'There's a Better Way - Fine Homebuilding Reader Quick Tips' Contest

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Rollup bungee bag

portsMouth, member | March 28th, 20131 comment

I purchased a 24-pocket shoe bag, made to hang on a door or wall, for my bungees. One bungee goes in each pocket; then I roll it all up and store it in my trunk. Now I don't have to deal with tangled...

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combine power cords and dust pickup hoses on sanders. planers, saws etc.

RWN, member | January 27th, 20133 comments

When using hand power tools like belt sanders, planers or a contractors saw for example, the power cord and sawdust or chip pickup hose often tangle or catch on the edge of a bench or project forcing...

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Getting ready for winter

jaypreston, member | December 31st, 2012

As I was preparing for another season out in the cold, you know…cleaning gutters, stringing up Christmas lights and all of the other winter tasks; I was not looking forward to spending much time...

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Make a better Allen Wrench

InspectorReuben, member | December 18th, 2012

Cut the end off your "L" shaped allen wrenches so they'll fit in your drill. Any project will go a lot faster after you do this. Here's a quick video of me demonstrating how to do it - make a...

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Saving space in the home

alexpeters, member | December 14th, 20123 comments

Saving space on cluttered worktop surfaces has been a problem for a long time in the home. Now, new innovation in the design of the S-Box haS helped designers and kitchen planners alike, rethink...

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Drill a hole in your wall without making a mess

InspectorReuben, member | December 10th, 2012

I heard Adam Carolla mention this quick tip, and it really works. I had to pass this along. If you need to drill a hole in your wall and you don't want to make a mess on the floor, just use...

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Recessed Retrofit Led Trim Kit

SmartbuildingGrp, member | November 27th, 20122 comments

I have a number of recessed incandescent light cans in ceilings that have a normal attic above them. I'm concerned about air leakage into the attic even though they are covered on top with insulation...

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5 Question to Ask Yourself When Constructing Home

ChristinaFusano, member | November 13th, 2012

A house is not a home... it's a common saying, and for a good reason. A house is a piece of land surrounded by walls that you are legally allowed to occupy to live in. A home is where you have...

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Repair a hole in drywall

lahatte, member | September 19th, 20121 comment

For repairing holes, small or large, in drywall, I like to use a 'backer' material, such as a scrap of OSB, or whatever, anything that is thin but can accept drywall screws. Cut a strip of the backer...

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Integrated Night Lights - a worthy weekend project

triedandtrue_design, member | May 1st, 2012

Navigating your house in the middle of the night, in the dark, might be easy for you, but what about your occasional houseguests? What about your kids? Mine seem to always have a reason to rouse me...

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3/8" Drill Bit Extension - long as you need it

barker, member | April 1st, 2012

Well, I had to have a short extension for my 3/8 inch drive Forstner bit. Just had to. I went to three hardware stores and was pretty well convinced that they don't sell such a thing. 1/4 inch...

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concrete vibrator

Noecom, member | February 8th, 2012

This tool uses any 3/8" (chuck) drill and a length of rebar #3 or #4. Cut rebar to comfortable length allowing insertion to the full depth of the form or trench. Put a little wiggle in one...

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Painful skin cracks

Realestatelady, member | January 29th, 2012

Good response by dermatologist in Q&A of Feb/March 2012 issue as to question of painful skin cracks. But she omitted the best, easiest, quickest tip: a drop of Super-Glue on the crack takes pain...

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Protecting Birch Trim

Luber, member | January 19th, 2012

With Birch window and door casing, I'm reluctant to use my pneumatic nailer because it's never 100% sure to get the heads below the surface and it's hard to fix things when that happens. So I'm using...

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The hole punch protection method

marissadmoore, member | December 6th, 2011

Here is an easy way to spackle or paint small areas with very little clean up, while protecting surrounding areas. All you need is painters/masking tape and a hole punch. Just rip a small piece of...

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Temporary No-pest Vent Cap

swc_boise, member | November 21st, 2011

Before closing up our Idaho remodel for the season, I made a final walk-around to check for openings where pests might find their way in over the winter. I noticed an open plumbing air vent pipe...

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Install/Remove Eyescrews and Hooks

fogmann, member | August 30th, 20112 comments

I used to painfully install hooks and eyescrews with a screwdriver through the hole. Predrill an appropriate sized hole, and then mount a matching hook or open eye bolt onto your drill chuck. Hand...

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Miter saw multi-cut jig

tsmtnman, member | June 20th, 2011

Here is a quick jig that I used on my dads miter saw. I needed to cut some one by twos to 24 inches. Since the saw was just on saw horses and I wanted to make sure all the parts were equal. My dad...

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Dead level demo

bikinmatt, member | May 20th, 2011

When cutting out a new RO for a window installation, I wanted to be sure my cut at the bottom would produce a level sill. I happened to have my layout laser set up because I wanted the new window to...

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Saving Money On dump fees

jasonneil36, member | April 20th, 20116 comments

When I am installing gyproc I leave one side of a wall unfinished untill the very end. I do this so i can have a place to store all those scrap bits of gyproc that have been produced. You...

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Easy Toggle anchor clean up

MarcCaputo, member | March 16th, 20111 comment

When installing toggle anchors for towel bars, the last thing you want to do is lug around a vac. Instead, it carry a roll of 2" blue painters tape. Simply fold the tape back to the non sticky side...

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"Amazing Magnetic Vacuum"

EGHMS, member | March 15th, 2011

I received as a gift from a supplier a magnetic wrist band to hold screws and what not. It just got in the way so it has been lying in the bottom of my tool tote. while vacuuming up drywall dust on a...

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Using a Zip Line for Quick Demo Removal - AKA "The Flying Bathtub"

BillyD, member | February 10th, 20118 comments

In the process of remodeling a third floor bedroom/bath, we needed to find a way to quickly, safely, and efficiently remove all the demo materials. Guess what we came up with...

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