Rain barrel

We have wanted a rain barrel for quite some time.  Recently, we ran across a blue industrial barrel from a friend who intended to make a rain barrel but had abandoned those plans.  She gave it to us for free.  After about $30 in parts we have a functioning barrel that will provide us with 55 gallons of free rainwater. Follow along for a run through of the process I used to create our barrel.

We started with a 55 gallon blue industrial barrel.  The barrel had a closed top with two screw in ports.  To begin, I purchased a 4" round plastic grate from the outdoor plumbing area at Lowes for $2.76.  I cut out one of the screw in ports and placed the grate in it's place. A hole saw or jig saw can be used for this.  This grate will keep filter out large items such as leaves and sticks that work their way through the guttering.

The next step was to install the spigot.  I purchased a 3/4" hose bibb ($5.56) along with a 3/4" washer ($1.96) and some gutter sealant ($4.28).  I used a hole saw to drill the appropriate sized hole for the bibb to screw into.  The plastic on the barrel is very thick and once the hole was drilled, it was pretty easy to thread the bibb into the plastic. I gooped up the threads and washer with gutter seal and screwed it into place.

Next, I needed to come up with an overflow tube.  I used a barbed fitting for hose with a 5/8" ID.  The fitting is brass and has 3/4" threads on one end and 5/8" barbed on the other.  I screwed this into the upper portion of the barrel in the same manner as the spigot. I used 5/8" clear vinyl tubing for the hose.  5 feet of it cost me $2.35.

Overflow fitting with tubing

Landscape fabric staple holding tubing in place

 Since the water is under no pressure, it is sufficient to just push the tubing over the barbed end of the fitting.  No clamp is necessary.  I positioned the tubing where I wanted it on the ground and used some landscaping fabric staples to  hold it in place.  When the barrel reaches capacity, the water will flow from the overflow tube and away from the foundation of the garage.







The final step in the process was cutting the existing downspout to length and adding a flexible extension onto the end.  I also used a regular aluminum elbow in order to get the downspout to sit directly over the grate on the barrel.  Now as the rain flows from the roof, it will be directed right into the barrel.  The spigot I selected is threaded to accept a garden hose.  We intend to connect a hose to our barrel for purposes of watering our vegetable garden.  Please remember that rainwater captured from a roof is not good for drinking.  Not pictured here is the pantyhose material that is stretched over the grate.  This will prevent mosquitoes from breeding in the water.  For winter I will empty the barrel of water and store it in the garage.  I saved the cut off section of downspout and I will attach it to the flex fitting so that any winter snow can melt and run away from the foundation.

Kitchen staircase progress

I jump around from project to project, as you might be able to see.  Ask my wife, she'll agree.

The kitchen staircase is showing some progress.  I've removed 1/4" plywood "risers" that covered up the original white paint.  I have begun stripping the maroon floor paint from the treads and sanding off the old dark (almost opaque black) stain/varnish, down to the original wood.  I have put down a test area of stain.  I had some Minwax dark walnut on hand so I rubbed a small area.  I let that dry for 24 hours then put one coat of oil based poly on top.  I wanted to see how dark it would be with that combo.  In the picture below you can see the small stain swatch on the top tread, front right corner.

Bare wood treads and stain test patch

My goal is for all of the stairs to have the same stained treads and white risers.  It's fun uncovering the old coverings.  I didn't get a picture, but when I was pulling off the quarter round molding under the tread lip, I found some vinyl woodgrain flooring that someone in the past applied to the stair RISERS.  Pretty 70's I think.  Here is another shot of the the stairs as they stand now.

Lastly, here is my proof that the stair risers were painted white from inception.

In this pic, the white is the original white paint.  Above it is a small area of bare, unfinished wood where quarter round was mounted under the tread nose.  I've pulled the moulding and it's being stripped via chemicals in the garage.  It was too small to use the sander.

I'll post again soon with more progress on these projects.

Discovering old wood flooring

I've always wondered what was underneath the 1/4" painted plywood on the attic landing.  I ripped it up a few weeks ago and discovered original hardwood tounge and groove flooring.  The wood appears to be of less quality than the rest of the house, probably since this was on the attic staircase.  It was pretty dirty and had the original stain on it.  Here is a shot of it after doing some sanding.

The floor appears to be oak and the nosing (painted in picture still) appears to be fir or pine.  I used a random orbit sander and 60 grit paper to sand the floor and nosing to bare wood.  I set all old nails and drove some new nails.  After everything was cleaned, I proceeded to lay down my coats of poly.  I used Varethane semigloss oil based poly.  It gives the wood an amber finish.  Here is a shot of half of the floor bare and half with one coat of poly. All of the stairs in the house had been painted with a porch and floor paint in a maroon color. Another ongoing project of mine is taking the main staircase back to the wood treads and white risers (also original).  Lucky for me, the prior owners decided to lay plywood over this floor and painted it.

I love the rustic look of the floor and can only hope that this will last another century.  Our house is built as a colonial revival/arts and crafts style. Most of the woodwork is painted (as it was since it's inception) but the floors are all oak strip.  I really enjoy bringing back original features to the house.

The grass is greener on the other side...

Updates on the fall grass seed planting are in.  About a month after seeding, the grass is much taller and appears very healthy.  It's weed free for the most part.  Fall planting is great b/c the annual weeds are beginning to die off and are not producing new growth.  The dandelions, clover, creeping charlie and other perennial weeds are also slowing, giving the grass opportunity to thicken up.  Here are a few photos I took this morning.  Overall I'm very happy with the results. 

This was previously all lambs ear and periwinkle groundcover

This had a mix of several groundcovers and shrubs.  I added the rock border.

A worms eye view. 

Grass seed germination

We've been reversing some landscaping over the last year.  At the beginning of spring we had a pro come in and remove a large section in the back yard and seed some new grass.  Well, with the drought I was watering 2 or 3 times a day.  Germination was slow and weeds took over.  It's much better now but will need some attention this fall and next spring to get rid of weeds. I'm trying to be as chemical free as possible. 

I tackled a few smaller areas in the front yard by myself.  I read up and learned that Aug 15 - Sept 15 is the prime time for seeding cool grass lawns in IL.  I looked at the list of grass species in the premixed bags and discovered that many companies have a large percentage of ANNUAL ryegrass.  This stuff sprouts quick but is not designed to come back.  The other cultivars will eventually fill in where it left off.  The top seed types for our area is perennial rye and kentucky blue.  I bought 3 lbs of each from Big R's bulk grass seed.  Since 3 is better than two (is it?), then I also got a pound of red fescue. 

After preparing the ground and sowing the seed, I was blessed with many days of cooler weather and rain.  On non rainy days, I made sure the ground stayed moist.  The first area of seed germinated in about 6 days.  The other area in just 4.  The conditions were just right for seed planting.

 My advice to anyone looking to plant new grass is to wait until fall to do it.  By this time the weeds are prepping to die and will not be as much competition to the new seed.  Crabgrass was a huge problem in the spring sowed back yard.  It must be controlled by a pre-emergent type herbicide (or a natural product, like corn gluten).  This means it has to be applied prior to growth.  Once the crabgrass is up, you're pretty much limited to killer products such as glyphosphate (Round Up by common brand name) and hand pulling.


 

 

I'm not completely chemical free, but I do try to choose the hand pulling method over most chemicals.  It may be crazy to some, in our hyper active culture, to spend time on your knees pulling weeds, but I actually enjoy the simplicity of it.  I'm also a little OCD, so, there you go.

 

 

If you have any suggestions on ways to prevent weed growth in new lawns, please let me know.

 

DIY speakers

One of my hobbies I've held onto over the years is DIY speaker building.  When I was in middle school I started developing an interest in electronics (audio/video in general).  My dad passed down some old speakers and a receiver from his days as a rocker.  These things were OK in their day, but when I got them the woofer foam was completely gone.  Bass was like snap, crackle and pop.  I begged and pleaded for an upgrade one Christmas.  Dad got me a set of big Jensen tower speakers with 15" woofers.  These were ridiculous in comparison to what I had. 
Eventually I got the idea to tear apart the old rotted speakers and see what was inside.  I realized that they were built pretty cheap!  Real simple crossovers, no cabinet bracing, very little damping.  I got the bug and found Parts Express.  I dropped about $30 on some cheap 6.5" woofers, myler tweeters and some spring loaded terminals.  I picked up some 1/2" particle board and proceeded to come up with a pair of speakers.  I was aiming for the 'look' of NHT superzeroes (a hot item in Crutchfield).  Here is what I came up with that week in the garage.

My first foray into DIY speakers

Yes, I still have these things.  They have moved from home, to college, to home, to my first house, to my storage, to my second house, to garage duty, to my current house.  Why did I drag these things around?  One reason is that even though they look like crap, they are beefy heavy and sound surprisingly good in comparison to anything I could buy off the rack at a store. 

Fast forward about 10 years later.  I'm finally settled down with a great wife, kids and an OK job.  I got the bug again and built a small 8" amplified sub for the house.  A bit better quality craftsmanship and some better parts.  Still not great, but better. 
My latest build is a design called the Nano Neo, by Chris Roemer of the Parts Express tech talk board.  Chris designed these to use the little neo woofers by Dayton audio and small dome tweeter by Dayton as well.  I followed his plans and spent an entire winter building a set.  I used rabbit joinery on this pair which was fancy for me.  I got to test my skills at wiring up a crossover and saudering.  I even gave this set my first attempt at veneering.  The results were outstanding and the sound from these are amazing. You cannot believe the depth of sound from speakers that are about the size of a workboot box.  Chris did a great job with these and now you can find many examples online.  Here is a shot at my pair of Nano Neos. They are serving as front main speaker duties in our living room.

The sweet offset shot of the Nano Neos

Do you enjoy the world of DIY?  If so, what are you DIYing in your spare time?




The Spider Man room

Our son, Kyler, turned 3 on July 28th.  His major interest right now appears to be Spider Man and superheroes in general.  So, his birthday gifts were spiderthemed.  One gift, a bed sheet set, led us to the "need" to paint his room.  The colors of the sheet brought us to the idea of using gray for the room color.  We have seen some gray themed rooms online and have always liked it. 

The room was painted all flat white.  Everything. Trim, walls, light fixture..the works.  Luckily, the doors have remained original (and they are very cool).  It's amazing what a simple coat of paint will do.  The gray color really made the trim pop and offered a nice contrast. 

While I was at it, I took off the original register grate and decided to strip the old layers of paint from it.  I counted 7 layers!  I used a heat gun for the majority and sandpaper for the remaining bits.  To finish, I picked up some black 'hammered' spray paint.  It gave the register a nice touch.  The black goes well with the gray wall and the vent now gets the attention it deserves.