What home improvement work did you do today?

Just priced the materials to do a little 6’x8’ “greenhouse” shed off the back side of our chicken coop. FML - this thing is going to cost almost $1k for 2x4’s and some T1-11 and some clear plastic corrugated sheeting!

 

Yeah - I need to check a couple other sources before committing to $1/LF for shitty 2x4's

 

Added some more lighting to the garage

 

Busy yesterday after work and this morning. Yesterday I weeded and fertilized our few new trees. Also had to replace an outlet qnd bubble case that our septic aerator hooks to.
I got 6 pallets of sod delivered yesterday and hired a high schooler to come help. Did about 3/4 of a pallet yesterday then him and I knocked out the rest today. I'm sore and tired, but glad it's done since the sand was blowing in our pool making it a pain and a mess. Here's a few pics kinda during and after. We got most of it covered. If the grass doesn't grow through and spread quick enough, I may go grab another 1 or 2 pallets. Each pallets is 450sqft.

 

By chance does anyone in the dfw Texas area know of/is a contractor or does remodeling? Looking for recommendations.I can create a thread but thought I would post here first.
TIA, David

 

It’s a snowball effect. Can definitely keep a crew busy. In the beginning stages but need some direction. So many people claim to be able to “do the work” but this is uncharted territory for us. Just looking for an honest and reputable referral. I know that materials are crazy high and on back order issues and might not be the time but someone to not rip my head off and give me some direction. Also, not looking for free but not a “jack of all trades and a master of none”. Been there done that. List is long and won’t type everything needed/wanting but here is an idea and can elaborate more via phone or pm.
Open concept kitchen and living we have. Re texture kitchen wall, paint, redo cabinets, redo backsplash, tape and bed, in ceiling light fixtures, replace tile flooring with wood flooring, have 2.5 in wood in a lot of home and want to replace with 4-5 in., rooms with carpet do wood floors as well, lots of trim painting, replace 2.5ish ( or whatever it is ) baseboards with 4ish in. This is something serious about and needs to be done in stages ( as mentioned can keep people busy ). Oh, I haven’t mentioned master bath remodel.

 

Still working on my bro-in-laws new place. We moved him in on Thursday and are still unpacking all his stuff. So far I've installed Nest Outdoor Cameras at both of his doors (he's easy to take advantage of) and I have a third one to install for his backyard, swapped out his dumb thermostat for a Nest, put in a grab bar near the tub using Wing-its (which are awesome), hung a TV in his game room (it's a little bit crooked so I need to shim it), switched out and rekeyed a deadbolt, put down area rugs, put up some shelves, hung a bunch of shit on his walls, etc. I'm glad I can do this stuff for him but I've been forced to neglect my yard and own home, so hopefully I can attack it a little bit this week. Pics below - we still have a lot to unpack. At least he can use his pool table... Oh yeah. There was a crappy ceiling fan on above his pool table. I found this kickass Tiffany lamp thing. It's old and heavy. I redid the old wiring and rigged it up above his pool table.

 

That is a proper pool tavern lamp. Looks great!

 

Worked on framing in a shed/greenhouse of the back side of our chicken coop.


Still need to frame in the door, install the siding (LP for the lower half, clear polycarbonate for the upper half), roof (more polycarbonate), lay hardware cloth, weed barrier, and gravel for the floor, paint, etc. But at least it is started and taking shape.

 

Finished staining the deck today. Damn... I don't remember the stairs being that hard on my back. Is it possible the deck has grown more stairs over the years? The wife says I've grown old and fat... pffff...

 

Getting ready to finish my basement. Put a goods list together and really aren’t looking forward to any of it. Here goes my summer lol.

 

Installed three solar panels for the Arlo Pro 2 cameras. They seem to work good and charge the batteries quick. Hopefully no more climbing up and down the ladder to remove and charge them.

 

That's what I told Mrs. Bandito. We were just over there earlier and she said I needed to get more light in that room because it only lights up the pool table. I told her that's the way it would look in a tavern. My bro-in-law agreed.

 

Damn....I may steal this idea from you for my cameras.

 

I was skeptical, but so far so good. It's able to keep up with the normal drain from usage. Here's a picture of the brand I went with from Amazon. I think they were just over $100 for a 3 pack and came in either black or white. Just make sure you get the correct one for whichever camera you have because the ends are different.

 

I had an old ‘bag caddy’ that worked great for holding open the big black trash bags for leaves and such. It was basically just a flexible sheet of plastic that held latched together. Fill the bag, tie it, and then slip the caddy off. Worked for about 8 years and then cracked and fell apart so I threw it away. Couldn’t find another like it but then yesterday I had a great idea. I bought a circular 32gal trash can. I will just cut the bottom off of it and it will function the same except will take up more storage room. Otherwise I feel like I solved a year long problem I’ve had! Haha.
Remember, it’s the simple things in life.

 

I did the same yesterday. Fortunately my stairs stayed at a steady height.

 

I'm tired of pulling freaking weeds so I'm laying down cardboard under my mulch to try to make my life a little easier. I got one of my large front gardens done this morning and had to give up on the other side when it hit the 90's. It's a bit of a process but I figure I'll get it all back if I'm not crawling around roses all year, pulling up weeds.

I also put a little shelf/hanger thing at my brother-in-laws house for all of his Special Olympics medals. Hope to get the dartboard up for him tomorrow.

 

I took the day off today to replace our 25 year old 50 gal HWT with a new tankless. I ran a dedicated circ line so we have near-instant hot water at the other end of the house. I’m amazed at how quiet it is. It’s a pretty amazing piece of technology. The wife is stoked on the extra space in the mudroom closet too.