Handy-Man Corner

[Iowanian]

I'm tired of bad Chiefs news.....


I thought it would be a good idea for a thread on the Handy-Man.

Do you have any Home remedies, gadgets you've made, advice on car repair, home maint, sollutions to kill weeds in your yard, bugs in your garden?

Use Coke to clean your batteries? That type of stuff.
Home made floor dry?

[Boise_Chief]

Originally Posted by tooge

Ummm, lets see. Dont jerk off with shampoo!

Use Johnson and Johnsons....

No tears.

[aturnis]

Originally Posted by Iowanian

I keep some of the plastic Laundry soap jugs, cut the tops out of them and use them to store nails, screws, electric stuff and other "garage items".

The plastic Folgers cans with the built in handle work great! You get a large container with a handle and a lid.

[Coach]

When painting concrete blocks, don't use a small to average sized paint brush to paint in between the gaps of the concrete blocks. Get a big fugger and dunk a whole shit load of paint on it, and slap it on the gaps and run across as much as you can.

When it comes to rolling paint on the concrete block, you usually get better results by rolling the roller at a 45 degree angle, especially covering the little holes.

[NewChief]

Originally Posted by Iowanian

Here is part of my latest project. Since I have built a closet in the bathroom I redid, and have 16 new windows and 30 squares of siding in the garage(hiring that out, don't have time).

I've got to post up shots of mine that I put together (no, I didn't build it) this summer. It's a fuggin monstrosity about on the same scale as yours.

Originally Posted by Iowanian

Here is a snapshot of the bathroom remodel. I'll try to dig up a "before" and post it here later. I know I'm not a pro, no laughing.

That bathroom looks pretty good except for it seems to be missing a Champion series toilet.

For future reference; with ceramic tile you should size your grout lines the same thickness as the tile, especially when you're using a contrasting grout color but it looks like everything is lined up and flush so I'll give an "A-". It's a whole lot better than most the DIY tile jobs I've seen. In fact, I don't recommend tiling to the average DIYer. They usually screw it up.

[Iowanian]

To put in the playground....what a deal that turned out to be.

I bought it off of craigslist. It was a playstar series that looked to be worth around 2200 and was built 2yrs ago. I bought it for a few hundred, had to drive to the DM area to take it down and haul it home, which took 2 trips.

I had to tear out about 30' of vintage 1930s brick and cement wall, tore out a row of hedge and 2 cedar trees. I leveled off the spot, dug a 45' trench by hand to bury a tile and hauled in the pea gravel....scooping 6 ton by hand.

The kids love it, so it was worth it in the end.

[Iowanian]

Alright Phildo...

Here is the real test. This was my most difficult attempt at tile yet...and my first attempt to do anything "fancy". Let me have it.

Still have to do the quarter round....and I'm waiting until everying is done, including the dining room floor and the last bathroom and do it at the same time.

Originally Posted by Iowanian

To put in the playground....what a deal that turned out to be.

I bought it off of craigslist. It was a playstar series that looked to be worth around 2200 and was built 2yrs ago. I bought it for a few hundred, had to drive to the DM area to take it down and haul it home, which took 2 trips.

I had to tear out about 30' of vintage 1930s brick and cement wall, tore out a row of hedge and 2 cedar trees. I leveled off the spot, dug a 45' trench by hand to bury a tile and hauled in the pea gravel....scooping 6 ton by hand.

The kids love it, so it was worth it in the end.

You're not telling me anything. I built my daughter's playset from reclaimed timbers. Never, ever again. I'll drop the hundreds on a kit next time. Fortunately there won't be a next time.

[Iowanian]

I agree. Never, ever again.

Given the loot I'm shelling out on this house, saving that thousand dollars was worth it for now.

Originally Posted by Iowanian

Alright Phildo...

Here is the real test. This was my most difficult attempt at tile yet...and my first attempt to do anything "fancy". Let me have it.

Still have to do the quarter round....and I'm waiting until everying is done, including the dining room floor and the last bathroom and do it at the same time.

It looks good. That's the Rialto line from Lowes. Good, strong tile. It's thicker than most other synthetic tiles.

Only change I'd have made would be undercutting your door jams and sliding the tile underneath but that's pretty tricky.

[Iowanian]

On the spacing, I used store bought spacers. What should I have done different?


I did the one on the left and into the closet. The right side was a basement door with a kicker board I just didn't know how to work around/over/through.

It better be good tile...it sure as hell wasn't cheap.

I'm happy enough with it, and the wife likes it, so I guess its good.

I lost my HD so I have to dig up my "before" photos....I'll eventually do a spread on what I started with, and what I'm creating. It'll probably not be too impressive for those guys living in castles, but its definitely a "flip this house-money pit".

Use smaller spacers. I generally use 1/4 or 3/8 max on 12" tile. Natural stone can go wider sometimes.

It looks great, dude. You have every reason to be proud. You did a good job with it. I love the woodwork. Too many times in those old houses the beauty of the wood has been covered with paint.

[Iowanian]

i'll have to look, but I think I used 3/8 spacers....the orange ones from Lowes.....

maybe the light color distorts it. I know the grout doesn't look that bright standing on it either.

3/8 is probably about right for that Rialto line, since it's thicker. I usually use a blending grout with that line which is why the contrast is stark for me.

Again, it's a fine job. You could install for me for $10 an hour any day.

[NewChief]

Originally Posted by Iowanian

To put in the playground....what a deal that turned out to be.

I bought it off of craigslist. It was a playstar series that looked to be worth around 2200 and was built 2yrs ago. I bought it for a few hundred, had to drive to the DM area to take it down and haul it home, which took 2 trips.

I had to tear out about 30' of vintage 1930s brick and cement wall, tore out a row of hedge and 2 cedar trees. I leveled off the spot, dug a 45' trench by hand to bury a tile and hauled in the pea gravel....scooping 6 ton by hand.

The kids love it, so it was worth it in the end.

Here's ours. My major challenge was how unlevel the ground was, and the size I had to deal with. With the safety clearance, the required space was like 36'x28' on a hillside. I leveled as much as possible by hand and cross tie, then I hauled in cheap ass mulch from the city to level the playing area. I used blocks, ties, and quickrete for all the posts that actually sit on the ground. In the end it was worth it, as that area of our yard was an unusable eyesore prior to the project.