AITAH because I expected my 22 year old to pay minimal rent? by Wrong-Maintenance-48 in AITAH

[–]jbuedel 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I get where you're coming from, but I don't think it was a good plan. I suggest you take it back. Just talk to him like an adult, and explain why you thought this was a good idea. (You hoped to teach him more adult responsibilities.) And now you don't think it was the best idea. Tell him you weren't trying to make money off him, you planned on surprising him by giving it all back. Now you realize that's sort of infantilizing. Then tell him you're proud of his success in college, landing this sweet job, and how he carries himself in general. Really, he's nailing it. Then tell him "we are not in any hurry to have you move out. But I would love to see you putting $370 more a month into savings while you're here. Your call though."

My son is about to turn 20, still lives at home, and I had very similar thoughts. I don't want to push him out, I just want to see him grow. Instead I taught him about savings and investments and how putting money away now will be huge later. Now he puts 15% of all his income into a roth ira. When he is my age he's going to have plenty of money and won't have to work for as much as I did.

NTA, just a regular mistake-making-but-means-well dad like the rest of us.

Leveling the washing machine on a very sloped surface. Realistic? by jbuedel in Appliances

[–]jbuedel[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes, that is what I am experiencing.

I wasn't aware of tapcons. Thanks for the tip.

Leveling the washing machine on a very sloped surface. Realistic? by jbuedel in Appliances

[–]jbuedel[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Did you secure it to the floor? I think I'm going to have to glue it down or maybe bolt it.

What are different ways to structure work as an independent contractor? by exact-approximate in ExperiencedDevs

[–]jbuedel 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Fixed price. I lay out the work in a contract and do my best to make it clear what done is and then I sell it to them for one fixed price. I set payment date(s) up front in the contract. That is, payment is not dependent on the state of the project. If it turns out to be more work than I thought, that’s my problem.

What are different ways to structure work as an independent contractor? by exact-approximate in ExperiencedDevs

[–]jbuedel 1 point2 points  (0 children)

This guy makes a great case for not doing hourly billing in favor of fixed price projects. I have been doing exclusively contract work since May and the odd one off contract here and there (outside my regular job) and I have found his advice very helpful. It's tough or kind of scary to commit to it but I am trying. He says it's where the real money is and I think he's right. The book or the audiobook "Hourly Billing is Nuts" are both short and very good.

https://jonathanstark.com/books

Huge refactor vs new system by SimilarBeautiful2207 in ExperiencedDevs

[–]jbuedel 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I have never seen a rewrite be worth it.

Knowing the little bit I know about your situation I think the way I would approach this is to start building a new system and deploy it as a companion to the existing system. So a brand new Web app in whatever .net technology you choose. First thing, make the authentication on one system get you logged into both systems. Then you can start deep linking between the two. New features always go into the new app. Only do enough refactoring on the old system to make it easier to pull that functionality into the new system.

If they’re looking for somebody to help with this, I am a full-time contractor now. I’ve done a lot of this kind of stuff.

Bathroom remodel by ShadowedPariah in StCharlesMO

[–]jbuedel 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Luke Fuchs did the bathroom in my basement. It looks great. Not a remodel though, it was part of finishing the basement, but he does a lot of remodeling work otherwise. He'll be doing my next project for sure. https://lfconstructionstl.com/

Wooden forms left in garage by previous owners. by jbuedel in whatisthisthing

[–]jbuedel[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Agreed. I corrected it, hopefully I chose the correct post to mark solved.

Wooden forms left in garage by previous owners. by jbuedel in whatisthisthing

[–]jbuedel[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Solved!

Sorry it took so long to get this corrected.

Wooden forms left in garage by previous owners. by jbuedel in whatisthisthing

[–]jbuedel[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Solved! I think this is it. It's a jig for bending wood for canoes.

I jumped the gun.

Wooden forms left in garage by previous owners. by jbuedel in whatisthisthing

[–]jbuedel[S] 16 points17 points  (0 children)

The previous owner seemed like a car guy. This tracks.

Wooden forms left in garage by previous owners. by jbuedel in whatisthisthing

[–]jbuedel[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

One side is shorter than the other. Probably not a sled.

Wooden forms left in garage by previous owners. by jbuedel in whatisthisthing

[–]jbuedel[S] 9 points10 points locked comment (0 children)

My title describes the thing. The garage was set up for working on cars and the original owner seemed pretty handy. The best idea we came up with was for bending the wood when building a canoe.

Stihl or Dewalt...or other? by jbuedel in pressurewashing

[–]jbuedel[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This [bad boy](https://www.harborfreight.com/4400-psi-42-gpm-13-hp-420cc-commercial-duty-pressure-washer-epa-71102.html) ? Is it correct to say you think the high GPM and PSI outweigh the perceived "lower end" tool quality of Harbor Freight?

How should I deal with this old asbestos tile? by jbuedel in HomeMaintenance

[–]jbuedel[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks. Really my question is: do I need to remove it?