November 16, 2010 AsktheBuilder Tips And News

Posted on by Tim Carter

What's in This Issue?

Travel News
Checklist Improvements
Super Energy-Efficient House
Crazy Heel Problem and Shoes
New Technology Trends
Latest Columns

I do product reviews frequently. Please read my Disclosure Policy to understand the relationship between me and the companies that make the products or offer the services I review.

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If you have a question for me, don't hit the Reply button just yet. Go immediately to my web site and type in the keywords about your problem into my Search engine. The search box is at the top of every page of my web site. You could have your answer in seconds if you do this! Please pay attention to all links you see at my web site. The exact products and services you often need are right in front of you, and you might be ignoring them.

I've been absent from your email box for several weeks. Why? I returned late last week from a three-plus-week road trip that had me fly to Scottsdale, AZ for an Internet conference, then drive from there to Los Angeles, CA for a day. Then my buddy Russ Waters and I flew to New Hampshire for just 13 hours so I could see Kathy, Meghan and Brent, do some laundry, pack up other clothes and pull out of my driveway in the early morning darkness in a driving rain pointed towards Greenville, South Carolina.

I was in Greenville for a week attending a secret Internet conference. When that conference ended,  Russ and I headed back towards New Hampshire making some stops on the way to visit friends and colleagues. I finally got to see the US Constitution, Bill of Rights and Declaration of Independence in Washington DC last week. That was very cool.

Both conferences allowed me to fill my brain with knowledge that'll help you. How, you might ask?

One of the things was a best practice that was taught to me years ago, but I've forgotten to make part of my everyday routine. Instead of me guessing what's best for you, how about me asking you exactly what you want from me? DUH!!!!!

I could go on and on about the things I discovered that should make AsktheBuilder better, but let's do it the right way. I'll just execute and you'll benefit.

Checklist Improvements

I discovered seven months ago that you liked my checklists when we conducted the monster sale in March. But it's time to update and improve all my checklists. This summer I announced that I was going to start by improving my Roofing checklist.

I've decided to start with the Roofing Checklist because it's one of the most important parts of your home. Leaks or bad roofing jobs can cost you thousands of dollars and lots of misery

Shortly after the summer announcement, I got swept up in moving my wife and daughter from Ohio to New Hampshire. The last time I moved was 24 years ago, and just about everything I owned fit into a mid-sized U-Haul truck. This time it was far more complex, and drained me physically and emotionally.

Now that the move is over, I want to create the checklists of your dreams. Ones that will take away all of your fears and frustrations when you go to hire a contractor. After all, what you desire is to get the best value for the dollars you spend as well as a leak-free roof, right? Or maybe you desire something else. I'm hoping you'll tell me.

Please take this simple survey (survey now closed) and tell me what the perfect Roofing checklist would have on it if you could create it.

Super Energy-Efficient House

I saw an article in USA Today not too long ago. It was about a fantastic energy efficient home built up in the wilderness of Minnesota, just 20 miles from the Canadian border. You know it gets cold up there.

I'm always intrigued by articles like this as I'm waiting to discover the Holy Grail of Energy Savings. My definition of the Holy Grail when it comes to energy is affordable products and systems that provide nearly an instant payback. Alas, this column revealed that I'm still on my quest. Why? I'll let you discover that when you read the article and see what the cost per square foot was to build the house. Wow!!

Imagine taking that number and trying to calculate the true payback period on the energy-efficient items. My guess, shooting from the hip, is about 75 - 100 years.

The Holy Grail, and I mentioned this years ago in a past newsletter, may be close at hand. All we have to do is get the government to release the technology used on the outer tiles that create the skin on the Space Shuttle. If we had half-inch sheathing made from this material, we'd be able to heat our homes with candles not furnaces or boilers.

Crazy Heel Problem and Shoes

Russ and I were in historic Portsmouth, NH wandering around on the last day of my road trip. Five months before, I injured my left heel and developed a nasty case of plantar fasciitis that I couldn't shake. Fortunately it's almost gone and I was able to walk around visiting the quaint shops.

While in Portsmouth we visited a shoe store that had an interesting shoe made by MBT. It appears the shoe design may help plantar fasciitis. This shoe has a bottom that's not flat. The center of the bottom of the shoe is higher so the shoe rocks slightly as you stand on it. MBT doesn't make this claim, nor am I a podiatrist.

Based on what I saw, it appears this cool shoe design would stretch the bottom of the foot, and that's one of the remedies that's often suggested to help heal the heel.  Because of the chronic pain I've been experiencing, I can tell you that for the past five months I've NOT been in the mood to work around the house. I was in agony through the move limping as I carried boxes.

If you suffer from sore heels and are putting off working around your home, maybe this shoe would work for you. It's worth looking at.

See an update in the December 5, 2010 Newsletter.

New Technology Trends

"I love technology." Remember that line that Kip sings, if you can call it that, at the end of the Napoleon Dynamite movie? It was hilarious.

Love it or hate it, technology is seeping into home improvement. I'm constantly trying to stay abreast of it. For example, I just received a high-tech thermostat I'm going to try to test next month. It's screen reminds me of the new Samsung Galaxy S cell phone I just bought.

Here's where I need your help again. I'm wondering how you're embracing technology. It would help me to know so that I can create things that will make your home improvement projects be more successful and be completed faster. What's more, perhaps I can help you select the best product using new technology.

The new smartphone I just purchased allows me to scan a regular bar code on a product and get back information. What's more, it can also scan the new QR codes, allowing me to really connect with a manufacturer. You can do the same if you have a smartphone.

What's a smartphone? It's a cell phone that allows you to connect to the Internet. Traditional cell phones allow you to make/receive calls  and send/receive text messages. I'm looking for your input should you have a smartphone now or are getting ready to buy one. They're amazing is all I can say.

Please help me and take this quick survey. The results will allow me to figure out how I can help you. I thank you in advance.

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Deck Piers

Posted on by Tim Carter
deck pier

These are just a few of the different types of deck piers. The bottom of the hole should always be in solid soil and below the local frost line. Copyright 2018 Tim Carter

Deck Piers Checklist

  • A wide pier base distributes load to more soil
  • Reinforcing steel in concrete is a must
  • The bottom must be on solid soil and below the local frost line
  • Top of pier should be above grade

DEAR TIM: I’m building a deck and discovered that the wooden posts can’t rest on the soil. What I’ve discovered is that I need deck piers. What are they, and how are they made?

Are there different ways to install deck piers and footings? What methods have you used to make sure the piers are installed square and in the exact place so the deck posts are centered on the piers? Jared C., Sacramento, CA

What Deck Piers Do You Use Tim, the Best Ones?

I've tried all types of deck piers and the one I prefer is the one you see me standing next to in the photo just below. CLICK THE PHOTO or CLICK HERE to order these amazing forms. It's the same one you see in the video above - the video I shot at the trade show.

deck pier form

This is me setting a deck pier form at my own home. Yeah, they need to be that deep in the ground in New Hampshire to prevent frost heave. (C) Copyright 2018 Tim Carter

Related Links

DIY Deck Pier Forms With Steel

Deck Piers and Footings - SECRET INFORMATION - Do NOT SHARE

Deck Piers - Don't Cut Corners Here

DEAR JARED: There are very few places you can place a wood deck post on the ground and have it not move. You can get away with that if you place it on bedrock or on some hard-packed material that has a high compressive strength such that the enormous concentrated load on the post doesn’t cause the post to sink into the ground. Solid crushed gravel might give you this condition as would bedrock.

Free & Fast Bids

CLICK HERE to get FREE & FAST BIDS from local deck contractors.

How Much Does a Deck Weigh?

The average deck can weigh one or two tons. That's thousands of pounds.

precast deck pier

These precast deck piers look like giant upside-down golf tees. Once buried in the ground, you’ll only see the top few inches of concrete. PHOTO CREDIT: Tim Carter

I’m constantly amazed at the massive amount of weight the average deck post supports. It can be hundreds and hundreds, and often thousands, of pounds when you calculate the weight of the deck, the furniture on it, and the added weight of people. Imagine the extra weight when a deck is packed with people over for a party or a leisurely afternoon get-together.

How Much Deck Weight Hangs on a House?

If the deck is connected to your house, usually half of the total weight of the deck is transferred to the house’s foundation if the deck is not cantilevered. The other half of the weight might be transferred to the ground on just two or possibly three posts at the far edge of the deck away from the house.

If the posts are just 4x4s, that’s an incredible amount of weight concentrated on an area less than 25 or say 37 square inches!

This is why wooden deck posts must rest on a solid bearing point that won’t sink or lift up because of frost action in a soil that’s in a cold location. You can support wooden deck posts with deck piers in any number of fashions.

Are Concrete Deck Piers Safe?

Concrete deck piers are safe. I’ve used concrete deck piers for many years.

Several architects I used to work with avoided deck piers and chose to employ a deck post footing thinking this would make life easier for me the builder.

What is a Deck Post Footing?

A deck post footing is simply a 20-inch or larger diameter pad of poured concrete down at the bottom of a hole that’s dug in solid soil. The bottom of the hole needs to be below the local frost level.

deck post footing footer

This is a simple deck post footing. Concrete is placed in a hole and a deck post rests on top of the concrete. Copyright 2018 Tim Carter

Are Deck Post Footings A Good Idea?

A deck post footing is not the best idea.

The wooden deck post is then placed on this concrete pad after the concrete hardens. The only trouble with this method is that the wooden post can be attacked by termites.

I’ve seen treated lumber, rated for below-ground burial, eaten by termites. I’ve come to believe it’s best not to place wood in contact with the soil as I don’t want to hope it will not rot. Hope is the emotion of last resort.

extensive termite damage on the right side of the post

Lookie lookie, Can you see the extensive termite damage on the right side of the post? Imagine my reaction when I pulled this post out of the ground. ©2017 Tim Carter

 

What is a Concrete Deck Pier?

A concrete deck pier is simply a column of concrete that rises up out of the soil and a wooden post is connected to this concrete column. Usually, the pier is 6 to 8 inches in diameter.

CLICK HERE to get FREE & FAST BIDS from local deck contractors.

Can You Buy Precast Concrete Deck Piers?

You can purchase precast concrete deck piers that do a great job of providing support for deck posts. These piers are wider at the bottom than at the top.

The wider bottom helps distribute the weight of the deck on a wider footprint of soil so the pier doesn’t sink into the ground. The piers come in different heights depending upon the frost level in your area and the depth to solid soil.

Are There DIY Concrete Deck Piers?

You can also pour your own DIY concrete deck piers. There are any number of handy plastic or cardboard forms that allow you to create your own professional looking piers. The key is to place them in the exact position making sure the wooden deck posts rest centered on the concrete pier.


I’ve seen carpenters and homeowners go to great lengths to measure and calculate where deck piers should be so they are in the precise location. Time after time I see mistakes made and the wooden deck posts only partially rest on the concrete piers or miss them entirely.

What is the Best Way to Locate a Deck Pier?

I’ve found the best way to ensure the piers are in the right spot is to build the outer frame of the deck and temporarily support it. If you make sure the outer frame of the deck is level and square, bracing it to hold it in square, then you can drop a plumb bob from the deck corners down to the ground. This allows you to place the pier perfectly. It’s that easy.

How Can You Temporarily Support the Deck Frame?

If you decide to construct the outer frame of the deck all you have to do is support the outer floor joists with 2x4s that are set on a small scrap of 2x4 that lies flat on the ground. Be aware that the weight of a single heavy 2x10 treated floor joist can be enough to cause the single 2x4 to sink slightly into spongy topsoil should you not use the scrap block. The scrap of wood will distribute the weight just as the wide bottom of the concrete deck pier.

How Do You Square a Deck?

It’s easy to square the deck frame if you're building a simple square or rectangle deck. All you have to do is make sure the lengths of the parallel sides of the deck are the same. This means that if you’re building a 12 x 16-foot deck that the outer frame has two sides that are exactly 12 feet and the other two are 16 feet.

Once the outer box is nailed together you take a tape measure and see what the diagonal measurements are from corner to corner. The odds are they will be different by several inches.

When you move the outer frame one way or another you’ll quickly discover you can make the measurements the same. When this happens, the outer frame is now square. Nail a long 2x6 diagonally from two of the connecting sides of the outer frame to lock it into this square position. It’s that easy, there’s no need for a fancy calculator or tricky high school geometry.

CLICK HERE to get FREE & FAST BIDS from local deck contractors.

Column 857

Sheathing

Posted on by Tim Carter

DEAR TIM: I'm trying to educate myself about new construction as I'm thinking of building a new home. I see carpenters nail on large sheets of wood onto the wall studs. What's the purpose of this funny looking material that appears to be made from scattered chips of wood? It seems that it could rot easily if not protected. I asked a worker on a jobsite what the material is and he said sheathing. Is that correct? Tony T., Lebanon, OH

DEAR TONY: The material you probably saw was OSB sheathing. The OSB stands for oriented strand board. This building product has now become the mainstay material to cover both exterior wall studs and roof framing members. Years ago, when I was still a pup carpenter, plywood was the king of both wall sheathing and roof sheathing. OSB sheathing has now pushed plywood to the back buildings of the lumber yards.

This house under construction is using a newer sheathing that's designed to repel water. PHOTO CREDIT: Tim Carter

Go back 70 years or more, and solid wood was the sheathing that was used on houses. It was tongue and groove and often installed diagonally on walls and floors. To save money on building, the carpenters first used this wood material to build the forms for early poured-concrete foundations.

Once the concrete was set and hard, the carpenters carefully took apart the forms and reused the 1x6 lumber on the floors and walls of the houses. If you look at older homes and see this material, you can often see the drips and stains from the concrete.

The fiberboard sheathing you see on the new homes you inspect serves several purposes. First and foremost it's a structural material. When the sheathing is nailed to wall studs according to the written specifications of the manufacturer and the building code's minimum requirements, it prevents the walls from racking side to side.

The wall sheathing allows a worker to drive a nail anywhere on the wall allowing him to secure a finished product. But keep in mind it's always better to nail into a vertical wall stud as well as the wood sheathing.

Understand that a frame wall can easily collapse like a cardboard box that you flatten once the top and bottom flaps of cardboard are wide open. When a cardboard box is closed and taped it's very difficult to flatten it.

Imagine if you built a wall using 2x4s and didn't cover it with anything. If you nailed the bottom plate to the floor after standing the wall up and then went to the end of the wall and pushed it forward, you could easily flatten the wall. Can you think what might happen to a house without wall sheathing if a strong wind pushed against it? Wall sheathing prevents houses from falling over.

You're correct in noticing that the wood sheathing can rot if exposed to water. This is true for any framing lumber that's not treated with a chemical, coating or covered with a waterproof material. Carpenters of old knew this and covered the side walls of houses with asphalt-saturated felt paper. They also put this felt on roofs under slate, tile and shingles to create a secondary barrier to water.

Today there are modern water and air-infiltration barriers that builders can apply over the OSB wall sheathing. These products are somewhat cumbersome to apply and require tape at the seams where the wrap overlaps itself.

You can purchase wall and roof sheathing that eliminates the modern wraps. This OSB sheathing comes from the factory with a plastic coating that repels water. You tape the seams while the wall is being constructed flat on the ground. This new sheathing material can save money and time because you effectively skip a step in the current building process.

This new sheathing material may become the new gold standard in the progression of wall sheathings because of its innovation. Builders are constantly looking for products that save time and money, but not at the expense of quality. The jury is still out on the true lifespan of this new product, but if the coating doesn't delaminate and the tape adhesive can last 100 years or more, it could be a real winner.

As Kenny Chesney said in one of his songs, "Only time will tell, but it ain't talkin'." Our kids or grandkids will discover the results.

Water is indeed the enemy of wood framing. It's imperative that you or your builder make sure that the wood can stay dry or dry out rapidly if water somehow gets behind the exterior finished surface of your home.

The courthouses of America are filled with lawsuits about rotting homes of all types. The science and skills required to keep homes dry seems to escape many rookie builders. This is indeed a problem in the industry as there doesn't seem to be any formal education system in place to pass down the time-tested secrets and methods that are known to keep exterior walls dry.

Column 856

Deck Sealer Test Results – Part 2 Video

Posted on by Tim Carter

Deck Sealer Test Results - Part 2

NOTE FROM TIM CARTER - Founder of AsktheBuilder.com - posted October, 2016: I no longer would apply Defy deck sealer to any exterior wood that I own at my own home.

Hi, I'm Tim Carter from AsktheBuilder.com. Today is October 12, 2010 and I want to show you the results of the deck stain test that I started on April 30th of this year. I am wearing my favorite fall shirt to honor Mother Nature and her great light show she puts on for us in color with all the fall trees. My shirt doesn't match what Mother Nature offers.

Here are some of the color of the trees around the lake.

Let's go ahead and look at the dock and see what happened in our test. So look at this. Here's our first stain. This is Extreme Defy in Cedar Tone that looks just as good as the day it was applied, in my opinion. It still repels water and there is no mildew.

Immediately next to it is the Extreme Defy in Clear. In my opinion it failed the color test. The test boards are gray. They are just as gray as the untreated boards. It still repels water, which is good, but as far as the color it is pretty bad.

The next sample is Sherwin-Williams Deck Stain in clear. Same thing - it failed. It is very gray. About as gray as the untouched boards adjacent to it. But it still repels water.

Finally, this last section (sorry for the sun shadow) was cleaned at the start of the test, but no sealer was applied. This is the control to see what it would look like if you did nothing. As you can see the two sealers to the immediate left of the control board has the same coloration as the control boards.

So here it the bottom line. If you are going to put a deck sealer or stain on your deck, the test is conclusive. If you want it to look good for at least a year or longer, you are going to have to buy one with a color pigment in it. The color pigments act as a sun screen to help the wood from turning gray. And next spring, I am going to do an extensive test of name-brand sealers similar to this test.

Electric Chainsaw vs Gas-Powered Chainsaw Video

Posted on by Tim Carter

Hi, I'm Tim Carter from AsktheBuilder.com. Let's do a neat demonstration. Let's see if an electric chain saw can do as good a job as a gas-powered chain saw. Both units have brand new blades and they weigh about the same. The blade length is about the same on both. So it should be a pretty equal test. Let's see how they do cutting through this 6-inch piece of hard maple.

Now, I know I don't have a face shield and don't have chaps on. I understand all that, but I am going to wear eye protection and I have glasses on and some good safety gloves. Let's see what happens.

First the gas-powered chain saw cuts through the log. That wasn't bad. It cut through like butter. Next we will see what happens with the electric chain saw.

Well, you saw it. The clear winner was the gas-powered chain saw. However, the electric saw did a pretty good job. I am confident that it will do good in the forest. I am going to check it out. (Extension cord doesn't reach!) Oh, maybe not.

 

       

The above is an affiliate link. I get a tiny commission if you purchase this item from Amazon.

Redwood Decking

Posted on by Tim Carter
redwood decking

This sample piece of redwood decking looks normal, but it’s not. It has a special profile that allows it to resist rot longer. Also this piece of wood decking has almost vertical grain. Note on the edge facing you the dark summer grain wood lines are nearly straight up and down. This wood grain profile is best for decking and ensures you don't have shards of wood peeling up from the deck that is common with flat-grained lumber. PHOTO CREDIT: Tim Carter

DEAR TIM: I'm about to build a new deck and really love the look and feel of real wood. All the composite decking materials try to mimic wood, so there must be a reason for that. I've got my eye on redwood decking and wonder if it's really all it's cracked up to be. Have you ever installed a redwood deck, and what can you tell me about the material? Are there any special considerations or new products that will allow the wood to last longer? What's involved in redwood deck maintenance? Bobbie M., Durango, CO

DEAR BOBBIE: I've worked with redwood for years as a builder and carpenter. I'd be lying if I didn't tell you I'm smitten with it. Not only is redwood gorgeous, it's naturally rot resistant. Granted, it's not as durable as oak or maple when it comes to hardness, but it makes up for this in so many other ways.

I agree with you about the plastics industry. For as long as I've been a builder, the vinyl siding business, the composite decking manufacturers, and even companies that make plastic interior trim moldings have tried to copy the look and feel of natural wood. That alone validates your personal attraction to wood.

It's my feeling that wood is hard coded into our DNA. Our ancestors used it to survive by making shelters, enlisted it to stay warm and dry, and made use of it as a cooking fuel. What I also love about wood, especially redwood, is that it's a crop not much different than wheat, corn or potatoes. The only difference is that the harvest time for redwood and other trees takes place after several years instead of months for most food crops. The bottom line is that we can grow redwood rapidly and continue to enjoy it for generations to come.

I used redwood on the last home I built for my family. It was used for all the siding and virtually all of the exterior trim. I didn't have a deck like you want, but I've installed quite a few redwood decks that still look as good as the day I drove the last stainless steel nail.

I love redwood because it's easy to work with and it has natural chemicals in it that make it rot resistant and not too tasty for most wood-destroying insects. It holds paint very well if you use it for a handrail. When you go to apply your redwood deck finish, you'll discover it readily accepts penetrating stains that will help preserve the natural grain and color of the redwood.

Understand that when you decide to use wood outdoors in just about any other location other than the Atacama Desert, where it often doesn't rain for decades, water is the enemy of wood. Redwood can be damaged by water, it just takes longer than other woods that you expose to water.

It's imperative that water not pond on horizontal deck boards and that water is allowed to drain away from between decking boards as rapidly as possible. The way redwood and many other lumber was milled for years produced boards that had parallel faces on each piece of lumber. While this seemed like a good idea at the time, it turns out that water could take advantage of this profile.

EB015 Cleaning & Sealing Deck eBoo CoverYou can now purchase redwood deck boards that have a very unique profile. The top surface of the boards has a slight crown to it like a roadway. This means the center of the board is slightly higher than the edges. Water readily flows off the top surface of the board.

The edges of the new redwood lumber are canted inwards slightly so that when two boards are placed next to one another, the gap at the bottom is wider than the top. This promotes excellent drainage and prevents organic debris from getting trapped between the separate pieces of lumber. Trapped organic debris holds water and accelerates wood rot.

Finally, the lumber mill cuts in two drip channels on the bottom of each board along the entire length. These grooves cause water that rolls under the wood to drip off the lumber instead of soaking in the underside. All of these things help extend the life of the redwood.

When choosing a redwood deck cleaner, I urge you to use oxalic acid or try a mild liquid dish soap and water. Avoid oxygen bleach as it can sometimes darken redwood. If your redwood darkens, you can often rejuvenate it by treating it with oxalic acid.

If you decide to use redwood for your deck, understand that this lumber comes in different grades. Some redwood is clear and free of knots. This is usually the most expensive.

You can get redwood that is less expensive that has tight knots in it. This grade is sometimes called Construction Grade. It will perform as well as clear, but it just lacks that perfect appearance.

Be sure to read all the written installation instructions published by the California Redwood Association before you construct your deck. Pay attention to the type of fasteners you're supposed to use. I would only use stainless steel nails or screws myself.

Column 854

Electric Chain Saw

Posted on by Tim Carter

DEAR TIM: I'm considering purchasing an electric chain saw. I've never used one and wonder if they really cut as well as a gas-powered chain saw. What are your feelings about these tools? If I need to use one where there is no electric, I imagine I could use a portable generator. Can you share some tips about these saws in case I do buy one? Victoria K., Denver, CO

DEAR VICTORIA: I've got both a gas-powered chain saw and an electric chain saw. If I were to blindfold you and place them in your hands one at a time, I doubt you could tell the difference.

gas-powered chain saw

This looks, feels and operates just like a gas-powered chain saw, but the electric cord at the handle tells a different tale. PHOTO CREDIT: Tim Carter

The weight of the two tools is comparable, they look nearly identical, and both saws have virtually the same controls that operate the blade and shut it down in an emergency.

What you may be wondering is if the electric chain saw has enough power to cut through wood. The answer is yes, so long as you purchase one that has enough horsepower or gusto. My electric chain saw has a 16-inch blade and a 3.5 hp electric motor.

The cutting action of a chain saw, in my opinion, results from three things. The sharpness of the blade, the speed of the blade moving across the wood, and the weight of the saw.

An electric chain saw with a razor-sharp blade will outperform a gas-powered saw all day long all other things being equal. A dull saw blade just spins creating lots of friction, smoke and frustration.

The electric saw I have really works well when you pull back the trigger all the way. The blade spins incredibly fast allowing the cutting teeth of the blade to vigorously bite into logs over 2-feet in diameter.

You can push down on a chain saw with your arms to have the blade bite more aggressively into the wood, but why not have the saw do that for you? This means a slightly heavier saw will allow gravity to pull the blade down into the wood. But there is a sweet spot. You don't want the saw to be so heavy you get fatigued.

I feel an electric chain saw is a great tool for around the home. You know it will operate as soon as you pull the trigger, assuming you have power at your home. Gas-powered saws can be tough to start if you don’t maintain them.

As for using a generator to power the saw in a remote location, that seems like a little bit of overkill and expense. After all, you need to feed gasoline and oil into a generator, so you might as well just carry one tool, a gas-powered chain saw, into the woods.

To minimize your work, use a high-quality chain saw sharpener to keep your blade in perfect condition. Don't cut close to the ground. Don't ever allow the blade to touch the ground as the dirt and small rock particles will rapidly dull the blade. Brush off all dirt from logs and the bark to keep dirt from dulling a blade.

Be sure to use electric chain saw oil to keep the blade lubricated. This is mission critical. Monitor the oil reservoir on the saw every few minutes so you ensure it never runs dry. Fill it when it gets to the half-full point as you need to make sure the blade gets oil at all times as you rotate the saw up and down as you cut.

Above all, read the Owners Manual. Read and understand all the safety warnings. Don't cut logs or trees that are wedged or in a bind. The weight of the log can close down on the blade, or the tree can shift as you cut it. Serious injury is always a possibility if you don’t know how to use these powerful tools.

Many safety improvements have been made with chain saws, both electric and gas-powered, but understand they still can hurt you in a fraction of a second.

My father-in-law cut his leg many years ago in an injury that could have cost him his life. He still doesn't know what happened, but somehow the saw jumped out of the log and sliced into his leg in the blink of an eye.

Wear all the recommended protective clothing, gloves, helmet, face shield, etc. when using a chain saw.

Related Column: Stihl Electric Chain Saw Review

Column 853

October 14, 2010 AsktheBuilder Tips And News

Posted on by Tim Carter

What's in This Issue?

Glassy Golf Course
Pocket Door Installation
Tim Carter Meet & Greet

I do product reviews frequently. Please read my Disclosure Policy to understand the relationship between me and the companies that make the products or offer the services I review.

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If you have a question for me, don't hit the Reply button just yet. Go immediately to my web site and type in the keywords about your problem into my Search engine. The search box is at the top of every page of my web site. You could have your answer in seconds if you do this! Please pay attention to all links you see at my web site. The exact products and services you often need are right in front of you, and you might be ignoring them.

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Glassy Golf Course in Greenville, SC

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Install a Pocket Door in a Jiffy

Let's say you really want a pocket door but there's a pesky heating duct, a plumbing stack, a massive structural column or something else hidden in the wall where you want the door to nest. Guess what? You can still do the door!

All you need is a sleek wall-mount door kit. This technology is time-tested. All you have to do is talk with any farmer/rancher who has massive barn doors that ride on wall-mounted tracks. Installing a regular residential door is nothing compared to the large doors that have worked well for many years for farmers and ranchers.

If you can create the opening for the door with no hassle, you can have the door project completed in a weekend.

Check out the wall-mount pocket door hardware from L.E. Johnson. That's the company I use for all my pocket doors.

Tim Carter LIVE and FREE in New Hampshire this Weekend

This is a quick reminder blast about the FREE Live Event I'll be at in just two days! It was brought to my attention that the newsletter you just got two days ago didn't go into enough detail, especially if you're a new subscriber. I keep forgetting that each week you may be part of 1,200 or so new subscribers that jump on board the AsktheBuilder.com Newsletter Express.

Here's the deets (details :-> ).

I'm going to be at a great kitchen cabinetry showroom in Lebanon, NH this Saturday, October 16th, from 10 am till Noon. Come see me at Cabinetry Concepts at 227 Mechanic Street, just off Interstate 89. While there, I'm going to discuss briefly the top three questions I get at AsktheBuilder.com week in and week out. You'll be surprised what they are.

Then, I'll begin to take your questions about your own home-improvement issues that you may be faced with. That's what I used to do on my radio show for 12 years - answer live questions. It's lots of fun. I urge you to bring photos of your problems. That makes it easier to diagnose the problem. If you want me to review plans for one of your projects, I'll do that.

Not to mention that the folks from Cabinetry Concepts will be there to answer any kitchen or bath design questions you may have. Oh, and guess what? There's a ceramic tile and flooring store that on one side of the Cabinetry Concepts store and on the other side a lighting showroom. You can see the latest of just about everything you need for an upcoming project.

But it gets better. Why should you drive perhaps 200 or 300 miles to get to this event? The door prizes and coupons we'll be giving away are amazing. You WILL walk away from this event with some very valuable coupons, potentially worth thousands of dollars, and you MAY have some sweet tools and other loot to take home. I've gathered well over $2,000 worth of tools and gear to giveaway as door prizes.

Everyone who attends the live event is going to get a special coupon from Plato Woodwork for a discount on new kitchen or bath cabinets. Kathy and I are using Plato cabinets in our new kitchen here in New Hampshire.

That's how I came to know the great folks at Cabinetry Concepts. This coupon could easily be worth several thousand dollars if you have a major kitchen remodeling on the horizon. I'm not making this up.

In addition to that, here's what I have right now sitting in my truck waiting to go up to Lebanon this Saturday:

  • Metal Pegboard and hanger accessories from Wall Control 
  • Free Tile Installation books from Matt Seillig 
  • Tomboy Tools Toolkit with Lightish Red carrying case PLUS the electric mini-driver! 
  • Gorilla Glue samples, Gorilla Tape, Gorilla Gear 
  • Dremel Trio Tool 
  • Two FREE 5-gallon pails of Extreme Defy Deck Sealer 
  • Two FREE 5-gallon pails of Extreme Defy Masonry Sealer 
  • Dremel Multi-Max Tool 
  • Worx 16-inch electric chain saw WG303 
  • Craftsman Lithium Ion Right Angle Impact Driver 
  • Campbell Hausfeld Recreational Inflation Kit 
  • Campbell Hausfeld Home Improvement Project Kit

Furthermore, Cabinetry Concepts is putting together some prizes for the first so many people that walk in the door. Bottom Line: LOTS of LOOT and LOTS of Free Answers from me.

I'm sure we'll hear your lamentations if you miss out and don't make it.

Seriously, I haven't done an event like this in years and have no idea when the next live event may be. You deserve to come. Treat yourself to a day in the Upper Valley of New Hampshire.

Please email me or register at the Cabinetry Concepts website so we know who's coming.

AsktheBuilder.com
100 Swain Rd.
Meredith, NH 03253, USA

October 12, 2010 AsktheBuilder Tips And News

Posted on by Tim Carter

What's in This Issue?

Maria Atwood Inn
Pressure Washer Accessory
Stain Solver News
Late-Season Deck Sealer
Live Event
Gravel Driveways
Don't Trip in the Dark

I do product reviews frequently. Please read my Disclosure Policy to understand the relationship between me and the companies that make the products or offer the services I review.

FOLLOW ME ON TWITTER

Friendly Question Reminder!

If you have a question for me, don't hit the Reply button just yet. Go immediately to my web site and type in the keywords about your problem into my Search engine. The search box is at the top of every page of my web site. You could have your answer in seconds if you do this! Please pay attention to all links you see at my web site. The exact products and services you often need are right in front of you, and you might be ignoring them.

We've had a string of gorgeous days up here in New Hampshire. The color of the leaves here in central NH is peak right now. It's absolutely breathtaking seeing some of the trees. Yesterday I saw a tree that was the most brilliant orangish-red. If you didn't know better, you just thought it was fake.

I received an email from a close friend of mine, Fred Hoffmeister, last week. Fred and his wife Sandi are the innkeepers of the Maria Atwood Inn in Franklin, NH only 20 miles from me. Fred was lamenting about how busy they were with all the guests, and that each of them was asking for the delicious scones that Sandi makes.

The scones have become the bane of Fred's existence since I taped a video about them several years ago. The video is at the bottom of the Atwood Inn home page. At the time, we were trying to drum up business for the inn. Well, it turns out the video is pretty popular and Fred's now too busy - if that's even possible. Fred, you know the old saying, "Be careful what you wish for!" :->>>>

In all seriousness, if you plan to come up to NH, you should stay at Fred and Sandi's place. It's a fantastic B&B. Ask for the White Mountain room on the third floor. That's where I stay whenever I'm there. Be sure to ask if they have some of the maple butter to slather on the scones.

UPDATE: Sadly, this wonder Inn has closed.

Pressure Washer Accessory

About two weeks ago, I received a very cool accessory that you can use with any pressure washer. It's called Spray Glide.

If you're using a pressure washer on a surface that can be damaged by the powerful stream of water coming out of the wand, you have to be very careful. If you get distracted or when fatigue sets in, the wand, in an instant, can get too close to the surface. BAM! You just messed up the wood deck or whatever you're cleaning.

The Spray-Glide tool clamps onto the wand with Velcro-like material and allows you to infinitely adjust the distance from the wand tip to the surface you're cleaning. It's got a nice wheel on it allowing you to just push the pressure-washer wand as you would a vacuum cleaner.

The Spray Glide folks have alerted me to a special deal on this tool that only lasts for the next FIVE days. You get a huge discount AND Free Shipping.

You'll love this tool. It's a must if you clean decks, docks, roofs or driveways.

Stain Solver News

If you're a new subscriber to this newsletter, you may not know about Stain Solver. It's a fantastic oxygen bleach I've made for about 15 years. All the ingredients are made here in the USA, unlike many of my competitors who get their ingredients off the west coast about 8,000 miles away. But I digress.

About a week after I moved Kathy from Cincinnati, OH to here in New Hampshire, our dog had an encounter with a skunk around midnight. I was awakened from a deep sleep to deal with the horrific odor. Lady, our German Shepherd dog, was not in any discomfort, but she smelled BAD. I knew instinctively that Stain Solver would get rid of the odor.

I mixed some up and carefully applied it to her fur and it did the trick. I was careful not to get it in her eyes or mouth. The skunk odor was gone instantly from her fur. As you can imagine, it does the same for just about any odor, including pet urine. If you have a pet that might tangle with a skunk, you may want to have some Stain Solver on hand for this emergency. You want the odor gone immediately.

Overnight we got two large orders from managers of hotels for Stain Solver. We're making the calls this morning to discover what they want to use it for, but I suspect they want to clean the grout in the hotel lobbies and food-service areas. Stain Solver does an incredible job cleaning tile grout. In fact, if you work at a hotel or motel in central NH, I'd love to stop by to tape a video showing how well it works. Email me if this is you.

Late-Season Deck Sealer

Today I'm taping the final video for the deck stain test I started on April 30th down on my dock. The winner was Extreme Defy in Cedartone. That's a medium-brown color.

The owner of Saver Systems, John Meredith, was generous enough to give away 4 of the 5-gallon pails of Extreme Defy as door prizes to the live event I'll be at this Saturday October, 16th. More on the live event in a moment.

But John felt bad for you in case you can't make it up here this Saturday for any number of reasons. He's developed a special page at his shopping cart just for you if you want a great deal on his colored Extreme Defy products. If you want to buy now and use the product in the spring, just keep it indoors from freezing temperatures.

Wait until you see the video I tape today. The Cedartone color of Extreme Defy looks like the day I brushed it on. It's gorgeous. All the other products I put on failed the color test. They still repel water, but the wood has turned gray.

Live Event

This is just a reminder. I'll be at Cabinetry Concepts in Lebanon, NH this Saturday (October 16, 2010) from 10 - Noon to answer your questions about anything home improvement.

I'll have an enormous amount of different door prizes to give away. Plus, Plato Woodwork is giving away to all who attend an unbelievable coupon that could be worth thousands of dollars depending upon the size of your upcoming kitchen remodel job. It's well worth the trip if you live even 200 miles away!

Gravel Driveways

If you're going to install gravel on a pathway or on a drive that gets traffic, don't make a mistake I see happen all the time. Do NOT use rounded gravel of any type. You must use a crushed gravel. Rounded gravel moves too easily and will not provide great traction. Crushed or angular gravel pieces interlock with one another so the surface doesn't move hardly at all.

The gravel that works best as a top coat is one that has pieces no larger than 1 inch on any face and also has smaller pieces of angular gravel along with some fines. Fines are almost the size of sand and help knit the larger pieces of stone together.

This gravel works great for footpaths in a garden setting.

Don't Trip in the Dark

If you live like I do in the northern hemisphere, the days are getting shorter. What's more, we're about to lose an hour of daylight when the time changes soon. This means you're awake more when it's dark, and tripping in the dark while fumbling for a light switch could be problematic.

I received for testing some handy accessory light-switch plates that help you see where a wall switch is in the dark. These cover plates have strips of the glow material built into the cover plate. This product is worth a look see.

AsktheBuilder.com
100 Swain Rd.
Meredith, NH 03253, USA

October 5, 2010 AsktheBuilder Tips And News

Posted on by Tim Carter

What's in This Issue?

Rugby
Pink Tool Belt
Bathroom Mold
Desperately Need Your Help
Business Survey
Latest Columns
Fire Pit

I do product reviews frequently. Please read my Disclosure Policy to understand the relationship between me and the companies that make the products or offer the services I review.

FOLLOW ME ON TWITTER

Friendly Question Reminder!

If you have a question for me, don't hit the Reply button just yet. Go immediately to my web site and type in the keywords about your problem into my Search engine. The search box is at the top of every page of my web site. You could have your answer in seconds if you do this! Please pay attention to all links you see at my web site. The exact products and services you often need are right in front of you, and you might be ignoring them.

On Sunday Kathy and I drove to Burlington, VT to visit our son up in college. He's playing rugby for the Champlain College Rugby Club. All I can say about rugby is that it's the best mashup of soccer, hockey and football one could ever imagine. It reminded my of some very physical games of touch football I played back in high school with no pads and on hard ground with bodies flying into one another.

We're in the final stages of selecting new kitchen cabinets for our home here. This winter there's going to be a boatload of new videos going up documenting that project. Speaking of new videos.....

Pink Tool Belt

Three months ago, I got a great email one morning from John Davis who subscribes to this newsletter. He was passing through Meredith, NH on the way to pick up his 11-year-old daughter Christine from an island camp nestled out on Lake Winnipesaukee.

For years, I've extended an open invitation for you to visit if you're in the neighborhood. John pulled that trigger. He and his daughter came over and we sat on the deck chatting drinking some iced tea, I believe.

Somehow the discussion moved indoors and involved my website and tools. Christine was amazed that I used the Dvorak method of typing. I showed her one website I'm familiar with that sells tools for women - Tomboy Tools. She pointed out that she'd love to have a pink tool belt. My response was, "Christine, that's easy. Let's email my friend Cindi Dugger."

Cindi is a rep for Tomboy Tools and is another subscriber to this newsletter. She's reached out to me for years to look at tools and we've become virtual friends as I may be with you. I've been blessed to have quite a few friendships that have spawned from this newsletter.

While Christine was still at the house, Cindi replied saying the tool belt would be shipped the next week. When I announced that Cindi had replied, the look on Christine's face was one I'll never forget. She was stunned it happened so fast and that she would get the pink tool belt.

But before sending the tool belt to Christine, I told Cindi I would do a video about it extolling its virtues! I'd appreciate it if you would pass this video around to all the friends on your email list. It would be interesting to see if this video has what it takes to go viral.

Finally, if you're looking to acquire some great pink tools as Christmas gifts, now's the time to act. Who do you know that might want the tool belt or any of the pink tools you see me show in the video? To get them or any TomBoy Tool, just visit Cindi's TomBoy Tools page. You can navigate quickly to see all the tools in the line.

Bathroom Mold

As you might imagine, I get many questions about mold issues in bathrooms. You may be waging a losing battle with it in your own home. Mold needs three things to grow: the mold spores, a food source and water. That's all.

Guess what? Two of the three things are around your home all the time: the spores and the food. You can control the third component if you work at it. Starve the spores of water, and the mold has a very hard time growing.

In your shower and tub area here's how to really cut down on mold growth. After showering, you must get rid of all surface water. This means using a squeegee to make the walls and shower floor free of water. Shake all water off the shower curtain and wipe down any glass doors. Leave the shower curtain open and the same with a shower door. You want that area to dry rapidly.

Towel dry the surfaces if possible. Use rags if you don't want to use your towel. Leave the bathroom door open to get air with lower humidity into the room. Use a bathroom exhaust fan that exhausts the humid air to the exterior of your home, not the attic space.

Bottom Line: Get the bathroom as dry as you can as fast as possible.

Desperately Need Your Help

While on the topic of mold, if you're new to the newsletter, I've sold my Stain Solver oxygen bleach for years. It does a fantastic job of cleaning mold from grout and surfaces. It also removes stain of just about any type from any water-washable thing.

About two weeks ago, we started selling Stain Solver on Amazon.com. It turns out we've tilted one of their algorithms. We got an email today telling us that we've sold TOO much in too short a time without having enough user feedback.

As with many websites now, they look for customer reviews. If you're a Stain Solver fan, can you please go to Amazon's home page and type stain solver in their search engine.

When you see the product in the search results, select the size you purchased in the past and go to it's page. About halfway down, you'll see a button to leave a Customer Review. Rate the product for me and leave a review, hopefully with a story about what you cleaned.

Speaking of Stain Solver, there's huge news about it very soon. I can't leak any details now, but when I do, you'll be blown away.

Business Survey - Stay With Me on This

Last week, I did a neat survey about moving a business to New Hampshire. The response was through the roof! Wow! Thanks if you were one who took the time to respond. The big winner in the survey was a 15-year tax holiday on the property taxes for the business. That didn't surprise me one bit. That's a fixed expense that anyone would love to scrub from the accounts payable side of the ledger for over a decade!

That survey showed me that you either work for a small or medium business and/or are the owner. I've also discovered that you may get sidetracked or flummoxed from time to time with computer or technical issues because you don't have what you need. Large companies have access to computerized tools that allow them to analyze data, grow faster and be more productive.

A really good friend of mine is developing web-based tools to give small and medium businesses the ability to quickly do the same kind of business concept and competitor analysis that large businesses have teams of people to do. These tools could really help grow your business in these tough times.

My buddy and I have talked about some of the rough concepts and I can't wait to use them myself. Please take this NEW quick one-question survey if you want to impress your boss or grow your business. It'll take you about 30 seconds to complete.

Latest Columns

Are you thinking of moving? Don't underestimate what it takes to pack.
What are your cable tv options when you want your TV away from the outlet?

Tim Carter's Fire Pit

If you're new to my newsletter, you may want to know about one of my hobbies. Let's just say my Fire Pit website has a little to do with tea and everything to do with preserving our great nation.

AsktheBuilder.com
100 Swain Rd.
Meredith, NH 03253, USA