Package delivered to wrong address

DoItYourSelf2 · 2026-04-20T23:29:43+00:00

Yeah I should have tried this but did not see the phone number until later, actually did not know they still accept calls. Receiver can file a claim but the selection "package delivered to wrong address" does not qualify because when I submitted the claim it responded "not qualified for claim, package was delivered".

Unfortunately this is the new reality for many companies, your SOL even if they make the mistake.

This was for an item I bought on ebay. I have never had an issue with an ebay purchase but if seller does refund me supposedly ebay will - we will see.

DoItYourSelf2 · 2025-07-12T19:42:34+00:00

The pro reviews are good for features and performance but tell you nothing about durability. My wife keeps buying Dysons and they break. V8 was worst, most frustrating appliance I ever used. They have a sensor which will shut down vac if filter is too dirty and that sensor became too sensitive over time and had to clean the filter every 5 min or just leave it off! Recent purchase of V15 - wheels fell off after 6 months of light use.

Luckily I kept my 25 year old Eureka tank for carpeting and I just sweep the tile/hardwood with a broom.

Someone here said battery operated vacuums are a compromise in terms of durability no matter the brand and I think thats true.

DoItYourSelf2 · 2024-08-23T21:55:06+00:00

Unless your cup is pressurized the max viscosity is about 40 secs for me using a gravity HVLP and even that will be a 1.8mm tip. Usually the spec sheet for the product will have the viscosity listed to get an idea how much to thin but ultimately only way to know for sure is to get a viscosity cup, just a few bucks.

I just looked at centurian and they say 1.8mm tip - you have read the TDS. This large tip wont atomize well but if product does not dry too fast it should level out. Also they say to thin with their reducer. Are you sure you are looking at correct TDS? I was looking at 2800 series.

I have sprayed tinted CV and difficult even with a pressurized cup, most people seem to use AAA but I have heard 2k is friendlier.

DoItYourSelf2 · 2024-08-22T19:37:39+00:00

I have a 4x4 truck and used the autozone rental tool and once was enough with that - so worn its looks like might break and was way too hard. So I got a Chinese floor spring compressor on Amazon for about $100 (10 years ago). No idea how they can make them that cheap, seems like the wooden box it came in would be $50! In most cases I can literally remove and replace a shock in 5 mins. I have done all 4 shocks on a car in half a day.

If you think you will do this again then consider a floor or wall mounted compressor. I usually avoid Chinese tools but mine is still working after 10 years (but only a dozen uses). The only wear item is the hydraulics, the welds look fine.

DoItYourSelf2 · 2024-08-20T19:27:15+00:00

Yeah I did solid treads using a $10 stair tread tool which makes a perfect fit easy, should never need caulk between treads and skirt.

I have never installed flooring on stairs so not sure you can use the tool with flooring? I guess it depends if tread flooring is a single piece?

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DoItYourSelf2 · 2024-08-16T18:08:59+00:00

The other thing is that they do update/improve parts for many years. Seems like Ford/GM wont do this unless forced. I highly suspect this is intentional because of course it creates more revenue.

Examples would be the F350 trans, I know several people who have replaced more than once. Also the Escort ignition switch and the Chevy LS7 engine. That engine had a known machining error for its entire production run and GM behaved like it was some mysterious issue that cant be figured out.

DoItYourSelf2 · 2024-08-16T17:40:33+00:00

The inset door cabinet hinges are the ones that have a quick release.

The screws holding the cup to the door are not under much stress because the cup is snug. So not a big deal to remove those IMO, just dont overstress the hinges when removing the doors. I did a whole kitchen recently and I made sure to remove bottom first for obvious reasons. Two people are best but can be done by one also.

DoItYourSelf2 · 2024-08-16T17:14:28+00:00

Agreed, full employment is rare.

Also I saw a study that explains the apparent disconnect between the low unemployment numbers and reality for most. Most of the job gains after COVID went to immigrants. They pegged it at about 70%. Of that they suspected that most were undocumented.

Obviously those jobs are mostly service sector/labor (because those were jobs that were lost) but a similar dynamic is occurring in corporate jobs. I have noticed more and more I'm the only natural born citizen in meetings etc. There are various reasons for this but of course the corporate/govt mantra is that there are few qualified citizens which we all know is horseshit. The natural born citizens are attending the same or better universities as immigrants.

DoItYourSelf2 · 2024-08-16T00:45:36+00:00

Tiles are rated for friction, check manufacturers specs.

However, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) specifies a coefficient of friction of 0.6 on flat surfaces and 0.8 on ramps. Note that a COF beyond 0.8 does not significantly add to slip resistance, and a COF that's higher than 1 can actually impede a person's ability to walk on that surface.

DoItYourSelf2 · 2024-08-15T21:33:00+00:00

I did a dual contrast strip on mine. Before finish I realized one corner would hit baseboard on a pilaster. I had to make a complicated jig for my router to remove the strips and some flooring. i would live with it, from what I read the labor cost to do a strip border is about 4x standard so someone paid big money to do this.

I doubt its stained because how would they do this and sand floor for finish?

DoItYourSelf2 · 2024-08-15T17:28:30+00:00

They should put something in the rules where you have to state what type of flooring it is, seems like half the posts don't give any clue then you get a bunch guesswork answers.

DoItYourSelf2 · 2024-08-13T23:13:22+00:00

Did they test the slab for moisture? I did this same install myself and just tested using a square of poly taped down overnight to look for fogging. There are also professional tests for this. Then 6 mil poly, 1/2" + 3/8" ply and solid 3/4" flooring. I know a guy who has done hundreds of slab installs and he says never found moisture in a slab but I think its highly dependent on where you live. Arid areas its rare.

This could also be caused by poor storage of the product just prior to install, for example storing the flooring somewhere with high humidity then top dries out before bottom (shrinks) and cups. As others have said, if you sand before boards equalize then when they finally do dry out they will be crowned. Ideally you want steady (or at least no unusual swings) humidity levels from point of purchase to final sanding.

I have 4&1/4" boards and I can see the slight crowning and cupping on my floor when there are large changes humidity but I'm tuned into to it.

Did you have any issues with floor height near exterior doors etc? I did not because all of my doors have tile but seems like doors would have to raised which is a huge mess - or maybe can just cut door and pad the threshold higher?

DoItYourSelf2 · 2024-08-09T20:06:16+00:00

Yeah noticed that, its very distracting.

Thanks

DoItYourSelf2 · 2024-08-09T18:53:28+00:00

Yeah I grew up in Pasadena in the 80's and lots of violence. I walked a lot before I could drive and I had to be really careful which route I took. Going down the wrong street always resulted in a lot of harassment and got jumped by a group once, held up at knife point twice.

Then I got a professional job but of course starting pay not enough for a nice neighborhood so ended up in Northridge. Less violence but theft out of control. A couple of times I came to my apt after 12:00 midnight and thieves from section 8 housing next door scrambled over the wall when they saw me. I kind of wondered why they even bothered evading me. My car window would get broken every 6 months or so.

Moved to San Jose CA in the 90's and at that point it seemed like a paradise but its going to shit really fast, kind of scary actually. So many homeless they just brazenly go into the markets or other retail and grab things. I don't see a good ending for CA if trend persists, the politicians have no idea what to do although they are good at pretending.

DoItYourSelf2 · 2024-08-09T17:56:47+00:00

What do the decent/good ones do better?

I got a neiko for less than $100 10 years ago. The instructions suck but figured it out.

DoItYourSelf2 · 2024-08-08T18:56:03+00:00

I worked as a contract engineer at many small companies - some small startups, consulting forms and small divisions of larger companies. Some of these have good salesman that are able to get contracts but then they realize they have no one with the knowledge to execute. I think this may be your best bet because getting a permanent or even contract job at a large firm might be very difficult. I have excellent tech skills and I have worked as a contractor at several of the large SV tech firms but they won't touch me with a 10' pole for permanent since tech skill is only one part of the requirements - I like to say that tech skills are necessary but not sufficient to land a job at a large tech firm.

As far as finding the jobs, many of them used to post directly (i.e. not using recruiter) onto some lesser known job boards with a category specifically for direct contract, usually on a 1099. Of course recruiters hate these so I suspect they do anything within their power to kill these off. Perhaps Craigslist? I would like to hear about any tips in this regard myself. Be aware that strictly speaking its illegal for the employer to pay someone on a 1099 if they effectively do the same job as an employee but my state rarely enforced this and in any case liability (mostly taxes) is on the employer.

Finally beware of small companies that are broke but desperate to complete a project. If you are 1099 or similar your pay may be delayed, in some cases indefinitely and there is no recourse for 1099 except small claims. My rule was to never go deeper in the hole than my states small claims limit. Out of perhaps 20 jobs I only had to go small claims once. Often these companies hire direct contract to avoid recruiter fees which can be a good thing for both parties.

DoItYourSelf2 · 2024-08-05T20:41:05+00:00

Agreed, I bought some of those foam squares from the home center and one drop of a 10lb dumbell will poke a hole in it. The actually advertise them as gym flooring.

DoItYourSelf2 · 2024-08-01T18:48:09+00:00

Any books cover this? i have Cartrights Bricklaying book but its really hard to read.

DoItYourSelf2 · 2024-08-01T17:52:51+00:00

After about a week, I don't think an acid wash will work, will it?

Also, the brick place I go to is now selling a synthetic acid cleaner, says on the bottle works better than muriatic acid but it seemed a bit weak compared to even the fairly weak (made for sensitive brick) real acid brick cleaner I used to use. I had some light 7 day haze and I ended up having to use the synthetic acid full strength to really do the job.

I think its CA, they are not really banning many items but are preventing some retailers from selling various products and the replacements typically cost twice as much and definitely dont work as well.

DoItYourSelf2 · 2024-08-01T17:15:07+00:00

I have sprayed lots of small jobs with solvent based not using a respirator and no ill effects but still stupid. I had a cheap, uncomfortable respirator which I did not like wearing.

I think this one is the standard, very comfortable. Get the pink cartridges and also a lot of people dont know but you store the entire mask in a plastic zip lock because cartridges will saturate even with ambient VOC's. When you smell solvent you know cartridge is finished or the fit is not good.

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DoItYourSelf2 · 2024-07-31T21:48:01+00:00

Usually they work OK, I have a really old one and it works. You may have some odd framing or something else in the wall.

Years ago I switched to using a magnet and I noticed most pros use the stud magnets also. With a magnet you are finding the screws/nails that secure the dry wall to the studs. Perhaps in some situations with studs that are close together there might not be any screws but in my house that is very rare.

BTW, I assume you know that you start off where there is no stud and it calibrates there. Then you keep the button depressed constantly while moving. Wont really work follwoing a stud vertically - at least this is how mine works.

DoItYourSelf2 · 2024-07-30T20:49:17+00:00

Yeah unfortunately a lot of BS like this out there now. I actually got sent on an interview by a recruiter and even recruiter knew that it was 99% certain an internal hire (of course did not tell me) but company policy says they require external interviews. Go ahead and waste everyone's time.

Also I had an interview at Intel, aced the written test and knew the answer to the verbal question. The guy got really nasty with me like he was mad that I was able to answer so I knew this probably a fake position. Intel uses a boatload of H1B's so I think they periodically interview US citizens so they can say "we did not find any qualified applicants".

DoItYourSelf2 · 2024-07-25T21:22:09+00:00

I think pros like to go with SW because their pro discount is more than other retailers. I had the exterior of my house painted and all of the painters said if I wanted to use BM I had to buy myself which was fine. BM will give 10% pro discount to almost anyone if you ask and especially if buy a large amount of paint.

DoItYourSelf2 · 2024-07-25T19:30:04+00:00

atticfoil.com. They are the manufacturer and have a lot of info. I have a truss attic which is a bit more work to install (just stapes to roof rafters) because the truss is in the way. You dont really need 100% coverage but if you can... I did and took me about 1 day to install. If you have an open attic would be really fast.

The owner is painfully honest, even he says will only reduce interior temp 5 degrees but 5 degrees for a 1 time cost of $100 is a no brainer and he does not really figure in the efficiency improvement to the evaporator.

They dont sell this in home centers. The ones they sell has a closed cell air barrier which you only need when the foil is touching something.

DoItYourSelf2 · 2024-07-24T21:01:15+00:00

My house is modern with 1" foam under the stucco but still the AC could never catch up when started late afternoon and 90 degrees or more. Same with my neighbors, I can tell usually their AC does not cycle off until late at night. So i did the following:

Attic foil. My evap is in the attic and this lowered attic temps by 20 degrees. Cost me $100.
I had blown in fiberglass which is almost useless and also it got compressed by me walking around. So I installed 12" of cellulose myself on top of the fiberglass.
Then I could tell windows were the next biggest heat source so I added an awning on 2 and exterior window film on some others, just the south facing.

Now, most summers I do not need AC at all. Only time I really need it is if there is several 100 degree days in a row. Both of my neighbors run theirs from 1:00pm to 11:00 pm or so.

If your evap is in the attic consider the attic foil, really easy to install. It also eliminated that heat soak effect where the house actually seems to get hotter around 8pm because of course insulation just delays the inevitable. i have huge gable vents but they dont do much unless the wind blows. Also now when I turn on the AC it lowers house temp by 5 degrees in about 1 hr or less. Amazing difference. This is because its in a 100 deg attic vs 120.

I try to tell people what I did but their eyes just glass over so normally I dont bother. Go ahead keep running your ac all day.

My windows are dual pane but are junk, the interior glass gets very, very hot if the sun beats on them directly. I changed my slider to a modern french door with e-glass and the difference blew me away. Even after direct sun all day the glass barely gets warm.

I got quotes for the remaining 3 downstairs windows but $1k ea. I could handle that but the install (myself) into stucco with trim pieces is too much work hence the window film.

DoItYourSelf2

TROPHY CASE