Home Improvement Today?

Also the white casing is mdf and is rotted and soaked in water. Actually falling apart in my hands when removing it. Is this stuff ok for outdoor use? Not going to put it back up on the two windows that I’m doing but it’s around all the other 10 openings. Not sure if I should do those too.

 

I was told it was OK as long as it’s painted. The white is only primer. I don’t have it myself but the next door neighbor got some windows replaced last year & that’s what the installer told me.

 

New gate built yesterday. Old gate had warped out of plane of the fence. I think I solved that problem for the future. Will stain once it dries out

 

Is this looking up into the header? As you stated? I'm a little switched around with the reference. I'd say look for spacers at the ends but typically you do see plywood sandwiched between the header boards and also fasteners that bridge the gap so that all the pieces are one...

Are the header pieces touching or joining at the top. Ie is the gap on the top te same as the bottom?

 

Those look to be 2x8s. You’ll be fine

How wide are the rough openings?

 

Yes that’s looking up into it. No spacers on the ends or on top.

 

3’

 

Rip some plywood into 4" strips and cut them to the depth of your header , tap them up between the plies and screw the whole works together with 3 1/2 GRK R4 screws

but its likely fine how it is if the two lintel pieces are connected with fasteners , thats a pretty minimal load

 

My sister had it done. They slapped Formica over the cabinets and replaced the doors and drawer fronts with plastic wood and cheap hinges that are always coming loose.
Now the Formica has chipped, cracked seams screaming at you due to the original cherry finish they covered.
If what you got is in decent shape, clean and paint them and get new hardware that uses the same holes.

 

Exactly what I did after installing quality kitchen ventilation. The grease embedded in the finish of those cabinet fronts was unreal. TSP'd the hell outta them before painting. So far, standin' up real well.

 

The problem is the cabinets look dirt cheap... but also the other problem is new cabinets are just unreasonably expensive lol.

My cabinets now were painted by the previous owner and needless to say they did a poor job. Pro painters are telling me they can’t gaurentee the final product. They are confident you just never know exactly what the other owners did.

 

Strip them down. They make gel style paint removers. Brush it on, wait a few, then scrape.
Is it fun, no. But you'll get rid of all the old paint and can then prep everything to get a good finish.
And yes, kitchen cabinets are stupidly expensive.

 

if you want to change the color this would be best, but if you wanted to change the look maybe just replace the doors. I dont know the cost...maybe cheaper/save you some $$
https://www.homedepot.com/services/c/cabinet-refacing/bf24dfc4c

 

So the very back grass area of my property line is mixed with all types of grass including weeds. My main grass is Bermuda. I’m looking to fix the area in the back.

I’m looking at tilling the area up and get weeds/old grass out, lay some Bermuda seeds down and some top soil on top of them.

Also got a few bare spots that need filled in.

What would you do if this was your yard?

 

I have a guy that treats my lawn for me, and does it cheaper than I could myself. He does pre emergent crabgrass control, general feeds, spot treats weeds, and inspects for insect issues every time he is here. He is an independent company, not one of the big commercial companies. Maybe search and find one in your area. I was paying over $300 a year doing it myself, for three applications of weed and feed. He’s doing 5 applications for $280.

He also recommended a higher deck setting on the mower to leave the grass a little longer after cutting. This supposedly helps with weed control as well. Not sure if this works with Bermuda though, mine is fescue mainly.

 

Thanks. Yeah the higher your grass the more it pushes weeds out and the more you cut your grass the thicker it gets which gets rid of weeds as well.

 

The focus needs to be on the grass, not weeds. The healthier and thicker the lawn the less weeds will have the ability to develop.

You probably already missed a critical window and thats to over seed as soon as the last frost in March/April depending on where you are.
I would get the lawn seeded in early spring. Mow the yard on your highest deck setting. Fertilize about 12 weeks after seeding (do not fertilize new seed). Then in the fall I’d probably aerate and slit seed in the fall/late summer.
It will probably take 3 full years to repair and get a good lawn going.

Ripping it up and starting over doesn’t seem like the best solution as you lawn doesn’t look that bad. It just looks neglected.

I’ve been working with mine the last two years. Its been a long process.

 

Is the reason they look cheap the shitty paint job or are they falling apart/poorly made too?

I'm sure I posted this picture before but I got all these cabinets:
For $1500, including the fillers, toe kicks and end panels. I'd say custom cabinets are stupidly expensive, pre-finished/preassembled are very expensive, pre-finished/knockdown are somewhat expensive, and unfinished/assembled are just regular expensive.

I went with the unfinished assembled from bargin outlet, they were a little cheaper and surprisingly higher quality than the home Depot/ Lowe's equivalent.

 

I just think the cabinets are cheap... but they arent falling apart.
I cant put my finger on it but I don’t like them.
To buy unfinished cabinets they would be exactly what I have now.

I’m not sure whether its the crappy paint job or what. Like I said I cant put my finger on it but I just don’t like them.

I don’t want to pay pro painters to redo them and then I still don’t like them.
And I’m hiring a pro to paint I’m not doing it. They don’t turn out right to do them yourself. Or at least when I have done them they don’t.

The cabinets I’m looking at aren’t custom. To me custom means made to order and non-standard sizes and solid wood. These are standard size cabinets made of plywood. So still cheap cabinets.

 

When we built this house, The Contractor used only PEX. I love that it has a panel (much like an electrical panel) where I can turn off specific water sources Hot or cold without turning off the whole house, NO pipes in the foundation as well.