I’m trying to find out what the name of this board is that goes between door sill and slab. Anyone know how easy it is to replace? It’s wood and needs replacing soon.

We have this 5ft+ deep hole (as measured by a rolling tape measure) that goes wayyyy deep underground. The driveway “layer” itself is 4” thick and you can kind of see in the picture that crumble in the picture. This hole showed up overnight but there are other similar holes that stretch along the 20ft wide driveway/garage area.

Is this normal for houses in upstate NY? i’ve read that some houses’ yards had hollow ground where construction workers just dumped things. We do have a pond very close to the house and I’m afraid this is basically a huge sinkhole waiting to happen. No idea what to do or if filling it with concrete will do the trick

Update 1: Called the Fire Dept and they came by. From what they could see, the foundation “wall” is okay, it’s just that the driveway is being chipped. Something to fix but they didn’t seem it structurally unstable. I’ll call some contractors tomorrow (Wed) and see if they can do some actual checkup. Also got my car out of the garage with no problem lol I can’t add additional pics to the post but the update comment has more pics

Update 2: Posted a night time pic with better flash photography in the comments. Seems like the foundation itself is good, confirming what the firemen said. We have some folks coming by tomorrow to do some diagnosis and hopefully we can have the hole filled by the weekend #pause

Came out to a piece of my siding flopping over my garage. Found it slapped with construction adhesive and one single nail fighting for its life lol. Thanks Ryan Homes, great sub-contracting you did.

I did the painstaking research of finding someone that could do siding and gutters because of the storms that damaged our house this year. The company had great reviews all over the Internet and the accounts did not look fake. We had a public adjuster with the company who submitted the estimate along with our insurance that corroborated them.

We had a meeting to determine the materials and the colors and had to give the checks that the insurance sent. That was the beginning of september. It is now the second week in October and outside of a response that I sent asking for an update, I have heard nothing. Supposedly the insurance company may need to reevaluate because the contracting company wanted to get supplement for some damage that was done inside due to the damage to the roof and siding. I didn't care about the inside because I knew it would eventually have to be fixed.

I live somewhere where there are four seasons. We're approaching winter and the rain from the fall has already caused more damage inside the house and if snow comes, it's going to be worse. We paid them $17,000 and that is not money that I can spend again to find another company. I don't even have close to that. I know State farm is already going to drop us after everything is done as that's what they've been doing to many homeowners since the storms. I really just need this fixed or else I'm going to have to just consider selling to a flipper and moving.

Do I have any recourse or is this just a very expensive lesson on being stupid?

I just had my electric bill contextualized in a way I hadn't before- my 1950s 950sqft home is costing over 10% more than my parents' 1750sqft new build. I'm sure having all new lights and other electronics makes somewhat of a difference, but it's a large enough gap, in a house twice as big as mine, that I'm second guessing my electricity use.

I don't unplug things, but I do turn them off when not in use. I don't have anything insane pulling in a ton of power, I think, and I'm in that sweet spot season-wise where my AC has been put away for weeks and my heat isn't on yet. Water heater isn't electric.

Most days, 1 TV is in standby mode or off entirely, the other is playing in the background while I WFH. WFH station is plugged into 2 power strips, for laptop, an extra monitor, some other little electronics. Lights are off most of the day and evening, maybe a lamp in the living room or the overhead light in the bedroom right before bed.

I've got little things plugged in that are either using minimum power throughout the day, or in standby mode (plugged in but not on)- some pet water fountains, table lamps, phone chargers, electric blankets, a lighted plant stand on a timer, dehumidifiers.

The only things I consistently have plugged in AND running all the time are security cameras and an electric doorbell.

Almost every plug has a surge protector with extra sockets plugged into it. Again, I don't unplug anything, but almost everything is in standby most of the day. Am I misunderstanding standby mode? Does it actually use a ton of electricity? Should I be unplugging everything unless I'm actively using it? Or is something else going on with my electric bill that a house twice my size is costing a not-insignificant amount less in electricity every month?

been researching dishwasher cleaners for a few weeks now and narrowed it down to a shortlist but honestly not sure if i picked the right ones. our dishwasher smells kinda funky and leaves this white filmy residue on glasses sometimes. looked at reviews but they contradict each other alot. curious what people here have actually stuck with after trying a few, not just what worked once

I need to fix this hole. What would you do? It is about 4" long by 3" wide.

I also need to drill back into the spot for a curtain rod.

I purchased my home in 22 and I’m at the unfortunate stage where I need a new roof. I’ve done the 3 bids, the prices vary significantly for what seems to be the same/similar roof. Initially I tried Angie’s list and that was a mistake. Lots of phone calls I had to silence my phone. For this who have bought a new roof any advice? What should I look out for and what were your main deciding factors?

I’m tired of the pushy sales tactics and want to find a trustworthy contractor but it’s all overwhelming. It would be nice if companies were transparent about their pricing upfront. I understand that there are potential unforeseen circumstances but it would be nice to know a general idea if I’m getting a fair value or not.

So there are cats that keep spraying my front door! I think a couple belong to my neighbor and the others might be feral. They all walk through my yard all day and night and if one sprays then the others come out in droves. Sometimes they on do it for weeks then they start and won’t stop. I’ve sprayed enzyme cleaner, mats with the little spikes(they just jump over it) . I had a motion activated sprinkler that never would work. I’m at my wits end!Any advice on how to keep them away from my porch?

Still trying to get off this leftover wallpaper adhesive. I’ve used steam, wallpaper stripper, goo gone, vinegar, and hot soapy water. It will not come off. Should I sand and skim at this point?

My husband saw a mouse this morning in our kitchen and then it disappeared. We called the exterminator and they'll come and check the house and set up traps. My question is how much of a deep clean I need to do? How do I know if the mouse has been in my drawer and cupboards where all my cooking and eating utensils are? My kitchen is also open to the living room. Do i need to clean the living room too? I just feel kind of disgusted when I think about that this mice could have been anywhere in the house. Sorry if this is a silly question but just bought this house 2 months ago and never had this kind of problem when i lived in apartments. Also, once I have the exterminator come, should I still be worried about mouse? like about where i put my food or cleaning my toddler's mess right away? thank you very much

About a month ago, I had to fix a clogged defroster drain on my Maytag fridge/freezer combo. For that fix, I had the freezer door off for about an hour. Ever since I put the door back on, it seems to leak air, causing snow buildup inside the freezer (but only on one side).

I'm losing my mind because this sealed perfectly for 13 years, and now the gap seems to big for the freezer to seal.

Photos: https://imgur.com/a/cBaHYs8

I tried the blow dryer trick (heating up the seal to make it soft/pliable so that it can stretch farther). That seemed to work for about a day, and then snow started building up again.

I also considered buying a new freezer door seal. A new OEM rubber seal is $150 (!!!). The $50 Amazon marketplace knockoffs have lots of reviews stating that they didn't fix the problem. If I knew it would fix the problem, I would buy the OEM part, but while the current door seal looks "old" (it's a little discolored), it doesn't have any tears.

What can I do about this? It seems awful to have to buy a new fridge over a rubber seal!

My grandmother had her roof replaced six years ago. Last month a strong storm came through and damaged the roof. Now it is leaking and insurance said it‘s bad enough to be replaced. They are charging her a $7,500 deductible and giving her a $8,000 check to fix it. To preface, I rent so don’t know much about home owners insurance.

My grandmother is on a fixed income and cannot afford $7,500. If we don’t get the roof replaced will they drop her? We live in a high tornado area so insurance is hard to come by. If we fix it ourselves will they drop us? She doesn’t even know what a deductible is so I’m trying to figure this out. I’m hoping when I call tomorrow they’ll talk to me even though I’m not the homeowner.

Anyone else had a similar experience or have some helpful knowledge? Anything is appreciated

You know those silver fans you see while waiting in lines at the theme parks? Picture yourself waiting for Disney’s Rockin Rollercoaster. You’re in this slow moving line, it’s hot but every ten feet or so, you get a blast of air. You look up and notice it’s coming from an ugly silver fan mounted in a corner of a fixture and it’s like - ahhhhh, air. Well, I am wondering if I should mount those same type of fans on my patio. Living in South Florida the heat’s brutal and if it’s not hot enough, you got mosquitos Those silver fans push out a ton of air and I’m not sure if a traditional outside ceiling fan will be strong enough. Does anyone have feedback on this?Do you have these types of fans in your backyard or am I crazy to think this? any recommendations?

Replacing both of my doors. Any guidance or help would be greatly appreciated.

Is everyone using the same doors? Is there a difference between where I purchase? Is an official/full time installer a necessary move?

Vinyl sided home from 1994 with slightly "uneven" openings (like everything in the house). Located in NY.

Have been talking to a rep from Precision for some time (great guy, very patient) and met with a few other local installers who all seem to be in the same ballpark of price and offerings.

**Both doors are 9ft wide. Openings are around 82.5. Some unevenness present.

Plan was 81in through Precision, stamped carriage with windows. Shim it up top and use a thicker weather seal to get the windows lined up and not blocked by gasket.

Builder I respect said they install and mentioned doing customs to gain additional clearance, and that the price would likely even out after spending on the shimming/rain guard.

So our home has two fireplaces. One upstairs and one downstairs. We had the upstairs one cleaned (as that is the only one we had planned to use). The fireplaces share a chimney but from my understanding have their own flus).

We lit a fire with duraflame last week and had zero issues. 3 days ago we did a fire with wood logs and thought everything was fine. I went downstairs and realized a small amount of smoke seemed to have come out of the downstairs chimney. It wasn't continuing to come through though.

3 days later our house still reeks of smoke. It really didnt smell when we were burning (or maybe we had just adjusted to the smell).

How do we:

1. Get this smoke smell out? We have windows open, fans going, we removed the ash, I vacuumed the rug and the couch.

2. Avoid this problem in the future. Not sure if maybe the chimney wasn't "primed" and thats why some smoke came into the downstairs fireplace?

We loved using the fireplace but if this is going to happen each time, it doesn't seem worth it.

Hello,

I'm 41 and live in Austin, I've always rented but have thought about buying a home. I'm married without kids (three cats 🐈‍⬛) and don't really like working on projects or maintenance. I'm wondering if it will be that much better financially than renting. I pay around $1,650 in rent at a nice complex and like the convenience.

For those of you who were in a similar situation, has it been worth it? I know it's possible to get lucky and buy a house well below market value, but besides these one-off situations, I'm not sure if it's worth it.

I would love some insight from people that have converted their garage to a home office. I am a full time freelancer living in a (small) single story 2 bedroom house. My partner and I are thinking of converting our 2 car garage into an office as we might have to give up the guest room to family.

Ideally I’d love to keep the space open, but we’ll likely split part of the garage into a small room to keep my desk in as that’s where I spend most of my time and it’s easier to keep a small room insulated.

The other half we want to install some shelves and a work bench for housing merchandise, packing orders, and whatever other bigger projects we get hyper-fixated on (for example, I’m considering picking screen printing)

Current concerns:
- We live in Las Vegas, so it’s very cold winters and harsh summers.

- Currently there are no windows in the garage and natural lighting is unfortunately a big deal for me. Not sure if that is something that’s easy to install?

We have thankfully have family that works in home renovation so we won’t have to hire a contractor.

Just curious to hear some insight from people who have done the same thing. Pros, cons, must haves, things to consider that we might not be considering. Thanks!

We are considering putting an offer on a home that's over 100 years old. We love the place, lots of character and charm, but we've never owned an old home before. We would be fine doing cosmetic updates over time, but we're nervous about taking on huge expensive structural problems.

Obviously we will get an inspection if we do make an offer, but currently trying to figure out if it's worth doing that, or if it's already clear the home would be a money pit.

E.g., the back of the house has a lot of crumbling paint and siding that's been patched with various materials/colors. Does this likely represent a big problem with moisture or rot that would need remediation soon? Or are these siding patches probably only a cosmetic issue? Or do we need an inspection in order to find out?

This is located in our front yard next to our driveway. The lid doesn’t sit flush, and it appears to be broken and rusted. I’m guessing it’s a water shutoff. If this is broken, who is responsible for having it repaired? The homeowner or the city?

Any help is appreciated thank you!

Our neighbors have a family of bats living in their attic, assuming they get in through a ~2 inch crack in the brick that faces our house.

I assume there are quite a few of them at this point because they’ve been there for months. I can even hear them during the day.

Outside of letting them know and making sure our brick is sealed, is there anything else we should do?

Edit: I’m sure they eat plenty of mosquitos but we have so many here in KY that they barely make a dent. :(

Edit (again): Why am I getting downvoted?? I have nothing against bats or any kind of wildlife, I would just prefer not to have a family of bats in my attic. Y’all are weird.

Planning to close the pool next weekend and I'm trying to get everything cleaned up before the cover goes on.
There's already a bunch of leaves sitting in the deep end. I ran my ecovacs pool robot yesterday and it picked up most of them, but there's still some dirt along the bottom and buildup on the walls.

I'm going to vacuum it again this weekend and brush the walls before dealing with the chemicals and cover. Just wondering how thorough everyone gets with that last clean.

Prior home owners put carpets over spalling areas of concrete and had their cars there during viewings and inspection so I never saw this until after we had moved in. A year after I finally had time to get under there and break it apart to see what im dealing with. After digging the two large compromised areas it appears there is a floating area with shaled concrete under the red area. You can hear the difference when tapping on it. Before I keep breaking this up until I hit solid ground, cleaning and bonding for a new pour; I wanted to get some advice if there is an easier option. Thanks in advance for the input.

I swear getting a new HVAC quote has turned into some weird personality test. We have an older house, one upstairs bedroom that never stays comfortable, and my mom lives with us so I’m not trying to gamble on eh it’ll probably be fine. First contractor walked in, looked at the old system for maybe 7-10 minutes, and said their favorite brand is the only one they’d put in their own house. Second contractor basically laughed at that and said everyone is changing their tune after ACCA 2026 because heat pump installs are getting more picky. Third guy was the calmest one and talked more about load calc, duct leakage, and whether the crew actually sets up the system right. No specific brand war from him, which honestly made me trust him more? But now I’m stuck because the loudest quote sounds confident, the cheapest quote sounds easy, and the detailed quote sounds expensive but maybe sane. For homeowners who already went through this, how did you tell the difference between a contractor who has a real reason for liking a heat pump brand and one who just likes the margin?

Been seeing signs of a mouse the last couple of days. Put out traps and havent gotten one yet. Tonight I put some aluminum foil in some areas to see if I could hear them. I have a portable air conditioner with the exhaust going out a window and a mouse was on my windowsill chewing on the foil from the inside. I take it this was the point it got in and out because I see no reason for it to be doing that there and there was a small gap. The unit of course got instantly removed and shut the window. Never had a mouse in the house for almost 40 years. Do mice go in and out of a house? Why else would it be chewing on foil around a window with no food or moisture near it?