This is a common problem with wood located in sunny spots: the heat causes the wood to dry out too fast and shrink apart. There's no absolute fix for it. It's just an ongoing maintenance issue which you have to keep an eye out for. There are other problems which crop up on shady spots, like mildew!  I cleaned the surface with a bleach-based cleanser before I repainted it. Then I scraped, patched and primed a few dozen other places where the paint was bubbling due to fluctuations in the weather. Then I repainted everything and stepped back to take a look.  It looks great! And this summer, the weather has been ideal for sitting in the shade with a glass of lemonade and watching a parade. Or a motorcade. Or a serenade... a masquerade... a promenade by the fire brigade...
Anyway, if your porch or deck needs a little TLC, give me a call. I love this stuff!
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 Jesse's clients ordered the doors beforehand, but as Jesse noted, the two panels "were not even close to being square." Due to an error by the manufacturers, there was an uneven gap when the two doors met. I've experienced this problem myself when ordering pre-made pieces from a mill, so I know it can be a real head-scratcher. Should you send the parts back and have them fixed, or try to work with what you've got? Fortunately, Jesse came up with an elegant solution:  He added a piece of trim down the center to cover the gap, then painted it to match the doors. This is more than just a "stop gap." It actually adds functionality! Now you can really close the doors completely so that you can truly block off the room. This would be really handy if you had a small house and your living room occasionally doubled as a guest room. I really like this barn door trend. It makes a nice focal point, plus it's much easier to install and maintain than a pocket door, and the doors are still out of the way when you open them.  This set of doors is sleeker than the "rustic" look we've been seeing lately. I think it would work with almost any decor, from a "modern farmhouse" look to a more contemporary style.
If you need someone to install a sliding barn door in Asheville, give us a call, We love this stuff!  Since today is Independence Day, I thought I'd take a break from my usual blog posts and share four of the reasons we're celebrating today, above and beyond our usual Fourth of July festivities. We have so much to be thankful for! Two All-American Craftsmen I'm grateful to have more calls for work than one man can answer, and this year I've started referring some of my customers to local handymen whom I trust to do a great job. Recently Jesse Scott, who's already one of the craftsmen in our network, introduced me to two more extremely talented handymen, who are both very friendly and easy to work with. I'm thrilled to introduce them here.
Click here if you'd like to work with Allan or Ricardo... or keep reading for another reason to celebrate. Good News on the Home Front
Many of you have sent your thoughts and prayers to us during her illness, so I'd like to send a big "thank you" to all of you. Your good wishes have been very encouraging, and your prayers must have worked! Now I'm going to turn the blog over to Faith for another piece of awesome news which she picked up from the local community and which seems perfect for sharing today. The Eagles Are Back! Faith writes: Thank you Arthur, and I second that motion: thank you to all of our customers and craftsmen and other members of our community that have prayed for me and sent their good wishes. It means a lot to me. One of the first things I did when my health started to recover was to spend more time getting out and reconnecting with my friends and acquaintances. Recently I had the chance to visit our county library, where I saw something amazing:  Avian expert Mike Skinner of Balsam Mountain Trust held a "Birds of Prey" demonstration which included this lovely young eagle named "Hope." "Hope" received her name because the conservation program for American Bald Eagles has been working. If you live in the Asheville area, you might even have noticed this in person. I myself have seen eagles flying up and down the French Broad River valley. It's a wonderful piece of good news, and proof that conservation really works. If you live out in the countryside like I do, you might have also spotted one of these, especially at night:
Isn't she lovely? She's a barn owl. Sadly, although barn owls are not endangered in general, her handler said that our local population has been dwindling as people replace old wooden barns with steel buildings. The good news is that you can help replenish the local population of these beautiful birds. Locals have discovered that barn owls will move into owl boxes, so if you have the right kind of terrain, you might be able to give your local birds a new home. Or if you have an old barn on your property, consider keeping it maintained for our feathered friends.  We hope that you and your family are having a safe and happy holiday. We'll be back from vacation tomorrow, and we're looking forward to hearing from you about your next project.
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About
Welcome to my blog! This is a chronicle of the adventures of Arthur Teel, a handyman working in Asheville and Weaverville, NC. Need someone to fix your home?
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August 2020
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What Our Clients Are Saying
"Arthur is that rare professional handyman who is totally reliable; fairly priced; pro-active in communications; honest; punctual; skilled -- and a really nice guy." "Arthur is a great resource to have here in our area. He's prompt, professional, does great work and is cost effective. I'll definitely use him again!" |
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Mars Hill and Weaverville Arden and Fletcher Fairview |
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