The Home Improvement Thread

[Caged Great]

Originally Posted by topfiverecords

Did you mean: Grammar

Nah, he meant

[jwslam]

Originally Posted by s_procee

He is permitted to until 10, he is just not constructing by "good neighbour" standards.

You should check to see if he has a permit or if there are safety violations.

Had to edit before Mr. Grammer show's up

Originally Posted by topfiverecords

Did you mean: Grammar

And yea, please use apostrophes willy nilly.
Is that Mr. Grammer show is up?
Or Mr. Grammer show possesses up?

Back on topic: Installing dimmers and motion sensor switches today!

[s_procee]

His daughter is good looking.

[s_procee]

i mean "good looking"

[YYC in LAX]

My wife and I completed a basement renovation over the summer but will require a professional to undertake our main floor renovation which will include new floors, kitchen, feature wall, etc.

Does anyone have any reputable home renovation contractors in the city?

Thanks

[Wormius]

I am redoing the bathroom, and wondering if it is necessary to remove the ceiling drywall.

My inspection shows that it isn't cement board or even moisture resistant drywall on the ceiling. My only worry about replacing it, is that directly above is blown in insulation. There is a vapour barrier that I can see, and I would like to know if I am able to carefully get the ceiling down, will the vapour barrier support the insulation so that it doesn't pour out?

[speede5]

It should, But an alternative might be to just sheet over top of it. Nothing wrong with a second layer of sheetrock, you'll never notice it once finished. Just use longer screws and a box extender for the light if there is one.

I don't know that I would be too worried about the ceiling drywall though. Moisture shouldn't be a big issue if you have good ventilation and a couple good coats of paint.

[Wormius]

Originally Posted by speede5

It should, But an alternative might be to just sheet over top of it. Nothing wrong with a second layer of sheetrock, you'll never notice it once finished. Just use longer screws and a box extender for the light if there is one.

I don't know that I would be too worried about the ceiling drywall though. Moisture shouldn't be a big issue if you have good ventilation and a couple good coats of paint.

Whatever was going on with our vent ductwork caused some condensation to drip back down and damaged the drywall around the bathroom fan. I was hoping that using a better material, if any issues arose, it wouldn't get turned to mush.

We had heard about that doubling up the sheetrock, but I wasn't sure if that was just a "hack" for lack of a better term. Is it common practice to layer over like that? I just don't want to get around to selling the house eventually and getting derogatory feedback from the home inspector.

If we did layer over, what is the process? Just scrape the texture off and lay it right against the old stuff with no other prep?

[You Need a Thneed]

I don’t like the chances of removing ceiling drywall without cutting a whole bunch of accidental holes in the vapour barrier. If it is possible to do so, I’m sure it would be more work than just ripping down drywall, VB, and insulation, and reinstalling it all new.

[llwhiteoutll]

Do you have access to the space above the bathroom?

If so, you can move the insulation out of the way and then just move it back once you have the new drywall in place. If not, you can take the existing stuff down without going through the vapour barrier. You just need to find the stud and all the screws, once you pull the screws, you can pull it down in large chunks

[speede5]

Originally Posted by Wormius

Whatever was going on with our vent ductwork caused some condensation to drip back down and damaged the drywall around the bathroom fan. I was hoping that using a better material, if any issues arose, it wouldn't get turned to mush.

We had heard about that doubling up the sheetrock, but I wasn't sure if that was just a "hack" for lack of a better term. Is it common practice to layer over like that? I just don't want to get around to selling the house eventually and getting derogatory feedback from the home inspector.

If we did layer over, what is the process? Just scrape the texture off and lay it right against the old stuff with no other prep?

Sounds reasonable. There is nothing wrong with layering drywall, as long as you aren't trapping moisture or missing the source. It's possible your vapour barrier is not as intact as it should be, in which case removing the existing drywall lets you fix it. Lots of times fans and fixtures are added and not properly sealed, taped etc.

As long as you don't have vermiculite I'd be tempted to pick away at a corner and pull the sheet rock off. Texture complicates it and needs to be wetted and scrapped off. If it's been painted over that's a bitch. Older sheetrock and spackle can have asbestos too, so you want to take precautions. How old is everything?

Doubling up drywall is common for creating firebarriers and sound reduction but there's no reason you cant do it for practical reasons.

[Wormius]

I have access to the attic over the bathroom. House was built around 1996, so no worries about the asbestos.

Both bathroom (guest and ensure) seems to drip during cold to warm snaps. The theory was that the ducting was either not insulated enough or the moisture isn’t escaping through the roof vent.

[RussianSpy]

So I am giving my basement a bit of a facelift this winter (new carpet, baseboards, knockdown ceiling).

Was wondering how much it should cost to have someone install about 250 feet of baseboard? Pretty standard basement, three bedrooms, one bathroom and an open living area. Upstairs we have 6’’ baseboard, but I don’t think I will go that big downstairs. Was thinking 3.5”. Any insights or recommendations for installers? I don’t have the skills required to do this to a high standard.

Currently requesting some quotes for the popcorn ceiling removal and knockdown installation of about 800 square feet of ceiling. First quote is $3.20 per square foot all in. Seems high, but I honestly didn’t know what to expect.

[OMG!WTF!]

Baseboard quotes can be quite different depending on what's included. Just be aware of if it includes nail hole filling and dapping. Some old school carpenters insist on doing it themselves while others leave it for the painters. That said it also doesn't hurt to give the baseboards a paint job before installing them.

[speede5]

Originally Posted by Wormius

I have access to the attic over the bathroom. House was built around 1996, so no worries about the asbestos.

Both bathroom (guest and ensure) seems to drip during cold to warm snaps. The theory was that the ducting was either not insulated enough or the moisture isn’t escaping through the roof vent.

If you have straight tin venting the moisture will condense in it while venting. you should have insulated flexible duct.

[kevman]

Actually you're better off installing normal rigid venting and either sliding an insulation sleeve over it or wrapping it with standard insulation. Those corrugated plastic vents have huge losses and you won't get anywhere near the air flow of a straight pipe. It's not too difficult to buy pipe insulation and slide it over fixed piping when it's installed.

[Wormius]

Okay, after much unpleasantness, I went into the attic and took some pics. The vents look pretty well insulated, the only suspicious thing was that they looked nearly vertical going to the fans. There is about 1/2 foot of horizontal into the fan, and it looks like it is sloping into them. This seems true of both fans and the respective duct work.

I guess my thought is maybe there is not enough of a horizontal run? Or would it be snow blowing in during winter?

Ducts from both bathroom fans.

Spoiler!

Duct from ensuite bathroom fan up to roof.

Spoiler!

Fan


Duct work and the fan


Where duct goes from horizontal to vertical towards roof.


Going up.


To roof

[Dynamic]

Not sure if this is a good deal but it seemed good to me....

LED bulbs are on sale at Canadian Tire for a buck a bulb, looks like the carbon tax picks up some of the cost. They had both the daylight and soft white bulbs as well as many other kinds.

I

[Nufy]

Originally Posted by Dynamic

Not sure if this is a good deal but it seemed good to me....

LED bulbs are on sale at Canadian Tire for a buck a bulb, looks like the carbon tax picks up some of the cost. They had both the daylight and soft white bulbs as well as many other kinds.

I

Queen Rachel changed mine for free...

Only cost approx. 50 x what this would be...

Good deal imo...

[speede5]

Originally Posted by Wormius

Okay, after much unpleasantness, I went into the attic and took some pics. The vents look pretty well insulated, the only suspicious thing was that they looked nearly vertical going to the fans. There is about 1/2 foot of horizontal into the fan, and it looks like it is sloping into them. This seems true of both fans and the respective duct work.

I guess my thought is maybe there is not enough of a horizontal run? Or would it be snow blowing in during winter?]

That doesn't look bad at all, with it going straight up condensation will run straight back into the fan, but it shouldn't be a huge issue. In the winter the moisture could be freezing on the vent and accumulating.

There shouldn't be any blockages in there, it's large diameter. I replaced a fan and vent for a client that was one solid birdnest once. lol