Q&A / 

Clay Paving Brick are the Best - Forget About Concrete Pavers If you read my column on a regular basis, then you know about two months ago I touched on the perils of using paving brick made from concrete. That column talked about how those bricks fade in color over time as the thin colored […]

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Building on Solid Soil - Get a Free Soil Map My college degree is in geology. At the time I was in school, I had no idea how valuable this knowledge would be once I became a full-time builder. There’s a very good chance I was the only builder in Cincinnati, Ohio that knew soil […]

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DIY Tool Rental Tips - You Can Save Thousands of Dollars I do media scanning each week to keep abreast of all that has to do with building new homes, remodeling existing homes, new tools, financial news, etc. Unless you’re living under a rock and hibernating you’re surely aware that inflation is raging, interest rates […]

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Lithium Battery Fires - The Problem is Very Serious This might be the most important column I’ve written in my 30-year career as a syndicated columnist. There’s a very high probability you have lithium-ion batteries in your home. They are now as common as ants at a summer picnic. The issue is the batteries can […]

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Top Residential Building Mistakes - There are So Many! Each week I have the good fortune to speak on the phone with homeowners all across the USA who ask me to solve problems at their homes. Many of these homeowners like you are facing expensive repairs because of mistakes made by the home builder. Each […]

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High Hardware Prices and Your Garage and Workshop I took over the grocery shopping duties to give my lovely wife a break. She did it for over forty years. Each week I continue to be astonished at the prices of ordinary food staples like bacon, eggs, bread, and milk. Do you suffer from the same […]

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How To Stop Contractor Scams - True Stories This is a milestone column for me. It’s my 1500th weekly column. For weeks leading up to this day I’ve wanted to produce a column that will save you vast sums of money, prevent confrontations, sleepless nights, and arguments. My goal is to empower you with all […]

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How to Make Your Bathroom Floor Warm as a Hypocaust You may find this hard to believe, but I didn’t build the house I currently live in. It’s a long story but this current house in central New Hampshire was supposed to be a transition home while I did build a Queen Anne Victorian house […]

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Secrets to Square Anything - It's So Simple Are you trying to save money in these harsh financial times? Have you given up trying to find a contractor and are starting to do more projects on your own? If so, you’re in fine company as my email inbox has exploded over the past months with […]

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How to Build a Masonry Fireplace - It's Very Complex The two main reasons for smoke in his home were the lack of a combustion air intake and his chimney was not the correct height. A few of his photos also showed a very dangerous situation where his flue liners were not surrounded by solid […]

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