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Talk to me about awnings. I have an uncovered 13x21 deck that desperately needs cover BUT the deck may be removed next year, so it must not be dependent on it. I've set up some waterproof fabric sunshades but I live in Portland where rain is constant and the wind can be pretty severe. The house has vinyl siding, which I know will crack at low temps and I'd like to avoid drilling in to it if possible. The more I look for DIY solutions with my limited skills, the more I think I should just get a contracting company to do it.
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Mar 21, 2023 18:32
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The wind is low in the summer but severe at all other times, mostly. I really need a permanent thing so I can stop thinking about it all the time.
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Mar 21, 2023 19:00
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^^^ I have cement slabs spanning the house that I will anchor it to. The deck is getting removed but not replaced. We're going to make the space more like a sun room or something we have be outside and have a sofa. Opopanax posted:I'm in the PNW and a couple years ago I bought one of those collapsible awning tent things for camping, then decided to throw it on the deck for the summer. It worked great, you can screw it down or use sandbags if you're worried, and if there's a big storm or you're just ready to put it away, you can fold it up and store it somewhere Hahaha I had a 12x12 version of that and even with bags full of cement bricks, it got torn to shred by the east gorge winds.
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Mar 21, 2023 19:52
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lil poopendorfer posted:thats a great idea! Short of buying a heat gun, would a plumbers torch work without damaging the finish? Assume that I’m applying the torch carefully haha I'd start with a hairdryer before you move to concentrated flame.
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Mar 23, 2023 15:19
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So, I explored a bunch of DIY options for a patio cover and nothing that is within my scope would be feasible, especially having to rent a cement drill. I've got a few contractors coming out to bid and I'll at least get to know what they think is reasonable. I'd love to get it installed before summer is in full swing so I can dismantle the lovely deck with a reasonable amount of shade.
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Mar 23, 2023 17:03
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Anyone have experience converting/sealing an existing shower to give it steam shower functionality? I have a big step-in shower with glass sliding doors that I could seal well-enough (there's only a small gap between them) and the frame reaches almost to the ceiling anyway. I could add a glass insert with a sliding portion for ventilation at the top, make an angles tile section for the ceiling to handle condensation and then toss in a bench, I guess? I've yet to find a regular showerhead that has a steam setting, unless my smooth brain is glossing over them. I'd love to avoid a tear-out for a dedicated steam unit.
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Apr 12, 2023 17:33
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CubicalSucrose posted:If you adjust the valve, it's possible to get "a good amount" of steam just cranking the temp as far as it'll go (and avoiding scalding yourself). Not sure if this would work for you. Maybe, I just don't want to be dumping a ton of unused water.
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Apr 12, 2023 17:45
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My dryer has been under performing for a new unit. Had some vent folks out and they could even tell where the exit vent was. We suspected under the deck. Is that some sort of nylon band... stapled to the wood??  I have to pull out all this drywall and framing anyway because repeated rainwater intrusion has obliterated the lower wood. Motherfucker.  This is after pulling out god knows how much lint. I have to remove that green panel as well to get at the foundation and I just want to sleep.
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Nov 8, 2023 01:37
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Ah well, the staples they used to secure it weren't bent and it's a miracle it stayed on. I measured the pipe and there is no way it had enough length to reach the vent. Someone made a "gently caress it, good enough" call that created a massive fire hazard.
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Nov 8, 2023 17:02
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Hahahhahahaa I want to die So I've been trying to figure out the source of my leaky basement laundry room for a while now. I was certain it was coming from one spot, not just general seepage, and I was right! I went ham on the finished wall, pulled out the insulation and a weird board that was right against the foundation.  That's a 6 foot crack that's been there decades. Whatever they tried to use for patching was just surface level and deteriorated pretty quick. Now that the insulation is gone, I can hear water coming in like a fountain. It's all on tile and I can shop vac it up easily but drat. ANYWAY I have an expanding resin foundation repair kit that folks seem to love. Also a contractor is going to come by, put in some carbon fiber staples and install a sump pump for good measure. It'll be so nice to enjoy the rain and not worry every time.
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Nov 12, 2023 22:48
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the yeti posted:If you haven’t already might be worth takin a look in the next rain and see if water pools up against that spot or your gutter pisses water there or anything. Oh I have. The spot is directly under a deck with a concrete slab and it stays bone dry. The water spurts out close to the bottom, so it's a soil issue.
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Nov 13, 2023 00:41
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Slugworth posted:A mixture of working flood mitigation for years and also having a basement that flooded legitimately made me hate storms for years. Rain meant 16 hour days of work while my own basement sat flooded. Even after I bought a new, non-flooding home, and switched careers, heavy rains just put me into anxiety mode for a very long time. I'd sit and listen to my sump pump, just waiting for it to fail. See, I'll basically do anything to make a basement work. Mine is finished, has a large bathroom, fireplace and is my main bedroom and office. I'm in Portland which is known for rain but the brutal summers are new. A comfy basement is literally a life saver. 65F year round is impossible to beat. I'm extremely lucky that the crack is in a laundry/storage room that already has tile. The main room has carpet and... I try not to think of what a time bomb that may be.
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Nov 14, 2023 07:29
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I am livid right now. I contracted a company to fix a foundation crack and install a sump pump. It was only about $4K, which seemed reasonable. They dig up the basement floor a bit and find that our waste water lines are still cast iron, which should have been replaced when the last owner installed a new bathroom 10 years ago. The pipes are basically just rust are are dumping water into the soil. The original contractors are now stalled because they can't fill in the concrete because the pipes right next to their site are exposed and have to be fixed first. All told this is going to be $20K and I am nauseous with stress. I don't have that kind of money.
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Nov 29, 2023 22:50
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devicenull posted:CIPP is more expensive then just replacing, especially if they're already visible due to other concrete work. Right, one contractor dug up the area for one issue and I called in a plumber for the very clearly dissolving iron pipes. You could turn on the sink and watch water flow out of the pipe in the next room. poo poo is wack. I checked to make sure it wasn't a jackhammer that caused a rupture and yeah, the bottom of the whole pipe was rusting away. Broke out the scope and it was gnarly inside. There's just no getting around it. And to be clear, it was 5k for the foundation repair/sump pump and 15K for the pipe work. I'd argue more about the price but what they are having to do is fairly extensive. The old iron pipe is getting bypassed in favor of connecting to the newer ABS system. It was either dig up part of the floor or tear up my giant shower and the adjoining room. I've applied for their 0% financing, which is a perfectly reasonable price per month. We can afford this level of repair, we just don't have that much liquid cash right now.
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Nov 30, 2023 04:15
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emocrat posted:It's a long shot, but go read, actually read, all of your homeowners insurance policy. Some companies include sublimits for repair/replace degraded piping. Thanks for the advice but unfortunately the policy has specific exclusions for wear and tear, including pipes. They wouldn't cover it unless one of the pipes broke and flooded/damaged the house. Since they broke and were just dumping in to the soil, they don't cover it. I'll hear back about the financing by the end of the week. If we get it, we will be 100% fine. My wife and I are frugal as hell and we had more than enough to cover the 5K contract but obviously don't have 20K laying around normally. I sure as poo poo am not going to borrow against my retirement or anything nuts like that. Our credit union also has very reasonable rate for home repair loans, so that's always a backup. I'm mostly stressed about the giant hole in my floor and the huge amount of rain coming our way. The sump is installed and working, it's just the pipe and trench that need to be finalized.
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Nov 30, 2023 16:27
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devicenull posted:Get a backwater valve put in as part of the work. It's like $50 in parts, and will prevent poo poo water from backing up into your house if the sewer system has any issues. Haha it's funny you mentioned that! I didn't think I had one (because they have to be accessible) but scoping the pipes turned out there is one... in a really lovely place. Not the end of the world but I'm going to try and move it while the floor is open. I'm just happy that it was perfectly clean and had no evidence that it was needed.
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Dec 1, 2023 02:31
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the yeti posted:In terms of comes-in-a-can expanding foam, is one brand as good as another? How cheap do you want to go? You can get expanding resin that will do the job, make it waterproof (if it is closed cell type) and I don't think rodents go after it like foam. Otherwise, yeah just use the steel wool method.
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Dec 2, 2023 17:12
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They look serviceable to me. Maybe not good for 20 years but should be fine for now.
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Dec 12, 2023 21:40
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Ask me about my hoooooooole
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Dec 12, 2023 21:42
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jetz0r posted:hey buddy, wanna tell me about your hole? It's loving big, mate.
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Dec 12, 2023 21:58
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devicenull posted:What color is the sunken tub you're putting in? I wish, that would be dope. Now that the new pipe is diverted/installed, I have to figure out if I want to retile just that part (with a new pattern, would look pretty funky) or redo all the tile, which would suck but be nice and uniform. Question about outlets: Somehow the contractors broke an outlet (the breaker is on now and it doesn't supply power) how safe is it to replace one yourself without any experience? I'm reasonably handy but have never done electric work in my life.
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Dec 13, 2023 15:29
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Slugworth posted:Might be worth asking, is there any way this outlet is downstream of a GFCI outlet? Not sure what downstream means in this context. I can say that it is mere feet from the fuse box.
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Dec 13, 2023 22:45
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Slugworth posted:Downstream would mean being fed power from a GFCI outlet, which may have tripped, but if this outlet is feet from the panel, then that's not likely your issue. Was hoping I'd have an easy fix for you. Oh, like one outlet whose powerline is chained to another? No, it stands alone. The two contractors are hashing out who is responsible and I should hear something soon. One was using a generator and the other tripped the breaker a dozen times using a cement saw, so it's pretty easy to guess is at fault.
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Dec 14, 2023 21:57
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Alright, I'm confused. The 120v 20A outlet that normally handles my clothes washer has stopped working. The breaker is fine, I've tested the wire and the outlet and they all read as outputting power but nothing actually gets juice. There's no other outlet that could be interfering with it, it's a dedicated outlet. I've hit the reset button and all that and nothing seems to work. I can replace the outlet no problem but am I missing something obvious?
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Dec 16, 2023 07:47
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Well, that's annoying but better that they fail than catch fire! The contractors were using that outlet for a cement saw and tripped the breaker about a dozen times. I could imagine the outlet giving up the ghost first. Thankfully replacing outlets is easy, if a bit stressful.
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Dec 16, 2023 17:13
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Can confirm that it was a dead outlet. Everything is up and running again and I somehow didn't electrocute myself. I'm so happy to live near a dozen hardware stores.
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Dec 16, 2023 21:54
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Porfiriato posted:So, basement issues! I recently moved into a place that has a covered concrete porch and underneath is an unfinished basement space. I was noticing some water on the floor in there after heavier rains. You can get hydrophobic cement mixtures at the hardware store to patch that crack. They come in buckets of powder or in a tube you'd use in a caulk gun. If there's only a little water and only after heavy rain/wind, I wouldn't go nuts doing any real demo. How big and in what orientation is the crack? You can paint over it and/or texture the surface later.
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Dec 18, 2023 16:54
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Porfiriato posted:
Take it from me, a guy who has been dealing with basement water for a while now, never assume you know where the water is coming from. The crack in my basement was extremely obvious, once exposed, but I assumed it couldn't have been there because above it was an 8ft slab of concrete with a deck on top of that and an awning on top of it all. The soil would soak but not have great drainage and came in through the very bottom of a 6ft vertical crack. poo poo is wild. You're lucky it's such a small issue right now but it'll only get worse if not addressed wholly. Can you dig up outside around where you think water is entering? Getting your peepers directly on the problem is the only way to start fixing it, I'm afraid. You can get expanding resin injecting kits that could work but they're made more for walls, not ceilings/floors. Amazon sells them for $150. You can do it from the inside while there is no flowing water, I'd just make sure you have someone on the outside to start screaming if it starts shooting out of an unwanted place.
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Dec 19, 2023 15:29
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How easy is it to redo the boards on a deck? I have a 20x15 deck with really lovely, rotting wood. However the joists underneath are quite healthy. Since the area is covered, I'm not worried about weathering all that much but we have high winds that do mess up the place a few times a year. If installing Trex, anything special I need to know? I've watched a few basic tutorials and it seems mostly straightforward. Any notable, cheaper alternatives I should research?
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Mar 29, 2024 20:21
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I have a phantom drip. Right above my closet is the bathtub in the main floor bathroom. Every so often a couple of drops of water will come down. Nothing huge , no damage being caused. All of the related pipes are exposed and are bone dry. I can't figure out the source. It's also wildly inconsistent. I've hung out for the full duration of someone's shower and nothing would happen but then I'd look at some other time and there would be a couple drops of water, clearly from that area. No cracks in the tub, the seals are in good condition... Are there color-changing wraps I can put around the pipes that'll show who is leaking?
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Apr 2, 2024 15:03
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canyoneer posted:Wrap em in toilet paper, that will make it obvious Well drat, that is a good idea. One fun thing about home ownership is overthinking everything!
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Apr 2, 2024 19:13
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I just take a piece of paper, put it on the side with the holes, poke a pencil through, put that on the wall, level and then drill. Takes no time at all.
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Apr 2, 2024 21:26
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Got some wood delivered for joists and they came warped, chipped and moldy. ]Thanks, Lowe's!
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Apr 13, 2024 02:39
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So, I finally tore out the old, rotting and dangerous deck and installed some Trex.  I have zero experience doing this (and it shows) but I'm pretty happy overall. Still need to trim the edges and set up new side boards and stairs along with trimming down some screws that refused to go in the last 5%. Don't cheap out on composite screws, people! One thing is that, even after adding more joists to make sure most spans were 12" or less, there are some slightly spongy bits that are bugging me. I don't want to have to take out large sections just to shim them but... ugh.
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Apr 16, 2024 16:31
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Anyone have suggestions for deck railings? All the prefab ones are crazy expensive and I don't have a truck to haul around big pieces of lumber.
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Apr 16, 2024 21:52
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Check your exhaust and make sure it's clear ALL the way through. It could be collecting lint and getting plugged up at the very end. All of which is a fire hazard. Just went through this. The previous owner had lint blasting in to the wall like a psychopath.
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Apr 16, 2024 23:00
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HycoCam posted:Cable railings are popular around here, but they are more expensive than most expect. A great alternative has been 8' sections of galvanized pipe. 6" cedar posts with black pipe looks pretty good...I'll try to post pictures tomorrow. Nice. Yeah I was thinking about using electrical conduit pipe since it's weatherproof, easily printable and cheap.
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Apr 17, 2024 04:20
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I was originally going to picture frame mine but I'm adding a new facade to the lower boards that will cover the raw Trex edge. Also hoping there isn't too much expansion with mine. There's an awning over the entire footprint, so no part gets sun for long.
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Apr 17, 2024 06:26
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Okay, I need to cut a 16ft piece of Trek down the middle, hotdog style. I don't have a table saw. I do have miter, oscillating, jig and reciprocating saws. What's a good way to get an even cut without it taking all goddamn day?
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Apr 18, 2024 16:53
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Not related but my mom is desperate to move back to the city from the country and put an offer on a house without an inspection. It looks great but EUGH.
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Apr 24, 2024 22:53
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