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Post by Powerthirteen on Jun 9, 2017 10:26:47 GMT -5
Yeah, I wasn't buying one without a good (expensive) house inspection and in fact ended up paying for 3 house inspections. The fact that one seller tried to talk me out of needing an inspection made me immediately say fuck off too. Hah, that actually reminds me. One realtor told me another house the couple selling it wouldn't accept any offers contingent on a house inspection because on their previous selling experience a house inspector had ruined a deal by pointing out "minor issues." Suuuuure... People lose their frigging minds when they start thinking about buying houses. |
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Trurl
Shoutbox Elitist 
Posts: 7,699
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Post by Trurl on Jun 9, 2017 11:55:49 GMT -5
My house inspector missed and entire live knob-and-tube circuit. Not surprising because I didn't find it until I was in the attic rewiring ceiling lights - inspectors can't find hidden stuff.
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Post by Lt. Broccoli on Jun 9, 2017 12:12:14 GMT -5
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Trurl
Shoutbox Elitist
Posts: 7,699
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Post by Trurl on Jun 9, 2017 15:37:34 GMT -5
Oven light blew and I realized that I've *never* replaced the bulb in an oven, that the ovens I've owned have outlived the lightbulbs in them.
Anyhow, the bulb is under a glass dome that's held in with a steel spring clip. I released the spring and somehow that actually shattered the glass dome, sending shards everywhere. Then the bulb wouldn't unscrew and actually left the base stuck in the (live, of course, because the oven door was open) socket. So first I cleaned up the broken glass, deciding that replacing the dome was probably not worth the effort (I can't imagine how something would bump the light where it's located up in the corner, and if it does then oh well). So I vacuumed up the shards, then with a pair of needle-nosed pliers carefully unscrewed the bulb base (it *really* didn't want to unscrew) until I could get a grip on it with more substantial pliers and yank the fucker out. Then screwed in a new bulb and put the spring clip in, since it might protect the bulb some.
Works now, we'll see if this holds up in the long term.
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LazBro
Prolific Poster 
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Post by LazBro on Jun 12, 2017 7:50:03 GMT -5
Upstairs A/C is out. Either the upstairs or the downstairs unit goes out at least once a summer. Freon leak that they can't seem to find. They fuel it back up and we're good for another season usually. Hoping we can get them out today.
All the bedrooms are upstairs, and around 11pm it was 83 degrees inside. We moved Baby Snape to the living room couch downstairs, and around midnight I threw in the towel myself and took the couch in the den. Mrs. Snape somehow made it through the night in our bed. If we don't get it fixed today I'm going to move Baby's bed mattress downstairs so we'll all have a place.
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Post by Pedantic Editor Type on Jun 12, 2017 7:57:41 GMT -5
Upstairs A/C is out. Either the upstairs or the downstairs unit goes out at least once a summer. Freon leak that they can't seem to find. They fuel it back up and we're good for another season usually. Hoping we can get them out today. All the bedrooms are upstairs, and around 11pm it was 83 degrees inside. We moved Baby Snape to the living room couch downstairs, and around midnight I threw in the towel myself and took the couch in the den. Mrs. Snape somehow made it through the night in our bed. If we don't get it fixed today I'm going to move Baby's bed mattress downstairs so we'll all have a place. So, our AC is only 5 years old, it works fine. But our house was poorly designed from the get go. Our fairly large, second-floor master bedroom only has ONE vent. And the overall ductwork isn't big enough to support the proper size AC for the house. Which means that with the AC on, while our downstairs is a perfectly comfortable 71-72 most of the night, our bedroom hovered around 80 last night. It probably won't cool off much today because our high will be 94. We're in for a few toasty nights. Ugh. (This has always been a problem, but usually our bedroom cools off more than that, to closer to 75 during the night, so I don't know why it was extra-warm last night?) |
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Post by Liz n Dicksgiving on Jun 12, 2017 11:39:36 GMT -5
My house inspector missed and entire live knob-and-tube circuit. Not surprising because I didn't find it until I was in the attic rewiring ceiling lights - inspectors can't find hidden stuff. The last inspector we worked with told us about a house he'd looked at that had what looked like minor water stains on a ceiling. The buyer asked that it be addressed, the homeowner complied, and by the time of the closing the leak had been repaired and ceiling patched. Fast forward a few weeks after moving in, and the ceiling starts looking wet again in the spot where it was patched. The new homeowners call a plumber, they open up the spot... and discover that the previous owners had just put a bowl under the leak and patched the ceiling over it. You can't find everything! |
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Post by nowimnothing on Jun 12, 2017 19:23:17 GMT -5
Upstairs A/C is out. Either the upstairs or the downstairs unit goes out at least once a summer. Freon leak that they can't seem to find. They fuel it back up and we're good for another season usually. Hoping we can get them out today. All the bedrooms are upstairs, and around 11pm it was 83 degrees inside. We moved Baby Snape to the living room couch downstairs, and around midnight I threw in the towel myself and took the couch in the den. Mrs. Snape somehow made it through the night in our bed. If we don't get it fixed today I'm going to move Baby's bed mattress downstairs so we'll all have a place. So, our AC is only 5 years old, it works fine. But our house was poorly designed from the get go. Our fairly large, second-floor master bedroom only has ONE vent. And the overall ductwork isn't big enough to support the proper size AC for the house. Which means that with the AC on, while our downstairs is a perfectly comfortable 71-72 most of the night, our bedroom hovered around 80 last night. It probably won't cool off much today because our high will be 94. We're in for a few toasty nights. Ugh. (This has always been a problem, but usually our bedroom cools off more than that, to closer to 75 during the night, so I don't know why it was extra-warm last night?) Our house is similar, I had to keep the AC on like 65 just to get the upstairs livable, I finally just bought window units for the upstairs rooms. turn them on at night and the downstairs does not have to be freezing. |
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LazBro
Prolific Poster
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Post by LazBro on Jun 13, 2017 7:26:10 GMT -5
Could not get the AC guy out yesterday, so we had a little downstairs camp out. Of course, Baby Snape sees it as doing something special, so she told us she wants us all to sleep downstairs every night. Uh, no.
Hopefully we'll be back up and running today.
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Post by Pedantic Editor Type on Jun 13, 2017 8:03:51 GMT -5
So, our AC is only 5 years old, it works fine. But our house was poorly designed from the get go. Our fairly large, second-floor master bedroom only has ONE vent. And the overall ductwork isn't big enough to support the proper size AC for the house. Which means that with the AC on, while our downstairs is a perfectly comfortable 71-72 most of the night, our bedroom hovered around 80 last night. It probably won't cool off much today because our high will be 94. We're in for a few toasty nights. Ugh. (This has always been a problem, but usually our bedroom cools off more than that, to closer to 75 during the night, so I don't know why it was extra-warm last night?) Our house is similar, I had to keep the AC on like 65 just to get the upstairs livable, I finally just bought window units for the upstairs rooms. turn them on at night and the downstairs does not have to be freezing. We live in a townhome, and I think there are regulations about window AC units, or we would probably have bought one years ago. Honestly this is the first year I remember it being this bad - but it's also been stupid hot early in the summer. It's possible that having several doors to the smaller bedrooms/bathroom closed isn't helping - we're dog-sitting and don't want him getting into stuff. |
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Post by Liz n Dicksgiving on Jun 13, 2017 8:45:09 GMT -5
The AC situation at stately Dick n Hisses Manor is awful, too. Boomer's room is in the walk-out side of the basement (most people don't think "stately" when they think of 1950's split levels, but Dick n Hisses Manor breaks the mold) and Hugs and I are in the upstairs part. To keep the middle level -- where the living room, kitchen, and thermostat are -- comfortable, the upstairs has to be sweltering and the basement freezing. I think our big home renovation project in 2018 might be to look into multi-zone air conditioning.
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Post by Pedantic Editor Type on Jun 13, 2017 13:35:20 GMT -5
Hello, I'm a dingbat.
I realized why our second floor is even hotter than years past. The master flue, which we keep partly closed in winter, wasn't open all the way. So barely any cool air was even getting through the vents we have. DUH. It's all the way open now so that should help a lot.
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LazBro
Prolific Poster
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Post by LazBro on Jun 13, 2017 13:44:10 GMT -5
The guy is supposed to come by and work on our A/C today. His name is Tim. He's Mrs. Snape's mom's A/C guy from her rental house business. So he helps us out for cheap. Sometimes even for free. So we like Tim. Tim's fine.
Thing is, Tim's a talker. Once Tim gets your ear, he'll keep it at least 15 minutes ... minimum. And as far as I'm concerned, the best time for a contractor to work at the house is when I'm not there. Indeed he has all day today to drop in and do his thing. But no. If I know Tim, he won't show up until 5 O'clock or so, just as I'm getting home with Baby Snape, because he's going to want to talk at me. Happens every time, and I could swear he does it on purpose.
I'm already dreading it.
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GumTurkeyles
AV Clubber 
$10 down, $10 a month, don't you be a turkey
Posts: 3,065
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Post by GumTurkeyles on Jun 13, 2017 14:01:14 GMT -5
Question for you homeowners. My basement is lined with studs; I don't know if it was ever a finished basement at one point, but the (disconnected) baseboards would indicate such. Anyway, in the corner of the house, the stud running along the floor is rotted. The rest of it is fine. This isn't supporting anything, so I planned on just cutting it out and leaving it off. However, I noticed an outlet it attached to one of the studs, that once I remove that bottom piece, will just be floating. Is this against building codes? I don't want to deal with an inspector seeing this later (when selling) and having me repair it then.
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Post by nowimnothing on Jun 13, 2017 20:18:39 GMT -5
Question for you homeowners. My basement is lined with studs; I don't know if it was ever a finished basement at one point, but the (disconnected) baseboards would indicate such. Anyway, in the corner of the house, the stud running along the floor is rotted. The rest of it is fine. This isn't supporting anything, so I planned on just cutting it out and leaving it off. However, I noticed an outlet it attached to one of the studs, that once I remove that bottom piece, will just be floating. Is this against building codes? I don't want to deal with an inspector seeing this later (when selling) and having me repair it then. I am not sure about code, but if you don't want to replace the entire bottom plate maybe you could just replace the part under the two studs where the outlet is. That would make the outlet more stable. |
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Post by ganews on Jun 13, 2017 21:42:40 GMT -5
Why yes I have had this house for two years and never cleaned the gutters. Since the downed tree scraped the corner off one, I had been thinking "Oh they were already not-great, here's a chance to pay for replacement without cleaning, I'll deal with that in June after conference." But now that we're here my money-loving heart is telling me to get the ladder out, see how much cleaning improves everything, and repair the gutter myself.
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moimoi
AV Clubber
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Post by moimoi on Jun 13, 2017 22:03:31 GMT -5
Why yes I have had this house for two years and never cleaned the gutters. Since the downed tree scraped the corner off one, I had been thinking "Oh they were already not-great, here's a chance to pay for replacement without cleaning, I'll deal with that in June after conference." But now that we're here my money-loving heart is telling me to get the ladder out, see how much cleaning improves everything, and repair the gutter myself. I just got new, 6" gutters because my old standard gutters were shot. It doesn't sound like the ideal diy project - being up on a ladder balancing a 40 ft. piece of metal. But if you're used to going up there to clean, maybe it's not so bad. The installer finished mine in a day and charged about $3K. |
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LazBro
Prolific Poster
Posts: 10,282
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Post by LazBro on Jun 15, 2017 8:03:05 GMT -5
The guy is supposed to come by and work on our A/C today. His name is Tim. He's Mrs. Snape's mom's A/C guy from her rental house business. So he helps us out for cheap. Sometimes even for free. So we like Tim. Tim's fine. Thing is, Tim's a talker. Once Tim gets your ear, he'll keep it at least 15 minutes ... minimum. And as far as I'm concerned, the best time for a contractor to work at the house is when I'm not there. Indeed he has all day today to drop in and do his thing. But no. If I know Tim, he won't show up until 5 O'clock or so, just as I'm getting home with Baby Snape, because he's going to want to talk at me. Happens every time, and I could swear he does it on purpose. I'm already dreading it. Ha ha! He got there so late that Mrs. Snape was home, and I could make her talk to him instead. Excelsior! |
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Post by nowimnothing on Jun 17, 2017 8:29:57 GMT -5
So I am fixing my house up a bit in order to sell it. I have a few projects I am unsure of. I could replace the carpet in the bedrooms upstairs, refinish the hardwood floors downstairs or replace the kitchen cabinets*. All are in pretty bad shape and need done, but I am not sure which would give me the best return on investment.
*Just the lower cabinets and countertop. I am aware that a full kitchen remodel would be the best ROI but this is more about making some cabinets with water damage into something not so ugly. Oh and the carpet upstairs has stains that I cannot get out. The wood floors are probably the best shape currently, but there is still some carpet with stains in areas and some worn floors.
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Post by Pedantic Editor Type on Jun 17, 2017 10:09:30 GMT -5
So I am fixing my house up a bit in order to sell it. I have a few projects I am unsure of. I could replace the carpet in the bedrooms upstairs, refinish the hardwood floors downstairs or replace the kitchen cabinets*. All are in pretty bad shape and need done, but I am not sure which would give me the best return on investment. *Just the lower cabinets and countertop. I am aware that a full kitchen remodel would be the best ROI but this is more about making some cabinets with water damage into something not so ugly. Oh and the carpet upstairs has stains that I cannot get out. The wood floors are probably the best shape currently, but there is still some carpet with stains in areas and some worn floors. Kitchens tend to sell houses, though flooring is probably second. |
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moimoi
AV Clubber
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Post by moimoi on Jun 17, 2017 13:19:25 GMT -5
Dilemma: My ancient garage door has been acting up, so I purchased a tune-up deal through Angie's list . The technician greased, tightened, and adjusted things, so hopefully it's working now. He also pointed out that the door brace needs reinforcement and said he could do that for $50, or he could give me a new garage door opener system plus brace reinforcement for $350, since my system is at least 20 years old and when it breaks down, it will break down completely. I can afford a new system and the technician was friendly and courteous; my only hesitation is that he's probably upselling me and his politics (as indicated by a certain bumper sticker) are distasteful to me. So does this guy deserve my money? Or do I just pay $50 for the brace and then when my system breaks down, get a new system from a company I fully support?
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Post by Incense on Jun 17, 2017 13:45:36 GMT -5
Dilemma: My ancient garage door has been acting up, so I purchased a tune-up deal through Angie's list . The technician greased, tightened, and adjusted things, so hopefully it's working now. He also pointed out that the door brace needs reinforcement and said he could do that for $50, or he could give me a new garage door opener system plus brace reinforcement for $350, since my system is at least 20 years old and when it breaks down, it will break down completely. I can afford a new system and the technician was friendly and courteous; my only hesitation is that he's probably upselling me and his politics (as indicated by a certain bumper sticker) are distasteful to me. So does this guy deserve my money? Or do I just pay $50 for the brace and then when my system breaks down, get a new system from a company I fully support? If it were me, I'd go with the $50 brace and wait a bit longer on the new system. It will give you time to locate a company that does good work, may charge a little less, and whose politics you at least don't know if you hate. Also, it's not super professional to have a political bumper sticker on the vehicle you use to meet with customers/clients, but he probably wouldn't care if someone told him that. |
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Post by Pedantic Editor Type on Jun 17, 2017 13:54:00 GMT -5
Dilemma: My ancient garage door has been acting up, so I purchased a tune-up deal through Angie's list . The technician greased, tightened, and adjusted things, so hopefully it's working now. He also pointed out that the door brace needs reinforcement and said he could do that for $50, or he could give me a new garage door opener system plus brace reinforcement for $350, since my system is at least 20 years old and when it breaks down, it will break down completely. I can afford a new system and the technician was friendly and courteous; my only hesitation is that he's probably upselling me and his politics (as indicated by a certain bumper sticker) are distasteful to me. So does this guy deserve my money? Or do I just pay $50 for the brace and then when my system breaks down, get a new system from a company I fully support? I'd either go for the brace now or, if the garage door has a few more days as is, shop for a whole new system right away. |
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Post by nowimnothing on Jun 18, 2017 7:29:34 GMT -5
Dilemma: My ancient garage door has been acting up, so I purchased a tune-up deal through Angie's list . The technician greased, tightened, and adjusted things, so hopefully it's working now. He also pointed out that the door brace needs reinforcement and said he could do that for $50, or he could give me a new garage door opener system plus brace reinforcement for $350, since my system is at least 20 years old and when it breaks down, it will break down completely. I can afford a new system and the technician was friendly and courteous; my only hesitation is that he's probably upselling me and his politics (as indicated by a certain bumper sticker) are distasteful to me. So does this guy deserve my money? Or do I just pay $50 for the brace and then when my system breaks down, get a new system from a company I fully support? I would go with the brace too. You will have a working opener and you can keep an eye out for a new one so you are prepared when it does die. Openers can last quite a while though. Maybe by the time you are ready for one, you will go for something fancy that you can open with your smartphone. |
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Post by Not a real doctor on Jun 19, 2017 10:00:54 GMT -5
Inspection is scheduled for this afternoon so hopefully nothing truly insane turns up.
Also, we're within 60 days of potential closing so locked in an interest rate and surprise of all surprises, rates have actually dropped very slightly since pre-approval. Woohoo for even cheaper (.125%) money!
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heroboy
AV Clubber
I must succeed!
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Post by heroboy on Jun 19, 2017 15:56:08 GMT -5
So a quick trip to the Home Depot yesterday to pick up some fertilizer and insecticide somehow ended with me ripping up sod and laying down a brick pathway.
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moimoi
AV Clubber
Posts: 5,091
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Post by moimoi on Jun 19, 2017 18:58:49 GMT -5
So a quick trip to the Home Depot yesterday to pick up some fertilizer and insecticide somehow ended with me ripping up sod and laying down a brick pathway. Go you! I spent about 6 hours outside yesterday installing a rain chain and improving drainage around the garden, spraying neem oil (Chicago's recent pattern of humid drought alternating with torrential downpours has been awful for the health of my ornamentals), preparing a large planting bed for my "outdoor reading nook", moving pavers around, and planting scotch moss, hydrangea, and clematis. I think it will take 3-4 days of work to properly break up the soil, amend with compost, and mulch so I can transplant my crabapple sapling and put out the reading bench I just got on sale. But it's exhilarating! Seriously, that soil bacteria must be doing something, because I feel terrific :-) |
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Baron von Costume
TI Forumite
Like an iron maiden made of pillows... the punishment is decadence!
Posts: 4,684
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Post by Baron von Costume on Jun 19, 2017 20:02:02 GMT -5
My big push to save up some money for a holiday this month has ended up with me being over even my normal budget due to house/garden stuff...
...yay! ><
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Post by Not a real doctor on Jun 19, 2017 20:37:12 GMT -5
Inspection went well. Couple of minor things but "this is a very solid house" was the verdict.
Hoo boy, I think it's really happening
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GumTurkeyles
AV Clubber
$10 down, $10 a month, don't you be a turkey
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Post by GumTurkeyles on Jun 20, 2017 9:16:09 GMT -5
Question for you homeowners. My basement is lined with studs; I don't know if it was ever a finished basement at one point, but the (disconnected) baseboards would indicate such. Anyway, in the corner of the house, the stud running along the floor is rotted. The rest of it is fine. This isn't supporting anything, so I planned on just cutting it out and leaving it off. However, I noticed an outlet it attached to one of the studs, that once I remove that bottom piece, will just be floating. Is this against building codes? I don't want to deal with an inspector seeing this later (when selling) and having me repair it then. I am not sure about code, but if you don't want to replace the entire bottom plate maybe you could just replace the part under the two studs where the outlet is. That would make the outlet more stable. Thanks for the suggestion! I cut the base stud only between the stud I was concerned about and the next one, and turns out that the rot was only in this one spot. The rest of it is fine, so the stud with the outlet is still firmly in place. |
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