OTHER TECH

If you want to add an extra row of seats to your home theater, a riser is crucial to preserving the view for the people seated in it. But the project isn't as complex and expensive as it might seem. "It's really easy to build a 12-inch-high riser for a second row of seats out of 2 x 10s with a 3/4-inch plywood top," says Ted Hollander of Absolute Sound.

"It's kind of like building a small deck," he explains, "very inexpensive to do, and you can just carpet it. I've had some jobs where existing carpet was left in the room, with a riser added on top. Then if the house is sold and the room has to be turned back into a bedroom or whatever, it's easy to remove the riser."