|
Inner Light posted:It's a nice house and a nice car, I'm jelly. All CUVs are the same but can't complain about that Benz. Thanks! I think that HD tabletop desk is a great option, too. I have a soft spot for butcher block--if I had the space I'd buy one myself.
|
#
?
Jun 12, 2021 16:37
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 9, 2024 11:28 |
|
|
I'm definitely going to buy that HD worktable for our kitchen. Our current island is a section of butcher block countertop on sawhorses. Problem with this is that the sawhorses put the countertop height at like 30" and is murder on our lower backs. I'd looked into a cute kitchen cart butcher block thingy, but they're more expensive and won't be as useful after we remodel the kitchen. But with the worktable, after it's no longer needed in the kitchen we can move it elsewhere and use it as a worktable.
|
|
#
?
Jun 12, 2021 17:57
|
|
|
Highbrow Slick posted:Looks like the 45 day timeline I was quoted on 1/29 was...not entirely accurate. Halfway through May and all I have to show for it is a missing bedroom door that the contractor took yesterday to match paint after arriving at my front door completely unannounced. Hooray Welp, it took four grueling months, including a lot of time with absolutely no contact from the contractor, but the day has finally arrived. Solid core and feelin fine.  E: old door for context: 
Highbrow Slick fucked around with this message at 19:51 on Jun 14, 2021 |
|
#
?
Jun 14, 2021 19:44
|
|
|
Highbrow Slick posted:Welp, it took four grueling months, including a lot of time with absolutely no contact from the contractor, but the day has finally arrived. Solid core and feelin fine. That looks great and much nicer! How's the sound now?
|
|
#
?
Jun 14, 2021 20:14
|
|
|
StormDrain posted:That looks great and much nicer! How's the sound now? Thanks! My fiancée took the kids out while the contractors were here, so we’ll see just how much they dampen the noise once they return. But they are definitely more substantial than the previous hollow doors.
|
|
#
?
Jun 14, 2021 20:20
|
|
|
I just moved from my hollow door apartment to all solid, and holy loving poo poo the difference is insane.
|
|
#
?
Jun 14, 2021 20:40
|
|
|
How often should you have a roofer look at your roof and/or replace the roof? Some googling suggests ~20 years, if my house is 18 years old, should I be having someone come out and look?
|
|
#
?
Jun 14, 2021 20:44
|
|
|
 How the heck do I clean juliet balcony windows? Complicating things, the middle pane is a door that swings open. It has a screen door that slides to the left.... then I can't clean the left window. The left and right panes do not open at all, they are fixed in place. I might just call a cleaning service someday and ask how much they'll charge if it's super annoying to do it myself. Inner Light fucked around with this message at 20:59 on Jun 14, 2021 |
|
#
?
Jun 14, 2021 20:55
|
|
|
Comrade Gritty posted:How often should you have a roofer look at your roof and/or replace the roof? Some googling suggests ~20 years, if my house is 18 years old, should I be having someone come out and look? Probably. Or at a minimum you should be budgeting for it soon. If it's an asphalt shingle roof, 20 years is typically the expected life span for contractor grade shingles/boots/etc. Even if they're 30-50 year shingles, they don't typically last that long. Make sure you use a LOCAL roofing contractor, preferably one who is recommended, not some van you see in the neighborhood or someone who knocks on your door. Assuming you're in a subdivision where all the houses were built around the same time, in a few years you're going to get bombarded by shady out-of-town roofers going door-to-door begging to do your roof. Hey didja know ya can't get those shingles anymore?? We could take a look and see if there's any hail damage and all you'll pay is your insurance deductible! We're doing your neighbor's roof down the street and we noticed your roof is in pretty bad shape, you don't want to wait too long!
|
|
#
?
Jun 14, 2021 20:56
|
|
|
DaveSauce posted:Probably. Or at a minimum you should be budgeting for it soon. If it's an asphalt shingle roof, 20 years is typically the expected life span for contractor grade shingles/boots/etc. Even if they're 30-50 year shingles, they don't typically last that long. Thanks. I'm sure there's some good local roofers in SE PA, I hate those door to door people, we just today had someone trying to sell us bug spraying with the whole song and dance about how they're in the neighborhood.
|
|
#
?
Jun 14, 2021 21:31
|
|
|
Yeah, we literally just went through all that... our house is 22 years old. Bought about 5 years ago, and spent every year since telling door to door roofers to gently caress off while watching just about every other house in the neighborhood get their roof done. The worst is after any sort of severe weather... storm chasers come out in full force trying to drum up business. But we finally got ours done, and if nothing else it's money well spent just to keep roofers off our front step.
|
|
#
?
Jun 14, 2021 21:41
|
|
|
Highbrow Slick posted:Thanks! My fiancée took the kids out while the contractors were here, so we’ll see just how much they dampen the noise once they return. But they are definitely more substantial than the previous hollow doors. Update: I can no longer hear screaming LP YouTubers from the room across from me, yay, five stars 100% recommend solid core if time and money are no object.
|
|
#
?
Jun 14, 2021 23:38
|
|
|
Comrade Gritty posted:How often should you have a roofer look at your roof and/or replace the roof? Some googling suggests ~20 years, if my house is 18 years old, should I be having someone come out and look? I have a professional roofer friend whose advice was "inspect the attic after major storms, call a local roofer whenever you literally notice water coming in, but budget for it now". Apparently the estimates for roof lifetime are extremely approximate and there's no telling how long it may actually last, so for instance we have a "20 year" roof that is 25 years old with no real issues. We've been here through 2 hurricanes and a bunch of big wind storms but have only lost 3 shingles. Like check out this list from Good Housekeeping: https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/home/renovation/a34020/when-to-replace-your-roof/ Most of the reasons come down to aesthetics; replace enough singles and the roof will look weird, and maybe by that point you'll even be saving money by just replacing the whole thing. Then the real serious reasons are "Can you literally see sunlight shining through?" and "Is the roof sagging?"
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2021 02:10
|
|
|
QuarkJets posted:I have a professional roofer friend whose advice was "inspect the attic after major storms, call a local roofer whenever you literally notice water coming in, but budget for it now". Apparently the estimates for roof lifetime are extremely approximate and there's no telling how long it may actually last, so for instance we have a "20 year" roof that is 25 years old with no real issues. We've been here through 2 hurricanes and a bunch of big wind storms but have only lost 3 shingles. How did you know you lost 3 shingles, was it self inspecting?
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2021 02:16
|
|
|
Inner Light posted:How did you know you lost 3 shingles, was it self inspecting? They literally blew off the roof during a storm, onto the ground, so we called a local roofing guy to go take a look and make any necessary repairs.
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2021 02:27
|
|
|
QuarkJets posted:I have a professional roofer friend whose advice was "inspect the attic after major storms, call a local roofer whenever you literally notice water coming in, but budget for it now". Apparently the estimates for roof lifetime are extremely approximate and there's no telling how long it may actually last, so for instance we have a "20 year" roof that is 25 years old with no real issues. We've been here through 2 hurricanes and a bunch of big wind storms but have only lost 3 shingles. I like this advice. Most roofers if you clal to check the roof will tell you it needs to be replaced. They don't have the right incentive to be honest.
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2021 03:43
|
|
|
I am looking to bring natural gas to my 800 sq ft home in the PNW. House currently has electric baseboard heaters and solar panels which generate about 450 KWH/month. The primary goal for bringing natural gas is to run it for my grill, range and future hot tub. The gas company will only run the line for free if I use it for a gas furnace, or will run it for $900 if I use it for a water heater. Given the presence of the solar panels, is it crazy to go the gas furnace route (to save $2k on the line installation) instead of an electric heat pump? Not sure if I’m thinking about the right variables here. Edit: I’m thinking paying $900 for the line installation to power a tankless heater, and then installing an heat pump (to also provide AC during the two summer months where it’s appreciated) is a good middle of the road option. vs Dinosaurs fucked around with this message at 18:19 on Jun 15, 2021 |
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2021 18:15
|
|
|
Propane grill, induction stove, electric hot tub.
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2021 18:35
|
|
|
Right now is actually a phenomenal time to get a roofer to say yes/no you need a new roof. They are actually inconvenienced by the amount of work they have. I wouldn't actually move forward with a roof replacement right now unless you're seeing sunlight or feeling the rain, but you'll get a pretty honest answer on how much life it has left.
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2021 18:38
|
|
|
StormDrain posted:Propane grill, induction stove, electric hot tub. Are the electric ductless pumps as good as the gas powered?
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2021 19:52
|
|
|
vs Dinosaurs posted:Are the electric ductless pumps as good as the gas powered? In a PNW home myself, recently replaced the baseboard heat with ductless mini splits as an energy audit suggested lowering my heating energy bill by half next winter. As a bonus I got AC that I can use even during wildfires (no outside air is pumped in). We just got it installed a week or so ago so it’s too early to know if we really will get that kind of energy savings.
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2021 19:58
|
|
|
vs Dinosaurs posted:Are the electric ductless pumps as good as the gas powered? They are generally more environmentally friendly, but from a pure energy efficiency standpoint they're better until you get close to / below freezing.
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2021 20:10
|
|
|
Hawkeye posted:In a PNW home myself, recently replaced the baseboard heat with ductless mini splits as an energy audit suggested lowering my heating energy bill by half next winter. If you are in Portland I’d be interested in a referral assuming you had a positive experience. What were your costs all in? Did you have your electric baseboard heaters removed, and what did that cost? I’ll probably go with a single unit because of how small the property is. Edit: First quote for a single head ductless unit at $7.5k installed. Good lord. vs Dinosaurs fucked around with this message at 20:33 on Jun 15, 2021 |
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2021 20:28
|
|
|
Has anyone installed an AC unit in their garage before, either a wall unit or a portable unit? I have a garage gym but its pretty unbearable in Texas summers, especially with any humidity. My issue is that i don't have any windows in the garage walls or in the garage door, so I'm not sure if I'd have to cut a hole in either my wall or my garage door. I thought about running it thru the attic, but apparently the longer the exhaust hose the more inefficient it is. just wondering if anyone has gone through with this.
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2021 21:23
|
|
|
EwokEntourage posted:Has anyone installed an AC unit in their garage before, either a wall unit or a portable unit? I have a garage gym but its pretty unbearable in Texas summers, especially with any humidity. My issue is that i don't have any windows in the garage walls or in the garage door, so I'm not sure if I'd have to cut a hole in either my wall or my garage door. I thought about running it thru the attic, but apparently the longer the exhaust hose the more inefficient it is. just wondering if anyone has gone through with this. I just installed a Mr Cool DIY Mini Split in my garage, mostly to the approval of the wiring thread. It wasn't bad, but the DIY one does have a premium over the non-DIY, which sort of balances out with paying an HVAC company do to the install. The hole I drilled in my wall is 3" in diameter, and has a nice little tube and everything. I did buy race track on amazon to cover it up. Works pretty nice at keeping the temp in the "comfy zone". The Mr Cool does have a dehumidify function, but I haven't tried it yet. Using a mini split will give you heating and cooling. You can see my finished photos here: https://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3090739&pagenumber=377#post515192323 I did a sub panel as part of it because my breaker box is at the opposite rear end end of the entire house. Something like this may be easier for others, the unit I used is 120v / 20a, so pretty normal.
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2021 21:30
|
|
|
Alarbus posted:I just installed a Mr Cool DIY Mini Split in my garage, mostly to the approval of the wiring thread. It wasn't bad, but the DIY one does have a premium over the non-DIY, which sort of balances out with paying an HVAC company do to the install. The hole I drilled in my wall is 3" in diameter, and has a nice little tube and everything. I did buy race track on amazon to cover it up. Works pretty nice at keeping the temp in the "comfy zone". The Mr Cool does have a dehumidify function, but I haven't tried it yet. Using a mini split will give you heating and cooling. I think I could probably manage most of that, except the electrical aspect, but I'm not sure I want to try DIY at such an expensive project. The more research I do, the more it seems like a permanent wall unit would be better than a portable unit, but I'd be curious if anyone put in a portable unit just to see how it went
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2021 22:18
|
|
|
EwokEntourage posted:I think I could probably manage most of that, except the electrical aspect, but I'm not sure I want to try DIY at such an expensive project. The more research I do, the more it seems like a permanent wall unit would be better than a portable unit, but I'd be curious if anyone put in a portable unit just to see how it went Portables are awful. The only ones I've seen actually work are the $8l-ish units we use for spot cooling in data centers. They have an intake and outlet hose connected to the outside, then a circulating fan for cooled air. Most home gamer units have only one hose, the output, which means they are constantly creating a negative pressure in the room, which is dragging in unconditioned air.
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2021 22:27
|
|
|
EwokEntourage posted:I think I could probably manage most of that, except the electrical aspect, but I'm not sure I want to try DIY at such an expensive project. The more research I do, the more it seems like a permanent wall unit would be better than a portable unit, but I'd be curious if anyone put in a portable unit just to see how it went Well, start with a site survey. Is your electrical panel close from a pain in the rear end standpoint? (Number of walls, basements, attics, etc you will need to go through to get a new dedicated circuit run.) is there a clear spot for you to put a pad on the ground? What about a wall mount? Is there a obvious spot directly on the wall inside or otherwise unobstructed to surface run things? Are you willing to spend 3-4 days in Texas°f doing this? (Definitely doable as a week long evening project if you are at all familiar with the tasks at hand.) The reason I ask is that this is definitely within the realm of a handyman if you are OK with it being Mr Cool style unit that won't have a 10 year warranty and perfect efficiency. Or if you don't want to do the electrical you could get it all in place and bring in an electrician. H110Hawk fucked around with this message at 22:55 on Jun 15, 2021 |
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2021 22:49
|
|
|
H110Hawk posted:Well, start with a site survey. Is your electrical panel close from a pain in the rear end standpoint? (Number of walls, basements, attics, etc you will need to go through to get a new dedicated circuit run.) is there a clear spot for you to put a pad on the ground? What about a wall mount? Is there a obvious spot directly on the wall inside or otherwise unobstructed to surface run things? Are you willing to spend 3-4 days in Texas°f doing this? (Definitely doable as a week long evening project if you are at all familiar with the tasks at hand.) The main panel is in the garage, kind of catty cornerish to where I'd imagine the wall unit would go, there is a cement pad behind our fence that used to be stairs to a door that is no longer there (now the laundry room). will have to measure things out of course, see if the pad works, might pay someone to handle the electric since we want to try to wire a pergola in the back as well  quote:Portables are awful. The only ones I've seen actually work are the $8l-ish units we use for spot cooling in data centers. They have an intake and outlet hose connected to the outside, then a circulating fan for cooled air. Most home gamer units have only one hose, the output, which means they are constantly creating a negative pressure in the room, which is dragging in unconditioned air. this is enough to get my wife off my back about it tho, so thanks! EwokEntourage fucked around with this message at 23:03 on Jun 15, 2021 |
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2021 23:01
|
|
|
EwokEntourage posted:The main panel is in the garage, kind of catty cornerish to where I'd imagine the wall unit would go, there is a cement pad behind our fence that used to be stairs to a door that is no longer there (now the laundry room). will have to measure things out of course, see if the pad works, might pay someone to handle the electric since we want to try to wire a pergola in the back as well That looks eminently doable if you want to spend some time to learn the ropes, and assuming your panel is modern and has the space. Unclear on the pergola. 
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2021 23:09
|
|
|
H110Hawk posted:That looks eminently doable if you want to spend some time to learn the ropes, and assuming your panel is modern and has the space. Unclear on the pergola. we have a box outside for the hot tub we want to split to put plugs on the pergola for lights or a fan or something, probably just pay for it too especially since it'll be getting rained on at some point I'll be sure to report back when i somehow end up with a 6 foot hole in my garage wall
|
|
#
?
Jun 15, 2021 23:18
|
|
|
EwokEntourage posted:no clue on the panel, the house if from the 50s but i don't know how old the panel is. Probably just pay for the electrical work. Please do! Everyone loves pictures. Also if the panel is original to the 50's this might become a $2500 upsell to a whole new panel. Square D snap on neutral or bust. (If it's Zinsco or Federal Pacific stablok you should do that post haste. They have a tendency to burn down peoples houses.)
|
|
#
?
Jun 16, 2021 00:29
|
|
|
QuarkJets posted:I have a professional roofer friend whose advice was "inspect the attic after major storms, call a local roofer whenever you literally notice water coming in, but budget for it now". Apparently the estimates for roof lifetime are extremely approximate and there's no telling how long it may actually last, so for instance we have a "20 year" roof that is 25 years old with no real issues. We've been here through 2 hurricanes and a bunch of big wind storms but have only lost 3 shingles. Nice advise, and I do the attic scans myself. Wait about 10-15 minutes into a really heavy rain, and walk around your attic with the most powerful flashlight you have. You're looking for discoloration or obvious wet spots on the underside of the roof sheathing. Nail penetrations tend to be where the leaks start, IME. If you're comfortable going on the roof, you can fix a bunch of minor leaks with a $2 tube of roofing cement. My common ones are nail pops, which I just dab some cement on to fix. I have about 23 years on an architectural shingle roof, and after fixing a few nail pops, it is leak free. I'm hoping to stretch another few years out of it, especially with the current state of material/labor shortages.
|
|
#
?
Jun 16, 2021 15:03
|
|
|
unknown posted:Moved into a house over the winter and finally got the AC started up and seasonal maintenance check done on it - good pressure/etc. Works great but the compressor in the outdoor unit (not the fan) is drat noisy and of course it was installed on the back patio, making it hard to enjoy.. It's a carrier brand unit - anyone know if that's fixable without spending gobs of $$$ or do I just have to live with it Just to quote myself from many pages ago - I finally pulled the installers manual for my AC outdoor unit/compressor (Carrier 24ABB324A310 from 2010), and it's rated at 76db (!), with an optional noise dampener available that reduces it by a whopping 2db  The aftermarket vibration pads helped a lot though. Only solution is a new unit. Ugh.
|
|
#
?
Jun 16, 2021 16:25
|
|
|
unknown posted:Just to quote myself from many pages ago - I finally pulled the installers manual for my AC outdoor unit/compressor (Carrier 24ABB324A310 from 2010), and it's rated at 76db (!), with an optional noise dampener available that reduces it by a whopping 2db Decibels are on a logarithmic scale. 2db reduction could be pretty significant. To give an idea, the NRR rating for ear protection worn when using guns is usually recommended to be in the 28-34 range. NRR rating has a semi-complex relationship to actual decibel reduction (subtract seven from the NRR and divide by two), but the long and the short of it is that cutting ~10db off a gunshot drops it by an order of magnitude and can render it hearing safe(ish - double up on earpro, you only get one set of ears). Don't know if the difference between 76db and 74 is going to be massively noticeable, but it could be enough to really take the edge off on something that's already outside your house.
|
|
#
?
Jun 16, 2021 17:21
|
|
|
unknown posted:Just to quote myself from many pages ago - I finally pulled the installers manual for my AC outdoor unit/compressor (Carrier 24ABB324A310 from 2010), and it's rated at 76db (!), with an optional noise dampener available that reduces it by a whopping 2db Yeah. I have similar builder grade carrier units that are right outside my bedroom. (CA16NA03000G) The head of my bed is like 3 feet away from them with one external wall between. Good thing I got used to the white noise, but yeah there's no way to make them more quiet. At first it was so bad I considered ripping out the drywall on that wall and putting in spray foam insulation, but I got used to it.
|
|
#
?
Jun 16, 2021 17:28
|
|
|
vs Dinosaurs posted:If you are in Portland I’d be interested in a referral assuming you had a positive experience. Seattle sorry. 4 head setup, 15/9/9/6 heads. Quotes ranged from 18-13.5k. Ended up doing the 13.5k bid because I liked their suggestions of unit placement and they charged $0 until it passes all inspections (so I felt safe with their lower ball bid I wouldn’t get screwed). As of right now I am not removing the baseboard heat units. We just set all of them to off and figure if something catastrophic happens with the mini split system in the winter we have backup heat systems. I’ll enjoy being able to use more wall space for now unless it comes to that though. Hawkeye fucked around with this message at 20:25 on Jun 16, 2021 |
|
#
?
Jun 16, 2021 20:22
|
|
|
vs Dinosaurs posted:Edit: First quote for a single head ductless unit at $7.5k installed. Good lord. I got a quote like this, dude asked how he was doing and I could honestly tell him he was over my other 2 bids by $2k/50% (2x4k quotes and his $6.5k quote). He looked seriously dejected but dude, this is an easy install, the walls are all open, single head 12k unit. Keep going.
|
|
#
?
Jun 16, 2021 20:40
|
|
|
still waiting for a concrete guy to show up. I"ve started calling around to get estimates from others I called him early april and gave him a deposit check.. he said 2-3 weeks. I was understanding that Apr was rain and cold. May came and went I called mid may, yeah.. I'm a little backed up the rain and freezing temps slowed my start, It'll be 1-2 weeks. That came and went, called back. I'm shooting for monday. That came and went.. a week later I called again.. I'm hoping friday but monday at the latest. Called monday night.. Oh yeah.. It was raining today I'll be there tuesday and have you poured this week(Drove by 2 driveways getting poured by other people, plus theres prep work that can be done in showers)... It's wednesday. Thing that sucks is everyone else is end of august it sucks.. If this guy had been honest I woulda just given up 2 weekends and done pavers like I originally planned, but went concrete kuz then I'm not the one doing the work.
|
|
#
?
Jun 16, 2021 20:58
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 9, 2024 11:28 |
|
|
H110Hawk posted:I got a quote like this, dude asked how he was doing and I could honestly tell him he was over my other 2 bids by $2k/50% (2x4k quotes and his $6.5k quote). He looked seriously dejected but dude, this is an easy install, the walls are all open, single head 12k unit. Keep going. Yeah, I’ll see if they come down after the actual on-site visit and bid. Calling around to other places as well because there is no way it should cost that much given the setup.
|
|
#
?
Jun 17, 2021 04:02
|
|