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I assumed he meant lock the door from the inside.
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Jul 26, 2020 12:31
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BLARGHLE posted:Those things are absurdly easy to pick or bypass, most are literally three pin single sided, which might as well not even be a lock as far as anyone with a pick is concerned. If you do want to secure anything in a garage, there should be a hole for a padlock to lock the crossbar in place, preventing any outside access. And I do mean any outside access- you'll be locked out too. My first options were interior-only padlocks through the track itself to prevent the wheels from raising, but if that is your only way out in case of a fire you shouldn't add locks like that to the door. Or add the crossbar but put a metal pin through it to prevent retraction on either side.
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Jul 26, 2020 14:24
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I'm pondering putting a small decorative retaining wall (really, just a step) into my lawn. I've used PTL for all my projects so far, but it's ugly and it sometimes warps. For this project I'm thinking about using redwood, and it won't break the bank since I don't need that much. (Think this, but half the height.) My question is regarding sealing it. It won't have much direct ground contact, as it will be mostly surrounded by air, gravel, or PTL. (I plan on making the base layer which won't be visible PTL, and then putting the redwood on top.) Still, it's going to be sitting at ground level, getting rained on, snowed on, etc. I was thinking I'd use a simple latex water sealer like Thompsons, but I remember with PTL that you have to be careful because sealing it too early can end up trapping moisture inside, which is its own problem. For my stated purpose, is there a better idea than just fully coating the redwood with a water sealer before installing it?
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Jul 26, 2020 16:08
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Well, gently caress. Just found a small crack in the foundation wall right above the basement drop tile. Hard to see the water stains down the wall but they’re there.  Time to call a foundation company! E: scheduled one for Friday. I even got to see the crack in action with today’s rain, which was actually useful to confirm exactly where I thought it was coming from. What’s really annoying is I just put in some fresh caulk and backer rod into the patio to house gap that is right on the outside of the wall this weekend, so there are definitely patio drainage issues of some kind.  
devmd01 fucked around with this message at 00:21 on Jul 28, 2020 |
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Jul 26, 2020 23:02
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devmd01 posted:What’s really annoying is I just put in some fresh caulk and backer rod into the patio to house gap that is right on the outside of the wall this weekend, so there are definitely patio drainage issues of some kind. High-five patio drainage buddy   Found out I've got a roof leak. Two, actually. It started raining and so I went out to see what my patio leak was looking like, and found water weeping out of the siding under the patio roof. Got up on a ladder and found they just didn't install any loving flashing where the house roof and patio roof meet. Just folded back the aluminum siding, slid in a couple shingles, called it a day. Just absolutely the laziest job. Some of the patio roof trim is so rotted and wet I was able to just pull it off with my fingers. These constant water intrusion issues are so frustrating, both that the previous owner obviously just let them fester, and at myself for not noticing them until now. Edit: roofing guy came out and barely looked at it, is sending a crew over on Monday to fix everything, including the rotted out trim board. 
Sirotan fucked around with this message at 21:11 on Jul 31, 2020 |
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Jul 29, 2020 22:36
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*I posted this in a different thread but I see now this is probably a better spot I feel dumb for asking this but based on the utility room photo below... Would you say the dryer is gas, electric, or not enough information to say for certain? I move in to my first house rental next week, and like a dummy I forgot to check to see which it is. I found this photo from an old listing and I'm hoping I can tell for certain so I can shop for the washer/dryer tomorrow, or I'll have to wait another week till I get more free time. Thanks! 
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Aug 1, 2020 02:18
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Hughmoris posted:*I posted this in a different thread but I see now this is probably a better spot That looks like a 4 prong plug for an electric dryer.
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Aug 1, 2020 02:32
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daslog posted:That looks like a 4 prong plug for an electric dryer. Thanks!
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Aug 1, 2020 02:42
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I've never been in a house that doesn't have an electric 240v dryer outlet, gas hookup available or not. Like Daslog I don't don't see a gas hookup there but, if you have one, it'll likely be coming out at the floor and that has a good chunk of the floor cropped out in the corner the dryer is meant to go. It's possible you have a gas hookup there but if you don't really care either way and just want to make sure you can use whatever dryer you bought, sure go electric.
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Aug 1, 2020 03:26
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Can also ask the realtor, they can probably check with the owner for you. Or contact them directly with whatever info you have on your contract.
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Aug 1, 2020 10:12
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Got the quote for my basement crack/leak. They want to do an interior perimeter drain system to help with water drainage against the back and side walls. $8900, wheee. At least it includes a whole new triple sump pump system as well. Especially fun after the $4200 roof repair last month! My coworker recommended this company, they’re highly rated, and they’ve been in business for a long time so I feel pretty good about going with them, but I’m still gonna get a couple more estimates for comparison. I’m also suddenly regretting placing my network wall rack in the basement directly underneath where the sump pipe exits the basement.
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Aug 2, 2020 14:19
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All of our sinks, over time, get moldy up in the aerator/filter tips. You'll be brushing your teeth and notice a little flap of black slimy mold flapping in the water coming out and know it's time to take them off and clean them. When we moved in 6 years ago we replaced all tips with these: https://www.lowes.com/pd/Danco-15-16-in-27M-Chrome-Male-Standard-Aerator/3646396 The problem was pretty immediate after that (granted we didn't have much time before these so don't think it's related). Why is my water doing this? This seems... not normal and pretty bad.
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Aug 3, 2020 20:11
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BonoMan posted:All of our sinks, over time, get moldy up in the aerator/filter tips. You'll be brushing your teeth and notice a little flap of black slimy mold flapping in the water coming out and know it's time to take them off and clean them. The most likely fix would be to install a water softening system. Before installing any system a quick test for water hardness and iron would be a good idea.
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Aug 4, 2020 04:20
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I'm on city water. In our basement, at the point where the copper pipe for city water comes in through the foundation wall, there is a sporadic leak when there is heavy rain. Is this the responsibility of the home owner or the city? I'm guessing home owner but had to ask. edit: it's me, of course, it's on the home owner. Do I call a plumber about this or a masonry/basement wall expert? pmchem fucked around with this message at 13:31 on Aug 4, 2020 |
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Aug 4, 2020 13:21
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HycoCam posted:It isn't super bad and typically way nastier looking than a health issue. Look in your toilet tank and it will probably be covered in the black slime. Magnesium in your water is the most likely cause, or more specifically bacteria living off the magnesium. There are few other items that can cause the slime growth, like older galvanized pipes. Thanks for the info! And yeah I replaced the flush valves on both toilets a while back and the tanks were indeed covered in the black slime. I'll get the water tested.
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Aug 4, 2020 13:29
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All this talk about water leakage reminds me that we’ll probably need to redo our siding sooner rather than later and I get so mad at people that cheap the gently caress out on these kind of things. I’d love to get to spend house money on some kind of quality of life/luxury for once rather than fix other people’s cheap poo poo decisions.
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Aug 4, 2020 14:23
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With Corona loving everything up the people in my state who do energy audits are A) doing their audits remotely over video calling and B) offering a bunch of extra subsidies because they have budget left over for the year. I'm not sure how many states are in a similar situation but it's worth checking into if anyone has been thinking about it. Anyway one of the things they recommended is replacing my water heater with a heat pump unit. With the subsidies it should pay itself off in less than a year from the energy savings which seems like a pretty good deal, but I'm a little lost shopping for one. Anyone know of any good sources of information on how to pick one/anything non-obvious I should look out for?
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Aug 4, 2020 18:16
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pmchem posted:I'm on city water. In our basement, at the point where the copper pipe for city water comes in through the foundation wall, there is a sporadic leak when there is heavy rain. The 2nd part isn't too hard to fix, if you don't mind a little digging. You'll need to figure out where the pipe is entering/exiting the house from inside. You should be able to determine where on he wall the pipe is and about how deep the pipe is. Bust out a shovel and start digging. The goal is to dig out the area around where the pipe enter the house while not cutting your water line with the shovel. Breaking your water line would be bad. Once you have the area where the pipe enters exposed. Clean the area with a stiff brush and water. You want all the dirt and any loose wall material gone. Then re-waterproof the area. There are lots of ways to waterproof. If the hole where the pipe goes through the house has any cavities, fill it will silicone. You don't want the silicone on the outside of the hole. Get a $10 bucket of pre-mixed concrete patch and put that on the outside of the hole. And for icing on the cake, you can spray the patched area with Flex Seal. But really, it is far more important to keep the water away from the foundation.
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Aug 4, 2020 18:34
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Wallet posted:With Corona loving everything up the people in my state who do energy audits are A) doing their audits remotely over video calling and B) offering a bunch of extra subsidies because they have budget left over for the year. I'm not sure how many states are in a similar situation but it's worth checking into if anyone has been thinking about it. Make sure you get one that meets your first-hour usage because, as I understand it, while they are very efficient at turning money into heat, they are not speedy about it.
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Aug 4, 2020 18:38
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HycoCam posted:But really, it is far more important to keep the water away from the foundation. yeah. I literally just had a GC fixing issues related to that this past weekend. Re-ran some downspouts, added dozens of bags of topsoil and mulch to fix the grade near the foundation. But, this is a hard problem to solve. The water today was from that tropical storm hitting the east coast. Like 7" of rain in 7 hours, in an area with a high water table and sump pumps everywhere. A street two blocks away was closed by the city because it was flooded out. So there was no way I was keeping all the water away from the foundation today. Yeah, sounds like I'll need some digging on the exterior to make sure both sides get sealed up. I doubt a plumber would do that.
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Aug 4, 2020 18:42
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My hot water tank is well beyond the warranty date so I’m getting nervous about it. Are tankless worth a look? Currently we just have 2 bathrooms so not heavy requirements for hot water. Just something easy and space saving would be kind of nice. Would like to either do a full house rebuild or massive reno within 5-10 years as well so it’s difficult spending money now, and living in a sort of limbo.
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Aug 4, 2020 18:49
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priznat posted:My hot water tank is well beyond the warranty date so I’m getting nervous about it. Are tankless worth a look? Currently we just have 2 bathrooms so not heavy requirements for hot water. Just something easy and space saving would be kind of nice. Gas or electric? If it's electric I wouldn't bother - they have insane requirements. For gas, indoors? If so you have to look at the airflow in and out - is there enough cubic feet of air to supply the unit and enough exhaust to exhaust it? They are purely luxury. If you don't have a use for the space consider if you really want to spend thousands more on a unit. Can you move it outdoors instead? Could you move your tankless outdoors?
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Aug 4, 2020 18:53
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We weren’t able to do tankless without a decent amount of labor- our gas hot water tank vents to the chimney and tankless can’t, apparently so the money/space just wasn’t worth it.
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Aug 4, 2020 19:07
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H110Hawk posted:Gas or electric? If it's electric I wouldn't bother - they have insane requirements. For gas, indoors? If so you have to look at the airflow in and out - is there enough cubic feet of air to supply the unit and enough exhaust to exhaust it? It has an existing gas tank on there now, indoors, with all the venting etc. I didn’t realize they cost that much more, they looked to be a but more but significant rebates bring it to almost the same but then I’m not including potential install costs too. Probably just go with another gas tank one, some decent brand like Rheem.
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Aug 4, 2020 19:26
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H110Hawk posted:Gas or electric? If it's electric I wouldn't bother - they have insane requirements. For gas, indoors? If so you have to look at the airflow in and out - is there enough cubic feet of air to supply the unit and enough exhaust to exhaust it? Perhaps there's a difference in market, but if a "tankless heater" is what we'd call a "combi boiler" then you don't have to worry about airflow because it draws air in from the same flue it exhausts from (but, you know, safely). Something like this: https://www.worcester-bosch.co.uk/professional/products/boilers/greenstar-cdi-compact They cost about $1500 for a beefy top of the line brand with loads of capacity. I run two bathrooms and 200sqm of underfloor heating off mine.
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Aug 4, 2020 19:37
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Jaded Burnout posted:Perhaps there's a difference in market, but if a "tankless heater" is what we'd call a "combi boiler" then you don't have to worry about airflow because it draws air in from the same flue it exhausts from (but, you know, safely). Combi boilers are pretty rare in North America. I have one and it's really hard to get it repaired because a lot of HVAC guys have never seen one before.
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Aug 4, 2020 20:43
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Wallet posted:Anyway one of the things they recommended is replacing my water heater with a heat pump unit. With the subsidies it should pay itself off in less than a year from the energy savings which seems like a pretty good deal, but I'm a little lost shopping for one. Anyone know of any good sources of information on how to pick one/anything non-obvious I should look out for? I recommend the Rheem hybrid WHs. They're the most reliable and efficient models out there. Home Depot carries them, if you want to DIY. The only considerations over a standard electric are that it needs to be installed in a open space (not those stupid closets) at least 10x10x7, they are taller than a typical electric unit, and you'll need to deal with condensate. Pretty quiet, but not silent, so you wouldn't want to put one in a living space. Mine will pay for itself in reduced electric by next year (3 years), and helps dehumidify my basement in the Summer.
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Aug 4, 2020 21:04
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Jaded Burnout posted:Perhaps there's a difference in market, but if a "tankless heater" is what we'd call a "combi boiler" then you don't have to worry about airflow because it draws air in from the same flue it exhausts from (but, you know, safely). There you go, I didn't realize they made them as a combined intake/exhaust system. Magic. I don't know anyone who has a combination one, but I also live in Southern California where no one has a boiler to heat their house. I don't see why that wouldn't work for a regular tankless system though which just does on demand hot water. Rheem seems to make one for their combination systems.
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Aug 4, 2020 21:07
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B-Nasty posted:I recommend the Rheem hybrid WHs. They're the most reliable and efficient models out there. Home Depot carries them, if you want to DIY.
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Aug 4, 2020 23:18
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Wallet posted:I have to have it installed by a licensed plumber to get the rebate so I can't DIY it even if I wanted to, but happy to have a specific recommendation. It's in an open basement so the space isn't an issue and the condensate should be easy to handle though the ceiling is not very tall so I will have to watch out for that. The power company rebate on mine didn't require a 'pro' install, they just sent a guy out to look at it who said 'yep, it's installed.' You need a about a foot higher than the top of the unit to remove the air filter for cleaning, and because it intakes air from a vent on the top of the unit. Sounds like you have a setup that will work well for it.
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Aug 5, 2020 14:05
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to get the rebate for a thermostat of like 100 bux I needed it installed by a freekin contractor. I did find my other power company (for apartment while I had it for a month after closing on home) just gave me 100 bux off a thermostat so I did that. I get that they want it actually installed so folks aren't getting a rebate by buying it at home depot then returning it, but for a thermostat it's basically a wash for installation.
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Aug 5, 2020 14:46
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Hello house thread. My fiancee and I just moved into our first house in LA. It's a rental owned by a couple in their late 30s/early 40s so it's not a corporate landlord and the landlord is a bit protective of the house. It's a pretty cool place with a nice star wars mural on the front, 2 bed, 2 bath with a 1.5 car garage. There are 2 houses on the property - ours is the big house and there's a 1BR back house with a separate tenant. The back house is covered in SolarCity panels so the owner actually doesn't charge us for electricity since the solar is cost neutral, or so he says. Unfortunately Spectrum Cable sucks so we're trying to get AT&T fiber installed and it's been a bit of an ordeal. The living room is the northwest corner of the house, with the current cable jack is in the living room on the west wall next to some builtins which are impractical for putting a TV or anything. The landlord of course wants the fiber installed right next to cable jack in the living room since he doesn't want any new holes cut in the original hardwood floors, or in the walls. The current jack is near approximately nothing - our TV is in a different room, my office is in the southeast corner furthest away from the living room and running ethernet to the office is a pain in the butt. Ideally I'd like to have both cable and fiber coming in to the office so my computers have wired access. Anyway, electricity and cable all come in on the east wall. Spectrum's cable currently goes in through the crawlspace from the east wall and pops up in the living room. The AT&T duder spent like an hour crawling around and apparently, there's no way to easy way to run the fiber from the east wall to the living room. They did seismic retrofitting (See: LA) a while back so the crawlspace isn't a big open space - there are big retaining walls under the house and only 6x12" holes for running cables in the walls. He wasn't able to do it himself and said we'll likely have to cut the spectrum cable, use it as fish wire to pull the fiber through the crawl space use the existing cable to pull the fiber through (and probably another rope to pull back the spectrum cable line). Also they were about to run the fiber from a pole in the alley behind the back house on the property which would have sucked. Until a new crew showed up and were like "that's dumb as hell, we'll just run fiber from the pole from the front like they did with cable". Anyway right now we have a loop of fiber coiled up ready to be fished under the house.
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Aug 7, 2020 06:09
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I’m not going to read all that but put the fiber gateway in the garage or utility closet and use Powerline Ethernet or coax ethernet gateway to run over existing power and cable lines
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Aug 7, 2020 16:12
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Garage is below the house since it's built on a hill and there's a huge retaining wall between it and the crawlspace. Speaking of garage, here's one of the jankier things - apparently the PO was irritated at the fact that to get from the house to the garage you had to go outside,   So he built this janky staircase at the back of the garage and this trapdoor in the entryway. The gas strut there isn't enough to hold it up so we need to put a metal rod in place to keep it from slamming shut. Of course there's no handrails.
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Aug 7, 2020 17:02
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That owns It actually looks really well done aside from the support issue
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Aug 7, 2020 17:08
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The door is good, but i think the landing is just hanging from metal straps from the ceiling. Everything about that staircase flexes a bit too much for comfort.
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Aug 7, 2020 17:12
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That's really awesome and you should absolutely fix it up to be more stable and safe. The PO should have had it open up like an upside down attic door, so that the sides could have folding railings that pop up when you open it.
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Aug 7, 2020 18:14
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Something like this would be cool https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2DGyA2EOGH4 This trapdoor is somewhat of a project for the current owner who's some sort of engineer, he keeps buying different gas struts to find one that will hold open the whole weight of the door so maybe we won't need a rod to hold it in place
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Aug 7, 2020 18:27
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luminalflux posted:It's a pretty cool place with a nice star wars mural on the front, 
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Aug 7, 2020 18:44
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Aug 7, 2020 19:10
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