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More stories about Repair

  • Q&A: Can Heat From a Wood Stove Damage Taped Drywall Joints?

    Q: We've been called back to repair the ceiling of a vacation-home addition we built last year. The 5/8-inch fire-rated drywall ceiling is covered with 14 inches of blown-in insulation. All the tape joints performed well except those within a 6-foot radius above the wood stove; they've lost...

  • Q&A: Stained Plaster Repair

    Q: What's the best way to remove a water stain from a sand-finish plaster ceiling? The plaster was applied over electric radiant-heating cable stapled to Gypboard backing, with a sand finish that won't tolerate any rubbing. Could we use a tinted wash that

  • Q&A: Shutter Repair

    Q: I'm in the process of renovating a home with traditional louvered shutters. Some of them need to have the tilt rod replaced, but I'm not sure how best to reattach the staples that connect the individual louvers to the rod. Is there a special tool that can be used to squeeze the staples in place?

  • Practical Plaster Repair

    Use plaster washers, joint compound, and drywall to repair cracked or broken plaster

  • Q&A: Fixing a Radiant-Tubing Leak

    Q. I have a leak in my recently installed radiant tubing, no doubt caused by freezing last winter before the system was fully operational. The tubing is a 300-foot run buried in a 4-inch concrete slab. Is there some kind of "stop leak" that can be circula

  • Rescuing a Block Foundation

    Two foundation remediation specialists show how they use an engineered system of pin piles and wall ties to give new life to a failing foundation.

  • Q&A: Shower Pan on a Slab

    Q. While I was removing the old tile from a concrete shower pan in a slab foundation, a portion of the 1x5-inch raised concrete lip separated from the slab below. It appears that the lip was formed and placed on top of the slab, and there is nothing tying

  • Repairing Slate Roofs

    With good technique and matching materials, repairs to a slate roof can be invisible and as durable as the original roof.

  • Repairing Wooden Fences

    A fence repair specialist explains the basics of a profitable remodeler's niche.

  • Stabilizing Basement Walls with Steel I-Beams

    A foundation repair contractor shows how steel I-beams, placed vertically against the basement wall, can prevent soil pressure from pushing in a cracked wall.