Tips & Techniques

I have struggled many a time in the past to create equal, code-approved spacing between deck balusters. The method I've come to rely on -- the slant-rule technique -- has taken…

Like Sarah Susanka, I prefer to use plug mold in kitchens rather than ruin the beauty of my backsplash with a series of outlets every few feet. As Sarah explains…

One of the handiest additions to any toolbox is a 99¢ bottle of bright-red nail polish. This tough, waterproof lacquer dries quickly, comes with its own brush and is useful…

In my 30 years as a carpenter, I've watched a steady evolution in tool belts. I think the leather ones were, and still are, an improvement over the old canvas…

If your favorite depth stop is missing when you need it most, here's a solution you can use in a pinch. As shown in the drawing, I slip a cable…

I switched to blown-in cellulose insulation in attics of new homes a few years ago. Watching the installers prepping one job, I saw the trouble they had to go to…

Jonathan White's method for anchoring pyramid-shaped footing forms on a sloped site (see Preventing pier-form uplift) brought to mind another approach that I have used to solve similar problems. As…

I needed to pull wire in a wall to hook up some speakers on my porch. I thought about buying a fish tape, but the cheapest one at Home Depot…

Here in California, we remodel plenty of stucco homes and install lots of new windows in their old walls. The tricky part is making a seamless patch between the new…

Here's a slick way for one carpenter to walk a wall while installing blocking with a minimum of wasted effort. As shown in the drawing, I start a 16d nail…