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Bob Vila

About Bob Vila

You probably know me from TV, where for nearly 30 years I hosted a variety of shows – This Old House, Bob Vila’s Home Again, Bob Vila, and Restore America with Bob Vila. You can now watch my full TV episodes online. Now it's this website that I am passionate about and the chance to share my projects, discoveries, tips, advice and experiences with all of you.
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  • Riding Out the Storm

Riding Out the Storm

STORMS & DISASTERS | SAFETY

Photo: csmonitor.com

If you are riding out the storm in a single-family home, make sure you have a plan for the worst-case scenario. A blown-out window or garage door opening can create a serious hazard for the entire house. Changing air pressures can literally take the roof off a home.

Sandy’s wind speeds don’t seem to compare with those of Hurricane Andrew in 1992, but the size and strength suggest it may rank among the worst US storms. Take steps now to secure doors and windows and tape large expanses of glass, particularly picture windows and patio doors. Keep window treatments closed and identify a safe room where the family can huddle in the event of a blow-out.

If your house becomes uninhabitable, wait for the eye of the storm to bring a brief lull, which might allow you to seek shelter with neighbors.

For more on hurricane preparedness, consider:

Waiting for Sandy
Be Prepared for Natural Disasters
Hurricane Sandy: Disaster Preparedness

Going Green in an Older Home

PRESERVATION | SUSTAINABILITY

Before the advent of modern heating and cooling systems, home builders would design temperature control directly into a home’s layout. In warmer climates, that would often mean features such as deep porches and window awnings on the exterior, high ceilings on the interior. Colder-climate abodes positioned chimneys in central locations; some employed steeply pitched, Saltbox-style roofs to deflect northern winds.

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Bob Vila’s Top 5 TV Shows & Movies

PEOPLE & PLACES
Tina-Fey-James-Franco-30-Rock

Tina Fey and James Franco in "30 Rock"

I was amused to see James Marsden geared up in a tool belt on “30 Rock”, as his character set about fixing loose floor boards in the apartment he’s sharing with his girlfriend Liz Lemon (Tina Fey). I hope he completes his project successfully—I guess we’ll find out in future episodes.

It’s no mystery why home improvement turns up so often in entertainment. Fixing up our homes can involve drama, conflict, maybe a little comedy–all ingredients of good entertainment.

Here are five of my favorite TV shows and movies where homes and/or improvements figure prominently. When you need to take a break from your latest project, these options will provide a terrific respite:

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Home from Havana: Finca Vigía & Caritas

PRESERVATION
Finca Vigía

Photo: World Monument Foundation

My February trip to Havana with the Finca Vigía technical team was a short, three-day visit focused on paper conservation and the planning of a new laboratory. Ernest Hemingway’s home outside Havana was where he kept his personal library of over 9,000 books, journals, manuscripts and so on. Papa was a pack-rat and held onto all sorts of souvenirs, from bullfighting posters to shopping lists for his fishing trips.

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Bob Tedeschi’s 5 Tips for DIY Beginners

PEOPLE & PLACES
DIY Beginners

Bob Tedeschi, New York TImes "The Pragmatist" columnist

During a recent interview with The New York Times columnist Bob Tedeschi, a.k.a. “The Pragmatist,” I asked if he had any words of wisdom for the DIY beginners—individuals, like him, who are learning as they go. Not surprisingly, this chronicler of his own trial-by-fire do-it-yourself mishaps and successes served up some great advice.

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DIYers Best/Worst Remodeling Discoveries

REMODELING

That’s what I asked my Twitter followers a couple of weeks ago. It’s natural to expect that your renovation’s happiest surprise will arrive upon the project’s completion; at the moment when your lingering doubts disappear and your tired optimism suddenly transforms into a feeling of proud delight.  However, it’s during the process itself, not after it’s over, that many homeowners discover the biggest renovation surprises of all.

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On Master Craftsmen

PEOPLE & PLACES

Bob Ryley

Throughout the years, I’ve been lucky enough to meet scores of talented, experienced contractors and craftsmen—proud workers committed to excellence. A couple stand out for me: Norm Abram from “This Old House” and Bob Ryley, the builder I worked with on “Home Again”. I think individuals who excel in their trade— plumbing, roofing, masonry, whatever—usually have a few traits in common. Why have I been thinking about this stuff? The following question reached me through Just Ask Bob: “You’ve worked with some great contractors. What qualities do excellent tradesmen share?” View my response below…

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Wood Paneling: Before and After

WALLS | TRIM & MOLDING

Paneled Library New York City BrownstoneHere’s a before-and-after worth noting. The wood wall paneling inside an 1890s NYC brownstone was severely damaged nearly a century after its installation—by a guy with a sandblaster. What to do?

The apartment’s interior features a beautiful Jacobean ceiling, parquet oak floors, and floor-to-ceiling paneling of quarter-sawn oak. The paneled walls had probably been painted and left that way, until someone realized there was beautiful wood under the paint and chose to use a sandblaster. Sadly, that someone didn’t realize how much damage would result from using such a drastic method of paint removal. All the wood paneling now has a severely distressed grain which, even when stained and varnished, resembles fir plywood.

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Add a Decorative Touch to Your Woodworking Shop

WORKSHOP | DESIGN

Woodworking Shop

There’s no reason why your woodworking shop can’t be easy on the eyes, outside and in. The one pictured above was created in order to write and research my book Bob Vila’s Workshop. We trimmed it out to reflect the Greek Revival homes and other structures common to the area it’s located in. (Adding to the old-timey feel of the place are the old doors and windows bought at salvage).

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Outtakes: My Interview with Celerie Kemble

PEOPLE & PLACES
Celerie Kemble

Photo courtesy of Douglas Friedman

The week before the holidays, I had the chance to talk *color* with Celerie Kemble, the New York and Palm Beach interior designer whose most recent book, Black & White (and a bit in between), recently landed on shelves. Before long, however, Celerie and I found ourselves discussing, of all things, light bulbs.

With incandescent fixtures on the way out, designers—like the rest of us—are experimenting with compact fluorescents (CFLs), which are known for their sometimes harsh, cool, too-bright light. Not surprisingly, Ms. Kemble has found at least one way of modulating CFLs’ temperature…

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