Questions tagged [demolition]
The demolition tag has no usage guidance.
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Safely Shoring Up a Roof During Patio Demolition and Reconstruction
I'm about to begin a project and am seeking recommendations for safely supporting a roof while performing structural work underneath.
I have a house built in 1971 with a raised wooden floor foundation ...
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Am I removing this carpet runner correctly, to lay traction pads or other refinishing options?
There's a basement staircase I've mentioned in other posts, which has some issues but is sturdy and usable. One issue is its carpet runner is disintegrating, dispersing black foam and plastic fiber ...
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Demolishing Concrete Patio that Protects Foundation and Door Threshold
Past questions have considered the general case of removing a patio that adjoins to a foundation, but I was hoping to show a few photos of my job and see if any specific advice applies here. My house ...
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Safely removing square recessed light with potential asbestos insulation
I am removing the ceiling of a sunroom constructed at some unknown time many decades ago. The house itself is from the 20s but the sunroom is not. I was starting the process by removing the old school ...
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What material is this found behind wood paneling?
I just got a house and wanted to demo some wood paneling in the basement. Behind one of the small panels against the wall perpendicular to the ceiling there was this board.
The house was built in the ...
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Safety of demolition with lead contaminated wood paint/stain
I want renovate my deck (falling apart) and basement (needs insulation and drywall/lighting). I have had a hazmat survey done (required in order to get a bin rental for demo waste). Both areas have ...
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Are there any reasons I shouldn't remove this odd nook from a basement room?
I'm thinking about taking out this weird nook in my basement, along with the white-topped blocks/supports that surround it.
Is there any reason I shouldn't? In other words - is there a likely purpose ...
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Safe to remove wall separation between two closets?
I have two double sliding door closets in my master bedroom that are side by side. Between the two closets is a drywall partition, the same depth as the closets, separating the two.
I'm looking to ...
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Pillar removal question
We are just a few inches short for a piece of furniture to maximize the space. Just wanted to know if I can remove or even cut it a few inches?
Inside photo:
Outside photo:
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Can I reuse PT beams?
We took down a deck that was decades old. I was thinking of cleaning and reusing the 4x8 beams. They're filthy and the ends need to be trimmed, but seem ok otherwise. Any reason I should reconsider?
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Can I demolish concrete block walls in the basement under concrete beams?
I've recently bought a house with a spacious basement. The basement has several walls that divide it into "sections" with free passage between them. I'd like to demolish some of the walls. ...
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Can self-leveling concrete go over a rough 1 inch mud-set mortar tile base?
Single story Florida home, concrete slab.
Half the kitchen floor was linoleum, other half was an uneven spanish tile recessed into slab to be even with the linoleum side. We want to install new ...
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How to demolish and remove a small concrete pad?
I have a ~5x5ft concrete pad under my deck. There was a hot tub before we moved in but the hot tub was removed and the deck built over it.
The concrete pad goes all the way to the exterior wall/...
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How should I remove ceramic tile on a conventional mortar bed?
I need to remove a bunch of this tile to reveal the wood flooring underneath for some vinyl.
I was just going to start going at it with a hammer and a crowbar, but if anyone has any tips I’d happily ...
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Do oscillating multitool blades that will cut 3-1/2" deep exist?
I need to cut out some rotten house framing. It is an exterior wall with stucco attached. The challenge is in cutting through the top plates. Since I cannot cut them at the same location, I need to be ...
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Pockets of what looks like dirt behind shower walls
So after frustration of fighting off ants multiple times over the past years, and starting to see what appears to be fungus gnat in the bathroom recently, I started to demo my bathroom shower. As I ...
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How to Remove Concrete Blocks
I have a few concrete blocks hard glued together to the garage floor to create a raised platform. What is the best/easiest way to remove this without damaging the floor?
Any thoughts would be greatly ...
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Efficiently removing nailed down subflooring
There has been creaking in some areas of the second floor in my older home. I tried out the simple fix of screwing down the floor sheathing (they're actually some kind of particle board it seems).
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What kind of drain pipe appears to be clay?
The photo below shows a venting stack that was disconnected. The stack runs from the basement to the attic and out through the roof. Which means it's perfect to pull new water, gas, and vent lines ...
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What's the best way for me to demolish & replace this existing walkway? I don't want to damage the foundation as I approach the front door!
My concern is that I will accidentally damage the foundation of the house as I approach the front door.
Can I take a jackhammer to the entire walkway, right up to the front door? What's below that ...
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Carport Removal - Possible to DIY?
https://imgur.com/gallery/0iamrtR
Hello all, just curious how possible it would be to DIY this carport removal. Out of the ~15 emails that I sent out for quotes, only 3 or so companies replied and ...
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Wall parallel to cieling/floor joists- is it load bearing?
I have a wall on the first floor I'd like to remove that runs parallel to my cieling/floor joists. This is my first demolition project in the house and I'd love some insight prior to contacting a ...
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How do I remove U posts?
I drove a 7 foot long metal U post into the ground about two feet with a post driver. It is now embedded in the ground beyond my ability to pull it out by hand.
When the time comes to remove the post ...
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Should I be concerned about my contractor not being lead certified
Wife and I live in a 1950s house. We’ve been planning a whole house renovation for months and finally found a GC we like.
We learned he isn’t qualified to work on lead-containing materials. He’s done ...
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Another load bearing wall question
First, yes, I will consult an engineer before removing any walls. I mostly just need a gut check to determine if it’s even worth the consultation or this is obviously load bearing.
I want to remove a ...
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Replacing 2 layers of tile, can I put plywood + Ditra mat OVER lathe and scratch?
We're redoing our 2nd-floor 7' x 10' laundry room, including new / moved cabinets and flooring. The existing tile was ~1/4" lower than the vinyl plank outside the room, so I (naively) assumed we'...
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Any issues with tearing down this closet to open up some space in our mudroom?
we are wanting to take down this closet, and put in some custom locker cabinets instead for our mudroom entry since it is pretty cramped.
First and most important, I assume this wall isn't load ...
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How do I remove this old flue pipe?
There's an old chimney for a furnace in my basement which is no longer being used, and I'd like to take it out. It's going through cinder block, with concrete sealing around both sides.
Outer ...
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How to grease and maintain a rotary hammer with SDS-MAX bits
i have a basic harbor freight demo hammer that uses SDS MAX bits.
its not clear how to keep it greased.
there is a plasict cover on top (see pic) that has a huge chamber beneath. its not clear how ...
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Should I demolish this closet myself or leave it for a contractor?
I’m an amateur at this, so I’m asking for some guidance on knocking this closet down. I want to turn the corner into just a normal plain corner without all the wood paneling. I would have a ...
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How can I remove a bit from a jackhammer that got stuck in concrete?
I was trying to jack hammer a hole through my foundation. This turned out to be a herculean task. I blame the old concrete from 1950 which is filled with rocks. I keep getting my bits stuck in the ...
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How do you create a hole in a concrete foundation with a demolition hammer?
I recently purchased the XtremepowerUS 2200Watt Heavy Duty Electric Demolition Jack hammer Concrete Breaker. With it I am trying to punch a hole through the concrete to replace an iron shower drain ...
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Why do some people cut concrete before they break a hole in it?
I'm replacing a shower drain. I notice some people cut the foundation with a concrete wet saw before they jack hammer the foundation to get through it. Others, don't. Is there a benefit to cutting the ...
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How best to remove flooring and underlayment from our tile floor
We are renovating a 1961 rural house in France. The ground floor is garage/basement, but both the first and second floors (in European terms) are a 30cm hard concrete subfloor with 10cm (4 inches) of ...
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How to tear down a brick chimney
My 100 year old chimney is in bad shape, so I decided to tear it down and rebuild it. Prior to beginning, I thought it was just the bricks and a steel liner, however once I took off the crown and the ...
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Lengthening header for closet
I recently posted asking whether my closet wall was load-bearing... but I've since determined it is. Prior to wall demo, had I checked the attic and crawl space and the wall appeared to be non-load ...
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load bearing wall above closet?
EDITED after demolition, I went back into the attach to pinpoint the exact ceiling 2x4 (I can see between the drywall gaps to the bedroom below). Now I have more reason to believe it's load bearing...
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How to minimize ceiling/drywall damage when installing the internal home side of a deck lateral tension device
The lateral tension devices are included in the current International Builders Code:
R507.2.4 Deck lateral load connection.
The lateral load connection required by Section R507.1 shall be
permitted ...
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Removing concrete hearth from fireplace
Please note: I did find this very similar question but believe ours is different since its unclear how far beneath the hardwood flooring the hearth goes.
Here is our current fireplace with a concrete ...
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What type of fixing is this, and how do I remove it?
I've been trying to remove floating shelves fixed onto a masonry wall with no visible screws. After cutting into it with a saw, I've found it is held up with the following fixing:
The exposed part of ...
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Is it possible to remove and old concrete balcony from a brick home and replace with a standard wood/composite deck?
I have a brick home built in the 1930's with a concrete slab "cantilevered" off the back of the house with 2 support columns. I am unsure if the balcony was original or added later but I do ...
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Fiberglass Shower Drain Removal
1974 Condo on a post tension concrete slab. This was an original fiberglass shower enclosure. I can’t figure out how to remove this drain.
Any advice is appreciated.
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How to demolish metal lath wall (tiled)?
A wall is metal lath on studs, covered in a coarse heavy plaster (or light cement, I don't know what it is) and over that is a thick layer of tile cement and then ceramic tile. The whole thing is ...
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Best way to clean up nails after demolition?
I have a small wooden shed in my back yard that needs to be torn down, and for the most part, I can handle it fine. However, I have one concern about the cleanup afterwards: how can I make sure the ...
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How should I remove a swimming pool from my back yard?
Our house had a nice cedar pergola in the backyard, about 20'x16', whose posts began to rot at the base. It was covered in grape vine... Nice for shade but not for a falling down pergola. Needless to ...
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How do I properly demolish a tub and shower?
I'm planning to demolish my bathroom for a renovation, and not sure of the exact steps on demoing the tub and shower. Also worried about the shower since it's a large one piece. How I should go about ...
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Hand saws to cut OSB type panels
I want to cut OSB panel on an old shed into pieces and they will go into garbage.
I've searched for some advice regarding it and found out that a handsaw can be used for small amount of work.
Please ...
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What considerations should I make when demolishing a driveway?
I have a really long concrete driveway, and we'd like to turn the back half of it into part of the backyard. From this:
To this:
I'm hiring a demolition contractor for this task, but I'd like to ask ...
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How should I dispose of material waste during home construction?
The construction of my new home is undergoing now, but I am facing a problem - piling up of trash and unnecessary materials left over at each step of the development which I am moving to my garage. My ...
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Safety Razor Disposal in Medicine Cabinet
A question for the old timers(or any timers), have any of you demolished an older house that had a safety razor disposal slot built into a bathroom medicine cabinet? Was dealing with the dispised ...
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