Preferred brand of tools?

What brand(s) of tools do you prefer?  While I was getting my work bench organized, I noticed that I tended to own a lot of Craftsman tools and I was wondering what brands other people liked.

May 26, 2009

3 comments  |  87 views

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DIY Workbench

After looking at the various workbench offerings at Sears, Home Depot, and Lowes, I decided to go DIY.  I knew I could make a better, more modular workbench myself by reusing parts of my existing setup and buying off the shelf components from the hardware store.  I inherited my old workshop from the previous owner of my house and he built it out of old laminate closet storage units and three bathroom vanities.  It was bulky, inefficient and cro » READ MORE

May 25, 2009

2 comments  |  1069 views

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I want a new workbench

I'd like to get a new workbench for my garage.  The bench I've been using for the past four years is a leftover from the previous owner of my house and is a fairly sturdy DIY version but with limited storage and power.  He/she took three particle board vanities and screwed them together, then fastened a thick sheet of MDF across the top of all three.

I'd like to have one with a nice wood top, an open shelf and some drawers underneath, and a pe » READ MORE

May 12, 2009

4 comments  |  324 views

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Evolv 11 in 1 multi tool

I went to Sears today to buy a 2 gal wet-dry vac and while I was there I saw a new line of tools called Evolv. They seemed to have an design edge and improved ergonomics over other tool lines I've seen, with a non-Craftsman brand color scheme (green/grey) and plain brown corrugated cardboard packaging.   Very earth tone-ish, which I liked.  I was curious about them so I checked out all of the tools and decided to give this 11 in 1 multi tool a tr » READ MORE

April 28, 2009

4 comments  |  263 views

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What happened to ReadyMade?

What happened to ReadyMade?  The site hasn't changed in forever, the online store is gone, and there is just a tidbit of news on the forums about the magazine HQ moving from San Francisco to Des Moines.

March 21, 2009

6 comments  |  474 views

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Added Extra Insulation Around Ducts

Last month I finally took care of a project I've been meaning to do since I moved into my house--wrapping my ducts with more insulation. 

The ducts in my crawlspace are insulated on the inside and there wasn't a whole lot of insulation in them, so they were rather energy inefficient.  To correct that, I bought a tube of duct mastic, some metal foil tape, and several rolls of R-6 duct wrap from the Home Depot and spent a few afternoons sealing » READ MORE

November 22, 2008

2 comments  |  357 views

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Oikos Green Building Library

I've been to all sorts of green building and energy efficiency websites, but none have really compared to the Oikos Green Building Library.  I stumbled across the site by accident one day and couldn't believe how in-depth and useful the articles are.  The Oikos library is not of those sparse "Green & Eco-Chic Living" or "10 Easy Ways to Go Green" sites, it is instead is geared towards homeowners and builders who look for and understand more techn » READ MORE

October 15, 2008

0 comments  |  60 views

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Recycle CFL Bulbs at any Home Depot

In case you didn't know, you can recycle old CFL bulbs at any Home Depot store.  This news is a bit old (see the pdf below for details), but I was reminded of it when I was in my local HD today and they had a new, very prominent and colorful station setup at the entrance of the store where you could drop off used CFLs and Rechargeable Batteries. 

I thought that was pretty cool.  Safe disposal for these bulbs always been way more diffcult than » READ MORE

October 13, 2008

0 comments  |  172 views

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New Water Heater

My water heater sprung a leak over the weekend, right around the seal where the pressure relief valve connects to the tank.  It was 12 years old and the thermostat was flaky anyway so I decided it was time to replace it.  After a few calls to the hardware store, plumbers and the local gas utility, I learned that the direct vent natural gas model I needed is a special order item at most hardware stores (except at Home Depot, which had some i » READ MORE

October 09, 2008

0 comments  |  113 views

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Choosing the right CFL bulb color

Wired posted a nice CFL bulb color selection guide to help pick the right CFL bulb for each room/task.  It's a nice and simple guide, but  I will add that I don't agree with their advice on bathrooms.  I use 2700K bulbs in both my kitchen and bathroom and they work fine.  I got rid of incandescents from every room in my house 2-3 years ago.  I don't think I could go back--the energy savings and reduced heat in each light fixture and lamp are well » READ MORE

July 10, 2008

0 comments  |  413 views

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