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Yeah it’s definitely time to just suck up the cost of that and get a professional so I can feel comfortable in my own home. I’m tired of having breakdowns over finding mouse nests and piles of seed.
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Aug 6, 2021 03:15
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PainterofCrap posted:Thirding; I called a pest service about the mouse infestation in my (failing with dementia) mother’s house. Since their recommended treatment was putting traps everywhere we see feces and find where they’re coming in, my sisters & I did it ourselves. They were coming in through a basement hopper window with a panel for the dryer vent - the remaining glass had broken. A month after sealing it, the last one was gone. Same, basically. The place we hired marked a bunch of places around the house where the could be getting in and the guy said we could pay him to fill them in, or that I could probably do it myself for way less. Went that route and filled in the gaps with concrete caulk or mortar, put traps in the basement, and the mouse problem disappeared real quick.
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Aug 6, 2021 03:54
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Story time! This one summer we were just getting *tons* of mice. We set out traps in the usual places, kept killing mice, and still more mice. Our neighbors even said they were getting way more mice than usual. So finally I went into the crawlspace to see what new mouse entrance had opened up. Turns out the 50 year old iron waste drain under the kitchen sink had finally given out, and 100% of our kitchen sink water and garbage disposal shreddings were dropping right into this lake. There was all manner of horror around it: mice, roaches, and slimy things with legs. Smelled pretty bad, although I like to pretend that because we're all vegetarians, it could have smelled way worse. Anyway, we called a plumber to fix it all up, and the mice found somewhere else to live. So hopefully you're not running a vermin beach resort under the house like we were.
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Aug 6, 2021 15:02
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cruft posted:vermin beach resort mods?
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Aug 6, 2021 18:07
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BadSamaritan posted:mods? If that username isn't taken I want it
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Aug 6, 2021 18:55
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  Figured out house the mice are getting in….loving piss
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Aug 6, 2021 20:41
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Ball Tazeman posted:
There you go. I'm wondering what's going on there. Did the top of the window frame kind of... collapse a bit and allow a gap?
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Aug 6, 2021 21:38
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Yeah I actually have no idea how to fix that. I also assume there is more of it like that around the house.
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Aug 6, 2021 21:52
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Ball Tazeman posted:Yeah I actually have no idea how to fix that. I also assume there is more of it like that around the house. Finding out where they're getting in is the hard part.
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Aug 7, 2021 00:08
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https://www.homedepot.com/p/GREAT-STUFF-16-oz-Pestblock-Insulating-Foam-Sealant-with-Quick-Stop-Straw-99053993/207077796 They make expanding foam with anti-rodent flavoring, so grab that can if you decide to spray foam it.
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Aug 7, 2021 00:53
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Vim Fuego posted:https://www.homedepot.com/p/GREAT-STUFF-16-oz-Pestblock-Insulating-Foam-Sealant-with-Quick-Stop-Straw-99053993/207077796 Frequently Bought Together: Steel Wool
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Aug 7, 2021 03:42
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I have 1/4" hardware cloth I need to attach to the back of my (metal) radiator covers for the same reason. Last time I used silicone caulk, any better suggestions?
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Aug 7, 2021 04:10
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i like nice words
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Anne Whateley posted:I have 1/4" hardware cloth I need to attach to the back of my (metal) radiator covers for the same reason. Last time I used silicone caulk, any better suggestions? Depends on what you have at hand. A proper construction stapler (powered) would be the easiest. But screws (appropriate to what they are going into......so probably wood screws or drywall screws) with washers will also work.
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Aug 7, 2021 04:17
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The radiator covers are a very thin sheet of metal, literally probably 1-2mm
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Aug 7, 2021 05:36
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Anne Whateley posted:The radiator covers are a very thin sheet of metal, literally probably 1-2mm Ahhhh, okay, so its literally into the metal covers. You have a few options, and self tapping machine screws + washers are definitely a decent one. You could also use pop rivets, but you would also likely need washers for those as well as I'm not aware of any commonly available pop rivets that would be both wide enough and short enough for hardware cloth. I just wouldn't try to use adhesives/silicone for this. It's not going to last. If I had to do this I'd probably tack weld it (with a flux core or mig welder), but that's not really practical for most people.
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Aug 7, 2021 05:43
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i have an offer pending inspection on a 116 year old house please pray for my soul
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Aug 7, 2021 05:48
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The Saucer Hovers posted:i have an offer pending inspection on a 116 year old house please pray for my soul This doesn't concern me at all. If a house made it to that age it was bot well built and well maintained. At least until the last decade or two, just like any other house. For sure you will have some different challenges and complexities for repairs and upgrades, but that comes with the territory of owning a home like that. Besides, that's on the "new" side of things I was looking at for my last purchase. We seriously considered a 200+ year old home. And because it's around here, of course George Washington slept there. They used to move him to a new place every night and it seems like anything old enough for that time has a sign stating as such. Motronic fucked around with this message at 05:59 on Aug 7, 2021 |
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Aug 7, 2021 05:57
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The Saucer Hovers posted:i have an offer pending inspection on a 116 year old house please pray for my soul I’m almost done renovating a house of similar age, don’t worry it’s all good fun.
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Aug 7, 2021 13:21
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A large portion of the housing stock is over 100 years old here (mine is about 130-140 years old- it was built before the town books were really formalized). Honestly, while it has some problems, it’s a really solid house, and a lot of the bigger things we do have to deal with are more due to PO decisions from the 70s-00s. That said, if you’re in an area where most houses are new construction, try to get referrals for contractors that work on older houses and know what to expect. Also be prepared for nothing to be truly square.
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Aug 7, 2021 13:50
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BadSamaritan posted:That said, if you’re in an area where most houses are new construction, try to get referrals for contractors that work on older houses and know what to expect. Also be prepared for nothing to be truly square. Lol check out the 2x4 shims 
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Aug 7, 2021 14:35
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 My dad's convinced this orange extension cord, which was plugged into that socket, running through the basement ceiling to the dishwasher is something people sue over. He's also someone that cries wolf at every opportunity, and may just want to feel smart on seeing something the home inspector missed. How big of an issue is this?
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Aug 7, 2021 14:37
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Coco13 posted:
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Aug 7, 2021 14:56
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Coco13 posted:
It's certainly not to code in any way, shape, or form. It needs to be replaced with proper wiring ASAP. Extension cords are for temporary use only, and certainly aren't appropriate to run through floors/walls. But who are you going to sue? The PO? You're buying as-is, at best you can demand a concession or tell them to fix it (hint: in this market they'll just laugh at you). The inspector? They aren't licensed electricians, and you already signed something saying they won't find everything. Yes they should have caught it, but frankly there are bigger things they probably missed. Since it's a pretty clear code violation, you MIGHT be able to force the issue with the seller. But honestly I'd guess that it might cost a few hundred bucks to get an electrician to do it properly. Maybe a bit more if you have to add a switch in the wall (dishwashers require a switch nearby if they're hard-wired). I wouldn't raise a big stink over it. It's a problem, but it's easily fixed. edit: Thought I was in the house buying thread. Ignore the crap about forcing the issue with the seller, obviously doesn't apply if you already closed.
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Aug 7, 2021 15:32
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What was the cord plugged into? If it was something portable like a fan or a lamp is it possible the inspector wouldn’t have flagged something like that because it was an obvious “eh we just don’t want to trip on this cord” thing the PO was going to remove on move-out? It’s not like that would have been powering a subpanel across the house. …  edit: oh poo poo I didn’t see it was going up through the subfloor, I thought it was draped over the pipes. lmao.
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Aug 7, 2021 15:33
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Coco13 posted:
I'm gonna have to side with your dad on this one, have them fix this before you buy the house. Regarding "something people sue over": this is not a good measure of severity, people sue over ridiculous trivial poo poo all the time. How about this is something that you don't want to accept as part of the home sale. It will be very cheap and easy for the sellers to fix it, and it's one fewer thing for you to worry about after you've moved in and are spending loads of mental energy trying to decide if the couch should go here or there, and whether those windows need curtains or not, and how long you're going to be able to put up with the carpet in that bedroom before ripping it all out. E: oh, you already closed? Then just fix it. You can probably even do it yourself. It'll be fun, you can learn a little bit about electrical wiring, and as a previous poster said, adding wiring to an unfinished basement is just about the easiest possible scenario. I bet you can have the whole thing fixed up in less time than it'll take to calm your dad down. cruft fucked around with this message at 15:37 on Aug 7, 2021 |
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Aug 7, 2021 15:34
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DaveSauce posted:(dishwashers require a switch nearby if they're hard-wired). This is the exception, not the rule, for most code jurisdictions.
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Aug 7, 2021 15:34
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Motronic posted:This is the exception, not the rule, for most code jurisdictions. Interesting, I was under the impression this done due to the "motor disconnect in sight" requirement in NEC. Was an exception added, or is this just a matter of regional interpretation? I know a plug functions as a disconnect as long as it's rated for the horsepower, but a hard-wired dishwasher has no other way to disconnect power than the breaker.
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Aug 7, 2021 15:45
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DaveSauce posted:Interesting, I was under the impression this done due to the "motor disconnect in sight" requirement in NEC. Was an exception added, or is this just a matter of regional interpretation? Our fridge had what we thought was a mystery switch behind it. Come to find out, five years later, it controls the dishwasher outlet, which is under the cabinet. I guess it's technically in sight, but if we'd needed urgently to disconnect the dishwasher in the first five years of home ownership, I probably would have gone to the circuit breaker. e: actually, this reminded me of another amusing anecdote, we actually replaced the entire dishwasher because somebody had flipped the switch. It was an old, loud thing that we probably would have replaced anyway, but it wasn't until I'd hooked the new one up and tried to turn it on that it occurred to me to try flipping that mystery switch. ee: I live about 500 miles west of the geographic center of the contiguous US, and about 1000 miles away from the Pacific Ocean, so if you live in New England you would probably say I'm on the west coast. cruft fucked around with this message at 15:55 on Aug 7, 2021 |
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Aug 7, 2021 15:49
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DaveSauce posted:I know a plug functions as a disconnect as long as it's rated for the horsepower, but a hard-wired dishwasher has no other way to disconnect power than the breaker. Yeah. Which is bad, especially with the new crop that is full of electronics and seem to need to get "rebooted" every so often, especially when there is a brown out (at least that's how my Bosch has acted about 2 or 3 times in the last coupes of years and I've run into it with other people as well). I think I've heard of the dishwasher switch being more of a west coast thing every time it's come up.
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Aug 7, 2021 15:50
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Vim Fuego posted:https://www.homedepot.com/p/GREAT-STUFF-16-oz-Pestblock-Insulating-Foam-Sealant-with-Quick-Stop-Straw-99053993/207077796 i didn't really care for the anti-rodent flavor, i prefer strawberry
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Aug 7, 2021 15:50
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Motronic posted:Yeah. Which is bad, especially with the new crop that is full of electronics and seem to need to get "rebooted" every so often, especially when there is a brown out (at least that's how my Bosch has acted about 2 or 3 times in the last coupes of years and I've run into it with other people as well). I'm in the SE and we have one; our house was built in 1999. But my parent's house in the midwest was built in the 80s and I don't recall it having a switch for the dishwasher.
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Aug 7, 2021 16:14
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DaveSauce posted:I'm in the SE and we have one; our house was built in 1999. But my parent's house in the midwest was built in the 80s and I don't recall it having a switch for the dishwasher. My guess is we'll see less and less of that now that pretty much everything is coming corded.
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Aug 7, 2021 16:47
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I had the mythical "extension cord running up from the basement to power the dishwasher going on" and electricians fixed it while they dealt with all the knob & tube, no switch (in Minnesota). Mine was extra fun because it wasn't actually an "extension" cord, the dishwasher was hardwired into cord that ran into the basement and was plugged into an outlet there.
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Aug 7, 2021 17:45
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Old homes have the same problems as all homes: what did the PO do to cut corners and kill me? They just had more time or more POs to hatch their plans.
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Aug 7, 2021 17:52
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BadSamaritan posted:That said, if you’re in an area where most houses are new construction, try to get referrals for contractors that work on older houses and know what to expect. Also be prepared for nothing to be truly square. In the past they fitted joints and seams up carefully and so they looked good and were sound. But they where less concerned about things being square. Today they are very concerned with things being square, but the quality of the joinery mostly absolute poo poo.
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Aug 7, 2021 18:04
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Phil Moscowitz posted:Lol check out the 2x4 shims Ya built your house in a swamp, you're lucky it didn't fall down and catch on fire.
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Aug 7, 2021 19:03
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Deviant posted:i didn't really care for the anti-rodent flavor, i prefer strawberry get both + regular and you can do spray foam neopolitan
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Aug 7, 2021 19:28
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Vim Fuego posted:get both + regular and you can do spray foam neopolitan Mmmm cursed dessert. Little bit of acetone sauce on top really rounds it out. Motronic posted:My guess is we'll see less and less of that now that pretty much everything is coming corded. I don't know why given the option you wouldn't do plug-in instead of hardwired. It just skips all the hard parts of code, maintenance is a breeze, and I have at least gotten lucky enough not to need to power cycle my dishwasher. It "turns off" 1 minute after the cycle ends, but I know it's not truly off.
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Aug 7, 2021 22:04
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H110Hawk posted:I don't know why given the option you wouldn't do plug-in instead of hardwired. It just skips all the hard parts of code, maintenance is a breeze, and I have at least gotten lucky enough not to need to power cycle my dishwasher. It "turns off" 1 minute after the cycle ends, but I know it's not truly off. Absolutely. I actually installed an outlet when it was time to replace my dishwasher (previously hard wired) and bought the correct plug kit for my garbage disposal when I added an air switch for it. Previously it was a light switch under the cabinet......so stupid considering the kitchen was last remodeled in a time when sir switches were very much a thing. The old light switch box got turned into an outlet that the air switch plugs into and the disposal plugs into the output of that.
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Aug 7, 2021 22:48
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Yanked out the giant cedar bushes from the front of the house today and found this cement going around the front of the house? I want to just make this a nice garden bed, should I work to expose it all or just cover it with landscaping material, dirt and rocks like the PO had done?
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Aug 7, 2021 23:47
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