Home renovation DIY help

[Dave P.]

Don't even attempt to install carpeting yourself. If you mis-measure or mis-cut, you've got a problem. If you don't install it correctly, it will be too loose and perhaps bulge up it spots. The key is the installation, carpet can be bought anyplace. We had wall to wall carpet installed years ago and my boss had a good friend in the carpet business. It was a little further away than my wife wanted to travel to so we stayed local. The high traffic seam between the living room and dining room which lead to the kitchen started to separate within just a couple of weeks after the job was done. Call the store, they send another installer to fix it. Week or two later, same problem. They send yet another installer. Week or so later, same issue again. All in all, about 4 or 5 different guys came to fix that seam before the last guy got it right. This is a job best left to the pros but try to insure you get a good installer by doing some research and perhaps some word of mouth info as well.

 

[AutoMechanic]

I’d definitely have the carpet professionally installed. I had to do it inside my sister’s house and it was awful and tedious. Finally after a few weeks we got the whole house done but as someone who doesn’t believe in hiring someone for work I’d hire carpet installers for sure.

 

[parshisa]

Show us how your sink is currently mounted.

Looks like it’s bottom mounted held in place with sealant and wooden pads/ribs (not sure what you call them).

 

[Cujet]

Thanks! What’s your preferred brand for these things?

Just go to Homeless Depot and don't get the cheap ones. The length of the fibers is related to how rough a surface it will paint and how smooth the paint looks. Microfiber rollers are known for holding 4x the paint of conventional rollers. They produce a great surface finish.

 

[Cropduster172]

For interior paint I have found the best value to be the Glidden premium (redclabel) in the 5 gallon pail from Homedepot or Pitsburg Pro from menards. Buy that and 3/4" nap roller and do 2 coats. It did a nice job and is cheap. Sherwin Williams super paint is super nice but for me the price isn't worth it.

Glidden and Pittsburgh are both made by the same company. Just like Sherwin Williams and Valspar. I've found Glidden to great and have used it for years.

 

[Cropduster172]

Kitchen cabinet painting, in almost every situation, results in being obvious rookie DIY work. It's a holdover for folks that are saving for actual new cabinets or if they are getting ready to sell or rent their home. The time and effort to properly sand and prep the surfaces is substantial. Also, cabinet door hinges fail over time depending on original quality and replacing them correctly takes time a skill.
You'd be better off replacing with new. There are a lot of builder/contractor supply houses that sell overstock and wholesale priced kitchen cabinets. Check Facebook Marketplace or see if Home Depot or Lowe's has stock cabinets in your size and taste.
As others have noted, removing and replacing carpet is a job for professional installers. Depending on their overall condition, professional cleaning can produce excellent results.

 

[parshisa]

Kitchen cabinet painting, in almost every situation, results in being obvious rookie DIY work. It's a holdover for folks that are saving for actual new cabinets or if they are getting ready to sell or rent their home. The time and effort to properly sand and prep the surfaces is substantial. Also, cabinet door hinges fail over time depending on original quality and replacing them correctly takes time a skill.
You'd be better off replacing with new. There are a lot of builder/contractor supply houses that sell overstock and wholesale priced kitchen cabinets. Check Facebook Marketplace or see if Home Depot or Lowe's has stock cabinets in your size and taste.
As others have noted, removing and replacing carpet is a job for professional installers. Depending on their overall condition, professional cleaning can produce excellent results.

there's a good chance we'll be moving out of texas by the end of this/early next year, and house would turn into rental. So, while house definitely needs a refresh, i don't think it's a "forever" home that I want to pile a bunch of money into. I appreciate the commentary on the carpets and the cabinets re-paint. The more I look into it, the more I realize I don't possess the patience and skills to adequately complete these job, so that'll probably going to be outsourced. I'll definitely give painting a go.

On a side note, the attic mounted water heaters are getting close to 10 yr mark. I have to admit, I've never drained them since we moved in, and I'm not sure if the previous owner have. I've visually inspected them and don't see any obvious leaks. Do they need to be replaced at 10 yr mark preventatively or leave them alone?

 

[walterjay]

If the water heaters are not set in pans with a drain I would replace it.

 

[The Critic]

Looks like it’s bottom mounted held in place with sealant and wooden pads/ribs (not sure what you call them).

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Is it possible? Maybe. Is it within the scope of a DIYer who has never done this before and plans to do a laundry list of items over the next few months? Unlikely.

 

[Cropduster172]

there's a good chance we'll be moving out of texas by the end of this/early next year, and house would turn into rental. So, while house definitely needs a refresh, i don't think it's a "forever" home that I want to pile a bunch of money into. I appreciate the commentary on the carpets and the cabinets re-paint. The more I look into it, the more I realize I don't possess the patience and skills to adequately complete these job, so that'll probably going to be outsourced. I'll definitely give painting a go.

On a side note, the attic mounted water heaters are getting close to 10 yr mark. I have to admit, I've never drained them since we moved in, and I'm not sure if the previous owner have. I've visually inspected them and don't see any obvious leaks. Do they need to be replaced at 10 yr mark preventatively or leave them alone?

Unless the water heaters show signs of leaking, just flush them and leave them alone. Search YouTube for a video on how to do your specific models.

 

[alarmguy]

Glidden and Pittsburgh are both made by the same company. Just like Sherwin Williams and Valspar. I've found Glidden to great and have used it for years.

100% on the Glidden
Their basic paint + primer premium line, very well priced, goes on easy and smooth. I never end up with roller marks.

Call me crazy but some of the more expensive paint at close to double the price is like spreading paste on a wall. Just not for me.

My wife and our a new home 1.5 years ago, one of the TV wall to be a darker color than the rest of the house which is all white.
I was a little apprehensive because light from our windows, which is really the back wall of this room hits this wall from a side angle, and I was afraid of roller marks showing up.
Anyway, it came out so smooth. It looks like it was sprayed on. This was the Glidden premium + primer paint.

 

[parshisa]

If the water heaters are not set in pans with a drain I would replace it.

They are. No signs of leaks that I can detect

 

[parshisa]

Is it possible? Maybe. Is it within the scope of a DIYer who has never done this before and plans to do a laundry list of items over the next few months? Unlikely.

The critic being the critic with much needed reality check lol. I appreciate the feedback!

 

[The Critic]

They are. No signs of leaks that I can detect

Leave it alone until ready to replace, but given their location and the potential for a significant water damage loss, 10 yrs is a good time to replace.

 

[Cropduster172]

100% on the Glidden
Their basic paint + primer premium line, very well priced, goes on easy and smooth. I never end up with roller marks.

Call me crazy but some of the more expensive paint at close to double the price is like spreading paste on a wall. Just not for me.

My wife and our a new home 1.5 years ago, one of the TV wall to be a darker color than the rest of the house which is all white.
I was a little apprehensive because light from our windows, which is really the back wall of this room hits this wall from a side angle, and I was afraid of roller marks showing up.
Anyway, it came out so smooth. It looks like it was sprayed on. This was the Glidden premium + primer paint.
View attachment 277752

I like Glidden. I painted all of the trim in our beach house with Glidden's mid-tier white semi-gloss. Flowed on smoothly, coverage was excellent and it dried to a beautiful pearly ultra white. Very easy to clean and a great sheen. I like Behr too...more or less the same but more expensive.

 

[KrisZ]

Paint first, flooring last IMO.

For walls, I would recommend eggshell finish, you likely have matte or satin finish and those are almost impossible to clean up, it’s easier to touch those up. An eggshell finish is easy to clean up and will brighten the place up a bit because the low sheen reflects some of the light.

For cabinet paint, I highly recommend Stix acrylic bonding primer. It was recommended to me by my friend who does home renovations, it’s very good.
Painted my cabinets almost a year ago and no peeling or chipping yet with very heavy use and small kids constantly banging the cabinet door.

 

[Cropduster172]

Paint first, flooring last IMO.

For walls, I would recommend eggshell finish, you likely have matte or satin finish and those are almost impossible to clean up, it’s easier to touch those up. An eggshell finish is easy to clean up and will brighten the place up a bit because the low sheen reflects some of the light.

For cabinet paint, I highly recommend Stix acrylic bonding primer. It was recommended to me by my friend who does home renovations, it’s very good.
Painted my cabinets almost a year ago and no peeling or chipping yet with very heavy use and small kids constantly banging the cabinet door.


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Stix is great stuff. Have a vaulted ceiling in our beach house with a big glu-lam beam at the top...paint constantly peeling off of it. I tried every Kilz product...oil based, water based neither worked. Bought a quart of Stix at Ace and the paint went over it perfectly and hasn't peeled in 2 years. Used it once to paint the tile backsplash in the same house. It worked perfectly.