January 5, 2025 • 32 mins
Dean continues with part two on his reactive basic tool set for homeowners when something breaks, gets loose, or squeaks. Dean says to grab yourself some pliers into your reactive tool kit and explains the general rule on them. Dean finds channel locking pliers as a great add-on to the kit, the difference of wrenches.Plus, Dean recaps the essential tools that one may need for any case scenario when it comes to fixing things around your home.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
KFI AM six forty. You're listening to Dean Sharp The
House Whisper on demand on the iHeart Radio app. I
am Dean Sharp the House Whisper. I design custom homes,
I build custom homes, and I'm your guide to better
understanding that place where you live today. On the show,
(00:22):
Part two, we're taking the first weekend in twenty twenty
five and I'm just getting you equipped equipped with what tools?
Just tools? Okay, yeah, we're not going starting with high
brow design concepts. We're just talking about tools. And the
particular list that I'm handing to you this weekend is
(00:44):
what I call a reactive tool set. And what that
means is this is not a set of tools designed
around a project that you're going to start to build,
because that will determine the project, will determine the tools
necessary to get that done. You know, whatever kind of
saw you need, or this or that or the other thing.
(01:04):
You know, this set of tools is your basic, essential
homeowner tool set that you react to things going wrong
with right, your reactive set of tools. It's the tools
that are there when something breaks, when something gets loose,
when something starts squeaking, when something gets wobbly, you know,
(01:25):
you know what I'm talking about, that kind of stuff.
That's the essential tools that we're talking about today. And
of course we will also take your calls. I'm gonna
give you the number right now because Richie is standing
by and the phone lines are opened up. The number
to reach me about anything you want to talk about today,
anything at all, design, construction, DIY tools or otherwise, anything
(01:48):
at all, whatever's got you scratching your head about your house.
The number to reach me eight three three two Ask
Dean A three three the numeral two ask Dean A
three three to ask Dean what are we serving up
for you today?
Speaker 2 (02:03):
Uh?
Speaker 1 (02:04):
Well, you can follow us on social media. We only
do the good kind of social media uplifting, informative, inspiring
stuff Instagram, TikTok, Facebook x Home with Dean that is
the handle for them all. And what else? Oh, if
your home is in need of some personal house whisper
attention beyond what I offer you here on the show,
(02:25):
then you know you can always book an in home
design consult with me and the tea. Just go to
house Whisperer dot design to get more information about that.
All right, let's introduce our awesome team Elmer is on
the board.
Speaker 2 (02:40):
Good morning Elmer, Good morning Dean, morning doing good.
Speaker 1 (02:44):
Thank you. How's your what's your new y what's your
biggest New year resolution? Yeah, right on, right on, You've
got it. You know, it's a master piece in the making.
My friend, Oh, don't take that. I just caught him
(03:06):
flat footed. Help you.
Speaker 2 (03:07):
It's it's a bunch, you know what I mean, plans
work on bigger projects. Here you go go to the
Dominican Republic with my family, you know, just kind of
everyone back together.
Speaker 1 (03:20):
You know that'd be awesome, everybody getting back home, just
a little visit exactly. Yeah, sweet sweet h I should
ask Richie, but he's nowhere in your microphone, so we'll
we will find out, Hey, Richie, once you send me
a text when you're done screening calls there with your
New Year's resolution, all everybody you know. And then there's
Eileen Gonzalez at the news desk. Good morning, Eileen, Good
(03:42):
morning sunshine. How's it going when you call me that?
It's hilarious because it's not how I feel.
Speaker 3 (03:51):
Well.
Speaker 1 (03:51):
What is your Do you have a a resolution this year?
Speaker 4 (03:55):
I don't do resolutions. I set goals for the year
because those are right.
Speaker 1 (04:01):
Yeah, okay, all right, it's just.
Speaker 4 (04:04):
Doing things for my health, work and relationships.
Speaker 1 (04:07):
Well, there you go, you've hit the trifecta. She's got plans.
Eileen has plans. That's what I like.
Speaker 4 (04:13):
Listen in goals, that's my thing.
Speaker 1 (04:15):
All right, Well, one of my great goals in life
is sitting across the table from me. I did it
check that box? My better half, my best buddy in
all the world, my design partner, the co owner, co
founder of house Whisper Tina is here. No, there you go.
(04:38):
It is one of your goals to have a different
spirit animal this year other than the elephant. We're keeping
the elephant.
Speaker 4 (04:45):
Elephant.
Speaker 1 (04:45):
Okay, we're keeping the elephant. So you got any resolutions
for the new year?
Speaker 3 (04:51):
I do, Oh, they sound private. I wouldn't call them resolutions.
Like Eileen said, I think, I think goals. I think
short term and long term goals. Obviously, health is always
a factor, and especially after what I went through this year,
I think focusing on my health even more.
Speaker 1 (05:11):
Right, you got hit with that unexpected surgery that you're
you're covering amazingly from.
Speaker 3 (05:17):
Yeah, and I think a lot of the fact that
I have built healthy goals has helped me to recover
more quickly, and that's really exciting to think. Wow, you know,
because I'm in such healthy, fit shape that my body
was able.
Speaker 4 (05:30):
To bounce back pretty quickly. And that's that's great.
Speaker 1 (05:34):
You are fit? Yeah, yeah, you are.
Speaker 3 (05:38):
My heart is healthy, so yeah, those are so health
I think first also, just fit all right there, fit,
flow it down.
Speaker 4 (05:46):
This is a family show, guys.
Speaker 1 (05:48):
I'm surprised you didn't pick up on that when I
first said it.
Speaker 4 (05:51):
Oh I did. I just let it go. That's how
I do.
Speaker 1 (05:55):
Let it just let's just let it go back.
Speaker 4 (05:56):
It'll just float away.
Speaker 1 (05:59):
Like so many anythings that Dean says. All right, everybody,
I'm so glad you're with us this morning. The team
is here. You can hear. We are ready to roll.
The phone lines are open right now. Eight three three
two Ask Dean eight three three the numeral two. Ask Dean.
Let's dive into part two of the essential tool list
(06:23):
for you and for your home this year. We'll do
it right after.
Speaker 5 (06:27):
You're listening to Home with Dean Sharp on demand from
KFI AM six.
Speaker 1 (06:31):
Forty joking on my coffee and also here to help
you take your house to the next level. I can
do both at the same time. That's talent. I can
help you change your life at home and choke on
my coffee simultaneously. Let's let's resolve one of them at
least here. Hang on, Okay, all right, I'm fine, No,
(06:57):
I'm fine. Really, we are talking about the essential tools
for your household today. It's not a long list. It's
about thirty items or so. And they can all fit
in a bucket or two. And if you are wondering
why would I put my tools in a bucket, then
you need to watch yesterday's episode a yesterday's show, find
(07:21):
it on the podcast, and you can find the podcast
on the iHeartRadio app, the new and improved iHeartRadio app,
where you should be putting my show as a preset
for you right there to get to me all the time, anywhere, anytime.
Or you can find our podcast wherever your favorite podcasts
(07:42):
are found Spotify, Apple Podcasts, wherever, wherever youwhere we are.
Yesterday's show was part one. This is part two, so
you're only going to hear some of the tools today
and the rest were yesterday. Okay, let's die back into
the oh oh oh, by the way, because I keep
my promises here hang on Producer Richie's resolutions for the
(08:06):
New Year. More travel this year Belgium, Amsterdam and Switzerland.
Is that all going to be one trip? That could
that actually could all be one trip? But or you
just divide it up, just say, hey, I'm going three times,
but that's a night. We have friends, very very dear
friends who lived in Amsterdam for years and years and
(08:26):
years decades that and we would go visit them. Off in.
Amsterdam is a cool town and it's also an insane
place for New Year's Oh my gosh, insane.
Speaker 3 (08:37):
That should be your bucket list, Richie, go to Amsterdam
for New Years.
Speaker 1 (08:42):
Say you've never seen a New Year's life.
Speaker 3 (08:44):
It is definitely one of those bucket lists things to do.
Speaker 4 (08:49):
It's unreal.
Speaker 1 (08:50):
There are virtually no regulations about the use of fireworks,
and all of the fireworks in Amsterdam are this amazing
high quality German fireworks, like like artillery, I mean, crazy stuff. Anyway,
more more stories.
Speaker 4 (09:08):
There are lots of drunk people playing with very intense.
Speaker 1 (09:14):
Surprisingly surprisingly, you know, all night long, we didn't hear
any ambulances running. Maybe they just shut down the ambulance.
You know, you lose an arm. Deal, we'll catch you
the next morning. Anyway, it's a good thing. Okay, back
to the list. Where are we at on the list?
We're up to pliers pliers. What's the difference between a
(09:36):
plier uh set of pliers and a wrench? By the way, well,
here's the difference. Essentially, wrenches are for the most part.
There's a couple exceptions here, especially when it comes to
plumbing stuff like pipe wrenches, but wrenches are usually typically
categorized as tools that are designed to fit squarely around
(10:01):
objects that are meant to be twisted and turned, like
the heads of bolts and nuts and bolts and that
kind of stuff. Does that make sense? In other words,
if there is a fastener device like a nut or
a bolt, or even a screw head at times that
has a blocked head or a nut attached to it,
(10:24):
then there is a wrench that's made that slides over
that blocked head and turns it efficiently. That's, by definition
kind of what a wrench is. Wrenches don't have teeth typically,
again with the exception of the pipe wrench and a
couple of things like it, but wrenches usually don't have teeth.
(10:48):
They don't leave scratches behind when they turn a thing.
They have flat sides because they're designed specifically and fit
specifically for the thing that they're turning. Applier appliers a
little wilder, it's a little bit more free flowing. Pliers
are for typically for items that do not have these
(11:11):
pre set, pre designed surfaces made for turning or extraction
or so on and so forth. So first on your
list for today, at least Needle nose pliers. Needlenose pliers
are typically what you know for a lot of fine
wire work, like electrical work, needle nose that sort of.
(11:32):
I mean, you know what a needle those pliers is, right,
It comes down to a very fine point. Allows you
to hold things like a wire in a very cramped situation.
It allows you to manipulate things in Do they have teeth.
They don't really have teeth, well, I guess they do.
Technically they have teeth, but they're more like ridges just
for good grab, for good hold and then Needlenose pliers
(11:56):
typically will have a wire cutting section right back near
the actual hinge, back at the backside of its jaw,
and some of them come with wires stripping attachments too,
and some are combos, right, but a good pair of
needle nose pliers in your toolbox is a must. Also.
Second set of pliers slip joint pliers. I've never heard
(12:20):
that term before, Dean, What does slip joint pliers? Well,
just clear all thoughts of pliers from your mind, and
then just imagine what pops into your head when I
say pliers. They've got kind of a they're sort of
medium sized, they're not needle nose, they're straight what you
(12:40):
imagine as the typical set of pliers, like the pliers
that you see illustrated when the word pliers is mentioned,
that is technically a slip joint plyer, because instead of
having a fixed joint or hinge that cannot be moved,
you've all done this, You open it up and you
find out that it can, that it can slide sideways slightly,
(13:04):
and that makes the jaws slightly larger to handle a
larger diameter thing. That's the slip joint, and that's a
slip joint plier. Okay, typical pliers. Probably strangely enough, if
I was selling plyers, this is probably the last pair
I would sell you. And and I just find in
my own life that slip joint pliers, which is ironically
(13:27):
the kind of the iconic plier, is the set of
pliers I use the least. I hardly ever reach for
slip joint plers, but you know what, everyone's in a
blue moon and they're not expensive, so I say have
them in your toolbox as well. All right, now, we
need to move on to the set of pliers that
I use, probably more often than way more often than
(13:50):
any pliers, channel locking pliers, and a derivation of channel
locking pliers, which is critical to keeping your house looking nice.
We need to talk about that, but we will on
the other side of the news.
Speaker 5 (14:06):
Right now, you're listening to Home with Dean Sharp on
demand from KFI AM six forty.
Speaker 1 (14:15):
Dean Sharp, the house Whisper with you on this first
Sunday of twenty twenty five. We're taking the weekend. We're
talking about essential tools for your home that every homeowner
should have in their home to take care of it,
not to do big old projects. Of course they'll do
big projects for you, but this list particularly is about
(14:38):
the tools that you have on hand to take care
of your house as a little thing goes wrong, as
a little something gets loose, something gets wobbly, you know
that kind of stuff. Also, we're coming up top of
the hour, we're going to be going to the phones,
and I want to let you know the phone lines
are wide open right now. So if you want to
jump into the queue and you've got a question something's
(15:00):
got you scratching your head about your home, give me
a call eight three to three two. Ask Dean eight
three to three the numeral two. Ask Dean. That's coming
up in just a bit. All right, back to the list.
I was talking about pliers again. The difference between wrenches
and pliers, FYI, is that a wrench and no, they
(15:22):
don't all look the same. They can look wildly different.
A wrench is a tool that has a configuration on
it that's designed to spin or turn or tighten or
loosen a fastener of sorts an object that is also
designed for that tool. Okay, so, for instance, the head
(15:44):
of a bolt or a nut has flat surfaces on it,
specifically so that the flat sides of a wrench can
slide onto it and turn it efficiently. But it doesn't
even have to be an open two prong thing. Yesterday
on the list we talked about Allen wrenches or hex
wrenches or torques wrenches which actually go inside the top
(16:09):
of a screw or a bolt. Those are wrenches too.
Why because the top of the screw or the top
of the bolt has a recess in it that is
hexagonal and designed to have that hex inserted into it.
Therefore it is a wrench. Plyers are a bit more
wild west. Pliers are devices that you use your actual
(16:32):
hand to squeeze to create tension onto, and they usually
have teeth of some sort so that they can grab
onto unconventional surfaces, round surfaces, for instance. And of course
there's always exceptions to this rule, like the pipe wrench,
which is a wrench that goes on round surfaces. But
(16:54):
as a general rule, that's what pliers are all about.
And I left you after talking about needle nose and
slip joint plyers to the pliers that I probably grab
more often than any other. Why. I couldn't tell you,
just the fact that I think these are great pliers
and they just they so get the job done. And
those are channel locking pliers. But Tina is flagging me
(17:18):
down here, and it's really getting distracting. You're distracting enough.
Just sitting there. Beatina's fagging me down because I obviously
forgot something. What okay what?
Speaker 3 (17:29):
So I dug into the archives, dusted them off on
our YouTube channel, and I found a little promo video
we made gosh, quite a few years ago.
Speaker 4 (17:40):
You're you're very cute and clean shape, and it's what.
Speaker 3 (17:44):
But anyway, it's actually very relevant to what we're talking
about today because it's a quick two minute here's a
tool box of white all the tools that you should have, you.
Speaker 4 (17:54):
Know, a home owner show.
Speaker 1 (17:55):
I remember that video.
Speaker 3 (17:56):
Yeah, so it's just great, like here's this, here's this,
and then like little prices.
Speaker 4 (17:59):
You know, it's really cute. I suggest going and watching it.
Speaker 3 (18:02):
One for all the information about tools, but two to
see Dean super cute and clean shaven.
Speaker 4 (18:09):
He's like a little baby.
Speaker 1 (18:10):
Oh my god, you're that.
Speaker 3 (18:14):
I'm not super cute. Now you're so super cute. You're
just clean shaven. It's just funny. I haven't seen your
face it.
Speaker 4 (18:19):
A long time.
Speaker 3 (18:20):
Oh geez, but it's it's on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok
at Home with Dean.
Speaker 4 (18:27):
Very fun two minutes. You got to watch it and
you get and even.
Speaker 3 (18:30):
If you if you're hearing about all these tools today
and you're not exactly sure what they look like.
Speaker 4 (18:36):
You get a visual of all the tools.
Speaker 1 (18:38):
Okay, now that I think this list has changed a smidge,
I've only added to it just because. But that's it's
probably ninety eight percent of what we're talking about today
and in two minutes. Yeah, all right, great, thank you
for that.
Speaker 4 (18:50):
You are so welcome.
Speaker 1 (18:52):
Thanks for happy to he calling me cute once. I'm
not sure how to take that. You are adorable, all right?
Uh cham locking pliers. So the other feature of pliers,
by the way, as I said, the difference between that
and a wrench, okay, is and this is probably why
pipe wrenches are in fact wrenches. Wrenches by definition are
(19:14):
not tools that you have to use the strength of
your grip to manipulate. They have their own jaws and
or you know, a method of locking itself into the
fastener that it's designed to turn, and then all you
do is pull the handle, all right. You don't have
to actually squeeze at the same time. Pliers you gotta
(19:37):
squeeze them in order to grab onto to make them
grab onto a thing. And so that's part of what
makes a plier applier. Okay, channel locking pliers kind of
bridges the gap, and that's probably why they're so useful.
Number One, they're long. They tend to be about twelve
plus inches long. And number two, because it has a
(19:59):
number of chainals in it, they can open up pretty
dang wide and get really small at the same time,
so they have a wide range of usefulness. They've got teeth.
But the nature of the offset head of a pair
of channel locking plyers, and if again, if check out
the video, if you don't understand what I'm talking about,
(20:21):
or just look it up online, but the offset head
of channel locking plyers means that you get that your
channel selected close to the size of the thing, and
that channel also helps you get a good grip on
a thing, so you don't have to squeeze them as hard.
In fact, once you've locked onto a thing, you just
sort of maintain mild tension. And they do the rest
(20:41):
of the work like a wrench, So they're kind of
half a wrench half plyers, and as a result, they
just do a lot of things good. They work like
a pipe wrench, they work like a mechanics wrench. They
are just they're all over the place, and they're probably
my biggest go to. However, here's the thing. There's a
(21:03):
second set of channel locking pliers that I want you
to have in your toolbox. You know. Let me back up.
I just heard myself say a second set. Let me
say this. When it comes to wrenches and pliers, I
think it's a great idea to have two of the
exact same kind, two sets of channel locking pliers and
(21:27):
two sets of, like when we get to it, adjustable
end wrenches. Why because quite often these things get used
for plumbing and or sensitive items, you know, that are
kind of stuck way out. And I've seen more homeowners
break more pipes or rip open more plumbing hoses because
they put a wrench on a thing and they start
(21:48):
to spin it, and they don't realize that the pipe
itself is getting too much torque on it. Okay, so
the best way in this I didn't want to make
today a show about technique, but I will tell you this.
The best way to ever use a wrench or a
set of pliers when you're trying to turn something off
something sensitive like plumbing, is to set the one wrench
(22:12):
on the thing that you're trying to turn and spin
off and set the other wrench just behind it, opposing
it on the pipe. Okay, so that the one wrench
supports the pipe, the other wrench supports the nut or
the valve or whatever it is you're trying to spin off,
so you don't do bigger damage than you expected to.
(22:32):
So there's your tip of the day, opposing wrenches and pliers. Okay.
But here's the thing. You don't always have to do that.
And here's an example of when you don't. And here's
an example of when you need to use a pair
of plyers, but you don't use the pair of pliers
that I just described. That is typical homeowner maintenance. Your
(22:54):
sink faucet, the faucet at the kitchen sink has at
the very end of it an aerator. Okay. That aerator
is that last little half inch guy with a little
screen inside, and it's got a little mechanism where it
drops air into the water and it helps just aerate
and make a better stream of water. But over time,
(23:17):
a sediment from inside the plumbing supply, I mean the
city supply of water can build up and you find
reduced flow out of your kitchen faucet, and especially after
plumbing work has been done in the house. That's a
typical time when sediment actually gets into the water lines
and ends up boom, being flushed right to the tip
of the faucet. So one of the typical things is, oh,
(23:40):
you know what we're gonna change. You know, we'll clean
out the aerator. They're made to be removed and cleaned. Okay. Now,
ideally an aerator is on there, just finger type, and
you could get your two fingers in there and open
it up. But if it hasn't been moved in months
or years, I guarantee you it's finger tight anymore. All right,
(24:02):
it's all it's kind of gunked up and stuck. And
so your first temptation is, well, okay, do you use
a wrench? No, because there's no flat sides to it
on most aerators. Something actually do. But if there's nothing flat,
if there's no flat surfaces on the aerator, then you
got to use pliers. And guess what, pliers have teeth.
(24:23):
And as soon as you grab the thing and you
spin it off and you're feeling so good about yourself,
you look down and you realize those teeth have dug
into the sensitive finish and scratched the heck out of it?
How do we avoid that? All right, I'll tell you.
Speaker 5 (24:39):
You're listening to Home with Dean Sharp on demand from
KFI AM six forty.
Speaker 1 (24:48):
We're talking about your house today, as we do every weekend.
No design talk today, not for me here as far
as the subject matter, No construction talk either. So what
am I talking about? Well, we're starting off the new
year with just an essential list of tools for you
as a homeowner to embrace and have standing by to
(25:09):
take care of your house. So we're just we're starting
with the very very basics. You've got a place where
you live, and whether you own or not. By the way,
these are the kinds of tools that save you money
from having to call a pro in in an emergency.
These are the kinds of tools that, even if you
have to call a pro in, if you've got them
(25:30):
on hand, you can shut down a leak, You can
shut down a problem before it damages other things. This
is just the essential tools. And guess what they all
fit into a five gallon bucket with a tool organizer, essentially,
and so they are well worth you having, whether you
rent or own, whether you live in an apartment or
(25:51):
a condo or a cottage or a castle. It's all
here for you. So that's where we're going today. Now
I should say this number one like we said the last.
Before the last break, Tina reached into the archives on
YouTube and found She's like, you know, I think you
did a tool video a few years back, so she
(26:11):
found a younger version of me having this conversation and
showing you, you know, essential tools. Now the list isn't
exactly the same. I've bad it a couple of things,
but it's up on our social media right now. You
should go check it out. And if you've got somebody
in your life who needs to have all this condensed
down into a less than two minute format, then boom,
(26:33):
there it is waiting for you can share it, follow
us while you're there. It's on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok x,
we're all over the place home with Dean. Go check
out the video, and you know, give us a shout
out while you're there. So that's that. And the other
thing that I want to let you know, unrelated to
my tool list is right after the next break, I
would like to go to the phones. But guess what
(26:55):
we're in one of those situations where this happens once
in a blue moon, there are no calls on the
and so if you've ever been holding back and thinking, gosh,
I would love to chance to uh talk to Dean
about something with the house. But you know what, never
get through it. Well as of right now. See there's
one call right now. Boom. See I say this and
somebody realizes, now's my shot. So guess what, now's your shot.
(27:18):
We've got low traffic on the call board right now,
and you know what, if no calls come through, that's fine.
I got plenty of stuff to talk about, but I
would love to take some calls starting right after the
next break. The number to reach me eight three three two.
Ask Dean eight three three the numeral two peep, ask
Dean eight three three to ask Dean anything you want
(27:42):
to talk about. You don't have to talk to me
about tools, anything, design, construction, architecture, landscape, DIY stuff, anything
at all. Whatever's got you scratch in your head about
your house eight three three two ask Dean. We'll see,
we'll see where it goes. The calls the board right
now is completely clear, totally up to you. All right
(28:04):
back to the list, where was I oh, I had
you sitting on the edge of your seat, didn't I right?
Because I said, there's a kind of plier out there
to take care of things like, for instance, taking an
aeriator off your faucet that without scratching it up. And see,
that's the thing. So I'm gonna clarify a couple of things. Yes,
(28:28):
there are many aerators that if you take the time,
you may not notice it at first. But if you
take the time and look at it, that round aerator
which is where the water comes out of your faucet
that you need to clean out every once in a while,
that aerator may in fact have two flat surfaces on it.
Now they're going to be very very hidden away because
(28:49):
they didn't want to set it up to make it
look like it was a nut or you know, sitting
at the end of your your faucet. But if you
look carefully, there may be two flat sides opposing each other.
That's the case, then you can just slide the smooth
surfaces of a wrench very carefully over those two flat
surfaces and remove the aerator without doing any damage to
(29:11):
the sensitive finish of the aerator. If there are not
If it is a completely round aerator. You know, I
can be able to use a wrench there. You're going
to use a pair of plyers. But like I said
right before the break, plyers have teeth and teeth they're
gonna get it done. They're going to dig in and
get that aerator off, but they're also going to permanently
leave teeth marks on the aerator and you're going to
(29:33):
mess it up and scratch its surface, as many of
you have, and you're living with scratched up aerators from
that old experience. How do we get around it? Well,
we reach for a set of channel locking pliers, but
not the ones that I was just describing. We reach
for a set of channel locking pliers that are intentionally
(29:54):
made to be drum roll please. Soft grip pliers. Yes,
there is such a thing, and yes you will find
them at your local big box or hardware store. Soft
grip channel locking pliers are essentially just a pair of
channel locking pliers that have over them over both sides
(30:17):
of their jaws, the upper and lower jaw, a rubberized
or plasticized thick coating or a slide on that renders
the teeth unreachable and so as a result, you can
use your soft grip pliers to grab onto and this
is exactly what they're made for. Soft grip is made
(30:40):
precisely for what I just described in order to grab
onto something and be able to turn it or spin
it or tighten it or whatever without messing up the finish.
There you go, soft grip channel locking plyers. I've got
one more set of pliers to discuss with you, vice
grip pliers very quickly. Everybody should have a pair of
(31:03):
vice gript pliers in their toolbox. Yes, they're weird looking.
A lot of people are like, I have no idea
how to use them. Vice gript pliers. They've got a
little screw on one side of the handle and a
little release tab on the other. That's because they're locking pliers.
They act like a vice. What you do is you
put them around the object and you start to squeeze
(31:24):
it down. If you can't close it completely, you adjust
the screw until you can just with a little pressure
close them and you hear them snap into place. Those
things are now more secure without you having to use
your hand power to squeeze them. Then. I mean, they're
as secure as a wrench in most situations and The
little tab is for unlocking it and releasing it as
(31:45):
you go. So there you go. Those are the pliers
that should be inside your toolbox. And when we come
back to the subject, we're going to turn a direction
and talk about a whole another set of tools. And
guess what I ask for Now we have a board
with nine plus calls sitting on them, which we will
go to right after the news. You are Home with
(32:08):
Dean Sharp, the House Whisper on KFI. 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
KFI AM six forty. You're listening to Dean Sharp The
House Whisper on demand on the iHeart Radio app. I
am Dean Sharp the House Whisper. I design custom homes,
I build custom homes, and I'm your guide to better
understanding that place where you live today. On the show,
(00:22):
Part two, we're taking the first weekend in twenty twenty
five and I'm just getting you equipped equipped with what tools?
Just tools? Okay, yeah, we're not going starting with high
brow design concepts. We're just talking about tools. And the
particular list that I'm handing to you this weekend is
(00:44):
what I call a reactive tool set. And what that
means is this is not a set of tools designed
around a project that you're going to start to build,
because that will determine the project, will determine the tools
necessary to get that done. You know, whatever kind of
saw you need, or this or that or the other thing.
(01:04):
You know, this set of tools is your basic, essential
homeowner tool set that you react to things going wrong
with right, your reactive set of tools. It's the tools
that are there when something breaks, when something gets loose,
when something starts squeaking, when something gets wobbly, you know,
(01:25):
you know what I'm talking about, that kind of stuff.
That's the essential tools that we're talking about today. And
of course we will also take your calls. I'm gonna
give you the number right now because Richie is standing
by and the phone lines are opened up. The number
to reach me about anything you want to talk about today,
anything at all, design, construction, DIY tools or otherwise, anything
(01:48):
at all, whatever's got you scratching your head about your house.
The number to reach me eight three three two Ask
Dean A three three the numeral two ask Dean A
three three to ask Dean what are we serving up
for you today?
Speaker 2 (02:03):
Uh?
Speaker 1 (02:04):
Well, you can follow us on social media. We only
do the good kind of social media uplifting, informative, inspiring
stuff Instagram, TikTok, Facebook x Home with Dean that is
the handle for them all. And what else? Oh, if
your home is in need of some personal house whisper
attention beyond what I offer you here on the show,
(02:25):
then you know you can always book an in home
design consult with me and the tea. Just go to
house Whisperer dot design to get more information about that.
All right, let's introduce our awesome team Elmer is on
the board.
Speaker 2 (02:40):
Good morning Elmer, Good morning Dean, morning doing good.
Speaker 1 (02:44):
Thank you. How's your what's your new y what's your
biggest New year resolution? Yeah, right on, right on, You've
got it. You know, it's a master piece in the making.
My friend, Oh, don't take that. I just caught him
(03:06):
flat footed. Help you.
Speaker 2 (03:07):
It's it's a bunch, you know what I mean, plans
work on bigger projects. Here you go go to the
Dominican Republic with my family, you know, just kind of
everyone back together.
Speaker 1 (03:20):
You know that'd be awesome, everybody getting back home, just
a little visit exactly. Yeah, sweet sweet h I should
ask Richie, but he's nowhere in your microphone, so we'll
we will find out, Hey, Richie, once you send me
a text when you're done screening calls there with your
New Year's resolution, all everybody you know. And then there's
Eileen Gonzalez at the news desk. Good morning, Eileen, Good
(03:42):
morning sunshine. How's it going when you call me that?
It's hilarious because it's not how I feel.
Speaker 3 (03:51):
Well.
Speaker 1 (03:51):
What is your Do you have a a resolution this year?
Speaker 4 (03:55):
I don't do resolutions. I set goals for the year
because those are right.
Speaker 1 (04:01):
Yeah, okay, all right, it's just.
Speaker 4 (04:04):
Doing things for my health, work and relationships.
Speaker 1 (04:07):
Well, there you go, you've hit the trifecta. She's got plans.
Eileen has plans. That's what I like.
Speaker 4 (04:13):
Listen in goals, that's my thing.
Speaker 1 (04:15):
All right, Well, one of my great goals in life
is sitting across the table from me. I did it
check that box? My better half, my best buddy in
all the world, my design partner, the co owner, co
founder of house Whisper Tina is here. No, there you go.
(04:38):
It is one of your goals to have a different
spirit animal this year other than the elephant. We're keeping
the elephant.
Speaker 4 (04:45):
Elephant.
Speaker 1 (04:45):
Okay, we're keeping the elephant. So you got any resolutions
for the new year?
Speaker 3 (04:51):
I do, Oh, they sound private. I wouldn't call them resolutions.
Like Eileen said, I think, I think goals. I think
short term and long term goals. Obviously, health is always
a factor, and especially after what I went through this year,
I think focusing on my health even more.
Speaker 1 (05:11):
Right, you got hit with that unexpected surgery that you're
you're covering amazingly from.
Speaker 3 (05:17):
Yeah, and I think a lot of the fact that
I have built healthy goals has helped me to recover
more quickly, and that's really exciting to think. Wow, you know,
because I'm in such healthy, fit shape that my body
was able.
Speaker 4 (05:30):
To bounce back pretty quickly. And that's that's great.
Speaker 1 (05:34):
You are fit? Yeah, yeah, you are.
Speaker 3 (05:38):
My heart is healthy, so yeah, those are so health
I think first also, just fit all right there, fit,
flow it down.
Speaker 4 (05:46):
This is a family show, guys.
Speaker 1 (05:48):
I'm surprised you didn't pick up on that when I
first said it.
Speaker 4 (05:51):
Oh I did. I just let it go. That's how
I do.
Speaker 1 (05:55):
Let it just let's just let it go back.
Speaker 4 (05:56):
It'll just float away.
Speaker 1 (05:59):
Like so many anythings that Dean says. All right, everybody,
I'm so glad you're with us this morning. The team
is here. You can hear. We are ready to roll.
The phone lines are open right now. Eight three three
two Ask Dean eight three three the numeral two. Ask Dean.
Let's dive into part two of the essential tool list
(06:23):
for you and for your home this year. We'll do
it right after.
Speaker 5 (06:27):
You're listening to Home with Dean Sharp on demand from
KFI AM six.
Speaker 1 (06:31):
Forty joking on my coffee and also here to help
you take your house to the next level. I can
do both at the same time. That's talent. I can
help you change your life at home and choke on
my coffee simultaneously. Let's let's resolve one of them at
least here. Hang on, Okay, all right, I'm fine, No,
(06:57):
I'm fine. Really, we are talking about the essential tools
for your household today. It's not a long list. It's
about thirty items or so. And they can all fit
in a bucket or two. And if you are wondering
why would I put my tools in a bucket, then
you need to watch yesterday's episode a yesterday's show, find
(07:21):
it on the podcast, and you can find the podcast
on the iHeartRadio app, the new and improved iHeartRadio app,
where you should be putting my show as a preset
for you right there to get to me all the time, anywhere, anytime.
Or you can find our podcast wherever your favorite podcasts
(07:42):
are found Spotify, Apple Podcasts, wherever, wherever youwhere we are.
Yesterday's show was part one. This is part two, so
you're only going to hear some of the tools today
and the rest were yesterday. Okay, let's die back into
the oh oh oh, by the way, because I keep
my promises here hang on Producer Richie's resolutions for the
(08:06):
New Year. More travel this year Belgium, Amsterdam and Switzerland.
Is that all going to be one trip? That could
that actually could all be one trip? But or you
just divide it up, just say, hey, I'm going three times,
but that's a night. We have friends, very very dear
friends who lived in Amsterdam for years and years and
(08:26):
years decades that and we would go visit them. Off in.
Amsterdam is a cool town and it's also an insane
place for New Year's Oh my gosh, insane.
Speaker 3 (08:37):
That should be your bucket list, Richie, go to Amsterdam
for New Years.
Speaker 1 (08:42):
Say you've never seen a New Year's life.
Speaker 3 (08:44):
It is definitely one of those bucket lists things to do.
Speaker 4 (08:49):
It's unreal.
Speaker 1 (08:50):
There are virtually no regulations about the use of fireworks,
and all of the fireworks in Amsterdam are this amazing
high quality German fireworks, like like artillery, I mean, crazy stuff. Anyway,
more more stories.
Speaker 4 (09:08):
There are lots of drunk people playing with very intense.
Speaker 1 (09:14):
Surprisingly surprisingly, you know, all night long, we didn't hear
any ambulances running. Maybe they just shut down the ambulance.
You know, you lose an arm. Deal, we'll catch you
the next morning. Anyway, it's a good thing. Okay, back
to the list. Where are we at on the list?
We're up to pliers pliers. What's the difference between a
(09:36):
plier uh set of pliers and a wrench? By the way, well,
here's the difference. Essentially, wrenches are for the most part.
There's a couple exceptions here, especially when it comes to
plumbing stuff like pipe wrenches, but wrenches are usually typically
categorized as tools that are designed to fit squarely around
(10:01):
objects that are meant to be twisted and turned, like
the heads of bolts and nuts and bolts and that
kind of stuff. Does that make sense? In other words,
if there is a fastener device like a nut or
a bolt, or even a screw head at times that
has a blocked head or a nut attached to it,
(10:24):
then there is a wrench that's made that slides over
that blocked head and turns it efficiently. That's, by definition
kind of what a wrench is. Wrenches don't have teeth typically,
again with the exception of the pipe wrench and a
couple of things like it, but wrenches usually don't have teeth.
(10:48):
They don't leave scratches behind when they turn a thing.
They have flat sides because they're designed specifically and fit
specifically for the thing that they're turning. Applier appliers a
little wilder, it's a little bit more free flowing. Pliers
are for typically for items that do not have these
(11:11):
pre set, pre designed surfaces made for turning or extraction
or so on and so forth. So first on your
list for today, at least Needle nose pliers. Needlenose pliers
are typically what you know for a lot of fine
wire work, like electrical work, needle nose that sort of.
(11:32):
I mean, you know what a needle those pliers is, right,
It comes down to a very fine point. Allows you
to hold things like a wire in a very cramped situation.
It allows you to manipulate things in Do they have teeth.
They don't really have teeth, well, I guess they do.
Technically they have teeth, but they're more like ridges just
for good grab, for good hold and then Needlenose pliers
(11:56):
typically will have a wire cutting section right back near
the actual hinge, back at the backside of its jaw,
and some of them come with wires stripping attachments too,
and some are combos, right, but a good pair of
needle nose pliers in your toolbox is a must. Also.
Second set of pliers slip joint pliers. I've never heard
(12:20):
that term before, Dean, What does slip joint pliers? Well,
just clear all thoughts of pliers from your mind, and
then just imagine what pops into your head when I
say pliers. They've got kind of a they're sort of
medium sized, they're not needle nose, they're straight what you
(12:40):
imagine as the typical set of pliers, like the pliers
that you see illustrated when the word pliers is mentioned,
that is technically a slip joint plyer, because instead of
having a fixed joint or hinge that cannot be moved,
you've all done this, You open it up and you
find out that it can, that it can slide sideways slightly,
(13:04):
and that makes the jaws slightly larger to handle a
larger diameter thing. That's the slip joint, and that's a
slip joint plier. Okay, typical pliers. Probably strangely enough, if
I was selling plyers, this is probably the last pair
I would sell you. And and I just find in
my own life that slip joint pliers, which is ironically
(13:27):
the kind of the iconic plier, is the set of
pliers I use the least. I hardly ever reach for
slip joint plers, but you know what, everyone's in a
blue moon and they're not expensive, so I say have
them in your toolbox as well. All right, now, we
need to move on to the set of pliers that
I use, probably more often than way more often than
(13:50):
any pliers, channel locking pliers, and a derivation of channel
locking pliers, which is critical to keeping your house looking nice.
We need to talk about that, but we will on
the other side of the news.
Speaker 5 (14:06):
Right now, you're listening to Home with Dean Sharp on
demand from KFI AM six forty.
Speaker 1 (14:15):
Dean Sharp, the house Whisper with you on this first
Sunday of twenty twenty five. We're taking the weekend. We're
talking about essential tools for your home that every homeowner
should have in their home to take care of it,
not to do big old projects. Of course they'll do
big projects for you, but this list particularly is about
(14:38):
the tools that you have on hand to take care
of your house as a little thing goes wrong, as
a little something gets loose, something gets wobbly, you know
that kind of stuff. Also, we're coming up top of
the hour, we're going to be going to the phones,
and I want to let you know the phone lines
are wide open right now. So if you want to
jump into the queue and you've got a question something's
(15:00):
got you scratching your head about your home, give me
a call eight three to three two. Ask Dean eight
three to three the numeral two. Ask Dean. That's coming
up in just a bit. All right, back to the list.
I was talking about pliers again. The difference between wrenches
and pliers, FYI, is that a wrench and no, they
(15:22):
don't all look the same. They can look wildly different.
A wrench is a tool that has a configuration on
it that's designed to spin or turn or tighten or
loosen a fastener of sorts an object that is also
designed for that tool. Okay, so, for instance, the head
(15:44):
of a bolt or a nut has flat surfaces on it,
specifically so that the flat sides of a wrench can
slide onto it and turn it efficiently. But it doesn't
even have to be an open two prong thing. Yesterday
on the list we talked about Allen wrenches or hex
wrenches or torques wrenches which actually go inside the top
(16:09):
of a screw or a bolt. Those are wrenches too.
Why because the top of the screw or the top
of the bolt has a recess in it that is
hexagonal and designed to have that hex inserted into it.
Therefore it is a wrench. Plyers are a bit more
wild west. Pliers are devices that you use your actual
(16:32):
hand to squeeze to create tension onto, and they usually
have teeth of some sort so that they can grab
onto unconventional surfaces, round surfaces, for instance. And of course
there's always exceptions to this rule, like the pipe wrench,
which is a wrench that goes on round surfaces. But
(16:54):
as a general rule, that's what pliers are all about.
And I left you after talking about needle nose and
slip joint plyers to the pliers that I probably grab
more often than any other. Why. I couldn't tell you,
just the fact that I think these are great pliers
and they just they so get the job done. And
those are channel locking pliers. But Tina is flagging me
(17:18):
down here, and it's really getting distracting. You're distracting enough.
Just sitting there. Beatina's fagging me down because I obviously
forgot something. What okay what?
Speaker 3 (17:29):
So I dug into the archives, dusted them off on
our YouTube channel, and I found a little promo video
we made gosh, quite a few years ago.
Speaker 4 (17:40):
You're you're very cute and clean shape, and it's what.
Speaker 3 (17:44):
But anyway, it's actually very relevant to what we're talking
about today because it's a quick two minute here's a
tool box of white all the tools that you should have, you.
Speaker 4 (17:54):
Know, a home owner show.
Speaker 1 (17:55):
I remember that video.
Speaker 3 (17:56):
Yeah, so it's just great, like here's this, here's this,
and then like little prices.
Speaker 4 (17:59):
You know, it's really cute. I suggest going and watching it.
Speaker 3 (18:02):
One for all the information about tools, but two to
see Dean super cute and clean shaven.
Speaker 4 (18:09):
He's like a little baby.
Speaker 1 (18:10):
Oh my god, you're that.
Speaker 3 (18:14):
I'm not super cute. Now you're so super cute. You're
just clean shaven. It's just funny. I haven't seen your
face it.
Speaker 4 (18:19):
A long time.
Speaker 3 (18:20):
Oh geez, but it's it's on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok
at Home with Dean.
Speaker 4 (18:27):
Very fun two minutes. You got to watch it and
you get and even.
Speaker 3 (18:30):
If you if you're hearing about all these tools today
and you're not exactly sure what they look like.
Speaker 4 (18:36):
You get a visual of all the tools.
Speaker 1 (18:38):
Okay, now that I think this list has changed a smidge,
I've only added to it just because. But that's it's
probably ninety eight percent of what we're talking about today
and in two minutes. Yeah, all right, great, thank you
for that.
Speaker 4 (18:50):
You are so welcome.
Speaker 1 (18:52):
Thanks for happy to he calling me cute once. I'm
not sure how to take that. You are adorable, all right?
Uh cham locking pliers. So the other feature of pliers,
by the way, as I said, the difference between that
and a wrench, okay, is and this is probably why
pipe wrenches are in fact wrenches. Wrenches by definition are
(19:14):
not tools that you have to use the strength of
your grip to manipulate. They have their own jaws and
or you know, a method of locking itself into the
fastener that it's designed to turn, and then all you
do is pull the handle, all right. You don't have
to actually squeeze at the same time. Pliers you gotta
(19:37):
squeeze them in order to grab onto to make them
grab onto a thing. And so that's part of what
makes a plier applier. Okay, channel locking pliers kind of
bridges the gap, and that's probably why they're so useful.
Number One, they're long. They tend to be about twelve
plus inches long. And number two, because it has a
(19:59):
number of chainals in it, they can open up pretty
dang wide and get really small at the same time,
so they have a wide range of usefulness. They've got teeth.
But the nature of the offset head of a pair
of channel locking plyers, and if again, if check out
the video, if you don't understand what I'm talking about,
(20:21):
or just look it up online, but the offset head
of channel locking plyers means that you get that your
channel selected close to the size of the thing, and
that channel also helps you get a good grip on
a thing, so you don't have to squeeze them as hard.
In fact, once you've locked onto a thing, you just
sort of maintain mild tension. And they do the rest
(20:41):
of the work like a wrench, So they're kind of
half a wrench half plyers, and as a result, they
just do a lot of things good. They work like
a pipe wrench, they work like a mechanics wrench. They
are just they're all over the place, and they're probably
my biggest go to. However, here's the thing. There's a
(21:03):
second set of channel locking pliers that I want you
to have in your toolbox. You know. Let me back up.
I just heard myself say a second set. Let me
say this. When it comes to wrenches and pliers, I
think it's a great idea to have two of the
exact same kind, two sets of channel locking pliers and
(21:27):
two sets of, like when we get to it, adjustable
end wrenches. Why because quite often these things get used
for plumbing and or sensitive items, you know, that are
kind of stuck way out. And I've seen more homeowners
break more pipes or rip open more plumbing hoses because
they put a wrench on a thing and they start
(21:48):
to spin it, and they don't realize that the pipe
itself is getting too much torque on it. Okay, so
the best way in this I didn't want to make
today a show about technique, but I will tell you this.
The best way to ever use a wrench or a
set of pliers when you're trying to turn something off
something sensitive like plumbing, is to set the one wrench
(22:12):
on the thing that you're trying to turn and spin
off and set the other wrench just behind it, opposing
it on the pipe. Okay, so that the one wrench
supports the pipe, the other wrench supports the nut or
the valve or whatever it is you're trying to spin off,
so you don't do bigger damage than you expected to.
(22:32):
So there's your tip of the day, opposing wrenches and pliers. Okay.
But here's the thing. You don't always have to do that.
And here's an example of when you don't. And here's
an example of when you need to use a pair
of plyers, but you don't use the pair of pliers
that I just described. That is typical homeowner maintenance. Your
(22:54):
sink faucet, the faucet at the kitchen sink has at
the very end of it an aerator. Okay. That aerator
is that last little half inch guy with a little
screen inside, and it's got a little mechanism where it
drops air into the water and it helps just aerate
and make a better stream of water. But over time,
(23:17):
a sediment from inside the plumbing supply, I mean the
city supply of water can build up and you find
reduced flow out of your kitchen faucet, and especially after
plumbing work has been done in the house. That's a
typical time when sediment actually gets into the water lines
and ends up boom, being flushed right to the tip
of the faucet. So one of the typical things is, oh,
(23:40):
you know what we're gonna change. You know, we'll clean
out the aerator. They're made to be removed and cleaned. Okay. Now,
ideally an aerator is on there, just finger type, and
you could get your two fingers in there and open
it up. But if it hasn't been moved in months
or years, I guarantee you it's finger tight anymore. All right,
(24:02):
it's all it's kind of gunked up and stuck. And
so your first temptation is, well, okay, do you use
a wrench? No, because there's no flat sides to it
on most aerators. Something actually do. But if there's nothing flat,
if there's no flat surfaces on the aerator, then you
got to use pliers. And guess what, pliers have teeth.
(24:23):
And as soon as you grab the thing and you
spin it off and you're feeling so good about yourself,
you look down and you realize those teeth have dug
into the sensitive finish and scratched the heck out of it?
How do we avoid that? All right, I'll tell you.
Speaker 5 (24:39):
You're listening to Home with Dean Sharp on demand from
KFI AM six forty.
Speaker 1 (24:48):
We're talking about your house today, as we do every weekend.
No design talk today, not for me here as far
as the subject matter, No construction talk either. So what
am I talking about? Well, we're starting off the new
year with just an essential list of tools for you
as a homeowner to embrace and have standing by to
(25:09):
take care of your house. So we're just we're starting
with the very very basics. You've got a place where
you live, and whether you own or not. By the way,
these are the kinds of tools that save you money
from having to call a pro in in an emergency.
These are the kinds of tools that, even if you
have to call a pro in, if you've got them
(25:30):
on hand, you can shut down a leak, You can
shut down a problem before it damages other things. This
is just the essential tools. And guess what they all
fit into a five gallon bucket with a tool organizer, essentially,
and so they are well worth you having, whether you
rent or own, whether you live in an apartment or
(25:51):
a condo or a cottage or a castle. It's all
here for you. So that's where we're going today. Now
I should say this number one like we said the last.
Before the last break, Tina reached into the archives on
YouTube and found She's like, you know, I think you
did a tool video a few years back, so she
(26:11):
found a younger version of me having this conversation and
showing you, you know, essential tools. Now the list isn't
exactly the same. I've bad it a couple of things,
but it's up on our social media right now. You
should go check it out. And if you've got somebody
in your life who needs to have all this condensed
down into a less than two minute format, then boom,
(26:33):
there it is waiting for you can share it, follow
us while you're there. It's on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok x,
we're all over the place home with Dean. Go check
out the video, and you know, give us a shout
out while you're there. So that's that. And the other
thing that I want to let you know, unrelated to
my tool list is right after the next break, I
would like to go to the phones. But guess what
(26:55):
we're in one of those situations where this happens once
in a blue moon, there are no calls on the
and so if you've ever been holding back and thinking, gosh,
I would love to chance to uh talk to Dean
about something with the house. But you know what, never
get through it. Well as of right now. See there's
one call right now. Boom. See I say this and
somebody realizes, now's my shot. So guess what, now's your shot.
(27:18):
We've got low traffic on the call board right now,
and you know what, if no calls come through, that's fine.
I got plenty of stuff to talk about, but I
would love to take some calls starting right after the
next break. The number to reach me eight three three two.
Ask Dean eight three three the numeral two peep, ask
Dean eight three three to ask Dean anything you want
(27:42):
to talk about. You don't have to talk to me
about tools, anything, design, construction, architecture, landscape, DIY stuff, anything
at all. Whatever's got you scratch in your head about
your house eight three three two ask Dean. We'll see,
we'll see where it goes. The calls the board right
now is completely clear, totally up to you. All right
(28:04):
back to the list, where was I oh, I had
you sitting on the edge of your seat, didn't I right?
Because I said, there's a kind of plier out there
to take care of things like, for instance, taking an
aeriator off your faucet that without scratching it up. And see,
that's the thing. So I'm gonna clarify a couple of things. Yes,
(28:28):
there are many aerators that if you take the time,
you may not notice it at first. But if you
take the time and look at it, that round aerator
which is where the water comes out of your faucet
that you need to clean out every once in a while,
that aerator may in fact have two flat surfaces on it.
Now they're going to be very very hidden away because
(28:49):
they didn't want to set it up to make it
look like it was a nut or you know, sitting
at the end of your your faucet. But if you
look carefully, there may be two flat sides opposing each other.
That's the case, then you can just slide the smooth
surfaces of a wrench very carefully over those two flat
surfaces and remove the aerator without doing any damage to
(29:11):
the sensitive finish of the aerator. If there are not
If it is a completely round aerator. You know, I
can be able to use a wrench there. You're going
to use a pair of plyers. But like I said
right before the break, plyers have teeth and teeth they're
gonna get it done. They're going to dig in and
get that aerator off, but they're also going to permanently
leave teeth marks on the aerator and you're going to
(29:33):
mess it up and scratch its surface, as many of
you have, and you're living with scratched up aerators from
that old experience. How do we get around it? Well,
we reach for a set of channel locking pliers, but
not the ones that I was just describing. We reach
for a set of channel locking pliers that are intentionally
(29:54):
made to be drum roll please. Soft grip pliers. Yes,
there is such a thing, and yes you will find
them at your local big box or hardware store. Soft
grip channel locking pliers are essentially just a pair of
channel locking pliers that have over them over both sides
(30:17):
of their jaws, the upper and lower jaw, a rubberized
or plasticized thick coating or a slide on that renders
the teeth unreachable and so as a result, you can
use your soft grip pliers to grab onto and this
is exactly what they're made for. Soft grip is made
(30:40):
precisely for what I just described in order to grab
onto something and be able to turn it or spin
it or tighten it or whatever without messing up the finish.
There you go, soft grip channel locking plyers. I've got
one more set of pliers to discuss with you, vice
grip pliers very quickly. Everybody should have a pair of
(31:03):
vice gript pliers in their toolbox. Yes, they're weird looking.
A lot of people are like, I have no idea
how to use them. Vice gript pliers. They've got a
little screw on one side of the handle and a
little release tab on the other. That's because they're locking pliers.
They act like a vice. What you do is you
put them around the object and you start to squeeze
(31:24):
it down. If you can't close it completely, you adjust
the screw until you can just with a little pressure
close them and you hear them snap into place. Those
things are now more secure without you having to use
your hand power to squeeze them. Then. I mean, they're
as secure as a wrench in most situations and The
little tab is for unlocking it and releasing it as
(31:45):
you go. So there you go. Those are the pliers
that should be inside your toolbox. And when we come
back to the subject, we're going to turn a direction
and talk about a whole another set of tools. And
guess what I ask for Now we have a board
with nine plus calls sitting on them, which we will
go to right after the news. You are Home with
(32:08):
Dean Sharp, the House Whisper on KFI. 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
Home with Dean Sharp News
Popular Podcasts
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
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.
Intentionally Disturbing
Join me on this podcast as I navigate the murky waters of human behavior, current events, and personal anecdotes through in-depth interviews with incredible people—all served with a generous helping of sarcasm and satire. After years as a forensic and clinical psychologist, I offer a unique interview style and a low tolerance for bullshit, quickly steering conversations toward depth and darkness. I honor the seriousness while also appreciating wit. I’m your guide through the twisted labyrinth of the human psyche, armed with dark humor and biting wit.