Home Improvement Thread

Postby **NTP66** » Thu May 20, 2021 8:18 am

Got a letter from my energy supplier last week that my rate was changing, which was odd since I enrolled in a fixed rate (my 3rd renewal with this company). So I called them, and they said it must have been a mixup on their end at the start of the contract. They sent me a check for the difference in price from now through the start of the contract, and then signed me up for a new 12-month, fixed rate contract that was lower than the last one ($.054c/kWh). So again, if you're ever looking to switch, I'm 100% on board with Cirro Energy.

Postby **count2infinity** » Thu May 20, 2021 8:27 am

Didn't take a before pic, but here's a picture of my dog on the deck last summer and it can give you an idea of what it looked like:

Anyways, after power washing:

After one thin coat and one thick coat:

Postby **count2infinity** » Thu May 20, 2021 8:56 am

I guess I should say that I really like the product as well. It feels awesome under foot. We'll see how long it lasts, but as of a week into having it, I really like it.

Postby **robbiestoupe** » Thu May 20, 2021 9:39 am

Looks nice c2i. Did you use same product for all the rail posts and supports? Are they able to make it any color you want? I just stained my deck last spring and hate to go through the whole process again. The rail posts and supports are fine, just need the actual deck redone again.

Postby **count2infinity** » Thu May 20, 2021 9:58 am

The rail posts and supports are awaiting paint. The bucket said that it's not meant for vertical surfaces, but I've seen online that people use it with no problem and we have plenty to do those spots.

As for colors: https://www.cabotstain.com/colors-and-f ... olors.html

Go down to the bottom under "resurfacer" for the color choices. If memory serves at Lowes they had like 6-8 choices that were the popular colors, and then like 12-15 more that you could choose from as well. We got the "Brickstone" color.

Postby **robbiestoupe** » Thu May 20, 2021 11:01 am

Thanks. I bought my stain from Sherwin Williams so we'll see if I can find one that's similar. It's such a pain to paint/stain the vertical rail pieces. If I can get away with just doing the deck, that's what I'll do.

Postby **shmenguin** » Thu May 20, 2021 6:53 pm

Moved in November. The master bath sinks have been getting progressively more clogged since.

I am in no way up for snaking out the drain hair/scum combo from my elderly predecessors. This sucks.

Postby **meow** » Thu May 20, 2021 7:01 pm

Yeah. That’s a call to a plumber for me. I’ll do it after that. Not the first time

Postby **DigitalGypsy66** » Fri May 21, 2021 9:55 am

We used to get this nasty, nasty (maybe pure Hydrochloric acid?) stuff at the plumbing supply store that would clean drains. You can actually smell burning hair etc. after you'd poured it down the drain. It was sold in a quart bottle but came in a plastic bag because the chemical could seep.

Gloves and max eye protection, obviously, but that would do the trick.

Postby **NTP66** » Fri May 21, 2021 10:22 am

I would not use that in residential plumbing, personally. This is a simple solution with a drain snake that every homeowner should already own.

Postby **DigitalGypsy66** » Fri May 21, 2021 10:44 am

Yes, this was a commercial building. Not sure how safe it is for PVC.

Postby **count2infinity** » Mon May 24, 2021 2:24 pm

Well, the quote gathering and process and ordering saga for our entry way is done. Now we move into the waiting for the door to get made and installed phase.

We're getting a 3/4 lite door and two venting sidelights on the side that are full lite. Our entry is a custom size, so they'll need to cut the door a bit, so that with the venting mechanisms on the side, we expected to pay a good chunk...

We got 4 quotes:
Renewal by Anderson: 20K retail, and 13.5K if I signed right then and there. Said thanks, but no thanks, obviously.

Window World: 6K. They tried to tell me that Window World makes their own doors and they're a step up from Therma Tru door as far as quality is concerned. I don't think that's true after looking at their catalog and looking at Therma Tru's catalog and everything is nearly identical. Not only that, the guy didn't measure a single thing while he was there. He just looked at the entry way, asked what I wanted, and gave me a quote. With the custom height, I didn't want to risk it.

Two were from local contractor type people: Both clocked in right around 4 K. The difference for me was one guy got the quote correct right away. Exactly what I asked him for. The other guy made some mistakes and had to go back and update the quote. He was quite slow in his responses as well.

Wrote out a check, and now we wait... the guy said in the past year it's been anywhere between 2-3 weeks to 2-3 months for the doors to be made.

Postby **robbiestoupe** » Mon May 24, 2021 2:28 pm

It's amazing what some contractors will get away with, isn't it? We're getting our kitchen and first floor flooring redone. Got quotes anywhere from $25k-$65k. And I'm sure the materials are not all that different.

Postby **count2infinity** » Mon May 24, 2021 2:32 pm

Yeah... I should mention that the 4K quote was for the exact, and I'm not stretching the truth here at all... EXACT same door the first guy quoted us for.

Postby **NTP66** » Mon May 24, 2021 2:34 pm

It's amazing what some contractors will get away with, isn't it? We're getting our kitchen and first floor flooring redone. Got quotes anywhere from $25k-$65k. And I'm sure the materials are not all that different.

$25k for flooring?!

Postby **robbiestoupe** » Mon May 24, 2021 2:37 pm

It's amazing what some contractors will get away with, isn't it? We're getting our kitchen and first floor flooring redone. Got quotes anywhere from $25k-$65k. And I'm sure the materials are not all that different.
$25k for flooring?!

Oops, bad wording on my part. $25k for new cabinets and countertops in the kitchen AND flooring on the first floor. Plus tearing out a half wall and some painting

Postby **NTP66** » Mon May 24, 2021 2:52 pm

It's amazing what some contractors will get away with, isn't it? We're getting our kitchen and first floor flooring redone. Got quotes anywhere from $25k-$65k. And I'm sure the materials are not all that different.
$25k for flooring?!
Oops, bad wording on my part. $25k for new cabinets and countertops in the kitchen AND flooring on the first floor. Plus tearing out a half wall and some painting

I was gonna say - for $25k I'd sub out the guys who did my flooring and pocket a hefty commission after their travel and lodging expenses.

Postby **NTP66** » Fri Jun 04, 2021 10:08 am

@Morkle: How's your ecobee working out for you?

Postby **CBear3** » Fri Jun 04, 2021 7:30 pm

Anybody have experience with Leaf Filter? They used car salesmenned my parents (started at $11,500, by the time the guy left the quote was $4,750). That works out to about $17 a foot, which seems pretty good, but by starting at a ridiculous price there’s no way to know what is reality.

I was wondering if anybody else had any experience with them.

Postby **count2infinity** » Sun Jun 06, 2021 1:00 pm

We’re trying to figure out a good way to get some shade on our deck. Anyone have suggestions? It’s south-south-east facing, so pretty much sun all morning and through the day with a bit of shade in the evening.

Sun sail?

Postby **Ad@m** » Sun Jun 06, 2021 1:14 pm

https://www.sunsetter.com/

Postby **NTP66** » Sun Jun 06, 2021 1:17 pm

I’ve thought about getting a sunsetter for our patio, but don’t think we’d make enough use out of it to justify the cost.

Postby **NTP66** » Sun Jun 06, 2021 1:20 pm

I saw on This Old House today that they make breaker style while house surge protectors. So I started looking into one. Long story short, I wound up buying a panel mount Eaton surge after seeing how much better they were than the breaker style ones.

Postby **meow** » Sun Jun 06, 2021 5:25 pm

We’re trying to figure out a good way to get some shade on our deck. Anyone have suggestions? It’s south-south-east facing, so pretty much sun all morning and through the day with a bit of shade in the evening.

Sun sail?

We have a metal pergola from Lowe’s that has a fabric cover. It’s great. Similar to this

https://www.wayfair.com/Sol-72-Outdoor™ ... gLYg_D_BwE

Postby **NTP66** » Sun Jun 06, 2021 6:06 pm

We’re trying to figure out a good way to get some shade on our deck. Anyone have suggestions? It’s south-south-east facing, so pretty much sun all morning and through the day with a bit of shade in the evening.

Sun sail?
We have a metal pergola from Lowe’s that has a fabric cover. It’s great. Similar to this

https://www.wayfair.com/Sol-72-Outdoor™ ... gLYg_D_BwE

How is that secured to the ground?