[lsturbointeg]

Originally Posted by glennQNYC

Ive been thinking about the economics of this as I see these lawn care equipment purchases. Is maintaining the lawn a labor of love, or a cost saving measure? Seems like the former when time is considered. Is a landscaper that much more expensive?

Disclaimer: city boy living in a condo here.

I think it's the love of owning a home and being a DIY'er. I could pay a lawn maintenance or I could fo it myself. To me it's the enjoyment. Until I physically can't do it, then I'll pay. But for now I do it cause of the enjoyment

[1MOREMOD]

Magrette moana Pacific professional

[P1]

Been looking for this one for a while...

[lsturbointeg]

replaced the standard halogen bulbs to 4' LED's!

[P1]

Clean looking garage!

[TXSTYLE]

Updating Firmware on this now. Can't wait to hardwire it in my car!

[TXSTYLE]

For those regular Garage Details on my Cars...

[lsturbointeg]

Originally Posted by TXSTYLE

For those regular Garage Details on my Cars...

Nice! do you have your detailing cart? I have the circle chair but been debating whether or not to get the square one?

[TXSTYLE]

Originally Posted by lsturbointeg

Nice! do you have your detailing cart? I have the circle chair but been debating whether or not to get the square one?

DAYUMN!!!! Now THAT'S a detailing supply!

This creeper has a storage bin to hold a few items. Definitely need it to save my back!

[EL Jeffe 5]

Originally Posted by lsturbointeg

replaced the standard halogen bulbs to 4' LED's!

Now thats nice and bright
Looks Good

[bosstones]

Originally Posted by glennQNYC

Ive been thinking about the economics of this as I see these lawn care equipment purchases. Is maintaining the lawn a labor of love, or a cost saving measure? Seems like the former when time is considered. Is a landscaper that much more expensive?

Disclaimer: city boy living in a condo here.

Originally Posted by lsturbointeg

I think it's the love of owning a home and being a DIY'er. I could pay a lawn maintenance or I could fo it myself. To me it's the enjoyment. Until I physically can't do it, then I'll pay. But for now I do it cause of the enjoyment

No worries, glenn. IMHO, it can be a cost savings and/or a labor of love depending on the situation. It just depends on how far down the rabbit hole you go.

For reference, it costs me $45 to have my lawn mowed/trimmed. If I wasn't using a company that already did 3 other nearby lawns, that'd cost would go up. If I got a mid-ish range riding mower for 2k, it'd pay for itself in less than 2 mowing seasons and I have better control over when/how my lawn is mowed.

Double pass core aerating & split seeding the back & sides + single pass aerating in front was something like around $700 after some 'discounts'. I could rent a manual core aerator for a couple hundred bucks a day (but have to transport it). A towed spike aerator is about the same cost to own. Not quite apples/apples, but still. One could split the cost of a rental w/ neighbors but my neighborhood is acre lots so I'd need more neighbors to buy-in to make it worthwhile.

It is arguable how often one aerates and really needs to overseed but landscaping isn't necessarily cheap. For reference, my cost #'s are for approx 32k sq ft of yard.

Note, too, that I haven't even gotten to fertilizing and weed control.

Buying equipment for it all definitely costs more upfront, but if it is used regularly over time it will pay itself off. Plus, not taking care of your lawn can lead to other expenses. Again, how far down the rabbit hole you go also makes a difference, too.

[bosstones]

Originally Posted by lsturbointeg

replaced the standard halogen bulbs to 4' LED's!

Nice! I was gonna do the same in my garage but missed the sale at Lowe's for these. Those LED strip lights are pretty expensive for what they are.

I will go the lazy way since I have no desire to to tear up the ceiling to run conduit (joists are perpendicular to where I need to run pipe). I'll just run it externally and paint to match the ceiling. I just have a single exposed bulb fixture in each car bay now so it won't be too bad. Might replace the bulb fixtures w/ 4' strips and do a perpendicular 8' strip (a few feet away) for each bay.

[Germanauto]

[lsturbointeg]

Originally Posted by TXSTYLE

DAYUMN!!!! Now THAT'S a detailing supply!

This creeper has a storage bin to hold a few items. Definitely need it to save my back!

Lol it's what happens when you're on Chemical Guy's website and a credit card in hand LOL!

[lsturbointeg]

Originally Posted by EL Jeffe 5

Now thats nice and bright
Looks Good

Thanks Brother! That's what I was hoping!

Originally Posted by bosstones

Nice! I was gonna do the same in my garage but missed the sale at Lowe's for these. Those LED strip lights are pretty expensive for what they are.

I will go the lazy way since I have no desire to to tear up the ceiling to run conduit (joists are perpendicular to where I need to run pipe). I'll just run it externally and paint to match the ceiling. I just have a single exposed bulb fixture in each car bay now so it won't be too bad. Might replace the bulb fixtures w/ 4' strips and do a perpendicular 8' strip (a few feet away) for each bay.

That's what I previously had. A single lightbulb fixture in each bay. All I did was buy the lightbulb adapter that allows you to plug in an electrical plug so that's where the LED plugs into. So from the picture that's the light towards the back of the garage. And than I removed the bulbs from the garage door opener unit and did the same thing but I scooted the LED's further down that way I have even coverage from front to back. The lights turn on automatically when I open the garage and they automatically turn off after I think 2 min? But what's cool is in the garage control unit there's a smaller button I can hit to turn the light on individually or have all 6 on like as seen

[lsturbointeg]

Originally Posted by bosstones

No worries, glenn. IMHO, it can be a cost savings and/or a labor of love depending on the situation. It just depends on how far down the rabbit hole you go.

For reference, it costs me $45 to have my lawn mowed/trimmed. If I wasn't using a company that already did 3 other nearby lawns, that'd cost would go up. If I got a mid-ish range riding mower for 2k, it'd pay for itself in less than 2 mowing seasons and I have better control over when/how my lawn is mowed.

Double pass core aerating & split seeding the back & sides + single pass aerating in front was something like around $700 after some 'discounts'. I could rent a manual core aerator for a couple hundred bucks a day (but have to transport it). A towed spike aerator is about the same cost to own. Not quite apples/apples, but still. One could split the cost of a rental w/ neighbors but my neighborhood is acre lots so I'd need more neighbors to buy-in to make it worthwhile.

It is arguable how often one aerates and really needs to overseed but landscaping isn't necessarily cheap. For reference, my cost #'s are for approx 32k sq ft of yard.

Note, too, that I haven't even gotten to fertilizing and weed control.

Buying equipment for it all definitely costs more upfront, but if it is used regularly over time it will pay itself off. Plus, not taking care of your lawn can lead to other expenses. Again, how far down the rabbit hole you go also makes a difference, too.

I have 20k of lawn so the lawn maintenance quoted me like $600 for the month which didn't include weed/bug spray or any kind of fertilizing. All could be done but with additional cost. Aerating just like you mentioned would have to be rented from HD. So I think in the long run I would be saving since the cost of all the equipment would pay off in the first year. I see me doing this myself for at least 20 more years

[ShopVac]

Ditched the diesel Jeep...may I never buy a diesel again.

Picked up this for the wife's DD, she said the Grand Cherokee was a little big for her tastes, so we downsized. Doesnt have all the fluff the Jeep had, but it's not bad. RDX A-Spec

[519.E82]

Originally Posted by ShopVac

Ditched the diesel Jeep...may I never buy a diesel again.

Picked up this for the wife's DD, she said the Grand Cherokee was a little big for her tastes, so we downsized. Doesnt have all the fluff the Jeep had, but it's not bad. RDX A-Spec

That looks really good great contrasting colours, but damn is that a big Acura logo

[ShopVac]

Originally Posted by 519.E82

That looks really good great contrasting colours, but damn is that a big Acura logo

Agreed...but it beats that damn shovel spade grill they've used over the previous decade.

[1MOREMOD]

What's wrong with diesel would own one the rest of my life by contrast

[TXSTYLE]

Originally Posted by ShopVac

Ditched the diesel Jeep...may I never buy a diesel again.

Picked up this for the wife's DD, she said the Grand Cherokee was a little big for her tastes, so we downsized. Doesnt have all the fluff the Jeep had, but it's not bad. RDX A-Spec

Man that's a sweet color combo. My wife's lease is coming up next spring. This was on my radar ever since they ditched that FUGLY beak grill.
However, my frontrunner is the upcoming 2020 Lincoln Aviator. With the Velar a close second. I definitely want to get updates from you over next 6 months.

[ShopVac]

Originally Posted by 1MOREMOD

What's wrong with diesel would own one the rest of my life by contrast

Keep in mind, you asked for this rant...so...

When I bought mine, gas was about $4 a gallon, so it made sense at the time. When it dropped to $2 a gallon about a 2 months later...and diesel was still at $4.50 for another 4 or 5 months, not so much. Being a diesel owner, you start to see these trends where gas drops and diesel does not. PA fuel tax is extremely high, and it's even higher on diesels.

From there, the VW scandal allowed for a re-tune of all diesels that dropped mpg by 2MPG (was 27-28 when I started, 25-26 after) and created a beautiful new limp home mode when there were issues with the regen process. I didn't ask for this to be done, dealer just did it (at the time, we really didn't know what the VW issues really were thought)

So, lets discuss new diesels and the regen.
-You need to either tow with the diesel constantly, or drive these things on the highway constantly. This new process does not allow for short distances. When I broke my ankle and was forced to drive the only auto I owned, my short trip to work wouldn't allow for a regen to go...and the exhaust filled up. A trip to the dealer and $350 later for a manual regen that can only be done at the dealer, and we're back in the game.
-So my wife starts driving it, her longer distances to work, and a couple weeks later, "Exhaust almost full - drive on the highway", but it's my kids graduation party, shit to do...goes to her mom's - goes to the store, "exhaust full, limp home mode". Another trip to the dealer - another $350 - and a talk to by the mechanic telling me I really need to drive this on the highway. 90,000 miles in 4 years, I'm not sure how much more highway I can do.

-Friday - wife calls me about another "get your ass on the highway message". So instead of coming home, she gets on the highway and drive 15 miles for no reason. Message goes away - and I look to trade it in. I'm out.

Jeep realized they had an issue with the regen filter (diesel version of a catalytic as best I can tell) and they extended the warranty to 8 years 80,000 for having so many failures. Jeep would not look at it for me, as I was at 85,000 when all this started. Cost to replace - $4000 to $8000.

Add to this, $200 oil changes (that's what it cost me to do myself...not the dealers charge, those are $350). As it requires almost 9 quarts of a special synthetic that only Pennzoil and mopar have - and 3 filters. Add to that DEF fluid that needs added (about 8 gallons every 8000 miles). Not much of an issue, until you get the "Out of DEF - 150 more miles of driving" messages.

With that, I'll never own again, won't recommend, and will pity those that have.