#2432 – Fault Lines: Checking Foundation Cracks | Prevent Pool Drownings

Show Notes

In this show, we dive into pool safety, sharing crucial tips to prevent drownings with layers of protection. Then, we demystify foundation cracks, distinguishing between minor issues and major concerns. Plus, we reveal a quick fix for restoring textured walls and ceilings. And as always, we answer more DIY questions to turn your projects into successes!

Table of Contents[Hide][Show]

Show Notes
Top Questions & Answers
Ask Your Home Improvement Question
Podcast Transcript

Foundation Cracks: Worried about foundation cracks? Get tips on knowing if they’re simple or serious.
Pool Safety: Guard your kids against drowning with these important layers of pool protection.
Textured Surfaces: Repairing textured walls and ceilings is made easy with this DIY product.

Ask Your Home Improvement Question

Do you have a home improvement or decor question? Call the show 24/7 at 888-MONEY-PIT (888-666-3974) or post your question here.

Podcast Transcript

Read Transcript

00:00:24	TOM: Coast to coast and floorboards to shingles, this is The Money Pit Home Improvement Show. I’m Tom Kraeutler.
	LESLIE: And I’m Leslie Segrete.
00:00:30	TOM: What are you guys working on this weekend? Are you getting projects done inside your house? Maybe you’re sprucing up the kitchen or the bathroom, or maybe doing a bit of painting, or maybe you are outside even though it’s summer. It’s hot and sweaty, but hey, it’s also a great time to get projects done outside your house. What’s ever on your to-do list, if you need help, if you’ve run yourself into a jam, if you’re stuck, you don’t know which way to go, or you’re thinking about starting a project, give us a call right now. Great time to reach out with your questions at 1-888-Money-Pit, or go to moneypit.com slash ask, because that’s what we do. We’ve got a great show planned for you. First up, summer marks the riskiest time of year for pool drownings, which sadly is the leading cause of death to young children. So we’re going to share the best way to back up parental supervision, because you always got to watch the kids, but we’re going to teach you a backup system called layers of protection that can make you even safer.
00:01:29	LESLIE: Keep an eye on those kiddies. And finding a crack in your foundation can be quite disturbing, but not all cracks spell disaster. We’re going to share how you can sort out the minor from the major, and what to do if you find yourself unsure of what you got.
00:01:45	TOM: And textured walls and ceilings are popular, but if you got to make a repair of that surface, like let’s say you had a leak or something like that, getting that original texture to be restored is a huge hassle. But now there’s a quick fix that can help you do this literally in minutes, so we’ll share details on that new product line.
00:02:00	LESLIE: But first, our focus is you. We want to know what you want to know, so if there’s a DIY project on your to-do list, let us help make it a DI done project. What are you guys working on? Just because it’s summer doesn’t mean you’re taking a time out. We can work on projects in air conditioning, and we can work on projects in air conditioning, and we can work on projects in the shade. You name it, let us help you.
00:02:22	TOM: In fact, sometimes it’s smart to work on projects in the air conditioning. We were refinishing floors in the house that we bought to renovate, and I wanted it to dry overnight so we could put a second coat on, but it was so humid, I was like, I’m just going to run the air conditioning all night long. It’s worth it. And I did, because I took the humidity out and dried faster. So sometimes there’s very good reason to work within those air conditioners. So whatever you’re working on inside or out though, let us help. The number here again is 888-Money-Pit.
00:02:49	TOM: That’s 888-Money-Pit.com or just go to MoneyPit.com slash ask and click the blue microphone button. Let’s get to it.
00:02:55	LESLIE: Heading over to Texas, we’ve got Dean on the line who’s looking for some help with the patio. Tell us what’s going on. How far are you into this project?
00:03:02	CALLER: We had the flagstone put down on a good solid base and it’s good, but I like to be able to fill the cracks and be able to use a power washer on it.
00:03:12	TOM: So Leslie, I’m thinking that with flagstone being an irregular surface like that, I’ve seen people try to fill these cracks and spaces between them. With a mortar, but it never works out because it’s not designed to be that strong.
00:03:22	LESLIE: Well, no. And I always feel like when you have mortar in between flagstone with the freeze and thaw cycle, it just cracks out unless it’s like a fully installed patio on top of concrete and you’re controlling that. But if you’re just going under, you know, tamped soil or, you know, whatever that process is for the grading, it’s still going to get movement. It’s still going to be affected by the freeze and thaw. So you kind of have to pick which direction you want to go in
00:03:48	TOM: here and kind of commit to almost a redo. Yeah. If you’ve got a solid base down already so you’re not getting any movement in that patio, I don’t think I would try to fill those joints in between. I would leave it exactly the way it is and, you know, just realize that you’re not going to be able to blast stuff away with a pressure washer and just get yourself a stiff broom and maybe some simple green and just do it by hand every once in a while.
00:04:11	CALLER: That’s what we’re up for. Thank you much, guys. Appreciate your help.
00:04:14	TOM: You got it. Take care.
00:04:16	LESLIE: All right. We’re going to head over to Maryland. We’ve got Linda on the line. Linda, what’s going on at your place? How can we help?
00:04:21	CALLER: I have a brick home and I have two porches on my home that are actually built into the brick and into the home. And then they have a concrete slab on the top of it. And the concrete is starting to crack up. And I bought some of that stuff that you fill in concrete with. And then I thought, well, won’t that look odd? Because it’ll probably be a different color than the concrete that’s on there. Maybe I should do something else. What if it doesn’t stay and it cracks more? And so I thought, well, I listen to your show every weekend. And I thought, I couldn’t call them and ask them because they always have such good ideas.
00:05:00	TOM: Well, we’re so glad that you did. So the cracks that you’re seeing, can you tell me about them? How wide are they? How long are they?
00:05:06	CALLER: You can tell that they’re stone. It must be just like a light coating of concrete because I can see there’s stone under it. And then it’s like, the cracks aren’t very big, but then it gets to an intersection like where they intersect. And then that particular area might be like you could lift a chunk out.
00:05:32	TOM: All right. So would you say it’s like an eighth between an eighth to an eighth of an inch or a quarter of an inch, something like that?
00:05:37	CALLER: Oh, I would say yes.
00:05:38	TOM: All right. So a couple of things. I’m a little concerned that you can see into the cracks to see the stone base underneath it. It may or may not be an issue. But what would be an issue is if you let a lot of water… Get in there from rain. If the water gets in, it’s going to make the soil less stable. So you’ll get settlement potentially. And then secondly, if you let a lot of water get in there, it’ll freeze and then it’ll expand and that will make the cracks wider. So what I suggest you do is simply to caulk those cracks and use silicone for that. Or you could use caulks that are specifically designed for concrete that are latex-based. Quikrete makes products like that. And as to the color, if you’re concerned about the color, I’ll give you a trick of the trade, but it’s a little bit above the average DIYers. But what I’ve done is I’ve found areas in the concrete that weren’t that visible, like on the side or the bottom of a step or slightly below grade. And I’ve used a drill, a hammer drill, which is a masonry drill, and drilled out some test holes and collected the chips because that dust is the same color as the rest of the concrete. And then I sprinkle that over the caulk and tap it down with my fingers and it blends in perfectly with the surrounding surface.
00:06:47	CALLER: Great idea. That’s a wonderful idea. Thank you so much.
00:06:54	TOM: You’re very welcome.
00:06:55	LESLIE: Hey, you want to make our day? Well, go ahead and leave us a five-star review on Apple Podcasts and we’ll be jumping for joy. Plus, you guys, your feedback helps us make the show even better for you. Just go to MoneyPit.com slash review. We’ve got Jeff in Pennsylvania on the line who’s looking for ways to take the super chilly basement air and bring it upstairs. Let’s see how we can move this air around. What’s going on?
00:07:17	CALLER: Well, I’m just curious if there’s any way I can do that economically since you would be running some kind of fan or something to do that. I mean, I do have central air, but I didn’t know whether, you know, in the air in the basement might be cheaper if I could get it to the second floor because, you know, the colder air will settle. I do have a laundry chute that goes up to the second floor. I didn’t know if I could pump anything up through there or not. Well, anyways, that’s why I’m talking to you.
00:07:51	TOM: Well, we appreciate the question. And there actually are appliances that do exactly that, but I found that they’re way, way, way overpriced and way, way, way under deliver with what they offer. But generally, it’s not a good idea to take your basement air and circulate it upstairs because the moisture is one thing. You have to, that moisture has to be pulled out of the air, and it’s going to happen by the air conditioning system. If it’s really, really damp like that, it’s going to start to make the air, you know, it’s going to start to make the air, you know, the air conditioning feel cold and clammy. And secondly, the air itself, it can be contaminated. You can have radon, you can have dust, you can have mildew or mold spores in that air. So generally, we don’t use the basement air as a source for air. Pretty much let the HVAC system do that. If the basement is finished, then you could have a return duct down there that pulls air from the basement into the HVAC system, but it wouldn’t be a supplemental system by itself. Does that make sense?
00:08:45	CALLER: Yes, it all makes very good sense.
00:08:47	TOM: Good idea. And understand why you came up with it, but I think it’s probably not the best way to proceed. Okay. Well, I appreciate it again. Good luck with that project.
00:08:57	LESLIE: Well, if you have kids and you have a pool, you know that pool safety is a big job. And while nothing is a substitute for keeping a close eye on your kids around the pool, there is one thing that you can do to help back up that parental supervision. And it’s approach called layers of protection. And it’s essentially just that multiple ways to keep kids away from the pool when no one is watching. And it includes a variety of things, fences, pool covers, even alarms.
00:09:24	TOM: That’s right. So first, let’s talk about fences, because when they’re properly designed and installed, they are definitely the most effective deterrent against drowning. But a pool fence design is actually pretty different than any other type of fence. And here’s how. So first, they have to be four-sided, obviously. They have to completely surround the pool and be at least four feet tall. And they also have to be what’s called non-climbable. So, for example, you can’t use a standard chain link fence because the squares between the wires are big enough for a child to get a toehold. Instead, you’ll need a special type of chain link that has smaller openings.
00:10:00	LESLIE: Now, the weakest link in all of your pool fencing is going to be the gate. Your gate must be self-closing and it must be self-latching. So they’re going to slam shut if you happen to leave them open. And moreover, gate latches should be mounted at least 54 inches off of the ground and have child-proof release mechanisms. I mean, heck, I can’t even open them sometimes. It’s so silly, but it’s important that they’re high enough and challenging enough so that a kid can’t find their way in. Now, a pool cover next to fencing, that pool cover really provides the most maximum amount of protection. And your best option is an automatic pool cover, which can be used between swims rather than only at the end of your pool season. These covers can be attached to the bottom of the pool, or they can be attached to the bottom of the pool. The pool covers are going to be motor driven, and with the flick of a switch, they’re going to automatically creep across the pool to seal out access to the water. And I mean, some of these you can even walk across.
00:10:50	TOM: Yeah, definitely. So let’s talk now about the alarms that are available. There are pool alarms, door alarms, and fence alarms. And these are really a must-have for every home that has a pool. It’s best to use a combination of all of them. So first of all, the door alarms. They’re battery-powered. They’re installed on exterior doors that lead to the pool. Now, if the door is opened, without the pressing a child-proof bypass button, that alarm sounds within seven seconds, and it stays on until it’s disabled by an adult. Now, the alarm is also effective in preventing an adult from leaving a door open, because if the door is left open for more than 10 seconds, even after pressing that bypass, it rings again. So these are a really inexpensive way to make sure everyone in your house thinks about pool safety.
00:11:38	LESLIE: All right. Now let’s talk about a fence alarm, because these work just like door alarms, but they’re designed to be used on the fence gates around your pool for an added layer of protection. You can also look into a pool alarm, because these are designed to detect a splash that occurs when a child falls into a pool. A CPSC study looked at three types of pool alarms and found that the best performers were underwater alarms, compared to the less reliable options of floating pool alarms or wristband alarms that you actually have your kids wear. Now, when purchasing a pool alarm, you always want to buy the type that includes a remote receiver, so that you can monitor the pool from inside the home, even with the door closed, the air conditioning on. You know, this way you really can hear what’s happening.
00:12:19	TOM: Now, keep in mind that while pool alarms can provide emergency notification if a child falls in, they are definitely not a substitute for fences, covers, or any of the other protective measures possible. So you definitely need every one of those three layers to make sure you and your children are totally covered.
00:12:38	LESLIE: Sherry in Tennessee is on the line with a question about a dryer. What is going on at your money pit?
00:12:43	CALLER: We have recently renovated our home, and we have noticed that with our dryer, if, you know, they’ll be dry, and sometimes I have just left them in there, and I have to re-fluff them to get the wrinkles out or something. But when I go back to them, if it’s been overnight, they’re pretty damp. And I didn’t know if that was more of a dryer issue, or maybe a dryer issue. I don’t know. I don’t know. I don’t know. I don’t know. I don’t know. I don’t know. It’s the way we have it hooked up. It’s in the laundry room, which is outside the kitchen, and it’s accessed through a vent just through the main, you know, the wall into the outside.
00:13:22	TOM: Right. So let me ask you a question about this. If you’re standing at the dryer, and the signal goes off signaling that the drying load is done, are the clothes damp then, or did they become more damp when they sit overnight?
00:13:35	LESLIE: They become more damp overnight. I mean, this sounds like a condensation thing, where you’ve got the dryers all warm and toasty from the clothes being dried, and perhaps then it’s on like a cold wall or exposed to air conditioning or something. Right, Tom?
00:13:48	TOM: Maybe. It’s a really odd problem. I can’t imagine what’s causing it unless there is high humidity. Do you have any evidence of high humidity anywhere else in that area? Do you see condensation? Do you see any mold growth? Does it feel like humid and sort of the air is thick down there, or is it only in the dryer?
00:14:05	CALLER: not really noticed it.
00:14:07	TOM: Do you have a steam dryer? Does it have a water line that’s hooked up to it? Is it a newer dryer that has a steam setting? No. I can’t imagine what’s causing this but for, like you say, Leslie, the humidity down there. And so I’m going to give you some general advice on dehumidifying that space. Okay. Which is all that humidity starts in the outside of the house. It starts when you have gutters that are clogged. It starts when the soil around the house is really flat so you don’t get any runoff, or the downspouts aren’t directed at least four, five, six feet away from the foundation. Because when you have a lot of water that collects around the house like that, it shows up first in the way of high humidity and much later if it continues in the form of flooding. So I would definitely look at the dampness issue and see if we can dry that space down there. You might want to try a portable dehumidifier for a while just to see if that has an effect on it. But even if you have that running, stopping the moisture from forming at the outside is usually the way that you get this under control. Okay. And it’s something you can do yourself too. It’s not terribly expensive, but you just have to understand why this is happening. We have a post on moneypit.com, it’s almost always on the homepage because it’s so popular, about how to stop a basement from flooding. Now, of course, you said you don’t have a basement that’s flooding and I understand that, but the advice is exactly the same. And we lay out step-by-step what you need to do to reduce moisture accumulation around the foundation perimeter of your house. So why don’t you take a look at that as well, Cheri, okay?
00:15:34	LESLIE: Thank you so much. Dan in North Carolina is dealing with a streaky roof. Tell us what’s going on.
00:15:40	CALLER: I am calling you from hot North Carolina today. Hot North Carolina, huh? I live in the woods. The roof of my house, however, has sunshine over it. It’s four years old. A new roof, 12-12 pitch. And I have started getting these black streaks coming down all over. Is there something that I can spray on that or put up on there that can help get rid of those black streaks on there?
00:16:10	TOM: Yeah, I’ll give you a couple of ideas. First off, there’s a roof cleaner called Spray and Forget that works very well. You apply it to the roof and it kind of goes to town right away, working on a wide variety of stains. It might take a month or more, but they will disappear. The second thing that you can do is you can take, if you feel up for this or want to have a contractor do it, if you go up on your roof and if you cover the top ridge, that’s that sort of peak of the roof from end to end. Dan in North Carolina, with a piece of copper flashing, maybe one piece on one side, one piece on the other, what you’ll find is as rain hits that, it releases some copper, which acts as a mildew side and also helps to keep the roof very clean. So a little trick of the trade there, use a roof cleaner and then a piece of copper flashing installed into that ridge will give you some ongoing protection against future streaking.
00:16:58	CALLER: That is a cool idea about the copper. Spray and Forget, do I just use my regular hose?
00:17:03	TOM: The Spray and Forget is a concentrate, so all you need to do is mix it up. And what you can use to apply it to your roof is a spray and forget. You can spray it on your roof, you can apply it, it really depends on what you have. What I like to use is kind of a pump up garden sprayer. It’s really easy to handle, doesn’t get too heavy. And then I spray my roof down with that.
00:17:18	CALLER: I’m going to try that. I really love your show and keep up your good work.
00:17:23	LESLIE: All right. Thanks, Dan. We appreciate it. Margie in Ohio needs some help cleaning some kitchen cabinets. Tell us about it.
00:17:28	CALLER: I have maple kitchen cabinets and above the hood area, it is very dirty from the fan and from cooking. And there’s a residue on the cabinet. And I was wondering what type of product I could use to take off the grit that is on the cabinet without damaging the maple cabinet.
00:17:48	LESLIE: So Margie, the area that you describe over, you know, the cooking area above the hood, that’s generally a very greasy spot in the kitchen under the best of circumstances. So I think your first step is to try to just clean it with some sort of, you know, grease remover, like an orange, cleaner or like, um, I always call it goof off, but I don’t think that’s the right name.
00:18:15	TOM: Yeah, no, I think that is one of the products, you know, or Murphy’s oil soap.
00:18:19	LESLIE: Yeah. I mean, something that has a citrus in it, that’s going to help you break down all of that grease buildup would probably be your best place to start and see how you do. I mean, outside of that, if you’re going to start messing with the sheen or the finish of that specific cabinet on its own, you’re going to then have to work with the rest of the cabinets to sort of match up to that. So my first attempt would be really to scrub it, clean it, give it some good old elbow grease and see where you go.
00:18:43	TOM: You might want to take the doors off the hinges to do this work, because it might be easier to work on them when they’re on a flat surface like that. Then you can go back and do the frame around the door after you’ve sort of perfected your cleaning on the door first and put it all back together. And if that works, you know, this might be a situation where you just keep going, right? Because even though the rest of the cabinets aren’t terribly dirty.
00:19:01	LESLIE: They’re more dirty than you think, I bet.
00:19:03	TOM: Yeah. You only know sometimes when you start cleaning it up, right? Because that’s when you see it get lifted off. You’re like, oh, there’s a whole new color under there.
00:19:10	LESLIE: Well, you may not realize it, but your home is always moving. It expands, it contracts, it settles. And sometimes that movement can result in cracks to your foundation. But even though those cracks are common, they can be pretty disturbing for most homeowners to find. So Tom, how do you know if a crack is serious or just kind of the result of normal wear and tear?
00:19:31	TOM: Well, you’re right. I mean, just about every home has its own share of cracks. They’re pretty common occurrence. And there are a number of reasons why they happen. So for example, the soil may not have been compacted properly before the foundation was installed, or you could have large pieces of organic material that had been included in that soil under the house. Like sometimes you’ll have contractors that’ll leave tree stumps in. And when it decays, the soil above it collapses to fill the void. And then of course that leaves a gap under the concrete and that can cause cracks. Also, the soil underneath the foundation or beneath column support, may have shrunk due to moisture loss. Or if you have too much moisture around the house, the soil under the foundation can weaken. And some soils also are expansive and very sensitive to the amount of moisture. So lots of reasons. The idea is, I mean, what you really have to do is keep your eyes out in the formation of cracks and track them over time. It’s one of the ways you know how
00:20:26	LESLIE: serious it is. Yeah. So how do you determine if it’s a major crack or something that you can fix? Well, one way to tell is the direction of the crack. Is it vertical, horizontal? Is it diagonal? And is the crack static or not moving? Because if it’s not moving, those are usually small hairline cracks. Vertically, sometimes they’re randomly oriented. And these type of cracks can be repaired fairly simply, and they don’t extend to the full thickness of that foundation wall. Now, a dynamic crack on the other hand, one that’s kind of moving, kind of changing, that can pose unique challenges. And a structural engineer may be required to evaluate that situation before that repair can be determined. You know, if it’s not moving, then you’re not going to be able to fix it. You know, how do you do it? What are the necessary steps are? Generally, though, these cracks are often oriented horizontally or diagonally, and they indicate a deflection and failure because of a structural overload. So that’s a bigger problem to begin with, and you’ll know that that crack is very different than something that’s just, you know, superficial.
00:21:25	TOM: Yeah, good point. So if you’re wondering how do you fix cracks like these, they’re not DIY projects, right? What you can do is seal to stop the water. You know, if it’s a crack that’s maybe, you know, an eighth to a quarter inch wide, you’re going to be able to fix it. You know, if it’s wide, you can seal it with a silicone caulk and then monitor it for movement. If it’s horizontal, fix your drainage. It could be collecting water against the outside, breezing and pushing it in. Or if you’re just not sure, get an inspection by a structural engineer or a professional home inspector, not, underline not, a contractor. Contractors that inspect foundations often have conflicts of interest. They want to sell you a big expensive repair. They’re not qualified as engineers to make the determination. So I would say a structural engineer or a home inspector are the best two pros to go to.
00:22:07	LESLIE: Michael from California is on the line and is looking to do some gutter work himself. Let’s find out if this is a good idea. What’s going on?
00:22:14	CALLER: I just had my roof replaced on my home and now I’m looking at the rain gutter. Would it be a mistake for me to buy the rain gutter sections at Home Depot, the aluminum ones and caulking and rivets and everything and do this project myself? Would I regret just not hiring a gutter company to come out and install the one-piece gutters? I’ve talked to two companies and it’s quite expensive. I could take quite a bit of money if I just bought this stuff at Home Depot.
00:22:39	TOM: You know, I think that installing the gutters yourself, Michael, is definitely a do-it-yourself project. However, the one thing that you would not have that gutter companies do have is the ability to make those gutters seamless. You’re going to have to use gutter sections and join them together, which can be done, you know, and it can be effective. It’s just a little sloppier maybe than just having it in one piece. Like I have a garage that’s 30 feet long because it’s a garage shop and they can do a lot of work with it. So, you know, I think that’s a good thing. I could basically roll out one 30-foot piece of gutter for that and not have any seams in the middle. So, look, you can do it yourself. You’re definitely going to save some money. You’re going to have to be very careful with your craftsmanship to make sure that everything’s attached properly. I’ll give you one tip on that. Don’t use gutter spikes. There’s a type of screw that you can replace that with. It’s like a long lag bolt designed just for gutters. And this way, once you attach it, it won’t fall out. And you want to make sure that they slope properly because you’re going to put these in the sections. You’re going to have to sort of plot out that slope, maybe by running a chalk line and snapping a line down the fascia to make sure you maintain the proper angle of these pieces as they get assembled. And then where they join together, you’re going to have to use a sealant on all of those seams to make sure they don’t leak. So, you definitely can do it yourself. It will save you some money. It may not look as perfect as it would have if a gutter company did it. But if they’re charging you crazy prices, then maybe it’s just not worth using a pro and you should go DIY.
00:24:07	CALLER: Pat in Arkansas is dealing with a humid house. What’s going on there? Well, I have a new heat pump, and it’s not taking out the humidity. Of course, I live in a humid area, but I just wondered. It’s supposed to take out the humidity, as I understood.
00:24:24	TOM: Well, not really. I mean, air conditioners in general, central air conditioners, which is essentially what a heat pump is, are not designed to be dehumidifiers. They do dehumidify by virtue of the fact that they’re cooling the air, but they’re not as effective as other forms of dehumidifiers. There’s a couple of other ones that you could consider, one of which is called a whole home dehumidifier, and that’s built into the HVAC system. It would be built into the duct system. And that can take out about 90 pints of water a day. And there’s another type of standalone dehumidifier. In fact, I just put one of these in my own house, and I thought it was absolutely terrific. It’s by Santa Fe, and it’s a small dehumidifier. It’s a small dehumidifier. It’s a small dehumidifier that installs, in my case, I put it in my basement, and actually is suspended from the ceiling in an unfinished part of the basement. And it’s only 12 by 12 by 22, and it takes out 70 pints of water a day. And it’s really neat. Once I had it up for an hour or so, I went down there, and you could just see this pretty strong stream of water dripping out of it. And all that water used to be in the air, and now it’s no longer there. So you need to do some dehumidification, and I think that you’ll find that that
00:25:34	CALLER: will do the trick, Pat. Okay. What is the average humidity supposed to be in the house?
00:25:39	TOM: 30 to 50 percent? Well, as I say, around 40. So we’re in the same neighborhood. Okay. And if you put a good dehumidifier in, that will be set up to a humidistat,
00:25:47	LESLIE: so that you’ll always know what the humidity is. And it’ll come on as it’s needed.
00:25:50	CALLER: Right, exactly. Okay. All righty. Well,
00:25:52	TOM: I thank you so much. Good luck, Pat. Thanks so much
00:25:54	LESLIE: for calling us at 888-Money-Pit. Well, if you’ve ever had a leak, or a crack, or even a nail pop come through a textured ceiling, you may know that repainting’s that leak or crack can be easier than the hassle of trying to restore the original textured surface. Now, typically, it’s been a very messy process, especially when you’re trying to fix a small area or one that’s just hard to reach. But now there’s a new product out from DAP that makes this really easy for both those DIYers and pros alike.
00:26:23	TOM: Yeah, and it’s called the 2-in-1 Wall and Ceiling Spray Texture, and it allows you to apply different types of texture. They have orange peel, knockdown, and popcorn textures, and you can do that quickly and easily to both walls and ceilings. Now, part of the reason this works so well is it has a very simple-to-use 25-ounce can that has a 60-degree adjustable nozzle, and that enables you to easily repair vertical, overhead, and sort of those hard-to-reach areas. The nozzle system is only available from DAP. It’s called AimTech because it allows you to direct that texture exactly where it’s needed, and it offers adjustability and a consistent flow and pressure, so you deliver an even, wide spray pattern. And if you’ve ever tried any other way to fix texture, I’m telling you, it’s a big mess. This is an amazing way to do it quickly and easily.
00:27:12	LESLIE: Yeah, and you know what? DAP’s 2-in-1 Wall and Ceiling Spray Texture is really a super-handy product. It’s going to save time. It’s going to save a whole heck of a lot of hassles, and it delivers a fast-drying, excellent texture match for maximum coverage and those pro results. It’s going to dry in under 30 minutes, which is a huge plus, and it can be painted immediately.
00:27:32	TOM: So whether you’re taking it on a repeat, pair and need to match an existing wall or ceiling surface, or create a totally new look, DAP’s 2-in-1 Spray Textures make it easy to apply an orange peel, knockdown, or popcorn texture to both walls and ceilings with ease and accuracy. It’s a great choice for both pros and DIYers, and it’s available at retailers nationwide for $29.98.
00:27:54	LESLIE: John in Oregon’s on the line and has a question about a wood-burning stove. What can we do for
00:27:58	CALLER: you? Yes, I know that they have them. They sell them. I just was wondering who asked if they actually makes them. Wood stoves? Yeah, fuel-efficient. I guess they’re more efficient than the older-type wood stoves.
00:28:10	TOM: Yeah, I mean, look, all the major manufacturers are making more efficient wood stoves these days. In fact, just last year, the EPA introduced a new source performance standard that basically requires the wood stoves to measure and report how much particulate it distributes into the air. And that also plays into efficiency. So, if you’re using a wood stove, you’re going to have to look for EPA-certified wood stoves that meet the 2015 standards. You’re going to be looking at a
00:28:41	CALLER: set of pretty efficient wood stove products. I guess you’ve answered my question.
00:28:45	TOM: I appreciate it very much. You’re very welcome. Thanks so
00:28:48	LESLIE: much for calling us at 888-Money-Pit. Well, Josh wrote into Team MoneyPit saying, we don’t like the color of our roof. The entire roof was most recently replaced by the previous owners less than five years ago with a tan-colored Owen Corning Supreme shingle. We’d like to paint over the shingles with a color that better fits the rest of the house. Is this okay to do? And if so, how do we do it? I have never heard this.
00:29:15	TOM: Yeah, and there’s a reason you never heard this, because you can’t do it. When I was a home inspector, Leslie, and I would go through some of these older, sort of single-family, usually senior citizen developments, and I’d look up at the roofs, and let’s say they were 20-ish years old. Occasionally, I’d see a roof that looks pretty good from the street. I’d look up at the roof, and I’d say, oh, that looks pretty good from the street. And I’d get up there with my ladder and notice that somebody painted it. You can’t paint a roof. Paint won’t stick to a roof. It’s not going to last. So, there’s no way you can change the color of this roof short of replacing those shingles. So, my advice is to invest in a good pair of sunglasses and put them on when you go from your car to the house, because you’re not going to be able to paint that roof. If you have a low slope or a flat roof, a built-up roof, there is a paint design for that that’s called fibrous aluminum. You’re not going to be happy with that because it’ll make your roof glow, but that’s designed to reflect UV rays off of a flat roof. That’s the only kind of roof paint I’ve ever seen, but you really can’t use any standard type of paint. There’s nothing available to paint those shingles. So, I think you might want to think about this the other way around. You know, instead of thinking about how can I change the color of the roof, think about what you can do to change the colors of the house that you’re concerned about so the house matches the color of the roof.
00:30:35	LESLIE: I’m going to tell you, Josh, I don’t like that color roof either. think it has to go with a very specific type of architecture, a very specific location. Like, it doesn’t work with every house, but I do get why people like it. It just doesn’t always work. So, I feel for you, guy.
00:30:53	TOM: But the good news is it’s a really good roof. You know, so you’re not going to have to deal with leaks. You have a newer roof, it’s an old scoring roof. You don’t have to worry about that. I just don’t like the color.
00:31:01	LESLIE: You know. So, in a few years, many, many down the road when it’s time to replace, you can think about a new color then. All right. Now, Bruce wrote in saying, I heard your tip on using Rain-X to make shower doors easier to clean. Is there a specific formula for plastic? I’d like to use it on my motorcycle windshield, but it’s plastic.
00:31:20	TOM: Yeah. You know, I have heard that the regular Rain-X sometimes is not ideal for plastics, but I’ve never had the issue myself because it’s really the only place that I’ve used it is on shower doors. But I looked into it and Rain-X does actually have a formulation that’s designed for plastics, specifically designed for motorcycles or marine windshields made of plastic. And it does, much like the original product, improve the water repellency on those plastics. So, when you get a rainfall, the water is going to bead off, which is just fantastic. In fact, I just coated my windshields this weekend because I was going away for a couple of days. And I was expecting rain. I’m glad I did because it’s like the wipers didn’t even need to run. So look into that. It’s called Rain-X Plastic.
00:32:08	LESLIE: All right. Excellent tip. Bruce, good luck with everything that you’re working on and enjoy your motorcycle rides and the newly rain-free windshield.
00:32:19	TOM: This is the Money Pit Home Improvement Show, where we make good homes better. Thank you so much for spending this part of your marvelous summer day. We hope it’s nice where you are because it is here. Can’t wait to finish up and get outside. And get going with some projects on my to-do list. If you guys have projects and you have questions, remember, if you couldn’t get through today, you can call us anytime at 1-888-Money-Pit or just leave a message at MoneyPit.com slash ask. We’ll call you back the next time we are in the studio. Until then, I’m Tom Kraeutler.
	LESLIE: And I’m Leslie Segrete.
	TOM: Remember, you can do it yourself.
00:32:53	LESLIE: But you don’t have to do it alone.

	(Note: The above referenced transcript is AI-Generated, Unedited and Unproofed and as such may not accurately reflect the recorded audio. Copyright 2024 Squeaky Door Productions, Inc. No portion of this transcript or audio file may be reproduced in any format without the express written permission of Squeaky Door Productions, Inc.)