Essential Videos and Articles of 2016

A peek inside the heads of ProTradeCraft users: the top articles, videos, and animations of the year.

Thank you for making ProTradeCraft a success. We have grown at a healthy clip since launching in June of 2015, and we hope to continue that trajectory.

Please email us if you have any comments, questions, or suggestions for video, animation, podcast or photo gallery topics. Have a great 2017.

Top Twenty Pages:

1. The Best Way to Frame: Less Wood, More Thought (article)
Less is more, more or less. And now it is codified.

2. How To Install House Wrap #TheRightWay (Video/Article)
Stop rot with house wrap

3. Three Ways to Wire a Panasonic WhisperGreen Select Exhaust Fan (sponsor video)
You can control the bath fan and the light from the switch, automate with motion and sensor controls, or you can mix and match methods. You can even tinker at the switch

4. Custom White Oak Kitchen Worth Writing Home About (Photos)
Furniture-grade cabinetry with simple joinery

5. Design and Build A Patio Roof To Tie In To An Existing Roof (video)
Two videos cover the design questions and construction process of a post and beam patio roof structure

6. What Could Cause THOUSANDS of Drywall Screw Pops? (article)
A perfect storm of missteps causes an unimaginable problem—or did it?

7. The Parthenon's Construction and Design as Revealed in the Rubble (video and slide show)
Athena and Poseidon's temple of war, peace, and democracy

8. It Takes 10 Minutes to Waterproof a Shampoo Niche #TheRightWay (video)
"This is the most important part to waterproof because this is the place where all the water will end up and it might leak if not done correctly." —Michal Mroczko

9. When Drip Edge Becomes A Double Agent (article)
The mission of water is to turn houses to mush. Some drip edge flashings may actually help water accomplish this mission.

10. What’s Wrong with Vinyl Siding? It’s Not What You Think (article)
Andres Duany defends the bad boy of exterior claddings, and urges the industry to up its game

11. Latino Locksets and Other Interesting Door Hardware (photos)
Sidewalk snapshots of South American door hardware

12. 2015 IRC Deck Ledger Bolt Placement (video)
The days of staggering bolts every 16 inches or so are over—especially if you want to step down to the deck

13. Easiest Drywall Patch Ever. No, Really. (video)
A hole saw and a scrap of drywall make an invisible patch that is fast and invisible. Did we say invisible?

14. Architectural Subterfuge: The (not so) Secret Side of Hidden Doors (video collection)
18 videos on hardware, screws, and designs that deceive the eye

15. How to Retrofit Drip Edge Flashing on an Existing Roof (video)
A look at types of drip edge flashing, how to cut it, and how to retrofit it to an existing roof

16. 3 Rules For Designing Crown Molding (article)
Look at walls like they're Classical columns to find the right proportions and shapes

17. Kickout Flashing That Won't Leak (animated detail)
Ground zero for roof rot is often where roofs meet walls.

18. 9 Ways to Hide a Minisplit (article with photos)
These mighty-mites can provide heating, cooling, and air-mixing for a well-insulated house, but they look so darned—European. It is hard for many Americans to warm up to them.

19. Robotic Bricklayer (video)
Never needs to check its iPhone

20. Robotic Carpenters: 6 Carpentry Tasks Robots Can Do Right Now (video)
It is time to think about the fact that many carpentry jobs may be automated—soon

5 Most Popular Sponsor Content Pages

2. How to Bend a Window Casing w/ a Built-in J-Channel
Sheet metal wizardry: From coil stock to casing in under a minute

3. How to Bend an Outside Corner for Vinyl Siding
Sheet metal brake wizardry: From coil to corner in 1:00 flat

4. Top Five Joist Hanger Installation Errors
See how easy it is to avoid the top five hanger errors

5. How to Install LP SmartSide Lap Siding
Start level, maintain the right clearances and gaps, and paint the cut edges

See the 2015 list here.