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H110Hawk posted:I would put it all in the umbrella. If you wind up hitting the umbrella nothing is going to matter, your underlying policy is getting non-renewed anyways. So even if I take 100k liability and someone sues me for, say, 75k, underlying policy is likely gone no matter what? I've never even had to think about these things before in my life but apparently buying a home changes a lot of things. Thank goodness we lost our offer on the place with a pool
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Mar 22, 2021 19:18
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PageMaster posted:So even if I take 100k liability and someone sues me for, say, 75k, underlying policy is likely gone no matter what? I've never even had to think about these things before in my life but apparently buying a home changes a lot of things. Thank goodness we lost our offer on the place with a pool Insurance pros will hand waive it away as unknowable, but large liability payouts are likely to get you non-renewed no matter what, or "effectively" non-renewed by jacking your premium into some comically high tier. Which they will again handwaive away Comcast style by saying "it's not your premium that went up, it's that you lost these discounts!" Just live your life and pray you don't cause a liability claim. If you do, it's why you paid for insurance and it will be their problem. Deal with it then. Liability insurance is cheap because most people never have a claim. It's like a high stakes version of that extended warranty on your TV. Do things to minimize your own risk of injury and it will minimize it for others, too. Like, non-slip flooring in your shower/bathroom, and don't have your gutters drain onto your sidewalk if it freezes near you.
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Mar 22, 2021 19:22
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B-Nasty posted:Hollow core doors are actually an engineering marvel: it's amazing they can trim down the materials to that sparse of a level and those things don't just fall apart. I've actually received cardboard boxes that are stronger. God drat it, the lovely doors in new construction enrage me. I now know exactly why.
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Mar 22, 2021 19:26
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Ugh, was planning on refinancing last week and now's gonna cost $1,300 more since rates have gone up (3% w/ 1100 credit to now 3% w/ 200 in points). Did not realize there were such drastic changes over a weekend. Should've locked in on Friday goddamnit. Also, when comparing two different rates / amortization schedules, is the best way to compare break-even points using a combination of the difference in interest payments and principal balance? Difference in monthly payments?
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Mar 22, 2021 19:54
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Motronic posted:This person acts like they have more knowledge than they do, so I assume they're just regurgitating what they read here and elsewhere. It gets painfully obvious at times like this. El Mero Mero posted:Not really sure why you're being purposely myopic, high-horsed and aggro on this or why you keep straw manning what I said. You do this in every thread. Stop it
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Mar 23, 2021 03:40
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hmmxkrazee posted:Ugh, was planning on refinancing last week and now's gonna cost $1,300 more since rates have gone up (3% w/ 1100 credit to now 3% w/ 200 in points). Did not realize there were such drastic changes over a weekend. Should've locked in on Friday goddamnit. there are a lot of mortgage calculators online, Zillow's is pretty good: https://www.zillow.com/mortgage-calculator/ edit: direct link to their refi calculator https://www.zillow.com/mortgage-calculator/refinance-calculator/ if you're trying to figure out whether to lock rates, this site has good daily coverage of the mortgage (rate) market: http://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/channels/ http://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/mortgage_rates/ pmchem fucked around with this message at 13:19 on Mar 23, 2021 |
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Mar 23, 2021 12:59
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Residency Evil posted:God drat it, the lovely doors in new construction enrage me. I now know exactly why. There's a dude who makes custom doors near me and they are beautiful. I don't know the cost but I want one. 
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Mar 23, 2021 13:20
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Yooper posted:There's a dude who makes custom doors near me and they are beautiful. I don't know the cost but I want one. i want to close that door really hard on a pushy salesmen and pretend it's the bottom of a boot kicking them in the rear end.
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Mar 23, 2021 13:34
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Yooper posted:There's a dude who makes custom doors near me and they are beautiful. I don't know the cost but I want one. I don't need Lord of the Rings doors, I just want a solid, rectangular door that feels like it has some weight to it when you open/close it.
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Mar 23, 2021 14:33
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Residency Evil posted:I don't need Lord of the Rings doors, I just want a solid, rectangular door that feels like it has some weight to it when you open/close it. Find a local millwork shop that specializes in doors and windows and get yourself some real doors (and support local/regional businesses!). My house is missing four interior doors (including a nonstandard one) and I will going to these guys for new doors. And windows. Like the fancy arched dormer windows with curved mullions and original to the house that are rotting and need replacing (with exact replicas, of course).
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Mar 23, 2021 15:52
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Residency Evil posted:I don't need Lord of the Rings doors, I just want a solid, rectangular door that feels like it has some weight to it when you open/close it. Queen Victorian posted:Find a local millwork shop that specializes in doors and windows and get yourself some real doors (and support local/regional businesses!). What's nice about using a local millwork shop is that a lot of them will also have access to 'stock' doors that are pretty good. So they will be able to tell you if there is a factory door that gets close to your requirements and, if there isn't one, they can build it in-house. A lumberyard is a good place to start, they might have a good millwork shop themselves or one that they're partnered with.
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Mar 23, 2021 16:10
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Queen Victorian posted:Find a local millwork shop that specializes in doors and windows and get yourself some real doors (and support local/regional businesses!). Tezer posted:What's nice about using a local millwork shop is that a lot of them will also have access to 'stock' doors that are pretty good. So they will be able to tell you if there is a factory door that gets close to your requirements and, if there isn't one, they can build it in-house. That's super helpful, thanks guys. Our current house is from the 20s and is built well, but it's good to know you can still get non-trash doors. Apparently I feel very strongly about doors.
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Mar 23, 2021 16:34
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Residency Evil posted:That's super helpful, thanks guys. Our current house is from the 20s and is built well, but it's good to know you can still get non-trash doors. My partner listens to a sleep-aid app that uses a mix of white noise or really, intentionally boring podcasts. Last week we fell asleep to a droning, soft-voiced lesson on the history and technology of Doors. She was out like a light; I was absolutely hooked, and looked up more information when it ended. Doors... are cool
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Mar 23, 2021 16:38
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Still awake before dawn He turned his iPad on Opened an article from the ancient Wikipedia As he scrolled on down the page He went to the frame where his door lived And then he... Paid a visit to the guest bedroom door and then he... Walked on down the hall And he came to the door, And he looked at the jamb "door handle?" "yes Chris?" "I want to lock you" "wife? I want to....."
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Mar 23, 2021 16:50
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All my interior doors are solid and I like it a lot. Older houses are the best. Door chat:  This is nearly 40 years old. There are two more outside in a courtyard that need restoration -- dry rot around the edges and the varnish is flaking away to nothing, but the center panels are in good shape. I really like them and want to preserve them. Any thoughts on who might be good to take on something like that without destroying them? I'm prepared to spend $$$$ on it unless new doors are $$$.
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Mar 23, 2021 17:12
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Yooper posted:There's a dude who makes custom doors near me and they are beautiful. I don't know the cost but I want one. I bet it's $5,000.
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Mar 23, 2021 20:10
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We just bought a really nice door for our backyard, it is a torrefied door from Masonite and it's pretty solid and amazing. Just need my FIL to completed the finishing on it. Set us back a few grand for sure, but was well worth it.
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Mar 23, 2021 20:57
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KS posted:All my interior doors are solid and I like it a lot. Older houses are the best. Find a (preferably local) millwork shop that does historic restoration/reproduction and get a consultation. Those center panels look like skilled woodcarving was involved (they are gorgeous), so it might be cheaper/easier to extract the center panels from the bad doors via carpentry maneuvers and/or paint stripper (to dissolve the glue) and build new doors around them than to have a woodcarver replicate the panels for entirely new doors. It could very well be that the doors are less far gone than they look and can be restored, or they are indeed trashed and you’ll need to rebuild them. You’ll find out with a consultation.
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Mar 23, 2021 21:03
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beginning to feel inadequate about my doors...
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Mar 24, 2021 01:26
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Right.. here I am thinking how nice it is that I have the 1950s solid plain doors in my house
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Mar 24, 2021 02:21
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GoGoGadgetChris posted:My partner listens to a sleep-aid app that uses a mix of white noise or really, intentionally boring podcasts. Last week we fell asleep to a droning, soft-voiced lesson on the history and technology of Doors. She was out like a light; I was absolutely hooked, and looked up more information when it ended. What’s the app????
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Mar 24, 2021 13:25
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Me at Home Depot: "Is the switch light almond or white...I'm pretty sure it's not white." Me at home, comparing the new switch to the old switch: "I'm pretty sure these are the same?" Me at home, finally installing everything, seeing the light hit everything together: "God drat it."
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Mar 24, 2021 16:13
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I'm looking to get a ductless heat pump installed this spring. My plan is to call in to some of the local companies and get a few estimates, but I wanted to know if there are any brands to look for / avoid and if there are any common pitfalls I may run into.
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Mar 24, 2021 17:35
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I have a Fujitsu system currently and it does a decent job of heating and cooling. It had a valve leak and needed it replaced and a coolant recharge a couple of years ago at around 10 years old. One thing to keep in mind is you can get a single outside unit with multiple heads and have smaller mini splits in multiple rooms. I would recommend this if it is an older house without an open plan or you have multiple floors.
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Mar 24, 2021 17:42
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Residency Evil posted:Me at Home Depot: "Is the switch light almond or white...I'm pretty sure it's not white." I have lived this. I will soon live this again. It's good that face plates and whatnot are cheap.
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Mar 24, 2021 18:22
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Keyser_Soze posted:I bet it's $5,000. A 'stock' wood door with a curved top ran $2,100 cost the last time I ordered one in early 2020 (TruStile made it). That's before install, overhead, finishing, hardware, and matching trim. So $5,000 installed isn't far off. just a kazoo posted:I'm looking to get a ductless heat pump installed this spring. My plan is to call in to some of the local companies and get a few estimates, but I wanted to know if there are any brands to look for / avoid and if there are any common pitfalls I may run into. It's not a perfect way to judge, but installers will have a 'rating' from the manufacturer - I think it's based on completing training and sales volume, but I'm not 100% sure. Fujitsu i think calls it 'elite' and Mitsubishi calls it 'diamond' I think. So that's a good first pass to find a contractor if you have a particular brand in mind. The part of the specification that gets glossed over the most often is cold weather performance. If you're just using it for cooling, don't worry about it. But, if you want supplemental winter heat, you'll want to understand how it performs down to whatever temperature you are worried about. I think the major manufacturers all make a cold weather model at this point, for example Mitsubishi calls it Hyper Heat. The efficiency of the unit is a little lower, but it performs better at lower temperatures.
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Mar 24, 2021 22:05
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Residency Evil posted:Me at Home Depot: "Is the switch light almond or white...I'm pretty sure it's not white." Why would you not get one of each and put the extra in the Pile of Stuff to Forget to Return to Home Depot?
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Mar 25, 2021 00:06
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ChineseBuffet posted:Why would you not get one of each and put the extra in the Pile of Stuff to Forget to Return to Home Depot? I gave up on that system long ago and just have a Donate to Habitat ReStore pile now.
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Mar 25, 2021 00:22
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Residency Evil posted:Me at Home Depot: "Is the switch light almond or white...I'm pretty sure it's not white." I did absolutely this two days ago. It doesn't help that there's 90 different light bulbs right behind me in that aisle all throwing different temperatures of light.
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Mar 25, 2021 00:30
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Nothing feels better than taking a handful of old 70's phone wiring in the attic and just ripping that poo poo out.
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Mar 25, 2021 01:47
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I have a light fixture that is a pain in the rear end to replace bulbs in. It has a large glass piece inside of a brass holder that is screwed on opposite sides with two little Phillips head screws, and it's about 12" across. So of course the LED bulbs were part of a defective set I bought, a pack of six and all died within about 18 months. Also its in my toilet and shower room and I shower before it's light out so I had to replace it. The first set of bulbs I got was also defective and didn't work out of the box. GE reveals. I got the second set yesterday, and they worked perfectly fine. One no longer works because I dropped it trying to screw it in and it shattered.
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Mar 25, 2021 02:09
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Residency Evil posted:Me at Home Depot: "Is the switch light almond or white...I'm pretty sure it's not white." This was me but with paint matching. I discovered that the white used on my walls is not the white used on my ceilings this past weekend 🤦♂️
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Mar 25, 2021 02:19
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Dumb question--our new house doesn't have ceiling lights in the bedrooms--which, don't get me started on how stupid that is--and we were planning on installing smart lights from Philips Hue along with Nest thermostats. I assume they have to be wired into the existing wiring system? What kind of holes in the walls are we talking here? Obviously I would hire an electrician to handle it, but I'm curious if anyone has any experience installing smarthome systems? Are they worth it? What do you love/hate about it?
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Mar 25, 2021 03:17
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I don’t know about the rest, but I personally really dislike Nest thermostats. I much prefer EcoBees. I have a bunch of Amazon Echo devices, Samsung SmartThings, and various WiFi and zwave devices and I love it all. I get irritated when something isn’t Alexa enabled. Even my garage door opener is WiFi enabled/Smart.
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Mar 25, 2021 03:26
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skipdogg posted:I don’t know about the rest, but I personally really dislike Nest thermostats. I much prefer EcoBees.  Meanwhile, I take a sledgehammer to any device in my condo that makes a beep I don't recognize.  I'm pretty sure I have the last dumbphone and dumb-TV in the bay area.Unrelated to the sledgehammer (I swear): I've discovered how much I hate kitchen appliance built-ins now that I'm trying to extract the microwave from all the cabinets built around it. The turntable is dying and making atrocious sounds whenever I turn it on, and now I have to get a replacement microwave that fits into a particular set of dimensions. *grumbles*
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Mar 25, 2021 03:33
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Maggie Fletcher posted:Dumb question--our new house doesn't have ceiling lights in the bedrooms--which, don't get me started on how stupid that is--and we were planning on installing smart lights from Philips Hue along with Nest thermostats. I assume they have to be wired into the existing wiring system? What kind of holes in the walls are we talking here? Obviously I would hire an electrician to handle it, but I'm curious if anyone has any experience installing smarthome systems? Are they worth it? What do you love/hate about it? Since all the smart home poo poo is made to replace regular stuff, installing it is the same as installing regular electrics. The thermostats are also made to replace regular thermostats. They may require a low voltage power source that your current t stat either has or doesn't have. This is a tangent, and my personal opinion. Center ceiling lights blow. The lighting is unflattering and harsh. The single point of light casts shadows facing away and it's inconvenient for anything where you're facing a wall, like a desk or vanity or closet. Hotels have good lighting to me. Night stand lights, lamps in the corner, desk lamp. If I was paying an electrician for lights I would consider wall sconces for ambiance, multiple can lights for general lighting (less shadow, more even lighting) , and table lamps for task lights.
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Mar 25, 2021 03:39
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who cares if the current switch is almond or white, it should be white, take that almond poo poo and throw it away. it comes from a time when everyone smoked inside their houses, so anything white turned that gross color eventually anyway. the only smoking you should be doing in your house now is a dab
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Mar 25, 2021 03:45
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Sundae posted:Unrelated to the sledgehammer (I swear): I've discovered how much I hate kitchen appliance built-ins now that I'm trying to extract the microwave from all the cabinets built around it. The turntable is dying and making atrocious sounds whenever I turn it on, and now I have to get a replacement microwave that fits into a particular set of dimensions. *grumbles* Built-in microwaves are on the easier side to match, because many models are the same unit with different faceplates. Like, there are two different sharp microwave drawers but it's the same box behind the faceplate, same with GE cafe, etc. So you probably can find one that fits from a functional standpoint, and then it just comes down to the faceplate and how that lines up. Now, old viking built-in ovens with side controls? Impossible to replace without nitpicky cabinet alterations. If you PM me the microwave model I can see if it matches any of the microwaves in my spec binder at work.
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Mar 25, 2021 03:46
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StormDrain posted:Since all the smart home poo poo is made to replace regular stuff, installing it is the same as installing regular electrics. This is a good point. We're living in a cave lit by two nightstand lamps, and I want the new house to have additional lighting. I think bedside table lamps + sconces might be overkill for that wall, but you're right, if we're paying for an electrician, might as well get what we want. The can lighting is a good idea, though, and we were thinking of a couple of recessed lights along one or two walls. Thanks for the info!
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Mar 25, 2021 04:37
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Maggie Fletcher posted:This is a good point. We're living in a cave lit by two nightstand lamps, and I want the new house to have additional lighting. I think bedside table lamps + sconces might be overkill for that wall, but you're right, if we're paying for an electrician, might as well get what we want. The can lighting is a good idea, though, and we were thinking of a couple of recessed lights along one or two walls. Awesome! I'm working on a high end home right now and there's about 6 can lights per bedroom just as general light, plus some that are aimable. My kitchen at home has five and the first time I turned it on after installing them was "Holy poo poo this is bordering on too bright and I love it". I would like to reinvent the lighting in my bedroom but I already painted it and mounted a chandelier in it, so it'll stay as is.
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Mar 25, 2021 04:49
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