Outdoor Projects:

YouTube Tuesdays: Who’s Next? Are You Ready for a Career at The Home Depot?

Posted by: Craig Allen on May 15th, 2012 | Make A Comment

For many of our associates, working at The Home Depot is more than just a job. It’s being part of a family. Wearing the orange apron is a source of pride.

Do you have what it takes to be a part of the next generation of leaders at The Home Depot? If you’re ready to rise to the challenge, we may have an internship or career opportunity on our team that can help take you to the top.

Watch this video to find out what we mean. (It’s not your normal corporate video. It’s actually pretty fun to watch.) And ff this video speaks to you, visit our Who’s Next web page for more information on starting a career at The Home Depot.

Catch up with YouTube Tuesdays and Thursdays for more Home Depot videos on the Apron Blog.

Home Depot, Home Depot careers, Video, Videos, youtube

Spring Garden Project: How to Make Compost

Posted by: Laura Sullivan on May 11th, 2012 | Make A Comment

Compost bin with kitchen scraps

The secret to a healthy garden is right in your trash. Composting your organic waste keeps it out of your local landfill, and it creates a nutrient-rich humus that boosts the fertility of your soil naturally. Composting is easy, too. If you’ve never had a compost bin before, you might be surprised at how much gratification you’ll get from seeing vegetable scraps and lawn clippings turn into wonderful, fertile and sweet smelling humus. And wait ’til you see how it helps make your vegetable garden and flowers thrive.

So, let’s get started creating compost.

Products needed to create a compost bin

Here’s what you’ll need:

Compost bin

Pitchfork

Manure or compost maker

Lawn debris and plant clippings

Kitchen scraps

A paint bucket and lid (optional)

Compost, Garden Club Projects, gardening, Outdoor Projects, Spring Garden Projects

Building a Tree Swing

Posted by: Shaina Oliphant on May 11th, 2012 | Make A Comment

Photo by pennuja

Being on a swing is always one of the most cherished memories of childhood play. Who can forget that feeling of freedom with the sun in your face and wind in your hair as you swing your legs to try and go higher and higher? Home Depot Community member Elsamurai94 wants to relive those memories and he turned to The Home Depot Forums for assistance. Forum associate Newf had some good advice on how to build a tree swing:

Elsamurai94: My friend and I want to build a tire swing this summer after we are finished using the tires for agility training. What should I used to make the swing? Nails? Rope? Chain?

From the Forums, Home Depot, Home Improvement, Kids, Outdoor Projects, Swings, The Home Depot, tire swing, tree swing

YouTube Thursdays: Soil Testing for Your Lawn and Garden

Posted by: Shaina Oliphant on May 10th, 2012 | Make A Comment

Whether your lawn isn’t growing the way you want it to or you want to make sure that everything’s just right before you start planting spring flowers, it’s important to get to know your soil. If it’s not healthy, it’s nearly impossible for your gardening projects to grow to their full potential. So how can you figure out exactly what your soil needs?

This video introduces you to your lawn and garden’s best friend – the electronic soil tester! This cool piece of equipment makes soil testing in your lawn and garden easy. The soil analysis gives you important information on your soil’s nutrient levels. It can also shed light on specific nutrients that are lacking, as well as what needs to be added to promote better lawn and plant growth.

Check out homedepot.com for everything you need for proper lawn and plant care like fertilizers, fungicides and weed control. You can also visit The Home Depot How-To Community Forums for expert associate advice on improving the health of your yard.

Want more videos? Catch up with YouTube Tuesdays and Thursdays.

Garden, Garden Soil, gardening, Lawn, lawn care, outdoor, soil, Video, Videos, youtube

Meet The Material: Plexiglass

Posted by: Jae Warren on May 9th, 2012 | Make A Comment

Image of 1939 Pontiac Ghost Car made from plexiglass

Image via Twisted Sifter

German chemist Otto Rohm registered the brand name Plexiglas® in 1933, and by 1939 his company Rohm and Haas brought the first commercial grade acrylic glass to market. That same year Rohm and Haas teamed with General Motors to produce the first transparent car built in the U.S., the Pontiac Ghost Car, for the 1939 World’s Fair in New York, according to Twisted Sifter. In August of 2011, the plexiglass Ghost Car was auctioned off for $308,000, which is not a bad return-on-investment for the $25,000 it cost to build the car in 1939.

What is plexiglass? Plexiglass is a transparent thermoplastic, known chemically as poly(methyl methacrylate), or PMMA. Plexiglass is a term that is also commonly used to refer to a wide variety of synthetic plastic products sold under the brand names of Lexan, Lucite, Perspex and others.

Plexiglass is often confused with polycarbonate, another transparent thermoplastic product that looks identical to plexiglass, but has different chemical and physical properties. Polycarbonate, sold under the brand name Lexan®, has 30X the impact resistance of acrylic plexiglass, is far less prone to scratching, and is available in bullet-proof grade thickness.

Acrylic Sheets Home Depot, Clear Acrylic Sheets, Decorating, DIY, Do-it-yourself, Home Depot, Home Improvement, Meet the Material, Plastic Sheets, Plexiglas, Plexiglass Sheets, Polycarbonate Sheets, The Home Depot

YouTube Tuesdays: Deck Improvements

Posted by: Shaina Oliphant on May 8th, 2012 | Make A Comment

We recently told you all about how to properly clean and maintain your deck, but let’s take your outdoor space to the next level. Give your deck a complete face lift without building a new one from scratch.

This video is chocked full of ideas on how to improve the appearance of your deck. Learn how to maintain your underlying structure while replacing certain features for dramatic effect. Add deck tiles and boards in a variety of colors and recessed LED deck lighting to post caps, deck rails and risers. This will can make all the difference in the world.

Balusters available in tons of shapes, styles and materials, as well as a variety of post caps, are all quick and inexpensive ways to make your deck look better than new! Visit our huge decking selection for everything you need to build or maintain your deck. Our expert associates on the How-To Community Forums will also answer any deck-related, or other DIY, questions you may have.

Want more videos? Catch up with YouTube Tuesdays and Thursdays.

Deck, DIY, Do-it-yourself, Home Depot, Home Improvement, outdoor, Outdoor Living, Outdoor Projects, Video, Videos

A Two-Pronged Strategy For Waging War On Garden Slugs

Posted by: Luke Rhodes on May 7th, 2012 | 4 Comments

Spring is the season for renewal, when many animals bear future generations. The garden slug is no exception. These unappealing, mostly shell-less pests chew irregular holes in the leaves of growing plants, or worse, clip the foliage plants need to survive.

Image via rhonddawildlifegarden

If your garden is prone to damage by slugs, spring is the best time to take measures against them. While this year’s spring slugs likely won’t reach maturity until autumn, last year’s generation is quietly laying eggs in the dark, damp corners of your garden.

Popular lore has provided a range of folk wisdom about how to deal with slugs, from tempting them with a dish of beer (if slugs actually like what’s in your cooler, consider switching brands), to using spent coffee grounds to kill them. The science behind such tricks is scant, and there are more reliable ways to deal with hungry gastropods.

The following steps form a basic two pronged strategy for protecting your plants from garden slugs.

Garden, garden slug control, gardening, Pest Control, Slugs, Spring, Tips

First Look: Sheds and Storage Boxes

Posted by: Thomas Chismar on May 6th, 2012 | Make A Comment

Remember back in the day when you were a kid? Playtime was all the time, and your toys meant the world to you. Decades later, our toys are still very important. Those toy cars, trucks and tractors that we maneuvered with our hands have now been replaced by much larger cars, trucks and tractors that move us. As a kid, you kept your toys safe in a toy box. So today, where do you secure your “toys?”

If you don’t already have a great place, or if your garage is so packed full of stuff you can’t get your lawn mower inside (let alone your vehicle!), our sheds and outdoor storage boxes are just what you need.

Associate Greg McKenzie takes you on a tour of our vertical, horizontal and walk-in sheds with plastic, metal and wood construction, and our resin and wicker outdoor storage boxes in this video:

Products featured in this video:

Suncast Large Vertical Shed
Suncast Resin Glidetop Outdoor Storage Shed
Suncast Sierra 6×8 Resin Storage Shed
Suncast Alpine 7 ft 2-1/4 in. x 7 ft 5-3/4 in. Resin Storage Shed
Arrow Newport 10×8 Steel Shed
Suncast Resin Wicker Deck Box
Rubbermaid 2x3x2 Medium Deck Box With Seat

Our First Look series highlights videos our store associates watch to learn about the new products and services available at The Home Depot. We share them here so that Home Depot customers, especially professional builders and serious do-it-yourself enthusiasts, can see what’s new in the aisles at The Home Depot.

Arrow, Deck Boxes, First Look, horizontal sheds, metal sheds, Outdoor Storage, Outdoor Storage Boxes, plastic sheds, resin sheds, Rubbermaid, Sheds, Suncast, THDV, The Home Depot, vertical sheds, Video, walk-in sheds, wicker deck box, Wood Sheds

Give An Old Patio Umbrella New Life With Paint

Posted by: Shaina Oliphant on May 4th, 2012 | Make A Comment

This umbrella doesn't need painting... yet. Image via nancy_t3i

Beautiful plants and flowers to liven things up? Check.

Comfortable patio chair to relax in? Check.

Time to stretch out in the warm weather with a good book and just unwind a little bit. Check.

But, wait! Your old patio umbrella doesn’t match your new patio accessories and it’s throwing everything off. Or maybe last summer’s sunshine totally faded your umbrella and it’s looking a little sad. Home Depot Community member ShaunasMom had a similar issue, but she didn’t want to splurge on a brand new umbrella so she headed over to The Home Depot Forums for guidance. Luckily, Forums associate Aboveaveragejoe was there to lend a helping hand:

DIY, Do-it-yourself, From the Forums, Home Depot, Home Improvement, outdoor, Paint, Patio, Patio Furniture, patio umbrella, The Home Depot

DIY Décor: Refinishing Rusty Patio Furniture

Posted by: Caroline Inge on May 2nd, 2012 | Make A Comment

Refinished patio set with spray paint

As patio season swings into action, it’s the perfect time to jazz up your outdoor space. If a brand new patio set isn’t in your budget, consider refinishing your rusty patio furniture (or a set you found at the thrift store!) with spray paint. It’s a weekend project that yields beautiful results!

Rusty patio table

I started with this folding bistro table. It still functioned perfectly, but the paint had worn off in spots, leaving the metal frame underneath rusted in a few places and exposed to the elements. In order to refinish the piece so that it will last many years to come, you’ll need to remove as much of the rust from the frame as possible.

To get started, you’ll need:

DIY Decor, How To Spray Paint, Outdoor Living, Outdoor Projects, Patio, Patio Furniture, Rust-Oleum