Tips & Techniques

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…

Whenever I'm installing cleats for closet shelves, I cut down the amount of ladder time with the little trick illustrated here. First I draw a level line to mark the…

Learn how to install large tiles on your ceiling properly using expert bracing techniques.

Discover a hassle-free way to efficiently remove glued-down carpet using C-clamps.

My work as a carpenter who specializes in repairing and replacing exterior trim means that I spend a lot of time fussing with long workpieces that have to be planed…