• Privacy Policy
  • Imprint
  • Contact Form
  • COMMAIK
    • Contact Form
    • Imprint
    • Privacy Policy
  • The Villa
    • The top floor
    • The upper floor
    • The first floor
    • The cellar
    • The garden
  • Stories from the construction
    • irrigation
    • Photovoltaics
    • Pool and terrace
    • SmartHome
    • The planning
    • The demolition
    • The installation
    • Machinery
    • Restoration and working techniques
    • This and that
  • Videos
    • Build & Renovate
    • Irrigation
    • Carport
    • Gabions
    • Garden
    • Garden kitchen
    • Pool
    • Smart Home
    • Drying
    • Tutorials
  • TESTED & RATED
    • Heating solutions & energy
    • Outdoor & Garten
    • Pool & garden kitchen
    • Security & Smart Home
    • Tools & DIY
  • Commaik Music
  • COMMAIK
    • Contact Form
    • Imprint
    • Privacy Policy
  • The Villa
    • The top floor
    • The upper floor
    • The first floor
    • The cellar
    • The garden
  • Stories from the construction
    • irrigation
    • Photovoltaics
    • Pool and terrace
    • SmartHome
    • The planning
    • The demolition
    • The installation
    • Machinery
    • Restoration and working techniques
    • This and that
  • Videos
    • Build & Renovate
    • Irrigation
    • Carport
    • Gabions
    • Garden
    • Garden kitchen
    • Pool
    • Smart Home
    • Drying
    • Tutorials
  • TESTED & RATED
    • Heating solutions & energy
    • Outdoor & Garten
    • Pool & garden kitchen
    • Security & Smart Home
    • Tools & DIY
  • Commaik Music
  • Privacy Policy
  • Imprint
  • Contact Form
  • Dry out the cellar yourself – infrared heating is used

    Plastic bottles attached to a pipe run along a brick wall in a basement or garage, probably part of a drainage system. Nearby is an easel or a whiteboard on blocks with several cables hanging above it. The floor is made of concrete. www.commaik.de

    In order to make the basement rooms of our over 100-year-old city villa usable, I first have to dry them out. The house is partially built into the slope. On the east side the basement floor is at ground level and on the west side about 200 cm below ground level. I have already used various methods for draining. I am currently creating a new watertight horizontal barrier in the masonry using chemical agents such as injection liquid, injection sticks and injection cream. I have already drained the eastern part of the cellar. Now it is the turn of the western part of the building. This time I let my…

    Weiterlesen

    Ähnliche Beiträge

    A man holds a roll of infrared heating foil. An arrow points to a thermal image revealing heat distribution on the floor. The words Infrarot Heizfolie are displayed above. www.commaik.de

    Efficient heating with infrared heating foil: installation, experience and tips for electric wall heating

    11. February 2025
    Close-up of a heavily rusted and corroded basement metal girder with jagged edges showing considerable decay. A blurred ladder and a bright background can be seen through a large hole in the metal. www.commaik.de

    Renovate basement ceiling yourself – safely replace steel beams

    25. October 2020
    A compact kitchen countertop with a black round washbasin, black faucet, sponge, dish soap, stainless steel electric kettle, and a Bosch dishwasher below, set against a gray textured wall with two power outlets. www.commaik.de

    Install granite washbasin with tap yourself

    3. February 2020
  • Lawn Irrigation – Connect 4 Rain Bird Valves to Hunter X-Core Computer

    Close-up of a Rain Bird mechanical irrigation control box with exposed cables, pipes, valves and connections, surrounded by gravel. The sunlight illuminates the area and highlights the various electrical and sanitary components. www.commaik.de

    I am still in the process of converting my existing Hunter lawn irrigation system. From the current 3 sprinkler circuits with 4 sprinklers each, I will build 6 circuits. I will then install 3 sprinklers per circle. For the blasters, I have so far relied on models from Hunter. My 1st valve box is also a Hunter product. Now the 2nd box is to be installed. Here, however, I rely on solenoid valves from Rain Bird. Rain Bird, like Hunter, is one of the top dogs in the irrigation equipment market. Price-wise, the valve box was even a little more interesting than Hunter’s box.

    Weiterlesen

    Ähnliche Beiträge

    A sprinkler provides irrigation to a lush green lawn in front of a stone building with a barred window and garden tools hanging on the wall in the background. www.commaik.de

    Winterizing and frost-proofing the lawn irrigation system

    27. October 2019
    Sprinkler system components and hoses are laid out on a bin next to a green lawn and a hedge, ready for irrigation installation in the garden. www.commaik.de

    Build your own automatic hedge watering system

    11. June 2020
    A person holds a trencher, creating trenches in a grassy yard for irrigation. Several orange buckets filled with soil are placed around the dug areas, with a brick path on the right and a stone building in the background. www.commaik.de

    Installing a lawn sprinkler: Step-by-step instructions for watering your garden

    21. March 2025
  • Hunter X-Core control computer for garden irrigation program yourself

    A man in a black jacket stands next to a Hunter X-Core irrigation timer, pointing at it. The X-Core’s display reads 4:22 PM and features green buttons and a central dial with labeled settings in German. www.commaik.de

    In one of my last blog posts, I described the installation and connection of the Hunter X-Core irrigation computer. I have explained how to connect the solenoid valves to the irrigation computer. However, I only briefly touched on the programming of the Hunter X-Core. In this article I will write in detail how I programmed my Hunter X-Core irrigation computer.

    Weiterlesen

    Ähnliche Beiträge

    Lawn irrigation system components, including pipes, valves, and wiring, are laid out on the ground next to an open valve box in a grassy area. A green garden hose and plastic cover are also visible. www.commaik.de

    Installing lawn irrigation: Valve box, Hunter solenoid valves and Rain Bird water distribution in detail

    1. March 2025
    A manicured garden with a palm tree, landscape stones, lawn care equipment, a bag of fertilizer and two lawn mowers on a neatly trimmed green lawn. www.commaik.de

    Lawn care in spring for the perfect lawn

    2. April 2022
    Sprinkler system components and hoses are laid out on a bin next to a green lawn and a hedge, ready for irrigation installation in the garden. www.commaik.de

    Build your own automatic hedge watering system

    11. June 2020
  • Glide Gear OH100 overhead camera platform in test

    A black Glide Gear camera rig stands on a workbench in a workshop, surrounded by various tools, toolboxes, and equipment hanging on a pegboard and scattered across the table—a true workspace for creative Glide Gear setups. www.commaik.de

    The Glide Gear OH100 Overhead Camera Platform is an indispensable camera mount for my overhead shots. For my video productions I film regularly in my workshop. I want to present the components and tools I use in my films in a clearly visible way. Of course, the work processes should also be shown optimally for the viewer. The Glide Gear OH100 offers the perfect solution for this. Thanks to its stable construction and flexible adjustment options, it allows me to position the camera exactly where it is needed. This allows me to ensure that every step of the process is clearly visible. In this article, I present the overhead platform…

    Weiterlesen

    Ähnliche Beiträge

    A Lymow One robotic lawnmower with tank-like tracks sits on a well-manicured lawn, surrounded by green grass and some fuzzy bushes in the background. www.commaik.de

    Lymow One in test: Robot mower without boundary wire with RTK navigation and chain drive

    16. November 2025
    A man stands next to a mounted parking heater system with large pipes, wires, and controls—perfect for any workshop. Large text above reads, Diesel Heizung für die Werkstatt (Diesel heater for the workshop). www.commaik.de

    Install 8kW diesel parking heater safely in the workshop & garage

    9. May 2025
    Partially built garden kitchen with white gas concrete blocks forming the base, set on a concrete patio. A black grill stands against the back wall, while construction tools and materials are scattered around the area. www.commaik.de

    Build your own garden kitchen – Masonry walls with aerated concrete

    26. September 2021
  • New submersible pump defective – draining the cellar

    A red pump, an orange bucket, two plastic bottles and a hose stand in front of a rough, stained concrete wall with visible drops of water and pipes. www.commaik.de

    Two months ago I built a sump pit with a sump pump in my cellar to collect the water seeping into it and further dry out my cellar. A submersible pump with an integrated float switch should then pump the water out via a hose. Unfortunately, things turned out quite differently. The new submersible pump in the pump sump was defective after just a few weeks. Read this article to find out why the pump was destroyed and how the draining process continued.

    Weiterlesen

    Ähnliche Beiträge

    Two large solar panels, part of a balcony power plant, are mounted on a wooden platform outside a modern house, angled to capture sunlight beneath a partly cloudy sky. www.commaik.de

    Set up 2. balcony power station and connect in series.

    25. March 2022
    Close-up of a partially constructed wooden deck, ideal for a garden terrace renovation, with a drill, screws, hammer, and metal brackets on top of the decking boards; metal framing and groundwork visible underneath. www.commaik.de

    Renovating the garden terrace: switching from wood to WPC and aluminum profiles

    17. March 2024
    A large pile of broken concrete and rubble sits on the floor of an unfinished construction site, surrounded by concrete walls and building materials, hinting at future plans for a pool installation. www.commaik.de

    Converting the pool – demolishing the old retaining walls

    23. March 2021
  • Drying basement – pump sump | build septic tank yourself

    A photo showing construction tools and materials: two yellow buckets with gravel, an orange bucket, a red pump sump for drainage, a circular saw blade, a power drill, and a spirit level, all placed on a rough concrete floor. www.commaik.de

    I built a sump pump at the lowest point of my house to help drain my cellar in the long term. The water is collected there and pumped out automatically. In this article, I describe how I built the soakaway and what I had to pay particular attention to. I go into the advantages and disadvantages of this method of draining the cellar and of course also write about whether this method works. Drying out the basement of my 120 year old house has been going on for 12 months now. In the interior, I have previously used the injection method to dry out. The areas above the barrier layer…

    Weiterlesen

    Ähnliche Beiträge

    A stylish party room with black walls, a tan floor, and a wood-burning stove with firewood storage. A partial wooden divider with a large window opening separates the space from the cellar-style utility area in the background. www.commaik.de

    Build your own party room in the basement

    14. March 2014
    A man stands next to a mounted parking heater system with large pipes, wires, and controls—perfect for any workshop. Large text above reads, Diesel Heizung für die Werkstatt (Diesel heater for the workshop). www.commaik.de

    Install 8kW diesel parking heater safely in the workshop & garage

    9. May 2025
    In a damp cellar, plastic containers are inserted into holes at the base of a brick wall to dry out the room. A red dehumidifier and various appliances can be seen in the background. www.commaik.de

    Draining the cellar – 1 year later

    31. December 2021
1415161718

Autor & Blogger

In this construction diary, we share our experience in the renovation and modernization of our Art Nouveau villa and hope to give a few suggestions and tips to some of you.

commaik.de © 2026
  • Contact Form
  • Privacy Policy
  • Imprint
  • Change privacy settings
  • Cookie policy
  • English
  • Deutsch (German)