Online Home Repair help for SD members

Quote from SueM : With all the home owners and the "spirit" of this board (ie BE and his thread, computer problem solvers) most questions could be answered. Personally as a single woman and owning my first home, I would rather ask my questions here than in front of construction workers snickering behind my back! I think the idea for this thread is really good, expecially with all the new home owners--owning a house and having to fix all the little things that go wrong is daunting!

I'm not condeming the thread, I'm just saying that posting a thread with a lot of questions about home repair will probably not be stickied in the tech support forum here unless there is someone knowledgeable and willing to stick with it and supply answers to these questions. Nobody has come forth as an expert or with any certifications or qualifications as Biker Eric has for his Appliance thread. We have a lot of users asking questions, but nobody qualified to answer so far.

Quote from batterycharger : About having an expert advising in this thread, that may not happen but there are many SD members who have posted excellent home repair advice in BikerEric's thread. Having this thread will allow his to be more on topic and provide an opportunity such as SueM appreciated. I have reasonable qualifications that I won't post, and would be happy to help some out when I can. I'm sure others will offer the same. Time will tell.

If SD can get these knowledgeable users to come forth and commit their time, it's possible this thread could be a sticky at the top of the forum -- like Biker Eric's Appliance help thread. If you can't get anyone with knowledge and some recommendations or certifications that they know what they are talking about to come forth, well, I don't see this getting stuck to the top of the thread. And why would users trust just anyone who posts an answer without some recommendation or certification that they know what they are talking about when they give answers?

Computer tech support here can kind of be judged by length of time in the forum and reps accumulated, but home repair is a different category that is not really covered in the realm of this forum -- it's mainly for computer tech support and covers some home theater, sound systems, a little gaming and some overclocking -- but mostly it's for computers and home electronics -- not house building, home repair and remodelling. IMHO, we need the knowledgeable people to come forth to answer these questions and they need to have something to back up their ability to give answers.

I can give my opinion that the user with the pencil sized hole that allows water to get into his basement to fill that hole up with silicone caulk to keep the water from coming in, BUT, what happens a few months down the line when water backs up around the foundation of his house to a point that the water stagnates and keeps the ground wet all the time and causes mosquitoes to be prevalent and/or causes that water to backup and flow into the house in another area?

Quote from callpocket : I'm not condeming the thread, I'm just saying that posting a thread with a lot of questions about home repair will probably not be stickied in the tech support forum here unless there is someone knowledgeable and willing to stick with it and supply answers to these questions. Nobody has come forth as an expert or with any certifications or qualifications as Biker Eric has for his Appliance thread. We have a lot of users asking questions, but nobody qualified to answer so far. If SD can get these knowledgeable users to come forth and commit their time, it's possible this thread could be a sticky at the top of the forum -- like Biker Eric's Appliance help thread. If you can't get anyone with knowledge and some recommendations or certifications that they know what they are talking about to come forth, well, I don't see this getting stuck to the top of the thread. And why would users trust just anyone who posts an answer without some recommendation or certification that they know what they are talking about when they give answers? Computer tech support here can kind of be judged by length of time in the forum and reps accumulated, but home repair is a different category that is not really covered in the realm of this forum -- it's mainly for computer tech support and covers some home theater, sound systems, a little gaming and some overclocking -- but mostly it's for computers and home electronics -- not house building, home repair and remodelling. IMHO, we need the knowledgeable people to come forth to answer these questions and they need to have something to back up their ability to give answers. I can give my opinion that the user with the pencil sized hole that allows water to get into his basement to fill that hole up with silicone caulk to keep the water from coming in, BUT, what happens a few months down the line when water backs up around the foundation of his house to a point that the water stagnates and keeps the ground wet all the time and causes mosquitoes to be prevalent and/or causes that water to backup and flow into the house in another area?

Then there is an obvious drainage issue that needs to be dealt with at that point.

It's questions of questions, like yours, that keeps a discussion open and going until there is a solution !

Quote from SueM : most people in my area are just tossing their carpet. Today was garbage day and I saw a lot of carpet rolls along the street.

I just saw the news of a Fargo, ND gentleman who is ripping out 4 feet of drywall, from the floor up, to get ready for the rising water. He says it happens every year and that ripping out the drywall (that was replaced last year) helps in getting the place dry again, from prior experience.

That is some extreme yearly maintenance

I say put that home on some stilts

Quote from SueM : most people in my area are just tossing their carpet. Today was garbage day and I saw a lot of carpet rolls along the street.

It's just a small area in a corner, about 5x5, of a large carpet. Didn't even know it was wet for three days! The fan helped a lot overnight, but I'm wondering if I pull the carpet up to let the cushioning dry if the carpet will shrink making it impossible to put back down?

Updated, seems to have dried out fine and all's well. Tucked back onto the tacks, but not with the same snugness it had before. Carpet's even a bit cleaner!

Quote from callpocket : BUT, what happens a few months down the line when water backs up around the foundation of his house to a point that the water stagnates and keeps the ground wet all the time and causes mosquitoes to be prevalent and/or causes that water to backup and flow into the house in another area?Then there is an obvious drainage issue that needs to be dealt with at that point. It's questions of questions, like yours, that keeps a discussion open and going until there is a solution !

Relax.

The region had 10+" of rain during a 50 year deluge that resulted in major flooding. She had a cup of water come in through a small defect in the foundation.

If this was a persistent problem it would deserve more attention.

And, threadbashers, your posts are serving no purpose. Please keep thread on topic.

Quote from batterycharger : Relax. The region had 10+" of rain during a 50 year deluge that resulted in major flooding. She had a cup of water come in through a small defect in the foundation. If this was a persistent problem it would deserve more attention. And, threadbashers, your posts are serving no purpose. Please keep thread on topic.

I see people giving legitimate input here -- haven't seen a bashing post yet.

Quote from SueM : With all the home owners and the "spirit" of this board (ie BE and his thread, computer problem solvers) most questions could be answered. Personally as a single woman and owning my first home, I would rather ask my questions here than in front of construction workers snickering behind my back! I think the idea for this thread is really good, expecially with all the new home owners--owning a house and having to fix all the little things that go wrong is daunting!

Indeed -- I agree. The things is, this forum is no different than looking through the phone book when it comes to this topic. There is nobody here who has come forth as an expert or even someone who does this for a living.

In cases of home repair or remodelling, it is always best to do the research and get references from people who have used a company in your area and can give an opinion about their work.

Quote from batterycharger : This is a direct spin off of the highly received "Online Appliance and HVACR help for SD members" thread by BikerEric. In his first post, BikerEric's 11th commandment is: "Ye shall keep this tread "chit-chat" free and on topic" and since that was happening this thread seemed like a good thing to do. So ask away. Seems there's enough experts to help with about anything here. Actually, I'll go first. Balloon framed 1860's house on a stone foundation, the side sill plates are spreading apart in the center and the first floor has sagged. Main beam was replaced some time ago with a steel I beam and lally columns (replacing tree trunks with flat rocks as footings) to stabilize the structure. Spreading sills continue. Thought of putting tie rods consisting of heavy threaded rods through the sill plate on one side and across the house to the other sill plate to stop the spread. Will that work and what might go wrong?

I've been in construction my whole life and have had a remodeling business since 1980. Your structural engineer was correct in that your foundation needs to be stabilized. Without knowing the grade and soil conditions around the foundation its hard to give accurate advice. But suffice it to say the foundation can be stabilized without rebuilding the whole structure. That in itself could be quite expensive though. The cheapest simplest method is to underpin the existing foundation. Next step would be a new foundation. these wont fix the spread but should stop further shifting.

Quote from SueM : Can't help OP but I got a question. I have a tiny little hole in my basement wall, about the size of an unsharpen #2 pencil lead. When the flooding occurred last week, water came through--puddle around wall--maybe a cup of water all told. I discussed it with one handyman who told me that it wasn't worth fixing--in fact I might make it worse. It is a 1959 cement basement with water sealer on the walls--no french drains, etc. What do y'all think??

The best fix for cracks or hole in concrete foundations is an epoxy based product. It will be stronger than the existing concrete and bonds well to concrete,and is water tight when complete. There are a number of products out there differing in what application you need it for( i.e. thin crack wide crack, hole,flaking ). since you only need a small amount call a poured concrete foundation company in your area and see if they would sell you a small amount. They could also recommend the best for your situation. While I'm at it I might add the best way to keep water out of any basement is to eliminate the source. That is make sure ground around your house slopes away from foundation. Keep rain gutters clear and directed away from house or into a drywell

Quote from dollarbill : I've been in construction my whole life and have had a remodeling business since 1980. Your structural engineer was correct in that your foundation needs to be stabilized. Without knowing the grade and soil conditions around the foundation its hard to give accurate advice. But suffice it to say the foundation can be stabilized without rebuilding the whole structure. That in itself could be quite expensive though. The cheapest simplest method is to underpin the existing foundation. Next step would be a new foundation. these wont fix the spread but should stop further shifting.

We have someone who does this for a living posting above -- if users here have an opinion that he is the one and he is willing to administer the thread, there could be a chance of making this a sticky. But dollarbill would have to agree and get all the info he needs in each case, complete with pics and other info to be able to help the users here. This is not as simple as giving symptoms of a broken appliance or one that is not working correctly. There is a lot more involved here than posting symptoms -- there needs to be background and pictures, input as to previous repairs and other contractors that worked on a job.

I don't know what kind of plaster, or combination of plasters to use for this.

It's for a circa 1910 large ornamental foyer with a tile floor and marble steps, the walls have plaster coves and arches. The plaster is on wire mesh and the 20+ year old paint is peeling, in some places as alligatored chunks.

I haven't delved into it yet but it appears the top layer of plaster may be separating in places, or the peeling paint is really thick. It's an unheated area and subject to New England temperature extremes.

Was contemplating, Durabond 90, is that the right material to smooth the plaster defects with? Or is there something preferable to use considering considering the temperature variations of 0 to 90 degrees?

Quote from TBurr : I don't know what kind of plaster, or combination of plasters to use for this. It's for a circa 1910 large ornamental foyer with a tile floor and marble steps, the walls have plaster coves and arches. The plaster is on wire mesh and the 20+ year old paint is peeling, in some places as alligatored chunks. I haven't delved into it yet but it appears the top layer of plaster may be separating in places, or the peeling paint is really thick. It's an unheated area and subject to New England temperature extremes. Was contemplating, Durabond 90, is that the right material to smooth the plaster defects with? Or is there something preferable to use considering considering the temperature variations of 0 to 90 degrees?

Are you sure its plaster and not cement plaster. The later being harder and made for exterior surfaces. Putting durabond on exterior surface wouldn't be recommended. It will dissolve if wet. even plaster of paris won't hold up outside unless it's protected. In any plaster repair you need to have a good base. That is, remove anything loose or peeling before you start. Otherwise your wasting your time. What you use to repair at that point depends on what you're repairing.I'm not sure if this is a historic house but you can get a lot of help from your local historical society. I sound vague because I'm wary of giving you advice without more info. You could lose historic value if done wrong.

It's horsehair plaster on a wire lath, for sure. I discovered that when I took down some brass light fixtures for restoration.

The walls are not exposed to anything that'll get them wet, it is enclosed. But the space is unheated and subject to freezing to sweltering heat.

Quote from TBurr : It's horsehair plaster on a wire lath, for sure. I discovered that when I took down some brass light fixtures for restoration. The walls are not exposed to anything that'll get them wet, it is enclosed. But the space is unheated and subject to freezing to sweltering heat.

In that case if you have minor cracks you could use durabond or easysand(easier sanding after repair) but if you wanted to keep the original finish you'd mix equal parts of structo-lite and interior finish plaster. Mix to a consistency of peanut butter and only mix enough to use up in a few minutes. This assumes you have removed all the loose plaster and the remaining material is stable (doesn't move or shift)