True Value Videos

Leaf blowers, rakes and a question about leaky showers The Handyguys discuss the contest to giveaway a great toolkit, some possible problems with a leaky shower valve and weather a rake or a leaf blower is the correct tool for collecting leaves. To enter the contest you just need to leave a comment on Episode 87 and let us know what you think a valid use of duct tape is. We will announce a winner during our first show in December. We will take Thanksgiving off so this show is the last show we will discuss the contest. Our next show will come out on December 3rd. Leaky Shower Valves Don t let a leaky shower drive you crazy. Listen to the podcast as Brian s shower. Note - the picture is NOT Albert, its not Brian or Paul either! We then address a question about a leaky shower valve. Albert called in and asked us about his leaky valve. He gets water leaking out the shower head all the time. He said it was replaced recently. How could this be? The Handyguys discuss what some of the issues could be. Albert we have a question for you. Does it leak from the shower head when you are filling the tub or all the time, even when water is off? We discuss both scenarios in the podcast. Likely it drips all the time. If that s the case the the washer(s) are likely bad. If the valve is new the washers could have been damaged during installation. If it is new, contact the guy who installed it for you. He could come back and make it right. If you installed it then just replace the washers and you should be good to go. How do you replace the washers? That will depend on what you have. We recommend you shut off the water and take the parts to your local True Value and they will help match up what you need. Rakes versus Leaf Blowers The Handyguys love their power tools. We found this video on YouTube and found it interesting. Is a leaf blower the best tool for the job of clearing leaves? Watch this video and listen to the podcast to get our thoughts. This video clearly shows the rake beating the leaf blower. If this is true then why is the leaf blower so popular? We think both tools have their place depending on circumstances. Listen to the show for discussion of when you may want to use a rake versus when you want a leaf blower. You can get both rakes and leaf blowers at True Value. Enter the contest to win this toolkit! Win this toolkit. Click on the picture to learn how! Hint: Valid use of duct tape wins Disclosure We were one of five bloggers selected by True Value to work on the DIY Squad. We have been compensated for our time commitment to the program and our DIY projects as well as our posts about our experience. We have also been compensated for the materials needed for our DIY project and this giveaway. However, our opinions are entirely our own and we have not been paid to publish positive comments.

How do you get your house ready for the Winter Season? Win this toolkit. Click on the picture to learn how! Hint: valid use of duct tape wins! Join the Handyguys in a not-so-methodical checklist for the winter season.  This is not your every day handyman (or not so handyperson) checklist.  We have some extras you may not see on other lists. Listen to the podcast as we discuss these items. True Value had all the supplies we needed to get our houses in order. As the days get shorter and darker, it is a good time to check all of your outdoor lights.  Make sure they work. Paul was able to discover these fancy CFLs at our local True Value. They look great don’t you think? Perhaps it is time to install a light with a motion detector to secure your outdoor entrances and windows. Also, you can now get some wife pleasing outdoor CFL lights.  You don t have to settle on the curly cue CFL bulbs Watch out for leaks and/or water penetration. gutters/downspouts grade flowing toward house clear insulation around soffit vents to avoid ice dams Bring in your outdoor furniture Replace the grates and flavor bars on your Grill.  True Value has the parts you need for this. Why not refresh your busted down grill and enjoy a few more cookouts this season. Paul picked up the new flavor bars and grate at True Value. The steaks came from the cow he bought. Winterize your yard tools Seal/weatherstrip and caulk around window and doors and latch those windows for the winter Insulate your unfinished basement.. especially around the rim joist Clean your Dryer Vent before it is too cold to work outside Install some heavy drapes on your windows to stop drafts.  That s what they did in the old days. Last chance for pre-winter fertilizer. Final chance for exterior touch up paint Is it time to stain the Deck in the fall?  Isn t the sun closer to earth in the Winter?  Brian says no.  Paul says yes. Which is it? Disclosure We were one of five bloggers selected by True Value to work on the DIY Squad. We have been compensated for our time commitment to the program and our DIY projects as well as our posts about our experience. We have also been compensated for the materials needed for our DIY project and this giveaway. However, our opinions are entirely our own and we have not been paid to publish positive comments.

Furnace filters are a critical component of your heating and cooling system. Make sure they are changed regularly. We discuss the myriad of choices in furnace filters in this podcast. The Handyguys group filters into three different categories, good, better and best. Whats best for one person may not be the best for another. The standard filters are good for most people. They permit the furnace to operate as it was designed. When selecting a filter you would typically replace with one equal in size and type to the filter already install on your furnace. This may be a a non-pleated fiber type filter. This type is also the least expensive, costing about $1.50 or $2.00 at the local True Value hardware store. If you desire a replacement filter that has a higher MERV or MPR rating (see below for definitions) there are several choices at True Value. Go into the store with your measurements and pick one out. A higher rated filter will catch and filter more particulates from the air. The high end filters will have electrostatic capabilities and can actually filter microscopic bacterias, smoke or other fine particulates from the air. The industry provides ratings for filters. MERV, or Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value, is a number from 1 to 16 that is relative to an air filter’s efficiency. The higher the MERV, the more efficient the air filter is at removing particles. At the lower end of the efficiency spectrum a fiberglass panel filter may have a MERV of 4 or 5. At the higher end, a MERV 14 filter is available. MPR is a term used by 3M and stands for Microparticle Performance Rating. It is actually part of the MERV rating, and measures how efficient an air filter is at capturing particles between 0.3 and 1 micron in size, which make up 99% of the air s particulate matter. Smoke, bacteria, and smog particles fall within this size range, so if filtering these out of the air is important to you, MPR is a good standard to examine. MPR is used to compare furnace filters to one another, and cannot accurately predict how a furnace filter will actually perform in your particular home environment. The higher the MPR, the more efficient the filter is at capturing these small particles. Lastly Don t forget about our contest. We are giving away this awesome toolkit. Check out the details on how you can win by listening to Episode 87 of The Handyguys Podcast. Win this tool kit! Disclosure We were one of five bloggers selected by True Value to work on the DIY Squad. We have been compensated for our time commitment to the program and our DIY projects as well as our posts about our experience. We have also been compensated for the materials needed for our DIY project and this giveaway. However, our opinions are entirely our own and we have not been paid to publish positive comments.

In this show The Handyguys discuss their top 10 starter tools and announce a contest to win this toolkit! Win this tool kit! What is included in a first time home buyers tool kit? Screwdrivers of course!  But what else? The Handyguys went shopping at True Value to assemble a quality starter set of essential tools for the typical home owner. Our Kit Includes: The Handyguys will take your questions via the phone at (818) 804-TOOL. Leave an email address if you want an immediate and direct response. Tool Bag Carpenter s Pencil Speed Square, Orange Pliers Set Screwdriver Set Pry Bar 16-Ounce Claw Hammer Tape Measure Safety Glasses Hearing Protection Utility Knife In the podcast we discuss our rationale for each of the tools and why we picked them. There are certainly other tools that could be added to this list, but this would make a great starter kit. Buy one If you would like to buy essentially the same toolkit through Amazon just click this button and add the items to your shopping cart. You can remove items and add different ones to your hearts content. How to win this toolkit! To win this toolkit you must Listen to the podcast for details. Essentially all you need to do it help us come up with a LEGITIMATE use for duct tape. Give us your duct tape idea by commenting on this show post. In this podcast, we discuss some not so legitimate uses of this ubiquitous tape. We want our listeners to provide us with some valid users of duct tape and we will award the tool kit our favorite suggestion. The winner will be announced December 3rd, 2009. Suggestions after December 3rd are still welcome of course but you will not be in the running for the toolkit.  So leave a comment below and be sure to provide an email address so we can contact you if your duct tape suggestion is our winner. An illegitimate use of duct tape! Photo Submitted by DJ Goodfellow Disclosure We were one of five bloggers selected by True Value to work on the DIY Squad. We have been compensated for our time commitment to the program and our DIY projects as well as our posts about our experience. We have also been compensated for the materials needed for our DIY project and this giveaway. However, our opinions are entirely our own and we have not been paid to publish positive comments.

DIY Drama, Old Tractors and New Counters You need to listen to the podcast to hear Paul s story about what happened to his nice laptop. Does this picture give you a clue? Click on the pic to see it bigger. We start off by talking about the True Value DIY Drama contest. You can win $5000 if your story is chosen as a winner. Brian and Paul have both had some drama but Paul most recently. You MUST listen to Paul tell his drama story in the podcast. It was a very expensive story. What are you working on lately? Brian and Paul both discuss what recent projects they have been working on. First up, Brian. Busted up old tractor Brian was able to find an old tractor on freecycle. Well, nothing is ever free. The tractor needed a battery, a new fuel line and a fuel filter.  For good measure, Brian changed the oil filter and spark plug and sharpened the blades. After adding some fresh gas, the tractor started right up.  Not too shabby. Over the past year and a half, Brian used this tractor for some pretty heavy duty mowing. Overgrown fields and campground trails were the typical terrain. In this time, the mower has required countless replacement belts plus a few hundred dollars worth of repairs for other busted parts due to its heavy abuse. Brian and Paul discuss when is it time to cut the losses. Is it worth another $40 for a pulley assembly and another $25 for another belt?  A tractor that is designed and built for the uses Brian is putting this old thing through is just not in the cards at the moment. New Counters Paul s project was new counter tops. The design committee (his wife) did all the legwork. In the podcast we discuss some of the options and considerations. The decision was made to go with Granite. Granite is a professional installation but there is still some work for the Handyguy. Paul removed the old laminate counters, installed the plumbing under the new sink and has the back splash to tile. Doing these chores yourself can save money even when you are having granite professionally installed. Paul makes reference to a Fine Home building article on drain hookups. The Handyguys Podcast is asking that you consider participation in important research on consumers’ thoughts on advertising within their favorite Podcasts. The Association for Downloadable Media (ADM) Consumers Attitudes on Advertising & Sponsorship in Audio and Video Podcasts research project is a survey that should take you about 10 minutes and does NOT ask for personal contact information.Please consider taking part in the survey at http://www.takethesurvey.com/rawvoice. The sooner the better! The survey is going on now and will wrap up in a couple weeks.

Phased Remodeling, Vinyl Siding and Grading Phased Remodeling Painting is an easy and relatively inexpensive way to change the look of a room. In this episode The Handyguys start off discussing Phased remodeling inspired by an article in a recent Home Improvement Times . What is phased, or serial remodeling? Are there advantages to this approach in tough economic times? What are the disadvantages? We then address two listener questions, one on what should be included in a vinyl siding job and one about grading, moisture and stucco. Listen to the podcast for a discussion by The Handyguys Brian what can I expect? I ve gone to website that tell you to take down all your framed artwork from the walls. What happens to all the stuff already cut into the siding, dryer vents, water pipes and such? Hope this isn t a stupid question. Thanks for your help. Lou Ann No, that s not a stupid question at all. It is standard practice that all the penetrations through the siding are properly flashed and trimmed out when the siding is installed. It couldn t hurt to ask your contractor though. This may be specified in your agreement but it doesn t hurt to make a call. Do not let them charge extra after you ask. We discuss this and talk about some of the things the siding contractor will need to deal with in the podcast. Thanks for your question Lou Ann. Bonus Tip If you are installing vinyl siding install it from back to front. The pieces overlap and when done back to front the gap is not noticeable from the front of the house, when installed front to back the gap is very noticeable. Grading Gary writes us, concerned about an inspection on a new house. I bought a house 6 weeks ago , one of the comments on the inspection report was the grading by the bedroom needed attention as it was to close to the stucco and would allow moisture to pass , this section is a new addition to the house and is built on a concrete foundation , at the front of the house however ( built in 1947 ) the stucco goes all the way under the soil as such clearly built with a different code . How do you prevent moisture ingress here ? Is the stucco sealed ? How do I know if its still effective? Thanks for the great show Gary Thanks for the pictures. You do not need to be concerned with the stucco or sealing it, your bigger concern is the relationship of the grading to the wall and floor behind the stucco. Your grade dirt and mulch should be below the level of the bottom of the wall. You are lucky, you have a window. Measure from the windowsill to the floor, on the inside, then measure on the outside down. This will give you an idea if the grade is too high. For our listeners and readers we followed up with Gary and his grade is low enough. That s it for this weeks show. Make sure you subscribe and tell your friends.

Home centers and door to door security sales It seems that the Handyguys are in a bad mood this week due to terrible service at the local home center.  The poor service, coupled with traveling security salesmen offering free installations, created some cranky Handyguys. First up are the stupid self check-out registers at the home center. Both Lowes and Home Depot the major US home center chains deserve blame. This cost cutting trend supposedly frees up personnel to help you load your car. But if you need help loading product in your car, you probably can t navigate it through self checkout (let alone getting it on one of those scanners!). It is not as though the displaced cashiers are out on the floor helping you with that crazy plumbing problem in your house. Brian shares a story about visiting a home center near his office with a simple purchase and NO human cashiers in sight.  The 4 self checkout stations were slowly processing the customers who had smaller goods to scan. The machines were scanning but with bill acceptors rejecting bills, machines balking about what is and isn t in the bagging area, there was an increasingly long line. When Brian finally had his turn to scan his long boards, there was no one to help when the scanner began nagging about unexpected items  in the bagging area. All four stations had people grumbling, the lost attendant was grumbling and trying, unsuccessfully, to help someone out. The whole experience was so frustrating that Brian just left and went to a different home center! As a goodbye, the attendant yelled for Brian to put the items back on the shelves! Well, wouldn t you know, the other home center chain that Brian went to has just installed self checkout too!!! Wake up Home Depot and Lowes. Customer service will win you loyal customers. The Handyguys would welcome anyone from either chain who would like to come on the show and discuss improvements you are making that are beneficial to customers . And what is Menards doing? We have never been to one. Home security hassles Both Paul and Brian were recently visited by door to door vendor pushing Free security systems. Every high pressure tactic in the book was attempted. The catch? About $45 per month. Paul did some research and the system can be bought and installed DIY for a couple hundred dollars. Monitoring can be had for under $10 a month for DIY systems.  Check out Paul s recommendations for web sites where you can purchase these systems. Click these icons to share, thanks: