1. Attachments are working again! Check out this thread for more details and to report any other bugs.

The Pandemic DIY Home Improvement Projects

Discussion in 'Fred's House of Pancakes' started by Salamander_King, Nov 24, 2020.

  1. tochatihu

    tochatihu Senior Member

    Joined:
    Apr 10, 2004
    8,972
    3,501
    0
    Location:
    Kunming Yunnan China
    Vehicle:
    2001 Prius
    I bought a house in Puerto Rico long ago and its electricals were DIY by somebody who did not realize that 'ground' and 'neutral' were different things. You could get shocked many places but never deadly. Only noticeable.

    They don't 'code' there :)
     
    Salamander_King likes this.
  2. Salamander_King

    Salamander_King Senior Member

    Joined:
    Nov 8, 2015
    10,958
    8,836
    0
    Location:
    New England
    Vehicle:
    Other Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    Not during this pandemic period, but I have done curing and canning of olive for many years. Our climate is not suitable for olive trees, so I had to special order raw olives in bulk from a California permaculture orchard. They have 100 years old heirloom Misson olive and Barouni olive trees. Usually, a box of ~30 lb raw olives shipped are processed at a time once a year. Haven't done it for several years for I still have plenty of "aged" Spanish olives and California-style black olives in brine as well as dry salt-cured black Mission olives on our pantry shelf.

    upload_2020-11-25_0-34-30.png

    upload_2020-11-25_0-19-52.png
     
  3. tochatihu

    tochatihu Senior Member

    Joined:
    Apr 10, 2004
    8,972
    3,501
    0
    Location:
    Kunming Yunnan China
    Vehicle:
    2001 Prius
    Wouldja look at that. Dang.

    We are supposed to slit each one before brining but I skipped that step.

    Olives 'on the tree' are one of few fruits that birds etc. completely ignore. Taste one and you will know why :eek:
     
    Salamander_King likes this.
  4. Salamander_King

    Salamander_King Senior Member

    Joined:
    Nov 8, 2015
    10,958
    8,836
    0
    Location:
    New England
    Vehicle:
    Other Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    The slit is necessary if you are water curing. For brine curing, it is OK not to do the slit. But to get rid of the bitterness, the curing process can take months for both of those processes. In fact, some of my brine-cured olives have been sitting in the final curing brine solution for years without much change in the flavor. If using lye to cure the raw green olive, they can be finished in a few days. I have always followed these processes in this booklet for various methods and styles of cured olives. https://anrcatalog.ucanr.edu/pdf/8267.pdf
     
    #24 Salamander_King, Nov 25, 2020
    Last edited: Nov 25, 2020
  5. tochatihu

    tochatihu Senior Member

    Joined:
    Apr 10, 2004
    8,972
    3,501
    0
    Location:
    Kunming Yunnan China
    Vehicle:
    2001 Prius
    Little did I realize that Salamader_King was actually Olive_King.
     
    Salamander_King likes this.
  6. Mark57

    Mark57 2021 Tesla Model 3 LR AWD

    Joined:
    Aug 14, 2009
    2,945
    2,735
    0
    Location:
    OK
    Vehicle:
    Other Electric Vehicle
    Model:
    N/A
    My wife calls me the man with the 10 inch tool.:eek: No, no, it's a 10" crescent wrench.:p I can't remember when the last time was I hired someone else to do something on the property. Grinding stumps, painting the house, appliances, etc. It's fun and rewarding.
     
  7. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

    Joined:
    Oct 17, 2010
    54,470
    38,103
    80
    Location:
    Greater Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Touring
    Do tell, I could use tips.
     
  8. Mark57

    Mark57 2021 Tesla Model 3 LR AWD

    Joined:
    Aug 14, 2009
    2,945
    2,735
    0
    Location:
    OK
    Vehicle:
    Other Electric Vehicle
    Model:
    N/A
    It's not hard. I rented a stump grinder from Home Depot for 24 hrs. I was able to get it home by 9am removed two 36" stumps including roots and return it by 7pm. This is the one they had for rental. It's loud and sort of tedious. You just start on one side and slowly swing it sideways to the opposite side. The machine will quickly tell you how much you can bite if it bogs down or not. Start high and get deeper and deeper as the top is removed plus roots. It helps to have someone pull the debris back as you go so you can see what you're doing.

    We lost two trees from an ice storm so I used my Worx 15 amp 18" electric chainsaw to fall them and chop them up. The 18" bar was plenty big even on these large trees and it had lots of torque.
     
    #28 Mark57, Nov 25, 2020
    Last edited: Nov 25, 2020
    Salamander_King and Mendel Leisk like this.
  9. Prius Maximus

    Prius Maximus Senior Member

    Joined:
    May 3, 2004
    929
    774
    1
    Location:
    Northeastern IL
    Vehicle:
    2014 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    Nice. I had a house similar. I started taking cheap paneling off the wall. The first piece got halfway across the kitchen and stopped. I look behind it and the electrical outlet was screwed to the paneling, not the junction box, and followed the paneling with me. Two wires only, no ground. Needless to say, instead of only ripping out paneling I ended up ripping out the walls, cabinets, floor - everything and redoing from scratch.
     
  10. NewHybridOwner

    NewHybridOwner Active Member

    Joined:
    Nov 21, 2018
    607
    278
    0
    Location:
    W. Michigan
    Vehicle:
    2015 Prius
    Model:
    Four
    Many years ago I discovered an online forum dealing with the NEC and its interpretation, and I signed up and dared to ask a question. They told me to go away and ask an electrician -- and those professionals don't always agree on how the NEC (a multi-thick-volume publication that gets revised every few years) applies to particular situations, and sometimes agree among themselves that an inspector's ruling was in error because he didn't take into account Paragraph X.Y subsection (p)(r)(2)(A) (or whatever).
     
  11. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 1, 2016
    11,251
    15,474
    0
    Location:
    Bay Area, California
    Vehicle:
    2019 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Prime Plus
    Artificial grass installation :).

    Before:

    3932AA17-9981-4FF2-925D-9F1DCEF3147D.jpeg F20FDF8A-FD38-4D6D-A334-EB7053CA68D9.jpeg
    During the process:

    17C2AC4E-60ED-4C3B-8DC9-9F25A22D4820.jpeg CDF9D29F-8F6C-4F8F-8C32-ACA8814B4FD4.jpeg
    After:

    642E7C20-AAF5-41E4-B22A-8C02A9139612.jpeg B4963B3B-1F37-46BB-9A85-6735A8613A79.jpeg

    Made the wife happy:love:.

    Happy wife, happy life(y).
     
    edthefox5, Mark57 and Salamander_King like this.
  12. Salamander_King

    Salamander_King Senior Member

    Joined:
    Nov 8, 2015
    10,958
    8,836
    0
    Location:
    New England
    Vehicle:
    Other Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    Wow! What a transformation!! Was it a DIY project, or did you have some help? I wonder if I did something similar in my yard what people would think of. Yeah, the grass is always greener in my side of yard. In our climate, the lawn is brown 8 months out of a year.
     
    #32 Salamander_King, Nov 25, 2020
    Last edited: Nov 25, 2020
    Raytheeagle likes this.
  13. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 1, 2016
    11,251
    15,474
    0
    Location:
    Bay Area, California
    Vehicle:
    2019 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Prime Plus
    DIY:).

    This was a 13'x40' area and in order to prepare the area it required the following:
    • Level ground
    • 3 inches (or more) of aggregate
    • Plate tamper (to compact the aggregate)
    • Border (I used the most cost effective pavers Lowe's had)
    • Artificial grass
    • Nails (that's how you lock down the turf)
    • In fill (adds weight to the turf)
    • Odorizer (helps if you have pets)
    • Power broom ( for brushing up the blades of grass once you have the nails down, in fill and odorizer spread)
    The amount of aggregate required was 9 tons, so that took a good bit of effort (and gave me a great workout);).

    The turf itself weighs ~400 pounds so I had to get creative once it was delivered (bought some carpet dollies from Harbor Freight that did the trick).

    Not a complex DIY project, but the wife wanted that next to the prior COVID summertime addition:

    4DC9B91D-0E6E-41E2-86A2-CAC7DF076751.jpeg 5D6AA83D-880E-465F-B3A8-BF2175FE26D4.jpeg

    The backyard for normal grass was a night mare, so this was a great long term solution(y).
     
    Mark57 and Salamander_King like this.
  14. NewHybridOwner

    NewHybridOwner Active Member

    Joined:
    Nov 21, 2018
    607
    278
    0
    Location:
    W. Michigan
    Vehicle:
    2015 Prius
    Model:
    Four
    Had to replace our 15-yr-old LG-manufactured over-the-range "Kenmore" microwave. It still worked fine, except that the handle broke off and no OEM or after-market replacement was available. We ordered a replacement Whirlpool one from Costco, but before it was delivered someone gave us an almost new Whirlpool one -- not quite as feature-rich, but free is better than $3xx, and we were able to cancel the Costco order.

    Had to drill some new holes in the wall and in the cabinet for the screws and bolts. I assume that if the old one had been a Whirlpool, the replacement would have been a little more straightforward.
     
  15. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

    Joined:
    Oct 17, 2010
    54,470
    38,103
    80
    Location:
    Greater Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Touring
    We have a similar microwave. There was a lower end model by same manufacturer: to open you gripped a protrusion and gave a yank, it opened. Not so on ours: you push a small panel, and internally levers, springs and latches go into motion, and eventually, the door opens. Except one of the plastic hinge points breaks, and then the entire thing is kaput. Twice I've torn it open, cobbled a fix with steel rod, little bits of wood, some plumbers strap hanger and a small diameter steel rod.

    Oh, we have a dishwasher with similar problem: the latch, cheap plastic hinge point, breaks, dishwasher kaput. Except with this one I haven't figured out a way to cobble: have bought a $40~ CDN latch TWICE now. It comes with electronics which aren't need, the old ones are fine. Just the effing plastic hinge. There's an edict in our kitchen now: ONLY close the dishwasher completely when starting it up. Maybe that'll help.
     
  16. NewHybridOwner

    NewHybridOwner Active Member

    Joined:
    Nov 21, 2018
    607
    278
    0
    Location:
    W. Michigan
    Vehicle:
    2015 Prius
    Model:
    Four
    Our microwave just had a handle to pull -- no pushbutton: protruding from the inner face of the door were "wavy" curved parts that engaged spring-loaded parts (rollers. I suppose) in the cabinet of the appliance, so to open the door we were merely getting those curved parts to ride over the rollers.

    Planning to offer the old one on NextDoor or on eBay "for parts only" and "local pickup only."
     
    #36 NewHybridOwner, Nov 26, 2020
    Last edited: Nov 26, 2020
    Mendel Leisk likes this.
  17. Salamander_King

    Salamander_King Senior Member

    Joined:
    Nov 8, 2015
    10,958
    8,836
    0
    Location:
    New England
    Vehicle:
    Other Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    I picked up this oscillating Multi-tool for my recent DIY project. If you do any small and/or irregular cutting, grinding, or sanding of wood, metal, or PVC, then this tool can be a big help. In my case, the backside of the countertop close to the wall was not accessible with the regular jigsaw or circular saw. This multi-tool made it so much easier to cut the small corner and edge close to the wall. I picked up the least expensive one, but as it turned out Dremel uses non-standard attachment for the detachable tools so that if you buy universal tools from other brands, it may not attach. It also comes with a rather short 7 feet cord.

    upload_2020-11-27_18-38-42.png
     
  18. Kenny94945

    Kenny94945 Active Member

    Joined:
    Mar 24, 2016
    758
    387
    0
    Location:
    Sausalito
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius v wagon
    Model:
    Four
    The plumbing repair tips are awesome.
    Yet I am surprised, no members of this forum installed the pandemic DIY improvement of a stripper pole, stereo and lighting :) LOL
     
    Raytheeagle likes this.
  19. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 1, 2016
    11,251
    15,474
    0
    Location:
    Bay Area, California
    Vehicle:
    2019 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Prime Plus
    Well at least no one has copped to it:whistle:.

    But in home entertainment improvements I bet were on some lists(y).
     
  20. ChapmanF

    ChapmanF Senior Member

    Joined:
    Mar 30, 2008
    23,069
    14,973
    0
    Location:
    Indiana, USA
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    IV
    I'm not really limber enough.