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Got a reminder again yesterday that u cannot assume square in a house.

R

Rob Keeble

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12,633
Location
GTA Ontario Canada
Well frustration was at its peak by the time i packed it in last night. Linda asked me to make up a pelmet to hold the curtain rails for our bedroom. Now we not in our final destination right now we renting a real old place till we decide on a property. So this place goes back to days of plastered walls etc.
Well relatively new windows but super old trim.
So i measured width at sil level not stopping to think it would be out. .Ok so wrecked first piece of cheap pine i was using.
But duh you think i would have learnt I go measure the top after and then recut but used the bottom measurement again. duh.
I could have slapped myself silly. So not that I like doing a tacky job (which adds to frustration rather than the joy and satisfactkon) but good old stanley flat brackets came in handy and i just joined on a piece.
The customer was happy but i aint but what the heck i am trying to learn to pick my battles. :) :)
Woodworking with a bad wing aint fun either and to top it off all my tools and things are still in one huge mess and pile in tha garage.
But hey the ability to set up a couple of saw horses and work outside with the new neighbor having a good ol Italian family get together and not bothering me an ounce was PRICELESS :)

Hope its sunk in to measure measure measure where i need to. :)


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I'd have to repeat Jonathan's suggestion, hard to find neighbors to get along with. :D

Even the house I live in now my parents were telling me "to build new...it's just easier". With the few structural and electrical issues I'm thinking they were right. They always built theirs (themselves) and didn't have to worry about things being done wrong. I had my last house built and was able to check on it almost daily and if you can't build it yourself, that is the way to do it so you can rip out what they screwed up before they cover it up.

Anyway, yes old houses can test your geometry skills and patience, but at least you're not owning that one (yet).
 
Rob Keeble said:
Well frustration was at its peak by the time i packed it in last night. Linda asked me to make up a pelmet to hold the curtain rails for our bedroom. Now we not in our final destination right now we renting a real old place till we decide on a property. So this place goes back to days of plastered walls etc.
Well relatively new windows but super old trim.
So i measured width at sil level not stopping to think it would be out. .Ok so wrecked first piece of cheap pine i was using.
But duh you think i would have learnt I go measure the top after and then recut but used the bottom measurement again. duh.
I could have slapped myself silly. So not that I like doing a tacky job (which adds to frustration rather than the joy and satisfactkon) but good old stanley flat brackets came in handy and i just joined on a piece.
The customer was happy but i aint but what the heck i am trying to learn to pick my battles. :) :)
Woodworking with a bad wing aint fun either and to top it off all my tools and things are still in one huge mess and pile in tha garage.
But hey the ability to set up a couple of saw horses and work outside with the new neighbor having a good ol Italian family get together and not bothering me an ounce was PRICELESS :)

Hope its sunk in to measure measure measure where i need to. :)


Sent from my MB860 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...

Welcome to my world Rob! When the boys built our place around 1840 (the farmhands, I figure, under the general guidance of a handyman) I don't think they had a measuring device among them. Makes for challenging times if you're someone who "don't do crooked".
Enjoy! Call if you need counselling :D

They do sound like good neighbours.
 
Peter Rideout said:
Welcome to my world Rob! When the boys built our place around 1840 (the farmhands, I figure, under the general guidance of a handyman) I don't think they had a measuring device among them. Makes for challenging times if you're someone who "don't do crooked".
Enjoy! Call if you need counselling :D

They do sound like good neighbours.
Click to expand...


Hey, they probably did measure Peter, but the greenwood does things as it dries/cures!
 
Jonathan the property is too small for my liking. The real plus side of taking Linda to Larrys place was she came away saying..."Thats exactly what we want for a property. So Larrys place is a benchmark of what we looking for. Now we just gotta find the area and seek it out. At least i dont have a debate with the wife about what i think is a great place. Oh by the way she even buys into the size of shop. Larrys shop is nearly bigger than the house. :)
 
Hey Rob, old houses and nothing very square is a common given. However when you mix in a mostly German population and their affiliation with barley pops things get quite interesting.

When I went to re-roof/shingle the porch roof a few years back I found the sheeting was rotten so I tore that off to replace it. Now the roof rafters were quite a sight. Not a one running square. some were angled as much as 6" and the next angled the opposite way. I nearly laughed myself off the roof and figured they must have been really drunk when they put that roof system together. The more I tear into this old home to upgrade the more I find in the way of amazing construction deficits. I'm more than willing to cobble something up when it doesn't really matter but I have come to realize that I am nowhere near the cobbling expert that the previous homeowners were.

In the current bathroom remodel I have pretty much had to re-stud the walls because there was no rhyme or reason to the stud spacing. Makes it hard to hang drywall and tile backer board. I guess when you put up lathe and plaster the studs can be just about anywhere you put them. I figure I could be half drunk and one eye closed and do a better job.:D
 
i learned that lesson myself rob, when i built a shelving insert for my dad's basement remodeling. i took the basic height, length, and depth measurements, and the only one that was good was the depth.:eek: the shelving insert was built to square, not to the house.:doh: planing here, pounding there, it finally went in, with a lot of verbal encouragement:tantrum: that cannot be reprinted here. it's amazing how much better the whole thing looked, when the surrounding trim boards were put in place. not a gap, or shim to be seen!:thumb:
 
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