Home Improvement

Lanx said:

is that just a power washer?

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Looks like the front/primary sides had their siding replaced and painted and the back just pained (and washed most likely- but you can see the stain discoloration)

Still its quite a task to refinish a house

I resided the whole thing. It was original asbestos siding from 1952 and I replaced it with Hardie Board (equivalent product) siding.

But the asbestos siding would never catch on fire!!

Fight said:

I resided the whole thing. It was original asbestos siding from 1952 and I replaced it with Hardie Board (equivalent product) siding.

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It's a good job, dude. Really made it look sharp.

I obviously didn't look at the rear before and after much... was the back a different color than the front lol? or just lighting? it looks like the grey... yeah resided the entire thing! and it does look good and the reframed windows etc.

If there are magic pressure washers that replace your siding while spraying... i need to borrow it ;-)

Don't mess around with pressure washers and get the wimpy ones. Here's what I recommend:

Mi-T-M HSP-3504-3MGH Hot Pressure Washer with Electric Start - Patriot Contractors Equipment

But, if you don't have $4,300 I would recommend something like this:

Simpson MegaShot 3,100 psi 2.5 GPM Gas Pressure Washer Powered by Honda-MSH3125-S - The Home Depot

Whatever you do, do not buy a Troy Bilt pressure washer. Worst piece of equipment I've ever owned.

I got the Subaru electric start one from Costco and it's been working out pretty well, other than me burning the shit out of my leg by not paying attention and walking into the exhaust.

So, after a long story that I may or may not post in the power of divorce thread, I just bought a home that will need some fixing up and will probably be hitting this thread up quite a bit. There's a lot of modernizing this thing is going to need and I'll be looking for advice. I'll try not to bombard you with the million things I'm thinking about.

The first question is a tiling question, as I don't necessarily trust what the sales guy told me at the tile place, but the data on this sheet seems to indicate I might be okay. I had to scrape up old linoleum from a concrete floor and the adhesive is being stubborn. After scraping for hours with an oscillating tool, I moved on to floor adhesive stripper (which, I'll never use again due to it being a PITA) and after all that, there's still some adhesive on the floor. Also, I'm having trouble determining if there's a sealant on the concrete in here...

Anyway, the thin-set is Kerabond and they make a latex additive called Keralastic, which supposedly allows it to bond better with the substrate. Has anyone used this stuff? Should I trust that it will adhere to the substrate even though it hasn't been completely cleaned of adhesive and may not be porous? Here's the sheet: http://www.mapei.com/public/US/products/Kerabond_Keralastic_System_EN_lr.pdf

Conflicting info -

Properly prepared vinyl composition tile (VCT), plastic laminate countertops, non-cushioned sheet vinyl and cutback residue (interior installations)

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and

All substrates should be structurally sound, stable, dry, clean and free of any substance or condition that may reduce or prevent proper adhesion./quote].

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IMO you will be fine, you did more prep work that most.

You may want to do a layer of auto leveling cement just to make sure it's all nice and level for your new tile work... it also would then cover whatever glue may be left.

It's also a floor, it's not like it's wall tile that wants to fall off. Maybe if you are doing very small tile, and the glue could be 50% of the adhesive area or more- then it may matter and result in loose tile... but if your doing normal floor- larger format tile and the glue that's left is only random small areas... I tend to say you are good.

Thanks. I should have added, it's 2x2 mosaic tile and the floor slopes to a drain hence the mosaic... otherwise, I would have chosen large format tile to make the room seem larger.

mkopec said:

I dont even think you have to go that far, unless concrete is really fucked underneath. The trowels you use to put down the adhesive/mastic, is designed to have a level of play to them, this is why they have teeth, so you can press down the tiles as required to make level floor. Now most concrete wont be 100% level of course, but that layer of adhesive you put down is where you correct that.

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True. Just level them as you go.

But because they are smaller mosaic and to a drain... even less worry about trying to make it perfectly flat.

I want the drain to be functional so I don't have to put a pan under the washer. Which reminds me, I need to look up how to add a flange of some sort to extend the drain to the height of the tile. ... or do I? I wasn't as worried about the slope due to the mosaic, more concerned with proper adherence to the floor. This is my first time tiling, I've done epoxy before and it's critical to have the floor prepared properly. I'm learning as much as I can with the laundry so I'm better at this when tackling the other larger tiling projects.

edits: Uploading picture super resolution, will link some pictures soon.

Tile morter is... basically concrete with some glue... I am sure it's somehow technically different than that...