MyTownCryer

Drywall Repair

Yesterday’s torn-screen fix cost all of $1.98 (including an impulse purchase). Today’s is the priciest in this weeklong series—but still under $10.

Yesterday’s torn-screen fix cost all of $1.98 (including an impulse purchase). Today’s is the priciest in this weeklong series—but still under $10.

If Charlie Sheen is a friend of yours (no judgment), you’re probably ready for most anything, i.e., you keep a defibrillator in your living room. But do you have a drywall repair kit to patch the holes he’ll punch in your wall during your annual Memorial Day party? Scrap the call to a handyman or the police, and stop by the dollar store for what you’ll need to set things right post-bacchanal.

Supplies:

• Wire screen, 99 cents (actually an envelope sorter made out of screen—a big savings since a roll of screen at the big box store is about $20 or more)

• String, 99 cents

• Pencil, 99 cents

• Joint knife, 99 cents

• Masking tape, 99 cents

• Sandpaper, 99 cents

• Drywall compound, 3.58

• Sizzle cologne, 99 cents (to get party-ready)

Total: $10.51 (if you can’t resist the Sizzle)

What you do:

• Cut the wire screen 2 inches larger than the hole.

• Tie one end of the string to the pencil and thread the other end through the middle of the screen—then bend the screen, and insert it and the pencil into the hole.

• Pull the string until the screen is flat against the hole (the pencil helps push the screen flat against the drywall) and hold it taut while you apply the drywall compound.

• Tape the string to the wall to hold the screen in place as the compound dries.

• Cut the string when dry.

• Sand and smooth compound with joint knife.

Tomorrow’s 99-cent store solution: Tighten a loose cabinet hinge.

What other inexpensive home fixes have you found or tried? What minor home repair job have you neglected because of lack of time?

By: Harmon Leon

Published: May 11, 2011

The Family Pet Climbing the Screen

Yesterday, we shared our discovery of the 99-cent store as a practical resource for home improvement supplies. We repaired a scuff mark on a countertop for less than $3. Today, we’re going to get rid of one of life’s greatest annoyances for less than $2.

Yesterday, we shared our discovery of the 99-cent store as a practical resource for home improvement supplies. We repaired a scuff mark on a countertop for less than $3. Today, we’re going to get rid of one of life’s greatest annoyances for less than $2.
Among life’s greatest annoyances:

• An empty carton of milk in the fridge

• A flat tire

• A torn window screen. That tiny hole is just the invitation bugs need to break in.

No need for a handyman or a replacement screen. You’ll find the right bug deterrent at the 99-cent store, if it’s not already on hand in your bathroom cabinet. But going to the dollar store is fun—you never know what you’ll find. Like cheap soda.

Supplies:

• Clear nail polish, 99 cents

• Two slightly dented cans of soda, 99 cents

• Total: $1.98

What you do:

• Apply the clear nail polish on both sides of the torn area. Slather it on so it builds up a nice barrier.

• Watch it dry transparently.

• Enjoy your soda.

Tomorrow’s 99-cent store solution: Repairing a drywall hole.

What are your biggest home repair annoyances?

Published: May 10, 2011

Countertop Damage

I love sharing HouseLogic with you.  At HouseLogic, we love to find and share inexpensive solutions to household problems. Our five solutions this week—one a day—don’t even require a trip to your big-box home improvement store—not that we don’t love stocking up at Lowe’s or Home Depot. Instead, pay a call to your 99-cent store. Its aisles are crammed with the inexpensive (and multipurpose) wares to fix what’s ailing.

At HouseLogic, we love to find and share inexpensive solutions to household problems. Our five solutions this week—one a day—don’t even require a trip to your big-box home improvement store—not that we don’t love stocking up at Lowe’s or Home Depot. Instead, pay a call to your 99-cent store. Its aisles are crammed with the inexpensive (and multipurpose) wares to fix what’s ailing.
Just watch out for the impulse to buy more than you intended at the 99-cent store. In all honesty, we couldn’t.

First up on the home repair list: Scuff marks on countertops.

If you’ve ever had a scuff mark on a colored countertop, you know that it sadly becomes the room’s focal point. But we found the right supplies to save you any embarrassment.

Supplies:

• Crayons, 99 cents

• Spatula knife, 99 cents

• A microwave-safe bowl, 99 cents (If you have one you’re willing to sacrifice to melt crayons, you just saved another 99 cents.)

Total: $2.97. $3.96 if you throw in a weak lemonade-type drink.

What you do:

• Pick the Crayon whose color comes closest to matching your countertop. Peel off the paper and place it in the bowl.

• Pop the crayon and bowl in the microwave.

• Pour the hot, melted crayon onto the scuff mark and work it into the indentation with the spatula knife.

• Scrape off the excess with the spatula knife.

The Crayon mixture will harden and dry quickly, erasing your countertop flaw.

Tomorrow’s 99-cent store solution: Fix a torn screen.

What other inexpensive home fixes have you found or tried? What minor home repair job have you neglected because of lack of time?

Published: May 9, 2011