The Home Improvements Thread (2)

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AchmatK said:
I had someone inspect my ceiling many years ago and it was determined that none of the internal walls are load bearing and the trusses are resting on the outside walls.

I have over 2m of headroom in the ceiling and was investigating putting in some dormer windows to go up for more rooms. That plan is on hold for at least another 5 years.

Pic of my house. Roof is tiled. View attachment 1269210
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It is starting to get a bit spooky how you are always a few steps ahead of every single project I want to do... My solar install will be done in a couple of weeks...love reading about your bees... Have recently been scoping out our large attic space to see if we could build upwards with ease...also busy with some revonations to the house currently.

What is next for you (me) I wonder?
 
If you dont have power running to the island you can always mount a pole system like below and run the cables down the inside of the pole for a popup plug.

1648887968271.png
 
It’s actually quite strange how cordless powertools have become the norm for pretty much everyone, yet small kitchen appliances remain corded. KitchenAid, Phillips, etc … you guys have missed a trick - and opportunity to tie folks into an ecosystem of your choosing. I’d happily purchase into a cordless ecosystem in the kitchen the same way I’ve bought into DeWalt for power tools
 
ElixirCoder said:
It’s actually quite strange how cordless powertools have become the norm for pretty much everyone, yet small kitchen appliances remain corded. KitchenAid, Phillips, etc … you guys have missed a trick - and opportunity to tie folks into an ecosystem of your choosing. I’d happily purchase into a cordless ecosystem in the kitchen the same way I’ve bought into DeWalt for power tools
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Power tools often run in short bursts. Appliances run for longer and would kill batteries quicker. Then you'd need a plug to recharge anyway...
 
Yeah, I wouldn't want to mix batter for 5 minutes than have to wait 30 minutes to recharge batteries so I can continue again :ROFL:
 
Hi all, any ideas how to get these 14mm bolts out from the burglar bars? The guys who fitted them seem to have used those bolts with the heads that break off once fitted.
Have to use the same holes again to refit them, so can't just grind them off... there's 12 bolts per set of bars.

We are changing the window frame fittings and have to remove the bars first; can't be fitted from the inside apparently.

Tried a normal spanner to try edge them out slightly so I could use my power sockets to remove them the rest of the way, but they won't budge at all with a spanner.

Edit : forgot the picture...
b89e060f8be4b677a6e87abcb90d42d3.jpg
 
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howardb said:
Hi all, any ideas how to get these 14mm bolts out from the burglar bars? The guys who fitted them seem to have used those bolts with the heads that break off once fitted.
Have to use the same holes again to refit them, so can't just grind them off... there's 12 bolts per set of bars.

We are changing the window frame fittings and have to remove the bars first; can't be fitted from the inside apparently.

Tried a normal spanner to try edge them out slightly so I could use my power sockets to remove them the rest of the way, but they won't budge at all with a spanner.

Edit : forgot the picture...
b89e060f8be4b677a6e87abcb90d42d3.jpg
Click to expand...
Have you tried getting more leverage with the spanner extending with a pipe or another spanner..?

Also, I haven't used these screws before, maybe it's reverse thread as additional security layer..?
 
WAslayer said:
Have you tried getting more leverage with the spanner extending with a pipe or another spanner..?

Also, I haven't used these screws before, maybe it's reverse thread as additional security layer..?
Click to expand...
Thx, haven't tried that yet, will give it a go. I can see that if the spanner slips off the hex at any stage it'll strip the remaining head part.

When they were fitted, they seemed to have a normal thread - I asked the guys not to knock off the shear heads, but they'd already done 2 windows...

The fitters left a few spares and they look like normal 14mm x70/80mm bolts, except for the very top bit that shears off.
 
howardb said:
Hi all, any ideas how to get these 14mm bolts out from the burglar bars? The guys who fitted them seem to have used those bolts with the heads that break off once fitted.
Have to use the same holes again to refit them, so can't just grind them off... there's 12 bolts per set of bars.

We are changing the window frame fittings and have to remove the bars first; can't be fitted from the inside apparently.

Tried a normal spanner to try edge them out slightly so I could use my power sockets to remove them the rest of the way, but they won't budge at all with a spanner.

Edit : forgot the picture...
b89e060f8be4b677a6e87abcb90d42d3.jpg
Click to expand...
Is that welding at 2300?
 
Some final touching up to do. Electrician will be back on Monday for covers for the plug points and properly fitting the down lights. Our current gas stove is an old general electric that is going on 25 years now but we've spaced it for a 900mm sized stove in future.

We'll probably change the lounge layout later but at least we can make food in the kitchen for the first time and just in time for Ramadan which starts tomorrow.

All in this has come to a R200k renovation including the underfloor heating and no new appliances.

We decided to not do the back and from doors as there was just not enough budget for those but they will get a refurbish and a new paint job. 20220402_183719.jpg20220402_183657.jpg20220402_183620.jpg20220402_183554.jpg20220402_183544.jpg20220402_183607.jpg
 
Not sure I trust the Mi robot vacuum with the square metre calculations. This is now vs a few months ago.

Shows better how much space we've gained by closing up the door and knot) locking down a section of the wall. Even with the addition of the island. Screenshot_20220402-221307_Mi%20Home.jpgScreenshot_20220402-221457_Mi%20Home.jpg
 
Without derailing from @AchmatK's stunning revamp, could I maybe get a quick check to see if my logic makes sense?

I would like to install 2x 2500l water tanks to catch rainwater for use inside the house.

My thinking was to install it along with a changeover valve so that I can alternate between municipal supply and harvested rainwater along with the requisite filters to ensure it's safe enough for brushing teeth and cooking (it wouldn't hurt to run the municipal water through filters either I guess).

Is my logic sound, or are there other barriers/challenges I'd need to consider? My main issue would be that the tanks would have to be on one side of the house and the municipal inlet is on the opposite end so I would need a fair bit of plumbing to get the water to the correct side. And of course, a booster pump to ensure adequate water pressure for the geyser/washing machine/taps.
 
howardb said:
Who knows... was a company called Bar One in Randburg that did them.
Wasn't impressed at all with them tbh...
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You would probably need to grind the head off and then drill out the rest from the wall.
 
PhireSide said:
Without derailing from @AchmatK's stunning revamp, could I maybe get a quick check to see if my logic makes sense?

I would like to install 2x 2500l water tanks to catch rainwater for use inside the house.

My thinking was to install it along with a changeover valve so that I can alternate between municipal supply and harvested rainwater along with the requisite filters to ensure it's safe enough for brushing teeth and cooking (it wouldn't hurt to run the municipal water through filters either I guess).

Is my logic sound, or are there other barriers/challenges I'd need to consider? My main issue would be that the tanks would have to be on one side of the house and the municipal inlet is on the opposite end so I would need a fair bit of plumbing to get the water to the correct side. And of course, a booster pump to ensure adequate water pressure for the geyser/washing machine/taps.
Click to expand...
Yes.

Just ensure the filtering you install doesn’t degrade rapidly
 
howardb said:
Hi all, any ideas how to get these 14mm bolts out from the burglar bars? The guys who fitted them seem to have used those bolts with the heads that break off once fitted.
Have to use the same holes again to refit them, so can't just grind them off... there's 12 bolts per set of bars.

We are changing the window frame fittings and have to remove the bars first; can't be fitted from the inside apparently.

Tried a normal spanner to try edge them out slightly so I could use my power sockets to remove them the rest of the way, but they won't budge at all with a spanner.

Edit : forgot the picture...
b89e060f8be4b677a6e87abcb90d42d3.jpg
Click to expand...

urg, the simplest is probably gonna be to cut the square bar off from the lug and use the lug as a bolt head to turn the whole thing out then reweld new lugs on, a mission I know but less hassle than trying to get every bolt out.

That or just drill the bolt heads out and then weld the bars back on to the pin left in the wall after and make it the next guys problem xD

alternatively drill the bolt heads out, weld nuts to what remains and turn them out with that.
 
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