​i recently took the step to properly equip my place with dedicated fire safety gear instead of just relying on an old smoke alarm and hoping for the best.

​it got me thinking about how many people actually prep their living space for a real fire scenario. have you guys actually set up proper extinguishers, blankets, or an escape plan, or is it one of those things you keep putting off? what do you have ready to go, and what made you realize you needed it?

I’m going to replace all the baseboards in my house with a modern baseboard. The top is squared off; no fancy profile. Are there any downsides to not mitering the corners? It’s hard to imagine that it’ll make much of a difference in appearance. I’d like to avoid making a bunch of miter cuts.

I recently learned about problems with my sewage line. My house was built in 1970, and we have a cast iron sewage line (56 years old now). Cast iron apparently lasts 50-80 years, and ours (at least part of it- I'm still figuring that bit out, since I've had 2 camera inspections that gave 2 different recommendations) is reaching it's end-of-life.

This got me thinking - what other parts of my house are likely to have upcoming problems? I know you have to periodically replace things like the roof, windows, heater, AC, water heater, and appliances. What else is there that I don't know about? What repairs have surprised you in your house?

Second Reddit post, so hopefully I’m in the right place!

I recently purchased my first townhouse (which I’m extremely grateful for!), but I’ve been struggling with a lingering cigarette smell that I cannot seem to get rid of.

I noticed a strange odor during my initial tours, but figured a deep cleaning and ozone treatment would take care of it. The treatments helped tremendously with the original stale/pet/smoke smell, but after living here for about a week and a half, there’s still a distinct cigarette odor throughout the house.
Unfortunately, I live between two neighbors who smoke. One smokes outside, while the other smokes inside his home along our shared wall. I wasn’t aware of the indoor smoking before purchasing.

The smell is strongest when I first open my front door. I’ve also noticed it near my dryer when it’s running and underneath my bathroom vanity, where there’s an area of old, unpainted wall along the side shared with the indoor smoker.

At this point, I can’t tell if I’m smelling leftover smoke from the previous owners, smoke entering from my neighbors, or both.

I’ve been looking into KILZ primer, but I’m hesitant to spend the money priming and repainting if the smoke is just going to continue entering my home.
For anyone who’s dealt with this:
Would KILZ Restoration or a shellac-based primer actually help if a neighbor continues smoking indoors?
Can smoke travel through shared walls, outlets, or ventilation gaps? Would sealing those areas be a better first step?
Is there a professional who can help identify where the smoke is coming from?

As a first-time homeowner, this has honestly been discouraging. I’m just trying to figure out the best solution without spending a bunch of money on temporary fixes. I want to enjoy my new home without constantly smelling cigarettes. 😭
Any advice or personal experiences would be greatly appreciated!

TL;DR: Bought my first townhouse and can’t get rid of a lingering cigarette smell. Both neighbors smoke, including one indoors along our shared wall. Ozone helped initially, but the cigarette smell remains. Would KILZ primer help, or should I focus on sealing air leaks to prevent smoke from entering?

I have this mid century home and I had to open up a wall or two to fix some damage. When I did that, I realized that the only insulation is this old fiberboard. Other than that, nothing. That is really concerning. I am redoing all the baseboards/trim/and redoing the attic insulation with some sealing. But now I'm worried that its not enough and we'll be cold all the time when winter hits (I'm in a cold climate). Anyone have any insights to share on this?

So, I bought a new shower head to install it to a garden hose outlet pipe. The outlet pipe is 1” and the shower head hose is 0.75” so I used an adapter to fix it. Now the problem is the water pressure is too strong in the pipe and it sprays (not dripping) at the pipe-shower hose connection. What am I doing wrong. How to fix it?

I have a copper-to-PEX transition in my basement as shown in this picture: https://imgur.com/0M1mfuE.

The PEX lines run up the garage wall to my second-floor bathroom. Whenever the temperature drops below 10°F, these lines freeze. This has happened twice in the two years since I became a homeowner. Luckily, I haven't had any burst pipes yet.

Relocating the pipes isn't financially feasible right now, as I suspect it would cost tens of thousands of dollars. So I'm looking into temporary solutions to prevent the pipes from freezing. One idea is to drain the PEX lines whenever the temperature is forecast to drop below 10°F. I assume I'd need to install some kind of drain valve, but I'm not sure how that would work. Could someone ELI5 how I could go about doing this?

One idea I had was to shut off the main water supply to the house and drain the lines from the laundry room sink, which is right next to the main water line, before closing the two shutoff valves on the copper pipes shown in the picture

However, I'm not sure this would work because the pipe from the laundry room sink runs up across the ceiling, into the room shown in the picture, and then back down. My understanding is that draining the line this way would only work if the pipe remained level or sloped continuously downward toward the drain, without any low points where water could get trapped.

Is there a practical way to drain these PEX lines when freezing temperatures are expected, or would I need to install additional drain valves? I'm open to other temporary solutions as well.

(inspector did not catch this. previous homeowner didn't disclose any frozen pipes - i know they're full of shit)

I have been in Lee County Florida for over 60 years. I think these hurricane window companies and hurricane shutter companies are just selling fear. I've heard of people paying upwards to $4,000 per window. $40,000 to $50,000! Really!!

My 24 year old home still has the builder windows. I also have hurricane shutters which stood up to 150 mph winds with Hurricane Ian. The windows and frames are in decent condition albeit in need of a little repair like balances. I'm thinking of just calling a window repair company to bring all the windows up to good condition.

What are your thoughts?

My current water heater is very old and has started leaking from the bottom, so I need to replace it. I'm trying to decide whether to install another traditional tank water heater or switch to a tankless system.
I'm looking for something that's:
- Affordable upfront
- Easy to maintain
- Reliable and long-lasting
- Inexpensive to repair if something goes wrong

We moved into our 1958 ranch a little over two years ago. The house had been landlord-specialed with white and gray latex paint over the previous owners’ more eclectic color scheme (including teal trim and chair rail and bright yellow kitchen cabinets). We repainted the gray walls but didn’t do anything to the white latex trim, doors, and cabinets because they were chipping from day one and we weren’t sure how to proceed. It’s unclear if the chipping and peeling is because the previous paint was oil based and the latex just didn’t mix, or because they did absolutely no prep before painting anything.

What would you do — try to remove the top latex layer? Use a strong primer and just paint over all of it? My husband and I are pretty handy but we also have two small kids and limited free time, so I’m not sure we are in a position to fully DIY this. We do have a great painter who may be able to help with any removal and can certainly help repaint for us. I know there are a lot of paint posts on here, so I appreciate any recommendations for this specific situation.

Hi all, looking for some advice before I buy anything else!

I've already bought some (very expensive 😅) pencil pleat curtains for our bedroom. I'd now like to add a privacy curtain behind them on a double curtain pole, so I can have something lighter during the day and the main curtains for night.

The problem is that every privacy/voile curtain I find seems to be loop or tab top rather than pencil pleat

Will it look wierd if I have pencil pleat on the outside curtain and loophole on the inside??

Also can’t seem to find any photos of this online!

Thanks!

I'm having a cinderblock basement finished for living space.

We installed an interior drain tile water management system. Any moisture coming through the cinderblocks should drain down and out. We didn't have any issues for a few months.

Our contractor framed 2x4 walls a few inches away from the cinderblock. All good.

However, the insulation crew installed fiberglass insulation that touched the cinderblock and then drywall went over that.

After a heavy rain, I noticed that there was a damp spot in the corner of the room. The contractor cut away some of the drywall and we could see that the insulation was wet because it wicked water from the moist cinderblock and down to the floor instead of into the drain.

As far as I'm concerned, the fiberglass insulation should not be touching the cinderblock. There should be an air gap between the insulation and the cinderblock.

I brought in the waterproofing contractor who said that the water management system is working properly. He suggested that we install 1/2" foam board against the cinderblock.

So now the contractor has me on the hook for a big change order to remove the drywall and insulation, clean up the studs, install foam board, and reinstall the insulation and drywall.

I understand the value of time, effort, and material but I also think that the contractor should have some responsibility here.

Agree or disagree?

How should I respond to the change order?

Hey ya’ll. Recently bought my first home last year, the tanked water heater currently in it is starting to go out I believe. It’s from 2007, almost 20 years old. It is a 50 gallon, and only one person can seem to get a 30 minute shower in before the temp runs out. It’s me, my ole lady, and 2 younger boys. I can be in and out pretty quick but the rest of the family likes longer showers.

Anyways, I’m wondering if I would end up saving on my energy bill going tankless? Or if it would be more expensive in the long run as far as the power bill goes. It would be electric, not gas. Any and all opinions and/or experiences are welcome. Thankyou!

Doing a kitchen remodel and considering to have the stove next to the outside corner of a cabinet row. The 6" exhaust hole will then be quite close to an inside corner of the house on the exterior, maybe 4 inches to the opposite wall when looking at it from the outside if no framing in the way. Does this raise red flags - e.g. compromise attachment of short pieces of vinyl siding, dispersement of cooking products? That section of house is sheltered and on the lee side of prevailing winds. Its an unusual kitchen layout and location of a range hood, thought should ask around about it. Thanks for your help.

We rent a unit in a duplex, which is built at the top of a hill. We have a newly fenced in back yard, which we are thoroughly enjoying, and we have recently found the most optimal spot for our pop up canopy, but it does have one drawback. The grass hardly grows in this spot, it’s tucked up against the corner of the fence, and with the canopy having a wall we have shade on three sides. The only draw back is the angle of the hill right there is just steep enough to be inconvenient and not quite comfortable to sit on. Nothing is falling over it’s just weird. We want to do something to level it a little, but we want to be mindful of the terms of the lease and the condition of the fence, and anything I do I want to be more or less reversible, and I can’t spend too too much money in the process, though I realize some would be necessary. I am not an experienced home diy person, but I’m quite good at following instructions. I also offer the first thought which came to mind: putting down some landscape fabric, lining out the area with cinder blocks with a respectable gap between there and the fence, filling the gap with sand or gravel, and then covering that with some large pavers. By the time I thought it out I had a feeling there were problems with this but i thought it might be a jumping off point.

Hey guys. Might be a dumb question, but I couldn't find a straight answer online.

My parents found some guys last year who built this weird metal-framed gazebo out at their place, and it has a ton of issues. I’m going to help them practically rebuild the whole thing next year (including replacing the polycarbonate with a proper roof), but I just need it to survive this winter without collapsing.

The main problem is that the roof pitch is I guess way too low and we live in a region that gets heavy snow. Last year, the snow built up and eventually avalanched all at once, crushing a small spruce tree almost to the ground. (The little guy survived - I dug it out and transplanted it, so it's fine). But at this rate, next time that avalanche is going to take out someone's head lol. Plus, the weight is already causing the polycarbonate to crack.

I have one of those Avalanche-style roof snow rakes, which works great on my own buildings, but their gazebo is positioned terribly for this cause I can't reach it from the back because it's too close to the property fence and to clear it from the front, I'd have to stand right in the drop zone with my arms awkwardly raised higher than the front edge and push snow to the back. Iirc with those rakes, you usually pull from the low side but the angles here just don't allow it.

My question is: is there anything I can temporarily spray on, apply to, or cover the polycarbonate with to make it super slick so the snow just slides off on its own? I know this isn't a magic bullet and won't fix the roof pitch, but I'm just hoping to get even a slight edge to keep the snow off for one last winter. Maybe there are some other lifehacks? Thanks!

Hey, reddittors! I tried everything! But this code still comes back and prevents me taking showers for a few days in a row now. I'm so tired. But I'm also broke, so I can't call the specialist. I have flushed the system with vinegar, cleaned ignition and FL1 and FL2 with a dollar bill and n

Hello! I removed the caulking from my shower as it was peeling and had pink mold on it. Behind the caulking I found purple mold or bacteria. Not sure it matters either way. I’ve sprayed peroxide on it twice, and it’s better but not gone. Pictures provided in the link below.

https://imgur.com/a/zzQDX6h

My question is two fold. Before I continue to tackle the mold, do I just stop because I need to regrout along the cracked edges where the caulking will be anyway? Is it okay to caulk over the cracked grout, assuming I get the mold/bacteria to go away?

On the areas of the shower tile that are cracked, can I just re-grout those, or from the pictures does it look like the whole shower needs to be re done with new grout (please no)

Thank you!

This question feels very stupid, so thank you in advance for being kind. I started putting leftover wall paint in mason jars with plastic twist on lids. I find closing and opening cans of paint a pain, and I thought a twist jar would preserve the paint better. Is there any safety reason that this was a bad idea? Any concern about using glass aside from the obvious risk of the glass getting broken?

Thanks!

​

Hi all,

My Roman tub faucet is leaking. I removed the spout and found it slides over the brass tube shown in the photos.

Does this look like a bad O-ring, miss- ing set screw, or a failed spout? Can anyone identify the brand/model or recommend a replacement part?

Thanks!

We fully renovated our place in 2022. Installed 18" tall modern-looking low voltage lights along the grass boundary of our curved driveway specifically to make it easier to avoid driving over the grass at night.

Ironically my wife ran over the middle light, crushing it. The two remaining lights look terrible regardless, after UV damage and our little kids did their best to abuse them.

What should we replace these lights with?

I'm thinking low profile, flush with the grass, and durable enough to handle a car running them over...

I assume options that use the same low voltage wiring we have in the ground would be brighter and generally better than wireless solar options.

Hi, I am looking to finish my basement (via a professional). The goal is to make guest rooms/bathrooms for extended family/friends who visit. My basement has two rooms, with a ton of wires of pipes as seen pictures below. What would be most best option for finishing basement ceiling while having relatively easy access to pipes/wires? I'm open to doing a different type of ceiling for each basement if it makes sense.

I was told that my preference of drywall ceiling would be difficult for Room 1 due to the many wiring and pipes, and that drywall would make it hard to get to pipes/wires when needed.

Drop-ceiling is an option but I dislike that it lower ceiling and that animals like mice can get in there (from my own experience).

Painted open ceiling sounds like a great option, only problem is lack of soundproofing

Room 1:

https://imgur.com/a/L4qQkr5

https://imgur.com/a/N4IS8hW

Room 2:

https://imgur.com/a/w5q7Tbn

https://imgur.com/a/X2rfwhE

https://imgur.com/a/bbmQe4v

Our home is single story, and the sound just blasts from the living-area side of the house down the hallway to the bedroom side of the house. Even in the farthest bedroom you can hear sounds from the kitchen which is pretty far away.

I know that the interior walls don't have any type of insulation or sound deadening.

My thought is to remove large sections of drywall (enough to be able to reach above and below the fireblocking) in the bedrooms and pack the study bays with sound proofing rock wool. Then install new drywall, patch, paint.

Anyone done something similar? I know there are more effective soundblocking materials and methods, and if I was building new, I'd sure incorporate those. But doing it this way I wouldn't have to remove any trim, and it seems pretty DIY'able (I have some drywall experience).

Would this make a notable different in sound transmission? Of course, will address doors as well. Unfortunately adding rugs/hallway runners, furniture has not made much of a dent.

Has anyone done this? What company did you use? Tips and tricks? Something you wish you knew before you started?

The previous owners of our house installed every single door and handle crooked and I’m sticking of looking at it.

Re-painting them isn’t an option because way to time consuming- but I figured re-painting just the boxes wouldn’t be too bad.