r/HomeImprovement

I need my glass patio door (edit) repaired. The whole door is smashed. I have had issues with contractors in the past, so I wanted to get my ducks in a row. I Googled what I should do, and Google gave me 100 pages saying I'm supposed to ask a contractor if they are licensed and insured before hiring them.

There are three main window repairers in my area, and all three are the highest rated through all the rating platforms. The biggest one had AI answering the phone pretending to be a person and never called or texted me back. The second biggest one gave me a reasonable quote for residential window repair, but were very nonpersonable. When I later asked if they were licensed and insured (which I Googled I was supposed to do), they became very angry and said they don't do residential, only commercial, and told me to go somewhere else. This was especially strange because I gathered that they are licensed and insured for commercial projects, they were just pissed for some reason that I asked. The third service which isn't as prominent was very friendly at first, but when I texted them asking them if they were licensed and insured, it caused a major problem. They thought I was someone else and they started sending me angry texts just for asking. The manager called me and smoothed everything over though, but he said he might have to charge me a higher price because he was giving me a sweet deal and I had stirred the pot.

I don't understand why this was such a hassle.

Edit: I'm still hiring the third (which when I wrote in a comment was downvoted so I deleted it, side note i don't understand Reddit downvoting when people are honest). I don't have another option. My window is broken and it's about to start raining. The manager stated they are licensed and insured and the tech will bring the certificate. I just caused a stir by asking. I believe the second one is actually insured too, they just don't want people asking, like "the audacity of someone asking! They should be grateful we answer the phone!" Really weird.

Second edit: I don't believe licensing is required in my state for the type of repair I am requesting. It's known as the "handyman exception" because it's below $1,000.

Maybe this is unpopular,but a lot of interior renovations trends lately feel more focused on looking good in photos than actually being comfortable to live with.

Everything now is ultra-minimal, glossy finishes everywhere, open shelving in kitchens, built-in lighting in every corner, huge decorative panels… and after a while it starts feeling more like a showroom than an actual home.

Especially storage.

People underestimate how important practical storage is until they actually live somewhere for a few months.Those "clean aesthetic" spaces online usually look completely different once real life happens and normal things somewhere to go.

The homes that usually feel the nicest aren't even the most expensive looking once. They are the one's where layout makes sense,the storage feels natural and the space actually feels relaxing instead of over designing.

Feels like a lot of homeowners are chasing trends instead of spaces they'll still enjoy 5-10 years later

Anyone else notice this or it's just me?

Would like some advice!

We bought a house a few months ago. Recently, we just got started on a new roof. This peaked more eyes towards our house and a code compliance car drove by and decided to hit my house with everything possible. Trash can in plain sight, grass patches need new sod, and trim dead palm trees. However, the biggest thing is pavers around our driveway and walkway. We bought the house this way and turns out It was unpermitted work and now we’re in violation of code compliance. What would be the proper way to handle this? Thank you!
In Florida, not in HOA.

I (43f) single homeowner have been working with the same contractor and his team through one renovation and now onto the second.

I fully accept my role in this level of doormat’ness but I want to change! The current issue is the porch, the support pillars were wrapped with some plastic board stuff and there are gaps. Also, the pillars no longer are flush with the top of the porch’s horizontal support beam. I absolutely need to say something which I can but allow me to share some history that makes me have zero faith the porch will be fixed.

The first renovation a wall had to be removed due to dry rot. It was replaced and siding was installed, however the siding looks terrible. Mind you, I live in a historic home, of significant value. My contractor said he would have the siding guy back but he has never been back. To this day, one year later, the siding for that outside wall has not been fixed.

I think I f’ed up on multiple fronts but to focus on the siding issue, I feel like I don’t have a leg to stand on because it’s been over a year.

The question is: do I have a leg to stand on? What about the porch? I already paid for that work but they are still in progress with additional interior work(which is going very well with no complaints from me). Can I withhold that payment until the porch is complete to my standards?

Going forward I will not pay for anything until have reviewed all details of the “completed” work. Please don’t dogpile on me either. I’m fully aware I’m passive and it’s hard because these are dudes working at my house and I worry they will just walk away from the project if I push back on anything.

Any help would be appreciated.

We’ve live near a small river for years and never had any serious issues with it before. During heavy rain it would rise a bit, maybe make the backyard muddy, but that was about it

This time though, after days of nonstop rain, the river basically decided to pay us a visit…

We saved some furniture and a few important things before the water got too high, but the entire first floor is pretty much destroyed now. Floors are ruined, walls soaked, cabinets swollen shut and the place is completely unlivable at the moment. The whole house smells damp no matter how much we air it out.

How long it takes for this kind of recovery. Not just drying everything, but checking electrical wiring, plumbing, replacing floors, repainting walls, rebuilding kitchen cabinets… all the fun stuff nobody thinks about until it happens to them.

I’ve heard decent things about restoration companies, but I honestly have zero frame of reference for timelines here. Are we talking weeks? Months? Half a year?

Anyone who’s gone through major flood damage pls share your experience

I live in St Joseph County, Indiana (Walkerton/ North Liberty area). Moved into this property (built in 2022) June 2025. From June through February the sump ran normally — only during heavy rain, cycling for a day or two then stopping. No issues.

March 2026 everything changed. We had a flash flood warning, the pump went from cycling every few hours to every 2-3 minutes and has stayed elevated ever since. Now in mid-May it's still cycling every 3 minutes.

What I've already ruled out and addressed:

• Float is functioning correctly, manually tested
• Check valve is intact and properly installed
• No water meter anomaly — city water leak ruled out
• Discharge pipe is clear — snaked the full corrugated run, no blockage
• Discharge drains to street storm drain, verified no backflow path toward house
• Sump pit inlets (French drain) are actively flowing — confirmed groundwater source, not recirculation
• Installed a battery backup pump as a precaution, and kept a spare pump at hand
• Basement has stayed completely dry throughout

Anyone is dealing with this?

I've asked my neighbor and one told me he got three pumps running the whole season, and the other neighbor said it's abnormal and should be checked.

What do you all think?

I don't know who else to ask and I'm sorry for the long post.. if you know anything about insulation in cold regions, please read and help-

Our home was built in 2022. The basement has poured concrete walls with waterproofing painted below grade on the Outside and inside. It is unfinished but the perimeter walls were insulated and vapor barriered. We live in Canada our winters are cold. The perimeter walls are 2x4 studs 16"oc. The base plates were set about 2 inches away from the poured concrete wall. They used thick r20 insulation batts.

We started getting tiny puddles forming around the baseplates. In winter following odd warm periods.We thought it was coming from Outside. I opened the barrier and removed a batt of insulation to find the whole wall was soaked. This was the case for every wall. Fast forward, the consensus is that it was condensation build up due to the temperature difference between the inside air and the concrete. The insulators had the batts touching both the concrete wall and the vapor barrier with no air space. From what everyone says, thats a no-no.

So - the home builder agreed to redo it. BUT i dont know if their solution is the right one or if its a shortcut or if its completely wrong. The email from the builder is below;

"Yes a 2x4 is made for R12 insulation but when you leave the studs away from the wall you can put a R20 into the stud cavities as you have space behind the studs

We will not be installing any Styrofoam as that has been tried with no success.

Our plan is to install typar to the concrete from grade level down and then install 1 layer of insulation horizontally behind the studs. Then another layer of insulation will be installed vertically between the stud cavities and then the wall will bepolyed.

We would need access to the house on Thursday to install the typar and deliver the insulation and poly

Friday (company) would come to insulate and poly the basement"

Please let me know your thoughts!

We have a 30+ year old sunroom we'd like to turn into an office. Needs heating and cooling as summers are hot and winters are cold. Sunroom is aluminum with single pane windows so insulation value is near zero. It's built on a deck (wood beams, no foundation) and roof is nearly flat so this is definitely not up to modern code for snow load.

Option 1: demo and build new. Quotes have ranged from $80k to $170k for a 12' x 17' footprint (same as existing). Likely wouldn't be completed until end of year. Would need permits. Some designs would add this to the total house SF.

Option 2: Supplement aluminum walls with 2x4 framing, replace doors and add double pane windows. Quotes are pending but tentative estimate is ~$15k-20k. Likely able to complete in a couple weeks using off the shelf windows.

Perhaps 5 yrs left in this house. What do you choose?

Moving into a new place and my current stove is pretty old so I’m trying to figure out if it’s a good time to buy while the Memorial Day deals are already going on or if prices are basically the same as usual. For people who are shopping right now, are you seeing real differences in this Memorial Day period or is it mostly the same models at regular pricing?

I've been thinking about the safety setup in my new house. Our garage has some storage and equipment like a space heater, gas cans, and a portable generator.

I've heard that garages can be a tricky place for regular smoke alarms because exhaust, dust, or fumes may cause false alarms easily. Heat alarms seem like a better fit for garages.

Does a garage actually need a smoke alarm, or is a heat alarm the better option? Any heat alarm recommendations?

I am considering purchasing a house that has 3 sections built in 1971, 1975, and at an unknown time but most likely also 1970s. Part of the house was made out of 2 mobile homes (no I am not joking, if it wasn't this cheap I would'nt even be considering it), don't know if that is more/less likely to have asbestos compared to the section that isnt a mobile home. In the very front of the house (1971), there are what I believe were 9" tiles that had grey mastic underneath. In the back of the house (unknown) there were also 9" tiles with black mastic underneath. The tiles were only partially scraped up, and some tiles were only half there. If they were fully intact, I'd just seal over them, but in this condition I am concerned it could be a major problem. In much of the house, sections of subfloor have been replaced, but I can not check everywhere as some new LVP has been put in. However, I doubt asbestos would have been handled properly when the subfloor was replaced, so I'm worried some could have gotten into the HVAC vents. I could possibly ask the seller to send samples into a lab at my expense. How concerned should I be if it is asbestos?

Has anyone ever received an HOA violation notice after they receiving a “friendly reminder” notice on that same issue?

I left two trash bags of clothes outside the dumpster thinking someone might want it, that was the issue… I didn’t do it again after receiving the “friendly reminder,” that’s why I am so furious right now.

Hey, hopefully somebody here can give me some insight. We live in South Florida and just had our roof replaced. We discussed wanting vents to be placed. My understanding is that vents help cool the attic down thus keeping the house cooler.

The roof is complete and no vents were added. The company’s representative is trying to tell us that our roof didn’t have vents when it was originally built. He said they leave space for water to leak in during hurricanes. I tried to ask him what standard practice is because I feel like it shouldn’t matter if there were no events before if the current standard is to put vents in the into roof.

Hi guys! How do you repel birds from your balcony. Because there are a lot of birds that are staying in our balcony and they shit a lot. It’s very difficult to maintain the balcony with bird shit all over the place. I have a small balcony and it’s really an eyesore. Your help would be appreciated. Thanks.

For about a year now my garage door does not open, the button worked for a short time and the very last time the motor ran a bit and only opened a little and I had to push it open. After that it never opened at all and can not be pushed up either, I have no access. I think my best option is to cut a hole into the panel and possibly somehow put a stick or grabber of some sorts to pull the emergency cable. I am fine getting a garage person to do this but does this seem like a possible fix?

I didn't realize you needed to clean the dryer vent itself ... has anyone had any luck with doing it themselves or should i just hire a professional? I'd have to get up on a ladder and I'm uncertain how that'd go for me lol

I'm trying to put a hose bib in and I need a 1 1/4" hole through brick. I have a hammer drill with a standard chuck, but apparently you can't get larger masonry bits that aren't made for SDS chucks.

Many years ago I drilled a hole through bedford stone with a star drill/chisel and a small sledge hammer. It was slow, but worked very well. Unfortunately, these seem to be a thing of the past.

So it looks like my options are:

1. Buy a SDS hammer drill (don't really want to do this as I very rarely need large holes in masonry).
2. Rent a setup from my local rental place - likely almost as expensive as buying.
3. Get an SDS bit and use an angle grinder to remove the SDS part.

Any suggestions?

I've seen some relative cheap diamond tipped hole saws meant for ceramic tile and counter tops. Will these work on brick?

EDIT: Thanks for all the input! I think I like the idea of drilling a bunch of smaller holes around the circumference of the hole I need ( I have a bunch of some small tapcon bits) and chiseling out the center. The hole will be covered by the faceplate of a Woodford frost-free bib, so no worries about a jagged edge.

TLDR: Apologies in advance if this is the wrong subreddit! I'm in the middle of a small bathroom remodel in NYC and could use a sanity check from you fine folk around an additive charge for waterproofing in a post-demo change order when there was previously language for it in the original scope.

Context: We originally signed a scope for a shower-to-curbless-shower change order. The original scope text for the Curbless Shower order is: > ### Shower to Curbless Shower:

1. Build floor foundation in order to accommodate curbless shower.
2. Build proper waterproof lead/vinyl base foundation on entire bathroom floor perimeter in order to accommodate new curbless shower stall design.
3. Complete leveling of existing foundation to accommodate new curbless shower.
4. Patch and repair where needed.

> ##### Costs > - Construction & Labor: $ 3,475.00 > - Plumbing: $ 1,465.00 > - Building Materials: $ 1,785.

Unfortunate after demo, complications arose immediately. The biggest one was that we found rust/mold on the existing framing behind the tiled shower wall (the building is new construction so that's a whole other thing to deal with), so that wall needs to be fully rebuilt. There were also complications with our planned wall-hung toilet because an air duct for the floor below runs behind that wall, plus some other floor/subfloor issues, etc.

Basically now the contractor is proposing a large post-demo change order, and one of the items is a separate waterproofing charge with the following text:

> ### Waterproofing Bathroom Floor:

1. Complete preparation of Bathroom floor to secure moisture.
2. Supply and install Laticrete 9235 Liquid Waterproofing Membrane System throughout the bathroom landing 6” upturn at all walls

> ##### Costs: > - Construction & Labor: $ 3,875.00 > - Building Materials: $ 875.00

> ### Waterproofing Bathroom Shower Walls:

1. Complete preparation of shower walls to the ceiling to secure moisture.
2. Supply and spread Laticrete 9235 Liquid Waterproofing Membrane System throughout the shower walls up to the ceiling as per building request.

> ##### Costs: > - Construction & Labor: $ 5,750.00 > - Building Materials: $ 2,355.00

When I asked why the floor waterproofing wasn't already covered by the curbless shower change order, they replied that the two items are separate:

> For waterproofing, I understand the confusion regarding the curbless shower change order versus the bathroom floor and wall waterproofing change order. These are two separate scope items performed at different stages of construction.

> The first step occurs after the subfloor has been prepared/poured. At this stage, a liquid waterproofing membrane is applied throughout the bathroom floor area, including a 6-inch upturn at all wall perimeters, creating a continuous waterproof barrier designed to protect against moisture intrusion beneath the finished tile surface.

> The second step involves the structural modification required for the curbless shower installation. Because a curbless shower requires the shower floor to be recessed and properly sloped for drainage without a raised curb, additional floor preparation and foundation work are necessary. During this phase, a lead or vinyl shower pan liner is also installed beneath the tile assembly as an added layer of protection against water penetration and leaks.

> This combination of full-floor waterproofing and localized shower pan protection is commonly used in curbless shower installations, where water exposure extends beyond the traditional shower boundary.

I understand the general logic that a liquid membrane and a lead/vinyl pan liner are different systems installed at different stages, that's not surprising. I also understand that waterproofing the shower walls to the ceiling is probably distinct What I am less clear on is the bathroom floor. Since the signed curbless change order specifically said "waterproof lead/vinyl base foundation on entire bathroom floor perimeter," it feels like there is at least some overlap with the new full-floor waterproofing charge, even if the Laticrete liquid membrane is technically a different system.

So essentially my questions are:

• Does the contractor's distinction make sense here?
• Is it normal to price the curbless pan/foundation waterproofing and full-floor liquid membrane waterproofing as fully separate items?
• Given the original wording, should the new floor waterproofing be treated as an entirely new charge, or more like an upgrade/expansion from already-included waterproofing with some kind of credit or offset?

I'm trying to figure out whether this is a real/necessary scope distinction, shady contract wording, or actually just stacking new charges in the post-demo scope on top of work that was already paid for.

I'm look for the best way to attach a retractable awning to my aluminum sunroom. Through much thought and googling, the best idea Ive found is to mount a ledger board to the load bearing structural posts/studs, whatever you want to call them, and then attach the awning to the ledger. For reference the wall I'm attaching to is 16’ wide, and I looking at an awning about that width, that'll extend 19 feet out. Will my plan work, or do y'all have any better ideas?

So we live in a duplex that does not have central AC. We already have an ac in the bedroom and an ac in the living room. We cannot afford to put another ac in not because money but I don’t want to overload the circuit. The ceiling is too low to install a ceiling fan. We do have a stand up fan in there but the kitchen is still hot. Any advice on how to cool down the room?