This past weekend we had very rainy weather here in New Hampshire. Two and one-half inches of rain fell at my house on Saturday in 18 hours. That's a bunch no matter how you look at it.

Do you want to see deep-blue water along the Maine coast this summer? Are you looking to rent a nice place while visiting Bar Harbor, Maine and Acadia National Park? Call Rebecca Richardson at 207-288-0307 or visit her rental website. She's a real pro, and has some great places to stay. I recently had to deal with Rebecca, and she's a pro.

June is stacking up to be a busy month. I'll be heading next week to Milwaukee and Chicago on business. The Milwaukee and Bosch Tool conferences are back-to-back. No doubt I'll be seeing lots of great tools.

I just reviewed a fantastic Milwaukee 1/2-inch drill driver this past weekend. That review is below. I'm also shooting a video tomorrow of one of their 4.5-inch grinders. I tested it on Sunday, and it was fantastic.

With Father's Day just around the corner, you may need a gift idea. I've got them for you, that's for sure! Just peruse my Father's Day Gift Guide. Ignore all the references to Christmas. That's a Jedi Mind Trick.

Internet News that Affects You

I realize this is a home improvement newsletter, but you get it electronically over the Internet.

My guess is you want me to share Internet news that directly affects you and your money, right? I've got news for you if you depend on great free online content you use before you start a big project at your home. Or do you like to watch DIY videos so you learn how the pros do things? The days of high-quality *free* online content could be coming to an end.

Microsoft is trying to hurt you. It's a very subtle thing, but it will affect you and millions of other consumers over time.

If you use Microsoft's Internet Explorer browser to surf the Internet, its latest version 10 of that software has a new default setting that will have Do Not Track set to the ON position. This is a setting that tells websites you visit that you do not want a tracking cookie placed on your computer.

You might think that's a good thing. It's not if you like free content. High-quality free content could pretty much disappear on the Internet if this change takes hold. Websites like mine depend on ad revenue to keep the lights on and servers spinning.

Not that you care, but my ad revenue at AsktheBuilder.com is down by 92 percent. I'm only able to survive now because you may be one of the few subscribers to this newsletter that routinely purchases my ebooks, checklists and Stain Solver. I sincerely thank you for doing that.

If you use software that blocks the display of behavioral ads, ad revenue will drop and websites will go out of business. It's that simple.

So what do you do? If you want great free content, you need to support websites that create it. You should understand the Internet ecosystem and be aware that writers and publishers like me have bills to pay. Thousands of great websites that have offered free content for years are suffering right now. Please be aware of that and of big companies that are trying to hurt us small fry.

Help Wanted

If you're an architect looking for a quick little side job, please reply. I need you.

If you're a graphic designer that wants to help me with a small project, I'd like to hear from you as well.

Absolute Last Chance

I was going to warn you over the weekend, but I decided I'd give you a break.

My Kickstarter Shed Project IS GOING TO HAPPEN. I know it for a fact.

You have LESS THAN 48 HOURS to get each of the 30 ebooks that's going to contain over 100 step-by-step shed building videos for only $1 each.

^^^^ READ the above sentence again. ^^^^

A video series this detailed does not exist. If it does, it's well hidden online. I can't find anything even close.

At Noon EDT on June 7, 2012, each of the 30 ebooks in this series is going to sell for $7 each. I guarantee that will happen too. This is going to be the best $30 you've ever spent in your life.

Go now to the Kickstarter page and pledge $30 and be done with it. You have less than 48 hours to save $180 dollars.

Tip of the Week - Tough Love for Dannielle

Dannielle Schoelch emailed me last Friday. Here's what she said:

"We had a cedar 3 rail fence installed six weeks ago. We had a few issues with how they installed a few things, but settled for the looks of that. Then three weeks later, black stains/streaks from the nails were appearing. Long story short, after the company that installed it denied that, I found out the nails they used were Coated Sinkers. They should have used Galvanized Ring Shanks. They finally agreed to come out, told us they would easily just replace the nails with the right ones, and fix the other issues, and get the stains off by power washing. Here's the thing, I also noticed the boards cracked at the nail. Could this be from corrosion from the bad nails?

Once they finished, we noticed more cracked boards, which they deny is from them, old nails on the posts, under the rails, which means they'd have to take the rails off again, black holes everywhere from the bad nails, and bad streaks. Also, nails poking out and exposed in places, and boards not on all the way, etc. One of our gate's hinges is holding onto 6-inch pieces of wood because they measured the posts too far apart, and had to make up for it. We're not happy, and they've been quite mean to me and blame me. They said they can replace one board, and fill in the nail holes with wood filler.

What do you think needs to be done? We paid almost $5k for this fence and I feel ripped off."

# # #

I wrote back to Dannielle. It was a rough Tough Love email. She didn't respond to me. I figured she wouldn't. I graciously shared with her what she needed to do to fix the problems with her fence, but I also gave her some extra unsolicited advice. That's why she didn't respond to me. Who wants to get corrected in a situation like that when you're in pain?

But here's the tip for you - and this has nothing to do with fences.

I told Dannielle that she made a serious mistake - as do thousands of people each day - by not doing all her research before the project started. She hired a contractor HOPING everything would be done right, and HOPING they knew what they were doing.

Hah! Hope - it's the emotion of last resort. You hope for things when you can't control them.

The sad thing is, Dannielle had complete control over the outcome of her fence project - she just decided not to exercise that control.

Dannielle is just like many who email me. Last Friday she was calling to me for help asking me to throw her an Ask the Builder Life Preserver because she's drowning in a pool of fence problems.

If you could read all the email I get each week, you'd immediately see the common scenario. Folks jump into projects without doing any research, make mistakes and once they realize they're in trouble, they come running to me to help them get out of the mess.

In a nutshell, I told Dannielle I had an entire Fence category full of columns at my website, and that I had columns about the correct nails and screws to use outdoors.

I also reminded her about my columns about drilling pilot holes when you are near the end of a piece of lumber, and that I had a column about extractive chemical stains in cedar and redwood.

Most importantly, I told Dannielle about my Contractor Hiring Guides. If she had purchased one, in less than an hour Dannielle would have discovered the real Professional Fence Contractor in her city.

Bottom Line: STOP before you sign a contract. Come to AsktheBuilder.com. Spend an hour or two reading my past work. USE the Search Engine heavily at my website. That's what it's for.

Dannielle could have saved time, money and frustration by coming to my website before she called any fence company for a bid. So can you.

Just Do It.

Milwaukee 2603-22 Cordless Drill Driver Review

Are you looking for a superb half-inch drill driver? A cordless one? One that really scored well in my test? Then read my review and watch the video. You'll love it. If you want to buy the drill, I have a handy link for you in the review.

Deck Ledger Board Flashing Drawing

Thousands of wood decks are not connected properly to houses. Heck, it could be tens of thousands. Water can leak into your home if this happens to you. Need I say more?

A friend asked me to draw for him how I properly flash decks that I build. Once the drawing was done, I thought, "Hmmmm, maybe others would love to see this."

I added helpful notes and made a second expanded drawing that zooms in on the all-important flashing detail. You can download the two drawings and the notes right now.

What other drawings would you like to see? REPLY to me and I'll see what I can do.

Cleaning Tip of the Week - Smelly Dish Rags, Sponges and ?

If you have smelly things that are water washable, you can not only clean them, but deodorize them as well.

Stain Solver is a powerful deodorizer. The oxygen ions that are released when you mix the powder with water blast apart the odor molecules rendering them unsmelly. That's a non-scientific way of explaining it.

All you really care about is that your stuff doesn't stink, right? I thought so.

This past weekend was a mixture of work and relaxation for me. I hope you had a great Memorial Day Weekend, and you reflected on those who offered up the ultimate sacrifice so that you have the freedom to read this newsletter that I'm allowed to write. All too often I feel many take our freedom for granted.

On Sunday, I cleaned a wonderful teak table that's on my deck. My daughter Kelly helped me with this job. Early the next morning, I sealed it after it had dried. Visit my Restoring a Weathered Teak Table page at my website to see dramatic before and after photos and secret links to the products I used to achieve the stunning results!

Tip of the Week - Difference Between an Impact Driver, Drill and Screw Gun

Check out the photo. Sure, the tools are all the same color and they all spin, but what's the real difference?

The common electric drill needs very little explanation - it accepts drill bits ranging in size from 1/16th-inch usually up to 3/8-inch diameter and sometimes 1/2-inch diameter. A variable-speed motor in the tool allows it to spin very slowly or quite fast providing you with great control should you choose to use it.

A screw gun is very similar to a drill but it accepts bits that fit the slots in different screws. An adjustable clutch on the tool allows you to tell the screw gun when to stop turning. This prevents the screw from snapping. It also allows you to control how far you drive the screw into the material. In the case of drywall, you want the screw head recessed below the surface, but not so deep as it tears the paper from around the screw head.

An electric impact driver is much like a screw gun. It accepts all sorts of driving bits and even smaller sockets. The internal clutches and gearing provide enormous torque at low speeds so that you don't strip the head of the screw or nut. While you can use low speeds on a drill and a screw gun, you simply don't get the torque. This single feature makes in impact driver invaluable.

Here's the drill / impact driver combo kit I've been using lately, but I expect to be testing a kit from both Bosch and Milwaukee very soon.

Hong Kong Subscribers and Photos

Do you live in Hong Kong? Or, do you have any great street photos showing the typical buildings, architecture, etc. from street level? Do you have photos of side streets, back alleys, etc.? My son needs them for a video game project. I'd be eternally grateful if you could forward a few to me. The higher the resolution the better.

Impressive Space Station and Northern Lights Video

Russell Morris, who lives in Queensland, Australia, sent me a link to a delightful video that you might enjoy. It's a respite from some boring home improvement video I might ask you to watch!

LAST Chance for Shed Videos

My DIY shed project on Kickstarter is just about to close out. I need your help to make the goal. You get some amazing swag if you back the project.

IMPORTANT NOTE:If you back the project at the $30 level, you'll get the entire video series for that one-time low price. I guarantee you that you'll never, ever be able to get the 100-plus videos I plan to tape for that price. I'm serious. This is your last chance.

If you *ever* plan to build a shed, you'll find these step-by-step videos invaluable. There are going to be over 100 videos total in 30 different ebooks about each phase of the project.

When the ebooks that contain the videos are in my shopping cart, you'll see them at $7 each. That means the entire video series will be priced at $210 if you buy the ebooks/videos one at a time.

But for the next week, you can get each ebook for just $1 each. That's an insanely low price.

If you're a long-time subscriber to this newsletter, you know that I meant what I say. You'll never see this low price again.

Go ahead, back the project right now. You'll not regret it for a moment.

Lumber Strength and Grades

You may not be aware that different species of lumber have significant differences in strength. And within each species, the actual grade of the lumber can have an impact on its strength.

In the photo below, you can see the arrows point to both the species of wood and the grade. The blue arrow points to the grade with SEL meaning *select*. The red arrow points to the species with SYP meaning Southern Yellow Pine.

For example, Douglas Fir is perhaps one of the strongest framing lumbers while hemlock is not all that strong. I say this assuming you're comparing two pieces of lumber the exact same size and thickness.

Southern Yellow Pine is a species I used regularly when I was building, and it's a very strong wood. It also accepts chemical treatment very well, which is why it's often the species you buy when you get lumber that you use outdoors.

The fewer knots one finds in lumber, the better its grade. Knot-free or nearly knot-free lumber is often graded select. You then step down to #1 and #2 grades as the knots become larger and there are more of them in each piece.

If you want a really informative brochure that talks about both hardwoods and softwoods, including photos, tables, and a great glossary of wood terms, you should download the FREE Hardwood Handbook put out by the Southeastern Lumber Manufacturers Association.

WARNING:It's a pretty big file, so if you click the link, go do something else while it downloads. You'll enjoy it!

Cleaning Tip of the Week - Aquarium Algae

Sandy shared with me how she used Stain Solver to clean years of algae from aquarium rocks. She said, " ... the Stain Solver produced amazing results without the worry of any harm to the fish."

To get rid of any hard water deposits on the glass of the aquarium you'll need either white vinegar or muriatic acid. These chemicals can absolutely harm the fish!!!

Upcoming Tool Reviews

Oh, I've got some tool reviews ready to do the later part of this week! I'll be shooting a video of two Milwaukee 4.5-inch grinders, a RotoSaw and a Senco Finish Nail Gun.

The second week of June I'll be getting my annual dose of new Bosch and Milwaukee tools as I'll be attending their annual tool conferences. It's always a pleasure to see all the new power and hand tools.

REPLY to me. Tell me what tools you want me to review. I'm SERIOUS. Click "Reply" and tell me. The same is true for products. What New Products do you want me to review? You have to Reply - I've got mystic powers, but ESP is not one of them. :->>>

I hope you had a swell weekend. Mine was spent in Maine on my ham radio helping 120 bicyclists stay safe. The club I belong to, CNHARC, was the official communications provider for The Seacoast Bike Tour.

Saturday was uneventful, but on Sunday around noon two cyclists got tangled up and crashed just minutes after I had passed them while I was on roving patrol looking for problems. One woman had to be transported to the hospital. I’m hoping she’s okay.

On Saturday, one of the rest stops the cyclists checked in at was on the coast in Maine. It was at the infamous Nubble Lighthouse. All I can say is that it was one of those rare days when it appeared a tanker filled with deep-blue dye crashed spilling its cargo into the ocean. The water was so blue!

Smart Money Magazine

I was interviewed yesterday and today by a very intelligent young woman named Jennifer Wieczner. She reached out to me about a story concerning DIY videos. After doing some research, she discovered that I have quite a following on YouTube and have lots of DIY videos as you already know.

But she needs YOUR help. She asked me moments ago if I knew of any homeowners who had watched a DIY video that led them astray, or caused them to waste money because the info in the video was wrong or incomplete.

Has that happened to you? Have you had a bad experience watching a DIY video? Jennifer needs to hear from you NOW. Please Cc: me in the email as I’d love to hear the story as well. Time is of the essence. She’s on deadline. That means email her NOW. Jen's email address is: [email protected]

Tip of the Week - Exterior Painting

Are you going to paint outside this year? If the surface already has paint on it, you really need to clean it to get fantastic results. Paint is just colored glue. Dirt, grease and sun-damaged old paint pigment all get in the way of a good bond.

Pressure washing does NOT remove all the dirt. If you want to get the surface clean, you need to wash it like you do your car - with a sponge, brush or surface agitation. I prefer to use a brush that’s used to clean RV’s. These are soft enough so they don’t scratch the paint of the RV, but stiff enough to get off the dirt.

To remove algae, mildew and sun-damaged paint pigment, my Stain Solver does an amazing job. Look below, the 9-pound size is now on sale.

Win an iPad!!!!

If you’re on Facebook, remember I told you months ago you should be, you can possibly win an iPad (16 GB and WiFi only). You only have nine days to react.

You need to take photos of an outdoor project you made with real wood. It could be a deck, gazebo, arbor, fence, porch, raised garden bed, etc. It just needs to be an exterior project made from REAL wood.

On June 1st, the photo you submit to the Wood Facebook fan page may be the one that wins!

Go to the following page, LIKE the page, post your photo, and tell them the city/state where the project is, when the project was constructed and WHY you chose real wood. It’s that easy. Get the camera out NOW and take your photo. Hurry! CLICK HERE TO ENTER.

Concrete Crack Repair

I’ve written in the past about using epoxy to repair concrete cracks. It can be a cracked driveway, cracked foundation, cracked patio, etc. Some epoxies are stronger than concrete and some have great flexibility.

I was sent some great concrete epoxy by the Roklin Company. They have a fantastic epoxy system that just may work for you. They also have concrete surface repair products as well as asphalt repair products.

These deserve a serious look if you have concrete or asphalt that needs attention. Good News! I negotiated a 15% discount for you! Use this promo code before it expires: ATB15 CLICK HERE TO SEE the PRODUCTS.

I did NOT get paid anything to write the above. I’m simply impressed by this company’s products.

Stain Solver Sale

I’m having a Memorial Day Clean Up Sale. The 9-pound size of Stain Solver is now on sale. You get a 15% discount. The photo you see is the 2-pound size. The 9-pounder comes in a one-gallon white plastic bucket.

But here’s the catch. Only 300 people get it at this price. Oh, and you get Free Shipping too with the Sale Price. CLICK HERE TO GET TO THE SALE.

If you want the discount and have some cleaning to do, you need to order *now*. You can only get this discount at the AsktheBuilder.com shopping cart. It’s not for sale on the Stain Solver website. I guarantee you we WILL SELL OUT of this size.

Mosquito Devices

Do you own one of those mosquito magnet machines that runs on propane? Or some other large-scale machine that claims to keep a bigger area free of mosquitoes? Have you had success or failure? What machine do you have that works best?

Deck Stain Test

The official AsktheBuilder Deck Stain Test has begun! I’m testing 16 different deck stains, some tinted, some toned and some clear. This is a real live test in real conditions down on my dock. The sun blasts my dock from sunrise until mid afternoon. There’s no shade. This is going to be a long-term test that runs for at least two years, possibly three. Here’s a photo of the pieces of wood that were just stained and out drying.

Four pieces of wood were stained with each stain - two each of treated lumber and two of cedar decking. One piece of treated and cedar lumber is being put in my garage attic out of sunlight and rain. These will be taken out of storage and put up against the outdoor samples from time to time to show how the stains are doing. I’ll take side-by-side photos.

I’ll have the first results available at the end of summer. We need to let Mother Nature work on the wood for at least three months. I’m sure you’ll be stunned by the results!

Sincerely,
Tim Carter
Do It Right, Not Over!