Home Improvement: 6-month backyard modern makeover |
- 6-month backyard modern makeover
- Valuing an 84" clawfoot tub?
- why/when to replace HVAC ducting??
- What is wrong with my ceiling?
- How much to replace a toilet?
- Pay contractors more than they ask if job ends up more than they bargained for?
- Where can I buy colorful, 70s shag carpet?
- The most stubborn wall paper glue in human history. Need advise on dry wall mudding over it... If possible
- DIY Ceiling Tiles?
- First time painting over damaged paint. (Bathroom). Any tips?
- Water issues during heavy rain
- Flooring
- Grounding issue in my apartment
- Is it normal for an unused outlet to burn out as a result of activity on another outlet?
- Buying girlfriend's late father's house. Major drainage issues that need solved.
- Resolving creaky floors. Whats the best way to tackle the issue?
- Adding outlet to 3 wire circuit (white, red, black)
- Water leakage between foundation and cold room
- Leaky Basement
- Just bought first house, kitchen seemed fine but the sink is starting to sag, is there an easy way to brace it? (Link below)
- Best robot vacuum without breaking the bank?
- Interesting things falling from the ceiling
- A few dumb questions regarding using a shipping container as an addition
- Best rent-friendly improvements?
| 6-month backyard modern makeover Posted: 17 Sep 2020 10:06 AM PDT We've spent COVID focused on the back yard. detailed gallery of how we did it, including descriptions of steps, products used, etc. [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 17 Sep 2020 04:43 AM PDT A friend of mine is helping his mother clear out their old family home so I went by to take a look around to see if there was anything I might be interested in buying. In one of the barns was a clawfoot tub that had been special ordered by one of his relatives. The person in question was 6'6" and 350lbs, so he ordered an 84" tub which arrived in 1911. I didn't think to measure the width and it wasn't in a location where I could get underneath to see the maker. It looked to be in pretty good condition under the dust, and had what appeared to be most of the original brass fixtures and exposed portion of the plumbing. I know the 72" ones are scarce, and I've never even heard of an 84", though it must have been an option if they had a mold. Any thoughts as to a fair valuation? (I already know it'll be a beast to move, the 60" ones I've moved were a pain in the ass). I posted on /r/plumbing and /r/centuryhomes, but didn't get a response so I'm hoping someone here might have some info. [link] [comments] |
| why/when to replace HVAC ducting?? Posted: 17 Sep 2020 07:45 PM PDT TLDR; HVAC tech recommended replacing metal ductwork due to likelihood of high air leakage (said they duct tape the joints). Should I have it tested to see the actual efficiency of the ductwork? Have the joints re-taped? Or replace the ductwork as suggested? Not sure why/when to replace if at all... Been living in this house for about 2 years. Heater and AC is 22 years old and I don't believe much routine maintenance has been done on it. Just dealt with wild fires and have tons of ash in condenser. Sounds like it makes more sense to get a new system than clean up current system. Asked HVAC tech if I should have ductwork cleaned since fire restoration company recommended that. He said his company doesn't offer that because they don't see a reason to. I have metal ducts and he said it probably has alot of air leakage due to them using duct tape in the old days to seal the joints. I did have tons of rodent issues which has all been taken care of. I know metal duct work doesn't go bad really so should I just have the joints re-taped? Should I have someone come out to check the amount of air leakage? Should I spend the $5-8k for new ductwork? Any advice would be great. [link] [comments] |
| What is wrong with my ceiling? Posted: 17 Sep 2020 07:47 PM PDT We are slowly painting the interior of our home (Washington state) and noticed cracks in the ceiling on the 1st floor around corners. There's another corner nearby with a similar issue, just doesn't look as sinking as this corner ceiling. Is the ceiling sinking? What's the best way to repair this? Ceiling photos [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 17 Sep 2020 09:07 PM PDT Want to replace two older toilets with newer high efficiency KOHLER units. Called a local plumber I have used in the past. Told him I would pick up toilets and have them when he arrives. His price to remove and install including heavy duty wax rings is $150 each. Flat fee and will guarantee his work for 90 days. Sound about right? [link] [comments] |
| Pay contractors more than they ask if job ends up more than they bargained for? Posted: 17 Sep 2020 10:56 AM PDT We've had contractors (well, they've done almost all the work themselves, are they still contractors?) converting a guest room into a bathroom. It's taken a long time because 2020 sucks. Partway through the work, we asked if they wanted to revise the contract at all. We have an old house (1885) and ran into some interesting wiring, plumbing, etc once the floors were opened up, so it was probably more difficult than they originally anticipated. They said No. Then the custom shower work began and it was weeks of cutting tile. It looks fantastic. They'll be wrapping up really soon. At this point, we'll owe them about 3k more when they're done. We kinda want to pay them a bit more (not much, maybe an extra 1k?) because I think it ended up being more than they expected. I wish we could offer more, but 2020 has been rough man. I also definitely want them to come back to convert the old bathroom into a second floor laundry as soon as possible. I've just recently started having an income again after reduced hours in the spring and no work over summer (educator here), but as soon as finances stabilize a bit, I want to offer them more work. Is it appropriate to offer them more? Is tipping normal for this kind of work? Is it stupid to offer more but only this little amount?? [link] [comments] |
| Where can I buy colorful, 70s shag carpet? Posted: 17 Sep 2020 06:43 AM PDT I am building a recording studio in my house and want to use 70s, your-grandma's-living-room colorful shag carpet, maybe like brown and orange multicolored. Problem is, the rest of the world does not share my love for this aesthetic and I cannot for the life of me find any stores that carry that type of product (go figure). Has anyone else recently installed retro carpet? Where did you get it? edit: it doesn't necessarily have to be shag and plush, just suuuuper retro. [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 17 Sep 2020 05:43 PM PDT 1 can I dry wall mud over the thickest,un-penetrable, stubborn wall paper glue. (I don't believe it's going any where... )Then prime and paint?I've scored it so much it looks like a pocket sized Wolverine attacked it while on pcp. I've tried wall paper remover spray. Vinegar and water. Vinegar, water and baking soda spray. Hot water and a sponge. Goo gone. Industrial adhesive remover. Sanding it with electric sander. Dish soap and water with rags and sponge. Steaming with two different kinds of steamers. Goof off. (Smells like bootleg moonshine) Scrubbing with knifes, pallet knifes, scrub brushes and everything that shape and size. The list goes on but this glue won't come off. 2 if I can't get the glue off is there another solution to going over it to get a solid bad, so I can paint the wall?3 any other miracle idea on how to remove it? But at this point I've given up all faith. God wouldn't create wall paper glue this horrendous...Thanks in advance for reading and the subsequent advise. [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 17 Sep 2020 08:14 PM PDT I am fixing a very old house and doing everything in a budget. Since Covid I've been working from a room I've always intended to have as an office. It is my office just ugly and need of minor repairs. Which leads me to ceiling tiles I'm far from an expert but I am prepared to create my own tiles if I need to. Any ideas on how? [link] [comments] |
| First time painting over damaged paint. (Bathroom). Any tips? Posted: 17 Sep 2020 09:36 PM PDT Super cheap paint being used (this house was a flip) coupled with the exhaust fan never being used during showers, means there is lots of chipping and crackling of paint. I have scraped all the loose bits free (in some places down to the drywall, and used a handheld sander and 120grit to go over the entire wall surface. I think I've gotten all the loose chips and rough parts, however now I have large areas where the paint surface isn't flush with the part that was chipped away (drywall surface). My current thought is that I will need to skim coat the areas where I chipped the paint away and bring it up to level with the rest of the wall, and sand it smooth. Is this the way to go? If so, what do I use for skim coat, just drywall mud? Do I need to wash the wall with TSP or does the sanding take the place of that, and I just need to wipe down with a damp rag? All my previous painting projects have been done over good paint jobs, so all I had to do was wash the wall with TSP and I was good to go. [link] [comments] |
| Water issues during heavy rain Posted: 17 Sep 2020 07:29 AM PDT Hi, I am having several issue with water getting where it should not during heavy rains (Midwest, USA) First there is water coming from under the siding. I have tried using a hose to narrow down where it is coming from and get the water to come out but am having difficulty narrowing down where the water is getting in. Seems to be somewhere near the lower corner Secondly my basement egress window seal gets damp in the lower left corner after a really heavy rain. Looking on the outside I have seen water rolling down the expose concrete on the right hand side but am not sure what to do about it. [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 17 Sep 2020 05:30 PM PDT Replacing old carpet in the living room and bedrooms. Went to three different stores today and they are all pushing this new Vinyl plank stuff. Is that the new hot thing? Pros ? Cons? I want to hear from some people who aren't trying to make a commission on me. Is it really better than laminate? [link] [comments] |
| Grounding issue in my apartment Posted: 17 Sep 2020 05:14 AM PDT Not sure if this is the right place to ask this question but any help would be appreciated. I'm in The Netherlands where I just rented an old apartment and I realised there are no ground pins in the sockets of this house and I was wondering if there is anything I could do to plug in my devices safely without having to change the entire wiring system of the house. When I plug in my macbook to charge I feel the strange vibrations on my laptop since its surface is metal and I'm guessing its because of no grounding in the sockets, I don't know what would happen if I plug in my PC and monitor to the socket. [link] [comments] |
| Is it normal for an unused outlet to burn out as a result of activity on another outlet? Posted: 17 Sep 2020 08:51 PM PDT Sorry if this isn't the right place to ask. Today I noticed an odd burning smell from my bedroom, and upon inspection noticed a small amount of smoke coming from the socket. After stupidly testing things, I realized it only happens when my AC unit is on. This AC unit is on another outlet, roughly 8FT away on the same wall. There are no signs of damage from that outlet. The burned outlet was not in use, and had not been for a long time. So we turn off power to the house, and remove the outlet. It has visible burn marks where the wire makes contact. The wires looked okay, and we had another outlet laying around so we wired that up. Its been roughly 2 and a half hours, with the AC unit plugged in and everything seems fine. No visible smoke, and while there is an odor, it isn't as strong and its most likely just a lingering scent from beforehand. So I think that was an issue we fixed, but what are the chances of this being a symptom of a larger issue? Most of the wiring in this house is 40+ years old and I've never heard of anything like that happening. Google was largely unhelpful, as all of the results were for damage to the outlet which had AC plugged into it. Any ideas? Suggestions? I would have taken pics but we already threw out the old outlet and this wasn't on my mind at the time. [link] [comments] |
| Buying girlfriend's late father's house. Major drainage issues that need solved. Posted: 17 Sep 2020 08:49 AM PDT So my girlfriend's grandparents house was built on already swampy land back in 1955. The house it itself is built on grade with the road, but the yard steeply slopes down at the rear of the house to the rest of the backyard. The entire 1 acre backyard is king of in a large depression. Originally a small open stream ran the almost the whole length of the property then made a sharp turn and cut across the center of the yard. At some point in the past her grandparents decided to use 55 gallon drums to enclose the stream and sodded over it. Now after 50+ years the barrels are all but rusting away and you fall through them in you're not careful where you're stepping. There's a few open holes as well. Even with the water directed through the drums the yard still gets pretty swampy after a heavy rainfall. Would it be feasible just to rip them all out and revert it back to a stream bed? Also after the grandparents passed and her dad inherited the house he did no upkeep with like gutters and drains around the house. There's now tons of mildew all over the finished basement walls. I plan on cleaning out the gutters but I have no idea where the downspouts end up. They disappear into the ground at the corners of the house and I've only found one exit for the front of the house so far. Any I could do to help mitigate water intrusion into the basement? [link] [comments] |
| Resolving creaky floors. Whats the best way to tackle the issue? Posted: 17 Sep 2020 07:55 AM PDT I am just about finished with with a major renovation of my second floor of a high ranch home. As part of the renovation we installed oak wood floors in the kitchen and dining room that matched the living room and all the bedrooms. All of the floors were sanded and stained. The subfloor was totally redone in the kitchen/dining room and its made it painfully clear just how creaky the rest of the house really is. If I had to do it all over again (and had unlimited money) I would have tackled this from the top and redone the entire floor but here we are. The first floor is a finished space with a drywall ceiling. While I don't love the idea of tearing everything a part, I don't see an alternative to getting into that ceiling and shimming the gaps causing the creaks. So now my question, am I better off removing the whole ceiling and really getting a whole view of the problem or can I try to target the creaks, cutting smaller holes so that I can resolve each issue? [link] [comments] |
| Adding outlet to 3 wire circuit (white, red, black) Posted: 17 Sep 2020 07:08 AM PDT Looking for advice on how to add an outlet to the electrical wiring that currently runs out to my well pump. It's a good location for an outlet for installing landscape lighting. I've added outlets to existing circuits before, but not sure how to do it when tying into a double circuit. There are two circuits for the well pump, with a red, black, and white wire running out to it. I know the black and red are hot, but do I have to tie into both of them, or can I just do one? I'm picturing cutting the white and black wires, and pig tailing them back together along with new wires leading to an outlet. Will that work? Everything online I can find about this is about having switched outlets, which isn't what I'm going for. [link] [comments] |
| Water leakage between foundation and cold room Posted: 17 Sep 2020 08:06 PM PDT I have an older home in Northern Ontario. The basement (concrete brick walls) has a doorway to an exterior of the main foundation 'cold room'. During significant rain I get small amounts of water entering at the join between then main foundation and the cold room wall, which then runs through the (narrower than the cold rooms) doorway into the main basement. Other than the joint, both walls are intact. I had temporized the leak with some additional sealant and literally using a plastic sheet to direct water away from that joint (the grading is slightly but not convincingly away from the house), however when the plastic sheet was removed, and it rained heavily, the problem recurred. I am contemplating digging back down and improving the waterproofing on the joint before our weather turns. The joint appeared 'worst' relatively close to the surface (although looks okay above ground, where the concrete stairs form the roof of the cold room) and looked okay below about 3' down, and appears the same from the inside (which is partly covered by wood, but could be taken down if need be). What should I do to improve the waterproofing (other then reimproving the grading once other work is done)? A colleague suggested tar and some kind of membrane over the joint? However, I don't have easy access to tar. Suggestions from the group mind are very welcome. [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 17 Sep 2020 05:44 PM PDT We had a lot of rain today & I noticed my basement is leaking. Its not a massive amount of water but it looks like the kind of thing that could cause an issue if left unattended. It's almost entirely where the blocks meet the concrete floor, but you can see it seeping through some of the blocks as well. Any ideas what could be causing this & what I need to do to remedy it? [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 17 Sep 2020 07:47 PM PDT https://imgur.com/gallery/L6vSwvq Thanks for any help! [link] [comments] |
| Best robot vacuum without breaking the bank? Posted: 17 Sep 2020 09:31 AM PDT |
| Interesting things falling from the ceiling Posted: 17 Sep 2020 06:58 PM PDT I've been helping my father renovate his old house. Most of the house was built in the early/mid 1900s and the rest is added on from about 1970s. The kitchen has been a nightmare...is there a way to protect the floor? The kitchen is under the bathroom. Half the ceiling is drywall the other half is plaster that was cemented in to lath boards. But the more surprising part is whats falling down as we take the drywall down. Tin cans, pantie hose, concrete, and huge pieces of slate. one piece has already put a hole in the floor...we've only gotten through 1/3rd of the kitchen too 🤯 Any ideas? [link] [comments] |
| A few dumb questions regarding using a shipping container as an addition Posted: 17 Sep 2020 03:09 PM PDT My dad lives in a 12'x26' building in my back yard. I bought the building from a guy in 2017, and we built it out into a nice efficiency apartment for him. He turned 60 this year, and we're starting to have some issues. His 36"x36" shower stall just isn't enough. He can't bend over and wash really well and he'd like a shower with a bench. And, I'd like to see him have a full kitchen instead of an efficiency. Plus, now he has a girlfriend, and she's sick of living out of her duffel bag and wants somewhere to hang her clothes. Which is understandable. I'm happy for him that he has someone, and I understand why she wants some space. We're considering buying a 40' shipping container. We can have one delivered for $1900 and put up on blocks and leveled. I came up with the following design with a 30' container, but I seem to only be able to find 20's and 40's. So lets say a 40 and increase the storage are in the back an addition 10 feet. Right now he only has a 6 gallon hot water heater. He can take a navy shower, basically. I'd use the additional space in a closet to add a 20 or 30 gallon hot water heater. Dad buys and sells antiques, so having an 8'x20' workshop in the back would be amazing for him. So given my design, he could move his bedroom to the new container area freeing up space to make his existing bathroom bigger. He'd also gain a closet. Here are where I'm a little stumped. What is a good way to connect the container to the existing structure? I feel like there should be some sort of sticky sided EDPM rubber to go between the two buildings, allowing it to flex but be air and water tight. But I can't find anything like that. And, the other thing I can't seem to get a solid answer on - I get I need to frame out the inside of a shipping container. Should I apply a vapor barrier like house wrap on the outside of the frame between the wood and the metal? I want to leave exposed metal on the outside so I can paint it to match the existing structure. Thanks! [link] [comments] |
| Best rent-friendly improvements? Posted: 17 Sep 2020 04:31 PM PDT Im moving into a brand new construction apartment, and was wondering what things I can do to make the apartment feel luxurious or just make improvements in general? I'm thinking about switching out the shower head for a nicer one from amazon, and now I'm wondering what other rent friendly improvements I can make. Thank you! [link] [comments] |
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