Show Notes: Backyard Oasis – On the House
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Show Notes: Backyard Oasis

By on June 8, 2019
backyard tree house

Whether you have a patio, a yard, or a ranch, your backyard should be whatever you want it to be. And that can mean anything from a calm place to unwind, a place to garden, or a place for the kids to run around!

Today’s show includes all the ways to set your intention and create the space for you.

We discuss:

  • Selecting patio doors
  • Camp Chef products – we interview Ryan Neeley and get a recipe for some of the best, easiest steak you’ll ever eat!
  • Extreme weatherproofing
  • Cleaning products that stand the test of time
  • Transforming your yard into the wonderland of your inner kid’s, and maybe your actual children’s, dreams

If you want more information about patios, patio doors, and backyard updates, check out some of our past articles below!

But keep reading below for all the info discussed during this show!

5 Tips for Selecting Patio Doors 

 With the selection of sliding, swinging, French and bi-fold patio doors available today, you have the flexibility to create a truly custom design that complements your home’s architectural style and helps to define your outdoor living space. What type of patio door you use depends on your home’s design, your lifestyle and convenience. For example is it opening to a large outdoor living space that flows from your interior living space? Is it for a small balcony? Or is it part of a large wall of windows? 

patio

 We have put together a list of five design tips to help you choose the right patio door for your home: 

Determine the opening method best for your space.

Since swinging and French doors need room to open, consider factors such as furniture and wall placement before determining which opening method works best for the space. If space is tight, consider using a stationary panel with a single swinging door or sliding doors that fit well in any sized space. 

Choose a design that has a wide doorway to provide greater access and a stronger connection to your outdoor living space.

Look for folding patio door systems or integrate multiple French and swing doors into your design, if your space allows it. 

Select the right type of glass with the most benefits and efficiency.

Low-E glass helps lower energy bills all year and protects against UV fading. decorative tempered glass offers privacy and added style, while still letting in natural light. Look for options like internal blinds and grills to control the light and views. 

Choose a material that is durable and easy to maintain,

This is especially important if you plan on using your patio door as the main entrance to your home. Vinyl, fiberglass, aluminum, and clad-wood patio doors weather well and never need painting. 

Choose a complementary quality and style of patio door to your home.

For example if your home is cedar, you’ll want to use a solid wood or high-end fiberglass patio door rather than a vinyl sliding door. French sliding doors offer the most design options, because you can select the door style, accessories and glass. If you want your patio door to have the same architectural style and feel of your front entry and garage doors, than you’ll want a hinged or French door, rather than a sliding patio door, which is basically all glass. 

 

Extreme Weatherproofing  

 With more alarming extreme weather conditions coming down the pipeline, building your dream home or keeping your home in one piece can seem like an impossible uphill battle!

High winds can affect the structural frame of your house.

Natural variables such as wind speed, wind height, ground surface features and the properties of the air, combined with building variables like the shape, location, and physical properties of a home, can create differences in pressure that push and pull on the exterior surfaces of buildings.

Tilting or uplift of a home may also occur due to high winds. 

windy tree

 So, how can you protect your home against high winds? 

Install storm shutters and storm doors. 

  • Installing storm shutters and storm doors can minimize the impact of high winds that may occur during hurricanes, tornadoes and other severe weather events. 
  • To install storm shutters and storm doors, you must: 
  • Look for any obstructions (overhangs, protruding windowsills, etc.) that might otherwise interfere with the installation. 
  • Install the bottom panel so it overlaps the bottom of the windowsill or doorframe. 
  • Make the location where the holes will need to be drilled for installation and drill on one side only. 
  • Ensure the panel is level, and if so, drill all other holes so each panel overlaps the previous panel. 
  • After the opening is covered by paneling, attach wing nuts to secure the panels properly. 

Reinforce your home. 

Reinforcing a home’s roof, doors and windows can reduce the impact of high winds. 

 To do this, you must: 

  • Determine what type of roof you have and ensure your roof is properly braced; you can reinforce with truss bracing. 
  • If high winds severely damage your home’s windows, you can install new windows from a variety of globally recognized brands (look for trusted brands like Andersen Window, JELD-WEN, American Craftsman and Tafco), many of which feature up to a double-lifetime warranty on hardware and screens, a lifetime craftsmanship warranty and lifetime accidental glass breakage warranty. 

 Don’t forget the “easy stuff.” 

  • Keep landscape trimmed and free of loose or falling branches 
  • Install roof fasteners when building a new house, renovating or repairing 
  • Garage doors need to withstand high winds or be shuttered because winds that enter through garage doors can allow the roof to be torn off 
  • Clean gutter drains to create extra drainage for basement and crawl space dry 
  • Seek emergency backup generators 
  • Keep supplies on hand, such as batteries, food, water, flashlights 
  • Completing simple maintenance tasks like bringing your outdoor furniture inside and securing your outdoor grill can make a world of difference if high winds approach. These tasks ensure you can safeguard your personal belongings and prevent them from blowing into your home in extreme winds. 

Hire an arborist.  

  • By employing an arborist, you can cut down trees that are leaning toward your house and trim away branches that overhang the roof. 

 

9 Old-Timey Cleaning Products That Work Wonders  

 Progress is good, especially when it comes to new cleaning product formulas that are more effective and gentler than some of the products that were popular in previous generations. But sometimes the old ways are the best, and long forgotten cleaning and housekeeping products are well worth remembering.  

These are some of our favorites! 

Fels-Naptha

Fels-Naptha is a laundry bar that’s been in use for over a century. It’s basically just a bar of soap that’s used to treat stains by wetting it and rubbing it directly on clothes. If you’re big into vintage shopping or thrifting, you’ll want to know about it because it’s especially good on older, set-in stains. 

Borax

Borax is a powdered laundry booster, which means that it doesn’t replace laundry detergent; rather, it’s used as a supplement to add whitening power, plus help eliminate stains and odors in the wash. What’s with the “20 mule team” on the box? When Borax hit the shelves in 1891, its components (sodium borate) needed to be transferred out of mines in Death Valley to a railroad in Mojave — and they got there by wagons powered by 20 mules. 

Arm & Hammer Washing Soda

Washing soda is a multiuse powder cleanser that can be diluted with water and used to scrub tile and grout, sinks and bathtubs, outdoor furniture, and refrigerators. It can also be used in laundry in the same way as Borax; those two products are also often used alongside grated Fels-Naptha to make DIY laundry detergent. 

Mrs. Stewart’s Liquid Bluing

 Mrs. Stewart’s bluing is probably one of our favorite old-fashioned cleaning products! (According to their website, the product has pretty much remained the same since 1883.) It does exactly what it sounds like it does: turns things blue. Why would you want that? Blue and yellow fall on opposite ends of the color perception wheel, so when whites, like sheets, towels, or T-shirts, start to go a bit yellow, adding a tinge of blue will make them appear bright white to the eye. 

Lestoil

Since 1933, Lestoil is the stuff for removing oil and grease from clothing. Simply dab a small amount on stains just prior to laundering. It can be hard to find, but it’s available on Amazon and at many grocery, hardware, and home improvement stores. 

Old Craftsmen’s Scratch Remover

 Old Craftsmen’s Scratch Remover‘s tiny little tin is basically like shoe polish for your furniture: Use it to fill in and cover scratches on wood dressers, coffee tables, chairs, etc. You’ll need a soft cloth — something like an old T-shirt or dish rag will be perfect — to pick up some of the scratch remover and apply it to wood in a circular motion. Use a clean portion of the rag to buff the wood, repeating with a second application if needed.

Simichrome Polish

Simichrome Polish is to metals like aluminum, chrome, silver, etc. as the Old Craftsmen’s stuff is to wood: A little bit applied to a soft cloth goes a long way to restoring shine and eliminating tarnish from various metals. It’s fairly harsh, however, so do be sure to wear household gloves when working with it.

Bon Ami  

Bon Ami is a powder cleanser (original formula since 1886!) made from feldspar, and it’s a gentler alternative to other popular abrasive powders like Comet or Ajax. This can be used to clean glass, porcelain, metals like chrome, aluminum, and stainless steel, and even cast iron cookware!

Jubilee Kitchen Wax

 Jubilee Kitchen Wax is a cleaning product was most popular in the 1950s and ’60s, but it’s making a comeback. If you want to clean and shine surfaces and appliances at the same time, give it a try. (Just avoid using it on stainless steel and granite.)

 

Turning The Backyard Into A Playground  

What kids love most about the summer is the fact that they get to spend a lot of time outdoors. This provides you as parents with the perfect opportunity to get crafty and to turn the backyard into a fun playground. There are lots of great ideas you can try and make sure you also involve the kids into your projects. 

  • Chalkboard walls
  • Zipline
  • Backyard tent
  • Hanging chairs
  • A swing
  • A tire swing
  • Beach-style fun
  • Treehouse – a must have! 
  • A music fence
  • Climbing wall 
  • Outdoor Twister

See some really cool pictures of these projects here!

Mentioned Links:

~ Thank you~ 

A very special thank you to all of our callers! We live to answer your questions, so keep them coming! 

Thank you to our Technical Support: 

  • Danny Bringer – Chief Engineer 
  • Carol “Remodeling Babe” Carey – Executive Producer 
  • Sam Reed – Associate Producer 
  • Rico Figliolini – Digital Master

 

Thank you for tuning in to find out how to make your backyard into an oasis! And check in next week for more cool tips! 

“Backyard Oasis” Show Notes for On The House with the Carey Brothers aired June 04, 2019. 

Missed our live show? Don’t worry! Because we have a podcast of the show. It’s the same thing we aired on the radio, but ready for you whenever and wherever you are! Check it out here. 

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