Show Notes
- Paying for Home Repairs: Want to buy a fixer-upper and still have funds for making repairs? New mortgage programs offer assistance.
- Extending Roof Life: Old, dried-out roof shingles can be rejuvenated with a treatment that adds years to the life of your life.
- Concrete Restoration: If you’ve got cracks, holes, or worn areas in concrete surfaces, there’s a way to fix the flaws and smooth things out.
Table of Contents[Hide][Show]
Plus, answers to your home improvement questions about:
- Hot Water Delay: Tired of waiting for the water to get hot? Loretta can either install a tankless water heater or a less expensive hot water recirculating system.
- Uneven Concrete: Part of the concrete porch slab is rising up. We give Charlie tips on preparing a new base to keep things level or creating a tapered ramp.
- HVAC System: There’s a big difference in the upstairs and downstairs temperatures in Amber’s home. Ceiling fans, a split ductless system, or additional ducting and vents can help.
- Dryer Vents: Should a broken dryer vent be repaired or replaced? We think Jim should replace the dryer vent and part of the duct that goes through his wall.
- Water Pressure: Krista has very low water pressure. She needs to test the pressure at different points to find any restrictions and see if it’s the well system.
- Foundation: After doing an addition, Larry’s house is starting to sink and the floor is bowing. He must get a structural engineer to evaluate what to do.
- Quartz Countertops: Why are there dull spots on the quartz countertops? Carolyn should be polishing the quartz surface regularly.
Podcast Transcript
Read Transcript
| 0:00:36 | TOM: Coast to coast and floorboards to shingles. This is the Money Pit Home Improvement show. I’m Tom Kraeutler. |
| 0:00:42 | LESLIE: And I’m Leslie Segrete. |
| 0:00:43 | TOM: We are here to help you take on projects you’d like to get done around your house, whether it’s a house, a condo, a co-op, whether you live in the house year round, or maybe it’s just a vacation place. If you’ve got a project that needs to get done, whether you’re doing it yourself or maybe it’s a project you want to hire a pro to help you tackle and you’re at a spot where you just need some ideas, you need some guidance, you’re stuck in the middle. Hey, those are all things that we can help with. We’ve been at this now for over 20 years and we’ve got the skills, the tips, the ideas to save your money, help you get that project done once done right, so you can get back to enjoying your space. So first step, those to help yourself are reaching out to us. And there are a couple of ways to do that. The best way is to go to money. BET.com slash ask that’s moneypit.com/ask and click the blue microphone button. You can record your question for us right there and we’ll get back to you the next time we are in the studio. Or you can call us anytime at 888-MONEY-PIT that’s 888-666-3974. Coming up on today’s show, are you guys looking for a good deal on a fixer upper? But maybe you’re a little bit worried you don’t have the money to make the needed repairs. Well, guess what? There is a popular HUD mortgage program available that will lend you both the funds to buy the house and what you need for the fix up. We’ll tell you how that all works. |
| 0:01:59 | LESLIE: And also ahead, is your roof more than ten or 15 years old? if it is, you might be thinking that it’s going to be time to replace it soon, but maybe not. We’re going to share a new product that can add five years of life to your roof with a single treatment. |
| 0:02:12 | TOM: And if winter has left your concrete surfaces with cracks and holes and generally looking kind of worn out and tired, we’re going to share a new product that makes fixing these flaws easier than ever. |
| 0:02:23 | LESLIE: But first, we want to know what you’ve got planned for this weekend. Next weekend, spring, summer. What is it that you’re working on at your Money Pit? Whatever it is, let us give you a hand. So reach out and let us know what’s going on. |
| 0:02:34 | TOM: Possibly do. We’ve got a fantastic giveaway for today’s show. We’ve got the Wagner control pro airless paint sprayer to give out to one very lucky listener drawn at random. If you’d like to win that paint sprayer, you’ve got to reach out to us with your home improvement question. Again, you can do that at 888-MONEY-PIT or by going to Moneypit.com/ask. Let’s get to it. Leslie, who’s first? |
| 0:02:57 | LESLIE: We’ve got Loretta from Delaware on the line who’s got a question about hot water. What’s going on? I hope you have some. |
| 0:03:03 | CALLER: That’s not that bad. It’s just I’m not used to waiting so long for the water to get hot. |
| 0:03:10 | TOM: Is this a new situation, or have you always had to wait a long time for the water to get hot? |
| 0:03:14 | CALLER: Loretta It’s a brand new house and we have a new hot water system. I don’t want to mention any names. |
| 0:03:21 | TOM: Yeah, well the thing is, it’s not really the fault of the hot water system, because what this is, is a function of the distance between the water heater itself and your bathroom. The farther apart they are, the longer the water which is called in the pipes has to run to basically dump itself out and become hot. So the solution here is really twofold. One’s really expensive and the other one is not expensive. So I’m going to guess going to go with the not expensive solution. The expensive solution is you could put it in another water heater closer to the bathroom, a tankless unit, but I don’t think that’s necessary. There is a basically a plumbing part called a hot water recirculating system. And what a hot water recirculation system does is it recirculate some of that cold water back to the water heater through the existing piping system to be reheated at key periods during the day. So think of it in terms of like a timer. So you might set this to go on. Well, let’s let’s presume we’re in a normal economy where you’re maybe waking up at five or six in the morning to get ready to go to work. So you would have it come on then and then go off when you left for work and so on. So you could set this for the morning hours or the evening hours whenever you want to make sure you don’t have to wait for hot water and it will automatically circulate some of that cold water back to B to be heated. And in that case, you’ll have rather instant hot water. Now, it’s not something that you want on 24 seven, because there’s no point in keeping the water in that pipe hot all the time when you’re not using it like when you’re sleeping or you’re doing something else during the day. But in key periods where you don’t have to wait for the water to make that long trip from the water heater to your bathroom, you can use this this recirculating system with timers to basically do it for you. A brand name that we have a lot of respect for is Watts. I actually worked with Watts a long time ago when these products were first being developed and help tell their story. But I think it’s a good product. It’s solidly built. You could find it online at like homedepot.com and not expensive. About 200 bucks and relatively simple plumbing project to install if you’re a DIY or if not a fairly short trip for a plumber to do. So I would take a look at the Watts hot water recirculating system with built in timer and as I said, you can look that up on Homedepot.com or probably on Amazon as well. |
| 0:05:41 | CALLER: Well, that sounds a lot better than my husband’s idea, which is don’t use too hot water. |
| 0:05:46 | LESLIE: That’s a terrible idea. |
| 0:05:48 | TOM: Nice guy. |
| 0:05:49 | CALLER: No. Yeah. |
| 0:05:50 | TOM: He must be a lot of fun to hang out with. |
| 0:05:53 | CALLER: But I appreciate all your. |
| 0:05:55 | TOM: Eric. Yeah. Good luck, Loretta. |
| 0:05:57 | LESLIE: Charlie in Texas is online has a question about a porch. What’s going on? |
| 0:06:02 | CALLER: Added a portion to a porch. I had it done. I had a particular put on it, and the concrete has risen about an inch from the other portion that was already poured. Yeah, I mean ideas. What I can do about that, huh? |
| 0:06:17 | TOM: So it rose up. Do you have expansive soils in your part of the country? |
| 0:06:22 | CALLER: I no, it’s pretty clay soils and I did have a sprinkler system underneath it, but I had completely tapped it off and everything. And then I had a company come in there and pour the slab so I could put a pergola on it. And it has risen about an inch above where the original porch was poured. |
| 0:06:42 | TOM: So it didn’t crack. It just it basically just like raised up above the old levels are correct? |
| 0:06:48 | CALLER: That’s correct. |
| 0:06:49 | TOM: The reason I ask you about expansive soils was a type of soil called expanse of clay soil. And there’s a fairly good amount of it in Texas. And when expansive clay soils get wet, they expand. And that could cause this heaving. I don’t think it’s frost heave. |
| 0:07:05 | CALLER: Oh, no, it’s not that. |
| 0:07:06 | TOM: All because you don’t have those kinds of swings, but it may be the soils and you’re not going to be able to get to settle back down again. I could tell you that. So if you do redo this right, and if you dig it out and redo it, one of the things that you might talk to the contractor about is they may be able to insert, drill some rebar into the old concrete and basically have it have a physical connection between the two to keep them in basically in line, right? It’s going to be not an easy it is going to depend on how thick that all that original surface is and whether they can do it without cracking. And so on. So that’s one thing I would say. And then the other thing I would talk I would see is pay careful attention to how you prep the base underneath the slab that you’re now going to replace to make sure that it’s dug out enough. It’s got stone in it. It’s well, tamped, mechanically tamped would be smart if you had six inches of stone before you put the concrete in and then you put rebar on top of that, keep it all in one piece when it’s poured that’s going to be a lot harder for that to move even if you do get some expansion. And then just be very cautious of water collection in that area. So what I mean by that is if you have downspouts that may drain towards that area or is anything else that causing water to congregate in that area and you could minimize that. That would help if, in fact, you do have these types of expansive soils that I’m talking about. There’s a product called recap that will stick to old concrete. Yeah. What if you were to make a band of carve, basically sort of trowel yourself a ramp, right. Not I would make it like 12 inches wide where it took the high edge of the new slab and then tapered it down to the old porch so that it wasn’t like a tripping hazard there because the replacing this thing is going to be really expensive. And it’s a lot of work if you don’t use it. Yeah, if you don’t mind trying this in the interim, you might want to pick up some recap. Essentially, the way it works is you clean the concrete and then you wet it down you trail on this recap. If it was me, what I would do is I would probably snap a chalk line about 12 inches from the in from the new edge so that I had some to aim towards, right? And then I would build it up even with the new edge and I would trowel it down to hit that chalk line at the low edge. Yes. And then you basically the reason you use in recap is because it sticks to the old concrete surface. Any other type of mortar is going to split off, right? This will stick to it. And then you won’t have this issue with a tripping hazard. And then, frankly, if that works out for you, you could just paint the whole thing old and new and it wouldn’t be very obvious what you did. |
| 0:09:32 | CALLER: I appreciate very much, sir. |
| 0:09:33 | TOM: All right. Good luck, Charlie. Stay safe. |
| 0:09:35 | LESLIE: Hey there. We’ll be enjoying this episode of our podcast if you are. it would totally make our day is if you leave us a five star review on Apple Podcasts. |
| 0:09:44 | TOM: Absolutely. Just go to money, FT.com, slash review and let the world know how much you enjoy our home improvement tips and tricks. And you might even win a copy of our book. |
| 0:09:55 | LESLIE: What do you guys working on this springtime season? Are you maybe taking on some painting projects? Well, how would you like to get that job done three times faster than using a roller while you can? With the Wagner Control Pro 130 high efficiency airless paint sprayer, it’s worth $259 and this is our giveaway this hour to one lucky listener. Now the coolest part about the Wagner Control Pro is that this is going to allow a homeowner to take on big projects themselves. And these are projects that you’d be like, Oh, I should probably hire a pro. But with the Wagner Control Pro, that is a you and you can definitely tackle these projects and save you a ton of money. Now you can find the Control Pro available at a variety of home improvement retail locations and that Wagner controlled for 130 high efficiency airless paint sprayer is going out to one lucky money pit listener drawn at random. |
| 0:10:45 | TOM: Make that you call us now at 1-888-MONEY-PIT or post your questions at Moneypit.com/ask. |
| 0:10:52 | LESLIE: Amber in Ohio is on the line and has a question for us How can we help you today? |
| 0:10:56 | CALLER: I have a loft and it is it’s all open to the you know, down stairs. But at any rate, when people come and stay, it is so it’s so warm up there. It’s very warm. And people always complain summertime or winter time, right? That matter. And downstairs I mean the first floor can be a tent. It feels ten degrees different than upstairs, right? And I have toes are set on you know, one certain degree. Yeah. And that stairs just feels like it’s not paying attention to what I set thermostat at. |
| 0:11:50 | TOM: All, right? What kind of what kind of heat do you have? Is it forced air? You have a duct system? |
| 0:11:55 | CALLER: Yes. |
| 0:11:57 | TOM: Do you have central air conditioning or not? |
| 0:11:59 | CALLER: I do. |
| 0:12:00 | TOM: Okay. And do you have any ceiling fans or panel fans that can help mix up the air? |
| 0:12:06 | CALLER: Yes, I do. But it seems to be that even when they put the fans on, they say that they don’t feel the difference. |
| 0:12:16 | TOM: But so when you turn the ceiling fans on, do you know that there’s a way that you can reverse the motors on that? There’s a little switch on the side and in the summer you want to set those So it pulls cold air up from the first floor and in the winter you want to change that setting so that it pushes warm air down from the second floor. Does that make sense? |
| 0:12:37 | CALLER: Yes. Yes. |
| 0:12:38 | TOM: Now, have you operated those reversing switches? Did you even know they existed? Because many people don’t. |
| 0:12:43 | CALLER: I have yeah, I have known that they existed. And I could tell I haven’t told the people that come and stay though, that up in the loft so. |
| 0:12:55 | TOM: Well. But it’s the kind of thing that you’re going to do you would do. I want you to do this one time, you know per season. So you wouldn’t expect them to do that. Now, the other thing that you can do is you can add supplemental air conditioning to that space. And what I would recommend there is a split Douglas system. So split Douglas means you have a small compressor that’s outside and then you have the actual air. You actually have the air handler that is inside and that mounts on the wall the same way you’d hang a TV, for example. And then between the outside compressor and the air handler inside, it will add additional air conditioning or cooled air up there, which will then filter down from there to the first floor and make everybody comfortable. And when you have a house that’s got this kind of configuration, it’s very common to have this great difference in temperature. And it’s a real challenge. And the only other thing that you could potentially do is you could talk to your Vasey Company about adding an additional supply and return to that space. But that would involve ducting and it depend on how hard it is to get that up. If there’s a way for they can get those ducts run up pretty easily and you had additional supplies in return in that space, then it’s going to cool a lot better and heat a lot better. But if not, then you’re going to have to do it a different way. Now, by the way, that many split Douglas system that can be purchased to work as a heater and air conditioner all in the same system. So if folks are complaining about it being too cold or too hot, depending on the season, you would have a control over that. for both seasons. |
| 0:14:29 | CALLER: That would be wonderful. Split. Douglas. |
| 0:14:32 | TOM: Split Douglas Yeah, exactly. |
| 0:14:34 | CALLER: And I would go to my. |
| 0:14:37 | TOM: You’re going to have to go. I know you’re going to have to go to an HVAC contractor. It’s not a DIY project. |
| 0:14:42 | CALLER: They actually say, Okay, okay, that’s, that’s great. |
| 0:14:49 | LESLIE: So do you find yourself looking for a good deal on a fixer upper? But then you’re concerned that maybe you’re not going to have the money that you need to actually make those repairs? Well, there’s a popular HUD mortgage program available that’s going to lend you both the funds to buy the house and then more to make those repairs. |
| 0:15:06 | TOM: That’s right. It’s the FHA is limited to 03k program and it enables homebuyers in existing home owners to finance up to $35,000 into their mortgage to repair, improve or upgrade their home. Now, it lets both homebuyer or home owner quickly and easily tap into cash to pay for property repairs or improvements. You get to avoid all those expensive construction loans and then basically take that additional balance and fold that right into your mortgage that you’re probably paying off over 20 or 30 years. |
| 0:15:38 | LESLIE: Yeah. And what’s interesting here is that homeowners can make property repairs, improvements or even prepare their home to be sold and home buyers can make their new home move in ready by remodeling that kitchen, painting the interior, purchasing new carpeting. you name it. |
| 0:15:53 | TOM: Now, if you’re thinking I’ve got bigger projects than that, the FHA has another version of the same program that’s called the two or three K Rehab Mortgage insurance to help with repairs like structural alterations or big remodeling jobs or projects to eliminate health and safety hazards. |
| 0:16:08 | LESLIE: That’s right. And both programs make it easier for you to buy a property that needs work or to fix up the one that you have and then fold those costs into your mortgage loan so that you’re paying it off over the life of the mortgage and not emptying your savings or getting stuck with additional high interest loans. |
| 0:16:23 | TOM: That’s a great program and really going to be a perfect fit for folks that are buying fixer uppers, including all you DIYers out there. They’re going to do some of the work yourselves. |
| 0:16:33 | LESLIE: Jim in Delaware is on the line, has a question about a dryer vent. Tell us what’s going on in your Money Pit. |
| 0:16:38 | CALLER: I have a dry air vent that’s coming through a concrete wall and the through flaps that have broken off. I wanted a good way to replace event for crisis place. The slappers are what. |
| 0:16:48 | TOM: I would replace the exterior part of that dryer vent the exhaust port. Those little blades that flip up and down have broken off. I would just replace that. Yeah. You’re going to pull it out of the existing hole and depending on how it was put in place, it may be tough to get concrete. Okay, well, but depending on how it was attached to the concrete, it might be difficult. You may actually have to grab a piece, a pair of shears like white snips and cut it out. It’s just sheet metal. And then you’re going to basically install a new one in its place. And when you buy the new dryer vent, they usually sell the dryer vent and they show that. So the metal venting separate, make sure you get a piece of hard metal dryer exhaust doctor run through that concrete through that hole. And then if there’s flex duck, you can attach it on the other side, try to keep it as regular duct as much as far as possible, because the flex stuck is it has a lot of resistance to it and closed don’t dry quite as quickly. |
| 0:17:44 | CALLER: Great. Thank you for the voice. |
| 0:17:46 | TOM: You’re welcome. Thank you so much for calling us at 888-MONEY-PIT. |
| 0:17:50 | LESLIE: Krista in Vermont is on the line and is dealing with some very low water pressure. Tell us what’s going on. |
| 0:17:55 | CALLER: I bought my house about a year ago and I’m on a shared well with my two other neighbors. And they both have great water pressure. But we have really awful water pressure. It takes 3 hours for the washing machine to run. We can’t use our garden hose and we’ve had some plumbers come take a look. And they said that there must be some kind of restriction in the water pipes since the other neighbors both have really great water pressure. |
| 0:18:22 | TOM: This is not well water. You’re on street. |
| 0:18:24 | CALLER: Water. We’re on well water. |
| 0:18:26 | TOM: Well water. And the well serves all the neighbors. |
| 0:18:28 | CALLER: Yeah, it serves the two neighbors that live north of us. |
| 0:18:31 | TOM: Okay, well, they’re right that there could be a restriction. The restriction could be a valve that’s partially closed. It may look open, but maybe it’s really closed. It could be. If you have old pipes, you have old pipes there. Holds a house? |
| 0:18:46 | CALLER: Yeah, it’s 54. |
| 0:18:47 | TOM: old. It’s like it’s like twenties, thirties or with its pipes. So 54 is going to be copper and decent quality copper. So here’s what I would do. I would start testing that water pressure at different points. If you can test it close to where it comes into the house, that’d be the first place to check it. You may have to you may have to put a tap in the pipe to do that, like an extra valve to do that. But I would start checking in a different point and see if we can narrow down where the restriction is. |
| 0:19:17 | CALLER: Okay. |
| 0:19:17 | TOM: You have to do a little detective work here. You’re to find that at some point that’s restricted. Could be the main water valve. You got one sometimes. Well, systems don’t have those. |
| 0:19:25 | CALLER: Right? The valve in our house was just replaced. But I don’t know about the valve at our neighbors house where the wellhead is. So were also told by one plumber that we could put a water pressure tank in the house to fix it. And then another plumber told us that wouldn’t work at all. |
| 0:19:38 | TOM: That’s not going to work. You need a there’s a booster that you could put in. But I would I would start trying to figure out if this is a problem at the point where the water comes into the house, because that’s going to change the discussion. It’s not your plumbing, it’s the well system. And I imagine you have some rights and you’re sharing a common well here, too, to get the same pressures everybody else. |
| 0:20:00 | CALLER: Yes. Okay. |
| 0:20:01 | TOM: You have to be discussion you have with the people that are involved. Okay. But you got to figure out what you got. You don’t know that yet. And that’s the way to do it. So it makes sense. |
| 0:20:08 | CALLER: Right? Yeah. Sounds good. Thank you. |
| 0:20:10 | TOM: You’re welcome. Good luck with that project. |
| 0:20:13 | LESLIE: Well, if you’ve got a roof on your home, that’s more than ten or 15 years old, you might be thinking that it’s going to be time to replace that roof very soon. And you might be right. As roofs do age, the shingles dry out, they lose their water resistance. And this is especially true today because most shingles have less asphalt in them than ever before. |
| 0:20:31 | LESLIE: And that means that they dry out all that much faster. Now, when that happens, the shingles need to be replaced and that can be pretty expensive. |
| 0:20:38 | TOM: It definitely can. But now there’s another way to extend the life of your roof. And it’s called roof, Max. It’s a roof rejuvenation treatment that restores the flexibility and the waterproofing protection of aging asphalt shingle roofs. And it can actually save you 80% over the cost of replacing a traditional roof. |
| 0:20:56 | LESLIE: Yeah, and roof, Max, This new technology uses natural plant based bio oil for a full asphalt shingle restoration. Now, this gives those shingles flexibility and instantly can add five years of life to your roof. |
| 0:21:08 | TOM: Now, if you think of all the states in the country, one which is particularly rough on roofs is Florida, right? |
| 0:21:13 | LESLIE: Yeah. And for a lot of different reasons, right? |
| 0:21:15 | TOM: Yeah. Not only do you have the storms, but you have incredible heat beaten down on those shingles. So we have a house. It’s actually my mom’s house down in Florida. And that roof was about 17 years old. So we headed down there and we had it treated by the local roof Max deal. And I got to tell you, actually, it was amazing because the way we did this, were actually filming at the same time for a project. We treated one half of the roof one day and then we came back the next day to do the other half because we wanted that first coat to kind of set in and do its thing. Then were able to compare the two sides of the roof and the old side, the untreated side was clearly brittle and cracked with a lot of granular loss and the roof next treated side. All the granules were sealed in and the shingle was as flexible. And I do not exaggerate here. It was as flexible as a brand new asphalt shingle. So it totally did everything they said it was going to do. And now we’ve got 8 to 10 years of life left on that roof when before we had maybe two at most. |
| 0:22:12 | LESLIE: That’s amazing. it really is fascinating how well this works. And it’s a natural product and it’s a coating. So it’s just outstanding that you’re able to do this. Now, each roof max treatment comes with a five year flexibility guarantee. Now, with three treatments possible once every five years, Roof Max can add up to 15 years of life to your existing asphalt roof. that’s outstanding. |
| 0:22:34 | TOM: If you’d like to learn more, set up an appointment with your local roof. Max dealer at roof Match.com. They’ll do a free assessment and decide if your roof is a good candidate for a roof rejuvenation. That’s roof m an ex-cop. Hey, is painting a project that you guys are taking on this spring? It’s super popular this time of year, but we’ve got a way that you can actually get that job done three times faster than using a roller because we are giving away a Wagner Control Pro 130 high efficiency airless paint sprayer. Now this paint sprayer is worth almost 260 bucks and we like it because it allows for 55% less overspray than traditional airless sprayers, and it works three times faster than using a roller. So you get the job done quicker. You don’t waste paint. It can hold actually up to a gallon and a half of paint right in the tank so you don’t have to keep going back to refill it. And you’ll find it at a variety of home improvement retail locations. But we do have one to give away to a lucky caller today. So if you’d like to win the Wagner control pro 130 high efficiency airless paint sprayer, call us with your question we’ll talk to your name in the money beat hardhat and if we select you’re going to win the control pro 130 and you are well on your way to tackling lots of painting projects around your house. We’ve got a full line of control pro sprayers. You can check them out at Wagner Spray Tachometer Wagner Spray PCH Dotcom. |
| 0:23:56 | LESLIE: Larry in Louisiana. Need some help at home? What are you working on? |
| 0:24:00 | CALLER: I have a pair and Beamer also had additions added on to it and addition is starting to sink and is causing a bow in the flooring. In the kitchen. Huh. |
| 0:24:13 | TOM: So what kind of foundation was the edition built with? |
| 0:24:16 | CALLER: It was under a concrete little runners that ran around the house. |
| 0:24:22 | TOM: So when you say concrete runners, can you describe that? Are we talking about was this a concrete footing? |
| 0:24:27 | CALLER: Were it split? maybe every five, six foot is like a one foot big piece of concrete that runs down a channel and encircles the house. And then they put these other concrete pieces that sit on top of the. |
| 0:24:44 | TOM: Concrete. |
| 0:24:44 | CALLER: Blocks, where to where they put the foundation of the house on it. |
| 0:24:49 | TOM: Well, it sounds like a standard footing with a concrete block foundation. If you’re getting movement in there, that’s definitely a concern. It points to some failure in the way that foundation was designed. How much would you say it’s shifting or it’s sinking? How much are we talking about? What are you seeing in terms of movement? |
| 0:25:06 | CALLER: There’s a bow and the kitchen is probably battered by a ten, 12 degree angle coming off of it. |
| 0:25:14 | TOM: Yeah, that’s pretty significant. Yeah, well, unfortunately, you’re going to have to have this looked at by a structural engineer because there’s going to be some sort of rehabilitation that’s going to have to be designed for this to stop it from moving further. It’s not likely you can pull it back up, but the goal at this point is to stop it from moving any further. And if you try to do this by calling in a myriad of contractors, you’re going to get a myriad of opinions and it. |
| 0:25:38 | LESLIE: May none of which you’ll be able to compare. |
| 0:25:40 | TOM: None of which you’ll be able to compare. And very likely you try to sell the house, you’re still going to have a problem because you really need a licensed design professional to evaluate exactly why this is happening and we prescribe a solution for you. So my advice to you is if you’ve got a 10 to 12 degree dip in this floor that you definitely would call for further investigation by an expert, and the best person to use for that would be someone who’s a structural engineer. So you might want to start looking around for that service. And I will also say that there’s probably home inspectors in your area that also happen to be structural engineer. So you could check the website for the American Society of Home Inspectors. That’s actually a morgue. So if you can find an engineer, there is also a home inspector. But that’s the type of sort of forensic building investigator that you need to figure out why this is moving and what you have to do to get it stabilized. I think that’s really important. And you try to harp on it as soon as you can. |
| 0:26:36 | LESLIE: Well, if winter has left you with cracks or holes or generally worn out concrete surfaces around your money pit dash coatings is out with a new product that makes fixing these flaws easier than ever. |
| 0:26:47 | TOM: Yup, it’s called Rock Patch and it’s a pre-mixed polymer stone formula that will fill level and or completely resurface those ugly cracks, shallow holes or isolated wear and tear on concrete surfaces. It’s super easy to use. It’s not dusty like other coatings. You don’t have to mix it up. You just pop open the lid, give it a quick stir and you apply it and it dries, rock hard, and then you can add another coat if needed after 24 hours. |
| 0:27:13 | LESLIE: Yeah. Now rock patch can fill in level cosmetic surface floors as well up to a half inch deep and creates a smooth new surface for floor paints, decorative coatings, new flooring, you name it. |
| 0:27:23 | TOM: The product’s available online, a date coating scam Home Depot and Lowe’s. A one gallon pail retails for 4195 or for bigger projects. Pick up the three gallon size for just 9795. |
| 0:27:37 | LESLIE: Carolyn and Iowa’s on the line has a question about a quartz countertops. Tell us what’s going on. |
| 0:27:42 | CALLER: Yes, what I notice are some dull spots that are showing up on the quartz countertops. We built this home two and a half years ago, and I always had understood with quartz, you didn’t have to polish or seal or anything. And we’re trying to be really careful. |
| 0:28:01 | TOM: Oh, now, surely you just quartz is indestructible because you can put hot stuff on it, but it’s also really absorbent and you definitely need to polish it. |
| 0:28:10 | CALLER: Okay, so all that report that I’ve heard that you never have to do anything to court that isn’t true. |
| 0:28:16 | LESLIE: You do need you to do stuff to granite, to marble, to quartz over time because there’s a sealant that they put on it. And depending on where you got it and who the yard is, if it’s a granite or a marble, it wears away with use. And so the lighter the color, the more often you have to do it. And it should be, they say, with quartz and marble and granite every 2 to 3 years, I have a granite countertop. I’ve probably done it three times in the 15 years I’ve been in my house. And it’s mostly because they’re the areas where you see what they pour that fills into the spaces. It’s kind of like popped out, especially on the edge. But other than that, I haven’t really need to do much to it. |
| 0:28:53 | TOM: There’s a Polish online at Amazon.com called Supreme Surface that’s really well recommend. That’s four out of five stars. I would give that a start if you’ve never tried it before, order it online. But this, Leslie said, you definitely do need to polish natural stone. Otherwise it is going to get dull over the years. And it sounds like it’s about time to do that with your house. |
| 0:29:13 | TOM: Thanks so much for calling us at 888MONEYPIT. |
| 0:29:17 | LESLIE: Nicolette wrote in to Team Money Pit and she says, Last summer we had a super expensive electric build due to air conditioning. I’m considering adding two whirly bird turbine bends to my roof to help remove some of the heat and the attic. Is this the best way to cool the attic and hopefully reduce my air conditioning costs? |
| 0:29:36 | TOM: Laughing a whirly bird vent is that the turbine vents? |
| 0:29:41 | LESLIE: Aren’t they called turbine vents? |
| 0:29:42 | TOM: Yeah, I think so. But anyway, so it’s one of those sort of like crown shaped vents that spins it. You see these on the top of roofs. Usually the bearings wear out and they have a terrible screeching sound. But the thing is, Nicolette, you don’t really want to use that kind of vent. It really doesn’t do a very good job of truly ventilating that attic. And yes, venting the heat in your head is a really good way to reduce your air conditioning costs. But we would suggest that use a combination of ridge vents. That’s if anything goes down the entire peak of your roof and soft vents. Those are the events that the overhanging edge of your roof, like kind of behind where your gutter is under where your gutter is. And when you have those two types of vents installed, the outside ambient air will get through at the soffit. It will run up under the roof, sheathing and exit at the ridge. And by doing so, it casts away all of that superheated air. At the same time. That vent combination is better than a whirly bird vent. It is better than an attic fan, and it really works very, very well to keep that attic as cool as it possibly can. And by the way, another thing that will reduce your cooling bills is while you’re considering this attic space, look at your insulation. Most homes don’t simply have enough insulation. You can easily add another six or eight inches of unfaced fiberglass insulation to that space. Just lay down perpendicular to the existing insulation. And that in and of itself will have a major impact on what you need to do to keep that house cool and comfortable and keep those air conditioning bills at an all-time low. |
| 0:31:13 | LESLIE: Frank in California wrote in saying, I want to replace windows and walls of stucco. What’s the best way to cut and remove the existing stucco? |
| 0:31:20 | TOM: Well, the best way to get those windows in would be to not cut to remove the stucco. Yeah. |
| 0:31:25 | LESLIE: I mean, couldn’t we just do a replacement window where you’re just doing the sashes, in essence, rather than the framework? |
| 0:31:30 | TOM: Yeah, exactly. And I think a lot of folks don’t recognize the fact that there is a certain type of a window that’s called the replacement window as compared to what we would refer to as a new construction window. So when you see a new house being built and you see windows being installed to the sheathing, to the framing, it has sort of a thin around the outside of it like a tab and that’s how they nail the window into the wall. But with a replacement window, you leave the existing window in place, you remove the sash is the part of the window that slides up and down. It has waits, that sort of thing. You remove all that, but you keep that interior frame of the window and then the replacement window slips inside of that replacement windows by their very nature, Frank, are customized to fit the opening that you specify, and you’ll get all the benefits of a new construction window with none of the hassles, especially when it comes to stucco, which just a real pain in the neck to have to break down and restore. You ended up having to paint your house by the time you’re done with it. So I would definitely look at you replacement windows as your solution. |
| 0:32:31 | LESLIE: All right, Frank, hope that helps you out. You’re going to be able to find some really great new efficient windows without making a big bunch of work for yourself. |
| 0:33:00 | TOM: Were always standing by and ready to help you get those projects done. I’m Tom Kraeutler. |
| 0:33:05 | LESLIE: And I’m Leslie Segrete. |
| 0:33:07 | TOM: Remember, you can do it yourself. |
| 0:33:09 | LESLIE: But you don’t have to do. |
| (Note: The above referenced transcript is AI-Generated, Unedited and Unproofed and as such may not accurately reflect the recorded audio. Copyright 2023 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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