Home Improvement/Remodel Thread

[vike daddy]

6 hours ago, minutemancl said:

So we have water that comes in through the top of a window. Someone came out for an estimate and found that the back of our house is lacking tyvek and the window is not flashed correctly. They are going to take off the existing siding, tyvek the back of the house, flash and tape the window correctly, then put the siding back on so we no longer get leaks. Does $6k sound look a reasonable estimate for this? It was much higher than I was expecting. This same company came and did a whole new flat roof for us for less than that last year.

type of siding? sq footage? height off the ground? access? etc.....

[minutemancl]

2 hours ago, vike daddy said:

type of siding? sq footage? height off the ground? access? etc.....

Vinyl siding. About 250 square feet total. Highest point is about 14 feet off the ground. Access is pretty wide open; nothing more than some minor annoyances. 

Materials total are less than $300. That was confirmed to me by the guy who did my estimate. That means over $5500 is going to labor, which just seems insane to me for a 1 day project. Even if you have 4 guys. 

[Tugboat]

On 8/25/2023 at 10:13 AM, minutemancl said:

So we have water that comes in through the top of a window. Someone came out for an estimate and found that the back of our house is lacking tyvek and the window is not flashed correctly. They are going to take off the existing siding, tyvek the back of the house, flash and tape the window correctly, then put the siding back on so we no longer get leaks. Does $6k sound look a reasonable estimate for this? It was much higher than I was expecting. This same company came and did a whole new flat roof for us for less than that last year.

 

This sounds insane to me.

 

For one...If they're using Tyvek to flash a window properly, they don't know wtf they're doing.  That's entirely the wrong product for the purpose.

 

idk about where you are but here there are multiple ongoing MASSIVE lawsuits about this ****.  People didn't install windows correctly and they leak and cause rot.

 

They should be using some sort of self-adhered vapor impermeable membrane in a very specific order to properly seal the window penetrations.  That's the only way to properly seal it.

 

 

DuPont themselves will tell you that you ain't supposed to use Tyvek to seal penetations.  They've literally got their own product for that.

[Tugboat]

On 8/25/2023 at 7:09 PM, minutemancl said:

Vinyl siding. About 250 square feet total. Highest point is about 14 feet off the ground. Access is pretty wide open; nothing more than some minor annoyances. 

Materials total are less than $300. That was confirmed to me by the guy who did my estimate. That means over $5500 is going to labor, which just seems insane to me for a 1 day project. Even if you have 4 guys. 

 

I don't wanna be pushy, but have you to looked into what it'd cost for fiber cement siding?

 

 

It's so much better in pretty much every way.  I looks better, it's most robust, it's basically fireproof.

 

 

James Hardie would be the main brand, but there are also a lot of other companies out there.

 

 

I get if it doesn't match your other sides of your house vinyl siding.  But i'd think about it anyway.

Edited August 27, 2023 by Tugboat

[minutemancl]

13 hours ago, Tugboat said:

 

This sounds insane to me.

 

For one...If they're using Tyvek to flash a window properly, they don't know wtf they're doing.  That's entirely the wrong product for the purpose.

 

idk about where you are but here there are multiple ongoing MASSIVE lawsuits about this ****.  People didn't install windows correctly and they leak and cause rot.

 

They should be using some sort of self-adhered vapor impermeable membrane in a very specific order to properly seal the window penetrations.  That's the only way to properly seal it.

 

 

DuPont themselves will tell you that you ain't supposed to use Tyvek to seal penetations.  They've literally got their own product for that.

Thanks for this. I wanted a sanity check. 

Their solution to the leaky window to ensure it doesn't happen again is to tyvek most of the back of the house, then flash and seal the window.

You think if I take off the siding around the window I could properly seal it myself? I know there are 100% not the correct layers on there right now. 

[Daniel]

So we're toying with the idea of building a guest house, and are wondering about converting a pre-fab structure like a storage building vs. building one from the ground up.  Anyone have any experience converting buildings like that?  It'd be both cheaper and faster to do, but I worry about the quality of the end result.

[Malfatron]

Any advice on replacing porch steps?

The bottom one is broken and there may be some rot

[MWil23]

11 hours ago, Malfatron said:

Any advice on replacing porch steps?

The bottom one is broken and there may be some rot

@NateDawg did this last year, but I’d also offer some advice:

Is there rot in the framing of the stairs and stringers or the treads? If it’s just the treads, easy fix.

If you need to replace the joists and stringers, it’s a bit more extensive but still not a terrible job. I’d personally recommend a solid foundation if you have stringers or it’ll sink and then rot again over time. If it’s a total replacement, rake the ground and level out the area and then consider adding a flat surface large paver in each area for each stringer to prevent rot and keep that nice level surface and foundation.

If you have to add/replace joists, I’d recommend hurricane straps.

Several good YouTube videos that walk you through the process.

[vike daddy]

 

 

 

 

 

 

Soooo.... I built another thing. A combo weather proof low ceiling back yard storage shed with a Trex deck above it and a roof over that, with a 45 degree turned stairway and landing. For my daughter's family and their daughter.

The design makes use of treated 4x4 posts rising up through the whole structure, with each level attached to them. They're the corners of the ground level shed walls, rise through the shed's sloped metal roofing, then the level deck framing attaches to them, then they shoot up above that too and form the posts for the deck roof beam framing.

Came out pretty decent, eh?

 

 

 

 

[Tugboat]

On 8/27/2023 at 11:36 AM, minutemancl said:

Thanks for this. I wanted a sanity check. 

Their solution to the leaky window to ensure it doesn't happen again is to tyvek most of the back of the house, then flash and seal the window.

You think if I take off the siding around the window I could properly seal it myself? I know there are 100% not the correct layers on there right now. 

 

Honestly, who knows.  Really does kind of depend on what's actually going on under there and how badly it's been fubar'd.

But at minimum, to do it properly...you're really talking about pulling the window altogether.  Who knows where it goes from there.

 

If you do decide to tackle it yourself...idk how comfortable you are with that, but it sounds like you're reasonably confident so it might be doable if you're patient and careful.

I'll drop this here for you as a good guide...

 

The dude is more than a little bit creepy and it's very "rah rah product sales".  But it shows the proper way to do it real well.  Even if you use some other company's competing product.

 

He also makes it look easy, but it's kind of a pain in the *** because everything's sticky and wants to stick to itself.  lol.

 

On 8/28/2023 at 1:46 PM, Daniel said:

So we're toying with the idea of building a guest house, and are wondering about converting a pre-fab structure like a storage building vs. building one from the ground up.  Anyone have any experience converting buildings like that?  It'd be both cheaper and faster to do, but I worry about the quality of the end result.

How important is it for this "guest house" to be "legal"?  😆

 

What you do with the foundation and whatever Mechanical/Electrical/Plumbing is probably going to be the biggest hurdle either way, if that's a concern.  Even portable "Tiny Homes" here are subject to somewhat insane regulations.  But insulation and other stuff aside, a building shell is a building shell for the most part.

I'd be kind of inclined to seek out a shed kit that's intended to be more of a "living space" though.  Might be the easiest route.

[Tugboat]

On 9/4/2023 at 3:20 PM, vike daddy said:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Soooo.... I built another thing. A combo weather proof low ceiling back yard storage shed with a Trex deck above it and a roof over that, with a 45 degree turned stairway and landing. For my daughter's family and their daughter.

The design makes use of treated 4x4 posts rising up through the whole structure, with each level attached to them. They're the corners of the ground level shed walls, rise through the shed's sloped metal roofing, then the level deck framing attaches to them, then they shoot up above that too and form the posts for the deck roof beam framing.

Came out pretty decent, eh?

 

 

 

 

That's pretty sweet.  I love that's it's like...a tree fort for grownups to drink in.  lol.  I'd 100% crush a number of beers in an elevated covered tree fort deck like that.

 

You've got some good *** neighbors for sure though.  Or you've buttered them up pretty well.  Or something.  😆

 

I've seen the Bylaw Police called on people for erecting far less substantial creations.

[BobbyPhil1781]

How many of y'all utilize whole house humidifiers? Yay or nay?

[Heimdallr]

On 9/4/2023 at 4:20 PM, vike daddy said:

Wow! Amazing!

[MWil23]

18 hours ago, BobbyPhil1781 said:

How many of y'all utilize whole house humidifiers? Yay or nay?

Humidifiers? I have a couple dehumidifiers 😂 

[BobbyPhil1781]

3 hours ago, MWil23 said:

Humidifiers? I have a couple dehumidifiers 😂 

I wish I had a need for them in the winter instead of this damn dry air we have along w/ heating making it even worse lol