The Project Thread

[stevegrab]

4 hours ago, rajncajn said:

This is another small project I did using some of the leftover trampoline parts. The metal poles are the safety net poles cut to size.

 

For this one,  I needed a firewood rack for my fire pit. Just something to hold everything and keep it relatively dry. 

 

Made it too tall at first.

Made the roof hinged so it's easier to stack the wood when I replenish. 

 

I'm curious, did you consider making the roof sloped, so water would not build up when it rains? Cannot tell but looks flat, but made out of corrugated aluminum or something similar. 

 

I've noticed in our local parks some of the railings on bridges and such being redone recently to have sloped surface. I figured that's so the snow doesn't accumulate as much and falls off as it melts. Thought same thing might apply here, and know that flat surfaces can be a real problem with water pooling and leaking (ask anybody with a flat roof). 

[rajncajn]

1 hour ago, stevegrab said:

I'm curious, did you consider making the roof sloped, so water would not build up when it rains? Cannot tell but looks flat, but made out of corrugated aluminum or something similar. 

It's corrugated plastic and it's sloped down in the front. It's also designed to drain to the sides to minimize splashing back onto the wood pile. The plastic also allows some sunlight to help keep the moisture down. 

Edited April 15, 2022 by rajncajn

[League_Champion]

I just bought a Ram 2500 Rocky Ridge K2 that I have big plans for. I have a little more time ony hands these days so I plan on customizing it even more. My goal is to make it into the ultimate outdoor, camping, fishing, hunting, go anywhere off-road vehicle. I've always been a Jeep Rubicon owner and have built many custom Jeeps over the years. I'm still trying to figure out what to do with this truck but I hope to have a plan real soon with plenty of pics. 

[rajncajn]

Nothing like emergency repairs...

This afternoon was supposed to be spent working in the yard. But when sparks flew when I bumped the ac unit with the lawnmower, the yard got put on the backburner. Apparently the power cord going to the outside unit was too close to the vent fins insise the unit and at some point I must have caught it with the weedeater and tore the jacket from the wire. Thankfully it touched the metal when I hit it with the mower,  because that could have been a serious hazard.

 

 

On a good note,  I really needed to clean the coils and since I had everything apart it was a prime time to get that done. Oh well,  new cable installed,  this time an outdoor one with a heavier jacket.

 

[stevegrab]

You really are Mr. Fix It.  Is there any kind of job you won't do? Are you for hire  

[League_Champion]

13 hours ago, rajncajn said:

Nothing like emergency repairs...

This afternoon was supposed to be spent working in the yard. But when sparks flew when I bumped the ac unit with the lawnmower, the yard got put on the backburner. Apparently the power cord going to the outside unit was too close to the vent fins insise the unit and at some point I must have caught it with the weedeater and tore the jacket from the wire. Thankfully it touched the metal when I hit it with the mower,  because that could have been a serious hazard.

 

 

On a good note,  I really needed to clean the coils and since I had everything apart it was a prime time to get that done. Oh well,  new cable installed,  this time an outdoor one with a heavier jacket.

 

 

That's an R-22 system? 

[rajncajn]

1 hour ago, League_Champion said:

 

That's an R-22 system? 

Yes,  it was put in after hurricane Katrina. It probably won't be long before we have to replace it. 

[League_Champion]

On 4/22/2022 at 1:35 PM, rajncajn said:

Yes,  it was put in after hurricane Katrina. It probably won't be long before we have to replace it. 

 

Yeah, those are a dying breed. You can still get R-22 equipment and there are replacement refrigerants now. I just had to replace an entire system in a rental property and went with all R-22 because it's just better. 

[FinishTheDrill]

Very cool, thanks for sharing!

[rajncajn]

Today is completely disassemble the lawnmower day!  My FIL bought himself one of the new electric lawnmowers and offered me his old one. Even though my old one worked fine, I got rid of it since his old one was newer than mine and had self propel. Well, my luck,  the engine seized the second time I used it. My FIL assured me that it had oil in it and I didn't even bother to check it. I got the thing completely apart and it's as I expected,  the piston rings are shot and the cylinder is badly scored. Not I've got to decide if I want to bring it somewhere to resurface the cylinder because I don't have the tools necessary or just break down a buy a new mower.  Waiting on a call back now to see how much the work will cost and if it's even worth it. 

In this second shot you can clearly see the damage. It's like that on both sides.

[stevegrab]

Well that really sucks, especially since you got rid of your old working mower. 

 

This winter I spent about $50 to replace the rear wheels on my mower, the inner plastic hub area that the axle goes thru had come apart as I was using them through fall one year to mulch leaves. I was able to use some washer/nuts to keep it going for a bit then found the wheels online. I was afraid the mower would die on me shortly after that. 

[irish]

On 7/23/2022 at 3:59 PM, rajncajn said:

Today is completely disassemble the lawnmower day!  My FIL bought himself one of the new electric lawnmowers and offered me his old one. Even though my old one worked fine, I got rid of it since his old one was newer than mine and had self propel. Well, my luck,  the engine seized the second time I used it. My FIL assured me that it had oil in it and I didn't even bother to check it. I got the thing completely apart and it's as I expected,  the piston rings are shot and the cylinder is badly scored. Not I've got to decide if I want to bring it somewhere to resurface the cylinder because I don't have the tools necessary or just break down a buy a new mower.  Waiting on a call back now to see how much the work will cost and if it's even worth it. 

In this second shot you can clearly see the damage. It's like that on both sides.

 

Sounds like a new mower. 

[League_Champion]

On 7/23/2022 at 3:59 PM, rajncajn said:

piston rings are shot and the cylinder is badly scored. Not I've got to decide if I want to bring it somewhere to resurface the cylinder because I don't have the tools necessary or just break down a buy a new mower.  Waiting on a call back now to see how much the work will cost and if it's even worth it.

 

Rajn, what are you doing? You don't repair that crap, you buy a new mower. Why would you rebuild a $200 old ass broken down mower? 

[rajncajn]

15 hours ago, League_Champion said:

 

Rajn, what are you doing? You don't repair that crap, you buy a new mower. Why would you rebuild a $200 old ass broken down mower? 

• The same lawnmower at Ace costs $400
• A new set of piston rings is under $25
• Because I don't like throwing money in the garbage just cuz I like shiny new things
• Because when I buy a new mower, I want to get exactly what I want, not compromise because I need something now. I also don't like borrowing other peoples stuff.

 

My only question on whether or not to get a new mower hinged on how much it would cost to resurface the cylinder and since I can't even get a shop to call me back then I'll probably end up getting a mower anyway. I just looked at the Stihl electric mower yesterday & that's probably the route I'll go as I look to eventually replace all my gas-powered yard tools with cordless. I've currently got a mix of gas powered & corded. Can't stand dragging cords around & the maintenance with gas is just a pain in the ass, not to mention the price.

[stevegrab]

4 hours ago, rajncajn said:

• The same lawnmower at Ace costs $400
• A new set of piston rings is under $25
• Because I don't like throwing money in the garbage just cuz I like shiny new things
• Because when I buy a new mower, I want to get exactly what I want, not compromise because I need something now. I also don't like borrowing other peoples stuff.

 

My only question on whether or not to get a new mower hinged on how much it would cost to resurface the cylinder and since I can't even get a shop to call me back then I'll probably end up getting a mower anyway. I just looked at the Stihl electric mower yesterday & that's probably the route I'll go as I look to eventually replace all my gas-powered yard tools with cordless. I've currently got a mix of gas powered & corded. Can't stand dragging cords around & the maintenance with gas is just a pain in the ass, not to mention the price.

 

Good plan. I've only been a homeowner about 16 years, bought a brand new Troy Bilt (Honda power) mower and a 2 stroke weed trimmer that had additional accessories you could add (never did buy them, but liked the option). The mower has been great and very reliable. The 2 stroker has been giving me trouble for a few years now. Won't start or keep running sometime. And since I'm not fixing it myself costs to do any major repair will probably approach the cost of a new one. Same thing for an old 2 stroke snow blower I inherited from my folks, was rarely used for a couple of years then just wouldn't run well. 

[League_Champion]

If you do buy a mower do yourself a favor and get a Honda self propelled. It's a few more dollars but it's the last mower you'll ever buy. 

 

On the rare occasion that I cut my own lawn I have a John Deere ride on and a Honda self propelled mower for the smaller areas. I swear by anything Honda. Just kidding, I do cut my lawn when home, sometimes. 

[rajncajn]

18 hours ago, League_Champion said:

If you do buy a mower do yourself a favor and get a Honda self propelled. It's a few more dollars but it's the last mower you'll ever buy. 

 

On the rare occasion that I cut my own lawn I have a John Deere ride on and a Honda self propelled mower for the smaller areas. I swear by anything Honda. Just kidding, I do cut my lawn when home, sometimes. 

Yeah,  the mower I got rid of had the Honda engine and it was great, but I'm ready to go easy and electric now. Honestly,  I prefer a push mower with no self-propel. My yard has so many obstacles to go around that half the time I'm pushing it anyway.

Edited July 29, 2022 by rajncajn

[League_Champion]

2 hours ago, rajncajn said:

Yeah,  the more I got rid of had the Honda engine and it was great, but I'm ready to go easy and electric now. Honestly,  I prefer a push mower with no self-propel. My yard has so many obstacles to go around that half the time I'm pushing it anyway.

 

The electric just doesn't cut it for me. It would take me a month to cut my property with an electric mower. 

[rajncajn]

12 hours ago, League_Champion said:

 

The electric just doesn't cut it for me. It would take me a month to cut my property with an electric mower. 

Since my FILs old mower broke down on me I got a chance to use his new electric one. It worked great with the exception of the self propel. It was a bit wonky to engage/disengage and if I tried to leave it engaged while making my turns it would basically run away from me because it was rear-wheel drive. I ended up not using the self-propel at all because I didn't want to have to disengage every time I made a new pass. As for cutting though, it was great. MUCH more quiet than any other mower, cut clean and had plenty of juice to get the job done.

[League_Champion]

19 minutes ago, rajncajn said:

Since my FILs old mower broke down on me I got a chance to use his new electric one. It worked great with the exception of the self propel. It was a bit wonky to engage/disengage and if I tried to leave it engaged while making my turns it would basically run away from me because it was rear-wheel drive. I ended up not using the self-propel at all because I didn't want to have to disengage every time I made a new pass. As for cutting though, it was great. MUCH more quiet than any other mower, cut clean and had plenty of juice to get the job done.

 

People who own them love em. I just wasn't sure how the electric mowers would handle the heavier brush, battery life for bigger properties, etc. I will definitely look into getting one for around the garden areas, etc. 

[rajncajn]

4 minutes ago, League_Champion said:

 

People who own them love em. I just wasn't sure how the electric mowers would handle the heavier brush, battery life for bigger properties, etc. I will definitely look into getting one for around the garden areas, etc. 

One thing that I found when researching a few is that some have a variable speed motor that will increase RPMs when met with more resistance. This both gives it more power when you need to get through the heavier stuff and saves battery life when you don't. Most mowers I looked at also come with multiple batteries, so if you run low you've got a backup ready to go. I can't cut my yard on single push mower tank anyway, so swapping out a battery wouldn't be a big deal. It'd actually be a bit easier, especially since I so often forget to go fill the gas can. My experience is obviously very limited and I'm certain my standard sized lawn, even with the thick grass and multitude of trees, is probably not comparable with your lot. But if you've got an area that you use a push mower on then I think these things are an improvement over gas.

[stevegrab]

17 hours ago, rajncajn said:

Yeah,  the more I got rid of had the Honda engine and it was great, but I'm ready to go easy and electric now. Honestly,  I prefer a push mower with no self-propel. My yard has so many obstacles to go around that half the time I'm pushing it anyway.

 

When I bought my first mower almost every asked "self propelled?", nope yard isn't that big, and mostly flat with front yard having an up/down hill alternating pattern going in one direction. I've seen people with yards that weren't that large using a riding mower, seems like overkill. 

 

Hmm your yard may be a bit larger than mine, I usually get about 1.5 mows from the tiny tank on my mower. I'm on a normal urban city lot.

[rajncajn]

12 minutes ago, stevegrab said:

 

When I bought my first mower almost every asked "self propelled?", nope yard isn't that big, and mostly flat with front yard having an up/down hill alternating pattern going in one direction. I've seen people with yards that weren't that large using a riding mower, seems like overkill. 

 

Hmm your yard may be a bit larger than mine, I usually get about 1.5 mows from the tiny tank on my mower. I'm on a normal urban city lot.

My lot is 75x150, and my house has a relatively small footprint. I also have a lot of trees, shrubs, garden areas & such to mow around and the grass in my back yard is always super-thick. So, while the yard may not be huge, it takes more effort to cut it because not a lot of it is just straight-line back & forth cutting and what is straight cuts is typically thicker grass that requires a slower pace or I have to make multiple passes.

[League_Champion]

I'd certainly consider an electric edger, weed whacker, blower, etc. That would certainly make life a lot easier. As for a mower I think my yard is too cumbersome for an electric mower. I have some areas by the water that get really really thick. 

[gilthorp]

I have had a project going on 17 months...an almost full window and front door replacement in a 30 year old house.

 

We decided to use a top tier firm for this and they have subsequently screwed the pooch over and over again.

 

Ordered in March of 21'...the initial install delayed until October of 21'. 85% of the job was done...but 48% of the financial outlay was not because of mismeasured items and then it got worse.

 

We were told they would finish on March 31st and they didn't have what they needed to completely finish so I sent them home. They came back last Friday with different issues that wouldn't allow them to completely finish, so I sent them home.

 

They were here today, after a ton of communication that they had all the materials they needed, but we found out halfway through that was a lie. 

 

Still not done and no end in sight as to the mistakes, product mishaps, tools needed not available (specific bits to route internal crown molding), improper material...I could go on and on.

 

I am livid. We have paid them, financed the rest, and I am paying for a project that isn't finished. I know some good lawyers and they all say I am over a barrel. Brutal.