Getting city approval: digital applications vs. old-school paperwork Man, I hear you on the portal timeouts. Last year I spent a whole Saturday scann...

I hear you on the mosquito hotel—my first attempt at a dry well basically turned into a breeding ground too. I ended up running a flex pipe out to the...

Ha, I totally get where you’re coming from. I tried using recycled denim insulation once and the inspector acted like I was building a fort out of old...

Locked Out Drama—What Would You Do? Can’t help but laugh a little remembering the time my cousin “upgraded” to a fancy keypad lock, then forgot the c...

I’ve been there—thought I’d just tighten a loose pipe under the sink once and ended up with water spraying everywhere. Now, I do a quick check every f...

Foam mishaps—ha, been there more times than I'd like to admit. I still have a hoodie in the garage with a permanent foam blob on the sleeve from my fi...

My strawberries do the exact same thing. Last summer, I found one sprouting right through a tiny crack in the concrete steps leading to our back porch...

Bathroom renos are definitely a good starting point—less intimidating, usually. I remember my first plumbing DIY was swapping out a bathroom sink fauc...

Haha, hardwood floors definitely have moods—mine get temperamental with weather changes too. I've actually had decent luck using black tea (cooled, ob...

I hear ya on the quick mid-season check, but honestly, I've found that if you build it right and use quality materials from the get-go, once a year is...