This Old House

Newton: Garage Nightmare and Garbage Disposers

A local nursery brings plants to the house. General contractor Tom Silva addresses some unforeseen rotting problems with the garage. Inside, the kitchen is plastered, the new white oak flooring is down, and the cabinets have just arrived from Kitchener, Canada. Flooring contractor Steve Dubuque shows master carpenter Norm Abram how he is layering aniline dye, stain, and polyurethane to achieve the floor color the homeowners are seeking. Plumbing and heating contractor Richard Trethewey travels to Racine, Wisconsin, to see how one manufacturer is making a new generation of kitchen garbage disposers. Tom installs a new standing seam copper roof over the back porch. In the master bath, Kevin finds tile contractor Joe Ferrante setting up for a major tile job – the first step is waterproofing the shower by using a paint-on, flexible, seamless, waterproofing membrane.