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PainterofCrap posted:If you're not wearing it? Use a balloon. Nope, I'll be wearing it, it just looks like crap since it's bigger than my head so I just wanted to add a little inert padding around the outside. Flash Gordon Ramsay posted:There's a cosplay thread that may be able to help with this kind of question https://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3473045 Thanks! I'll try some pillow foam 
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Oct 23, 2017 17:19
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How important are strike plates for a door that doesn't get much use? Scenario: the (attached) garage door to the outside clearly hadn't been opened in many years when I bought the house. I wanted to change the locks on the house, so I had to get it open. It was stuck fast, and I ended up literally shouldering/kicking it in to get it open. Obviously it had swelled considerably in its years of disuse. I then took it off the hinges and sanded it down to where it will now close. However, the bolts no longer line up with the pockets/strike plates. They are off by about 1/8 - 1/4 inch. I took off the strike plates and widened the pockets for now, and the door closes and locks. I'm just not sure I can call that done. I really want to avoid having to take a chunk out of the door frame, gluing in a dowel, and remaking the pockets/strike plates.
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Oct 25, 2017 20:47
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SouthShoreSamurai posted:How important are strike plates for a door that doesn't get much use? That happens a lot with houses when they settle. What's the big deal about just mortising up another 1/4"? Depending on how well nailed the jamb sides are, sometimes you can use a cheater bar under one side and honk it up a smidgen, maybe even a tad. If you need the striker to raise a bit, a fat 4" screw or 2 in the top hinge (remove a couple, obv) will penetrate to the 2x4 cripple the jamb hangs off, and cant the door cockwise.
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Oct 25, 2017 21:40
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It's not the mortise that's my issue. It's the screw holes. I could mortise up another 1/4", but the new screw holes would overlay the old ones. I didn't think of wedging up one side of the entire frame. I was thinking of plugging the hole with a dowel, then recutting the new mortises and redrilling the screw holes. Seems like a lot of work if it isn't even going to affect anything, though. Like I said, the door will get very little use.
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Oct 25, 2017 23:17
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Do what you want
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Oct 25, 2017 23:58
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A few toothpicks and some carpenter's glue--stuff them in the screw holes. Viola! Use the wood chisel you'll need to move the strike plate to smooth over the old screw holes.
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Oct 26, 2017 04:03
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SouthShoreSamurai posted:It's not the mortise that's my issue. It's the screw holes. I could mortise up another 1/4", but the new screw holes would overlay the old ones. Alternately, you could go with a longer strike plate: https://www.homedepot.com/p/Tell-4-..._-206753813-_-N They've got them for deadbolts as well. socketwrencher fucked around with this message at 05:55 on Oct 26, 2017 |
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Oct 26, 2017 05:49
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SouthShoreSamurai posted:How important are strike plates for a door that doesn't get much use? How much room do you have along the latch edge of the door? You might be able to shim the hinges to raise or lower the latch to its hole. It's easy to do with just a cereal box or other flat, non-corrugated cardboard. Do the bottom hinge if it strikes too low, the top hinge if too high. Basically, you unscrew the hinge in question from the frame, then cut a shim out to fit that gap. Once you make one that fits, trace it to make more. You'll probably need 6 or more. Also, you might want to stick any extra in a drawer or something. This is one of those things you may need to adjust and add more as the seasons make that frame expand and contract. kid sinister fucked around with this message at 17:56 on Oct 26, 2017 |
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Oct 26, 2017 17:53
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I live in an old house that continues to drain my wallet. I have these old floor furnace units that are, much like everything else in the house, old and questionably functional. They've been pretty cantankerous over the years, but we've kept them working... until now. When we went to light one up this year, it back-blasted and started a small ( easily extinguished, but very exciting ) fire. We called the HVAC guys same day. Our heaters are old enough that eavesdropping on them at work is always interesting. It's usually a mixture of, "When did they even make these like this?" and "How is this even working?" They tried. They failed. They experienced a back-blast of their own. The verdict is that one unit has reached the point of no return, and that the other is getting there. I told them to give me a quote for replacements, they said they'd get back to me, and left. Today I got a ballpark figure of 3,000. Per unit. I could get a marginal discount if I did both at once. Now... I am pretty sure I don't need two units. It is a small house, maybe 1,200-ish square feet. We've a basement and finished attic, but those aren't living areas and we aren't really concerned with keeping them comfortable. Replacing a single unit is very much within the budget, but it would take a very big chunk of change. The HVAC company also floated the possibility of a more traditional vented system, and said while an estimate would be impossible without sending a guy out to really think about the job, it would definitely be more. Guys with HVAC knowledge, I have some questions. 1) Does this price sound about right? 2) Would a single unit be enough to keep a small house comfortable? 3) What other heating options do I have? We do have a wood burning stove in the basement, but haven't used it in years. The chimney would need to be inspected and cleaned proper prior to use, as would the vents attaching the stove to the chimney, but the stove itself is a big metal bastard and seems no worse off than when we moved in.
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Oct 26, 2017 19:51
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NerdyMcNerdNerd posted:I live in an old house that continues to drain my wallet. Is there any other kind of old house? $3000 sounds a bit high, but a lot of that will be market-dependent. I'd get a few more quotes. Additionally, it's worth considering that floor furnaces are less efficient than traditional furnaces, so depending on your fuel costs you may be better off paying more now for the more expensive installation of a traditional ducted furnace. Another advantage of the latter is that if you need air conditioning you could install a heat pump system and take care of both issues simultaneously. One more thought: have you considered a ductless mini-split heat pump? For some people the aesthetics are a deal breaker, but there are also in-ceiling cassette-style units.
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Oct 26, 2017 21:56
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tetrapyloctomy posted:Is there any other kind of old house? The person who gave me the 3,000 quote said they're still waiting back to hear from a few people for quotes of their own. Could be less. Could be more. May have to get more quotes. The more I think about it, though, the more I linger on that wood burning stove in the basement. If the chimney doesn't need much work... it might be doable, but if the chimney needs some brickwork I don't know. Seems a little late in the year for it, temps are already starting to turn. We could also try toughing it out with an electric space heater supplementing the one working unit. I feel this is doable, as the winters here aren't usually that bad. I only worry about the possible strain a decent space heater might put on the house's wiring, which almost certainly needs work. There are two reasons I am reluctant to install a duct system just yet. The first is the cost. It would be a significant investment, and if anything else popped up, it would put a lot of strain on the finances. The other thing is that my winter/spring project is going to be gutting all the garbage 70's remodel poo poo from the basement ( wood paneling on loving everything, including the floor furnace's enclosure  ), taking down the lovely drop ceiling, and making it into a useful area of the house instead of a dark pit we don't talk about. I'm not yet sure what I want to do it after I empty it out.I don't really care about looks, but I also don't want to install a permanent thing that would be a pain in the rear end if we had to resell the house. I am intrigued by the mini-split pumps though.
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Oct 27, 2017 04:12
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If the chimney needs to be lined or have any work done to it you can rapidly hit 3k. I would get a chimney sweep or whatever they are called to come and inspect + give a quote.
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Oct 27, 2017 04:21
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NerdyMcNerdNerd posted:I live in an old house that continues to drain my wallet. Puff-back? Sounds like an oil-fired boiler...is it? Chimney work is not cheap, and the price for remedies for itm and you HVAC, are going to rise weekly until maybe March. Three thousand for an oil-fired boiler is not too bad. They ain't cheap.
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Oct 27, 2017 05:06
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PainterofCrap posted:Puff-back? Sounds like an oil-fired boiler...is it? Yes, I am pretty sure it is an oil-fired type. To be fair to the guys who came over, they were blunt about the fact that they did not believe I even really needed the amount of BTUs I had for the 1,200 square foot house. The two ancient units threw out a combined total upwards of 40,000. A little google research tells me that this is twice what I need. As I discover more and more wonderful tidbits about this place I am filled with the desire to know what the gently caress the inspector said when the house was being purchased. Did you know they made power outlets that held the wires to the socket without screws- just friction? Our house had those. 
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Oct 27, 2017 15:56
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NerdyMcNerdNerd posted:Did you know they made power outlets that held the wires to the socket without screws- just friction? Our house had those. Backstabs are still a thing and an approved method. When I change outlets in my own home, I take the time to use the screws, but if I were an electrician trying to knock out work fast, I might not.
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Oct 27, 2017 16:00
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Like a backstabbed outlet? Aren't they actually not that bad? I agree if feels weird but I remember googling it when I came across one in my house that was super hard to remove.
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Oct 27, 2017 16:02
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NerdyMcNerdNerd posted:Yes, I am pretty sure it is an oil-fired type. Friction held is superior to screwing uncooperative copper you silly person, and is still a standard, stay on the actual topic of your heater problem.
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Oct 27, 2017 16:03
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eddiewalker posted:Backstabs are still a thing and an approved method. Fair enough, I'll concede I don't know poo poo about outlets. I just assumed they were some throwback fire hazard fun because the ones we had were in a sorry state. A few had the wires more or less just falling out when I had them replaced.
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Oct 27, 2017 16:14
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NerdyMcNerdNerd posted:Fair enough, I'll concede I don't know poo poo about outlets. I just assumed they were some throwback fire hazard fun because the ones we had were in a sorry state. A few had the wires more or less just falling out when I had them replaced.
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Oct 28, 2017 02:24
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We had a bathroom fan that didn't work, and traced it back to a backstab switch with the whole bottom corner of the switch broken off. I replaced all three switches in that bank, and used the screws.
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Oct 28, 2017 02:30
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Shortly after i bought my house, I replaced all the bathroom and kitchen outlets with GFCIs, only to discover that one of the backstabbed outlets in the kitchen had wriggled loose and was arcing something awful, to the point where the wiring and outlet was covered in scorch marks. I feel your pain McNerd... There's also some bizarre nee expensive thing to fix, isn't there? If one heater is working and seems to be sufficient, I'd just rock that with supplemental electric heaters. Maybe get your wood furnace and chimney inspection done at some point so you can give both a shot to see if they're adequate, before trying to decide what kind of system you need.
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Oct 29, 2017 04:34
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tetrapyloctomy posted:
Seconding this. I spent $12,000 replacing the baseboard heat & window air conditioning in my house with a forced air system a couple yeas ago. Tore down the ceiling in the basement and ran ducts everywhere. The cost to heat and cool my house dropped a good $300 a month. At that rate I'll have the forced air renovation paid for in less than 5 years. If I were you I would seriously investigate this option, especially because you plan to tear out the ceiling anyway. Minisplit systems are a nice option if they work in your area. There are a couple downsides though. The air handler in most mini-split setups is surface mounted to the wall in every room you want to climate control and they are a bit bulky, and tend to catch the eye when you enter the room. The other drawback is that they are almost always a heat pump system, and most will not work properly if the outside air temperature drops much below 0f. Thus if you live in the upper part of the midwest/Canada (or Alaska) where below zero temperatures are a normal part of winter, your system can fail to provide heat when you need it the most.
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Oct 30, 2017 16:47
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OSU_Matthew posted:Shortly after i bought my house, I replaced all the bathroom and kitchen outlets with GFCIs, only to discover that one of the backstabbed outlets in the kitchen had wriggled loose and was arcing something awful, to the point where the wiring and outlet was covered in scorch marks. I feel your pain McNerd... There's also some bizarre nee expensive thing to fix, isn't there? They made the gauge lighter when copper got expensive, the holes got tinier in the newer ones, and good luck with that poo poo, folks. I kinda forgot about that too. Thinner wire is easier to wrap around the screws though.
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Oct 31, 2017 16:13
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Mr. Mambold posted:They made the gauge lighter when copper got expensive, the holes got tinier in the newer ones, and good luck with that poo poo, folks. I've never heard this before and can't find any other references, nor have I seen it when doing electrical work firsthand. Got any more info?
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Oct 31, 2017 16:23
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Mr. Mambold posted:They made the gauge lighter when copper got expensive, the holes got tinier in the newer ones, and good luck with that poo poo, folks. I kinda forgot about that too. Thinner wire is easier to wrap around the screws though. Though the ampacity rating of a given wire size may have changed over time, I'm pretty sure the AWG sizes have been standard since 1857.
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Oct 31, 2017 18:48
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One Day Fish Sale posted:I've never heard this before and can't find any other references, nor have I seen it when doing electrical work firsthand. Got any more info? That's me relaying common talk, I've not found (nor looked for) any actual documentation tbf. glynnenstein posted:Though the ampacity rating of a given wire size may have changed over time, I'm pretty sure the AWG sizes have been standard since 1857. So why was that poster having problems fitting old copper into newer plugs? I've run into that myself. My house is 30 years old, which is really not all that old, but the wire will not backstab into new plugs.
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Oct 31, 2017 19:30
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New receptacle backstabs are for 14 AWG wire. They used to be designed for 12 AWG... Perhaps that is the issue?
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Oct 31, 2017 19:50
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Don't newer receptacles have a completely different design for the backstab clamps? I replaced a bunch in my house recently and the new ones had you tighten a screw to set the clamp instead of just shoving the wire in.
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Nov 1, 2017 05:02
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If you're like me and have been waiting on a smoking deal for a compound sliding miter saw, the Dewalt DWS779 is $349 on Amazon right now.
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Nov 1, 2017 14:42
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Shame Boner posted:If you're like me and have been waiting on a smoking deal for a compound sliding miter saw, the Dewalt DWS779 is $349 on Amazon right now. That's the same deal as it was 20 years ago. Adjusted for inflation, etc. TheGreasyStrangler posted:Don't newer receptacles have a completely different design for the backstab clamps? I replaced a bunch in my house recently and the new ones had you tighten a screw to set the clamp instead of just shoving the wire in. Like add-on plugs, then? Well, it's about time.
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Nov 1, 2017 15:33
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Mr. Mambold posted:That's the same deal as it was 20 years ago. Adjusted for inflation, etc. That's true, but I didn't have $350 to spend on impulse buys when this was the going rate and other folks in need also likely find themselves without a time machine. I'm planning on re-tiling the kitchen and bathroom this winter so it couldn't have come at a better time. I hope others can benefit.
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Nov 1, 2017 16:19
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Shame Boner posted:That's true, but I didn't have $350 to spend on impulse buys when this was the going rate and other folks in need also likely find themselves without a time machine. I'm planning on re-tiling the kitchen and bathroom this winter so it couldn't have come at a better time. I hope others can benefit. Why would you buy a miter saw to do tile work? Am I missing something here? Are you trolling?
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Nov 1, 2017 16:26
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Is it that hard to imagine someone using a sliding saw with a dry blade to save time cutting tile? At any rate, I have enough wood construction projects cutting lumber wider or thicker than my little 10" saw can handle in one pass to welcome a timely upgrade.
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Nov 1, 2017 16:46
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It actually is a great deal for the slider saw- I read it as just the compound miter at first; but for 4-12" tiles you can use a $20 scratcher. For esoteric and/or pro tile cuts like granite or marble, go ahead and plunk down :200bux: for a Harbor Fright water cooled brick & tile saw. I did that after reading some reviews, and it's a very well built saw. Did my kitchen in 12" granite tile, and what's cooler than hell about granite tile versus monolithic granite tops is you can match the backsplash. Also, I'm pretty sure there's a stricture in Leviticus against using a miter saw to cut ceramic tile. Thou shalt be cast out and whipped with irons.
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Nov 1, 2017 17:25
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TheGreasyStrangler posted:Don't newer receptacles have a completely different design for the backstab clamps? I replaced a bunch in my house recently and the new ones had you tighten a screw to set the clamp instead of just shoving the wire in. You're right, but technically the newer design isn't a backstab. Backstabs held in the wire (poorly) with only spring pressure. The new design is better all around. It's safer, plus each screw clamp can hold 2 wires, instead of 1 per backstab hole.
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Nov 1, 2017 19:17
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Mr. Mambold posted:It actually is a great deal for the slider saw- I read it as just the compound miter at first; but for 4-12" tiles you can use a $20 scratcher. For esoteric and/or pro tile cuts like granite or marble, go ahead and plunk down :200bux: for a Harbor Fright water cooled brick & tile saw. I did that after reading some reviews, and it's a very well built saw. The 10" with sliding table? I snagged one of those off of Craigslist, brand new, and yes it is a hell of a saw. Don't know how long it will last, being harbor freight and all, but for a few tile jobs around the house buy that thing in an instant. Get it for the first job and stuff it in your garage rafters or something. Side note: do not use hand cut, non rectified tile for your first tile job ever.
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Nov 2, 2017 00:17
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Mr. Mambold posted:Also, I'm pretty sure there's a stricture in Leviticus against using a miter saw to cut ceramic tile. Thou shalt be cast out and whipped with irons. Or sprayed in the face with shards. Save your face! Home Depot has a wet tile saw for $99: https://www.homedepot.com/p/QEP-3-4-HP-Wet-Tile-Saw-with-7-in-Diamond-Blade-22650Q/202615612
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Nov 2, 2017 04:32
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Shame Boner posted:If you're like me and have been waiting on a smoking deal for a compound sliding miter saw, the Dewalt DWS779 is $349 on Amazon right now. I think this is right about what I bought mine for last year after home Depot clearanced out the holiday sale stuff. It's a fantastic saw, I love mine, especially for that price point.
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Nov 2, 2017 04:33
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PremiumSupport posted:Seconding this. I spent $12,000 replacing the baseboard heat & window air conditioning in my house with a forced air system a couple yeas ago. Tore down the ceiling in the basement and ran ducts everywhere. The cost to heat and cool my house dropped a good $300 a month. At that rate I'll have the forced air renovation paid for in less than 5 years. If I were you I would seriously investigate this option, especially because you plan to tear out the ceiling anyway. I would love to put some real HVAC systems in this old house, but I just don't have that kind of capital to throw around at the moment. If I did, I would likely move to a better house.  I've decided to replace a single unit. I've requested a written quote for 3,000 because anything over a few hundred bucks had better be in writing, and I'm wondering about other ways to help cover my rear end. What should I look out for? How do I know I am getting a good furnace and not a piece of poo poo? What kind of guarantees should I look for, if any?
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Nov 2, 2017 16:46
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NerdyMcNerdNerd posted:. What should I look out for? How do I know I am getting a good furnace and not a piece of poo poo? What kind of guarantees should I look for, if any? First and foremost make sure your contractor is licensed and bonded to do the work in your state/community. The licensing increases the probability that the job will be done right, up to code, and with the proper permits. The bonding should prevent them from taking your money and heading to Switzerland. Each contractor will likely have favored brands that their company sells and installs, so the brand you get will depend on the contractor installing it. What you want to look at is how long of a warranty they offer on the equipment installed. The contractor will not warranty a piece of crap for any length of time, but a good contractor will stand behind quality equipment for years. The contractor that installed my system offered a lifetime warranty on the furnace as long as I go through them to get my annual inspection. PremiumSupport fucked around with this message at 17:31 on Nov 2, 2017 |
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Nov 2, 2017 17:27
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