Sprinkler Work

I finally tackled the sprinkler work that needed to get done in the backyard. Several things needed to get fixed. There was a french drain I wanted removed as I was going to replace it with a water barrel, the sprinkler box needed to be moved because it was sitting right where this water barrel was going to go, and the sprinkler manifolds needed to be fixed as they were leaking and the previous owner who "fixed" them, completely removed a zone that was watering the back of the yard. Along the way, I discovered a bad patch that sprung a leak too.

So, first off, the digging and removal of the french drain was done.

Like it never happened...

Then I started to attack the existing manifolds and determined it was best if I just moved it over to the side a few feet. I used two dual manifolds connected together which was handy, but also had to fashion a shut-off valve that would fit in the existing box. Turned out to be a bit tricky but with an extra 4th manifold added and the switch, it just fit into the box.

Existing three part manifold and shut-off valve.

New one all built and ready to install.

In place and lines all reconnected.

Another look at the runs.

Mostly done.

A look inside the box all wired up.

Kitchen re-shaping

 Had time to, and had already moved everything out of the pantry to a temp shelf in the dining room, so I decided to demo the pantry. As it was the kitchen and I suspected dust was going to go everywhere, I got some 9x12 sheets of plastic and some duct tape and blocked off the area. It turned out to work better than I expected too. I need to start doing that little bit of tedious prep work on projects, as at least in this case, it saved me time and headache later on.

 

Soffit hole open to attic...

All removed.

So, I still need to patch up the holes with new drywall, but there was a surprising amount of wood used to frame that pantry. Bonus is that I can reuse that downstairs, especially with lumber prices nowadays. Next on the list will be to remove all the kitchen soffits, which should get really messy. Luckily I stuffed batt insulation above the soffits when I was doing all the work in the attic, otherwise I'd just get loose insulation falling down.

The Big One

 I started to attempt to finish the stairs in the house, up to getting the "retro" wood stair treads in order to do it. As I pulled away the tile from the first riser step, I then clearly saw the levels of chaos underneath my kitchen floor. I always knew it was quite high, as the carpet in the living room had to be shimmed up to reach the height of the tile floor - but I was about to discover a whole bunch of fun news.

Layer of linoleum, then particle board, more linoleum, mortar, then tile.

So I got the bottom layer of linoleum tested for asbestos, and it came back at 5% content. Got a quote to pull it out and the guy mentioned the second layer, with its black backing was probably worse and had the usual 60% asbestos. So - the kitchen journey began with asbestos removal.

  

Snuck a peak at the original flooring.

Not terrible, considering all that was on top.

Still a bit of adhesive left over on the floor.

Front Garden Work

The front bushes had started to die and they always looked terrible in general, so we tackled removing them, which was quite a feat. Then of course making the area pretty after that was the next task. As I am not the one with the green thumb, I passed that task on to another.

Before look at the bushes

Tearing out the bushes.

Clean slate.

New seating area and flowers

Grown in after a few weeks

Unfinished business

To say the least, I've been distracted and there's definitely been a drought on work and posts. To try to get something significant done on the house, I recently tackled the front entryway which has been the only part of upstairs that's untouched by new trim or paint. So, here's the before and afters.

Closet with old-style trim

New door never trimmed out

Close up. I need to cutback the chair rail.

Front door with new trim.

Semi-fancy custom pieced together trim.

All painted.

Little wider shot of finished product.

Let's see if that sparks some creativity to tackle some more projects. Perhaps?

Indeed.

HVAC replacement, new roof and gutters

After the water heater, I went spending wild, and have been enjoying putting the responsibility of fixing the house into the pros hands. To continue throwing money at problems, I replaced the furnace, the A/C, the roof, and the gutters. The furnace was long due to be replaced, and when doing so, I had to replace the A/C because the old one used now illegal refrigerant. The new furnace is 96% efficient, and the A/C compressor is huge (and quiet) compared to the previous one. I also went fancy and got an ecobee 4 pro thermostat.
As far as the roof, I opted for a Landmark Pro shingle in Max Def Weathered Wood. I liked the variety in colors and figure it'll match well now, and for any house color in the future. The gutters are just a seamless aluminium with Gutterstuff gutter guards.

New Ruud U96 furnance

Exhaust and now, intake, using existing flue.

Light at the end of the tunnel...

New roof. They even painted the flue and other exhaust pipes.

Water heater update

My vintage 1998 water heater finally tanked and started to leak all over the floor. Luckily it was slow and I discovered it pretty quickly. After that, the search for a plumber and researching what was the best replacement began. I was toying with the idea of installing my own tankless water heater but when I had to deal with no hot water at all in the house, the urgency of the fix really sunk in. A pro took all day to install the gear. It probably would have taken me weeks...
So, I got a tankless water heater and a water softener installed. Turns out my plumbing was already set up for a softener, I was just clueless to the fact. As I didn't do anything - here's just the before and after photos of the plumber's work. Wait! I did add an electrical outlet for the heater and softener...

Before. Tank.

After. Rinnai RUR199IN Tankless heater and a softener.

Front of house before.

Added exhaust and intake cover for heater.