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Sirotan posted:It should be ok but imho shutting off water to them is also a good idea that takes all of 2 seconds to do. Better safe than sorry I’d been avoiding it because it’s in an awkward location & some long-ago previous owner stripped the heck out of the shutoff valve nut and it’s a pain to close. I should really just figure out replacing it, along with the adjacent ancient utility sink valves.
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Jan 12, 2022 03:06
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PainterofCrap posted:Call the city immediately. If these fucksticks are hammering a wall with anything other than hand tools, they're risking serious problems. Oh poo poo. That's worse than I was hoping to hear. I ended up talking to the guy as he was leaving for the day and I asked what he was working on and I described what I saw. Not surprisingly, he said it should all be fine. He said they had to work on the bricks that the floor joists sit on over on that side of the wall. He said they were finished, so I'll hope that nothing collapses before I get someone to check it out.
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Jan 12, 2022 16:11
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We've got freeze-proof hose bibs at the house, but I've always shut them off when I'm done watering/car washing for the season. But the shutoffs are quarter turn valves right above the Pex manifold next to the furnace and water heater, so it's just "walk in, turn off, open drain fitting above shutoff". I could probably skip draining the lines, but I figure the drain is there for a reason, and the drained water goes right down the floor drain in the utility room anyway.
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Jan 12, 2022 16:30
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Struggling to book a roof job. Finally got one company to take a look. I think their quote is high, but still might make sense given how busy everyone seems. Hopefully can get at least one more quote, but not holding my breath. The roof has a deck/balcony on top. It's an addition, maybe 300sqft, built in the 90s. Current roof is EPDM, and is leaking. The leak is only noticeable in one small spot in a closet. I pulled up some of the deck boards and could feel soft spots in the plywood under the membrane, so clearly there's damaged boards to replace. Some roofers said on the phone they'd expect me to find someone to do that part, and I think I have someone. Also, the way the addition was designed, the wall below and the railing above the roof are quite integrated. It looks slick, but it will mean either the roofers have to work in some tight spots or way more needs to be rebuilt than would be ideal. The quote is for PVC, either deckshield (walkable) $17,500 or duro-last (would need deck added on top) $12,500. Includes demo of old roof and new sheeting, but does not include repair of rotten members. Not sure if it includes demo of the old deck. This seems like high end pricing and a high end product. I'd like to know what an EPDM quote would come in at, but it seems less relevant if no one's willing to do that work. We'll see if the next guy shows up. Inzombiac posted:I hate owning a home. The constant stress, the expense, the incredible time sinks. How do I make a post my desktop
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Jan 12, 2022 17:03
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For what it's worth I never shut off the water to my freeze proof hose bibs when I lived in Philadelphia, but I could see where they came into the house on the inside, and could also readily confirm that they were installed at a downward angle.
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Jan 12, 2022 17:34
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This is a dumb question but would it possibly be good enough to pump water from one part of the lawn to a part further back? I'm on a quarter acre and getting a pipe from the back to the street is going to be a huge hassle because the sides are concrete slabs.
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Jan 13, 2022 03:53
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I just got 5 single pane windows replaced with double pane windows. Does this look lovely to anyone else? And beyond aesthetics, am I looking at a bunch of loving water damage in the future with a lovely install? I'm a layman with this stuff but the end product looks worse than I expected. After they installed the windows, but before installing the trim and finishing the inside: gap between window and casing on the interior:  gap above window:      After they "finished the job":           the gap above the window with the exposed foam was covered with a quarter round I need specifics to tell the company beyond "looks like poo poo". I know the gap with the exposed foam is a problem and needs to be fixed. But the gaps started making me think that maybe this was poorly done and isn't just a poor trim job, and I have a ticking time bomb of water damage or mold or something in my future. I included the "after windows installed but before finished" pics to show what's behind the trim. This house is an older house from the 1960s and I'm working on improving, but I'm afraid I'm burning money and taking steps backward. biceps crimes fucked around with this message at 17:15 on Jan 13, 2022 |
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Jan 13, 2022 17:01
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Replacing switches and outlets gets loving COSTLY... when you have to replace every single one in your home because you can count the non-hosed up ones on a single hand. Thanks, POs 
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Jan 13, 2022 17:11
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Johnny Truant posted:Replacing switches and outlets gets loving COSTLY... when you have to replace every single one in your home because you can count the non-hosed up ones on a single hand. Thanks, POs
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Jan 13, 2022 19:16
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Slugworth posted:Unless I have immediate safety concerns, I generally just replace them room by room the first time I paint each room. Spreads the pain out a bit since I always use the decora stuff that's a little pricier.  That's a good idea! If you don't mind me asking, how come you use the Decora stuff? I was scoping out cheap outlets and stuff, but my knowledge of electrical work is... very limited, to say the least.
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Jan 13, 2022 19:55
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Slugworth posted:Unless I have immediate safety concerns, I generally just replace them room by room the first time I paint each room. Spreads the pain out a bit since I always use the decora stuff that's a little pricier. Exactly what I do. I'm down to 3 rooms that still have lever switches.
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Jan 13, 2022 19:59
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EVERYWHERE 
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If you're like me you replace everything with paddles except those loving 4-gang boxes of 4-way switches you know will take 2 hours each
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Jan 13, 2022 20:16
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bi crimes posted:I just got 5 single pane windows replaced with double pane windows. Which model windows did you get? Can you Google that and find advertising photos or install documentation and compare that to how yours is done?
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Jan 13, 2022 20:40
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Just bought a house in WA! Haven't moved in yet and I want to rip out the grass and replace it with something that will require less maintenance and fewer resources. The Internet says clover - can I have a lawn of straight up clover or should I need to mix it with anything else?
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Jan 13, 2022 20:40
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Lovelyn posted:Just bought a house in WA! Haven't moved in yet and I want to rip out the grass and replace it with something that will require less maintenance and fewer resources. The Internet says clover - can I have a lawn of straight up clover or should I need to mix it with anything else? I'm not an expert on clover, but something to keep in mind if you intend to be on the lawn a lot is that clover doesn't take abuse as well as grass.
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Jan 13, 2022 20:45
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Lovelyn posted:Just bought a house in WA! Haven't moved in yet and I want to rip out the grass and replace it with something that will require less maintenance and fewer resources. The Internet says clover - can I have a lawn of straight up clover or should I need to mix it with anything else? You might consider just seeding the existing lawn with clover, and then forgetting about it. The clover will actually put nitrogen in the grass. Before the invention of broad leaf herbicide, clover was considered part of a healthy grass lawn.
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Jan 13, 2022 20:49
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SpartanIvy posted:I'm not really versed in modern window installs but I agree that looks questionable. They're NT Windows twinsulator. After making my post, I watched some DIY videos on retrofit window installation, read some docs, that sort of thing. It seems relatively straight forward and they followed the steps while they were working, I think they just cut corners and were sloppy with finishing the exterior trim. The windows are square and level, not drafty. I think I just didn't know what to look for and was upset at how sloppy and ugly the exterior trim is. I'll complain to the owner about the trim being ugly and missing caulking in spots. The guy that was out here finishing the trim finished the last one with the big gap on top after the sun was down and it's obvious. This company has been such a headache to deal with, they somehow only one one crew guy doing installations and a bunch of their staff has been out with covid. biceps crimes fucked around with this message at 20:54 on Jan 13, 2022 |
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Jan 13, 2022 20:50
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cruft posted:You might consider just seeding the existing lawn with clover, and then forgetting about it. The clover will actually put nitrogen in the grass. My long term goal is to fill the yard with raised beds/bushes/fruit trees so I wanted to take out all the grass now before I set everything up (which will take a long time, I'm not rushing) - would you seed the existing lawn or pull the grass?
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Jan 13, 2022 20:59
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Lovelyn posted:My long term goal is to fill the yard with raised beds/bushes/fruit trees so I wanted to take out all the grass now before I set everything up (which will take a long time, I'm not rushing) - would you seed the existing lawn or pull the grass? I feel like that's your call. In the PNW you're going to be hard pressed to keep something from growing in the dirt. Do you want grass and clover, or clover and something else that moves in? If it were me, I'd just seed clover and let it go until I was ready to clear out and begin my landscaping. But I moved to the desert before buying a home and it's different here, so I'm an unreliable source.
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Jan 13, 2022 21:06
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I'm in the PNW and tossing some clover seed out before it rains is a decent way to get it to propagate. You can save yourself some headache by doing this over a couple years and the clover will mostly take over. Meanwhile you can uproot whatever grass needs to go for your installations and not bother with the rest. A contractor could uproot and re-seed with clover for you but that's probably going to be about $4K.
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Jan 13, 2022 21:21
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I appreciate y'all, thank you!
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Jan 13, 2022 22:19
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Roofer came out to look. Guys, that was good. He was communicative and followed through about when he'd show up. He was knowledgeable and enthusiastic. He listened to me and didn't make me feel like just the idiot homeowner I am. He talked through next steps and how to move forward. I guess we'll see what comes in the email but ah, please let this be real. He came recommended by two people I know well, one who is a GC. He doesn't have office staff, I called 4 time before leaving a message after which he text back.
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Jan 13, 2022 23:06
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Had a water management specialist come out. He was pessimistic about a cost-effective solution. My lot is completely flat aside from a tiny grade at the end of the yard next to the street. He estimated that exploratory demo and sealing would run about $11k and full demo with drain and pump would be $50K, neither of which I can afford. The only other option is to run 20'+ pipes from the spouts and pray they can keep up. A french drain is also not really an option because there's no way to get a daylight exit, given the space available. I'm really downtrodden about this but I gotta find some way to fix this.
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Jan 13, 2022 23:55
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Johnny Truant posted:
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Jan 14, 2022 00:05
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Inzombiac posted:Had a water management specialist come out. He was pessimistic about a cost-effective solution. Did they mention a dry well as an option at all?
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Jan 14, 2022 00:06
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I've got a bit of a mystery on my hands. In the new house we just purchased (08 build), the dryer has not been up to par- taking 100-120 minutes to dry a normal load of clothes. I emptied out a good amount of lint from the hose behind the dryer, but could only go so far. We had already planned on a new washer/dryer to replace the old Frigidaire, but I also wanted to ensure the entire vent was cleaned out appropriately. I hired a local duct/dryer vent cleaning guy with a high pressure system on his truck, but we could not find where the dryer vents out to even after searching for a long while. My inspector (and I) had assumed it was the vent in a kind of straight line out of the house but it turns out that this is just the bathroom fan. Two other vents on that side of the house (closest to the dryer) are for the microwave exhaust and the fireplace. Otherwise it appears the only other vent is on the other side (front) of the house for the boiler exhaust. He blew out the vent from the inside, but the drying performance is still abysmal (90-100 minutes a load). I want to know where this drat vent is and ensure it's cleared- this whole neighborhood was built at the same time/by the same builders/design (townhomes, 2 units per building), and my two closest neighbors have obvious dryer vent exhausts on the side of their house, but I do not. I'm thinking about buying a 50 foot endoscope camera to try to scope through the vent and see where it goes. I also plan on talking to some neighbors and see what they say... otherwise I'm not sure what else to do. A bunch of my friends are hedging their bets that it is just venting into the drywall which I'm really hoping is not the case. Wanted to ask the thread for any general advice here- is a camera scope the right move?
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Jan 14, 2022 00:25
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Dehumanize yourself and face to bloodshed (it totally just vents into the wall cavity)
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Jan 14, 2022 00:29
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dox posted:I'm thinking about buying a 50 foot endoscope camera to try to scope through the vent and see where it goes. You should do that, because it's almost for sure that the joist cavity the end of the hose was left in when they forgot to put in the outside exhaust is now full of lint.
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Jan 14, 2022 00:30
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Vim Fuego posted:Dehumanize yourself and face to bloodshed (it totally just vents into the wall cavity) This or attic/crawlspace
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Jan 14, 2022 00:30
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Can you rent an endoscope camera from lowes depot? Might be more cost effective if you don’t have other uses for it. I for one am invested in learning where this vent leads
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Jan 14, 2022 00:39
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Inner Light posted:Can you rent an endoscope camera from lowes depot? Might be more cost effective if you don’t have other uses for it. I for one am invested in learning where this vent leads Happy to have the thread cheering me on in solving this lovely mystery. Unfortunately there are no lowes/depot in my small town, and I doubt Ace Hardware rents them out. I'm gonna ask around locally and if all else fails, I'm eyeing this one even though I doubt I'll have much use for it again.
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Jan 14, 2022 00:43
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Inner Light posted:Can you rent an endoscope camera from lowes depot? Might be more cost effective if you don’t have other uses for it. I for one am invested in learning where this vent leads Depending on how long this is the easiest thing might be a plumbing/drain camera. And they definitely rent those. Bonus points that you can locate the head of the camera with the "hound" tool through a wall. Edit: dox posted:Happy to have the thread cheering me on in solving this lovely mystery. You may not be able to get it where you need.......you know, pushing rope and all. Maybe you can attach it to a cleaning brush kit? https://www.amazon.com/Holikme-Clea...s%2C1188&sr=8-9 Motronic fucked around with this message at 00:48 on Jan 14, 2022 |
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Jan 14, 2022 00:45
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Ya this-Motronic posted:You may not be able to get it where you need.......you know, pushing rope and all. Maybe you can attach it to a cleaning brush kit? I've been trying to investigate various things (including the dryer vent pipe) with one of those cameras, and maneuvering more than a few feet past your reach is an exercise in frustration. Attaching to a more rigid guide would probably help.
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Jan 14, 2022 01:08
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It's too much to hope for that your dryer is backed up to an outside wall? It might be cheaper to just abandon the existing line in place and run a new one. As Motronic noted, it's probably terminating in the wall somewhere and remains a giant fire hazard. How about buying or renting an IR camera to determine where the wall & ceiling are being heated by this dryer?
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Jan 14, 2022 01:13
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I assume you checked for this already when you scouted outside, but do you have a deck or porch that it might be venting underneath?
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Jan 14, 2022 01:18
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PainterofCrap posted:How about buying or renting an IR camera to determine where the wall & ceiling are being heated by this dryer? That's a great idea and way better than the endoscope which will likely just show you a bunch of lint and how far you shoved it in before it stopped.
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Jan 14, 2022 01:28
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SpartanIvy posted:Did they mention a dry well as an option at all? Yes but we have a shitload of rainfall (Portland, OR) and he said every one he inspected after our last storm failed. There's just way too much volume for them to handle. I'm going to get a second opinion. He was kinda fatalistic and wasn't super in to discussing alternatives. Edit: I got some corrugated pipe and extended my downspouts. One of the gutters had to be cut down a bit only to find that there was at least a foot of dirt and grime that was plugging up the whole thing. Ironically, that's the one side of the house that doesn't have water issues! Inzombiac fucked around with this message at 02:20 on Jan 14, 2022 |
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Jan 14, 2022 01:50
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Where is your dryer located? Ours is upstairs with the bedrooms (2 story with basement) and vents out through the roof rather than sideways through the wall, since it's in basically an interior closet. It'll make cleaning the vent extra fun I'm sure, I'm planning to basically just go in the attic rather than to the second story roof over the bedrooms when it's time to clean it out next.
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Jan 14, 2022 02:21
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Inzombiac posted:Yes but we have a shitload of rainfall (Portland, OR) and he said every one he inspected after our last storm failed. You already have the hole dug, the old garbage can thing.
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Jan 14, 2022 02:38
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PainterofCrap posted:It's too much to hope for that your dryer is backed up to an outside wall? Dryer is backed up against the shared well with the neighbor (townhome). I can look into renting an IR camera, but not sure if Ace will have it... this does seem like a good option. armorer posted:I assume you checked for this already when you scouted outside, but do you have a deck or porch that it might be venting underneath? I do have a deck in the back where there are the 3 vents alongside it, but nothing underneath: downstairs bathroom, kitchen microwave, and kitchen gas fireplace. PitViper posted:Where is your dryer located? Ours is upstairs with the bedrooms (2 story with basement) and vents out through the roof rather than sideways through the wall, since it's in basically an interior closet. It'll make cleaning the vent extra fun I'm sure, I'm planning to basically just go in the attic rather than to the second story roof over the bedrooms when it's time to clean it out next. The dryer is downstairs in a kind of "subterranean" level right next to the guest bathroom. There is obviously ductwork along that same wall along the guest bedroom and bathroom all the way through to the laundry room as there is a bulge in the drywall-- I'll get some pictures up in the morning. It kind of looks like the guest bathroom and dryer vent share a vent, but I'm told that doesn't happen and when testing the bathroom fan, you can feel it outside but with only the dryer running can't feel anything. It seems unlikely that it would vent to the roof up 3 stories, especially here in Northwestern Colorado where we get a lot of snow. dox fucked around with this message at 04:24 on Jan 14, 2022 |
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Jan 14, 2022 03:03
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