Home Improvement: Fired my gutter contractor today |
- Fired my gutter contractor today
- Impact Drivers
- $12k Bathroom Remodel 1890s House Near Boston (with photos and cost breakdown)
- How can I make this dent on my kitchen sink less apparent?
- How much to tip landscape/masonry workers?
- Suggestions on housewarming gift for a first time homeowner?
- Window repair vs replacement
- How long does carpet hold smells?
- GC dumped debris from a different job into the bin he's charging us for? How to handle
- Is this a normal process for getting cabinets refinished: contractor is insistent on my wife being present for the estimation at our home. He refused to give pricing without her present. Is that normal?
- Options if nothing floor joists is out
- Bathroom fan condensation issue
- Replacing an ANALOG thermostat to a DIGITAL thermostat
- Doorbell assistance needed! What is this thing?!
- Replacing Bathroom Exhaust Fan
- HELP! How to reduce noise in apartment
- Cleaning hardwood floors?
- Can we do a tan-wash on a pink stone fireplace?
- Help Improving Heating
- Help !!!
- Mold On Drywall
- Need some help with drywall repair after shower remodel
- Advice on drop ceiling materials
- How to improve look of silicone sealant between shower glass and bathtub?
- Gable Vents with Ridge Vent
| Fired my gutter contractor today Posted: 14 Oct 2020 02:24 PM PDT Already a month late, I took time off work because he told me he would be here this afternoon. He no showed on me and fed me a line about having extra stuff to do in the morning. I live in a small town and I'm having a hell of a time getting guys to come out. 2 companies won't travel here, the only local company gave me a no bid because the house is too tall (his crew is all 60+). Also had a window contractor come out and measure, but never quoted me. It's like these guys don't want to make money. A whole house of gutter guards plus full gutter and guards on half the house, 6 windows. I don't get it. TL;DR: I'm over contractors. [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 14 Oct 2020 03:13 PM PDT I finally bought an impact driver today. Wish I bought it a year ago when I first bought my house. I have a normal drill , but having an impact driver makes every screw SO much easier. That is all. Thank you. [link] [comments] |
| $12k Bathroom Remodel 1890s House Near Boston (with photos and cost breakdown) Posted: 14 Oct 2020 06:09 PM PDT We just finished up a remodel of a small full bathroom in our 1890s house in a suburb west of Boston. We hired a contractor to demo everything except the tub, repair some pretty bad water damage in the subfloor, waterproof the shower surround and floor, frame out a small closet to the right of the shower, install a shower niche, install new toilet, sink, shower valve trim, light fixture, exhaust fan, and tile. It took him 3 weeks (18 days, 4 with a helper) and he charged us $7,500, which included construction materials (lumber, plywood, cement board, etc.). I would probably allocate about $500 to materials, leaving $7,000 in labor. I took on the painting, trimming out the closet and installing shelves and the door, and installing shiplap over the popcorn ceiling. We also provided all of the fixtures and tile. See the spreadsheet in the album showing the breakdown of costs (about $4,000). We also paid $400 to have the old tub refinished. We are very happy with the results. I try to DIY as much as I can, but decided to hire a contractor for this job for two reasons: (1) the water damage in the subfloor had me worried that once we opened up the floor/walls the job would require a pro (fortunately the damage wasn't too bad); and (2) our house only has 1.5 baths, so we (family of five) were without a shower/tub for three weeks, and we couldn't afford to be without them for any longer. Given that it took a pro three weeks working full time, it would have taken me months, which just wasn't an option. Like most houses of this vintage, none of the floors/walls are level and the contractor took the time to level out the walls around the shower to make sure the new tile looked good. Figuring out what to pay the contractor was difficult, as prices online were all over the map. We got a good reference from a trusted friend, and his price was the lowest of three bids. For the Boston area, I think we did pretty well on the budget. My recommendation is to find a contractor that can do all of the work without subbing anything out. It saves time and money. [link] [comments] |
| How can I make this dent on my kitchen sink less apparent? Posted: 14 Oct 2020 03:44 AM PDT A heavy plate fell in the kitchen sink and created the dent shown in the album: It is quite apparent and it makes the sink look old and ugly. Is there a way to make it less obvious? The last image in the album shows the space underneath the kitchen sink, it is very narrow and the dent shows as a very mild curb (not easy to spot in the image but it was thee best I could take). I leave in north Europe. [link] [comments] |
| How much to tip landscape/masonry workers? Posted: 14 Oct 2020 07:34 PM PDT We hired a mason/landscaping company to install new outdoor stairs using paver wall block, small retaining wall, paver landing pad, garden edging and a concrete pad for a shed. Job cost roughly $14k. They have truly been the most amazing contracting crew I've ever worked with. We would like to tip the workers (not the owner) for busting their ass on this job and being rockstars. We are torn on how much we should tip though. It should be noted that we provided them, every day, a pot of coffee, cases of water and a full 'snack box' of fruit/individual bags of chips/candy that we refilled each day. On top of that, we are providing lunch for them tomorrow and spread their name, landing them two more jobs for our neighbors before the end of the season. The project was estimate to be a 7-10 day project. We are currently on day 5. They are a crew of 6. Three of them have been on-site every day. The other three are the digging crew that is responsible for doing all the digging/earth shaping while the other team installs the material. What do you think is an acceptable tip amount? I'm by no means rich and will be recovering from this project for a little bit. Is $50 a piece acceptable, $300 total? Do you think the three guys doing the material install should get more than the other three since they have been on site every day? Granted the others haven't been here the whole time, they dug everything by hand and it's all rock/shale here so that was a no easy task.... We are open to guidance/acceptance since this is really the biggest project we've done to date, one which also includes such a huge crew...I'm used to tipping 2 people, max lol Thank you! [link] [comments] |
| Suggestions on housewarming gift for a first time homeowner? Posted: 14 Oct 2020 09:58 PM PDT So quick backstory (it matters, I think). A couple of years ago, we had a vacancy to fill at work. This is in IT operations and infrastructure for large manufacturing. I decided that I didn't want corporate non-IT folks to hire someone with all the experience and credentials on paper. I wanted someone green. Someone with only an associate's degree and little to no experience. I knew how hard it was for me when I first started 20 years ago, plus it's be beneficial that they would bring no bad habits. It has worked out absolutely fantastically. The guy we hired is an absolute workhorse and has never let up. Really dedicated and has come a long way from no experience 2 years ago. In talking with him a year and a half ago, he mentioned that he was embarrassed because his credit was absolutely trashed and he had no hope of ever buying a house. He is actually in his mid-30s and his credit was, in fact super thrashed. He and his wife are vegans and also have a lot of animals and since not many rentals will let them have them, they were stuck in a really crappy, VERY expensive rental. As it so happened, I had gone through the same thing and was able to mentor him on his finances and rebuilding his credit over the past year and a half and, as of yesterday, he and his wife closed on their first home! It was actually a great deal and a really nice property. I wanted to get them something that would be super useful as a housewarming gift, but my insight is a bit old as I have loved in our current home for 17 years, so it's been awhile since I was a new homeowner. He is technically physically disabled, but gets around just fine in spite of it and plans on doing all the maintenance and upkeep on his home as long as he can. So, what was a great housewarming gift you received, or one that would be good to have received and helpful? [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 14 Oct 2020 08:45 PM PDT Our house is 15 years old and many windows don't open or close properly. We got sticker shock this evening when given our first quote on replacing all the windows in our house. Granted, this was our first quote and could be a high end quote, we plan to also get a quote from Lowes and another local window place but is window repair an option? Where would we find someone to do that if we can't find the brand/name of our current windows? How often, if ever, do people replace their windows? [link] [comments] |
| How long does carpet hold smells? Posted: 14 Oct 2020 06:40 PM PDT I had a dog die a year and a half ago. Since then I've had the carpet cleaned by professionals. When she was old and had accidents I always cleaned the spots well even before then. While playing on the floor earlier I had my nose in the carpet and caught a big stinky whiff of stale piss. How the hell long do smells linger? I was gonna replace the damn thing anyway, but hot damn if that doesn't make me want to speed up the process. [link] [comments] |
| GC dumped debris from a different job into the bin he's charging us for? How to handle Posted: 14 Oct 2020 09:18 PM PDT We're deep in the project and near the end. We found wood, sheeting with dirt/broken concrete, a large bay window, trash bags, and other stuff that wasn't from our job in the dump bin. When confronted by my wife, the GC said 'it was just a few bags" and when asked about the window "just a few bags and a window and they needed a place to dump it". I didn't bother to push further at that point as we hadn't been billed yet. Got the bill and it looks like the bin had maybe a 10% discount from the last bin. I actually believe the amount of external debris to be closer to 40%, but also don't believe it matters. They shouldn't be putting 0.1% of debris from another job site into a dumpster that we're paying for and is on our property. I noticed a small amount of tile from another jobsite in the bin this time - could have been one of his subs just throwing something out of their truck, but still, not our debris. Any advice on how to handle? Don't want to piss them off too much since the project is near the end. Overall quality is good. Time management and communication was good at first, but pretty poor lately as our job is winding down and he has other jobs taking the majority of his time. EDIT: For clarity - the external debris filled the remaining space of the bin, and there's another bin on the property that I'm being charged for as well. [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 14 Oct 2020 03:46 PM PDT A few companies also insisted in-person estimation process. I get it but seems highly inefficient given covid times. Should I insist on a virtual walk through instead? Wife is pregnant so trying to minimize exposure to others. Edit: spent some time googling this - it's definitely a thing and given the number or articles on it (not cabinets but similar sales process), surprised companies are still insistent on it! - https://thewindowdog.com/husband-wife-must-present/ - https://www.proremodeler.com/sales-one-leg-'policy'-risks-offense [link] [comments] |
| Options if nothing floor joists is out Posted: 14 Oct 2020 09:15 PM PDT I have a new bathtub installation that runs perpendicular to my floor joists and currently the joist is blocking the pipe that connects the drain to the overflow. I can't notch the joists because the tub sits in the middle 1/3 of the beam. I've already raised my bathtub with an extra 3/4" plywood, which wasn't too bad considering the cement board + tile would just about make up for that lift. But I probably need another 3/4" - 1". Any good suggestions on what I should do? [link] [comments] |
| Bathroom fan condensation issue Posted: 14 Oct 2020 10:00 PM PDT So I'm in the middle of bathroom remodel and just installed a new exhaust fan. After running the shower for a bit there is a pretty steady drip from the fan housing/cover. I initially thought the damper door on the roof vent or the one in the fan outlet was stuck shut but they're working as they should. Then I thought it was condensation running back down the ducting. I tested that by removing the ducting from the fan outlet and venting straight into the attic. Same issue. The fan housing and fan blades seem to be where the moisture is accumulating until it's enough to drip. So I thought maybe the housing is cold enough from the attic air (in the northern US, so outdoor temps 30s - 60s F this time of year) to cause condensation to form. So I insulated around the entire fan housing with 1 inch foam board, spray foam around the edges, and loose fill fiber glass insulation over all that. Still dripping...... I'm at a loss. The bathroom is about 50 square feet. I used a hampton bay 80 cfm fan, which I think should be more than enough. I used insulated flexible 4 inch ducting from the fan to the roof vent. That runs about 24 inches straight horizontally then turns up 90 to the roof vent. Any help is appreciated, thanks! [link] [comments] |
| Replacing an ANALOG thermostat to a DIGITAL thermostat Posted: 14 Oct 2020 07:29 PM PDT Hello, So my condo unit has an analog thermostat and I want to replace it with a digital one. The problem is I can never move the analog lever to the right spot to get the perfect temperature, figured a digital one will provide more accuracy. I currently have this model 'Honeywell T822L1000' and was wondering what digital ones would work in place of it. I'm looking for a simple unit so nothing with wifi. https://i.postimg.cc/XJjb5Jn6/IMAG3984-Copy.jpg I'm not sure if this matters but my condo unit has baseboard heating (connects to a central boiler for all condo units in the building) with water flowing through the pipes. The baseboard heating pipes are inside 3 separate rooms in my condo. Heating only, no AC Thanks [link] [comments] |
| Doorbell assistance needed! What is this thing?! Posted: 14 Oct 2020 09:31 PM PDT Hey y'all! Frustrated in Chicago here! I'm updating to new Ring video doorbell because we purchased a house that only had a cheap battery operated doorbell that eventually died. The ring I purchased has the rechargeable battery or can also be wired to avoid the hassle of charging etc. WELL once we removed old battery doorbell we found the old uncapped wiring stuffed behind it (facepalm, I know!) Now we're on a Google search journey to find out how to wire the new Ring doorbell. I had little brother test the wires that were found with a multimeter thing and there's no power so we are now on a mission to fix the issue. Long story short, after some Google searching, we found this contraption in picture and can't definitively come to a consensus of what it is LOL! Please help, as we just need to know where to go from here. Thanks!! Picture of the thing! (https://imgur.com/a/WPB62nY) [link] [comments] |
| Replacing Bathroom Exhaust Fan Posted: 14 Oct 2020 04:25 PM PDT I just bought a new house and the bathroom exhaust fan makes a horrible grinding noise. I went to pull it out today and was quickly defeated. I was able to get the cover and motor assembly out without any issue but the housing is held up there with black magic. Here are some photos of the housing. On the side opposite the power connection, there is a stud. That is the only area the housing feels like it is attached to (and probably the exhaust duct). But I don't see any screws! How do I get that thing out? [link] [comments] |
| HELP! How to reduce noise in apartment Posted: 14 Oct 2020 09:21 PM PDT Hi guys! So my apartment has really bad floors, you can hear everything from upstairs. I finally moved to a top floor to avoid that, but now I have to be careful for my downstairs neighbors. I have this elliptical at home that I use for 30 minutes daily, since gyms are closed right now. It makes a bit of noise and even though we have carpet, our downstairs neighbor has been complaining about the noise. I feel bad but I also don't want to stop using my elliptical for my workout. I was thinking of getting thin concrete bricks and placing them below the elliptical.. do you think that will help block out some of the noise? What do you think is the best solution? Thank you!! [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 14 Oct 2020 05:21 PM PDT What's recommended? Soap and water? Oil soaps? Tbh the floors are already in terrible shape and need to be refinished. Too much foot traffic and pissed on by dogs way too many times. Just wanting to clean them enough that maybe I can wear socks that only turn a little gray instead of black... [link] [comments] |
| Can we do a tan-wash on a pink stone fireplace? Posted: 14 Oct 2020 08:56 PM PDT pink stone Here is the current problem. Pink stone from who knows what decade. It doesn't look great with the knotty pine (honey colored) walls. We have a very small budget for this project so replacing the stone is not an option. Doing some sort of wash on the stone is. Here is an inspiration photo of what I think looks better. inspiration photo My question: A white wash won't look good because the white will be too stark. Is doing a tan-wash an option to look like the inspiration photo? Any suggestions are appreciated. Thank you! [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 14 Oct 2020 04:25 AM PDT https://imgur.com/gallery/JinxBFs Hoping you guys can help me improve my heating before the winter. I live in a 1800sqft cape just north of Boston. 2 bedrooms plus half bath on the top floor, 4 rooms plus full bath on the main floor, unfinished basement. The house is fully insulated. The current heating system is a gas furnace with 3.5" round ducting for all the supply runs. They all run separately straight from the furnace. The majority of the ductwork is not insulated. Im pretty sure that one of the bedrooms on the 2nd floor doesnt even have ductwork that runs the whole length, Im fairly certain it uses the joist space leading to a vent. That room barely gets any airflow and almost no heated air. I suppose my question is what would be my best course of action here. Should I just insulate the current ductwork? Have the system completely redone? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks! [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 14 Oct 2020 08:28 PM PDT I found a silverfish running up the frame of my window. I quickly sprayed Mr. Clean on it as a reaction. Does this mean more? What is my next step? [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 14 Oct 2020 08:06 PM PDT https://i.imgur.com/OggT65I.jpg Had a basement flood. How bad is this mold? I'm going to replace the drywall but in other areas I was hoping to kill it, bleach it, and whip it off after 5 days of drying out. [link] [comments] |
| Need some help with drywall repair after shower remodel Posted: 14 Oct 2020 05:42 PM PDT The trim piece needs to still go on but there will still be a gap between the drywall and tile. It runs from the floor to the ceiling. [link] [comments] |
| Advice on drop ceiling materials Posted: 14 Oct 2020 05:34 PM PDT We're doing a mold remediation and have to pick new drop ceiling tiles. We'll likely be using the same grid. It needs to be accessible for plumbing and electric so it can't be sealed. What is the best material considerations? In high humidity I've always heard you want more pourous and absorptive. There's a shower going in so it will likely be high humidity. I'd welcome links to good products. We want to be as aesthetic as possible. No bargain basement bulk fiberglass unless it's appealing. [link] [comments] |
| How to improve look of silicone sealant between shower glass and bathtub? Posted: 14 Oct 2020 03:56 PM PDT So my new bathtub kept leaking in certain areas of the silicone sealant (bathtub, between where the top of the bathtub and the bottom of the shower glass meet). Our contractor came, added more silicone and it helped a bit, but still leaked. Me being an idiot, I added more silicone myself and no more leaks, but its ugly. I have big beads, small beads, hair strand silicone, it just looks ugly. Short of removing everything and starting over, is there any way to just cut pieces of the silicone away? I would love to just run an exacto knive down the front of it but know I will damage my tub. Any ideas? [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 14 Oct 2020 05:30 PM PDT We recently had our roof replaced, installed a ridge vent, and boarded up the existing gable vents. We're now talking with an insulation company to improve our attic insulation and general home energy efficiency. The insulation guy said that for ventilation, it's better to actually have both (we live in MD and he said the climate here is a main factor). I've done some googling and have found conflicting info. Some say you can only have one, otherwise it interrupts proper air flow, others say it's completely fine to have a ridge vent with open gable vents. Which is actually true? [link] [comments] |
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