c/diy-and-reno

Stopped using a drill driver for screws, went back to a manual screwdriver for trim work

I used to zip everything in with my Makita impact, but after blowing out the corner of a window casing in my bathroom last month, I switched to hand-driving the final quarter turn. Has anyone else found that the extra control saves more time than the speed for finish work?

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ivan_harris•11d ago

Drywall anchors in my 1970s apartment betrayed me at 2am

A shelf with 40 lbs of books crashed down Tuesday night because the old toggle bolts were rusted through, so now I'm learning how to find studs with a $15 magnetic scanner instead, has anyone else inherited hidden fastener problems from old builds?

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hannah_west39•15d ago

Appreciation post: my neighbour's offhand remark about drywall dust saved my saw

Was cutting a bunch of MDF shelves in my garage last Saturday, the dust was everywhere. My neighbour Bob walked past and said, 'you know that fine dust is gonna kill your circular saw bearings, right?' I kinda shrugged it off at first, but then I remembered my old saw sounded rough after a big project. So I stopped, blew out the vents with my compressor, and checked the brushes. There was a thick layer of that superfine powder caked around the motor housing. Cleaned it all out and added a quick shop vac hose right near the blade guard. Fired it up after and it ran smooth, no weird whine. That one throwaway comment probably saved me from buying a new $120 saw. Has anyone else had a tool die from sawdust buildup, or do you all use those little dust bags?

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linda_reed•15d ago

Drywall sanding dust took 3 days to clean, or was I doing it wrong?

Spent a weekend sanding a 12x14 room in Tacoma, thought the plastic sheets were sealed enough. Dust got into the HVAC vents and every closet, took three full days with a shop vac and tack cloths to fix. Is there a faster way to catch that fine dust, or is it just part of the job?

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wader71•16d ago

Recycled drywall mud made me a believer after 5 years of hating on it

I used to trash anyone who mentioned using reclaimed joint compound, figured it was always lumpy garbage. Then last month I had a small patch job in a rental unit where the old bucket was still soft, so I gave it a shot instead of driving 20 minutes to the big box store. Mixed in a little water and some dish soap for smoothness, and it spread like butter, honestly better than some fresh bags I've used. Took about 40 minutes total for the whole repair versus my usual hour and a half. Now I'm wondering if I've been wasting money on new compound for years, anyone else had luck reviving old drywall mud? What's your go-to trick for getting it back to workable?

1 comments

linda_reed•18d ago

A painter told me to stop sanding drywall so smooth, I thought he was crazy

Met this older painter at a job site last week while picking up supplies. He saw me sanding a patch for the third time and just shook his head. Said I was wasting my time, that the mud needs some tooth for the next coat to grab. I always figured smoother was better, that's what every YouTube video says. He showed me his finish after one coat and it looked flawless. Now I'm rethinking my whole approach to patching. Has anyone else found that less sanding actually gives a better result? I spent 6 hours on a closet wall last month and it still had dips.

2 comments

angela_morgan•20d ago

Just realized I sanded 40 stair spindles by hand

I've been putting off refinishing my stair railing for like 2 years. Finally tackled it last weekend and counted as I went, 40 wooden spindles total. Sanding each one with 80 grit then 120 took me three full afternoons, my arms were noodles. But I hit that 40th spindle and just stood there, amazed I didn't quit at 12. Anyone else ever surprise themselves with a boring repetitive task they thought they'd hate?

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the_sean•20d ago

That pressure washer rental at Lowe's turned into a 4 hour nightmare

Rented a 2500 PSI unit from the Lowe's on Thompson Lane last saturday to clean my driveway, but the wand kept kicking back like a mule every time I hit a crack. After 30 minutes my wrist was screaming and the concrete still looked like a dirty mess, so I called the guy at the counter and he said I was holding it wrong. Is there a trick to keeping the trigger steady, or am I better off just paying someone $150 to do this next time?

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hannah_wells•20d ago

Hit 100 nail pulls with one crowbar, then it snapped

I was demoing a deck in Tulsa last weekend and kept a tally of every nail I pried out with the same $12 crowbar. Number 100 was the charm, it broke clean in half mid pull. Took a 20 min detour to the hardware store, but the replacement has a rubber grip so I guess I upgraded. Anyone else track tool lifespans or just me?

2 comments

iris_schmidt•21d ago

That $35 caulk gun upgrade was worth every penny

I've been fighting cheap caulk guns for years on trim jobs, always getting messy beads and wasted tubes. Picked up a dripless model at the hardware store last week for $35 and my baseboard lines came out clean on the first pass, zero headache. Anyone else found a cheap tool that smoothed out their work?

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ericcraig•25d ago

My neighbor's "just use sandpaper" advice for deck restoration cost me a whole weekend

Tbh I should have known better. My neighbor Bob has been cutting corners on everything since I moved in 3 years ago. But he sounded so sure when he said a palm sander with 80 grit would strip my old deck stain just fine. 2 days later and 12 sheets of sandpaper wasted, I had barely made a dent in a 12x16 deck. Bought a chemical stripper from Home Depot for $35 and had the whole thing done in 4 hours. Anyone else have a well meaning neighbor give you advice that backfired?

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miles_robinson20•27d ago

Serious question - can you sand painted drywall too much before painting?

I was helping my buddy Dave redo his living room in Austin last Saturday. We were sanding down the drywall after patching some holes from where he took down a big cabinet. He kept going back over the same spots with the sanding block, like really going at it, trying to get it baby smooth. I told him I thought you could actually damage the paper layer if you oversand, and he looked at me like I was crazy. He said his dad always taught him to sand until your hand feels no bumps at all, even if it takes twenty passes. That got me thinking about how there's no real standard for when to stop. I've seen YouTube videos where people barely scuff it and call it good. Has anyone else run into this where you think you're being thorough but really you're just tearing up the drywall?

2 comments

blair_chen81•28d ago

Switched from foam roller to fiberglass resin on my boat deck and it cured in 20 minutes flat

I was dead set on using epoxy for fixing a section of my 14 foot aluminum boat, but the hardware store guy in Missoula talked me into trying fiberglass resin instead. Mixed it up at 55 degrees and it kicked over way faster than I expected, no sagging or sticky spots. Has anyone had issues with fiberglass resin cracking under heavy sun exposure?

2 comments

zara_sanchez•28d ago

Found out my grandpa's old pipe wrench was worth $200

I was skeptical when a buddy said those old stillsons at estate sales can go for real money, but I checked the date stamp and sold it for $200. Anyone else find stuff in the garage you thought was junk that turned out valuable?

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fionafoster•28d ago

Found out my grandpa's old pipe wrench was worth $200

I was cleaning out his garage last weekend and looked up the model number on a vintage tool forum. Had no idea those old Stillson wrenches from the 50s were collectible now. Anybody else find surprises in inherited toolboxes?

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flores.emma•28d ago

Last Tuesday was a total nightmare with drywall mud

I decided to skim coat my living room ceiling. 9 AM start. Mixed my first bucket of all purpose mud. Too thick. Added water. Too thin. Took me three tries to get it right. Then my cheap 14 inch taping knife snapped mid stroke. Had to drive 20 minutes to Home Depot for a new one. By 4 PM I had only finished one corner. Anyone else have days where the basics just fight you the whole time?

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wells.christopher•29d ago

Went with sanded grout instead of unsanded on my kitchen backsplash, big mistake

I was retiling my kitchen backsplash last weekend and had to pick between sanded and unsanded grout for 1/8 inch joints. The guy at the counter said unsanded would be fine for tight lines, but I went with sanded because I thought it'd be stronger. Now I'm spending my Saturday scraping out gritty residue from every single gap because it wouldn't pack down right. Anyone else made this call and regretted it?

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phoenix_singh25•1mo ago

Overheard a guy at Home Depot say he drywalled his whole basement without mudding the joints

I was getting conduit at my local hardware store in Austin and this guy next to me was bragging to his buddy that he wired his whole shed with extension cords buried in PVC. Said it passed code because the inspector never looked close. I wanted to say something but figured it wasn't worth the argument. You ever hear DIY shortcuts that just make you cringe?

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simonk98•1mo ago

Had an electrician in Portland tell me my grounding clamp was wrong

He pointed at my water pipe clamp and said that setup will turn your whole house into a ground rod if lightning hits, so anyone else ever get told their grounding is way off after they already finished the job?

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stellat46•1mo ago

Had a contractor tell me something about caulk that stuck with me for years

I was helping my neighbor Tim redo his bathroom in Portland and he spent like 10 minutes just smoothing the caulk line with his finger. I asked why he was so slow and he said "if you rush the caulk you'll be redoing it in 6 months, the prep is everything." He showed me how wiping it too fast leaves gaps that let moisture in. Has anyone else had a simple tip from someone that totally changed how you do something basic?

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sean_barnes24•1mo ago

My neighbor swore by self-leveling compound on a crooked subfloor - what a mess

He said just pour it thick and it'll fix any slope. I did that in my laundry room and ended up with a 2 inch high spot by the door that cracked the tiles. Has anyone actually leveled a floor without screeding first?

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charlies37•1mo ago

Battled with glue-down vs. floating floor for my own basement job

I went back and forth for weeks on whether to glue down LVP or go floating for my 600 sq ft basement. Ended up choosing floating because it was my first time and I wanted the easier tear-out if I messed up. Six months in and no complaints, but was that the right call for the long run?

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wendy_lee48•1mo ago

My garage workbench collapsed last Tuesday. What a mess.

Built it two years ago with cheap 2x4s from the home center. Didn't realize they were wet when I bought them. They dried out and warped bad. The whole shelf came down on my drill press. Had to tear it all apart and start over with kiln dried lumber. Anybody else get burned by wet lumber from the big box stores?

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felixm29•1mo ago

I finally got called out by a plumber for my crappy soldering

So last month I was trying to sweat copper pipes in my basement for a new laundry sink. This old plumber came over to help me fix a leak I made and he just looked at my joints and said 'did you even clean these with emery cloth?' Turns out I skipped that step for like 10 fittings and they all looked like garbage. He showed me how to heat the fitting right instead of the pipe and it was like night and day. Anyone else have a tradesperson call them out on something basic they were doing wrong?

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jordan_henderson13•1mo ago

Halfway through painting my living room I hit exactly 100 brush strokes on one wall - and it made me think about prep vs. finish work

I was rolling paint on my living room walls last Saturday and got curious about how many brush strokes it took for the cut-in work around the ceiling. I counted exactly 100 on one 8-foot wall before I finished the trim. It got me wondering - do you guys focus more on getting the prep work perfect so the painting goes fast, or do you think spending extra time on the finish makes the biggest difference? For me, that 100 strokes showed just how much of the job is detail work even when you think you're done. What's your take on where to put your energy?

3 comments