Ask This Old House

Kevin

On "Ask This Old House," our experts travel across the country to answer questions about your house. Today, Jenn will look to nature for inspiration to create a new woodland garden. Then are you dealing with small chips, scratches, or cracks in porcelain? Mauro will show you how to tackle repairs before you have to replace your tile. And we're taking a look at chimneys from the top down to help you understand when your chimney could be in need of a professional repair, on "Ask This Old House."

Jenn

Hi, there, and welcome back to another episode of "Ask This Old House." I'm headed to a new landscape project where the homeowner wrote in asking about how they could have some kind of natural barrier between their home and the road. Got a few plants with me today. I hope he likes them. Hey,

Jon. Jon

Hey. Thanks for coming.

Jenn

It's a busy street here today.

Jon

Yeah, so, as you can see, there's always a lot of tree work going on and a lot of activity in the neighborhood.

Jenn

Right.

Jon

So, when we first bought the house a couple of years ago, we just had all grass in the front yard here, and it went right to the street.

Jenn

Okay.

Jon

And we have two young children, so we wanted to do something to create a little bit of separation between the yard, where they're going to be playing, and the street.

Jenn

Right.

Jon

What I've done so far is, I've just gotten some wood chips from a local arborist and kind of spread them out here to create a garden bed. But from here, I need to actually plant something there, and I don't know what to do there, so that's why I called you for help.

Jenn

I always check the surroundings and the setting, and you have a very naturalized woodland setting. So I think it's screaming for a woodland garden, something with zone-specific plants, meaning what's supposed to be here, native plants that are going to thrive. And then definitely something, understory, that you're not going to compete with these trees.

Jon

Alright,

let's do it. Jenn

Okay. Alright, so, I brought a bunch of different varieties.

Jon

Okay.

Jenn

And I want to show you, and then you can say if you like them or not. Some are deer-resistant. All of them are native. I put this tarp over the top always when you're driving so it doesn't hurt the plants in transport.

Yep. Jenn

So, this first one... This is a Cornus sericea, a red-twig dogwood. As you can see, it's starting to flower right now.

Jon

Yeah, very nice.

Jenn

It's deer-resistant, but it's deciduous, so that means the leaves are going to drop off at the end of the season. But the beauty of this one -- these sticks turn bright red in the winter.

Jon

Alright, great.

Jenn

This will be a great anchor plant throughout. Next plant, we have a Viburnum. This is a Viburnum nudum. It's a winter Viburnum. All Viburnums have these flowers that turn into berries. So, again, great for the wildlife. The fall color on this is spectacular. This will get to be about 8 to 10 feet, so it'll just fill in a big void.

Jon

Okay.

Jenn

So we'll stagger some of those. This one -- it's beautiful. Another Viburnum. This is a cranberry bush Viburnum. Flowers, berries, birds. And these are brilliant red, you know, the fall color on this. But, you know, it's a unique leaf shape. Again, a native plant. Beautiful choice.

Okay. It looks nice. Jenn

If I don't say so myself.

Jon

Yeah, very nice.

Jenn

Let's see. What else? Oak-leaf Hydrangea. This is going to flower around June-time. These beautiful panicles of white. It is in the Hydrangea family. It is a native plant. It's oak-leaf, because you can see it's in the shape of an oak leaf.

Jon

Right, yeah.

Jenn

And this is going to be 6, 8 feet tall. I think we stagger it in with the others, it's going to work perfect. Also, fall color is gorgeous. It's like reds and purples. It's going to be a great contrast out in the garden.

Jon

Alright, great.

Jenn

Last but not least... this is a vernal, witch hazel. Vernal means "spring," so it's going to be one of the first ones to flower for you in the year. And it's going to have a beautiful branching structure and anchor that corner.

Jon

Alright, great. Looks good.

Jenn

Okay, so, I'd like to stage this area first.

Jon

Okay.

Jenn

You can put those two down and grab the other oak-leaf. What I want to accomplish in this area -- just set them up where I think they should go, like, maybe mimicking nature, just some kind of not-organized fashion.

Jon

Okay, so they'll be staggered a little bit?

Yes. Jon

Okay. Good.

I'll get the other oak-leaf. Jenn

Yeah.

Jon

So, these along the back? Okay.

Jenn

Yes. And then scoot that one back more, so not in a straight line. Yep. I've already called an underground-utility-locating service. They mark for gas lines. They mark for electrical lines. So it's a very important service to call. It's a free service. And, lastly, it's the law. Alright, so, let's get started planting. I brought some compost, peat mix, peat-moss mix -- that's for amending the soil -- as well as a starter fertilizer.

Jon

Okay.

Jenn

What we're going to do is individually go to each one, rake back the mulch, dig the hole, plant the plant to the appropriate height, and then rake back only a couple inches of mulch.

Jon

Okay. Sounds good.

Jenn

Okay? So you move the plant. I'll take the tools. So, we usually like to group twice as wide if possible. We might not be able to with tree roots, but we'll see how it goes. You put the compost in. We're going to incorporate it into the hole. Alright. That looks pretty good. So, these are all the roots. I like to tease it. And, so, the purpose of teasing the roots is so they don't grow in the circle like they were growing. You want it to be a couple inches just above the soil. Alright, Jon,

passing the torch. Jon

Thank you.

Jenn

So, here's your watering instructions. Every day for the next couple weeks, watch the weather and move to every other day. You know, if we're going to have a couple 90-degree days, hit it. Your plants will tell you. They'll start drooping, so you'll know they're thirsty. So, I would go for a minute on each one, just ma-- you know, or until it pools underneath and then move on to the next one. Do the whole line, come back, do it again, and then you're done.

Jon

Alright, so a full minute on each plant?

Jenn

Yeah. Or when you see the water puddle around it.

Jon

Okay. Alright,

great. Jenn

Okay? So, what do you think of the whole project?

Jon

I think it looks great. I really like the natural look of it, the way that it's not just in a line, but it's all staggered. And I love that everything's native plants. So it's great. What do you think?

Jenn

Well, I think it's mighty smooth. I think it's going to fit in this whole landscape scenery of a woodland garden. And we got it done, even -- We even beat the tree guys.

Jon

We did, yeah. They're still working away with all their fancy equipment.

Jenn

Exactly. So, it was nice to meet you.

Alright. You too. Jenn

Alright, take care.

Jon

You too.

Kevin

Hey,

Mauro. Mauro

Kevin.

Kevin

So, no painting today, but a little repair?

Mauro

A little repair -- porcelain. You can see it everywhere, especially in bathrooms. You think porcelain is tough, but cracks and chips and scratches can happen.

Kevin

Okay, well, walk me through the process. How would you attack that?

Mauro

Well, first thing we got to do -- lightly sand to make sure all the edges are nice and ready for the patch.

Kevin

Gotcha. What are you using for sandpaper?

Mauro

I'm going to use a 320 sandpaper.

So something very fine. Mauro

Very fine, very nice. Just gentle. Just make sure you break out the edges a little bit.

Kevin

Oh, you're talking seriously gentle, right?

Mauro

Yes. So, you don't want to, you know, sand more than you have to.

Kevin

Okay.

Mauro

Once this is nice and clean, we clean that up. And then I'm going to use the tape.

Kevin

So, I mean, obviously, we've got porcelain here. I'm used to seeing sort of the smaller ones with the gloss. But these big pieces right here, that is definitely porcelain.

So same approach. Mauro

Same approach. But this has this gloss finish on the borders, and this is like a mat finish.

Kevin

Gotcha.

Mauro

It's just going to have one little space between the cracks.

Kevin

So, you are taping to protect from drips and runs and stuff?

Mauro

Absolutely. I don't want anything to drip. The areas ever don't have to touch.

Kevin

Perfect.

Typical painter's tape. Mauro

Painter's tape. And this is very, very thin, so I don't want to create any edges here.

Kevin

Mm-hmm.

Mauro

Press it really well.

There we go. Kevin

Okay.

Mauro

And we got this.

Kevin

So, this is a porcelain patch.

Mauro

This is a porcelain patch. This is like a glaze.

Kevin

And I buy this off the shelf at the home center.

Mauro

You can find them there, yes.

Kevin

Alright, cool.

Mauro

This comes in white, but you have another different colors, just in case you have a different-color tile. But those colors needs to be ordered.

Kevin

So it's like just a really thick paint.

Mauro

Just like a thicker paint.

Kevin

It comes with its own brush. You just want it to -- Are you trying to fill it in, as well?

Mauro

We're trying to fill it in. And at the same time, the color should match really well.

Kevin

So, you said they've got other colors that you can order.

Mauro

Yes.

Kevin

What if grandma's pink-and-avocado tile scheme needs to be repaired? Can I make a mix?

Mauro

You can. If you can find the color that you need, what I do -- I grab a little bit of this oil-based stain, because it's all solvent-based.

Kevin

Mm-hmm.

Mauro

Just drip a little bit, just working on it slowly until you get the desirable color.

Kevin

Okay. So, with stains, I'm thinking I'm going to get sort of the off-white, sort of more brown tones, but if I got to pull out, like, a pink or something or a green, you're thinking I can get that?

Mauro

Then you're going to have to find some pink colors, some pink paint, so...

Kevin

A pink paint would work. Oil.

Oil. Yeah. Kevin

Okay. So, that's going to set up in how long, roughly?

Mauro

This is going to set up in about 30 to 45 minutes. And then you come by, take a look at it. You might have to put one or more than two coats.

Kevin

Okay. Sounds good. So, that's a scratch. Up here, we've got more of a gouge or a divot. Maybe a scale is dropped or thrown onto the bathroom floor in anger or being "calibrated." 15 pounds too heavy.

Mauro

Something that makes your floor --

Kevin

What's the process for something --

Mauro

For this one here, we're going to use the same technique with the tape in here and lightly sand, break out the edges, make sure it's done clean, tape around. But for this, we're going to have to use a putty.

Kevin

Again, home center, off the shelf.

Mauro

Off the shelf, yes. Alright, this one is like a putty. It comes in white, but it also comes in different colors, too.

Kevin

It's not much thicker than the paint. I mean, you can clearly work it with a knife.

Mauro

Yeah, It's a little thicker than that, but not that much.

Kevin

You would be able to buy the putty in a variety of colors, as well?

Mauro

There's different colors also, yes.

Kevin

And would you be able to mix with a little bit of oil stain?

Mauro

Absolutely.

Kevin

How much drying time between coats?

Mauro

This one here dries in about 45 minutes.

Kevin

Okay. And that's when you determine whether or not you need another coat.

Mauro

Absolutely. Come and check and see if you need one or two more.

Kevin

Gotcha. The paint or the paste -- how are they drying?

Mauro

They will dry with a little bit of finish on it, a little bit of gloss.

Kevin

So there'll be a sheen on these when they're dry.

Mauro

Yes.

Kevin

And if I wanted to bring it down...

Mauro

To bring it down, you're gonna have to lightly sand until you get the desirable finish that match closer to the tile.

Kevin

Okay. So you're literally in kind of

the fixing-the-wall stage. Mauro

Absolutely.

Kevin

Building it up, feathering it down.

Mauro

Patching and build it up. Sand it, clean it and paint.

Kevin

It definitely looks like a homeowner-friendly project.

Mauro

Absolutely. It's a very easy DIY. Any homeowner can do it.

Kevin

Beautiful. Alright. Thank you, Mauro.

Mauro

Alright. Thank you.

Kevin

So chimney repair today, huh?

Mark

Right. So I actually know the homeowner, and this is a great situation because they're gonna let us get up there. They wanted us to inspect the chimney.

Kevin

I like the flat roof. Easy to work on. I was surprised walking in to see the whole thing barricaded off. I mean, I know safety is important, but is this overkill?

Mark

Not overkill at all. It's what we need.

It's OSHA compliant. Kevin

Yeah.

Mark

The barricade up top is gonna allow us not to wear a harness.

Kevin

That's nice.

Mark

Which lets us move around a little bit better. The stairs are gonna let us have easy access with equipment, material,

everything we need. Kevin

Better safe than sorry.

Mark

Better safe than sorry is exactly right.

Kevin

Oh, Mark, I do love a flat roof.

Mark

Alright. And this is why you hire a professional to do this. Again, look at the barricade. Safety is paramount.

Kevin

Okay. And here's the subject matter right here.

Mark

This is the subject right here.

Kevin

So this chimney, any chimney, what's a homeowner worried about?

Mark

So water infiltration is always the biggest enemy to any chimney, and there are three spots that water can come in -- top, in through these joints and sometimes the bricks, and the flashing.

Kevin

Let's start with the top. So that little vent thing there tells us that this is not wood burning. This is for some mechanical equipment in the basement.

Mark

Exactly. This is a vent, and it comes with a metal flange. Now, if you look at the chimney behind us over there, Kevin, you'll see that cap is made of concrete. Now, I don't want to do that here because this metal and this brick is not really compatible during the freeze-thaw situation. So what we're gonna do is take this flange, which does have a bevel. So the water is gonna shed and we're gonna use caulking and place it -- glue it down to the brick.

Kevin

So you like this application -- what's being used and the way it's installed?

Mark

I do. The caulking allows for the flexibility.

Kevin

As I look at that one over there, what don't you like about that?

Mark

What I don't like about that is the way they fastened everything. So you're gonna put screws in each corner of that cap, that's gonna go into the concrete. There's gonna be a hole there. That's where the water is gonna get in and eventually turn to ice and break up.

Kevin

Gotcha. So you don't like the mechanical fastener. You like the flexible one and the adhesive caulk.

Exactly. -Kevin

Okay. So that stays. Here on the face...

Mark

Here on the face, you can see these brick -- brick to brick. The mortar joint is broken, and that's why we're gonna want to grind out this chimney in its entirety. So this joint will come, this joint will come, and all the way through the chimney. That's gonna help us in two ways. It's gonna help us get all these cracks and make them solid, but it's also gonna give us uniformity.

Kevin

So I understand completely why you'd want to fix that. But this looks pretty good to me. Is this towards your point of if you only did a little bit now and then a little bit later, you'd be paying for the scaffolding twice?

Mark

Exactly. So that's the most important part. Once you're up here, this is not a ton of work. But putting all these barricades up, putting the stairs and the staging and getting the staging up, that's very expensive.

Kevin

When you dragged your finger across some of this, I saw some of this aggregate fall out. What does that tell you?

Mark

So that tells me this is the original mortar and it's very aged. When we use our jointer, we call it a slick. Yeah, that seals that mortar. Right here, you can see all this exposed aggregate. That means the weather has hit it for years and years and years.

The slick is gone. Mark

The slick is gone. And now this joint actually acts as a sponge. So it's taking the water in itself.

Kevin

Okay, more water. So moving down to our flashing. Your thoughts?

Mark

Right. So this is a rubber roof. And as you see, they've taken the rubber and they've brought it 8 to 10 inches up onto the brickwork, which is the way we want it. They've affixed it properly. So I don't see anything that's broken. I don't see anything that could be a potential leak. So we're gonna leave this in place.

Kevin

Okay. So it's really water is the thing that's gonna tip off a homeowner to the fact that they've got a problem.

Mark

Right. That and a bad draft. So if the fireplace isn't working properly and they have a downdraft, all you have to do is come outside, look around. All these trees may be a factor in causing a downdraft. This hill behind us is also suspect.

Kevin

How does that work, the hill?

Mark

So when the wind comes off a big hill like that, it wants to beat down. And so it'll hit the top of the chimney and beat down and cause a bad draft.

Kevin

So how high should it be and is this higher than normal?

Mark

Yeah, so code is about two feet. But I suspect when they were building this chimney about 100 years ago, they felt that downdraft on their back. And instead of staying with code, which was two feet, they picked it up another couple of feet, and that enhanced the draft.

Kevin

That's pretty cool. Alright. So top is good. Bottom is good. You want to chase the middle.

Right. Kevin

Alright. Let's repoint.

Mark

Let's get going.

Kevin

Easy to inspect up here, Mark, when we're right up next to it. But if you're a homeowner, you don't have staging, can you inspect it from the ground? And how frequently should we be checking our chimney?

Mark

So what you should know is you have a 50-year product.

Kevin

House is older than 50 years, say 75 or so, send someone up to give it a good inspection?

Mark

Exactly. If you're buying the house, the home inspector, he'll probably touch on the chimney. One of his first things, especially given the age of the house. But definitely get someone on the roof because you're not gonna see what you and I have seen from the ground.

Kevin

So you gave me a 4-inch grinder right here.

Mark

Yep. That's hooked up to our HEPA vac, which is gonna collect the dust. What you're gonna want to do is keep that nose down into the joint because that's where the hose is, that's what picks up the dust.

Kevin

Okay. So that goes to the face of the mortar.

Exactly. Kevin

Alright. So you want me to start with the grinder?

Mark

You're gonna go this way, you're gonna go horizontal. You're gonna give me a good field to start with, and then I'm gonna follow you up with a chisel and I'm gonna do all the verticals with a chisel. And the reason for that, Kevin, that 4-inch blade may override onto this brick on the bottom or it may override to that brick on the top. But either one, we don't want to touch.

Kevin

What you're saying is you don't trust me.

Mark

No, I trust you. I just don't trust me.

Kevin

Let's get the gear on and do it.

Mark

Alright. Why don't you get the water and the brush and we'll start cleaning out these joints? Once you brush the wetness on, it absorbs and therefore, it will not take the water out of our mix. Now we're ready to fill the joints. My mortar is always gonna be an oatmeal-ish consistency is what I like to say, and we're always gonna use a type "N." Type "N" allows for brick to move a little bit in the weather that we have up here.

Kevin

So that's a flexible type.

Mark

Very flexible. And again, we're gonna notice that the joints that we have are a little thicker, that's gonna make the tool that we're gonna use a little bit thicker.

Kevin

Yeah. And you call that a...?

Mark

This is just a regular margin trowel pointer.

Yep. Mark

And right there, I'm gonna start out always doing my verticals first.

Kevin

So you know I'm gonna have you do all the verticals because that little flip and scoop thing that you do...

Mark

Yeah?

Kevin

...I don't do.

Mark

Well, that's taken me a long time to perfect, but one of the things you do want to make sure you do with any tool is make sure you push that mortar back until you have contact with the existing mortar. That way we'll know that it's full. And that's very important. Again. Why?

Because of water infiltration. Kevin

Okay.

Mark

Alright, Kevin. So this is the last head joint for this side. Now what I'm gonna do is just show you how I want the bed joint done. And again, it's the same thing. Just make sure you push all the way to the back

so we have full joints. Kevin

Yup.

Mark

Again, everything is about water infiltration.

Okay. Mark

Alright.

And this is how easy it is to... Kevin

Gotcha. What could possibly go wrong as you scoop it off there like you got 40 years of experience?

Mark

I may. Alright, Kevin. So you're gonna stay here, do these horizontal joints. I'm gonna jump on the other side and continue the verticals. Right there. You can use that. I'm gonna use this.

Kevin

I got another bucket here if you want to take yours. So Mark, in terms of prevention, to prevent this sort of deterioration from happening, anything you can do on the inside of the house to stop this?

Mark

Nothing, really, Kevin. This is a chimney that, again, a hole in your roof. So it's out in the elements. Mother Nature is gonna do what she's gonna do. So just do your due diligence, pay attention to it, and act accordingly.

Kevin

Okay. A little extra mortar down there.

Don't look too close. Mark

Alright. Well, great job, but we do have a couple more steps, Kevin. First, we're gonna come back in a few days, and we're gonna wash this with a nice masonry detergent. After that, we're gonna let it dry. And then I'm gonna use the sprayer. I'm gonna put waterproofing agent in it, and then I'm gonna spray this whole chimney down. One thing I'm gonna do is I'm gonna start from the bottom up. People sometimes want to go from the top down, but if I did that, I'd end up with some streaking all the way down there. So I want to start from the bottom. That way I'll be wet on wet and not wet on dry.

Kevin

And you're a big fan of the waterproofing. You bring it up a lot.

Mark

Yeah, huge fan of the waterproofing. Number one, it's gonna protect our investment, so...

Kevin

Alright. Well, I learned a lot. And I know homeowners have learned some, too. They know what to look for, but they also know what to ask their mason to make sure they're getting a good job. So good day.

Mark

Alright. Thanks for your help, Kevin.

Kevin

My pleasure. Next time on "Ask This Old House," we visit Franklin Pierce's homestead to meet a team of conservators who are breathing new life into 200-year-old wallpaper. Then do you know what a GFCI receptacle is or how it works? Well, Heath will explain why it's one of the most important electrical safety features in a building. Plus, Tom helps a homeowner repair and repitch the gutters above their back patio. All that on "Ask This Old House."