To Those that own a house

[JohnnyDrfiter22]

Recently I just bought a house, its 50+ yrs old. I'm remodeling and doing a lot of repairs. I like to do things myself so those that own a house where do you find your info to help repair your house, library, internet, Lowes?? We should also post some house pix and your projects!

[exitspeed]

I remodeled my entire home. I used the internet for a lot of things (building an arbor, making concrete countertops, etc) but I also have a lot of friends and family that are experienced in a lot of different things which helped a ton. we get a lot of inspiration from magazines and catalogs like Crate and Barrel, Martha Stewart, etc. Here's how it turned out.

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/hs472.ash1/25915_1264649022053_1404585470_30609357_1906209_n. jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/hs472.ash1/25915_1264648982052_1404585470_30609356_371126_n.j pg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/hs472.ash1/25915_1264648942051_1404585470_30609355_2819143_n. jpg
http://hphotos-sjc1.fbcdn.net/hs472.snc3/25915_1264648902050_1404585470_30609354_8004817_n. jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs452.snc3/25915_1264647822023_1404585470_30609350_5631639_n. jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/hs472.ash1/25915_1264647782022_1404585470_30609349_634731_n.j pg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs452.snc3/25915_1264647742021_1404585470_30609348_2109003_n. jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/hs472.ash1/25915_1264647662019_1404585470_30609347_1836739_n. jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs472.snc3/25915_1264647622018_1404585470_30609346_7995127_n. jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs452.snc3/25915_1264646902000_1404585470_30609342_7697101_n. jpg
http://hphotos-sjc1.fbcdn.net/hs452.snc3/25915_1264646821998_1404585470_30609341_1266645_n. jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/hs472.ash1/25915_1264646781997_1404585470_30609340_171427_n.j pg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs472.snc3/25915_1264646741996_1404585470_30609339_141986_n.j pg
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http://hphotos-snc3.fbcdn.net/hs452.snc3/25915_1264645621968_1404585470_30609337_74970_n.jp g
http://hphotos-snc3.fbcdn.net/hs452.snc3/25915_1264645581967_1404585470_30609336_4819158_n. jpg
http://hphotos-snc3.fbcdn.net/hs452.snc3/25915_1264645541966_1404585470_30609335_4077318_n. jpg
http://hphotos-sjc1.fbcdn.net/hs472.snc3/25915_1264645501965_1404585470_30609334_4874443_n. jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/hs472.ash1/25915_1264645421963_1404585470_30609333_5676724_n. jpg

[GenPac]

Knowing folks in the industry is ideal, IMO. It's nice to bounce ideas off of friends that are knowledgeable in specific disciplines (Electrical, plumbing, carpentry) Some of the folks that staff Lowes and HD are really helpful, then there are some that are simply useless. You can usually tell right away which ones are sharp. :bow:

[Sam_Well.13]

i worked at the home depot for 5 yrs.... well, thats where all i got my skills from.. i build my dad his backyard and a patio, along with a fire pit, fountain and i turned one of the garage into an insulated extra room.

[DeathMetal]

Exitspeed, you have a beautiful home.

I hope one day to have something that size, in that style.

We share similar tastes

[Daniel.]

Melbourne Howard Russell your house is awesome.

[cxlo8331]

beautiful home exit!

[Dirty Habit]

Exitspeed, how much of that house came from Menards?

[sickstatus]

damn exitspeed. nice house!

motivation for me ahaha.

just need to finish up my RN licenses already.

[Slammed180]

I'm in the trades, and alot of my friends are in other trades. I do tile, my room-mate is an electrician, other buddy is a framer, brother-in-law is a plumber etc....

So, doing shit around the house is pretty easy.

My only project on the go right now, is a recessed tv unit in my bedroom. When i'm done, I'll have a 37" LED TV wall mounted to be flush with the rest of the wall. I'll be watching porn in style.

[g6civcx]

Don't overdo permanent, hard to undo "mods" if you don't plan on holding the property forever. A lot of first time homeowners make that mistake and find it hard to sell their house.

FYI, I flip at least 2-3 houses a season. This is speaking from almost 10 years of owning property and flipping dozens of houses.

For 99% of the people, I recommend saving as much of your money as possible in the beginning if you don't know what you want to do.

The very first thing other than to check for material defects in the home (e.g. frame/foundation, structure, roof, wiring, plumbing, etc.). You should have already checked these things when you first bought the home.

If not for whatever reason, you should do a home inspection for informative purposes.

Whatever is deficient shoud be fixed to bring the house up to code.


The very first "mod" I recommend you do is to bring the electricals up to code. I don't know your area or if your house is grandfathered in for exemption, but it's always good to bring your wiring up to code.

Most likely you'll have to upgrade your fusebox to a newer style breaker. You may also have to redo your grounding system.

While you do this, think hard about what kind of electrical accessories you will be adding to the house. It's really hard to go back later and run new circuits if you haven't made wiring provisions. Mostly since residential wiring is really hard to get to with wires buried behind walls and such.

The second thing would be to do the same with your plumbing. Whatever expansions you plan on doing later should be supported by the plumbing.

It really pays to take care of these things first so you don't spend a LOT of money later on.


Then you can start looking at upgrading the appliances like energy-efficient heat pump, water heater, washer/dryer, fridge, dishwasher, etc.

For most people I would say stop there. Whatever crazy cosmetic mods you want to do should be deferred until you have a good grasp on you financial situation, your area, your taste, etc.


If you want to add some value to your home then you can start looking at minor cosmetic ornamental changes to the bathroom and kitchen.


Most people should really spend like a year planning whatever mods they want to do. Then plan your supporting mods very carefully and make sure you have the proper permit to bring your house up to code.

The actual construction itself is the last thing you do. Most people make the mistake of doing the construction first and finding that they're not properly prepared for whatever reason and a small job turns into major big bucks.


If you have any specific questions I'd be glad to bounce ideas for you.

One other thought. I've seen a lot of very nice houses done up wrong because they didn't know or took shortcuts. You can't sell a house or even live in one that has code violation(s).

I've seen a lot of these houses under foreclosure because the owner doesn't have money to go back and fix the house to code after they took out a major home equity loan and have no money left.

I remodeled my entire home. I used the internet for a lot of things (building an arbor, making concrete countertops, etc) but I also have a lot of friends and family that are experienced in a lot of different things which helped a ton. we get a lot of inspiration from magazines and catalogs like Crate and Barrel, Martha Stewart, etc. Here's how it turned out.

I really like the open floorplan, big driveway, offset garage, and the lot. Nice job.

It's nice that you can live in an area that can get you good value on your property.

Beats living in a metro area where everything is a major rat race to get a small parcel.

[ManoNegra]

Nice house Mel
but you didn't take a picture of the most important are (to me at least)
the garage

[exitspeed]

Exitspeed, how much of that house came from Menards?

Actually, mostly Home Depot. It was closer for most of my remodeling.


Nice house Mel
but you didn't take a picture of the most important are (to me at least)
the garage

Garage is nothing special. I haven't gotten to it yet. Only thing special about the garage is the access to the Zombie Bunker.

[DJPimpFlex]

Lol when I saw this thread I was like, "Exitspeed should chime in". I remember his house being bangin from some thread awhile back.

[lalo167]

I remodeled my entire home. I used the internet for a lot of things (building an arbor, making concrete countertops, etc) but I also have a lot of friends and family that are experienced in a lot of different things which helped a ton. we get a lot of inspiration from magazines and catalogs like Crate and Barrel, Martha Stewart, etc. Here's how it turned out.

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/hs472.ash1/25915_1264649022053_1404585470_30609357_1906209_n. jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/hs472.ash1/25915_1264648982052_1404585470_30609356_371126_n.j pg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/hs472.ash1/25915_1264648942051_1404585470_30609355_2819143_n. jpg
http://hphotos-sjc1.fbcdn.net/hs472.snc3/25915_1264648902050_1404585470_30609354_8004817_n. jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs452.snc3/25915_1264647822023_1404585470_30609350_5631639_n. jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/hs472.ash1/25915_1264647782022_1404585470_30609349_634731_n.j pg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs452.snc3/25915_1264647742021_1404585470_30609348_2109003_n. jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/hs472.ash1/25915_1264647662019_1404585470_30609347_1836739_n. jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs472.snc3/25915_1264647622018_1404585470_30609346_7995127_n. jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs452.snc3/25915_1264646902000_1404585470_30609342_7697101_n. jpg
http://hphotos-sjc1.fbcdn.net/hs452.snc3/25915_1264646821998_1404585470_30609341_1266645_n. jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/hs472.ash1/25915_1264646781997_1404585470_30609340_171427_n.j pg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs472.snc3/25915_1264646741996_1404585470_30609339_141986_n.j pg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs472.snc3/25915_1264646701995_1404585470_30609338_5909292_n. jpg
http://hphotos-snc3.fbcdn.net/hs452.snc3/25915_1264645621968_1404585470_30609337_74970_n.jp g
http://hphotos-snc3.fbcdn.net/hs452.snc3/25915_1264645581967_1404585470_30609336_4819158_n. jpg
http://hphotos-snc3.fbcdn.net/hs452.snc3/25915_1264645541966_1404585470_30609335_4077318_n. jpg
http://hphotos-sjc1.fbcdn.net/hs472.snc3/25915_1264645501965_1404585470_30609334_4874443_n. jpg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/hs472.ash1/25915_1264645421963_1404585470_30609333_5676724_n. jpg


Wow this is gorgeous bro! Nice work, and or the op, best would be skill and mind.

[cc4usmc]

Stop quoting pics tard. Exit, any before pics?

[saleaf]

I just bought a brand new house last September. Ive done so much already. And have so much to do still. My favorite thing to work on is electrical, its in my blood. I'm a wiring wizard.

[shift_jin]

i used my neighbors as a networking tool. i had my next door neighbor's brother fix my AC. i have another neighbor who is a RN who sees my children on small stuff. i get a discount at Lowes too.

[Agamemnon]

Don't overdo permanent, hard to undo "mods" if you don't plan on holding the property forever. A lot of first time homeowners make that mistake and find it hard to sell their house.

FYI, I flip at least 2-3 houses a season. This is speaking from almost 10 years of owning property and flipping dozens of houses.

For 99% of the people, I recommend saving as much of your money as possible in the beginning if you don't know what you want to do.

The very first thing other than to check for material defects in the home (e.g. frame/foundation, structure, roof, wiring, plumbing, etc.). You should have already checked these things when you first bought the home.

If not for whatever reason, you should do a home inspection for informative purposes.

Whatever is deficient shoud be fixed to bring the house up to code.


The very first "mod" I recommend you do is to bring the electricals up to code. I don't know your area or if your house is grandfathered in for exemption, but it's always good to bring your wiring up to code.

Most likely you'll have to upgrade your fusebox to a newer style breaker. You may also have to redo your grounding system.

While you do this, think hard about what kind of electrical accessories you will be adding to the house. It's really hard to go back later and run new circuits if you haven't made wiring provisions. Mostly since residential wiring is really hard to get to with wires buried behind walls and such.

The second thing would be to do the same with your plumbing. Whatever expansions you plan on doing later should be supported by the plumbing.

It really pays to take care of these things first so you don't spend a LOT of money later on.


Then you can start looking at upgrading the appliances like energy-efficient heat pump, water heater, washer/dryer, fridge, dishwasher, etc.

For most people I would say stop there. Whatever crazy cosmetic mods you want to do should be deferred until you have a good grasp on you financial situation, your area, your taste, etc.


If you want to add some value to your home then you can start looking at minor cosmetic ornamental changes to the bathroom and kitchen.


Most people should really spend like a year planning whatever mods they want to do. Then plan your supporting mods very carefully and make sure you have the proper permit to bring your house up to code.

The actual construction itself is the last thing you do. Most people make the mistake of doing the construction first and finding that they're not properly prepared for whatever reason and a small job turns into major big bucks.


If you have any specific questions I'd be glad to bounce ideas for you.

One other thought. I've seen a lot of very nice houses done up wrong because they didn't know or took shortcuts. You can't sell a house or even live in one that has code violation(s).

I've seen a lot of these houses under foreclosure because the owner doesn't have money to go back and fix the house to code after they took out a major home equity loan and have no money left.



I really like the open floorplan, big driveway, offset garage, and the lot. Nice job.

It's nice that you can live in an area that can get you good value on your property.

Beats living in a metro area where everything is a major rat race to get a small parcel.

WTF mang. Your entire post had nothing to do with the OP's question.
He asked about gaining knowledge on home remodels and repairs, not what's the best "mods" for his house.

Seriously, you got to stop making yourself look like gods gift to the world. Every post you make you start off like you know everything. God damn.

[HalveBlue]

WTF mang. Your entire post had nothing to do with the OP's question.
He asked about gaining knowledge on home remodels and repairs, not what's the best "mods" for his house.

Seriously, you got to stop making yourself look like gods gift to the world. Every post you make you start off like you know everything. God damn.

Actually, it sounds like he knows what he's doing, and giving out some pretty good advice at that.

Why are you so offended?

How many houses have you flipped?

[Agamemnon]

Actually, it sounds like he knows what he's doing, and giving out some pretty good advice at that.

Why are you so offended?

How many houses have you flipped?

I have no doubt that he knows what he's doing. But that's not what the OP asked for.

I'm not offended at all. I just want to know why he posted such a long post about something that has nothing to do with the thread at hand.

[1ZlowZ]

His post is actually related to OPs question in a way. Just telling him what not to do when remodeling so it doesn't bite him in the ass later. He is telling OP what to do so it helps it out later.

[g6civcx]

Thank you mods for merging my posts. After posting I realised that I should have merged the posts, but by then the damage has already been done.

WTF mang. Your entire post had nothing to do with the OP's question.
He asked about gaining knowledge on home remodels and repairs, not what's the best "mods" for his house.

Seriously, you got to stop making yourself look like gods gift to the world. Every post you make you start off like you know everything. God damn.

I'll respond to your second comment first.

First, I do not apologise for your perception. I do not make myself out to be anything more than I am.

Second, I did not say that my way is the only way, or even the right way. People are free to believe what they want.

Third, I know a lot about a very small number of topics. Unlike many people, I do not comment on topics that I do not have in-depth knowledge. Look at the hundreds if not thousands of threads in Off Topic. I stay out of most of them if I have no idea what I'm talking about.

As per your first comment, the OP asked:

where do you find your info to help repair your house, library, internet, Lowes??

You are correct that I was slightly off-topic, but again this is the Off Topic forum, so being off-topic somewhat is not as important as other sections.

To make my comments more relevant to the OP's question:

I find my info to help repair my house from my 10 years of experience flipping millions of dollars in real estate. There is no real teacher like experience.

Knowing HOW to do various things is not hard. You can learn it by reading books or the Internet, taking classes/seminars, doing apprenticeships, etc. Find what works for you.

I personally have a set of various experts that I can consult with. I have licensed electricians, plumbers, general contractors, and realtors/brokers that I consult for general questions.

For specialised skills (e.g. HVAC, granite, tile, drywall, hardwood, etc.), I can get references from my general contractors.

Knowing WHAT to do requires a different set of skills. Nobody can really tell me what to do other than me trying a bunch of different things and falling on my face and learning from my mistakes.

From your simple question I anticipated that you will run into a lot of problems new homeowners usually encounter. I hope that I am wrong, but I gave you some advice to help focus your efforts. You can take it for what it's worth.

I took a little bit of my time to pass my experience on to you. If you don't like it or disagree then it's fine. I am not asking for any recognition.

I just want you to be successful in the things you do. Much joy and success to your home owning experience.

[JohnnyDrfiter22]

Hey Beautiful home Exitspeed!!! i really like the Tile, kitchen and baths!

G6Civcx great info, im definately looking into replacing my electrical already.

Maybe soon ill post some pix of my projects and house.

[WanganRunner]

Exit did some great work.


My house was built in 2005, so no "code" work and not much else to do. I'd like to maybe do countertops and hardwood floors though. No idea how to do either one.

[ZilviaKid]

exitspeed, you should carpet your garage like a baller haha.

but seriously that looks gorgeous

[BOROSUN]

nice nuatral colors and french door to the dining area.

[g6civcx]

Exit did some great work.


My house was built in 2005, so no "code" work and not much else to do. I'd like to maybe do countertops and hardwood floors though. No idea how to do either one.

Who was the builder? In our area homes built after the 90s are generally crap and don't have the same quality as homes built earlier.

Also just because it was recently new doesn't mean it doesn't have code violations. I watched the construction of a lot of new homes in our area in the 05-06 range and what I saw pretty much disgusted me. The build quality is pretty much crap.


I hate residential contractors in general. They as a whole are generally incompetent and just want to rip you off.

I use commercial contractors almost exclusively.


Granite is not a big deal. They can probably do it one day if you do standard stuff.

I generally don't like hardwood in my personal house. I'd just throw carpet and rip it out to install hardwood when I sell the house.

[exitspeed]

Thanks again everyone. Glad you like it. We've been remodeling the house for 5 years.



Granite is not a big deal. They can probably do it one day if you do standard stuff.


I'm not a fan of off the shelf granite. You can tell the difference. If I had to do it over again I'd do my counter tops in concrete. I did the master bath countertop and it is inexpensive and pretty easy. If you hire someone to do it though it can cost just as much as granite. If I would have done my kitchen myself in concrete I could have done it for a quarter of what my granite cost.

[sleep]

Wow this is gorgeous bro! Nice work, and or the op, best would be skill and mind.

edit those pics out of your post. Quoting pics is retarded

[g6civcx]

I'm not a fan of off the shelf granite. You can tell the difference. If I had to do it over again I'd do my counter tops in concrete. I did the master bath countertop and it is inexpensive and pretty easy. If you hire someone to do it though it can cost just as much as granite. If I would have done my kitchen myself in concrete I could have done it for a quarter of what my granite cost.

I'm not a fan of granite either. I actually prefer vinyl in my own home for low cost and maintenance. I don't really give a crap what my personal house looks like.

The average buyer though always go crazy over granite.

[axiomatik]

I considered granite for my kitchen. I didn't want to go with laminate since we will be selling the house in a few years, and as mentioned, people go gaga for granite. Instead, though, I went with a Quartz countertop (specifically, CaesarStone (http://www.caesarstoneus.com/)). It has the look and feel of granite, but isn't porous like granite, so it won't stain or get water spots.

OP, when you have a specific question, the internet is a great resource. If you need general information, for example, if you want to tile a floor, but have no idea how to do it, DIY books are a great resource. All home improvement stores sell them, or get them from the library. Workshops at Home Depot would also be helpful for hands-on experience.

[exitspeed]

I considered granite for my kitchen. I didn't want to go with laminate since we will be selling the house in a few years, and as mentioned, people go gaga for granite. Instead, though, I went with a Quartz countertop (specifically, CaesarStone (http://www.caesarstoneus.com/)). It has the look and feel of granite, but isn't porous like granite, so it won't stain or get water spots.



That was one thing that I must say about granite is that a lot of people said how porous and how easy it stains and how much work it is to keep in maintained...we don't have any stains or any other issues with ours now after 4 years. I'm really happy with the granite we have. Concrete does stain though, so that is something that needs to be considered. In my master bath I did a distressed look tot he concrete so any stains or imperfections are hardly noticeable.

[5pecialist]

It's like building a 240sx - just do it!

[driftsilvias13]

I am saving my ass off to buy a house. Fuck cars I need to sell my 240 already.

[initial_jc]

Sick job, looks dope

im probably going to buy a house soon.

[t_rempel]

I did custom cabinetry for a couple years and I'm just gonna chime in real quick on granite.
People love granite becaues it is an incredibly well rounded material for countertops.
It's incredibly durable and resists scratching very, very well. That cannot be said for granite wanna be surfaces such as corian.
The porous nature of the stone can depend on the quality of the seal job done by the granite shop and maintenance is a once a year thing. Like anything else, you often get what you pay for. Do your research on shops and ask for references.

The owners of the business I worked at used granite in their homes... but that's just their professional experience talking.

PS, your place looks great exitspeed. any before photos?

[DataXUnknown]

I wish you could find places (of that size) here in socal for a decent price. Unfortunetly, you'd be lucky to have half of that front lawn from exitspeed's pictures. I'm curious what kind of price does a house like that go for in WI? And did you save up for sometime or have a job that keeps you financially pretty stable? I want to start planning for the future, don't know whether to start saving now or just go with the flow of things.

[JDMS13Louie]

I wish you could find places (of that size) here in socal for a decent price. Unfortunetly, you'd be lucky to have half of that front lawn from exitspeed's pictures. I'm curious what kind of price does a house like that go for in WI? And did you save up for sometime or have a job that keeps you financially pretty stable? I want to start planning for the future, don't know whether to start saving now or just go with the flow of things.

A lot of the houses in lake Elsinore, Victorville, or Bakersfield are like that

[driftsilvias13]

A lot of the houses in lake Elsinore, Victorville, or Bakersfield are like that

Yeah but who the fuck wants to live out there?!

[whiterps13]

I wish you could find places (of that size) here in socal for a decent price. Unfortunetly, you'd be lucky to have half of that front lawn from exitspeed's pictures. I'm curious what kind of price does a house like that go for in WI? And did you save up for sometime or have a job that keeps you financially pretty stable? I want to start planning for the future, don't know whether to start saving now or just go with the flow of things.

Here in Rockford, Illinois (90 NW of Chicago) a nice, 1500 square feet house with a decent sized yard and decent overall condition will go for anywhere from 90k to 150k.

Fully custom, 4000+ square feet homes are hardly in the 500k's.

Its amazing what getting away from the big cities and coasts can do for home prices. They are unreal cheap around here.

[0100]

Wow, awesome house exit!!

[WanganRunner]

Wow, this came back from the dead.


I'd like stainless steel countertops like in a commercial kitchen, but it wouldn't go with the rest of my place. Other than some work in the garage, I'm probably not doing anything to my place, as I'll likely be moving in 2-4 years.

[initial_jc]

im looking for a house in bakersfield,

i was wondering about countertops, can the grout be cleaned up?

the house i was looking at the grout is F'ed lookes alll red, it was originally white.

[fckillerbee]

exitspeed...you house looks like the one my dads old house that we fixed up from literally a shit hole...leaned on the wall...fell right through it. haha..

gorgeous work by the way. Its probably one of the biggest accomplishments to sit back...have a beer...and say I built this with my own two hands...haha


My dad was in construction...my mother in law just picked up different designer magazines. You can get all that info on the internet..just search for the style of housing you want to build. And take your time. it took us about 3 years to complete. working almost everyweekend.

FYI...fuck leveling a yard. we went through 8 truckloads just to get it even....but the banana trees in sand surrounded by big gray rocks...looked soooo pretty in a green backyard. And palmtrees are gorgeous in my opinion.

[fckillerbee]

im looking for a house in bakersfield,

i was wondering about countertops, can the grout be cleaned up?

the house i was looking at the grout is F'ed lookes alll red, it was originally white.


honestly...it's really easy to do counters. Its the foundation that has to support whichever weight you end up with. So make sure your cabnets are strong and not rotted/termite infected.

Shit...building cabnets isn't even that hard...just get the right tools...practice a little bit on cutting...find the right stain for the wood. Spend extra money on good sliders(for the drawers) and rebuild it.

In my fathers house, we blew out the wall inbetween the kitchen and living room and made a bar out of it...just don't cut down the main support beams. haha. that would suck.

but if you don't want to do all that work...you can scrape out the grout...and re-grout it. grout is really messy...so plan for that.

[initial_jc]

i think we might scrap it off and regrout for the time being untill we can afford a sick countertop

[JohnnyDrfiter22]

Initial JC they make a grout cleaner, taking it out and re grouting might be more work than youd want, your more than likely to damage the tile

Cmon Guys where the other house buildups. Hopefully after this year when im credit card debt free and all i have is my house mortgage ill chime in with my house build.

[axiomatik]

there is already a thread for house build-ups, but it is in the Premium Members section...

[TheWolf]

DIY An Essential Guide to home repair Collection - Demonoid (http://www.demonoid.me/files/details/2479608/10548392/)

this is a great torrent on pretty much everything on home repair. from tiling to brickwork.