LGP DIY House edition

[PensHckyFan79]

I didn't see a DIY/Home owners thread so I thought this could be a place to exchange knowledge on projects you have done, ask questions about current/upcoming projects, or an area to brag about how awesome your handy work is.

As a new home owner there are certain projects that I want to try and complete before we move in.

1. Remove all wall paper in the house. - Any notes or hints. We have been using a steamer and it is just painful. The youtbut videos make it seem so easy!!
2. Remove all carpet (new carpet installed). - Carpet has been removed, new carpet ordered
3. Change locks. - Done
4. Paint walls and ceilings that need painting. - Paint picked out, working on wall paper first
5. Possibly remove linoleum floor in kitchen (replace with ????)
6. Debating total demo and new master bath. - current shower is very small and the rest of the bathroom looks like its from the 70's

[shafnutz05]

Inb4 Juice Vila

[meow]

Mrs. Meow and I recently finished the master bathroom. Ripped it down to the studs and threw absolutely everything out. I hope I never have to that again in my life.

[eddysnake]

Mrs. Meow and I recently finished the master bathroom. Ripped it down to the studs and threw absolutely everything out. I hope I never have to that again in my life.

did this when we first moved in. Put up bead board, then tiled the floor and surrounding walls around the tub. good learning experience, but had more fun building a deck. Next year I think we are planning on ripping the entire back of our house off and putting on a 2 story addition, that will be a call up dad, uncles, brothers, etc and get a lot of beer kind of time.

[cheesesteakwithegg]

We took down some wallpaper in our old house and used Dif and a scoring tool, and it was hell. Really wish there was a better way to get the stuff down.

[shmenguin]

i heard fabric softener works on wallpaper

[joopen]

We just built new construction. No projects other than getting a deck built.

[cheesesteakwithegg]

We just built new construction. No projects other than getting a deck built.

What is it with new construction and no decks? Cheaper to build after the fact than adding it into the builders price?

I pass a few plans on my way home each day of new construction, and not one of the houses has a deck on them.

[canaan]

id assume that the ROI from a contractor's standpoint isn't all that great. the material for building a deck and the subsequent property value resulting in that addition, in this market, wouldnt be conducive to selling the properties quickly.

[pittsoccer33]

im back in house hunting mode. im looking to spend about $50,000 less than I could just so I can do the updates myself. yellow and avocado kitchens and pink and green bathrooms preferred.

[columbia]

im back in house hunting mode. im looking to spend about $50,000 less than I could just so I can do the updates myself. yellow and avocado kitchens and pink and green bathrooms preferred.

You can also take advantage of houses with out of date, but quality materials.
One of my brothers had a house in Peters Township with a pink bathroom. His wife kind of liked it and it would have been way too expensive to replicate the quality of the original 60s materials.

[pittsoccer33]

We just built new construction. No projects other than getting a deck built.

This city has such great vintage housing stock. So many of my friends have built new homes in the last year too and it seems so surprising to me.

Another friend bought in Bloomfield for $50,000ish and then put [at least] double that into it before he ever moved in. Mechanically its a brand new house but it has so much more character and classic touches than any Ryan/Heartland deal.

[pittsoccer33]

im back in house hunting mode. im looking to spend about $50,000 less than I could just so I can do the updates myself. yellow and avocado kitchens and pink and green bathrooms preferred.

You can also take advantage of houses with out of date, but quality materials.
One of my brothers had a house in Peters Township with a pink bathroom. His wife kind of liked it and it would have been way too expensive to replicate the quality of the original 60s materials.

I've seen a lot of cool things done by painting appliances. Why not? If your ugly ones are working correctly painting them is pretty easy if you take your time. Paint them to match the decor in your kitchen that you like. Add designs onto the fridge if you're crafty like that.

I have no idea what these cost and they aren't my style at all, but I really think its cool to see a company doing this http://dreamstoves.com/ All vintage appliances pre 1960 completely refinished and rebuilt.

[Juice]

I didn't see a DIY/Home owners thread so I thought this could be a place to exchange knowledge on projects you have done, ask questions about current/upcoming projects, or an area to brag about how awesome your handy work is.

As a new home owner there are certain projects that I want to try and complete before we move in.

1. Remove all wall paper in the house. - Any notes or hints. We have been using a steamer and it is just painful. The youtbut videos make it seem so easy!!
2. Remove all carpet (new carpet installed). - Carpet has been removed, new carpet ordered
3. Change locks. - Done
4. Paint walls and ceilings that need painting. - Paint picked out, working on wall paper first
5. Possibly remove linoleum floor in kitchen (replace with ????)
6. Debating total demo and new master bath. - current shower is very small and the rest of the bathroom looks like its from the 70's

Wall paper is just painful to take off. I used the little scorer, then the piranha spray that breaks it down to take the paper layer off, then soak the crap out of the glue layer and scrape it off and try not to gouge the **** out of the wall.
My painting tips go: 1. Good brush 2. Good paint 3. Good Technique
I used cork flooring when I redid my kitchen at my old house and I loved it. Warm, soft, easy to clean.
Bathrooms are a blast. Just gut it.

[pittsoccer33]

A basement idea I saw online and intend to steal is to paint the cement block walls a dark color (like navy blue) and then stain the ceiling support beams a dark brown color. Add a layer of paint to the floor and some area rugs and voila.

[AlexPKeaton]

Is doing your own hardwood flooring as easy as it looks like on TV? The prices for getting them installed are like triple the material cost.

[shmenguin]

Next year I think we are planning on ripping the entire back of our house off and putting on a 2 story addition, that will be a call up dad, uncles, brothers, etc and get a lot of beer kind of time.

are you just remodeling the back into a 2 story addition? otherwise, wouldn't you need to dig a foundation or something? either way, i can't imagine doing that myself.

[Juice]

Is doing your own hardwood flooring as easy as it looks like on TV? The prices for getting them installed are like triple the material cost.

Do it. You can pretty much do anything you want if you do enough research and watch enough youtube videos. Make sure the underlayment is clean and level, put down vapor barrier, start at the longest wall and make sure to stay square, rent a floor stapler, make sure to have a jigsaw, take your time and think about what you're cutting, use the last piece of one row to start the next row, don't put the joints too close together. Not necessarily in that order.

[shmenguin]

if you're thinking of remodeling, this is fun stuff:

http://www.sweethome3d.com

it was crazy to be able to build a 3d model of my house in like an hour. we want to do a mega addition in a few years (or move). using this to work with potential floor plans has been awesome.

...of course since i know jack squat about load bearing walls and when you need to add headers and pillars for support, i could build my own xanadu and then an architect could squash my dreams in half a second.

[pittsoccer33]

I used cork flooring when I redid my kitchen at my old house and I loved it. Warm, soft, easy to clean.
Bathrooms are a blast. Just gut it.

I hear cork flooring and I'm imagining sheets of wine corks. That can't be easy to clean. So I'm guessing it is a different sort of texture?

[Juice]

My bigger DIYs recently have been refinishing my pool deck (sucked, I'm just tearing the **** out next time) and hardwiring 220v line and installing a happy self fathers day Juice compressor.

[Kraftster]

I had a huge Bob Vila night last week. We got new carpet on Thursday, and I had to hurriedly replace some soft subfloor near one of the exterior walls that must have been leaking a bit of water of a number of years (we've been in the house for 3 years and haven't noticed anything other than the soft spot getting a tad bigger than when we moved in.

Amazingly finished it in about 2.5 hours. lifted carpet, pad cut out the bad part of the floor (about 2'x3') and popped in a pice of plywood I happened to have that was almost perfect size. Worked perfectly. Only a small couple squeaks.

Also we just put some fancy primer on wood paneling and painted. Also just painted three other rooms and hung curtains.

Next up I am installing a french drain across my front yard in front of my landscaping, lifting the grass in that area and replanting it, clearing my old mulch, putting down new double-layered fabric and getting new mulch for the landscaping.

Next next I am lifting the entryway tile to see if I have the same hardwood there that we had under the rooms we just carpeted. If I do, I will be refinishing the hardwood.

The one thing I will not be doing on my own is a potentially significant plumbing issue that seems to be going on.

[Juice]

I used cork flooring when I redid my kitchen at my old house and I loved it. Warm, soft, easy to clean.
Bathrooms are a blast. Just gut it.

I hear cork flooring and I'm imagining sheets of wine corks. That can't be easy to clean. So I'm guessing it is a different sort of texture?

The texture feels kind of like that, but they put a barrier layer on top like a clear polyurethane to make it slicker and clean easy. I dropped a knife and it stuck point down in the floor, I pulled it out and it was like it never happened. Kind of cool.

[canaan]

My bigger DIYs recently have been refinishing my pool deck (sucked, I'm just tearing the **** out next time) and hardwiring 220v line and installing a happy self fathers day Juice compressor.

you need a 220 line to smush oranges? you soff.

[Kraftster]

Also, doesn't really fit here but perhaps I can get a response and not waste a new thread.

Does anyone know if it is possible for a septic leach field to remain somewhat active after converting from tank to sewage?