HandymanRick.com
...I fix stuff!

SCOPE OF SERVICES

The scope of my service is to be reasonably available for home repair and installation jobs in a variety of trades that can be accomplished within one day for only one customer per day. Items not included in my scope of services include those jobs typically accomplished by licensed contractors and jobs I feel are outside my comfort level. The bottom line is that I will honestly relate to you if I can do your jobs or not.

You may consider that ... I can fix just about anything! ... including but not limited to: Replace and repair doors, lock-sets, trim, cabinets, vanities, shelving units, dog doors, closet doors, attic stair units, towel racks, safety bars, security doors, curtain rods, track lighting, fans, baseboards, light painting, etc. Replace lights, fans, plugs and switches. Replace toilets, sinks, dish washers, garbage disposals, microwaves, ovens, garage door openers. Fix fences, gates, dry rotted structures, replace vents, repair sheet rock, and clean gutters.

How long does it take?
Written by Rick Hanson

-A new feature for 2008-

I am often asked how long a task will take. People want an estimate but since I work strictly by the hour (as California law allows) I will not provide an estimate. Still, it is reasonable to want an idea. Since I have done so much of this, I kind of know approximates but have often thought that it would be useful to annotate what I do, how I do it, what I think about while doing it, and how long it takes ... whatever the "it" is. This is quite an undertaking since I work just about every day and do many interesting tasks. This list will be added-to often...

REPLACE GARAGE-TO-OUTSIDE DOOR (the hard way)

Customer bought a pre-hung door. This is a good thing. This task usually involves pulling out the old door and jamb. Cleaning the rough opening of any obstacles, setting the new pre-hung door into the rough opening, squaring it and shimming it as necessary and then attaching it to the rough opening. Installing the lock set, trimming out one side, foam weather proofing any gaps, trimming out the other side, and lastly caulking as necessary all remaining gaps and holes. All of the above had to be done … that’s the basics. However, in this case, the door didn’t fit the rough opening. It was too high by a good two inches. The header had to be cut and it was covered with stucco on the outside. (3 hours)

DOG DOOR THROUGH WALL

Installed a through-the-wall dog door. The wall had drywall on the inside and stucco on the outside. Had to miss electrical, cut baseboard and alter door housing somewhat to fit requested placement. (2 hours)

TWO DRY WALL PATCHES

Addressed two holes in drywall caused by a youthful rage (fist). Darn lucky kid missed the studs in both cases else he would have shattered his wrist. One hole was about 12” by 16” and the other was fist-shaped. Cut out the large hole from stud-to-stud to accommodate rectangular replacement of ˝” drywall. Backed the sides and attached. Created a California patch for the smaller hole. Mudded out the two holes and let dry over night. Returned the following day. Sanded the patches smooth, lightly floated imperfections and then sprayed matching orange peal texture. (2 hours)

REKEY FRONT DOOR DEAD BOLT

Removed front door dead bolt. Took it to the shop to re-key. Duplicated three more keys. Returned and replaced the dead bolt. (1 hour).

A TYPICAL LIST OF SMALL TASKS

Patch some grout, fix cracks in walls and ceilings, repair kitchen cabinet door hinge, secure hallway banister, address a sticky inside door, and touch up paint.

I use a color-match caulking, either sanded or non-sanded for most all grout patches. All the colors are available from Daltile in Martinez. I keep a color chart in the truck. I used white, acrylic/latex caulking for these hairline drywall cracks. It bounds the crack, can be smoothed out with a finger and molded to match texture, when dry it stretches as the crack stretches and it's paintable. On really moving cracks I use a more elastic formula. I repair or replace cabinet hinges often. The trick on replacing is to get one with the same offset. In this case the hinge was broken at the flange but had alternate screw holes. The hallway banister, in this case, was just loose. A simple screwdriver did most of the job and the use of Power Grab helped secure the turned-in banister ends to the wall. The sticking door involved a slight door rotation accomplished by removing 1/8" of material from the upper jam hinge mortise. And the trick in touch up painting is to use the right paint. In this case, the paint was dried out in a rusted can stored in the garage without a label along with a number of other such non-labeled non-cared for cans. Needless to say, until the paint(s) are identified and workable the touch up could not be accomplished. (2 hours)

REPLACE A GARBAGE DISPOSAL

I remove the old disposal, paying close attention to the existing plumbing for any problems such as broken or fatigued pipes, poor alignment, etc. Address the new disposal by removing the dishwasher waste connection plug, if the installation has a dishwasher attached -- this one did -- and attaching the electrical cord. Note: Some new garbage disposals come without a cord (purchased separately) and could be plug-in or hard wired. Remove the sink flange, clean the hole and install the new sink flange. Hang the garbage disposal and reattach the waste plumbing. In this case, the new GD was fatter than the old. Thus the waste pipe was closer to the existing plumbing. But, since the existing plumbing was plastic, I was able to simply shorten two pipes by about 1" each. And, of course, these pipes had gunk and kitchen waste in them making this job a … joy! Once complete I plug in the GD and tested for leaks. No leaks first time. Perfect! (1 hour)

SOME TYPICAL INSTALLATIONS AND APPROXIMATE TIMES

• Replace a front, back and garage entrance door with a pre-hung replacement. This includes the removal of the old trim and door, installing, squaring and plumbing the new door, weather proofing, installing the lock set and re-trimming. (2 to 4 hours)
• Replace a bathroom faucet, with or without having to also replace the valves and supply lines. (1 hour)
• Replace a kitchen faucet, with or without having to also replace the valves and supply lines. (1 to 2 hours).
• Replace a light fixture (inside and out) at average height. (1 hour)
• Install a ceiling fan at average height. (1 to 2 hours)