And the hassle...think of how frustrating it would be to have to call the landlord again and again to fix that toiket.....
And the hassle...think of how frustrating it would be to have to call the landlord again and again to fix that toiket.....
This kitchen wall SUUUUUUUCKS. There is old vermiculite bullE36 M3 insulation in the southern wall of the kitchen, aka, where all my cabinets are. My jars of stuff need to thaw before I can use them.
I feel like with my luck the vermiculite would have to come out for foam to go in, which makes it a no go because all the aforementioned cabinets.
Can we just hit a small 6 figure lotto win so I can tear this place to studs and rebuild properly?
I think I finally got the pellet stove sorted. I still want to drill out the holes in the fire pot, but it's running good again. I need to find a 90 degree Phillips screwdriver to get one of the ash cleanout plates out.
For records purposes though, between November and December of 22, new door gasket, clean out T, vacuum hose to switch.
Plans for this year start with paying off the Lowes card.
If money permits
Big toolbox is moved. Now to find motivation to get organized. And maybe finish welding casters on the welding cart I started a couple weeks ago.
As probably seen in another thread, we've decided to do a run of meat birds this year. I have a bunch of pvc leftover from when I was going to build a garden trellis, so it'll be the frame for the coop and cover 1/4 of the garden. Plan being I'll do a set of birds, move it for the next set, then in following years rotate it through the garden, tiling in every fall and spring as usual.
On second thought, might just do it every few years after the first time to prevent too much nitrogen buildup.
Going to go with freedom Rangers, as they'll forage more than just sit and eat all day. Probably 6-8 at a time, should be 10-11 weeks to be ready to dress.
I want to do bees but I'm not allowed.
I got a dumpster today. Wanted a 5, settled for a 10. Could probably fill a 20.
just the first hour it was here
all that dark? Covered in brush and junk since we bought the place. Brake pads, lines, blown out galvanized air line, chunks of pipe, an ECU from something. All gone now, I could probably park 4 wide if I had to.
The chickens started laying again a couple weeks ago, averaging 8 a day from the flock.
my next layer flock is going to be all Brahma, those eggs are just enormous, as are the birds.
RevRico said:I want to do bees but I'm not allowed.
Bees are a mixed bag. Everyone I know that's gone through the effort has had the hive up and leave 75% of the time. The other times they either made lots of honey, died off, or didn't make very much honey.
It makes sense if you have a large amount of fruit trees to get pollinated and/or are retired. Otherwise support local beekeepers and buy honey from them.
And, it really is amazing how fast dumpsters fill up.
spring cleaning continues. Everything except my dad's bottles of hardware, my heavy duty welding cart, hydraulic press, and a small set of wire shelves is out of the snake garage and into the garage I actually use. There was a set of chincy wooden shelves in that section of wall before. Friction fit no less.
I'm going to have at least one full day of organizing everything, finding odds and ends, labeling stuffs, but I might finally have an organized space again and be able to find the stuff I need when I need it.
Find any more snakes?
In reply to preach (dudeist priest) :
Not yet. We're still dipping below freezing at night. I'm pretending that keeps them away so I can transfer and clean. Whole bunch of tools I never used because of where they were I need to find new excuses not to use.
Have found quite a few skins though
7 more Brahma. This is why I don't take the wife to farm and family fun center.
Upstairs bathroom got remodeled, glad I linked that in the first post before late edits went away.
That really put a hold on things for this year, and probably next year, because it put me in a deep financial hole. On the plus side, nothing else has really required my attention this year and all the supply side plumbing is new, direct runs, that are labeled. Still getting water pressure spikes though.
We're going to have to redo the back deck and get gravel next year somehow. They just both need done. And another mattress, a real one with springs and no memory foam bullE36 M3.
RevRico said
. And another mattress, a real one with springs and no memory foam bullE36 M3.
Amen to that. Tried that experiment, did not enjoy. 4/10, will not do again.
Wow, fencing is expensive. It's gonna cost almost $700 just to turn the back yard into a coop. That's if I have enough pipe left over for frame work and it doesn't shatter when I bend it.
One time expense, I just have to keep that in mind. We're just going to cage the backyard from garage to garage. I'm going to attempt to build some sort of walking platform so when they devour all the grass we can still get through the place. Don't know how I'm going to keep anything above ground long term though. Will be much less frustrating not needing to mow it anymore, so definitely a win.
I'm also going to build some grass frames. These are boxes made of 2x4s with hardware cloth on the top side. The chickens can't peck through the tiny hole so the grass can actually grow up and keep them with a steady supply.
The "finished" side of the basement leaks in heavy rain. I'm going to try to borrow a digger this summer if I can't talk someone into buying me a mini ex and I guess put a French drain down the side of the house and hope that fixes it. There's not enough room to run one along the back of the house, and I don't want to ruin the floor putting in an internal French drain. So dig the whole way down, gravel, pipe, fill it in.
Getting good plastic weed barrier for the garden this year. I'm hoping to get multiple years out of it. I still haven't started the seeds though.
I think I'm going to hire out the deck rebuild. I don't need the extra headache this summer.
Sold the boilers, left a weird gap in the floor I gotta do something with.
Not sure how I'm going to fix that either. Probably borrow Nissantechs 2 bag cement mixer and pour it into one big pad, maybe a ramp.
Tractor is getting new front wheels because mounted tires weren't much more than loose.
Tuesday December 10, 2024 just for records and an off my phone storage spot
Dryer motor, died due to belt being off a little bit.
Belt was 18 months old give or take.
The oven is slowly dying
What I suspect is the room fan, but I'm not buying until I'm 100% positive, keeps getting louder but won't die on the POS Ashley pellet stove.
KitchenAid is getting louder, in dire need of a rebuild and regrease. Only 4 years old, probably plastic gears too. I did get my hands on an 80s model that needs a deep cleaning (at a minimum) before use though.
oil tanks are gone, but everything is still a clusterberkeley in the garage. The wall leaks where the tanks were, and the picture isn't on my phone for some reason showing where, so combined with my lack of any discretionary money, I have no idea what storage solution is going in it's place.
upstairs bathroom finally got it's mirror back. It'll get trimmed eventually. Maybe when we have a professional do the bathroom again down the road.
this big bastard is next on the chopping block. Not connected to anything anymore, to except maybe the floor. I want a wheeled island. Maybe a tool cart, maybe a cut down bakers rack with shelves, maybe a toolbox with a piece of butcher block on top.
I have been given permission, to is we ever hit the lottery or somebody finds a trailer full somewhere, to use toolboxes to replace the cabinets.
I've used red lock water seal with really good results. Dry Loc works fairly well to. Only works for the walls were the red lock water seal can go on the floor as well as the walls. Best place to do it is the outside walls. They have some really good barrier that when they get wet adhere to the cement and seal it.
Mirror fell out of the medicine cabinet exactly one month after being put back in. The search for a new cabinet continues. 19 tall by 26 wide is apparently the wrong orientation for that size. Wife is to short and kids are too clumsy to just hang a mirror over the cabinet and make them lift it to get in. Maybe I should try calling a glass shop and price custom pieces for doors? I've been shot down in the idea of getting a really big one and mounting it on the wall instead of in.
1/26/25 Master bedroom and dining room ceiling fans replaced
1/2something washer checked out, all parts within spec.
Deck design finalized, ready for construction in probably April, maybe May depending on weather.
Back to the idea of New walls over old, with insulation and new wiring. Could, in theory, limit this to outside walls, but I think it would be better overall to do all of them, all new circuits, Ethernet, actual insulation. I have found a solution to the ceiling fans, I don't mind losing the 8 inches in every room except one. The kitchen.
I can't figure out how to rewire and insulate in here without shrinking the room. I've never done cabinets before and there are a E36 M3load of them, so pulling them and putting them back doesn't sound like fun. I'd also want new counter tops, because these all slope back, which makes cooking, chopping, cutting anything juicy really freaking annoying. Maybe these could be leveled, but I doubt my ability to get it out in one bigass piece.
Still more of a pipe dream than a near term project, but I think it would be worth the cost in energy savings and the lack of annoyance from the mystery random wiring in the house.
I would also put a shelf the whole way around the living room and entrance way 18 inches down from the ceiling for displaying all the collectables taking up space elsewhere.
outside line for the hose froze and burst. Luckily there was a working shut off valve in the garage. No drain though, and no good way to insulate that pipe, so I may just cut it off instead of trying to repair it. There is another hose outlet around the side, one that can be drained every winter so it doesn't freeze, I just need another hose.
Kitchen space is at a premium so i understand why losing 8 to 10 inches would suck.
So, assuming you gut the kitchen... the cabinets look solid enough and nice enough to pull, clean up, and re-hang. Do all the drawers work and doors not fall off?
(Why yes, we gutted and redid our kitchen and the old cabinets were not intact enough to reuse in my basement. However did you guess?)
I'm also looking at that false wall above the cabinets. Assuming you take that out while setting up sane plumbing, electrical, and insulation- that opens up a lot more storage space above the cabinets.
We went with 12" by 12" soapstone tiles for our counter tops with a slate tile back splash. We couldn't afford granite, marble, corian, or a butcher block insert and didn't want laminate. It has held up very well after 20 years.
In reply to RandolphCarter :
I've been thinking about cutting off that "peninsula" section of counter that goes from the left wall towards the fridge and replacing it with a big piece of butcher block. $200 for a 24x48 piece at Lowe's Depot isn't terrible, but does leave the joint as a bit of a mystery
The doors and drawers, aside from the paint that gets sticky in high humidity, are in good shape. What I've seen crawling around in cabinets, they're good solid wood so they should move.
My lack of experience has me thinking of farming that out, but I don't even want to imagine the price it would run.
I'm also in the weird headspace of what to do with the corner cabinets, top and bottom. I've been losing stuff in them since we moved in. Lots of options with lots of pros and cons to each. Maybe a big lazy Susan style in the top for all my spices and stuff, but I'm thinking racks or those pull out things for the bottoms and all my pans and countertop appliances.
At 37, 5'10, and 260lbs crawling around inside cabinets is rough. I'm trying to plan ahead in case we wind up stuck here forever. The people that lived here for 60 years did a decently halfassed job of making the house good at one floor living, but there are lots of improvements that could be made.
I'd thought about just leaving the kitchen as is, but I already see frost on the siding outside, and feel like insulating everywhere else would focus all the cold on that section making things worse. But part of cutting the cold kitchen will be doing the basement ceiling, which is currently drop ceiling frames without the tiles.
Always something, but it gives me something to occupy my mind when I'm not cooking or chasing kids.
In reply to RevRico :
Does the burst line come out of the block wall I see behind it? If so, you can cut it 12 - 18" behind the wall and install a faucet that closes off well behind the wall, hence no freezing.
OR - add a shut off well behind the wall and every fall remember to shut it off and pen the one outside. No freezing.
In reply to 914Driver :
Haha I wish. The line that broke comes out of the ground. Not sure how deep. Then it takes a bend and goes into the house garage where there's a shutoff valve on the main water line for it.
The block wall behind it is the snake garage. There's a 4 inch piece of PVC coming through the floor like it was originally meant for a toilet, but no other water in the building, incoming or outgoing.
It's got a 200amp service and it's own meter though.
Previous owner was a mechanic back in the 70s-80s, the snake garage was his shop. It's barely wide enough for a Tahoe to park in, no idea how he actually did any work on those old land yachts in there.
I'm 53, 5' 11" and 250 lbs. I also have torn up my shoulders pretty good over the years so cabinet related adventures like replacing my garbage disposal REALLY SUCK.
Dead space in corner cabinets is frustrating. We only have 1 corner set in our kitchen. We went with a lazy suzan for the lower (pots and pans) and a beveled for the upper (dishes/bowls/etc)
The lower cabinet is shaped like an L and has a door that folds in the middle. The upper is at a 45 degree angle and has a normal door.
For spices I have two plastic lazy Susans that go in a "normal" cabinet on the shelves. Lower shelf is for spices and the middle shelf is for blends. Upper shelf is not practical for a lazy Susan and has things like kosher salt, dried Carolina Reapers, and economy sized tubs of curry powder from the local Indian market.
But back to your setup - if you look at the carcasses of your cabinets you may find they are modular. So it may be possible to swap out the corner units or otherwise move things around.
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