The Home Improvement Thread

[Canehdianman]

Yeah, put a bollard in front of it. People wont learn unless you damage their car.

[Wormius]

Does each shop need it’s own railing? Or could it be installed where there is less risk of getting hit by cars?

The sacrificial stanchion or whatever in front of the railing might work like what I think it’s being suggested already.

[Table 5]

There are 3 railings and all of them get hit. We could probably remove one, but the tenants say they want them to stay.

Originally Posted by Canehdianman

Yeah, put a bollard in front of it. People wont learn unless you damage their car.

I didn't realize how poorly people park till we had this property. People just drive into everything. The railings, steps, the parking bumps, the parking signs. One old man managed to back up into a retail bay a couple of years ago.

You'd think with all these parking sensor on cars these days, people would hit things less...but nope. And it's not like it's some super tight inner city parking lot.

[jwslam]

Use these?

[photon]

If basement carpet gets exposed to some sewer backup, is there any way to clean it so that it's safe? Or is it a case of it should always be replaced?

I guess it's more a question of the underlay, the carpet and underlay are pretty thin but I don't know if cleaning can get in there enough.. or if the underlay is too much of a sponge and would never be able to be cleaned properly.

[puffnstuff]

Throw the carpet and underlay away. Far far away.

[Scroopy Noopers]

Originally Posted by puffnstuff

Throw the carpet and underlay away. Far far away.

Then maybe think about sealing the slab nice and buying an area rug or two, if this is an issue you believe may happen again in the future. Not quite as nice, but I’ve seen some interesting things done.

[photon]

I'd put in vinyl plank to replace it, just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing an option I wasn't aware of.

[Incogneto]

I'm at the point where I NEED to replace my eavestroughs. Anyone here have a recommended contractor? Looking for some quotes on getting the job done right.

[Wormius]

Originally Posted by InCoGnEtO

I'm at the point where I NEED to replace my eavestroughs. Anyone here have a recommended contractor? Looking for some quotes on getting the job done right.

How is the condition of your roof? If you can get the roof and eavestroughs done at the same time, it might be worth it to wait. Otherwise, you might be getting new eavestroughs again.

[PaperBagger'14]

Originally Posted by InCoGnEtO

I'm at the point where I NEED to replace my eavestroughs. Anyone here have a recommended contractor? Looking for some quotes on getting the job done right.

Wait for a good hailstorm and get both done?

[Nufy]

I need to cut some of those 24 x 30 concrete patio blocks to fit around some deck pilings.

What is the best method. I would prefer to do at home.

Options ??

[topfiverecords]

Originally Posted by Nufy

I need to cut some of those 24 x 30 concrete patio blocks to fit around some deck pilings.

What is the best method. I would prefer to do at home.

Options ??

Here's what I did when I needed to do this but they were only straight through cuts. Might need something finer for notching.

Put a concrete blade in a circular saw. Set up a guide on the block to keep a straight line. Make a shallow cut first and then increase the depth of the blade. Might take multiple passes slowly increasing the depth depending on the saw power, etc. Wear glasses and a dust mask. You're not really cutting the block, you're grinding it away so it's actually a pretty easy task.

If the grade around the block is going to cover some thickness of the block you could cut part way through and then hit it with a sledge and it should snap along your line.

[Fuzz]

For straight lines the circuit saw method works well. For curves get a brick set and hit YouTube for tips.

[Meelapo]

Not really home improvement but home fix up...

In our restroom at home we have a particle board cabinet with particle board doors - the same type of stuff you see in new homes these days. A few days ago my shorts caught the handle as I was walking by and I ripped the door off. There was no damage to the door but the inside of the cabinet didn't look so great. Here's the image:

https://imgur.com/gallery/niBAnFj

So I went to Home Depot and got some wood filler and some Gorilla glue and tried my best to fix it. I used the glue to paint into the damage just to keep things together and then I filled the gouge with the wood filler. However, when I tried to screw things back in place the filler didn't seem to hold the hinge screws in. Maybe the pilot holes weren't tight enough (the screws that I'm using are blunt on the end and not pointy so I'm guessing I need to make pilot holes).

So what I've done now is I've filled the two holes from the new screw holes with match ends (not the tips) and toothpicks and glued them in hoping they'll provide something for the screws to bite in to. I'm hoping that'll work but I have my doubts.

Have I approached this correctly? Is there a better way to do this? Is there a hinge that would fit my door but is longer so that I can screw into non-damaged part of the interior of the cabinet? Am I screwed? To fix this, do I need to buy a new cabinet? Bathroom? House?

I've tried searching the internet for some advice but I can't find anything that will help aside from the tips regarding dowls and toothpicks. I am not handy and this is the first time I've attempted a repair such as this so my tools are very limited.

What do I do?

[TopChed]

Originally Posted by Meelapo

Not really home improvement but home fix up...

In our restroom at home we have a particle board cabinet with particle board doors - the same type of stuff you see in new homes these days. A few days ago my shorts caught the handle as I was walking by and I ripped the door off. There was no damage to the door but the inside of the cabinet didn't look so great. Here's the image:

https://imgur.com/gallery/niBAnFj

So I went to Home Depot and got some wood filler and some Gorilla glue and tried my best to fix it. I used the glue to paint into the damage just to keep things together and then I filled the gouge with the wood filler. However, when I tried to screw things back in place the filler didn't seem to hold the hinge screws in. Maybe the pilot holes weren't tight enough (the screws that I'm using are blunt on the end and not pointy so I'm guessing I need to make pilot holes).

So what I've done now is I've filled the two holes from the new screw holes with match ends (not the tips) and toothpicks and glued them in hoping they'll provide something for the screws to bite in to. I'm hoping that'll work but I have my doubts.

Have I approached this correctly? Is there a better way to do this? Is there a hinge that would fit my door but is longer so that I can screw into non-damaged part of the interior of the cabinet? Am I screwed? To fix this, do I need to buy a new cabinet? Bathroom? House?

I've tried searching the internet for some advice but I can't find anything that will help aside from the tips regarding dowls and toothpicks. I am not handy and this is the first time I've attempted a repair such as this so my tools are very limited.

What do I do?

The toothpick method has always worked well for me, but I've only done it with stripped out holes that were otherwise solid. I used PL construction adhesive and strips of a cedar shim. You may also want to use a wood screw or something that will bite in a bit more than the cabinet screws that were there originally.

[aiy_yah]

Went back to page 75, which goes back 11 months and didn't see any posts on this:

Any recommendations for someone to install tile? Looking to reno 2 full, 1 half bath. Want tile for the showers and for the floors. Little bit of backsplash work also.

[rain_e]

Originally Posted by Nufy

I need to cut some of those 24 x 30 concrete patio blocks to fit around some deck pilings.

What is the best method. I would prefer to do at home.

Options ??

Rent a wet saw from Home Depot. I tried the circular saw method with the correct blade. It was extremely time consuming. $80 for the rental and you are done in a couple of minutes.

[Ducay]

Originally Posted by aiy_yah

Went back to page 75, which goes back 11 months and didn't see any posts on this:

Any recommendations for someone to install tile? Looking to reno 2 full, 1 half bath. Want tile for the showers and for the floors. Little bit of backsplash work also.

For your showers - are they new installs? Assume you'll need waterproofing as part of that?

[aiy_yah]

Originally Posted by Ducay

For your showers - are they new installs? Assume you'll need waterproofing as part of that?

I'd be replacing old tiled showers, so likely would replacing the backing as well.