Archives

S27 E8: Real Stone, Flat Roof

Kevin finds stone specialist Jason Buechel installing natural quartzite veneer on the landscape walls. Tom Silva oversees the installation of the low-slope EPDM roofing system.

S27 E7: Water Damage Brings Opportunity

Master mason Lenny Belliveau gives Kevin a lesson in block work. Kevin travels to Los Angeles to see a restored modern house that once belonged to Hollywood legend Gary Cooper.

Ice Dam Prevention

Here’s how to prevent ice dams in 8 steps so you can enjoy a winter free of icicles and the damage they can do to your roof.

Fast Fixes for Ice Dams

Read these quick tips to help prevent ice dams before the snow even falls.

A drawing of a man looking at a land for sale sign and imagining a home on it.

What You Should Look for When Purchasing Vacant Land

Want to build your dream house from the ground up? Know what to look for when buying vacant land to turn your land-owning dreams into reality.

7 Insulation materials stacked on top of each other into a tower.

All About New Insulation Options: A Homeowner’s Guide

Learn how to pick a new insulation option for your home. Our guide covers materials plus health and safety considerations.

Invisible Peril

Why you may be breathing poison gas from your garage—and what to do about it

25 Secret Renovation Sources

We raided our Rolodexes (and Palms and Blackberries) to bring you a handpicked list of places where the savvy go for extraordinary home products

Creating a Master Bath for a Modest Home

How one couple added on a luxurious master bath without sacrificing the modest scale of their cottage home.

S27 E6: High-Tech Heating and Cooling

Kevin lends Norm and general contractor Tom Silva a hand framing in the "not quite flat" roof above the library. Richard Trethewey shows Kevin a new software program that allows him to design the HVAC system on a laptop.

Building a Flat Roof Right

Here's how the pros construct one so it stays tight and tight.

S27 E5: The Cost of Poor Workmanship

Norm Abram shows Host Kevin O’Connor the newly discovered problems at the project house, most of them caused by the poor workmanship of a previous contractor. Roger Cook reveals the anatomy of new landscape walls; they’ll be natural stone veneer over reinforced concrete.

S27 E4: Longfellow's House

Certified arborist Jack Kelly shows landscape contractor Roger Cook a treatment of horticultural oil that will protect the property’s hemlocks. Kevin meets curator Nancy Jones for a tour of the legendary Longfellow House.

Red patterned wallpaper hanging on the wall of a room.

The Best Techniques for Hanging Wallpaper

Master wallpaper hanging with expert tips in this guide. Learn prep, measuring, cutting, and smoothing techniques for pro-level results.

S27 E3: Worst-Case Scenario

Tom Silva discovers extensive rot and termite damage on the eastern elevation, and what he thinks is a failed footing in the basement. Norm Abram finds that the problem is not the footing, but rather under-structured framing from two previous renovations.