home improvement turns into science fair projects?

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mediatechnology
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Re: home improvement turns into science fair projects?

Post by mediatechnology »

The house being two story was the greater challenge.
My wife and I are not big stair-climbers anymore.
I looked at enclosing the carport which was do-able.
Couldn't extend outward since it was near the property line.

Based on the comps of our current home and the price of the one we were looking at there would be money to pay for enclosing the carport and other projects.

Most of these homes are not designed to be lived in 365 days a year and are vacation get-aways.
But there are some designed for year-round living in the area that are just as nice.

Most of the lots don't have a lot of width to allow single floor ranch style architecture with strong horizontal lines and footprints.
To get the square footage they have to go vertical.
We have just under 2000 square feet now and that's about right for us.

I'm getting too old to want to build anything but a Frank Lloyd Wright style home built on a wide lot in that area would be awesome.
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JR.
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Re: home improvement turns into science fair projects?

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mediatechnology wrote: Sun Aug 02, 2020 8:28 pm The house being two story was the greater challenge.
My wife and I are not big stair-climbers anymore.
I hadn't thought about it but I haven't lived in a house with stairs for 3 decades

I looked at enclosing the carport which was do-able.
I have gotten used to the open car port. You can also do a partial close-in just adding a side wall with window.
Couldn't extend outward since it was near the property line.

Based on the comps of our current home and the price of the one we were looking at there would be money to pay for enclosing the carport and other projects.
or save the money... of course you know with houses you can have other expensive issues (wiring, plumbing, etc).
Most of these homes are not designed to be lived in 365 days a year and are vacation get-aways.
insulation, windows, etc
But there are some designed for year-round living in the area that are just as nice.

Most of the lots don't have a lot of width to allow single floor ranch style architecture with strong horizontal lines and footprints.
To get the square footage they have to go vertical.
We have just under 2000 square feet now and that's about right for us.

I'm getting too old to want to build anything but a Frank Lloyd Wright style home built on a wide lot in that area would be awesome.
I designed a great house years ago, but never finished... I was going to build a greenhouse into the attic, with glass roof, and hot tub off the master bedroom (what could possibly go wrong. :lol: ) It would have had stairs... :-(

JR

PS: I have a brother living in CA and I keep telling him he better hurry up and move back to texas while it is still texas (he lived in houston area years ago.)
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JR.
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Re: home improvement turns into science fair projects?

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JR. wrote: Sun Jul 26, 2020 11:31 am
JR. wrote: Fri May 08, 2020 8:52 am Finally got my smaller diameter (lighter weight) 3/8" hose.

IMG_20200507_135104450.jpg

I wish I had this sorted earlier in the year... but its all good.

I can now spray closer to the tops of my pecan trees.

JR
Image

I just ordered a parade flag pole harness (belt?) that should make it easier to support the weight of this pole.
Image
When fully loaded with spry bottle and hoses full of water, not easy to manage and steer. This harness should make it easier.
===
BTW I am seeing new pecans forming already on my most productive tree...nuts on my other trees are smaller but still coming. I am optimistic that all my spraying this season did something useful. The caterpillar (bacteria) spray pretty much nuked the tent caterpillars this year. 8-)

JR
I just found an active yellow jacket nest right by one of my gutter downspouts. I am not stupid enough to mess with them in daylight. I can see a steady stream of yellow jackets coming in and out of the nest opening.

I just placed a DIY sugar water trap nearby but will wait until after dark to use my extension handle sprayer to spray them from a safe distance. :lol: I will use some neem oil that is supposed to be pretty harmful to bees.

JR
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JR.
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Re: home improvement turns into science fair projects?

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I quick check this morning revealed no yellow jacket traffic from the old nest... I will check again later when it warms up but I feel lucky. 8-)

JR

[update] yellow jackets have left the neighborhood [/update]
Last edited by JR. on Wed Aug 19, 2020 11:13 am, edited 1 time in total.
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mediatechnology
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Re: home improvement turns into science fair projects?

Post by mediatechnology »

I'm going to try some Neem spray I have on a persistent ant problem. (not fire ants.)
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Re: home improvement turns into science fair projects?

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mediatechnology wrote: Wed Aug 19, 2020 9:05 am I'm going to try some Neem spray I have on a persistent ant problem. (not fire ants.)
For fire ants I use two step approach.. Bifen bait using a broadcast spreader to prevent recolonization, and Orthene acephate dissolved in water poured directly into the mound to nuke the queen...
---
For regular ants I have a combination termite/ ant poison I use. Years ago I had termites in multiple places but I am too cheap to pay a termite service yet another subscription fee, so I spray using off the shelf poison and it works. 8-)

JR

PS: I am starting to resemble that cliche old man with a shop full of different poisons... :lol:
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Re: home improvement turns into science fair projects?

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These are climbing up an exterior brick wall.
I need a liquid: Raid only works for a few days and the ant bait trays only slow them down.
Boric acid powder isn't long-lasting either.
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Re: home improvement turns into science fair projects?

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The liquid concentrate I use for that is called Triazicide(?)... they claim to kill 260+ insects but I can't find that list.

For control of ants‡‡, centipedes, cockroaches, crickets¥, fleas, millipedes, mosquitoes, Palmetto bugs, scorpions, sowbugs, pillbugs, spiders, deer ticks and waterbugs.

blue grass billbug (adult), black turfgrass Ataenius (adult), chiggers, chinch bugs, white grubs (Japanese beetle, European chafer, southern chafer), dung beetle and hyperodes weevils (adult), European crane flies and mole crickets (nymphs and young adults)

including ants‡‡, armyworms, cockroaches, crickets¥, cutwormsß, earwigs, fleas, ladybeetles****, lawn moths (sod webworms), millipedes, mosquitoes, moths∞, Palmetto bugs, sowbugs, mites^, spittlebugs and waterbugs.

‡‡ Argentine, southern, field, Allegheny mound, Florida carpenter, red carpenter, black carpenter, cornfield, honey, pavement, nuisance, odorous pyramid, black turf, white-footed, crazy, little black, ghost, thief, acrobat, citronella, big-headed, lawn, lasius
¥ House, common short-tailed, Indies short-tailed, Arizona, tropical, variable field, fall field, southeastern field, Texas field, spring field, northern wood, western striped, eastern striped, sand field, vocal field, southern wood
ß Black, bronzed, granulate, variegated, greasy, spotted, army, clover, green
**** Convergent, seven-spotted, two-spotted, thirteen-spotted, twice-stabbed, Asian

I don't see termites on that list... but they be gone too...

JR
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Re: home improvement turns into science fair projects?

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wrong poison... the one i use for termites is carpenter ant and termite killer bayer

active ingredient is b-Cyfluthrin

JR
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Re: home improvement turns into science fair projects?

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This afternoon I checked and saw a handful of yellow jackets flying into the same nest, so after dark I banged them with another shot of poison.

I mixed in some other random insect poison I had.

JR
[update- after a second flush last night, today I can't even find the old hole.... we'll see if they survive that and dig out. :lol: /update]
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