Projects/Home Improvement Thread

[NDdomer2]

I would just pigtail out of the bottom of that existing box, drill a hole through the stud and pull wire into your new box on the other side of the stud facing into your unfinished space. Or you could go a little lower or higher with that new box on the same side of the stud. Also make the box for the unfinished side is a “new work” box, which has nails molded into it that you anchor to the stud, not “old work” or a “remodel” box which have plastic anchors that clamp to drywall.

thanks - i was looking online and i couldnt find any sort of front/back boxes anyways.

 

[Irish#1]

So i think this project should be relatively easy but I am no electrician by any means.

I have an outlet in my basement and a storage area on the immediate other side of the wall which is unfinished. I want the outlet to be on both sides. I believe i can just install a different style outlet box that allows me to put one on both sides but just wanted to check here. See picture below.

Not an electrician either, but I've never seen a box where you can install multiple outlets facing the opposite direction. Since boxes are designed to minimize the risk of fire, I am guessing they don't make what you want, but I could be wrong. If you're just wanting access to that outlet and won't be adding additional constant load to the breaker I would just install a second box facing the other way and jumper it off the first one.

Edit: What Boiler said.

 

[NDdomer2]

Tried to rep ya Irish#1 but I must spread.

I found a box in a closet so I think I just need to nail it in, u less it's just going to be easier to use the new work box like Boiler said.

 

[Irish#1]

Since you already have a box, I'd just use it. As Boiler said, you can mount it above or below the existing one or on the opposite side of the stud. Personally I would put it on the opposite side of the stud so the height is the same. That way you avoid any code violations if you sell and the inspector is a butthole. Remember when you mount, don't make it flush with the stud. There should be little tabs that show you how deep to set it. It goes without saying, but remember to flip the breaker before you start. We don't want to read about you in the RIP thread. lol

 

[NDdomer2]

Since you already have a box, I'd just use it. As Boiler said, you can mount it above or below the existing one or on the opposite side of the stud. Personally I would put it on the opposite side of the stud so the height is the same. That way you avoid any code violations if you sell and the inspector is a butthole. Remember when you mount, don't make it flush with the stud. There should be little tabs that show you how deep to set it. It goes without saying, but remember to flip the breaker before you start. We don't want to read about you in the RIP thread. lol

Lol the breaker part was actually a pain in the ass. 1) I'm working in basement so had to go garage to basement after every breaker flip to see which was right one. 2) And of course the outlet I needed wasn't on an obvious breaker like the 3 different breakers the specifically mentioned basement in some fashion. Instead it was on the washer and dryer breaker (both are upstairs)

We're all good now tho thanks for the help fellas

 

[Bluto]

Lol the breaker part was actually a pain in the ass. 1) I'm working in basement so had to go garage to basement after every breaker flip to see which was right one. 2) And of course the outlet I needed wasn't on an obvious breaker like the 3 different breakers the specifically mentioned basement in some fashion. Instead it was on the washer and dryer breaker (both are upstairs)

We're all good now tho thanks for the help fellas

For future electrical I’d recommend getting a circuit breaker finder with a receptacle tester. They run about $30.00. Eliminates having to flip circuits on and off.

 

[Irish#1]

Well, here it is minus the cap to go on top. I have a little mortar to clean off but overall I'm happy. Saved myself close to a thousand bucks. Mason's make it look so easy!

The limestone caps finally came in. Need to spray off the dirt, but I'm happy with the results.

 

[NDBoiler]

The limestone caps finally came in. Need to spray off the dirt, but I'm happy with the results.

Not too bad for an old guy.

 

[Irish#1]

The wife decided she wants to put a ceiling fan in the pavillion and hang a couple of barn lights. I get estimates and hire an electrician. I tell her ahead of time that there will be some exposed flex conduit and she says that's okay as long as they try to hide most of it. Electrician comes out and does a great job. The wife comes out, takes a look and is upset because you can see the flex extending down to the lights.

Wife: "If I'd known it would look like that I wouldn't have had them do it!".
Me: I did tell you ahead of time there would be exposed wiring."
Wife: "But I didn't think it would look like that! and I don't like the spacing of the lights"
Me: "The lights are exactly where you wanted them."

I ended up building these boxes to cover the wiring. She's a happy camper now.

 

[Wild Bill]

Any HVAC guys on the board? I'm renovating a house and the upstairs has flexible ducts with round 6 inch dampers that are just hideous. I want to replace them with a 10x4 register box and then attach flush mount air registers in the link below.

My concern/question is whether or not this will restrict airflow to an extent that would be problematic. I have done some research but it's hard to get a straight answer and my HVAC guy doesn't even know what the hell these are. Bet if I put them in a case of beer he'd know.

https://ariavent.com/collections/ve...zwLYqKuLFH_PAfHw-bkEvht-cq38W-8oaAng9EALw_wcB

 

[Irish#1]

Any HVAC guys on the board? I'm renovating a house and the upstairs has flexible ducts with round 6 inch dampers that are just hideous. I want to replace them with a 10x4 register box and then attach flush mount air registers in the link below.

My concern/question is whether or not this will restrict airflow to an extent that would be problematic. I have done some research but it's hard to get a straight answer and my HVAC guy doesn't even know what the hell these are. Bet if I put them in a case of beer he'd know.

https://ariavent.com/collections/ve...zwLYqKuLFH_PAfHw-bkEvht-cq38W-8oaAng9EALw_wcB

The old home (1883) we are renovating has a lot flex duct with a 10X4 on the end. We replaced the furnace in the upgrade but left the flex and 10X4. We’ve not noticed any issues with air restriction and our HVAC guy who I’ve known for a long time wasn’t concerned.

 

[Wild Bill]

The old home (1883) we are renovating has a lot flex duct with a 10X4 on the end. We replaced the furnace in the upgrade but left the flex and 10X4. We’ve not noticed any issues with air restriction and our HVAC guy who I’ve known for a long time wasn’t concerned.

Yeah I think it's fine with traditional vents but take a look at those registers in the link. They restrict flow a bit. Just not sure how much.

 

[Irish#1]

Yeah I think it's fine with traditional vents but take a look at those registers in the link. They restrict flow a bit. Just not sure how much.

I looked at the specs. I’m obviously not a HVAC guy but if you’re not putting in a new blower for more CFM I can’t see these causing a problem.

 

[Wild Bill]

Do we have any architects or draftsman on the board? Lurkers come forward.

I'm renovating my first floor and was just quoted $8k to draft the plans that will reconfigure the space and more than likely include an addition.

Is this unreasonble or am I unreasonble?

 

[Rack Em]

Do we have any architects or draftsman on the board? Lurkers come forward.

I'm renovating my first floor and was just quoted $8k to draft the plans that will reconfigure the space and more than likely include an addition.

Is this unreasonble or am I unreasonble?

I will do it in Microsoft Paint for $2k

 

[BobbyMac]

Do we have any architects or draftsman on the board? Lurkers come forward.

I'm renovating my first floor and was just quoted $8k to draft the plans that will reconfigure the space and more than likely include an addition.

Is this unreasonble or am I unreasonble?

Score me a bottle of Dark Lord and I'll draw it up in any one of 63 colors you choose except Burnt Sienna... sorry, dog ate that one.

 

[Irish#1]

Do we have any architects or draftsman on the board? Lurkers come forward.

I'm renovating my first floor and was just quoted $8k to draft the plans that will reconfigure the space and more than likely include an addition.

Is this unreasonble or am I unreasonble?

That seems high, but I'm guessing that includes the electrical, plumbing, specifying the type of windows, doors, cabinets, etc. Not sure how extensive of a renovation, but there's some software available that let's you design what you want.

 

[Irish#1]

Do we have any architects or draftsman on the board? Lurkers come forward.

I'm renovating my first floor and was just quoted $8k to draft the plans that will reconfigure the space and more than likely include an addition.

Is this unreasonble or am I unreasonble?

What did you decide WB?

 

[Wild Bill]

What did you decide WB?

Really not sure yet. Certainly not paying $8k. Something I left out of the original post is that I asked them what a customer would typically spend on this type of project - plans, material, labor, etc, and she told me they would like to budget $200k, at least. Just under 2000 square feet, no addition and they want to budget over $100 bucks a square foot. lol

If I decide to reconfigure without an addition, I really don't need anyone. I can just lay it out myself. I just think this place could use an addition, and I can get one built far cheaper than most people b/c my old man has a mini-excavator and I have poured concrete my entire life. I can get it out of the ground for basically nothing so why not.

 

[Cackalacky2.0]

Do we have any architects or draftsman on the board? Lurkers come forward.

I'm renovating my first floor and was just quoted $8k to draft the plans that will reconfigure the space and more than likely include an addition.

Is this unreasonble or am I unreasonble?

Im a structural engineer and I draft a lot and collaborate with Architects. Modifying existing residences can be detail heavy ventures adn my experience is that getting the layout of things the way an owner wants is time consuming becasue they dont really ever know what they want. haha.

That doesnt seem exorbitant for a existing residence but depends on the complexity and affected square footage and how much information needs to be relayed to the contractor. If you have a good contractor you trust, probably dont need much in the way of details and can rely on specs. If you dont have a conractor, then you may need those details to get a good quot for comparisons between contractors. I also dont know if your reconfig will affect structure or required new structure but that could be added cost and I wouldnt want an Arch specifying anything other than partitions and arch components. Most GCs can handle limited structural components that the Residnetial Building Codes allows them to do especially as it relates to timber/lumber framing and some brick/masonry tasks.

I dont know what their billable rate is but thats 60-70 hours roughly where Im at for reference.

 

[Cackalacky2.0]

Really not sure yet. Certainly not paying $8k. Something I left out of the original post is that I asked them what a customer would typically spend on this type of project - plans, material, labor, etc, and she told me they would like to budget $200k, at least. Just under 2000 square feet, no addition and they want to budget over $100 bucks a square foot. lol

If I decide to reconfigure without an addition, I really don't need anyone. I can just lay it out myself. I just think this place could use an addition, and I can get one built far cheaper than most people b/c my old man has a mini-excavator and I have poured concrete my entire life. I can get it out of the ground for basically nothing so why not.

My area new additions to existing homes runs about $150/sf lmao. Ridiculous but everyon eis busy especailly the good ones and they charge PREMIUM prices to get on the books.

If you can get out of the ground to the slab level on your own thats a huge savings. I'd just recommend making sure you arent taking out any load-bearing compnets or adding additional loads to supporting elements. A couple grand to a engineer might be worth it for reconfiguring 2000 sf.

 

[Wild Bill]

My area new additions to existing homes runs about $150/sf lmao. Ridiculous but everyon eis busy especailly the good ones and they charge PREMIUM prices to get on the books.

If you can get out of the ground to the slab level on your own thats a huge savings. I'd just recommend making sure you arent taking out any load-bearing compnets or adding additional loads to supporting elements. A couple grand to a engineer might be worth it for reconfiguring 2000 sf.

That's crazy. I already updated the second floor, which is roughly 1400 square feet, 4 bedroom, 2 bathroom, stairwell for roughly 40k. Thankfully, my brother is a plumber and I can lay tile like fuckin picasso so the labor expenses were beer and $2k I stuffed into my brother's glove box so he couldn't refuse it. I painted, trimmed, installed new stair railings and updated the electric fixtures. I had someone install the hardwood and they charged me $2.50/foot, which is a bargain.

I'd do the same thing in the first floor, dump the house and build a new one before I spent 150/foot and the buyer can deal with the limited space in the kitchen.

The entire purpose of the addition is to add space to the kitchen, use a portion of the existing kitchen to build a mudroom off the garage and have my laundry on the main floor. If I go that route, I would need an architect/engineer b/c I'm opening up the back of the house, roughly a 30 foot span, and transfer the weight to the existing foundation. I know it won't be cheap to recess a beam to support that type of span and I'm more than happy to pay for this type of work. $8k to tell me where to put my toilet isn't going to happen, though.

I would build the addition on a crawl space with insulated concrete forms over a slab. I don't want that cold addition feel and need to run my heat and plumbing through the space so I think it's the best option. I worked with the forms before and it was easy and a great insulator, imo.

 

[NDdomer2]

lol sounds like you got it all figured out!

 

[Wild Bill]

lol sounds like you got it all figured out!

That's what I keep telling Mrs. Wild Bill.

 

[Cackalacky2.0]

That's crazy. I already updated the second floor, which is roughly 1400 square feet, 4 bedroom, 2 bathroom, stairwell for roughly 40k. Thankfully, my brother is a plumber and I can lay tile like fuckin picasso so the labor expenses were beer and $2k I stuffed into my brother's glove box so he couldn't refuse it. I painted, trimmed, installed new stair railings and updated the electric fixtures. I had someone install the hardwood and they charged me $2.50/foot, which is a bargain.

I'd do the same thing in the first floor, dump the house and build a new one before I spent 150/foot and the buyer can deal with the limited space in the kitchen.

The entire purpose of the addition is to add space to the kitchen, use a portion of the existing kitchen to build a mudroom off the garage and have my laundry on the main floor. If I go that route, I would need an architect/engineer b/c I'm opening up the back of the house, roughly a 30 foot span, and transfer the weight to the existing foundation. I know it won't be cheap to recess a beam to support that type of span and I'm more than happy to pay for this type of work. $8k to tell me where to put my toilet isn't going to happen, though.

I would build the addition on a crawl space with insulated concrete forms over a slab. I don't want that cold addition feel and need to run my heat and plumbing through the space so I think it's the best option. I worked with the forms before and it was easy and a great insulator, imo.

Regarding the enlargd span, the g.c. can probably make it work. There are engineered beams and posts and connectors that come with load and span tables so they are pretty user friendly but there will be a lot of details to work out between them and the architect most likely. Not sure if the Architects quoted fee included subing a structural engineer as needed. If you need an structural engineering questions answered, let me know.

 

[Wild Bill]

Regarding the enlargd span, the g.c. can probably make it work. There are engineered beams and posts and connectors that come with load and span tables so they are pretty user friendly but there will be a lot of details to work out between them and the architect most likely. Not sure if the Architects quoted fee included subing a structural engineer as needed. If you need an structural engineering questions answered, let me know.

What's your overall take and experience with LVL beams? I have heard some contractors tell me they're not sold on them - mostly due to their concerns about long term durability and nothing to do with short term failures.

 

[Cackalacky2.0]

What's your overall take and experience with LVL beams? I have heard some contractors tell me they're not sold on them - mostly due to their concerns about long term durability and nothing to do with short term failures.

Love them. Use them all the time. Way stronger than conventional lumber. THe way I understand it is that since they are engineered their behavior long term isnt well known as conventional lumber or timber. Strength can be easily tested and documented. Whats less well know is their long term performance with regards to environmental pressures (exposure to water, humidity and an ability to dry effectively if they get wet and what that does to the strength) or with creep and long term load induced deflections. Generally these are rectified with proper detailing in the case of environmental issues and by accounting for a bit of extra deflection over time (for this I will adjust my deflection criteria when sizing a beam or adjust the span length if possible). Generally i just make my deflection criteria a bit more strigent (meaning I dont allow it deflect as much) and then the beam is what it is at that point.

I have to be a bit fluid in what I allow as alot of times LVL is more available, or glulam is the better option somethimes, especially when traditional lumber sizes fluxuate in pricing. I have seen LVLs perform very well over time when looking at existing buildings my company has done as we get called back to do more work at the same site. Im not too concerned with choosing that over nominal lumber section and how it performs in a residence.

 

[Cackalacky2.0]

I guess as a corollary exclamation, if you go the engineered beam route, make sure its a proper product for the place its going. If it is to be used exterior, there are other engineeried lumber products that are better used than LVL but for interior dry applications, LVLs are great.

 

[Irish#1]

Just watch a few episodes on HGTV and you'll have it all figured out. Should be able to knock that out in a couple of hours like they do.

 

[Wild Bill]

Love them. Use them all the time. Way stronger than conventional lumber. THe way I understand it is that since they are engineered their behavior long term isnt well known as conventional lumber or timber. Strength can be easily tested and documented. Whats less well know is their long term performance with regards to environmental pressures (exposure to water, humidity and an ability to dry effectively if they get wet and what that does to the strength) or with creep and long term load induced deflections. Generally these are rectified with proper detailing in the case of environmental issues and by accounting for a bit of extra deflection over time (for this I will adjust my deflection criteria when sizing a beam or adjust the span length if possible). Generally i just make my deflection criteria a bit more strigent (meaning I dont allow it deflect as much) and then the beam is what it is at that point.

I have to be a bit fluid in what I allow as alot of times LVL is more available, or glulam is the better option somethimes, especially when traditional lumber sizes fluxuate in pricing. I have seen LVLs perform very well over time when looking at existing buildings my company has done as we get called back to do more work at the same site. Im not too concerned with choosing that over nominal lumber section and how it performs in a residence.

This is exactly the concern some people have raised. I really have no choice other than an Ibeam or LVL with a 30 foot span. The only other option is to split the distance with a beam but that doesn't fit Mrs. Wild Bill's "vision".

Thanks for the advice, Cack.