Home Improvement Today?

we got a killer deal on the house, below market value and its a blank canvas. Owner was the original owner who bought it brand new when it was built. Inspection was yesterday and went over great so next step is waiting for the title company to tell me to come in and pick up my keys.

Immediate plans are scrape ceilings, knock down wall between kitchen/dining and living room and installing a beam for load bearing. Can lights throughout and paint.

 

Open plan improvements are very attractive. When was it built? What came up on inspection?

 

I remember @joshua721 had some input on the Kerdi vs Wedi subject.

 

Was built in 1973.

Only "marks" on the inspection were missing GFCI's in the kitchen/bath. Otherwise he said it looks great. He also mentioned to get my breaker box swapped ASAP, is an old Zinsco...which will also be an immediate fix.

 

I might weld up some metal for a mount for the side of the deck, shouldn’t be too hard, just some flat with a piece of pipe welded to it. Then find a pole (maybe black iron pipe) and get some online quotes for a custom shade sail.

 

Schluter and Wedi systems create a waterproof enclosure

 

Doesn't cement board or densshield with the appropriate tape and sealers provide a waterproof enclosure for a lot less money? Are you paying a premium for ease of use?

 

Nice. Yeah, I had a Zinsco come up on my current house. I had an electrician come out to inspect it specifically after that, and he found no signs of corrosion on the aluminum bus bars, or other signs of arcing, overload or wear, and breakers were all sound. Plus it was huge, 400A, and there was a newer subpanel inside the house (Square D). It is embedded in stucco, too. We hemmed and hawed over it, and he finally said, if it were his house, he would leave it alone.

Sooooo, before you dump that money, and if you have adequate capacity in it, might want to get an actual electrician out to look at it first for a second opinion. Just a thought.

 

If your time doesnt cost anything then yes.

You could just paint redguard on fiberboard and call it it good. Wedi and kerdi take alot less time to install and also eliminate the areas that are more likely to cause failures. It's simple, easy to install and bulletproof for anyone with half a brain.

 

This one is tiny. But I plan to do the same, have someone come out and look at it and give me a full report. Although after what I’ve read about them it will always be in the back of my mind before I go to sleep every night.

 

Thank you. That's exactly what I was wondering. So for a homeowner who's pretty good at tiling and has done a few showers with backer board, it probably wouldn't pan out as worthwhile to use wedi or kerdi. No time crunch. Multiple bathrooms so i could spend a month tiling and not care.

 

@scocar
@308savage
https://www.instagram.com/p/BKDkkn6Aqj5/?utm_source=ig_share_sheet&igshid=1726e8mruzhaq

Amazon has sails way cheaper then I expected. They dont stop rain but are very cool.

 

Yeah, I forgot about it after I spent 14k on a new heater/AC this past winter, showering sparks out of a shorted ceiling fan in the office, replacing the washing machine supply valves and the garage drywall over those, the broken fridge, two broken garage door springs, the dryer box and vent system repairs and upgrades (complete with contractor sticking his foot through my ceiling), adding insulation up to code in half the house above the bedrooms, lots of irrigation fuckery, and rebuilding the kitchen sink drain system. That was all since last May.

But I'm not bitter.

Edit: oh yeah, and remounting the door hinges in one bedroom, replacing pocket door handles in three rooms, and I'm sure some other shit I'm forgetting. None of that was one the list at the time of purchase. Shit just starting breaking at a phenomenal rate. 1986.

 

I think both wedi and kerdi ste far superior to anything else. But a well built drypack over a leadpan still works to. It's about time. Wedi panels are light and easy to work with and both wedi and kerdi can be used th o do things I wouldn't attemp with other systems. The mistake alot of people make is thinking that tile and grout are waterproof. They are not. I'll be using wedi in my home, and if you find a local supplier you might be surprised at no marked up price.

 

Speaking of irrigation fuckery... Asked some questions on here a few months ago and here's the result. Been working outside the past few months to beat the Phoenix summer heat - new sprinklers, landscaping clean up and painted the house. Pics before during and after. Amazing what a little water can do in the desert.

 

The only price I found for wedi was over $300 for a shower kit. I could do the same tub surround for under 100 with backer. Kerdi rolls were a little more reasonable but I would have to put drywall under them after I tear out the existing cultured marble slab walls, right? Thats still significantly more than cement fiber board. What I'm looking into now is densshield which seems reasonably priced, easy to work with (lightweight, can score with razor, have to waterproof the seams and screw holes). Do you have any experience with that? Are kerdi/wedi that much cheaper from a supplier?

 

Can do , partially

Schluter and Wedi are systems that ensure a totally waterproof substrate for tile , you can get close to that with other products used in combination

 

The quotes for the retractable awnings were ridiculous, me and the wife talked about it more this evening and decided to either buy a cantilever umbrella and mount it to the deck (no base) or get a sail and install it myself.

 

Check your local hardware stores (small box). OSH around here (SoCAL) sells sunshade material by the yard at about a 6' width in your choice of 3 colors (tan, black, and green). I fired up the sewing machine and sewed two panels together to get full coverage on my small patio (12'x12'). Used small bits of canvas in the corners for grommet reinforcement and have a DIY sunshade in the correct size for around $15 and a little time and effort. I even got a couple yards of black to use as an awning for the truck with some tent poles. Beats paying for an ARB.

 

Costco also sells these cheap. I picked up a 13 x 7 sail for about $20. Haven't hung it up yet. Bonus is lifetime returns if it eventually fails.