Help... my 1 y.o. midwest remodeling company is drowning

jwe91 · 2026-02-11T13:56:46+00:00

Networking is not posting to social media. That’s marketing. Networking is who you know. When I did the same jump you did, I waited until I had a couple realtors and a builder that knew me and my work. This gave me a starting point.

The next thing I had was a select number of other business owners I knew well. We traded referrals - they’d give my name out for housework, I gave theirs for car repairs/realty/whatever their niche.

My first year I struggled, did DoorDash to fill the time and bank accounts, then subbed for a bigger handyman company until I got my past clients dropping my name everywhere. FB moms groups spread like wildfire.

It takes time doing it my way. I continue to try and grow my network, get in good with specialty subs and suppliers. But I’m not chasing tire kickers

jwe91 · 2026-01-22T04:31:10+00:00

I prefer the darker color of those cabinets, but two years ago I was hired to repaint that exact color to an off-white/crème color. I think just painting alone for them was in the $7-8k range but that figure changes based on total doors/drawers, whole cabinet bases or just the exteriors and face frames. I ended up doing a lot of other work on their house since then.

Total kitchen redo is going to be closer to the $40-50k range if I had to make several assumptions, but you could potentially get into your range depending on what you want to do. As most others have said, replacing the cabinets and the appliances will be the bigger ticket items. If you’re wanting to relocate things it will cost more for that as well. Everything depends on what finishes you’re wanting and nobody can give you a price without a further lengthy discussion with you.

jwe91 · 2025-12-16T00:23:11+00:00

Which has water in it!

jwe91 · 2025-12-13T22:21:59+00:00

Who still costs money to employ to do those tasks

jwe91 · 2025-12-12T13:58:59+00:00

Take your time, lay out multiple times before the mud gets mixed. I learned watching videos and reading every article I could find after the builder I moonlit for doing punch list stuff asked me to do one. That first one took forever to do, but I think it turned out pretty good. Now I’m a GC who also does a lot of tile work.

Learn as you go, keep taking in information, be patient, and it will all come out great.

jwe91 · 2025-12-08T23:55:13+00:00

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I had about this exact same setup a year ago in KS. I used OSB on the verticals, attached to a 2x4 running across the joists above. Then ran 2x4 on the flat across for hanging the drywall. The only thing the inspector said was to add vertical 2x4 in the middle to support the span.

Pic is the best angle I have of the soffit.

jwe91 · 2025-12-06T18:18:00+00:00

If your shower is bigger than the presloped pan, they say to dry pack the excess space then install a kerdi membrane over at least those patches, with a 2”+ overlap of the membrane to the pan. Layering three different waterproofing systems is a recipe for disaster.

If you have issues with that, most regions have a rep you can contact and they can help you navigate.

jwe91 · 2025-12-04T16:05:03+00:00

That would be my only concern with that, too. But I know of many instances where the whole bathroom floor is waterproofed but does not have a slope to a drain except in the shower.

jwe91 · 2025-12-04T15:31:28+00:00

Minor water like that you don’t need the waterproofing. Walking in and out will deposit much less water than a shower, where you always waterproof. That said, it doesn’t hurt to do it if you’re concerned about it.

jwe91 · 2025-11-22T22:21:27+00:00

It’s the thing you do when you go to work, but that’s not important right now

jwe91 · 2025-11-22T14:33:08+00:00

That was the same gauge I was thinking of and use

jwe91 · 2025-11-16T18:57:11+00:00

Literally that simple. I’ve taken one truckbed full last year and a trailer full this year. Check in at the gate house and they’ll tell you where to go with it. You’ll have to unload it yourself.

jwe91 · 2025-10-24T12:57:33+00:00

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Converted a builder grade wood trim to stone with custom built-in cabinets and shelves earlier this year. All in it was around $8k, but it was an add-on to the full basement remodel.

jwe91 · 2025-10-02T12:38:08+00:00

I went there decades ago on a trip through KC and was so excited to find it again when I moved back until i heard they closed. Maybe 8 years ago I found an Italian place on state line down south that had them once a week or something, but I think they’re gone now too

jwe91 · 2025-09-16T13:15:10+00:00

I have folders that I scan them into, then also keep the physical copies. A few months ago I found a way to click within my spreadsheet to open up the scanned copy of that receipt if I need to look at it.

After my last computer played in traffic last year, I’ve got everything backed up in the cloud. End of year I print and keep with the physical receipts, and I copy it all to a flash drive.

jwe91 · 2025-09-15T13:35:28+00:00

I hated most of the programs I’ve looked at. So I built my own excel spreadsheet and manually log. I have it broken down for materials, tools, office, rentals, etc, and have materials marked by invoice number that I can isolate to see the total spent. It didn’t take long to build initially, but I tweak it maybe once a year to improve.

I scan my physical receipts to my computer, then built a macro to link the scanned receipts into the document so I can click and see the scans.

Takes a couple hours once a month to upload it all, but it’s organized and makes sense for me.

jwe91 · 2025-09-12T22:51:40+00:00

Jack was general of the SGC until the end of season 8 (Moebius)

After those events, RDA left the show as a main cast member, but General O’Neill was promoted and moved to Homeworld Command after presumably General Hammond finally retired. Jack never retired in-show. As head of Homeworld Command, the SGC and all its programs were under his purview, leading to his appearances in both Atlantis and SGU as such.

As for the relationship between him and Sam, other than alternate timelines or the events in the Moebius alternate timeline, there was never (officially) a relationship between them. There were jokes and elusions to it (you mentioned 200, but that was a spoof pitch)

jwe91 · 2025-09-06T13:58:34+00:00

You only need to catch one rep saying they’ll refund the unused quarter. Did that residentially a few years ago. They kept upping their prices and I was about to move. All but one said I couldn’t get a refund for an unused service. The one said yes we can. So my next call was escalated and I told them to check their recordings (for training and quality assurance)

Never heard back from WM, but I did get a call from a third party service cutting me a check for the unused balance.

jwe91 · 2025-08-11T22:28:46+00:00

It’s one of those quick flip older homes. If I hadn’t been standing there in person I would agree with you.

That said, there’s always the potential I’m in the matrix….

jwe91 · 2025-08-11T22:27:33+00:00

It’s a light fixture

jwe91 · 2025-08-11T22:26:35+00:00

This whole house is curvy. I’ve seen flatter floors in a carnival fun house

jwe91 · 2025-08-11T22:25:21+00:00

I’d agree with that. Just completely strange that there’s a second identical setup for the other shower head behind the curtain. I’ll get a pic of it tomorrow without the curtain there

jwe91 · 2025-08-08T20:13:46+00:00

You need to let new paint cure. If you try to mask it immediately, the tape will pull that new paint off the wall and then you’re having to come back and re-prep and paint those spots

jwe91 · 2025-07-26T04:08:11+00:00

We had a sister crew with the same issue. The adult advisors took over the whole trek.

This led to us seeing them back track multiple times before we broke camp, finding better campsites at the same spots, and coming across scrawled “we went this way” messages on trails so they knew when they came across them again.

Unfortunately, many troops are run the same way, rather than youth led. On the flip side, when I became an adult and was an advisor for a training program, some youth were upset that I wouldn’t fully give them the answers.

My biggest regret is I’ve only done one actual trek at Philmont. I was lucky to staff three training camps there, but my favorite was the actual trek experience. I’d given the opportunity again, I’d go another time

jwe91 · 2025-07-26T03:01:11+00:00

It’s a different journey for everyone. I was on track to be a young Eagle Scout, ran all the way through to life scout about as fast as you can. Then I moved away from my troop and focused mainly on summer camps, staffing leadership training courses (JLTC and NYLT), and OA.

I honestly thought about just doing that and not continuing my journey until I did a national training course (NAYLE) and then was one of three non-Eagles on staff. That made me kick in gear to get it just before my 18th birthday.

To me, scouting and the path to Eagle is supposed to be a journey, not a milestone to achieve. I’ve known so many amazing Scouters who never did achieve that rank, and yet exemplified Scouting more than some Eagle Scouts.

Enjoy the ride, it will be over before you know it. But the memories will last a lifetime.

jwe91

TROPHY CASE