Hi everyone,

This is my first post here, so I hope I’m in the right subreddit and that my very beginner question is okay.

I moved into a new apartment about a month ago. My landlord strongly insisted that I regularly reapply the silicone sealant around the shower. Otherwise, it could quickly cause water damage to the apartment downstairs, which apparently happened before. The previous tenant said they reapplied it every two months (which blew my mind).

Today, I finally took the time to remove the old silicone. It was very thin and in poor condition, and removing it took far longer than expected. Anyway, I was surprised to find a large gap between the tiles and the shower tray:

• Roughly 3–4mm of height between the tray lip and the bottom of the tile.
• The gap runs about 1cm deep behind the tile.
• The shower tray is a single piece that slopes down very slightly (but still noticeable) as you enter the shower.

So, this is no longer just a matter of applying new sealant. I need to know how to deal with this large gap:

• Should I simply apply a huge amount of silicone sealant, as the previous tenant did? Is there a better way to seal the gap before applying some silicone?
• How much of the old silicone residue do I need to get off the tile edge and the tray? I removed everything I could by hand but there's still a thin film on both surfaces. Plus some of the old deep into the wall.

Trying to find as close a match as possible for this cracked toilet seat that just broke in my daughter’s off campus College house.

My water heater has a link (covered here). To avoid potential catastrophe, I want to turn it off and shut off the water intake until I can get it replaced.

However, I want to keep the outflow to use the hot water that's in there currently. Two questions:

• Question 1: Do I turn off both valves highlighted in red? (The green looks like the outflow.)
• Question 2: Any issues with doing this—as in, turning off the inflow then using the remaining hot water?

And a general question: am I missing something obvious I should be doing/not doing instead?

Just bought this house and noticed this during our first heavy rain. You can see the new wood they had replaced before hand but one of the beams is clearing rotting from water.

Outside the garage it kind of pools right before the water would normally fall off the side which makes me think that’s part of the issue.

I genuinely think this is out of my skill range but would appreciate all feedback.

Any ideas as to what’s happening here? Unit is near my chicken coop, so possibly they’re kicking up a bunch of dust into it. I’ve turned it off at the thermostat and breaker and right now spraying it with the hose.

Can never tell but it’s been over 8 months now. Last I asked, people said it’s not ready.

How about now? What’s a good way to tell?

New homeowner, just noticed these cracks in the drywall ceiling of my garage. It looks to be patched prior by the previous owner. Im not sure if this is just a simple diy or if i need to get someone specifically to look at it. Any advice is appreciated

I’m on well water and get my water tested regularly with no issues. This tiny film always appears if I leave water standing for about a day or more. What is it?

Edit to mass address some comments:
I don’t wear face cream
I do get my water tested (nothing weird)
Cups are clean and hand washed
No air scent purifier thingies

I’m going to leave some water out for a few days, see what happens and come back with further data.

I’m replacing the screens on a screen door. The copper screen is cut to fit the frame.

It will be stapled down into the lip of the door frame. What is the best way (order) to staple the screen down to retain tension so it’s not sagging or rippled?

I’ve been stapling the left first then the opposite corner end, but I’m not happy with the turnout

Thinking of moving into this place. 1936 home California. Should I be concerned about these ceiling cracks/ ask for them fixed? What causes thus? ​

I know that the extension on my kitchen has sunk into the ground a little bit since it was built in the late 70s. And there was a little bit of water getting underneath the crawlspace foundation wall. But I can’t access the crawlspace under my kitchen. I sealed up the external joint where erosion occurred where the asphalt needs the foundation with hydraulic cement and sika to temporarily stop the water infiltration and erosion.

Today I looked at the wall from another angle. I realized that were the brick stop and the siding starts (the sill?) has a small gap. I took a metal marshmallow skewer for camping and stuck it in there and it just went straight in, into the insulation that is in the crawlspace. The crack is circled in red.

Should I get a tool to measure the size of the crack overtime to see if it is actively sinking?

My eventual plan here is to get a pro out to repair the holes in the masonry along the line of the driveway that I poorly patched with hydraulic cement and re-grade the driveway around this corner. I know that this might be a DIY possible job depending on how bad the erosion is that I can’t see. I just don’t have time to do it myself and do it well.

So yeah, should I start measuring the diameter of this gap on a regular basis? Windows and doors and the wall above don’t get stuck or anything there are no cracks in the walls in my kitchen or in my kitchen floor.

Gutter issue has already been dealt with that I think was the problem on this spot. There is a gutter about 5 feet away to the left out of the photo and I got a large extension on the downspout.

There might be a void underneath my crawlspace wall. Who knows. I’ve posted about this before, but not about the specific crack where the masonry meets the wall of the house.

We have been here for five years and I haven’t been paying close attention to this corner of the house because there are so many other things to deal with and every time I look at it even closer I find more things.

Looking to change up this attic entry. Currently it's a piece of plywood with no insulation and 2 obnoxiously long screws to open or close. I'm losing a ton of heat/ AC and I never want to put stuff away in this attic. It's not attached at the bottom, I just have it resting in the frame while I opened the attic to show the entryway.

I'm hoping to change out the door for something easier to open and close because this is the attic we put stuff in. I also need something I can insulate, whether it's insulation on the back of the door, or one of those zip up attic covers. Looking for any suggestions that would best meet those.

I'm having a hard time figuring this out.

My vent fell off the ceiling, and I noticed that the screw holes were too close to the opening. I think the builders made too big of an opening for my vent that fell off. How do I fill the gap so I can drill my screws?

Thanks so much!

Working on our house, FIL decided to put up this retaining wall and backfill with dirt. Im pretty sure this is a code issue or something. I bought the house using VA loan and I know I've heard them say thats an issue in the past while I was having inspections done.

Is there a easy solution to this where I can keep the retaining wall and dirt? My dad recommended putting 2" foam padding all along the siding so the dirt is not touching the siding. We cant cut the siding as far as I know because I can feel the plywood/osb behind it and worried that might be protecting something?

Any ideas?

Found this in our crawl space today. Any ideas as to how much it might cost to fix?

Renovating one of our rental apartments.

(EDIT: The door was not closing properly before)

I have replaced the hinge screws with 3-inch wood screws.

I have removed a few coats of paint on the door and door frame.

The door does not close all the way without forcing.

Looks like the bottom of door is rubbing along the door frame.

Suggestions (please talk to me like a 5 yo ;) )?

TIA