Working on the exterior of the home is something we can only do in nicer weather so for most of us, that means the summer months. Let's take a look at some popular repairs you'll want to consider to keep your home looking great and well maintained.
1. Wood Deck Cleaning and Refinishing
Wood decks require maintenance just like any other part of your home. Fortunately they are generally pretty easy to access and refinish. This tutorial will walk you through the steps necessary for wood deck cleaning and refinishing.
2. Replacing a Deck Board
A repair you'll face at some time if you have a natural wood deck is the replacement of a deck plank or board. In this tutorial, we'll walk through the steps necessary to replace a rotten or damaged deck board.
3. Proper Deck Board Installation
The debate about whether deck boards should be placed "Bark Side Up" (growth rings curving down) or "Bark Side Down" (growth rings curving up) has raged for years. I don't agree with the position that "bark side up" is always the answer and I'll tell you why. Then you can decide which way you want to install the boards. The issue of which way to orient the deck board is only relevant with Flat Grain boards because the orientation of their growth rings will affect how the wood reacts when wet, and in the case of a deck board, whether you have a "cup" warp or a "crown" warp.
4. Organic Yard Care
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Organic lawn care is growing in popularity and for good reason. It provides a safe and healthy way to make your yard look great without harmful chemicals and pollutants. Let's take a look at some of the foundations of organic lawn maintenance, mowing and aeration
5. How to Tuckpoint Brick Mortar Joints
The process of repairing a mortar joint is called tuckpointing. This term is derived because you are tucking mortar into the damaged mortar joint with the point of a trowel called a "pointing trowel." Fortunately the need to repair a mortar joint is more common than having to replace a brick. This repair isn't too difficult but takes a little patience and finesse.
6. How to Replace a Damaged Brick
This home repair is one that can be attempted if you are repairing 1 brick or up to 4 adjoining bricks and the wall you are repairing is not load bearing. On brick homes the brick wall is typically a "veneered" brick wall. Veneered means it is a brick skin over wood framing. If that is the case with your home, then the brick wall is not load bearing and can be repaired.7. Cleaning Gutters and Downspouts
Cleaning your home's gutters and downspouts is a major home maintenance task that should be performed at least twice a year (spring and fall). This tutorial will guide you through the easy way to perform this task.
8. Common House Paint Problems and Their Repair
This tutorial "Common House Paint Problems" will illustrate and review the problem, cause and solution for the top 10 house painting problems and paint failures found around the home.
9. Repairing Damaged Vinyl Siding
Vinyl siding is the most fragile of all siding materials and besides melting when exposed to extreme heat, it will become brittle in cold weather. Repairing small sections of vinyl siding can be an expensive proposition if you have a repair technician come out for a house call, costing $300 or more for the repair. However, you're going to learn how to make the repair for a small fraction of that price, for as little as $10.
