Professional builders and DIY’ers alike can take advantage of the American Wood Council’s online (and free to use) Maximum Span Calculator for Wood Joists and Rafters. Use it to calculate the size and grade of joist needed for a given joist span, on-center spacing, live load and dead load. Select Dead Load choices of […]
Extreme How-To
National Hardware Show 2018 Highlights
The National Hardware Show is an enormous trade show where tool and equipment companies unveil the new products that will soon stock the aisles of your local hardware store. The EHT staff attends every year to check out more than 250,000 hardware, tool and lawn/garden products collected in one place. Here’s a look at […]
Mix and Match Click-Together Flooring
Creating beautiful, custom floors for your home is easy with Marmoleum® Click CinchLOC. Available in 28 colors and two versatile formats (12” x 12” squares and 12” x 36” planks), homeowners can mix and match colors and sizes to create endless design possibilities unique to their home and personal style. Marmoleum® Click CinchLOC breaks […]
Acrylic Block Versus Glass Block -Pros and Cons
Offering design appeal and privacy, block windows have been used in homes and commercial projects for more than a century. What started as the inclusion of heavy true glass block windows has evolved over the years to the embracement of lighter-weight acrylic block windows. Both have their place in today’s market, but which one is […]
Yardmax YW7565 Chipper Shredder
The EHT staff recently tested the new YW7565 Chipper Shredder from Yardmax. Designed for the DIY landscaper, this model is built to last, and it’s easy to use and transport. With stamped steel construction and a Briggs & Stratton OHV engine, this Chipper Shredder eats limbs and branches and spits them out with a 10:1 […]
Lift a 20-Ton Block
In the video below, a builder from Michigan demonstrates some amazing techniques of how to move and lift huge stones. He does this with no motorized equipment, and uses only wood, stones, counterweights and manpower. This is probably how Stonehenge was constructed. Although this isn’t the best quality video, the ideas shown here are well […]
Create a Green Roof
guest post by Chris Lundahl photo courtesy Flickr If you take pleasure in improving your house with fun DIY projects, why not install green roof? Not only can a living roof be aesthetically pleasing, but they help protect from storm waters, provide your home with sound and heat insulation, most possibly prolong the life […]
Vine-Like Robot for Construction Sites and More
Stanford scientists have developed the first snaking robot that moves like a vine. Its ability to grow across distances without moving its whole body could be useful in construction, search-and-rescue, and medical applications. Just imagine this thing pulling wires through the walls of your home, or sending water to disaster survivors. Check out this video […]
Bushels of Brackets and Lots of Louvers
SYRACUSE, IN – What are two of the most popular polyurethane product lines manufactured by Nu-WoodTM? The Indiana-based company produces 76 different styles of durable brackets plus 21 unique louvers, making them one of the leading manufacturers of decorative millwork in the industry. “Adding a lightweight decorative bracket to a porch or under an eave […]
Building Homes with Products Made in the USA
MILLS RIVER, N.C. – Made in the USA Day on July 2nd serves as the ideal time to focus on the benefits of constructing homes with Made in America products. According to the National Association of Manufacturers, there are 12.3 million manufacturing workers in the United States. And, American manufacturers contributed $2.18 trillion to […]