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Here's another great tip from BobVila.com. Even if you re diligent about cleaning year-round, when winter s over there s always another reason to roll up your sleeves. But you can make spring cleaning less of an onerous chore if you use the right tools. Here are some suggestions. Get a year s worth of grime and mildew off your deck and your home s exterior in a few hours by using a pressure washer and an oxygen-based bleach solution or natural cleanser. For windows, a solution of white vinegar and water is as good a cleaner as any, and old newspapers make great lint-free window wipes. Finish the outside with some rain protectant made for car windshields and lengthen the time between cleanings. There s nothing better than a long-handled ostrich feather duster for getting rid of cobwebs and dusting those trim details up high that you never think about. A damp cloth with a little vegetable oil will work on wood surfaces. Microfiber dustcloths work on any surface, especially electronics. For cleaning lampshades and popcorn ceilings, use a lint roller. Rubber gloves will rub pet hair off the upholstery. And white cotton gloves, one wet and one dry, can help you clean the chandelier. Mop hard floors with a good self-wringing string head mop; save the sponge mop or disposable cleaning pad type for lighter everyday jobs or laminate floors. If you have wall-to-wall carpet, a steam cleaner s a great tool to have. While it might not seem like a cleaning tool, using a timer will keep you from burning out or getting sidetracked as you work. And a rolling cart to store and haul your tools will lighten your load during spring cleaning and beyond. Find out more at BobVila.com: The ultimate home improvement web site! BobVila.com 2008

Here's another great tip from BobVila.com. We all know that life would be very different without that wonder of modern science: the toilet. But when it acts up, we also know life can get pretty complicated in a hurry. Don t wait until you have a houseful of guests to get prepared. Homeowners should own a full-sized plunger, an auger, a bucket and some rubber gloves. In the event of a clog that s overflowing the toilet, shut off the water intake valve underneath the tank, then remove half the water from the bowl before plunging the drain opening rapidly several times. If the water goes down, plunge once more for good measure before turning the water back on and flushing. If plunging doesn t work, the auger will. Cranking clockwise, feed the auger into the drain until it tightens at the clog; reverse a bit, then continue down as far as it ll go, and pull the whole thing up at once. Remove that matchbox car that junior s been missing along with any other debris, and plunge again before you flush, just in case. As always, being prepared with the right tools can save the day! Find out more at BobVila.com: The ultimate home improvement web site! BobVila.com 2008

Here s another great tip from BobVila.com. Mold problems are present in about four out of 10 American homes. With the often prohibitive costs and dubious results of professional mold remediation, more and more homeowners are looking for ways to take care of mold problems themselves. If mold is affecting an area less than 10 square feet and your household doesn t include anyone who is very young, very old or immune-compromised, you can tackle the problem yourself if you re careful. First, consult the EPA s web site and read about the different levels of mold infestation and the levels of protection they require, both for you and for the rest of your house. Mold spreads by sending out millions of airborne spores. Disturbing a mold infestation can send the spores flying and make your problem worse and more widespread unless you seal off the area and protect yourself. Seal off any heat or air vents to the affected area, and install a window fan to pull air to the outside. Seal off the area with plastic sheeting taped over the doorway. Never touch mold with your bare hands, get it in your eyes or breathe it. Wear a disposable work suit or clothing you can throw away after the job is done. Wear a respirator, gloves and goggles, and shower well after you ve finished. Contrary to popular belief, you cannot kill mold with bleach. It might remove the appearance, but it won t get the roots, which will re-bloom in a matter of days, sometimes hours, if the area remains wet. In general, the best way to get rid of mold is to remove the affected materials altogether and rebuild. Removal is your only option if the moisture came from grey water or sewage. If the moisture source was clean, use a wet vac or steamer to remove wet or loose debris first and double-bag it in heavy trash bags. Then damp-wipe or scrub with detergent and water, but don t soak the surface. When it s thoroughly dry, vacuum again with a HEPA vacuum. Double-bag the vacuum contents and thoroughly clean or replace the vacuum s filter. You can dispose of the bags of debris with the rest of your trash. If the moisture problem that invited the mold in the first place has been fixed and the area remains completely dry, the mold may not re-grow. Find out more at BobVila.com: the ultimate home improvement web site! 2008 BobVila.com

Here s another great tip from BobVila.com. While it s a job many of us would love to ignore, gutter cleaning is an important twice-a-year ritual all homeowners need to adopt. When clogged gutters overflow, they can cause ice dams on the roof that force water inside your house. They can also get so heavy that they ll pull the gutters loose and rot the trim and siding. Even if your gutter doesn t fill to overflowing each season, leaving any decaying debris in there is an invitation to carpenter ants and mosquitoes. If you have a lot of trees around your house, you might want to clean your gutters even more frequently. There are lots of ways to do the cleaning. You can find inventions like tongs on an extension pole, shop vacuums with gutter nozzles or even a remote-controlled gutter-running robot. But most methods eventually involve getting on a ladder. If you have gutters above the first story or aren t comfortable on a ladder, you re better off hiring a pro. To clean your gutters yourself, wear gloves, a dust mask and safety goggles. Make sure your ladder is well-footed at all times and use a ladder stabilizer, or stand-off, to keep from denting and damaging your gutters. Scoop the debris into a garbage bag with a garden trowel, then rinse toward the downspout with a high-pressure nozzle on your hose and scrub it clean. Try to avoid spattering the siding in the process. Next, clear the downspouts with a hose or auger. Installing leaf strainers at the drain tops will cut down on the large clogs. When it rains, check for leaks and mark them with a china marker so you can patch holes or correct pitch problems when it s dry. There s debate about whether gutter caps or screens are worth the investment of up to $7 a running foot. Because nothing keeps all debris out, you still have to have your gutter cleaned every couple of years at least, and screens and caps make it much more difficult and expensive to do it. Find out more at BobVila.com: the ultimate home improvement web site! 2008 BobVila.com

George Saylor from Owens Corning is on location in this episode to discuss the insulation products that will be used in the Waterfront Warehouse Rehab project. Before work begins, Bob notes the importance of wearing protective gear including gloves, hat, long sleeve shirt, pants, particle mask, and eye protection when working with fiberglass insualtion. Owens Corning has provided a fiberglass insulation that delivers an insulation value of R15 in only three and half inches of thickness. The material's higher density creates smaller more uniform cells of trapped air to provide a greater degree of insulation in a tighter space, making it more efficient. Saylor also explains how to insulate around outlets and other building infrastructure. On the exterior walls, extruded polystyrene insulation is being installed between the studs and wallboard to prevent thermal transfer from the metal studs to the building's interior. The additional material will create a R20 wall. In the living spaces, interior walls are filled with fiberglass batt insulation to prevent the transfer of sound from room to room.

Kalo, Teresa's brother, is on site to create a gift garden for the homeowners. He is weaving split, green-bamboo partition fences that are held together simply by the friction of the reeds. Kalo, a weaver, has learned textile techniques in Taiwan that he is applying to the fence. He has created a Zen space within the garden and various sections for plantings, fences, a potted black bamboo, and stones. Kalo's niece is splitting the bamboo that he uses for the woven fences. He warns that bamboo is razor sharp once cut and takes tremendous attention and gloves. Kalo shows Bob how he uses four warps, or horizontals, for the bracing that will hold the vertical reeds in place. The fence will age and weather from green, to gold, to grey, and ultimately to black before it is replaced. Jim's two daughters are also working on the garden project, mulching the beds in front of the bamboo garden.