Ask the Builder: The Right Hardware Is Crucial to Connecting Things in Your Home

Ensure that strong winds will not carry parts of your home away.

This is a hold-down anchor. You can use them to make a secure connection between a deck post and a concrete pier. They work well to secure a garden shed, preventing it from blowing away. Tim Carter/Tribune Content Agency

I live in rural New Hampshire. When I drive to town, I pass by a house that has a very tall outdoor shed. Every now and then, impressive nor’easters lash us with high winds and rain. We also get our fair share of powerful gales.

After one of these storms hit, I always wonder if the shed is going to be on its side or maybe in the neighbor’s side yard. I say this because I’ve been blown over before carrying a piece of plywood on a windy day.