A friend of ours is asking for advice about waterproofing their block wall foundation after their water supply line leaked in their front yard and caused seepage into their basement. The line had been leaking for an extended period and saturated the ground and then with some moderate rain they experienced some slow leakage which resulted in some mold growth in their basement.
They have been asking a few people about the problem and have …
In this how to we are answering questions from a friend that is considering buying and installing their own security system. They would like to own the equipment and have as much versatility in expanding it and choosing the method of monitoring. They also have questions about security cameras and home automation. We will try to cover the basic considerations when you are choosing a system that you will self install and what …
A buddy of ours is a professional welder now retired and every once in a while in the conversation is what do you do when you are out on a job and you brake something but you don’t have a welder. Can you put something together with a few car or truck batteries and maybe weld a part good enough to get it back to the shop.
A lot of people do this and maybe …
If you are considering building a structure on a vacant lot then there are a number of different tests that you need to complete before you begin framing up your footings and pouring concrete.
One of the big things that many people run into is thinking that the lot they are building on is virgin soil, meaning no one has ever built on it before and it has never been used for any other reason.
Sometimes …
As people have extended needs there are companies that are offering options that are available as addons to your home security system. This might include motion sensors that also have video cameras in them or it might be a system that allows you to control your thermostat, lighting and even your appliances from your Alarm System.
The first thing that should be said and realized is that there is a big difference between these systems …
There has been a variety of conversations by owners and mechanics about the servicing of automatic transmissions that have seen high mileage. Some of these thoughts on service are really not good practice although they may seem to be safeguarding the owner they can lead to problems and should be addressed.
When a vehicle has not seen perfect maintenance over a long period or when a new owner assumes a used vehicle there is a …
A friend contacts us today about their vehicle because they are having problems with their exhaust system. It seems that the tail pipe has rusted so bad that it finally broke free from the muffler. They need to get it repaired and are wondering if it is something that they can do themselves or if they need to take it into a shop.
As you can imagine when a pipe is rusting this bad you …
A friend asks us about his 1998 Chevy Truck saying that it is not starting and died in the street out in front of their home. This is not only a no start problem but it is a situation where the vehicle stopped running pretty much out of nowhere. Luckily he was very near his home so it didn’t require a tow back to their house or to a garage.
This is a problem that …
A friend is asking about a new 2 year old home that they are now getting around to remodeling the basement to make it livable. They are wondering if it is worth the time and expense to coat the interior concrete basement walls with a concrete waterproofing paint. They explain that the exterior of their foundation was sprayed with an asphalt coating and it has a 10 year warranty for protection.
This is a very …
A friend contacted us about a situation they are having with the water supply in their home. They first noticed that their water bill for the previous month was much higher than normal. They then called in a plumber that suggested a replacement of their pressure valve and told them there was a leak in their outside supply line and the line had to be replaced from the street to the house.
They were quoted …