A renovation company currently completing a basement renovation has installed a floor drain in a way that we feel is improper and we are hoping to have it changed. The pipes/plumbing underneath are fine as far as we know, but the floor slopes up in the area around the floor drain (marked by and inside the yellow circle in the image below) such that water flows away from it. The photo shows that it’s in the laundry room, and would be situated beneath the washer. The subfloor was poured concrete, and then luxury vinyl plank was glued over top (as throughout the entire basement).We don’t know a whole lot about these things, but we feel like a floor drain should be at a low point. It seems like common sense, but the company’s comments are making us want to ask other people.

Here are our questions:

(1) Isn’t it important to have the drain lower than the surrounding floor and the surrounding floor graded down towards the drain so that water flows toward the drain? Or is there something counterintuitive that we’re missing?

(2) What types of processes would be involved in fixing this? We wouldn’t do it ourselves (not at all handy, also tired/overwhelmed), but rather would consider hiring someone. Would it necessarily involve jackhammering up the entire area and repouring concrete? Or is there a common process used to kinda sand/grind away a bit of the top layer of subfloor? Or maybe it’s just a issue of the vinyl plank being wonky? Thanks in advance and excuse any ignorance or lack of clarity.

(3) What type of contractor would do this kind of repair (assuming that it needs to be repaired)? We thought plumber, but it's not really the pipes that are the issue, just the fact that the floor or subfloor is improperly graded.

Relations with the reno company are not good (ideally, we just ask them to fix it, but that's more complicated than it sounds).

Picture of a floor drain, covered by a chrome finished drain cover, surrounded by vinyl plank flooring in a light brown wood finish. The area immediately surrounding the drain has been circled in yellow in the picture. The edge of a washing machine is visible in the side of the picture, and the washing machine drainage hose is at the top.

Coming from the UK, most new windows have small adjustable trickle vents that allow air flow and humidity exchange around a window to reduce condensation, and in turn, mould. Having moved to Canada, this does not seem to be a thing here. In classic N.American style, the solution seems to be to throw power at the problem and have costly HRV and humidification systems built into the central air systems. These are necessary, but in a closed bedroom with two people sleeping in winter, the humidity rises and the glass temperature falls, meaning we still get lots and lots of humidity on the inside glass of the window - like the whole window is covered in condensation in the morning - we're ringing out cloths used to wipe up.

I have searched for trickle vents here but found them almost impossible to find. This makes me wonder - are they a bad idea in climates where it is so cold for so long? Or is it just a national oversight?

Currently repairing some old tongue and groove siding on my new (to me) house. I noticed this gap along the soffet. Just want to confirm whether or not this is supposed to be caulked. Fairly certain it should be but don't want to close up something that's intended to vent or drain. Kind of looks like maybe it had a really thin bead of caulk at one point in time.

What is the cheapest and easiest way to fix these mixing drawer panels and also one drawer insert. Sorry if those aren’t the correct names. Trying to do some at home repairs but I’m a complete novice. Any advice helps thanks :)

Attempting to simply update the hardware in my kitchen- and when removing the old ones, we found that they somehow stained around the knobs, which is noticable with the new knobs. Is there any way to easily fix this? Thanks in advance!

Hey there reno pros

I have a family room addition that's built about 3ft above ground on sonotubes.

There are heat vents/HVAC that are boxed in with chipboard and I'm assuming some sort of insulation behind that. I'm also assuming the floor is insulated.

The room is 23' x 13' and carpeted. It does get a little cool in there during the freezing months (Jan/Feb) but nothing the gas fireplace can't warm up.

We want to replace the carpet with vinyl plank but we're afraid it might be even more chilly without the carpet.

My idea is to simply mount 4" rigid insulation on the underside to help the floor stay warmer.

Do you see any issues with condensation forming between the chipboard and insulation?

Would it be a good idea to seal the chipboard with paint first or will it even matter?

Thanks for the help!

This is a commercial building from the 1930s that has been redone over the years. It looks like they drywalled over the original lathe on the outside walls on only one side of the building. The other outer side of the building does not have lathe. I am guessing it is not Structural. I have read that it can help with sheer strength, but not more so than drywall.

My plan is to cut it a up few inches at the bottom so I can remove the years of dust dirt and soil that made its way in before the buildings outer brick was repaired and patched. The outside of this wall used to have a flower bed right against the building that was causing severe leaking.

I appreciate any solicited advice before I grab my tools.

So…. Do I just sand this down and then re paint it or do I need spackle to smooth down?? Help 😥

What’s more helpful for more renovations. A table saw or mitre/drop saw?

As you can see, not much wall above to play with

The existing, real fireplace is not usable. Without removing it and replacing the the one in the picture, how can I make this look good?

We have added heat pumps on the back of the house (small middle town) and removed most of the baseboard heaters but some spaces like this front hall and stairwell still benefit from some more heat in winter, especially in the early morning.

I’d like to remove this big old one and place a smaller modern one that can be remote controlled and at least set on a timer. This one doesn’t have a wall switch, just the knob directly on it. This seems to be an issue as smart switches are for wall mounted knobs only (that I have found)

What options do I have here to upgrade this to something sleeker and more automated?

Hello, I recently painted the walls behind my built-in shelves (previously orange). I guess I didn't do the greatest tape job because the orange is visible in the corners. What is the best and simplest way to cover it up? Do I use a thin brush? Can white silicone be applied? Thank you!

Hey all,

Looking for some advice on this. I’ve always heard renovating a home is cheaper than buying a new one depending on your needs. My question is, my wife and I can’t afford a new home to help our 2 new additions we had last year (twin boy and girl).

What all would be involved with adding a new room to my home over the front part of the garage? And what would be your suggestions on how if any to rearrange the floor plan?

Attached is my current floor plan on the second floor. And based on measurements without changing any of the foundation it seems I can add a 10’x16’ room.

I am not sure if a door could fit in the loft between the window and the laundry room, or if the guest bathroom would need to be moved and relocated within the new space.

Any suggestion/help would be appreciated!

We want to replace light fixtures in an apartment that came with lutron light switches with dimmers.

But all the led light fixtures I've been looking at that are not just a flat circle -- e.g., a nice-ish looking chandelier -- seem to come with their own remote controls, and state that you can only use wall switches to turn the light on/off.

I'm feeling lost. How do I find nicer light fixtures that will work with our wall dimmers? I've tried googling and can't find clear answers on this. Thank you!

EDIT: Attaching a photo of the type of LED strip chandelier I've been looking at that I like, but seems to all be remote-controlled, specified that it won't use in-wall dimmers. Is this type of fixture just not in the cards, or is there a way to look for one that's wall dimming switch controllable?

https://preview.redd.it/i71euoxjlp3e1.jpg?width=1500&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=44c98d397293382fc28dfcbdeda02c9056017b0c