Q&A / 

Quick Column Summary: Garage sided with no sheathing material How to stop water from entering No easy fixes Remove siding and add sheathing, tar paper or house wrap Judy Saulle, who lives in a cedar-sided house in Earlysville, VA, has an interesting problem with her house.  "Our garage does not have any sheathing just cedar Read More »

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Quick Column Summary: OSB roof boards swelling Pull off or cover over OSB OSB can swell and still be good Question builder on delays Steve, who's having a house built in Ann Arbor, Michigan, has a questionable builder. I see big trouble brewing. "We are having a home built and OSB boards were used for Read More »

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Quick Column Summary: Need a firewood shelter Don't cover with a tarp Airflow keeps wood dry Put a roof over firewood DEAR TIM: Winter is fast approaching. Last year I goofed up. I stacked my firewood outdoors like I see others do, but it rained on the wood, it froze up and then it snowed Read More »

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Quick Column Summary: Keep grill away from house Doublecheck propane connections Call fire department first One of my ham radio friends almost burned his house down in the past two weeks. He had to switch out the four-gallon propane tank under his grill and somehow cross-threaded the hose connector. The leaking gas caught on fire Read More »

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Quick Column Summary: Home improvement endorsements Are they credible Did the endorsers test the product Did endorser get paid for this I'm pretty much just like you. I'm not immune from receiving advertisements in the mail. Earlier this week, I received a postcard from GutterBrush that was promoting a 20-percent-off offer. Here it is: On Read More »

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Quick Column Summary: Plastic fiber gutter guards After testing, these will fail Get micromesh gutter guards Video links, test results Tracy, who eats lots of cajun food in Plaquemine, LA, asked me about a poor-quality gutter guard I reviewed in a past video of mine. Here's what she said: "In your video about gutter guards, the Read More »

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Quick Column Summary: Slope of yard sends water into garage Regrading may be necessary Install a French Drain Link to video Lisa, who lives in hilly Columbia Heights, Minnesota, - perhaps that's why her town has *Heights* in it, has lots of storm water running into her garage. Let her tell you about it: "We Read More »

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Quick Column Summary: Installing car lift Need to cut into concrete Is mesh enforced concrete enough Strong concrete with steel bars needed A reader, who is a shade-tree mechanic, is trying to install a professional car lift in his garage. Let him tell you: "I saw a video that you posted on YouTube about the Read More »

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Quick Column Summary: New roof has asphalt smell How is it getting into home Shingles off gassing into attic Turbine vents will remove smell Rosie Palau, who lives in Sarasota, FL the home of the best sugar beach sand in the USA, has a big problem in her home. I know how to solve it! Read More »

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Quick Column Summary: How to clean teak table Pressure washers can cause damage Use an oxygen bleach Seal with synthetic resin DEAR TIM: I purchased a used teak outdoor table from the online classified ad website Craigslist. It was a great deal, but it needs some tender loving care. How do I clean it? Should Read More »

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