The Super Official Homeowners Thread

[JustinG]

Funny, the company we are using just left our place.

I absolutely despise yard work, and after trying for 3-4 years and lots of wasted $$$ trying to get grass to grow at our old place, I was done.
Which is why we forked out to have sod/irrigation installed in our backyard too, vs seed/straw no irrigation. Front/side yard came with Sod/Irrigation included.

$60, a month for Virginia Green to come out and do their thing, while all I have to do is mow/trim and occasionally put down some insect control pellets with the spreader. Sign me up.

These companies can definitely be hit or miss though, my backyard neighbor hired a different company and gave em the boot after 2 treatments, after he saw them skipping half of his yard and not overlapping the spray they were putting down. Working from home has afforded me the ability to watch Virginia Green as they do their thing, and so far I am very pleased.

Our sod took a beating after being put down late June/early July, brown/and patchy. Our builder aerated and overseeded last fall, which helped. We still need to dethatch, aerate, overseed again this fall to work on some patchy spots, but so far it has been well worth it.




Backyard neighbor has been here a year longer than us, and finally got some seed to take this fall. Seeing his yard when we moved in solidified our Sod/Irrigation for the back yard.

Minus that dieing tree, which the builder is replacing

[Apoc]

I've elected not to pay to someone to give my kid autism.

[JPolen01]

I've elected not to pay to someone to give my kid autism.

Do you have at proof of this? My dad always put down fertilizer when we were growing up and I definitely do not have autism last time I checked.

[JustinG]

I've elected not to pay to someone to give my kid autism.

I mean I guess they are kinda vaccinating the yard....just don't tell Jenny McCarthy

[Apoc]

I've elected not to pay to someone to give my kid autism.

Do you have at proof of this? My dad always put down fertilizer when we were growing up and I definitely do not have autism last time I checked.

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I used autism as a generic term for neural-developmental issues. For the record, I've vaccinated my kid with everything recommend and on time... so I'm not one of those paranoid anti-everything for my kid. That said, the shit they put on your yard is not good for development. There's a reason why they say don't let your kid on it until 24 hours after the next measurable rainfall. At a certain age, it probably doesn't matter much, but my kid is eight months old and puts grass in his mouth at every opportunity.

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[Beej]

Virginia Green

Word to VA Green. I've probably got a couple years to go but every lawn I can see from mine uses them and they're immaculate.

All of those chemical issues are more related to pesticides than fertilizer/pre-emergent/fungicides, no?

[Apoc]

Virginia Green

Word to VA Green. I've probably got a couple years to go but every lawn I can see from mine uses them and they're immaculate.

All of those chemical issues are more related to pesticides than fertilizer/pre-emergent/fungicides, no?

It's everything... although the ones I linked after 15 seconds of googling are pesticide heavy. Do a bit of searching on fungicide and nitrogen fertilizers and you'll see similar results. Maybe I'm anal about it, but anything that whores the reproductive health of bees is probably not good for a developing child.

[JustinG]

Yea, a kid your age, constantly putting things in their mouth and the constant vigilance required to make sure they aren't doing something to kill themselves, I'd probably have the same level of concern.

One thing I do is make sure the sprinklers run the evening after they spray. Which they recommend you do anyway if rain isn't forecasted. This allows the chemicals to make their way into the soil vs on the actual grass. Which seems to be the issue, residue residing on grass/vegetable and then ingestion some way.

Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk

[WRXtranceformed]

I've elected not to pay to someone to give my kid autism.

Do you have at proof of this? My dad always put down fertilizer when we were growing up and I definitely do not have autism last time I checked.

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="https://yourlogicalfallacyis.com/anecdotal">https://yourlogicalfallacyis.com/anecdotal</a><!-- m -->

I used autism as a generic term for neural-developmental issues. For the record, I've vaccinated my kid with everything recommend and on time... so I'm not one of those paranoid anti-everything for my kid. That said, the shit they put on your yard is not good for development. There's a reason why they say don't let your kid on it until 24 hours after the next measurable rainfall. At a certain age, it probably doesn't matter much, but my kid is eight months old and puts grass in his mouth at every opportunity.

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26143737">https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26143737</a><!-- m -->
<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25630971">https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25630971</a><!-- m -->
<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25714811">https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25714811</a><!-- m -->
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My wife and I are with Chris on this. It's not just limited to pesticides, RoundUp has been banned in a few countries throughout the world and California legislators just won a lawsuit that says they can force Monsanto to label RoundUp as a cancer threat due to the health problems associated with glyphosate.

There's so much lobbying in the chemical industry that it's hard to believe a lot of the counter "science" that is being done to try to prove chemicals are safe (see: the funding the sugar industry did for years pushing scientists to label fat as more health-damaging than sugar). When I see companies like Johnson & Johnson settling hundreds of millions of dollars in lawsuits to people who developed ovarian cancer due to their baby powder, it just really makes you think more about the chemicals you keep around the house and use.

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A lot of people are starting to wonder if the rise in developmental disorders and health disorders later in life is linked in many cases to this stuff.

[ScottyB]

A lot of people are starting to wonder if the rise in developmental disorders and health disorders later in life is linked in many cases to this stuff.

its almost a guarantee. same story throughout history - big company muscles the legislators long as possible to ensure profits on super popular products. tobacco, big agri/corn, pesticides, plastics, etc, its all the same.

hard to avoid but if its a synthetic concoction of something, there's bound to be occasions where its going to do some harm to something, somehow.

reproductive health of bees

that's a seriously scary topic. if they go away, our agriculture industry pretty much does too

[JustinG]

So on the topic of pesticides, what do you guys all use to keep the 6 & 8 legged critters outta the house? Anything natural? The general "Home Defense" perimeter spray?

[Apoc]

Sealing cracks is the best first step.

Castile soap is the only non-chemical worth a damn, but it doesn't work for everything and it's better for smaller applications like gardens. Most of the home defense sprays work decent enough, but they're rarely one and done. Bugs out here aren't much of a thing, so we don't bother treating at all. Back east, we found that paying someone was waaaay more effective.

Note that even though the really bad shit was outlawed commercially, the active ingredients in what remains on the market are still considered bad for humans.

[WRXtranceformed]

So on the topic of pesticides, what do you guys all use to keep the 6 & 8 legged critters outta the house? Anything natural? The general "Home Defense" perimeter spray?

Despite her disdain for nasty chemicals Wifey says she uses Ortho Home Defense because:
- it is not an aerosol
- it's sprayed on areas nobody is touching, preparing food on, etc (unless somebody is licking the baseboards)
- it lasts for a really long time with one spray (6-12 mo)
- it works like night and day well

[JPolen01]

I am using some of the Ortho Home Defense stuff for the above reasons. We did have a problem with carpet beetles when we first moved in. Called an exterminator for like $125. He treated the inside and outside of the house with whatever and it has really worked to keep the bugs out for the last year. Big reduction in spiders and of course the beetles are gone. Cheap and effective = win in my book.

[JustinG]

That's what I have used, does this stuff expire? I've had the same jug for like 8 years

[JPolen01]

I don't know about expiring, but if it is anything like medicine it has probably lost its potency by now.

[Apoc]

I'm convinced medicine expiration date is bullshit.

[Scott]

I'm convinced medicine expiration date is bullshit.

It's not.

[Apoc]

I'm convinced medicine expiration date is bullshit.

It's not.

That's a very compelling argument... but one with data is stronger.

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90% of more than 100 drugs, both prescription and over-the-counter, were perfectly good to use even 15 years after the expiration date.

[*insertusernamehere*]

When I see companies like Johnson & Johnson settling hundreds of millions of dollars in lawsuits to people who developed ovarian cancer due to their baby powder, it just really makes you think more about the chemicals you keep around the house and use.

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/nation-now/2016/02/24/johnson-johnson-lawsuit-baby-powder-talcum-ovarian-cancer-link/80845030/">https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/na ... /80845030/</a><!-- m -->
<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://nymag.com/thecut/2017/05/johnson-johnson-baby-powder-jury-louis-slemp.html">http://nymag.com/thecut/2017/05/johnson ... slemp.html</a><!-- m -->

.

Well ain't that something... My granaunt and great grandma both passed away from ovarian cancer and can ya guess what's a *staple* Jamaican household product?