Home Remodel: Do, Don'ts, Advice

[fatnslow]

I'm replacing some rotten cedar deck boards and hand rails to stretch it out for a few more years. What's the proper way to prep new cedar for staining ? Is there any chance in hell of trying to match the old stain ?

[climberevan]

I'm replacing some rotten cedar deck boards and hand rails to stretch it out for a few more years. What's the proper way to prep new cedar for staining ? Is there any chance in hell of trying to match the old stain ?

Just be sure the wood is clean and go to town on all 6 sides with stain. The darker the color, the longer it will last. The chance of matching what's there is likely between 0 and 5%. Weathering is impossible to duplicate. Prob best to just re stain the whole thing while you're at it.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-T707A using TGR Forums mobile app

[DJSapp]

Trying not to lose my mind, but finally got permit approval to do the second story addition. Just gotta move out in the next month and make a ton of finish decisions...

Sent from my Pixel 4 XL using TGR Forums mobile app

[Dantheman]

Godspeed, DJ.

[Art Shirk]

I decided the best course of action was corten steel on one side and timbers that will rot in a year everywhere else. I’ll be back next summer to discuss how to get the rebar out to replace these. Wife off my case for now.



Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

[iceman]

I'm replacing some rotten cedar deck boards and hand rails to stretch it out for a few more years. What's the proper way to prep new cedar for staining ? Is there any chance in hell of trying to match the old stain ?

Depending on the resin content and how fresh the wood was sawn there can be mill glaze on cedar, which won't allow stain to sink in and it can end up sitting on the surface and flaking off later. Better to lightly hand sand it. Mill glaze is only a few atoms thick, it doesn't take much to get it off. https://www.cabotstain.com/woodcarec...-to-stain.html

[RootSkier]

I'm replacing some rotten cedar deck boards and hand rails to stretch it out for a few more years. What's the proper way to prep new cedar for staining ? Is there any chance in hell of trying to match the old stain ?

Depending on how big your deck is...renting a deck sander and taking the whole thing down to new wood is really not that much work. Of course, this depends on how its fastened, the handrail situation, etc.

[powdrhound]

Testing the new sink and faucet, I get a leak behind the new cabinet.
I sure wish I had seen this before.
How it didn’t leak with the old sink, I have no clue.

[iceman]

By "leak" you mean "giant jet of water", right?

That's pretty crazy-looking.

[fatnslow]

Depending on how big your deck is...renting a deck sander and taking the whole thing down to new wood is really not that much work. Of course, this depends on how its fastened, the handrail situation, etc.

No way, it's all top nailed.

[::: :::]

No way, it's all top nailed.

Got any kids that like being helpful?
Give them a nail set & a hammer
I did this (supervised) at our old house that had top nailed oak strip flooring
It goes faster than you might guess, esp w/ a couple sets of hands
[assuming no flat heads]

[Rideski]

It would be nice if this thread had an index.
Haven’t made time to get all the way through it.
Has there been any tuckpointing chatter?
Tubes of quickrete caulk or bags of mortar?
Coloring?
Tia

[RootSkier]

No way, it's all top nailed.

No shit, my last house had redwood decking that was nailed down. I pulled every piece, flipped it over, screwed it down, then got a deck sander. Basically had a "new" redwood deck for like $50 in screws and $100 in deck sander rental (mostly the sandpaper). I think I did it all in a couple days, but I blocked that shit out of my memory.

(people who nail down deck boards should have their dick nailed down)

[muted]

By "leak" you mean "giant jet of water", right?

That's pretty crazy-looking.

That does look bad. A couple months ago I found out the main water line at my work building was duct-taped to the city water line. It was losing a gallon every 2-3 seconds when it blew. Plumber said, why no, I have never seen anyone do that before. Ultimate McGyver move by previous owners, not sure when it was done.

[climberevan]

No shit, my last house had redwood decking that was nailed down. I pulled every piece, flipped it over, screwed it down, then got a deck sander. Basically had a "new" redwood deck for like $50 in screws and $100 in deck sander rental (mostly the sandpaper). I think I did it all in a couple days, but I blocked that shit out of my memory.

(people who nail down deck boards should have their dick nailed down)

This would be an ecellent option for the OP if the boards are merely crappy looking, not actually rotten. If they are cedar, I suspect real rot is absent.

Oh, and if you do replace them, I really like the Camo screw system. It's not much slower than doing a good job of face screwing, but the screws are pretty expensive. It's worth it for a smooth top that still allows individual boards to be pulled up. Clients love it.

Sent from my LG-US998 using TGR Forums mobile app

[bizarrefaith]

Anybody have any experience with vinyl siding? We bought a house that has vinyl. Eventually I want to replace it with cedar or Azek but that's a longer term project. In the mean time, there's about 5-10% of the vinyl that needs to be replacement immediately because it's cracked, has holes, etc. and is a risk for water getting in behind it. Can you use a nail gun to hang vinyl?

[glademaster]

I think replacing only some of the siding will end up looking like ass, and would just bite the bullet and re-do the whole house.

[Flyoverland Captive]

Anybody have any experience with vinyl siding? We bought a house that has vinyl. Eventually I want to replace it with cedar or Azek but that's a longer term project. In the mean time, there's about 5-10% of the vinyl that needs to be replacement immediately because it's cracked, has holes, etc. and is a risk for water getting in behind it. Can you use a nail gun to hang vinyl?

Wait for a hail storm, then make an insurance claim. I got two houses resided that way.

[half-fast]

Can you use a nail gun to hang vinyl?

You don't want the nails driven all the way in so the vinyl can expand/contract freely

[RootSkier]

Anybody have any experience with vinyl siding? We bought a house that has vinyl. Eventually I want to replace it with cedar or Azek but that's a longer term project. In the mean time, there's about 5-10% of the vinyl that needs to be replacement immediately because it's cracked, has holes, etc. and is a risk for water getting in behind it. Can you use a nail gun to hang vinyl?

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news but all vinyl siding gets water behind it, regardless of whether it has holes/cracks/whatever.

[sirbumpsalot]

Speaking of Cedar...the small 1ftx30ft lattice under my porch has rotted out so I just grabbed it and ripped it all out. The whole bottom frame was buried in dirt so no wonder. I built some new 1x8 panels and will install. Plan was to lower and smooth the dirt down to leave maybe an inch or less of space between bottom of new frames and the dirt.

I used Home depot cedar end caps for framing the cedar lattice and painted the whole thing with water-based primer/paint to match the house but the cedar was rated as not "ground touching".

Before I install, I happened to wonder if putting down a row of buried pavers with a ice/rain shield between the frame and the pavers would make it look cleaner and keep it from future rot?

Or am I overthinking this...the thing is gonna rot after 10yrs anyways?

Anyone?

[::: :::]

painted the whole thing

yergonnadie
it will be fine

one of those ^^^, but more likely the second

[Ski220]

Plan was to lower and smooth the dirt down to leave maybe an inch or less of space between bottom of new frames and the dirt.



Or am I overthinking this...the thing is gonna rot after 10yrs anyways?

Anyone?

Leave an air gap of 1/8 - 1/4 inch between surfaces otherwise will retain moisture. Aspect and general weather depending on where you live.

If between dirt and lattice an inch should do as long as you keep it free and clear.

Before you install lattice, install some chicken wire and bury the bottom edge 6 inches to keep small critters (f'n chipmunks) out.

[Nobody Famous]

Before I install, I happened to wonder if putting down a row of buried pavers with a ice/rain shield between the frame and the pavers would make it look cleaner and keep it from future rot?

Or am I overthinking this...the thing is gonna rot after 10yrs anyways?

Anyone?

I don't think ice & water shield on top of pavers will make an appealing look, especially with the white lettering on black background.

This is a case where you don't need to go super deluxe, you do want to keep the critters out, allow airflow and protect the the work from premature rot.

[babybear]

I have a puzzler for all of you home experts. We’re replacing the bulbs in this fixture and the globe on the right won’t unscrew from the fixture. It looks like it was misthreaded when installed if you look at how the one on the left looks more seated
Any good solutions to getting it out that you guys can think of?

I’m so annoyed I’m almost ready to take a maul to it