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The Home Renovation Thread

Ah, when in doubt, rip it out! Can you find new pavers to match the existing ones? I can honestly say I've never seen pavers over concrete anywhere except Florida.

Friends in Ft. Myers used a company out of brooksville to redo their screened in pool area, used thin pavers over concrete that was cracking. Maybe check Craigslist for concrete guys that do it on the side? I saved quite a bit hiring the workers on Sunday vs the company during the during the week to pour a pad for a boat. Learned some Spanish too
 
JB said:
Really want to figure out the expansion of the screen/patio in our backyard. It seems the major cost is the concrete to go below the pavers and for a pretty "small" job costing over $5k seems like we are stuck not being able to do it right now. The screen part is inexpensive, but frankly without doing the "floor" its impossible. Really need to make friends with a local contractor.
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5k for the concrete "flat" work?
 
T2GRN18 said:
5k for the concrete "flat" work?
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For the concrete, pavers and screen and this is only extending it a little bit. I think the total price was 6k actually.
 
JB said:
For the concrete, pavers and screen and this is only extending it a little bit. I think the total price was 6k actually.
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Correct, $6K to extend the current patio out 5 feet in width and 27' in length. We currently have pavers for 6' x 27 with 6 x 12 in a screen. We want to expand that 6x27 to be 11 x 27 all under a screen with the additional of a small aluminum roof for the portion that is currently paved but not under a screen. I hope that makes sense.

If we want to just add concrete to the non-paved side it's $6K, if we want to remove the old pavers and repave the entire new patio it's $7800.
 
While the grout still has to be done tomorrow...the kitchen backsplash tile is all up on the wall now.

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Looks good buddy!
 
adwillingham said:
Thanks Kevin...never done one before, but I think it will look really good when the grout goes in.
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It's a tedious job, but as long as your patience is up it goes fairly smooth. Grouting isn't bad, just don't try to do too big of an area,
 
That looks fantastic! A well done backsplash makes a huuuge difference in kitchen appearance.
 
Grout is in and clean up has been mostly done...just some final de-hazing to go, then getting plates back on and final caulking done. Turned out really well considering we had never done anything like it before.

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This is a closer-up shot of the tile. Pretty combination of glass and stone and complements the countertops nicely we think.

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You have done a great job Ad. I need to get my reno photos up.
 
I'm thinking about putting laminate flooring down in our entire downstairs area. Reasonable DIY project for a moderately skilled person???
 
tequila4kapp said:
I'm thinking about putting laminate flooring down in our entire downstairs area. Reasonable DIY project for a moderately skilled person???
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Not a hard project at all since most click together
 
adwillingham said:
While the grout still has to be done tomorrow...the kitchen backsplash tile is all up on the wall now.

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This really looks great. What did you use to cut out the holes for the electrical stuff?
 
tequila4kapp said:
I'm thinking about putting laminate flooring down in our entire downstairs area. Reasonable DIY project for a moderately skilled person???
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Yep. Just take your time at the beginning and lay out your breaks, leave a decent gap at the walls and let 'er rip.

It can get really tough if you have an un-level floor so I'd check that first.
 
tequila4kapp said:
This really looks great. What did you use to cut out the holes for the electrical stuff?
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I had borrowed a tile saw for the cuts you could see (like outside edges), but for cuts for the outlets I used a handheld tile cutter and it did a nice job.

My only real error is that some of my measurements around outlets were a bit too big, so I ended up having to buy and install midsize outlet covers to make sure all the gaps were covered
 
tequila4kapp said:
I'm thinking about putting laminate flooring down in our entire downstairs area. Reasonable DIY project for a moderately skilled person???
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Its somewhat of a project especially if your wanting to do it with out transition pieces at the door ways. If your willing to use t-moldings then it's a little easier because you are less likely to create "stress points" where the laminate gets cut too tight or expansion room becomes too little. If you're serious about doing it yourself, gimme a call and I'll give you some pointers. Floor covering is my trade if anyone else needs help shoot me a PM.
 
It turned out great Donne.

I've got a lot of long overdue projects staring me straight in the face. Interior painting, downstairs flooring, kitchen back splashes, cabinet doors, countertops, etc. It is going to take some time to get it all done but it needs to start relatively soon, probably after the holidays.
 
The Papa said:
Its somewhat of a project especially if your wanting to do it with out transition pieces at the door ways. If your willing to use t-moldings then it's a little easier because you are less likely to create "stress points" where the laminate gets cut too tight or expansion room becomes too little. If you're serious about doing it yourself, gimme a call and I'll give you some pointers. Floor covering is my trade if anyone else needs help shoot me a PM.
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I'll probably be calling you eventually, buddy. I've been thinking about what you said about high traffic areas...has me thinking laminate all downstairs (I'd prefer no T moldings); the carpet upstairs still has life in it, we can do that another day. That sounds better than re carpeting the entire house and having wear issue in the high traffic areas sooner than we'd like. Plus, a single flooring throughout the downstairs sounds a lot better than current state of 3 different floorings.
 
Thinking of getting some blow-in insulation in the attic before the winter really comes. Has anybody done this and seen noticeable improvements in heating/cooling efficiency?
 
mhuelsman131 said:
Thinking of getting some blow-in insulation in the attic before the winter really comes. Has anybody done this and seen noticeable improvements in heating/cooling efficiency?
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It's a easy DIY made a difference in my house, another option is to have a couple companies come in and quote doing spray foam.


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golfinFF said:
It's a easy DIY made a difference in my house, another option is to have a couple companies come in and quote doing spray foam.


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I'm definitely DIY'ing it, just trying to see if there is a substantial benefit.
 
mhuelsman131 said:
Thinking of getting some blow-in insulation in the attic before the winter really comes. Has anybody done this and seen noticeable improvements in heating/cooling efficiency?
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More attic insulation usually improves heating and cooling efficiency. The R-value is the resistance to airflow between warmer and cooler air masses, and higher is always better. However, like most things there is a point of diminishing returns. Being farther north I would want a minimum of 18" in the attic. (R-44 if I remember correctly).

If you currently have blown in check the depth in several places. Blow in tends to settle over time and not always evenly so you may have some low spots here and there. If you want to add you'll need to rent one of the machines and have some help feeding the hopper while you shoot the insulation. Wear a mask and long clothing to avoid direct contact as much as possible.
 
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Started a concrete square driveway. These are getting popular down here.


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The Home Renovation Thread

Oh and plumbing fixtures went in this weekend for that bathroom I posted...

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