Tag Archives: Home Ownership

Slow but Steady on the Basement

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The GF and I spent some time today putting up more siding in the basement, and building out a shelf along two walls. The shelf is just a nice and useful way to finish off the the top of the foundation below the windows. I’m in a split level, see, and the basement is only partially below ground.

We spent way too much time (and money) at The Home Depot, but we got quite a bit accomplished. Some of the most difficult areas have been boarded in. Their odd angles and strange corners were no match for our mastery. Now, all we need do is buy the trim to cover up all the gaps between the boards. Some of that we acquired at The Home Depot for to play with, but we need a lot more.

For the area above the foundation, we were going to try to use some sort of blown insulation, but we couldn’t find anything that was cheap and easy. So we were going to use fiberglass insulation, but that stuff itches like the dickens. Instead, we went with “Green” newspaper clipping insulation. That’ll go up today, tonight, or tomorrow. Then we’ll finish out the walls around the windows and will be about 2/3 of the way done with the walls.

I still love how the ceiling turned out.

We still need to board in the bike alcove, and the outside of the basement bathroom. I’d like to find an insulation solution for the area around the furnace, but that might be on the garage side, rather than the basement side (the furnace is in a little room nestled between the two, with access via the garage).

We’re still not sure what to do about one wall. We want to build a bar on that side of the room, but we need to plan ahead for water and drainage lines. Plumbing is not my thing, so I’m going to have to do some research before even starting on that wall.

The only mishap was me smashing my finger against the foundation while prying out the old shelves. I saw stars, but kept my cool. It’s a little black and blue today, but I might not lose it. A small price to pay for adding an entire room’s worth of living space to the house.

No pleasure, no rapture, no exquisite sin greater than central air.

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So, over the last three years, my AC has been decreasingly efficient. For those that know me well, that which is not efficient is a Bad Thing(tm). Add that general anti-inefficient sentiment to the fact that it’s just damn hot in the house these days, and that there is a recipe for discontent. Continue reading →

Finally… water and ice in the door…

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I got the copper piping laid today to provide the refrigerator with water for the ice maker, and ice/water in the door. It only took 3 hours and two trips to Home Depot… one for the pipe, and another for a reciprocating saw.

See, when they installed the original (heavy gauge, by the way) pipe, they installed it with permanency in mind. That’s all well and good, but the pipe was crimped and waaaay to short. In order to replace it, I had to start in early on taking the ceiling tiles in the basement out, as well as cut into a cabinet near the floor so I could reach in and feed the pipe through. That’s why the saw. I would have patched the pipe and just lengthened it, but… well, I didn’t think about it until later. I don’t even know if it’s realistic and/or possible. It was crimped pretty near the cabinet, so I’d have had to cut a hole anyway, just to get enough room to attach and extend.

All in all, an interesting Saturday. I’m looking forward to having ready-made ice and cold water. I’m also looking forward to tearing out the rest of the ceiling to see what’s up there. I’m thinking, at least at this point, that I’ll just leave the bare wood and support beams, and paint them black. Later I may go back with some tiles or a ceiling, but that’s a few projects down the road.

Car Juggling, Over-eager children, and dumber than dumb home improvement

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Finally heard some solid numbers regarding my car. After bouncing it around town for a week and a half, spending about 6 hours in total on the phone with a dozen different people, I find that the estimated repair, according to the body shop, is $5,200. That’s damn near the trade-in value… we’ll see what the insurance adjuster says. I should hear back on Monday what the verdict is.

Last week, during all this, my lawn needed mowing… badly. I just didn’t feel up for it, though. With timing that almost speaks to the supernatural, two neighborhood kids come by and offer to mow the lawn for $10. What wonderful fortune! I agree, at which point they ask if they can use my mower. Heh. Go figure. No matter, I let them at it, and pay them $20 for their trouble.

They’ve come by three times since wanting to mow it. Seems they figure me and my lawn an easy source of money, and want to milk it for all they can. I really can’t blame them for it… they’re young, and I remember doing exactly the same thing when I was their age… didn’t work for me any better than it’ll work for them, though.

The previous owner of my house, in keeping their promise to repaint the interior, did so. But they did an absolutely abhorred job. It’s terrible. They didn’t trim in the ceilings except for a couple of places, and splashed paint on fixtures here and there. The best part though (note the sarcasm) is how they dumped their excess paint down the kitchen and bathroom sinks! Isn’t that grand? The brand new, gorgeous deep stainless steel sink in the kitchen had white paint drops all over it, and the drains are stained. The sink in the bathroom is nigh unusable, due to the fact that it takes over an hour for it to drain.

I’m sure it’s entirely possible to carry more stupidity around on one’s shoulders, but the previous owner is already carrying around quite a load. I’ve called him and requested he send a plumber out to take stock of the situation. I’ve the name of my own which I’ll call if (when) I don’t hear from the previous owner for an estimate.

Unbelievable. Absolutely unbelievable.

All Moved In

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I’m pretty much all moved in now. Everything I need for daily living is over, and a good part of it is unpacked… if not finally organized. I still have some small things (records, files, a couple tools, a few knick-knacks) at the other house, but I can pick those up over the course of the next few weeks.

Right now I’m just very tired. I think the mad rush of the last three months is catching up with me… and with so much left to do on the house to get it where I want it.

First Night in the New House

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Last night I stayed in my new house for the first time. I slept on my new bed, under my own roof, between my own walls. This morning I took a shower in my own shower.

I’d like to say it was a great night’s sleep, but I really can’t. It always takes me a while to acclimate to a new place, be it a friend’s I’m staying over at for the first time, or a new house. I don’t imagine it’ll take long.

In addition to the "New Place" factor, it stormed quite loudly last night, waking me up around 5:00am with the lightening and the thunder and the rain slapping the windows (I really need to replace the storm windows in the bedroom… right now their just screens. That == rot).

The final element contributing to my relatively restless night was the fact that the AC thermostat broke off in my hand yesterday. That was the second time I adjusted it. Didn’t take long, did it? I going to replace it with one of those programmable ones from Home Depot. That way, the house won’t be freezing when I wake up.

All in all, however… It was extremely cool!

Then there’s the issue of the car. I don’t know for sure what the damage is, but it’s likely that it’s totalled. I rear-ended someone in the rain two days ago. One half-second of having the eyes off the road and it’s a world of inconvenience. No one was hurt, including the other guy’s freakin’ Ford Focus, but my front end is crushed beyond recognition. I’ll find out today what the story is, and if it is totalled, I think I’m going to look at a new Saturn ION-3 Quad Coupe, and use the insurance payout for down payment.

On the home front, there’s cold, heat, and soft.

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I haven’t written in a while, so I thought I’d bring you up to speed on the house front.

Last week I was presented with a new Kenmore Elite refrigerator and a new Kenmore radiant glass top stove. I got them cheap from the Sears Outlet Store here in KC, and saved about 43% off retail. The only thing I was worried about was being able to get a warranty on new-but-slightly-damaged goods. The stove has a dent in the side, and the fridge has a scuff on one of the plastic pieces. There was no cause to worry though, b/c a full warranty was available for both of them, which I promptly bought. They’re in the kitchen right now, waiting to be put to use. I did try out the stove, and was absolutely amazed at how quickly the coils lit up. Compared to all other electric stoves I’ve seen, this bastard is quick. Boo Ya.

Yesterday my bed and mattress were delivered. The mattress came ok, but the bed had a broken piece… what came of it, that is. One piece was broken, and two other critical pieces were missing entirely. I placed a few calls to Benchmark, where I bought it, and they assured me they were working on it as fast and thoroughly as they could. Today they delivered the rest and set it all up for me. Can I get another Boo Ya?

Then there’s the whole issue of getting copper piping to the refrigerator to supply the ice maker with water. Turns out it’s a good thing I intended to rip out all the ceiling tile in the basement anyway, b/c that’s what I’m going to have to do in order to get to the point of origin on that pipe. Well, not the entire ceiling, but enough of it to justify (to my mind) just ripping it out and starting over. I don’t like the tile, and I don’t like the faux wood paneling on the walls. It’s got to go. And so it will. It’ll be my first true Home Improvement Project… and it’s got me a bit excited. I should be taking pictures, but since I don’t have a camera, and don’t want to bother with scanning non-digital photos, I probably won’t. You’ll just have to rely on my mad descriptive skillz, yo.

Thoughts from the Final Walkthrough

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My agent and I did a "final walkthrough" today before closing on the house tomorrow morning at 10:00am. They’ve still got a LOT to do. The hardwood floors aren’t sanded yet, much less stained and given a polyurethane coat. The walls, while mostly painted, aren’t quite done yet. That’s fine, b/c I’ll get back in there and repaint at some point in the next few months. The oven range is still there, but the delivery guys can take that with them when they bring my new one in. They still have a lot of stuff left in the garage and the basement. The two cracked windows still are, and it’s generally messy all around. There’s no way they’ll be done by 10:00 tomorrow morning.

So, what we’re going to do is either get all the repair moneys in escrow, or proof of work with certified reciepts, and get in writing that all the remaining work will be done by Memorial Day. It’s a little edgy, but we don’t have that many other options. They need out, I need in, there’s a lot left to do, and they simply don’t have the time. Frankly, that’s fine with me, b/c it means that instead of shopping around for big appliance and crap, I can spend a little time out in the sun and riding this weekend… maybe even mow the lawn (at the old house, not the new).