The Home Improvement Thread

Silverback

Lima Gulf Bravo Foxtrot Juliet Bravo
Good luck!!
 

TacoXpo

HOAX DENIER

TacoXpo

HOAX DENIER
Speaking of TVs...I bought a 50" Hitachi 4k Roku TV about 7 months ago. I figured it was a big enough name brand that I would get a quality TV without splurging for the name (Samsung, LG, Sony...)

Just outside of the 30day return policy, it it started randomly restarting. Sometimes the whole thing would power cycle, sometimes just the app that was running. Tried to return it. Nope. Tried to call support. Nope. Did a factory reset and the problem went away for a while. Then it would reboot infrequently. Last week, I couldn't get more than 10 minutes into a show and it would do it. Tried performing a factory reset and couldn't get the damn thing to stay on long enough to even register it. Apparently, you have to register Roku TVs in order to even use them. By register, I mean "Sync to account."

Tried calling Hitachi support again and couldn't even get a person. Just an automated system telling me that I was out of luck. I couldn't even lie to the automated system to get a real person.

Since that bad experience, I've been able to get it re-synced with my account and it has only rebooted twice. Better, but still not good. At this point, I can't even sell it on Craigslist in good conscience. So now I'm looking at getting a new TV to replace one that "works."
Have it breed with Lazarus! lol
 

TacoXpo

HOAX DENIER

TacoXpo

HOAX DENIER
Ok... I'll sell it for 1.5 million. I'll throw in the shed and mower. ;) lol
I'm just about to list a 1970s 1,500 sq ft home for $1,325,000. 7,000 sq ft lot that has 5 story apt building looking over the back yard. Dumpy kitchen. Clean otherwise. Something about an ocean and a large search engine employer nearby. lol
 

Silverback

Lima Gulf Bravo Foxtrot Juliet Bravo
Have it breed with Lazarus! lol

He's still in my garage... not sure what to do with it. Don't feel right trying to sell it nor give it away.
 

Silverback

Lima Gulf Bravo Foxtrot Juliet Bravo

Taco Loco

Tired and Lazy, married to ‘The Laundry Fairy’
Just read in our local paper that the town I live in is the 3rd fastest growing city in America! WTF...

CENSUS: Pflugerville ranks as third fastest-growing U.S. city

That's not a good thing.

It's exactly why we wanted to move from Conroe/The Woodlands 2017Conroe is America's fastest growing city, census reveals

Texas has quite of few of growing cities, too many liberals coming here also.

Although we have a good retirement home already, I'm thinking after the boys finish HS, were planning to move further out, smaller house, larger shop & Mo land.
 

tex

That's Mr Asshole to you
Need some other opinions on something. We might end up staying in our house for a few different reasons but mainly a smaller house in our neighborhood is retarted expensive and interest rates are up. Plus all the houses that we are seeing need $10k-$30K of work when they are already priced at a premium. Doing the math it's making less sense to sell and downsize since it would not be any cheaper and fixing up a smaller house would make are total investment higher than the value of the new house. IF we stay we have a sunroom that is about 300 square feet and is considered condition space to the county due to the window unit. Its all windows so its expensive to cool in the summer. We have some patio furniture and a TV out there. We don't really use it and I go out there to watch TV sometimes. My friend brought up a crazy idea to remove the windows and turn it back into a covered patio. Reduce my square footage with the county and lower my taxes. I have the biggest house on the street so if I did this I would be the same size as the 2 other 2 stories on the street. Plan would be to put in a sink, counter top, bar, and make it an outdoor kitchen.
I would reduce my tax cost about $100 a month plus the savings of having to heat and cool it. Am I crazy for reducing the square footage of my house? Picture for reference. This is about half the room and the side I would do the outdoor kitchen and bar.
20180524_194014.jpg
 

Silverback

Lima Gulf Bravo Foxtrot Juliet Bravo
I know on my property tax statement it mentions my covered patio (they don't know about the outdoor kitchen but I have seen them on other peoples property tax statement).. what I'm doing a shitty job of saying, is that taking the windows out might not lower it as much as you think. It will still be up to the county to appraise the home and now instead of a home with x amount of feet it will be a home with x-300 sq feet with a covered patio and outdoor kitchen. Might come out a wash.
 

Silverback

Lima Gulf Bravo Foxtrot Juliet Bravo
The kitchen won't be added till after they come out.

What about those windows that tilt out.. my grandparents built a sunroom between the house and the garage many many moons ago. Had these windows that had maybe 7 panes each and they all tilted outward to allow air to flow. One crank tilted all the windows IIRC.
 

tex

That's Mr Asshole to you
What about those windows that tilt out.. my grandparents built a sunroom between the house and the garage many many moons ago. Had these windows that had maybe 7 panes each and they all tilted outward to allow air to flow. One crank tilted all the windows IIRC.
I am probably going to put screens in place of the windows to keep the bugs out.
 

Anathollo

Armorall is my choice of lube
Staff member
Need some other opinions on something. We might end up staying in our house for a few different reasons but mainly a smaller house in our neighborhood is retarted expensive and interest rates are up. Plus all the houses that we are seeing need $10k-$30K of work when they are already priced at a premium. Doing the math it's making less sense to sell and downsize since it would not be any cheaper and fixing up a smaller house would make are total investment higher than the value of the new house. IF we stay we have a sunroom that is about 300 square feet and is considered condition space to the county due to the window unit. Its all windows so its expensive to cool in the summer. We have some patio furniture and a TV out there. We don't really use it and I go out there to watch TV sometimes. My friend brought up a crazy idea to remove the windows and turn it back into a covered patio. Reduce my square footage with the county and lower my taxes. I have the biggest house on the street so if I did this I would be the same size as the 2 other 2 stories on the street. Plan would be to put in a sink, counter top, bar, and make it an outdoor kitchen.
I would reduce my tax cost about $100 a month plus the savings of having to heat and cool it. Am I crazy for reducing the square footage of my house? Picture for reference. This is about half the room and the side I would do the outdoor kitchen and bar.
View attachment 9875
"Oh you just made improvements to your house by taking out old leaking windows! Let me add another $1,000 to your house value since you just improved your property!" said the tax man. /S
Anything you do to the house and put it on record with the city is going to be seen as an improvement.

Since you said you're staying in the house, I would demo the window and move the door over. Frame up the outside and inside so you can extend the bar over.
20180524_194014.jpg
 

tex

That's Mr Asshole to you
"Oh you just made improvements to your house by taking out old leaking windows! Let me add another $1,000 to your house value since you just improved your property!" said the tax man. /S
Anything you do to the house and put it on record with the city is going to be seen as an improvement.

Since you said you're staying in the house, I would demo the window and move the door over. Frame up the outside and inside so you can extend the bar over.
View attachment 9877
I get what you are saying. I talked to the county yesterday and the tax man point blank told me not to make it fancy with an outdoor kitchen and all that. I told him no worries on that and that I was tired of paying to heat and cool the space that we dont really use.
 

Silverback

Lima Gulf Bravo Foxtrot Juliet Bravo
I am probably going to put screens in place of the windows to keep the bugs out.

You know they make screens that go in front of windows that open! And both keep bugs out. :D
 

tex

That's Mr Asshole to you
You know they make screens that go in front of windows that open! And both keep bugs out. :D
I like the idea of making it a patio. I am not sad to see the windows go if we do this. I'm just trying to get other opinions if I am crazy for considering to reduce the square footage of the house.
 
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