If you rely on a sump pump to keep your basement dry, then you need a good system that keeps on working even when electric power goes out. I often hear from homeowners who’ve endured a catastrophic basement leak that…
Back in 2018 I got the chance to try Milwaukee’s then-new 18 volt cordless electric chainsaw. You can see me cutting some hard maple firewood logs using this saw in the video below. I know cordless tool battery technology has…
Power tool technology is the same as every other kind of advancement in the world. New stuff is expensive and exclusive at first, then it gets cheaper and more widely available over time. So what kind of new and interesting…
The world is faster, more demanding, less free and more competitive than it used to be, and I find that staying sane in the 21st century requires mental and lifestyle strategies to match. Then there are personal issues which are…
Want to install wainscoting along the side of a staircase? This short video shows an overview of an actual installation I was part of on a century home. We used a kit for this job from an outfit called Elite…
Question: As the weather warms up in spring I sometimes hear a faint drip-drip sound coming from the attic of my 17 year old bungalow. Water stains and dripping also showed up on the ceiling. When I opened the attic hatch,…
Masonry wasn’t my favourite homebuilding material when I got involved in building and renovation back in the mid-1980s, but 35+ years of dealing with reality has changed my mind. Brick veneer, in particular, offers the best combination of quality and…
With a little proactive maintenance, you can keep vehicles running and looking good economically for decades. Click to see 5 real-world tips that have kept a 29 year-old pickup in great shape.
If you’re thinking of installing a new hard surface floor in your home or cottage, an experience I had working on the house of my daughter and son-in-law and their kids may prove helpful. The house had wall-to-wall carpeting upstairs,…
Long before metric and unified fasteners, machinery was chaos. Threads varied from shop to shop. Parts didn’t interchange. Repairs were slow, expensive, and uncertain. The Industrial Revolution needed something more than innovation — it needed standardization. This AI Dialogue explores…
A roll of plastic pipe I ordered years ago arrived in a carton that makes me concerned. A stern, 15-word warning of the sort I’m seeing more and more often is the reason why. It highlights a creeping menace that’s…
In the late 1980s I faced a choice, and it was like many of the big choices we all face in life. Do I do the harder thing that I know is best, or do I choose the easier way…