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All posts by onthehouse

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  Fireplace Blamed For Smokey House

  Question You probably don’t remember me, but I was the editor of California Life in the Sacramento Bee back in the late ’80s. I fondly remember you. Here’s my question that I can’t seem to find a...

  • Posted March 6, 2014
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  Cleaning a Fireplace of Excess Mortar

  Question In my home, we have a two-sided see-through fireplace. Our house was a spec house and it looked as if when they were building, they spilled some mortar on the stone. How can I clean this...

  • Posted March 6, 2014
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  Chimney Leaning

  Question My fireplace is leaning about 2″ away at the roof. I am an old man, and on a limited income. Is there anything I can do? Dee Answer Yes! Don’t stand under it! Actually, your problem...

  • Posted March 6, 2014
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  Changing the “Grout” Color on the Fireplace

  Question We love our family room corner fireplace with rock but hate the color of the grout. The grout is dark to medium gray and we prefer light gray which we think would look better as our...

  • Posted March 6, 2014
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  Broken Screw Prevents Repair

  Question We were going to replace our hot and cold handles on our tub, but the screw head is broken. Now we cant get it off. It’s only on the one side, the cold handle. Any ideas?...

  • Posted March 6, 2014
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  Grill Turnover: Clean your Grill Mess Quick

  You’re having a big holiday cookout today? And your grill is a mess? The lava rocks are all greasy? Today you’ll learn how a barbecue “turnover” helps when you’ve invited the gang over. Before you start scraping and brushing...

  • Posted March 5, 2014
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  Keep Calm and Paint a Room Pink

  William Gaines created Mad magazine (of the ’60s and ’70s), but his famous cartoon character, Alfred E. Neuman, wasn’t mad (as in angry), at all. Rather, Alf asked, “What, me worry?” Are you feeling angry? Maybe a...

  • Posted March 5, 2014
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  Turning the Termites Away

  This year, one-thousand homes a day will catch fire, but that statistic pales when compared to the 5,000 homes a day that will be damaged by termites. Unlike fire, there’s no insurance for termite damage. Instead, there are things...

  • Posted March 5, 2014
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  Scrubbing Away your Pet’s Skunk Scent

  Gas masks were invented in 1849, and if your pet meets up with a skunk, you’d better get one. Either that, or read today’s tips which will allow you to make a skunk smell go away. Soak...

  • Posted March 5, 2014
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  Getting the Granules to Go Away

  If your faucet aerator gets repeatedly clogged with tiny blue or green granules, it’s aluminum hydroxide: a corrosion by-product caused when household water with a high pH level comes in contact with the aluminum anode in your...

  • Posted March 5, 2014
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