Home Improvement: It's the weekend! What are you working on? |
- It's the weekend! What are you working on?
- Serious question: why not white roof coat your house?
- Capped my Jetted/Jacuzzi Tub
- What is your mopping equipment?
- Major kitchen renovation: knocked down a wall and went a little budget crazy (~$85k)
- Cracked shower grout in corners. Tips on resealing?
- Confused by this wall
- Having trouble finding a replacement clip
- How do I fix outdoor spigot (picture)
- Added proper shelves to the mudroom!
- What do I need to get this Korean appliance up and running?
- Drywall estimate seems really high! $9,600 for 525 sq ft.
- Thoroughly vetting a contractor.
- Countertop chip
- How to solve a possible ground loop?
- 200 year old bricks - water repellent treatment?
- Demo'd wall with return vent, what size does replacement need to be?
- Improving sound proofing/quality in an apartment; ideas and methods?
- In the area under my deck stairs I'm going to dig up the grass and lay down some landscaping fabric. Is it okay to put any size rocks over the landscaping fabric?
- How can I cover these holes?
- What to look for in a power washer?
- What are some good sources for learning different home renovations
- [VA, USA] Electric vs Gas Dryer
- How do you apply peel and stick tile to an existing tiled backsplash?
- What to do with these gaps?
- Can I power wash my new deck paint off?
| It's the weekend! What are you working on? Posted: 09 May 2020 04:30 AM PDT Big project or small, what are you building, changing, swapping, upgrading, painting, moving, or just doing a good ol' cleaning on? [link] [comments] |
| Serious question: why not white roof coat your house? Posted: 09 May 2020 05:01 AM PDT I live in Arizona and a lot of our roofs are slanted flat top roofs that are just coated in a white silicone coating. An example of the coating I'm referring to is Henry's Tropi-COOL silicone coating. This stuff seals gaps, adds a UV protectant to your roof, has like a 12 year warranty and keeps the roof cooler in the 100+ summer days. It just seems to all around kick ass. So I'm wondering why people wouldn't just rather coat their homes in it? I'm specifically wondering because I have sun facing wall, and during the summer days it gets pretty hot, so it popped in my head to coat it in the silicone coating. My zero experience logic says that if the silicone coating keeps your roof cool it would do the same for your wall. So why not put it everywhere? I mean, if it's good enough for the roof it should be good enough for exterior walls right? I know the obvious response would be that it may not look as nice as paint but I think practicality wise it'll work much better as a protective layer than paint right? And isn't that really the point of paint? I'm asking here because I don't wanna do something stupid like coat my brick wall in silicone roof coating and then find out that there's an obvious reason other people don't do it that I'm just oblivious to. Help me lol. [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 09 May 2020 06:56 PM PDT I purchased my condo 10+ years ago and have constantly been irritated by the jetted tub in my master bathroom. I've never actually used the jet function other than to clean out the gunk that builds up in the pipes, and the jet and jet housings are a pain the butt to clean. Worst of all is that the jet housings are angled slightly upwards, so that they hold any water that gets splashed in there while showering. So even after I found a way to remove the actual jacuzzi nozzles, the housings were still holding water after every shower. I remember searching around for a proper solution to this around 10 years ago but could not find one to my liking. About a month ago, I decided to start Googling around again and came upon this post https://thecozyloft.wordpress.com/2017/01/24/jetted-to-soaker-tub-conversion/ - this was exactly what I was looking for! I did not end up following those directions to a t, but it served as the template for what I ended up doing. Steps: 1) Purchased: 4 circular vinyl door knob shields - 3.25", 1 tube each of: silicone sealant, silicone adhesive, and acrylic caulk. 2) 4 of my jet housing openings (conveniently) happen to be exactly the size of the most common door knob shields (3.25") so I put some silicone sealant around the recessed lip of the housing, popped the shields in the housing (had to slightly file some down to fit) and then put another rim of sealant around the shields once they were in place. 3) The other jet housing was a bit smaller so I used silicon adhesive to glue to a shield to the outside of the housing, and then filled in the gaps with more sealant - not ideal for this one, but so far it seems to have held up well. 4) The final step was covering up the air intake cover, which I did by filling in the holes using acrylic caulk. If I had to do it again, I would use silicone for this too, as I am seeing I may have to put another layer of caulking on the outside to keep the caulking from shifting out of the intake holes. Overall, it was a very cheap and simple process (I'm not willing to shell out the money for a new tub) - just the cost of 5 door shields (about $3 each), a tube each of silicone caulk and silicone adhesive, and a tube of acrylic caulk. TLDR: Jetted tub was annoying the crap out of me and is a pain in the rear to clean, so I capped the jet housings using circular vinyl door knob shields and some silicone sealant and adhesive. [link] [comments] |
| What is your mopping equipment? Posted: 09 May 2020 03:50 PM PDT I understand this isn't exactly "home improvement" as much as "home maintenance" but you guys seem wise to maintenance. I have white tile floors in the kitchen that are always grimey. My washable knockoff swiffer does an awful job so I'm thinking of upgrading. What are you guys using to keep your kitchen tile clean? Bonus points for direct links to products. Thanks in advance! [link] [comments] |
| Major kitchen renovation: knocked down a wall and went a little budget crazy (~$85k) Posted: 09 May 2020 06:36 AM PDT Bought a house with my wife last May (northern NJ) that was under our original budget. Decided to make the kitchen of our dreams in a 3-month gut renovation. So glad this wrapped in February before the quarantine hit. We were here for every day of our contractor's work and chose colors/texture/lights/appliances/etc. Rundown of budget/expenses included in our contract: DEP Demo: $3500 Plumbing Labor: $5600 HVAC Labor: $800 Electrical Labor: $4300 Electrical Materials: $2450 Carpentry Labor: $3500 Floor Tile and Backsplash Labor: $6000 Permits: $600 Floor Tile Allowance: $1000 Backsplash Allowance: $400 Koehler Faucet: $200 Quartz I Countertops w/ 30" Sink: $6550 New Andersen Casement Window (over sink) and new laundry room vinyl window (was rotted): $950 Woodmode Brookhaven Custom Cabinetry: $22,776 Cabinetry Install Labor: $4600 Appliances: $22,376 (free installation or 6% fee if we bought our own) -Built in Wolf/Sub-Zero 42" French Door SS Fridge/Freezer: $12,100 -Viking 30" Single Wall Electric Oven: $3210 -Viking 24" Microwave w/ 30" Trim Kit: $1249 -Viking 36" Gas Cooktop: $1670 -Best In-Line 600 CFM Hood: $1,100 -Bosch Dishwasher (SHX878ZD5N): $1225
Hardware Pulls: $458 Pendant Lights from Pottery Barn: $380 Blinds to Go Window Shade: $367 We went with higher end on our own terms because the contractor was recommending GE Monogram. We weren't prepared for a full Wolf setup, but wanted American made brands for easier servicing. Extra HVAC Labor for running new duct line to ceiling vent: $600 Edited New Total: ~$87k Here is a link to 57 captioned photos of our journey: before and after photos Did we go a little high on certain things? Yes. But we love and use all of the space every single day. Questions welcomed! Edit 1: Also after all of this was done, we took a look at the insulation in the lower attic above the kitchen and living room...it was a mess. So we decided to hire an insulation contractor ($7k) to remove everything from the lower and upper attics (upper covers 4 beds, 2 baths) and air seal and re-insulate to proper depth. Our energy audit door blower fan test yielded an 18% increase in efficiency. Here's a couple photos of the lower attic: https://imgur.com/a/JJfDGkW Edit 2: Forgot electrical materials costs, pull hardware, pendants, and window shade cost. [link] [comments] |
| Cracked shower grout in corners. Tips on resealing? Posted: 09 May 2020 04:55 PM PDT The shower looked fairly recently renovated when we moved in. It /looks/ ok, but the corners are grouted and cracking in all plane edges and at the drain. I need to get the drain cover off for cleaning, too. What is best for resealing? (tile caulk or straight silicone?) Remove some or all the grout? How to properly seal the drain after I remove its grout? I plan to repaint the shower ceiling. I presume I should paint before caulking/siliconing. The gallery: https://imgur.com/a/mKE6TUy Thanks. I'm going to add here that my primary concern right now is the drain. In the pics you'll see there isn't much space to do much between the tile and the removable drain cover. [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 09 May 2020 12:23 PM PDT 1969 rambler in PNW. At some point previous owner put in a sunroom addition to the back of the house. I am opening it up to be a larger space (it had walls within). I am pretty sure this wall isn't structural as it is running parallel to the ceiling joists/beams. However, once I got all the wood paneling off I noticed that the top plate is resting on the top plates of the walls perpendicular to it. Adding to the confusion is the header above the doorway is a doubled up 2x4 that isn't attached anywhere and slides freely out of the wall. Also, the three 2x4s running along the side of the doorway are pretty loose and can swing back and forth. So no downward pressure on them. Do I just cut the top plate flush with the walls it is resting upon? Are there other steps I'm not thinking of? EDIT the wall is gone. gone [link] [comments] |
| Having trouble finding a replacement clip Posted: 09 May 2020 04:41 PM PDT Hello all! On our front porch, we have roller shades that are secured on the bottom by clips that look like this: Imgur https://i.imgur.com/0tTiVBT.png One of them came off and I need to get a replacement, but I have not been successful. I don't know the brand of the roller shades, so I can't go back to the manufacturer, and I don't even know what they're called. I'm sure they're easy to get, but not knowing that it's called makes it difficult to search for. Can anyone point me in the right direction? Thanks! [link] [comments] |
| How do I fix outdoor spigot (picture) Posted: 09 May 2020 02:38 PM PDT Water is spraying out of the seal when on EDIT****** Can anyone link me to an affordable replacement at Home Depot [link] [comments] |
| Added proper shelves to the mudroom! Posted: 09 May 2020 05:33 AM PDT Had to make a Lowes run anyways so figured I'd grab some "extra" supplies for projects around the house. I grabbed some 1x16" x 6ft boards, some pan-head screws, and a small can of poly/stain. Here's what I came up with. I said it in the imgur album but I'll say it again. Use strong magnets to find studs in plaster walls! They'll stick to the nails (and thus the studs). A regular stud finder can't "see" through all the lathe board so it will think your whole wall is a stud. [link] [comments] |
| What do I need to get this Korean appliance up and running? Posted: 09 May 2020 04:53 PM PDT I recently bought a Korean fan exhaust. To my surprise, it came without a wall plug attatched, just a blue and brown wire. On the box of the fan the electrical requirements show 220v/60hz/360w. I have already bought a Schuko power plug to wire the fan but I would like to know what power converter I need to connect it to my 110v wall plug? [link] [comments] |
| Drywall estimate seems really high! $9,600 for 525 sq ft. Posted: 09 May 2020 01:51 PM PDT We are remodeling the first floor of our home near Mt Hood, Oregon. It's about 525 sq ft total, two small bedrooms and a living area. This is our first down-to-the-studs remodel. I recently got an estimate to drywall and finish (not paint) everything downstairs and the estimate came back at $9,600. We have already completed and cleaned up the demolition and installed new insulation. We also put in cedar plank ceilings, so this estimate is for the walls only - no ceilings. Does this seem high? [link] [comments] |
| Thoroughly vetting a contractor. Posted: 09 May 2020 03:35 PM PDT Anyone have any tips or unique questions. I know you make sure they are licensed and insured. I know you can ask for experience and referrals. Any other tips or thinks to look for. [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 09 May 2020 09:48 PM PDT Hey all, I got a sizable chip in my Carrara marble countertop from dropping a pan while cooking today. I am going to try and DIY the fix and I was wondering what the best recommendation for epoxy would be? Would any old epoxy do (like something you could get in a Tube from Home Depot, or would it need to be more specialized) I have some extra tile that I can use to grind up for coloring [link] [comments] |
| How to solve a possible ground loop? Posted: 09 May 2020 09:46 PM PDT With both my wife and I working from home, I've had to set up a new home office space for her to work in. But we've run into a nagging problem with our basement wiring. Most of the outlets in our finished basement seem to be ungrounded. When I use an outlet tester, they come up as open ground. This did come up in our home inspection 11 years ago and they replaced a few of the outlets with GFCIs. All the walls and ceilings in our basement are drywalled so replacing the wiring would be the nuclear option that we can't really swing right now. To date there really has never been a discernible problem with any of our downstairs outlets until I set up my wife's workspace in our spare bedroom. She has a laptop with a dock and two monitors on her desk. As she works, the monitors will occasionally blink off (the picture, not the power). I've tried swapping cables and swapping in different monitors and still this occurs. She did not have this issue for the few weeks she was working in my office, which is on its own breaker with all good outlets. I also have a very small home theater setup on the other side of the wall in the next room that has never exhibited any weird symptoms like this. From what I have been able to tell online, this may be happening because of a ground loop condition. What are some ways I can safely (and hopefully easily) remedy this? [link] [comments] |
| 200 year old bricks - water repellent treatment? Posted: 09 May 2020 02:11 PM PDT I have a 200 year old brick house in the US Midwest. I have been told I should waterproof the brick... any suggestions of what I should use? Someone at a historical site with a similar building recommended Siloxane. The bricks were made onsite and our soil has a lot of clay if that helps. If you have a specific product to recommend that would help. Searching for Siloxane online shows a huge variety of products but most in prediluted gallon jugs, and I would need a lot more than that. [link] [comments] |
| Demo'd wall with return vent, what size does replacement need to be? Posted: 09 May 2020 05:32 PM PDT the old hole was 3.5" X 30". Does the new hole just need to be the same area? Would a 12X12" would work? [link] [comments] |
| Improving sound proofing/quality in an apartment; ideas and methods? Posted: 09 May 2020 08:09 PM PDT I have been dealing with a mechanical hum for a while now, with out having been able to really figure out the source. It started out of the blue and has been constant 24/7. It is low enough in volume that one can stop noticing it when other sounds are present, but when trying to sleep or work it suddenly becomes rather deafening. It seems primarily to come from area around the windows, but can also detect it near vents and random other locations in the apartment. I am unsure if it is a noise from outside, or something to do with the building. I know there is a limit on what I could potentially do to lower the noise, but since there does seem to be some reverb (given there are loud/quiet spots), I am thinking at least I can help dampen it to a degree. My current ideas;
Are some of these pointless? Simpler options? White noise machines don't really help me, and aren't really an option when working from home (meetings and such). [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 09 May 2020 08:04 PM PDT There's loads of free landscaping pebbles/rocks on craigslist and I'm wondering if those are fine. The rocks under my deck right now are drainage stones. [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 09 May 2020 08:04 PM PDT http://imgur.com/gallery/7RjHa9Q I have no idea what name is for these hole covers. Could someone please help out? I ordered sink holes which were massive. I just measured these, the holes are exactly 1" in diameter. I'm worried if I get something like a 1.2" lid, they will overlap each other in the middle. Does anyone know how I could fix this problem? Thanks. [link] [comments] |
| What to look for in a power washer? Posted: 09 May 2020 03:47 AM PDT Looking to get a gift for a special lady this weekend, what should I look for in a power washer for cleaning things around a house. I tend to fall for feature creep, so want to avoid that this time. I know I can Google it, but asking here seems more conducive to cutting through all the marketing crap. I'm more of a buy at harbor freight, use until it breaks, replace with something better, but as this is a gift, I'd thought I'd try to skip that step, if there seems to be a consensus around any types of feature or specific models. Use case would be outdoor cleaning: concrete sidewalks, driveways, wooden decking, probably getting mud off a truck. I don't think a very powerful one is needed in general as it would probably be used to break something if it's too powerful, and don't want one that would be able to cut off a toe or anything. I also don't know what brands are more reliable. [link] [comments] |
| What are some good sources for learning different home renovations Posted: 09 May 2020 03:03 PM PDT Recently I became interested in purchasing homes and renovating them for future rental properties. However, my knowledge of home renovations is slim. I am looking for a video series or something along those lines that would teach me how to do all different types of home renovations. I know I can google individual things but is there some comprehensive youtube series or one available for purchase that goes through all the different parts of a house and how to fix/renovate them? [link] [comments] |
| [VA, USA] Electric vs Gas Dryer Posted: 09 May 2020 04:15 PM PDT My wife and I just got our first home. We are shopping for washer and dryer now. We are curious as to what kind of dryer is better. We have both a 240 volt plug and a gas line run to our laundry room.
Thanks for the help. [link] [comments] |
| How do you apply peel and stick tile to an existing tiled backsplash? Posted: 09 May 2020 07:59 PM PDT I want to change the backsplash in our kitchen. It's currently tiled in a funky pattern. I have been reading up on people using peel and stick tile, but mostly on flat surfaces. Has anyone successfully done this on an existing tile backsplash? Any advice would be appreciated :) trying to find the most budget friendly option! here's the current kitchen backsplash [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 09 May 2020 07:56 PM PDT Hello, I'm a very new renovator down here in NZ. I'm wondering what I should do with gaps between GIB/Drywall and skirting boards. I've bought a product that fills the gaps, should I just go ahead and fill them? Is there any other considerations I should make? Example Crack Caulk Product Product [link] [comments] |
| Can I power wash my new deck paint off? Posted: 09 May 2020 07:55 PM PDT Hey all, I just stained/painted my new deck. I bought a deck stain paint that is latex based and semi-transparent from my local hardware store. It is the Benjamin Moore Abbey Brown color.. I don't really like it. It looks too solid of a color. And I wanted a more natural look. Does anyone have any recommendations on how I can remove it and start from scratch? What deck staining tips do you have? I feel like if I had a chance to do it over again, I'd go with transparent and an oil-based. I'm kinda bummed out right now and hope you guys have some good news for me. [link] [comments] |
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