Innholdsfortegnelse for February 2016 i Family Handyman

Family Handyman|February 2016

STUFF We Love

editors@thefamilyhandyman.com Add a USB charger in a snap In this electronic age of ours, there seems to be at least one device being charged on every single counter and end table in the house. It’s getting difficult to find an unoccupied outlet for our antiquated blenders and desk lamps. Here’s a cool gadget that can help. It’s an outlet cover plate with a built-in USB charger, and it’s as easy to install as a regular cover plate. You just shut down the power, unscrew the old plate and screw on the new one. No receptacle replacement required! The USB port gets its power from two prongs that contact the screws on the sides of the receptacle. The cover plates come in white, light almond and ivory. One SnapPower USB Charger…

5 min

Family Handyman|February 2016

Handy HINTS®

handyhints@thefamilyhandyman.com Reuse drywall cutouts Whenever I need to make an electrical repair inside a finished wall, I cut an opening with my hole saw and save the round plug. Later, when I’m ready to patch the hole, I glue a piece of rolledup cardboard to the back of the plug using construction adhesive. Then I glue the other end of the tube to the drywall on the other side of the wall. I cut the cardboard tube slightly shorter than the depth of the wall studs so that the plug sits just below the surface of the drywall. I then finish off the patch with some joint compound. James B. Stefan NO-SCRATCH TOOLBOX I cut and glued a piece of carpet to the bottom of my toolbox to protect surfaces…

3 min

Family Handyman|February 2016

FORGET IT ... REGRET IT!

editors@thefamilyhandyman.com You probably already have a home maintenance checklist: Replace the furnace filter each season, shut off water spigots before winter, clean the gutters, etc. That’s a good start, but there are jobs that homeowners often forget about, or don’t even know about. Here are some important home maintenance items that may not be on your list— items that may cause a big headache, or worse, cost you big money if you neglect them. TEST THE SUMP PUMP … OR RISK A FLOOD Last spring, I got home from a weekend trip to discover my entire basement floor covered in 1/2 in. of water. After shutting down the power, I waded over to the sump pump and noticed it wasn’t working. Upon closer inspection, I realized that the cable attached…

7 min

Family Handyman|February 2016

What homeowners MUST know

editors@thefamilyhandyman.com NOT JUST FOR THE KITCHEN Painters love Glad Press’n Seal self-stick kitchen wrap because it goes on fast and stays put. Line paint trays to eliminate cleanup later or use it to shield any surface. Vacuum out drain clogs A wet/dry vacuum can suck clogs out of plugged drains. Even plumbers use this trick sometimes. If you need to increase suction, seal around the nozzle with a wet rag. Fix a dead light fixture Lots of things can go wrong with a lamp or light fixture, causing bulbs to burn out quickly or flicker or not work at all. Here’s the first thing to check: Unscrew the bulb and peer into the socket. The little contact tab in the center of the socket should be tilting slightly outward, away…

2 min

Family Handyman|February 2016

DIY Quiz

editors@thefamilyhandyman.com Put on your thinking cap and take this month’s quiz to see just how smart you are when it comes to DIY. Here’s how it works: ■ There are easy, intermediate and really tough questions all mixed together. ■ There may be more than one correct answer! ■ The answers begin on p. 76. Get your DIY rating on p. 77. Good luck! 1. When should you clean that fireplace flue? A. When the “scratch” test indicates a creosote deposit that’s 1/8 in. thick or more. B. A good rule of thumb is to clean after every 50 or so fires. C. Clean the chimney every fall before fireplace season. D. If you are careful to burn only dry firewood, you’re fine having it swept every three years. 2.…

7 min

Family Handyman|February 2016

Great GOOFS®

greatgoofs@thefamilyhandyman.com GREAT BALLS OF FIRE My shop vacuum was making a grinding noise. I took it apart and blew out all the dirt and grit. But after putting it back together and starting it up, it was still noisy. I decided to try lubricating the motor with a few squirts of WD-40. This time, however, I heard more than just a grinding noise. There was a “kaboom” accompanied by a big, blue ball of fire shooting out of the motor. What I didn’t consider is that WD-40 is flammable and that electric motors generate sparks. Not a good combo, as my singed eyebrows will attest. Charles Potter Ramped-up romance My college girlfriend and I were on the skids. So when her new car was ready for its first oil change,…

2 min

Family Handyman|February 2016

Detect leaks

editors@thefamilyhandyman.com Things go wrong with plumbing systems. It just happens. And it doesn’t matter where you live or how old your house is. A pipe can freeze and burst. A toilet can overflow. You might unknowingly puncture a pipe with a nail during a remodeling project. Or your water heater could let go and send a raging river flowing right through your home’s living space. Scared yet? Sooner or later, you’re going to have a plumbing failure—maybe big, maybe small—but the key is to catch it before it causes catastrophic damage to your home. Think we’re being alarmist? Damage caused by plumbing failures costs homeowners and insurance companies billions of dollars every year. Here are some hightech solutions that will alert you when a leak is just getting started so…

4 min

Family Handyman|February 2016

SHOWCASE SHELVING

Nightstands are just not big enough for everything: lamp, alarm clock, phone, photos of your kids ... so books, magazines, your tablet or your cup of tea ends up on the floor. This shelf unit gives you about 10 times more space for decorative and essential stuff. And its dazzling design will transform your room. Best of all, it’s easy to build with basic tools. 2 CUT THE STRIPS TO LENGTH A crosscut guide allows you to make perfectly square cuts exactly where you want them. Mark the cut location and line up the guide. Clamp the guide and make the cut. Make sure to keep the saw bed tight to the guide fence as you make the cut. Getting started The first step is to round up the tools…

11 min

Family Handyman|February 2016

Smart remodeling

editors@thefamilyhandyman.com One of the most important tasks of any remodeling project is protecting the parts of the house that are not being worked on. And that’s not easy considering the hundreds of trips back and forth with tools, materials and debris. And then there are the muddy boots, billowing clouds of dust and the occasional dropped tool (which always seems to drop sharp edge down on a finished surface). We talked with Josh Risberg, a remodeling pro, and he gave us some great tips and told us about some of his go-to products. With his advice, you’ll be able to keep certain parts of the house safe and sound while all heck is breaking loose in the others. MEET THE EXPERT Josh Risberg has spent 13 years in the remodeling…

5 min

Family Handyman|February 2016

Master metal conduit

editors@thefamilyhandyman.com Running electrical conduit on the surface of a wall is an easy way to add wiring to a workshop, garage or basement or anywhere else there are no open stud cavities. And electrical metallic tubing (EMT) is a perfect choice. It’s strong, cheap and easy to bend once you learn how. After the conduit and boxes are mounted, you push or pull wires into them, and connect the wires to the switches, outlets, lights or other devices you’re installing. Custom-bending conduit is a bit of an art that takes some practice. And you’ll need a conduit bender ($30) to pull it off. We won’t cover that in this story, but the instructions included with the bender will help you. We’ll also show you alternatives to bending, along with more…

7 min

Family Handyman|February 2016

INSTANT TIPS FOR A NEATER WORKSHOP

AIR TOOL STATION A 2-1/2-gallon bucket is all you need to store air tools and hoses on a wall right by the air compressor. Screw a 3/4-in. plywood shelf inside the bucket to create two storage areas, then attach the bucket to the wall with a couple of screws and washers. Load up the bucket with nailers, nails, tire pressure gauges and other accessories and coil the hose around it. Pie plate pockets Screw cut-in-half pie tins and heavy-duty paper plates to a shop wall and you’ve got space-saving storage for the sanding discs, circular saw blades and abrasive discs that like to hide in a drawer. Be sure to tape the sharp edges on the cut pie tins to protect your fingers! DRILL HANGOUT Those big hooks that are…

1 min

Family Handyman|February 2016

Old smoke detectors cost lives

editors@thefamilyhandyman.com Every year people die because their smoke detectors didn’t go off during a fire. That’s usually because the batteries were dead (or had been removed to stop false alarms) or the detector was past its useful life or was located where occupants couldn’t hear the alarm. This article will tell you how to check your detectors and replace them if necessary. We’ll also help you understand the latest technology—which has improved dramatically in recent years—so you can choose detectors that best protect your home and family. Do your present detectors work? It’s really simple to test your smoke detectors to make sure they’re working. Just press the test button and the alarm should sound. If it’s a battery-powered alarm and doesn’t sound off, change the battery and retest it.…

5 min

Family Handyman|February 2016

CUSTOM CLUTTER BUSTER

editors@thefamilyhandyman.com YOUR CLOSET CAN LOOK LIKE THIS! From anarchy to order in a weekend! (melamine panels make it easy) Walk through the closet aisle at any home center and you’ll see lots of closet organizers—everything from wire shelving systems to ones that look like real wood cabinetry with all kinds of fancy accessories. And while these systems are designed to work in just about any type of closet, you can get a fully custom closet organizer—and possibly even save a few bucks—by building one yourself. Here’s how we built ours using melamine panels, plus some tips on building your own. What is melamine? While real wood is strong and beautiful, building a closet organizer with it is expensive and timeconsuming. Melamine products are an attractive and inexpensive alternative to wood…

5 min

Family Handyman|February 2016

MAKE IT LAST!

editors@thefamilyhandyman.com Making your stuff last longer is a great way to get more bang for your buck, and there are dozens of ways to do that, many of which you probably already know: changing the oil in your car, putting on a fresh coat of paint, etc. But we’ve gathered some great tips that may be new to you, tips that will help you get the most out of your house, tools and even your clothes. COVER YOUR TOES Extend the life of your work boots or shoes by coating the toes with a rubbery protective shell. The product shown here is called Tuff Toe and can be found at shoe stores or online for less than $25. Boot Guard is another brand. DON’T WRECK AN OUTDOOR FAUCET I replace…

5 min

Family Handyman|February 2016

Replace struts yourself and save $300

editors@thefamilyhandyman.com If you’ve put 80,000 or more miles on your struts, they’re worn out and must be replaced (see “How to Tell If You Need New Struts”). We know they’re expensive (about $700 for front struts replaced at a shop). But in the long run, driving on worn struts actually costs you more. That’s because the unchecked bouncing destroys your tires and quickly wears out other expensive suspension components like ball joints, control arm bushings, stabilizer bar end links and tie rod ends. And worn struts are dangerous because they increase your stopping distance by almost 10 ft. from 60 mph and cause steering instability, especially on curves at higher speeds. Replacing struts used to be a dangerous job for a DIYer. You had to compress the spring and remove…

6 min

Family Handyman|February 2016

PRO talk

editors@thefamilyhandyman.com Wheelbarrow topper The slanted shape of a wheelbarrow makes it perfect for moving dirt and concrete, but square items like toolboxes—not so much. As a lead carpenter for a remodeling firm, I was constantly hauling tools back and forth from my truck to the job site, twice a day, every day. On a whim, I built a box to sit on top of my wheelbarrow so I could haul more tools at once. I liked it so much that I took it to the next job, and the one after that, and the one after that. It’s just a simple plywood box with cleats fastened to the bottom to keep it from slipping off the wheelbarrow. I’ve hauled mountains of stuff with it over the years. Josh Risberg, Lead…

2 min