Home Electronics cost a lot and it is important to protect your investments with proper care and planning. The fact is most homes will have a number of power surges throughout the day due to switching of internal equipment used by the electric company to feed power to our communities. And most of the time they go unnoticed but if you have a UPS device plugged in you are likely to hear it trip …
HowTo – Choosing A Grass String Trimmer
HomePageFeatures, Lawns - Grass, Tool Guides
Grass String Trimmers are useful for cleaning up the edges of your lawn and getting into areas that you can’t take your lawn mower. For most of us this is a one time purchase that should last you many years so how do you know what type is best for your home?
Well first you should understand that every string trimmer uses a plastic / nylon type cord to cut the grass and weeds. …
How To – KwikSet SmartKey Locks And Tools
Doors & Windows, Tool Guides
KwikSet recently came out with a new lock feature called the SmartKey.
If your lock set has this feature it means re-keying the lock to work with different keys is now a matter of seconds instead of minutes and removal and disassembly of the door lock is no longer necessary in all cases.
The process seems pretty straight forward.
If you are knowledgeable about standard lock sets you know that the key you insert into your lock …
HowTo – One Weekend Outdoor Garden Makeover
Lawn & Garden
One of the things most of us don’t have is tons of extra time to worry about how our homes look. If we are lucky we find time to clean the inside and maybe wash the cars but the exterior of your home can have a lot to do with how much you enjoy living where you are.
With this in mind lets look at how you can makeover your outside in just a couple …
How To – Bleeding Brakes And Tools Needed
Automotive, Tool Guides
When you are replacing or repairing your brakes it is important to bleed the air out of the system. Air is easily compressible compared to liquid brake fluid and if bubbles are trapped in your lines you will end up with a soft brake that won’t perform well. Also the air will get entrapped in the fluid and cause poor breaking once your brakes heat up.
It is also important to change the fluid in …
New Tax Incentives For Metal Roofing
Green Building, Roofing
The Federal Stimulus Package of 2009 has included better incentives for moving to metal roofing. The total cost of retrofitting or building a home with a metal roof is not covered but with better incentives and rebates the cost of replacing your existing roof with a metal roof can help push people in that direction.
Choosing a metal roof has many benefits.
Resistance to fire in areas where wild fires cause damage is a serious consideration. Many counties in California have …
How To – Knowing When Your Appliance Or Electronics Are Not Worth Fixing
Appliances
The average home is likely to have at least a few thousand dollars worth of electronics equipment. Everything from cameras, phones, computers, TVs and all the little gadgets that make life fun and easier.
So how do you decide whether something is worth fixing or if you would be better off throwing it away and getting a new one?
The decision is not always that difficult but more often then not it can be emotional. The …
How To – Repairing Stripped Bolts And Threads
Automotive, Tool Guides
There are a number of times when working on your car or home that you end up messing up the threads on a bolt or spark plug or wind up with a nut that you strip the heck out of.
So what can you do in this situation other then grab a beer and start crying …..
Well in some cases you are going to endup replacing the item or bringing it to a machine shop …
How To – Choices In Outdoor Furniture Styles And Materials
Lawn & Garden
Spending time outside relaxing is something we all like to do and garden furniture can provide seating and eating areas along with shade from the sun and a place to get away at the end of a hard day.
Some of the things that you have to look at when planing an outside furniture arrangement include:
How much you want to spend
How long do you expect the furniture to last
What materials go best with your lifestyle
Is …
How To – Automotive Trim Removal And Tools
Automotive
Interior and Exterior Trim on vehicles is installed in a way that fasteners are hidden from view. This makes the removal of these parts without damaging them one of the more difficult processes in auto repair.
For the most part understanding how trim parts are attached is a combination of experience and guess work. The process should be performed slowly and with much thought to find exactly where and how you should pry on a …
How To – Finding Energy Star Rebate Programs
Appliances, Tax Rebates
The Federal Government works with product manufacturers and distributors to provide discounts on products used in our businesses and homes that reduce energy consumption.
Often the rebate information is listed on the product in the store when you purchase it but more often then not rebates never make it to the consumer.
You also have situations where a retailer might push a non-rebate product over a rebated product because they make more on …
How To – Is Your Home In A Radon Zone?
Health & Safety
Every home in the USA has a potential to have Radon Gas problems but where you choose to live can mean you have a higher potential for this dangerous gas.
No matter where you build you should always have a Radon Test performed before you finalize your purchase.
Once you have realized you are at risk you should take necessary steps to reduce any exposure.
If you are building a new home then there are methods to vent gasses from below your foundation …