Learning How to Landscape :: Like Building But with Plants
Much like a wall in a home can provide partition, and in some cases, it can be bearing. It always includes such things as plumbing or electrical, and it is contained by...
All posts by jb bartkowiak
Installing a Bathroom Faucet :: American Standard Outreach with Speed Connect
Moving forward with their basement remodel, I told them that this particular faucet was what is known as a centerset faucet. That is – the faucet is made for a top that...
Pennington One Step Complete :: An Experiment & Results
But just as Barry was dotting the t's for his trip to Genie Company HQ, I received an update on a growing experiment I participated in while visiting Pennington Grass Seed in...
Installing Checkerboard Flooring :: Get a Classic Floor with Vinyl Tile
This tile was thick at a solid 1/8” and rigid, much like what I know as Resilient Tile, but lacking much of its signature heavy-fill and graining. It was “dry backed” and...
Installing a Door Slab & a Glass Knob, Mortised Style LockSet
We finally decided on a single raised-panel door. This post covers installing a door, including installing a salvaged antique mortised-style lockset. Includes Videos :: Routing for Hinges in a Door Slab, plus...
Lawn Care Tips from Pennington Seed :: The Seeds of Knowledge
As I think about all the information we gleaned from the experts at Pennington Seed, the single best tip I can offer you for successfully growing grass this Spring is -- “Know...
Renovation Loans :: What is a 203k Loan?
I have gotten a handful of questions recently about Renovations Loans, and more specifically -- 203ks. Like many, I knew only that 203ks were “Renovation Loans,” but not much else. So I...
The Story with Story Tapes :: An Alternative to Traditional Tape Measures?
The 12ft tape - a fantastic option for shop work or really any repetitive building activity that fits in that scale. But as Jane suggests, story tapes may be as equally valuable...
Wood Fireplaces :: How To Get the Most Out of a Wood Fireplace
The net value of a wood fireplace may however come down to one simple thing. What type and quality of wood you choose to burn in your fireplace. A skill perhaps –...
Insulate a Basement Ceiling in an Old House :: How to Estimate & Install for Where You Live
As I stood in my basement, looking up at the floor joists of the dining room above, I thought to myself, “I guess I do know a few things about insulation.” Learn...
Removing Formstone from a RowHome Part 2 of 2 (Behind the Building Edition)
Formstone, I have come to know as a sort of stamped stucco, was applied primarily to the face of homes between the 1940s and the 1960s. There was nothing to indicate that...
Side Venting a Dryer :: Close Connect Revisited + Weatherization Tips
I posted about the dryer’s hook up in our laundry room in a side vented fashion. This is the follow up post to that - finishing the close connect fitting. Includes information...