Home Improvement/Repair Questions

[Ramnares P.E.]

So as some of you know, I recently purchased a home outside New York City.  One of the benefits? of this is a huge front lawn.  I've been a city guy with a 10' x 10' backyard most of my life.  Any recommendations/tips for treating your lawn?  PreEmergents with weed killer preferences?  Fertilizer preferences?  Any help is appreciated!

 

[youngmotivatedengineer]

What is the current condition of the lawn? You're going to develop a routine that you will need to follow on a yearly basis, but the first 1-2 years may vary depending on existing condition.  You may need to do extra steps to get it to a pristine condition,  that you may not need once it's a well established lawn.

 

[knight1fox3]

So as some of you know, I recently purchased a home outside New York City.  One of the benefits? of this is a huge front lawn.  I've been a city guy with a 10' x 10' backyard most of my life.  Any recommendations/tips for treating your lawn?  PreEmergents with weed killer preferences?  Fertilizer preferences?  Any help is appreciated!

I typically use the Scotts Weed & Feed treatments about 2 or 3 times per year. I generally try to look for the lower nitrogen content. During active lawn season, I spot treat weeds with a weed killer made by Ortho. For edging and/or removing weeds/stray grass from landscaping, Round-Up is the way to go. With the dog, I tend to encounter lawn "dead spots". Which I then usually patch with EZ-Seed (grass seed + fertilizer + covering). Tends to make for a well-maintained and decent looking lawn for me. :thumbs:

 

[Ramnares P.E.]

What is the current condition of the lawn? You're going to develop a routine that you will need to follow on a yearly basis, but the first 1-2 years may vary depending on existing condition.  You may need to do extra steps to get it to a pristine condition,  that you may not need once it's a well established lawn.

The previous owner did a great job maintaining the lawn.  The front has no dead spots and is thriving already.  The back and side have a couple dead spots but nothing major.  

I basically did what fox said.  Scotts has a three in one out which I used over the entire lawn and then I reseeded with the EZ seed.  

Will see the results in a few weeks I guess.

Thanks for the quick input.  Took me about 4 home depot trips to get the quantity figured out just right.

 

[youngmotivatedengineer]

In the fall, they also have a special blend that you can use to help thicken up the lawn for the winter time when the lawn tends to thin out a little. 

If you didn't do it this time, you may want to invest in one of the distributors so you get even application instead of just spreading it all by hand. 

 

[Szar]

So as some of you know, I recently purchased a home outside New York City.  One of the benefits? of this is a huge front lawn.  I've been a city guy with a 10' x 10' backyard most of my life.  Any recommendations/tips for treating your lawn?  PreEmergents with weed killer preferences?  Fertilizer preferences?  Any help is appreciated!

I do not miss lawn care as a renter now...  Its such voodoo art.

 Use the wrong fertilizer?   It dies.   Cut it too much or too low?    It dies. Not enough sun?  Dead.   Step on it too much?   Death.   Water too much?   Rot.   Water in the summer sun?   It burns.   Not enough water?  Dust.  Heavy rain?   Your neighbors get the grass. 

I'd rather take the PE exam again. Heck,  I'd rather have a cold drink from Cosby. 

 

[Ramnares P.E.]

I do not miss lawn care as a renter now...  Its such voodoo art.

 Use the wrong fertilizer?   It dies.   Cut it too much or too low?    It dies. Not enough sun?  Dead.   Step on it too much?   Death.   Water too much?   Rot.   Water in the summer sun?   It burns.   Not enough water?  Dust.  Heavy rain?   Your neighbors get the grass. 

I'd rather take the PE exam again. Heck,  I'd rather have a cold drink from Cosby. 

lol @ cold drink from Cosby.

Thanks @youngmotivatedengineer - I purchased a spreader because it's just too much lawn to do by hand.  I have a motorized hand spreader for the lawn area around the pool.  Agree with @Szar though, lawn care seems a voodoo art that is far too much work for not much return.

 

[Bot-Man]

I'm seeding a couple dead spots today. Scotts EZ Seed patch and repair. It grows pretty well in sun and shade. Just make sure you water it well when you first apply it. 

 

[Road Guy]

What type of grass?

I've never been much of a lawn master but in the south (Bermuda) monthly fertilizer was a must -late spring to fall and then the pre emergence just at early spring...

My yard here is fairly small - 1/4 acre lot so it's maybe a 15 min mow job - back In Atlanta it was an hour plus

Previous owner put in an online liquid fertilizer with the irrigation system and it's pretty cool.. since nothing on my lawn is supposed to live in the semi - desert climate of Denver - the soil really sucks - first year I didn't add the liquid fertilizer and it looked like everything was about to die...

Looking forward to selling my house for $900K when amazon comes to Denver and then I'm gonna get an ocean condo on the gulf and not have any grass [emoji4] (well not the mowing kind anyways)

 

[Road Guy]

Laid some wood this weekend... and
Not the fun kind......

 

[Supe]

BS, your kids did, we all saw it.  Looked like unfinished planks from the FB post?

 

[Road Guy]

My 15 year old was surprisingly a huge help- could not have got it all down without him- defin goes by faster with a 2 man crew...

Yeah unfinished red oak - in the pic I had just got done mopping after sanding it so it looks weird...

Now I just need to get the old lady to hurry up and pick out a stain color. cause until this is done ain't no where to sit in the house...

 

[Supe]

If she tries a few samples, can you post?  I have red oak through most of my downstairs, and have contemplated refinishing vs. replacing as there isn't anything majorly wrong with it.  Just scratched up and a few gaps in boards where the main support beam runs under the house.  It has a very reddish stain on it now, and I'm wondering how well it will take a more neutral brown color.

 

[youngmotivatedengineer]

If you got spare pieces, I suggest staining a few pieces with each possible stain color and place it in several spots in the room. With all those windows, the stain is going to look different in sunny portions/darker areas of the room as well as night time. You don't want her to pick 1 and then have her complain daily that she doesn't like it due to the shading or she looked at it at night only and not in natural light.

 

[Road Guy]

supe - will do!

YE- yeah that's the plan, just need to get the wife to narrow down to 2-3 stain colors

we originally wanted a darker stain but I am just in hurry up and wait mode for the wife to pick something out -

sucks that the tile in the kitchen is 1/8" lower than the wood floor, will have to do a T- threshold, should still look good but I was hoping to just have a seamless transition..

Also the carpet under where our sofa was was riddled in a million pee stains from the previous owners dogs (unless my dog climbed under the sofa to piss) they had 2 little yappy dogs they left inside all the time and they had a different living room configuration than ours, so now I am afraid to pull up any more carpet but at the same time I also want to get all that **** out of the house..

 

[Road Guy]

so my next project when I get the floors done I want to add a propane / gas fire pit for the back deck, - we currently have one of those chiminea things - which we do really like but don't always want to deal with the smoke. I really want something like this from Lowes - but its around $450 bucks (see below)

I've got a bunch of  the stacked stone tile left over from my fireplace inside I just did so I was thinking about just trying to make one. I can get all the parts from JAX - do ya'll think if I just frame up the inside with wonder board / Dura rock or something that would be heat resistant? I was just going to get some black slate tile for the top - I like it being a "coffee table" for CAB when the fire isn't going?

Its on a deck or else I would just get some of the small wall blocks and fill with the fire ring and lava rocks..

Any ideas?

 

[Supe]

so my next project when I get the floors done I want to add a propane / gas fire pit for the back deck, - we currently have one of those chiminea things - which we do really like but don't always want to deal with the smoke. I really want something like this from Lowes - but its around $450 bucks (see below)

I've got a bunch of  the stacked stone tile left over from my fireplace inside I just did so I was thinking about just trying to make one. I can get all the parts from JAX - do ya'll think if I just frame up the inside with wonder board / Dura rock or something that would be heat resistant? I was just going to get some black slate tile for the top - I like it being a "coffee table" for CAB when the fire isn't going?

Its on a deck or else I would just get some of the small wall blocks and fill with the fire ring and lava rocks..

Any ideas?

View attachment 11127

Buy a square burner insert, then just frame with metal studs, sheet the outside, and then add your stacked stone.  I wouldn't trust cement board and 2x4's unless I was using one of the insulated pit inserts, but those are a couple hundred bucks by themselves.  You may save $100 or so vs. buying the premade one. 

 

[jeb6294]

The wife got one of those inflatable hot tubs from a neighborhood Facebook classified's page a little while ago.  I kind of rolled my eyes at the time, but man that thing has been nice.  Got it blown up and ready to go for the year and all seemed to go well until I hit the button to turn the bubbles on...no bubbles.  Got to take the pump apart this weekend to fix it.  Remarkably simple setup.  Some electronics, but basically just a heating element, small water pump and a blower.  Blower worked but no bubbles were coming out.  When I got it apart I figured out there are two spring loaded rubber stoppers between the blower and the tub.  There's enough air pressure to push one stopper open and make bubbles, but then if too much pressure builds up, the other stopper opens and dumps the air out the bottom.  The first stopper had shellaced itself to the plastic housing after sitting all winter.  Popped it loose and cleaned it up and voila.

 

[Ramnares P.E.]

so my next project when I get the floors done I want to add a propane / gas fire pit for the back deck, - we currently have one of those chiminea things - which we do really like but don't always want to deal with the smoke. I really want something like this from Lowes - but its around $450 bucks (see below)

I've got a bunch of  the stacked stone tile left over from my fireplace inside I just did so I was thinking about just trying to make one. I can get all the parts from JAX - do ya'll think if I just frame up the inside with wonder board / Dura rock or something that would be heat resistant? I was just going to get some black slate tile for the top - I like it being a "coffee table" for CAB when the fire isn't going?

Its on a deck or else I would just get some of the small wall blocks and fill with the fire ring and lava rocks..

Any ideas?

View attachment 11127

Wife has been thinking about adding this to the deck outside.  I'm not motivated enough at the moment to try to build one so I might just eat the cost for the off the shelf one.  She was looking at the bigger ones that double as a table as well.

 

[Supe]

My coworker got tired of trying to service the expensive hot tubs that inevitably fail anyways.  He now buys the inflatable ones exclusively for a small room he built off his master.  Says he replaces one every 2-3 years, but its paid for itself at that point.