A Tiresome Wedding
chisue
9 years ago
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chisue
9 years agosusanjf_gw
9 years agoRelated Discussions
Love my new, QUIET Sub Zero
Comments (4)Jakvis - thanks for the info. and you could easily be correct but I sure hope not. It's also possible that I didn't describe the problem in complete detail. I wasn't home while the tech was here so I'm relying on what DH repeated to me. The service tech did call Sub Zero while he was here and described the situation - whatever the problem was required recovering the freon. The tech told DH that the repair itself would only be a couple of hundred dollars but the additional cost was due to the freon recovery and second tech. He even suggested that we consider buying a new unit. We've used the same repair company for 16 years and we've always thought they've been honest and fairly reasonable in their charges. DH originally gave them a $300 check to cover the service call and for the parts that he would have to order. When we canceled the repair they promptly refunded all but $75 to cover the service call. I would hate to think that the tech was incompetent. I hope I'm not merely rationalizing since this was not an inexpensive purchase - I don't regret replacing the unit because it was definitely showing it's age and the abuse it received from my 4 sons. At the very least if we do list our home potential buyers won't be turned off at finding out the frig is nearly 26 years old and At that point we'll also have to decide if we want or need to replace the freezer - but we have other options if that happens. There isn't a soffit over the freezer and it's at the end of a cabinet run next to a doorway so we could easily opt for a smaller, less expensive unit....See MoreNeed layout help
Comments (15)Can't sleep so what the heck, I played with your kitchen. ;-) I ditched the stub walls between FR and kitchen and created a banquette wall, 5'6" long between FR and kitchen with 42" walkways on either side. Adding a banquette freed up space in the kitchen since you don't need to add walkway clearance behind the bench. The bench is 24" deep, plenty deep to add cushions on the back. Table is 42" wide and 60" long. It's a bit tight between the chair at the top of the table and the right hand French door (4' from table to door) but you could make the left hand French door the one predominantly used and it won't be an issue. There's 52" between table and island, which is 42" wide and 6' long. I added a prep sink as others suggested to the island. This will make the island function better and not act like a barrier. I placed it where I did so that it doesn't interfere with your drop-zone from the fridge but you could move it to the outer corner if you prefer. I moved pantry/MW/command central (desk) set-up around and pushed the fridge back to line up with oven/MW as you described above. I placed a 30-32" wide pantry (depends on how large your oven cabinet needs to be) with pull-outs between fridge and oven/MW stack (30" wide oven, btw). This is my preference - less chance of door dings - but you can easily swap pantry and oven/MW location. Some people don't like ovens opening into a doorway but most people don't open their ovens nearly as often as they open their pantry so it could be less of an issue than you'd think. And if you go with a range, not a rangetop, the single oven will be used even less frequently. The cabinet by the banquette is your bar/wine fridge/drop zone. Oops, I was thinking that by making it only 18" deep, I'd give you more clearance for people to stand here but wine fridges need 24" depth. No matter, you've got enough room to go 24" + counter overhang here. I enlarged the window over the sink, centered the sink on the window and moved your DW to the right where you prefer it. The cabinet to the right of the DW can be a china hutch-type cabinet to the counter. I ditched the upper angled cabinet to the right of the range/rangetop and made the cabs go straight to the sink wall. Better look, IMO, and you still get decent (perhaps more usable) storage....See MoreIf you DIY'd your kitchen...
Comments (29)This was an excellent thread to get a glimpse into how many different ways there are to accomplish the same goal of a kitchen remodel. We hired a GC and have a project manager who comes by every day. The scope of our project is fairly large which means I'm solidly in the good/fast (aka expensive) part of the graphic above. DH has been supportive, but he did comment that we have delayed our retirement by at least two years (uh, we're 20 years away from even thinkin' about it) - that was a depressing statement. My justification on all this - if we were to sell our house & buy something new we'd pay a pretty penny in realtor fees and state excise taxes. I'm staying put and doubling down on my kitchen budget - refreshing the rest of the main level at the same time. (paint, floors, furniture). Appliances, cabinets, lighting, plumbing fixtures, and counters have put me in at ~ $75K. Add GC fees, interior construction, plumbing, electrical, hardwood, etc. I'm well into the 6 figures. Back to the original question: I'm not afraid to get in there and do stuff. Over the years, I've tiled, sanded and stained interior doors, sanded and stained kitchen cabinets, drywall (install, mud, tape, texture), etc. But now, I just don't have time and it would take 10 years for me to finish even a tiny scale project. If I had time and the project was a bit larger in scale, things I would definitely outsource: electrical - particularly to make sure you meet code requirements, plumbing if it is more than a simple linear move, solid surface fabrication, construction rough in (assuming your changing walls - want to keep house structurally safe). Other nice to outsource items would be drywall and trim paint (we are partial to oil paint on trim). In a prior life, I did a DIY and it took about a year. We did not hire out anything and I probably spent < $4,000 on a .10' x 10' kitchen. New Maple doors (ordered from Canyon Creek); clear coat poly. Sand and gel poly-stain (cherry) existing cabinet box Replace exterior hinges with interior European style and add new door hardware. Hinges were definitely more than the knobs. Replace drawer fronts with slabs of solid maple with clear coat poly. We purchased premium wood and had great hardware store that would plane down the maple to match cabinet door depth. The planer left burn marks on the maple and I was panicked - sanded out just fine. New sink and faucet (HD special) New range - felt like a splurge at the time, but it was a scratch & dent for 50% off. Granite tile counter, purchased tile from granite importer (chose the cheapest thing I liked) - finished edge with 3/8" x 1.5" trim piece of maple. Large format porcelain tile on floor - again cheapest thing I liked from a importers yard. It might have been stone (travertine), but I just can't remember. Long comment. sorry for that. =)...See MoreEight years of Abies Koreana 'Kohouts Icebreaker'
Comments (13)Will, Long time no see. Great pictures of your I.Bs. Glad to see you back once in a while. Your garden always looks wonderful. Here are the pics of my I.Bs. All are about 6 years old. All are in pots. No sign of leader development at all. Weird? There have been a great debate - on ACS - whether I.B is a miniature or a dwarf. Some say it is a miniature, some say it is a dwarf. Your plant turns out to be a dwarf, but mine is miniature. To me, it seems, it all depends on whether it is in a pot or it is in the ground. Of course, some other conditions can affect its growth rate too (zones, sun condition, etc...) but I'm not sure of other factors though. All I know, based on my experience is this: 1 - It is very sensitive to overwatering. It can easily go down in just one shot of overwatering. However, if it does not get enough water during the summer time, it will get burnt, but it will recover once it gets enough water. In other words, you cannot kill it with under-watering but you will kill it with over-watering. Well-drainage growth media is the key. I don't know what the right formula is but I have a formula for it. 2 - It becomes(?) a miniature when it's in a pot. it only grows about 1-2 inches a year and becomes extremely tight (see the pictures). 3 - it can take hot sun in zone 7a-b. Some needle burn when transplanting to a new pot. No needle burn when established in the pot. 4 - Very cold hardy. No broken branches in heavy snow. But some help might be needed to brush off the snow accumulation. 5 - Some evergreen fertilizer is needed (Lowe's has it), but use it sparingly or you will kill the plant. Apply the fertilizer in the spring and away from the base. Hope these info would help those want to plant this wonderful plant. It is my most favorite Abies Koreana. Please enjoy the plants. John N....See MoreChi
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