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Yeah I called about getting a quote and they couldn't even schedule a quote until the 8th and even then, they wouldn't be able to do the actual work until February. Also, depending on how cold it is, they said they couldn't do it if it got too cold (which it probably will be for the next few weeks where I am) so there's that, too.
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Jan 1, 2018 02:41
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Panthrax posted:I'm sorta-kinda in the same boat. Furnace is like 28 years old, ac is 25ish years old. I've put 2-400/year into it for the last couple years and it's been running pretty well, other than a seeming r22 freon leak. I waterproofed the basement last year so I'm hoping I can hold off another year or two before replacing the system. My biggest worry is it dying during the Cleveland winter we're having right now with 3 cats. Cross my fingers and hope nothing bad happens? Yeah I think in the next few years R22 is going to be outright banned so if you have a leak you are going to have to replace it no matter what. I'd stop sinking 400 /year into it and just bite the bullet honestly. It sucks, but youre throwing money away before the inevitable. At least start putting money away if you can't swing it right away. Check with the sales rep for any state rebates or grants for what should be a significant jump in efficiency of your system.
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Jan 1, 2018 07:45
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Kanish posted:Yeah I think in the next few years R22 is going to be outright banned Yep, no repairs that require adding refrigerant as of 2020.
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Jan 1, 2018 17:07
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Whoops wrong thread
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Jan 1, 2018 22:11
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A while ago I posted about restoring hardwood floors under carpet. Some older carpet had a left a bunch of old adhesive and otherwise the boards were in pretty rough shape. Well, two passes board-by-board with a belt sander (the rental orbital sander did squat and I didn't trust myself with a drum sander), three mineral spirits wipedowns, untold amount of vaccuuming, a coat of sealer, and three coats of poly later and I'm actually fairly happy with the result. Here's the before and after: https://imgur.com/a/APoGR. The picture hides a lot of them, but there are a ton of gouges and other flaws, some of which are definitely because of me, but a lot are just old damage to the boards. I definitely was not very successful in blending the edges in with the main sanding. We still have to nail in the shoe molding and then we'll paint before actually moving out bed in. One room down, three and a hallway to go. 
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Jan 1, 2018 23:42
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ExplodingSims posted:It's pretty rare to see a system running, in good condition, for 30-40 years. I've seen it before, it's usually just furnaces though, since they tend to be pretty simple things. But 20 years or so would be the max life I'd expect of a unit. Of course that depends on a lot of factors, climate, run time, humidity, proximity to the ocean, etc (The ocean will gently caress your A/C unit up is real short order) I'm assuming you're not in a climate where you have to run it very often? All the coils are in good shape and not rotting away? Your summer power bill isn't getting to $300+ I actually don't know exactly how old the A/C components are. The furnace is a Payne, with an inspection chart first dated April 1978. The evaporator unit on top could be newer, although it doesn't look it. Recent repairs have been to replace the fan motor on the outdoor condenser unit, and repair and then replacement of the pilot light thermocouple. I'm not totally clear on what part is the "heat exchanger." I'm in California, we run the A/C frequently during the summer, and the heater frequently in the winter, but it's rare for me to run up a bill over $200 and I've never seen a $300 bill. The house (1188 square feet) was built in 1958 as a very basic blue-collar worker type ranch home in the Bay Area, they were building tons of these houses in the 50s. If it has insulation in the walls, it's collapsed or decayed; the blown-in insulation in the attic space is pretty old, and there is nothing under the floor. The windows are double-glazed vinyl affairs mostly, I think, they seal well and aren't an issue. The house is a very basic rectangle, the heat ducting runs through the attic space and probably isn't well sealed. The doors do not seal well, there's a big gap under the door to the garage which is by the way not to code, since it's clearly not a fire door and also doesn't have the required automatic door closer thingy. The front door also I can see daylight around the edges in the morning, so it's obviously not sealing well either. Basically: yeah, if this thing springs a coolant leak or needs a major repair, we'll just replace the whole system. But as long as I'm just paying for minor parts here and there, I think the low-hanging fruit for saving money will be a big upgrade to the house's insulation, getting the doors sealed, and maybe replacing ~50 feet of ducting.
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Jan 2, 2018 01:14
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Leperflesh posted:I actually don't know exactly how old the A/C components are. The furnace is a Payne, with an inspection chart first dated April 1978. The evaporator unit on top could be newer, although it doesn't look it. Recent repairs have been to replace the fan motor on the outdoor condenser unit, and repair and then replacement of the pilot light thermocouple. I'm not totally clear on what part is the "heat exchanger." I'm in California, we run the A/C frequently during the summer, and the heater frequently in the winter, but it's rare for me to run up a bill over $200 and I've never seen a $300 bill. The heat exchanger is the main part of the furnace that the ignited gas feeds into, aka the big sqiggly metal thing:  It's what makes up most of a gas furnace, and replacing one is a bitch of an affair that requires taking pretty much the entire unit apart. But, like I said earlier, if it's working ok for you, then just wait it out a bit longer then. Getting more insulation will definitely help more. That and getting any air intrusion sealed up. However, if you are planning to replace the ductwork at some point, I'd start budgeting for a new unit at that point. It just makes sense at that point to connect a new unit to everything, especially if it's a trunk line you're replacing. Plus it means less fiddling around trying to make a 4-piece to connect the old unit up.
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Jan 2, 2018 01:54
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Leperflesh posted:I actually don't know exactly how old the A/C components are. The furnace is a Payne, with an inspection chart first dated April 1978. The evaporator unit on top could be newer, although it doesn't look it. Recent repairs have been to replace the fan motor on the outdoor condenser unit, and repair and then replacement of the pilot light thermocouple. I'm not totally clear on what part is the "heat exchanger." I'm in California, we run the A/C frequently during the summer, and the heater frequently in the winter, but it's rare for me to run up a bill over $200 and I've never seen a $300 bill. Yeah you are long overdue. Get a home energy audit and have the state cut you a big check to help offset the cost of your repairs. You might be surprised by how much nicer your home is after doing it. Your new unit will use a lot less energy (electricity and gas) for a lot more btu's exchanged. I wouldn't put another penny into your system as-is if you can afford it. Our bills dropped dramatically for a much higher level of comfort. For the same electric bill I was paying before to have the ac losing ground at 100% duty cycle to try to hit 78f I can keep it at 73 all day long with the unit only cycling on occasionally in the dead of summer. (100+ outside temp.) our winter heating bill is cut in half.
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Jan 2, 2018 02:12
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Got keys to my house on the 29th. PO stopped electrical servoce on the 31st. Despite requesting my service to start immediately on the 1st, looks like they didn't do that because now the power is off and the pipes are frozen. I guess best I can do is just look for signs of water tomorrow as hopefully the power comes back, heat kicks in, and things thaw?
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Jan 2, 2018 02:34
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I'm about to go get quotes to pull and replace a patch of wood floor, then refinish the whole thing. Also new carpet for the bedrooms. I hate dealing with contractors.
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Jan 3, 2018 14:52
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No Butt Stuff posted:I hate dealing with contractors. Same. It seems like the kind of thing that only gets better with practice, but that can definitely be a costly learning experience.
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Jan 3, 2018 15:51
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We really lucked out with flooring. Someone recommended this small crew that is a father and sons that you would never be able to find on your own. The work is solid and they're way cheaper than they need to be.
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Jan 3, 2018 16:00
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totalnewbie posted:Got keys to my house on the 29th. PO stopped electrical servoce on the 31st. Despite requesting my service to start immediately on the 1st, looks like they didn't do that because now the power is off and the pipes are frozen. I guess best I can do is just look for signs of water tomorrow as hopefully the power comes back, heat kicks in, and things thaw? More in this saga - I called electric company this morning and they got the power on. But, I also get an email confirmation for my STOP SERVICE request. What the gently caress... oh well, I'll call them to get it sorted out. Wait, no, there's a bunch of power outages around so they're not answering phones at this time. Awesome! Edit: got them on the phone, the stop service request WAS scheduled, I made them cancel it. But then they called back 5 minutes later asking if I had power, because it showed in their system that I didn't - I did. What the gently caress, ugh. Damage so far: Bath tub faucet Kitchen faucet's hand wash thing Upstairs bathroom cold water pipe to the sink (need to tear up the tile floor to fix) Upstairs bathroom hot water pipe... Somewhere in the wall. It might be behind the stone backsplash/wall in the kitchen. This is going to be the worst, I think. At least for the upstairs bathroom I already turned off the water before it thawed. But I didn't turn the hot water tight enough so it still leaked just a bit for a few minutes. Could have been much worse, though, if it had been at full pressure, I think. More a few fast drips (like right when you turn off the shower) than a steady stream. Still, gently caress. In similar news, my old downstairs neighbor also had a pipe burst on his condo. Apparently his mother paid for it in cash and they don't have homeowners insurance. Welp. Note for the future: make sure PO does not cancel service, just has it transferred. This is going to cost me over 1k to get the house livable (only 1 bathroom). Also, valves that rely on a ball/spring are much more susceptible to damage than the turny valves. But this probably also means that pipes leading to turny valves are more likely to burst. totalnewbie fucked around with this message at 01:36 on Jan 4, 2018 |
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Jan 3, 2018 17:28
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First quote: 16 loving grand for a new furnace, AC, and ductwork, using the current refrigerant lines. And the sheet doesn't even say what brand. Whoops. Quote #2 tomorrow.
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Jan 4, 2018 02:38
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totalnewbie posted:More in this saga - I called electric company this morning and they got the power on. But, I also get an email confirmation for my STOP SERVICE request. What the gently caress... oh well, I'll call them to get it sorted out. FYI your post is coming off like you're a loving zen master, good on you. Mine would be littered with profanities, "why me"'s and more than a few "should've stayed renting" thrown in.
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Jan 4, 2018 03:02
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Cancelling service instead of transferring in the winter? That's nuts. I can't believe the electric company didn't warn them of the possibilities, unless it was all done online.
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Jan 4, 2018 04:53
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Higgy posted:FYI your post is coming off like you're a loving zen master, good on you. Well, I had an opportunity to avoid the situation but failed to act on it, so I AM pretty mad at myself for not following my instincts on that. I really should have pushed the PO to call the utility company and not taken a phone jockey at her word that "oh the power probably won't be turned off". That said, you bet I am loving mad that the electric company would turn off power to a house over a holiday weekend when they see that start service was requested for the next day (apparently it was scheduled for the 1st, despite being told the 1st was not available due to a holiday, and so my understanding was the 2nd, but the 2nd was ALSO a holiday for the company). Point is, I think it's EXTREMELY irresponsible of the power company to turn off service to a house when they are unable to immediately turn it back on, especially because it's in the single digits where I live now and has been for days. My own/house's issues aside, this could very well have been a very dangerous situation for someone who had already moved into the house. This is, literally, how people freeze to death. In no way should a company ever have policy or procedure that could lead to potential DEATH or at least a very dangerous situation for a customer. EVER. I checked my house again after leaving everything alone for a couple hours to play trivia and it was still dry, so that's good. Apparently one of my trivia friend's stepdad is a contractor so at least it looks like I'll have a good way to get everything repaired after the plumbers tear my kitchen and bathroom apart. Also, the bathtub pipes are easily accessible by a removable panel in the hallway closet immediately on the other side so that's also good if I end up having to replace that - my plan is to just buy a compatible faucet and call it a day because, let's be honest, I just need a faucet that works. But yeah, I was scheduled to move tomorrow, so I had to call the movers and apologize profusely and cancel the move. Thankfully the guy's pretty understanding and didn't charge me (I'd just used him to move over Thanksgiving). But most of all, thank gently caress I gave myself a couple weeks overlap in my temporary place and the new house because I literally wouldn't have a place to piss (well, poo poo) in my house. Did I mention my parents also wanted to come visit from 8 hours away? They're still arriving tomorrow - I kept telling them to wait until I actually moved and got everything sorted first, but of course they're not going to listen to me. So now they're staying in a hotel. Thankfully my mother is at least smart enough to realize how incredibly irritated I was and was just like "Yep, we'll get a hotel, no big deal, we'll just get everything fixed and it'll be fine" and got off the phone real quick. Maybe that's where I get the zen from. I keep joking that buying a house is the biggest mistake of my life, I'm really hoping this is the extent of it. In other miscellaneous news, the PO left a full 5-gallon bucket of used motor oil in the garage. Man I'm way too nice/trusting. But at least all I need to do is put a lid on it and take it to a shop. I'm rambling, but it's been a long day.
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Jan 4, 2018 04:53
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howdoesishotweb posted:Cancelling service instead of transferring in the winter? That's nuts. I can't believe the electric company didn't warn them of the possibilities, unless it was all done online. My realtor mentioned at closing that cancelling was not a good thing to do, but he (and I) didn't insist the PO call the utility company to change it. I think I'm going to call my realtor and tell him to just loving insist in the future because the amount of effort it takes is pretty minimal for the pain it can potentially avoid, especially in the winter, yeah.
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Jan 4, 2018 04:55
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Triple post. FWIW this is the comment I left the utility company (DTE)quote:I would sincerely like to know how DTE policy and/or procedures could lead to a stoppage of service (electrical) without the ability to restart service immediately. In this case, not until the 3rd. Edit: they responded with a standard format "contact us and we'll look into it" (which is perfectly acceptable as a public Facebook response) so I did and we'll see what happens. Maybe I might get a "sorry bro, get the PO not to cancel service next time?" But the really funny thing is I go to the website to get my account number and it's gone. It shows my previous address, my current address, and it HAD shown my new address but now no longer. A comedy of errors. totalnewbie fucked around with this message at 14:57 on Jan 4, 2018 |
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Jan 4, 2018 05:14
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Quoted $5k for a total HVAC system replacement. I guess that's not too bad to replace a 40 year old noisy, super inefficient electric furnace/air handler and 13 year old noisy AC unit. Off to the TN department of energy website to see what kind of rebates I can get for doing all of this. I'm not going to say DO NEVER BUY. Do buy sometimes, but know what you are getting into. Goodbye home emergency fund and tax return!
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Jan 4, 2018 14:30
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totalnewbie posted:Triple post. FWIW this is the comment I left the utility company (DTE) At this point, I would file a complaint with the State Utility Board so they can gently caress this company in the rear end with the long dick of government bureaucracy. The State LOVES to take the piss out of utility companies.
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Jan 4, 2018 16:00
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Leave it to owning a home to make inclement weather a cause of anxiety instead of cozy and/or merely inconvenient. In Jersey and currently my order of concerns are roughly: 1) Decades-old furnace gives up the ghost and we can't get a service guy before the weekend, when it's supposed to be back in single digits (I just signed up for a Worry Free service plan but it hasn't taken effect yet.). 2) Winds get too strong for the giant tree in front of us and it falls our way. 3) Winds and snow finally start blowing tiles off our at-end-of-lifetime roof. 4) Power goes out (realistically this should be #1, but I think because it doesn't mean direct damage to the house itself it got pushed down.)
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Jan 4, 2018 16:13
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Well Marge we're probably going to freeze to death but at least the tree didn't hit the house when it fell over
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Jan 4, 2018 23:34
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Living in places where the pipes freeze and break seems like a bad idea, we just have to deal with half the state burning down most christmases(it usually doesn’t burn the suburbs though)
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Jan 4, 2018 23:41
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My furnace broke last week while it was in the teens outside and was off for like 20 hours before it got fixed and it only got down to around 58 F in the house, so I guess if your house is at least moderately well insulated it might take you longer to freeze to death than you think.
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Jan 4, 2018 23:43
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My furnace broke on Tuesday and despite nighttime lows in the low teens, it’s only gotten to 45 once when I didn’t have space heaters running.
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Jan 5, 2018 02:39
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EAT FASTER!!!!!! posted:At this point, I would file a complaint with the State Utility Board so they can gently caress this company in the rear end with the long dick of government bureaucracy. As someone who works for a utility, yeah. Contact your local news. Utilities are so scared of them.
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Jan 5, 2018 02:44
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I got a call from the utility and so this was the state of affairs up until now, just with the utilities, after each time I talked to them (though I didn't talk to them on the 1st): 1/1: Utility in my name, with START requested (in system). Effect: Electricity OFF. 1/3: Utility in my name, with STOP requested (in system). Effect: Electricity ON and my utility account becoming "Inactive" 1/4: Utility not in my name, with START requested (in system). Electricity ON and my utility account becoming "Active" The only thing that makes sense to me is that somehow, the signal they send isn't a START/STOP signal but a TOGGLE signal. Somehow, the first one didn't go through properly to the house, so the system thought I had power when I did not. When I called on the 3rd to get power, they sent a signal to toggle my power, which gave the house power but actually removed my name from the system. Anyway, I'm going to talk to the insurance adjuster tomorrow and have them send someone out to take a look, because with where the broken pipes are, I'll have to tear into a plaster ceiling and, if I'm lucky, can get away with removing the stove and getting into the wall through a spacer between the cabinet and the stove. If not, it'll be time to go into the kitchen wall, which is finished with natural slate tiles, but large ones, like the size you'd find on floors. A little weird, now that I think about it. But yeah, that's going to be loving awful. I'm going to let the insurance company duke it out with the utility if I can, because I'm more interested in being made whole than trying to, I don't know, accomplish what by filing a complaint? Now, if at the end I'm going to be forced to pay a bunch of money then, yeah, I might go ahead and go down that route. All things considered, it could have been a lot worse - * I wasn't living in the house when it lost power (well, might have been a GOOD thing because maybe I could have gotten the power turned back on?) * There's no flooding (some water did leak/spill but it wasn't bad, relatively speaking. With the cold, I'm crossing my fingers there's nothing too terrible when they open up the wall.) * I still have a place to live, at least for a week and a half * I can always move my things in and stay with a friend or in a hotel, if necessary * I can absorb it financially if I have to (not to say it won't affect me). But the plumber I talked to today told me about a job they just finished up, where the nanny didn't realize there was a split heating system and the upstairs burst a pipe when the homeowners were out of the country. Water was flowing full-on for DAYS. They basically had to gut everything - even the stairs had to go. And it's in an area of multi-million dollar houses. He said they had something like 30 leaks to fix. So yeah, it could have been a lot worse.
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Jan 5, 2018 06:02
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What year is the house? When they open up those walls, lots of things may need to be brought up to code to pass inspection.
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Jan 5, 2018 13:36
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totalnewbie posted:I'm going to let the insurance company duke it out with the utility if I can, because I'm more interested in being made whole than trying to, I don't know, accomplish what by filing a complaint? Now, if at the end I'm going to be forced to pay a bunch of money then, yeah, I might go ahead and go down that route. This is absolutely the right answer. The Utility really doesn't want to be liable, but the Insurance company really doesn't want to have to pay if they can avoid it and they make it a business of litigating exactly this sort of thing if they have to. Unfortunately they may not aggressively full compensation, but it's definitely one less thing you need to worry about right now.
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Jan 5, 2018 14:18
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baquerd posted:What year is the house? When they open up those walls, lots of things may need to be brought up to code to pass inspection. 1924, but the kitchen was renovated a few years ago and the bathroom is updated as well, so hopefully this doesn't turn out to be the case.
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Jan 5, 2018 14:20
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totalnewbie posted:1924, but the kitchen was renovated a few years ago and the bathroom is updated as well, so hopefully this doesn't turn out to be the case. hahahahaha
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Jan 5, 2018 14:51
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totalnewbie posted:1924, but the kitchen was renovated a few years ago and the bathroom is updated as well, so hopefully this doesn't turn out to be the case. Please make a thread.
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Jan 5, 2018 15:12
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As an owner of a house that was built in the 1750s and has had two major additions in the 1800s and 1940s, I cringe any time I know I'm about to reveal work that was done by the PO in the last 8 years.
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Jan 5, 2018 15:19
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I could use some opinions from everyone. As stated a few days ago, my HVAC is on the fritz. The electric furnace and air handler appear to be original from when the house was built in 1976 and are horribly inefficient and can't handle sub-freezing temps very well. Even the newer outside AC unit is 12 or 13 years old at this point, and is old enough that it wouldn't work with a new air handler and furnace unit. I was quoted between $4,000 and $5,000 to replace the entire system with something new that will last a long time hopefully. My plan is to stick it out with old lovely system for the next few months (assuming it doesn't just up and die completely), and use my tax return, some savings, and efficiency rebates to replace it all in March, or worst case since the AC works fine, maybe next fall before it gets cold and I'd need the furnace again. Tennessee doesn't usually get that cold, and I rarely have to use the furnace regularly after early March anyways, and it can keep up decently enough with 40+ degree outside temps. After that though, there are a number of little things that bug me being in an older house. None are major things, and I'm not talking about "well, I just HAVE to have granite counter tops and stainless steel appliances!" or other petty cosmetic items. I would like to start fixing some myself (replace lovely shag-ish carpet with laminate flooring in dining room and living room, replacing original 70's yellow/green tile floor in entryway and bathroom with new, nice tile) and paying for things I can't or don't want to do myself (removal of asbestos popcorn ceiling, replace an old drafty front door and sidelight, replacing a broken ceiling fan on a 16' ceiling). Right now I'm paying down my mortgage by an extra $350 a month, and I was going to change that and redirect that $350 into house maintenance and repairs instead for 2018 to help offset the cost of some of these things I want to do. I know some of you are going to tell me I should be taking that extra $350 and just investing it elsewhere instead, but that isn't going to happen. It will either continue to go into the mortgage principal or into the house itself directly. Thoughts? DJCobol fucked around with this message at 15:44 on Jan 5, 2018 |
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Jan 5, 2018 15:40
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DJCobol posted:I could use some opinions from everyone. As stated a few days ago, my HVAC is on the fritz. The electric furnace and air handler appear to be original from when the house was built in 1976 and are horribly inefficient and can't handle sub-freezing temps very well. Even the newer outside AC unit is 12 or 13 years old at this point, and is old enough that it wouldn't work with a new air handler and furnace unit. I was quoted between $4,000 and $5,000 to replace the entire system with something new that will last a long time hopefully. My plan is to stick it out with old lovely system for the next few months (assuming it doesn't just up and die completely), and use my tax return, some savings, and efficiency rebates to replace it all in March, or worst case since the AC works fine, maybe next fall before it gets cold and I'd need the furnace again. Tennessee doesn't usually get that cold, and I rarely have to use the furnace regularly after early March anyways, and it can keep up decently enough with 40+ degree outside temps. If you put it into the mortgage, thats great, you'll be paid off early. If you put it into repairs/improvements, you may or may not see a value increase, but you'll surely enjoy the house more. Also, a new multi-speed HVAC system can be SHOCKINGLY more efficient than older units like you have. The thing will almost certainly pay for itself over the course of its life, and probably pay for itself inside of ten years.
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Jan 5, 2018 15:51
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MrYenko posted:If you put it into the mortgage, thats great, you'll be paid off early. If you put it into repairs/improvements, you may or may not see a value increase, but you'll surely enjoy the house more. Also, a new multi-speed HVAC system can be SHOCKINGLY more efficient than older units like you have. The thing will almost certainly pay for itself over the course of its life, and probably pay for itself inside of ten years. The repairs and upgrades I have planned are not really intended to increase the eventual resale value. If they do, then great. Like the biggest thing that bugs me right now is my master bath. The vanity is all janky, the previous owner put up horrible textured wallpaper and then painted over it, and lovely glue down vinyl tiles on the floor. I figure for less than $1000 I can buy a new vanity/sink, strip down and paint the walls, and maybe even replace the old yellowing shower/tub with a new one. With the $350 I would save a month, and the extra money I have set aside for whatever every month, I can have it done by April. And for the HVAC, your point about efficiency is pretty high on my list of reasons why I'm not really hesitating to spend the cash. I'd love to get something quieter too, since my air handler/furnace is right in the middle of my house in a utility closet, the noise it makes affects the entire house. And the outdoor AC unit is right outside my bedroom and sometimes wakes me up when it kicks on in the summer at night. DJCobol fucked around with this message at 16:00 on Jan 5, 2018 |
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Jan 5, 2018 15:58
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DJCobol posted:The repairs and upgrades I have planned are not really intended to increase the eventual resale value. If they do, then great. Like the biggest thing that bugs me right now is my master bath. The vanity is all janky, the previous owner put up horrible textured wallpaper and then painted over it, and lovely glue down vinyl tiles on the floor. I figure for less than $1000 I can buy a new vanity/sink, strip down and paint the walls, and maybe even replace the old yellowing shower/tub with a new one. With the $350 I would save a month, and the extra money I have set aside for whatever every month, I can have it done by April. Making your home YOURS is something that you can't really put a price tag on. In that vein, guess who discovered this morning that popcorn ceilings sometimes have asbestos in them, after removing all the popcorn from the master suite of his house?  (I wore a filter-mask, but I wasn't exactly surgical about dust-control, and the poo poo is all over my house, and has been for months while I finish other renovations... An asbestos test kit is on the way.)
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Jan 5, 2018 16:02
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MrYenko posted:Making your home YOURS is something that you can't really put a price tag on. Yeah, that poo poo sucks. I'm not going to try and remove all of my popcorn ceiling, just the low hanging stuff downstairs in the kitchen, dining room, and bathroom. From the research I've done, proper remediation would cost a few thousand dollars. Mine may be OK to self remove with a good respirator and glasses though, because it was painted over at one point, and the paint supposedly holds on to all the dust. And my test results were at like 2.3% where the threshold for remediation is only 2.0% I think.
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Jan 5, 2018 16:11
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| # ? May 29, 2024 17:06 |
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Asbestos is sometimes kind of a boogeyman, at least in residential situations. Old Transite board and floor tiles are, relatively speaking, innocuous. But stuff like popcorn ceilings (when removed) and pipe wrap are some of the more risky situations since you've got friable material and fibers floating all over the place. If you want to DIY that stuff, you should soak whatever you're removing with water, and get plastic sheeting and a blower or something to move as much of the remaining dust outside as possible. Or, just hire a professional. "One fiber is all it takes" is kind if BS, but for really friable stuff like that you should take precautions, especially if you've got dust hanging around a living space for a while. Also, note that a "filter mask" really should be at least a properly fitted half-face respirator with P100 (HEPA) filters. I've seen a lot of folks try to use disposable dust masks, and that just doesn't cut it. A good respirator isn't that expensive, and getting something with exchangable cartridges will allow you to use it for other stuff like painting or solvent use. I mean, what's done is done and honestly the risk is small and I wouldn't lose sleep over it. But for anyone planning a job, it's still worth thinking about.
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Jan 5, 2018 16:58
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