Joe and Allan explore the unintended consequences of a number of decisions made in the Chicago area that impacted waste management, water control, river management, and the control of invasive species. Allan brings up the importance of choosing the correct products for the materials and environment that you are working on. Not all related products are the right fit and make for more work later. They wrap up with an update on the Basílica de la Sagrada Família. After 144 years of ongoing construction, the exterior was finally completed this week.

Joe starts off with a telescoping magnet. A tool you never need until you desperately need one. Joe is having a few breaker box issues at home. Allan and the text line had a few suggestions for him. Allan spent his week fixing bad paint jobs on metal fixtures around a lake. Joe finished pulling up that water damaged floor in the mid-century modern house. Then Joe and Allan explore the theory that pyramids may have actually been built from the top down. It almost makes sense.

Joe has discovered dead blow hammers and their uses. Allan is wrapping up his current house project. The guys get off into a conversation about controlled failures like filters, breakers, and other needed safety features. They wrap up with a look back in history to the Colossus of Rhodes and the lessons we are still learning.

Max said it was houseplant day and the guys all agree that houseplants are a good thing to have. Joe is thinking about getting a stone carpet for his kitchen. Allan has a few thoughts. Max brings up the fact that a lot of new ideas are just modern takes on old ideas like the building lessons being discovered studying Viking long ships. Allan did a little water management via landscaping this week. Then, they wrap up with the great ideas you can find for your yard at Memorial Park.

Joe and Allan start off by comparing their bags of random parts and assorted other junk. Then, the guys have a few last minute holiday gift ideas. Max brings up the CRT (cathode ray tube) and its contribution to our modern world. Then are a few cautionary words about the dark side of fast fashion. They wrap up with a brief overview and history of the McRaven House.

Joe starts out with his power plunger. They get into the good and the bad about this device. Next, Joe's power bill has gone down recently. He has made a number of home improvements that made an impact. Allan is wrapping up a project and needed to make use the local dump. They agree that more people should get to know the local dump. Waste management is a big business. They wrap up with a look at Rockefeller Center.

Joe and Allan start off with the pros and cons of the microwave oven. Then, the guys have a few cautionary words about the growing number of AI videos about DIY projects. Not everything works quite like the video. Allan has a few updates on his repair jobs this week. Joe is still getting over the poison ivy he got from the dead vines in his backyard. They wrap up with the winter wonderland that is Yellowstone National Park.

Joe and Allan get started with a difference of opinion on breakaway blades for utility knives. Joe loves them, Allan, not so much. Both of the guys did quite a bit of landscape cleanup last week. Allan escaped unscathed. Joe, on the other hand, has now learned that even dead poison ivy can do a number on your skin. They have plenty of info on the plant's family and how to avoid the stuff. Kurt Weir with Groundworks returns with lots of information about the world under your house and just how much it impacts inside the house. It is more than you think. He also get to announce a major award for Groundworks and the fine job they have been doing since arriving in the Mid-South.

Joe and Allan have a full and wide ranging show. Joe asked Allan about "festive emergencies" and received numerous good tips and a couple about power tools and frozen turkeys. Then, Allan had a great week making progress on installing quarter round and sealing up a drafty basement. Joe has kind works about contractors he has had working on his hvac system. They they get into how pets and other critters wind up in crawlspaces and between walls. The guys wrap up the show with a look at the theoretical works of French architect Étienne-Louis Boullée.

Joe gets fascinated by octopus news. Allan reports on the world's largest pumpkin. He follows that up with winterizing advice for your yard. Max wants to know more about alternative energy storage and usage. The guys wrap with news about decorative power towers.