DIY Life

Ask any real estate agent, and she'll tell you that when it comes to home equity and return on investment, the two most important rooms are the kitchen and the bathroom. Forget the fancy pool; it's nice, and it might close the deal at sale time, but prospective buyers are going to decide yea or nay in the kitchen.

The kitchen is a focal point for family gatherings and entertaining guests. So what are the main components of the typical kitchen? Well, there's the major appliances. They should match and be energy-efficient. Storage? There should be plenty of cabinets to stash food, dishes, pots and pans.

But what really stands out are the kitchen countertops. This is where the real work is done. Because of that, lighting should be focused on them, literally putting them in the spotlight.

Whether you're planning on building a new home or you're rolling up your sleeves for a remodel, you have a lot of choices when it comes to selecting the countertops. The things to consider are personal preference, aesthetics, matching the rest of the decor, and, of course, budget. Let's have a look at some of the choices.

As you fire up your central air conditioner, is the temperature really what it says? If it's not, you could be spending extra bucks on your electricity bills. The good news is that you can take care of it yourself without calling a service person. And if you know it's not right, follow these steps before buying a new one:

1. Turn off the power to the heater and A/C.
2. Remove the cover.
3. Obviously, change any batteries.
4. Clean the bimetal coil with a soft, clean brush. On a round thermostat, you might have to turn the dial for complete access.
5. Remove the body from the base on a round model. There are usually screws involved.
6. Clean the switch contacts with a piece of bond paper.
7. Replace the body on a round model.
8. Adjust the anticipator. Start by finding and noting the amp setting; it may be in your manual, on the furnace service panel or on the boiler's transformer. Look at the anticipator setting on the scale. If it's off, adjust it with your fingernail; or you nail-biters (you know who you are), use the point on a pen.
   NOTE: On an air heating distribution system set it to the amp setting. On a water heating distribution system set it to (amp setting X 1.4). I have no idea why.
9. Replace the cover.
   

OK, this is a trick that I used to use when I was really, really poor. You know how it is; your bar of soap gets so small that it's really hard to use? Or if you happen to use Ivory, it always seems to break into unusable chunks prematurely?

Well, here's a solution. I salvaged one of my old cotton socks. Whenever a bar of soap got into one of the afore mentioned conditions, I would pop the chunks or slivers into the sock. In fact, I would do it early. Once the sock had a decent content, I would wash with it.

It seemed to be a great solution because it turned out to be soap and washcloth all in one. Of course, if you're handy with a needle and thread, you could grind out something a little more elegant. I probably would have, but hey, I was just a wild young bachelor!

It's late at night and you're ready for bed. You go out to the washing machine to put the clothes in the dryer before you snooze. All of a sudden you notice water on the floor and a mysterious wet spot on the drywall behind the washer. Doesn't look good.

Do you call a plumber and shell out the big bucks for a night call? Heck no! The first thing to do is cut away the drywall where the wet spot is. And there you see it - the water supply pipe has a leak and is spraying a mist out. The next step is to grab the sacrificial garden hose and cut off a piece - just about six inches long.

Now, slice it down one side and place it over the supply pipe where the leak is. To stop the leak you'll need to snug it up. To do this, use a minimum of three hose clamps; put one right over the leak and the other two on either side of it. Presto! Now you can go catch some zzz's!

Now that the weather is improving we've got a window of opportunity. That two month or so period between the cold and the absolutely scorching is the right time to get that serious landscaping done. And like any other DIY endeavor, the key is having your tools in tip-top shape.

What's on your plate for adding a little curb appeal to your property? Putting in a pond? Adding a new flower bed? Putting in a new patio? Whatever your aspirations, you'll be wise to inventory your tools. More than likely, some will need maintenance and some will need to be replaced.

Start with the basics
The tool most used (hopefully not abused) is the lawnmower. At a minimum you'll need to:

• Sharpen the blade.
• Change the oil; go with a synthetic and you'll only have to do it once a year.
• Clean or replace the air filter.
• Clean or replace the spark plug.
• Check for frayed or broken cables.
  

Few things annoy me more than bolt hole threads that strip out. I don't think any of you would disagree with me that it always happens at precisely the wrong time. Who wants to spend an hour looking for that tap and die set and then digging up a fatter bolt?

Well, the good news is that there's a cheap DIY fix! I wouldn't recommend doing this on your engine block, but it'll work like a champ in a number of light duty situations. It doesn't require any fancy tools either. The first thing to do is back out the bolt. This should be easy; it's already stripped, right?

Now fill the bolt hole with a compound, either Liquid Steel or J.B. Weld. You've got to love the folks that invented those products! Next, coat the bolt liberally with liquid soap. Crank the bolt back into the hole and wipe up the excess that squeezes out around the bolt head.

When the compound is dried, you're set! You can now screw or unscrew at will.

Bamboo is fast becoming one of the hottest green flooring materials. Why green? There are at least two reasons. First and foremost, it's sustainable. If you've ever had any in your backyard, you know how hard it is to contain. Even worse if you don't want it, but it's an under-the-fence gift from a neighbor!

Yes, I know there are non-spreading varieties. But the point is, compare bamboo's renew rate to hardwood.

The second green aspect of bamboo is that it's a natural product. Carpet usually has a lot of synthetics in it, and that means petrochemicals and gas-off issues. Formaldehyde may also be an ingredient. Yuck.

There's a variety of choices for installing bamboo flooring. It requires a dry floor and a membrane or layer of felt. Other than that, it can be nailed, glued, or floated like laminate floors. There's something for whatever kind of subfloor you have!

One of the worst kinds of home break-ins is the kind where the bad guy just kicks in the front or back door. It doesn't really matter that your deadbolt is engaged; it only extends a couple of inches at most and the door jamb doesn't take much to splinter.

But with a little effort you can greatly enhance the holding power of the deadbolt. When the wall is framed and the door rough opening is made, the opening is actually an inch or two wider than the door jamb requires. This allows for plumbing the jamb. Wooden shims are inserted between the framing studs and the jambs.

So this is what you do -

1. Remove the trim screwed to the jamb that receives the deadbolt.
2. Cut a piece of rigid metal electrical conduit about six inches long.
3. Use a paddle bit the same size as the O.D. of the conduit and drill through the jamb and framing studs.
4. Squirt a bit of glue inside the hole.
5. Insert the conduit into the hole until it's flush and re-install the trim.
   

Now, it's not just the jamb holding the deadbolt, you've got the strength of the stud working for you!

Do you need an energy audit? If your electricity and gas bills are higher than they should be, or if you have an older home, you probably do. You already know about insulation, radiant barrier, efficient windows, and Energy Star appliances.

The problem, of course, is that these are many areas to address, but you don't have pockets that deep. Things need to be prioritized here. And that's where the energy auditor comes to the rescue. After his inspection, he'll provide you with a report that tells you:

• Where you stand with your current cooling and heating system.
• Your home's efficiency overview. This details where your home is bleeding hot and cold air.
• The most efficient use of your dollars to save you money by saving energy.
• Bigger outlays of cash that will begin paying for themselves right away.
  

After the break, I'll describe how the tests are done, and the costs involved.

Winter is drawing to a close and the weather is showing signs of warming. One thing that means is that more time can be spent outdoors in the backyard with friends and family. Fire up the barbecue pit!

But wait -- before getting into full time frivolity, take time to do some preventative maintenance.

• Got plastic patio furniture? Give those chairs and tables a coat of car wax. This will make them easy to clean and minimize fading from the sun.
• Got a deck? Make sure all nails or screws are well-seated to eliminate accidents. This is a good time to re-finish the wood, before the weather gets too hot.
• Got a pool? This is a great time to put in a slide and load it up with floaty things.
  

Most folks won't be doing much traveling this summer due to high fuel costs and the airlines shutting up like your favorite watering hole on Saturday night, so plan on spending time in the back yard with friends and family!

Nothing sets off a room like a well-lit aquarium filled with fish zooming all over the place. But why settle for a conventional fish tank? For a really cool-looking set-up, convert that old console TV into the sharpest looking aquarium on the block.

All you need is the old TV (of course), an aquarium that's the same size as (or slightly smaller than) the TV screen, and all the usual aquarium accessories. The TV console will look better if you refinish it. Leave the old knobs on; you can reconfigure them to control the aquarium lights.

Just carefully remove the crt and guts and replace them with the fish tank. Once you get the whole thing set up, you'll be set to watch the show that never has commercials or re-runs!

A few years ago I scored a contract to give a customer's home a face lift. The first basic thing I was doing was removing the old pine 1" X 4" trim and replacing it with Hardie plank trim. The second chore was repainting the siding, which was approximately three quarters of the home.

This particular house was a two story (plus a ground-level carport) so that meant a lot of ladder dragging. Because of that, I broke the work up into manageable chunks. Replace trim, caulk, paint, and then move on to the next section.Today I'll share some of the things I did to work efficiently and make the customer happy.

If you're a serious gamer, you probably live on that gotta-have-the-next-best-thing roller coaster. But what to do with that old SEGA Genesis console? Don't trash it; build an electric guitar out of it! That way, you can still "play".

Here's an interesting site to give you some game consoles to guitar ideas. These guys are not only creative, they've got way too much free time! That being said, there are some guitar collectors out there who spend serious cash on this kind of thing. You might just finance that new game system you've got your eye on.

Besides that dust-gathering console, you'll need a few more guitar components. Pick up a set of strings, pickups, a neck, tuning machines, etc. Now who's the Guitar Hero III? You are!

One of the worst fates to befall family and home is a raging fire. The result can be a small as a nuisance clean-up job to the worst of all - the death of one or more family members. Having fire extinguishers close at hand can make the difference. But not all extinguishers are the same. Let's have a look...

• Type A: for use on paper, plastics, and wood.
• Type B: for use on gasoline, paint thinner, or other flammable liquid.
• Type C: for use on electrical fires.
• Type D: for use on flammable metals.
• Multi-class types: These are a combination of two or more of the above types. Often, these are the most handy to have around the home.

The key to using an extinguisher effectively is summed up as PASS.

• Pull the pin.
• Aim the nozzle.
• Squeeze the handle.
• Sweep the spray at the base of the fire.
  

Be sure all members of the family know how to do this. As cheap as fire extinguishers are, it wouldn't hurt to buy a few and practice so the reaction in an emergency will not be confusion and panic.

Types of Roofing Materials

I had initially wanted a metal roof. They're very storm resistant, and in some cases, they will outlive the homeowner. But they are expensive -- very expensive.

So, shingles were my choice. Shingles come in many grades and are available with some impressive features.

I didn't want a boring look, so I went with architectural (also called dimensional) grade shingles. Yes, they do cost more, but they sure look great. The raised layers give the roof a more three-dimensional look.

The next thing I decided to put on the upgrade list was a shingle that was algae-resistant. What is this, you ask?

Have you ever noticed those upside-down-ice-cream-cone shaped stains on roofs? They usually start where something is protruding, like a chimney or a stink pipe. Folks usually assume it's a stain from something washing off the protrusion, but it's not. It's actually an insidious life-form, out to make your home look shabby. It's called Gloeocapsa magma (just in case you want to throw the term out in conversation at your next cocktail party).

Anyway, I just didn't see any sense in having a new roof looking worn-out within the first year. Most shingle manufacturers eliminate the algae problem by incorporating a bit of copper into the shingle's surface.

Selecting a Roofing Contractor

Selecting a roofing contractor is the most important part of the process. The roofing industry is literally full of fly-by-night outfits. One obvious thing to do is to ask friends who have re-roofed who they used, and what kind of job they did. Also, check with the BBB and the local chamber of commerce.

Look for the big names, and look for companies that have been around for a while. Sure, the local handyman can do the job, but will he back it up?

Here in South Texas, it's easy to get a pretty inexpensive roofing job, because we're awash with, um, undocumented "guest workers". Well, I figured that if a company would skirt that little legal issue, what else would they compromise on? So, that was on my criteria list.