Another Sister for an Errant Plumber

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A sister is relatively easy, cheap and simple to fix a ubiquitous problem in an old brownstone building.  You could use 1/4″ steel plate, but that is also a fussy detail to work with and more expensive than an LVL.  I have no idea why plumbers were so determined to cut and notch so many joists to plumb a building, but they more than any other trade, sufficiently compromised the structural integrity of our building.  As a result, we have had to deal with the implications of their zeal and ardor for removing structure in favor of piping.
IMG_4554Above you can see our brand new orange sister nestled against a joist that was notched for the toilet waste pipe.  There was about 1″ of the original joist left, which is why the floor in the bathroom had become soft.  The structural redundancy in old brownstones is impressive, but so is the notching that often leads to sloping and sagging floors.

 

The Metal Monger

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Every renovation runs into budgetary constraints, but there are plenty of tricks to either shrink the budget or find a little extra bread if you are determined enough.  When I was a kid my father who was a contractor used to send my brother, a fellow by the name of chunk and myself to do the demolition on buildings before the fancy carpenters started construction.  At some point in the process he would send us to the scrappers to recycle the metal we had pulled from the building.

We harvested this copper from our building, primarily from the heating system, kitchens and bathrooms that are being demolished. It may not look like much, but it is about 180 pounds of copper.

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The metal mongers currently pay about $2.30 per pound for copper, which is about $414. They pay cash. That is 2 new toilets that I don’t have to buy. Bonus.

IMG_4561Just be careful, when you go, I took this photo inside the yard and immediately a group of burly looking Irish men came out and started yelling at me… Who knows.

 

 

Antique Radiators

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In an effort to save a few dolla bills during the renovation we have been cruising salvage shops, antique dealers, craigslist and of course Kevin & Richards plumbing supply looking for used radiators. While it may seem like an odd place to save a few bucks, one fin of an antique radiator sells for about $7-10/fin while a newer radiator sells for about $25-$30/fin. It is not always an easy move, as the used radiators may have cracks and the bushings may be damaged.  This often requires more work and money which makes the newer radiators look like a better buy.  Often the radiators are stored outside and have not been tested, so buyer beware…

We found these at Kevin and Richard’s plumbing supply and they have been tested and are stored inside.  Unfortunately they did not fit our criteria as BTU output is based on the size of the radiator which is sized to the room in which it is installed.

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The Boiler Diaries

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Well, its been another long week and clearly I have yet to fully grasp everything there is to know about oil boilers.  To be honest, I grew up in the country with a forced air system that ran on natural gas supplied from the street.  I never had to think about where the heating supply came from, it was just always there.  On Thursday I was cleaning up the cellar when I leaned over to touch the heating pipes as I was about to leave and realized they were cold.  It seemed odd because the pump for the boiler was still running.  When I went to check the boiler there was no fire.  I then went to check the tank and much to my surprise I had realized that we ran out of heating oil…

Due to the extreme cold this last few weeks we blew through 175 gallons of No. 2 heating oil in less than two weeks and eviscerated about $850 in heating costs.  Ugh.  In addition to that fact, I found myself once again trapped in our boiler room at 2 AM with nothing but the sound of the water pump to keep me company.  We called our typically oil supplier, but the office had closed at 5:00 PM. Ugh…

The stress then set in realizing that the framing contractors progress would slow considerably if we asked them to work in the freezing cold and the idea of pipes freezing and busting during the night was too much to bear.  Skaggs Walsh to the rescue. Once again, it is amazing what can be supplied 24 hours a day in NYC.  Within 3 hours they delivered another 250 gallons of No. 2 heating oil and we were back in business, or were we…

Because the tank had run completely out, the pump needed to be primed and I had no idea how to prime an oil boiler…  Well, a few hours later and some random youtube videos and we were back in business.

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Can’t wait to convert this thing to gas…

Screwed

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We have been sistering many joists in building.  In fact, there are more sisters than a convent in eastern Quebec.  As a result we have been moving through a lot screws.  Our trusty engineer specified a particular type of screw and they have been difficult to locate here in Brooklyn.  I have driven to multiple Home Depot’s searching for large buckets of these things.  Each time we buy the screws in bulk we pay less than 50% for each screw.  Its quite a savings and only a few Home Depot’s carry them in bulk.  Today I just downloaded the Home Depot app on my i-phone and I have to say, its pretty impressive.

Not only can I purchase product from my phone on the job site, but I can also compare prices and shop around. Pretty powerful.

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It will also locate which stores have the items in stock or what the delivery times might be… Workers in the store will then go out onto the floor, remove the purchased items from the shelf and store them behind the counter until I arrive.  I can also assign one of the contractors assistants to go and pick them up under their name.  If I decide that I just want to go to the store to pick them up myself and purchase them with cash, the app will tell me what aisle and section they are located in.  This way, there is no wasted time, no confusion and I know exactly where the items that I am looking for are located.

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Once my order is ready for pickup, Home Depot will then shoot me a text message to notify me.

IMG_4407Almost as good as the day they decided to deliver a piping hot pizza to your door…