Home Repair Rules

1. Estimate the project time. To get the real number multiply by 5 and add 10. A ten-minute project will take at least 60 minutes.
2. They quit making that 20 years ago.
3. They quit making the easy adapter for fixing #2 10 years ago.
4. The last guy who remembered the easy work-around retired 5 years ago.
5. You don't have the tool, so you need to make a special trip to get one. It is a limited use or one-time tool. So, after you use it, you will put it away in a place you won't forget until after you can't find it next time and buy its replacement.
6. If you need a helping hand, no one will be in earshot, especially if you have finally wedged yourself under a sink or some uncomfortable place.
7. You have to make at least 3 trips to the hardware store/Lowe's/Home Depot to get a $1 part. You get the wrong part; Larry puts the wrong sizes in the bag; and, after you've spent $20 and two trips, someone suddenly remembers that THIS transition piece is the one that works.
8. No plan is good unless it changes 3 times during execution.
9. It takes at least an hour to pick out the perfect paint color. Once on the wall, it will be absolutely wrong.
10. Buy Ibuprofen stocks. Sales will dramatically increase.
11. The new product is 0.5" bigger or smaller than the hole it's going in and won't fit without extra effort. For example, a 60" shower, bought to go into a 60" opening, is really 60.5".
12. It's never in an easy place to get to.
13.  We had those last year, but we don't know where they are.

Two days in the bathroom

Made progress on the bath.  Finally picked out vanity and new top,so I got's another trip to the dump to get rid of the old top.

Major effort on getting the drain line to meet.  Three trips to Lowe's/home depot trying to get a transition piece from 1 1/2 to 1 1/4 and finally, the guy at Lowe's Broad Street said use one of these.  Next time I'll go to Pleasants.  Together, no leaks.

Toilet

Easy installation.  No leaks, I hope.

Bath Mirror

Not bad and not hard to install.  Sits on a mounting bracket and two brackets to hold it on if you want to surface mount.  I can't recess mount this because other bath shares the wall.

Progress on New Bath

Painted yellow walls with Behr Premium Ultra.  One coat didn't cover the yellow.  Took two coats and I have some touch up to do.  Using the Allure vinyl planking.  The floor is in.  I may be sloppy, but I make up for it by being slow.

Electronics recycling

10+ years of computer junk and other electronics off to recycling.  Rainy so I used the Tahoe.  Took about 2 hours to drag it out of the eave storage and get it downstairs.

Took 3 minutes to empty the car

New Tub

A real plumber does it faster than I could

Atkins Diet

Started the Atkins Diet about two months ago.  Weight today was 310.  I started somewhere around 340.  Slow

Cheap Reciprocating Saw

I had a Black and Decker recip saw.  Used it twice for two bathroom renovations.  This saw quit moving the blade toward the end.  Wouldn't recommend getting one of those.

Second Bath Project

Doing the second bath.  I'm removing the old tub and having the new one professionally installed.  Starting, above.
Current look