Show Notes
Today’s show is all about making the most of your home’s spaces! First, we’ll discuss choosing durable, low-maintenance kitchen countertops. Then, we’ll explore making use of the area under your second-story deck with under-deck drainage systems. And if your asphalt driveway is worn out, we have expert replacement tips. Save time, money, and effort with answers to these and other home improvement questions!
Table of Contents[Hide][Show]
- Countertops: Busy kitchens require the most durable countertop materials that are easy to maintain.
- Underdeck Space: Make the most of unused living space under your second-story deck.
- Driveway Repair: Get tips on replacing an asphalt driveway that’s showing wear and tear.
Top Questions & Answers
- Deck Stain: Pauline’s stained deck is already looking worn again. She should apply an oil-based primer and a solid deck stain with more pigmentation that will last longer.
- Garage Door: There’s dry rot around the garage door’s wood header. Dave needs to build a temporary wall to hold up the roof while replacing the header.
- Skylight: Will installing a skylight interfere with viewing the TV screen clearly? Ginny’s tubular fixtures will point light downward, so it shouldn’t be an issue.
- Driveway Repair: Scott’s old aggregate stone driveway is starting to crumble. It would be hard to repair that rough surface and we suggest replacing the driveway instead.
- Patio Furniture: Lucy needs to clean the patio furniture that was left outside. She gets tips on the best way to clean different surfaces and materials.
- Windows: Edwin is renovating his 1875 post and beam house and needs advice on keeping the aesthetics of the old windows with energy-efficient replacement windows.
- Ridge Vents: Are ridge vents really necessary? Mary doesn’t like them, but learns they’re doing what’s needed to provide ventilation and prevent moisture in the attic.
- Water Heater: Mary can’t replace the electric water heater with a tankless model, but she can switch to an electric heat pump water heater instead.
- French Doors: Is there a way to seal the bottom of French doors to keep rainwater out? David should concentrate on solving his drainage problems to divert water away.
Ask Your Home Improvement Question
Podcast Transcript
Read Transcript
| 00:00:22 | TOM: Coast to coast and floorboards to shingles, this is the Money Pit Home Improvement Show. I’m Tom Kraeutler. |
| 00:00:29 | LESLIE: And I’m Leslie Segrete. |
| 00:00:30 | TOM: What are you guys working on this beautiful spring weekend, and how can we help? You need some help planning a project or solving a problem? You got a decor dilemma? You got a repair challenge? Or maybe you want to take on an outdoor living project because summer is almost here. And when it comes, we want to spend a lot of time out there enjoying our outdoor spaces. So if you’ve got questions, now’s your chance. Reach out to us at 1-888-Money-Pit because our to-do list happens to be empty right now. We’re waiting for you guys to fill it up. The number here is 1-888. 666-3974. That’s 888-Money-Pit. Or you can post your questions to moneypit.com slash ask. Coming up on today’s show, you know, a kitchen can feel like Grand Central Station, can’t it? When the food’s being prepped, electronics being charged, car keys getting dropped, countertops bear the brunt of all of that wear and tear. We thought now might be a good time to talk about tips on the most durable and easiest to maintain countertops. And we’ll do that in just a bit. |
| 00:01:26 | LESLIE: And if you have a second-story deck, you might feel like the space underneath is a no-brainer. It’s a man’s land. It’s usually damp, muddy, and layered with moss or mildew. Well, with a little creativity and the addition of an under-deck drainage system, the area beneath the deck can be used for almost anything. We’re going to explain how. |
| 00:01:44 | TOM: And is your driveway ready for a do-over? You know, asphalt always takes a beating from Mother Nature. We’re going to share some tips on how you can restore your driveway no matter how worn it is. |
| 00:01:54 | LESLIE: But first, we are here to help you create your best home ever. So whether that’s a quick fix or a big project, we can help you save time, money, and tackle all of your to-dos with confidence. I mean, come on, guys. We’re already in May. You’ve got Memorial Day weekend coming up. You have guests coming over. You want your house to look good? Give us a call. |
| 00:02:12 | TOM: The number here is 1-888-Money-Pit. That’s 1-888-666-3974. Or just go to moneypit.com slash ask. Let’s get to it. |
| 00:02:20 | LESLIE: Pauline in Washington is on the line with a wood decking question. How can we help you? |
| 00:02:24 | CALLER: Three years ago, I treated it and put a stain on it. And it’s gone back to the same. The same worn look that it had when I first started working on it. And so I wanted to find out what to do to make it presentable all year round where it doesn’t go back to a worn state. |
| 00:02:45 | TOM: What kind of wood is the deck? |
| 00:02:46 | CALLER: It’s not treated wood. So it’s just wood. And it is covered. It’s a covered deck. So it doesn’t get a lot of rain. The rain doesn’t really hit it. But it gets a lot of footwork and dog. Footprints and dust and… |
| 00:03:02 | TOM: What you’re going to want to do is apply a solid color stain and prime it first. So the primer is going to be oil-based. And the stain can be water-based. But the primer is going to make sure it sticks really well. And then I would use solid color because there’s more pigment in it. And if you do that and use a good quality product, you’ll probably have a surface that will last you probably five to seven years before you have to do it again. |
| 00:03:23 | CALLER: Oh, okay. Because I used a transparent stain the first time. |
| 00:03:26 | TOM: Yeah, well, that’s why. You see, transparent stain has no pigment in it. So if it’s got no pigment… You know, you’re just looking at the natural color of the wood. And unless it has a really good UV inhibitor, that’s just going to wash out pretty quickly. So you have to use something with pigment. You know, you could also try semi-transparent if you don’t want to go solid color. But you’ve got to have something with pigment if you want it to last and have a consistent, attractive finish. Okay? Okay. |
| 00:03:48 | CALLER: So after I put it on, is there something I can treat or put over top of it so it wears well? |
| 00:03:54 | TOM: It’s not designed for that. It’s designed to be the wear layer. So you don’t need to put anything on top of it. |
| 00:04:00 | LESLIE: Wish me luck. |
| 00:04:01 | TOM: All right. Good luck, Pauline. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-Money-Pit. |
| 00:04:05 | LESLIE: All right. Heading up north to Canada where Dave in Ontario needs help with a garage door. What can we do for you? |
| 00:04:10 | CALLER: I’ve got the old wooden garage door. And over top of it’s the wooden framework. And the paint was all bulging. So we kind of tapped at it. It looks like the whole thing’s dry rotted. So I’m not sure if I’m opening a whole Pandora’s box and I’m not going to be able to have to tear the whole garage down. But it looks like I’ve got to replace the header in it. Now, it’s a cement block garage. So I don’t know how involved this is going to be. |
| 00:04:38 | TOM: So it’s just a header over the garage door. Was there a leak above it? |
| 00:04:41 | CALLER: The roof was done a year and a half ago. So again, it’s not an attack. It’s a detached garage. So if it was leaking, I’m not really sure whether it was long term. |
| 00:04:54 | TOM: But it’s definitely not leaking now? No. |
| 00:04:57 | CALLER: No, everything’s dry in there now. Okay. |
| 00:05:00 | TOM: Roof rafters resting on that header? Yes. |
| 00:05:03 | CALLER: It’s a four-sided. So I guess they call that a cottage. |
| 00:05:06 | TOM: What you’re probably going to have to do is you’re probably going to have to build a temporary wall to hold up the roof rafters while you disassemble the header. And you do that like right inside the garage door. You basically build kind of a fake wall right up to the underside of those rafters to support them between the garage floor and the underside of the rafters while you do the disassembly and replacement of the header. Then once it’s all put back together, then you can disassemble that temporary wall. And then the weight will be transferred. Back onto the new header. So that’s the process. |
| 00:05:33 | CALLER: Would I be jacking that up, taking a little bit of pressure off of it? |
| 00:05:36 | TOM: I wouldn’t jack it up, but just make it snug. It probably won’t move at all. Okay. |
| 00:05:41 | CALLER: So this is something I could probably handle myself, or should I be getting a contractor in? |
| 00:05:45 | TOM: Well, if you’re pretty experienced, yes. But it’s also the kind of thing that you might need to have a pro help you with if you’ve not done it every day, because you don’t want to mess this up. If you get something wrong, then you could cause some structural problems that are going to be… You know, pretty concerning. |
| 00:06:02 | CALLER: Yep. Very good. That gets me pointed in the right direction. |
| 00:06:05 | TOM: All right. Good luck with that project. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-Money-Pit. |
| 00:06:10 | LESLIE: Do you love learning about home improvement on our podcast? Well, we love bringing you all the latest tips and tricks. |
| 00:06:15 | TOM: And if you want to make us smile, leave us a five-star review on Apple Podcasts. Just go to moneypit.com slash review. |
| 00:06:23 | LESLIE: Ginny in Missouri has a question about a skylight. How can we help you today, Ginny? |
| 00:06:27 | CALLER: We have turned our garage into a living room. And consequently, we have windows only on the south side where the door was. We have a nice, large living room, but it’s been very dark on the north side. So I found a wonderful deal on a tubular skylight. And I bought it, but because it’s our living room and we have our television in there and such, now I’m concerned about putting it in, because is it going to interfere with being able to watch the television in the daytime? And no one seems to have information about this. |
| 00:07:10 | TOM: Are you saying because of the fact that it will be so bright over the TV, possibly that it would sort of wash it out? Is that what your concern is? |
| 00:07:18 | CALLER: Right. It won’t be directly over the television. It’ll be in the middle of the north part. But we’re just concerned because… Of reflections and things like that. |
| 00:07:31 | LESLIE: Yeah, but Tom, the sun tunnels generally, depending on the way they’re installed, direct the light straight down, correct? |
| 00:07:37 | TOM: They have diffusers. So the lens part of it that’s at the end, it’s kind of more like having a ceiling light fixture when you’re done. So I don’t think it’s going to be an issue. I’ve never heard of that as a complaint, Ginny. |
| 00:07:49 | CALLER: Oh, okay. |
| 00:07:50 | TOM: So I would tell you to do it. I think those are great products. And by the way, for those folks that are not familiar with this, so what a sun tunnel is, is like… Like Ginny said, it’s a tubular skylight. So imagine instead of having to cut a hole in your roof and then build a light shaft, you can cut like a round hole in your roof. You can drop this tube down through it. And basically it snakes down between the roof and the ceiling, kind of like… Think of it as a dryer exhaust duct. It’s like flexible like that, but it’s wide. It’s like 12 to 14 inches wide. And the inside of the tube is polished like a mirror. So it takes a lot of light and directs it down that tube to that light diffuser, which is at the ceiling level. So I think it’s a great option. And I think it’s a good use in this particular space. |
| 00:08:31 | CALLER: Well, I really thank you because it was very difficult to find information. |
| 00:08:35 | TOM: Good luck, Ginny. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-Money-Pit. Well, kitchen counters serve as the work surface for family life. It’s where you prep your food, you eat your meals, may even be paying bills or helping with homework in that same space. And that’s why choosing material for your countertops that can stand up is really important. So here are a few things to consider starting off with tops made from natural stone. |
| 00:08:57 | LESLIE: Yeah, natural stone. Natural stone is probably one of the most popular options. The look of natural stone adds richness and depth to a space and it makes it a great choice for kitchens and baths. Now, granite and quartz have become the gold standard lately, but they’re both beautiful and they can also be very costly. Now, a small bathroom can provide you the opportunity for that luxe look on a makeover with a budget. |
| 00:09:20 | TOM: Now, solid surface countertops are also a good option. They look great. They offer more design flexibility since they can be custom made to fit your needs. Now, I use solid surface and I did need to custom make mine, Leslie, because in my old house, my kitchen corner was off by an inch on eight feet. It was at a square. So that was even more than you can caulk, you know, so we had to make them to fit that space. Composite material is available in many colors and textural blends and solid surface countertops can also be part of a green kitchen or bath solution. |
| 00:09:51 | LESLIE: And for the DIYers out there, ceramic tile has the most size, color, shape, texture, and pattern options. And it’s durable and stain resistant. It’s easy to install and it’s affordable. But that grout needs to be sealed to prevent staining. And then there’s butcher block, which is a beautiful and natural option, but that’s going to need a ton of care, especially to prevent absorption of any E. coli bacteria. So you got to take good care of it to stay safe. |
| 00:10:16 | TOM: Now, lastly, a solution I’ve used now a couple of times is a stone coating. So you can get stone coatings that are made by Daich, D-A-I-C-H, DaichCoatings.com, that look like granite or marble. And they can go over a wide variety of surfaces. So if you have a worn out solid surface material, or even if you have old types of formica, it goes over that. You can even build a countertop from scratch and put it on top of that. And when you’re done, I’m telling you, it looks just like the real stone. And it’s super durable as well. So lots of options in durability when it comes to kitchen countertops. Pick the one that’s going to work best for you and enjoy it. |
| 00:10:53 | LESLIE: Scott in Illinois is on the line with a driveway question. Tell us what you’re working on. |
| 00:10:56 | CALLER: We have a house. It’s 13 years old. And our driveway is finished in aggregate at the surface, which is a little rough. The problem is it’s now starting to crumble. And I wonder what’s the best alternative to try to repair that. |
| 00:11:14 | TOM: So when you say aggregate, is it like a stone surface? |
| 00:11:17 | CALLER: Yes, it’s a little rough, right. |
| 00:11:19 | TOM: Yeah, so it’s hard to maintain. Is the driveway sloped? Is it pitched? Is that why it has a rough surface? |
| 00:11:25 | CALLER: Yeah, it’s only a mild slope. It’s about three degrees. Well. |
| 00:11:29 | TOM: It’s hard to repair a surface like that because it is so rough right now. You know, is this the kind of thing that you might think about replacing? Yes. Problem with driveway construction is that even though we all think driveways are as tough as roads, they are often not. And they’re often very thin. And therefore, they have short lifespans. And so if this is starting to crumble now and it’s not that old, I think it’s just going to continue to deteriorate. And you might be looking at a replacement rather than a repair. |
| 00:11:58 | CALLER: Probably may be better to do. Do it in cement rather than put up aggregate. |
| 00:12:02 | Yeah, I mean, that would be a really tough surface. Just think about, since it’s pitched, you want to make sure, and you’re in Illinois, you want to make sure that you’ve got some surface on there that will give you some traction. So you don’t want to make it too smooth. Yes. |
| 00:12:14 | CALLER: Thank you so much. I appreciate that. Good luck, Scott. |
| 00:12:18 | LESLIE: Lucy in Kansas needs some help cleaning some lawn furniture. How can we help you? |
| 00:12:22 | CALLER: We left our lawn furniture out of doors all winter long, and it is covered with, uh, film of just grime and accumulated from the weather. We have a combination. Some of it is, uh, plastic. Some of it is metal, uh, furniture, and there’s some fiberglass. What can we use on that? |
| 00:12:43 | LESLIE: All right. Well, everything is going to kind of be a different approach. Now for the fiberglass, you know, you can really just use a basic cleanser with a, you know, a mild abrasive brush. And you just want to brush on some cleanser, clean it up like soapy water. That should do the trick. You can even use dry erasers on them to see what it is on there for the wood. You’re going to want to also use like a soapy cleanser with some water. You want to gently use a pressure washer if you need to, but you also want to make sure that once that’s all done, that depending on what the wood is, is it painted? Is it stained? Is it natural? You might have to reapply whatever that finish is. |
| 00:13:19 | TOM: All right. Good luck with that project. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-Money-Pit. |
| 00:13:24 | LESLIE: All right. I love it when home improvement is a family affair. We’ve got Edwin and his kids on the line. Colin from New York. What’s going on? |
| 00:13:32 | CALLER: It’s an old post and beam house built in 1875. Going through it. The wife wants an open concept. So I, you know, took out the beam and put it in an LVL because it did have a wall underneath it. And so my question is on aesthetic. Structurally, I mean, I’ve always built and I’m good structurally, but I was wondering about what is a good height for the windows. I know that it can’t be higher than three feet. And then I think I can slide. I can slide under some of the egress under like a grandfather to keep them lower. But I don’t know what’s desirable, I guess. |
| 00:14:08 | TOM: Are you putting windows in that are larger than what you had originally? Or are you creating new windows? Where are these going? |
| 00:14:14 | CALLER: There are going to be new windows in the existing openings. And I’m going to just get a modern, get them made from modern materials, but copy the ones were there. They were huge, beautiful windows as it was. |
| 00:14:24 | TOM: So you’re using the existing opening. I would tend to say you probably don’t want to change. That that’s definitely going to change the dynamic. It’s hard for me to give you a certain number, a certain height off the floor because I haven’t seen your house. And I think aesthetics definitely is going to play into this. I will say I hear some young voices behind you that you’ve got kids. You’ve got to be concerned about the falling out of windows and making sure you have appropriate. Oh, that’s not very far. |
| 00:14:51 | CALLER: OK, well, still, you know, you make sure you have windows on the second floor. I’m moving them up to safety first floor. I’m like, we can’t really get. |
| 00:14:59 | TOM: Yeah, and the windows that are available today in the in the replacement window market are fantastic in terms of their efficiency. You know, there’s a lot of great brands out there that are doing this. I would just make sure that the windows you choose are Energy Star rated and be mindful of the fact that on the window itself, there’s going to be a sticker that’s called the NFRC label stands for the National Fenestration Rating Council, and it will tell you the specifications of the glass. By looking at that sticker, you can compare it against other windows and know. Which window is really efficient compared to another? Because sometimes, you know, all of the salesmanship of the window companies will make it hard to discern what’s the best and most efficient window. But if you follow the stats on the NFRC label, you will be good to go. |
| 00:15:43 | CALLER: Yeah, and I know even if you want to put big windows in, even if you get higher efficiency, they’re still like a hole in the wall. I mean, the highest R value you can get out of them is like between a seven and ten. And that’s going triple panes, fiberglass, the whole nine. |
| 00:15:56 | TOM: Which may or may not make sense. Given your location. You are up in northern New York, so it does get pretty cold up there. So you might want to think about triple panes. But of course, that adds to the cost. |
| 00:16:06 | CALLER: It doubles the price of a window. I run an insulation company for a living, so I’ve done my research on the windows. |
| 00:16:13 | TOM: All right. So, yeah, no, you know exactly what you’re up against and you know how to make sure that all the cavities around that window are properly sealed. Edwin, I hope that helps you out. Good luck with the project. It sounds exciting. It is. It is. Thank you. |
| 00:16:25 | LESLIE: Marion, Massachusetts, is on the line with a RidgeVet question. How can we help you today? You know, my house is 70 years old. |
| 00:16:31 | In time, it needed to be re-shingled. So the roof explained now they use a RidgeVet and they open the center of the roof. And it was agreed. And I was happy with the shingles. But I do not like that RidgeVet when I’m an addict. It’s like having an open window. Is there a way I can close that? |
| 00:16:51 | TOM: No, that is doing exactly what it’s intended to do and exactly what it has to do, Mary. You know, we all grew up. We grew up in homes that were grossly under-ventilated. But if your attic is ventilated perfectly, it should be the same temperature as the outside. It is not a conditioned space. It is unconditioned. So the heat is trapped at the floor level where you have insulation. But the RidgeVet is designed to let air out of the attic where it’s most likely to exit. So for example, if your house is ventilated perfectly, the wind is going to blow over the roof. It’s going to depressurize the ridge and pull air out of the attic. From that space, it pulls out moisture in the wintertime. It pulls out heat in the summertime. And the other half of that are soffit vents at the overhang. These work together to properly ventilate a roof. So you’ve just never experienced a properly ventilated attic. But that is exactly what RidgeVets are supposed to do. And I would not change them. Because if you do, you’re going to have a number of issues to crop up. Number one, you’ll have moisture that will build up in the attic. And what that will do is make the insulation far less effective. If you add just 2% moisture to fiberglass insulation, it loses about a third of its resistance to heat loss. Secondly, in the summertime, you’ll have excessive heat, which will make cooling the house that much more expensive. So I wouldn’t do a thing. |
| 00:18:13 | CALLER: OK. I was curious. I’m not thrilled with it. But I guess I have to live with it. |
| 00:18:18 | TOM: Get used to it. It’s doing its job, Mary, OK? |
| 00:18:22 | CALLER: Thank you. |
| 00:18:22 | TOM: Good luck with that project. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-Money-Pit. |
| 00:18:27 | LESLIE: Well, if you’ve got a second story, Dick, you might feel like that space underneath is no man’s land. It’s usually damp. It’s muddy. And it has layers of moss and mildew growing in there. Well, with a little creativity and the addition of an underdeck drainage system, that area beneath a deck can be used for almost anything. |
| 00:18:46 | TOM: With us to talk about deck drainage systems and how they work is Dave Kyle. Dave is the CEO of IBP, a company that manufactures and markets some of the decking industry’s most successful CALLER: waterproofing innovations, including Trex Rain. Escape. Dave Kyle, welcome to the Money Pit. Thanks very much. |
| 00:19:03 | CALLER: Glad to be here. |
| 00:19:04 | TOM: You know, Dave, I spent many years as a home inspector. And invariably, whenever I saw those spaces, I think no man’s land is a good description. People use it for storage and that sort of stuff. But it’s so damp and wet. It’s just hard to make it a pleasant hangout space. But if you’ve got a deck drainage system, you’ve got new opportunities for that. |
| 00:19:21 | CALLER: Yeah, yeah, absolutely. We found that a lot of consumers, if you can imagine sitting under a deck without a drainage system. Typically, there’s cobwebs, water-stained joists. It doesn’t look very nice and clean or finished. And with the Trex Rain Escape product, because you’re putting the product in before the decking goes down, it waterproofs it underneath and allows you to finish off the underneath side with really whatever you want. |
| 00:19:48 | TOM: Now, that’s a key difference between a lot of the decking drainage products that are out there, because many of them go in after the fact. And that makes it doubly difficult to get a waterproof installation, it would seem. |
| 00:19:59 | CALLER: Yeah, yeah, we see it a ton of times where the people will try to undermount a drainage system to the underneath side. And one of the big differences that Trex Rain Escape has is when we put our system in, we’re actually going to staple it to the top of the joist. And then if you can imagine water’s passing down through the deck boards, before it ever comes in contact with the joist, the water’s captured, and then it’ll be drained away. In a gutter system. So now you can put the system in, and you’re assured that the actual joist structure will not come in contact with water. And with trying to mount one from the underneath side, the difficulty is that water will pass through and saturate that joist structure. And the water will run out just like the product should do. But one of the issues that you’ll run into. Now you’ve trapped moisture in between the decking and the drainage system, which would allow and create areas for rot and deterioration and shortening the life of the deck. |
| 00:21:10 | LESLIE: And truly, once you’ve redirected all of that water and that moisture, do you really have a truly dry area underneath that you can control the aesthetic and not just sort of succumb to the shade and the yuck that usually grows under there? |
| 00:21:26 | CALLER: Yeah, yeah. In fact, I would. I would say probably 90% of all the systems that are installed with the Trex Rain Escape product, consumers can really open it up to whatever they want to do. We have people that do outdoor kitchens, seating areas, bars, lounges. The consumers actually go out and put TVs outside now so they can sit down there and really use it as living space. |
| 00:21:54 | TOM: Yeah, I mean, it truly is a roof when you’re done, right? I mean, it keeps all that water in. Dirt and debris away from you so you’re not impacted when it starts to rain. I’ve even seen some photos of your product where folks are using ceilings under the deck. What a concept, right? Outdoor deck. But beautiful. |
| 00:22:13 | LESLIE: I mean, my goodness. I mean, it becomes like a whole outdoor room. It’s such a difference. |
| 00:22:17 | CALLER: Yeah, yeah. And we encourage consumers to match the house so that it looks like the deck itself was built with the house. And you can put up a… A ceiling that matches your siding on the home and paint it the same color so it really blends in. It looks like part of the house instead of a poor addition. |
| 00:22:37 | TOM: We’re talking about Trex Rain Escape. It’s a system that’s easy and efficient to install. I understand you need very few tools to do this, so it doesn’t really add a lot of complication to the deck install, it would seem. |
| 00:22:49 | CALLER: The tools required to install the system are a staple gun, utility knife, and a caulking gun. So it’s very few skews, so there are very few parts to install. To make the system work and very easy, we’ve got some great instructions that show you how to put the system in so that it works. And then you have that living space below the deck. |
| 00:23:10 | TOM: Well, I think the bottom line here is it opens up a lot of possibilities and gets rid of some of the areas that have been unpleasant in the past designs where you just collect that moisture. And now you’ve got truly, as you say, Leslie, finished living space to do with whatever you wish. The product is called Trex Rain Escape. Their website is just that, trexrainescape.com. You can also call for more information by dialing 1-877-348-1385. That’s 877-348-1385. Dave Kyle from Trex Rain Escape, thank you so much for stopping by the Money Pit. |
| 00:23:45 | CALLER: We appreciate it. Thank you so much. |
| 00:23:48 | LESLIE: Mary in Alaska is on the line and needs some help with a water supply. What’s going on, Mary? |
| 00:23:52 | CALLER: I have hot water heaters downstairs. And I’m considering going to a tankless. |
| 00:24:01 | TOM: What kind of fuel do you have in your house, Mary? Is it gas or electric? |
| 00:24:05 | CALLER: Electric. |
| 00:24:06 | TOM: Okay. So you can’t really go with an electric tankless water heater because the tankless water heater technology is really designed for gas water heaters. What you can do is switch to something called a heat pump water heater. Now, a heat pump is a high-efficiency electric water heater. So it will save you some money. It also typically will qualify for various different types of energy rebates. But it’s going to be more expensive than your traditional just tank electric heater. Because with an electric water heater, you know, it’s running 24-7. It’s pretty expensive. With a heat pump, it basically kind of uses the refrigeration concept that you use with heat pump air conditioners to try to provide some of the warmth of the water. So it is less expensive to operate. So I think it really comes down to, you know, how much you want to spend for the unit, how long you’re going to be in your house, because it’s not like you pack the thing up when you leave. You know what I mean? And if you want to keep the electric water heater, you can do so. What I would suggest you do is add a timer to it. There is a device, not too expensive. It’s a heavy-duty timer designed for a 240-volt appliance. And you basically would set the water heater to come on, you know, like maybe around dinner time, stay on through evening showers and bathing, and then come on again in the morning for morning showers, then go off again. The water will still remain warm throughout the day. But instead of it running 24-7, maybe you only have it run 8 or 10 hours, and that will save you some money, too. Does that make sense? |
| 00:25:42 | CALLER: Yeah, it does. I was just trying to get rid of the tanks of water. I always… I hear you. I had one bust on me one time and bought my basement. And I don’t want that to ever happen again. And I was really hoping I could get… get rid of all that water sitting down there in one place. |
| 00:25:59 | TOM: Well, I’ll tell you what. Chances are that if you have experienced a busted water tank that flooded, it’s never going to happen again, because it’s just not that common. And I can’t… You would have the most awful luck in the world for that happening twice, okay? If you have Wi-Fi in your house, there’s lots of smart home products that are out there, including some that are leak detectors that basically get mounted on the basement floor. And if you ever get a flood again, it’ll at least alert you. Maybe you can send a neighbor over or somebody to check the house. Yeah. |
| 00:26:26 | CALLER: Yeah, I know. They have shut-off valves and all that kind of stuff now, too. But I just wanted to get rid of all of it. Well… But no electric tankless yet, huh? |
| 00:26:38 | TOM: No, they have them, but they’re really expensive. They don’t give you any energy savings. Do you have propane that you use for anything? No, no. We heat with fuel oil. Okay. Yeah, so I think that the best thing for you to do is to either put a timer on your standard water heater or get a heat pump water heater. Anyway, I think that’s probably the best option. Okay? Okay. |
| 00:26:59 | CALLER: Thank you so much. |
| 00:27:00 | TOM: You’re welcome, Mary. Good luck with that project. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-Money-Pit. |
| 00:27:04 | LESLIE: Thank you. Bye-bye. Well, asphalt driveways take a beating from Mother Nature. Sun, moisture, and certainly this past winter’s freeze-thaw cycles, and all of that weather combines to cause cracks and then deteriorate that asphalt binder that really holds that driveway together. Now, if it seems your driveway is ready for a replacement, you’ve got some options. Yeah. |
| 00:27:25 | TOM: First of all, you need to understand what you’re buying. Aside from driveway sealing, which is when a very thin coat of asphalt sealer is applied, there are really three ways to redo a driveway. First, a pro can add a layer to what you already have, or if the old driveway is in really bad shape, they can completely tear it out and start from scratch. But if the driveway is just worn but doesn’t have big potholes or cracks, a top coat could be an option. Yeah. |
| 00:27:49 | LESLIE: For a driveway replacement, however, the most important things that you need to consider is preparation. Preparation of the base. Now, once that old asphalt is removed, a new gravel base, typically six inches, is going to be installed, and then it’s rolled like a big 3,000-pound roller. It’s going to smooth that all out until it’s almost as solid as a finished road. And if this part is done well, you can expect your new driveway to look like the day it was put down for many, many years. |
| 00:28:16 | TOM: Now, lastly, here’s something that people don’t really realize. It’s important to choose the right type of asphalt. Some asphalt has more stone in it. Some asphalt has more sand in it than others. Now, if you use an asphalt that’s too sandy, the driveway will not be as strong, and you could have problems in as little as two years. If you see that your driveway is sagging under your car tires where you always park, that could be the problem. But if you put one down that has more aggregate, it will last at least 10 years or more. Sandy asphalt also might have a smoother appearance, but it just doesn’t last. So always make sure you’re mixing in gravel when you’re choosing the type of driveway that you want to have. |
| 00:28:52 | LESLIE: All right. Now we’re heading to Texas. We’re going to chat with David about a French door. What’s going on? Yes. |
| 00:28:57 | CALLER: I want to remove my sliding glass door on my patio. It’s about 30 years old, and I want to put in a French door. And my concern is water leakage getting in, because sometimes my back patio will flood a little bit, and I want to make sure I seal the bottom of the door correctly and the top. And I wasn’t sure how to do that. |
| 00:29:17 | TOM: When you say your patio floods, does it flood where it gets above the sill of the existing sliding glass door? |
| 00:29:23 | CALLER: It does sometimes. We’ve got a cement slab out there that’s about four inches down below the sill. But sometimes I have a deck built around that slab. So sometimes if it rains real hard, the water will fill up on top of the slab there before it drains off. And sometimes it will get up to the door. |
| 00:29:42 | TOM: All right. Well, the problem is that no matter how you install that door, old or new, the connection between the door sill and the house wall is not designed to stop a flood. Right. So, you know, you’re basically talking about, you know, what would happen like in a shower pan situation, right, where the water would come up and fill up the pan. It’s not designed for that. So you could put all sorts of sealants under that door. It’s still going to leak through eventually. You might be better off concentrating on that drainage problem while you’re doing this work. And if you can’t get to the slab, if you can’t remove the slab and repitch it, or put a new one that slopes away, the least that you should do is maybe cut out the section near the house, and install a drain there. You can use a type of drain that basically will sit just below the grade, it will soak up the water, and then pitch it so it drains away from there. There’s a drain called Easy Drain that has the drain pipe and like a foam aggregate around it all in one, which makes it a lot easier to put in than a traditional French drain. But you’ve got to control that water problem, and this is the time to do it, because no matter how you try to seal that new French door, that beautiful door, which is going to be expensive. It’s going to be expensive against your floor or your slab, whatever it’s sitting on. It’s not going to hold back water that’s flooded above the level of the door. It’s just not designed for that. It’s designed to keep rain out, you know, if it’s flashed properly, but not a flood. |
| 00:31:05 | CALLER: Okay, great. That really helps. It eases my mind anyway. |
| 00:31:09 | TOM: All right. Well, good luck with that project. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-Money-Pit. |
| 00:31:15 | LESLIE: Well, Anita in Illinois reached out to Team Money Pit and writes, I’m going to have to install a new central air conditioning system this year. How do I know what size to get for my 888? It’s a 1,800-square-foot single-story home. |
| 00:31:26 | TOM: So the simple answer is three tons. How do I know that? Because 600 square feet per ton is the standard norm for an air conditioning system. However, there’s a lot of other factors that I did not include in that estimate, and that should be figured out by an HVAC tech before you settle on that size. For example, which way does the house face? How much glass do you have on the south and west sides of the home? How much insulation do you have on the house? All of those answers go into what’s called a central air conditioning system. It’s called a heat loss analysis, and that is what will tell you exactly what size the AC needs to be. And it’s important not to guess. If you go too small, you’re going to have not enough cooling power. People tend to always want to go too big, but if you go too big, here’s what happens. The air conditioning system does not run long enough to dehumidify the house, and you get that cold, clammy kind of feeling. It kind of cycles on and off quickly. So not good, plus that wastes a lot of energy. So the answer is make sure you do a heat loss analysis. And if a contractor comes and doesn’t do that, doesn’t want to do that, you’re not talking to the right contractor. |
| 00:32:28 | LESLIE: All right, Danielle from New Jersey wrote in, I refinished my wood kitchen table years ago. Recently, I sanded and refinished it again, but put on about four coats of an oil-based polyurethane and allowed a day of drying in between each coat. Now it sticks if anything warm sits on it, coffee cups, plates, everything. How can I fix this? Yeah. |
| 00:32:48 | TOM: Unfortunately, you need to go back to the beginning and sand off all of that finish. Strip it all down the original wood. Here’s why. Because you didn’t leave enough time for that urethane to dry, and it’s never going to dry at this point. You have sealed in uncured polyurethane, and that’s why it’s all gummy and disgusting. So I’m sorry to have to tell you that, but you got to strip it all off and start from scratch. Even though the label says it’ll dry in two or three hours or four hours, don’t believe it. Yeah. It sometimes takes weeks for that urethane to fully cure. Yeah. |
| 00:33:14 | LESLIE: It really is unfortunate that you have to go all the way back. But the good news is now you’re kind of a pro at it. |
| 00:33:20 | TOM: Well, three R’s, reduce, reuse, and recycle, are the key. Key to a green lifestyle. Leslie has tips to help with one green table-building project that delivers all three in today’s edition of Leslie’s Last Word. Leslie? |
| 00:33:35 | LESLIE: Yeah. This truly is about repurposing, and this really is a great trick of the trade to just turn unusual items that maybe you have around the house into functional and good-looking side tables. You know those glazed garden stools? I feel like everybody’s picked one of those up at one of those discount stores at some point. Just because they’re fun colors. And they look good. And then you get them home and you’re like, do I put this outside? Do I keep it inside? Well, whatever. They look great as a little side table. Or even if you’ve got some space in the bathroom, you can put one next to the toilet with like a candle or a little orchid or something. Just really fun and really pretty. It’s just a great way to go ahead and use that as a little side table. You can also think about rain drums, vintage wire baskets, old suitcases. You know, a stack of them are really fun as a side table. And even musical instruments. They work amazingly well. Because, you know, you kind of stand it on end and then put a glass thing on top. You know, there’s ways to build the table and then have the instrument look like it’s holding it all up. Send me pictures. I’ll help you sort it out. But it’s really a great way to get a functional side table but also have something that’s super unique and totally you. So don’t be afraid to go a little wild and try something out with something you already have laying around. It’s going to save you money and you’re going to be so glad you did. |
| 00:34:50 | TOM: This is the Money Pit Home Improvement Show. Coming up next time on the program, we’re going to talk about home improvement. We’ll talk about home improvement. As we move closer to summer, water saving becomes more and more important. But rather than rely on your kids and family to use less water, new fixtures can actually do that water saving for you. It’s a simple plumbing project. We’ll tell you how to find faucets, toilets, showers and sprinklers and more that can do that job without wasting water on the very next edition of The Money Pit. I’m Tom Kraeutler. |
| 00:35:16 | LESLIE: And I’m Leslie Segrete. Remember, you can do it yourself. 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 2024 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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