iStock/Darren Townsend Call a Pro for Mold Removal: If you can smell mold, but you can’t find the mold or moisture problem. If there is so much mold that you can’t remedy the problem easily. If there are highly susceptible individuals in your home. This could include those with respiratory conditions such as severe asthma or allergies, and those with a weakened immune system caused by HIV, chemotherapy or an organ transplant....
DIY Picket Fence Do you need to make a fence for a new dog? We love a good DIY project, but they can be expensive sometimes. You could get by with spending a few hundred bucks on an electric fence, or you could build a fence yourself. We decided a picket fence was a good cost-effective way to go. If you have saved wood scraps over the years from various DIY projects, you might be in luck!...
Buying a new home is a monumental step in your life and likely one of the biggest purchases you’ll ever make. We have all your DIY tips, maintenance task checklists and key product recommendations to help you feel excited about your new home and empowered to truly make it your own. What to Do Before You Close on a Home PM Images/Getty Images On This Page Being organized is the name of the game right before you close on a home....
Recovery Don’t return to severely damaged buildings until advised to do so. There may be structural damage that makes the building unsafe to enter. Help a neighbor who may require special assistance: the elderly, people with disabilities and large families with young children. Take photos of the damage for your records and save samples of spoiled floorings and furnishings to show to your insurance claims adjuster. Rain and Wind Flooding It’s essential to work safely when cleaning up wind and rain damage....
The Best Grill Sales If there’s one thing better than a perfectly grilled steak, it’s scoring an unbeatable deal on the grill to make it. That’s right—Black Friday grill sales are here! Retailers are slashing prices to clear their warehouses, so enjoy the spoils and sear up some seasonal favorites. Not sure which grill to buy? There are several of different types, like gas, fire pit and electric grills. We broke the top grill sales into the categories below, so it’s easy to find a good fit....
Fellow DIYers, is your go-to hardware store right around the block or halfway across town? A quick trip to the store can make or break getting that project done, especially if you need to make multiple trips. Researchers at Porch.com compiled data from the U.S. Census Bureau, Zillow and the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis to determine which places in the U.S. are best for DIYers. They weighed the density of hardware, furniture and appliance stores in each area....
It’s that time of the year when nature sends winter storms with all different types of winter storm names blasting down from the Arctic. Hopefully, you’re prepared for winter weather, both your home and your vehicles, because it can be easy to get caught by surprise when the snow starts falling. However, you can avoid the shock — if you pay attention to the winter storm advisories, watches and warnings issued by the National Weather Service (NWS)....
If you took a security camera and combined it with a doorbell, you’d have the Google Nest Hello Doorbell. It adds a layer of security to your home that can be accessed no matter where you are. Here’s what you need to know about this innovative smart device. How Does the Nest Doorbell Work? The Nest Hello doorbell replaces your wired doorbell by connecting to the existing wires. From there, you link the Nest Hello doorbell to the Nest app through WiFi....
Overview Maybe it’s happened to you. You wake up one morning and notice one of your double pane windows or patio doors is a little cloudy. You wipe the inside pane with the sleeve of your bathrobe and the cloudiness remains. You wipe the outside pane and get the same results. Then you have a revelation: Eureka! The cloudiness is between the two panes of glass. Some days (and especially at night) the cloudiness disappears, but then it reappears—and over time the cloudy area becomes larger, thicker and more obtrusive....
For a transmission to perform correctly, several electronic, hydraulic and mechanical systems need to work together seamlessly. When one or more of these systems fail, reverse is usually the first gear affected. Before panicking, let’s look at the issues preventing your car from shifting into reverse. First, Automatic Transmission vs Manual Transmission Automatic transmissions and manual/standard transmissions accomplish the same thing — a transfer of engine power and torque to the drive wheels....
For most people, the dream of homeownership includes swathes of lush green lawn to entertain friends and family. But to maintain that bit of verdant paradise, you need to handle lawn care and maintenance. And to do that, you’ll need a way to mow the lawn. Types of Lawn Mowers Lawn mowers are generally classified by how the user interacts with them and what kind of fuel (if any) they use....
When you need some rest and relaxation, you don’t need to go far. Your yard can be the perfect place for you and your family to play or chill, and it can offer so much more if managed well. Here are some of the many benefits of a healthy yard. It Extends Your Living Space Your yard has the potential to become a true extension of your home. Take a look at how you can add seating areas and/or an outdoor cooking area....
Dog doors, a.k.a. pet doors, are small, covered openings cut in the bottom of exterior doors, designed for pets to easily go in and out of a house without the help of their owners. The idea is to give dogs and other pets more freedom. And with more than $450 million in pet doors sales in the U.S. alone in 2019, plenty of pet owners appreciate the benefits. Do Doggie Doors Let Cold Air in?...
It sounds serene to live self-sufficiently in a little cabin in the woods, until you go to flip on a light or charge your laptop and nothing happens. Clearly, a reliable electrical system is key to your off-grid comfort, but planning and installing one can feel daunting. The good news is that new technology, like EcoFlow’s modular power systems, is making the task straightforward and painless. Here are a few tips for making sure your remote home becomes the paradise you’ve always dreamt of, with the help of EcoFlow’s latest modular power system: EcoFlow Power Kits....
Family Handyman Another Use for Your Most Basic Tools To make fast and accurate cuts in pipe insulation, use a hand miter box and a bread knife. You can get precise 45- and 90-degree cuts for a tight fit and a professional look. — Henry Haskell Pool Noodle Water Hose Pool Noodle Wrist Rest Pool Noodle Door Bumper Stay-Put Drawer Organizer Super-Fast Floor Squeegee Floating Beverage Barge Luggage Rack Protector Prevent Car Door Dings!...
Shutterstock Fall is here, and you’re probably ready for a break in the action when it comes to mowing your yard. But just because the leaves have their first tinge of yellow, doesn’t mean you can put the mower away for the season. Not yet anyway. For much of the country, lawns continue growing in the fall, before the grass goes dormant in the winter. So when can you actually stop cutting the grass?...
olesiabilkei/iStock / Getty Images Plus Chalkboard paint allows you to transform a wall into a family message center, create a small accent wall or decorate a child’s bedroom or playroom to encourage creativity. However, there are a few things to consider before you paint a chalkboard wall. What Is Chalkboard Paint? Be sure not to confuse chalkboard paint with chalk paint. Chalkboard paint is just what it sounds like—paint that allows you to turn the item or wall you’re painting into one you can write on with chalk....
What Is a Solstice? As the Earth circles the sun, our days change in length. The seasons shift, too. This handy worksheet from NASA’s Earth Observatory explains that Earth is tilted 23.5 degrees on its axis, so the sun’s strongest rays shine on either the Tropic of Cancer or the Tropic of Capricorn depending on the Earth’s position. The winter solstice is the day with the least amount of sun, while the summer solstice is the day with the most....
Which hammer claws are best? Straight Claws There are two types of straight clawed hammers: short and long. Long claws are sharper and work great for stabbing into a hunk of wood if you want to grab hold of it. But long, straight claws are thinner and can break off in a severe demo situation. Short claws are more rugged but don’t pierce wood as well. Curved Curved claws can pull most nails out of wood without the aid of a spacer, but provide less leverage than straight claws....
There are plenty of good reasons to sleep with your bedroom door open. It ensures proper air regulation throughout your home at night. It lets you hear little children if they awaken and listen for anything mysterious, like break-ins or something going wrong with your appliances. But none of those supersede the most important reason for closing your bedroom door at night: Surviving a house fire. It’s actually one of the key fire safety tips you need to know....
