Author: wobblewedgedev

Fall weather is officially here and we’re thinking about all of the wonderful ways that Wobble Wedges can be useful inside and outside of the house. Wobble Wedge plastic shims are available in three sizes to solve all of your wobbles and three colors to blend into your environment. These useful plastic shims won’t rot or expand when exposed to the outside elements, making them perfect for exterior residential and maintenance applications. Get started with a variety pack of Wobble Wedges as you set out to accomplish everything on your fall exterior to-do list.

Small Plastic Shims for Stabilizing Decorative Pumpkins and Gourds

Nothing says fall like a motif of pumpkins and other gourds on the steps leading up to your entryway, but pumpkins never have even bottoms, making precarious work out of assembling a perfectly aesthetic arrangement. Use Wobble Wedge Mini plastic shims or clear flexible Wobble Wedge standard size shims to place pumpkins and gourds with perfect precision. Use Wobble Wedges patented interlocking ridges to stack and combine shims to fill any compensate for even the most asymmetrical of pumpkins. Your front porch fall ensemble will look ready for the cover of a magazine and certainly ready for Trick or Treaters to come trotting up the walkway.

Use Wobble Wedges to Hold Exterior Mats in Place

Do your exterior entryway mats slide when it rains or snows? Wobble Wedge plastic shims possess a small hole in the top that allow them to be screwed down to surfaces with a standard size screw. Use two or more Wobble Wedges to batton the edges of your mat down to your porch to prevent any future slipping or sliding of the mat. This technique also works for holding down the edges of exterior decorative carpets and rugs. Keep the edges of an outdoor rug from curling up by tacking them down with color-matched Wobble Wedges available in white, black, and clear plastic.

Level Storage Shelves in Garages, Basements, and Tool Sheds

Storage shelves can get loaded with hundreds of pounds of gear, tools, and storage items. Don’t let your precious items rock on a precarious shelf. Ensure large and heavy storage shelves are perfectly level, prior to loading them with items, using Wobble Wedge plastic shims. BigGap Wobble Wedges offer a solution for large gaps caused by sloped or uneven concrete garage or basement floors. Use the interlocking ridges to stack and combine Wobble Wedges until storage shelves are perfectly level and able to bare weight. Once the shelves are loaded and bearing weight again, Wobble Wedges will not slip or slide out of place.

Level Storage Bins for Stackability

Use Wobble Wedges to level all of your storage bins for the ultimate stackability and security of items. Plastic storage bins can become warped over time or misshapen due to their contents. Make sure that each layer of bins sits level so the next layer can stack on top with Wobble Wedge plastic shims. This is also a good solution when stacking bins of different sizes. Make sure smaller bins sit level on top of larger bins and that each layer can bear the weight of the next without damaging items in the containers.

Plastic Shims Will Keep Your Holiday Decorations from Wobbling and Leaning

Setting up holiday decorations is a great activity to get you in the holiday spirit. Many decorations are sentimental and hold a special place in our hearts, so don’t let them wobble precariously while on display! A great solution is our Wobble Wedge® plastic shims, as the soft/flexible plastic version can cushion glass, porcelain, and wood. Our hard/rigid plastic shims are strong enough to take 2,000lbs if necessary. Continue reading to see how Wobble Wedge® plastic shims can help you stabilize Christmas decorations in your home:

Shore Up Small Holiday Decorations

Small decorative holiday items often get setup on table tops, mantels, and various surfaces around the home. For example, if your manger is a family heirloom and has seen a lot of seasons, it might be a little warped. This is the perfect use for our Mini Wobble Wedges®, which can discreetly shore up the corner so your precious porcelain figurines don’t take a tumble. Mini Wobble Wedge plastic shims are also perfect for leveling table top trees, candy bowls, glass and porcelain figurines, pretty much any small wobble you might have! Minis are available in both a soft/flexible plastic and a hard/rigid plastic. Both plastic shims come in a clear/translucent color so they’ll blend in and not steal the show.

Use Bigger Wedges for Bigger Decorations

If you’re dealing with a bigger wobble or leaning decoration, you can also use our other two sizes of Wobble Wedges®: BigGaps™ and Standard wedges. Perfect for stabilizing any large spaces with a single BigGap filling a 0.48” space and Standards a 0.25” space. Standard plastic shims come in three colors black, white, and clear/translucent, so you can choose the color that will blend in best while they stabilize Christmas decorations. Just like all of our plastic shims they are safely stackable! Thanks to our patented interlocking ridges you can stack Wobble Wedges as high as you need to and they won’t slip!

Stop Your Tree from Wobbling

Don’t let a leaning Christmas tree dampen your holiday spirit! Whether it’s a live tree or an artificial tree, Wobble Wedge® plastic shims can get it stable and standing straight. Our plastic shims can help with stabilizing it within the stand if the screws don’t quite reach the tree to hold it firmly. You can also use our plastic shims to shim the feet of the stand, if that’s the source of the wobble. Get details on our blog post “Keep Christmas Trees from Falling or Leaning”.

Tuck Cords Out of Sight

If you’re putting up a beautiful outdoor display, you’ll probably have a lot of cords to keep out of the way. Wobble Wedge® plastic shims can help tuck cords out of sight across thresholds, under siding and even hold up cords along the eaves. Read more about how our plastic shims can help keep you from tripping on cords outside with our blog post “Hide Electrical Cords Outside”.

Steady Your Houseplants with Wobble Wedge® Plastic Shims 

A beautiful indoor plant jungle can transform a home into your own private oasis. And caring for houseplants is a wonderful way to de-stress and feel connected to nature. If you have a plant that is unsteady or wobbles it can be easily knocked to the floor by a stray elbow or a curious pet. Most houseplants will survive a fall, but that beautiful pot it was planted in probably won’t! So what to do when you have an unsteady houseplant? Here’s how to stop wobbling potted plants with the help of Wobble Wedges®.

Stop Wobbling Potted Plants

There are many types of planters and pots that your houseplants can live in. From ceramic to plastic, some with attached trays and some with separate ones. Luckily if your potted plant rocks back and forth it doesn’t matter which kind of pot it’s in. Our solution will work with them all. You might be tempted to grab a piece of cardboard or a wooden shim, but if these options get wet they can grow mildew or rot. Using a plastic shim to stabilize your potted plant is the best option.

Our Wobble Wedge® plastic shims aren’t affected by water. So they can be used to shim the pot in the water tray or under the tray. Simply take a soft/flexible plastic shim in the color of your choice (black, white, or clear/translucent), and place it under the edge of your pot. The soft plastic will cushion the pot and grip it at the same time, putting a stop to your wobbling potted plant.

How to Level a Plant Stand

If your plants are on wire or wooden plant stands, these too can become unsteady. This is especially common with wire plant stands, where one or more legs is shorter than the rest. Take your plant out of its stand and rock the stand to determine which leg is shorter. Place one or more soft plastic shim under the feet of your plant stand. If you want to make sure it’s level, get a small level to check it front to back and side to side. If it leans to one side you will need to use more than one plastic shim to get it level.

Luckily Wobble Wedge® plastic shims come in three sizes, so you can get the exact height you need. A Mini Wobble Wedge® is 0.16” high, a Standard is 0.25”, and a BigGap™ wedge is 0.48” tall. If you need to combine them to get the perfect height you can safely do this thanks to our patented interlocking ridges. They allow Wobble Wedge® plastic shims to be safely stacked, no slipping! Once you’ve fixed the wobble, return your plant to the stand. Voila, you’ve learned how to stop wobbling potted plants!

Plastic Shims can help prevent unsightly indentations from furniture

Heavy furniture can leave some serious indentations in carpet! Small feet on furniture put a lot of pressure on the carpet fibers, compressing them under the full weight of the item. But how to stop these annoying compression marks in carpet? Spread out the weight of the furniture over a larger area. This is where Wobble Wedge® hard/rigid plastic shims come in! Read below for info on how to fix the compression marks you already have in your carpet, and how our plastic shims can prevent new ones.

How to Fix Compression Marks in Carpet

If you’ve moved your furniture around in a carpeted room you’ve definitely had to deal with compression marks. These annoying spots where the fibers of your carpet just won’t “bounce back” like they should. There are two common suggestions for fixing a compression mark. Most common is using ice cubes. Place an ice cube (or more than one depending on the size of the indent) in the compressed area. Let it melt, after melting the water should have expanded the compressed fibers. Blot up the excess water and fluff the carpet with your fingers. The second option is to use steam. Take a damp towel and place it over the indentation, use a clothes iron set to medium (with steam) and iron over the towel for about a minute. DO NOT iron the carpet directly, as the iron will melt the carpet! The steam will do much the same thing as the ice, and expand the fibers of the carpet. Then fluff with your fingers. 

How to Use Plastic Shims to Prevent Compression Marks in Carpet

But how do you prevent compression marks in your carpet to begin with? One suggestion is to move each furniture item a few inches every couple of weeks. But that just seems like way too much work to do forever! The better solution is to disperse the weight of the furniture item over a larger area. Narrow legs on furniture put all of the weight down in one tiny spot, compressing the carpet and leaving a mark. A wider foot spreads out the weight over a larger area and doesn’t compress the carpet as much. This is why using a Wobble Wedge® plastic shim under the feet of your furniture can prevent compression marks. Simply take a hard/rigid standard Wobble Wedge® plastic shim and place it under each foot. Our hard/rigid plastic shims come in both clear and black plastic, so they can blend into your decor. And Wobble Wedge® hard/rigid plastic shims can take +2,000 lbs of force, so even your heaviest armoire or display case can easily be supported.

Plastic Shims Work Great to Hang Replacement Windows

Installing replacement windows can be a great DIY way to improve the insulation and value of your home. These instructions are for situations where the window frames are in good enough condition that you don’t need to strip the window down to the studs. If the frames are in good condition, you can simply install a slightly smaller window into the existing frame, making this an easier DIY than a full frame installation. This article assumes you’ve already removed the old window and prepped the opening. Here’s how to install replacement windows:

Order Your New Windows

You’ll need to measure the opening of your existing frame to determine what size window you should order. Open the window and measure from the lowest point to the top of the frame. Because things move over time, measure it on either side and the middle, measure the width too, top, middle, and bottom. The smallest measurement is the size you should order for your windows, otherwise it might not fit. Order the window ½ to ¾  inches smaller than the opening, this allows enough room for adjustments, caulk, insulation, etc. 

How to Install Replacement Windows

• Clean the opening: Remove any debris, using a shop vacuum cleaner to remove any dust, or wipe it down with a slightly damp cloth if you don’t have a shop vac.
• Prep the Sill: Take flashing tape and cut it the length of the window sill. Place it so that it covers the bottom ledge of the interior side of the window, this is important for waterproofing. Carefully place it so that it is fully flush in the corners. Using a level check that the sill is level. If it bows use hard/rigid Wobble Wedge® plastic shims to bring the sill up to level. Once the plastic shims are in place and you’ve verified it’s level, screw each plastic shim in place (you can use the pre-drilled holes in Wobble Wedges®) and use more flashing tape to hold the plastic shims in place.
• Dry fit the window: there should be a small opening all the way around the window.
• Caulk it: Using an elastomeric caulk (it will be flexible and expand/contract with the seasons giving you a good seal) apply a ⅜-inch bead all the way around the exposed inner face of the exterior casings. Apply two beads of caulk along the windowsill (bottom).
• Put the window in place: First put the bottom of the window in position and then tilt the top of the window into place. Press it firmly against the caulk. Hold it in place with hard/rigid Wobble Wedge® plastic shims at all of the pre-drilled frame screw holes. Screw through the pre-drilled holes, and through the shims. Don’t tighten the screws all the way so that you can do the next step.

• Check the position: Make sure that the sashes sit evenly in the frame. If there are uneven gaps, position a hard/rigid Wobble Wedge® plastic shim at the meeting rails (where the sashes meet when the window is closed) to make the spacing even. Verify that the window is plumb, level and square (be sure to measure diagonally to check for square). Also make sure that the window opens and closes properly. Adjust around the edges of the window with hard/rigid plastic shims. After all measurements are right, score and snap the Wobble Wedge® plastic shims to remove excess. Finish tightening the screws.
• Fill the gaps: From the outside, gaps around the window that are less than ¼ inch wide can be filled with the same elastomeric caulk used earlier. If the gaps are larger than ¼ inch, prefill them with backer rod weatherstripping, and then caulk. For gaps inside you can use a minimally expanding foam or the elastomeric caulk to fill the gaps.
• Last steps: Reinstall the stops or add new ones. Finally you’re ready to prime and paint or stain the window sash and frame! You’ve now learned how to install replacement windows! Congrats!