The Saturday Morning Home Repair Blog (SMHRB) is where we gather to discuss the many and varied aspects of home repair. Some here are trained professionals. Some, talented DIYers. All are welcome. Please feel encouraged to ask questions, share successes, lament sags, drips and cracks and, as always, share any advice that you have for the rest of us.
Good morning, the Christmas installment of SMHRB is presented by laughingRabbit. I provide home repair and interior refresh services, working mostly by myself. I am fortunate enough to have a wife who is skilled and will lend a hand when needed. I had hoped to have the bath portion of my basement project completed to entertain you with this morning, it was not to be. The client has moved in to the bedroom portion, and began using a bedside toilet to make life a little easier. I concentrated on improving their comfort by getting the drywall in place, had a plumber install the sewage sump, set the toilet and vanity and hung the light / vent fan combo along with a coat of primer.
During this past week, I had two home projects that demanded attention. One was a long drawn out remodel of an outbuilding, converting it into a climate controlled wood shop, the other a flooring repair in my laundry room. The flooring repair was critical, since the damage caused by a leaking water heater supply had pushed the freezer into the dining room, which pushed several furnishings from the dining room into the living room. These in turn, made putting up a tree for the holidays, as well as having a family dinner impossible.
With my intrepid wife’s help, I began the patching repair of the damaged floor. We had put this off since summer, while we debated, researched and shopped flooring. Now it was time to move with whatever worked. I moved the washing machine out, cut the existing sheet vinyl floor as cleanly as possible. Since this is a mobile home, the floor is only edge glued, and was laid before the walls are put in place. The area I had cut pulled up nicely revealing sagging particle board and lots of mold underneath.
I first cut some exploratory holes in the damaged floor, looked for wires and pipes, then with a circular saw and sabre saw, cut into the floor. Once I had the cuts made and the waste out of the way, I cleaned up the tops of the joists, screwed plywood blocking to any area not supported by a joist, then installed 3/4” plywood patches. The patches came out fairly level with the existing. I then placed the vinyl (bleached by my sweetie) back down, aligning it with the rest of the floor covering. Rolling back half of it, I glued the seam and up under the existing vinyl. After adhering the floor along the seam, it was barely visible. Then I glued the rest of the patch along the wall, rolled everything as hard as I could, and cleaned up the surface. As insurance, I top taped the the seam with a heavy duty clear vinyl repair tape.
Believe me, I was a happy puppy as I slid the washer and freezer across the seam and it did not roll up.
But, there is always something else. When I first moved the washer out of the room, there was a spring lying under it. Doing a little research I found out it was the motor counter balance spring, and the hole in the frame where it hooked had worn through. Pulling the cabinet off the base allowed me to drill a new hole and reinstall the spring without having to lean the washer back and wait for it to fall on me while working. That’s always a good thing.
Now with the furnishings all back where they belonged, I could put up the tree and carry on with the holidays.
The wood shop? That became my Christmas present to myself. The power company laid the underground supply, then pulled the temp pole and lift pole from beside the building. We flipped the main and all was good. Then the county dropped by, looked everything over, and passed me on my final inspection. After three years, I finally had this project finished. I promptly made a piece of holiday decor for the house to celebrate.
Jingle Frog and friends sitting on their new stocking holder
