"You can make an opening higher in a load-bearing wall much easier than creating a wider opening." Enlarge Opening in Load Bearing Wall Checklist Build temporary walls to support the load Bearing points of columns must be stacked and extend down through the house to a footing Hire a structural engineer to size the beam Be sure […]
Smoking Fireplaces QUESTION #1: Oh Tim, I need your help. I’ve got a masonry fireplace that puffs smoke into the room when a fire is burning. It gets worse as the fire dies down. I’ve spoken with three different bricklayers who build fireplaces and have received three different answers. Confusion reigns at my home and […]
Tim Carter attends a factory tour where the new Lenox wood jigsaw blade is shown.
25th AsktheBuilder Anniversary October 2, 2018 is the 25th anniversary of my Ask the Builder syndicated newspaper column. I’m very proud of surviving this long as a writer and publisher and thought I’d share some of the good and the bad I’ve seen since that morning I waited outside in the dark for the newspaper […]
"I do NOT make a normal practice of bashing my peers, but this instance is so egregious I had to point it out." This column was SO GOOD that I shared with the 31,000 subscribers who read my September 9, 2018 AsktheBuilder Newsletter. Exterior Wall on Slab Must Be Out on the Edge An exterior […]
Tim Carter records an excavator unloading heavy stackable retaining wall blocks.
This column was inspired by something that happened to my sister last week. She called me for advice because she needed a tree removed from her rear yard and she didn’t know any reliable tree-removal companies. Perhaps you’ve been in the same situation recently about any number of repairs or projects that you need to […]
Ask the Builder Podcast 18 Highlights: Settlement Cracks in Walls Podcast Sponsor: Stain Solver - Certified Organic Oxygen Bleach Home Improvement and Home Construction Podcast Photos, Links and Great Stuff: Settlement Cracks in Walls Related Links: Settlement Cracks and More Pro Tips Subscribe to the AsktheBuilder Podcast
Skylight Melting Siding Can and Does Happen It's possible for a skylight melting siding story to be in your local paper or here online. I know it's possible because I've felt the searing heat on my own face from sunlight that's concentrated and reflected by the slightly concave glass on my own skylight. I was […]
"An electric baseboard heater works just like a toaster but without the danger of a fire." Basement Heating Options Checklist Electric heating is probably your best bet Do the math before making an expensive selection Insulate walls with closed-cell foam Portable heaters work well What Basement Heating Options Are Affordable? You might be surprised to […]
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