#2500 – Pros and Cons of a DIY Deck Project | How Roof Snow Guards Work | Vent Fan Efficiency

00:00:00 – 00:00:12

If your roof starts to leak, all your floors really squeak, you’re livin’ a Money Pit! Money Pit! If your basement needs a pump, or you place it like a dump, you’re livin’ a Money Pit!

CALLER:

00:00:15 – 00:00:19

Fix up your home sweet home by callin’ 888-MONEY-PIT!

LESLIE:

00:00:21 – 00:02:09

Coast to coast and floorboards to shingles, this is the Money Pit, and I am Leslie Segrete. Well, while we didn’t anticipate these changes in the year 2025, we are continuing with the Money Pit in the way that Tom Kraeutler built the show, continuing his wonderful foundation of home improvement knowledge. You’re gonna hear some familiar things, and we’re gonna try some new things. So let’s all get together and have a great show, you guys. Comin’ up this hour, adding a backyard deck is one surefire way to increase your home’s living space, but is building that backyard deck a DIY project? We’re gonna share some tips to help you decide if you’re ready to take on that adventure. Also joining us this hour, we have Lars Wahlberg, who’s the president of Rocky Mountain Snow Guards, to talk about the importance of protecting you and your surroundings by adding a snow guard to your roof, if you live in a snowy part of the United States. Also ahead, we’ve got one of the most overlooked appliances in your home. And you know what? It’s got a lot to do with your indoor air quality. I mean, we spend a lot of time indoors, that this winter season has been givin’ us a lot of wintry weather, so we’re gonna tell you what you need to do to keep this appliance right. We’re running at peak efficiency to keep you healthy inside your home just ahead. But first, give us a call, shoot us an email, send us a tweet, let us know what you are workin’ on. Perhaps you could be the lucky winner of a prize this hour. We’re givin’ away some beautiful LED solar rose petal bollard lights from Koda. So join us, give us a call, let us know what you are workin’ on, so we can maybe pull your name out of the Money Pit hard hat and give you that great prize. We’re gonna also have our new friend, well, he’s not a new friend to me, but he’s new to you guys, Jim Kenzie is the Money Pit senior producer. And Jim’s gonna help me out by introducing some calls and chimin’ in here and there. So, welcome, Jim. What’s goin’ on this hour?

JIM:

00:02:09 – 00:02:11

Oh, we’ve got a load on our plate, don’t we?

LESLIE:

00:02:12 – 00:02:14

We sure do, but you know what? I think we can do it.

JIM:

00:02:15 – 00:02:15

Well, let’s get to it.

LESLIE:

00:02:15 – 00:02:16

All right, who’s first?

JIM:

00:02:16 – 00:02:23

First up, we’ve got Dave in Arkansas. Leslie, he’s got some questions about geothermal for you. What’s goin’ on over there, Dave?

CALLER:

00:02:23 – 00:02:46

It’s a water furnace unit that’s about 23 years old, and so it’s probably had a good life. I’m just curious these days if it’s best to look at replacement with a geothermal, or if conventional units are now just as efficient, you know, and which way to go.

LESLIE:

00:02:47 – 00:02:49

All right, so what kind of fuel do you have right now, David?

CALLER:

00:02:49 – 00:02:51

Our home is all electric.

LESLIE:

00:02:51 – 00:04:38

All right, so it’s all electric. Okay. So, yeah, the HVAC systems are far more efficient than they used to be, but if you were to go geothermal, you’ve got the investment of having to essentially install the ground line, which basically goes deep into the soil as part of this, and that’s something that’s going to depend greatly on the condition of the soil, whether it can be easily drilled, you know, and so on and so forth there. Now, the install on geothermal tends to be pretty expensive, so you’re definitely going to have to get some estimates on that and see if it makes sense. If not, I would buy the most efficient electric heat pump system, because it’s the best system that you can afford, and it also makes sure that you replace both the coil on the air conditioning side of this as well, because the coil has to match, right? You don’t just want to put the unit outside. You’ve got to replace that coil as well, because unless they are properly matched, you are not going to get the efficiency that you’re promised, so to speak. All right, and then thirdly here, I want to make sure that you replace the thermostat with one that’s designed specifically for heat pumps, and this is really a common mistake that people make, because they’re putting standard clock setback thermostats on heat pumps, and what happens is if that heat pump runs on the heat pump cycle, the temperature has to move very slowly, so it doesn’t trigger the backup system that’s built into all of those heat pumps, which is going to then still be your electric heat, and if you do that, that’s going to be really expensive to run. So you want to replace the heat pump with the most efficient one that you can afford. Make sure you match it with a proper size coil, and you want to make sure that that thermostat is also replaced and is a heat pump thermostat. And by the way, a lot of thermostats today are also Wi-Fi, they’re wireless, so your phone kind of becomes a remote control for it, which is great.

JIM:

00:04:38 – 00:04:43

Yeah, Leslie, and let’s face it, everybody lives on their phones nowadays, so it kind of makes it a little bit more convenient.

LESLIE:

00:04:44 – 00:04:53

Yeah, you don’t even have to get off your easy chair to change the heat, or even when you’re coming home from work, you can just put the heat up a little bit. So it’s a lot of technology for you to take advantage of as well. All right, Dave?

JIM:

00:04:53 – 00:04:59

Thank you so much. I appreciate it. Hi, Sandra. You’ve got the money pit. How can we help you today?

CALLER:

00:04:59 – 00:05:24

Oh, hello. My question concerns, would you recommend a radon test for a house? Our home is a two-story house on a hill, and the lower level, which is completely finished, is two sides underground, and it has two sides ground level. And if we have a radon problem, can something be done to correct that? We’re in the Pacific Northwest.

LESLIE:

00:05:25 – 00:05:28

And do you hear about high radon levels in that area coming up occasionally?

CALLER:

00:05:29 – 00:05:36

I don’t, but I’ve never talked about it with anybody, and I saw something in the paper recently that suggested people have this test.

LESLIE:

00:05:37 – 00:07:08

All right. Well, then it’s definitely a good idea. So you go ahead and order a radon test kit. You can do it online. The type you want is called charcoal adsorption, not absorption, adsorption. And it’s a type of test that you’re going to put in the home for anywhere from about three to seven days. You open up the charcoal canister or charcoal packet, depending on the type of test you get, and you leave it on the lowest living space. So whatever that area of finished living space in your house is, basement, first floor, whatever it is, you leave it there for a period of time. Then you seal it back up and you send it off to a lab, and they’re going to give you the result. Now, if it comes back at four picocuries, per liter of air or higher, that’s the actionable guideline there. At that point, you want to consider some sort of remediation for the radon, and you ask, well, how exactly do I do that? And the answer is it’s harder when the whole space is finished, but it’s not impossible. So generally, the way radon is mitigated is by a system called a sub-slab ventilation system, and they basically run pipes below the surface of the lowest slab and then pull them out. They pull the gas out of the soil and discharge it outside. So it’s a matter of figuring out where to get that pipe into the slab, where you discharge it, you know, with the least amount of disturbance because your home is finished. But a good radon mitigator is going to do this even in a finished home.

CALLER:

00:07:08 – 00:07:12

Oh, my gosh. It sounds quite complex.

LESLIE:

00:07:12 – 00:07:17

Yeah, you know, it’s pretty straightforward, but you’ve got to start with that test. So do that first. Okay.

CALLER:

00:07:17 – 00:07:21

Are there areas in the country where you’re more likely to have radon?

LESLIE:

00:07:21 – 00:08:57

Yeah, there actually is. If you go to the EPA website, that’s epa.gov slash radon, there’s an information section there about radon zones across the entire country, including contact information for your local state area. All right? All right. Thanks so much for calling the Money Pit. Hey, are you a fan of our podcast? Well, leave us a five-star review on Apple Podcasts, and we’ll be doing a happy dance. Plus, it helps us keep the show going and growing. Just go to moneypit.com slash radon. That’s epa.gov slash review. Give us a call. Let us know what you are working on. Whether you’ve got a project that you are planning to do on your own, or maybe you’re hiring a pro, or perhaps you just don’t even know where to start, well, that is where Team Money Pit comes in. So let us know how we can help you. And I’ve got a great idea how to help you guys out with your upcoming projects, especially one for the spring season. We’ve got a great prize up for grabs going out to one lucky listener here at the Money Pit this hour. We’ve got up for grabs Kodas Solar Rose Pedal Bollard Lights. It’s actually a four-pack. And these are beautiful solar-powered lights that are super easy to set up. There’s no wiring necessary. You just basically stake the bollard in place and then let the sun do its magic and watch that pathway glow. It’s got dusk to dawn technology, so you kind of just set it and forget it, and those lights will automatically light up as dusk approaches. Check them out at kodalights.com. But this four-pack is worth $80 going out to one lucky listener this hour. So give us a call and let us know how we can help you, and perhaps you will be the lucky winner this hour. 888-MONEY-PIT.

JIM:

00:08:57 – 00:09:01

John in Florida is on the line with a tiling question. What can we do for you, John?

CALLER:

00:09:01 – 00:09:19

Well, I was thinking of tiling my bathroom, and I was going to put some cement board down on the floor before I tiled the floor. But the green board that’s on the walls, I was questioning whether I should just since I’m setting tile on the green board, or do I have to remove that and put cement board on the walls?

LESLIE:

00:09:20 – 00:09:52

Well, it depends on how long you want that tile to last. You know, the green board is a water-resistant drywall, and it’s designed to have the tile put over it. So it’s something that people do, and it’s something that builders do a lot. And I’ll tell you that I never really liked it because typically I’ve seen five to eight years later that everything has to be torn out because it’s just not as durable as putting up a cement board. I mean, if you were in this house for the long term, you’re just better off putting up cement board and putting up the tile this way. It’s definitely going to last a very long time.

CALLER:

00:09:52 – 00:09:58

Okay. Even go all completely around the tub surround that I’ve got in there now?

LESLIE:

00:09:58 – 00:10:00

Yeah, absolutely, because that’s where all the water is going to sit.

CALLER:

00:10:01 – 00:10:05

That’s what I had suspected, and that was just verification to my question.

LESLIE:

00:10:05 – 00:10:18

All right, John. Good luck. You know, a lot of times folks really do have a gut feeling about the right way to do something, and using us as a sounding board is really important. It’s a great reason to give us a call at 888-MONEYPIT. So glad we could help you out, John.

JIM:

00:10:18 – 00:10:24

And now we’re scooting out to Iowa. We’ve got Judy with an electrical question on the line. What’s going on, Judy?

CALLER:

00:10:24 – 00:11:13

My electricity gives me wonder. It’s so far so good. Our house is old. It was built in the late 1920s, and we love it there. It’s a big old farmhouse, but it’s got knob and tube wiring in it. And the electrician said, you know what? He that was there, that I’m not sure he’s a full-fledged electrician, but he said that it was okay. And he said, just don’t mess with it, and it’ll be all right. But I just get nervous in the summer when we have the air conditioner on. Every once in a while, the lights seem to go dimmer when the air turns on. So I’m just wondering if we should stick with what we have, or is that a danger? Do I need to switch, or do we need to change it over to something else?

LESLIE:

00:11:13 – 00:13:36

Okay, so knob and tube wiring is the very first centrally wired type of house wiring that was available, and it’s called knob and tube because there are these ceramic knobs. They look almost like a drawer pull, and then they’re attached to the side of the structure. So that might be, for example, like the rafter or a ceiling joist. And then the wires are stretched from knob to knob to knob, and where it goes through a joist, there’s a ceramic tube that’s inserted into it, and that’s why it’s called a knob and tube. But this way, the wire itself is not going through just the wood. It has that sort of ceramic sleeve. Now, knob and tube wiring, the biggest issue here is that it’s not grounded, nor can it be groundable. So it’s unsafe from a user perspective, but even more important, you know, that wiring was done in the 1930s. So knob and tube wiring is pretty much falling apart today, and very often you can see that rubber insulation on the wire itself kind of just falls. It’s falling off and crumbling apart. And in addition to that, the reason why the wires are strung off the beam is because they have to be air cooled. So guess what happens when you put insulation over it? It’s no longer air cooled. It’s going to get even hotter. So I think that knob and tube wiring is just unsafe, and you’ve got to disable it no matter what is going on with your air conditioning. All right. Now for the air conditioning issue, that may or may not have something to do with the knob and tube. Whenever you turn on an appliance with a big compressor, which is what happens often with refrigerators and air conditioners, if the circuit that you’re using on there happens to be somewhat close to a lighting circuit, that’s the place you generally see it. I mean, that kind of thing happens all the time, but unless you have the lights on, you kind of don’t physically notice it. Yeah, but it’s not uncommon. I mean, for example, in a kitchen, to see the lights dim once in a while in an older house when the refrigerator kicks on. Because nowadays we have all the lights on. So you don’t have to worry about that. So what I would say is that you’re going to be careful of all of those on separate circuits, which you wouldn’t notice, but when they did share a circuit, you’re going to notice that kind of effect. So my advice would be to replace that knob and tube wiring. You can simply disable it and leave it in place. You don’t have to take it out, but you do want to replace it as much as you possibly can. Now, I’d love to see you replace it throughout the entire house, but I know sometimes that’s difficult and it’s certainly worth it. And it’s going to be a lot safer if you do.

CALLER:

00:13:37 – 00:13:43

Okay. Audio Description

LESLIE:

00:13:43 – 00:14:00

Audio Description Audio Description Audio Description

LESLIE:

00:14:12 – 00:14:15

Audio Description

LESLIE:

00:14:26 – 00:15:11

Audio Description Audio Description Audio Description Why Option may be perfect if you’re planning on a fairly simple square or rectangular shaped deck, but things could get dicey if you choose a more complicated, multi-level deck design. I mean, also think about it. Do you have all the tools? Do you know how to use them? So those are some things to keep in mind. Now, hiring a pro is obviously going to result in a pricier deck, since you’re paying for the labor. But on the plus side, that professional

LESLIE:

00:15:40 – 00:16:23

Subtitles by the Amara.org community Now, speaking of those permits, although you might not love the idea of having to put out some of this extra money and the time that it does take to get those permits, not to mention having to pass the inspection by that local building inspector, you are going to be glad that you did it in the end because you’re going to be confident, number one, that the deck is safe and you won’t have to worry about problems or questions concerning the addition from your homeowner’s insurance provider or even from future potential buyers. So it does make sense. Do this properly whether you decide to go with a pro or you decide to do it on your own. Jim Kenzie, Senior Producer at The Money Pit, who’s next on our call list?

JIM:

00:16:23 – 00:16:27

We’re going to Robert in Texas with an air conditioning situation. What’s going on there, Robert?

CALLER:

00:16:28 – 00:17:01

Well, I had something at my local home show this past weekend and I went and it’s called Arctic Blast. I don’t know if you’ve ever heard of it. It’s installed in your air conditioning system and it supposedly will reduce the efficiency of your air conditioning. Right. You have to wait for the air conditioning to drop by about 21%. That’s what companies often do. You just inject it into the like Freon. It’s installed that way. I’m just wondering if it’s worth it to have an old system and, you know, I’d like to increase the life of it and if I can get five degrees more, that’d be a pretty good deal with the 21% increase, decrease in the demand.

LESLIE:

00:17:02 – 00:17:03

But how old is your system now?

CALLER:

00:17:04 – 00:17:05

It’s about 15 years old.

LESLIE:

00:17:05 – 00:17:13

Yeah, at 15 years, it’s kind of at the end of its normal life cycle, and they’re telling you there’s a refrigerant that they’re claiming is going to improve its efficiency?

CALLER:

00:17:13 – 00:17:21

Yeah, it’s called Arctic Blast, and it offers an environmentally friendly process that greatly improves the efficiency of R22, R134.

LESLIE:

00:17:21 – 00:17:23

And how much is this process going to cost you?

CALLER:

00:17:23 – 00:17:24

About $575.

LESLIE:

00:17:25 – 00:17:39

Yeah, I don’t know, about $600 is kind of a lot of money, and it’s going to take you a long time to make that back. I kind of would be hesitant to do this. I think if the system is working, and if it’s properly tuned up, it’s got the right level of refrigerant in it, then it’s going to work well.

JIM:

00:17:39 – 00:17:40

Until it stops working.

LESLIE:

00:17:40 – 00:17:53

Yeah, changing the refrigerant I don’t think is going to make that big of a difference. So I wouldn’t mess with it. I would just keep using it as is until it just doesn’t spit out cold air anymore, and then it’s time to replace it. And that’s really just the best way to do it.

CALLER:

00:17:53 – 00:17:58

Yeah, that’s what I was wondering, because I thought, well, if I can get a few more years out of it, you know, rather than having to buy a whole unit.

LESLIE:

00:17:58 – 00:18:04

Yeah, and I mean, maybe you can, maybe you can’t, but putting that additive in there, I don’t think it’s going to work. I think it’s going to make a hill of beans a difference.

CALLER:

00:18:04 – 00:18:13

Okay. Well, that’s the reason I come to listen to y’all every week and on Saturdays, and I value your opinions. I wanted to see what you had to say about it, and I really appreciate it.

LESLIE:

00:18:13 – 00:18:41

All right. Well, good luck with that project, and thanks so much for calling us at 888-MONEYPIT. This is the Money Pit. I’m Leslie Segrete. Well, it has been a wild winter across the United States. Lots of snowfall in areas that maybe even aren’t used to getting a ton of snowfall. So joining us, we have Lars Wahlberg, who’s the president of Rocky Mountain Snow Guard, to talk about the importance of snow safety, especially during March, which is our Snow Guard Safety Month. Welcome, Lars.

LARS::

00:18:41 – 00:18:43

Thanks, Leslie. It’s great to be here.

LESLIE:

00:18:43 – 00:18:55

So, Lars, explain for some folks, especially people who might not be so familiar, what exactly is a snow guard? I mean, I see them all over the Northeast, and they definitely make a roof look lovely. But what do they do?

LARS::

00:18:55 – 00:19:22

Well, snow guards are just things that are attached to a roof that keep snow out of it. They keep snow and ice from sliding off the roof all at one time. So the objective here is to keep from having what we call an avalanche, or when the entire snow blanket on the roof comes sliding off all at one time. And that’s when you can have damage to things below or people or pets.

LESLIE:

00:19:22 – 00:19:32

Do you find that certain types of roofs are more prone to these snow slides, or is every type of roofing material really a good candidate to have a snow guard?

LARS::

00:19:32 – 00:19:59

Generally speaking, the dangerous roofs would be roofs of slippery roofing products, like a composition shingle, or a metal shingle, or a metal panel roof, sometimes a natural slate roof. Things like that, where snow doesn’t have any way to attach itself to the surface, are more dangerous.

LESLIE:

00:19:59 – 00:20:09

Do you find that homes that have a finished attic space that makes it more dangerous, maybe gets more heat, are more likely to have these snow slides, or it really doesn’t matter what’s going on on the inside?

LARS::

00:20:09 – 00:20:41

It doesn’t matter a whole lot what’s going on on the inside of the house. Generally speaking, what happens is that the snow lands on the roof. It stays on the roof for a period of time. There’s an adhesive function between the snow and the roof surface. But over time, that roof surface warms a little bit. You get a little bit of water in there, and that acts as a lubricant, and then the snow comes sliding off the roof. So, sometimes that can be because of warmth coming from inside the house. More often these days, it’s because of solar warming from the outside.

LESLIE:

00:20:42 – 00:20:54

Now, is it something that you have to do when you’re installing a roof? You would think, okay, at this point I need to be also adding a snow guard, or is this something that can be retrofitted on your existing roof?

LARS::

00:20:54 – 00:21:18

It’s best done when the roof is being installed. Sometimes it’s a little bit less expensive to put them on while the shingles or the metal panels are on. The metal panels are being installed. But these products can also be installed after the fact. Generally, 60-70% of the products that we sell are for roofs that are previously installed. So, yes, they can be put on after the roof has been put on.

LESLIE:

00:21:19 – 00:21:34

I know we’re saying that it’s better to do it with a new roof. But if you’re sort of in a mid-lifespan of whatever that roofing shingle is, is it better to kind of ride it out, or it’s good to invest in it regardless of the existing, you know, existing lifetime of the roof that you’ve got on your home?

LARS::

00:21:35 – 00:21:45

These installation techniques won’t damage an existing roof. So it’s best to put them on to avoid damage to things down below.

LESLIE:

00:21:45 – 00:22:06

That’s really smart. We’ve got Lars Wahlberg joining us this hour here on The Money Pit, who’s president of the Rocky Mountain Snow Guards Company. So, Lars, what type of snow guard materials are out there? Do you find that there’s a certain material that works better with a certain type of roofing material, or do you really lean on your contractor to say, this is the one that’s going to be best for you?

LARS::

00:22:06 – 00:22:35

We do a lot of design work for contractors because different snow guards work better with different kinds of roofs. It seems very simple on the outset. You know, you look at it and you go, oh, yeah, we’ll stick 100 of these up there and that’ll be fine. But there are specific snow guards for specific types of attachments to different kinds of roofs. We’re really good at understanding and we can help direct customers to get the right snow guard for their application.

LESLIE:

00:22:36 – 00:22:51

And I will tell you, they do look so lovely on the roof. So even if they’re not providing the function at the moment, the placement of the snow guards just looks like a beautifully designed architectural detail. So they really can enhance your home as well while providing a practical function.

LARS::

00:22:52 – 00:22:53

Yes, they can, absolutely.

LESLIE:

00:22:53 – 00:23:04

All right. Well, happy winter, happy snow to everybody. Lars Wahlberg, president of The Money Pit. President of the Rocky Mountain Snow Guards. Thank you so much for joining us this hour. And thanks so much for being here.

LARS::

00:23:04 – 00:23:05

Oh, thank you, Leslie.

LESLIE:

00:23:06 – 00:24:07

Hey, guys, let us know what you are working on as we’re transitioning from winter to spring. You start kind of thinking about that outdoor space and enjoying your beautiful yard or garden. So we’ve got a great prize up for grabs this hour that can help you create a beautiful outdoor space. We’ve got the Koda Solar Rose Petal Bollard Light 4-Pack up for grabs. It’s a prize pack worth $80. And it’s really solar-powered, so you don’t have to do anything. There’s no wiring. It’s a super easy setup. You just stake that bollard in place along your pathway or maybe even in the flower bed. And you kind of just watch it glow. It’s got a slanted top, so it’s really efficient at collecting that solar charging. And so if you face it where that sun shines, you’re going to get light for eight-plus hours at night. And with that Dusk to Dawn technology, you just set it and forget it. Check them out because they’re really beautiful. You can do so at kodalights.com. But give us a call at 888-MONEYPIT for your chance to win. Jim Kenzie, who’s next on the Money Pit? How can we help somebody out?

JIM:

00:24:07 – 00:24:10

Hey, Robert. You’re on the Money Pit. How can we help you today?

CALLER:

00:24:10 – 00:24:32

I’ve got an old Astro pole barn. It’s about 30 years old. It has original windows in it, which appear to be just sort of slid in from the outside. Got a flange around them. And then they were bedded in with white RTV. I want to replace those windows. And I can’t figure out how I’m going to get rid of that RTV to let loose on the frame so I can pull them out of there.

LESLIE:

00:24:32 – 00:25:27

All right. So one option for you is if you want to just leave the outside frame of the window in place is you go with a replacement window. And the way that works is you basically would remove the sashes, you know, the part that slides up and down. You remove any trim on the sides and the header. And then when you buy a replacement window, every single replacement window is designed to be especially custom-built. So you would buy them to fit inside of that opening. And you would have an energy-efficient, easy-to-operate window. But you would be retaining that sort of simple wood frame around the outside of the one you have now and the trim on the inside. But typically what happens with that replacement window is that the installers will also wrap that trim with aluminum. And that makes it look great and it kind of makes it maintenance-free. So in your case, if you don’t want to mess with that siding, what you could do is just go with replacement windows. And it will actually be a lot easier to install. And they do go in pretty quick.

CALLER:

00:25:27 – 00:25:38

I see. Well, I was kind of planning on removing the whole thing because it’s a standard size, 24 by 36. And I had picked up some windows, replacement windows.

LESLIE:

00:25:38 – 00:25:49

Yeah, but when you say replacement windows, that you picked up some replacement windows, what you mean is you just picked up what we call new construction windows. And they have that flange already on the outside.

CALLER:

00:25:49 – 00:25:50

No flanges on them.

LESLIE:

00:25:51 – 00:25:59

Oh, they don’t. So then did you find replacement windows? Did you find replacement windows that fit inside the existing old window opening? Yes. All right. I mean, you got what you need to do this project.

CALLER:

00:25:59 – 00:26:02

Well, I need to get rid of that RTV so I can get the old frame out of there.

LESLIE:

00:26:02 – 00:26:14

Well, if it is a replacement window, then you don’t remove the old frame. I mean, that’s the point of a replacement window, that old frame stays in place and the replacement window fits right inside of that. And that’s the way the whole industry works.

CALLER:

00:26:15 – 00:26:20

I understand that. But without getting rid of the frame, I don’t have the exact dimension that I need.

LESLIE:

00:26:20 – 00:27:02

They’re basically made to order and they fit inside the opening of the old window and that’s why it really is such a simple way for you to do the replacement. So I’m afraid I can’t really give you an easy way to do this. Your options are either open it all the way up from the outside and use the window you bought or return that if you can and simply go with a true replacement window design where you’re just getting the sashes done. I mean, you can call a pro to come in, give you some advice on which window is going to work better, give you some pricing. I know you want to do the work yourself, but that could be a good starting point to see if what you’ve got will work and if not, what you really need. And then you can still do it yourself. Robert, thanks so much for calling us at 888-MONEYPIT.

CALLER:

00:27:02 – 00:27:02

Thank you.

LESLIE:

00:27:03 – 00:29:23

Well, one of the most overlooked appliances in your home has got a lot to do with the quality of the air that you’re breathing and kind of hand-in-hand with the amount of cleaning that you’re going to have to do. And that appliance is your vent fans. Now, a vent fan. A vent fan is really great for helping you to reduce the humidity in your home, reduce odors, pollutants, even water damage in areas with a lot of moisture like your kitchen or your bathroom. If they are properly installed, that vent fan is going to pull air from your kitchen or your bath and then send it to the outside. And it takes all of that extra moisture and those pollutants along for the ride with it. Now, in the bathroom, those vent fans really do help reduce the incidence of mildew and mold. And really other water damage that could happen. So, ultimately, that means less cleaning. And in the kitchen, this is going to remove all of those odors and the pollutants that you produce when you’re cooking your family a meal. So, the next time you take a shower, you fill the tub, you cook on the stove, you do want to run that exhaust fan. And you typically should run your bathroom fan for 10 to 15 minutes after you shower. Because once you, you know, you’re done showering, there’s still a ton of moisture in that bathroom. And that fan can do its job by getting it all out. Now, if you kind of feel like, eh, I’m not going to leave it on, or I’m going to forget, or how do I know? You can install a humidistat. Because that will keep it running just as long as there’s moisture in the room. So, it kind of takes the guesswork out and will turn off when it does get rid of all of that excess moisture. Now, when it comes to your kitchen exhaust fan, you should be running that whenever you’re cooking on the stove top. And you’ve got to remember that vent fans that exhaust fan. The ones that have enough moisture to the outside are better than those recirculating fans that only kind of help manage the odors. And I get it. Sometimes the placement of the stove is on an interior wall, so that recirculating fan is better than nothing. But if you can vent outside, you should. And only, remember, with these recirculating fans, you’ve got to clean those grease screens and change the filters about every six months. The one we have over our stove is great because they’re metal. They pop out. I stick them right in the dishwasher. And then I pop them right back in. So, do what’s best for your situation, but do run those exhaust fans. Jim, who’s next?

JIM:

00:29:23 – 00:29:38

Okay, we’ve got Sandy now who has a problem I’m sure many of us have come across before. And, Leslie, I really like your answer to this. I’ve used it in the past. And I’m going to not steal your thunder. So, here we have Sandy. Sandy, tell us what’s going on with your carpet.

CALLER:

00:29:39 – 00:29:43

Well, I had a Scentsy, one of those little things that uses hot wax.

JIM:

00:29:43 – 00:29:44

Mm-hmm.

CALLER:

00:29:44 – 00:29:56

And my granddaughter knocked the Scentsy over onto the carpet and part of it splashed upon my Henry Don chair, which is upholstered. Ruh-roh. I haven’t done anything yet because I don’t know really how to go about cleaning that.

CALLER:

00:29:56 – 00:30:18

Well, the first thing you want to do, and this is, it’s kind of an easy fix. You just have to make sure you haven’t already scratched at it or rubbed it or anything. Take a brown paper bag and an iron. And you want to put the iron on a high setting without steam. And put the paper bag over the wax and then iron. And the wax will melt but then stick to the paper bag and you’ll be able to peel it right off.

CALLER:

00:30:18 – 00:30:22

Oh, that’s awesome. Okay, brown paper bag with a hot iron, not on steam.

CALLER:

00:30:22 – 00:30:23

No steam.

CALLER:

00:30:23 – 00:30:27

Just hot cotton and hold it on there for a few minutes and it will pull it out.

CALLER:

00:30:27 – 00:30:42

Yeah, you don’t want to like sit it on there too long because you don’t want to burn it through. Okay. So, you want to kind of just, you know, hold the brown paper bag, then put the iron on top. And then shift it around, you know, moving to a clean part on the bag as you get more of the wax onto the bag. This way you’re not re-spreading the wax.

CALLER:

00:30:42 – 00:30:44

That sounds wonderful. Thank you so much.

JIM:

00:30:44 – 00:30:50

Hope that helps you out, Sandy. We really appreciate you giving us a buzz here at the Money Pit, 888-MONEY-PIT.

LESLIE:

00:30:51 – 00:30:58

So, we’re going to jump in now to our emails. And Jim’s going to introduce a writer-inner, an emailer, and we’re going to give him a hand.

JIM:

00:30:59 – 00:31:00

A writer-inner?

LESLIE:

00:31:00 – 00:31:05

Yeah, you know, sometimes I get stuck, Jim. And this was a rough one on my own for the first time.

JIM:

00:31:05 – 00:31:08

Yeah, I think you did great. I think you nailed it. I think you nailed it.

LESLIE:

00:31:08 – 00:31:11

So, thank you so much for being here with me. Who do you got?

JIM:

00:31:11 – 00:31:35

We have Jason from Joplin, Missouri writing in to us. He basically has a bathroom remodel to do. And since he’s doing it, he wants to know if he should just redo it as is or expand it and go into the master. He wants to turn it to master bedroom is what he wants to do. But now seems like the time. If you’re going to do something, you really need to plan this out before because you could go way different directions money-wise.

LESLIE:

00:31:35 – 00:33:12

So, Jason’s kind of wondering, does he keep the bathroom footprint the way it is? Yeah. Or does he take over some of the space from the bedroom and kind of make a better bathroom scenario? Correct. You know, Jason, that’s kind of an excellent question. And I think it really depends on, first of all, how big is your bedroom? Can you spare that square footage? Is it coming from a closet? Are you making a closet smaller? Because I don’t know that you want to do that unless you happen to have two amazing closets in the room. And making one smaller, you know, isn’t really going to hurt it. Gosh, I really think it depends on the situation there. If you’re not going to be sacrificing a ton of closet space, I think a much better bathroom suite in a master bedroom is going to benefit you as the person who currently lives there and the person who’s selling that home down the road. Because everybody’s looking for that sort of master suite in that bedroom that gives you a beautiful bathroom to use, something with a larger footprint. Maybe if you didn’t have a tub in there, you get a chance to have a shower. Kind of improve what you’ve got. If you’ve got a single sink, maybe this is the chance to put in a double vanity, add some new lighting. If it’s within your budget, I think this is a great opportunity to make this bathroom a better situation. Now, I speak of this as a person who has no master bathroom. And so I always dream of having this wonderful scenario. So please allow me, Jason, to spend your money and say, yes, make the bathroom bigger. But you can’t. But truly, I think this is a chance for you to sit down with a good architect, a good bathroom designer.

JIM:

00:33:12 – 00:33:14

Yeah, there’s the key. Yeah.

LESLIE:

00:33:14 – 00:33:25

And think about what those options are, what that cost is. Is it within your budget to do so? You know, that’s really the reality of the situation. Right, Jim? Yeah.

JIM:

00:33:25 – 00:33:43

And I realize that, you know, we’ve only got about a minute here left to try to wrap this list. But now’s the time to really get with a planner or designer because if you’re going to keep the same footprint, you’re going to have one budget. But if you start moving things around, well, I think I want the tub there. I want the toilet here. You could get into some big bucks. Yeah.

LESLIE:

00:33:43 – 00:34:52

And I think to quote Tom here, you know, if you do meet with a designer and have a set of plans that say this is what I want to do if I do expand that bath, when you do go to hire the pro to actually do this project for you, as Tom would say, they’re bidding apples to apples. And they’re all bidding on the same thing. So you’re not kind of having one chat with one contractor and one chat with another and getting, you know, a wide range. You’re going to have a wide variety of numbers here that really don’t compare to anything. So if you have good plans from a good design team, you know you’re getting things quoted correctly and you know what you’re going to end up with. And this can kind of help you figure out budget-wise if this is what you want to do. But I say, Jason, if it’s in your budget, definitely go for that awesome new bath. All right, guys. Well, we made it through our maiden voyage of Money Pit 2.0. Episode 1. Episode 1 of this new generation of Team Money Pit. So I thank you guys so much for joining us. We’re going to have a lot of great home improvement advice coming. So thanks for sticking around. Remember, guys, you can do it yourself, but you don’t have to do it alone.

CALLER:

00:34:53 – 00:35:05

Video show. Pick up the telephone. Fix up your home sweet home by calling 888-MONEY-PIT.