Any thoughts on building on to your house. I currently have a 1600 sq. ft. house in a cul-de-sac, .85 acre yard & love the neighborhood. I need a little more space though. I have a kid now & would like a double car garage with a bonus room on top & a laundry room addition as well.

Any thoughts on if it's cheaper to just add on or to buy a new house. I have no idea about how much additions like that cost besides the crap I've read by googling.

I only owe $110,000 now on the house, valued at 159,900 in todays shit market.

Any insight from construction guys would be great.

5/9/2011 4:33:54 PM

Depends on what you currently have and what you're wanting. Anything, within reason, is possible. I'm more of the opinion to invest in what you currently have...and you're in a position where you could use 34k (90% of value - balance owed) to do something. Pretty sure 35k won't cover what you're asking, though. My father-in-law is a contractor. I could ask him if you like, for ballpark figures. Shoot me a PM if you're interested.

5/9/2011 4:52:06 PM

The less stuff you do to an existing building the more cost effective an addition is. If you are OK with a small connecting hallway to what is for the most part a free standing building then an addition could be fairly economical option. They can typically keep the most systems separate and this type of addition isn't going to have many engineering fees and it is easier with fewer unknowns for the contractor. On the other hand if you want your existing kitchen to be open into a new great room or a two story addition then you are getting hit for the engineering side of things (they have to determine everything that they are dealing with) and the fact that it is much more of a pain in the ass for the contractor so the fees go way up. Certainly the 2nd option can add more value to your house as well, but if your house is in a $160,000 neighborhood it would be hard to get the value out of any moderate to major addition back out of it.

5/9/2011 5:01:45 PM

Actually, he just walked in the door when I was typing that...He seems to think the cost would be significant.

The 2-car garage with bonus room would be around 1000 sqft or so. Not including strange things, somewhere around 90-100k to do what you're asking. And he's just estimating off the top of his head.

5/9/2011 5:07:39 PM

Quote :

"DoubleDown All American 7105 Posts user info edit post I get the feeling that people are not realizing the photo is of the rear of the house with no elevations. Look at the house across the street, it looks normal and definitely not "boxy""

What's meant by elevations?

[Edited on May 9, 2011 at 8:06 PM. Reason : V ah, cool. Thanks.]

5/9/2011 7:46:34 PM

The varying levels of roof / trim on the front (or rear, but not in this case) of houses that make them look good, also is used to describe the front fascia of a house

5/9/2011 7:59:31 PM

Question for the hvac experts...i just noticed that my AC was blowing but my outside fan wasnt running. The thing is it seemed to be cooling fine and the thermostat temp had just reached what i had set it to. Is it nor
al for the outside fan to be off sometimes even if the AC is still blowing? It makes me nervous because i just had a capacitor on the outsidefan replaced.

5/9/2011 11:24:14 PM

Quote :

"The 2-car garage with bonus room would be around 1000 sqft or so. Not including strange things, somewhere around 90-100k to do what you're asking. And he's just estimating off the top of his head."

just go buy a trailer and put it in your yard.

5/10/2011 12:04:36 AM

Thermostats with wireless sensors...I already have looked at a few online but I wanted to throw this out to see if anyone has any personal experience or opinions on brands. There are a couple different methods to handle it as well.

Basically I am in the market for a new thermostat for our downstairs. The one that came with the house is a crappy, non-programmable and the location is poor. Instead of having to relocate the actual thermostat (patching the wall, moving wires, mounting a new thermostat, etc.) I am looking at getting a thermostat with a wireless sensor.

Some of these models have a normal thermostat with your HMI on the wall with nothing more than a simple wireless sensor that can be placed somewhere else in the house. Some of them have the thermostat controller with HMI on the wall with a remote that has a temperature sensor but can also adjust the setpoint and programming on the unit. Others have nothing but a wireless receiver on the wall that does the controlling, but the HMI is entirely on the remote. Others have the thermostat itself completely wireless and it can be removed from the wall mount and placed wherever. I am fine with any of these setups. The main point is getting programmable with a wireless sensor that we can place on an end table/coffee table or wherever we want to.

5/10/2011 9:59:19 AM

Thanks Senez.

5/10/2011 4:15:22 PM

update on my HVAC issues.

I had a tech out today and he basically said my compressor is on its last leg and isn't strong enough to enough cool air temp and volume wise into the space to efficiently cool the apartment. And a good unit will have a difference of 15 degrees in the cool air it pushes and the temp in the house. Mine is at 12. So unless we replace the unit it's going to run constantly and to expect outrageous power bills. He topped it with freon so right now it's at least blowing cooler.

Here's the thing. My landlord should receive this report but i've already relayed these exact sentiments to her. She lives in California and doesn't seem to have any urgency in discussing replacing the AC system. How can I further push the issue without being rude?

5/10/2011 5:49:00 PM

I have a 2 Bedroom/2.5 bath townhouse in Chesapeake VA

So far I have had to redo one of the upstairs bedrooms, the kitchen/dining room due to a polybutelene (sp) pipe busted. Replaced nearly all the piping they could find. Busted another pipe in the wall next to the kitchen, this time it wasnt polyb, but still sucked.

main water cutoff valve broke, had to replace that.

but hey, i refinanced it and now save 400 bucks a month on my mortgage...1692 to 1279.

and then I had to move for work and now I have renters. WOOHOO! not. I miss my house

[Edited on May 10, 2011 at 7:28 PM. Reason : oh yea, i also had to replace the hot water heater...]

5/10/2011 7:27:23 PM

^^ unless the compressor fails, the landlord is under no obligation to do anything. However if he/she isn't a worthless dickfor, then they oughta fix it, but it sounds like they are.

5/10/2011 10:16:30 PM

I'd find a way to make the compressor fail

5/11/2011 12:13:43 AM

that's what the hvac tech said before he left. he was a real cool guy and worked for a long time to try and get me fixed up to at least make it through the summer. he was like "between you and me, i've seen these things just blow up. not sure how it happens, usually an ice pick, but strange things have happened to compressors"

5/11/2011 8:32:55 AM

Quote :

"Any thoughts on building on to your house. I currently have a 1600 sq. ft. house in a cul-de-sac, .85 acre yard & love the neighborhood. I need a little more space though. I have a kid now & would like a double car garage with a bonus room on top & a laundry room addition as well. Any thoughts on if it's cheaper to just add on or to buy a new house. I have no idea about how much additions like that cost besides the crap I've read by googling. I only owe $110,000 now on the house, valued at 159,900 in todays shit market. Any insight from construction guys would be great. "

a ballpark safe bet would be $100/sqft.

5/11/2011 9:33:52 AM

Quote :

"Quote : "just got a $6k delinquent property tax bill for my new place for the last two years (i closed in feb). not sure how this didn't come to light during settlement but i've got several voicemails/emails into my agent and the title co. weak." for the zero people that cared or read this, the law firm that performed my closing said they are putting an attorney on it and not to worry about it. ill do that once i see a copy of a final bill paid."

just got an email from my closing attorney. they're footing the bill and pursuing collections against the developer/seller. nice.

5/11/2011 9:52:22 AM

^ nice! you rarely see lawyers being that helpful/useful.

5/11/2011 11:06:59 AM

Quote :

"you rarely see lawyers being that helpful/useful."

That's quite a ridiculous statement. It's only because the shitty/greedy ones stick out that people actually think this.

Anyways...side track...^^awesome. Those people messed up and now they are fixing it. Justice served

5/11/2011 11:29:17 AM

i really have to figure out how to get motivated to do some painting or something. jesus.

5/11/2011 12:11:42 PM

^lol, I started painting like 5 months ago, waited 2 months, painted part of the living room before deciding I didn't like it, waited 2 weeks and tried another color and didn't like it, waited another month and painted it the color I like except I forgot to sand a wall. I still haven't sanded that wall so that I can finish the living room (huge open living room) and then I have to do the kitchen. Fuck painting. Now that all but 1.2 rooms are painted, I have NO motivation to finish

5/11/2011 7:02:02 PM

Painting is what they make child molesters do in the 3rd ring of hell

5/11/2011 8:02:37 PM

power washed the deck a couple of weeks ago, now it won't stop raining long enough for me to seal it.

5/12/2011 11:44:18 AM

once you power wash and dont seal it, how long before you would have to power wash it again and then seal it? or dumb question?

5/13/2011 12:26:21 AM

Service Experts coming Monday morning to drop a new 2-ton package unit...

$5,000 decision made within 2 hours....

5/13/2011 7:46:07 AM

ants in texas are little fuckers.

5/13/2011 10:18:49 AM

Quote :

"once you power wash and dont seal it, how long before you would have to power wash it again and then seal it? or dumb question?"

Dunno for sure, I figure I have about a few more weeks leeway atleast...Hopefully I can get it done in the next week or so. I need atleast 3-4 consecutive days w/ no rain.

5/13/2011 12:05:34 PM

^^I'd highly recommend use of a liquid ant bait. We had a problem last summer that no sprays or treatments would touch. I used this stuff and within a few days those ants were done-zo, never to return.



http://www.lowes.com/pd_188371-54989-300_0__?productId=3018801&Ntt=terro+ant+bait&pl=1¤tURL=%2Fpl__0__s%3FNtt%3Dterro%2Bant%2Bbait

5/13/2011 5:01:14 PM

^That stuff is great

5/13/2011 6:45:04 PM

agreed i love that stuff

5/16/2011 3:15:02 PM

agreed, you just have to be patient and let it work. The ants have to be free to take the bait back to the hill, if you kill them while they're around the bait it's useless.

5/16/2011 4:05:37 PM

i will also sing the praises!

my dirty ass roommate doesn't pick up crumbs in the kitchen so we got ants. and this got rid of it

(in texas too FWIW)

5/16/2011 11:27:03 PM

Someone tried to break into the house this afternoon. Alarm system was well worth the money. Have someone coming to install security cameras and a dvr this weekend. Also purchased a new pistol for the wife for when she is home alone.

5/17/2011 11:39:49 PM

Who are you having install the security cameras? How much does something like that run?

5/18/2011 12:30:12 AM

^^Where do you live?

5/18/2011 8:30:09 AM

I live in Selma. We use Loss Prevention for the monitoring service. They do more businesses than residential stuff. I was very happy with the way everything was handled. Cops were on the scene in less than 10 mine and thats saying alot considering I live in the country. The guy who installed it does all the low voltage stuff for my contractor. He is coming back Sunday to install the dvr system and infrared security çameras. Also thinking about putting up some sort of gate at my driveway( drive is 1/4 mile long).

5/18/2011 1:00:01 PM

+1 for the terro ant killer. Works great.

5/18/2011 3:03:42 PM

^^^ No laser-triggered guns mounted beside the cameras??

5/18/2011 6:25:50 PM

Getting a quote on that this weekend as well.

5/19/2011 7:24:02 AM

Damn, you're a quarter mile off the road and someone tried to break in?

5/19/2011 9:34:45 AM

^
If you live down a 1/4 mile road and nobody is at home, it makes it really easy to break in and clean the house out unnoticed. If somebody IS home, you are 1/4 mile away from witnesses.

rural crime

[Edited on May 19, 2011 at 10:17 AM. Reason : s]

5/19/2011 10:16:54 AM

get a large dog or two to roam the property

5/19/2011 10:19:23 AM

More like Weather Woes, but...

I laid down sod in a large rectangular portion of my yard that was originally suppose to be a driveway...and in the two weeks since I laid, it hasn't rained once. Just a huge pain in the pass to remember to turn my sprinkler on several times a day (and move the sprinkler because it's a narrow rectangle and doesn't cover the whole piece).

The sod is actually looking good, but you can still slightly tell the difference between the grass that's always been there and the new sod...and I'm impatient and a perfectionist when it comes to my yard. So that's just a little annoying. Oh well...

5/19/2011 12:02:27 PM

I spent like $40 on a 2-zone timer for my spigots and it has been well worth it. Laid ~2000 square feet of sod last year and kept it watered without an irrigation system due to having 2 spigots (1 on each side of the house) and 2 of those timers. Basically gave me 4 zones with separate timers etc. Just runs on 4 AA batteries that have lasted over a year so far.

http://www.homedepot.com/buy/outdoors/garden-center/two-zone-water-timer-9379.html

Probably too late for you now but the price has been WELL worth the investment for me. Especially since we also laid another 1000 square feet of sod this year and seeded some other areas as well.

[Edited on May 19, 2011 at 12:16 PM. Reason : .]

5/19/2011 12:14:28 PM

anyone got any cures to dog urine killing grass? not a huge problem but just wondering if there is anything out there.

5/19/2011 2:40:51 PM

^^

Yeah...my yard is just so small. I also only laid about 230 sq ft this time around. And I've got centipede that just doesn't need consistent watering (the grass that was already there has been amazing). Just wishing we could get a little rain down here.

5/19/2011 3:16:15 PM

^^If you're willing to take the time you can train it to only pee in one spot.

5/19/2011 3:40:32 PM

this goes more with Renting, but i know CarZin and some others have experience with this.

So I had my AC serviced last week based on the issues i've discussed in this thread. Basically the service tech said it was too old and worn down and just can't produce what it takes to keep my place cold. And unless I replace it it's just going to continue to run non-stop and cause me to have extreme power bills.

So here is my deal. He said he was going to write the report and basically lay it all out that this thing has to be replaced ASAP. But I did not get a copy of that report and my landlord (who may be telling the truth, but it's been over a week) is saying she hasn't received any kind of report saying there was a problem. I've called the HVAC company and they are refusing the send me a copy of the service report since I am not the owner. Thoughts?

5/19/2011 4:12:58 PM

fridge died last night... it's no longer cooling.

caught it early though, and moved the food to a friend's place. got a guy coming to look at it later.

5/19/2011 4:13:08 PM

^^ I say you just go out and break it like the guy said.

5/19/2011 4:24:54 PM