How & How Often to Paint a Garage Door

This past weekend gave us a great opportunity to tackle a project that’s been long overdue: repainting our garage doors. We’ve been living in this house for about 5 years, and over that time haven’t put a single coat of paint on these wooden doors. (We did, however, replace the garage door opener on one door when it failed) Of course, we’d love to have no maintenance, lightweight... 

10 Inch Sanding Saw Blade Review: The Final Cut

Are you ready for 2010? We are! We spent the last four days of 2009 completing the first step in a complete overhaul of our first floor, removing stud walls. The whole job won’t be finished until the Summer, but we’ve got great details to share already, including tutorials on ripping out walls, hanging, repairing, and taping drywall, and a load more! Up first this year, though, is a review... 

Before & After: Rustic Wood Floors Renovation by Melanie in Richmond

This week’s Before and After is brought to you by Melanie in Richmond. Melanie didn’t leave a blog address with her submission, so we’re not sure whether she has a blog or not. But, when you see her Before and After story below, I’m sure you’ll agree she should have one if she doesn’t already. (Apparently there are actually folks who work on their homes and don’t... 

Removing a Stipple Ceiling by Sanding (Reducing Stalactites)

Stipple ceilings were very popular in the late 1970s and 1980s.  They are commonly mistaken for popcorn or ’spray on’ ceilings that also have texture.  Both of these ceiling types were installed in this period because they are much less expensive ways of finishing a drywall/sheetrock without mudding and sanding the joints of the drywall smooth, which generally requires more time.  Both... 

Fixing Stippled Ceilings

Our house was built in 1984, and as such came with a few features we’d rather not have. One of those features is stippled ceilings. Last year, I read and read on how to remove the stipple texture. A simple Google search revealed many methods for removing it: sanding, wetting down the stipple, scraping. Many people said removing the stipple was easy… It wasn’t. I decided to try the...