Top Tips From Canada’s Handyman
Shawn Monteith, aka Canada’s Handyman and one of our DIY experts, has been in the home renovation business for close to four decades. Needless to say he has completed a number of jobs over the years and has a number of tricks to make his work well…less like work. We asked Shawn to share some of his tips he has picked up over the years and ones he keeps in his back pocket when he needs them. Some of them will surprise you.
1. If you burn the tip of your finger instantly squeeze your earlobe. There are so many tiny blood vessels in the earlobe that they help get rid of the pain and heat and give you instant relief.
2. If you’re doing finish carpentry and have to put a nail into the edge of wood, you don’t want to split the wood. Take the nail and flip it upside down on a hard surface. Now take hammer and hit the point of the nail to dull it. A sharp point nail will split the wood while a dull nail will crush wood fibres and will not split the wood.
3. If you want perfectly straight caulking lines, use painters tape and tape both edges of area to be caulked. Control the size of bead by controlling the area between tape. Apply caulking and wipe smooth. Now remove tape to give you a straight bead of caulking.
4. What do you do when you’re installing wood baseboards and your inside corners are not 90 degrees? Get yourself a coping saw and do inside coping cuts. This cut will take out the gap and give you a nice fit.
5. When painting with a brush, don’t wipe off all of the paint on the edge of the can before you apply the brush to the surface to be painted. Dip the brush into the paint can, then tap only one side of the brush in the can. This will stop the dripping and leave you with a fair amount of paint on your brush and help make the job go faster.
6. When you plug in a power tool always make sure it is turned off. Some power tools have a ‘On’ switch the will stay on after it’s unplugged. If you plug the tool into an outlet and the switch is on, the tool will automatically start which is very dangerous.
7. When using finishing nails for finish carpentry, always counter sink the head into the wood the same thickness as the width of the head. This will guarantee you have enough depth to add a wood putty or something similar to hide the nail head.
About Canada’s Handyman, Shawn Monteith
Shawn Monteith has been involved in the construction industry for close to 40 years. Building houses, high rises or commercial spaces, Shawn is involved from start to finish. In the mid 90’s, Shawn started doing shows and showing the public some of his techniques and tricks of the trades at the PNE, Vancouver Trade shows and numerous Vancouver morning TV shows. Moving back to Ontario didn’t stop this handyman. With his own stage at the CNE and segments on The Marilyn Denis show, Shawn continued his passion helping the public with his construction knowledge. This exposure led to many visits to local morning shows including Breakfast Television, Rogers, Global and approx. 20+ appearances on CHCH’s morning show as their local handyman. Shawn has also been involved in many trade shows over the years including the GTA Home and Reno Show, National Home Show, and the Toronto Fall Home Show. Catch one of his shows and you’ll see repairs and techniques on drywall, carpentry, ceramic tiles, decks, fences, flooring and many other construction related topics.
