Lorin from Toronto, Ontario, asks for help on how to get baseboards off without breaking them.First, cut the paint line between the baseboard and the wall. This will avoid chipping the paint on the wall.Work with two thin wedges and a 1/4 inch backer board. Force one wedge into the crack betwee...
When you hear "Wow", "Hockey Stick", "Wane" -- you might think of the Great Gretzky, but you might just be overhearing a conversation complaining about lumber.Just what do all those strange terms mean when we evaluate lumber? Wow, Hockey Stick, Bow, Twist and Warp all mean bad bends and often the...
Stairs squeak when something is loose and the wood rubs either against another piece of wood or rubs on a nail.You can often feel the movement by putting your finger on the stair joints while someone walks on it. (Be careful not to pinch your finger.)If the movement is where the tread and the ri...
All washing machines vibrate when they go into the spin cycles. Top loading machines have the tubs suspended on springs that create a primary bad vibration as they build up to speed. If the load is too unbalanced, they bang around and the machine stops. If the load is only a bit unbalanced, th...
Brenda from Port Hardy, B.C. says that her wood burning insert smells of soot when it is not in use.The problem is obviously one of air coming down the chimney. Either the exhaust fans in the house are drawing air when there is no fire to maintain an upward draft, or the wind is twisted around on...
Ever tried to push warped deck boards into place so you can nail them down. It takes about three extra hands and a knee.Well there are various "board benders" on the market. The one in the graphic is called the Bow Wrench. Essentially they grip the joist and allow you to force the board, with ...
When you screw a handrail to the top of a balustrade you can at times avoid an ugly putty hole covering the screw by driving the screw in from the other side of the vertical post. But when you go into the wall, you may not have a choice.Phil from Ingersoll, Ontario has an interesting suggestion ...
When a door jam cracks because someone forced the door it is often easier and just as sturdy to repair it rather than to replace it. To replace it requires removing and reinstalling the entire frame.Find screws long enough to reach at least one inch past the crack from one side or the other. 4 ...
I have received a number of questions about woodworking and glue so this segment touched on a few basics of gluing boards together.What is the difference between white and yellow glue?Not much in terms of strength. The real difference is that yellow glue will set faster and allow you to remove t...
Earlier in this TV segment we installed a threshold between an old and a new floor. In that case we actually cut away to a flat base that allowed us to put our threshold down flat. If you cannot do this or for some reason need to fill in a low spot in a floor before putting in the threshold its...
