The modern homeowner has more alternatives to traditional, wired, and landline-based home security systems than ever before, but it can be hard to tell the difference between all the new companies in the industry. In this comparison review, we’ll break down two of the most prominent home security companies—SimpliSafe and Ring—and compare their products, services, and costs to help you choose the best home security system for your home. Ring Home Security Ring is the first name in video doorbells and the product that birthed the company in 2013. Ring was purchased by Amazon in 2018 for $1.2 billion. Here’s…

If you’re in the north hemisphere, now is the time of year to consider an air conditioner. If you’re in an older building or small space (or both), a portable air conditioner can be unearthed or wheeled out every summer for that extra dose of needed cooling. There aren’t many portable A/C units that are good looking, unfortunately, but we’ve rounded up the 10 best looking, and top-performing air conditioners. N.B. For more see our post Remodeling 101: The Ins and Outs of Smart Air Conditioners. Above: The sleek-looking LG (LP0817WSR) 8,000 BTU White Portable Air Conditioner cools rooms up…

Mister Ice Cream in Vancouver offers the latest dessert craze—ice cream made to order using liquid nitrogen. (The technique has been popular in Asia for some time, say owners Michael Lai and Tommy Choi, and in San Francisco, Smitten Ice Cream is leading the charge.) Unlike readymade ice cream, which requires stabilizers such as eggs, the nitrogen technique mixes only fresh cream and milk with flavorings like sugar, salt, or chocolate. The ice cream, they report, is denser, smoother, and creamier. At Mister Ice Cream, the act of making is a show in itself; a row of KitchenAid mixers becomes enveloped in a chilly cloud…

Watch as Roger Cook visits a stone yard that makes stone walls in sections at their facility using a variety of natural field stone from disassembled old walls. Once the sections are built, Roger and Kevin O’Connor watch them get loaded onto the truck and taken to the project. In Newton, the crane lowers the sections right into place. One last stone is added over each seam and it looks like a traditional stone wall. Building a Stone Wall Building a stone wall by hand is typically a time-consuming and backbreaking 6-step process—from preparing the footing, laying the base course,…

There are two ways to go about removing grout: with an electric-powered tool, or with a manual tool and a lot of determination. We’ll go over both methods below. Removing Grout Manually If you’d rather not purchase a power tool, the pointed metal tip of a traditional, lever-type can opener (also called a church key opener) works just as well, albeit with more time and effort. Draw the point repeatedly along the joint to scrape out the hardened grout. If the tool becomes dull, clamp it in a vise and resharpen the tip with a file. Alternatively, you can fasten…

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