Ask This Old House

Kevin

Today on "Ask This Old House"...

Jenn

Well, Sarah from Massachusetts wrote in, and she has this eyesore of a wall. Loves the patio and plantings around it, but was wondering how she could dress it up.

Mark

We'll reface this concrete wall...

Jenn

With a beautiful natural stone.

Mark

So, this is that great Connecticut fieldstone. Obviously, it's cut thin.

Richard

And I'll take you through the step-by-step of an installation of a garbage disposal. Now, on drain, waste, and vent, they measure it from the inside diameter.

I.D. Richard

The I.D. That's 1 1/2 inch. On tubular, it is on the...

Groans

Richard

...outside diameter.

Kevin

O.D. That would drive me crazy.

Richard

Oh, yes. Okay, those are both called 1 1/2 inch.

Kevin

That's not fair.

Tom

Hi, Elayne.

Elayne

Hi, Tommy. Welcome to Nashville.

Tom

Thank you. This is home of country music.

Elayne

Well, do you love country music?

Tom

I'm a big country music fan.

Elayne

Well, you're in the right place.

Tom

I heard that. And I like your house.

Elayne

Thank you so much. We love it, too. It was built in 1918, and I live here with my husband and my two boys.

Tom

Oh,

great. Elayne

And that's actually

what I e-mailed you about. Tom

Alright, well, let's see what you have.

Elayne

So, my boys are 10 and 4, and they love to play here.

Tom

Oh, in this side yard?

Yeah. Tom

Well, this is nice. It has a gate, and you're away from the traffic.

Elayne

It's kind of perfect for them, but there is something with the door that I'd like to show you.

Tom

Okay. This door right here?

Elayne

Yes. It opens right onto the living room.

Tom

Oh, it's nice. Alright, so what's the problem?

Elayne

Well, I love a lot of things about the door, how it kind of matches the house. And I think it might be original, even. But right now, it's kind of hard for me to hear the boys when they're out there, and I'd love to keep a better eye on them.

Tom

Yeah. So, what do you want to do?

Elayne

I was thinking about replacing it with a Dutch door.

Tom

Oh, a Dutch door. So, you want to keep the top open when the boys are outside playing?

Elayne

Yeah, I think it'd be really nice.

Tom

Well, you can actually buy Dutch doors, which means we'd have to take the whole unit out and replace it with a new one. But I really like the character of this door. I like the glass at the top, the inset panels, the stiles and rails, and this hardware. You know, what about if we took this door and we cut it right here and made it a Dutch door?

Elayne

I would love that.

Tom

Alright. Well, let's get some tools, and we can get started.

Elayne

Great!

Tom

Alright. We've got our work station set up outside to keep the mess outside.

Elayne

I appreciate that.

Tom

Well, most of it, anyway. Okay, so, now, I've marked the door

where we're gonna cut it. Elayne

Sure.

Tom

Now, your door has two hinges. We need to add two more hinges. So I'm gonna take a hinge and trace around the outside, and that will be where I mortise it on the door.

Elayne

Great.

Tom

And then the bottom. And now I'll just chisel it out.

Elayne

So, how do you know how deep to chisel?

Tom

Right now, I'm estimating the thickness of the hinge. So I don't want to go any deeper than that. I'm cutting the grain of the wood so that when I chisel out these little pieces, I don't want this part to splinter off.

Elayne

Oh, looks perfect.

Tom

Okay. That's it right there. Alright, now I'll chisel the next one down. Okay, so, now that I've mortised for the hinges on the door, the next thing I want to do is I want to install the hinges on the door. Now we can trace and mortise the hinges on the door jamb. Now, we added two hinges to the door and we want all the hinges to match, so we're gonna replace your existing hinges with two new ones. Your old hinge is much thicker than the new hinge.

Elayne

Oh,

right. Tom

So what we need to do is put a filler in behind it to bring it flush. This is just a scrap piece of cardboard. Okay. So, now what we're gonna do is we're actually gonna cut the door right down the center of this stile right here.

Exciting. Tom

Yeah. Now, I look at this dead bolt right here, and I really don't like the location of it. Do you use it?

Elayne

No, we don't. We have another one on the jamb.

Tom

Oh, okay. So we can take this out and patch it?

Elayne

Mm-hmm.

Tom

We'll use a plug from the hole saw to fill the dead bolt hole. We use polyurethane glue for the plug, which is water-activated. We'll fill the mortise on the side of the door with wood glue and a Dutchman. Okay, so, now the polyurethane glue has dried, and it's holding that plug in really good.

Elayne

Wow, look how much that expanded.

Tom

Well, that's the benefit of that -- It expands, and it will hold whatever you're trying to glue right in there. Alright. Both patches are in, on the face and on the side, and the door is sanded.

Elayne

Once we paint this, you won't even be able to tell.

Tom

No, it should blend right in.

Elayne

Does that mean we're ready for the big cut?

Tom

Not quite yet. If I cut the door now, that means it'll have a gap on the center of the door the thickness of the blade, and that will let air in and out. We don't want that to happen. So what I need to do is cut two wedge fillers that are gonna go in that center. Alright. Here's our two pieces. We have a taper on the top of this piece and a taper on the bottom of this piece. They'll go in that center section of the door and fit like that. Now when you open the top door and you bring it in, it'll separate the two and create a little bit of a gap. As they close, the gap will become tight, sealing the air out. Now I have to cut the space in the door this thick. So, our center piece will go in like this, right in the door.

Great. Tom

We'll attach this piece to the underside of the top section, then hang the door and see how it fits. I'll get the door up where it goes, if you want to put the hinge pins in.

Elayne

Great. So exciting.

Tom

Okay. That's good. Okay, good. Now the next one. Good. Now we'll get the bottom on. Now let's see how it fits.

Elayne

Oh, wow. This is great.

Tom

Alright, that's pretty good. Now let's close the top and see what we have. You see we still have a gap right there. So now we can attach the filler to the bottom section of the door and then fine-tune the fit. Okay. We were able to turn your door into a Dutch door.

Elayne

Wonderful.

Tom

All you have to do is paint it.

Elayne

Sure!

Tom

Now, I've installed a barrel latch right here so when you unlock it, you can just open the top and close the bottom. And now you can hear your boys playing in the yard.

Elayne

This is so great. Thank you so much, Tommy. And thank you for coming to Nashville.

Tom

It was my pleasure.

Kevin

Okay, pal. I'll take two 45s, a "P," and one --

Laughs

Richard

Get your fittings here!

Laughing

Kevin

Look at you. What, are you swapping -- selling stuff here?

Richard

Well, I thought we would talk about doing a project that people might tackle, which is actually to install a disposer into their kitchen sink.

Kevin

People love them, so if you can help them get them in there, they're gonna take you up --

Richard

They need a little bit of courage. Alright, so, we have this sink set up here. You know, a standard kitchen sink without a disposer -- got a basket strainer right here and a straight tailpiece here. If we now hang this disposer from right here, the center of the drain moves from this point over to this point.

Kevin

'Cause that's the outlet from the disposal right there.

Richard

That's right. So we got to think about how do we make the connections from right here -- let's call this point A -- to point B right here where it goes down into the wall

and down into the city sewer. Kevin

Gotcha.

Richard

Okay? So, it's really just a question of looking at some of the parts and pieces you're gonna find in the plumbing aisle at a home center

or at a plumbing wholesaler. Kevin

Okay.

Richard

So, here's our exit point right here. And now, everything between right here and our trap is done in standard Schedule 40 PVC -- drain, waste, and vent.

Okay. Richard

Okay? So, we've got a trap right here. And on this side, everything on this side is called the sewer side of the system.

Kevin

That's all going out of the house.

That's right. Kevin

It's after the P-trap.

Okay. Richard

And it's done this way. So, between this point and this point, we're gonna have a trap. And then it's a question of, what fittings do we have available to us to make these angles? And so, here you can see a standard 90-degree elbow. Here's one that is a elbow, but it's got a street connection, so it would fit into another fitting.

Kevin

Oh,

yeah. Richard

This one's 60 degrees. This one's 45 degrees. This is 45 street. This is 22. Now, the combination of all these parts and pieces lets you sort of navigate your way to get between point A and point B.

Kevin

I gotcha, and those are all -- I'm looking at them right there. Those are all glue joints. That's all traditional PVC

that I expect to see. Richard

That's right. And then a couple of things on couplings right here. This is the standard coupling. That's terrific. Don't forget to also maybe get one of these, which is a repair coupling. In a tight, little space, they're really handy to be able to let you go into it here and then bring it back and glue it together.

Kevin

And this is gonna be your sort of fudge. This is gonna give you an extra inch here or there, put your things together. Gotcha.

Richard

So, now, selections of traps. We're putting a disposer in. Sooner or later, the disposer -- Put enough garbage down there, it means the drain might need to be cleared on the sewer side. So I love seeing this, a cleanout plug right here that would let you bring a snake right in here to go this way.

Kevin

Wrench that off, open it up, and you're good.

Richard

This is another one with a loosening nut right here that would let you drop this and run the snake this way. Here's what we're seeing people doing nowadays, and this is -- Look at the difference in the thickness right here.

Kevin

Schedule 40, not Schedule 40.

Richard

This is just regular tubular.

Yeah. Richard

Okay. And then, you could just go with this. This is fine, but if I did this, I'd also like to put a cleanout in right here to still think about the service in the future, okay?

Kevin

So, as I look at these right here, all acceptable, but you must have a favorite. Which, like --

Richard

I still like a cleanout plug when I can get it.

Kevin

Real easy, right? Accessible and --

Richard

And this is not bad, either, okay? Now, we need to transition from this trap to tubular, another form of 1 1/2 inch. But it's not the same.

Kevin

Of course not. It should be.

Richard

In plumbing, you would think that 1 1/2 inch would be 1 1/2 inch. Now, on drain, waste, and vent, they measure it from the inside diameter.

I.D. Richard

The I.D. That's 1 1/2 inch. On tubular, it is on the...

Groans

Richard

...outside diameter.

Kevin

O.D. That would drive me crazy.

Richard

Oh, yes. Okay, those are both called 1 1/2 inch.

Kevin

That's not fair.

Richard

And there's one more thing. This looks like that. What do you think that is?

Kevin

Well,

it's smaller. Richard

That's another size. That's 1 1/4 inch. Now, that's gonna be used in lavatories, in bathrooms under sinks. This is in a kitchen. But you'll grab the wrong thing in the aisle, you'll get all the way home, and you'll come back for this one.

Kevin

Job security for plumbers, right there.

Confusing us laymen. Richard

Alright, these all go together with compression nuts and gaskets, and whatever you need to get that last mile from the outlet of the trap to right here. That's point A. It goes to point B.

Kevin

Let's go to point C, get this thing going.

Richard

Alright, so, there's always a little water in the trap. You want to take it down carefully. I got a bucket underneath. Sometimes these are so rusted on, you have to heat them up with a torch to make this nut melt. But this is a lot easier. Kevin, why don't you dig out some putty, and let's start thinking about mounting the disposal? And just hold against me.

Kevin

Yeah.

Richard

Now I can tighten up these screws. It makes a fabulous connection to the underside of the sink.

Kevin

That's a beautiful thing.

Richard

Can you just pass me that saw, Kevin?

Kevin

Yep.

Richard

The old work is in the way before I can hang the disposer. I'm not gonna reuse any of this stuff. Pretty ingenious, and this will help give you a little bit of leverage. Use a screwdriver. So, now, why don't you grab me a 45 and a 22, and let's play around with it?

Kevin

You want a street, though?

Richard

Actually, let's try a street 45. Great call. Okay. So, now that looks a little too long this way and a little too -- It's not long enough this way, okay? So give me the 22.

I don't have a street 22. Richard

No, just a regular 22. They never come in a street.

Kevin

Oh, you're just gonna use a little straight-y?

Richard

You can cut it for me if you want. Now, the last thing is to put a properly installed electrical outlet in, ground-fault circuit interrupted. Many times, you're gonna find electricity in there, 'cause many times, the dishwasher's next door.

Yep. Richard

But once you get that switch in, here's a great thing to add. See the box right here?

Kevin

Mm-hmm.

Richard

It connects with a small tube to an air switch.

Disposal whirs

Not bad. Kevin

Music to my ears.

Laughs

Kevin

That's great,

Richard. Richard

Grind.

Kevin

Nice job. Well done. Oh, boy. Look at this brain trust. Something's going on outside.

Jenn

Something good is going on.

That's right. Always. Kevin

What are we looking at?

Jenn

Well, Sarah from Massachusetts wrote in, and she has this eyesore of a wall. Loves the patio and plantings around it, but was wondering how she could dress it up.

Kevin

I can see why, right? I mean, the brick patio looks great. Are those cobbles in the back? So that stands out as sort of the sore thumb. So, thoughts on dressing it up?

Mark

Good way to put it.

Jenn

So, on the cheaper end of things, I think stain or stucco. You could apply that, it's easy, and it would just dress up this surface.

Mark

Yeah. Stain I like because it gets absorbed into the material, so it's gonna stay, and it's gonna protect. Paint -- never,

ever paint. Kevin

No paint on these?

Mark

No way. Water gets behind that paint, it's gonna pop. We're gonna have a mess.

Right. Kevin

Okay.

Mark

So I kind of had a little bit of a vision -- stone.

Stone. Mark

Veneer.

Kevin

Oh,

a stone veneer. Mark

Yeah.

Kevin

Oh, so apply -- Well, you got brick down there, you got cobble there, so it would actually fit.

Jenn

The wall's in great shape. Sometimes you would have to take a wall down, but this, I think, would be perfect for a veneer.

Mark

Oh, this is a strong wall. I can just tell by looking at it. A stone veneer on top of that is gonna make it a 10.

Kevin

So, key question -- Who's going?

You -- Oh. Mark

Ohh!

Oh -- Mark

Me or you?

Both. Jenn

Let's do it together.

Mark

What do you say, Jenn?

Jenn

Alright,

let's go. Mark

Alright.

Jenn

Wow, this is really a great, little patio nook. I like how it's nestled into the side of the yard here.

Mark

Oh, I love this whole -- this whole area, but this is the wall that we were talking about.

Jenn

Ah! So, okay. So, this is what's gonna get the veneer, right?

Exactly. Jenn

Alright. So, what are you thinking for materials?

Mark

We have basically two choices. We can do a synthetic stone, or we can do a natural stone veneer, which is probably what you and I would like the best.

Absolutely. Mark

The manufactured stone, if you will -- It's inexpensive, it's easy to put up, goes quickly, which is always an advantage cost-wise.

Jenn

And it is the rage.

Mark

It is the rage these days.

Jenn

So, you know what my vote's gonna be.

Thin stone veneer. Jenn

Thank you, sir.

Mark

Alright. I'm with you on that.

Jenn

Alright. So, we're gonna apply the pieces individually, and then how are we gonna finish it off?

Mark

So, some people like to take that stone, and they like to go from this side and go all the way over

and then down to that side. Jenn

Okay.

Mark

The only thing I don't like about that, the only thing I hate about that, is it has open joints. Open joints to the weather, eventually get under that stone, pop it up. So what I was thinking --

Jenn

'Cause the water is gonna travel in, and when it freezes, it could pop it out?

Mark

Freeze/thaw up in this area. So, it'll go quick, too. It'd be one, two winters, and then we have problems. So, in this instance, what I think we should do is a cap. Again, we do have choices with material. I like the bluestone for this space, only because of the color tone. The softness of that product on your eye might -- What do you think about that?

Jenn

I'm a fan of using all natural products, so I think that'll look really good together. So, if we place bluestone across the top, it's gonna provide another place to sit, a nice, clean place to put a drink, and it'll finish it off as a perfect cap. We've got some work to do, so let's get started.

Mark

Let's go,

Jenn. Jenn

Alright.

Mark

The first thing we want to do is clean up the wall. We're gonna start at the top with the grinder. We're gonna get it right down to the raw concrete to make sure we have good adhesion for our cap. And then we're gonna continue down the wall and do the same thing to both sides. We're not gonna grind down all the way flat. We're actually gonna use some of the low spots for adhesion.

Jenn

Alright. Alright. Got a few more pieces.

Mark

Alright,

great. Jenn

I love this fieldstone. I love the color and the texture.

Mark

Right. So, this is that great Connecticut fieldstone that we were talking about. Obviously, it's cut thin, which is what we wanted. You can actually see the sawn edge.

Jenn

Right, right. And so this is the side that will go down?

Mark

That's right.

Alright. Mark

So, all we're gonna do is we're gonna take our notch trowel. We're gonna take the material, which, by the way, is a modified mortar. For intent and purpose, all that is is there's glue in the mortar. And that's when we're gonna take our margin trowel. We'll actually back-butter the stone.

Thank you. Jenn

Mm-hmm. And having the glue mixed in is really gonna help that vertical surface so it sticks.

Mark

Very important. The regular mortar, a type N or a type S, does not have the "stickability" that the modified mortar does. Today was supposed to be a nice, sunny day.

Yeah. Mark

It's cloudy. The temperatures are down. So every time that we try to put a stone on, you walk away, you might see a sag,

right. Jenn

It slumps. Yeah.

Mark

So, that's exactly what these chips are for. So, as long as we chip up, we know this modified mortar is gonna set when it's supposed to. A little bit longer, but --

Jenn

And so, once it's set, we pull them out.

Mark

We'll pull them out. You'll never see them.

Like this one here... Jenn

Yep.

Mark

...that's ready to go. I have one over here. Down here, ready to go. Okay, now it's time to joint up the work. Lovely.

Jenn

Set her down?

Mark

Set her down. Just wiggle it down into place. Look at that. That's the pitch we want, but maybe a little too much. Can you give me a bang right there? Another one. Another one. Alright, that's great. That's what we want.

Jenn

Look at that.

Let me just check... Jenn

Mm-hmm.

Mark

...my overhang. Buck and a half there. Buck and a half there. Buck and a half there. Inch and a half there. So,

looking good. Jenn

Excellent. That looks so good.

Mark

Alright, now we have some cleaning up to do, Jenn.

Thanks for the help. Jenn

Good. Alright.

Kevin

Next time on "Ask This Old House"...

Heath

I'll show you how to add outdoor lighting to your deck.

Tom

Have you ever wondered what power sander to use if you have a job to do? I'll explain how they work and which one to choose.

Mauro

And I'll go over the basics of power-washing vinyl siding.

Kevin

And we'll share with you a few more home inspection nightmares.

Jenn

Well, it looks like there was a gutter there, but now there's a fern growing out, and someone's bed could be up up top.

Richard

That's a procrastinator.