money-Pit. Coming up on today’s show, none of the heating season has arrived. It’s a good time to think about how to stop the one thing that makes us reach for that thermostat more than we should, and that’s those chilly drafts that are leaking into your house. So we’re going to share some tips on how to track down and seal virtually every single draft in the house just ahead. |
| 0:01:15 | LESLIE: And natural stone countertops have long been a popular but expensive option for kitchen renovations. But today, you can accomplish that same look at a fraction of the cost by using a countertop refinishing kit. We’re going to show you how. |
| 0:01:29 | TOM: And textured walls and ceilings are popular, but if you have to make a repairs to that surface, restoring the original texture is a big hassle. Well, now there’s a quick fix that can restore that surface in minutes. We’ll share those details as well. |
| 0:01:42 | LESLIE: But first, what projects are you guys dreaming about that you want to tackle this fall season? Well, if you can dream it, you can do it and we can help. So let us know what projects you’ve got on your to do list or maybe your dream list, because we want to help you make those a reality. |
| 0:01:58 | TOM: Plus, we’ve got a great product we’re giving away today from Greenworks is a 40 volt 500 watt portable power station. It can create enough power for off grid outdoor fun, like camping trips and tailgating, or even for backup power that might be needed during an electrical outage. Now, check this out. It’s worth almost 800 bucks, but it’s going to go out to one listener drawing at random from those who reach out to us with a question. So you got a call with a question. You just can’t call and say, hey, I want to win that fantastic prize from Greenworks. Well, we’d love to send it to you, but you’ve got a call with a home improvement question. We’ll be drawing a winner from the Money Pit hardhat. And if we pick out your name, you’ll get that great power station from Greenworks. So let’s get started. Leslie, who’s first. |
| 0:02:41 | LESLIE: Got Louise on the line? Who’s got some mystery stains on a mailbox? What’s going. |
| 0:02:45 | CALLER: On? Okay, I have a brick mailbox, and it seems to have salt deposits leaking to the outside of it. |
| 0:02:53 | TOM: Is it in the way of a lawn sprinkler, by any chance? |
| 0:02:58 | CALLER: No, it isn’t. |
| 0:02:58 | TOM: Because often what happens is if it gets groundwater splashed on it, and that could happen if you have sprinklers and wells, a lot of mineral salts in there that will dry and basically hear the outside. You know, what’s happening here is you are seeing some sort of mineral deposits and you’re going to have to clean it. And the best way to clean it, believe it or not, is to mix up a vinegar and water solution because vinegar melts the salts. |
| 0:03:23 | CALLER: Wow. |
| 0:03:23 | TOM: So you can, you know, mix them up in a bucket, splash it down, you know, with a nice soft bristle brush, scrub it. And that should make those disappear. They may come back. But the other thing that you could think about doing it once it gets nice and dry and clean, is to apply a masonry sealer to it. And if you use a silicone based masonry sealer, you want to get one that’s vapor permeable so it doesn’t trap the water underneath the seal or surface. And so it’s a breeze and stops it from cracking and chipping. But that should slow down the showing up of any additional salt stains. |
| 0:03:52 | CALLER: Well, thank you so much. |
| 0:03:54 | TOM: All right, Louise, thanks so much for calling us at 888-Money-Pit. |
| 0:03:58 | LESLIE: Now we’ve got Scott on the line who needs some help rearranging a door swing. What’s going on? |
| 0:04:02 | CALLER: We just bought a new place and our downstairs bathroom. The door now swings in the left. But the problem is a light switch is then behind the door. Oh, yeah. |
| 0:04:16 | TOM: So you got to walk in the bathroom, close the door in the dark, fumbling with the light switch and turn it on. |
| 0:04:20 | CALLER: Yes, that’s pretty much it. So I’m just curious if there’s a way to switch the handing of the door without replacing the whole casing. Everything. |
| 0:04:28 | TOM: Not easily. It’s probably easier to run a new light switch on the other side than it is to change out the door because, you know, the hole is drilled where the hole is drilled. And if you were to change the hand, you’d basically have to you’d have you have to put a new hole on the other side, I would think, yeah, doors don’t flip right and left too easily, you know, unless you’re talking about the door and your washing machine is designed to do that, you know, an interior door doesn’t, doesn’t turn very easily. So I would suggest you just run a new switch on the other side and you could just put a blank out played across the one that’s there now was frankly, nobody’s going to see it. |
| 0:05:06 | CALLER: All right. Thank you very much. |
| 0:05:07 | TOM: You’re welcome. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-Money-Pit. |
| 0:05:11 | LESLIE: Heading over to Ohio. Linda’s on the line with the window Question. What can we do for you? |
| 0:05:15 | CALLER: I’m an informant. They’re supposed to be energy efficient, but my heating bills and my air conditioning bills are really high. I don’t think I fell in love with the plastic on the windows anymore. Is there any other way to make it more efficient? |
| 0:05:31 | TOM: It’s a real challenge when you’re a renter, because you’re right. There’s only a limited things that you can do, but there are things that you can do now. You mentioned putting the plastic on there. I’m not quite sure you know what you’re doing in terms of the plastic, but the shrink film. Plastic works the best where essentially covers the whole interior of the window space. And then you use a hairdryer once you apply it and it gets really taut and clear. That’s one thing that you can do. The second thing is that there is a sort of a liquid weather stripping. It’s like a weather stripping caulk and it looks like silicone caulk, right. So what you do with this stuff is you essentially caulk your windows shut, you put it in all the places, there’s gaps. And the nice thing is that in the spring, it remains rubbery and you can kind of grab the edge of it and peel it right away. Now, the only bad thing is this Whatever window you caulk, you won’t be able to open all winter long. So if it’s a bedroom window, you can’t do it there because you need egress in the event of an emergency. But it works great, especially with really old windows, because it does seal them up and it’s easy to do and it doesn’t damage the windows appeals right off. |
| 0:06:37 | LESLIE: You have a name or you’re not allowed to say it on the air. |
| 0:06:39 | TOM: Air. There’s a there’s a number of different brands of it. I know that Red Devil makes one. I think DAP makes one. And I think there’s also a generic one, and you ought to be able to find it at the Home Depot. And if it’s not on the shelf, I would ask the service desk and describe the product to them. |
| 0:06:57 | TOM: The weather stripping cork is what you’re looking for and perhaps they’ll be able to order for you. But I have seen it on the store shelves and there is. All right. Well, listen, good luck. I hope that helps you out. Lynn, appreciate you calling us at 1-888-Money-Pit. |
| 0:07:11 | LESLIE: You know, we love hearing from our listeners. And if you want to make our day, leave us a five star review on Apple Podcasts. |
| 0:07:17 | TOM: You know, it really helps us know what we’re doing right and how we can improve our show for you. So just go to Money Pit dot com slash review, Money bootcamp slash review, and you might even win a copy of our book. If you do reach out to us with your questions, you might just win a great product we’re giving away from our friends at Greenworks. It’s the 40 volt 500 watt four slot inverter portable power station and it can create enough power for off grid outdoor fun, like camping trips and tailgating or for backup power that you might need during the electrical outage. It’s worth almost a hundred bucks, but it’s going to go out for free to one listener drawing at random from those who call us with a question, you got to have a question about your house that you’d like some help resolving. If you do that will toss your name into the Money Pit hard ahead. The number here is 1-888-Money-Pit 888-666-3974. Or better yet, and for the fastest possible response, just go to MoneyPit.com/ask and click the blue microphone button. |
| 0:08:14 | LESLIE: Sal in North Carolina, you’ve got the Money Pit. What can we do for you? |
| 0:08:17 | CALLER: Well, we had the AC gas leak in the whole house. AC got sick, so there’s a leak. It was in there and we call the diagnosis and they recommend we replace the whole ecosystem in the house. |
| 0:08:32 | LESLIE: Like just the air handler and condensing unit or all of the duct work as. |
| 0:08:35 | CALLER: Well. I think it just the condenser. |
| 0:08:38 | LESLIE: Everything okay. How old is your unit? |
| 0:08:40 | CALLER: Well, it’s old, like about 20 years old. |
| 0:08:42 | LESLIE: Oh, okay. So it’s time. |
| 0:08:44 | CALLER: So why we’re I was wondering if there is, like, the recommended affordable again a company that can supply the or replace the whole system with affordable, too. We live in Durham, North Carolina. |
| 0:08:59 | LESLIE: Well, you’re going to want to find a local AC contractor that, you know, you check their references and that you trust you know, ask people that, you know, ask people in the neighborhood, look online, check their references, call them up and find somebody that you feel comfortable with. Now, when it comes to a manufacturer of a condensing unit, carrier is a fantastic brand train is a fantastic brand. You really want to look at things such as energy efficiency. You want to make sure you know now that you’re doing some work, you want to make sure that it’s properly sized for your home and the right HVAC contractor can calculate which size condensing unit you’re going to need for the amount of rooms and distance of the house that you’re really trying to cool. So you want to make sure that you’re looking for high energy efficiency. If there is any rebates going on, you know, ask those questions. A good HVAC contractor is going to know that and help point you in the direction of which manufacturer has those going. Right now. As far as, you know, tax rebates, those are things you really want to look into. But I say you can’t go wrong with a carrier or a train. |
| 0:09:59 | CALLER: Oh, good. But I have another question. Some manufacturers offer insurance, two years insurance for the replacement. You want me to buy the insurance or it’s or it’s a new one. We don’t have to get insurance for that. |
| 0:10:21 | LESLIE: It depends. Now, usually a brand new piece of equipment is going to come with some sort of manufacturer’s warranty and you have to make sure and find out what the term on that is not usually included. I wouldn’t buy anything extended. What I would look into is if there’s a service contract with the HVAC company that’s doing the install because it’s a piece of equipment that you’re going to want to have looked at once a year, levels are going to have to be checked. Everything’s going to have to make sure it’s in top operating condition, number one for the efficiency. But also you want to make sure it’s cool and is that you need it to be cool. So I think the money is better spent on an annual maintenance contract because it’s going to include most of those things as far as parts, sometimes they include filters, sometimes they don’t. But you’ll want to make sure that you get filters because you do have to change those monthly, and that’s in the return duct. But I think the money better spent other than an extended warranty would be on an annual service plan. |
| 0:11:12 | CALLER: Oh, great. Thank you very much. |
| 0:11:14 | TOM: All right. Well, good luck with that project. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-Money-Pit. |
| 0:11:18 | LESLIE: Well, energy efficiency is an ongoing job for any homeowner, and there are many parts of your home that can be improved to increase energy efficiency. But one area that is definitely tough to track down is how all of those drafts are getting into your money Pit. |
| 0:11:33 | TOM: Yeah, and that’s what really makes you uncomfortable. It makes you feel chilly if you happen to be in the path of one and if you’re heater is blasting warm air, but the room never seems to get any warmer is also likely a result of air leaks. So with all that cold air leaking in, the real indoor temperature can never be accurately gauged. And that’s going to overtax your heating system in the winter and your cooling system in the summer. |
| 0:11:55 | LESLIE: Now, one of the best ways that you can track down the source of all of those drafts and air leaks is by hiring a professional home energy auditor. Now, a home energy auditor is going to have the tools and the knowledge to see where the biggest offenders exist. They’re going to use tools such as blower doors, which can pinpoint the source of drafts and infrared cameras that can even find spaces where insulation could be missing. |
| 0:12:17 | TOM: And with the results of the home energy on it, you’ll know exactly where your home’s leaking and you’ll be able to address every area with absolute certainty which is going to make your home more comfortable and a lot less expensive to heat and cool all year long. |
| 0:12:32 | LESLIE: Diane in South Dakota is on the line with the flooring question What can we do for you today? |
| 0:12:35 | CALLER: Yes, we had a problem with trying to put some wood flooring down on our on our floor, and then they delivered the wood and they went to lay it down. They said that our floor wasn’t that flat. We had some ridges or bumps on it up and that they could not put the flooring on because it would pop up and hold. Okay. And I’m just wondering if there’s any way to rectify that. |
| 0:13:01 | TOM: So what type of subfloor do you have that they were trying to put this new flooring on top of? Is it plywood? |
| 0:13:06 | CALLER: It’s plywood, yes. |
| 0:13:07 | TOM: Yeah, sure. A good flooring installer would know this. So I’m surprised they didn’t tell you what had to happen. But there’s a couple of things you can do. There’s a carpentry solution, and a carpentry solution may involve it depends on how far out of whack it is. I mean, they’re right these new flooring products, they have a certain range that they’re designed to work with within. And if your floor is out of level above that range, then certainly you could have adhesion problems. So there’s the carpentry solution might involve working on the floor. Joyce to actually get them the way down. Sometimes you get a joist that is crowned and sort of rises up. There is actually a way to go into the basement, cut that beam in half, put a new solid beam next to it and bring it down, and that will help it lay down and eliminate that bump. So that’s a carpentry solution. And the other solution you can use is to apply what’s called a floor leveling compound. Now, this is a liquid, very thick compound that gets poured onto the floor and then it’s self-leveling and a level and it’ll keep everything nice and flat. And that takes up the dips and the rises in that floor and gives you a very flat surface to work on. Probably not a do it yourself project, something I would have somebody do that has some experience with it because it’s got to be done right. Then once that dries, the new floor can be laid right on top of that. So there’s a carpenter solution, and then there’s the floor leveling compound, which is designed exactly for situations like this. |
| 0:14:38 | CALLER: Okay. I actually think that we’d probably have to go the carpenter because I asked him about that product. I said, isn’t there some kind of a leveling product that you could pour on the floor? And they said it wouldn’t work in this situation. |
| 0:14:51 | TOM: Okay. Well, I’m not sure why they probably should be. Give me more information on that. And sometimes when a contractor says it won’t work, what they mean to say that’s what comes out of their mouth. But what they’re saying is, I really don’t want to do it. |
| 0:15:02 | CALLER: Okay. Okay. |
| 0:15:03 | TOM: Maybe they didn’t want to do it. Don’t take that to heart. It may be that can, in fact, be done. You just don’t have the right person involved yet. |
| 0:15:08 | CALLER: Okay. Well, thank you very much. I appreciate your calling me back. |
| 0:15:13 | LESLIE: Darren in Virginia, you’ve got the Money Pit. How can we help you today? |
| 0:15:15 | CALLER: Yeah. So I’m trying to convert my toilet from regular water in the house to around 265 gallon rain barrel outside. So piping it in underneath my house, I have the CPC, the smaller stuff. So what I was wondering is, do I have to filter their water? And if I pump it in there, what is the next piece I that I should use? |
| 0:15:41 | TOM: Are you putting a pump on it? |
| 0:15:42 | CALLER: I’m going up. I’m going to have a solar plant on it. |
| 0:15:45 | TOM: All right. So first of all, no, you don’t have to filter toilet water because it’s wastewater. It’s greywater water so it can go straight in. Secondly, how much pressure do you need? Well, I guess that’s really depend on the toilet. But I would think, you know, most water pressure in a house is going to be anywhere between 50 and £70. So that’s probably what your toilet’s used to working with. And thirdly, you want to make sure I know it’s I mean, it’s a great thing that you’re doing Chinese rainwater for all this, but let’s not forget the obvious. Make sure your toilet itself is efficient. You know, the toilets today can use as little as about 1.3 gallons of water per flush. So if you have an older toilet, you might want to upgrade it. So you need even less water for the flushing mechanism. |
| 0:16:27 | CALLER: All right. So that’s something to think about. Also. |
| 0:16:31 | TOM: What other what other green upgrades are you making to the house? |
| 0:16:34 | CALLER: There’s actually all started with I put in a drinking system for my pigs. |
| 0:16:38 | TOM: Okay. Well, you’ve got a farm there. |
| 0:16:40 | CALLER: I have a farm. I have a small farm in Damascus, Virginia, and we piped, we piped in the stalls, drinking the balls for the pigs because they kept spilling all their water. So. So now they are totally self-sufficient. They have a solar powered pump at 40 PSR. I go into these nipples and it’s coming off of their roof into a rain barrel that feeds it. |
| 0:17:04 | TOM: Well, so this is a natural extension of that. And if it’s good enough for the it’s good enough for the pigs, I guess it’s going to be good enough for your home plumbing system as well. |
| 0:17:12 | CALLER: Yeah. Yeah. I definitely want to try to do as much as I can with Mother Nature before I have to depend on somebody else. |
| 0:17:18 | TOM: All right. Well, it makes a lot of sense. Darren, good luck with that project. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-Money-Pit. |
| 0:17:25 | LESLIE: Well, natural stone countertops have long been a popular but expensive option for kitchen renovations. But today, you can accomplish that same look at a fraction of the cost by using a countertop refinishing kit. |
| 0:17:38 | TOM: Yeah, you know, I just did exactly that on my last kitchen. Reneau was about a year ago now, and I used Lux Rock by Daich Coatings to create a beautiful granite top. And now that line has been expanded to include a beautiful marble top option called Marble Dream. |
| 0:17:55 | LESLIE: Peter Daich is joining us now to talk about this latest advancement in countertop finishes. Welcome, Peter. This is awesome. |
| 0:18:02 | PETER DAICH: Hey, thank you very much. Well, marble is a timeless look and it’s beautiful. It’s definitely something desirable for, you know, many interiors, kitchens, bathrooms, you name it, tabletops. But the point is, that marble, as beautiful as it is, is also prone to staining and is not extremely durable. And what we’ve done with this kid is we’ve given you the ability to put an actual marble coating down. It’s the real thing. And you’re applying it onto your surface. But you are getting excellent stain resistance and excellent durability. So it’s really something there to last for a long time and, you know, save you a little bit of money as well. |
| 0:18:43 | LESLIE: So, Peter, much like your other products, I mean, there’s real stone, real marble in this finish. So it’s not just paint. You’re actually putting the stone on. This is awesome. |
| 0:18:53 | PETER: It’s real marble that you’re applying on to your surface. And there are specific techniques for installing the actual vein that’s in the finish that gives it an extremely authentic and beautiful appearance. So really, if that’s the kind of accent you’ve wired for your kitchen, for instance, for a long time, but you’re just not ready to spend the money to do it and probably also struggle with things like stains and possibly some damage on marble, because marble is actually a fairly soft material. This product has been engineered to go down, give you that marble appearance, give you that beautiful, airy, soft feel, but you don’t have to worry about the staining issue or the durability issue. It’s something there that can last you for years and serve you and your family very nicely and quite stylishly, I must say. |
| 0:19:48 | TOM: Let’s talk about the services that this can go over, because you do have quite a variety of services. I know you can go over laminate. I know in my case, I went over plywood. What about old bathroom vanity tops that are like sort of like a soap stone or cast? Yep. A surface that just looks really worn. Will the product cover all of those different types of surfaces? |
| 0:20:06 | PETER: It absolutely will. So if you want to go over that kind of surface, the old cultured marble, as they like to call it, the one piece, you can definitely do that if you have a kitchen table made of wood or any other material you can go over that you can do your bar, you can do your fireplace mantle, you can even do your wall if you want to. If you feel like you want a very authentic marble surface. The beauty of it is that it comes in one complete kit. It’s got everything in it. It’s easy to do. It’s just a few simple steps. And best of all, you don’t have to have any artistic skill. You don’t have to be terribly creative or capable, frankly. I mean, if I can do it, anybody can do it honestly, Tom. |
| 0:20:50 | LESLIE: All right. Let’s talk about the process. Is this like a weekend long project? Let’s talk about the steps here so I know how long this is going to take me. |
| 0:20:57 | PETER: Yeah, basically, it is a weekend project, essentially. You can start it on a Saturday morning and you’ll probably put the last coating of the clear on Monday. So it’s roughly a weekend. That having been said, most of your time is going to be spent just allowing things to dry and applying the actual product is all done by roller except for the veins. There’s a tool in there to apply the veins. It’s just simply apply a good solid base coat of the marble and you’re going to apply your veins and there’s some more marble that goes over top and then clear coats and you’re done. But, you know, I think your listeners, you know, those who want to try this are going to be shocked at how quick the results are and how authentic the results are and how well it lasts over time. This is meant to serve you for years. And of course, because it’s so inexpensive and you decide down the road you want a different color of marble, go ahead and apply right over top. You’re good to go regardless of how your decor changes. |
| 0:21:57 | LESLIE: I mean, this is really great for $169 and that kit is going to cover 40 square feet, comes in a bunch of different colors. It looks just like the real marble thing. And if you were to go buy a real marble countertop, I mean, we’re talking a lot more than the cost of the dish coating marble dream product. So this is great. You can do it in a weekend. I mean, I say give it a try. If you’ve got a worn out top, definitely put your skills to work here and see what you can do. I bet you’re going to love it. Peter, how many colors does marble dream come in? |
| 0:22:28 | PETER: It comes in three right now. There’s a nice bright white called pristine white. There’s a black and there’s also a nice light gray. But what you’re going to find is that this look is a little bit more minimalist. It’s a little bit softer. There’s not as much activity going on for the it’s just a very soft, very minimalist feel, something very modern and something that should look great in your kitchen or any other room for a long, long time. |
| 0:22:57 | TOM: I’m sure it will. And of course, you have two other countertop kit products. You have the minerals select, and then the luxe rock that I mentioned previously, which by the way, I think we’re at least 6 to 9 months into the Luxe rock finish on the countertops that we put it down in the kitchen and still wearing perfectly. And it looks great. I could tell when I was working with that product, as I have some of your other products that I can tell when it finishes a good quality finish because it just goes down differently. It feels like it has a different tact, a different flow to it, and that’s the only way you’ve been able to perfect these finishes is just because of the quality and the chemistry really, that you guys put behind it. So well done. Once again, the product called Marble Dream available in three colors. You can go to Daich Coatings icon to learn more at daichcoatings.com. Peter Daich, thanks for stopping by the Money Pit. |
| 0:23:45 | PETER: Hey, thank you very much. Have a great day. |
| 0:23:48 | TOM: Hey, how’d you like to have a portable power station that you can use to plug in your devices when the power goes out? Because you know what’s going to happen, right? Sometimes that’s where it’s going to happen. What? We’re giving one away from Greenworks, it’s the 40 volt 500 watt four slot inverter portable power station. It’s the perfect solution for power on the go. It’s got seven ports, so that can handle a wide range of small electronics that supply comfort and convenience. So we’re talking mini fridge, TV, phone, lantern, fan lighting, you name it. It’s worth almost 800 bucks, but we’ve got one to give away to one lucky listener that reaches us with their home improvement question. And that’s really the key. You’re going to have a question if you call in with your question at 1-888-Money-Pit, that’s 888-666-3974. Or better yet, just go to moneypit.com/ask and click the blue microphone button. You can record your question there. We will enter you into the opportunity to win the 40 volt portable power station kit from Greenworks. So make that you give us a call with your home improvement question or post it. |
| 0:24:49 | LESLIE: Nina and Arizona has got a log home that’s cracking up. What’s going on? |
| 0:24:52 | CALLER: My husband Rob all along home and the exterior walls on the inside that are cracked. The logs are cracked. What can we do to fill that in and make it look better? |
| 0:25:03 | TOM: You can fill them in with there’s various types of wood filler out there that that, you know, can be colored and stained to match that. But I think you’re going to be chasing it over and over and over again. So you might want to proceed cautiously. |
| 0:25:16 | CALLER: Oh, wow. Okay. So there’s really no solution for it. |
| 0:25:20 | TOM: I think you’re better off kind of accepting that that’s what that’s supposed to do. I mean, it’s not like finished hardwood furniture or something, you know, it’s a log. So it’s supposed to have that rustic look to it. |
| 0:25:29 | CALLER: Okay. That’s what that’s kind of what my husband said. |
| 0:25:31 | TOM: So, no, you see, you should listen to him, Nina. He just thought he was trying to get out of work, didn’t you? |
| 0:25:38 | CALLER: Okay, well, thank you very much. |
| 0:25:39 | TOM: So glad we could solve that spat. Well, if you guys have ever had a leak or a crack or a nail pipe come through a textured ceiling or a textured wall, you may remember that painting that leak or crack can be easier than the hassle of trying to restore the original texture surface. I remember having to do this in college and, you know, we used to restore the texture. We used toothpaste. Yeah. It wasn’t a leak, by the way. It’s from our mists. Dart tosses and poking holes in the ceiling. Well, fortunately, that was a long time ago. We’ve got better technology today. There’s new product out from DAP that makes this really easy for both the wires and pros. |
| 0:26:22 | LESLIE: Yeah, You know what, guys? It’s called the two in one wall and ceiling texture spray. And it allows you to apply orange peel knocked down and popcorn textures very quickly and very easily to both the wall and the ceiling now comes in a simple to use 25 ounce can that has a 60 degree adjustable nozzle to easily repair a vertical overhead and hard to reach areas. The nozzle system is only available from DAP and it’s called AIM tech because it allows you to direct that texture. Exactly where you need it. Now. Depth two in one wall and ceiling spray texture is really a super handy product. It’s going to save you time, it’s going to save hassles. It’s very easy to use. It delivers a fast drying, excellent texture match for maximum coverage and professional results. Plus it dries in under 30 minutes and you can paint it immediately. |
| 0:27:13 | TOM: Whether you’re taking on a repair, you need to match the existing wall or ceiling surface or are you creating a new look That’s new spray textures. Make it easy to apply an orange peel, a knock down or a popcorn texture. It’s a great choice for both pros and the wires, and you’ll find it in select Lowe’s stores for 2998. |
| 0:27:32 | LESLIE: John and Connecticut’s on the line has a question about flooring. What are you working on? |
| 0:27:36 | CALLER: Well, I have a house that has concrete floor and has no basement. And it sits on, you know, on a concrete floor. And I’m wondering what type of flooring I should put on it. So you have a lot of options. |
| 0:27:48 | TOM: One thing that I would try to avoid would be carpet, because carpet on concrete tends to potentially cause an unsafe situation because you can get a lot of dust that can grow mold in a space like that. You can get a lot of allergens that will trap in the space like that. So I would look at hard surface flooring and use throw rugs if you wanted to have something soft underfoot. If you want an inexpensive option, you could use laminate flooring. Laminate flooring is very durable, very attractive. Today it can look like hardwood flooring. You can look like stone, it can look like tile. They’ve got the technology down to the point where they can sort of print into the laminate pieces itself, the impressions of the stone or the impressions of the green. So I think it’s a very attractive option for concrete slabs. Another one is engineered lumber, right? |
| 0:28:35 | LESLIE: Now, a great option is an engineered hardwood. Now, what’s so great about that is the top layer is actually the hardwood. So if you’ve got that real natural look in mind, this is the way to get it. But what’s underneath the top layer is sort of a compressed structure, almost like a plywood. And those are done at varying grains across from each other. That makes it structurally stable. So if you’re in a moisture or high moisture environment, that’s really going to be the best choice if you’re looking for an actual hardwood. |
| 0:29:02 | CALLER: Oh, wow. Okay. That sounds good. I’ll look into that and I appreciate the information. |
| 0:29:07 | TOM: All right, John, good luck with that project. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-Money-Pit. |
| 0:29:12 | LESLIE: All right, Joe in New Jersey reached out and he says, we’ve got an old house that needs better attic insulation right now. The attic, it’s ventilation from an attic fan. If I add more insulation, is the fan still going to be enough? |
| 0:29:24 | TOM: Well, no, the fan still won’t be enough for a couple of reasons. Frankly, it’s not enough right now. Or it could be too much because when those fans are on, especially in the summertime, they end up pulling out so much of the attic key to their reach down to the house. Then you got central air conditioning. They’ll sort of pull out that cooled air as well. And that’s just wasting your energy dollars by basically taking the heritage record inside the house and sucking up in the attic and kicking out. So what you ought to do is this you ought to remove the attic fan as much passive ventilation as you can. The easiest way to do that is to add ridge and soften fence so that you get a good bit of ventilation. Both in the summer and the winter. In the summer, it takes out the heat, the winter, it takes up the moisture and that makes sure the insulation works well and now’s the time to do it. If you’re adding more insulation, which is really smart this fall, make sure you have enough ventilation to move that moisture, move that heat and you’ll be comfortable and save a lot of energy. Well, we’ll all be spending more and more time in the kitchen as we get ready for the end of your holidays. Leslie has tips to spruce up this space in today’s edition of Leslie’s Last Word. Leslie, I know that you love cooking for friends and family, but how do we make it easier? |
| 0:30:35 | LESLIE: Yeah, you know, I do love to cook for my friends and family, but there are several tips and tricks that I always keep in mind to make sure that I’m working safely and smart. So first of all, you’ve got to remember that raw poultry can carry salmonella, and preparing it requires an extra step of disinfecting. You want to make sure you wash hands often. You use a plastic cutting board, not wood, because the wood can hold germs and the small cuts on the board surface, if you’re looking for quicker cleanup, just flip the board over as you know, as you’re done with the poultry prep. But don’t forget, you’ve got to wipe down the counter afterward with a disinfectant. I remember my sister having a very bad incident with lamb one Thanksgiving, and everybody got super-duper sick. And believe me, we do not let her live this down. Next up, heavy pots and pans can be tricky to move from place to place. So when you fill them, place the pot on the stove first, then add your ingredients. You can get an extra-long hose for your sink sprayers. You can fill your pots with the water without moving them. Now, lighting a super key in the kitchen, it’s very easy to do as well. You can stick on LEDs that run on batteries. This way you can have under cabinet lighting. That’s you know, up there faster than you can actually stuff that turkey. But finally, you’ve got to remember that half of all burns treated in the E.R. results from a scalding injury. And that can happen very easily with just hot water from the tap. So you want to make sure that you set your home’s water heater to 120 degrees to avoid water coming right from that tap at a dangerous temperature. It happens quick. And if you have an elderly family member or kids, it can happen to them really, really before they even know what’s going on. |
| 0:32:17 | TOM: This is the Money Pit Home Improvement show coming up next time on the program, if you guys have been thinking about a remodeling project and wondered what to do with the ceiling, I’ll bet there’s one type of ceiling You’ve totally ruled out a drop ceiling. Well, we’re going to share why you might want to give these easy to install tiles a second look on the very next edition of the Money Pit. I’m Tom Kraeutler. |
| 0:32:40 | LESLIE: And I’m Leslie Segrete. |
| 0:32:41 | TOM: Remember, you can do it yourself. |
| 0:32:43 | LESLIE: But you don’t have to do it alone. |
| (Note: The above referenced transcript is AI-Generated, Unedited and Unproofed and as such may not accurately reflect the recorded audio. Copyright 2023 Squeaky Door Productions, Inc. No portion of this transcript or audio file may be reproduced in any format without the express written permission of Squeaky Door Productions, Inc.) |
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