Soup's Uncle Posted May 18, 2015 Share Posted May 18, 2015 My wife is letting me turn our storage room into a home studio room. I have to do drywall and laminate floors. Havin gmy Father in law help out cus he's good with that stuff. Will post pics. I'm so siked. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Springfield Posted May 18, 2015 Share Posted May 18, 2015 funny, I'm ripping out a deck to put in a patio. Patios > decks, not even close If you have ugly concrete, put pavers over top. You will be MUCH happier with that than a deck. Decks are truly awful. Our patio right now is pavers. The pavers are small and countless weeds sprout up every spring. It's damn annoying. I could redo the pavers but I figure that would involve more cutting and be more time consuming. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duckus Posted May 18, 2015 Share Posted May 18, 2015 (edited) My siding is hardiplank. Noticed the other day some fairly large gaps and want to make sure to fix before future water damage.Having done a bit of research, it seems the old way was to caulk butt joints for hardiplank but a few years ago they stopped and suggested that it is installed with flashing. This changed happened a few years ago - right around when my house was built. I am not sure if there is flashing and thus I don't need to do anything, or if there is not and I need to caulk.How is the best way to figure out if there is flashing? I can't really see anything in the gaps that looks shinny like flashing.... Edited May 18, 2015 by Duckus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popeman38 Posted May 18, 2015 Share Posted May 18, 2015 Way too many links to list. There is actually class action lawsuits against all the major makers http://www.lieffcabraser.com/Case-Center/Front-Loading-Washer-Litigation.shtml They look fancy but they are all great big pieces of Chines Made poo. Don't fall in love with all of the hi tech digital crap and fancy finishes. Trust me, they don't work. We've owned two different pairs from reputable companies. Both developed mold and had several service calls for gasket leaks and circuit boards. My sister, two neighbors, and essentially everyone I know with an HE washer has had similar problems. You could read on the web for hours. You can buy a commercial SQ pair for about $1500-$2000. They are only sold thru independent distributors, as typically they are built for laundromats. (these are actually laundromat units, but without the coin tray). There is nothing electronic on them - mechanical dials and thats it. They are NOT energy star rated. It's glorious. Truly. The mold issue was mostly in units from 2001-2008. The newer models have better drainage and don't have many issues. I have 2014 model Whirlpool Duets and have had no issues. We leave the door slightly ajar to allow air circulation (maybe cracked 2 inches) and run a Affresh clean cycle once a month. We have a 4 year old, so 12 months and several hundred loads of laundry later, mold and odor free. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elessar78 Posted May 18, 2015 Share Posted May 18, 2015 Replacing the Oil Control Valve on my 2007 Sonata tonight. Causing to make all kids of racket due to throwing the timing off. Hopefully that's the issue, or I'm in for a few thousand to get the motor worked on and see if the timing chain jumped a tooth. One little sensor set me back $130. I love newer cars. WTF buddy? Do you live in your car?? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slateman Posted May 19, 2015 Share Posted May 19, 2015 WTF buddy? Do you live in your car?? Commutes around here make your car feel like home 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elessar78 Posted May 19, 2015 Share Posted May 19, 2015 Commutes around here make your car feel like home If we don't follow the rules we are no better than the Cowboys fans animals 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zguy28 Posted May 19, 2015 Share Posted May 19, 2015 (edited) Commutes around here make your car feel like home Sorry, lack of reading comprehension. I just saw DIY... I blame my mobile device. Carryon. Edited May 19, 2015 by Zguy28 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S.T.real,lights,out Posted May 19, 2015 Share Posted May 19, 2015 So has anyone ever installed one of those underground electric fences? Have to run about 600' of wire...trying to determine if its worth buying/renting a landscape edger to do the work. The wire only needs to be approx 2" deep. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chew Posted May 19, 2015 Share Posted May 19, 2015 Anybody ever do a dog run before? Wife and i want put together a 15x3 foot area along the side of the house for the dogs to use when we move in. Not sure what material to go with. Read up on some forums, folks have used river rock, mulch, pea gravel, wood shavings, sand, etc. Was wondering if anybody on ES has done this before Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elessar78 Posted May 19, 2015 Share Posted May 19, 2015 Sorry, lack of reading comprehension. I just saw DIY... I blame my mobile device. Carryon. I was just kidding. No harm done. There's a "ask a mechanic" thread too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PCS Posted May 19, 2015 Share Posted May 19, 2015 Our patio right now is pavers. The pavers are small and countless weeds sprout up every spring. It's damn annoying. I could redo the pavers but I figure that would involve more cutting and be more time consuming. Couple of things really. Most important is what you want. I like both and intend on a bit of a combination of the two in my backyard down the road. The building part is a bit based on if there is a step or two to the existing patio. Several ways to build depending on on that. If you don't mind the pavers,you just might be better of with them in this case. Check and see if the paver patio has soft spots or is "rolling". That would mean pulling them up,but once you get a couple up,it's easy from there. Actually,from the sound of it,you'll want to do that anyway. If you can find a match or close match to the pavers you have now,it'll be cheaper to keep the paver patio. After removing them,there's several things to check for after that. The weeds,well,they can be a problem with paver patios. Really easy to take care of actually. That is once you re-install the pavers. Good sand between the joints and some light,routine maintenance will be just fine to keep the things largely at bay. Just sweep or use a leaf blower once or twice a week to keep the weed seeds from setting up camp in between the pavers. Wash the pavers off with soapy water a few times during the year. Really quick,easy jobs there. Also helps to make sure the area around the pavers is free of weeds. Won't 100 percent the thing against weeds,but it can be the next best thing. My siding is hardiplank. Noticed the other day some fairly large gaps and want to make sure to fix before future water damage. Having done a bit of research, it seems the old way was to caulk butt joints for hardiplank but a few years ago they stopped and suggested that it is installed with flashing. This changed happened a few years ago - right around when my house was built. I am not sure if there is flashing and thus I don't need to do anything, or if there is not and I need to caulk. How is the best way to figure out if there is flashing? I can't really see anything in the gaps that looks shinny like flashing.... One of the cons of Hardisiding. Flashing is an interesting term in that it actually encompasses all kinds of water proofing that goes behind,underneath,around,just about everything on the building. Not metal in lot's of cases. In this case,the flashing could a piece of joint flashing,(pre-cut flashing made specifically for this type of siding),and can be a close color match for the siding itself. Could a piece of ****athane,tyvek,or some other type of water resistant material. You may not see it clearly unless you can lift it up a bit more,(carefully). Caulking is still okay as far as I know and I tend to do both with siding. Though with the real wood stuff,I 22.5 cut the joints,bisquit join and glue them. Along with a couple small finish galvies. Anyway. Try to find a spot on the house where the siding is gapped,but in a not so obvious area and carefully pry up the siding at the joint just a bit. Have a flash light handy too. If you don't see something there,then you definitely want to caulk where you can. Then cuss the name of the installer. Meanwhile,here at the home front we've taken back our side yard,(all sandy soil). The two shelterlogic structures are gone and the wife is on board with letting me take a day to build a nice shed. Maybe a couple of days and two sheds or one large one. Those shelters are not meant for this environment no matter what the material. We filled a small construction dumpster with stuff from the work we've done so far. Replaced a garbage disposal,two toilets,prepped the back for a walkway along the house,(using concrete paver molds),and the area along the now rebuilt fence for a cinder block planter. Replaced the front door,(with help from the wife's ex),did a small 1/2 remodel of the boys bathroom. Took out the shower doors and put up a nice curved double rod. Wife painted and I'm fixing the growing number of tiles. Sigh. DUMBASSes who installed the tile in the shower in the first place used regular drywall and a mix of mud and liquid nails to fix the tile on that drywall. I'll be waterproofing what I can,but looks like we'll be gutting the bathroom sooner rather than later. Okay. Off to finish that and put in new switches in the bathroom and if I can find it,a new GFI outlet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zoony Posted May 19, 2015 Share Posted May 19, 2015 I have hardi plank too. Just recently sealed the joints. I used a high quality construction grade polyurethane. DO NOT use silicone. Silicone does not adhere to concrete or block or stone (amazing how many people don't know that) It is important to use a high quality polyurethane so that it can flex and bend with movement in the siding. I used Sika but you could use 3M as well. If you bought it at a box store it is the wrong product. Go to a local commercial construction supply house in your area. Keep the bead under 1/4". Tool product after applying And most important, paint over the joint. UV light will degrade polyurethane. If it has UV protection (paint) the joint will last 50+ years 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zoony Posted May 19, 2015 Share Posted May 19, 2015 http://www.whitecap.com/shop/wc/57235 Theres a link to the sealant Also, here's a picture of the side of my house after sealing/painting. You can not even make out the joints unless you're really looking for them Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zoony Posted May 19, 2015 Share Posted May 19, 2015 So I tackled crawlspace encapsulation... probably one of the toughest DIY projects i've ever tackled. (and that includes building two garages, several decks, patios, landscaping, remodels, you name it) Basically, if you have a house with a crawlspace, 80% of the air you are breathing comes from that crawlspace.That's how a house works, sucks air in through the bottom and spits it out the top, just like a chimney. Problem is, crawl space building codes were written a century ago long before central air conditioning. So what happens, warm, 95% humid, 95 degree air is pulled in through your crawl space vents and circulates, where it meets duct work and the floor of your home that are 70 degrees and 55% humid. You end up with condensation. Doesn't sound like a big deal. But it is... condensation leads directly to mold. I have a very nice home that is only 10 years old, in a crawlspace inspection I found several patches of mold. If you have a crawlspace, I guarantee you have it to. And you're breathing it every day. Read more http://www.energyvanguard.com/crawl-space-encapsulation-method/ I also did a mold test with those test kits from Home Depot. The results were absolutely disgusting. In 3 days I had a petri dish with all of the colors of the rainbow. Looked like an abstract painting. Here's a before Picture or two. After doing the inspection, I found I couldn't be in the crawl for more than 30 minutes or so, I would start coughing uncontrollably. I had two estimates on doing the work. One was for $9500, the other was $12000. And that didn't include ripping out old disgusting insulation or sealing rim joist. So, did it myself. Decided to forego traditional crawlspace wrap (it is incredibly expensive) and used Stego Wrap, which essentially does the same thing. it is 15 mil and has a commercial spec for vapor retardation and radon control. http://www.stegoindustries.com/products/stego-wrap-15-m-1.php First I had to cut the wrap and measure. Did this in the driveway in January. Cold work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zoony Posted May 19, 2015 Share Posted May 19, 2015 I pinned the wrap to the block wall using a gas-actuated gun (instead of traditional gunpowder). Just like a framing nailer, sweet tool. I attached the wrap with two sided tape, term bar, and the pins from the gun. Also used XPS insullation and spray foam to seal the vents from the inside. Followed up by covering the floor (had to move the hot water heater) and finally installing a dehumidifier. Now the crawl is 50% relative humidty at all times. No condensation, no mold. No bugs, no mice, no spiders either. Also I had the rim joist and sill plate (major sources of air leakage in any home) spray foamed with closed cell. As luck would have it, our heat pump went out in February. We decided to go ahead and replace that too, and a new air handler. Breathing better nowadays. If you need help with your crawl, call anyone but me. I understand why it costs $12,000 to have it done now. That job SUCKED. Total cost was probably about $3k in materials I think. I kind of lost track. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RawBBQSauce Posted May 20, 2015 Share Posted May 20, 2015 Finished setting up my first 4x4 raised garden bed over the weekend. Now I just gotta figure out what to plant. I'm thinking lettuce and radish. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dfitzo53 Posted May 20, 2015 Share Posted May 20, 2015 (edited) Finished setting up my first 4x4 raised garden bed over the weekend. Now I just gotta figure out what to plant. I'm thinking lettuce and radish. [garden pic] Nice! So did we. I should post pics too. So far we've got tomatoes and cucumbers that my mom started from seed inside, and a couple beans that my daughter started as a project at daycare. Going to plant some herbs too, namely cilantro right now. Edit: Maybe we should start another garden thread for this year. Edited May 20, 2015 by dfitzo53 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pointyfootball Posted May 20, 2015 Share Posted May 20, 2015 Finished setting up my first 4x4 raised garden bed over the weekend. Now I just gotta figure out what to plant. I'm thinking lettuce and radish. I personally like fresh herbs more than anything, so I always plant basil, rosemary, cilantro, parsley, chives, etc. One of my favorite summer meals is fettucine with garlic, olive oil and fresh tomatoes and basil just heated up. Good hot or cold. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PCS Posted May 20, 2015 Share Posted May 20, 2015 Nice! So did we. I should post pics too. So far we've got tomatoes and cucumbers that my mom started from seed inside, and a couple beans that my daughter started as a project at daycare. Going to plant some herbs too, namely cilantro right now. Edit: Maybe we should start another garden thread for this year. Go ahead. I just checked and the one we had a couple of years ago has been archived. So if anyone wants,feel free to start one up only let's make it a continuing one. The "Official" one if you will. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duckus Posted May 22, 2015 Share Posted May 22, 2015 (edited) Built an art nook for my 2 year old daughter.Okay. This isn't an impressive project compared to y'all - but I am a beginner and pretty proud of the final product.Solid wood table found on Craiglist for $15. Cut then refinished and mounted. All in $40 for table, materials, and hanging organizer. Edited May 22, 2015 by Duckus 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PCS Posted May 22, 2015 Share Posted May 22, 2015 You did it yourself. It looks good and you're happy with it. Looks and sounds like a success to me. Pretty impressive to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LD0506 Posted May 22, 2015 Share Posted May 22, 2015 You did it yourself. It looks good and you're happy with it. Looks and sounds like a success to me. Pretty impressive to me. Agreed, that essential motivation to DIY is the satisfaction of knowing you did it everytime you look at a project. I'm still tracking down and undoing dumb **** that was done to this house by previous owners, tore out and rebuilt a square and a half of the roof, a valley running down to a shallow porch roof and sidewall, several rains this week tested it and everything stayed dry in the first time in forever. The ultimate culprit? the ridge vent on the den! On to tearing off siding and repairing, sealing, housewrapping the exterior and reinstalling siding.................... I'd kill for a nice furniture rehab job Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PCS Posted May 23, 2015 Share Posted May 23, 2015 I know that one. Holy **** this place is a bundle of wtf were they thinking diy crap. The wife and I are ready for all kinds of "Holmes" moments when we start taking drywall and such down the road. Sigh. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zoony Posted May 23, 2015 Share Posted May 23, 2015 I know that one. Holy **** this place is a bundle of wtf were they thinking diy crap. The wife and I are ready for all kinds of "Holmes" moments when we start taking drywall and such down the road. Sigh. There are two ways to do things. Right, or again Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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