WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.520 --> 00:00:04.080 KFI AM six forty. You're listening to Dean Sharp The 2 00:00:04.080 --> 00:00:11.000 House Whisper on demand on the iHeartRadio app. Welcome home 3 00:00:11.320 --> 00:00:14.400 your Home with Dean Sharp, The House Whisper, where every 4 00:00:14.599 --> 00:00:18.719 week we talk about ways to turn your ordinary house 5 00:00:18.920 --> 00:00:23.239 into an extraordinary home. And you know, this very program 6 00:00:23.320 --> 00:00:26.199 is also what's known as the House Whisper podcast that 7 00:00:26.280 --> 00:00:30.320 you can listen to anytime, anywhere on demand. This very 8 00:00:30.359 --> 00:00:34.479 episode that we're doing right now, this broadcast becomes a 9 00:00:34.600 --> 00:00:36.920 podcast about an hour after we go off the air, 10 00:00:37.399 --> 00:00:40.679 and every one of our broadcasts have done the same 11 00:00:41.039 --> 00:00:44.560 hundreds of episodes, all searchable by topic. It is a 12 00:00:44.600 --> 00:00:47.439 home improvement reference library. You can find it on the 13 00:00:47.479 --> 00:00:51.719 free iHeartRadio app or wherever your favorite podcasts are found, 14 00:00:52.039 --> 00:00:56.079 Apple Podcasts, Spotify. You just search for Dean Sharp or 15 00:00:56.159 --> 00:01:01.000 The House Whisper or Home with Dean Sharp. Find it Boom, 16 00:01:01.039 --> 00:01:04.000 you'll pop up. You'll see my ugly mug right there 17 00:01:04.359 --> 00:01:07.239 underneath our orange logo, and you know you have come 18 00:01:07.280 --> 00:01:10.000 to the right place. So, if you've missed any part 19 00:01:10.040 --> 00:01:12.239 of today's show, and you've missed any of the tips 20 00:01:12.239 --> 00:01:15.159 and tricks of DIY fix it that we have talked 21 00:01:15.159 --> 00:01:18.079 about thus far this morning. You can just go back 22 00:01:18.079 --> 00:01:20.079 and listen to the podcast and listen to it as 23 00:01:20.120 --> 00:01:24.159 many times as you like, whenever you want. And if 24 00:01:24.159 --> 00:01:26.159 you're thinking, that's all great, but what we really need 25 00:01:26.239 --> 00:01:28.680 is Dean and Tina in our house solving some very 26 00:01:28.680 --> 00:01:31.280 specific problems, well you can do that too. You can 27 00:01:31.319 --> 00:01:33.920 book an in home design consult with me and the tea. 28 00:01:34.319 --> 00:01:38.120 You just go to house whisperer dot design. You'll know 29 00:01:38.200 --> 00:01:42.400 when you're there. You'll see Tina's beautiful smiling face right 30 00:01:42.480 --> 00:01:44.879 up front where it belongs, and you'll see my ugly 31 00:01:44.959 --> 00:01:48.439 mug somewhere in the background where it belongs way back there. 32 00:01:49.200 --> 00:01:51.280 You'll know you're in the right place when you get there. 33 00:01:51.480 --> 00:01:56.040 All right, I want to continue our list of DIY 34 00:01:56.079 --> 00:01:59.599 tips and tricks, a very specific list though. Okay, this 35 00:01:59.680 --> 00:02:01.280 is not the kind of stuff that you're gonna find 36 00:02:01.400 --> 00:02:05.799 on YouTube or in regular instruction videos, because these are 37 00:02:05.840 --> 00:02:09.960 not necessarily the steps that you take to get one 38 00:02:10.039 --> 00:02:14.199 project done or another. These are the little tiny things, 39 00:02:15.000 --> 00:02:19.439 the little techniques and skills that you end up doing 40 00:02:19.719 --> 00:02:23.159 while you're doing that project that you realize I'm not 41 00:02:23.240 --> 00:02:25.759 good at this, and I don't really know what I'm doing. 42 00:02:26.759 --> 00:02:29.759 Case in point, let me make it about as simple 43 00:02:29.879 --> 00:02:34.039 and ridiculously simple as possible. I say ridiculously simple. I 44 00:02:34.080 --> 00:02:38.080 don't think it's ridiculous, but you might think, oh my gosh, really, 45 00:02:38.199 --> 00:02:41.800 you're about to tell us how to use a screwdriver, Dean, Yeah, 46 00:02:41.840 --> 00:02:44.319 I am. I am about to tell you that. Okay, 47 00:02:44.759 --> 00:02:49.039 here is why the secret of using a screwdriver is 48 00:02:49.479 --> 00:02:53.280 not as obvious as what a lot of people would imagine. 49 00:02:53.560 --> 00:02:57.319 A screwdriver is a great device, and for the sake 50 00:02:57.360 --> 00:02:59.960 of making like easy, Okay, I don't even want to 51 00:02:59.919 --> 00:03:04.800 talk about the complexities of using a flathead screwdriver with 52 00:03:04.919 --> 00:03:09.199 a slotted screw. Okay. That is what I'm about to 53 00:03:09.240 --> 00:03:12.400 tell you is you take this and you magnify the 54 00:03:12.439 --> 00:03:15.840 importance of these skills ten times. If you're gonna take 55 00:03:15.879 --> 00:03:19.879 a flathead screwdriver and use it to loosen or to 56 00:03:21.120 --> 00:03:25.360 screw in a slotted head screw. Okay, it's so much 57 00:03:25.439 --> 00:03:29.080 trickier than most people realize. But let's start with a 58 00:03:29.319 --> 00:03:34.919 very very simple, basic, and maybe the most universal situation 59 00:03:35.240 --> 00:03:38.879 these days, and that is a Phillips head screwdriver. Phillips 60 00:03:38.919 --> 00:03:41.759 head screwdriver has got that little cross shaped on the 61 00:03:41.840 --> 00:03:44.599 end of the screwdriver. The tip is not flat, it's 62 00:03:45.000 --> 00:03:49.039 divided into four fins. And you know that a Phillips 63 00:03:49.039 --> 00:03:53.840 Head screw has that little cross shaped indentation in it. Okay, 64 00:03:54.639 --> 00:03:57.319 So what's the big deal Dean with that? What's the 65 00:03:57.319 --> 00:03:59.879 big deal with using a screwdriver? You stick the screw 66 00:04:00.120 --> 00:04:03.919 driver in the whole of the screw and you turn it. Well, 67 00:04:04.280 --> 00:04:06.919 go right ahead, and then you can call me later 68 00:04:07.039 --> 00:04:09.400 and tell me all of the hassles about doing that. 69 00:04:09.800 --> 00:04:12.039 Here is the thing, This is what nobody ever tells 70 00:04:12.039 --> 00:04:15.159 you that when you're starting. And let's just say, for 71 00:04:15.240 --> 00:04:18.160 the sake of argument or for the sake of our illustration, 72 00:04:18.519 --> 00:04:21.759 that we're going to put a wood screw into a 73 00:04:21.839 --> 00:04:25.439 piece of wood. And it's a Philip's Head screwdriver and 74 00:04:25.600 --> 00:04:29.160 screw tip. Okay, And yes, I know there are Torques 75 00:04:29.199 --> 00:04:32.959 heads out there that do this easier. I'll get to that. 76 00:04:34.040 --> 00:04:38.800 Philip said, screwdriver has a point to it. Okay. There 77 00:04:38.800 --> 00:04:42.279 are angles, and those angles correspond to the angles that 78 00:04:42.319 --> 00:04:46.399 are down inside that indentation in the screw, the recess 79 00:04:46.439 --> 00:04:49.839 in the screw. Here is the thing. You cannot simply 80 00:04:50.480 --> 00:04:54.079 put a screw on the end of a screwdriver, touch 81 00:04:54.199 --> 00:04:58.120 the tip to a piece of wood and start turning it. Otherwise, 82 00:04:58.480 --> 00:05:02.839 because nothing happens, the screw falls off, the screwdriver comes out. 83 00:05:02.680 --> 00:05:05.720 It's what we call camming out. It just comes out 84 00:05:05.720 --> 00:05:08.120 of the top of the screw. You have to apply 85 00:05:08.240 --> 00:05:12.120 some pressure. But if you apply too much pressure, if 86 00:05:12.160 --> 00:05:15.199 you put put it there and you push really hard 87 00:05:15.399 --> 00:05:18.439 while the screw has yet to go into the wood, 88 00:05:18.959 --> 00:05:21.759 then the next most likely thing that's going to happen 89 00:05:21.920 --> 00:05:24.839 is you're gonna get it a little sideways. It's going 90 00:05:24.920 --> 00:05:27.240 to fall off to the side. The screw goes off 91 00:05:27.240 --> 00:05:29.879 to the side, and the screwdriver goes right into the 92 00:05:29.920 --> 00:05:33.079 wood and makes an ugly indentation, and you've just marred 93 00:05:33.720 --> 00:05:37.720 the surface that you're trying to fix and or a 94 00:05:37.800 --> 00:05:41.920 fix and repair. Okay, yeah, now you know what I'm 95 00:05:41.959 --> 00:05:44.800 talking about. You've been there. This has happened to you, 96 00:05:45.480 --> 00:05:49.079 and if it hasn't happened to you, it will. So 97 00:05:49.199 --> 00:05:56.160 here is the point. A screwdriver requires pressure gradient pressure. 98 00:05:56.680 --> 00:06:03.560 You start with light pressure with you holding the top 99 00:06:03.600 --> 00:06:07.560 of the screw and the screwdriver in thumb and fore finger, 100 00:06:08.040 --> 00:06:11.079 and you get the fatty flesh of those two fingers 101 00:06:11.560 --> 00:06:15.480 around both the end of the screwdriver tip and holding 102 00:06:15.519 --> 00:06:18.680 on to the top of the wood screw itself so 103 00:06:18.720 --> 00:06:22.319 that you're holding it in place. And then light pressure, 104 00:06:22.480 --> 00:06:26.279 not so much pressure that you're going to make the 105 00:06:26.319 --> 00:06:29.079 thing go cock eyed and ram that screw into your 106 00:06:29.120 --> 00:06:33.600 finger and or the wood, but just enough light pressure, 107 00:06:34.120 --> 00:06:40.759 and you begin to turn gently pressurized until the tip 108 00:06:40.800 --> 00:06:44.040 of the screw starts penetrating into the wood, and as 109 00:06:44.079 --> 00:06:48.199 you turn it, the first beginning part of the thread 110 00:06:48.720 --> 00:06:53.040 starts to take and hold How long how far do 111 00:06:53.120 --> 00:06:56.000 you know that you need to go until you can 112 00:06:56.079 --> 00:07:00.560 remove your finger from the screwdriver tip and the the screw. 113 00:07:00.920 --> 00:07:04.279 When the screw has started and it's now standing up 114 00:07:04.399 --> 00:07:07.319 on its own, it's far enough in that it is 115 00:07:07.439 --> 00:07:10.680 now sticking up like a tree standing on its own 116 00:07:10.800 --> 00:07:14.680 out of the wood. Now we reapproach. You still use 117 00:07:14.720 --> 00:07:17.759 your fingers lightly there, and we're going to re engage 118 00:07:17.759 --> 00:07:21.839 the screwdriver and understand that from here on out the 119 00:07:21.879 --> 00:07:25.000 screw is going to encounter more and more resistance from 120 00:07:25.079 --> 00:07:29.279 the wood, but it will become more stable the further 121 00:07:29.360 --> 00:07:32.680 it goes in, and so you as a result will 122 00:07:32.800 --> 00:07:37.920 need to apply greater and greater forward pressure as you 123 00:07:38.120 --> 00:07:42.240 rotate it, so pressure starts light, just light enough to 124 00:07:42.240 --> 00:07:45.800 get it started. And then as you turn the forward 125 00:07:45.920 --> 00:07:49.319 pressure of the screw driver into the screw head so 126 00:07:49.399 --> 00:07:53.000 that it doesn't cam out, meaning spin and strip and 127 00:07:53.040 --> 00:07:56.000 come out of the screw head, you continue to apply 128 00:07:56.240 --> 00:08:00.279 greater and greater pressure until you've got that thing all 129 00:08:00.360 --> 00:08:03.560 the way in. This is something that I as far 130 00:08:03.639 --> 00:08:06.519 as I know, no YouTube video that I've ever seen 131 00:08:06.759 --> 00:08:11.319 has ever covered. But this is how a screwdriver works 132 00:08:11.959 --> 00:08:15.879 well without screwing up the project that you have prepped 133 00:08:16.160 --> 00:08:21.279 so so very carefully. That's how you use a screwdriver. Now, 134 00:08:21.399 --> 00:08:23.600 of course, there are screw heads out there these days, 135 00:08:24.000 --> 00:08:28.040 torquees head screws that cam out far less. They're superior 136 00:08:28.199 --> 00:08:32.960 to a Phillips head screwdriver, and that's why they're by 137 00:08:32.960 --> 00:08:37.279 and large replacing Phillips heads in most places. They're kind 138 00:08:37.320 --> 00:08:40.480 of star tipped, they have more surface area, they create 139 00:08:40.519 --> 00:08:44.320 more tension, they go down straight or and further into 140 00:08:44.360 --> 00:08:47.879 the screw. But the same principle still has to apply 141 00:08:48.320 --> 00:08:50.879 because the further a screw gets into a piece of wood, 142 00:08:50.919 --> 00:08:53.039 the more pressure you have to apply behind it to 143 00:08:53.080 --> 00:08:55.200 take it the rest of the way. And they don't 144 00:08:55.240 --> 00:08:57.120 tell you that. You just think, oh, you just turn 145 00:08:57.200 --> 00:08:59.799 the thing and it goes in on its own. No 146 00:09:00.399 --> 00:09:03.559 it doesn't. But too much pressure up front will screw 147 00:09:03.600 --> 00:09:06.480 the whole thing up way too early. It is a gradient, 148 00:09:06.720 --> 00:09:09.559 kind of a bell curve of pressure as you put 149 00:09:09.559 --> 00:09:12.879 a screw into the wood. All Right, you're either saying, Wow, 150 00:09:13.000 --> 00:09:16.120 you just wasted five minutes of my life, or you're 151 00:09:16.159 --> 00:09:20.720 thanking me forever. Hopefully it's the latter and not the former. 152 00:09:20.759 --> 00:09:25.399 All Right, we got more of these for you right after. 153 00:09:26.799 --> 00:09:30.120 You're listening to Home with Dean Sharp on demand from 154 00:09:30.200 --> 00:09:31.679 KFI AM six forty. 155 00:09:33.360 --> 00:09:35.919 Thanks for joining us on the program today. I am 156 00:09:36.000 --> 00:09:40.440 running down my own special list, a very very special 157 00:09:40.480 --> 00:09:46.799 list of DIY tips and tricks, because you know, it's 158 00:09:47.000 --> 00:09:49.039 the season. It's time for you to get out and 159 00:09:49.120 --> 00:09:52.000 get that honeydew list handled. And I know, I know 160 00:09:52.120 --> 00:09:54.840 you're great at following instructions. I know that you're going 161 00:09:54.879 --> 00:09:56.720 to take your time and you do your research and 162 00:09:56.759 --> 00:09:59.480 you make sure that that project that you're about to 163 00:09:59.480 --> 00:10:02.200 tackle the you've taken everything into account. But I'll tell 164 00:10:02.200 --> 00:10:05.879 you what doesn't end up on those instruction lists or 165 00:10:05.960 --> 00:10:09.919 those YouTube videos or the kind of little things that 166 00:10:09.960 --> 00:10:13.440 I'm talking about today. And sometimes it's the little things 167 00:10:13.440 --> 00:10:15.240 that you have to do again and again and again 168 00:10:15.279 --> 00:10:17.799 and again in a project that ends up giving you 169 00:10:17.879 --> 00:10:21.600 the greatest frustration or the greatest victory. And so that's 170 00:10:21.600 --> 00:10:24.799 why I want to make sure that these little things 171 00:10:25.000 --> 00:10:27.759 are handled and that you know what to do. We've 172 00:10:27.799 --> 00:10:30.399 talked about how to glue wood. How many times do 173 00:10:30.480 --> 00:10:33.679 you turn a pipe thread? You know how much of 174 00:10:33.720 --> 00:10:35.519 a pipe thread has to be covered to know that 175 00:10:35.559 --> 00:10:38.279 it's on right. The kinds of things that you only 176 00:10:38.360 --> 00:10:40.919 start to think about once you're actually doing it and 177 00:10:40.960 --> 00:10:43.639 you realize, I don't know this, I don't know how 178 00:10:43.679 --> 00:10:46.600 far I'm supposed to screw this pipe in here. That's 179 00:10:46.639 --> 00:10:48.279 the kind of stuff that I'm trying to help you 180 00:10:48.320 --> 00:10:51.840 with this morning. Literally, if if you just joined us, 181 00:10:52.200 --> 00:10:55.960 then you just missed me explaining how you use a screwdriver. 182 00:10:56.720 --> 00:10:59.399 And I mean that in all seriousness, because there is 183 00:10:59.440 --> 00:11:04.440 a physical technique to using one adepthly, and so we 184 00:11:04.519 --> 00:11:06.440 talked about that. So you have to listen to podcast. 185 00:11:06.559 --> 00:11:09.080 If any of these great tips and tricks that you've 186 00:11:09.120 --> 00:11:13.799 missed along the way. In the spirit of what I 187 00:11:14.000 --> 00:11:20.200 just described with the screwdriving very quickly, what's the secret 188 00:11:20.240 --> 00:11:24.080 to setting a nail and nailing nails in without hitting 189 00:11:24.080 --> 00:11:27.159 your thumb with a hammer? Okay, it's very very simple. 190 00:11:27.200 --> 00:11:29.519 This one does not take as much time as the 191 00:11:29.519 --> 00:11:33.639 screwdriver tip. It's it's very simply this. The biggest problem 192 00:11:33.679 --> 00:11:37.360 that people have with hammer and nails and their fingers 193 00:11:37.519 --> 00:11:40.120 is the fact that they start off too aggressive with it. 194 00:11:40.200 --> 00:11:42.080 That you hold up the nail and you try and 195 00:11:42.120 --> 00:11:45.519 give it a good whack while you're still holding the 196 00:11:45.600 --> 00:11:49.480 nail and the nail hasn't started to enter the material yet. Okay, 197 00:11:49.879 --> 00:11:52.720 So it's very simple. You hold the nail and you 198 00:11:52.759 --> 00:11:56.279 hold the hammer, and you tap, just tap, tap, tap, 199 00:11:56.639 --> 00:12:00.399 very light tapping on that nail until the nail is 200 00:12:00.440 --> 00:12:04.240 standing on its own, and then you remove your hand 201 00:12:04.480 --> 00:12:07.799 from the crime scene and continue to hammer it in. Now, 202 00:12:07.799 --> 00:12:09.960 I can't guarantee that you're gonna hit that nail on 203 00:12:10.000 --> 00:12:12.759 the head and that you're not gonna mar up the 204 00:12:12.799 --> 00:12:16.200 material around you. That takes a little coordination and experience, 205 00:12:16.279 --> 00:12:19.639 but at least at least if that hammer is gonna 206 00:12:19.679 --> 00:12:23.120 miss it's not going to land on one of your 207 00:12:23.159 --> 00:12:26.840 phalangies and give you a black and blue nail and 208 00:12:26.879 --> 00:12:29.840 so on. So the point is this, you just tap 209 00:12:29.960 --> 00:12:32.840 the nail until it gets started and is stuck in 210 00:12:32.879 --> 00:12:35.720 there standing up on its own, and then you know 211 00:12:35.799 --> 00:12:38.480 that little tapping is never gonna Number one, it's not 212 00:12:38.519 --> 00:12:43.000 a swing. It's never going to miss, and even if 213 00:12:43.039 --> 00:12:46.159 it did miss, it's just a little tap against your finger. 214 00:12:46.200 --> 00:12:48.879 So you just lightly tap it until the nail is 215 00:12:48.919 --> 00:12:52.200 on its own and then remove your hand from the 216 00:12:52.279 --> 00:12:56.240 area before you start swinging that hammer. For real, very 217 00:12:56.360 --> 00:13:01.360 very simple. Something that a lot of people don't know 218 00:13:01.440 --> 00:13:04.240 the answer to is if you're doing any electrical work, 219 00:13:04.279 --> 00:13:06.799 and I don't mean rewiring your house. I just mean, 220 00:13:06.960 --> 00:13:11.080 let's say you're changing out a switch or an outlet 221 00:13:11.200 --> 00:13:13.440 and you run into a situation where there's a wire 222 00:13:13.559 --> 00:13:16.159 nut that you have to undo something, and then you've 223 00:13:16.159 --> 00:13:19.320 got to redo it. Wire nuts. You all know what 224 00:13:19.360 --> 00:13:24.240 a wire nut is, right. They're a little cone shaped plastic. 225 00:13:24.360 --> 00:13:26.840 They're either well, they come in different colors, and they 226 00:13:26.840 --> 00:13:30.399 come into different colors for a reason. There's different gages 227 00:13:30.440 --> 00:13:34.879 of wire nuts. There's orange, there's blue, there's red. There 228 00:13:35.039 --> 00:13:39.919 is when I just cover yellow. These are different gauges, 229 00:13:40.000 --> 00:13:43.360 meaning that wire nuts are raided to have a certain 230 00:13:43.480 --> 00:13:47.759 number of wires shoved up inside them before they twist 231 00:13:47.799 --> 00:13:51.440 and hold on to them, and so on. The package 232 00:13:51.759 --> 00:13:54.720 of wire nuts on the box itself, it'll tell you 233 00:13:54.799 --> 00:14:00.240 that a red wire nut is rated for four you know, 234 00:14:00.320 --> 00:14:04.440 twelve gauge wires or six fourteen gauge wires or you 235 00:14:04.480 --> 00:14:07.360 know whatever, that kind of thing. But the question is 236 00:14:07.399 --> 00:14:10.080 assuming you've got all that right, because that's just instructional. 237 00:14:10.559 --> 00:14:13.320 That's like, okay, that's the technical thing. I've got three 238 00:14:13.399 --> 00:14:16.879 of these wires, and so according to the box, I 239 00:14:16.879 --> 00:14:21.039 should use the yellow wire nut. Okay, got it. Now 240 00:14:21.080 --> 00:14:24.480 I have the yellow wire nut and I have these wires. 241 00:14:25.600 --> 00:14:28.919 How do I know what I'm about to do is 242 00:14:29.000 --> 00:14:31.679 done right? Okay? Because it's not just put the wire 243 00:14:31.759 --> 00:14:35.360 nut on the wires. There's a process there, right, So 244 00:14:35.679 --> 00:14:40.200 it's very simple. Here we go. Choose the right wire nut, 245 00:14:40.559 --> 00:14:44.639 have the wires stripped appropriately to the right depth, very 246 00:14:44.759 --> 00:14:48.639 very important, not too far and not too short. Again, 247 00:14:48.960 --> 00:14:52.720 the box will tell you how far quarter inch, half 248 00:14:52.759 --> 00:14:56.240 inch of exposed wire, whatever the case may be. Use 249 00:14:56.360 --> 00:14:59.080 a gauge and strip the wires to the right depth 250 00:15:00.240 --> 00:15:03.639 the nut on until it begins to grip. All three 251 00:15:03.679 --> 00:15:07.159 wires hold them together, and you feel that it begins 252 00:15:07.200 --> 00:15:11.360 to grip, and then keep twisting the wire nut until 253 00:15:11.440 --> 00:15:14.080 it's what we call bottoms out. When it bottoms out, 254 00:15:14.080 --> 00:15:16.559 it means that those wires have been drawn all the 255 00:15:16.559 --> 00:15:19.720 way up inside that wire nut and they're not going 256 00:15:19.759 --> 00:15:25.399 in any further. And then keep twisting that wire nut 257 00:15:25.480 --> 00:15:28.759 until the wires themselves, the wires that you can see 258 00:15:28.960 --> 00:15:33.080 down outside the wire nut, begin to twist around each 259 00:15:33.120 --> 00:15:36.519 other at least once. Yeah, that they actually spin on. 260 00:15:36.960 --> 00:15:40.039 That's how you know that wire nut is as tight 261 00:15:40.279 --> 00:15:43.639 as it's going to go, and it couldn't go any tighter. 262 00:15:43.679 --> 00:15:46.240 And believe me, you ask any electrician, they will tell 263 00:15:46.279 --> 00:15:49.240 you the biggest problem with DIY electrical work is that 264 00:15:49.240 --> 00:15:51.360 people don't put wire nuts on tight. In fact, the 265 00:15:51.360 --> 00:15:54.440 biggest problem that they have with their own apprentices is 266 00:15:54.480 --> 00:15:57.639 that you guys didn't put the nuts on tight enough. 267 00:15:57.919 --> 00:16:01.679 Down the road or somewhere, something slipped, something wiggled, and 268 00:16:01.720 --> 00:16:04.639 now we're losing contact. So wire nuts go on as 269 00:16:04.759 --> 00:16:08.399 tight as possible, how tight all the way in and 270 00:16:08.440 --> 00:16:12.120 we keep twisting until the wires themselves start twisting around 271 00:16:12.159 --> 00:16:14.000 each other. You don't have to do it ten twenty 272 00:16:14.120 --> 00:16:18.039 fifty times. Just get those exposed wires where the part 273 00:16:18.120 --> 00:16:21.320 of the rubberized insulation that you can still see cross 274 00:16:21.360 --> 00:16:25.919 over each other at least one time, at least once twice, 275 00:16:26.440 --> 00:16:28.759 just to be super safe. You don't need to go 276 00:16:28.759 --> 00:16:30.919 any further than that. And there you go. All right, 277 00:16:30.960 --> 00:16:33.000 I got more for you. 278 00:16:33.000 --> 00:16:36.279 You're listening to Home with Dean Sharp on demand from 279 00:16:36.399 --> 00:16:38.159 KFI AM six forty. 280 00:16:40.080 --> 00:16:44.679 Live streaming and HD everywhere on the iHeartRadio app. Yes, 281 00:16:44.840 --> 00:16:47.960 we are broadcast, and we are digital. We are terrestrial, 282 00:16:48.080 --> 00:16:51.960 and we are streaming. We are everywhere. We're right behind you. 283 00:16:52.000 --> 00:16:52.440 Watch out. 284 00:16:52.679 --> 00:16:55.879 Okay, I'm just kidding your Home with Dean Sharp the 285 00:16:55.919 --> 00:16:58.639 house whisper. Thanks for joining us on the program. Today. 286 00:16:58.759 --> 00:17:04.000 I'm doing a list of those little tiny fix it 287 00:17:04.799 --> 00:17:11.559 tips and tricks that really really really end up making 288 00:17:11.599 --> 00:17:16.640 a difference. Either take your next DIY project and make 289 00:17:16.680 --> 00:17:19.880 it a pleasure, or if you don't understand them, make 290 00:17:19.920 --> 00:17:23.240 it a great frustration, even though you're following the instructions 291 00:17:23.279 --> 00:17:25.799 to a t Because these are not the kinds of 292 00:17:25.839 --> 00:17:29.599 things that end up in YouTube videos or instructions. They 293 00:17:29.640 --> 00:17:36.440 are these tiny, mechanical and sometimes coordinated tricks and tips 294 00:17:36.519 --> 00:17:40.680 and techniques that most people just don't talk about. And 295 00:17:41.039 --> 00:17:43.920 because I care for you, and because I know the 296 00:17:44.000 --> 00:17:46.880 kind of frustration that you experience when you get out 297 00:17:46.920 --> 00:17:48.440 your set of tools and you get right in the 298 00:17:48.480 --> 00:17:50.799 middle of a job and you realize, well, nobody told me. 299 00:17:51.119 --> 00:17:53.000 Of all the things they said, they didn't tell me 300 00:17:53.079 --> 00:17:56.000 how much to do, and how where did I get it? 301 00:17:56.119 --> 00:17:58.599 I get it? So let me get back to the list. 302 00:17:58.640 --> 00:17:59.880 I'm going to try and make this a bit of 303 00:17:59.920 --> 00:18:01.799 a lightning round. I want to get a few more 304 00:18:01.799 --> 00:18:06.599 of these in. How many wraps of electrical tape is 305 00:18:06.759 --> 00:18:10.279 enough when you are using electrical tape, Now, electrical tape, 306 00:18:10.319 --> 00:18:12.720 you know, we use it for a number of different reasons. 307 00:18:12.720 --> 00:18:15.359 Sometimes we use it to repair a nick or a 308 00:18:15.440 --> 00:18:19.079 cut in the or break in the insulation on a 309 00:18:19.559 --> 00:18:23.519 electrical line. Sometimes, after we have put a wire nut on, 310 00:18:23.720 --> 00:18:26.359 will give a few wraps of electrical tape just to 311 00:18:27.200 --> 00:18:31.640 kind of seal up the gap underneath the wire nut 312 00:18:31.720 --> 00:18:34.799 to the wires themselves. A lot of electricians like to 313 00:18:34.839 --> 00:18:37.640 do that as a as a just as a habit 314 00:18:38.160 --> 00:18:42.720 of extra moisture protection and so on. There are a 315 00:18:42.759 --> 00:18:45.640 number of different reasons to use electrical tape, but electrical 316 00:18:45.720 --> 00:18:50.160 tape primarily is an insulating and a repair tool, and 317 00:18:50.359 --> 00:18:53.519 it's very rubbery and it has an insulating quality to itself. 318 00:18:53.559 --> 00:18:57.160 So how many wraps is enough? Wraps? You see? That's 319 00:18:57.200 --> 00:19:00.160 the thing? How many is enough? This kind of gets 320 00:19:00.200 --> 00:19:05.119 down to the remember that old Tutsi pop commercial from 321 00:19:05.319 --> 00:19:07.400 do you remember? Are you old enough like me to 322 00:19:07.480 --> 00:19:09.880 remember that? From like the seventies and eighties, where the 323 00:19:09.960 --> 00:19:13.240 kid wanted to know how many licks does it take 324 00:19:13.319 --> 00:19:15.839 to get to the center of a Tutsi pop? And 325 00:19:15.880 --> 00:19:18.480 he asked the rabbit, and he asked the bear. I 326 00:19:18.480 --> 00:19:20.759 don't remember, he asked several woodland creature. I don't know 327 00:19:20.799 --> 00:19:23.839 why he's asking woodland creatures, but it's cute. Finally, they 328 00:19:23.880 --> 00:19:26.680 all referred him to the owl, and the owl said, well, 329 00:19:26.759 --> 00:19:28.920 let's find out, and he took like three licks and 330 00:19:28.920 --> 00:19:30.759 then he crunched it with his beak and he's like 331 00:19:30.839 --> 00:19:33.720 three So I don't think that was good advice, but 332 00:19:33.880 --> 00:19:36.519 this is good advice. How many wraps of electrical take? 333 00:19:37.640 --> 00:19:43.039 The general rule is this to exceed to meet or 334 00:19:43.079 --> 00:19:46.960 exceed the thickness of the wire insulation. So, in other words, 335 00:19:47.160 --> 00:19:50.119 if you take a look at that little rubbery coating 336 00:19:50.200 --> 00:19:54.000 that the wire has on it, and you're repairing a 337 00:19:54.039 --> 00:20:00.319 piece of missing insulation or cracked or damage, then how 338 00:20:00.400 --> 00:20:04.240 many wraps rapid enough so that the electrical tape wraps 339 00:20:04.319 --> 00:20:08.160 are roughly the same thickness as the wire insulation. And 340 00:20:08.279 --> 00:20:10.400 there you go. That makes sense and you'll be able 341 00:20:10.400 --> 00:20:13.119 to remember that from now on because it's not a number, 342 00:20:13.200 --> 00:20:16.559 it's just matched the thickness of the insulation of the wire. 343 00:20:16.680 --> 00:20:19.319 All right, A pilot hole. You know what a pilot 344 00:20:19.319 --> 00:20:22.039 hole is when you're putting a wood screw into a 345 00:20:22.039 --> 00:20:25.680 piece of wood or some other sensitive material. Putting a 346 00:20:25.720 --> 00:20:29.000 screw into sensitive material. You got to understand this that 347 00:20:29.799 --> 00:20:37.440 screws are basically wedges. They're wedge shaped. And so if 348 00:20:37.480 --> 00:20:40.319 we just take us and a lot of people ignore 349 00:20:40.440 --> 00:20:43.519 this because the wood that they're going into is soft, 350 00:20:43.599 --> 00:20:46.480 it's like pine or it's redwood or something like that, 351 00:20:46.839 --> 00:20:50.079 and you screw a screw down into a piece of 352 00:20:50.160 --> 00:20:52.079 soft wood like that, and you're not going to see 353 00:20:52.079 --> 00:20:55.000 anything happen at first, But then you come back later, 354 00:20:55.160 --> 00:20:57.880 whether it's hours, days, or weeks later, and all of 355 00:20:57.880 --> 00:21:00.440 a sudden, where the screw is there's a crack. It 356 00:21:00.480 --> 00:21:04.839 has split the wood. Now, hardwood will split immediately, it'll 357 00:21:04.839 --> 00:21:08.480 show you the error of your ways right away. Soft 358 00:21:08.519 --> 00:21:13.200 wood might hide it for a while, but eventually the 359 00:21:13.240 --> 00:21:16.839 wood will split along the line of the screw because 360 00:21:16.839 --> 00:21:19.480 it's a wedge and you can't just put that much 361 00:21:19.559 --> 00:21:23.039 pressure into the wood and not expect the wood grain 362 00:21:23.160 --> 00:21:26.559 to split. So how do we avoid that. We use 363 00:21:26.960 --> 00:21:31.519 pilot holes. We drill a hole through the wood so 364 00:21:31.559 --> 00:21:35.640 that we're removing material and as the screw goes in, 365 00:21:37.079 --> 00:21:40.359 it's not wedging and forcing all this material around it 366 00:21:40.400 --> 00:21:44.319 to move out of place. So the question is how 367 00:21:44.359 --> 00:21:46.839 big should a pilot hole be? And it's a very 368 00:21:46.920 --> 00:21:50.720 very simple answer. You take the screw in question and 369 00:21:50.839 --> 00:21:53.279 you hold it up to the light. You want to 370 00:21:53.319 --> 00:21:56.160 ignore the threads. The threads are the part of the 371 00:21:56.200 --> 00:21:59.720 screw that bites into the wood. But inside the threads 372 00:21:59.759 --> 00:22:03.359 you'll see the shaft of the screw going the length 373 00:22:03.400 --> 00:22:06.839 of the screw, the thickness of that shaft. That's what 374 00:22:06.920 --> 00:22:10.119 you match your drill bit up to. Okay, your drill 375 00:22:10.160 --> 00:22:13.599 bit should not be any larger or smaller than the 376 00:22:13.640 --> 00:22:19.000 shaft inside, hiding inside the threads of that woodscrew. You 377 00:22:19.079 --> 00:22:22.200 drill that hole, and as the shaft goes in, it 378 00:22:22.240 --> 00:22:25.119 will not be splitting the woods. And yet the threads 379 00:22:25.200 --> 00:22:28.559 will dig into all the sides in three hundred and 380 00:22:28.559 --> 00:22:32.079 sixty degrees and the screw will hold beautifully. By the way, 381 00:22:32.359 --> 00:22:35.519 it also makes putting that screw in a lot easier 382 00:22:35.640 --> 00:22:38.920 in reference back to screwing screws in with a screwdriver. 383 00:22:39.160 --> 00:22:42.640 So there you go. The pilot hole is the thickness 384 00:22:42.720 --> 00:22:46.599 of the shaft of the screw itself. When fixing my 385 00:22:46.720 --> 00:22:49.319 sprinkler lines, Dean, which a lot of you're going to 386 00:22:49.319 --> 00:22:51.759 be doing. How much glue do I put on a 387 00:22:51.799 --> 00:22:55.359 PVC pipe and how many times do I turn the fitting? 388 00:22:55.400 --> 00:22:58.039 I've heard I'm supposed to turn the fitting, spin the 389 00:22:58.039 --> 00:23:02.200 fitting after putting the glue on. Very very simple, very 390 00:23:02.319 --> 00:23:06.599 very simple. Right, you apply to your PVC pipe after 391 00:23:06.680 --> 00:23:12.599 you have put some primer on. Primer very important first, Okay, first, 392 00:23:12.640 --> 00:23:15.920 a little bit of watery purple primer that opens up 393 00:23:15.960 --> 00:23:19.559 the porosity of the PVC. Put primer on the pipe 394 00:23:19.599 --> 00:23:25.839 and on the fitting. Both then one unbroken band of 395 00:23:26.000 --> 00:23:29.519 glue all around the fitting and the pipe, push them 396 00:23:29.559 --> 00:23:33.160 together and then make a one quarter turn. You turn 397 00:23:33.240 --> 00:23:36.880 it too much and you're wiping the glue away. Don't 398 00:23:36.880 --> 00:23:40.440 turn it at all, and you don't have the assurance 399 00:23:40.440 --> 00:23:43.920 that you've got even spread. So you put those PVC 400 00:23:46.119 --> 00:23:50.400 fittings together with the glue after the primer. One quarter 401 00:23:50.480 --> 00:23:54.160