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Call your lawyer yesterday.
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Sep 28, 2020 06:21
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I've definitely seen backsplashes that look like they were just tossed up onto the wall like seeing if the spaghetti is done; try to avoid that. At least see if the guy has some photos of previous stuff before hiring them?
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Oct 20, 2020 12:43
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TheWevel posted:I got a letter from my HOA (addressed to the previous owner) saying that they didn't pay the 2020 HOA dues. They were due in March. We moved in early-August, part of the purchase agreement is that the sellers are supposed to pay everything so the new owners are free and clear until the following year. Based on that, we didn't escrow a partial payment for the rest of the year. I was going to reach out to my HOA but I didn't want to draw attention to it if I didn't have to. In my experience, there was a line item in the closing break down that showed that the previous owner paid until the end of the year, and then we paid them back for that portion. HOAs are also poorly managed so it's quite possible that they 1) do have your info and/or 2) the previous owner did actually pay, but their automated system doesn't know. I think you should talk to them to sort it out, and reminder that title insurance may protect you here if the PO didn't actually pay.
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Dec 1, 2020 00:03
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Kitchen Reno Question: If the installers messed up the placement enough to cause them to be unaligned and not be able to fit appliances, how long does it take for them to take down and rehang the cabinets? What risk is there to these new cabinets, and if they mess them up, what is the recourse? Work has stopped and I’m going over with it the lead contractor on Wednesday (right before a snowstorm, ffs) so I’m trying to picture what this conversation is going to be like.
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Dec 14, 2020 02:54
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We had a detailed 2-D plan that incorporated the size of the appliances. I am assuming that the lead contractor wasn’t on site for installation, because there’s small but significant issues with the spacing that wasn’t noticed until they started putting in some of the appliances that arrived. Namely the stove and over-range microwave (which did arrive yesterday) only align if they take away space where the wine fridge (coming this week) goes on the left. If it had been the 15” cabinet that we replaced for the wine fridge, they may have noticed this issue before, and it wouldn’t have fit. Fortunately, (and perhaps a bigger issue that I want an answer about), the plan we have shows 160” for the wall, and we actually have 162” to work with. So there’s two extra inches of space that they can shift the cabinets to the right and everything would align fine. Annoyingly, they could have even resolved this before we noticed, but the hanging half-depth cabinets are flush to the left full-counter-depth pantry, and the edge of that pantry overlaps by about half an inch, causing the cascading misalignment that affects the appliances in the middle... all while leaving this huge gap around the fridge and this 3 inch space that has to be filled in to the right of the wall. Maybe it’s my web developer senses, but I just wish it had all been center aligned and there would be no issue! I’m glad to hear that they can resolve the issue with just a day’s worth of work and without damaging the cabinets. Tried to work it out over the phone, and I hope the contractor will realize in-person that he should just have them redo it. I feel like I should be wary about using him in the future however (we have a bathroom remodel planned after we move in) but I think that will come down to how things get handled on Wednesday. - The contract doesn’t say much. Perhaps it should have been more specific, it’s just a checklist of things they say they will do, no section for recourse. Is there a standard for these things? Fortunately it does say they will install the cabinets to the rendering, and it doesn’t match the rendering, so pretty straightforward that needs to be fixed. Nybble fucked around with this message at 04:04 on Dec 14, 2020 |
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Dec 14, 2020 04:02
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Post-mortem on the "Cabinets in the wrong place" conundrum: Contractor took one look at it and told his installers to fix it without argument. Best possible result after the initial phone call when he hadn't yet seen it and was confused why something wasn't going to fit where it was supposed to. Thanks for the advice up thread. Slowly but surely getting to the point where I'll actually be able to move into the house we bought a month ago. Feels good.
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Dec 17, 2020 20:58
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We bought a Bosch 100-series due to most everything else being on back order as well. It cleans better than any dishwasher we’ve had and the 3rd rack is great, but we have to remember to open the door to let the steam out so it dries well. If we run it over night, everything needs a wipe down. 48-decibel is also quieter than anything we’ve had before so we don’t mind running it during the day or in time before we go to sleep. Granted we were always in apartments, but it works well enough for us for $600. Hopefully the next time we redo a kitchen, there won’t be a pandemic on.
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Jan 23, 2021 17:07
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USAA has been solid for everything I've ever had with them, but I get that's not available for everyone.
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Mar 8, 2021 04:07
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What’s generally the process for getting toilets replaced? We have 3 older ones that we’d like to upgrade (lower amount needed to flush, better seat, and specifically a Toto bidet for the owners bathroom) but not sure if it’s a matter of “hire plumber, they bring them and replace” or “go buy from Lowe’s/Home Depot/etc and have a plumber show up and do the job”. Also if there are any good recommendations for a good solid standard toilet I’m all ears.
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Mar 27, 2021 00:10
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If you find a good pluggable wall-mount one, please let me know. Most I've seen are either sit on the floor, or connect directly into the power. We've got a spot on the wall in our en suite that would be perfect for a plug-in towel rack that was previously used for a ... TV? I now know this because there's a blank outlet covering that hides a coax cable.
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May 20, 2021 18:09
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Spending the weekend checking off some to-do list items, including painting, and finally getting around to posting about this: https://imgur.com/a/ckN67ow A few of the rooms in the house have these sorts of cracks in the drywall. It seems like it’s just bad taping from what I’ve looked up, but wanted to check in folks on how best to handle these. It wasn’t mentioned in the inspector report, but I also feel like some have shown up / gotten worse over the last 6 months since we’ve moved in. I’m off to go get paint for another thing I’m doing, but could get some other stuff to fix this while I’m at it. Edit: House built in 1993, I believe they did a very quick repaint of everything in flipper gray when selling, based on pictures on older listing in 2012 to now. So it’s possible they messed up something in that repaint for sale. The kitchen cabinets were hastily painted white for example, with drips evident, but we redid the kitchen before moving in anyway. Nybble fucked around with this message at 16:48 on May 31, 2021 |
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May 31, 2021 16:44
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Hm, I have some leftover flooring, wonder if I could make a bundle on it 🤔 But seriously, what should I do with it? Would I need to keep it around for any reason?
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Jun 11, 2021 00:44
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If you can get USAA, get USAA. Lucky to have it and use for almost everything but the mortgage itself.
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Jul 15, 2021 22:58
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Is a belt drive garage opener worth replacing for an older chain opener? We need to replace the door (no insulation, making the living room above it cold in the winter and hot in summer) but curious how much of an effect it will have for sound and operation.
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Jul 27, 2021 21:58
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TheWevel posted:
Hell yes, well done.
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Aug 14, 2021 16:51
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UPDATE
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Works for me, but it does throw a fun “not optimized for mobile” alert, so check your filtering or a different browser
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Aug 19, 2021 04:31
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I have to open our Bosch each time when it’s done, or else it has a little bit of condensation left on top of the cups and glassware that’s a bit annoying. Gets dishes extremely clean so we don’t regret it, but we were also buying during the absolute worst time last winter so we didn’t have a choice. I’d go for it if you can
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Aug 22, 2021 19:04
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Same issue here when our power goes out. They keep triggering each other until I took 2 of the 3 off the circuit. Any resources on debugging it would be highly appreciated, even if it’s “get a electrician out to look at it and poke it”
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Aug 31, 2021 12:44
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Bottom Up Top Down blinds with opaque and translucent sections are amazing and magical. Great for light control and privacy if you are in a packed neighborhood.
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Oct 5, 2021 22:18
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The PO put in heated floors into the owners bath; I added a towel warmer and heated seat bidet. I don’t care that we are on the top floor and it’s already warmer than the rest of the house… it must be WARMER.
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Nov 20, 2021 01:26
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Am I reading that CDC site wrong, or is Hantavirus extremely rare, especially on the East Coast? https://www.cdc.gov/hantavirus/surveillance/index.htmlquote:As of the end of 2019*, 816 cases of hantavirus disease were reported in the United States since surveillance began in 1993. These were all laboratory-confirmed cases and included HPS and non-pulmonary hantavirus infection. Granted, super fatal and you definitely want to not just be dealing with rodent droppings anyway while unprotected, but I was shocked to see that it's so low.
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Dec 3, 2021 21:05
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Residency Evil posted:They're telling me things should be done within 30 days. I'll take the over if anyone wants the under
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Dec 20, 2021 21:54
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I don’t want to dog pile, but when it said “Florida” in their profile… that checks out.
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Jan 2, 2022 10:26
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Our second level floors are much colder this winter than last, so I took a look around the house and spotted that there had been some silicone that seems to have cracked at the intersection of the wall and the overhang of that second level. My first instinct is to cut away the old silicone and fill the gap with Loctite Tite Foam. It’s not a huge gap (half inch) so I wonder if that might be overkill? Any tips here would be great.
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Jan 5, 2022 03:54
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Anyone have any recommendations for thermals curtains that look the same on both sides? Need it to block a hallway so I can keep the warm air from escaping up my open foyer. I don't mind the sliding glass door curtains with the backing that looks different, but it seems impossible to find reversible curtains.
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Jan 12, 2022 20:44
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Baby Shoe, In Attic, Maybe Worn?
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Jan 17, 2022 15:28
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Residency Evil posted:Garage update: it'd be pretty much done if not for this stupid snow that's been preventing them from painting it. a technicality, but glad to cash the over. (send pics!)
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Feb 4, 2022 03:03
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Question for the thread: We’ve had some heavy rain this week, and sometimes i’ve noticed water in the garage before, but this is the first time I looked at it post-new door and during the rain. Looks like some of it is getting into the house from the outside where the neighbor’s dirt sits. Should I worry/how much to worry? What’s the solution? Does it just need a better drain put in there, caulking, or something more intensive? Also it’s not a lot of water at all, not a stream by any measure. But I know any water ain’t great, and this is the only part of the house below ground, everything else has cement clearance above ground. https://imgur.com/a/EoE2D8Z Nybble fucked around with this message at 19:45 on Feb 4, 2022 |
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Feb 4, 2022 19:10
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Eufy is a good system that stores all the videos locally. Mainly like it because I’m on the third floor working and want to know who’s at the doorbell without trying to rush down the stairs each time. Could be the neighbor, could be a delivery that doesn’t need me. We also had a guy try to open up car doors, and he showed his full face until seeing the camera doorbell. lol. But the locked car door prevented the break-in, not the camera. Also been meaning to get motion lights, especially for the backward entrance, as they probably wouldn’t try it at all in that scenario.
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Feb 5, 2022 23:45
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It's alarming how quick I got used to 4 to 5 digit quotes for house things, but after you spend 6 digits on the down payment, it makes sense. Just weird because otherwise I've lived a very frugal life. Even the honeymoon didn't cost as much as the new HVAC.
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Sep 27, 2022 22:32
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I felt a little bad when we ripped up the carpet in our house; they had clearly just installed it in order to sell the house. But wood everywhere is so much better, and that's before we had a kid who loves to take crumbly snacks around. The only downside is that it's a bit cold in spots right now, but socks fix that.
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Feb 6, 2023 17:17
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Starting to look around to get a half-bath turned into a full-bath. Gonna require removing a wall (two closets) to make it fit. First quote, didn't come to the house to check it out: $40-45k. love to get the "gently caress off" quote. Gonna shoot off a few more requests and see if we can get it under $20k
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Mar 3, 2023 22:15
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It doesn’t have to be a flipper house, just the PO hiring the cheapest possible painters to try to rent, fail, and then sell the house. Air Intake painted, power panel painted, lots of “oh they didn’t even remove the plug wall plate”, and the kitchen cabinets repainted with wall paint. Oh well, it’s fine now. Except that the drywall tape was failing and that was also painted over, so those cracks are showing up now along the border of most walls. fun!
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Mar 22, 2023 02:35
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HOA political/budget issue is a homeowners problem IMO, so I’m gonna post it here. If you don’t like HOAs, trust me, I get it, but I’d love some specific info and experiences with HOA if possible! Invite for the annual meeting went out last month, specifying 10/10 for the zoom meeting. Board members were up for election, and I had planned to bring up the issue of the budget which does not conform with the reserve requirement as set out by a previous reserve study. (One done before covid and inflation, no less) We had email conversations about it in the summer when our budget could no longer afford the new garbage collection contract at 2 days a week and had to go down to one pickup a week. So on 10/10 I log on for the meeting and it never happened. I email our management company rep and was told that somehow the meeting occurred the previous night, 10/9. The 3 incumbents were the only members, and that’s apparently enough for quorum. Budget with minimal savings was apparently approved. However, the rep then said the meeting will be rescheduled and the previous one will be nullified. It’s a small community (~30 homes) and generally a lot of folks know each other and our kids play together, which makes the silence about this very strange. The board members are older and don’t have kids at home though, so they don’t hang out with the younger parents, but they do have the email list and have said nothing about why they held a shadow meeting. My plan is to now actually run for board member and force the issue, because it feels too shady to let go unchecked. Any thoughts would be appreciated on how run for the board, and also proposing the likely unpopular but very necessary fee increase which hasn’t been raised since 2014.
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Oct 12, 2023 15:12
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Rabidbunnylover posted:Past that, it's just politics. Some suggestions: This is great stuff, thank you. Definitely filing a candidate form and talking with some other owners to get the temperature of things Motronic posted:I know you're joking(ish) but a lot of HOA in my area were requirements for the zoning variance that allowed the farm field to be turned into high density hoes on postage stamps. In that zoning variance/approval there is typically a mechanism for the municipality to do the things the board should be doing if they are not (i.e. managing storm water basins, road plowing/repair, signage) and a way to bill the residents for the work. This is what happens when you dissolve the HOA and it gets on the radar of the municipality, who will also typically be able to force the formation of a new HOA at the expense of the homeowners - likely run entirely by a professional organization and at great expense. It's basically like putting your HOA into court ordered receivership. There's practically HOAs everywhere in NoVA, so that was definitely unavoidable. It's mostly been fine, but holding the shadow meeting irks me in a way that at least pushes me to do something productive about the situation. It'll also be good practice for the PTA meetings in a few years time...
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Oct 12, 2023 22:22
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- Thanks for the HOA advice last month. I’m not 100% pleased, but we did get a slight bump in the fee approved, making sure we aren’t falling behind on the reserve, and planted a seed to think about further increases so that we can continue paying for services when those go up in prices too. - First day of freezing temperatures here and I’m so glad that we put in new windows. The windows and sliding glass door were the originals from the 90s. I just went to the first floor, which is usually 60-65 degrees in the winter when the rest of the townhouse is 70-72, and it was 68 today. It’ll be a small win on the heating gas bill, and a big win for comfort for that floor. It’s especially impressive given the first floor foyer opens up to the second floor so a lot of the heat was either escaping out the sliding glass or to the second floor.
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Nov 2, 2023 13:46
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More and more I’m just going to get things in person, but even the store’s “in stock” counter is wrong about 20% of the time (even more for Target). Extremely frustrating that we are almost back to “call store to have a person look at a thing to check it’s in stock” like I used to do 20 years ago.
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Jan 13, 2024 18:30
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There’s an interior design thread, but please don’t post it there, they might all combust. Reminds me of Connor McDavid’s house, but the Kirkland/Great Value version https://www.architecturaldigest.com/gallery/inside-the-cozy-modern-home-of-hockey-all-star-connor-mcdavid
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Jan 16, 2024 02:36
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While we are on the subject, dryer question: what’s the best set for cleaning out a vent that’s 15 feet long? We have an upstairs laundry room (yay! especially when a baby blowout or throw up happens, the crib sheets and pjs in the washer in the next minute) but it it’s in the middle of the floor so it’s a long way out of the house. It does a 180 degree turn to go out under the floor, so I’m trying to find a good drill compatible vent set that will be long enough to knock most of it out.
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Jan 17, 2024 15:32
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| # ¿ May 15, 2024 07:08 |
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I wish I had gotten the higher-end Bosch but it was peak pandemic when we bought appliances and it wasn’t available. So we just do a load after dinner and cracking it open a couple of inches when it’s done works well enough for evaporation.
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Feb 2, 2024 02:35
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