ArcaMax

Flowers and vegetables pop up out of the ground in the spring. So too deck support posts. You may be a homeowner who wishes to create a wonderful outdoor room, or expand that small deck cobbled together by the builder of your home. Allow me to share some deck construction tips that can save you time and prevent expensive leaks into your home.

I...Read more

Building materials made in factories can contain latent defects. These are hidden time bombs that can explode, causing mayhem in your life. It’s not easy to spot them, but there are some things you can do to prevent both physical and financial harm. I’ve dodged the bullet several times in my career and lifetime.

Several decades ago, I built...Read more

Wood is such a magnificent building material, in my opinion. It’s strong, it’s beautiful, it’s easy to cut and shape, and it can be used to create delicious eye candy both inside and outside your home.

My lovely wife enjoys outdoor gardening. She inherited this love and skill from her mother. My family was the exact opposite. I grew up in...Read more

I’ve shared in past columns the wonderful time I'm having helping my son with projects around his house. For several weekends now we have spent hours of quality time together while finishing his basement.

I’m fanatical about having access to wires, pipes, ducts and so forth that you often find in a basement ceiling. A good way to maintain ...Read more

I received two frantic phone calls in less than 12 hours several days ago. Both calls were about plumbing emergencies. The one young woman was so flustered she hung up on me the instant she discovered my Google Maps listing was about drawing plumbing plans, not doing plumbing service calls. I speculated a pipe had burst and water was flooding ...Read more

Last fall I traveled with my wife across the USA. We arrived in Los Angeles and a few hours later got to hold our newest granddaughter. It was magical, to say the least.

My youngest daughter inherited her mother’s love of gardening. It was decided a day trip to the magnificent Huntington Botanical Gardens located in San Marino, California, ...Read more

Not long ago I was skim coating hundreds of square feet of new drywall in my son’s basement. I added water to the thick drywall joint compound so it was the consistency of latex paint. Investing in this extra step makes the new drywall satin smooth because the paper face of the drywall ends up with the same texture and porosity of the taped ...Read more

Do you park your car or light truck in a garage? I do both here at my home. I didn’t build the house I live in, but I hope to build my final dream home with my dream garage in the next few years.

I grumble each time I back my Ford F250 Super Duty 4x4 into my bay. The architect who designed my home made the same mistakes that have been made by...Read more

You may not know this, but I received a bachelor of science degree in geology many moons ago. I was fascinated by the topic, and it helped me build houses and buildings that would not fail. Hydrogeology, the study of groundwater, and continental glaciation were two subjects that have allowed me to solve wet basement problems for thousands of ...Read more

It's likely you’ve been inside a house that is surrounded by spectacular scenery. You may have stayed at a resort like the one in Furnace Creek in Death Valley National Park. Perhaps you’ve stayed in the Mt. Washington Hotel in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire.

I can guarantee you the architects who designed the buildings and specified the ...Read more

The seasonal tumblers are all clicking into place here at my home. The same thing might be happening where you live. My central New Hampshire town, much to my dismay, uses rock salt to fight ice and snow on the roads. Yes, it works, but it also corrodes cars and trucks. The salt also creates anxiety for many a homeowner in the spring. They think...Read more

I grew up reading Superman comic books. One of his superpowers was X-ray vision. He could see through opaque objects to detect danger. I was mesmerized by this power.

What would you say if I told you that for less than $300 you could have a simple tool that plugs into your smartphone to give you a similar superpower? I’m talking about an ...Read more