The Best is Yet to Come

What we’re looking for with indoor paints, finishes, or any construction product for that matter, are LOW-VOC or ZERO-VOC  . Remember these two terms. If any construction material or paint supply meets EPA approval it will have a LOW-VOC or ZERO-VOC labeled in its contents. Look for an EPA registration number on paint cans. The EPA only regulates paints that contain toxic ingredients. For the same reason, stay away from paints regulated or restricted by OSHA or DOT.

I found a website for you that contains more info on  NON-TOXIC CONSTRUCTION SUPPLIES:  http://purehome.accountsupport.com/index.html and one specifically for NON-TOXIC PAINT SUPPLIES: http://www.pristineplanet.com/non-toxic-biodegradable-paint-environmentally-eco-friendly/paint/1625_a_0.html

Thanks for empowering yourself today, you’ve made me proud.

Anthony Gilardi

Question:

I saw you answering problems about leaking toilets and wanted to ask you for advice?

 I have a toilet down stairs, that leaks around the base of the  toilet only on occasions. It doesn’t leak when the water valve is off, but  on occasions if someone upstairs has a long shower it will leak at times leak  around the base. But doesn’t leak if I have the toilet water valve off. Does  that make any sense to you?

 I was thinking maybe the force is causing it leak since all  this water has to pass this toilet on the way out??

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks,

Tony

Answer:

Hey Tony.

Sorry it has taken so long to get back to you. Very busy on the set on Myles of Style, finishing off season three.

OK, let’s get to the bottom of this.

Leaking toilet bowls around the base. 90% of the time it is the wax seal. Sometimes it’s the wax seal and the flange.

And, yes, it never makes sense as to when it feels like leaking or not.

AND, yes, you are correct in thinking it is the force causing the leak.

However, if the flange and wax seal are working properly, these leaks should not happen.

Try replacing the wax seal first, while you are there take a good look at the flange. If after we do that there is still a leak, then we are in the unlucky 10%, and you have to call in a professional.

My question is: Do you feel lucky?

LOL.

My professional opinion, it’s one of those two.

How do I replace the wax seal and check the flange you ask????

Here we go: 

1. Shut off the water at the valve below the toilet.

2. Flush the toilet and make sure all the water empties out of both the bowl and the tank, use a plunger if you have to.

3. Unscrew the Johnny Bolts on either side of the bottom of the bowl.

4. Carefully lift the bowl and set it upside down or on it’s side so you can get to the bottom.

5. Using a putty knife (or if you don’t own one, a spoon or butter knife will work), scrap the old wax completely away from both the bottom of the toilet and around the floor drain.

6. Check and see if the flange (the thin round metal piece that holds on the Johnny bolts is in good shape. If it’s not replace it (cost about $5 to $10).

7. Using the manufacturers directions install a new wax seal ($2 to $3) to the bottom of the bowl.

8. Replace bowl securely, tighten Johnny bolts and turn the water back on.

   ANTHONY TIP: NEVER seal the bottom of the toilet bowl with waterproof caulk or anything else for that matter, NEVER! You want to know if your toilet is leaking before it’s too late.

By all means, if you are in the process and you need further advice right away, don’t hesitate to contact me.

I’ll be there for you.

Write to questions@anthonygilardi.com

Good luck.

Anthony

Question:

Hey man, I have a question… I build a pretty nice home theater in my basement, but I need to paint the room. What friggin color should I do it? It’s used 99% to watch movies. and a little for my daughter to play in. there’s must be some precedent to what color you paint a home theater.

Answer:

Rule of thumb, home theaters…dark colors.

Reasoning: cut out the glare. Think about every movie theater you’ve been inside. Dark colored walls, black or Maroon/Burgundy curtains. No glare.

I personally would not go black…TOO dark and borderlining on Clostaphobia .

Brown tends to look ugly on walls.

I like the Maroon/Burgundy idea something like a Wine color.

Cool, warm, comfortable, enhances light.

As far as your daughters play room, what you want to do is stay away from flat finish paint. Impossible to clean. Also stay away from high gloss…glare problem again.

I would go middle ground:

Satin finish paint in the Maroon/Burgundy family.

Now we talk about something Kim calls “Color phobia” on the show all the time.

It’s when you put a dark color on the walls of an empty room and it looks overwhelming.

Happens every time.

Don’t panic. Once you fill the room, hang pictures and TVs, etc, the color seems to disappear.

Those are my thoughts.

Good Luck

Anthony Gilardi from HGTV’s Myles of Style with:

Ten ways to Spring ahead, and not fall back.

1. Change the filter in your HVAC (heating, venting and air conditioning) system and dust all vents intake and outlet. I say to do this twice a year after big seasons like winter and summer. Most HVAC systems share the same furnace. A dirty filter can lower the efficiency of the heating/cooling system, increase heating costs and cause fires.
2. Check your window screens, clean, repair, or replace all screens.
3. Open all exterior water spickets that may have shut off for the winter and run the water filling a five gallon bucket. This creates good water flow, gets rid of stagnant water in your pipes.
4. Sweap your chimneys annually, this protects you from fire hazards. I suggest you so this every spring after winter use. I do not recommend doing this yourself. Professional chimney sweeps are decently priced and are properly trained to handle unforeseen problems.
5. Safety proof around the outside of your home. If you have kids. As you know, they may have grown over the winter. You may have different problems this spring than you did last spring. Check fences for safety, fence off swimming pools, make sure you have strong handrails on all staircases. Get rid of dangerous and hazardous materials.
6. Check your water heater. If you have a gas-fired water heater, check to make sure it is venting properly. Light a match next to the vent and wave it out (don’t blow it out). See if the smoke is pulled up into the vent. If it isn’t, have a professional inspect and repair it. Otherwise, carbon monoxide and other combustibles can build up in the home. Check around the base of your water heater for evidence of leaks. If your water heater is over 5 years old, it should be checked monthly for any leakage or rusting at the bottom. If water leakage or rust is found, the water heater should be replaced.
7. Clean the clothes dryer exhaust duct, damper and space under the dryer. Poor maintenance allows lint to build up in the exhaust duct and cause fire.
8. Make sure the light bulbs in all your fixtures are the correct wattage.         The light fixture manufacturer recommends the correct wattage. If too high a wattage bulb is used in a light fixture, heat produced inside the fixture can lead to fire inside the fixture, ceiling or wall. Correct wattage will be labeled on the fixture.
9. Clean the kitchen exhaust hood and replace air filters.                                          Keeping this clean of cooking grease will help keep a stovetop fire from spreading.
10.  Always have a multi-purpose fire extinguisher accessible.                          Make sure it is Underwriters Laboratories (UL) listed or Factory Mutual (FM) approved. Check the gauges to make sure they are charged and ready to use.

QUESTION:
There is a attic above where the cracks are. It runs the length of the front room, Only in the front part of the house. Is there a way I can just spackle it then repaint? There is one area that looks like it needs joint tape, then painted. Is that okay to do? No pictures, no camera right now, sorry.
 
ANSWER:

Ok, this is good news.

Don’t worry about pictures, I’ve seen this a million times.

Here’s what we’re going to do:

Before we start anything keep in mind this is going to make a mess.

Either clear out the room completely or put plastic over everything that will remain.

If there are doorways leading to other room you may want to block them off as well because when it comes time to sand, the dust will get EVERYWHERE.

Next we going to gently chip off any old drywall or plaster of anything that looks and feels like it’s loose and will eventually fall anyway.

Also, wherever there are thin cracks, you will want to SLIGHTLY widen them to about 1/8 of an inch or so. FYI, a professional would do this with the corner of a trowel to create a triangular channel. Don’t worry if you can’t do this perfectly, we’re only trying to create a nice gap to hold our replacement plaster or joint compound. This is not an exact science.  

Don’t panic if after doing this it looks like you made the problem worse because you didn’t.

This is called prepping the area.

After doing this correctly, we’re ready to patch.

We’re going to try to do this in one day to be ready to paint the next day.    

Keep in mind of course, different carpenters have different styles and use different products. In my experience this has been what works best for me:

QUICK TIP, any crack that is wider than ¼ of an inch will need to be taped.

I personally like yellow, mesh, fiberglass, tape with a backing that sticks to the surface (very common BTW, any hardware store will carry it).

We’re going to use two different products for patching.

First we’re going to use 90 MINUTE JOINT COMPOUND.

This comes in powder form and will have to be mixed. Work with about ½ gallon at a time and mix with water to the consistency of toothpaste. You don’t want to mix too much at once because once it dries, if you didn’t have time to get it on the ceiling, it’s useless. I like to use a plaster knife at least 6 to 8 inches. QUICK TIP, the bigger the knife the more ground you can cover, however, the more difficult it is to work with, so find a size that suits you.

This is a basecoat but try to be as neat as possible, the neater you are the less sanding there will be later. YES, 90 minute compound means that an average coat will take about 90 minutes to dry. You may or may not need a second coat of 90 minute. Once the first coat is dry give it a light sanding an assess the situation. Keep in mind, this is a base coat and does not have to look perfect. What am I looking for you ask…well rule of thumb, and the reason why I like to use yellow tape, at this point if you’ve covered all the yellow areas you’re ready for the top coat.

Now we’re going use something called TOPPING COMPOUND.

The good news is this product comes premixed and ready to go, the bad news is this step takes more technique and patience. We’re no longer racing against a product that’s going dry in the bucket. Take your time with this step, spread it out evenly, remember, the measure of a good job is how little sanding remains. After everything looks even, WALK AWAY, don’t drive yourself crazy, let it dry over night.

QUICK TIP, the better the room is ventilated the faster the compound will dry, leave a window open if possible.

Day 2, this is it, we’re ready to sand.

Using drywall sandpaper, sand until the entire ceiling is smooth and even.

You may have to tweak some areas, that’s OK, and very common.

What I like to do next is; using a DAMP (not wet) sponge, clean all the dust off our ceiling.

We’re almost there.

No matter what color or type of paint you’re going to use, you ALWAYS want to prime the area first. Average primer takes about a couple of hours to dry.

Then we’re ready to paint, and…

FINITO!

Believe me, after doing this a few times in your life you can consider yourself a pro.

Don’t forget to have fun, and reward yourself for a job well done.

Good Luck.

Anthony  

I had to go into the kitchen and check this out for myself. Whoever looks at the end of your aluminum foil box? You know when you try to pull some foil out and the roll comes out of the box. Then you have to put the roll back in the box and start over. The darn roll always comes out at the wrong time.

Well, I would like to share this with you. Yesterday I went to throw out an empty Reynolds foil box and for some reason I turned it and looked at the end of the box. And written on the end it said, Press here to lock end. Right there on the end of the box is a tab to lock the roll in place. How long has this little locking tab been there? I then looked at a generic brand of aluminum foil and it had one, too. I then looked at a box of Saran wrap and it had one too! I can’t count the number of times the Saran wrap roll has jumped out when I was trying to cover something up.

I’m sharing this with my friends. I hope I’m not the only person that didn’t know about this.

Ok, couple questions:

How is the wood currently finished?

Paint?

Stain?

Varnish?

This is important info.

Of course the easiest thing to do is paint.

Paint covers anything, however, if there are multiple coats of varnish you would still have to strip and sand before you begin.

Here’s the thing.

Refinishing wood is always tricky.

However, it could be very rewarding if you have the time and the patience.

I personally love to redo old furniture.

But it’s not easy.

If you’re game, I’ll walk you through it.

First things first, pick up some paint/stain stripper.

This stuff is very toxic so read the manufactures advice VERY carefully and don’t cut corners. Take the proper precautions. Eye protection, skin protection, and respiratory precautions.

Usually stripper can be applied with a paint brush, preferably one that you wouldn’t mind disposing of after the job.

Let the stripper do the work and reapply if necessary (in case there are multiple layers).

Then  sand down to the bare wood.

TIP: I prefer an orbital sander over a palm sander because it leaves behind less vibration marks.

Start off with a course grit 80 or so, and graduate to a finer, finish, grit like 220. 

After we’re down to the bare wood, you might want to hand sand it to even off any vibration marks.

Now, IF STAINING, you want to treat the wood with a coat of wood conditioner.

Then you are ready to stain any tint you would like.

Finish it off with a couple coats of polyurethane.

If painting, you are ready to do so.

Make sure you keep a close eye on the project  so you can catch any drips before they cause a problem.

TIP: If you would like to paint a certain color yet still keep the would grain visible, you can water down the paint, apply a wet coat, and carefully wipe it off with a clean cloth.

Note: a light , bright color, or a white tint can give you a cool pickling effect.

One more tip:

Always test out your stain or paint on an inconspicuous area to see how well it covers before you attack the entire project.    

Hope this helps.

Let me know how it goes.

Thank you.  

Anthony

Floating shelves are very simple.

This type of shelf should be thicker and bulkier than a regular shelf so it can hold the floating system.

You want to them be a minimum of 5″ thick.

Let’s work with the measurement 5″ Thick, 12 “deep, and 36″ wide.

If you want your shelves to be larger, you can multiply the stock list to meet your particular needs.

Tip: Use a calculator. LOL.

Stock:

2 5″ lag bolts at least 3/8″

2 3/8″ washers

2 Max 3″X11″ L-brackets with a precut hole on the 3″ side at least 1/2″ round (sounds hard to find but it’s not, they’re relatively common, ask for help at the hardware store if necessary).

1 1″X12″ 6 Foot plank of whatever wood you want to use.

1 1″X6″ 6 foot plank of the same wood.

NOTE: 1X12’s are actually 7/8 X 11 1/4 and 1X6’s are actually 7/8 X 5 1/4.

Tools:

Drill/Screw Gun

Hammer or Finish Nail Gun pref. 18 gage.

Ratchet Set.

Level

3/8″ drill bit.

Sand paper

Wood Glue

6d finish nails or 2 1/2″ gun nails pref. 18 gage.

Wood Putty (if you want to stain or paint the shelves you can use any stainable/paintable wood putty to fill the nail holes, otherwise, use a wood putty that matches the wood you use)

Cut List:

2 1″X12″ pieces at 34 1/2″

2 1″X6″ pieces at 11 1/4″

1 1″X6″ piece at 36″

1 piece of 2X4 cut at 34″

Assembly:

Attach your 2 side pieces (1X 6X 11 1/4) to the top and bottom pieces.

NOTE: Top and bottom pieces go inside the side pieces creating a length of 36″ total and a thickness of 5 1/4″ total.

Then your 1″X 6″ X 36″ piece should fit exactly on the face.

It should look like a hollow box with no back.

Use glue on your joining edge grains before nailing.

Nail joining edges about 5 inches apart from each other.

Putty all nail holes, give everything at least an hour to set, then sand (with the grain) down to a smooth finish.

Stain or paint at this point if desired (read manufacturers instructions for proper drying time).

Don’t use a finish coat such as poly or shellac yet. Install the shelf first.

Installation:

Approach desired wall.

Draw a level line exactly where you want the shelf to be.

Find where the two sides of the shelf will land (36″).

Find two studs within that length (they should be 16″ on center apart from each other, but make sure you’re hitting a stud don’t assume anything).

Dry fit the 34″ 2X4 on the wall under the level line and make a mark (on the 2X4) where the studs are located.

Drill a 3/8″ hole at each mark through the 2×4 all the way into the wall and into the stud.

Place the L-brackets behind the 2X4 (in-between the 2X4 and the wall) lined up with the holes you have just drilled.

You should be able to see all the way through everything if this is done correctly.

Using a ratchet set, screw the 5″ lag bolts with washer, all the way through the 2X4, the l-bracket, into the wall, and into the stuff, tighten the bolt nice and snug, don’t over tighten.

At this point, you should have what looks like a 34″ 2×4 screwed into the wall with metal brackets around 11′ pointing towards you.

Double check to make sure the system is level.

Now the simple part.

Slip the hollow shelf into place directly over and around the system. Should fit like a glove.

Nail the back of the shelf (against the wall) into the 2X4 for stability (you won’t be able to see the 2X4 but you know where it is).

Do this on the top and bottom.

You can apply any finish coat (poly of shellac) at this time.

Finito!

Congratulations!

Good job.

Let me know how it went.

Questions?

Tips?

Problems?

Go to www.anthonygilardi.com and let me know.

Good luck.