Month: June 2022

Furnishings

DIY Table Top Grouting

A table’s top is the greatest part of its surface and the most visible. Whether you are trying to hide a table top, or creating a unique look for a brand new table, grouted tile is a simple alternative to stain or paint that supplies a gorgeous rugged surface. You should select a table top that is stable and firm for the application of your tile and grout. A table with a thick shirt will work better than the thinner shirt, because tile grout is rigid and takes a firm foundation.

Prepping

Inspect the table for any damage or irregular areas. Fill in damage and seams in the desk with auto body filler plus a flexible putty knife. Allow the filler to harden. Sand the table smooth using an oscillating tool fitted using a sanding accessory, and wash the dust from the top using a tack cloth. Apply a coat of oil-based bonding primer using a roller towards the top of the table. Allow it to dry completely and sand the surface gently. Wipe the rest of the dust from the table with a tack cloth.

Setting Tile

Mark across the table through its centre both approaches to make a T grid to set the tile. Apply tile mastic adjesive to the back of every tile, also known as”buttering,” to a depth of 1/8 inch. Start in 1 corner of the T and place the initial tile. Use a vinyl tile spacer off every corner and include more tiles around it, to make the proper gaps between tiles. Continue laying tiles in straight lines, with spacers to put each tile before the table is covered. Cut tiles to the edge of the table as needed to match. Allow the adhesive to harden. Use a damp sponge to wash adhesives from the faces of the tiles.

Grouting

Apply premixed grout between the tiles using a foam grout float, dragging the grout into the gaps between the tiles. Fill out the grout lines with the surface of the tiles. Dampen the grout float and then drag it across the faces of the tiles to remove as much grout from the tiles as you can. Smooth the grout using a little, easy instrument, such as a grout trowel, to make a smooth line. Allow the grout to set up and use a moist sponge to clean the grout from the tiles.

Sealing

If the tiles are presealed, then the grout will probably require sealing. A penetrating tile sealer ought to be used on porous, unsealed tile prior to sealing the grout. Apply it to the faces of the tiles in accordance with the label instructions. Allow the tiles to dry, then apply a penetrating grout to the grout lines equally. Wipe the tiles clean using a wet rag to remove grout sealer before it dries, that can lead to clouding. Enable the table to place for 24 hours prior to use.

Replacing Old Grout

To replace old grout onto an exisiting table, scrape on the worn grout from between the tiles using a handheld oscillating tool fitted using a grout removal blade, until you reach solid substance. Use mastic to reattach loose tiles. Enable them to set. Wash the tiles nicely with a household cleaner. Apply grout as formerly described. Seal your grout to shield it from stains and spills prior to using your own table.

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Home Painting

How Do I Hang Flower Pots Inside?

A hanging basket may dress the a space or add greenery and color near a window. Hanging the pot correctly ensures the plants get what they want and you don’t damage your walls, floors or ceilings. Hang baskets near eye level so that you may enjoy the blossoms and access them for care and upkeep.

Select a Position

Select a spot for your plants that meets their needs. Most flowering plants require all-day sun when grown inside, although some may tolerate indirect or part-day sun. Near a south-facing window often provides best light intensity inside. Stress can be an issue. Avoid hanging baskets around drafty windows in winter, or air conditioner or heater vents. The temperature fluctuations can harm the crops and drying atmosphere can leave them dry and brown.

Potting Needs

A lightweight soilless potting mix works best. These combinations typically contain peat, perlite, vermiculite and other lightweight, well-draining substances. The pot must contain bottom drainage holes. Choose baskets for indoor usage with connected bottom drip trays so that water doesn’t drip onto your flooring.

Setup Method

Install hanging hooks at a ceiling joist or wall stud to ensure they don’t pull out beneath the weight of this basket. An electronic stud finder may quickly locate a joist or stud. Drill a starter hole through the plaster and into the joist, with a drill bit one dimension bigger than the hook, then twist the hook tightly. If the hook feels loose, then it may pull out and harm your ceiling.

Care Tips

Plants in hanging baskets or connected to the wall require the same care as any indoor potted flower. Water the basket once the top 1 inch of soil feels dry. When watering, take down the basket and place it at the sink. Allow it to drain for 30 minutes, then empty the drip tray before rehanging to minimize drips. If the plants at the basket begin extending toward the window and looking leggy, rotate the basket each time you water it so a different side faces the window.

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Home Painting

Can Painting Kill Mold?

Painting over mold does not kill it. The mold causes it to peel back off the wall and continues to grow beneath the paint. The correct approach to manage a mold problem is to work out the reason for the moisture, then fix this problem and remove the mold. Infestations and mold of other molds could be dangerous and are managed by a remediation specialist. You should do this before painting and are able to fix mold problems that are smaller yourself.

Removal and Repainting

Protect carpets and flooring under the moldy area with a plastic drop cloth and wash the affected area with a sterile cloth and mild detergent. Wash it , when the area has dried. Repeat this procedure again in 20 minutes. Wait 30 minutes and then wash the wall with water. Last, apply a cleaner. Leave this option on the wall without rinsing. Allow the wall and paint with products. In problem areas where you anticipate mold can grow again, such as bathrooms, choose. These paints will not kill mold that is current but are resistant to new growth. Use these paints caution around children and pets, as the combination creates a toxic gasoline and never mix bleach with ammonia.

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Home Painting

Can Spray Foam Stick into Duct Work?

Subsequently expand to fill gaps and cracks that hamper the efficiency of your home’s heating and cooling methods and spray foam insulation is designed to stick wherever it is implemented. These attributes make spray foam perfect for attics and crawlspaces filled with duct work.

A Sticky Situation

Foam insulation will stick to anything, including duct work, as long as the surface is clean and dry. It is impossible to eliminate When the spray foam has adhered. Because the duct work is coated with a thick coating of dust which interferes with the 35, in cases where it won’t adhere to duct work sheet metal, it may be. It may also be due to oils used in the process which have to be eliminated from the work. Wipe the duct work down white vinegar and 1 part water if the spray foam won’t stick. Let it dry thoroughly before spraying on the foam. Before employing spray foam, then check to find out whether it’s necessary to apply an ignition barrier between the work and the foam, particularly around joints.

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Home Painting

The Way to Remove Ivy Remains In the Foundation of My Property

Those long ivy (Hedera) vines that lend English charm to your home’s exterior can hurt bricks and mortar using their origins. These resilient plants boom in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 5 through 11, and some species are invasive. Even after you kill the vines, the lifeless parts can cling to the home’s foundation like adhesive. Removing these remnants takes a balancing process of scrubbing hard enough to get off the roots, but not enough to hurt the home.

Wear work gloves and safety glasses prior to attempting to remove the ivy. If you have asthma or other breathing issues, wear a mask as well.

Catch the very top of one of the vines at the highest stage that is attached to the foundation. Pull it gently away from the home to see if it is going to detach. Repeat the removal procedure with all remaining vines. If you feel resistance, stop and abandon the vine in place for later removal.

Set the flat blade of a plastic paint scraper perpendicular to the side of this foundation in a place where some of the ivy tendrils stay. Tilt the scraper backward slightly to your 45-degree angle and push it gently above the foundation to eliminate the majority of the larger remaining ivy pieces.

Brush the foundation using a dry, stiff-bristled, nylon brush and side-to-side motions to detach the remaining ivy roots.

Fill a spray bottle with a mixture of 1 cup of water and 1 to 2 teaspoons of dish soap. Saturate the remaining ivy roots together with the solution, and let the mix sit for one or two minutes. Scrub off the roots using the nylon brush.

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Home Cleaning

How to Wash Greasy Semigloss-Painted Walls

The secret to cleaning grease off of walls painted with semigloss paint would be to start with a gentle cleaner and work your way up to the strong ones. Grease does not stick well to semigloss paint, and gentle detergents are less likely to etch the end and rub pigment.

On the Mild Side

There is no gentler cleaning solution than warm water, which may be all you require. It might just move the grease around and make the wall dirtier, though, so try it first by rubbing an inconspicuous part of the wall using a sponge. Insert a oz of all-purpose nonabrasive cleaner or dish detergent per gallon of warm water should you have to fortify the mixture.

Heavy-Duty Cleaning

Kitchen grease may call for a more powerful cleaning solution. White vinegar is a mld acid which cuts grease, so try adding 1/2 cup to your own detergent solution. Make the solution much more powerful, if necessary, by blending in a cup of ammonia and 1/4 cup baking soda. Use the solution generously, but rinse the wall with clear water and dry it using a cloth afterward.

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Home Painting

Shampooers Vs. Steamers

Carpeting is a warm and soft flooring option, but it’s the toughest material to clean because it’s made of fibers that trap dirt and soils. Carpet manufacturers urge you clean carpets occasionally with a shampooer or steamer. The best way to use depends on the degree of clean you desire to achieve. For example, while both will create your rug brighter, shampooers sometimes leave dirt behind.

The Way Shampooers Clean

Shampooers use warm water combined with soap to make a solution the shampooer applies into the carpet. It then removes the dirty solution after it dries. Shampooers typically spray on a water and shampoo solution or a dry foam on the carpet. A revolving or rotary brush subsequently works the foam or shampoo to the fibers to loosen the dirt. Sometimes this procedure can overwet the carpet, which prolongs drying times, and the brush may harm delicate carpet fibers.

The Way Steamers Clean

Steamers use warm to hot water to loosen dirt in your carpet, and they then extract the dirt in the fibers with a strong vacuum and carry it into your holding tank. While the title “steamer” means that your carpet is being cleaned with steam, a steamer actually uses warm to hot water to clean the carpet. A spray of water is used to force the dirt in the carpet fibers, and a vacuum located in front of the spray instantly sucks it up. Carpet steamers are typically like layout, but also the temperature of the water used varies. Some machines use cold water that is heated to boiling water. With steamers that heat to exceptionally significant temperatures, there’s the chance of scalding when the water line breaks.

Degree of Cleaning

Shampooers are a surface cleanser, meaning they clean the upper portions of the carpet fibers but may not reach dirt and deposits that settle on the bottom. Steam cleaners provide deep cleaning, extracting with enough power to pull the dirt in the base of the rug fibers. Shampooers basically bury the dirt in foam and often have brighteners which produce your carpet look cleaner than it really is. Eventually this may lead to yellowing, which can’t be eliminated.

Cleaning Frequency and Timing

Carpets must be shampooed or steamed every 12 to 18 months. The frequency is based on the caliber of your carpet, how much traffic it receives and whether or not you have pets. For example, a rug in a guest room doesn’t require cleaning as often as one in a family room, and a rug in a house with pets may require more frequent cleaning than just one in a home with pets. Your timing is also important. It is best to steam or shampoo your carpet before it gets too cluttered. This is quite important when having a shampooer, nevertheless, because you don’t get a deep clean. This means in the event that you wait too long to shampoo the carpet, dirt and soils settle where they may remain even after shampooing.

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Tropical Style

Types of Perennial Sunflowers

Sunflower (Helianthus) is a large group of sun-loving lants with glowing yellow petals that radiate from a dark brown center. Unlike yearly varieties, perennial sunflowers blossom and return for many years. Even though the flowers are similar to annual sunflowers, the flowers are normally smaller. Most perennial sunflowers begin blooming in late summer or early fall, attracting butterflies and honeybees into the backyard as late as November.

Maximiliani

Maximilian sunflower (Helianthus maximiliani) is just a gigantic plant that reaches heights of 3 to 10 feet at maturity, with a spread of 2 to 4 feet. The plant exhibits glowing yellow, daisylike blooms surrounding dark yellow centers, rising above long, thin leaves. Maximilian sunflower, which flowers mainly in late summer and early fall, is acceptable for growing in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 4 to 9

Lemon Queen

Helianthus “Lemon Queen” is a big, fast-growing perennial sunflower that reaches heights of 6 to 8 ft and widths of 3 to 4 feet. The plant produces masses of 2-inch, pale lemon-yellow, semi-double blooms with dark brown centers. Blooms appear in midsummer and last six to eight weeks. Helianthus “Lemon Queen” is perennial in USDA zones 4 through 9.

Multiflorus

Helanthus x multiflorus contains quite a few attractive perennial sunflower varieties, each displaying masses of colorful, early- to late-summer flowers on fuzzy stems measuring as tall as 4 to 5 feet. Varieties include the extreme gold, double-flowered “Lodden Gold”; “Capenoch Star,” with glowing yellow, single flowers; along with “Soleil d’Or,” with vibrant yellow, semi-double blooms. Multiflorus sunflowers have been drought-tolerant plants acceptable for growing in USDA zones zones 4 through 10.

Willowleaf

Willowleaf sunflower (Helianthus salicifolius) is distinguished by smart yellow-orange, 2-inch blooms with purplish-brown centers that grow atop sturdy, pale green, 6- to 8-foot stems. The plant’s graceful, drooping leaves step 8 or more inches in length. This sunflower variety expands by underground rhizomes, eventually creating a thick colony of blossoms. Willowleaf sunflower, which flowers in fall, is perennial in USDA zones 4 through 9.

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Tropical Style

How to Care for Fruit Trees in Autumn & Winter

Selecting new fruit out of a tree in your own backyard may be a tempting dream, but for many home gardeners, fruit trees don’t appear overnight. In fact, there’s a great deal of work involved in caring for fruit trees all year long: gardeners have to be cautious about fruit pests and diseases and also take care when pruning to make sure that trees will grow a structure that will support those fruits of fantasy. Despite the fact that they’re dormant in the late autumn and winter, fruit trees nevertheless need some minimum maintenance in this year of rest.

Wait for the leaves to drop completely on all of fruit trees before beginning your dormant season examination. Look the tree over carefully for unusual growths, cracks in the bark that may be weeping sticky fluid, bark that is falling off, discoloration or other indications that something is likely wrong. Remove badly sick or damaged trees suffering from diseases that are incurable and replace them with more resistant varieties.

Examine your tree’s construction if it is very young and decide on which to make pruning cuts — generally speaking, wounds heal more rapidly during the late autumn and winter, since spring rains can support fungal and bacterial invaders. Remove much of the present season’s increase, particularly those branches at risk of growing into one another or rubbing as they mature. Cut out dead wood on old trees, in addition to any part of any trees that are showing signs of disease to slow its spread.

Select a dormant oil spray or inactive fruit tree spray according to your tree species and life history. Apply it thoroughly to ruin chronic pest and pathogenic agents when temperatures will probably be constantly above freezing for a couple of days. Avoid spraying general insecticides if your tree has already started to bud, because those poisons can linger, killing honeybees who visit early in the spring. Apply these therapies almost no time while the tree remains deeply weather and inactive conditions cooperative.

Keep a watchful eye on the weather. Apply a layer of mulch 4 to 6 inches deep into young, shallowly rooted fruit trees in case your regional weather forecast requires a hard freeze — even though you should wait to prune out frost damage to trees, a hard freeze could do extensive damage to the root systems of fruit trees and cannot be disregarded.

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Tropical Style

Magnolia Grandiflora Varieties

Few trees can match Magnolia grandiflora’s stately elegance. It is commonly called southern magnolia because of its prevalence in the South. Reaching heights that exceed 80 feet with a 40-foot spread, this indigenous tree needs large expanses of lawn to perform to its potential. Since most suburban lawns cannot accommodate its mature size, horticulturists have bred southern magnolia varieties that are more appropriate for smaller spaces.

Pyramidal

Three popular varieties have pyramidal shapes such as the indigenous southern magnolia. “Majestic Beauty” is a massive tree that needs a huge yard, but its older height of around 50 feet remains shorter than the native selection. Its outstanding feature is the large, fragrant flowers that appear in late spring and persist throughout summer. “Samuel Sommer” has even bigger flowers, but on shorter trees. Growing around 40 feet tall, its blossoms can reach 14 inches across. Whereas most southern magnolias are hardy only to U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zone 7, “Edith Brogue” pushes the envelope around USDA zone 6.

Columnar

Southern magnolia trees that have columnar shapes are satisfied to smaller or narrower lawns. It is possible to plant them as specimen trees or flowering evergreen screens and hedges. “Hasse” types a tight column, growing up to 40 feet tall and 15 feet wide. Its shiny leaves are contrasted by dark green upper surfaces and dark brown underneath. “Kay Parris” is smaller, growing up to 30 feet tall and 12 feet wide with fragrant, 6-inch-wide flowers. A 1993 introduction, this tree is regarded as a cross between “Little Gem” and “Bracken’s Brown Beauty.”

Compact

The smallest southern magnolias are the ones that have streamlined or dwarf forms. All these varieties are suited to smaller yards. “Little Gem” reaches 30 feet tall and 15 feet wide and blooms at a younger age than most magnolias. Its leaves have been held uprightly, showing their brown undersides. “Baby Doll” is shorter, reaching a semi-rounded contour of approximately 22 feet tall and wide. “Teddy Bear” is one of the very compact southern magnolias, only reaching 20 feet tall and 10 feet wide.

Care

Irrespective of size, shape or variety, all southern magnolias require similar care. They tolerate varied light conditions, from full sunlight to partial shade, and different soils, such as clay, sand or loam. These trees are resistant to most diseases and insects. They require little to no pruning to maintain tree health, though the bigger varieties can be pruned into espalier types. Southern magnolia roots extend laterally further than most trees — approximately four times the distance from the trunk to the drip line.

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