kittycatonline dot com - Home remodeling

Assembling a shed

Wed, 25 Aug 2010 07:38:00 -0800

Here are some photos for your viewing pleasure:Our new shed. All this summer I've been working on constructing a shed. On Father's Day, my loving family got me a shed for the storing of our stuff which we were tripping over in the garage.

What you don't see is the work it took to clear the land, pour the concrete pilings, and so forth. You also don't see the massive cost overruns. What started out as a $749 shed kit ballooned into an over $3,000 project. I was making trips to Home Depot and Lowes almost daily.

Did I mention that after completing the outside of the shed, Anchorage then went into the official Worst Summer Ever, recording the most consecutive rain days ever? Over 30! I'm blessed to say the shed didn't dissolve into a pile of mushy wood pulp. Oh, but the blessed sun did finally appear, and I got out the airless sprayer. The interior of the shed has about 4 gallons of Killz latex, and the exterior has over gallon or so of Sherwin Williams latex. I should note, the interior paint is courtesy of our municipality's hazmat recycling program. I got the interior paint for free! Makes up for the exterior paint which was $98 for two gallons. Well, it's time for me to go to work so I can't drag this story on. Give the photos a look.

(later on this evening) I'll go into detail a bit. Our backyard is basically unimproved land on a hill behind our home. I had to put the shed where I did because it was the only bit of terrain that wouldn't need significant work to use. I cleared the land out, after getting a utility locate done, sank in six concrete footings. On that went a subfloor, and on that went the shed.

The boardwalk leading up to the shed is constructed with pressure-treated wood, and is secured using 4x4 concrete post bases. There are metal spikes driven through the wood at strategic points, adding stability to the boardwalk and preventing it from shifting over time.

When I took the pictures seen here, we finally had a few days of sun, so all the plants were nice and green. Considering we had a full month of rain, they were well watered, thus they look good. Of course, during that rainy period, working in the backyard was like working in a slimy bog because, well, it was working in a slimy bog. Once the sun came out, though, ahh, how glorious! I tell you, Anchorage in the summertime is so beautiful.

As far as applying the paint goes, I used my airless sprayer, a Ryobi something-or-other from Home Depot. It was at time cantankerous, miserable, and yet, how else can one apply gallons of paint in a few minutes? You just can't paint rafters any easier, a brush or roller would have been a pain. As for the outside, the whole shed's exterior took about an hour, and that includes having to prop up ladders and everything. It took more time to clean out the sprayer than it did to use it. The airless sprayer is cleaned out, boxed up, and residing in the very shed it painted.

Replacing an old Hunter fan remote control

Sun, 11 Apr 2010 17:29:00 -0800

In my hand I hold an old remote control for our Hunter fan/light combo. We bought the fan back in 1999 from Eagle Hardware, which I think was bought out by Lowes a long time ago. Our remote has faded to that ugly-looking yellowed "old plastic" color, and the button for turning on the light barely works anymore. I did some searching online, but came to find out quickly that getting a replacement remote is basically a lost cause.

Until today.

Here's the scoop: The remote I have has a sticker on the back which says "MODEL UC7848". You would think googling on that would give you a source for ordering it, but oh nooo. Now mind you, being the guy who installed the fan and the remote control, God was merciful enough to leave in my shabby memory a good picture of what the receiver unit on that Hunter remote looked like. At Home Depot, I spied a Hampton Bay unit where the receiver looked identical. Here is a link to the same unit, "Hand Held Ceiling Fan Wireless Remote" at amazon.com. Anyhow, the unit is a Hampton Bay #191-691.

Yes, what you see here, or what you find in Home Depot, will be a receiver-remote combo, not just the remote alone. Hey, don't complain. Anyhow, I got this home, and amen, the remote worked fine once I set the DIP switch inside to match that in our original Hunter remote. Why does it work even though it's two different brands? My theory is that neither Hunter nor Hampton Bay makes the gear, they're just repackaging stuff from some nameless Chinese manufacturer. And so it would seem. All I know is that I don't have to take my fan down to replace the remote control receiver in there. That alone makes me very happy.

So, while I can't guarantee this will work for you, it worked for me. I bought Hampton Bay Handheld Wireless Remote #191-691, and the remote within that kit works as a replacement for Hunter remote model UC 7848.

New fireplace

Tue, 06 Oct 2009 16:56:00 -0800

What you see here is something we probably should have done years ago. Our old wood fireplace has today been replaced with a gas fireplace insert. This guy is an Avalon DVS GreenSmart Gas Insert, from North Country Stoves. The installers got this baby stuffed into the old fireplace in a day. Not bad, considering they had to run gas piping all around the house. Anyhow, the fireplace has a remote control, just like a TV. Only one channel, though. You can adjust the flame just like a volume control. Has a fan, and a thermostat, so you can set a temp, and let the fireplace keep the room temp at what you pick. The unit will run with no electricity, either, which for me was the deal maker. I couldn't see the point in getting something that wouldn't keep us warm if the power went out.

My loving wife has desired a gas fireplace for years, and we finally did decide to take the plunge. I really like wood fireplaces, but well, she doesn't. Admittedly, the ash and hassle of storing the wood is something I tend to forget about when thinking wood fireplace. Also, I must admit, even though we had a wood fireplace for what, 15 years, I never once cooked anything in it. So there goes that perceived benefit. Gas it is. I must say, it does look nice, and being able to point the remote at it and fire it up is nice, too. It should be sweet once Christmastime rolls around and it's getting below zero outside. Should have done this years ago, but at least by waiting we got the most energy-efficient unit available at this price range. We'll see if a warm fireplace hearth proves to be a kitty magnet.

Details on windows and trim

Tue, 01 Sep 2009 16:51:00 -0800

The paint on our window trim is Sherwin William 2058 Barcelona Beige, oil-based. The new windows were put in by Greatland Construction. VPI Quality Windows - Synergy - Vinyl Frame - Double Glazed Argon - LoweE(0.025) - ZF - VPI-A-24. Energy Performance Rating U-Factor 0.28. Solar Heat Gain Coefficient 0.19. Visible Transmittance 0.43.

The Thanksgiving No Hot Water Story

Sat, 29 Nov 2008 17:58:00 -0800

This is a story of No Hot Water. Over the last few days we had very little hot water. Our hot water system in the home has been a constant thorn in our sides, as it's entirely inadequate, and just, well, lame. We have a stainless steel tank which is heated by the same boiler which supplies our driveway melt system.

Shown here is a Taco 007-F5 circulator pump, priced at $78 or so at Amazon.com. In town, we have a plumbing place that has TV ads stating they'll be sure to sell you the right part. I go there, tell them I need a Taco 007-F5, even have it written down. The counter guy says they don't make those anymore, and I need the Taco 00R instead. Fine. I fork out $124 and change, and home I go. Install it, still no hot water. Argh. I was suspecting it was the zone valve anyway. The pump I took out was covered in crusty glycol crud anyhow, and it's been in there for 7 years, so I have no regrets changing it out.

Well, fine. I go to Home Depot and get a replacement zone valve, just like the one shown here from Amazon.com. I wasn't going back to the plumbing place. Forget that. Oh, and what do I see also at Home Depot? The Taco 007-F5 pump for $89 that plumbing guy says they don't manufacture anymore. Argh. The zone valve set me back $104 but hey, the house is back to having hot water, and I have more pump than I needed, but you know what? A hot shower sure beats a cold one!

Home remodel photos, at last.

Thu, 20 Nov 2008 19:49:00 -0800

View more photos It's been a while now since I completed our big remodel project. As promised though, here are a few photos to go through. Since I was home sick today, I had time to take a few snaps and post them. If I can ever dig up some old photos showing how the home looked with the old doors and carpet, I'll post those too. If I never do find those, think 70's dark walnut and worn-out cream colored carpet. It's much nicer now.

Tile backsplash done, as is the kitchen

Tue, 22 Apr 2008 01:48:00 -0800

Well, it added a week or so to the project, and a few bucks, but I'd say it was worth it. I really wanted to go with 1-inch tiles, the little square ones. However, I couldn't find them along with the matching bullnose tiles, those being the ones with the rounded edge where the tiles stop.

I never did find any bullnose tile in town, as all the shops including our local specialty tile shop, had no bullnose tile. Instead, I had to go with a plastic edge material that looks fine, but really isn't what I wanted.

It was somewhat of a hassle to work with, but yeah, in the end it worked out fine. The floor shot there, that's the Konecto flooring we're using in the house.

So just how did I go about doing the work? The tiles are 2" square, which are mounted together in a 12"x12" sheet. The plastic trim around the perimiter is this stuff: Schluter JOLLY (note, I went with the white PVC version, not the aluminum). It's a rail that you embed into the mortar, providing both a guide edge and a nice transition between tile and untiled surfaces.

The job went like this: I had the new countertops in place. I drew out the area where the tile was going to go, and then attacked the walls with a grinder, to provide a rough surface for the mortar to adhere to. Working from one end of the room to the other, I would apply some thinset mortar to the wall, place a 1/8" plastic spacer on the top of the countertop backsplash, then embed the Schluter railing into the thinset. The tiles went into the thinset, and so the process went around the kitchen.

I own a wet tile saw, and used it extensively, since I had to saw out the holes where the electrical outlets go, and where I had to go around the microwave oven and the window sill. The tiles rested on the Schluter stick, which rested on the spacers, which rested on the countertop. Because the tiles themselves are in 12"x12" sheets, and I was only doing one 12" row, I did not have any issue with the tiles pulling each other down while drying.

The next morning we dug out the plastic spacers and filled the 1/8" gap with adhesive caulk. The tiles themselves we then grouted with non-sanded (i.e. not gritty) grout in 'bone'. Stuff looks dark brown when mixed, but it dries to a light tan. Three days later, we applied grout sealant, and it was a completed job.

Kitchen cabinet refacing is done, new couters in

Sun, 06 Apr 2008 01:06:00 -0800

Kitchen Remodel Photos
After a couple months work on weekends and the occasional day off of work, the cabinets are done and the new countertops are in. Rather than pay for entirely new cabinets, I did a cabinet refacing myself. This consists of removing the old doors, applying a real oak veneer on the fronts of all the cabinets, and installing new oak doors. I believe the results were worth it. Are they as nice as brand new oak cabinets? No, of course not. But then, new cabinets for our kitchen would have easily been a $15k+ job. Going with the refacing, it was about $2200 or so. Might not have even been that much. Well worth it, and not a bad compromise between beauty and economy.

Deanna did a fine job of oiling the insides of the cabinets. I don't have a photo of the insides, but with the new outsides, the insides looked pretty blah. While consisting of solid plywood from years gone by, they needed some TLC. After she oiled 'em up, they looked real good.

The original countertops we had were somewhat problematic, the backsplash was separate from the horizontal surface, and water from the sink seeped into the joint, badly warping the wood. Those counters came out and we opted for a one-piece laminate in Deanna's favorite color. We're very happy with the countertops. I will be adding in a tile backsplash, but wanted to get some photos up now. So, browse the photos and enjoy.

Downstairs bathroom done

Sun, 02 Mar 2008 13:42:00 -0800

Here is what we started with. Our old downstairs bathroom, pretty much torn out. The yellow walls, the warped laminate floor.

And after a month or so of working in the evenings and weekends, here is the result.

I don't have a "Before" photo of this shower, but imagine your classic 70's Disco Gold color. Now it's been refinished to a classic white finish.

Over the washer and dryer I built a set of storage cabinets, they came out pretty nice. Working with that melamine stuff, though, ugh. My hands ended up getting cut up with a load of scratches, the melamine edges are very sharp. But, the results were well worth it, the finish is durable, and the cabinets fit the space perfectly, something not available with off-the-shelf cabinets.

The door in this shot, I'll tell you now, hanging that door was easily the single most miserable part of the whole job. You'd think that an easy task, but oh no. No. I really couldn't get a good shot of the entire bathroom due to it's small size, but this is a pretty good shot.

And here is a closeup of that sink, with a glass tile backsplash.

Downstairs Shower - The Nightmare Continues

Thu, 14 Feb 2008 21:00:00 -0800

Bet you don't know what this is, right? Neither did I until I ran into a little nightmare of my own doing. If you've read my previous entry about resurfacing our downstairs shower, you know it hasn't been easy. Anyhow, while removing the masking tape from the shower drain at the bottom of the shower, I decided, foolishly, to tug on a bit of silicon blobbing out from the edge of the drain. The whole ring of silicon came out. Argh. Well, I shot more silicon back in there to seal the drain, and waited a couple days. All looked well. As part of the overall re-do of the shower, I bought a satin nickel trim kit for the shower, which lead me to take off the part of the shower where the water knob (it's a Delta unit) attaches. Big mistake. Water started shooting out, and I had to run and shut down the main water supply.

Well, after shutting down the water, I was able to attach the trim kit, and get the water to the house back on. I run the shower a bit, and what do I see coming into the hallway? Water leaking out from the shower! Ugh. I mop it up, dry the area, and run the shower again. More water. Fine. I go to bed, and the next morning consider my options. I could replace the shower myself, or just pay the big bucks and have a plumber come in and do the job. I google "fix leaking shower drain", and find the beauty pictured here, the WingTite Shower Drain. I paid for 2nd Day Air, so I'll see if it does indeed show up in 2 days. With shipping it was a tad over $90. Will it work? I have no idea. It should.

Oh, yeah, I should mention. In the morning, when I ran the shower a lot, it didn't leak a bit. So, likely the water was from the initial fire hydrant effect when I removed the valve. Excess water shooting back behind the wall. But just in case, I want that WingTite around the home so if it truly is leaking from the drain, I've got the part to fix it on hand. This whole home re-do is turning into quite a test of patience. May God continue to shower His mercy on me so that my daughter may continue to shower in the shower! Amen.

Resurfacing the shower

Tue, 05 Feb 2008 10:22:00 -0800

First off, I don't have any before & after photos because I couldn't get a decent photo of the shower in our small bathroom.

As part of our downstairs bathroom re-do, I decided to change the good ol' 70's gold shower over to white. After pondering the options, I decided to cheap out and resurface the shower myself, using Klenk's Tub & Surround Refinishing Kit, which I picked up at Home Depot.

Our shower is a 32" wide 3-wall shower, the type one finds in a second bathroom. Small. Anyhow, the kit directions says there is enough there to do one tub or shower, so great, let's do this. I spend $34 and away we go. I start by cleaning the shower walls as directed, then I sand the walls. If you have ever sanded fiberglass before, you know it isn't fun. Anyhow, I get it all clean, and it's time to start mixing paint. Well, not quite. You see, the kit uses a two-part system, where you mix one can into another and wait an hour, which I do.

Okay, an hour has passed, let's paint. Using the included roller and following the directions, I start to roll the paint on the shower. And the results are a nightmare. The foam roller they give you doesn't roll, it just sort of skids along, smearing paint as it goes. There is a trick to this, as I would find later on.

Anyhow, the directions say you apply a coat, wait an hour, apply another coat, and so on. It says it might take up to three coats to cover a dark colored tub. Let me tell you what: First off, the can has enough paint to do a tub made for Barbie, not a tub made for humans. It didn't take one kit and three coats, it took three kits, a week's time, sanding out a load of sags and runs which I never did fully remove, and probably nine coats to get the tub a nice glossy white. But white it is, indeed. The finish appears to be very solid, like enamelware. One interesting difference is that the new finish has a sort of orange-peel texture, which for a shower is actually preferable to a slippery-smooth gloss. There are still a few runs in the final job, and it certainly doesn't pretend to look like a brand new tub, but looking at $125 versus the cost of replacing the whole shower, I think I'm happy with it. Only time will tell.

Oh yeah, I said I'd explain the trick of putting this stuff on. The directions say put on a thin coat. That ain't the half of it. They mean barely get the roller wet. I found using a big paint tray worked best. Keep the paint tray mostly dry, and roll the roller in there just enough to get it damp. As you roll out the paint, it will have an almost tacky feel as it goes on. That's the trick. The first time around, I had too much paint in the roller, and it skidded around instead of going on nicely. With each new coat of paint, the paint adheres better. Oh, yeah, buy extra foam roller pads at the store, too. The kit only comes with one roller, but you'll need more. The paintbrush in the kit is pretty handy for painting the soap dish, which is hopeless to try to roll out. Oh, and note, the paint has a positively evil smell. I suggest wearing a respirator and get a lot of ventilation going. Would I do this again? Well, maybe. I'll see how the finish holds.

That ain't supposed to be there.

Fri, 25 Jan 2008 01:04:00 -0800

In the process of remodeling our downstairs bathroom, I decided it would be great to have a recessed ceiling light over the shower. Since I had sanded the gold 70's colored shower yesterday in preparation for expoy coating it white, I had it all nice and dry. Perfect time to do the ceiling light. I got out my stud finder and carefully checked the ceiling to map out where the studs were. Perfect. Right above the center of the shower there aren't any studs.

I picked up the recessed light fixture for existing homes, and using the enclosed template I draw a nice circle and within a few seconds with my reciprocating saw I have a nice hole in the ceiling. And as they say, "That ain't supposed to be there." Guess what? Copper pipes aren't magnetic, so the stud finder doesn't find it. Praise Jesus, I didn't plow through the pipe with the saw!. So, instead of a recessed light, there is a nice patched hole. I'm getting more practice at drywall all the time.

This is just the beginning of the project, I can only dare to imagine what else will come along to test my patience. May God grant me that patience, I'm' sure I'll need it.

Painting the interior of the home

Mon, 10 Dec 2007 01:11:00 -0800

Well, my wife and I decided to redo our carpets, because they are truly tatty. Original seams are separating, the carpet is coming off the backing. At the same time, the interior hasn't been painted in over 15 years, more like 17, I think. We decided the logical thing to was to repaint first, then deal with flooring.

My wife went out of town to visit with my sister for a week, so that I could repaint the interior. Believe me, I'd want it no other way. I love my wife dearly, but also wanted to get the job done without having to constantly stop and clean stuff, et cetera. I took a week off at work, to use up some use-or-lose leave before the year's end. The job did indeed take almost an entire week. Let me see if I can recall it all.

Friday: paint downstairs
Saturday: cleanup downstairs, general prep upstairs
Sunday: take the day off for church.
Monday: paint split entry, living room, dining room
Tuesday: paint kitchen
Wednesday: paint master bedroom
Thursday: paint children's bedrooms

Yep, that's it. The bathrooms were painted not long ago, so they don't get new paint. We will indeed redo the downstairs bathroom, as the color it got painted is really ugly.

As part of our overall plan, we will be redoing the flooring and doors, so I didn't mask off any of those items. Now that the carpet has plenty of paint on it, as do the doors, it helps to make the decision to redo those things so much easier. Oh yes, I also removed all of the edge trim in the house, except around the windows. There isn't any going back now.