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So we had some storms this spring and a little roof damage and the good people at USAA have decided to give me $$$ to reroof this house. Thing is, due to the global pandemic, I've got gently caress all else going on so I'm going to do it myself for $. In my hale youth I did several houses with three tab shingles and I've got a pretty good handle on the basics, but I'm going with architectural shingles on this house and I have a question: It looks like there's no getting out of buying the hip/ridge cap pieces, but do you have to buy the pre-made starters or can you still cut a shingle in half? Are there any other gotchas lurking?
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Apr 20, 2020 04:14
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actionjackson posted:I would think you would have to have the handle back on the assembly first and then tighten it, but I don't see any logistical way of doing that. Install the handle, then rotate it back towards the backsplash (which is probably full hot). That should put the access hole where it's possible to insert an Allen wrench.
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Apr 20, 2020 04:19
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tactlessbastard posted:So we had some storms this spring and a little roof damage and the good people at USAA have decided to give me $$$ to reroof this house. We just had one of these roofs installed in December, and, yes, you have to buy the ridge cap. Architecturals are laminates and they don't handle cutting down for ridge cap very well.
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Apr 20, 2020 04:21
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PainterofCrap posted:We just had one of these roofs installed in December, and, yes, you have to buy the ridge cap. Architecturals are laminates and they don't handle cutting down for ridge cap very well. I mean a starter for the bottom row.
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Apr 20, 2020 04:24
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tactlessbastard posted:It looks like there's no getting out of buying the hip/ridge cap pieces, but do you have to buy the pre-made starters or can you still cut a shingle in half? Are there any other gotchas lurking? I've only done one roof, but it was architectural shingles, and the bottom-row starter was substantially cheaper than cutting shingles in half. Plus it came as a roll so you could just roll out what you needed for a given edge and make a single cut.
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Apr 20, 2020 04:26
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PainterofCrap posted:Install the handle, then rotate it back towards the backsplash (which is probably full hot). That should put the access hole where it's possible to insert an Allen wrench. ah cool thanks guys
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Apr 20, 2020 04:35
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TooMuchAbstraction posted:I've only done one roof, but it was architectural shingles, and the bottom-row starter was substantially cheaper than cutting shingles in half. Plus it came as a roll so you could just roll out what you needed for a given edge and make a single cut. OK I'm sold thx
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Apr 20, 2020 04:44
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tactlessbastard posted:I mean a starter for the bottom row. Again, because they're laminated, you'll need either starter shingles, or a bundle of standard 3-tabs to act as starter shingles. e: sorry, I didn't read your initial post all the way through :/
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Apr 20, 2020 05:04
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Paint question: What color is the generic contractor beige that every home gets slathered in? Doing some drywall patches, and the places they're done are spots that are unlikely to be painted any time soon. I realize that after 20 years, the paint has probably faded a bit form fresh, but I just need something close. I can try to bring in some of the old drywall to get it "color matched," but in my experience the color-matching computers at the hardware store are hit or miss.
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Apr 20, 2020 15:59
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DaveSauce posted:Paint question: Magnolia, classically.
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Apr 20, 2020 16:02
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I have what I am pretty sure is a a boxelder box infestation in my garden/tool shed out back. I have a MASSIVE silver maple on the back edge of my property, and it looks like they feast on them as much as boxelder trees. The shed is where I see most of them, and every time i open the door to go in there I have to wait a second for the rain of them to fall down from the little nooks and crannies they were in. I have seen a couple spots on the outside of house, mostly at the foundation, where they're amassing, and while the shed is sort of a "live and let live" policy, I really don't want them to make their way to my house. I understand they don't really do anything directly harmful, but in general I prefer bugs stay outside. What's the best way to ensure they don't come in? I assume there's got to be some sort of pesticide I can sort of "line" my foundation with?
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Apr 20, 2020 16:07
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I've replaced the flapper/chain thing in my toilet but my toilet still runs every so often. When I put in one of those cleaning tablets some of the blue stuff leaks into the bowl, so I know I have a leak somewhere still. Is there a way to figure out where the exact source of the leak is? I'm guessing the next step is replacing the entire assembly inside the tank?
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Apr 20, 2020 18:42
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actionjackson posted:I've replaced the flapper/chain thing in my toilet but my toilet still runs every so often. Maybe it's training for a 5k. actionjackson posted:When I put in one of those cleaning tablets some of the blue stuff leaks into the bowl, so I know I have a leak somewhere still. Is there a way to figure out where the exact source of the leak is? I'm guessing the next step is replacing the entire assembly inside the tank? What sort of innards does your tank have? Is it an old-school float or a cylindrical float? If the latter, when I had a similar problem the plumber recommended replacing the whole float assembly, which did the job.
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Apr 20, 2020 19:39
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Jaded Burnout posted:
Pretty sure it's the latter. Here's what it looks like. Could there be an issue with the white cylinder?
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Apr 20, 2020 19:51
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There are a few things wrong with my dryer vent. One is that the roof vent has a screen. This is not ideal — in fact, I'm fairly certain it's against code. I learned this when I realized something was up with my dryer vent because my clothes weren't drying and there was no lint in the trap. Sure enough, it was completely covered with lint to the extent you couldn't see daylight through it.  But while I was up there, I learned of a larger issue: the duct doesn't connect to the loving roof vent.  This was behind a bit of insulation that'd been wrapped around the duct and stapled to the underside of the roof deck. How do I / can I even fix this without replacing or removing the roof cap? I'm not sure how to get this piece of duct extended and joined to the collar of the roof cap given the confines. Is there an acceptable stop-gap I could do for a few months until it's safe to bring a contractor in?
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Apr 20, 2020 19:51
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actionjackson posted:Pretty sure it's the latter. Here's what it looks like. Could there be an issue with the white cylinder? I'm no plumber but I'm pretty sure the black cylinder is the float and the white cylinder is your overflow. It's possible there's a fault in the overflow but I think it's more likely the float has a problem, as that gets sealed around the base, whereas I'd expect the overflow to be in from the factory, but that's just me guessing.
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Apr 20, 2020 20:12
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actionjackson posted:Pretty sure it's the latter. Here's what it looks like. Could there be an issue with the white cylinder? I've fixed a couple of toilets with the same setup but I'm not a plumber or anything, I've just had to fix a few. In my experience if it's leaking it's usually because the reddish flush flapper isn't sealing well against the flusher tube below it. Sometimes the rubber in the flapper is old and is cracking, sometimes there's just gunk build up around the tube. I've got hard water here so I get a lot of white calcification on the bottom of everything and it often makes a little gap. I'd give that flapper a little inspection for solidness and wipe down the flusher pipe it seals on to see if it feels good and solid or if there's crud on it. If the flapper is bad you can just replace it. Now if it's not the flapper bit then it may be the (black plastic cylinder) float getting stuck. Sometimes they get hung up, sometimes they leak and water gets in there preventing them from floating back up properly. If you can't easily find anything obstructing it but it keeps happening it might be worth getting a new one since they're relatively inexpensive, this kit that has almost everything for the inside of a tank is $15 at home depot: https://www.homedepot.com/p/Fluidmaster-Universal-2-in-Complete-Toilet-Repair-Kit-400AKRP10/100391762 The least likely but not impossible issue is that the chain is getting hung up on itself when flushed, since it pulls the flapper open. The flapper itself is weighed down upright by a cavity that has water in it which drains out a bit until it flaps back down. I don't see those ball style chains getting hung up on themselves that often (it seems more likely with the link chain style chains) but it's not impossible. It's usually obvious if it's that since when you open it while it's running the flapper will be being held back by the chain being caught on itself. edit: Definitely look at some youtube videos, there's going to be a million of them. I've used advice from this channel more than once: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUsfNTwfDV3Ry_CFHJ9BeKA/search?query=toilet Rexxed fucked around with this message at 20:54 on Apr 20, 2020 |
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Apr 20, 2020 20:48
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Thanks, the flapper is pretty much new but I never thought about wiping down the area where it touches the tank, I'll give that a try first.
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Apr 20, 2020 22:44
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dakana posted:There are a few things wrong with my dryer vent. Modern vents I see have a few inches of solid vent pipe that sticks down to attach to, but I've seen old ones where you just stick the exhaust pipe up through the hole and nail the sides to the roof. Yours might be the latter. Seems like the best course of action would be to take the vent off and replace it with a proper one and then reconnect it properly in the attic. If your roof is ancient and too brittle to work with you might try jamming your exhaust pipe up into the hole and securing it on the bottom side of your roof decking to make sure it doesn't fall back out or anything. That's a pretty dubious solution though. E: this looks like the kind of bathroom vent you have installed. You can see how they run the exhaust to the roof. You could do that for your dryer vent but definitely do not use flex-duct for heated dryer exhaust. You'll burn your house down. https://youtu.be/PqrZWd_CQIE SpartanIvy fucked around with this message at 23:00 on Apr 20, 2020 |
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Apr 20, 2020 22:56
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actionjackson posted:Thanks, the flapper is pretty much new but I never thought about wiping down the area where it touches the tank, I'll give that a try first. Flush a bunch of times with the lid off and keep an eye on it. If you do end up replacing the fill valve when grasping at straws, it might not be a total waste -- when mine broke I was quite happy to find out the replacement filled faster and was quieter than the stock version. Now on to me: I know there's probably a construction / framing thread, but this should be short. I'm going to build a small 5'x14' deck to sit behind a cabin. The joists will be running in the 5' direction. Do I need joist hangers for this or can I just put multiple screws through the 14' lengths into the end grain of the joists? There's going to be no wedding reception dancing on this thing, it's basically an elevated walkway with some firewood storage.
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Apr 20, 2020 23:59
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SpartanIvy posted:First off that's the wrong vent for a dryer, it should not have a bug/bird screen on it because lint gets stuck on it as you discovered. Thanks! The roof is... probably six months old, with dimensional shingles. It's sounding like replacing it is the best route. The unfortunate part is that I have zero experience with roofing. This part of my roof is also pretty steep, so I'd likely want to figure out some kind of fall arrest system. I am... somewhat handy, and willing to learn, but also wary of getting in over my head especially during a pandemic. What sort of materials/tools would I need to replace the roof vent? My lack of roof knowledge means I'm not sure of how destructive removing the old vent will be, and what all I need to do to re-seal the roofing around the new vent. It looks like in the video, he's cutting through only one layer of shingle, and then attaching the flange of the roof vent to that bottom shingle layer, right? He's not going down any further than that to an underlayment or anything? Then, he nails and caulks the top and sides to the bottom layer of shingle, and then caulks the top layer of shingle back on top of the flange. Then, the bottom is left unsealed to let any moisture weep out and down the roof, yeah?
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Apr 21, 2020 15:50
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I did it for the first time less than a year ago on a 22 year old roof and it was easier than you'd think. You pretty much get the basics from the video as you've said. The only materials you'll need is the caulk, a prybar, a hammer, and possibly a new vent cap. Your shingles should already be cut to fit the vent that exists there so unless you get a new vent that's larger you don't need to worry about cutting anything. It "should" be as simple as popping out the 2 nails holding it on, freeing the old vent and caulk from the shingles, lifting/sliding it out, test fitting the new vent, and then applying new caulk and reinstalling it. If you're trying to reuse the old vent then remove the old caulk from it first. The most important thing is to make sure you get the back shingles over the back of the vent plate so that water runs around it without getting under it. Take pictures when you're done and post them in the thread if you'd like a second opinion. As for securing yourself, I have a low pitch roof so that's not something I've had to deal with but if I did I would run a long and strong rope over the top of my house and back down to the yard and secure it to a tree or car. Also stick a towel or board on the roof cap so the top doesn't rub or dig into the shingles. As far as securing yourself to the rope, whatever works. I have a rock climbing harness but you might not. Do whatever you think is safest. Don't rely on your belt though!
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Apr 21, 2020 16:53
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SpartanIvy posted:As for securing yourself, I have a low pitch roof so that's not something I've had to deal with but if I did I would run a long and strong rope over the top of my house and back down to the yard and secure it to a tree or car. Also stick a towel or board on the roof cap so the top doesn't rub or dig into the shingles. As far as securing yourself to the rope, whatever works. I have a rock climbing harness but you might not. Do whatever you think is safest. Don't rely on your belt though! If you're going to tie off, get one of the harness kits designed for fall protection like: https://www.homedepot.com/p/Werner-Roofing-Safety-System-K211201/203907961 That only includes 50ft of rope, so I also purchased 100ft of 5/8" polydac rope (same as in the kit) that can go over the house to a tree or other anchor. These roof harnesses are safer than a climbing harness because they are designed to work upside down if you happen to not fall feet first. They also include a shock-absorber to prevent a sudden stop during a fall. Obviously, if you're tied to the ground on one side of the house, make sure you don't fall from the roof on that side, or the harness and rope will just annoy the paramedics when they come to pick up your broken body.
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Apr 21, 2020 17:16
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I need a lawn mower soonish My options are limited, here are a few from Canadian Tire and Walmart I was considering: Yardworks 150cc 3-in-1 Lawn Mower, 21-in Yard Machines 21" 140cc 3 in 1 Push Mower Husqvarna 163cc 3-in-1 Gas Lawn Mower, 21-in Troy-Bilt 160cc 3-in-1 Self Propelled FWD Lawn Mower, 21-in All lawnmower reviews seem to be negative. What would give me my best bang for my buck?
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Apr 21, 2020 20:44
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Professor Shark posted:I need a lawn mower soonish I think most gas ones will be as good as the maintenance they receive. Beyond that, you get what you pay for, so cheapies will have cheaper parts. There's a small engine thread somewhere that might be more helpful; sorry I can't link it directly.
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Apr 21, 2020 22:10
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Thanks, and I'll search for the thread
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Apr 21, 2020 22:14
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Professor Shark posted:I need a lawn mower soonish Do you need a gas model, or would a push mower work for you? I bought my first push mower last summer and I wish I had sooner.
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Apr 21, 2020 22:27
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We have a pretty big property, so I planned on going with gas
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Apr 21, 2020 22:38
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My Ryobi 40v mower is awesome and lasts a good hour or so.
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Apr 21, 2020 23:20
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I have a cordless electric and I love it, but I have about 250 sq yards of lawn, so YMMV
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Apr 21, 2020 23:26
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I've owned a Husqu and it was a fine brand.
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Apr 22, 2020 04:24
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EAT FASTER!!!!!! posted:I've owned a Husqu and it was a fine brand. This is the one that I went with. Thanks for the help, goons!
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Apr 22, 2020 11:27
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I’m trying to repaint my house and the drywall under 2 layers of wallpaper seems weird and my brother was like you checked that’s it’s not asbestos right? Which I did not.  Is it a real concern that it would be asbestos in the dry wall in the dining room? The house was built in the 50s
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Apr 22, 2020 16:22
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It's plaster or rock lath, not drywall. (My 1953 house is all rock lath with a plaster skim coat) You're fine. (other than potential lead paint issues)
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Apr 22, 2020 17:29
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opengl128 posted:It's plaster or rock lath, not drywall. (My 1953 house is all rock lath with a plaster skim coat) You're fine. (other than potential lead paint issues)
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Apr 22, 2020 18:31
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Slugworth posted:Plaster can definitely have asbestos. I don't say it to be scare mongering, and God knows I've demo'd plenty of plaster without testing it, but if it's a concern to you, definitely test it first. I won't say don't test it, but WRT removing the plaster in my 1890s house that had had some extensive renovation done several decades later, but not sure when, I did exhausting research on asbestos in plaster. It seems after about 1920, they loved putting asbestos in things, but it cost more. So if the plaster was being used in a fireproofing application, it was likely to have asbestos. In all other cases, almost certainly not. This is for resisdential use. Different manufacturers and application applied to commercial use.
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Apr 22, 2020 19:04
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DaveSauce posted:Paint question: Even a "bad" color match will be closer than "one gallon of beige please lol". Go into a closet or behind the fridge or something and cut a 2" or so square of drywall out and just get it matched. You'll likely do better getting it matched at a Sherwin Williams, Ben Moore, PPG, etc than at a Home Depot or Lowes. Homebuilders are all over the place with their colors, some have a standard, some have options and upgrade colors. If you know who the builder was and what paint manufacturer they used, it could be worth a try to call that paint store and see if someone there knows what paint they may have been using, although 20 years back may be a long shot.
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Apr 22, 2020 19:07
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Final Blog Entry posted:Even a "bad" color match will be closer than "one gallon of beige please lol". Go into a closet or behind the fridge or something and cut a 2" or so square of drywall out and just get it matched. You'll likely do better getting it matched at a Sherwin Williams, Ben Moore, PPG, etc than at a Home Depot or Lowes. Gotcha. I figured that there was some particular color/manufacturer that had cheap paint by producing in mass quantities, rather than each contractor/painter having to order/mix batches every time they need to paint a house. I have the bit of drywall I took out to make the patch, which should be enough. Honestly I just need something close... we won't be properly painting these spots for quite a while I expect, but given that they're the original contractor garbage I couldn't care less about the quality of the touch up as long as it doesn't stick out too bad. I almost want to by REALLY cheap paint to make it match better...
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Apr 23, 2020 14:44
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DaveSauce posted:I almost want to by REALLY cheap paint to make it match better... This is 100% the right answer. The cheaper flat paints that builders, apartments, etc use use a lot of clay and other cheap fillers in them. As a result they are flatter than your higher quality acrylic and vinyl-acrylic flat paints. Use a higher quality paint and even with a perfect match it may look great from straight on but when you look down the length of a wall it will stick out like a sore thumb because you're picking up the sheen difference. You'll probably have to get the builder grade poo poo in a gallon, even if you just need a quart, but price wise it's probably not any more expensive than a quart of the good stuff. Edit: I realized I made an assumption that it's flat paint on the wall since it was builder stuff, but you didn't specify that. If there's a sheen to it then it's going to be a bit more difficult to get that part right. Final Blog Entry fucked around with this message at 17:45 on Apr 23, 2020 |
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Apr 23, 2020 17:40
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opengl128 posted:It's plaster or rock lath, not drywall. (My 1953 house is all rock lath with a plaster skim coat) You're fine. (other than potential lead paint issues) Do you think I can just paint latex paint/primer onto it then and it'll be fine?
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Apr 23, 2020 17:58
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