Merry Christmas

Merry, Merry Christmas.  I hope everyone has a happy and fun-filled day with family and friends.

eFaucets.com: Bathroom Faucets that Caught My Eye

I can’t tell you how surprised I was with the massive selection of bathroom faucets on the eFaucets website.  They have one handle faucets, one handle vessel faucets, wall mount faucets, electric faucets, basin tap faucets, pull out spray faucets, and your traditional two handle faucets.  And this is just in the bathroom section!

Kohler K-12182-CP - Single Handle Lavatory Faucet

As of today faucet was available for sale at eFaucets.com for $120.19.  Average retail price elsewhere is $176.75.  Please click the link above to make your purchase.

Delta Faucet 3585LF-MPU - Two Handle Widespread Bathroom Faucet

As of today faucet was available for sale at eFaucets.com for $188.97.  Average retail price elsewhere is $299.95.  Please click the link above to make your purchase.

Delta Faucet 2551LF-RB - Two Handle Centerset Bathroom Faucet

As of today faucet was available for sale at eFaucets.com for $205.60.  Average retail price elsewhere is $326.35.  Please click the link above to make your purchase.

Graff Faucet G-1710-LM3L-PC - Two Handle Widespread Bathroom Lavatory Faucet

As of today faucet was available for sale at eFaucets.com for $359.20.  Average retail price elsewhere is $449.00.  Please click the link above to make your purchase.

DIY Home Improvement: Insulating the Upstairs

We are remodeling our hose and it is about half done.  Actually, I am being kind by saying half done.  We still have A LOT of work.  That work starts with the upstairs.  Aside from our bedrooms, everything else is still gutted.  This meant that some exterior walls upstairs weren’t insulated.  We live in New York and boy is it cold!

I’m going to admit that I notice a major different now that this mini DIY home improvement project is done.  However, both Dan and I didn’t think it was too bad at first.  After all, it is 20 to 30 degrees outside and the upstairs is still warm.  Of course heat rises and our rooms are heated, it just wasn’t as cold as we thought it would have been.  Which is why this DIY  home improvement project kept getting pushed back and back and back some more.  But we did it this weekend!

Starting with the upstairs; the space in the picture below is going to be our full bathroom upstairs (most likely next year).  We didn’t want to hang sheetrock because it would have to come down in 6 months for the electric and plumbing work.  So we just hung some insulation and covered it with plastic.

We actually kind of cob-jobbed the insulation a bit.  Dan stuffed it into the beams and did a few staples here and there.  But, once again, why go through the work of stapling it so much when it just has to come back down.

Then, there was the issue of our bedrooms not having any doors.  All the doors still need to be redone (stripped, sanded, primed, and painted).  Our rooms are pretty warm, but would be even warmed if the heat was able to stay inside.  So Dan created doors out of curtains.

What he did was hang some heavy duty wire at the top of each door.  The curtains we have require the curtain hooks.  They were attached to each curtain and then hung.  I like the fact there are two curtains on each doorway, so they can be pulled back a bit at night.  I am a paranoid person who likes to be able to hear throughout the whole house at night.

In Sarah’s room, she still has two entranceways into her room.  One is an actual doorway and the other is from a closet that was demolished out.  One door was covered by a dark color sheet (hard to see in the picture below).  The other door was left open and uncovered.

She thinks the curtains are pretty cool and wants one over her doorway.  However, we are still a bit nervous about the stairway and at night.  We always leave on light on upstairs for her to see when getting up to go to the bathroom, get a drink, and so forth.  Maybe in a few months when she is more familiar with the house and we are more comfortable.  For now, we’d most likely have a child screaming “its too dark in here; I can’t see where I am going” otherwise.

DIY Home Improvement: Taking Care of Old Fridge Box

At one point in time (a long, long time ago), there was a box in our kitchen that extended out into the garage.  This box was a home for the refrigerator.  At the time, I’m sure it seems like a wise thought.  The refrigerator slid right into that box, leaving more space in the kitchen.  However, I’d say about 5 years ago, the new owners bought a new fridge.  That fridge no longer fit into the boxed in space, but it was left as is.  Actually a couple of shelves where hung (no clue why though since you couldn’t reach them behind the refrigerator).

So here we are with this built-in box that is basically pointless to us.  Moreover, it extends out into the garage, meaning we are losing prime storage space.

Moreover, the garage is not heated.  There are rectangular cutouts at the bottom of this space, likely was used to vent and provide airflow to the refrigerator.  Our problem is that a bunch of cold air is seeping in.

So this past weekend, Dan decided to fix the problem.

First and foremost, he had to move the refrigerator out and I had to get back there and clean.  There were about 2 years worth of cobwebs (at least) back there.  So I took the ShopVac and cleaned the floors, walls, and everything in between.

Dan removed the shelving units.  After all, it was good wood that can easily be reused.

Then, Dan hung two pieces of wood (almost the entire length of this space) on each site.  This gives him something to hang the sheetrock and insulation to.  Insulation was hung and also stuffed in those above mention rectangular cutouts.

Dan then hung the sheetrock.  Since this space is hidden behind the refrigerator and since we will be doing a full kitchen remodel next year, we didn’t tape the sheetrock, paint, or anything. 

What we did though was caulk the gaps to eliminate any airflow (aka coldness) from making its way into our now well-buttoned-up kitchen.

A Product I Wouldn’t Recommend: This O Cedar Mop

This past summer, we purchased a new mop, as we were preparing to buy our new house.  We needed a good mop that would enable us to thoroughly clean our old apartment and our new house.

Dan bought an O Cedar mop at our local Wal-Mart store.  I was pleased because, personally, I had always heard good things about the O Cedar brand.

I take pride in that I am a very easy to please person.  I rarely find a product that I wouldn’t recommend, but this mop is one.  Please note that I am not 100% sure on the make a model.  They appear to have newer model mops on their website (which is a good sign to me).  However, this reason I don’t like our O Cedar mop might also be found on others.

In fact, let me first start that the mop itself is nice.  The refill sponges are fabulous.  We used it a lot and probably purchased at least 4 mop refill sponges in 2 months.  After all, you tear up a mop sponge pretty good when trying to clean a NASTY, dirty, house that looked like it hadn’t been cleaned in years.

My problem comes from the fact that it is just too hard to install the refill attachments.  It shouldn’t take ten minutes or more; it shouldn’t take any special tools, and so forth.

Please note that we read the directions and have changed many mop heads/sponges before, but this was different; it was a major task.

I tried, my mom tried, and Dan tried and ended up needing to grab a tool to basically jam the sponge into the holder.

Another gripe I had (but it really doesn’t apply to us) is that it is hard work to ring out the sponge.  It requires some massive force. Although we were able to apply the necessary force, I could see how someone older, such as my grandmother, would be unable to do so.

DIY Home Improvement: Baseboard Heating with No Walls!

This is how you install a baseboard electric heater when you have no physical walls to attach it to!

The upstairs won’t be remodeled until spring.  It is too cold to do it now and we need time to plan for all the heating and plumbing projects.  However, we needed to get some heat going upstairs (our bedrooms are heated already).

So this lonely piece of sheetrock is hanging out all by itself, but it is supporting our upstairs hallway heat source; it should feel important!

DIY Home Improvement: Dangers of Remodeling One Wall When Wall Behind It Is Finished

One of the first things we did when we bought our new house was get our bedrooms ready.  Each of our bedrooms had to be gutted and resheetrocked.  We did this; however, then we started to move onto other projects.  One of those other projects was gutting the rest of the upstairs.

In between our bedroom and Sarah’s room there was an extra room, it was used as an office.  I gutted it all except for the side of the wall that lined up against Sarah’s room.  See Sarah room was just resheetrocked and taped.  I was too afraid I was going to damage the sheetrock on her wall.

So Dan stepped up to the plate to do the job.  However, we still ended up cracking the sheetrock in her room.  You can see from the picture below.

Luckily, it basically busted at the seam (where two pieces of sheetrock connect and are taped together); therefore, it should be a relatively easy fix.

However, we did learn a lesson that we will keep in mind in the future.

O Christmas Tree

We have officially put up our first Christmas tree at our new house.  Of course, I didn’t think to take a picture of it all decorated yet.  Another one of the million things to add to my to-do list!  Doesn't our 6 year old look thrilled to be helping?

Yes, We Hung Sheets

If you have been following my blog, you’d know that we are struggling a bit with winter and the coldness (and when I say cold, I REALLY mean COLD).  It is so hard to be remodeling a home in the month of December in New York State.  So many things are in progress right now and it seems like so much cold air is seeping through.

I hate to admit this, but we had to go through and hang some sheets.  They look awful, but it had to be done.

We hung a sheet at the bottom of the stairs leading to upstairs.  We did this because the upstairs was super-warm, but that was because all the heat from the downstairs was heading for higher ground.  It would be 70 upstairs, but only 55 downstairs even with the heat on high.

We hung a sheet leading from the kitchen to the backroom (our unfinished but soon-to-be maybe next year family room).  We have determined that this room isn’t very well insulated underneath the floors (something we will fix), there is no working heater in this room, and it is attached to the garage (which also has no heat).  Basically, all the warm air from downstairs was heading upstairs and all the cold air from the back of the house was spreading into the kitchen, bathroom, and living room downstairs.

While it looks awful right now, we already noticed a difference in one hour!  So the sheets will stay until we come up with a more semi-permanent solution.

DIY Home Improvement: Winterizing Our Home (Inside)

To winterize our home and help stop the coldness from seeping into the living room/dining room from the basement, we filled some of the gaps in our old wood plank floors.  We also went through and stuffed insulation beneath the sheetrock (in the gap between the sheetrock and the floors).

I never thought that I would say this, but we are actually lucky that we hadn’t placed trim around the bottom of the walls yet because it made this process much easier.

One issue we ran into were major gaps, like the one pictured below in the corner of our dining room.

However, we also ran into a problem because this house is so old.  Dan stated that typically, there are 2 by 4s laid across the bottom of a floor.  The studs are then typically fashioned to the 2 by 4s.  We didn’t have this.  So basically there were gaps.  Since the sheetrock didn’t reach the bottom of the floors by a fraction of an inch in some spaces, it was enough for a ton of air to seep up from the basement.

So here is what we did.

• Note:  We didn’t have to remove any trim since we had yet to nail it in.

• Started with a large piece of insulation and used a box cutter to cut smaller chunks.

• We removed the backing of the insulation (worked with the pink insulation only).

• The smaller chunks we cut were used as is for some of the larger gaps.  Smaller pieces were pulled for the smaller gaps.

• We used a putty knife to carefully, evenly, and gently push the insulation into gaps.  Since the cold air was coming from the basement, we made sure to push the putty knife and insulation down towards the basement.

And we are done!

As always, insulation can get messy especially when cutting and pulling tiny pieces.  That is why it is a good idea to keep anything important (furniture) covered and to always wear a dusk mask.

It's Raining, It's Pouring....

Holly massive amounts of rainfall!  We are getting hammered with lots of rain.  It rained most of they day yesterday, but today is going to be steady heavy rainfall.  Our yard is already starting to flood and I am sure the basement will start next.  I'll have to upload pictures later.

DIY Home Improvement: Filling the Gaps

If you read my last post, you might have heard that we had a little floor problem in the living room and dining room.  After ripping out the old floors, we cleaned the cracks between the old plank wood floors good.  Unfortunately, we didn’t realize that we were taking out all the old stuff they used to block the airflow from the basement.  Needless to say, it was FREEZING in our living room!

So what did we decide to do?  Here is how we filled the gaps on our wood floors.

Filling Floor Gaps

• We used clear caulk; it does go on white (I freaked out for a minute when Dan was first doing this), but does dry clear.

• We didn’t stuff the floors with it; used just the right amount.

• We did most of the floors, but did leave a few really tiny sections.  This is due to the fact that most wood will contract with the temperatures; therefore, we didn’t want to overdue it and possibly cause damage.

• We didn’t walk over it for a day; we caulked and then went out shopping.  We were too nervous that dirt or mud pieces from our shoes would forever be stuck in our floor.

Why?

I came across a few posts online that mentioned you shouldn’t caulk the gaps between wood floors, but a few others did recommend it.  So why did we take this particular approach?

• It was simple.  It took about an hour and half (we had a lot of cracks to fill) and we were done.

• It wasn’t really an option for us to stuff more insulation under the floors from below.  The basement isn’t finished, but it would have taken a major overhaul downstairs and at least a full week to complete this project.  We are remodeling our home solely on the weekends and after work; therefore, not really an option.

• We don’t care too much about appearances at this moment.  Speaking of which, now that the caulk has fully dried, you can hardly notice it.  We haven’t decided 100% on flooring yet.  The living room section might be carpeted and the dining room section floating floors.  Either way, we looked at this as a temporary fix.  The subflooring and permanent flooring we later lay down will also help to block the cold airflow.

A Mistake We Made With Old Plank Wood Floors

In the living room/dining room, we ripped up all the flooring (including the subflooring).  When doing so, it appeared a bunch of crap was stuck in between the floors.  Dirt, straw, mud, and so forth.  So naturally at the time, we cleaned in between the cracks good. 

With it being winter and all, we have since learned why they did that!  To fill in the gaps!  A lot (and I mean A LOT) of cold air was coming up through the basement floors.

It never once dawned on us that all the tiny straw pieces, chunks of stuff that looked like mud, and so forth were left there on purpose.

So if you are dealing with an old house (ours was built in 1880), something to defintetly consider.  Wish we did because it made a lot more work for us!

Thanksgiving

I haven't done much posting over the past week.  Things were busy with Thanksgiving and family coming out to visit.  Work on the house pretty much came to a grinding halt, but we are back to business now.  I have a few more blog posts to upload.

$10 Home Depot Gift Card Winner: Congratulations Comment #100!

Thanks everyone for entering my random giveaway to win a $10 Home Depot Gift Card.  I am in the process of trying to secure additional sponsors for better giveaways, but even if I have to keep buying products myself I will, so please keep checking back.

As for the $10 Home Depot Gift Card giveaway that ended last night, the winner is Comment #100!

Tara said...

I like to shop in store because it's right down the street and they have tons of products.

Does Killz Premium Interior/Exterior Water-Based Sealer Primer and Stainblocker Really Dry In 1 Hour?

Dan just finished breathing new life into our basement door.  Before painting he primed.  While I was there with my trusty camera, I took a picture of the Killz Premium Sealer, Primer, and Stainblocker we were using.  Really one of these times I’ll remember to take a picture before half the can is covered in paint or primer!

It was then I noticed the “dries in 1 hour” quote on the can.  Really I wondered?

All after work and in just a few hours, Dan was intending to prime and paint.  We are typically used to priming, waiting a day, painting early in the morning, and then applying the second coat a few hours later (more than one hour).

So I decided to hatch a test.  After all, we have purchased a few products before that says “works or installs in X amount of time,” but had the drying or installation take much longer.  Unfortunately, I botched that test a bit. 

Does the Killz Premium Interior/Exterior Water-Based Sealer Primer and Stainblocker really dry in 1 hour?  I’m going to say yes; however, I checked at the 1 hour and 5 minute mark.  Not sure exactly how much a difference five minutes would make, but we were pleased.  Dan was able to successfully prime and apply the first coat of paint to our basement door in one evening.  As for the paint drying…that took a bit longer!

We purchased one gallon of Killz Premium Interior/Exterior Water-Based Sealer Primer and Stainblocker at Home Depot for slightly less than $20.

Elmer’s Carpenters Wood Filler: Work on the Basement Windows

When I think of Elmer’s I tend to think of the school glue and glue sticks that my daughter I and use for craft projects.  However, the Elmer’s brand is so much more.  They make and distribute a wide variety of products, including some for construction.  When doing so much work by hand in a DIY home improvement project, you might find yourself needing wood filler.  We did and we turned to Elmer’s.

What is wood filler used for?  It is used to cover defects in wood.  These defects can include dents, holes, scratches, and so forth.

What to consider when buying?  I leafed around the Elmer’s website and found most of their wood filler to be interior/exterior (meaning it can be used inside the house or outside).  However, it is a good idea to double check before making your purchase.  They also sell stainable wood glue.

Preparation Instructions:  You must be applying this wood filler to a clean and dry surface.  The package states that for the best results the filler, wood, and outside temperature (if applying outside) should be at least 40 degrees.

Application Instructions:  You need a putty knife to apply the wood filler.  We slapped a little bit on at a time and removed the excess from the putty knife.  Then go right back to the spot where you applied the wood filler and smooth it out.  Simple as that!

Painting Basement Door & Windows: Valspar Extreme Weather Exterior Paint Review

If you have been reading my blog, you might have noticed a paint review I did a few days back.  I reviewed Valspar’s Interior Eggshell Latex Paint.  This was the first can of paint we purchased for our DIY home remodeling project and we were very happy with the results.  In fact, Dan had stated “I wished that we went with Valspar throughout the entire house.”  So of course when it came time to purchase paint for the basement windows and basement door, it was only natural that we opted for Valspar.

Maybe one of these times I'll remember to take a picture BEFORE we use the product!

Paint:  Valspar Extreme Weather Exterior Paint Semi-Gloss Latex Neutral Base

Custom Color:  Cliveden Forest

Purchased At:  Lowe’s

Cost:  Still trying to find the receipt

Why We Opted For It?

There are a number of reasons why we opted for the Valspar Extreme Weather Exterior Paint.  First, we were majorly impressed with the quality of Valspar paint.  Some of the other paint we purchased had a tendency to run, but the Valspar paint we used in Sarah’s room did not.

Secondly, we were preparing to paint our basement windows and doors.  Our basement will be semi-heated in the winter to prevent pipe freezing.  However, it is still going to get pretty cold.  Moreover, we live in Central New York.  The fall has been met with some cold, windy, and rainy days.  Winter will be filled with show, ice, and sleet.  So we really needed a good brand of exterior paint.  Opting for something titled “Severe Weather” seemed like good thinking.

The Review

As when painting Sarah’s bedroom, the paint was easy to apply.  This is provided you follow the standard rules of painting.  When painting Sarah’s bedroom, we were painting the walls.  The basement window frames and basement door where removed and painted on a flat surface.  This likely eliminated any possibility of running, but the paint went on smooth and we experienced no clumping.

The basement window frames have been painted for about 2 weeks now.  The basement door was finished two nights ago.  So far, the paint seems to be holding up nice to the rain.  I would recommend Valspar Paint because it has become a favorite of ours.  However, I will be able to provide a more accurate review in a spring; we’ll see how well this “Extreme Weather” paint holds up to Central New York’s extreme winters.

For more information about Valspar Paint, please click the link to be directed to their website.

A True Do-It-Yourselfer: Breathing New Life Into An Old Basement Door

We have an entranceway to our basement from the garage.  The basement door was in rough shape. In fact, we never closed it because we didn’t think it would hold up to being opened and closed.  Since winter is coming, we want to be able to keep the garage and basement warmer; therefore, this door needed to be fixed.

I wish I took a picture of this door beforehand.  It was in bad shape; lots of scratches, paint peeling, and so forth.  In all honesty, I thought it would have been a million times easier to buy a brand new door.  But, we are trying to save as much money as possible; therefore, a DIY door fixer-upper project was hatched.

To get started, Dan stripped and sanded the door in the garage.

After cleaning and wiping done the door, Dan was ready to move onto the next phase of the project.  That phase involved priming the door.  To do this, we used Killz Premium Interior/Exterior Water-Base Primer Sealer and Stainblocker.

After the primer had dried, Dan moved onto the painting.  We had some left-over paint from the basement windows; therefore, we used this.  Not that anyone will really pay any attention, but our basement door now matches our basement windows.  For the paint, we went with a custom Cliveden Forest green.   The base paint was Valspar Extreme Weather Exterior Semigloss Neutral Base paint.

The door has been hung, but some adjustments to the hinges still need to be made.

Lysol Neutra Air Fabric Mist: Does It Work As Good As Febreze?

When we moved into our new house, we had a lot of extra room to fill.  We will have even more when it we around to remodeling the family room next year.  Coming from a small apartment, we never had much furniture.  We were lucky that my aunt had an old couch and matching oversized chair we could have.

The only issue we ran into is the smell of dog.  Not a bad dog smell, but just the smell of dog.  You notice this A LOT more when you aren’t a pet owner yourself.  So I decided to head to Wal-Mart to buy some Febreze.

While at Wal-Mart, I came across a sale on Lysol Neutra Air Fabric Mist.  Being this sale made it cheaper than Febreze; I decided to give it at try.  I purchased the Crisp Linen scent.

Like most fabric mists, Lysol Neutra Air is designed to eliminate odors include pet odors; exactly what I needed!

I applied the spray to our new-to-us couch twice a day for one week.  Probably a little bit of overkill on my part, but oh well.  I am pleased to announce that the dog smell is gone.  It has been over two months since I treated our couch and still no dog smell.  This goes to show that the spray isn’t just temporarily covering up the smell, but that it actually works to eliminate it.

As for whether or not Lysol Neutra Air Fabric Mist is better than Febreze, it is hard to say.  I am an avid Febreze user and I personally believe the results are the exact same; both products work.

So if you were looking for suggestions, I would base it on personal preference or best price.  Traditionally, they retail for the same price.  I opted for Lysol Neutra Air Fabric Mist because it was on sale.  If I can find it on sale again, I will buy again.

Click the link for more information on Lysol Neutra Air Fabric Mist.  You can also join the Lysol community by creating a FREE account.  After doing so, click their Special Offers link and you can print a coupon for $1 off Lysol Neutra Air Fabric Mist.

$10 Home Depot Gift Card Giveaway (1 Winner) Ends November 19th 2010 at 11:59pm Eastern

Note:  This giveaway is not sponsored by Home Depot.  I purchased the gift card myself at my local Home Depot last night.

Last night, we had to make a run to our local Home Depot store.  Being we only had to get a few things, my daughter and I stayed in the car.  Until it dawned on me, why not buy a gift card to giveaway on my blog!  So I did. 

Why only $10?  Because (honestly), I am cheap.  Moreover, we aren’t exactly rolling in the money right now.  As I am sure everyone knows, a DIY home improvement project breaks the bank.

So while not a great giveaway, it is still a chance to win something for free.

While this giveaway is not affiliated or sponsored by Home Depot (other than the fact I am giving away a $10 gift card I purchased), I do want to talk about Home Depot for a minute.

We purchased our house at the end of July 2010.  It needed major renovations.  Basically, the entire house needed and half of it still needs to be gutted.  As you can imagine, we now frequent home improvement stores more than the grocery store now!

In my area, we have quite a few stores to choose from.  For some reason, we always find ourselves going back to Home Depot.  We have spent thousands of dollars there.  Why?  A number of factors come to mind.  They have a large selection of products, great prices, a friendly staff, and most importantly a staff that knows what they are talking about (we have asked questions and got great answers).

It is hard to list all of the DIY home improvement items we have purchased from Home Depot; but here is a sample.

• Glacier Bay Dual Flush Toilet
• Bath Tub
• Hampton Bay Light Bar (Bathroom)
• Hampton Bay Florescent Light (Living Room)
• Hunter 5 Minute Ceiling Fan and Light (Dining Room)
• Bathroom Floor Tile
• Bathroom Bathtub Tile
• 8 Gallon Cans of Paint
• AND MORE!

Now onto the good stuff…  The Giveaway

Rules:  Please leave a comment below answering the mandatory question.  Additional entries are available and listed below.   Please leave one comment for each extra entry you complete.  This giveaway ends on November 19^th at 11:59pm Eastern.  A winner will be selected through a random drawing done on Random.org.  The winner will be contacted 24 hours after giveaway closes.  In the event you win, you have 48 hours to respond to my email or a new winner will be selected.

Mandatory Entry:

Tell me why you like to shop at Home Depot AND do you prefer to shop at your local Home Depot store or at HomeDepot.com?

Extra Entries:

• Follow my blog via Google Friend Connect
• Subscribe to my blog updates via email.
• “Like” our Facebook page.
• Leave a comment on a non-giveaway post; then come back here and leave a link letting me know where you left your comment.
• If you are doing a DIY home improvement project – what are you working on; bathroom, kitchen, bedrooms, or something else?

Paint Review: Valspar Contractor Finishes 2000 Series Interior Eggshell Latex Paint

We have painted our bedroom, spare room, Sarah’s room, bathroom, living room, and kitchen cupboards.  We let our daughter Sarah pick the colors for her room.  Of course though, we selected the base paint to use.

Since eggshell paint has a better shine to it, we opted for eggshell latex paint.  Here is our review.

Brand:  Valspar Contractor Finishes 2000 Series Interior Eggshell Latex Paint

Bought From:  Lowe’s

Cost:  I’m still trying to find the receipt we saved.

Why We Opted For It:  After reading a few reviews online, we found that Valspar paint comes highly rated and recommended.  We also had color charts from Valspar that my daughter picked from, so it was just easier to opt for this brand.

The Review

We have no complaints about the Valspar Contractor Finishes 2000 Series Interior Eggshell Latex Paint.  As with any paint, follow the general rules of painting and you are good to go.

A little bit of a funny story, we needed an extra gallon of the custom purple.  So I sent my brother down to Lowe’s to make the purchase.  I can see it in small print in the picture above, but there is a neutral base and an antique white.  I didn’t realize this at the time so that took a good 15 or more minutes for him to sort it out at the store.

One issue we had with a couple of other paint brands is that we ran into a lot of running.  No matter what we did, the paint always ran more so than your average run here and there.  We didn’t have an issue with the Valspar.  In fact, Dan had said “I wished we opted for Valspar paint throughout the entire house.”

As for the finished product, we live (actually we love).  The colors are bright and the walls now have a good amount of shine to them; they don’t look dull and boring.

As you can see from the picture above, we opted for purple and yellow.  I can’t find the custom color information for the yellow color.  However, the purple is “Plum Burst” from one of the many Valspar paint sample cards we brought home.

If you would like more information on Valspar paint, please click the link to visit their website.

Home Depot 2010 Tool Book

Since 2010 is almost over with, I am assuming that this Home Depot 2010 Tool Book has been out for a while.  I just got around to finding it in our local Home Depot store last night.  I think it was because we are usually on a mission at Home Depot; we go in with a list and get what we want.  Last night I took some time to mosey around the store.  Kind of wish I brought my camera with me, but I also know that a lot of stores are against photos so oh well.

Dan and I leafed through this Tool Guide and found a few tools we already had and a lot we wished we did have.

Cool Tools: Black & Decker Belt Sander BR300

Got a big sanding job that is perfect for a belt sander?  Then try Black & Decker.  One of the many tools we love is the Black & Decker Belt Sander BR300.

Type: Belt Sander

Brand:  Black & Decker

Make and Model:  Belt Sander BR300

Price:  Can’t find it sold anywhere online, but there is a new BR318 new for $60 on the Black & Decker website (link below)

Noteworthy Features

• 3” x 18” belt that is easy to change
• Automatic belt tracking
• High Torque Motor that is 5.2 amps

The Background

This is another oldie but a goodie!  In fact, I was surprised to come across the old box; we never save these boxes.  The Black & Decker Belt Sander BR300 has a copyright date of 2000 on the box, meaning it has been around for a while; just like the Black & Decker Mouse sander and polisher I just reviewed.

The Review

We used the Black & Decker Belt Sander BR300 when attempting to strip the bedrooms of the wallpaper that had been painted over.  We rented a steamer; however, the steamer wasn’t melting the paint, which meant we couldn’t even get to the wallpaper underneath.

So, we decided to sand some of the paint away.  We stopped doing this because it would have taken 2 plus days for just one room!  With that said, we used the Black & Decker Belt Sander and it worked like a charm.  The biggest issue for us was the wallpaper steamer that didn’t work as well as we thought it would.

Personally for me, I was a bit timid of the Black & Decker BR300 Belt Sander.  It looked so big!  I was only used to using small handheld sanders.  It did require the use of two hands (unlike some smaller sanders), but it got the job done and was easy to control.

The only issue I had with this Black & Decker Belt Sander was the dust collector; I am not a big fan of these.  Yes, I know the goal is to keep a house clean.  But when you are sanding an entire room, you need to stop and empty the bag collector quite often.

I would recommend this and other Black & Decker sanders to anyone looking to start a DIY project.  My only suggestion is to head to Walmart when it comes to buying the replacement belt sandpaper sheets.  They were half the cost there than at our local home improvement stores!

Newer Products

I went to the Black & Decker website and did a search for belt sanders.  I came across two newer belt sanders for those looking to buy the latest and the greatest.  They are the:

Black & Decker 3” x 18” Belt Sander Model #BR318 (a newer model than what we have)

Black & Decker 3” x 21” Dragster Belt Sander Model #DS321

Cool Tools: Black and Decker Mouse Sander and Polisher MS500K

Handheld electric sanders are a must-have when it comes to a DIY home remodel or DIY home improvement project.  Why?  They are easy on the hands, a lot less manual labor, and a downright timesaver!  Here is a cool tool that we love and use a lot!

Type of Tool:  Electric Handheld Sander

Brand:  Black & Decker

Make & Model:  MS500K Mouse Sander and Polisher

Price:  I found it listed on eBay new for $29.99

Noteworthy Features

• Works as a sander and polisher in one!
• Easy to grip design makes it easy to use and comfortable to hold.
• Sandpaper attaches via velcro.

The Background Information

Now, this cool tool that I am reviewing appears to be pretty old.  You can kind of tell by the fact that it showing some massive signs of wear and tear (mostly dust in every crack possible), but that wear and tear is not impacting the sander’s ability to sand!

I also did a search online and found an article dated 2000 on the Black and Decker website, meaning this sander has been around a long time.  Another internet search provided me with the fact that the Mouse is still around; it has just been upgraded to various models with extra features!  How neat!  I think we need an upgrade!

With that said, it is important to note that this tool has been around a long time and we have been using it often (Dan at work and us at home).  He laughed when I asked when we bought it, as he has literally purchased hundreds of tools over the years.  But personally to me, it goes to show that quality tools last long - getting you the best value for your money!

From what I gather online, this tool was sold with a storage case.  Since all our tools are bought new and not used, we likely had a storage case at one point in time.  However, they don’t seem to last long in our house!  We go the old fashioned way of having a cardboard box for all the sanders and another cardboard box for all the sandpapers.

The Review

I have personally done a lot of sanding.  I sanded out sheetrock in the bedroom after removing the wallpaper, sanded to strip the stain off a new bathroom vanity we bought,  sanded multiple doors, and so forth.  Only the latter did I use the Black & Decker Mouse Sander and Polisher with.  My question to Dan?  Why didn’t you give me this thing sooner!

Electric sanders are nice, as they eliminate the majority of the handwork.  The problem comes from the fact that some sanders vibrate so much they leave your hands feeling numb and shaky after 30 minutes.  I did NOT have this problem with the Black & Decker Sander and Polisher.

From someone who knew nothing about construction before starting a DIY home remodeling project, you learn a lot of things along the way.  For example (and while it does seem like common sense, it is something you need to learn through trial and error), push too hard on the sander and you’ll leave a mark on the surface you are sanding.  This really wasn’t an issue with the Black & Decker Mouse sander, as I felt in control at all times.

A lot of this control had to do with the fact it doesn’t appear the sander has a mind of its own.  The above mentioned vibrations I was talking about, for someone with small hands, it means you must apply hold the sander with two hands or it will get a mind of its own.  NOT a problem with our Black & Decker.

I think a lot of it has to do with the shape and size of the Black & Decker Mouse MS500K.  It honestly looks like an oversized computer mouse, which is probably how it got its name.  This makes the sander easy to grip and control.

As of right now, my sanding has come to an end (for at least the next month), but when a new project appears, you bet I’ll be grabbing the Black & Decker MS500K Mouse Sander and Polisher.

Here is the link to a new Black & Decker Mouse Sander sold at Home Depot:

Detail Sander with Dust Collection