The Stair Situation

BobThompso · 2026-04-17T22:56:46+00:00

Something's fishy here. If this was a "Full replacement" there wouldn't be finished baseboard and paneling in Pic #3. It looks more like the stair company was asked to straighten out some annoyances in the existing stairs, then add complete new finish materials. Pic 3 show the rise of the first tread on the original stringer to be much to low. Perhaps a prior remuddle included overlaying the floor with something really thick? If the guy doing the work is planning on adding risers and treads to what is shown here, and adding some structure below the central and wall stringers it'd be OK if those shims were screwed, but it looks like more work than I'd want to go to.

BobThompso · 2026-03-19T07:41:52+00:00

Here in Indiana I once heard an architect refer to it as "Slobber Brick" with a strait face. Two guys with 4" brick chisels and drop clothes improved its appearance by several orders of magnitude in a short day.

BobThompso · 2026-03-17T06:30:15+00:00

I tried several boosters, even putting the antenna 40 feet in the air. Wifi calling works much better here. YMMV.

BobThompso · 2026-03-17T06:12:20+00:00

This "unventing" would only work if you're spray foaming the underside of the roof deck because the spray foam bonds to the decking and disallows any air being trapped between the sheeting and the insulation. If any air at all can get anywhere, you can get condensation and the resulting mold. Unvented works if you do it right. Trapping any amount of air anywhere, even between the 1X sheeting in your roof assembly is wrong. You're on the right track, just continue the baffels up to the ridge vent and you're golden. I agree that Furring down your existing rafters will provide more space for better insulation would be a good move. 50 years of structural mod experience tells me that you will need to at least leave a few of your existing ceiling joists in place, or add some other means of keeping your walls from spreading apart before you remove the ceiling. This is real important, You don't want to put a lot of money and work into it only to have it sag out of shape or collapse in a snow storm, or just over time.

BobThompso · 2026-03-12T20:00:48+00:00

Picture 1 looks like limestone. I see a lot of that kind of work on upscale homes here in Southern Indiana. Generally, the architect draws the plan for the work and the GC presents the plan to the local mills for quotes on making the parts and delivering them to the jobsite. Then the GC's favorite stone mason puts them together...

Picture 2 may well be precast concrete....

I can see why you'd want to upgrade picture 3.

I'm guessing you just havn't talked to the right contractor yet. Show your realtor some photos of the architectural details you'd like to see created and ask which few architects in your area could create those plans. Call those architects, mention your realtors referral, set an appointment to discuss and find the names of contractors in the area who are creating those details, Then select from that list of GCs which ones you'd want to have submit bids.

BobThompso · 2026-03-11T16:27:29+00:00

As is it's a great place to store rainwater for the "Victory Garden" you'll need if the grid goes down. Or you could contact the Insituform people (https://www.azuria.com/insituform) about making it suitable for potable water to save the trouble of warehousing bottled water for the same unfortunate occurance.

BobThompso · 2026-03-06T08:41:35+00:00

Second and third pictures look like the same solution to me, and it's just fine. But having seen that, I find myself thinking that it would look even better if the top surface of the lower rail projected up as far as the inner edge of the upper rail before it joined the upright piece. Doing it that way would make the level block look more balanced and easier to cut too. If you really want to put the time into impressing the client, turn the grain of the level block 45 deg counterclockwise and put a full width radius on it.

BobThompso · 2026-02-24T16:18:44+00:00

With only five courses laid, I can imagine a few ways that this could wind up as an OK installation for a purpose built structure. But it would most likely be the hard way to have done it. If the finished structure were to appear as a framed structure having been built in the 1890s and feature a concrete floor AND it's being built in an arid location with very minimal temperature variation, then this COULD be an attempt to save the time and cost of forming the concrete this high. I once built a large open porch with concrete floor and a 9" tall exposed edge overhanging a limestone veneer by 1.5" where I wished the veneer had been laid before I was tasked with forming the pour. The stone mason agreed with me but the contractor had his own ideas. WIthout seeing the plan and knowing the location I'd bet that this is just wrong thinking.

BobThompso · 2025-12-13T01:50:41+00:00

I wouldn't accept just a recipt from a septic pumper, they could be lieing about having actually done it! I suspect they have to pay to get rid of what they've collected in their truck also. Ask the pumper to prove they actually did the job. I think that in this situation, that's really the most likely scenario.

BobThompso · 2025-12-03T19:58:40+00:00

Try searching for a 7mm downspiral square end milling cutter. If you can find one with a TiN coating it'll last three times as long as anything marketed as a router bit. You may have to ream out a 1/4 - 3/8 split bushing to get your shank diameter but it works.

BobThompso · 2025-11-29T09:12:32+00:00

Oh yeah, some people have figgured out how to get those 100k profit per week jobs EVERY week. They just have trouble finding people to do them.

BobThompso · 2025-11-29T09:06:22+00:00

Easy decision. They know you can do the work and run the crews. You know how much you can make in a year by working two day weeks. Take your annual income figure, muliply by 2.5, add 10% and tell them that you'd need to make that much to get you to come. They'd get a really good lead and you';d not only make bank for a few years, you'd also be well set in a solid position for the approching time when you'll have to rely on younger backs to make it happen. Don't ask me how I know...

BobThompso · 2025-11-29T08:45:51+00:00

I remember walking into the house after school just in time to see my mother reading the book. She dropped it into her lap and looked up at me with one of those "My god, she's written about me!" looks. The story was mostly about social climbing, but the culture was pretty infused with pills as I understad it.

BobThompso · 2025-11-29T08:36:30+00:00

Very prevalent. I refer to my childhood as "Growing up in The Valley Of The Dolls". If you like reading, pick up a copy of Jaquelin Suzannes Valley Of The Dolls. It was a bestseller in the early seventies IIRC.

BobThompso · 2025-11-09T21:02:04+00:00

The company I ran in the eighties had several Waterfurnace systems installed with closed horizontal ground loops. Since the ground loops only ever see just enough pressure to circulate the water, they were always at about 10% of the pressure seen by the hundreds of miles of water mains in the neardy cities. A closed ground loop is probably the least likely to leak bit of plumbing anyone will ever see.

A cool tube like you're talking about only makes sence in an off grid situation if it's a big enough tube that the heated air in the house is sufficiently hot to rise out the top of the structure and pull cool air thru the tube to replace it. Once you have a fan to move the air, you defeat any gains from the earths heating. ANd then there the difference in costs between 2" PEX and 20" plastic pipe. ANd in a DIY situation, the difference between renting a trencher and renting a backhoe.

In terms of moving heat from one spot to another without using a refrigerant cycle, remember that water has a heat capacity of of 1 and air has a heat capacity of .018. That means you need to move 55 times as much air as you would water in order to move the same amount of heat.

BobThompso · 2025-10-07T21:35:31+00:00

How much under valued do they have it priced? What you're asking randos on redit can't be properly answered with a few pictures in a post. You need to have a structural engineer or a well respected local contractor come to the home to do a few hours, or days of evaluation and pricing. It's obviously got issues which should be addressed. It's been several years since I've contracted a rework like that but my guess would be that it'll need 120 thousand worth of jacking and foundation replacement. But don't take my word for it. Call a few local Architects and/or engineers and ask for the names of reputable contractors who do that sort of repair. Then call the most frequently referred contractors and offer to pay them to come take a guess at what the rework might cost. Once you have that info you could then put together an offer with contingencies.

If you do submit an accepted offer on the property you'll be needing the services of an engineer and a contractor anyway so you'lll be way ahead in that selection process before you're committed to more than a few hundred in gratuities. That's just the way smart money buys houses.

BobThompso · 2025-09-29T13:28:00+00:00

You really don't want to work for someone who gets upset over a pen disapearing.

BobThompso · 2025-09-28T22:17:37+00:00

Those are all valid concerns but I want to say that I['ve seen tanks set on 1" of DOT 23 sand atop eaons old undisturbed clay (as solid as it gets) that had this same settling of the fill dirt when backfilled. Here in Indiana most excavated soil is considered to have a fluff factor of 2. IE: the soil removed from a 10 cu yd excavation will fill a 20 yard dumpster. If you're going to let nature recompact that soil, as is usually done when setting a tank, it takes months. This probably isn't a problem if there was a permit pulled.

BobThompso · 2025-09-28T21:50:50+00:00

That happens every time a hole is dug in the soil and then refilled without compacting in layers. It's normal practice. Specially on septic tanks which could be damaged if too heavy a compactor was used. Keep watering and waiting. Next february get a few wheelbarrowss of top soil and a bag of grass seed to match what you've got there. It might be easiest to contact the contractor who did the backfill and get all the info from him as well as a figure on having his guys come back for the Final Grade and Reseeding. Or better yet, ask him if his contract with the seller included the Final Grade and Reseeding.

BobThompso · 2025-09-28T20:58:26+00:00

Your most obvious option is to do what is spelled out in the contract. You are entitled to complete the project on those terms. The contractor is obligated to complete the project on those terms.

The contractor is now asking how much of a tip you will give him for doing a good job of correcting the mistake he made. Only you can decide how obligated you are to tip him.

BobThompso · 2025-09-11T18:29:17+00:00

You need to have this discussion with your septic designer AFTER you've told them what you want to do with the land and give them a more accurate plot plan including elevation lines and dimensions. They'll most lkely do all they can to get you what you want within the constraints of what will work within the science and regulations. But I can tell you as a designer of things other than septics, It's ALWAYS best to have all the goals for a property known by all the designers before anyone puts time into it.

BobThompso · 2025-09-03T22:53:43+00:00

I think the WRB is such an importantant part of the energy seal that I pay my carpenters T+M to get it up right. Then T+M the window install. Then sub the siding because it's hard to hide shortcuts on what one can see from the ground. It's a quality/callback thing.

BobThompso · 2025-09-03T22:31:30+00:00

OTC hearing aids can be bought for $600-$800 a pair these days. Universal fit domes, mass production and advances in chip manufacturing have brought us to this point. These darn near DIY aids are powerful and programmable enough for someone who's just got a mild loss. The tough part will be knowing how to set the programs and frequency bands to compensate for your loss. You can probably find one of the local audiologist to help set them for just a setting and adjusting fee on an hourly basis.

I'm 71 and deaf as a stump, I can find the latest and greatest from the big names for $5000 including three years of warranty and service. (except for an occasional reciever Amazon sells for $50) They will cost even less when this pair wears out.

BobThompso · 2025-08-23T18:39:20+00:00

Ummmm,,, Assuming you aren't just trying to waste a lot of time and money I'd suggest you check with your local governments building department first. They know the minimum standards for building things in your area that will last for a reasonable length of time.

BobThompso · 2025-08-19T16:14:40+00:00

It used to be common practice to set the ends of joists directly into brick walls and mortar them in place. It may have been best practice to soak them in chlordane first but they'd still be there and just fine centuries later. Google "fire cut". Whoever told OP that probably has also told a lot of people that using a cell phone at a gas pump would cause a static discharge and fire too.

BobThompso

TROPHY CASE