After years of getting my parents pool ready for the summer months, I have finally given up any hope of being able to uncover the pool, add chlorine and let the swimming begin. The attached picture is after a few hours of ph adjustment, chlorine hyper-shock therapy and a large dose of algaecide. When I […]
Home Improvement
The Great Pumpkin, dad and the IBEW Strike of 1966.
One of my favorite stories involved my dad, of all people, who hated gardening and never understood why my mom insisted on having a garden. I was no more than seven years old at the time, when I planted some pumpkin seeds in our backyard. But I planted them late, and my crop consisted of […]
Plant a Family Garden
Growing up in Alabama, my mother always had a garden. When we lived in the country, the garden was on a plot below our house. But when we moved to Birmingham, my mom began gardening on some acreage at my grandfather’s house that was really a flood plain for Five Mile Creek. I ran the […]
Solid Surface Counter-Top Installation for the Homeowner and DIY/ Design and Layout Segment
Are you considering updating a bath, kitchen or maybe even adding a bar to your home, then you will want to check out our series on Corian and solid surface counter top installation. Extreme How-To’s Hal Jones takes you step-by-step through the installation process. Using the same solid surface material any homeowner or DIY-er can purchase from […]
Tile for Sunroom Project Finished, Third Update
The tile are installed and grouted. I won’t say there weren’t moments of exasperation, but now that it’s all behind me, I can sit back and enjoy the finished product. Many tile jobs are hurry up and wait. You wait for the thinset or mastic to dry. You wait for the grout to take a […]
Death of a Tool
Rarely have I had tool failures, but this week has been an exception. Monday night I had a Dremel rotary tool die an ignoble death. Monday afternoon I went by Lowe’s to pick up some cut off wheels and saw the new quick change kits and picked one up for a little more than $20. Monday night […]
Laying Out Ceramic Tiles/Tiling a Sunroom with Porcelain Tile Update Number Two
Several factors affect tile layout. My suggestion is before installing the tile permanently, do a dry run. Lay out the tiles, dry(using no mortar) to see what works best for you. In large areas I usually use a focal point as my center, but if the focal point method causes me to have a small perimeter tile, […]
Before I did this…
It is springtime in Alabama. Forsythia is already blooming, jonquils and crocus are beginning to drop their blooms, but the nights are still cool and the grass is still brown. Spring is a time of rebirth for plants, animals and even careers. How does one become an online media person? Well the road has many […]
Trends in Tools
I was talking with my good friend Doug Mahoney yesterday. Doug is editor of ToolSnob, and writes the tool columns for Popular Science and Popular Mechanics, but his real job is as a builder in Boston. One of the subjects we talked about was upcoming trends in tools and products. We have seen the new […]
Survey Results of EHT Readers
About a week ago I polled 10,000 readers regarding various areas related to Extreme How-To. Thank you to all who participated. Surveys help us better target future “How-To” articles to areas of your interest. I wasn’t surprised by the responses on the numbers of you planning on painting or gardening/landscaping, but the numbers of you planning bigger […]