Timely Home Improvement News from the Washington Post:

• Take a Class, and Basic Electrical Tasks Shouldn't Trip You Up January 31, 2009
  Q: DEAR TIM: I have a chance to take a $250 course on electrical wiring that covers how to change outlets, switches, light fixtures, rewiring circuits, etc. I'm terrified of electricity and use a stick to trip my circuit breakers.
  Tim Carter
• Cultivate Your Gardening Knowledge Outside the Back Yard January 31, 2009
  There are so many lectures, seminars and workshops at botanical and estate gardens, arboretums and parks in the Washington area that there's not room for me to list them all.
  Joel M. Lerner
• Do It Yourself January 31, 2009
  Q: Our white kitchen countertop, made of plastic laminate, is stained from spills of things like red wine, curry and fruit juice. How can I clean it?
  Gene Austin
• Replacing Windows? Look for Seal of Approval. January 24, 2009
  Q: DEAR TIM: I'm about to start a window replacement project. My husband wants vinyl windows because of the easy maintenance, but I'm not a big fan. The number of choices is making it hard for me to decide which kind of windows to install. What are the best replacement windows?
  Tim Carter
• Designing a Garden From the Ground Up January 24, 2009
  Most homeowners approach landscape design in a way that is meant to meet their immediate need, whether that is screening, groundcover, shade or flowering plants. The proper approach to landscape design is multi-dimensional -- considering interest on ground, vertical and overhead planes.
  Joel M. Lerner
• Change Is Slow to Come Home January 24, 2009
  For more than 20 years, architect and author Witold Rybczynski has focused on the houses and lifestyles of ordinary people.
  Katherine Salant
• Replacing a Shower Head Is Easy, Do-It-Yourself Task January 24, 2009
  Tired of that leaky, single-stream shower head left over from the Nixon administration?
  Adrian Sainz
• Do It Yourself January 24, 2009
  Q: We have a shaky end post on our stairway. How do we tighten it up?
  Gene Austin
• Home Front: Home Energy Audits, Yellow is In for 2009, Sectional Sofa Sources and Time to Toss the Poinsettia? January 22, 2009
  Post Home Section staffers Jura Koncius and Terri Sapienza take questions on your decorating dilemmas. This week they offer tips on making your home more energy-efficient as they reveal the results of an "energy audit" at Jura's house.
  Jura Koncius and Terri Sapienza
• Security Systems Can Monitor More Than Bad Guys January 17, 2009
  Q: DEAR TIM: I'm in the market for a home security system, but there seem to be so many aspects that it's rapidly getting confusing. Should I be looking at a wireless system? If the price is too high for what I want, should I consider a do-it-yourself system? -- Marty V., Hartford, Conn.
  Tim Carter
• Inside the Mailbag: Misbehaving Roots and a Miniature Railway January 17, 2009
  It's time to answer your garden questions again -- in winter, when time is spent out of the garden, planning what can be done to enhance it in spring.
  Joel M. Lerner
• Do It Yourself January 17, 2009
  Q: We sometimes get a strong sewer odor in our house, especially when we run the washing machine. Someone told us the traps to some of our drains might have dried out, letting sewer gas enter the house. What are your thoughts?
  Gene Austin
• New-Model Wood Stoves Burn Cleaner January 17, 2009
  During the energy crisis in the 1970s, interest in heating with wood surged, particularly in regions where oil or electricity were primary heat sources.
  Camilla McLaughlin
• Home Front: Inside Blair House, IKEA Cabinet Installation, Non-Caveish Basement Colors, Good Deals on Mirrors and more January 15, 2009
  Post Home Section staffers Jura Koncius and Terri Sapienza take questions on your decorating dilemmas. This week they get a sneak peek inside Blair House, the White House's official guest house.
  Jura Koncius and Terri Sapienza
• Sewer Gas Odor Can Waft Through Incorrectly Installed Toilet Gasket January 10, 2009
  Q: DEAR TIM: My husband installed a new gasket on the toilet in our master bathroom as part of adding a new ceramic tile floor. He's pretty handy, but I soon noticed a sewer gas odor in this room. There wasn't an odor before. He can't smell it, and I'm reluctant to have him do the job over. The t...
  Tim Carter
• Home Front: Fine China in the White House -- and Your House, plus Getting Organized in the New Year and Buying New Bed Pillows January 8, 2009
  Post Home Section staffers Jura Koncius and Terri Sapienza take questions on your decorating dilemmas. This week they'll help you with your resolutions to get your home organized and save money in the New Year.
  Jura Koncius and Terri Sapienza
• Do It Yourself January 10, 2009
  Q: How does one get rid of squirrels in the attic? -- H. Cooke
  Gene Austin
• It's Time to Sharpen Your Gardening Tools January 10, 2009
  "Man is a tool-using animal . . . without tools he is nothing, with tools he is all," wrote Scottish essayist Thomas Carlyle.
  Joel M. Lerner
• Shivering With a Skimpy Furnace January 3, 2009
  Q: DEAR TIM: Are all heating systems the same? Mine is running constantly and can maintain a temperature of only 67 degrees in my home. It's below zero outdoors. But still, I would expect the house to be comfortable even if the temperature outside is bitterly cold.
  Tim Carter
• Colorful, Sculptural Branching January 3, 2009
  In winter there's not much to take your attention away from the structure or colors of trees and shrubs. You can appreciate them for their branching habits and bark, not just because they supply the "canopy" or "spatial enclosure" of the landscape.
  Joel M. Lerner