May 13, 2023 • 39 mins
On Today's EpisodeThis week, our show was pre-empted in the West Michigan market, so we decided to air a "Best Of" episode featuring some of our favorite segments.The (Tasty) History of Tulips [00:00 - 09:30]In honor of the end of Tulip Time 2023, we talk about the surprising (and surprisingly "tasty") history of tulips.Touch-Up Master Class [09:31 - 18:59]Ever touched up some scuffs on your wall only to have less than perfect results? We've got answers!Ladder Folklore [19:00 - 30:40]Ladders are common tools around the home. They're crazy old . . . and with all that use over all those years, there are bound to be some interesting stories that have arisen through the ages. We discuss some of our favorite (and the funniest) ladder-related history and folklore.Floor Painting [30:41 - 39:15]Painting a floor can really infuse a room with energy and interest. If you're thinking about this kind of project, check out this segment. We've got the info you need to get great results.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
You're listening to the Repical Like HomeImprovement show sponsored by Benjamin Moore, and
this week we're playing a best ofcollection of some of our favorite segments.
We hope you enjoy it. Goodmorning, everybody, Happy Saturday. Happy
Saturday. Hailey, you beat meto the pus. Sorry you stole my
thunder. I'm just so excited abouttulip time. I want to start talking
about the tulips. You just wantto. But I have a thing that
(00:23):
I do, and that thing,yeah, is what gets me going and
gets the whole thing is run yourmojo. You did. You killed my
mojo. The whole show was goingto stink now mojo jojo. Yeah.
So anyway, whatever we were saying, it's tulip time. I don't even
know where we're going anymore. It'stulip time. This is my first tulip
Time's first tuli of time. I'mexcited for the carnival part, the elephant
(00:46):
ears. Yeah, I'm not excitedfor the restraint of not picking the tulips,
right, because that's a thing foryou. Yeah, I really like
picking flowers and I know that I'mnot allowed to. You know, why,
why do you know? Because Ithought about it, and who told
you not to? I had theinstinct first that it was a bad idea.
I said, well, these helland people, they might not like
(01:06):
me picking the flowers. And soI came in and said can I pick?
You said absolutely not right, No, I have been raised with I
mean, the fear has been driveninto me that you don't do that.
I don't even know what happens.Well, I don't think it's pretty.
It's similar to the Ottoman Empire thatwe're going to talk about. Okay,
(01:29):
So yeah, so we decided tocelebrate tulip time by throwing a spotlight on
tulips, tulip bulbs, their history, all of that, and it was
Hayley's idea. And you wanted tostart with the origins of it. Yea,
So we're going to just jump straightinto the show. We got other
good stuff coming. Don't worry aboutit. She can't have killed my mojo
bad enough, because I am fullof MOI. So the little bit you
(01:52):
did, it's not going to hurtthe rest of the show. And trust
glad it's good. But the originsthey started in such a weird place.
They were a wildflower. They grewin Central Asia, and Persia around one
eighty is the earliest that we knowthey were around. But yeah, just
grown on side the road or well, I guess maybe not road, but
yeah, just being cute all ontheir own. Never would have pictured that.
(02:15):
I always pictured the pristine fields,yeah, because we know tulips as
being cultivated flowers, so I thoughtthat was really interesting. And then they
transitioned from there to Turkey, right, Yeah, the Turks fell in love
with the tulip and they were theones that really started cultivating it as this
pristine flower that it is today.And that was in like the sixteenth century
(02:36):
Ottoman Empire. The sultan was soobsessed with tulips that if you tried to
take tulips outside of the capital,you were punished by exile. I wonder
what he did if you picked themright exactly. Maybe that's where we got
our ideas for the rules. Idon't think it's far off. It likelips
inspire that kind of craziness, yeah, because it just keeps going. So
(03:00):
because then yeah, they finally actuallyget taken out of Turkey. There was
a guy who had a friend thatwas working in Turkey at the time.
He came back to Vienna. Aboutwhat time is this? This is in
like the sixteen hundreds, Okay,early fifteen hundreds, I guess, all
right. But he gets a holdof a tulip and then he actually starts
cultivating it in Leiden, Netherlands,because he's working at essentially the botanical gardens
(03:27):
there. But that's where he startedcultivating these tulips for medicinal purposes. They
found out that it actually is goodfor skin. It's also a diuretic,
an antiseptic. Don't try it athome because we don't know you might have
an allergy to it. Built alittle fort out of poison sumac when he
was little, and we have greatphotos where we got photos from the day
(03:47):
he built it and then the dayafter when he swelled up like a balloon.
Wow. So we don't want thatwith tulips, So don't go rubbing
them all over your face. Don'tdo that. But eventually, I don't
know exactly how it caught on asa mania, but tulips were the thing
in the Netherlands once the sky startedcultivating them, and it took off so
(04:09):
much that they were worth more thana house. The actual like a single
bulb could be worth more than ahouse. They became a collector's item.
They traded them as currency essentially becausethey were so valuable, and all these
really rare breeds of tulips were evenmore valuable. So it was this like
high society way of It's like artcollecting. It's very strange to think of
(04:32):
it being that valuable, but yetwhat I found, it made them even
more valuable than that. Yes,life saving, life saving. Actually in
World War Two they were actually eaten. Basically the winter of nineteen forty four
to nineteen forty five, German troopswere still occupying the Netherlands, and the
railway workers and the Dutch government inexile kind of worked together, collaborated to
(04:57):
come up with a scheme basically orwhatever, a plan to have a railroad
strike and that would prevent the Germantroops from being transported all over the place.
That was the idea to slow itdown. Didn't like that, of
course, so they halted supplies intothe western Netherlands. Now, to make
things worse, right around that time, December of nineteen forty four, cold
(05:18):
weather sets in that lasts several months, Canals freeze over transportation and escape becomes
impossible. Yeah, and there's nofood, no food. You've got all
of this going on. While thecombination of harsh, prolonged winter and a
limited food supply sends the country intoa severe famine. And it's actually known
as the hunger winter. The hungerYeah, there's a there's a Dutch word
(05:40):
for it that I couldn't say,but translation is the hunger winter. Starvation
becomes extremely common and over four pointfive million people are affected. More than
twenty two thousand died. Jeez,enter and unlikely hero the tulip bulb.
See, the war had slowed downall the farming and the growing of them,
so they were about there's and theyoung men were gone, right,
(06:01):
so there's nobody to plant the tulips, and so we've got barns and barns
full of them. They're rotting,they're starting to dehydrate and all of those
things, but they're still potentially edible. Somewhere somebody looked at him and said,
you know what, kind of likea like an onion, kind of
looks like a potato comes out ofthe ground. Maybe we can eat it.
I don't know how that part worked, but I do know that at
(06:25):
one point that winter the Dutch government, actually the Office of Food Supply,
published a guide suggesting that tulip bulbsare a food source and explained how to
prepare them, and even offered afew recipes for the housewives who are trying
to wow crank outbook. I know, I can't imagine, makes me kind
of want to try a tulip ball. But I also you said, yeah,
(06:47):
here's the thing. They have almostno nutritional value, so you're not
getting much out of it. Butthey also contain glycoside, which is potentially
poisonous, so there are concerned riotBut the Dutch had no choice at that
point, so properly preparing them,you know, removing the parts that contain
the glycoside. They cooked them andate them like potatoes, and even more
(07:11):
commonly, they milled the ballbs tomake a sort of flower that they used
for breath. Now, eventually,in nineteen forty five, the Allies started
dropping supplies back in and so theydidn't need him as much. The emergency
kind of faded and the tulip babsdidn't need to be eaten anymore. But
they did save the day over thattime period. That gap. That's pretty
cool act, right, It's estimatedthat about one hundred and forty million bulbs
(07:34):
were eaten throughout that time. Now, what makes this really interesting, and
I'll go really fast, is whatcame out of it medically speaking. See
at this point, a doctor inthe Netherlands, doctor Willem Carol Dick,
works at Julianna Children's Hospital in thecity of the hag All right, he's
got a large number of children patientswith celiac disease, and at that point
(07:56):
there was no real consensus as tothe causes of celiac disease. Doctor Dick,
though, believed that wheat was amain offender, but he didn't have
any proof. So when the hungerwinter hits, starving conditions began to impact
all of his patients, and henotices that even with low food rations,
yes, his celiac patients are everybodyelse's degrading. These are improving, these
(08:18):
patients, and when they bring inthe bread made with tulip flour, they
all improved dramatically. In fact,I believe I read that the mortality rate
of the celiac patients in his hospitalwent from thirty five percent to nearly zero,
all because they were eating this breadwithout any wheat in it. And
(08:39):
after the war, doctor Dick Spencea number of years studying all of this,
and in nineteen fifty publishes his findingsthat wheat and rye flower aggravate celiac
symptoms. And he also was ableto discount the theory that complex carbohydrates were
the cause. So with the helpof all these other doctors and researchers and
this hunger winter and the tulip flower, he's able to pinpoint gluten as the
(09:01):
ultimate culprit in the whole thing.Wow, and all kinds of good things
happen because of it, So thankyou tulips. Now, all right,
we're gonna take a break, andwhen we come back, we'll be talking
about touch up painting, why theprocess can be tricky sometimes, and more
importantly, what you need to doto get the best results possible every single
time. All of that's coming upnext. Stay tuned. You're listening to
(09:33):
the Repical Light Home Improvement Show sponsoredby Benjamin Moore, and this week we're
playing a best of collection of someof our favorite segments. We hope you
enjoy it. Well, Haley,there's never a dull moment, is there.
We are in a hot little studioand we've got our one connection to
sanity is our fan. I havea little beautiful little remote that I love
(09:54):
because I don't have to get outof my chair to turn the fan on.
I just clickball. You know,hour remotes work have to go into
it. A long story, butin the break, I went to set
my robote down and you just wentright in your cot gup right into my
coffee cup, and then I wasshaking out the coffee and then I opened
it up to get the coffee outof the battery compartment. And for some
(10:16):
reason, first instinct was I'll justdrink the coffee out of the battery section.
No, I know, I wasn'tthinking there was chewies in there,
the little gummies. I don't knowwhy I do half of what I do.
My children are embarrassed. You're embarrassedto even be a part of this.
And now I've shared it with everybody. I'm just thinking, Yeah,
somebody thought, all right, let'sgo on to the topic at hand.
(10:39):
We had somebody email us about touchup paint. And the scenario that happened
was this, she got a BenjaminMoore sample pint in her color. So
the house was painted maybe four yearsago, and she came in for touch
up paint, didn't have any ofthe original and got a sample pint in
the color. Right now, thatdoes make some sense. I can see
where queen and the color, sodefinitely seems like a good solution. She
(11:03):
went home to touch up the spotsand was disappointed that everything showed. She
wondered what went wrong and then howto fix it. Now we're going to
deal with the whole sample pint thingand why that didn't work in the second
part of this segment. But rightoff the bat, there's a number of
reasons why touch ups can go poor, late, or standout, and usually
the failure is due to one ora combination of the following. Yeah,
the first part is going to beapplication. If you've got a bunch of
(11:26):
spots that need to be touched upon a single wall, Even though it
sounds like more work, it's honestlybetter to just paint corner to corner.
There's way less of a chance thatyou're going to see any of those touch
up spots because our eye is notgoing to carry over the corner. There's
already a color shift regardless, soit's not going to know that that's not
exact right. We'd always recommend youknow, the ideal way to get your
(11:48):
best results is to paint a largerarea and fine breaking points corner to corner
is ideal. No, not everybodywants to jump into that. We get
that, but still look for biggerbreaking points because, as Hailey mentioned,
isn't going to carry all of thosedifferences and it will just blend away exactly
looks better, you get better results. We all know what it looks like
when you touch up the little silverdollar size spots on the wall and you
(12:09):
see them very first, you alwaysthink that, oh, you just have
a small touch up should do,It's going to be really easy, and
it's actually the hardest touch up todo are the really tiny ones. Yeah,
so if you can do a biggersection, better results. Now,
let's say you can't or you're notgoing to the next thing you need to
think about is that when you dothis touch up, you've got to use
the same tool that the paint wasoriginally applied with. Exactly if you rolled
(12:31):
paint onto the wall, you wantto use that exact same roller ideally to
roll on the touch up, Whichdoesn't sound like work that we want to
do again, because now it's awhole thing we got to get out of
tray, and that's the roller frameroller covers, and that's where the Wooster
Jumbo coder system is a great system. You know, the whole Wooster roller
(12:52):
system is a great way to gobecause if you buy the normal sized roller
covers, the nine inches, contractorswho use the eighteen inch covers makes a
jumbo Cooder, which is a smallcoder. Funny name. I don't know
why they went with that, butjumbo in this case actually means super little.
Yeah. Mini Yeah, a miniroller cover. And all of these
mini roller covers, they've got afull range of them, and they all
(13:13):
match their larger counterparts and the fabricused, the nap used, all of
it will match, so it willbe flawless. You won't see the difference
between the two. So it's agreat system to use just for a regular
painting. If you have to getinto tight corners, use this jumbo Cooder
system in cooperation with the Wooster largerregular rollers right, and you're going to
(13:33):
have no problems at all. You'llbe able to switch back and forth and
see no difference. And if youdon't know what kind of roller cover you
use. You know, just usea roller cover that's appropriate for the job.
The worst thing you could do,though, is use a brush on
a wall that was rolled out,because that texture from the brush is going
to make the paint look like adifferent color. That texture is going to
(13:54):
reflect in a different way. Andit's amazing how much of a difference that
makes. Right, So you thesame tool and keep those jumbo cooders in
mind. Now, let's say thatyou've got a super small spot and you
don't even want to get a jumbocoota out to roll that area, like,
you know, the whole tiny littlenail hole exactly that. What do
you do it? Well, there'sa great system that I ran into.
(14:15):
Somebody shared that with me. Somebodywho's been in paint for years said one
of the things they would always recommendto their customers is to get a Q
tip And basically you just get thepaint on the end of the Q tip
and use it as a little tinymini roller. It's like a roller for
barbies, it is, and itreally works well. It gives enough of
the simulation of that texture yea tohave it blend away I've tried it a
(14:35):
bunch of times. Works really well, really nice for super simple quick touch
ups. Yeah, all right,so make sure you're applying with the right
tool. The third thing that youwant to do is apply light coats and
feather them all out. Don't tryto make a single application cover and height.
Your paints could be too thick,it could be too shiny in that
regard, it could even run downthe wall a little bit. Well,
and when we say feather it out, we mean you're applying less and less
(14:58):
paint to blend with the rest ofthe wall. So as you work out
from that single spot, it's justgetting less paint the further you go out.
The fourth thing when it comes toapplication is to be patient. You
know, paint changes as it dries. Yeah, wet paint is not going
to match your wall, So don'trush into a store because you just applied
touch up and it doesn't match.I've had people do that. I've almost
(15:18):
been that person, but I toldmyself, no, it's going to darken
over time, and yeah, youdon't want to rush out get new paint,
come back home and find that whatyou had blended right, and give
it time. Let it dry.All right, So those are application issues.
Another reason touchups go awry is thatwe use the wrong paint. We've
got to get the exact paint thatwe had in the same finish and the
same exact color to make this workexactly, which is why the sample paint
(15:41):
did not work for that touch up, because you did not paint your walls
with a sample pint. You paintedit. Let's say, with the benchroom
moor is Regal select an eggshell,and so the sample pint is an eggshell,
so it seems like it would work, but actually paint is going to
vary in sheen from product to productline. Even though they both say eggshell,
it's not the exact same eggshell.And then of course she dies a
(16:03):
little bit over time too, whichmakes it really hard when you're touching up
paint that's extremely old because it's flattenedout. And so now even if you
go down to the basement and youget the original paint of the original can,
it might look slightly shinier when yourepaint because it's been aged for so
long well, and color changes asit sits on the wall. So you
know, our room depends on howit's used. But normally, you know
(16:26):
it's going to pick up surface contaminants. The color is going to be dulled
a little bit, darkened a littlebit over time, and so new paint
can be shinier, it can bea little lighter in color, even if
it all comes like you said,from the original can. So with all
of that said, how in theworld you get good results with touch ups?
Well, first, that's where thatcorner to corner thing that we mentioned
in the very beginning really comes outand helps a lot. If you got
(16:48):
a corner to corner. Even ifthe color is slightly different, even if
the sheen is a little different,you're not going to see it. Secondly,
keep good notes. Yeah, mygrandpa left really great paint notes in
the basement. He labeled every canwith the date that he bought it,
the color that was used, allof the information was right there on the
can, and it said where itwent in the house. Because paints may
(17:11):
look really similar and it's not exactlythe same color, sometimes people will make
note cards if you go that route. If that's the way you like to
go, ask in the store andwe can print an extra sticker for you
with all of the pertinent information andget that on there. Sometimes now people
will take photos. Yeah, andpeople sometimes will take pictures of the lid
of the can, which doesn't actuallyhave as much information as you think it
(17:32):
does for us. So we preferagain ask what information we need so that
you're taking a picture of the rightpart of the can, so that we
have the information later on when youcome in that you're not frustrated exactly.
Third, if the original paint isn'ta close match anymore, which is possible,
we can always custom match something.Be aware of that. But the
big thing to remember here is thatwe need to see something in order to
match it. And sometimes this meansyou've got to get creative. You got
(17:53):
to look for face plates, ventcovers, anything with the paint on it
that can be easily removed and broughtin Exactly. I've had people removing higher
strips of trim into the store becauseI mean, we just need a target,
and it doesn't have to be giant, just a quarter size really is
all we need to get a matchof that paint. But the bigger the
sample, the better, right.So by all means, if you're stuck
(18:15):
in that situation, give us acall ahead of time and we can kind
of walk you through what's the bestway to help you get your color.
Touch ups can be pulled off,and we're not trying to make it sound
like the impossible dream. Yeah,it certainly can be done. It's just
you've got to know a few thingsgoing in in order to get those great
results. Exactly. All right,we're gonna take a break and for the
Grand Rapids listeners, you'll get newsand weather and all of that good stuff.
Detroit listeners, you're going to geta rep Colit Rewind, and then
(18:37):
when we're all back together, we'regoing to get one of my favorite segments
of all time, a deep divelook at ladders and some of the folklore
that surrounds them. It's a lotof fun, believe me. So stick
around listening to the Recal Like HomeImprovement Show sponsored by Benjamin Moore, and
(19:03):
this week we're playing a best ofcollection of some of our favorite segments.
We hope you enjoy it well,Haley. There are all kinds of tools
that we take for granted. Wedon't even think about where they came from.
We just use them, and mostof the time, if you're children,
you don't even put them back wherethey belong. You just use them
and leave them there and never givea second thought to it. Now,
we have talked about a bunch ofthem before. We've talked about hammers and
(19:23):
saws and duct tape, and we'vedug into the interesting history behind them.
And I came up with another one. Did it's excited about it. It's
a really good one. And eventhough I thought it was a really lousy
idea at the beginning, I didn't. I'm joking, but I wasn't wowed
by it because it sounds really ordinarybecause we take it for granted. It's
(19:45):
the ladder, something we need anddepend on all the time. And the
shorter you are, the more youneed it. Yeah, you really need
them, dance, so you shouldreally appreciate the ladder. You are not
any taller, no, I know. Yeah, we both need them and
reaching ones, but we'll get thosein another episode. But these have been
around since ten thousand BC at least. At least that's the first recorded history
(20:07):
exactly. We've got what art ona cave the Spider Caves in Valencia,
Spain shows a picture of somebody climbingup. They're up to their elbow in
a beehive harvesting honey. Yeah,we think that's what the article said.
We think they are harvesting honey.What else what they have been doing with
their arm and a bee hive harvestinghoney? But either way that that particular
(20:32):
picture shows a ladder being used.Now it's kind of a rope ladder.
They think that was probably made outof grass or something like that, but
it's a ladder in concept. Andthen we know that they had wood ladders
that they used in ancient Egypt becausethat's how they built the pyramids and the
tombs. So they've been around fora really long time and they haven't really
(20:52):
changed much since the Egyptians were usingthem in that way, Right, the
Egyptian ladders that we talk about,basically that's the modern ladder look for the
most part, and that's the wayit was for a very long time.
And we know that the Pharaohs andall those they were using them in Egypt,
but we know that they became morecommon shortly after that and people everywhere
(21:15):
started using them. And we knowthat because of a very interesting reference.
There's a game. Yeah, we'reall familiar with ladders, shoots and ladders.
How old is that. We allfigure it's probably from the forties or
yeah, it goes back where tothe second or third century BC BC In
India it was snakes and ladders Originally. I don't love this game. I'll
(21:38):
be honest. It's a little harsh, and maybe that's why. WHOA you
have a hard time with Shoots andladders. That's harsh. Definitely made me
cry. Yeah, it wasn't afun one. I mean, it's fun,
but it's I don't know, well, it's old. Maybe that's the
problem I think with old things.Right. No, anyway, Shoots in
(22:03):
Ladder, it's a it's a gamethat goes back you said second century BC.
It was already something in pop cultureat that point. Yeah, And
it didn't really change much until abouteighteen sixty two when Henry H. Balsley
invented the folding ladder, the foldingstep ladder. Now there were step ladders
just prior to that, there's there'sevidence of that, but he holds the
(22:26):
patent for the folding step ladder.He basically threw two ladders together and put
a hinge on it, and suddenlyyou've got something that's incredibly easy to store.
It's portable. And he also changedthe steps right the rungs, hence
the step letder, because now they'reflat and easy to just climb up.
Before it was always that round rung, So that was a big advancement eighteen
(22:47):
sixty two. Another huge advancement comesin eighteen sixty seven, and it's Henry
Marcus Quackenbush. Yeah, I alwayspause on that last name of great last
name, Quackenbush. He invented thedunsion ladder at the age of sixteen.
Yeah. I wasn't inventing at theage sixty. No, I don't even
know if I was driving. Allthe cool kids were. In fact,
pretty much everybody was. I wasa late bloomer. That's been my thing.
(23:14):
If I would, which mom saysI can't, so I won't.
But if I did, it wouldsay late bloomer. I am still peeking.
I'm waiting to peak like fine wine. Yes, I'm like a fine
wine. I'm just aging, yesexactly. Anyway, Henry Quackenbush, he's
sixteen, he's a mover and ashaker. He's probably got girlfriends, he's
(23:36):
probably driving, and he's inventing theextension ladder. Think about that, and
think about the fact that we've hadtwo major advancements in the ladder within five
years. Up until that point,they're pretty much the same. It's kind
of incredible. Thousands of years andthen boom all these changes. The next
big advancement comes about sixty some yearslater in nineteen thirty, and that's the
(23:56):
introduction of the aluminum ladder. Yeah, the aluminum extension ladder. And it's
because Norwegian firefighters decided they were tootired to lug those heavy wooden extension ladders
are what you're throwing a lot ofshade there is that what they could say,
now, yeah did I use thatcar? Did you did that?
Is like the first time ever anyway, you're throwing a lot of shade.
(24:19):
But extension ladders would they're very heavy, crazy heavy. I don't move them.
I watch other people. So theNorwegian firefighters kind of we're crabbing about
that, Hey, this is toomuch. We're not sure if we want
to get to that floor or not. Maybe we can do something different.
I'm sure that's not how it went, but overall, well, Sam A.
Corbus took on the job though,and he creates the first from Norway.
(24:41):
Where was he from? Now?He's from the US. Oh,
he's from the US. Yeah,So he takes the job on and comes
up with the aluminum extension ladder,and so that's the first time we see
a lightweight ladder being used, andfrom there it kind of takes off.
Now all the firefighters want these lightweightaluminum extension ladder and companies are being made
just to support these firefighters, whichis pretty cool. Yeah, and yeah,
(25:06):
the aluminum extension ladder, that's probablywhat most of us have sitting around,
easy to lug around, and wecan thank Sam Corbus and the Norwegian
firefighters for getting that started in thethirties. One other big advancement that kind
of happened in about the eighties eightytwo I think it was, and this
was surprising. It was the atticladder. You know, the little thing
that you pull the rope down inthe garage or whatever and the ladder folds
(25:29):
down. I really can't believe ittook that long to make that. Yeah,
I know, the eighties. Iknow a lot of good things happened
in the eighties. That's one ofthem. That's the history now. But
there's some fun stuff we could getinto, safety stuff. We could talk
about safety stuff, or we couldtalk about let's save the safety stuff.
We'll do that in a future episode. We've got a little fun stuff today.
(25:55):
Yeah, all right, and itis fun. It is fun.
It's the superstitious stuff that's tie withladders. And we all know, you
know, when you think about there'sa handful of things that we think about,
and whether you're superstitious or not,you know that there's certain things that
a great, big group of peoplethink are. Yeah, don't break a
mirror, breaking mirrors, black hatFriday the thirteenth, that's always a big
(26:15):
one. And walking under ladders,walking under a ladder, And Haley brought
that up when you pitch this topicand you said why is that a problem?
And of course, as is myway, I said, oh,
that's simple, it's just And thenI had nothing and I realized very quick,
I don't have any idea why that'sa big deal. And so you
dug into it. Yeah, Ifound a couple of things. Where does
(26:37):
this go back to? Well,no, the superstition is almost as long
as they were being used for.It was back in ancient Egypt. They
decided to put these ladders in thetombs that they were building with the ladders
as a way for that person toget to the afterlife. It was going
to make it easy for them toget out of the tomb. But if
you walked under the ladder, wewere kind of interrupting their journey to the
(27:02):
afterlife. So that was bad luck. So doing that that was a big
deal. And then you mentioned thatin later years. Yeah, Christianity,
right, because the ladders they wereleaned up against walls at that point in
time, and that naturally creates atriangle, a triangle, or at least
something very close to a triangle.And of course the triangle is a symbol
(27:22):
for the Trinity. And walking underneaththat ladder was, like you said,
the language they used was breaking treatingthe Holy Trinity. That's a big deal,
and that might be why the offenseis so great. It's between seven
and forty years of the bad luckis supposed to last, right, So
that's where some of these superstitions comefrom. And I'm sure there's more,
Oh yeah, I'm sure, butwe decided there's one last important thing that
(27:45):
we can't talk about the superstition sideof things without giving everybody the answer as
to how to avoid it. Becausewhile the superstition is kind of funny to
think about where that came from.How to undo it is even better.
So we got a number of ways. We've got a couple of minutes to
go through them, and you're gonnawant to take notes because I mean,
I don't know how many times Iwalked under a ladder ever since we started
(28:07):
writing this topic down. But anyway, here are some things you can do.
First off, it's pretty straightforward.The first one is really easy.
If you walk under, you walkback out backwards, just go on reverse
right. You can't turn around becausebecause that's gonna make it just as bad,
maybe worse. I don't know.We should consult, but if you
walk backwards you can undo perhaps,and if you make a wish on your
(28:27):
way out, maybe that's even better. So who knows. But that's the
walking backwards one. Now that's notfor everybody because not everybody is that agile.
Oh yeah, fair, I wouldprobably fall over trying to walk backwards,
so not your thing. Don't worry, we got you covered. You
can always put your thumb between yourindex and middle finger while walking under the
(28:51):
ladder, so basically you're doing theI got your nose thing oh yeah,
that little kids. If you dothat, I got your nose. Thing
as you're walking under the ladder,go wow, all right, and maybe
both hands if you're really worried.Well, if it's a big ladder,
or if you're really worried, bothhands would be great. The other thing
you can do is cross your fingersand wait for a dog to come by.
Yeah, you got to wait forthe dog. That's really important.
(29:14):
If you just cross your fingers andgo under the ladder and come out on
the other side and uncrossed them withoutseeing a dog, no, you just
screwed it all up. So you'vegot to keep them crossed until you see
a dog. We're not technically surewhat kind of dog. Probably a big
one. Bigger's bigger is better.And you know, a pure breed is
good. If it's mange, maybekeep looking, you know who knows.
But maybe let's say finger crossing isn'tyour thing. If you like spitting,
(29:38):
we've got some answers for you,because you can get rid of the bad
luck by spitting three times through therungs. I don't know if I would
be good at that. Actually,we might spit on the rungs a slip
hazard for saying exactly. Okay,well, let's say you don't want to
spit through the rungs. One lastone you can try is as you're walking
through. And this one sounds reallygood, super solid. I'm sure this
one's gonna work. As you're walkingthrough, you notice you're under a ladder.
(30:00):
Oh no, what do I do? You spit on your shoe and
then you don't look at it.Don't look at the spittle on your shoe
until it's dried, So you're gonnaneed a help her. Yeah, that's
logical. Yeah, just get alittle kid somewhere, have them check out
your shoe. If the spittle's dry, you're good to go. That's probably
the best one, most effective.I think so too. We're gonna put
a link in the show notes youcan check these out. Isn't folklore and
(30:21):
superstition fun? Crazy stuff? Loveit? Okay, we've got to pause
for a few minutes for commercials andwhatnot. And when we come back,
we'll be joined in the studio byDan Altina, president of repcal Light,
and we'll be talking about painting woodfloors. That's all next. Stick around.
(30:41):
You're listening to the Reupco Light Homeimprovement show sponsored by Benjamin Moore,
and this week we're playing a bestof collection of some of our favorite segments.
We hope you enjoy it. There'salways projects you can tackle that will
make your space feel better. Andone that we've never really talked about on
the show, but which will havea huge impact on any space is painting
an old wood floor exactly. It'ssuch a good way to freshen up a
(31:03):
space. It's not a huge investment. It's not like replacing the floors themselves,
right, And we're talking about floorsthat maybe they've got water damage.
Maybe they really weren't ever meant tobe the star of the show. They're
meant to have carpet go over them, so they're not star of the show.
I did notice that, Well,Dan, we can't all be stars.
(31:30):
No, I do know that youcan all like what you can be
my entourage, That's what I Sothe floors can't be the star of the
show, just like not everybody here, right, So they eat a little
help sometimes, yes, and theyshould say. You know, if you're
gonna paint wood floors, you're kindof committing to that. You're not necessarily
(31:51):
committing to a color, you canalways change that, but you're probably not
ever going to go back to woodfloors again. It's gonna get into the
cracks a little bit. Dan,that was your big concert of the project,
right, But I do love allthe options. It goes with any
style colors has a ton of impact, a ton of impact. Easy to
change the colors. It's you know, way simpler than carpet or any of
(32:13):
those other exact choices. And it'sa it's a relatively simple project, a
great project to start on if youreally haven't done a ton of painting.
Now, before we get into allthe cool possibilities and colors and designs,
a couple of things to consider.First off, paint on the floor rarely
lasts forever. You're gonna have tojust buy into the fact that there's going
to be some chipping and traffic patternsand wear and all of that. You're
(32:36):
just going to see it. Yeah, And sometimes that kind of works with
the look. Even if you're goingfor like a shabby chic design choice,
then maybe it's not so bad.Maybe build it with that in mind.
Yes, for that, That's howI'm going to do my whole house.
That way if the kids, youknow, mess anything up, mare it
up, ding it up. Partof the look. Yeah, I'm on
with my eyes closed, so beaware of that. We don't want you
(32:59):
to disappointed. Another thing to considersthat coatings can fail. We talk about
this all the time if you don'tdo the proper prep and that's really really
key on a floor, making sureyou do the right prep work. And
it starts with cleaning the floors reallywell, really well. Yes, we'd
recommend using dawn dish soap, TSP, maybe a little Scotch bright scrubby pad
something to make sure you get themreally really cleaned, and then rinse them
(33:22):
well exactly. And then you reallywant to scuff the floors to promote that
adhesion. We usually are talking aboutone hundred and eighty standpaper with a random
orbital stander. You're just trying toscuff the surface. We're not trying to
remove the varnish completely, right.Something to keep in mind if you choose
down the road to use a waterbased coating, good sanding is absolutely critical
(33:43):
to getting good results. If youhappen to choose an oil based product,
not as important, generally better adhesion, but still it's good practice. Good
practice. Now after sanding, makesure you clean the floors again with a
damp cloth. You're just trying toget the dust off. You don't have
to break out the cleaners or anythinglike that. And one last thing when
it comes the projects is just makesure you're planning that workflow so you don't
trap yourself in a corner. Idid that in a deck. I did
(34:07):
it in a stairway. That isreally, really, really frustrating, and
you feel really stupid because normally whileyou're painting in your home and you should
know better. I was helping ninein laws and I was brought in because
he's the expert, he knows,and I'm on the deck, and I
realized at one point I am stuck. And then I said that My father
(34:30):
in law said, I wondered howlong it was going to take you to
figure out who happening? Yeah,yeah, anyway, don't do that.
You want to look smarter than that, So plan it out ahead of time.
Another thing to consider is that choosingthe right paint products may require some
expert advice. Yeah, if thefloor is really worn already, if it's
(34:52):
a naughty wood, if there waterstains present, These are all things that
might affect our recommendations, right,So into the stores with photos, we
can talk it through. We'll figureout what you're working with and make a
recommendation based on what you're comfortable workingwith product wise as well, but we'll
get you where you want to go. As for paint, like Hailey just
(35:13):
mentioned, some of it is goingto be recommended based on your situation,
but we can still talk about themain Yeah, there's options out there,
and from an oil based standpoint,we'd recommend using Repcolites eurethane flor enamel,
where's really well, extremely well.Yeah, yeah, I put it in
my house, I had all thesekids and it held up like iron.
So I'd really recommend that. Andanother option if you want to go to
(35:36):
water base, would be what BenjaminMoore's floor and patio. I always say
that wrong, Yes, Flora,I get it right that time. You
did. Actually, Wow, amazing. It's floor and patio and it's a
low Lusser finish, so a littlebit less shiny. Okay, So there's
the options out there. There's there'sa few other things that we could recommend,
but you're just going to want tohave that conversation in the store.
(35:58):
Any repcolliter Port City Paints will helpyou get the right product. Now,
the last thing to talk about beforewe move on to the really fun stuff
is that the back to use time. You've got to keep that in mind
before you really really go crazy backin this room again. Ideally you're waiting
at least twenty four hours before you'vegot any light foot traffic on the floors
or putting any furniture back, andyou're putting furniture back carefully after twenty and
(36:22):
then dragging it to the other halfof no, be very careful with all
of that. Give it time,and then generally a minimum of about a
week before you put it back tonormal use exactly. That's the work involved.
Now let's get to the fun partwith the time we've got left,
and that's just exploring all the designoptions out there. Yeah, I mean,
some of my favorite floors that I'veseen on Pinterest and Instagram are kind
(36:45):
of unexpected colors like soft yellows orpinks even, and there's so many options
when it comes to stencils or rugs. I've seen flower patterns on floors that
look gorgeous, but even just theclassic checkerboard design with a white and subtle
gray. You don't have to gosuper high contrast with the black and white,
although that's still a fun look too. When choosing a color, something
(37:07):
to keep in mind is that colorson the floor typically look a couple shades
lighter than colors on the wall.You know, all of the light is
coming from above, a lot moreis being reflected back up, so you're
going to want to compensate for thatby choosing a color that's a couple shades
darker than you want. But beforeyou just jump into that, of course,
do some sampling. Yeah, youcan either go with just the eight
(37:28):
architectural color chips we have in thestores, so you're getting a little bit
of a bigger view, or ifyou're going to invest in a sample pint
not painting it on the floor.Now, we want to get a foam
core board to paint that onto,And you really don't want to cheap out
on this. Get a nice board. Don't paint both sides of it,
just one side that's sealed. Thatway doesn't start to warp on you.
Right. Finally, dust and grimeare inevitably going to collect. It's their
(37:51):
way and if you paint the floorsin a super bright white, you're definitely
going to see that more quickly.So try to aim for some midtone colors
and that way you're not going tosee every little back, right, And
I guess we should address whites becausethey're really popular right now. The farmhouse
look is in, so you're gonnasee these white floors everywhere. And I
don't want to set people up forfalse expectations. I think it's a great
(38:14):
color design wise, just be awarethat it's going to take some extra cleaning.
I mean, right, you're notgoing to be able to have shoes
in the house. Who doesn't loveextra cleaning and walking around in socks?
Yeah, just be aware. You'reexactly right, it's a trendy color.
You can definitely get there. Wejust want you to understand what you might
be dealing wet exactly. All right, that's all the time we've got.
(38:35):
You can find this one again onlineat repcollit dot com. And while you're
there, make sure you subscribe toour podcast and you'll never miss another episode.
Lots of inspiration for floors on Instagram. Two will have those in our
stories and highlights. Check it outand don't forget if you do end up
doing this project. We love tosee that stuff. Tag us Repcolate Paints.
We want to see what you're workingon. I want to see pictures
exactly. We all do good pictures, right, yeah, pictures off it
(39:00):
really bombed out. Take another company, right anyway, all of the rep
Co Light stars are open waiting toout. I'm Dan Hansen, I'm Daniel,
and I'm Healey Johnson. Thanks forlistening.
You're listening to the Repical Like HomeImprovement show sponsored by Benjamin Moore, and
this week we're playing a best ofcollection of some of our favorite segments.
We hope you enjoy it. Goodmorning, everybody, Happy Saturday. Happy
Saturday. Hailey, you beat meto the pus. Sorry you stole my
thunder. I'm just so excited abouttulip time. I want to start talking
about the tulips. You just wantto. But I have a thing that
(00:23):
I do, and that thing,yeah, is what gets me going and
gets the whole thing is run yourmojo. You did. You killed my
mojo. The whole show was goingto stink now mojo jojo. Yeah.
So anyway, whatever we were saying, it's tulip time. I don't even
know where we're going anymore. It'stulip time. This is my first tulip
Time's first tuli of time. I'mexcited for the carnival part, the elephant
(00:46):
ears. Yeah, I'm not excitedfor the restraint of not picking the tulips,
right, because that's a thing foryou. Yeah, I really like
picking flowers and I know that I'mnot allowed to. You know, why,
why do you know? Because Ithought about it, and who told
you not to? I had theinstinct first that it was a bad idea.
I said, well, these helland people, they might not like
(01:06):
me picking the flowers. And soI came in and said can I pick?
You said absolutely not right, No, I have been raised with I
mean, the fear has been driveninto me that you don't do that.
I don't even know what happens.Well, I don't think it's pretty.
It's similar to the Ottoman Empire thatwe're going to talk about. Okay,
(01:29):
So yeah, so we decided tocelebrate tulip time by throwing a spotlight on
tulips, tulip bulbs, their history, all of that, and it was
Hayley's idea. And you wanted tostart with the origins of it. Yea,
So we're going to just jump straightinto the show. We got other
good stuff coming. Don't worry aboutit. She can't have killed my mojo
bad enough, because I am fullof MOI. So the little bit you
(01:52):
did, it's not going to hurtthe rest of the show. And trust
glad it's good. But the originsthey started in such a weird place.
They were a wildflower. They grewin Central Asia, and Persia around one
eighty is the earliest that we knowthey were around. But yeah, just
grown on side the road or well, I guess maybe not road, but
yeah, just being cute all ontheir own. Never would have pictured that.
(02:15):
I always pictured the pristine fields,yeah, because we know tulips as
being cultivated flowers, so I thoughtthat was really interesting. And then they
transitioned from there to Turkey, right, Yeah, the Turks fell in love
with the tulip and they were theones that really started cultivating it as this
pristine flower that it is today.And that was in like the sixteenth century
(02:36):
Ottoman Empire. The sultan was soobsessed with tulips that if you tried to
take tulips outside of the capital,you were punished by exile. I wonder
what he did if you picked themright exactly. Maybe that's where we got
our ideas for the rules. Idon't think it's far off. It likelips
inspire that kind of craziness, yeah, because it just keeps going. So
(03:00):
because then yeah, they finally actuallyget taken out of Turkey. There was
a guy who had a friend thatwas working in Turkey at the time.
He came back to Vienna. Aboutwhat time is this? This is in
like the sixteen hundreds, Okay,early fifteen hundreds, I guess, all
right. But he gets a holdof a tulip and then he actually starts
cultivating it in Leiden, Netherlands,because he's working at essentially the botanical gardens
(03:27):
there. But that's where he startedcultivating these tulips for medicinal purposes. They
found out that it actually is goodfor skin. It's also a diuretic,
an antiseptic. Don't try it athome because we don't know you might have
an allergy to it. Built alittle fort out of poison sumac when he
was little, and we have greatphotos where we got photos from the day
(03:47):
he built it and then the dayafter when he swelled up like a balloon.
Wow. So we don't want thatwith tulips, So don't go rubbing
them all over your face. Don'tdo that. But eventually, I don't
know exactly how it caught on asa mania, but tulips were the thing
in the Netherlands once the sky startedcultivating them, and it took off so
(04:09):
much that they were worth more thana house. The actual like a single
bulb could be worth more than ahouse. They became a collector's item.
They traded them as currency essentially becausethey were so valuable, and all these
really rare breeds of tulips were evenmore valuable. So it was this like
high society way of It's like artcollecting. It's very strange to think of
(04:32):
it being that valuable, but yetwhat I found, it made them even
more valuable than that. Yes,life saving, life saving. Actually in
World War Two they were actually eaten. Basically the winter of nineteen forty four
to nineteen forty five, German troopswere still occupying the Netherlands, and the
railway workers and the Dutch government inexile kind of worked together, collaborated to
(04:57):
come up with a scheme basically orwhatever, a plan to have a railroad
strike and that would prevent the Germantroops from being transported all over the place.
That was the idea to slow itdown. Didn't like that, of
course, so they halted supplies intothe western Netherlands. Now, to make
things worse, right around that time, December of nineteen forty four, cold
(05:18):
weather sets in that lasts several months, Canals freeze over transportation and escape becomes
impossible. Yeah, and there's nofood, no food. You've got all
of this going on. While thecombination of harsh, prolonged winter and a
limited food supply sends the country intoa severe famine. And it's actually known
as the hunger winter. The hungerYeah, there's a there's a Dutch word
(05:40):
for it that I couldn't say,but translation is the hunger winter. Starvation
becomes extremely common and over four pointfive million people are affected. More than
twenty two thousand died. Jeez,enter and unlikely hero the tulip bulb.
See, the war had slowed downall the farming and the growing of them,
so they were about there's and theyoung men were gone, right,
(06:01):
so there's nobody to plant the tulips, and so we've got barns and barns
full of them. They're rotting,they're starting to dehydrate and all of those
things, but they're still potentially edible. Somewhere somebody looked at him and said,
you know what, kind of likea like an onion, kind of
looks like a potato comes out ofthe ground. Maybe we can eat it.
I don't know how that part worked, but I do know that at
(06:25):
one point that winter the Dutch government, actually the Office of Food Supply,
published a guide suggesting that tulip bulbsare a food source and explained how to
prepare them, and even offered afew recipes for the housewives who are trying
to wow crank outbook. I know, I can't imagine, makes me kind
of want to try a tulip ball. But I also you said, yeah,
(06:47):
here's the thing. They have almostno nutritional value, so you're not
getting much out of it. Butthey also contain glycoside, which is potentially
poisonous, so there are concerned riotBut the Dutch had no choice at that
point, so properly preparing them,you know, removing the parts that contain
the glycoside. They cooked them andate them like potatoes, and even more
(07:11):
commonly, they milled the ballbs tomake a sort of flower that they used
for breath. Now, eventually,in nineteen forty five, the Allies started
dropping supplies back in and so theydidn't need him as much. The emergency
kind of faded and the tulip babsdidn't need to be eaten anymore. But
they did save the day over thattime period. That gap. That's pretty
cool act, right, It's estimatedthat about one hundred and forty million bulbs
(07:34):
were eaten throughout that time. Now, what makes this really interesting, and
I'll go really fast, is whatcame out of it medically speaking. See
at this point, a doctor inthe Netherlands, doctor Willem Carol Dick,
works at Julianna Children's Hospital in thecity of the hag All right, he's
got a large number of children patientswith celiac disease, and at that point
(07:56):
there was no real consensus as tothe causes of celiac disease. Doctor Dick,
though, believed that wheat was amain offender, but he didn't have
any proof. So when the hungerwinter hits, starving conditions began to impact
all of his patients, and henotices that even with low food rations,
yes, his celiac patients are everybodyelse's degrading. These are improving, these
(08:18):
patients, and when they bring inthe bread made with tulip flour, they
all improved dramatically. In fact,I believe I read that the mortality rate
of the celiac patients in his hospitalwent from thirty five percent to nearly zero,
all because they were eating this breadwithout any wheat in it. And
(08:39):
after the war, doctor Dick Spencea number of years studying all of this,
and in nineteen fifty publishes his findingsthat wheat and rye flower aggravate celiac
symptoms. And he also was ableto discount the theory that complex carbohydrates were
the cause. So with the helpof all these other doctors and researchers and
this hunger winter and the tulip flower, he's able to pinpoint gluten as the
(09:01):
ultimate culprit in the whole thing.Wow, and all kinds of good things
happen because of it, So thankyou tulips. Now, all right,
we're gonna take a break, andwhen we come back, we'll be talking
about touch up painting, why theprocess can be tricky sometimes, and more
importantly, what you need to doto get the best results possible every single
time. All of that's coming upnext. Stay tuned. You're listening to
(09:33):
the Repical Light Home Improvement Show sponsoredby Benjamin Moore, and this week we're
playing a best of collection of someof our favorite segments. We hope you
enjoy it. Well, Haley,there's never a dull moment, is there.
We are in a hot little studioand we've got our one connection to
sanity is our fan. I havea little beautiful little remote that I love
(09:54):
because I don't have to get outof my chair to turn the fan on.
I just clickball. You know,hour remotes work have to go into
it. A long story, butin the break, I went to set
my robote down and you just wentright in your cot gup right into my
coffee cup, and then I wasshaking out the coffee and then I opened
it up to get the coffee outof the battery compartment. And for some
(10:16):
reason, first instinct was I'll justdrink the coffee out of the battery section.
No, I know, I wasn'tthinking there was chewies in there,
the little gummies. I don't knowwhy I do half of what I do.
My children are embarrassed. You're embarrassedto even be a part of this.
And now I've shared it with everybody. I'm just thinking, Yeah,
somebody thought, all right, let'sgo on to the topic at hand.
(10:39):
We had somebody email us about touchup paint. And the scenario that happened
was this, she got a BenjaminMoore sample pint in her color. So
the house was painted maybe four yearsago, and she came in for touch
up paint, didn't have any ofthe original and got a sample pint in
the color. Right now, thatdoes make some sense. I can see
where queen and the color, sodefinitely seems like a good solution. She
(11:03):
went home to touch up the spotsand was disappointed that everything showed. She
wondered what went wrong and then howto fix it. Now we're going to
deal with the whole sample pint thingand why that didn't work in the second
part of this segment. But rightoff the bat, there's a number of
reasons why touch ups can go poor, late, or standout, and usually
the failure is due to one ora combination of the following. Yeah,
the first part is going to beapplication. If you've got a bunch of
(11:26):
spots that need to be touched upon a single wall, Even though it
sounds like more work, it's honestlybetter to just paint corner to corner.
There's way less of a chance thatyou're going to see any of those touch
up spots because our eye is notgoing to carry over the corner. There's
already a color shift regardless, soit's not going to know that that's not
exact right. We'd always recommend youknow, the ideal way to get your
(11:48):
best results is to paint a largerarea and fine breaking points corner to corner
is ideal. No, not everybodywants to jump into that. We get
that, but still look for biggerbreaking points because, as Hailey mentioned,
isn't going to carry all of thosedifferences and it will just blend away exactly
looks better, you get better results. We all know what it looks like
when you touch up the little silverdollar size spots on the wall and you
(12:09):
see them very first, you alwaysthink that, oh, you just have
a small touch up should do,It's going to be really easy, and
it's actually the hardest touch up todo are the really tiny ones. Yeah,
so if you can do a biggersection, better results. Now,
let's say you can't or you're notgoing to the next thing you need to
think about is that when you dothis touch up, you've got to use
the same tool that the paint wasoriginally applied with. Exactly if you rolled
(12:31):
paint onto the wall, you wantto use that exact same roller ideally to
roll on the touch up, Whichdoesn't sound like work that we want to
do again, because now it's awhole thing we got to get out of
tray, and that's the roller frameroller covers, and that's where the Wooster
Jumbo coder system is a great system. You know, the whole Wooster roller
(12:52):
system is a great way to gobecause if you buy the normal sized roller
covers, the nine inches, contractorswho use the eighteen inch covers makes a
jumbo Cooder, which is a smallcoder. Funny name. I don't know
why they went with that, butjumbo in this case actually means super little.
Yeah. Mini Yeah, a miniroller cover. And all of these
mini roller covers, they've got afull range of them, and they all
(13:13):
match their larger counterparts and the fabricused, the nap used, all of
it will match, so it willbe flawless. You won't see the difference
between the two. So it's agreat system to use just for a regular
painting. If you have to getinto tight corners, use this jumbo Cooder
system in cooperation with the Wooster largerregular rollers right, and you're going to
(13:33):
have no problems at all. You'llbe able to switch back and forth and
see no difference. And if youdon't know what kind of roller cover you
use. You know, just usea roller cover that's appropriate for the job.
The worst thing you could do,though, is use a brush on
a wall that was rolled out,because that texture from the brush is going
to make the paint look like adifferent color. That texture is going to
(13:54):
reflect in a different way. Andit's amazing how much of a difference that
makes. Right, So you thesame tool and keep those jumbo cooders in
mind. Now, let's say thatyou've got a super small spot and you
don't even want to get a jumbocoota out to roll that area, like,
you know, the whole tiny littlenail hole exactly that. What do
you do it? Well, there'sa great system that I ran into.
(14:15):
Somebody shared that with me. Somebodywho's been in paint for years said one
of the things they would always recommendto their customers is to get a Q
tip And basically you just get thepaint on the end of the Q tip
and use it as a little tinymini roller. It's like a roller for
barbies, it is, and itreally works well. It gives enough of
the simulation of that texture yea tohave it blend away I've tried it a
(14:35):
bunch of times. Works really well, really nice for super simple quick touch
ups. Yeah, all right,so make sure you're applying with the right
tool. The third thing that youwant to do is apply light coats and
feather them all out. Don't tryto make a single application cover and height.
Your paints could be too thick,it could be too shiny in that
regard, it could even run downthe wall a little bit. Well,
and when we say feather it out, we mean you're applying less and less
(14:58):
paint to blend with the rest ofthe wall. So as you work out
from that single spot, it's justgetting less paint the further you go out.
The fourth thing when it comes toapplication is to be patient. You
know, paint changes as it dries. Yeah, wet paint is not going
to match your wall, So don'trush into a store because you just applied
touch up and it doesn't match.I've had people do that. I've almost
(15:18):
been that person, but I toldmyself, no, it's going to darken
over time, and yeah, youdon't want to rush out get new paint,
come back home and find that whatyou had blended right, and give
it time. Let it dry.All right, So those are application issues.
Another reason touchups go awry is thatwe use the wrong paint. We've
got to get the exact paint thatwe had in the same finish and the
same exact color to make this workexactly, which is why the sample paint
(15:41):
did not work for that touch up, because you did not paint your walls
with a sample pint. You paintedit. Let's say, with the benchroom
moor is Regal select an eggshell,and so the sample pint is an eggshell,
so it seems like it would work, but actually paint is going to
vary in sheen from product to productline. Even though they both say eggshell,
it's not the exact same eggshell.And then of course she dies a
(16:03):
little bit over time too, whichmakes it really hard when you're touching up
paint that's extremely old because it's flattenedout. And so now even if you
go down to the basement and youget the original paint of the original can,
it might look slightly shinier when yourepaint because it's been aged for so
long well, and color changes asit sits on the wall. So you
know, our room depends on howit's used. But normally, you know
(16:26):
it's going to pick up surface contaminants. The color is going to be dulled
a little bit, darkened a littlebit over time, and so new paint
can be shinier, it can bea little lighter in color, even if
it all comes like you said,from the original can. So with all
of that said, how in theworld you get good results with touch ups?
Well, first, that's where thatcorner to corner thing that we mentioned
in the very beginning really comes outand helps a lot. If you got
(16:48):
a corner to corner. Even ifthe color is slightly different, even if
the sheen is a little different,you're not going to see it. Secondly,
keep good notes. Yeah, mygrandpa left really great paint notes in
the basement. He labeled every canwith the date that he bought it,
the color that was used, allof the information was right there on the
can, and it said where itwent in the house. Because paints may
(17:11):
look really similar and it's not exactlythe same color, sometimes people will make
note cards if you go that route. If that's the way you like to
go, ask in the store andwe can print an extra sticker for you
with all of the pertinent information andget that on there. Sometimes now people
will take photos. Yeah, andpeople sometimes will take pictures of the lid
of the can, which doesn't actuallyhave as much information as you think it
(17:32):
does for us. So we preferagain ask what information we need so that
you're taking a picture of the rightpart of the can, so that we
have the information later on when youcome in that you're not frustrated exactly.
Third, if the original paint isn'ta close match anymore, which is possible,
we can always custom match something.Be aware of that. But the
big thing to remember here is thatwe need to see something in order to
match it. And sometimes this meansyou've got to get creative. You got
(17:53):
to look for face plates, ventcovers, anything with the paint on it
that can be easily removed and broughtin Exactly. I've had people removing higher
strips of trim into the store becauseI mean, we just need a target,
and it doesn't have to be giant, just a quarter size really is
all we need to get a matchof that paint. But the bigger the
sample, the better, right.So by all means, if you're stuck
(18:15):
in that situation, give us acall ahead of time and we can kind
of walk you through what's the bestway to help you get your color.
Touch ups can be pulled off,and we're not trying to make it sound
like the impossible dream. Yeah,it certainly can be done. It's just
you've got to know a few thingsgoing in in order to get those great
results. Exactly. All right,we're gonna take a break and for the
Grand Rapids listeners, you'll get newsand weather and all of that good stuff.
Detroit listeners, you're going to geta rep Colit Rewind, and then
(18:37):
when we're all back together, we'regoing to get one of my favorite segments
of all time, a deep divelook at ladders and some of the folklore
that surrounds them. It's a lotof fun, believe me. So stick
around listening to the Recal Like HomeImprovement Show sponsored by Benjamin Moore, and
(19:03):
this week we're playing a best ofcollection of some of our favorite segments.
We hope you enjoy it well,Haley. There are all kinds of tools
that we take for granted. Wedon't even think about where they came from.
We just use them, and mostof the time, if you're children,
you don't even put them back wherethey belong. You just use them
and leave them there and never givea second thought to it. Now,
we have talked about a bunch ofthem before. We've talked about hammers and
(19:23):
saws and duct tape, and we'vedug into the interesting history behind them.
And I came up with another one. Did it's excited about it. It's
a really good one. And eventhough I thought it was a really lousy
idea at the beginning, I didn't. I'm joking, but I wasn't wowed
by it because it sounds really ordinarybecause we take it for granted. It's
(19:45):
the ladder, something we need anddepend on all the time. And the
shorter you are, the more youneed it. Yeah, you really need
them, dance, so you shouldreally appreciate the ladder. You are not
any taller, no, I know. Yeah, we both need them and
reaching ones, but we'll get thosein another episode. But these have been
around since ten thousand BC at least. At least that's the first recorded history
(20:07):
exactly. We've got what art ona cave the Spider Caves in Valencia,
Spain shows a picture of somebody climbingup. They're up to their elbow in
a beehive harvesting honey. Yeah,we think that's what the article said.
We think they are harvesting honey.What else what they have been doing with
their arm and a bee hive harvestinghoney? But either way that that particular
(20:32):
picture shows a ladder being used.Now it's kind of a rope ladder.
They think that was probably made outof grass or something like that, but
it's a ladder in concept. Andthen we know that they had wood ladders
that they used in ancient Egypt becausethat's how they built the pyramids and the
tombs. So they've been around fora really long time and they haven't really
(20:52):
changed much since the Egyptians were usingthem in that way, Right, the
Egyptian ladders that we talk about,basically that's the modern ladder look for the
most part, and that's the wayit was for a very long time.
And we know that the Pharaohs andall those they were using them in Egypt,
but we know that they became morecommon shortly after that and people everywhere
(21:15):
started using them. And we knowthat because of a very interesting reference.
There's a game. Yeah, we'reall familiar with ladders, shoots and ladders.
How old is that. We allfigure it's probably from the forties or
yeah, it goes back where tothe second or third century BC BC In
India it was snakes and ladders Originally. I don't love this game. I'll
(21:38):
be honest. It's a little harsh, and maybe that's why. WHOA you
have a hard time with Shoots andladders. That's harsh. Definitely made me
cry. Yeah, it wasn't afun one. I mean, it's fun,
but it's I don't know, well, it's old. Maybe that's the
problem I think with old things.Right. No, anyway, Shoots in
(22:03):
Ladder, it's a it's a gamethat goes back you said second century BC.
It was already something in pop cultureat that point. Yeah, And
it didn't really change much until abouteighteen sixty two when Henry H. Balsley
invented the folding ladder, the foldingstep ladder. Now there were step ladders
just prior to that, there's there'sevidence of that, but he holds the
(22:26):
patent for the folding step ladder.He basically threw two ladders together and put
a hinge on it, and suddenlyyou've got something that's incredibly easy to store.
It's portable. And he also changedthe steps right the rungs, hence
the step letder, because now they'reflat and easy to just climb up.
Before it was always that round rung, So that was a big advancement eighteen
(22:47):
sixty two. Another huge advancement comesin eighteen sixty seven, and it's Henry
Marcus Quackenbush. Yeah, I alwayspause on that last name of great last
name, Quackenbush. He invented thedunsion ladder at the age of sixteen.
Yeah. I wasn't inventing at theage sixty. No, I don't even
know if I was driving. Allthe cool kids were. In fact,
pretty much everybody was. I wasa late bloomer. That's been my thing.
(23:14):
If I would, which mom saysI can't, so I won't.
But if I did, it wouldsay late bloomer. I am still peeking.
I'm waiting to peak like fine wine. Yes, I'm like a fine
wine. I'm just aging, yesexactly. Anyway, Henry Quackenbush, he's
sixteen, he's a mover and ashaker. He's probably got girlfriends, he's
(23:36):
probably driving, and he's inventing theextension ladder. Think about that, and
think about the fact that we've hadtwo major advancements in the ladder within five
years. Up until that point,they're pretty much the same. It's kind
of incredible. Thousands of years andthen boom all these changes. The next
big advancement comes about sixty some yearslater in nineteen thirty, and that's the
(23:56):
introduction of the aluminum ladder. Yeah, the aluminum extension ladder. And it's
because Norwegian firefighters decided they were tootired to lug those heavy wooden extension ladders
are what you're throwing a lot ofshade there is that what they could say,
now, yeah did I use thatcar? Did you did that?
Is like the first time ever anyway, you're throwing a lot of shade.
(24:19):
But extension ladders would they're very heavy, crazy heavy. I don't move them.
I watch other people. So theNorwegian firefighters kind of we're crabbing about
that, Hey, this is toomuch. We're not sure if we want
to get to that floor or not. Maybe we can do something different.
I'm sure that's not how it went, but overall, well, Sam A.
Corbus took on the job though,and he creates the first from Norway.
(24:41):
Where was he from? Now?He's from the US. Oh,
he's from the US. Yeah,So he takes the job on and comes
up with the aluminum extension ladder,and so that's the first time we see
a lightweight ladder being used, andfrom there it kind of takes off.
Now all the firefighters want these lightweightaluminum extension ladder and companies are being made
just to support these firefighters, whichis pretty cool. Yeah, and yeah,
(25:06):
the aluminum extension ladder, that's probablywhat most of us have sitting around,
easy to lug around, and wecan thank Sam Corbus and the Norwegian
firefighters for getting that started in thethirties. One other big advancement that kind
of happened in about the eighties eightytwo I think it was, and this
was surprising. It was the atticladder. You know, the little thing
that you pull the rope down inthe garage or whatever and the ladder folds
(25:29):
down. I really can't believe ittook that long to make that. Yeah,
I know, the eighties. Iknow a lot of good things happened
in the eighties. That's one ofthem. That's the history now. But
there's some fun stuff we could getinto, safety stuff. We could talk
about safety stuff, or we couldtalk about let's save the safety stuff.
We'll do that in a future episode. We've got a little fun stuff today.
(25:55):
Yeah, all right, and itis fun. It is fun.
It's the superstitious stuff that's tie withladders. And we all know, you
know, when you think about there'sa handful of things that we think about,
and whether you're superstitious or not,you know that there's certain things that
a great, big group of peoplethink are. Yeah, don't break a
mirror, breaking mirrors, black hatFriday the thirteenth, that's always a big
(26:15):
one. And walking under ladders,walking under a ladder, And Haley brought
that up when you pitch this topicand you said why is that a problem?
And of course, as is myway, I said, oh,
that's simple, it's just And thenI had nothing and I realized very quick,
I don't have any idea why that'sa big deal. And so you
dug into it. Yeah, Ifound a couple of things. Where does
(26:37):
this go back to? Well,no, the superstition is almost as long
as they were being used for.It was back in ancient Egypt. They
decided to put these ladders in thetombs that they were building with the ladders
as a way for that person toget to the afterlife. It was going
to make it easy for them toget out of the tomb. But if
you walked under the ladder, wewere kind of interrupting their journey to the
(27:02):
afterlife. So that was bad luck. So doing that that was a big
deal. And then you mentioned thatin later years. Yeah, Christianity,
right, because the ladders they wereleaned up against walls at that point in
time, and that naturally creates atriangle, a triangle, or at least
something very close to a triangle.And of course the triangle is a symbol
(27:22):
for the Trinity. And walking underneaththat ladder was, like you said,
the language they used was breaking treatingthe Holy Trinity. That's a big deal,
and that might be why the offenseis so great. It's between seven
and forty years of the bad luckis supposed to last, right, So
that's where some of these superstitions comefrom. And I'm sure there's more,
Oh yeah, I'm sure, butwe decided there's one last important thing that
(27:45):
we can't talk about the superstition sideof things without giving everybody the answer as
to how to avoid it. Becausewhile the superstition is kind of funny to
think about where that came from.How to undo it is even better.
So we got a number of ways. We've got a couple of minutes to
go through them, and you're gonnawant to take notes because I mean,
I don't know how many times Iwalked under a ladder ever since we started
(28:07):
writing this topic down. But anyway, here are some things you can do.
First off, it's pretty straightforward.The first one is really easy.
If you walk under, you walkback out backwards, just go on reverse
right. You can't turn around becausebecause that's gonna make it just as bad,
maybe worse. I don't know.We should consult, but if you
walk backwards you can undo perhaps,and if you make a wish on your
(28:27):
way out, maybe that's even better. So who knows. But that's the
walking backwards one. Now that's notfor everybody because not everybody is that agile.
Oh yeah, fair, I wouldprobably fall over trying to walk backwards,
so not your thing. Don't worry, we got you covered. You
can always put your thumb between yourindex and middle finger while walking under the
(28:51):
ladder, so basically you're doing theI got your nose thing oh yeah,
that little kids. If you dothat, I got your nose. Thing
as you're walking under the ladder,go wow, all right, and maybe
both hands if you're really worried.Well, if it's a big ladder,
or if you're really worried, bothhands would be great. The other thing
you can do is cross your fingersand wait for a dog to come by.
Yeah, you got to wait forthe dog. That's really important.
(29:14):
If you just cross your fingers andgo under the ladder and come out on
the other side and uncrossed them withoutseeing a dog, no, you just
screwed it all up. So you'vegot to keep them crossed until you see
a dog. We're not technically surewhat kind of dog. Probably a big
one. Bigger's bigger is better.And you know, a pure breed is
good. If it's mange, maybekeep looking, you know who knows.
But maybe let's say finger crossing isn'tyour thing. If you like spitting,
(29:38):
we've got some answers for you,because you can get rid of the bad
luck by spitting three times through therungs. I don't know if I would
be good at that. Actually,we might spit on the rungs a slip
hazard for saying exactly. Okay,well, let's say you don't want to
spit through the rungs. One lastone you can try is as you're walking
through. And this one sounds reallygood, super solid. I'm sure this
one's gonna work. As you're walkingthrough, you notice you're under a ladder.
(30:00):
Oh no, what do I do? You spit on your shoe and
then you don't look at it.Don't look at the spittle on your shoe
until it's dried, So you're gonnaneed a help her. Yeah, that's
logical. Yeah, just get alittle kid somewhere, have them check out
your shoe. If the spittle's dry, you're good to go. That's probably
the best one, most effective.I think so too. We're gonna put
a link in the show notes youcan check these out. Isn't folklore and
(30:21):
superstition fun? Crazy stuff? Loveit? Okay, we've got to pause
for a few minutes for commercials andwhatnot. And when we come back,
we'll be joined in the studio byDan Altina, president of repcal Light,
and we'll be talking about painting woodfloors. That's all next. Stick around.
(30:41):
You're listening to the Reupco Light Homeimprovement show sponsored by Benjamin Moore,
and this week we're playing a bestof collection of some of our favorite segments.
We hope you enjoy it. There'salways projects you can tackle that will
make your space feel better. Andone that we've never really talked about on
the show, but which will havea huge impact on any space is painting
an old wood floor exactly. It'ssuch a good way to freshen up a
(31:03):
space. It's not a huge investment. It's not like replacing the floors themselves,
right, And we're talking about floorsthat maybe they've got water damage.
Maybe they really weren't ever meant tobe the star of the show. They're
meant to have carpet go over them, so they're not star of the show.
I did notice that, Well,Dan, we can't all be stars.
(31:30):
No, I do know that youcan all like what you can be
my entourage, That's what I Sothe floors can't be the star of the
show, just like not everybody here, right, So they eat a little
help sometimes, yes, and theyshould say. You know, if you're
gonna paint wood floors, you're kindof committing to that. You're not necessarily
(31:51):
committing to a color, you canalways change that, but you're probably not
ever going to go back to woodfloors again. It's gonna get into the
cracks a little bit. Dan,that was your big concert of the project,
right, But I do love allthe options. It goes with any
style colors has a ton of impact, a ton of impact. Easy to
change the colors. It's you know, way simpler than carpet or any of
(32:13):
those other exact choices. And it'sa it's a relatively simple project, a
great project to start on if youreally haven't done a ton of painting.
Now, before we get into allthe cool possibilities and colors and designs,
a couple of things to consider.First off, paint on the floor rarely
lasts forever. You're gonna have tojust buy into the fact that there's going
to be some chipping and traffic patternsand wear and all of that. You're
(32:36):
just going to see it. Yeah, And sometimes that kind of works with
the look. Even if you're goingfor like a shabby chic design choice,
then maybe it's not so bad.Maybe build it with that in mind.
Yes, for that, That's howI'm going to do my whole house.
That way if the kids, youknow, mess anything up, mare it
up, ding it up. Partof the look. Yeah, I'm on
with my eyes closed, so beaware of that. We don't want you
(32:59):
to disappointed. Another thing to considersthat coatings can fail. We talk about
this all the time if you don'tdo the proper prep and that's really really
key on a floor, making sureyou do the right prep work. And
it starts with cleaning the floors reallywell, really well. Yes, we'd
recommend using dawn dish soap, TSP, maybe a little Scotch bright scrubby pad
something to make sure you get themreally really cleaned, and then rinse them
(33:22):
well exactly. And then you reallywant to scuff the floors to promote that
adhesion. We usually are talking aboutone hundred and eighty standpaper with a random
orbital stander. You're just trying toscuff the surface. We're not trying to
remove the varnish completely, right.Something to keep in mind if you choose
down the road to use a waterbased coating, good sanding is absolutely critical
(33:43):
to getting good results. If youhappen to choose an oil based product,
not as important, generally better adhesion, but still it's good practice. Good
practice. Now after sanding, makesure you clean the floors again with a
damp cloth. You're just trying toget the dust off. You don't have
to break out the cleaners or anythinglike that. And one last thing when
it comes the projects is just makesure you're planning that workflow so you don't
trap yourself in a corner. Idid that in a deck. I did
(34:07):
it in a stairway. That isreally, really, really frustrating, and
you feel really stupid because normally whileyou're painting in your home and you should
know better. I was helping ninein laws and I was brought in because
he's the expert, he knows,and I'm on the deck, and I
realized at one point I am stuck. And then I said that My father
(34:30):
in law said, I wondered howlong it was going to take you to
figure out who happening? Yeah,yeah, anyway, don't do that.
You want to look smarter than that, So plan it out ahead of time.
Another thing to consider is that choosingthe right paint products may require some
expert advice. Yeah, if thefloor is really worn already, if it's
(34:52):
a naughty wood, if there waterstains present, These are all things that
might affect our recommendations, right,So into the stores with photos, we
can talk it through. We'll figureout what you're working with and make a
recommendation based on what you're comfortable workingwith product wise as well, but we'll
get you where you want to go. As for paint, like Hailey just
(35:13):
mentioned, some of it is goingto be recommended based on your situation,
but we can still talk about themain Yeah, there's options out there,
and from an oil based standpoint,we'd recommend using Repcolites eurethane flor enamel,
where's really well, extremely well.Yeah, yeah, I put it in
my house, I had all thesekids and it held up like iron.
So I'd really recommend that. Andanother option if you want to go to
(35:36):
water base, would be what BenjaminMoore's floor and patio. I always say
that wrong, Yes, Flora,I get it right that time. You
did. Actually, Wow, amazing. It's floor and patio and it's a
low Lusser finish, so a littlebit less shiny. Okay, So there's
the options out there. There's there'sa few other things that we could recommend,
but you're just going to want tohave that conversation in the store.
(35:58):
Any repcolliter Port City Paints will helpyou get the right product. Now,
the last thing to talk about beforewe move on to the really fun stuff
is that the back to use time. You've got to keep that in mind
before you really really go crazy backin this room again. Ideally you're waiting
at least twenty four hours before you'vegot any light foot traffic on the floors
or putting any furniture back, andyou're putting furniture back carefully after twenty and
(36:22):
then dragging it to the other halfof no, be very careful with all
of that. Give it time,and then generally a minimum of about a
week before you put it back tonormal use exactly. That's the work involved.
Now let's get to the fun partwith the time we've got left,
and that's just exploring all the designoptions out there. Yeah, I mean,
some of my favorite floors that I'veseen on Pinterest and Instagram are kind
(36:45):
of unexpected colors like soft yellows orpinks even, and there's so many options
when it comes to stencils or rugs. I've seen flower patterns on floors that
look gorgeous, but even just theclassic checkerboard design with a white and subtle
gray. You don't have to gosuper high contrast with the black and white,
although that's still a fun look too. When choosing a color, something
(37:07):
to keep in mind is that colorson the floor typically look a couple shades
lighter than colors on the wall.You know, all of the light is
coming from above, a lot moreis being reflected back up, so you're
going to want to compensate for thatby choosing a color that's a couple shades
darker than you want. But beforeyou just jump into that, of course,
do some sampling. Yeah, youcan either go with just the eight
(37:28):
architectural color chips we have in thestores, so you're getting a little bit
of a bigger view, or ifyou're going to invest in a sample pint
not painting it on the floor.Now, we want to get a foam
core board to paint that onto,And you really don't want to cheap out
on this. Get a nice board. Don't paint both sides of it,
just one side that's sealed. Thatway doesn't start to warp on you.
Right. Finally, dust and grimeare inevitably going to collect. It's their
(37:51):
way and if you paint the floorsin a super bright white, you're definitely
going to see that more quickly.So try to aim for some midtone colors
and that way you're not going tosee every little back, right, And
I guess we should address whites becausethey're really popular right now. The farmhouse
look is in, so you're gonnasee these white floors everywhere. And I
don't want to set people up forfalse expectations. I think it's a great
(38:14):
color design wise, just be awarethat it's going to take some extra cleaning.
I mean, right, you're notgoing to be able to have shoes
in the house. Who doesn't loveextra cleaning and walking around in socks?
Yeah, just be aware. You'reexactly right, it's a trendy color.
You can definitely get there. Wejust want you to understand what you might
be dealing wet exactly. All right, that's all the time we've got.
(38:35):
You can find this one again onlineat repcollit dot com. And while you're
there, make sure you subscribe toour podcast and you'll never miss another episode.
Lots of inspiration for floors on Instagram. Two will have those in our
stories and highlights. Check it outand don't forget if you do end up
doing this project. We love tosee that stuff. Tag us Repcolate Paints.
We want to see what you're workingon. I want to see pictures
exactly. We all do good pictures, right, yeah, pictures off it
(39:00):
really bombed out. Take another company, right anyway, all of the rep
Co Light stars are open waiting toout. I'm Dan Hansen, I'm Daniel,
and I'm Healey Johnson. Thanks forlistening.
Popular Podcasts
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
24/7 News: The Latest
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.
Therapy Gecko
An unlicensed lizard psychologist travels the universe talking to strangers about absolutely nothing. TO CALL THE GECKO: follow me on https://www.twitch.tv/lyleforever to get a notification for when I am taking calls. I am usually live Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays but lately a lot of other times too. I am a gecko.