So as some members know im a diy on a budget guy. This weekend i found that to me that has not only applied to just cars but now the house i am buying. To better explain my situation im going through an fha loan and the house has to meet the standards the gov wants for them to aprove the loan. The fha inspector said we need to scrape and paint pretty much the whole house since it was built before 1978 it could have lead paint BEFORE we buy it and we have to close by the end of april. so we have limited time. Today i spent the day scraping the basement walls and i repainted it all while my future wife did all the interior trim work and and the kitchen. We opted to pay to have the exterior painted because we just dont have enough time to do it all. We got a quote to do the whole house and that was gonna be close to 7K . We finally found a company who was epa and fha certified who gave us a great price on the exterior 2400 not too bad considering the other gys wanted 5k + for just the outside. On the drive back from working on this house which by the way we still dont own it kinda hit me . I might be tired and my hands may be blistered but i can appreciate the work alot more . Im sure for many guys and gals who have built their own engines , cars, done their own paint, interior , etc. It's not only about being able to tell someone you did it your self and saved money but being able to be proud of it looking back and enjoying the fruit of your labor. I just thought i would share this since i haven't been working on my car lately this is all i got lol.

 

I am the same way. Time is my only enemy or I would to everything myself.

 

Holy crap!! I would think the paint could be tested for lead before they made you go through all this hassle! Geez...

I just retrimmed and repainted the chimney and all the vents on the roof. The chimney trim pretty much fell apart like logs on the rainforest floor. Luckily the sides were hardiboard - it was still like new. The painting was actually fun. The whole house needs it soon anyway so i got a gallon of each color.
It took 3 days but it all came out great. I bet I saved around 500 AND I got it all done just the way I wanted it. It should last well past my move-out date of 2022....
That 500 will buy lots o beer or car parts!

I am now going lumberjacking on a dead tree in the back yard...

DIY - my way of life...

 

They didnt even give us the option of testing. My friend is a contractor he said testing paint is standard practice and is almost how cops test drugs on site dring traffic stops I dont know if he was being sarcastic but in todays world probably sounds right lol . But this house was built in 1920's so they said it has to get handled like lead because of what could be under some of the layers. The main complaint was some peeling paint but since lead was a possibility but ther was peeling in alomst every room not sever but we just went ahead and took care of it before we moved in.

 

House paint prior to 1970 almost all had lead, you can argue all day about the real risks.

Today's DIY is building platforms for the new washer dryer. No way I was paying $200 each for ones sold by the mfr.

 

I really have to be motivated to diy. Usually after I get the quotes for someone to do it and see how much it's going to cost does it for me. When your done stand back with a cold beverage and admire your work. Can't beat it!