Have you bought a pre-fabricated home, or know someone who has? If so, what words of advice can be given about this?
[more inside]
posted by drpynchon
on Jun 15, 2013 -
7 answers
Do I dare try replacing the door gasket on my frontload washing machine?
Photo of damaged gasket. It's not supposed to look like a ruffle. It's supposed to be smooth. The damaged occurred when I was washing a duvet cover and sheets. The load became very unbalanced and the machine leapt and jumped.
Has anyone ordered the part and done a
successful DIY repair? Or should I pay a service tech?
The machine is a Maytag MHWE200XW00. It looks like we could get the
gasket shipped for about $120.
posted by valannc
on Jun 10, 2013 -
11 answers
I have been robbed three times in the past 7 months. My lease ends July 31st, and I do not wish to pay one more month. I have expressed that I feel targeted and unsafe to the apartment complex, but they do not want to make a concession for me.
What rights, if any, do I have? Michigan is my location.
The apartments seemed safe when I chose them, but have turned into something else since.
posted by squirbel
on Jun 10, 2013 -
26 answers
I have some masking tape adhesive residue on my windows. They are vinyl windows double pane with argon gas inside. I use naptha with is lighter fluid although I use the actual stuff from a paint store to remove adhesive on other stuff it works well. It is safe on plastic. What I'm wondering will it damage the stuff that holds the glass panels to the frame (I think its silicone not sure though) I dont want it to get damaged and let the argon gas leak out.
posted by john123357
on Jun 6, 2013 -
24 answers
I'm looking to update the front of my 15' x 30' attached Baltimore row home.
It currently features ugly formstone.
I'd like to add a mason veneer siding on top of the existing formstone if possible. Can this physically be done?
Thank You!
Eric
posted by emeyer5269
on Jun 4, 2013 -
2 answers
I have a few household projects for which I'd like to mock-up some designs. Mostly pressingly a bathroom, and after that garage storage, landscape design, and other things. What is the best (free, or individual consumer-priced) software to get the job done?
[more inside]
posted by sparklemotion
on Jun 3, 2013 -
4 answers
We are about to apply for a home equity line of credit. The guy at the bank already ran our credit and verified rates and eligibility. I'm also about to change jobs. What should I do about the loan?
[more inside]
posted by chickenmagazine
on May 21, 2013 -
3 answers
I'm wanting to do a project similar to
this, but for Astoria (specifically, if possible) or Queens (generally, if that works out better). So basically, I'm looking for suggestions of iconic people/places/things that represent the neighborhood and/or borough, and would evoke fond memories for folks who have lived there. I'm not going to be taking photos, so I'm not limited to things that currently exist or that are concrete (as a terrible example of this, I mean that an apple could represent "the Big Apple"). I've already thought of Shea Stadium and the World's Fair stuff in Flushing Meadows (QMA, Unisphere, NYState buildings, etc.) What am I missing, Queens-folk?
posted by unknowncommand
on May 21, 2013 -
8 answers
More details after the jump, but in short: Mortgage lender holds the deeds to the house after missing payments for years.
I am trying to figure out what the imminent risks to the house are and if I could find a debt negotiator.
Many thanks to you all.
[more inside]
posted by seatofmypants
on May 21, 2013 -
6 answers
My mom and I want to transfer her house to me, her son as cheaply and quickly as possible. We live in Columbus Ohio Franklin county if that helps. I'd prefer not to have to pay a lawyer or whatever but I will if it's necessary to get it done quickly. Having it completed within 10 days would be great, is this possible? and how do we do it? websites, phone numbers, etc. would be helpful!
posted by crawltopslow
on May 20, 2013 -
10 answers
Where do you go when you've graduated from IKEA and are ready for decent, but not necessarily heirloom quality furniture? We're just hoping to find some stuff to carry us through the next 8-10 years, or is that unrealistic? How much should we honestly expect to spend?
[more inside]
posted by Diagonalize
on May 13, 2013 -
27 answers
[USA filter] Even with the new disclosures I can't figure out how much Medicare pays for just a hospital or nursing home room - 24 hours. Just the room charge.
[more inside]
posted by cda
on May 13, 2013 -
6 answers
I would like to do a massive clean/organization of my apartment over the next few weeks. Help me figure out a game plan.
[more inside]
posted by lunasol
on May 10, 2013 -
22 answers
I am leaving my place shortly and moving into a new one, however there will be a period during which I will be camping out with various family and friends while the paperwork on the new place gets sorted and I get some work done to it. What is the minimum of stuff I should take with me in order to live comfortably on someone else's floor / sofa bed / guest room, while still not taking up too much of their space? Also, how do I deal with the lack of feeling settled / not having my own space? I haven't done this for a long time, so want to go in fully prepared.
[more inside]
posted by Ziggy500
on May 10, 2013 -
15 answers
I may be on the lookout for a new residence soon, and I'm open to alternatives to the usual apartment/house rental. In particular, living in an RV or camper trailer parked on the street outside of a friend's house (or in their driveway if long-term parking on the street is illegal) seems doable. And fun. And possible (I asked). What's it like?
[more inside]
posted by jsturgill
on May 6, 2013 -
19 answers
What's a good bush to plant next to the front door? This is in coastal Massachusetts.
[more inside]
posted by Miko
on Apr 28, 2013 -
17 answers
Single retiree is selling a big paid-off house and asked me and huzzeh for help deciding whether or not it makes sense to rent an apartment or buy a condo. What questions should we consider to help make this decision?
[more inside]
posted by elizeh
on Apr 18, 2013 -
17 answers
Aside from a few major professional-only renovations for our house, what we can do to make our home the way we would like? (Bonus points for simplicity!)
[more inside]
posted by Kitteh
on Apr 15, 2013 -
8 answers
My neighbor has expressed a desire to rebuild the wooden fence between our houses. We share one side of the fence with her, and it's definitely in need of repair--warped boards, aging, etc. Should she be fully responsible for paying for the fence, since it was her idea to fix it? Or should we contribute some money since we share one side of the fence?
[more inside]
posted by starkraven
on Apr 2, 2013 -
36 answers
So. I live on the ground floor. My apartment complex hires leafblowers to come and blow leaves and dirt out of the parking lot twice a week. Every time they come to do this, I come home to dirt, in the entryway of my apartment, that has blown in under my front door. It's a new door, with a new rubber guard at the bottom. How can I prevent this from happening?
posted by sevensnowflakes
on Apr 1, 2013 -
13 answers
I'm inthe process of designing a comprehensive refit of a 21 Metre Dutch Barge and thought it's about time I made at least a small amount of use of my Robotics background.
I'm thinking about including a vast array of sensors throughout the inside and outside and feeding it all into a central computer, then probably using these sensor feeds to do various automation actions.
So this question has a few parts, some technical and some not.
[more inside]
posted by Just this guy, y'know
on Mar 27, 2013 -
10 answers
My old cast iron bathtub is stained beyond help. None of the tough cleaners do anything at this point. I looked into repainting it myself but couldn't cope with the idea of the prepping and the awful epoxy-based paint etc. etc. We could pay a fortune to have it reglazed, I guess, BUT
[more inside]
posted by DMelanogaster
on Mar 24, 2013 -
25 answers
Hi, thanks in advance for helpful comments, suggestions, recommendations. I am looking to begin an improvement project on a single fam home the day after tomorrow in Arlington, TX. So, of course I waited to the last minute before deciding to seek alternate options to Home Depot and Lowes (the only big box home improvement stores in the area). That's all I need, Mefites! I will have to go get the materials from Southwest Arlington TX, so preferably
posted by rxbert
on Mar 21, 2013 -
1 answer
Dear adventurous loungers of Metafilter, please tell me about the cleverest space-conserving bed or couch replacements you've ever seen.
[more inside]
posted by WidgetAlley
on Mar 20, 2013 -
32 answers
I need recommendations for activities for someone with medical conditions that preclude reading, writing, watching much video, or walking for any significant amount of time.
[more inside]
posted by knapah
on Mar 18, 2013 -
36 answers
- I live in an apartment and the water heater does not give an entire 40g of hot water [the capacity of the water heater and approximate capacity of the tub].
- I would like to relax in the bath for at least 20 minutes or more.
- I've tried boiling water, aquarium heater [fail, takes to long to heat], basalt stones [too small to matter].
Do you have any ideas for lengthening my bath time? My water goes lukewarm after ten minutes, almost chilly.
posted by squirbel
on Mar 9, 2013 -
23 answers
Please talk to me like I'm stupid. I have a bunch of video files (~5TB...so far) hanging out on a bunch of external hard drives. Right now I just take turns plugging them into whichever laptop I'm going to use to watch the videos. I'd like something a little more convenient and easily accessible from multiple rooms in my small apartment, but I'm not awesome at setting up networky things (I've never successfully gotten two different laptops in my apartment to even "see" each other over the wireless router). What should I do?
[more inside]
posted by aswego
on Mar 4, 2013 -
9 answers
I am trying to purchase a foreclosed house with a homepath loan, but I do not qualify for a homepath loan despite excellent credit. Apparently a conventional loan will not work for the current condition of the home. Can you help me sort out my options in Virginia?
[more inside]
posted by shortyJBot
on Mar 3, 2013 -
7 answers
My baby brother moved to London yesterday and I'm sadder than sad. We're really close and he lived a couple of minutes from me so we hung out a lot. I'm going to miss him so much and it'll take me a while to accept that he's a flight away, and I can't just randomly drop in on him, hear his little hello, and settle down for a few hours of putting the world to rights. My usual way of dealing with sadness is not very productive - namely substances of varying degrees of legality, and chocolate. Help me make a list of positive things I can do to lift me out of the little pool of tears I'm in. He's left me one of his guitars - which was mine about 20 years ago - and I'm determined to learn it this time. Any other suggestions? Thanks.
posted by billiebee
on Mar 3, 2013 -
7 answers
I'd like to get more into freelance copywriting. It's something I can do from home, and I'm pretty good at it. I have a money and time goal for it.
Money: 5 cents a word
Time: 15 hours a week
Total: About $1,500 a month.
I'm on Textbroker, but they rarely pay more than 1.5 cents a word. I'm open to pay-by-project too, if they're consistent. How would I go about finding regular clients/websites that could help me reach my goal?
posted by tuberose
on Feb 27, 2013 -
3 answers
I am looking for a quote along the lines of, "you leave home to search for what you are looking for, only to come home and realize it was there all along".
I remember reading a specific quote around this idea, but I can't remember the wording well enough to look it up. I would also be interested in any quote along these lines and expressing a similar idea.
thanks.
posted by bearette
on Feb 23, 2013 -
15 answers
I act childish and feel patronized whenever I go back home from university to my parents and (much) older sister. I think this is a known phenomenon. What can I do to minimize this? (Snowflake details inside.)
[more inside]
posted by Conspire
on Feb 22, 2013 -
10 answers
I have a two-car garage with a LiftMaster automatic garage door opener that is misbehaving and it's driving me crazy. It seems to be randomly just opening the door long after it is closed and I can't figure out why. I've seen the other questions about garage door openers but was hoping for some advice specific to my situation.
[more inside]
posted by misskaz
on Feb 22, 2013 -
15 answers
I am planning to convert my basement into a bedroom for one of my brothers to use. I was thinking all that was needed was carpeting and paint, but one of my friends recently told me that I may need to have some kind of modification to the basement windows or walls so that there's a fire escape route apart from the stairs. Is this the case? I've had a hard time finding a definitive legal reference as to what I need to do to have someone legally sleep in my basement.
[more inside]
posted by Vorteks
on Feb 21, 2013 -
13 answers
Help us figure out how to cover up or replace this god awful kitchen floor. We just purchased a farmhouse that was renovated in the mid 50s. The mudroom and kitchen have 9" asphalt tiles that are all coming up (so not level), and on top of that, the prior owner used these rooms as a kennel for his incontinent daschund.
[more inside]
posted by checkitnice
on Feb 16, 2013 -
20 answers
Everything I do, all day, every day, hurts. The more I do things that are painful, the more the pain snowballs. We're going to build a house that we hope will help reduce the accumulation of pain, and maybe even let me recover a little. Help me make sure I'm covering all the bases in house design accommodations.
[more inside]
posted by galadriel
on Feb 13, 2013 -
35 answers
We're redoing a bathroom in a house we plan to sell. It's a very old house, so nothing is quite standard. Between the new sink cabinet and the stacked washer / dryer there is a
space that's about 10 inches wide, 24 inches deep and 80 inches high. We'd like to make it functional in some way. It also should look nice.
[more inside]
posted by heigh-hothederryo
on Feb 10, 2013 -
14 answers
We live in a rural New England house on a wooded lot and we don't actually know a whole lot about taking care of trees. Other than 'you should call someone and learn about taking care of trees' what will be useful for us to know?
[more inside]
posted by A Terrible Llama
on Feb 6, 2013 -
14 answers
Even when I have free time, I find myself rarely doing the thing called "relaxing". I'm looking for how I can better relax, and what I can do to give myself a better environment to do so.
[more inside]
posted by parudox
on Jan 29, 2013 -
15 answers
Our home in Seattle contains a dozen or so electric heaters. We would like to get rid of these and upgrade to something more efficient/attractive/economical.
It seems our two options are 1) Central gas heating or 2) ductless heat pump.
To make gas heating work, we would have to install ducts. Does anyone have any experience with adding ducts to a ductless house? One possibility that has been suggested is to put the ducts on the outside of one side of the house. This would probably work in our case since all of the large rooms in our house share a common wall.
What are your thoughts/experiences with installing either gas heating with new ducts or ductless heat pump heating? I'm assuming that central gas would work just fine in a Seattle winter but I'm not sure if a ductless heat pump system would be adequate in the winter ( considering that our hope is to replace - not just augment - the existing system ).
posted by metadave
on Jan 21, 2013 -
14 answers
Not literally. But I'm stuck on picking a color. Special snowflake details inside. (Possible triggers for mental health issues)
[more inside]
posted by 1066
on Jan 16, 2013 -
21 answers
