Home Improvement: A Treatise on Toilets |
- A Treatise on Toilets
- I am part way through redoing my home office. I installed an accent wall of wallpaper and it looks amazing, I'm super proud! How do I hide the seems that are showing now that it's drying more?
- Pantry Remodel
- What is the best home improvement tool and why is it the oscillating saw
- I’m a hair stylist that is turning a loft space into a small studio. Unfortunately it has short office like carpet floors and I can’t remove them as it’s a temporary situation.
- Bought a townhouse. Heavy rain. Leak in basement wall. Now what?
- Newbie Home Buyer.. why are these windows fogged up?
- Questions for people who have fixed the problem of ants getting in (ex: such as crack at edge of door door) but your ant traps can't keep up with how many there are, see pic
- Running Ethernet to garage along power lines
- Large window in shower
- Countertop installer drilled holes too close to undermount sink, how to proceed?
- Gasoline smell coming from basement - anything to worry about?
- I’m looking to divide space in my studio. Where or how could I get one of these options for a reasonable about 12ft W by 11ft H?
- 2 toilets into 1 Sewage Pump
- Tried to replace my outdoor faucet/spigot and ended up twisting off an old pipe, which is now broken off inside my wall. Is this fixable by myself?
- Believe I may have 2 or 3 issues here
- A question about sugar ants in the home.
- What are they planning on doing?
- Ugly window in bathroom help
- New to home repair. What is the best way to fix these mid-sized scratches in my hardwood flooring?
- Standup shower
- Few questions about patching a wall
- Negative grade towards house
- PSA: Check your electrical before buying a new stove
| Posted: 12 Aug 2020 11:15 AM PDT I want to save all of you from the difficulties that I've been through selecting toilets. Reviews often talk about clog resistance, but I haven't had real clogging issues from any modern toilet. When they're all rated >8/10, it's hard to make a further distinction. The Problem: The previous owner of the house installed some Glacier Bay chair-height dual-flush toilets to replace the truly ancient ones that were already there. GB is Home Depot's house brand. In my experience the GB is okay. It doesn't clog but it has two major weaknesses: Quality is inconsistent. Some of them flush well, others don't and no amount of adjusting seems to correct it. Also, the push-button flush corrodes quickly and looks bad. The Goal: I want a comfortable toilet (comfortable height, elongated bowl) that does not clog and doesn't require a lot of daily effort to keep clean. The Attempts: Over the years I tried the GB dual-flush, an American Standard Champion, a Kohler aqua-piston, and a Delta. The Kohler was the best of the three. The Delta worked great, but was a constant effort to keep clean because it's water pattern just didn't clean the rear of the device. The Am Stan was fine, but to a lesser degree than the Delta, still required daily maintenance. The Solution: I researched. Hard. Everywhere. I spent literally three weeks hunting for the right toilets, because I'd like them all to match and I don't ever want to buy another toilet. I spoke to three different plumbers and even a family friend who, thanks to some medical issues, could be considered an Olympic-level toilet user. Words like "consistency" and "volume" were used. So without further delay, here's what to order: The Toto Drake is a legend, but they only recently made it available in Tornado flush. I tried one that was 1.28/0.8 dual flush and found that the 1.28 was good, but not quite great. The 1.6/0.8 gpf is truly spectacular and keeping itself clean and never hesitating to complete the job. It's also worth noting that this model is *not* typically stocked in HD stores. It's an online order only. I also don't have particular loyalty for HD, they just happened to be able to get me this model in a reasonable amount of time and convenience. You may be able to order it from other retailers. Here are the highlights: - It's a Universal Height which means ~16" rim to floor. Standard height for Toto is ~14.5" and ADA/Chair height is ~16.5". I didn't push for the chair height because it was extremely hard to source and it's literally less than a half-inch difference. - It's not a skirted trapway. If you want that, there are other models that have it, but it wasn't important to me and many models with that feature look like something from an alien spaceship. - The Tornado flush uses three large water inlets rather than a bunch of small holes. Most major brands have some similar technology as their latest, greatest offering. The intent is that it has no rim to trap bacteria, no holes to clog and uses a wave of water to rinse the entire bowl area. The bottom of the bowl is triangular and doesn't hold a lot of water. I kept expecting it to be insufficient, but it just works very well. It's also surprisingly quiet to flush, which is nice for late night use. - The gasket I posted a link to was praised high and low by plumbers who've used it saying it's really easy to work with and seals extremely well. - It doesn't come with a seat. I used the Toto soft-close seat recommended, but you can use whatever. I also have a Biobidet in the master that my wife likes and it wasn't a problem to hook it up. - There are toilets that automatically dispense toilet cleaner with each flush. There's even a version of this toilet that does that. I didn't want the extra complexity and expense, but if you're into that, you can get it. - If you must have 1.28 gpf, there's a version of this toilet that does that and it works well. I have one I bought before I discovered the 1.6. The other contender was the newest Kohler Corbelle. https://www.us.kohler.com/us/corbelle-comfort-height-two-piece-elongated-1.28-gpf-chair-height-toilet/productDetail/toilets/1323975.htm For a few dollars more, you get the skirted trapway and 1.28 gpf. The bowl design includes more of a rim that the water has to travel around and we weren't sure it would clean as well. I'd say if you must have a skirted trapway or you must have 1.28 gpf, you should strongly consider this toilet. The combination of the Revolution360 flush and the aqua-piston tech Kohler is known for might be good. For my money, though, I was trading on the legendary Toto quality. I hope this is helpful to some of you. I know I was extremely frustrated trying to find the right toilet and I'm hoping to save some of you that hassle. [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 12 Aug 2020 08:02 AM PDT I must've stretched the wallpaper as I was applying it a bit too much because these white seems are peeking through now and it's distracting to the eye. I really don't want to leave any lose ends on this project... I am still working on the window and painting the door while I wait for my new furniture and some photo legdges. [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 12 Aug 2020 12:15 PM PDT First; pictures of the process: https://imgur.com/a/4orJOvt I added some descriptions in the image captions. Took roughly 1.5 months from start to finish with most of the work done on weekends. Feel free to ask questions on details since my descriptions are very broad. [link] [comments] |
| What is the best home improvement tool and why is it the oscillating saw Posted: 12 Aug 2020 02:45 AM PDT For real. I bought a cheap mastercraft oscillating saw and I kind of want a second, better one. I use it for flush cuts, drywall and sanding. I removed grout with it, sanded floor patch compound with a diamond grit sandpaper, sanded between spindles on my deck, made perfect cuts to remove casings and baseboards, cutting shims after installing doors. Any time I'm doing a project I have the oscillating saw nearby. [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 12 Aug 2020 07:04 PM PDT I need a hard floor in the small areas under the shampoo bowl and under the stylists stations. The whole space is 400ish sq ft (I think). I would need several areas that have 4-6 sq ft of hard floor that won't look awful over a grey carpet and won't be raised off the floor enough that someone would trip over it. Does anyone have any alternative floor tricks? Thank you in advance. [link] [comments] |
| Bought a townhouse. Heavy rain. Leak in basement wall. Now what? Posted: 12 Aug 2020 02:43 PM PDT So yeah, I bought a house cause it's cheaper than renting (or so I thought) and I've been fixing some things. One day in the corner I notice what appears to be mold. I like to kill things in the cradle, so I investigate, and what do I see under a mat, but a wet spot. There appears to be a slight bulge under that spigot that's kind of cropped out. Anyway, it's been raining heavily in my area (about 30 miles south of DC) and I'm pretty sure it's not helping my situation. The downspout outside goes into the ground, so I'm kind of confused on what the best course of action is, and what kind of tools I should go buy. Do I buy a shovel and start moving earth? Do I take a grinder and cut the spout out of the ground and reroute further away from my house? Do I cry and curse the world? I'm open to any suggestions, and I'm pretty handy (fixing cars to felling trees, and other basic home repair). Let me know if I can DIY or if it's something I should find help with. Please. [link] [comments] |
| Newbie Home Buyer.. why are these windows fogged up? Posted: 12 Aug 2020 07:31 PM PDT I'm house hunting and came across a great equity play for a home that needs renovation. I noticed during the 3D online tour that many (pretty much all) of the windows appear dirty/foggy. After researching online, it sounds common for fogged windows to result from poor window seals, but it seems strange that literally every single window is showing signs of this. Album of photos: https://imgur.com/a/dNP2Me6 For reference, the home was built in 1998 and I doubt windows have been replaced. I also thought, since the home appears vacant (empty photos) maybe the AC is off and the Florida summer humidity is causing this. Any ideas? [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 12 Aug 2020 06:38 AM PDT Basically I think ants are getting in through the crack in the door based on where the ants are. But my ant traps can't keep up. I can't just seal it with puddy because I need to be able to open/close the door easily. See pic: https://imgur.com/YxpDf8t
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| Running Ethernet to garage along power lines Posted: 12 Aug 2020 08:41 PM PDT I've had an 18" deep and ~60' long trench dug from the house to the garage to run a 60A line to the garage. However, now that the ground is open I also want to add Ethernet. Is it a bad idea to just throw in an exterior grade cat6 cable on top of the electrical conduit? Is there a alternative and equally priced way to send fast internet to the garage? [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 12 Aug 2020 08:10 PM PDT I have a large jacuzzi tub in the center of my far bathroom wall with a large wood window (53" wide x 62" tall). I'd like to replace the tub with a large walk-in shower. How do I handle the window? https://imgur.com/gallery/NqvhMj6 It matches another on the house, so I hate to make it shorter (leaving the top open) or close it off (also, it lets in light). I've looked at film, but film isn't ideal inside of a shower. Etched glass is the same - not ideal in a shower or outside in the weather. I believe I'm leaning toward waterproof plantation shutters. But, is it okay to have the wooden window in a shower? I suppose I'd worry less if the sill wasn't so low. It's wood on the outside, so that gives me hope. Options? Concerns? I'm hitting a wall here. Thanks. [link] [comments] |
| Countertop installer drilled holes too close to undermount sink, how to proceed? Posted: 12 Aug 2020 05:19 PM PDT Title says it all I guess. Quartz installers had the spec sheets on all the products and I had them in hand and offered to send them with the template guy, he said "we're good": cast iron undermount, single hole faucet, soap dispenser, all Kohler stuff. The holes are too close to the sink flange to install the faucet and dispenser. I could jerry rig it with a cutoff wheel for the washer and longer screws, and a smaller plastic bolt for the dispenser if I can find one, but I kind of feel like the installer owes me a new section of quartz done correctly. Problem is I paid cash and don't know what kind of recourse I have with the installer. Any advice on dealing with this? Thanks. [link] [comments] |
| Gasoline smell coming from basement - anything to worry about? Posted: 12 Aug 2020 08:54 PM PDT Hi everyone. This sub may not be the best place for this thread, so forgive me, I'm a bit worried. About 3 hours ago my family started smelling gasoline coming from the basement, which is weird because we have natural gas appliances but nothing with gasoline/petrol. We actually had the fire department come down and check it out, and nothing registered on their gas scanners - apparently gasoline odor can be detected at a much smaller concentration than it would actually be harmful at. They suspect the scent may have traveled from the gas station down the road, which had just refilled. But we've lived here for 30 years and never had anything like this happen, and it doesn't seem like any of my neighbors called anything in. Is there anything I should look out for? The scent is still pretty strong and has diffused throughout 3 levels of my house. I'm assuming it's safe because the fire department didn't find anything wrong, but I'm gonna be nervous to even turn the stove on for a while. Thanks in advance, even if y'all tell me I'm being over paranoid! [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 12 Aug 2020 08:54 PM PDT |
| Posted: 12 Aug 2020 08:46 PM PDT I have LibertyPro 380 Sewage Pump. I am wanting to install a secondary bathroom into my basement and am wondering whether it can handle the capacity of 2 toilets, 2 showers, 2 sinks. I have also seen these Saniflo toilets which come with their own pumps, are those worth it? [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 12 Aug 2020 08:31 PM PDT Was trying to replace an outdoor faucet and spigot. Used a wrench to try to remove the pipe attached to the indoor plumbing, and it must have been glued or rusted shut because the entire pipe itself twisted off The pipe in question is behind siding and multiple layers of wood (i think) from the outside, or behind drywall in my living room from the inside. Is this something I can fix myself, or should I call a plumber? Is a plumber even the right person to call? I of course have the water turned off at the main but I don't think it's safe to turn it back on, so I'm operating with no running water for now...any help would be greatly appreciated [link] [comments] |
| Believe I may have 2 or 3 issues here Posted: 12 Aug 2020 05:52 PM PDT Woke up this morning to find what appeared to be burn marks on the ceiling of my closet. Black and brown splotches. I got up on a chair to get a closer look and could hear crackling behind the wall. I shut off the main breaker. I climbed up into my attic thinking a wire was melting, but couldn't find anything of the sort. There are no wires running above the closet. The crackling can still be heard inside the wall with the power off. I found a small pool of water on some plastic, so my roof is leaking. The burn marks are covered in white fuzz now, mold from the leak? The crackling isn't electrical, since it happens with the breaker off. There are no odors, no smoke. All water pipes run through the crawlspace. I'm at a loss [link] [comments] |
| A question about sugar ants in the home. Posted: 12 Aug 2020 07:49 PM PDT Been dealing with a sugar ant problem in my kitchen. While I was at work today an exterminator came by and put what looks like a clear thick liquid around my kitchen and bathroom sink. It was put down in small distinct blobs in specific areas. The exterminator didn't leave a note or anything so I have no idea what they used? Anyone happen to know what it may be? I am hoping not particularly toxic as it's literally on my kitchen and bathroom counters. Thank you. [link] [comments] |
| What are they planning on doing? Posted: 12 Aug 2020 04:01 PM PDT There's construction going on in my building since it was recently bought. I'm curious if anyone knows what they're doing. Here's a photo They put that brown piece of paper on the window and the white streaks on the wall. [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 12 Aug 2020 07:36 PM PDT Hi everyone, I'm planning on redoing my bathtub. I have a pretty good idea on how the whole tub area is going to look. I'm stuck at this part http://imgur.com/a/lzLWj4S . I am going to tile the whole area but I don't know if I should tile over this area or what. I also plan on replacing the window. Any suggestions on how to make this look good? [link] [comments] |
| New to home repair. What is the best way to fix these mid-sized scratches in my hardwood flooring? Posted: 12 Aug 2020 08:44 AM PDT Pics of the scratches here Most of them are pretty surface level but there's a lot over a small area. I'd like to avoid redoing the entire floor if possible. Would it be possible to just sand and stain this one area or would that make this spot stand out relative to the rest of the floor? [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 12 Aug 2020 06:51 PM PDT I have a standup shower in my house, it's tiled walls and tiled floor. The grout is coming out where the wall meets the floor. Can I apply caulking there and be ok, or do I need to apply new grout. If it's grout, which I've never done before but am willing to learn, any advice on how best to approach it? [link] [comments] |
| Few questions about patching a wall Posted: 12 Aug 2020 10:10 PM PDT So I got a big spot that got torn off after the dogs come running down the steps and smashing into the corner. https://i.imgur.com/p9rnbRV.jpg I'm thinking DAP DryDex would be the way to go. Other suggestions would be appreciated if this isn't the best stuff. My question is, which type of sandpaper will I need to smooth it out? Any tips would be appreciated. I've never patched a wall before [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 12 Aug 2020 06:17 PM PDT We have a negative grade towards the house in the backyard but only the portion where the deck is (well, was) covering it. We discovered it as were are renovating our deck. It looks like it's developed over time. The deck currently has a thin layer of small rocks or gravel over it. What should I buy to go and fill it up? Soil? Mulch? Sand? Is it okay to compact it with a manual compact tool (deck is in the way). Do I need multiple layers? Thank you in advance. [link] [comments] |
| PSA: Check your electrical before buying a new stove Posted: 12 Aug 2020 05:55 AM PDT TL;DR: Make sure your current electrical set-up is compatible with newer appliances. Some info I wish I had known Back in April when the Covid-19 craziness was just getting started (in the US) our oven crapped out for the 4th time since we purchased our house a year ago. Finally got our home warranty company to cut us a check instead of making repairs. We did a lot of research and since we had our basement stripped to studs for renovation project we decided we'd pay to have a gas line run to our kitchen so we could get the dual fuel set up we wanted. Due to Covid the unit we picked out was heavily delayed (4 months). Since the stove top still worked on the broken unit I delayed on upgrading the electrical outlet from the 3 prong on our old unit to the 4 prong required for the new one. I screwed up in assuming it was going to be an easy swap. My house was built prior to 1996 meaning I had old wire that did not contain a grounding wire necessary for the new 14-50R outlet required for the new unit. So last night I decided to change out the outlet as our new oven is to be installed today. Me when I only see three wires when I expected four. Cue panic. Call my buddy who is an electrician. He asks me if I'm willing to stay up late and make a somewhat expensive trip to Lowes. Make somewhat expensive trip to Lowes. Spend 6 hours running new line from panel to stove (fortunately our kitchen sits right above the garage/electric panel. Promise first born child to electrician buddy. If this stove doesn't show up today I'm going to be pissed. Edit: As /u/alek_hiddel and /u/I_Usually_Need_Help pointed out - many units have the option to use a 3 prong or a 4 prong power cord. That was not the case with the one we purchased. [link] [comments] |
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