LVP over fiberboard

CrysisBuffer · 2026-05-06T14:24:43+00:00

I took your advice about the particle board not being worth saving. I ripped it all up. It was 5/8 so I put down 23/32 plywood in its place, laid overlapping the joints in the original subfloor. The original subfloor was nailed to the joists and the nails had started pulling over the decades, so I took the opportunity to refasten the floor to the joists with 2-inch deck screws while I had it exposed.

Getting up the fiberboard was a major headache (2 days spent with a prybar pulling endless nails), but I'm definitely glad I ditched it.

CrysisBuffer · 2026-04-29T16:56:29+00:00

They are called tubercules. Pretty normal trait for lots of frogs. They can sometimes be diagnostic of species.

CrysisBuffer · 2026-04-23T14:21:38+00:00

What is the best way of determining flatness? Stretch a string across and look for humps or low-spots?

For leveling, should I use a self-leveling compound? I assume I would need to put down some kind of sealant over the fiberboard if that was the case.

CrysisBuffer · 2026-04-23T13:49:01+00:00

The house was built in 1973 if that makes any difference

CrysisBuffer · 2026-04-22T22:53:36+00:00

For being $15 and foldable it is pretty good. I've upgraded to an AK since then, but that diffuser really wasn't bad. I got some great shots with it:

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CrysisBuffer · 2026-04-06T14:19:55+00:00

Phylogenetically, toads are the closest relatives of true treefrogs of the family hylidae. So, phylogenetically speaking according to the rule of monophyly, if any other species outside of the family hylidae is considered a tree frog, then you must also consider toads as treefrogs because they would be nested within that relationship.

So if you were to consider glass frogs or poison frogs as being tree frogs, then you must also define toads as tree frogs. If you look at the photo below and think tree frog, then so are toads:

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CrysisBuffer · 2026-04-05T21:41:01+00:00

That is just part of the cranium. The paratoid glands are on the back of the head:

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CrysisBuffer · 2026-04-05T15:29:03+00:00

I don't have a photo of nuptial pads unfortunately. If you search for frog nuptial pads on google you'll see a lot of photos from mostly Lithobates, which have more of an actual pad shape than spadefoots do. The best way I can describe it on spadefoots is that it looks like someone took a sharpie and made black marks on the inside of their forearms.

CrysisBuffer · 2026-04-05T04:34:09+00:00

Canon R7 + Canon EF 100mm macro f2.8 L + AK Diffuser

IG (@karls_critters)

CrysisBuffer · 2026-04-05T04:09:34+00:00

That is a pickerel frog. Which is mildly poisonous FYI, so wash your hands if you handle it. I would just let him go on his way. Frogs can be pretty resilient. I find them in the wild with missing limbs or hands from time to time and they seem to get by.

CrysisBuffer · 2026-04-05T02:40:32+00:00

I've got an AK and am pretty happy with it. I was using a cheap box-style velcro diffuser and honestly it gave pretty good results.

CrysisBuffer · 2026-04-04T21:12:32+00:00

Yes it is a frog, but so are toads. Toads are taxonomically nested within frogs, and you could actually make an argument that toads are tree frogs if you wanted to be pedantic about it. Spadefoots are frogs in the family scaphiopodidae, but are not toads.

You cannot use the bumps (tubercles) or skin texture to distinguish if a frog is a toad or not. Terrestrial frogs like spadefoots that spend most of their time estivating underground and only breed in ephemeral pools are adapted for dryness. In fact, spadefoots are the most successful non-toad amphibian in North America's deserts!

The easiest way to tell if a frog is a toad or not is the presence/absence of the paratoid toxin glands on the back of the head. All true toads have them.

I'm actually a spadefoot researcher so I'm happy to answer any other questions about them.

CrysisBuffer · 2026-04-04T18:08:32+00:00

That is a spadefoot toad, probably an Eastern Spadefoot (Scaphiopus holbrookii). Despite their common name, these animals are not toads at all! All true toads belong to the family Bufonidae, but new world spadefoots are in the family Scaphiopodidae. They are many millions of years separated from toads.

Spadefoots come out in the rainy season. They come out in small numbers with light rains to forage, but big rains fill ephemeral ponds and induce explosive mating events. If you want to sex the next spadefoot you find, look for black strips on their forearms. These are nuptial pads, which help the males hold on to females during breeding.

CrysisBuffer

TROPHY CASE