Hi there, I just noticed this on my wall today. House was built in 1940. There are alot of little divots and stuff in the walls around the basement that clearly have had pieces chip off but there's never been any major issues. Just wondering if this is just another piece of old basement chipping off or something to be majorly concerned about.

Long story short... my mom was cleaning some dried sauce on my countertop and used one of those green scotchbrite pads, once it was clean it left these visible scratches. She feels horrible... just need to know of i can buff them out and what I'd need. Thanks in advance 🙏🏼

I just bought a 97 year old home. Over the years the main fire place has been painted over multiple times with oil and latex paint. Estimate at least 15 layers. Whats the best option to remove this if thats even possible? I would like to get it back to the original brick look.

May please know is there is a 100% clear see through hardwood floor sealer / finish ? Can be semi-gloss or glossy…

The stairs facing towards me I want to keep original color / finish (this is what I got after sanding) (I used shellac clear on bottom one to see how this turns out).

The steps u step on have 100% natural Tung Oil on them so those r a little darker

My husband and I close on our gorgeous 1908 home next week. It needs some fixing up as it’s been empty for a couple years now (some cast iron plumbing is leaking, plaster cracking ceilings, interesting electrical work, etc). This is also our first home and we are hoping to keep costs as low as possible by teaching ourselves to do as many of the fixes as we can. My question is what is everyone’s do’s and don’ts especially for older houses? What would you fix yourself vs hiring someone to fix or just things you discovered about older homes after owning one, I feel like every-time I try to google something to prepare myself I learn several new things that can be wrong.

TLDR: What are your do’s and don’ts and general advice for old home ownership?

Why would someone do this??

Hey all I bought a home 5 months ago and started noticing some cracks in ceiling paint, then it started bubbling and falling off so today I started stripping paint to fix the issue and noticed these large cracks. The walls and ceiling are plaster and lathe which I’m not very familiar with so I’m wondering if this is a serious structural issue that wasn’t disclosed or something that I can fix. Home was built in 1926 and previous owners did say the ceilings were popcorn ceilings but they had them re done a few months before listing. I appreciate any input

My husband and I just moved from California to a 1908 house in Ohio. We are prioritizing repairs and upgrades (how are there still only 3 grounded outlets in this house?), and fixing the broken ropes on the double hung windows and re-glazing will have to wait until spring. We are covering the drafty windows with plastic film, but the window behind the couch is where my 6 month old puppy watches the world (she lays on the back of the couch to look out). It’s also the draftiest window (the top has slipped down about 1/2” and we haven’t been able to lever it back up). The problem is that the puppy pushes her nose through the plastic to get closer). I’m going to try applying the plastic closer to the window itself (on the inside of the frame instead of covering the entire frame), but I was wondering if anyone else has found a better solution.

Our shower in our 1930s house started to leak, after a moisture guy came we found it was failing grout between the tile. Long story short, we decided to try and replace the offending tiles ourselves after watching a few youtube videos. After tile was removed we found it lacked a proper back to re-adhere the tile to. You can see in this image the plaster that failed and the hole the water was leaking out of. Ideas? I have some skill and tiled before so I was hopeful.

I have an older house and the inspector said I should put in more attic (1000sf) insulation. I think what is there is fiberglass (no vapor barrier) from when the home was built in 1957. Note because of low electric rates, my electric bill averages only $200 a month. No AC only heat. I am wondering if 1) I should do nothing, 2) lay or blow in some more insulation (no barrier) over the existing insulation, or 3) remove what is there and put in new insulation bats with a vapor barrier?

This must be a common problem for those with older homes… My home’s hot water baseboard heating system has a 2-wire thermostat that is a Honeywell. It is not back lit, has capability to set 4 programs (time of time) distinct for each day of the week, and battery is only for backup (not regularly powered by battery).

This type of product doesn’t seem to exist anymore, even in Honeywell units. It seems if I want that kind of programming, it will have to be a unit that can’t be powered by the 2-wires and I’ll need to replace the batteries.

I’ve been burned by this already as I tried getting a smart thermostat and was needing to replace the batteries every month or so. I would really rather a thermostat that can work off the 2-wires only. Doesn’t have to be smart, but I would prefer the programming I had before.

Any recommendations?

We’re under contract on 1903 Colonial Revival in Western PA that needs some work. It’s a foreclosure and has been unoccupied for about 5 years. We walked the property with several contractors recently to get estimates on various repairs. One area pretty much all of them called out was moisture in the sandstone basement. We have visited this property on 3 separate occasions over the last 2 months and never actually seen water coming in (though we haven’t been there for a heavy rain, only light rains), however it is very humid and there is white mold and mildew. We noticed some burst pipes on the first floor and came to the conclusion that the basement likely flooded due to frozen pipes. There are even water lines on the support posts about 10-12” high. We’re thinking it was never properly dried and this is probably why it’s still so damp. But every contractor is trying to sell us on a French drain. I’m leaning towards just addressing the downspout runoff and grading of the yard and installing a big dehumidifier then monitoring the moisture and any incoming water after we move in. Then if I see they were all right and I was an idiot I’ll get someone to install the French drain. I feel like this house is 121 years old and doesn’t look like it has had a French drain before (I guess it’s possible there’s an old one buried). Why does it suddenly need one now?

I have to wonder why everyone said water was coming in when we couldn’t actually see water. Do contractors and basement water proofers always think an old basement needs a French drain? Do they ever think you’re ok without one?
If it’s just damp is a dehumidifier enough? And what is everyone’s thoughts on my plans to try to divert the water outside first with the downspouts and grading before spending $15k on the drains? Or should we just get it all done at the same time?

Anyone know what brand of faucet this might be?

just painted the bathroom and the ceiling paint peeled off. The ceiling i painted first then taped it to paint the blue. I was thinking of sanding it with fine grit (200-400) and then prime and painting it.

We recently bought and moved into a 1959 home that was vacant for 9 months and there is a weird smell that gets into our clothes and makes my wife very sick. I ripped out and covered in killz paint the water damaged wood thats in the floors, I also fixed a massive cracked cast iron pipe and finally ripped out the walls in the basement with mold behind them because of water damage. I still feel like the smell isnt going away and not sure if anyone has had any luck with smell remedy of an old home? Its a mildew smell as if you left the clothes in the wash for a few days. Hopefully the remedies help not continue the smell but just to get the lasting smell out.

Hey y’all, my wife and I just bought our first house and it’s a whopping 123 year old Chicago bungalow. The foundation is all concrete, and all cracked. Some of it is tiled over in what might be asbestos tile, but where I can see the foundation it’s all cracked up and maybe has a little give. In what I assume used to be the boiler room I can knock on it with my fist and hear the concrete pieces clunking together.

So how do you fix it? I’ve seen a process on This Old House where they seal the outside and inject it with epoxy, but if the cracks are really extensive I’m afraid the epoxy will just go into voids without really packing them.

What do?

Hi all 👋🏼

Which toilet is the cleanest to have for renters? Is biscuit color stay looking cleaner or white?

I have renters and want to keep the toilet looking clean even if they don’t clean it regularly so not sure if should get white toilet and have the cleaning tech these Kohlers, Deltas & Toto’s have OR get a biscuit colored toilet to try to hide ‘the un-cleanliness’

Thank you 🚽

Hi all 👋🏼

Which toilet is the cleanest to have for renters? Is biscuit color stay looking cleaner or white?

I have renters and want to keep the toilet looking clean even if they don’t clean it regularly so not sure if should get white toilet and have the cleaning tech these Kohlers, Deltas & Toto’s have OR get a biscuit colored toilet to try to hide ‘the un-cleanliness’

Thank you 🚽