Nathan travels to Birmingham, Alabama to install a sliding barn door in an open-concept loft apartment; Tom compares the qualities of different types of roofing materials; Ross explains the culprit behind damaged solar panels and how to prevent future damage; Mark installs a drywell for a homeowner with drainage issues in his backyard.

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How to Hang a Sliding Barn Door
Nathan installed the Z-Bar Knotty Alder Wood Interior Sliding Barn Door Slab with Hardware Kit that can be found at The Home Depot. The kit comes with all the materials required to assemble and hang the door, though Nathan choose to add additional 3/4" stock in this application because the wall was not plumb and the door would have hit the baseboard otherwise.

For a finish, Nathan and Stephanie stained the door using a water based stain by Minwax. Both the stain and the rags and brushes needed to apply it can be found at home centers.

Comparing Roofing Materials
Tom compared a variety of roofing materials, including asphalt shingles, cedar shingles, metal, and clay tiles. These can all be found at a variety of home centers or from a roofing contractor and are more available in some regions of the country depending on the housing styles.

How to Troubleshoot Solar Panel Damage
Ross explained that squirrels will use solar panel wires as chew toys if they aren't properly protected. He suggested installing a solar panel critter guard to prevent squirrels and other critters from getting behind the solar panels.

How to Build a Simple Dry Well
Installing a simple dry well requires few tools and materials. Mark lined the trench with landscape fabric, which can be found at any home center. He then filled the trench and the hole with crushed stone, which can be found at masonry supply stores and some home centers. The pipe he installed was two sections of solid PVC pipe and one section of 4" perforated PVC pipe. The pipe and the PVC glue required to secure the connections, are found at home centers.

When installing a dry well in a small yard with little space for leeching, Mark also suggests installing a plastic basin in the hole to allow for more controlled drainage. This yard was massive and slightly sloped downhill away from the house, so the plastic basin wasn't necessary.

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Products and Services from this episode

Water-based stain
Category: Paints & Finishes, Doors & Hardware
Manufacturer
Minwax Company
http://www.minwax.com

About Ask This Old House TV: From the makers of This Old House, America’s first and most trusted home improvement show, Ask This Old House answers the steady stream of home improvement questions asked by viewers across the United States. Covering topics from landscaping to electrical to HVAC and plumbing to painting and more. Ask This Old House features the experts from This Old House, including general contractor Tom Silva, plumbing and heating expert Richard Trethewey, landscape contractor Jenn Nawada, master carpenter Norm Abram, and host Kevin O’Connor. ASK This Old House helps you protect and preserve your greatest investment—your home.

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ASK This Old House | Sliding Barn Door, Dry Well (S18 E1) FULL EPISODE
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