What home improvement work did you do today?

Holy smokes that sucks the big one!
Has this happened before, are they new to the hood?
Also what are your local laws to benefit you in times like this,that would be a "friendly neighbor" relationship killer if there is something in place that prevents run off like what you had going on there.
If your not friendly with the neighbors or don't want to start friction there are ways around that Tsunami.
It maybe labor intensive and I don't know what you have for lanscape, but if you have any pitch in the back yard preferably by the fence you could build a run off trench with cement and have it dump in the woods,well if you have both then it's just labor and cement.

Sorry man that really sucks,I'm sure your pool filter medium took a hit to and will have to be replaced as well.

 

Probably not what you intended, but given the subject… this is funny.

 

Welp, not sure what we did yesterday but I got this text message at work


Came home and the transmission is completely shot. Not sure if the upgraded all metal drive was the final straw that broke the camels back or what.

told my wife not to worry and she can clean the clothes on my washboard abs. She didn’t think it was funny

 

Long story so I'll try to keep it short. Went to visit my parents up in Michigan. They had bought a condo in May and a dude was supposed to go in and fix it up for them. By the time we drove up there 12 days ago, he still hadn't finished. Started a lot of shit but only finished the shower and he half-assed it. My sister sent me the pics below before we headed out but there would be no way I could do anything to fix it in the 5 days we had planned to stay.



My gut told me to bring as many tools as I could but I couldn't fit much more than my little tool bag with level, electrical tools, and a level in the truck (had luggage for 4 and two inflatable mattresses taking up the bed).

Got there and the dude fucked everything up.

He grouted the shower drain in and I'm assuming he got grout in the pipes:


This is his idea of putting in laminate flooring:



Notice here, he didn't bother putting the base board back on:



He ripped apart the bathroom fan to wire a light that he installed over the shower and left it.



I didn't have the tools to fix the floor. I was able to buy a Panasonic remodel fan and wired the light using its junction box to make it code (thanks @RainMan_PNW for giving me the idea).



He didn't put the trim back on next to the shower. Apparently he had replaced the drywall and also failed to tape the joints. I ended up buying some tub caulk to fill the gap and also sealed the top of the shower and anywhere he didn't get the grout in.







He didn't get the transition piece nailed down correctly. It looked like he shot through the plastic with a nail gun. I was able to temporarily velcro it into place.



My dad had been in the hospital. He's a former Marine who served in Viet Nam and was exposed to Agent Orange. He's been struggling with Parkinsonism and just had a pacemaker put in. I arrived on Saturday night, he was in rehab until Wednesday so in addition to trying to identify any hazards that the idiot who did the work to their house had cause, I was trying to make it more accessible to dad. Unfortunately I didn't have the tools or the time to do much - I only had about a day and a half (hospital visits) to get done what I could.

I added a ton of grab bars (tip: those Wing-its they sell at Home Depot are worth every penny).



My mom was having a ramp put in their garage entrance but it wasn't going to be built until today (as I'm writing this) so I made a temporary redneck rail out of a dowel rod to make the steps safer (she fell and broke her foot a few weeks earlier on those steps).



I also added an extra grab bar for good measure.



He came home soon after the rail and grab bars were installed and they helped out a lot. I hung a towel bar for them in their bathroom.



Next morning he woke up and couldn't get out of bed. We had to call an ambulance because he couldn't walk. Turns out he had a horrible UTI that the in-hospital rehab center didn't catch. It was good that he went back in though because they also found a loose wire on his new pacemaker.

After that I went into their laundry room and found that the guy had half-assed some wall paneling and didn't use outlet extenders.



I also found one of the outlets loaded up with sawdust from his cutting.



I vacuumed it out and put the extenders on the ones I could. A few of them needed to be recut so I couldn't do anything with those.



Anyways, I did the best I could with a borrowed drill and the tools I had on hand. I'm hopeful dad will get back home soon and they'll be able to find somebody reasonable to fix/replace all of the bullshit this guy did.

 

Dryer has been increasingly getting noisier. 2 year old Maytag. Bought a roller and belt kit. Took it apart. Rollers and belt look new, as one would expect. The blower fan has come uncoupled from the threaded bushing that holds it onto the shaft of the belt motor. It was dragging and spinning, but not fully. Wobbles and makes rumbling noises. Couldn’t get it to spin off due to being decoupled from the shaft. So I ordered a new one and filled the space between the fan hub and threaded shaft with gorilla superglue. After 5 mins they are now coupled together. I’ll replace with the new when it comes in. Likely have to just cut the plastic fan off and use vice grips to remove the threaded hub.

 

For all I know, it would be the same guy

 

Sorry to hear you’re dealing with all that crap @TaquitoBandito that’s some BS right there!! Glad you were able to get some of it right and spend time with your folks. Bet you’re exhausted but awesome job, dude!

Heading back east in a week to spend some time with my parents, dad also with Parkinson’s.

Safe trip back!

 

Appliances these days!

 

Not nearly on the same level as what y'all are doing... Wife decides it was time to remodel the guest bathroom. Of course, every time there's a remodel all things must be a new color including plugs and switches. I hate hate hate doing electrical work but some small things I will attempt and most of the time hot(with gloves). I've replaced a bunch of switches, plugs, ceiling fans in the past but seems this house has it out for me. Needless to say, a job that should have taken 30min turned into days because the house is so damn old. One of the threaded holes in the switch electrical box busted off so it wouldn't stay flush with the wall and I wasn't about to change the entire box. Found these on things Amazon and they freaking rock!!!

Box Doctor -

$20 Box Doctor Repair Clips - Fix Loose Outlets and Switches - Electrical Wall Box Repair Clips - 10 Pack

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08CXHP4QF?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details

 

Thanks - safe travels to you!

The hardest part about being in Texas is being 20 hours from my parents...

We made it back Monday night - Siri navigated us through some crazy backroads. In a dark two hour span, I counted 19 deer, 2 cows and a possum hanging out on the shoulders of the road. I did hit a bird that flew in front of me but I'm pretty sure it bounced off of the skid plate.

 

PLEASE tell me it was not "John the handy man"...

If so, you tell me when, I have a rope with his name on it...

This particular "F@@king Fool" moves between Florida & New York and tried some of the same $hit when we rebuilt after Irma....After Connie

"Riding my a$$" about stuff they were trying to do , I took 3 weeks of Comp and became the PIA laborer he had ever worked with... And then he

"Skipped" before finishing the punch list or final payment...

Great on you for helping your folks and hopefully they get things "Livable"..

And as I said , rope in my garage for "Special occasions"

People should not F@C& with our folks...

 

Sucks to see that. You did some good work where you were able to. I would suggest getting rid of that pocket door at some point. They become a PITA after a while.

 

Damn. So that's what the guts look like. Haha.

 

Agreed - I'll bring my snake killing shovel for when the screams get old.

 

Screams,

Where the "Rope swings" in the Cypress trees out in the Swamp even Excavators disappear without a whimper...

 

I'm still bringing my shovel just because I never get a chance to use it anymore. I think the snakes have tipped each other off.

 

Couldn't "like" the previous post. I've been in the trades for a looong time and that is some of most pathetic, BS "work" I've ever seen. I was gonna make a joke about giving the guy a break since he's obviously blind and working by braille. But, by the time I got to the last photo i was too pissed off for jokes. Taking advantage of elderly people is unconscionable. I hope your dad's OK and that the "blind" guy gets a healthy dose of Karma.

 

Follow up to the dryer fiasco. Glue fix did nothing, surprise. New fan came in. Lots of fun getting the old fan out. Vibrating tool to the rescue again. If you don’t have one, get one. It’s gotten me out of so many jambs. After the old fan was cut out, vice grips to get the old threaded nut off the shaft. New fan spun right on.

 

Are you talking about an Oscillating Tool? I love mine.

 

I think it depends on what attachment you put on the end and what you're using it for in determining if it's called a vibrating tool or an oscillating tool.
But I got one years ago and it has been a great tool around the shop/house

 

I figured you'd stop by...

 

Same rules apply

 

Now come on,

You're not in over your head until the oxygen & acetylene tanks are turned on and the Stryker creates "Spark"

And NO, that is not experience talking , that would be wisdom in teaching..

 

An old episode of Howard Stern show just came to mind.

 

Are you just trying to secure it into place? Some pics would be appreciated.

 

I’m building a back deck. Here’s what happens when you try to haul too much weight on the trailer on a bumpy road. The springs broke and then the weight shredded the tire.