Home Improvement Thread

Postby **meow** » Thu Nov 09, 2017 6:24 pm

Don’t go electric

Postby **Silentom** » Thu Nov 09, 2017 6:28 pm

Don't listen to him, he's a cat.

Postby **NTP66** » Thu Nov 09, 2017 6:28 pm

Nah, had one before, but it paled in comparison to this gas blower. I love yard work with the exception of raking leaves, so I wanted something that’d get the job done quickly.

Postby **meow** » Thu Nov 09, 2017 6:35 pm

Electric is for people that can’t maintain gas engines. NTP seems capable.

IMO, of course

Postby **NTP66** » Thu Nov 09, 2017 6:50 pm

I think electric - corded or cordless - has its place. My trimmer is a cordless 20v Li-Ion unit, and it does a terrific job both trimming the lawn and edging. It’s also pretty quiet.

Postby **shmenguin** » Sun Nov 12, 2017 8:54 pm

Dammit. My obsessive brain did not need to just learn about the Philips hue lighting system.

Postby **AuthorTony** » Wed Nov 15, 2017 4:52 pm

I'm looking at installing some security cameras around my house/property, or having them installed. Has anyone done this? No idea what to look for in terms of brand, etc.

Postby **mac5155** » Wed Nov 15, 2017 8:04 pm

I bought a 4 camera set with DVR off Amazon. It got 4.5* reviews so I pulled the trigger. It was around $160 but did not have a HDD

Postby **AuthorTony** » Wed Nov 15, 2017 8:12 pm

Are you pleased with it? Care to share the brand?

Postby **mac5155** » Wed Nov 15, 2017 8:16 pm

I haven't installed it yet. We will do that this weekend, but my electric isn't to the new house yet either. So, if you're not in a hurry I can let you know... Haha

This is it
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01K9ZXRLO/re ... dAbA81Y0D0

Postby **Willie Kool** » Wed Nov 15, 2017 8:32 pm

Nest Cam IQ outdoor...

Postby **mac5155** » Wed Nov 15, 2017 9:50 pm

Nest cams don't give you any recording for free though, do they?

Postby **AuthorTony** » Wed Nov 15, 2017 9:56 pm

I actually don't need anything quite that high tech. Just looking for something to see if anyone's snooping around my property, especially the wooded area behind my house. Today I found a 2x4 that had been nailed into two trees to hold a swing was pulled completely loose on one side. Less than a month ago it was firmly in place so I'm at a loss to explain how it suddenly came loose. I have a super creepy/shady neighbor and wouldn't be shocked if he was up to some shenanigans.

Postby **mac5155** » Wed Nov 15, 2017 10:00 pm

In that case, a trail camera may be best for you

Postby **Willie Kool** » Wed Nov 15, 2017 10:08 pm

Nest cams don't give you any recording for free though, do they?

Without a subscription, you’ll still get free snapshots that show you what your camera saw when it detected motion or sound. Free snapshots are stored for up to 3 hours before they expire.

So no, not really - but $100/yr for one cam or $150/yr for two gets you 10 day storage of streaming video in the cloud (inaccessible to any intruders) and the ability to make clips (up to 1 hour long) and save them to your hard drive.

We got an older model nest cam outdoor less than a month before they announced the new one. I didn't permanently mount it (due to ongoing, multi-year house painting project), and will now find a different use for it - probably inside somewhere. We did the Nest Aware free trial with it temporarily mounted outside though, and it's very nice...

Postby **Willie Kool** » Wed Nov 15, 2017 10:26 pm

Today I found a 2x4 that had been nailed into two trees to hold a swing was pulled completely loose on one side. Less than a month ago it was firmly in place so I'm at a loss to explain how it suddenly came loose.

Bear?

Postby **AuthorTony** » Wed Nov 15, 2017 10:30 pm

Today I found a 2x4 that had been nailed into two trees to hold a swing was pulled completely loose on one side. Less than a month ago it was firmly in place so I'm at a loss to explain how it suddenly came loose.
Bear?

I wish. The 2x4 was about 7 feet in the air and I couldn't see any marks on or around it. I did wonder if a deer got caught in the swing but I think the rope or swing (which is a 3 inch thick tree branch) would have broken before the 2x4 would have come loose.

Postby **Freddy Rumsen** » Wed Nov 15, 2017 10:31 pm

Aliens

Postby **Willie Kool** » Wed Nov 15, 2017 10:36 pm

7 feet in the air? Dude, you know what that means? Must have been a squatch...

Postby **AuthorTony** » Wed Nov 15, 2017 10:38 pm

7 feet in the air? Dude, you know what that means? Must have been a squatch...

Aliens

I love you guys.

Postby **shmenguin** » Fri Nov 17, 2017 6:18 pm

Dammit. My obsessive brain did not need to just learn about the Philips hue lighting system.

Pulled the trigger for my dining room and living room. These are super cool.

For the uninitiated, you buy the bulbs and a thing you plug into your router and you're off and running controlling your lights with your phone. Not super useful until you get into dimming, color temperature, auto scheduling for when you're on vacation, etc. also integrated into voice command tools like Siri and Alexa.

Postby **Silentom** » Sun Nov 19, 2017 9:18 pm

Hung the ceiling drywall in our master bedroom today. My arms hurt.

Postby **columbia** » Sun Nov 19, 2017 9:21 pm

White vinegar for cleaning hardwood floors?

Yes or no?

Postby **meow** » Sun Nov 19, 2017 9:24 pm

You need to make a friend that has a lift

Postby **AuthorTony** » Sun Nov 19, 2017 9:27 pm

Speaking of flooring - hardwood or engineered hardwood?