Show Notes
- Preparing Your Grill: Getting fired up for BBQ season? Take these steps to prep your grill.
- Wind-Resistant Roofing: Roof shingles can get blown away by strong winds. Check out wind-resistant roofing that will stay put in the storm.
- Bedroom Designs: If you suffer from pin-somnia, these trending bedroom designs on Pinterest may be the cure.
Table of Contents[Hide][Show]
Plus, answers to your home improvement questions about:
- Shower Valve: Oops! David cut the drywall for his shower valve a bit too wide, but using a goof plate for oversized holes will help him cover the space.
- Mold Removal: Karen discovered mold from floor to ceiling behind the wallpaper in her basement. We suggest having the mold tested before deciding on a mitigation plan.
- Bats: Tommy has bats in his belfry – or at least in his attic! The most humane solution is to find where they’re getting in and install a one-way bat door to keep the bats out.
- Log Cabin: Deborah’s renovating a log house and needs to refill the chinking. She’ll have to experiment to find the best binding ingredients.
- Attic Ventilation: Can Conrad install a solar attic fan over his garage and leave the ridge vent on the rest of the house? We’ll discuss the pros and cons.
- Painting Over Stains: What prep work is needed before painting a ceiling with smoke damage? Joyce can use TSP to remove the soot stains, then use an oil-based primer before covering with latex paint.
- Rust in Water: Carol is searching for a product to help with the rust in her water. We advise her to use CLR to clean the rust stains from her bath fixtures.
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. |
| 0:00:38 | LESLIE: And I’m Leslie Segrete. |
| 0:00:39 | TOM: Welcome to episode 2305 is episode 2305 for our podcasters that follow along and we are here to help answer your questions about home improvement to core remodeling projects you’d like to get done, projects you started doing and stopped doing because you got stuck in the middle. We’re here to help smooth that all out and make sure you can get those projects done right the first time so you can get on to enjoying this beautiful spring weather. What are you doing today? Are you working inside, working out? Well, if you got a question, a couple of ways to reach us, call us at 1-888-MONEY-PIT. That’s 888-666-3974. Or post your questions and moneypit.com\ask just click the blue microphone button. Coming up on today’s show, do these warm weekends have you raring to fire up your gas grill? |
| 0:01:31 | TOM: Well, that sounds pretty good, but it could be a disaster waiting to happen if you don’t prep that dormant grill first. We’ll tell you how just ahead. |
| 0:01:39 | LESLIE: Plus, seasonal storms can whip up some seriously damaging winds that can rip those shingles right off your roof. We’re going to share some tips on a new roof shingle that can stand up to winds that are up to 130 miles per hour. |
| 0:01:53 | TOM: Plus, we dive into bedroom design trends by taking a look at what people are searching for on Pinterest. It’s always a good source for ideas and inspiration. |
| 0:02:01 | LESLIE: But first, we want to know what you’re searching for on Pinterest. I feel like that’s such an invasion of privacy when we’re figuring out what everybody’s searching for. I mean, do it. |
| 0:02:11 | TOM: Is not personalized. If we don’t agree with your design choice, it’ll just be between us. |
| 0:02:17 | LESLIE: So really, what are you guys working on? We already know, actually. So we’re going to help you out. We already know what you’re looking at. Give us a goal. We’re going to help you out with those questions. We already have the answers ready. |
| 0:02:28 | TOM: That number is 1-888-Money-Pit, 888-666-3974. |
| 0:02:34 | LESLIE: Head now to Iowa, where we’ve got David on the line, who’s got an issue with the shower mixing valve, what’s going on. |
| 0:02:40 | CALLER: So we put the rock board on the walls but we cut the hole not six inches around the whole valve. And now that I’m looking at it, I think maybe the plumber should have set the valve back further so we could have done like a three inch hole to the tile around Canakkale, around that six inch hole. And even though the trim is only slightly larger. |
| 0:03:03 | TOM: So they have a lot of the shower valves have what we call goof plates, which like oversize trims, you need to go back to the manufacturer and see if they make one or see the generic one. That’s cuts that will be wider than what you have. Boy, it’s silly that he cut that hole before actually having the valve and. |
| 0:03:20 | CALLER: We punch a hole. Now you ask ourselves, my brother did because he had the mixing valve out so far it didn’t occur to us at the time. Oh yeah. |
| 0:03:31 | TOM: Well, that’s why they make goof plates. |
| 0:03:34 | CALLER: You could I could cut out a section of the rock board and then have the plumber recessed it further back. Maybe, whereas they’re not worth doing that. |
| 0:03:41 | TOM: It’s a lot of work considering how far along you are. I would find out if there’s a goof plate available. Frankly, when you put those in, they look. They look natural, they’re big they’re bigger valve faces, but they look natural. They don’t look like a patch. |
| 0:03:55 | CALLER: Yeah. And so it would be okay to put a bigger trim or the existing trim and just and just seal underneath it. Think. I think so, yeah. Yeah. If I had bought it that rubber, whatever you call it, the orange rubber thing but it won’t sit around that six inch. |
| 0:04:12 | TOM: Yeah. See what’s available and take it from there. |
| 0:04:15 | CALLER: Yeah. All right. Okay. All right. Thanks a lot. |
| 0:04:16 | TOM: Appreciate it. You got to look. |
| 0:04:18 | LESLIE: Karen in Pennsylvania is dealing with some mold in the basement. Tell us what’s going on. |
| 0:04:22 | CALLER: My mom has a house that the basement is. We put it up for sale and nobody noticed this. And one person came in and tore wallpaper off the wall. And we noticed that it had mold from the floor to the ceiling and even in the inner walls. So I had a gentleman come and look at it and he said, it will take $30,000 plus. And he would come in, remove all the interior walls, all the wood paneling, everything off the wall, down to the bare. He would have a chemical put on, clean it, and then it would never come back. And then the second guy came in and he said he would rip everything out as a as he said, he would coat it clean it, and guarantee it, that if it did come back, he’d fix it for $10,000. |
| 0:05:18 | TOM: Yeah. I don’t think you need either of these guys. You don’t have enough information yet, and I don’t think you’re talking to the right people. I doubt either of them are professional road mold, mitigators. It sounds to me like they’re just trying to size you up for as much money as they can get from you. The first thing you want to do is test the mold, figure out what kind of mold it is. And that’s done. There’s a couple of easy ways to do that. But basically, you take a sample and you send it out to a lab and they tell you what you got, and then you can kind of design a mitigation plan around that. You know, I need to get a sense as to how much mold is there. But if it’s just a little bit of mold behind the behind the wallpaper you may not need to pull this out. You might be able to treat it right in place, but it doesn’t sound right. |
| 0:06:00 | CALLER: Where the bathroom is, has an inner wall, and that is halfway down with mold. |
| 0:06:06 | TOM: Okay. How mean, how much mold are we talking about here? Square footage wise? Is it like a 4×4 foot by four foot space? |
| 0:06:14 | CALLER: Or we’re going to take all the outer walls because we since went around and pulled off some wallpaper here and moved some paneling. And we also the first guy that came in for $30,000 brought in a light. And to me it looked like a black light. But he brought the light in. That was a special light, and it can tell what type mold it was and where the mold was. |
| 0:06:36 | TOM: That is completely wrong. Do not call that guy back is completely wrong. Okay? That guy was not giving you accurate information. If he comes in with his magic light that supposedly tells mold. |
| 0:06:50 | LESLIE: They can’t actually tell you what kind of mold unless they do a chemical test on a physical sample. |
| 0:06:54 | TOM: Well, it’s a mold test sent out to a lab and they read it, so, right? That guy’s a snake oil salesman. |
| 0:06:58 | LESLIE: Right. But I mean, it’s actually holding a piece of that mold and testing it with certain things. And that’s done by a lab. |
| 0:07:04 | TOM: It sounds like you could use a basement renovation, but I wouldn’t you know, I wouldn’t get too crazy over it. If it’s done by the right kind of company, they can take that apart very carefully, dispose of all of that material. And maybe you don’t even want to put the walls back. Maybe just want to leave it unfinished. Oh, good. All right. Well, good luck with that project. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-MONEY-PIT. |
| 0:07:24 | LESLIE: Now going to talk with Tommy in Mississippi, who’s dealing with some That’s what is going on. |
| 0:07:28 | TOM: What I have is about seven new guests in my attic and they’re in the area where the dormer is in. I need to figure out a way to get rid of them. They’re nesting where the screen is. And I want to get rid of these guys, and I’d love to get your input. Thanks. |
| 0:07:48 | LESLIE: You know, this is like my worst nightmare. I’m always afraid they’re going to get stuck in my hair. |
| 0:07:51 | TOM: Oh, yeah. I mean, look, the most humane way to deal with that, to get in your attic is to find that spot that they’re getting in. There’s going to be a little gap somewhere and then basically put in a one way back door. What that looks like is basically kind of like a piece of screening. And think of it as having a hinge at the top and the bottom kind of flops, right? And so with that, the bats can push on it and they will crawl out of it. But when they try to get back in, they just kind of bounce off it and can’t really find their way back. So that would be the trick there. That’s the most humane way to do that. I’m not a big advocate of mothballs and other types of bat toxins and things of that nature. I think they got in there will find their way out. You just got to make sure that once they do leave, they don’t come back. |
| 0:08:36 | LESLIE: The other option is me running with the broom, screaming. |
| 0:08:40 | TOM: Like I could see you, like running around with a broom trying to bat the bats. |
| 0:08:44 | LESLIE: I’m telling you, they live in a tree across the street from me. And in the evenings when I walk the dog in the summer, I’m like, They’re going to get stuck in my hair. They’re going to attack my hair. I don’t know if that’s just like an old wives tale, but that is the one thing I am most afraid of. |
| 0:08:57 | TOM: Well, it’s a healthy fear to have. |
| 0:09:00 | LESLIE: Deborah in Pennsylvania need some help with a log home? Tell us what you’re working on. My husband I are renovating a Lincoln Long house. |
| 0:09:08 | CALLER: Nice. |
| 0:09:09 | LESLIE: I have there is in between the logs. |
| 0:09:12 | CALLER: There is thinking. |
| 0:09:14 | LESLIE: Yep. And in in between arch sinking. It is filled. |
| 0:09:17 | CALLER: With with. |
| 0:09:18 | LESLIE: Stone. And I just. I want to keep the stone there and rethink it because it deteriorated over the years. I found a recipe online of clay salt and hydrated lime. |
| 0:09:33 | CALLER: Right. We did a couple test spots. |
| 0:09:34 | LESLIE: And when it dried, it cracked. So I don’t know if the recipe. |
| 0:09:41 | CALLER: Is a good recipe. |
| 0:09:43 | LESLIE: Or maybe we. |
| 0:09:44 | CALLER: Made it to too. |
| 0:09:46 | LESLIE: Liquidy and it. |
| 0:09:48 | CALLER: Cracked. |
| 0:09:50 | LESLIE: And I do know that in the old houses they also put. |
| 0:09:54 | CALLER: Straw. |
| 0:09:54 | LESLIE: Or horse hair. |
| 0:09:57 | TOM: In the clay, the same reason they put rebar in concrete. It reinforces it. I don’t know about the recipe with hydrated lime, but I know that there’s a recipe that’s similar to that that uses wood ash, of course, where you’re where you’re going to find enough wood ash to do it entire house. I can tell you. So I couldn’t determine if whether if that was what caused this issue or not. Do you have an aversion to using one of the commercially available, very reliable products through this? Because you can buy chicken. And by the way, if you’re driving down the road thinking, what the heck are they talking about? Shrinking kitchen, keg shrinking is is think of it as sort of the caulk between the logs of a log house. You know, when you see logs stuck together and it looks like almost masonry or has been or mortar has been pressed in between like a wood for B for bricks, that’s called chicken. And so that’s what we’re trying to restore here. And it’s and it’s unique to log homes. |
| 0:10:53 | CALLER: There’s a horse hair. |
| 0:10:54 | LESLIE: Does that act as a binding. |
| 0:10:56 | CALLER: To hold the plaster together so it won’t crack. |
| 0:10:58 | TOM: I think it would because that’s what reinforcements drill would do. But you know what I’m going to say? Good luck finding ash and horse hair today. You know, it’s going to be a. |
| 0:11:11 | LESLIE: You can buy your air mattress. |
| 0:11:13 | TOM: There’s going to be a lot of horses out there that are getting a haircut, the horse to check this house. |
| 0:11:17 | LESLIE: You owe, you have the horses. |
| 0:11:18 | TOM: So that’s how I got the horses. I got the horse hair covered. We wish you a lot of luck with this, but I would I would say that you ought to just experiment with a couple of different versions of this, and you find one that works. Go for it, because you are in a very unique position there. Very unusual projects project. |
| 0:11:35 | CALLER: Yep. Okay. |
| 0:11:37 | TOM: All right. Good luck. |
| 0:11:38 | LESLIE: Got to be different. Yep. |
| 0:11:39 | TOM: Thanks so much for calling us at 888-MONEY-PIT. Well, if you guys love the grill, summer is a season for sizzling steaks, chicken, seafood and veggies. But whether your gas grill is new or it’s been around the block a few times, there are some steps that you need to take right now before you fire up that grill for the very first time. |
| 0:11:58 | LESLIE: Yeah, first, if you’re grill is new, you’re going to need to season it. So to do that, you want to just wipe down the interior with a wet cloth and then coat it in vegetable oil or shortening and ignite all of the burners. You want to set it to medium heat, which is about 300 degrees. And when it reaches that medium heat, you want to close the lid and turn it down to about 250 and then let it go for an hour or two until your coating stop smoking. And then that’s going to form a nice protective coating. |
| 0:12:25 | TOM: Now, if your grill isn’t new, you’re going to need to scrape off any charred food debris with a wire grill brush, change out any old or burnt lava rocks and also clean the venturi. Now, those are the tubes that run the gas or propane from the tank to the burners. This is a place that spiders love and any kind of blockage could cause a gas back up leading to an explosion. Speaking of which, you also need to check for leaks. There’s an easy way to do that. Just take some liquid dish soap mixed in with a little bit of water and then brush it on the connections where all of the propane or gas lines are. If you seal a bubble, come up there, you know you’ve got a leak and you’ve got to get it fixed before you fire up that grill for the very first time. We’ve got step by step tips on grill prep and safety online right now to help you out at Money Pit dot com. |
| 0:13:15 | LESLIE: Conrad in Texas is on the line with a roofing question How can we help? |
| 0:13:18 | CALLER: And I want to get your advice as to whether or not it would be advisable to put up a solar event over my garage and leave the ridge fence throughout my head. The rest of my house. I am getting ready to rebirth my entire house and garage. |
| 0:13:36 | TOM: So when you say solar vent, do you mean solar powered? Attic fan. |
| 0:13:41 | CALLER: Yes. Yes, right? |
| 0:13:42 | TOM: First of all, my general advice is to never use an attic fan. And the reason I give that advice is because typically when the attic is over, living space, that is air conditioned. What happens is the fan is so powerful that it will pull air conditioning from the living space through the hundreds of nooks and crannies that you don’t know about, like the space between the two by fours and the wall cavity where, say, the outlet is installed. That becomes like an intake port where it’ll suck out the air conditioning. If you were describing this garage as being attached to the house, but not attached to a living space, and then that would include the attic. And now the attic is completely independent of not being over the living space. And considering that’s a hip roof, which is the type of roof, folks, if you’re not familiar with this one, is like a pyramid or it goes up on all four sides and up with this really straw, small, rigid at the top where you really can’t put an effect event in that circumstance. In that circumstance only, yes, I think it’s okay to put a solar powered attic fan. I think it makes a lot of sense for you because if you’ll be pulling air from all those soft vents all the way around, you’ll be drawing it through that attic space and exhausting it. And that will keep the roof temperature cooler and yes, it can increase the longevity of the roof. Now, for the other sections of roof and attic that are, again, separated from that garage space there, you should use a continuous ridge vent, make sure the ridge lines cut open at least an inch to an inch and a half. So you have a good wide gap at the top. And then that gets on top of that and be careful with the type of event that you choose. You want to make sure you get one that’s open enough to allow the airflow but not let water drive into it. There’s one by certainty called an air vent. It’s the it’s that’s their manufacturers name of their trade air vent I think it’s air vent dot com or air vent inc something along the lines and it has a nice baffle built into it which speeds up depressurization. It’s also got a filter that fits inside of it that stops up from rain, from blowing in. So just get a good quality of event like that and I think you’ll be good to go have the best of both worlds in that situation. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-Money Pit. |
| 0:15:56 | LESLIE: Right. Joyce, Missouri is on the line next with smoke damage. What is going on at your Money Pit? Hi. |
| 0:16:01 | CALLER: I have a feeling that got a bit of smoke damage from a propane fireplace, so I don’t want to paint and have it bleed back through and then have to go paint again. Painting is a big enough job. I want to do it for it will stay quiet and not bleed through. So my question is, do I need to seal it, wash it? What do I need to do before I paint it? |
| 0:16:26 | LESLIE: If you’ve got smoke damage, generally what is done? And you know, are you seeing like yellow stains? Is that what you’re seeing? Is it all over? Is it in spots? |
| 0:16:34 | CALLER: No, it’s a smoky color. |
| 0:16:37 | LESLIE: All right. So because it’s a certain content to feel like a little bit oily or greasy, depending on what you were burning, I guess it’s from the propane, so you might want to clean it a little bit. First with TSP, you can find that in the paint center in the painting aisle. It’s called tri sodium phosphate and you mix that up and you can make it sort of a thicker consistency and you want to wash those areas, see if you can get some of that off first. And then once that’s all dry, you’re going to want to prime that wall and prime the entire wall. And you can use an oil based primer that does tend to seal in those stains a little bit better. And any sort of smoky odor that might have been there from whatever the damage was. And then once that’s dry, you can go ahead and put a latex paint over it. That’ll give you the color and that’ll ensure good adhesion of the paint to the primer to the wall and hopefully then if you’ve done a good job of sort of trying to clear away the extra soot in the stain and then sealing it with the primer that shouldn’t bleed through. So that really does the trick. |
| 0:17:35 | CALLER: Oh, okay. That helps me a bunch because I didn’t want to have to. |
| 0:17:39 | LESLIE: Redo. |
| 0:17:39 | CALLER: Once. I’ve already done it. All right. |
| 0:17:41 | TOM: Well, good luck with that project. |
| 0:17:42 | CALLER: Thank you very much. Y’all have a wonderful day. |
| 0:17:46 | LESLIE: Well, seasonal storms can whip up some seriously damaging winds that can rip the shingles right off of your roof. But now Lowe’s is launching a new roof shingle from Owens Corning. That’s beautiful. And get this wind resistant up to 130 miles per hour. |
| 0:18:01 | TOM: Here to explain what gives the new duration shingles, this incredible level of protection and more is Eric Roadhouse. He’s the merchandizing vice president of building materials for Lowe’s. |
| 0:18:11 | ERIC: Welcome, Eric. Hey, happy to be here. Thank you. |
| 0:18:14 | TOM: Hey. So spring is the ideal season to inspect your roof for those missing and torn shingles and, of course, take steps to prevent it from happening again, right? |
| 0:18:23 | ERIC: Absolutely. It’s a great time. You know, we’ve had a lot of inclement weather this year. We see it every night on television. I was reviewing some recent storms this morning. A lot of action in the U.S. this year. A perfect time to get up on that roof and check for damage. |
| 0:18:37 | TOM: All right. So let’s talk about the new duration shingles by Owens Corning. Now, as Leslie said in the intro, these can handle winds up to 130 miles an hour. That’s pretty amazing. And I understand the nailing technology is really at the heart of what makes it possible. Can you explain it to us? |
| 0:18:52 | ERIC: Yeah. So the duration shingles has a product attribute called shear nail technology. And it’s kind of interesting if you’ve ever watched folks put nails in a shingle, they go really, really fast. Right? They’re firing six plus nails per shingle. What this allows the installer to do is to make sure they’re accurately driving those to a certain zone in the shingle that has like triple layer protection and it gives the most holding power that you can get if they put them in the exact location they’re supposed to. So Owens Corning has done a nice job with duration and the sheer nail technology. |
| 0:19:28 | TOM: Because I guess if you don’t put that nail in exactly the right place, you start to lose strength. And it’s holding power to keep those shingles tightened on the roof and secured together, correct? |
| 0:19:38 | ERIC: Correct. So these systems are engineered to work in a certain fashion. There’s a certain distance. They have to be spaced out and they have to be in a narrow area in the middle of that shingle as they’re putting them down. And like I said, if you’ve ever watched it, it’s pretty rapid fashion. So mistakes can happen. And what Owens Corning has done lowers that odds of a nail being misfired or put in the wrong location on a shingle. |
| 0:20:02 | LESLIE: Now, it’s interesting, when we talk about roofing shingles, you always hear people be like, oh, it’s a 20 year, it’s a 30 year, it’s a 35 year or whatever it might be. You’re sort of speaking, I guess, in the duration or the lifetime of the warranty of these roofing shingles. Now, when it comes to roofing products, I mean, what kind of warranties are there out there and what do they cover? |
| 0:20:20 | ERIC: So the great warranty or with the duration product is they have a lifetime defect warranty on the product itself as if it is installed correctly. There are a lot of other warranties available above and beyond that. But what that does is gives that homeowner a lifetime of comfort, knowing that this product is going to last as long as the original owner of the home. There are certain rules that apply, and you would actually research that on Owens Corning dot com. |
| 0:20:50 | TOM: Now aside from the strength and the durability, Lowe’s has duration shingles and actually a wide range of color choices for curb appeal and performance based on where you live. Can you give us an overview of those different varieties of duration shingle? |
| 0:21:04 | ERIC: So the first thing I always recommend that someone does before they’re in the market to look at colors and styles is make sure you check with your H your way if you actually have an easier way. A lot of folks are in an H away and don’t know that there could be stipulations of involving color. |
| 0:21:20 | TOM: So of course you’re referring to a homeowners association, right? |
| 0:21:23 | ERIC: Yes, sir. |
| 0:21:23 | TOM: Yeah, because they specify the architectural standards. So, right? If you have any archway, you want to make sure you’re consistent with that. |
| 0:21:28 | ERIC: And once you’ve got that, there’s I won’t get into all the details, but there’s something for everyone. There are products that are meant for the Western climates. There are products where algae is an issue. There are high fashion colors. There are even colors that Owens Corning comes out with every year, launches a new color. It’s really interesting and exciting. I’m pretty much of a dark brown guy, but there’s something in there for everyone. |
| 0:21:54 | TOM: Yeah, and the architectural shingles are always my choice where they can look like a shake or shingle, the way they can control color on these shingles. The definition of colors is really amazing. You know, you put a little dark area around the edge and all of a sudden it looks like you have a real cedar shingle on the roof. |
| 0:22:11 | ERIC: Absolutely. The way they can put these aggregates on top and the accuracy that they have can really create some neat effects that you can look at and actually really stand out in your neighborhood and still meet FHA requirements, but have something a little special. |
| 0:22:25 | LESLIE: Gives you a chance to show your personality while still following the rules. Now that we’re sort of on the backside of winter, we’re in this beautiful spring season. Looking forward to the summer. Is now a good time to sort of start thinking about everything that’s in the top of the house. Look at the insulation in the attic. |
| 0:22:41 | LESLIE: I mean, should we be checking out all of the stuff now that the weather’s good? |
| 0:22:45 | ERIC: Absolutely. When you get up on your roof or up in that area, definitely want to check out for the damage shingles that we talked about. One good place to look is in the gutters and the downspouts. If you find any pieces of shingle and material there, that’s a good, good indication that something has been moved up there. And then while you’re up there, always a good idea to look at insulation, 90% of the homes in the United States could use more insulation, especially in the ceiling and attic areas. Those things tend to settle over time. Just a great time to do what I call investment grade home improvements, things that are going to pay off in the long run. |
| 0:23:23 | TOM: The Owens Corning has a insulation system that is called Attic Cat. Basically, it’s a blown in insulation and a machine that will distribute it. That’s an easy way to add additional insulation. Does Lowe’s offer the attic CAT system and how does it all work? |
| 0:23:37 | ERIC: Yes, Lowe says the attic cat loose fill insulation available. We also have machines. If someone wants to do it themselves, they purchase ten bags of insulation. They get a 24 hour free rental of the machine and the machines are in the stores in the section. |
| 0:23:52 | TOM: And like you said, it’s a nice way to add some additional insulation. It gives you a really quick return on investment and makes you very comfortable. Now’s the golden opportunity to get out there. It’s not too hot, not too cold. Weather’s great. So grab binoculars, go outside, look over your roof, or any missing torn shingles. Take a peek in your gutters and if you need new shingles, check out the new duration Shingles available at Lowe’s made by Owens Corning when resistant up to 130 miles an hour and absolutely beautiful. Erick Rowan, house merchandizing vice president of building materials for Lowe’s. Thank you so much for stopping by the Money Pit and filling us in on these new products. |
| 0:24:24 | ERIC: Absolutely. Thank you both. |
| 0:24:26 | LESLIE: Well, one way to spot trends is to follow the number of Pinterest searches that are done on a particular topic. Now, the folks at Feather and Black did just that and found five bedroom design trends destined to be popular this year. |
| 0:24:39 | TOM: Yeah. So, Leslie, let’s see how many of these you agree with. The first one is wooden accents, rustic decor is a simple, yet classic style choice for bedrooms. Pinterest searches for rustic bedroom have risen 203% since December. |
| 0:24:54 | LESLIE: You know, this one can be a little dark. And I guess it depends on where in the country you are that may seem to have this place up a little bit more because it’s a lot of like very dark wood on the walls, wooden furniture. So maybe if it’s like a mountain house or a ski house, I could definitely see this playing out before more of like the everyday, more urban suburban, maybe not so much, but it could work in the right environment. |
| 0:25:18 | TOM: All right. The next one is farmhouse style and worldwide. Pinterest searches for farmhouse decor have risen 63% over the last three months. People do seem to love the blend of sort of rustic style and contemporary beauty that farmhouses offer. I mean, look, it looks nothing like a real farmhouse, but it’s nice look. |
| 0:25:36 | LESLIE: It really does. And these are kind of like airy and open. There’s a lot of way sometimes there’s just like a touch of light wood. Maybe it’s a wood beam. They’re very sort of like open, clean, timeless, but still sort of very classic and old timey. I kind of like the farmhouse look. |
| 0:25:54 | TOM: Now, the next one really surprised me, and that was written the written style apparently has been steadily growing in recent months. Check this out. Searches for Rattan furniture have risen 316% if tripled. The warm and soft tones of rattan offer a sense of comfort that makes it a popular option for many. Are you big on rattan? |
| 0:26:16 | LESLIE: You know, I kind of love it because it’s that California boho feel. So it kind of gives you that like modern bohemian and you can mix it with a lot of like colors and warm looks and plants and it gives you that sort of bohemian vibe. So I definitely like that look I’ve written, and it’s usually only like a piece or two in the room that gives it that feel. |
| 0:26:40 | LESLIE: I definitely love the look of that. |
| 0:26:42 | TOM: So not too much because you can kind of overdo. |
| 0:26:44 | LESLIE: It, right? Yeah, it’s usually like the headboard or a side table it’s something. Not everything. |
| 0:26:53 | TOM: Now, here’s one I know you like, and that’s an accent wall. I mean, whether you’re adding just a splash of color or you bring a stencil or you’re doing something that’s really ornate in terms of wall paneling, interested in adding accent walls to your bedroom is also on the rise, up 69% over the last three months on Pinterest. |
| 0:27:10 | LESLIE: Well, and you know what? This is such a broad topic because you’re right, it could be a ton of things. It could be wallpaper, it could be a solid color paint, it could be paneling, it could be anything. I mean, simply do a Google search and you will see a wide variety of design choices. So it could be anything and everything and it could be as gorgeous or as minimal. So this is something I am totally on board with and I think you can make it anything you want it to be. So this is a great design trend. |
| 0:27:39 | TOM: Now, here’s one that really threw me. It’s that seventies style. What’s old is new. 1970s bedroom related terms have seen a 78% increase according to Pinterest trends. |
| 0:27:51 | LESLIE: Oh my God, this is a hard time to. |
| 0:27:52 | TOM: Get the bellbottoms out again. |
| 0:27:55 | LESLIE: No way. Have you seen like seriously do a search and some of these rooms are like, have the magic garden written all over them. It is not a place I would like to sleep in, but who knows? People are looking for it. I don’t know why. Maybe there’s a sense of nostalgia. I don’t know. It’s not for me. |
| 0:28:12 | TOM: Or being back two years back. |
| 0:28:13 | LESLIE: Lava lamp. I don’t know. Maybe. I’m not sure what’s driving this, but it’s definitely a no for me. |
| 0:28:20 | TOM: Oh, it’s it’s funny I get these all the time from folks that are doing this research. Pinterest trends are super handy. You just come up with a topic and they start digging into it. Sometimes you find some real gems of information that that really can make us laugh. So I hope you guys enjoyed that. And whether you are a savvy style person, a wooden accent person, a farmhouse, a written or an accent wall. If you’ve got questions about your decor, you can reach us 24 seven at 1-888-MONEY-PIT. |
| 0:28:50 | LESLIE: All right. Caroline, Oregon’s on the line with some rusty water at her house. What’s going on? |
| 0:28:54 | CALLER: My house is about 25 years old. |
| 0:28:57 | LESLIE: I’ve lived in it for about six. I wondering if there’s some something some kind of a chemical or something. |
| 0:29:04 | CALLER: That I can put inside the tank to keep it from turning black. |
| 0:29:09 | TOM: So have you tried seal or. |
| 0:29:12 | CALLER: No. What? What? What is that? |
| 0:29:14 | TOM: Okay, so I would take a look at the sealer. It’s been around for many, many years. A gray company. It stands for calcium, lime and rust. It’s specifically designed to clean rough stains from bathroom fixtures. |
| 0:29:27 | CALLER: Okay, Could you spell that for me? Yeah. |
| 0:29:30 | TOM: C. L. R. |
| 0:29:32 | LESLIE: Okay. Got it. |
| 0:29:34 | TOM: Stands for calcium, lime and rust. See, I was never a good speller, but I got that one. Huh? |
| 0:29:39 | CALLER: Yeah, you did. |
| 0:29:41 | TOM: All right, Good luck with that project. Thanks so much for calling us at 88 Money Pit. Hey, Jaron is wondering whether window tinting makes sense for her home. She says my home has multiple large windows as well as a sliding glass door in the living room and dining room, let in a ton of natural light. We love that. However, with that light comes added heat, she’s asking, Would window film be a good option to make the seating areas more comfortable but also let in as much natural light as possible? You’ve worked as a decorator for a long time. What’s your take on window film? Does it have a good purpose in a situation like this? |
| 0:30:14 | LESLIE: I mean, and you’re familiar with this as well? I think there are the right films for the right purposes, especially when you have a large glass and you don’t want to cover it with the window treatment because you love the view, because you love the feel of the glass, because it’s a more modern property, but you don’t want that sunlight coming in. |
| 0:30:29 | LESLIE: You don’t want it to damage the furnishings, the floor, the fabrics, but you still want the benefit of the view. There are low e coatings that will allow the light to come in without the heat gain without that damage from the sunlight. And so you have to find the right one for that application. And it does, I think, need to be professionally done so that it does look good. |
| 0:30:50 | LESLIE: I have no idea what that cost is. But I think if you find the right product and it’s applied properly, I think it can do the job. |
| 0:30:56 | TOM: I think the way window films are made is pretty amazing. They have like dozens of layers inside one like thin piece of film, and each layer has a job in terms of reflecting the light. I had it on a vehicle once that we owned and it was amazing. In the middle of the summer everybody has these like crazy shields up to keep the house the car from overheating. We get inside our car and it would be super comfortable no matter how hot it was outside. They really do work and they can do so without being too dark as well. Many of these films actually are clear and so you don’t even see them once they’re up. |
| 0:31:26 | LESLIE: All right. Definitely a good option for you, Darren. |
| 0:31:29 | TOM: Well, if you’ve ever completed a fix up project only to have it break down again a short time later, it’s kind of frustrating. Well, Lesley’s got tips for turning those nagging problems into one and done jobs on today’s edition of Lesley’s last word. Lesley, We’re trying to prevent Groundhog Day. |
| 0:31:45 | LESLIE: Yeah fixing that same problem over and over again definitely is a drag and for sure feels like Groundhog Day. And it does seem to happen with some projects more than others. Sort of bring an end to those vicious cycle. The solution is to change the way you take on that project and get to the root of the issue. Now, peeling paint is a good example. The next time you see some peeling paint, don’t just slap another coat on top of it. Instead, strip away the old stuff with a paint scraper or chemical. And then here’s the key Apply a primer before you reapply that topcoat. The primer is what’s going to make that topcoat stick for good? Now, if your basement seems to spring a leak every time you fix the last one, there’s a good chance. The real issue is poor drainage. So you want to grade the soil away from your home’s foundation and make sure those gutters release water at least 4 to 6 feet away from your home’s exterior walls for a much drier space. And you can put away that caulking gun once and for all. If the caulk between your shower tiles keeps cracking and breaking fill your bathtub with water before you fill in the caulk that one final time. Now the weight of the water expands that gap you need to fill, which is later going to contract for a tighter, long lasting fit. So basically, you fill that gap with the caulk while the tub is full of water, let it dry, then drain the tub, and then all of a sudden that weight releases and it shrinks and canal and it’s going to stay nice and tight in there. So lots of things that you can do once and for all and get them to stay done. |
| 0:33:10 | TOM: Good tips coming up next time on the Money Pit. If wallpaper stands between you and your dream room, you’re not alone. Wallpaper removal is a dreaded task, but the right steps not only make it quick, but easy. We’ll explain how in the next edition of The Money Pit. I’m Tom Kraeutler. |
| 0:33:26 | LESLIE: And I’m Leslie. So. |
| 0:33:27 | TOM: Remember, you can do it yourself. |
| 0:33:29 | LESLIE: But you don’t have to do it alone. |
| (Note: The above referenced transcript is AI-Generated, Unedited and Unproofed and as such may not accurately reflect the recorded audio. Copyright 2023 Squeaky Door Productions, Inc. No portion of this transcript or audio file may be reproduced in any format without the express written permission of Squeaky Door Productions, Inc.) |
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