work goes on

I need to replace some doors

I need to buy three new doors, a Front and a rear entry door and a thin broom closet door.

I am thinking of putting a door bell on the back door and a door bell and knocker on the front.

I have had no luck with those remote battery operated bells and I am not about to run wires all over the place and back.

I like the old fashion twist bells, drill three holes, slide through and screw tight...ready to go.

The door knocker?

I would like something really different.

Might keep the kids away.

Just need to add a door to match

Looking up.

The ceiling in the stairwell has been painted, white, all that leaves to do there is the walls, the trim, the doors, the stair rails, the step risers, the bannister rails, the mouldings, the step replacement, the staining....

Its funny, I grew up this house and until I had to paint it and put up mouldings, I never noticed how, when my parents built the house, (finishing it in 1959), that it must been a long time and a lot of work, Because the staiway walls and ceiling are not what you would consider, square....

.

Not to mention, In those 54 years, I never noticed the samll gaps they left at joints..

Or how about that piece of wood to the left, I don't know if it is a ceiling support or a gap filler.

 I can say, filled, sanded and repainted, most people won't even notice...
Most people don't go upstairs.

So...better? Or no?

If you remember, there was an issue with some pipes, and a closet...

Well, I scraped the crap out, cut some new wood, did a little painting and...

Oh...the tiles? I found those in the basement...the adhesive on the back was useless, and they wee brittle as hell...but...they worked well enough.

The unexpected...Water

Someone once told me that owning a house is nothing but expenses and work. Well, the work has been true, but once done, everything should be wonderful...right?

A couple months ago I picked up a dehumidifier for the basement, and instead of emptying the bucket everyday, this model has a hose attachment.

This feature makes the unit self contained and worry free. I ran a hose from the unit to the sump hole. Unfortunately the pump I had was there for the rare flood which may occur, as in March 30th a few years ago. The pump uses a floating ball switch on a cable, the problem being the pump doesn't turn on until the water has filled the sump-well and actually started filling the basement. Last weekend I bought an upright pump and inserted it in the hole.

In case you are curious about the sump well it is a Rubbermaid storage bucket. In 2009 I chopped a hole through the concrete, inserted the container then cemented it in place. I have since made a wooden cover for the hole.

Last night, after work, I went downstairs to make sure it was working, as I came down the stairs I noticed the basement floor was wet, on closer inspection I found the sump well was below pump level so it was working. Then...why the wet basement? Looking up I found that the water was dripping from two joints in the water piping. I don't do soldering so I called the plumber. 

As I type this, they just left, 

the leak, wasn't at the joints,

 it was in the wall behind the linen closet upstairs. 

So...

It looks like I am not working on the stairwell, I am rebuilding a wall and a closet.