DIY in Home & Garage

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A Fire Pit Patio You Can Actually Build in Two Days

A 12-foot circle, about 3 tons of gravel, and one rented plate compactor. What it costs, what order to do it in, and where most guys lose Sunday.

GuideCan You Fix ItWes Dunbar23 Sept 20266 min

Unclog a Drain With a Plunger, a Snake and Ten Minutes

Skip the caustic bottle. Diagnose the clog first, then work through the stopper, the plunger and the trap in that order.

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Rewrite my CV so it actually gets read

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GuideCan You Fix ItWes Dunbar23 Sept 20266 min

Your Mower Won't Start. Check Spark, Fuel, Air In That Order

Most no-start mowers come down to five dollars of parts and forty minutes. Work the order and you'll find it before lunch.

Ivermectin.com — Tracked USPS delivery, no clinic visit

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Garden & Yard6 min read

Put Drip Irrigation in Your Vegetable Garden This Weekend

Two days, a hose bib, and about $150 buys you a garden that waters itself all summer. The parts nobody tells you about are the ones that matter.

Poll

Where does your best time with your kids happen?

GuideCan You Fix ItWes Dunbar23 Sept 20267 min

Reglue a Wobbly Chair So It Outlasts the Rest of the Set

Squirting glue into a loose joint buys you about four months. Taking the chair apart and cleaning it properly buys you thirty years.

GuideCan You Fix ItWes Dunbar23 Sept 20266 min

Your Garbage Disposal Hums But Won't Spin

The hum means the motor is fine and something is jammed against the impeller. Fix it in twenty minutes with a $3 wrench, in this order.

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GuideGarden & YardWes Dunbar23 Sept 20266 min

Build a 4x8 Raised Bed for Under Two Hundred Dollars

The lumber is the cheap part. The soil is what wrecks the budget, and here's the math that keeps one bed under two hundred bucks.

Quiz

Does your wardrobe actually fit you?

Five questions, honestly answered, and a plan for the next fortnight.

GuideCan You Fix ItWes Dunbar23 Sept 20266 min

Why Your Garage Door Stops Halfway and What to Fix First

Five minutes of diagnosis tells you whether this is an eight-dollar can of lubricant or a call to a spring guy.

GuideCan You Fix ItWes Dunbar23 Sept 20266 min

Fix a Sticking Door Before You Reach for the Plane

Nine times out of ten it's a loose hinge screw, not a swollen door. Find the rub, then fix it in the right order.

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Give me something to do with my kids this weekend

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GuideCan You Fix ItDean Shaw23 Sept 20266 min

Your Dishwasher Won't Drain. Do This Before You Call Anyone

Four inches of gray water in the tub is almost never a dead machine. Work the blockage points in order and most of these fix themselves in an hour.

Dude.com — 16 advisers who listen, talk and pray with you

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GuideCan You Fix ItDean Shaw23 Sept 20266 min

Fix a Dryer That Runs But Never Gets Hot

Three parts cause almost every no-heat dryer, and one of them costs twelve bucks. Diagnose in the right order and you'll be dry by dinner.

Poll

How often do you see your closest friends?

GuideCan You Fix ItWes Dunbar23 Sept 20265 min

A Dead Outlet, Diagnosed in the Right Order

Before you buy a receptacle or call anybody, work the circuit from the cheapest cause to the most expensive. Most dead outlets die from three things.

GuideCan You Fix ItWes Dunbar23 Sept 20266 min

A Dripping Faucet Tells You Which Part Failed

Where the water shows up decides whether you need a 50-cent washer, a $6 seat kit or a $28 cartridge. Diagnose before you buy anything.

Delicious.com — Nine thousand recipes and a plan for tonight

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GuideCan You Fix ItWes Dunbar23 Sept 20266 min

Your Furnace Won't Fire. Check These Three Things First

A cold house at 6 a.m. usually comes down to a dead thermostat, a choked filter or a flame sensor with a film on it. Fifteen dollars and an hour.

Quiz

Is your money actually in order?

Six questions. No email required, no sales pitch at the end.

Can You Fix It6 min

Patching Drywall Without Making It Worse

Autos7 min

The spark plug job is easy until the last quarter turn

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Plan a cook for eight people

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GuideBRO for HerNina Castellan3 Oct 20266 min

The anchors that came in the box are why the shelf fell

A cordless drill isn't hard. The clutch, the pilot hole and the right wall anchor are the whole game, and almost nobody explains them.

Names.com — The name is the first thing you sell

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Gadgets6 min read

Gadgets Worth Owning That Nobody Writes About

The stud finder that actually finds studs, the battery tester that ends the drawer of maybes, and seven more tools that never make the roundups.

Poll

How often do you see your closest friends?

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