Air Conditioning Questions

Jim jumps right into a couple early calls about recommended paint for a roof and air conditioning. He also takes questions on putting concrete underneath a mobile home, fence posts for a gate, a heat pump, and more.  Jim continues in the second hour on the phone lines and looking at email questions answering more of your home improvement questions. Don’t forget to checkout the website thipro.com.

Episode Transcript

(00:00):
Idiot, though Daddy. Texas HomeImprovement is on the air with Jim Duntman.
Welcome to Texas Home Improvement. Whatcan I do for you? You're
from Texas? How could you tellyou? Tall? Jim Now with all
your home improvement questions. That's sevenone three two one two five eight seven

(00:20):
four. That's seven one three,two one two five eight seven four.
Texas Home Improvement brought to you byReady Seal, Stain and Sealer, Sunburn
Shutters. Where beauty meets energy efficiency, American Standard Comfort the way you like
it do West Services Foundation Repair,Plumbing and air Conditioning, Guardian Roof Systems,

(00:41):
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James Hardy Sighting the best sighting onthe planet. Floor in the Core,
Victor's Remodeling and Construction Party, PlexSpecialists, Rev Synthetics, shingles by
f Wave and USA Wall Phone Insulationfor insisting homes and now broadcasting live from

(01:07):
the Dutton Ranch. Here's Jim.Do you hey? Welcome to Texas Home
Improvements, your total home improvement source. I am Jim Dutton here to help
you out any home improvement question youhave. Feel free to pick up the
phone, give me a call,and I'll see what I can do to
help you out here on Texas HomeImprovement. The number to call, like

(01:30):
the man just said, seven onethree two one two five eight seven four.
That's seven one three two one twofive eight seven four. We're gonna
be taking calls and answering questions forthe next two hours, So feel free
to pick up the phone, giveme a call, and I'll see what
I can do to help you outhere today. Now, don't forget about

(01:51):
our website, t hipro dot com. There's all kinds of helpful information there
and links to the people you hearme talk about. There's questions and answers
and video clips. I mean,it's just a wealth of information when you
go to t hipro dot com andsome of the stuff that you'll find there.

(02:12):
You'll find the ask you button that'swhere you can send in an email
question. You'll also find the placeto sign up for our newsletter that goes
out every other week. There's oldcopies there if you want to look at
some of them. But it doesn'tcost you anything, and we don't do
anything other than send you the newsletter. We don't know send you other information.
We don't sell that information to anybody. It's strictly for sending out our

(02:37):
newsletter. And of course you'll findlinks to all the people you hear me
talk about when you go to thhiprodot com. So use it as a
resource because there's also questions and answersand stuff there as well t hipro dot
com. But if you have ahome proven question, you know, it's

(02:59):
always easier to get in at thebeginning of the show than it is at
the end of the show. Sopick up the phone, give me a
call. Seven one three two onetwo five eight seven four. We'll see
what we can do to help youout here on Texas Home Improvement, your
total home Improvement source again seven onethree two one two five eight seven four.

(03:23):
First call of the hour. Let'sgo to Bob in Northwest Houston.
How can I help you? Hi, Jim, Good afternoon. I think
my insurance company must have secret dronesof something. They took a picture of
my corrugated roof as a shed rooflike a patio roof on the back of
the house, and it's rusted,and they said, I have three weeks
to fix it, and I'm thinkingI can just paint it. What kind

(03:46):
of paint would you recommend? Youknow, they actually make a coating that
you can paint on there. Uh, if you'll go, if you'll go
over to Sherwin Williams, yep,tell them you need to put a coating
on for the corrugated metal roof.They'll have it. Or you can go

(04:09):
to a a roofing supply store.Okay, and they'll have it either one
of them. Yep. Oh perfect. Then I can send them a picture
yep, and look put you know, you can put that on there.
It's gonna seal it up. Andany place where you might have had like

(04:32):
fasteners coming loose or anything, makesure you're tighten all that down first,
and where the where the sheet metaloverlaps. What the professionals do is they're
going to go in and cock andseal all that first and then put this
on. And truthfully, you're goingto take a roof that is already like

(04:54):
your roof is probably what fifteen yearsold? Yeah, you must work for
the insurance company. Yes, nowthat's just the age that they start doing
this. Uh. But you'll putthis coding on and you'll easily add another
ten years plus to it. Butit's gray in colored, so their satellite
picture can see a gray roof forand whatever color it is, most of

(05:15):
them are white white. Okay,well either way, but yeah, and
and the nice part about it isit'll help with the heat as well,
because most of those products are designedto reflect the heat off and so it'll
be a lot more comfortable under theretoo. Oh well, thanks for that.
Yeah, then I'm gonna do thatin the other one. Then,
oh, thank you. That's veryhelpful. I can get just taken care

(05:38):
of alrighty you take care you twobye bye, fight again seven one three
two one two five eight seven four. You know he talked about them having
a drone. I remember years ago, and I do mean years ago.
This was probably, well not probably, this was forty years ago. I

(06:02):
had a little fourplex place that hadstucco on it, and the insurance company
drove by, and the building wasway on the back of this property,
but they drove by, took apicture and sent me a notice that I
had to scrape all that peeling paintand redo it. It was stucco,

(06:27):
it was concrete. It wasn't peelingpaint. And I had a heck of
a time getting them to understand thatit wasn't paint, it was stucco,
that it's supposed to look that way. So yeah, they do sometimes go
out and actually look at properties,and most people don't realize that, but

(06:49):
they do. And I'm sure there'sa lot of people this week, you
know, with all the flooding that'sgoing on up in the north northeast quadrant
of the city, who are goingto be dealing with the insurance companies.
And I guess I'm gonna throw outa few things here quick and early.

(07:10):
If your house flooded and you getback in there, you need to take
pictures and document, document, documenteverything that got damaged. Then remove the
carpeting, sheet rock, deck,got wet, all that stuff, because
it is upon you, not necessarilyto do the repairs, but mitigate it

(07:34):
from causing any further damage. Andif you leave that building closed up and
you don't get all that wet stuffout of there, it's gonna start molding
and mildeing and just destroy that buildingin no time. So look, once
you get back in, get thewater out, get all the damaged stuff

(07:55):
out, but only after you've gonein and just photographed the heck out of
it, and I would recommend youalso walk through with a video camera and
video everything as well. Do both. You can't have too much of this
stuff. Secondary thing. You're gonnapile all that junk up outside. And

(08:18):
I hate to tell you this,but you're gonna leave it there until your
insurance company comes out if you haveinsurance, because they're gonna want to see
it for themselves. So just leaveit piled up. Once the insurance has
come by and you know, hadhad their adjusters out and stuff, then
it can be put out for trashpickup and all that kind of stuff.

(08:43):
But please document the heck out ofeverything that you do. And if if
you went underwater, I see alot of air conditioning systems are underwater and
things like that. Don't run anythingyet because the electric is going to have
to be dried out in some cases, Uh, the electrical outlets, you

(09:07):
know, if they were underwater,they need to be replaced. If you
were in any type of salt water, the wires that actually need to be
replaced, uh, And in homesthemselves. It's sometimes questionable, but if
you were underwater for a good periodof time, you're probably looking at replacing
all the wires that were underwater aswell, because it does you know,

(09:28):
the inside the wires is paper alot of times and it does soak up
moisture up in there and causes problemsfor you later. So there's a lot
that's going to have to happen withthese homes that are flooding. Uh,
hopefully you've got flood insurance because it'sall expensive. That's the stuff that's got
to be done. Got a questionseven one three two one two five eight

(09:54):
seven four John, this is Jim. How can I help you? Hey,
Jim, first of all, appreciateyour time. As always, you
do such a great service for thecommunity and we very much thank you.
I had a couple of air conditioningquestions here. I have a rental property
that has had a new furnace putin. It was a closet furnace as

(10:18):
well as a coil what have you. And then the condensing unit outside is
the same one it's always been andthat room or there's a master bedroom.
It's not very big house, it'sonly maybe twelve hundred square feet or something
like that, but one of themaster bedroom is the ten is not happy

(10:41):
about it because it's it's real humidin there, and I put it an
a gauge and it seemed like it'sin the high sixties something of that nature.
Wanted to get your thoughts what mightbe. I had the AC guy
go back out, and he loweredthe speed going over the coil, and
he said, and more free on. But any thoughts what might be the

(11:03):
issue and what might take to addressthat issue? Well by lowering the speed,
that hopefully helped somewhat with it,but balancing the system. The fact
that he added more free on shouldn'thave done a darn thing for it unless
it was low on free on tobegin with. Yeah, I think he

(11:24):
might have put the free on inwhen it was cooler, and so maybe
it wasn't the right what it neededto be, Okay, all along something
like that. It's my guess anyway. Okay, But is the room temperature
wise different as well? I boughta fund to put a room temperature and

(11:48):
it's at seventy. She has thethirdstat set to sixty nine, and it's
at seventy okay, in the middleof the night. But the humidity is
like sixty eight or something like that. Okay, And how so adity and
the rest of the house, I'mtold not as bad. Okay, take
it personally, especially in the middleof the night, but that's what I'm
hearing. Sure, you know what. I hate to do this to you,

(12:13):
John, but I'm gonna put youon hold for a minute because there
is an issue taking place that Ithink will help address this. We'll be
right back with more Texas Home Improvementseven one three, two point two five
eight seventy four. Okay, let'stalk about windows. You know, when

(12:35):
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steer you wrong and he recommends Guardianroof Systems said down to League City.

(14:11):
Hello JD, Hey, Jim,how you doing that? Man? I
did call you last week about chimneycapsyou recommended. I called Guardian Roofing.
I did call them. The techniciancame out, he was on time,
and man, that did it.Kudos to Guardian, good job for me.
I really really appreciate that. Guardianroof Systems. Click the link under
Trusted contractors at thchipro dot com.You know do West air Conditioning can help

(14:35):
you with all your air conditioning needs, whether you just need tune up getting
ready for summer, or maybe lastyear your system just didn't do so good
and you're thinking it's time for anew one. When you want the best,
you call Due West. This ismy family business. We'll come out,
take a look at what you got, and then you know, we'll

(14:56):
put together some bids for you togive you some options on on keeping your
home comfortable and controlling that humidity.Again. Seven one three four seven three
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seven three seven one five six.And yes, we do have some great

(15:16):
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Seven one three four seven three sevenone five six for due West air Conditioning.
Jim Dutton. I'm a contractor,a simple man, That's who I
am. A simple new fragrance.Oh yes, a fragrance for the Bold

(15:39):
home improvement man. I have fundoing this. Cack caw the new fragrance
from Jim Dutton. That's why Ido it. Cock cock. It smells
like Texas Colck. Look for itright next to the turpentine on Aisle five,
Calk cop Hey, Welcome back toTexas Home Improvement seven three, two,

(16:07):
one two, five eight seven four. When we left, I was
talking with John and they're having ahumidity issue. And John, is this
humidity problem really just showing up atnight? Yes, it's a master the
fact that is, That's what she'stelling me. Anywhere. Yeah, well,
here's what's happening. And I cantell you a lot of people are

(16:29):
having this issue. The temperatures atnight are getting almost in the same range
of where we're setting our air conditionersat and so the AC is not kicking
on very much, so therefore it'snot dehumidifying dehumidifying at that point. And
once the sun comes up and itstarts to heat up, the system runs,
it starts to dehumidify again. Soas uh as time moves on and

(16:56):
we start getting a little warmer atnight and the system runs more, this
problem is going to go away.But this is a very common problem in
the spring because we have lots ofrain to milder temperatures and the systems just
don't run enough. So there aresome things that can be done if you
want to, you know, investin it, but it would require having

(17:18):
it where it has a humid asstat on it to kick on and dehumidify.
But it would only happen probably twomonths out of the year. Gotcha.
Okay, I got you. Sowhat's happening, if I can say
it back to you a little differently, is that because it's not that hot,
the air conditioning is not running andthus it's not taking the humidity out

(17:42):
of the air. Is that what'sgoing on? So it's decided, is
decided. Now if she put thethermostat down even lower, from seventy to
sixty five or something, I guesseven if she just it to sixty eight,
it would run a whole lot moreand take care of it. Gotcha.

(18:04):
Okay, go she's claiming it's justat night, so it must be
that I didn't even think about that, Jim as usual. If you figured
it out, well, So yeah, I'll tell you how I know if
humidifier. Yeah, now I'll tellyou how I know this because uh,
you know, I have two places. I have one in Pasadena, and
then one in in Dallas. MyDallas place. I have a variable speed,

(18:26):
no problems with it at all.In Pasadena have a single speed HVAC,
and I get the same problem atnight about three in the mornings when
you feel it. Gotcha, good, good, smart man, Jim,
smart man. If I ask youone more a shot question, And that's
just on the one of the houses, on the condensing unit outside, whether

(18:47):
it has the armaflex or whatever that'scalled that goes over as it, whether
it gets kind of nancy looking andstarting to dry out and all that sort
of thing. Is that common tokind of just cut that out and put
some new and pape it up realgood or what your thoughts on that?
Okay, Okay, So I guessthe unit the unit will last you typically
ten fifteen years, but that stuffonly typically lasts about six or seven I

(19:12):
gotcha, okay, all right,Well, as always appreciate you for your
guidance. Thanks, so appreciate thecall. You take care, okay,
okay, good bye and again sevenone three two one two five eight seven
four. That's seven one three twoone two five eight seven four. And

(19:32):
yeah, the humidity, let's faceit, uh, you know, if
the AC is not running, you'renot under humidity control. And that is
one of the huge advantages of avariable speed because it will come on at
slow speeds to control the humidity,and that can in itself can make a
huge difference on your comfort in thehome. So but if you do have

(19:57):
that issue, turn the therm statdown at night just a little bit further.
And I know sometimes it may feellike you're getting a little too cool,
but it will control the humidity awhole lot better. And honestly only
for that time period. Uh.In the in the spring, uh uh,

(20:18):
it really still won't run that muchbecause it is so cool outside.
It really doesn't hurt the electric bill. We normally don't have this issue in
the fall as much, simply becauseit's usually not as wet in the fall
as it is in the spring.And let's be real, this has been
a real wet spring, so wherewe're having issues with it again. If
you got a question seven one threetwo one two five eight seven four,

(20:44):
that's seven one three two one twofive eight seven four, and I'll see
what I can do to help youout here on Texas Home Improvement. And
don't forget about our website, thipro dot com. It's there as a
resource to help you out. Soanytime you're looking for a contractor thinking about
a project, looking for some answerson stuff, start at thhipro dot com

(21:08):
and we'll see what we can doto help you out. And by the
way, that is where you'll findthe ask Jim button where you can send
in email questions to me as wellt hipro dot com. We're gonna take
a break for news, traffic,weather, and we'll be back with more
Texas home improvement. You know,Concord window film can help you with some

(21:45):
of these temperature issues that we're gettingready to run into. And I say
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(22:06):
and get too hot, you canput this window film on to help control
temperatures. Maybe you're getting too muchglare. Hey, it comes in everything
from almost clear to darkening enough tokeep it where your neighbors aren't seeing what
you're doing in your home. Soagain, if you're looking for a window
film to help control temperatures in yourhome, control the fading of wood,

(22:32):
floors and furniture and things. Youneed to take a look at Concord window
film. Eight eight eight two zerosix one four one three. That's eight
eight eight two zero six one fourone three. Are you as honest and
disciplined and informed as Jim Dutton?Well, why in the corn bread hell

(22:55):
aren't you here? Is on TexasHome Improvement. Hey, welcome back to
Texas Home Improvement. Seven one threetwo one two five eight seven four.
Again it's seven one three two onetwo five eight seven four. Any home

(23:17):
improvement question you have, pick upthe phone, give me a holler,
and let's talk about it here,Elberto, how can I help you?
Hi? Mission Dudd? You knowhow you doing? I'm doing wonderful,
except you can call me Jim insteadof mister Dutton. All right. About
ten years ago I bought a mobilehome here at Alvin. It was put

(23:41):
in, I guess in the eighties, late eighties, early nineties. I'm
assuming they put this thing just onthe dart, uh, because I haven't
found any concrete under it. Isthere a way to put concrete under it?
Or do I just keep trying tobuild this thing up as I go,
Well, put blocks under it.You would have to just keep putting

(24:03):
blocks under it. I mean youcould put concrete under it, but it
it would be cost prohibitive. Hunt. If you want to continue, please
stay on the call. So andlooks like we might have had a little

(24:29):
phone issue there. We'll put himback on hold and look on mobile homes
that way. Nowadays they actually requireon especially the modular ones, concrete underneath
them, especially if you're in thewindstorm areas. Uh, they didn't back
in the day. They would justset basse pads and blocks. And yes,

(24:52):
they do push and settle down intothe ground over time, and you
just have to repick it up atanother block. It usually doesn't happen too
often though, I mean over thelife of a mobile home you maybe add
one or two blocks in the height. It is a slow process and you
have to be in some pretty badsoils for that to be happening. So

(25:18):
I'm not sure what all you gotgoing on on that. And Alberta,
Alberta, are you there? Godamn? Yeah? Yeah, okay, hit
my phone somehow, I didn't knowwhat I did, Okay, So,
yes, have bad erosion here thisproperty that I bought, it's an acre,

(25:41):
okay, was never built up,and the other neighbors are built up
around here, So this is likeone of the lowest pieces of property in
the neighborhood. Got you. Soeverything kind of runs through here, and
I've got bad erosion. I've alreadyput a couple of yards of select feel

(26:03):
under the house and it's already gone. Yep. Okay. I I was
gonna raise it up, block upunderneath it, you know, around it,
like make a barrier and put moreselect feel that way, maybe it
would block those uh lock those timbersin place. Yeah, well it should

(26:26):
be sitting on concrete blocks. Howhigh off the ground is it right now?
Less than three feet? Okay?So is this a single wide or
double wide? It's a single wide. It's less than a thousand square feet.
Okay, So if you wanted toput concrete under it, then typically

(26:49):
it wouldn't be too difficult on onethat size because you could literally just take
the skirting off, put forms aroundfor the concrete for me. Okay you
can, and then uh you know, put rebar and everything in there.
Leave the blocks that are there rightnow in place out and maybe maybe just

(27:15):
put some uh form board around it. And what you will do then is
after you when you pour the concrete, they can reach up underneath with a
bull float just to smooth the concreteout, because you're not gonna need to
do a glass finish on this thingunderneath there, No, just get that
that bull float and maybe a broomfinish on it. Then you can set

(27:40):
blocks on top of that new concreteand remove the ones that are down in
the dirt, and then you fillthat hole of concrete exactly. See that
makes a lot more sense now tostop the erosion. What you need to
do, because you're gonna want topour this concrete pad level, but dig
a beam around the perimeter down intothe ground and I would go I would

(28:07):
probably you know, if you're havingerosion issues, you want to go at
least six inches. I would probablysay go twelve inches. And what that'll
do is keep the water from washingup underneath the concrete, all right,
But I'd still have to build thisup some do that. Yeah, you
can build it up, build itup before you pour the concrete. But

(28:30):
that perimeter beam, you want todig it all the way down six to
twelve inches into the undisturbed soil,not the built up soil, but back
down into the original soil. Allright, so I look at plan.
Oh look, I got my workcut out for me. That's gonna be
pretty. That ain't gonna be acheap deal either, Huh. It won't

(28:53):
be as bad as you think Igot. All I gotta do is go
out and earn some more money.It'll it'll take care of itself. Yeah,
it with Biden out, Yeah,Alberto, good luck with that,
you bet bye? And look,I forgot to mention this part. When

(29:15):
you put the steel reinforcing in it, use number three rebar on something like
this. I'd probably put it ontwelve inch centers that way the concrete because
all concrete is in the crack.The rebar is in it to hold it
together when it cracks. And thatlittle turn down you know on the edge
where I was saying, put alittle bean. Look, when I do

(29:38):
patios and different things like that,I tend to do that as well driveways
because you don't want erosion getting upunderneath the concrete. Once it starts washing
the dirt out from under the concrete. Now you got a bigger problem to
deal with, and it is soeasy and cheap to do that. Why
more contractors don't do it is beyondme, but they don't. Anyways,

(30:03):
if you've got a home improvement question, seven one three two one two five
eight seven four. That's seven onethree, two one two five eight seven
four, and we'll see what wecan do to help you out here on
Texas Home Improvement your total home improvementsource. And again, don't forget about
our website t hipro dot com.Ah Sunburst Shutters, you know, Sumburd

(30:41):
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(31:03):
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(31:23):
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Jim Dutton of Texas Home Improvement recommendsa company, he won't steer you wrong,

(31:45):
and he recommends Guardian roof Systems saiddown to League City, Hello jd
Hey Jim, how you doing that? Man? I did call you last
week about uh timneycaps you recommended.I called Guardian Roofing and I did call
them. The technician came out,he was on time, and man,
kudos to Guardian. Good job forme. I really really appreciate that,
Guardian roof Systems. Click the linkunder Trusted Contractors at thchipro dot com.

(32:10):
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(32:30):
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(32:52):
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(33:16):
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(33:46):
tear some mind. This is TexasHome Improvement with Jim dot Hey. Welcome
back to Texas Home Improvement Cure.Total Home Improvement Source seven five eight seven
four. Let's head out to pairLand and Jason. This is Jim.

(34:07):
How can I help you, Hi, Jim. Uh, Let's see,
So we had we had some gatingthat was connected between our detached garage and
our you know, single story residentsthat was kind of dilapidated. So uh,
we went to Low's and we're like, why not just knock it down.

(34:28):
We'll just replaced with some fence penalty, et cetera, et cetera.
So, uh, I got athe four by four you know, cement
wood post adapters, and I gota half inch by six inch Uh froud

(34:49):
to you know, to secure thatadapter into the ground. And I got
the posts up, I got thefence boards up. But I mean it
gives probably maybe with a level andeverything, it's still kind of wobbles a
little bit. Yep. So I'mcurious to see did I miss something?

(35:09):
Was I supposed to put something inthe hole because it's not as secure as
we had hope? Yeah, thatthe uh, the little adapter that you
have that goes from the four byfour to the concrete. Yeah, that
is that is not meant for fenceposts. That's meant for uh like a

(35:32):
post for a patio cover, thingslike that that don't have a side load.
It's it's meant for a straight download on it. Your your fence
post needed to be in the concretedown into the ground. Oh so we
have a like pebbled rock, it'son top of the concrete. And I

(35:59):
guess but what could see my nextcourse of action and just uh replacing the
post and uh digging a hole forsome concrete in or yes sir, all
right, yeah, And and Paulof fence, is this a six foot
fence? Yeah, yeah, sixfoot and then I have a one by
six underneath that just for for theyou know, well for for a fence

(36:23):
post that has a gate on itor is being used with a gate.
I would recommend your whole go downabout three feet. Yeah kind of what.
I was kind of surprised to seethat the the the loads the load's
employee kind of guide me in thatdirection to use that, So I wasn't

(36:45):
expecting that kind of dudes, Iwas thinking maybe I forgot to add a
pockety and I was gonna call tosee if that's something that you might recommend
or some type of you know,retrofitted semen or something. Nah. That
that that adapter there that you're thatyou're on. It's just it's always gonna
have give to it because like Isaid, it's it's meant for a top

(37:07):
load going down, not for thesideload. Yeah. Well, worst case,
what if I just stick with thatput the gate on. I mean,
it didn't give a whole lot.I mean, you gotta it'll probably
you know, with our position andthe residence and being in a cul de
sac, we're kind of protected byyou know, the coastal wind that might

(37:29):
come through the Pariland area. Butwith uh, with that being said,
could I still get away with itand you know, just take it easy
and or am I gonna risk likebreaking breaking the concrete or Nah, You're
not gonna risk break in the concrete. I'm not worried about that. Uh.
The only thing that's gonna happen isthe post is gonna wobble as time

(37:52):
goes on. It'll probably wobble moreif you wanted to secure it where you
didn't wobble quite as much. Yeah. Uh, you know how driveways into
ranches have the bars that go upand then a thing across the top that
ties the two side posts together.Uh okay, and they'll put their name

(38:13):
on it up there. Yeah.Yeah, yeah, put something like that
up across there, and that wouldhelp stiffen its some, but it's it's
still going to have some movement toit. Yeah yeah. And I also
put a like a ninety degree bracketon one end of that fence post,
and it's you know, it's probablyyou know, five feet long or something,

(38:34):
but I feel like a ninety degreeon the top two by four and
I secured that to the garage,yep. And that helps us. That
helps it a little bit. Butuh, you know, I I guess
out of every day used and puttinga thirty sixth centch gate on there,
it's gonna be the worst. Imean, if the worst that's gonna happen
is it's just gonna wobble more overtime, then that's it. Yep.

(38:58):
I think I'm fine with that.I was just worried that maybe the uh
the six ince rod though happens bysix inch rod going down into the seamen
with it like you know, breakoff or my raster, the foundation or
something. Nothing to worry about onthat. All right, Well, okay,
are talkie. I appreciate it,all right, you take care Jason.

(39:21):
Jason, had you called me before? No, but I listened to
you every weekend. Okay, yourvoice sounded very familiar. What's it sound
like? I had a caller onetime and they still use it on a
bumper and it's from years ago,calling about uh putting in a a U

(39:42):
a room for growing strawberries and stuffin his home. Oh yeah, I
don't know about that. Okay,you take it in all right, thank
you, bye again. Our numberseven one three two one two five eight
seven four Again it's seven one threetwo one two five eight seven four.

(40:05):
And I'll see what I can doto help you out here on Texas Home
Frew And we're getting ready to takea quick break and then we'll get back
into more calls. But I dohave some lines available, so seven one
three two one two five eight sevenfour, and ach in. Don't forget
about our website t hipro dot com. It's there is a resource to help
you out twenty four seven. Soanytime you're looking for somebody you heard me

(40:28):
talk about or just some questions andanswers, go to tchipro dot com.
All right, you've heard me talkabout USA Installation for years, and when

(40:51):
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(42:17):
discover floor and Decore where we knowpro. You know, when it comes
to plumbing problems in your home,you got to have a plumber you can
trust, not just somebody who's goingto come out and tell you, oh,
it's time for a new faucet simplybecause you need to put some new
O rings in it. And youneed somebody who can take care of that
water heater. Maybe upgrade to atank, list replace the sewer lines or

(42:39):
even the water lines in your home. You want due West Total Plumbing seven
one three four seven three seven onefive six. You know a lot of
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And do they offer multiple styles andvoices so you can get the exact

(43:00):
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How Improvement for Texas Remodel Team.They have a window division that does nothing
but windows, and they can makesure that things like your trim, your
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(43:45):
fifty nine to ninety one online atTexas Remodel Team dot com. That's right,
that's right, Texas. I'm fromTexas. In Texas, we have

(44:07):
the death penalty and we use it. That's right. If you've come to
Texas and kills somebody, we willkill you back. This is improvement with
Jim, doesn't that's rights. Hey, welcome back to Texas Home Improvement.

(44:28):
Let's head over to the galleria andJim This is Jim. How can I
help you? Hey, Jim,it's good talking to you again. Thank
you good. I got a sixteenor seventeen year old air conditioner and it
will not give up. Just itkeeps running and running and running. We've
had no problems with it, butit's getting fairly old, and this summer

(44:52):
coming I want I'm planning on replacingit with a more modern unit. Two
things about it. One is ifI get a uh when when I install
it, uh the heat pump units? Uh? Can I just replace it

(45:20):
with the heat pump unit and withthe wiring. I'm in it in a
town home for four unit townhome,and I want to make sure that I
don't have to run all new cables, wires, stuff like that to make
that heat pump work. No,you should not have to, so you

(45:43):
can just just replace it. Howdoes it? How does it work in
reverse? I've got these units allhave per down units from First Company and
as the evaporator course, uh,that music means I got to take a
break for news trap Wether. I'mgonna put you on hold and we'll come
back and address this when we comeback with more Texas Home Improvement. Talking

(46:07):
about air conditioning systems. And ifyou're looking for a new one, you
take a look at American Standard Heatingand air conditioning. You know, American
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(46:30):
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(46:55):
And when you're taking a look atthose new systems, take a look at
the variable speeds. That's the ultimateinhumidity control. Idiot GoDaddy. Texas Home
Improvement is on the air with JimDutton. Welcome to Texas Home Improvement.
What can I do for you?You're from Texas? How could you tail?

(47:20):
Call Jim now with all your homeimprovement questions. That's seven one three
two one two five eight seven fourthat's seven one three two one two five
eight seven four. Texas Home Improvementbrought to you by Ready Seal, Stain
and Sealer, Sunburn Shutters, wherebeauty meets energy efficiency, American Standard Comfort
the way you like it do,West Services Foundation Repair, Plumbing and air

(47:43):
Conditioning, Guardian Roof Systems, TexasRemodel Team, Windows, the official window
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(48:08):
and now broadcasting live from the DottonRanch. Here's Jim dot Hey. Welcome
back for another hour of Texas HomeImprovements. Your total home improvement source seven
one three two one two five eightseven four. That's seven one three,

(48:30):
two one two five eight seven.For any home improvement question you have,
feel free to pick up the phoneand we'll talk about it here on Texas
Home Improvement. Of course, don'tforget about our website thhipro dot com.
It's there's a resource to help youout. Twenty four to seven With that
being Zaid, wyon't we head backinto our call with Jim that we were

(48:52):
having. And Okay, Jim,you're talking about upgrading a sixteen year old
system and you want to go withthe heat pump. Yeah, and that's
very wise because you know the heatthe heat pump will definitely help save you
money in the winter months when you'rerunning your heater. I'm making the assumption

(49:15):
your house is all electric, itis, okay, So it's as far
as the lines that they have toworry about, the copper lines, they
will clean those out because you probablyhave the old coolunt. I would guess
you're either you're probably still a fourto ten A system. Correct, No,

(49:38):
it's actually are twenty two. Ohokay, you were hold over then.
Uh so, yeah, they canclean them out. Now. Every
once in a while they have tochange the size of them, and if
they do, they can run anew line. But typically they're able to
clean them out and reuse what yougot. And as far as the way

(50:02):
the heat pump works, you know, when you're cooling, the coil takes
the heat out of the air inthe house, takes it outside to the
outside unit. The fins on theoutside unit dispersed that heat into the air
outside. In the winter months,when you're using a heat pump, it's

(50:25):
just reversed. Those fins are absorbingthe heat that is in the air outside,
and it takes it and puts itinto the coils in the attic,
and as the air goes by,it heats it up and blows it into
the home. And you know,for the majority of us, it makes
no sense at all that when it'sthirty, you know, thirty four degrees

(50:49):
outside a heat pumps able to pullheat out of the air. But it
does. Yeah, So buying Rabbistates what time should I be over anytime?
These are Oh my goodness, mybirthday present, Happy birthday. Thanks.

(51:15):
Uh so uh. The question Ihave is that when you hook this
up, I think it would bevery difficult for me to run new lines.
And that's so I should probably havethat checked out first, which is
saying yeah, but like I said, the majority of the time they can
just read if the lines are stillworking on the existing system, chances are

(51:38):
real good they're going to work forthe new one, okay. And then
what's going to happen is is thatthe the the heating coils on the evaporator
call, uh, those are justwe we just won't use those anymore,
is that right? I mean thatthere's nothing you have to do with that.

(52:00):
Well, the even when you havea heat pump, you still have
the strip heat because that is consideredthe emergency heat, just in case something
happens. Okay, so we keepthat in there. Okay, yeah,
all right, Now understand you're you'rein your situation because you're still are twenty

(52:22):
two. When you change out theoutside unit, you're going to be changing
the inside unit as well, soall that stuff's going to be new also.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, you're not. You're not gonna
get away. You're not gonna getaway with just changing the outside unit.

(52:44):
Okay, Well, I guess I'vebeen pretty lucky going sixteen seventeen years and
it's no problem. Yeah, it'samazing. I'm asking what brand is it?
It's r I think it's they areI It's it's hard to find.

(53:04):
I think it's a one of thetrain units or something like that. Okay,
yeah, it Uh, it's workedvery well. The only thing we
had was the fan on It wasmaking a little noise, and I replaced
that myself. And uh, so, well I'm looking at that and and

(53:25):
but I guess I'm going to haveto replace the the evaporator call and everything.
Uh no, matter what I do, because it's all our twenty two
yep. So so an American standard. Uh sounds like that's what you all
promote there. And they make agood heat pump unit. And in addition

(53:51):
to the other units. Oh yeah, they make great heat pump units.
Okay. And what's the difference inprice between just replacing it with the regular
standard air conditioning unit and a heatpump unit? What what am I looking
at? Maybe ten twenty more orsomething like that. Usually not even that

(54:14):
much. Oh really, no,it's it's in the hundreds of dollars as
all. Oh, that's done.I have a heat pump hot water heater.
And I was kind of glad tohear I did that because apparently the

(54:36):
government is going to force us tohave heat pump air conditioners in nineteen and
twenty twenty nine. And maybe movingalong the right right path here, that's
well, that's about it, okay, I appreciate it, Thank you very
much. Well, make sure yougive us a call. We'll come out

(54:57):
and take a look at it foryou. I will all right, well,
okay, great, thanks, takecare. Yeah, and if you
want to call for du West airConditioning to come out, the number is
seven to one three four, seven, three, seven, one five six.
Now I've got a home proven question. Seven one three two one two
five eight seven four. Let's goto Spring Branch one. How are you

(55:22):
today? Hi, Jam, wonderful, doing good. First time caller,
longtime listener, great show, Thankyou. I am looking at replacing my
driveway and I'm looking at calling I'mlooking forward to call around a couple of
contractors. What are a few questionsI should ask as far as thickness of

(55:43):
a driveway or is there even sucha thing as strengths of the concrete?
What is I look for? Whatshould I ask for for just the standard
driveway? Uh? Yeah, justwrite down the specs so that you get
the same thing from everybody. Sowhat you're looking for is a minimum of
three thousand PSI concrete three thousand Okaine. Now, I will tell you I

(56:08):
just did my driveway and I putin thirty five hundred. But that's because
I back an RV in on it. Is there a cost difference? Yes,
pennies and I literally mean pennies.Okay. So, and then for
your steel reinforcing, you want nowire mesh, you want number three rebar

(56:31):
on twelve to sixteen inch centers.Twelve to sixteen number three yep. Okay.
And the thickness, what about thethickness on a driveway patio sidewalks is
always four inches okay, unless you'regoing to build it tobacco, dump truck

(56:52):
on it, then you go thicker. But you know, for regular vehicles
on a driveway, four inches isenough with the exception of the approach if
you have to, you know,re report the approach where it comes straight
off the road there. Uh,that's usually got to be like eight or
ten inches, depending on the citycode that you're in. No, I'm

(57:14):
not going that far out. I'mjust just whatever's my part, not the
city side, okay, okay,okay, okay, thirty five, thirty
five hundred PSI. It's what I'mgoing to go shoot for. Three thousand
or thirty five yeah, okay.Number three rebar at twelve to sixteen centers
yep. At four inches sick,four inches thick, got it? Thank

(57:37):
you, sir? You bet youtake care bye bye, and again our
number seven one, three, twopoint two, five, eight seven four
going to Pearland. Hello Allen,Hello, how are you wonderful? So
I got a question about a wholehome generator. Recently obtained three quotes to

(58:00):
have a whole home generator and installedcomplete the whole package. But my sort
of dumb is I'm looking at retiringand selling and moving in about twelve to
eighteen months. So my concern isthe return on investment if I go to
sell the house, and is itadding value? Is it a pretty much

(58:23):
a dollar for dollar. No,you're really not going to be adding much
value to the house itself. Okaythe generators, and I know some of
the generator guys are trying to sellit as it's adding all this value,
But for most people, it isnot going to add that much value to

(58:45):
the house. And I tell youit will not on the appraisal. So
you're probably looking at what fifteen thousandor so, give or take. Actually,
I've got three quotes, one forall twenty two kws, one at

(59:06):
eleven seven, another at twelve seven, and then one at fourteen something.
Okay, so that's sort of youknow, I thought if I can you
know if it fit a add maybeeight nine thousand and a year, Yeah,
and a half, it would beworth the insurance, so to speak.

(59:28):
As far as the generator is there, one's a Generac, another's a
Champion, and then I also knowthere's a Briggs Stratton. Is there one
that you would stay away from orone that you think is superior? I
would consider the Generak superior and Briggsand Stratton. The issue with most Briggs

(59:55):
and Stratton stuff is it's noisy becauseof the motors that they use. But
I have not looked enough into theirgenerators to see what they're using as a
motor, because like most companies,they've started kind of farming some of their
stuff out as well, so theymay be having a quieter motor. But

(01:00:17):
Generak sets the standard on these homegenerators and they still account for well over
eighty percent of the home generators thatare being used, right right, Okay,
Well, I mean that was mybig question was the return on investment
because it is sort of a shortterm deal. I was concerned about.

(01:00:38):
You're you can pretty much figure you'regoing to lose your money on it when
when you put it in. Whatyou may want to consider you know that
Champion generator that you just brought up. Champion makes generators for like RVs and
stuff that are larger generators. They'rethey're fairly fairly quiet. Have an electrician

(01:01:06):
come out and put a pigtail ontoyour box with a switch so that if
we have a prolonged period of outage, you could use a portable Champion type
generator like the RVs would use.Uh. That way, when you move
you can take it with you,but the pigtail is still there, and

(01:01:27):
you're you're going to spend a lotless money. Good advice, okay,
a perfect Well. I appreciate allthe information. It really really helped me
make one decision. Alrighty, youtake care, Yes, sir, have
we go weekend and again our numberseven one three, two, one two,
five eight seven four. Let's talkabout Texas remodel Teams window division.

(01:01:52):
You know a lot of people willsell you windows. The unfortunate thing is
a lot of people all they cando is put that wind to win and
if they encounter any bad wood oranything like that, they can't fix it.
And if the window needs a littletrimming, they can't do it.
They tell, well, you're gonnahave to get a carpenter for all that.

(01:02:13):
Not At Texas Remodel Teams Window Division, they have a complete remodeling company
that's behind them that's able to comein and take care of all that kind
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(01:02:35):
Reviews, an A plus rating withthe BBB. And I tell you I've
yet to get a complaint on TexasRemodel Team's Window division. And I've been
talking for Texas Remodel Team on theirremodeling division for well over ten years.
This is a great company that's goingto take great care of you. Two
eight one six' one two fiftynine ninety one. That's two eight one

(01:03:00):
six one two fifty nine to ninetyone for Texas Remodel Team's Window Division.
You know, if you're having asewer leak under your homes foundation, that's
something that really needs to be addressed, but it needs to be addressed by
somebody who can take care of theplumbing as well as the homes foundation.
That's why you want to call doWest, both a plumbing company and the

(01:03:22):
foundation repair company to make sure thatyour homes foundation stays intact years after the
plumbing work is done. When youwant the best, call you West seven
one three four seven three seven onefive six online at dudash West dot com.
When Jim Dutton of Texas Home Improvementrecommends our company, he won't steer

(01:03:43):
you wrong and he recommends Guardian roofSystems said down to League City. Hello
jd Hey Jim, how you doingthat? Man? I did call you
last week about uh timneycaps you recommended. I called Guardian Roofing. I did
call him. The technician came out, he was on time, and man,
that did it. Kudos Guardian,good job for me. I really
really appreciate that. Guardian roof Systems. Click the link under Trusted Contractors at

(01:04:06):
thchipro dot com. Hey, let'stalk about American Standard air. If you're
thinking about an air conditioning system likewe were just talking about, take a
look at American Standard Heating and airconditioning. These systems are nationally recognized for
excellence for performance, reliability, andcustomer satisfaction. So you can take care

(01:04:28):
of your family all year long withAmerican Standard air in American standard technology.
It meets the ever changing Texas weatherhead on. And let's be real,
our weather changes and can change rapidly. So keep your home cool and humidity
free or be ready for a littleheat when you need it. Invest wisely
and invest in the home comfort systemthat's going to last you a long long

(01:04:53):
time. American Standard Heating and airConditioning Comfort the way you like it.
Check out american stand dot com.Get your home improvement to the next level.
Uh, you do have a level, don't you. You know that
thing with the weird green water andthe bubble. You are listening to Texas

(01:05:15):
Home Improvement with Jim Dutte. Let'sup go Hey, welcome back to Texas
Home Improvements. Your hold Home Improvementsource seven one three two one two five
eight seven four. That's seven onethree, two, one two five eight

(01:05:36):
seven four. Any home improvement questionyou have, feel free to pick up
the phone and give me a callright now. I got all open lines,
so I'm ready to take some callsand answer questions. Why don't we
jump into an email? Question though, that came well about forty five minutes
ago from Dan. He says,I live in the Meerland area and my

(01:05:59):
house is about six foot off theground. The brickstairs to the front door
have shifted some away from the house. Can a foundation company come and adjust
the stairs back to where they aretouching the porch? The gap is probably
an engine a half give or take. Thank you. Well, it's going
to depend on how it's put together. And since you're up about six foot,

(01:06:23):
Uh, it's either a newer constructionor one that's been elevated. But
regardless, if the stairs have aperimeter concrete beam on it, then yes,
it could probably be adjusted. Ifit's just stack blocks and it doesn't
have any foundation to speak of underit, it could be a problem.

(01:06:43):
So it's just going to have tobe looked at. And if you want
to give du West foundation repair,call at seven one three four seven three
seven one five six. We'd bemore than happy to come out and take
a look. Because first to comeout and look and give you an opinion
doesn't cost you anything. Uh So, yeah, I give us a holler

(01:07:04):
again seven one three, two onetwo five eight seven four Ralph and a
leaf. How can I help you? Yeah? The Briggs in Stratton has
American parts, doesn't it? Thegenerator. Yes, sir, what about
the generak Honest to gosh, Ican't. I couldn't tell you. Okay,

(01:07:29):
that's where I have to find out, because that was a good selling
point when someone was trying to sellme Briggs and Stratton. Yeah. I've
not looked into that, and Iwill tell you I'm the same way I
buy American on like at Due West, all our vehicles are either Ford,
Chevy or Dodge. We don't buyyou know, the Toyotas and Hyundai's and

(01:07:56):
all that kind of stuff. Allour all our vehicles are American made.
The hydraulic equipment we use is allAmerican made. But on these generators,
like I said, Generact pretty muchsets the standard on that stuff. And
that's the only reason I have alwaysmaintained that one as the top, because

(01:08:16):
it's darn near ninety percent of themarket that they have. You know,
it's amazing that you say that,and I respect that, But what is
it. I've never heard anyone sayGeneract is better than the others. What
makes you think that? What makesme think that is the longevity of what
they've been doing. And when Igo out and hear the systems running in

(01:08:41):
places, the quietness of them,just the durability of that those systems have
had, and honestly, Briggs andStratton over the years have not had the
durability of other motors on the market. Another question, now they have,
and hold on, I don't mindyou asking another one, but I gotta
do news, traffic and weather first. We'll be right back to you.

(01:09:04):
And Ralph, let's talk real quickabout Concord window Film. You know,
if you're looking for a way tohelp with windows that are letting in way
too much light, way too muchheat, UV rays that are tearing up
floors and furniture and things like that, you need to call the folks at

(01:09:24):
Concord Window Film. Now, Concordwindow Film is a professional grade window film,
not the cheap stuff you get onAmazon places like that. It can
go from a dark tint to giveyou privacy to a tent so light you
can't even tell it's there. Andall of the window films they sell block
up to ninety nine percent of theUV rays from coming through your windows.

(01:09:48):
You need some window film. Youneed to talk to the folks at Concord
Window Film at eight eight eight twozero six one four one three that's eight
eight eight two zero six one fourone three. You don't have to ask
a I. You can ask JimDotton. Here he is with more today.

(01:10:13):
Welcome back to Texas Home Improvement.Seven one three two one two five
eight seven four. That's seven onethree, two one two five eight seven
four. When we left, Iwas talking with Ralph on generators. And
Ralph while we were on break,because I knew I had seen generak uh
somewhere. I looked it up.They're actually manufactured in Oshkosh, Wisconsin,

(01:10:40):
and they got several plants five differentcities up in Wisconsin. And that's where
I had seen him because I goto Oshkosh for the Air Venture Show every
year, and uh in driving throughthere, I saw some of their facilities
up there. But uh so thatthat's where they're actually manufactured. I have
know the question about window air conditioning. Okay, is it best to you

(01:11:04):
know, all year round, whetherit's winter or whatever, to at least
turn it on five minutes a week, you know, like in the winter
that just keep the motor. No, you don't, you don't need to.
Okay, that's about all, andRalph, I was gonna throw one

(01:11:24):
more thing out there on the generators. Yeah, understand, I'm not backing
generat portable generators and all that kindof stuff. I have only looked at
the whole house generators because that's atotal different animal than than when you get
into portable generators. What's your differencethe motors and and the uh technology that

(01:11:51):
they use for actually generating the powerand stuff. When you get into the
portable generators, they don't handle thespikes that a whole house tight generator does.
What's a portable generator for? Yeah, if you want to run your
skill saw and stuff like that.Oh, okay, thank you, Okay,

(01:12:12):
you take care. And again ifyou got a question seven one three,
two, one two, five,eight seven four, let's head out
to Seabrook mark. You're doing allright today, I'm doing good for an
old man. Well, how canI help you? I'm not going uh

(01:12:32):
mechanically inclined or good with my hands, but I'm doing the best that I
can. I have a on myceiling. The vents that I have,
somebody told me that they're actually uhvents for heaters on the floor, and
my ceiling is a dry wall,and I don't know if that's supposed to

(01:12:55):
be right or not. And theuh vents were only screwed into the dry
wall, not not any wood oranything like that. Okay, they're leaning
down because of its nineteen sixty fivewas when it was built. Can I

(01:13:15):
just might make a cut in thedry wall, then find one of the
beams, which I believe the beamsare really sort of close, connect two
by four piece to the beam,and then hook the a vent to that.
Well you mind my asking who's tellingyou this? Next door neighbors.

(01:13:43):
So here's the deal. A houseis built in sixty five typically has a
sheet metal boot that passes through thesheet rock, and it has a flare
that's on the top of the sheetrock. When the screw goes through the
sheet it should hit that sheet metaland that's what it ties into. Huh.

(01:14:08):
Okay, And now the problem thathas occurred is that sheet metal lip
was only like a half inch tothree quarters of an inch, and sometimes
the screws get out a little toofar to hit it when they're going straight
in, So you got to angleit towards the middle part of the vent
and usually it'll capture it then.But honestly, as far as worrying about

(01:14:32):
changing those those vent covers and stuff. I wouldn't worry about that a bit
because it's like angling out and thenit's also dripping. Yep. Now the
dripping is being caused because your yourinsulation is probably getting old and getting away
from the sheet metal up there,and the attic heat then gets into that

(01:14:56):
metal and allows it to start sweating, and it'll start dripping. Oh okay,
I've got that. You know,the the spray on, not spray
on, the you know the popcorns, yeah type stuff. Yep. Yeah.
I found out when I bought thehouse afterwards that one bedroom had no

(01:15:17):
insulation at all. We have checkedout and everything too, so I probably
a good idea for me to isto get some more of that that was
done in twenty or two thousand andone. Okay, and that was blown
in insulation, correct yep, yes, yes, When you use blown in
insulation, it usually needs more addedabout every fifteen years because it settles with

(01:15:44):
time and it loses its effectiveness.Ah. Well, that that probably is
one of the reasons why our airconditioning built our electric bill is so high.
Yep. Well, I really appreciatethis, sir, you bet you
take care, Thank you you twolife and again seven one three two one

(01:16:06):
two five eight seven four. Lookjust real quick on that built in sixty
five, It's had the same ventsup there. Neighbors get nosy about stuff.
Uh you know the metal it's aroundthere. Yes, it's hard to
get a screw into it sometimes,but that is what helped that thing together

(01:16:27):
for the last what forty five sixtyfive years? So uh, I'm sorry,
not sixty five fifty five years.Uh. Anyways, let's see here,
Guyan Willis, how can I helpyou? Hey, hey, about
seven years ago I built a detachedgarage. It's a good sized garage,

(01:16:51):
thirty by forty eight, and it'sone side is uh two stories. The
other side is just a high storyfor an RV. But anyway, I've
never insulated. I never did anythingwith the inside. So now I'm getting
ready to do sheet rock and insulationon the inside and condition at least parts

(01:17:15):
of it, you know. Andthe exterior wall is on the stuff that
support and the high stuff is twoby six six on sixteen, and then
the second story is two by fourson sixteen. But I want to put
insulation. My question is about vaporbarrier. Okay, And I've put the

(01:17:36):
exterior's got os and b in tiveekand hardy sighting on most of it.
Some parts of it have brick veneerafter the time mix. So do I
get the face or the unfaced insulationin the walls is up north, we

(01:17:56):
always worried about the vapor barrier.Always had to have a good tight You
had to tape it and everything onthe inside of vapor barrier. Yeah.
Well, welcome to Texas, wherewe don't do that and destroy our homes.
Yeah. In the North, thereason you had to do that was
was simply because of the weather thatthat you're dealing with up there. Down
here, we need it to breathe, and so you know, we use

(01:18:20):
a faced type insulation that's faced withpaper and it's really just so the edges,
you know, the little wings onit. You can staple to the
two bays in order to hold itin place while you're putting the sheet rock
up. That's it. If youwant to slice that so it breathes,

(01:18:41):
you absolutely can. After it's inplace. Wow. In the attic,
if you're adding insulation and go withbat you would use on faced. But
in the walls just for ease ofinstallation. Go with the face, okay,
all right, that's that's all I'mfinding that, you know the box
stores is the face, you know. Yeah, and so really I hadn't

(01:19:06):
bought insulation in thirty years and Iwent in there was I had to leave
because they want like ninety seven dollarsfor a bail the insulation. That's crazy.
But yeah, put the facing tothe inside and then the sheet rock
will be up against the face.All right, great, great, thank
you, you bet you take care? All right, Obay, I'll tell

(01:19:31):
you what. Let's take a quickbreak here and talk about sunburst shutters,
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Sunber shutters use as pollywood, whichis guaranteed to never warp, crack,
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(01:19:54):
that have sunburst shutters in it thatare twenty seven plus years old, and
I couldn't tell them from the theones I had in my own house.
And now I've had mine for aboutthirteen years or maybe more even. Anyways,
if you're looking for shutters for yourhome, you need to call Sunburs
Shutters. They have design consultations soyou can work with an expert to make

(01:20:15):
sure you get that perfect look andfit for your home. So give your
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(01:20:36):
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where you need. Come discover floorand Decore where we know pro. All
right, we've had a lot oftalk about air conditioning systems and stuff today
and look, I want to beyour air conditioning guy. So if you
need service work, you need replacement, you need anything done with your air
conditioning system, call my company,Due West, our air Conditioning division.

(01:21:23):
They know how to take care ofyour home and yes we can service it.
And you know what, if you'regetting into a twelve thirteen, fourteen,
fifteen year old system, we cantell you the options as far as
replacement or if you actually need toreplace it yet. That's why they say
when you want the best, calldue West seven one three four seven three

(01:21:47):
seven one five six. You knowa lot of window companies you can put
in new windows, but can theymake the trim look right? Do they
use high end cock to seal upthe air gaps? And do they offer
multiple styles and choices so you canget the exact windows you need and want
for your home. Jim Dutton,host of Texas ho Improvement for Texas Remodel

(01:22:08):
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(01:22:32):
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Texas Remodel Team dot com. Thereain't nothing he don't know about home improvement,

(01:23:01):
stinking smarter like here's Jim Dutton onTexas Home Improvement. Hey, welcome
back to Texas Home Improvement. Let'sjump back into our our calls here,
Albert, this is Jim. Howcan I help you? Hi? Jim?

(01:23:23):
My house is built in nineteen sixtythree, I think, okay,
And back in November, we hada tunneling underneath it to reroute the interior
bathroom, to reroute the drain.Uh huh because you had your old cast

(01:23:44):
iron pipes. Yes, okay.So while they were doing after they got
it all dug out and the plumbingdone, it started raining and so the
the uh dirt sat there and gotwet. In fact, it we had

(01:24:08):
street floods, so the dirt dirtwas really wet. When they put it
back in there. About three weekslater, we started smelling a musty smell
okay, And to this day we'resmelling a musty smell. So and when

(01:24:34):
I stick my finger down there,there's still mud. Oh yeah, so,
And honestly it won't be because thedirt was wet when it went in.
No, when when you dig atunnel, it is impossible to pack

(01:24:54):
that dirt back as tight as itwas, and so water will accumulate where
those tunnels are and get that dirtwet. And actually packing the wet dirt
back in is easier uh and andand able to pack it tighter than if
it was all dry. But wherewhere that musty smell comes from is where

(01:25:16):
the bathtub is. There's a knockoutthat's one foot by one foot square yep,
that needs to be sealed up withfoam. With foam, Yeah,
get some of like the great stuffthe the for around the doors and windows.
Mm hmm. And if you'll fillthat cat uh that box in with

(01:25:39):
that, that'll stop that musty smellfrom coming up through the under the bathtub.
Yeah. I tried duct tape andthat just is not able to contain
it. No, No, butI know the foam works because you know,

(01:26:00):
we at due West We Tunnel everyday of the week. I've got
you know, ten tunnel jobs goingtoday and we have to follow those boxes
all the time. Okay, won'tthat droll termites? No, sir,
Your your soil underneath there gets wetregardless when it rains. Uh huh uh,

(01:26:23):
so you know you're you're it isis the reason people have foundation movement
is the soils when they dry out, they shrink. When they get wet,
they'll expand. Well, it's impossibleto keep the soils dry all the
time. They do get wet,and so that's why we even water the
foundations, is to keep the soilmoist and keep it expanded. So now

(01:26:45):
you you won't have any any issueswith that. Okay, thanks for the
advice, you bet. You takecare. Bye, and let's see here,
Dan, I'm gonna try to sneakyou in before we got to take
this next break, so we'll haveto go a little quick, all right.

(01:27:08):
Got a house is about fifteen yearsold on a slab tile floor directly
on the concrete. Sitting in theliving room about six weeks ago and heard
something sounded like a rock head ofa window and started walking around looking for
it, and in front of thefront door the towel has bowed up from

(01:27:31):
the from the floor. And whenI say bowed up, I mean noticeably
bowed up. Yeah, I don'tknow, probably about two inches. Yep,
yep. Okay, let's start withfoundations, start with just getting the
towel up. I'll tell you what, I'm gonna take this quick break and
I'll come right back to you andboot and get it addressed for you.

(01:27:51):
Let's talk real quick about ready Sealed. You know, if you've got outside
woods, a fence, a deck, a dock, any thing like that
that you want to protect, ReadySeal will take care of it for you.
You can roll it on, brushit on, spray it on.
It soaks deep down into the woodfibers and it has tint to it because

(01:28:12):
it's a prime it's a primer.It's a sealer in it as well to
seal so that you're not taking onthe moisture anymore, and that's what causes
wood problems. Now. Ready Sealis available at box stores, lumberyards,
hardware stores, really any place thatsells building materials. But if you want
to find a store nearest to you, go to readyseeal dot com at floor

(01:28:39):
Endecoor. We know Pro as yourone stop source. We deliver everyday savings
on over a million square feet ofinstock flooring tools and installation materials. See
how our flooring experts can help saveyou time and money with our best in
class selection at rock bottom prices andwith pro level benefits like our dedicated Pro
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(01:29:01):
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need it. Come discover floor anddecore where we know proh. Let's talk
about USA Insulation. You know you'veheard me talk about foam insulation for years.
I don't want to encapsulate the wholehouse, but in the walls it
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(01:29:24):
if you want to up the ourvalue in your walls and seal out air
penetration, you need to call USAInsulation three four six two nine seven twenty
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(01:29:49):
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(01:30:12):
We're constantly spreading the good word regardingtheir team from our neighbors. It really
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(01:30:34):
one. That's two eight one sixone two five nine nine one our click
the link at thhipro dot com.Springtime in Texas, wildflowers, nice temperatures,
and Jim Dutton is in a prettygood mood. Enjoy it while you
can. Here's more Texas Home Improvementwith Jim Dutton. Hi, welcome back

(01:31:00):
to Texas Own Improvement. Dan.We were talking about your tile and it
popped up and I'm assuming it runsacross the front with the outside wall correct,
Yes, sir, pretty much.What happens is concrete expands and contracts
with the temperature and moisture changes andmost of the temperature and when we get

(01:31:21):
northern fronts that come in, theconcrete and the tile expand at different rates,
and the larger area of tile youhave, and when they get into
this fifteen to twenty year range,they tend to pop up like that.
There's not a whole heck of alot you're going to do to change it,

(01:31:42):
because it has to do with themastics not having enough give left in
them anymore. When the concrete doesexpand and contract under the tile, and
so it literally just pops it loose. And the unfortunate thing is you typically
can't put the same tile back downunless you can be very careful to clean

(01:32:03):
it and it didn't break or anything, but usually it's time for a new
floor. A lot of people getworried that it's a foundation problem, but
typically it's really not a foundation problem. It's just the concrete expanding and contracting.
Okay, so about the only thingI can do, best, bet,

(01:32:23):
is just start working in the groutand trying to see if I can
get it up clean and yep andgo from there. Yes, sir,
well, thank you so much.You kind of alleviated my biggest concern.
Alrighty on the top there, yep, you too. And that is it
for Texas Home Improvement today. Makesure you join us again tomorrow for more

(01:32:46):
Texas Home Improvements starting at two o'clockright here on seven pointy KTRH. We're
going to talk about Texas Remodel Teamone more time. But before we do,
I do want to bring up thesame thing I did at the very
beginning of the show. I knowa lot of people homes are flooding up
on the northeast side of town andstuff. If your house did flood,

(01:33:09):
make sure you take pictures of everythinginside, take video everything inside before you
start cleaning stuff up. Then assoon as you can get in the waters
receded, get those wet carpets out, get the wet sheet rock, insulation,
all that stuff out of there soyou don't start growing mold and mildews.

(01:33:30):
Get the house dried out. Youcan figure that the outlets that were
underwater got to be replaced. Youmay even have to replace the electrical wiring.
But that's something that has to belooked at after everything is dried out
to make that determination. But document, document, document everything you do and
when you pull all the carpet andsheet rock and stuff out. I hate

(01:33:51):
to tell you this pilot up sothat when the adjuster comes, if you
have insurance, they can see allthe building materials and all the stuff that
went back, and that includes anyfurniture and stuff that you have. So
with that, have a great weekand well I will talk with you again
tomorrow with more Texas home improvement.