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Milwaukee 15-Gauge Finish Nailer: A Hands-On Review
Whether you’re a professional or a weekend warrior, a good finishing nail gun can boost your productivity and simplif...
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Hands-On Tool Review: Did the DeWalt Narrow Crown Stapler Nail It?
We own a narrow crown stapler that gets a lot of use in our small woodworking and trim projects. This type of stapler...
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Hart Tools: Is Walmart’s New Tool Line a Game Changer?
Walmart has always sold a variety of household tools, but its launch of Hart Tools in 2019 officially put it in compe...
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Plug In and Power Up: A Tested Review of the DeWalt Charging Station
In a world where cordless tool power is taking over, the DeWalt DCB104 charging station offers a substantial benefit ...
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The Best Power Tools & DIY Products Tested in 2023
From 143 to 12: That’s how far we whittled our lineup of the best tested power tools and DIY products to make this en...
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Generac Generators and Frigidaire Cooktops: 30 Recalls You Need to Know for Fall 2023
Staying on top of product recalls is essential for consumers to ensure that our families stay safe. The Consumer Prod...
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Is Husqvarna a Good Brand?
Shoppers on the hunt for lawn and garden equipment have no doubt encountered a variety of Husqvarna products and migh...
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If the DeWalt 20V Chainsaw Doesn’t Work for Every Task, Is It Worth It?
If you’re in the market for a small battery-powered chainsaw, there are lots of good options and a few not-so-good on...
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The Greenworks 40V Pole Saw Cuts High Branches With No Ladder Required
If you’ve ever considered climbing a ladder to remove a branch with a chainsaw, then you might need a pole saw. Chain...
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Drilling in Tight Spaces: A Makita Right-Angle Drill Review
If you’re not yet acquainted with the remarkable versatility of a right-angle drill—the top tool for drilling in tigh...
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Can the Husqvarna Zero-Turn Mower Cut a Bumpy Lawn at Top Speed?
If you measure your lawn in acres rather than square feet, then a zero-turn riding mower might be right for you. Unli...
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The Best Jackhammers of 2023
In the past, jackhammers were noisy, heavy tools operated mostly by professional road crews or demolition workers. Mu...
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Master the Art of Tile Cutting With the DeWalt Tile Saw: A Hands-On Review
The DeWalt D24000S 10-inch wet tile saw is a game changer for tile-setting projects. With a robust 1. 5-horsepower (h...
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Hands-On Review: Unveiling the DeWalt PowerStack Advantage in High-Performance Batteries
Get ready to supercharge your power tools with DeWalt's latest offering: PowerStack batteries. As an avid constructio...
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Ace Hardware Is Giving Away Free Craftsman Batteries—Here's How to Get Yours
Between its high-speed power tools and variety of DIY essentials, Craftsman has quickly become one of our favorite to...
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The Best Air Compressors for Home Garages of 2023
Those who have never owned an air compressor for home garage use might not realize the flexible uses the tool can pro...
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Lowe's Is Giving Away Free Tools for Craftsman Days
Here at Bob Vila, we love a good tool deal from a great brand—but we especially can't pass up a BOGO deal. Now throug...
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This Battery Chainsaw Beat a Dozen Competitors During Testing
There are plenty of sound reasons to own a good chainsaw, and it needn’t be bulky, heavy, or difficult to operate. Ba...
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The Best Sanders for Hardwood Floors of 2023
It’s possible to use just about any sander for hardwood floors, but some can involve a long, laborious, and uncomfort...
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The Best Portable Sawmills of 2023
Sooner or later, homesteaders and folks who regularly convert trees into usable (and valuable) lumber may wish to own...
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How to Use a Router the Right Way
Woodworking can challenge your DIY skills and encourage creativity. However, sticking to the most basic tools can be ...
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The Best Power Tools and DIY Products Tested in 2022
Whether you need to upgrade some tools in your workshop or have some upcoming projects that require new gear, this li...
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The Best Palm Nailers
Palm nailers are light, compact, highly maneuverable, and easy to use. Just load a nail into the front, position it, ...
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How to Use a Lathe for Woodturning
As far as woodworking projects go, few are as satisfying as those turned on a lathe. But what is a lathe? A lathe is ...
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How to Turn Wood Accessories for Your Home
Woodturning is a fascinating hobby and not quite like any other kind of woodworking. Even though it involves a machin...
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The Best Sandblasters of 2023
A good sandblaster can make many tough jobs—including restoring antique cars, returning concrete to like-new conditio...
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The Best Nail Guns for Fencing
Using a nail gun for fencing is faster and safer than using a hammer. Nails themselves needn’t be held with these too...
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The Best Belt Sanders
A belt sander is a relatively common power tool that is used to remove layers of wood, metal, plastic, or other targe...
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The 10 Loudest Power Tools in Your Workshop
The sounds of grinding, vibrating, buzzing, and boring may be welcome signs of progress and accomplishment to DIYers,...
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The Best Cabinet Table Saws of 2023
Cabinet table saws, often just called cabinet saws, are the largest of the table saws, with huge power and tremendous...
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The Best Jointer Planer Combos
Buying rough lumber can save a lot of money and offers the opportunity to find and use interesting varieties. However...
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The Best DeWalt Table Saws of 2023
Table saws are a versatile staple of DIY enthusiasts, home woodworkers, and jobsite contractors, capable of accuratel...
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Plunge Router vs. Fixed-Base Router: What's the Difference?
DIYers and woodworkers (usually) love their tools. But, when two tools—like a plunge router and fixed-base router—app...
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The Best Chainsaw Sharpeners of 2023
Sharpening a chainsaw once meant working on the chain’s individual teeth by hand. Today’s best chainsaw sharpeners ar...
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The Best Echo Chainsaws
Although Echo offers several larger chainsaws for professionals, the bulk of its chainsaws are targeted toward homeow...
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The Best Milwaukee Drills
Milwaukee is a name that always features prominently in independent reviews of leading drill manufacturers. The compa...
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The Best DeWalt Miter Saws of 2023
Miter saws are, by far, the most popular cutting tool for residential jobsite use, and they’re also a versatile tool ...
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The Best Ryobi Drills for Your Budget and Needs
Ryobi, the featured brand of The Home Depot, differentiates itself from the pricier brand names in the power tool wor...
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The Best Husqvarna Chainsaws of 2023
Husqvarna has been one of the top brands of chainsaws on the market for more than 60 years. While you can expect to f...
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The Best Chainsaw Bar Oils
Before starting a chainsaw, be sure to top up the bar oil. Bar and chain oil is not the same as two-cycle oil, a type...
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The Best Plate Compactors
Nothing is as effective as a plate compactor when it comes to creating a solid foundation for hardscaping projects li...
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The Best DeWalt Impact Drivers for Every Job
DeWalt is one of the most well-respected power tool brands in the business, so it’s no wonder that the company makes ...
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The Best DeWalt Drills
As one of the best-known and best-regarded names in power tools, DeWalt has a collection of drills that are highly re...
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The Best Milwaukee Impact Drivers
Impact drivers are the go-to tool when dealing with long screws and other large fasteners. An impact driver delivers ...
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How to Use a Drill
One of the most important DIY tools is the trusty power drill. Equipped with speed and torque, a power drill can bore...
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How to Use a Circular Saw
DIYers have a wide variety of cutting tools available to them, but few are as convenient and versatile as the circula...
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The Best Makita Drills
Makita offers an impressive range of drills that are highly regarded for their competitive performance and excellent ...
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8 Handy Ways to Use a Reciprocating Saw
While it is a common tool in many DIY projects, some people still ask what is a reciprocating saw and what is a recip...
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Power Tools Substitutions: What to Do When You Don't Have Just the Right Tool for the Job
Most folks are familiar with the phrase, “the right tool for the right job. ” While there’s good reason for that adag...
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10 Mistakes That Are Killing Your Power Tool Batteries
 Your Bad (or Misinformed) Habits are Killing Your Power Tool Batteries When asked which power tool brand someone sho...
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Find an Amazing Deal on Brand-Name Tools? They Might Be Fake
Power tools that look like those made by well-respected brands may not always be what they seem, especially if there’...
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The Best Stihl Chainsaws of 2023
The market offers numerous professional chainsaw brand choices, but few can rival the performance and reliability of ...
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9 Types of Batteries Every Homeowner Should Know
Electronics are so pervasive in our modern world that you can find devices for an incredible range of functions, from...
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The Best Drill Bits for Tile Tested in 2023
Drilling holes in tile—to install towel rods in a bathroom renovation, say—can be tricky. There's always a risk the t...
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The Best Right-Angle Drills Tested in 2023
Whether you're a professional tradesperson or a DIY enthusiast, you've likely encountered situations where a standard...
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The Best Oscillating Tool Blades of 2023
Oscillating tools are the multi-tool of saws, capable of performing diverse tasks ranging from cutting and grinding t...
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The Best Weed Eater Heads to Repair Your Tool
Weed eater heads see a lot of abuse. Spinning at thousands of RPMs, bumping against the pavement, and plunging deep i...
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The Best Gas Hedge Trimmers for Maintaining Your Landscape
Hedges and bushes are assets to any home’s landscaping, providing much-needed privacy around patios and along propert...
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The Best Gas Chainsaws
Gas chainsaws have a reputation: they’re loud and sometimes hard to use. However, we've found that some of the best g...
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The Best Compact Circular Saws Tested in 2023
The best compact circular saws have balance, output, and ergonomics that match the work being performed, whether it's...
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The Best Chainsaw for Cutting Firewood for Your Home
Whether for cutting up downed trees for firewood, cleaning up after a bad storm, or doing some pruning around the yar...
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The Best Bench Sanders of 2023
Bench sanders are designed to sand down large surfaces quickly and easily, so you can finish a woodworking project fa...
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The Best Siding Nailers of 2023
Siding helps protect the structure of your home, adds an extra layer of insulation that can lower your energy bill, a...
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The Best Coping Saws for Cutting Molding
A coping saw is a handy tool for DIY woodworkers and professional carpenters alike. The standard coping saw employs a...
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The Best Chainsaw Chaps to Wear While Operating Power Tools
A chainsaw is one of the most dangerous tools you can use, as kickbacks or slips can bring the chain into contact wit...
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The Best Benchtop Jointers of 2023
Instead of throwing warped or uneven wood into the scrap bin, DIYers could benefit from equipping their workshop with...
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The Best Band Saws of 2023
A sturdy band saw makes rip cuts like a table saw, crosscuts like a miter saw, and reduces the thickness of a board l...
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The Best Drill Bits for Metal Tested in 2023
Home improvement centers often dedicate an entire aisle to drill bits, which come in a plethora of types and sizes fo...
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The Best Bench Grinders of 2023
Many household and DIY projects require bladed tools or machines, whether it’s mowing the lawn or chiseling some wood...
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The Best Finish Nailers
Few power tools can save time like a finish nailer. These handy tools replace the arduous act of driving nails into f...
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The Best Electric Pressure Washers Tested in 2023
An electric pressure washer is an excellent piece of equipment because it produces dramatic cleaning results. It can ...
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The Best Battery Chainsaws Tested in 2023
Most of us associate chainsaws with the earsplitting growl of a 110-decibel motor. Thanks to quantum leaps of innovat...
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The Best Hearing Protection Tested in 2023
If you spend time operating power tools and machinery, you’re undoubtedly making a racket in the process. While most ...
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The Best Power Tool Sets for Your Needs and Budget, Tested
When you find yourself in need of some new power tools, consider buying an entire corded or cordless tool combo kit t...
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Solved! What Is an Impact Driver?
Q: When shopping for the right tool for the job, I see so many choices. Cordless drill, hammer drill, and impact driv...
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The Best Palm Sanders Tested in 2023
The finishing touches on a woodworking project can transform decent work into stunning craftsmanship. Using just the ...
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The Best Chainsaws Tested in 2023
Landscapers and lumberjacks, whether pros or DIYers, need reliable chainsaws for maintenance, cleanup, and cutting fi...
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The Best Hammer Drills
A hammer drill is a multipurpose tool that bores holes, drives screws, and drills into stone, brick, metal, and other...
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The Best Drill Bits Tested in 2023
When one is assembling a tool kit for home improvement, maintenance, and construction projects, one of the first item...
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The Best Cordless Drills for DIYers
With many of today's tools running on powerful, long-lasting batteries, DIYers aren't limited by the length of a cord...
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What's the Difference? Snow Blower vs. Snow Thrower
Today’s snow removal machines make quick work of clearing the white stuff from driveways and sidewalks—saving your ba...
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The 12 Best Tools Powered by Batteries
Don't let tangled cords get in the way of your home projects. These innovative tools help you get the job done all while running on battery power.
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Bob Vila's 14 Best Tips for Drilling
Every homeowner encounters a bit of drilling sooner or later in their list of projects—whether that's installing curt...
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Solved! How Long Does Gas Last?
Q: I have a gas lawn mower and a gas generator, and I worry that the gas in those tanks has been in there too long. D...
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How to Use a Chainsaw
The chainsaw—a portable power tool that cuts wood via a fast-moving chain that rotates around a guide bar—can make sh...
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How To: Cut Cement Board
Do-it-yourself types depend on cement backer board for numerous projects, including tiled walls, flooring, and even c...
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9 Handy Uses for Your Cordless Drill/Driver
Some folks swear by their wet saws for cutting tile, while others couldn’t bear to part with their trim router. But there's at least one power tool that any DIYer...
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Finishing Sanders
Names like orbital sander, pad sander, and oscillating sheet sander are used to identify finishing sanders. You'll fi...
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The Shaper
For those woodworkers for whom a molded edge, a contoured decorative curve, is the difference between a proper job an...
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The Thickness Planer
The planer is a tool for woodworkers who require large quantities of planed stock and who elect to buy it rough cut. ...
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Radial-Arm Saw
There are always ongoing debates within a universe of people who are committed to their work. One such argument among...
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Jigsaw
The jigsaw resembles the band saw in that the workpiece is presented to the blade atop a small table (nine inches by ...
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Tilting Arbor Saw
For many woodworkers, the single most important workshop tool is the table saw. Though it is most often referred to b...
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Table and Radial Saws
One of the crowning achievements of many do-it-yourselfers is to purchase a stationary bench power tool. Unless you'r...
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Pneumatic Nailers for Homeowners
Pneumatic nailers, known as nail guns, have changed the way builders work, and are as common on the job site nowadays...
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How To: Clean Your Power Tools
Like everything with moving parts—your car, your computer, your body—your power tools will last longer and work bette...
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Top Tips for Using a Floor Sander
Use a floor sander effectively in order to complete your hardwood refinishing project more quickly and easily.
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Why Every DIYer Needs a Thickness Planer
The thickness planer is not the most versatile tool in your arsenal. In fact, it really only does one thing: it plane...
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Protective Gear
There's nothing hard about wearing safety goggles or earplugs or a respirator when they are needed. The cost for such...
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Everything You Need to Know About How to Sharpen a Spade Bit
Spade bits, it seems, are always encountering nails, at least in the kinds of rough drilling chores that renovation w...
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Removing a Hazardous Tree
A large rotted tree is removed for safety reasons.
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Building Planter Boxes
Bob Ryley is in the garage workshop building a planter box for the sunroom.
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Sanding Wood Floors
In the sunroom, Howard Brickman is at work sanding the floors.
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Home Technology Update
Bob meets up with Tim Woods (of the Internet Home Alliance) in the basement of the Quechee home to hear about the progress made integrating the connected home tec...
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Skylight and Gable Window Installation
Bob goes up to the attic of the Victorian project house, where an ODL tubular skylight is being installed. Also, Bob looks back at the installation of windows on ...
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Installing a Brick Walkway and Porch Lighting, and Milling the Railings and Balusters
Contractors put in the brick walkway. Forester Moulding and Lumber replicates the porch railings and balusters. Also, new security and sprinkler systems are insta...
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Wood Floor Repair
Bob and homeowner Gavin repair and refinish a 75-year-old oak floor. Because the new patch floor panels have a different thickness from the original, a belt sande...
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Removing Trees from the Project Site
Bob joins contractor Bob Ryley and the tree removal specialist to discuss clearing the site. Special tips on chainsaw use and safety are provided.
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Building a Medicine Cabinet
Bob helps contractor Bob Ryley hand-craft a medicine cabinet using a radial arm saw, Dado blade, router, screws, and carpenter's glue.
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