Recent content by Jack T.

Wow. Don't want to go inside a building if he designed it.

Look up "CrossVent". It's essentially adding another roof, but it works. I tried insulating our cathedral ceiling below the deck and covering it with pine tongue and groove, but had problems with condensation since there was no way to vent it. Bit the bullet and went with the cross vent and...

Aside from the obvious issue with the tanks, check the taxes on the property. If it's been taxed as a commercial property you might be in for a shock.

See if you can find the USA Today from last Thursday or Friday. There was an extensive article about the effects of the drought, and foundation repair due to the surrounding soil drying up and pulling away was one of them. It said homeowners would sometimes hear what sounded like a gunshot...

Best solution is to get the Max Jax and position it for both vehicles before you drill any holes. If both vehicles have the lift points at the sills, you might be able to get away with a standard width keeping the arms non extended for the truck and extended for the car.

Doing a basement remodel right now, and I bought a few small kits from Foam it Green to insulate that area. Was easy to use, and did a good job. I backed it up with mineral wool insulation. Rule of thumb - always buy more than you think you'll need.

Yeah, I was amazed at the difference in price between the faced and unfaced. Both Lowe's and HD are selling unfaced R30 at less than $10/roll here, while faced is in the $40 range for the same square footage. If you need the vapor barrier, it would be worthwhile to buy some rolls of plastic...

Assuming the metal siding and soffit is nailed, since it was put up by Amish, you should plan on having to replace most if not all of that. The nails they used aren't going to come out without a fight. Personally, I think I would rather build from new than try to dismantle a building and...

After losing power for 2 days a couple winters ago, I bought a Briggs 6000W. Had a buddy do the transfer box hookup, probably have $1,000 in the whole setup. Now I can run the fridge, most lights, TV, and furnace. Actually got to use it a couple months ago when the power was out for about 12...

Looks good! Did you dowel in the new concrete piers to the existing floor? I ordered my Max Jax before I checked the thickness of the floor, so I was relieved that it was 4"+ when I drilled. I know what you mean about the sacrificial bolt. I ordered more from McMaster-Carr because I knew I...

Yeah, make sure the house is marketed with the shop mentioned prominently. The only reason we're in the house we are is because the previous owner had just put up a separate 28 x 32 garage. Without that, we never would have even bothered looking at the place. A corollary story: Years ago I...

Set up a box fan to blow across the area where you're working. Mosquitoes are not strong flyers, and it doesn't take a very powerful wind to keep them away.

Wow. Must be much better looking in person. I'd guess $200 would be a fair price.

However you do it, make sure your new header is properly fastened to the existing structure. And make sure you account for any snow drift load if you're attaching below the eave height of the existing building. A lot of building collapses caused by snow are a result of a lower building not...

Yeah, that's great if you have access to NG. Our place doesn't, so it was either electric or propane. Went the path of least resistance with electric, figuring if it didn't do a good job I'd go to propane. For keeping the garage above freezing and bearable if not toasty, the G73 fills the bill.