French Drain Installation for Storm Water Drainage

The problem that many homeowners face is that their yard, particularly the back yard, was never properly graded by the residential building contractor. The rolling hills might sit easy on the eye, but they can spell trouble in the form of standing water. If this describes your yard designs, you might consider installing French Drains.

How might this unintended pond and water garden affect your property? A wet basement. Basement flooding. Costly foundation repairs. Any of these scenarios can be devastating to your bank savings account. Poof! There goes that tax refund and stimulus package tax rebate!

French drain systems fall in the green landscaping category. With nothing more than a shovel, some landscaping fabric, gravel, construction sand, and grass sod, you can save and increase your residential property value!

And don't forget, gutter downspouts will help to direct rainwater away from those low spots in the first place.

Diagnosis for Refrigerator Repair

Even though refrigerators are some of the hardest working and longest lasting of all major household appliances, they can become cantankerous at times. It can be something as simple as the interior light burning out or something as problematic needing compressor repair or replacement. In any event, you need some solid refrigerator troubleshooting skills for a good diagnosis.

Many of these repairs can be handled by the average DIY type person whether its a compact refrigerator or a monster. Others, particularly the ones dealing with refrigerant charging or refrigerant recovery, can only be tackled by someone licensed to do so.

And if your fridge is still under warranty, let the service person handle it, lest you void your appliance warranty. This happened to me recently when the almost-new compressor went out and had to be replaced. I'm unlikely to buy another Maytag. Most likely my next will be a Samsung refrigerator.

In any event, here is an excellent refrigerator troubleshooting checklist.

Don't Fall for Woodworking Gimmicks (Mighty Putty)

There's a lot of woodworking tips out there but I prefer the ones that meet two criteria - they are easy to implement and they save money. After all, there's a huge market re-selling an item as a "miracle product" when in fact it's just a regular product with new marketing.

Take TV hawker Billy May's newest offering, for instance. "Mighty Putty"? I don't think so. The only new thing about that product is the name. It's been around for a long time, and at a much cheaper price than he sells it for. It's just been a low-key product.

So don't just grab the phone when you see one of these goofy ads. Do your research and avoid the ginzu knife syndrome. Always do your research.

More on Deck Building - Setting Posts

My series of articles on deck building that I anticipated going, maybe, three articles, has taken on a life of its own! Have I created a monster? You decide. The latest installment (the fifth) is on the fine art of digging the holes and setting the posts in concrete.

Outdoor Construction

The timing of these articles was deliberate. I knew there was a lot of material to cover and that many DIY'ers haven't done much outdoor construction. It's important that all the info gets out there so that once spring arrives, my readers won't have to sit around drumming their fingers waiting on my lazy self.

And it's a good thing that I started early - as I said, there was more material than I thought. For instance, all my outdoor construction has been done here in sunny South Texas. It came as a surprise to me that things such as the frost line had to be considered when determining post depth. (Yes, I do research; I don't just make this stuff up!)

Readers Clamor for Deck Embellishments

Yes, reader feedback is a good thing. I've received, via email, some good suggestions for topics. For example, a surprising number have asked for embellishments like fancy railings, bench seats with storage compartments, and options for hot tubs. All of this is coming after the basics have been covered.

A few readers have commented that I've put in too much detail but better too much than too little, as Shrek would say. So keep the suggestions coming. Contact me via the Home Reno & Repair site or my email, kelly.smith.1@gmail.com. Until then, keep your powder dry!

Fluorescent Lights and Ethanol

I've blogged about the wisdom of tweaking your home for energy saving in the past. I guess I'm just kind of a nut on the issue. Something to do with keeping more of my own money, I think. But now it seems it's not just a suggestion. The most recent energy bill put out by President Bush mandates it.

The Energy Bill Tightens up Energy Conservation

Just how does it do that? For one thing, incandescent light bulbs are being phased out. Of course, you don't have to run out and do it tomorrow; the time period is four to twelve years, whatever that means. Sounds a bit ambiguous and vague to me. Oh wait, that's government talking to us.

So what do we replace them with? Either fluorescent lights, low voltage halogens, or LED bulbs. They're making some good progress on LED light bulb clusters. I changed the bulb in my Mag light to LED and it's kind of cool. (Yes, the color is too!)

Another change is taking a stronger stance on Energy Star-rated appliances. That just makes sense. If you're going to replace something anyway, you might as well do so in a way that saves you money down the road. Otherwise, it's kind of like buying dull razor blades!

Speaking of Energy, Ethanol Stinks

Ok, I probably riled someone up with that statement - but it's true. At least it's true in the good 'ol USA. That's because we use corn. It takes more energy to produce a gallon of ethanol than it delivers on the road. And it delivers 10% fewer MPG! So in this case the government is asking us to waste energy. But I guess that's political correctness for you.

The Brazilians nailed it though. They use sugar cane which is a tremendous ROI. We just can't grow as much of it here. And speaking of using so much corn to crank out ethanol, the organically raised cows aren't getting their fair share.

So what are organic cowboys supplementing with? Soy beans. We can't keep up there either. So we're importing them from our favorite trading partner, ahem, China! It's ironic that given all the poison toothpaste and lead-painted toys they send us, that we think the cows are staying organic.

Popcorn Ceilings and Asbestos Content

Do your house have those tired old popcorn ceilings? They used to be very popular because they were easy to install and they saved residential building contractors buckets of money. But during the past few years, they've really fallen out of style. Here's a comprehensive article on how to remove popcorn ceilings.

Beware of Asbestos Content

Unfortunately, many home builders relied on adding asbestos content to their popcorn texture mix. They didn't realize the dangers of mesothelioma and other fiber-related health risks. The asbestos seemed like a no-brainer since the fiber content helped the mix hold together and it increased the fireproofing aspect of the home.

Accordingly, there is one thing that you must do before you attempt to remove any of your popcorn ceilings: have it analyzed for asbestos. There are plenty of labs that can do this for a very small fee.

Asbestos Abatement - Can You do It?

In a word; NO. You'll have to get a professional asbestos abatement contractor to do it if the test is positive. At first glance it might seem not so big a deal; don a respirator, get some bags and scrape away.

Actually, there are a couple of reasons that you shouldn't mess with it.

• The powers-that-be make the rules very hard to play by - special suits, double bagging, etc.

• Whoever performs the abatement is permanently responsible for it. That means, like, forever! If someone happens to get into the bags and gets sick, they're coming after you, like fleas on an old hound dog. Have you seen the size of some of those legal settlements? Whew!

Finishing the Drywall Ceiling

Once the old texture is gone, you'll need to bring the ceiling up to standards. Most likely you'll have some drywall taping and floating to do. Remember that you'll be applying the sheetrock compound above your head; keep your mouth closed!

Next, apply a new texture. Get as creative as you want. Finally, slap on a paint job and you're good to go!

Woodworking Joints - Key to DIY Furniture Projects

It's no secret in woodworking circles that strong wood joints are critical with DIY furniture projects. This is true with new furniture or when restoring older furniture pieces. It's also important in other areas of woodworking. Just as the saying goes, "A chain is only as strong as its weakest link", the same is true in woodworking.

Types of Wood Joinery

One school of thought is that there are two broad categories of joints - those using wood glue and those that don't. Japanese wood joinery, for example, is known for its tight, intricate, and glueless joints. There is a whole family of hand saws for cutting them. Other glueless applications are the ones of old, where a mortise was cut all the way through wood and the tenon extended through the other side far enough to accept a keeper peg.

Glued-up joints, on the other hand, are used almost exclusively today, so that's what I'll ramble on about here. When using glue, it's important to choose the right type of woodworking glue for your project.

The Box Joint

A Box joint is also known as a finger joint. The term finger joint is descriptive: the corner is formed by interlinked, square "fingers". The term "box joint" is historical. Before cardboard was so prevalent, produce was brought to the market in wooden boxes.

The challenge was making the box corners hold together as it got slammed about. Enter the box joint. Why? Because cutting box joints is easy to do on a mass market scale using a jig on a table saw. It was very economical.

The Dovetail Joint

A dovetail joint is made with interlinked corners like the box joint. It gains its incredible strength because of its mating surfaces. The "pins" are flared like a dove's tail, and fit neatly into the corresponding "socket". At the top and bottom are the "shoulders". Dovetail joints are ideal for applications that get a lot of action, such as drawers.

How do you cut a dovetail joint? The traditional way is with a dovetail saw (pictured above). But to get the most accurate and professional looking results, it's best to use a jig and a special dovetail router bit.

Other Woodworking Joints

Now, this would be a long list, but blogs aren't textbooks, so here are some popular ones:

• The Lap Joint - The two pieces of wood are cut to overlap. It is used on things such as cabinets or sideboards.

• Tongue and Groove Joint - A tongue is cut on one piece of wood, centered on the stock. A corresponding groove is cut on the other piece to receive the tongue. It's used to make wider panels, doors, or when installing hardwood floors.

• Dowel Joints - A hole is drilled through the two pieces of wood and a glued-up dowel is inserted. Sometimes used to strengthen other joints, like the lap joint.

• Biscuit Joints - Using a biscuit cutter, a half oval is cut into the center of two pieces of wood. Then a full oval glued-up wood biscuit is inserted and the two pieces are joined. It's a great way to form wider panels or build a butcher block countertop.

Obvious Notes - Always use wood clamps with glue joints and put wax paper under your project to keep it from sticking to your workbench!