Beyond Blue Home Improvement Thread

[geoff]

Hi everyone. I'm Geoff and have been a dedicated Volunteer on the forums for 13 years. I am proud to have stopped some of the stigmas that are associated with mental health as well as doing my best to help others too

Before my health went south I was a builder in all aspects of home construction and renovation. If you don't have a handyman around I hope I can offer you some tips that may be of help. I have had many years of experience in home renovation and will do my best to help you out if you are stuck and need some advice

I hope my experience may be of help to the people on Beyond Blue and make their life a little bit better. Even if you need help with the most basic painting job or putting up a shelf I can help there too with some tips

I will do my best to get back to anyone that has a question when I can as this is social yet important thread

Geoff

[Hanna3]

Hi randomx, that what I thought you meant, OK good to hear they do make a difference in a fibro house I wasn't sure... I doubt Housing will pay for it though...

Thanks Geoff, transfers in Housing are very slow and hard to get, but yes I will have to sort out where I can move to and tell them it can't continue into another summer...

Really appreciate the help from both of you thank you!

[geoff]

Hi RX, well said, and have known Housing to supply both these curtains as well air conditioners, especially split system aircons, thanks so much.

Hanna the one on wheels probably needs water adding to it but I've always found them not to be the best, they tend to make the room humid.

If the insulation was installed 2 decades ago then by now it will provide very little use and the chances housing have of replacing it aren't good, simply if they do one unit then they have to do all of them.

The same applies to outside awnings as both of these have been rejected in my area, as I have someone I've known for 20 years who lives in a brick veneer housing unit.

Hanna 47 degrees would be unbearable just as the temperature in winter would be.

If you don't get any satisfaction then you can go to the 'tenants through consumer affairs or in Vic this link'www.tenantsvic.org.au › helpline' but other States will be similar, but if you can think about moving would be better than trying to cool and heat it down as the heat and cool just go through the fibro wasting your money.

Housing needs to know that your concern needs priority.

Take care.

Geoff.

[Hanna3]

Thanks Geoff I'm in NSW but I do truly think this house is only suitable to be knocked down - we had a storm yesterday and all the outside gutterings are rusted through and the water pours down the windows... but I'll have to think where to move to, as it's costly, and Housing hates transfers and they're not easy to come by... even with priority they can take over a year. I can't imagine how cold it will be here in the winter, I guess I have to retreat to one bedroom which I once had to do in a private rental - hooked up an extension to the TV and set up a folding table and basically lived in one bedroom for the winter.

Thanks so much for your advice. Housing here don't supply air conditioning or curtains at all... it becomes very costly for a pensioner - plus getting the lawns mowed is $60 each time...

Really appreciate your trouble thanks so much.

[geoff]

Hello Hanna, I am truly sorry you're in this situation, no one should have to live in a place like you're living in, it doesn't do anything for how you feel and not a good place to improve your mental health and it's nothing that housing should be proud of.

Are you able to contact your local MP and describe the type of housing you are living in, and can I give you a link or two to copy and paste in your search browser and there is information that may help you:

-https://www.dcj.nsw.gov.au. phone 1800 422 322.

-www.dss.gov.au › national-rental-affordability-scheme › nras-tenancy

-www.dss.gov.au › housing-support › programs-services › housing

- Contact: Ph: 1800 243 455. E: [email protected].

If any friend of mine was living in a place like this, I'd be doing every thing to find other housing.

I've mentioned Quantum as they maybe someone you can contact, I used them up where I live to get a friend to urgently obtain a unit after he was in a devastating situation.

If you have time we'd love to hear back from you.

Geoff.

-

[Hanna3]

Thanks Geoff so much for that - I haven't heard of Quantum I'll look them up.

I've been talking to people on my other thread, that I need to think where I would like to go before talking to Housing - I'm not very happy in this town (moved here relatively recently) - it's inland and I'm missing the coast - and I'm concerned they will only move me into a block of flats here that are absolutely dreadful, in the worst part of town (I wouldn't feel safe) and look dark and gloomy - I'd go nuts there. So I need to go armed with a request of where I'd like to be moved... there's another town about 40 minutes from here that might even be preferable, and I thought I'd drive there next week and take a look at the Housing there - I do know where it is, so I could take another look at it and the town.

They've put in new carpet here and a new gas heater but the old sash windows don't close properly and the drafts come through, the windows rattle - all the outside gutterings need replacing, they won't replace a fly screen that has blown off one of the bedroom windows so I can't open the window at night because the moths al fly in - they say they haven't got the budget (all it needs is glueing together in one place and someone to climb up a ladder and fit it back on again). Welcome to public housing and how little the government is prepared to put into it!!!

I know some people in public housing damage it and aren't grateful, but a single lady my age who looks after her home and just wants a quiet reasonably comfortable safe place to live with my little dog should be something our government can manage surely - I worked full time until I got sick in my mid-50s, so paid my taxes all those years...

I'm aware I need to be grateful to have a roof over my head at all, but I'm not getting any younger and I don't see how I can be expected to live in these temperatures (hot or cold) right through my sixties and seventies...

It's wonderful of you to give me all this help, thank you so very much, it's so kind of you to go to this trouble for me and it's been so helpful to be able to talk to you about it. I really appreciate your trouble thank you!

[geoff]

Hello Hanna, it's very sad to hear of the situation you are in and feel sorry that this shouldn't happen.

Sash windows, I'm not sure how many houses have those these days, but unless you know how to replace the sash cord and how to fix them, then they can be a huge problem and wonder why they have put in new carpet and heater.

In Victoria they are pulling these old places down and building new units.

I've been searching and found other places to search:

-Housing pathways

-www.facs.nsw.gov.au › housing › living › reporting-problems

-Get it Fixed! Prompting NSW Public Housing to repair the system
consumersfederation.org.au › Articles › Consumer Education Materials

I've probably given you too many sites to google, but ave a look around at the places you'd like to live.

Sorry, I'm not there to help you.

Geoff.

[Hanna3]

Hi Geoff,

You've been such a help and yes I have lots to Google..

I don't know what it is with Housing, it seems to be where their budget is allocated - they put in new carpet and a new heater but won't repair windows that are broken and letting in water...

Single people seem to always be allocated a unit now, and I go nuts without a bit of outside area - a one bedroom tiny villa would do me as long as it had a bit of outside area where I could have plants and sit and read outdoors... so I'm Googling around looking for even back into a private rental...

Most of the fibro houses around me here were originally public housing but have been sold off and people have them cladded somehow and insulated and put verandahs on them etc, but Housing said they weren't selling this one... but they said a 2 bedroom house like this wasn't much use to them, as for families they need a 3 bedroom house and single people are being put into units.

So it's not a good situation for me, another transfer could take at least a year, and the cost of moving again... but you've been a real help about the house thank you so much.

[geoff]

Hello Hanna, I hear from someone that housing, here in Victoria especially in the area where I live, say one thing and do something else.

Please let us know how you get on.

Best wishes.

Geoff.

[Hanna3]

Thanks Geoff - I'm still "percolating" ideas as someone once put it. I don't want to approach Housing without a definite place/area in mind or I'm worried they'll plonk me in one of the terrible unit blocks here. At least it's a bit cooler now... I'm getting used to one sash window sliding down all the time - there's a loud rumbling sound and down it goes - I just keep getting up on a stepladder and shoving it back up again... wonderful isn't it... cheers!

[Birdy77]

Hi Geoff, hope your hand is getting better 😊

Would it be ok if i re-asked a question that i put here while you were unwell and you missed it? No pressure at all, but just to get your thoughts?



Hi Hanna 😊

With your sash window falling down, Geoff should be able to describe this better than i can, but if it's the lower sash that is dropping, you should be able to tighten it - there should/might be two small screws in either corner on the bottom of the window, (underneath the bottom rim) i think you need to tighten the screw closest to the frame (turn it to the right - "righty-tighty, lefty-loosey").

If it's the top sash that's dropping, there might be something similar along the top rim of that sash. My sash window has a fixed top sash, so i can't check for you.

Worth a look?

Pats to Sam,

🌻birdy