The Handyguys Podcast

The Handyguys do not own generators but with all the power outages in the news, they are certainly thinking about adding this “power tool” to their arsenal. Portable generators are easy to pick up at your local True Value store and you can be up and running quickly with some limitations. Without modifications to your electrical system, you can only connect household items that reach with an extension cord and which are not hard wired (e.g. a furnace blower). If you want the system to integrate with your electrical system for powering items such as the blower on your furnace, you will need to have an electrician install a bypass switch. Here are issues to consider before buying that generator:

Have a great new year!

We were one of the bloggers selected by True Value to work on the DIY Squad. We have been compensated for our time commitment to the program as well as our writing about our experience. We have also been compensated for the materials needed for our DIY project. However, our opinions are entirely our own and we have not been paid to publish positive comments.

The post Selecting a Portable Generator first appeared on The Handyguys.

The post Selecting a Portable Generator appeared first on The Handyguys.

The Handyguys discuss government involvement in banning traditional light bulbs.

Yup, the government has ‘outlawed’ the tried and true light bulb. Even after this podcast was recorded, some representatives in congress have attempted to delay the enforcement of the ban. Despite their efforts, it seems the ‘ban’ will be move forward.

It’s not really a ban on incandescent, it’s a requirement that by certain dates, certain types of bulbs need to meet certain energy efficiency standards. January 2010 will be 100 watt bulbs and others to follow after that.

Listen to the podcast as The Handyguys discuss the alternatives, pros and cons as well as discuss personal freedoms and its relationship to community stewardship.

Bottom line, CFLs can save you money in the long run and the newest breed of CFL bulbs have nice color, turn on to full brightness much faster and may also last longer. You can find every type, size and style of the CFL bulbs over at your local True Value hardware store.

We were one of the bloggers selected by True Value to work on the DIY Squad. We have been compensated for our time commitment to the program as well as our writing about our experience. We have also been compensated for the materials needed for our DIY project. However, our opinions are entirely our own and we have not been paid to publish positive comments.

The post Lightbulb Bans, Government Intervention and Personal Choice first appeared on The Handyguys.

The post Lightbulb Bans, Government Intervention and Personal Choice appeared first on The Handyguys.

The Handyguys did a bit of virtual perusing of the isles of our local True Value. Each of us made a Christmas shopping list and then compared our choices in this entertaining podcast.  We selected some excellent practical gift ideas for the handyguy, handygirl or anyone else. You must listen to the full podcast for our  explanation of why these items belong on your Christmas list.  And Merry Christmas!

Listen to the podcast for all the discussion and why we selected these items.

We were one of the bloggers selected by True Value to work on the DIY Squad. We have been compensated for our time commitment to the program as well as our writing about our experience. We have also been compensated for the materials needed for our DIY project. However, our opinions are entirely our own and we have not been paid to publish positive comments.

The post Last Minute Christmas List Ideas first appeared on The Handyguys.

The post Last Minute Christmas List Ideas appeared first on The Handyguys.

Can you save some money using LED Christmas Lights? The Handyguys discuss LED, mini-incandescent and C9 and C7 Christmas lights.

This podcast was inspired by an article Handyguy Brian read on the Fox News Website entitled Good Return on Investment: LED Holiday Lights. Are they really a good investment? Perhaps, perhaps not! Do the Handyguys dare to disagree with Fox New reporting? In the name of fair and balanced, the Handyguys discuss the energy savings of LED Christmas lights.

Yes – LED Christmas lights save energy. According to the article, you will save about 71.4 cents per 100 light string per season.

How about return on investment? You decide. Handyguy Brian went by the True Value and picked up a 300 light set for $39. That is a projected savings of $2.14 per season. Assuming Brian needed to buy new incandescent strings every 3 years due to failure, assuming $15 each time, and assuming that the LEDs lasted the advertised 20,000 hours (129 years at 155 hours per season), the ROI would 5 years. If ROI was calculated only on energy savings, the ROI would be more like 18 years!

Bottom line, buy quality, name brand, LED lights with a warranty. Save the info about how to file a warranty claim for your LEDs.

What about white lights versus colored lights? The Handyguys discuss an old article by a radio talk show host Michael Smerconish. Michael has said

White lights are boring.

Wow, Michael, tell us how you really feel! Read Michael’s articles “Enough with the white Christmas, already!” and The Coloreds and The Whites

Also discussed are the older style C9 and C7 lights.

Listen to the podcast for all the lively discussion.

We were one of the bloggers selected by True Value to work on the DIY Squad. We have been compensated for our time commitment to the program as well as our writing about our experience. We have also been compensated for the materials needed for our DIY project. However, our opinions are entirely our own and we have not been paid to publish positive comments.

The post LED Christmas Lights for Energy Savings first appeared on The Handyguys.

The post LED Christmas Lights for Energy Savings appeared first on The Handyguys.

The Handyguys discuss some hardscaping options under consideration for Brian’s father’s house – concrete, stamped concrete and pavers.

Plain old concrete is the cheapest and fastest option for a front stoop. A small stoop can be done in a day with the following day to remove forms and clean up any dirt around the area. Brian’s fathers project (front patio, walkway, side walkway and rear patio slab) came in at about $3500 for plain concrete.

Stamped concrete is the process where a texture is places in the concrete to emulate the look of stone or brick. Stamped concrete also is typically colored. It’s a less expensive option than pavers, installs quickly and has a nice look. Brian’s fathers project (front patio, walkway, side walkway and rear patio slab) came in at about $4500 for plain concrete.

Pavers are bricks made from concrete. They come in many different shapes and colors that can be mixed and matched to come up with an interesting and unique look. They are usually more costly than concrete. Pavers also require much more attention to detail in terms of preparation and they are more labor intensive to install. The entire job takes longer than concrete. Brian’s fathers project (front patio, walkway, side walkway and rear patio slab) came in at about $9000 for pavers.

Listen to the podcast for a full discussion on each of the options.

The post Hardscaping Options – Concrete, pavers or stamped concrete first appeared on The Handyguys.

The post Hardscaping Options – Concrete, pavers or stamped concrete appeared first on The Handyguys.

Stink bugs! Perhaps we wouldn’t hate them sooooo much if they had a better name. Perhaps if stink bugs were called Smiley Bugs, Fun Bugs, Sweet Bugs or something else, it would make them a bit more likeable. Unfortunately, stink bugs are a real issue. Stink bugs come into our houses when the weather cools off, they also can devastate certain crops.

Stink bugs are yet another invasive species that are currently impacting 33 states in the US.

Stink bug traps can be effective inside or outside the house to control and eliminate infestations. Prevention is another good approach to keep them out of the house.  A key preventative measure for keeping stink bugs out of the house is to caulk and seal up cracks around your doors and windows. Leave your porch lights off so when you come inside you wont let as many stink bugs in with you.

Bottom line for stink bug control:  Trap them before they get inside, trap them if they do get inside and seal up the house so ones that the traps don’t get, can’t get inside.

In this audio podcast, The Handyguys discuss the stink bug and how to eliminate them from your home. We discuss the Rescue! trap that is available at True Value.

We were one of the bloggers selected by True Value to work on the DIY Squad. We have been compensated for our time commitment to the program as well as our writing about our experience. We have also been compensated for the materials needed for our DIY project. However, our opinions are entirely our own and we have not been paid to publish positive comments.

The post Stink Bug Prevention, Control, Removal and Elimination first appeared on The Handyguys.

The post Stink Bug Prevention, Control, Removal and Elimination appeared first on The Handyguys.

Our neighborhood has a lot of wasps. They build small nests and find their way into all the protective hideouts provided by vinyl siding, drip edges, gutters and flashing. I don’t usually pay a lot of attention to the wasps unless they are building a nest very close to people such as on my deck or front porch. While two of my children were stung last year, the wasps are generally not aggressive and stay out of our way. They are also supposed to eat other insects which is a good thing.

Perhaps my permissive “live and let live” policy went a little  far. These creatures began building more nests around the home and bothering my wife and kids who were trying to enjoy the outdoors. It was time to address the  problem and eliminate the  nests.

First, I used binoculars to observed the swarming wasps during the day when they are most active so I could see them flying in of out of their disguised homes. I then crept out one of our second story windows during the evening to get a closer look and access to their nests. This method can be very dangerous if you have a steep roof. You can either slip off the roof on your own or with the aid of angry wasps.

While on the roof, I used an Ortho Home Defense product which I purchased at True Value Hardware.  It works great and does not seem to stain the siding. It has the ability to spray at areas that are 12-15 feet away and its foam prevents the wasps from making a counter attack.

I identified nests in many areas including those shown here:

The largest nest was in the rain downspout. I could not believe wasps could survive the water runoff but the nest was cleverly built on the inside of the spout away from the water which washes down the outside of the spout. If you look closely you can see the nest in the down spout:

When I was at the True Value store, I picked up a Rescue WHY trap for wasps, hornets and yellow jackets. I was a little nervous about using the chemical spray in first floor areas outside where people like to hang out so I hung this trap above the porch. After about a week of it being ignored, the wasps finally started climbing in (perhaps because they no longer had other homes to return to…). I am going to keep using the Rescue trap and see if it continues to eliminate the remaining Wasps.

We were one of the bloggers selected by True Value to work on the DIY Squad. We have been compensated for our time commitment to the program as well as our writing about our experience. We have also been compensated for the materials needed for our DIY project. However, our opinions are entirely our own and we have not been paid to publish positive comments.

The post Wasp Killer – eliminate wasps around your home first appeared on The Handyguys.

The post Wasp Killer – eliminate wasps around your home appeared first on The Handyguys.

When the handyman moves inside to cut and sand wood, a major hazard exists with all the dust that is accumulated in the air and potentially in your lungs.  The Handyguys talk about how to control dust from ruining your day and potentially your life.

In order to protect yourself from dust, consider these strategies:

The Handyguys discuss these tips and their own dust collection and mitigation strategies in this episode.

The Handyguys discuss a somewhat controversial issue regarding residential fire suppression systems or sprinkler systems. The controversy isn’t regarding the benefits of such a system, since yes, they do save lives and property. The controversy is if governments should require them to be installed in new construction or major remodels.

Handyguy Brian thinks it should be an individual’s choice and such an expensive option should not be mandated. Pennsylvania recently repealed the requirement after only a few months in effect. In times when builders are hurting for business and customers are trying to save every dollar they can, it’s not wise to put additional costs on the industry. Listen to the discussion.

Oh, and please no nasty emails if you don’t agree with us. Disagreeing comments are welcome if they are respectful and tasteful.

The post Dust Collection and Resiential Sprinkler Systems first appeared on The Handyguys.

The post Dust Collection and Resiential Sprinkler Systems appeared first on The Handyguys.

In this audio episode, The Handyguys discuss the advantages of a local True Value store and the latest line of Delta faucets.

Mike from “thediygeek” went on a media tour of Delta Faucet in Indianapolis, IN. He reports in on this episode of the Podcast. You can find a detailed report of his trip here. Also discussed is Brian’s installation of a new Delta Kitchen faucet he picked up at True Value. Oh, and Paul, Handyguy Brian’s wife loves it!

Listen to the Handyguys discuss the Delta line of faucets on this podcast!

We were one of the bloggers selected by True Value to work on the DIY Squad. We have been compensated for our time commitment to the program as well as our writing about our experience. We have also been compensated for the materials needed for our DIY project. However, our opinions are entirely our own and we have not been paid to publish positive comments.

The post The True Value Experience and Delta Faucets 2011 first appeared on The Handyguys.

The post The True Value Experience and Delta Faucets 2011 appeared first on The Handyguys.

In this audio episode, The Handyguys discuss thatch in your lawn as well as discussing those purple kite looking things that are showing up in trees around many states in the Midwest and Northeast.

The Handyguys discuss thatch in your lawn and dispel many myths regarding thatch. What causes it and what doesn’t cause it. Listen to the podcast for the discussion.

No, those aren’t kites. They are traps used to monitor the potential infection of the Emerald ash borer beetle. Those little suckers are killing ash trees around the country. The Handyguys discuss where they come from and what the effects of them are on our forests.

The post Preventing and Repairing Thatch (and those purple triangle thingies in trees) first appeared on The Handyguys.

The post Preventing and Repairing Thatch (and those purple triangle thingies in trees) appeared first on The Handyguys.