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12 HOT PRODUCTS FROM THE NATIONAL HARDWARE SHOW

THE 2022 NATIONAL HARDWARE SHOW WAS HELD IN APRIL IN LAS VEGAS. IN CASE YOU’RE WEREN’T ABLE TO ATTEND, HERE’S A ROUNDUP OF COOL TOOLS AND PRODUCTS THAT WERE ON DISPLAY.

1 MOBILE REVOLVING TOOL CART

MFG: Montezuma Storage WEB: www.montezumastorage.com INFO: The Montezuma 3-Tier Steel Mobile Revolving Tool Cart provides greater visibility and access to your frequently used tools. This innovative, professional-level cart pulls right up to your project and puts your tools within easy reach. The 3-tier revolving top incorporates foam inserts, steel tines, pockets, an easel and a drawer to allow you to store and organize a variety of tools and equipment. A staging tray and a bottom tray are also included.

2 ULTRA QUIET AIR COMPRESSOR 3 MOSQUITO BITS

MFG: California Air Tools WEB: www.californiaairtools.com INFO: The California Air Tools Light & Quiet 1P1060SP Portable Air Compressor is designed to be one of the quietest air compressors in the industry having only 56 decibels of sound. The .6 HP motor operates at only 1680 RPM creating less noise and less wear. MFG: Summit Chemical WEB: www.summitchemical.com INFO: Just in time for spring, it's America's best-selling granular mosquito larvacide. Mosquito Bits also works as the biological control for fungus gnats in the soil of home, garden, and landscape plants and home mushroom beds. Granular application for mosquito larvae control ensures broad coverage in standing water and quick kill of mosquito larvae without affecting beneficial insects, fish, frogs, people, plants or pets.

4 YARD BUTLER HOSE REEL CART

MFG: Yard Butler WEB: www.yardbutler.com INFO: This sturdy, balanced, and heavy-duty two-wheeled hose cart will end the struggling when moving and storing heavy garden hoses in your yard. Watering 50 yards away and need to reach a few more fruit trees? No problem. The IHT2-EZ is built for stability so it won't tip or drag even when you give it a yank. It tips back with perfect balance and wheels away effortlessly. It offers a 200-foot hose capacity, kink-free, leak-free, and rust-resistant design.

5 NO SPILL GAS CAN

MFG: No Spill, LLC WEB: www.nospill.com INFO: No Spill, LLC manufactures the No Spill Gas Can. Features such as a push-button control with auto-stop, along with view stripes, fast flow, and a Flame Mitigation Device set this product apart from all of the others. Made in the USA.

6 THE CAULKING FINGER

MFG: FWMM Products, LLC WEB: www.thecaulkingfinger.com INFO: This crazy-looking thing is a caulk-smoothing tool like no other on the market today. It looks, feels, and performs like your own finger while saving yours from splinters and abrasions.

7 WATER SAVER W/RTF

MFG: Barenbrug USA WEB: www.barusa.com INFO: Water Saver lawn seed mixture contains some of the most advanced, unique, tall fescues on the market. Providing the benefits of rhizomes not found in any other tall fescue varieties, Water Saver, w/RTF has the ability to quickly fill in damaged and bare spots in your lawn with new shoots of grass. This results in less over-seeding, fewer weed problems, and no wide-leafed ugly clumps of grass like other tall fescues can form.

8 SLIDA DRIVER AND SLIDA FILE

MFG: Wilko Tools WEB: www.wilkotools.com.au INFO: These innovative dual-tipped screwdrivers and files are designed so the handles can not disengage from the sliding shafts, ensuring both shaft ends are always available via the releasing switch on the handle mechanism. It's a handy way to have a Phillip's head and flat-blade driver in one tool.

9 CURBALIGHT

MFG: Curbalight WEB: www.amazon.com INFO: Curbalight offers an American-made prefabricated tree ring that includes a LED light strip with hundreds of color shades to choose from. This product offers beauty and security of all landscape designs.

10 QUICK DAM WATER ACTIVATED FLOOD BARRIERS

MFG: Quick Dams WEB: www.quickdams.com INFO: Quick Dam Flood Barriers absorb, contain and divert problem flood water. Flood Barriers are water-activated and come in lengths of 5, 10 and 17 feet. They absorb, swell and gel oncoming water on contact to create a durable barrier. Flood Barriers are compact, lightweight and easy to use. They are easy to keep stored away until needed and reusable.

11 RAPIDFIX

MFG: Lighthouse for the Blind WEB: www.rapidfix.com INFO: RapidFix is a dual-component adhesive system comprised of a powerful, instant bonding adhesive and Welding Powder. The adhesive can be used alone or can be combined with the Welding Powder. The powder is formulated to harden instantly when it comes into contact with the adhesive. Together, the two are used to make repairs similar to a weld, as well as for filling holes, gaps and cracks. The adhesive dries crystal clear. The welding powder hardens opaque-white and can be painted immediately. The hardened welding powder can be instantly drilled, sanded, ground, filed and painted.

12 RMR-86 INSTANT MOLD & MILDEW STAIN REMOVER

MFG: RMR Brands WEB: www.rmrsolutions.com INFO: In 2021, the RMR-86 Instant Mold & Mildew Stain Remover was recognized in over 20 publications as the Top Mold & Mildew product. Some of the most noted titles include: Bob Villa, Old House Journal, and Today’s Homeowner. The RMR-86 Instant Mold & Mildew Stain Remover is the FIRST Professional Grade Mold Stain and is available to the average consumer.

INJURIES ON THE RISE FROM DIY HOME IMPROVEMENT

Summer is approaching, which means home improvement injuries will be on the rise.

Sometimes tackling a project yourself seems easier and cheaper than hiring a contractor, but the reality is that they come with the risk of bodily injury. In 2020, more than 290K home-improvement injuries needed to be treated in the ER, and over 24K required hospital admission.

The analysts at the Clearsurance team used data from the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS) to identify the most prevalent home-improvement injuries, which body parts were injured most, which tools were the most dangerous, and how the injuries were treated. A quick look at just how risky DIY home improvement projects can be:

• There were 290,599 home improvement injuries requiring treatment at an emergency room and 24,534 home improvement injuries requiring hospital admission.

• Lacerations (127,486) were the most common injury from home improvement projects followed by fractures (35,917) and contusions/abrasions (34,806).

• The most commonly injured body parts were fingers, hands, and eyeballs.

• The most dangerous household tools that caused the most injuries were manual workshop tools (107,2850) and power saws (83,141).

• Home improvement injuries increased during the warmer spring and summer months.

With home improvement injuries accounting for 3% of all ER injury visits, Home Improvement & Repairs readers should realize just how risky DIY projects can be. Be careful out there.

Read the full study at Clearsurance.com.

SUNNY OUTLOOK FOR OUTDOOR HOME IMPROVEMENTS

Americans will be doing more outdoor home-improvement projects this spring, and they’ll be spending much

more time on these tasks. According to the 2022 Axiom Home Improvement Outlook Survey, nearly 67% of homeowners say they will spend more time on outdoor home improvement projects this year than in 2021. Six in 10 respondents report they will spend between $1,000 and $5,000 on these projects.

“Spring is the time for outdoor tasks,” says Mike Reiber CEO of Axiom Marketing. “But experts are telling us this boost in outsideof-the-house projects is more than seasonal. Since 2020, many Americans have focused on updating the interior of their homes. Now they’re turning their attention to projects that improve and update their outdoor environments to make them as nice as the inside of their homes.”

According to the survey, the top five outdoor projects they’ll take on this year include adding new shrubs or trees, building or renovating a deck, adding a fence, expanding or creating a new flower garden, and exterior painting. How much are homeowners planning to spend? 48% of those surveyed said they’ll be

shelling out anywhere from $1,000 to $5,000 on projects. 28% say they’ll spend under $1,000. More than 15% expect to spend up to $10,000. Nearly 50% say they’ll pay for the projects in cash.

Most homeowners will take on the jobs themselves with just over 41% saying the tasks will be do-it-yourself projects. Hiring a professional comes in a close second with nearly 38% of homeowners saying they’ll leave it to the pros.

Download the full Axiom 2022 Home Improvement Outlook report here: https://axiomcom.com/2022-outdoorhome-improvement/

DOME-SHAPED HOUSES FOR SEVERE WEATHER

A contractor from Tuscaloosa, Al., is building semispherical houses to protect residents from severe weather. The domes are constructed with a web framework that strengthens their structural stability. According to John Johnson, owner of New Age Dome Construction, the houses are safer and less expensive, noting his is the only company in the industry with

domes certified for 250 mph winds, (The Enhanced Fujita scale rates an F5 tornado with wind-speed in excess of 200 mph.)

“We recently had a call from the State of Alabama’s special investigator for the architects and engineer's board,” says Johnson. “He had an official request to verify our claims. After I blew up his email account with my ICC facts and test data, on the third morning, he officially closed the investigation.” The investigator’s response: “You got the goods.”

Learn more at www.newagedomeconstruction.com.

TREX LAUNCHES HELPFUL “HOW-TO” RESOURCES WITH TREX ACADEMY

With DIY’ers representing a considerable portion of the deck building/intending category, Trex Company, the world’s largest manufacturer of wood-alternative decking and railing, launched Trex Academy, an online multimedia content hub dedicated to helping DIY’ers bring their deck dreams to life. Housed within the Trex website, Trex Academy includes a robust mix of resources geared toward DIY’ers of all skill levels. Visitors have the opportunity to explore the content at their own pace. The landing page features the following resources:

Plan Your Deck – an ideal starting point with helpful tools for comparing and selecting materials, estimating costs, visualizing and drafting deck designs, ordering samples and finding nearby retailers and builders.

Get Started – covers key steps to building a deck, including important pre-build considerations, inspirational and shoppable Project Galleries for finding the perfect look, and expert advice and testimonials.

How-To Guides – These detailed step-by-step instruction guides take you through every part of the process from planning and foundation work to installing decking, lighting and railing, plus finishing touches and even upcycling leftover materials.

For more visual learners, Trex Academy also features a full YouTube playlist complete with 15 newly-produced, in-depth how-to videos covering the entire deck building process.

Visit Trex Academy at www.trex.com/academy.

CEMENT SHORTAGES IN THE SOUTHERN US

Cement shortages were reported in Alabama and South Carolina. Dan Crosby, president of South Carolina ready-mixed concrete supplier Metrocon, told Fox News that his business could only take on 60 percent of its normal workload. He blamed the problem on labor and supply shortages. Meanwhile, the Alabama Concrete Industries Association saw a 14% increase in the demand for concrete in 2021 but said that a cement shortage might cause delays to construction projects. The association also pointed the blame at labor and supply issues. It pointed out that high demand for concrete during the winter prevented inventory being built up and then the annual plant maintenance breaks in the spring added to the problems. Once contractors actually secured supplies of cement, they then faced further delays due to a nationwide truck driver shortage

Source: www.GlobalCement.com

ASK MATT

QUESTION: How can I bend wood like I’ve seen on other people’s furniture projects?

ANSWER: I know of two ways to bend wood. The first is called kerf-cutting, which is the process of cutting a number of parallel slots into a piece of material that allow it to bend. Kerf refers to the width of material a sawblade removes when it cuts through wood. Kerf-cutting creates many closely positioned saw cuts across one face of a board which extend from edge to edge but are not deep enough to penetrate the opposite face. Essentially, by kerfing the wood, you are making the material on one side of the board thinner, so it can be flexed to follow a curve. While this method is not very strong, it does allow for easy forming of wide or tall parts for decorative use. Another method to create a curved piece of wood is to heat it with steam. Some woods such as oak respond well to steam-bending, and thinner stock sizes will bend easier (with less breakage) than thicker stock. You can find detailed instructions online for steam-bending. In general, you’ll need to make a box or container to enclose the board. A 4-in. diameter PVC drain pipe is a common steam container. WIDER! YOUR FAVORITE NON-SCRATCH SCRAPER TOOL JUST GOT The box should be sloped with a drain hole on one end and equipped with a removable cap. Use a wallpaper steamer or similar device to push steam into an intake port along the top. Steam the wood for roughly one hour per each inch of its thickness. Save Time and Effort When Cleaning Small Surfaces, Edges & Grooves! Remove the board with tongs, set it into a form or clamps to bend it into shape, then allow it to cool and stiffen. Need more info? Visit Matt’s blog at HomeImprovementAndRepairs.com.

ORIGINAL MODEL AND NEW WIDE BLADE FEATURES: ROUNDED TIPS —BETTER SCRAPER THAN A FINGERNAIL FLAT-EDGED TIPS—WON’T SCRATCH LIKE A SCREWDRIVER POINTED TIPS—BETTER THAN A TOOTHPICK FOR CLEANING GROOVES AND CORNERS

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Remove stickers, tape,caulk, putty, grime & more!

Available in original 2-packs, 5-packs and new wide blade 3-packs