Comments on: DIY Fence Project Update

By: Marne

Marne — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 19:20:53 +0000

Oh, our friends took all this time and money staining their fence. Then the back part ended up being torn down because the empty lot behind them was being developed. It was so sad!

By: Deborah Ng

Deborah Ng — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 10:45:11 +0000

Hi Katklaw – Actually the dumpster is for a variety of projects we have going on here. I didn’t show you the corner of my backyard with all the debris! Some of the panels are too rotted and broken to do anything with, and some of them can be saved.

I know my husband and son have plans to build a doghouse with some of the wood.

By: katklaw777

katklaw777 — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 05:45:36 +0000

i subscribed to your site because i wish to be a thrifty person and get ideas on how to reuse and recycle things so they don’t end up in our landfills and to save money. here you are talking about getting a dumpster and throwing out all those lovely aged panels of wood!

first of all we have the same kind of fence as you and unless it is actually rotting away you really only need to buy replacement slats and replace some screws and nails. we had a professional (a very honest one) estimate the cost of replacing vs repairing etc. and asked his opinion. turns out our fence was basically sound and only needed one day of good repair. your fence really doesn’t look all that bad.

please, please don’t throw that lovely aged wood out! recycle it! build a shed, doghouse, chicken coop even! use it for picture frames, wainscoting, or any of a thousand craft projects! if you decide you have no frugal use for it, sell it or even better give it away to another thrifty person. i wish i lived near you i can think of a million uses for it!!!

By: inthebuff

inthebuff — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 00:49:51 +0000

About 10 years ago my friends and I installed a brick paver patio under our deck. I learned two things — how to put in a patio and that I never want to do it again.

Carter is very cute.

Canoe is correct…with caveat. Be careful when you spray outside. Be sure to put up plenty of tarps/protection if you’re spraying stain/paint outdoors.

If it’s windy [and it seems to be where you are] you will have more on the side of the house than on the fence.

By: DramaMama

DramaMama — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 00:15:32 +0000

Brilliant! Canoe, you must be an engineer or something…here we are all grumbling about projects and piece work and you come up w/an idea like that. Where were you when we were painting cinder blocks in our basement by hand?

By: canoe

canoe — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 23:45:00 +0000

Hi, Carter is cute! I’d rent a sprayer for the weatherproofing. It doesn’t need to be pretty and you can do it a lot faster, even after its up!!!

By: zero

zero — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 21:14:06 +0000

oh dear. we did the same thing to our newly purchased home and now the very daunting task of painting the fence ( it’s a Cape Cod so we want white). Translated: We Want: She Does. Well, lots of sunscreen and my iPod…
happy trails!

By: Stephanie Chance

Stephanie Chance — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 18:16:25 +0000

I don’t envy you. That looks like something that is well worth the cost of paying a professional. We learned that several years ago while building our own house. We were going to save money by hanging the sheetrock ourselves. Well, sheetrock is terrible stuff to work with. If we had not paid someone to come in and do it, we would probably still be working on it today.

By: Taking Your Blog to the Next Level with Video : Network Blogging Tips

Taking Your Blog to the Next Level with Video : Network Blogging Tips — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 13:42:12 +0000

[...] think there are times where it’s good to show rather than tell. For instance, I did my first ever video blog post at Simply Thrifty today. My husband and I have to replace our backyard fence. Rather than hire someone, we’re saving [...]

By: Robin

Robin — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 13:30:39 +0000

Hey, I think we have the same shed as you have Deb.

We once decided to put wainscoting around the bottom half of the entire bathroom. We bought untreated wood, stained it all, and then had to coat it with a special moisture seal. What a project. Took me many days afterwork and a few weekends to get the entire thing done.

I don’t know how much more it would have cost us to buy the wood finished, but I’m sure it would have been worth it.

Sometimes we get a little crazy on the DIY, don’t we?