Home Improvement: I painted my kitchen cabinets! |
- I painted my kitchen cabinets!
- Recently found out land we live on isn't included in our property deed. Anyone ever deal with this?
- Replaced a wax ring today.
- How to find a good general contractor?
- Seeking advice for improperly done foundation backfill.
- Ideas on fixing my telescope table
- Any idea what this faucet hose connector might be?
- How is this light switch wired?
- New fridge and frosting issues
- New to home improvement, but trying to hire someone to rebuild our deck
- Tool to test light for functionality
- Gap above stationary pane of sliding door
- Tips on repairing a sliding door frame?
- Brown strawberry tile backsplash and peeling paint in kitchen
- Hot water heater advice needed
- Lead Paint Removal Filters?
- Half the fasteners in my joist hangers in my deck are likely deck screws, half are joist nails. What are my options? Can I simply replace these screws with nails?
- I really messed up my backsplash, any ideas?
- What is this smell in my bathroom?
- Ceiling fan with no remote or chains
- Help identifying a pipe in the front yard. Interested in updating or moving it if possible.
- Prepping walls for texture after wallpaper removal, do I prime before? Oil or Water based?
- What can be done about groundwater flooding yard?
- How to fix a closet door with a spring latch at the top
- Screened in porch sill replacement material
| I painted my kitchen cabinets! Posted: 06 May 2020 01:24 PM PDT Finally mustered up the courage to paint the kitchen cabinets. Ended up being cheaper than I expected, and it made such a huge difference in our boring kitchen. The whole project took a little over a week and cost me about $200. - Wagner 250 HVLP Sprayer - $90 - One gallon Valspar Cabinet Enamel - $55 - Kilz 2 Primer - $25 - Miscellaneous paint supplies (foam rollers, brushes, sandpaper, drop cloth, etc.) - $30-40
If you're thinking about doing this, get a paint sprayer, at least for the drawer fronts and doors. Makes a huge difference in quality. Also: BEWARE OF OVERSPRAY. I learned the hard way. It gets everywhere. Lots of cleaning needed in the garage. [link] [comments] |
| Recently found out land we live on isn't included in our property deed. Anyone ever deal with this? Posted: 06 May 2020 07:14 AM PDT In Allegheny County PA. 10 years ago bought a bank foreclosure from Wells Fargo. Included a large fenced in back yard. Need to replace the fence, went to do a property assessment and found out half of "our" yard is still in the name of the previous owner. Allegheny is pretty good with online records. The previous owner had 2 parcels in her name, our house and half the yard and then a separate parcel with the other half of the yard. It is very obviously all "one property". Owner died in 2007. Found certificate of occupancy from 2003 that gives description of our house with 6 foot high wood fence in rear yard. Fence is continuous. There are 21 liens on the property (back taxes) that we would be more than willing to pay off. I have been able to find documents back to the 80's indicating the person who owned our house owned this parcel as well. Is the best way to obtain the deed to the property to go through adverse possession? PA recently changed the law from 20 years to 10 years which we have owned this house since January 2010. Other option would be to request the city seize the property in a Treasurer's sale. The lot than can become eligible for Side yard sale program in which we would have to bid and win. This could take 18 months. The fence absolutely needs to be rebuilt, it has been one of our last projects and is falling over. Thank you for any advice. Will repost on legal advice and Pittsburgh as well. Thank you! [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 06 May 2020 04:01 PM PDT I know it's one of the most simple (and grossest) things you can do. But it was the first thing I've done on my new home. I can't wait to work on some more stuff! [link] [comments] |
| How to find a good general contractor? Posted: 06 May 2020 04:44 PM PDT We are looking to renovate our whole house and looking into finding a general contractor. There are so many out there, how do you choose? [link] [comments] |
| Seeking advice for improperly done foundation backfill. Posted: 06 May 2020 08:29 PM PDT So this is the front yard our 40 year old home. As you can see the 2-3 feet adjacent to the foundation has severely settled. We have already repaired the sidewalk, and garage floor. I plan to redo the sprinklers myself. We pulled all the overgrown junipers out last year so we could asses the situation. I have spoke with one landscaper, he estimated we should be 4-5 inches above the black tar line. Said no need to redo the tar. Roughly estimated 15 tons of soil to get it to the right height. Said leave everything there and just bury it to reduce the labor, and in the end it will be cheaper to buy new materials in whatever design we ultimately decide on. I'm not sure on the actual height, but I estimate we might need to be even higher to get the grade correct and I really want to know if I should be doing something more with the waterproofing. We do have a basement, and it has been dry for the last years, except for a hailstorm that backed water high enough to flow through the sprinkler line. Regardless I will use some quality polyurethane caulk once the sprinklers are repaired. Any other pitfalls here? I am very comfortable with large repairs and extreme DIY projects, but this is a little outside my normal and I like to do the best repair I can. Thanks! [link] [comments] |
| Ideas on fixing my telescope table Posted: 06 May 2020 06:52 PM PDT I have a out door table for our deck that the tempered glass was shattered. The table is 91.6" long and 45.6" wide. Any ideas on a place to get a piece of tempered glass that big or any other good ideas on someway to fix this. I called the company telescope, and they don't even cut glass for this table anymore or even make a table this big. I hate to throw it away as the frame is so well built and sturdy. Open to any and all suggestions. Located in the NE. [link] [comments] |
| Any idea what this faucet hose connector might be? Posted: 06 May 2020 08:09 PM PDT I'm building a basement tiki bar with a sink that utilizes a small water pump (Flojet BW5000). The pump comes with quarter inch tubing but did not come with an adapter to connect to our 3/8" faucet supply line. I based this installation off a video I saw, and everything seems to work, but I can't find the connector used to attach the tubing to the faucet. Any ideas where I can find this? Picture here. I think it's a push-to-connect fitting for 1/4 inch tubing, with a 3/8" compression thread on the end. Am I right in that assessment? If so, where can I find one? Came up short at Menards and Lowe's. [link] [comments] |
| How is this light switch wired? Posted: 06 May 2020 05:09 PM PDT I was planning to replace this hallway switch with a z-wave one to trigger trigger the lights when there's motion in the hallway. Not really sure how this is wired though. Switch powers two lights. One in a hallway and one in an attached kinda side mud room to the hallway. No idea if the switch is wired before, after, or in between the lights. House was built in the 50's if that matters. Used a non-contact tester to see if I could figure anything out:
Update: Flipping some breakers off to change out one of the light fixtures and the two lights are on separate breakers. [link] [comments] |
| New fridge and frosting issues Posted: 06 May 2020 03:42 AM PDT I've searched around and can't quite get an answer as to why my new fridge (purchased last month) is having a frosting issue already. First noticed in the freezer some frost appearing all throughout the compartments. Then on the refrigerator side, noticed the bottom bin sticking out a little bit. I remove it and see a lot of frost built up. It's a vent, but it's clogged completely with ice. What's going on here? Is my temp set incorrectly? Is something not working as it should? It is a kitchenaid, side by side. [link] [comments] |
| New to home improvement, but trying to hire someone to rebuild our deck Posted: 06 May 2020 07:23 PM PDT I found a builder who was willing to tear down my current deck and rebuild it using composite. He came out and gave me an estimate, which was in our range. I asked him to send me a more detailed estimate through email because we were deciding which materials to go with. It's been a few days and he hasn't emailed me or contacted me. I was just wondering what is the customary amount of time I should give him before emailing or texting him. I'm not in a rush or anything, but it would be helpful in order to determine if we should start looking for someone else. I'm new to the whole home improvement thing so I apologize if this question comes off as naive. Thank you! [link] [comments] |
| Tool to test light for functionality Posted: 06 May 2020 07:17 PM PDT My wife got a new outdoor light fixture from Costco today. Took down my old one - it worked fine but was outdated. I connected the new one, put a light in it, and turned it on - nothing happened. I rechecked the wires twice, still nothing. Switched back to the old fixture, the light went on. Is there a tool or there that can test the functionality of new fixture other than wiring it in? If rather not give up on theirs fixture as it suits the house well. [link] [comments] |
| Gap above stationary pane of sliding door Posted: 06 May 2020 07:12 PM PDT I have this gap above my sliding door on my balcony. There's a similar problem with the door, causing it to not close all the way, so I'm guessing the floor sunk down slightly to cause it? I intend to eventually install a new one, but I was just curious if it is any cause for concern. [link] [comments] |
| Tips on repairing a sliding door frame? Posted: 06 May 2020 07:05 PM PDT Hi, first post, read the rules so hopefully I get this right :) I've just moved into a new place with an indoor to outdoor sliding glass door in an aluminium frame. I noticed in the bottom right corner (on the side opposite the handle) there is a 6mm(1/4 inch) gap between the bottom and side frame, any ideas on ways to make the gap disappear? I.e. rubber mallet to knock it back into place? silicon to fill the gap? hot glue? Open to all ideas and advice as to what's a good/bad idea Thanks in advance! [link] [comments] |
| Brown strawberry tile backsplash and peeling paint in kitchen Posted: 06 May 2020 04:16 PM PDT There are so many things to fix in this kitchen that I'm having a hard time figuring out where to begin. The paint is peeling from the walls, paint is rubbing off on the cabinets and windowsill, the caulk is failing everywhere and then of course, there's the glorious brown(??) strawberry and rooster backsplash. I've done some research to figure out what I need, but would greatly welcome a sanity check and helpful comments/guidance! Rooster/brown strawberry backsplash: Would it be best to use the epoxy tile paint kit here, or would just scrubbing with steel wool, TSP, latex primer, and High Gloss Enamel work? Windowsill: So far I've scraped the paint and sanded. Is there any way to fill in those ridiculous gaps above the window? Do I remove/add silicone caulk before or after painting? Does silicone caulk work between the granite slabs as well as between the granite countertop and wall? I was looking at priming with Kilz Kitchen and Bath Primer, followed by a white semi-gloss finish. Paint chipping from kitchen walls: Scrape, sand, Kilz Kitchen and Bath Primer, then BJ Moore Bath and Spa Semi-Gloss? Paint scraping off cabinets: Same as the wall? Thanks for your time everyone. [link] [comments] |
| Hot water heater advice needed Posted: 06 May 2020 04:13 PM PDT So my hot water heater is fried and I'm out of options but to replace it. This is NOT my field of expertise. I'm overwhelmed and stressed and have so many questions. Can I get some help?
Thanks, reddit. [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 06 May 2020 06:59 PM PDT I have been doing research on lead paint removal. I am about to remove some, and just bought a HEPA shop vac... now I am working on masks. I was wondering if anyone knows the difference between p100 canisters and those p100 circular filters. Thank you! [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 06 May 2020 06:52 PM PDT It almost looks like the original were set at 24inch spans with nails and then they added another set in between each existing joist with screws to make the span now 12 inches between each joist [link] [comments] |
| I really messed up my backsplash, any ideas? Posted: 06 May 2020 08:50 PM PDT I have a enough to redo the whole thing if I have to but, I'd reather not. Just moved into our first house, yay! I did the backsplash because it was a just a white decorative wall board. Removed the board and the wall looked really bad so decided to reinstall it for behind the cabinets, stove and fridge. I don't know why I didn't realize this was happening. Put spacers on the counters to have room for caulking. I know there are a few issues going on here but any advice on filling this gap? The bottom row of tile I did one piece at a time so I think I can pull it out and make them longer but the tile will be behind the countertop. The other picture is the metal edging strip. I am pulling those out and recutting them but the edging strip is wider than the tiles. Is the strip supposed to protrude past the tiles? I used the measurements off of the tile package but it doesn't seem right. tile [link] [comments] |
| What is this smell in my bathroom? Posted: 06 May 2020 04:55 PM PDT I live in a house that was fully renovated in 2018. The renovation turned a 850 sq. ft. single story into a 2,300 sq. ft. two story. We've lived here since January of 2019 and over the last two weeks or so there's been an odd smell in our 2nd floor bathroom. It's hard to pinpoint exactly what the smell is but it's kind of smoky or maybe like the "hot wood but not fire" smell you get at a lumber mill. We've had an electrician out who combed through most of the house and confirmed that it's not an electrical fire or electrical problem of any kind. A plumber also came out and completed a full inspection and concluded that the smell wasn't plumbing related either. Both of them were completely stumped by what could be causing the smell. My best guess at this point: I climbed into the attic and found that a patch of the attic (maybe 3' x 10') doesn't have insulation laid down. This patch is above the room next to the bathroom in question. The days when the smell started were also the warmest days we've had all year. (We live in the Detroit area and temps were in the 70s Fahrenheit.) So maybe the uninsulated wood and drywall warmed up with the weather and that smell is working through the bathroom vent/ceiling fan into the bathroom. The problem with this theory is that we didn't experience this smell last summer. I'm at a loss here. Has anyone had a similar experience or smell in their home? It seems like no big deal but I also don't want to put my family at risk if it could be something serious. Any insight would be appreciated. Thanks. [link] [comments] |
| Ceiling fan with no remote or chains Posted: 06 May 2020 06:25 PM PDT I moved into a new house and one of the ceiling fans has no remote and no chains. It's connect to a light switch which turns on the entire unit (lights and a low fan speed) but there is no way to control speed setting or lights, meaning I can never have the fun running with the lights off. Is there a solution cheaper than replacing the ceiling fan? I was hoping to find a universal fan remote. In the mean time I removed the light bulbs so I can run the fan at night. [link] [comments] |
| Help identifying a pipe in the front yard. Interested in updating or moving it if possible. Posted: 06 May 2020 03:26 PM PDT Hi everyone, first time posting here. I was hoping you could help me identify this pipe in my front yard. I'm pretty sure it's a type of drainage pipe, I'm just not sure what it's name is, it's function, and whether or not I can update/move it. Just having the name would help me google more info. Any help would be appreciated! Link to picture here: unknown pipe [link] [comments] |
| Prepping walls for texture after wallpaper removal, do I prime before? Oil or Water based? Posted: 06 May 2020 03:19 PM PDT Hello, it's been a few months and I am happy to say that I have removed all the wallpaper in this house! It was a PAIN in the rear end and I'm glad at least that part is over. There are some horrible spots where it looked like they used a different kind of glue to put on the backing paper and it tore up the drywall paper bad when we were steaming it off. I got some Gardz and I'm gonna fix those spots, but I have a few questions.. The thing is, I'm not entirely confident that I got EVERY single glob of glue and whatnot off of the walls, that crap is invisible. So far I've just been spot treating the torn places with Gardz and then skimming over that with mud. After all of those spots were done, I was just going to prime with regular primer and then paint..however, someone suggested doing a texture so any of my mistakes aren't so apparent, and it will look good. So, if I wanted to do a knockdown texture, how would I go about this after taking the wallpaper off? Would just using Gardz everywhere be a surefire way to make sure the glue isn't reactivated when I apply texture? Could I get away with using just a regular primer, and if so do I use oil or water based? I ASSUME using water-based would just making everything slough off the walls after applying it on top of the texture, but I have no idea. [link] [comments] |
| What can be done about groundwater flooding yard? Posted: 06 May 2020 03:16 PM PDT My fiancée and I bought a house about a year and a half ago in Connecticut. Since we've lived here the bottom of our yard has almost constantly been wet, with water often spilling out into the street. Our neighbor says it's always been pretty wet in that area but it seems like it's slowly getting worse. We had someone from the town come out to see if there was a leak in the water lines and they said it looked like there was so we got someone out a couple days later to find the leak and patch it. After digging we were unable to find any sort of leak. The plumber and town worker agreed that there actually was no leak and it seemed to just be ground water. The water flows up pretty steadily keeping the yard a little flooded for most of the year and causes a large part of the road to ice up in the winter. Here are some photos of the area taken after digging. And here's a gif showing the water flowing down the driveway into the road. Is there anything we can do to fix this? We're scheduled to have our driveway replaced this month and would really like to get this taken care of before then. [link] [comments] |
| How to fix a closet door with a spring latch at the top Posted: 06 May 2020 03:04 PM PDT In southeast US. I have a closet with double doors, and the latching mechanism is a spring loaded ball that sits on the top of the frame. The left door has no resistance with the latch and is much too easy to open, while the right door requires medium force to open and close. How do I fix the loose door? I've noticed applying upward pressure doesn't really make much difference, so I don't think tightening the hinges will do much. Link to photo: [link] [comments] |
| Screened in porch sill replacement material Posted: 06 May 2020 03:50 PM PDT I have a screened in porch that the pandemic finally has me in a position to maintain/repair after years of neglect. Two of the sills (painted 1x6) have big rotted sections. My analysis says this was going to happen eventually (flat pieces of wood with essentially no weather protection), but then I look at the deck outside of the porch and all the railings are topped with horizontal 2x6, also painted white. I have no idea whether the original sills were pressure treated or not, but their comparative condition to the deck railings makes me think they were just dimensional lumber. So in the replacement pieces for these sills, I'm considering PT lumber. From what I've read you basically wash the boards with a scrub brush and then let them dry thoroughly in order to get them to take primer and paint. Is this worth it, does anybody have experience with this? Or should I shell out the $$ and get PVC boards for the sills? I don't know how hard that stuff is to work with (whether you can rout an edge on it or not, etc). [link] [comments] |
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