Home Improvement Show 02-22-25

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:14):
Good morning and welcome in now the home improvement show
of the Midlands, and thanks for joining us on this
Saturday morning, you know on one of the three point
five FM and five sixty AMWVOC and round the planet
on the iHeartRadio app. It's free, It's cool, Grab it.
James Carwell, our guy from Freedom Plumb, is going to
be by a little bit later on. I had to

(00:35):
actually use James a week or two back. Maybe we'll
talk about that. If we busted a water line under
the kitchen sink, ikes do anything with cold either, it
just well, we'll we'll talk about that. I'm freaking out,
but luckily I knew where my water shut off valve
was outside, so important to know. We'll probably talk about that.

(00:56):
Jessica Smith Lex and Kim Drive is also going to
drop by and pace a visit little bit later on
the hour. First up, it's Marcus Greenwell and it's not
Todd but it's Paige page Butler. Marcus the owner of
Lifetime Cabins and Countertops. Good morning, Good morning to you,
sir and Paige.

Speaker 2 (01:11):
Good to see you again, Good to see you, glad
to be here.

Speaker 1 (01:14):
Been a little while. I don't know how many folks
on this show you work with. But it's a bunch, yes,
it is, right, right, So we've we've had a chance
to talk in the past, but it's been a long time.
So it's great to see you again.

Speaker 3 (01:26):
You too, and you all work together quite often, right, Yeah,
as much as I can.

Speaker 2 (01:33):
They do a great job for me, so I enjoy
working with them too.

Speaker 1 (01:36):
So you're in the You are in the for folks
who don't know. And believe me, your name gets dropped
on this show all the time, all the time. That's wonderful, Paige.
Your you're an interior design that's correct. How did you
get into this?

Speaker 2 (01:52):
I went to business the University of Georgia and received
the degree there.

Speaker 1 (01:57):
There isn't okay, I was not aware of.

Speaker 2 (01:59):
That excellent school for interier design.

Speaker 3 (02:02):
Yeah, just downside a little bit in football unfortunately.

Speaker 2 (02:05):
Yes, it's all good all the way around.

Speaker 1 (02:07):
Yeah, okay, well we'll see if we can get through
the next you know, fifteen minutes cohabitate here. So this
has been something I guess maybe at what age would
you decide this is what you wanted to do.

Speaker 2 (02:22):
I actually went to Georgia and began with a fashion
major and that lasted back then in those days, lasted
one quarter and I decided to change to interior design.
So ever since, and so I graduated from Georgia in
nineteen eighty nine. I've been doing this for quite some time.

Speaker 4 (02:45):
And she's good at it.

Speaker 3 (02:46):
Say, she's got natural ability just to bring stuff together
and kind of work with other people's stuff.

Speaker 4 (02:51):
That they have.

Speaker 3 (02:52):
I mean it really it's amazing what she does.

Speaker 1 (02:54):
Well, you know, that's one of those things where there's
some science involved, I guess, but it's mainly ard, right.
I mean, you gotta have a In other words, I
couldn't just go to the University of Georgia, which by
the way, I never would, But I couldn't just go
to the University of Georgia and get a degreen interior
design and so only be a great interior designer. You
gotta have a knack for it, right.

Speaker 2 (03:15):
Well, I think that people with a knack for it
are drawn to it just like any other artsy field.
But there is a lot to learn. I mean, every
day for me is a different day because it might
be pulling things together, like Marcus mentioned, things that people

(03:38):
have in their home and making their family room, whatever
room come together. In a better way. But other days
I'm sitting down with house plans and reworking those house
plans before a new build, or going in before a
contractor a lot of times and deciding how to work

(04:00):
a renovation where walls are coming down or not, you know,
So it's something different every day. Another day I might
go hang art for somebody or just choose paint colors.
I work for a lot of different people for xterior
and interior paint, so it's different every day. But as
far as how Marcus and I work, it's usually a

(04:22):
large renovation with a kitchen or bathroom remodel, and I
start with the countertop. Every single time. All paint, all finishes, Tiel,
everything comes from that countertop. So I'm contacting Marcus all
the time about what material they may have on the

(04:43):
light or we start with a stone warehouse and then
it's sent to him for fabrication. But that's where I begin.

Speaker 1 (04:51):
I guess that's because you put into countertop and chances
are pretty good that's the counter help. It's going to
be there for a long, long, long long time. The
cover is not going to change right exactly. You can
change the paint color on the wall or the accessories
or whatever. But the countertops, the countertop, right.

Speaker 2 (05:06):
That's right. And a lot of the times, I mean,
you could pick you know, ten neutral paints and they
might not be the right one for the countertop. You
have to begin with that.

Speaker 3 (05:20):
Yeah, that's a good point. And then she'll bring her
tile samples over there and paint colors and we'll be
putting them up against the slab and all that kind
of stuff, making sure they go with it.

Speaker 1 (05:29):
So now you work a lot with again folks like
Lifetime and contractors and home builders and such. But can
you know homeowners contact you directly.

Speaker 3 (05:37):
Yes, of course, Page Butler Interiors And the name.

Speaker 2 (05:43):
Of my business is actually Page Butler Interior Styling and Design,
which is a very long and so a lot of
times we just say Page Butler Interiors.

Speaker 4 (05:54):
But yes, you can.

Speaker 3 (05:57):
You can look it up on Facebook is a good
way to look at yes, and also Google.

Speaker 2 (06:02):
Well, actually Facebook is a better Facebook way, probably define me.
But Page Butler in Terior Styling and Design is my
business page. And then but yes, a lot of times
I'm contacted by the client first, and then I'll gather
together the different contractors, including Marcus that are needed.

Speaker 1 (06:25):
So you're kind of like the contractor who gets the
other contractors involved.

Speaker 4 (06:30):
And it works specially well general too.

Speaker 3 (06:32):
I mean I say little because she's shortened stature, but
she can run a project. I can tell you that
right now.

Speaker 1 (06:39):
Yes, you got to keep these guys in life.

Speaker 4 (06:41):
That's exactly.

Speaker 1 (06:44):
So what is it? What does a typical uh project
between the two of you all look like?

Speaker 4 (06:51):
Beautiful?

Speaker 3 (06:51):
I'm gonna start out with that world because a lot
of times her clients are wanting nicer material than a
standard level one grand it. They're wanting some court site
or some Luna marble like we've got working with one
project in a bathroom remnant that she found at our
location and Chapin Chapin Road. And that's for the miss

(07:13):
Cheeks that want me to say that on the radio,
make sure I say, we'll say the location more well.

Speaker 2 (07:20):
Actually the way this is one example of how I
received a client and missus Cheeks heard this radio program.

Speaker 1 (07:31):
Thank you mister Cheeks for listening, I know.

Speaker 2 (07:33):
And I was mentioned I was not present, and she
called me like two years later, and so now we're
doing a large kitchen and master bathroom remodel. So it's
you know, business comes from all different directions. Sometimes I'm
the first on the job. Sometimes people stop by lifetime
and hear about me. I mean it's we all work

(07:57):
with each other and for each other to, you know,
to bring it all together.

Speaker 1 (08:01):
So when you're contacted page by a potential client, I mean,
how does the process work? You're going to go Obviously
you want to know what they want, what they like
and all that, but I mean that can be some
of us just don't know what we want, that's right.
How often you run across that.

Speaker 2 (08:20):
To be beautiful, Yes, very often, because people know how
they want to feel in their home or office, and
so they'll call me and we'll schedule a consultation where
I will go and meet with them, look at the
style of the home, and I'm just going to stick
with residential right now, although we work on commercial jobs.

Speaker 4 (08:43):
To get to do that.

Speaker 2 (08:45):
So the style of the building, whether it's residential or commercial,
will start me in a conversation with them, and then
of course their hopes and dreams about what the end
project it will be, and then we just fill in
the blanks in between.

Speaker 1 (09:03):
Are there specific questions you're going to always ask when
that first sit down.

Speaker 2 (09:08):
I would say how they live in the home and
how they want to feel in the home. Sometimes the
style of the building and their wants don't line up,
but that's rare because I can usually make it work.

(09:30):
I just don't want to be too far apart. But
most of the time that'll work out, and then we
just have a conversation. Like I said, how they'll live there,
how they want to feel like. It depends a lot
of times on what they do outside of the home
when they come home. How do they want to rest
and relax. Do they love a modern look or do

(09:52):
they want to have a cozy farmhouse feel, or anywhere
in between. It could be mid century modern, it could
be transitional, completely traditional cottage. I mean, just any style
of a home that you can imagine. What do they
want to have?

Speaker 1 (10:09):
What's hot right now? I mean, what's what are the
hot trends right now in your business.

Speaker 2 (10:15):
I'm not a trendy designer, and so I always do
start with the exterior of the home. But mid century
is a trend that has been going on for probably
three years or so, and so that one's hot. I
would say modern farmhouse is on its way out as

(10:38):
a trend. But that doesn't mean that it's not always
going to be there. There's just certain aspects of it
that people tire of. And that's true for every trend.
If you overload a trend, it's going to get tiresome.
So that's why I try to stay classic in my design,
and I try to mix design. And you know, I

(10:59):
don't want to be all modern in one house, or
it would it could be cold, you know, if everything
in the whole home is modern. So I try to
mix it up so that they never feel that way.
I designed for it to never be changed.

Speaker 1 (11:15):
I want to show my ignorance of the whole interior
design operation here. But I mean, do you run across
situations where somebody says, this is what I want, but
because of the building or the does or whatever the layout,
that is.

Speaker 2 (11:27):
Just not possible to do rarely, but that would be
looking at the outside of the house, like say you
had an English cottage or tutor exterior, I would not
recommend the interier look in mid century modern. I mean,
you might have a piece of furniture if they like that,
or a light fixture, but you wouldn't want to just

(11:49):
have the whole inside not work with the whole outside, right.

Speaker 1 (11:54):
So so Marcus, from your standpoint, again, often you know
Page will have bring bring you customers, but it works
both ways, right right?

Speaker 3 (12:02):
Oh yeah, certainly, yeah, absolutely a lot. And then we've
got three going on right now and I think two
more that are upcoming something like that.

Speaker 1 (12:13):
So but at what at what point do you say,
you know what, guys, we need to call Page. We
did you get paging on this one?

Speaker 4 (12:19):
Yeah?

Speaker 3 (12:19):
We did that with client over and murray Wood last
last couple of months ago. She went in there and
picked a whole bunch of different stuff with Paige because
she couldn't make her decision up and we'd ended up
doing the outlass in the kitchen for her.

Speaker 2 (12:34):
Right yea, so she had visited lifetime. I believe in
just having trouble making decisions.

Speaker 4 (12:41):
Right, and Page helped her out and.

Speaker 2 (12:44):
That led to other that led to two other bathrooms.
Oh wow, And so that y'all did the yeah with
the model right. So anyway, it's jobs evolved.

Speaker 1 (13:00):
Marcus about this one, says, I burn a total trend thing.
And with with countertops, you know, what's what's hot and
what are we looking down the road, what's But from
your your vantage point. That's just a portion of what
you do. Is that your designer's countertops, right, But how
do you approach that? I mean, are there are there
things that you look at ahead and say that this

(13:20):
is going to be or do you go, you know,
with hey, it's going to be there a long time.
Don't do something just outrageous here, you know?

Speaker 2 (13:29):
Right, Well, that's part of the conversation, like you were
asking about before, whether or not they would like to
see color in their countertop because it is a large
purchase and once it's there, you don't want to be
removing that, especially because we're not going to be normally
with me working with builders great granted, you know that's

(13:53):
something that maybe you would change later. I mean, we
do it all the time, but if you're ending the
money for a tier five to seven quart sie, you
do not want to replace that. So are you into
bold color and feel like you'll be okay with that
forever or would you like to be with a neutral?

(14:15):
And I get every kind of personality, right, So it's
a joy to work with all of it, and that
would be one way to start. Are they going to
keep their cabinet colors their cabinets just how they are,
or is this a renovation where everything's starting from scratch,

(14:36):
because you'll have to work with what's there. If they
want to keep what's there and like a stained cabinet
for instance, and not paying it, then certain materials maybe
not are the best for that. So we work with
what they have, or we're starting from scratch. Either way,
I begin what I do with that countertop.

Speaker 1 (14:59):
So Marcus, when typically the posts come on the lot,
do they know exactly what they're looking for? I just
want to look good.

Speaker 4 (15:05):
Yeah, I definitely know a.

Speaker 2 (15:08):
Lot of times they think they know. When we go
to a stone warehouse to choose where there's really I
mean a huge amount of different things to see, it
can be overwhelming to them and they'll walk in even

(15:28):
saying I want to use this blue on my bathroom cabinet,
and I say, well, we just wait just a minute
and let's see this what's here. Or they might have
they have quartz in mine and we end up with
a natural stone. You know, you never know. But and
then when we go to Marcus's lot, that's when I've

(15:49):
already called and said this is what I have a
feel that we're going to be looking for do you
have it? And then we'll discuss whether or not, you know,
he has how many options he's going to have there,
or whether we send something to him.

Speaker 4 (16:06):
Yeah, so sometimes I'll help her.

Speaker 3 (16:08):
Sometimes she'll send the customer over there direct just to
kind of make some final look around, look around or
something like that.

Speaker 1 (16:15):
Sometimes. So in your business, obviously you know it done yesterday, right, Yeah,
And we know we've talked about this over the years, Marcus.
When it comes to, you know, buying countertops, it's not like, hey,
here's the countertop, can I have it put in tomorrow.
You know, there's a lot that needs to happen process.
But then this is this other step here and and

(16:37):
folks who you know again it's it's going to be
there for a long time. Yeah, you know, let's let's
be sure you get it right. And so so this
is where where you come in many times, page getting
you involved in the process. Is that something that typically
you can get involved and help the customer make a
selection and a short amount of time or is it

(16:58):
going to take a couple of weeks or I mean,
what's your goal, what's your I.

Speaker 2 (17:03):
Could make a decision on a countertop that day that
I meet with it.

Speaker 3 (17:08):
Yeah, I was going to say the same thing, probably
one day or one you know, one time meeting, so
I don't be.

Speaker 1 (17:14):
Thinking that, Okay, I'm gonna get page involved. This could
be a month or two to get this thing done.

Speaker 2 (17:19):
No, not selections, now, that would depend on the only
time that wouldn't be pretty much immediate would be if
the husband and wife disagree and then you have.

Speaker 1 (17:35):
Let me talk to you for a second. Guys.

Speaker 2 (17:37):
Yeah right, that's either way. They might have to go
home and talk it over. I have had clients that
have a total different vision, but you know, they come
together and then it would be next me taking tile
if they're going to use the tile black splash, you know,
Marcus and I love to see the countertop material run

(17:58):
up on the backsplash when it's appropriate. A quart site
being a great example because there's beautiful veining and a
court site so you can have and they're wonderful at
fabrication to do this where the vein comes across the
countertop and then up on the backsplat, so it's a
seamless you know, of course, no grout. It's beautiful and

(18:24):
it's what God made just right. There for you to
look at every single day.

Speaker 1 (18:29):
So another reason why you're in the market for countertops
last time, cabins and countertops because resources like Page right
over here.

Speaker 4 (18:35):
Yeah. Absolutely, we can get it right all over all, right.

Speaker 1 (18:39):
Page always good to see you you too, and again,
best way to reach you at Page Butler Interiors and Styling.

Speaker 2 (18:47):
Designs Interior Styling and Design.

Speaker 1 (18:50):
Almost got it right.

Speaker 2 (18:51):
Yes, I know this a little long.

Speaker 3 (18:53):
If you put in Page Butler Interior on Facebook, it'll
pull right up.

Speaker 2 (18:57):
Great, good to name.

Speaker 4 (18:59):
Yes, and of course yeah, I'm googling you all the time.

Speaker 1 (19:04):
Where's Page of course?

Speaker 4 (19:08):
Forty twenty that's right.

Speaker 3 (19:09):
I'll be out there today and forty twenty Fernandina Road
over there by Costcos and uh Northern Tool right there
by Greenstucks and get some coffee, some liquors, some tools.

Speaker 1 (19:23):
And some toilet paper.

Speaker 2 (19:25):
Yeah, before after their meeting with you.

Speaker 4 (19:28):
That's right. Yeah, either one, whatever's better.

Speaker 3 (19:31):
Stop at the liquor store first and chack. Yeah, that's
where my bone yard is. We got all the pieces
and remnants a couple of slabs. I'm a couple of
hundred slabs. So matter of fact, that's where you and
an spend a lot of time.

Speaker 1 (19:45):
Yes we have, yes.

Speaker 3 (19:47):
But call me on the phone eight O three seven
seven twenty for the uh for a phone quote. I'll
do that for free on the phone. Kind of give
you an idea of how much it's gonna cost, just
kind of, or take a sketch of your kitchen and
bringing in and see me.

Speaker 1 (20:00):
That's real simple. Yep, R Paige. Great to see again,
you too.

Speaker 2 (20:03):
I enjoyed it, boyes.

Speaker 1 (20:05):
Enjoy having you, Marcus. Have yourself a good weekend, brother.

Speaker 4 (20:07):
Thank you, e T.

Speaker 5 (20:10):
Lifetime Cabinets Encountertops is your locally owned source for countertops.
Great selection, great prices, and they pride themselves on superior
installation and customer service. The owner, Marcus will even personally
come out to do all your measurements. See the selection
online at Lifetimecabinets sc dot com or stop buy one
of Lifetime Cabinets and Countertops two conveniently located showrooms on

(20:33):
Fernandina Road in Columbia or Chapin Road in Chapin and
check out the hundreds of slabs in stock, granite, marble, quartz, quartzite.
They've got it all and if you can't find exactly
what you were looking for when you're there, and that's rare,
they will find it. And it's not just kitchens and bats.
Lifetime Cabinets and Countertops does outdoor patios, vanities, bars, man caves,

(20:56):
you name it. Lifetime Cabinets and Countertopsnandina Road in Columbia,
Chapin Road in Chapin and online at Lifetime Cabinets sc
dot com.

Speaker 1 (21:07):
Hi is Gary David. Looking to refresh your home or
business with a fresh code of paint. Call Finishing Touch Team.
Finishing Touch Team for outstanding service, quality and professionalism. There
are reasons why they've been so successful doing business now
in Columbia for twenty two years. Their service and quality
stands out in the painting industry and speaks for itself.
Don't hire just another painter. Hire the Finishing Touch Team

(21:28):
perfection with unwavering commitment to superior craftsmanship and customer service.
Free estimates and ten percent off for first responders, vets
and nurses. Find out more at Finishingtouchteam dot com. We're
back on the Home Improvement Show of the Midlands and
thank you for joining us this morning here on one

(21:50):
O three point five FM and five sixty amwvoc well
I had this guys. Well, actually James would have come out,
but he didn't have his truck a week or so
ago when I made the call of Freedom Plumbing. Uh,
but we did get a rob out there to take
care of an issue we had. James Carwell, the owner
of Freedom Plumbing, now joining us on the home improvement
show of the Middlings.

Speaker 6 (22:09):
Good morning, sir, Good morning Gary Harry.

Speaker 1 (22:12):
You'm well man averted a catastrophe.

Speaker 6 (22:16):
Uh yeah, good thing you home.

Speaker 1 (22:17):
I'll tell you that my goodness. So yeah, I was
mentioning a little earlier. We my wife's in there. We
got a late dinner one night and uh and suddenly
she starts, you know, yelling in the kitchen and I'm like,
what's going on here? I running there and water is
gushing out from under the sink, the kitchen sink. I mean,

(22:37):
like like a geyser, you know, instant freak out time. Right.

Speaker 6 (22:43):
Absolutely.

Speaker 1 (22:47):
I reached underneath the sink and I just start cutting
off every valve I can find, right, and then there's
one again. So you know, I get two shut off.
It's still coming out, and I'm reaching around behind the
garbage dispose and I find another one and that's where
it's coming from. And I and I as I grabbed
the valve or go to cut it off, the whole
thing comes off in my hand.

Speaker 6 (23:08):
The first time I've heard that happen.

Speaker 1 (23:10):
Yeah, So luckily, luckily, I knew two things. I knew
where my uh my, my water shut off out of
the house was. Yeah, although I knew where it was,
hadn't hadn't lifted up the thing before and uh And
I also knew roughly where the what do you call
it the key or whatever, the handle that you put

(23:33):
on it to turn it off with what do you
call that thing y? Yeah, the meter key, which took
me about thirty seconds to locate, thankfully. And so there
I am. It's like a thirty at night, it's cold,
I got no shoes on, it's dark outside. Luckily, I
got my cell phone in my pocket to turn the
flashlight on. And I go out there and pull up
that cover and then i'm, you know, and I see

(23:54):
the meter, and I don't see the little cutoff thing.
It's bared under a little bit of dirt. I'm digging around.
I didn't care what was down there, you know, Tarantula's
bowel constrictors didn't matter right, didn't matter, and and luckily
got to cut off in time to where we did.
We averted disaster, you know about about eight or nine.
You know, big beach towels kind of mopped up everything.

(24:14):
But yeah, it can happen at any time. It's happened
to you. It happened to you with a busted washer hose,
a couple of years.

Speaker 6 (24:23):
Old washing machine. It was actually the appliants itself. The
one load of laundry flooded the upstairs and ownstairs of
our house in the hotel for a month.

Speaker 1 (24:32):
Wow.

Speaker 6 (24:33):
Yeah, I'm taught to Rob about that after he got
finished doing there. And it's his assumption is that.

Speaker 1 (24:43):
The pull out spray, Yes, that's exactly.

Speaker 6 (24:46):
What he grabbed onto one of the you know valves
coming out valves on the water line.

Speaker 1 (24:53):
So so two lessons here. Yeah, you got one of
those you know those nozzles, those spray nozzles. Look under
the sink and make sure that core is not ap
a round of pipe somewhere.

Speaker 6 (25:01):
Yeah, and make sure there's no way for it to
potentially grab a hold before you pull it out, especially
if you have CPVC pipe copper and pex not not
as big of a deal because they got some you know,
of course coppers is a lot more rigid, harder to
do anything with, but Tex has that flexibility that you

(25:21):
really don't have to worry about it snapping off.

Speaker 1 (25:23):
Well that's what we got now certainly. And less number
two is know where your shut off valve is of
the house and then have one of those those shut off.

Speaker 6 (25:30):
Keys and know where it is absolutely wow, and make
sure you know you know where that the piece that
it fits onto is exactly. Yeah, that's the way that
can happen. Uh. You know, with CPVC gets brittle over time,
it can happen. You know, sometimes it cracks and just goes.

(25:50):
Usually it starts small with the dripper, a leak or
something like that, but I've seen them crack and start spraying.
So luckily you were home and you were able to
Thank goodness, and we've talked about where your meter is before,
and you were prepared and ready for the situation. So
that's a good thing because it could have been a
whole lot worse.

Speaker 1 (26:10):
Well, I got to tell you this, if it hadn't
been for our years of discussions in this program, I'd
have had no clue what to do. I really wouldn't have.

Speaker 6 (26:17):
So well, I'm glad it helped them. Yeah, that means
we're doing something right.

Speaker 1 (26:21):
Yes, sir, all right, since we're on the topic of water,
because you know, plumbing typically involves that although you know
what I say that, but you guys do I mean
the gas lines and all sorts of things. It's not
just water, but still the main focus on water and plumbing,
and something we haven't talked about in a while water
heaters in particular, something maybe most of us be included,

(26:41):
don't really know anything about, not necessarily a water heater,
but but something to do with a water heater. So
what's what have we got on the atend of today,
mister Carwell.

Speaker 6 (26:49):
So thermal expansion has not really talked about very much
when it comes to water heaters. Thermal expansion, okay, and
everybody thinks back to their physics class that they took. Yeah,
that anytime something needs up, the molecules are going to
start to spread out. The same thing happens with water.

(27:10):
You start heating water up, you get what's called thermal
expansion because the molecules of the water start to spread out,
So you actually increase your pressure on the system and
it's going to start pushing back, typically on the cold side.
So what we do, and if let's get a little
bit further in here and see if we can explain

(27:31):
it better. So if your system is open system, meaning
if if that pressure increases and it was able to
push back into the city, it would, But most municipalities
require what they call it a double a dual check
valve on the meter, which basically creates a closed system

(27:53):
for your home, meaning that water can only go one
direction and that's into your house, So when that thermal
expansion occurs, there's nowhere for it to go. So basically
what you're doing is just increase in the pressure on
the system of your home. So anytime, by code, if
you have a closed system, you're supposed to have a

(28:13):
thermal expansion tank on your water here and that absorbs
it's got a little bladder in there and absorbs that
additional pressure, so you're not putting unnecessary pressure on the
rest of your plumbing system and you know, causing premature
failure on fixtures and pipes and things of that nature.
So every municipality that I dealt with requires those check valves.

(28:38):
Or even if you have a pressure a reducing valve
that also creates a closed system, and most houses have
those because most houses have pressure over ADPs I when
they're built, and you know, the builders required to put
on pressure regulator to regulate that pressure, not.

Speaker 1 (28:58):
The back zone in most Okay, well, I was gonnad
that answers. One of the questions is going to ask
you is is what what roughly what percentage of homes
have closed systems versus open It sounds like most most
have closed systems these days.

Speaker 6 (29:10):
Yeah, and at this point, any any water heater we installed,
we're installing the pressure terminal expansion tank with it.

Speaker 1 (29:18):
But I have you got a home that's been built,
you know, a home built recently, last decade or more
than it is on a closed system, then the builder's
got to put that in with the hot water heat.
It's installed, right, it should be taken care of already.

Speaker 6 (29:32):
I would say ninety percent of them aren't. Some of
them are. I don't. I don't think they really look
that deeply into the system when it's inspected, Okay, all right,
And I don't think they're assuming that these municipalities are

(29:54):
requiring check valves on their system, and the check valve
is to protect their system. That's kind of like we've
talked about, you know, the double check valve assemblies that
are testable that you have to have if you have
an irrigation system and the line breaks that can pull
that city line breaks, it can create enough back pressure

(30:17):
to pull water into the system from your system, which
means if your irrigation is on, it can pull that
fertilized water into the water system. So they always everyone
I've dealt with requires a build check valve on the
meter where the connection is from your line to their line.

Speaker 1 (30:37):
As a homeowner or a business owner for that matter.
So let's say something of that happened and you know
that your water gets done back in the municipal system,
are there is there a liability on your part as
a homeowner to the municipality for that.

Speaker 6 (30:51):
It's the municipality's responsibility to really deal with protecting your system.
So they're the ones that require the test thing. They
have to keep up with the you know if you
have those on the system. And again that's why they
that's why they require the check valves. Typically at the

(31:12):
meter where you're you're lying connects to the water meter,
you'll require a check valve be installed there and they
usually do the inspections on those when those water lines
are originally installed.

Speaker 1 (31:28):
Well, since we started off talking about hot water heaters here,
this is the conversation we haven't had in a while. Either,
you have options when it comes out water heaters. Oh yeah,
and I think you've told us before most of Is
it true that most of what gets installed to Alli
said that you installed are the tankless hot water heaters.

Speaker 6 (31:49):
Yeah, it depends on the situation. Sometimes they can be
constrahebitive based on the situation that that you have and
where your water heater is currently located and what you
would have to do to get a tankless installed. Because
I'll say that a typical tankless water heater is going
to use forty to fifty thousand btes. A tankless is

(32:10):
going to use anywhere up to two hundred thousand bts,
So there's a large jump and fuel consumption there for
the unit. And if you're in a situation where you
can't easily get a new gas line to where that
unit's located, then it might be best to go back
with a tank. So you know, that's the discussions we

(32:31):
have with each homeowner and weigh the options. Another thing
some people don't think about is the maintenance when it
comes to tankless water heaters. Manufacturers, most of them anyway,
recommend a flush maintenance every year and a burner cleaning
every two years. That's additional costs that people really don't

(32:53):
you know, calculate into the equation when they're talking about
the difference between the costs of a tank and a tankless.
I would say most people are capable of doing a
flush maintenance on a tank style or a tankless heater.
You know, a couple of YouTube videos and you probably
get to go. But when it comes to doing a

(33:13):
burner cleanting, there's parts that you actually have to remove
to get that burner out, and there's different procedures for
different manufacturers on how to clean them. So, you know,
it just depends. I would say the biggest reason to
get a tankless is if you have a need for
large amounts of hot water, you know, a soaking tub,

(33:33):
large family situations like that. That's when we would definitely
lean towards recommending the tankless over the tank and.

Speaker 1 (33:42):
Again just because that's the endless supply bot. How does
that work?

Speaker 6 (33:47):
It just heats the water up instantaneously. I say instantaneously.
There's a series of pipes that the water flows through
and a burner you know, ignites and burns and heats
that water up as it's moving through the unit. So
by the time it moves through those series of pipes
and comes out of the unit, it's one hundred and
twenty degrees or you know, sometimes you can go higher

(34:08):
than that, but that's typically what we said on that
is one twenty. So it it regulates the heat and
adds some cover needed and make sure it comes out
of that desired temperature.

Speaker 1 (34:19):
Well, what's the difference in the say, the utility expense
between the two because it is a tankless keeping this
water hot like all the time.

Speaker 6 (34:32):
No, So that's the big difference between a tank kind
of tankless is a tank is gonna eventually cool down.
You're going to heat it up, it's going to cool down.
Let's see you go on vacation for a month and
you don't put your your tank style heater on vacation mode. Well,
what's going to happen is it's going to heat up

(34:54):
to one twenty and then click off. The thermostats will
be satisfied. It's going to cool down, it's going to
have to go through that cycle, and it'll just keep
going through that cycle of heating and cool and you're
not even there. You're not using that water.

Speaker 1 (35:06):
Okay, So that's the tank okay, has no pilot.

Speaker 6 (35:10):
Light, it's electric ignition. So what happens is you turn
that faucet on, it recognizes the flow through the unit,
and then the burner's cut on and so that's the
only time that it's going to be actively burning fuel
and heat waters when you have that faucet on, and

(35:30):
there's always that minimum typically around i'd say a half
a gallon of flow through that unit is going to
cause it to kick on.

Speaker 1 (35:40):
So if you're going on vacation and you don't want
your tank style water heater to keep working, how do
you put it in vacation mode?

Speaker 6 (35:51):
Typically there's a dial on the gas valve that'll save vacation.
You just turn it there and it just keeps the items.
I mean, you could go as far as cutting the
gas off, but then when you get back, you're gonna
have to relight the pilot. That would save you even
more money because you know, pilot light, even though it's
a small flame, you're still using fuel to keep it lit.

(36:14):
You know, there's still a constant flow of either propane
or natural gas going to that pilot keeping it on.
So if you really want to save I would say
turn the gas off. There's typically instructions on the front
of the heater on how to light your pilot light
if you're comfortable with it.

Speaker 1 (36:33):
Oh, if you're comfortable with it, yeah, but not otherwise
you have to look for looking out there and light
it for you a little switches as vacation mode, and
then take it back off with you. Okay, all right, okay, good,
But now back to the tankless water heaters, because there's
I think some misunderstanding by some folks. A tankless water
heater does mean endless hot water, but it does not

(36:54):
mean instant.

Speaker 6 (36:54):
Hot water, right, correct, So you still have to wait.
Let's say you don't use your hot water for a while.
The hot water is going to cool off inside that hotline.
Let's say you got to fixture that this pretty far
away from a heater. You cut the hot water on,
You've got a pipe full of cold water going all
the way back to that heater. That water's got to

(37:15):
come out before you get hot water. Because the hot
water starts from the tankless and then has to run
all the way to that fixture that you're using, So
all that cold water has to be urged out of
the system before you're going to get hot water. Now,
there are which we typically recommend units with built in

(37:36):
or circulating systems. If the customer is already having an
issue with having to wait a long time for hot water,
and that we just put a bypass underneath the furthest fixture.
It creates that loop where it can turn on periodically,
run hot water through that line, and it'll create a
quicker response time for your hot water. When you cut

(37:59):
the false one, you're not having to wait as long.
What what?

Speaker 1 (38:01):
And I guess it's going to depend on the person.
Everybody's got a different opinion of this, James, But I mean,
what what is I'm waiting too long for hot water?
I mean, how how quickly with any kind of tankless
tank whatever? I mean, how long should you be waiting
for hot water before you say there's there's something wrong here.

Speaker 6 (38:18):
Now, it doesn't matter between a tank or a tankless.
It matters on the location. You're going to get hot
water in the same amount of time. If the tankless
is in the same position as the tank style heater.
You know, it's just it still has to move from
point A to point B, so that that's not going
to change so yet. It really does depend on how

(38:40):
your system is piped in and how long you're willing
to wait for hot water. But our our our last house,
our shower was upstairs and it really took the longest
for our kitchen. But our shower took a quite a
bit of time. So we would cut it on and
you know, go through the process of brush our teeth

(39:00):
before we not being shower.

Speaker 1 (39:01):
I learned that trick from you a couple of years ago,
and I do it every morning. Every morning.

Speaker 6 (39:06):
I do that.

Speaker 1 (39:06):
I cut it on first, brush my teeth, all that,
and then I hop in and it's ready to go. Yeah,
so you have to use a little more water, maybe
a little more you know, the energy build, but still
nothing worse getting a shower.

Speaker 6 (39:18):
You know, if you are concerned about the uh, the
waight time, the easiest way to reduce that without you know,
adding the recirculator is go all the way hot. That way,
you're not mixing cold water. You don't have cold water
coming out in the process of you waiting on the
hot water right, because then you're just you're you're slowing
down your weight time. You're creating a longer wait time

(39:42):
to go all the way to the hot side. That
way you only have water running through the hot line
and purging all that cold water that's in that hot
water line out.

Speaker 1 (39:51):
Yeah, I do that too, thanks to your advice. It works.
It works very well. Thank you.

Speaker 6 (39:57):
By the way, I'm glad we're get some good information
out there.

Speaker 1 (40:02):
And I got to tell you, man, I did get
a text yesterday. I've had a chance to do the
survey yet, but uh, Rob who is I don't know
how many times Rob has been out to our house
or my parents' house doing stuff. But uh uh yeah,
what a great guy.

Speaker 6 (40:15):
Uh Uh. We're lucky to have you guys.

Speaker 1 (40:18):
Yes, but but so I haven't filled the survey out yet.
But apparently the survey says, you know, if I say
something nice about him, then he gets a free lunch.
So go ahead and buy that man of free lunch,
will you, James, Oh yeah, because he deserves maybe maybe
a free dinner too.

Speaker 6 (40:30):
Uh. He deserves it, that's for sure, absolutely all right.

Speaker 1 (40:36):
So uh, if nothing else from from from this edition
and our segment today. Know where your water cut off
valve is for the home and no, or if you
don't have one, go to a big box store and
get one of those those about keys so you can
cut that thing off if you have to in a
moment's notice.

Speaker 6 (40:55):
And if it's hot water and you know that it's
hot water coming out, you know it should be a
off valve on the hot side or on the cold
soop of your hot water here, whether it would be
tank or tankless. Okay, So that's an easy way to
do that too, without having to scramble around and find
your meter key.

Speaker 1 (41:11):
And all that all right, James Carlwell, he is the
owner of Freedom Plumbing. Always a pleasure to talk to you,
my friend. How the folks reach you guys?

Speaker 6 (41:18):
Thank give us called eight oh three four four seven
zero four seven one or visit our website at Freedom
dash Plumbing dot com. Thank you buddy, Thank you Gary.

Speaker 7 (41:27):
Nothing gets your home in tiptop shape like Lexington Kimdry
professional carpet cleaners. Their certified cleaning solutions meets a healthier
home for pets and humans.

Speaker 4 (41:36):
Called eight zero three five.

Speaker 7 (41:38):
Hundred forty seven oh seven FOURFA is a Lexington Kimdriy
dot com Today.

Speaker 8 (41:43):
Not a lot to do, yea, but you can call
mister Electric with priority dispatching. One of our electricians will
be at your door ready to safely restore your power fast.
Because not having electricity is annoying.

Speaker 1 (41:56):
It's very annoyer.

Speaker 8 (41:59):
So next time you need an electrician, call mister Electric
because life is better with electricity. Services provided by locally
owned and operated franchisees. Products and services may very by location.

Speaker 9 (42:09):
Hi there, I'm Jeremy Holliday, local owner of mister Electric
of Columbia. I've been servicing the Midlands since twenty ten
and I'm happy to answer questions and give you free
estimates with upfront pricing. Schedule your free safety check with
Mister Electric of Columbia and receive fifty dollars off any
work over three hundred dollars. Call eight oh three eight
six eight four two four three or visit my website

(42:32):
mister Electric dot com forward slash Columbia.

Speaker 1 (42:54):
Hey, we're back on the Home improvement show the Midlands
on one oh three point five FM and five sixty AMWVOC.
Jessica Smith drops in now Kim Dry of Lexington, Jessica,
good morning, good to see as always.

Speaker 2 (43:06):
How are you.

Speaker 1 (43:06):
I'm doing good. I'm doing good. I love this idea
today that the things you want to talk about, because
we have today for you some tips on how to
I guess, increase the longevity of your surfaces.

Speaker 10 (43:20):
Correct, so carpet, upholstery, hard surfaces. How to get the
best out of the longevity of those things. So for example,
start with We'll start with carpets. So first, if you
have a new home or new carpets that you just replaced,
always read your warranty. This helps We help people with
warranty issues all the time on a regular basis. So

(43:43):
with the warranty, you want to make sure you read
that of what the manufacturer suggests.

Speaker 1 (43:48):
And what do they suggest. Is it pretty universal or
does it depend on the manufacturer?

Speaker 10 (43:53):
Depends on the manufacturer, depends on the type of carpeting.
So as they will tell you it's your response ability
in order to qualify for repair replacement, and that would
mean to check things like what type of carpet is it,
what type of pad do you have underneath it? Certain

(44:13):
manufacturers recommend the every twelve months. We have some warranties
that we do every eighteen months in order they if
you get a cleaning within those eighteen months and you
provide your invoice, they will cover warranty issues. You also
have to make sure that the manufacturer would suggest getting
your carpet protect and renewed during that cleaning, or some

(44:37):
just say Okay, you just need to have it cleaned
during that time.

Speaker 1 (44:41):
And that's something I think a lot of people. Listen.
I I've been around carpet and homes, you know, all
my life, and I'm not sure I ever really even
heard anything until you joined the program about the protectent
that you put all when you do the cleaning.

Speaker 10 (44:56):
It just depends on the type of fibers and what
they do. So the carpet protectant usually gets applied with
their manufacturing process, but depending on foot traffic and vacuuming,
it just depends that starts to wear off over time.
So it's a good idea to get that renewed. But
again you'd want to read your warranty to see if
that's required in order to keep the warranty valid or

(45:18):
if you just need that invoice that shows it was
clean during that time period.

Speaker 1 (45:22):
Okay, so what other sorts of things. Are these manufacturers
wanting you to do, is the owner of said carpet
in order to keep it covered.

Speaker 10 (45:32):
So it's just your tips frequent vacuuming, of course.

Speaker 1 (45:37):
And then do you have to have to like notate
that everytime.

Speaker 10 (45:39):
No, but they can you can tell, like especially if
there's if there's gray lines building up or dust lines
building up, they'll know whether or not it's been vacuumed regularly.

Speaker 1 (45:50):
So they can get a sample and see and look
they can when.

Speaker 2 (45:53):
They look at it.

Speaker 10 (45:53):
Yeah, but it's also a good tip to get your
vacuum maintenance as well. So oh okay, So in other words,
make sure he's cleaned out, that you change out your
filters if you have them. Never let the bag or
container that you have in your vacuum get over half full. Really,
it decreases the suction and it actually like hurts the

(46:15):
vacuum cleaner. So it starts to you know where you've.

Speaker 1 (46:18):
Mentioned that before, because I think I told you the
that's my wife always tells me I'm cutting the grass,
you know, don't let the bag it all the way full,
Like why not? Okay, that's why, Yeah, because.

Speaker 10 (46:27):
It just it's just it stresses the vacuum cleaner if
you would, because it's trying to suck, but it doesn't
have enough airflow in order to get it all apartfact
all right. And then also some local shops in the
area do offer cleaning and maintenance of vacuum cleaners in
order to get them.

Speaker 2 (46:45):
Serviceable.

Speaker 10 (46:45):
I guess if you would, so they can do that.
So back to manufacturing warranties. Clean up spots and spills
when they happen, don't let them sit. Always blot not
rub in when you're cleaning.

Speaker 1 (47:01):
How often do we make that mistake?

Speaker 10 (47:03):
And then because you end up setting it down further
deeper into the carpet versus splotting it up. And then
always make sure using the correct spotter to clean. So
if you have an oil based stain, you want a
stain or a spot that removes oil. If you have
an organic stain, you want to make sure using a
spotter for those organic things in order to break them

(47:24):
down and lift them from the carpet surface. And then
of course the professional cleanings minimum one time a year.
With a maintenance cleaning, you know you can remove the allergens,
reduce traffic patterns. You just want to have to sit there,
especially if someone has the same sofa sitting in the
same spot and then they go to move it, and

(47:44):
then you have that big gray dark area because that
traffic area wasn't maintenance. So you want to make sure
you get your maintenance cleanings. And then if you have
pets in the whole, you can rotate the furniture. Unfortunately,
my living room is just as it is. There's no
way you can move in different ways. It's that challenge

(48:05):
for when you put up the Christmas tree.

Speaker 2 (48:06):
Where is it going to go?

Speaker 1 (48:07):
Exactly?

Speaker 6 (48:09):
Yeah?

Speaker 1 (48:09):
Yeah, all right. So these are all but these are
all things that the manufacturer may or may not require
you to do in order to maintain the warranty on
the carpet.

Speaker 10 (48:21):
Correct. You just need to make sure you understand your
warranty so you know what you need to be doing
to keep that warranty valid. So in case something happens,
you qualify for your repair replacement.

Speaker 1 (48:34):
Now. And I don't know how this would I've never
gone through this before. Let's say you do have it
an issue and you think it's covered under warranty. How
does that work?

Speaker 6 (48:42):
Are you?

Speaker 1 (48:43):
They send somebody out to inspect the entire carpet or
are you sitting in a sample of something or so
it depends.

Speaker 10 (48:50):
So we've had Their first step would be called the supplier,
the person that you had installed purchased your carpeting from,
bill advise you your next steps. Sometimes they have someone
come out and take a look at it. They'll take
pictures to see what the damage is like. If it
was a stain resistant carpet and you've done your cleanings

(49:13):
and then this certain stains not coming out, then they
would go ahead and let you know what they do
to file with the warranty.

Speaker 1 (49:20):
Okay, So aside from what the manufacturer the hoops it'll
make you jump through, which are all good for the
longevity in life of your carpet. Obviously, are there other
tips as you care for that carpet over the years
to keep it longer lasting, aside from what the manufacturer
is going to want you to do for a warranty
coverage issue.

Speaker 10 (49:40):
Just that make sure that you're vacuuming and then also
make sure that you're getting it cleaned and doing your
part to clean up spots and spills before they become
set in and permanent. You don't want to spill something
and then oh, I'll just get it later. You want
to make sure you get that blotted.

Speaker 1 (49:55):
Up that never runs well, does it? Okay?

Speaker 6 (49:58):
Good?

Speaker 1 (49:58):
So that's carpets, a lot of other surfaces you guys
work on. Where do we go from here?

Speaker 10 (50:07):
So you could go to a polstery pholstery.

Speaker 1 (50:09):
Okay, So we clean somewhat similar to carpet in a
lot of ways.

Speaker 10 (50:13):
Right, usually in the same rooms, right, But we clean sofas, chairs,
dining chairs, whether be seats or backs, mattresses, and we've
even even clean dog beds.

Speaker 1 (50:28):
Dog beds, dog beeds Fido loves you, mm hmm.

Speaker 10 (50:32):
Well because they're full of you know, oils, dander, allergens,
so they're good to get those. And some dog beds
are pretty big where you cannot throw them into a
washing machine.

Speaker 1 (50:42):
Yeah, I have seen some of those, so we can clean.
We'll make it a point note to have a dog
that big in my house. But they to each his own,
so I guess it's probably some of the same same
sort of ideas here, huh sort of.

Speaker 10 (50:55):
One tip for that is with your upholstery, make sure
you take pictures of tag and paperwork so that you
can hire the appropriate cleaner for the type of fabric
it is because not all fibers are created equally. So
for example, if you have a Viscos blend, we unfortunately

(51:17):
cannot clean viscos, so that would be listed on the
tag as part of what it is. And tags, because
they're up underneath the cushions, can go missing, they can
start to wear to where you can't read them. So
when you get a new piece of furniture, it's always
good to take a picture of those tags.

Speaker 1 (51:36):
Never thought about that.

Speaker 10 (51:38):
And like I said, if we can't we can clean most.
We can clean most fibers more than other companies. However,
with those few, if we can't clean it, we can
certainly refer you to a company that can, such as
like a dry clean only fabric. We do not do
dry clean only just because for we like to stay

(52:01):
in the healthier realm of cleaning and dry clean only
products are kind of harsh, so we don't need.

Speaker 1 (52:07):
Kay okay, all right, So but again some of the
same things apply here. A stain, a drop, something spallfalls
on it, blot it up, blot it up, don't rub it.

Speaker 10 (52:14):
Yeah, use the right that's important to have your tags.
The tags will also tell you what kind of cleaning
codes you have, whether it's a solvent clean that would
be a dry clean only or a w clean which
is water based. It could be an sw which means
it's good for both types of cleanings, so you don't
if you have a dry clean only solvent based clean
cleaning tag, you do not want to put water on that.

Speaker 1 (52:36):
Kive dry Lexington, Jessica, good to see. How to folks
that get on the schedule with you?

Speaker 10 (52:40):
Yep, give me a call eight zero three five hundred
four seven zero seven or reach us out at Lexington
chemdry dot com.

Speaker 1 (52:47):
All right, terrific, Good to see it, Jessica.

Speaker 11 (52:51):
I'm James Carwell, local owner and operator of Freedom Plumbing
right here in the Midlands. After working as a plumber
for nearly a decade, I decided to open my own
business and Freedom Plumbing was born because of my love
for this country and the great respect I have for
the men and women of our armed forces and our
first responders. I named my company Freedom Plumbing. What sets

(53:11):
us apart from other companies is our customer service. We
have a five star rating on Google, a five star
rating on Facebook, an a plus rating on Angie's List
and an A plus rating with a Better Business Bureau.
I'm James Carwell, local owner of Freedom Plumbing and we
look forward to servicing you for all of your plumbing needs.
Get fifty percent off your next service call. When you

(53:33):
mentioned you heard us on WVOC. Learn more at Freedom
dash Plumbing dot com. That's Freedom dash Plum.

Speaker 1 (53:39):
This is Gary. You've heard me talk for years about
Anthony John Construction and the wonderful jobs they do for
folks all across the Midlands. When it comes to roofing
and gutting, well it's the same people doing the job,
but the name has changed. That's right now. It's Beaver
Roofing and Beaver Gutters. Leave it to Beaver for all
your roofing and gutter needs. The same great service and
the same great folks. I'd Anthony John Construction, just with

(54:01):
a new name. Eight oh three nine nine one roof
and Beaverroofing dot com the gutter roofing work. Leave it
to Beaver Beaver Roofing and Beaver Gutters.