What home improvement work did you do today?

Ok, got a question for you fellow DIYers...

I just installed a Pioneer mini split for a large room that is isolated from my central HVAC. I bought a vacuum pump, gauges, etc, and watched a few YouTube videos to do it the right way. I am happy to say that it is working perfectly. My only problem is how it looks on the outside of the house. The wall that my line set and drain hose are running out of is so thick, the joint for the high pressure line is right at the edge of the hole in the brick on the outside of the house. Because of this, I was not able to get the line set bent enough to lie flush with the exterior brick wall of the house. It comes away from the brick just far enough that I'm unable to use the slim cover kit that I bought to visually clean it up. I do NOT want to force it to lie flush now that the connections have been made and the refrigerant is in the line set.

I'm looking for ideas to cover up or reduce the noticeability of the line set as it pokes out of the hole away from the house. I have two options of the top of my head:

1. Wrap it again in paintable tape, and paint it the same color as the house. That would make it less noticeable, and it wouldn't cost much at all.

2. Build a small, three sided fence out of cedar 1x's to mount on the house and cover up the unsightly line set. This would look cleaner in my opinion, and it would match the rest of our cedar trim and shutters. I would not cover up the outside unit, just the line set, and I would be careful not to restrict airflow to the outside unit in any way.

Option 1 is easier by far, but I'm a sucker for clear-stained cedar, and I can't help but think option 2 might look great. Any other options I haven't thought of yet?

 

happen to have a pic of it?

 

Pics definitely help. I’d lean toward option 2

 

I’m leaning toward 2 as well. I can get a pic later. Just imagine two copper lines in white insulation coming out a few inches away from the house before curving down toward the unit. They just stick out too far.

 

#2.

 

Might I recommend @Fotnot brand fertilizer?

 

we had "neighbor night" this past Saturday. I told all the wives and husbands I was sorry if they ended up pregnant for swimming in our pool.

 

They should already know the risks... you might want to post signs though.

 

I don't get it sorry.

 

Hopefully, it's not a little Robi... Those things are known to catch fire when they pancake!

 

We are already being invaded by people moving here from CA/WA/OR so you better get here fast. Almost full!

But yes, we do have a ton of hydroelectric dams.

TVA would be the place to look for your dam job.


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Nice!

 

fanciest start kit I've ever seen, Is it just a start cap and relay? Why is it mounted outside the unit where the sun can get those wires.
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EDIT
Just googled a couple things. Learned something. Also for the prices I saw online seems like a good deal. You also have some benefit of it staging the OD motor to come on first reducing start amps a little there also.

 

I started the addition of a sub-panel out to the garage..

 

I’m not even going to pretend I know exactly how it works! There is a start capacitor in it though. The fan does indeed start first, then about 3 seconds later the compressor starts.

It doesn’t get any sun on it right now the way it’s positioned. But I do plan on mounting a larger enclosure on the side of my house and putting it in there even though the unit is waterproof and supposed to be uv resistant.

 

I wish I still had the pic of the hard start that exploded like a New Years popper……

 

I’ve been meaning to do this for a while but couldn’t find the right fan. Found it yesterday on Amazon. Got it today and mounted it. Had to cut the hole bigger. When the house was reroofed they put the vent in the center of the roof. Well the center of the roof also had a 2x4 going down it. They cut a tiny 4x4 inch hole and called it good. The garage was getting way too hot. And since it’s attached to the house it would heat the house up. Hopefully this will help.





Also got some plastic foliage for chain link fences. Just did this for a mock up.



The plants are all there because my patio cover is being replaced. That will be done tomorrow and I’ll post those pics.

 

So the guys installing the awning/patio cover fell behind half a day, the wiring for the lights and intricacy of the layout held them up I guess, or maybe replacing the eaves (more on that later) but we finally got a new patio cover.

Here's the old one...

Notice the post on the left. And that it was attached to the eaves on the right.





Termite buffet








Wind, time and the sun took it's toll.







There's also a gate and about 2 feet of fence that they replaced.



The guys showed up on the 11th, just two of them. Demo'ed the entire awning and started installing the new one.



The old eaves were toast.




So here's where things went... not according to plan.

When I dealt with the salesman in early June, we discussed the eaves and he mentioned that I might need to hire a carpenter to do it, as his company doesn't handle that stuff. I said I'd do it myself if you give me a weekend. So we scheduled his guys to show up June 30th, giving me 4 days to take care of it and his guys show up on July 5th. June 30th rolls around and no one shows up. WTF? I text him and he says that he didn't have anyone scheduled to show up and that we didn't talk about that. The'll be here on July 11th. Did I miss hear him? But then I get an email from the company that day asking to pay for the remaining balance on the invoice for services rendered. I didn't miss hear him, he forgot to schedule his guys but not the billing.

So on Monday after work, I had to go to Home Depot and find some 1x8 boards to replace the eaves. Fortunately I'm a genius and bought the exact paint a few weeks prior. Unfortunately, the only wood The Homie Despot had was maple. FUCK. I also thought that I'd have to demo, paint and install the new eaves in just a few hours. So $200 for the wood and $100 in tools and miscellaneous stuff I get home. As I'm backing in my driveway the salesman calls me to let me know that if I go get the material his guys will install the eaves free of charge. So I spend the evening painting eaves and letting them dry in the garage.

Tuesday they showed up and got some shit done.

Holes dug, poured and posts set.





The top panels used are insulated, which is awesome because they're used to create a soffit for the lighting.






Finally finished. They did a great job.


And they managed to keep the worklight which is right over the sink. That sink will be replaced with a stainless unit once I find what I'm looking for. The closest light is right over the BBQ.







And the new gate.


Overall very happy with them but their cleanup leaves a lot to be desired.

For the SoCal LA SouthBay folks, I used Torrance Fence Co, if you are interested. Not trying to plug them or anything. Mods, feel free to delete this line if need be.



Edit: Light test.

 

Baja....that looks great. Always feels good to add value and astetics to ones home.

 

Called in the professionals. New roof completed and the solar panels project starts Monday!!!!

 

This showed up yesterday. So far, probably the best $500 i ever spent.



Also worked on putting the tin on my new carport/lanai, until it started raining.

 

Been thinking about getting one of those Coleman Saluspa's, did you buy the addition seats for them, or do you just sit on the bottom?

 

Believe it or not, you can buy them at Lowe's and Walmart, but they have them priced around $650.00 for the version with the most jets. I'm still searching around for a lower price because I did see them somewhere for $500.00.

Here's a good link in the meantime if you're interested in buying one.

https://homehottubguide.com/review/coleman-saluspa-range-review/#saluspahawaii

 

No I sit on the bottom, but the bottom is padded. The water is about 2 ft deep.

I got it on ebay, open box for $450. Didnt appear to be previously unpackaged at all when it arrived.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/293323257688

I went with the square one which i assume is slightly bigger than the round ones which are a little cheaper. I havent tested it yet, but i think 4 people could squeeze in it.

 

And a little beautification along the fence to go with the new awning. No long drawn out story for this.

 

Temporarily installed my StarLink RV dish (still waiting for the home dish to ship - 2 years and counting).


Haven’t found my “optimized” spot yet (I have a lot of trees around the house), but first speed tests compared to the painful DSL I’ve been putting up with for the past 16 years

 

Thanks for that link, can't beat that great price, just ordered one.