My Handyman Goes Back to School


accordian-classroom-door installed by My Handyman

While most of the work we do is in homes, we also use our handyman skills to help small businesses and in this instance a school with a request we don’t get too often.

Our Customer’s Request

St Martin of Tours in New Hope asked My Handyman for help with installing a folding room divider in a classroom that weighed, yikes 380 lbs.  The challenge was the room had a drop ceiling almost 2 feet below the structural joists in the ceiling and above this was a steel beam.  They also wanted the drop ceiling to have a finished appearance where it... 

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Tips on Sealing Your Deck


Decks need to be stained to protect them from the elements

When sealing your deck, you have 3 choices and one of them should never be used. You can use a clear sealer, a stain that adds color to your deck wood or paint. The last choice, painting a deck, is never a good idea because paint adheres to the surface of the wood and it will peel and chip, and trying to get rid of all the loose paint is an impossible task, i.e. how do you get into the cracks between the deck boards?

If you’re stuck with a painted deck, you can either replace it or … you can... 

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Dirty Decks & How to Clean Them


cleaning deck with oxygen bleach

We all want a beautiful deck but that requires a little elbow grease, as they get dirty and need to be cleaned each year … just like you need to wash your car once in a while. If you’ve got a wood deck, after you’ve cleaned it you also need to seal it to protect it from the elements … as that’s how you’re able to extend it’s useful life. If you take care of your wood deck, it can last 20 to 25 years and if you don’t, you might have to replace it after 15 years.

How the Elements... 

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Should You Get a Ceiling Fan?


ceiling fans in master bedroom help cool the room

If you’ve looked at new homes in the last few years, maybe you’ve noticed that they all include not one, but several ceiling fans. This is quite different from homes built in the ’80s which often didn’t have ceiling lights in the bedrooms.

One of the key reasons for making ceiling fans a standard feature of new homes, is to help homeowners make smart energy usage decisions — depending on temperature and humidity, it’s much cheaper to run a ceiling fan than your whole house air conditioning!

Ceiling fans also dress up a room, sometimes in subtle ways and other times, you... 

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Technology Gadgets Galore


family electronics capturing more time & money

We love all our technology gadgets but how many can we use at a time? We’re now spending more money on technology than our traditional utilities, it’s getting scary. Do we really need a tablet as much as we need lights and hot water? Maybe we can justify today’s devices (average couple has 7, a family of 4 has 11 pieces of technology) but does it make sense to keep adding more?

In our consumer driven world, manufacturers spend billions of dollars to drive us to buy more, more and more.... 

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Not Your Standard Windows


windows can add natural light & touch of character

For several years there has been lots of focus on upgrading your home with new windows for energy efficiency, with double or triple pane windows. If you’ve already updated all your windows, congratulations and save these tips for a future home.  The federal tax credits helped fuel this trend to motivate construction spending during a sluggish economy, and to prepare for rising energy costs.

Another reason for upgrading one or more windows is to bring more natural sunlight into your home. While it might not be as simple as taking out an old appliance and sliding the new one in, you... 

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Celebrating Earth Day & Your Community


earth day reminds us to appreciate energy, water & the air we breathe

Our planet earth is pretty special, yet we take it for granted 365 days each year. Earth Day is meant to remind us how our planet takes care of us each and every day, and how we can do a better job of protecting the earth’s resources. There are so many creative activities happening to celebrate Earth Day that we just wanted to share a few with you.

The earth is a huge place which people understand better today, with air travel commonplace and our ability to learn about people around the world from television and the Internet. The world we... 

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Backyard Decks & Features Everyone Wants


deck & adirondack deck chairsfor relaxing

Decks, patios and other outdoor living spaces are an important feature for any home and for good reason. When the weather is nice, you can move lots of activities outdoors from grilling hamburgers or steaks to relaxing family dinners, neighborhood parties and more. When you spend lots of time outdoors using your deck or patio, it’s common to expand and enhance this outdoor space.

In fact you have many choices in how you update your backyard. It depends on what’s most important so we’ll explore your options, as homeowners are getting real creative as they transform old fashion decks into outdoor... 

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Fire Pits & Relaxing Outdoors


backyard relaxation with firetable for warmth

Summer is getting closer and it’s time to start thinking about how you’ll enjoy the great outdoors this year. Camping, barbecues, family outings and more are at your doorstep or soon to arrive.

For many of us, all those spring and summertime activities remind us of childhood. As adults, it can be difficult to find the time to enjoy the nice weather by taking a vacation or making the extra effort to spend time with relatives and friends. Many people choose to bring the campsite home by building or buying a firepit in their yard.

There are a few different ways to... 

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Landscape Design & Picking Your Shrubs


Landscaping design starts with the right shrubs

Each spring we think about getting out in the garden, weeding and pruning what’s there. We re-evaluate our landscape design and wonder what types of shrubs we should add, or maybe new flowers for more color. This is more important when we find older plants that didn’t survive the winter, and there’s always the question of which plants to buy?

Ideally, we want plants that look great in our overall landscape design. Even better is when we find shrubs that require little or no maintenance but finding them can be a challenge. For those who aren’t dedicated gardeners, you may find... 

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