Ask This Old House TV

Showing results for "Season 4"
Scan the episodes below and select "more" to get information on products or services you saw on that episode.

Episode #426

Installing a mini-split air conditioning system, what is it?, de-thatching a lawn… more

Episode #425

Cutting ceramic and stone tile, installing a sump pump … more

Episode #424

Replacing an old dishwasher, what is it?, sharpening a wood chisel, using lawn spreaders… more

Episode #423

Replacing an interior "hollow-core" door with a new "solid-core" door, repairing a leaky kitchen faucet… more

Episode #422

Repairing stripped threads on a cast-iron radiator, fixing a grading problem, what is it?, stabilizing a wobbly newel post, refinishing an old cast-iron bathtub… more

Episode #421

Installing an instantaneous water heater, planting trees to save energy, installing cellulose insulation … more

Episode #420

Installing a granite driveway marker, what is it, repairing a hot water radiator system … more

Episode #419

Building a custom radiator cover, installing a steam humidifier in a forced-air heating system … more

Episode #418

Transplanting a white spruce tree, what is it?, extending a staircase handrail … more

Episode #417

Repairing a residential well, repairing a hole in vinyl siding … more

Episode #416

Choosing and using hammers, repairing a pressure-assisted toilet, repairing a plastered wall … more

Episode #415

Installing a low cost in-ground sprinkler system, what is it?, pouring a concrete footing for a deck … more

Episode #414

Installing a radon mitigation system, pruning an apple tree for fruit production… more

Episode #413

Installing a new vinyl floor, what is it?, preventing frozen pipes… more

Episode #412

Washing windows like a pro, what is it?, flushing an electric water heater… more

Episode #411

Snowthrowers, what is it?, where to find it… more

Episode #410

Pruning an overgrown privet hedge, installing a new basement laundry sink … more

Episode #409

Viewer tips, re-shingling a garage roof using asphalt-fiberglass shingles… more

Episode #408

Circular saw 101, what is it?, installing a new outdoor faucet using PEX, cabling an oak tree to prevent splitting… more

Episode #407

Removing and preventing moss, algae and lichen from a roof, what is it?, repairing a leaky water valve, planting shade-tolerant ground cover under a European Beech tree … more

Episode #406

Original Air Date: Week of November 10, 2005

Landscaping contractor Roger Cook helps a young couple build a raised garden bed using composite landscape timbers made from recycled plastic and sawdust. Back in the loft, Roger shows host Kevin O'Connor several other types of landscape timbers, including one that has been pressure-treated with liquid glass. Then, plumbing and heating expert Richard Trethewey helps a homeowner clear a slow-draining bathtub using a plumbing snake.

Building a raised garden bed with landscape timbers
Landscaping contractor Roger Cook helps a pair of homeowners build a raised garden bed for growing vegetables using landscape timbers made from recycled plastic and sawdust. Roger installed wooden stakes to mark the corners of the bed and ran level string lines to establish the bed's outside edges and its finished height. After removing the top layer of grass and digging down for the base timbers, Roger installed the bottom timbers that would sit below grade. He then laid more timbers on top and secured them with 6" timber screws spaced 18 inches apart. Roger then installed 1/2" rebar through the base courses and into the ground to keep them from moving. Additional timbers were then installed until the finished height of the bed was reached; each timber was fastened using more rebar and screws. Afterward, up in the loft, Roger shows some landscape timbers made from other types of materials, including a wooden timber that has been pressure-treated with liquid glass.

Where to Find It
The landscape timbers made from recycled plastic and sawdust used to build raised garden bed are manufactured by:

Trex Company, Inc.
800-289-8739

Trex landscape timbers are available at:
Friend Lumber & Building Centers
781-273-1335 The timber screws are manufactured by:
FastenMaster
800-518-3569

In the loft, Roger showed several other types of landscape timbers:
Plastic Lumber Company
330-762-8989

SmartTimber from Smartware Products
800-883-1673

TimberSil
901-754-5176

XPotential Products
800-863-6619

Clearing a bathtub drain
Plumbing and heating expert Richard Trethewey helps a homeowner clear a bathtub drain that has been draining slowly for the past 13 years. Richard begins with an anatomy lesson of how a "bath waste and overflow" system works. He explains that the best place to insert a snake is through the overflow opening. Richard removes the plate along with the linkage inside. He then takes a snake with a steel cable and runs it down through the overflow opening and down through the trap. Before reinstalling the drain assembly, Richard adjusts the "stopper" so that it allows water to pass freely when the drain's trip-lever is in the "open" position. Later, up in the loft, Richard shows a "drum trap" and explains why a plumbing snake might not work if you have one in your house.

Where to Find It
Plumbing snakes are available at your local home center or plumbing supply house.

Episode #405

Caring for a rose bush, how to steady a wobbly toilet, plugging a basement water leak using hydraulic cement.… more

Episode #404

Repairing a flat wheelbarrow tire, repairing an aluminum rain gutter, viewer tips, installing a thermal expansion tank … more

Episode #403

Installing an under-sink water filter, planting a drought-resistant tree.… more

Episode #402

Quieting creaky stairs, static cling solution, and installing an electric shut-off valve for a washing machine … more

Episode #401

Repairing a mortared stone walkway, patching an oak floor… more