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If this is a new-ish home to you, check to see if there are any dampers off the central heating/cooling (typically close to the furnace) for restricting airflow to floors of your home. It's fairly common on multi-floor homes. Photo is in my basement off my furnace, but fairly typical.
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May 15, 2022 22:18
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slidebite posted:If this is a new-ish home to you, check to see if there are any dampers off the central heating/cooling (typically close to the furnace) for restricting airflow to floors of your home. It's fairly common on multi-floor homes. Photo is in my basement off my furnace, but fairly typical. Wow, they labeled yours? fancy
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May 15, 2022 23:07
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Sorry if this is out of place for the thread but I just bought a couch and I'm wondering what product to use to protect it. It's polyester or something, not leather because my cat would destroy a leather couch. Is scotch-guard the tried and true solution? Sorry the only photo I have of the couch has the price in it. Not intentional and not really that much for a couch apparently as we saw some that were over $20k.
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May 15, 2022 23:36
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VelociBacon posted:because my cat Give up
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May 15, 2022 23:44
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HootTheOwl posted:Give up This. But also, if you're trying to protect it from other things like spills some type of sprayable scotchguard might be the right thing. The place you bought it from should know, or ask the manufacturer.
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May 16, 2022 00:03
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Yeah I'm not expecting scotch-guard to protect against the cat just other normal spills or whatever happens to couches. The place I bought it from wasn't going to give any formal advice on products to use because they wanted us to buy their 5 year warranty (no thanks). They did say they didn't know of any other products in the space so I guess it's all good.
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May 16, 2022 00:07
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Motronic posted:Magnetic sign material works great. You can cut it to shape and just slap it on each vent that is leaking or slid is off a bit to allow some air through. I wouldn't suggest stuffing things into your vents. I would, the problem though is the vents are plastic. I could replace them with metal ones I guess. slidebite posted:If this is a new-ish home to you, check to see if there are any dampers off the central heating/cooling (typically close to the furnace) for restricting airflow to floors of your home. It's fairly common on multi-floor homes. Photo is in my basement off my furnace, but fairly typical. It's not new, but good point, I'll check for those.
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May 16, 2022 00:14
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Scotch Guard is the best you can do. You’ll need like 4 cans to cover that sectional. Also get a steam cleaner with a couch attachment or a small steam cleaner just for upholstery. Costco usually has good deals on both.
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May 16, 2022 00:15
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bobmarleysghost posted:I would, the problem though is the vents are plastic. I could replace them with metal ones I guess. If you're going to need to replace them anyway you can replace them with good quality vents that will seal properly when you close them.
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May 16, 2022 00:35
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bobmarleysghost posted:It's not new, but good point, I'll check for those.  Those have been in existence since pretty much the beginning of forced air central heating.kitten emergency posted:Wow, they labeled yours? fancy VelociBacon posted:Sorry if this is out of place for the thread but I just bought a couch and I'm wondering what product to use to protect it. It's polyester or something, not leather because my cat would destroy a leather couch. Is scotch-guard the tried and true solution? Sorry the only photo I have of the couch has the price in it. Not intentional and not really that much for a couch apparently as we saw some that were over $20k. If they ever start scratching furniture with regularity you might as well HootTheOwl posted:Give up
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May 16, 2022 03:28
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Pollyanna posted:Got a question. If given the chance, would you change all the walls in a house from plaster to drywall? My house is 90-years old. The ceilings are drywall over plaster. Everything is plaster. There are three down-sides to plaster: - it makes a hell of a mess when you have to cut a hole in it. - It does crack as the house settles, sooner than drywall will - no, you probably won't have laser-level walls. Other than that, it's denser & quieter than drywall, is not difficult at all to hangs things on (if you're talking difficulty finding a stud for hanging heavy poo poo, you'll have bigger issues with 16" OC being more of a suggestion back then, which is not the fault of the plaster) and the lath actually does add some structural rigidity. It's easier to repair than drywall as there is lath behind it. The repairs with plaster are rock-hard. TL;DR: Embrace plaster. PainterofCrap fucked around with this message at 06:06 on May 16, 2022 |
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May 16, 2022 04:57
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Pollyanna posted:Got a question. If given the chance, would you change all the walls in a house from plaster to drywall? Here's what I would do: If the plaster is in good condition, keep the plaster. If the plaster is in irreparably bad condition (bulging, severely cracked, low quality work to begin with, etc), then I'd replace it.... ...with more plaster. I grew up in a largish house with high ceilings that was all drywall. It was so goddamned loud - every sound you made just ricocheted around and ugh. Even solid wood doors couldn't block it all. I now live in a house with all plaster walls and it is very acoustically quiet by comparison. I absolutely love it. Like if my husband is way up in his attic office and I'm downstairs, I'll just text him because yelling is futile. Plaster is way better at blocking/absorbing sound than drywall. My dad has advocated for just replacing plaster with drywall as we renovate, but I've come to like the sound dampening way too much. Also helps that the plaster in our house is in good to excellent condition and doesn't actually need replacing.
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May 16, 2022 05:18
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I grew up in a lathe and plaster house and own an old house where they replaced the plaster with drywall. If the plaster is in good shape it is way better. It is much more durable, you can knock things into the wall on accident and cause way less damage. It also provides better sounds insulation. Generally, I think in most cases the texture they used back when they plaster walls is a bit better too. My parents house has a very light skip trowel style (very mission) and it has one other advantage is that patching is pretty easy (with the right compounds) as thanks to the texture, and idiot fixing it still basically makes it look normal unless you know what you're looking for. You can do this with drywall, you just have to find a dude who does it. Plaster also allowed for a lot more creativity with curves and transitions than drywall imho. My parents house does have some huge hole someone replaced with drywall in one bedroom (I guess 40+ years ago because my parents bought it in 82) and it has started to look like rear end (you can see the tape). The annoying thing is going to be finding a dude who can fix it right. That is the pain in the rear end part. You can find a million dudes who can do drywall (even myself passably) but plaster is harder to find. Apparenlty, a number of stucco guys can do it. You want the guy who doesn't just spray poo poo on nm fucked around with this message at 10:56 on May 16, 2022 |
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May 16, 2022 10:52
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Drywall replaced plaster because it was cheaper and faster and required less skilled labor to install, not because it was better.
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May 16, 2022 13:09
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Kaiser Schnitzel posted:Drywall replaced plaster because it was cheaper and faster and required less skilled labor to install, not because it was better. And the fact that you only need water at the very end, that's where the "dry" part of drywall comes from.
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May 16, 2022 14:30
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Another renovation question: Our house has an unfinished basement and a long term goal would be to at least partially finish it. The furnace and oil tank are in the basement so probably wall that area off separately but make the rest into a potential living area. There’s no ductwork or anything like that in the basement now (split ac on main level and central ac on upper level). I guess my main question is there is humidity in the basement now-will finishing alleviate the humidity or will we run a humidifier there all the time still?
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May 16, 2022 14:42
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nwin posted:I guess my main question is there is humidity in the basement now-will finishing alleviate the humidity What do you mean by finishing? Finishing it without any environmental controls/upgrades will not "fix" a humidity problem. One can absolutely have the correct HVAC to manage the humidity as part of finishing, but most people are too cheap for that and just throw in a dehumidifier.
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May 16, 2022 14:53
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Is it cool to mount a rigid dryer exhaust over the drywall in my basement if I don't mind the aesthetic? PO very unfortunately installed flexitube in the wall and I'm not super excited about redrywalling (or paying someone to redo) that section.
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May 16, 2022 15:02
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We need to get a washer/dryer and fridge for our new house. Are there any specifics/brands to stay away from? The past 10 years of my life I had a hand me down washer/dryer (whirlpool) that were workhorses and amazing. And our fridge was just whatever came with our last house (that we also left).
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May 16, 2022 15:02
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Motronic posted:What do you mean by finishing? Finishing it without any environmental controls/upgrades will not "fix" a humidity problem. One can absolutely have the correct HVAC to manage the humidity as part of finishing, but most people are too cheap for that and just throw in a dehumidifier. Ideally we’d make a space for an office/bedroom. There’s no windows except for those small ones you see in basements so I doubt we could count it as a bedroom since there’s not two points of egress…I’d have to read up on state law for that. But yeah, we’ll have some workout equipment there, some storage, the electrical panel/furnace in the basement, so I was hoping to section off a place with drywall/electricity/drop ceilings/flooring maybe for an office/bed for when guests come. There’s a ton of “finished” basements in Connecticut where the entire thing is finished with carpet/flooring/walls/etc that they use for bonus rooms, etc. The previous owner tried to start something but I’m not sure why because it’s ridiculously small (it might work for an office but I dunno about fitting anything besides a twin size bed in there). During the inspection, they noted that they usually try and recommend drywall starts 2’ above the floor so moisture doesn’t seep into it, and they think that’s what happened here. Once I move in I’ll take a closer look and if needed, just cut off the bottom 2 feet with a rotozip or something. 
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May 16, 2022 15:13
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PainterofCrap posted:My house is 90-years old. The ceilings are drywall over plaster. Everything is plaster. Queen Victorian posted:Here's what I would do: If the plaster is in good condition, keep the plaster. If the plaster is in irreparably bad condition (bulging, severely cracked, low quality work to begin with, etc), then I'd replace it.... nm posted:I grew up in a lathe and plaster house and own an old house where they replaced the plaster with drywall. Kaiser Schnitzel posted:Drywall replaced plaster because it was cheaper and faster and required less skilled labor to install, not because it was better. D-drat, okay  I am now educated. I guess I’m just biased because I currently have plaster walls that look like this:    and because I’ve attempted to hang things before and got a crumbly mess for my trouble. So is that cragginess a natural part of plaster walls, or because of subpar repairs and upkeep? Is hole/crack/crumble repair simple enough to DIY, or do I really need to get a plaster person?
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May 16, 2022 15:25
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BonoMan posted:We need to get a washer/dryer and fridge for our new house. I think everyone can agree that Samsung appliances should be universally avoided at all cost (Although I do have a Samsung Flex washer and dryer system that's going on 4 years with zero issues). Their fridges especially are trash. My current suggestion is to buy less expensive appliances without any bells or whistles on them. Less things to go wrong. I've had good luck with Whirlpool and Frigidaire stuff in the last few years. My highly rated LG fridge needed repaired in less than 3 years.
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May 16, 2022 15:27
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Pollyanna posted:Got a question. If given the chance, would you change all the walls in a house from plaster to drywall? plaster insulates better and "sounds" better .. it's hard to describe but i think sound echoes more in plaster rooms. someone pointed it out to me and i think they're right. honestly, i think plaster is generally higher quality but its very labor intensive, which is why they switched to sheetrock. nothing to do w obsolete technology. ripping them out for no reason is gonna be a major hassle, that stuff is heavy and there is likely lead paint on it. as part of other renovations, sure it makes sense but i wouldnt do it just to rid your house of plaster. if you want new walls, you can just hang the sheetrock over it.
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May 16, 2022 15:27
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nwin posted:Another renovation question: address the source of humidity, it's either coming from the walls of the foundation or the slab.... Maybe both. Make sure your gutters drain 6' away from your house and make sure the area surrounding your house pitches down, 1' pitch for 10'. if you're already doing that or it does't help, you'll have to find where the moisture is coming from. when you say the basement is "unfinished" does that mean you can see the concrete/blocks? if yes, can you see where the moisture is coming from?
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May 16, 2022 15:36
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Pollyanna posted:D-drat, okay You're in a Boston area rental (if I remember right). That means you likely have super old plaster, even as plaster goes. Then it's been not maintained properly by lowest bidder work. It looks like parts may even have had wallpaper half-rear end removed in one of those pictures. At a certain point, yes, plaster will start to crumble off the lath (lathe?) behind it. This isnt helped if the house is moving, like your lovely Boston rental probably is. It's fixable if you care to learn or spend the money on skilled labor. The good point about being in an area where plaster is common is you can probably find someone. The other option is to remove and go back with drywall, but use 5/8 instead of 1/2 and insulate the wall cavities to get some of the noise damping properties back.
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May 16, 2022 16:22
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BonoMan posted:We need to get a washer/dryer and fridge for our new house. The general advice here is to avoid Samsung. The high tech bells and whistles are just more potential points of failure, and getting them fixed is a pain in the rear end because you have to go through specially licensed repairmen and source parts from Korea. I work in tech, so I've come to appreciate simple machines that don't have any IoT bullshit and are incapable of displaying error codes. We ended up with Maytag MVWP575GW for our washer (plus the matching dryer), and it's been totally great and has had zero issues. It's basically Maytag's answer to the Speed Queen. A couple people I've talked to have said that their biggest moving regret was not taking their ancient, dependable Kenmores/Maytags/Whirlpools with them to their new house because their new machines (that weren't Speed Queen or similar models) ended up being inferior in just about every way except looks and water usage. As for fridges, our house came with a basic white Frigidaire that's over 20 years old (which is like five times the expected lifespan of a Samsung fridge) and it's chugging along just fine. We had a scare a couple months ago, but all it needed was a new start relay, which was an inexpensive, easily obtainable part and easy to install. There's definitely something to be said about appliances that have few points of failure and are simple enough for you to DIY diagnostics, parts acquisition, and repair. When we remodel, I'm looking for the best, simplest built-in fridge. Looking at Sub-Zero (my parents have had theirs 25 years with no issues), but lately they've been advertising IoT capabilities and other superfluous techno bullshit which has me extremely concerned.
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May 16, 2022 16:31
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Pollyanna posted:So is that cragginess a natural part of plaster walls, or because of subpar repairs and upkeep? Plaster walls, properly installed, are still the gold standard of quality. They are done slightly differently now (usually top coating over sheetrock or similar) but still much more expensive than drywall and taping. These methods can be finished to a much higher level than painted drywall paper. Your pictures show amateur work done to the lowest quality possible to continue being able to rent out your maintenance-debt laden space. I've see the same/worse with drywall dumps. Pollyanna posted:Is hole/crack/crumble repair simple enough to DIY, or do I really need to get a plaster person? Depends on the plaster and what condition it's in. But it shouldn't be a big deal unless the repair is large enough that you need to know how to trowl large sections flat. Edit: nwin posted:But yeah, we’ll have some workout equipment there, some storage, the electrical panel/furnace in the basement, so I was hoping to section off a place with drywall/electricity/drop ceilings/flooring maybe for an office/bed for when guests come. So how do you plan to head and cool the space? Because that's how you'll control the inevitable humidity that gets past the vapor barriers you should be installing while finishing. If you have a system that can be zoned properly and be used to control humidity you won't need a dehumidifier. Or if you install mini splits with a "dry" setting. Motronic fucked around with this message at 16:43 on May 16, 2022 |
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May 16, 2022 16:37
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skipdogg posted:I think everyone can agree that Samsung appliances should be universally avoided at all cost (Although I do have a Samsung Flex washer and dryer system that's going on 4 years with zero issues). Their fridges especially are trash. Queen Victorian posted:The general advice here is to avoid Samsung. The high tech bells and whistles are just more potential points of failure, and getting them fixed is a pain in the rear end because you have to go through specially licensed repairmen and source parts from Korea. Yeah that was our thoughts as well - avoiding Samsung. We definitely want them to be as simple as possible. We're a very smart connected household but don't need any of that in our Fridge or W/D. Simple and reliable is our goal. And godddammnnn all this has gotten so expensive. Definitely wishing I would have saved my old W/D. But we had to move quick and into a rental half the country away so we were having huge impromptu garage sales. Bought *both* from a colleague for $75 - they lasted from 2008-2021 where I sold them for $100 in fine working order.
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May 16, 2022 16:45
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Since we're doing plasterchat, I need to find studs in a plaster/lath wall built in 1906. I'm trying to install these Rockler floating shelf brackets, so I need to get pretty close to the center of the stud. I know not to assume 16" OC, is the best advice to just drill a small hole near the baseboards, and if it's hitting wood after an inch or so deep then it's on a stud? A stud finder/magnets/etc are just going to be worthless, right?
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May 16, 2022 16:48
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BTW, the classical solution to hanging pictures on a plaster wall is installing a picture rail. It's a crown molding with a hidden gap, letting you clip a picture hook over the molding. The downside is the visible wires.
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May 16, 2022 17:07
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How do I install a window A/C unit like this: https://www.costco.com/midea-12%2c000-btu-cooling-inverter-window-air-conditioner.product.100849391.html In a window that slides open horizontally like this: 
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May 16, 2022 17:09
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nwin posted:recommend drywall starts 2’ above the floor so moisture doesn’t seep into it, and they think that’s what happened here. Once I move in I’ll take a closer look and if needed, just cut off the bottom 2 feet with a rotozip or something.
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May 16, 2022 17:15
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There are really only a handful of "major" manufacturers for appliances now. There are a few smaller specialty/Euro manufacturers (IE: Miele), but for 99% of homeowners it boils down to: Whirlpool (Owns/manufactures Kitchen-Aid, Maytag, Jenn-Air, Amana, few others...) Electrolux (Also owns Frigidaire) GE (Hotpoint, few others) Samsung (dear god no) LG (Slightly better than Samsung by most accounts) As others have mentioned, typically, the more basic, the better. FWIW, I did some pretty heavy research back when we bought our current home (2017) and ended up with: Washer and Dryer: Electrolux Refrigerator/Freezer: Whirlpool (Kenmore) Gas Range: Frigidaire (Kenmore) DW: Bosch I love Bosch dishwashers. I know some people complain about the drying capability, and it's true, some plastic items especially may not be dry, but god drat, it cleans well. I can easily live with giving some items a quick wipe with a towel from time to time before putting them away. All of my appliances have been trouble free EXCEPT just recently, my fridge decided not to dispense cold water/ice anymore. I thought it was the main water valve which I replaced but it's still no beuno. I haven't done any other troubleshooting. Otherwise, it still cools very well. It is something I plan to repair though. Some manufacturers have specific strong suits. For example, GE has a pretty bad rap from a lot of people, but from what I understand they do gas ranges very well. Whirlpool/Maytag had big issues with their front loader washers but top loaders were still pretty good (not sure if that's still the case, the Maytag Neptune washers was regarded by some to be the beginning of the end for Maytag). Frigidaire ranges are typically solid, if not great, but their dishwashers are pretty much "meh" Many "high end models" like Kitchen-Aid, Frigidaire Gallery, are often mechanically the exact same as much lower priced models with a couple of frills put into it. Like with fridges, a fancy shelf, dishwasher, a couple dB reduction. One of those things were spending more will likely not result in a more reliable appliance. e: Regarding Samsung, there are some very loyal brand defenders of them for some reason, but the biggest issue, from what I understand with repair people, is parts for the Korean brands, Samsung in particular, are brutal. I know someone that waited over 9 months for a part for their built in oven.
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May 16, 2022 17:17
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SA Forums Poster posted:How do I install a window A/C unit like this: You can't. You have to buy a window A/C unit designed for casements. The search term 'slider' will also work.
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May 16, 2022 17:18
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Arsenic Lupin posted:BTW, the classical solution to hanging pictures on a plaster wall is installing a picture rail. It's a crown molding with a hidden gap, letting you clip a picture hook over the molding. The downside is the visible wires. I really dig the look of the wires. I put picture rail up everywhere and love it. I bought a crimper and some steel cable to give things a more modern look. Just got these framed and put up this weekend:  And in plaster chat, I have the best of both worlds imho: sheetrock with a plaster skim coat on top. My walls are about an inch thick.
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May 16, 2022 17:51
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Sirotan posted:I really dig the look of the wires. I put picture rail up everywhere and love it. I bought a crimper and some steel cable to give things a more modern look. Looks great, did you know about this? https://www.flickr.com/photos/biodivlibrary/sets/
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May 16, 2022 17:59
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That looks wonderful.
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May 16, 2022 17:59
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That looks dope Sirotan, nicely done.
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May 16, 2022 18:15
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SA Forums Poster posted:How do I install a window A/C unit like this: Don't do this unless you're comfortable and 100% sure your AC unit isn't going to drop out your window where it could easily kill someone, but here's what I did previously:  I just put a 2x2 along the top L-channel thing so that it would be braced on either side by the window frame, and actually drilled + screwed the left side of that 2x2 into the metal window frame to ensure it wouldn't shift. Measured the space above the unit and the width of the groove on the outside edges to determine the dimensions of blanking plate. This would be best if it was acrylic but I just went with some fibreboard that had some kind of paint or protective sealant on the outside face. I screwed some extra cutoff piece of the 2x2 into the blanking plate so that I could toss some screws in the top of the blanking plate 2x2 and the L bracket 2x2 and use a hair tie to keep the board firmly in place (because I liked to remove it when it was nice out). The whole thing is sitting on foam to isolate it a little from the windowframe to minimize the vibration. e: Just so I don't lose face here in the home thread, that was a rental apartment which is why the sill/frame is in such poor repair. VelociBacon fucked around with this message at 18:39 on May 16, 2022 |
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May 16, 2022 18:33
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VelociBacon posted:Looks great, did you know about this? These are pretty cool, though my birds are not particularly accurate depictions.
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May 16, 2022 19:48
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