First time home owner

last year

My husband passed January 31, 2020. Our house and adjoining land were more than I could maintain so I purchased a home to be closer to my siblings. Posting a few photos. What are these for, there are four in all?

This gutter is not connect to base; has 1/2inch at bottom

Do I need to cover these grates, there are four of them?

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Stax

last year

They look like vents for the crawl space. They should be kept clear during the warmer seasons. You could cover them in the winter.

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Comments (14)

cat_ky
last year
last modified: last year
Keep them clear of debris. They are used for crawlspace venting, and are important. If you need to cover for winter, buy the plastic domed type covers and set them in place. Be sure to remove them again as soon as the weather warms up. Something like this. https://www.homedepot.com/b/Hardware-Window-Hardware-Repair-Window-Wells-Accessories/Cover/N-5yc1vZ1z18ib2Z1z18a9e?storeSelection=
Lucie thanked cat_ky
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This is such an interesting question. We are also DIYers and bought property to build our own house on. We even talked about doing it a decade ago and it didn’t work out. Can I say I’m SO GLAD it didn’t work out when we were younger and less experienced homeowners? We did what @cpartist said - bought a fixer upper (two, actually) and lived in them for the last decade, fixing them as we go and learning technical skills, space planning, where to splurge and where to cut costs, etc. If we had built right away a decade ago we would have had a MUCH INFERIOR house over what we can build now. From a living standpoint and fit and finish, both. Currently we are in the second fixer upper as our temporary/investment property that we are fixing and living in during the build we will start next year. This gives us a staging ground so he time pressure is off us to get it done faster than we can afford. It’s also let us test out everything from cabinetry join methods to drywall finish, tile setting, pulling new wire and redoing an electrical panel, multiple types of plumbing and HVAC repairs and installs, even furniture building and cut/install of molding and trim. This is our low stakes test house. And we can rent or sell it once we move, so sweat equity will pay dividends that will help cover our mortgage costs for the new place. I highly recommend doing it this way. Life and priorities change over the years, as do skills and finances. There is a reason even most of us diehard DIYers don’t start out with the ‘dream house build’ :)
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littlebug zone 5 Missouri
last year
Did you have a concern with the gutter and the black receptacle? You said they’re not connected to each other - they don’t have to be connected. Rain flowing down the gutter will continue to fall straight down into the black receptacle as it should.
Lucie
Original Author
last year
littlebug, there are a couple more gutters that go down into the pipe but water runs off the roof onto the sidewalk. I will take a video next time it rains.
Little Bug
last year
last modified: last year
Water running off the roof onto the ground, rather than into a gutter, is a concern. Is there a piece of gutter missing? Perhaps you should schedule a visit by a guttering company.
Lucie thanked Little Bug
Olychick
last year
Make sure the drain the downspout is going into isn't plugged by debris.
Lucie thanked Olychick
cat_ky
last year
Water running off the roof, and not into the downspout, means you need gutters and downspouts all cleaned out. There is a clog somewhere.
Stax
last year
last modified: last year
Sounds familiar! lol
Lucie thanked Stax
Lucie
Original Author
last year
I had help cleaning the gutters; I will have to wait until it rains to see if that fixes the problem. Otherwise, I have not idea how to slip the gutter out from the black thingy.
Stax
last year
The black thingy has a black cap with a rectangular hole to accommodate the downspout.

You should be able to slide the cap upward on the downspout to possibly allow cleaning any leaves in the black thingy.

Also, if you remove one of the screws thru the metal strap shown in your photo above the thingy, you may actually be able to get the downspout out of the thingy.
Lucie thanked Stax
kathyg_in_mi
last year
The first pic is of crawl space vents. An easy way to cover them for winter is to go to HD or Lowe's. They always have some broken styrofoam insulation pieces that you can buy cheaply, cut to size, then just angle a board from the ground to the styrofoam to hold it in place.
Lucie thanked kathyg_in_mi
Lucie
Original Author
last year
Stax, OMG thank you so much. Can't wait until tomorrow to check it out.
Lucie
Original Author
last year
kathyg_in_mi...It's off to HD tomorrow. Between my sister and me we will get it done. Thanks so much!
Stax
last year
While at HD, take a look at the "thingys." You'll see how they work and improve your chances.
Lucie thanked Stax

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