Home Improvement Project - Base Shoe

After I finished the laminate floor project, there is still a gap between the floor and the base board. Ideally, the base board should be removed before working on the floor, however, it is time consuming to remove all base board, install floor, put back the base board, and then re-paint the base board. To save time, we can use base shoe without removing any base board.

Base shoe is like a crown molding in my opinion. There will be a lot of 30 or 45 degree cut to make corners look a lot of nicer. Thus, Miter Saw will be a nice fit for this project. I was using this less power tool borrowed from my colleague Po(thanks). This is an awesome tool because it does do the job very nicely.


In addition to the saw, I also need a nail gun to save time. Using hammer is not only time consuming but also error prone. I highly recommend to use a nail gun instead. There two kinds of nail gun. Air-compressed nail gun is much powerful, but you will need to purchase a separated air compressor. Electric nail gun is less powerful, but for this kind of project it is sufficient. The key ingredient of the project - Base shoe.

We will also need paint and brush for the final finish.

Everything is ready, now let's begin.

Step 1: Measure the width and cut the base shoe roughly.


Step 2: Cut 45 degree angle for the corner. Some corners require 30 degree angle which will take more efforts.



Step 3: Drive the nail to the base shoe and wall. This will close the gap shown in the picture.


Step 4: Brush the paint to give it the final touch.

Step 5: Completed!



Reference:
1. http://www.ehow.com/videos-on_4990_install-base-shoe-molding.html

Home Cleaning Project - Bug Terminator

We found some tiny black bugs on the wall near the roof area. We are not sure what they are but they certainly won't be a good thing. Thus, with the scientific spirit in my blood, I would like to figure it out before it cause catastrophic disaster.

To figure it what the bug is, I will need a microscope. I prefer an USB digital microscope that can connect to my computer and capture snapshots easily. I am using a Mac, so I need one that is compatible with MacOSX too. Buy.com has Carson for $49 which is on sale, but I went to a local Frys to pick up Celestron Handheld Digital Microscope(up to 150x) just for the convenience. unfortunately, Celestron does not have good support for Mac because it require me to find some image/video capture application on my own instead provide a default one in the box. After some researches on the Internet, I ordered a more powerful USB microscope(Veho VMS-004 - up to 400X) from J&R.com.

• Celestron (up to 150x)
  

• Veho (up to 400x)
  

Step 1: Catch a bug.

Step 2: Take a picture. Say Cheeze!

> Front view: 40x


> Top view: 150x Close up


> Bottom view: 150x


Step 3: Google it to find matched photo. We found a similar match on Pest Control Canada via google image service(thank you, google :-)). We thought that the bug we found was "Carpet Beetles". I was not 100% sure about this, so I sent an email to get the confirmation from Pest Control Canada web site below. However, after we've done the research for a few weeks, we were certain that it was actually a "bird mite".

> Bug list web site: PEST CONTROL CANADA - Pest Information & Control Solutions

Step 4: While waiting for the confirmation, I Googled the solution of how to terminate "Carpet Beetles". Here is a very good source.

> Reference: How to Get Rid of Carpet Beetles

Step 5: Based on the reference, I decided to buy "Boric acid" and "Mothball" to kill and keep bugs away. Plus a steam cleaner to deep clean the carpet and put possible affected clothes and sheets to the washer and dryer for a good treatment.

Step 6: Get cleaning equipment ready and vacuum the carpet first.

Step 7: Steam affected areas.

Step 8: Wipe out bug's bodies.

Step 9: Spray "BugOut" to affected areas as the first defense wall.

Step 10: Spread Borax to affected areas too to build the 2nd defense system.

Step 11: Stream clean the carpet to kill any bugs already invaded.


Step 12: Put Mothballs in the closet as a prevention measure.