Show Notes
Today, learn how to avoid costly mistakes when building your backyard deck. We’ll also provide tips on designing an efficient and functional kitchen layout, plus share info on a powerful and convenient solution for summer power outages. Tune in for expert advice to help you tackle all your home improvement challenges with confidence!
Table of Contents[Hide][Show]
- Kitchen Design: Get professional tips for smart design in your dream kitchen.
- Building a Deck: Watch out for making these costly mistakes when building a deck.
- Backup Power: This portable battery backup is a quiet and easy solution for summer power outages.
Top Questions & Answers
- Brick Steps: How can Mia remove carpet that’s glued onto brick steps? She’ll need an adhesive remover to soften and scrape off the glue and we suggest applying thin pavers or exterior ceramic tiles on top of the steps.
- Chimney Repair: Moisture is getting into a chimney that’s losing stucco. Anthony should remove any loose stucco and use a repair product that will adhere to concrete and brick.
- Countertops: Jason’s renovating his kitchen and needs inexpensive options for his countertops. We’ve got info on durable DIY products that can create the look of stone countertops.
- Foundation: There are cracks in the concrete slab and the kitchen is starting to dip. Rochelle should hire a structural engineer to determine how to make the best repairs.
- Carpenter Bees: Carpenter bees have invaded Kevin’s porch and fence! He needs a pest control professional and should replace the wood with PVC materials.
- Water Damage: Dewey’s basement stinks from a prior sewage backup. We’ve got tips on tearing out the drywall, wiring, outlets, and flooring and having a remediation company treat the problem.
- Flooring Polish: Is French polish a good option for refinishing hardwood floors? Theresa learns that it’s a beautiful finish but not very durable for a busy household.
- Efficient Windows: How energy-efficient are low-E windows? We confirm that low-E glass coating will reflect the sun’s UV rays and make a big difference in Bruce’s energy bills.
- Rust Stains: Metal railings have left rust stains on Tamra’s pavers. We recommend using natural acid products like lemon juice or vinegar or certain chemical products.
- Musty Odors: Bryan’s crawlspace gets a musty odor in the summer when he’s away. Humidity builds when the house is closed up, so he could use an exhaust fan with a humidistat and check the exterior drainage to reduce moisture.
Ask Your Home Improvement Question
Podcast Transcript
Read Transcript
| 00:00:30 | TOM: Coast to coast and floorboards to shingles, this is The Money Pit, home Improvement Show. I’m Tom Kraeutler. |
| 00:00:36 | LESLIE: And I’m Leslie Segrete. |
| 00:00:37 | TOM: Hey, guys. What are you working on this weekend? If it’s your house, you’re in the right place because that’s what we do and we’re here to help you get the projects done that are on your to-do list. So if you need help with a project, you need help solving a problem, you got a decor dilemma, you got a room with stains that you paint, you have to paint again and again and again, well, whatever’s going on on your to-do list. You can slide it right over to ours and we will help you get that job done. But first, you got to help yourself by reaching out to us with your questions at 1-888-Money-Pit, 888-666-3974 or post your questions to moneypit.com slash ask. Coming up today, adding a backyard deck is one surefire way to increase your home’s living space. But if you’re not careful, it’s really easy to make very costly mistakes. So we’re going to show you what you need to avoid when building the deck of your dreams. |
| 00:01:27 | LESLIE: And are you thinking about updating your kitchen? The summer while repeating its existing layouts can be tempting, but the kitchen of your dreams probably includes updated functionality and flow. So we’re going to share some tips for kitchen layouts that make it easier on the cook. |
| 00:01:41 | TOM: And if you’re concerned about losing power this summer, but want a solution other than a noisy generator, we’re going to share a super powerful plug and play option that can power your home in an instant. |
| 00:01:51 | LESLIE: But first, do you feel like you’re in a constant game of tug of war with your house and maybe your house is winning? Well, we’re here to help you. Take back that lead from advice to answers to hot new products where you’re one stop shopping for all things DIY. |
| 00:02:05 | TOM: So let’s start with your questions. The number again is 1-888-Money-Pit-888-666-3974. Or for the fastest possible response, go to moneypit.com slash ask and click the blue microphone button. Let’s get started. Leslie, who’s first? |
| 00:02:21 | LESLIE: Leslie All right. We’ve got Maya from Iowa online. Now Maya is dealing with some steps outside that have carpeting glued to them. That sounds like a terrible combination of things. What is going on at your money pit? |
| 00:02:32 | CALLER: My house has two step brick steps on the west side of my house and it’s covered in carpet, outdoor carpet that’s been glued on. Now there are some holes starting in that carpet and I’m wondering what the best way is to remove it. Once I get it removed. What would be your advice on what I should do with that step? |
| 00:03:02 | TOM: Well, Maya, I tell you that’s a heck of a mess you got yourself into there because trying to remove that carpet that’s glued on is very difficult under any circumstances. There are adhesive removers that you can use but the best you’re going to get is it’s going to soften it up and then maybe you can kind of scrape it flat. Now I do have one idea for you and that is for you to try to apply pavers on top of this old step. You want to just make sure that you’re not altering the height but there’s a type of paver called a Milano paver. It’s made by the Pave Stone Company and it’s a thinner paver so it’s only, it’s probably less than an inch thick and you can glue these on because the problem is this, with all that old glue on there, you’re not going to, you’re going to have a heck of a time getting anything else to stick. You know, you’re not going to get paint stick terribly well, you certainly couldn’t use any of the concrete repair products because they’re designed to basically go over old concrete. But if you were to glue something on top of that, either the pavers or you could use also a ceramic tile, make sure it’s rated for outside and it’s not slippery. But if you were to think about gluing back on top of that concrete surface, top of that step or the little stoop, whatever it is, either a tile or a paver, then I think you could have a nice looking surface there and have something that could stay around for a long time. |
| 00:04:17 | LESLIE: Head into upstate New York where we’ve got Anthony on the line who’s dealing with a chimney that’s losing its stucco. What’s going on? |
| 00:04:24 | CALLER: This house is 80 years old. About 20 years old I had stucco put on it because some of the bricks were loose and few were broken. And after, now it’s starting to deteriorate. Some of the stucco has taken off and some moisture has got under a lot of the other stucco and I would say about 70% of it is loose. And I’m just wondering what would be the best way to repair it. |
| 00:04:52 | TOM: Well, it sounds like it gave you credit. You’ve done quite a few years of service there, Anthony. So what you’re going to have to do now is to remove as much of this loose stucco as possible. The good news is that in that 20-year term, the products have gotten a lot better at adhering to masonry surfaces. For example, you’ll find if you look at the products made by Quikrete, they have a wide variety of products that are designed to adhere to old concrete or brick surfaces and the secret is really in that adhesion. Now I just used, for example, a product they have that’s called ReCap and it’s designed for slabs. I’m not sure it’s designed for chimneys, but they have other products. |
| 00:05:32 | CALLER: What’s the name of that again? |
| 00:05:34 | TOM: ReCap, R-E-C-A-P. I’m not so sure if it’s designed to work on walls, but I know it works on sidewalks. But they have another patching compound that’s designed specifically for like cracked steps and stoops and that certainly would work on a chimney. And they adhere very, very well and that’s the key. They bind with the masonry surface. They bind with the masonry surface underneath and that’s what gives you the longevity because of course what happens is any masonry product is going to get wet in the winter and in the rain and it’s going to freeze and as it does so, it starts to push itself off and that’s why it gets loose after all those years, just the expansion and contraction of the freeze thaw cycle. So, I think if you pick up the right product, you should be able to repair that again and get a good number of years out of it. |
| 00:06:17 | CALLER: Should I take all the stucco off? Absolutely. |
| 00:06:20 | TOM: Well, not all of it, but anything that’s loose. Uh-huh. If it’s still tightly bound, you don’t have to take that off, but if it’s loose, you absolutely have to take it off because you can’t put good patching compound over bad stucco. |
| 00:06:33 | CALLER: Okay. |
| 00:06:34 | TOM: All right? Okay. Thank you very much. Hey, you’re welcome. Good luck with that project. |
| 00:06:39 | LESLIE: Hey, Money Pit Podcast fans. You want to help us out? Well, go ahead and leave us a five-star review on Apple Podcasts and we’re going to give you a virtual high five, plus you’ll be helping us spread the word about our show. Just go to MoneyPit.com slash review. |
| 00:06:54 | LESLIE: And in New Jersey on the line, we need some help refinishing a countertop. |
| 00:06:57 | CALLER: I was curious, I’m renovating my kitchen and I don’t have the money for new countertops. Can you recommend a coating that I can use for countertops for the kitchen that will stand up to wear and tear? |
| 00:07:16 | LESLIE: Now, Tom, you just used a really great product to re-vamp a countertop at one of your places, right? |
| 00:07:21 | TOM: I did. Yeah. I used Daich Coatings products. They have multiple countertop products. The one I used on a second floor apartment was called Luxe Rock, which gave me the look of a granite finish. And it was truly amazing because it looked just like granite when we were finished, but super durable and easy to do. And actually, I’m working on another kitchen right now and I’m using a different product called Marble Dream that has the look of marble. You have lots of options with that one as well. So those two products, Jason, are by Daich Coatings. D-A-I-C-H Coatings.com. They’re available online and at major retailers. So we would recommend those and suggest you take a look. |
| 00:08:01 | LESLIE: We’ve got Rochelle in Delaware on the line who’s dealing with a foundation issue. What’s going on? How can we help? |
| 00:08:05 | CALLER: I have a two-bedroom ranch which is on a concrete slab. The foundation has a crack in it and my kitchen floor is starting to dip. What can I do to resolve this issue? Wow. |
| 00:08:22 | TOM: That sounds like a potentially serious problem, Rochelle. My first question is whether or not this is an active crack. I mean, all foundations have cracks, but is there clear evidence this is active and ongoing? And that might take somebody with some professional skills to determine. You may, if you suspect that’s the case, you may want to hire either a structural engineer or a professional home inspector to take a look at that. Do not hire a contractor to take a look at that because they’re going to have a big conflict of interest. And determine whether it’s ongoing and active, and if that’s the case, then you absolutely would need a structural engineer to determine what the extent of the problem is and how to repair it. I don’t know how old your house is, but in Delaware, builders are required to place a 10-year structural warranty on homes. So if that’s the case, then you definitely need to give notice to the warranty company as well as the builder. Not just the builder, but both, the warranty company and the builder, so that there’s a record of you making this claim inside that 10-year warranty. So I hope that that gives you some direction, but determine if it’s active first, get some professional help, and if it’s covered by a builder’s warranty, make sure that you give them notice. |
| 00:09:31 | LESLIE: Well, adding a backyard deck is one surefire way that you can increase your home’s living space. But if you’re not careful, it’s really easy to make some costly mistakes. So here’s what you need to avoid. First of all, you’ve got to think about traffic flow and convenience. Now, most people like their decks to be just off the kitchen for obvious reasons. Now, if you’re going to build a wrap-in, you’ve got to think about traffic flow and convenience. If you’re going to build a wrap-around deck, you want to try to have the door to the deck just off of the kitchen, which is going to make all of that summer barbecuing and even wintertime grilling a breeze. |
| 00:10:00 | TOM: And make sure that you include room for a dining area with chairs that is not between you and the pathway from the kitchen to the grill. Don’t forget to consider options like built-in benches and planters and even lighting, all of which can make your deck a lot more accommodating and comfortable. And next, your deck will be shiny and new once it’s built, but not for long. If you choose to build a wall, you want to make sure that your deck is shiny and new. If you choose to build a wooden deck, keep in mind that the least expensive option, which of course is pressure-treated wood, does require upkeep in the form of stain and sealants to keep out the water and to keep the lumber looking fresh. |
| 00:10:33 | LESLIE: Now, if you want wood and you can afford it, cedar is a great choice since it’s naturally weather and insect resistant, and it weathers to a nice kind of mellow gray tone. Composite decking, that generally does require little or no upkeep, but it’s considerably more expensive than most wood decking, and you’re not likely to recoup that cost. Now, if you’re planning on staying in your home for the foreseeable future, it’s a good option that does eliminate the worry of splinters on bare feet and then, again, barely any deck maintenance. Just once in a while with a pressure washer, and that composite is awesome. |
| 00:11:12 | TOM: For more tips, check out how to plan an amazing deck on moneypit.com. |
| 00:11:17 | LESLIE: All right, we’re heading to Georgia, where carpenter bees are destroying the day-to-day life of Kevin. Boy, are they annoying. What’s going on? |
| 00:11:24 | CALLER: Well, about 10 years ago, we had a screened-in porch built. About two years prior to that, we had a privacy fence put up around the backyard, and we have more wood bees, carpenter bees, than I’ve ever seen in my life. I have 25 traps set up. Every time I turn around, I’m finding more wood bees. I use the wood bee spray. |
| 00:11:50 | CALLER: I’ve felt… Fill in the holes with wood putty, and the next year or later on in the year, you know, they’ve just come out in another area. If you have a trick I haven’t thought of, I would sure appreciate it. |
| 00:12:05 | TOM: Well, it sounds like those carpenter bees are sort of wearing a wrecking belt here for this trip around your house, Kevin. Sorry to hear that. So, a couple of things come to mind. First of all, if you have that severe a problem, trying to chase this yourself, especially with over-the-counter, so to speak. I would definitely hire a pest control professional to treat these carpenter bees. They have access to different pesticides that you don’t have access to. They know where to put it, how much to put there, and they also can use pesticides that can stay around a little while longer than the stuff you can buy, and therefore give you some long-term protection. You are doing the right thing by filling the holes. What I also do on properties that I have where I’ve got carpenter bees that attack, like the fascia or the soffit material, that’s soft wood, is I replace it with AZEK, A-Z-E-K, which basically looks like wood, but it’s made of PVC, so they can’t eat it. |
| 00:13:08 | LESLIE: They can’t eat it. They’re going to try, but then they’re going to realize to go somewhere else. |
| 00:13:12 | TOM: They’ll be like saying, hey, looks like wood, doesn’t taste like wood. So, they do try to eat it. |
| 00:13:19 | LESLIE: I mean, we had the last remaining. The last remaining lumber in the yard was the play set, and the carpenter bees, I don’t know how many tunnels and pathways they’ve made in there, and the kids were terrified to run past it, and I got rid of that, and for about a week, the bees were like, whoa, wait, what happened? And now they are gone. It’s amazing, because everything else is AZEK. |
| 00:13:42 | TOM: They found something else to eat at somebody else’s house, so they left. |
| 00:13:45 | LESLIE: Thank goodness. |
| 00:13:45 | TOM: Yeah, so it’s a matter of both. We’re using the right kind of pesticides to treat it, and then also trying to eliminate it as much. Yeah. As much of that wood as possible. So, good luck with that project. |
| 00:13:55 | LESLIE: All right, we’ve got Dewey looking to make some real estate income here. He’s got a three-unit property, and, well, two out of three ain’t bad. Isn’t that what Meatloaf says? One of them’s not quite ready. What’s going on? |
| 00:14:07 | CALLER: I bought a three-unit building where I live in one of the units. I think it was built in about 1905, and the basement unit has a really bad odor coming from one of the rooms. Prior to moving in, the unit had some pretty bad backed-up sewage that flooded some of the unit. The room in question has carpet squares and kind of confirmed the smells coming from the drywall. The room is on the sharing the exterior side of the house, so my question is how to figure out if it’s from the flood, if there’s leaking from the foundation. And if we do replace the drywall, making sure that that was the cause of the smell. The other thing is the exterior, there’s some type of black material that was used to seal the sidewalk to the building, and what’s the best way to seal that to make sure there’s not leaking rainwater coming in as well. |
| 00:15:13 | TOM: Well, it sounds like a great investment having a three-unit building. We just got to get one-third of that unit into a rental. That’s a reasonable condition, Leslie. The fact of the matter is if you’ve had a flood that has sewage, you always need to really tear up any part of the drywall that was connected to that. And also, if there was wiring, like the flood went above the outlets, then the wiring has to be changed, and the outlets have to be changed, so you’re going to have to do a fair amount of demolition there. |
| 00:15:41 | LESLIE: But you would have to do that even if it was not sewage, if it was water, correct? |
| 00:15:45 | TOM: Any kind of water, that’s right. Sewage just makes it even worse. |
| 00:15:48 | LESLIE: It just makes it more gross. Yeah. |
| 00:15:51 | TOM: I think that a remediation company could really help here because they’re good at this. They know what to do with these types of leaks and floods because they’ll not only get rid of anything that’s impacted. They can treat the wall cavities with the appropriate types of cleaning products to kill anything that’s left behind because you could biogas from everything that’s going to be in that wall. |
| 00:16:17 | LESLIE: And it could just make you super sick. |
| 00:16:19 | TOM: It really can. And it’s got to be a lot healthier. It’s got to be completely healthy if you’re going to rent that space out. So I think you’ve got a bit of a mess on your hands here. But the other thing is about the carpet, really bad idea to have carpet in a basement, right? |
| 00:16:32 | LESLIE: Well, I mean, everybody likes the feeling of a cozy floor, especially in a basement, but it’s just a space that’s prone to moisture. There could be leaks. There could be flooding, depending on weather conditions. And even if your basement’s been bone dry, get a crazy storm and you’re going to have to clean it up. And it might not be that time. So it’s better to do a floor that’s water resistant, something that’s a solid surface that’s meant to be used in a basement space below grade. And then get yourself an area rug when, should it get wet, you’re able to clean it, toss it, whatever. Absolutely. |
| 00:17:05 | TOM: In terms of that sidewalk outside, that’s probably an asphalt sealant that was used between the sidewalk and the house. Just generally speaking on the outside of your house, make sure the water is draining away from the foundation. And if that sidewalk slab happens to pitch in to the house, that’s a bad thing. No matter what you seal it with, you’re not going to stop water from getting into that wall. So that would be a case where you’d have to either tear out the concrete and replace it, or depending on how it’s built, sometimes you can lift that concrete one section at a time and actually repitch it. |
| 00:17:35 | LESLIE: All right. Now we’re going to chat with Teresa, who’s got an idea for a different kind of floor coating. |
| 00:17:39 | CALLER: How can we help you? I’m interested in the hardwood wax oil finishing. I was going to get my hardwood floors redone. Just wanted to know what your thoughts are. I have a man and three dogs, and I was wondering, is this stuff durable? Because I can’t find anybody in this area to do it, but they say I can do it myself. |
| 00:17:57 | TOM: Well, I’ll tell you, Teresa, yeah, I know what kind of floor finishing you’re talking about, and it’s not going to stand up to a man and three dogs or just about any other kind of normal wear and tear. You’re referring to a type of finishing that we call French polish, and what it consists of is paste wax and boiled linseed oil. Basically, you use boiled linseed oil, not regular, because that’s what you’re going to do, because the regular will not dry, but you use boiled linseed oil, and it’s applied with a paste wax finish, and it’s buffed in place, and it’s a beautiful, soft, warm finish, but it is not a durable finish. It is not going to be like a varnish or like a polyurethane. It is really for a home that’s going to get very, very light duty, and yeah, you could do it yourself, but you’re going to need some pretty big equipment, like a floor buffer at least, because trying to buff this in my hand would completely wear you out, at least it would me. So it’s a beautiful finish, but I just don’t think it’s a good choice for the situation when you have pets, when you have people in the house that are going to be giving it a lot of wear and tear, dragging in the sand from the outside, the dirt, the mud, whatever. It’s just not a good choice. So what I would do is I would lightly sand the floor, assuming it’s not in bad condition. I would lightly sand it. There’s a machine, a couple of different machines that are like pad sanders that don’t take off a lot of wood, but they take off the finish and get it ready for a new coat, and then I would use… Probably at least two coats of a satin polyurethane, an oil-based polyurethane, and those are really pretty easy to apply. You use a lamb’s-wool applicator for that, which is kind of like a mop, and you basically spread it out and let it dry, and whatever the can says, double it for drying time, and I think you’ll find it’s going to be a much more durable finish, and if you choose satin, it’s still going to be a soft glow, but at this time it will really stand up. |
| 00:19:39 | LESLIE: Well, if you’ve been frustrated by the layout of your kitchen, summer is a great time to take on a renovation project. Now, the hardest part can just be figuring out where to start, so here’s how to get started. First of all, it’s really easy to stick with the same old current design plan that you’ve got, because you’re used to it, but thinking outside of those old boxes can bring inspiration on a brand new and even more efficient kitchen layout. Changes to the location of the sink, functionality of the countertops, adding or even removing an island to just free up some space, and getting strategic with your lighting can definitely make sure that you have both task and application. |
| 00:20:15 | TOM: Now, speaking of pro designers, if you need to find an experienced one, check out the National Kitchen and Bath Association, or NKBA, because they have a certification program for kitchen and bath designers. And it’s not an easy certification to get. To become an NKBA-certified kitchen and bath designer, pros need to have at least five years of design experience and need to complete at least 60 hours of continuing education. |
| 00:20:44 | LESLIE: Yeah, and the really nice thing about working with a pro designer is that you can pretty much wipe the slate clean and start from scratch, so the sky’s the limit. Seeing beautiful kitchen designs in a showroom or on websites can be fun, but it also is definitely overwhelming. But the skills of a design pro can make the difference and help you achieve all that is possible for your space, and all while potentially saving you the money, the time, and the hassle of figuring it out on your own. All right, now we’re heading out to Las Vegas, where Bruce is on the line with a question. Bruce, I have a question about windows. What can we do for you today? |
| 00:21:16 | CALLER: I wanted to know about your opinion on the effectiveness of e-windows. I have approximately a 3,000-square-foot home that’s two stories, but I actually don’t put the air conditioning on until it’s about 110 outside, and then I put it on to about 85. And I have some shutters in the house, so I wonder what you thought on e-windows. |
| 00:21:38 | TOM: Well, when you say e-windows, Bruce, are you talking about low e? Yes. Okay. |
| 00:21:44 | CALLER: That’s what it’s called, right? |
| 00:21:45 | TOM: Yeah. So yeah, so low e, and the e stands for emittance, and basically what it is is a reflective coating that is on the glass. And most high-efficiency windows, or I would dare to say almost all of them, have a low e coating. And what it does is it takes the UV from the sun and reflects it back outside. So very, very important to have low e window glass in Las Vegas, especially with the heat that you experience. That’s going to make a dramatic difference on how much heat actually gets into the house itself. It’s going to reflect it back out. So it is definitely a measure of efficiency and something you want to look for when you’re shopping for those windows. |
| 00:22:21 | CALLER: Okay. Well, with the caveat that, like I said, I don’t put the air on until it gets to be about 110 outside. |
| 00:22:26 | TOM: I understand. But no matter what comfort level you like to use that air conditioning, you’re going to be using less of it if you have low e glass. |
| 00:22:34 | CALLER: And any idea of approximate cost and the difference of … |
| 00:22:38 | TOM: You know, I wouldn’t consider for a second not using low e glass in a house, no matter where it was in the country that I was building or putting windows in. I wouldn’t be able to tell you what the cost difference is. But if it’s a thermal pane, average quality thermal pane window, it’s going to have low e glass. Thank you so much. |
| 00:22:57 | LESLIE: Heading to Georgia, where Tamara’s on the line with a rust problem. What’s going on at your money pit? |
| 00:23:01 | CALLER: I was having some work done inside my house. I was actually having a banister put in with metal rails. Okay. So they were cutting up the rails outside on my pavers, on my windows. I was in the hallway. And you wouldn’t see anything. And then winter came and went, and we were left with a very bad rust stain on the pavers. And we don’t know if we should use a pressure washer or a chemical something to take it off. |
| 00:23:29 | TOM: Well, you definitely do not want to use a pressure washer, because that’s going to destroy the pavers. What you want to do is use some sort of a chemical product or a natural acid to take it off. So you can start with the easy stuff. Most rust removers have some sort of a chemical. There’s a lot of acid in it. So you can start by pouring lemon juice on the rusted surface. Let that sit. Kind of work it in with a nylon brush or a wire brush. In addition to lemon juice, you could try natural vinegar. That works as well. But if those two don’t work, then I would use a product like Iron Out. Have you seen Iron Out? Many people use it in the laundry to take iron stains out of clothing. But that works really well as well. Okay. |
| 00:24:08 | CALLER: I’ll try that. How about like CLR? Yeah. |
| 00:24:10 | TOM: I mean, that would be worth a shot. I think you’re in the right department here. Or you could use TSP, trisodium phosphate, and you mix that up into sort of a thick soapy solution and apply it to the rusted out areas, the rusted stained areas, and let it sit for a while and then rinse it off. |
| 00:24:23 | CALLER: Terrific. Thank you so very much. |
| 00:24:26 | TOM: Well, guys, if you’re concerned about losing power this summer but you want a solution other than a noisy generator, EcoFlow’s new Delta Pro 3 Home Battery Backup is a really smart solution. The Delta Pro 3 features powerful capabilities and an elegant compact design that can easily integrate into your home. It’s also portable, so it can power outdoor activities from picnics to dinner parties to tailgating and more. Yeah. |
| 00:24:51 | LESLIE: You know, the setup is also plug and play, so it’s really hassle-free and it’s seamless. It can be used as either a standalone battery backup or integrated within your household power system to cover just the circuits and the appliances that you choose. In fact, the DP3 offers a maximum continuous output of 4,000 watts and both 120 or 240 volt output. That means you can power almost anything and everything, including those household appliances like your dryer, a water heater, air conditioning, even induction stoves. |
| 00:25:22 | TOM: Yeah, and the unit can function alone or can be expanded in capacity to power multiple high-power home appliances at the same time. Plus, it has seven industry-leading fast-charging options, so the DP3 will be ready when you need it. |
| 00:25:36 | LESLIE: And you know, I also really like that you don’t have to go outside during extreme weather conditions to adjust or even to operate again. And while traditional generators are noisy and disruptive to your daily life, DP3 features EX-Cooling exclusive technology for ultra quiet operation at just 30 decibels under a 2,000 watt load. |
| 00:25:56 | TOM: Get ready for the inevitable power losses this summer and beyond with the new sleek and powerful Delta Pro3 from EcoFlow. Learn more at EcoFlow.com. That’s E-C-O-F-L-O-W dot com. |
| 00:26:09 | LESLIE: Brian in Arkansas is on the line and has a mysterious odor in his head. |
| 00:26:13 | CALLER: in the house. What’s going on? I’ve got a crawl space under my house of about 1,900 square feet, and we’ve noticed the last several years, only in the summer, when we go away from a long weekend, we come back on a Sunday night, and there’s a peculiar odor in the house. It’s a musty smell, |
| 00:26:28 | TOM: if you will, but again, only in the summertime. Well, it’s typically more humid in the summer, and you mentioned that it only happens when you’re away, so you have less air movement inside the house. Doors are not being opened and closed. Is this crawl space under your house, does it have |
| 00:26:43 | CALLER: a vapor barrier over it, Brian? Well, when the house was built 15 years ago, they put down some probably four or six mil sheeting, but it wasn’t completely encapsulated, so what I have done in the last two weeks is gotten some 15 mil poly, and I have totally encapsulated under the house. |
| 00:27:00 | TOM: I’ve wrapped the pillars, I’ve sealed the walls, and I’ve taped the seams. So that’s great. So something else that you can do is you could add an exhaust fan, into that crawl space, and have it set to work off a humidistat, and the way you do that is they have crawl space fans that are basically 8 by 16 inches, which is the same size as a concrete block, so in lieu of one of the vents, you install this fan, and you wire it to a humidistat, maybe mounted somewhere in the middle of the crawl space, and then when the moisture gets really high, the humidistat will kick on the fan, and it will draw some drier air through the crawl space. Now, the third thing that you can do is just to be very careful, with your outdoor drainage maintenance. So by that, I mean make sure you have gutters on the house, that the downspouts are discharging away from the house, and that the soil around the crawl space perimeter slopes away from the house. By trying to keep that water away from those walls, you’ll reduce the amount of moisture that’s building up in the crawl space. Does that make |
| 00:27:57 | CALLER: sense? It does. I think I’ve got all that covered at this point. What about a dehumidifier? I’ve |
| 00:28:02 | CALLER: been told that’s the next step. You could put a dehumidifier in, but I would rather see you |
| 00:28:07 | TOM: put that simple ventilation fan in there. Hooked up to a humidistat on first. But if you want to put a dehumidifier in, I would take a look at the one by Santa Fe. I actually just put a Santa Fe dehumidifier in my basement, and it’s working really, really well. And I liked it because it’s not very big. It hangs from the rafters, and it was only 12 by 12 by 22. So it was a pretty small unit, so it didn’t take up a lot |
| 00:28:32 | CALLER: of space, and it’s doing a really good job. The one I put in takes out 70 pints of water a day. Wow. |
| 00:28:39 | CALLER: Well, as I take each step, I’m trying to go and see if I’m doing everything correct. Could there be anything else that I’m missing, or am I assuming that the smell is coming from under |
| 00:28:50 | TOM: the house up into the first floor? Well, I mean, the only other typical source of smells in houses is plumbing smells. So sometimes you get biogas in the drains of your sinks or your tubs. That can cause an odor. But if you clean those out with like an oxygenated bleach, that will keep that under control. But if you have a dehumidifier, you can put a dehumidifier |
| 00:29:09 | CALLER: in there. If you have that kind of humid, musty smell, it may very well be coming from the crawl |
| 00:29:12 | CALLER: space. Okay. So if I totally encapsulate it and either put a fan in and or a dehumidifier, |
| 00:29:18 | CALLER: should I see results in just a couple of weeks, maybe? I think so, yes. |
| 00:29:22 | CALLER: Okay. Because that takes care of the air under the house, which affects the first floor as well, |
| 00:29:26 | CALLER: I guess. Absolutely. I will proceed with that. All right, Brian. And anytime you have questions, |
| 00:29:31 | LESLIE: you can reach us at 1-888-Money-Pit. All right. Nicole reached out to Team Money Pit saying, what is the rule of thumb? Painting over water stains. I recently fixed a leaking second floor shower, but I’ve noticed that there’s a black stain around a nail hole where the leak occurred, which I assume is mold. |
| 00:29:48 | TOM: It could be rust though too, right? It could be rust or it could be another reaction of the water and the drywall and the paint. It often causes, and the nail of course, often causes those sort of blackish stains. In fact, I don’t think it is mold in this case, although everyone will probably default to calling it that. I really think it’s just a stain. That will be, should be easy to fix, but only if you attack it in the right way, Nicole. So what you need to do is you need to make sure that you are priming that spot where that nail is. And if it’s, if it’s a loose nail, I would put another one next to it so that the head is overlapped and that will stop that, that loose nail from coming out any further. But definitely do that. And then you want to prime it with a good quality primer. I think acrylic primer is fine in this case, but you can’t just put ceiling paint on it because if you do, the stain will sort of draw right through. You’ve got to prime the spot first and then paint over it |
| 00:30:43 | LESLIE: and you should be good to go. All right. Now, Jan wrote in wanting to know how to tell the age of a home. She says, I’ve heard you ask listeners how old their house is, and I’m wondering how I might |
| 00:30:53 | TOM: figure that out for my house. Oh, that’s a really good question. That’s something that I had to do a lot of sort of see the pants calculations of when I was a home inspector to try to figure out house age, but there’s a few ways to do it. Now, if your home is newer, and by that, I mean less than say 30 or 40 or even 50 years old and has the original plumbing fixtures, you can pull like the lid of your toilet off, turn upside down. You’ll see a date stamp right in there because that’s very, very common. Even going back, frankly, almost a hundred years, sometimes I’ve seen those date stamps in because it’s the way manufacturers made these tanks. They always did that. Same thing with sinks, like kitchen sinks that have cast iron. I’ve seen the dates sort of actually cast right into those sinks. So that’s one way to do it. Secondly is of course, seeing what kind of building materials are being used here. For example, if it’s copper plumbing, that’s probably from the sixties. If you have old knob and tube wiring, first of all, you shouldn’t still have it because it’s pretty dangerous, but that’s going to be from like 1900, 1910. In fact, on our website at moneybit.com, we have an article now it’s called home repair tips by age of house. And in it, I go through all the common home repairs based on home age. And you can use this to get a sense of what’s going on in your home. So if you’re a home repairer, you can use this to get a sense of what’s going on in your home. So for example, if you have steel plumbing pipes and you can still see them, if you’re not active anymore, that means the house was built probably between 1900 and 1940 or so. If you have an undersized electrical system, that was probably pretty common around 1940 to 1960. If your home has some of the original decorating from maybe the sixties, you’re going to notice everything is dark, dark, dark. We call that decorating stark era. That’s like 1960 to 1980. And if you have a home that’s a little bit aluminum wiring was common in 1962. Hope you don’t have any of that. Let’s see what else. How about roof ventilation? The homes that were built in the last 40 years or so don’t have that much ventilation. So often those roofs have mold that forms on the underside of them. So all sorts of keys there to determining house age. And sometimes you get lucky and open up electrical panel and you’ll see when the first inspection was. It’s just a date right there and you know what it is. |
| 00:33:03 | LESLIE: All right, Jan. Well, good luck with all of your projects. And I hope you figure out that your house is the perfect age for you. |
| 00:33:09 | TOM: This is the Money Pit Home Improvement Show on air and online at moneypit.com. We hope you guys are having a great summer weekend and that we’ve given you a tip or two that helps you take on the projects that are on your to-do list. You can reach us 24 seven at 888-Money-Pit or always at moneypit.com slash ask. Until next time, I’m Tom Kraeutler. |
| LESLIE: And I’m Leslie Segrete. | |
| TOM: Remember, you can do it yourself, 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.) |
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