Category: home improvement

Posted on

Busted water pipe

Well, the pipes in the bathroom downstairs froze and one busted. Fortunately for me, it is easily fixed and I can do it myself without having to bring in a plumber this time. Last time I had to have a plumber come out to the house and fix a busted water pipe. That was a bit expensive.

I went to the hardware store and bought everything I need to fix it and it actually didn’t cost that much. So much the better for me. After just a little experimentation and luck I had it fixed in no time. Glad I made sure to watch that guy when he fixed the last one. =)

Posted on

Time to decorate the house

Well it is that time again. Time to decorate inside and outside the house.

This year we are building a nativity scene for the front lawn. We sat down last night and drew out our plans for the entire thing and made a list of materials we will need.

I am also going to purchase new out door lights for the yard and house. This will be a big adventure for us and we are all looking forward to it.

I am pretty sure this project will take longer then the kids think it will, but we will have fun with it.

Posted on

Working on the house

Well, there were a few spots of cold air coming in the house from outside that we did not detect until the weather turned colder. I thought we had done a pretty good job of weatherproofing the house, but I guess we missed a few spots.

These are easily fixed with a bit of caulking. I just have to run down to the hardware store and get some to take care of it.

We are just about ready for winter. I am rather tired of raking leaves though. :/

Posted on

Recovering from the Texas Wildfires

With all the drought in Texas this summer and the awful wildfires, you would not think that homeowners who live in the Austin area would have trouble with water and flooding. But when I heard that an entire neighborhood just east of downtown Austin was on fire, I knew that the firemen were having to work hard to put out fires in homes, not just the forests. When they came upon a house on fire, they had to fight that fire with water. So although the firemen saved the house from burning to the ground, the water damage from all that water will require professional cleaning, especially if the houses had wall to wall carpet that got soaked.

My former neighbor, John, moved to Austin about 6 years ago and I called to check on him, wondering if the wildfires were any threat to where he was living. He assured me that he was on the other side of town, but that many co-workers lived East of the city and their homes were at risk. His boss was already faced with finding a water to help with the damages to his family’s home.

 

Posted on

Time to winterize

The time has come to winterize the house and garden. The end of October always means the leaves have turned color and fallen and the temperatures are dropping every night.

We went an procured several loads of manure for the garden and mixed it in well for the winter season. The gutters have been cleaned from most of the fall leaves, and we only have to put new insulated foam around the pipes to keep them from freezing.

I do believe we still have to check the windows and doors for airflow as seals will dry rot from age over time. Other then that I believe we will be set. The rest of October and November will be chopping wood for the fire place and bon fire outside. Busy as always. =)

Posted on

Yard Waste

Sometimes a word or phrase sounds so practical, so perfectly descriptive, that you wonder why you never heard it before.

I have been trying to find out where to take a load of fallen tree limbs and bags of leaves to dispose of them. I know this is not considered trash and its not even considered recycling.

Turns out the proper term for it is yard waste and there are only two places in the county that will accept it. And neither one is open on Saturdays and Sundays. Sigh.

Posted on

Very Bad Weather

For the past two weeks we have been threatened by violent thunderstorms and the danger of possible tornadoes. I always take the threat of a tornado very seriously. The amount of damage that can be done, including killing people and pets, is horrifying. Every time we hear a tornado warning siren we take shelter in the basement – that is the safest place in our house.

All last night we have emergency alerts come on the TV and the sirens went off at least 4 times overnight. The threat is even worse at night because it is dark and you cannot see the danger, plus my people are asleep and do not leave their TVs on to hear the warnings.

Posted on

Putting Up Lights

I was not going to put up any Christmas lights, but I found some really good bargains at K-Mart on the new LED lights. They were already half off the regular price, so I decided to get a few boxes. I put them on the Dogwood tree in my front yard and they look very colorful and bright.

Posted on

Hobo Jack

Recently I discovered a cool show on the History Channel about these two guys who call themselves “pickers.” They drive around in a van and pick through people’s junk, they buy what they like and then re-sell it.

Today they met up with a guy called “Hobo Jack” who had some sheds with all kinds of stuff. I couldn’t believe all the stuff that was dusty, rusty and mildewed. If he had just taken care of some of that stuff, it would be extremely valuable. But he let it all rot and deteriorate and was hardly worth anything.

Posted on

Need TV anywhere?

Once they went to digital signals, the TV’s wouldn’t work unless you had cable or bought one of those boxes.  Well I found another way and it’s with a Slingbox. Strange name I know but it works not only on your TV but also on your computer or just about anything else you want to watch TV on.  It’s compatible with any TV and you can even watch your home TV on any other TV in your home.  Awesome!!!