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Masonry Heaters is a complete guide to designing and living with one of the oldest, and yet one of the newest, heating devices. A masonry heater’s design, placement in the home, and luxurious radiant heat redefine the hearth for the modern era, turning it into a piece of the sun right inside the home. Like the feeling one gets from the sun on a spring day, the environment around a masonry heater feels fresh. The radiant heat feels better on the skin. It warms the home both gently and efficiently. In fact, the value of a masonry heater lies in its durability, quality, serviceability, dependability and health-supporting features. And it is an investment in self-sufficiency and freedom from fossil fuels.

The book discusses different masonry heater designs, including variations extant in Europe, and explains the growth of their popularity in the United States beginning in the late 1970s. For the reader who may be familiar only with open fireplaces and metal woodstoves, Masonry Heaters will bring a new understanding and appreciation of massive heat storage and gentle-but-persistent radiant heat. Masonry heaters offer a unique comfort that is superior to that from convection heat from forced-air systems, and more personal than that offered by “radiant” floors. As author Ken Matesz demonstrates, the heat from the sun or from a masonry heater is genuine heat instead of just insulation against the loss of heat.

Those who are looking to build, add onto, or remodel a house will find comprehensive and practical advice for designing and installing a masonry heater, including detailed discussion of materials, code considerations, and many photos and illustrations. While this is not a do-it-yourself guide for building a masonry heater, it provides facts every heater builder should know. Professional contractors will find this a useful tool to consult, and homeowners considering a new method of home heating will find all they need to know about masonry heaters within these pages.

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Fences, Gates, and Bridges, Second Edition, is your practical instruction guide to the best methods of building an incredible variety of fences, gates, and bridges for all regions and weather conditions.

Originally published in 1900, Fences, Gates, and Bridges, Second Edition features a section on fences that boasts an impressive medley of materials and designs, including the zigzag fence, the cheap and portable barbed-wire fence, and a sampling of sod and stone fences.

And what is a fence without a gate? The second segment of this fully illustrated book guides you through the making and setting of posts, as well as the construction and installation of swinging gates, sliding gates, pulley gates, and more.

The final section consists of information on a number of bridges, depicting a wide selection, designed for crossing gullies and culverts, as well as ornamental bridges for gardens and walkways.

Fences, Gates, and Bridges, Second Edition is a functional pocket manual and a testament to American ingenuity for all of your fencing, gating and bridging needs.

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Shelters, Shacks and Shanties, Second Edition presents lively, step-by-step tutelage on building all types of temporary and long-term accommodations from both natural and man-made materials. Originally published in 1914, this practical classic is as essential a guide for today's modern homesteader as it was at the turn of the 20th century.

Included are instructions for dozens of worry-free shelters for you to choose from, including a sod house for the lawn, a treetop house, over-water camps, a bog ken and much more. Satisfying the builder's need for the creature comforts of home, it also provides tips on how to build hearths and chimneys, notched log ladders, and even how to rig a front door with a secret look. Illustrated throughout with a bounty of helpful line drawings, Shelters, Shacks and Shanties, Second Edition harkens back to the can-do spirit of the American frontier that still thrives today.

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Handy Farm Devices, Second Edition, is as useful and pertinent for homesteaders and small-scale farmers today as it was when it was first published nearly 100 years ago. A wealth of labor- and money-saving projects fills this century-old guide to low-tech property maintenance along with easy-to-follow instructions and practical illustrations. Within the pages of this book you will learn to make:

• Spill-proof chicken wateres
• Portable chicken coops
• A lightweight orchard ladder
• A small truss bridge
• An easy fence-post and stump-puller
• Gates that don't sag
• Gates that lift over snowdrifts
• A handy wood splitter
• A bicycle-powered washing machine
• And much more

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With so many attractive stock cabinetry designs available, creating the kitchen of your dreams no longer involves the budget-busting price tag of custom-made cabinets. In fact, you'll be amazed as cabinetmaker Jonathan Benson shows you how to beautifully — and affordably — transform your kitchen by using money-saving stock cabinetry and a well-thought-out plan.

From having a solid design that meets the needs of everyone using the space, to advice and lessons on what to know before going cabinet shopping, or how to live in a construction zone, Benson and his wife, Sherry, a former chef and restaurant owner, show you how a little teamwork can make a kitchen remodel go more smoothly.

Transforming Your Kitchen with Stock Cabinetry will put you right in the heart of a remodeling project, which happens to be the Bensons' own kitchen, and guide you through the complete process. The inspirational gallery at the end of the book is filled with beautiful photos and gives true meaning to the term "dream kitchen."

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CLEARANCE ITEM. PREVIOUS RETAIL PRICE WAS $19.95 AVAILABLE ONLY WHILE SUPPLIES LAST!

Natural is trendy, part of the wide-ranging cultural shift toward homemade and handcrafted. Discover the latest in candle making techniques with this complete, contemporary guide to the green side of the craft. Using soy, palm wax and beeswax, these 30 projects create beautiful, eco-friendly pieces perfect for gift-giving or home display. Fragrance, color and wax additives are explored along with a range of basic techniques including dipped, rolled and molded methods.

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CLEARANCE ITEM. PREVIOUS RETAIL PRICE WAS $19.95 AVAILABLE ONLY WHILE SUPPLIES LAST!

Whether you want a storage structure, children's playhouse, art studio or workshop, you can learn how to design and build the ideal shed for any yard with this Popular Mechanics guide. You'll learn how to site, plan and choose durable and attractive materials. There's easy-to-understand information on carpentry and structural anatomy, from installing a foundation to nailing roof shingles to framing a window. This book also includes a final chapter with shed designs that will help you get started building your own structure. Become a citizen of Shed Nation and enjoy your property to its fullest.

There are innovative plans for building several sheds, each with a different practical use, as well as contributions from Popular Mechanics readers who share their own designs.

The sheds include:

• Small Is Beautiful: A 6’ x 8’ shed with solid framing, plywood sheathing and cedar siding. It’s big enough to hold a variety of tools, but won’t dominate the backyard.
• The Groundskeeper: This 9’ x 13’ shed with a spacious layout and a crisp, no-frills design is ideal for the beginning DIYer.
• The Big Red Shed: This handsome shed is a multipurposer’s dream; a 10’ x 12’ tool shed combined with an 8’ x 10’ open bay that’s great for firewood or tractors.
• Classic Colonial: A stylish, multipurpose garden shed with decorative trim and architectural accents. Includes a 12’ x 12’ general storage space, 4’ x 12’ potting area, and a small loft for seasonal storage.
• The Greenhouse: Complete instructions on purchasing a kit greenhouse in a variety of sizes (7’ x 9’, 8’ x 16’, or larger) allows for a big-league growing season.

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Whatever your grandma did to fix and maintain things around the house and garden, it probably worked. That’s because the old ways are often the best ways when it comes to solutions for everyday problems, ideas for saving time, and handy advice for getting the job done. And that’s where 1,001 Old-Time Household Hints comes in. Find the best hints, tips and secrets for everything from cooking, cleaning and home maintenance to pet care, gardening and holiday celebrations. You’ll also find ways to adapt and improve some old-time methods. Discover an amazing variety of useful and clever ideas, including how to:

• Clean copper pans, using buttermilk and salt
• Make real sourdough bread the way the pioneers did
• Fight wrinkles and create kissable lips
• Use natural ingredients to repair your hair
• Create your own unique perfume
• Organize common space in your home
• Use ivory soap for polishing silver and insect control
• Safely separate drinking glasses that have been stuck together
• And more!

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Whether as a way to manage challenging economic times or retain a garden's bounty, root cellars are making a big comeback.

This book takes a fresh look at the art, science and romance of building and stocking a root cellar. There are detailed, illustrated construction guides for making four different kinds of root cellars that are functional and attractive. These include never-before-seen models for apartment and condo dwellers and home owners without a basement.

The Complete Root Cellar Book provides technical information on using photovoltaics (solar cells) and other energy technologies to enhance a root cellar's performance and ecological sustainability. It also includes must-know information on how to choose, store and manage a supply of fruits, vegetables, nuts and preserves.

The book features 100 recipes that call for stored produce, many of which also make use of the root cellar's specific environment, such as sauerkraut and barrel-fermented dill pickles. These classic dishes, many with new twists, include:

• Classic leek and potato soup
• Golden puffed potato puddings
• Maple pecan crumble apple pie
• Classic carrot cake
• Spiced pear butter
• Three-onion relish