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Bit the bullet and replaced my main AC system to the tune of $7,800. It was a 20 year old 5-ton R22 unit, an impressive lifespan for Florida. When the summer heat kicked in this year, it just couldn't keep up anymore and was running nearly constantly just to maintain temperature. Run time the week before replacement:  The week it was replaced on that Friday:  And the first full week since replacing:  That ought to make a dent in our record high power bills, the last two were $500 and $590.  I was getting a lot of condensation coming from the secondary drain into the emergency pan for a while after we changed it out, but also getting plenty of flow to the outside and it was blown out when he changed it so the main should be clear. AC guy thought he was going to have to adjust the drain line since we lost a little slope due to the new air handler sitting lower (it hangs from the garage ceiling). Then after a few days the secondary drain's drip started slowing down on its own and stopped completely a couple days ago. Bone dry ever since. Now I'm thinking that the new unit was just pulling that much excess humidity out of the house vs the old one.
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Aug 1, 2023 14:30
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Shifty Pony posted:It is a light/fan combo so that's exactly why it isn't centered. Still going to see it every time I use the bathroom now. Paint a strip/basic design on one side so it's centered in the area of the same color. At least it will look like intentional asymmetry, then.
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Aug 1, 2023 15:08
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SpartanIvy posted:I can't imagine showing up for a party at a strangers house and then deciding not only to steal poo poo from their neighbors, but then toss the evidence into the hosts garage. What an absolute trash tier person. I had a 'friend of a friend of a friend' at one of my parties who, rather than look in a cabinet when he ran out of TP, used my towel and washcloth and then hid the poo poo-smeared evidence under the clawfoot tub.
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Aug 1, 2023 15:47
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Sloppy posted:I had a 'friend of a friend of a friend' at one of my parties who, rather than look in a cabinet when he ran out of TP, used my towel and washcloth and then hid the poo poo-smeared evidence under the clawfoot tub.  This was at a high school / college party, and the person was very drunk, right? Certainly not an adult out in society yet. Right?!?!?
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Aug 1, 2023 17:16
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Sloppy posted:I had a 'friend of a friend of a friend' at one of my parties who, rather than look in a cabinet when he ran out of TP, used my towel and washcloth and then hid the poo poo-smeared evidence under the clawfoot tub. It could have been worse https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VDniUvt8RFs
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Aug 1, 2023 17:23
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TerminalSaint posted:I feel your pain. That’s a gorgeous… stucco pattern?
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Aug 1, 2023 17:56
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Sloppy posted:I had a 'friend of a friend of a friend' at one of my parties who, rather than look in a cabinet when he ran out of TP, used my towel and washcloth and then hid the poo poo-smeared evidence under the clawfoot tub. At least you didn't get upper decked where someone poops in the upper tank of your toilet, causing every flush to get worse
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Aug 1, 2023 18:33
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Sump pump question: When my sump got installed like 12 years ago, they used a little piece of foam installation to block the hole in the top, which I guess was to stop splashing and smell from getting out? This piece of foam is now saturated and super gross. Is there something that doesn't look so improvised I should be using to fill that hole?
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Aug 1, 2023 18:35
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Poldarn posted:Sump pump question: If it's in an actual standard sized sump pit they make lids for them. Perhaps one of those work work even if it's not a standard sized sump pit if you can find one larger than the hole. https://www.homedepot.com/p/JACKEL-18-in-Solid-Sump-Basin-Cover-SF22B/300456934
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Aug 1, 2023 18:37
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Motronic posted:If it's in an actual standard sized sump pit they make lids for them. Perhaps one of those work work even if it's not a standard sized sump pit if you can find one larger than the hole. Oh good idea. The HD near me doesn't have any, but I can order one.
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Aug 1, 2023 18:55
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What's a good kitchen countertop material these days? My recollection is that granite and marble are porous and require a good deal of care/maintenance/sealing. Quartz is not bad, I think... right? Similar price than the others but less maintenance, yes? I looked up slate for laughs, seeing as it's used for lab benchtops and whatnot, and apparently you can get good looking stuff for way cheaper than the above, so that's not out of the running? Looks like you can get it smooth or with a more natural finish, which I think would look cool. I've googled this and all I find are dozens of SEO "here's some useless pros and cons of each call our showroom to schedule an appointment" type websites.
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Aug 1, 2023 19:07
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I went with quartz. When I did my research what I learned was that quartz isn't a raw natural product, it's an engineered stone. Which is actually good, it's made with ground-up quartz and an inert resin. The resin is food safe but the overall product is non-porous. So correct on less maintenance. Doesn't need to be treated or sealed, and won't stain.
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Aug 1, 2023 19:12
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We had quartz in our old house and loved it. Very low maintenance. We have very ugly, "cheapest thing HD sells" granite at our current house. It's fine and we don't really do any maintenance on it. It's very dark, so I don't think any staining would really show. We're replacing it with quartz in the near future. The price range on quartz can be anywhere from like $59/sqft to $130+/sqft installed. edit: Cambria has a video that shows some of the manufacturing process: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TKzpM00XtGY
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Aug 1, 2023 19:13
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On the subject of sump pumps I recently discovered that my house has one outdoors by the side of the garage. I live in southern California and my house does not have a basement or a bomb shelter and the foundation is slab. The pre-inspection report doesn't say anything about it either. Do I call a plumber and them come over and figure out what the intended purpose is?
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Aug 1, 2023 19:47
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(nostalgia alert) In the 1970s, my mom went to a gravestone maker and asked them to make a single-cabinet-sized countertop out of marble offcuts. That counter was next to the refrigerator and it rocked for anything you wanted to be quickly cooled (e.g. candy) or that was sticky (some bread doughs) or needed to remain cold (pastry dough). When my husband and I set up house, we wound up buying a marble "cheese board" roughly 12" x 15" that we've carried from place to place for 40+ years. My point: You may not want a marble countertop, because marble both chips and stains, but you do want a large piece of marble to use for the reasons above. The rest of the countertops were butcherblock, which I totally loved for its "chop anywhere" feature, to say nothing of being able to slide hot pots off the stove onto the counter. Alas, they are hopelessly unsanitary.
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Aug 1, 2023 20:57
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Quartz has that same temperature property with a bonus that it's safe for food contact unlike granite. So functionality wise it's strictly superior to either granite or marble. Apparently professional kitchens/bakeries will have quartz counters for their pastry work, because it's a great surface to work pastry dough against without melting the butter, for example.
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Aug 1, 2023 21:05
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FISHMANPET posted:I went with quartz. When I did my research what I learned was that quartz isn't a raw natural product, it's an engineered stone. Which is actually good, it's made with ground-up quartz and an inert resin. The resin is food safe but the overall product is non-porous. So correct on less maintenance. Doesn't need to be treated or sealed, and won't stain. The resin leads to the only downside of quartz: you can burn it if you put a very hot pot directly onto it.
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Aug 1, 2023 21:09
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Arsenic Lupin posted:(nostalgia alert) In the 1970s, my mom went to a gravestone maker and asked them to make a single-cabinet-sized countertop out of marble offcuts. That counter was next to the refrigerator and it rocked for anything you wanted to be quickly cooled (e.g. candy) or that was sticky (some bread doughs) or needed to remain cold (pastry dough). When my husband and I set up house, we wound up buying a marble "cheese board" roughly 12" x 15" that we've carried from place to place for 40+ years. I remember a story, perhaps on here, about grandmas candymaking marble section of the counter. The kitchen was being redone or something and they pulled that section of counter only to find that it was literally a a grave stone with the carved/lettered side facing down.
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Aug 1, 2023 21:12
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Shifty Pony posted:The resin leads to the only downside of quartz: you can burn it if you put a very hot pot directly onto it. Exactly. If you don’t want the resin then you want true Quartzite, which is the natural stone. Highly recommended.
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Aug 1, 2023 22:53
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Motronic posted:I remember a story, perhaps on here, about grandmas candymaking marble section of the counter. The kitchen was being redone or something and they pulled that section of counter only to find that it was literally a a grave stone with the carved/lettered side facing down. Brb shaving my kitchen budget by visiting the local cemetery
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Aug 1, 2023 23:41
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brugroffil posted:Brb shaving my kitchen budget by visiting the local cemetery Hopefully that's not subtracting from the groceries bill either 
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Aug 1, 2023 23:45
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Bobcats posted:That’s a gorgeous… stucco pattern? Thanks! It's plaster. In addition to that hall it's in the main floor bedroom and dining room. 
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Aug 2, 2023 00:22
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That's glorious.
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Aug 2, 2023 01:22
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What's it like to clean that
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Aug 2, 2023 01:24
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Hadlock posted:What's it like to clean that Haven't had to yet, but easier than popcorn I'm sure.
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Aug 2, 2023 01:44
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Good-Natured Filth posted:
The guy was probably early 20s like the rest of us at the time, yeah, although there were always a number of weird older kids that clung to our social circle so it might have been one of them. We thought they were cool because they'd buy us booze but in retrospect were just failchildren beginning to fully blossom.
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Aug 2, 2023 01:46
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TerminalSaint posted:Thanks! It's plaster. In addition to that hall it's in the main floor bedroom and dining room. That's amazing. What a crafts/skill feature to have.
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Aug 2, 2023 02:47
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We love it, even though the thought of ever having to patch it if I need to cut a hole in the ceiling gives me fits.
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Aug 2, 2023 16:13
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Let me know if there's a better thread for this. I bought a condo recently and am trying to install a curtain rod in my living room (the previous owner used command hooks to hold the curtain rod). It's a wide window, so I want to mount the ends to studs. The center bracket I used drywall anchors for, which went fine except for the bit where I stripped one of the anchors when it got stuck, but my studs are steel*, not wood, so I don't think the screws that came with the curtain rod work and I'm a bit afraid of drilling into the metal studs. Would a self tapping screw work okay for this? Should I just buy out Home Depot so I don't have to make a million runs to get curtains hung? *When I removed an outlet cover to check, I found a bit of paper towel shoved in the electrical box  I'm a first time home owner but I don't think that's supposed to be there?
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Aug 5, 2023 22:57
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Mecca-Benghazi posted:Let me know if there's a better thread for this. I bought a condo recently and am trying to install a curtain rod in my living room (the previous owner used command hooks to hold the curtain rod). It's a wide window, so I want to mount the ends to studs. The center bracket I used drywall anchors for, which went fine except for the bit where I stripped one of the anchors when it got stuck, but my studs are steel*, not wood, so I don't think the screws that came with the curtain rod work and I'm a bit afraid of drilling into the metal studs. Would a self tapping screw work okay for this? Should I just buy out Home Depot so I don't have to make a million runs to get curtains hung? 1. Steel studs will not work properly with the screws, as screw in metal studs do not have much strength compared to the same in wood (the metal is hollow so nothing to grab onto). You have to use toggle bolts or another metal stud mounting solution. 2. Drywall anchors are meant for drywall, not studs, sounds like you are doing it right though.
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Aug 5, 2023 23:05
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Yeah just to be clear the middle bracket I used the drywall anchor for was definitely not aligned with a stud I was hesitant to try a toggle bolt since the holes are larger than for screws and I wasn't sure if the metal studs could handle having a big hole in them 
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Aug 6, 2023 00:24
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I'm in an interestingly similar position trying to hang a window shade - they had it up with drywall anchors but one of them gave out and now I'm trying to put it back in, but better. I did the "buy out Menard LowesDepot" solution with a bunch of different screw solutions designed for self-tapping and digging into sheet metal/steel. I also grabbed The Nuclear Option of a cobalt drill bit big enough for the bags of toggle bolts I have in the cabinet if none of the fastener-based solutions work. No idea what the metal is made out of, but it definitely wrecked one of my HSS cheapie drillbits.
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Aug 6, 2023 00:44
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Real nuclear option is to cut out some drywall, install appropriate blocking, and patch/paint
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Aug 6, 2023 01:39
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brugroffil posted:Real nuclear option is to cut out some drywall, install appropriate blocking, and patch/paint Eh, it's an apartment, so that's probably a bridge too far 
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Aug 6, 2023 05:17
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Zarin posted:Eh, it's an apartment, so that's probably a bridge too far What does an apartment have to do with this, unless you're using that to mean "I rent" in which case you should do nothing other than call your property management or landlord.
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Aug 6, 2023 13:32
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If I want to replace a toilet and also the flooring in a bathroom, is there a certain order I should do those two things in or does it not matter? Thanks!
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Aug 6, 2023 20:16
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surf rock posted:If I want to replace a toilet and also the flooring in a bathroom, is there a certain order I should do those two things in or does it not matter? Thanks! You'll have to remove the toilet to replace the floor so might as well do both at the same time. Remove old toilet, remove old floor, install new floor, install new toilet.
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Aug 6, 2023 20:20
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I would do them at the same time? The toilet has to come up to do the flooring, and you may have to raise the flange depending on what exactly you're doing (going vinyl to tile, for instance). Or you could do what my last Gary did, which is put the tile OVER the vinyl floor, and cut it around the toilet (and vanity). That was at least an easy demo. As an aside, what are everyone's thoughts on tiling up to a vanity, vs pulling the vanity and tiling wall to wall? Our hall bath upstairs is wall-to-wall vanity/cabinet along one side, and pulling it out would be a bitch of a job. I know the current floor doesn't extend under the vanity and cabinet, so I'm resisting the urge to pull it and thinking I should just tile from the vanity out.
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Aug 6, 2023 20:26
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PitViper posted:As an aside, what are everyone's thoughts on tiling up to a vanity, vs pulling the vanity and tiling wall to wall? Our hall bath upstairs is wall-to-wall vanity/cabinet along one side, and pulling it out would be a bitch of a job. I know the current floor doesn't extend under the vanity and cabinet, so I'm resisting the urge to pull it and thinking I should just tile from the vanity out. Depends on how nice everything is and the likelihood of changing them in the future honestly. You know the trade offs - tile up the to vanity is easy, but you're stuck with that size and style now unless you retile the floor. If the vanity is nice enough and good with you and will last until a full got of the bathroom go for it. If you're gonna piecemeal remodel tile under it or at least buy enough to do so.
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Aug 6, 2023 21:25
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Found out that I have a bunch of wasps or hornets in the siding under our bay windows:  I picked up a can of hornet killer spray, but it didn't seem to do much. I can't get it directly in the hole from the ground level, and I don't know where the nest is behind there anyway. Anybody have any experience or recommendations. I do not feel comfortable going up there on a ladder and pulling of that siding as it is, so I am guessing I should be reaching out to some professional pest control companies. I plan to go around the house this summer and patch up the cracks and little holes in the siding with caulk. Any thoughts on how to patch a hole that big? I have another one of similar size near ground level where my Gary routed his satellite cables through the siding and foundation.
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Aug 6, 2023 22:05
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