#2510 – Brush Up on Tips to Paint Like a Pro | Is Your Home Too Airtight? | Front Doors Add Value

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[Jim] (0:10 – 0:27)
The Money Pit is presented by Centurion Tools. Now here’s Leslie Segrete.

[Leslie Segrete] (0:27 – 1:55)
Coast to coast and floorboards to shingles, this is The Money Pit. I’m Leslie Segrete. While this weekend is Easter and Passover celebrations are continuing across the world, so we are wishing you all a peaceful holiday, however you celebrate.

We’ve got a lot to cover this hour, so let’s get to it. If you’re looking to make a huge difference in your home’s decor, a painting project is for sure one of the quickest ways that you can DIY your way to a new look. We’re going to share some pro tips to make that project a lot easier.

And spring brings a breath of fresh air into your home in so many ways. But did you know that your home needs to breathe in fresh air as well to maintain a healthy household? If your home is too energy efficient, could it be potentially too airtight for healthy living?

Yeah, it can. We’re going to explain just ahead. Plus, replacing your front door is a project that can increase both your home’s value and its curb appeal.

And this change could make a huge difference. We’re going to share tips on how to get that transformative project done. And with all of those spring outdoor lawn and garden care projects that are happening right now, we have a great prize going out to one lucky caller.

It’s the Centurion 2-Gallon Lithium-Ion Battery Sprayer with USB Charger and Metal Wand worth $89. And lucky you, we’ve got one going out to a very lucky caller this hour. So give us a call at 888-MONEYPIT.

Jim, who’s first?

[Jim] (1:56 – 2:01)
From South Dakota, Leslie, we’ve got Amy on the line with a window question. Amy, tell us what’s happening, please.

[Amy in South Dakota] (2:02 – 2:22)
We have crank out windows. There’s like three windows in a set on the outside to crank out. And I’ve noticed some discoloration mostly along the bottom, a little bit up the sides of the window.

And I’m thinking it’s maybe some water damage from maybe the windows were out and it rained. But I’m also seeing it on the middle window.

[Leslie Segrete] (2:22 – 4:32)
All right. So Amy, is the stain that you’re seeing sort of like a grayish color and it’s on the wood? Yes.

So I think what you might be seeing there is normal oxidation. And the reason that’s happening is that because the sun and the rain, and of course, you know, you’ve got some contributing factors here with those two. But mostly what happens is the sun hits the lower edges and it tends to kind of break down the finish of the wood and then it starts to fade and it could, you know, change that wood a new color.

And the same thing happens if you were to leave raw lumber outside for a long time. It starts out nice and bright and then it sort of gets yellowish and then maybe even turns like a darker gray. As the time goes on, it’s exposed to water and sun.

So that generally just tends to change the patina or the look or the coloration of the wood. So I think it’s just saying that these areas you’re seeing may need to be refinished. And it’s not a major problem.

It’s truly a cosmetic one. I mean, it could be structural at some point, but you might want to explore the idea of sanding those areas. And what you’ll find is that when you sand them, you kind of take away that gray discoloration area and you get down to some of that raw wood and you can see really what’s under the surface.

So if you sand them and then refinish those with an exterior grade urethane, and it’s important that you go with urethane because you want something that’s oil based for the exterior because it’s going to have more UV protection in it, which means as the sun is beating down on it, it’s going to last a lot longer. Now, in terms of those metal windows, I’m a little confused about that. It could be that sometimes when the water dries off, it leaves behind mineral salts and that can kind of look like a discoloration.

And one thing you could try just to kind of test to see if it is those mineral salts is to wipe the area with some white vinegar. And you can even mix the white vinegar a little bit with water, but the white vinegar itself is going to work great at melting away the salt. And you can see if it goes away.

If it doesn’t go away, I think it’s probably just some discoloration of the paint. And again, repainting everything with a primer first and then a top coat of paint will restore that finish on those metal windows as well. Okay, very good.

Thank you. Thank you so much for calling us at 888-MONEYPIT.

[Jim] (4:33 – 4:38)
We’ve got John in Arkansas with a floor leveling question, Leslie. John, can you fill us in a little bit?

[John in Arkansas] (4:38 – 5:16)
I’ve put a recent addition on the back of my house. It’s about 16 by 16, and it’s a pier foundation. Where it butts up to the house, the house is a slab foundation.

Due to levelness, unlevelness, part of the floor is perfectly level with the slab. But at one corner of it, where I’m going to try to tie two LVP products together, it’s about a half an inch of concrete is higher than where it’s going to tie in. Do I need to grind that down?

[Leslie Segrete] (5:17 – 5:20)
Well, what kind of flooring are you planning to use once you’re all said and done here?

[John in Arkansas] (5:20 – 5:22)
LVP, laminated vinyl plastic.

[Leslie Segrete] (5:22 – 5:48)
All right, so what you could do is use a floor leveling compound. And basically, you put the floor leveling compound on, and you bring up that area that’s a half an inch lower, and you just kind of build it up to even out that edge. You kind of feather it out, though, over the feet or two, two to three feet kind of around the perimeter of where that transition was.

This way, you’re creating a more gentle transition, and you should be able to floor right on top of it.

[John in Arkansas] (5:49 – 6:00)
That is a problem. The problem is that the door going to the outside is right at the point where it’s a half inch difference. The sweep is right on the LVP.

[Leslie Segrete] (6:00 – 6:30)
Yeah, right, as luck would have it. All right, so in other words, if you were to add for the leveling compound there, that floor is going to be too thick. So two options here.

You can either cut and reframe that part of the door, or maybe just call it a day and make it a transition. I mean, is it possible that you can have a transition strip between these two sections with the understanding being that one section is slightly higher than the other? This way, you really wouldn’t have to worry about changing the level of the floor, but it would make for a definitive visual break between the two rooms.

[John in Arkansas] (6:31 – 6:36)
Well, I am going to have two different floor finishes. I was going to use a transition.

[Leslie Segrete] (6:38 – 6:40)
Exactly like a saddle.

[John in Arkansas] (6:40 – 6:44)
Correct, but I didn’t know if that would be enough to make up the difference.

[Leslie Segrete] (6:44 – 7:16)
Yeah, I mean, well, not by itself it’s not going to work. You kind of have to build up that lower side. So when you do put that saddle in, you’re going to end up with a spot where the floor is a half inch higher.

So you need to put that additional piece of wood under it, like building it up so that you can level everything out. And then you can sort of set it in place, glue it together, clamp it, you know, whatever you need to do to get it to be level once it’s installed. I mean, really the trick here is making sure that whatever you do to fix this difference in height looks intentional, looks good.

So people think, all right, you planned on doing this.

[John in Arkansas] (7:18 – 7:24)
All right. Appreciate the call back and you guys have a great day. I look forward to listening to your program every week.

[Leslie Segrete] (7:26 – 12:14)
Hey, Money Pit podcast fans, you want to help us out? Well, go ahead and leave us a five-star review on Apple Podcasts and we’re going to give you a virtual high five. Plus, you’ll be helping us spread the word about our show.

Just go to moneypit.com slash review. Hey guys, what are you working on? Spring is the perfect time of year to get your lawn and garden in order so that it’s going to look just truly amazing for the summertime.

And this is really where we set the stage for that summer of color to happen around the yard. We’ve got a great prize up for grabs this hour to help you have the best backyard on the block. We’re giving away the Centurion two-gallon lithium battery sprayer with USB charger and a metal wand.

It’s super effortless application here, guys. It’s a one-button start-stop. It’s right in the handle so you can keep that sprayer going.

And with its charge time, you’re going to get about 120 minutes of runtime. The 14-inch metal wand has a brass nozzle and it delivers that precise spray for every task. I mean, from watering to fertilizing, so everything you need to get done this time of year so that that summer yard looks amazing.

It retails for $89.99, but you can find it online at steinhome.com. A beautiful summer yard is headed to one lucky caller this hour, so let’s lend you a hand. Give us a call now at 888-MONEYPIT.

Well, spring is the perfect time of year to create a huge makeover at home with a great DIY project, and we’re talking about painting. You know, when it comes to a paint project, the pros that do this every single day really have perfected their techniques over time and they’ve developed a level of expertise that most of us who just kind of paint occasionally might never pick up. We’re going to let you in on their secrets.

Let’s start with a key element of any paint project, and that’s primer. A lot of people skip this step, but you should not because primer is what makes sure that that paint will stick and it also can hide whatever you are trying to cover up. Now, the pro trick here is to tint that primer.

You can have your primer mixed with the formula for your top coat, so compared to using just a plain white primer, you’re going to get a better job of covering the existing paint color that’s on the wall, so when you do get to that finish coat, it’s going to be more vibrant, and then you may require fewer coats of that top coat to kind of achieve that same effect. Now, the secret to a finish that is free of brush marks is mixing a paint extender, sometimes you might find it called a paint conditioner, into the paint, and this is going to do two things. First, it slows down the paint drying time, so that’s going to give you a longer window to overlap those just painted areas without getting those ugly lap marks, and that happens just because you’re putting wet paint over dried paint, it kind of darkens that color, so you’ll avoid that, and second, that paint extender levels out the paint so brush strokes are virtually eliminated, or at least they are so much less obvious. Now, let’s not create a second project when you’re doing this painting project by choosing the wrong material to protect your flooring and your furniture.

Now, pro painters aren’t using a thin bedsheet as a drop cloth, so you shouldn’t either. Those thin sheets will not stop splatters and spills from seeping through onto the flooring or onto the furniture. Plastic contains those spills, but it keeps that paint wet for a long time, so it usually can end up on your shoes and then you track it all over the house.

The best bet here, guys, is to use a canvas drop cloth. It’s not slippery, it absorbs all of those splatters, but it is still good practice, even if you spill on canvas, to just kind of wipe up a spill so that it doesn’t bleed through, it doesn’t get on your shoe, it doesn’t get on your pants, you’re not tracking it everywhere. So just try to be tidy, and if you do spill, no big whoop, just clean it up.

And the last tip here is getting the paint on the brush. I mean, there’s really a trick to that as well. If you wanna get the most mileage out of a single sort of fill up to your brush and make fewer trips to that paint container, pros do sort of like a load and go approach.

They load that bottom inch and a half of the brush with paint, they tap it against the side of the container to knock off the heavy drips, and then they start painting. By contrast, homeowners are kind of taking the load of paint and then just dumping it right on the wall. They approach it to kind of drag in that brush, and it doesn’t really look good.

You’re just wasting a lot of paint, and then you kind of immediately wipe it off. Now, I do have one last quick tip for when it comes to masking with painter’s tape. If you wanna stop that paint from bleeding through, you wanna do a thorough job of adhering that painter’s tape before you start.

So you can apply the tape and then run a putty knife over the top and press it down for a good seal. I also like to take the color that I’m using that I know may bleed through and kind of seal that edge with it. So if it does bleed through, it’s the correct color.

But those are two approaches and lots of great tips to a pro painting project done in no time. All right, Jim, let’s see who’s up next for the money pit.

[Jim] (12:14 – 12:17)
You know, Leslie, I have a love-hate relationship with painting.

[Leslie Segrete] (12:17 – 12:19)
Oh, everybody does. I mean, it’s awesome.

[Jim] (12:19 – 12:29)
I would like to pay a professional to come in and prep, and then I just paint, except pros don’t tape anyway. Man, they’re so good. I could never do that.

I’d have to prep. Therefore, I just don’t paint.

[Leslie Segrete] (12:29 – 12:39)
The charge is in the prep, because with my window project, I was like, hey, what’s the difference if I have you sort of prep the drywall and then I paint it? And they were like, nominal. And I was like, dang it.

[Jim] (12:40 – 12:41)
Birds of a feather.

[Leslie Segrete] (12:41 – 12:43)
So you’re just gonna have to prep, Jim. So sorry.

[Jim] (12:43 – 12:59)
Thanks a lot, Leslie. Let’s get back to the calls, Leslie. Heading over to Rhode Island with Linda Leslie, not Linda Leslie, but with Linda Leslie.

There should be a comment, I would think, you know. Do you ever do that when you’re leaving a message for somebody, you say comma or period?

[Leslie Segrete] (13:00 – 13:12)
I do it like with voice-to-text, and my kids always laugh at me, because obviously I’ll be driving, and I’ll be like, call, tell so-and-so, comma, exclamation point. And they’re like, mom, you don’t have to do that. And I’m like, yeah, I’m old.

Leave me alone.

[Jim] (13:12 – 13:14)
I do that when I’m leaving somebody an actual voice message.

[Leslie Segrete] (13:15 – 13:15)
Oh, Jim.

[Jim] (13:15 – 13:17)
Hey, don’t forget to give me a call, period.

[Leslie Segrete] (13:18 – 13:19)
Comma, exclamation point.

[Jim] (13:19 – 13:27)
Exactly. Sorry to tie you up there, Linda. We are coming to you in Rhode Island, and you have a problem with your patio.

Why don’t you tell us a little bit about that project?

[Linda in Rhode Island] (13:28 – 13:52)
What I would like to do, actually, is make it a combination of a patio so I could use it during the summer, and also use it as a carport during the winter. And I was wondering, as far as a base, what would be the best? I have a form, and he used that, and he made all the patio blocks.

Oh, that’s interesting.

[Leslie Segrete] (13:52 – 13:56)
So it sounds like you guys made those paver stones with a form.

[Linda in Rhode Island] (13:56 – 14:00)
Right, right. And I poured cement into the form. How do I get it out?

[Leslie Segrete] (14:00 – 14:05)
So when you say carport, you intend, then, for this patio to have a roof on it. Is that correct?

[Linda in Rhode Island] (14:06 – 14:17)
Yes, I would like it where I could still have the sides all open, because I have a collectible car to put in. Oh, what kind of car is it? It’s a 1966 Ford LTD.

[Leslie Segrete] (14:17 – 17:40)
All right. Well, that is super cool. So let’s see what we can do to help out here.

First of all, aside from these forms and this and that, we really need to talk about how you’re going to do the base. So if you do concrete, that’s going to be the most permanent and durable surface, and I would recommend that if you’re planning on parking a car there, or, you know, if you’re doing a slab, you want to make sure that it’s at least six inches thick, you know, four, but nothing thinner than that. And you want to make sure that it’s a reinforced slab, and this is generally not a DIY project.

You know, it’s hard pouring concrete. You have to make sure that the surface is properly prepped. You have to make sure that it is mixed all correctly, and then you have to make sure that that rebar is supported in a way.

So it’s definitely, if you’re reinforcing the concrete, not the most simple do-it-yourself project. But if you have a project where you’re just basically pouring yourself a slab that’s not reinforced, and you’ve dug out that top layer of dirt, you’re going to put stone in. You’re going to tamp it down.

You’re going to pack that stone really, really well. And then you’re going to pour that concrete sort of in this perimeter area that you’ve built. And that’s going to give you a solid permanent surface, because now you’re digging down a little bit below grade to really reinforce this patio, rather than building a slab on top that needs to have a form and be fully reinforced.

If you were going to do something that was like paver bricks, or even in sections, there are forms available. And if your grandfather’s old form doesn’t work, it’s again, it’s the same kind of thing. You’re prepping a base.

You want to make sure everything is solidly tamped. You want to work with the concrete. And then you want to make sure that any weeds or things that grow through don’t go through, because it’ll sort of ruin your project over time.

So that proper prep and preparing of the soil below and everything will keep anything from growing up and causing things to get uneven and look terrible and just cut the life short. So really getting this base right is the most important part of that project. And once you do that, in terms of a carport roof, I mean, it depends.

You could attach that roof directly to the side of your home. You’re going to need some columns or supports that are going to be properly secured to the base of the concrete. And then you’re going to need some sway bracing so that it doesn’t sway back and forth from side to side.

And that also is a fair amount of work. I mean, it sounds simple, but this is a big project. And if you don’t get it right, you know, you could definitely have a situation where things kind of come apart quickly.

We had a neighbor who built a solid carport next to their garage and it came down in a storm, you know, so you think you’ve got something right. And then mother nature tells you differently. So I do encourage you get that concrete solid base, make sure it is stable and secure and really, really solid.

And then you can even just finish the concrete. You can even, you know, use a color coating. I think Dyche Coatings has like a terrazzo finish or just even some concrete stains to give it a different look than just a simple concrete slab, which I think will be helpful in the patio phase of when you’re using this, not as a carport.

So this way, if the paver forms don’t work out, you can just treat that concrete on your own to make it look like a whole finished area. Or you can try to apply those pavers right on top and they just sort of lock together. So there’s a lot of different ways you could do it, but you have to make sure that you get that base correct.

And I would definitely consult with a pro for that roof because you want it to stand up to mother nature. So those are some things that I would recommend as you’re going forward with this project.

[Linda in Rhode Island] (17:40 – 17:45)
I think I need someone that’s in that type of business. I think it’s beyond my DIY.

[Leslie Segrete] (17:46 – 17:51)
All right. Good luck with that project, OK? I really appreciate it.

Thank you so much for calling us at 888-MONEYPIT.

[Linda in Rhode Island] (17:52 – 17:56)
Oh, thank you so much for all your help. You certainly have solved my problem.

[Leslie Segrete] (17:57 – 18:00)
Jim, let’s see who’s up next on the Money Pit.

[Jim] (18:00 – 18:10)
Oh, I’m never going to turn you down on heading south to Florida, Leslie. We’ve got Scott there and he wants to do some bathroom reconfiguration. Scott, tell us what’s going on, please.

[Scott in Florida] (18:10 – 18:47)
Hi, guys. So my daughter has a master bathroom with a standup shower and a toilet, and she wants me to try and flip those two. So in other words, move the toilet drain to where the shower is.

But of course, it’s on the first floor and it’s a concrete slab. So I’m not doing the work myself, but I’m looking at and asking you guys if it’s something that you think is worthwhile cost wise. If it’s going to cost me more in headaches, getting someone to come in and chop up the concrete to go ahead and flip all that plumbing and then I can redo the, you know, the finishing touches, when they’re done.

[Leslie Segrete] (18:47 – 19:19)
Oh, geez, Scott. You know what? You’re like dad of the year for wanting to tackle this project, but I don’t think it’s worth it.

It’s going to be a massive project and it’s going to be hard if you had a wood framed floor to do the job. But with concrete, it’s going to be even harder. You have to break it all out and get rid of it.

And then that’s a lot to even move that toilet drain over a couple of feet. So it’s a huge job that I don’t think it’s worth it. I mean, what is it about the configuration now that your daughter just likes so much?

[Scott in Florida] (19:19 – 19:40)
So when you walk in, the toilet is right to the right hand side when you walk in and the shower’s in the back wall and it’s a lot of wasted space in the shower is really what it comes down to. There’s so much. It’s like half the space of the shower is really like a shelf as opposed to being usable.

So I might just reconfigure that for them and put a second shower head and that might be more efficient use of the space. Would you think?

[Leslie Segrete] (19:40 – 20:17)
It’s challenging here trying to reposition everything just because you feel like there’s some wasted space. I have seen where a shower is made smaller and then you take that space and maybe make like a storage closet out of it or just a closet for in the bathroom. This way, you’re not flipping positions.

You’re not moving drains. You’re not ripping up concrete, but you’re making that shower just slightly smaller and adding a closet. I don’t know what the storage situation is in there, but it could be a way to do that project to give them more space to use without all that wasted space and not have such a major, major construction project on your hand.

[Scott in Florida] (20:18 – 20:20)
Yeah, I appreciate the advice. Thanks so much for calling.

[Leslie Segrete] (20:20 – 22:34)
You can totally blame me for this, Scott. You can tell your daughter, Leslie said no. And she called me and we can try to figure out another solution.

Well, an energy efficient home can save homeowners big on their energy spending, but since they can be so airtight, they also often require extra ventilation to maintain that healthy indoor air environment. And that’s where mechanical ventilation kind of steps in. It seems counterintuitive to think that we have to let air into the building when for hundreds of years we’ve done nothing but chase out those drafts.

I mean, really, it’s like you’re thinking like, wait, I do want a draft. But think about it. A drafty home was kind of letting in enough outside air that that ventilation really helps to get rid of contaminants.

And that can be anything from chemicals in building materials and furniture to germs and toxins. Just that little bit of drafty leaks was really cycling the air out of the home. But those new energy efficient homes don’t have those little gaps and voids where the drafts can slip through.

And as a result, we kind of need to strategically bring that fresh air in without undoing your home’s efficiency. So if you want to bring in some fresh air without wasting energy, there are two approaches that are common. The first is heat recovery ventilation, also known as HRV.

And that pulls in fresh air while exhausting the stale air. And it allows the heat found within that stale exhausted air to kind of preheat the air that’s coming in fresh from outside. So as an added bonus, you’re using less energy bringing that outdoor air up to the room temperature.

It does, however, require a fan running continually. So there is that energy cost there. The other is the energy recovery ventilation or ERV.

And that does everything that HRV does, but it goes a little further because it kind of captures the humidity from the air. And that ERV is generally better if you’ve got a warmer climate because you might have that humidity already in the air. And that’s really how you decide between the two.

It largely depends on your home’s moisture levels. If your house is humid in the winter, HRV is better for you. If not, ERV.

But either way, if you have that energy tight home, you do need that air to come in. And this is how you do it. All right, Jim, let’s get back to the phones.

[Jim] (22:35 – 22:38)
It kind of sounds like ERV is HRV on steroids, Leslie.

[Leslie Segrete] (22:39 – 22:40)
A little bit souped up.

[Jim] (22:41 – 22:48)
All right, Leslie. Now we’ve got Mike on the line in super chilly Chicago. He’s got an insulation question appropriately.

What’s going on, Mike?

[Mike in Illinois] (22:49 – 23:37)
My wife and I are first time homeowners. We bought a house last year that was built in 1910. It is a classic Chicago two flat that was converted into a single family home.

It’s a flat roof made out of brick. I have a scoping camera that I’ve been poking around and behind nooks and crannies and walls and things like that. I’m pretty convinced that there’s no insulation in the walls.

So what are my options here? You know, moisture is a concern. It’s my understanding that brick needs to breathe.

You know, do we have an option of putting insulation in? If so, what type? You know, what concerns might there be?

What questions might we want to ask? Is it a matter of, you know, do you need to tear out the drywall and fill the insulation in? Or can it just be packed in the cavity there?

So those are the types of questions I’m wading through. What are my options? What it might look like?

How would you go about this? Thanks so much.

[Leslie Segrete] (23:38 – 25:58)
All right, Mike. First of all, I can’t even believe that you own a borescope. I mean, Tom had one.

And the only reason I even know what the heck it is is because it’s a home inspector’s tool. And Tom would talk about it often. It’s sort of a tool where you take a camera and you kind of look into a wall around the outlet.

You can see what’s going on sort of behind. You can see how everything’s made, which is interesting. But of course, now you’re going to find out that there’s a lot of things going on behind the walls.

And typically with brick, you know, you can’t really insulate brick that well. You’ve got limited options here. The fact that you have a double wall is all the insulation really you’re going to get.

So if you want to insulate those walls, your only option is to take the drywall down inside the house and then apply a rigid foam insulation, kind of like a sheet product to the walls and then put the drywall back on. And that’s something that’s obviously like a pretty disruptive project. There’s a lot of work to be done.

But the other thing that you could do is focus on all the things that you can control. So for example, let’s talk about drafts. You can seal those windows inside and out by caulking the exterior perimeter and the interior perimeter.

You can caulk both sides of the trim on the inside to cut down on the drafts. You could replace the windows if they’re super drafty, obviously, and go with a more energy star option. If you have outlets and light switches that are on an exterior wall, you want to make sure that you’re putting gaskets behind those outlets and those switches.

And then, you know, you can find these gaskets in a ton of different shapes and sizes. They’re not expensive at all. And those will seal out the drafts on the exterior walls as well.

And you mentioned you had some insulation in the attic. I would sort of quantify that and see how much insulation you have and make sure you’re maximizing what you can have up there. I realize it might be a narrow space, but doing these sort of things will help keep you more comfortable at home.

So good luck with the house and good luck with the project. I mean, we’re glad you’re getting out there and enjoying the show. And, you know, working with some cool tools.

You know, spring really is the perfect time of year to get all of the projects around your money pit in tip-top shape and sorted. But especially so for your lawn and garden, because this kind of sets the stage for a summer of color all around the yard. So we’ve got a great prize to help you just have the best backyard on the block.

[Jim] (25:58 – 26:01)
Wait, Leslie. Leslie, don’t you think this needs a drum roll?

[Leslie Segrete] (26:01 – 26:02)
Oh, please.

[Jim] (26:06 – 26:07)
It’s the best I can do.

[Leslie Segrete] (26:08 – 26:15)
All right. It’s not the best, Jim, but I’ll take it. It’s a good prize, though.

Everybody don’t let the drum roll dissuade you.

[Jim] (26:15 – 26:16)
Yeah, good thing I’m a guitarist, huh?

[Leslie Segrete] (26:18 – 27:10)
All right. Up for grabs this hour, we have the Centurion two-gallon lithium battery sprayer with USB charger and metal wand. It’s totally effortless to use because it’s just a one-button start-stop.

It’s right at the handle and that’s going to keep that sprayer going. And the charging is going to give you about 120 minutes of runtime. Super focused brass nozzle on the metal wand that you can just do everything from fertilizing, watering, applying pesticides, herbicides, all of the things that you need to keep this yard looking amazing all summer long.

It retails for $89.99, but you can find it online at steinhome.com. A beautiful summer yard is headed to one lucky caller this hour, so let’s lend you a hand. Give us a call at 888-MONEYPIT.

Jim, who’s up? No more drum rolls, please.

[Jim] (27:13 – 27:18)
Leslie, we’ve got David on the line and he’s doing a little bit of spring cleaning. How can we help you out, David?

[David] (27:18 – 27:23)
I need to get a power washer. What PSI should I try to get?

[Leslie Segrete] (27:23 – 29:51)
Well, yeah, you’re right. When you’re shopping for a power washer, you’re going to see something called PSI or pounds per square inch, but there’s also a number of things you want to consider outside of the PSI. You also need to look at the gallons per minute that pressure washer is going to deliver, the size of the motor.

Are you looking at gasoline or electric? Those are some things that you have to consider. Electric, it’s going to be a lot less expensive and it’s going to be super easy to maintain.

As long as you can get the cord around the house to where you need to use it, it’s definitely going to work for you. I think around 1800 PSI is going to be great for general purpose house cleaning and that’ll really just solve pretty much everything around the place. All right, well, good luck with your project and thank you again for calling us at 888-MONEYPIT.

Well, if you’d like to take on one remodeling project that can both increase the value of your home and improve that curb appeal for years to come, we are talking about installing a new front entry door. Now, surveys show that installing a new front entry to the home can deliver a dramatic boost in what those home buyers think that your home is actually worth. And that can lead to a lot more interest at the time of sale.

I mean, think about it. The entry is sort of the stylish teaser for what’s going on inside, great color, stylish hardware. That’s only giving a buyer a glimpse of what’s going on in the home.

Now, today doors are available in wood or steel as always, but these fiberglass entry doors are so beautiful and they can really look so much like the real wood that it’s hard to tell the difference. And they are also far more energy efficient than both wood or steel options and doors. And they often come with multi-point locks that are built right in to make them almost impossible to break into.

Now, installing a new door really is not a project for an inexperienced home improver and truly is best left to a pro. Removing that old door opens your home to the elements and surprises like rot and insect damage. They are kind of often found during the process.

Plus home security systems, electrical wiring, all of that does require some special care. And the pros know how to install a door that’s not gonna shift and become hard to operate no matter how much settlement the home is gonna go through and really no matter what that weather. And that’s gonna assure you many, many years of hassle-free use.

So definitely a front door is an awesome project, but maybe one you leave to the pro.

[Jim] (29:51 – 29:53)
Takes a pro, I got a reciprocal saw.

[Leslie Segrete] (29:53 – 30:03)
Jim, we’re not gonna start projects again that you can’t do, right? Dinah wrote in to Team Money Pit and she asks, Jim, what does she ask?

[Jim] (30:04 – 30:23)
She asks, my boiler supplies the hot water, but it runs out and then it needs time to recover. This is the worst problem. So she says, I really can’t take a long shower or fill the bathtub.

What do you suggest? Do you think this is a case of not a large enough water tank? Is there something going on in the delivery of the hot water?

[Leslie Segrete] (30:23 – 32:11)
All right, those are very good questions. And sort of the answer here is yes and yes, because the thing is it’s not unusual to have your boiler supply the hot water, but there’s a type of sort of sidearm to your boiler and it’s called a tankless coil. And it basically takes some of that heated water and it runs it around the coil and then the domestic water runs through a separate coil inside of that.

And it sort of transfers the heat from one unit to the next, if that makes sense. But the thing about this here is that your boiler has to run all the time when you need that hot water. So that means you’re kind of paying all the time.

I mean, maybe not as much as you pay in the winter months, but it’s definitely an expensive way to be heating water year round. So here’s your options, Dinah. First, you can add what’s called an indirect fired water heater.

Now it looks like a regular water heater. It’s basically more efficient than a conventional gas or electric water heater and sort of adds a storage buffer for the whole family’s hot water needs. So you don’t really have to worry so much about running out, so to speak.

Now the water’s always gonna be there. It’s always gonna be warm. And it’s just a really smart thing to do when you have a boiler that’s providing your hot water.

You know, I remember Tom having a similar situation and they worked with this sort of sidearm unit for a long time and it worked well, but then they went with the combination boiler and it’s kind of a smaller item. It hangs on the wall. Usually they’re about like cabinet sized and they can provide all the heat and hot water for the entire house.

You know, the hot water radiators, plus the water for the showers, dishwashing, that kind of stuff. And it never, ever, ever runs out. And it’s about 25% of the cost to run than that boiler heating the water was.

And I remember Tom thinking like, this was awesome and it was definitely a good improvement to have.

[Jim] (32:11 – 32:18)
All right, Dinah, I hope that all works out for you and you can take the longest hot shower ever and five or six baths in a row.

[Leslie Segrete] (32:18 – 32:19)
I love that.

[Jim] (32:20 – 32:36)
Lisa writes in, I’ve recently moved into a new build and about five months ago and decided to go with wood effect vinyl floor. And I’ve had several issues with the floor constantly lifting when I vacuum. But what’s more troubling is there’s yellow tinge all over the floor.

It looks horrible. What do you think?

[Leslie Segrete] (32:37 – 34:05)
Yeah, I mean, that’s kind of a tricky situation and I’m gonna presume that we’re talking about like a regular vinyl floor here and not like a plank or a luxury vinyl plane or anything of that nature. Because you’re getting this yellow tinge all over the floor and that kind of makes me think there’s a reaction with an adhesive going on. Because they would have had to put an adhesive all on the floor.

It’s not really a floating floor situation when you have a sheet vinyl product. So you put the adhesive down and then actually stick that sheet flooring to it. And it could be just having a chemical reaction which is turning it yellow.

So if I were you, I’d go directly to the manufacturer of the product first and determine that if it was actually installed correctly. And then if they say, oh no, that’s the wrong adhesive, you know that it’s the installer versus the product. So that kind of gives you the path to determine who can help you fix this problem.

And I hope you get to the bottom of this because no one wants to look at that yucky yellow floor, especially not you and your new home. Well, that wraps up another hour of home improvement how-tos. We’re here to help with all of the things that your home keeps asking you to do.

Whether it’s a plumbing or an electrical issue or design and decor, we love to lend a hand. We are wishing everyone a wonderful holiday, however you choose to celebrate. Spring greetings until next time.

Clearly I’ve been watching Severance, so I have all these weird wintertide greetings. Spring greetings until next time. Remember guys, 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 2025 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.)