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GoGoGadgetChris posted:I'll spare you the smelly hairy details but this situation required the Big Guns If you used the toilet instead of waffle stomping it down the shower drain you wouldn't be in this predicament.
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Jun 3, 2020 04:20
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I have a garage door question. I have a multi-story townhome with the garage on 0F. My circuit breakers / electrical panels are also located here. I am thinking about what happens when the power goes out, and having access to the car, tools, breakers and so on. The existing opener works pretty smoothly, and is a battery backed (EverCharge) system. There's some kind of key hole on the outside that's rusted over, that best I can tell, may be wired up to the push-button on the inside of the garage, maybe as a key-switch or something. I don't have that key anymore, and I'll probably go disconnect the wire at some point. What's the best way if any to get some kind of manual key / mechanism added where in the event the battery fails / even backup power won't open the garage, I still have some way to securely open that door?
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Jun 3, 2020 06:36
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movax posted:I have a garage door question. Rusted over lock on the outside was probably something like this this: https://www.homedepot.com/p/Chamberlain-Quick-Release-Key-for-Garage-Doors-7702CB-P/303335537 I had one of these installed on my garage door when I moved into my new place because the garage had no other external door. This hooks up to the manual disconnect on the track so you can use the key to pull the cord from outside in case you lose power. Manual disconnect on the track should look like this, and if you don't see it maybe you just need a new cord: 
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Jun 3, 2020 12:08
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reminds me that I need to get one of those for my garage.. I've got an auto door and it's the only way to enter the garage.
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Jun 3, 2020 13:09
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Sirotan posted:Rusted over lock on the outside was probably something like this this: Yep, that looks like what it used to be, many moons ago. I guess I can call a local garage door company or something (I mean, I could /probably/ do this myself, but if it's cheap and someone competent does it, why not) to kill the old one off, and add that in. There's no other external access, so that would be the lynchpin of being able to access it...
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Jun 3, 2020 16:11
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The disruption caused by underpinning a foundation is directly related to how badly the foundation has moved. Our house was out by about an inch per 12 feet, so not terrible. We had to replace tile but that was due to the foundation cracking and not the repair. The biggest direct result of the underpinning was that the windows on the wall that moved the most are slightly out of square now. They don't open as easily and one of them lost the seal between the two panes. The bathroom on that wall has 24" tiles and no cracks formed. Of course, a lot of this was obfuscated by simultaneously discovering that our main waste pipe was more of a concept than a structure, so we ended up having to cut the slab to replace that line anyway, and it went through the kitchen and two other bathrooms, so... lots of things got changed. I can't tell you if underpinning is necessary or not, but generally speaking I would recommend for you to do things that ensure your house's foundation is stable.
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Jun 5, 2020 04:04
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What would y'all say is a reasonable yearly increase in homeowners insurance with no claims? I have Allstate and it goes up 12-15% per year. From 2015-2017 I just ate it, and then it hit a threshold where I had to ask Wtf? and they restructured it, I believe something to get me a "new customer" discount and something else, which came out to a total 22% discount. Three years later and I've hit that threshold again. I could make the same phonecall again, or maybe I need to start shopping other companies if that type of increase is unusual.
Damn Bananas fucked around with this message at 14:55 on Jun 9, 2020 |
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Jun 9, 2020 14:48
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drat Bananas posted:What would y'all say is a reasonable yearly increase in homeowners insurance with no claims? I have Allstate and it goes up 12-15% per year. From 2015-2017 I just ate it, and then it hit a threshold where I had to ask Wtf? and they restructured it, I believe something to get me a "new customer" discount and something else, which came out to a total 22% discount. Three years later and I've hit that threshold again. I could make the same phonecall again, or maybe I need to start shopping other companies if that type of increase is unusual. Contact a local independent insurance agent and have them get you a set of quotes. My Homeowners went down 50% when I moved away from Allstate. Someone has to pay for all those commercials.
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Jun 9, 2020 16:24
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How much have you all paid to fence in your backyard? I'm gathering quotes, but I'm curious what others have paid? One guy just charges materials then works for 16$ an hour which seems like too good to be true. Might come out to be the same price as a crew though because he's a one man band and could take a long time.
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Jun 9, 2020 18:17
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This is probably really location dependent. If I met someone who could give me previous clients as references that worked for $16/he plus materials, I'd jump at it. But I would need to see examples of their work and talk to someone who had used them before.
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Jun 9, 2020 18:28
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Found my quote - 408' of 3 ft tall aluminum fence->$8800 or so. That's from 2015. e: chicago suburbs gvibes fucked around with this message at 18:58 on Jun 9, 2020 |
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Jun 9, 2020 18:34
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My quote! 147' of 6' wooden privacy fence and 60" gate cost me $2200 and took them about 6 hours to install if I remember correctly.
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Jun 9, 2020 18:40
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I live in a condo, so I don't have a fence issue. But the little stuff I've done has convinced me that whatever you will do, you should get several quotes from several types of places. I got quotes to have a large wardrobe built in my master bedroom. Quoted prices ranged from $2500 to $15000, despite the fact that the designs were virtually all indistinguishable from one another, using the same materials. We ended up going with one that wasn't the lowest but was close, but they were also the only ones who designed something that wasn't something that I could have done on IKEA's "design a pax" website.
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Jun 9, 2020 19:31
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I did a little handyman labour for a guy recently to make some cash. He needed a second set of hands to complete a deck build he had contracted. It was 2/3 done. He had me mostly cutting nailers to add between the joists as he had no idea where his boards would end to be screwed/nailed down. He went on and on about the money he saved the homeowner for a real piece of custom work. It did wrap around their pool in an interesting way. He charged materials plus $65/hr labour. Later in the day he told me this was the first deck he’s ever built.
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Jun 9, 2020 19:57
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Labor costs vary wildly by region. Quotes for a fence are completely useless without location info.
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Jun 9, 2020 20:01
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146' of fence and a gate, and they took down the old fence. Cedar. $4100 in Northern Virginia in 2017. Would have saved $400 going with regular pressure treated wood. I think we got a couple other quotes that were about the same price, but for PTP not Cedar so went with the cedar.
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Jun 9, 2020 20:49
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 Posts were all existing for the longest strip, "right back" includes 11' of concrete work. Eastern Los Angeles County
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Jun 9, 2020 20:54
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Depending on exactly what that means, like $1k to $2k of the cost could be the concrete work. You can see that by comparing the pool fence cost to the cost for the other fence work. e. you've also got two gates in there. Yeah. I think that pricing is looking pretty reasonable. Leperflesh fucked around with this message at 22:23 on Jun 9, 2020 |
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Jun 9, 2020 22:21
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Leperflesh posted:Depending on exactly what that means, like $1k to $2k of the cost could be the concrete work. Yeah, it wasn't too much concrete but it was hand mixed on site. Somehow my swale which was 30'? long, involved a concrete truck and a days worth of trenching, ripping out plants, and form building, was under a grand from a different company.
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Jun 9, 2020 23:21
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Cross posting from the Kitchen Equipment thread in GWS: Hi foodgoons. Do any of you have familiarity with Ilve freestanding ranges? 7 years into owning this home and we can finally afford to borrow the money to remodel the kitchen. I'm looking at a 48" 7 burner Nostalgie model freestanding range with a double oven. They are sealed burners and appear to have the dual office burner design. They're about half what a Wolf would cost. I know parts and labor are going to be expensive on a European stove, that is expected. I'm just wondering if anyone here has tried them. It seems like people either love them or hate them, but Consumer Reports doesn't review them so no luck there.
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Jun 10, 2020 01:58
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We just had someone out to quote us siding and windows and... I just realized he left without giving us any sort of written quote. Is this as big of a red flag as I think it is? The last hour of it was some high pressure sales poo poo, so I'm already not sure I want to deal with them anymore.
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Jun 15, 2020 23:13
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devicenull posted:We just had someone out to quote us siding and windows and... I just realized he left without giving us any sort of written quote. Is this as big of a red flag as I think it is? If they have your e-mail address, you might get a digital quote later. That being said, if you got skeezy vibes from him and high-pressure stuff, he can gently caress right off. Get someone you're comfortable with.
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Jun 15, 2020 23:16
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That’s the main reason we went with Pella vs. Andersen. The Andersen sales guy pulled a bunch of high pressure bullshit when we made it clear up front that we just wanted the quote so we could comparison shop and have an idea of how much cash we needed to save up. I get that they work on commission but if they’re not gonna listen to what we have to say from the start I’m not inclined to work with them. In contrast, the Pella sales lady was super low key, no pressure, and was very happy to answer all of our questions.
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Jun 16, 2020 00:40
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I actually bought my anderson windows all via Home Depot, at a 25% off discount.
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Jun 16, 2020 00:48
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Yea, the more time it's been since that guy left... the more problems we come up with about things that he told us. He was trying to sell us vinyl siding + 8 windows for our 1500sqft house for $47k. Crazy sales tactics include: * Oh you'll save 25% off your energy bills * Sign now and agree to do marketing to save up 50%! * Some sort of demo with a heat lamp and complete lack of understanding about how IR thermometers work * LIFETIME WARRANTY!!!! * This will make your house value go up so much! * Prices are going up soon due to coronavirus! * Our insulation has graphite which makes it repel water, unlike that lovely styrofoam insulation other people use
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Jun 16, 2020 01:01
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How much would I regret trying to tear out old carpet and install new pad/carpet myself as a first-timer? I've done wood and laminate flooring before, but never anything with carpets.
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Jun 17, 2020 08:42
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Sundae posted:How much would I regret trying to tear out old carpet and install new pad/carpet myself as a first-timer? I've done wood and laminate flooring before, but never anything with carpets. How much do you hate your life? Unless you've done carpet before pay someone. I too have tiled/wood floored entire houses and I tried to do a very small bedroom and was replacing the same carpet/pad I had pulled up and it looked like poo poo and I had to pay someone to do it anyways.
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Jun 17, 2020 12:24
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Sundae posted:How much would I regret trying to tear out old carpet and install new pad/carpet myself as a first-timer? I've done wood and laminate flooring before, but never anything with carpets. A lot. It will look like poo poo because there is near zero chance you will be able to stretch it properly and evenly. That whole process is nearly an art form. And I get it - they make it look so easy. But that's because they've done it 20 times this week already before you watched them do it.
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Jun 17, 2020 14:49
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We've got hardwood floor on our first floor, and we're about to finally start our kitchen remodel. Could we put a different color and/or species hardwood in the kitchen if we wanted to or should such a thing be avoided?
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Jun 17, 2020 18:58
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Fair enough. Thanks for the answers!
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Jun 17, 2020 19:41
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MJP posted:We've got hardwood floor on our first floor, and we're about to finally start our kitchen remodel. Could we put a different color and/or species hardwood in the kitchen if we wanted to or should such a thing be avoided? What is the layout like on your first floor? If it’s open plan and there’s no easy delineation (like walls and doorways with transition strips) between the kitchen and other parts of the first floor, then changing the floor in just the kitchen seems like a bad idea. But if the kitchen is its own room, then I guess it doesn’t matter what the flooring is in relation to the rest of the layout. In any case, why do you want to change the floor? You can always restain and refinish if you want a different color of wood - that’s not a terribly big deal in the grand scheme of remodeling. If you’re worried about hardwood flooring in the kitchen, don’t be - it holds up just fine (I grew up in a house with hardwood in the kitchen and plan to put hardwood in our kitchen during the eventual remodel).
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Jun 17, 2020 20:48
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devmd01 posted:That’s the main reason we went with Pella vs. Andersen. The Andersen sales guy pulled a bunch of high pressure bullshit when we made it clear up front that we just wanted the quote so we could comparison shop and have an idea of how much cash we needed to save up. I get that they work on commission but if they’re not gonna listen to what we have to say from the start I’m not inclined to work with them. https://topclassactions.com/lawsuit-settlements/lawsuit-news/834782-pella-reaches-26m-window-defect-class-action-settlement/ I took out plenty of those that had moss growing in them when I worked for renewal by Andersen. On Andersen: that fiberx composite material that makes their high end windows so pricy is like Trex decking because they own Trex, but I'd get the builder grade ones and install them myself if the ones in my house weren't in surprisingly good shape. Also unless you have like a million windows it's probably only like 5-10% of the outer surface area of your house and would only save around the same amount, any window that wasn't drafty would do, but no window, wall instead would be even better. Attic insulation is where it's at. I always hated the salesmen's bullshit, even as an installer.
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Jun 18, 2020 02:50
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My house has 40 year old Milgard windows that still work so I'll definitely be checking them out when it's replacement time! Last year I replaced my support beams under my house though. I imagine it's going to settle again over the next couple years so I should probably put that off a bit...
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Jun 18, 2020 03:31
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Queen Victorian posted:What is the layout like on your first floor? If it’s open plan and there’s no easy delineation (like walls and doorways with transition strips) between the kitchen and other parts of the first floor, then changing the floor in just the kitchen seems like a bad idea. But if the kitchen is its own room, then I guess it doesn’t matter what the flooring is in relation to the rest of the layout. My fault for not being clearer - the kitchen currently has linoleum floors. There is definitely a delineation - we have a small hallway that connects the living room, bedrooms, and kitchen.
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Jun 18, 2020 14:31
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Nope, they were installed back in March. In our case it made a *huge* difference, the windows we replaced were the original ones from when the house was built in ‘96 and were drafty as poo poo. before winter I went through an entire box of window seal putty.
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Jun 18, 2020 14:32
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devmd01 posted:Nope, they were installed back in March. In our case it made a *huge* difference, the windows we replaced were the original ones from when the house was built in ‘96 and were drafty as poo poo. before winter I went through an entire box of window seal putty. 1896? Even the aluminum windows in my house from 1978 aren't that bad.
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Jun 18, 2020 14:51
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Dr.Donkeypunch posted:Anyone have any experience with battery-powered outdoor landscaping equipment? I’m specifically looking for a leaf blower and hedge trimmer. This is from a bit ago but heres my two cents. I have an Ego lawn mower and leaf blower. They're both awesome and I love them! I bought the mower with the bigger battery and I can get my whole lawn mowed (roughly 60 x 180 ft lot with driveway and a 1500 sqft house on it) on one charge. It handles tall grass just as well as a regular gas mower. The leaf blower gets neighbors admiring it every fall. It works awesome and can really send poo poo flying with the turbo button. Would highly recommend either one.
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Jun 18, 2020 19:51
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I got an Ego push mower recently and I love it but we must've gotten a faulty battery because the drat thing just stopped having a charge after 12 days (like, put it on the charger and there are no lights and it just fails to do anything). We're getting it replaced and ideally we just get a straight replacement instead of a separate product. I wouldn't view this as an indictment of the product at all.
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Jun 18, 2020 20:42
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I've owned 3 EGO mowers at this point and they've all been great. Started with a second hand push mower and it did well but had a few problems if my grass got too long/wet. I found a cheap second hand self propelled model and upgraded to that and it worked perfectly and hasn't ever bogged down. My brother just bought a house so I gave him my mower and used it as an excuse to buy the latest self propelled select-cut model. They're all top-shelf mowers. I have a ton of their other tools too and they're also all great. I would say skip the hedge trimmer and get the power head with trimmer attachment. It can cut almost the same thickness of branches that the standalone can but it has the tremendous benefit of allowing you to cut the tops of tall hedges and the backs of deep ones. I never use the stand alone hedge trimmer anymore. The chainsaw is also a pro-pick. I've used it on fallen limbs and to cut down small trees and it's a beast for it's size.
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Jun 18, 2020 20:55
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Also take a look at makita. When I bought my place I picked up an impact driver + drill to do some work. I then added an angle grinder, a hedge trimmer and a line trimmer. All of them have been excellent quality and you can get them without the battery so I've only got the two original 5Ah packs. Their garden stuff reviews highly and the hedge trimmer is legit amazing compared to combustion type ones- it's extremely light, silent and has no trouble with 1/2 inch thick fir tree branches. They're also easy to get after sales parts for.
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Jun 18, 2020 21:32
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