c/diy-disaster-tales

My plumber friend watched me try to fix a leak with duct tape and just said 'that's a $500 band-aid, Nancy'.

He wasn't wrong, the whole wall is soggy now. Anyone know how to actually fix a pinhole leak in a copper pipe without flooding the garage again?

Tried to fix a leaky shower valve in my old Phoenix house and it turned into a 3-day plumbing nightmare

The original valve body was so corroded I had to cut open the wall behind it, which I didn't plan for at all. What should have been a 2-hour job with a simple cartridge swap ended up taking me 15 hours over three days because I had to learn how to solder new copper pipes. Has anyone else had a simple repair blow up because of hidden damage in an old house?

Tried to patch a hole in my drywall with spackle instead of a proper patch kit

Had a fist-sized hole in my bedroom wall from an old shelf. The choice was between buying a drywall patch kit for about $15 or just packing it full of spackle. I went with the spackle to save a trip to the store. It looked okay for a day, then it all cracked and fell out onto the floor. Has anyone fixed a mess like this without having to cut out a whole new piece of drywall?

Everyone says to use a stud finder but I think they're a waste of time

I was hanging a heavy mirror in my living room and decided to just tap the wall to find the studs, which worked fine for years. This time I hit a pipe behind the drywall and caused a small flood that cost me about $300 to fix. Do you guys actually trust those electronic stud finders or do you have a better method?

Rant: My 'quick' deck board replacement turned into a weekend-long hunt for the right hidden fastener

I thought swapping a single board would take an hour, but the old clip system was discontinued and finding a match at three different stores took about 14 hours total. Has anyone else had to Frankenstein a solution for a specific decking brand?

My 'simple' bathroom vanity install turned into a three day fight with plumbing

I thought swapping out the old vanity in my guest bath would take a Saturday, but the shutoff valves were so old and seized I had to replace the whole supply line setup. What should have been 6 hours of work ended up taking me 28 hours over three days because I kept having to run back to the hardware store. What's your best trick for dealing with those crusty old valves without calling a plumber?

My neighbor just told me my DIY deck footings are a ticking time bomb

I was showing off my new deck frame last weekend when my neighbor, who's a retired contractor, asked how deep I dug the footings. I said 'about a foot and a half' and he just went pale. He said in our area, with the freeze-thaw cycle, code is 42 inches minimum or the whole thing will heave. I used 12 bags of concrete mix on posts that are basically sitting on top of the ground. Has anyone had to retrofit footings on a half-built deck before, or is this a total tear-down situation?

Back in 2012, I was helping my buddy rewire his basement in Denver and learned a hard lesson about junction boxes.

I dropped $150 on a fancy orbital sander for a table refinish and it left these awful swirl marks everywhere.

I mean, I followed the instructions, used the right grits, and kept it moving, but now my oak tabletop looks like a bad car paint job, so does anyone know how to actually fix this without starting over?

Filling nail holes turned into a spackle disaster

I put too much spackle in the holes and it cracked when it dried. I figured out that using a few thin layers gives a smooth finish. What's your fix for this?

Vent: My garage shelf collapse has tools EVERYWHERE

I think skipping anchors in drywall is FINE, but now what?

Tbh, my spray-painted address numbers washed off in the rain

Now I always prime and seal outdoor stuff first.

Thought I could skip the tape measure on a patio chair repair

Stopped using my measuring tape because I felt confident after a few projects. Just eyeballed the bolt holes and drilled straight through. Now the chair leg is THREE inches off and it tips over if you look at it wrong. How do I fill these giant holes and try again without ruining the wood?

Local DIY brick fire pit cracked in the cold. Arguing with my buddy: was it the mortar mix or skipping the rebar that did it? Chime in!

Tried to replace a faucet and now I have a slow leak under the sink. What did I miss in the connections?

My floating shelf fiasco from a popular DIY channel

I copied a design but didn't check my wall type. The shelves crashed, so now I always check my materials first.