ralph gardens's Profile
Author's Posts
September 3, 2009
Grape Vines and Brick
I've just discovered that the vine growing on the side of my brownstone is a massive grape vine. I know most vines damage the brick and mortar, and should be cut, does anyone know whether grape vines damage the brick?
Thanks.
June 26, 2009
Looking for interior door
Hello, I'm trying to find an interior door 30" wide by 91" tall. Tried Eddie and Olde Good Things without any luck. Thought I'd see if anyone had a door that might work lurking in the basement somewhere. Will gladly pay and pick up.
Thanks.
June 1, 2009
Saraghina?
Is it really true? NY Mag says Saraghina on Leiws is finally opening.
http://nymag.com/restaurants/openings/57037/
April 2, 2009
1% penalty on 2 family?
I'm looking into refinancing my loan on a two family brownstone and my mortgage broker told me that there was a 1% two family add on from Fannie/Freddie which bumps the beast available rate up to a little over 5.6%. Has anyone else run into this? We're looking at a 30 year fixed regular conforming loan but that added 1% is putting the kybosh on any real savings since our current loan is at 6%. Any way around this to get a better rate?
October 31, 2008
Heating quandry
Hello Brownstoners,
Looking for a little advice on two possible fixes for my heating system. We have a forced hot water system. It appears that the valve that regulates the flow of hot water through the system is broken so, when the thermostat says the heat should turn off, it doesn't--water flows through all of the radiators in the front of the house all the time and it can take hours for the rest of the radiators to cool down.
Our boiler guy has given us two options. Option one—change the valve which according to him is a fairly labor intensive plumbing job and could run about $700. Or, put in a relay on the boiler that will turn off the boiler when the thermostat switches off and turn it on when the thermostat switches on. This will cost about $350. Our concern is that since this system works like a hot water heater—a huge vat of water is kept hot all the time and then gets pumped through the system when needed—that our bills will go through the roof if every time the thermostat switches the heat on it needs to heat up that whole vat of water. Also, I’m not convinced this will totally fix the problem since what’s to keep the cooling but still hot water from circulating through the system. On the other hand who wants to spend $350 they don’t have to.
If anyone’s had this kind of problem or is a plumbing/boiler expert, I’d appreciate any advice you’ve got.
Thanks.
Author's Comments
Glad you are back - we really liked your blog and we're looking forward to seeing what you've done with your house.
Posted by: ralph gardens at October 18, 2009 3:25 PM in response to No More Times
Here's a piece from the Times on TIC. Very common approach in San Francisco, but less so here.
Posted by: ralph gardens at September 28, 2009 4:08 PM in response to Tenancy in Common
ralph gardens wrote a review about Lomzynianka on September 11, 2009 12:09 PM
I love this place. The Hungarian pancake is not to be missed. Most entrees are around $6 or $7. Well worth the trip to Greenpoint.
I think some vines definitely are trouble. I once lived in an apartment in London where vines were growing over the window. One tendril actually grew right through a 2 inch thick wooden window frame and into my kitchen. That can't be good for brick.
Posted by: ralph gardens at September 3, 2009 7:22 PM in response to Grape Vines and Brick
Thanks for the info. Great help. Unfortunately, I don't think an arbor will work, they are growing from the back of an adjacent building onto the side of ours in the yard of a third building (complicated, I know). But glad to hear that they are not damaging the mortar. I love the idea of all these grapes growing on the side of the house. I cut some back today but couldn't reach the top 5 feet or so which I guess I just won't worry about for now. Maybe I'll get a good harvest later this fall. Home made wine on the way.
Posted by: ralph gardens at September 3, 2009 5:24 PM in response to Grape Vines and Brick
Also rejuvenation: http://www.rejuvenation.com/ has plenty mortise locks, knobs, etc. to choose from and the quality is usually high.
Posted by: ralph gardens at July 3, 2009 1:21 PM in response to Door latches
Wow, thanks for the heads up. We've been waiting for this for a very long time. I'm going to order something now before the powers that be change their mind.
Posted by: ralph gardens at June 29, 2009 5:59 PM in response to Fresh Direct In My Part Of Stuy!
Thanks Zil, unfortunately that's not wide enough--it's a bathroom door so we're looking for full coverage.
Dave, thanks for taking a look, I'll check back Monday to see what you found.
Posted by: ralph gardens at June 26, 2009 8:33 PM in response to Looking for interior door
I'd just knock out all the loose plaster and put in piece of sheet rock. Make sure that the sheet rock is slightly thinner than the surrounding plaster--3/8 works best in my house but our original plaster is very thin. Once you've secured the sheet rock you can plaster over the entire patch, essentially skim coating over the top of the sheet rock. Once its painted you shouldn't notice any difference between it an the original plaster.
Posted by: ralph gardens at June 17, 2009 1:37 PM in response to Another plastering question
Schiller is smart guy and usually is pretty astute about the real estate market. But you also need to realize that his numbers for New York have almost nothing to do with New York City, let alone Brooklyn. Here's the list of cities that make up the New York metro area index numbers:
Fairfield CT, New Haven CT, Bergen NJ,
Essex NJ, Hudson NJ, Hunterdon NJ,
Mercer NJ, Middlesex NJ, Monmouth NJ,
Morris NJ, Ocean NJ, Passaic NJ, Somerset
NJ, Sussex NJ, Union NJ, Warren NJ,
Bronx NY, Dutchess NY, Kings NY,
Nassau NY, New York NY, Orange NY,
Putnam NY, Queens NY, Richmond NY,
Rockland NY, Suffolk NY, Westchester
NY, Pike PA
I'm not sure the price of a house in New Haven tells me much about condos on downtown Brooklyn.
Posted by: ralph gardens at June 8, 2009 12:36 PM in response to Bob Shiller: 'Decline May Well Continue for Some Time'
No, unfortunately me and the missus missed it. But we keep walking down there to peek through the windows every time we go to Peaches hoping that they're closer to opening. Do they a garden or is it all indoors?
Posted by: ralph gardens at June 1, 2009 3:40 PM in response to Saraghina?
The NY Mag post is under the headline week of June 8, so maybe another week to go?
Very excited. Not sure I an wait another week.
Posted by: ralph gardens at June 1, 2009 2:56 PM in response to Saraghina?
We had this done over the winter. We built a wall in the hallway near where the parlor opens onto the hallway. The hallway wall rises from the floor to the ceiling. Then a second wall hangs from the ceiling along the stairs connecting to the bottom of the stairs and ending at our side of the new wall (wow that sounds confusing). It completely blocks our living area from the rental as long as we lock the double doors leading from the parlor to the hall. We didn't lose any ceiling height, which is nice. The only draw back is that we have to access the parlor though the middle room (we have three rooms per floor).
Not sure if that's helpful at all.
Posted by: ralph gardens at May 26, 2009 1:44 PM in response to closing a staircase?
This might be a little besides the malling of Coney point, but why is there an image of Amoeba music on that power point slide along with the the Hard Rock and that creepy Shreck video billboard? Amoeba is a tiny (3 store) independent music retailer from California. They are not exactly the kind of mega retailer that this seems to be objecting to.
Posted by: ralph gardens at April 30, 2009 1:32 PM in response to Thor's Big-Box Dreams for Coney Island
I'd vote for getting it tested first. You can scrape up some of the black glue and include it with with linoleum samples to be tested. There is a place in the city near Penn station that does testing. If it comes back negative just pry the linoleum up up with a crow bar and you are set. When we had our floors redone the guys just came in and sanded off all the black adhesive when they did the floors. They came out great. If there is asbestos then, you are probably in for some expense to get it dealt with. Definitely not worth taking any risk with. Also, just for clarity's sake, asbestos is a fairly common mineral and it is mined.
Posted by: ralph gardens at April 21, 2009 1:19 PM in response to Asbestos and Linoleum Flooring
Thanks for all the info. Crazy that Fannie/Freddie are penalizing multi family owner when the government is doing all it can to bring rates down to encourage lending. Sounds like it might be worth shopping around a little. I'll post again if I find any great deals.
Posted by: ralph gardens at April 2, 2009 1:58 PM in response to 1% penalty on 2 family?
Do you have any pictures? And do you know the dimensions?
Thanks.
Posted by: ralph gardens at January 28, 2009 1:24 PM in response to Selling Entryway Bench/Coatrack
Do you have any pictures? Ans do you know the dimensions?
Thanks.
Posted by: ralph gardens at January 28, 2009 1:23 PM in response to Selling Entryway Bench/Coatrack
Hi all, thanks for the advice.
Master Plumber: I was going on the diagnosis that my boiler guy gave me (well my interpretation of it and since I don't know much about boilers there is plenty of room for error there) but when I got through to the plumber we use and basically described the above scenario, he scratched his head kind of like you did. So, maybe its something else? Though the flow check valve that you mentioned sounds like that could be it. Our system is pretty ancient but for the most part has been functional and reliable. I'm sure we're overdue for an upgrade, but I'm reluctant to spend the money on a new bioler until we really need it.
Our guy will be over on Wed or so to take a look so I'll post an update once I find out what the issue is.
Thanks.
Posted by: ralph gardens at October 31, 2008 7:25 PM in response to Heating quandry
Responses to Author's Forum Comments
cmu - that seems like a reasonable price for the neighborhood, but unfortunately it's above our range!
sharpq - i'll be in touch! thanks.
Posted by: h_t at September 29, 2009 2:49 PM in response to Tenancy in Common
why not find a first floor condo/coop with backyard outdoor space, or something similar with a deck or rooftop deck?
we have a 2000 sq foot condo with a backyard, a deck and lower level patio, and is more yard than some with brownstones get. We only looked at condos with outdoor space and found tons.
Also, couldn't you find a ground floor or parlor floor coop with outdoor space? Have 2 different friends that bought coops that included the backyard.
Posted by: wine lover at September 29, 2009 3:06 PM in response to Tenancy in Common
wine lover- We would only want a yard, but have found that the interior space is usually too small for 4 people. It's been struggle... we've been looking since February.
Posted by: sharpg at September 29, 2009 5:55 PM in response to Tenancy in Common
DO NOT DO THIS
YOU WILL GET SCREWED!!!
Posted by: Ben Gazi at September 30, 2009 11:14 AM in response to Tenancy in Common
I'm interested in Selling my TIC ownership in a 4 story Brownstone in Stuyvesant Heights, Bed Stuy. It is located on Decatur Street between Lewis and Stuyvesant Ave (One of Best Most Sought After Blocks). You can own Upper Duplex with complete Roof Rights. Convert to Duplex for one family or rent out one floor and live on the other floor. Currently the top two floors are set up as separate apartments. Close to Utica Ave A. Around the corner from Peaches Restaurant and Breadsty Coffee Shop. Cash Deals only. Looking to get $450K.Your share of Current carrying charges for building is about $1200 per month (includes heat, small mortgage, taxes).. Houses on this block sell for $950K and up...
Any interest???
Posted by: Oldlady at October 1, 2009 7:40 PM in response to Tenancy in Common
it is true..but believe it or not some homeowners look upon a tree as a burden...watering sweeping leaves ,etc..... usually older, grumpier homeowners
Posted by: eman1234 at October 27, 2009 6:24 PM in response to Trees in Bed Stuy?
Yes. I think you can also apply at the Department of Parks and Recreation website. You are put on the waiting list. We got our tree planted in less than a year from the request. There is a fall and spring planting season, so if you act now, you'll probably get in for the next fall season. If you're lucky, you could get a tree next spring.
The owner of the property has to agree to have the tree planted, so if you want your neighbors to get trees, they will have to apply for them as well.
Posted by: Bklyn born at October 27, 2009 6:28 PM in response to Trees in Bed Stuy?
trees are nice but less AC in the summer also means more heat in the winter.
Posted by: denton at October 27, 2009 6:38 PM in response to Trees in Bed Stuy?
Actually not Denton. Because the leaves fall off the trees in the fall. Of course it takes a while for a tree to grow to any size to accomplish these goals. It would be your gift to the future. (That said the cherry tree I planted in my front yard 7 years ago has doubled in size and now is a privacy screen for my scond floor parlor.)
Posted by: Putnamdenizen at October 27, 2009 8:37 PM in response to Trees in Bed Stuy?
Agreed I too received my tree less than a year in Bed Stuy
I hear the city wont plant a tree, if the neighbor on the right and left have trees planted.
Posted by: jack slade at October 27, 2009 10:33 PM in response to Trees in Bed Stuy?
I wish it was that easy. I also live in Bed Stuy and have filled out all kinds of forms over the last four years requesting a single tree and other times trees for the whole block and have never received any response from the parks dept. I emailed the community board and they said fill out another online form which I did to make it four total requests. I finally got an email which said I'd receive a brochure in a week days and guess what--no brochure. It's incredibly frustrating. Does anyone have a contact for a real person at the parks dept who deals with street trees? I remember coming across one on Brownstoner maybe last year but can't seem to track it down now.
Good luck newinstuy and please share if you have better luck than me.
Here's the link I used to enter this limbo most recently:
http://www.nycgovparks.org/sub_permits_and_applications/forestry_service_request.html
Posted by: ralph gardens at October 27, 2009 6:24 PM in response to Trees in Bed Stuy?