Jim From the Deer Lease

Jim starts with an email question on remodeling after tree damage. He also takes some calls about hot water circulation, a breaker circuit, removing a shower stem, a dripping toilet, and more. Jim continues in the second hour answering more of your home improvement projects around the house. 

Episode Transcript

(00:00):
Idiot, though Daddy. Texas HomeImprovement is on the air with Jim Dutton.
Welcome to Texas Home Improvement. Whatcan I do for you? And
you're from Texas? How could youtell you? Call 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, Sunburnt
Shutters. Where beauty meets energy efficiency, American standards, comfort the way you
like it do, West Services FoundationRepair, Plumbing and air Conditioning, Guardian

(00:40):
Roof Systems, Texas Remodel Team Windows, the official window installer of Texas Home
Improvement. James Hardy Sighting the bestsighting on the planet floor in the Core,
Victor's Remodeling and Construction party Plex Specialists, rev Synthetic shingles by f Wave
and USA Insulation Wall Foam Insulation forinsisting homes, and now broadcasting live from

(01:07):
the Dutton Ranch. Here's Jim duty. Hey, Welcome to Texas Home Improvement,
your total home improvement source. Iam Jim Dutton and I am broadcasting
from the Dutton Ranch today. Weare out at the Deer Least today,
which is the Dutton Ranch, andso we're broadcasting live from there, but

(01:29):
I'm still here to take calls andanswer questions. So seven one three two
one two five eight seven four.That's seven one three two one two five
eight seven four. And uh,you know, it's work weekend at at
the Deer Least, so that's alwaysfun. But the best part is I
come in here, I'm sitting inthe air conditioner doing the show, and

(01:51):
everybody else is outside work and Iguess I shouldn't poke fun at that,
but it is what's happening, andlove. I love doing the show.
So we're gonna do the show livefrom the dearlyst. So seven one three
two one two five eight seven four. Again, any home improvement question you
have seven one three two one twofive eight seven four. Of course,

(02:16):
don't forget about our website thhipro dotcom. It's there is a resource to
help you out twenty four to seven. So anytime you're thinking about a project,
in the middle of a project,just got a question on a project,
you pick up the phone, andyou pick up the phone, you

(02:36):
go to your computer, you goto thchipro dot com. Not only will
you find all the people you hearme talk about, but you'll also find
questions and answers and videos and copiesof the TV show newsletters, all this
stuff that can help you with yourhome improvement projects. In fact, while
you're there, make sure you signup for our newsletter. It goes out
every other week, doesn't cost youanything, and there's a lot of helpful

(02:58):
information. But that's also tchipro dotcom where you'll find the ask Jim button
where you can send in email questions. So it's just a wealth of information
t hipro dot com. But likeI said, we're here to take calls
and answer questions. The number tocall seven one three two one two five

(03:21):
eight seven four. That's seven onethree two one two five eight seven four.
And again I'll see what I cando to help you out here on
Texas Home Improvement, your total homeimprovement source. I will start with an
email question while we try to getsome phone calls going here real quick,

(03:43):
let's see this comes from Bradley inLeague City tree fell on house major remodel,
and I guess what he needs issomebody who can do it. Now,
look if a tree falls on yourhouse, you typically want to call

(04:08):
your insurance company and or an adjusterto help you out with that. The
adjuster will deal with the insurance companyfor you and you know, help you
get that part taken care of.Then they also the adjusters can help you

(04:29):
with contractors and stuff. Now youhave restoration companies. Woodlands is a good
example. We've talked about them inthe past. They can help you with
stuff like that. We talk aboutthem for water and flooding and stuff like
that. But you know they cantake care of a tree falling on a
house as well. If you justwant to hire a contractor to come in

(04:51):
and fix it, well, look, you're down in League City Victor's Remodeling
and Construction. Give them a call. They can definitely take care of that.
Eight three two two four three ninetynine ninety seven and he'll get you
taken care of and get you rebuiltagain. If you got a question seven

(05:14):
to one three two one two fiveeight seven four. That's seven one three
two one two five eight seven four, and I'll see what I can do
to help you out here on TexasHome Improvement. Let's head to Cedar Park
and Steve. This is Jim,How can I help you? Hi,
Jim, great show every week welisten to it. Tell me if you

(05:35):
could tell us a little bit aboutnot necessarily circulation pumps for distributing hot water
to all of our outlets and ourhome, and not really point of use
feeds the gas fed fire units andthe electrical fed fire units. I think
there is another system, and I'mnot familiar, familiar at all with it,

(05:57):
wherein we can have hot water inimmediately anywhere we are in the house.
Could you talk to us about that? Well, there is a couple
of different ways to go. Oneis a recirculating system that basically has a
loop that goes around the house andit's always circulating hot water. The next
one is I'm sorry, oh,because we push a button in the far

(06:21):
bathroom and then the water circulates throughthat special pipe. I ran back to
the hot water heater and we writethat maybe there's something better than that.
Well, since you already have its, you know, circulating that way the
button is one way of doing it. The other is that it's always circulating.
You can also put it on atimer so it's only circulating during certain

(06:45):
hours of the day, you know, because like if at night you don't
need it circulating, If if everybodygoes to work or school, you don't
need it circulating, so you canset timers on it. The button is
a system, though, that's setin place that when you walk in,
you hit the button. Say yeah, as you're going in, you go
in the restroom, you hit thebutton. By the time you come out,

(07:05):
you got hot water circulating. Sure, but since you've already got a
circulation system going, sounds like tome the only thing you would need to
do is change it from the buttonto either full time circulating, which I
don't really recommend, or the timeor which I recommend a lot. And
these are at the hot water heater, I guess, and they circulate from

(07:28):
that point. In other words,I said it at that point and all
that. Yep, great, I'veseen those home depot and such and okay,
well we're going to look into thataspect. And I'm glad I called
you. Oh thank you. Well, let me tell you real quick though.
The reason I don't recommend having itcirculate all the time. People don't
realize the waste. But well,no, it wears the pipes. You

(07:51):
will look, you will wear holesin the elbows of your pipes. If
you have it circulating all the time, you got to look at it this
way. The Grand Canyon was madeby a little river flowing through there.
Yeah, Niagara Falls. Sure,that's interesting concept. I hadn't considered that.
Jim, thank you so much foreverything. And we will do a
timer. And we have a predictablelifestyle, so you know, why not

(08:16):
do that. Yeah, all right, thanks a lot, Jim, appreciate
it. Keep them a bit.Have a great weekend you too. By
you know, there is one othersystem that's available, and it's the ground
fall system. Basically, it runsfrom the water heater to a faucet that
crosses back over in the cold waterto go back. I've not installed one,

(08:41):
my plumbers have. I personally havenot installed one. But you know,
if you're only having the issue withone faucet, that's another way to
go. But if you want quickhot water at all the places, a
recirculating system like I said, thatgoes all the way around, put it
on a time or that is thebest way to go. Got a question
seven one three two one two fiveeight seven four. That's seven one three

(09:09):
two one two five eight seven fourAnd I'll see what I can do to
help you out here on Texas HomeImprovement again seven one three, two one
two five eight seven four. Let'ssee, I'm gonna jump back into an
email question here. Don in Selenais asking about retaining wall in French strain.

(09:31):
We need a retaining wall along oneside of our home in Selena.
We need a French drain as partof it. Uh, we have funds
and are ready to go. Allright. I know a lot of contractors
who will jump on that, andno, I'm teasing you. Look excuse

(09:52):
me. I had to shut themic off. The cough there. If
you're looking for a retaining wall anda French strain system, and quite frankly,
almost all retaining walls should have aFrench strained system behind them, give
my office a call it due West. We do actually quite a few retaining

(10:13):
walls, and I do very largeretaining walls. But we can handle even
your you know, your little oneand two foot retaining walls. You start
getting into the like three four fivefeet absolutely have to have a French strained
system behind them. A lot ofcontractors will just put a pipe in the
bottom with the gravel bed around it. That's only you know, one foot

(10:37):
diameter, and I don't care forthose. When we put a system in,
yes, it's going to have theperforated pipe in the bottom behind the
wall, at the bottom of thewall, but also the gravel is going
to come almost all the way tothe top of the wall. We got
to leave six inches of dirt overthe top, you know, just so

(10:58):
you can grow grass and stuff atthe top or whatever you're gonna plant.
But the gravel gets wrapped in afabric, and the whole purpose of the
drain systems behind walls, moisture isgoing to travel through the soil, it
hits that gravel, it goes downinto the French drain and then can be
carried away. If you leave itbuild up, that water pressure will build

(11:22):
and literally push a wall over.So again, if you need a retaining
wall or French strain for a yardwork as well, but a retaining wall
with the French drains and such caldue west at seven one three four seven
three seven one five six, andwe'd be more than happy to get you

(11:43):
taken care of with that. Butyeah, I've done walls that are,
like I said, one foot tall, and I do walls that are I've
done. The biggest one was sixtyfoot tall. So we'll get you taken
care of seven one three, twoone two five eight seven four. I
got open lines ready to take yourcalls and answer your questions here on Texas

(12:05):
Home Improvement. You know your airconditioning system is a mechanical device and for
that it's got to be service periodically. Well air Conditioning can take care of

(12:33):
your air conditioning systems for you.You need a new air conditioning system because
you got one that's old and therepair bills is going to be more than
it's worth putting into it. Callduist air conditioning. Even if you've got
a price from somebody else, geta second opinion. You'd be amazed at
some of the price differences. Andyou know what, there is a big
difference between systems that are available aswell. Single speed, variable speed,

(12:58):
dual speed. All of them havetheir pluses and minuses, but let's face
it, in our climate, whoare a lot of times dealing with humidity
issues, and at dual speed andvariable speed, that's the way to go.
When you want the best, youcall due West. That's seven one
three four seven three seven one fivesix at seven one three four seven,

(13:18):
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(13:41):
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Decore, where we know pro.When Jim Dutton of Texas Home Improvement recommends
our coverany he won't steer you wrongand he recommends Guardian roof Systems said down
on the League City. Hello jdHey Jim, how you doing that?

(14:03):
Man? I did call you lastweek about Chimney caps you recommended. I
called Guardian Roofing. I did callthem. The technician came out, he
was on time, and man,that did it. Kudos to Guardian.
Good job for me. I reallyreally appreciate that. Guardian roof Systems.
Click the link under Trusted contractors atthchipro dot Com. Sunburst shutters you know,

(14:24):
that is a perfect example of somethingyou can do to your home that
will not only make it more beautiful, but more energy efficient as well.
The Pollywood shutters, which are themost popular shutters in America for a great
reason, insulate two to three timesbetter than a traditional wood shutter. And
I'm actually sitting here at the DeerLease in the little house we have up

(14:45):
there, got Sunburst shutters on thewindows so I could close those up.
I've got them open right now soi can see outside. But we got
the mini split air conditioning system going, and I'm telling you it's as comfortable
as could be in here. Andthat's the way it is year round.
You can do that with your homeas well by calling Sunburst Shutters and getting
the shutters put on your home.They actually have design consultants who will come

(15:09):
out and help you get that perfectlook and fit for your home. So
give your windows the treatment they deserve. Call seven one three four six two
eighty eight hundred. That's seven onethree four six two eighty eight hundred.
You don't have to ask a I. You can ask Jim Dutton. Here

(15:30):
he is with more Texas Home Day. Welcome back to Texas. Home Improvement
seven one three two one two fiveeight seven four. That's seven one three,
two, one two five eight sevenfour. And right now I've got
all open lines available. So sevenone three, two one two five eight

(15:52):
seven four, it's a great timeto pick up the phone and give me
a call. I'll see what Ican do to help you out here on
Texas Home Improvement. So question thatcame in about water leaking through the grout,
and I don't think it's really awater issue, but Sonia from Missouri

(16:14):
City says water leaking through groud.About six months after I had porcelain tile
installed on my dining room floor,I noticed white powder appearing on small sections
of grout. A plumber told meit was effhorescence, possibly caused by a
leaking pipe. I had my systemtested and was told there were no leaks.

(16:36):
What should I do next to findout what is causing this? Well,
even moisture build up around the foundationcan cause this because what it is
is basically moisture gets into the concrete. There's a chemical reaction with the stone
that's in the concrete and the portlandand all the stuff, and it produces

(16:59):
what looks like like cotton candy.It's a little fuzz that comes up and
you can sweep it. It goesaway, and it'll come back, sometimes
even overnight, but a lot oftimes it'll take it a day or two
to come back. You probably didn'tnotice it before the porcelain tiles were put

(17:21):
down because more than likely you hadcarpet or something like that, and the
air conditioning system was keeping the humiditylow enough in the moisture content low enough
in the concrete that as this stuffwould try to form, it didn't have
the moisture that it needed. Whenyou put the tile on it, though,
and there's moisture in the concrete thatbuilds the moisture content up behind the

(17:48):
tile where the grout lines are.It's allowing that efforescence then to blossom up.
There are products that can be putdown prior to the tile being put
in. Ditch coating makes a coating, quick creek makes a coating, but
all of them would have had tobe put down before the tile was put

(18:10):
in. Once the tile is thereand it's coming up through the grout lines,
other than keeping it cleaned up,there's not a lot you're gonna do
to stop it. And so thefirst thing I would recommend though, to
minimize it is go check around theoutside, see if they're standing water.
If there is no standing water,now check and see how the slope of

(18:34):
the soil is. And I getit. We're flat. We don't get
a lot of slope, but you'regonna have some slope. And if there
is subsurfaced, it's a surfaced subsurface moisture traveling through the soil. It
hits the foundation. It can besoaked into the concrete. And typically when

(18:55):
a foundation is built there's four inchesof slab showing over top. I'm from
mowing our yards and the clipping isthe grade and stuff. It gets up
higher and higher to where we onlygot an inch or two showing, and
that's typically when people start having thisproblem. So by regrading the yard you
may be able to solve this problem. It's not a cheap fix, but

(19:17):
it's the right fix. And sooneror later you will have to regrade anyways,
because and I say that, youknow, you let it go for
sixty seventy eighty years, you justdon't have any slab showing. You've got
to regrade to get slab showing againto keep from having moisture issues, and
that's really what it comes down to. Got a question seven one three,

(19:40):
two, one two, five,eight seven four Going to Tomball, Hello,
Billy, how can I help you? Hey? How's it go?
And enjoy your show? Thank you. I've got an electrical problem that I
just cannot understand, much less fix. My washing machine is on a one

(20:06):
circuit, and I've got another protectedcircuit in the house. And when it's
separate from the washing machine circuit,and when the washing machine spends gets into
the spin cycle and draws a lotof amperage, it triggers the breaker on

(20:30):
the other on the other circuit.How can one appliance on a separate circuit
trigger the breaker on the second circuitBecause they're all in the breaker box together,
and there's a neutral bar that runsup the middle, and if everything

(20:53):
isn't exactly tight the way it shouldbe, and stuff like that, it
could be arcing and tripping it.Right now, they're at the breaker itself.
Hmm. Okay, now I've gotone of those in the receptacle breakers
that I'm talking about keeps tripping.But you're talking about the actual circuit breakers

(21:15):
in the electrical box outside, right, But even that could be enough to
trip the GFI that's on the plugoutside as well, because yeah, yeah,
because it can send a surge throughthe system or if something's not hooked
upright backfeet through the system. Okay, give Right Touch Electrical a call and

(21:40):
let them look at this because itprobably won't be very expensive at all to
get it fixed. Okay, allright, all right, thank you very
much. You bet take care.Hey, let's talk about something else you
can do to your home that won'tbe unbelievably expensive. They can help save
you money on your electric bill.Take better care of your flooring and furniture,

(22:03):
fabrics and things like that. That'sConcord window film. Now rooms in
your home, they get a lotof windows that are too hot and you
get sun coming through like sliding glassstores that are heating up the floors and
furniture. This all adds to yourenergy bills. Concord window film is a
professional grade window film, not thecheap stuff you get on Amazon and box

(22:26):
stores. But you can still installthis yourself, and it's customized for your
need, so the you know,the the sizes and different things. Go
to a dark window tint if youdon't want people looking in or if you
want to stay clear as though youdon't have anything, they can handle that

(22:47):
as well. For you, callthe folks at Concord Window Film and talk
to them too. Eight eight twozero six one four one three. That's
two eight eight I said two eighteight eight eight eight two zero six one
four one three. That's eight eighteight two zero six one four one three

(23:07):
for Concord Window Film. Give thema call today. Are you as honest
and disciplined and informed as Jim Dutton? Well, why in the corn bread
hell aren't you here? He ison Texas Home Improvement. Hey, welcome

(23:32):
back to Texas Home Improvements. Yourtotal home improvement sour seven one three two
one two five eight seven four.That's seven one three two one two five
eight seven four. And I'll seewhat I can do to help you out
here on Texas Home Improvement Jerry Inn, Bay City. What can I do
for you? Yeah, Jim,I appreciate it. I enjoy your show.

(23:56):
Uh, I'm very limited on howto do any kind of household repairs.
And my shower it won't turn offcompletely and it drips out of the
shower head and it's a single stemfor the hot and the cold, and
I watched a YouTube on how totake that stem out, but it's probably

(24:22):
twenty or thirty years old and nobodyhas that same stem. And I if
I buy a new shower set,will any stem go in that pipe?
No? Okay, I may haveto call a plumber. Yeah, because
you know the stem, it hasold rings on it and washers and things

(24:48):
like that. A lot of timesit can be rebuilt and put back in.
Not always, but a lot oftimes. But as far as a
newer one fitting into the old one, uh no, they're all sized specifically
for the housing. And if thestem can't be replaced or repaired, then
you end up putting in a wholenew faucet. Okay, Well, I

(25:15):
appreciate it that that was my question, and I thank you very much.
You bet Jerry, you take careah By. But you know, and
if you can get away with rebuildingone with the old rings and the you
know, the washers and stuff likethat, you're you're typically talking pennies to

(25:40):
do that. But what happens isyou get the hard water and it gets
mineral deposits in there, and uhthat starts etching on some of the metal
parts. Now, then you're notable to rebuild it and you have to
replace it. Uh. And sothat's that's really what the determining factors come

(26:02):
down to. Got a question.I ended up with all open lines again.
Seven one three two one two fiveeight seven four. That's seven one
three, two, one two fiveeight seven four. Pick up the phone,
give me a call. Let's talksome home improvement here on Texas Home
Improvement. So Robert on a Navisota, Texas, since an question about acid

(26:30):
concrete coloring. I have a contractorto acid color my entire back patio and
front porch at approximately four dollars persquare foot. What are the downsides,
if any, to this idea?Does it discolor quickly, maintenance required,
et cetera? Thank you? Well. How fast it's going to disc color

(26:55):
typically depends on what colors you use. The darker the color, the and
the more direct sunlight, the quickerit will disc color. Maintenance wise,
you got to keep it clean.They can put some sealers over it to
help clean it. The biggest downsideto these colors that you put on concrete.

(27:19):
This way, as the concrete getswalked on and wares, it'll wear
through the color and that's the reasonthe seilers and protectors become critical because you'll
wear through those, and that's somethingyou can reapply to keep the color.
But if you don't have some typeof protective coating over it, if it's

(27:42):
a high traffic area and you've seenit in grocery stores in different places like
that, where you got a trailwhere people are always walking, like through
the checkout counter for instance, andthe color where they're walking is gone.
So that's your biggest downside. Butlet's let's face it, on residential that's

(28:04):
usually not a huge issue. Soif you want to put the coloring down
and have it look good like that, I got no problem with it at
all because you'll get years and yearsof good life out of it. But
like I said, if you canput the sealer clear code over it,
I would really recommend that, andthat way you get even more life out

(28:27):
of it. Got a question sevenone three, two, one two,
five eight seven four and in Woodlands, Welcome to Texas Home Improvement. Well,
good afternoon, and thank you fortaking my call. Well, I
appreciate you calling. I don't haveto talk to myself. Well, I

(28:48):
have a question. I have awater heater that's about ten years old.
It's forty gallon, and it's cycling. It's in my second story, and
my house is about twenty eight hundredsquare feet's cycling on and off. Had
a like every couple of minutes.I can hear it turning on and I
can hear it coming on and comingoff. I had a plumber come out
and they quoted me around six thousanddollars to replace it. Do you have

(29:12):
any Yeah, yeah, and thatjust was exorbitant, I thought, But
I haven't checked any other places eitheryet. What do you have for a
water heater? Well, it's it'sit's nothing fancy. It would have been
something that it was just it wasa regular it was it's a gas water

(29:33):
heater. Okay, you know anythingfancy. It's just a regular, quardy
gallon water heater up in the atticon the second floor. That is correct.
You got a plumber who just doesn'twant to deal with taking it out.
Okay, give my a call itat due West Plumbing. Okay,

(29:56):
I will do that. I'm soexcited because obviously we have a pro problem
or yeah, you know, doingthe cycling. It's never been cleaned out
and it's never flushed, I guessas you would call it. And I
don't have a water purification system,so I mean it's getting hard water all
the time. And how old isit it's about I was sort of surprised

(30:17):
it's about ten years. It's not, I mean ten years old. Okay,
Yeah, give us a call atseven one three four seven three seven
one five six. We'll get youtaken care of because, yeah, it's
not. They're a pain to goup in that second floor attic and carry
it all the way down and out, and that's they're just not wanting to
deal with it. Okay, thankyou so much. I'm so I'll be

(30:41):
giving y'all a call on Monday,all right, thank you. Okayo oh,
let's talk about Texas Remodel Team windowsdivision. You know you hear about
Texas Remodel Team because they do agreat job of remodeling, but they've got
a complete window divisi as well.And what their window division does every day,

(31:03):
day in, day out, isreplacement windows for your home. Whether
you want vinyl, wood, fiberglass, doesn't matter. Texas Remodel Team can
take care of you. But theycan go beyond that. If you get
into rotten wood around that window.That's got to be addressed. Hey,
they're remodeling guys, so division cancome out and take care of all that

(31:26):
so it doesn't slow the project downor worse, you don't have to find
another contractor to bring in to takecare of it. So if you want
some great windows with an excellent installation, called Texas Remodel Team at two eight
one sixty one, two fifty nineninety one. It's two eight one six
one two fifty nine ninety one.When Jim Dutton of Texas Home Improvement recommends

(31:52):
our company, he won't steer youwrong and he recommends Guardian roof Systems said
down to Leak City. Hello JDHey Jim, how you feeling there?
Man? I did call you lastweek about timnycaps. You recommend it,
I call Guardian Roofing. I didcall them. The technician came out,
he was on time, and man, that did it. Kudos to Guardian,
good job for me. I reallyreally appreciate that. Guardian roof Systems.

(32:14):
Click the link under Trusted Contractors atthchipro dot com. Hey, let's
talk about James Hardy siding, thebest siding on the planet and I say
that it was all sincerity because whatother siding is gonna hold paint better?
None? What other siding is notgonna rot, not gonna deteriorate, not

(32:37):
gonna get eaten by bugs. None. That makes James Hardy Siding the best
siding on the planet. You wantto learn more about it, go to
thchipro dot com and click on thelink for James Hardy Siding. When Jim
Dott, you know Texas Home Improvement, recommends the company, he won't steer
you wrong, like Do West Services. I got your phenomenal company out regarding

(33:01):
a foundation watering system and those hiredof lugging those miserable so co hoses that
keep getting destroyed. It's just anightmare. So anyway, I had Jacob
out from your company, Do Westand he was phenomenal, and you run
a tip top organization. He wasdressed beautifully. The truck he drove up

(33:23):
and was perfect. I mean,you just have made yourself a wonderful company.
I can't thank you enough. Ireally appreciate it. Do West Services
Foundation Repair, Total Plumbing and airConditioning called seven one three four seven three
seven one five six. That's sevenone three four seven three, seven,
one, five six online at dodashwest dot com. That's du dash west

(33:49):
dot com. Do West Services.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 dot Hey, welcome back to
Texas Home Improvements your Total Home Improvementsource seven one three, two one two

(34:15):
five eight seven four. We're gonnahead to Austin. Robert. You're doing
all right today? Ah, yes, sir, how you doing? I'm
doing wonderful. How can I helpyou? Well? It seems like every
time we do, like wash aload, our toilets start gurgling. And

(34:37):
that's the only thing we do laundry. And is a toilet near like on
the other side of the wall orsomething from there, it's like a cross.
It's inside the restaurant across from theWashington driver. Yep. They're more

(34:57):
than likely sharing a vent stack,and the vent stack is plugged, and
so when the washing machine is discharging, it's trying to pull air through the
through the toilet to let the waterdrain. It's more likely happening the other

(35:19):
direction when the toilet is flushed.It's probably pulling air through the drain line
of the washing machine. You're justnot hearing it because that p trap is
probably under the slab, so you'renot hearing it. You're just hearing the
one in the toilet because the peatrap, the s trap itself is in

(35:43):
the toilet itself, and so youhear that one and see it a lot
easier, okay, But to clearit out, you there's I mean,
obviously you could call the plumber todo it, but if it was mine,
what I would try first is togo up on the roof and and
go down through the vent stack andwith a water hose and see if you

(36:08):
hit anything, you can turn thewater hose on. But if there's a
break in the pipe in the ventstack, it would put water in a
wall somewhere. But uh, youknow, if you if you want to
use a snake, you know,a drain cleaner, you can rent one
of hose and run it down throughthat stack. But that's what it's going

(36:28):
to be, is there's a plugin the in the vent line somewhere.
Okay. I was thinking maybe itwas a sign of having a pump or
septic or any no, probably not. Okay, then i'll something might just
have to get upon it. Thankyou for your help, sir. You

(36:50):
bet you take care. Yeah,typically if you get into the signs that
you got to pump the septic,yeah, it's gonna back up, but
it's not going to make that gurglingsound. Uh. And look, you
should have a cleanout out there inthe yard. And if it's coming close
to time to pump a septic,you open up that clean out and you're

(37:17):
going to have all kinds of nastystuff coming out on your yard. We'll
just put it that way. Thattells you, hey, it's time to
get the septic pumped. Got aquestion seven one three two point two five
eight seven four. And if youwait too long, it'll come up in
the bathtub. You don't want that. Heading out to friends, Wood Gordon,

(37:40):
Welcome to Texas Home Improvement. Hey, jam thanks for having me back.
Hey, you helped me out severaltimes. And I didn't know if
you wanted some advice on the adviceyou're giving. But with the electrical problem
in the utility room, I didn'thear him say, but that circuit could
be may beback onto a g FIso that one's ALIGNE and one's a load.

(38:06):
And as that appliant starts at spindcycle, there could be something wrong
with that appliance that's caused that gfI two trip. And of course the
other possibility is that the GFI itselfis getting weak and old and needs to
be replaced. Right. Well,he was saying they were on two separate
breakers in the breaker panel, thoughI didn't hear the two breakers. Yeah,

(38:31):
yeah, it was on two separatecircuits. And and that's that's right
now. I was thinking it's gotto be related back to the the neutral
bar in the breaker panel itself.Wonder those breakers heart breaker? Is it
what an arc breaker? Right?Uh? And that that's what I was

(38:54):
wondering as well. And that's butthat gets beyond what i've truthfully my knowledge
on the electrical uh, because Ihaven't dealt with those, and I would
call an electrician out to to fixthat one. Well, you know the
definition of electrician, right, goahead, that's somebody who works with something

(39:17):
that can kill them that they neversee. Yeah, yeah, yeah,
it can definitely can get you introuble. I gave. I gave the
three things that all plumbers know.One time, but I got in trouble
because there was one of those wordsyou're not supposed to use, and I
didn't realize that at the time.Jim, you enjoy your weekend at the

(39:39):
rams, buddy, talk to you. I'm doing it. You take care
again. Our number seven one threetwo one two five eight seven four.
That's seven one three two one twofive eight seven four. David. I'm
I'm gonna let you go ahead andask you a question, but we'll probably

(40:00):
hitting a brake before we're done withit. How can I help you?
Hello, Jim, I'm just callingabout the guy that was looking for the
the stem for his yeah faucet.Okay, so there's he'll he'll need to
go to an area that the housesare like fifty sixty years old. There's

(40:23):
one in Channel View called Gray's Hardware, and they carry all those old fitting
yeah, so they can still begot got oh yeah, yeah. And
but he was way out of town. Uh he lived down almost towards Corpus.

(40:45):
Oh. Okay, well, eveneven in that area, if he
goes to a town the ye oldyeah, they'll have them all right,
David, I appreciate. I gottatake a quick break. We'll be back
seven one three two one two fiveeight seven four. Let's talk about USA

(41:06):
Insulation. You know, I talkabout USA Insulation all the time, and
I did long before they were sponsorsas well, because I love the product.
It's a non expansive phone they caninject right into the walls of your
existing home. I don't want thewhole house encapsulated with phone, but I
love it in the walls because inchfor inch you can't beat the R value

(41:30):
and that's what they do. Plus, it reduces the noise from outside up
to eighty percent, and and it'sa Class A fire retardant, so I
said Class A. It's a greatfire retardant. Anyways, look, if
you're looking at insulating your walls ofyour existing home, you need to call

(41:52):
USA Insulation and get it done right. Three four six, two nine seven
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(42:13):
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Floor End Decore where we know proah du Wes Plumbing. You know we're

(42:35):
just talking about plumbers. If youneed a plumber to come out and take
care of a dripping line or somethinglike that for you, or maybe you're
looking for somebody to replace the sewerlines or get rid of those old galvanized
lines. You want the best,you call due West at seven one,
three four seven three seven one fivesix again at seven one, three four,

(42:58):
seven, three seven to one.You know a lot of window companies
can put in new windows, butcan they make the trim look right?
Do they use high end cock toseal up the air gaps? And do
they offer multiple styles and choices soyou can get the exact windows you need
and want for your home. JimDutton, host of Texas ho Improvement for
Texas Remodel Team, they have awindow division that does nothing but windows,

(43:22):
and they can make sure that thingslike your trim, your brick, even
your windowsill looks perfect. Because afterall. They are owned by a construction
company. They carry all the majorbrands of windows, and their insul crews
are second to none, giving thema four point nine stars out of five
on Google Reviews and an A plusrating with the BBB, plus a thumbs

(43:42):
up from me. Great windows,great prices, and a great installation called
the Texas Remodel Team Window Division foryour new Windows today two eight one six
one two fifty nine to ninety onetwo eight one six one two fifty nine
to ninety one online at Techi thisRemodel Team dot com. If somebody tells

(44:14):
you you can't do it, tellhim to kiss your crew bar. This
is Texas Hold Improvement with Jim Dutton. Hey, welcome back to Texas Home
Improvement. Seven one three two onetwo five eight seven four Lewis in Spring
Branch. How can I help youtoday? Hey Jim, thanks for taking

(44:36):
my call. I've got a followa question on the stem in the bathroom.
Yeah, so if I want to, if I want to, I
need to get mine replaced. Canit just be fully replaced or to have
to be the exact same one?Has to be the same one if you're
just replacing the stem Okay, yeah, because it does have a league just

(44:59):
like the previous it's collared. Butokay, so it has to be the
same ones I'd have to pull itout. I'm having the same issues.
It's it's leaking and it's crusty.So yeah, it sounds like it's when
if it's all crusty like that,then it becomes time to look at getting
a whole new faucet and stuff.But like that caller just a minute ago

(45:21):
was saying, there are places youcan go that still carry some of that
old stuff. Uh, but it'sreally only if they have it as old
inventory that they're still carrying. Soif I were to replace it with the
new one, would it be possibleto replace the whole fawcet or just the
store the whole the whole Fawcett stamp, the whole stem would come from the

(45:43):
pipe, well, the whole faucet. Yeah, that definitely can be the
whole thing replaced. That's not aproblem. Well, I say it's not
a problem. You got to getaccess to it, and sometimes that requires
going into the wall, But beyondthat, it's not a problem. Readily
available can be done all the time. It's just when you've got to replace
just the stem itself. When youget into a thirty year old part,

(46:07):
that can become difficult to get AndI hate to do this to you.
I gotta cut you off because thishour of Texas Home Improvement is done.
We got another one to go.But let's talk about American Standard. You
know American Standard air conditioners and they'renationally recognized for excellence for performance, reliability,

(46:28):
customer satisfaction. I personally have beenusing them in my home since nineteen
ninety nine. And American Standard heatingand cooling systems, let me tell you,
they meet the ever changing Texas weatherhead on, so you can keep
your home cool as humidity free orbe ready for a little heat when you
need it. Invest wisely and investin the home comfort system that will last

(46:52):
you a long long time. AmericanStandard Heating and air Conditioning. I love
my systems. You will two youwhat comfort the way you like. It
begins at American Standard air dot com. And while you're there, take a
look at the choices. You havevariable speed, single speed, dual speed,
the variable and dual best humidity control. You're going to get idiot tho

(47:16):
EI Texas Home Improvements on the airwith Jim Nutt. Welcome to Texas Home
Improvement. What can I do foryou? You're from Texas? How could
you tail tall? Jim Now withall your home improvement questions. That's seven
one three two one two five eightseven four. That's seven one three,

(47:37):
two one two five eight seven four. Texas Home Improvement brought to you by
Ready Seal, Stain and Sealer,Sunburn Shutters where beauty meets energy efficiency,
American Standards, Comfort the way youlike it do, West Services Foundation Repair,
Plumbing and air Conditioning, Guardian RoofSystems, Texas Remodel Team Windows,

(48:00):
the official window installer of Texas HomeImprovement. James Hardy Sighting the best sighting
on the planet. Floor in theCore, the Victor's Remodeling and Construction Party,
Plex Specialists, Revy Synthetic shingles byf Wave and USA Insulation, Wall
Phone Insallation for insisting homes and nowbroadcasting live from the Dutton Ranch. Here's

(48:27):
Jim dot Hey. Welcome the anotherhour of Texas Home Improvements. Your total
home improvement source seven one three twoone two five eight seven four. That's
seven one three, two one twofive eight seven for any home improvement question
you have, feel free to pickup the phone give me a call.

(48:50):
I'll see what I can do tohelp you out here on Texas How Improvement.
Starting a new hour, all thelines are open, so now's a
great time to call because typically asthis hour goes on on the line start
filling up. So if you gota question, call early you're always better
off. Seven one three, two, one two five eight seven four.
Of course, don't forget about ourwebsite t hi pro dot com. It's

(49:16):
full of helpful information links to thepeople you hear me talk about, questions
and answers and videos and uh youknow, it's just a wealth of information.
When you go to tchipro dot com, there is a place to sign
up for our newsletter that goes outevery other week. There's also old newsletters
there that you can look at,as well as copies of our TV show

(49:37):
and such so thipro dot com.And one last thing that's there is you
ask Jim button. That's how youcan send in email questions. Uh so
thhi pro dot com and then hitthe Askjim button to send in an email
question. But again, I gotopen lines seven one three, two,

(49:59):
one two, five, eight sevenfour, pick up the phone, give
me a call, and let's talksome home improvement here on Texas Home Improvement,
your total home improvement source. Withthat being said, we'll head into
a email question here comes from ClintonMcKinney talking about French strains. We have

(50:22):
puling water along French and partial backyard. Well, if you got a pulling
water along a French train, thatmeans French train ain't working. I'm really
wondering if you're What you're not talkingabout is surface strains, because a lot
of people think all drained systems areFrench strains. A French strain is a

(50:46):
sub surface system. You don't seeany catch basins or anything at the top.
It's basically a perforated pipe and apipe that's got holes in it,
embedded in gravel, and so waterthat's migrating through the soil hits the gravel,
drops down into the pipe and getstaken out. It will take care

(51:06):
of surface water as well. It'sjust not as fast as using a surface
drain system. But look, ifyou're having an issue with a drain system,
give Due West a call. Wework on off drain systems all the
time. We install French drained surfacedrains, all that kind of stuff,

(51:27):
and we'd be moren happy to getthat taken care of for you again,
if you got a home improven questionthough. Seven one three two one two
five eight seven four. That's sevenone three, two one two five eight
seven four Gregan Woodlands, Welcome toseven forty k t H. How can

(51:49):
I help you? Yes? Hello, I have two outside AC units or
two AC units in the house upstairsand downstairs. And what do I need
to do to the units as ahomeowner on a routine basis to open them
up and wash out the leaves ordo other stuff too, or what do
you recommend? Well, the biggestthing typically for as a homeowner you can

(52:14):
do is to keep the filters changedand keep the system clean on the inside.
As far as the outside unit,you should be having it service twice
a year anyways, and during theservicing they should take it apart and clean
all the leaves and debris and stufflike that out of it. The reason
you get it serviced twice a yearthough, is I mean it's a mechanical

(52:37):
device just like a car, andso they got to make sure all the
lubricants are right and all that stuff. Make sure everything is clean, like
the coil itself, but beyond that, they've got to check capacitors and different
things to make sure that they're stillwithin the right tolerance, because that's the

(52:57):
stuff that breaks down that cat.You'd have an outage on the hottest day
of the year. Right, Okay, I'll double up. I've been doing
it once a year, and twicea year sounds like the way to go.
I appreciate you. Once a yearis better than not doing it at
all. But as far as onthe outside unit itself, I mean,

(53:22):
if you want to hose it offonce in a while to keep those those
fins nice and clean, there's absolutelynothing wrong with that. You can clean
the leaves out of it. Idon't typically recommend for most people to take
the unit apart, though, toget access down there, because there's too
many things you can tear up.Okay, alrighty, thank you very much.

(53:45):
You bet you take care and againour number seven one three, two
one two five eight seven four,and the kind of stuff I'm talking about
in there really just even the finson the unit itself. Every time you
bend one of those fins, itbecomes that much less efficient because the air

(54:08):
doesn't flow through to dissipate the heat, and that's what those things are designed
for. On the inside, youhit the wrong wire or something, hey,
the system won't turn back on.You end up calling a repair person,
not to mention the fact that youcan you know, hit something and
shock yourself. So it's really nota dude yourself job to pull the units

(54:34):
themselves apart seven one three, twoone two, five eight seven four.
Again, 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. So this was a lengthy email

(54:55):
that came in from Andy and BrianCollege station. Any He says, little
background for you. First, Ihave a three year old home with tile
floors throughout. I will put itpolitely and say the builder was less than
great. If he could cut acorner, he cut it. On top

(55:15):
of that, he later turned intoa crook and took a bunch of customers
money and disappeared into hiding, onlyto resurface in bankruptcy court months later.
But that's another story. Thankfully Idid not lose any cash to the man,
but I was left holding a punchlist of unfinished warranty work a mile

(55:37):
long. So over the past threeyears, I've been working through that punch
list while the same time discovering newsurprises illustrating this joker's shoddy work. Windows
not being cocked, doors not square, plumbing, pipes without any insulation.
No, sooner I crossed something offthe first list, I add three more

(56:01):
things. It has been exhausting.I tell you all of this because I
do not know if my latest issueis the result of a cut corner,
shoddy craftsmanship, or possibly a biggerproblem with the home, and I am
not aware of Okay, well,hey, real quick, you know with

(56:23):
the issues that you just listed,you know, the not insulating, the
pipes and doors not square, windowsnot being cocked, and stuff, where
the heck were the inspectors when thishouse is being built? You know,
city inspection departments are becoming a royalpain because they want to charge a bunch

(56:45):
of money. They don't work withthe contractors on getting out typically in a
timely manner. And I'm not sayingall cities and not all inspectors are this
way. I'm saying it's becoming abigger and bigger problem though, and what
they what they fail to realize.They work for you, the taxpayers,
and they're supposed to be your advocate, which means they should be doing things

(57:08):
to help save you some money.And you know what saves you money getting
their butts out there on time ifthere is an issue, working with the
contractor, get it reinspected so progresskeeps going because what's happening. There are
some cities contractors won't even go intoanymore because they have to charge so much
to put up with what takes place. With some of the inspectors they just

(57:31):
don't want to deal with it,and that's ridiculous. Or you're stuck with
bootleg contractors who are cutting corners andnot pulling permits and stuff, and then
you end up with what this guy'sgot. Anyways, as I mentioned,
I have tile floors through out thehome, gray tile grout and gray grout.

(57:53):
Lately, I have noticed voids inthe grout popping up all over the
place. Because the gray on ray, they are very visible, like little
black holes. Initially, I thoughtI just needed to sweep the floor,
but when that didn't work, Igot down close and poked at the black
dots and realized they were small holes. I know this can be normal on

(58:16):
an older tile, but on afloor that is only three years old,
this seems extreme. Additionally, Ilive alone, so my floors are not
heavily trafficked. Is just me anda couple of cats. There are no
children or large dogs banging around?Is this normal for me to be seen

(58:38):
so many voids in my grout witha house this young, I am counting
well over thirty in one room atthe moment. Is this possibly a cut
corner and the builder failed to dosomething he should have done? Or is
this just a bad grout job?And the big question savory grouting the whole

(59:00):
house? How do I fix these? Thanks in advance for any assistance you
can offer. Love the show,appreciate all that you do for the community.
Well, look, it is justa shoddy grout job. And basically,
when they put grout in you usea rubber trowel and you have to

(59:21):
squeeze the grout down into the voidbetween the tiles. When they don't do
a good job of pushing the groutdown in there, you get these voids
like this because they're just skimming overthe surface. They get a little bit
of material down and then it's avoid behind it. And when that happens,
you start getting what you've got.And it doesn't matter if it's a

(59:44):
twenty year old grout job or atwo day old grout job. It's a
problem. They only fix. Youcan either try, since yours is only
three years old, to get thesame color grout and and that actually should
be able to be done and seeif you can just fill in the spots,

(01:00:05):
but they're going to continue popping upuntil all the voids are gone,
or you got to grind it outand put all new grout. That's going
to be your two options, youknow. So you can go buy a
floor into Core store and be ableto get grout there that should be able
to match it. But you know, as far as a quick and easy

(01:00:29):
fix, unfortunately, there really isn'tone. And this is not an unusual
issue. Again, it has nothingto do with the age. It's just
a workmanship issue with how they spreadthe grout and packed it in there.
So uh, Truthfully, if itwas mine, I'd be looking at the

(01:00:49):
drummal tool that has a little groutremover grinder thing because you can get the
hand scrape ones to do it,but that drummal tool does make it a
lot easier, and I would probablyhit the worst areas and clean it up
that way and put new groud inbecause, like I said, being only
three years old, you can probablyget grout to match it. Still got

(01:01:10):
a question seven one three two onetwo five eight seven four. That's seven
one three two one two five eightseven four. Let's talk about windows.
You know, if you're looking forreplacement windows, called Texas Remodel Teams Window
Division. Now you've heard me talkingabout Texas Remodel Team for over ten years.

(01:01:30):
They do a great job at remodeling, but they've also got this window
team that that's all they do isgo out and do replacement windows for people
all over the city. So ifyou need windows for your home, call
the folks at Texas Remodel Team andyou know they have a four point nine
stars out of five on Google Reviewand a plus rating with the BBB and

(01:01:53):
they're going to take great care ofyou as well. So if you need
new windows, call two eight onesix one two fifty nine ninety one.
That's two eight one six one twofifty nine ninety one, or just go
to thchipro dot com and click onthe link for Texas Remodel Team. You

(01:02:15):
know, if you're having a sewerleak 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 the plumbingas well as the homes foundation. That's
why you want to call du Westboth the plumbing company and the foundation repair
company to make sure if your homesfoundation stays intact years after the plumbing work

(01:02:36):
is done. When you want thebest, call due West seven one three
four seven three seven one five sixonline at dudash weest dot com. When
Jim Dutton of Texas Home Improvement recommendsa company, he won't steer you wrong
and he recommends Guardian roof Systems,it said down to League City, Hello
JD Hey Jim, how you doingthat? Man? I did call you

(01:02:57):
last week about a timneycaps I commendedI call Guardian roofing. I did call
them. The technician came out,he was on time, and man,
that did it. Kudos to Guardian, good job for me. I really
really appreciate that. Guardian roof Systems. Click the link under Trusted Contractors at
thchipro dot com. You know AmericanStandard Air is my choice in air conditioners,

(01:03:20):
and American Standard is nationally recognized forexcellence for performance, reliability, and
customer satisfaction. So take care ofyour family all year long with American Standard
heating and air conditioning. American Standardtechnology. It meets the ever changing Texas
weather head on. So keep yourhome cool and humidity free, or be
ready for a little heat when youneed it. Invest wisely and invest in

(01:03:45):
the home comfort system that will lastyou a long, long time comfort the
way you like it. American Standardairdot com. Smile. You woke up

(01:04:08):
in Texas this morning. This isTexas Home Improvement with Jim Dutton. Hey,
welcome back to Texas Home Improvement's yourtotal home improvement sour seven one three
two one two five eight seven four. That's seven one three two one two

(01:04:29):
five eight seven four in the homeimprovement question you have pick up the phone
and give me a call. We'regonna head out to Missouri City. Paul,
Welcome to Texas Home Improvement. HelloJim. Recently I had some of
my foundation work done at the house, excuse me, and they punched a
number number of holes in the floor, and now they've since been resealed with

(01:04:55):
concrete, and the question is doI put a concrete ceilant in there?
Uh? Well, one product Iread at loads made by Valvespar. They
wanted the concrete to dry for sixtydays. And I've got this vinyl floor

(01:05:15):
guy schedule to come in here probablyWednesday next week. So now he's going
to put down a you know,a vapor barrier, you know, under
that new vinyl. But should Ishould I bother to seal this new concrete?
Typically not? Okay, Yeah,Typically there's not a not a reason

(01:05:40):
too. Uh and especially if he'sgoing to be putting a vapor barrier down
before putting the vinyl planks down,you really don't need to be doing a
sealer on there. Okay. Okay, Well that's that's that was my question.
Okay, ok thank you so much. If you have any the questions,

(01:06:00):
feel free to pick up the phone. I will in the future,
thank you sir again our number sevenone three two one two five eight seven
four. That's seven one three twoone two five eight seven four, And
I'll see what I can do tohelp you out here on Texas Home Improvement.
And you know It's not uncommon whenyou do foundationm peer that you have

(01:06:26):
to break holes, whether it's inthe flat work outside like a driveway or
patio, or if you're doing interiorpeers, you have the option of tunneling
instead of doing interior peers. Now, the way I typically tell people is
if you're getting ready to do atotal remodel job, then you can take
a look at, uh, youknow, going through the slab. If

(01:06:51):
your house, though, is anolder home that has cast iron pipes and
you're not going to be doing remodelingand stuff, don't do that. Pay
for the tunneling. And here's why. When you tunnel you have access to
the plumbing so it can be replacedif need be. The other thing is

(01:07:13):
you can stay living in the homewithout having the expense of redoing the entire
inside of a home. And itreally in the long run, what I
have found over the years of doingfoundation repair, you're gonna spend as much

(01:07:33):
either way you go, You're gonnaspend basically the same thing because it makes
such a mess inside the house.You've got a lot of cleanup to do
and replacement of stuff to do,versus the cost of the tunneling. So
just a little side note there forthat. Again, if you got a
question seven one three, two onetwo five eight seven four Mike and Kingwood,

(01:07:58):
how can I help you? Hey, I got a question for you.
Can you hear me? Yes,sir, Yes, I've got a
covered back patio. Of course whenit rains a little bit of the patio
gets wet, but I won't paintit. And uh, but I want
to make sure I do the usethe right paint, right type of ceilant

(01:08:18):
and all that. So just wonderingwhat how I should go about doing that.
You want to get a regular masonrypaint. Yeah, and you can
go to like a Sherwan Williams ora place like that and they carry him
and that'll give you the right instructionsfor you know, how to prep the

(01:08:40):
concrete and then you put that painton there, you know, so that
it doesn't just blister off because itgets moisture behind it. So the critical
part is to have the right typeof paint. Okay, So just go
in there and ask tell what I'mdoing and just say, yep, masonry

(01:09:01):
pinks and they they should know whatI'm talking about. Yeah, they got
a whole line of it. Okay, okay, great, all right,
thank you very much, appreciate yourhell you bet take care with that.
Seven one three two one two fiveeight seven four. Let's talk about Concord
window film. You know this,This is a great product if you're trying

(01:09:26):
to make your house more comfortable,you're trying to make your house more energy
efficient, and you just want totake better care of your your floors and
your fabrics, on your furniture andthings like that, because let's face it,
the sun comes in and it heatsup the floors. That heats up
your air conditioner's got to run more. The sun comes in, it bakes
on the furniture, it fades outthe fabrics. Well, Concord window film

(01:09:51):
is a professional grade window film,not the cheap stuff you get at the
Amazon and you know box stores.Uh that you can install yourself and customized
based on what you need, likethe stuff I mentioned. So you can
go from a darker tint or giveprivacy to you know that gives you privacy,

(01:10:14):
or a light tint that virtually youcan't see. You need to call
Concord window film eight eight eight twozero six one four one three. You
don't have to ask a I youcan ask Jim dot here he is with
Lord Texas. Hey, welcome backto Texas Home Improvement. Seven one three

(01:10:44):
two one two five eight seven four. That's seven one three two one two
five eight seven four. Gonna headdown to Bay City. Teresa, how
are you today? I'm good?How are you doing? Doing wonderful?
I'm going to help you. Okay, okay. I purchased a house and
it is on blocks, and ithas a wood floor. And I don't

(01:11:11):
have a dog, but I dobabysit my daughter's dogs, and I'm concerned
about that. But I heard fromsomeone the other day that you can put
a celant on the floor, likea Varnus celant. Is that correct?
Do you recommend that? Well?They make different finishes that you can definitely
put on that floor. Now,this house is up on blocks. How

(01:11:35):
old a house is it? Itwas built in nineteen oh two, But
it's the floor has the floor hasbeen replaced. I mean it's the fewer
type wood. But I was justwondering if that's something that I could do.
Absolutely. Now, typically when it'sdone is one of the floor is

(01:11:58):
being refinished, so you can't typicallyclean it up sand it if need be,
and all that, because once youput that finish on, you don't
have access to the stuff underneath anymore. It would have to be all sand
off in order to do anything.So you want to do your prep work
first. But you know, theymake regular polyurathanes and different things like that

(01:12:23):
to put on the floors and theyhold up very well. Is this an
oak floors? Is did they goback with original pine like floors? Okay?
But yes, it absolutely can bedone. And I was just curious

(01:12:43):
also, you know at the houseit's bump blocks. If moisture cuts up
underneath that hurt at all with theceiling on it. It actually can if
you're getting a lot of moisture comingup through there, because it can keep
the air conditioner from being able todry the wood, and so it can

(01:13:05):
it can allow the moisture to buildup underneath and and cause the floors to
cup. Okay, all right,So that's just something to consider, yep.
Okay. Now, if you've gotventilation under the house and you don't
have standing water, typically it shouldnot be a problem. And especially on

(01:13:27):
these older homes like that, uh, they're they're usually well ventilated underneath.
Yes, so there's still standing water, and then there's about two inches in
most areas underneath where the air cango through, two inches on the sides.
On the sides, the sand isbuilt up a little bit on the

(01:13:50):
outside rim of the house, andit's a little bit lower on the inside,
so the water doesn't go in.But there's at least two inches where
air can I guess blow underneath thehouse. Okay, two inches is usually
not enough, but it depends onhow the other sides of the of the

(01:14:12):
house are as well as far asvaleration. Okay, what how much do
you recommend? Well, for everyone hundred and fifty feet of space that
you have underneath there, you needone square foot of ventilation. Okay.
So okay, now let me askyou a quick question. What's the finish

(01:14:36):
on the floors? Now? Ifit doesn't have a finish on it,
I don't think there's any finish atall. I mean it was just put
down, ah, because I boughtthe house after the floor had been put
in. Okay, so it looksto me like there's no finish at all.
But there's a stain on it.Yes, yeah, there's a stain.

(01:14:59):
But I guess the finish. Youknow, you know the cracks on
the outside of the wood. I'mgoing to get that all sealed. Yes,
okay, so yeah, there's afinish, but it's not it's more
of a mate than a shiny finish. And that's what I was just gonna
say. I'm betting this has eithera flat or a mate finish on it,
and you're probably used to seeing agloss finish, and so yes,

(01:15:25):
a gloss finish can be put onit. That would not require you to
resand all the floors, but Iwould take a sample in so that you
can get the right finish to goover it so it doesn't blister off or
anything. Okay, sounds good,Well I will look are doing that then
bye bye. And you know,the floor when it's got even a mate

(01:15:53):
or a flat finish on it,it's already sealed and so putting another coat
over the top is not gonna causeit any issues that it doesn't already have.
Uh, it's one, it's gotno finish on it, and you
seal it that you could start gettingthe moisture build up and the cupping and
stuff. But since this is alreadythere and more likely does have some type

(01:16:17):
of finish on, it should befine to go over. Go ahead and
go over. That got a question. Seven one three two one two five
eight seven four. That's seven onethree, two, one two five eight
seven four. Let's talk about sunburstshutters. You know, this is a
perfect example of something you can doto your home that will not only make

(01:16:40):
it more beautiful, but more energyefficient as well. Pollywood shutters are the
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That's a lifetime guarantee. In fact, I'm sitting here in front of a

(01:17:03):
sunburst shutters right now up at theat the deer lease in the little cabin
house that my parents have on theproperty, and they're gorgeous. I mean,
we put sunburn shutters everywhere. Uh. And the nice thing is like,
if we have a real cold fronthere, you can close them up.
It creates that dead air space ifit gets really hot outside, which

(01:17:25):
we don't have to do in thisparticular place, but you can close it
up again and create that dead airspace. Uh, so you know it's
it's they're just they're gorgeous, they'redurable, and you don't have to worry
about them. So, if you'relooking for a way to dress up any
room of your home, give SunburstShutters a call and ask about one of

(01:17:46):
their design consultations so you can workwith an expert to make sure you get
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(01:18:09):
visit Sunburst Shutters Houston dot com.At floor Endecore, we know pro as
your one stop source. We delivereveryday savings on over a million square feet
of instock flooring tools and installation materials. See how our flooring experts can help
save you time and money. Withour best in class selection at rock bottom
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(01:18:33):
Pro Premier Financing and unbeatable Pro Loyaltyprogram. You get what you need,
when you need it, where youneed it. Come discover floor end
Decore where we know pro Well,let me talk to you about my company,
due West and all the services thatwe offer. In fact, our
parent company is du West Services.Because we have foundation repair, which you

(01:18:57):
all know is for foundation repair,for deck aids. We've been in business
for forty five years. You know, we have plumbing, we have air
conditioning, we do concrete work,retaining walls. We have people to do
all these different projects you want tohave done around your home or business because
we have a complete commercial division aswell. That's the reason they say,

(01:19:21):
when you want the best, youcall due West at seven one three four
seven three seven one five six againat seven one three four seven, three
seven one five six. You knowa lot of window companies you can put
in new windows, but can theymake the trim look rat do they use

(01:19:41):
high end cock to seal up theair gaps? And do they offer multiple
styles and choices so you can getthe exact windows you need and want for
your home. Jim Dutton, hostof Texas Improvement for Texas Remodel Team,
they have a window division that doesnothing but windows, and they can make
sure that things like your trim,your brick, even your windowsill looks perfect

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because after all they are owned bya construction company. They carry all the
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(01:20:25):
your new Windows Today two eight onesixty one two fifty nine ninety one two
eight one six one two fifty nineninety one online at Texas Remodel Team dot
com. Are you as honest anddisciplined and informed as Jim Dutton? Well,
why in the corn bread hell aren'tyou here? He is on Texas

(01:20:53):
Home Improvement. Welcome back to TexasHome Improvement your total Home Improvement source seven
one three two one two five eightseven four. That's seven one three two
one two five eight seven four again. Any Home IMPROVEMN question you have,

(01:21:14):
feel free to pick up the phoneand give me a call. So I
mentioned, I'm right now. I'mup at the dearly sitting in front of
the in the little cabin, infront of the sunburn shutters covers the other
thing that we use here in thelittle cabin is we have a mini split
air conditioning system, the Ducklass.Now, this particular building here is probably

(01:21:41):
I don't know, twelve hundred squarefeet and the one unit it has the
one unit that's out into the livingarea kitchen. Then at one end is
two bedrooms. The other end isjust a I don't know what the heck
that room is. Dad put iton just so he could sit out and
watch the animals out the window insteare going out into the woods. But

(01:22:04):
you know that one duckless system takescare of this building perfectly. And I
get people a lot of times askingme whether they can heat and cool their
home with a Ducklass system. Youabsolutely can. The only thing I'm going
to tell you is like, ifyou want to close the bedroom doors at

(01:22:26):
night, it could tend to geta little bit warm in those bedrooms,
But if you leave the door open, it's not a problem. There are
workarounds where you can put in fansto pass through the walls to bring the
air in from the big room intothe bedrooms and stuff. So there are
ways to do that. But hey, it's just one of those things where

(01:22:53):
I love those those MANI split ducklesssystems. They do a great job for
the right applications. Anyways, let'shead out to Hampstead seven one three two
one two five eight seven four Teressa, this is Jim. How can I
help you? Hi? Yes,I have a raised, you know,

(01:23:13):
pur and beam home and it's sortof high. I mean one part of
it's like six feet off the ground. And I'm found out I have a
lot of moisture. They're not pondingwater, but a lot of moisture.
We had put a few vents underit, but it's apparently not enough.
So what would you suggest adding morevents? How you got if you've got

(01:23:35):
ponding water? Though? The dragonneeds to be dealt with. Oh okay,
okay, it's just it's just wet. I mean, it's just wet
feeling. It's oh gotcha the highhumidity? Yeah right? And what do
you have for ventilation under there?Now? Nothing except for a few vents.

(01:23:56):
But they're like ten inches round.There's about ten of them, that's
it. And how big a houseis it? Through? Three four hundred?
Oh yeah, you're not. You'renot even close to enough? Then?
Uh, you more than And I'mnot running the calculations right now,

(01:24:18):
but Yeah, if you got tenround vents, you're probably looking at having
to double the number of events youhave. Or as an option, a
fan can be put into one ofthe vents that draws air out from under

(01:24:39):
the home, and then what thatdoes is it draws air in through those
other vents, so you can movea lot more air that way, and
that that does a tremendous job asfar as controlling humidity levels and things.
And you can get those fans thathave humidistats on them so when you humidity

(01:25:00):
level goes up or the temperature goesup, the fan will kick on and
start moving air to take care ofthat problem for you. And and any
of them solar, Yeah, Ihaven't seen any that are solar, but

(01:25:20):
the fact that you have round onesthere because most of them are you know,
oblong where it's you know, Idon't know, eight inches tall and
sixteen inches long, and since yoursare round, I'm not so sure you
couldn't get away with using a solarroof vent if you had a place that

(01:25:42):
you could Yeah, if you hada place that you could mount it where
it's not sticking out like a sorethumb, but it's still going to get
sunlight hitting the solar panel. Itwill uh that that would work, okay.
So so okay, that's what Ineed to know. Thank you,
You're welcome. You take care andagain seven one three, two one two

(01:26:08):
five eight seven fourth number to call. We are getting at the end of
the show, so I don't thinkwe need to worry about taking any more
calls. I will tell you.Ventilation is a huge issue under these UH
block and based pure and beam homes, especially in newer homes. The older

(01:26:29):
homes, the finishes they put onthem, but you know, they breathed.
Now we the polyurethanes and things weuse don't breathe. The other thing
that we do wrong is now wetry to close up all events and that
builds this humidity. Used to bethey kept everything open and let the air
flow and stuff. And you knowthe complaint people have is, oh,

(01:26:51):
well, my feet get cold inthe winter months and stuff like that.
Put a pair of slippers on.That's what I do in my own house,
myle I have a concrete slab,but uh, you know, the
floors get chilly. I just putslippers on and I'm totally fine, and
it's better for the house. Betterfor you, uh and saves you a

(01:27:15):
ton of money. The last thingI will tell you as far as underneath
those old homes is do not putfiberglass or any type of insulation like that
under the cross space of the homes. Especially when you have a moistury issue.
The humidity will build up in thatinsulation and literally cause wood rot.

(01:27:40):
And you're talking about an expensive repair. You start letting it rot because of
insulation. You're replacing everything, allthe floor joys, the sub floors,
everything, and it gets unbelievably expensive. Leave it open, let it breathe,
and your home will be much betterbetter off, and you will save
yourself eight on of money. We'regonna take a quick break. We'll be

(01:28:04):
right back with more Texas home improvement. Well, you know we've been talking
about wood sealers and coating the floorsand stuff. Well, let's talk about
ready Seal real quick. This isa product that you can put on decks

(01:28:28):
and you know, gazebos and docksand any outdoor wood product. It's an
oil based product. It soaks downdeep into the wood fibers, so it
seals it from taking on moisture whilestaining. At the same time, and
by not taking on moisture, ithelps to extend the life of the wood,

(01:28:50):
keeps it looking gorgeous and is ajust a great product. Now.
I used it on a fence thatI had a piece of property I had
for sick sixteen years. I wouldrecode it every four or five years,
kept it looking gorgeous. Here atthe Deer Least, we've got an outdoor
pavilion that we've got it on rightnow. I've put that on there two

(01:29:13):
years ago. Gorgeous. It isthe way to preserve any outdoor wood.
So if you're looking for a wayto take care of outdoor lumber where you
don't have to keep replacing it,take a look at Ready Seal. It's
available at box stores, lumberyards,hardware stores, and they've got several different
shades and colors to choose from everythingfrom just a neutral color to a dark

(01:29:38):
walnut that's Ready Seal. You wantto learn more about it, go to
thchipro dot com and click on thelink for Ready Seal. At floor end
Decore, we know FRO 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

(01:30:00):
class selection at rock bottom prices andwith pro level benefits like our dedicated pro
service Team, Pro Hotline, ProPremier Financing and unbeatable pro Loyalty program.
You get what you need, whenyou need it, where you need it.
Come discover floor and decore where weknow pro I USA Insulation. You

(01:30:20):
know, if you're looking for away to make your house more energy efficient,
you want to put insulation in thewalls. He do you call the
folks at USA Insulation. Their foamworks beautifully because even if you have insulation
in the walls, the best you'regonna have is our thirteen. If you
got two by four studs, andby adding the phone that USA Insulation uses,

(01:30:45):
it compresses that insulation that's in there, seals all the air gaps and
raises that R eleven, R thirteenon up to R twenty five R thirty.
I mean that is making your houseso much more energy efficient as well
as making it quieter. So youwant to get rid of the noise,
you want to make your house moreenergy efficient, call USA Installation at three

(01:31:09):
four, six, two nine seventwenty eight hundred. That's three four six,
two nine seven twenty eight hundred.When Jim Dunton recommends a contractor,
he won't steer you Rock Dylan,Hey, Jim's falling in real quick about
one of your trusted contractors, TexasRemodel Teams. We've been working with them

(01:31:29):
for four or five years now,just project after project. He's the only
guy we call. And they dida great job on an outdoor kitchen for
us, huge patio extension, outdoorfireplace, the kitchen as well. Nothing
but good things to say about them. More constantly spreading the good word regarding
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(01:31:50):
done around the house with Texas RemodelTeam. If you're needing any type of
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a just a patio cover, highlyrecommend it. Call Texas Remodel Team now
at two eight one six one twofive nine nine one. That's two eight
one six one two five nine nineone our click the link at thhipro dot

(01:32:15):
com. Springtime in Texas, wildflowers, nice temperatures, and Jim Dutton is
in a pretty good mood. Enjoyit while you can. Here's more Texas
Home Improvement with Jim Dutton. Yeah, don't upset my mellow man. Look,

(01:32:36):
tomorrow we won't be on Texas HomeImprovement. Tomorrow. There's gonna be
an Astros baseball game. It's Astrosversus Rangers. The two markets, that's
two of the markets that Texas HomeImprovement airs on. But we'll be back
next Saturday here on seven forty kt H so uh. In the meantime,
you can still go to our websitet HI prom and get all the

(01:33:01):
help you need, or just hitthe ask Jim button to shoot me an
email question again. It's thchipro dotcom. With that, I hope you
have a great weekend. I knowI'm planning on having a wonderful weekend finishing
up up here at the Deer Least, and I look forward to visiting with
you again next Saturday with more TexasHome Improvement. Well, let's talk about

(01:33:35):
Texas Remodel Teams window division one moretime before we go, because let's face
it, a lot of times we'vegot to take a look at replacing the
windows in our home. You gotthose old single pain aluminum frame windows.
They are just ugly. It's timeto look at something new, something more
energy efficient as well. And we'regetting ready to hit summer, and that's

(01:33:56):
when that energy efficiency is becoming abigger problem. I mean, they're already
talking about conserving energy next week becauseit's going to warm up a little bit.
What the heck are they going todo when we're hitting triple digits again,
that's a different story. You wantreplacement windows, not sure if you
want vinyl, wood or fiberglass.You call Texas Remodel Teams Window Division.

(01:34:18):
They'll go over all that with youand help you pick the right product for
your home. Two eight one sixone two fifty nine ninety one. That's
two eight one six one two fiftynine ninety one for Texas Remodel Team