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WWIITTHH CCLLEEVVEERR SSOOLLUUTTIIOONNSS TTOO EEVVEERRYYDDAAYY PPRROOBBLLEEMMSS
J U L Y 2 0 0 9
101 Handy Hints
®
1 2
Blowapartstuck5-gal.buckets Stain-savingsprayapplicator
MydadandIhavefiguredoutawaytogetthosestuck-together5-gallon Saveyouremptypump-typesprayersthathavean
pailsapartnearlyeverytime.Wejustpushanairnozzlebetweenthebuckets adjustable-spray tip and use them to apply wiping
andblowcompressedairintothelowerone. stain.Sprayasmallsection
at a time, then wipe
Amber Williams
it. You’ll be sur-
prisedhowlittle
[Ididn’tbelievethisuntil
stain you use
I tried it.The secret is
to complete
topushtheairnoz-
the job this
zle tip into the
way com-
side of the top
pared with
bucket to cre-
brushing.This
ate a path for
technique is
the air to get
especiallyhelpful
into the bot-
forapplyingstainto
tomone.The
intricate parts like
top bucket is
spindles.
propelled by
Ashley Bradberry
a cushion of
air and lifts
right out. It sure
beats pounding
them apart—and
sometimestopieces—
withahammer.—Editor]
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101 Handy Hints
®
3 5
See-throughjunk Ducttape
drawerinabag wristbands
I store my extra fasteners in a Whenyou’reworkingwithfiber-
clearplasticbaginsteadofacof- glass insulation, tape the cuffs of
fee can or junk drawer. Searching your long-sleeved shirts to gloves
forthecorrectnut,boltorwhatever with duct tape. It’ll keep the glass
is as easy as looking “through” the fibersfromgettingundersleevesand
bag,reachinginandpluckingitfrom irritating your skin. Your wrists will
Gail Snyder Carl Jensen
themix. thankyou.
4 6
Tapemeasure Spraycannozzlecleaner
holder
Nozzles from cans of spray paint tend to
clog with dried paint after use.
Since I’ve never had a specific place
Here’satricktokeepthemclearfor
to store my tape measure, I could
PICTUREHANGER thenextproject.Removethenoz-
PLATE never find it when I needed it. I
zleandstickitonyourcanofWD-
solved the problem by screwing a
40 (most are the same size and
large picture hanger plate onto the
shape).Justgivethenozzleaquick
wall behind my workbench. Now, I
squirt to clear it out, then return
hook the tape measure onto the
thenozzletoitsrightfulplace.
hanger when I’m finished and have
notroublefindingitatall.
John Lee
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101 Handy Hints
®
7 9
Postholegauge Highflysucker-upper
Digging a posthole requires you to We live on a farm, so keeping flies out of the house and evicting them
constantly stop and remove the digger once they’ve moved in is a constant headache. When they swarm against
to measure the depth of the hole. Skip the theinsideofthewindows,wesimplysuckthemupwithavacuumcleanernozzle.
hassle by turning the handles of your post- The problem was that the hose didn’t reach the skylights. Then my husband
hole digger into built-in measuring sticks. thoughtofduct-tapinga10-ft.lengthofPVCpipeontotheendofthenozzle.Now
Withapermanentmarker,makealineevery wecansuckfliesdownfromthehighestskylightsinthehouse.
6in.upthehandlesfromthetipsofthedig- Louise Veldhuizen
ging blades. When you get close to the
desireddepth,stopdigging(leavingthedig-
ger in the hole) and check the depth on the
Bill Robinson
handles.
8
Wrenchfor
roundedboltheads
Loosen bolts with worn,
rounded heads with a
pipe wrench! The
pipe wrench jaws
ROUNDED
BOLT
diginandgrabthe
head so you can
removethebolt.
Jeff Larson
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101 Handy Hints
®
12
10
Movable
Screw-lubeonastring
bikerack
Drill a hole through a bar of soap and
hang it above your workbench. Run Tired of that darn
long screws across the soap before you drive bike hanging in your
them and they’ll smoothly penetrate the way? Build this movable
woodwithoutstrippingthescrewhead. bikerackfroma2x4and
Brian Bubenzer a pair of bicycle hooks.
Cut four 3-1/2-in. blocks,
stacktwoontopofeach
other, and screw them
11 together. Now screw
Tinfoilcouch-saver them on the end of a 4-
ft. 2x4 and repeat the
Keepyourcatsoffthecouchwith
process for the other
tinfoil.Tearoffapieceoftin-
side. Drill a hole in the
foil long enough to cover
middle of the stacked
the top of your couch, and
blocks and screw in the
setitonthecushions.Thefeel
bicycle hooks. Lay the
andsoundoftinfoildrivescats
rack across your garage
nuts and they’ll immediately
ceiling joists, and hang
jumpoff.
yourbikefromthehooks.
Carolyn Quintiliano
When you need to get
behind the bike, simply
slide the entire rack out
oftheway.
Kitty Fay
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101 Handy Hints
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13 15
Disguising caulk onconcrete Scratch
thatlayout
If you’re caulking concrete, either to fill a crack or to seal it
around the edge,you can make the caulk almost invisi-
Items that have
ble.Simplydustthecaulkwithdryconcretemixwhile
mounting holes on the
it’s still wet. When it’s dry, brush away the excess,
back can be tricky to hang BACKOF
MAILBOX
andthecaulkwill virtuallydisappear.
level. To ease the layout
process, make a template.
14
Doorpainting Set a piece of paper over
MOUNTING
helper the back side of the item HOLES O U T LIN E
and rub over the outline
Paint both sides of a door at
andmountingholeswitha
once with this nifty trick. Purchase
pencil. Level and tape the
three 3/8-in. x 4-in. lag bolts at a
template into position on
hardware store. Screw one into the
the wall, then drill pilot
center of the top edge and the other
holes and secure the fas-
twointothebottomedge6in.in
teners.P.S.Ifthemounting
from each end. Paint one side of
holes are oddly spaced,
the door, then lift the door by the MAILBOX
make sure you don’t
two bolts and flip it over using
reversethetemplatewhen MOUNTING
LOCATION
the single bolt as a pivot.
youtapeittothewall.
Now paint the edges and
Ron Ross
3/8"x4" other side of the door.
LAGBOLT
When the door is dry,
remove the bolts, fill the
holes with putty and touch
upwithpaint.
William G. Freed
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101 Handy Hints
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16 18
Airhose Chipterminator
station Whenyou’recuttingoffthebottomofaninteri-
or veneered door with a circular saw, it’s difficult
Keepyourairhoseandfittingsin
to get a clean line because the wood veneer
one place and out of the way.
chips very easily. Eliminate chipping by first
2-1/2"
Screw a coffee can onto a
RISERBLOCK
scoringthecuttinglinewithasharputilityknife.
scrap piece of plywood.
Make your saw cut 1/16 in. from the line
Attach a 2-1/2-in. riser
onthewasteside,andeasetheedge
block to the edge of the
with sandpaper. The wood will
plywood and hang the
chipuptotheline,butnotpastit.
entire contraption from a
Anna Victoria Reich
wall or workbench. Drape
yourairhoseoverthecof-
19
fee can, and store your
Hatchback
fittings inside. It also
protector
works great for hanging
extensioncords. Haveyouevertriedthejug-
gling act of loading and unload-
Walter Barndt
ing a hatchback while keeping
17 the hatch from banging against
Caulkingextender
the metal rib of the open garage
door?Toprotectyourcar’sfinish,
Ifyouhavetogetcaulkintoa
glue foam pipe insulation to the
tightspot,justtapeaflexible
metal garage door rib with rub-
drinking straw to the tip of your
ber cement. The hatch will rest
caulking gun and you’ll be ready
damagefreeagainstthefoam.
to caulk into any nook the straw
Al Danas
willreach. Rick Tatanus
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101 Handy Hints
®
20 22
Long-term Fishingrod
storage catcher NEVER
CATCHES
ANYTHING
One way to get rid of clutter in Whenever I grab a fish-
yourstorageshedorgarageistodo ing rod, it always catches
what we did. Screw 16-in. scrap on the line from another
2x4s at a slight upward angle to rod, and it’s quite a
eachsideofawallstud.Theywill headache to untangle the
holdawidevarietyofyardtools. lines.Tosolvetheproblem,
Tina Campbell Icutan8-ft.1x4inhalfand
used 1-in. screws to mount
1-1/4-in. PVC caps (42¢
each)onone1x44in.apart.
Onthesecond1x4,Iequally
spaced 1-1/4-in. PVC cou-
plings (35¢ each). I
21
screwed the 1x4 with the
Cordless
45-DEGREE
4"PVCELBOW caps to the wall a foot off
drillholster
the floor, and the one with
Makeaniftycordlessdrill couplings 6 ft. off the
holster by screwing a 45- floor and directly
degree 4-in. PVC elbow ($3) above it.The rod tips
to the side of your work- slide up through the
bench. Quick-draw the drill couplings and the
out of the holster when handles rest in the
you’rereadyforaction. caps.
Mark and Miriam Joe Jaquesmoe
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101 Handy Hints
®
23 25
Muffinpanpartstray Padded
rakeholder
WhenIworkonsmallprojectsor
take something apart, I use muf-
If you’ve got a lot of raking to
fin pans to keep everything organized.
do, tape 3/4-in. pipe insulation
Stack several pans together for extra
overtherakehandletoprotect
workspaceorstorage.
your hands from blisters. Pipe
Tom Zeman insulation can also be used to
softenthehandlesonbrooms,
TTAAPPEE
shovelsandothertools.
Chris White 33//44""PPIIPPEE
IINNSSUULLAATTIIOONN
TTAAPPEE
24
Propane
tankcarrier
26
Twinedispenser
Whenever I took my 20-lb.
propanetanktobefilled,italways Prevent balls of twine from
rolled around in the trunk of my tangling up by making a twine
car. To solve the problem, I dispenser from an empty plastic
stuck it in an old milk crate. detergent jug. Cut the bottom off the
The crate’s wide, flat base jug and drill a hole in the cap. Screw
keepsthetankstable. the jug to your shop wall with the
Doug Milder
spout facing down. Drop the ball of
twine into the jug, thread it through
theholeandscrewthecapon.
Paul Chupek
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101 Handy Hints
®
27 28
Sandpaperfiler Microwavecleaner
My sheets of sandpaper used to get crumpled It’seasytocleanbaked-onfoodandspillsfromyourmicrowave!Partially
and damaged lying around the shop.I purchased a fillameasuringorcoffee
file folder ($4) from an office supply store, and now my cup with water and add
sandpaperiswellorganizedandinpristinecondition. asliceoflemon.Boilthe
Aaron Zeff water for a minute, and
then leave the door
closedandletthesteam
loosen the mess. After
10 minutes, open the
doorandwipeawaythe
grime.
Dorothy Gore
29
Disappearingremotes
If your remote controls are cluttering up
your coffee table and getting lost behind
sofa cushions, here’s how to neaten up. Apply
adhesive-backed hook-and-loop strips to the
undersideofthecoffeetableandtothebacks
of the remotes. To avoid snags on upholstery
and clothing, put the soft (loop) material on
the remotes. Now all the controls are hidden
fromview,butyou’llalwaysknowwheretofind
them. Hook-and-loop strips are available for
about $7 a package at home centers and discount
Daniel Griesbach
andhardwarestores.
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