denton's Profile
- denton
- 1980
- 2007
- Brooklyn
- Park Slope
- House
- Fluid Sealing, Fluid Transfer , Power Transmission
- Male
- 54
- http://www.pbase.com/dentontay/
Author's Posts
October 27, 2009
Gas Leak
I had an energy audit done yesterday and as part of that they have to check boiler, gas lines, stove, etc for CO, incomplete combustion, and gas leaks. They found two small gas leaks, one at the main shutoff valve, and one at a joint. Both of these are before the meter.
If you put your nose right up to the main valve, you can smell it a bit, the other you can't smell at all. There is no smell at all in the enclosed room where these leaks are so they are tiny. For all I know they've been leaking for twenty years.
I know I should call NG and get them taken care of but I'm worried about my service being shut off for some amount of time. Anyone have experience with a similar situation?
October 15, 2009
Sewage Smell in Basement
I'm getting a sewage smell in the basement, near the clean-out/main street drain, and it's beginning to get on my nerves. I made an enclosed 'meter room' that also has the sewer stuff when I semi-finished the basement. So it's possible the smell always existed but diffused itself away. I don't think so tho.
Recently I had a company come and do a camera inspection of the sewage lines, since we have a tree in front. There were some roots, which were cleaned out, but nothing major. Company said everything was in good shape.
I wonder if there is not enuf flow? It strikes me that there are only the two of us, we put in dual-flush toilets, and did everything else to save water. Never had this problem when there were 6 contractors in the house.
September 30, 2009
Brooklyn Kitchens & Baths
Greetings all:
Anyone who has read my reno blog knows the horrendous time I had getting Brooklyn Kitchens (formerly known as Garfield Kitchens) to deliver what I needed in the way of vanities, fixtures, kitchen cabinets, etc., all of which were paid in advance.
Apparently things have gotten even worse, if that's possible. I have just been contacted by an attorney who is preparing to sue Brian Ackerman on behalf of her client for non-delivery.
She's interested in hearing from other Brownstoners who have similar stories to tell. Her name is Audrey Roth and her email is aroth@convergentgc.com.
September 6, 2009
Ditmas Park Zoning
Hey all:
I have a woman friend with a couple of grown daughters and grandchildren, a sister, and a couple of others, and she wants to gather them all under one roof and live happily ever after.
Therefore she is thinking of buying one of those big Ditmas Park houses. But I suspect she thinks she can put in several apartments with individual kitchens and baths. I suspect not.
She's currently living in a nabe where the DOB never comes by and people do what they want. I don't think Ditmas Park is like that.
Are those big DP houses one family, two family, multiple dwellings? Whats the zoning and what is typical for a c of o in those big houses?
July 16, 2009
South Slope / GH Dog Run
Dear Greenwood Heights/South Slope residents:
Some of your neighbors are working to establish an official dog run in the area alongside the Prospect Expressway between 6th and 7th Avenues. A couple of areas there have been used as dog runs for years, but recently enforcement agents have been ticketing dog owners who use these areas. That’s a $100 fine.
We are working with CB7 and Parks Department representatives to make this happen. An official dog run these days needs to have both water and fencing. We have identified two areas that have fencing but no water, and two areas with water but no fencing. With enough support from the community and CB7, Parks will send an engineer to study the areas and will hopefully pick a specific place to create the dog run.
The details and maps are located here:
http://www.pbase.com/dentontay/dog_run
We are asking our neighbors to sign an on-line petition to show that the dog run has the support of the community. The petition can be found at:
http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/ghdg
You don’t have to have a dog to believe that a dog run is a good thing for the neighborhood. In fact we even accept signatures from cat owners! A legitimate dog run reduces the number of people who unleash their dogs elsewhere as they now have a legal place to exercise their dogs.
While we appreciate everyone’s support, we need people who sign the petition to be from the South Slope/Greenwood Heights nabe.
Thanks!
June 13, 2009
Visit from Consumer Affairs
Hey all:
I called in a restoration and construction company (Basonas Construction) to do some minor masonry work. We had cut thru the side of the house to install venting for the new boiler, and to install a sump pump, and the holes were not neatly done, so I wanted them bricked up and sealed appropriately, and also there was a piece of bulging stucco I wanted fixed.
I've worked with Basonas before on some major seven figure projects, and I like them. And the owner likes me, so when I need something like this done, I call him.
When I bought the house early on, he did a parapet wall, sealed up one exterior door, and opened up and installed another, and for that I had paid him $7500.
This was a small job, a few manhours, a few bricks, a little stucco and cement, so the owner told me he'd just do me a favor. That doesn't mean I won't throw him a couple of exceptional bottles of wine, or some cash, or whatever, but normally he does large projects, not homeowner projects like this.
So here's the scene. I'm sitting on my stoop. My wife is gardening in the tree pit. Basonas' very well marked truck is in the driveway, and the worker is visible in the driveway doing work (Semi-detached house, the driveway goes all the way along the side of the house). .
A guy comes strolling down the block, says he's a homeowner up the block, and asks me do I mind if he goes to the worker and gets a card, since he needs some work done. I replied that he was welcome to do so, but I wouldn't count on the worker having a card, and that maybe he should just take the info off the truck.
Then I mentioned that Basonas was good, but not that cheap, he usually doesn't do these kinds of projects, he's doing me a favor, yada yada. Trying to help out a neighbor.
Then I go inside. A few minutes later my wife yells at me to come down, and there's the alleged homeowner along with another large Hispanic gentleman, and they pull out badges and say they’re from the NYC Dept of Consumer Affairs. (Later I found out that they came into the back and started harassing the Hispanic worker, when my wife heard what was going on, she ordered them off the property and told the worker to keep working, all in Spanish, then she called me).
The big guy, who is barely civil, is telling me that Basonas appears not to have a homeowner contractor’s license. I explained that he doesn’t normally do small homeowner jobs and that in the past when I worked with him he had everything he needed in the way of insurance and workers comp etc. I was told he needed a license to work on 3 family and under houses. I reiterated that he was doing me a favor for free and that this was a friend of mine. I also was able to get Basonas’ owner on the phone and put him on with the inspectors. The original guy says that all they’re trying to do is protect the consumer, and if I’m not paying for the work, and I’m satisfied with the work, he’s OK with that.
The big guy says they have photos of the truck and that if they catch him around again doing so-called ‘favors’ for homeowners he’ll be up the creek. But in the end the work wasn’t stopped, no summons was issued, and nothing more happened.
I’m wondering if I should complain about the inspector who used false pretenses to gain access to my property. I’m also wondering if someone called them on me, like my good neighbors. I tend to think not, as a call like that would simply go to the DOB, and I have recent permits. Would a neighbor be sophisticated enuf to write down a contractor name, look up to see if they had a license, and call the right dept at 311? I’m thinking they were just driving around. Watch out!
June 8, 2009
water bill
Hey all:
I posted this in the morning and it didn't show up, maybe it got cleaned out with the spam so if you actually answered it, sorry...
Anyway we've had this house now for a year and a half and still no water bill.
How long does it take for the first one? I'd hate to get a four figure bill at some point.
May 27, 2009
Looking for manufacturing space
Hey all:
I'm looking for a small mfg space, maybe 3000sft m/l. Prefer Sunset Park but am flexible. Anyone know a broker that handles this kind of thing?
May 10, 2009
Stair Rails
Other than the final plumbing inspection, which is still bedeviling us, the stair rails that we had installed here are the last piece of this renovation.
In between, we’ve laid on a few more coats of varnish to the stairs to the basement, as well as to the second floor.
Our GC could not find anyone to do these kinds of rails (he’s a bit old-school) so we ran into Rich and his dad at Luna Welding ( www.lunawelding.com ). Rich is more than a contractor, he’s also an artist working in metals, and his dad is a carpenter. Rich came over and we all discussed the myriad options in posts, rails, and materials (there is a ton of choices) so as always we decided to keep it as simple as possible. Polished steel hardware (sprayed with a sealant to prevent rust), stainless steel cable, and an oak handrail to match the stairs. The price was $6600.
Rich showed up with his crew in a few days and put in the posts, then came back a few days later and finished the job. He even took care of varnishing the railing for us. We’re happy with the results.
Finished product above and here:
http://www.pbase.com/dentontay/image/112358898
A couple of more first floor shots:
http://www.pbase.com/dentontay/image/112358913
http://www.pbase.com/dentontay/image/112358899
And a couple of shots from the second floor:
http://www.pbase.com/dentontay/image/112358901
http://www.pbase.com/dentontay/image/112358902
And some shots my wife took during the process:
http://www.pbase.com/dentontay/image/112358897
http://www.pbase.com/dentontay/image/112358903
http://www.pbase.com/dentontay/image/112358905
http://www.pbase.com/dentontay/image/112358912
During this process we were able to get all our artwork up on the walls, so it’s really feeling like home. The AC guy came by to charge the unit for the first floor, just in time for those 90 degree days, and, we’ve got our library unpacked and put away. Since I haven’t had the luxury of having it all in one place for a number of years, we took advantage of CraigsList to grab a few Billy bookcases locally. Here are some shots of the completed basement library.
http://www.pbase.com/dentontay/image/112358907
http://www.pbase.com/dentontay/image/112358908
http://www.pbase.com/dentontay/image/112358909
http://www.pbase.com/dentontay/image/112358910
(We can’t close the pipe chaise until the final plumbing inspection)
In a couple of weeks I’ll do a final post, detailing the screw-ups we made and things we should have done differently, and that will be it! Time to go back to reading.
May 1, 2009
Need an electrician, I think
Greetings:
I have a friend who's doing psych doctoral work on this old machine. It seems like a cross between a slide projector and an overhead projector. It flashes displays on a screen and the subject has to press a lever with a choice. It probably dates from the 1950s.
Recently the machine has stopped functioning, and my friend thinks it's a frayed or broken wire.
The machine is located on 2nd Ave (Brooklyn) in the 30s. It's a heavy machine, maybe fifty pounds or so, so she needs someone to go in person and see if it can be repaired.
Do you know any likely candidates?
If you fix the machine, not only will you get paid, you'll get a free psych test on the spot! (OK, only kidding on that)
Pls post here or email me thru my profile. TIA.
Author's Comments
Make it a bottle of wine and $5 for the men and it's a deal. Then I'll pay the women back the $5 to do the woman calendar.
Posted by: denton at November 6, 2009 5:35 PM in response to Open Thread
"Is it possible for a woman to have multiples?"
I thought women had multiples, and men didn't.
Posted by: denton at November 6, 2009 5:28 PM in response to Open Thread
"The PLUSA Beefcake Edition. Amzi will be forced to pose for at least 7/12 months. My guess is that Dave will buy many, many calendars. We'll be rich!"
I hope I can do the photography. I'll do the males for twice what I'd charge for the female version.
Posted by: denton at November 6, 2009 5:28 PM in response to Open Thread
my cat is on crack. Must be the way he tears around the house. If I catch him near my stash again I'll wring his skinny Ethiopian neck.
Posted by: denton at November 6, 2009 3:58 PM in response to Open Thread
"This will remove the folks that are "borderline" users (i.e., folks that don't *need* to use them, but do.)"
t6, this is really funny. Do you have any idea how many poor people drive from Brooklyn & Queens to LI every day for mfg jobs? A lot. And I thought you were a friend of the working classes.
Posted by: denton at November 6, 2009 3:56 PM in response to New Kosciuszko Bridge Won't Come Cheap
">>most people know that ARMs are very risky
oh yeah? then why did so many of them get it anyways?"
Cuz they were told by their mortgage broker, their bank, and Alan Greenspan that house prices would only go up, so that in 7 yrs when the ARM resets they would just refi it into another mortgage.
Nothing goes up forever. Note even gold.
Posted by: denton at November 6, 2009 3:36 PM in response to Open Thread
Alright, CATS.
The damn cat is sneezing. Does this mean a trip to the vet? Does the little bastard have swine flu? Do I have to feed him boneless chicken breast with lemongrass soy sauce until he stops?
Posted by: denton at November 6, 2009 2:42 PM in response to Open Thread
ditto, why not give bing a try? If you're using firefox, like you should be, you can just add it to the search engine box. I've been trying it and it often gets cleaner and better results. Not always.
Posted by: denton at November 6, 2009 2:01 PM in response to Open Thread
cmon T6. How can you quantify REAL EFFORT? You're looking to start a bureaucratic disaster. If all this subsidizing bothers you, why not just take a right-wing approach and stop all subsidies to the arts. That would accomplish what you want a lot easier.
Posted by: denton at November 6, 2009 2:00 PM in response to Open Thread
"I don't go around worrying about how much the other guy's got. I just concentrate on how much I can get, and go after it. Much simpler that way."
Yeah ENY. T6 wants to be the next pay and tax czar. Everyone makes too much and pays too little in taxes according to him.
Posted by: denton at November 6, 2009 1:53 PM in response to Open Thread
"Our subway stop was shut down, I got caught in a bottleneck at one of those metal barricades, everyone angry, shoving, trying to get to work or wherever..."
Yeah Noki, worse than St. Patty's day today. All the suburbanites in town doing things they can't do within a mile of their own house.
Posted by: denton at November 6, 2009 1:51 PM in response to Open Thread
congrats. I hope you have a thick skin. Inevitably, especially given the historic nature of he house, some of your design choices will be criticized. Just keep firing away and don't let he haters get to you. And remember you're doing it for yourself, not anyone else.
Good luck!
Posted by: denton at November 6, 2009 1:39 PM in response to Welcome to The Albemarle Reno Blog
JFB, you checked teacher's salaries lately? A pair of them can go over 200k.
Posted by: denton at November 6, 2009 1:37 PM in response to The Albemarle Renovation Blog Launches!
"where they called my husband for a decision, who would have to call me; who would call the plumber/electrician, who would then call my husband back instead of me."
Seems like your husband's fault here, lol. Why didn't your husband just tell the contractor you were in charge, and refuse to discuss it?
Ask him that tonight over dinner :-)
Posted by: denton at November 6, 2009 1:31 PM in response to Contractors & Chauvinism
Working around high end (union) contractors and engineers all day, I agree w eman there is a culture of teasing and fun. It comes from sometimes having your life on the line and your life can often depend on your co-worker. This culture is part of bonding with co-workers who if they do a bad job can cost someone their life.
Having said that sometimes it can go over the line, the whip comment certainly did. You were right to protest.
But if you base your hiring decisions on rejection of this blue collar culture, let's hope you don't end up with the most sensitive yet unskilled contractor in Brooklyn.
Respect in the trades is earned, not given. Snappy did the right thing, she ribbed back, pushed back, and earned respect. Try it.
Don't think that contractors automatically think guys are smart and 'girls' are stupid; any contractor can find out what the client knows in a couple of sentences.
Posted by: denton at November 6, 2009 8:37 AM in response to Contractors & Chauvinism
"Denton, very educated and well thought out answer."
Thanks bp, I didn't spend a lot of time thinking about it, but I do have my own biz and I know what it costs to hire quality staff, pay bennies, keep a truck on the road, and make a profit.
Posted by: denton at November 5, 2009 6:19 PM in response to Cost of Plumbing for Washer?
mopar, seems like a golf club would have come in handy!
Posted by: denton at November 5, 2009 6:12 PM in response to Mouse Infestation - Help!
"I am not disparaging the work of any scientist who is doing research in this field. As I said above, it may turn out that there is indeed global warming."
benson, I'm surprised at you. Are you saying that the earth is not getting warmer? I see what legion is saying, about the modeling aspect and predicting the future and possibly getting it wrong. I suppose that's harder to argue with. But while you can argue that the future is not predictable, you can't argue that the earth has been getting warmer, can you?
Posted by: denton at November 5, 2009 4:24 PM in response to Open Thread
However if Brooklyn Kitchens takes out an ad in the directory Mr. B better not come to the next meetimg :-)
Posted by: denton at November 5, 2009 4:19 PM in response to Brownstoner Directory Reaches Milestone of 50 Listings
Noki, it looks more like the old days of newspapers. If you were a big company you took out an ad on one of the main pages. If you were small you took out an ad in the classifieds in the back. Newspapers may be dying but the paradigm lives :-)
So you got brownstoner.com, which is expensive, and the directory, which is not.
Posted by: denton at November 5, 2009 4:18 PM in response to Brownstoner Directory Reaches Milestone of 50 Listings
legion, it's refreshing to see you and so many others suddenly worried about the deficit, when they didn't seem to care for eight years. Actually it's a good thing we have one now else things would be worse.
Posted by: denton at November 5, 2009 4:12 PM in response to Open Thread
You'd be interested in knowing where Al Gore's investment fund's office is and what he pays for rent. All I can say is sweeeet.
BTW he was at B&N 5th Ave yesterday afternoon, longest line I'd ever seen there.
Posted by: denton at November 5, 2009 4:08 PM in response to Open Thread
"Just curious. I can understand Arkady's rationale, not wanting 4 different people on the lease for business purposes, but can a landlord really dictate, if i qualify for, and sign the lease on my own, who i can let live in the other 2 bedrooms (within reason, if i owned property i wouldn't want my rental unit turning into a flophouse)"
Yes she can. The lease states who will be living in the apt when you sign it. You can't just get a roommate later. But you can get married or have a child. (I see rob's not reading this thread).
Posted by: denton at November 5, 2009 3:56 PM in response to Open Thread
Report it to the precinct, it's a leaving the scene of an accident. Plus you'll need an accident report to file for insurance, and probably to take to the TLC.
Posted by: denton at November 5, 2009 3:47 PM in response to Mrs. B Side-Swiped In The Heights
dh, I believe those fall under protected classes. Not entirely sure. I don't think you can choose not to rent to gay people, cuz that's sexual preference.
You can't discriminate either by not renting to a person with children. Altho there are some rules about having enuf sft per person...
Posted by: denton at November 5, 2009 3:19 PM in response to Open Thread
"Is it illegal for a landlord to advertise a rental and specify "no shares" ??"
Nope. Not a protected category.
Posted by: denton at November 5, 2009 2:38 PM in response to Open Thread
"I have yet to have a bowl of rice that made me wanna f*ck. "
Maybe after that stir-fried rice tonite you will snappy. Especially sine you're inviting people over :-)
Posted by: denton at November 5, 2009 2:35 PM in response to Open Thread
mazda 6 is a nice car. Maybe a tad large 4 u.
Posted by: denton at November 5, 2009 2:29 PM in response to Subway Service on Weekends Is F@#%ed
Can I ask you guys how it works with garden access in this set-up? Does the owner share the garden with the tenant? And allow gardening, entertaining, etc by the tenant? Or does the owner give up access to the garden?
Posted by: denton at November 5, 2009 2:25 PM in response to House of the Day: 119 Fort Greene Place
I wouldn't want to use a contractor who couldn't afford to send $300 on something, whatever that might be.
Posted by: denton at November 5, 2009 2:11 PM in response to Brownstoner Directory Reaches Milestone of 50 Listings
Nice layout, livable rooms. Apts for the middle class sure were built nicer back in the day.
Posted by: denton at November 5, 2009 2:08 PM in response to Co-op of the Day: 75 Henry Street, #19A
"I'll have to clean like mad and store half of our stuff and pretend we don't have little boys, and probably take a 30% cut to what we thought we might get when we listed in summer 2008, but life's life."
And hope you don't get 'HODT'... lol
Posted by: denton at November 5, 2009 2:04 PM in response to House of the Day: 119 Fort Greene Place
Fair Housing Act, completely.
GWB
Posted by: denton at November 5, 2009 12:56 PM in response to Open Thread
I agree benson, but I would hope a better banking sector will help stimulate the rest of the country. With a weaker dollar, export sales should begin to pick up also (mine have). Retails sales are stronger than expected. As are auto sales. Things are looking up, but it will take some time. You're sounding like a Democrat btw, Obama 2010 baby!!!
Posted by: denton at November 5, 2009 12:55 PM in response to Open Thread
Paul Auster at B&N Union Square tonite, folx, Foer 11/16 ditto.
Posted by: denton at November 5, 2009 12:46 PM in response to Open Thread
Great news for me too snappy! Don't have to get her back!
Posted by: denton at November 5, 2009 12:41 PM in response to Open Thread
benson, and anyone else who thinks that the de-industrialization of America is a destructive and stupid thing, you might want to check out this most interesting interview with Angela Davis (and she is still hot, if I may say so).
She equates the destruction of manufacturing with the high incarceration rate.
http://www.citylights.com/book/?GCOI=87286100677870
Posted by: denton at November 5, 2009 12:40 PM in response to Open Thread
apropos of the 'opening links' thread, seems that hiring on Wall Street is definitely picking up. Anecdotally of course.
Da kid, who was laid off last November, was called back on a contract basis, $25/hour, as many hours as she could work, Saturday and Sunday and nights included. She made like $6000 in a few weeks, enuf to keep her out of the basement a few more months.
Now she's just been offered her old position back and the same firm, at quite a nice salary, given her age and experience, or should I say lack thereof.
Meanwhile she just had another interview with a WS boutique research firm. She was one of eight candidates, made the second round and is now one of two. Second interview today. She may well find herself with the luxury of two job offers.
Meanwhile a friend of hers who was laid off from the same firm but who comes from a poor family, so is on her own financially, and was going thru the last of her 401k to survive, has just found a 100k job.
Sorry BHO, Miss Muffet, and the What, RE has bottomed. See the jobs claims and productivity stats this AM?
Posted by: denton at November 5, 2009 12:36 PM in response to Open Thread
"WHEN will they in turn show some appreciation to the fans????"
benson, they showed their appreciation for the fans and the taxpayers that paid for the stadium by giving them a good fisting! $2500 a seat, fuck that.
That's why I was so tickled to see empty seats in the front row last night!
Posted by: denton at November 5, 2009 12:27 PM in response to Open Thread
Pole, that is actually a nice block. And it's a very cute house. THe only thing, it and the one next to it look like the facade is falling down.
Posted by: denton at November 5, 2009 12:10 PM in response to Brooklyn Sales: Under a Million
mopar, glad it worked out. If in fact they looked at the job, then no way should they up the price. Especially a simple job like that!
btw when I bought my house before I started the reno I paid my GC $800 to pour a concrete pad and hook up a new washer and dryer to the old plumbing, and some plumbing adjustments were needed. Didn't file that either.
Posted by: denton at November 5, 2009 6:41 AM in response to Cost of Plumbing for Washer?
Word, the blog that this came from definitely mentioned speed bumps.
Posted by: denton at November 5, 2009 6:29 AM in response to Closing Bell: Columbia Street Traffic Petition
Do you have a pregnancy detector?
Posted by: denton at November 4, 2009 6:16 PM in response to Furnace Malfunction?
"stud finder w/ electric wire alert"
Snappy, you switching sides?
Posted by: denton at November 4, 2009 6:15 PM in response to DIY Beginner Project?
Jack, I wouldn't say the big guys are crooks, I'd say they have a different overhead than small guys.
Mopar, seems to me for these small jobs you should use a local guy, not a big guy like Alladin.
I'd make someone look at the job before quoting. If they won't do that, I'd at least ask for an email addy and send them a pic of the existing conditions. Phone quotes are a nightmare.
Posted by: denton at November 4, 2009 6:05 PM in response to Cost of Plumbing for Washer?
both good suggestions, you could also buy new doors.
Posted by: denton at November 4, 2009 5:57 PM in response to Kitchen Cabs repainting?
I smell a coffee bubble brewing in PS.
Posted by: denton at November 4, 2009 5:22 PM in response to Streetlevel: New Cafe Opening on 6th Avenue
What 'dangerous traffic'? What does that mean? When there were nothing but trucks and tractor-trailers carrying goods between the piers and factories, there were never any accidents. Now that people come to Ikea and Fairway, it's an issue. Maybe they should just learn to drive.
Speed bumps are a BAD IDEA on a street that conveys truck traffic, and furthermore, the DOT won't put them down on a bus route.
Really people, this is a simple two way street. Deal with it.
Posted by: denton at November 4, 2009 5:21 PM in response to Closing Bell: Columbia Street Traffic Petition
"Figures you new jacks wouldn't know what it means. "
Careful, eny, the new jacks won't know what new jacks means either :-)
Posted by: denton at November 4, 2009 4:03 PM in response to Open Thread
Responses to Author's Forum Comments
"where they called my husband for a decision, who would have to call me; who would call the plumber/electrician, who would then call my husband back instead of me."
Seems like your husband's fault here, lol. Why didn't your husband just tell the contractor you were in charge, and refuse to discuss it?
Ask him that tonight over dinner :-)
LOL -- we talked numerous times about how asinine it was that contractors refused to call me. It was like they were going through contortions NOT to talk to me. My husband and I would both tell them to stop calling him and to call me, yet they couldn't get it through their thick heads. Like a mental block or something that a woman would have decision making capacity.
I used to deal with this nonsense all the time when I worked in IT as a programmer and doing tech support. I worked at a huge academic medical center and the doctors would always questioned my ability when I showed up to fix their computers; my male colleagues never got second guessed like I did. Since they were essentially paying me, I took more BS than I would have liked, but when I'm doing the hiring, I reserve the right not to work with any contractors who have a pathological inability to respect women!
Posted by: brooklynstyle at November 6, 2009 7:14 PM in response to Contractors & Chauvinism
the stupidest part of this is that some of my employees are women. and we still make dumbass sexist jokes..
Posted by: eman1234 at November 6, 2009 8:30 PM in response to Contractors & Chauvinism
eman1234
since when is making a pass at a woman considered a culture?
You't can't imagine how many men bug the crap outta me on a daily basis.
Tis the season to be jolly.........
Posted by: Ysabelle at November 6, 2009 10:20 PM in response to Contractors & Chauvinism
Listen, the reality is that women get hazed in stereotypically male work environments, and shouldn't need tougher skin than men in similar positions but absolutely do.
As a woman who has worked on way more jobsites than offices, I have survived and thrive because I have a very dirty mouth, am not afraid of conflict and am just about impossible to offend. I also go ahead and sympathize with how weird it looks to see a tiny blonde woman lifting a 100-lb bag of cement, actively point out that I am smaller than my co-workers, and generally don't try to act like everything's normal. I am a novelty, and honestly it's easier and more honest to work with it than it is to work against it.
You can't change people, but you can behave as if you will be treated the way you want to be treated, and empathize with the fact that a lot of people in the trades have very little formal education, come from countries that are really sexist, and live in a much more gendered world than you do. This mixture of integrity and empathy is strong. It doesn't work instantly, and is more about developing relationships than negotiating the hardware store, but it works really well.
Posted by: vanburenproud at November 7, 2009 9:33 AM in response to Contractors & Chauvinism
The surprising thing about this thread is it is full of women I had previously assumed were men.
Posted by: mopar at November 7, 2009 10:36 AM in response to Contractors & Chauvinism
My two cents.
Replacing bathroom fixtures is really easy if all goes as planned, but throw in a leaky shut off valve, corroded pipes, or any of the million other things that can go wrong and things get annoying very quickly. If I were a novice, I would make sure I had a friend on standby who knew what he or she was doing and could come over and bail me out if it came to it. Otherwise you may end up shaving (or worse) in the kitchen sink for a few days.
Installing crown molding in my opinion is more difficult to do than flooring, but it's going to be a lot less intrusive on your life style than the flooring.
If you're doing tongue and groove hardwood, you can get by with a circular saw since if you do it correctly, all of your cuts will be hidden by either baseboard or shoe molding so you have a little wiggle room. Rent the nailer, which will put you on a tighter timeline for getting things done, but it's one of those tools that you're not going to use very often. Laminate click and lock flooring is easier and requires very few tools.
I hate installing crown molding. It's a pain in the neck to get it perfect, and it looks terrible if you don't.
Posted by: Bond at November 7, 2009 12:17 PM in response to DIY Beginner Project?
"The surprising thing about this thread is it is full of women I had previously assumed were men."
You sexist :-)
Posted by: denton at November 7, 2009 5:30 PM in response to Contractors & Chauvinism
People who renovate brownstones are spending tens and hundreds of thousands of dollars. And while doing so they're being told by people like eman and denton they have to just accept and try to fit into the "culture" of these workers?
Whatever. Not by me. I would never hire anybody who made comments like the ones that were listed. How about these contractors and workers trying harder to fit into MY culture as their employer? You know, like I have to do when I'm hired by somebody! I think that's argentina's main point, that the new "culture" of homeowners in the United States is this: Women are a significant group of homeowners and even when married are more often the boss on these jobs, so act professionally and with courtesy or you don't get hired.
Posted by: traditionalmod at November 8, 2009 8:20 AM in response to Contractors & Chauvinism
"The surprising thing about this thread is it is full of women I had previously assumed were men."
You sexist :-)
Posted by: denton at November 7, 2009 5:30 PM in response to Contractors & Chauvinism