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space229
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RE: How should I budget a curbless accessible route during new construction?
I’d be cautious about showing all three buckets as equally deferrable. If the route needs to work from move-in, the base bid should cover one complete, usable accessible route; phasing a missing piece of sitework or a th...
RE: WHERE DO YOU EVEN START WITH HIRING SOMEONE TO DESIGN YOUR HOUSE?
Yeah, I hear you - track record’s important, but I’ve been burned by “big name” designers who just couldn’t stick to my budget or kept pushing ideas I didn’t want. How do you even figure out if someone’s gonna respect wh...
RE: HOW DO YOU REALLY SAVE WATER AT HOME? QUICK POLL
HOW DO YOU REALLY SAVE WATER AT HOME? QUICK POLL I’m all for saving water, but some of those gadgets can get pricey up front. Did you find the low-flow showerhead made a big enough difference on your bill to justify the...
RE: Finally upgraded my living room lights - anyone else tried smart bulbs?
That’s exactly what put me off at first. I tried a couple of the cheaper smart bulbs and honestly, the constant reconnecting got old fast. Ended up switching to smart switches instead - cost a bit more upfront, but at le...
RE: HOW DO YOU REALLY SAVE WATER AT HOME? QUICK POLL
Yeah, I tried the same setup and honestly, unless you’ve got your barrel way up on blocks, gravity just doesn’t cut it. I ended up hand-filling a watering can most days. As for mosquitoes, I swear they’re little escape a...
RE: Anyone else feel awkward talking to their TV?
I get what you mean about manual overrides. Sometimes I wonder if all these “smart” features are just making things more complicated - and expensive - than they need to be. Like, do we really need to talk to our TVs just...
RE: Cleaner city air thanks to new traffic rules?
Cleaner City Air Thanks To New Traffic Rules? You’re not alone - these last-minute changes are a headache, especially when you’re trying to keep costs down. I’ve had to reschedule painters twice now because the delivery...
RE: Building base structures - what if you had to start over?
I get the logic, but have you ever found a middle ground that worked out? When we built our garage, we didn't splurge on premium materials, just went mid-range... 8 years later, still no issues. Maybe sometimes there's a...
RE: Digging into property easements - anyone else find online tools confusing?
They're actually pretty decent, but it depends a lot on the detector quality and how deep your pins are buried. I borrowed a friend's mid-range detector last summer and managed to find two out of three pins without much ...
RE: Digging into property easements - anyone else find online tools confusing?
Yeah, totally agree. But surveys aren't exactly cheap - anyone have luck using county assessor records as a middle-ground option? I've found they're usually decent enough for basic easement checks without breaking the ba...
RE: Trimming down expenses on project supplies
Yeah, humidity can really mess with reclaimed wood projects. Did you try letting the boards acclimate indoors first? I've found giving them a week or two inside helps reduce warping quite a bit...usually worth the wait.
RE: Construction's done, now what - stick with builder's lender or shop around?
I've had experiences with both local lenders and bigger banks, and honestly, I'm not sure flexibility always comes down to size or community ties. Sometimes it's just about the individual loan officer you're dealing with...
RE: Finally made my space feel like "me"
Totally get what you're saying about the plants - I went through a similar phase myself. Thought succulents would be foolproof, but turns out even they have their limits (RIP little aloe...). Have you found any budget-fr...
RE: Figuring out how much to borrow for building our house
Yeah, this is spot on. When we built ours, I thought I was being careful budgeting extra, but even then we got blindsided by some drainage issues that nobody saw coming. Ended up costing us a good chunk more than we plan...