MY HOME IMPROVEMENT PROJECTS - (OR 'PRACTICAL USES FOR THAT MODEL FOO')

[bucketfoot-al]

New addition to the thread ... with grand babies coming for a visit in a few weeks, my wife asked me to fix several rotted out deck floor boards (where the roof dumps a fire hose of water every time we have one of those special "Texas Thunderstorms" that dumps inches of water in a few hours ...)

So, I got some matching deck boards, sawed them to the right length, took out the screws ... aaand found that the crossbeam boards holding them had started to rot as well ...

Well, I expanded the removed section to 3 boards, and got some heavier cross beam boards that I will insert adjacent to the rotten boards and hammer them flush - thus taking the weight off of the rotted boards - and then hammer the floor boards onto the new cross beams ...

The last photo has the boards in place "for show only", but the crossbeam work still needs to be done (see the crossbeams to the right of the old rotten planks ) ... for that I need the hammering services of my muscular stepson this afternoon ... as I have found out over the past few years, hard hammering work makes every muscle ache the next morning ... I dunno ... ya think ... I might be ... getting ... wait for it ... OLD? Must be!

More pics to come ... (this is what I am reduced to, in addition to no modeling time 2 months and running ... )

[tay666]

Instead of hammering, you could just screw the sistered joists onto the existing joists.
Just be sure to use construction screws or deck screws. Not drywall screws.

[bucketfoot-al]

Instead of hammering, you could just screw the sistered joists onto the existing joists.
Just be sure to use construction screws or deck screws. Not drywall screws.

They have to be hammered into position first because its a tight fit. They can't just be placed against the old joists because that would require lifting ALL the old deck planks off. Not a good idea on a 13-year old deck! Once I hammer them into position screws are not required. (The joists have to go over the horizontal brackets that are about 6' apart for support - so you can't just place them flush against the old ones. The idea is to take the carry load off of the rotted area of the old joists).

Experimented with 2" joists and got a pinched finger to show for it - they were way too thick to hammer up into place

Moving to option #2 - 5/4" thick boards (same as the deck planks). And getting muscular stepson to help. Stay tuned.

[bucketfoot-al]

UPDATE: Thanks to Grant's help (and young muscles) - MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!!!

(You can see where I poured Gorilla Glue (what else?) inside the old screw holes and cracks in the original, partly rotted (bottom 60% is still good) joists. Just a little extra "reinforcement").

[bucketfoot-al]

Earlier today I sawed the leftover heavy deck boards into 3-foot sections ... to use as ballast holding down the anti-frost bag over the Loquat tree, which is blooming ... I want those plums this Spring damnit!!!!

The key thing was to add a 125W Infrared Heat Lamp under the canopy inside the bag ... to keep the tree and especially the buds above 32 degrees ... its dipping to 29 degrees tonight ... fingers crossed ... tomorrow the bags come off as the next 10 days low looking to be 40 degrees and up ... but I'll have to do this a few more times the next couple of months for sure ...

Inside the house I fixed about 6 towel hanger rings in the bathrooms that had started pulling away from the wall ... using ... Gorilla Glue (didya expect anything else? Gorilla Glue is still UNDEFEATED in the "home fix" category) ... I just pour a little glue between the metal and the wall where its loose ... let it slide down and then, using a wet paper towel, squeeze some water down the wall to 'activate' the Gorilla Glue ... the ring is then taped tight to the wall using clear packing tape (because its not so sticky and won't peel the paint off the wall upon removal) ... wait an hour, cut and carefully peel the tape off ... and the towel rings (or toilet paper holder rings) are Gorilla-secured ... forever ...

[tay666]

Well, if it works for you, great.
Personally, I tend to overengineer. You can hang off the towel rods I installed in this house.

As for the temperature, I am kind of jealous. 30 was our high today, and it felt like a heat wave. The high tomorrow is supposed to be 18.

[bucketfoot-al]

Well, if it works for you, great.
Personally, I tend to overengineer. You can hang off the towel rods I installed in this house.

As for the temperature, I am kind of jealous. 30 was our high today, and it felt like a heat wave. The high tomorrow is supposed to be 18.

Yeah, that's due to us being (engages Copilot ) about 755 miles farther South on the globe ... our average January high is 63 degrees (with many days warmer) while Ohio is between 33-36 degrees average January high ( *Yikes! ). San Antone average January lows are 40.5 degrees ... vs 21 degrees for Ohio ... it is what it is ...there is no way I could ever live in that kind of climate again ... too old I guess ...

[tay666]

Also, the state average is a lot different than the part of the state I live in. The rest of the state tends to be much warmer than us here on the north coast.
We are just across the lake from Canada after all.

[bucketfoot-al]

Also, the state average is a lot different than the part of the state I live in. The rest of the state tends to be much warmer than us here on the north coast.
We are just across the lake from Canada after all.

Yikes that's cold! I spent three winters on North Lake Shore Drive in Chicago when I was going to Northwestern Law School ...

The only time that I ever felt colder in my life was the 10 January days I spent training with the Army in Hohenfels Germany in '96, on the way to Bosnia, up in the mountains near the Czech border, reputedly the coldest spot in Continental Europe

Don't know if it is, but sure as heck felt like it!

We slept in tents wearing all our cold weather gear and the cold weather sleeping bags zipped up to around our noses. Everyone took turns staying up for a couple of hours to make sure that the old kerosene stove in the middle of the tent kept burning, so that we didn't freeze. There was about 3 ft of snow outside.

Then there was the two months I spent at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base up in your neck of the woods, for the Dayton Peace Talks back in '95. That November was absolutely frigid!

Thanks Trevor. Brought back a lot of memories.

Pretty sure I'm going to have some nightmares about being out in the Arctic by myself tonight

[tay666]

That brings back some memories of my own.
Us teenagers camping out in the woods and waking up to like 4 inches of snow covering our sleeping bags.
Freak snow storm in like late September or early October.
We didn't have tents or anything like that. We just drug sleeping bags and pillows out in the woods and started fires.
Back then I really didn't even notice the cold.

Now I do.

[bucketfoot-al]

Modeling Studio Improvement (inspired by Trevor's own work on his model area bench):

A 50.75" wide, 25.5" deep 'drawer' was added to the bench (that I built way back in 2013). Tape secured it so that I could finish screwing it to the 2x4s. Heat Lamp stowed underneath awaiting this weekend's freeze when it will be returned under the Loquat tree and the tent put over it again. Not quite sure what I will put under there, but as I work in the studio in coming months I'll figure it out. (There's no shortage of 'STUFF' that could go down there and free up some shelves).

Thank you Trevor for the inspiration!

[tay666]

Cool.
Infrastructure projects are fun. Especially when it eventually streamlines actual fun processes like doing kits.

[bucketfoot-al]

Cool.
Infrastructure projects are fun. Especially when it eventually streamlines actual fun processes like doing kits.

Got the next 3 kits to work on tucked in on the L side now ... tonight needed to move the BIG LONG wood base for the 1/18 Sauroposeidon 'bash as I started painting him ... no available space anywhere ... then I glanced at the new drawer ... and just slid the base all the way in between the heat lamp and the kit boxes ... man I should have done this a long time ago!