This Old House Radio Hour – Détails, épisodes et analyse

This Old House has been America’s most trusted source for home improvement for over four decades. Now, we’re bringing that same expertise to the airwaves with This Old House Radio Hour. Each week we answer your DIY and renovation questions. Plus, we dive into the latest trends from building science to design with an ear for great storytelling about the places we call home.

Welcome to the Premiere of This Old House Radio Hour! Join us for an hour of expert-driven DIY and home improvement, where craftsmanship, history, and hands-on know-how come together. Master carpenter Callum Robinson reads from his bestselling memoir, Ingrained: The Making of a Craftsman, and shares with host Jenn Largesse the deep joy of woodworking—and the stories locked inside every piece of wood.
Then, we head to Le Claire, Iowa, where American Pickers’ Mike Wolfe restores a 19th-century general store on the banks of the Mississippi River. Plus, we uncover historic homes under $1,000 with Ethan and Elizabeth Finkelstein from Cheap Old Houses! All of this, plus we’re answering your home improvement questions at 877-This Old House Radio Hour! — That’s (877) 864-7460.

On this episode of This Old House Radio Hour, we sit down with viral sensation Caleb Simpson, the TikTok star who’s made a name asking one simple question: “How much do you pay in rent?” Caleb shares what 500+ home tours have taught him about housing, design, and what our spaces say about who we are. Then, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Doris Kearns Goodwin reflects on turning grief into meaning by recreating her 19th-century farmhouse inside a Boston condo. Ethan and Elizabeth Finkelstein from Cheap Old Houses showcase two historic stunners for less than $125K, including one with its own National Register–listed playhouse.

We also dive into your DIY questions—from whether you should paint over ugly floor tile, to what to do with a puddle-prone bathtub, and how to protect your HVAC system from power surges. And we play another round of What’s That Sound?, where your favorite This Old House pros try to guess the noise—and maybe save your outlets in the process. All that, plus a Simple Fix from Jenn Nawada that tells you if your backyard trees are dying.

On this week’s episode, we rethink the meaning of home—from the scale of a single room to the soul of a sprawling city.

First, visionary architect and best-selling author Sarah Susanka joins us to reflect on the enduring appeal of her groundbreaking book The Not So Big House. She unpacks power of designing for quality over quantity, how smarter, smaller spaces can transform our lives, and why her “Not So Big” philosophy is more relevant than ever in a world grappling with sustainability, affordability, and a hunger for meaning in our living spaces.

Then we travel to Walpole, New Hampshire, where acclaimed filmmaker Ken Burns has created his own sanctuary on 111 acres of rolling New England landscape. He walks us through the barn he dreamed up as a child and built as an adult—proof that sometimes, the stories we tell start with the places we make. And finally, a bold conversation about the future of Los Angeles. In a time of housing crises, infrastructure strain, and environmental urgency, we explore b—one that centers community, climate, and the power of design to create a city that works for everyone.

All that, plus your DIY and Home Improvement questions answered. Call us today at 877-864-7460

Adam Savage—former MythBuster and maker movement icon—joins us to talk about the philosophy of tools, the joy of failure, and building a 200-hour replica of Hellboy’s revolver. Then we visit Charleston to uncover the truth behind those sideways-facing row houses (spoiler: it’s not about taxes). Singer-songwriter Rosanne Cash invites us into her lovingly restored 1855 Manhattan brownstone, where music, memory, and steampunk-Jane-Austen style live in harmony. Plus, our experts take your calls—from crooked kitchen cabinets to leaking pond pumps—and face off in a hilarious round of What’s That Sound?

On this week’s This Old House Radio Hour, architects Jack Becker and Andrew Linn of BLDUS in Washington, D.C. explain how they’re turning the sustainable food movement into a sustainable building movement with their “Farm-to-Shelter” philosophy—drawing inspiration from Chef’s Table and using regional, regenerative materials to create homes that are beautiful, healthy, and good for the planet. Then, bestselling author Ariel Lawhon (Frozen River) returns to her childhood bunker in Taos, New Mexico, built by her father with no electricity or running water, in this week’s “My Old House.” Plus, Cheap Old Houses returns with listings in Oil City, PA and Garfield, WA, we play a new listener game called House Rules, and our expert team fields your DIY questions—from mysterious outlets and noisy neighbors to fence repairs and stubborn carpet glue.

Need help with your home? Call us at 1-877-864-7460 or email us at, questions@thisoldhouse.com

This week, we meet writer Patrick Hutchinson who bought a $7,500 off-the grid, moss-covered Craigslist cabin—and taught himself to fix it with YouTube and trial and error. How he went from clueless to carpenter and changed his life.

Actor Alessandro Nivola shares how his Brooklyn row house became a living tribute to Brutalism, family, and art history.
Plus:
– Mold or mystery? Our experts explain why cutting drywall might just save your house.
– What to say to an electrician who won’t touch your knob-and-tube wiring.
– Why workwear is having a high-fashion moment—and what that says about the way we live.
– And a simple fix using a golf tee that just might realign your door and your DIY confidence.

Got a home issue? Call us at (877) 864-7460. We’ve got the experts—and a few surprises.

This week on This Old House Radio Hour, we meet Bo Petterson—a 66-year-old dad, DIYer, and unexpected TikTok sensation. Known to millions as @DadAdviceFromBo, Bo began posting home repair videos with his daughter Emily as a way to help her recover from a traumatic brain injury. What started as a private act of love has grown into a viral force for good, offering step-by-step repair tips, emotional support, and the quiet reassurance that it’s okay not to know everything.

Then in *My Old House*, acclaimed author Walter Mosley returns to the South Central Los Angeles bungalow where he grew up—a 1,500-square-foot home filled with fruit trees, family, and the kind of detail that shaped his voice as a writer. With warmth and reflection, Mosley explores the power of place, the meaning of identity, and the memories that never leave the walls we call home.

Plus: your DIY questions, a round of *What’s That Sound?*, the surprising history of toilet paper etiquette, and Mauro Henrique’s clever painter’s tape workaround you’ll want to try this weekend.

This week on This Old House Radio Hour—what does it mean to rebuild not just homes, but entire communities?

Sunset Magazine editor-in-chief Hugh Garvey joins us to discuss the magazine’s special issue devoted to the rebuilding of Altadena and Pacific Palisades in the wake of January’s devastating wildfires. Sunset, a voice in California architecture for over 125 years, has assembled an extraordinary coalition of architects, planners, artists, and historians. Together, they offer not just a plan, but a call to action—for fire-resilient homes, culturally grounded design, and a West that can weather what’s coming.

Then we travel from the hills of Los Angeles to the streets of Tulsa, where Danny Boy O’Connor—from House of Pain—takes us inside his remarkable second act. After bottoming out, he bought a run-down house for $15,000... and it just happened to be the house from The Outsiders. What followed was a full restoration, a pilgrimage, and a new life. We take a tour of the Outsiders Museum and meet the community that made it possible.

Later, Cheap Old Houses is back—Ethan and Elizabeth Finkelstein spotlight a dreamy 1870s Victorian in Fredonia, Kentucky and an off-the-grid cabin on federal forest land in Snoqualmie Pass, Washington, both for under $100,000.

Plus, another round of House Rules, our listener-powered game that tests your home renovation know-how. And in The Simple Fix, we show you how to find a stud in your baseboard—without breaking the wall.

And as always, we’re taking your calls. Got a house problem, project hurdle, or just need a little advice? Call us at (877) 864-7460.

All that and more, coming up on This Old House Radio Hour.

Spring is in full swing, and so are pests and critters. The Bug Boys join us to help prevent infestations in and around your home, wherever you live!

In “My Old House,” actor William H. Macy takes us on a personal tour of his Vermont cabin complex, which he has personally built over three decades; the ups and downs of his building have mirrored the highs and lows of his life off-screen.

Also, Ethan and Elizabeth Finkelstein from Cheap Old Houses join us to share listings that you can purchase. This week, they spotlight historic properties in Ohio and Michigan for a Rust Belt extravaganza.

We’ll also answer your DIY and home improvement questions, play a round of “House Rules.”