The DIY thread - DIYourself
- Thread starter Red Mosquito
- Start date
moose35
Well-Known Member
Coil balance
Should be replaceable. What brand windows?
qclabrat
Well-Known Member
Some old vinyl replacements. Guessing about 20 years old. More than 50% are broken.
Karate Monkey
Well-Known Member
I think you can find the coil. What about that plastic clip on the bottom?
Maybe lock in the top sash and use those?
iman29
Well-Known Member
Anyone have an extendable gas/electric pole saw I can borrow around Morris County?
I’ve been debating back and forth to buy one but for the 1-2 times a year I need it to trim the low branches on the tree in the yard doesn’t seem worth it. I also don’t want to buy something with another different battery system. HD has a rental for $70 a day would be my other option.
Will trade your rental for your fav beer or drink or choice.
Thanks
I’ve been debating back and forth to buy one but for the 1-2 times a year I need it to trim the low branches on the tree in the yard doesn’t seem worth it. I also don’t want to buy something with another different battery system. HD has a rental for $70 a day would be my other option.
Will trade your rental for your fav beer or drink or choice.
Thanks
i have a cordless (20v) chainsaw and an adjustable step ladder, just something else to think about (i say this with no clue how high these low branches are)
(Apologies in advance for the giant post).
I work as an engineer with a pretty standard desk job, meetings, some travel, some interesting parts, some less interesting. At the back of my mind I've always wondered if I'd be overall happier if I were doing something more hands on, be it in a trade, or something else. This past week and a half, while on vacation, I got pretty good evidence to support a conclusion on this front...actual, physical labor sucks.
My parents are fortunate enough to have a house on the water in MA, which my grandparents purchased in something like the late 50s/early 60s when you could do something like that on a single schoolteacher's salary. I've put in quite a bit of work on the house over the years, including building an outdoor shower with some friends close to 20 years ago. That shower was now overdue for replacement and I decided that I'd spend a "portion" of my 10 day vacation up there rebuilding it.
Previous condition:
Because I do enjoy woodworking, I decided to make my own fence panels, which was dumb. I also wanted to slightly expand the original footprint of the shower, which was also dumb, although I suppose it could be nice to have more room in there if you're chasing a kid or dog around.
Days 1 and 2 were digging out the absolutely crazy vines that engulfed the previous shower and then paying a random person to pick them up and bring them to the dump. The root system from the vines had created a giant berm that made the old shower a bit of a swimming pool and, long term, wasn't the greatest thing for the foundation. So that all got dug up and graded away from the house as well as possible without impacting the entire yard. I additionally used a compacted road base type of material (up there it seems to be "T base", local to NJ I've always known it as "quarry process" or qp) to further solidify the grading away from the foundation and also provide a better base to put a walkable service onto.
I put in the first post, got it plumb, fussed around with the height, set it in concrete. Attach the next panel to it with clamps, put the next post on to the end of that, fuss around with plumb and level, set in concrete, etc. I also used Simpson moment post bases for setting the posts. These things are expensive but I'm always reluctant to put posts directly into the ground, because it's such a hassle if one gets broken or has to be replaced for whatever reason. Given the location of the house on the coast, this felt like it was marginally worth it.
After all of the posts and panels were in place, the whole thing got covered in gravel and then the panels filled in with 1x8" boards, with ~1-1/2" gaps, staggered on the front and rear to ensure privacy. Getting that worked out to avoid sightlines into the shower was more of a pain than I had expected. Actually, almost everything was more of a pain than I had expected.
Finally, I built and hung a door and mounted latch hardware. This was the only aspect of the project that required a fair bit of precision and was also the part that I was concerned about the most. Thankfully I got to this on the afternoon of the last day where I was already completely burned out so it was as stressful as possible. But it still turned out well...the latch side gap is slightly tight at the top but not enough to cause problems. When I go back up next, I'll either adjust the hinges, take a small amount off of the post, or something else so that it clears slightly better. The middle of the door is stacked 2x4 material, which was supposed to be to 4x4's, but I had screwed up a cut and didn't have enough left over. I think the pattern with the 2x4 sapwood actually looks interesting, so happy accident there.
In conclusion, I do not want to work with my hands for a living. At least, not outside in direct sunlight with high humidity for 10 days straight. I'll be taking the next couple of weeks at work to recover from my vacation. If I had it to do over, I probably wouldn't...but if I had to I'd buy pre-made panels and make the whole thing a little smaller just so it doesn't dominate that part of the house so much. But overall I'm really happy with the result and relieved that I managed to get it done before leaving.
I work as an engineer with a pretty standard desk job, meetings, some travel, some interesting parts, some less interesting. At the back of my mind I've always wondered if I'd be overall happier if I were doing something more hands on, be it in a trade, or something else. This past week and a half, while on vacation, I got pretty good evidence to support a conclusion on this front...actual, physical labor sucks.
My parents are fortunate enough to have a house on the water in MA, which my grandparents purchased in something like the late 50s/early 60s when you could do something like that on a single schoolteacher's salary. I've put in quite a bit of work on the house over the years, including building an outdoor shower with some friends close to 20 years ago. That shower was now overdue for replacement and I decided that I'd spend a "portion" of my 10 day vacation up there rebuilding it.
Previous condition:
Because I do enjoy woodworking, I decided to make my own fence panels, which was dumb. I also wanted to slightly expand the original footprint of the shower, which was also dumb, although I suppose it could be nice to have more room in there if you're chasing a kid or dog around.
Days 1 and 2 were digging out the absolutely crazy vines that engulfed the previous shower and then paying a random person to pick them up and bring them to the dump. The root system from the vines had created a giant berm that made the old shower a bit of a swimming pool and, long term, wasn't the greatest thing for the foundation. So that all got dug up and graded away from the house as well as possible without impacting the entire yard. I additionally used a compacted road base type of material (up there it seems to be "T base", local to NJ I've always known it as "quarry process" or qp) to further solidify the grading away from the foundation and also provide a better base to put a walkable service onto.
I put in the first post, got it plumb, fussed around with the height, set it in concrete. Attach the next panel to it with clamps, put the next post on to the end of that, fuss around with plumb and level, set in concrete, etc. I also used Simpson moment post bases for setting the posts. These things are expensive but I'm always reluctant to put posts directly into the ground, because it's such a hassle if one gets broken or has to be replaced for whatever reason. Given the location of the house on the coast, this felt like it was marginally worth it.
After all of the posts and panels were in place, the whole thing got covered in gravel and then the panels filled in with 1x8" boards, with ~1-1/2" gaps, staggered on the front and rear to ensure privacy. Getting that worked out to avoid sightlines into the shower was more of a pain than I had expected. Actually, almost everything was more of a pain than I had expected.
Finally, I built and hung a door and mounted latch hardware. This was the only aspect of the project that required a fair bit of precision and was also the part that I was concerned about the most. Thankfully I got to this on the afternoon of the last day where I was already completely burned out so it was as stressful as possible. But it still turned out well...the latch side gap is slightly tight at the top but not enough to cause problems. When I go back up next, I'll either adjust the hinges, take a small amount off of the post, or something else so that it clears slightly better. The middle of the door is stacked 2x4 material, which was supposed to be to 4x4's, but I had screwed up a cut and didn't have enough left over. I think the pattern with the 2x4 sapwood actually looks interesting, so happy accident there.
In conclusion, I do not want to work with my hands for a living. At least, not outside in direct sunlight with high humidity for 10 days straight. I'll be taking the next couple of weeks at work to recover from my vacation. If I had it to do over, I probably wouldn't...but if I had to I'd buy pre-made panels and make the whole thing a little smaller just so it doesn't dominate that part of the house so much. But overall I'm really happy with the result and relieved that I managed to get it done before leaving.
iman29
Well-Known Member
Thanks most of what I need to get at is probably 8-12 feet off the ground approximately and the biggest branches are not that thick maybe 2-4”.
I’ve got and 8’ ladder and normally I use some massive garden shears and a bow saw and go up and down around the permiter of the tree. Haven’t done it for 2 seasons now so was looking to make it easier if I cut most of it from the ground level. And probably safer.
Will keep this option in mind tho. Appreciate it.
iman29
Well-Known Member
My back hurts just thinking about the landscaping part of that project. Looks pro. 👍🏻
Yeah man, great job.
Nice that you can enjoy the fruit of your fantasy job, even if it isn’t going to be your next career.
I’ve had similar thoughts on the job (some days more than others).
There’s places you can plug in once in a while to scratch that itch (Habitat for Humanity and similar).
ekuhn
Well-Known Member
Great work and be proud of it! Looks awesome.
Scope creep, unforeseen items, and a time crunch can make things sometimes unbearable. That added stress doesn’t help.
iman29
Well-Known Member
DIY PSA: check and clean your dryer vent regularly or have someone come do it.
Wife told me the towels were taking longer to dry and That’s the first clue the vent needed cleaning.
Fortunately I have access to the whole vent and exhaust out the basement because the basement is unfinished. I can take apart the vent in sections to clean it out. I have our old vacuum cleaner in the basement for any “work” jobs and I also keep a flexible hose from one of those canister models just for this purpose.
Duct tape the flexible hose to the main vacuum hose for extra reach and I can run it through both sides to get everything. The run from the dryer up to the pipe that runs out the house was the worst. Filled the vacuum canister twice 😯
Wife told me the towels were taking longer to dry and That’s the first clue the vent needed cleaning.
Fortunately I have access to the whole vent and exhaust out the basement because the basement is unfinished. I can take apart the vent in sections to clean it out. I have our old vacuum cleaner in the basement for any “work” jobs and I also keep a flexible hose from one of those canister models just for this purpose.
Duct tape the flexible hose to the main vacuum hose for extra reach and I can run it through both sides to get everything. The run from the dryer up to the pipe that runs out the house was the worst. Filled the vacuum canister twice 😯
@iman29 Ian you should be an interventional cardiologist! Just like a coronary artery!
Fat Trout
Well-Known Member
feel your pain. love the work you did!!!!!!! Its hard to do both especially when you know you can. Your parents are lucky to have you helping them!
serviceguy
Well-Known Member
That is super nice, and a great job! You can build me an outside shower whenever you want. Unfortunately you will have to wait until I buy a beach house which will never happen...sorry! But seriously, it shows great attention to detail and craftmanship. Would a pro built it faster? Probably, but I doubt you would have been as happy with the end result.
iman29
Well-Known Member
same - i no longer go on a ladder any higher than 6-8 feet.
Appreciate all of the kind words.
It's interesting to think about the "Pro" vs "DIY" thing. No question a pro would have done this faster. I was thinking about how much I would have to charge do make this project viable as a way of making a living and it's pretty laughable for a ~9 day full time project. Nobody would pay for that (even on Cape Cod!).
The biggest time wasters were driving around finding/buying supplies and the relative inefficiency of the temporary work setup that I put together. The first one is a fact of life to a degree, but as a pro with local connections, you could definitely minimize that because you know where you can reliably go to pick up certain things. The second, I'd definitely expect a pro to be better at, although I see a job of job sites where guys are cutting trim on the ground, stuff is all over the place etc. I was assembling 6'x4' panels on a 8'x2' temporary workbench, which sucked. I'd do something along these lines if I were getting paid for this kind of work:
It's interesting to think about the "Pro" vs "DIY" thing. No question a pro would have done this faster. I was thinking about how much I would have to charge do make this project viable as a way of making a living and it's pretty laughable for a ~9 day full time project. Nobody would pay for that (even on Cape Cod!).
The biggest time wasters were driving around finding/buying supplies and the relative inefficiency of the temporary work setup that I put together. The first one is a fact of life to a degree, but as a pro with local connections, you could definitely minimize that because you know where you can reliably go to pick up certain things. The second, I'd definitely expect a pro to be better at, although I see a job of job sites where guys are cutting trim on the ground, stuff is all over the place etc. I was assembling 6'x4' panels on a 8'x2' temporary workbench, which sucked. I'd do something along these lines if I were getting paid for this kind of work:
