Pressure Wash the Deck
A coworker of mine just bought a house and he got our Pressure Washer at https://bradentonpowerwashing.com and got it going on the vinyl siding of his now blue house. While we had it up and running, I had Stefan Pressure wash the front porch. Just in time for Halloween!
We squeezed in one final tandem bike-commute to work by coming home at about 2:00 so Stefan could pressure wash. It was an unseasonably warm Tuesday in October. After the end of Daylight Savings on Nov 2, the bike-commute season is over unless you fancy riding your bike in the pitch black darkness that is 5:00 PM in this part of the country.
The Porch floor was in rough shape. I’m not sure why it was so bad but I think the Thompson’s Water Seal we used to seal the deck never fully absorbed and the dirt stuck into it. Maybe we put it on too thick. I’m not sure. I think we’re going to switch to a different sealer product. Or we should probably hire professional deck sealing service to do everything properly. I was advised to check out this site for reputable contractor.
Before, it was bad, real bad and After, it’s a pretty reddish brown wood color!
Our deck design was a satisfying change. It seems the Thompson’s Water Seal did it’s job. The water still beads off even after pressure washing and under all the dirt the wood has hardly grayed at all. If it didn’t hold onto dirt like it does, we would be super happy with it.
Stefan hit the Porch swing with the pressure washer and discovered some peeling. I’m thinking of painting it lavender. I’ve got this vision of a lavender porch swing and lavender rocking chairs on the porch. The porch is currently cream and the house will been a mossy green at some point. What do you think?
For now, since the water still seems to be beading, I think we are going to toss a layer of the water Seal on the steps for the winter and leave the porch floor as-is. In the spring we want to get a new deck installation and we are going to use a decking cleaner/sealer system on the floor.
I still need to do some research on what products work the best. I’ll let you know what we decide. Visit http://hanover-sealcoating.com/ to find out how to make your surface look cleaner, more elegant, and functional.
If you have any suggestions, let us know in the comments!
Sarah
Attic Stairs
Memorial Day weekend we finished up some lingering projects around the house and installed the attic stairs. I was quite apprehensive about the task but it was a quick easy project though a bit hot since we had to get in the attic.
We stuck up 2 pieces of plywood to hold the stairs at each end. We hoised the ladder up into the attic and Stefan climbed in after it. He lowered the ladder onto the plywood supports and attached the sides of the ladder box to the studs.
After he got out, we cut the legs to length with a hack-saw and attached the feet.
All-in-all it only took us about an hour! We did get the frame for it situated before the plaster went up so the hole was already there, ready to go. We did a very good job but is took us a very long time and at the end the quality of the improvement, in spite of our efforts, was not as good as the quality from professional staircase builders in Sydney.
Despite my apprehension, I’d say this was a super reasonable DIY project even for people less crazy than Stefan and I.
Sarah
New Sofa
Our new couch came in today and I LOVE it!
One small problem… stairs. It didn’t fit up the stairs. whoops.
we have some options. There is an upholstery place nearby that specializes in “knock downs” where they take apart your sofa, carry it up the stairs, and put it back together. It’s pricey, one review on yelp said $400 but if it works, it would be great.
The other option is to try to go through the window in the bedroom. We got the bed in that way before.
I’ll keep you posted on the progress but for now, the sofa is in the piano room and it is a bit too large for the room…
It is a great sofa. We bought it from Arhaus:
We custom ordered in in a nice grey herringbone.
It has some great details like these nailheads.
The little English roll-arms are nice and small but still substantial enough to prop up a pillow.
I really love the sofa and I’m determined to get it up into that room!
Sarah
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Love the sofa. It will look so good in the den with the wall color and den rug
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Beautiful Sofa. It is important to maintain your couch by getting it cleaned annually. Skin cells, spills of all kinds and pets can turn couches into a den of dirt and filth. Call your local cleaner to keep your investment clean.
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The Couch That Wouldn’t Fit Up the Stairs: a Story in Pictures | DIY Sarah | Craft, Decor, Art, Garden, and Dessert
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Den Rug
We have a new (to us) rug in the Den. We bought it for $40 off craigslist and I LOVE it. It’s a little big for the space but there is a large difference between an 8×10 and a 10×12. I’m planning on moving it farther under the couch and way from the far wall but I’ve got it layed out so I can vacuum and (depending on cleaning prices) get it professionally cleaned. The Zerorez San Jose – Bay Area Carpet Cleaning provides you with the finest carpet care.
Vector is a big fan.
It’s amazing how much it has warmed up the room already. The corners of this room overhang the front porch so this room is the coldest in the house. We’re planning on getting a heated rug pad to help and we will get insulation going eventually but in the mean time, this big ol rug is doing a great job keep our toes off the cold floor.
It makes the room look small the way it’s positioned now but adding some reveal around the rug should solve that problem. And the floor is so cold, there isn’t much else to be done besides a big heavy rug.
That white couch is going soon too. The new couch is on it’s way! I can’t wait to show you.
HOW TO VACUUM THE RIGHT WAY
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EаÑh cleaning situation is unique and will rеԛuÑ–rе a dÑ–ffеrеnt vacuum that еxÑеlÑ• Ñ–n Ñ•uÑh Ñаѕеѕ, for examples, you may need the best vacuum to pick up long hair if that’s a current problem you have. Fоr lаrgе brоаd ореn areas, a wÑ–dе аrеа vаÑuum may bе thе bеѕt fÑ–t. Fоr an оffÑ–Ñе ѕеttÑ–ng wÑ–th lоtÑ• of оbÑ•truÑtіоnÑ• аnd Ñ–ndÑ–vÑ–duаl wоrkÑ–ng Ñ•tаtіоnÑ•, a hip or bаÑkраÑk vаÑuum mау bе the most аррrорrіаtе fоr thаt раrtÑ–Ñulаr job. Fоr ÑаrреtÑ• and area rugÑ• thаt hаvе lоореd fÑ–bеrÑ• оr are made frоm natural materials like wool оr Ñ•Ñ–lk Ñ•hоuld nоt be vаÑuumеd with bеаtеr bars. Fоr wеt ѕроtÑ• uѕе a wet-dry vаÑuum Ñlеаnеr tо vаÑuum dаmÑ€ or wеt surfaces. A regular vаÑuum Ñlеаnеr will be Ñ–nеffеÑtÑ–vе on lÑ–Ô›uÑ–d spills, wеt pet Ñ•tаіnÑ•, оr damp ÑаrреtÑ•; Ñ–t Ñоuld also risk electrocution. Whаtеvеr уоur cleaning tаѕk mау bе, it Ñ–Ñ• a gооd idea to lооk оut thе аrеа before deciding what vаÑuum would bеѕt suit уоur nееdÑ•. Thеrе is a wÑ–dе selection оf dÑ–ffеrеnt vаÑuum ÑlеаnеrÑ• оn thе mаrkеt, some wÑ–th bеаtеr bars аnd others wÑ–thоut, some with еxtrа аÑÑеѕѕоrіеѕ and оthеrÑ• wÑ–thоut. Make sure уоu knоw whÑ–Ñh appliance works bеѕt on уоur flооr.
Sarah
Ann Wolpert
11/12/2014 | 10:50 am Permalink
I think lavender will be stunning.