My cheap hostel in Prague turned into a nightmare for a week

Booked a place for $12 a night near the main square, thinking I scored. The first night, the hot water was out. The manager said it would be fixed 'tomorrow'. It wasn't fixed for five days. I had to boil a kettle to wash my hair. The wifi only worked in the hallway, and my room was right next to the noisy common area. Has anyone else had a budget stay go this wrong, and did you get any money back?

The difference between a cheap knockoff and a real Schindler door operator is a whole weekend

We had a call for a sticking door on a 90s Schindler 330A. The building manager bought a generic operator online to save maybe 200 bucks. Spent all Saturday fighting it, the gear mesh was off and the cam follower was binding. Monday morning I put in the proper Schindler part and it was running smooth in under an hour. Has anyone else had a generic part eat up more time than it was ever worth?

Saw a 1920s floor in an old Tacoma library that made me think

I was in the old Carnegie library branch in Tacoma last week, and they had a section of the original maple floor on display. The boards were only 2 inches wide, and the nails were hand-driven, not a single staple in sight. It's a different kind of craft now, with all the click-lock and floating floors we do. Anyone else run into these old-school installs and just stop to look at the work?

Why does nobody talk about the difference between a 6 mil and a 10 mil vapor barrier?

I just finished two jobs a week apart, both in the same neighborhood with similar crawl spaces. The first one I used a standard 6 mil poly, and the second I went with a 10 mil reinforced barrier. The difference was huge. The 6 mil tore in three places just from me moving around on it, but the 10 mil held up without a single puncture. It cost about 30% more, but I saved at least an hour not patching holes. Is the thicker barrier always worth it, or do you guys stick with the thinner stuff to keep material costs down for the customer?

Used a new AI program to straighten up my garage over the weekend

Passed up easy money by refusing to cut corners on a transmission rebuild

My reputation is worth more than a quick profit.