October 28, 2011 AsktheBuilder Tips And Newsletter
What's in This Newsletter?
Latest News
Buying a Lot
Hydraulic Cement & Front Steps
My Christmas Gift Guide
Repairing Drywall
Facebook News
This past weekend I had the enormous pleasure to stroll down memory lane. I was in Bar Harbor, Maine.
Thirty-seven years ago, I was there with my new bride of a week. This time Kathy stayed home to have some quiet time while I went up there with my oldest daughter Meghan. She wanted me to look at some land she's thinking of buying.
On our first afternoon there, we went to Sand Beach in Acadia National Park. This is the place my wife got wife's remorse.
Kathy and I were standing at water's edge and I looked down. Right there was a round doughnut-shaped object. I picked it up. "What is it?" Kathy questioned. "Some DUMB *** (rhymes with bass) lost the eye cushion to his binoculars," I quipped.
Wanting to show her how strong I was, I tried to throw the part about a quarter-mile out into the surf. As it was sailing through the air, I got wide-eyed and looked down at the binoculars hanging from my neck. She saw me look. Can you hear Kathy's voice?
Without hesitation she blurted out, "I married a DUMB ***."
So last Saturday afternoon standing at the same spot, I tried to find the part. Surely Neptune would return it along with some of my dignity. Needless to say it wasn't there. It long ago was pulverized or went down a whale's blow hole.
Buying a Lot or Raw Land Tips
Looking at the lot that Meghan wants, I was reminded that years ago I wrote a column about buying a vacant lot or land.
It was a pretty big hit so I created a 25-point checklist to help you avoid buying the wrong piece of land.
I get emails all the time from folks who have purchased a really bad piece of ground. You can prevent that using my checklist.
Here are some extra things that are not in the checklist:
It's dangerous to buy a snow-covered lot. What's under all that snow?
What about things nearby? How about a local airport and the land you want is on or immediately adjacent to final approach?
If the land is next to a lake or other body of water, are there special setbacks, building guidelines, etc. that make construction very expensive?
If the land is on a private road, what are the costs associated with maintaining the roadway?
The list goes on and on.
If you're thinking of buying some land, you may want to look at my opens in a new windowLot Selection checklist.
Perhaps one of the best buys you'll ever get for seven bucks.
Hydraulic Cement and Front Steps
"My front stairs are breaking down. Chunks of cement around the railing are broken off. A cement person told me he could repair the stairs with hydraulic cement. Is this what hydraulic cement is good for? I'm not talking filling holes. I'm talking replacing the cement where chunks have broken off."
Maureen, don't hire this person. They're giving you bad advice. Hydraulic cement is one that usually contains some bentonite clay. This cement expands when it hardens. It's the material to use to plug a hole in a foundation or set an anchor bolt.
If you want to repair all the missing chunks, I have a great past column about Repairing Concrete that tells you how to do it.
My Christmas Gift Guide!
I'll be finishing my new Christmas Gift Guide this weekend. Oh boy, is it loaded with some great ideas no matter what your budget is.
If you're looking for the perfect gift for that HARD-TO-BUY-FOR person on your list, I'm going to be your life preserver.
What's more, my daughter Meghan has created a gift guide of her own! It's full of fantastic lifestyle gifts.
We need to get past Halloween before we publish these guides.
No matter what, don't shop until you look at what I have and what Meghan suggests.
Repairing Drywall
Do you have a medium-sized hole in your drywall? Say from a door knob, fist, or maybe a softball? Yes, people hit softballs inside homes.
There are many drywall patching methods. They all achieve the desired result.
One way that works, assuming you have some scrap drywall around, is to cut a plug that will fill the hole. It's not hard to do and the drywall facing paper acts as the built-in tape to do the repair.
But what if you don't have the scrap? That's where this new product comes in. opens in a new windowThe Drywall Plug.
Go to their website and it will all make sense. If you have scrap drywall of your own, you can make a similar plug but cut the shape of the plug as a square or rectangle, not a circle.
Do you want me to tape a video showing you how to make your own plug? Reply to this email but CHANGE the subject line to: Drywall Plug Video.
Facebook News!
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Do you use Facebook? I've got a opens in a new windowFacebook Fan Page that really sees some action during the week.
There's LOTS of tips there that never make it into this newsletter.
Please go there now and LIKE me so you can start to get FREE tips from me when you login to your Facebook page.
