Jason’s dad was the one who recommended Rescue Tape. It is waterproof, self-fusing, doesn’t get sticky like duct tape, and even could even be used as a tourniquet for emergency situations! We were definitely intrigued. And, of course, you can buy it at your local hardware store along with the coaxial connectors.

First, Jason had to cut the line to repair it and strip it to reveal the wire.

Once the cable was split, he added the connector to each side of the cable line.

Once the fittings are on, the cable snaps easily back together. We wrapped each fitting with the shrink tape and used a propane torch to seal the connectors into place.

For protection against the elements because it was going back under the ground it was wrapped in the Rescue Tape.

All Jason had to do was wrap it tightly around itself, and the tape fuses together for a waterproof and airtight fit. We buried the cable back (this time much deeper) under the ground and our cable and internet were fine!

It was about seven o’clock by the time we had gotten back to the house and it took us about thirty minutes to unload the truck. Jason was very eager to see his fence get started and put a few more posts into the ground.

Amateur Fence Problem #1: In our excitement to put up a fence, Jason had already put in a few of the six foot posts into the ground. When we decided to go with a six foot fence, we needed to figure out how to make those posts still useful (we are trying to save money, not spend more!) while making the rest of the fence with the eight foot posts for more stability. We came across the perfect L Bracket at JBK Hardware to fix our problem so that the top of the panel had just as much support from the post as the rest of it. Jason also added more concrete to make sure the posts would be even more secure holding the extra weight.

Amateur Fence Problem #2: Use a string to make sure your posts are lined up straight and check, check, and double check as the cement dries! On our first side, it is ever-so slightly off to the eye when you look at it dead on. We made sure to fix this problem on the side which would have the most traffic.

The next day (Day 3) after work, Jason continued the fence with help from our friend and co-worker, Sam. They finished putting the posts in on the left side of the fence and also started on the far side of the yard, too. Once the cement was set for a while, they started to attach the panels.

By the end of Day 3, we had both sides of our fence up! All we had to finish was the connecting panel in the back to our neighbor’s fence and the sides that would touch the house and include the gates.

First, I used the Paper Tiger and scoured the border. It was fairly easy to use, although difficult to cut into the wallpaper closer to the ceiling because of its circular cover. Here is what the wallpaper looked like after scouring it.

Once that was done, all I had to do (or so I thought) was spray on the wallpaper removal gel (the DIF product) and let it soak before using a paint scraper to remove the wallpaper off from the wall.

Very similar to what happened with the wallpaper steamer, which makes me wonder if it might just be the wallpaper we had, it came off into two layers: 1) the image and 2) the adhesive behind the image.

Because of having to repeat the process twice, it took me almost four hours to finish taking off the wallpaper border in the kitchen. If you are capable of using/renting a steamer, PLEASE DO. It is less time consuming than this way. This is the aftermath of messiness:

You can also tell how terrible our wall cabinets were put together.

Once the wallpaper was removed, I had to go through and wipe down the walls with simple hot water and soap to remove the sticky residue and sand down some areas for the new paint color.

I am hoping a new paint job in the kitchen will liven up the outdated cabinets for the time being and make it more connected to the rest of the house. Look forward to the finished paint job result!

Okay, so it didn’t look like that everyday. But I thought unscrewing it added extra emphasis on how old it was and how much it didn’t work. Truly, our fan never worked. I have been sweating through each dinner until tonight.

Before we dramatically tore it off the wall, we remembered to first turn off the electricity and then disconnect the wires.

We decided to order our new hood through our True Value warehouse and it was shipped in a few days. I didn’t take a picture of the box because 1) I forgot and 2) it’s cardboard box.

Once we got the old hood out of the way, I was a little taken aback.

So we paused the installation process until I could make it look a little more presentable and clean.

Installing the hood beneath the cabinet was very easy and only took four screws. Jason said it was a little awkward for him, trying to bend his body to make sure it was fully screwed in.

Once the new one was in place, we removed a simple steel plate to expose the wires and reconnect them.

Finally, we made sure the ground wire was secure and in place. We also added a lightbulb.

After that, we replaced the steel plate and turned on the electricity again to see our new hood in all its glory.

Definitely makes the rest of our kitchen look even more outdated, but we finally have a working stove hood! Now I don’t have to crank the A/C up when I decide to use the stove!

Jason and I have been collecting branches since the major snow storm this winter and had a large enough pile to rent the chipper from work this week on our day off. Our good friend Chris came over to help us out. I decided to videotape the beginning of Jason and Chris using the chipper in order to create a how-to. Of course, we don’t go into detail on running the actual machine because every machine will vary depending on its brand and how large it is. The size of the chipper we used had a 6″ cap.

We also had a tree that was damaged by the snow storm which Chris used a chainsaw and cut down.

I am hating myself that I didn’t take a video of the process. But he went branch by branch, and at the end after the tree ended up splitting on its own by the weight, he did one sweep and the tree was done with only a stump remaining just against the ground.

So once the tree was done, we then had two piles of brush we were able to chip:

And now for the video! Enjoy. It is my first time using iMovie, so hopefully we’ll will use videos more often and get more creative with them as we go. I wasn’t able to post it directly onto the page due to size with WordPress (I’ll be working on this problem) but for now you can check it out on our youtube page:

How to Use a Chipper by somethingtochase.com

Here is what we used the mulch for! More information on the rose bushes in a future update!

Secondly, the old thermostat covering will need to come off. Usually you can pop it off.

Unscrew the metal housing underneath the cap to reveal the wires.

Disconnect the wires from each other and cut the ground wire. Then reconnect the wires with the new housing.

Screw the new housing back and pop on the new cover. Turn on the power to the area and test to make sure it is working properly by checking the baseboard heaters. After that, you’re done! Easy.

We hope to have all of the thermostats replaced with newer, up to date ones by summer. This will definitely help with our heating bill next year!

*We bought all of our thermostats at JBK True Value.

Unpack the box and MAKE SURE you have everything, especially the directions. I forgot to take a picture of this part. There is usually a lot of pieces because most fans come with a few options for mounting (we chose a flush mount because we don’t have very high ceilings). Secondly, you need to take out your old ceiling fan. Usually you can do this pretty quickly by unscrewing the top from the housing. Keep the old housing on there unless the instructions tell you differently.

Then, hook the base of the fan onto the side of the housing unit. Connect the main wires.  Make sure the grounding wire is connected to the grounding rod.

The blue wire is the lights. That is for the lights. Some fans don’t have this because they don’t have a lighting fixture attached. Once all of the wires are attached, screw the base onto the housing. This took me standing on the coffee table holding the base in place while Jason screwed it together.

Notice the faded ceiling? I did fix this afterwards because I was too impatient beforehand and we only had so much sunlight to work with (we did this directly after working – notice Jason’s wonderful True Value polo).

Here is a shot of the unit hanging from the housing hook.

The second part of the fan holds the wiring for the blades and the lights. It is WAY more tricky. Thankfully Jason did this easily. Once the wires were twisted together, we screwed the blades onto the base. Then the light fixture was screwed in and the lightbulbs placed properly.

Much easier than we thought it would be. Here is the finished product with a new splash of ceiling paint over the dingy, faded part.

And there you have it! So don’t worry if it looks too complex. A ceiling fan is very manageable to replace on your own!