Tag: damage repair

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Gathering seeds and doing household repair

Over the last few weeks, I’ve been gathering seeds from what I call, my “blown out herbs and flowers” so I can put them in packages, mark them and then plant again next year. I love having herbs, flowers and other plants that I have grown and then gathered the seeds, and planted again the next spring. Generations of plants, so to speak.

I’m also getting the house ready for the winter. There are some repairs needed to be done on the outside of the house, due to the drought and yet also the terrible storms that passed through when we did get rain.

All of these things I love to do but need help with, and I have to admit that my kids have been wonderful about helping me with the a lot of the things that need to be done. This gives me peace of mind and also knowing that I am going to be prepared (sort of) for the winter and also have the spring seeds to plant, will save money and help me to keep from a great deal of worry.

 

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Home repair grants

Having written about home repair grants in the past, I am a firm believer that more people should take advantage of this service. I’m in the process of looking for a contractor to help with venting and also repairing the old pipes in the bathroom, and believe me when I say it can get very expensive. With the economy the way it is, any help with money situations is a big deal and it’s worth checking out to see if you are eligible. It only takes a bit of one’s time and it can make all the difference in the world.

A friend of mine moved back to where she had been renting out the home she owns. When she got there and was settled, she decided to check out assistance with home repairs as the old tenants had trashed her house, then skipped out on the rent and repair bills. My friend was in dire need of assistance to help with the repairs since she couldn’t afford it on her own.

I was told an insulation assistance in NJ was just the thing she needed, as my friend’s previous tenants had even run up a heating bill in the winter that was outrageous. The utilities had been included in the rent so she went into debt with that also. I’m glad she is using her head and checking out various grants and professionals to help with and do the work she needs to have done.

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A new screen door

For the last few months, I’ve needed a new latch on the storm/screen door. Finally I looked at the darn thing to figure out what I would need to fix the handle and latch. I figured it shouldn’t be that hard, though I’d never done it before.

The guy I talked to at a store I will not mention right now, took over the job of “helping” me, and though I thought it was a nice offer, I told him I didn’t need help. He tagged along anyway. Nothing bothers me more than a person trying to sell an item, not because a person needs it, but because the “helper” will make a commission. Heck with the part or piece works or not on what one needs it for.

I finally went to another home improvement store, and brought a brand new door. It was on sale, fit perfectly, and it was one I had my eye on for awhile. The kicker is, it was only 15.00 more than the parts the little “helper” had try to sell me.

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Improper venting

After the storm we had yesterday, I went up into the attic since I thought I had heard water dripping on the attic beams. I was a bit leery to go up there since I actually was afraid of what kind of damage I would find. To be quite frank, my husband is not one to do home improvement or home maintenance well at all. If he isn’t interested in a certain project or a “need to be done” chore, he won’t do it, and if he does, it is rigged. Some guys are like that, but it ticks me off when I have to hire someone to follow simple instructions on home fix it things that I can’t do and he won’t do right.

I’ve always been a jack of all trades. A lot of trades. Meaning with me, I know a little about a lot and what I don’t know, I find out. So onto the attic…I ventured upstairs to see that the vent for the bathroom was vented into the attic and that is it. No where except the attic for the moisture to escape. In other words, the husband did a really improper vent job, to say the least. I wasn’t impressed and ticked off great to lots more.

While upstairs, I also notices that the roof is leaking. This is not good. I have to call someone to help me get this fixed a what I am hoping is a reasonable price. I am going to ask a friend of mine who has and will help with the vent for a home cooked meal. Not a problem at all. This is how we barter back and forth.

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Bathroom ventilation and decisions

We’ve recently put in a high powered vent in the bathroom. Before we had it, the walls and ceiling gathered black mold, so I had to consult an expert, since I needed help immediately. I’m happy to say my bathroom is now mold free, which is a great feeling. This house is so old that no one had thought about what would happen with no window, and no ventilation. One vent didn’t get it, so when we got rid of the mold, then repaired the damage, we put a second one vent in and the problem, was solved.

Now comes the rest of the remodeling, and it’s about time. Now though, since we have the vents, I can hang wallpaper without it bubbling up, or drooping because of the dampness that was always in the room before. I am either going to wallpaper, or wait until all the kids are out on their own, if that ever happens, and paint for now.

I’m debating now as to laying bathroom carpet, or just getting new tile. The tile that is on the floor now, isn’t very old at all, but it was laid before the vents and so it’s pulled up in places. I’ve heard bathroom carpet in such a small carries a whole lot of bacteria. Maybe I’ll just get new tile and new bath rugs that I can wash once a week. I’m leaning toward that. I plan on taking one day to go shopping and looking around for what I can find that I really want in the bathroom. I figure when I see it, I’ll know!

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Siding problems

Today all my kids and my grandson were outside, shooting of fire rockets and such that my brother had given them last summer. My youngest daughter gave the guys all of hers and they had a LOT of various bangs, booms, fizzles and zips going. I was sitting outside watching and also looking over the garage and back of the house, to see if the snow, hail, wind and basically nasty weather over last year had hurt any of the siding, roof and window trims. Indeed it had taken it’s toll in a lot of places in the siding.

I had told my husband that I did not like the guys work, while they were putting up the siding and he ignored me, saying that he hired them because they were grandsons on a acquaintance, bla…bla…bla. In other words, he had never seen their work. I come from a very long line of construction men. Roofers, siding guys, masons, and concrete guys. Remodel men and even plumbers and electricians. I took one look at the job they were doing and I raised holy hell. Unfortunately, my husband hushed me up before I could flat out fire them.  To this day he is regretting that I didn’t…but of course, he won’t admit it.

While assessing the siding on the house, I came across loose panels, holes, gaps and even some of the corner ( I believe they are called, but don’t quote me ) facets missing. I have a feeling that isn’t the correct word, but I’ll ask a friend later. Anyway, long story short sort of, a lot of the siding is going to have to be replaced. To say the least, I am bummed out that I didn’t go on my first instinct and fire those guys. They didn’t charge as much as the men I had talked to, to do the whole job, but at least had I gone with them, they had a warranty and also were reputable. I say I and me, because my husband ought me this house when we got married. So…it is MY house to make the decisions with. Now, I need new siding and am for sure going with who I wanted in the first place. In the long run, it will help with money matters and I won’t have to worry.

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Kids and X-boxes

My son’s X-box did something they call, red ring. Now, I’m not exactly sure what that means, but I know it’s not good. In fact, my youngest son is very bummed out about it. Oldest son fixed it today, and it was working fine, the it did the red ring thing again.

Youngest son has asked me about ten times now, when his brother will be home. Shoot…I don’t know. I just know that youngest son is bored, and I also know that he spent entirely too much time on that game box.

I will indeed admit he is very good at the games he plays, and has been written about in games magazines. But when that is just about all he does when he gets home from school, I have to admit that he needs another hobby. He loves to garden if he can plant in an unusual way. It wouldn’t surprise me though, if he didn’t find a way to incorporate it into the games he plays on the X-box and computer, as well as his other game boxes the two boys have.

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Help in Austin with home problems

The other day, my uncle who also happens to be my Godfather called me. Apparently the weather has been pretty bad there, or at least had been and he had a lot of wind damage, due to a big storm that had gone through there in his city. He’s getting on in years and to be honest, I wish he knew more about maintenance on his home. I worry about him, since my aunt passed on a few years ago, because she was a very efficient woman, and he relied on her a great deal.  My uncle Al, does have a computer, but he really only knows how to send an email at best. He doesn’t know that he can also find help with matters of things like maintenance, or help with things like the wind damage or other fix it type services that can be found on the internet.

After he and I hung up, I called a friend of mine who lives near Austin and she gave me a link to a site, http://www.the steamteam.com/ and they would be able to help with the problem.

I of course called Uncle Al and told him how to look up this service on the internet and get the information that he might need and that they would no doubt be able to help him not only with the wind damage, but also any other damage his property may have suffered due to the storm.