Blog
Touch of a Button
Here’s another cool new tool to add to the workshop collection. Technically a power tool, this battery-powered Auto Wrench from Black & Decker automatically adjusts with the touch of a button. Adding it to your workshop can eliminate the need for up to 50 standard and...
Uplifting News
Hurricane season is here and coastal communities are bracing for the storms. Every year brings new building codes to protect homeowners in storm-threatened areas and new products to help builders meet code without sacrificing the bottom line. Norbord Windstorm OSB...
Pool Safety
In preparation for the pool-friendly spring and summer days, The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) recently issued a warning to pool owners concerning the risks of drowning and related accidents. We thought it fit to pass this warning along to our...
By the Book
I liken finding a good contractor to finding a good mechanic. You want someone you can trust, someone dependable, and someone who isn’t going to take you for all you're worth. Easier said than done. Thankfully there are resources available—helpful hints and tips that...
Rock and Grind
When I first saw a pepper grinder sporting the label "Vic Firth", I thought it was a misprint. The only Vic Firth I had ever heard of was the drumstick maker, the man who makes the sticks I use. Apparently Vic Firth, after a lifetime of making the best drumsticks in...
Identity Crisis
I'm typically skeptical of all-in-one devices and appliances. Sure, they can do a lot of things, but can they do them all well? Cuisinart’s Griddler is one multifunction countertop cooking device that is capable of wearing four chef hats. With Contact Grill, Panini...
Performance Meets Beauty
The garage door is often your home's first impression on visitors, so aesthetics truly matter. But, these doors are prone to significant wear-and-tear, so homoeowners investing in a garage door want beauty that holds up to the elements. Add energy efficiency to the...
Home Heartbeat
Our homes are our biggest investment, and it is easy to become a bit neurotic about them when we’ve left them for extended periods of time. Did I leave a window open? What if the pipes freeze or leak? Was the iron on when I left? Questions like these can plague the...
Waterproof Homes for All
At long last, the entire building industry admits that the exterior components of a house constitute a whole. There's no longer a reason to think roof guys only care about roofs and siding guys only care about exterior sheathing and cladding. As of this spring, the...
Shower Control
Now here's a product any control freak would love—the Waitek Shower Monitor. For any parent or sibling who has ever come at the end of the long shower chain only to find cold water, this is for you. It's a very clear and very reliable shower control that gives an...
Killer Drill
The cordless drill one day might replace the dog as man’s best friend. If that day ever came, the most popular “breed” could very well be the C12 from Festool. This industry-first cordless drill with a brushless motor is not only a pound lighter and 25% smaller than...
Seat Belt for the Home
As the first storm of the Hurricane Season bears down on Florida, we at Renovate Your World are keenly aware of the needs of coastal homeowners for designs and products that make their homes safer in severe weather. Here’s one we came across called the Hurricane...
Night Orbs
I love nighttime lighting, especially outdoors. I would love to create a nightscape with lights twinkling, glowing, or swaying along landscaped paths. Then again, I worry about Dark Sky lighting. Shouldn't it be compatible with nature? I surely don't want to brighten...
All Keyed In
In these times of PIN numbers and passwords, our feeble human minds become cluttered with number and letter sequences that grant us access to all that is important in our lives—our bank account, our email, our homes…In an effort to clean out some of the clutter, ADT...
The Right Tub
It’s hard to appreciate the challenges presented by old age and debilitating injuries unless one has experienced them first-hand. What I can appreciate, though, is when a company comes out with a product to make life a little more manageable for those live with such...
Debunking Dangerous Hurricane Myths
Most of us have been fooled by urban myths and email hoaxes. Remember the Bill Gates e-mail? It was a hoax and you never saw a dime. Unlike that harmless hoax, urban myths about disaster safety aren’t just annoying, they are dangerous. Myth 1: Placing masking tape,...
A Tight Seal
Insulation may not be the most glamorous of home ownership topics, but when increased R-values and air leakage prevention equal money saved on energy costs, it’s like blowing a dog whistle in a kennel—a whole lot of ears perk up. Icynene's insulation system kills two...
Lightning Safety Awareness Week
It's Lightning Safety Awareness Week—a fact I learned as I raced to check the weather and shut down my computers in the face of a violent storm yesterday. NOAA, the weather guys, and a list of partners are promoting lightning awareness and safety indoors and out....
Shock-Free Mowing
Okay, I know that it appears I'm on a power trip these days—an irresistible pun— but this entry sent by a friend is a perfect solution to the threat of electrocution from corded lawnmowers and hedge trimmers. A newly developed cord has traditional wiring inside, but...
Gladiator in the Garage
I don't know about you, but my garage looks like trash—and that's putting it nicely. I know I need to organize it, but it all seems too daunting. Why not just put a sign on the door, that fronts onto the driveway of course, saying "Please use other door?" Oh really,...
Feel the Energy
Boston residents know something new and interesting is always happening on the MIT campus, some of it shenanigans and some pure genius. In that very spirit, MIT roommates Zach Anderson and R.J. Ryan have created a fully automated dorm room. Calling their project MIDAS...
Beanbag Heaven
The only thing better than watching World Cup games is watching it with a bunch of similarly passionate soccer fans. Get a group of us together and it’s mayhem. But it can also mean a shortage of places to sit. Let’s face it—anyone who has hosted a large gathering for...
Portable Lawn Fix
Maybe I've spent too much time in the garden lately or maybe I'm remembering my apartment days... whatever it is, I was struck by the garden in a box that I saw on Mocoloco . That led me to search for the product, which led me to think up my own modification. For...
Cracking Windows Not So Wise
Now that you know that only tested and approved shutter systems or windows made with impact-resistant glass should be used as window protection, let’s debunk another common myth. MYTH: Crack or open windows to allow wind pressure inside the house to equal pressure...
How’s It Hanging?
Wallpapering isn’t exactly all the rage, but there MUST be some out there who still dig floral patterns in their bathroom, hot dogs in the kids room, etc.—why else would there be a product like this out there? Claiming to be an industry “first and only,” this...
Fitting Footings
Summertime means summer projects, and one popular summertime project is the house deck. But befoe you pour those footings, think again. As an alternative to wooden posts or concrete footings, Redi-footing offers prefabricated plastic footings suitable for deck...
Stack ’em Up
One of my father’s favorite yard projects is building stone walls. He has a couple of them going on their New Hampshire property, and I imagine he has his eyes set on a few extensions and additions this summer. I admire his ambition, but I do worry about his health,...
Blowin’ in the Wind
You already know that taping windows provides no protection whatsoever from flying debris and just cracking windows actually increases your risk of a catastrophic roof failure.Now let's tackle the idea that only selected openings should be covered during a hurricane...
Have a Safe 4th of July
So you are probably thinking, “what’s with the bucket?” No, it’s not for sand castles, car washing, or rock collecting, but it might be the most important purchase you make before Independence Day hits. According to the National Council of Firework Safety you should...
Sun, Sun, Sun Here It Comes
Here’s an accomplishment that deserves mention, for three reasons: A) It is a cool DIY project, B) It utilizes solar energy, and C) It cost about $5 to make. Built using a combination of materials found in a junkyard and materials on-hand, the solar heater panel was...
