September 20, 2025 • 28 mins
Dean fights Covid brain to answer your calls about stucco and expanding paint on an all calls weekend!
Stucco!!!!
Stucco!!!!
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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 (00:09):
Good morning and welcome home. I am Dean Sharp, the
house Whisperer, custom home builder, custom home designer, and every
week your guide to better understanding that place where you live.
We are doing all calls. It's an all call Saturday morning,
like we do every Saturday morning. The number to reach
me eight three three two. Ask Dean A three three.
(00:31):
The numeral two ask Dean A three three to ask Dan.
I'm gonna get back to the phones in just a second.
I do want to something came up as soon as
I got off the line with our previous caller, Rebecca,
talking about her she just inherited, under less than great circumstances,
an almost century old home here in southern California, and
(00:52):
there were concerns about the wiring in the home. And
I recommended to her that she have an electrician just
take a look at everything. But the wires just sit there.
It's a very durable system electrical is, so if it
hasn't been messed with, it doesn't mean that they just
age out. However, I do want to add this to it.
I was sitting here thinking during the break. Oh, I
should have said this, So I'm going to say it
(01:13):
to all of you who are listening that if you're
ever concerned that wiring is getting old and maybe a
crack and insulation inside a wall could cause a fire
or anything like that, there is another safety protocol that
you could take. And this would make a good argument
for changing out the electrical panel, because a new electrical
panel would enable you to put in a new kind
(01:35):
of breaker, which is called an arc fault circuit interrupting
breaker an AFCI. That's different than a GFI breaker. GFI
breakers are there for when you overload a circuit and
they pop off, so to save human life in the house,
that's why they are in the kitchen, they're in bathrooms
any time we're near water. But an AFCI and all
(01:56):
arc fault circuit breaker is actually designed mostly to protect
against lamp chords that are running through you know, electrical
cords that you've already plugged into an outlet that might
have a break in them, that get walked on, stuff
like that, and that could be arcing, arcing out of
their insulation onto something combustible and as a result, cause
(02:17):
a fire. And an arc fault circuit interrupter is designed
to sense that and shut off when there's an arc.
But here's the other bonus to them. They'll do the
same thing if there's some kind of arcing that's happening
inside a wall. They'll just sense that there's an arcing
problem and they'll break. They will snap off like a
(02:39):
regular circuit breaker would under heavier loads. So that is
something I forgot to mention, and I should have mentioned it.
An arc fault circuit interrupt an AFCI breaker is very,
very sensitive to the kinds of concerns that most people
have with older wiring and homes, and so as an
additional layer of protection peace of mind, you can install
(03:00):
AFC eyebreakers at the panel and be assured that there
aren't little arcs happening inside the wall that could cause
a fire. All right, that's it. That's I just wanted
to make sure I gave the best answer possible. All Right,
with that, let's go and talk to Bob. I want
to talk to Bob. Hey, Bob, welcome home.
Speaker 3 (03:21):
Thank you so much, Dane, thanks for taking my call.
Good morning. My situation is we're doing renovations on a
nineteen fifty six tracked house. It's on a race foundation
with stumb walls, and we're the stucco. We just had
the stucco redone, so I removed all the soil away
from the house so they could get a full throw
top to bottom on that stucco. Now it's time to
(03:43):
put it back. But I really don't want to put
the dirt against that new stucco. And we are going
to put on some rain gutters. We're dealing with the
drainage issues and stuff. But how do I terminate that
the bottom of the stucco to the soil We're preparing
to landscape as well. Do I need to create it
away from the house? Can it touch the stucco because
I don't know if it was there appropriately house had
(04:06):
allowed deferred maintenance.
Speaker 2 (04:08):
Yeah yeah, Wow, man, how I wish you had called
and we could have talked before you did redid the stucco,
because no, you don't want to put soil up against
the stucco. You don't. I mean it's not is it
the end of the world. No, But here's the thing.
Stucco is very porous. It's a concrete It holds moisture
(04:30):
in it, and stucco needs to be able to have
a place to drain that moisture out of current code
and you know, you shulg it on your stucco guy
for not doing this, But the current code is it
has been for a long time, is that the stucco
comes down the wall, it terminates in what we call
a weep screed, which is a triangular piece of flashing
(04:50):
metal with holes along the bottom of the screed. The
stucco should terminate a minimum of four inches of b
of soil level where there's just soil in two inches
above hardscape where there's a sidewalk or concrete or anything
like that. That is what the weep screed is all about.
And that gap allows now you don't have to end
(05:13):
the color of the house. You can paint the rest
of it. But yeah, So the idea would be that
the stucco is coming down the wall, it terminates in
the weep screed against the stem wall. The soil comes
in against the stem wall, and there's a gap between
the two so that the soil is not touching the stucco.
Because moisture in the soil just no, absolutely, without question,
(05:35):
is going to rise up through capillary action into the stucco,
and then it's going to settle, and then it's going
to want What goes up must come down. It's going
to want to come back down again. And when it
does and it can't get out the bottom of the
stucco because of moist soil, it will push out from
the backside and will mess up the finished coat along
the bottom side of the house. A lot of people
(05:55):
call me on this all the time. They say, my
stucco is deteriorating, my house is falling up. You know,
basically what it is is the finished code of the
stucco is being pushed off from the backside through hydrostatic pressure.
Because there's no weep screed and older homes, nineteen fifties
homes there I live in one, they're notorious for having
(06:16):
just run the stucco right down in, you know, past
the soil line. That's not how we want to do
it these days. And when the stucco guys showed up
to redo your place, they should have advised you to
put in weep screed around so that it is so
the stucco is held up above the soil.
Speaker 3 (06:34):
Yeah, I was, I would have expected that. I mean,
it was all permitted, and I mean they did it all.
It looks beautiful now. But if we're dealing with the
drainage and we're putting in you know, the rain gutters,
can I go lower than the stucco and have it exposed,
you know what I mean? I mean, I don't do
just the soil have to grade away from the house.
(06:56):
I mean, at that point, you know I would go level.
But again, yeah, I don't want. I don't want what
the soil is.
Speaker 2 (07:03):
Yeah, yeah, no it's and I understand. So it's all.
We always want water moving away from the house. We
always want water moving away from the house. So the
rain gutters important have to make sure they shoot out
beyond and don't contribute to dropping water right at the
foundation line, right right against the stem wall. And this
goes beyond just talking about stucco. This is about over
(07:25):
soaking the foundations and the and the stemwall and all
of that. So we always want soil draining away from
the house. If we can't, then there are things, I mean,
you could while you're while you've dug it out there,
you can install a small French drain system, a small
percolation drain system so that any water that builds up
(07:46):
against the stemwall can be conveyed out, connect that to
whatever draina system the rain gutters are doing as well,
So those are your options. Yeah, but I would keep
the soil away from the stucco absolutely and everywhere possible,
drain it away from the house so that we're not
having an excessive amount of moisture building up against the stemwall. Bob,
(08:09):
I've got to go to break. Thanks for the call.
I hope that helps just yet get us at this point.
Just be as practical in your thinking as possible so
that you're not inviting moisture problems for that old foundation.
All right, my friend, when we return, more of your
calls your home Dean Sharp, the house whisper, Dean Sharp,
(08:30):
the house whisper here to help you take your home
to the next level. Good Saturday morning to you, my friends.
Still gonna be attle bit humid out there, even though
the remnants of this tropical storm that we got the
kind of edgy tail end of they're fading away, but
still the humidity's up there, but looks to be a
(08:53):
beautiful weekend here for us here in southern California. I
hope wherever you are the weather is treating you. Well.
It's an all calls Saturday morning, and I want to
get back to the phones. I want to talk to Tiger.
Is this Tiger?
Speaker 4 (09:06):
Yes, Tiger Jay.
Speaker 2 (09:07):
Tiger, Welcome home, my friend. How can I help you?
Speaker 4 (09:11):
So? I'm looking to build a very large custom statue
in my backyard, and I was looking just for some
general guidance, how big it should, what material I should do?
Is it any good recommendations for companies that would do it?
If there's things I should or shouldn't do, Yeah, you can.
Speaker 2 (09:32):
Kind of that's an interesting question. What when we say
a large statue a statue of a person? Is it?
Is it a structure? Is it a you know what?
What are we talking about?
Speaker 4 (09:48):
Yeah, it's actually a giant Nintendo character named Bowdre. So
you've kind of like to.
Speaker 2 (09:54):
Do you want to you want a big old Bowser
in your backyard? Huh big concrete Bowser?
Speaker 5 (09:59):
I do?
Speaker 3 (10:00):
All right?
Speaker 2 (10:00):
All right, Okay, so uh he's he's a girthy guy.
So five foot tall Bowser is gonna be he's gonna
be weighty.
Speaker 4 (10:13):
Yes, all right?
Speaker 6 (10:15):
You Sam and I are dying in the newsroo right now.
We're like this is amazing. How can we also get
a Bowser's great idea?
Speaker 2 (10:26):
Okay, so here's the thing. Here is the thing. I'm
not sure I would go concrete with this one, because
because for that height, he's gonna be he's gonna be big.
I I think I would go resin with it, fiberglass resin,
so that it's essentially hollow, and then you could paint
(10:47):
it out and it would last. It would last as long,
if not longer than the concrete, because that's a that's
a mass of pre cast concrete to do. So something
that size I would pull in my my my resin
people and uh and yeah, of course, I mean, given
the kind of weirdness that I've done through the years. Uh,
(11:09):
you know, I've got some contacts with some people in
SoCal who can do that. A lot of people around
the studios do this kind of stuff all the time. Basically,
what's involved, my friend, is, uh, you first start with
a with the sculpture itself, and that is always the
first step. The first step is we've got to get
a mold made in order to create a sculpture, whether
(11:33):
it's pre cast concrete or a resin fiberglass hollow. You
know sculpture, but a mold has to be made from
an actual original sculpture. And so however that original sculpture
is created most of the time, it's done in clay,
uh in sculpted in full size format in clay, and
(11:56):
then that clay is used the clay sculpture, which obviously
was not going to survive years out in the yard.
The clay sculpture is then used to pour a fiberglass
mold around a latex mold around in a fiberglass box casing,
so the fiberglass holds the latex in place. The latex
(12:20):
pours in around the clay sculpture, and what we end
up with when the latex cures and dries, we end
up with a perfect mold for this character now in
large form. And that's a I mean that's big. So
it's big. So I applaud you for taking the steps.
Then once you get the latex, now that can be
(12:44):
used to mold it out of anything, including and that's
what I would recommend, a fiberglass structure that's essentially hollow
on the inside to keep this thing light and yet
usable and functional. But yeah, those are the initial steps there.
I definitely, absolutely would not do it in concrete because
that thing is going to weigh a ton, not exaggerating,
(13:05):
probably would weigh at least a ton, and not the
easiest thing to move around. And that just because it's
heavy doesn't mean it's gonna survive the elements any better,
you know, than a fiberglass resin hollow structure. And think
of like, you know all the stuff you see on
old restaurants like Bob's Big Boy, Bob's sitting out there,
(13:26):
or you know the big chickens up on the Chicken
Place roost, and you know that kind of stuff. Fiberglass resin,
they're hollow, they're easier to work with, They're way easier
to paint and to maintain. But that all starts with
the initial sculpture. So before you even get to that point,
you got to find somebody who is going to sculpt
out a five foot tall bowser for you, and then
(13:49):
you take it from there. Tiger, thanks for the call, man,
Very very interesting, most interesting call in the morning. There
you go, how'd I do Heather?
Speaker 6 (14:00):
I think it was great. Now Sam and I are like,
how can we make this happen in our backyard? I'm
a big Nintendo fan. So when he said that, I.
Speaker 2 (14:07):
Was like, I'm despired. This is where where you know what.
Neil would have some input on this too, but unfortunately
we're throwing him off a building for charity, so he's
not going to be around.
Speaker 6 (14:19):
Hill, Miss you Neil.
Speaker 2 (14:21):
All right, everybody, more of your calls. When we return
your Home with Dean Sharp the house Whisper.
Speaker 1 (14:28):
You're listening to Home with Dean Sharp on demand from
KFI AM six forty.
Speaker 2 (14:34):
Dean Sharp the house Whisper here to help you transform
your ordinary house into an extraordinary home. Oh yes, oh yes,
it can be done. We do it all the time.
We do it every week right here today, we're doing
it by taking your calls and helping you with whatever
is on your mind regarding your home today. I should
(14:55):
also say, if your home needs some more personal house
Whisper attention, meaning you you'd like Tina and I to
be standing in your home staring at the problem, that
can happen too. You can request an in home design consult.
Just go to house Whisperer dot Design for more info.
House Whisper dot Design. All right, let's get back to
(15:15):
the phones. I want to talk to stare it. Hey,
stare it welcome home.
Speaker 1 (15:19):
Hey, thank you. I am in the process of fire
harding inner house. We're having brand Guard Advents and solid
about two weeks.
Speaker 2 (15:27):
Oh, well done, my friend.
Speaker 1 (15:30):
Well that's the number one. Number two you mentioned you
get to ease paint with a and you said sent paint.
Is that what you call a fire pit paint?
Speaker 2 (15:37):
An f fluorescent fluorescent paint?
Speaker 3 (15:40):
Yeah?
Speaker 1 (15:41):
Yeah, And I found one that shields industries hopefully that's
one that you know. And then I was wondering about
other wood services that are both mostly vertical, but some
are horizontal, like the wood the windowsills. And we have
a couple of pot benches. They're painted with test paint
for water paint. Right, should they be painted or is
(16:04):
that something I can skip? It's quite expensive to get
this paint and have it applied.
Speaker 2 (16:09):
Yeah, it is, it is, it is. Uh. You know
here's the thing. Uh Oh did I say eff fluorescent?
Oh my gosh, I said I use the wrong word.
Speaker 3 (16:19):
I'm sorry.
Speaker 1 (16:19):
Isn't gonna correct you.
Speaker 2 (16:20):
Job, it's left over covid brain fog. I'm suffering from
it this morning. Into messin paint. That's a paint that
actually foams out and expands when the heat gets it,
uh near it And it's brilliant stuff. But if you're right,
it's very very expensive. I want you to use it
on your house. I want to use it on the eves,
the faciaboard that area, so that flames are licking up
(16:42):
against the wall. That's the most sensitive spot. Honestly, stare
just because from there flames get into the attic. And
once flames are in the attic, then you know we
got problems. Yes, technically, window sills are sticking out. Uh,
they they're technically sticking out and uh and could they Yeah,
but they're not sticking out very much. They're lower on
(17:03):
the wall. And if flames are already up to the
house at that point, I'd be more concerned about spending
money on fire hardened glass, tempered glass in the window
than spending extra money painting the sill. Now, a shelf,
a large shelf that's sticking out like a pot shelf,
that's not a bad idea. Any large horizontal surface that
(17:25):
could catch the bottom side of a flames pretty significantly. Sure,
why not throw a little bit of that extra paint
on the bottom at least of that surface so that
you're protecting it against flames if they make it up
to the side of the house. But my main concern,
again as you know about using the expensive fire proofing paint,
(17:50):
is up in those eves. The eve overhangs that from
the roof, because that's bare exposed roofbone, if we want
to call it that. Think about that bare exposed roof bones.
That's what your eves are sticking out there, all wood,
and when those start to burn, it's a pathway directly
into the attic. And any firefighter will tell you once
a fire is in the attic, there is just not
(18:13):
a whole lot that they can do. There's just not
a whole lot. And that is what we see all
the time in these mass fire events. We're like, oh
my gosh, that whole roof is on fire. It must
have caught on fire from up above, embers falling on
top of the roof. Nope, nope, that's not how it happened.
Embers get inside the attic and those roofs burn from
(18:34):
the inside out, and that is that's the proven science
of it, and that's the best thing you can be doing.
So good on you for going with the brand guard
vents for the ember proof vents for your home and
for the in two messent fireproof paint which is very
expensive but worth its weight in gold on eves and
(18:54):
facia overhangs. So good for you start. I wouldn't really
worry about the other stuff. Maybe the shelf, maybe what about.
Speaker 5 (19:02):
Are you still with me?
Speaker 1 (19:03):
Yeah? You had mentioned about a film and you had
mentioned three M may have a product that put on
the windows that are not tempered.
Speaker 2 (19:13):
Yep.
Speaker 1 (19:14):
And is there a specific name that might be a
little more effective than just a window tint?
Speaker 2 (19:24):
Is there a specific Uh? Oh, you're talking about a
specific brand name.
Speaker 3 (19:29):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (19:31):
Yeah, No, I have no idea. Who are to start
on that except that you said three M may have
a product?
Speaker 4 (19:37):
Yeah?
Speaker 2 (19:38):
Yeah, Well that's where you start. Actually you start by
going infected. We just had a client to do it
here not too far from my house, and we gave
them a consult and they they followed through. So what
they did is they called up three M, or they
went to the three M website and they went to
that product page, the fire resistant film window film and
uh and then three M will tell you who they
(20:00):
where dealers are and report certified installers for this area.
Or you could just do a Google search in your
area for three M fire films for windows. But yeah,
it is a really really good idea if you don't
want to be changing the window out itself to tempered glass.
This fire resistant heat resistant film. The glass is going
(20:22):
to shatter, but it's going to hold the glass in
place so that it doesn't create a hole in the
side of the house for the flames to then lick
in and get inside. And so it is considerably less
expensive than changing out windows and very very effective and efficient.
So all you have to do is just do the
Google search for your air or go to the three
M website. Three M will tell you who near you
(20:44):
can get this job done. You can have them come out,
they give you an estimate, and then get or done.
So that's that's how that works. Start, I gotta go,
I'm up against a break. Thank you so much for
the call, great call, great questions, good luck, and proud
of you for firehart ardening your home in all the
best ways possible. All right, y'all, when we come back,
(21:05):
more of your calls your home with Dean Sharp, the
house Whisper. Dean Sharp, the house Whisper here to help
you take your home to the next level. Hey, thanks
for joining us on the program today. Here we are
at the end of another two hours. Tomorrow's big show,
we're going to be talking about these areas of your
home that I call introductory spaces, the way your home
(21:29):
introduces itself and prepares your guests and you for making
a transition from one place to another. There are about
four categories of them, starting with the pathway up to
your house, the entryway, hallways inside your house, and all
the pathsways leading out into your backyard to the destinations
out there. We're going to be talking about how to
(21:50):
transform those and how important those are on the Big
Show tomorrow from nine to noon, so don't miss it.
One more thing here for today from the House Whisper
Community event calendar. One of the things I love about
the holidays is that we always find ways of getting
out and spending more time just face to face with you.
(22:13):
And we got two or three of those things going
on this year, at least right now. One of them.
The next one coming up, the Canajo Open Space Foundation
is having its fourth annual Native Plant Palooza and Ecofest.
That's a mouthful native plants, That's what it's all about.
It's going to happen Saturday October eleven, just a couple
(22:36):
of weeks from now, Saturday October eleventh, from ten to
two at Canehoe Creek North Park in Thousand Oaks. Now,
I believe I have on good authority. If you live
anywhere within three hundred miles of Thousand Oaks, you may
be legally required to attend. You'll just have to check.
But here's why you'd want to come anyway. In a
(22:56):
recent nationwide survey of me and Tina, Thousand Oaks was
unanimously voted the most awesome city that we live in.
So hey, there's that. Native Plant Palooza is a free,
family friendly outdoor festival where you're guaranteed to have fun
or your money back, or where you'll learn about how
(23:17):
native plants magically create wildlife habitat, save water, and help
fire safe your home. All at the same time. There's
going to be stuff for the kids, food trucks like
the legendary Chndos, Tacos, and experts from over thirty five
eco focused organizations and vendors like the California Wildlife Center,
wild Birds Unlimited, the Theodore Payne Foundation, the Best Native
(23:41):
plant nursery on the planet and to help it all
make sense. Also, there a certain house Whisper that you
might know and his boss Tina are going to be
there too. That is Saturday, October eleventh, from ten to
two at Canejo Creek Park North in Thousand Oaks. You
can go to coo SF dot org for details, COSF
(24:04):
dot org for details. Also coming up at the end
of October, I'll talk about this a little bit more
on the show tomorrow. You could be a part of
the House Whisper Ghost Tour of the Historic Kellogg House.
We're doing that on Monday night, October twenty seventh, special
meet and greet ahead of time, and then a special
VIP tour of the Historic Kellogg House down in Santa Ana.
(24:27):
You're not gonna want to miss that. And then of
course later on in November we are going to be
doing yet again our big live audience House Whisper Holiday
Show sponsored by Aldacomb. So a lot of good good
stuff coming up very very soon. But the next one
a couple three weeks Native Plant Palooza in Thousand Oaks
(24:48):
at Caneo Creek Park North. All right, we are right
up against the clock here. I think I can squeeze
in one more call. Let's talk to Dell. Hey, Dell,
welcome home. Hello, Hey Del.
Speaker 5 (25:05):
Yeah, after listening to you, I was going in and
start one of those recirculating pumps on my water heater.
Speaker 3 (25:12):
Yes, what I was.
Speaker 5 (25:13):
Most of them got a timer on them. And if
it's in the off position, do you just get you know,
your normal hot water in the old fashioned way, who
gets wet and runs you by pressure?
Speaker 2 (25:24):
It will still work, right, absolutely, absolutely, it'll still work.
So if you're concerned, like if there's a power outage,
if you commit to a recirculating pump, if there's a
power outage, then you won't get any hot water at all.
That's not the case that the research pump connected to
a bridge valve. All that's doing is helping get the
hot water to those faucets faster, so you're not running
(25:46):
as much water down the drain and wasting so much
time and water. But if there's a power outage, then
you're just back to regular city pressure. You'll just be
waiting for the hot water like you do now. But no,
it's not gonna it's not gonna make you vulnerable to
a power outage. Shut the house down.
Speaker 5 (26:01):
Also the manifold that goes on it. You know what
do you call it? The bridge valve that goes underneath
the sink?
Speaker 2 (26:07):
Yes, sir?
Speaker 5 (26:08):
Do you need more than one of those in the house?
In other words, I install one to the kitchen sink,
for example, and am I still going to get the
same action in the bathroom?
Speaker 2 (26:18):
Well, that's the interesting thing. Most houses are plumbed like
a tree, like a tree branching out, and so what
we like to do is to benefit the other. Now
you can install as many of them as you want,
obviously at every faucet if you wanted to, but to
benefit the whole house, what we want to do is
we want to install the bridge valve at the sink
that is the furthest away from the water heater. That way,
(26:42):
it's drawing it up through the trunk and out into
the branches of the tree as it's trying to get
to that valve. That's the one that will benefit the
rest of the house the most because of just the
structure of the tree. So kitchen sink, I don't know
whether it advise you on the kitchen sink. Kitchen sink,
if it's the closest into the water heater. No, it's
not going to help the rest of the ones in
(27:03):
the house, so we always install. If we're just installing
one at the sink that is furthest away from the
water heater, then it draws that hot water at least
up through the trunk and gets it closer to the
other sinks as you go as well. Dell, thank you
for your call, my friend. Thank you everybody for your
calls this morning. To anybody who we didn't get to.
(27:24):
When you call back, if you call tomorrow's show, or
you call back next week, you just let our call
screener know that you were on the hold and you
didn't get through, and we'll give you a fast past
top priority next time around. Everybody, take advantage of this
day that you've got in your hands, whether the weather
is helping you or not, and get out there and
get busy building yourself a beautiful life, and we will
(27:46):
see you tomorrow. Nine am. This has been Home with
Dean Sharp, 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 (00:09):
Good morning and welcome home. I am Dean Sharp, the
house Whisperer, custom home builder, custom home designer, and every
week your guide to better understanding that place where you live.
We are doing all calls. It's an all call Saturday morning,
like we do every Saturday morning. The number to reach
me eight three three two. Ask Dean A three three.
(00:31):
The numeral two ask Dean A three three to ask Dan.
I'm gonna get back to the phones in just a second.
I do want to something came up as soon as
I got off the line with our previous caller, Rebecca,
talking about her she just inherited, under less than great circumstances,
an almost century old home here in southern California, and
(00:52):
there were concerns about the wiring in the home. And
I recommended to her that she have an electrician just
take a look at everything. But the wires just sit there.
It's a very durable system electrical is, so if it
hasn't been messed with, it doesn't mean that they just
age out. However, I do want to add this to it.
I was sitting here thinking during the break. Oh, I
should have said this, So I'm going to say it
(01:13):
to all of you who are listening that if you're
ever concerned that wiring is getting old and maybe a
crack and insulation inside a wall could cause a fire
or anything like that, there is another safety protocol that
you could take. And this would make a good argument
for changing out the electrical panel, because a new electrical
panel would enable you to put in a new kind
(01:35):
of breaker, which is called an arc fault circuit interrupting
breaker an AFCI. That's different than a GFI breaker. GFI
breakers are there for when you overload a circuit and
they pop off, so to save human life in the house,
that's why they are in the kitchen, they're in bathrooms
any time we're near water. But an AFCI and all
(01:56):
arc fault circuit breaker is actually designed mostly to protect
against lamp chords that are running through you know, electrical
cords that you've already plugged into an outlet that might
have a break in them, that get walked on, stuff
like that, and that could be arcing, arcing out of
their insulation onto something combustible and as a result, cause
(02:17):
a fire. And an arc fault circuit interrupter is designed
to sense that and shut off when there's an arc.
But here's the other bonus to them. They'll do the
same thing if there's some kind of arcing that's happening
inside a wall. They'll just sense that there's an arcing
problem and they'll break. They will snap off like a
(02:39):
regular circuit breaker would under heavier loads. So that is
something I forgot to mention, and I should have mentioned it.
An arc fault circuit interrupt an AFCI breaker is very,
very sensitive to the kinds of concerns that most people
have with older wiring and homes, and so as an
additional layer of protection peace of mind, you can install
(03:00):
AFC eyebreakers at the panel and be assured that there
aren't little arcs happening inside the wall that could cause
a fire. All right, that's it. That's I just wanted
to make sure I gave the best answer possible. All Right,
with that, let's go and talk to Bob. I want
to talk to Bob. Hey, Bob, welcome home.
Speaker 3 (03:21):
Thank you so much, Dane, thanks for taking my call.
Good morning. My situation is we're doing renovations on a
nineteen fifty six tracked house. It's on a race foundation
with stumb walls, and we're the stucco. We just had
the stucco redone, so I removed all the soil away
from the house so they could get a full throw
top to bottom on that stucco. Now it's time to
(03:43):
put it back. But I really don't want to put
the dirt against that new stucco. And we are going
to put on some rain gutters. We're dealing with the
drainage issues and stuff. But how do I terminate that
the bottom of the stucco to the soil We're preparing
to landscape as well. Do I need to create it
away from the house? Can it touch the stucco because
I don't know if it was there appropriately house had
(04:06):
allowed deferred maintenance.
Speaker 2 (04:08):
Yeah yeah, Wow, man, how I wish you had called
and we could have talked before you did redid the stucco,
because no, you don't want to put soil up against
the stucco. You don't. I mean it's not is it
the end of the world. No, But here's the thing.
Stucco is very porous. It's a concrete It holds moisture
(04:30):
in it, and stucco needs to be able to have
a place to drain that moisture out of current code
and you know, you shulg it on your stucco guy
for not doing this, But the current code is it
has been for a long time, is that the stucco
comes down the wall, it terminates in what we call
a weep screed, which is a triangular piece of flashing
(04:50):
metal with holes along the bottom of the screed. The
stucco should terminate a minimum of four inches of b
of soil level where there's just soil in two inches
above hardscape where there's a sidewalk or concrete or anything
like that. That is what the weep screed is all about.
And that gap allows now you don't have to end
(05:13):
the color of the house. You can paint the rest
of it. But yeah, So the idea would be that
the stucco is coming down the wall, it terminates in
the weep screed against the stem wall. The soil comes
in against the stem wall, and there's a gap between
the two so that the soil is not touching the stucco.
Because moisture in the soil just no, absolutely, without question,
(05:35):
is going to rise up through capillary action into the stucco,
and then it's going to settle, and then it's going
to want What goes up must come down. It's going
to want to come back down again. And when it
does and it can't get out the bottom of the
stucco because of moist soil, it will push out from
the backside and will mess up the finished coat along
the bottom side of the house. A lot of people
(05:55):
call me on this all the time. They say, my
stucco is deteriorating, my house is falling up. You know,
basically what it is is the finished code of the
stucco is being pushed off from the backside through hydrostatic pressure.
Because there's no weep screed and older homes, nineteen fifties
homes there I live in one, they're notorious for having
(06:16):
just run the stucco right down in, you know, past
the soil line. That's not how we want to do
it these days. And when the stucco guys showed up
to redo your place, they should have advised you to
put in weep screed around so that it is so
the stucco is held up above the soil.
Speaker 3 (06:34):
Yeah, I was, I would have expected that. I mean,
it was all permitted, and I mean they did it all.
It looks beautiful now. But if we're dealing with the
drainage and we're putting in you know, the rain gutters,
can I go lower than the stucco and have it exposed,
you know what I mean? I mean, I don't do
just the soil have to grade away from the house.
(06:56):
I mean, at that point, you know I would go level.
But again, yeah, I don't want. I don't want what
the soil is.
Speaker 2 (07:03):
Yeah, yeah, no it's and I understand. So it's all.
We always want water moving away from the house. We
always want water moving away from the house. So the
rain gutters important have to make sure they shoot out
beyond and don't contribute to dropping water right at the
foundation line, right right against the stem wall. And this
goes beyond just talking about stucco. This is about over
(07:25):
soaking the foundations and the and the stemwall and all
of that. So we always want soil draining away from
the house. If we can't, then there are things, I mean,
you could while you're while you've dug it out there,
you can install a small French drain system, a small
percolation drain system so that any water that builds up
(07:46):
against the stemwall can be conveyed out, connect that to
whatever draina system the rain gutters are doing as well,
So those are your options. Yeah, but I would keep
the soil away from the stucco absolutely and everywhere possible,
drain it away from the house so that we're not
having an excessive amount of moisture building up against the stemwall. Bob,
(08:09):
I've got to go to break. Thanks for the call.
I hope that helps just yet get us at this point.
Just be as practical in your thinking as possible so
that you're not inviting moisture problems for that old foundation.
All right, my friend, when we return, more of your
calls your home Dean Sharp, the house whisper, Dean Sharp,
(08:30):
the house whisper here to help you take your home
to the next level. Good Saturday morning to you, my friends.
Still gonna be attle bit humid out there, even though
the remnants of this tropical storm that we got the
kind of edgy tail end of they're fading away, but
still the humidity's up there, but looks to be a
(08:53):
beautiful weekend here for us here in southern California. I
hope wherever you are the weather is treating you. Well.
It's an all calls Saturday morning, and I want to
get back to the phones. I want to talk to Tiger.
Is this Tiger?
Speaker 4 (09:06):
Yes, Tiger Jay.
Speaker 2 (09:07):
Tiger, Welcome home, my friend. How can I help you?
Speaker 4 (09:11):
So? I'm looking to build a very large custom statue
in my backyard, and I was looking just for some
general guidance, how big it should, what material I should do?
Is it any good recommendations for companies that would do it?
If there's things I should or shouldn't do, Yeah, you can.
Speaker 2 (09:32):
Kind of that's an interesting question. What when we say
a large statue a statue of a person? Is it?
Is it a structure? Is it a you know what?
What are we talking about?
Speaker 4 (09:48):
Yeah, it's actually a giant Nintendo character named Bowdre. So
you've kind of like to.
Speaker 2 (09:54):
Do you want to you want a big old Bowser
in your backyard? Huh big concrete Bowser?
Speaker 5 (09:59):
I do?
Speaker 3 (10:00):
All right?
Speaker 2 (10:00):
All right, Okay, so uh he's he's a girthy guy.
So five foot tall Bowser is gonna be he's gonna
be weighty.
Speaker 4 (10:13):
Yes, all right?
Speaker 6 (10:15):
You Sam and I are dying in the newsroo right now.
We're like this is amazing. How can we also get
a Bowser's great idea?
Speaker 2 (10:26):
Okay, so here's the thing. Here is the thing. I'm
not sure I would go concrete with this one, because
because for that height, he's gonna be he's gonna be big.
I I think I would go resin with it, fiberglass resin,
so that it's essentially hollow, and then you could paint
(10:47):
it out and it would last. It would last as long,
if not longer than the concrete, because that's a that's
a mass of pre cast concrete to do. So something
that size I would pull in my my my resin
people and uh and yeah, of course, I mean, given
the kind of weirdness that I've done through the years. Uh,
(11:09):
you know, I've got some contacts with some people in
SoCal who can do that. A lot of people around
the studios do this kind of stuff all the time. Basically,
what's involved, my friend, is, uh, you first start with
a with the sculpture itself, and that is always the
first step. The first step is we've got to get
a mold made in order to create a sculpture, whether
(11:33):
it's pre cast concrete or a resin fiberglass hollow. You
know sculpture, but a mold has to be made from
an actual original sculpture. And so however that original sculpture
is created most of the time, it's done in clay,
uh in sculpted in full size format in clay, and
(11:56):
then that clay is used the clay sculpture, which obviously
was not going to survive years out in the yard.
The clay sculpture is then used to pour a fiberglass
mold around a latex mold around in a fiberglass box casing,
so the fiberglass holds the latex in place. The latex
(12:20):
pours in around the clay sculpture, and what we end
up with when the latex cures and dries, we end
up with a perfect mold for this character now in
large form. And that's a I mean that's big. So
it's big. So I applaud you for taking the steps.
Then once you get the latex, now that can be
(12:44):
used to mold it out of anything, including and that's
what I would recommend, a fiberglass structure that's essentially hollow
on the inside to keep this thing light and yet
usable and functional. But yeah, those are the initial steps there.
I definitely, absolutely would not do it in concrete because
that thing is going to weigh a ton, not exaggerating,
(13:05):
probably would weigh at least a ton, and not the
easiest thing to move around. And that just because it's
heavy doesn't mean it's gonna survive the elements any better,
you know, than a fiberglass resin hollow structure. And think
of like, you know all the stuff you see on
old restaurants like Bob's Big Boy, Bob's sitting out there,
(13:26):
or you know the big chickens up on the Chicken
Place roost, and you know that kind of stuff. Fiberglass resin,
they're hollow, they're easier to work with, They're way easier
to paint and to maintain. But that all starts with
the initial sculpture. So before you even get to that point,
you got to find somebody who is going to sculpt
out a five foot tall bowser for you, and then
(13:49):
you take it from there. Tiger, thanks for the call, man,
Very very interesting, most interesting call in the morning. There
you go, how'd I do Heather?
Speaker 6 (14:00):
I think it was great. Now Sam and I are like,
how can we make this happen in our backyard? I'm
a big Nintendo fan. So when he said that, I.
Speaker 2 (14:07):
Was like, I'm despired. This is where where you know what.
Neil would have some input on this too, but unfortunately
we're throwing him off a building for charity, so he's
not going to be around.
Speaker 6 (14:19):
Hill, Miss you Neil.
Speaker 2 (14:21):
All right, everybody, more of your calls. When we return
your Home with Dean Sharp the house Whisper.
Speaker 1 (14:28):
You're listening to Home with Dean Sharp on demand from
KFI AM six forty.
Speaker 2 (14:34):
Dean Sharp the house Whisper here to help you transform
your ordinary house into an extraordinary home. Oh yes, oh yes,
it can be done. We do it all the time.
We do it every week right here today, we're doing
it by taking your calls and helping you with whatever
is on your mind regarding your home today. I should
(14:55):
also say, if your home needs some more personal house
Whisper attention, meaning you you'd like Tina and I to
be standing in your home staring at the problem, that
can happen too. You can request an in home design consult.
Just go to house Whisperer dot Design for more info.
House Whisper dot Design. All right, let's get back to
(15:15):
the phones. I want to talk to stare it. Hey,
stare it welcome home.
Speaker 1 (15:19):
Hey, thank you. I am in the process of fire
harding inner house. We're having brand Guard Advents and solid
about two weeks.
Speaker 2 (15:27):
Oh, well done, my friend.
Speaker 1 (15:30):
Well that's the number one. Number two you mentioned you
get to ease paint with a and you said sent paint.
Is that what you call a fire pit paint?
Speaker 2 (15:37):
An f fluorescent fluorescent paint?
Speaker 3 (15:40):
Yeah?
Speaker 1 (15:41):
Yeah, And I found one that shields industries hopefully that's
one that you know. And then I was wondering about
other wood services that are both mostly vertical, but some
are horizontal, like the wood the windowsills. And we have
a couple of pot benches. They're painted with test paint
for water paint. Right, should they be painted or is
(16:04):
that something I can skip? It's quite expensive to get
this paint and have it applied.
Speaker 2 (16:09):
Yeah, it is, it is, it is. Uh. You know
here's the thing. Uh Oh did I say eff fluorescent?
Oh my gosh, I said I use the wrong word.
Speaker 3 (16:19):
I'm sorry.
Speaker 1 (16:19):
Isn't gonna correct you.
Speaker 2 (16:20):
Job, it's left over covid brain fog. I'm suffering from
it this morning. Into messin paint. That's a paint that
actually foams out and expands when the heat gets it,
uh near it And it's brilliant stuff. But if you're right,
it's very very expensive. I want you to use it
on your house. I want to use it on the eves,
the faciaboard that area, so that flames are licking up
(16:42):
against the wall. That's the most sensitive spot. Honestly, stare
just because from there flames get into the attic. And
once flames are in the attic, then you know we
got problems. Yes, technically, window sills are sticking out. Uh,
they they're technically sticking out and uh and could they Yeah,
but they're not sticking out very much. They're lower on
(17:03):
the wall. And if flames are already up to the
house at that point, I'd be more concerned about spending
money on fire hardened glass, tempered glass in the window
than spending extra money painting the sill. Now, a shelf,
a large shelf that's sticking out like a pot shelf,
that's not a bad idea. Any large horizontal surface that
(17:25):
could catch the bottom side of a flames pretty significantly. Sure,
why not throw a little bit of that extra paint
on the bottom at least of that surface so that
you're protecting it against flames if they make it up
to the side of the house. But my main concern,
again as you know about using the expensive fire proofing paint,
(17:50):
is up in those eves. The eve overhangs that from
the roof, because that's bare exposed roofbone, if we want
to call it that. Think about that bare exposed roof bones.
That's what your eves are sticking out there, all wood,
and when those start to burn, it's a pathway directly
into the attic. And any firefighter will tell you once
a fire is in the attic, there is just not
(18:13):
a whole lot that they can do. There's just not
a whole lot. And that is what we see all
the time in these mass fire events. We're like, oh
my gosh, that whole roof is on fire. It must
have caught on fire from up above, embers falling on
top of the roof. Nope, nope, that's not how it happened.
Embers get inside the attic and those roofs burn from
(18:34):
the inside out, and that is that's the proven science
of it, and that's the best thing you can be doing.
So good on you for going with the brand guard
vents for the ember proof vents for your home and
for the in two messent fireproof paint which is very
expensive but worth its weight in gold on eves and
(18:54):
facia overhangs. So good for you start. I wouldn't really
worry about the other stuff. Maybe the shelf, maybe what about.
Speaker 5 (19:02):
Are you still with me?
Speaker 1 (19:03):
Yeah? You had mentioned about a film and you had
mentioned three M may have a product that put on
the windows that are not tempered.
Speaker 2 (19:13):
Yep.
Speaker 1 (19:14):
And is there a specific name that might be a
little more effective than just a window tint?
Speaker 2 (19:24):
Is there a specific Uh? Oh, you're talking about a
specific brand name.
Speaker 3 (19:29):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (19:31):
Yeah, No, I have no idea. Who are to start
on that except that you said three M may have
a product?
Speaker 4 (19:37):
Yeah?
Speaker 2 (19:38):
Yeah, Well that's where you start. Actually you start by
going infected. We just had a client to do it
here not too far from my house, and we gave
them a consult and they they followed through. So what
they did is they called up three M, or they
went to the three M website and they went to
that product page, the fire resistant film window film and
uh and then three M will tell you who they
(20:00):
where dealers are and report certified installers for this area.
Or you could just do a Google search in your
area for three M fire films for windows. But yeah,
it is a really really good idea if you don't
want to be changing the window out itself to tempered glass.
This fire resistant heat resistant film. The glass is going
(20:22):
to shatter, but it's going to hold the glass in
place so that it doesn't create a hole in the
side of the house for the flames to then lick
in and get inside. And so it is considerably less
expensive than changing out windows and very very effective and efficient.
So all you have to do is just do the
Google search for your air or go to the three
M website. Three M will tell you who near you
(20:44):
can get this job done. You can have them come out,
they give you an estimate, and then get or done.
So that's that's how that works. Start, I gotta go,
I'm up against a break. Thank you so much for
the call, great call, great questions, good luck, and proud
of you for firehart ardening your home in all the
best ways possible. All right, y'all, when we come back,
(21:05):
more of your calls your home with Dean Sharp, the
house Whisper. Dean Sharp, the house Whisper here to help
you take your home to the next level. Hey, thanks
for joining us on the program today. Here we are
at the end of another two hours. Tomorrow's big show,
we're going to be talking about these areas of your
home that I call introductory spaces, the way your home
(21:29):
introduces itself and prepares your guests and you for making
a transition from one place to another. There are about
four categories of them, starting with the pathway up to
your house, the entryway, hallways inside your house, and all
the pathsways leading out into your backyard to the destinations
out there. We're going to be talking about how to
(21:50):
transform those and how important those are on the Big
Show tomorrow from nine to noon, so don't miss it.
One more thing here for today from the House Whisper
Community event calendar. One of the things I love about
the holidays is that we always find ways of getting
out and spending more time just face to face with you.
(22:13):
And we got two or three of those things going
on this year, at least right now. One of them.
The next one coming up, the Canajo Open Space Foundation
is having its fourth annual Native Plant Palooza and Ecofest.
That's a mouthful native plants, That's what it's all about.
It's going to happen Saturday October eleven, just a couple
(22:36):
of weeks from now, Saturday October eleventh, from ten to
two at Canehoe Creek North Park in Thousand Oaks. Now,
I believe I have on good authority. If you live
anywhere within three hundred miles of Thousand Oaks, you may
be legally required to attend. You'll just have to check.
But here's why you'd want to come anyway. In a
(22:56):
recent nationwide survey of me and Tina, Thousand Oaks was
unanimously voted the most awesome city that we live in.
So hey, there's that. Native Plant Palooza is a free,
family friendly outdoor festival where you're guaranteed to have fun
or your money back, or where you'll learn about how
(23:17):
native plants magically create wildlife habitat, save water, and help
fire safe your home. All at the same time. There's
going to be stuff for the kids, food trucks like
the legendary Chndos, Tacos, and experts from over thirty five
eco focused organizations and vendors like the California Wildlife Center,
wild Birds Unlimited, the Theodore Payne Foundation, the Best Native
(23:41):
plant nursery on the planet and to help it all
make sense. Also, there a certain house Whisper that you
might know and his boss Tina are going to be
there too. That is Saturday, October eleventh, from ten to
two at Canejo Creek Park North in Thousand Oaks. You
can go to coo SF dot org for details, COSF
(24:04):
dot org for details. Also coming up at the end
of October, I'll talk about this a little bit more
on the show tomorrow. You could be a part of
the House Whisper Ghost Tour of the Historic Kellogg House.
We're doing that on Monday night, October twenty seventh, special
meet and greet ahead of time, and then a special
VIP tour of the Historic Kellogg House down in Santa Ana.
(24:27):
You're not gonna want to miss that. And then of
course later on in November we are going to be
doing yet again our big live audience House Whisper Holiday
Show sponsored by Aldacomb. So a lot of good good
stuff coming up very very soon. But the next one
a couple three weeks Native Plant Palooza in Thousand Oaks
(24:48):
at Caneo Creek Park North. All right, we are right
up against the clock here. I think I can squeeze
in one more call. Let's talk to Dell. Hey, Dell,
welcome home. Hello, Hey Del.
Speaker 5 (25:05):
Yeah, after listening to you, I was going in and
start one of those recirculating pumps on my water heater.
Speaker 3 (25:12):
Yes, what I was.
Speaker 5 (25:13):
Most of them got a timer on them. And if
it's in the off position, do you just get you know,
your normal hot water in the old fashioned way, who
gets wet and runs you by pressure?
Speaker 2 (25:24):
It will still work, right, absolutely, absolutely, it'll still work.
So if you're concerned, like if there's a power outage,
if you commit to a recirculating pump, if there's a
power outage, then you won't get any hot water at all.
That's not the case that the research pump connected to
a bridge valve. All that's doing is helping get the
hot water to those faucets faster, so you're not running
(25:46):
as much water down the drain and wasting so much
time and water. But if there's a power outage, then
you're just back to regular city pressure. You'll just be
waiting for the hot water like you do now. But no,
it's not gonna it's not gonna make you vulnerable to
a power outage. Shut the house down.
Speaker 5 (26:01):
Also the manifold that goes on it. You know what
do you call it? The bridge valve that goes underneath
the sink?
Speaker 2 (26:07):
Yes, sir?
Speaker 5 (26:08):
Do you need more than one of those in the house?
In other words, I install one to the kitchen sink,
for example, and am I still going to get the
same action in the bathroom?
Speaker 2 (26:18):
Well, that's the interesting thing. Most houses are plumbed like
a tree, like a tree branching out, and so what
we like to do is to benefit the other. Now
you can install as many of them as you want,
obviously at every faucet if you wanted to, but to
benefit the whole house, what we want to do is
we want to install the bridge valve at the sink
that is the furthest away from the water heater. That way,
(26:42):
it's drawing it up through the trunk and out into
the branches of the tree as it's trying to get
to that valve. That's the one that will benefit the
rest of the house the most because of just the
structure of the tree. So kitchen sink, I don't know
whether it advise you on the kitchen sink. Kitchen sink,
if it's the closest into the water heater. No, it's
not going to help the rest of the ones in
(27:03):
the house, so we always install. If we're just installing
one at the sink that is furthest away from the
water heater, then it draws that hot water at least
up through the trunk and gets it closer to the
other sinks as you go as well. Dell, thank you
for your call, my friend. Thank you everybody for your
calls this morning. To anybody who we didn't get to.
(27:24):
When you call back, if you call tomorrow's show, or
you call back next week, you just let our call
screener know that you were on the hold and you
didn't get through, and we'll give you a fast past
top priority next time around. Everybody, take advantage of this
day that you've got in your hands, whether the weather
is helping you or not, and get out there and
get busy building yourself a beautiful life, and we will
(27:46):
see you tomorrow. Nine am. This has been Home with
Dean Sharp, 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.
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I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com