Home Improvement: Modernizing ugly house |
- Modernizing ugly house
- Pantry revamp project. Waaay too much work but it was fun!
- Is this normal for drywall contractors?
- You guys said don’t do it....I did it.
- Quick $60 kitchen upgrade
- Drywall Repair Advice Needed
- How to murder a bush
- Garage Wood Wall - How's My Plan?
- Ideas, please!
- Refinished master bath cabinets
- Huge Undertaking!
- Has anyone encountered this with drywall before?
- Best way to keep spiders and other bugs out of the garage and deck?
- Maintaining old skylights
- How to fence a patio?
- Can this be easily removed?
- Slow Home Renovation
- Home inspection - floor support beam misaligned with columns
- Sump pump drainage solution
- What to do with an old radiator
- Patio Lounging Sans Bugs
- Ants in driveway and lawn
- Advice needed: Where to start with a major renovation in two adjacent rooms?
- What to look for in a dishwasher?
| Posted: 15 Jun 2020 05:43 PM PDT http://imgur.com/gallery/uuT1F5B Just finished my quarantine project. My wife and I wanted a modern home when we moved to the chicago burbs last year. Unfortunately, it wasnt in our price range. The house we bought was functionally fine, but we thought it was ugly so we decided to modernize it. The house has brick on the lower section and composite lp tudor siding on the second story. I researched what we could do to the bricks to make them less ugly. The general consensus was that painting the bricks is bad due to moisture issues and paint flaking off, but I found a product called limewash which is what they use on old buildings in Europe. It is essentially a lime based coating that calcifies to brick and stone so the bricks retain their normal properties (so it doesnt flake off or trap moisture like paint). Ot can be cleaned with a pressure washer to look good as new if it gets dirty over time. We found a brand called romabio that is sold concentrated. Each bucket is 4 gallons and the consistency is like clay. You dilute the the lime by 50-100% with water and apply it on the bricks while they are wet. I attempted to spray the limewash, but the lime kept clogging my sprayer and created a huge mess with over spray. I then switched to a masonry brush to complete the job. I finished the bricks over a few weekends. Next up I painted the upper story with sherwin William's emerald exterior paint. The flat surfaces made it pretty easy and I was able to roll it and finish it in about 2 days. Lastly, we replaced two of the exterior doors to finish the transformation. The process was fairly straight forward. I measured 3 times and got replacement units in the same dimensions. The front was more involved because of the sidelights, but the hole was fairly square so the door went in without issues. All of the fasters tobsecure the door are hidden under the interior trim and the brickmold. We also replaced the exterior light fixtures and will replace some rotten out trim around the garage. The non DIY portion was replacing the roof and gutters. The old roof was 30 years old and needed to be replaced. [link] [comments] |
| Pantry revamp project. Waaay too much work but it was fun! Posted: 15 Jun 2020 07:36 AM PDT We've hated the wire shelves we had in our closet panty since we moved in 6 years ago. Quarantine inspired me to fix it, which I thought would take a few hours and ended up taking 4 weekends. First time building shelves, dealing with sheet goods, puttying or caulking, or using my new palm edge router. I'm pretty happy with how it came out, I'll be adding LED strip undercounter lighting next weekend but otherwise it's looking pretty good. And my wife is happy with it too, so bonus! [link] [comments] |
| Is this normal for drywall contractors? Posted: 15 Jun 2020 04:35 PM PDT Due to an overwhelming amount of needed drywall replacement, I opted to hire out instead of do it myself. I've attached some pics, but it seems like they've missed every single outlet by at least a few inches, then shoved mud in there to correct. No back patch. Is this normal? [link] [comments] |
| You guys said don’t do it....I did it. Posted: 14 Jun 2020 10:41 PM PDT A few months again I asked you all what you think I should do to improve my kitchen. I was wondering if painting the cabinets was the way to go. I got all sorts of opinions, some that painting them was a bad idea. Don't get me wrong, I seriously appreciated the feedback both negative and positive. But, I couldn't let painting the cabinets go, so I bit the bullet. Although, there's still a few things I want to do next (specifically replace the tile with wood look tile or luxury vinyl plank) I'm going to take a break for a second and enjoy my hard work. Now the dining table is on the chopping block... my kitchen more angles of the after the process (story time) In total it's cost $1,034 to:
What I used to make the cabinets white was: 1. Aqua Coat White Cabinet Grain Filler (Amazon) 2. Zinsser Cover Stain White Oil-Based Interior/Exterior Primer and Sealer (Home Depot) 3. BEHR White Urethane Alkyd Satin Enamel Interior/Exterior Paint (Home Depot) Most important Materials 1.paint spray 2. soft close cabinet hinges 3. cabinet bumpers cabinet handles 4. cabinet screws 5. screws for the hinges because the ones they cane with sucked 6. TSP to throughly clean cabinets and doors before painting 7. LED lights 8. LED Dimmer switch I definitely could of made this project a little cheaper, but somethings I got a little extra/higher grade than maybe needed and there was a lot of tools that I didn't have at hand (first time home buyer, moved in less than a year ago) It took twoish weeks with loooots of breaks in between because my husband has THE shortest attention span out of anyone I know and I couldn't get him to stay on task for too long. Lol So what do you guys think? [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 15 Jun 2020 06:11 AM PDT Swapped polished chrome knobs with brushed door pulls and added cabinet lighting. Also have cabinets on the other side of the kitchen and bathrooms that we swapped with the same hardware. http://imgur.com/gallery/9pYqaKA Edit: links to product found in comments below. Backsplash was peel and stick that we did last year. Once we're tired of it, we'll pull it off and do a tile backsplash. [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 15 Jun 2020 10:00 PM PDT Hi All, need some advice on a drywall repair job that was done by a contractor. We had some water damage due to a leaking pipe from our upstairs neighbor. See the before and after photos of the repair. There are some noticeable lines and indents in the wall and ceiling where the new drywall repair was made. Is this normal and should we accept this? The contractor is telling us its due to the structure of the framing. He stated that if more compound is added, it may look worse. Would they be able to do a better job and make the repairs not noticeable? Thanks for any advice you can give! Images: Before and After Drywall Repair // Completed After Drywall Repair [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 15 Jun 2020 05:34 PM PDT I cut it back every year, but the motherfucker always roars back with a vengeance. I want to slay this hydra for all time. Scorched earth. Is fire too drastic? [link] [comments] |
| Garage Wood Wall - How's My Plan? Posted: 15 Jun 2020 08:20 PM PDT Hi there, I'm located in Northern Michigan and am looking to cozy up the one-car garage in my condo for some more hangout space. I'm looking to add wood boards to one side of my garage as an accent wall but also as a dart board backer. This is my first major home improvement project and I'd love to hear some feedback on my plan before I pull the trigger. And, due to covid, I would like to avoid spending multiple hours wandering hardware stores whenever possible and starting with a solid plan seems to be a good strategy for this. The wall I plan to cover is 9.5'x21' and is unfinished drywall. Here's what it currently looks like while we reorganize in prep for the project. Please keep in mind I have no idea what I am doing and have used the internet as a guide thus far. Here are my (proposed) steps:
Please, please point out any of my glaring mistakes. I really appreciate any tips you might have for this process. Looking forward to learning a lot along the way! [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 15 Jun 2020 04:09 PM PDT We are in Upstate New York, looking for ideas for this concrete area in rough shape. Considering a low deck on the entire space... all ideas and thoughts welcome! [link] [comments] |
| Refinished master bath cabinets Posted: 15 Jun 2020 06:32 AM PDT It's been a few months since gutting an refinish my master bath and I finally got around to refinishing the cabinets. Sprayed Renner 2k urethane primer and topcoat. It was easy to use and flowed out nicely. This was kinda a test run before the kitchen cabinets. [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 15 Jun 2020 09:59 PM PDT Hello all, Me and my wife decided to purchase a house that is 10 years old and never got finished. The house... to say the least... was built very poorly. It seems that the person that previously started building it ran out of money. They got the roof on and shingled it ( very poorly) and then left the project to rot. Well... I walked through and decided that it was something that I could undertake in my free time after work! I have been working on it since January and boy has it been a learning experience. I'm a capable guy but have never done most of these things! I would love to post pictures of my progress so you can get an idea of this home... but for some reason i can't post a photo on this sub? Any ideas? [link] [comments] |
| Has anyone encountered this with drywall before? Posted: 15 Jun 2020 06:45 PM PDT Hello! I am a newbie to home repairs. We just bought a house that was built in 1972. We ripped out the wood paneling and some of the drywall paper is dissolved and kind of crusty. It's completely dry. The affected areas are only about 1/16" deep. The condition of the sheetrock itself seems to be okay in most places (including under the weird crusty sections.) Should I sand it down, cover up with Gardz and go about taping? Or is this something that needs to be completely ripped out? We are on a budget and putting in a lot of the work ourselves, but I want to make sure we don't have to revisit this later. Anybody encountered this before? [link] [comments] |
| Best way to keep spiders and other bugs out of the garage and deck? Posted: 15 Jun 2020 06:19 PM PDT Hey guys, will try to be quick. Bought our first home this fall and the deck and garage were filled with cobwebs. We figured previous owners just let it build over the years, and cleaned it all over the winter. Well, we're now into spring and theyre back in full force. I've always loved having a few spiders around but this is just nuts. Daily, I'll walk through and wipe away 10+ spider webs, with 10+ spiders, every single day... I've sprayed pesticides around the deck posts, deck rafters, garage walls, etc etc... they just come back. I used to live in an apartment and had good luck with diatemaceous earth and borax powder, but that hasn't worked here either. I think part of that is also because it just blows away pretty quickly. Can you guys tell me a good long term pesticide I can spray around that will last months, kill and/or keep the bugs away, and also isnt toxic to pets? We have a barn cat who sleeps in the garage and on the deck. Thanks for the tips guys! [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 15 Jun 2020 07:32 AM PDT I have these old skylights in my house (Northeast US). I'm sure these have poor thermal qualities and I might replace them someday with modern materials, but first, I want a shot at restoring these. Can anyone tell me: - how the structure works--ie, can I remove the metal frame for cleaning? https://postimg.cc/z3hqTYbT [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 15 Jun 2020 07:36 PM PDT We have a typical concrete patio in the back, maybe 10x10. We also have 2 large dogs. When they play they often end up rushing the patio and knocking stuff down. What could I put around, or at least on the side most exposed to the yard, that would keep them out of the patio/in the backyard if I wanted to, but also not make it difficult for me/family to go into the backyard? I guess I'm thinking like the railing on a deck, except at ground level? [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 15 Jun 2020 11:05 PM PDT This is in the very middle of my front yard. I have a theory that it has to do with the old sprinkler system that is installed around the house that we've never used. I'm 95% certain the system is totally broken. Is this a possible do it yourself removal or do we need to call a plumber. Sidebar why would anyone install this right in the middle of a yard?! [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 15 Jun 2020 07:16 PM PDT My husband and I bought our first home together in August 2019 of just last year. The house we bought was cheaper because it was in need of an indoor paint job and new flooring (the carpet in the bedrooms are ancient). We started out by painting the front entree way and have been going room-by-room since. Entree-way > guest hallway > master bathroom > kitchen > laundry room > guest bathroom > living room have all been done! Part of the living room was painting the brick fireplace. We figured this was the most cost effective way to make it look better. It was pretty ugly in person, it actually looks okay in photographs though as a heads up. It was some colored glaze that was painted over brick by brick and it was flaking off. Here's a progression album of us just painting the fireplace a flat dark grey: https://imgur.com/gallery/Q8Hdw4D I like it a lot more. It doesn't really grab your attention like some fireplaces do, but I like how it isn't just clashing with the whole house anymore either. Our game plan is to do the guest bedroom > master bedroom > and the spare bedroom in that order. After that the repainting phase is complete. And then, the focus is going to be tiling the whole house, including bedrooms. We got a deal on wood tile that the main house is going to have. It's a light wood tile. In the kitchen we're using a "marble" tile for some contrast, and if budget permits we may use the same tile in the bathrooms. I think the fresh paint and tile is going to transform the house! After that we may move onto something more ambitious, such as repainting the kitchen cabinets. [link] [comments] |
| Home inspection - floor support beam misaligned with columns Posted: 15 Jun 2020 06:38 PM PDT Hey guys! Hope this is the right place to post. We are purchasing a house and the home inspection noted that one floor support beam is misaligned with the concrete columns in the crawl space. Does anyone know if this is a big deal? The house is from the 60s and I'm assuming it's been like this the entire time. If this isn't the right subreddit, please point me in the correct direction! [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 15 Jun 2020 07:11 AM PDT Hello! We purchased a new home, and the sump pump was draining right at the foundation. Our contractor put a bandaid on, as shown in pic, with some soil to fill the hole and a pvc pipe (pipe parallel to the home has drainage holes). The original bid was $2500 for a 50' long French drain. There's also four gutters on that side of the house, and it's a natural drainage slope for the area. Fast forward not even two weeks, and hvac repairs have taken that budget and then some. So, what are my creative options for time / budget? 1) suck it up and figure out how to diy a proper French drain 2) suggestions for how to properly install a temporary underground pipe that we can daylight away from the foundation (how deep, do we still need rocks, what's the protocol for this?) Thanks in advance. I've been researching a lot how to handle our gutters and this sump pump drain. But I'm more scared I'll mess things up and our somehow dry basement won't be dry anymore. [link] [comments] |
| What to do with an old radiator Posted: 15 Jun 2020 10:14 PM PDT Hi, I just moved into an attic. This attic has this awkwardly placed, old radiator. Is there a way to safely cover it or make it look better? This is a rented house so removing is not an option. I also feel like it's a weird size because all of the radiator covers I could find online seem to be too big for it. Thank you in advance Old radiator [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 15 Jun 2020 10:09 PM PDT I see them laughing at me through Pinterest and Lowe's ads. Happy families lounging and sitting on plush wicker patio furniture without a care in the world. I had a dream, once... a dream where I could lounge on my lounge chair without an eight-legged creep getting all up in my relaxation like an affectionate uncle at Thanksgiving. Literally HOW do people have patio furniture that is against the outer walls of their houses and not die from spider and snake bites? What magic solution am I missing here to be able to have my patio and enjoy it too? [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 15 Jun 2020 06:23 PM PDT Not sure if here is the place but heats the best way to get rid of pavement ants? The keep digging holes in between my uni stones. Also seem to have ant holes around my tree. The soil around it feels spongy Not a major issue but want to handle it before it gets worse. An exterminator is quoting $300cad for 3 treatments [link] [comments] |
| Advice needed: Where to start with a major renovation in two adjacent rooms? Posted: 15 Jun 2020 06:21 PM PDT Hey home improvers! We have a large renovation project that spans two adjacent rooms and so far we only know two things: it's gonna be expensive, and we want to hire a professional to help us create a vision of what it could all look like. We have some general notions of what we want done (new floor, extend the bathroom to make room for a big bathtub, remove wood paneling, etc) but my partner and I accept that there are people with actual talent for putting together great interior design and we would like to pay them money to help us create two beautiful rooms. Where do we start? Do we search for "interior designer" or "interior decorator" or "general contractor"? First and foremost we want to hire an artist who can help us envision a few options at a few price points, and then figure out budget and particulars later. Thank you! [link] [comments] |
| What to look for in a dishwasher? Posted: 15 Jun 2020 09:43 PM PDT Quick question, what are the most important things to look for in a dishwasher. Friends said make sure it's metal inside and not plastic as they smell more. Is this true? Also, would you get a better dishwasher for a cheaper price if it did not match your another appliances, assuming it's the same color, or would you stick to the same line to make it look good? [link] [comments] |
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