This Old House

This Old House gives you the inspiration, information and instruction you need to take on home improvement projects of all sizes and succeed. In every issue, find fresh design ideas for every room, creative DIY solutions, step-by-step projects, and tips from the pros. For annual or monthly subscriptions (on all platforms except iOS), your subscription will automatically renew and be charged to your provided payment method at the end of the term unless you choose to cancel. You may cancel at any time during your subscription in your account settings. If your provided payment method cannot be charged, we may terminate your subscription.

Fence Post Installation • No need for mixing or bracing when you follow these simple steps to set a fence post or mailbox pole using Sakrete® Fast Setting Concrete Mix.

Close the skills gap? We’re working on it

Reader mail • THIS OLD HOUSE READERS simply can’t get enough storage ideas, if the replies to our November/December 2018 issue are any indication. From DIY projects to concerns about safe attic access, our in-box overflowed with your input on stowing stuff.

homesolutions

Colorize a claw-foot tub • Want to dress up the outside of an existing cast-iron fixture or put a fresh face on a salvaged one? Turns out painting’s the easy part—it’s surface prep and priming that require careful consideration. Here’s how to do this specialty paint job right, in light of the fixture’s existing condition.

Back-saving snow movers • Even if you own a snow thrower, there are still times when manual means provide the best (and safest) way to clear the white stuff. Here, three of the latest products that make snow removal less of a chore.

Spruce up your spruces • Though outdoor temperatures may not be ideal for yard work, in most areas March is prime time to prune common backyard conifers, using the end-of-winter dormant period as a window of opportunity to stimulate growth. Here’s how.

Playful way to fight tired feet

Tiling made easier • Renovating your bath? Take the stress out of a DIY tile job—and save some time and money—with these off-the-shelf helpers

Leaving town? Turn down the heat…a little

Keep your front loader mold-free • High-efficiency front-loading washing machines use less water and energy, plus get clothes cleaner than their top-loading competition—but they’re also more prone to developing odors and mildew. Here, ways to turn a stinky washer into a clean machine.

Trading spaces • Swapping adjacent bath and laundry locations allows for a smarter layout and fresh finishes in a kid-friendly grooming room

The bright stuff • An exuberant wall covering and a trio of punchy paint colors add up to one charming vintage-style bath

Rustic headboard • Tom Silva and Kevin O’Connor turn a sheet of plywood and some rough-sawn boards into a unique piece of bedroom furniture

Here’s to a better bath • We continue our issue-by-issue guide to the year’s best new home products with finds for baths and laundry rooms, whether they’re in need of a major reno or just a quick refresh.

From dreary to cheery • Practical upgrades give a little stone house a brighter outlook

Where Efficiency Meets Aesthetics • When architect Don Powers decided to renovate a 1920s bungalow in Jamestown, Rhode Island, he needed windows that would not only meet his net-zero building goals but also look the part of the classic New England shingled cottage. Here’s how he accomplished both.

ask This Old House • 64 tips, tricks, and answers to your homeimprovement questions

DIY SMARTS

Norm’s tricks of the trade

SMALL BUT MIGHTY • As the Powers family moves into their renovated 1920s bungalow, it’s too early to tell if its energysaving technologies and energy-producing systems will...