This week we welcomed Joe Truini as co-host and Julie Day Jones for the “Around the Yard” segment. Julie, our resident lawn and garden expert, talked about all things related to spring gardening. This week’s “Around the Yard” segment is brought to you by Quikrete. Learn more at quikrete.com
My daughter Chelsea also joined us to share tips from her May webisode of Checking In With Chelsea, “How to Help Your Grass Grow This Summer.” Be sure to check it out for five tips on jumpstarting your grass this growing season.
In the first hour, we shared a tip from one of our listeners, Larry in California. He addressed two common problems with patio tables: Not all patios are level, and wood on concrete absorbs water. His suggestion: “I drill a hole in the bottom of each leg and pound in the appropriate size T-nut. Putting a rust proof bolt in the nuts allows for height adjustments (like a refrigerator adjustment) and it raises the wood off the concrete allowing water to run under.” Thanks for the tip, Larry!
Here’s what else we tackled in this week’s show:
Hour 1
Sandy in OH
What are the pros & cons of an open back bathroom vanity? It seems that most reasonably priced cabinets have open backs. Will they fit flush against the wall?
Pamela in FL
I have the rounded terra cotta flooring in my enclosed sunroom. I hate the color it looks so out of date. Is it possible to lay wood over the entire surface? The existing flooring has been there for years.
George in MI
Every year I add soil to fix low spots on my lawn. But the soil always erodes. How can I prevent this from happening?
Thelma in CA
We stained our wood floor but it’s still tacky. We went and wiped it all down and we have fans going trying to dry it but it’s not drying. We need some help so we don’t have to re-do the whole floor again.
Chris in AL
I’m trying to figure out how to run electricity from my carport to a shed in the backyard. Running conduit between the two is easy enough; the problem is tying into the electrical service in the carport. Unfortunately, the electrical outlet in my carport is recessed into the wall, just as ordinary electrical outlets are inside, so there’s no obvious way of attaching conduit to it. At the moment, we just have a very long extension cord plugged into it running to the shed, but I’d like a proper solution. I also mean to install a couple of extra electrical outlets along the run from the carport to the shed, which I can’t do with an extension cord. Any ideas? Is it as simple as removing the extant recessed outlet and putting a box on the outside of the wall?
Hour 2
Rick in AL
I’m removed a portion of the top layer of a subfoor in a house built about 50 years ago, that has a crawl space below. The bottom layer of the subfloor is made from diagonal 1X8s, and the top layer is 5/8″ plywood with a black coating on top. There is a layer of roofing “tar paper” between. I’ve removed some of this as well. Can you tell me what to use in place of the tar paper, what type of plywood to use, and whether I should have a gap between the plywood sheets (~1/8″) to allow for expansion?
Lilian in MA
We bought an old house that we love a lot. However this old house has lots of challenges but the most disturbing of all is this mold that happens due to a lack of adequate ventilation. We use oil for heating and electric for cooking, but we have no idea how to ventilate our home.
Tom in MN
We want to put in shower you can walk in and take out the bathtub. What do you recommend doing? It’s a standard size tub.
