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The Wonder Weapon posted:Ok so I can be fine with it as-is and I don't need to repaint it this year (or next (or next))?
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Aug 16, 2023 18:08
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The Wonder Weapon posted:Ok so I can be fine with it as-is and I don't need to repaint it this year (or next (or next))? Are you worried about aesthetics or functionality? Because it's pressure-treated wood, it's not gonna rot anytime soon. You don't need to repaint it soon or at all, except insofar as it bothers you aesthetically.
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Aug 16, 2023 18:11
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TooMuchAbstraction posted:Are you worried about aesthetics or functionality? Because it's pressure-treated wood, it's not gonna rot anytime soon. You don't need to repaint it soon or at all, except insofar as it bothers you aesthetically. Problem being once you've stained/sealed it it will look much worse then if it was never stained or sealed in a couple of years unless you keep up with it. If painting fences every 2 years doesn't sound like fun then it's best to leave it alone.
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Aug 16, 2023 18:20
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Today I'm 100% concerned about functionality. I was also told (by this thread perhaps) that treating it was necessary for long-term survival. In three years I may care more about the aesthetics, we'll see. What's the easiest way to paint 40 linear ft of wood fence? Do you spray in an environment like this, or am I stuck brushing/rolling the whole thing? (I do not currently own a sprayer)
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Aug 16, 2023 19:41
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The Wonder Weapon posted:Today I'm 100% concerned about functionality. I was also told (by this thread perhaps) that treating it was necessary for long-term survival. In three years I may care more about the aesthetics, we'll see. The painting is the easy part - I'd use an airless sprayer. The prep is what takes time. I'd start with a pressure washer and hope I didn't need to scrap or sand after that. And yeah, the sealer will buy you more long-term survival on the fence - if you keep up with it. Not sure what your weather is like, but even with 15F to 100 F, high humidity, snow, ice hurricanes, etc a completely unsealed pressure treated fence around here is gonna last a couple of decades. If you're somewhere that rains constantly unsealed will probably significantly shorten its life, as would if its located in a shady spot under a lot of trees.
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Aug 16, 2023 19:57
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TooMuchAbstraction posted:Are you worried about aesthetics or functionality? Because it's pressure-treated wood, it's not gonna rot anytime soon. You don't need to repaint it soon or at all, except insofar as it bothers you aesthetically. If you wanna stand out, pretend your are living in a swedish rural village, or just piss of your neighbors / HOA consider an old fashioned fence like this, gärdsgård in swe, not sure if it has an english name. No need to paint, just made from sticks   
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Aug 17, 2023 07:30
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If that fence is still effectively sealed by that semitransparent stain, it may not take another coat right now. If water sprinkled on the fence beads up, you won't be able to restain it right now and will need to let it continue to weather, or remove the existing stain first. If water can soak in, it'll take a fresh coat of stain. It's pretty common to have exposed areas that are ready to restain and protected portions of the same structure that aren't.
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Aug 17, 2023 12:17
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eddiewalker posted:Kwikset has a neat thing they call Smartkey where you can rekey your locks to any Kwikset key you already have. StormDrain posted:They're very weak and easy to break, unfortunately. I. Wouldn't reccomend. Not that most locks are secure really... These are bad. https://www.frontrangelocksmith.com/blog/the-best-lock-for-your-home-is-your-lock-really-safe/ quote:The Kwikset SmartKey is the younger brother of the standard Kwikset deadbolt. It came out in 2008 and it works in a completely different technology than any other lock on the market. The purpose of this new technology is to allow the owner to easily change its key to a new key, without the hassle of calling a locksmith. Therefore, its interior structure is completely different, making the classic compromise methods useless. Every locksmith knows that whenever they need to unlock a Kwikset SmartKey, there’s no point in trying to pick, rake or bump it, drilling is the only option. When this lock first came out, it had a major security flaw where it could be unlocked easily with a flat-head screwdriver. As my testing showed – this flaw is long gone. Trying to pry it open with a screwdriver actually broke the head of my screwdriver off. Like you said though, pretty much all residential locks are not great.
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Aug 17, 2023 15:20
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The complaints I've seen about Smartkey locks all revolve about the mechanism jamming and refusing to unlock when the correct key is used. You can see the internal mechanism in this video: https://youtu.be/l0q0hNHZYsg I believe I read that the failures come from the little nubs on the key pins wearing and either not properly lifting the sliders or even jumping to the next notch of the slider. Either way when they fail you basically have to drill the lock since your average locksmith won't have LockPickingLawyer's skills.
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Aug 17, 2023 15:45
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Shifty Pony posted:The complaints I've seen about Smartkey locks all revolve about the mechanism jamming and refusing to unlock when the correct key is used. You can see the internal mechanism in this video: They are absolutely awful, overcomplicated jam-tastic garbage if you live anywhere with "weather". The big box store regular kwiksets aren't too far behind to be fair. I don't buy locksmith-supplied schlage because I think they're more secure. It's because they actually work well when you need them to with minimal if any maintenance/lubrication after install. They also don't feel like a bag of barely toleranced parts that kinda sorta mesh together until they jam up when operating them.
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Aug 17, 2023 15:48
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Motronic posted:They are absolutely awful, overcomplicated jam-tastic garbage if you live anywhere with "weather". The big box store regular kwiksets aren't too far behind to be fair.  e: Shifty Pony posted:The complaints I've seen about Smartkey locks all revolve about the mechanism jamming and refusing to unlock when the correct key is used. You can see the internal mechanism in this video: slidebite fucked around with this message at 16:46 on Aug 17, 2023 |
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Aug 17, 2023 16:25
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All good info. Maybe next summer I'll test the tops and see if they're absorbing water, and I can just put a small layer on the very top surfaces, rather than the entire fence.
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Aug 17, 2023 16:33
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slidebite posted:Interesting, the LPL is obviously picking it, but that other locksmith site I quoted earlier says they are not pickable. I wonder if they changed in recent years? That LPL vid is 7 years old. Time is money to professionals. Drilling always takes X time, picking can take X time, 5X time, or never work. So the safe bet is to not gently caress around with lock picks and go straight to drilling, and charge the customer more for a new lock plus the time.
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Aug 17, 2023 16:52
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LPL has had videos where he has supposedly been sent locks by actual lock smiths that they claim are unpickable and he had no problem getting into them at all. Obviously there's not likely any competition lock pickers going around trying to break into houses though so not super relevant. I've mentioned this before in the thread but personally I changed all my locks to Yale digital models with no key holes at all and no wireless module installed. Only key I typically carry is my mail key, and no need to worry about locking myself out somehow.
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Aug 17, 2023 17:09
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I do have a success story which is that I’m finally moving out of my piece of poo poo apartment, home to big brain ideas like unfiltered furnaces in dirt-filled 1800s era basements with uninsulated ducts that haven’t been cleaned in 20 years and also this: https://youtube.com/watch?v=R8Z2tedtZF0
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Aug 17, 2023 17:14
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jetz0r posted:Time is money to professionals. Drilling always takes X time, picking can take X time, 5X time, or never work. So the safe bet is to not gently caress around with lock picks and go straight to drilling, and charge the customer more for a new lock plus the time. What am I hiring a professional for if they're just going to drill the lock anyway?
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Aug 17, 2023 17:15
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Tiny Timbs posted:What am I hiring a professional for if they're just going to drill the lock anyway? Because you don't have a drill (or it's behind the locked door), don't know how to use it, and don't know how to or have the parts RIGHT NOW to put a barrel back in that is keyed properly to your other locks. Take your pick of any or all. This isn't about methods, it's about outcomes.
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Aug 17, 2023 17:20
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Elem7 posted:LPL has had videos where he has supposedly been sent locks by actual lock smiths that they claim are unpickable and he had no problem getting into them at all. Obviously there's not likely any competition lock pickers going around trying to break into houses though so not super relevant. Do those fail open or closed when the battery runs out? How hard are they to bypass without knowing the code? How hard are they to install?
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Aug 17, 2023 18:12
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The Wonder Weapon posted:All good info. Maybe next summer I'll test the tops and see if they're absorbing water, and I can just put a small layer on the very top surfaces, rather than the entire fence. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tbazGVrbN-g
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Aug 17, 2023 19:09
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Ham Equity posted:Do those fail open or closed when the battery runs out? How hard are they to bypass without knowing the code? How hard are they to install? The first one I bought could lock you out if the battery died theoretically but it gives you an audible warning when the battery starts to get low in the form of spoken speech. "Battery is low, replace soon" not just beep-beep-beep or something. Also the batteries last a long time, I got it in like 2015 and have only replaced them twice. The other 3 slightly newer ones I have that all applies and in addition they have 2 contacts on the bottom for a 9-volt battery to provide temporary power. For bypassing, I don't honestly know. We have 8+ digit codes set on them and there is an optional lockout so brute forcing the code isn't super likely/not possible, long as you don't leave an obvious Cheeto dust pattern. Bypassing physically ala LPL? No idea, I haven't tried to tear them apart and figure that out, I would be surprised if its totally impossible but there's no obvious glaring way to disengage the lock and also exert enough force to turn the shaft which isn't visible on the exterior side. They're as easy to install as any regular deadbolt, so not very.
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Aug 17, 2023 23:16
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Pollyanna posted:I do have a success story which is that I’m finally moving out of my piece of poo poo apartment, home to big brain ideas like unfiltered furnaces in dirt-filled 1800s era basements with uninsulated ducts that haven’t been cleaned in 20 years and also this: Goongrats :3
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Aug 18, 2023 00:49
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Pollyanna posted:I do have a success story which is that I’m finally moving out of my piece of poo poo apartment, home to big brain ideas like unfiltered furnaces in dirt-filled 1800s era basements with uninsulated ducts that haven’t been cleaned in 20 years and also this: Lmfao awesome
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Aug 18, 2023 01:18
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Elem7 posted:We have 8+ digit codes set on them and there is an optional lockout so brute forcing the code isn't super likely/not possible, long as you don't leave an obvious Cheeto dust pattern. The Samsung locks have mandatory random 3 digit code before you put in your code. Does yours offer this? This is to prevent the greasy fingers problem.
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Aug 18, 2023 01:43
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Pollyanna posted:I do have a success story which is that I’m finally moving out of my piece of poo poo apartment, home to big brain ideas like unfiltered furnaces in dirt-filled 1800s era basements with uninsulated ducts that haven’t been cleaned in 20 years and also this: Did you purchase a home or are you moving into a less poo poo apartment? I remember your dirt HVAC pictures and they were horrific.
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Aug 18, 2023 01:43
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H110Hawk posted:The Samsung locks have mandatory random 3 digit code before you put in your code. Does yours offer this? This is to prevent the greasy fingers problem. Looking online at the manual, nope, doesn't look like ours have that feature. Not super concerned for us personally because my wife and I have different codes and no repeating numbers, mostly a coincidence, but it should mitigate that risk, the keypad surface is also pretty easy to wipe clean with the back of a sleeve if needs be. The cheeto dust remark was mostly a joke, but I never liked some of the cheap digital locks I've seen where there's only 5 buttons(1-2,3-4,5-6, etc) and 4 digits pins which seemed like they'd be super easy for some kid to break into.
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Aug 18, 2023 02:45
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Elem7 posted:Looking online at the manual, nope, doesn't look like ours have that feature. Not super concerned for us personally because my wife and I have different codes and no repeating numbers, mostly a coincidence, but it should mitigate that risk, the keypad surface is also pretty easy to wipe clean with the back of a sleeve if needs be. The cheeto dust remark was mostly a joke. I mean I have disabled alarms I've forgotten the code to by just mashing the 4 super dirty buttons in various orders. Even if you wipe them clean eventually your fingers wear the gloss off. With 8 digit codes and multiple regularly used codes it's not as big of a deal.
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Aug 18, 2023 03:00
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I came to brag that I finally have my shower glass enclosure installed. And my wife took the opportunity to shame my unfinished trim RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE GLASS MAN. Now I gotta buckle down and complete this punchlist this weekend. One trim, filling nailholes and painting.
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Aug 18, 2023 06:28
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My exterior storage doors have a nice 1.25" gap at the bottom I want to seal. Mice are getting in. All the big box door sweeps are like .75" at most. What would y'all use?
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Aug 19, 2023 17:17
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BonoMan posted:My exterior storage doors have a nice 1.25" gap at the bottom I want to seal. Mice are getting in. Fix your door. That's a huge rear end gap. Are you missing the sill? Measure your door and see if it's short or where you are missing that inch or so. You could always screw and glue a piece of material to the bottom of your door to take up the gap and then affix your weather stripping to the bottom of that, but it would probably look pretty janky.
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Aug 19, 2023 17:24
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StormDrain posted:I came to brag that I finally have my shower glass enclosure installed. And my wife took the opportunity to shame my unfinished trim RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE GLASS MAN. Now I gotta buckle down and complete this punchlist this weekend. One trim, filling nailholes and painting. Looks great!
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Aug 19, 2023 18:14
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I've got this small little terraced side garden here. It's about 50 sq feet or so. Ignore the crushed tomatoes. Also these pics are on different sides of me having an eastern hemlock taken out. I'm thinking about doubling it's size down the hill to make it big enough to make a small fire pit. Nothing requiring masonry, just a place to toss some logs and sit around in the fall/winter. Thought was to build a retaining wall x feet down the hill, make it level as I can, connect the side walls, take out the downhill part of the old section, fill it in, etc. concern is that there are power lines to my house about 12 - 15 feet above where it would go, as seen here kinda.  I would never turn this into a giant bonfire or anything, and forest fire risk is negligible since this is technically a deciduous rainforest. This would probably get used 2-3 times a month max. Would occasionally being over a fire cause damage to these wires over time? Thanks!
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Aug 19, 2023 19:56
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The Wonder Weapon posted:What's the easiest way to paint 40 linear ft of wood fence? 
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Aug 19, 2023 19:56
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SpartanIvy posted:Fix your door. That's a huge rear end gap. Are you missing the sill? Measure your door and see if it's short or where you are missing that inch or so. https://imgur.com/a/MBaxGBe It's an outdoor storeroom so I'm not going to spend a ton of time on it. It is missing the threshold though
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Aug 19, 2023 20:45
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BonoMan posted:https://imgur.com/a/MBaxGBe So put in a threshold unless you're rolling things in and out of that space. Otherwise you're bound for a not-so-great looking hack (or higher effort like taking the door off to add to the bottom) to make up a decent amount of that gap so a normal sweep will cover the rest.
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Aug 19, 2023 20:49
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*desperately trying to pay contractors with kites in good repair and dead rats and string*
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Aug 19, 2023 22:55
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Eason the Fifth posted:*desperately trying to pay contractors with kites in good repair and dead rats and string* I mean, at least he's paying, unlike everyone else around him.
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Aug 19, 2023 22:55
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I woke up yesterday to a house that was 83 degrees (Florida) and saw that the outside fan wouldn't start (was making a hum trying to start). Called an HVAC guy and he told me it was the capacitor. I switched that out and it started working again, but today it's doing the same thing again and my hot water is also not pumping from my electric tank heater. The AC fan will start intermittently but then stops again. When running, the air is cold and it's blowing fine, but it just won't start or run consistently. The hot water is lukewarm at best, feels like ground temp really. I checked the reset switch. I've done a full circuit board reset (off main, off singles, on main, on singles) but no improvement. Is this an electrical issue? We do get regular storms and strong lightning, but nothing else was damaged in the past few days to my knowledge. Could this be a fuse issue? I don't even know who to call since the HVAC guy did a full check and told me it was just the capacitor. Feels like I wasted $100 on that visit.
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Aug 20, 2023 01:54
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Possibly just a coincidence but if you have a digital multimeter go to outlets around the house and check to make sure they all read close to 120V.
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Aug 20, 2023 02:07
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Our coffee maker stopped boiling water ;______; RIP
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Aug 20, 2023 08:58
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Going back to door lock chat, I'm getting a new front door and it doesn't come with hardware. What should I buy in terms of handle and deadbolt? I want quality, this is presumably a one-time purchase and it's not something where I'm trying to save pennies. I don't want a remote controlled/app-controlled lock.
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Aug 20, 2023 14:31
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