Good on you bro for taking your boy to work. A couple days doing real work with dad is better than a couple months of school. I have great memories of going out with my dad, and taking my son out with me.
50 years ago, I was taught to not caulk the bottom of the apron (the lower trim board), so that any moisture that built up behind it, could drain out. Remembering that condensation and osmotic pressure, due to the temperature differential will force moisture from the conditioned space out into the atmosphere.
As a pretty much “ do almost all of it” guy like yourself, the one thing I take away from your videos is your calm demeanor and sense of balanced purpose. You don’t come across as a high stress guy about the work. Your tips have helped me enjoy my job a bit more-thank you!
Dear Ben: Over the past 3 months I gutted and rebuilt my kitchen to the studs. I followed your drywall, taping and mudding series and the finished product looks professional and great. Thank you for this information.
Thank you for sharing the details of trimming and rain protection of the window exterior. Another great carpentry tutorial and way cool getting your son involved in carpentry at age 12 years 😀
I've heard and used it many times, but heres another one for ya. One easy way to get nails hammered into hard wood is to lubricate them. You can use lip balm, beeswax, or even a lubricating oil. (Or to go really old school,wipe them in your hair.) If you want to pull nails out of wood, but they seem to be to small for the back of the hammer in use, make a small nail puller by filing a notch in the shape of a V into one of the hammer’s claw tips. If you use a triangular shaped needle file, that should do the trick very well.
Yes, blunting the tip of a nail works great for dry trim boards. Also always have a bar of “dove moisturizer soap” in a plastic bag in your tool box. 1 quick swipe across the soap with the end of the nail or screw and you’ll never have a problem. Lube, lube, lube! 😊
Excellent tips! I have replaced many windows done this way. Some had a couple decades before I replaced them, some had a few years. I pay attention to what works and try to figure out why. I live in coastal New England and the seasonal temperature variation as well as humidity variation creates a lot of movement in your exterior cladding here. This movement in the cladding and the caulk shrinking as it dries and losing its elasticity with time kills caulk joints quickly. Taking what you have demonstrated a few steps farther, when you have the siding cut to install your trim, that is the time to scrape and sand the ends so you can SEAL the end grains with your primer so it can dry while you are doing other things and increase the adhesion of your caulk joint significantly. I would also employ back caulking along the ends of the siding to the sheathing before setting the outside corner in a bed of caulk making a gasket along the outer perimeter. Might be over kill for some areas but definitely helps with drafts and thermal draw if not keeping water out. Just a a few tips for anyone else that reads the comments like my self.
Just watched this video (a couple times actually). I'll be doing old school cedar trim with sills on two of my exterior bedroom windows. Just what I needed. Thanks!
Hey! Carpenter stuff. Nice. Back prime is essential with unprimed lumber. Got to remember to bevel bottom edges to reduce wicking Thanks for the video.
I knew all the tips ex ept where you pointed out using a shim to tool caulk in the pecker track. Never thought about that but makes good sense. Thanks for the video bud
Hey man, was at Lowe's the other day and picked up the Gator 120 grit drywall sanding sponge with CeraMax... it is some sort of ceramic sandpaper that resists clogging....best sponge I've ever used! It doesn't clog up at all! I got an 80 grit and 120 grit. I'm going to buy some more this week, I don't think I'll ever buy other sponges unless I'm getting an angled one.
I've been watching you for years and learned so much from your content... always appreciate when you upload Although I realized that I wasn't subscribed so I went ahead and fixed that. Subbed and turned on notifications. Keep on keeping on!
I agree 💯% with tip #4. I've repaired so many homes where the wood looks good but on the edges/cuts where the wood was not painted it is rotten and a small repair turns into a big one because all the boards now need to be changed. $$
Bin der dun dat type of old carpenter. Wish vids like this would have been done 40 years ago so that tips like yours wouldn't have had to be learned the hard way! Agree with using Dynaflex 230. It's also good as a poor man's substitute for soundproofing cracks instead of Green Glue! Just one comment. I eschew the messy, often wide concave finger caulking look between the new window and trim. I make a clean caulk line using tape just like you and I do with sealing around counter tops except with wood trim, I only tape off the window. GK
Lastly . . . I like this kind of video. What I was taught about painting - scrape and sand, then prime, then caulk, then prime the caulk, then top coat. The first primer seals the wood and keeps it from sucking up the caulk and also provides "tooth" for the caulk to adhere to. Then, after caulking, prime again, so that the texture is consistent. The caulk will have a different texture than the primer.
Hey Ben, I can detect smoke all the way down here in Olympia. Donkey tracks, haha! I learned to call them Charlie Olsens because the marks look like the letters C and O.
1. Cut the nails above the flashing with a reciprocating saw before tucking flashing up under vapor barrier. 2. Don’t caulk the bottom edge. Thanks for the other tips
If you had a metal break you could break a custom piece of flashing to go up under the siding and over the top trim board. We have to do that all the time, and just throw a couple trim nails in the siding to grip the flashing as well.
Looks like there are still a lot of termites on that house. I saw evidence on the new window……poop that falls onto your new work. It looks like tiny black sand and will make you cough like crazy if you breathe too much. Be safe. Thanks for the great video.
Hats off to Sir Joseph Whitworth the father of engineering, for teaching (without an engineering degree ) the British Navy that Blunt or flat tip projectiles penetrate straighter, truer and deeper than pointed. I.E. Wadcutter/Semi Wadcutter. And hats off to Vancouver Carpenter for teaching with self deprecating humor, (the sign of a true leader). Really, cheers from a Chicago Finish Carpenter for making education both palatable and hilarious. Thanks PS I’ve been known to be a jackass on occasion too. LOL
Donkey tracks, lol. That flashing turned up... yeah, I'm not sure I would turn it up on the ends, eventually swelling shrinking could cause it to separate and water will be happy to enter and do it's thing...
I'm getting ready to primer/paint a replaced exterior window stool. The old one rotted and replaced with treated pine. I've primer / painted it every other year. Takes a lot of beating, but keeps pealing. Think I could use a putty knife and cover it with Dap paintable acrylic caulk + silicone? It says it is paintable in 30 minutes and is made for doors/windows. 100% waterproof and okay for interior or exterior.
Yeah, that was probably our smoke wafting up your way. Sorry about that. We weren't thrilled with it either and pretty much stayed inside as much as possible. (I'm in eastern Washington state -you know, the dry side. The Idaho panhandle also had its fair share of fires.) There was no escape from the smoke for a good while there. Thankfully the fires are out and the smoke has pretty much cleared. Hopefully we are finished with the wildfires this year as we begin the last days of summer and look toward heading into fall. ☺👍
Prenailing is something I often do but to avoid splitting the wood I drill holes first. Drill a hole the size of the nail and it will go through like butter. If you plan on recessing the nail for something nice like trim the hole can be even slightly wider than the nail. This makes tapping the head down in very easy. You don't have to bash the nail in and make a donkey track or gouge the wood with the tool to tap it in if the hole is predrilled and wider than the nail, the nail just goes straight down.
The head of the nail holds the board in place. Since the plan is to sink the nail when you spike the nail down below the surface the wider head of the nail wedges against the sides and provides friction.
I don't know the codes in Canada but in the US you have to put Z - Metal on the top trim and have to make it a 1/4" longer on the sides so you can bend it over the ends and it goes on top of the house wrap.
In Vancouver, we start with tyvek starter strips for windows, the window header flashing with end dams goes on top of the starter strips and the building is then wrapped with house wrap overtop of the header flashing ( weather proofing is always positive lap like shingles ). On top of the house wrap does not make sense if water comes down the house wrap it should drip onto the header flashing and drip away from house - not continue behind header flashing.
Hey love the videos! I've always wondered, do you offer something to customers in exchange for being "allowed" to film, or do you just explain to them that its part of what you do and tough luck?
I’m curious as to why you chose to flash under the head trim instead of over the flash trim. I believe it would help protect the top of the window and the trim better and eliminate the reliance of caulk (only) on the top of the head trim. Great video keep up the good work.
I tried to get the flashing up tight to the siding but there were too many nails/staples in the way. I would have preferred the way you mentioned but it just wasn’t happening.
@@vancouvercarpenter Use your multi tool to cut the nails under the siding and slide your flashing right in between sheathing and siding and replace nails as needed !
Not sure if anybody has some advice but I’m getting ready to replace some o rotted window sills, I think the frames are ok but my question is, some of the windows have been replaced with a “flush exterior sill, how would I make the exterior sill flush?
@@tylercousins7779 I got mine from a small local home center, the owner a guy I know. He came out and measured all my windows and ordered them himself. Great to work with small local outfit.
I filmed it but lost the footage of the first coat. I have the framing and all the consecutive coats but I don’t have the glory shot of applying the first coat🙁
The exterior of the plywood-sheathed house is covered in 1x2 battens, running vertically. Then your siding nails onto that. Any water that somehow gets behind the siding (and it will) can run down and out the bottom, without the wall itself getting wet. This is a great way to protect a home in a wet climate. Extra work, a bit more money, but peace of mind.
Any chance you’ll be plastering a brick wall anytime soon? I have a brick wall in my house which I put plaster primer on today but I am gonna need some instructions for the actual plastering process. I know you Canadian/Mericans just do drywall’s normally but maybe you can find a wall to plaster and make a video on it? Either way, great channel you have👍🏾
I don't think that drip-edge is needed on a sloped cill - it's a detail for a flat bottomed cill. Water is not going to run back up a 5º slope, it's going to hang on that bottom edge and drip from there. And if you are going to make a cut in a place where water is going to collect at least make it big enough to ensure you get paint in it - make the groove at least a couple of blade widths wide..
I was taught while laying any caulk to "inject" it into the joints so it will fill in the voids and not just sit on the surface. More area for the caulk to bond will give it more strength.
Good on you bro for taking your boy to work. A couple days doing real work with dad is better than a couple months of school. I have great memories of going out with my dad, and taking my son out with me.
50 years ago, I was taught to not caulk the bottom of the apron (the lower trim board), so that any moisture that built up behind it, could drain out. Remembering that condensation and osmotic pressure, due to the temperature differential will force moisture from the conditioned space out into the atmosphere.
You leave a small gap underneath in the middle where you caulk so moisture can escape.
As a pretty much “ do almost all of it” guy like yourself, the one thing I take away from your videos is your calm demeanor and sense of balanced purpose. You don’t come across as a high stress guy about the work. Your tips have helped me enjoy my job a bit more-thank you!
Thank you🙂
Of course he's Canadian eh
@@vancouvercarpenter how would someone go about hiring you for some larger projects?
He's also handsome and can heel flip.
Dear Ben: Over the past 3 months I gutted and rebuilt my kitchen to the studs. I followed your drywall, taping and mudding series and the finished product looks professional and great. Thank you for this information.
Thank you for sharing the details of trimming and rain protection of the window exterior. Another great carpentry tutorial and way cool getting your son involved in carpentry at age 12 years 😀
That nail-blunting tip is genius! I’m as old-school as it gets but I’ve never heard that little trick before! 👍
I've heard and used it many times, but heres another one for ya. One easy way to get nails hammered into hard wood is to lubricate them. You can use lip balm, beeswax, or even a lubricating oil. (Or to go really old school,wipe them in your hair.) If you want to pull nails out of wood, but they seem to be to small for the back of the hammer in use, make a small nail puller by filing a notch in the shape of a V into one of the hammer’s claw tips. If you use a triangular shaped needle file, that should do the trick very well.
Yes, blunting the tip of a nail works great for dry trim boards. Also always have a bar of “dove moisturizer soap” in a plastic bag in your tool box. 1 quick swipe across the soap with the end of the nail or screw and you’ll never have a problem. Lube, lube, lube! 😊
Excellent tips! I have replaced many windows done this way. Some had a couple decades before I replaced them, some had a few years. I pay attention to what works and try to figure out why. I live in coastal New England and the seasonal temperature variation as well as humidity variation creates a lot of movement in your exterior cladding here. This movement in the cladding and the caulk shrinking as it dries and losing its elasticity with time kills caulk joints quickly. Taking what you have demonstrated a few steps farther, when you have the siding cut to install your trim, that is the time to scrape and sand the ends so you can SEAL the end grains with your primer so it can dry while you are doing other things and increase the adhesion of your caulk joint significantly. I would also employ back caulking along the ends of the siding to the sheathing before setting the outside corner in a bed of caulk making a gasket along the outer perimeter. Might be over kill for some areas but definitely helps with drafts and thermal draw if not keeping water out. Just a a few tips for anyone else that reads the comments like my self.
Thank you for taking the time to pass on your knowledge and experience your videos have helped me many times
Love this guy....he is a combo of new and old school....great stuff.
Beautiful job brother....as a maintenance tech your videos help me a lot man! Thanks!
Just watched this video (a couple times actually). I'll be doing old school cedar trim with sills on two of my exterior bedroom windows. Just what I needed. Thanks!
Killer tips! Being a painter, I will say one thing.. We never caulk the bottoms of window trim so that moisture has an exit. Awesome tips!!!
Yeah I was thinking same thing about caulking the bottom
I do window replacement in FL and the inspectors fail us all the time for not caulking the bottom🙄.
Hey! Carpenter stuff. Nice. Back prime is essential with unprimed lumber. Got to remember to bevel bottom edges to reduce wicking Thanks for the video.
Good lost tips.
Love the cove ceiling. I have them in my 1940 house.
Damn! You cove work is off the hook 🪝
I knew all the tips ex ept where you pointed out using a shim to tool caulk in the pecker track. Never thought about that but makes good sense. Thanks for the video bud
THANK YOU for your dad's blunting tip!!! And yeah-prenailing boards.
Absolutely Brilliant video!!
Thank You Ben.. Keep up the good work.
Thank You !! This is exactly what I was looking for!!!
I always thought not to caulk the bottom so if water did get behind it would find a way on bottom
That's the way to do it--and teach it! Well done!
Hey man, was at Lowe's the other day and picked up the Gator 120 grit drywall sanding sponge with CeraMax... it is some sort of ceramic sandpaper that resists clogging....best sponge I've ever used! It doesn't clog up at all! I got an 80 grit and 120 grit. I'm going to buy some more this week, I don't think I'll ever buy other sponges unless I'm getting an angled one.
This is nice, cool stuff. Thanks for sharing and explaining.
Great tutorial! i believe from experience the only outdoor caulk to use is mulco. It sticks and does not break down
We always called donkey tracks rosebuds and would put a little water to the area it would swell out even
I've been watching you for years and learned so much from your content... always appreciate when you upload Although I realized that I wasn't subscribed so I went ahead and fixed that. Subbed and turned on notifications. Keep on keeping on!
Thanks for showing us around
We were on fire...shout out from Osoyoos :) Cheers and keep up the good work.
I sure wish you could see the repairs we’ve done to the walls in our bedroom after watching your videos on installing drywall.
I hope I would be proud for you!!!!
I like, "do your best and caulk the rest." and your advice on blunting nails to prevent splitting.
That dynaflex 230 is some awesome caulk.
I’m hanging out waiting on hurricane Ida to hit watching this- bout to find out if my home builder did all this! Great time to check for leaks 😁😅
Haha me too. I'm in baton rouge
Wish you luck
Good luck to you guys down south!
Man its intense right now
I agree 💯% with tip #4. I've repaired so many homes where the wood looks good but on the edges/cuts where the wood was not painted it is rotten and a small repair turns into a big one because all the boards now need to be changed. $$
Nice Work, keep up the good work. God Bless.
Bin der dun dat type of old carpenter. Wish vids like this would have been done 40 years ago so that tips like yours wouldn't have had to be learned the hard way! Agree with using Dynaflex 230. It's also good as a poor man's substitute for soundproofing cracks instead of Green Glue! Just one comment. I eschew the messy, often wide concave finger caulking look between the new window and trim. I make a clean caulk line using tape just like you and I do with sealing around counter tops except with wood trim, I only tape off the window. GK
Lastly . . . I like this kind of video. What I was taught about painting - scrape and sand, then prime, then caulk, then prime the caulk, then top coat. The first primer seals the wood and keeps it from sucking up the caulk and also provides "tooth" for the caulk to adhere to. Then, after caulking, prime again, so that the texture is consistent. The caulk will have a different texture than the primer.
Yes never caulk bare wood
I have learned so much from your channel
so many great tips
Those old Vancouver houses seem to have a lot of character. Nice trimming, caulking and paint job
yeah we have some nice character houses
Hey Ben, I can detect smoke all the way down here in Olympia.
Donkey tracks, haha! I learned to call them Charlie Olsens because the marks look like the letters C and O.
Guy I know calls them a**h***s.
Thank you! Very helpful.
Damn! You do amazing work 🙏👏🏿👍🙌🏾🇺🇸
1. Cut the nails above the flashing with a reciprocating saw before tucking flashing up under vapor barrier.
2. Don’t caulk the bottom edge.
Thanks for the other tips
Good tips. New follower!
Great video
If you had a metal break you could break a custom piece of flashing to go up under the siding and over the top trim board. We have to do that all the time, and just throw a couple trim nails in the siding to grip the flashing as well.
Thx, timely for me 👍
Looks like there are still a lot of termites on that house. I saw evidence on the new window……poop that falls onto your new work. It looks like tiny black sand and will make you cough like crazy if you breathe too much. Be safe. Thanks for the great video.
Knew all the tips except the saw cut for a drip edge. Well done.
Thanks 👍
Thanks Ben.
Hats off to Sir Joseph Whitworth the father of engineering, for teaching (without an engineering degree ) the British Navy that Blunt or flat tip projectiles penetrate straighter, truer and deeper than pointed. I.E. Wadcutter/Semi Wadcutter. And hats off
to Vancouver Carpenter for teaching with self deprecating humor, (the sign of a true leader). Really, cheers from a Chicago Finish
Carpenter for making education both palatable and hilarious. Thanks
PS I’ve been known to be a jackass on occasion too. LOL
I also totally dig the pride you take in your workmanship it speaks volumes as to your character. Airborne brother
Donkey tracks, lol. That flashing turned up... yeah, I'm not sure I would turn it up on the ends, eventually swelling shrinking could cause it to separate and water will be happy to enter and do it's thing...
I'm getting ready to primer/paint a replaced exterior window stool. The old one rotted and replaced with treated pine. I've primer / painted it every other year. Takes a lot of beating, but keeps pealing. Think I could use a putty knife and cover it with Dap paintable acrylic caulk + silicone? It says it is paintable in 30 minutes and is made for doors/windows. 100% waterproof and okay for interior or exterior.
This drip cut is also used on outdoor stairs.
Keep the bottom of the tread dry.
I love your hair
Yeah, that was probably our smoke wafting up your way. Sorry about that. We weren't thrilled with it either and pretty much stayed inside as much as possible. (I'm in eastern Washington state -you know, the dry side. The Idaho panhandle also had its fair share of fires.) There was no escape from the smoke for a good while there. Thankfully the fires are out and the smoke has pretty much cleared. Hopefully we are finished with the wildfires this year as we begin the last days of summer and look toward heading into fall. ☺👍
Good video..
Prenailing is something I often do but to avoid splitting the wood I drill holes first. Drill a hole the size of the nail and it will go through like butter. If you plan on recessing the nail for something nice like trim the hole can be even slightly wider than the nail. This makes tapping the head down in very easy. You don't have to bash the nail in and make a donkey track or gouge the wood with the tool to tap it in if the hole is predrilled and wider than the nail, the nail just goes straight down.
Since nails depend on friction to hold, doesn't drilling a hole larger than the nail reduce the holding power?
The head of the nail holds the board in place. Since the plan is to sink the nail when you spike the nail down below the surface the wider head of the nail wedges against the sides and provides friction.
Thanks!
Sound knowledge!
Don’t use BIN outside, it’s extremely brittle and will fail outside. Zinsser peel stop or oil based would be best choices.
You're cool dude. Subscribed. Primo
I don't know the codes in Canada but in the US you have to put Z - Metal on the top trim and have to make it a 1/4" longer on the sides so you can bend it over the ends and it goes on top of the house wrap.
In Vancouver, we start with tyvek starter strips for windows, the window header flashing with end dams goes on top of the starter strips and the building is then wrapped with house wrap overtop of the header flashing ( weather proofing is always positive lap like shingles ). On top of the house wrap does not make sense if water comes down the house wrap it should drip onto the header flashing and drip away from house - not continue behind header flashing.
@@walnutcontractors5661 Mr. Douglas is incorrect...US should be doing what you do.
Hey love the videos! I've always wondered, do you offer something to customers in exchange for being "allowed" to film, or do you just explain to them that its part of what you do and tough luck?
Cool thanks
OMG yes, prime all the cuts, glad I'm not the only one!!!!!! As someone that repairs dry/wet rot, thats the number one failure
and YES on dyna flex
"That's a lot of caulk".... was waiting for you to say it.
From just south of the border...
I’m curious as to why you chose to flash under the head trim instead of over the flash trim. I believe it would help protect the top of the window and the trim better and eliminate the reliance of caulk (only) on the top of the head trim. Great video keep up the good work.
I tried to get the flashing up tight to the siding but there were too many nails/staples in the way. I would have preferred the way you mentioned but it just wasn’t happening.
@@vancouvercarpenter Use your multi tool to cut the nails under the siding and slide your flashing right in between sheathing and siding and replace nails as needed !
It amazes me that nobody, like I never see it done ever . take the time to prime and paint their cuts on ext trim .
I had issues with bin123 peeling after a year, Recommendations?
Another tip is to crown your sill so if cups it cups up over retaining water (opposite as shown afaict)
Not sure if anybody has some advice but I’m getting ready to replace some o rotted window sills, I think the frames are ok but my question is, some of the windows have been replaced with a “flush exterior sill, how would I make the exterior sill flush?
Donkey tracks is a better name! We call those "half moons" in New Zealand
Paint all edges and cuts. Best trick I know
I wish you lived near me. You're hired.
Any suggestions for the top corners of shake molding with 45 degree corners
Great video as always. Do you brake your flashing yourself? If so, a video showing how you do it would be great.
Have you tried Boral tru ext trim?
It's really good
What big box window replacement would you recommend that doesn’t cost an arm
And leg?
Quite often you can get better quality windows made locally that are equal to or cheaper than the box stores. Same with doors.
box store windows are crap quality for the same price as a decent window. Don't go box store just call some window suppliers.
@@tylercousins7779 I got mine from a small local home center, the owner a guy I know. He came out and measured all my windows and ordered them himself. Great to work with small local outfit.
Thanks for another great video. Did you do a video on the drywall cove?
I filmed it but lost the footage of the first coat. I have the framing and all the consecutive coats but I don’t have the glory shot of applying the first coat🙁
@@vancouvercarpenter 😞
What about doing the 45 mitre trick on the ends of the bottom trim board ?
do your best, and caulk the rest! nice
14 degrees is the magic number for your sloped sill
What is "rain screening" ? I have never heard that term before.
The exterior of the plywood-sheathed house is covered in 1x2 battens, running vertically. Then your siding nails onto that. Any water that somehow gets behind the siding (and it will) can run down and out the bottom, without the wall itself getting wet. This is a great way to protect a home in a wet climate. Extra work, a bit more money, but peace of mind.
@@paulmaxwell8851 Thanks !
Donkey Tracks are also called "Moons".
Do we have to paint once primed?
Any chance you’ll be plastering a brick wall anytime soon? I have a brick wall in my house which I put plaster primer on today but I am gonna need some instructions for the actual plastering process. I know you Canadian/Mericans just do drywall’s normally but maybe you can find a wall to plaster and make a video on it? Either way, great channel you have👍🏾
Kirk Giordano has good plastering channel:
ua-cam.com/users/StuccoPlasteringsearch?query=brick%20chimney%20
@@procrastin8enufftubingalre583 Thanks mate! Guy has exactly the kinda content I need.
I don't think that drip-edge is needed on a sloped cill - it's a detail for a flat bottomed cill. Water is not going to run back up a 5º slope, it's going to hang on that bottom edge and drip from there. And if you are going to make a cut in a place where water is going to collect at least make it big enough to ensure you get paint in it - make the groove at least a couple of blade widths wide..
👍🏼
I was taught while laying any caulk to "inject" it into the joints so it will fill in the voids and not just sit on the surface. More area for the caulk to bond will give it more strength.
That’s how I do it too👍
How did you cut that 5 degree bevel to create the sloped sill?
👍👍👍
Love the shrimp boat era Forrest Gump cosplay @3.54
Do you have a similar video but on a brick home?
Can you do a video on that scaffolding setup?
I didn’t build it
💙
What are the 3 circles on the wall under the window sill?
Probably for air circulation.
Wondering if the smoke is from one of the fires north of Boundary Waters area?
This was filmed 2 weeks ago.
The egde of the wood is like a sponge sucking up water, like the bottom of a Christmas tree.