The Home Ownership Thread

[Gus]



City I live in has been under a state of Emergency for a couple days now. 75,000 people evacuated - only 1,500 ended up in emergency shelters, all else found refuge with friends. The City Center lies at the confluence of two major rivers, both of which have spilled their banks and flooding homes.

http://globalnews.ca/news/661667/photo-gallery-calgary-floods-before-and-after/

Lots of beautiful old (100+ years) houses being destroyed.

My house is fine - one of the perks to living on top of a hill - but some of the neighbourhoods effected where at the top of my list for my 'dream' neighbourhood.

The news video is very dramatic. My heart goes out to you and the residents who are dealing with such a catastrophe.

 

[KenRose]

I live in Calgary too. Close to downtown and thank you for saying that. One thing you really don't appreciate until you have to go through it. It upset me more then I thought it would.

The news video is very dramatic. My heart goes out to you and the residents who are dealing with such a catastrophe.

 

[KenRose]

They have moved some of the animals to the remand center (our jail). The zoo was totally submerged, I feel awful because I'm sure some pets have died

 

[Ataturk]



When my front-load goes, I'm going back to top-load.

why? I hate top loads.

I was skeptical of the front loader, not being able to soak clothes in it and all that--but it turns out you can, easily, actually. Mine's got an "auto soak" button that very slowly agitates for an extra thirty minutes. It does the job.

It's also a lot gentler on clothes and has a superior spin cycle, sparing time in the dryer which is where the real wear and tear happens. The only downside is that I used to pull my shirts out mid-wash and clean the collars. Gotta do that in the sink now (but it doesn't seem to be as necessary).

Trying out the washer after the repair was humiliating, though. Two leaks, a loose connector, and I had to retorque the spindle nut. No torque spec in the manual. When the bearings were unused it seemed like tightening the nut caused it drag. 'Course it's not a car and the spindle actually turns, so I should have known better than to leave it loose. I had to gradually tighten it. Glad I didn't let the loctite dry. After running through a spin cycle or two the tub spun freely even with the nut tight. So I guess I fixed it.

 

[brokencycle]

Maybe it is just my front-load -- it came with the house. I don't have much of a problem with the cleaning, but it isn't very big and it falls victim to the stinky front-load issue.

 

[VLSI]



Maybe it is just my front-load -- it came with the house. I don't have much of a problem with the cleaning, but it isn't very big and it falls victim to the stinky front-load issue.

Don't latch the door when you close it after unloading a cycle. Just push it closed without the "click". Mine is plenty large, no issues there.

 

[imschatz]



I live in Calgary too. Close to downtown and thank you for saying that. One thing you really don't appreciate until you have to go through it. It upset me more then I thought it would.

Man, that's tough .. where you evacuated? Up until October, I was living at 4th st and 15 ave sw .. Definitely would have been evacuated, and my basement apartment likely flooded.

It's great to see the water receding so quickly though. Was out on the Deerfoot yesterday, and it still looked like a warzone, but this morning - water levels in some spots have dropped 4-5 feet.

 

[Ataturk]

Leaving the door open works, but on mine there's a little drain and filter where the tub meets the seal at the bottom. It gets lint in it and the lint stays wet. What you should do is wipe it out from time to time. Nothing to it, though.

Edit: also there's a filter under the tub. You have to take the bottom panel off on mine to get to it--just three torx-head screws. I've heard of people finding socks and stuff in there, and that could really stink.

 

[Gus]



Maybe it is just my front-load -- it came with the house. I don't have much of a problem with the cleaning, but it isn't very big and it falls victim to the stinky front-load issue.

The stinky front load issue appears to be common no matter what brand. I tried every scent freshening method I could find and then a home forum said "Just leave the door open after washing". That works. Fortunately we have a laundry room so I don't have to stare at an open door. But if I had it in a kitchen or other visible location I might reconsider a front load or research a FL brand that is guaranteed odor free when closed. Not sure if there is one.

I will say that the new front loads are 1) quiet 2) very energy and water efficient 3) do an amazing job cleaning

 

[Gus]

Speaking of appliances, we just bought a new refrigerator. Double doors on top and a freezer drawer on the bottom. It is a very efficient setup. But, what I especially enjoy are the LED lights. They run up both sides so there are no dark areas and the light is clean and slightly blue, very pleasing to the eyes. So much better than a couple 25watt incandescent bulbs.

LED's continue to get better and better. I was in a commercial light store the other day and the owner showed me some of the latest LEDs. No longer do you need to accept bright, glaring ones. They are rapidly introducing new flattering colors. And the power savings and life span is remarkable.

Anyone looking at home lighting, I highly recommend checking into the new wave of LED's. Especially for under counter and other specialty or task lighting. You might need to go to a specialty light store.

 

[jgold47]



The stinky front load issue appears to be common no matter what brand. I tried every scent freshening method I could find and then a home forum said "Just leave the door open after washing". That works. Fortunately we have a laundry room so I don't have to stare at an open door. But if I had it in a kitchen or other visible location I might reconsider a front load or research a FL brand that is guaranteed odor free when closed. Not sure if there is one.

I will say that the new front loads are 1) quiet 2) very energy and water efficient 3) do an amazing job cleaning

I have a hybrid top load, that doesnt have a center agitator. best of both worlds. Its a bravos by maytag. no complaints.

 

[texas_jack]



Speaking of appliances, we just bought a new refrigerator. Double doors on top and a freezer drawer on the bottom. It is a very efficient setup. But, what I especially enjoy are the LED lights. They run up both sides so there are no dark areas and the light is clean and slightly blue, very pleasing to the eyes. So much better than a couple 25watt incandescent bulbs.

LED's continue to get better and better. I was in a commercial light store the other day and the owner showed me some of the latest LEDs. No longer do you need to accept bright, glaring ones. They are rapidly introducing new flattering colors. And the power savings and life span is remarkable.

Anyone looking at home lighting, I highly recommend checking into the new wave of LED's. Especially for under counter and other specialty or task lighting. You might need to go to a specialty light store.

What brand is it?

 

[Gus]



What brand is it?

This is it. http://www.electroluxappliances.com...tors/French-Door-Refrigerator/EW23BC85KS.aspx

 

[Connemara]

How much did you guys put down on your first house?

 

[Ataturk]

It really annoys me that counter-depth refrigerators cost so much more than the regular ones.

Conne, you should go talk to somebody who sells mortgages. It might make no difference in the rate and closing costs whether you put down 5% or 20%... You will have to pay mortgage insurance, but if house values keep going up you can get rid of it in a couple years.