How to BBQ a Whole Chicken on a Charcoal Grill To cook a whole chicken on the grill, you’ll want to butterfly it first so more of the meat is in contact with grill grates. This allows the chicken to cook more quickly and will also help prevent the chicken from overcooking. Cut along each side of the backbone and remove it, and turn the chicken breast-side up. Open the two sides of the chicken, similar to a book, and lay it flat....

Both open and covered pergolas provide a beautiful setting for backyard barbecues, fire pits, hot tubs, and more. Ideal for climbing plants, DIY pergolas create an area of dappled sunlight that’s ideal for both relaxing and entertaining. You can make it as shady as you like by adding climbing plants and creepers, or by topping off the structure with fabric. The four corners of the pergola can also be anchored with planter boxes....

Try painting the birch plywood box and adding ash veneer tape to the edges to give your modular boxes a distinctive look. For a more colorful accent, paint the entire box. Or you can accent the birch plywood with walnut plugs and veneer. You’ll likely need several hours to build and finish seven boxes. Before you begin, assemble materials and prepare your work area. Then follow these steps to learn how to make DIY modular boxes....

Some older dishwashers have self-cleaning filters, which are similar to garbage disposals. However, the majority of modern dishwashers, including the most common models from Whirlpool, GE, KitchenAid, Frigidaire, Samsung, Bosch, Kenmore, and LG, have manual dishwasher filters that you have to remove and clean yourself. If you’re unsure of your dishwasher filter type, check your owner’s manual or on the manufacturer’s website. Cleaning your dishwasher filter is an easy maintenance task that will help your appliance’s performance....

Daniel McCurry, owner of Father Nature Landscapes in Birmingham, Alabama, says you should discard the nectar and clean the feeder anytime the liquid in it appears cloudy or milky. “The higher the humidity, the faster [the nectar] goes bad for them,” McCurry explains. “When it becomes milky, it makes it taste funky for the birds, and they’ll move on to someone else’s garden.” Plus, “the mold that can grow in the hummingbird’s water can cause them to get a fungal infection,” he adds....

The most important thing to know is that the best way to clean a pizza stone does not involve soap and water. Common pizza stone materials, like ceramics and cordierite stone, are naturally porous, meaning soap could become a permanent part of your pizza flavoring if absorbed into the pizza stone. Similarly, you shouldn’t soak a pizza stone in water; the porous material will absorb the moisture, ultimately negating the crust-crisping characteristics of the pizza stone....

How to Clean and Disinfect a Kitchen Sponge Here are five ways to clean a kitchen sponge, including high heat, natural ingredients, and more. How to Clean a Sponge with Vinegar If you’re looking for an inexpensive, non-harmful, and biodegradable disinfectant, turn to vinegar. It can be used to clean your microwave, sink drains, showerhead, and, you guessed it, your grimy kitchen sponge. What You Need VinegarWarm water Step 1: Soak Sponge Soak sponge in full-strength vinegar for 5 minutes....

The best way to clean shoes varies depending on the material. Most footwear can be cleaned using a solution of mild dish soap and water, but certain types of shoes, including mesh sneakers and suede shoes, require special care to avoid damaging the material. We’ll walk you through how to use simple household items, such as baking soda, distilled white vinegar, and a toothbrush, to remove grime and discoloration from your footwear....

How to Clean Painted Walls The first thing you should consider when washing painted walls is the finish. If needed, reference our handy guide to paint finishes. Whether the finish is glossy or flat will determine how scrubbing will affect the look of the wall. How to Clean Walls with Flat Paint Duller paint finishes, including flat, satin, and eggshell finishes, are less durable when it comes to cleaning. Do not use harsh chemicals or degreasers when cleaning flat painted walls....

Skillet-Cooked Steak, Step-by-Step First, be sure you’re using a proper skillet. Use one that’s heavy and the right size for the amount of steak you’re cooking. A skillet that’s too large will cause the pan juices to burn. (These directions also apply to how to cook steak in a cast-iron skillet.) Add the steaks to the hot skillet and reduce the heat to medium.Do not add any liquid and do not cover the skillet—you don’t want to steam the steaks....

How to Cook Steak in the Oven Before we start cooking, you’ll need to choose the cut of steak to suit your recipe. Seek out these cuts when broiling steak in the oven: FlankStripTop sirloinTri-tip (bottom sirloin)TenderloinPorterhouseT-boneRibeye Test Kitchen Tip: For melt-in-your-mouth texture, look for steaks with a fresh pink/red color with abundant marbling (stripes of fat in the meat). Some fat around the exterior of beef cuts is good, but trim any large pieces surrounding the meat....

The process is easy: Grab a cyanotype kit (which typically comes with sun-sensitive paper) and place objects on top of the paper in a decorative pattern. Once exposed to sunlight, the paper will change colors only where the sun hits it—leaving you with a monochromatic art print after you remove the objects on the paper. Plants, shells, rocks, and pinecones are all good sun print candidates. Only the shadows cast by objects will appear, so opacity, size, and shape are key....

Put your fence on a regular maintenance schedule and check the support structure first, repairing or replacing any damaged posts and rails. Grab each post at the top and put pressure on it from all sides. If it’s properly seated in the ground, it should move little or not at all. Movement may signify rot at the base and the need for replacement. Do the same for the rails, and repair them if necessary....

Before you get started, it’s important to determine whether the peeling paint contains lead. If your home was built prior to 1978, it could have lead-based paint, which can pose serious health risks, especially for children. You can find testing kits at hardware stores, but to be sure, hire a certified company to collect chips and send them to a lab for testing. If you think your home has lead-based paint, do not try to fix the peeling paint yourself....

How to Freeze Tofu Yes, freezing tofu is an extra step you’ll need to plan for, but I promise it’s worth it. Since tofu is stored in water, ice crystals form, making porous, sponge-like holes in the block (see photo above). This allows for a chewier texture and the pockets can now absorb more flavor from your tofu marinade or seasonings added. There are a few different ways to freeze tofu, but here are the most popular methods:...

Hallmarks of Handcraft With this style, understand that it’s all about imperfection. Be prepared to embrace the irregular — the handcrafted world is not polished or matchy-matchy. Dye lots may differ and colors or patterns might not quite align, even among like items in a set. And that is perfectly OK, in fact it is to be desired, to help foster that feeling of uniqueness. Materials That Matter Wood, stone, metal, leather, clay, glass and other authentic materials that yield and transform through the work of human hands are at the heart of handcrafted style....

When to Plant Garlic Garlic is best planted in the fall and harvested the following summer. Ideally, get the cloves in the ground around the same time you would be planting spring-blooming bulbs such as tulips and daffodils. The ideal time to plant garlic is right after your area’s first frost, which may happen anywhere from late September to late October in northern regions and as late as December or January in southern areas)....

Once a cable has been run and/or the old appliance has been removed, you can expect to spend an hour making most connections. Make sure you know how to strip, splice, and connect wires to terminals. Before you start wiring, check that the new appliance does not overload the circuit. What You Need ScrewdriverFlashlightStrippersLineman’s pliersLong-nose pliersApplianceWire nutsElectrician’s tape Before You Begin: Safety Tips Before you do anything else, shut off power to the circuit....

Of course, insulation also has a role in interior walls, and should not be dismissed when it comes to the rest of your home. You may want to add it to the walls of your upstairs area to help deaden sound between rooms. Below, we’ll help you understand how insulation works and how to install it yourself. Safety First One of the worst aspects of installing fiberglass insulation is that loose particles can be extremely irritating....