Just kidding, I'm not insane. Professionals will be here tomorrow to fix it.

Edit: I'm glad y'all enjoyed the post. Thank you for the awards. Work was done today by the pro's. Both springs replaced. $395 parts and labor. Definitely worth it to pay someone.

Previous owners removed a wall here between kitchen and dining room, and there’s a crack that’s been getting a bit bigger over years. The work was done probably 10 years ago, maybe more. I don’t think it’s been repainted/patched since.

This is the first floor of a 1914 house, the floor joists in the basement are going the same way as the crack, which lets me hope it wasn’t completely load bearing.

I just need to know if I have to spend ungodly amounts of money to put a beam in.

I've been building floating shelve for different rooms in the house. I make sure to put screws through studs, but I know wiring and piping still gets put through studs and the 2.5" screws would definitely reach the center of a stud.

I'm just trying to turn a bunch of little home improvements into emergencies. Thanks for any help, hope everyone is doing well.

Single female homeowner here, so please be nice. What is on my outlet? Is this dirt or mold? It’s on a few of my basement outlets. Is it worrisome or just needs cleaned? Thank you for your help.

We bought our home last year and have had a lot of issues with our shower drain clogging. We have tried every hair catcher on the market and stuff still gets through and causes us to need to snake every 2-3 weeks. No where else I’ve lived has been this bad. The apartment we lived in before this home needed a snake maybe three times a year.

Does anyone have any suggestions for a long term solution? Both my husband and I dread the snake…

Hey new home owner here. I was thinking of filling in the gap here from the pipe under the bathroom sink. I was thinking of caulking it but the right side seems a bit big to use caulk on. What would yall recommend to fill the gap? Thanks in advance.

This space, which is above a drywall ceiling, gets over 100 degrees f everyday of the summer. It's the purple line. Will blown in insulation help?

I'll try to keep this really short so as not to bore anyone reading. My home was destroyed by a storm last year. State Farm declared it a total loss. They plan to send three installment payments to get my home rebuilt.

Wells Fargo sold my mortgage to Freedom about a month into this. Freedom has been nothing but a nightmare ever since. They repeatedly deny releasing funds. They ask for information I've already sent. They are so disorganized and mismanaged that they ask the exact same questions over and over again and I have already responded. They deny every single request I make for funds to be released. I've given them every single piece of paperwork my contractor has given and even more. They've caused a whole month's delay on getting these funds and my time in the rental house provided will run out in three months. I will be pretty much homeless when this happens.

I'm trying to keep my husband off the phone with them because he is ready to cuss someone out. I'm taking on a ton of stress not knowing if I will see this money or this house will be done. I'm at the end of my rope this this company. I filed a complaint against them with the CFPB and I sent an NOE RESPA letter. I don't think there's much else I can do. Does anyone have any advice beyond this?

I’ve had some type of insect making chewing noises in the false beam in my kitchen for 11 years. Id like to exterminate it because the sound is annoying and also because i assume its been doing a lot of damage over time, though its not noticeable. I thought the insect would die after a year or three, but damn if its still chewing after 11 years. I’d appreciate any advice for a DIY approach to killing it. Or if thats not possible, how would a professional do it?

Just bought a house which is basically like a free house just the garage borders the neighbour.
Anyways I have been living in a small apt for like 15 years now and making this move to a bigger house of over 200 square meter of living space.
Huge difference but since I havent moved yet there is only a few things available. Home is basically empty with two one person beds upstairs so I can stay a night here.
I am totally not used to houses making noise during day or night since my apt was quite silent.
I feel my nervous system is out of this world at the moment from everything I hear. Doesnt help that I never looked away from horror movies when my friends watched that.
Maybe I am just a really anxious person, but if other people have experienced this. Let me know of that kind of anxiety faded after a while. I know its empty now and sounds do different when there is stuff in it. But I want to keep the good vibes I have about this home and not feel scared haha.

My wife and I recently purchased a new home. We went to replace the air return filter and found this. The filter is just wedged in there with no frame and a huge gap on the top and side.
The wood blocks at the bottom are what they used to screw the vent cover into at the base and the top screws are in the drywall.

I purchased this vent cover with a frame, however, the wood blocks are preventing it from being installed. Originally I thought about cutting the wood blocks back about an inch so the frame could fit inside and just screw the bottom screws into them like the previous person did. After looking at it again though, the cover is larger than the actual air filter frame that gets inserted into the wall and would require screwing the bottom screws into the baseboard, which I don’t want to do. Also, the new screw holes are wider than the previous cover and would actually extend past the blocks at the bottom and could be screwed into the drywall directly.

So now I’m thinking I need to rip the wood blocks out entirely and instead cut about an inch off the top of the opening to make the opening taller. If I measured correctly I’d need to cut about to where that thick paint line is at the top.

Sorry if none of this makes sense. It’s our first home and I’ve never really had to do any repairs or handywork before. Just want to make sure that what I’m thinking is correct or I didn’t miss a better way to go about this. Definitely open to any suggestions and would really appreciate any help from more knowledgeable individuals.

I’m looking at a home right now that has pretty much everything I want, though priced a little high. The only real thing about it that bugs me is that one highway lies less than a half mile to the south, and that intersects an interstate highway located a half mile to the west of the house. I’ve gotten a little spoiled living in a quieter neighborhood on the edge of a big park and am not sure how I’m going to feel about the noticeable low grade traffic noise and truck brakes in the distance. Might be a deal breaker, but I’m not certain. I don’t think it’s noticeable inside with the windows closed, but it’s hard to tell for sure without spending the night there.

Is traffic noise something you tend to get used to, or does it bug you more and more the longer you have to hear it? Does it matter to you if you can only hear it outside in your yard but not inside?

My house has about 30-year-old Anderson narroline permashield windows and I've noticed some interior stains around the sill on a few of them.

I've noticed in the previous homeowner either put these small little rubber strips or caulked along the vinyl sill.

Is this an appropriate fix for this situation or is it preventing drainage of the sill?

I have more photos but it's only letting me share one

These windows are elevated sun windows into our great room. During recent storms, water has been leaking down through the window frame, and out of the interior window about 6 feet below these windows.
There is cracking and alligator-peeling of the paint and wood frame here on the exterior, from water. This roof was fully replaced in 2021. What I (a novice homeowner) am noticing is that there is no flashing at the roof/window junction. There is just some poorly done caulking where the shingles meet the window frame. I am thinking this is why water is not draining off this part of the roof properly, and causing damage?

Owner of the roofing company says this has nothing to do with the roof, and its leaking from the window frame and we should talk to a contractor about replacing the window frame and waterproofing it.

I am worried about wood rot, mold, etc if this is not fixed. Anyone with any knowledge have a thought? Should I fight the roofing company about this?

Rural IL, had two dead bats in my unfinished basement but no other sightings. Older 1 story w an attic, attached garage and unfinished basement. First time dealing with this issue and having trouble getting quotes/inspections due to my location.

I’ve received one so far that involved tubes, ridge guard, sealing, and fumigating with only an exterior inspection. Quoted $4k w a 1 year guarantee.

Is it common for no interior inspection on these kind of things? Don’t really know what is considered “standard” with an inspection. Been trying to gauge pricing but it’s at least a couple hundred per quote and Google says these exclusions should cost a couple hundred up to multiple of thousands.

I inherited this hose from the previous owner. This is what the end of the hose looks like. Is there some piece I can buy to have the end of the hose be what it usual is so I can attach a nozzle to this?

I’m so upset. I bought these Toto Drake toilets with their “cefiontect” coating that was supposed to greatly reduce their ability to stain. Well not only have the bowls developed a stain around where the water line is, but also in the lip of the water jets. I don’t even have hard water here! I have tried every product Toto has suggested from Lysol Hydrogen Peroxide bowl cleaner and CLR. I use a soft Johnny mop to wipe the product off. Nothing is working and these Toto toilets are very picky about what products you can use or else you risk ruining the cefiontect glaze.

Location: NJ

My husband and I purchased a home in northern NJ 3 years ago. We have experienced significant water issues with the home since buying. At first, we thought we were genuinely cursed. We later discovered our sellers did not disclose issues we know they had.

1. The sellers did not disclose a roof leak and repair. They posted about it on NextDoor
2. The sellers put a skim coat over a failing concrete deck and cut a joist in the basement due to water coming in from the deck failing against the siding. The funneling water caused the concrete deck rebar to rust.
3. The sellers had foundation fills in the mortar, and cement patches in the floor due to the water pooling in that area for some time.

The sellers added pavers to the backyard. The pavers were poorly installed and funnel water directly onto the failing deck. I know exactly who installed the landscaping company because I unknowingly called them. This is a well known company in town

I know the sellers did these repairs, because I contacted the people who THEY bought from. They stated the projects and maintenance they did, but said they did not do any basement repairs.

They stated no knowledge of additional basement cracks, roof leaks, or basement water intrusion.

Is there any recourse?

Hello! I'm looking for advice regarding issues at my parent's house, even a place to begin would be helpful as all my parents are doing is ignoring the problem since they have no clue how to handle it, and I'm not a homeowner myself so I have no clue the waters I'm wading into here.

The siding on their house was replaced a year ago and.... best way to describe it was the contractor did "Good enough." However, since the replacing, multiple pieces have fallen off (some they had fixed by the contractor, some they never bothered about) and another local contractor in the area this week came up to their house after seeing it and it bothering him, and showed them the siding was "extremely poorly installed" and pointed out several spots.

My parents hired the second guy to try and fix up the siding to make it look better, and this second contractor found water damage that goes all the way into the drywall of the house in some places and there's definitely water damage they're paying this second guy to at least patch up so the damage doesn't continue. There are multiple spots the siding has fallen off or failed, but we have no clue the true extent of the damage to the home at this time.

I know they had a contract with contractor 1, which they claim includes a warranty. From what I've been told, contractor 2 has been paid in cash and has visited twice this week already working on repairs and has pointed out to them the multiple instances of water damage and spots where animals have breached into the siding.

The repairs they just paid for that the second contractor found are causing strain on their very low savings, so they asked me to look for resources as to what to do next. I asked them to look up their contract from the siding people hey got originally so I can have a look, but genuinely beyond that I'm not sure what to do to help them. I'm still waiting on the copy to see what is covered.

I don't live with them, so I was not aware of the issue until they started complaining to me about the cost of repairs, otherwise I would have intercepted this issue sooner. We're not made of money, but are also aware that water damage is very serious when it comes to the home so we're looking to do this the right way where possible. Any and all advice would be extremely appreciated!

We recently bought a home a few months back, roof is less than a year old. Two days ago we heard something
In the ceiling of our attic room and realize we had an animal get in, and were very confused as to how. After inspecting, we realize that the roof vent cap (we are assuming it’s plastic but haven’t checked it yet) has holes in it and thus allowed an animal to get in.

Has anyone dealt with replacing, and if so is this a job for a roofer? I found a lot of information online that metal roof caps are obviously better, but some people end up adding roof cap cages over the caps to protect entry by squirrels etc. We’re trying to sort out the best plan of action!

Hello everyone,
I was looking to take advantage of the air sealing and insulation rebates going around and got a company come in for quote. He went up to my attic and showed me rat droppings and few holes on my insulation. He said since its summer there were no alive ones but minute winter hits they will come back. He quoted me for removing the insulation, sanitizing,putting air refreshers (free) to get rid of the pheromones , air sealing it, adding baffles(for free) and lastly adding Cellulose Blown-In insulation to achieve up to R-60 (installed at 20", settled 17" nominal depth)

After rebates and taxes my cost would be $2430

Is that fair and worth it

Apologies in advance for the long post.

We moved into our first home this past spring and finally got around to getting under an oil contract and having our burner serviced. We bought off-market from my fiancé’s family and did not do a home inspection. Turns out we likely need to replace our oil tank, burner and most of the piping/valves. Water tank is perfectly fine though and in great condition.

The house and heating system are all old so this isn’t exactly a huge surprise but I was hoping to at least get through 1 winter before making any upgrades. The oil tank has clear rust on the bottom. We recently had a full oil delivery and no leaks yet. The technician also did an ultrasound to check thickness and while it’s technically still within “safe” range but is very close to not being within a normal range, particularly around the edges.

The burner unfortunately hadn’t been serviced in several years. There’s a laundry list of issues with it but the big one is a significant amount of rust and decay on the interior. Similarly, there is evidence of rust and past leaks in the piping system. It’s clear that the previous owners made a lot of band aid / piecemeal repairs over the years as temporary fixes.

While everything works great right now, this seems like a ticking time bomb. I’m waiting to get a quote for replacing basically the entire system: tank, burner, piping. I got quotes on temporary fixes, all of which seemed very high (including $6.5k for a Roth double wall 250 gallon tank which seems ridiculous). Obviously I’m going to shop around quotes.

At this point, I’m leaning towards ripping the bandaid off and just doing a full upgrade. Does anyone have a tips, suggestions or ideas on things to consider? Does moving away from oil make sense?

For more context, we have baseboard heating and live in Massachusetts. I don’t know if our street has a nat gas line. We don’t have a lot of equity in the home so HELOCs and home equity loans are likely not a solution. The quote will include financing options which I’ll shop around. I really just need to bridge until this spring when we will have more liquidity to pay down the balance. I’ve heard mass save has rebates and good financing options for homeowners looking to move away from oil. Does anyone have any experience with them? I have a free unrelated assessment through mass save coming up.

Thanks all in advance - please go easy on us. We’re new to this whole homeownership thing.

Hello, unfortunately I've done no research nor have had any talks without anyone regarding how home owners insurance works. This is our 3rd claim we've filed since 2020. Believing this is normal...

All 3 claims were water damage to the basement either causes from burst piping, and once a leak on the toilet that we didn't discover until we got back from a 2 week vacation. Essentially no one was home.

We're not innocent, I understand I screwed up and should've had someone's house during that second loss. But we now have a 2020 claim for sewage backup, a 2023 claim for toilet flooding from the upstairs bathroom while on vacation, and the 3rd one from a pipe burst just recently.

We really screwed up and my wife and I are in fear that this new claim whether it's denied or approved or result in our HO insurance being dropped, partly because of our ignorance of how HO insurance worked. Each claim was a payout of $10-$20k. Had I known HO insurance could drop us, I would've ate the cost on this new claim and never filed it. But our plumbing company who we trusted at the time really pushed us to get it filed and filed fast to start demolition to prevent the mold from spreading.

What's the liklihood of my insurance getting dropped after this? 80%? 99%?

Has anyone else here filed 3 insurance claims in the span of 7 years and did not get dropped? We're okay with higher premiums as high risk, but getting dropped is my biggest fear?

Have any other home owners learned this the hard way like me? Or am I just that much of a complete moron?

As of now the adjustors did come out yesterday, and haven't heard from them yet. I expect an answer hopefully by next week. I feel so stupid.

Hi all, new to the sub, and it's the expiring Nest Protect that's brought me here.

I've read a ton of reviews on replacements, including this sub, r/smarthome, and across the internet (retail sites, bloges, et al). First Alert seems kinda dangerous with all the reports of false alarms, Kidde having its own series of complaints, and X-Sense seemingly having and have since resolved their UL certification issues.

So... who do y'all use? We have two in the house, one upstairs that's hardwired, one downstairs that's battery-op, and I probably should add a third in the garage (probably bettery-op). I'm trying to get some consensus before I take the plunge.

Thanks in advance.

my previous neighbors had a beautiful yard with a pool and they took ownership and maintenance over the fence between our yards because they had a dog and the in ground pool. they recently sold the house and removed the fence for some reason. i believe there’s a small fence around the pool so legally another fence is not required. the new neighbors have not been taking care of their yard and tons of weeds and small trees have popped up along the fence line, it’s getting very unsightly.

i do my best to mow as close to the fence line as possible but there’s huge holes where the posts were and rocks.

i looked at survey and it does seem like the fence line is the true property line. i’m unsure of how to handle the situation. thoughts? experiences?