Home Improvement/Project thread

[nw baltimore wx]

3 hours ago, EB89 said:

Thanks for the tips. I’ll hold off on the fertilizer the. When would you suggest araeting and reseeding. I know fall is best. September, october?

Late August to first week of September. The warm temps will help germinate the seed fast and then you'll get a good 10 weeks or so of growth. Aerating helps a lot too. The seeds find their way into the holes which are a great environment for them. Keep it simple. When you aerate, do not remove or rake the plugs. Just aerate, spread seed and fertilizer, and keep it watered.

Are you renting an aerator? If so, maybe you can find a neighbor or two that wants to split the cost, or do a half day rental. Aerating a townhouses lawn will take no time at all.

[mattie g]

1 hour ago, showmethesnow said:

What changed your mind?

A little more research, a bit of feedback from friends and neighbors (I also appreciate the feedback on here!), and our bank account - all together.

This isn’t something that *has* to be done right now. We may be pushing the life of this roof a little, but we haven’t had any issues, and it’s frankly not in terrible shape. I truly believe that waiting a few more months isn’t going to be a problem.

Honestly...we made a rash decision without going through the whole process like smart consumers should. Wife and I didn’t feel comfortable with it at all last night. We’ve learned from this, and even if it turns out that the quote we had from this company was among the best we could get, then we’ll at least know that we’re making a truly informed decision on how to proceed.

[showmethesnow]

Just now, mattie g said:

A little more research, a bit of feedback from people we know, and our bank account.

This isn’t something that *has* to be done right now. We may be pushing the life of this roof a little, but we haven’t had any issues, and it’s frankly not in terrible shape. I truly believe that waiting a few more months isn’t going to be a problem.

Honestly...we made a rash decision without going through the whole process like smart consumers should. Wife and I didn’t feel comfortable with it at all last night. We’ve learned from this, and even if it turns out that the quote we had from this company was among the best we could get, then we’ll at least know that we’re making a truly informed decision on how to proceed.

Probably a good move. Thought the price might have been a touch pricey per square but without really seeing the breakdown of exactly what was being done it is hard to really know for sure. And then again it was almost 10 years ago when I really researched this so prices might have gone up quite a bit as well. Mentioned before that you will probably get your best rates if you start shopping this fall, early winter for next spring or summer. And don't be afraid of getting different quotes and playing them off of each other to see if they may try to beat each other. Good Luck, hope things work out for you.

[showmethesnow]

1 hour ago, nw baltimore wx said:

Late August to first week of September. The warm temps will help germinate the seed fast and then you'll get a good 10 weeks or so of growth. Aerating helps a lot too. The seeds find their way into the holes which are a great environment for them. Keep it simple. When you aerate, do not remove or rake the plugs. Just aerate, spread seed and fertilizer, and keep it watered.

Are you renting an aerator? If so, maybe you can find a neighbor or two that wants to split the cost, or do a half day rental. Aerating a townhouses lawn will take no time at all.

That is when I had my best luck seeding. After peak heat during the summer with a couple of months growth where the root system can get established before the cold sets in.

[mattie g]

53 minutes ago, showmethesnow said:

Probably a good move. Thought the price might have been a touch pricey per square but without really seeing the breakdown of exactly what was being done it is hard to really know for sure. And then again it was almost 10 years ago when I really researched this so prices might have gone up quite a bit as well. Mentioned before that you will probably get your best rates if you start shopping this fall, early winter for next spring or summer. And don't be afraid of getting different quotes and playing them off of each other to see if they may try to beat each other. Good Luck, hope things work out for you.

Thanks....that’s what I’m hoping. I appreciate the feedback!

[EB89]

3 hours ago, nw baltimore wx said:

Late August to first week of September. The warm temps will help germinate the seed fast and then you'll get a good 10 weeks or so of growth. Aerating helps a lot too. The seeds find their way into the holes which are a great environment for them. Keep it simple. When you aerate, do not remove or rake the plugs. Just aerate, spread seed and fertilizer, and keep it watered.

Are you renting an aerator? If so, maybe you can find a neighbor or two that wants to split the cost, or do a half day rental. Aerating a townhouses lawn will take no time at all.

I’ll be renting. I think I am going to split it with my parents for four hours. They have a 1/4 acre lot. Like you said my little yard won’t take that long. Going out of town this weekend for the week. I guess I’ll shoot for the 25th of this month. If not it would have to be the 8th or September 

[KamuSnow]

22 hours ago, showmethesnow said:

That is when I had my best luck seeding. After peak heat during the summer with a couple of months growth where the root system can get established before the cold sets in.

And this is where your weather awareness can help - best results when temps are 80's/ 60's as opposed to 90's/70's, with no heavy rain the 1st week. Also don't let it dry out from about 3 days after seeding until it's 1/2" to 1" high (during germination). This probably applies more to a total reseeding on dirt.