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Most of the time our basement is ok, except apparently when we have heavy rainfall/snow melt; we're currently getting puddling that is draining into our sump and getting pumped out. The walls are fieldstone. I realized that when the PO redid the roofing they left the downspouts just dumping against the wall, so I have fitted some extenders and tubing to direct that out away from the house, but I think by the time we did that the ground was already pretty saturated; so it hasn't solved the issue. I'd like to at least improve the way it drains (it currently just sort of wiggles around the floor before making its way to the sump) and at least find out if we can do something exterior. Out of curiosity, how close was too close for doing exterior work? We're fine on three sides, but one side of the house is about 4 feet from the neighbors fencing and that might be an issue.
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Nov 17, 2018 16:16
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Ashcans posted:Out of curiosity, how close was too close for doing exterior work? We're fine on three sides, but one side of the house is about 4 feet from the neighbors fencing and that might be an issue. Our house has about a four foot setback from the houses on either side. Not the property line, the other houses themselves. Our stairwell is a bumpout, so looking out those windows is like "oh no they've made a change to the Matrix!". Also we have both a front and back porch, so that complicates things too. So yeah, unfeasible and too risky to do exterior excavation for us. We'd all be hosed forever if something were to happen to one of the neighboring houses due to our excavation work. If you're four feet from the property line and the neighbor's house is further away, might be doable (they have skinny little trenchers that can dig a trench six feet deep and a foot wide), but get some consultations from basement companies.
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Nov 17, 2018 17:19
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We also have an old house with a stone foundation that weeps a lot when it rains. So far the best thing we've done was dump a shitload of top soil around the parameter of the house and it's dramatically reduced the amount of water coming in.
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Nov 17, 2018 17:48
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I have also been bitten by the dead water heater bug and now Christmas is cancelled for the next three years
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Nov 18, 2018 04:31
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I need help troubleshooting. We hadn't used our fireplace since we moved in, but decided this winter that we want to. I haven't built a fireplace fire since I was a kid, and that was just helping so I'm pretty inexperienced. Long story short: Used fireplace, and house filled with smoke. It's a gas **assist fireplace. Chimney was inspected/swept 3 days ago. Yes, flue was open. Only used 3 small branches/logs from a Bradford Pear tree. The logs had been sitting decoratively on a firewood rack indoors next to the fireplace the whole time. Internet says its wood is fine for firewood. We poked the branches around to be sure they weren't creating little smoldering smokey spots. It wasn't really a visible stream of smoke, but more like an ever increasing haze. It was bad enough that it set off the smoke alarm and we had to leave all the windows open for a few hours. Current plan is to install some glass fireplace doors to help contain if it happens again, but I remember as a kid sitting next to an open fireplace and not turning the whole room hazy. I'm obviously missing something. WTF did I do? edit: forgot a detail: When trying to create an updraft we just left the gas on for a bit, assuming that would heat the air upwards enough. Is that not good enough, is balled up newspaper pretty much required? **gas assist fireplace, with log lighter, from my googling for terminology Damn Bananas fucked around with this message at 20:55 on Nov 20, 2018 |
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Nov 20, 2018 18:52
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drat Bananas posted:I need help troubleshooting. We hadn't used our fireplace since we moved in, but decided this winter that we want to. I haven't built a fireplace fire since I was a kid, and that was just helping so I'm pretty inexperienced. Don't put wood in a gas fireplace. You use decorative gas fireplace logs.
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Nov 20, 2018 19:11
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H110Hawk posted:Don't put wood in a gas fireplace. You use decorative gas fireplace logs. JFC, this is a great way to burn your house down if that was installed as a gas-only fireplace rather than a conversion. Those things are not meant to handle wood.
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Nov 20, 2018 19:18
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Holy crap
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Nov 20, 2018 19:31
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You almost burned your house down!
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Nov 20, 2018 19:57
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Suck it electrical wiring thread!!
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Nov 20, 2018 20:18
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Guys, "gas fireplace" can be one of two things, and only one makes drat Bananas a blithering idiot. There's the gas insert type with fake logs, which is what most people associate "gas fireplace" with, and then there's a regular wood-burning fireplace that has a simple perforated gas line in it for augmenting/starting your wood log fires (my parents have these and they own). I HOPE he was talking about the latter type of gas fireplace and not a fake log insert. 
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Nov 20, 2018 20:30
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Yeah, sorry for my lack of terminology... it's the perforated-gas-line wood-putting-in type model. I wasn't sure if it could be called "wood-burning" if it has a gas line. Please chill yall's heart attacks. edit: gas assisted starter, log lighter, etc. Damn Bananas fucked around with this message at 20:58 on Nov 20, 2018 |
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Nov 20, 2018 20:49
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To create a draft you need lots of heat going up the chimney, and then the combustibles in the fire will draw oxygen in and heat up exhaust gasses to continue the flow. But a lot of things affect this, like especially the geometry of the fireplace itself - depth and height of the firebox, condition of the chimney, etc. It could be that you just have a lovely, poorly-designed fireplace that will never draw well, or it could be your fire is too far forwards, or you need to restrict the entrance with some kind of door, or your flue isn't opening all the way, or there's a structure at the top of the chimney that is preventing crosswind from helping to increase draw, or who knows. Realistically if you're already using the gas assist to get heat going and a flow of air and it's still filling your house with smoke, I doubt anyone here can help until you take extensive photos of the fireplace, the top of your chimney, etc. It might be easier to talk to your chimney expert - whoever just cleaned it - and get advice tailored to your particular situation. In the end it's possible that you just don't have a good fireplace, and having a wood fire means some smoke in the house.
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Nov 20, 2018 21:02
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Thank you! I'll give the chimney guy a call back, see if he remembers anything that struck him as difficult to get a draft up there. I'll be putting doors on it soon, and I'll keep in mind to make sure the fire isn't too far forward. I guess if it's a lovely design flaw then oh well, at least it's a pretty fireplace.
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Nov 20, 2018 21:15
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drat Bananas posted:Thank you! I'll give the chimney guy a call back, see if he remembers anything that struck him as difficult to get a draft up there. I'll be putting doors on it soon, and I'll keep in mind to make sure the fire isn't too far forward. I guess if it's a lovely design flaw then oh well, at least it's a pretty fireplace. How old is the house out of curiosity? Could you take a quick picture of the fireplace?
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Nov 20, 2018 21:25
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H110Hawk posted:How old is the house out of curiosity? Could you take a quick picture of the fireplace? Built in 1992. I can't right now, I'm at work but I'll try to remember when I get home.
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Nov 20, 2018 21:36
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drat Bananas posted:Built in 1992. I can't right now, I'm at work but I'll try to remember when I get home. How could you forget the day your house almost burned down on the internet?
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Nov 20, 2018 21:40
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So I bought a leaf blower/vacuum mulcher and used it to suck up and bag 9 bags of leaves today. Best purchase ever. It used up half as many bags, with half the effort, and three times as quick as raking and bagging by hand. e: The only "issue" is that it dumps the mulched leaves into a bag you carry on your shoulder which works fine but it's annoying to stop every once in a while, dump it, and start back up. I got one of the kits that let you dump the leaves into a 55 gallon trash can, and I'm going to try and modify it to dump directly into my city-required paper bags to expedite everything. SpartanIvy fucked around with this message at 01:55 on Nov 25, 2018 |
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Nov 25, 2018 01:46
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I had one of those at a previous place and they are pretty decent. But more trees = bigger hammer:  This thing has been working out great. I'm estimating the pile of mulched leaves is around 8 yards by now. I'll probably get it to 10 by the time all the leaves are down. I'm gonna have a lot of compost.
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Nov 25, 2018 02:08
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Is there a way I can insulate this lovely old window in my bathroom?
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Nov 27, 2018 21:20
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Something I wasnt expecting to happen in the fall/winter - cave crickets in the basement. Time to burn the house down
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Nov 28, 2018 01:18
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enraged_camel posted:Is there a way I can insulate this lovely old window in my bathroom? Temporarily or permanently? The window insulation kits like this are great for drafty windows: https://www.amazon.com/3M-Indoor-Window-Insulator-5-Window/dp/B00002NCJI But they're not really meant to be up for more then a season.
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Nov 28, 2018 01:27
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devicenull posted:Temporarily or permanently? The window insulation kits like this are great for drafty windows: https://www.amazon.com/3M-Indoor-Window-Insulator-5-Window/dp/B00002NCJI Yeah, I think my issue is that the glass and the metal frame get really cold/hot and I lose/gain heat that way. I haven't really noticed draft.
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Nov 28, 2018 01:43
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Sepist posted:Something I wasnt expecting to happen in the fall/winter - cave crickets in the basement. Time to burn the house down Noooooo those things freaked me the gently caress out as a kid, and I really don't wish to encounter them as an adult
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Nov 28, 2018 03:54
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A big rear end tree branch that's been stuck up in the canopy for as long as I've owned the house decided to finally descent and now it's resting on the power line service drop to my neighbors house that's over my property. It doesn't appear to be interfering with their service, and it's low enough that I can get to it with my ladder and sawzall it apart pretty easily but I have no idea how to go about getting the power disconnected temporarily so I can do it. I'll obviously have to ask my neighbor about it before I do anything, but do I or my neighbor call their power company and just ask them to disconnect power for a couple hours, or how does that work? Does it cost money? Goon advice please. e: big rear end tree branch *for Texas. It's probably only 6-8" in diameter.
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Nov 28, 2018 05:23
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SpartanIvy posted:A big rear end tree branch that's been stuck up in the canopy for as long as I've owned the house decided to finally descent and now it's resting on the power line service drop to my neighbors house that's over my property. It doesn't appear to be interfering with their service, and it's low enough that I can get to it with my ladder and sawzall it apart pretty easily but I have no idea how to go about getting the power disconnected temporarily so I can do it. I'll obviously have to ask my neighbor about it before I do anything, but do I or my neighbor call their power company and just ask them to disconnect power for a couple hours, or how does that work? Does it cost money? Goon advice please. Call the power company. They will probably do thr cutting for you.
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Nov 28, 2018 05:32
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That was the first thing I tried. They confirmed it was between the pole and the house, not a pole and a pole, and that it was not sparking or otherwise immediately dangerous and then told me it was "the homeowners problem"
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Nov 28, 2018 05:34
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SpartanIvy posted:That was the first thing I tried. They confirmed it was between the pole and the house, not a pole and a pole, and that it was not sparking or otherwise immediately dangerous and then told me it was "the homeowners problem" THat's strange. Here they have a little more interest in not having someone get shocked to death I guess. I guess call them again and ask how to get power to that line shut off. you would PROBABLY be OK to get after it yourself without having it shut off first if the line isn't damaged, etc, but on the off chance there is something wrong, I would want them to shut it off. I bet they will charge you something for it.
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Nov 28, 2018 05:57
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therobit posted:THat's strange. Here they have a little more interest in not having someone get shocked to death I guess. I'm definitely not getting near it without the power being shut off.
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Nov 28, 2018 06:05
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SpartanIvy posted:After googling it, it's apparently a toss up whether a power company considers the run from the pole to the house their responsibility or not. Mine (Oncor) does not. Are you SURE you didn't see a spark? Because I am pretty sure you saw a spark. I would sooner hit it with a flame thrower than gently caress with unfused power.
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Nov 28, 2018 06:27
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Yea I got cave crickets in my newly owned basement as well... assuming I should just go crazy with the ortho home defense sprayer.
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Nov 28, 2018 14:50
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I just bash them with a steel brush on a pole when I see them.
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Nov 28, 2018 14:54
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I think I'd rather have cave crickets than the loving house centipedes that speed around my basement.
Good-Natured Filth fucked around with this message at 18:12 on Nov 28, 2018 |
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Nov 28, 2018 18:10
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SpartanIvy posted:After googling it, it's apparently a toss up whether a power company considers the run from the pole to the house their responsibility or not. Mine (Oncor) does not. I wouldn't get near it period. Hire a tree service, let them figure it out. Even if their solution ends up being "we managed to convince the power company to deal with it", that's still worth money.
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Nov 28, 2018 18:37
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I called again and managed to convince the power company to come out and take care of it. E: nevermind they called me back and said it's not their problem SpartanIvy fucked around with this message at 19:37 on Nov 28, 2018 |
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Nov 28, 2018 19:23
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Glue traps are a excellent (but gross) solution for cave crickets. Scatter a couple of them around the basement where you think the fuckers might be coming in from, and you will see almost immediate results.
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Nov 28, 2018 22:00
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You shoulda just said you saw some smoke from the tree. That got the power company out to my neighbor's house real fast last summer. It was true in that case but that's beside the point.
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Nov 28, 2018 22:13
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Oh sure commit wire fraud.
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Nov 28, 2018 22:24
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Voodoo posted:Glue traps are a excellent (but gross) solution for cave crickets. Scatter a couple of them around the basement where you think the fuckers might be coming in from, and you will see almost immediate results. Also think about whether you might have mice/rats/etc around that you don't know about, because they'll also get stuck in glue traps and that can be pretty horrifying.
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Nov 28, 2018 22:29
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Ashcans posted:Make sure you aren't putting these anywhere your possible pets go, though, because if your cat (etc) takes a swat at a trapped cricket now you're going to the vet. Make sure you use super thick trash bags if you do, or only clean them up the same day your garbage is picked up so the horror is carted off same day.
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Nov 28, 2018 22:31
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