Essential Tools Part 1 | Hour 2

informational kind. We're on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook X, got them all Home with Dean, same handle for all of them, and of course this very program also the House Whisper podcast that you can listen to anytime, anywhere on demand. Hundreds of episodes, all searchable by topic. Do you know we're about to start our ninth season here on KFI. Can you believe that we're going to be that'll be happening at the end of this month. We are your

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essential homeowner tools weekend that we're doing. But right now, top of the hour, as is our custom, it is time to go to the phones find out what's going on with your home. I want to talk to Tim. Hey, Tim, welcome.

Replacing all the piping sounds like a nightmare. I've done some research. I found one company that does repiping, as they call it. It looks like they inject some kind of polymer into the existing pipes as a coating to protect it against future leaks. But I wanted to get your thoughts on what's the best way to address this.

in ground plumbing and you're talking about overhead stuff. So yeah, I am a little concerned about that. So what do we do? Well, you've got two choices, essentially when it comes to a well three when it comes to dealing with the system that you've got there at the house. Number One, you keep going to bed nervous every night because another pinhole league develops somewhere else and potentially damages other things, and that's no good. So is it wise at this point for you to look to the other

two alternatives and just get it handled? Sure, of course it is. The two main alternative you've got is a physical repipe okay of the house, meaning that new pipes are run, new plumbing lines are run to all of your fixtures in the home, and the copper isn't necessarily pulled out. I mean when they when re pipers will they'll pull out what they can, but they're not going to go tearing up walls just to get an abandoned copper pipe out of the wall, because it doesn't matter,

it's doesn't have water running through it anymore. They'll just leave it in place, doesn't hurt the wall, doesn't hurt the house as they run the new material. That would be in my recommendation to run a new system or repipe system using pecks piping. It does not react to the hardness in the water the same way that the copper does. And the thing with pecks, it's flexible, which means that we can minimize the amount of joins of actual you know, ninety degree fittings and so on everywhere.

A PEX system can theoretically be run end to end from manifold all the way to the end of a fixture without any additional fittings, which means it's that much more reliable in terms of not worrying about a fitting breaking, which is most of the time where a leak occurs.

So there's that, or there are companies out there who, as you were saying, are doing epoxy re pipes, and it's basically where they take the system that you've got and they will shoot inside of those pipes under high pressure and high volume flow an epoxy substance that clings to the inside of the pipe and essentially becomes a lining for the inside of the pipe. Have I seen those done successfully, Yes I have. Have I seen them botched? Yes I have. So my advice to you is twofold

number one. You got to get it priced out, okay, price out both options. Price out a repipe among two or three qualified services, and price out a an epoxy on the inside of the existing copper lines, and price that out with two or three qualified services. And when I say qualified services, it's not just any old plumber

who occasionally does an epoxy job on pipes. Go with a company that has a guarantee and that does this a lot, because it's easy to mess up, because if it isn't done exactly right, then the epoxy can build up in some areas too thick, even clog up, and significantly reduce flow in your copper system. So it's a it's a it's a valid, viable way of lining the inside of aging failing pipes. It works, it works, but it's got to be done by somebody who really really

knows their stuff. And is it going to be cheaper than a repipe, don't know, don't know. Honestly, it's not a given that it's cheaper. Is it a little less invasive, sure? Okay, but it doesn't necessarily. You know, a little bit of drywall removed here and there for a repipe is not the end of the world. Drywall is inexpensive and it's easy to fix. So the question is what's it going

to cost for your particular home. You should always homeowners, always get multiple bids and explore every avenue before you make a decision.

lines just fine. And then cross your fingers and see if anything else goes bad anywhere else in the house, and you know what, you might be in the situation where it holds up just fine. You're like, yeah, for whatever reason it was that bad pipe or that pipe located with our water in this bad situation. But if anything else goes bad anywhere else in the house, then you've got to assume that the whole system is beginning to show its age or is failing for whatever the condition.

Does that make sense, Tim, I gotta go. Thank you for your call. I hope that helps. Always, always, always explore every option. Windows shopping is free, getting qualified estimates for everything so that you know ahead of time. Yeah, we've made the most informed decision possible. Thanks for your call, Tim. All right, when we come back, more of your calls your home with Dean Sharp the house whisper. I am I Jean Sharp, the house whisper at your service. Thanks

for joining us on the program today. What is that? That's the sound of my basketball? Yes, I am holding them back. This is my emotional support basketball. I hold on to it when I'm exceptionally tired and life just get you know, it's just a basketball. Uh, we're not talking about basketball today. We're talking about essential tools for your home. But right now I am spending some time going to the phones. I want to go back to the phones. Before we get back to essential tools, take

at least one more call let's talk to Ivan. Hey, Ivan, welcome home.

so you got roughly you know, half inch. When it comes to a screw, you've got roughly half inch sheathing, and if you can get a little bit more than a half inch penetration into the wood with your screw, then you'd be in good shape. So a one inch screw inch and a quarter inch screw you want to go deeper, you know, by all means you don't really need to go much deeper than that. So there you go. Now there is an easier way though that I can

give you some advice on if it were me. If it were me, I would still be using nails up there and not screws. You know, by and large, you know, in the industry we don't screw down sheeting sheathing for roofs. We still nail it. But if there's a concern about anything working their way out in the future, then I would use eight penny nails, and I would use a

particular kind of nail that's known as a ring shank nail. Okay, a ring shank eight penny gun nail is a nail that has ridges on it, and essentially it's kind of, if you want to call it, this barbed and so because of that, ring shanks do not easily work themselves lose under any circumstances whatsoever, and yet they shoot in quickly, effectively, efficiently.

And so for a roof sheathing situation, eight penny ring shanks is kind of like the ultimate in long lasting performance for the sheathing and ease and speed of installing the roof sheathing itself, because you can use a pneumatic nailer or you can use an electric nailer and actually get it all done faster and more efficiently. Now, just one little area of a roof that you're repairing, that's one thing you know, have at it, use whatever connective

you know, fasteners you want to use. But if we're really talking about resheathing an entire roof, it's just a big road to hoe. As they say, there's just a lot there, and so if you want to take the time to screw it all down, that's fine, go for it. But we typically don't do that because number one, we're not worried about it creaking or anything like that like

a floor. That's why we don't even glue down roof sheathing two rafters, it's just nailed and applied because they will hold, They will hold long term if it's done right. And if the nail makes connection. So it's a little unorthodox to use screws for a roof ivan, but I'm not going to tell you not to. I just want you to make sure that you know what you're in store for. Ultimately, I would still use nails in a heartbeat.

And if I wanted things just really, really firmly a fixed up there, then I would use a ring shank style nail and you will be in good shape. My friend. Thank you for your call. Appreciate it. Hope that helps. I know it does, really would encourage you. Just go ahead and nail that roof sheathing in. You won't regret it, not if you use the right nails. All right, y'aul. When we come back, let's dig back into our list of essential home owner tools to take care of the

stuff that happens around your house. Remember how I said not to be expecting to pull a bunch of nails with your claw hammer. Well, what are we gonna pull nails with? We will discuss pride bars and nail polars and chisels when we come back your Home with Dean Sharp the house whisper.

not a project list. This is not like, oh, I've got to build a thing, you know, whenever you have to do something like that. The project is going to define the tool list itself because it needs certain things. This is the toolkit that's sitting in the garage or the workshop, or wherever the case may be, or closet somewhere in the house. This is your go to a what I call reactive tools. This is when something goes wrong, something's up, something needs to be fixed or adjusted, or

that kind of thing. That's essentially what this Essential homeowner toolkit is. And is it a given that most homeowners have a toolkit like this at their house. Nope, nope. I got to tell You've been in a lot of homes, lots of homes, sometimes homes of my friends, and they're like, yeah, Dean, this thing happened. I'm like, oh, well, let's take a look at it. Wish be able to fix that up. Let me, Can I get a wrench or a screwdriver from you? Ooh yeah, I think I think I have one of those.

accompanying tools for that hammer. I told you that I don't want you spending a lot of time prying nails with your claw hammer, even if you get the right kind of claw hammer, pulling out a bunch of nails. That is the job of a nail puller. I'm not talking about a person talking about an actual tool in the back in the day. And I think this was always a this was always a nickname. Although I think for a while it was an actual brand name. Back in the day, we used to call them in the

framing world a cat's paw. A cat's paw is a steel tool, all steel, and these days I like the fact that they along the shaft they have a little rubber comfort handle, but on one end relatively straight with a very very small head and a little split in it like a mini mini hammer clawset way way better cupped and pointed for digging in and digging out the head of a nail and getting it going, and then the other end with a ninety degree angle on it to

really get great leverage. They're about twelve inches long, and they're an essential part of any toolkit because that is what nails should be getting pulled out with. They're all steel. They're heavy duty, tempered steel, so you can use your hammer to drive them into certain situations in order to dig that nail out right. Not gonna be a clean dig, but that we're not talking about, you know, delicate finish

work at this point. We're talking about when a nail needs to get pulled out of a piece of wood or whatever the case may be. An actual nail puller and along that line, different though pride bar. Now, I'm not talking about a big old crowbar, the kind of thing that you see, you know, like on murder mysteries where somebody gets you know, killed with a crowbar. I'm not talking about the three foot long demo style crowbar. I'm talking about a flat pride bar. It's about let's say,

fourteen inches long, it's about two inches wide. It is flat spring steel on one end again, gentle curve on the other end, ninety degree turn. There are innumerable uses for a pride bar. It could be used to leverage and lift something up temporarily, to get under or to level something. It can be used to separate studs. I mean, I could go on and on, but just trust me. A flat pride bar and a nail polar as accessories

to your hammer. Okay, does that make sense? And here's an area where it gets a little gray, but in my opinion, it's well worth it. And that is a small set of wood chisels. Now, typically wood chisels something that I like to keep out of the hands of a homeowner because they're sharp, and they are usually for

building projects, for making projects for woodworking. But over the years I have found so many just random uses for a good wood chisel, whether you know, don't use it as a prie bar per se, but as a space as something that can cut a nail. And I don't want you to go out and buy some super expensive

set of Japanese wood carving wood chisels. I'm talking about a basic set of wood chessels that's not going to run you more than fifteen bucks or so, so that if you end up damaging the tip of the chisel, like having to drive through the shaft of a nail to cut it off or something like that, then you know you're not worried about it. You're like, oh, there goes my super expensive wood chisel. Now these are just utilitarian items. You only need three okay, quarter inch half

inch three quarter inch wide wood chisel blades. They can find them in sets of three to five and you should have them on hand. Infinite number of uses for that tool as well. All right, I got more for you. We'll do it right on the other side, can' if I Jean Sharp the house whisper a welcome home. Thanks for joining us on this cool Southern California Saturday morning, the first Saturday of twenty twenty five and we are getting you ready for a productive maintenance year for your

home by talking about the essential homeowner toolkit. These are the basics of that I think makes a complete essential toolkit for taking care of your home, not building new projects, but taking care of the things that may come up along the way. Let's dive back into the list, shall we.

We got time today for a couple more, and of course we're going to continue this on tomorrows show, Part two, the Big Show tomorrow morning from nine to noon, we will go further as well as taking more of your calls. All right, no toolkit is complete without a full set of screwdrivers. And in my opinion, the best essential toolkit screwdriver is not a whole set of screwdrivers, but one

multi tip, multi purpose screwdriver, now, is there. You know, I always get this argument from certain folks like, no, no, no, you should have a full set of screwdrivers. Okay, because they're lean, they have better access, you know, they're not as bulky, and it's just it's proper. Well, yeah, that's fine, you're right, there's nothing wrong with having a full set of screwdrivers if that's your thing. It's just like there's

nothing wrong with having a full set of standardized fixed wrenches. Okay, But for the average homeowner, for the average repair, for the average bit of home maintenance, ninety five maybe ninety nine percent of the time, you don't need the specialized slim screwdriver or the specialized fixed open and closed end wrench. What you need is a good screwdriver and a multi tip screwdriver and an adjustable end wrench. More on the wrench as we get to that part of the list.

So just to say, multi tip screwdrivers, a multi use screwdriver is worth its weight in gold. You have more than one, have one sitting in the tool drawer in the kitchen, one out in the bucket, in the you know, in the garage, whatever the case may be. My preference, and it's just my preference, but of course I'm correct about this. My preference is I'm not a big fan of the multi tip screwdrivers that store tips in the handle, you know, where that little dial access back there. And

I'll tell you why. There's nothing more frustrating than going to your screwdriver and you need a particular tip and find that it has fallen out, you know, because the dial accidentally was left open, and now this tiny tip is you know, god knows where it is. I like a multi tip screwdriver in which everything is embedded into the actual shaft of the screwdriver itself. Now that's not a thirty tip screwdriver, it's not a twenty eight tip screwdriver. That makes it more like a nine in one or

eleven in one multi tip screwdriver. But for your general repairs, that's enough. It means that there's a Phillips head tip that's large and a small one. It means that there's a large flathead and a small one. It means that there's nut driver settings as well, and probably some square shaft of stuff as well. The point is, the point is it's enough. It's enough for the typical homeowner repair. And so you know, go for the like an eleven in one. A clin makes them, to wall makes them,

Milwaukee make that. You can find these just about everywhere and they're well worth it. And I like one with a little rubberized handle too, just because even if you're you know, unlike the handle on the homeowner hammer, which I told you earlier in the show, I don't really care what the handle's made out of as long as it's not cheap, because you know, how many nails are

you going to be as a homeowner doing a repair job. Okay, you're not doing probably a thousand nails, right, That's when the comfort grip and shock absorbing handles come into play. Just a handful of nails, Just a handful of nails. But I do like a nice rubberized grip on a screwdriver.

And why is that? Because you know, screws are a whole different thing, and you're putting a lot more effort into driving in a screw or removing a screw just a single screw, then you are, you know, nailing ten nails. And so I do like a screwdriver that is all set up with a good rubberized handle on it. Along this line, the other thing that I want you to have on hand are hex wrench sets or what some

people know as alan wrenches hexagonal wrenches. This is the kind of stuff that so many things these days have little hexhead screws. Whether you're putting together furniture, whether you're assembling something, or you're just maintaining a device, A folding

hex wrench set is my preference. Again, sometimes you can find individual wrenches alan wrenches that are stuck into a holder, and the problem with that is, again long term, what are the odds that you go back to that thing and find that the one that you need is the one that's missing because it fell out of the holder. It came out. I like a folding hex wrench set, kind of like a Swiss army knife set up with

the folding wrenches. Now, yeah, sometimes it's a little bit bulky and it might get in the way of access. And that's when if that's the case, you know, you run to the hardware store and buy one, just the one hex wrench that you need. Now, when I say that, I've set that all up for you, so you're imagining what that is, right, this folding kind of Swiss army knife that's got six or eight or ten hex wrenches of various sizes. I want you to have three of these,

not all three of the same. I want you to have one set that is a hex wrench set that is metric. I want you to have another that is imperial, okay, and I want you to have another these days that is not actually a hexagonal wrench, but is a TORQS t RX, A torque set and it's little star bits because they are so so common. If you have those three, if you've got hexagonal wrenches that are both metric and imperial,

then you got that covered. And if you've got a torquees set on your folding hex wrench set, then you're pretty well handled. And chances of finding something outside of that in your home, yeah, it could be a little specially item. Again, that's when you go to the hardware store and just buy that one little tool for a couple three bucks and take care of it. Otherwise, these guys right here, they'll have you covered all right. Tomorrow, my friend, we are going to continue this list. It'll

be part two of our Essential Homeowner Toolkit. But that wraps it up for me today. Here, thank you for spending the time with me. It's been a privilege. As always. Follow us on social media Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, x Home with Dean, same handle for all of them. The house Whisper Podcast is everywhere that your favorite podcasts are found and your home is in need of some personal house Whisper attention book an in home design consult with us

at house Whisperer dot Design. We're right back here tomorrow from nine to noon. Until then, get out there in this beautiful day and get busy building yourself a beautiful light. We'll see you tomorrow. This has been Home with Dean Sharp, the House Whisper. Tune into the live broadcast on KFI AM six forty every Saturday morning from six to eight Pacific time and every Sunday morning from nine to noon Pacific time, or anytime on demand on the iHeartRadio app