Hour 1 Podcast 6 3 2023 Mixdown 1

[00:00:00] It's around the house. I went and rented all the right materials, got everything right, and I tell you what, that Swedish finish that they had put on it back in the eighties or whatever it was, it was a nightmare to fight it come everything up. I had to go really, really heavy on the grit just to get that off, and it was a complete issue.

[00:00:27] It took me probably four. Five days to do where I thought it was gonna be too. And I probably, looking back, should have spent another couple days on it. So that is another one of those projects that, uh, I should have just had somebody come and do it and the next time I'm gonna let somebody come do it.

[00:00:45] When it comes to remodeling and renovating your home, there is a lot to know. We've got you covered. This is around the house. Welcome to the Round the House Show. This is where we helped you get the most outta your home through. [00:01:00] Information and education. Wow. After Memorial Day weekend, it is what I call summertime.

[00:01:06] We're gonna talk some summertime projects today, but first, I wanted to talk about a couple things here just to get you up to speed. First off, if you wanna find out more about Around the House, show head over to around the house online.com and you can contact us there as well as make sure you're following, uh, US on social media.

[00:01:23] Look for around the House Show and the television show, which is around the House Northwest. You can find both of those on Facebook and Instagram. And, uh, make sure you follow us over there. And we do have a close group on, uh, called Around the House Nation if you wanna post up projects, have questions.

[00:01:39] That kind of thing. You can do that as well. Well, first off, in this first hour I wanted to talk about my top 10 projects to leave to the pros. These are the ones that I've looked at over the years went, you know, you have more of a likeliness of either getting yourself hurt, we're costing you more money than if you hired [00:02:00] someone to do it.

[00:02:01] And yes, there are projects out there that if you look turnkey between both of them, You can see one of 'em is gonna be cheaper to have the pro come do it, so that way you can go fishing, whatever you wanna do while the work's being done, and you don't have to worry about it. Now, the first one today on my list here, and there's gonna be, there's gonna be a little asterisk at the end of our hour today on this because there are some of these that I'm gonna say.

[00:02:28] Uh, it'll probably go beyond our 10 here, cuz there's gonna be, unless you know what you're doing type of things. And this is not what I'm talking about here. First on my list, garage door repair. Now if you're gonna replace or do a little fine tuning on it, that's one thing. But if you have your traditional torsion spring, which is if you have the garage door shut and you look up at the middle of the door and you see big coil springs, yeah, those things are deadly up there.

[00:02:58] And if you think about it, there [00:03:00] is so much power hiding up in those springs cuz that's what lifts the garage door and that garage door. Like mine for instance, the have in my house, it's wooden, so it, it's a 16 by seven garage door with wooden glass. When you go to lift that, it's hundreds of pounds and that is what makes it lift so easily is that torsion spring.

[00:03:20] But here's the problem, how you tighten them? You put these special bars in the hole. And you twist it and then tighten a nut down around it. I know of two people out there that have broken jaws that actually had to go get their mouth wired shut because the bar came outta control and they slipped it and it came up and the other one came up and hit 'em in the face.

[00:03:42] These are things that you do not want to tackle yourself. Now, there are ways to do like the, the little rollers on the side if you do it carefully. But the bottom roller where that cable is tied to, that's another issue. So when in doubt on a garage door, have a garage door [00:04:00] company come out, get it tuned up, and you'll be good.

[00:04:03] Now, if it's the, the garage door that has the tension springs on the side with the cable that are by the track, it's a little different story. There's still a pain to work with, but that's not near as bad as what you're dealing with here with those torsion springs. And so can you replace a garage door opener?

[00:04:20] Yeah, absolutely. Do you wanna mess with that torsion spring and the bearings and all that? No. That's where you bring the pro in and let them deal with it. That's the crazy fun part with that. So if you can do that, you'll be good to go. That's the key with that. Bring a pro in for garage door repair. Now the same thing goes to garage door installation as well.

[00:04:42] It's the same kind of thing. We're gonna talk about that here too, because I do not want to be messing with that at all. And you know, garage doors are finicky. They, there are a lot of little adjustments on there and there's a lot of things to know. This is one of the projects that I don't tackle myself.

[00:04:58] I go ahead and let [00:05:00] that professional come in and we're gonna actually do a video here coming up in the next few months. I've got a garage door on order right now that we're gonna do for, uh, around the House Northwest to really be able to cover that because, uh, we're gonna talk about how dangerous those things are so you can kind of get an idea what to look at now when you have a garage door spring break.

[00:05:17] Now, here's another little key with this as well. Always replace both springs and have them check the bearings and all those pieces up there as well. Because here's the thing, typically a garage door will have two springs up there. Those springs need to be a match set, and if one gets replaced, the other one should too.

[00:05:35] Never just replace one spring. You've already gotta torn apart. They've already gotta do it. Put the other spring in there. It's really just costing the parts Anyway, and that's where it's at. Now, the next one here on my list is a big one, and I have done this myself and quite frankly, after doing it myself, I'm not doing it again.

[00:05:56] And it's just one of those where I'm like, Nope, my time is so much better spent doing other [00:06:00] things. And that is hardwood floor refinishing. Now, I had, uh, in this house here that I bought, I wanted a really rustic looking g uh, looking floor. And I had a white oak that had this 1980s pink whitewash on it.

[00:06:16] So we. Sanded it down. I went and rented all the right materials, got everything right, and I tell you what, that Swedish finish that they had put on it back in the eighties or whatever it was, it was a nightmare to fight. It gummed everything up. I had to go really, really heavy on the grit just to get that off, and it was a complete.

[00:06:37] Issue. It took me probably five days to do where I thought it was gonna be too. And I probably, looking back, should have spent another couple days on it. So that is another one of those projects that, uh, I should have just had somebody come and do it and the next time I'm gonna let somebody come do it because I tell you what, it is a tough battle.[00:07:00]

[00:07:00] You've gotta sand it. Screened it. You've gotta get all the dust off of it, all the corners and edges. And then, uh, I even had some issues where, uh, the finish had worn through and there was some contamination. And when you're putting over, like somebody had waxed it at one point, and so they'd put wax over it and the wax had gotten into the wood, which caused staining issues.

[00:07:20] It was a fight all the way through it. So this is one of those things that I look at and say, you know, I need to do this differently in the future. I tell you what, I am not gonna be doing a hardwood floor like that again. Will I replace it? No, it's great hardwood. I'm just gonna have a professional come in to do it.

[00:07:37] And yes, it's thousands of dollars and I'd just much rather have somebody else do it. Can you do it if you're patient and you got plenty of time? Yeah. But the problem is, is that it's not going to be a weekend project for more, most people. So if you're taking a week off of work and you're gonna redo your floors, You're probably okay, but you just can't have anybody on it while you're working on it.

[00:07:56] You almost have to have the rest of the family out of the house, and I would [00:08:00] much rather just, uh, have somebody else tackle that one. Now, the next one here on the list is a big one, and this is one that I've noticed that has saved me money by having others do it. And here's why. This is insulating a crawlspace or attic.

[00:08:17] Now, in my experience, at least in my area here, the markup that the home centers and places have on insulation is enough that I have been able to get for the price of insulation or less have someone come in and do the project. So that means if you want to reinsulate your attic, that every quote that I've ever had, From people out there, it was cheaper to have them come in and do the project than it was for me to go buy the insulation and do it myself.

[00:08:49] So when it comes to doing projects like that, I tell you what do I wanna be crawling in my crawlspace down there in insulating that, oh, not a chance. [00:09:00] If I can have somebody else do it and it saves me money, this is probably one of the best projects to let other people do, cuz that's gonna put money back in your pocket.

[00:09:08] In heck, you're gonna gain a couple days of time and not have to be in that crawlspace or attic. So that's a win-win for everybody. All right, when we come back, we've got so many more here on our list today and, uh, including a bunch of honorable mentions of my top projects. For you to leave to the pros.

[00:09:25] We'll do that just as soon as around the house returns. And make sure you find us on social media. Just look for a Around the house. Show around the house. We'll be right back.

[00:09:46] Should I be loud? Be so hot.[00:10:00]

[00:10:10] Welcome back to The Round The House Show. This is where we help you get the most outta your home through information and education. Thanks for joining us today. Well, we've been talking about my top projects to leave to the pros and in those top projects to leave the pros. If we look back at the last segment we talked about, garage door repair, garage door installation.

[00:10:29] Hardwood floor refinishing. And we are just wrapping up our discussion about insulating a crawlspace or attic. That is one of those at every single time that I have found that, uh, well, I've gotten cheaper quotes that I can buy the materials for, and that's when I have no problem letting 'em take care of it.

[00:10:46] Now, here's the next one here too, and this is a big one here, and we're gonna talk about this in kind of multiple facets here. Having a pro come out and do your H V A C tuneup. Can you go out there and clean your [00:11:00] condenser? Can you vacuum out your unit? Can you do that stuff? Absolutely. And you know, good maintenance is good maintenance, but unless you're an HVAC tech and you know what you're doing, you need to get in there to be checking the, the free on or coolant level in that thing.

[00:11:16] You need to figure out all the things that are going on with your system and you wanna have a pro sitting there working on it for you, cuz that's really where the problems arise. For instance, if you own a carrier brand system, let's say like I do, you want that carrier tech to come out and to really sit there and know what's going on with your system.

[00:11:39] They know what the warning signs are when that thing's not working well, they know what the problem areas might be. What are the weak points? What are the failure points? You want that person taking your system and going through it, cleaning it up and maintaining it and doing it. And this is where I believe in service contracts.

[00:11:55] Service contracts. I think for this is a good thing. And if you do have a [00:12:00] failure, when you have a service contract, in most cases it gets you through. That thing first, where you're probably gonna be on the shortlist, you are a existing customer to them. So you getting somebody out there faster is gonna be key.

[00:12:16] And then some of those things also, depending on who you're working with, some of those programs can also have a priority scheduling for if there is an issue. So maybe that will save you a service call. Maybe it will save you an emergency service fee to come out there on a weekend or a holiday or something like that.

[00:12:34] So having that annual service done on your H V A C system and making sure that someone's taking care of it 24 7 is a good thing. So something to consider there. Now, H V A C systems are not a DIY project. And here's why, and let's talk about this for a few minutes because I really wanna, I really want you to think about this, especially if you're thinking about upgrading your system or putting a heat [00:13:00] pump in this year.

[00:13:01] Now, here's the big part. Your installation company that's putting the, the, the, the product in is more or as much of important as the brand you are putting in. So if you go out and buy a top of the line, like a carrier or train or, or one of those brands, right? If you're putting in that top of the line system and you turn around and find the cheapest, lowest quality company to put it in, you might as well have bought a cheap unit because that technician is as important as the product going in.

[00:13:41] You need to have a great installation. Mixed with a great product and you as a DIYer is not a great installation. I want somebody coming out to do heat calculations and figure out how many windows, which way the house is facing, how much air needs to move, what your [00:14:00] temperature is. These are things that most homeowners are gonna do poorly.

[00:14:04] So this is not a, I'm gonna buy something online, or I'm gonna buy it through the back door of this place and put it in. That is not how you get a system that's working correctly. If you get one too big, it will work bad. It will cost you money, it will freeze up. So you want to do that. Now, there are heat pump systems out there for the minis splits that are meant as a D IY system, and yeah, that's okay, but you're better off having a company come out and do it because again, you want those calculations done correctly.

[00:14:41] You want somebody trained that's going to tell you what system you need in there and to be able to stand behind it. I've had people do bad calculations, and guess what? They had to come out and fix it because they didn't do the calculation right. Now, here's the thing too. If you're in a place like I am where [00:15:00] you get to be, you know, minus 10 on a very cold winter day.

[00:15:06] And the hottest that I've been in this house was 117 on a summer day. Yeah, that's, that's a swing. But the problem is, is designing for 117, when that might be every four years versus the typical 103, you know, you really need to expect that system to do on a cooling side, 30 degrees. Is really kind of what that's designed for.

[00:15:34] So just keep that in mind when you're doing things. Okay. That's part of that process. So that's a big one. Making sure that that H V A C is done by a pro is where you're good. Now, here's the next one. Major drywall projects that require texture. Now, if you're just doing a smooth wall and you're gonna do it great, but if you're redoing your, if you're taking that eighties paneling [00:16:00] down in the den and you're gonna put up new drywall in there and you're gonna texture it, this is not your basic DIY project that you want to look good.

[00:16:09] Texture is an art, and it is a practiced art. And if you as a homeowner or you as a handy person, aren't able to do that correctly, And to match it. I have seen people come in, drywall professionals and where we've done a kit remodel or a bath remodel and they come in and match the texture and it looks like that was there.

[00:16:38] Now, here's the problem. Some textures, there's not really a good way to do that, so you have to redo that entire area. Sometimes it's better. To have somebody come in and just do that drywall work for you. So it's done. It's done by the artist. It's beautiful. And yes, you've paid a little bit, [00:17:00] but that is going to be, you know, I've got tons of bad patches in my house.

[00:17:06] A hundred percent. This house was a rental for years. There were, there were kind of poor DIY projects. I have to really go through and res, skim coat my entire house one of these days. Am I gonna do that myself? Heck no. I'm gonna have a company come in and do it because drywall to me is not fun. That texture part.

[00:17:27] I don't want to do an a, uh, just a, uh, you know, a standard knockdown or an eggshell texture. I don't wanna mess with it. So that's where I'm gonna go in and really knock out those, the professional, do it so it looks perfect, you know? And there's different levels of finish as well. You know, you can't just say, Hey, I want a smooth wall.

[00:17:48] I want maybe like a level four that is really smooth. Or a level five, which is kind of the rage of the new contemporary homes, which is just dead. Perfect. [00:18:00] And so understanding those terms and understanding what you want and making sure they're match and understanding what has to happen as far as priming and painting is all part of that process.

[00:18:11] So really, when you're talking about drywall, I would let that go. That is a great one to have other people tackle and that way it's done right and you can paint over it and it'll look good at the end. All right, we come back so much more about projects. You should let the pros tackle just as soon as around the house returns.[00:19:00]

[00:19:10] Welcome back to The Round the House Show. This is where we help you get the most outta your home through information and education. Well, today we've been talking about my top projects to leave to the pros. Those things that, well, you're better off letting the professional tackle for a number of reasons.

[00:19:23] Maybe it's safety, maybe it's quality, maybe it's something that's a learned skill that's gonna take you as a homeowner a while. So here we go. Let's keep going on this one. Now, here's the next one, which I think there's plenty of YouTube videos of this going badly, but let's talk about it. Large tree removal in the city.

[00:19:42] Or something that's close to your house now, it's one thing to take a little tiny tree down and get your, your, your saw out and start knocking it down. But taking down a significant tree and doing it correctly is best left to the pros. I [00:20:00] can't tell you how many times I have watched people drop trees onto houses, neighbors houses, cars.

[00:20:09] Um, places they didn't want to. Power lines go down the list and, uh, when in doubt if you can't drop it down, if it bounces, if there's nothing for it to bounce on, then the only person that's gonna get hurt is you. But the rest of that could be a problem. So that's really what I want you to, to take a peek at.

[00:20:29] So when we're talking about large tree removal, And this is where it gets interesting because first off, you need to know what your local area can do. My neighborhood, I cannot just take down a tree. That's not how that works. I literally have to go through, I have two trees that are dangerous trees right now that I'm trying to get through the city process and I'm waiting for, uh, a tree company to go through and, uh, actually get the permits to take down two dangerous trees.[00:21:00]

[00:21:00] So they're going through that process. That's how that works in my neighborhood. So understand what trees can be removed and what the legal process is. I have four trees in my front yard that it would take me probably a year to 18 months to get through the city process because they're healthy, they're in good shape.

[00:21:17] I. To do that. So those are things that you just need to understand. But second of all, having that company come out that can remove it carefully without getting hurt. And there's another thing that I've been watching as a trend on YouTube as well, that just makes me shake my head because it's just absolutely ridiculous.

[00:21:34] What I'm seeing is a tendency for dads to go out and dads, I'm calling you out on this one. Dad's to go out and really run the chainsaw and show the kids how to use it. If you are going to be teaching your kids how to use a power equipment, especially outdoor power equipment, can we please make an effort to do some kind of safety discussion with 'em?

[00:21:58] There was a kid out there, [00:22:00] probably 10 or 12 that I was watching on a YouTube video that popped up. He had flip flop shorts, tank top, no safety glasses. This, this kid could have easily gotten hurt. It was just a really horrible idea. So dads do a better job of teaching your kids how to do it and do it safely.

[00:22:23] That way they learn it the right way. There goes my little public serviceing amount smith to all you dads out there. Let's think about how we're teaching 'em so that we don't get them hurt later on, because we taught them poorly. So a large tree removal in the city is a big one. And I mean, I've seen people do it successfully, don't get me wrong, I have seen people go out and rent boom lifts and cut 'em into very small pieces.

[00:22:49] Take it down. Okay, seen that done. But I've also seen people go out and cut bigger pieces, get in a hurry, and, uh, knock the boom lift over cuz they've overloaded it. So [00:23:00] again, things to be careful with. Next up, we're gonna dive into power here. Electrical panel replacement. I knew how to do my own electrical panel replacement.

[00:23:11] I could have done it, I could have read up on code, but you know, something, I brought in the, uh, electrician to do it because I wanted to see it get done correctly, and I didn't want to ha, I didn't have time to be able to sit there. Because I'll be honest, I knew it was probably gonna get two or three call outs on a, on electrical, being a homeowner, doing an electrical panel when I called and get my building permit.

[00:23:33] And yes, this is something you get your building permit for. This is one of those things that I did not have time to do the back and forth. I wanted to have it done so I had an electrician come out and do it. So we could go from a, uh, a hundred amp panel to a 200 amp panel. And I had one of those panels you should be looking for.

[00:23:53] It's a split main panel where it's split up and it was made by Cutler [00:24:00] Hammer. And I had one of those panels that, um, you see, what happened is, is way back when in the, in the seventies, eighties and nineties, we had a problem. There were some companies out there putting out UL listed products that were not UL listed.

[00:24:18] So the problem with that is, is that they were not, um, putting out quality products and this could overheat and mine had overheated and I was literally, Days, weeks, and months, and you never know what it would've taken to push it over the edge, away from having a a, a fire. So make sure you understand what brand panel you have and when in doubt, why don't you just go down and take a look, or go over and take a look what your panel is and see what it is, and do some Google searching to make sure that you've got that dialed in and you know that you have a good panel.

[00:24:51] If your house is built in the seventies, sixties, seventies, eighties, and nineties, take a peek at it. You might be, uh, might be, uh, one of [00:25:00] those that need a upgraded panel. And if you're thinking about doing a, a car charger or something like that, now's the time to tackle that project. Cause I really want you to be safe with that.

[00:25:11] So, next up here, foundation repairs. Now maybe you've got a, a broken wall and, and, or you've got a, a wall that's leaning. That is something that no matter what, here's how you navigate this, and there's a way for you to do this, but the first thing you do is bring in the professional if you have a cracked foundation, if you have water coming in weird spots, or that wall seems to abode, the first thing I want you to do is not call the foundation contractor.

[00:25:45] The first thing I want you to do is to give a call to your local structural engineer. And pay them to come out and write you a report. That way, that report, you're gonna be golden guys. Have them write up [00:26:00] the re, the repair that will tell you what's going on. That way you're safe. Then if you're gonna do the repair yourself, you can follow that to a t cuz they will tell you what needs to be done or you're gonna go out and get your bids for it to be done correctly.

[00:26:20] That way, you know, now these days there's really not a reason unless you're trying to raise a house up to Jack A. House up and, and replace anymore. So don't let that be a fear. Many times a cracked wall or a b wall can be fixed with carbon fiber or steel or, and or steel. Many times you can go in on a broken foundation, pour a interior basement wall on the inside of it and basically buttress up the old one.

[00:26:51] There are a lot of ways that you can do this without having to jack the house up again. Um, that's the key there. There's a lot of different options for you, so just think about that, where [00:27:00] you're working on that, but really foundation repairs. And then the other one I'm gonna go with here. Is digging out a basement or crawlspace, and we won't get to this before.

[00:27:10] We can finish up going to break here. We won't get all the way through this, but the problem is, is that people will go in and start to say, oh, I wanna add another foot of height to my basement, so I'm gonna dig it out. And so they go in and do that. And here's the problem we have to watch out for, and this is a big one.

[00:27:29] If you have four walls in a basement and a concrete floor, Sometimes if you have a lot of lateral pressure pushing that in from the outside, that basement floor has locked the bottom of the walls in. So if you have other foundation issues, that's what's holding everything from coming in. So if you take out the, if you go in and say, I'm just gonna take out my concrete floor in the basement and take it down, there's nothing holding the bottom of those walls in and you can have a problem.

[00:27:59] So [00:28:00] we come back here, I'm gonna talk about the ways to do that correctly after you have an engineer report on it. But this is something that you can do yourself if you want to do it, but you have to tackle this one, right. And there are ways to do it. It's gonna take a lot of concrete work, but you might be able to do the digging yourself.

[00:28:18] You might be able to do some of that yourself, cuz some of this stuff is, uh, definitely not d i y homeowner. Type projects, but part of it is, we'll talk about that just as soon as around the house returns.[00:29:00]

[00:29:05] Welcome back to The Round the House Show. We've been talking about our top projects to leave to the pros, but first, before we review that, let's, uh, make sure that you know how to get ahold of me. Go over to around the house online.com and you can message me there. Now the things that we've been talking about today.

[00:29:22] How to, you know, stuff to leave to the pros, like garage door repair, garage door installation, hardwood floor refinishing. I just, can you do it? Yeah. Is it a lot of work? Absolutely. Insulating a crawl, spacer, attic. Yeah. Many times it's cheaper to have a pro do it than just to buy the materials. HVAC repair, replacement, large tree removal in the city.

[00:29:43] Electric panel replacement, major drywall projects. We've been talking foundation repairs. Now we were talking about digging out a basement or a crawlspace and we were talking about how that, uh, concrete slab that is your floor can be locking in those exterior walls. [00:30:00] So sometimes what I've had to do when that's the case is I have to cut out a and B sections.

[00:30:06] So what I'll do is I'll cut out 50%. That's holding that wall out. And I'll put in a new fitting, a new footing and a new wall up, and then I'll come back in and at least with that new footing, I can lock in that wall. And so I've gone in and locked in those new footings and I pour those in A and B sections.

[00:30:27] So we can take out the A section, dig that part down while the B section of concrete is still holding it together. So you're kind of almost creating a checkerboard pattern there on that wall. That way you've got something holding it and then you can come in and pour the rest. It'll be fine. So that's not a bad way to go in creating that.

[00:30:46] But again, you need to have a, a engineer, draw that up for you, come up with the plans, building permits, all that stuff. So you're good to go. So that is the key right there, making sure if you're do doing that, that is what it's all about. [00:31:00] All right, now here's some projects that I want to talk about here that are kind of my asterisks.

[00:31:05] And I say that because you need to know what you're doing to tackle these projects. And these are not entry level DIY projects. And I'm talking like major plumbing. Like if you're remodeling your kitchen and you're gonna add a sink in the island and things like that, nah, this is where you bring the plumber in.

[00:31:26] Maybe you've got a main stack you're gonna move where you're gonna place that vent so that things drain correctly. Is really key. And yes, I want you to pull building permits on this stuff so you can do it safely. And here's the key to this, and this is where it gets really important. You need things to drain.

[00:31:49] You need things to go together correctly. If you've got cast iron, I want people to know how to deal with cast iron and to cut it and connect to it. And maybe even [00:32:00] put in more cast iron if that's the way you want to go. You know, cast iron drain pipes are great in certain spots. I love them for main stacks that come from a second floor down into a living space, cuz you don't hear any of that water going down or it really reduces it.

[00:32:17] If you don't like to hear somebody flush the toilet upstairs. That can be a big key right there. To making sure that you've got things pretty well quiet downstairs. Now, can you go a, B, S or P V C depending on what your building code is and insulate around it? Sure. But cast iron's really good for that.

[00:32:36] Where cast iron tends to fail is after 75 to a hundred years, and people that have used a lot of drain cleaners and things like that and eating through it, yeah, that's where you can have a problem. But using lead oum and packing those around the fittings. Yeah, I like to have a plumber that's experienced with that.

[00:32:57] Now the next one here is, um, major [00:33:00] electrical work, like hooking up a generator or hooking up a car charger Now, A car charger's a little easier cuz you know what you're doing. It's a simple circuit. You wanna make sure that you're hooking up in the panel correctly. You wanna make sure you're following all the building code.

[00:33:13] You wanna make sure that your, your neutrals and grounds and everything are done correctly. And you wanna make sure that since you're using a lot of power for a long time, that it's working correctly. Now where it gets a little more difficult is where you're hooking up like a auxiliary panel for a generator and things like that.

[00:33:35] Some of these issues you're dealing with floating neutrals and things like that, which are well beyond what many homeowners are, uh, commonly working with. And so those are things that I really want you to be able to have somebody come, you know, deal with it as a pro. So that way it's safe, that way you know it's correct and it's gonna pass into the inspections that need to happen.[00:34:00]

[00:34:00] Now, the next one's gonna go into swimming pools. If you're gonna have somebody skim coat the plaster on your swimming pool, unless you know what you're doing, have it done by pro. That is where you have the company come out. Unless you are a plaster and you know what you're doing, I guarantee you having that pool repair done by a pro, cuz you're gonna have to do it every number of years.

[00:34:23] It's just part of pool ownership and having that looking good, but making sure that you are all dialed in on that in a pool is important. And then the next one here that I want to talk about is a big one. Here's the thing. Major concrete work is where you bring the artists in. This is the place that you really want it to be done and done correctly.

[00:34:50] Now, about half a concrete work is the prep, making sure that you've got the right rock down. It's [00:35:00] compacted, it's sealed. It's insulated when it needs to be insulated. It has the right rebar, it has the right wire mesh, it has the forms built correctly, it's sloping the right way. All of these things are really what you want to have dialed in, and that's where the key is to make sure that's done.

[00:35:21] Because I tell you what, that prep work is where all the work is done and the rest of it is finished work when the mud shows up. Now that's the big key to doing a great project. And this is not a DIY or friendly game. That person out there doing the concrete work that concrete's expensive these days. So have the person come out, have 'em do it, start to finish.

[00:35:48] If you wanna get the site ready and maybe get the old stuff removed or whatever, eh, knock yourself out. But really having a concrete finisher [00:36:00] set it up. Compact it. Make sure there's enough gravel, stone rock. Make sure that if it's in a wet area that they've got that dealt with, if you've got frost issues or if it's going in a garage where they have to throw in some foam to insulate it, whatever, make sure that's done correctly.

[00:36:14] Make sure they've got the right concrete mix showing up. Is this fiber reinforced? Is this something that's gonna be finished where you don't wanna see the fibers in it? What are you doing to make sure that this is done correctly and then getting the finished where they've got the edges right, the broom finish, right, or whatever is gonna happen, including stamping.

[00:36:34] This is a professional artist at this point, and the same goes for doing brick work as well. If you're gonna do a beautiful brick wall and you've never done it before, If you're gonna learn, start out with some small projects. If you wanna be a mason, that is not an easy trade. There's a lot of best practices that you need to understand and work with, but that's okay.

[00:36:58] You can do that. [00:37:00] But if you think that you're just gonna run down to the home improvement store, get five or six pallets of red brick and go put red brick up on the wall, it's gonna look gorgeous. It's not how it's gonna work, it's gonna, it's gonna be a tough go and you need to know what goats behind it, cuz you're gonna have weeping holes, you're gonna have a rain screen, you're gonna have a place that if moisture gets back behind it, how to let that out.

[00:37:19] There's a lot of little things that go onto this and then making sure that that is done correctly. Now last up here, we've been talking about 10 projects, or we actually went on to a little bit more handful of projects here that you wanna let the professionals do. If you are having professionals do this, make sure they're licensed, bonded, insured.

[00:37:43] Later Today I'm heading out to a project, I'm gonna go take a peek at where a homeowner ended up hiring somebody spent 140,000 bucks on a project and they have a hot mess, which it's probably gonna cost him 200 to fix it [00:38:00] because from the little bit of pictures I've seen, there is no business. I mean, the, the bathrooms are gonna have to be re gutted, and they didn't, they tried to save money and hired somebody that wasn't licensed, bonded, and insured.

[00:38:14] So let's make sure that you've got that all dialed in. And that you've got all those tips and go back and watch some of the episodes we've got here. Listen, we've got some great ones in the past about how to hire a contractor. That is what you wanna go back and visit. And, uh, you can do that, uh, on our, on our page here.

[00:38:33] So you'll be able to find that stuff. But it's really all about trying to make sure that you've got the right people going in and doing the job, and aren't gonna run away with your money. That's the key right there of having that. So do your research, sign the contracts, verify their license and their insurance so that way if they pour your concrete and it all ends up coming apart and they gotta rip it out and do it, you know you have somebody that has the ability to do this right, and is [00:39:00] gonna come back and fix it and not go out and run off with your money.

[00:39:05] All right everybody. More information about around the house head over to around the house online.com and uh, if you have any questions, you can message me over there or comments. I'd love to hear them as well. As always, thanks for tuning around the house. This is our number one. I can't wait for the next one.

[00:39:19] We'll see you then.