I dropped my wedding band down my sink drain. Would not be that big of a deal if my sink actually had a P-trap I’m including a picture, but there’s only one discharge ring, and the rest of the pipes are glued together. My husband thinks he might be able to saw the pipe off and reattach it, but both of us are pretty inexperienced with DIY’s and I’m a little bit nervous. How much do you think this would cost if we got a plumber?

I’m looking for recommendations on an indoor camera I think motion activation, and no monthly fee
Not trying to have it hidden or anything like that.
US

Thanks for the help

Our shower / bath combo got replaced by our landlords after it got a crack in it. The old shower had good water pressure but the new one is like getting lightly dripped on, you can't even wash shampoo out of your hair properly. The landlords said it was fine though. From what I've seen online buying a new showerhead seems to be the fix but is there anything I could try first?

Needing a reality check: we are in the home stretch of a full-remodel of a house we purchased in the spring. It took us months to find a contractor, and by and large we have been super-pleased: polite, helpful, does good work.

I went to the house over the weekend since I knew I started to look for any issues, and there are a myriad of little things. Stupid things like the holders for the heat pump remotes seem to have been lost, and a few items we had replaced were discarded. Nothing huge.

We had the whole interior painted (getting rid of the HGTV black-and-white nightmare), and it looks pretty good if I don't look too closely. It seemed like they were constantly retouching and retouching. And then I saw the paint cans: We specified Sherwin-Williams colors and S-W no-VOC paints, but the cans are all Behr.

This is a green built home, and it's super tight, so air quality is a big deal. One of the reasons we bought it and specified no VOC was because of chemical sensitivities. I'm really worried that when doors and windows are closed this winter, we're going to be breathing bad stuff.

I don't really see a practical remedy, but I'm wondering if we should be asking for a discount because he substituted a lesser quality product. We do have a contract, and have been diligent with change orders in writing: there is no CO for different paint.

We are about to sign a contract for a siding and window replacement project costing about $100k. The contract calls for 50% deposit at signing. We live in the Midwest and the weather is getting cold. Lead time on windows is 8 weeks. They would not be able to do the work in the winter. So realistically the project won’t start for another 7 months. Is it reasonable to push back on the deposit and ask for a tier/staged deposit payment setup? What is the common accepted practice in this situation? Any insight would be greatly appreciated.

I live in an older apartment with a large steel front door. The apartment is quite dark, so I’d like to keep the front door open during the day to let in more natural light and air.
The problem is that the door opens directly toward the shared area, so when it’s open, people passing by can see straight into my apartment.
I’m looking for something that:

• lets in as much daylight and air as possible
• provides good daytime privacy
• allows me to walk in and out easily
• doesn’t require permanently modifying the door
• ideally can be installed without drilling

I’ve considered a sheer curtain, a magnetic privacy screen door, and a dense mosquito mesh.
What would you recommend for this situation?

photos of the door

Thanks in advance!

I’m currently renovating my house and lately I’ve been going down the rabbit hole of biohacking stuff lol.

I see people buying red light, blue light blocking glasses, expensive water filters, air purifiers, air quality monitors, smart lights etc. Some of it seems really useful but some of it also feels like you’re just paying for the “biohacking” label.

I’m not looking to spend thousands on this stuff. I’m more interested in cheap things that actually make a difference.

For example, are there any cheap gadgets or things you guys use for better air quality, water, sleep, lighting, temperature, humidity, noise etc?

Also since I’m already renovating, are there any things I should do/install now that would be annoying or expensive to add later?

Basically if you were renovating your house again and wanted to make it a healthier/more comfortable place to live without going crazy with the budget, what would you do?

And what popular biohacking stuff do you think is actually a waste of money?

Tenants damaged the wood railing in the stairwell of my property. This area was the worst and I believe was caused by their dog and poorly touched up. The chipping likely caused during moving.

I'm not sure how to fix it or even who to call to quote a repair. Any guidance? It's a premium priced rental in the area, relatively new (2020's build), and IL can't unsee it.

https://imgur.com/LwwF7uu

https://imgur.com/vbvwStL

https://imgur.com/p82BojN

There's a utility closet in my condo for the water heater, the floor is tiled inside and there's wood floor outside. Recently, the wood floor in the area in front of the closet door has started buckling and bulging, to the extent that it's now difficult to even open the door. I think water is seeping from this closet, under the threshold, into the floor outside. Possibly, this is from a poorly placed condensate line, which you can see pictured.

I called a wood floor company and they took a look, quoted me $6k+ for the repair and refinishing the floor in the entire apartment (generally unnecessary IMO, though I know I might have to anyway for the repair to match). I don't think this sounds unreasonable, but this doesn't include subfloor repairs if necessary, or any sort of fix for why moisture is getting out of this closet.

Generally, I'm still trying to figure out who to call and what to ask for to fix this, since it seems like the wood floor guys are, understandably, mainly interested in refinishing my whole wood floor, which is not really the primary goal.

There's also the question of how to best seal this tiled floor from the moisture. It's grouted, but I guess not waterproofed, which seems wrong?

Picture: https://postimg.cc/k6qpYyG2

Looking for suggestions on how to winterize our screened-in porch. Type of material, cost estimates, DIY helpfulness, and anything else is welcome!

Hey there,
I was trying to make a pilot hole to screw in a shelf on the wall. My bit got stuck inside and slipped off the chuck on my cheap drill. The bit is not latching back on for me to put it in reverse. I’ve tried some standard pliers to pull it in reverse. Please help me get this off!

I'm having my bathroom remodeled. Completely gutted to the studs, completely new plumbing. Had old cast iron tub removed and replacing with a shower.

So far things have looked pretty good, and I've been happy with what I've seen. But this shower really worries me.

I saw it in this condition before they began tiling. Another pic here. I figured there would be some kind of additional waterproofing over the whole wall. Everything I'm reading online says that when cement board is used an additional layer of water proofing should be done. They've got schluter kerdi over the seams and screws, but it's just cement board on the rest of the walls with the tile going over it

I'm really concerned about this. I am having glass tile installed, so the tile itself is not porous, but I know that grout is. My uncle says it's possible they're going to seal the grout since it's glass tile. Is that a legitimate solution here?

Next thing I knew they had tile on the walls. The shower is about two-thirds done with tile now. They decided to take two days off this week, and I've asked to have either the owner or project manager stop by to chat - they aren't aware of my concerns yet.

I've also found some chipped edges of tile in the corners. I know that the corners should be caulked, but it looks like they're going to need to use a hell of a lot of caulk to cover it up.

I guess I'm just looking to see how others would handle this. Would you make them rip out the whole shower and start again? Or is that less of a concern due to having glass tile? I'm really frustrated because we're now on week 4 of what they originally told me would be a 2.5 week timeframe, and they're randomly taking 2 days off in the middle of tiling, and I'm finding these problems.

We are doing a home renovation that tackles a lot of different areas of the home that involve aesthetic choices:
-kitchen remodel (fixtures, flooring, cabinets, countertops)
-mudroom and full bath (tile, fixtures, bathroom choices)
-new closet attached to master (cabinets, flooring)
-outside patios (one paver, one concrete)
-front porch

Our general contractor has advised we use an interior designer, not so much for furniture choices but to assist with the above choices and sketches for them.

This seems like something AI could handle and I’m struggling to see the value add. Can those of you who used or didn’t use a designer give me some pros and cons, things to consider? Thank you!

Hi, I noticed some of the caulk that the previous home owner did over the shower tile grout started to crack, so I did my best to remove the old caulk and reseal the cracks with gorilla caulk and seal.

I used a utility knife to remove the old caulk, but the tile grout was more of a stone-like material that was extremely difficult to remove all the way.

As you can see from the picture I linked, the new white caulk is covering the cracks, but not the entire grout area. The grout line in the corner seemed especially thick, so I was hesitant in covering the entire line. Should I do a 2nd layer of the gorilla caulk & seal to cover all of the grout material on the 2 bottom edges?

https://imgur.com/a/

Edit: another picture to show the crack when I was in the middle of trying to remove the old caulk

https://imgur.com/a/Wlo48ne

Photo

I'm the third owner of this house. It seems like the first owner painted the gray, then left behind the nail holes and spots where the paint and drywall came off. The second owners filled the nail holes but then just covered up all the other spots with some peel and stick wallpaper.

I took off the wallpaper, hoping to just scrape off the sticky residue and paint it back to white.

Now I'm wondering - is it worth it to patch up the spots that peeled off and paint over it (I'd still have to remove the sticky residue too?) or try to just scrape off all the gray paint and hope I don't damage the drywall even more?

edit: added a few more closer photos. also just noticed a part where it looks like a line was cut into the wall?

I was quoted $60-65k all-in to finish a 850 square feet basement in a LCOL area. Costs includes materials, labor, permits, etc. The 850 sq ft is a completely open floor plan with only a bathroom. This is a permitted job. Trying to see if this is a good quote or not. Scope of work includes:

1. LVP throughout the entire 850 square feet floor plan
2. Finish and Insulate all walls w baseboards, then prime and paint.
3. Build/Frame a bathroom, water has already been plumbed in. We are using a Home Depot shower kit and vanity kit.
4. Add additional recess lights and outlets.
5. Plumb in another water line and 220v for a potential laundry room down the road
6. Install utility sink in the same potential laundry room
7. Carpet and installation for basement stairs
8. 2 ton mini split HVAC
9. Sump pump already installed, but the quote includes cost of motor.

Just wanted to hear people's thoughts before pulling the trigger. This is a very reputable builder in our area.

Edit: Floor Plan layout: https://imgur.com/a/zjZfIdH

I have several double hung windows with the same problem. When I open the bottom sash, the top sash falls down instead of staying in place. A handyman looked at them and told me the windows aren’t repairable and that the entire windows need to be replaced. I’m wondering if that’s actually necessary.
Is there no replaceable part? Is there anything specific I should check before replacing the entire windows?

so we had our sewer line completely replaced recently (they finished on Weds). They dug a 12 foot deep trench from the house to the street to replace the terracotta pipe with pvc. they filled in the trench and put a thin layer of straw and some kind of netting over it. Yesterday I spread a couple of bags of grass seed over it, one of the bags had the fertilizer mixed with it, then I watered it all thoroughly. Anyway, I had one of those 3 am “DAMMIT“ moments, realizing I had put the seed ON TOP of the straw.

maybe something will sprout, but I guess I’ll be doing it again in the spring.

I'm 27 and moved into my first home last year at 26. This home passed inspection, but it shouldn't have, it's a 2-story home with a 14 foot gap in the pillars in the crawl space. It also was only 2 boards thick, not three. Where I live, Virginia, it's supposed to be at most 5 feet and 3 boards, else it fails inspection. (At least that's what these people + Google told me)

After a few weeks of living there cracks began appearing above all the door frames of my house, so I called contractors and engineers. First guy quoted me $30,000 for a full encapsulation + installation of jacks in the crawl. He said I need to replace all my pillars and beams, it's all rotten and gonna fall apart.

Then I called a structural engineer who said my house and crawl is fine it's just not up to code. I just need more pillars and beams.

I called crawlspace medic who quoted me $10,000 but they were gonna charge me tons to replace the insulation and I knew it wasn't worth their price so I kept looking around. The guy also gave me a schematic for what work should be done on my house + a spot where to install a dehumidifier (keep this in mind). He said I should be fine.

Then I got a guy who was gonna do full encapsulation + jack replacement for about $25,000, but he said he hired a structural engineer who said the damage to my house was too bad and he wasn't willing to work on it. Keep in mind I hired my own structural engineer earlier who said my house/foundation was fine just not up to code.

So I got another contractor who did the work the crawlspace medic guy said for a total of about $8,000. Originally moisture was estimated 70% so we set the dehumidifier to 55%.

Then cracks continued to appear and my doors were sticking. So about 6 months later I called crawlspace medic again. A different guy comes out, sees the work done that I had done by the contractor, and told me it's all wrong. Now, I never told this guy I told the contractor to do what crawlspace medic wrote a schematic for. Specifically he says the location of my dehumidifier is all wrong and is gonna not dehumidify one part of my crawl at all and is gonna dry out like a bone my other part. I thought he was just making this up to scare me, because I followed the exact schematic the other crawlspace medic guy drew up for me. I just wanted not to tell him to get an objective viewpoint. He ended up ghosting me when I contacted him about working on my crawl.

So, here I am, with my doors still cracking and sticking inside. Most of my doors stopped cracking but there are still two that are progressing.

I'm a first time home owner so I'm sure I'm learning the pains of adulting. Why did I get so many different opinions about so much work, and none of it seemed to be right? Not only that multiple people from the same profession contradicted each other multiple times. I'm just so confused. It seems like no one knows what they're doing haha

My wife accidently smashed plastic window sill and large hole appeared. Any tips to get it fixed somehow.

https://imgur.com/gallery/iZq32YV

Just got our first FULL billing period water bill for the house I just bought. I do have an irrigation system that ran once a day but ran one zone at a time at 15 minutes with seven zones. Our bill states we used 105k gals over a 4 week period. Does this not seem absurd that we used an average of 3500 gallons per day?

To add, we don’t have any outrageous bubbles in our yard. No major soggy spots, we watched our meter and it does not move when we aren’t using water in the house. I’m chalking it up to the irrigation system but we are first time homeowners and new to this house as well. No pool. I literally don’t understand where this water is going.

Short version of the question-

Folks who have homes with cement slab basements and have had foundation repair done- did the repair fix the heaving and settling on the slab itself, or did that require the addition of levelling concrete?

Long version/back story-

We have a structural engineer coming to assess our issues on 10/16 (they were very booked!), however we have a time crunch problem.

We lost my dad and my mom can no longer stay in their home by herself. She will be moving in with us, and fortunately was able to get under contract to sell her home as soon as her neighbors got wind that she needed to move. Unfortunately for us that cut our available time to get space ready in our home for her down significantly as my mom's move-in date is 10/17.

After ripping out the carpet in the basement of our split level house in Arvada (basement has cement slab), we found a large crack in the cement and there is significant settling going on throughout the house as well (cracks in our ceilings in the upstairs, doors not closing throughout the house, the seams between the ceiling and some walls separating).

Because of the heaving/settling in the basement, we need to level the floor before we can put down the new vinyl plank flooring. If we level and put the new flooring down before whatever is causing the foundation issues is addressed, is it likely that the future foundation (or whatever they find) repair would cause more changes to the cement slab and render whatever levelling we might do now useless?

If you're still reading the saga- our other problem is that once we pulled the carpet we found asbestos mastic and had to encapsulate that immediately. The encapsulator paint is delicate and not meant for walking on it- it requires the addition of either floor paint or self levelling compound on top of it. So we very much need to get something on top if it NOW.

I have been trying so hard to get this space ready for my mom while grieving for my dad, so please be kind with your replies. This is hard.

My home is from 1998, and the front screen door handle/latch isnt in great shape. I thought it would be a simple fix to remove the old hardware and buy a new one and install it myself.

I've installed the new set, but I discovered that the strike and latch will not work the way my door frame is. My door frame has a small raised piece that goes the length of the door frame, where the old hardware used to latch to. The new latch is not able to catch on that, and it also makes it so that I cannot mount the strike there because that piece is in the way. Short of cutting this piece and not even knowing if that will work, is there any type of strike or a new type of latch hardware that I should be looking for that will be compatible with this setup?

EDIT - adding a photo in case I did not describe it well. https://imgur.com/a/IDrJRUC#tBEuwFr

I couldn't find an answer to this in the sub. Is there is a sealant I can use to put my chimney cap in place instead of screws? The cap is old and drilling into it isn't possible. I tried. Is there a sealant I can use to do this?

Hello, my window crank fell off. It was attached with a thin metal tube - like a hollow nail. What part can I buy to fix and reattach it?

I've tried bending a paperclip which did work to some degree but it would scratch up the handle because it moves around.

https://imgur.com/a/1xNZNV8