Fuses and their different coding can be confusing. They are certainly not as simple as circuit breakers, but after reading this tutorial you will understand the mysteries of fuses and their codes. You'll also see why fuses had a history of being misused and how they developed from having simple Edison bases that looked like a light bulb base, to tamper-proof Rejection bases.

In the tutorial Your Home Fuse Box and Fuses 101 you'll learn about fuse types, base types and even how to convert a fuse into a circuit breaker!

Some house paints, especially alkyd or oil based enamel paints, contain high amounts of VOC's which can be dangerous. There are some alternative paints available that have very low to practically no VOC content. Also there are non-toxic organic paint alternatives you can consider. But beware of the marketing hype! Like "organic" foods a lot of manufacturers use the term "Low VOC" as more marketing hype than truth.

This tutorial Low VOC Interior Paint and Other Healthy Alternative Paints will explain the truth about low VOC paints and what to look for when reading the labels. You'll learn all about the alternatives you have in paint products, and how you can protect your family's health and still have a beautiful home!

Thinking of renovating your basement? If you are you'll need to make sure you have a dry basement which I explain how to achieve in the tutorial Troubleshooting a Wet Basement.

Turning basement space into "lower level" living space is a great way to improve the usefulness of your home. As you see in this blog's photo of my home's basement, lower level spaces can be fun and attractive.

A great website I've found that has some very useful videos on finishing out a basement is called Armchairbuilder.com. This website is a great reference for folks looking to do their own construction for new homes, additions and major repairs. They have a very nice how-to video library on basement finishing including pre-planning, moisture control, bidding to contractors (see also Dealing with Contractors), mechanical, insulation, tiling, carpeting and other aspects of basement renovation.

Celebrate the upcoming Memorial Day holiday on your new refinished wood deckand then enjoy the rest of the summer!

Refinishing a wood deck is a great summer project that will improve your outdoor living space and extend the life of your deck which is a significant investment in your home.

Deck refinishing includes several steps such as:

• inspection,
• basic deck board repair (if needed),
• initial deck board cleaning / brightening,
• deep cleaning with a power washer,
• sanding,
• staining / sealing and
• the celebration BBQ!

There are several tricks and tips I outline for you in How to Refinish a Wood Deck to make short work of this project and get you professional looking results. I'll give you specific product recommendations and lead you through a very detailed and photo packed tutorial of each step in the refinishing process.