Projects..

Not so much ‘Honey-Do’s’ but fixits…

Today was to fix a loose towel bar, someone used to help get up, is my guess, as its right by the toilet in the remodeled Master Bath… So the only support, instead of studs, was the drywall grabbers, the ones that screw themselves into place… The base of the mounting post of the towel bar is maybe 1-1/4" bussed nickel, hanging onto the little 1" plate with a 7/64" Allen setscrew…

Old one off, I cut a 2"x3-1/2" hole a few inches below where it needs to go back, drywall screwed a 3"x8" piece of 3/4" plywood into place and for now spackeled the crews, cut lines… Next maybe a little drywall joint compound, then figure out how to match the texture and repaint, then finally repaint, using the touchup paint I still have… And lastly remount that 14" towel bar!

That’s it for today, letting it dry, cleaned up my mess…

Ready to watch the Warrior playoff game!

weco

You might want to consider putting a grab bar in that location. We put one in when DH had cancer and it was a great help for him as his strength waned. We used white powder coated bars so they don’t shout GRAB BAR to the casual observer and match the existing trim in the room.

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Grab bars next to toilets are almost essential in the first days after a knee or hip replacement. We live in an Active Adult community and there are so many knee and hip replacements that local Orthopedic surgical groups sponsor stuff like our Pickleball tournaments and even cookouts.

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Today was to fix a loose towel bar, someone used to help get up, is my guess, as its right by the toilet in the remodeled Master Bath… So the only support, instead of studs, was the drywall grabbers, the ones that screw themselves into place… The base of the mounting post of the towel bar is maybe 1-1/4" bussed nickel, hanging onto the little 1" plate with a 7/64" Allen setscrew…

This is a pet peeve of mine. Towel bars are often 18" and 24" long. Studs are on 16" centers. When a house is built, they should decide where the towel bars are going to be located and install a horizontal board so the bars can be installed in solid wood.

PSU

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A toilet paper dispenser / grab bar worked great for my wife.

When we remodeled the bathrooms, I added boiling and grab bars in the sower, have 2 more to set up in the shower and one I think I can out vertically on a stud within reach of the toilet, so yes, have it in mind, should also do the hall bath but so far after way earlier adding booking on the towel bar, it’s remained solid… Also I think less need by our younger, overnight visitors. All are brushed nickel, but a nice S curve…

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0108D0QNY/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b…

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Wow, spell checker broke!

"L added blocking and grab bars in the shower,… "

I know these are expensive, but they really work. We have textured tile on our floor and shower walls. I can sit on the grab bar. If you are not picky about the design, HomeDepot has some less expensive shapes of the same product.

https://www.nodrillingrequired.com

In the shower(s), while the walls were open for relocating plumbing, waterproofing I added lots of 2" blocking, so now that we’ve made decisions on the placement, it’s a matter of my ambition, to lack of, to make, drive through the ceramic tile to reach that blocking…

Adhesives might outlast me, but I know good name branded Stainless mounting screws will truly outlast me, us… These swoopy grab bars came with excellent mounting options, but I tend to be very cautious, make it even better…

One wall it the pocket door, so it’s not really strong enough for mounting anything… But the back wall is solid, almost solid wood…

I’m surprised to see the grab bars no longer available at amazon, but I think some I bought at Build.com, so they are out there… I have the 3 I need, already here, waiting to be added… They match the cabinet hardware, too, so part of a theme, a swoopy theme…

weco

Didn’t find them at Build/com, but I did at Houzz.com

https://www.houzz.com/products/life-line-wave-bar-stainless-…

so there are more available if needed…

I’ve built 3 houses for my family. I have always taken the OSB or plywood fall offs from the flooring/walls/roof and ripped them down to 14-1/2". I then screwed 2x2’s to them and placed them in the bathroom walls just so I never have to search for a stud when installing grab bars/towel racks. So much easier.

gcr

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Great idea, if only I’d been around in the mid '60s here! As I was in my 20’s then, I don’t think I had a thought about such things, much less knew this place was being built…

But when the back wall along the linear drain, I did try to think ahead and place blocking in that wall… However I see I put it too low, should have also been up a bit higher on each side of the shampoo alcove… Oops…
https://ibb.co/SBjJh15

We move the shower to the outer wall, to the left of the above, but only opened it ~30" for the tile backing, sealing… Not over under the window where the towel bar is…

But now I hav patched, finished, and medium orang peeled it this evening, tomorrow I can paint, may mount the towel bar sometime Saturday or maybe add a another coat of paint…

Hindsight is great! But we can fix it!

weco

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I’ve occasionally thought about a grab bar or two. Problem is, our showers are tile. Drilling tile is a nightmare. It’s my understanding the tile will often break. So we’d definitely have to hire someone to do it (and warranty it). Might be worthwhile.

There are adhesive ones, but my understanding is that they aren’t reliable. The adhesive gets old, and they don’t hold when you actually need them.

Drilling tile isn’t a difficult propane with a decent hammer drill and a carbide or diamond bit… I added the fold down teak seat in the shower, hit the blocking OK on one side, but had to use toggle bolts on the other, i worked out fine… I just put a drip cloth down to collect the dust, used sealant/caulking as I bolted it in to keep water out of the wall…

Older red tiles are a little more fragile… but easier to drill… Adhesive tiles, are they really sealed? But again, using sealant stops any water leakage…

Over the years, lots of carbide drill bits, from 1/8" to 1", some have shanks for the Hilti hammer drill, but I bored through the fireplace to bring in natural gas & 120vac for the controller… But, back on the job, we bored so many holes in floors, ceilings, walls, pillars to mount gear… No fear, just get it done!

I still have drawers of those bits, hey, might need em someday!

weco

OK, tried to paint today, after the orange peel texturing last evening…

Turns out the paint I thought was for the bathrooms, isn’t right, too dark. So now I have to sort that out, maybe the right one is in the garage, not the shop…

And now house guests, Mother’s Day… Next week, I guess…

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I have a house guest for a few days.

She’s a doer. Always doing something.
So, while here, I’ve managed to get about 7 or 10 little projects completed. She’s painting some “sugar skull” tchotchkies that have been waiting for the attention.

Moved some paintings, to make room for a 4’x 6’ mural painting.
We drove to a friend’s house to pick up the mural.
It’s now hanging over my couch and looks GREAT!

The paintings that were moved are in better locations.
Put a new canopy on the canopy shade.
Renovated a metal frame into a small table for the patio.

I’m an “electic” kinda guy. And, I’m really liking the eclectic look that is developing.

Over all, I’m happy.
And there are another 10 projects that will get accomplished.

Each one is … 15 minutes to maybe an hour.

I’m having feelings of success :sun_with_face:

:hammer: :art::framed_picture: :carpentry_saw::horse: :circus_tent:
:sun_with_face:
ralph

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OK, survived the weekend… A bit of a hangover, some nice Basil Haden, conversations with family, maybe one too many… Drove home, expired tags on the truck, then find out my wallet had been at home all along, a traffic stop or accident you;d have been really bad…

I tried to find the paperwork for the 2 bath remodel, found some, not all, so I must have tossed the paint chips, then even after checking the garage, I can’t find the right paint… Must have tossed it…

ut I found my phots of the project, and in there was the right can & label I had photo’d! So armed with that information, Kelly-Moore ACRY PLEX 150-121-1G, KM4550, Cafe Latte, I went to the store, brought home a paint chip to compare…

Good news, it’s the match… Bad news, it’s not available doe to some sort of headache for them… Other bad news is that it’s only available in 1 gallon cans… Other bad nerds, that it costs $67.99 per gallon! Other bad news, it’s not available in their other stores, either!

So I ordered a gallon, left my name, number, email, and will await a call/email… Got to know Leo, the manager, he knows my painter/friend, Ben, all good guys… If he had it, I’d like be able to use Ben’s cost… Used to do that with auto parts when I was much younger, had friends in the real Service Station business… So anyway, whatever the price, it solved the paint color matching…

For now, I knocked down some of the orange peel, less rough, I can give it another coat and mount the towel bar until the real paint comes it… I’ll have a lifetime supply left over, I guess…

Progress, kinda…

weco

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Drove home, expired tags on the truck, then find out my wallet had been at home all along, a traffic stop or accident you;d have been really bad…

When at home I don’t like carrying my wallet around in my back pocket so I leave it on the kitchen table. I wish I had a nickel for every time I’ve driven off without my wallet. After I’ve noticed it I try to drive carefully home. Knowing this happens quite often I’ve taken a photo of my drivers license and my insurance card because I always have my iPhone with me. Trouble is I don’t know if the Law (cops) will accept a photo.

Regards,

ImAGolfer

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When at home I don’t like carrying my wallet around in my back pocket so I leave it on the kitchen table. I wish I had a nickel for every time I’ve driven off without my wallet. After I’ve noticed it I try to drive carefully home. Knowing this happens quite often I’ve taken a photo of my drivers license and my insurance card because I always have my iPhone with me.

Good idea, even if they don’t accept it. I’ve done the same thing so many times I’ve considered finding a secret place in the car to hide a seldom used credit card, just so I don’t have to get all the way to the store and come all the way back home to get the wallet.

Haven’t done it yet, but it’s a thought I have every time I forget the wallet, which is often enough to be embarrassing.

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…because I always have my iPhone with me…

Which is why I no longer even have a wallet. Just my phone in a case that also holds my driver’s license and one credit card. That’s it. And I rarely use the credit card, since 95% of the time I can just tap the phone to the credit card reader.