Contest Winners

[Kit@HT]

I'm proud to announce the first HomeTips Contest Winner!



Congratulations to Mark Hulsey of Tehachapi, CA who recently provided the five best answers to other users questions in the $100 "Answer My Question!!" Contest

Mark has been a consistent source of helpful knowledge in our Electrical & Lighting category since he became a member of the HomeTips Forums last September. He currently has over 300 posts, more than any other HomeTips member. Mark will collect $100 CASH for his participation in this contest!

[Kit@HT]

Congratulations to HomeTips Forum user VORDAMMT!

Your story of tool (and forehead) woes won you a $200 Home Depot Gift Card!!

Vordammt:
"What happens when you hammer a screw?"

"This happened a few years ago when I still lived at home.

My dad was putting together a day bed. We didn't have an electric drill and he was having to put it together by hand with our old set of screwdrivers, you know, the ones that are all chipped up. Needless to say, it wasn't an easy task.

Well once the bed was about 4/5 of the way completely, he accidentally put a screw in crooked. Being impatient, he decided to try and force the screw in instead of taking it out and realigning it. Bad idea. He got the screw stuck at an angle. I'm not sure if it was frustration at the bed, frustration at the tools or if he just had enough of everything; but my dad decided to hammer in the screw. Doubly bad idea.

Obviously, the screw wouldn't hammer in. He started hammering harder and harder until the hammer flew out of his hand. The hammer gracefully flew through the air and landed on the springs on the day bed, sending it equally graceful back through the air -- directly at dad, hitting him claw first right smack in the middle of his forehead.

He fell to a sitting position and was obviously flabbergasted as to what just happened. Then, two small, equally spaced trickles of blood start running down his face. That's when mom and I lost it. For the next week, I had to stifle the giggles every time I saw him with those two perfect hammer claw marks in his head.

If only he had a drill and a decent set of screwdrivers (like we told him to get)! Then again, to this day, I don't think I've ever laughed so hard in my entire life!"

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[Kit@HT]

Congratulations to sam22bennet, who's helpful tips about how to reduce energy usage and save money won him $25!

sam22bennett:

My home has 100% electric appliances and furnace, so my Electricity bill can be quite high, especially in out Iowa winters! I have found that replacing all of my light bulbs with Compact Fluorescent bulbs and making sure to turn off lights when I leave the room/am not home drastically reduces my bill. Also, installing a programmable thermostat was the best investment I could have made, It turns the heat up only in the evening when I am home, and on weekends, and turns down to 65 degrees while I am at work. Conserving energy is my favorite way of saving money around the house!