Pre-Holiday Hustle: Quick Home Upgrades; the Best Games; and Space Heater Safety

This episode of the RepcoLite Home Improvement Show, sponsored by Benjamin Moore, dives into pre-holiday prep and maintenance tips to help reduce seasonal stress.

Dan talks about dealing with holiday anxiety and shares practical cleaning and touch-up tips to refresh your space quickly. The episode also features an interview with Jeff Rietveld from Out of the Box Games, offering game recommendations for gifts and holiday gatherings.

Critical safety tips for using space heaters during winter are also discussed, emphasizing the importance of proper extension cord usage and reducing fire risks.

CHAPTERS

00:00 Introduction and Holiday Stress

01:18 Upcoming Segments Overview

03:24 Quick Home Spruce-Up Tips

07:28 Painting in Tight Spaces: Strategies and Tips

19:00 Interview with Jeff Rietveld: Best Games for the Holidays

20:22 Game Rules and Hints

21:20 Cheating in Games

21:52 Poetry for Neanderthals

22:47 So Clover and Other Games

23:46 Telestrations and Party Games

26:41 Word on the Street

28:17 Wits and Wagers

31:29 Favorite Part of the Job

32:41 Space Heater Safety Tips

38:16 Wrapping Up and Announcements

TRANSCRIPT

  Well, good morning, everybody out there. Happy middle, middle of December. You're listening to the Repco Lite Home Improvement Show sponsored by Benjamin Morin. Yeah, middle of December. Seriously, how in the world do we slow this down? We need to get together and figure that out. I'd like to pump the brakes here a little bit.

Are you feeling that too? Or is it just me, you know, for me, there aren't enough hours in the day. I've got parties to plan errands to run gifts to buy so many gifts to buy and really honestly, I'm absolutely stinking at gifts this year. Stinking and it's stressing me out. Normally, normally by now I've completed all of my shopping and I've completed it brilliantly in most situations.

You know, we're being honest here, no false humility, pretty brilliant when it comes to gifts. This year, this year I'm stinking. Unless I come up with some kind of inspiration, unless that strikes really, really soon, we're heading for one of those Christmases, right? I certainly wouldn't want to be my kids this year, at least not yet.

Anyway, I hope you're all doing a ton better than I am. Hope you're more on top of things. Hope you're feeling really festive, really ready for what's coming and just feeling really accomplished. But just in case you're feeling a little bit of anxiety, like I am, I've got some help for you today. Uh, later, I'm going to be talking with Jeff Rietveld from Out of the Box Games in Holland and Zealand, and we're going to talk about some great games for Christmas gifts or gifts.

Or family parties. So if the gift giving stress is getting to you, stick around for that. All right. That, that will help. We're also going to be diving into space heater safety, and I know that doesn't sound the most exciting, right? It doesn't sound terribly exciting, but trust me, those little heaters, They can be lifesavers in the winter, but only if you use them right.

Otherwise, well, if you don't, they can, they can really cause some trouble. So we'll talk about that. And I've also got some strategies for painting in tight spaces. I am super pumped about this, this topic. I love it. It's a lot of fun. It's pretty funny. Uh, and that's coming up next. Uh, but right now let's get to the paint point for the week.

And to do that, I want to circle back to the whole holiday stress thing. thing. Like I said, I've been feeling it. Maybe you've been feeling it, but here's the difference. You know, here's, here's me realizing, uh, this is me growing up a little bit. It's me realizing that I'm not the only one in the universe here.

Um, the only people that are coming over to my house, uh, for a party or for any kind of festive activities, the only people coming to my house are the ones who live there. You know, they already know about the junky parts. They're not going to be surprised. They're not going to open a closet and go, Oh my goodness, I can't believe you crammed all that into here.

They know it's crammed into there. They helped cram it in. They're not going to be disappointed. They're not going to be grossed out. Oh man, this tastes like dog hair. It's because it is, right? It's full of dog hair. It's more dog hair than lasagna. Eat it. You know, they're not going to be grossed out. It's just home.

But some of you, some of you are hosting big events. You've got guests coming over. I wonder what that's like. I don't want to know what that's like. And my guests don't want to be a part of it. Not while I've got dogs. Maybe you've got that going on. Maybe, maybe they're even staying with you over an extended period.

If so, you're feeling the stress to make your home shine. And if that's you, if that happens to be the spot that you find yourself in, let's talk about some quick ways to spruce up your space, uh, without taking on a full paint project. And first off, start with the walls. And a lot of the time, walls don't need to be repainted.

You know, they just need to be cleaned. A magic eraser or even a simple solution of warm water, dish soap, and white vinegar can work wonders on scuffs, fingerprints, marks, who knows, spaghetti sauce, whatever's on your walls. You can get that off pretty easily. Uh, it's amazing. How much brighter and fresher a room can look with clean walls.

Wash the walls down and you realize, Man, we were living in a hovel. You know, this is pretty nice. Doesn't need to be repainted. It just needed to have the spaghetti washed off. Right? So maybe you can find that out. Maybe that's the answer. That's the case in your home. Who knows? Some things to consider if you do go, you know, the magic eraser route, uh, they're brilliant for removing marks, but if you use them with too much pressure on delicate surfaces or on mat or flat finished walls, there's a really good chance you're going to remove paint or burnish the finish, you know, make the spots look shiny.

You don't want to go the magic eraser route and then end up making the situation worse. So first, uh, if you're going to use one, test it out in an out of the way area to make sure that you're not going to have a bigger problem. Down the road and also use gentle pressure and dampen the eraser before starting.

Uh, if you've got a flat or matte finish on your wall, uh, and you're thinking about using the magic eraser, I guess maybe try, but maybe keep in the back pocket, uh, your back pocket that the, the next best thing that you, you could do in those situations is to touch up. You know, do a little touch up painting.

And that's my second idea. You know, if you've got nail holes or scratches, grab a bit of lightweight spackle, fill the nail holes, sand them smooth, and then if you've got some leftover paint from the original wall color, touch it up. You know, it's ideal to use the same tool when you're touching up that you originally used to apply the paint.

A lot of people don't think about that, but if you rolled the wall, you should use a roller to do that. for your touch up. If you brush the surface, touch it up with a brush. If you have tiny nail holes and you need to touch that up, but you don't want to get a roller out, a quick trick is to use a Q tip.

You basically just get one, hold it on its side against the wall and then rotate it over the area. It really quickly and easily becomes a makeshift micro roller. And it does a really good job for nail holes. Small scratches, things like that. So, if you're doing your touch ups, feather them out, and most of the time, you can blend them away entirely.

Uh, if the spots don't blend perfectly away, you can do a more complete repaint later. You know, after the busyness of the holidays. But most of the time, a slightly lighter spot on a wall is better than a dark scuff mark or a hole. So even if they show these little light spots, it's still a win. Now sometimes, the third idea, the quickest fix is strategic placement.

Uh, this third idea is a little sneaky, but hang a piece of art, a mirror, you know, lean a decorative ladder against the wall. Something, anything to hide these spots. It's a great way to draw attention to the best parts of your space, when Well, covering up imperfections. So think about that. Another idea, refresh your trim or baseboards.

Now these areas, they take a ton of wear and tear, but a quick wipe down or touch up can make the whole room feel polished and new, uh, adjust the lighting, you know, change out your light bulbs, make sure they're all the same temperature, the same consistency, better lighting can make colors pop and even disguise small flaws.

In the walls, lastly, declutter and rearrange. You know, sometimes all the space needs is just a little bit of decluttering to open it up and make it feel just a ton better. So think about those things. The key is you don't need a major project to make a big impact. These small manageable little updates can really help.

If you've got guests coming over, you'll feel better about your space. You'll know that you put your best foot forward and it's not going to take a ton of time or add a lot of stress to your plate. All right, that's the paint point for the week. Hopefully it helps you get your home ready and take some stress off your plate.

All right, we're going to take a break. When we come back, we're going to be talking about strategies for painting in tight spaces, cramped quarters, uh, painting in those areas and not losing your mind. It's a ton of fun. It's coming up next. Stick around. And

we're back. You're listening to the Repcolite Home Improvement Show sponsored by Benjamin Moore. And last week, we talked about some tools that you should have if you're going to be painting in tight spaces, small rooms, you know, cramped quarters. We talked about the tools. Today, let's go over some essential strategies that will make the process easier and help you avoid, you know, those really sad oops moments.

Or, in a more dramatic fashion, the really moments. Right? Right? All right. First off, uh, schedule enough time for the work. That's my very first tip here, and it's kind of funny, and I've fallen into this as well, but a lot of people get it in their head that if they're painting a small space, that somehow the project's gonna go quicker than painting a large space, and I guess it makes a lot of sense.

You know, the room is so much smaller. There's just less to do, right? It's gonna just fly. Well, weirdly, it doesn't work that way. In fact, usually. The exact opposite is true. Anybody who's tackled a bathroom or a narrow hallway or an entryway knows it can be a challenge. And while the wall space is limited, uh, you find that you're cutting in more.

You find that you can't roll a small area as effectively as you could if the room was ten foot square. Bottom line, you just can't move as fluidly or as conveniently as you'd like. And all of that, You know, piles on and adds time to the project. So give yourself that time, plan for it, plan on it. Don't jump in thinking that you're going to ramp up in a couple hours and then you're going to head to grandma's 112th birthday party.

All right. Most likely, you're going to find the project takes much longer than you thought. And then you've got a dilemma. You know, do you leave the house? Well, everything's in order. In this state of half finished chaos, I mean, you've got paint in the tray, a brush covered with paint, the ladder's out, the room's a mess, can you really, really just leave it like that?

But on the other hand, it's grandma's 112th birthday, sure, you know, she seems healthy. Seems like she's doing well, but you never know. Don't put yourself in that position. Don't be making those decisions. Those are bad decisions. Plan on these smaller projects taking longer than you think, and you'll be safe.

and happy. All right. That's the first first strategy. Second strategy. Minimize your helpers. Minimize your helpers. Tight quarters. They are definitely not the place for an extra set of hands. You know, these people who want to help us, they mean well, you know, they do. They want to support you. They want to support me either because they love us or because they feel guilty You know, that's, that's entirely possible.

They feel guilty that you're working on something and they're not, uh, whatever the reasoning is, they usually mean well, but after about four minutes in a tight space together, you're going to discover about probably 17 or more reasons why you despise that person and why you've always, Always despise that person and to be honest, you know, really throw it all on the table here They're probably gonna be discovering those same things about you.

So don't do it too many cooks in the kitchen That's bad too many helpers in a tight space. That's worse It'll start with some bumping it's gonna end in In, you know, some kind of MMA cage match. Avoid all of that at all costs. If somebody insists on helping, make a deal. You know, maybe they clean the rest of the house while you work in this room.

Or maybe they can prepare dinner. Or maybe they can run to Repcolite if you forgot something. Or even better, maybe they can just leave. You know, get out of Dodge for a while and let you do the work. Solo painting is smoother in small spaces. Alright, that's the second strategy. Third strategy that I've got for you.

Prep your walls thoroughly. And this, this next one, you know, it applies to every single paint job out there. But still, don't tell yourself that since the space is small, that you can skip, you know, some of the prep work. Uh, prep work's crazy important, no matter the size of the project. All right, just because it's little doesn't mean the prep work doesn't matter as much.

So take the time and do it well. Remove nails and screws. That's a big one for me. Don't try to paint around the nails. You know, it usually ends up being a pain in the neck. You know, I've learned that the hard way over and over again. Finally, I've learned and I remove them. But the thing is, it's crazy tempting every time to leave them in.

You know, it's just a little nail. What's it going to do? It's a little nail. I'm going to use it again. As soon as the walls dry, I'm going to put the art back up on it. Maybe I'll just leave it there and roll around it. You know, that's usually what I tell myself. And then I start rolling and I forget about it, you know, because I'm flying through the room, I'm rolling those walls, like, like lickety split, you know, super fast.

And with a skill that usually impresses even me. And as I'm going, I forget. about that little nail that's sitting there lurking, waiting for me until I hit it with the roller, you know, at full speed. Sometimes it snags the cover and pulls out fibers. I've had it create a little pattern that ends up repeating on the wall until I replace the cover.

That was a pain. Sometimes the nail shoots off, you know, I knock it clean off the wall and it lands in the carpet somewhere, probably pointy side up. That's always fun to find later or, you know, nothing terrible happens. You know, I just bump into it with the roller. Oh, the nail. I forgot about it. No big deal, right?

Yeah. It's fine until the paint that collected on the nail starts dripping onto the floor happens every time. It's not a tragedy, but it is a nuisance. And in a small space, you got enough. Things that can be nuisances. Don't let this be one. Remove the nails, fill the nail holes. If you're not going to be putting the nails back and be sure to scuff sand any glossy surfaces.

So the paint sticks better. And don't forget to clean the walls. Like I said, it's the full prep job here, even though the room is small, but make sure that you wipe everything down, especially all the little hidden spots behind the toilet, the light fixtures, the vent cover for the ceiling fan, even the tops of doors.

All of those areas have caused trouble and headache and sorrow for me on paint projects because I forget about them until I roll into them. And all of a sudden, now I pick up a bunch of fuzzies or who knows what I found. It's the bathroom after all. Could be anything. And now I'm spreading it on the wall in my new paint.

It's a real pain in the neck. Wipe all those areas down, make sure they're clean. Everywhere dust could be lurking. It's Get it. Last prep step, uh, and then we'll move on to another strategy, but last prep step here is remove as many items from the wall as is reasonable. Painting around toilet paper holders, the towel racks, the switch plate covers, that's possible.

And if you're an accomplished painter, it can all be done very quickly. But if you're new to the process, it really can be frustrating, especially in small spaces when you don't have a lot of room to work. So you're quicker to just remove those items. So you've got more of a clean shot. Okay. Alright, that's the really long third strategy.

Uh, fourth strategy, really short, create an external workstation. Uh, setting your paint and tools on the floor in a cramped space is an afternoon of woe waiting to happen. Not woe like, woe, look at these walls. Woe like, woe. Whoa, my goodness, I'm in so much trouble, right? That kind of whoa. Uh, so don't, don't leave these tools in the room while you're working.

Set up a small table in the hallway or just, you know, just outside the room or something. Uh, if you don't have a little table to set up, make one with sawhorses, just outside the room. Put a drop cloth underneath it and your materials are going to be close at hand, but out of the way so you can work. All right, second to last tip, and this one's brilliant.

Work methodically and stay mindful of your surroundings. And I know that sounds kind of like Jedi advice, you know, maybe something that, um, Obi Wan Kenobi would say, uh, but that's okay. It just makes it cool, right? And it's still true, you know, whether you, whether you're big into Star Wars or not, that's still really true.

Stay mindful, and work methodically. Uh, you're working in a small space. There's wet paint within an arm's reach all around the room. So just slow down, you know, maybe just a notch or two, and give a little thought to each move before you make it. Now maybe that doesn't apply to you. Maybe you're methodical and thoughtful with every project, but you're not.

Or maybe you're like me, you know, I'm less of those things and I'm kind of more all in, you know, that's how I work. I move crazy fast, uh, almost, you know, with, with violence, uh, it's been described. I, I'm not violent while I'm working, but that's how people have described how I approach the job. Um, a lot of energy.

akin to violence. You know, I want that room done now, and I'm willing to die to make that happen. Uh, if you know what I mean, and you work like that, uh, you've got to slow it down. We both do. Slow down and think about what you're doing, and...