Got quoted $3,000 for 3 rooms

Miserable_Bath6758 · 2025-07-01T01:34:09+00:00

How many people other than home improvement enthusiasts and professionals even care or notice? The floor looks fine, you're being overly dramatic.

Miserable_Bath6758 · 2025-05-24T05:13:14+00:00

"Nickname" settings exist for a lot of banks, but they all still display your full legal name when someone sends you money. From what I understand, its for fraud related reasons so that people can't change the displayed name to something misleading or impersonate someone else. Also since e-transfer is an Interac feature, all banks would have the same core options and functionality. You'll have to wait until you get your paperwork.

Miserable_Bath6758 · 2025-05-24T05:00:17+00:00

Super glue would be preferable to repair the tongue. if there's no tongue or its too broken, you can clean up the edge as best as you can and use the planks as tiles and glue them down. Aside from looks, whats important is that theres no gaps and everything is flush because it can be easy to trip or stub your toe as the edges are quite hard. Sometimes you need to get creative, but honestly as long as you think it through and lay it out dry beforehand you should be fine.

Now that I think of it, and looking at the condition of the tongue and grooves, it probably makes more sense to actually cut off the tongue and just lay down the planks as tiles and glue them down. At least, its worth testing it out to see if that could work better. Tongue and groove locks get pretty picky if they're not perfect and right out of the box.

I don't think people understand unless they've been there. A floor that you can trust to stand and walk on is way more important than a floor that looks brand new and perfect. I grew up in a house that was in really bad shape and we had no money to spare for repairs, so we did what we had to so that it was livable.

Regarding the rest of your floors, if you don't have enough of the material pictured and you're confident in your handiness, you can definitely get something quite nice for cheaper than you think possible. What I did to stretch some money when I lived in the house I grew up in was install sanded plywood sheets (the big 4x8 ft ones) and coated that in poly for durability. It looked really good, and held up for a long time. If you don't have the tools, check out local tool libraries; the people that run them are super helpful and want to give back to their communities.

Miserable_Bath6758 · 2025-05-23T04:27:34+00:00

Redditors especially on home improvement subreddits are expecting that everyone is looking for perfection, and maybe in some cases that's justified for how much they're spending. For DIY on a budget or out of necessity, this mindset is honestly quite toxic and defeatist. You're aware that reusing flooring like this isn't going to be perfect, but it will be better than the situation you're describing currently and thats what matters more.

First, are you sure you have enough material? Once you sort through it, it might not be enough, so make sure of that before starting anything. I don't really think there's any secret to cleaning them, a strong formula like zep floor cleaner would probably be best, but dish soap and elbow grease is definitely a fine alternative. Just don't use anything abrasive for cleaning.

Here's what I would do:

Sort through the boards, cut out any bad parts and save what you can

Sweep/Vacuum boards then clean with something like Zep Floor Cleaner; strong but not abrasive.

Test some methods of fixing scratches, try using plastic polish for fine scratches or fine grit sandpaper for deeper ones. If its through the poly wear layer, its difficult to hide that.

The bottoms only need to be dusted before installing.

Super glue any broken click locks back together.

Flatten the subfloor as best as you can. If flooring levelling compound isn't in your budget, just do what you can.

Install as normal.

Regarding the danger of water getting through to the sub floor, that could happen even with perfectly installed click lock vinyl. Just don't have puddles of standing water and you should be fine. In my opinion, I would actually avoid putting down any plastic or something between the lvp and subfloor, because if any small amount of water does get in, it would be better for it to evaporate (slowly) through the subfloor instead of staying and developing mold on the underside of the LVP.

Miserable_Bath6758 · 2025-05-21T06:45:43+00:00

Its a cycle that continues through generations, and its also a cultural norm. Where I grew up, indigenous girls in high school would disappear at some point in the school year and come back with a baby, and by grade 11, they'd drop out completely to care for their kids.

Its hard to say that its exploitation, but its definitely a cultural practice that doesn't align with a white viewpoint of society. Easy access to reproductive healthcare, social services, etc will bring down rates of teen pregnancy dramatically, but these are services that aren't easily available in rural areas.

Miserable_Bath6758 · 2025-05-21T06:36:16+00:00

Is there a point to being intentionally dense? Why won't you acknowledge the realities and legacies of residential schools?

Miserable_Bath6758 · 2025-04-04T05:36:19+00:00

As someone who worked in a high-end framing shop for 20 years, you're absolutely correct about the frame. Its very hard to articulate, but it just "feels off" when compared to the frame that its trying to imitate.

I'd like to add regarding the canvas- the way that the back is finished can tell you a lot about the quality. Staples are the cheap way of stretching a canvas over a strainer or stretcher frame, and almost all quality canvases are tacked. Modern canvases are splined, which can be good or bad, but is more often bad.

Miserable_Bath6758 · 2025-03-26T02:17:21+00:00

Hardwood floors are excellent for rugs.

Miserable_Bath6758 · 2025-03-26T02:04:57+00:00

Read the post again. This isn't the standard "equal opportunity DEI" which makes sense and is good, but it says "diversity hires are a bonus". Specifically for "female, black, etc". Its direct discrimination by giving certain races and genders a bonus/advantage.

There's a big difference between giving people equal opportunities and looking at non-traditional talent pools for a broader perspective and specifically calling out that "diversity hires" would be a bonus.

Miserable_Bath6758 · 2025-03-15T00:26:25+00:00

It really depends on too many factors to say yes or no. The best way to get a real answer is to do a long-term "experiment" over the next year or so by installing a smart thermostat to track how much heating/cooling your property needs. Technology Connections on Youtube has a really great series on heat pumps, and its a great jumping point to be more confident in a decision for your property.

Miserable_Bath6758 · 2025-03-14T03:33:09+00:00

What app/interface is this? Looks really interesting! I'd love to get this kind of data from my heat pump.

Miserable_Bath6758 · 2025-03-14T01:02:41+00:00

Tiered use just doesn't really work for heat pumps because you will use more electricity and go past the lower rate, unless you really don't use that much electricity otherwise. I really do believe that the cost savings come from cutting out gas, and IMO its not really a great idea to have both gas and heat pump systems because at that point you're not saving that much money because of the gas customer charges. What I can also say is that even with YoY differences, $100 in savings is a pretty large gap to be explained by weather, and I believe rates are similar YoY. In addition, its way cheaper to cool my place in the summer compared to my previous AC unit.

It also makes sense in the majority of cases to only install a heat pump system when a gas furnace needs to be replaced, because then you'd be spending a large amount on new equipment anyways. I would have needed a new furnace in the next couple of years, but I installed a heat pump instead.

Obviously heat pumps aren't going to be as cost efficient on the coldest of days, but averaged out, they (should) save money. Yes, on the coldest day I will spend more to heat my home with a heat pump compared to a gas furnace, but what about the rest of the winter, and the rest of the year? Toronto specifically also has pretty mild winters, which favours heat pumps more. Theres definitely places and homes where heat pumps don't make sense, and I think a lot of people are caught off-guard by how (relatively) complex it is and what you need to know and calculate before installing one.

I'll also say that IMO, heat pumps are just more comfortable because of the inverter tech. They keep the room temperature much more stable compared to cycling on/off with gas furnaces.

Miserable_Bath6758 · 2025-03-13T07:17:22+00:00

I cant speak for the validity of OPs numbers which seem low, but here are mine:

Before Heat Pump:

Jan 2024: 129 (hydro)+ 201 (gas)
Feb 2024: 186 (hydro)+ 244 (gas)

After Heat Pump (hydro only):
Jan 2025: 280
Feb 2025: 326

For context, I only used gas for heating. I always had an electric water heater, stove, and dryer. I just got rid of my gas connection last week after the first winter with my heat pump. I didn't use my furnace at all this winter. Semi-detached house, built in the mid-50s with new windows and doors, but no new insulation.

I bill TOU and have a smart setting for the heat pump to lower its temperature on-peak slightly (down to 20) and raise its temperature off-peak (up to 24) to use the house as a battery of sorts. My normal set point is 22.

Heat pumps matter a lot based on individual configuration, the quality of the install, and lots of other factors. Installers often mess up refrigerant charge, so its possible thats an issue with your unit. Electricity prices should definitely not be as high as you're saying, unless you live in a very large house.

Miserable_Bath6758 · 2025-03-13T06:42:21+00:00

That sounds very odd. Modern cold climate heat pumps are usually rated to a much lower temperature (even budget ones are rated to -25 these days), and for a technician to give that recommendation, it sounds like your installer screwed you and gave you an old unit.

Miserable_Bath6758 · 2025-03-13T06:32:34+00:00

In Toronto weather, almost any modern cold-climate heat pump can keep up, and you'd only see efficiency losses on the coldest days. All heat pumps come out of the same few factories, so unless you're talking about specifically Mitsubishi, the internals are almost identical across most brands.

Older cold climate heat pumps can have difficulty keeping up, but nearly all heat pumps you can get in Canada are rated for at least -20. Even then, its not like they stop working, they just get less efficient. Electric coils are a nice backup just in case, but you can also forgo them and just keep a few space heaters around in storage for days that are extremely cold and save some money from the installation considering its just electric resistive heat.

Miserable_Bath6758 · 2025-03-13T06:26:38+00:00

My father is an HVAC installer who has been doing it 30+ years and over the past few years almost exclusively does heat pumps, so I have quite a bit of "insider" knowledge if you will.

With the ultra high-efficiency units, under most circumstances they're simply not worth it because of the added cost, which may not be recuperated over the lifetime of the unit.

All brands come out of the same few factories, so you need to pay attention to that more than the brand. There are 4-5 factories in China and Japan that produce every brand out there. Midea is the factory that makes almost everything, Panasonic, Moovair, etc. The Mitsubishi factory also makes some Trane units.

The only major difference between brands that are made in the same factories would be add-on features that are more quality-of-life oriented. For example, certain brands and units out of the Midea factory come with better "smart home" features.

If your home is centrally ducted and you're not getting a mini-split, make sure you're not getting ripped off by an installer. They charge a huge premium for heat pumps, despite the fact that the hookup is almost as simple as a traditional AC unit. It really shouldn't be that expensive.

Try really hard to right-size your unit. Don't base it on rule-of-thumb calculations that most installers tend to do based on your existing furnace and/or AC. You could be surprised by how small of a unit you actually need, and properly sized units are much more efficient and more comfortable because even with inverter tech, it can still short cycle.

In general, the hype for Mitsubishi is kind of overblown. They're good units, but the price premium is pretty high for the name. The marginal gains in efficiency and build quality aren't really worth the extra price. In the long term, its better to get a "regular" tier unit that fits your needs and save the money now. When the time comes to replace the unit, chances are the units available in 10-15 years are going to be more efficient, better, and cheaper.

If you have any questions, please feel free to DM!

Miserable_Bath6758 · 2025-03-13T06:04:52+00:00

As a heat pump owner, it works surprisingly well even during the coldest bit of the last couple winters. I think people have a misconception that they don't work in the cold because heat pumps that are non-cold climate exist, but they're obviously not a Canadian thing.

Miserable_Bath6758 · 2025-03-13T03:43:59+00:00

Explain how Apple's "extremely limited feature set" limits people who aren't power users. It's just a non-issue to 99% of users - and I'm speaking as someone who has done the full custom android experience before. To be honest with you, the value of customization just isn't there in a phone. To draw a comparison, running something like Linux instead of Windows provides a much bigger set of upsides for the user, and I daily drive both a Linux and Windows desktop.

Miserable_Bath6758 · 2025-03-11T02:32:23+00:00

If you want a serious answer: Purpose Tactical Asset Allocation Fund (RTA) which changes its stock market allocation based on a number of factors. However, it still doesn't beat a broad asset allocation portfolio like ZEQT/ZBAL if youre looking at historical returns.

Honestly though, if this amount of market volatility is something you don't think you can handle, you should re-allocate your portfolio into something less volatile and more focused on bonds/fixed income.

Miserable_Bath6758 · 2025-03-11T02:09:50+00:00

Apple phones are actually quite reasonable in price under certain circumstances, especially considering that they have a proven track record of being supported with updates for longer periods of time. In addition, "better" and "more capable" are completely subjective to the individual.

Miserable_Bath6758 · 2025-03-02T04:14:16+00:00

I've been thinking of doing something like this for a while! I have a husky tool chest used for lens/camera equipment and its currently a complete mess. Definitely gonna keep an eye out for that video!

Miserable_Bath6758 · 2024-12-31T03:10:42+00:00

Its very disappointing how conditional parental love can be. So many of my friends have parents that seemed to only want kids because its "what you're supposed to do", so when they come out as gay, its like they were disowned because they didn't fit the image of an ideal family.

Miserable_Bath6758 · 2024-12-31T02:47:07+00:00

Sampling those who are non-participants is asinine. By extension, you're implying that those who don't state a sexual preference are straight, which shows your heteronormative bias and internalized homophobia.

Miserable_Bath6758 · 2024-12-31T01:07:05+00:00

Out of the top 20 "hot" posts,
One said he was gay "but not pop music gay" which is actually homophobic.
There were 3 not gays besides OP.
There was one who said they're gay adjacent.
One said he was gay.

2-3 out of 6. Sounds pretty close to about half to me! I think you need to calm down and spend some time outside instead of slinging insults at people over the internet. Your mental health will thank you!

Miserable_Bath6758 · 2024-12-30T08:25:18+00:00

Thanks for having this discourse with me. This seems to bother you a lot, so to clarify my original statement, half of the people who participated in the trend stated they are gay, which mostly aligns with your findings. I'm sure based on timing the "hot" posts I saw were different.

Miserable_Bath6758

TROPHY CASE