Are You Handy? 2
- Thread starter SPOCKED
- Start date
Less interesting but, as I mentioned earlier, vital to basement repair was sistering two joists that were causing living room floor sag at the point of
original heater grate in the center of the house.
^ The grate, which no longer serves any purpose, will get replaced with a square of flooring and then leveled before hardwood laminate goes on top.
^ Full length view.
^ Here is the 6x6 tile we've chosen for the uncarpeted third of the floor (it's got a little mars surface thing goin' on
)
original heater grate in the center of the house.
^ The grate, which no longer serves any purpose, will get replaced with a square of flooring and then leveled before hardwood laminate goes on top.
^ Full length view.
^ Here is the 6x6 tile we've chosen for the uncarpeted third of the floor (it's got a little mars surface thing goin' on
)
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I just got a glimpse of the amount of work I have scheduled while Elmo is away.....
pray for me!!
^ SPOCKED certainly wins the door prize. I am reasonably handy, but that level of home repair is well beyond my skills. I tend to focus on smaller things, such as mechanical watches and fountain pens, or electronics (computers/equipment or scratch-built circuits) for flexing my DIY muscles.
painting drywall
You're doing it wrong.
See you need to be like me these days. I go on these business trips and I come home and find that the house has been tiled or that the back deck has been cleaned, or the front yard has been landscapedI just got a glimpse of the amount of work I have scheduled while Elmo is away.....
pray for me!!
Though I think Im going to build an entertainment center soon.
I'm pretty handy. My dad taught me a lot of stuff and I've had jobs as a carpet/flooring installer and a sign installer (you know, like those ones that say 'IKEA'). Funnest part of the latter was operating booms forty feet in the air. What cool machines. Good way to get over a fear of heights. 
Spocked, I can't remember why exactly, but although berber carpets are really popular right now I seem remember learning that regular old (high quality) cut pile carpets are better. Again, I'm not sure why that is but that's what I was told.
As far as carpet seaming goes, it's a bit of an art but not too terribly difficult. Just do a bunch of test pieces out of your scraps until you get the hang of it. Read as much as you can on it but know that none of it is gonna be anything like actually doing it.
Using kickers is a bit of bitch too. You need really strong legs. Remember not to use your knee itself but the muscle just on the inside of your thigh and be sure to put your whole body into it. It's kind of like aerobics that way.
Spocked, I can't remember why exactly, but although berber carpets are really popular right now I seem remember learning that regular old (high quality) cut pile carpets are better. Again, I'm not sure why that is but that's what I was told.
As far as carpet seaming goes, it's a bit of an art but not too terribly difficult. Just do a bunch of test pieces out of your scraps until you get the hang of it. Read as much as you can on it but know that none of it is gonna be anything like actually doing it.
Using kickers is a bit of bitch too. You need really strong legs. Remember not to use your knee itself but the muscle just on the inside of your thigh and be sure to put your whole body into it. It's kind of like aerobics that way.
I think this thread title sould have been Are You Handy Cuz I Have No Choice... I really have no prior skills in remodeling/carpentry at all so I don't mean to come across as experienced. I have no choice but to do this work and sometimes it's really overwhelming. For instance, the work on the joists was driven by Elmo's step-dad last weekend. I helped with the labor so I was completely hands-on, but I am otherwise only a noobie who learns as he goes. But I'm really in awe of people like Bro, J_P, Philo, Scout and others for their skill in these areas. It is certainly fun and rewarding. Once I get down there and start mapping out what needs to be done, I just want to dig in. I love it, but so many other real life things have to come first. So this current project is going to really take awhile since I'm a bit of an analy perfectionist and my experience is fairly limited.
OK, Spocked, you asked for it. Since I have so many pictures, I'm going to post most as links for people to view at their leisure, while I'll post the dramatic "Before/After" pics as visible.
In this first set, I ripped out these idiotic soffits in my kitchen as well as the entire ceiling (no Ceiling Cat!) so that I could install canned lighting as well as having flat ceilings rather than that popcorn crap that was up there. Part of the one soffit had already been removed, along with the cabinets, so that I could open up the kitchen and get more light from the window. Dumb luck came into play, because the 10' drywall sheets I bought FIT PERFECT! *HINT* When doing drywall work, spend the $25 to rent a lift. It's money well spent!!!!!
Before-2
Before-3
Before-4
After-2
After-3
After-4
After-5
After-6
My ultimate plans are to crown the tops of the cabinets so I can put stuff up there for display.
Now, I hated the Formica countertop, plus my ex-wife had wanted the nice, large single sink replaced with that stainless steel double sink (which I hate). The sink didn't fit, and over the years splashing water caused the particle board to swell as well as rot out the particle board floor under the sink. Luckily, I had a sheet of ¾" plywood someone had bought for me to use to replace the counter-top.
Counter-2
Counter-3
Counter-4
Counter-5
Counter-6
I have since tiled the countertop and will also install Hardibacker behind the stove and tile the wall behind the stove. I am using a super primer from Lowes to primer over the stained cabinets and am painting the cabinets Antique White. I rewired the dishwasher so it will have it's own circuit rather than being run from the countertop electrical box. I don't use a disposal, so I removed that and will re-wire the countertop electrical boxes with GFCI outlets. The texture on the walls was painted over by my ex with latex paint, which is peeling. I'm going to scrap the walls, smooth and paint.
In this first set, I ripped out these idiotic soffits in my kitchen as well as the entire ceiling (no Ceiling Cat!) so that I could install canned lighting as well as having flat ceilings rather than that popcorn crap that was up there. Part of the one soffit had already been removed, along with the cabinets, so that I could open up the kitchen and get more light from the window. Dumb luck came into play, because the 10' drywall sheets I bought FIT PERFECT! *HINT* When doing drywall work, spend the $25 to rent a lift. It's money well spent!!!!!
Before-2
Before-3
Before-4
After-2
After-3
After-4
After-5
After-6
My ultimate plans are to crown the tops of the cabinets so I can put stuff up there for display.
Now, I hated the Formica countertop, plus my ex-wife had wanted the nice, large single sink replaced with that stainless steel double sink (which I hate). The sink didn't fit, and over the years splashing water caused the particle board to swell as well as rot out the particle board floor under the sink. Luckily, I had a sheet of ¾" plywood someone had bought for me to use to replace the counter-top.
Counter-2
Counter-3
Counter-4
Counter-5
Counter-6
I have since tiled the countertop and will also install Hardibacker behind the stove and tile the wall behind the stove. I am using a super primer from Lowes to primer over the stained cabinets and am painting the cabinets Antique White. I rewired the dishwasher so it will have it's own circuit rather than being run from the countertop electrical box. I don't use a disposal, so I removed that and will re-wire the countertop electrical boxes with GFCI outlets. The texture on the walls was painted over by my ex with latex paint, which is peeling. I'm going to scrap the walls, smooth and paint.
Not the handy girl.
Well, that's one way to learn a new career
In all honesty, learning how to do simple stuff is great... Not having to wait for and then pay for a plumber when you have some plumbing issues... But you are going WWAAYY beyond that!
You should contact one of those remodel shows and have them record this!
Leather jacket + power stance = manly.
I'll tell Rocky, my realtor, you likee
That's a good thing, you never want to get tired and do something sloppy and then a year later get mad at yourself for it once it's too late.
While once the room is done no one will ever see your awesome framing work, you'll know it's there. There's nothing like sitting down with your beverage of choice with that feeling of acomplishment.
I've been doing tons of work outside the past week, relandscaping a few things, fixing others and flat out just throwing tons and tons of stuff away. At the end of the day, when I'm getting tired, instead of working myself dead like I normally would, (i don't know like to walk away from something until it's all done) I call it a day and come back to it. I know myself and when I'm gettin worn out i tend to get sloppy.
Oh, and I'm getting a super dark tan from all of it, so it has it's own rewards
Doin' it right now, JW
The house is empty and I'm at the desk in the room I built for the kids. It may sound sappy, but I look at these walls and marvel. I love this room. For the first few months here, it was a cold, dark shell for piles of tools - studs and hanging outlets. And now it's a small retreat, carpeted and clean. An oasis from a hectic world that looks out to a green vista of ash trees covered in ivy, pines and rhododendrons and lylacs, and a lonely dirt road beyond. I'm in a very good place right now...see...
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