Home Projects (upkeep/repair/mods/cool sh*t/advice/question)

malchior · Post by **malchior** » Fri Jul 02, 2021 3:35 pm

malchior wrote: ↑Wed Jun 30, 2021 11:02 am
Smoove_B wrote: ↑Wed Jun 30, 2021 10:55 am
malchior wrote: ↑Wed Jun 30, 2021 7:43 am It isn't going to be crazy hot but still unwelcome to say the least.
Is distilled misery here in NJ these last 3+ days and I don't think it's actually going to break until tomorrow afternoon. It was (air temp) 79 degrees at 1:30 this morning, plus whatever the humidity was. It'll be over a 100 today...again.

I hope you can get someone there quick.
Negative ghost rider. Friday between noon to 4. At least it isn't after the holiday. I was hoping it was just the start up capacitor on the fan but its definitely the fan motor. It tries to startup and smoke is coming out of the housing so my guess is seized bearing.

I threw a window unit in where I'm working and I can dip into the pool at my leisure. It is more about just making sure we have a lot of cold water for the feline house members and just deal with it.

And they cancelled on me. Said they couldn't get anywhere out here except "sometime" on Monday. Yeah nope. My grandfather's ghost invaded me and I kept badgering them until miraculously someone was in the next town over and could come help me out tonight.

Scuzz · Post by **Scuzz** » Fri Jul 02, 2021 3:49 pm

We signed a contract Wednesday to get our old patio cover (a wooden pergola system) torn down and have a new patio cover installed. The new one will be aluminum and not wood, so I won't have to paint it again in 15 years. It also will be 30lf ft fully covered and insulated and 30 lf ft of pergola. It will have LED lights and a ceiling fan in the covered part.

We looked at a neighbors project and while I am not in love with the aluminum look it has some definite advantages. The last one made it 27 years, so I can't complain the wood was rotting and the spiders loved it. It also didn't have a fully covered area and I like to BBQ year round so the covered area will be nice in the winter.

Now, to get a quote to update the kitchen.

malchior · Post by **malchior** » Fri Jul 02, 2021 4:59 pm

Badgering them was the right move. The tech came out and confirmed the exact problem I reported on Wednesday morning. The motor on the fan failed. So now they have to order it and ... who the hell knows when they'll get it with the holiday. It took the guy 10 minutes to diagnose it. If they hadn't come out today they'd be diagnosing this on late Monday. I'm guessing I'm not up and running until mid to late week next. Guess I have to figure out a long-term solution since sleeping on downstair couches isn't cutting it.

stessier · Post by **stessier** » Wed Jul 21, 2021 9:03 am

Our refrigerator has a known issue that causes the ice maker to freeze over leading to the lack of ice and water on the door. It's 8 years old and it finally happened to us. Last night I started at 5:30, pulled the whole ice maker apart, used a steamer to melt all the ice, removed all the ice on the back exterior of the fridge (the insulation is so bad that it actually freezes on the back - really horrible design), and added insulation to the back to separate the water lines from the surface trying to prevent further freezing. At 8:05 I finished cleaning the floor and had a working fridge for a total cost of $70 ($20 for insulation and mounting tape and $50 for a new water filter that I figured I should change as long as I was doing everything else). Only down side is I got a burn on my finger from using the steamer. Be nice if I didn't have to do this for another 8 years.

3 weeks ago I changed out the hot and cold cartridges in our bathroom faucet to stop a leak. Moen's design is completely integrated plunger/o-ring/spring, so it was very easy once I found the right youtube video. Took about an hour (which included finding and watching the youtube video).

I really feel like I should keep a ledger with how much I've saved doing stuff myself rather than calling a repair man. I could then cash out my "savings" for fun stuff whenever I wanted. Never seems to work out that way though...always use it for like food and clothes for the kids... Booooooo.

Default · Post by **Default** » Thu Jul 29, 2021 12:34 pm

Built a tablesaw workstation on wheels, putting up french cleats in the garage, then building shop cabinets after I put together a tablesaw sled. If they come out ok, I may just build the kitchen cabinets myself.

Brian · Post by **Brian** » Thu Jul 29, 2021 1:26 pm

Just put the deposit down on all new flooring in the living room.

Finally gonna replace the (likely) forty year old carpet.
Going with some LVT (Luxury Vinyl Tile) to get us through the time between now and when we can sell the house which is hopefully no more than a couple of years. It should last at least that long especially when you consider that we barely spend any time in the living room.

Default · Post by **Default** » Thu Jul 29, 2021 6:55 pm

Brian wrote: ↑Thu Jul 29, 2021 1:26 pm Just put the deposit down on all new flooring in the living room.

Finally gonna replace the (likely) forty year old carpet.
Going with some LVT (Luxury Vinyl Tile) to get us through the time between now and when we can sell the house which is hopefully no more than a couple of years. It should last at least that long especially when you consider that we barely spend any time in the living room.

malchior · Post by **malchior** » Tue Aug 10, 2021 4:43 pm

I just signed myself up for a project that might now be over my ability to deliver.

I mentioned to my wife that I wanted to finally get around to putting a real floor in our partially finished basement (it is painted concrete). Well lo and behold I have an order for 30 boxes of luxury vinyl plank and underlayment and am waiting on delivery. I thought it was only going to be a matter of cleaning the floor and laying the product. Until I read the instructions and it recommended checking the floor for levelness and wouldn't you know it but on one side the basement slopes slightly down. This is not towards a drain of any sort, it appears like a slightly out of level pour. It is smooth but not flat. I'm now deep in reading about doing a partial self-leveling concrete which is a ton of work. I'll have to sand the paint and concrete to increase roughness, apply a primer, and then pour a quick set self-leveler. Yikes. The floor seems super straight forward luckily so hopefully that'll be the limit of bad luck.

Then I would aim to replace all the old lights in the drop ceiling, fix warped ceiling tiles, and build out a theater and entertainment area eventually (next year probably when I have the energy for it).

Scuzz · Post by **Scuzz** » Tue Aug 10, 2021 5:49 pm

malchior wrote: ↑Tue Aug 10, 2021 4:43 pm I just signed myself up for a project that might now be over my ability to deliver.

I mentioned to my wife that I wanted to finally get around to putting a real floor in our partially finished basement (it is painted concrete). Well lo and behold I have an order for 30 boxes of luxury vinyl plank and underlayment and am waiting on delivery. I thought it was only going to be a matter of cleaning the floor and laying the product. Until I read the instructions and it recommended checking the floor for levelness and wouldn't you know it but on one side the basement slopes slightly down. This is not towards a drain of any sort, it appears like a slightly out of level pour. It is smooth but not flat. I'm now deep in reading about doing a partial self-leveling concrete which is a ton of work. I'll have to sand the paint and concrete to increase roughness, apply a primer, and then pour a quick set self-leveler. Yikes. The floor seems super straight forward luckily so hopefully that'll be the limit of bad luck.

Then I would aim to replace all the old lights in the drop ceiling, fix warped ceiling tiles, and build out a theater and entertainment area eventually (next year probably when I have the energy for it).

I would think any basement would have some minor slope to make any water problem slope towards wherever they would want water to go. As long as that slope is maintained you might be okay without leveling. My carpenters used to use the self leveling concrete product you speak of, but they knew how to do it. But yea, there is a reason I would think that most basements are finished concrete. You could do some nice work on just the finish and go with that?

malchior · Post by **malchior** » Tue Aug 10, 2021 5:58 pm

Scuzz wrote: ↑Tue Aug 10, 2021 5:49 pmI would think any basement would have some minor slope to make any water problem slope towards wherever they would want water to go. As long as that slope is maintained you might be okay without leveling.

Probably not - it isn't a uniform slope and it slopes down a bit but the house is build into a hill. This would be sloping down towards up the hill. Builders aren't known for great concrete work generally.

My carpenters used to use the self leveling concrete product you speak of, but they knew how to do it. But yea, there is a reaon I would think that most basements are finished concrete. You could do some nice work on just the finish and go with that?

It is pretty wavy. It is not terrible and you don't notice until you're inspecting it. It's just ugly and not fun to walk on. The planks are going to happen and the slope is out of spec so I'm going to try to get it close to spec. It won't be perfect but then again I am covering it. I just can't have one end of a floating floor that sags when you walk on it and pulls the whole thing apart over time. There will be a lot of swearing, probably repair grinding, and tears but it will get done. Or I'll get to that point where I'll bring a pro in. It is an adventure.

Lassr · Post by **Lassr** » Tue Aug 10, 2021 9:24 pm

Lassr wrote: ↑Mon May 03, 2021 4:10 pm Copper pipes under the house are starting to spring small leaks. I've plugged 5 but time to replace it with the new PEX, so I will also update the shower from a 3x3 fiberglass to 3x7 walk in tiled shower, and update the vanity. Grand total, $6k to $7k. had to refinance due to the divorce so I just added the extra funds in the refinance and my monthly payments are lower now but I added 2 years onto the loan.

So the work finally started on the bathroom. Tile guy finished the shower today. Vanity top, shower light, crown molding, paint, and new plumbing will be installed over the next couple of weeks.

Daehawk · Post by **Daehawk** » Tue Aug 10, 2021 9:44 pm

Id love to have a big waterfall shower. Maybe even an outdoors shower.

Lassr · Post by **Lassr** » Tue Aug 10, 2021 10:15 pm

Daehawk wrote: ↑Tue Aug 10, 2021 9:44 pm Id love to have a big waterfall shower. Maybe even an outdoors shower.

I started to do a waterfall shower but it would have meant moving plumbing to the attic and I did not want to do that, so it is an standard hand held/hosed shower head.

Scuzz · Post by **Scuzz** » Wed Aug 11, 2021 12:14 am

malchior wrote: ↑Tue Aug 10, 2021 5:58 pm
Scuzz wrote: ↑Tue Aug 10, 2021 5:49 pmI would think any basement would have some minor slope to make any water problem slope towards wherever they would want water to go. As long as that slope is maintained you might be okay without leveling.
Probably not - it isn't a uniform slope and it slopes down a bit but the house is build into a hill. This would be sloping down towards up the hill. Builders aren't known for great concrete work generally.

My carpenters used to use the self leveling concrete product you speak of, but they knew how to do it. But yea, there is a reaon I would think that most basements are finished concrete. You could do some nice work on just the finish and go with that?
It is pretty wavy. It is not terrible and you don't notice until you're inspecting it. It's just ugly and not fun to walk on. The planks are going to happen and the slope is out of spec so I'm going to try to get it close to spec. It won't be perfect but then again I am covering it. I just can't have one end of a floating floor that sags when you walk on it and pulls the whole thing apart over time. There will be a lot of swearing, probably repair grinding, and tears but it will get done. Or I'll get to that point where I'll bring a pro in. It is an adventure.

Good luck to you.

Lassr · Post by **Lassr** » Wed Aug 11, 2021 9:56 am

malchior wrote: ↑Tue Aug 10, 2021 5:58 pm
Scuzz wrote: ↑Tue Aug 10, 2021 5:49 pmI would think any basement would have some minor slope to make any water problem slope towards wherever they would want water to go. As long as that slope is maintained you might be okay without leveling.
Probably not - it isn't a uniform slope and it slopes down a bit but the house is build into a hill. This would be sloping down towards up the hill. Builders aren't known for great concrete work generally.

My carpenters used to use the self leveling concrete product you speak of, but they knew how to do it. But yea, there is a reaon I would think that most basements are finished concrete. You could do some nice work on just the finish and go with that?
It is pretty wavy. It is not terrible and you don't notice until you're inspecting it. It's just ugly and not fun to walk on. The planks are going to happen and the slope is out of spec so I'm going to try to get it close to spec. It won't be perfect but then again I am covering it. I just can't have one end of a floating floor that sags when you walk on it and pulls the whole thing apart over time. There will be a lot of swearing, probably repair grinding, and tears but it will get done. Or I'll get to that point where I'll bring a pro in. It is an adventure.

Yep, sounds like an issue that would have to be tackled before laying the plank or as you say over time the planks will not hold in place. I had one spot in my transition from kitchen to foyer that had a bulge from the house settling and I had to plane out some board to level it because the planks I was laying would not connect properly. It was only like a 1/2 inch but enough to foul things up.

malchior · Post by **malchior** » Wed Aug 11, 2021 10:07 am

Yep - the spec is 1/8" over 6 feet and 3/8" over 10 feet. It is about a 1/2" at 7 or 8 feet. It's a bummer because it is a lot of extra work for about a 4 foot section of a 50 foot span. I also have to undercut the whole baseboard for expansion which will be a bit tedious. About 150 linear feet to undercut.

Lassr · Post by **Lassr** » Wed Aug 11, 2021 2:24 pm

Lassr wrote: ↑Tue Aug 10, 2021 10:15 pm
Daehawk wrote: ↑Tue Aug 10, 2021 9:44 pm Id love to have a big waterfall shower. Maybe even an outdoors shower.
I started to do a waterfall shower but it would have meant moving plumbing to the attic and I did not want to do that, so it is an standard hand held/hosed shower head.

Hardware installed and light.

Paingod · Post by **Paingod** » Mon Aug 16, 2021 5:49 pm

We've got a whole home to project. We're trying to move to rural Southern Vermont. I've got the job and an apartment, my wife and kids and dogs are in Maine. I get to visit them on the weekends, no time off for good behavior.

We've been talking with a contractor. Only one. Every single other one I spoke with either didn't return calls or were booked out a year. He finally came up with a price for our project. It's gorram scary.

The project: Carve out a 15' wide 350' long driveway with drainage concerns and a 40' culvert, along with clearing a 2 acre build site. Add in a 400' deep well, and a mounded septic system. Shake up a solid foundation with a 24x36 garage with an unfinished workshop/storage space for the 1st floor and a finished apartment on the second floor. Add in standard gable roofing and attic. Absolutely everything is basic - flooring, windows, roofing, etc.

The contractor: $450,000

Us:

I'm having real difficulty figuring out how he got to almost half a million for a friggin' apartment over a garage. We figured somewhere between $225,000 at best and $275,000 at the most. Now we're playing damage control and trying to start over with all new inquiries with every contractor in the area again. Is there any way to actually rough out the cost of a project like that?

Carpet_pissr · Post by **Carpet_pissr** » Mon Aug 16, 2021 6:35 pm

malchior wrote: ↑Wed Aug 11, 2021 10:07 am Yep - the spec is 1/8" over 6 feet and 3/8" over 10 feet. It is about a 1/2" at 7 or 8 feet. It's a bummer because it is a lot of extra work for about a 4 foot section of a 50 foot span. I also have to undercut the whole baseboard for expansion which will be a bit tedious. About 150 linear feet to undercut.

WHERE exactly is the slope problem?

If it's at an extreme end of the room, you could potentially get away with not doing what is going to be a pain in the ass (leveling after the fact) But a heavy piece of furniture over it and you could be ok. Hopefully it's not in the center of the room?

I (hired someone) put down flooring in a FROG where the floor was not completely level, and it pops slightly when you step in a particular part. It has not affected the surrounding boards though.

Carpet_pissr · Post by **Carpet_pissr** » Mon Aug 16, 2021 6:36 pm

Paingod wrote: ↑Mon Aug 16, 2021 5:49 pm We've got a whole home to project. We're trying to move to rural Southern Vermont. I've got the job and an apartment, my wife and kids and dogs are in Maine. I get to visit them on the weekends, no time off for good behavior.

We've been talking with a contractor. Only one. Every single other one I spoke with either didn't return calls or were booked out a year. He finally came up with a price for our project. It's gorram scary.

The project: Carve out a 15' wide 350' long driveway with drainage concerns and a 40' culvert, along with clearing a 2 acre build site. Add in a 400' deep well, and a mounded septic system. Shake up a solid foundation with a 24x36 garage with an unfinished workshop/storage space for the 1st floor and a finished apartment on the second floor. Add in standard gable roofing and attic. Absolutely everything is basic - flooring, windows, roofing, etc.

The contractor: $450,000

Us:

I'm having real difficulty figuring out how he got to almost half a million for a friggin' apartment over a garage. We figured somewhere between $225,000 at best and $275,000 at the most. Now we're playing damage control and trying to start over with all new inquiries with every contractor in the area again. Is there any way to actually rough out the cost of a project like that?

Just this part boggles my mind in terms of cost:
"Carve out a 15' wide 350' long driveway with drainage concerns and a 40' culvert"

Assuming you want that paved, or concrete?

Paingod · Post by **Paingod** » Mon Aug 16, 2021 6:40 pm

Carpet_pissr wrote: ↑Mon Aug 16, 2021 6:36 pmAssuming you want that paved, or concrete?

Basic crushed gravel, like "Dirt Road+". Pavement maybe somewhere down the line, but not to start.

We bought 10 acres of land. There's no point in building right up against the road.

We had one quote to do a 250' driveway + culvert + clearing for $15,000 but the guy wasn't get the dimensions right and we turned it down. I'd be happy right now for him to come back and try again for $20,000.

Smoove_B · Post by **Smoove_B** » Mon Aug 16, 2021 6:47 pm

Mounded septic is pushing the cost up a little - maybe $10K. It's hard to say, not knowing what material prices are like in your area.

400' well is also not cheap. They have to slap steel casing into the ground and it's probably like 370' feet. So, the linear foot-cost of that casing, plus all the bags of bentonite concrete to seal it. Plus a heavy duty pump to draw the water from that deep.

I can only assume site conditions demand both (mounded system, very deep well).

I also don't know if he's quoting you pandemic pricing for materials (wood, plywood, insulation, etc...). I think there's been some adjustment and prices are down, but I gave up months ago trying to do anything requiring wood.

Sorry to hear about it all - it has to be insanely stressful right now to be dealing with that.

Carpet_pissr · Post by **Carpet_pissr** » Mon Aug 16, 2021 6:47 pm

Paingod wrote: ↑Mon Aug 16, 2021 5:49 pmI'm having real difficulty figuring out how he got to almost half a million for a friggin' apartment over a garage. We figured somewhere between $225,000 at best and $275,000 at the most. Now we're playing damage control and trying to start over with all new inquiries with every contractor in the area again. Is there any way to actually rough out the cost of a project like that?

You are aware that construction and materials pricing have recently been at all time highs, yes? I wonder if you are still getting "shortage" prices, even though spot lumber has dramatically fallen in past couple of months, to almost "normal" levels recently. I am very sure many contractors will be milking that for long past the actual shortage though (and may be the case here). What you may also be seeing in that quote is a labor shortage problem.

I would definitely ask him to break down the price by project...just the driveway, just the apartment, etc. There are negatives to that approach though, because he will want to keep as much of that original $450 quote as possible. The likely outcome is that you will get inflated individual project pricing from him to make the total amount he already quoted you seem reasonable. OTOH it will signal that you are in sticker shock, and need to get that number down significantly for you to hire him.

This is pretty obviously a case where you will want at LEAST two quotes, given the crazy market in this space right now. I know it's hard to get contractors to return calls (also why you are seeing the price you are), but man, you could easily get fleeced here. Any possibility of waiting 3-4 months?

Carpet_pissr · Post by **Carpet_pissr** » Mon Aug 16, 2021 6:49 pm

Smoove_B wrote: ↑Mon Aug 16, 2021 6:47 pmI also don't know if he's quoting you pandemic pricing for materials (wood, plywood, insulation, etc...). I think there's been some adjustment and prices are down, but I gave up months ago trying to do anything requiring wood.

Doh - beat me to it!

Yes, spot lumber prices have dropped off the cliff lately (thankfully....Daddy needs a new shed!).

Paingod · Post by **Paingod** » Mon Aug 16, 2021 7:39 pm

Carpet_pissr wrote: ↑Mon Aug 16, 2021 6:47 pmYou are aware that construction and materials pricing have recently been at all time highs, yes? I wonder if you are still getting "shortage" prices, even though spot lumber has dramatically fallen in past couple of months, to almost "normal" levels recently.

We absolutely know materials have been a roller coaster. We've been watching it go up...up...up...down...down... He claims to be adjusting his quote based on current costs.

Carpet_pissr wrote: ↑Mon Aug 16, 2021 6:47 pmWhat you may also be seeing in that quote is a labor shortage problem.

This is absolutely a thing. He claims it took 1-2 months to get an Electrician to even talk to him about this, let alone quote it.

Carpet_pissr wrote: ↑Mon Aug 16, 2021 6:47 pmI would definitely ask him to break down the price by project...just the driveway, just the apartment, etc. There are negatives to that approach though, because he will want to keep as much of that original $450 quote as possible. The likely outcome is that you will get inflated individual project pricing from him to make the total amount he already quoted you seem reasonable. OTOH it will signal that you are in sticker shock, and need to get that number down significantly for you to hire him.

This is likely what we're going to have to do. I owe him some kind of answer and not just stunned silence.

Carpet_pissr wrote: ↑Mon Aug 16, 2021 6:47 pmThis is pretty obviously a case where you will want at LEAST two quotes, given the crazy market in this space right now. I know it's hard to get contractors to return calls (also why you are seeing the price you are), but man, you could easily get fleeced here. Any possibility of waiting 3-4 months?

We don't really see a way around waiting. There is ab-so-fucking-lutely no way we're dropping half a million on a simple garage with a studio apartment in backwoods Vermont. We have a house in Maine that works just fine for us and we want to move. The suck part is that I found a pretty good job with a pretty good company making better money than I ever made in Maine. Walking that back is hard. Splitting my life between Maine and Vermont is hard. Sitting on an undeveloped plot of land is easy.

Right now we're in damage control and trying to see if we can cobble together the driveway/septic/well/power and drop a tiny house there for me to live in instead of tossing$12,000 per year on rent into someone else's bank account.

malchior · Post by **malchior** » Mon Aug 16, 2021 11:52 pm

Carpet_pissr wrote: ↑Mon Aug 16, 2021 6:35 pm
malchior wrote: ↑Wed Aug 11, 2021 10:07 am Yep - the spec is 1/8" over 6 feet and 3/8" over 10 feet. It is about a 1/2" at 7 or 8 feet. It's a bummer because it is a lot of extra work for about a 4 foot section of a 50 foot span. I also have to undercut the whole baseboard for expansion which will be a bit tedious. About 150 linear feet to undercut.
WHERE exactly is the slope problem?

If it's at an extreme end of the room, you could potentially get away with not doing what is going to be a pain in the ass (leveling after the fact) But a heavy piece of furniture over it and you could be ok. Hopefully it's not in the center of the room?

It's worse in a way. It is right where there is a door into mechanical/laundry space. So I might even have to sand down the door once I level it. It is well out of spec - nearly 1.5" down over 6 feet in that corner when the floor calls for 1/8" over that distance. I have to level it. It is a very uneven slope from different directions. I am contemplating a 2-step self-leveler. Fill the deepest section of it. Sand it down a bit, prime it again, and self-level it and the immediate area to be level to the surrounding area. I am drawing chalk circles everywhere to figure it out - lol.

Kraken · Post by **Kraken** » Tue Aug 17, 2021 12:59 am

We who live in >100-year-old houses find your passion for a level floor heartwarming. We just adjust to our slopes. Pro tip: Bar coasters make good furniture shims.

malchior · Post by **malchior** » Wed Aug 18, 2021 7:11 am

Kraken wrote: ↑Tue Aug 17, 2021 12:59 am We who live in >100-year-old houses find your passion for a level floor heartwarming. We just adjust to our slopes. Pro tip: Bar coasters make good furniture shims.

It isn't a passion for a level floor more like passion to stay somewhere in the bounds of the warranty of the floor I'm about to lay. I just experimented with putting some of the tile down and seeing how it'd work out. It was not encouraging. It conformed a little better than I expected but still you step on that are of the floor and the whole sags about an inch. It ain't going to work even if I was just negligent.

Blackhawk · Post by **Blackhawk** » Sat Sep 04, 2021 9:58 am

What would be the cheapest, easiest way to remove a lip from a desk? The desk in question is really dense fiberboard, and it is thick - about an inch. The lip goes all along the front and is curved. It does not seem to be a separate piece that's been attached too the front - it is all one piece, and it is shaped that way. I don't currently own any sort of saw capable of making that cut. I would consider investing in a cheap (as in affordable, not as in crappy) saw if it was something that would likely see more use in the future.

The problem is that it prevents the use of almost any sort of slip on or clamp that would attach to the front of the desk. For that huge C-clamp, sure, but most accessories aren't that deep or robust, and and assume that they'll be slipping directly over a square edge. But normal desk accessories won't work, and there are a couple that I'd like to be able to use. Most of them have a clamp that barely reaches the non-curved part of the desk, and are unstable while attached.

Spoiler:

/edited to fix the images

Zarathud · Post by **Zarathud** » Sat Sep 04, 2021 10:16 am

Removing the lip seems like a recipe for disaster. Add a block the size of the lip to make it level, and a clamp might hold it in place without needing to attach it permanently.

Blackhawk · Post by **Blackhawk** » Sat Sep 04, 2021 11:13 am

Zarathud wrote: ↑Sat Sep 04, 2021 10:16 am Removing the lip seems like a recipe for disaster. Add a block the size of the lip to make it level, and a clamp might hold it in place without needing to attach it permanently.

I was personally worried about the front edge falling apart. I'm not sure what you mean by adding a block.

Unagi · Post by **Unagi** » Sat Sep 04, 2021 12:00 pm

I think he is suggesting you create your own new ‘front edge’ of the desk, and that you may need to clamp (or glue) that down, but then you’d be free to clamp everything else to the new edge.

Sounds like it may be problematic or ugly though.

But clever.

Edit:
Or wait! No , I read it wrong : I think he is describing putting a block behind the lip, making the whole desk ‘thicker’ / no lip in the front.

That’s a good idea if that thickness isn’t too thick.

Zarathud · Post by **Zarathud** » Sat Sep 04, 2021 12:09 pm

Unagi wrote: Or wait! No , I read it wrong : I think he is describing putting a block behind the lip, making the whole desk ‘thicker’ / no lip in the front.

That’s a good idea if that thickness isn’t too thick.

That is it.

Unagi · Post by **Unagi** » Sat Sep 04, 2021 12:39 pm

I was going to (originally) suggest a Dremel tool. Maybe carve away the lip in just the places you need an accessory clamped.

Could certainly make other use of that tool in a number of other projects/solutions/life hacks.

disarm · Post by **disarm** » Sat Sep 04, 2021 12:52 pm

Unagi wrote:I was going to (originally) suggest a Dremel tool. Maybe carve away the lip in just the places you need an accessory clamped.

Could certainly make other use of that tool in a number of other projects/solutions/life hacks.

I have a Dremel tool and have successfully used it for a similar purpose, but it was on a bit smaller scale and I used a router attachment. Trying to do it for the entire front edge of a desk would work, but it's going to be pretty time consuming and hard to make it look smoother all the way across.

Do you know anyone with a full size router that you could borrow (not the network kind)? It's pretty much exactly the tool for this job and would have it done in a matter of minutes.

Blackhawk · Post by **Blackhawk** » Sat Sep 04, 2021 1:07 pm

Zarathud wrote: ↑Sat Sep 04, 2021 12:09 pm
Unagi wrote: Or wait! No , I read it wrong : I think he is describing putting a block behind the lip, making the whole desk ‘thicker’ / no lip in the front.

That’s a good idea if that thickness isn’t too thick.
That is it.

You mean put an entire new top on the desk? There's no 'lip', the desk just the curve.

Blackhawk · Post by **Blackhawk** » Sat Sep 04, 2021 1:08 pm

Blackhawk wrote: ↑Sat Sep 04, 2021 9:58 am

Spoiler:
[/img]

WTF? That's not the image I posted.

Blackhawk · Post by **Blackhawk** » Sat Sep 04, 2021 1:10 pm

Apparently I posted one image link inside of another image link and that was a particularly unhelpful error message.

Here are the pictures of my desk that I thought I'd posted originally to explain the issue.

Spoiler:

Unagi · Post by **Unagi** » Sat Sep 04, 2021 1:13 pm

Blackhawk wrote: ↑Sat Sep 04, 2021 1:07 pm
Zarathud wrote: ↑Sat Sep 04, 2021 12:09 pm
Unagi wrote: Or wait! No , I read it wrong : I think he is describing putting a block behind the lip, making the whole desk ‘thicker’ / no lip in the front.

That’s a good idea if that thickness isn’t too thick.
That is it.
You mean put an entire new top on the desk? There's no 'lip', the desk just the curve.

No, under the desk. A thin board would butt up against the back side of the lip, hopefully flush with that inside edge of the lip that’s under the desk.

So then, if your accessory could open wide enough it would simply clamp the current desk on top, and the bottom would be clamped perhaps half against this thin board and half on the lip.

Blackhawk · Post by **Blackhawk** » Sat Sep 04, 2021 1:15 pm

disarm wrote: ↑Sat Sep 04, 2021 12:52 pm I have a Dremel tool and have successfully used it for a similar purpose, but it was on a bit smaller scale and I used a router attachment. Trying to do it for the entire front edge of a desk would work, but it's going to be pretty time consuming and hard to make it look smoother all the way across.

Do you know anyone with a full size router that you could borrow (not the network kind)? It's pretty much exactly the tool for this job and would have it done in a matter of minutes.

I actually did exactly that - I've got a section of the desk about an inch and a half wide that I carved the lip off of with my Dremel to mount an arm rest. It took about 30 minutes and three cutoff wheels. Cutting off a three foot section that way would be... impractical. Like I said, it is about an inch thick and it is extremely dense for particle board. Hell, it survived 20 years of daily use, including two kids growing up around it, without a single chip.

I don't know anybody with a router. Or rather I know one person, but that's a can of worms I won't be opening.

/edit twice - and I failed to properly post a simple quote. I think I just need to go back to bed today, geeze!