I always thought rain barrels were kind of pointless, like you'd just get a little bit of water and it'd be a hassle. But last weekend my neighbor Bob showed me his system he built for about $60 with a used food-grade barrel from a local bakery. He said his garden survived a 2-week dry spell last July just from what he'd collected. Seeing his tomatoes and peppers thriving while mine were wilting really convinced me. Plus he showed me the simple overflow valve he rigged up so it never floods. I'm planning to grab a barrel this Saturday, anyone have tips on mosquito screens?
Frank and I were both out sanding our decks last Saturday and he told me he switched to a solid stain after his semi-transparent peeled after just 2 seasons. He said it saved him a whole weekend of work every other year because he just power washes and does a light coat now. That hit different for me because I've been redoing mine every 18 months with the see-through stuff and it's exhausting. Has anyone else made the switch to solid stain and found it holds up better?
Honestly, I spent like two years thinking I just had bad luck with screws stripping out on me. Every weekend project I'd run into this issue with my deck repairs or hanging shelves. Last month I was trying to mount a mailbox post and the screw head just shredded again. My neighbor Joe came over to borrow my drill and he looked at my bit and asked why I was using a Phillips #2 on a Pozidriv screw. I didn't even know there was a difference. He showed me his set with the little markings and now I check every time before I start. It's saved me maybe 20 minutes per project and I don't have to dig out stripped screws with pliers anymore. Has anyone else gone years without realizing this was a thing?
Honestly, I was dead set on painting my front door black for like a month. Then last weekend I walked past a house on Maple Street in my neighborhood where they did that and it just looked like a dark hole in the wall. Now I'm leaning toward a deep navy blue after talking to the paint guy at Sherwin-Williams about how it reflects light better. Has anyone tried navy with brass hardware and regretted it?
It said modern gray, but 3 hours into sanding I realized the stain was just blue-tinted watery paint that peeled off like sunburn. Had to strip everything down to bare wood on my apartment balcony in 90 degree heat. Anybody know a brand that actually holds up on oak?
I capped a pipe in my basement during a remodel and forgot to mark which line it was on the shutoff chart. When a new crack showed up in the drywall, I spent 6 hours chasing a phantom leak before I realized I'd left a valve barely cracked open. Anyone else ever create a problem for yourself that took way too long to figure out?
I learned the hard way that you really need to sand and prime first or that stuff won't stick at all, has anyone else had better luck with a different brand?