Just a bit of a recap of where I've been the past few weeks, months...
I found myself having a rather forceful and bitter semi-public (staff area) argument with one of the staff and, later on when I thought about what happened I realized I was over-stressed and it was making me not just a less effective leader for this place, but causing rifts in the staffing structure of the site. The reasons for my stress are manyfold, not the least of which were getting this place up and running, trying to sell my house and move cross-country, family issues that we don't need to go into, death threats, health issues that also don't need going into, and just a general ton of the proverbial fecal matter.
I won't say that I'm back 100% but I am back to a certain extent. I'm still dealing with all kinds of stress in my personal life (everything above plus my garage got hit and totaled by my neighbor's tractor and our mortgage company is trying to rip us off for the insurance settlement we got and were going to use to replace the garage - film at 11) so if I decide I need to step away again just to maintain enough sanity to pass as normal I will do so without notice. Some of y'all know how to reach me in real life and are welcome to do so.
(https://ufozs.com/smf/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2FwPjgccY.png&hash=de624d4a5f535c109740aaab42b5a7bc1a566ad3) (https://imgur.com/wPjgccY)
The moment of impact (captured by one of my security cams)
Yeah I think "months" is the right word here. I was going to contact you soon, thanks for checking in!
Take care of the poop. Sounds like there is a lot of it. I'm sorry to hear that.
Yay! for security cameras!
Double YAY that you are back! :smiley_clap:
Quote from: Lambykins on October 05, 2021, 04:00:38 PM
Yay! for security cameras!
Double YAY that you are back! :smiley_clap:
He was trying not to hit our pickup with the back of the tractor as he mowed the grass and forgot the bucket was there. Our insurance wanted to go after him to cover our deductible but I said no, he was doing us a favor and I wasn't going to see him punished for that.
The hit was enough to jar the whole thing off its foundation and the insurance adjuster said it was cheaper to demo it and rebuild than to rent a crane to move it, fix the foundation, and rent a crane again to move it back. So that was an $18k+ "oopsie". Unfortunately, our mortgage company is one that wants all insurance payouts given to them and then they will reimburse you for your actual out-of-pocket costs. Effectively that would mean it never gets done since we don't happen to have $18k laying around to use for that. We do have an ace up our sleeve though. My wife bought the house and got the mortgage before we were married, so it's all in her name, but the insurance policy has both of our names, and my name is on the check along with hers and the mortgage company. We're hiring a lawyer to fight having to sign it over to the mortgage company on the grounds that while they have a contract with my wife they do not have one with me, and 1/3 of that check is mine.
The mortgage company claims to be doing this to protect their investment, and I can understand wanting to do that, but the house is currently valued at $160k more than we paid for it, and the mortgage has been paid down a lot over the last 12 years. There's more than enough there to protect their investment without this.
Welcome back.
Get a new lender, refinance the mortgage with $18,000 cash out for the repairs. You get the cash for the repairs. Then have the insurance company re-issue the check to the new lender to pay off the extra debt.
The money you spend on an attorney will cost more than any refinance fees and if your mortgage is more than 3.25% you will save money any way.
Quote from: Raptor on October 05, 2021, 05:15:53 PM
Welcome back.
Get a new lender, refinance the mortgage with $18,000 cash out for the repairs. You get the cash for the repairs. Then have the insurance company re-issue the check to the new lender to pay off the extra debt.
The money you spend on an attorney will cost more than any refinance fees and if your mortgage is more than 3.25% you will save money any way.
This is one of the options we're considering. We can convert it to a VA mortgage and go through a different lender @ 2.35%
Quote from: NT2C on October 05, 2021, 06:34:44 PM
Quote from: Raptor on October 05, 2021, 05:15:53 PM
Welcome back.
Get a new lender, refinance the mortgage with $18,000 cash out for the repairs. You get the cash for the repairs. Then have the insurance company re-issue the check to the new lender to pay off the extra debt.
The money you spend on an attorney will cost more than any refinance fees and if your mortgage is more than 3.25% you will save money any way.
This is one of the options we're considering. We can convert it to a VA mortgage and go through a different lender @ 2.35%
Welcome back, and sorry to hear about the suckage in your life. My first thought was the same as Raptor's - it sounds like it's time for a different mortgage company.
And I love the clear image from your camera! It seems like most of the security camera footage that you see is the "filmed on a potato" variety, rather than clear, bright pictures like yours produced. Big thumbs up to you for doing it right! :smiley_clap:
Sorry for such a lousy few weeks, but good to have you back.
Quote from: EBuff75 on October 05, 2021, 07:59:54 PM
Quote from: NT2C on October 05, 2021, 06:34:44 PM
Quote from: Raptor on October 05, 2021, 05:15:53 PM
Welcome back.
Get a new lender, refinance the mortgage with $18,000 cash out for the repairs. You get the cash for the repairs. Then have the insurance company re-issue the check to the new lender to pay off the extra debt.
The money you spend on an attorney will cost more than any refinance fees and if your mortgage is more than 3.25% you will save money any way.
This is one of the options we're considering. We can convert it to a VA mortgage and go through a different lender @ 2.35%
Welcome back, and sorry to hear about the suckage in your life. My first thought was the same as Raptor's - it sounds like it's time for a different mortgage company.
And I love the clear image from your camera! It seems like most of the security camera footage that you see is the "filmed on a potato" variety, rather than clear, bright pictures like yours produced. Big thumbs up to you for doing it right! :smiley_clap:
That's not even my best camera. That's a 5-year-old 720P 2MP camera and you're looking at a third-generation still. Let's see if I can upload one from one of the newer cameras.
Well, the image files are too big to upload here but these are 2nd generation copies from Imgur:
(https://ufozs.com/smf/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2FQNKyMbu.jpg&hash=7f61f7036df35c5b98842867e7635f11e26b8305) (https://imgur.com/QNKyMbu)
Driveways (1080P)
(https://ufozs.com/smf/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2F0JTAo27.jpg&hash=b6609e6fd05b528799c4dbc65a0790ffa7663358) (https://imgur.com/0JTAo27)
Rear yard (also 1080P) - Interesting tidbit, you can see the camera that took the accident picture in the upper right corner because the IR LEDs leak a little even when off. If I turn them on...
(https://ufozs.com/smf/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2F137BaTp.jpg&hash=4b67fbaf6f9662f6f2ded3d658bfca88d229d79f) (https://imgur.com/137BaTp)
And they aren't even aimed at this camera!
And with it now in IR mode it picks up the PTZ camera on the shed like a beacon:
(https://ufozs.com/smf/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2Fqm0Wnk0.jpg&hash=32e4aad1893a2c134529e380d6363da329707442) (https://imgur.com/qm0Wnk0)
(smudgy due to spider webs)
Quote from: NT2C on October 05, 2021, 10:01:51 PM
(smudgy due to spider webs)
We have to keep certain exterior lights on at night so we can see the cams without evicting the spiders. You can't see through the webs at all with just the IR from the cams since they reflect the IR light back. We've been thinking about getting IR lights that will give the cams more range, but I don't think that will help with the spider webs. Have you tried anything other than exterior lights on to see through webs?
Quote from: Anianna on October 05, 2021, 10:20:07 PM
Quote from: NT2C on October 05, 2021, 10:01:51 PM
(smudgy due to spider webs)
We have to keep certain exterior lights on at night so we can see the cams without evicting the spiders. You can't see through the webs at all with just the IR from the cams since they reflect the IR light back. We've been thinking about getting IR lights that will give the cams more range, but I don't think that will help with the spider webs. Have you tried anything other than exterior lights on to see through webs?
This place is usually lit up like a Vegas casino anyway so I just hose 'em off now and then. That driveway picture up there is a good example of the light levels here. The pickup sits under a 175W mercury vapor yard light (waiting for it to die so I can replace it with LED) and there's a 100W equivalent LED lamp either side of the garage door the camera is above. Oh, and a 90W equiv. spotlight shining on the flagpole to the left of the camera.
BTW, all of these pan and tilt except for the one above the deck and all are less than $50 each. The one on the driveway and the one on the shed/garage are similar to these on Amazon:
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B08F1W3R92/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
I did add a wifi access point at the garage end of the house (router is at the far south end and the garage is at the north end) to help with connectivity. Oh, and all the cameras record 24/7 to off-site storage on a 14 day loop.
Quote from: Anianna on October 05, 2021, 10:20:07 PM
Quote from: NT2C on October 05, 2021, 10:01:51 PM
(smudgy due to spider webs)
We have to keep certain exterior lights on at night so we can see the cams without evicting the spiders. You can't see through the webs at all with just the IR from the cams since they reflect the IR light back. We've been thinking about getting IR lights that will give the cams more range, but I don't think that will help with the spider webs. Have you tried anything other than exterior lights on to see through webs?
I don't have cameras at my house (yet), but spider webs is one of the things which gives me pause about getting them. It used to be that I had about a 75% chance of cobweb-to-the-face every day when I walked to the garage, and I've learned to stand back as I open my storm doors, lest I have spiders fall out of the crack between the door and the frame and land on me. Inside it's not much better. I would kill spiders on pretty much a daily basis throughout my house (I love my Bug-A-Salt gun!). It's partly my fault, as I leave the outside lights on at night, which attracts lots of bugs. The house also has bushes and plants all around the exterior and very heavy tree cover for lots of little six and eight legged things to hide in. I finally got fed up with it this year though, and did something about all of my unwanted guests.
Last spring I got a 2-pack of Ortho Home Defense (https://www.samsclub.com/p/ortho-home-defense-2-1gal-with-wand/prod20932911) at Sam's Club and have sprayed it around the exterior of my house twice now. The number of spiders has probably dropped by 75-90% as a result. The package even comes with its own little battery-powered spray nozzle that you attach to the jug (not very powerful, but it works). Each application is supposed to last about 3 months and it looks like I'll probably get about 3 uses out of that $25 purchase. Much cheaper than paying a pest control company to come in and do it!
Maybe now I could go ahead and get some cameras (if I can figure out a good way to wire them up - brick, 1.5 story houses aren't great for that kind of stuff without having to just wrap the wires all the way around the building).
Quote from: EBuff75 on October 05, 2021, 11:11:53 PM
Quote from: Anianna on October 05, 2021, 10:20:07 PM
Quote from: NT2C on October 05, 2021, 10:01:51 PM
(smudgy due to spider webs)
We have to keep certain exterior lights on at night so we can see the cams without evicting the spiders. You can't see through the webs at all with just the IR from the cams since they reflect the IR light back. We've been thinking about getting IR lights that will give the cams more range, but I don't think that will help with the spider webs. Have you tried anything other than exterior lights on to see through webs?
I don't have cameras at my house (yet), but spider webs is one of the things which gives me pause about getting them. It used to be that I had about a 75% chance of cobweb-to-the-face every day when I walked to the garage, and I've learned to stand back as I open my storm doors, lest I have spiders fall out of the crack between the door and the frame and land on me. Inside it's not much better. I would kill spiders on pretty much a daily basis throughout my house (I love my Bug-A-Salt gun!). It's partly my fault, as I leave the outside lights on at night, which attracts lots of bugs. The house also has bushes and plants all around the exterior and very heavy tree cover for lots of little six and eight legged things to hide in. I finally got fed up with it this year though, and did something about all of my unwanted guests.
Last spring I got a 2-pack of Ortho Home Defense (https://www.samsclub.com/p/ortho-home-defense-2-1gal-with-wand/prod20932911) at Sam's Club and have sprayed it around the exterior of my house twice now. The number of spiders has probably dropped by 75-90% as a result. The package even comes with its own little battery-powered spray nozzle that you attach to the jug (not very powerful, but it works). Each application is supposed to last about 3 months and it looks like I'll probably get about 3 uses out of that $25 purchase. Much cheaper than paying a pest control company to come in and do it!
Maybe now I could go ahead and get some cameras (if I can figure out a good way to wire them up - brick, 1.5 story houses aren't great for that kind of stuff without having to just wrap the wires all the way around the building).
My wife is a total arachnophobe and we've found Miss Muffets Revenge (https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B00FGIJXK4/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1) works well for around doorways to prevent sudden heart attacks. We don't use a lot of it because I appreciate spiders and the wife understands that inside the house is our home, outside the house is their home. She's satisfied with that, though the garage is kind of a DMZ for her and them.
Quote from: NT2C on October 05, 2021, 04:34:39 PM
The mortgage company claims to be doing this to protect their investment, and I can understand wanting to do that, but the house is currently valued at $160k more than we paid for it, and the mortgage has been paid down a lot over the last 12 years. There's more than enough there to protect their investment without this.
Nobody should get jerked around like that. Sometimes I think our legal system should allow for "justifiable arson" as self defense against this sort of thing.
I hope the forum can be more community and support for you than work and stress now.
Quote from: EBuff75 on October 05, 2021, 11:11:53 PM
Last spring I got a 2-pack of Ortho Home Defense (https://www.samsclub.com/p/ortho-home-defense-2-1gal-with-wand/prod20932911) at Sam's Club and have sprayed it around the exterior of my house twice now. The number of spiders has probably dropped by 75-90% as a result. The package even comes with its own little battery-powered spray nozzle that you attach to the jug (not very powerful, but it works). Each application is supposed to last about 3 months and it looks like I'll probably get about 3 uses out of that $25 purchase. Much cheaper than paying a pest control company to come in and do it!
I used that stuff to reduce ants invading my house. It made a big difference for two summers, but last summer the ants were clearly resistant to it. They would walk right over it the moment is was dry. :gonk:
Do those cameras save to/connect to any sort of on-site device? Asking because our 30 mbps faster internet might not be able to keep up.
Quote from: CG on October 06, 2021, 06:56:41 AM
Do those cameras save to/connect to any sort of on-site device? Asking because our 30 mbps faster internet might not be able to keep up.
Each has an on board micro SD card.
Wellcome back!!! :smiley_clap:
That is a whole lot of suckage!!!
A word on insurance..
For your next one I'd suggest a "Full Value Insurance" to avoid the type of hassle you got..
Here in Sweden it's By Far the most common insurance on Houses, Garages, Garden Sheds etc.
With a "Full Value Insurance" the insurance company will fix or rebuild your house or garage when something happens, thus avoiding the type of hassle with the money that happened to you and also ensuring that the House or outbuilding will get fixed even if it turns out to be difficult and expensive to do..
Also the contractors the insurance companies use are careful to do a good job since they want the repeat business from the insurance companies..
Over here a "Full Value Insurance" is also cheaper than an insurance were you put a value on the house and they pay you money when something happens. (Since the Insurance companies have a pretty good "volume discount" with the builders, they can fix it cheaper than if you yourself hire a builder.)
Quote from: Johan on October 09, 2021, 02:08:23 AMWellcome back!!! :smiley_clap:
That is a whole lot of suckage!!!
A word on insurance..
For your next one I'd suggest a "Full Value Insurance" to avoid the type of hassle you got..
Here in Sweden it's By Far the most common insurance on Houses, Garages, Garden Sheds etc.
With a "Full Value Insurance" the insurance company will fix or rebuild your house or garage when something happens, thus avoiding the type of hassle with the money that happened to you and also ensuring that the House or outbuilding will get fixed even if it turns out to be difficult and expensive to do..
Also the contractors the insurance companies use are careful to do a good job since they want the repeat business from the insurance companies..
Over here a "Full Value Insurance" is also cheaper than an insurance were you put a value on the house and they pay you money when something happens. (Since the Insurance companies have a pretty good "volume discount" with the builders, they can fix it cheaper than if you yourself hire a builder.)
In the US, it's called "Replacement Cost" or "Replacement Value" coverage.
Quote from: MPMalloy on October 10, 2021, 09:58:07 AM
Quote from: Johan on October 09, 2021, 02:08:23 AMWellcome back!!! :smiley_clap:
That is a whole lot of suckage!!!
A word on insurance..
For your next one I'd suggest a "Full Value Insurance" to avoid the type of hassle you got..
Here in Sweden it's By Far the most common insurance on Houses, Garages, Garden Sheds etc.
With a "Full Value Insurance" the insurance company will fix or rebuild your house or garage when something happens, thus avoiding the type of hassle with the money that happened to you and also ensuring that the House or outbuilding will get fixed even if it turns out to be difficult and expensive to do..
Also the contractors the insurance companies use are careful to do a good job since they want the repeat business from the insurance companies..
Over here a "Full Value Insurance" is also cheaper than an insurance were you put a value on the house and they pay you money when something happens. (Since the Insurance companies have a pretty good "volume discount" with the builders, they can fix it cheaper than if you yourself hire a builder.)
In the US, it's called "Replacement Cost" or "Replacement Value" coverage.
It's also the type of policy we have. The issue isn't with the insurance company, it's with the mortgage company.
Quote from: NT2C on October 10, 2021, 10:41:26 AM
Quote from: MPMalloy on October 10, 2021, 09:58:07 AM
Quote from: Johan on October 09, 2021, 02:08:23 AMWellcome back!!! :smiley_clap:
That is a whole lot of suckage!!!
A word on insurance..
For your next one I'd suggest a "Full Value Insurance" to avoid the type of hassle you got..
Here in Sweden it's By Far the most common insurance on Houses, Garages, Garden Sheds etc.
With a "Full Value Insurance" the insurance company will fix or rebuild your house or garage when something happens, thus avoiding the type of hassle with the money that happened to you and also ensuring that the House or outbuilding will get fixed even if it turns out to be difficult and expensive to do..
Also the contractors the insurance companies use are careful to do a good job since they want the repeat business from the insurance companies..
Over here a "Full Value Insurance" is also cheaper than an insurance were you put a value on the house and they pay you money when something happens. (Since the Insurance companies have a pretty good "volume discount" with the builders, they can fix it cheaper than if you yourself hire a builder.)
In the US, it's called "Replacement Cost" or "Replacement Value" coverage.
It's also the type of policy we have. The issue isn't with the insurance company, it's with the mortgage company.
Thats how I understood it, but I also thought the Insurance Company was going to pay you money (that the mortgage company is trying to take).
My suggestion was an insurance where the insurance company actually just rebuild/fix the Garage for you, instead of paying you money..
I'm not sure what insurances is available in the US, since my knowledge is in Swedish insurances..
(I am also unsure of the exact terminology in English, since it is pretty specialised words google translate may well be giving me gibberish.) :-\
*Edited for clarity*
I have been mostly away for a few weeks as well so this is a little late. Anyway, welcome back. Hopefully, things will calm down and be a little easier for mind and body. Since planning a cross-country move was one of your listed stressors I thought I would mention that I enjoyed your thread at the old place about a prospective spot in Idaho. If (and only if) you want to start another one along the same lines as a way of documenting/chronicling/venting I am all ears eyes. Regardless, it is good to have you back.