To answer your question Dewalt is higher quality than Ryobi but be careful most of the newer Dewalt tools do not have user changeable brushes and that means an expensive repair bill from a service shop. If you want the best tools for the job then use Makita or Porter cable and also Milwaukee. Most of those tools have user changeable parts that are easy to order. The best advice to give anyone looking to by tools is bye the most expensive tool that you can afford as anything else will only leave you wanting better and constant upgrading will cost you a lot more in the long run.

It is sort of like comparing low-test gas to high-test gas, ryobi it designed for the do-it-yourselfer who uses their tools occasionally around the home, yet still has the power to compete with higher end tool such as dewalt or makita, So, i would recommend choosing dewalt over ryobi if price doesn't matter due to over all longevity of the tool, but for the person who likes having multiple tools the ryobi one+ system is fantastic for having 20 or so tools which all use the same batteries. Overall, ryobi is great for the person who does hobby work around the home doing smaller independent jobs, dewalt is designed for the person who uses it 5 days a week 8 hrs a day.
SIDENOTE: Rigid however now offers life-time warrenty (as far as i know) to all of its products which is fantastic if you only want to buy one product and have it last you forever because if it konks out and you'ved kept your receipt and registered the upc within your first 90 days of purchase, your set and never have to buy that tool again...
Hope this helps.... ps the best advice is to find lots of advice, go into home depots and talk to the tool guys, there should always be atleast one who knows the majority of your questions.

It depends on what tools you are buying! For a cordless drill/impact driver I went with Makita (18V/lithium-ion). I'm in construction, I bought this set a year ago...I use/beat this drill five to six days a week and it's works like the day I bought it! I recommed that you spend the extra money and get something that lasts. They cost more for a reason! I like Makita, Dewalt, milwaukee and bosch products. Just do your research on the tool and compare! Good luck

Dewalt with the XRP batteries are my favorite for drilling and driving. Skil and Makita for sawing and Paslode for nailing can't be beaten.

Dewalt. But try to stay away from ANYTHING lithium for a little bit, as the batteries are a bit unreliable.

Makita LXT! You get what you pay for. Great balance,feel,weight and performance. Definitely a higher end product but if you use it for a living well worth the money.

Ryobi is the competitor to Black and Decker. From my understanding, Rigid is Ryobi's upline. Personally, I love DeWalt. all except my right angle drill are DeWalt....for that I chose Milwaukee just because of the ergonomics. If you do not need something that is contractor grade, ryobi is fine, plus the batteries are cheaper to replace when the time comes for that. If you want a drill with hammer action, definitely go with a corded piece of equipment. In that case, again do you need contractor grade equipment?

Definitely DeWalt. DeWalt is Black & Decker's professional line of tools. Don't let the B&D association fool you. DeWalt makes some of the finest tools on the market. They are right up there with Makita, Hilti, Bosch, & Milwaukee. I have used many DeWalt tools on the jobsite and I tend to like them better than Bosch who is known for making some of the best.
Overall I like Makita and Hilti the best with Dewalt in second place. But for the price I think Ridgid has the best tools on the market. Great value. I like their tools as much as the Dewalt's and Makitas.
But in the end it depends what your buying. One company's drill might be better than another and vice versa when looking at mitre saws. So it depends what your buying.
Ryobi on the other hand is more of a budget brand and lower quality. Also way cheaper.

Dewalt is known for their long lasting accurate products i would go with Dewalt if the price is similar

You night be successful getting into some of the intricate areas with a Dremel rotary and sanding accessories like the EZ471SA, EZ472SA and EZ473SA detail abrasive brushes. The 511E or 512E finishing abrasive buffs are another option. These accessories require the EZ402 mandrel or standard 402 mandrel sold separately. This may not be the only tool you'll need, especially if you have flat sanding or more aggressive sanding to do.

If it's a valuable antique do not touch it. I doubt it is cause if it was valuable you would know about it, and you would keep it in original condition.

DO not use a rotary tool like a Dremel. They go too fast at 5000-30,000RPM and will gouge the wood pretty bad. It will eat right through the wood carvings. I'[d try a chemical stripper like Circa. Wear gloves, let it soak, then use steel wool and a tooth brush to get all the stuff off. SHould work good for you. If there are any trouble spots then I'd try a rotary tool with a mild abrasive pad, like a polishing pad. I wouldn't use a sanding drum or disk on the dremel, it'll dig right in and make a mess. Dremels are very powerful little buggers.

If it's a very large project with absolutely mind boggling detail that would take years to sand away, then have it professionally stripped by soaking it. A furniture refinishing can soak it in a hot bath and strip the whole piece. You can get a price on it and determine the difference between that and a few cans of stripper, gloves, brushes, sandpaper, dremel attachments, plus your labor, etc..... It might be worth to go the professional hot bath route.

I would be careful using solvent based strippers on an old table,many of the glues used back then were solvent based, meaning your table could fall apart on you a couple months after the stripper has been removed. I use a Feine multi tool for heritage restorations, available not here but another tool place. you will also be interested in a non solvent based, totally organic stripper called, Soy Gel. ask for it at your building supply place or any paint store that sells low-VOC paints.

I recently redid an old antique chair with a lot of curves. I used my dremel with a couple of attachments. I have small sanding blocks of different sizes that were very helpful along with a shaping bit for the small areas where the sanding blocks were to big. Why not simply remove the colour with a stripper much easier and less chance of damaging it. I also used the B & D Mouse sander. Regardless of which method you use make sure you are in a well ventilated area and wear proper protection as you could have traces of lead in the paint

I would suggest that you take the piece to an antique store and ask them how valuable your piece is, to sand off paint off an antique can dramatically reduce the value of the piece.

That being said, I'd suggest not a power tool, but a chemical stripper such as "Circa 1850", using that and some old tooth brushes, you should be able to clean the piece up nicely.

If you want to keep the furniture’s cravings and intricate work intact; stay away from power tools. Lots of elbow grease, paint/varnish remover, steel-wool, soft wire brush, sandpaper and patience will keep the integrity of the piece you are working on. If you have thrown-in the towel; there are “Rotary Tools” available with hundreds of attachments that would suit your needs. Hope this helps?

The Dremel is your only option for this kind of delicate work.

i usually try and use a wire saw to remove stuborn mirrors, but i heat the mirror first, steam the bathroom really well, turn the shower on hot and the sink below the mirror,use a hair drier, and if your carefull, you can use a heat gun, 9 times out of 10 mirror comes off easier and there is no wall to fix as the silicone softened up a bit.

Hope this will help: If the entire mirror is caulked with silicone, remove them first. See whether you can now remove the mirror. If the mirror is still stucked, that means the mirror is glued with either mirror mastic or silicone. Try to use a good gauge fishing line to tuck behind the mirror and start "sawing" the adhesive behind the mirror. Please do this with 2 persons, one on each side of the mirror. If you are lucky and can get through 2/3 of the mirror, you can just pull it off. If you can't even get 1/4 of the mirror, there is no choice but to break it. Good luck!

Concur with the options presented below, no matter what you choose the wall is going to be pretty ugly afterwards. I will add a caution about using a carpenter's square; if you put any kind of torque on it at all you will end up with an 'unsquare.'

Look on the underside of the bathroom accessories, you might find a small recess where a threaded screw where a screwdriver or allen wrench might fit in, this is attaching the decorative fixture to a metal mounting plate which in turn is either screwed to a stud, or into anchor bolts, either way once the little screw is extracted, lift the part straight up vertically, then pivot the front edge upwards to release it from the brackets.

hope that helped.

I recently removed a 5'x5' mirror. First, I taped the entire surface of the mirror with wide tape to hold the pieces in place if it broke. I removed the hooks, and cut the caulking around the channels along the sides. I tried to pry it off from the top, the only accessible edge, but couldn't.

I then took a hammer to the top corner (with appropriate eye protection and gloves, and a helper) and cracked it. After working some smaller pieces off, I got behind the mirror deep enough to pry the rest of it from the wall. Wherever there was adhesive, it needed a coat of drywall mud. For any large holes, I recommend the adhesive patches with the metal mesh in the middle.

As for the accessories, I've cut them out of the drywall before, and would recommend using the other posters' advice in breaking them off.

I took on a similar project not long ago, and was faced with the same challenge. I've heard of a 'wire' saw you can use to run behind the mirror, cutting through the adhesive, although I haven't actually seen one. Believe it or not, I actually used a carpenter's square - it was the right size, and would sit flush with the wall. I just slid the square behind the mirror and pulled down on each side slowly until I got all the way through. I covered the mirror with several pieces of duct tape first, but I don't think I needed to. Nonetheless, safety first - protective eyewear and gloves are important, and I would also suggest covering all bare skin (pants, sweater, etc.), just in case the mirror shatters. Once it's off, you will undoubtedly have some adhesive left on the wall, and will need to do some patching. As for the towel rack and tissue holder, I just 'yanked' on them and they came off quite easily. All-in-all, It's not pretty, but with some patience you will succeed. Good luck with the project!

Durability and Functionality - use the Milwaukee. With looking at some previous comments I would suggest that you do pay attention to the warranty duration and just what the warranty covers. Milwaukee is more expensive then Ryobi and no one can argue that but your paying for the quality, warranty, and accessability of repair parts. I will however agree with ↓ if you're a home owner I would get the Ridgid because you can't beat the warranty if you can afford the downtime. But keep in mind it is ONLY LIFETIME IF YOU REGISTER ONLINE!!!!!!

Based on Ridgid's Lifetime warranty I am now buying their tools almost exclusively - you can't beat that warranty. I just had a Dewalt grinder give up and it's only several years old and barely used - guess what? Not under warranty - sorry.

Milkwaukee is without a doubt the higher end tool. For the occasional/home user Ryobi generally suits the bill. I don't agree with the previous comment that best bang for your buck is dewalt! the warranty on Milkwaukee tools is 5 years versus Dewalt's 3 and Dewalt tools are always more expensive.

They're both owned by TTI and I believe Milwaukee is considered their higher end brand.

I say it would depend on your needs.
If you're a pro user, I'd go for Milwaukee, since they're geared towards the pro user. Their tools are heavy duty, durable, powerful and can take the abuse of a job site.

The model 300 or 4000 Dremel rotary tool with a EZ-456 cut off wheels and EZ402 mandrel will cut the lock. Keep in mind that you may go through quite a few cut off wheels. The lock will have to be clamped securely. It will be a slow and hot cutting process and difficult to control a straight cut.

If you have rotory tool like a Dremel, they sell either the red/brown
small thin grinding disks about 1" in diameter or the diamond coated
metal disks about 3/4" in diameter that mount on a small mandrell. No
normal metal will yield to either of these cutting tools and they are
fast cutting with very little kerf material removal. They will also cut through any hardened lock material if you lose the key, without any effort...just sit there with gentle
pressure..don't force or they will shatter.

Buy 2 regular padlocks ( same kind )
File away half of it using a metal file or a jigsaw with a metal blade. (a lot of work but the only way)
Disasemble the second lock(try not to damage it) and use the inner parts to demo on the half lock.
This project may be too difficult to do using real locks. Perhaps construct a lock mechaniism large scale using wood and dowels. It will be effective to conceptualize while demo'ing a real lock may be too small to see.

I suggest that you purchase a laminated padlock which have flat layers of metal that hold the lock together, and what you need to do is grind off the rivets that hold the layers together with a grinder , remove the layers and then cut away each piece by hand or power tool , and put the lock back together again, then you will be able to see the insides of this padlock.

You can, but any power saw with a blade meant for metal would do a better job. I particularly like the Ryobi grinder

a cut off saw would work better and easier for you

it all depends on what kind of wheel you have in the pipe cutter...alot of them sold have cutting wheels that are made for PVC piping and it'll trash that blade and get a rude cut on top of it...look for a cutting wheel intended for the specific type of tube you're cutting.

A stud finder will help you locate the stud and a strong magnet will tell you if it is metal or not.

Do you live in a condo or appartment? If so its most likely metal. If you live in a house, its most likely wood.

if you remove one of the electrial outlet covers, you should be able to to see the stud that the box is attached to and you can tell if its metal or wood.

In the battle of drills, the makita li-ion lxts are leading, at least in my experience.

You'll notice that the Makita drill is lighter but only marginally. The Milwaukee Drill and Impact Driver feel really comfortable in your hands and the new M18's are considerably lighter than their predecessors the V18s.

The Makita impact driver is much lighter than all other impacts but you will be sacrificing power for the Makita. The torque on the impact is 1280 inlbs and the Milwaukee is 1400 inlbs. Also, you will notice the Milwaukee batteries have an power output of 58 Watt hrs over the Makita's 56 Watt hrs. The onboard fuel guage on the Milwaukee is also handy.

Good luck with your tools!

Milwaukkee focuses on the Electrical and Plumbing Industry and have been one of the best brands for years . Also they have a 5 year warrenty includes batteries ( Makita 1 year i think ). Check out the new M12 tools also , Impact and driver great for electricians

I can't speak to the issue of correcting the sagging floor, but I can tell you that depending on how drastic the change in grade is, the wood will accommodate - however the smaller the area that is sagging, the more difficult it will be for the nails/cleats/staples to hold, and of course, the more it will show in the end result.

We just installed bamboo in our home-office 2 weeks ago, and although it looks absolutely fabulous, there were some challenges - specifically, if you are doing it yourself, you MUST ensure you have the right size adaptor plate for the nailer. Most hardwood floors are 3/4" thick, where the bamboo we laid was 5/8". The rental place we got the nailer from only had a 3/4" plate and a 1/2" plate - so I had to carefully set the nailer in position on the tongue, otherwise it would set the cleat too low on the tongue and completely destroy it, or would end up damaging the surface. Additionally, since bamboo is actually a grass, I found that the tongue was more delicate than you would find in hardwood.

Even with these challenges, we will DEFINITELY be using bamboo again in the future - it's all about sustainability for us these days. ;-)

Good luck with the project!

This is not a simple problem to solve, leveling the floor by adding material to the top of the floor does not fix the real problem you are experiencing, be it an old house or not you have support issues. I've yet to discover a house I have not been able to level. ( 15 years working on heritage homes) You have to start at the bottom and correct what's causing the sag, first look at the dirt that the post that's holding the beam is on. is it soft or muddy? there could be geo-technical issues at play here. if the ground can support the footing the post is on, and the house has not settled anymore( past 5 years) then you rent some temporary shores, a couple of 25 tonjacks. Jack up the beam so it's level plus a 1/4" to allow for new post, recut a new post and insert it. viola floor level. or it should be, if the beam supporting the floor was undersized or if it's really old, it's a solid 6X8 or something of the sort and it's sagging between the posts, then it needs to be replaced or beefed up with c channel Iron supports through bolted once the sag has been removed with the 25 ton bottle jacks. (available at most rental centers)

I would defiantly call a local contractor or if it's a really old house with historical value ( many old farm houses fall under this category) contact your local heritage home society for a contractor experienced in older homes.

The actual laying of the floor if you wanted to still go ahead with the floor install will accommodate that kind of sag, if you run the boards parallel with the sag, not trying to bend the boards to the floor. Many flooring installers will not recommend this attempt due to the increased failure if the nails or staples let go. you will have an extremely squeaky floor.

You can really use any finish you want, however for high moisture areas, the minimum sheen you would want to use would be an eggshell enamel. This sheen is softer (not as glossy) than the semi-gloss, but still has a good 'scrubbability' factor along with mildew resistance. If you don't like the glossy look, go with the eggshell enamel, otherwise Behr offers a satin lustre enamel specifically designed for kitchens and bathrooms, or of course you can use the semi-gloss. You will find more info at behr.com. Good luck with your painting project!

As a painter i can say you need a latex paint especially formulated for and called "kitchen and bath" You can use the same paint in a semi-gloss if you like the look better. I haven't used semi-gloss in a bathroom for at least 10 years. This paint is for high humiditiy areas.