Archives: Structure

Radiant Heat Floor Insulation

By Todd Fratzel on Air Conditioning, Insulation

Radiant Heat Insulation Thea in Maine recently emailed us a question about radiant heat insulation. He has radiant heat tubing stapled to the bottom of the plywood sub-floor in his house and the insulation that was installed by the builder is falling down and doesn’t appear to be installed properly. Thea asked me what method…

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How To Connect A Propane Grill To House Propane Supply

By Todd Fratzel on Appliances, Decks & Porches

Disclaimer: You really should consult a certified gas fitter for this type of project. Be sure to check all local building codes prior to attempting a project of this nature. Connecting Gas Grill To House Propane Supply Connecting your propane gas grill to your house propane supply is a great way to ensure you can…

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How To Cut Dados With A Router

By Todd Fratzel on Finish Carpentry, Power Tools

Cutting Dados With A Router In this article I’d like to show you how to cut dados using a Plunge Router. More specifically this method is very useful for cutting dados in the sides of a book case. It would be very difficult to cut these dados using a stacked dado in the table saw…

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Colonial Mantel with Slate Surround

By Todd Fratzel on Finish Carpentry

Colonial Style Mantel The first mantel that I ever built was a colonial style mantel with a slate surround and hearth. The photo shows the mantel and surround that I built in our first home. I really wish I kept photos of the fire place before this project so you could see the dramatic change.…

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Reverse Privacy Lock Sets to Child Proof

By Todd Fratzel on Doors

We have child proofed a couple of doors in our house by simply reversing the privacy lock sets. In particular we have used this method on the door leading to our basement stairs and the utility room in the basement. This is a really simple method to child proof doors without having bulky door knob…

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Radiant Tubing Into Concrete Slab Detail

By Todd Fratzel on Air Conditioning, Foundations

Radiant Slab Heat This post is an answer to a question a reader asked the other day. “How should I treat the radiant tubing into concrete slab detail?” It just so happens that I installed the radiant tubing in our new home so I’ve got a bit of experience with this detail. Installing radiant tubing…

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Sherwin Williams DeckScapes Clear Deck Sealer

By Todd Fratzel on Decks & Porches, Painting and Finishing, Product Reviews

The other day I power washed the deck and farmers porch. Now I need to choose a sealer to protect the Cambara decking. When we built the house I used Penofin Penetrating Sealer to seal the cambara decking. Well I’ve been pretty unhappy with that sealer. I don’t think it has held up well at…

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Cleaning Decks With Power Washers

By Todd Fratzel on Decks & Porches, Maintanence

Pressure Washing Decks Cleaning decks with pressure washers is a very easy home improvement project that doesn’t take much skill. The best part is you don’t have to own an expensive power washer to do the job. Almost all rental centers carry pressure washers. Today I rented a 3,100 psi gas powered pressure washer from…

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