texts: What can I do about my kitchen sink that has clogged suddenly and completely?

texts:
I had no problem with my double kitchen sink ever since getting Nu-Flo in our 1970s pipes, and their installers told me the kitchen drain had been installed going up instead of down so it caused the sink to back up. They fixed it and my sink drains fine ever since.
Yesterday I was rinsing out a small milk frother and trying to remove small bits of carmelization from it on the right sink, so the water was mostly clear. Suddenly the water backed up. I plunged that side while holding a stopper over the left side. It didn't have much effect. I used a product called Plumb Away that supposedly whooshes air at high pressure. I could hear and feel some movement on the stopper but saw little to no effect on the drain.
Plumb Away says if you use it three times with no effect, call a plumber. The third time I used it, water came spurting out of the thing next to the faucet, all over me, but still the water didn't budge. I don't want to call my landlord because if they will try to charge me for the plumber.
Overnight the standing water went down very little. It's strange that the drain went from fine to completely clogged in one instant and I wasn't pouring anything cloggy down. Also I would say I'm a light user of the sink because I don't cook a lot, I don't pour grease down it or anything like that.
I called my downstairs neighbor and she said her sink backs up when she uses the disposal. I did run the disposal and the left side went down immediately but no effect on the right side. I didn't know this but apparently the disposal only is for one side? (I hardly use the thing honestly, never had one before so not accustomed to using it.)
Does this sound typical? Do you think it can be fixed by something like Drano Gel?
Edit: The thing next to the sink looks like a sprayer would go there but there's nothing there. I have no clue what it is, and when I tried to find imgs online I couldn't find anything similar so I had to get up (ugh) and take a pic, sorry for the dirtiness of it:

No probs with the other drains. I called one of my downstairs neighbors and she said she has ongoing probs with her kitchen sink backing up when she runs the garbage disposal. I assume we are on a sewer system.
Edit2: I tried Drano Gel, followed the directions for the tough clog and used the whole bottle for 30 minutes, and it's still clogged. I guess I gotta call the ogre.


texts: regular circuit breaker doesn't trip.....when changed out to ground fault breaker it trips

texts: circuit from wall socket keeps tripping even with a small fan with a ground fault circuit circuit so took out the ground fault circuit breaker and put in a regular breaker now the fan works but I need to and need a ground and need a ground fault why does the groun ground fault  keep tripping tripping


texts:
I'm using silicone as an impromptu paint/varnish (the object to be varnished can and will flex in ways typical varnish won't survive).

I've used a bit of cardboard as a spatula to mild results - not terrible, but not exceptionally smooth. Is there any better way to do it?


texts: This may seem trivial, but is frustrating me. How do you ensure an even second and third coat over matte white paint? Other than a few brush marks here and there, you can't see the fresh paint from the dry.  Changing the lighting conditions doesn't seem to help.  This is such a common scenario that there just must be a painter's trick.


texts: Can I ground my workbench using an unused outlet's neutral?

texts:
I haven't found any advice on my specific predicament, so I'll ask here. First, some background.

I just moved into a house with old electrical wiring (read: ungrounded outlets). Unfortunately, the area where I'll be working with static-sensitive devices (microcontrollers and similar devices) is in a carpeted area and the humidity here is very low. In other words, I will likely want to start using a wrist strap and anti-static mat for my work. However, I don't have anything to ground to.

While I know connecting ground to neutral in an actively used outlet is a silly idea, I'm wondering if it would be alright to use the neutral connection of an unused outlet to ground my mat and wristband. Since the outlet is unused the neutral wire should never be energized and always grounded.

If this is not a reasonable idea, does anyone have any better suggestions? (Rewiring is not an option for me as it's not my house.)

If it is a reasonable idea, I'm curious if it would also be safe to ground an active outlet with the neutral wire of an unused outlet. Not that I plan on doing that, I'm just curious if that makes sense (it seems like it would theoretically be fine given my understanding of how individual outlets are wired).


texts: Bathroom lights go off and come back on after a few minutes

texts: My bathroom light from time to time goes off after being on for a few minutes then comes back on then goes off again. When I flip the switch for the light nothing happens and I have to wait for the light to come back on. Does anyone have a solution to this? Getting tired of the horror movie lights...


texts: How can I measure the voltage of 40A transformer?

texts:
I need to power 10 meters of 5V LED strip, for which I bought a 40A transformer on AliExpress.

Now, as much as I believe that cheap stuff bought from China can be okay quality, I'd like to make sure I'm sending the right amount of volts in the strip. There is a little screw on the transformer (on the very right) to adjust the voltage but there are no numbers or anything.

My question is, is there a way to measure voltage coming out of the transformer before I plug it in? All multimeters I've seen have maximum limit of 200mA or 10A.

Does this limit apply to measuring voltage as well?

Do you have any other ideas how to make sure I won't burn all my LEDs when I plug them in?


texts: Is it normal for A/C performance to improve when vent covers are removed?

texts:
I recently moved my office to the second floor of our home and I haven't been able to get the temperature below about 78 even though the thermostat is on 72.  My son's bedroom had been the same way until the other day when I removed his vent cover (diffuser) to paint the ceiling.  Today I noticed his room was like a freezer, so I removed the vent cover in my office and now it is cool in here.  Is this normal?

My vent cover is round and looks like this:

with the exception that mine only has two openings rather than three.

Here's my theory...when the diffuser is on, the cold air is mostly pushed out along the ceiling where the air is the hottest.  This warms it up as soon as it comes out, before it has a chance to "fall" down to where I am.  By removing the cover, the air is being pushed straight down, essentially cooling the air lower in the room rather than near the ceiling.

My cover is about 30 years old, so perhaps it is poorly designed?


texts: How should I jumper the transformer to use a thermostat with my heat pump?

texts:
I am hooking up an aftermarket blower motor on my Trane XL 1400 AC/heat pump. I have a black, blue, red & white wires coming out of the new motor. I am bypassing the circuit board so I am connecting black & white wires to to outside of the contactor, and capping off the red, which is low speed anyways.

How do I hook a jumper up from the transformer so I will be able to use my thermostat?


texts: Second Pressure releif valve in hot water system?

texts:
My water heater has a pressure releif valve attached to the top, with a downspout that drains on to the floor. There is a second release valve on the hot water distribution pipes, this one drains to the ground outside. what is the purpose of this second valve? Is it a code requirement?
My intuition is that is is designed to trip before the heaters release valve so water is blown off outside instead of on the basement floor. The distribution release valve is set to 125 psi, but I can't find a set point labeled on the heaters valve.


texts: Is a 4x4x18' enough to support this span. 12'x13' room. Ridge beam supported each end with a 13' open span

texts: Screened in room. Ridge beam recommendation?


texts: Doors have stopped closing due to humidity, how can I close my doors?

texts:
I have a few doors in my house that will not close at the moment due to humidity and I was wondering what is the smartest course of action would be.

1 door will not close due to expanding past the frame width wise and the other is being caught on the top.

My options as I see it right now are

Sand down door frames
Sand down doors
Rehang doors

I could use some advice.


texts: Should I make my two steps have the same rise or keep one closer to a typical height?

texts: I have a 10-1/2" rise outside from my concrete patio to my deck. Should I put in one step at the halfway point or a shorter step with a 3" rise with the 2nd step being 7-1/2"?


texts: Why is one baseboard heating hotter, and not controlled by thermostat

texts: We have a 3 unit house with hot water baseboard heat fired by an oil boiler. Apt 1 has her thermostat set at 70 but her room temperature is 82 so she set thermostat to 50 and the living room baseboard is hot, and not being controlled by thermostat.  All other baseboards in the apartment are working normally as are all baseboards in apts 2 and 3. We changed her thermostat but baseboard is still heating too much. Any ideas on what to check??


texts: This is our townhouse (5 house) service entrance. We only put plastic sheet above to partially cover it from rain, but when it is strong, the breakers got wet (this being going on for the past 20 years). Any idea what kind of glass or cover to put inside to prevent rain from wetting it (raining season coming in 2 months). We can't replace the panels because it would require so much city hall paperworks (even replacing a breaker needs city hall permit) and the neighbors won't cooperate putting up money for the repair or any power interruption.


texts: Is there a way to simply splice in an additional length of 12/2 NM-B cable?

texts:
Is there a way without using junction boxes to simply splice in additional length of 12/2 NM-B cable? Can I use twist caps?

I'm putting in a dog door and as it so happens, there is some 12/2 right in the way of the location I've chosen. There's no additional slack in the cable, and I don't want to rip up more drywall than I have to. I'm tempted to just cut it and splice in an additional foot or two with twist caps to get it out of the way. I don't know if this is safe or legal. Do I need to get junction boxes? Attached some pictures for fun.

Also, there is a 1-gang electrical outlet box that is going to the outside. I'm moving that up a bit.


texts: How do I run new water lines from the basement to the second floor through a finished wall?

texts: I am redoing an upstairs bathroom that has galvanized steel pipes currently running to it for water supply that run straight up from the basement. I am debating between using PEX or copper for the new supply lines. From what I have researched, if i use PEX, it will slap against the wall of the 1st floor since i cannot attach braces inside the finished wall without removing drywall. Is this true? Also, if I do use copper, what size is recommended for a bathroom: 1/2" or 3/4"? What type of braces does copper need to support it? I am planning on bracing it in the basement and at the 2nd floor where it enters.


texts: How to prevent heat loss over a recessed light?

texts:
I have a recessed light installed in a sloped ceiling - no attic space over it. On a cold morning when there is frost or snow on the roof and I stand outside the house, I can see a warm spot directly over where the light fixture is. The light has been off all night so I believe this isn't heat from a bulb - just warm air escaping. What are some good options for preventing this heat loss?

I don't know the model of can (I might be able to poke around to find it) so I don't know yet if it's IC-rated. It's 120V (no transformer).

EDIT: I haven't tried to pull the can down but with the bulb out I can see it's a Juno ICT926 which is IC-rated. I see Juno offers two products: the ALG6 (Airloc Gasket) which is a plastic ring and a VB6 (vapor barrier) which seems like it wraps the box. Is one more desirable than the other or more appropriate for this problem?


texts: Where can I find a 5/16" end cap for a faucet diverter?

texts:
I have a Delta kitchen faucent with a diverter shank that connects to a hose for a pullout sprayer. I am disconnecting it because I want to use the sprayer hole for a filtered water faucet. The problem is that the hose connects to the shank via a 5/16" fitting. I have disconnected the hose and need to find an end cap that will screw onto the shank.

I showed the hose to a plumber who happened to be at Home Depot (another customer, not a staff guy) and he says, "Oh, that's a standard 3/8" fitting", then I say, "No its 5/16th", then he says, "No such thing, its 3/8ths". Then we go over to the fittings and find a male 3/8" plug and sure enough its slightly too big for the hose. He's like "Damn, its 5/16th". So he directs me to a plumbing supply store. I go there. The guy is like "We have no 5/16th anything".

I have a lathe, do I need to get some hex rod and cut my own internal 5/16" diameter thread. I hope not because I hate cutting internal threads, especially into a blind hole. Please tell me there is somewhere I can get a 5/16" brass end cap. Note that an adapter will do just as well, because if I can get a 5/16" to 3/8" adapter, then I can use a 3/8" end cap, which Home Depot does have.


texts:
I have a dimmable floor light with 6 G4 bulbs. I ordered a bunch of dimmable LED bulbs and now that they've arrived after weeks, they don't light up at all. If I take one bulb off and place a halogen one instead, they would light up and dim (even though they're flicking), but as soon as I take off the halogen bulb, the whole light turns off. The requirements for the light is 10W max for the bulbs, and what I've got is obviously less than that, maybe too low?

Another thing I notice is that the light is 230-240V as we'd expect but the bulbs are AC/DC12V,180LM.

Any idea if I could fix this without having to return the bulbs? Or what LED bulbs should I be looking for?

Please see the video of the issue, and here’s the link to the purchased bulbs.


texts: How to support freestanding trellis with 2x4 legs

texts:
I'm getting married soon. One of the decorations is a custom built arbor 7.5 ft tall, 7 ft wide, and 2 ft deep, made with 2x4 legs. After the wedding we want to install it in our garden as a rose trellis. The location we're planning on has about a 1.5 ft drop over the 7 ft width with a shallow drainage swale down the middle of it, although it's more like a yard because it rarely has running water. The ground is hard packed clay with grass over it. How can I install the arbor so it's free standing?

Since the legs are only 7 ft long, I don't want to bury 2 ft in the ground.  I'm also not sure if the wood is ground contact rated. It's stained with oil based deck stain (2 coats) but likely isn't pressure treated.

If it were a deck or similar wide structure I could put it on blocks but at 7. 5ft high and only 2ft deep it would be top heavy and fall over in high wind.

I've seen ground stakes for 4x4 posts, but not for 2x4's.

Other than cementing 4x4 posts in the ground, with the low side longer for leveling, then screwing the 2x4 legs to them, how could I install this arbor?


texts: emery cloth or sandpaper to remove corrosion

texts:
I'm considering to replace a stop-and-waste valve in the basement, where copper pipes are installed. So I need to clean the corrosion off the pipe. My question is if I could use fine-grained sandpaper instead of emery cloth (since I see it is normally recommended), is there a big difference between the two?

Thanks.


texts: Why is it OK to use a 50 A receptacle on a 40 A circuit?

texts:
NEC's Table 210.24 " Summary of Branch-Circuit Requirements" shows required condudcor and outlet requirements for different circuit ratings:

Why is it permitted to put a 50 A receptacle on a 40 A circuit?

(Note: this question based on a comment in this question: Can different gauge wiring be used in the same circuit?. NEC screengrab from @maple_shaft's answer.)


texts: How do I slow further cracking in wood outdoors?

texts: Ideally my wood steps and picnic table would have been treated properly in past years but they weren't.  The answers to this question recommended oil-based approaches to protecting outdoor wood.  But given that I have cracking ranging from mild to severe, is there anything I can fill the cracks with which will do more to slow continued than the simple oil based treatments?  I'm in Chicago, so winter is real.


texts: Maximum PSI for cleaning outside vinyl siding?

texts: I am looking to buy a pressure washer to keep various outdoor surfaces clean.  What is the maximum safe pressure the vinyl siding can withstand to prevent damaging surface etching?  Also, will vinyl brittleness in below-freezing temperatures be a risk requiring a lower pressure or to avoid this method of cleaning?


texts: How can I keep screws secure over time in a loft bed kit?

texts:
I just ordered this bed and a lot of the reviews say that the screws loosen and have to be retightened often.
I'm wondering what the impact to the wood itself, over time, if I used wood glue in the holes during assembly. Would this cause the wood to split or anything from whatever pressure changes that (normally) cause the screws to loosen up?
This may be a completely dumb question, I don't know why I'm second guessing myself; I think it would be fine but I don't want to learn by trial and error with this one.
Thanks!


texts: How can I remove tile grout from floorboards?

texts:
We've removed old ceramic tiles that cover a tongue and groove bathroom floor.  What is a good way to remove the hard tile grout that now covers the floor?

EDIT: updated title as we've found Rimu is a podocarp softwood

EDIT: To answer the comment below, yes we would like to finish the boards with polyurethane varnish in keeping with other parts of the house

EDIT: after trying a bunch of approaches what worked was using a belt sander with P80 belts, stubborn areas required a little more pressure


texts: How to deal with sharp door latch corners?

texts:
There is a doorway that sometimes people walk through and get scratched on their arms by the latch on the door and occasionally it even draws blood. I think it's because the two external corners of the door latch are too sharp.
How can I make the door latch safer? Is it OK to use a Dremel rotary tool to round out or flatten the corners a bit?


texts: How can I remove ridges from a concrete shower pan?

texts:
I recently laid a new concrete shower pan, and went around the drain radially, which created some circular ridges.

I'd like to make the pan as smooth as possible, but these ridges are currently 1/8" to 1/4" high. How can I level these out, and do I even need to worry about it if I'm laying thinset when I put my tile down?


texts: Old oak stairs nail squeak - removing nails

texts:
Stairs in a 100 year old house are squeaking, and I'm looking for a way to repair it.
The squeak comes from a single nail that is connecting the tread and the riser, vertically, in the middle.
There is a gap between the tread and the riser, and I can see the nail. When someone is walking on the stairs, the tread flexes and rubs on the nail.
I've seen suggestions to use glue blocks and shims to support the tread from below, but since its a single nail - does it just make sense to remove or cut the nail under the tread, since it doesn't seem to be providing any more support?


texts: Can't seem to figure out how to tighten this. The whole thing has become loose up top. It's in a new (3 yrs) house


texts: I want to install a motion sensor for the stairwell

texts: Stairwell has a switch at top and bottom with no line of sight between them.  Can I use two motion sensors?  It looks like what I found are single pole and can be used with one 3 way switch but not two motion sensors?


texts:
I have a maple bench that recently decide to crack. I'm not sure what's the cause. I'm guessing wood expansion due to humidity changes.  Anyway, I've decided to look around for solutions on fixing the crack. The crack itself is pretty small, a finger nail barely fits in the opening. Here's some pictures:

Top of the bench

Close-up of the top

Under the bench

Ideally, I would like to close the gap. In the end, I'm not sure which one is the best approach. I've considered the following:

Bowties; although it doesn't seems to close the gap.
Dutchman; a patch wouldn't be that bad, but requires a lot of precision!
Re-gluing; by carving the crack in a V shape from under the bench, adding glue and then clamping.
Wood filer; would probably require sanding the whole top, staining and varnishing again. I would like to avoid that.
Staining the crack with a tiny brush; makes the crack less visible but wouldn't close the gap.

Anyone have experiences on fixing these cracks?

UPDATE:
I went ahead and stained the crack as per @HenryJackson's answer.  It is a lot less visible.  I will leave it as-is for now.  (It's not making me crazy... yet!)


texts: I am building a off grid house in Ghana and would like to use an American 200 amp breaker box and plugs. Are the solar inverters different? or can I wire it to work?


texts:
I put in a new GFCI outlet (Electeck model GF-15-WT-5PK), but my TEST button is intermittent. It takes 2-4 presses to trip it off. There was no issue before I mounted it to the wall. Initially it would trip immediately when I flipped the circuit breaker on, but I fixed that by tightening the ground.
When the outlet is hanging by the wires, it tested on the first press.
I tried my fingers and a screwdriver and it does not trip off on the first press of the TEST button.
The outlet is installed in a Wiremold metal deep extender box. Wiremold backplate is grounded.


texts: How to flash a window when using insulating boards with air barrier included?

texts:
We are going to re-insulate and re-side our 1947 home with new Roxul ComfortBatt, IsoClad 2 1/4" foam boards and some basic kaycan vinyl siding.

I have been looking at how to flash a window and have concluded that I'll need to remove an existing window, flash the frame and re-install it. All of the guides I have read use an air barrier that is not included in the foam board, meaning they can cover the window frame and cut the wrap in order to fold it into the frame and flash properly.

Like this:

What I am wondering is, what is the correct way to flash a window when using an air barrier that is stuck to the foam board insulation?

I was thinking of buying the smallest roll of House Wrap and just cutting a section out to cover up the width of the window, but if this is not necessary i'd rather not spend the time/money.

I can't find anything in the Isoclad manufacturer's website or the product manual.

Thanks!


texts: How do you calculate the right size furnace to maximize efficiency?

texts:
Given that sizing of the equipment is the most important issue to get right to maximize efficiency, what are the factors an installer should take into account to determine the correct size? Is it possible for me to calculate it?

For example, this homeguide describes two formula for sizing a furnace -- one based on square footage (understood to be too crude) and one based on heating degree-days:

50 x heating therms x furnace efficiency = load in BTUs/hour

Oddly, this formula suggests the required BTUs/hour increases as furnace
efficiency (AFUE) increases. Surely that can't be right, since the furnace size
should not need to increase as the furnace gets more efficient.

So if these formula are not correct, what is a good method of calculation?

Correction: In the formula, as furnace efficiency increases, actual heating
therms used would decrease. So I'm wrong; the formula does, at least, pass the
smell test.


texts: How can I make the underneath of an outdoor playset usable and not a mudpit?

texts:
Based on this bulletpoint from the allowed topics:

Which tools, materials, and best practices for home improvement task.

I'm looking for advice on dealing with our playset.  Specifically the area beneath it that they usually recommend being a sandbox.  We don't want a sandbox.  However, since we haven't done anything with it yet, the thing ended up being a mud pit with some interesting weeds growing.

So my questions are:

What materials and best practices can I use to make the area a usable "indoor" space for the kids with a flooring of some kind and maybe even a door or gate?
What do I need to do to make sure the flooring is weatherproof and won't become muddy or allow weeds/grass to eventually poke through?
Any advice on making sure critters, bugs, spiders, hornets, etc. don't decide to take up residence inside?


texts: Why does my front loading clothes washer stink?

texts:
I have a front loading washing machine which smells really bad.

I have also had the brown sludge problem which I've managed to clear with hot cleaning etc. I've noticed I have to empty the filter of smelly water every time I use the washer.  Also, this coincides with having a new kitchen and dishwasher installed.

Is this dodgy plumbing or does the machine need repairing?  Any ideas?


texts: Can I use construction screws to pull together bowed joists?

texts:
I am building a small (14'x12') detached deck to be placed directly on the ground with some gravel under it. I am using 4x6 pressure treated boards (UC4B) for outside frame.

I intend to use 6" TimberLOK screws from FastenMaster to stitch the frame together. All resources suggest that it's as good as lag screws.

As I put boards together, I noticed the bent on one 14' board. That makes about 1" gap between outer frame and inner joist in the middle (also 4x6).

I wonder if it's ok to use couple 6" TimberLOKs to just pull the outer board to the middle joist.

This picture is to give an idea of the project.


texts: Soundproofing a room so sound doesn't go out as much

texts: So the building I live in is really bad with sound. What I want is a way to soundproof my room so I can talk with my normal voice without upsetting the people who live above me. The floor above me is the 5th and they can even hear the guy playing guitar who lives in the 2nd floor. I'm usually on voice chat at night and especially if something upsets me and I raise my volume, the entire floor above me can apparently hear me. Is there anything I can do aside from making my room the way a radio studio is?


texts: Do I need more than just Drylok to insulate concrete basement walls before framing out some walls?

texts:
I have a large unfinished basement. Concrete blocks walls. French drain. All but the top 18 inches or so are underground.

It's got great potential to be finished (9 foot ceilings).

The basement has a sump pump, which kicks on any time it rains. The concrete clearly sweats in certain areas. In one corner, there is a hole in the concrete at the very bottom about a dime size which trickles water after it rains. The water trickles down the french drain and finds its way out through the sump pump. In my 3 years at the house I haven't seen the water rise over the french drain, even during the heaviest downpours, but I admit it's a little disconcerting to hear water trickling into the basement whenever it rains.

Last summer I put Drylok on every inch of the concrete wall. 2 coats on the bottom half.

I'm thinking about getting some metal studs, framing out some walls, and making a kids room, family room, and bar area.

My questions are:

Do I need to put foam or some other sort of vapor barrier on the (already Drylok'ed) concrete walls before the studs go up? Or is the Drylok enough?
Is it OK that water will be trickling in behind the wall in that one area? I realize its wise to put a battery backup on the sump pump, plus I have a backup generator, but is there something that needs to done before finishing the basement, or can I live with the water getting in just as long as the sump pump gets it out?
Is it OK to use metal studs to frame it out? Seems like the way to go given the moisture, but also it just seems easier to manage than cutting so much wood.
If you were me how would you proceed to get the basement ready for finishing?


texts: How do I hang a large wall to wall mirror?

texts: I have a 5' by 6' mirror to install frameless in my bathroom.  When I set it on the back splash do I need anything on the back splash or can I set direct without any metal or plastic things making a small or any gap?


texts: Electrical circuit breakers, how do I check

texts: I had a 15 Amp GFIC/AFIC circuit breaker replaced. Everything is wired correctly. How do I test that the new one is not defective ? Lights still don't work.


texts: How can I get the sink trap to clear the drawer under my bathroom sink?

texts:
Is there a better solution to a P-Trap? We have installed a new vanity only to find that the drawer contacts the p-trap.
The vanity has 3 drawers. The top one is built in a "u-shape" and goes around the drain pipes. But, the next one down still hits the P-Trap:

My other attempt was to use a flexible P-Trap and angel it to the side, But I don't know that this would actually work.

I'm really trying to avoid cutting a notch out of the back of the drawer if possible.Is there a better way of doing this?


texts: Why is my touch sensitive switch leaking voltage?

texts:
The setup:

I have a 2 gang touch sensitive switch which has a live feed coming into it from mains light circuit, which also goes on to feed the switch above too (same 2 gang touch sensitive switch but dimmable).

Connected to the 1st gang of the initial switch is the live wire for the outside lights (3x 6W LEDs) which works fine. Connected to the 2nd is the live wire for the plinth lights (20x 2W LEDs) which causes a problem. All the neutral wires are bundled together (4 of them - feed from main light circuit, feed to 2nd dimmable switch, outside lights, plinth lights).

The plinth circuit switch just turns the power on/off to another mechanical switch under the worktop which the plinth LEDs are always plugged into.

The problem:

With both the touch switch and mechanical switch off, the LEDs are off.

When we turn the mechanical switch on, LEDs stay off.

When we then turn the touch switch on the LEDs come on.

But when we turn the touch switch off, the LEDs flash every few seconds (building up current in capacitor somewhere and releasing periodically).

Even with the touch switch turned off, there seems to be 150V hanging around at both the mechanical switch terminals and the touch switch live wire (only plinth circuit).

Attempted solutions:

We switched the outside lights and plinth lights live wires to the opposite switch gangs, the 150V seemed to follow the plinth live wire and the outside lights worked fine still, so there doesn’t seem to be problem with the switch (as first sight).

We added a suppressor circuit (just an LCR circuit from maplin we read somewhere tends to fix LEDs flashing due to induced current), but it just added another capacitor to the circuit and it flashes twice - at different brightnesses. (We added this to both the mechanical switch end and the touch switch end, both same results).

We wired the exact same circuit to another mechanical 2 gang switch instead of the touch switch and now everything is working fine... So maybe there is something wrong with the touch switch?

We read somewhere about adding a fluorescent bulb to the circuit to draw the excess current and stop charging the capacitors bur that seems like a silly work around.

We had an idea of adding just a resistor to get the same solution as above, or maybe a relay instead?

Does anyone have any ideas of what could be going wrong with the touch switch or possibly with the plinth lights circuit itself? Or possibly any solutions anyone can think of?

At this point we've fixed it by just using a mechanical switch but it's bugging us as to why the 150V is leaking and why it is following that particular circuit, we'd like to use the touch switch to match the dimmable switch.

Any help in ideas much appreciated.


texts: what the best option to deal with a rusting screw in drywall?

texts:
I have some rusting screw in my garage drywall:

What's the best option to deal with it?

Do I

drive it back into, spackle it with Drywall Joint Compound and touch it up with paint?
Remove it somehow, fill the hole with Drywall Joint Compound and touch it up with paint?
Something else?

Thanks


texts: Do I have to strip or sand a table before painting with chalk paint?

texts: I have an old end table that has been painted 2 times I know. I want to paint it with chalk paint and have a distressed look. Do I have to strip or sand. Concerned about type of old paint used previously.


texts: PVC leak under slab in outdoor waterfall feature

texts: I've searched the internet for a solution to my problem and I can't find anything that even references a potential fix.  Maybe one doesn't even exist, but I have to try, right?  So, here is my problem.  I have an outdoor man-made waterfall.  Of course, to get the waterfall to work, you need a sump pump and a pipe going back to the top to continue with the waterfall.  One winter I must not have winterized the return pipe well enough and a crack happened that now drains the water from the system in a matter of days. I need a fix that doesn't involve tearing up the ground to replace the portion of the damaged pipe.  Something akin to how you might fix a leaking radiator with pepper or egg yolks.  If anyone here knows of a product or home remedy that would work on this problem I would be grateful.  Thanks in advance for any help.


texts: Changing a 4 wire supply to a 3 wire plug

texts: I have a very thick 4 wire supply coming from my panel and a 50 amp breaker that went directly to my hot tub. I no longer have the hot tub. The wires are caped and the breaker is off. I want to use the existing 4 wire supply that is already ran and put a plug on the end to use for various tools, log splitter, skill saws, ect. Can this be done without changing everything? Thanks for your knowledge. Phil J.


texts: 49" TV wall mount with full motion bracket on plasterboard

texts:
I recently purchased the LG 49SJ800V. I would like to wall mount this TV using a full motion TV bracket (like this). Aerial and electricity sockets are located at 1.83m from the floor on a plasterboard. The first thing I did was to search for the stud using the Bosch Truvo. Yet I could not find any. I then opened the socket to check whether I could spot the stud from there. But, I could only see a quite thick plasterboard (see pic) and a gap between a wall made of bricks and the plasterboard. The socket were screwed over an horizontal piece of wood possibly attached to the brick wall.

Given that TV weights about 13kg (about 29 pounds) and that the plasterboard is quite thick, I was hoping that 6 spring toggles would do the work. However, after some search on the internet, it seems that a number of people advises not to wall mount a TV with a full motion bracket without fixing the bracket to the stud.

Any advise on this regard?


texts: Why does my pilot light go out when I release the pilot light knob?

texts: My furnace pilot light will not stay lit. I can light it and depress the pilot switch for 2 minutes. But, once I let go of the button, the pilot immediately goes out. Does my thermocouple need replacing?


texts: Any potential problems with re-numbering electrical panel?

texts:
I'm going through and re-labeling our electrical panel. Currently it has the numbering: 1a & 1b, 2a & 2b, etc.

Quite a few of the breakers are linked together (for things such as the stove, or the air conditioner). The air conditioner, for example, has two 30 amp breakers covering 31a, 31b, 29a, and 29b.

This naming scheme doesn't seem super efficient to me. Number 1 is on the bottom right of the panel, and the highest number is on the top left of the panel. I want to re-label everything with new numbers 1-28, going from top to bottom on the left side, and then top to bottom on the right side. All the breakers that are joined together would simply have a single number to reference them by. In my mock up, all of the air conditioner breakers would just be labeled "15".

Are there any problems removing the old numbering system? I wouldn't think there would be, but if there is some type of standard I don't know about, I would be worried about making things more complex for any future electrician visits.

Might be a dumb question, but I want to be sure before I pull/cover up the old labels.


texts: Is it common for vertical joints to not be filled?

texts: We live in a high-rise apartment, and the shower room cinder-block wall is covered by sheet rock. The wall separates our apartment from our neighbors' apartment.  Anyway, I noticed that the blocks above the drop-ceiling seemed to have no vertical joints. I imagine the hidden part of the wall below the drop-ceiling is the same.  I can almost put my small finger into the spaces.  Is this type of block-laying common?  Or should we think of looking for a new home?


texts: Is there any benefit to using outdoor faucet covers if the water to them is shut off?

texts: If I shut off the water supply to an outdoor faucet during cold weather, is there much benefit to also covering the faucet using a styrofoam faucet cover or similar? My guess would be no, but maybe the pipes conduct heat well enough that it would still be worth it.


texts: How can I figure out exactly where a bathroom leak is coming from?

texts:
There's a small amount of water at the lowest point on my bathroom floor.  It looks clear and doesn't have a smell.  Lately, it's been showing up every day, whether anyone's taken a shower or not.

How can I be absolutely sure where this water is coming from?

A few sources come to mind:

The base of the toilet.
The supply line feeding the toilet.
The sink across the room.
A leak in the roof somewhere over the bathroom.

Overall, the house is of...unusual quality.  No one's exactly sure when it was built.  On the one hand, the interior is all fairly new.  On the other hand, there are knotholes in the exterior walls that were "repaired" by having a tin can lid tacked on over them.*  Bottom line: I'd believe just about anything could be the source of this water.

*Surprisingly, you'd never notice the tin can lids unless you were really paying attention.


texts:
I am installing an Eaton CHSPT2ULTRA surge protector to my Siemens QP breaker box.

The surge protector has (4) 14-gauge stranded wires to connect.  I had no problems making a tight connection with the green wire to the grounding bar, and to the white I added some stranded 10-gauge wire with a wire nut to reach the neutral bar, which is secured tightly.
The problem is that the black and red wires connected to the 50 amp breaker don’t seem too secure. If I tug on the wires somewhat they don’t come out, but I think if I pulled harder I could pull them out of the breaker without too much effort.

Taking a close look at the 50 amp breaker, it’s (of course) made for a much larger (8-gauge) wire.  Even with the screw all the way tight, there is still space at the bottom of the screw.  So it seems to me that the 14-gauge stranded wire just isn’t big enough for the breaker screw to hold the wire tightly.

What is the best way to fix this loose connection at the breaker?

Can I use crimp-on spade terminals to the two breaker wires?  Is it up to code to have this connector inside a breaker box?  Gardner Bender makes a 16-14 AWG 4-6 Stud Spade Terminal, Vinyl Blue (10-Pack) that is rated for 600-Volt maximum rating as building wiring and 1,000-Volt maximum rating for signs and fixtures, and has UL and CSA safety listings.

Is there a better way to do this?

Thank you!


texts: Gas stovetop repair: What anti seize to use on brass fittings?

texts:
I am repairing a gas range.

The brass venturi tubes are threaded, and seem to seize up, even when metallic anti seize paste is used. (And when that happens, I have to drill out the venturi, which means $60-130 in replacement parts!)

These parts get very hot. (They are part of the burner assembly.) Typically, they have to be drilled out because the threads on the brass venturi weld themselves over time to the base jet assembly. Again, this is due to heat.

I am considering trying ceramic anti seize paste this time.

What type of anti seize is the best way to go for this application?


texts: Adding a new electrical outlet to lighting circuit

texts:
My house was built in the mid 70s, MBWC everywhere. Many lighting circuits are also connected to the outlets. What I want to do is connect a receptacle upto the switch for the pantry so that when someone turns on the pantry lights, the socket will turn on (I will be connecting this socket to LED light strips to illuminate the shelves). What do I need to think about to be within code?:

Am I allowed to add new sockets onto lighting circuit nowadays?
Do I need to worry about lighting per square foot?
Overloading the    lights - well I only use LED lights, but someone
in the future might stick    something else in, right? What do I tell
the inspector? I currently    count at least 17 lights (14 of those
recessed) on this branch (15A    110V), and like I said earlier,
there are some sockets on this as    well. I use all LEDs, but
someone in the future might stick 100W    incandescent bulbs in,
overloading the branch. What does this mean    for me.
The pantry is also the washing machine area, so I'll use a    GFCI.

I'll have this permitted and inspected.

Thanks


texts: What could cause a tubs drain to gurgle when the toilet is flushed?

texts: One day after I used a bacterial enzyme degreaser/ septic treatment to clear slow draining bathtub drains I can hear gurgling in my master bath tub drain when someone flushes the toilet in the other second floor bathroom.  This morning the downstairs toilet was blowing bubbles when flushed.  I have used this product before without this happening.


texts: Why do shelves often fall during the night?

texts: I was reading this question and ran across something that has occurred to me several times in the past.  It may just be that it seems like shelves fall at night a disproportionate amount of the time but from past experience, I have had no less than four shelves fall in multiple locations, all at night.  Is there a good reason why shelves appear to fall at night more often than during the day or is it just random chance.


texts: How to install a new pvc line on a fridge to an existing small plastic line?

texts: What do I need to get this going? a kit? first time installing or connecting myself.  any help will be great appreciated.  I have a pac lined tubing, but nothing else.


texts: Safety of hard wiring cable lighting intended for halogen bulbs in a circuit with LED dimmer switch

texts:
Reporting from the northeastern United States. I am thinking through installing a cable lighting system on a circuit in a hall in the 55 year old house. I've since installed a LED dimmer switch for the light, which works fine with the current fixture and a LED bulb. The new fixture is a low voltage cable light system which was made to use halogen MR16 bulbs without the dimming capability.

What opinions on safety or practicality may you folks have. This is a fixture that is dimmed low all the time 24/7. I would feel accomplished if it can all work with LED MR16 bulbs.

this is an imgur album/dossier of the hardware involved here

I thank everyone in advance for their wisdom and opinions.


texts:
I got a 40ft flag pole that is schedule 40 pipe welded together every 10ft with couplers.
My questions are:

How deep I should put it?
What diameter base?
Can I use a Sonotube?

The area I live in gets quite a bit of rain and some pretty heavy wind. I can get gusts up to 100mph.


texts: What can be used to prevent my windows from sliding down?

texts:
I have wooden windows in my home, they came with a pulley mechanism to hold them up once they are opened. However, some of the pulley's cord popped, so now when I lift the lower window open and let go it falls back shut.

Are there any thing I can buy to keep the windows open without me having to wedge them ? I was thinking maybe they sell the Pulleys independently ?

Thanks in advance.

Picture of window style:


texts: Used the wrong screws for sheetrock and screw marks are too visible. Any suggestions?

texts:
I used wrong screws for the drywall. I didn't realize that the screws are wrong until the job was done and I started to put mud on the walls. After putting the first layer and doing some sanding, I realized that screws are still way-way too visible. I am trying to correct my mistake in some way and am looking for suggestions on how to fix this. Can somebody suggest something?

I was thinking to put a layer of paper tape to hide this mess before putting a layer of mud again. Is this a good idea?


texts: How do I properly align an outdoor light fixture?

texts:
I was trying to install an outdoor light this afternoon. Unfortunately the outlet box is interfering with the mounting bracket. I looked around at a few different lights and it looks like I would have the same issue with them as well.

The mounting holes in the outlet box are horizontal. It appears the installation instructions are expecting these mounting holes to be at an angle. The screws that mount to the light fixture are too long and are hitting the outlet box. Does the outlet box need to be rotated, or am I missing something obvious?

Here are the light fixture installation instructions.


texts: My house is 100 years old. Two bulbs (one on the first and one on the second floor) are controlled by two switches (one on the first floor and one on the second).  I checked the both switches. They are good, but don't have power. Surprisingly, the lights can be on once or twice a year. The wiring is original. Thank you for your help.


texts: Can an electrician with 16th edition rules do work in anybody's home?

texts:
I did an elim course taking city and guilds for the 16th edition electrical installation and maintenance. Can I still do work in people's houses without having to give certificates the types of work?

I want to add or move sockets, lighting and install new consumer units. Can I do this without having to get a permit as well?


texts:
I want to replace my kitchen strainer and to do this, I'm trying to replace the tailpipe - but it's stuck. I was able to unscrew the nut all the way I believe. If you look at the picture below, you can see a little pvc on the tailpipe showing...I'm not sure what is still holding onto it.

Any advice? Thanks!


texts: elegant attic hatch design for several purposes

texts:
My attic hatch measures roughly 2' square.  Presently, it has insulation on top of the hatch door (in the attic).  Because some of the hatch sticks up above the insulation on the floor of the attic, I'd like to re-do the door so that the hatch insulation is inside the hatch.

Does anyone have any elegant design suggestion to allow the door to come down, rather than need to be pushed up into the attic?  With 6-8" of insulation, a door that swings down seems infeasible.

I wouldn't mind simply pushing it up into the attic, but the small problem with that approach is that the hatch seems to have been build imperfectly: its bottom dimensions are slightly larger at the bottom than at the top (~1/2"), which could make pushing the door up less-than-ideal.  Particularly if the door is snug enough at the bottom, which I would like it to be for air sealing purposes.


texts: Cover vinyl asbestos floor tile without making later flooring harder

texts:
I have a kitchen with 9"x9" vinyl floor tiles that I have just found out contain asbestos.  Though they are at first glance in sound condition (only a very few small chips, all well-adhered, etc), looking closer there is a fair amount of scuffing and small scratches from everyday wear and tear which with 2 kids I do not like at all.  All that abraded material has to go somewhere...

The long-term plan - when we can afford it - is to rip out the kitchen and probably put on an extension.  But I want to do something now to stop the wear and tear on the tiles - and ideally encapsulate them.  How can I best do this without (a) tearing out the existing kitchen units and (b) making a future remodelling much more difficult?  This area might eventually be carpeted, tiled or lino.  I don't much care what it looks like in the meantime.  It is VAT on top of concrete; there's no visible black glue so I imagine they were peel and stick.
Options I have thought of:

Epoxy floor paint.  Would do the job, but I understand it's very hard to put anything else on top of this later without scarifying the surface (bad idea on asbestos!) - and presumably this would make removing the tiles really hard too
Polyurethane floor paint.  May be better to lay new flooring on later, but will it adhere, and it also sounds horrible to work with (respirator needed?)
May be a crazy idea, but can I just get some cheap vinyl flooring and lay it without sticking it down?
I can't see trying to put down any form of screed around the existing units working
How much difference would vinyl floor polish/sealer make?  As far as I can tell, these are usually wax-based so are unlikely to add a lot of abrasion resistance.


texts: How should I deal with an animal in the attic?

texts:
My tenants tell me that they hear an animal (possibly a raccoon) in the attic.  This is an old (1880s) three story row house with a flat roof and a pretty low (2 ft average, maybe) attic.  The house was totally renovated 10 years ago and I'm not very familiar with the attic situation or where the animal might have entered the attic.

I was told it sounds like at least a couple relatively large animals are scampering around the attic and occasionally they
make whimpering growling noises.  They seem to be most active in the morning
between 5 and 7 and I don't usually hear them during the day (maybe they are
nocturnal or maybe I'm just not at home during the day).

How do I deal with the situation?

Edit: Alright, I betrayed the DIY principle and hired a professional.  He found squirrel droppings and no proof of raccoons or any other animal.  He found two wholes and filled them with metal screens attached with screws and Liquid Nails.  He also put a trap and is going to check it in a few days.  Cost was rather steep: $395 total.  Next time I may do this myself.  Although, honestly it was not an easy job for him especially in one of the corners where space was tight.  Also, the dust, droppings and fiberglass insulation makes this job unpleasant.


texts:
I have a unique problem with the gas pilots in my house. They all seem to be going out. One day I found both pilots in my fireplaces out. Didn't think much of it. I then found the pilot on my hot water heater out. I turned it on and next day its out again...did that a few days then decided to change the thermocouple. Did that and still same thing happening. Then I called a plumber and he changed the gas valve and thermostat on the water heater. The same thing kept happening. I then remembered the pilots on the fireplace. I turned them both on and turned the water heater pilot on and within 30 minutes all are off again. The next morning I was heating tea on my gas stove and the burner went out.

I don't understand whats happening. I told the plumber what happened and he said I might have negative pressure in my house ( don't know what that means).

Does anyone have any ideas? Please I'm desperate.

thank you

Sam


texts: Cracks on second store concrete slab...bigger

texts:
Since my last posting, I've discovered potentially bigger problems.  Any advice on how to deal with these? Just fill?  It seems that the previous owner took out the sliding doors and installed windows, creating a book in the room. That part off the floor is 1/2 inch lower than the main master bedroom.

[1]: https://i.stack.imgur.com/O1Abf.jpg


texts: How to choose location for kitchen rough-in plumbing

texts:
I'm going to have a new house built, and I want to have roughed-in plumbing in one room for a small kitchen.  I need some help choosing a location to tell the builder.  I won't be shopping for cabinets or fixtures until some time in the future, long after I have to finalize the construction plans.
I want the pipes to be in a certain interior wall that's 8 feet wide, but I'm not sure how far the pipes should be from the corner of the room.  Is there a standard or rule-of-thumb to follow in the US?  Is there a reasonable place to put the rough-in plumbing so that I can easily choose a cabinet later that would work with the pipe location?


texts: Correctly wiring GFCI with two hot lines

texts:
I recently bought a house built in 1958, with the original wiring. The outlets are not grounded (only two pins) and so I want to put some GFCI outlets as a hold-over until I can afford to have the house rewired with grounding.

One outlet I am working on is fed with two pairs of hot wires. They are on the same circuit, although when I turn the breaker off I still have 16V going through them, until I turn off the other breakers.

Would both pairs connect to the line side of the GFCI outlet? In that case I suppose I would not be able to chain other outlets off the load side. My main concern is that in this answer, the poster says

  In this procedure, only one wire should make the meter light up. If more than one wire caused the meter to light, contact a local licensed Electrician.

I would like to learn more about home wiring, without putting myself at risk -- if I need to get someone who knows what they're doing to come work with it that's fine, but I'd still like to know what I'm dealing with.

Update:

Took another look today. With the multimeter I was able to determine one pair that never had any voltage (I've separated all the wires from the outlet) so that must be a load pair.

The other pair of wires is another story. When the breaker is on it measures 120V as expected. When I turn the breaker off, it still has 16-18V going to it. There is a lightswitch near the outlet and when I turn it on, it goes right back to 120V, so it looks like that outlet is fed by two circuits, one of which goes through that switch.

As a note, when I initially wired the GFCI outlet, it tripped as soon as the breaker was turned on -- would that other circuit be coming into play to cause that? I did try wiring the outlet both possible ways, swapping the two wire pairs between load and line inputs, and it still tripped.

Onto the outlet, here is a picture, apologies for the less than great quality. Bottom line though, there are no tabs on the outlet and nowhere that looks like tabs would have been broken from.


texts: Adding wall light switch for future ceiling fan light option

texts:
As part of some remodeling that I am doing, I am considering adding a switch to the wall switch box and a running 14/3 cable to the ceiling fan to control the fan and light (possible future addition) with separate switches.

I do not plan to add a light just yet (if ever).

I would terminate the hot wire inside the ceiling fan box with a wire nut.  Is this safe practice?  Or, should I only add the switch if I connect a light at the other end?


texts: Stone veneer fireplace with TV mount and mantle

texts:
I'm currently attempting to create a "stone" accent wall where I plan on installing a fireplace mantel and TV mount.
I purchased and hung cement board to my frame and came across a few conversation / videos which at best, befuddled me.
1) Metal Lath: It seems as though some products don't require one. They simply attach the stone to the wall using said "glue/mortar" and its good to go. I'm going to have kids running around this thing, so It can't fall apart.
2) TV Mount: Some people attach the mount to the Cement board and put stone around it, others screw through the stone.
3) Mantel: Same as the tv mount, mantel first and stone after?
Any and all help is appreciated!


texts:
My heating system has a tankless boiler which feeds an external tank. The tank temperature is measured using a probe inserted into a standard aquastat well.

The probe is considerably smaller than the well diameter. It is supposed to be filled with thermal grease to aid conductivity. But how to effectively keep the sensor in the well? The well doesn't have any sort of cap or fitting to close off the open end.

I could obviously just tape it but I'd like to find something more permanent than that. Tapes often dry out. I'd thought of heat-shrink tubing but I think the difference in size from the small wire to the large metal tube is too much.

Well with probe inserted:

Well and probe itself:


texts: Question on relative warp resistance of engineered wood

texts:
I aim to place, unsecured, (though blocked from movement on 3 sides) a piece of sheet/engineered wood on top of the side rails of a single bed frame. The siderails are 2 cm wide and will be acting as if beams supporting a subfloor.
The horizontal space between the siderails is approx 92cm and the length is approx 191cm.

My understanding is I will be outwidth the max recommended spar/beam distance for a subfloor where I have seen a rough max of 60cm for a sheet of mdf at 22mm thick.

Can anyone recommend the best type of engineered wood for this please?
IE
•   particle board/chipboard
•   mdf
•   plywood (softwood)
•   plywood (hardwood)

And possibly a thickness though I guess the thickest would be best?

Looks not important, I just want the type of engineered wood that is least likely to warp.
Thanks
G


texts: Door knob lock not moving when turned to lock

texts:
I have a bathroom doorknob that when I lock, nothing happens to the lock
(by lock I mean the thing that moves and stops the door from moving I don't know if there is a technical term)
I can pull the lock out which seems to be the current position it SHOULD be in when I lock it but it never seems to go in that position. The doorknob can still move when I twist it but it never seems to fully extend when I lock it. The problem doesn't seem to be the strike plate being misaligned, at this point I don't know


texts: I would like to know if my current gas fireplace can be converted to a wood burning fireplace. The house has a masonry chimney but I have not done any inspections yet. If it can be converted how would I go about doing this?


texts:
Hello I have a Honeywell FocusPRO 5000 Non-Programmable 1 Heat/1 Cool Thermostat, Large Screen.
The wires it needs are:

Conventional Terminals:

Rc 24VAC power from cooling transformer
R 24VAC power from heating transformer
W Heat relay (stage 1)
Y Compressor contactor (stage 1)
G Fan relay C 24VAC common.

For 2 transformer systems, use common wire from cooling transformer.

The problem is that my brother said he could install it and took the old thermostat out.
Now the situation is the wire colors do not match. It's an older furnace.
The wires I have to the thermostat are:

Orange
Red
Black
White
Green

The box wiring diagram says: No. 17680-1 evaporator control panel
On the furnace panel:

G = Orange wire
R = Red wire
y4 = Black
y = Black (to ac unit)
D = white (to AC)

And the wiring diagram on the box... well I have a picture of it if it helps. I just need help put the wires in the correct order for the thermostat; I do not care if it works or not because I just need it back in the right order.
The green wire to the thermostat attaches to a red wire that goes to the furnace itself and the white wire attached to the thermostat is attached to white wire that does the same.


texts: How can I test a radiant heated driveway in warm weather?

texts:
I'm buying a house which has a radiant heated driveway (for snow and ice abatement)
How can I go about testing it in warm weather?


texts: What screwdriver do I need for this 'star' shaped fitting?

texts: I need to unscrew the screw in this picture. It doesn't seem to be using a standard fitting however. What screwdriver so I need for this?


texts:
I am installing a mini washer/dryer into a second story bathroom.  I want it to be the safest and easiest installation that I can do myself.   I understand the basics: minimum 4" diameter tube.  Use hard tubing not flexitube, No more than 25' and subtract 2.5' for each 90 deg bend, etc...  But here are a couple questions about doing it right in my particular situation.

Most dryer venting systems are attached to the wall.  In my case, there is already a conduit under the floor where I am laying pipe.  The conduit is between a major beam and a 12" floor plank which will be under the bathroom floor.  I want to run my dryer vent in that conduit.  But access to the conduit will be on the floor.   Can you do that?

The venting pipe will go into the garage attic, make a 90 deg bend and then go 10' to the nearest outside wall.  The outside wall happens to be above the garage roof.  The vent will exit on the second story about 2' above the surface of the garage roof.   Is this acceptable?   ( I see other cases where people vent dryers onto their roofs.  I don't know if its a good practice.)


texts: Ceiling vent right next to wall. Ideas for grille cover?

texts:
The typical size 10x4 won't work because the wall is right next to it on one side (see picture).

I can buy a smaller size but then the question is where do I screw in the second hole.

Any ideas?


texts: Does electrical conduit in a cinderblock wall need to be covered before being plastered over?

texts:
I have a receptacle in my kitchen cinder block wall and have chiseled a channel in the cider block for the Romex™ but I think the Romex™ needs to be in conduit like in this picture.
https://www.energyefficientbuild.com/images/RosO1-20080919-013a.jpg
Do I need to put a cover over the chiseled channel before I plaster over it or can I plaster right over the conduit?


texts: Type of floor to use for a three season porch

texts: I am installing a three season porch.  It will be well insulated and have energy efficient windows. The floors will not get wet.  I wanted to put pergo floors down, but Home Depot tells me they can warp because of the change in temperature.  What should I use that would be most like wood?


texts:
I have a copper water pipe i want to connect to earth. I bought some pipe earth clamps but I’m suspicious that maybe the material they’re made from is not suitable and will result in galvanic corrosion. The clamps are:
Strap: Stainless steel
Clamp body: Phosphour Bronze with zinc plating

Both the clamp body and strap will be in contact with the pipe. From what i can tell, copper doesn’t like to be in contact with stainless steel or zinc.
Is this correct? What material should the clamps be made from?


texts: Why is my fridge causing my lights to dim?

texts:
We've been having problems with our lights dimming recently.  We've had similar problems with bathroom fans slowing, plus the TV and dishwasher will reset.

I have a suspicion that it caused by the fridge.  It's been making bad motor sounds and freezing up.  When we unplug the fridge, it seems to stop our issue with the lights dimming.  When we plug the fridge back in, the lights immediately dim for a second and then the periodic light dimming starts back up.

My question is whether a fridge can draw enough power to cause dimming throughout the house.  I know there's an initial surge when you plug in a big appliance, but shouldn't it immediately settle down?  If it's causing further periodic dimming, then is there something wrong with the fridge?  Or could this be a wiring issue?

I know this is hard to diagnose from afar, but looking for some opinions to point me in the right direction (new fridge or call an electrician).


texts: How can I upgrade a 3 wire appliance receptacle to a 4 wire receptacle?

texts:
I have a cabin, wired for 220 and even has a sub-breaker near the outlet.  There are 3 wires to the connector (two hots and the neutral).  The range-top that I want to hook up is a 4-wire model (2 hots, neutral and ground.)
When I put a tester's negative to the neutral, of course either of the hots shows 120v.  When I touch the negative to the metal box, the same result with each of the hots (though I can't see any ground wire adapter on that metal box.  Touching wallboard with the negative does NOT ground it; when I touch the negative to drywall and the positive to either of the hots, I get nothing.
Questions:

does this mean that the metal box is itself grounded somewhere/how (so I can just attach the ground wire to it?)

Is there any cause for concern about wiring these directly, without a plug?


texts: Is Electric Central Heating worth it if using Solar Panels?

texts:
I understand that electric heating is less efficient and comparatively more expensive than gas heating (propane or natural gas), but considering I live in Texas (a lot of sunlight) and I intend to install solar panels, would it be cheaper and more effective to install an electric heating system instead of gas heating?

Note: my home is about to be built, so the hassle of (re)moving pieces and pipes would not exist in this case.


texts: Drains backing up - will it affect my drinking water?

texts:
We had -15 below zero weather a few days ago.  I did not notice any plumbing problems at the time.  However a couple of days ago my toilet starting gurgling and then over flowing.  I thought my daughter had put something down it (she may have).  Now when flushing it, backs up into the bathtub.  At the same time this was happening we were running the dishwasher.  I attempted to plunge the toilet but you hear the gurgle in ALL the drains, including the kitchen sink.  I also tried force flushing with several gallons of bottled water.

The water is also coming up the bathroom sink drain.  As I have an S trap under the kitchen sink, draining through the floor to the basement, I am worried about the safety of my drinking water.  There is a call into a plumber but this will take several days to hear from him.  I have one of those funny kind of vents in the basement (looks like a plastic tube) and also a clean out in the side yard.  My biggest concern in the drinking water safety until this is fixed.  We are on city water.

What can I do right now to keep my drinking water safe, protect my house, and minimize my overall expense and trouble?


texts: How should I wire this White-Rodgers fan and limit control? What about the thermostat?

texts:
I have a wood-burning stove, that is used as an auxiliary heat source in the house.  There's a regular electric furnace, and adjacent to it is the stove.  The warm air duct (out) from the stove connects directly to the input air duct on the electric furnace.

On the side of the stove there's a White-Rodgers thermostat, E12 5D51-035.
Looks like this:

Also attached to the stove, there's a line in, a 3-conductor grounded line with a 3-prong plug on the end - for 120V power supply.  There's also a blower on the stove, which takes 120V power, and has 2 conductors - white and black.  It forces the warmed air through the output duct. All the wires are meet in a junction box, and none are connected.

The wiring is like this:

How should this be wired?  I don't know what is meant by "fan" and "limit".  I am assuming that "fan" refers to the blower on the stove.  But what is the limit?  I guess I just don't understand what the thermostat is doing with 2 lines coming into/out of it.

My understanding was that a thermostat is just a heat-controlled switch. I'd expect a single line in (or out) and the thermostat would open or close the circuit depending on the temperature.

If I understood the purpose of the fan/limit thermostat, I might be able to figure out how to wire it.

EDIT: OK I read a little on the fan/limit control concept. The limit is a high-temperature safety limit, I guess.

I looked on this page and found the following diagram:

The explanation is for a Honeywell fan & limit control, but it seems similar enough to the White-Rodgers device I an using. Unfortunately, I find the explanation to be vague, and the diagram isn't helpful.

What is the yellow triangle with the #2 in it?  It seems like the things labelled L1 and L2 are the wires in the line in.  L1 is black (hot) I guess, and L2 would be white.  So I can wire the line-in white to the white conductor on the fan.  Then the line-in black (hot) goes to the fan side of the fan/limit control.  Wired to which conductor?  white or black?  If the thermostat is a simple switch then I guess it doesn't matter. Then the other conductor (black or white) can get wired to the black line on the fan.

That leaves the limit conductors - what do I do with them?  I don't have any yellow triangles on my stove, to wire those to!!


texts:
I just found a small crack, about 1 inch, on my acrylic bathtub floor. The tub is a Kohler Devonshire 1357 about 14 years old. Tub looks almost new, crack looks superficial just the acrylic surface. I can’t see it underneath because it’s on the opposite side of my access but the tub has what I believe is a fiberglass backing and I can’t imagine it went through that.

Is this something I should repair with a kit they sell at home improvement store or will the crack expand in the near future and should just look for new tub? Will the repair look descent, it’s a very small crack and doesn’t seem to flex.

Thanks!


texts: Should we glue or nail our new engineered wood flooring

texts: We have a concrete floor with linoleum tile. We will be leaving the tile in place. Should we glue the new engineered wood or put down a subfloor and nail the engineered wood into place? If a subfloor is the way to go, what type of plywood is recommended?


texts:
First let me preface this by saying that I am very comfortable doing basic electrical work.  With this project my electrician is on vacation and won't be back for a few weeks but I wanted to see if I could tackle this myself.  I have a drawing that I could attach but it is terrible so here goes.

3 wire yellow romex to bathroom with red and black hot and white is neutral.
3 wire yellow is going to a box with a GFCI and light switch.
Red is set to go to GFCI and to switch controlling two sconce lights.
Black is set to go through box and on to two can lights and the ceiling fan with switches on opposite side of the wall.

He told me where everything was going when he left but I am not one to guess when it comes to electrical and thought I'd ask.  Here are my thoughts...

black bypasses everything in the box and continues on to the fan and can lights.
red goes to the LINE of the GFCI, then from load to switch next to it and on to the sconce lights.
white pigtails to GFCI and on to can lights and fan.

I believe red is 20 amp and black is 15.

Does this sound right?


texts: Stripping parquet floor glue to install underfloor heating

texts:
We have a huge lounge in our new house (in the UK) and it is covered with parquet flooring which we dislike. The little wooden blocks are starting to work loose here and there, so I don't see it as too much of a problem to remove them.

However, I expect the layer of black tar/bitumen/glue underneath is going to be rather firmly attached to the concrete base. I don't fancy scraping it off by hand. The room is 29x12ft!

Since the room is always cold in winter, despite 2 wall-mounted radiators, I am thinking about installing underfloor heating (plastic pipe with hot water from the main boiler). The cost/effort of digging down an inch or two to make space for the pipes will absorb the problem of the black sticky stuff on top!

So the question is: How much do I need to dig out (how deep, and over what percentage of the floor area) or should I forget the underfloor pipe idea (because you know a better way to strip the tar off)?


texts: Can I use the exposed water line on a Kenmore refrigerator to bypass the internal filter for incoming water supply?

texts:
I have a Kenmore refrigerator (model 53552200) that has incoming tap water connected to a valve near the bottom on the back of the fridge. In addition, there is an exposed 1/4" plastic water line running on the back of the fridge, from the top, down to the bottom of the unit. This line already has a coupling in the middle of it, and I want to connect my reverse osmosis water filter to it directly, thus (hopefully) bypassing the fridge's internal water filter.

Do you know if my plan would indeed bypass the internal water filter?  If so, which direction is the water running in this fridge line---from bottom to top, or top to bottom?

I understand that some fridges have fake filters that can be installed so that the normally-used input valve can be used, while still bypassing the filter. I am leaning away from this solution because there is already a water line connected to the fridge, and I'd prefer to leave that alone in case it is used in the future---I'd of course turn off the incoming water to this line while my RO connection is in place.  This plan of mine just avoids having to disconnect/reconnect the compression fitting several times, avoiding any potential headaches associated w/ that.


texts: How to install window screen without screen track

texts:
We had wooden Marvin double hung tilt-pac windows installed but all without screens.  However, there aren't any screen tracks.  On the exterior trim, there is a groove/corner on three sides that would fit a screen (~36x54.5) , but it would have to be secured with hardware somehow.  And this trim corner does not extend to the bottom sill - rather, the bottom sill is sloped down and smooth.  I attached a picture of the lower corner to see where the screen would fit - I am pointing to the relevant corner where I thought I could fit in the screen.

How do I secure a screen to the trim without a screen track and without letting water into the trim/sill?  I am worried about screwing things into the wood and letting water in.


texts: How do I search for a thermostat that has a delay before it turns on heating, rather than instantly turning on once the temperature drops by 1 degree?

texts:
I bought a cheap thermostat which has an annoying problem: if I set it to 70 degrees, it will turn on the heating as soon as the temperature drops to 69 degrees and turn it off as soon as it increases to 70 degrees. This causes the heating to turn on and off every 15 minutes, which is annoying due to the initial fireplace sound being quite loud.
How do I find a thermostat that is smarter than that and waits for a bit before turning on/off? I.e. for a 70 degree setting, it would wait for the temperature to drop to 67 degrees, turn on heating, wait for the air to heat up to 73 degrees, then turn off. I believe there's a scientific term for such behavior in systems, but I can't seem to find it via Google.


texts: Converting pendant light to wired hanging lamp - what to do with ground wire?

texts:
The short: what to do with ground wire from pendant light when converting to hanging lamp?
The long: I've found several tutorials on how to add a plug to my wired pendant light, and I've determined that I can give it a go with an extension cord. I think I've figured out which wire is hot and which is neutral (though they're both the same color - found out that the neural side is ridged on the plastic cover, and hot is smooth). In disassembling the light, I find what I assume is the copper ground wire attached to the metal bar the light hands from, but not running the full length of the cord. As I disassembled the hardware to get to the cord (as well as remove the heavy decorative bar that would make it hang down too low), the ground wire came off. The only thing left is the regular old lamp wire - is that all I need to attach to the extension cord wires, or do I need to somehow reattach the ground wire? Thanks!!!


texts: Why are some outlets still out after replacing an outlet?

texts: So I had an outlet that was sparking and sometimes cutting out (till I moved it to an angle) so I decided to change it. Turned the breaker off, replaced it, turned it back on and find out my room and a few other things on my side of the house don't have power. Now this had happened before with my bathroom on the same circuit so I know what breaker it is. So a few outlets on the way from the breaker box (on the same breaker as my room) to my room work, and stop about halfway through. I bought a multimeter and tested my outlet and get ~120 Volts. Tested a light switch (that wasn't working but on the same breaker) and same thing, so I'm at a loss of what to do. Any help would be appreciated.


texts:
I am new to Home Improvement and recently hear a pop!, then my overhead lighting in my small kitchen stopped working.
Lowe's sold me a replacement ballast (good enough to remove the old ballast, and attach the new commercial one which the associate said would work fine), and once reinstalled, the one bulb was killed outright, another flickers nonstop and is very dim, and the third seems okay?

It never did any of this before, and I am concerned. Before getting gouged by an electrician, I was hopeful to ask for insight here.

Thanks


texts:
I have a solid wood entry door installed by the previous owner of the house. However, it doesn't match the mid-century style of the house and it doesn't have any windows; making the front entryway very dark. I would like to go back to the style of the home without breaking the bank.

I'm interested in a simple flush slab door in solid wood with a few narrow windows (lites). Like the door in the picture. I've looked at a few manufactures that make doors like this but the quotes I've got are all $1400-1700 range. This is quite a bit more than I was hoping to spend.

I was wondering if there is a DIY solution. I'm going to be painting the door so I don't need a beautiful stain grade finish. Can I get a 1 3/4" thick plywood sheet cut to size, install hinges, bore holes for the handles and cut out squares to install the glass lites? If 1 3/4" plywood doesn't exist can I laminate two or three sheets of thinner together with screws and/or glue? The door is under a carport and we live in a relatively mild climate but it will be subjected to some rain/freezing so I wan't something that will survive.


texts: Plumber's Putty on outside of tub drain is cracking: Replace with same or something better?

texts: This putty is starting to crack and leak onto my basement ceiling. Is this repair as simple as removing old putty and applying new? Or is this practice now (or always has been) frowned upon and is there a better, more professional method of resolving this leak?


texts: Can I vent a window air conditioner through a joist space for 30 feet?

texts:
The situation:
We live in a one bedroom + den (rental). We're using the den as a second bedroom, as we're a family of four and that's what we can afford right now. The den has no windows, however, and so gets very warm.

The project:
We have a small 8,000 btu air conditioner that I would like to vent out the window in the living room. We're in a long-term rental situation, and our landlords are fine with us doing minor projects. What I'm thinking is cutting a hole in the ceiling of the den, and using flexible vinyl ducting run through the ceiling cavity (which I have access to). The cavity is just slightly too small to crawl through, so I'm wondering a couple things:

Is there a problem venting an air conditioner through roughly 30' of ducting?
Would would be the easiest way of fishing the ducting through the cavity?
Are there any major problems that I'm not considering, or any simpler solutions? It's not possible to vent to the roof, and I'm wary about venting into the ceiling cavity. It's a straight shot from the den to the window.

A couple pictures:

Thanks for any help you can offer!


texts: How to deal with water damage from backed up AC drain

texts:
We have a central air conditioning unit that has one part of the unit in a closet.  The blower connected to the ductworks and coils in this part of the unit, while outside there is a compressor and blower unit.

There is a rather long PVC drain line from the indoor unit to the outside.  There is a catch connected to the drain via a small hole which opens up into larger PVC, which then goes down into the floor, and comes out about 6 feet lower on the outside of the house, where it then goes down another run of PVC to the yard.

The issue is that periodically this rather long piping clogs.  There is not a large amount of catchment at the unit itself, and there is no indication if the drain is clogged, so it fills up and then starts overflowing into the intake vents space below the unit and the eventually works its way to the flooring where it proceeds to cause damage to the wood, causing it to curl upwards.

I am not sure what to do about this.  When it happened the first time I was able to clean the drain line by attaching a vacuum to the PVC outlet, and then flush more water (by carefully pouring it into the catchment area and waiting for it to drain) until I was pretty sure it was cleaned out.  There seemed to be some green stuff suggesting some kind of biological buildup, so I also flushed some bleach down, and have been pouring bleach down monthly.

I was not, however, able to figure out what to do about the damaged part of the floor.  The local flooring store was not able to tell me anything - I took a sample of the flooring and they were clueless aside from redoing the whole floor with something completely different.  I tried looking for handymen on Thumbtack but didn't get any responses from my inquiries that made me confident in wanting to let any of them come out and look at it.  At the time only about 2 square feet around the closet were damaged, part of it under the door.  I do not want to replace the whole hardwood floor (it's in a hallway adjoining two bedrooms and is wall to wall hardwood in the whole thing) so nothing was done.

Now however, despite the monthly bleach regiment the unit has backed up and overflowed again, this time damaging around 6 square feet of flooring.  There was no green in the suctioned backup this time, or any obvious gunk, although it was a bit dirty looking (this could have partially been due to remaining stuff in the vacuum from a previous cleaning).

I have two questions:

Why does the blockage keep coming back?  How can we prevent it from coming back since it is so hard to spot and damaging when it does?
How can we repair the flooring?  I have tried prying up the loose wood, but the parts that are not wet are very securely glued and I don't know how to detach them without making a big mess (breaking the piece, leaving lots of remnants stuff attached which I have to somehow remove).

Pictures:
1. The floor in front of the air intake.  The grate has been removed, as well as the flooring that would come up.

The floor near the hinge of the door of the utilities closet.

View of interior showing catch (black plastic) and exterior piping leading away from unit.

4.Closer view of catch, including opening to PVC piping.


texts: How to darken flagstone edge on fireplace hearth

texts: What can I use to color/darken the edge of a flagstone hearth. House built 1967. Hearth appears to have an unknown sealer on it - slight sheen, very water resistant. Top has nice color variation but edges are a much lighter mostly solid color. Stripping and heavy sanding is not really an option.


texts: Previous owner didn't get permits for remodel, am I now liable?

texts:
Location is Hillsboro, OR (suburb W of Portland).

I'm considering purchasing a house that had significant remodeling done a few years ago (kitchen and bathrooms incl. plumbing).

If the previous owner (the one who haid the remodel done) didn't get permits for the work, is it a potential liability to me?


texts:
We've noticed some cut in half floorboards, underneath old carpet looking to see if it is possible to repair these cuts with some way. Or does the entire floorboard need replacing?

We can't put on new carpet until these are fixed, we noticed dents/rips in carpets previously because the flooring bends close to the cuts in the wood.

Image:


texts: Close gap between bathtub border and wall

texts: In my bathroom, I have a bathtub with a showerhead. The bathtub is diagonal, one side is a semihigh wall, behind is the toilet. The other side is attached to a wall. Problem now is that there is a gap between the upper border of the bathtub and the wall. When I shower, then the water runs there and on the floor, which is annoying to clean. Attached some pictures, because I find it hard to explain. How can I close the gap in a way that I still can remove it easily later? First thing I did was putting cloth on there, but after a year it rotted. Right now, I use some bottles to fix the shower curtain in place, but the curtain now also rots a bit.


texts: Tape or corner bead where Hardi meets Drywall?

texts:
I need to finish the outside corner above the shower alcove. The shower ceiling is hardibacker and the wall outside the shower is drywall. Where these two meet, what is the proper way to finish it so it's a nice corner? I will just end up painting it.

The walls were easier because I had tile wrapping around the corner so I just taped and thinset those and tiled overtop. Not sure what to do for the ceiling since there won't be any tile.


texts: For the purpose of soundproofing, do I need to comply some building code when renovate my bedroom? If yes, what it is?

texts:
For the purpose of soundproofing, I wound like to add some layer inside my bedroom.
So, I just need to drill some holes.

Do I need to comply some building code during the bedroom renovatition? If yes, what it is?

I googled building code and got this wiki, which discuss lots of building code without mentioning a word about soundproof.

I live in China.

Any ideas?


texts:
I need to connect a 100Amp subpanel at a guest house that I am building in the back of my property.  My main panel is 400Amps. I need 120/240V at the subpanel to run a couple of mini split ACs that are on 240V plus your usual lighting and kitchen stuff (cooking and hot water is gas).  The distance from the main panel to the subpanel is 260f.  I plan to run the wires in conduit, some underground but majority of conduit is along a block fence. I live in the Phoenix, AZ area.

I had planned to use 1/0 aluminum or 3AWG copper wire but it looks like this will not be sufficient to allow for a 3% maximum voltage drop and I should use 3/0 aluminum or 1/0 copper which the online calculator recommends.  NEC seems to suggest no more than 5% voltage drop.  For 5% allowable voltage drop 1/0 aluminum looks sufficient.
Should I use 1/0 aluminum, or use 2/0 or even 3/0 for the guest house?
Thank you for your feedback.


texts: Vinyl tile installation over a concrete basement floor with moisture

texts:
I would like to put some sort of flooring over part of my basement. Something with the look and simple installation of an interlocking garage tile (example) would fit the bill -- this isn't a living space, but a cleaner, smoother floor would be nicer than dusty uneven concrete.

However, I'm concerned that this might cause problems with mold growth or moisture buildup. The floor in my basement is about 100 years old, and if there ever was a drainage system, it probably isn't functional anymore. If you tape a sheet of plastic down on the floor for a day or two, moisture does accumulate underneath it, and we run a dehumidifier during the humid/wet seasons. The basement has never flooded but it can get a little humid/musty if the dehumidifier isn't running.

So, can I install some flooring without causing bigger problems? I could imagine that any of these applies:

It's just a bad idea, and I should stick with small area mats
It's an OK idea as long as the floor is properly designed with vents
It's fine, doesn't matter if the concrete floor is a little moist under the tiles
It's fine, but I should apply some sort of sealer to the floor first
It's actually good, the vinyl tile layer will reduce how much moisture gets into the air and take a load off of the dehumidifier

So... Which of these is right? Is there a particular type of flooring or installation process that's designed to handle not-100%-dry basement floors?


texts: How long should I wait before turning on a window AC after moving it?

texts: So my downstairs AC went, of course during this insane heat wave. Checked out Lowes and found a small room AC for 150$ so came up with a plan. My room AC is rated for a much bigger space so I bought the 150$ one for my room and moved the one there downstairs into the living room. So, I know that oil and that liquid refridgeration stuff needs to settle before I turn it on. Do I really need to wait 24hrs? While moving it I managed to keep it fairly level (not perfect but certainly not more than 45* one way or the other). Thanks for the advice and stay cool today everyone!!


texts:
I'm looking for advice on what kind of generator I should get for my mobile home. We have had 3 pretty bad storms (2 hurricanes, 1 blizzard) and am looking to give my home backup power.

Now I have done some research and I am looking for a generator to run my heat, refrigerator, entertainment system, and maybe hot water heater.

My biggest concern is my heat and hot water; my heat is oil burner and hot air and my hot water heater is a 30 gallon tank. My entertainment is all relatively new (purchased within the last 2 years so I know my TV doesn't draw more than 300 watts). Now what I have noticed is it looks like both water heater and my heat are running on 110V.  I do not see 240V anywhere but my dryer. My service coming in is only rated for 60A by the way. I've heard that the are start-up loads and nominal loads. I'm not sure what size I would need and most likely wouldn't have both the heat and hot water on at same time but in the event that does happen I want to know I'm OK.

Also I install entertainment for a living and have a general knowledge of electrical. I would prefer to keep this within a budget.

I wouldn't need a transfer switch either; I would probably install a sub-panel.


texts: Can you install grouted floor tile over padding?

texts:
Can you install floor tile over padding?  The floor tile is standard tile that will require grouting.

I'm concerned the tile and/or grouting will crack due to the padding.  The purpose of the padding is to reduce the noise of foot traffic in the room below.  Sound dampening padding is fairly thin, and not nearly as thick as carpet padding.


texts:
I've got a door on a shed outback that pretty much just fell apart this summer and I need to replace it before I get a drift of snow.  The old door was a regular wooden door, but I was thinking of just replacing it with a screen door (lined with plastic in the winter to avoid snow blowing into it).

I bought a 80' screen door from Home Depot which said it 'could be trimmed' but I'm assuming that means gussied up, not resized because I have no idea how I could cut 8 inches off the door.

I searched Google for screen door kits but didn't really see anything.  Is my best bet a custom jobber?


texts: How to remove dishwasher drain plug that got stuck in the garbage disposal

texts:
Replacing the disposal one morning before work (1st strike), and while hastily doing this I managed to knock out the dishwasher drain plug, but what I did not manage to do was remove the plug from the disposal before I installed it and tested it.

Now, I'm pretty sure it's stuck somewhere I cannot see, although I hear it hitting the lugs every time I turn the disposal on.

Is there anyway to remove it?


texts: Cannot change shower temperature - Cartridge issue?

texts:
My shower was remodeled prior to me purchasing the house, it has one lever that controls the water flow and then a knob that controls the temperature. Well, you can turn that knob as much as you want in any direction and the temperature won't change (luckily it's on a decent temperature).

Unfortunately it does not appear that the valve is some standard brand but seems to be Cifial from the googling I have done so it's not like Home Depot is going to have parts. I think I found a replacement cartridge (see link below) but before I drop $141 I would like to have some sort of idea that the cartridge is the likely culprit.

Does replacing the cartridge sound like the right place to start or is there something else I am not aware of that could be causing this?

https://www.fdsupply.com/item/p099-4256/cifial-cartridges/

Here is a picture of the valve that controls the temperature:


texts: Why is the drywall in my garage sagging?

texts: The drywall on my garage ceiling is sagging badly. Is this because it's too thin (I think it's 1/2" and I guess it's supposed to be 5/8") or is it because of humidity or something else? If I re-drywall the ceiling with 5/8" fire resistant (I think that's the code requirement) should I use some kind of sealer on it?


texts:
I wish to build a gate across a 3.8m wide driveway.

There is a concrete column on one side which I can fix the hinges to (a post into the ground is not an option) and a brick wall on the other side which I can fix the latch to.

For aesthetic reasons I want to use timber. How should I construct the gate for strength? I imagine it will need diagonal bracing to prevent it from sagging at the end furthest from the hinges. Are there any other things I should do? What size of lumber should I use? Any resources I can use as a guide?


texts: Yellow poly gas pipe to copper tubing transition

texts:
I need to run a liquid propane gas line from my tank to my house.  The house and tank connections are currently copper tubing.  I was thinking of using yellow poly pipe for this run, but I haven't been able to find the proper transition pieces from the yellow pipe to copper.  What kind of transition fittings could I use?

Additionally, this could be a dumb idea, so feel free to tell me that also.

Here is the yellow poly pipe: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0759LPYSZ/ref=ox_sc_act_image_2?smid=A28LU3M6V82A2C&psc=1


texts: The electric source of my water well is a circuit box on a house that is to be demolished.  I want to keep the electricity to the water well.  What are my options?


texts: Is there a way to install a fan switch for a ceiling fan that doesn't have a fan wire?

texts:
Just a general question, as I was installing our new ceiling fan last night. From the ceiling, there is a white wire and a black wire (and the bare copper). I attached the two green/white wires to the bare copper, the white to white, and the black to my blue and black wires coming from the fan. This works fine, but I was really hoping to have a switch for the fan and another for the light.

Is there a way to go about this without redoing the entire wiring?


texts: What is mineral spirits called in Australia?

texts:
I'm looking at cutting Polyurethane to use for a rub on finish, and the marvellous instruction articles and videos all say to do this with "mineral spirits". I am in Australia and unsure what this is.

Is it just mineral turpentine (turps), the same stuff that you use to clean up from oil based paints?

Is there any difference between normal turps and low odor turps for this purpose?

Or is mineral spirits what we call "white spirits" or dry cleaning fluid?

Hope someone can resolve this for me!


texts: How can I repair a bathroom fan under garage that is leaking in the winter?

texts:
I have a rigid metal exhaust pipe coming out of the bathroom fan over my downstairs bathroom.  It goes up at approximately a 30 degree angle for about twenty feet and stops just before it gets to the side of the garage, where it points, open, at a screen that seems to be mostly sealed (I don't know if this is how my attic over my house is supposed to be; I trusted that my roofer knew what he was doing).  There are joints about one/third and two/thirds of the way up the pipe.  The top third of the pipe is dry.  At the highest of the two joints, there are a few drops of water, that I'm sure are being formed by condensation, then running back down the outside of the pipe, to soak my fiberglass insulation and then drip down through the bathroom fan while it is on.

My questions are these:

Is this an immediate repair job, or can it wait until I have a week off in February?  Could it wait until summer (when it will be warmer for me or the condensation won't(?) be occurring)?
What would be involved in the repair? I'm thinking I'd need to replace any wet insulation, check the integrity of the drywall that forms the ceiling for the bathroom, and seal the pipe (somehow).  Are these accurate and what haven't I thought of?

3 -- What is the proper way to vent the end of that pipe out of my attic with that side vent (I wish I knew proper terminology, sorry; I'll try to get some pictures up here to help)?


texts: Grounding requirements for main panel and subpanel

texts:
I recently had my main service professionally upgraded to 200A and had a 60A subpanel installed in my master suite to support future additions. All work passed city inspection, for whatever that's worth. I'm just now noticing some things about the work that I'm not so sure about.

The main panel is in an separate-attached garage. The majority of circuits enter the house through a covered breezeway between the garage and house. The new 60A subpanel in the master suite is fed by wires in a buried conduit run through the backyard from the garage.

Questions:

Only one ground rod was driven for the 200A panel. Is this sufficient?

There are only 3 conductors between the main and sub. 2 hot and 1 neutral, no separate ground. There is a ground bar installed in the panel, but no wires connect to it. When I asked the electrician about this after the fact, he said that the neutral wire also serves as the ground, and that it is ok to do this in a subpanel. Is he correct? I've read that ground and neutral bars should not be bonded in a subpanel, but in this case there isn't even a ground wire - neutral and ground share the same wire.