Show Notes
- End-of-Summer House Projects: Get info on 5 end-of-summer house projects to do now that will save time, money, and repairs later.
- Cooling a Home on a Budget: Learn low-cost to no-cost ways to reduce the heat in your home.
- Exterior House Painting: If you spray it, you can slay it with a paint sprayer that makes exterior house painting projects quicker and easier.
Table of Contents[Hide][Show]
Plus, answers to your home improvement questions about:
- Central Vacuum: Condensation on the central vacuum pipes is ruining Sean’s walls. We suggest insulating the whole pipe to stop the drip.
- Shelving: Ellie needs tips on how to hang wall shelves. We have tips on how to properly anchor shelves to offer the right support.
- Radon Mitigation: Bob has questions about adding a radon fan. He should get a separate radon mitigation system that will pull the gas from under the entire slab of his home.
- HVAC Mold: Fluctuating temperatures cause mold in Betty’s ceiling vents. It may be only condensation that’s depositing dirt particles, but she should have an HVAC inspection to see about cleaning the duct system and replacing the filters.
- Tree Roots: Ashwani is concerned about the roots of big backyard trees near his home. There’s low risk if the trees are healthy, but he should consider thinning them out if the trees are crowded together.
- Cracked Ceramic Tiles: Can cracked ceramic floor tiles be fixed? They can’t, but Valerie can remove the damaged tiles and replace them with complementary ones.
- Vinyl Flooring: Angela wants to cover her old vinyl kitchen floor with paint. It’s not a good idea, but we offer options that are durable, affordable, and stylish.
- Bathroom Odors: Phew! There’s a sewer odor in Ted’s bathroom. He should check if the trap is properly vented and use bleach to eliminate bio-gases.
- Pool Deck Coating: Howard asks about paint for his concrete pool deck that won’t be slippery. We have tips for applying an anti-slip coating.
- Butcher Block Countertop: Eliza likes the look of a butcher block countertop, but we warn her that it’s a lot of work to maintain and guard against bacteria.
Podcast Transcript
Read Transcript
| 0:00:32 | TOM: Coast to coast and floorboards to shingles. This is the Money Pit Home Improvement show. I’m Tom Kraeutler. |
| 0:00:37 | LESLIE: And I’m Leslie Segrete. |
| 0:00:38 | TOM: And we are here to help you take on the projects you want to get done around your Money Pit. Now, look, it’s called the Money Pit, but for us, that’s a term of endearment. That’s a house we care about. That’s a house we need to spend some money on, but we want to do it efficiently and effectively. And that’s the kind of tips and advice we give you on this show. So if you’ve got questions about a project that you’re doing right now or one you’re planning for the weeks and months ahead, reach out to us with those questions at 1-888-Money-Pit, or better yet, go to moneypit.com/ask and record your question for the fastest possible response coming up on today’s show. As summer heat starts to fade, now is a very good time to plant end of season projects that will set you up for the cooler months ahead. So we’re going to walk you through five projects that will save you time, save you money, and help you avoid some very expensive repairs when colder weather prevails. |
| 0:01:29 | LESLIE: And now that summer is at its hottest. Are you scraping for every possible way that you can to keep cool and comfortable? Well, we’ve got a few low cost to no cost tips to share that can do just that. |
| 0:01:40 | TOM: And you guys ready to take on a big painting project, like maybe painting the outside of your entire house? That’s a great fall project. And as challenging, though as it might sound, it’s actually totally doable. So we’re going to share tips on tools that make that job a lot easier. |
| 0:01:55 | LESLIE: But first, what is your home rental plan for the year ahead? Do you have a project or two in mind? Well, we want to help you create your best home ever. So make a list, pull inspiration photos, start an Excel spreadsheet so you know exactly what you’ve got to spend and where and how you want to spend it. And let us help you get those projects done right the first time so that we’ve got the holidays you’re enjoying those new spaces. |
| 0:02:18 | TOM: Reach out to us with your questions right now at 1-888-Money-Pit, That’s 888-666-3974. Leslie, let’s get to it. Who’s first? |
| 0:02:28 | LESLIE: Sean in Texas is on the line. He’s got a question about a central vacuuming system. What’s going on? Those are super awesome. |
| 0:02:35 | CALLER: I’ve been in the house about ten years. I don’t know how long the c central VAC system was in the house prior to me being there. In the past year. I’ve gotten a lot of condensation water build up in one of my inlet pipes and that pipe runs inside my AC club. And I just. I don’t have any idea how to keep the conversation because the condensation is actually running out in a brown, muddy looking water down my walls and ruining my walls also. |
| 0:03:07 | TOM: Okay, so this pipe runs through the closet where the air conditioning system is. Is that correct? |
| 0:03:12 | CALLER: Yes, sir. Runs through the closet and then up into the attic. |
| 0:03:15 | TOM: Okay. So what I think is happening here is you have cold temperature on one side of this pipe, which is which is probably because it’s running through the room where the air conditioning is. And then you have warm air inside the pipe, which releases its moisture and informs the condensation. So the solution is simply to insulate the central vac pipe, because that will prevent the temperature change and that will in turn prevent the condensation. You know, typically we don’t insulate central vacuum pipes, but in this unusual circumstance, by putting insulation around the outside of it, you will no longer have the difference between the cold temperature on the outside and the warm, moist air on the inside. And that should take care of the problem. |
| 0:03:53 | CALLER: Would that be inside the attic? Because I’ve already done that in the closet itself and it didn’t seem to help. |
| 0:03:58 | TOM: Yeah, I would do it across the whole pipe because if it’s condensation problem, you need to basically stop the temperature differential across it and that’ll do that. |
| 0:04:06 | CALLER: All right. Well, thank you for your help. |
| 0:04:07 | TOM: I appreciate it. All right. Good luck with that project. |
| 0:04:10 | LESLIE: Ellie in Wisconsin is on the line and just got a new place. Congratulations. And you’re looking to put up some wall shelves, do some decorating and show some things off. How can we help? |
| 0:04:19 | CALLER: Well, I have a new home that is actually brand new with everything inside. I would like to put up the wall shelving, but desperately need while going to the bathrooms. I think because I don’t know where our products will go and I have no idea where to for to begin. |
| 0:04:34 | TOM: Well, bathrooms are a great place to start your how to project. Ellie, you know, I give you a lot of credit for going out there and buying a few tools to get yourself started with in terms of these shelves. You know, if it’s a small shelf, like for knickknacks and things of this nature, you don’t really have to attach it to the studs, which makes the project a lot easier. There’s a whole bunch of different types of wall anchors that are out there that basically will hold just fine in that drywall. If it’s even a little bit heavy, you can use something called a toggle bolt or this a cool little connector that’s called the monkey hook. It’s like a piece of wire that goes into the drywall and builds up behind the wall. And those things can handle up to 50 pounds. So I wouldn’t get too worried about having to go over the top with some heavy duty shells and drilling through the walls. Because aside from finding the studs, you also want to make sure you’re not finding, like your plumbing pipes with that drill and causing a leak, which would be a big mess. |
| 0:05:26 | LESLIE: Yeah, you really just need a light duty drill driver that’s going to help you with a ton of projects around this new house. And for shelving, make sure you pick something stylish. You can go for some that are more shallow, more of like a leaner ledge. If you just want to put some artwork or some pictures on it, you can go for ones that are more deep. Maybe you want to put cookbooks or, you know, some bathroom products on it, depending on where you’re putting the shelf. But make sure that you properly anchor it for the weight that you plan to put on it. And it’s always good to put more weight anchors than you might actually put on the shelf because it’s better to be safe than sorry. |
| 0:05:57 | TOM: Yeah, but if it’s light duty, you don’t have to go ahead and worry about connecting it to the studs. You’ll be able to hang it right from the drywall with using the types of connectors that we talked about. |
| 0:06:05 | LESLIE: We’ve got Bob on the line. Who’s dealing with the problem? Maybe. Maybe not looking to add a radon fan to the basement. What’s going on, Bob? |
| 0:06:13 | CALLER : They have to seal pits. One is a ejector pump and the other is a sub. That’s for my utility sink and a floor drain. Since they’re sealed and they’re vented to the through the roof, I was wondering if I could put a fan for radon gases. I was just wondering if I could put one on that attic, that pipe going out through the roof. |
| 0:06:34 | TOM: Hey, Bob. So I can definitely see how you might think that just adding a fan to those sealed pits right now would have some impact on your home’s ability to vent radon. But the truth be told, it’s actually a completely separate system. The way radon mitigation system is installed. It’s not just a matter of having a some pit with a sealed top. You know, radon mitigators will actually install the system in such a way where they confirm that they’re pulling gas from underneath the entire slab, the entire surface of your body, of your basement floor, and not just from a pit like that. So I can’t imagine that that would do very much to change the level of radon if it existed in your home. So I would encourage you to do the proper testing. And if it comes up high to put the proper system in, in terms of those pits, they’re doing exactly what they should be doing right now because there’s a sink on there. It has to be vented. It sounds like it is vented. And that’s really just to make sure it’s going to operate properly. But it’s not an option for you to further add a rate on fan to that that would simply waste energy and not be very effective. Good luck with that project. |
| 0:07:44 | LESLIE: Hey, Money Pit listeners, if we’ve saved you some time, money or hassles with your projects, you would totally make our day by leaving us a five star review on Apple Podcasts. Just go to Money Pit dot com slash review. Berry In Tennessee, you’ve got the Money Pit. What’s going on? |
| 0:07:59 | CALLER: Okay, I’m in Tennessee and for several weeks on end we have temperatures from the mid-eighties and up to almost a hundred during that time. When it’s really hot, there is mold that comes into my closet that leads to the attic stairs. Okay. And it comes out from a couple of vents in and a couple of bathrooms and sort of on the ceiling in the hallway adjacent to the attic stairs. |
| 0:08:34 | TOM: How do you know it’s mold and not something else? |
| 0:08:37 | CALLER: Well, I mean, it’s little black spots. |
| 0:08:41 | TOM: You know, the reason I say that is sometimes if you have a difference in temperatures, you will get condensation of basically the airflow on those surfaces. Now that condensation and tin deposits, some of the dirt that’s in the air and it’s not like you have a dirty house, it’s just that sometimes you get dirt particles in the air on the walls and they’ll stick to the cooler parts and not so much to the warmer part. So, you know, one question I have is, is it really mold that you’re seeing is mold isn’t usually become airborne. It just kind of grows on a surface? |
| 0:09:09 | CALLER: Well, I don’t think it’s sticking to cooler parts because the classic that leads to the attic stairs, I mean, the heat is intense. And there and I try to leave the door open as much as I can. |
| 0:09:20 | TOM: So if it is mold is forming, it sounds to me like it might it might potentially be in your duct system, which is unusual, but I’m wondering where else it could be. Have you had that system cleaned? Have you had the filters replaced on your systems? Because that should be trapping mold spores? |
| 0:09:37 | CALLER: No, I. I just really didn’t know what to do. All right, well. |
| 0:09:41 | TOM: Here’s what I would do. I would have the HVAC system inspected by your he and cooling company to see if they find any of these deposits inside the system. If that’s the case, I would have that in the duct system, thoroughly clean. I usually don’t recommend that because it’s almost never necessary. But if you’re getting this much mold forming in those areas, it may be that there are deposits inside the docs and it does need to be cleaned. Just make sure it’s done by a professional so it doesn’t get released to other parts of the house. Okay. |
| 0:10:06 | CALLER: Okay. Who would be the professional. |
| 0:10:09 | TOM: Duck cleaning experts that have dealt with this problem before? An AC company may be able to point you in the right direction. |
| 0:10:16 | CALLER: Thank you very much. |
| 0:10:18 | TOM: Well, a summer heat starts to fade. Now is a good time to plan some end of season projects. So to help, we put together a short list of five projects that will save you time, money and avoid costly repairs down the road. So let’s get started with a few home improvements that should take place before the weather begins to change. |
| 0:10:36 | LESLIE: All right. First up, now’s a good time to fix a swimming pool leak. And here’s why. Now a small leak that appears during the summer months can become major repairs during the winter. If there’s a freeze thaw cycle and it opens up that crack to even a bigger one. So you want to make sure you find and fix all those small leaks before you put that cover on for the winter. |
| 0:10:56 | TOM: Now, next, it is time to service your heating system. Now, we do know that it’s still very, very warm outside and it’s kind of hard to think about heat right now. But it’s really important that you schedule a system service for your gas furnace, your propane furnace. If you’ve got a heat pump, you need to get those heating systems cleaned and adjusted. Now, when demand is low, the technicians are available and you’ll be that much farther ahead When the cold weather sets in. When you wait till October, you usually don’t get the service guys to come over until December. So do it once and do it right, right now. |
| 0:11:30 | LESLIE: It’s always so funny when they’re turning on the heat and you’ve got the air conditioning on and they’re trying to make sure things work so crazy. All right. Now also is a great time to look for leaks because summer is a major time for water damage to occur in and around your home. Now, those summer storms that maybe popped off a couple of roof shingles, some leaking AC units and other common sources of water, all of those can lead to mold, mildew and then wood rot if they’re not repaired quickly. So get those jobs done now. |
| 0:11:59 | TOM: And while you’re putting away your summer stuff, be sure to check out the condition of your driveway. If your driveway develops cracks or potholes. Last year, End of summer is definitely the best time of year to make these home repairs because patching your driveway will prevent future damage as that freeze thaw cycles, less water gets in, expands, it causes more cracks, more disruption. And if you get straightened out right now, you avoid all of that aggravation and all those additional repairs need to be done next spring. So there you have it. Five projects all sort of weekend ready projects that will put you that much farther ahead when the cold weather arrives. |
| 0:12:33 | LESLIE: So get those jobs done. Now. Ashwani in Illinois is on the line with a long question. What’s going on? |
| 0:12:39 | CALLER: I have seven or eight trees in my backyard, which are pretty tall, like 30 to 40 feet, and they are close to my house. I have been seeing that their roofs have started showing up on the ground. I don’t know if it is because of the drought or what, like annoying a different kind of tree crab, white ash crap apple. I’m just wondering, is it something I can do to fix it? I have to get start getting rid of them because if they get weak and they fall, then they might fall on my house. |
| 0:13:12 | TOM: Well, first of all, this is Mother Nature’s way of growing these trees and the tree roots. And no, there’s nothing you can do about it. If the trees are healthy, then of course, the risk of them falling on your home is certainly reduced. Anything could happen in a storm. But, you know, I tell you, I’d rather have high trees around my house and take a chance on one falling down in a storm than not, because they’re just so beautiful and they have so many energy efficient benefits by keeping the sun away. Now, if they’re very crowded, you may consider sending them out. Sometimes you have to take out one tree to make room for another. It’s a project I did myself about three weeks ago. I had planted some trees when we first moved to our house over 20 years ago, and it turned out that one of them, I felt, was really sort of taking the sun away too much from another and causing it to start. And then it became damaged by woodpeckers. So I just decided to take it out. And now that tree that’s next to it is doing much better. So sometimes you got to thin things out in order to give the remaining trees. Maybe the ones that are, you know, in the best shape are the ones you like to look at the most, a better chance of surviving and thriving. So I think this is really just sort of a management issue. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with what you’ve described. Doesn’t give me any pause that you’re going to have. You know, a lot of risk of damage to your house. Like I said, as long as they’re healthy and as long as you are keeping an eye on them and making sure they stay that way and as long as they’re not growing too terribly close to the House, some roots that are within two or three feet of the house can cause foundation issues. But if we’re talking about trees that are just in your backyard, I think that you’ll be okay just the way it is. Okay, if they’re that close to the house and if they’re really tall and really heavy, then you may want to think about that in and out. Okay. |
| 0:14:58 | CALLER: Yeah. Thank you. Thanks a lot. |
| 0:14:59 | TOM: You’re welcome. Good luck with that project. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-Money-Pit. |
| 0:15:04 | LESLIE: Valerie in Arkansas is on the line with a flooring question. What can we do for you today? |
| 0:15:08 | CALLER: I have some ceramic tiles on the floor that have cracked and it’s just a hairline crack. But I was wondering if there was a way to repair those or if I have to bake completely replaced. |
| 0:15:21 | TOM: You cannot repair a cracked ceramic tile. Once cracked, it will always be cracked. The question is, can you pop the cracked tile out and replace it, or are additional tiles of the same make available? That could require some research. But if you can’t find the exact same tiles, you may have some other options. You could try to replace it with a complimentary tile, one that may actually be a decor piece, you know, and kind of stand out on purpose. Or you could look for an area where you have tile that maybe you went to a closet or something like that and try to remove that and use that to replace the cracked tile. That’s kind of an extreme example of it, but at the least the least you need to do is tip is to figure out why it cracked though. And usually that has to do with the floor system in that perhaps it wasn’t properly installed to begin with. That makes sense. |
| 0:16:09 | CALLER: It does. It does. I was afraid you were going to answer it that way, though. |
| 0:16:14 | TOM: Leslie, what are some places Valerie might look for if she was thinking about finding matching tile for an older floor? |
| 0:16:22 | LESLIE: It’s challenging to find a tile. Once especially, it’s been discontinued and also, if you are new to the house and it’s an old tile and you just don’t know where it is, so say you’ve got a box. If you’re lucky enough to have a box that has something with a manufacturer on it, you can at least reach out to the manufacturer and see. |
| 0:16:40 | LESLIE: Or maybe you’ve got, you know, one or two new tiles kicking around. There are a few manufacturers across the United States that you can actually send that tile to, and they’ll actually make it for you if they have that glaze in their stock. A couple of them that do that are North Prairie tile works there in Minneapolis, but that’s going to be a bit on the pricier side. It’s going to run around $30 per square foot. So it really depends on how important it is to actually have this tile and to match it. You know, it’s tricky. If you can try a couple of architectural salvage yards, maybe you can find something that works. But I do like the idea of popping out a couple of things here and there to sort of make a purposeful pattern and add a detail in that wasn’t there before. I think it’s a cost effective way to sort of, you know, keep the integrity of the tile you love, but make it new without spending a ton of bucks. |
| 0:17:31 | CALLER: Okay. All right. I’ll try that then. |
| 0:17:34 | LESLIE: Angela in Georgia is on the line. I would love to tackle a painting project. How can we help? |
| 0:17:38 | CALLER: We have vinyl flooring in our kitchen, and it’s more than 20 years old and there are just a few areas where it’s starting to yellow. And it’s like coming it coming probably from underneath because bleach doesn’t work and it has got nicks on it, you know, in it. Anyway, I was thinking I had always wanted to have like a black and white checkered floor. And this pattern is like a grid. It’s like six inch squares. So it’s already all lined out. And I was, you know, thinking about painting it black and white or whatever color scheme, you know, I decided upon. But I don’t know what type of product to use. |
| 0:18:21 | TOM: Yeah, I don’t think painting a vinyl floor is a very good idea. I don’t think there’s any product designed for that, especially a 20 year old vinyl floor. If you wanted that type of pattern, I would just get a new piece of vinyl. I mean, they’re not that expensive. The yellow that you described is not a stain. It’s a chemical reaction. What happens with vinyls, It ages, especially if it’s had like throw rugs over it or rubber backed carpets over it is it’s oxidation that occurs that changes the color of the vinyl. A lot of people think that those are stains, but they’re really not. It’s just a physical change of the vinyl material. But I don’t think vinyl can be painted. I mean, vinyl siding can barely be painted and not recommend that either. There are some high adhesion primers used for that. But, you know, take that to the floor now. You’ve got to have something that’s really durable. It can take chairs being rubbed across the floor and that kind of thing. So I don’t think painting is as a possibility. I would be considering another type of product and, you know what? There are so many new floors today. The prices have come so far down, you can get beautiful laminate floor. Now that’s super water resistant for under about three bucks a foot. So I would take a look at the new flooring and treat yourself to a floor that looks like that pattern that you envision but is much newer and more durable. |
| 0:19:33 | CALLER: Okay. Could that new type of flooring just be applied on top of this? Like just right on top of it? |
| 0:19:39 | TOM: You can put it on top if the old flooring comes up easily. I always like to take as much of that up as I can. I don’t like putting layers down, but you know what? If it’s if it’s solid and it’s flat and it’s well adhered, then I think it’s okay to go on top of it. Just keep in mind that when you do that, you make the floor thicker than it was before, taller than it was before. And sometimes not so much just with vinyl, but sometimes like if you have a dishwasher, if this is a kitchen, you have a dishwasher, you can you could be at risk of sort of flooring in the dishwasher, so to speak. In other words, you could have flooring that’s thicker than the legs of that dishwasher. So what you really have to do is take the dishwasher out for all the way into it and then adjust the legs and slide it back in again. |
| 0:20:23 | CALLER: All righty. Well, all of the appliances probably could be pulled out. Yeah, that wouldn’t be a problem. |
| 0:20:28 | TOM: All right, well, then, good luck with that project. The good news is you’re getting a whole new floor. That’s going to be a lot easier than the old one, I’ll tell you that. |
| 0:20:34 | CALLER: A lot less work, I’m sure. Yeah. |
| 0:20:37 | TOM: Absolutely. Yep. Now and in the future. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-Money-Pit. |
| 0:20:41 | CALLER: Thank you. |
| 0:20:42 | TOM: Well, now that we’ve reached the hottest days of the summer season, we’re sure your air conditioners are working like, totally overtime to keep you cool and comfortable. But there are some additional things you can do to reduce that heat that collects in your house. And many of these can be accomplished with little to actually no cost whatsoever. |
| 0:20:58 | LESLIE: Yeah, first of all, you want to take advantage of the clock setback technology by programing your air conditioner to run at the coolest temps only when you’re home and at a slightly higher temp when you’re away. Now, this way you can maintain a comfortable temperature and avoid completely overheating your house when vacant, which can take a long time to cool down again once you turn that air conditioner on again. |
| 0:21:18 | TOM: Now, next, if you need to maybe bake a cake in the oven or run a load of clothes for the dryer, you really should think about adjusting your schedule to use those heat generating appliances only at night when the temperatures are actually cooler. And if you’ve got central air conditioning systems or you’ve got rooms where you’re running window units, that same air that leaks in during the cold winter months, well, guess what? It also leaks in during the summer months. And that’s why you should be closing storm windows. Yes. If you’ve got storm windows, you don’t think about them in the summer, but you should close them in the summer to cut back on those warm air drafts that drive up the cooling bills. |
| 0:21:51 | LESLIE: Now, if you’ve got a ceiling fan, you want to take advantage of their one energy efficient feature, and that’s that their motors are reversible so you can control the direction of the blades. Now, you can use the fan to pull cold air up in the summer and push warm air down in the winter. You can upgrade to a more energy efficiency cooling fan. There are Energy Star qualified models out there and they’re up to 50% more energy efficient than those conventional fans. And that can further help you to stay cool in the summer. I mean, especially if you’re spending less money, you’re definitely feeling cooler. |
| 0:22:21 | TOM: And as that full season approaches, now is also a good time to think about adding shade trees along the warmer south and west sides of your home. You know, adding landscaping in the fall is the right time because it provides plenty of time for the roots to grow deep and strong before the summer sun comes around again. |
| 0:22:39 | LESLIE: We’ve got Ted from Mississippi on the line who was dealing with some bathroom odors. What’s going on? |
| 0:22:43 | CALLER: We bought this house about two years ago, and we’ve noticed that when you in the bathroom, at the master bathroom, you close the door. We normally close that door when we sleep at night. You get up in the morning, you go in there and it’s just kind of a sewage odor. It’s not it’s not overbearing, but it’s definitely there. |
| 0:23:07 | TOM: There’s two causes of this. Number one is when you don’t have traps, because the traps basically the holding of water in that U-shaped pee trap or T-shaped trap stops the sewage gas from backing up into that bathroom space. So presuming that you have traps that are properly installed, that wouldn’t be it. The other reason this this often becomes a problem is because of something called bio gas, which is basically essentially the bacteria that grows inside those drains. And the way to deal with that is by using an oxygenated bleach to not only clean the drains, but also to clean the overflow of the sink wall. So, you know, when you close the sink drain, you fill the sink up, you have like an overflow towards the top. Sometimes that channel also gets filled with bacteria. So I would encourage you to try and oxygenated bleach in those situations and let it sit in there and hopefully it will attack any of the bacteria that’s lining those pipes and see if we can get this smell to go away, because those are really the two causes of this. It’s poor venting or simply a problem with bile gas. |
| 0:24:11 | CALLER: Right. Okay. |
| 0:24:12 | TOM: So get that shot. |
| 0:24:14 | LESLIE: Howard in Tennessee is on the line and need some help making things around the pool. Not so slippy. What’s going on? |
| 0:24:19 | CALLER: Well, we have a concrete deck around our pool and it has been painted before, years ago. And I was doing an impression. Wash it. And I wonder what kind of paint surface to put on there that would not be slick for people with fall. |
| 0:24:38 | TOM: Yeah. So I think what you want, Howard, is a paint with a with an anti-slip coating. There are paints out there that have some abrasion to them, and so they are specifically designed for stairs and a wet location is what you’re suggesting. I know there’s one in Home Depot that’s called short step as you are a step. It’s made by Insl-X and it has some pretty good ratings. Folks seem to be very happy with it. And it’s designed as an exterior coating that does just that. It can go in on concrete. And what I would caution you, though, is if you are going to pressure wash, you want to make sure that that surface gets really dry and that you’re lifting off any loose paint, because as good as the top coat of paint is, if it’s not sticking, it’s not going to do any good. So you want to make sure you if you’re going to pressure washer, that’s great, but make sure that loose paints go in and give it a good couple of days in the sun to dry before you put the next layer of paint on it to take a look at that short step product. And I think that’s exactly what you need. |
| 0:25:38 | CALLER: Well, thank you so much. And I’d just like to say I love your show. It’s very informative. Even here in Tennessee. We like it. |
| 0:25:47 | TOM: Well, we thank you so much for listening there in Tennessee, Howard, and have a great day. |
| 0:25:51 | CALLER: Thank you, sir. |
| 0:25:52 | LESLIE: Well, are you ready to take on a big painting project like, you know, maybe painting the entire exterior of your home? I know that seems like a very gigantic project, but it actually is totally doable with the new Wagner Titan ControlMax 1700 high efficiency airless paint sprayer. |
| 0:26:11 | TOM: Yeah, the Titan ControlMax 1700 paint sprayers. They feature a high efficiency, airless technology that can produce actually up to 55% less overspray compared to traditional airless sprayers and the output sort of a softer spray with improved control. And that’s all going to add up to a high quality finish that goes on about three times faster than a roller to get the projects done very quickly. |
| 0:26:33 | LESLIE: Yeah, And speaking of big projects, if you want to take on a project as big as painting your house this summer, Wagner has step by step detailed posts and videos on their website, and they’re going to walk you through everything from the prep part to the painting. Now, whether your project is to paint a deck, a fence or an entire home. Wagner Airless paint sprayers make big jobs so much easier. The Titan Control Mack 1700 can pull right from a five gallon bucket, which means you don’t have to change out. Paint can so frequently. And that’s going to save you even more time on the job. |
| 0:27:05 | TOM: That Wagner Titan ControlMax 1700 paint sprayer makes it easier to paint like a pro it’s available in both in-store and online at Lowe’s home improvement and you can see the complete line of Wagner products at wagnerspraytech.com. |
| 0:27:19 | LESLIE: We’ve got Eliza on the line who wants to add some butcher block to the kitchen. But let’s find out if this is the best idea. What did you have in mind, lady? |
| 0:27:27 | CALLER: We’re redoing our kitchen countertops, and I’d like to have a butcher block. I’ve heard that some types will work over time. I was wondering if there’s a particular wood or style that is more durable that is going to be a worthy investment or if it’s a risk and I should just go a different route. |
| 0:27:49 | TOM: Hey, Eliza, you know, butcher blocks are popular for a long time and they can be embedded in the countertops. But I got to tell you, they are a lot of work, mostly because you always have to guard against E.coli bacteria if they are not properly maintained, sealed, disinfected, you definitely have a risk of having bacteria sort of seep in there. When it comes to the types of wood, you know, it really is always hardwood. The difference would be whether it’s end grain or whether it’s face cream. And green is going to be a little more absorbent, but it tends to last a little bit longer on face cream will not absorb as much, but it does get beat up and doesn’t look very nice for a very long period of time. I mean, frankly, if it was me, I would skip a butcher block altogether today. I just don’t think it’s worth the work nor worth the risk. I hope that makes sense to you and good luck with that project. |
| 0:28:44 | LESLIE: Hank wrote in saying, Birds periodically fly into my windows and either become stunned or they’re killed. Is there something that can be done to make the glass appear as an object so birds avoid flying into the windows? It’s so terrible when this happens. And truly, most of the times they’re just stunned. |
| 0:29:00 | TOM: It is sad. In fact, according to the American Bird Conservancy, they shared that more than 250 million birds are injured every year due to these collisions with windows and other clear surfaces. And it’s because they can’t differentiate the glass from the sky. Now, the solution, Hank, is to install screens on the outside of windows, which makes the surface more detectable to birds. Or you can add a wide variety of reflective strips or other similar products that are out there to help birds see those windows as an obstruction and not as a clear path forward. |
| 0:29:35 | LESLIE: You know, I know, Hank, when you think of the term like window decals, you think of something that your kids might put up for the holidays, but the ones that are meant to sort of make the glass stand out are very discreet, actually. And there’s a lot of varieties that you can find to sort of help you solve the problem, but not create a decor problem. So you’d be surprised when you go searching that you’re going to find a lot of great options that will work for you. And think of all the birds you’re going to be saving. I mean, it’s amazing how they just get so simply confused and it’s just, you know, alarming when it happens. But hopefully they’re just a little stunned for a minute. |
| 0:30:09 | TOM: Well, are you ready to start a new decor project but kind of stuck at the starting line, if that’s you creating a mood board can unlock that creative process. Leslie, share tips on how to do just that in today’s edition of Leslie’s Last Word. |
| 0:30:22 | LESLIE: Yeah, you know, if you’re feeling stuck and you’re really just looking for a way to unlock your creativity, creating a mood board really is a great way to organize your ideas. But while traditional mood boards are often glued up, boards filled with clippings and colors and textures and all the things that you like. Digital mood boards are now taking this to a whole new level. Now, a digital mood board makes it super easy to create and integrate your collection of photos. Now Pinterest posts and other eye catching elements. All of those things you’ve got together. Then you share those boards with family and friends for feedback. It really is a great way to kind of kickstart this creative design process because it helps you kind of define the style and overall look of the project that you’re going for. And it allows you to visualize and organize all of those ideas and emotion ones. And it’s really an easy way to sort of put everything together in one place. So if you’re looking on how to start these digital mood boards, you have to kind of figure out which free template you want to use. And there’s a ton of choices on Canva.com. There’s really a lot to choose from there. Then you get started, you brainstorm a few key words that describe the vibe, the esthetic of your project, and take all those images that you’ve saved on your phone or Pinterest, and you just start arranging them in that Canva template. Now, with this digital approach, it’s really just as easy to make two or three mood boards kind of sort of suss out which style exactly you’re going for or color palette, or see them both together and kind of decide which option is best for you. I mean, it’s really easy to sort of get this route going and then suddenly you’re going to see this pattern come together and you’re going to be picking colors and picking furnishings and picking textures and all of it. Just this amazing design process has opened up for you. So don’t be afraid. Start organizing yourself digitally, and soon you’re going to be enjoying that actual physical, new interior design. |
| 0:32:19 | TOM: What a great way to do just that. Coming up next time on the Money Pit, if you guys would like your home to feel open and airy, but you just don’t have the budget for a big project, we’re going to share some smart tips to help you open up the space without emptying your bank account in the very next edition of the Money Pit. I’m Tom Kraeutler. |
| 0:32:37 | LESLIE: And I’m Leslie Segrete. |
| 0:32:38 | TOM: Remember, you can do it yourself, but. |
| 0:32:40 | LESLIE: You don’t have to do it alone. |
| (Note: The above referenced transcript is AI-Generated, Unedited and Unproofed and as such may not accurately reflect the recorded audio. Copyright 2023 Squeaky Door Productions, Inc. No portion of this transcript or audio file may be reproduced in any format without the express written permission of Squeaky Door Productions, Inc.) |
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