baconbits

Seems cheap for abatement of that much stuff.

 

I'd be inclined to have it removed because upon selling your house, I think the value would be negatively impacted more than $2,000. Plus new, high efficiency ducting, etc is a selling point... albeit at a $5,400+ expense.

 

It's easy to spend others' money...

How many feet of asbestos ducting would be removed? I have maybe 10 feet at most, 8" diameter.

Built some shelves in my basement Friday on my day off. I had the guy at Home Depot rip the OSB down to 2x8 footers because their panel saw will make it straighter than me with a circular saw.

 

Again, not crazy about fasteners supporting the load so I made it a bit better by Liquid Nailing all wood-wood contact other than the OSB tops to the frames. Most of the stuff that will be on here is lighter (holiday decorations, etc) but I do have tools and whatnot on some of it. Worst case, I add some more legs in the middle of the spans to help support it all.

 

For those who want to build something similar:

28-30 8ft 2x4s

4 sheets OSB/plywood ripped to 2x8 feet

250+ deck screws (frame)

Drywall screws (secure OSB to frame)

2 10oz tubes of Liquid Nails

 

Rounds out to about $150-$170 depending on what you get, which isn't bad considering rinky dink wire shelf units that are 18" deep by 48" wide by 60" tall or whatever are $80...

 

Last pic is starting to organize my stuff and moving it off my work bench so I can, like, actually work at it. I was looking around the basement for containers of some type to put all my miscellaneous plumbing and electrical bits into until I realized I have a bunch of empty paintball boxes... perfect. It also shows that dreadful terracotta clay block I'm stuck with - the white Drylok makes it tolerable down there and seem much brighter and bigger.

 

I've got 80+ 22oz beer bottles off camera on the shelf waiting for my next brew session too.

How many ducts, how long, etc? Is it really that much for abatement?

I'm looking around... making some faux 4x4s out of 2x4s is a cheap option. I saw another guy making some out of doweled 6x6s and 2x6s too. Now I'm thinking about getting some 6x6 legs for the weight, cutting some dado slots, and gluing/screwing some 2x4 braces to them. A flat solid core door would make a nice top too.

 

The super heavy super sturdy ones seem to be more for wood working or other heavy, heavy duty stuff... I just need a vice to hold some plumbing while I glue or solder it together, space to rebuild computers, etc...

 

I'm sure I could spend a month building a work bench and have it cost 2 grand and it would be the envy of local carpenters and wood workers but seriously, in the end it'll just be a big shelf cluttered with my tools with a 2x1ft space for me to actually work.

I used to watch Norm Abraham and Bob Vila as a kid when all my friends would watch cartoons... The woodworking like that never stuck because I always liked construction more.

 

There are a couple shops near me that put out furniture like your first table, usually combinations of reclaimed wood and metal, and they fetch huge money... $1800-4000 coffee tables, $1000 end table pairs, etc.

Birdmayne, I have some crazy respect for legitimate woodwoorking like that, especially with reclaimed wood like that first table. Excellent work.

Don't be a cheapass. Each one of my cans in my basement was $20+ by itself, and I have 16.

 

Have to... I own a turbo Subaru.

 

I want to do this to save money, sure, but it's also the DIY tinker thing too...

 

In the grand scheme of things, it would be faster to just wire up a bunch of T8 or T12 fluorescent fixtures but it wouldn't be nearly as cool.

 

Trying to light up large spaces with low ceilings (only ~80 inches), can lights are definitely not the ideal solution. My ceilings are totally open as well so can lights would look goofy. Either LED strips to the underside of the joists or fluorescents mounted to them are the best unfinished basement solutions.

Jase, 12vdc here

 

Everything I've rewired in my house is 12/2, outlets, lights, everything. All 20A receptacles, some 15A and some 20A breakers. Electricity is something I don't mess with because it can cause a fire quickly.

 

...but this is an LED lighting circuit that runs on 12vdc. Soldering 12ga solid core is going to suck so I'm between 14ga and 12ga stranded... there's a 2x price differential between them.

If you're doing two 15A power supplies, you can get by with 14ga. If you were to try to run all the strips off a 25A power supply, you would need 10ga. Wire gauge is based on amperage, not wattage, hence why high-amp circuits on 12V automotive systems need thick gauge wire.

 

I think I'm going to break them up into 3-strip "circuits" and run them off a 30A supply... possibly fuse them to get around the 25A limit. Each 3-strip circuit should only draw about 8 amps (2.5A per strip supposedly) which would allow me to get away with 14GA as long as I keep the runs under 20 feet or so. I keep going back and forth on this... a single 30A supply is $18 where as 20A supplies are $17 or more.

 

I see a lot of conflicting info regarding acceptable voltage drop (anywhere from 3% to 10%) so it factors into the wire size. The power supply is adjustable up to 14.8V so I can get around whatever drop, I just don't want it to heat up too much and cause issues. I should fuse these after the power supply...

Well, I think I've figured out what I'm going to do for shelving and my work bench. I've also likely figured out my lighting plan and it's cheaper than buying a bunch of fluorescent T8 fixtures.

 

LED Lighting DIY

eBay LED Light Strips

 

Combining eBay and Amazon, I can get eight 5m strips of those LEDs, some 12-14ga wire, double sided foam tape, and a couple 15A 12vdc power supplies and light almost my entire basement for about $100. It seems the only code I have to adhere to for low voltage DC is I'm limited to 25A per circuit, regardless of (low) voltage. Running 8 of those strips will require ~20-22A so I think I'm going to grab two 15A power supplies and run them off a single switched outlet to guarantee I'm limited to less than 25A if it ever comes up.

 

I would need a minimum of five more 2-bulb T8 direct-wire fixtures at ~$22 each, romex, and bulbs which would run $150+ and be far more inefficient. I have four T12 fixtures now, 2-bulb each, and they're the plug-in type so I just wired up a string of switched outlets to power them but I want something a little more permanent than outlets in the joists.

 

Shelves

 

I pretty much used those plans - more or less a shopping list - to make the shelves I already have. I'm going to mount the legs on the outside to make plywood installation easier and have *just* that much more space on the shelves. You can build two sets of those shelves for about $150. That should be enough space for all of our junk in the basement and then some.

If you don't smoke then the risk is a lot lower. The fibers combined with the toxic chemicals from tobacco is a real killer.

 

Nonsmoker here.

 

I'm not really worried about it... I'm still in my 20s (barely) so I'm riding that "I'm invincible" mindset for a little while longer.

I've probably removed asbestos from this house without knowing... Definitely didn't test for it either. I know even one exposure can cause health problems but I keep telling myself that long exposure over many years or decades (old ships or factories, etc) is what usually leads to cancer/asbestosis... Not removing 60 square feet of flooring once.

I don't want to cover it with anything because it's in my basement... If I have water problems in the future, that new floor will be ruined.

My neighbor had similar tile but half as much... he said his all popped up whole, 99% of the time so no (minimal) fibers floating around. The mastic had to be chipped off the floor with a 6" chisel which I'd rather not do.

 

I thought about soaking them with a hose and soap, popping them up, asbestos-friendly landfill, and then getting one of those wet concrete grinders and grinding the mastic off but that all seems like a TON of work (even more mess) and something that just makes sense to pay someone to do it the totally right way.

 

The tiles are in good condition so I thought about leaving them too... just a couple popping toward the corner where I had a water problem a long time ago. Part of the reason for moving the work bench there was sweeping up dust and such is a lot easier on those tiles than on concrete, wiping up paint, etc, but then I've read constantly sweeping could fray the edges of the tiles and get fibers in the air...

I attached a quick doodle of my basement, kind of to scale. I known for a fact that the space I have to play with (currently totally empty) is 17x25 with about 25x12 covered in 9x9", likely asbestos floor tile.

 

I thought about putting more shelves in that corner, moving the work bench over there along with more shelves... All kinds of stuff. If I move the work bench, l might frame in a little room where the current bench is and make a man cave out of it - wall it off from the steps toward the furnace, then straight toward the cellar.

 

Any idea what asbestos abatement costs for flooring?

The feet were made out of some scrap pressure treated 2x4s I had. Everything I plan on building in my basement that contacts the floor will be pressure treated or somehow isolated from the concrete after seeing what moisture does to wood (my old steps)...

 

I plan on building another two sets of these, just 8 feet long each, 4 shelves high, to store other junk on, just to the right of where these current shelves are. I have an odd length of basement wall between the current shelf and to the right that I'm not totally sure what to do with. Work bench, more shelves/storage, etc... I haven't decided.

I built a thing to clean up some things.

 

Yes, the fasteners are bearing the load but I'm not storing engine components or cinder blocks on these, so there's not much load/weight on them.

 

I somehow bought the 92-5/8 studs versus the 8 footers sooooo these aren't quite 48" long - 46" - but I used up the extra sheet of OSB I had leaned on the wall. Good for getting mostly holiday stuff up out of the way.

 

I found some plans that I slightly modified for my use/space. If you want to build the full width ones, two 4x8 sheets of plywood or OSB, 13 2x4s, box of 2.5" deck screws totaling ~$85, plus a couple hours gets you 4 shelves, 2 feet deep by 8 feet long plus 4 legs. Pretty cheap for the amount of space you get - twice the storage space for the same price when compared to those wire rack kits.

Welp, stairs are done. I didn't realize until the second tread was on that I had a massive brain fart aaaaand something was screwed up. I misread the stair calculator website I used and my treads were 1/2" too short on the depth. I was planning on using a 2x10 for a 9.25" deep tread to satisfy the 9" code minimum. With my rise/run, I actually needed treads 9.75" deep to meet my 3/4" target nosing, so as it is, I only have a 1/4" nose... figured I'd confess I goofed up before some astute person in here notices "Hey, something looks off"...

 

Should anyone be building steps in the future, I think these two sites are great. I stole the "hanger board" idea from the first link and used the second one to calculate/lay out my stringers.

 

http://www.carpentry-pro-framer.com/stairs.html

http://www.blocklayer.com/stairs/StairsEng.aspx

 

 

Pic 1: The hole or trench or whatever you want to call it in the floor. It looks like they used brick remnants to make a foundation for the stringers and then poured the floor. Yuck. I patched this up and waiting for it to dry before installing the stringers.

 

Pic 2: Starting point, before hanger board installed.

 

Pic 3: Hanger board in, copious amounts of glue and screws. Rickety wood ladder to get in and out for the time being.

 

Pic 4 & 5: Stringers in. I didn't get a picture of the "cleat" I put at the bottom to keep the stringers from washing out, but there's a pressure treated 2x4 under the last tread that's screwed to the concrete. Again, tons of glue anywhere there is wood/wood contact because I don't want any squeaks.

 

Pic 6 & 7: Finished product

 

Pic 8: Pour one out for my Diablo demo/framing blade... I broke a carbide tip off one of the teeth, somehow.

 

Just need some trim work, put up some walls going down the steps, bead board, and I'm going to call it done. Then I can start building shelves and a new work bench.

I only bought two 2x12s. I made sure I marked them correctly before cutting because I didn't want to have to borrow my neighbor's truck again to buy another

 

I goofed up a couple cuts (kerf on the wrong side of the line) but for the most part, they came out pretty good for my first try. The basement floor not being level side to side doesn't help.

Same. I'll look into the Bosch blades

Already have an oscilating multitool. I haven't found a wood blade I like so I don't use it much as a saw... Cuts too slowly. It's great for sanding in tight spots so it gets a ton of use there.

 

Jase, I'm not scared about these steps... Just not looking forward to the finish trim work. After putting in a small half bath in my basement, I found I like framing and doing "rougher" things like that. I'm looking forward to building some shelves and a new work bench this winter.

 

I've read stair DIYs and howtos and know how to use a set of stair buttons so I think I'll be good. The extra cost here just doesn't seem worth it.

Welp, I'm moving forward with my basement stair project. I did some of the demo tonight, and got a little discouraged but I need to do this. I also *finally* found the required stair codes so I can make sure everything I do meets code.

 

• Minimum tread depth (including nosing) = 9"
  
• Maximum rise = 8-1/4"
  
• Nosing (unless tread is greater than 11") must be between 3/4" and 1-1/4"
  

 

Risers and treads can't vary by more than 3/8" (shortest riser compared to tallest, etc), which should be simple with my stair buttons and using 2x10s as treads.

 

What discouraged me during my partial demo was that I confirmed my fear = the basement footer was poured, gravel dumped in, stairs built, then the floor was poured. The stringers rotted out because they were partially encased in concrete and open to the world (dirt, water) on the bottom. Carnage is in the first two pictures. I have the second tread braced from underneath to support the entire thing so it's not dangling by the landing at the top.

 

Third picture shows my limitations. I can't make the stairs wider, and technically they don't meet code width right now, but I can't fix it. The steel beam supports a load bearing wall on the left, header bottom left supports the stringers for the steps going to the second floor, and the header to the right supports another load bearing wall in my kitchen. Currently the treads are about 33" wide, code if I'm reading right is 36" minimum. They'll be slightly narrower once I rebuild them because I'm going to use a fascia board to make doing trim work easier later.

 

Last picture shows my plumb bob telling me where my bottom nose is going to be. I'm going to patch the hole in my floor and bring the stringers out so the plug of cement isn't supporting the weight of the steps. I'll probably cut the stringers out around a 2x6 or something, Tapcon the 2x6 to the floor, and toe nail the stringers to that. I haven't totally figured that one out yet, but I'm sure I'll come up with something over-engineered and robust.

 

Right now, the weekend goal is finish demo, patch the hole, and get some functional stairs built by Sunday night. I'll worry about trim work and finishing stuff later. I'm going to build some simple walls and put up some bead board going down the steps to make everything look a bit nicer and make it look like a normal stairway, versus now where it was mostly open (no walls) for the bottom 6 treads.

 

Materials for functional steps is looking to be about $125 including a hand saw to finish cutting stringers so I don't "over cut" them with the circular saw. This guarantees the project will actually cost $400.

Here you guys are, using riding mowers for 1/4 and 1/2 acres, and I'm thinking my 20" Toro self propelled push mower is too big for my 1/8 acre

 

I could use a weed whacker to cut my front yard, I think.

I should mention, that basement mold remediation was totally separate from my bathroom leak, although it was a big water leak nonetheless.

 

I haven't the slightest idea what my homeowner's insurance covers other than $5,000 in medical bills for people injured on my property so I make sure my steps are shoveled and salted in the winter for the mailman and that I don't have any of my dillhole friends over to feign injuries on my steps until I can shovel them.

 

I think it'd be worth a call to your agent, honestly.