Hot answers tagged renovation
10
Working on a house that you're already living in is a lot more stressful, because you're living in a construction zone. Here are a few tips:
Select a part of the house to be construction-free. Your family can be comfortable in that space while other parts are in chaos.
Clean up at the end of each day. This will make the construction space less stressful.
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7
I'm not sure if this question really falls into the DIY category, but it is interesting and I'm sure shared by many inspiring DIYers.
You have already committed to the project so some of this advice is not timely. I think the most important factor in DIY work is understanding the scope of the project, and the skills needed to complete them. Working on old ...
7
Safety first
Make sure you wear proper safety gear. Safety goggles, appropriate gloves, hearing protection (if applicable), and a hardhat, might all be useful safety equipment.
Watch out for that...
Make sure you know what is inside the wall/floor, cutting through a wire or pipe can ruin your day really fast.
"Did it come out yet?"
It might be a good ...
6
Unless you have scrap laying around, you'll be buying a 4x8 sheet of drywall anyway (unless you can find damaged panels or the hardware store sells half sheets). So anything less than 4x8 will be about the same amount of work to patch, so cut out as much as you need. Just remember to try and end in the middle of a stud.
If it's 8ft. from floor to ...
5
Check local codes -- you may not get a choice in the matter.
Check the door to see if the fire rating requires it to be mounted one way or the other.
Otherwise, look at convenience. Will the door open completely with the car in the garage or your workbench in place? From a security standpoint, having it swing into the basement would be more secure as the ...
5
So based on advice from ratchetfreak in comments I took his advice and went with the 'corridor' effect on the 37" wall (pic below). As the room has two doors it gave me an interesting perspective on what the 'walking into the room' vibe was. For door #1 (the bottom door in pic) I felt like the closet made the room feel smaller on entrance. For door #2 (left ...
4
Heading into a major renovation without a detailed plan, materials schedule and a clear budget can turn what should be a gratifying experience into a nightmare. Preplanning is the key to success. Take your time, if you don't have the ability to create detailed drawings of the new layout, then it may be wise to have an architect create some plans for you. ...
3
99.9% of the time, an entry door from a garage into the house swings in towards the house like any other entry door. Not only does it secure the hinge pins indoors, but allows installation of a screen or storm door on the garage side. Often a door opening into a garage would interfere with a car entering or a car door opening if left open.
Funny fact: ...
3
It ain't called "divorce dust" for nothing. Living with a home improvement project in the works is indeed very stressful as you can't feel "settled" in your own home, and such projects are often kindling for fights about money (the number two cause of divorce)
Confine the projects to one room or area of the house at a time. Living in a completely torn-up ...
2
One thing to consider is whether there are any steps involved. A door cannot open over steps. If you absolutely need to have it open into a stairwell, then you need to build a proper landing, big enough for a person, and the door to open.
Next, prefer to have the door open inward, so that the hinges are inside.
However, the main point of security should ...
1
I would look into renting a bull float and pulling one of the resurfacing cement products that have plasticizers in them. They can be troweled to knife edge thinness. If the floor has been sealed (does a drop of water bead up or absorb?), you may have to abrade the sealing off, to allow the new cement to bind. Latex admixtures are usually used to promote ...
1
A floor drain is no problem in a bathroom, in fact that's a bonus! Just don't let it dry up.
As for where to start, here is a general guideline:
Tear out all the drywall and to expose any rotten areas.
Replace rotten studs, one at a time (full-length, don't patch). You don't won't to remove a whole wall at once, it may be load-bearing. Put in temporary ...
1
The biggest reason for me a garage door should open INTO the home...full arms make it easier to open the door when the door PUSHES rather than PULLS. If your hands are full of grocery bags and you are trying to pull the door toward you to open it, it is much more awkward than just pushing on the door once the handle latch is released (also for this reason, ...
1
Take a look at the Ikea closets. They are pretty functional and are designed to look built in.
Also I don't think there's any actual law requiring a closet in the bedroom. So you can call any room a bedroom as long as it has appropriate egress, door and your septic tank is big enough.
1
I agree with what has already been said, and I empathize with you - DIY renovation is a pain. When I had to do some renovation to a condo I was living in (with 3 small children), my wife and I could only designated a couple hours each night after the kids were asleep to get done as much as we could.
My only advice is that sometimes it's actually worth the ...
1
Do smaller projects before you attempt a full remodeling so that both you and your spouse can calibrate your expectations for how long things take, and so that you are sure that you enjoy the process.
If the project is large and you only have evenings and weekends available, only do it if your spouse is also taking part in the work (even if it is to a ...
1
How did I survive my 3 year home Reno ? The only thing I thought of each morning was "do not quit" even when I prayed for an act of god to swipe this soul sucking, money grabbing, dust producing pile of wood/ stucco and granite off the face of the earth I would just focus on the house being finished and have persistence to see it through.
Oh. And I drank ...
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