I know the thought of putting away decorations and Christmas trees is a bit premature but I wanted to share a really easy DIY project. A few years ago, Jocie and I took the time to create our own Christmas tree storage bag. It was a cheap, easy solution that [...]
It’s been about 7 months since we last refinanced, and we’re at it again.
Last March we locked in at 5.00% on a 30 year mortgage. Back then you could get a 15 year loan for about 4.75%. While we could afford the 15 year payments, we didn’t [...]
I’m really excited to announce our next giveaway. Up for grabs is a beautiful, new Delta Pilar, touch activated, kitchen faucet (official site)!
ToucH2O TechnologyThis single handle pull-down faucet features the brand new ToucH2O technology. ToucH2O makes it easy to turn a faucet on or off with any part of [...]
If your looking for ways to improve the energy efficiency of your home, you might turn to the area of your unfinished basement ceiling where the joists meet the sill plate (at the top of the wall) and the rim joist [...]
It’s cold on the east coast right now… real cold. We’re about 15 inches into the Blizzard of 2009 and we’ve already made our first pass with the snow blower across our driveway and the front walk.
About two years ago,' [...]
A little over a year ago, I posted about Charities with Local-Pickup service. I’d like to follow up with a list of places to take your stuff if you don’t live in an area with door-step service or if you just want that stuff outta there and don’t want [...]
Have you noticed the change on the top menu bar? (If you’re reading by e-mail, you’ll need to visit the site to see this).
Every day we have thousands of folks stop by the site looking for help with all types of home [...]
Did you know we maintain an up-to-date Sears Coupons list all year long? Sears releases updated coupons about once per week, and sometimes releases short-notification specials just before the weekend, so the page changes often.
The Sears Coupons list is part of our [...]
Craftsman VersaTrack is a really good storage & organization option. It’s easy to install, has multiple configurations, and lots of great accessories. In my basement, I’ve found it really helps me take advantage of space that is otherwise un-usable. Check out my VersaTrack review [...]
Now that the spray foam insulation is complete in the basement, we’re again turning our attention to finishing the space.
Our original layout for the basement included 1/4 of the space used as a TV area. But after visiting a number of home theater stores in [...]
For the last two years we’ve been working hard to improve the looks of our lawn, and with some decent successes. We’ve become big fans of Scott’s DIY Annual Lawn Care Program and particularly of their Turf Builder with Weed Control (which did great last [...]
I recently began checking my home for air leaks and boy did I find them. I started with a couple exhaust vents and was surprised to find little bits of sunlight coming through (see picture). This is a common place for air leaks but fortunately there is [...]
Every now and then a truly innovative technology comes along and makes life better. You know… like the remote control, or the dishwasher, or stain-resistant carpet.
Delta Faucet is hoping their latest ToucH20 technology (official site) improves your kitchen faucet experience. But does it really [...]
It’s time to conclude our Trane Thermostat Giveaway. A big thank-you to Trane for providing these great deluxe programmable thermostats.
A programmable thermostat is a great way to regulate the temperature of your home. Adjusting the temperature of your home, by even a few degrees, can [...]
Looking for a creative gift idea for the home improver in your life? Last week, Ethan came up with a list of handyman gifts that are easy to purchase online and will ship in time for the holiday. Here’s another idea we think many handymen (and handywomen!) might enjoy [...]
I’ve already put together a list of inexpensive gift ideas for DIYers and if you have any to add, be sure the leave a comment. For today’s post, I thought I’d compile a few reviews for some additional inspiration.
Every gift-giving season, I [...]
On his way out the door yesterday, Fred asked me to grab the camera and write this post because it’s the beginning of December in Maryland, and we have bright purple flowers in our front gardens – still!
Last fall, when I laid out [...]
A compressor and finishing nailer are practically a must-have for home improvers. Pneumatic nailers speed along many jobs, like baseboard and shoe molding installation, crown molding installation, and most all woodworking jobs (including the very common DIY hardwood flooring install where a finish nailer is a great option [...]
We love sharing unique experiences with our readers and I think today’s post is a real treat! Fred and I had the pleasure of filming Hottle Energy Solutions as they insulated Fred’s basement with spray foam. We worked hard to put out a really comprehensive, [...]
Reader question: I just picked up a new Trane programmable thermostat for our air conditioner/heat pump system. When I took the front off the current honeywell thermostat, it looks like there are quite a few more wires than what the new thermostat will accept. The thermostat has seven wires connected [...]
Izzie is cruising the house and quickly learning how to open things, so one of the items on my to-do list was to install some safety latches. Jocie picked up a package of Safety 1st Wide Grip Latches. I installed a pair on the cabinet [...]
When it comes to recessed can lighting, “IC” means “insulation contact”. IC-rated cans (usually labeled as “IC-rated” or simply “IC”) are appropriate for attic installations and anywhere else you plan to have insulation touching the can’s housing. Non-IC cans (almost always labeled “Non-IC”) must have an [...]
Traditional manual screwdrivers aren’t the sexiest of home improvement tools, but they are essential… A good screwdriver can speed along simple and complex home improvement projects alike. While there’s a myriad of combination screwdriver options on the market competing for your hard-earned cash, there’s one version [...]
Black & Decker has a new hand-tool offering called the ReadyWrench. It’s similar to the Craftsman dogbone wrench in that it combines several of the most common socket sizes into one wrench. B&D sent us a ReadyWrench to try out. Read on for more information and how you could win [...]
Keeping hand tools organized and accessible on the go is tough. The lionshare of portable toolboxes on the market come with a deep bottom storage bin and one or two removable shelves (like the one shown at the right). These solutions aren’t bad per se, but we [...]
The Kreg Jig is a great addition to any woodworking shop, no matter what your skill level. The jig enables you to quickly and securely join two pieces of wood together with pocket holes. Kreg provided us one of their kits to try out & review. If [...]
With my wife gearing up the holiday music and Black Friday only a few days away, I thought I’d share some gift ideas for handymen / DIYers. I searched high and low to find inexpensive items that are super useful. If you have additional suggestions, leave a comment and I’ll [...]
If revolvers were the great equalizer that tamed the lawless west, the 18V impact driver is the modern-day DIY equivalent. Back in the 1800s, the enemies were unruly types who plundered, poached, and pilfered from innocents. Today’s DIY enemies: bolts tightened beyond the loosening force of traditional drill-drivers, and [...]
Some time after Jocie and I moved into our house, we started to notice a bad odor in the unfinished part of our basement. The smell is difficult to describe, but it reminded me of bad fish. If you look around online, it’s obvious that a lot of people are [...]
In our prior house, we had an awkward nook in the corner of our small 10′ x 10′ rectangular kitchen — a 2′ x 3.5′ space that was completely empty. The area was in the corner opposite the cabinets (which were laid out in an ‘L’ shape on the other [...]
A good resource I’ve come across is called Seal Your Home. This site was created by DAP to help educate consumers about weatherizing- improving the energy efficiency of a building’s envelope. Reducing the flow of cold air into your home is an important part [...]
I’m playing with the Excel mortgage calculator I wrote about this morning.
I’ve always heard that with a 30 year mortgage, you don’t own that much of your home after 15 years of steady payments… You’d think after shelling out half of all the payments, you’d own [...]
I was playing with amortization schedules in Excel 2007 and created this nifty (and pretty simple) tool for calculating home loan amortization schedules for up to a 40 year loan…
I figured it might come in handy for others, so I cleaned it up. You can download it below.
[...]
I’ve been very pleased with my 14.4v cordless drill for several years now. But recently, I’ve come across a few jobs where it’s just not up to the task. Enter my new Porter Cable 18v hammer drill! I had no idea what I was [...]
I’ve been reading about quite a few giveaways going on around the DIY blog-o-sphere and I wanted to pass along the word. There’s nothing like winning something!
Todd @ Home Construction Improvement is actually running two giveaways.
Delta Dado Set Giveaway – Dado sets are really useful [...]We decided on recessed can lighting for our new basement game room. Not only do can lights reduce the visibility of ceiling defects, they eliminate light fixtures hanging down into the room. Since our ceiling is low (only 7′8″ without [...]
Fall is the best time to grow new grass. By September, the hottest months have past but the temperature hasn’t plummeted. The soil still contains a fair amount of moisture and there are plenty of good growing days. An easy easy way to plant grass seed is with a seed [...]
On most decks, the decking boards run parallel to the house and across the joists (either perpendicular or at a 45 degree angle). But what if you want to run the decking boards perpendicular to the house, going straight out from a back door? While uncommon and a bit more [...]
The next item in the Craftsman Tool Storage series is the Craftsman Wall Cabinet. Craftsman was kind enough to provide several elements from their Garage Storage System. Be sure to check out the Workbench, Floor Cabinet, 5-Drawer Addition, and VersaTrack Reviews.
The [...]
In September and October we told you about Ryobi’s Durashot Tek4 digital camera and Tek4 Professional Multimeter, two of ten tools that comprise Ryobi’s latest line of 4V Li-Ion gadgets.
As I wrote in the digital camera review, the concept behind Ryobi’s latest tool line [...]
Happy Saturday! As you read this, we’re up and at ‘em getting started on our basement insulation project. Here’s some weekend reading to get you started while we’re busy.
TipNut headlines this round up with 10 ways to make your own laundry detergent. It’s an [...]
And another giveaway has come to an end. It’s time to announce the winner of our Price Pfister faucet giveaway.
Price Pfister has been making stylish, dependable faucets since 1910. They [...]
The Price Pfister giveaway has finished (winner announcement shortly) and it’s time to get rolling with our next amazing freebie. Trane is breaking into the scene with a very nice, energy efficient, programmable thermostat. And the best part, there’s going to be two winners!!
Trane XL800 Digital ThermostatDid you know [...]
We’re just about ready to have closed cell spray foam installed (our choice for basement wall insulation). We’ve lined up a great contractor in the Baltimore area who’s going to let us follow him around the basement with our video gear so we can share the whole experience with [...]
At first look, a cordless drill and a cordless hammer drill seem like very similar tools. They look similar and are even used for some of the same projects. But hammer drills have one key advantage, making them much more useful and, I believe, worth the additional cost. Read on [...]
Ceilings have a way of really showing defects when the drywall is not installed properly. While the visibility of ceiling defects can be reduced (e.g., through recessed lighting, flat paint, and other methods), the goal of every ceiling drywall installation should be to reduce or eliminate [...]
So you’ve just purchased a new workbench – it’s home, it’s setup and it looks great. But how do you keep your workbench looking like new? The appropriate maintenance depends on the workbench top material. Fortunately, most workbenches feature similar materials. Cleaning and maintaining these materials is [...]
Alright, got your coffee in hand? Here’s a few things going on around the Home Improvement Blogosphere we’d thought you be interested in this fine Saturday morning.
Kate @ Centsational Girl headlines this DIY Round-up with detailed instructions for making pillows from suit fabrics. She found the [...]
In our on-going basement finishing project, we hit a place a couple weeks ago where we needed the lines between our indoor fan unit and outdoor compressor unit to our HVAC system moved around so that we could insulate and then hang drywall. Unlike many new projects, this wasn’t one [...]
