**Designing and Installing Natural Stone Veneer**

As we stood side by side in this beautiful yard, I couldn't help but notice the potential for natural stone veneer to transform this area. The wall that caught our attention was a prime candidate for renovation, and with some careful planning, it would become a stunning focal point.

We began by discussing the two primary options: synthetic stone or natural stone veneer. While synthetic stone is an affordable and quick solution, I couldn't help but feel that natural stone would be the preferred choice. Not only does it offer a more authentic look, but it also has a unique charm that can elevate any space.

**The Installation Process**

Our approach was to install the stones individually, ensuring a precise fit and creating a seamless transition between each piece. To achieve this, we applied a modified mortar, which is a specialized adhesive designed specifically for installing natural stone veneer. This type of mortar provides superior bond strength and durability, making it an essential component in our installation process.

Once the mortar was dry, we began to lay the stones, starting from the top and working our way down the wall. To create a uniform appearance, we used a combination of low spots on the wall to serve as anchors for adhesion. This technique allowed us to distribute the weight evenly, ensuring a stable foundation for the veneer.

**Choosing the Right Material**

For this project, I advocated for using blue fieldstone, which I felt would complement the existing landscape and add a touch of elegance to the space. The soft color and subtle texture of this stone would create a soothing atmosphere, perfect for an outdoor seating area.

As we worked, my colleague expressed a preference for natural materials, citing their timeless appeal and versatility. Indeed, choosing natural products can be a wise decision, as they often provide a sense of authenticity and character that synthetic alternatives cannot match.

**The Cap: A Finishing Touch**

To complete the installation, we applied a cap stone across the top of the wall, creating a clean and polished finish. This final piece not only provided an inviting surface for sitting or placing drinks but also served as a visual anchor, tying together the various elements of the design.

With our installation complete, I couldn't help but feel a sense of satisfaction at the transformation we had achieved. The natural stone veneer added warmth and depth to the space, creating a welcoming atmosphere that would be perfect for outdoor entertaining or relaxation.

**Additional Considerations**

As we worked on this project, several additional considerations came to mind. For example, it's essential to address any existing gaps or openings in the wall before proceeding with the installation. In this instance, we discovered a small gutter that had been overgrown by vegetation. By clearing away the debris and repairing the gutter, we ensured a secure and watertight seal.

Moreover, it's crucial to take into account factors like weather patterns and environmental conditions when designing outdoor spaces. In areas prone to heavy rainfall or extreme temperatures, additional measures may be necessary to protect the veneer from damage or erosion.

**Power Sander Options**

If you have a job that requires power sanding, I'd like to share my expertise on the different types of sanders available and how they work. From angle grinders to rotary hammers, each tool has its unique characteristics and applications. By choosing the right sander for your needs, you can achieve professional-grade results and tackle even the most challenging projects with confidence.

**Outdoor Lighting**

Would you like to know more about adding outdoor lighting to your deck? Not only does it enhance ambiance and safety but also increase property value and curb appeal. In this article, we'll explore the basics of outdoor lighting design, including power sander usage and common pitfalls to avoid. Whether you're a seasoned DIYer or a homeowner looking for inspiration, I'm here to share my expertise and provide valuable insights on creating a welcoming and inviting exterior space.

**Home Inspection Nightmares**

We've all been there – faced with unexpected issues that arise during home inspections. In this section, we'll delve into some common problems homeowners encounter and offer practical advice on how to address them. From gutter maintenance to power washing vinyl siding, I'll share my expertise on tackling these challenges head-on.

**Additional Resources**

To further enhance your DIY skills and knowledge of natural stone installation, I recommend exploring additional resources such as books, online tutorials, or workshops. By continuing to learn and improve your craft, you can tackle even the most complex projects with confidence and achieve stunning results that will elevate your home's curb appeal.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: entoday on ask This Old House well Sarah from Massachusetts wrote in and she has this eyesore of a wall loves the patio and plantings around it but was wondering how she could dress it up we'll reface this concrete wall with a beautiful natural stone so this is that great Connecticut Fieldstone obviously it's cut thin and I'll take you through the step-by-step of an installation of a garbage disposal now on drain waste and vent they measure it from the inside diameter ID the ID that's what you have on tubular it is on the oh outside the animal okay that would drive me crazy oh yes this is okay those are both called inch and a half that's not fair thank you hi Elaine hi Tommy welcome to Nashville thank you this is home of country music what do you love country music I'm a big country music fan well you're in the right place I heard that and I like your house thank you so much we love it too it was built in 1918 and I live here with my husband and my two boys oh great that's actually what I emailed you about all right well let's see what you have so my boys are ten and four and they love to play here oh in the side yard yeah well this is nice it has a gate and you're away from the traffic It's Kind of Perfect for them but there is something with the door that I'd like to show you okay the store right here yes it opens right onto the living room it's nice all right so what's the problem well I like a lot of things about the door how it kind of matches the house and I think it might be original even but right now it's kind of hard for me to hear the boys when they're out there and I'd love to keep a better eye on them yeah so what do you want to do I was thinking about replacing it with a Dutch store oh a Dutch store so you want to keep the top open when the boys are outside playing yeah I think it'd be really nice well you can actually buy Dutch doors which means we have to take the whole unit out and replace it with a new one but I really like the character of this door I like the glass at the top the inset panels the Styles and rails and this Hardware you know what about if we took this door and we cut it right here and made it a Dutch door I would love that all right well let's get some tools and we can get started great all right we've got our workstation set up outside to keep the mess outside I appreciate that well most of it anyway okay so now I've marked the door where we're going to cut it sure now your door has two hinges we need to add two more hinges so I'm going to take a hinge and Trace around the outside and that will be where I mortise it on the door and then the bottom now just chisel it out so how do you know how deep to Chisel right now I'm estimating the thickness of the hinge so I don't want to go any deeper than that I'm cutting the grain of the wood so that when I chisel out these little pieces I don't want this pot to Splinter off that looks perfect okay that's it right there all right now I'll chisel the next one down okay so now that I've noticed for the hinges on the door the next thing I want to do is I want to install the hinges on the door foreign on the door jamb now we added two hinges to the door and we want all the hinges to match so we're going to replace your existing hinges with two new ones your old hinge is much thicker than the new hinge all right so what we need to do is put a filler in behind it to bring it flush this is just a scrap piece of cardboard foreign so now what we're going to do is we're actually going to cut the door right down the center of this style right here exciting yeah now I look at this deadbolt right here I really don't like the location of it do you use it now we now we have another one on the jam oh okay so we can take this out and Patch it we use the plug from the hole saw to fill the deadbolt hole foreign we use polyurethane glue for the plug which is water activated we'll fill the mortise on the side of the door with wood glue and a Dutchman okay so now the polyurethane glue has dried and it's holding that plug in really good wow look how much that expanded well that's the benefit of that it expands and will hold whatever you're trying to glue right in there all right both patches are in on the face and on the side and the door is sanded if we paint this you won't even be able to tell No it should blend right in does that mean we're ready for the big cut not quite yet if I cut the door now that means I'll have a gap on the center of the door the thickness of the blade and that will let air in and out we don't want that to happen so what I need to do is cut two wedge fillers that are going to go in that Center all right here's our two pieces we have a taper on the top of this piece and a taper on the bottom of this piece they'll go in that Center section of the door and fit like that now when you open the top door and you bring it in it'll separate the two and create a little bit of a gap as they close the gap will become Tight Seal in the arrow now I have to cut the space in the door this thick so our centerpiece will go in like this right in the door we'll attach this piece to the underside of the top section then hang the door and see how it fits I'll get the door up where it goes if you want to put the hinge pins in great so exciting good now we'll get the bottom one now let's see how it fits oh wow this is great all right that's pretty good now let's close the top and see what we have see we still have a gap right there so now we can attach the filler to the bottom section of the door and then fine tune the fit okay we were able to turn your door into a Dutch door wonderful all you have to do is paint it sure now I've installed a barrel latch right here so when you unlock it you can just open the top and close the bottom and now you can hear your voice playing in the yard this is so great thank you so much Tommy and thank you for coming to Nashville it was my pleasure okay Pala take 245s at p and one get your fittings here look at you what are you swapping selling well I thought we would talk about doing a project that people might tackle was actually to install a disposer into their kitchen sink people love them so if you can help them get them in there they're going to think they need a little bit of Courage all right so we have this sink set up here you know a standard kitchen sink without a disposal got a basket strainer right here and a straight tail piece for you here if we now hang this disposer from right here the center of the drain moves from this point over to this point because that's the outlet from the disposal that's right so we got to think about how do we make the connections from right here let's call this point A to point B right here where it goes down into the wall and down into the city sewer gotcha okay so it's really just a question look at some of the parts and pieces you're going to find in the plumbing aisle at a home center or at a plumbing wholesaler okay so here's here's our exit point right here and now everything between right here and our trap is done in standard schedule 40 PVC drain waste and vent Okay Okay so we've got a trap right here and on this side everything on this side is called the sewer side of the system it's all going out of the house that's right it's after the P-trap okay okay and it's done this way so uh between this point this point we're going to have a trap and then it's a question of what fittings do we have available to us to make these angles and so here you can see a stand a 90 degree elbow here's one that is an elbow but it's got a street connection so it would fit into another fitting this one's 60 degrees this one's 45 degrees this is 45 Street this is 22. now the combination of all these parts and pieces let's just sort of navigate your way to get between point a and point B and those are all I'm looking at them right there those are all glue joints that's all traditional PVC that I expect that's right and then a couple of things on couplings right here this is the standard coupling that's terrific don't forget to also maybe get one of these which is a repair coupling in a tight little space they're really handy to be able to let you go into it here and then bring it back and glue it together and this is going to be your sort of fudge this is going to give you an extra inch here or there to put your things together gotcha so now selections are traps we're putting a disposer and sooner or later the disposer put enough garbage down there it means the drain might need to be cleared on the sewer side so I love seeing this a clean out plug right here that would let you bring a make right in here to get this right off open it up and you're good this is another one with a with a loosening nut right here that would let you drop this and run the snake this way here's what we're seeing people doing nowadays and this is look at the difference in the thickness right here schedule 40. schedule 40. this is regular tubular yeah okay and then you could just go with this this is fine but if I did this I'd also like to put a cleanout in right here to still think about the service in the future okay so as I look at these right here all acceptable but you must have a favorite what's like it's still like a clean up plug one really easy right accessible and this is not bad either okay now we need to transition from this trap to tubular another form of inch and a half but it's not the same of course not it should be Plumbing you would think that inch and a half of an inch and a half now on drain waste and vent they measure it from the inside diameter ID the ID that's inch and a half on tubular it is on the oh outside the animal okay that would drive me crazy oh yes it's okay those are both called inch and a half that's not fair and there's one more thing this looks like that what do you think that is well it's smaller that's another size that's inch and a quarter now that's going to be used in lavatories and bathrooms on the sinks this is in kitchen but you'll grab the wrong thing in the aisle you get all the way home and you'll come back from this job security for plumbers right there confusing us later all right these all go together with compression nuts and gaskets and you whatever you need to get that last mile from the outlet of the trap to right here that's point a goes to point B let's go to point C get this thing going all right so there's always a little water in the Trap you want to take it down carefully I got a bucket underneath sometimes these are so rusted on you have to heat them up with a torch to make this nut melt Tim once you dig out some Putty and let's start thinking about mounting the disposer that just hold against me yeah now I can tighten up these screws it makes a fabulous connection to the underside of the sink that's beautiful thing can you just pass me that saw Kevin yeah the old work is in the way before I can hang the disposer I'm not going to reuse any of this stuff pretty ingenious and this will help get to give you a little bit of Leverage I'm using a screwdriver foreign 45 and a 22 and let's play around with it you want a street though actually let's try street 45 great car okay so now that looks a little too long this way and a little tube it's not it's not long enough this way okay so give me a the 22 I don't have a street 20. no just a regular 22. they never come in a Street oh you're just going to use a little straighty you can cut it for me if you want now the last thing is to put a properly installed electrical outlet in the ground fault circuit interrupted many times you can find electricity in there because many times the dishwasher is next door but once you get that switch in here's a great thing to add see the box right here it connects with a small tube to an air switch not bad music in my ears that's great Richard grind nice job well done oh boy look at his Brain Trust something's going on outside something good is going on that's right what are we looking at well Sarah from Massachusetts wrote in and she has this eyesore of a wall loves the patio and plantings around it but was wondering how she could dress it up I can see why right I mean the brick patio looks great and those cobbles in the back so that stands out as sort of the sore thumb right so thoughts on dressing it up so I on the cheaper end of things I think stain or stucco you could apply that it's easy and it would just dress up this surface yeah stain I like because it gets absorbed into the material so it's gonna stay and it's going to protect paint never ever paint no paint no way water Gets behind that paint that's going to pop we're gonna have a mess okay so I kind of had a little bit of a vision Stone here oh stone veneer yeah yeah no so apply well you got brick down there you got Cobble there so it would actually fit the Wall's in great shape sometimes you would have to take a wall down but this I think perfect oh this is a strong wall I can just tell by looking at it a stone veneer on top of that is going to make it a 10. so key question who's going oh me are you both let's do it together what do you say Jen all right wow this is really a great little patio Nook I like how it's nestled into the side of the yard here oh I love this whole this whole area but this is the wall that we were talking about ah so okay so this is what's going to get the veneer right exactly all right so what are you thinking for materials We have basically two choices we can do a synthetic stone or we can do a natural stone veneer which is probably what you and I would like the best absolutely the the manufactured Stone if you will it's inexpensive it's easy to put up goes quickly which is always an advantage cost wise and it is the rage it is the rage these days so you know what my vote's going to be thin Stone Finance thank you sir all right I'm with you on that all right so we're gonna we're gonna apply the pieces individually and then how are we going to finish it off so some people like to take that stone and they like to go from this side and go all the way over and then down to that side okay the only thing I don't like about that the only thing I hate about that is it has open joints open joints to the weather eventually yeah and under that stone pop it up so what hours because the water is going to travel in and when it freezes it could pop it out in this area so it'll go quick too it'd be one two Winters and then we have problems so in this instance what I think we should do is a cap okay again we do have choices with material I like the blue stone for this space only because the color tone the softness of that product yeah on your eye Mike what do you think about that I'm a fan of using all natural products so I think that'll look really good all right so if we place a blue stone across the top it's going to provide another place to sit a nice clean place to put a drink and it'll it'll finish it off as a perfect cap we've got some work to do so let's get started let's go Jen all right the first thing we want to do is clean up the wall we're going to start at the top with the grinder we're going to get it right down to the raw concrete to make sure we have good adhesion for our cap and then we're going to continue down the wall and do the same thing to both sides we're not going to grind down all the way flat we're actually going to use some of the low spots for adhesion foreign I love the color and the texture right so this is that great Connecticut Fieldstone that we were talking about obviously it's cut thin which is what we wanted you can actually see this on edge right right and so this is the side that will go down that's right so all we're going to do is we're going to take our Notch trial we're going to take the material which by the way is a modified mortar uh for intent and purpose all that is is glue in the mortar foreign and that's when we're going to take our margin trowel we'll actually back butter the stone having the glue mixed in is really going to help that vertical surface so it sticks very important the regular mortar or type n or type S does not have the stick ability that the modified motor does today was supposed to be a nice sunny day yeah cloudy the temperatures are down so every time that we try to put a stone on you walk away you might see a sag right yeah so that's exactly what these chips are for so as long as we chip up we know this modified motor is going to set when it's supposed to a little bit longer and so once it's set we'll pull them out we'll pull them out you'll never see them like this one here yep that's ready to go I have one over here down here ready to go okay now it's time to Joint up the work set it down set her down just wiggle it down into place look at that that's the pitch we want but maybe a little too much can you give me a bang right there another one another one all right that's great that's what we want look at that let me just check my overhang buck and a half there buck and a half there buck and a half there inch and a half there so excellent good that looks so good all right now we have some cleaning up to do Jen thanks for the help all right foreign I'll show you how to add outdoor lighting to your deck have you ever wondered what power sander to use if you have a job to do I'll explain how they work and which one to choose and I'll go over the basics of power washing vinyl siding and we'll share with you a few more home inspection nightmares well it looks like there was a gutter there but now there's a fern growing out in someone's bed could be up on top that's a procrastinatortoday on ask This Old House well Sarah from Massachusetts wrote in and she has this eyesore of a wall loves the patio and plantings around it but was wondering how she could dress it up we'll reface this concrete wall with a beautiful natural stone so this is that great Connecticut Fieldstone obviously it's cut thin and I'll take you through the step-by-step of an installation of a garbage disposal now on drain waste and vent they measure it from the inside diameter ID the ID that's what you have on tubular it is on the oh outside the animal okay that would drive me crazy oh yes this is okay those are both called inch and a half that's not fair thank you hi Elaine hi Tommy welcome to Nashville thank you this is home of country music what do you love country music I'm a big country music fan well you're in the right place I heard that and I like your house thank you so much we love it too it was built in 1918 and I live here with my husband and my two boys oh great that's actually what I emailed you about all right well let's see what you have so my boys are ten and four and they love to play here oh in the side yard yeah well this is nice it has a gate and you're away from the traffic It's Kind of Perfect for them but there is something with the door that I'd like to show you okay the store right here yes it opens right onto the living room it's nice all right so what's the problem well I like a lot of things about the door how it kind of matches the house and I think it might be original even but right now it's kind of hard for me to hear the boys when they're out there and I'd love to keep a better eye on them yeah so what do you want to do I was thinking about replacing it with a Dutch store oh a Dutch store so you want to keep the top open when the boys are outside playing yeah I think it'd be really nice well you can actually buy Dutch doors which means we have to take the whole unit out and replace it with a new one but I really like the character of this door I like the glass at the top the inset panels the Styles and rails and this Hardware you know what about if we took this door and we cut it right here and made it a Dutch door I would love that all right well let's get some tools and we can get started great all right we've got our workstation set up outside to keep the mess outside I appreciate that well most of it anyway okay so now I've marked the door where we're going to cut it sure now your door has two hinges we need to add two more hinges so I'm going to take a hinge and Trace around the outside and that will be where I mortise it on the door and then the bottom now just chisel it out so how do you know how deep to Chisel right now I'm estimating the thickness of the hinge so I don't want to go any deeper than that I'm cutting the grain of the wood so that when I chisel out these little pieces I don't want this pot to Splinter off that looks perfect okay that's it right there all right now I'll chisel the next one down okay so now that I've noticed for the hinges on the door the next thing I want to do is I want to install the hinges on the door foreign on the door jamb now we added two hinges to the door and we want all the hinges to match so we're going to replace your existing hinges with two new ones your old hinge is much thicker than the new hinge all right so what we need to do is put a filler in behind it to bring it flush this is just a scrap piece of cardboard foreign so now what we're going to do is we're actually going to cut the door right down the center of this style right here exciting yeah now I look at this deadbolt right here I really don't like the location of it do you use it now we now we have another one on the jam oh okay so we can take this out and Patch it we use the plug from the hole saw to fill the deadbolt hole foreign we use polyurethane glue for the plug which is water activated we'll fill the mortise on the side of the door with wood glue and a Dutchman okay so now the polyurethane glue has dried and it's holding that plug in really good wow look how much that expanded well that's the benefit of that it expands and will hold whatever you're trying to glue right in there all right both patches are in on the face and on the side and the door is sanded if we paint this you won't even be able to tell No it should blend right in does that mean we're ready for the big cut not quite yet if I cut the door now that means I'll have a gap on the center of the door the thickness of the blade and that will let air in and out we don't want that to happen so what I need to do is cut two wedge fillers that are going to go in that Center all right here's our two pieces we have a taper on the top of this piece and a taper on the bottom of this piece they'll go in that Center section of the door and fit like that now when you open the top door and you bring it in it'll separate the two and create a little bit of a gap as they close the gap will become Tight Seal in the arrow now I have to cut the space in the door this thick so our centerpiece will go in like this right in the door we'll attach this piece to the underside of the top section then hang the door and see how it fits I'll get the door up where it goes if you want to put the hinge pins in great so exciting good now we'll get the bottom one now let's see how it fits oh wow this is great all right that's pretty good now let's close the top and see what we have see we still have a gap right there so now we can attach the filler to the bottom section of the door and then fine tune the fit okay we were able to turn your door into a Dutch door wonderful all you have to do is paint it sure now I've installed a barrel latch right here so when you unlock it you can just open the top and close the bottom and now you can hear your voice playing in the yard this is so great thank you so much Tommy and thank you for coming to Nashville it was my pleasure okay Pala take 245s at p and one get your fittings here look at you what are you swapping selling well I thought we would talk about doing a project that people might tackle was actually to install a disposer into their kitchen sink people love them so if you can help them get them in there they're going to think they need a little bit of Courage all right so we have this sink set up here you know a standard kitchen sink without a disposal got a basket strainer right here and a straight tail piece for you here if we now hang this disposer from right here the center of the drain moves from this point over to this point because that's the outlet from the disposal that's right so we got to think about how do we make the connections from right here let's call this point A to point B right here where it goes down into the wall and down into the city sewer gotcha okay so it's really just a question look at some of the parts and pieces you're going to find in the plumbing aisle at a home center or at a plumbing wholesaler okay so here's here's our exit point right here and now everything between right here and our trap is done in standard schedule 40 PVC drain waste and vent Okay Okay so we've got a trap right here and on this side everything on this side is called the sewer side of the system it's all going out of the house that's right it's after the P-trap okay okay and it's done this way so uh between this point this point we're going to have a trap and then it's a question of what fittings do we have available to us to make these angles and so here you can see a stand a 90 degree elbow here's one that is an elbow but it's got a street connection so it would fit into another fitting this one's 60 degrees this one's 45 degrees this is 45 Street this is 22. now the combination of all these parts and pieces let's just sort of navigate your way to get between point a and point B and those are all I'm looking at them right there those are all glue joints that's all traditional PVC that I expect that's right and then a couple of things on couplings right here this is the standard coupling that's terrific don't forget to also maybe get one of these which is a repair coupling in a tight little space they're really handy to be able to let you go into it here and then bring it back and glue it together and this is going to be your sort of fudge this is going to give you an extra inch here or there to put your things together gotcha so now selections are traps we're putting a disposer and sooner or later the disposer put enough garbage down there it means the drain might need to be cleared on the sewer side so I love seeing this a clean out plug right here that would let you bring a make right in here to get this right off open it up and you're good this is another one with a with a loosening nut right here that would let you drop this and run the snake this way here's what we're seeing people doing nowadays and this is look at the difference in the thickness right here schedule 40. schedule 40. this is regular tubular yeah okay and then you could just go with this this is fine but if I did this I'd also like to put a cleanout in right here to still think about the service in the future okay so as I look at these right here all acceptable but you must have a favorite what's like it's still like a clean up plug one really easy right accessible and this is not bad either okay now we need to transition from this trap to tubular another form of inch and a half but it's not the same of course not it should be Plumbing you would think that inch and a half of an inch and a half now on drain waste and vent they measure it from the inside diameter ID the ID that's inch and a half on tubular it is on the oh outside the animal okay that would drive me crazy oh yes it's okay those are both called inch and a half that's not fair and there's one more thing this looks like that what do you think that is well it's smaller that's another size that's inch and a quarter now that's going to be used in lavatories and bathrooms on the sinks this is in kitchen but you'll grab the wrong thing in the aisle you get all the way home and you'll come back from this job security for plumbers right there confusing us later all right these all go together with compression nuts and gaskets and you whatever you need to get that last mile from the outlet of the trap to right here that's point a goes to point B let's go to point C get this thing going all right so there's always a little water in the Trap you want to take it down carefully I got a bucket underneath sometimes these are so rusted on you have to heat them up with a torch to make this nut melt Tim once you dig out some Putty and let's start thinking about mounting the disposer that just hold against me yeah now I can tighten up these screws it makes a fabulous connection to the underside of the sink that's beautiful thing can you just pass me that saw Kevin yeah the old work is in the way before I can hang the disposer I'm not going to reuse any of this stuff pretty ingenious and this will help get to give you a little bit of Leverage I'm using a screwdriver foreign 45 and a 22 and let's play around with it you want a street though actually let's try street 45 great car okay so now that looks a little too long this way and a little tube it's not it's not long enough this way okay so give me a the 22 I don't have a street 20. no just a regular 22. they never come in a Street oh you're just going to use a little straighty you can cut it for me if you want now the last thing is to put a properly installed electrical outlet in the ground fault circuit interrupted many times you can find electricity in there because many times the dishwasher is next door but once you get that switch in here's a great thing to add see the box right here it connects with a small tube to an air switch not bad music in my ears that's great Richard grind nice job well done oh boy look at his Brain Trust something's going on outside something good is going on that's right what are we looking at well Sarah from Massachusetts wrote in and she has this eyesore of a wall loves the patio and plantings around it but was wondering how she could dress it up I can see why right I mean the brick patio looks great and those cobbles in the back so that stands out as sort of the sore thumb right so thoughts on dressing it up so I on the cheaper end of things I think stain or stucco you could apply that it's easy and it would just dress up this surface yeah stain I like because it gets absorbed into the material so it's gonna stay and it's going to protect paint never ever paint no paint no way water Gets behind that paint that's going to pop we're gonna have a mess okay so I kind of had a little bit of a vision Stone here oh stone veneer yeah yeah no so apply well you got brick down there you got Cobble there so it would actually fit the Wall's in great shape sometimes you would have to take a wall down but this I think perfect oh this is a strong wall I can just tell by looking at it a stone veneer on top of that is going to make it a 10. so key question who's going oh me are you both let's do it together what do you say Jen all right wow this is really a great little patio Nook I like how it's nestled into the side of the yard here oh I love this whole this whole area but this is the wall that we were talking about ah so okay so this is what's going to get the veneer right exactly all right so what are you thinking for materials We have basically two choices we can do a synthetic stone or we can do a natural stone veneer which is probably what you and I would like the best absolutely the the manufactured Stone if you will it's inexpensive it's easy to put up goes quickly which is always an advantage cost wise and it is the rage it is the rage these days so you know what my vote's going to be thin Stone Finance thank you sir all right I'm with you on that all right so we're gonna we're gonna apply the pieces individually and then how are we going to finish it off so some people like to take that stone and they like to go from this side and go all the way over and then down to that side okay the only thing I don't like about that the only thing I hate about that is it has open joints open joints to the weather eventually yeah and under that stone pop it up so what hours because the water is going to travel in and when it freezes it could pop it out in this area so it'll go quick too it'd be one two Winters and then we have problems so in this instance what I think we should do is a cap okay again we do have choices with material I like the blue stone for this space only because the color tone the softness of that product yeah on your eye Mike what do you think about that I'm a fan of using all natural products so I think that'll look really good all right so if we place a blue stone across the top it's going to provide another place to sit a nice clean place to put a drink and it'll it'll finish it off as a perfect cap we've got some work to do so let's get started let's go Jen all right the first thing we want to do is clean up the wall we're going to start at the top with the grinder we're going to get it right down to the raw concrete to make sure we have good adhesion for our cap and then we're going to continue down the wall and do the same thing to both sides we're not going to grind down all the way flat we're actually going to use some of the low spots for adhesion foreign I love the color and the texture right so this is that great Connecticut Fieldstone that we were talking about obviously it's cut thin which is what we wanted you can actually see this on edge right right and so this is the side that will go down that's right so all we're going to do is we're going to take our Notch trial we're going to take the material which by the way is a modified mortar uh for intent and purpose all that is is glue in the mortar foreign and that's when we're going to take our margin trowel we'll actually back butter the stone having the glue mixed in is really going to help that vertical surface so it sticks very important the regular mortar or type n or type S does not have the stick ability that the modified motor does today was supposed to be a nice sunny day yeah cloudy the temperatures are down so every time that we try to put a stone on you walk away you might see a sag right yeah so that's exactly what these chips are for so as long as we chip up we know this modified motor is going to set when it's supposed to a little bit longer and so once it's set we'll pull them out we'll pull them out you'll never see them like this one here yep that's ready to go I have one over here down here ready to go okay now it's time to Joint up the work set it down set her down just wiggle it down into place look at that that's the pitch we want but maybe a little too much can you give me a bang right there another one another one all right that's great that's what we want look at that let me just check my overhang buck and a half there buck and a half there buck and a half there inch and a half there so excellent good that looks so good all right now we have some cleaning up to do Jen thanks for the help all right foreign I'll show you how to add outdoor lighting to your deck have you ever wondered what power sander to use if you have a job to do I'll explain how they work and which one to choose and I'll go over the basics of power washing vinyl siding and we'll share with you a few more home inspection nightmares well it looks like there was a gutter there but now there's a fern growing out in someone's bed could be up on top that's a procrastinator\n"