Well, it's been a year, but I'm back to blogging! What can I say but the old refrain, "I've been busy." And one of the things that's kept me most busy has been interior painting in Asheville. This year we're starting to see a little more color sneaking in. I know Maximalism has been a big trend in Architectural Digest for quite awhile, and it's finally starting to come to our mountain town. I've already blogged about picking paint colors and how to paint with bold colors, but there's one painter's secret I haven't mentioned, which is how to choose the best version of the most dangerous color: Yellow.
The trick with yellow is that it basically comes in two varieties. The "safest" yellow to pick for your walls is a warm version that skews toward orange, like we see in Harewood House. Here's a lovely little villa in a similar color. The trouble seems to come in when people accidentally choose a yellow that skews toward green. Here's an example of what I mean. This will show up differently depending on your computer monitor, but at regular settings you'll see a more acidic color. This "acid yellow" is the one that people generally regret using, even if it's toned down. It can be harder to tell the difference on a color chip, so I recommend getting a small jar of your proposed color and painting it on a piece of poster board so you can test it out on different walls and in different light. If you don't like the "egg yolk" yellow, another possibility would be to choose a grayed-down version. My wife actually chose a pistachio greenish-yellow for our home, and it looks great. However, it's got a lot of gray (and a lot of white) in it, so that in some lights you can't even see the color.
But don't let me scare you away from bright colors! Especially because we're here to help make sure that your interior painting is done right the first time.
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Not long ago I had a customer who wanted to replace a big recessed can light with a more ordinary light fixture. Of course, she had the electrician come out first to remove the existing can light and install a box for the new fixture. But that left a big hole around the new box. This is one of the more tricky drywall repairs because of course, you can't just fill in this hole with skim coat and be done with it! I started by adding a support made of thin wood which I screwed to the existing drywall. Then I added a custom-cut patch to fill in. My first patch was actually a bit small, and I soon realized I needed something with a little more coverage. Wasn't there a spaceship in Star Wars shaped like this? With my new patch installed my next step was to add a piece of screen. This will allow me to make a nice even skim coat, and it will give something for the mud to grab. It's serving the same purpose as the drywall tape you install on joints when you're finishing out a wall. Then it was time for a couple coats of mud. By the way, if you ever do this yourself, don't try to get everything perfect on the first coat. Only the best of the best can do that; I've only met a few people with that level of skill in my life, and even with all my experience, I'm not one of them. The trick is to put down each layer fairly thin, and sand well between coats. The last step was a little bit of touch-up by our interior painters to get it looking just perfect.
All in all, this is a fairly tricky drywall patch job to get right. This is one of those times you'll want to call in the pros. Luckily, that's what we're here for! Summer is almost here, the weather is fine, and calls to our Asheville handyman service are picking back up! As an essential business, we're still open during the COVID-19 shutdown, although of course we're practicing safety precautions. Luckily I already have a pretty good mask: As calls have picked up, we've been getting a lot of service requests from people who really need a plumber or an electrician, not a handyman. So when do you need a licensed specialist? For electrical work, a good rule of thumb is that most handymen are willing to make changes that happen at the electrical box. The best example of this is swapping out one light fixture for another, like I did for this customer. Here's another view of that room - I've always liked that unusual chandelier. It sure was tricky to hang... there were lots of extra connection points to the ceiling. For plumbing, most handymen can make repairs on the "downstream" side of the shut-off valve. In other words, we can swap out kitchen faucets, replace sinks, and repair toilets. You need a licensed plumber or electrician when you're going to be working upstream of the shut-off valve (for plumbing) or outside of the electrical box (for electricians). So you'll need an electrician if you want to put a light fixture where there isn't one right now, or if you're having mysterious problems with your lights, that aren't fixed by changing the bulb. And if you have a plumbing leak, or if you want to install a new bathroom where there aren't any fixtures now, you need a plumber. By the way, there's one more repair that usually requires a plumber: repairing a leaking hose bib. That's because these are often installed without shut-off valves in the line behind them, which is a shame considering that even frost-free bibs are easy to damage if you leave your hose connected during a cold snap. I think a lot of people are disappointed when they call us and we have to refer them onward, because they think licensed technicians are more expensive. But using an unlicensed repairman can be expensive in other ways. It's just too easy to make a mistake that could burn your house down or flood your living room. And here's an insider secret: it doesn't always cost more to use a specialist. The trick is to find an electrician or plumber in Asheville who will take on small jobs. Fortunately I have a free gift for you, courtesy of my wife Faith. She keeps a little book of all the local tradesmen that have been recommended to us by our customers over the years, and now it's available free of charge. This includes the best electrician we know of in Asheville, as well as the one plumber we trust to work on our parents' homes. All we ask in return is that you sign up for our (occasional) newsletter. Here's the link to sign up: And if you decide you still need a handyman or interior painter instead of a plumber or electrician, be sure to come back and contact us to schedule an appointment.
A few years ago, I had a side gig as the temporary maintenance man at a downtown Asheville condo building, and the one problem that constantly came up was clogged or slow drains, especially in the shower.
You know what it feels like:
You're taking a quick shower and suddenly the water is up over your knees, and you wish you'd brought your hip waders.
Fortunately I found a cheap alternative to calling a plumber...
The Zip-It Hair Snare
Basically it's a cheap, disposable plastic version of the plumber's snake. It kind of reminds me of a zip tie, except that it has teeth. You stick it down into your drain and pull it back out, and some of the hair that's clogging the drain will get stuck to the little teeth and come out with it. If you're doing this in a bathtub, it will be easier if you unscrew the drain cover first.
Repeat this several times, and you're done. Look how much stuff comes out!
I recommend also getting a pair of gloves and a little bucket to catch the goop, because the hair clumps are kind of gross. But hey, it beats calling in the professionals. During my maintenance gig, I bought a dozen of these for the property manager and cut the number of service calls way down. If you try this and it doesn't work for you, shoot us an email. We don't do plumbing, but my wife has a "little black book" with all of the best craftsmen we know. The other day I had an epiphany: it's not worth your time or money to try to fix a faucet. It all started because my bathroom faucet was acting up. First it clogged up so that less water came out when I turned it on. Of course I removed the aerator and cleaned out the grit that had accumulated there. But when I put it back together, I noticed water dripping behind the sink. Naturally as a handyman I messed with it for half an hour or more, shining flashlights into corners, tightening things, and bumping my head against the sink. (Ouch!) I never did find the source of the leak. My guess is that the back pressure caused by the clogged aerator ruptured a hidden seal. Or maybe the same grit that caused the clog caused a problem somewhere else. So I stopped by Lowe's and bought a replacement. The old faucet cost $25, but this time I splurged and spent $29 for something with style. It only took 15 minutes to swap out the new faucet for the old, and I have peace of mind because I doubt it will leak any time soon. I've tried to fix faucets for customers in the past and not had much luck. Sometimes I'm able to tighten them and stop the drip, but it usually starts dripping again later. I've known plumbers who had the same experience. Long story short: if your faucet drips, replace it. It's another example of spending money now to save money later. Because a second visit from a plumber is expensive, especially if the new leak has damaged your cabinets and floors. And if you need a handyman who pays attention to the bottom line, give us a call. |
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