cornetor's Profile
- Torin
- 1998
- 2007
Author's Posts
April 29, 2008
Street tree advice
I requested a street tree from the parks dept. about a year and half back. Long story short, I just now found out that they rejected my request last year sometime due to underground utilities at the site. Does anyone have any alternative ideas for sprucing up the sidewalk? We have a row of about 10 houses with nothing but bare sidewalk and we need something to pretty the block up.
March 21, 2008
Rain Barrel
I've read that a rain barrel used to water vegetables and fruit should be a food grade plastic barrel. I know I might find a 55 gallon wine barrel out in Canarsie. Anyone know of other resources for a food grade barrel?
March 1, 2008
Mason Recommendation
As recommended I used LN Masons this weekend. Just a quick, simple job, but I would recommend him. I'll be using him again. They changed the name to Transcend Masonry. His name is Nick and the number is 347-407-1816
February 6, 2008
Water heater, When to replace
My water heater is at least 10 years old. It has no signs of leakage and no visible rust. However, I frequently hear what sounds like marbles rumbling around inside it. Has anyone ever experienced this? Is this a bad sign?
January 24, 2008
Jan '08 Tentative Assment
does anyone understand the assessed value that DOF uses to calculate property tax? There is a line item that reads "6-20% Limitation", and the amount in the row under the header "Land" doubled from last year, and my assessed value went up $2000.
Jan '08 Tentative Assment
does anyone understand the assessed value that DOF uses to calculate property tax? There is a line item that reads "6-20% Limitation", and the amount in the row under the header "Land" doubled from last year, and my assessed value went up $2000.
December 13, 2007
Hole poker needed
I need to create two holes in our exterior walls for a dryer vent and an electrical outlet. Any contractor/handyman recommendations for such a job?
Original wood basement doors
I'm replacing the front and rear basement entry doors and I have the original wood doors if anyone has a use for them. They are painted black, not in the best shape, but still functional. The style of the door is the same as the pocket door picture posted on the forum today, but they are short, about 77".
torin.l.cornell@jpmchase.com
December 2, 2007
Dryer Vent in Basement Window
I had new basement windows installed last year by Bay Ridge windows. The estimator was in and out so fast I never thought to ask about how we can vent our dryer, which was vented through an old window pane. The only thing I can think of now is to create a hole in the wall to vent through. Any other ideas? Any way to retrofit a vent to a new window?
Legal 2 Family used as 1
Is there any advantage to changing our house's official status from 2 family to 1? It's seems like there is no tax advantage, and little if any difference in market value used to calculate the tax.
Author's Comments
I'm just curious on your behalf, what does the city do about heat complaints? I know you can log heat complains with 311 and the city has certain standards for temperature based on the time of year. But how does a caller substantiate the claim? Does the city actually visit the apartment and check the temp? Maybe if the city can disqualify her claim it will deflate her position and place you on firm legal footing.
Posted by: cornetor at November 5, 2007 1:28 PM in response to Best way to deal with an unreasonable neighbor?
Lincolnimestone, thanks for the info. The shaft is topped by a skylight. I did a quick inspection of the skylight while on the roof and I didn't see any signs of ventilation. I think the steam is being trapped in the house. I guess I need a roofer to install a vent.
Posted by: cornetor at November 6, 2007 9:15 AM in response to Light shaft and ventilation
I've had good experiences with Blue Water plumbing.
http://www.bluewaterplumbingnyc.com/index.html
Posted by: cornetor at November 6, 2007 2:51 PM in response to Do Not Hire D&D Plumbing!
I'm looking too. Many people on this site have given A&A high marks. They advertise right here on the forum
Posted by: cornetor at November 6, 2007 2:53 PM in response to recommendation for chimney contractor?
I'm no expert, but I've always been told the clanking is caused by water trapped in the steam system, usually in the radiators. We had a plumber come over, who simply elevated one end of the radiators to encourage condensed water to leave the radiator and return to the boiler. It didn't cost a dime. But it didn't work either (at least entirely)!
Posted by: cornetor at November 8, 2007 9:46 AM in response to clanking radiators
I had the same problem last year and I think it was a simple matter of shutting off the boiler and turning it back on. We had a plumber come over, but I don't think there was an actual problem.
Posted by: cornetor at November 8, 2007 9:48 AM in response to No Heat - bad thermostat?
Sounds expensive. I've had similar work done for much less. If you want a rec, MAM electric is good and reasonable. They're in bay ridge.
Posted by: cornetor at November 8, 2007 10:02 AM in response to brown
I'm not sure I understand the project, but I will tell you what we did. We had two separate federal pacific panels (less than 100amp) and we replaced them with a single 100amp GE panel. Total cost was $700. There was no external work done between our incoming line(s) and con ed's supply line. Just disconnecting the old panel and installing the new. I'm not sure it's the same as your project, but thought I would throw in my 2.
Posted by: cornetor at November 8, 2007 12:11 PM in response to 60 to 100 amp upgrade
Try lightinguniverse.com or insidestore.com. I've ordered lights from both.
Posted by: cornetor at November 13, 2007 5:42 PM in response to lighting resources
Responses to Author's Forum Comments
We recently struggled with an original floor made of round "penny" tiles. Old grout was worn/dried enough that I was able to get new stuff to stick on top for several years. But it was a temp fix.
Bigger problem was a crack from where the underlying slab had settled. Patch remained stable, so it wasn't moving anymore, but it still looked like hell.
We wound up going with a new floor on top of the old one...thin leveling coat with new tiles set on that.
One thing on the tile: In our place, the original tile was porcelain. That means the color goes all the way through, and is not a glaze. This stuff is period correct, and looks better in my view. The matte finish is also considerably less slippery when wet.
It is not hard to find, but we did discover that prices varied tremendously (like, by a factor of two) for identical product. So definitely call around.
Make sure to use a good grout sealer when you’re done.
Geometry of hex tiles means they have less grout surface between them to get dirty than do the rounds.
Posted by: guest at April 1, 2008 11:51 AM in response to regrout vs. retile
Try Magic Eraser on the grout. Maybe you will get lucky.
Posted by: guest at April 1, 2008 3:32 PM in response to regrout vs. retile
I agree with the 4".
Posted by: guest at April 18, 2008 10:22 AM in response to laying a stone patio -- how much gravel to put down
Thanks. And poster 9:47: thank you so much for bringing up such a painful subject. While you're at it, why don't you give me a nice papercut and pour lemon juice on it?
Posted by: John Lydon at April 18, 2008 12:19 PM in response to laying a stone patio -- how much gravel to put down
oy.
Posted by: guest at April 24, 2008 4:48 PM in response to Recommendations for Plumbers?
I have found Gateway Plumbing to be very competent, fair and reasonable.
Posted by: jlo at April 25, 2008 1:38 PM in response to Recommendations for Plumbers?
Werber Plumbing in bay Ridge
The most honest and competent plumbers I ever used for my co-op.
Posted by: guest at April 25, 2008 9:52 PM in response to Recommendations for Plumbers?
We just called Pat Hogan at Leinster Contracting on the recommendation of this forum for a partial basement demo (which I foolishly began myself) and an emergency cleanup. The original ceiling as it turns out was asbestos (apparently non-friable) nevertheless it was a whole can of worms I should have never opened.
They were straightforward, efficient, and extremely through.
He took down our entire ceiling, the asbestos sprayed plumbing - did an immaculate cleanup job.
In and out tin less than a day.
He included the air testing in the price, faxed certification package quickly.
A very good experience.
Thanks to everyone who recommended him.
Posted by: guest at April 27, 2008 8:53 AM in response to Asbestos Removal
My company is MTB GROUP my site is www.mtbgroupllc.com we do all phase of construction we can help you we just completed a BrownStone in Harlem @ 30 west 126th street come check it out it is also on my site.
You can contact me on the site or call 1-800-235-2703.
Thanks
Geoffrey
Posted by: mtbgroup at April 28, 2008 3:56 PM in response to Recommendations for Plumbers?
We recently used Verrazano Flooring and had an excellent experience. The workers were extremely professional as were their office staff. They came when they said they would and were on time. Their price was very competitive and the floors look better than ever. We would definitely use them again. I recommend them highly.
Posted by: vcj at April 28, 2008 4:47 PM in response to Verrazano Flooring?
OP here, I've had engineers tell me during home inspection that dirty boiler water is a very bad thing. BTW, it is a gas boiler, Weill McClain (is that that right name?).
Any other opinions on dirty water in my gas boiler?
Posted by: cornetor at November 1, 2007 3:45 PM in response to Chemical additive for boiler water