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How-to Protect your home during construction

13K views 34 replies 14 participants last post by  gma2rjc 
#1 ·
Nothing will spoil you fun faster than ruining your carpets or finished floors during a project----

A few hours spent protecting your floors and furniture will safe you a lot---and keep peace in the family.

I'll offer up a couple of my favorites--then you all,please add yours---

Carper protector-- --This is like a 30" wide roll of Scotch tape----
I use it for protecting the carpet----:laughing:---also---when stripping wall paper

I lay heavy plastic over the entire room---then 'tape' the plastic around the base boards with the carpet protector----cover that with cloth runners and get out the garden sprayer---

Next---Sheets of Masonite or Luan ply to protect floors when moving appliances----I split a sheet into three pieces and keep moving them in front of the heavy appliance---well worth the cost---
 
#4 · (Edited)
Remember -
No matter what measures you take to contain any dust generated by the
remodeling project you are doing -
It will get everywhere.

If you're working in one room - some type of fan, blowing out a window will help.
Got to cut drywall/plaster with a saw? - have someone use a shop-vac,
close to the cut - to vac. as much dust as possible.

Depending on the extent of the project - forced air furnace? -
change your furnace filter(s) during or, at least after the project.

rossfingal

(Also - "Dust Masks" are your friend) :)
 
#10 ·
We drywalled a basement a few years back---there were several exercise machines----we wrapped them well---moved the dang things countless times --

When the project was about finished the homeowner asked," Mike, would you guys mind moving those out to the curb for me?"
 
#5 ·
Plan ahead for trash handling--

The extra cost of good heavy duty trash bags will seem like nothing if you have to clean up a giant mess inside your house when a cheap bag splits.

A dumpster is often needed----best to spend your time doing the construction,rather than filling your garage with heaps of trash that must be handled a second time----
 
#6 ·
If your going to use a pick up to haul the trash away lay a tarp in the bed that's big enough to lay in the bed and up over the cab of the truck. Once it's full flip the tarp back to cover the load.
Once your at the dump often times you can pull on the tarp to dump it.
When stripping a roof lay some OSB down on the deck or stoops, lay tarps any place your dropping the shingles to reduce the time picking up the small pieces and nails. The OSB on the decks will stop all the black marks and give you something to run a pitch fork or flat shovel across to clean it up.
Lay a piece of OSB over the top of the
 
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#7 · (Edited)
If your project involves the use of some type of V.O.C. compounds
(Volatile Organic Compound) - petroleum based.
Use protection for your hands -
We use latex gloves with rubber gloves over them.
Some of these can be absorbed through your skin.
(The result of this happening - I can attest to!) :(

Watch out for "fumes" - adequate ventilation, at all times!
If you're working anywhere, near sources of combustion -
furnaces, water-heaters, space-heaters, stoves ...
Anything with a pilot-light/ignitor.
Turn them off!

If you are using "strippers" or acetone, xylene, xylol, lacquer thinner ....
Don't make the mistake of throwing any rags/paper towels.... into a
bucket or a box, and leaving them somewhere, where you don't want a
fire to start.
"Spontaneous combustion" can occur - no, you don't need a match or spark.

rossfingal
 
#26 ·
On top of protecting your home, protect yourself. Get yourself a half face respirator. Not a paper "dust" mask. Get a real respirator that will protect you. Get one that is N95 rated and be sure it fits properly. The kind with replacable filter cartridges. Use P100 cartidges for dust protection. Use organic vapor cartridges if you are going to be using any nasty chemicals, like epoxies or paint strippers. Second, get a good shop vac and use a HEPA rated filter in it.
 
#29 ·
Back in the day, materials were almost completely natural products. Asbestos was probably one of the first all natural materials found to be causing health issues. Today we use a lot of synthetic materials and chemicals on even the most simple construction jobs. Breathing dust and fumes from these does who knows what? People today should be a lot more educated and aware of the kinds of things they are inhaling and ingesting.

Of course there are those who just don't believe and think they have iron lungs and nothing has happened in the 20 years that they've been sawing out asbestos insulation, so there must be nothing to it. They are your lawsuit people.
 
#8 ·
During major demolition---cover furniture with plastic and tape it well----especially pianos----dust and grit travel a long way---and paying to clean and tune your spouses piano may cause a divorce---:laughing: ( or sleeping in the dog house)
 
#9 · (Edited)
Yeah - worked in houses where the homeowner had nice, grand/baby-grand pianos.
They had someone come in and shrink-wrap them - to the extreme.
They had to be moved around - sometimes a lot.

After things were done -
"Piano Tuner"!
Piano tuning is not a "DIY" project! :)
Those people who do that piano tuning - got way, better ears than I have!
"RF"

(Remember - "you can tune a piano - but, you can't tuna fish!) :)
 
#11 ·
When you have plumbing drains open---cap or plug them up---

I don't want you to waste time ripping out drains because a fitting went bouncing down an open toilet hole---

( Don't ask me how I learned ---it was not a fun experience)
 
#14 ·
Soap and water---a little dirt won't kill you--Wait till you find a separated sewage line in a crawl space-----

That's why plumbers get the big bucks!!!! It's a glamorous job.
 
#21 ·
Speaking of plumbers, a friend of mine who is a plumber was telling me of a time he went to a doctor's house on a call. He was there about 15 minutes and handed the doctor's wife a bill for $75 (it has been a while back). She went ape, what is this! My husband doesn't make this kind of money, Ronny looked at her just as serious and said, well if he had gone to school for a couple more years he could have been a plumber.:laughing: True story.
 
#22 ·
When demolishing drywall, as fun as it might seem to just go at it with a hammer like they do on TV, take it slow, use a jigsaw to cut it into square panels that you can just pop out. Easier to transport to the truck, and less dust.

I demolished my whole basement like that. Sure it took longer to demolish, but it went 10x faster to cleanup after. There will still be dust, and bits here and there, but at least the majority of the material can be handled in larger chunks.



I never said perfect squares, but at least this was easier to carry out than tiny chunks!
 
#24 ·
When demolishing drywall, as fun as it might seem to just go at it with a hammer like they do on TV, take it slow, use a jigsaw to cut it into square panels that you can just pop out. Easier to transport to the truck, and less dust.

I demolished my whole basement like that. Sure it took longer to demolish, but it went 10x faster to cleanup after. There will still be dust, and bits here and there, but at least the majority of the material can be handled in larger chunks.



I never said perfect squares, but at least this was easier to carry out than tiny chunks!
why did you demo the basement?
 
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