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

Original Air Date: Week of December 8, 2005

Landscaping contractor Roger Cook helps a pair of homeowners tame an overgrown privet hedge with some "rejuvenation pruning." Then, plumbing and heating expert Richard Trethewey helps a homeowner install a laundry sink in the basement of her new townhouse. Together, they run the copper pipes for the water supply, make the new PVC drain connection, and connect the plumbing vent.

Viewer Tips
Landscaping contractor Roger Cook helps a pair of homeowners get control of a privet hedge that has grown to be over 10 feet tall. He recommends "rejuvenation pruning" to reduce its overall size and allow more sunlight to reach the inside of the hedge. Roger begins on the sunny side of the hedge, using bypass loppers to remove some branches growing away from the main stems. This makes small holes for sunlight to reach the inside. Using bypass hand-pruners, Roger then tapers the hedge, making it narrower at the top. This will allow more sunlight to get into the base and will help to shed snow from the top of the hedge during the winter months.

Where to Find It
Step ladders manufactured by: Lynn Ladder & Scaffolding Co., Inc.
800-596-6717

Some of the pruning tools were manufactured by:
Fiskars

Installing a new basement laundry sink
Plumbing and heating contractor Richard Trethewey helps a homeowner install a laundry sink in the basement of her new townhouse. First, he explains that the sink's drain must be higher than the main drainpipe so that gravity will allow water to drain freely. The main drainpipe is a little too high, so Richard puts concrete blocks underneath the sink to raise it up. He then cuts into the main drain line and installs a fitting that will receive both the pipe coming from the sink's drain and a pipe leading to a vent. After cutting and gluing together all of the PVC drain pipes, Richard installs the sink's faucet. He then cuts into the copper water supply lines and installs new shut-off valves that will supply hot and cold water to the sink's faucet. He then uses steel-braided hoses to make the final connections between the supply valves and the faucet.

Where to Find It
The "Utilatub" laundry sink was manufactured by:
Mustee & Sons, Inc.
Laundry sinks and all of the other materials needed for this project are available at your local home center or plumbing supply house.

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

Building a raised garden bed with landscape timbers, clearing a bathtub drain. … more

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