Hoss
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Home Improvement
- Thread starter Picasso3
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back in the day, I did a nursing home and the locals used black mastic (looked like roofing tar ) to put on any metal items that were going to penetrate the slab. I was putting rigid metal conduit in the slab but they insisted the concrete would rot the conduit. I have no idea if that is correct or not.
Lanx
<Prior Amod>
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haha, yea when my mailbox almost tipped over and i found the rot, i went and got this anchor
and a new 4x4 and i was up and running in no time, didn't have to dig weird or pour concrete.
of course in super hindsight
what i did was wrong, b/c my mailbox is right next to the culdesac transformer, but i ain't crispy yet!
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Control
Bronze Baronet of the Realm
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Well, digging a bigass hole with a shovel seems more likely to fry you than your screw post.haha, yea when my mailbox almost tipped over and i found the rot, i went and got this anchor
and a new 4x4 and i was up and running in no time, didn't have to dig weird or pour concrete.
of course in super hindsight
what i did was wrong, b/c my mailbox is right next to the culdesac transformer, but i ain't crispy yet!
I got the spikey (instead of screwy) version of that for a few panels of fence/trellis. Wasn't really thrilled with the sturdiness, but it hasn't moved yet. Although with that in mind, I made the stupid thing in a U shape, so it probably would have been fine just throwing it on the ground.
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GuardianX
Perpetually Pessimistic
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haha, yea when my mailbox almost tipped over and i found the rot, i went and got this anchor
and a new 4x4 and i was up and running in no time, didn't have to dig weird or pour concrete.
of course in super hindsight
what i did was wrong, b/c my mailbox is right next to the culdesac transformer, but i ain't crispy yet!
I did like control and got the spike version of that to do my mailbox...I warped the top and the "Stake" when it hit somethign hard about 2 feet~ in. I gotta extract it now because it's useless as is, the post is like 6 inches off the ground and the metal bracket is warped.
Who knows, I may just use it for now, I dunno...it looks janky as heck.
Control
Bronze Baronet of the Realm
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Yeah, very rocky/clay-y ground here, so it made it hard to get them sunk exactly where I wanted and square. But digging wasn't going to be much fun for the same reasons. I don't think they ended up adding all that much "stick this to the ground" or "keep this from falling over" force, at least if it were a single post. Since the fence is more of a box shape, it seems a bit more like building a shed and attaching it to footers, it keeps it stable laterally at least. Not sure I would trust them for a straight fence more than waist high though, at least without some perpendicular supports. Probably ok for a mailbox though, and the screwy ones look like they'd be better than what I used. I don't know dick about fences though, so I was just winging it.
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Looks like moss grew on it and over time weakened the block. This is repairable. I would use Hydraulic Cement. You can get it at the home center. Hydraulic cement is thick, stays put on vertical surfaces, and expands slightly as it cures.whoo here's a couple pics of the worst damage. Sorry for the poor angle, ladder doesn't go any higher, which might be an issue for repair.
Scrape out any moss thats still there. Remove any very loose debris from the holes. Mix up some cement according to the instructions on the package. Glob it into the holes and let it set. It sets in 5 minutes so work in small batches with a helper who can mix up a bit and send it up the ladder to you.
Quikrete 10 lb. Hydraulic Water-Stop Cement 112611 - The Home Depot
Enjoy the Quikrete 10 lb. Hydraulic Water Stop Cement 112611, a rapid setting, high strength repair material for blocking running water and leaks in your concrete surfaces at The Home Depot
www.homedepot.com
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Thanks for the advice. I've used hydraulic cement to patch cracks in my porch, much smaller volume. So I could not concern myself with the mixing vessel(some cleaned plastic recyclable or can) itself setting up quickly. How do you deal with this in a larger volume? Just set aside lots of cans for mixing one batch at a time?Looks like moss grew on it and over time weakened the block. This is repairable. I would use Hydraulic Cement. You can get it at the home center. Hydraulic cement is thick, stays put on vertical surfaces, and expands slightly as it cures.
Scrape out any moss thats still there. Remove any very loose debris from the holes. Mix up some cement according to the instructions on the package. Glob it into the holes and let it set. It sets in 5 minutes so work in small batches with a helper who can mix up a bit and send it up the ladder to you.
Quikrete 10 lb. Hydraulic Water-Stop Cement 112611 - The Home Depot
Enjoy the Quikrete 10 lb. Hydraulic Water Stop Cement 112611, a rapid setting, high strength repair material for blocking running water and leaks in your concrete surfaces at The Home Depotwww.homedepot.com
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I just mix it in a plastic paint bucket. I think its like 32oz / 750ml? The cement comes out and i just reuse it. You can get 3 of those for a few bucks and rotate through.
If you have a helper, you can use an old paint bucket with a handle. Have them mix and attach it to a rope. Pull it up, squish it in, and send the bucket down, rinse repeat!
Goatface
Naxxramas 1.0 Raider
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pretty sure that is water damage from the mortar not being able to weep moisture away. blocks are fairly permeable, so water travels to the bottom and collects on the mortar. would probably reseal the crown (special paint like stuff) and if not going to use it cover it with a cap. don't know if can buy a cap to close it off. remember few years ago my neighbor couldn't find one so he just built one out of treated wood and covered it with singles, so it looks like a little roof.
i have never built a chimney, but torn down several and that is what i have been told causes most of the damage like that.
edit found a pic of it, about 10 years ago we were talking about it one day the next was on his roof installing it. he was mid 80's at the time.
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The chimney is capped. Though I don't know to what degree. I'm fairly ignorant here. It looks like the standard "lets smoke out and keeps some water from getting in".
I paint my porch with that stuff that keeps water out, should I use the same stuff on the top few layers of cinder blocks of the chimney?
I paint my porch with that stuff that keeps water out, should I use the same stuff on the top few layers of cinder blocks of the chimney?
Captain Suave
Caesar si viveret, ad remum dareris.
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Door is installed on the wrong side of the fame. How the fuck are you supposed to safely open that from the stair side?
Aazrael
Avatar of War Slayer
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After they shut down the factory I work at I decided to "borrow" as much material as I could from there before they close the doors. My boss does not give a fuck anymore and just said "take what you need" lol.
So I stuffed some 2x4s into the car and decided to start building a wall leaning green house for the GF. Had some old windows from a co-worker that I'm building around.
I'm no woodworker and I take lots of shortcuts but it usally looks decent enough when I'm done.
Started assembly today and coated it with 1 coat of oil as a base. Will be painted white when it's done.
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So I stuffed some 2x4s into the car and decided to start building a wall leaning green house for the GF. Had some old windows from a co-worker that I'm building around.
I'm no woodworker and I take lots of shortcuts but it usally looks decent enough when I'm done.
Started assembly today and coated it with 1 coat of oil as a base. Will be painted white when it's done.
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Day 1
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Sludig
Potato del Grande
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Dont know which thread remotely would have people for it. Seems up
Lanx
ally. Got guests coming over in a few weeks and I'm always overly self conscious I guess you would say worrying about how the house smells with several big dogs and unlike CO, very wet so yeah, especially the "mud room" with the kennels has some smell. Also finishing a batch of chicks in a brooder and when they are getting decent sized that also has a little funk.
A few rooms I might ozone, otherwise good windows open airing out, might get carpet smelly powder you vacuum up. But anyone know of any good ways of spritzing up the house without it just being crazy amounts of febreeze that then just smells like you febreezed. Half debated just loading up on smelly dollar tree mopping soaps etc and go full mexican cleaning crew.
Lanx
ally. Got guests coming over in a few weeks and I'm always overly self conscious I guess you would say worrying about how the house smells with several big dogs and unlike CO, very wet so yeah, especially the "mud room" with the kennels has some smell. Also finishing a batch of chicks in a brooder and when they are getting decent sized that also has a little funk. A few rooms I might ozone, otherwise good windows open airing out, might get carpet smelly powder you vacuum up. But anyone know of any good ways of spritzing up the house without it just being crazy amounts of febreeze that then just smells like you febreezed. Half debated just loading up on smelly dollar tree mopping soaps etc and go full mexican cleaning crew.
Kobayashi
Bronze Baronet of the Realm
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Dont know which thread remotely would have people for it. Seems up
A few rooms I might ozone, otherwise good windows open airing out, might get carpet smelly powder you vacuum up. But anyone know of any good ways of spritzing up the house without it just being crazy amounts of febreeze that then just smells like you febreezed. Half debated just loading up on smelly dollar tree mopping soaps etc and go full mexican cleaning crew.
They make a Febreze without the godawful perfume. Don't ask me why, but it's an absolute pain in the ass to find in stores.
Free | Febreze FABRIC
Fabric Refresher Free knows how to pack a mean odor-fighting punch (without the scent).
I think I had to buy it online - I think I used Target since that's something I don't want a knock off of. That said, I don't use it very often - usually just as a last resort, there was some data that came out showing that chemical isn't the greatest health-wise. Baking soda does a pretty good job - you can spread it on carpets and whatnot and then vacuum it up. It's probably the active ingredient in the carpet smelly powder and you don't get whatever extra bullshit that comes along with that.
Hepa filters can help some if you get ones that have an activated charcoal region. Winix isn't bad, but I usually wait for a sale. I used to like Asept Air, but their filters are impossible to get now. You can also get activated charcoal bags - they help some but I find them a little more limited than something with some airflow circulating air in the room.
Lastly, if you do want to mask the smell, I like to use a diffuser and a drop of an essential oil - I like citrus. Nice thing is you can dillute easily so the smell isn't overpowering.
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Lanx
<Prior Amod>
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i think theres only two ways to "absorb" odor and thats w/ charcoal and/or baking sodaDont know which thread remotely would have people for it. Seems up
A few rooms I might ozone, otherwise good windows open airing out, might get carpet smelly powder you vacuum up. But anyone know of any good ways of spritzing up the house without it just being crazy amounts of febreeze that then just smells like you febreezed. Half debated just loading up on smelly dollar tree mopping soaps etc and go full mexican cleaning crew.
get a few of these and put one in each room, it's $1 (i put 1 at each door, that way i also know where i put it, instead of stashing it in a corner and forgetting for a year, if youre super cheap you can just buy the flow thru box once and just fill it up w/ new bulk baking soda, or use something porus like coffee filter material)
you can of course "mask" the odor thats where febreeze comes in, it's mostly just perfume, right?
then kill the odor (odor cause by bacteria), ozone
those sprays that attack bateria, especially since you have pets, get a black light and go to town
"natural" home remedy for a funky area is citrus/vinegar/baking soda, that should neutralize any problem area
and if you live like a vampire, open all your shades, sunlight is also a disinfectant
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Aazrael
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Started painting and wouldn't you know, it starts to rain out of nowhere...
Will be fun to see how much paint is left tomorrow. Will be painted another coat then I'll hang the windows.
Not sure how to solve the roofing. Going to add 4 more supports on the roof but they might be a bit thin as they are now, used some old off-cuts. Might need to go and get some that are double the thickness if it feels too flimsy. Will be adding a metal sheet roof that I have saved for years.
Day 2
Will be fun to see how much paint is left tomorrow.
Will be painted another coat then I'll hang the windows.Not sure how to solve the roofing. Going to add 4 more supports on the roof but they might be a bit thin as they are now, used some old off-cuts. Might need to go and get some that are double the thickness if it feels too flimsy. Will be adding a metal sheet roof that I have saved for years.
Day 2
