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I can't see the nest, no. All I can see is them flying around and entering my soffits in a couple specific places, so I assume there's a nest up in there. I'll have to go get some kind of spray and a ladder I guess and keep on top of treating the places where they enter.. Thanks for the help!
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Jul 8, 2019 03:29
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I'm trying to turn one of the rooms of the house my SO and I live at into an office for her to use. Originally it was just going to be a paint job, but scope creep has set in and now I'm looking at replacing the baseboards and redoing the flooring. This is the floor as-is:   These are some really, really old hardwood planks that have been painted and are deeply gouged (that divot in the second photo is about 6 inches long and a little over an inch wide) in multiple locations. I'm trying to figure out what my options are. Is the wood even remotely salvageable? Are there ways to repair that kind of damage that will fit in once the floor is redone? My initial plan after looking at the state of the current floor was to redo it with laminate panels. If I'm looking to do that, would it be best to just paper over the existing floor, or rip it all up and lay the laminate on a new plywood subfloor?
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Jul 8, 2019 04:43
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Baronash posted:I'm trying to turn one of the rooms of the house my SO and I live at into an office for her to use. Originally it was just going to be a paint job, but scope creep has set in and now I'm looking at replacing the baseboards and redoing the flooring. This is the floor as-is: If it is really old hardwood then they are probably worth renovating since it will be practically impossible to find wood of that quality for a reasonable price, if at all. If you look around you should be able to find paint stripper that's a paste you can cover the floor with and then scrape up the next day. It's not nice work, bit messy but it works well, I don't know the names of products available in your area so I can't point you to anything specific unfortunately. The gouges could be filled and then stained to match the rest of the floor depending on what you do with it. But then again old wood floors like that tend to end up like that anyway so you could just leave the gouges if they aren't in the way or cover them with a rug.
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Jul 8, 2019 10:36
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Baronash posted:I'm trying to turn one of the rooms of the house my SO and I live at ... The wording here instead of just "my house" makes it sound as though you might be renting. If so, don't put your own time and money into this project.
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Jul 8, 2019 11:21
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I have really old floors that were refinished and if those areas seems structurally sound my floor guys would have definitely just thrown some filler in the big gouges and called it a day. They looks in really good shape imo. Also it wasn’t that expensive when they had to source old pine boards to replace and match but those might be a lot easier to get in the philly area.
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Jul 8, 2019 12:14
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Honestly if you want to just paint you just need to put some wood putty/gap filler in those divots before you paint, you wont really be able to tell the difference. The same will go with a refinishing, as others have said. A good refinishing can make the worst floors look new again, provided there's nothing crazy like oil stains that are soaked through the wood. Though not previously painted, here's a before and after of my pine floors that had been under carpet for 30+ years: https://imgur.com/a/Fadbm5p
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Jul 8, 2019 13:40
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I just moved into a house with (primarily) ~35yo oak floors that are in pretty decent condition, however there is some variation in color due to renovations done over time and my SO would like to refinish/stain everything to be a consistent, new color. This is the flooring of almost every room in the house, so this would be a sizable project that would take many weekends. While I have the motivation to do the work myself, I have zero experience with redoing floors. Is the DIY approach a bad idea here or is this as simple as youtube videos make it out to be?
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Jul 10, 2019 01:36
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If there ends up being lead paint on that floor, is a chemical stripper still a good idea? Looking elsewhere, it seems like opinions are kind of mixed on whether it's going to kill me and poison my guests.tetrapyloctomy posted:The wording here instead of just "my house" makes it sound as though you might be renting. If so, don't put your own time and money into this project. The house is provided by my employer, so yeah, it's basically a rental. I'd normally agree, but if the cost of materials isn't too outrageous, I would be pretty keen to give my SO a nice office while we have the space to do it.
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Jul 10, 2019 02:38
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How do I connect this new light fixture: To this very old mounting system that the old chandelier used?  EDIT: Ok, I figured it all out. It's late and I'm going to bed, so I'll finish it tomorrow. Sorry to bother the thread! The Wonder Weapon fucked around with this message at 04:44 on Jul 10, 2019 |
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Jul 10, 2019 03:19
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The Wonder Weapon posted:How do I connect this new light fixture: I have a bunch of poo poo like in my house from old fixtures with wires that are literally coming through small holes in the ceiling/walls. Ideally you install a box and mount it to that, but all I did was to use 2in screws to firmly mount the bracket into the ceiling plaster. It worked for the previous chandelier and it’s working for the new ceiling fan so far.
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Jul 10, 2019 03:54
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Spring Heeled Jack posted:Ideally you install a box and mount it to that, but all I did was to use 2in screws to firmly mount the bracket into the ceiling plaster. It worked for the previous chandelier and it’s working for the new ceiling fan so far. Wait you're holding up a ceiling fan with screws fastened to the plaster?
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Jul 10, 2019 12:11
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The Dave posted:Wait you're holding up a ceiling fan with screws fastened to the plaster? That has to be a joke
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Jul 10, 2019 12:26
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Jul 10, 2019 13:33
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Thanks again for everyones help with my baseboards question. I'm having my floors refinished and asked my guy for a quote on replacing the baseboards and he gave me $1200 to do it which seems awfully high. I think when I measured everything it was like 160 ft total of wall space. Am I being unreasonable? I live in Seattle so shits expensive in general but that just seems really high. Is this something I could reasonably do myself? I have a buddy with all the tools/I can rent them if he doesn't.
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Jul 10, 2019 18:20
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Teabag Dome Scandal posted:Thanks again for everyones help with my baseboards question. I'm having my floors refinished and asked my guy for a quote on replacing the baseboards and he gave me $1200 to do it which seems awfully high. I think when I measured everything it was like 160 ft total of wall space. Am I being unreasonable? I live in Seattle so shits expensive in general but that just seems really high. Is this something I could reasonably do myself? I have a buddy with all the tools/I can rent them if he doesn't. It is definitely something you can do yourself, just make a lot of test cuts on scraps and really get good at measuring properly. If you have small gaps at your corners I’ve used caulk to fill and it looks good and paints well, there might be something else that people would recommend for that though. Make little test boxes with inside corners and outside corners to practice.
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Jul 10, 2019 18:55
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Remodel update: So I went to the county and got a stamped assessment record (cost $1) which indicates our house has 4 bedrooms and 2.5 bathrooms. Took it back to the city and the permit person looking at it was like "yeah, this is not worth arguing about", took whiteout to both my and their copy of the permit, and wrote in the right numbers. So that's been resolved! Demolition completed on Friday the first working day after we submitted our permit. The baseboards look solid and prior work on the electrical seemed decent (some re-wiring needed to be done but it was minor). All deliveries have arrived except for (1) Toilet, which is not required for final inspection so not high priority, and (2) Bathtub filler; the rough in already has arrived but the filler still needs about a week to come. This is only necessary for final inspection. Contractor is in the process of installing rough ins. The fan rough in has already been installed and the bath-tub rough-in was in the process of being hooked up last night. Tentative ETA is to schedule an inspection for Friday, which will be for the rough-ins. Following this two inspections are required: shower pan + final. I've been informed that they will check for the circuit breaker to the room being AFCI-compliant. This is an easy fix and is just a replacement of the breaker at the circuit box. So in other words, things are going pretty much as smooth as possible!
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Jul 10, 2019 20:04
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ElCondemn posted:If you have small gaps at your corners I’ve used caulk to fill and it looks good and paints well, there might be something else that people would recommend for that though. I found this dude's guidance very clear, though I've not had an opportunity to follow it yet https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9riTpAjyfLM
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Jul 10, 2019 20:54
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Has anyone here installed solar panels on their home? We're thinking about having some company do most of the legwork, but I'd be interested in hearing if they're worth the extra cost.
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Jul 15, 2019 17:13
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This is amazingly location and exact home specific. Most people are lucky to start seeing a break even on a solar install before the panels end up needing to be replaced. And that's with optimistic numbers on how your local utility will be/continue to buy back power (hint: they're all going to switch to wholesale or worse if they aren't already there). The only thing that has ever made a solar panel install worthwhile has been federal and local tax incentives.
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Jul 15, 2019 17:20
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On the other hand solar panels for heating your water rather than producing electricity are much easier to break even on apparently, though I don't have exact numbers to back that up.
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Jul 15, 2019 17:22
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Ebola Dog posted:On the other hand solar panels for heating your water rather than producing electricity are much easier to break even on apparently, though I don't have exact numbers to back that up. Yeah, those has been pretty solid in most places since the 90s, providing you have relatively moderate or low electricity costs - because while the heating of the water is quite efficient and free, just like in geothermal heating, the constantly running circulation pump(s) are not.
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Jul 15, 2019 17:30
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Motronic posted:This is amazingly location and exact home specific. How much of that is consumption-specific (i.e. how much of your peak production lines up with peak draw)? I work from home and so I'm actually around the house during peak production times. We live in a place hot enough that the HVAC is running pretty consistently during the day and I've been wondering how much of that could be offset by solar.
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Jul 15, 2019 18:00
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Hubis posted:How much of that is consumption-specific (i.e. how much of your peak production lines up with peak draw)? I work from home and so I'm actually around the house during peak production times. We live in a place hot enough that the HVAC is running pretty consistently during the day and I've been wondering how much of that could be offset by solar. Put your address in here: https://www.google.com/get/sunroof If they don't cover your area it's probably for a really good reason.
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Jul 15, 2019 18:05
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We had an inspection today and it passed with very minor issues, except one: The bathroom is required to have a fan and a light switch with a manual on, motion-off sensor (check). What was not mentioned in the building handouts was that the fan needs an automatic on humidity sensor. So I have put in an order for a humidity sensor attachment for my fan for $30, which I told the contractor to install. I told the contractor to "accidentally" remove it after final inspection.
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Jul 15, 2019 21:33
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Motronic posted:Yeah, those has been pretty solid in most places since the 90s, providing you have relatively moderate or low electricity costs - because while the heating of the water is quite efficient and free, just like in geothermal heating, the constantly running circulation pump(s) are not. Just how much power do these pumps need? Could you put a couple of cheap panels up just to power that? 
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Jul 15, 2019 21:46
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ntan1 posted:We had an inspection today and it passed with very minor issues, except one:
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Jul 15, 2019 21:48
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ntan1 posted:We had an inspection today and it passed with very minor issues, except one: I actively looked for and spent extra on a humidity-sensing fan when I retrofitted my bathrooms. I didn’t need any fans at all because my house is old enough to skate by on the “window that opens” loophole, but who opens those after every shower? Having a fan run exactly as long as necessary to clear out shower vapor seems cool and good? I did tape over the motion part though. I don’t need a fart fan every time I walk by.
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Jul 15, 2019 21:55
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ntan1 posted:We had an inspection today and it passed with very minor issues, except one: the regs are trying to protect you from yourself
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Jul 15, 2019 22:10
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Wiggly Wayne DDS posted:how big is the bathroom and what fan did you install Two fans, Panasonic with a 50/80/110 and the other with 110/130/150, in a 150 sqft room. They're fine. The regulations specifically here are so people dont use more electricity when turning their fans on and only were required from last year. The humidity sensors these days also like to break, a lot. There are many many complaints about the fan accidently turning on when it rains outside, permanently, and it's only 60% humidity. A timer switch is simply less likely to break. I absolutely know which regulations are for protection and which are not. ntan1 fucked around with this message at 23:05 on Jul 15, 2019 |
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Jul 15, 2019 22:33
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Motronic posted:
I’m genuinely asking, ... umm for a friend.
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Jul 15, 2019 22:42
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WithoutTheFezOn posted:What about for pool heating? I don't see why one would heat a pool with a PV panel going to an inverter then going to an electric heater. Why not use a tried and true hot water panel with a heat exchanger and skip all of the losses (and expense)?
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Jul 15, 2019 22:48
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I don’t know, but there are tons of homes in S. Florida that have 5-7 panels on the roof that I’m told is solely for pool heating. E: oh apparently they’re not just PV panels, the water gets pumped up to the panels.
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Jul 15, 2019 22:52
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WithoutTheFezOn posted:I don’t know, but there are tons of homes in S. Florida that have 5-7 panels on the roof that I’m told is solely for pool heating. We had those, they were great. They look fundamentally different from PV once you see them side by side.
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Jul 15, 2019 23:19
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H110Hawk posted:We had those, they were great. They look fundamentally different from PV once you see them side by side. About half the people we talk to say solar is great for pool heating, about half say don’t bother. I have no idea. (Gas is not a viable option).
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Jul 15, 2019 23:42
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What's the best way to attach some (reasonably hefty) string lights to my home and out building? I initially saw some videos of people screwing eye hooks to the underside of their vinyl (pictured in photo 2), but I'm not convinced, having thought about it some more. This is what the edge of my outbuilding looks like. The face is a thin, aluminum or vinyl sheet attached to wood with what appear to be normal nails. The underside is a just a sheet of...vinyl? It's not backed by anything. This is just my outbuilding, but I want to run them along my house, to a tree, down the length of this outbuilding, and then along my garage (which thankfully has an easily accessible wood board to to use.)  
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Jul 16, 2019 03:33
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The Wonder Weapon posted:This is what the edge of my outbuilding looks like. The face is a thin, aluminum or vinyl sheet attached to wood with what appear to be normal nails. The underside is a just a sheet of...vinyl? It's not backed by anything. That doesn't seem right at all. There should be wood under there. What's under the eave? A soffit? Can you lift it up and look in there at the back side? It's nearly 100% that if you sunk a screw in there you'd hit a 2x(someting) and be totally fine to hang your lights from it.
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Jul 16, 2019 03:39
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Hubis posted:How much of that is consumption-specific (i.e. how much of your peak production lines up with peak draw)? I work from home and so I'm actually around the house during peak production times. We live in a place hot enough that the HVAC is running pretty consistently during the day and I've been wondering how much of that could be offset by solar. Most grid-tied system plans, even those without full net metering, only do a true-up at the end of the billing cycle-- so even if your peak load is in the evening you'll still have gotten the full value of the kWh produced during the day. With demand metering you'd need to time your loads to match the sun-- doing things like pre-cooling the house for the evening in the middle of the day. That's where things like battery storage can help. I've had solar on my roof for several years now, I'm in basically the best area for it, and I'm on track to break even in the 7 years I planned on-- it's a best case scenario.
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Jul 16, 2019 03:44
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Motronic posted:That doesn't seem right at all. There should be wood under there. Earlier while it was still light out, after some fudging, I was able to separate the soffit from the vertical face. That's where I saw the board behind the face, but nothing above the soffit. I can try and grab a photo tomorrow. Since there's a 2xWhatever behind the vertical face, can I just screw the eye hook into that? I was initially worried that adding a hole would lead to corrosion, but in typing all this out, I realize it's already got nails in it, so that's probably not a big deal.
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Jul 16, 2019 03:50
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The Wonder Weapon posted:Since there's a 2xWhatever behind the vertical face, can I just screw the eye hook into that? I was initially worried that adding a hole would lead to corrosion, but in typing all this out, I realize it's already got nails in it, so that's probably not a big deal. I mean...in an abundance of caution you can throw some silicone caulk or something on the screw so water doesn't leak in (I'd do this, it's probably not necessary) since the screw head will be proud of the cladding unlike the nails holding it there. But this is potentially preventing a problem that might need to be acted on a couple decades from now.
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Jul 16, 2019 03:59
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| # ? May 19, 2024 17:27 |
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eye hooks and cable ties, mate .
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Jul 16, 2019 09:13
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