LGP DIY House edition

[meow]

Anyone have any experience in refinishing hardwood floors?

I'd hire someone. A floor sander can be a beastly machine that needs an expert touch. If your movements are constant and even, you can end up taking divots out of the floor. I've only ever hired two people to work on my house: one guy to cut down trees and one guy to refinish hardwood floors.

Thanks--I figured that would be the case. Mine are somewhat old....wondering if it would just be easier to yank them up and put that pergo (or whatever fake stuff that locks together) stuff down.

We will no longer be friends if you rip them up. Refinish those bad boys.

[pittsoccer33]

i am of the singular opinion among all humans that hardwood is fit for museums and gymnasiums, not homes.

[60sixx]

GAH!!! don't do that. old shmold. if they're thick enough (and i'd bet they are), they can be re-finished beautifully. i think 3 bucks per square foot is a reasonable estimate for how much you'll pay someone to do it.

I figured someone would say that!

They seem old, maybe original? The house is 70 years old. In a couple spots, there are some serious gouges taken out. Is that something that can even be fixed?

[60sixx]

i am of the singular opinion among all humans that hardwood is fit for museums and gymnasiums, not homes.

I actually prefer it. Easier to keep clean/looking nice. All carpet just looks like butt after awhile. Especially when you have pets.

[pittsoccer33]

everyone does. but me. my apartment in hoboken had them and it was the first time since I was a toddler I had to deal with them. HATED it. made getting out of the bed in the morning for work way too miserable.

[shmenguin]

GAH!!! don't do that. old shmold. if they're thick enough (and i'd bet they are), they can be re-finished beautifully. i think 3 bucks per square foot is a reasonable estimate for how much you'll pay someone to do it.

I figured someone would say that!

They seem old, maybe original? The house is 70 years old. In a couple spots, there are some serious gouges taken out. Is that something that can even be fixed?

i think so. you need to find a match for the wood, though. i'm pretty sure most floor guys can figure that out.

my floors were 70 years old and pretty thin, and they turned out great after they got re-finished.

[meow]

i am of the singular opinion among all humans that hardwood is fit for museums and gymnasiums, not homes.

I used to think like that. Growing up, I didn't have hardwood, only carpet. The house we bought didn't have carpet, only hardwood. We carpeted the upstairs, but left the downstairs hardwood. I love hardwood now.

[PensHckyFan79]

i am of the singular opinion among all humans that hardwood is fit for museums and gymnasiums, not homes.

your not alone, my wife doesn't like hardwood at all. The house I grew up in started at 90% carpet 10% other flooring and after years of updates my parents have it to about 80% hardwood and 20% other. I like hardwood and think it looks nice, but to each there own. I would agree with other people that after a certain length of time any carpet even if you got top of the line will look like crap, where as hardwood is pretty much forever.

[KennyTheKangaroo]

radiant floor heating+wood floors=paradise

[meow]

radiant floor heating+wood floors=paradise

We put radiant floor heat in our bathroom. We can't get our dogs out of there in the winter

[cheesesteakwithegg]

Got one quote for a tree that needs removed in my back yard. It's a 70 ft tall oak. It is close to a fence, swingset, and shed. Requested quotes from a bunch of people, only one company got back to me and said $2K. FML

[eddysnake]

Got one quote for a tree that needs removed in my back yard. It's a 70 ft tall oak. It is close to a fence, swingset, and shed. Requested quotes from a bunch of people, only one company got back to me and said $2K. FML

how important is your fence, swingset, and shed? Is the tree completely dead? I have some ideas and it won't cost anywhere near $2k

[Kraftster]

Ouch. That is awful. I want to get rid of 4 pines. All 60+, one probably 100. The biggest one is also right by a telephone pole with wires coming through the branches.

The tip I received from a neighbor that just had a couple taken out is to wait until the fall when things slow down. Better chance of getting a decent deal if you can wait.

[meow]

I just had a 85ft oak tree removed from my front yard. It hung over our house, a neighbor's house, and their detached garage. $1,200 to cut it down, cut up firewood for us, haul the remaining wood away, machine the stump, remove all the debris, fill in the hole, and plant new grass. I was happy with the price and results.

[cheesesteakwithegg]

I just had a 85ft oak tree removed from my front yard. It hung over our house, a neighbor's house, and their detached garage. $1,200 to cut it down, cut up firewood for us, haul the remaining wood away, machine the stump, remove all the debris, fill in the hole, and plant new grass. I was happy with the price and results.

yeah, this is just to drop the tree, clean up the yard, and cut the wood into 16 inch lengths. was this in the pittsburgh area? if so, do you mind sharing the company's name?

[meow]

I just had a 85ft oak tree removed from my front yard. It hung over our house, a neighbor's house, and their detached garage. $1,200 to cut it down, cut up firewood for us, haul the remaining wood away, machine the stump, remove all the debris, fill in the hole, and plant new grass. I was happy with the price and results.

yeah, this is just to drop the tree, clean up the yard, and cut the wood into 16 inch lengths. was this in the pittsburgh area? if so, do you mind sharing the company's name?

It wasn't in Pittsburgh, but I think you should be able to find a comparable price.

[PghSkins]

We have had our house for 12 years. So far we have:

- Replaced hideous yellow linoleum in the kitchen, stairwell and downstairs landing with laminate tile in the kitchen and carpeted down the stairs and on landing (cats have since pretty much destroyed)
- Painted most everything, including the living room like 4 times, stripping the wallpaper at one point (wife finally likes the dull yellow it is now)
- Put in crown molding in the living room
- Refinished hardwood floors in living room- they were carpeted over and in deplorable condition when we bought it (hired contractor so not DIY but since it was mentioned. Used Alexander's Hardwood Floors in Beaver Falls. They did a first rate job)
- Ceramic tile floor in downstairs bathroom, need to pull back up and replace with laminate because the underlayment's not even and the tiles shift
- Gutted upstairs bathroom and totally redid it, all new except the tub. The tile job in the tub is my pride and joy. Bathroom did not have a shower when we moved in for no apparent reason.

Wife wants the kitchen redone but I can't go into that kind of debt. Have to save our pennies. It is knotty pine and original from 1951. It's more rustic than dated, I think. She doesn't agree.

[cheesesteakwithegg]

Bye bye stupid tree

Spoiler:

[meow]

Installed a dishwasher on Saturday. Since mrs. meow is expecting a little kitten, I felt it was time she stopped having to do dishes. Took about 2 hours total. Was surprisingly simple.

[MWB]

i am of the singular opinion among all humans that hardwood is fit for museums and gymnasiums, not homes.

I actually prefer it. Easier to keep clean/looking nice. All carpet just looks like butt after awhile. Especially when you have pets.

This x 1000. I hate our carpet, mainly because we have pets. So aggravating to clean.

[MWB]

Bye bye stupid tree

Spoiler:

Wow, that is in a really tough spot. Paying to cut down trees is something I always think should be cheaper.

[eddysnake]

went to replace the floor on kids wooden playground tower thing and found out it's been destroyed by termites inside. The beam holding the swings is still in good shape, so I'm going to rebuild the tower this weekend and use some of the old parts. Figured it would save me about $400 in building rather than buying a whole new set. it will be better, stronger, faster. 85 and sunny on saturday = cooler of beer work day, I can't wait.

[canaan]

Bye bye stupid tree

Spoiler:

i would do that myself...even if it makes destroying the swingset in the process.

[cheesesteakwithegg]

Bye bye stupid tree

Spoiler:

i would do that myself...even if it makes destroying the swingset in the process.

I considered it, but glad I hired someone. I had to move the swingset / playhouse / etc out of the way. They brought in a bucket truck and took some of those limbs off the top, then they dropped it. Obviously with the tree being as dead as it was, a lot of those branches broke and shattered everywhere when it hit the ground (didn't hit the house, but it was close). If I would have just had it dropped, no doubt some damage would have been done to the house.

[shafnutz05]

So apparently the people that lived in our home before us planted these really lousy trees throughout the yard:

http://i.imgur.com/dfuZnKL.jpg

I guess they are some kind of crappy poplar hybrid that is designed to grow quickly, but also not hardy at all and destined to turn to crap within 10-15 years. As you can see, there are veritable jungles surrounding both of them. Not shown, several more of the same type of tree at the other corners of our 1/2 acre lot.

I'm afraid it's going to cost a pretty penny to get these things taken down, but they are an eyesore and ruin the yard, IMO. The good news is, none of them are in hard to reach areas.