Mold and mildew growth have become a top concern in homes because of the health problems they can trigger. Remediation companies make their living removing the stuff, but prevention beats cleanup every time. One tool in the prevention toolbox is mold-resistant drywall, a gypsum panel product sold by every major wallboard manufacturer and often pitched […]
Caulk belongs in every repair kit because it closes the gaps that water, air, and pests use to get inside. Choosing the right compound matters as much as choosing the right machine for a construction task, and the same discipline that goes into selecting the right backhoe loader applies to a tube of sealant: the
Building codes frequently dictate which drywall goes on which wall, and fire-rated board is one of the most common requirements. Type X and Type C drywall show up in garage separations, furnace rooms, and other places where a fire could spread quickly. The material slows the passage of fire so occupants have time to escape,
Walk down the insulation aisle of any home center and the big sellers are easy to spot: bales of fiberglass, stacks of rigid foam boards, and dense rolls of mineral wool. Sitting beside them is a thin, shiny roll that looks like bubble wrap faced with aluminum foil. Reflective foil insulation is compact, clean to
Grout does two jobs in a tiled bathroom: it locks tiles in place and seals the joints between them. Because grout is porous and usually light colored, it is also the first surface in the room to show soap scum, hard water deposits, and mildew. Left alone, stained joints turn into cracked joints, and cracked
The driveway is one of the largest exposed surfaces on a residential property, and it takes more punishment than almost any other part of the house: repeated vehicle weight, tire heat, freeze-thaw cycles, and deicing salts. A driveway surface has to carry that load for decades, which is why the choice between materials comes down
Grout and caulk both fill joints in tile work, but they do different jobs. Grout is a cement-based material that locks tiles together and keeps water out of stable joints. Caulk is a flexible sealant for gaps where materials move. Choosing the wrong one shows up fast: rigid grout cracks where the house flexes, and
Kitchen and bathroom counters need to be tough, waterproof, durable, attractive, and affordable, and few materials balance those five demands as well as laminate. Laminate countertops had their heyday in the 1950s and 1960s, when postwar suburbs needed cheap, easily produced surfaces, and they faded from showrooms as granite and quartz took over. The material
Drywall is the default wall and ceiling surface in most modern homes because it is cheap, fast to install, and easy to repair. A standard 4-by-8-foot half-inch panel costs a fraction of plaster or wood paneling, and a two-person crew can hang an entire room in a day. The trade-off is that the material is
Quartz and laminate countertops used to sit at opposite ends of the kitchen spectrum. Laminate carried a bargain reputation that dated back to the 1960s, while quartz was marketed as a premium product with a price to match. That divide has narrowed in recent years, and the two materials now compete directly in many remodels.
