| Author | Message | ||
     Wolfridgerider |
Have you done any mods to your home lately that once done, turned out better than you expected? I just installed a LED spot light on the back of my house that lights up like the sun. The old motion sensor, 2 bulb flood I had, only worked half the time and I was/am tired of dragging the ladder out to change the bulbs. The LED clams it will last 22 years and save a bunch of $$$ over its life. Saving a few bucks is cool but I like the hassle free operation It was 99.97 and I think it might just be worth it  So, have you done anything to your homestead lately? | ||
| Sifo |
I put 9 LED lights on the exterior lighting in November. These are on more than any other lights I have, so they should save some cash in the long run. Like you, I was tired of climbing up to change bulbs too. I haven't really compared my new bills to see if there's a noticeable change in my bill yet. | ||
| Bads1 |
Won't really notice on your house if your just using as motion sensor. | ||
| Littlebuggles |
Added a foot of insulation to my attic, has saved me about 40% on my heating and cut the summer cooling bill by at least 25%. Wish I'd done it 10 years ago when we bought the place! One of these days I'll seal the floor in my garage maybe, that would be a cool mod, for helping with leaky bikes and such. I'm fixin' to pull my kitchen apart in the next week or so and get the new cabinets installed with additional storage, yay. | ||
| Kenm123t |
Impact rated windows Full coverage night vision cameras with Internet connected alarms and DVR. I get connected to my smart phone on motion and or alarms. Interior renovation is underway | ||
| Dfishman |
I built a custom 42" front door so I can park bikes in the dining room! | ||
| F22raptor |
Built a 3-car front entry on to my 2-car side entry garage. Turned the old one into toy-central!  | ||
| F22raptor |
Built a 3-car front entry on to my 2-car side entry garage. Turned the old one into toy-central! | ||
| Ratbuell |
I've only been in this house for a year...and it's already pretty awesome. I've painted some rooms...added a 6" duct from the heat pump into the basement (from the attic - that was fun!)...gotten the 500' driveway paved (no more gravel)  ...and been changing light bulbs over to LED a bulb at a time. I did install one of the LED floodlight bulbs (just a retrofit bulb, not a whole fixture) on a yard spotlight and WOW, instant daylight. MUCH better than the CFL's the last owner had installed. I'll be swapping more of those over, once the weather lets up and there's not snowdrifts all around the house  | ||
| Rah7777777 |
Installed 52' of ridge vent (attic exhaust vents) And a crap ton of more intakes. Had a motorized fan but it was not cutting it. 105 out used to get my attic to 170-175 deg. With the ridge vent highest I've seen is 115. Now I need to add insulation. | ||
| Pwnzor |
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| Cataract2 |
F22, is that a Harbor Freight bike lift? CFL's really aren't any good for quick on and off applications. They are better used in places where you will turn the light on and leave it on for a time, think living room. LED bulbs are good in places with quick on and off applications. Bathrooms, closets, outdoor motion lights, etc. | ||
| Notpurples2 |
Hinged shelf doorway for back room. It's at the end of a short hallway and just looks like a built-in shelf. I'm planning on pulling it down and doing some more detail work and adding a secret lock mechanism, probably the old tilting book style. Right now it can only be latched from the inside. | ||
| Sifo |
LED lights are good any place a CFL will work, only better. Just another example of where the government backed the wrong technology to dump huge amounts of funds into. I really didn't want that super white light in my exterior lighting that people have come to associate with LED lights. I tried a single one at first and was very happy to see that the color was incredibly close to that of my existing incandescent lamps. | ||
| Buellinachinashop |
I added a Generac 45K Watt propane UPS system last summer. We have some horrendous weather up in NE Wis. That and the power company can take days to turn it back on was enough to pony up for it.  (Message edited by buellinachinashop on January 02, 2013) | ||
| Ratbuell |
Any LED that's labeled as "warm white" will be similar to an incandescent bulb. Same as the color temperatures for HID headlights; the lower the K (Kelvin) number, the yellower the light. 4500K is about daylight; I think there are quite a few LED's out there now in the 3200-3600K range. The packaging is getting pretty good now, telling not only the K range, but also the Lumens (light output) right there on the package. | ||
| Oldog |
I put an LED lamp in the fixture over the garage door, its the 5~6K color. I have been leaving it on 24 7, I will prolly start the lamp replacement deal soon. next project, install a conduit and covers for TV cables ( tv is over fire place ) replace lights, with led What is the most durable and least expensive heating system for the south east, I have put a new A coil on the heat pump last spring and the HP still does a poor job heating I shut it off and run on the emerg heat now as I see no use in running the HP to destruction | ||
| Fahren |
CFL's are terrible outdoors in the cold. | ||
| Airbozo |
Mods from the last year; Installed cabinets in my Kitchen and had custom cabinets made to match in other spots in the house. Installed those as well. Had a granite counter top installed (had someone else do it because I don't have the skills or tools). Installed custom back splash. The hardest tile job I have ever done due to the tile, colors and orientation. Had to lay it out on the kitchen floor before install to make sure everything lined up and no colors were repeated. Built the dog a new house complete with ADA approved ramp, since he is getting too old to make it up the stairs to the old one. Too bad he doesn't use it and instead sleeps next to the motorcycles. (yes they are both outside due to construction mess in their proper home) Wrapped the water pipes just in time for a bout of freezing weather. Installed the rest of my siding (concrete based). Painted every square inch of the house inside and out and installed baseboard and trim. Re-located the pit away from my neighbors house and broke it in a week later with a 100lb pig on a spit. Installed IR transmitters and receivers so I can control all my video and audio equipment from any where in the house or yard, including a video matrix switch to select any input or output I desire... Tasks to complete this year: Finish the Kitchen lighting, including under cabinet lights and trim it out. Remove 4 large redwood stumps and install the front entrance stairs (stone work). Finish the custom pantry cabinet (they made this cabinet wrong twice already), design and install cabinets in my office (someone else will make them). Install the beer and cider taps in the kitchen, install deck and enclosures for the kegerators. Plenty more I am forgetting... | ||
| F22raptor |
Cataract2, Yea, the $299 one. I also bolted their $39.95 front wheel chock-hold-down. Love it!  | ||
| Roderick |
Recently I read about foam insulation AFTER a house is built. Then I thought about my basement which have a usually cold (not merely cool) bathroom. So has anyone done this foam insulation spray to his/her house? | ||
| Hootowl |
That nail unbender is worth every penny. | ||
| Hootowl |
I have. I recently did a 600 sq ft addition, 300 of it a screened porch. The insulated part of the structure I did in foam. You can heat it with a fart and cool it with an ice cube. Amazing stuff. They use open cell in warmer parts of the country. If you live in a cold climate, your local insulation guy will probably use closed cell. Here's the porch. Wasn't quite done with the paint when I took it. The french doors lead to the new 300 sq ft room insulated with foam. No pictures of that, sorry.  | ||
| Hootowl |
They can inject it in existing homes as well. They use a type of foam that doesn't expand as rapidly so as to not blow the drywall off the studs. They pop a hole in the top and bottom of each stud bay, and inject it from the bottom. When it squirts out the top, they move on to the next bay. My father is about to have it done to his house. If you've already got fiberglass in the wall cavities, I don't think there is much they can do. This is for insulating houses that were built without insulation. | ||
| Sifo |
My mom recently got an upgraded water heater. It's set up with an air exchange heat pump so it heats the water with heat taken from the air in the basement. When hot water demand is higher, it also has a standard electric heating element. I think this sort of thing makes more sense in a hot climate where you will be cooling the air while heating the water. | ||
| Scottorious |
I installed an on demand hot water heater. The thing is amazing! Whoever says they don't work either doesn't have one or they got the wrong size. I went with a rheem and it just rocks. I personally installed it and it was easy. Rheem is an amazing warranty company also. Even though average joe installed it, when something broke they overnighted the part to me for free. Better yet they are really easy to work on. If you ever considered making the change. Make it a rheem and just do it. I'll never own a standard water heater again. When four of us come home from doing something dirty its nice to know that even if you are last you'll have as much hot water as you need. I purchased the smallest unit and its more than enough for my house, I run low flow on all faucets and showers. AMAZING product. | ||
| Vtpeg |
I've sprayed foam on several jobs. Great product, high r value and air seals. Energy auditor I work with loves the stuff. Up to 1000 bf is do able by your self, after that its better to have a truck setup come in. In the north east band joists around the house are often uninsulated and unsealed and this is an easy upgrade with quick payback. I've not used it in sheathed walls but have done some dense pack cellulose. Works well but there is a learning curve and some sheet rock will pop. | ||
| Ohbueller |
We just moved in August to a home with propane heat. The seller thought we could buy the buried leased tank from the propane company but they refused to sell. Because this company has a reputation for gouging customers, especially those with leased tanks, I was about to spend $2500 to buy a tank from another supplier, have the old one excavated and the new one buried, but at the last minute realized throwing money at propane is just a waste. We had a Water Furnace ground source heat pump installed and so far we love it. With the Water Furnace we also installed a Marathon water heater (lifetime tank) that heats some of the water using a desuperheater on the heat pump, so I should never replace the water heater again (replaced twice in our last house). I believe after tax credits and rebates the saving vs. propane will pay for the system in about 6 years. I was off work last week and took that time to add a layer of R30 over the R30 the builder had put in. Whenever Mrs. Ohbueller says "we" should do this to the house she means "you" should do this to the house. Next "we" should build shelves and a counter in the laundry room. I want to put in the LED security lights now, those sound great. | ||
| Strokizator |
I put in solar panels a couple of years ago and just added a water heater like Sifo described. My propane unit was costing about $600 a year and this new one runs on about $200 of electricity at regular rates. My electric bill was $4.85 last month. | ||
| Old_guy |
Bought the house 6 months ago. Built a Corian topped picnic table for the back yard.  New porches  to replace the OLD one  |
