Features

• Accounting Habits of Successful Contractors

  A CPA explains how to organize your monthly schedule so that you’re always keeping an eye on job costs — and turning a profit.

   

• A Stone Veneer Foundation

  A durable job depends on using the right mortar, anchoring the stone to the concrete, and providing weep holes for water that penetrates the veneer.

   

• Sizing Domestic Water Pipes

  A master plumber provides a step-by-step method for sizing water supply pipes, based on code and common sense.

   

Q&A

• Q&A: Grout or Caulk?

  Q. When installing a mortar-bed shower floor, should the gap between the drain and the adjacent tiles be finished with grout or with caulk?

   

• Q&A: Condensation on Windows

  Q. A customer with insulated-glass windows has a problem with excessive condensation on the interior of the windows. Can you please list the most important causes of high humidity in a home? A. Energy and sustainable

   

• Q&A: Vinyl Siding Over Foil-Faced Rigid Foam

  Q. Can vinyl siding be installed directly over foil-faced rigid foam?

   

• Q&A: Overhanging Brick Veneer

  Q. It’s not unusual for a foundation to be slightly out of square. If the house has brick veneer siding, it’s sometimes necessary for the first course of bricks to overhang the concrete foundation. What is the maximum safe overhang in such a situation?

   

• Q&A: Compressing Fiberglass Batts

  Q. I’ve heard that if you use 5 1/2-inch-thick fiberglass batts in a 2x4 wall, the insulation will have a higher R-value than standard 3 1/2-inch batts provide. But some people say that compressing fiberglass batts lowers the R-value. What’s the story?

   

• Q&A: Solid Surfacing for Flooring

  Q. Can solid surfacing be used for flooring in a bathroom?

   
• 

  Q&A: Mounting Downspouts on EIFS

  Q. What is the best way to attach gutter downspouts to a house with EIFS?

   

Design

• By Design: Adding On to a Foursquare

  Adding on to a vintage foursquare house

   

Business

• Strictly Business: Heading Off Problems Before They Arise

  Head off problems before they arise

   

Trade Talk

• Trade Talk: Switching Lights With X10 Controllers

  Switching lights with X10 controllers

   

Products

• Products

  Compact excavators, hole saws with stamina, an easy-open utility knife, acrylic block windows, a drywall suspension system for domes, high-capacity toolbags, PVC railings, more

   

Toolbox

• Toolbox: New Compound Miter Saw from DeWalt

  DeWalt’s new compound miter saw

   

Tools of the Trade

• Tool Test: 1/2-Inch Right-Angle Drills