BG Homeowner and DIY Thread - Out of the Basement Edition

[archibaldcrane]

It's so unsettling lol

[Kirin]

Bit of a carry over from the Covid thread, but I'm having to move due to a landlord planning renovations in the middle of the pandemic. Taking the opportunity with the low rates to look into buying a house. I got pre-qualified yesterday, and have an appointment setup with the realtor to review some houses this Sunday. I'm all too familiar with some major pitfalls like HVAC, plumbing/water heater, foundation, and roof. Does anyone have any other specifics I should watch out for? I definitely plan on an inspection, but I'd like to know what I'm looking for before I go on Sunday.

Lead can be a big issue in older homes. Also, have a radon test done. It puts the seller in a hard spot because if it shows up as high, then they have to report it to any future buyers if you don't purchase. This means they pay for repairing it and you just take it out of the closing costs.

If you have a basement or any below-ground areas, check on when or if it was waterproofed and the plot's location in relation to the floodplain.

If it is on septic instead of sewer, find out when the tank was last serviced and by who. Make sure they come out and confirm it is in working order.

[Boyiee]

Think we doing a fire pit, garden boxes and planting an apple tree this week.

Not sure how I want to do the fire pit yet.

[Cantih]

Friend of mine on fb posted this
I'm dying

Spoiler: show

Now, unless it's hidden by the angle..
Where's the toilet paper roll holder within arms reach?

[Kirin]

Youve got two sinks right there. Instant bedet.

[Tymon]

Anybody experienced with paint varieties? Especially variety of brand and sheen.

I painted a bedroom with Lowe's HGTV Sherwin Williams rebrand stuff in Satin. It's not very good paint to me, but I do love the way it feels to the touch.

So I went and bought actual SW store Superpaint which is supposed to be relatively high tier, also in Satin. Much better looking, but doesn't feel like what I would expect a satin paint to feel like. Feels like a flat paint to me.

What's up with that? Should I be getting a higher lustre of paint from this kind? Velvet?

[Tyche]

I'm confused...the paint looks good but it doesn't feel right? Do you care about how your paint feels or you worried about cleanability? Without knowing what exactly you're going for, it's not really something that can be answered. As for paint...

I use SW cashmere. Used to use exclusively Benjamin Moore. But the SW cashmere is fantastic.

[Jaybar]

The sheen only refers to the glossy reflectance of the paint and not the texture. Satin is typically a middle ground between flat and gloss sheens. If you are more concerned about the texture you could consider using the former paint and apply a clear glaze coat to make it glossier. This should retain the texture while adding more "shine" to the walls. You'll want to find a satin or semi-gloss glaze.

I don't know of any velvety paints on the market. Most textured paint is regular paint with additives mixed in, like sand or glaze compounds.

Also don't touch the walls with those hands!!! You'll get marks everywhere! Oh wow, sorry my inner-mother just emerged.

[Tymon]

I'm confused...the paint looks good but it doesn't feel right? Do you care about how your paint feels or you worried about cleanability? Without knowing what exactly you're going for, it's not really something that can be answered. As for paint...

I use SW cashmere. Used to use exclusively Benjamin Moore. But the SW cashmere is fantastic.

I should have clarified. I was expecting it to have the same appearance and feel as the other one because they were the same type of paint. Turns out Superpaint's "satin" is more like an eggshell compared to the satin that Lowe's sells.

I was also recommended Cashmere. That'll be what I'm using from now on.

[Boyiee]

Raised bed garden and fire pit done.

Going to look at new houses this week... the fuck I do those things for? lol

[Ksandra]

Yo, do you guys have a trick for an easier way to remove a brick wall?

Our house has a tiny patio, and the previous owners thought it would be a good idea to build a low brick wall around it with dirt for plants. Looks nice except it makes the tiny ass patio even tinier.

I have been slowly removing one of the walls using a chisel and mallet, and it's taking fucking forever.

Like as in every now and then I remove like 5 bricks from the wall.


I wanna get this shit done as I want to redo the flooring on the patio, but can't until these brick walls are gone.

We tried buying cement bits for the drill, but either it just doesn't work, or our drill sucks. (Very possible drill sucks. Bought it before finding out how Black and Decker had gone to shit.)

[archibaldcrane]

Sledgehammer would usually be the tool, can't tell from your description if there's a reason that wouldn't work

[Kirin]

Yeah, I would just think a sledge.

Even if some of the bricks are under ground level or up against the patio and you don't want to damage whatever makes up the patio, place a towel over the bricks and whack away.

If you want to go big time, Home Depot may be able to rent you a jackhammer.

[Jaybar]

Masons I work with use pneumatic drills to destroy the brick similar to this product.

Its efficient assuming you aren't preserving the bricks. A sledge might not be enough.

[Gadritan]

Masons I work with use pneumatic drills to destroy the brick similar to this product.

Its efficient assuming you aren't preserving the bricks. A sledge might not be enough.

Best method is a mix of both in my experience. Use a hammer drill to weaken points grid style, then a good knock or two with a sledge will bring it down in large chunks.

Easier to clean up and remove as well.

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[Melena]

Just buy a bunch of M-80's. Just make sure you don't pull a Ragnell.

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[Corrderio]

Bit of a bump but how picky are banks if you don't have the full 20% for a down payment? For context my apartment is jacking up the monthly price and it seems like for based on what Trulia calculates I could get a house for about 200ish more a month by the time my renewed lease is up. Wondering if that would be good enough for a bank to approve me.

[archibaldcrane]

Bit of a bump but how picky are banks if you don't have the full 20% for a down payment? For context my apartment is jacking up the monthly price and it seems like for based on what Trulia calculates I could get a house for about 200ish more a month by the time my renewed lease is up. Wondering if that would be good enough for a bank to approve me.

You'll likely just have to pay a bit more for PMI. Punch in your numbers, contact the few lowest banks and see what they think.

https://www.zillow.com/mortgage-rates

[Corrderio]

Thanks. I was looking at something similar with Trulia since it also estimates the insurance, property tax, etc.

[Buffy]

Anything you can do to avoid PMI you should do. It’s really freaking evil.