Official Pit Home Improvement/DIY thread

[2&2 Slider To Leyritz]

Good luck. Best advice I have is to buy a breaker bar, which I had never heard of but is basically a 5-foot long weighted iron spike (like a javelin). That river rock is all over the place, so when I got to roots or rocks that the post-hole digger couldn't get through I would just have to repeatedly fire the breaker bar into the ground until it chipped away whatever was blocking me. You could try to use a power digger I guess, but I was too worried of losing control of one of those one the hill so ended up doing it all by hand.

ETA: also given your set-up something you may want to try: not sure if you can see it in my last pic, but just to the left of the dock piling is a white pipe that I have running down into the water. That goes up to a 5 HP pump under the lower deck, which I trenched up the hill and hooked into my irrigation system. Free water for the lawn all year round FTW.

[tsywake]

Is it gas or electric? I've got an electric pump I put in the river a couple years ago, but it has to push ~100' up the hill so I didn't have a lot of pressure. I think I'm going to have to try and reconfigure it.

[2&2 Slider To Leyritz]

It is electric. It has about the same 100' hill, and I haven't had a problem with pressure. I've got a panel right next to it wired with 220 (you can see the edge of it in the picture) that the pump is hardwired to, so that might be the extra needed juice.

[tsywake]

I'm pretty sure my issue is with power. I've run 150' of extension cord down there to it, so I'm sure I'm getting quite a bit of loss there. I intend on lighting the steps so I can just eventually add another circuit.

[silk]

I am impressed TWD. My brother-in-law can do stuff similar. Takes him forever tho and cost quite a bit to get him going since he is Bud Light powered.

[silk]

OOps I mean 2&2. lol

[TWDeac]

Seriously considering installing my own semi-custom cabinets.

[tsywake]

They're really not that difficult to install. Just make sure you have someone there who can help you hold them up while you screw them in. Also, it would be a good idea to have a 4ft level.

[leftcoastdeac]

Ah, good timing on this thread. Next week I should be able to start working on a coffee table I've been meaning to build for a while now. I've got all the materials and plans together, just have to start making cuts.

This project will be the first one that will allow me to use my nail gun.

[TWDeac]

They're really not that difficult to install. Just make sure you have someone there who can help you hold them up while you screw them in. Also, it would be a good idea to have a 4ft level.

Yeah, my girlfriends dad has all the tools I could ever need and he is very handy. Leveling them to the floor and the wall is the only real difficult part, but that can be handled by being careful with shimming and having a bunch of levels.

I do worry about the overall finish. Obviously, cabinet installers know the ins and the outs of how to make things look top-notch.

[TWDeac]

I wish it wasn't so hard to get some quotes on semi-custom stuff. Cabinet dealers are the fucking worst. I don't want to have to talk to someone when I have the dimensions and I know what I need.

[iodeac]

Laying hardwood really isnt that difficult. You just need a floor nailer, and make sure you start it straight. I think I spent $7000 total to put down bamboo hardwoods in my entire house.

Tile really isnt difficult. Just make sure you put down cement board, and assuming you arent doing intricate cuts, get a tile snap. I've got all the trowels and mixers and floats still that you are welcome to borrow if/when you decide to tile.


eta - my mom did a lot of the tiling in my house while we were putting down the hardwoods. If she can do it without royally screwing it up, anyone can.

We are probably going to start looking into tile this weekend and getting ready for that project. Is there a difference between ceramic or porceain? Also, how would we go about cutting around the toilet, sink, etc. What's a tile snap? I'm basically starting from scratch on this project as far as knowing what tools I need or how to start. Also, do we need a special saw to cut the tile? Thanks!

[dot com]

I got the cheapest water tile saw from Home Depot when I did my bathrooms, it's just a basin of water under the saw, no pump, and I feel it was better than the more expensive ones, there was hardly any mess and it worked like a dream.
Cutting for around the round sewer pipe can be annoying, but I just made jagged cuts with the tile saw and then finished it circular with the hand tile-cutting pliers.
Keep in mind you want to remove the sink/toilet and not just tile up to its edge.

[tsywake]

We are probably going to start looking into tile this weekend and getting ready for that project. Is there a difference between ceramic or porceain? Also, how would we go about cutting around the toilet, sink, etc. What's a tile snap? I'm basically starting from scratch on this project as far as knowing what tools I need or how to start. Also, do we need a special saw to cut the tile? Thanks!

This is the tile snap, and its used for straight line cuts. I'll try to remember to bring the floats and trowels to the Spring Game.

but I just made jagged cuts with the tile saw and then finished it circular with the hand tile-cutting pliers.

This is what dot com is talking about. They're great for smaller cuts.


I ended up buying a dry tile saw on Amazon. It was cheap and broke not long after I finished using it, but it did the job well. It just created a lot of dust.

[tsywake]

Here's a pretty good explanation of porcelain vs ceramic. http://www.thetileguy.com/ceramic1.html

[RollTheQuad06]

I'm realizing now that when I get my floors refinished, I'll have the option to stain them if I want. For whatever reason, this had not occurred to me. Now I need to decide if I want to, and if so what color.

I think a rich dark wood would look really luxe and nice, but would show scratches more easily. My current living room furniture mostly tends toward dark colors (aside from some white bookshelves) and I think when I get a new bedroom set it will also be darker wood. Not sure if it would look too dark with dark floors and furniture, or if light walls would balance that out. Or if the dark floors would make the space look too small. Ack to more decisions!

[iodeac]

I got the cheapest water tile saw from Home Depot when I did my bathrooms, it's just a basin of water under the saw, no pump, and I feel it was better than the more expensive ones, there was hardly any mess and it worked like a dream.
Cutting for around the round sewer pipe can be annoying, but I just made jagged cuts with the tile saw and then finished it circular with the hand tile-cutting pliers.
Keep in mind you want to remove the sink/toilet and not just tile up to its edge.

O rly? Thanks because I definitely thought you could just cut tile around the edge.

[tsywake]

Definitely remove the toilet and tile up to the hole. The toilet will sit on the tile. Otherwise, if you ever had to replace the toilet, the new one would have to be the exact dimensions of your old one in order for it to fit right. If you have to, you can get an extension on your toilet flange if your toilet will sit up to high.

[TWDeac]

OFY. Perfect video for installing cabinets yourself.

[tsywake]

I think a rich dark wood would look really luxe and nice, but would show scratches more easily.

It does. We went with dark bamboo throughout the house. I absolutely love the color of it, but it does show scratches pretty easily and it takes a lot of work to keep them clean. Call me rustic, but I love the natural color and variations of wood and if I had it to do again, I'd probably not go with a dark stained floor. Just a personal preference though.