glumpy
breeze
Unless the house is historic hat's what I've always done. They are energy efficient, easier to install. and prefinished with less maintenance.
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Home-owners...What are your current projects? (2 Viewers)
- Thread starter wilked
- Start date
Fat Nick
Footballguy
Sound will be better if you go in-wall vs. in-ceiling as you can direct the sound more...but if your main goal is aesthetics, I think you'd be fine.
I'm planning to do in-wall when I finish my basement. Not to the research/build phase yet, so can't offer much in the way of recommendations. I've typically been partial to Polk speakers for the price-point though.
NutterButter
Footballguy
lumpy19
Footballguy
Fat Nick
Footballguy
@ "You're really going to regret that when the missus comes home and wants it in the corner by the window."With that said - that thing is awesome. I'm a huge fan of natural wood decor. That whole room is awesome. My wife would NEVER go for something like that, but I think it's awesome.
Fat Nick
Footballguy
So I need to start landscaping around my deck. Right now, I just have some 4" river rock under the deck. I want to add a 3-4' mulch border around the edge of the deck, and plant some boxwood there with the intent of having it grow into a hedge that covers most of the view under the deck. It's nice looking under there, but I don't want to have that be the only thing you see.
I'm leaning towards Korean (Wintergreen) boxwoods, becuase they don't get super tall, winter well, and are deer resistant. The deer resistant is a must. I lost many of my shrubs that were supposed to be deer resistant over the last 2 winters. The only thing they didn't eat were boxwoods. They ate pine, juniper, holly, etc. So...
My problem - I probably need 15 or 20 Korean Boxwoods. I'd like them to be 2' tall, so I'm not waiting 5 years for a finished hedge...but those things cost like $50 a piece most places I've looked. I'm not spending $1,000 on boxwoods when I'm doing the planting myself.
Anybody have any tips on getting better prices on landscape plants? I can't fathom things like that really costing THAT much.
I'm leaning towards Korean (Wintergreen) boxwoods, becuase they don't get super tall, winter well, and are deer resistant. The deer resistant is a must. I lost many of my shrubs that were supposed to be deer resistant over the last 2 winters. The only thing they didn't eat were boxwoods. They ate pine, juniper, holly, etc. So...
My problem - I probably need 15 or 20 Korean Boxwoods. I'd like them to be 2' tall, so I'm not waiting 5 years for a finished hedge...but those things cost like $50 a piece most places I've looked. I'm not spending $1,000 on boxwoods when I'm doing the planting myself.
Anybody have any tips on getting better prices on landscape plants? I can't fathom things like that really costing THAT much.
mr roboto
Footballguy
Wait till fall.
Fat Nick
Footballguy
That's how I get my shade trees - I wait till fall and get them 50% off....the problem I typically have with that is that as soon as they go 50% off, the local landscapers swoop in and buy them up. I'm seriously concerned about finding 20 Korean Boxwoods once the fall price cuts set in.
I've found a few "wholesale" nurseries, but they won't let me access their price list as I'm not a retail nursery.
NutterButter
Footballguy
Become friends with a landscaper. They get a really nice discounted price from the nurseries.
matttyl
Footballguy
Anyone have any experience or advice on some type of "rain barrier" on a 2 tier deck? No, that's not my house, but my deck is similar to that one - one "tier" off the main level kitchen area, and another below it off of the finished basement mancave area - each tier a little over 500 sq. ft. The decking boards on top are very weather beaten and will need to be replaced anyway sometime soon, but the ones on the bottom are still fine (because they don't get much direct sunlight and don't get any direct rain, snow, sleet).
When I go about replacing the decking boards on the top in the next year or so, I'd also like to install some type of rain barrier below it so that I can use the lower deck as a "3 season" type area. It won't be enclosed, but it will have a ceiling - hopefully with a few ceiling fans and a few can lights.
It looks like there are two schools of thought. The first being making the ceiling itself the rain barrier, like this. To me, though, this would make installing ceiling fans and lights pretty difficult, and it would lower the ceiling height some. The second thought being installing a plastic sheets between the decking joists, like this. These "troughs" would funnel the water to a gutter and then drain wherever you wanted. Then install whatever ceiling type you wanted to under that - which to me would make installing fans and lights a bit easier, but I'm not sure how water tight this would be.
Any help greatly appreciated.
When I go about replacing the decking boards on the top in the next year or so, I'd also like to install some type of rain barrier below it so that I can use the lower deck as a "3 season" type area. It won't be enclosed, but it will have a ceiling - hopefully with a few ceiling fans and a few can lights.
It looks like there are two schools of thought. The first being making the ceiling itself the rain barrier, like this. To me, though, this would make installing ceiling fans and lights pretty difficult, and it would lower the ceiling height some. The second thought being installing a plastic sheets between the decking joists, like this. These "troughs" would funnel the water to a gutter and then drain wherever you wanted. Then install whatever ceiling type you wanted to under that - which to me would make installing fans and lights a bit easier, but I'm not sure how water tight this would be.
Any help greatly appreciated.
Osaurus
Footballguy
Desk is finally done. Finished 2 weeks ago. Loving all of it so far.
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d151/osaurus/B896C997-D42E-4CD4-9F31-2F1537B2DD31_zpsjxja9g85.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d151/osaurus/B896C997-D42E-4CD4-9F31-2F1537B2DD31_zpseagsvkly.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d151/osaurus/8B889439-321E-4DD0-A193-7CD07BB3C21A_zpsazz7hbpv.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d151/osaurus/0ED1119F-B2D9-4985-96http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d151/osaurus/8B889439-321E-4DD0-A193-7CD07BB3C21A_zpsazz7hbpv.jpgF1-AB4B1FDE8743_zpsckktar9q.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d151/osaurus/B896C997-D42E-4CD4-9F31-2F1537B2DD31_zpsjxja9g85.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d151/osaurus/B896C997-D42E-4CD4-9F31-2F1537B2DD31_zpseagsvkly.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d151/osaurus/8B889439-321E-4DD0-A193-7CD07BB3C21A_zpsazz7hbpv.jpg
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d151/osaurus/0ED1119F-B2D9-4985-96http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d151/osaurus/8B889439-321E-4DD0-A193-7CD07BB3C21A_zpsazz7hbpv.jpgF1-AB4B1FDE8743_zpsckktar9q.jpg
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modogg
Footballguy
i'm building a deck off my 2nd floor. has been going longer than i thought. if you are going to build a deck, don't order the lumber and everything from Lowes. or if you do, definitely don't do it on the weekend. impressing the ladies in the neighborhood though 
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Workbench. 30" wide by 5'6" long. Laminate top with built in table saw and router. I'm hanging my miter saw off the end. Everything bought from garage sales, around $200-$250 total cost. Not mine, but similar.
ETA: Have garage sale jigsaw and drill press that I have to build another table/find another spot for.
ETA: Have garage sale jigsaw and drill press that I have to build another table/find another spot for.
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matttyl
Footballguy
Anything underneath that deck? You may want to look into a product similar to Trex Rain escape. Wish that had been done to mine initially.i'm building a deck off my 2nd floor. has been going longer than i thought. if you are going to build a deck, don't order the lumber and everything from Lowes. or if you do, definitely don't do it on the weekend. impressing the ladies in the neighborhood though
Fat Nick
Footballguy
Local lumber yards are cheaper most of the time too. I found that my local lumber yard was ~5% cheaper for my deck build. Maybe 1-2% on the PT lumber, but like 5-7% cheaper on the Trex stuff. Better overall quality too.i'm building a deck off my 2nd floor. has been going longer than i thought. if you are going to build a deck, don't order the lumber and everything from Lowes. or if you do, definitely don't do it on the weekend. impressing the ladies in the neighborhood though
Fat Nick
Footballguy
That's pretty awesome. I have that exact table saw and love it...but I've wanted a larger table to support larger ply.
Yeah, I wanted to table mount the router so the table saw was just the next logical step. The old lady found a behemoth work bench on craigslist for free, they just wanted to get rid of it. It must have been $200 worth of lumber, easy, for free. I just took it apart and cut it down to the size I wanted. I'll take some real photos when I get the laminate on.
Spin
Footballguy
My wife opened up an inhome day care and wanted a changing table for downstairs. Didn't wanna spend the almost $300 that babies-r-us was asking, so spent $50 at Lowes. Gonna stain it tonight. I put the topper on with just 4 screws so when she's done we can convert it to a shelf. Only issue is the legs are supposed to be 1x2s but they're only .5 inch think instead of .75 like the other 1xX's. So the 1x3 and 1x4s I used for trim stick out slightly.
http://puu.sh/jMUl8/07b2d0843a.jpg
http://puu.sh/jMUl8/07b2d0843a.jpg
El Floppo
Footballguy
looks great.
and the best part is, when it breaks and bounces a kid down to the whirling hall of knives- parents can sue both of you.
MattFancy
Footballguy
Anyone here ever done any tiling before?
Doing a bar top and want to know if I can just tile right over the plywood (it's a subfloor) or if I need cement backer board or something similar down over top. I've heard different stories and I'm not sure which one is right. Since it's a bar top, I don't think I'd have problems with the plywood expanding/contracting, especially since the plywood is framed around by oak boards.
Doing a bar top and want to know if I can just tile right over the plywood (it's a subfloor) or if I need cement backer board or something similar down over top. I've heard different stories and I'm not sure which one is right. Since it's a bar top, I don't think I'd have problems with the plywood expanding/contracting, especially since the plywood is framed around by oak boards.
The Commish
Footballguy
I'd put down the cement backer board, especially if it's a bar top. Being a bar, I am assuming it'll get wet. Grout isn't waterproof and you don't want the plywood to rot over time.
MattFancy
Footballguy
That's probably a good point. I'm just worried because we measured the border around the top to be just about perfect with the height of the tiles. Is cement backer board or ditra a better choice? I want the layer under the tiles to be as thin as possible.
The Commish
Footballguy
Either would work, but you need to make absolute sure the plywood is supported sufficiently and rigid so it doesn't move if you're using the ditra.
Insein
Footballguy
So its now September and basement is almost ready for the floor. Should be done by Halloween. Expect a post in March with a new time frame.
MattFancy
Footballguy
It shouldn't be moving at all. It's screwed into the top and then has an oak wood boarder all along it. I don't think it's going to be shifting much at all.
Fat Nick
Footballguy
Don't know what kind of fireplace you have, or where specifically you're saying you're getting drafts from, but I have an odd story re. fireplaces and drafts.
We have a pre-fab fireplace. Just one of those basic ones with the metal box and ceramic tile inserts. Anyway, during Hurricane Sandy, I was in the basement checking on things, and noticed a VERY strong draft coming from under where my fireplace was. After the hurricane, I decided to go check it out. Turns out the joists that ran under the fireplace bump-out were literally open to the dirt. it's hard to describe. The bump out overhung the block foundation wall, and the joists ran over this wall to support the bump-out. If you stuck your head up between the joists, you could see the dirt that was under the bump-out. Now the bump-out was finished outside, but still...no blocking between the joists? straight to dirt? Any kind of critter could've dug right into the house.
Needless to say I spent a few days blocking and insulating my sill joist and that space. Made a huge difference in the drafts down there.
MattFancy
Footballguy
Yup. We have a gas fireplace and the cold air comes right through it. The marble around it is like ice in the winter months.
VA703
Footballguy
same scenario
did you do anything to fix this?
I patched up the exhaust pipe outside (gas fireplace) but cold air still creeps through somehow
MattFancy
Footballguy
Our builder just said that's how it is. Which I don't buy. We usually just put some sort of decorative thing in front of it to knock down some of the draft.
odin33
Footballguy
I'm sure you are doing it but you are shutting the flue right? Mine, while a little colder in the winter time than the surrounding area isn't that bad once the flue is shut. But man o man does that thing poor it in if left open. Only on the really windy days can I walk by and notice it while shut.
Now the closet that's underneath it in the basement is a completely different story. Damn thing just dumps cold air into the basement. Thankfully it has a drop ceiling so I have access. but when I stick my head up in there I can't find anything. Joists run perpendicular to foundation there so I've only got the 4" section I can really 'see', and IIRC the beams were blocked out where the end of the fireplace would be above Thought I saw daylight one time checking on that exact thing, but when I remembered it months later and brought down a can of foam insulation I couldn't find it.
Will try to feel the gap this winter, as I'm hoping to get more use out of our basement. Read as Daddy's game watching area.
Anyone install a projector onto a wall as a tv source? Initial half arsed research turned up I needed 15 feet. Of course I've got about 13' and some change, before running into the the drywall hiding the i-beam.
VA703
Footballguy
my flue does not have a open/close flap. I had to go out there remove the outer barrier piece and stuff crap in the vent. put some type of cotton in there then sealed it shut with a plastic cutting board. still after that air was creeping in. i might have to check lowes and see if they sell caps for those
odin33
Footballguy
I just spent the entire weekend getting the living *&$%^#$% shook out of me stump grinding. Had 8 18-24" stumps in the back yard (thanks emerald ash bore), and we're relandscaping the front yard so I double dipped and used it to take out all the yew/holly/burning bush stumps out front too. Thank goodness I rented the fully hydraulic one as it took me 10 hours of run time just to get everything dug up. I can't imagine using the one you have to sway back and forth.NOte to all you DIYers, rent the biggest baddest mofo you can find, and even then it'll take a lot longer than you expect.
Then the cleanup, good lord the cleanup.
On a side note that thing makes for one helluva hillbilly rototiller.
Sad part of it all is once everything was cleaned up it didn't really looks like I did a darn thing, except create giant brown rings in the backyard.
Oh well, progress. Next weekend the dirt and mulch show up.
Then the cleanup, good lord the cleanup.
On a side note that thing makes for one helluva hillbilly rototiller.
Sad part of it all is once everything was cleaned up it didn't really looks like I did a darn thing, except create giant brown rings in the backyard.
Oh well, progress. Next weekend the dirt and mulch show up.
BumperNutz
Footballguy
odin33
Footballguy
Yeah check lowes or depot. If you get the standard D'uh employee you might be outta luck. See if there's a smaller mom and pops type hardware store, I've had success there when I've been stumped at the other two.
Oh and don't expect to find rolls/sheets of magnet. Needed to cover a vent in the unfinished section of the basement and I couldn't get them locally so I had to go through amazon. Of course a month or so later I found some at harbor freight.
Without a flue, what about taking a piece of fiberglass insulation (the pink stuff) and wedging it up there (even without a flue I'm assuming the exhaust ducting goes up and then out at some point which is where the draft is coming from most likely).
That or the more rigid foam insulation. Grab a sheet of the purple stuff and not the white bead type as you'll rue the day trying to clean up all those damn dots.
odin33
Footballguy
Don't Noonan
Footballguy
We are looking to replace the carpet in the house with wood flooring. I scheduled a few wood installer contractors to come out and measure a few weeks ago. I then had Empire come out last Monday. My wife really liked an engineered hardwood that Empire showed us but I didn't like the "buy now" business model. Ultimately we signed a contract with Empire but was told we could cancel by Thursday. I finally got a better quote from one of the wood contracters and called and cancelled Empire on Thursday. They were not happy and offered $1,500 off to stick with them. I still cancelled.
The Commish
Footballguy
=Smackdown=
Footballguy
Just had 32 solar panels installed on my roof.
The spinny wheel thng to indicate how much electric is being use in the house hasn't moved since the day the panels were installed.
Dont knwo why I didnt do this 10 yrs ago?
The spinny wheel thng to indicate how much electric is being use in the house hasn't moved since the day the panels were installed.
Dont knwo why I didnt do this 10 yrs ago?
Michael Brown
Footballguy
If anyone cares, this project is about 90% complete. Went fully custom on the bar. It's about 70" long and wraps around to the back wall either 30" or 60" depending on if you measure from the front or the back of the bar. It's a black granite bar top about 28" front to back, with another 30 inches for me to maneuver around behind. Had a party there on Saturday night where me and my brother tended bar, perfect amount of space for us to move around. There's also cabinets along the back wall about 9" depth out from the wall with the bottles on top, 42" off the ground same as the bar front. Sink in the corner, mini-fridge under the bar, and a shelf underneath. The real cool piece was the backlit onyx panels I had them put on the front. Adds a real cool vibe to the whole thing.
Still gotta do the frosted glass shelves above the back cabinets, which we're running LED lights through for a light-up effect on the bottles, mount the TV, throw up a few more shelves on the bar back, and install the overhead wine glass rack. Gonna run around $12k all-in with materials, labor, etc.
odin33
Footballguy
Anyone know anything about refinishing hardwood floors? Tried the search function and yeah that didn't work.
Bought a home heading into foreclosure bank in 2011 so the list of repairs is long and distinguished. House was built in the 80s so fairly modern construction.
Good news- save for the laundry room the entire first floor is hardwood.
OK news- second floor is also 'hardwood' but it's some type of laminant but that's for another time
Bad news- some time probably mid 2000's someone did a horrific job (drips marks, uneven coat, runners, etc.) staining the hardwood floors so that I now have a two toned first floor. The doors, door trim, and baseboards are all a light/blonde stain. The floors and quarter round, and of course the staircase to the second floor is all this reddish brown. Add to that there's some warping from previous water damage. Nothing severe, but certainly a good sanding will be required.
I can live with the color, but whatever finish/poly they put down (if any) is long gone and I've got wear spots coming through. If they need to sand anyway I'd prefer it all go back to the blonde color.
Anyone know of a reasonable rate to have the floors and quarter rounds stripped, re-stained, and a basketball court type uber thick poly put down would run me? For a scale perspective we're talking 1300-1500 Sq ft.
I'm not averse to doing some of it myself, but I also don't want to FUBAR my hardwood floors.
TIA
Bought a home heading into foreclosure bank in 2011 so the list of repairs is long and distinguished. House was built in the 80s so fairly modern construction.
Good news- save for the laundry room the entire first floor is hardwood.
OK news- second floor is also 'hardwood' but it's some type of laminant but that's for another time
Bad news- some time probably mid 2000's someone did a horrific job (drips marks, uneven coat, runners, etc.) staining the hardwood floors so that I now have a two toned first floor. The doors, door trim, and baseboards are all a light/blonde stain. The floors and quarter round, and of course the staircase to the second floor is all this reddish brown. Add to that there's some warping from previous water damage. Nothing severe, but certainly a good sanding will be required.
I can live with the color, but whatever finish/poly they put down (if any) is long gone and I've got wear spots coming through. If they need to sand anyway I'd prefer it all go back to the blonde color.
Anyone know of a reasonable rate to have the floors and quarter rounds stripped, re-stained, and a basketball court type uber thick poly put down would run me? For a scale perspective we're talking 1300-1500 Sq ft.
I'm not averse to doing some of it myself, but I also don't want to FUBAR my hardwood floors.
TIA
The Commish
Footballguy
In our area it's $2-$3 a square foot to stain and poly. Not sure how much it costs to strip it all down to begin the process though. Might be $3-4 a square foot in total??
Get someone to do this for you unless you know how to use those big sanders. You can have it sanded down to the wood and stained any shade you like. I would budget the $3 to $4 per SF for this.
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Binky The Doormat
Footballguy
Garage ceiling shelving 4'x8' - SafeRacks. Still gotta get the wife to pick out out all of the Christmas decoration boxes, etc in the attic to store up there. Really like it.
Safe Racks
Safe Racks
The Commish
Footballguy
Have you bought them yet? If not wait until you can get them on sale at Cosco. They'll be a third of the price. You'll get 3 for $250. I had them in my last house so much I bought them for my new house.
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Binky The Doormat
Footballguy
Yeah. No Costco around here - but figure I could have gotten them online ...is that the case? I may put another one on the other side of the garage. I put it immediately over the car as I have some shelves already on the side.
