February 15, 2025 • 30 mins
With remodeling season quickly approaching, Dean explains the sandbox portion of his and Tina’s method when evaluating a home project. Dean talks about structured homes, working with the type of home you live in and creating your dream home the way you’d like it. Dean says ideas are not decisions. And how ideas should be rolling in always. Lastly, Dean talks about sealing a toilet tank that leaks.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
KFI AM six forty.
Speaker 2 (00:02):
You're listening to Dean Sharp, the House Whisper on demand
on the iHeart Radio app KFI AM six forty live
streaming in HD everywhere on the iHeart Radio app. Hey,
welcome home. I am Dean Sharp, the house Whisperer. I
(00:23):
design custom homes.
Speaker 1 (00:25):
Oh yes, I do.
Speaker 2 (00:26):
I build custom homes, and I am your guide to
better understanding that place where you live. So happy to
be spending some time with you on this early Saturday morning.
Well maybe if you're on the East Coast and you're listening,
it's not quite so early, but it's pretty early out here.
The sun hasn't come up yet. That's the way it
(00:47):
goes here on Saturdays for us, at least during the winter.
It is a cool not well, yeah, it's pretty crisp,
pretty crisp Saturday morning. The rain is gone, and so
we've got a sunny southern California looking ahead of us
for this weekend. Happy about that. The rain was good too,
(01:09):
with the exception of the landslides that came you know,
post fires and such, but generally speaking, we made it
through that storm just fine. And I am glad that
you're with me. We're going to be taking calls this morning.
Of course. The number to reach me right now eight
three three two Ask Dean. Saturday morning is always a
(01:31):
great time to call in because traffic's a little light
out there, you know, a lot of people sleeping in,
But you and I are up, and so that means
we can talk about your home. Eight three three two
ask Dean. A three three the numeral two ass Dean.
Producer Richie is standing by. The phone lines are open.
He's ready to take your calls, and so am I. Also,
(01:53):
we're going to be talking this morning about some of
the thinking that leads up to the remodeling process. So
I'm entitling today's show. There are no bad ideas, only
bad decisions, and so you just gotta stick in there
with me and listen to find out exactly what I
mean by that. But I'm hoping, I'm hoping that that
(02:17):
little conversation will help liberate your thinking when it comes
to approaching whatever it is that you plan to do
or change about your home. Let's talk for a second
about our awesome team. Sam is on the board. Of course,
theres are not so live studio audience. Good morning Sam.
Speaker 1 (02:38):
Good morning Dan. How you doing.
Speaker 2 (02:41):
I'm good, I'm good, glad to be here with you.
Producer Richie, like I said, is standing by right now.
The phone lines are open. Yeah, okay, No Mike near
him as usual, and sitting across the table from me.
My better half, oh, my dear, my design partner, my
best friend in all the world, Tina is here.
Speaker 1 (03:03):
Welcome home. Good morning to you, Good morning, Good morning.
Speaker 2 (03:07):
To that beagle getting next to you. That was not
the sound of a beagle. That was an elephant. But
and he looks some sometimes reminds me of that when
he eats too much. But little Sammy beagle, he's adorable.
All right, Shall we dive in? I think we should
as I'm waiting for calls to come. And truly now
(03:30):
is a good time to do it as we wait
for calls. Let me let me introduce what I'm thinking
about this morning. I want to have a conversation about
how to tease out the best ideas for your project
by essentially creating what in the design world is a
(03:53):
kind of a well known device, kind of and by device,
I don't mean it's something that we physically build, say,
but at worst, it's a metaphorical device. Building a sandbox.
A sandbox is a place where kids come and play, right,
and you build stuff and you move sand around. And
(04:16):
the understanding, the unwritten rules about sandboxes are that you know,
whatever gets built there, it doesn't really matter, right, because
it's not gonna last. You know, if we're gonna build
a castle, nobody's moving into it exactly, And so we're
just there to have fun and to stretch our minds
(04:38):
and our and our sculpting skills and all of that
kind of stuff. A sandbox is a place where you
play and just to let you in on a little
bit of how the sausage is made. When it comes
to home design, or at least the way that Tina
and I move through home design. When we start with
a project, we will we'll start by, well, let's say it.
(05:02):
Let's say let's say it's not a brand new home,
a new new build, a new creation. Let's say that
we're we're redesigning a home for somebody, so it's a remodel.
So we're working with an existing shell. So we the
first step is we will go over to the house
and we will spend the better part of a day
sitting there with our computer and our laser measures and
(05:25):
we will measure down that entire space and build that
space what we call the as built the existing home
structure into our CAD system, so that now we're going
to take our laptop home with us back to our studio,
and what we have now in our possession is a
(05:48):
three D model accurate of the existing house, and it's
that model that we start playing with. Sometimes we'll call
the playtime version one and start sketching and moving walls
around and changing this and changing that, and other times
we'll be working on it simultaneously on two different computers
(06:09):
in which one of us is kind of moving ahead
with our first set of ideas that we're calling version one,
and the other is trying out some weird stuff or
you know, things that are a little bit more fanciful,
or we're just experimenting. And we could we literally call
that file the sandbox, because the sandbox is where you
(06:31):
can go and play without doing damage to anything, because
it's this area of play. And the more I've thought
about that over a few months now, because I've got
a little project going on the side here where I've
been doing a lot of writing to you, the homeowner
about kind of design theory and design principles in a
(06:52):
way that isn't all stodgy and stuffy and boring, but
really really practical, I hope. And I've been thinking about
this a lot, and I've been thinking about the idea
of how I can better encourage homeowners to kind of
free themselves up to think as widely and as boldly
(07:14):
and as imaginatively as possible. I'm not trying to turn
you into a designer. I'm not trying to have you
replace that role that creative gifting and profession. But what
I am doing is saying this. I always say this,
A custom home, a truly custom home, begins with a
(07:35):
custom homeowner. And you know what, I'm just gonna let
that hang out there right now. I will explain exactly
what I mean by that right after we get some
traffic and do some biz.
Speaker 1 (07:48):
Does that sound good? All right?
Speaker 2 (07:49):
Campie em sharp the house with for Hey, whether your
home is a condo or a cottage or a castle
doesn't matter. I'm here to help it take it to
the next level. That's what we're all about here. That's
one of the secret sauce elements of our program, I believe,
and that is that like probably nowhere else that I
(08:14):
am aware of. I'm a designer who is talking to
you about universal design principles that we use every single
day for a state level homes. Yeah, the fanciest, the
most jaw dropping residences that you can imagine, all the
(08:37):
way down to you know, the little adu that you're
building in your backyard, or the little cottage that you
live in, the tiny house that you live in, or
the condo that you live in. Like no other place
that I know, I talk about architecture and design uniformly
across the board because the fundamental principles that go into
(08:59):
the process are applicable across the board. It's just that
nobody has ever taken the time to talk to you,
the mainstream homeowner, about these things. And so this morning
I'm helping you kind of loosen up your thinking a
little bit in regards to your project. And right before
(09:20):
the break, right before oh by the way, let me
get let me do my biz. Here, the phone lines
are open. We've got a couple of calls. We've got
room for you, though. I'm going to be going to
the phones in just a bit. The number to reach
me eight three three two, ask Dean. Eight three three
the numeral two, Ask Dean. And you know, with calls,
(09:41):
it's always the same, regardless of what I'm talking about.
You can call and ask me about anything going on
with you and your home. So there you go, eight
three three the numeral two, Ask Dean. Uh, there is
room for you on the callboard today, all right, So
before the break that one of the things I like
(10:01):
to say to our clients at the outset is that
a custom home starts with a custom homeowner.
Speaker 1 (10:08):
And what do I mean by that? It is it's.
Speaker 2 (10:13):
Intended to stir something up in you. And that's this
I completely understand, even though you know, most of my
career I've been doing a state level homes, okay, ultra
custom homes, and still regardless of what level of homes,
(10:33):
all the teen and I work on are custom home designs.
Speaker 1 (10:38):
But I'm just, you know, a normal guy.
Speaker 2 (10:42):
I mean, I grew up in a lower middle class,
blue collar family and like most Americans, we live in
tracked housing houses that were built by others for nobody
in particular. And that you move it, you know, you
(11:03):
find one that you can afford, and hopefully one that
you like. That sort of kind of fits what you imagined.
And you know, not a lot of people find their
dream house in a tract house, but you find a
you know, a nice house and you're like, wow, that's fantastic.
I got a nice house now. So what we do
is we move into other people's thoughts and structures and
(11:29):
then we make do, because that's what a good human
being does is you take the structure that you've been handed,
you take the as it were, the cards that have
been dealt to you, and you play your hand the
best you can.
Speaker 1 (11:43):
You make do.
Speaker 2 (11:45):
And it's that kind of make do thinking that you know,
makes us who we are as Americans, that you know
we can find the silver lining and we move forward.
Speaker 1 (12:00):
But here's the thing.
Speaker 2 (12:01):
After a lifetime of making do with what you've got,
in other words, moving around it, you changing around it,
now you're at a place where you're ready to change
part of it. You're ready to finally say, you know what,
(12:21):
this kitchen, I'm going to give myself a new kitchen.
I'm going to change the way this family room works.
I'm going to alter the primary bedroom. Whatever the case
may be. Maybe you're just going to give the entire
house a full makeover. A full redo. Well, that is
(12:42):
more difficult for you than you might have expected, for
one reason, because you're used to making do with what's there,
and you're used to moving out of its way. Okay,
and now what we're doing, if we really want to
build a custom home is we're going to be asking
(13:04):
it to move out of your way. And that's what
I mean when I say that a custom home starts
with a custom homeowner. It's time to change your thinking
in regards to what's possible. Most of us will look
at the existing space and say, well, I've already got
a set of limits on me here. I'm just going
(13:25):
to have to make do with what's here. And so
we think small. We think more in terms of decor
than we do of architecture. We don't allow ourselves to
dream too big. When we go out shopping for things,
or even beginning to research a thing, we instantly tell
ourselves there's a voice in the back of your head
(13:46):
that says reminding you, listen, you're just a middle class homeowner.
Don't be looking at high end appliances, don't be to
looking at luxury anything, because that's not the category of
life you're living.
Speaker 1 (14:00):
You're only gonna get.
Speaker 2 (14:01):
Disappointed by that, or you're gonna sucker yourself into buying
something that you shouldn't be affording. In all this kind
of thinking, and believe me, I'm the last person in
the world to sit here and tell you, hey, just
throw caution to the wind and run out and just
buy stuff you can't afford, not at all what I'm saying.
(14:24):
But what I am saying is that, and I'm gonna
underscore this a little later. Window shopping is free, dreaming
is free. And back to what I started the program with,
I want every one of my clients to essentially build
themselves a sandbox where they can kind of explore the.
Speaker 1 (14:47):
Space, stretch their arms out.
Speaker 2 (14:49):
What's wrong with you taking your real desires and looking
at a luxury product or a high end appliance, and
for the sake of research, for the sake of understanding
it better, and maybe for the sake of zeroing in
on what it is about that thing other than it
(15:11):
just being expensive and ritzy. What it is about that
thing really that is kind of ringing your bell, because
those discoveries can end up translating back into your budget
level in ways that could change the whole game. That's
why I say there are no bad ideas, only bad decisions.
(15:33):
A decision is a choice to act in a direction.
Ideas they just come in. Put them in your sandbox.
All right, We've got so much more to talk about
on this, plus your calls. You're listening to Home with
Dean Sharp on demand from KFI AM six forty six
(15:56):
live streaming and HD everywhere on the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 1 (15:59):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (16:00):
Right in the middle of reporting on the which I
actually just forgot to even mention I should have started
the show, was saying, hey, you guys, feel that earthquake
this morning? It was a three point seven I believe
this morning at like or maybe late last night. It
was eleven forty four late last night in Malibu, down
(16:23):
deep and out our way in Thousand Oaks. We felt
one little bump, just rack on the house. And then
that was it, not even vibration or anything after the fact.
And then literally as we were reporting on it here
mentioning it, another aftershot came through three point five. Now
they're saying three point five like eight miles also in Malibu.
(16:45):
What's with Malibu these days?
Speaker 1 (16:48):
What is the deal is that?
Speaker 2 (16:51):
Is there some message? Is the universe sending some message
to Malibu. But this is, you know, no damage, just
just a little shifting, little, a little bit of a
shrugging of the shoulders as it were.
Speaker 1 (17:06):
Anyway, there you go.
Speaker 2 (17:08):
Any way, all right, So we're going to be going
to the phones right after the next break, But I
just want to finish this thought with you for the
moment on loosening up these the thinking when it comes
to approaching your remodel. How important is it that you
are kind of stretching your own mind and stretching yourself.
(17:31):
So right before the break, I was saying that I
don't want you to limit your own thinking when it
comes to let's say, window shopping outside of your what
you would normally bracket yourself into your you know, financial range.
(17:52):
And and that's not me encouraging you to spend more
money than you should, not at all. But higher end things,
whatever the case may be, whether it's a material, whether
in its appliance or a fixture, or even an architectural thought,
(18:13):
higher end things, uh are that way most of the
time for a reason. Most of the time, it's not
just some fatish branding move that has made a thing,
you know, twice as expensive. I mean, some of that
is involved, but higher end things have features and or
elements to them that are different, as you know, than
(18:37):
you know, middle of the road things. And it's those
elements that I want to explore with you. Find out
what it is about that higher end thing that has
that element and identify what it is that really sends
you about that thing. And if it's just the jug
(18:58):
of the thing, well there's not a whole lot we
can do about that, But as you really start to
explore it and to dig into it, you may very
well find I would say at least eighty percent of
the time we find that, ah, it's this, it's this thing.
And then if we can turn around and translate that
into your home in a way that you can afford,
(19:20):
then you know what there it is. There's one hundred
and fifty percent satisfaction right there. But the point is
we're never going to get to that place until you
free yourself in your thinking to you know, color outside
the lines, as it were. And so hence these two principles.
One the sandbox. Have a mental sandbox. Have a folder
(19:45):
that you collect things in, whether it's on your computer,
whether it's whether it's a Pinterest board or literally a
physical folder that you're going to put pictures and thoughts
and ideas in. But have a folder entitled sandbox, and
that folder is for play. That folder. You don't have
(20:05):
to put anything in there that you have to justify
to anybody. Okay, you're like, excuse me, why do you
have a twelve thousand dollars built in side by side
sub zero refrigerator freezer unit paneled in inside this folder
(20:27):
as you're contemplating the remodel on your nine hundred square
foot condo. Well, I don't have to justify that to you.
That's my sandbox. Okay, that's my that's in my wish list.
And it's not a wish list in the sense of
this is the thing I'm gonna have one day. It's
there for my own reasons. It's there because I'm exploring
(20:49):
what it is about that that really appeals to me,
and that way I can translate that into the remodel
that I'm actually gonna do. Is that starting to make
sense to y'all? You're starting to kind of feel my
vibe there. So these two principles, have a sandbox and
the second principle, there are no bad ideas only bad decisions, okay.
(21:16):
And what that means is when you're in the idea phase,
you're not making a decision to move forward on this
or that you're ideating. You are collecting ideas. And by
the way, partner, partner out there, partner of the remodeler, okay.
And I say this because you know, I would say
(21:39):
most of the time when a remodel is being done
and we've got a married couple or life partners or
you know, together in this, somebody is probably at the
tip of the spear and someone else is either encouraging
or saying yeah or yeah, it's not my thing, but
it's his thing or it's her thing. All right, Partner,
(22:01):
you don't be the one who is shooting down every
single thought that comes across that person's mind because you're
concerned or worried that, oh no, man, if I don't
shoot this down, she's going to just go hogwild with
this thing. Not when we're ideating, ideas are precious, little
(22:25):
tender things.
Speaker 1 (22:27):
And most of the.
Speaker 2 (22:30):
Create and hear me now, because spoken from a creative
who does this for a living, most of the little
creative sandbox ideas that flutter through our minds that we
jot down or that we set aside to explore. Most
of the things are not going to manifest that way
(22:51):
into the project at all, but a couple of them
might bear it within them, the kernel of the thought
of the idea that will grow into something that looks
very different but will game change the entire project, change
it all. And so around here Tina and I we
(23:16):
partner in our artistic endeavors that at the beginning of
a project, we enter the no judgment zone. That's what
the sandbox is. It's a no judgment zone. Okay, it's
a She says, hey, what about this? And my job
is to nod and to acknowledge that thought and to
(23:37):
allow it to enter into our little stat and the
same with her instead of saying, well, that is the
stupidest idea I've.
Speaker 1 (23:43):
Ever heard that would never happen. That's you.
Speaker 2 (23:46):
There are always reasons for ideas and they need a
place to grow and to flourish. And just remember, ideas
are not decisions. When it comes to the decision, we
will be taking ideas that have matured, that have changed,
that have developed, and have also passed a series of
(24:08):
litmus tests. Budget practicality, all of these things, and then
a decision gets made. But ideas, now you need a
place to free your mind. Does that make sense?
Speaker 3 (24:21):
I hope?
Speaker 2 (24:21):
So all right, I'm gonna free my mind right now
with some traffic, and then when we come back, we're
gonna go to the phones your home with Dean Sharp
the house whisper, Campy, Dean Sharp the house whisper.
Speaker 1 (24:34):
Welcome home.
Speaker 2 (24:36):
Hey, the time has come to take a few calls,
and we've got a few calls to take, and so
let's let's start out with talking to Tim. Hey, Tim,
welcome home.
Speaker 3 (24:48):
I'm Tim. I'm Tim Callum Carrion. How we place seal
between toilet tank and ball? And should you put a
router and motim away from people and a trimming tree
and bushes keep your house from burning down? For president?
Speaker 2 (25:08):
Okay, all right, Tim, Well that was a whole list
of things. Review the first one with me again? What
was the toilet question?
Speaker 3 (25:17):
Okay, how do you this is the seal between the
toilet tank and the bowl. When I flushed the toilet,
it leaks, but it doesn't leak from the leaks like
from underneath the tank. So I think it's the seal
between the tank and the bull and I already bought
one from home Depot which got three screws and like
(25:38):
a rubber a giant rubber washer.
Speaker 1 (25:41):
Yep, yep. That's the guy right there.
Speaker 3 (25:44):
Ever built stainless steel screws.
Speaker 1 (25:48):
Yep, yep.
Speaker 2 (25:51):
So you gotta take You got to shut the water
off to the toilet. That's the little the little angle
stop valve at the bottom there with the hose connector
that's leading to the toilet. Then you want to flush
the toilet out as as much as possible, So you
got to get the water out of that top tank.
So you're gonna flush and just make sure it gets
(26:12):
all done out of there, no more water coming in.
You're going to disconnect that tank from that hose, and
so it should be a relatively easy hose disconnect to
make there. And then there are usually two sometimes there
are three, but there are usually two large bolts that
(26:35):
are running through in between the top tank and the
bottom seat on the bowl of portion when a tank
is detachable. A lot of toilets these days they're all
one piece, so this is kind of a moot point
when it comes to those toilets. But if you've got
a detachable tank, then you are the and the trick
(26:57):
by the way of getting those out. They usually have
very broad heads on them and a very long slot
for like a flathead screwdriver. The trick is, if it
hasn't been done in eons and there's been a leak
and water, then the nut on the bottom side may
spin with you. It may be, you know, frozen, so
(27:19):
you probably need not only a screwdriver for the top,
but a pair of a good pair of pliers to
grab onto the nut from the bottom side to hold
that in place so that you can break that frozen
seal and get that nut spinning again. And then you
take those off and that will allow you to remove
(27:40):
the tank from the lower unit and you'll have access
to the gasket and the O ring that's right there.
You change that out, put it back on, use the
new bolts and secure it again. Don't oversecure it with
a toilet tank. It's always just snug because you can
crank those down to the point and put too much
pressure on the porcel and then crack it so it
(28:02):
doesn't It needs to be snug so that it's not
loosey goosey, but beyond snug. That's it doesn't have to
be like wrench down tight. And that is how you
do that, my friend. And in answer to your question
about shrubs, pruning shrubs is always a good idea so
(28:23):
that they're not growing up too tall right next to
a house. But the most important thing other than keeping
you know, for pruning for the sake of keeping a
plant in good condition is keeping it green and verdant
and well watered. That's the key. So a lot of
people misunderstand when it comes to fire safety in a home.
(28:46):
They think, oh, I gotta get every plant away from
my house. I'm just going to clear plants out of
the backyard.
Speaker 1 (28:53):
You don't have to do that.
Speaker 2 (28:55):
What I don't want is dry, neglected, dead things all
over your lawn and yard. That is a danger. Green
things that are full of moisture. These things are actually
very very difficult for fire to chew through, and so
they actually slow down a fire as it's approaching your home,
(29:18):
not assist it. Okay, So just keep your landscape in
really good shape and you don't have to worry about
all the ins and outs of how tall is it
and where you know, keep it in good shape, keep
it in beautiful condition, keep it healthy and well watered,
and you're doing what you need to do now. Plants
(29:40):
right up underneath the house all over the place. Is
that a higher risk than if there are a few
feet away from the house. Sure, a tree that's hanging
its branches way over your roof probably not the best idea.
But the point is healthy plants as opposed to dry ones, donuts,
sas on the rest of it. The key is keep
(30:02):
him in good shape. Tim, Thank you for your call, sir.
We are at the top of the hour. We will
take more of your calls right after a news break.
You are listening to Home with Dean Sharp, the House
Whisperer on KFI. You're listening to Home with Dean Sharp
on demand from KFI AM six forty
KFI AM six forty.
Speaker 2 (00:02):
You're listening to Dean Sharp, the House Whisper on demand
on the iHeart Radio app KFI AM six forty live
streaming in HD everywhere on the iHeart Radio app. Hey,
welcome home. I am Dean Sharp, the house Whisperer. I
(00:23):
design custom homes.
Speaker 1 (00:25):
Oh yes, I do.
Speaker 2 (00:26):
I build custom homes, and I am your guide to
better understanding that place where you live. So happy to
be spending some time with you on this early Saturday morning.
Well maybe if you're on the East Coast and you're listening,
it's not quite so early, but it's pretty early out here.
The sun hasn't come up yet. That's the way it
(00:47):
goes here on Saturdays for us, at least during the winter.
It is a cool not well, yeah, it's pretty crisp,
pretty crisp Saturday morning. The rain is gone, and so
we've got a sunny southern California looking ahead of us
for this weekend. Happy about that. The rain was good too,
(01:09):
with the exception of the landslides that came you know,
post fires and such, but generally speaking, we made it
through that storm just fine. And I am glad that
you're with me. We're going to be taking calls this morning.
Of course. The number to reach me right now eight
three three two Ask Dean. Saturday morning is always a
(01:31):
great time to call in because traffic's a little light
out there, you know, a lot of people sleeping in,
But you and I are up, and so that means
we can talk about your home. Eight three three two
ask Dean. A three three the numeral two ass Dean.
Producer Richie is standing by. The phone lines are open.
He's ready to take your calls, and so am I. Also,
(01:53):
we're going to be talking this morning about some of
the thinking that leads up to the remodeling process. So
I'm entitling today's show. There are no bad ideas, only
bad decisions, and so you just gotta stick in there
with me and listen to find out exactly what I
mean by that. But I'm hoping, I'm hoping that that
(02:17):
little conversation will help liberate your thinking when it comes
to approaching whatever it is that you plan to do
or change about your home. Let's talk for a second
about our awesome team. Sam is on the board. Of course,
theres are not so live studio audience. Good morning Sam.
Speaker 1 (02:38):
Good morning Dan. How you doing.
Speaker 2 (02:41):
I'm good, I'm good, glad to be here with you.
Producer Richie, like I said, is standing by right now.
The phone lines are open. Yeah, okay, No Mike near
him as usual, and sitting across the table from me.
My better half, oh, my dear, my design partner, my
best friend in all the world, Tina is here.
Speaker 1 (03:03):
Welcome home. Good morning to you, Good morning, Good morning.
Speaker 2 (03:07):
To that beagle getting next to you. That was not
the sound of a beagle. That was an elephant. But
and he looks some sometimes reminds me of that when
he eats too much. But little Sammy beagle, he's adorable.
All right, Shall we dive in? I think we should
as I'm waiting for calls to come. And truly now
(03:30):
is a good time to do it as we wait
for calls. Let me let me introduce what I'm thinking
about this morning. I want to have a conversation about
how to tease out the best ideas for your project
by essentially creating what in the design world is a
(03:53):
kind of a well known device, kind of and by device,
I don't mean it's something that we physically build, say,
but at worst, it's a metaphorical device. Building a sandbox.
A sandbox is a place where kids come and play, right,
and you build stuff and you move sand around. And
(04:16):
the understanding, the unwritten rules about sandboxes are that you know,
whatever gets built there, it doesn't really matter, right, because
it's not gonna last. You know, if we're gonna build
a castle, nobody's moving into it exactly, And so we're
just there to have fun and to stretch our minds
(04:38):
and our and our sculpting skills and all of that
kind of stuff. A sandbox is a place where you
play and just to let you in on a little
bit of how the sausage is made. When it comes
to home design, or at least the way that Tina
and I move through home design. When we start with
a project, we will we'll start by, well, let's say it.
(05:02):
Let's say let's say it's not a brand new home,
a new new build, a new creation. Let's say that
we're we're redesigning a home for somebody, so it's a remodel.
So we're working with an existing shell. So we the
first step is we will go over to the house
and we will spend the better part of a day
sitting there with our computer and our laser measures and
(05:25):
we will measure down that entire space and build that
space what we call the as built the existing home
structure into our CAD system, so that now we're going
to take our laptop home with us back to our studio,
and what we have now in our possession is a
(05:48):
three D model accurate of the existing house, and it's
that model that we start playing with. Sometimes we'll call
the playtime version one and start sketching and moving walls
around and changing this and changing that, and other times
we'll be working on it simultaneously on two different computers
(06:09):
in which one of us is kind of moving ahead
with our first set of ideas that we're calling version one,
and the other is trying out some weird stuff or
you know, things that are a little bit more fanciful,
or we're just experimenting. And we could we literally call
that file the sandbox, because the sandbox is where you
(06:31):
can go and play without doing damage to anything, because
it's this area of play. And the more I've thought
about that over a few months now, because I've got
a little project going on the side here where I've
been doing a lot of writing to you, the homeowner
about kind of design theory and design principles in a
(06:52):
way that isn't all stodgy and stuffy and boring, but
really really practical, I hope. And I've been thinking about
this a lot, and I've been thinking about the idea
of how I can better encourage homeowners to kind of
free themselves up to think as widely and as boldly
(07:14):
and as imaginatively as possible. I'm not trying to turn
you into a designer. I'm not trying to have you
replace that role that creative gifting and profession. But what
I am doing is saying this. I always say this,
A custom home, a truly custom home, begins with a
(07:35):
custom homeowner. And you know what, I'm just gonna let
that hang out there right now. I will explain exactly
what I mean by that right after we get some
traffic and do some biz.
Speaker 1 (07:48):
Does that sound good? All right?
Speaker 2 (07:49):
Campie em sharp the house with for Hey, whether your
home is a condo or a cottage or a castle
doesn't matter. I'm here to help it take it to
the next level. That's what we're all about here. That's
one of the secret sauce elements of our program, I believe,
and that is that like probably nowhere else that I
(08:14):
am aware of. I'm a designer who is talking to
you about universal design principles that we use every single
day for a state level homes. Yeah, the fanciest, the
most jaw dropping residences that you can imagine, all the
(08:37):
way down to you know, the little adu that you're
building in your backyard, or the little cottage that you
live in, the tiny house that you live in, or
the condo that you live in. Like no other place
that I know, I talk about architecture and design uniformly
across the board because the fundamental principles that go into
(08:59):
the process are applicable across the board. It's just that
nobody has ever taken the time to talk to you,
the mainstream homeowner, about these things. And so this morning
I'm helping you kind of loosen up your thinking a
little bit in regards to your project. And right before
(09:20):
the break, right before oh by the way, let me
get let me do my biz. Here, the phone lines
are open. We've got a couple of calls. We've got
room for you, though. I'm going to be going to
the phones in just a bit. The number to reach
me eight three three two, ask Dean. Eight three three
the numeral two, Ask Dean. And you know, with calls,
(09:41):
it's always the same, regardless of what I'm talking about.
You can call and ask me about anything going on
with you and your home. So there you go, eight
three three the numeral two, Ask Dean. Uh, there is
room for you on the callboard today, all right, So
before the break that one of the things I like
(10:01):
to say to our clients at the outset is that
a custom home starts with a custom homeowner.
Speaker 1 (10:08):
And what do I mean by that? It is it's.
Speaker 2 (10:13):
Intended to stir something up in you. And that's this
I completely understand, even though you know, most of my
career I've been doing a state level homes, okay, ultra
custom homes, and still regardless of what level of homes,
(10:33):
all the teen and I work on are custom home designs.
Speaker 1 (10:38):
But I'm just, you know, a normal guy.
Speaker 2 (10:42):
I mean, I grew up in a lower middle class,
blue collar family and like most Americans, we live in
tracked housing houses that were built by others for nobody
in particular. And that you move it, you know, you
(11:03):
find one that you can afford, and hopefully one that
you like. That sort of kind of fits what you imagined.
And you know, not a lot of people find their
dream house in a tract house, but you find a
you know, a nice house and you're like, wow, that's fantastic.
I got a nice house now. So what we do
is we move into other people's thoughts and structures and
(11:29):
then we make do, because that's what a good human
being does is you take the structure that you've been handed,
you take the as it were, the cards that have
been dealt to you, and you play your hand the
best you can.
Speaker 1 (11:43):
You make do.
Speaker 2 (11:45):
And it's that kind of make do thinking that you know,
makes us who we are as Americans, that you know
we can find the silver lining and we move forward.
Speaker 1 (12:00):
But here's the thing.
Speaker 2 (12:01):
After a lifetime of making do with what you've got,
in other words, moving around it, you changing around it,
now you're at a place where you're ready to change
part of it. You're ready to finally say, you know what,
(12:21):
this kitchen, I'm going to give myself a new kitchen.
I'm going to change the way this family room works.
I'm going to alter the primary bedroom. Whatever the case
may be. Maybe you're just going to give the entire
house a full makeover. A full redo. Well, that is
(12:42):
more difficult for you than you might have expected, for
one reason, because you're used to making do with what's there,
and you're used to moving out of its way. Okay,
and now what we're doing, if we really want to
build a custom home is we're going to be asking
(13:04):
it to move out of your way. And that's what
I mean when I say that a custom home starts
with a custom homeowner. It's time to change your thinking
in regards to what's possible. Most of us will look
at the existing space and say, well, I've already got
a set of limits on me here. I'm just going
(13:25):
to have to make do with what's here. And so
we think small. We think more in terms of decor
than we do of architecture. We don't allow ourselves to
dream too big. When we go out shopping for things,
or even beginning to research a thing, we instantly tell
ourselves there's a voice in the back of your head
(13:46):
that says reminding you, listen, you're just a middle class homeowner.
Don't be looking at high end appliances, don't be to
looking at luxury anything, because that's not the category of
life you're living.
Speaker 1 (14:00):
You're only gonna get.
Speaker 2 (14:01):
Disappointed by that, or you're gonna sucker yourself into buying
something that you shouldn't be affording. In all this kind
of thinking, and believe me, I'm the last person in
the world to sit here and tell you, hey, just
throw caution to the wind and run out and just
buy stuff you can't afford, not at all what I'm saying.
(14:24):
But what I am saying is that, and I'm gonna
underscore this a little later. Window shopping is free, dreaming
is free. And back to what I started the program with,
I want every one of my clients to essentially build
themselves a sandbox where they can kind of explore the.
Speaker 1 (14:47):
Space, stretch their arms out.
Speaker 2 (14:49):
What's wrong with you taking your real desires and looking
at a luxury product or a high end appliance, and
for the sake of research, for the sake of understanding
it better, and maybe for the sake of zeroing in
on what it is about that thing other than it
(15:11):
just being expensive and ritzy. What it is about that
thing really that is kind of ringing your bell, because
those discoveries can end up translating back into your budget
level in ways that could change the whole game. That's
why I say there are no bad ideas, only bad decisions.
(15:33):
A decision is a choice to act in a direction.
Ideas they just come in. Put them in your sandbox.
All right, We've got so much more to talk about
on this, plus your calls. You're listening to Home with
Dean Sharp on demand from KFI AM six forty six
(15:56):
live streaming and HD everywhere on the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 1 (15:59):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (16:00):
Right in the middle of reporting on the which I
actually just forgot to even mention I should have started
the show, was saying, hey, you guys, feel that earthquake
this morning? It was a three point seven I believe
this morning at like or maybe late last night. It
was eleven forty four late last night in Malibu, down
(16:23):
deep and out our way in Thousand Oaks. We felt
one little bump, just rack on the house. And then
that was it, not even vibration or anything after the fact.
And then literally as we were reporting on it here
mentioning it, another aftershot came through three point five. Now
they're saying three point five like eight miles also in Malibu.
(16:45):
What's with Malibu these days?
Speaker 1 (16:48):
What is the deal is that?
Speaker 2 (16:51):
Is there some message? Is the universe sending some message
to Malibu. But this is, you know, no damage, just
just a little shifting, little, a little bit of a
shrugging of the shoulders as it were.
Speaker 1 (17:06):
Anyway, there you go.
Speaker 2 (17:08):
Any way, all right, So we're going to be going
to the phones right after the next break, But I
just want to finish this thought with you for the
moment on loosening up these the thinking when it comes
to approaching your remodel. How important is it that you
are kind of stretching your own mind and stretching yourself.
(17:31):
So right before the break, I was saying that I
don't want you to limit your own thinking when it
comes to let's say, window shopping outside of your what
you would normally bracket yourself into your you know, financial range.
(17:52):
And and that's not me encouraging you to spend more
money than you should, not at all. But higher end things,
whatever the case may be, whether it's a material, whether
in its appliance or a fixture, or even an architectural thought,
(18:13):
higher end things, uh are that way most of the
time for a reason. Most of the time, it's not
just some fatish branding move that has made a thing,
you know, twice as expensive. I mean, some of that
is involved, but higher end things have features and or
elements to them that are different, as you know, than
(18:37):
you know, middle of the road things. And it's those
elements that I want to explore with you. Find out
what it is about that higher end thing that has
that element and identify what it is that really sends
you about that thing. And if it's just the jug
(18:58):
of the thing, well there's not a whole lot we
can do about that, But as you really start to
explore it and to dig into it, you may very
well find I would say at least eighty percent of
the time we find that, ah, it's this, it's this thing.
And then if we can turn around and translate that
into your home in a way that you can afford,
(19:20):
then you know what there it is. There's one hundred
and fifty percent satisfaction right there. But the point is
we're never going to get to that place until you
free yourself in your thinking to you know, color outside
the lines, as it were. And so hence these two principles.
One the sandbox. Have a mental sandbox. Have a folder
(19:45):
that you collect things in, whether it's on your computer,
whether it's whether it's a Pinterest board or literally a
physical folder that you're going to put pictures and thoughts
and ideas in. But have a folder entitled sandbox, and
that folder is for play. That folder. You don't have
(20:05):
to put anything in there that you have to justify
to anybody. Okay, you're like, excuse me, why do you
have a twelve thousand dollars built in side by side
sub zero refrigerator freezer unit paneled in inside this folder
(20:27):
as you're contemplating the remodel on your nine hundred square
foot condo. Well, I don't have to justify that to you.
That's my sandbox. Okay, that's my that's in my wish list.
And it's not a wish list in the sense of
this is the thing I'm gonna have one day. It's
there for my own reasons. It's there because I'm exploring
(20:49):
what it is about that that really appeals to me,
and that way I can translate that into the remodel
that I'm actually gonna do. Is that starting to make
sense to y'all? You're starting to kind of feel my
vibe there. So these two principles, have a sandbox and
the second principle, there are no bad ideas only bad decisions, okay.
(21:16):
And what that means is when you're in the idea phase,
you're not making a decision to move forward on this
or that you're ideating. You are collecting ideas. And by
the way, partner, partner out there, partner of the remodeler, okay.
And I say this because you know, I would say
(21:39):
most of the time when a remodel is being done
and we've got a married couple or life partners or
you know, together in this, somebody is probably at the
tip of the spear and someone else is either encouraging
or saying yeah or yeah, it's not my thing, but
it's his thing or it's her thing. All right, Partner,
(22:01):
you don't be the one who is shooting down every
single thought that comes across that person's mind because you're
concerned or worried that, oh no, man, if I don't
shoot this down, she's going to just go hogwild with
this thing. Not when we're ideating, ideas are precious, little
(22:25):
tender things.
Speaker 1 (22:27):
And most of the.
Speaker 2 (22:30):
Create and hear me now, because spoken from a creative
who does this for a living, most of the little
creative sandbox ideas that flutter through our minds that we
jot down or that we set aside to explore. Most
of the things are not going to manifest that way
(22:51):
into the project at all, but a couple of them
might bear it within them, the kernel of the thought
of the idea that will grow into something that looks
very different but will game change the entire project, change
it all. And so around here Tina and I we
(23:16):
partner in our artistic endeavors that at the beginning of
a project, we enter the no judgment zone. That's what
the sandbox is. It's a no judgment zone. Okay, it's
a She says, hey, what about this? And my job
is to nod and to acknowledge that thought and to
(23:37):
allow it to enter into our little stat and the
same with her instead of saying, well, that is the
stupidest idea I've.
Speaker 1 (23:43):
Ever heard that would never happen. That's you.
Speaker 2 (23:46):
There are always reasons for ideas and they need a
place to grow and to flourish. And just remember, ideas
are not decisions. When it comes to the decision, we
will be taking ideas that have matured, that have changed,
that have developed, and have also passed a series of
(24:08):
litmus tests. Budget practicality, all of these things, and then
a decision gets made. But ideas, now you need a
place to free your mind. Does that make sense?
Speaker 3 (24:21):
I hope?
Speaker 2 (24:21):
So all right, I'm gonna free my mind right now
with some traffic, and then when we come back, we're
gonna go to the phones your home with Dean Sharp
the house whisper, Campy, Dean Sharp the house whisper.
Speaker 1 (24:34):
Welcome home.
Speaker 2 (24:36):
Hey, the time has come to take a few calls,
and we've got a few calls to take, and so
let's let's start out with talking to Tim. Hey, Tim,
welcome home.
Speaker 3 (24:48):
I'm Tim. I'm Tim Callum Carrion. How we place seal
between toilet tank and ball? And should you put a
router and motim away from people and a trimming tree
and bushes keep your house from burning down? For president?
Speaker 2 (25:08):
Okay, all right, Tim, Well that was a whole list
of things. Review the first one with me again? What
was the toilet question?
Speaker 3 (25:17):
Okay, how do you this is the seal between the
toilet tank and the bowl. When I flushed the toilet,
it leaks, but it doesn't leak from the leaks like
from underneath the tank. So I think it's the seal
between the tank and the bull and I already bought
one from home Depot which got three screws and like
(25:38):
a rubber a giant rubber washer.
Speaker 1 (25:41):
Yep, yep. That's the guy right there.
Speaker 3 (25:44):
Ever built stainless steel screws.
Speaker 1 (25:48):
Yep, yep.
Speaker 2 (25:51):
So you gotta take You got to shut the water
off to the toilet. That's the little the little angle
stop valve at the bottom there with the hose connector
that's leading to the toilet. Then you want to flush
the toilet out as as much as possible, So you
got to get the water out of that top tank.
So you're gonna flush and just make sure it gets
(26:12):
all done out of there, no more water coming in.
You're going to disconnect that tank from that hose, and
so it should be a relatively easy hose disconnect to
make there. And then there are usually two sometimes there
are three, but there are usually two large bolts that
(26:35):
are running through in between the top tank and the
bottom seat on the bowl of portion when a tank
is detachable. A lot of toilets these days they're all
one piece, so this is kind of a moot point
when it comes to those toilets. But if you've got
a detachable tank, then you are the and the trick
(26:57):
by the way of getting those out. They usually have
very broad heads on them and a very long slot
for like a flathead screwdriver. The trick is, if it
hasn't been done in eons and there's been a leak
and water, then the nut on the bottom side may
spin with you. It may be, you know, frozen, so
(27:19):
you probably need not only a screwdriver for the top,
but a pair of a good pair of pliers to
grab onto the nut from the bottom side to hold
that in place so that you can break that frozen
seal and get that nut spinning again. And then you
take those off and that will allow you to remove
(27:40):
the tank from the lower unit and you'll have access
to the gasket and the O ring that's right there.
You change that out, put it back on, use the
new bolts and secure it again. Don't oversecure it with
a toilet tank. It's always just snug because you can
crank those down to the point and put too much
pressure on the porcel and then crack it so it
(28:02):
doesn't It needs to be snug so that it's not
loosey goosey, but beyond snug. That's it doesn't have to
be like wrench down tight. And that is how you
do that, my friend. And in answer to your question
about shrubs, pruning shrubs is always a good idea so
(28:23):
that they're not growing up too tall right next to
a house. But the most important thing other than keeping
you know, for pruning for the sake of keeping a
plant in good condition is keeping it green and verdant
and well watered. That's the key. So a lot of
people misunderstand when it comes to fire safety in a home.
(28:46):
They think, oh, I gotta get every plant away from
my house. I'm just going to clear plants out of
the backyard.
Speaker 1 (28:53):
You don't have to do that.
Speaker 2 (28:55):
What I don't want is dry, neglected, dead things all
over your lawn and yard. That is a danger. Green
things that are full of moisture. These things are actually
very very difficult for fire to chew through, and so
they actually slow down a fire as it's approaching your home,
(29:18):
not assist it. Okay, So just keep your landscape in
really good shape and you don't have to worry about
all the ins and outs of how tall is it
and where you know, keep it in good shape, keep
it in beautiful condition, keep it healthy and well watered,
and you're doing what you need to do now. Plants
(29:40):
right up underneath the house all over the place. Is
that a higher risk than if there are a few
feet away from the house. Sure, a tree that's hanging
its branches way over your roof probably not the best idea.
But the point is healthy plants as opposed to dry ones, donuts,
sas on the rest of it. The key is keep
(30:02):
him in good shape. Tim, Thank you for your call, sir.
We are at the top of the hour. We will
take more of your calls right after a news break.
You are listening to Home with Dean Sharp, the House
Whisperer on KFI. You're listening to Home with Dean Sharp
on demand from KFI AM six forty
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