Archive

Get out a couple sheets of paper or a white board. At OTB, we experience 3 phases of work requests from people, starting about this time of year.  The “early birds”, either because they want to make sure they are on our schedule or because they put it off too long last year (Feb-Apr); the “OK lets do its”, who have […]

DIY painting tips  As we get into spring and our minds run to freshening things up a bit around our places, one easy thing we can do to put a new face on our home is some painting inside.  This is a great time to do it, before the weather beckons us out to work on […]

There is one person who specializes in knowing how to increase the value of a property: the realtor. They are at ground zero in the housing markets. Everything that has to do with housing involves its worth when the time comes to sell. A repair that is put off becomes a discount at time of […]

I don’t know anyone who says they “like” crawlspaces.  Unless your house is very new, some of the denizens of the darker places have found your crawlspace and made it home, for at least a while.  Our crew jokes about finding ‘freeze-dried’ rodents, but the fact is a crawlspace is a dirty and usually moist […]

Not many other parts of the country prepare for a prolonged rainy season like we do here in the NW. Anyone who has lived here more than 2 years sees the benefits of preparing their property for the wet months to come. There are tasks we can do now which will help in 2 ways: […]

Lawns do more than make your yard look good. They contribute to a healthy ecosystem in your neighborhood. And there are ways to make your lawn green and healthy — naturally and organically. Lawns absorb water, which helps reduce storm runoff and improve water quality. Lawns also have a significant cooling effect, provide oxygen, trap […]

Let’s get real–most builders don’t have time to complete various simulations like illumination levels and shading analyses to determine how to bring in more natural light without losing thermal energy. So here, Kunjan Shah over at Healthy Building Science shares three quick tips to go by when increasing natural light.  

Here in the Pacific Northwest, we’ve been experiencing a very dry and very hot spring and summer.  So it’s more important than ever to take care of your lawn and apply proper mowing techniques. This article from weekendgardener.net provides a great overview of what happens to grass when it’s cut, mowing heights and frequency, and […]

We like this COOL air conditioner you can make at home. It can even be solar powered!  Check out this Geekwire.com article for a brilliant air conditioner hack. Stay cool on the Fourth!

It’s so easy to put off those annoying fixes – a latch that sticks, taking care of a walking washing machine. You’ll see how easily these simple solutions for common household headaches can address a problem. Check out this article at familyhandyman.com for more easy solutions.