Discussion Forum
Discussion Forum
Up Next
Video Shorts
Featured Story
Skim-coating with joint compound covers texture, renews old drywall and plaster, and leaves smooth surfaces ready to paint.
Highlights
"I have learned so much thanks to the searchable articles on the FHB website. I can confidently say that I expect to be a life-long subscriber." - M.K.
Replies
you can't be serious with that sized photo....
get some http://www.irfanview.com .... be nice to us dialupers...
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming
WOW!!! What a Ride!
I shrunk it a little.
Joe Carola
thanks...
That looks to be some fine digs....
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming
WOW!!! What a Ride!
I never tried IrFanView, but thought I would make another suggestion that allows you to easily resize images if you are running XP.http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/downloads/powertoys/xppowertoys.mspxyou can just install the image resizer if you wish. After installing this program all you have to do is right click on the image and choose resize.... it will ask you what size you want to make it.Here is the direct link to just the image sizer:http://download.microsoft.com/download/whistler/Install/2/WXP/EN-US/ImageResizerPowertoySetup.exeIf you use firefox as a browser (http://www.firefox.com) it will resize the image to fit in your borwser automatically, but for Dial users that doesn't really help much.Nice house Rob!
Nice looking house!
What is the building to the right? Hope that isn't a neighbor, looks like its only a couple feet away.
The building to the right is a shed. I built that over an old well pit.
Put the shed up 3 years ago.
This is the rear of the house.
I shrunk it a little too.
All this picture shrinking is taking away from the nice leg shot getting out of the car. Or, are all you guys homos? And the only thing you care about is building pictures?
Who Dares Wins.
Edited 9/28/2004 8:46 pm ET by Gunner
The legs belong to my wife <G>
We removed the telephone pole from the roof and added a chimney. What do you think? My first try with stone.
why did you remove her legs? was she making a run for it?
Hey J/k Nice house! Mike
Nice work.Who Dares Wins.
rob.. you need help.. your project is fantastic.... but your photos are over the top..
on the chimney one all i could see was a bunch of giant stonesMike Smith Rhode Island : Design / Build / Repair / Restore
That's so you could see all the detail :)
jt8
rob.. where is the flashing ?Mike Smith Rhode Island : Design / Build / Repair / Restore
here.. i fooled with it in Irfanview...
View Image
Mike Smith Rhode Island : Design / Build / Repair / Restore
Edited 10/9/2004 12:16 pm ET by Mike Smith
Thanks Mike,
It started off around 2meg from the camera. I had converted it to 74k
I think. I thought that was the size people were posting. Next time I
will try to get it down to 35k.
Do you see the white streaks on the roof from the motar? I got a hose
out and washed the roof off, It looked good. Then when I returned in
the morning everything below the chimney was pure white. I could see
it from a 1/4 mile away. It was like that for a few days. when I couldnt
stand looking at it any longer I decided to try washing it off with
muriatic acid. It cleaned up real good with that. But man was I scared
for awhile...thought I would have to replace about 2 sq. of shingles.
Usually a 600 or so wide and about a 500 pixel tall works pretty well...
Hold the DPI to 70/72 and it's all cake and pie...
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming
WOW!!! What a Ride!
Crop the subject with the edit feature and then resize is a good way to go...
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming
WOW!!! What a Ride!
Rob,
Good on you for banging the nails yourself, and to your wife not leaving you in a roadside ditch for doing so. Did my place solo a few years ago.
Regarding the picture size, the 75kb goal is a good one, but you also need to pay attention to the physical (pixel) size of the pic as well.
When some of your pics open up, the viewer needs to scroll quite a bit up/down/left/right to see the pic. Also, with the large picture size and the modest 75kb size, the large pictures lose their resolution and become grainy.
Congrats, and be safe.
Mongo
Hey Mongo,
Someone said you had a word doc or something about your experiances
with concrete countertops? Can I get a copy?
[email protected]
We are going to try our hand at it.
Sort of.
Lost most of it in a hard drive crash and never had the inclination to recreate the missing stuff.
Still, I'll send you what i have.
Feel free to contact with other questions.
Thanks Mongo,
That is some good reading. Wish I had got that before I purchased
four 3/4" 4x8 sheets of melamine...man that stuff weighs a ton!
I have an island which will be about 54" x 72" maybe in a kidney
shape. If I use two pieces of melamine I will need to hide the
line on the face, Now im thinking I should purchase a 5'x 8' sheet
of high gloss formica and a couple sheets of 3/4" pressboard.
I was going by Fu-Tung Chengs book "Concrete Countertops".He doesnt
mention anything about formica as far as I can recall.
I am going to do a jet black countertop with green veins in it, If I can
figure out a way to do the veins.
Rob
You can do veins a few different ways.
1)You can hand pack the green veining across the form, then come back and fill in the rest with your black background color.
2)You can handpack a somewhat stiff black background on the formica, with the black mix stiff enough that it leaves voids between the black mix and the form. Then after the countertop is removed from the form you come back with a putty knife and force green crete into the voids.
3)You can mix different colors in the form, then draw a rod through the mix, resulting in "swirls" of veining color. With this, much depends on the size (cross-section) of the rod and the stiffness of the mixes used.
I prefer the first method, handpacking the veining, then filling in over it with the background color. Best control, and with that I've gotten the best results. I'm sure there are other strokes for other folks, but that's the one I prefer.
One tip. Veining usually looks best when the majority of it is on a on a diagonal. Remember to carry the "slope" of the veining up the edges of the form, and not just straight up the form edge, but on a diagonal as well. I've seen a couple of novice attempts where the fabricator did something like a 1/4" to 1/2" deep vein, then just butted that into the edge of the mold and poured the background color over that. When the top was taken out of the mold, the veining didn't extend the full depth of the slab when looking at the edge of the countertop. It looked obvious and unnatural.
Actually, two tips. Definitely do a few small samples to see how your veining looks. You'll certainly see improvement from one to the next.
Oh, a third tip...find a spot in your yard where all these samples can be used as stepping stones.<g>
Thanks Mongo,
Im glad to hear your tips, I would have been inclined to just do the first 1/4 inch and forget the front edge. I have been thinking of
using a "Stomp brush" that I use for texturing ceilings. If I try that
I will remember to get the front.
The swirl is also something im thinking about. Guess its time to try
making some stepping stones <G>.
Hey Mongo, Check out my Concrete Countertops. I still have two more to build. Man, were these heavy! We decided not to try veining. Trying to get ready for Thanksgiving. We thought we were going to get black, but when they dried they lightened up alot. Looks like a blue/gray. We are going to repaint the walls now. Wife says they dont go togeter now. <G>.
Sorry guys about the file size, I resized it...but that was as low as I could get it! I am so busy on the house im lucky if I get 10 min on the puter!
Closeup please.
Nice looking kitchen. What are you going to use around the stove?
As to the picture: Looks like you decreased the resolution when you tried to shrink the file size. What program are you using? You would probably have better results by shrinking the pic down to about 600 pixels. With a smaller picture, it should decrease the file size.
I'd like to see the detail in the original shot. Feel free to post it. And to keep the dial-up folks from whining, I'll shrink the original shot for ya.
jt8
Edited 11/21/2004 11:28 pm ET by JohnT8
whine? Those guys don't whine, they just won't look at the post.
Let's just call it 'forum etiquette'.
be an officer
Edited 11/21/2004 11:36 pm ET by rez
Hi John,
In answer to your question about what im doing around the stove. Im putting cultured stone there. Started that project today, hope to install stone in the morning. I will try to post some more pics.
Merry Christmas.
This is our master bath
"I can't say I was ever lost, but I was bewildered once for three days."
Thanks for downsizing the pic for me Razz, I use linux and wife doesnt give me much time on the computer.
heh heh I like the modern americana tradition with the wreath on the osb.
And tell your wife to quit drinking diet soda. That stuff is bad for you.
"I can't say I was ever lost, but I was bewildered once for three days."
heh heh I like the modern americana tradition with the wreath on the osb.
I thought it was a nice touch.
And tell your wife to quit drinking diet soda. That stuff is bad for you.
He says as he takes another drag on the Marlboro. : )
jt8
It's better to light a candle than to curse the darkness. --Chinese proverb
Very nice rob, looks like you've put alot of your heart into your home.
Kudos!
I edited your kitchen photo. Also very nice.
Ooops!
Gentlemen, Gentlemen... The idea is posting under 100KB size photos in a jpeg to permit dialup viewing.
View Image
"I can't say I was ever lost, but I was bewildered once for three days."
Thanks alot, I just cant get the photo resizing figured out in linux, im using the gimp. Im sure its possable, I just need to sit down with it for a few min....If I had a few Min.
If I post more pics will you resive them for me?
I use photo editing software that came with the computer to crop, resize and edit pictures. Then I save the edited pictures to a file and try to get those to post, I'm a neanderthal on a keyboard and its hit or miss to find the pictures and post.
I like your house, keep posting.
some more pics
Cool, I'm stealin' that stepped wall in the master bath. What's the toe kick?Keep posting big pics, no matter what the dial up #### say...we'll drag 'em outta their caves soon<G> Don't worry, we can fix that later!
The toe kick has not been installed yet. It came in a box rolled up.
I have it in the basement sandwitched between two 2x6 to flatten it out.
I think its just a cheap board with photograpg paper stuck to it.
Whem I took it out of the box and unrolled it, I got a wrinkle in the
face.
Rob, great stuff.
"I can't say I was ever lost, but I was bewildered once for three days."
I am working on the front door now. I will post pics of that next.
Here's a version of Irfanview that should run fine with Linux.http://frankscorner.org/index.php?p=irfanview395Knowledge is power, but only if applied in a timely fashion.
Edited 5/30/2005 9:45 am ET by GOLDHILLER
Nice work. Where did you find the hardware for the glass panels, esp. the transom?
I will ask the wife, I forgot. I think it was "canada shower doors".
We saved about $1000.00 and had free shipping.
This is the company we got the shower doors and hardware from.
Les Prosser
Shower Door of Canada
Phone: 416-781-9833
Fax: 416-781-9959
Toll Free :877-781-9833
Please let Les know that Robert Teed from Dream Builders, Bath Michigan. refered them.
They are really great to work with.
This is a door we got off the internet. It is 42"x 89" after I cut about
6" off. I refaced the inside with 3/8" oak that Johnsons Workbench cut
for me. I spray glued with "Sta-Put" formica glue, then nailed it.
The existing wood was so badly warped I couldnt flaten it out. I
salvaged a couple pieces and used them to replace the worst ones on the other side.
As you can see I changed the look on the inside, and might someday do the same on the outside. We have ordered some dress up parts and a new
door latch/deadbolt assembly.
I used 3/8" bendable plywood for the arch then put oak veneer on the face. I still need to find curveable trim or have a shop custom make
something to fit the door. We got the door for $350.00, $150.00 for the
oak, $250.00 for the deadbolt/latch and about $100.00 for decorative
hardware.
Total cost will be $1000.00-$1200. A door like this would cost upwards
of $3000.00 to 5K.
Im just saying this so folks understand that if you look around you can
save money and still end up with something close to what you want.
Sorry about the lines in the pic, my camera is acting up.
Edited 6/1/2005 11:05 pm ET by robteed
Resized for the people using pony-express for ISP.
That is a neat looking door. Did you have to frame it, or did it come prehung?
although.... not sure the OSB has quite the look you were going for ;)jt8
It's better to light a candle than to curse the darkness. --Chinese proverb
Ooops forgot to attach resized pics. Try it again.jt8
It's better to light a candle than to curse the darkness. --Chinese proverb
hi John,
I built the frame. This is the second attempt. The first time I tried framing it up on the saw horses. Didnt work out to well.
That is a wonderful door for your entry. I like your style.
Keep posting...
Hey Gordozco,
Thanks,
I still have some more things to add to the door. Will post more pics soon.
Here are some more pics of the front door.
Someone please resize them for me.
Thanks,
Rob Teed
Dream Builders
Resized.
Jon Blakemore RappahannockINC.com Fredericksburg, VA
Thanks Jon for resizing the pics.
Rob
Nice door Rob.
Try Irfanview for resizing, its easy.
Doug
I looked at Irfanview for Linux, but I dont run "WINE". Thats an
emulator to run windows software on linux. I tried it a few years back
but it was quite buggy.
Rob -
Been lurking thru this thread - but time to pipe in and say I'm really enjoying the pics and like a lot of what you're doing in your home! She's a beauty!One is never to old to yearn. Italian Proverb
Thanks for the comments. I will be posting more pics soon. Im working on the backfill now. I will be starting to work more on the exterior stonework next. Had a company come in and pour the concrete floor in the garage. I will install the doors then put a wood laminate on the doors to dress them up.
WE added on a kitchen and dining room and the only thing left to do is the cabinets. So, what can you tell me about these kind of tops? How do you pour them and what kind of mix and how do you get it smooth and how do get the color,etc.
James Hart
I got the idea from a book at Lowes. Called "Concrete Countertops"
by Fu-Tung Cheng. We got this color by adding two cups of Black Iron Oxide to each bag of Quickcrete 5000. We premixed each bag with the color, mix it dry. Then we poured it back into the bag. And mixed each bag like that. 7 bags for the long countertop, 8 bags for the big one.
I have to get to work right now. I will be back online tonite.
Someone please resize pic this for me.
Smaller size.
jt8
Thats the mold for the kitchen sink counter. The bottom of the mold is the top of the countertop. A reverse image.
Looks heavy. That'll be a good time to flip over.jt8
Ya, looks like you're plenty busy. :o)
In the event you get a break and want to study something about pic resizing here is an old link detailing some things about Irfanview. Worth the read. Use it once and then you'll find it just takes seconds to resize a photo.
Cheers
http://forums.taunton.com/tp-breaktime/messages?msg=24441.1
Hi Mike,
I flashed the chimney chase before I applied the stone. I hope I didnt
screw that up? I figured I would just put a bead of tar around the
base of the stone after I tuck point the stone.
Im not planing on tuck pointing until spring. I have too much other stuff to do. We have been building for 14months now. We are going to move in in a couple weeks.
My "Wife" and I have done everthing ourselfs with the exception of the
excavating and septic system. We poured the footings,poured the walls,poured the floor,framed,roofed,siding,drywall,insulation ,etc.etc.
I do have a 20 year old kid works for me one or two days out of the month. We have a strict budget of 150K. So far we have spent 137K.
Sorry guys for posting pics that are too big.
I'm on dial-up about half the time, and as long as the pic is under 100k, it doesn't bother me.
As long as it doesn't look grainy/distorted, large pics don't bother me. I just SHIFT-click them and open in new window. Easier to see that way anyway.
jt8
"rob.. where is the flashing ?"
OK Mike ... now just leave the wife outta it ...!
oh ... chimney ... I get it ..
Jeff
jeff.. i think the stillers are playing the pats on my birthday..
...... wanna make something of it ?Mike Smith Rhode Island : Design / Build / Repair / Restore
he he..
Just have to ask: former SAS?
gunner.. u r so right... none of the shrinks do justice to that pair of legs..
nice house , too !Mike Smith Rhode Island : Design / Build / Repair / Restore
Well guys,
Ive heard nuff about the legs...so this should settle that.
This is my main helper on the house.
agreed
Jeez..i was thinking exactly the samething. But i am strange anyway. stinky
Robteed, congratulations on the house. I couldn't help but notice your scaffolding and it made me very nervous. Homeowners are not required to follow OSHA guidelines but why would you subject yourself to possible injury or worse. Your ladders are not secure, there is no rope tying off your rungs, it looks like a couple of rocks have been used to level one side of the ladder, you are set up on sand, the plank is barely catching on one end and it is not secured, there are no railings, kickboards or end rails. A trip to the ER would pay for the extra it would take to do things a little safer. I'm not busting your chops, just concerned you may not be healthy enough to complete the project.
As a long time builder, that set up would have been like a super highway to us many years ago. Today it is a recipe for disaster and for employers, illegal. There is another post on this site. Someone's wife jumped down off a 4' scaffolding and hurt her knee seriously. A fall from your height, especially if you land on those horses won't be fun. I also hope those pretty feet in the flip flops are going home, not to the job. Sorry to be wagging my finger but it's only for your good.
Beat it to fit / Paint it to match
The ladders were not set on rocks, They are indeed set on sand. Its very
compacted sand, the ladders are set at angles into the knotched overhangs above. I take safety very serious. I determined that there
was no way the ladders could move to the sides, or out for that matter.
Its true I dont have railings on my pic or any safety ends. I am the only person going up there and I wouldnt go if I thought It wasnt safe.
Thank you for your concern though.
I would be more concerned about the ladders leaning up against the rake fascia.
Jon Blakemore
The whole set up could be improved with just tying the plank. Those are the type many of us have accidentaly walked off a time or two.
Beat it to fit / Paint it to match
Here is a shot of the master bedroom
Please...
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming
WOW!!! What a Ride!
Assuming you don't have a pop-up blocker turned on,
if you hold the SHIFT down while clicking on the attachment, it will open in its own window and automatically resize itself. And if it turns out to be a big file (not in this case) you can let it dl in the new window while continuing to read in the orig window.
jt8
With all the blockers in place it's right click and open in a new window....
Some of us have DU with no other options available...
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming
WOW!!! What a Ride!
So, 74K is still too big?
Keep them below what #'s then?
murial..
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming
WOW!!! What a Ride!
Sorry for my ignorance but please define murial .
wall sized pictures...
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming
WOW!!! What a Ride!
Oh man, I thought it was some puter term I hadn't learned. Bwaaa!
I think he was shooting for "mural" with possible sarcasm ;)
The 'edit' feature has saved me a few times.jt8
possible...
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming
WOW!!! What a Ride!
leaning towards probable.
Or dyed in the wool and written in stone...
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming
WOW!!! What a Ride!
Joht8, thanx for that tip about resizing!
blueIf you want to read a fancy personal signature... go read someone else's post.
YEA! We got our final inspection today. If anyones interested I will
post more pic. All we have have left is Trim and a few odds n ends.
Oh, and bookshelfs in the library,and the floor sanded and sealed.
And the back deck...and... I guess it never ends <G>/
Please turn down the resolution on your digi camera. I have broadband so the file size is no problem, it's just kind of hard to look at a 36" picture on an 18" screen. There is really no need to take such high resolution pictures unless you intend to print them.
Anyway the house looks way cool. Love that front door. It looks like big $. I've always felt that the front door area was a very important area of the house - first impressions and all that...
This is a pic of the finished house. There is a e car garage to the left. Tree is in the way. Hope this is a managable pic size.
More pics to come.
RobTeed
Dream Builders
Here are the pics of the garage doors before I added a wood facade.
And then after. They look great now that they are stained.
And here we are laying sod. I said I would post more pics. So guess I will start today. I have a few more things to show. Hope you all like em.
Here is our Library, Hope you guys like it. I reduced the sizes of these pics to about 115k. Hope thats low enuff for you guys on dialup.
Robert Teed
Dream Builders
Bath,Mi
************************
We are looking for work,contact me.Thanks
Here is my stairway, almost done. I need to polyurathane the post again.
Also need to fill nailholes. Man, a house has aLOT of nailholes...
I see the attachment says Libary.jpg..but its really my stairway. check it out.Edited 2/9/2006 11:31 pm ET by robteed
Edited 2/9/2006 11:35 pm ET by robteed
I've got a problem with the library. My comfy chair isn't over there by the fireplace. ;)
Comfy chair with a lamp. Read a book by the fire. Oh, and gotta have an ottoman too. Gotta have my feet up while in my comfy chair reading a book to the crackle of the fire.
Pretty neat library. What is the design in the tilework on the fireplace?
jt8
"Take your life in your own hands, and what happens? A terrible thing: no one to blame." -- Erica Mann Jong
Hi John,
Yea, I would put the chair closer to the fireplace. Still looking for a nice lamp. The desk chair is on order. I dont think there is room for a ottoman.The desigin on the fireplace is a castle. Maybe I will post ####closeup. I made the corbels under the mantel myself. I think it turned
out good.
rob.. love the library !
View ImageMike Smith Rhode Island : Design / Build / Repair / Restore
Thanks for the coment Mike.
I still have a few more pics to post.
Rob Teed
Dream Builders
when I reply to a post by me, am I supposed to click to:ALL or if it says from:robteed
To:robteed
do you guys see it?
I posted a bunch of pics. Hope I didnt screw it up.
Rob Teed
when I reply to a post by me, am I supposed to click to:ALL or if it says from:robteedTo:robteeddo you guys see it?I posted a bunch of pics. Hope I didnt screw it up.
Yeah, we can see them as 'all' or 'robteed'. I think the only real difference is that if you leave it as 'robteed' you'll get an email saying the robteed has replied to your post.
House looks good. How long you been working on it? I saw leaves on the trees in some of those shots.jt8
"Take your life in your own hands, and what happens? A terrible thing: no one to blame." -- Erica Mann Jong
We have been building this house for two years. I still need to tuckpoint the stonework,build a back deck,sidewalks,concrete driveway, and put finish paint on interior trim....oh, and all the things on my "Honey do list" <G>.
My wife and I built this by ourselfs, I had a couple of my workers
help stand the walls and sheath the roof. But other then that we did it all, poured walls in the basement and eveything. We have 200k into it,
will sell for 650-700k.
Edited 2/10/2006 8:30 am ET by robteed
Rob
Looks great! And yes you can just respond to yourself, the pix show up fine.
Doug