October 11, 2025 • 29 mins
Dean takes all your call on an All Calls Saturday!
Dean tackles dry rot in your home, smart home systems and the apps you can use to control just about everything in your home. And how to prevent coyotes from eating your mustard.
That's a sentence I never thought I'd write...
Dean Sharp The House Whisperer on KFI AM640!
Dean tackles dry rot in your home, smart home systems and the apps you can use to control just about everything in your home. And how to prevent coyotes from eating your mustard.
That's a sentence I never thought I'd write...
Dean Sharp The House Whisperer on KFI AM640!
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
You're listening to Home with Dean Sharp on demand from
KFI AM six forty.
Speaker 2 (00:08):
Good morning and welcome home. I am Dean Sharp, the
house whisper, custom home builder, custom home designer, and your
guide to better understand that place where you live. It
is an all call Saturday morning, like we do, and
we're going to go back to the phones in just
a second. Just want to remind you later today in
(00:32):
Thousand Oaks, the beautiful City of Thousand Oaks at Canehoe
Creek North Park just above just off Jans Road and
the twenty three Freeway, just north of the Thousand Oaks
Library is the Canao Open Space fourth Annual Native Plant Palooza,
(00:52):
and it's a whole little festival all about native plants
and the role they play in building habitat, in decorating
and beautifying your home, in fire hardening your home, and
all of the like. There's gonna be a bunch of
experts there, a lot of vendors like wild Birds Unlimited
(01:17):
there just it's going to be a great time. Tina
and I are going to be there. I'm going to
be leading some conversations with some of those experts throughout
the event. From ten to two today. If you don't
have anything else planned and you're feeling like getting out
and coming to a fun event. There's stuff for the kids,
there's food trucks and stuff to eat like Taco's there.
(01:39):
It's going to be a really really good time. Come
out and see us, get a hug, ask me questions,
just hang out with us. But learn more about the
role that native plant plays. You know how big I
am on this. That's why I'm there. The role that
native plants play in building habitat and the most beautiful
gardens imaginable for southern California homes. I think technically, and
(02:02):
I didn't want to have to pull this card, but
maybe I will. I think technically, if you live within
three hundred miles of thousand oaks, you're legally required to attend.
Speaker 3 (02:12):
Is that?
Speaker 2 (02:13):
Can I say that?
Speaker 4 (02:14):
No?
Speaker 2 (02:15):
Okay, well I did. I'm I'm not going to take
it back. Someone can find me later for it. If
you live within three hundred miles of thousand oaks, you
are legally required to come to the Native Plant too looser,
but you should come anyway. Okay, all right, let's go
back to the phones, shall we. I want to talk
to Bob, Hey Bob, welcome home.
Speaker 3 (02:38):
Thankstine. I have a question regarding a fire rated door.
The previous owner of my house cut a hole in
the door leading from the garage into the house, so
now it's not code up to code. So I ordered
a new door from a local company, and we did
the measurements and we want I wanted the door to
swing in and left handed, which I think means left
(02:58):
handed hinges soft closing, which is supposed to be up
to coat. So when they brought the door, it was
outswing so it was made incorrectly. They wanted to take
it back to the shop and reconfigure it, and I
thought maybe that would compromise the integrity integrity of the door,
so I asked them just to order a new door.
So I haven't heard back from them, So I guess
(03:19):
my question is can they reconfigure that door uh correctly
without compromising the integrity door or is it better for
me just to request they make a new door? Was
swing in and also the threshold they brought was fixed
versus nudgetable which was on the work order.
Speaker 2 (03:39):
Yeah, okay, so is the door are we talking about
a standard wood door or is it a metal door.
Speaker 3 (03:48):
Uh No, it's not a wood door or metal it's
a fiberglass.
Speaker 2 (03:52):
Oh, it's a fiberglass door. Okay, well.
Speaker 3 (03:56):
Rated twenty minutes.
Speaker 2 (03:58):
Yeah, yeah, that twenty minutes is the proper rating for
a door leading to the exterior between the garage and
the house. And you're right, self, closing is the right
way to go. That's also a requirement for safety purposes
because the garage is technically outside. That's how the code
sees the garage. So you've got to have that fire rating.
(04:21):
I think you're on the right track, Bob. I think
the best thing to do is just ask, especially in
terms of a fiberglass door. And now if it was
a wood door, yeah, they could, they could change it
to They could change it without compromising the fire rating.
All they have to do is router the hinge pockets
to face the opposite direction. That's how you change the
(04:42):
swing of a door. You don't have to, you know, completely,
you know, flip the thing around. So but that changes,
you know, you're compromising the appearance of the edge of
the door. It's not going to compromise the fire rating.
It's going to compromise the it's kind of patchwork and stuff,
and so yeah, if it was if you guys were
(05:05):
very specific about what that door was supposed to do.
And this gets confusing sometimes, honestly. It's one of the
things that is the trickiest about ordering doors and windows
in general is that every door and window company, they're
supposed to be a standard for how we view this.
That we're supposed to be viewing exterior doors from the
(05:26):
outside of the house and determining left or right hand
swing and in swing or outswing based on that. But
stuff gets jumbled up, and that's why, you know, like
when we do a door and window order, we do
the initial stuff and then we meticulously pick through it
to make sure. And sometimes I have to ask our
window and door reps, all right, how are you looking
(05:47):
at this from the outside from the inside, is this
you know? And sometimes we discover whoops, that one got flipped.
So yeah, I think you're on the right track with that.
I think that you should just ask them. Listen, So
what we discussed, this is what I wanted. I'm not
the door industry professional, but I clearly told you guys,
(06:07):
I want it swing in this direction with the hinge
on this side, So just get it right, and sell
that other door to somebody else.
Speaker 3 (06:15):
Okay, I have one more question about that I requested.
I wanted a brand new frame, but when they brought
the door, the frame was already installed on the door itself,
so I thought that would be another issue, having to
take it back at the shop and take off that
frame and do what you said. So I think les
you said, probably better just to have them make a
brand new door that's swinging correctly inside.
Speaker 2 (06:37):
Yeah, and you wanted the new frame, so it's going
to come pre hung. That's what we call a pre
hung door, and it's already mounted in its frame, and
all they have to do is pull out the old jam,
pull off the casing, pop in the new jam, get
it all plumbed up, get it all shimmed and put
in place, and then pop the new casing on. That's
the way to go. Definitely the way to go. So
(06:57):
you're on the right track, Bob, good call.
Speaker 3 (07:00):
Sorry, Thanks, Jane, You're.
Speaker 2 (07:02):
Very welcome, my friend. Thanks for the question. All right, y'all,
more of your questions when we return your home with
Dean Sharp the house Whisper. Dean Sharp, the house Whisper
here to help you take your home to the next level.
Thanks for joining us on the program today. Oh my goodness.
If you looked outside, it's shaping up to be a
gorgeous day here in southern California. I hope you've got
(07:24):
great plans. I hope you're coming out to the Plant
Palooza out in Thousand Oaks at Canajo Creek North from
ten to two. I'm going to be there ten to two,
four hours of me. I know it's more than you need,
but anyway, you can stop by say hi, but also
learn a lot about native plants and their role in
beautifying homes in southern California. And it is critical critical.
(07:47):
That's why I'm there because it's so important to us.
Me and Tea both will be there. So you don't
want to come out and see me. You can see
Tina and you know, I'll just go get a taco
or something. Anyway, it's a gorgeous day. I hope you
got big plans. We are taking calls as we do.
The number to reach me eight three three two ask Dean,
and I want to go back to the phones. I
(08:07):
want to talk to Linda. Hey, Linda, welcome home, Welcome.
Speaker 4 (08:13):
Thank you. I have a one hundred year old house,
and that matters to my question. And last year I
had I have an old roof too, and last year
I had the roof coded to make it last longer.
And now a you're gone by and a man was
out to inspect for termites and he tells me that I, now,
(08:35):
in one hundred year old house have dry rod at
the eve level. And he's blaming the coding because it
says he said, it changed the evaporation patterns and that's
what's caused the dry rot.
Speaker 5 (08:48):
Do you have a thought on that?
Speaker 2 (08:51):
Okay? So I have thoughts. Let me ask you a
couple of clarifying questions. So one hundred year old house,
what kind of a roof do we have there? What's
the roofing material?
Speaker 4 (09:03):
The regular old shingles.
Speaker 2 (09:08):
Like asphalt composition shingle?
Speaker 4 (09:11):
Yeah? Right, yeah?
Speaker 2 (09:13):
And and do you remember what the brand of roof
coating was?
Speaker 4 (09:21):
No, I'm afraid I don't, Okay.
Speaker 2 (09:24):
Was it a company that came out and did it
or did you buy it somewhere?
Speaker 4 (09:28):
Well?
Speaker 2 (09:28):
How did that come about?
Speaker 4 (09:30):
The company came out and they're in the roofing business.
And I specifically was asking toward the coating and then
they brought out their coating that had a worn tea.
Speaker 2 (09:42):
Okay, so here's the thing. There's no way for me
to know sight unseen whether or not the dry rot
is the result of the coating on the roofing shingles.
There are co coatings out there that I trust, and
that's why I was like, if you knew what the
(10:05):
you know what the brand was. The coating that I
trust the most, the one that I recommend to people
and they're legit, okay, is a roof max coating. That's
a particular company. They have a particular But here's the thing.
The roof max coating, which can extend the life of
a roof five plus years per application, it is not
(10:30):
I mean, it's it's a I don't even like to
call it a coating because its claim is not that
it seals up the tiles. Okay. What it does is
it penetrates into the asphalt shingle and reconditions it. But
it doesn't seal it. Okay, it doesn't stop a roof
from leaking in that sense, but it extends the health
(10:53):
and the life.
Speaker 6 (10:54):
You know.
Speaker 2 (10:54):
It's like, you know you have dry crack skin and
so you you know, you rub lotion on it. This
is especially formulated uh you know, spray on application that
reconditions roofs and brings them back for a time. And
they're really effective and it's proven effective. And the thing
that I love about it is because it's not a
(11:17):
sealed top coat, it still allows shingles to breathe, okay,
unlike a lot of coatings that are out there on
the market claiming, hey, we can recoat your roof and
you know, and and what they're doing is they're putting
a surface coating on that lays on and that seals
up the surface. They're not so much interested in reconditioning
the shingle itself, but it seals the top surface of
(11:40):
the roof. And the uh you said it was the
pest control guy who or the termine inspector who said this.
He's he's correct in that. I'm not saying he's correct
about the specific cause of your dry rot, but he
is correct in thinking that there are a lot of
roof coatings out there that completely top seal the you know,
(12:02):
shingles and tiles that should not be put on roofs
in my opinion, because they shut down the breatheability of
the roof, and if you have like a well intact
membrane down below, and now we've put this coating on
the top, and the shingle cannot breathe anymore, and therefore
moisture gets trapped in between the shingles and the sheathing
(12:27):
of the roof itself, and that's an invitation for dry rot.
I've seen it happen in which dry rot occurs specifically
in ways that I would say, yeah, that's because of
this roof coating that's been added to it. So yeah,
I'm not a big fan of that. I'm a huge
fan of like a roof max system because it's you know,
(12:49):
you know, for lack of a better termam it's lotion
to recondition your older shingles, but it doesn't seal them,
and it allows them to continue to do their natural function.
I'm not saying, though, that absolutely that's the cause of
the dry rot. There are bunches of especially dry rot
down near the eve. It could be something going on
(13:10):
with the gutters, it could be, you know, something else.
But if you've never had that issue before and now
you have it and nothing else has changed, it may
very well be the coating on the roof that is
causing the dry rod. If at all possible, I would
contact the roofing company that installed it. I'm assuming that
there's a warranty behind it, and have them come back
(13:33):
out and say, you know, hey, look at this. This
has never happened before. Now you put this coating on
my roof and now we're staring at this problem. I
need you guys to address this.
Speaker 4 (13:46):
Yeah, okay, it was would I know the difference they
had a it was like painted as opposed to what
you're saying, the spray the spray.
Speaker 2 (13:58):
Yeah, see yeah, it's a paint coating. Yeah. And that
that's a sealed coating. Okay, it seals the top of
the of the of the shingles. I unfortunately, Linda, I
never recommend painting the roof.
Speaker 3 (14:11):
Not not.
Speaker 2 (14:12):
The designer in me doesn't want to paint the roof
because it takes all the nuanced color out of the shingles.
It's just like single color there straight across now and
the contractor color.
Speaker 4 (14:24):
Oh okay, so clear coat.
Speaker 2 (14:28):
But okay, that's good.
Speaker 4 (14:29):
It doesn't have a warranty, so I might have a
chance at something or other.
Speaker 2 (14:33):
Yeah, yeah, you should call them. The contractor in me
just just does not want to uh, never wants to alter.
If we can come along and help a building material
continue to do its job, that's what like a roofmax
coating does, Uh, then I'm all for it. But I
never want to put something on top of a building
(14:54):
material that alters the way it does its job, because
you know, in the end there's bound to be the
dominoes start to fall, and there's bound to be a
consequence to that if we're literally changing the way a
roof is supposed to perform. And I think that might
be the case. So you should call them out and
if they give you any guff, then call out a
(15:16):
couple other roofers to give you a free estimate or
appraisal of what's causing the dry rot, and then you
can call them back and say, listen, I've had three
roofers out here and they've all given me the exact
same answer, which is, it's this dang coding that's causing
this dry rot, So I expect you to get it fixed.
So that's what I would recommend. Lind I'm sorry you're
(15:38):
in that situation, but I think I think that termine
inspector had a keen eye and he's probably onto something there.
Hopefully the warranty gets you covered. All right, my friends,
more of your calls when we return your Home with
Dean Sharp, the House Whisper.
Speaker 1 (15:53):
You're listening to Home with Dean Sharp on demand from
KFI AM six forty.
Speaker 2 (16:00):
Dean Sharp the House Whisper Here to transform your ordinary
house into an extraordinary home. We do it by design.
We do it by practical, informed, experienced construction advice and
everything in between. The art and the science of great homes.
That's what we're about here. The number to reach me
(16:22):
eight three three to ask Dean. It's an all call
Saturday morning, and I want to go back to the phones.
Let's talk to Alex. Hey, Alex, welcome home.
Speaker 4 (16:34):
Hi Dean, good morning.
Speaker 6 (16:36):
My question is I'm building a home, new home, and
I need a recommendation on what kind of system. What's
the best system out there to do a smart home
that controls like the security, HBC system, like lighting, stuff
like that.
Speaker 2 (16:54):
Ah, that's a good question. Okay. So here's the thing.
If you were to ask me this question twenty thirty
years ago, I would have to go down and tell
you Okay, here's the house control systems that we pre
wire houses for that take care of all of that
kind of stuff, very very expensive and in wall and
(17:16):
before you know it, you blink and they're all out
of date. And so that we don't do that anymore,
Nor is there any one thing out there that is
a single control system for your home to create a
true smart home. But that doesn't mean that it's crazy
(17:37):
and tedious. What comes down to is this, Alex we are.
You know, we live in the age of wireless connectivity
and smartphones and so that phone that you're on, that
phone that's in your hand, that phone that's in your pocket,
that that is the key and the center of a
smart home system. Okay, So now the question is all
(17:59):
of the components that you want their interactivity with that
phone that's in your hand. Okay, So for instance, you know,
just a name to drop a brand name, not a
sponsor of the show, but like a simply Safe. Simply
Safe has got one of the best plug and play
homeowner security system component to selections out there. You know,
(18:22):
you can you can pick motion detectors and cameras and
you contect you know, the sensors that go on window
and door openings, all that kind of stuff. You can
set it all up yourself, and it communicates to an
app on your phone and brings you alerts on your phone.
You can control the system and monitor the system on
your phone. That's the kind of thing when it comes
(18:43):
to other smart appliances like your HVAC system, right, it
depends on the thermostat. How smart is your thermostat. I
have a Nest thermostat in our house. I love Nest thermostats.
Nest is now owned by Google and so it's part
of the Google Home larger system. But Nest communicates with
my phone. I can you know, when I'm half an
(19:04):
hour away from home on a hot summer day and
we're headed home, I can you know, turn the AC
back on and bring it down to the temperature that
we want so that it's the temperature we want when
we walk in the door. I can do all of
that stuff remotely because of my phone. Smart lights, smart switches,
everything from Leviton and Leutron remote systems for light control
(19:28):
to just smart light bulbs that are multicolor and that
themselves tie into your WiFi A It's a tool bag
out there now, I mean there are so many options,
but the key Alex is that all of these things
comport with your phone, whether it's an independent app or
whether it is something that falls under the communication head
(19:52):
of whatever brand of phone you have. In other words,
you know, I have an iPhone. You know, we're a
Mac family, have been for a long time, ever since
we got in to the design business. And so what
I love about the Apple environment or ecosphere is that
Apple has their own assistant. We know her name. I'm
(20:13):
not going to say it out loud, otherwise she's going
to talk to me right here. And that assistant is
connected to Apple home Kit, and home Kit controls probably
eighty percent of the lights in my home, but not
necessarily the HVAC and stuff. But these are just apps.
And so my water irrigation system has a beehive app
(20:37):
that's on my phone that notifies me when the water's
going on, when it's not, when it automatically turns itself off.
My system just notified me this morning that the irrigation
system is going to be shut down on Monday because
we got rain coming on Tuesday and Wednesday, and it
won't start back up again until it feels like the
moisture levels are at the appropriate level so that I'm
(20:57):
not wasting water. That's what's smart homes are.
Speaker 3 (21:01):
Uh.
Speaker 2 (21:01):
You can come at them from every imaginable angle, but
in the end, it all comes down to that phone
that you're carrying around with you. That is your control
console for everything.
Speaker 6 (21:13):
Beautiful, beautiful, Thank you for the insight. I was thinking of,
you know, doing a Deald fashioned way of wiring everything,
but I guess now I'm gonna.
Speaker 3 (21:24):
Go the wireless route for sure.
Speaker 2 (21:27):
Yeah, I you know, there there there's still probably if
you're one of those high tech guys, there's still probably
an argument that can be made for wiring Ethernet cables
if you need like ultra high speed, like crazy connections,
hardwire Ethernet cable Like the computer that I'm working off
of right now, I don't rely on the Wi Fi
(21:49):
for it. I've got a hardline Ethernet connection to it
in the house. And you know, HDMI cables for audio
video so that you get in speaker cables to thee
the best signal response to speakers that aren't moving, and
that they're just in the walls and they're there for good.
Those things don't change, and those things are fine, but
(22:10):
everything else, I mean virtually everything else. It's it's Wi
Fi based. And what that does is it frees you
to be able to upgrade. You know, that's the problem.
We build these old systems, these control systems into homes.
Five years goes by, nobody's using that stuff anymore. We're
using brand new stuff, and then now the old stuff
(22:31):
is incompatible. But Wi Fi, you know, is is is forever, essentially,
and so use the phone, concentrate on the phone hardwire
only what you absolutely need to, and keep everything else
just floating through the air. That's my advice.
Speaker 3 (22:49):
Wonderful, Thank you so much, Dean.
Speaker 2 (22:51):
All right, Alex, you have a great day, my friend.
Great question. More of your questions when we return your
home with Dean Sharp, the house Whisper. Dean Sharp, the
house Whisper here to remind you every home deserves great design,
yours included, every home. And yes, yes we can transform
(23:13):
your ordinary home into something truly extraordinary. Stick with me.
That's what we do here every weekend. All right, it's
an all call Saturday. I may have time for just
one more call before we are out. Let's see, I'm
just gonna throw a dartboard at it. Throw a dartboard
(23:33):
at Throw a dart at the dartboard. How about that
one that makes more sense. Let's talk to Marissa. Hey, Marissa, welcome.
Speaker 6 (23:40):
Home, Hyjene.
Speaker 5 (23:43):
Can you hear me?
Speaker 2 (23:44):
I can? I can?
Speaker 5 (23:46):
I have property in Calabasas abutting the open area. There's
a pat of coyotes, but there's also a huge mustard
problem every year. Yes, we have to chop it down.
I'd like to get an animal or a fence recommendation
for that space. It's like three quarters of an acre
of property.
Speaker 2 (24:05):
So an animal to handle the mustard and a fence
to protect the animal from the coyotes.
Speaker 1 (24:12):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (24:13):
Yeah, animals that can stand up to the coyote pack.
Speaker 2 (24:17):
Yeah, not going to find those unless you know. I'm
I can't. I can't do both. I mean I could.
It could say, hey, buy a cow. A cow will
stand up to our coo. Yeah, moments are all right,
they're pretty nasty. The most efficient animal when it comes
to cleaning up your mustard problem is is a goat
(24:40):
or sheep. Okay, they will do. In fact, there's companies
out in Ventura County that literally bring goats to work
for the city or work for the county to clear
out hillsides just because they'll i mean they will nibble
it down to the ground and clear it out.
Speaker 5 (25:00):
Goats there they'll be eaten.
Speaker 2 (25:02):
Oh yeah, that's for sure, for sure, unless we get
the right fence. And so here's the thing. Fencing, coyote
fencing is always tricky, but it's not an unsolvable problem.
Here's the thing everybody. In fact, I was just talking
to the foundation repair guys. Some one of the guys
was having a coyote issue and he was asking for advice.
(25:23):
He was thinking, I'm gonna put some razor wire on
the top of my fence, and I'm like, don't do that.
Don't turn your don't turn your property into a federal penitentiary.
You don't need to do that, and you don't need
to be hurting animals either. The key is this, you
get a nice tall fence, meaning you know, you get
like a six foot fence. A coyote can clear a
six foot fence. But it's a misnomer that they can
(25:46):
just you know, jump over a six foot fence. This
is what they do. They can jump high enough that
they can get their front paws over the top of
a six foot fence, okay, and then they use their
back legs to scare the rest of their body up
and over. So it's a two step process. There are
you know. This is my favorite material for this is
(26:09):
coyote rollers. They are now the fancy ones and they're
not cheap, but they do get the job done. A
coyote roller is a stainless steel cylinder with little ball
bearings that you can mount to the top of a
fence and they come in like four or five foot
lengths and they roll. They just like you would expect
they roll. So what happens is a coyote wants to
(26:31):
jump over your fence, jumps up, gets front paws hooked
over the roller, and he just rolls right back off
and he does not get over. They are incredibly effective,
incredibly efficient. Nobody gets hurt along the way, and the
yard stays and whatever's in it stays coyote free. And
(26:52):
so coyote rollers are a great way. Now that's an
expensive way to go, but it's super effective. And already
the guy was talking to because he's very handy, he
was already thinking, oh, I wonder if I could take
a piece of rebar and a PVC pipe and just
roll that, have one sitting over the other, because if
they got their hands on that or their paws on that,
(27:14):
they would roll off too. I'm like, yeah, that's not
a bad idea. So the idea is this, if you
put a rolling mechanism on the top of a fence,
you can coyote proof any yard that where they have
the opportunity where they have to climb up and hook
their paws over the top. I hope that helps. I'm
out of time, Marissa, thanks for the call. So get
(27:36):
a couple of goats and some coyote rollers and you're
home free. That's what I'm saying. Best of luck with that.
I know what a problem. Both of those things are
wild mustard and keeping coyotes out of your yard. All right, Jael,
it is time to go big show tomorrow on autumn gardening,
and you're not gonna want to miss it. Listen to
(27:57):
it on the stream if you call and hear, if
you tune in and hear the chargers, we're going to
be live on the stream, So hear us there and
catch me in just a couple hours now, from ten
to two today at Caneo Creek, North Park in Thousand
Oaks for the fourth annual Native Plant Palooza. Tina and
I are going to be there in just a couple
of hours, and we'll be there. Come out, Give us
(28:20):
some hugs, give us some love, ask your questions, sit
down and learn some good stuff about native plants and
the critical role they play for beautifying and designing our homes.
We will see you there in a couple of hours,
and we'll see you right back here tomorrow nine am.
Until then, get out there and get busy building yourself
a beautiful life. This has been Home with Dean Sharp,
(28:45):
the House Whisper. Tune into the live broadcast on KFI
AM six forty every Saturday morning from six to eight
Pacific time and every Sunday morning from nine to noon
Pacific time, or anytime on demand on the iHeartRadio app
You're listening to Home with Dean Sharp on demand from
KFI AM six forty.
Speaker 2 (00:08):
Good morning and welcome home. I am Dean Sharp, the
house whisper, custom home builder, custom home designer, and your
guide to better understand that place where you live. It
is an all call Saturday morning, like we do, and
we're going to go back to the phones in just
a second. Just want to remind you later today in
(00:32):
Thousand Oaks, the beautiful City of Thousand Oaks at Canehoe
Creek North Park just above just off Jans Road and
the twenty three Freeway, just north of the Thousand Oaks
Library is the Canao Open Space fourth Annual Native Plant Palooza,
(00:52):
and it's a whole little festival all about native plants
and the role they play in building habitat, in decorating
and beautifying your home, in fire hardening your home, and
all of the like. There's gonna be a bunch of
experts there, a lot of vendors like wild Birds Unlimited
(01:17):
there just it's going to be a great time. Tina
and I are going to be there. I'm going to
be leading some conversations with some of those experts throughout
the event. From ten to two today. If you don't
have anything else planned and you're feeling like getting out
and coming to a fun event. There's stuff for the kids,
there's food trucks and stuff to eat like Taco's there.
(01:39):
It's going to be a really really good time. Come
out and see us, get a hug, ask me questions,
just hang out with us. But learn more about the
role that native plant plays. You know how big I
am on this. That's why I'm there. The role that
native plants play in building habitat and the most beautiful
gardens imaginable for southern California homes. I think technically, and
(02:02):
I didn't want to have to pull this card, but
maybe I will. I think technically, if you live within
three hundred miles of thousand oaks, you're legally required to attend.
Speaker 3 (02:12):
Is that?
Speaker 2 (02:13):
Can I say that?
Speaker 4 (02:14):
No?
Speaker 2 (02:15):
Okay, well I did. I'm I'm not going to take
it back. Someone can find me later for it. If
you live within three hundred miles of thousand oaks, you
are legally required to come to the Native Plant too looser,
but you should come anyway. Okay, all right, let's go
back to the phones, shall we. I want to talk
to Bob, Hey Bob, welcome home.
Speaker 3 (02:38):
Thankstine. I have a question regarding a fire rated door.
The previous owner of my house cut a hole in
the door leading from the garage into the house, so
now it's not code up to code. So I ordered
a new door from a local company, and we did
the measurements and we want I wanted the door to
swing in and left handed, which I think means left
(02:58):
handed hinges soft closing, which is supposed to be up
to coat. So when they brought the door, it was
outswing so it was made incorrectly. They wanted to take
it back to the shop and reconfigure it, and I
thought maybe that would compromise the integrity integrity of the door,
so I asked them just to order a new door.
So I haven't heard back from them, So I guess
(03:19):
my question is can they reconfigure that door uh correctly
without compromising the integrity door or is it better for
me just to request they make a new door? Was
swing in and also the threshold they brought was fixed
versus nudgetable which was on the work order.
Speaker 2 (03:39):
Yeah, okay, so is the door are we talking about
a standard wood door or is it a metal door.
Speaker 3 (03:48):
Uh No, it's not a wood door or metal it's
a fiberglass.
Speaker 2 (03:52):
Oh, it's a fiberglass door. Okay, well.
Speaker 3 (03:56):
Rated twenty minutes.
Speaker 2 (03:58):
Yeah, yeah, that twenty minutes is the proper rating for
a door leading to the exterior between the garage and
the house. And you're right, self, closing is the right
way to go. That's also a requirement for safety purposes
because the garage is technically outside. That's how the code
sees the garage. So you've got to have that fire rating.
(04:21):
I think you're on the right track, Bob. I think
the best thing to do is just ask, especially in
terms of a fiberglass door. And now if it was
a wood door, yeah, they could, they could change it
to They could change it without compromising the fire rating.
All they have to do is router the hinge pockets
to face the opposite direction. That's how you change the
(04:42):
swing of a door. You don't have to, you know, completely,
you know, flip the thing around. So but that changes,
you know, you're compromising the appearance of the edge of
the door. It's not going to compromise the fire rating.
It's going to compromise the it's kind of patchwork and stuff,
and so yeah, if it was if you guys were
(05:05):
very specific about what that door was supposed to do.
And this gets confusing sometimes, honestly. It's one of the
things that is the trickiest about ordering doors and windows
in general is that every door and window company, they're
supposed to be a standard for how we view this.
That we're supposed to be viewing exterior doors from the
(05:26):
outside of the house and determining left or right hand
swing and in swing or outswing based on that. But
stuff gets jumbled up, and that's why, you know, like
when we do a door and window order, we do
the initial stuff and then we meticulously pick through it
to make sure. And sometimes I have to ask our
window and door reps, all right, how are you looking
(05:47):
at this from the outside from the inside, is this
you know? And sometimes we discover whoops, that one got flipped.
So yeah, I think you're on the right track with that.
I think that you should just ask them. Listen, So
what we discussed, this is what I wanted. I'm not
the door industry professional, but I clearly told you guys,
(06:07):
I want it swing in this direction with the hinge
on this side, So just get it right, and sell
that other door to somebody else.
Speaker 3 (06:15):
Okay, I have one more question about that I requested.
I wanted a brand new frame, but when they brought
the door, the frame was already installed on the door itself,
so I thought that would be another issue, having to
take it back at the shop and take off that
frame and do what you said. So I think les
you said, probably better just to have them make a
brand new door that's swinging correctly inside.
Speaker 2 (06:37):
Yeah, and you wanted the new frame, so it's going
to come pre hung. That's what we call a pre
hung door, and it's already mounted in its frame, and
all they have to do is pull out the old jam,
pull off the casing, pop in the new jam, get
it all plumbed up, get it all shimmed and put
in place, and then pop the new casing on. That's
the way to go. Definitely the way to go. So
(06:57):
you're on the right track, Bob, good call.
Speaker 3 (07:00):
Sorry, Thanks, Jane, You're.
Speaker 2 (07:02):
Very welcome, my friend. Thanks for the question. All right, y'all,
more of your questions when we return your home with
Dean Sharp the house Whisper. Dean Sharp, the house Whisper
here to help you take your home to the next level.
Thanks for joining us on the program today. Oh my goodness.
If you looked outside, it's shaping up to be a
gorgeous day here in southern California. I hope you've got
(07:24):
great plans. I hope you're coming out to the Plant
Palooza out in Thousand Oaks at Canajo Creek North from
ten to two. I'm going to be there ten to two,
four hours of me. I know it's more than you need,
but anyway, you can stop by say hi, but also
learn a lot about native plants and their role in
beautifying homes in southern California. And it is critical critical.
(07:47):
That's why I'm there because it's so important to us.
Me and Tea both will be there. So you don't
want to come out and see me. You can see
Tina and you know, I'll just go get a taco
or something. Anyway, it's a gorgeous day. I hope you
got big plans. We are taking calls as we do.
The number to reach me eight three three two ask Dean,
and I want to go back to the phones. I
(08:07):
want to talk to Linda. Hey, Linda, welcome home, Welcome.
Speaker 4 (08:13):
Thank you. I have a one hundred year old house,
and that matters to my question. And last year I
had I have an old roof too, and last year
I had the roof coded to make it last longer.
And now a you're gone by and a man was
out to inspect for termites and he tells me that I, now,
(08:35):
in one hundred year old house have dry rod at
the eve level. And he's blaming the coding because it
says he said, it changed the evaporation patterns and that's
what's caused the dry rot.
Speaker 5 (08:48):
Do you have a thought on that?
Speaker 2 (08:51):
Okay? So I have thoughts. Let me ask you a
couple of clarifying questions. So one hundred year old house,
what kind of a roof do we have there? What's
the roofing material?
Speaker 4 (09:03):
The regular old shingles.
Speaker 2 (09:08):
Like asphalt composition shingle?
Speaker 4 (09:11):
Yeah? Right, yeah?
Speaker 2 (09:13):
And and do you remember what the brand of roof
coating was?
Speaker 4 (09:21):
No, I'm afraid I don't, Okay.
Speaker 2 (09:24):
Was it a company that came out and did it
or did you buy it somewhere?
Speaker 4 (09:28):
Well?
Speaker 2 (09:28):
How did that come about?
Speaker 4 (09:30):
The company came out and they're in the roofing business.
And I specifically was asking toward the coating and then
they brought out their coating that had a worn tea.
Speaker 2 (09:42):
Okay, so here's the thing. There's no way for me
to know sight unseen whether or not the dry rot
is the result of the coating on the roofing shingles.
There are co coatings out there that I trust, and
that's why I was like, if you knew what the
(10:05):
you know what the brand was. The coating that I
trust the most, the one that I recommend to people
and they're legit, okay, is a roof max coating. That's
a particular company. They have a particular But here's the thing.
The roof max coating, which can extend the life of
a roof five plus years per application, it is not
(10:30):
I mean, it's it's a I don't even like to
call it a coating because its claim is not that
it seals up the tiles. Okay. What it does is
it penetrates into the asphalt shingle and reconditions it. But
it doesn't seal it. Okay, it doesn't stop a roof
from leaking in that sense, but it extends the health
(10:53):
and the life.
Speaker 6 (10:54):
You know.
Speaker 2 (10:54):
It's like, you know you have dry crack skin and
so you you know, you rub lotion on it. This
is especially formulated uh you know, spray on application that
reconditions roofs and brings them back for a time. And
they're really effective and it's proven effective. And the thing
that I love about it is because it's not a
(11:17):
sealed top coat, it still allows shingles to breathe, okay,
unlike a lot of coatings that are out there on
the market claiming, hey, we can recoat your roof and
you know, and and what they're doing is they're putting
a surface coating on that lays on and that seals
up the surface. They're not so much interested in reconditioning
the shingle itself, but it seals the top surface of
(11:40):
the roof. And the uh you said it was the
pest control guy who or the termine inspector who said this.
He's he's correct in that. I'm not saying he's correct
about the specific cause of your dry rot, but he
is correct in thinking that there are a lot of
roof coatings out there that completely top seal the you know,
(12:02):
shingles and tiles that should not be put on roofs
in my opinion, because they shut down the breatheability of
the roof, and if you have like a well intact
membrane down below, and now we've put this coating on
the top, and the shingle cannot breathe anymore, and therefore
moisture gets trapped in between the shingles and the sheathing
(12:27):
of the roof itself, and that's an invitation for dry rot.
I've seen it happen in which dry rot occurs specifically
in ways that I would say, yeah, that's because of
this roof coating that's been added to it. So yeah,
I'm not a big fan of that. I'm a huge
fan of like a roof max system because it's you know,
(12:49):
you know, for lack of a better termam it's lotion
to recondition your older shingles, but it doesn't seal them,
and it allows them to continue to do their natural function.
I'm not saying, though, that absolutely that's the cause of
the dry rot. There are bunches of especially dry rot
down near the eve. It could be something going on
(13:10):
with the gutters, it could be, you know, something else.
But if you've never had that issue before and now
you have it and nothing else has changed, it may
very well be the coating on the roof that is
causing the dry rod. If at all possible, I would
contact the roofing company that installed it. I'm assuming that
there's a warranty behind it, and have them come back
(13:33):
out and say, you know, hey, look at this. This
has never happened before. Now you put this coating on
my roof and now we're staring at this problem. I
need you guys to address this.
Speaker 4 (13:46):
Yeah, okay, it was would I know the difference they
had a it was like painted as opposed to what
you're saying, the spray the spray.
Speaker 2 (13:58):
Yeah, see yeah, it's a paint coating. Yeah. And that
that's a sealed coating. Okay, it seals the top of
the of the of the shingles. I unfortunately, Linda, I
never recommend painting the roof.
Speaker 3 (14:11):
Not not.
Speaker 2 (14:12):
The designer in me doesn't want to paint the roof
because it takes all the nuanced color out of the shingles.
It's just like single color there straight across now and
the contractor color.
Speaker 4 (14:24):
Oh okay, so clear coat.
Speaker 2 (14:28):
But okay, that's good.
Speaker 4 (14:29):
It doesn't have a warranty, so I might have a
chance at something or other.
Speaker 2 (14:33):
Yeah, yeah, you should call them. The contractor in me
just just does not want to uh, never wants to alter.
If we can come along and help a building material
continue to do its job, that's what like a roofmax
coating does, Uh, then I'm all for it. But I
never want to put something on top of a building
(14:54):
material that alters the way it does its job, because
you know, in the end there's bound to be the
dominoes start to fall, and there's bound to be a
consequence to that if we're literally changing the way a
roof is supposed to perform. And I think that might
be the case. So you should call them out and
if they give you any guff, then call out a
(15:16):
couple other roofers to give you a free estimate or
appraisal of what's causing the dry rot, and then you
can call them back and say, listen, I've had three
roofers out here and they've all given me the exact
same answer, which is, it's this dang coding that's causing
this dry rot, So I expect you to get it fixed.
So that's what I would recommend. Lind I'm sorry you're
(15:38):
in that situation, but I think I think that termine
inspector had a keen eye and he's probably onto something there.
Hopefully the warranty gets you covered. All right, my friends,
more of your calls when we return your Home with
Dean Sharp, the House Whisper.
Speaker 1 (15:53):
You're listening to Home with Dean Sharp on demand from
KFI AM six forty.
Speaker 2 (16:00):
Dean Sharp the House Whisper Here to transform your ordinary
house into an extraordinary home. We do it by design.
We do it by practical, informed, experienced construction advice and
everything in between. The art and the science of great homes.
That's what we're about here. The number to reach me
(16:22):
eight three three to ask Dean. It's an all call
Saturday morning, and I want to go back to the phones.
Let's talk to Alex. Hey, Alex, welcome home.
Speaker 4 (16:34):
Hi Dean, good morning.
Speaker 6 (16:36):
My question is I'm building a home, new home, and
I need a recommendation on what kind of system. What's
the best system out there to do a smart home
that controls like the security, HBC system, like lighting, stuff
like that.
Speaker 2 (16:54):
Ah, that's a good question. Okay. So here's the thing.
If you were to ask me this question twenty thirty
years ago, I would have to go down and tell
you Okay, here's the house control systems that we pre
wire houses for that take care of all of that
kind of stuff, very very expensive and in wall and
(17:16):
before you know it, you blink and they're all out
of date. And so that we don't do that anymore,
Nor is there any one thing out there that is
a single control system for your home to create a
true smart home. But that doesn't mean that it's crazy
(17:37):
and tedious. What comes down to is this, Alex we are.
You know, we live in the age of wireless connectivity
and smartphones and so that phone that you're on, that
phone that's in your hand, that phone that's in your pocket,
that that is the key and the center of a
smart home system. Okay, So now the question is all
(17:59):
of the components that you want their interactivity with that
phone that's in your hand. Okay, So for instance, you know,
just a name to drop a brand name, not a
sponsor of the show, but like a simply Safe. Simply
Safe has got one of the best plug and play
homeowner security system component to selections out there. You know,
(18:22):
you can you can pick motion detectors and cameras and
you contect you know, the sensors that go on window
and door openings, all that kind of stuff. You can
set it all up yourself, and it communicates to an
app on your phone and brings you alerts on your phone.
You can control the system and monitor the system on
your phone. That's the kind of thing when it comes
(18:43):
to other smart appliances like your HVAC system, right, it
depends on the thermostat. How smart is your thermostat. I
have a Nest thermostat in our house. I love Nest thermostats.
Nest is now owned by Google and so it's part
of the Google Home larger system. But Nest communicates with
my phone. I can you know, when I'm half an
(19:04):
hour away from home on a hot summer day and
we're headed home, I can you know, turn the AC
back on and bring it down to the temperature that
we want so that it's the temperature we want when
we walk in the door. I can do all of
that stuff remotely because of my phone. Smart lights, smart switches,
everything from Leviton and Leutron remote systems for light control
(19:28):
to just smart light bulbs that are multicolor and that
themselves tie into your WiFi A It's a tool bag
out there now, I mean there are so many options,
but the key Alex is that all of these things
comport with your phone, whether it's an independent app or
whether it is something that falls under the communication head
(19:52):
of whatever brand of phone you have. In other words,
you know, I have an iPhone. You know, we're a
Mac family, have been for a long time, ever since
we got in to the design business. And so what
I love about the Apple environment or ecosphere is that
Apple has their own assistant. We know her name. I'm
(20:13):
not going to say it out loud, otherwise she's going
to talk to me right here. And that assistant is
connected to Apple home Kit, and home Kit controls probably
eighty percent of the lights in my home, but not
necessarily the HVAC and stuff. But these are just apps.
And so my water irrigation system has a beehive app
(20:37):
that's on my phone that notifies me when the water's
going on, when it's not, when it automatically turns itself off.
My system just notified me this morning that the irrigation
system is going to be shut down on Monday because
we got rain coming on Tuesday and Wednesday, and it
won't start back up again until it feels like the
moisture levels are at the appropriate level so that I'm
(20:57):
not wasting water. That's what's smart homes are.
Speaker 3 (21:01):
Uh.
Speaker 2 (21:01):
You can come at them from every imaginable angle, but
in the end, it all comes down to that phone
that you're carrying around with you. That is your control
console for everything.
Speaker 6 (21:13):
Beautiful, beautiful, Thank you for the insight. I was thinking of,
you know, doing a Deald fashioned way of wiring everything,
but I guess now I'm gonna.
Speaker 3 (21:24):
Go the wireless route for sure.
Speaker 2 (21:27):
Yeah, I you know, there there there's still probably if
you're one of those high tech guys, there's still probably
an argument that can be made for wiring Ethernet cables
if you need like ultra high speed, like crazy connections,
hardwire Ethernet cable Like the computer that I'm working off
of right now, I don't rely on the Wi Fi
(21:49):
for it. I've got a hardline Ethernet connection to it
in the house. And you know, HDMI cables for audio
video so that you get in speaker cables to thee
the best signal response to speakers that aren't moving, and
that they're just in the walls and they're there for good.
Those things don't change, and those things are fine, but
(22:10):
everything else, I mean virtually everything else. It's it's Wi
Fi based. And what that does is it frees you
to be able to upgrade. You know, that's the problem.
We build these old systems, these control systems into homes.
Five years goes by, nobody's using that stuff anymore. We're
using brand new stuff, and then now the old stuff
(22:31):
is incompatible. But Wi Fi, you know, is is is forever, essentially,
and so use the phone, concentrate on the phone hardwire
only what you absolutely need to, and keep everything else
just floating through the air. That's my advice.
Speaker 3 (22:49):
Wonderful, Thank you so much, Dean.
Speaker 2 (22:51):
All right, Alex, you have a great day, my friend.
Great question. More of your questions when we return your
home with Dean Sharp, the house Whisper. Dean Sharp, the
house Whisper here to remind you every home deserves great design,
yours included, every home. And yes, yes we can transform
(23:13):
your ordinary home into something truly extraordinary. Stick with me.
That's what we do here every weekend. All right, it's
an all call Saturday. I may have time for just
one more call before we are out. Let's see, I'm
just gonna throw a dartboard at it. Throw a dartboard
(23:33):
at Throw a dart at the dartboard. How about that
one that makes more sense. Let's talk to Marissa. Hey, Marissa, welcome.
Speaker 6 (23:40):
Home, Hyjene.
Speaker 5 (23:43):
Can you hear me?
Speaker 2 (23:44):
I can? I can?
Speaker 5 (23:46):
I have property in Calabasas abutting the open area. There's
a pat of coyotes, but there's also a huge mustard
problem every year. Yes, we have to chop it down.
I'd like to get an animal or a fence recommendation
for that space. It's like three quarters of an acre
of property.
Speaker 2 (24:05):
So an animal to handle the mustard and a fence
to protect the animal from the coyotes.
Speaker 1 (24:12):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (24:13):
Yeah, animals that can stand up to the coyote pack.
Speaker 2 (24:17):
Yeah, not going to find those unless you know. I'm
I can't. I can't do both. I mean I could.
It could say, hey, buy a cow. A cow will
stand up to our coo. Yeah, moments are all right,
they're pretty nasty. The most efficient animal when it comes
to cleaning up your mustard problem is is a goat
(24:40):
or sheep. Okay, they will do. In fact, there's companies
out in Ventura County that literally bring goats to work
for the city or work for the county to clear
out hillsides just because they'll i mean they will nibble
it down to the ground and clear it out.
Speaker 5 (25:00):
Goats there they'll be eaten.
Speaker 2 (25:02):
Oh yeah, that's for sure, for sure, unless we get
the right fence. And so here's the thing. Fencing, coyote
fencing is always tricky, but it's not an unsolvable problem.
Here's the thing everybody. In fact, I was just talking
to the foundation repair guys. Some one of the guys
was having a coyote issue and he was asking for advice.
(25:23):
He was thinking, I'm gonna put some razor wire on
the top of my fence, and I'm like, don't do that.
Don't turn your don't turn your property into a federal penitentiary.
You don't need to do that, and you don't need
to be hurting animals either. The key is this, you
get a nice tall fence, meaning you know, you get
like a six foot fence. A coyote can clear a
six foot fence. But it's a misnomer that they can
(25:46):
just you know, jump over a six foot fence. This
is what they do. They can jump high enough that
they can get their front paws over the top of
a six foot fence, okay, and then they use their
back legs to scare the rest of their body up
and over. So it's a two step process. There are
you know. This is my favorite material for this is
(26:09):
coyote rollers. They are now the fancy ones and they're
not cheap, but they do get the job done. A
coyote roller is a stainless steel cylinder with little ball
bearings that you can mount to the top of a
fence and they come in like four or five foot
lengths and they roll. They just like you would expect
they roll. So what happens is a coyote wants to
(26:31):
jump over your fence, jumps up, gets front paws hooked
over the roller, and he just rolls right back off
and he does not get over. They are incredibly effective,
incredibly efficient. Nobody gets hurt along the way, and the
yard stays and whatever's in it stays coyote free. And
(26:52):
so coyote rollers are a great way. Now that's an
expensive way to go, but it's super effective. And already
the guy was talking to because he's very handy, he
was already thinking, oh, I wonder if I could take
a piece of rebar and a PVC pipe and just
roll that, have one sitting over the other, because if
they got their hands on that or their paws on that,
(27:14):
they would roll off too. I'm like, yeah, that's not
a bad idea. So the idea is this, if you
put a rolling mechanism on the top of a fence,
you can coyote proof any yard that where they have
the opportunity where they have to climb up and hook
their paws over the top. I hope that helps. I'm
out of time, Marissa, thanks for the call. So get
(27:36):
a couple of goats and some coyote rollers and you're
home free. That's what I'm saying. Best of luck with that.
I know what a problem. Both of those things are
wild mustard and keeping coyotes out of your yard. All right, Jael,
it is time to go big show tomorrow on autumn gardening,
and you're not gonna want to miss it. Listen to
(27:57):
it on the stream if you call and hear, if
you tune in and hear the chargers, we're going to
be live on the stream, So hear us there and
catch me in just a couple hours now, from ten
to two today at Caneo Creek, North Park in Thousand
Oaks for the fourth annual Native Plant Palooza. Tina and
I are going to be there in just a couple
of hours, and we'll be there. Come out, Give us
(28:20):
some hugs, give us some love, ask your questions, sit
down and learn some good stuff about native plants and
the critical role they play for beautifying and designing our homes.
We will see you there in a couple of hours,
and we'll see you right back here tomorrow nine am.
Until then, get out there and get busy building yourself
a beautiful life. This has been Home with Dean Sharp,
(28:45):
the House Whisper. Tune into the live broadcast on KFI
AM six forty every Saturday morning from six to eight
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