Ask a Building Trades Professional

Temporary fence up. I got a "snow fence", because the chicken wire fence would have been very hard to see. This dog is not a jumper or a biter, but it is definitely a runner.. So I went with a highly visible plastic fence that seemed would have been easier to install anyway. Bought the u-shaped nails Cutlass recommended and they worked great. DIDN'T buy any posts.

The size of the large hole in the fence is about 42 feet. The roll of snow fence I bought is 50. Without any extra posts in the middle it actually doesn't look so bad! There isn't much room on the bottom for the dog to get under, and we're putting in tent pegs or something similar on the weekend. And maybe buying 2 metal posts to twist tie to the fence and make it a bit more straight. It looks a bit S shaped on the top now, but very functional. So it seems to be alright, and with a couple minor adjustments it should be good enough for the winter.

The other side of the fence my roommate and neighbour took care of when I was at work. 2 panels fell out - they put them back in. They used these metal post supports you hammer into the ground to make everything sturdier and nailed (or screwed) in everything back into place. It's very sturdy and should hold up in the winter. But in the spring that neighbour also wants to consider building a new one, or at least improving the existing one.
 
I have a ceiling that spans 24 feet. There's a standard low/moderate pitch roof over it with a crawlspace attic. Right down the center, where the sheetrock from each side meets, there's a straight crack just developed. I assume that a bit of sag in the rafters has lead to it opening up a bit. So if I can somehow hide the crack, it'll eventually come back. Anything you can suggest to prevent that from happening?
 
Cutlass said:
I have a ceiling that spans 24 feet. There's a standard low/moderate pitch roof over it with a crawlspace attic. Right down the center, where the sheetrock from each side meets, there's a straight crack just developed. I assume that a bit of sag in the rafters has lead to it opening up a bit. So if I can somehow hide the crack, it'll eventually come back. Anything you can suggest to prevent that from happening?
Click to expand...

How old is the house versus how old is the drywall job? How long did it take for the crack to appear?

If you have an old house with newer drywall, then the sagging center ceiling joist thing MAY reappear, but simply mesh tape and joint compund repair is the most cost-effective. Use the "Henry" brand 6" wide yellow fiberglass mesh flashing membrane (obviousky not the asphalt-soaked cotton flashing membrane) as it is stronger. Be warned: it is not self-stick. Mud first, then mesh tape, then top.

However: shame on drywallers for breaking the long joints along the same joist. I never do that. I run drywall across the joists and stagger the end seams, which usually avoids this kind of thing, especially in old houses.

If it's newer house and original dryall job, I supposed it's the same phenomenon and repair. Settling happens when the workers leave the job. It's an ugly fact of life.

If you have a way into the crawlspace, you can see how the ceiling is tied the roof. If it is a significant sagging situation, aviation cable with sturdy eye screws can be a good reinforcement. That's how a structural engineer recommended we fix one of our ceilings in 2008.

Hope this helps.
 
Might be an idea to check the joist ends for damp if it's an old house. Not so likely in a roof joist, but worth a look.

While we're talking of joists - some massive bell end took a big chunk out of a joist in my place to make room for a shower trap. There is access although constrained. What's the best way to make good?
 
GinandTonic said:
Might be an idea to check the joist ends for damp if it's an old house. Not so likely in a roof joist, but worth a look.
Click to expand...
That, too. Thanks, mate.

While we're talking of joists - some massive bell end took a big chunk out of a joist in my place to make room for a shower trap. There is access although constrained. What's the best way to make good?
Click to expand...
Ouch. Don't necessarily need a solution if you still have 2/3 of your joist intact. Otherwise, sistering with comparable dimensional lumber is an option, if you can widen the joist pockets on the ends or can get joist hangers of adequate width.

In general, modern plywood flooring can equalize the load under the shower. When in doubt, reinforce.

If you have limited access, and the notch is less than 1/3 of the joist height, then you may be all right.

Silurian would have a more technically-informed analysis, were he here.
 
This is an addition room added onto a house in the late 70s. So near 40 years. I did have the thought of cabling or chaining the center joist to the roof center beam. But I don't know if the roof has a bit of a sag to it either, as it's spanning the same distance. My problem with patching the plaster is going to be that the surface finish of the ceiling is, well I don't know properly what it's called, but the guy took some form of a mop and put a bunch of spots of plaster up there, each roughly star or snowflake pattern. And so as it's cracked across that, and I don't know how to redo it, I really don't know how to get the appearance back. A little googling makes me think this is the type of ceiling finish. http://buildingmodern.net/stippled-ceiling-cover-up-dos-donts-options/
 
It's hundred year old floorboards. It used to be a bathroom and when I converted the house into two flats it become a kitchen. All the the rooms on the first (second to Yankies) floor were sanded, with slivers hammered and glued between. Bar the spare room which we might generously call a work in progress and the bathroom whose floor I nicked to patch the more egregious areas in the rest of the flat and replaced with one inch ply. And finished with flat pebbles from the local beach - looks really good. Since I had almost the whole floor up I renailed with brads, with screws on the sections over plumbing/ electrics.

I didn't sliver the plank over the buggered joist since it needed fixing, and I screwed rather than bradded it down. Would have fixed it at the time but I really needed a kitchen in the interests of domestic harmony.

So the joist is 40% gone. One floorboard access (unless I bugger up the floor). eighteen inch or whatever gap between the joists.

EDIT at Cutlass - 90 min crosspost!

Generally impossible to repair such finishes. Also they were generally applied to cover up sins. If it's just plaster-on-paper it should scrape off fairly easily. Sometimes it's a polyvinyl type deal that is impossible to remove from the plasterboard without taking great chunks of the gyproc too. The adhesive being stronger than the plaster.

I have a similar problem in the downstairs flat. It would probably be easier to just put the thinnest possible ceiling board up. Since I cant do that and steam stripping doesn't work im using nitromorse to scrape off the most 3d excesses and skimming over, as a filler task whenever I feel the need for something soul crushing and futile in my life.
 
GinandTonic said:
It's hundred year old floorboards. It used to be a bathroom and when I converted the house into two flats it become a kitchen. All the the rooms on the first (second to Yankies) floor were sanded, with slivers hammered and glued between. Bar the spare room which we might generously call a work in progress and the bathroom whose floor I nicked to patch the more egregious areas in the rest of the flat and replaced with one inch ply. And finished with flat pebbles from the local beach - looks really good. Since I had almost the whole floor up I renailed with brads, with screws on the sections over plumbing/ electrics.

I didn't sliver the plank over the buggered joist since it needed fixing, and I screwed rather than bradded it down. Would have fixed it at the time but I really needed a kitchen in the interests of domestic harmony.

So the joist is 40% gone. One floorboard access (unless I bugger up the floor). eighteen inch or whatever gap between the joists.
Click to expand...
Sistering the joist is the only option, but you need access to the entire span of the joist, or it's worthless. I do sistering all the time, it's easy.

EDIT at Cutlass - 90 min crosspost!

Generally impossible to repair such finishes. Also they were generally applied to cover up sins. If it's just plaster-on-paper it should scrape off fairly easily. Sometimes it's a polyvinyl type deal that is impossible to remove from the plasterboard without taking great chunks of the gyproc too. The adhesive being stronger than the plaster.

I have a similar problem in the downstairs flat. It would probably be easier to just put the thinnest possible ceiling board up. Since I cant do that and steam stripping doesn't work im using nitromorse to scrape off the most 3d excesses and skimming over, as a filler task whenever I feel the need for something soul crushing and futile in my life.
Click to expand...
Cutlass, once the issue of sagging is resolved, you could just brush in thinned-out joint compound into the crack for cosmetic, barely-noticeable repair. But, in 10 years you will see it again.
 
I'm building a new fence because the old fence was crap and fell over.

The first task is to dig out the old broken posts and put in new ones. Fortunately my roommate has been able to find a sale on posts at the local Lowes - only a couple minutes away. Another friend with a van can help me transport them to my house tomorrow.

The thing is that I have buy these posts tomorrow if I'm to take advantage of the sale.

My question is this.. There are two types of posts for sale. Which one do I get?

Post 1

Post 2

The specs seem identical, but they look different. What's so good about the one that's more expensive?

I will be using existing panels for the fence, the ones that fell over should be fine. We'll just re-attach them to these new posts.. I don't think colour should be an issue, but.. who knows? My fence is kind of gray-ish, closer to the colour of the 2nd post, but not really quite that colour either..

edit: just got back.. the only difference was that one of the posts was brown and the other was "green". Same price. I got the "green" ones which aren't really green at all. Store manager must be colourblind. Will match fence just fine.
 
Yeah, turns out the price difference on the website is a mistake - one price is the regular price, and the other price is the "buy one 50% off for next post" price, calculated per post.

The posts also looked exactly the same, aside from colour. Anyway, now I have to look to hire someone to remove the junk in the existing holes and dig new ones - so me and my roommate can put the new posts in there and fill it up with cement.

That part we can do, and we can measure everything fine I think, but I'm not sure how easy it's going to be to remove the junk that's in the holes. Maybe we can do that ourselves? I don't think there's any cement there, but I could be wrong. There's definitely post pieces though.
 
There's a good chance the old wood was just put in the dirt. In which case it's not that difficult to dig out, as it's mostly rotted away at this point. But it is work.
 
Work we are willing to do :D

We are also discussing doing some of the basement work ourselves. There's insulation to be put in, a sliding door to the laundry room installed (an upgrade), a lot of drywall work has to be done, then a floor put in, and baseboards... then then doors put on, and blinds.

The flooring I will definitely hire someone to install, but I will probably buy the floor myself. The insulation I am going to get a quote on asap, maybe it's a good idea to get a professional to do that. My roommate has experience with drywall, and he says that won't be a problem. I am going to paint, so that's covered, and baseboards.. yeah might just hire someone to install those.

If I do this right, I'll have a bunch of money from insurance left over for a $750 foosball table, a walkway to the shed in the backyard, a garden, replacement of some of the boards on my decks, money for all of the new fence rebuild costs, a new gate, and maybe some other upgrades for the basement.

So I am going to buy a Do-it-yourself/home-improvement type book and use it as a guide, and I guess watch some youtube videos. My roommate used to live with a guy who remodelled his entire basement - much more extensively than these projects I mention here - they did everything from the design, demolition, drywall, flooring, plumbing, electrical work, etc. All done to code. So he's got experience that should come in handy.

But I will also be posting a bit here, I think, during these projects. I'm going to be relying on a lot of different sources for information, but it's probably worthwhile to post some of the progress/any questions here.
 
Please post! I've been doing a course and so have not been much use of late. I took photos to make an idiots guide to putting shelves up in a closet for you, but one of the 3m long planks was warped and I had a bit of a sulk. I'll dig it out and post it.
 
I have a question related to new-fence-post installation.

There is clay in my backyard (and thus standing water, etc.) and I have been told that I can expect my new posts to rot, just like the ones which broke in half rotted, even though the posts I bought are all treated wood. One person suggested using some sort of a "spike" system - you install these spikes in the holes (which have been dug deeper than otherwise required) and the post sort of sits on it.. Then you put cement around all that, I think.

My dad and another person seem to think that all I should do is just dig holes, put in post, and fill with cement.

Thoughts?
 
I'd dig holes and not bother with cement. Just pack the dirt in hard around the posts. Modern PT wood is supposed to last 25 years in wet conditions. It's just a fence. Don't overthink it. How high is your fence? 5"? An 8 foot post 3 feet into the ground with the ground pounded hard in around the post is as strong as you need.
 
Cutlass said:
I'd dig holes and not bother with cement. Just pack the dirt in hard around the posts. Modern PT wood is supposed to last 25 years in wet conditions. It's just a fence. Don't overthink it. How high is your fence? 5"? An 8 foot post 3 feet into the ground with the ground pounded hard in around the post is as strong as you need.
Click to expand...

The company that I'm looking to hire to fix up my basement said that they'll have tools here that we could use to dig the holes - then I can pay them to set the posts and do the concrete bit.. which they recommend, due to the sometimes standing water and strong winds. And they say that if we do it this way, it won't be much per post. So we're gonna start digging this weekend maybe, and see what the hell is down there anyway - might be concrete.. hopefully not..

I have two competing quotes for my basement work.. One of them is via my insurance (company A) and the other one I tracked down myself (company B). I am trying to figure out what the differences are between the two quotes - the difference in the quoted amount is rather.. substantial.

It looks like company A is quoting for $3,200 worth of "roof felt" for "roofing", which I'm guessing is to waterproof the wall(s) maybe? The other one doesn't have this, I don't think.

The only difference I know about is that company B is installing a sliding door to the laundry room for me - an upgrade I am paying for out of my own pocket. i.e. this is not covered by the insurance $ I got.

I don't want to post the competing PDFs, because there's tons of personal information there and other sensitive information.. but.. here's the parts I can post:

Company A:
Spoiler :
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Company B:
Spoiler :
wZWDT8S.png


So basically the deal with company A is that it's a larger company, there's tons of overhead there, etc. and company B is a family-run operation and the owner has told me that he gets his customers a really good price on the materials (on certain common items) and doesn't charge much markup on that. I have no idea what company A does in terms of getting me a good deal on the materials or not, I haven't done the research yet - but I'm going to assume that they charge me as much as they can - so that everybody gets a nice cut of the insurance money.. but if I'm wrong, I mean if it's possible to tell looking at these numbers, let me know.

So far I haven't really compared these in detail, but already I can see that the roofing doesn't seem included in company B's estimate. My insurance will pay for all the stuff that company A quoted me for - so I can upgrade company B's job to include things like.. that roofing stuff, whatever it is. and whatever else I find.

Here's a screenshot of the part I'm confused about right now:

smwAvth.png
 
I think you need to explain just what it is you are planning, or trying, to do to your basement. What is the problem, what are they planning to do about it? Without some background, it's hard to say anything about the bit you've shared about what the contractors plan to do.

What's the roofing material for? Does the actual roof have a problem or is it within the basement that they plan to use it?

Basement's tend to be damp. But they aren't necessarily wet. They attract humidity, but most don't leak actual water. These are differences you need to be aware of in order to decide just what you want to do with the space. Any home can have flooding due to damaged plumbing. Most do not due to natural conditions. You can prepare for the latter, but the former is kinda something you either have happen or you don't.

Have your contractors explain in simple terms what they intend to do. The roofing line of your quote needs explanation. Do they intend to use a self sticking form or tarpaper to waterproof the concrete walls? Are your concrete walls even damp enough to bother with that? If, after a day of serious rain, you put your hand against the bare concrete, would you say you felt dampness? Get something like this and find out just how damp your basement is. And if your walls are damp, that roofing material may not be the best way to deal with the situation. But you really need to have them explain why they want to do it that way, and what they believe the advantage would be.
 
Sorry, I should have explained what happened.. What happened was my basement flooded. A bunch of stuff has been ripped out, like parts of drywall, the entirety of the floor, etc.

The plan is to put in insulation in some places in my basement, replace the missing drywall, install a new floor, new baseboards, and to paint everything.

There is a hallway there, a laundry room that no work is being done on (except for the new door), a bathroom (no work done here either), a small storage area under the stairs with a regular-sized door, and a large rec. area. The flooring goes into the rec area and hallway only, new insulation and drywall is only in parts of the hallway and rec. area, and I think everything but the laundry room and the rec. area is getting painted.

What's the roofing material for? Does the actual roof have a problem or is it within the basement that they plan to use it?
Click to expand...

That's why I'm confused - it's only the basement that's affected. A water pipe froze and we got it basically right away.. so only a bit of water got out.. Still meant we had to rip out the floor, but.. the roof is like 3 stories above, so there's no way it's for that. Yet it does say "roofing".

I should have said that I already passed on company A. I can probably still call them and find out what that is exactly supposed to be.. because it is rather pricy.. and.. I was on very good terms with them while they cleaned out my basement. I passed on them because I knew I could get a better & cheaper quote elsewhere.. or that's what my research had indicated anyway, and everyone I talked to agreed.

I'm also going to call company B and ask them what they think it might be and how their approach to the problem and their solution accommodates for the lack of the "roofing material".

Have your contractors explain in simple terms what they intend to do. The roofing line of your quote needs explanation. Do they intend to use a self sticking form or tarpaper to waterproof the concrete walls? Are your concrete walls even damp enough to bother with that? If, after a day of serious rain, you put your hand against the bare concrete, would you say you felt dampness? Get something like this and find out just how damp your basement is. And if your walls are damp, that roofing material may not be the best way to deal with the situation. But you really need to have them explain why they want to do it that way, and what they believe the advantage would be.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I'm going to try to figure out what the plan was. I was hoping it was something obvious and someone would just say: "Oh, that's used for this and that, you don't really need it, they just put it in there to get more money out of the insurance company." or something tbh
 
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