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Continuing our Reno®rets tour of our place and had some questions I was hoping smarter people would know the answers to. If this isn't the right place to ask let me know and I'll edit/remove but it looks like most of the the folks frequenting the plumbing/HVAC/wiring thread jump are regulars into all of them: 1) Does anyone know what the term for this type of shower drain is or how it's installed (I've removed the square grid cover?  I hate it and want to replace it, but it doesn't look like the drains where you screw the cover in place, and when I reach under the stainless steel portion of the drain it just feels like mortar mix or cement. Is it just a free-floating funnel into the actual drainage pipe? 2) Are these hvac return registers?   They look like ones I've had in other houses, but there's no duct behind them, it's just a cavity behind the drywall and between studs and doesn't go down or horizontally anywhere that I can see. The air handler/furnace is elevated (by 2 feet) but I can't trace how they could possibly be connected, or they might be something else completely. 3) Someone in the past (spray?)painted all supply registers and parts of the flex duct as well:  I've seen this in flips but this wasn't one. House was built in 1990 so I'm not worried about LBP, but wondering if this is a danger or health concern before I figure out how to fix. 4) What are these on my garage floor?  Can't imagine caps for installing bollards but reverse image search doesn't give me much else. 5) just for content, city inspection for our recessed lighting install is tomorrow, and this is where our contractor ended up.   One car garage may also be missing an overhead beam but that's a question for an engineer. PageMaster fucked around with this message at 03:47 on Jun 7, 2021 |
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Jun 7, 2021 03:38
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PageMaster posted:Continuing our Reno®rets tour of our place and had some questions I was hoping smarter people would know the answers to. If this isn't the right place to ask let me know and I'll edit/remove but it looks like most of the the folks frequenting the plumbing/HVAC/wiring thread jump are regulars into all of them: quote:3) Someone in the past (spray?)painted all supply registers and parts of the flex duct as well: quote:4) What are these on my garage floor? 
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Jun 7, 2021 03:59
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That was fast, thanks! I'll give the returns a test once we're clean up all the drywall dust; it would've been nice if they were upstairs since it gets miserable hot here. I'm going to assume since the return isn't in nice rigid duct my filter is probably going to be hit pretty hard with all the crap behind the walls?
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Jun 7, 2021 04:22
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PageMaster posted:That was fast, thanks! I'll give the returns a test once we're clean up all the drywall dust; it would've been nice if they were upstairs since it gets miserable hot here. I'm going to assume since the return isn't in nice rigid duct my filter is probably going to be hit pretty hard with all the crap behind the walls? You mentioned the house isn't brand new right? The dust that gets caught by your filter isn't coming from the walls anymore. It's coming from you, your pets, your clothes, the air that comes in from outside, etc. Your walls aren't actively crumbling inside and creating new dirt.
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Jun 7, 2021 04:28
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*painting talk* Funny this came up today/yesterday. We got keys to the house 2 weeks ago and wanted to clean and paint before moving in. I don't think I've ever looked at walls so much in my life. Thankfully the 10' vaulted ceilings throughout the entire house are stained tongue & groove boards and exposed fir beams because painting ceilings sucks. The walls were in rough shape. Built in 1955 and the drywall nails were starting to bulge out. Hammered them back in and dimpled the surface to fill and paint over. Lots of holes to fill. Inconsistent textures. Drywall anchors. Poor quality painting, drywall patches etc. Growing up, my step mom owned her own painting/wallpapering business for 20-30 years or so and during summers I would help out for extra cash. It's shocking how quickly a pro can finish a room. Watching someone edge perfectly with a 2-1/2" angled brush and no masking seems impossible. The things I learned: The end result is a direct reflection of the amount of time you spent prepping. If you spend the time to prep, painting and cleanup goes quickly and it looks much better. Clean the walls AND the trim. Not only will it help the paint adhere better but it will also help any tape stick better and prevent bleed. Be careful on trim not to take the paint off. Lots of people paint over glossy paint without sanding or priming so the paint on top doesn't adhere well. If you scratch or rub too hard it might come off. When taping, as stated earlier, firm application pressure helps prevent paint bleeding under so use a plastic scraper or credit card. Try to paint so you don't get it on the tape but in places you get some, consider scoring the seam after it's dry to prevent the tape from taking the paint off as well. Pull the tape off towards itself and don't go too fast. Fill holes with joint compound and learn how to use a putty/taping knife (push the mud into holes, scrape it away, feather edges etc). Sand it and apply texture to it if needed in order to match the current texture. I like 40 minute joint compound in the powder form. You can mix it when you need it and it won't dry out in a tub. It feels better to work with than the premixed. If the wall has a texture like orange peel or whatever, look over the wall with harsh uplighting or sidelighting to look for drywall repairs and poorly filled holes. Add texture to those spots with a sponge/a texture roller or the smooth spots will be super obvious. You can use thin drywall mud for this. Painting with a thick roller cover might help but not usually as effective. Lots of textures are sprayed on so it might be hard to replicate by hand. Good tools make the job much easier. Wooster Sherlock poles are great. Quick release, sturdy, no twist, locking roller etc. Get the smallest one you need. Get the accompanying Sherlock rollers as well. They just click on like a bayonet. They've got bearings for smoother rolling and the covers go on and come off easy. High quality brushes make a huge difference. Spend the $12-20 on a good 2-1/2" angled brush. It will keep it's shape better and the bristles stay straight. They're also more precise. Spend the time to clean them well before putting them away and they'll last a long time. Look on YouTube how to edge with a brush. There's definitely a technique and it takes practice. Spring for high quality roller covers. When you start seeing shedding debris in your paint, you'll wish you used a better roller cover. Wash it beforehand to get manufacturing fibers out of it. If you're sanding, I like the wedged sponges for hand sanding small spots but a pole attachment is also really handy. If you're going to take a break, load your brush or roller up with paint to prevent drying. It will be fine for an hour or so. If a day or so, wrap it in plastic and toss it in the fridge. Disposable tray liners. A 10 pack is $6. Just toss them out when finished and never fuss with cleaning a tray again. Buy a paint tool and learn how to use it's features. Scraper, cover cleaner, hammer/denter, knife, can opener etc. A round metal handle end cap is better for pounding in nails and dimpling a surface to fill later. We went with Benjamin Moore mid grade (eggshell) and it's a paint primer but we still primed the walls beforehand to help cover the existing colors. It's surprisingly thick and doesn't really drip or splatter. Ran $60/gallon. I really like flat paint but our last townhouse had flat and it was miserable if anything ever got on it. If you cleaned it, that spot would always be visible after that. The more washable flat is spendy. We calculated our sq footage of the walls and got exactly as much paint as we needed with very little leftover paint. We only needed 2 gallons of primer and 5 gallons of paint for 1100 sq ft house excluding the two bathrooms. We had a spreadsheet of the wall dimensions/calculations. 400 sq ft per gallon, 2 coats. Here was our process. It was a bit masochistic but the results were pretty good given how bad the walls were. I think I'll have to add a bit more texture to some of the repaired spots but I'm so tired of sanding/painting that I just want to be done and I'll be the only one to notice. Clean the walls Mask whatever needs masking Fill holes and make any repairs Sand (80-220 as needed) add texture if needed If lots of dust, vacuum. Wipe down baseboards and trim if dusty. Prime Paint - edge then roll Sand (this is a very light once over with 220) Paint - edge & roll This was my wife's first real painting experience besides "apartment" painting where you don't care about the quality or details as much as just turning walls a different color. She didn't understand why it was so intensive until she saw the final result. Like a lot of people, she thought she knew the basics but she needed a quick crash course in prep and painting. Colors? Lol. Take a wild guess. Grayscale. The wood floors and ceilings add a lot of color and contrast already. We'll add color with plants, textiles, artwork, furniture etc. Decorators white Gray owl Slate Baby seal black (just in my office). Lastly, O'Keefe's for hands. My knuckles cracked open and bled from getting so dried out and being washed so often.
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Jun 7, 2021 08:26
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In the continuing saga of awful contractor work by the previous owner, none of our front porch posts or columns were lined up or equally distanced, so we have to move a few of them to try and salvage it without completely redoing the entire goddamn thing. Every time we find something in this house that was done after 2000, it was done in the worst possible way. The slope of the roof over the addition funnels water right into the bottom of the siding and had rotted out the wall of the 1st floor bathroom after several years. Like you had to TRY to get it this bad. 
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Jun 7, 2021 14:54
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Whoreson Welles posted:In the continuing saga of awful contractor work by the previous owner, none of our front porch posts or columns were lined up or equally distanced, so we have to move a few of them to try and salvage it without completely redoing the entire goddamn thing. loving Gary, man. Yesterday I discovered that the basement lights are on the same circuit as the outlets in the bedroom turned office on the main floor because using an air conditioner in the office while also using a heat gun to peel old paint off the basement window casing tripped the 15A breaker. I know wiring stuff like that is common but it makes no goddamn sense to me whatsoever.
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Jun 7, 2021 15:43
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Johnny Truant posted:Is there a recommended paint brand that goons gravitate towards? We got a bunch of swatches from Behr because... they had a big display of them at Home Depot, lol. I did 3 bedrooms with PPG timeless. Would recommend.
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Jun 7, 2021 15:48
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Verman posted:*painting talk* I'd love to see pictures when you're done, if you don't mind. I'm always curious about how people paint and decorate their houses. And grayscale with wood ceilings is honestly something I'd like to see. As much as we rag on Agreeable Gray, there is a reason neutral colors tend to go on walls. Look at how many bad paint jobs we've seen with people who've tried to add too much or the wrong color. I have friends who painted their ancient Victorian bright colors in every room (the foyer had thick black-and-white stripes and old records covering the ceiling). It totally worked and looked great, but there's not a chance I'd try it myself, much as I like to think I have good taste.
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Jun 7, 2021 16:22
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Verman posted:*painting talk*  Amazing, thank you! About to make my partner read this while we eat breakfast, lol. Wooster Sherlock was exactly the type I was looking at, I'm glad I at least had one thing correct! Am I correct in thinking that the larger the roller itself, the more skilled the painter should be? I'm thinking of like a 9" or a 12" for baby's first paint job. Deviant posted:I did 3 bedrooms with PPG timeless. Would recommend.  Thanks for the req! I'm thinking we're going to go with SW Duration for the first floor, then use a slightly cheaper paint brand for the second floor. Def going to compare SW colours with the swatches we took home the other day. PPG Timeless looks a bit more expensive than Behr, so the research continues to pile up!
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Jun 7, 2021 16:31
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so the yellow is the previous owner's work (and these photos are VERY flattering, it looked ugh in person and stank like animal poo poo) i went to 3 off gray walls and a dark blue accent wall, plus new carpet:  
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Jun 7, 2021 16:37
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This guy's 40min video on painting is the most helpful video I've ever watched on Youtube. It's also very engaging to watch even if you don't have a need to paint. He's very good at teaching you without bogging down in minutia. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2eUxz_or2Qs His entire channel has very help, easy to understand and engaging DIY videos on a broad rang of home projects. Check out his videos if you want to understand a home project before you tackle it. FCKGW fucked around with this message at 19:45 on Jun 7, 2021 |
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Jun 7, 2021 19:42
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FCKGW posted:This guy's 40min video on painting is the most helpful video I've ever watched on Youtube. It's also very engaging to watch even if you don't have a need to paint. Thank you for posting this. I was going to post this myself but it got late and I already wrote quite the essay. His content is really good and should be a bible for learning how to paint further than just putting color on a wall. I've never really looked at his stuff outside of painting but it looks like he's got tons of great content. The other person I watched was vancouver drywall guy? He did a thorough explanation of mudding/drywall repair. Verman fucked around with this message at 19:52 on Jun 7, 2021 |
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Jun 7, 2021 19:46
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Verman posted:Thank you for posting this. Yeah, his video on tiling helped me tremendously. Reminds me of a Youtube version of Mike Holmes.
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Jun 7, 2021 19:49
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Haha yeah, that's the video where I have so far learned all of my painting knowledge. I saw a comment about him being the Bob Ross of DIY stuff and it's so true.
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Jun 7, 2021 20:18
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FCKGW posted:This guy's 40min video on painting is the most helpful video I've ever watched on Youtube. It's also very engaging to watch even if you don't have a need to paint. He's very good at teaching you without bogging down in minutia. Yes thank you. Need a good DIY channel to help me feel confident while I slowly destroy my home.
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Jun 7, 2021 20:41
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Pilfered Pallbearers posted:Yes thank you. Just remember it goes slow and miserable when you don't have experience. Expect to redo things. Expect it to take twice as long as you expected because you ran into a totally avoidable problem.
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Jun 7, 2021 20:46
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Pilfered Pallbearers posted:Yes thank you. House Ownership Thread: Feeling confident while I slowly destroy my home
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Jun 7, 2021 21:05
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Pilfered Pallbearers posted:Feel confident while I slowly destroy my home. Yes
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Jun 7, 2021 21:08
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SpartanIvy posted:House Ownership Thread: Feeling confident while I slowly destroy my home
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Jun 7, 2021 21:13
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The hardest/most difficult part of wall repair/paint/drywall for me is getting the texture right. Both of my houses have had a monterrey drag/knockdown texture, and blending that in, making it look good is the hard part for me. I do tend to be overly critical of my own work though. A patch I did at my last house stood out like a sore thumb to me, but my wife and several other people didn't even notice it when I pointed it out.
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Jun 7, 2021 21:32
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skipdogg posted:The hardest/most difficult part of wall repair/paint/drywall for me is getting the texture right. Both of my houses have had a monterrey drag/knockdown texture, and blending that in, making it look good is the hard part for me. I do tend to be overly critical of my own work though. A patch I did at my last house stood out like a sore thumb to me, but my wife and several other people didn't even notice it when I pointed it out. I am so happy that wall texture is not a thing here in NJ
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Jun 7, 2021 21:53
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Hide untextured wall sections behind pictures or furniture bada bing bada boom you are now Gary.
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Jun 7, 2021 22:30
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In our house, its interesting to see how people attempted to repair a hole. They went through the effort of applying joint compound with a knife ... but didn't press it in and scrape off the excess. They just globbed it on a smeared it, and definitely didn't sand it afterward to blend it into the wall whatsoever. Some of the small holes were filled with caulk which remained flexible and didn't sand so I just removed all those rubbery boogers and filled them properly. Those giant screw type drywall anchors are a bitch though. I had 2 that pushed right through the drywall when I tried to put a phillips bit into them to remove. A lot of the texture on most walls I see nowadays is just the natural orange peel effect from rollers which is fine. I don't think I would want something like knockdown as it would be really difficult to replicate or hide a fix. Verman fucked around with this message at 23:09 on Jun 7, 2021 |
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Jun 7, 2021 23:06
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So many patches of holes on my orange peel textures walls that were just done by scraping a putty knife of compunt across them. So instead of a little hole you get a 2" long chatter of mud. My tip for yall, do that, but then hit it with a wet rag and wipe off most of the excess. And dabble it over the hole. Then it's sort of textured and not chattered.
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Jun 7, 2021 23:18
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Guh I've been putting off the 1"x1" hole in my drywall for like a year now. My old housekeeper ripped the toilet paper roll holder off the wall when he used it like a handle to stand up from a squat, and when I asked if he'd fix it he just quit and never came back The worst part was the metal backing for the holder fell down back behind the wall
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Jun 7, 2021 23:26
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GoGoGadgetChris posted:Guh I've been putting off the 1"x1" hole in my drywall for like a year now. My old housekeeper ripped the toilet paper roll holder off the wall when he used it like a handle to stand up from a squat, and when I asked if he'd fix it he just quit and never came back LOL, this is me in my early twenties. I was interning at a graphic design shop and they had me using a giant paper cutter. I promptly sliced my finger, but I was too embarrassed to admit it so I hid in the bathroom until it stopped bleeding, then just went home early. At least I came back the next week though.
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Jun 7, 2021 23:42
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The orange peel texture poo poo you can get in a can works pretty well, just get a big piece of cardboard or paper that you can spray it on first to practice.
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Jun 7, 2021 23:45
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GoGoGadgetChris posted:Guh I've been putting off the 1"x1" hole in my drywall for like a year now. My old housekeeper ripped the toilet paper roll holder off the wall when he used it like a handle to stand up from a squat, and when I asked if he'd fix it he just quit and never came back That's an annoying size to patch. Are you going to make a California patch or put a single screw in the center to a paint stirrer?
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Jun 8, 2021 01:00
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Well it seems our washing machine has bit the dust; came upstairs to some loud clicking and a nice burned motor smell permeating the room. Is there a consensus on a quality washer/dryer brand these days? Dryer is also super old as well so I figure I'll replace them both at the same time. Washer is a traditional top load, and dryer is a gas front load. I've heard a few good things about Speed Queens, but who knows if that ceased to be relevant years ago. Not looking for anything fancy, would honestly prefer no digital display/Bluetooth connectivity/flatscreen tv for a fridge-door level of gimmicks. Also debating a new Dishwasher if I can get a store to give me a discount if I do all three at once, is Bosch 800 still the ideal choice there? There seem to be a few different model numbers for the 800 series - not sure if that's just handle/color options or if I need to be extra careful to get a specific one.
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Jun 8, 2021 01:27
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The Rev posted:Well it seems our washing machine has bit the dust; came upstairs to some loud clicking and a nice burned motor smell permeating the room. I think a lot of folks here are fans of Speed Queen (except the 2018 model, which is the one that was trying to meet a bunch of insane new efficiency standards and ended up not washing well as a result). Since we were shopping for a washer in 2018 and the place didn't have any past Speed Queen models available, we ended up with the Maytag equivalent: https://www.maytag.com/washers-and-dryers/washers/top-load-washers/p.3.5-cu.-ft.-commercial-grade-residential-agitator-washer.mvwp576kw.htm We really like this one (and the matching dryer) because it's built like a tank (laundromat beast machine innards), has simple controls with no stupid IoT bells and whistles, has no internet, has deep water wash options, and looks like it's from the 80's. Also super good warranty. This isn't an endorsement for Maytag in general, just this one particular model that was developed to compete with Speed Queen.
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Jun 8, 2021 01:44
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StormDrain posted:That's an annoying size to patch. Are you going to make a California patch or put a single screw in the center to a paint stirrer? What do you mean by the 2nd method?
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Jun 8, 2021 01:52
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Our plaster walls have a nice texture and dull sounds pleasantly, but goddamn if they don’t make patching or hanging things into a giant chore. It was really impressive seeing the plastering contractors up on their stilts when our neighbors got their wall redone. That is some technique.
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Jun 8, 2021 01:56
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FCKGW posted:This guy's 40min video on painting is the most helpful video I've ever watched on Youtube. It's also very engaging to watch even if you don't have a need to paint. He's very good at teaching you without bogging down in minutia. Clicked Hoping to see everyone's favourite Canadian and wasn't disappointed.
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Jun 8, 2021 02:16
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Inner Light posted:What do you mean by the 2nd method? Put a paint stirring stick or other scrap of wood in the hole, screw it to good drywall on each side and then screw the drywall patch to it. The big holes portion at 1:25. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fdy9uRvpI-E
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Jun 8, 2021 04:08
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Verman posted:Those giant screw type drywall anchors are a bitch though. I had 2 that pushed right through the drywall when I tried to put a phillips bit into them to remove.  Isn't that where unused drywall anchors go? It's certainly where I put them. You put the screw driver in them then whack it with a rubber mallet and they are gone forever.
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Jun 8, 2021 04:34
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H110Hawk posted:
It’s these guys  Which have a lip to them so smashing them threw the wall would make the hole bigger You’re supposed to be able to unscrew them from the wall
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Jun 8, 2021 05:16
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These things. Most of the time you tap a Philips into it and back it out. Sometimes when they are over inserted and you tap it, it pushes through and makes a big hole. I know a lot of people just push them in slightly further into the drywall and fill/paint. I prefer to just remove them all together and fill that hole. As for paint, here's what the living room looks like now. We don't get great afternoon light into the space due to tree coverage but you get the idea. It's all decorators white on this section. It was gray and darker gray making the closet a focal point while darkening that portion of the living room. We wanted to brighten it up and make the closet blend in more. It looks gray in the photo but that's just lack of light. It honestly made a huge difference. I'll take the doors off and paint the same white eventually. I REALLY WISH the previous owners had kept the beams natural wood and not paint them. I don't hate the white, would just prefer natural wood.  This is actually a light gray and stands out against the trim much more than the decorators white. This wall carries through to the kitchen and will have a large book case on it so I wanted something other than just white while still keeping it light enough to brighten up the space. Might not be able to tell but it's decorators white on the left and owl gray on the right.  I just finished the white wall in my office and baby seal black will be going on next. I've been wanting a dark office/guitar room for a while. And it's a mess. Haven't cleaned the floors, reinstalled fixtures or plate covers yet.
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Jun 8, 2021 05:24
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I have owned a home for about a week now and already have a full and complete appreciation of the thread title.
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Jun 8, 2021 07:57
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java posted:I have owned a home for about a week now and already have a full and complete appreciation of the thread title. The struggle is all too real.
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Jun 8, 2021 12:23
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