Prime Time

POSTED: Sunday, Mar. 22, 2009

Hands-on approach keeps home and garden maintenance manageable

Name: Walt Ducoing

Age: 70

Hometown: Blaine for 16 years.

Former occupation: Aviation explosives technician for the Navy.

'It looked interesting': "I was in the Navy for 22 years, stationed all over the place, mainly in California and aboard aircraft carriers as an aviation explosives technician. It involved taking care of armament systems on naval aircraft. I got into it accidentally. It looked interesting when I was young, so I tried it."

Back to Blaine: "I grew up here and then I came back when I retired from the Navy 16 years ago. Since then, I've worked up at the border as a freight expediter for several companies and have done some warehouse work."

Green thumb: Ducoing and his wife, Sharron, live in a single-story, three-bedroom home on four lots. "I have a fairly large garden where I grow dahlias and roses and have some raised beds for growing peas, beets, potatoes, Brussels sprouts, and raspberries in the summer."

Home sweet home: "I love sitting on the deck in the summer and having a glass of wine and enjoying the sunshine."

Handling handy work: "I'm very active. I hike every week with the senior center in Blaine and I'm not disabled in any way, so I've hardly made any home maintenance changes as a senior."

Helping hands: "I got the house reroofed last year and had a company in Bellingham do that. Years ago I probably would have gotten a couple of buddies together to do it ourselves, but not any more. I've also gotten quite a bit of plumbing help. I had an underground leak and I don't like to do plumbing."

Other home projects: "I did the deck myself a few years ago, but other than that, I haven't done much major work to the place."

Sharing the chores: "It's pretty much the standard American thing. (My wife) takes care of inside and the cleaning and I do the out-side. I do some inside stuff because her knees aren't what they used to be, so I get down on the kitchen floor and clean it myself." Favorite chore: Feeding the birds around the neighborhood. "It's gratifying, especially in the winter, to have them eat out of the feeders."

Least favorite chore: "Cleaning the gutters, because you're up on the ladder and cleaning the muck out. I do that a couple times a year. Usually when you do it in the winter time the water is ice cold and it's a miserable job. I don't know how many more years I'll do it."

Downsizing down the road? "I'd like to move out of here and move into Bellingham in the next 10 years, because there is so much more to do there. We'd probably move into a condo or an apartment, something where I don't have any house things to worry about when I'm not as spry as I am now."

Chores he plans to give up: "Probably things like house painting and some of the gardening and tree trimming."

If money were no object, what would make upkeep easier? "Hiring someone to mow the lawn. I have quite a bit of lawn to mow, and it takes me two hours. It's good exercise, but it's a pain in the neck."

Tool he can't live without: "I'd really be hurting without a lawn mower."

Home maintenance time: "In the winter, hardly any at all. About one hour a week. In the summer, including gardening, about six hours a week."

What gives him energy for home repair: "Staying physically active and doing aerobic-type workouts. Things like hiking and weight-lifting. I usually hike at least once a week in the Chuckanut Mountains and up at Mount Baker. And I work out at the Blaine Senior Center at least three times a week.

Other hobbies: "I like to go fishing for trout with a couple of friends in Eastern Washington. My wife and I go camping in the summer down to Whidbey Island."

Home work advice: "Don't do anything you don't feel comfortable doing. Do what you are physically capable of doing and don't do anything else, because you could potentially get hurt. Also, you have to maintain and take care of equipment. I bought my Honda lawnmower 18 years ago and it still runs like a champ. You save a lot of money in the long run if you take care of your stuff."