Nathan Gilbert serves as Carpenter on Ask This Old House.
Nathan was selected as one of three in the first class of Generation NEXT apprentices and spent the summer of 2017 working alongside the TOH team on the Newton Generation NEXT project. During his time as an apprentice, Nathan helped shine a spotlight on the skilled trades gap in the construction industry in high profile ways—speaking on Capitol Hill before senators and congressmen and appearing at the opening ceremony of the International Builder’s Show in 2018.
Months after his apprenticeship, Nathan was thrilled to receive a call from the Ask This Old House producers to see if he’d be willing to make some house calls both alongside Tom Silva and on his own. Since accepting their offer, Nathan has had the opportunity to travel the country helping homeowners answer questions on home repairs and improvements.
Growing up, Nathan learned his skills from his father, who ran a carpentry business south of Boston. His father even appeared in an early season of This Old House, demonstrating his technique for hanging cabinets.
After high school, Nathan followed in his father’s and grandfather’s footsteps and enlisted as a Navy Seabee, the construction battalion within the US Navy. He served in three deployments across five years that took him to Afghanistan, Djibouti, and Timor Leste. After leaving the Navy, he returned home to Massachusetts and started his own finish carpentry business.
Nathan lives with his wife and daughter in a suburb south of Boston.
Follow Nathan on Facebook Instagram @nathanhgilbert.