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Keith
 
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Default DIY dumb and dumber

Continuing the theme of DIY Disasters...

My home, like hundreds of identical legoland boxes in the 1970's new-town
estate, is built around a central stair well. The first six steps lead to a
half landing, turn 180 degrees right and take another six steps to the first
floor. I had quite envied the way the next door neighbour had built out over
the bottom steps, and put cupboards into the reclaimed space. After
estimating the size of timbers required to span the space, and the best way
to fix them to the party wall, I filed the project on the "maybe-one-day"
list.
The cupboards were apparently a selling feature when the house changed hands
recently, until, that is, the new owner found two lengths of rope knotted
through holes in the roof trusses and disappearing through the loft floor.
(Yes, by rope I mean half-inch three strand S-laid twisted hemp ideal for
towing cars etc.)
The new owner, after staring at the rope for a while, decided the best way
to find out _why_ they were there was to cut through them and see what
happened. (He said afterwards that the hacksaw made them "hum like a
guitar")
I heard the "what happened" through the party wall: an almighty crash and
loud shouts and screams. Resisting the urge to dial 999 straight away I
cautiously opened their front door to find the mistress of the house in
hysterical tears at the bottom of the stairs, and the DIY 'master' leaning
out of the loft hatch in hysterical 'laughter', the two of them separated by
the remains of the cupboards.
I gave them a hand to clear up the wreckage, but I'm still looking for the
courage to tell them that the installer of the "rope lintel" also rewired
the whole house ...............


keith


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Jeff
 
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Keith wrote :-
My home, like hundreds of identical legoland boxes in the 1970's new-town
estate, is built around a central stair well. The first six steps lead to

a
half landing, turn 180 degrees right and take another six steps to the

first
floor. I had quite envied the way the next door neighbour had built out

over
the bottom steps, and put cupboards into the reclaimed space. After
estimating the size of timbers required to span the space, and the best

way
to fix them to the party wall, I filed the project on the "maybe-one-day"
list.
The cupboards were apparently a selling feature when the house changed

hands
recently, until, that is, the new owner found two lengths of rope knotted
through holes in the roof trusses and disappearing through the loft floor.
(Yes, by rope I mean half-inch three strand S-laid twisted hemp ideal for
towing cars etc.)
The new owner, after staring at the rope for a while, decided the best way
to find out _why_ they were there was to cut through them and see what
happened. (He said afterwards that the hacksaw made them "hum like a
guitar")
I heard the "what happened" through the party wall: an almighty crash and
loud shouts and screams. Resisting the urge to dial 999 straight away I
cautiously opened their front door to find the mistress of the house in
hysterical tears at the bottom of the stairs, and the DIY 'master' leaning
out of the loft hatch in hysterical 'laughter', the two of them separated

by
the remains of the cupboards.
I gave them a hand to clear up the wreckage, but I'm still looking for the
courage to tell them that the installer of the "rope lintel" also rewired
the whole house ...............


keith


This reminds me of the house I used to live in, a 2 up 2 down semi cottage,
the girl next door had what looked like a net curtain rod across her front
bedroom window that she used to hang clothes on. One evening we heard
frantic hacksawing, later in the pub I asked her boyfriend what he'd been
doing, and it turns out he'd cut this bar with a junior hacksaw...... he
said it went 'twang' and seperated about an inch on the first cut, but he'd
got rid of it.
I later found the 2 foot metal 'S' buried in the plaster on my side of the
party wall .

Regards Jeff


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brugnospamsia
 
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"Keith" wrote in message
...
Continuing the theme of DIY Disasters...

My home, like hundreds of identical legoland boxes in the 1970's new-town
estate, is built around a central stair well. The first six steps lead to
a
half landing, turn 180 degrees right and take another six steps to the
first
floor. I had quite envied the way the next door neighbour had built out
over
the bottom steps, and put cupboards into the reclaimed space. After
estimating the size of timbers required to span the space, and the best
way
to fix them to the party wall, I filed the project on the "maybe-one-day"
list.
The cupboards were apparently a selling feature when the house changed
hands
recently, until, that is, the new owner found two lengths of rope knotted
through holes in the roof trusses and disappearing through the loft floor.
(Yes, by rope I mean half-inch three strand S-laid twisted hemp ideal for
towing cars etc.)
The new owner, after staring at the rope for a while, decided the best way
to find out _why_ they were there was to cut through them and see what
happened. (He said afterwards that the hacksaw made them "hum like a
guitar")
I heard the "what happened" through the party wall: an almighty crash and
loud shouts and screams. Resisting the urge to dial 999 straight away I
cautiously opened their front door to find the mistress of the house in
hysterical tears at the bottom of the stairs, and the DIY 'master' leaning
out of the loft hatch in hysterical 'laughter', the two of them separated
by
the remains of the cupboards.
I gave them a hand to clear up the wreckage, but I'm still looking for the
courage to tell them that the installer of the "rope lintel" also rewired
the whole house ...............



I imagine he must have had to take up the slack over time - perhaps he could
have used sash cord - and I wonder if it shifted according to atmospheric
conditions .... (creaking ship's timbers come to mind)

Am I the only one here who has suspended their kitchen wall units and the
microwave on 10mm threaded rod fixed to noggins screwed between the joists ?

(drylined walls)

Been up over 5 years and I do believe it's staying in the forthcoming
overhaul ....

Jeremy


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Tony Bryer
 
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In article ,
Brugnospamsia wrote:
Am I the only one here who has suspended their kitchen wall units
and the microwave on 10mm threaded rod fixed to noggins screwed
between the joists ?


Not for long - doing something similar is on my list.

My memory on the details is a bit hazy but there was a loss-of-life
disaster at a disco/club in the USA (Kansas?) where the designer had
supported walkways at different levels on threaded rods from the
ceiling. The design was fine, but to make erection easier the
contractor changed the one rod with nuts at each level to a series
of shorter rods offset at each level, failing to appreciate that
this left the topmost nut carrying all the loads from below, not
just the one level.

| | | |
======== ==========
| | | |
======== ==========
| | became | |
======== ==========
--
Tony Bryer SDA UK 'Software to build on' http://www.sda.co.uk
Free SEDBUK boiler database browser http://www.sda.co.uk/qsedbuk.htm




  #6   Report Post  
Jeff
 
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Rob Morley wrote :-

snip

Did you tell her?


No - we didn't get on, I just kept looking at her outside wall

Regards Jeff


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In uk.d-i-y, Tony Bryer wrote:

My memory on the details is a bit hazy but there was a loss-of-life
disaster at a disco/club in the USA (Kansas?) where the designer had
supported walkways at different levels on threaded rods from the
ceiling. The design was fine, but to make erection easier the
contractor changed the one rod with nuts at each level to a series
of shorter rods offset at each level, failing to appreciate that
this left the topmost nut carrying all the loads from below, not
just the one level.

Your memory is pretty accurate: it was the Hyatt Kansas City. One
decent summary is at
http://www.glendale-h.schools.nsw.ed...Hyatt_page.htm

As that page hints at, the difference between design and implementation
wasn't just silliness on the builder's part: the original design was, if
not unimplementable, certainly a royal PITA: the uniform-diameter suspension
rod would've needed threading for most of its length, so as to be able to
spin the nuts up from 2nd-floor-level to 4th-floor...

(Analogies to software development - "the bug is in the spec", "no it
isn't, it's the way you coded it, and I'm an Analyst-Architect and I get
paid more so I must be right" are of course entirely spurious ;-)

Stefek
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Tony Bryer
 
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In article , wrote:
Your memory is pretty accurate: it was the Hyatt Kansas City. One
decent summary is at

http://www.glendale-h.schools.nsw.ed...Hyatt_page.htm

I read accounts in the past but had forgotten it was 114 deaths!

--
Tony Bryer SDA UK 'Software to build on' http://www.sda.co.uk
Free SEDBUK boiler database browser http://www.sda.co.uk/qsedbuk.htm


  #9   Report Post  
The Natural Philosopher
 
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Tony Bryer wrote:

In article ,
Brugnospamsia wrote:

Am I the only one here who has suspended their kitchen wall units
and the microwave on 10mm threaded rod fixed to noggins screwed
between the joists ?



Not for long - doing something similar is on my list.

My memory on the details is a bit hazy but there was a loss-of-life
disaster at a disco/club in the USA (Kansas?) where the designer had
supported walkways at different levels on threaded rods from the
ceiling. The design was fine, but to make erection easier the
contractor changed the one rod with nuts at each level to a series
of shorter rods offset at each level, failing to appreciate that
this left the topmost nut carrying all the loads from below, not
just the one level.

| | | |
======== ==========
| | | |
======== ==========
| | became | |
======== ==========


I remember this. Featured on TV wasn't it?

Clasic case of needing in large writing 'DO IT THIS WAY NOT THAT WAY'
on the plan...

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Harvey Van Sickle
 
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On 16 Feb 2005, Jeff wrote

-snip-

This reminds me of the house I used to live in, a 2 up 2 down semi
cottage, the girl next door had what looked like a net curtain rod
across her front bedroom window that she used to hang clothes on.
One evening we heard frantic hacksawing, later in the pub I asked
her boyfriend what he'd been doing, and it turns out he'd cut this
bar with a junior hacksaw...... he said it went 'twang' and
seperated about an inch on the first cut, but he'd got rid of it.
I later found the 2 foot metal 'S' buried in the plaster on my
side of the party wall .


That's a super tale; you may be quoted at some point in the future...

--
Cheers,
Harvey
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Lurch
 
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On Wed, 16 Feb 2005 22:31:56 -0000, "Jeff" strung
together this:

I later found the 2 foot metal 'S' buried in the plaster on my side of the
party wall .

Woss one 'o them then?
--

SJW
Please reply to group or use 'usenet' in email subject


  #16   Report Post  
Stefek Zaba
 
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Andy Dingley wrote:


The trick is to use swaged rods in short sections and long tube nuts.
The rods have thick ends formed onto them and the threaded portion is
thicker than the middle. The nuts only have to be screwed on a foot at
at time.


Something along those lines occurred to me all by myself as I wrote the
previous thingy. All by myself, I tell you: (invent)tm ain't dead here.
*Not* obvious to one skilled in the arts, no; and in *no* way influenced
by the fixtures on the Clifton Suspension Bridge wot I drive or walk
across sereval thymes a day... honest!
  #17   Report Post  
 
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wrote:
In uk.d-i-y, Tony Bryer wrote:

My memory on the details is a bit hazy but there was a loss-of-life


disaster at a disco/club in the USA (Kansas?) where the designer

had
supported walkways at different levels on threaded rods from the
ceiling. The design was fine, but to make erection easier the
contractor changed the one rod with nuts at each level to a series
of shorter rods offset at each level, failing to appreciate that
this left the topmost nut carrying all the loads from below, not
just the one level.

Your memory is pretty accurate: it was the Hyatt Kansas City. One
decent summary is at

http://www.glendale-h.schools.nsw.ed...Hyatt_page.htm

As that page hints at, the difference between design and

implementation
wasn't just silliness on the builder's part: the original design was,

if
not unimplementable, certainly a royal PITA: the uniform-diameter

suspension
rod would've needed threading for most of its length, so as to be

able to
spin the nuts up from 2nd-floor-level to 4th-floor...

(Analogies to software development - "the bug is in the spec", "no it
isn't, it's the way you coded it, and I'm an Analyst-Architect and I

get
paid more so I must be right" are of course entirely spurious ;-)

Stefek


Thats some nut spinning!

Builders must not change structural elements without seeking approval,
for exactly this reason.


NT

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brugnospamsia
 
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"Lurch" wrote in message
...
On Wed, 16 Feb 2005 22:31:56 -0000, "Jeff" strung
together this:

I later found the 2 foot metal 'S' buried in the plaster on my side of

the
party wall .

Woss one 'o them then?
--


If this is a wall tie, why was it running across the window ?

Jeremy



  #19   Report Post  
Jeff
 
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brugnospamsia wrote :-

If this is a wall tie, why was it running across the window ?


dunno, was approx 6' high and 18" in from window so was probably above the
top of the window but could be seen from the ground (esp with clothes hung
on it)
Definately a wall tie but funny positioning

Regards Jeff


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