Building a house in Trinidad

[Dave]

Yup those are not essential and thus are closed.

[Duane 3NE 2NR]

Yup those are not essential and thus are closed.

https://www.facebook.com/Centrascape/vi ... 071055317/

[Dave]

Given I don't have Facebook, can't see what you are showing but if it is that plant shops are open I did hear about that. Not sure how the law works there.

[Jerry84]

Need some advice. I recently acquired a house, more like inherited. It needs a little work and updating but I decided to move in and do it little by little. A couple things I need to know:
1. How do you clean floor tiles and grout? Tiles and grout are just dirty. Tried most off the shelf cleaners and no luck.

2. In one bathroom the drain is vertical and at the bottom of the wall rather than horizontal(flat). Therefore the water settles a bit before running off. Cleared the waste line and that didn't help.

3. Have to block up an existing door as there were two doors in a room. Do I need to rip out the aluminum frame in order to block up or something could be done with the frame being there?

4. There was some 2x4 zinc rhs in the garage which I inherited and since I had a fabricator doing some work for me I opted for him to build a nice steel entrance door. Need to get the hole saw that could drill the lock holes but the ones in the hardware are rated for softer metals like aluminum etc. and not harder metals (so I was told at Bhagwansingh's and Chootoo's hardware). They wanted to sell me a series of drill bits etc to achieve the lock holes which was very exorbitant in pricing. Any suggestions? I first thought about lock boxes but not getting any that's suited for 2x4.

Suggestions welcomed.
Thanks

[pugboy]

try purple blaster on the tiles, the fumes very strong though, pour it in a container and use a paint brush to spread it on and sit for a few mins
then scrub with brush, wear gloves its cracks up the skin on hands.

locks usually come in standard depths so the lock box is designed for that depth, may be easier to just weld on a lock box.
is it a burglar proof type front door ?

[adnj]

My opinion:
1. Clean the tile with a scrub brush and cleanser (Ajax, Comet, etc.). For whitening the grout lines use the strongest bleach that you can find.

From the web: Mix together ½ cup baking soda, ¼ cup hydrogen peroxide, 1 tsp dish soap. Spoon cleaning agents onto grout and let sit for 5-10 minutes. Scrub the grout lines with a brush. Grout cleaning tip: Make sure to scrub hard to agitate the grout and cleaning solution and break up any really stuck dirt.

2. That's just not a good place for a drain. Not much you can do.
3. Leave the frame if you want to use gypsum or plycem to close the opening. Remove the frame if you want to use blocks so that rebar can be stitched into the old block.
4. Use a bi-metal hole saw to cut through the steel slowly and while spraying lube into the cut.

[shake d livin wake d dead]

if you are left with no other option to get those tiles cleaned, muriatic acid would do the trick. This is a very dangerous chemical eh but it works.

[carluva]

Check out fb for a place called "clean it yuhself".

This guy rents you professional floor cleaning equipment and the chemicals and accessories needed. I cleaned the entire downstairs of my house (tiles) last year before Xmas and the tiles and grout were so clean after. Sounds like you may need machine assisted cleaning and the machine I rented will surely do the trick.

[pugboy]

what type of chemical does the machine use ?

Check out fb for a place called "clean it yuhself".

This guy rents you professional floor cleaning equipment and the chemicals and accessories needed. I cleaned the entire downstairs of my house (tiles) last year before Xmas and the tiles and grout were so clean after. Sounds like you may need machine assisted cleaning and the machine I rented will surely do the trick.

[adnj]

If you aren't doing an entire building:

[pugboy]

i see rock hard trucks pulling the big loads of cement today
thought they were stopped

[rspann]

3M has a 7'" rust and paint stripper that works on an angle grinder / Buffing machine . I used it to clean a whole yard that has red clay tiles . Got out all the paint ,moss , stains etc .

[*KRONIK*]

Yea
Saw some empty, dusty trailer on the road today

i see rock hard trucks pulling the big loads of cement today
thought they were stopped

[carluva]

what type of chemical does the machine use ?

Check out fb for a place called "clean it yuhself".

This guy rents you professional floor cleaning equipment and the chemicals and accessories needed. I cleaned the entire downstairs of my house (tiles) last year before Xmas and the tiles and grout were so clean after. Sounds like you may need machine assisted cleaning and the machine I rented will surely do the trick.

I was given this. It was diluted in a pump sprayer which was loaned as part of the rental as well. The chemical was safe for glazed porcelain tiles. It does irritate the skin and emit and odour which can become annoying after prolonged use. But just keep the place well ventilated when using and GTG.

[carluva]

Drill brush works sweet. I did the car upholstery with it and came out clean after using my bissell little green.

Used it to clean a bathroom as well. Much easier than scrubbing.

But for an entire floor of a room of house, that may be a bit labour intensive.

If you aren't doing an entire building:

[screwbash]

so leh me ask allyuh dis... TCL and rockhard was selling for$45 before and den boom $120. i assume the hardwares raise the price on its own to dig out people eye. when tcl and rockhard start back to deliver would cement return to $45 a bag an if ALLYUH go still support the MC hardware that was diggin out allyuh eye knowing the kinda arsehole allyuh buying from. dem that raise the price is heartless, money hungry greedy MF and i woulda neve buy a nail from them again in my life. god doh sleep.

[Musical Doc]

i see rock hard trucks pulling the big loads of cement today
thought they were stopped

A shipment of rock hard cement came in this week in chaguaramas so it was probably offloaded and being transported to storage

[screwbash]

i see rock hard trucks pulling the big loads of cement today
thought they were stopped

A shipment of rock hard cement came in this week in chaguaramas so it was probably offloaded and being transported to storage

saw another rockhard truck transporting white bags of somthing today also. CNC3 say TCL get permission to resume operation. chicken truck seen offloading chicken outside a fry chicken fast food place today also.

[Jerry84]

try purple blaster on the tiles, the fumes very strong though, pour it in a container and use a paint brush to spread it on and sit for a few mins
then scrub with brush, wear gloves its cracks up the skin on hands.

locks usually come in standard depths so the lock box is designed for that depth, may be easier to just weld on a lock box.
is it a burglar proof type front door ?

thanks. The door is inspired by the photo. Seeing that it's 2x4 rhs I'm finding it difficult to find a box to suit that profile.

[Jerry84]

Thanks man. Tried the normal Ajax etc but no luck.
Will take your suggestions into consideration

My opinion:
1. Clean the tile with a scrub brush and cleanser (Ajax, Comet, etc.). For whitening the grout lines use the strongest bleach that you can find.

From the web: Mix together ½ cup baking soda, ¼ cup hydrogen peroxide, 1 tsp dish soap. Spoon cleaning agents onto grout and let sit for 5-10 minutes. Scrub the grout lines with a brush. Grout cleaning tip: Make sure to scrub hard to agitate the grout and cleaning solution and break up any really stuck dirt.

2. That's just not a good place for a drain. Not much you can do.
3. Leave the frame if you want to use gypsum or plycem to close the opening. Remove the frame if you want to use blocks so that rebar can be stitched into the old block.
4. Use a bi-metal hole saw to cut through the steel slowly and while spraying lube into the cut.

[adnj]

Thanks man. Tried the normal Ajax etc but no luck.
Will take your suggestions into consideration

Sometimes, tiles become worn or the glazing cracks in process called crazing. Crazing is tiny, discolored cracks in the glaze that cannot be cleaned.



If the grout has been discolored by mineral contaminants like iron, you have to reverse the process with something like flouric acid that leaves a clear residue. Muriatic acid will leave a yellow residue.

If its just an oily residue or even paint, a highly alkaline cleaner like lye (sodium hydroxide - Purple Blaster is lye-based) or TSP2 (sodium metasilicate) will lift the stain.

If powdered bleach (sodium hypochlorite) or TSP2 won't work, you can try a gel paint stripper. Penta manufactures one locally. All of these materials are caustic, can cause surface damage and can cause personal injury.

[rspann]

If during the Process of cleaning ,the grout becomes damaged or stained , you can remove the grout with an electric grout remover and re- grout .

[pugboy]

johnnyq hardware say they have rock hard stock
$55 a bag

[*KRONIK*]

johnnyq hardware say they have rock hard stock
$55 a bag

Them wicked boi

[pugboy]

Lol stocks coming back out so downward price war

[Musical Doc]

I have a 2 inch gap to fill between my step and the wall. Which is the better method to fill it up? Use cement and gravel mix or pieces of red block with cement and red sand? Also is there any need to put any kind of reinforcement in there like a piece of steel?

[pugboy]

Anybody bought readymade kitchen cabinets recently ?
Friend is looking for some for a small apt kitchen.

YoungSing come and give a quote for almost $50k, I almost dead yes. So a house kitchen might cost $150k.
Their units avg around $1100 each, guess because they using the pvc board but still out of budget.

[Dave]

We did young sing/beta homes in 2010, was 20k ish. Teak and solid surface. The only good part is that literally half a day between demolition of old and installation of new.

[adnj]

I have a 2 inch gap to fill between my step and the wall. Which is the better method to fill it up? Use cement and gravel mix or pieces of red block with cement and red sand? Also is there any need to put any kind of reinforcement in there like a piece of steel?

If the step is not mechanically attached to the wall, once repaired, you will likely see separation due to tremors, settling or thermal cycling. If you fill the gap with material, it can wedge in place and dislocate whatever is next to it. It will also likely crack and require repair in the future.

Because it is a narrow margin, you can caulk the space with expanding foam or wet newspaper while leaving a void two inches below the surface. Let it dry for a day or two. Then fill the void and finish the margin with a 3:1 sand/cement mortar mix amended with a 3:1 water/PVA binder. Follow the PVA instructions on the bottle for priming the old concrete surfaces.

[carluva]

Anyone knows if these type of knife gate valves are available in Trinidad?

I am looking for 3 inch and 2 inch.