BASEMENT FLOOR PAINT - Cracks, hydraulic cement, etching liquid, acid, epoxy, latex  [full story]

Q: We heard a little bit about bats and thought we might want to attract them to our lake house so they will eat the mosquitoes in the yard. However, we do not want them in our house. What can we do? A: Do you remember the movie "Field of Dreams"? A voice in a cornfield tells Kevin Costner's character, "If you build it, they will come." Well, that was a movie. In real life, ... [full story]

Q: Enclosed is a photo of a dental cabinet that belonged to my father-in-law. It was given to him around 55 years ago by a dentist who was throwing it out. It was covered with many layers of paint and was used by my father-in-law to store paint supplies, brushes and tools for years. We decided to have it refinished and were told the wood is mahogany, the base is marble, and the glass knobs ... [full story]

Q: We are dying to add an outdoor living room to the back of our house. My husband is passionate about his garden and we have a pergola where we often entertain during warm weather. The trouble is, there's not very much of that where we live. Our next thought is to attach a greenhouse to the Great Room, but the contractor has warned us that energy costs will be huge. Can you give us ... [full story]

Fishing lures are among the most colorful categories of sporting collectibles, and none are more so than those produced by Fred Arbogast. From 1928 on, his company created a wide variety of catchy-named metal and plastic lures, whose gleaming rainbow hues and metallic sheen continue to capture the attention of collectors as well as their aquatic targets, some individual examples commanding up to four-figure prices. Arbogast had a lifelong obsession with fishing, dating back to ... [full story]

Q: We are getting ready to move furniture to the front porch for the first time - we bought the house last fall. I have a couple of questions: What color should we paint the ceiling? It's white now, but aren't all porch ceilings supposed to be blue? Also, what's the best furniture to use? We have old wicker, the real thing, but have been thinking about some of the new plastic wickers. What do ... [full story]

Q: I saw an article in my local newspaper about eliminating cattails that are growing in a pond. In my case, they are not in a pond. They are in a bit of a marshy area that I have on my property. In the 22 years I have owned the property, the cattails have taken over more and more ground. How do I get rid of them?  A: It is common for cattails to spread ... [full story]

Q: Wow, what a cold spell we have had the past couple of weeks. I have a lot of perennials in my yard and the worse looking ones are nearest the house. I thought they would get the most protection, but I must be wrong. What can I do for them now and what can I do to keep them from having problems next time?  A: The problem for many early blooming plants and buds ... [full story]

If green is the color of choice for environmentalists, blue may become the favored color for lawsuit-averse builders. The product that might set the trend is BluWood, a preservative applied to lumber to reduce the incidence of mold and damage from termites.   COAT OF ARMOR - BluWood treatment of this stairway is designed to reduce or eliminate the threat of mold and termite damage. CNS Photo by Earnie Grafton. And it's dyed blue partially because it's ... [full story]

No two ways about it, these things are cool ... literally. Chances are your child will get a cold or upper respiratory tract infection this year. And lets face it, basic humidifiers are not very attractive. They look like medical machines. Introduce Crane Adorable Humidifiers. These cool mist humidifiers disguise the awkward apparatus to look like a variety of animals and sports balls. You can help your child clear a stuffy nose with numerous design ... [full story]

Termites eat and tunnel into wooden structures. Because they are hard to detect, the damage can be expensive by the time they are discovered. If a structure has become infested, additional action must be taken. [full story]

Q: There's a small space off the downstairs hall in our old Victorian that we'd like to turn into a half-bath - the house was built circa 1899, with only one bath upstairs. The trouble is this little room is taller (at nearly 12 feet) than it is wide (just under 8 feet). What should we do so it doesn't feel like you're "in the bottom of a well?" A: Two quick tips: 1. Do ... [full story]

Q: I inherited the mixing bowls and drip coffeepot seen in this photo from my 95-year-old uncle. Marked in gold on the bottom of each piece are the words "Hall's Superior Quality Kitchenware - Made in the U.S.A." In the 1930s and early 1940s, he was a feed salesman and later a coffee salesman. His daughter thinks they were bonus rewards for sales. I am 71 years old and can remember seeing them at his ... [full story]