texts: Installing a wireless remote switch for a ceiling fan in an existing single gang box

texts: I installed a ceiling fan that has a wireless remote switch to control the light and fan speeds.  It can be mounted in the wall in an existing single gang box.  However the power to the fan must now be permanently on.  To do this I am assuming that I just need to use a wire nut to  connect the two black wires that go into the existing switch.  I.e., remove the existing switch, connect the two wires going in to the switch, and then mount the remote switch  in the existing gang box.  Is that correct?


texts: What header joist sizes do I need for a loft bed?

texts:
I've decided to design and build a king-sized loft bed for our bedroom. Basically, I've got an 80" x 89" frame, 54" off the floor, covered with slats instead of plywood (see image, below).

I'm sure I'll have other questions (and I haven't dealt with lateral stability and a few other issues yet), but for now I'm just trying to size the header joists correctly.

I was able to use the AWC span calculator for the joists, themselves, and I should be clear with 2x4 No 2 Douglas Fir. I intend to use mortise and tenon joints to attach them to the headers.

My question is: What calculations or tables can I use to size the headers?


texts: What is the best way to resolve an issue with misaligned floor joist hangers?  Our flooring in the kitchen is starting to dip and sag and it is directly related to the fact that the floor joists are not level with our support beams.  I believe that I will be able to jack the joists, bringing them flush with the top of the support beam and replace the joist hangers but I would like some confirmation that this will work.  I would rather not rip up the entire floor if I do not need to.


texts: How do I cleanly cut threaded stainless .24" rods?

texts:
I have tried hack saw, manual bolt cutters,  plasma cutter - all of which mess up the thread and make it tough to get the nut on. What's the best tool for this? Ideally something under $50 or something rentable? I have a lot of rods to cut (need to make about 50 cuts).

The nuts will be put on once and not removed. I can leave one of the ends unfinished so the nuts don't come off, but one end still needs to be pretty so I can get a nut on in the first place.


texts: How to wire switched light fixture in place of ceiling fan

texts: I removed a ceiling fan that had four wires.  I have installed a normal ceiling light that remains on regardless of the position of the switch.  The switch worked with the ceiling fan light. How can I figure out the right wiring to use the switch for the light?


texts: Guidelines for running tv cables behind walls for an HD TV

texts:
My in-laws want to mount a new TV on the wall and have asked their contractors (they are in the middle of a renovation) to open a hole above their gas burning fireplace for routing cables to/from the TV. The contractors opened up a hole to the right of center.

Are there guidelines or special tricks for placing the hole so that they would work with all TV mounts so that the mount can be centered above the fireplace without interfering with the hole?

Or do I have to first buy the TV mount and TV to figure out the best placement for the hole? (In my case since they've already opened up a hole I guess I would have to buy mounts that would work with the hole)

Do manufacturers of mounts have any special specs that they design to?


texts: interpretation of conduit vs raceway wet location vs outdoor vs NM NM-B

texts:
eventual question: for a sealed PVC conduit external to house, does that qualify as a wet or damp location preventing use of non metallic (NM or NM-B) indoor type wire?  And does underground feeder (UF) type of wire need to be used within that conduit?

scenario is regarding schedule 40 PVC gray electrical conduit {outdoor rated} run on outside of house from 1st floor (load center access) to access attic above 2nd floor.  And this is along side same type gray PVC conduit of the same length that encloses single phase 2-wire 240 volt feeder from pole to  house leading down into the electric meter socket/box (typical U.S. setup).   Both conduits are the same length about 14 feet on the outside of house.  Only practical means of getting new electrical run is along outside of house and penetrate attic wall, everything above concrete foundation and above grade by at least 3 feet.

a) difference between "raceway" and "conduit".  does this definition matter?  This is regarding circular conduit, schedule 40 NEMA TC2 the type used to connect to meter sockets.  I think it's PVC, the gray electrical circular conduit definitely schedule 40 or above.
b) using the types of outdoor conduit bodies available today (21st century) they are quite durable and water tight, they come with gaskets on their covers.  With solvent welding the plastic pipe and such good conduit bodies available does this run of conduit still classify as a wet/damp location such that the typical NM-B THHN indoor romex single run cannot be run within a 2" or 3" piece of conduit, per NEC interpretation?
c) does drainage matter for what has been described?
d) does a dual rating of THWN on the romex allow it?  I don't remember at the moment if the typical romex 14/2 or 12/3 wire is also THWN.  What about other wire ratings such as XHH or XHHW?

NEC-2017 sections:

310.B and 310.C page 70-145
334.10 and 334.15 page 70-191


texts: When should I change / replace my water pipe?

texts:
I was wondering when should we change our indoor water pipe? Should we change every 5 years or every 10 years?

This is because recently, I notice that the water quality is not getting that good (cause my electric kettle have turn quite "rusty" when boiling the water).

By the way, I know that we can use water filtration system but was wondering if the pipe will accumulate unnecessary materials (be it bacteria or heavy metals) which stay inside the pipe.


texts: Why would bulbs in this DIY lamp keep burning out?

texts: I built a light fixture out of a water pipe and some "vintage" fillament bulbs. I have a micro switch that is operated by a plumbing valve. Everything works, however, when I put 4 bulbs, 40w each, one randomly burns out after 20 sec. I checked the connections, they seem OK, the switch is rated at 240v( im in europe) and 16A. With 3 bulbs the fixtures works. What could be the issue?


texts: Why are two load wires both energized when one is?

texts:
I pulled an outlet out of the box to determine how far upstream it was on the circuit in preparation for installing a GFCI. Three hots and three neutrals connected to the outlet.

I disconnected all hot wires and used a non-contact detector to determine which is the line from the circuit breaker. I verified the other two were hot loads going elsewhere (i.e., not energized when I turned on the breaker -- and everything else on the circuit was off, so I got the outlet furthest upstream). I figured, OK, they're splitting the circuit left and right around the room to reach the other outlets, etc.

However, when I connect just one of the load hots, everything downstream gets power, and the other load hot that's not yet connected also has power. Ergo, the separate hot load wires connect with each other somewhere I can't see, but I have no idea why or where, since hooking up just one got power to everything.

I've never seen this before. Can anyone tell me what's going on?


texts: What to use a 90 and when to two 45s in copper piping?

texts:
I'm replacing the tubing for an outdoor hose and in the wall I found what you see in the picture below. Why did they use two 45s and not one 90? Is there a general guideline for when to avoid 90s in favor of 2x45?
And what is that ugly coupling in the picture? It looks like they took a coupling and bent it into a 45. (To be it looks like they didn't have a 90 and improvised.)


texts:
I'm opening a kiosk in a mall. I need 100 amps (I will have a few fridges, grills, register, lightboxes).

Does that require a 220 line?

What does it depend on? Structure of the electricity in the mall?

I'm telling the electrician that I need 100 amps and he keeps asking me "what that is". Is that not enough information in order to update or get me a main connection?


texts: How can I switch between two generator inlets?

texts:
I recently pulled a permit and installed a 30A generator inlet and backfeed breaker w/ interlock. However, I actually would like to install a second inlet in an alternate location and be able to select from either one, as I have two different generators and they are kept in different locations on my property.

To do this safely, I need a switch that can cut off one inlet when the other is engaged; otherwise, the inlet would be live when the other one is being fed by a generator.

To do this to code, do I need to switch neutral as well as both hots? If so, where can I get a 30A triple poll, double throw switch? Leviton and the like only seem to make DPDT switches (which would be fine if I only need to switch the hots).


texts: What is the best way to prepare walls, windows and baseboard for re-painting

texts:
I would like to repaint our appartment that haven't been paintined for over 7 years.  I have a question on how to prepare for the new paint.
The walls have chipped paint a little should i use spackle to even it out?

The biggest thing is the window.  The paint is really coming off there.  I scrapped the paint where i could.  I don't really want to scrape everything off.  What should i do next?  Do I need use spackle to fill the parts where i took of the paint?  Can i use DAP fast 'n final light weight spackle?

Also i have the same problem with the baseboard.  The paint is chipping and it is not even. Should i also chip off the paint and use spackle before priming?

Thank you!

Update!

Here are more pictures of the wall and windows where i took off some paint.  Also the paint on the radiator is pilling off.


texts: How to secure a doggy door from intruders?

texts: I installed a doggy door so that our dog can go in/out when it has to go to the bathroom while we are at work/away.  It lets him out into our fenced in backyard. The gates are deadlocked, but obviously this does not completely secure the house from determined intruders.  If someone were to breach our fence, the intruder might easily fit into our doggy door.  Other than the cover that was provided with the kit which I easily broke into, what is a good way to secure a doggy door from unwanted intrusions?


texts: What kind of lighting to buy when there is no previous installed to use as a reference?

texts:
When moving to a new house and there are no lightbulbs/lights etc how do we know what kind of lighting we should buy?
Is this something standard?
And how do we decide on what is the best type in terms of power consumption (i.e. cheaper)?


texts: Why do bathroom sinks have overflow holes whereas kitchen sinks and tubs do not?

texts:
My understanding is that the purpose of the overflow holes is twofold--

To allow water to flow down you drain faster.
To prevent overflow if the sink is filling faster than it's draining.

If #1 was true, wouldn't you also see the overflow holes on kitchen sinks?

If #2 was true, wouldn't you also see the overflow holes on bathroom tubs?

So--why do I never see overflow holes on tubs or kitchen sinks?

Edit: To clarify, my familiarity is primarily with sinks/tubs in the United States.


texts: Use Rigid Foam Underneath Sidewalk to Control Water

texts:
hoping to get some opinions on this.

I recently dug up a wall of my house as I was having water problems. It's been now sealed, backfilled, and I'm debating how to refinish the top layer. It used to be a poured concrete sidewalk, that ranged from 4" to 9" in thickness (They never levelled before pouring). THis sunk and sent water directly into my foundation wall.

My plan is to just put paving stones right now, but I was thinking about the layers immediately under the stones. My plan is to use about 3" of Granular B Gravel, then paversu on top of it. I also have extra 1" XPS insulation from a basement project. Have you ever heard of laying these boards along the sidewalk, sloped so that any water that gets through the pavers and gravel, gets immediately diverted away from the house? The sidewalk will be approximately 3' wide, so if this idea works, it will send water 3' away from the house, keeping my basement even more dry during the spring thaw and during heavy rain.

I'm trying to think of any reason this would be a problem. Only thing I could think of is perhaps if it doesn't drain away fast enough this could lead to pooling water, but that's quite a bit of water to do that.

Thoughts? Warnings? THanks.


texts: Will this replacement induction cooktop fit in the cutout for the old cooktop?

texts:
My induction cooktop died recently, and needs replacing. As it is under warrenty, and there are no replacements currently available, we have been offered store credit at the place we bought it from. While we're at it, we are looking to get a slightly different model.

The question is, will the newer model fit into the existing cutout of our granite benchtop, or will we need to stick with the same model we have now?


texts: Should the wires being hooked up in a split bolt connector be running side by side, like in a wire nut connection, or running towards each other, in opposite directions. Or does it matter?


texts: What easily obtained material would work best to protect my LCD screen?

texts:
I've got 18 month and 2 1/2 year old boys. I'm considering purchasing a TV, and I'm concerned about the occasional lapse in judgement. (e.g.: The odd toy being thrown at the screen in a fit of uncontrolled anger) What material would be easiest and ideal for protecting my 46"-55" screen from infrequent projectiles. (I'm not expecting it to have to take a huge beating, but it should be able to deflect a pen or maybe a matchbox car)

The clearer the better, but my guess is I can get rid of the protector in 18 months or so anyway, so this is not a permanent solution.

I've seen the following, but was hoping to get in a little cheaper (particularly since the 55" version is $240)

I'm considering a basic acrylic, but not sure if this is the best choice or not.


texts: Any way to reverse engineer split ac inverter compressor speed?

texts:
Summer has come and I've got myself an oversized inverter Air Conditioner (1.5 ton for 120sqft room) as suggested by some YouTubers.

Details:

Outdoor temp day: 43C,
Night: 30/35
Relative Humidity: Less than 15%
Ac model: LG-LS-H18VNXD
Capacity: 1.5 Ton
Type: Hot and Cold

Problem 1:
The AC overcools, especially at night, I wake up shivering to turn off ac. I always set the temp to 30°C. I don't think the thermostat is faulty because the AC display shows the actual temperature on de-humidify mode, which is always 4-7 degrees lower than set.
Problem 2: Frequent power cuts here and I want to run the AC on my pure sine wave 850va inverter. I have noticed that when the AC compressor runs on low mode, it consumes around 240Watts @ 220v. And I have tested running it on my inverter and it works flawlessly. But this low mode is rare, it only happened once. Normally, it sucks around 800watts. And I feel even low mode is enough to cool my room comfortably.

Now, all I want to do is control the speed of the inverter compressor manually.

I have two ideas

I believe that the temperature sensor works on resistance, so I want to connect my own resistor instead of the temp sensor (but I don't know how to do it safely, here I need your guidance).
I noticed that the indoor unit communicates with the outdoor unit via a 4th wire. This communication must be analog but I can't find the working behind it. If there's a way to alter the communication signal to show low temp, it could work without the hassle of tricking the thermostat itself.

But both the ideas are just my theory, I have never opened up any AC unit before. Are these viable ideas and if so, how do I accomplish them safely.

And if there are any other idea to control the compressor speed directly?

Please suggest a DIY solution to achieve this I'm not open to alternatives like:

talk to a technician (here technicians can only install AC, they have no clue about anything really technical). I am a programmer so I can adapt to some technical stuff
Reverse the cold air back to top of AC to trick the thermostat (no, i tried that, its not a good solution and doesn't always work)
getting a cooler (no, because its also a winter/heating AC)
getting smaller AC (No the seller wont accept return and I am not wealthy enough to buy a separate AC).

EDIT:

So i opened the indoor unit to checkout the thermistor, after a lot of searching through pcb, found the culprit to be the open hole through which refrigerant pipes go via double roof ( the installer morons didnt close it properly), now its working fine. But again, i would like to manually control the VFD to run the ac on 850va inverter perhaps ? the lowest speed when temp is reached consumes 300watts and is cool enough.

I guess the PCB might have a override, but I didnt find any service manual for the particular model (LG LS18VNXD). Right now I just want the service manual of the A.C


texts: Use of paint on kitchen wall. Water and oil resistance

texts:
We are renovating our kitchen and we will not have top-level cabinets. (see picture). Now I am wondering if it is possible to use some type of paint and/or polish, for the wall behind stove or whole working area.

I don`t want it to be different from rest of the wall. It should be able to withstand water, oil and other kitchen dirt.

Kitchen is used daily, and I don`t want to redo the paintjob too often. Real-life experience with water/oil resistant paint are appreciated.

Thanks for any suggestions.


texts: How do I use a hole cutter drill bit (ø 6.3cm) such that I get an intact wood disk?

texts:
I want to cut wooden disks from a wood board. I bought what I thought was the right bit for my drill. However, the bit seems to be solely for the hole, not for the disk, as it comes with a centering drill. The drill will drill a hole in my disks, making them useless for my purpose. It tried to tighten the centering drill further in, but that did not work. The tightening screw seems to only work on the flattened part of the drill and (not surprisingly, when you think about it) on the thread part of the drill. When I push the drilling machine down, the cutting part will push up along the drill.
How do I solve this? Is there a spare part I'm likely to get at a DIY store? Do I have any chance of re-purposing some other drill bit for this?
Edit: I have a stand for my drill, so I don't think I actually need the centering drill.


texts: Wiring a rocker switch with pilot light so light is on when switch is off

texts:
I have a single switch with a pilot light next to a two-function switch in a double gang box. They are both used to control a three function fan/light/night light in a bathroom.

Everything is working fine, except the pilot light in the single function switch is on when the light is on, rather than when it is off, which seems like the point of the pilot light.

Did I do something wrong?


texts: What options are available for connecting new shed to power?

texts:
I am about to finish building a large shed (small garage) in Wisconsin and I'm considering my options for running power to it. The power company is WE Energies.

The shed is pretty close to a power pole but my house power runs off of a pole in the other corner of the lot. I would like to bury the line to the house someday and potentially upgrade my service a bit.

I don't think I have any circuits left in my current breaker box in the house so simply running a line from the house may prove to be more work than originally thought.

Details:

Shed is 12x20 feet
House is 1500sqft living area
Shed is about 30 to 50 yards from the house but only about 5 yards from the power pole
I don't need a lot of power (just lights and maybe one or two outlets)
My breaker box does accept tandem breakers (I have installed one before) but I've heard they are sometimes illegal. I'm not sure what the code says in my area
My breaker box has some sort of extension box off the side of it with a few more breakers in it
Current service is either 100a or 150a service. I was considering upgrading to 200a at some point
My bill says 723 kWh but doesn't list a service
Appliances:

Dryer: LER4634BQ1 (4 amp motor, 23 amp heater and accessories)
Washer: LLR9245BQ1 (9.8 amp)
Furnace: NUGS075BG01
A/C: ???


texts: Converting housed stringer to open stringer

texts:
I am in the process of converting our housed stringer stairs to an open stringer format and have some questions about placement of the stringers.  We have an L-shaped stairway going from the first floor to the second floor (see attached) and a straight stair way going from the first floor to the basement (see attached).

I feel comfortable removing the housed stringers and replacing them with sawtooth stringers to open it up.  However, the problem I discovered is the ceiling in the stairway leading to the basement is directly screwed to the housed stringer of the stairway leading to the second floor (see attached).

In other words, if i replace that housed stringer with a sawtooth stringer, the ceiling in the basement stairway will have to be lowered considerably.

I could move the wall in an inch on each side of the stairway going to the basement to hide the stringer, but that seems like a lot of extra work for minimal gain.

Any ideas on how I can do this without moving the wall and ceiling in the basement stairway (also, i realize that the ceiling will have to come down in the basement stairway during the project, thats no problem)? The goal is to keep the basement stairway as wide and tall as possible while still keeping the drywall there.

Thanks a lot in advance!


texts: Should I replace a water heater preemptively?

texts:
I have a conventional gas-fired 40-gallon hot-water heater in my basement. It currently works fine, and there is no visible rust on it or pipes near it, but it turned 20 years old a few months ago.

I was thinking of having it replaced because I assume it will fail within the next few years given its age. Is this reasonable, or would I be throwing money away to replace something that still works fine?

For context: The water tank sits on top of an old hardwood floor in my unfinished basement (yes, for whatever reason someone installed hardwood flooring directly over the dirt floor in my basement, even though the space is just used for storage), and I'm 75 percent sure I will stay in my house for at least the next 5-10 years.


texts: Are these asbestos fibers in my plaster?

texts: While screwing in an electrical cover in my new home (built in 1919) I noticed these fibers sticking out of the plaster or skim coat. I have not seen these anywhere else. Hope the picture loads. Are these asbestos fibers?


texts:
We are building a fake chimney breast in our living room and I have built the bottom half out of brick and the top half will be stud wall with plasterboard.
I will be using a Thistle Hard wall backing coat on the bricks before I skim with Thistle Multi-finish. The top half will be built from studs and plasterboard then plastered, as we are having an inset TV. Only the front and outer sides will be plastered. The fireplace inside is brick slips/brick thins.
My question is what type of join shall I do between the hardwall section and the plasterboard section?
My concern is that cracks may develop at this point and not sure that mesh tape is strong enough.
I have attached a photo with a rough outline of the stud work/plasterboard that will be built on top. With the yellow line the area where I have a concern.


texts:
I have had a solid oak worktop delivered and placed it on some sheets next to my radiator until ready to treat with Danish oil. Just about to start and it looks like the radiator has leaked and soaked the edge of the worktop

I have let it dry but it has left behind a dirty water stain all along the edge, I have tried using some fine sandpaper but it doesn't seem to do anything

Does anyone have any suggestions for removing this type of stain

Thanks


texts:
I read an at least partially true story about a man who escapes prison by sawing through iron bars using 'emery thread'. A google search for such returns only stories about dangerous kite-fighting in India.

Is there such a thing? I imagine it would be very useful for sawing off branches close to the trunk or tree stumps close to the ground.


texts: How can I tell if my counter top is silestone or granite?

texts:
I just bought a house, that came with granite counter tops. I was doing some research on it and noticed that Silestone looks exactly like granite.

I don't know for sure if my counter tops are indeed granite. Is there a way i can find out without causing damage to the material?


texts: Is this dimmer wired the wrong way around?

texts: I've inherited the wiring shown below. The two dimmers on the left operate separate lights, but I notice the L1 from the middle dimmer is connected to the Com on the left dimmer. Does this mean that the middle dimmer is wired the wrong way around? Should the daisy chaining of the incoming live wire not be from Com to Com?


texts: I am intending to cut out two egress windows in the side of my house. Instead of digging 2 holes, I was hoping to dig one and cut both egress windows within the same well. The well will be built with 4x6x12 timbers (3x12 window well), with 2 48x48 windows. There will be 20" of concrete between the two windows. I am struggling to find anyone doing this, so I am wondering if there is a problem with my plan. Thanks much!


texts: A licensed chimneysweep recently inspected the sole flue in our ~100 year old house. He reported that "buildup is not too bad, but the flue should be cleaned." He also reported that the flue could NOT be cleaned "because two or more appliances share it," i.e. the fireplace on the main floor and the oil furnace in the basement. In the attic there is also evidence of a third appliance sharing the same flue, probably the original wood stove in the kitchen, which is long gone. Any guidance as to what to make of this? It's hard to believe that the flue has never been cleaned.


texts: Cleaning large amounts of cat urine from an occupied house?

texts:
In a fit of altruism, I adopted five stray cats over a period of time.   They came with some problems, which I expected, but two in particular have started something new:  Urinating everywhere.   It's like a contest.   Floors, walls, cabinets, furniture, appliances - everything is a target.

I'm looking for the best method to clean cat urine off of various surfaces - floor laminate & tile, painted drywall, porcelain appliance surfaces, and wooden/pressboard cabinets.    I'm hoping to get through my ownership of these cats without having to completely gut my house when they've finally passed on.

I'm considering a semi-commercial steam-cleaning unit but I don't know if it will (a) destroy things I use it on, and (b) will it actually work?   I'm suspicious of advertising claims like "Cleans everything!"

Any advice?


texts: Guage of wire from main disconnect at shop under ground 100' to house a NATO supply 220 hot tub

texts: What gauge of wire do I need to run from main electrical disconnect and Shop 100 feet Underground 2 disconnect panel in house that will also Supply a hot tub 220 volt?


texts: Is it acceptable to use 3/4" steel flex conduit instead of EMT for wiring 240 receptacle plug inside my garage?  This would be attached to the garage wall.


texts:
Wall warts / power bricks seem to be pretty poorly designed. They always seem to block a power socket either side when used on 8-plug extensions.

What's your solution to stop them blocking adjacent plugs?


texts: What is a reasonable depth and diameter for postholes dug in clay soil to support an 8' fence?

texts:
What is a reasonable depth and diameter for postholes dug in clay soil where the frost line is no more than 12” and that will support an 8 foot tall solid wood fence that uses PostMaster metal posts?

I hope to have someone else install an 8 foot high PT wood fence.  There will be no light or air passing through or under the fence and it will be heavier than average, given the additional height and board weight.  One side will run for 135’.  The attached diagram provides more detail.

The PostMaster Installation Instructions describe a 30” deep, sloped, 10” diameter hole, filled with 6” of gravel plus 24” of concrete for a 6 foot high fence.  They caveat that the “exact diameter and depth will be determined by local weather and soil conditions.”  Got it.  Huntsville, AL; very clay soil.  Maximum wind gusts of 65 mph.  (This is not in the normal tornado path and is not intended to withstand a tornado.)

In reviewing the StackExchange posts on fencing and post holes I came across the concept that the diameter of the pier may be increased to compensate for a shallower post hole.

I would like to know the recommended depth and diameter without relying on the 2 buttress posts, which are my small overbuild idea.  We will be able to walk under them.

26 APR 18 update: I just found a Master Halco youtube video specifying 6-8" diameter holes dug 36" deep for an 8' board-on-board fence, such as I would like to have.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mgjryMn7jI4
- I also spoke to a fence builder experienced using PostMaster posts who opined that the 10" diameter and 30 deep holes were more than adequate, but that the gravel was of no value in our climate.  So, 30" x 10" dia inches of concrete vs. 36" x 8" dia of concrete.


texts: Can I replace a window in a garage gable wall without adding a modern header?

texts:
So, I have an older construction home (1948, a great year for lumber in MN) with a detached garage connected to the breezeway. The garage roof structure has rafters and collar ties with two storage joists (maybe for shear) and joists on the gable ends running between bearing walls. The gable walls are rafters stick framed (very basic image attached) down to a double top plate with the previously mentioned joist nailed to both the rafters and studs above the double top plate.

There is currently an 8ft wide barn sash window on one gable wall and two 7ft tall by 8ft wide garage doors on the other. None of these existing openings have anything but the double top plate as the header. The garage doors have king and jack studs like a regular doorway, but the window only has king studs with cripples from the top plate to a single 2x4 header and a 2x4 sill plate with cripples down to the bottom plate. None of these openings have any sag in them.

Shouldn't the ridge be passing some load down through this window and creating sag in the middle of the window span? or is this being mitigated by the joist above it being nailed to the gable studs as well as the rafters? I want to convert this window into a roll up door and was thinking I could just frame it the way the garage doors are framed to keep the opening 7ft tall. Not so sure the permit office will share my enthusiasm for this idea, with good reason.


texts: Filling a gap between drywall and stair stringer

texts:
I was planning to remove the old ugly cove moulding on my stair stringers. 30 years of lazy paints jobs have left it in a very bad state.

My initial plan was to just sand the stringer and wall, get them all cleaned and patched up and looking good, then caulk the right angle where they meet.

However, when I started prying off the moulding I discovered the drywall doesn't actually meet the stringer. It's about half an inch short.

Is there any durable, secure way to fill this void and achieve the clean finished angle I was hoping for, or am I going to have to resort to covering it back up with quarter round?


texts:
I’ve bought a new place and it’s a Sunday morning I accidentally smashed a light. Ducked up to Bunnings to try and replace he glass part but they don’t have anything similar so the Bunnings fellow convinced me that this DIY light fitting was easy. I used to do electrical studies at school and remember basic circuitry so I thought it would be fine but it wasn’t what I was expecting.

I thought I was undoing line earth and neutral and then feeding those back into the holes on the new light. Unfortunately this light has 2 neutrals going into separate holes on the light and this new light only has one neutral.

Before I blow something up can anyone give me advice on what to do with the second neutral?


texts: How to wire new pendant lights to an existing ceiling light that has two different switches and have them work independently?

texts: I have a ceiling light that has two wall switches (one at either end of room). I want to install two new pendant lights and have them run on one of the switches, and have the ceiling light run on the other switch. Should I call a pro, or is this something that can be done by a DIYer?


texts: Possible New Cracks in basement of 18 year old house

texts:
My mother moved into a ranch house in August. House was built in 2002 and sat vacant for probably 8 months before she moved it. In August the roof was replaced, in October shrubs torn out all around and soil added to slightly slope from house with grass planted.
Starting about 2 months ago my mother says she's hearing loud noises from the basement and thinks there are more small cracks in the wall than before. I don't think this possible but want other opinions.
The inspection mentioned a few small cracks, nothing to worry about. There might be 15 cracks, all hairline, some vertical, some more diagonal. I don't see why this would suddenly start nor that anything should be done, whether the cracks are new or not.
On the first floor there's one place where the drywall tape at the ceiling/wall has separated for about 4 feet since she moved it.
Would these cracks make any noises? We've discussed if it's the ductwork contracting, etc. without resolution. I was there about 6 hours today for the first time in months and we didn't hear anything.


texts:
Trying to figure out how to correctly wire a combination switch in my basement hallway.

One of the two switches turns on the basement light, and works without any issue.

The other switch is supposed to be connected to a switched outlet. However, the outlet doesn't work correctly. When I plug in an outlet tester and turn the switch on, it says that I have an open neutral wire.

So, when I opened up the switch for a better look, I see that there's two cables coming into the box.

The two wires leading to the basement lights (neutral and hot) were connected to the switch.

The cable connected to the switched outlet had the hot wire connected to the switch, and the neutral wire screwed up with the ground wire at the back of the box.

My question is: what are my options here for getting the switched outlet into operation? Can I just attach the neutral wire to the combination switch? I'm assuming that's not a good idea, but not certain what else to do here.

Picture of the back of the receptacle box.


texts: What could be causing my furnace burners to fire up, then shut off due to partially open door?

texts: I have a 10 year old Carrier gas furnace that keeps shutting off every 24-48 hrs. First I thought it might be the flare sensor but then I checked the bottom door and it wasn't completely closed. I opened it and then closed it again properly and the furnace started running just fine. Then after a day or two, I noticed the same thing happening again - furnace trying to come on but burners would shut off after a few seconds. I opened and closed the door again and voila - everything was back to normal. A day or two later ... same thing happens again. I was thinking to tape that door but I know it's only a temporary fix. What's causing all this? Why is that door opening ever slightly after a day or two? What can I do to fix this permanently?


texts:
From what I can tell, 8 Penny nails are 2 1/2" long. Charts on the internet back this up.

But I was looking at the nailing guide for this hurricane tie on homedepot.com and it specifies two different 8d nail lengths.

A search on Home Depot does not come up with any 1.5" 8d nails. What's going on here?


texts:
I've tried Googling this but the stakes are quite high and I don't want to be wrong, so I'm asking here.
Wildfires are raging in California where we live, and the Air Quality is nearing the 'hazardous' AQI level. I just bought a 6x16" 400cfm active carbon air filter/fan, and I have 1 other air purifier running in different rooms.
The problem is it's extremely cold in our house as I have the heater off. I am wondering if it's safe to turn the heater on, or if it's going to pull in air from outside?
I'll try to give you details which could help figure it out.

Our heater box is in the closet under the stairs (photo below).
Also, there is 14x14x1 sized air filter behind our couch which I feel it sucking air from when the heater is on. Is this the only location the air comes from?
The thermostat offers heat/cool and is a digital box on the wall
We have a gas stove so I assume the furnance is also gas?
We live with someone with COPD and I also have asthma, so it's important to me not to just rely on some old ass filter which is supposed to filter air from the outside.
important side question does it look like my quatro heater is dangerous? In trying to research this i found that some were recalled and now I'm scared because our house has this furnace...


texts: Do external faucets have an indoor shutoff valve somewhere indoors?

texts:
Spring is here! So I decided to see if I could draw some water for watering the plants outside and... no water and no pressure at my outside faucet.

I just bought my house (1948 victory house in Canada). so I'm wondering if perhaps houses normally have some sort of indoor valve that controls flow to the external faucet and if so where that would normally be located.

I'm going to be checking my main line inside my house today but I have to move the washer and dryer off their pedestal to have a look.

Do external faucets have an indoor shutoff valve somewhere indoors or should I not bother moving my washer and dryer and just call a plumber?

Edit:
I finally managed to find it inside of a wall stud. Using a technique described here.
Is there a way to trace water pipes through walls?


texts: Is a tiny dent in a compressor tank a safety concern?

texts: I saw some questions and answers on air compressors so I thought I would ask one: I just purchased a Chicago Pneumatics 21 gallon compressor and I noticed a tiny dent about 3+ inches from the upper seam, (almost unnoticeable, like the edge of something hit it or the tank fell on it). Again, it is really shallow, but is this something to worry over?


texts: Is a sandwiched beam made out of 2x4s laid flat a suitable for a 15' span that doesn't carry a load?

texts:
After working to remove a wall that runs parallel to the ceiling joists, I've run into a little problem.  The builder used a 2x6 for a nailer (to attach the ceiling drywall) on top of the 2x4 stud wall that I am removing.  I can get this out but I'm trying to disturb the existing ceiling as little as possible so I was hoping to leave the 2x6 in place (I plan to frame out a beam across the space and am trying to avoid dumping the 18 inches of spray in insulation into my dining room).

My current plan is to create a beam out of the 2x4s in the top plate, adding one or two more as necessary and screwing them together... but I need to span just under 15 feet.  The only load above is the roof/attic space (without storage).  I have very little access to the attic space so was planning to use joist hangers to face-nail the sandwiched 2x4 beams on either end.  As is, they run at the same height of all the other walls so without creating a post up against the walls, I see no other way to support the beam... and this wouldn't work anyway as one of the beams would go right in front of the window that I planned to put in.  Things were going so well until today.

My question:  Is a sandwiched beam made out of 2x4s laid flat a feasible solution for the span that I need?


texts: How to diagnose damp coming up through cracks?

texts:
I'm suspecting that my flat may have a damp and mould problem coming up through cracks etc and into my airspace.  I definitely know in one room there is damp underneath the floorboards though I thought if its covered its ok.  However I didnt account for coming up through cracks etc.

I really dont want to go to the trouble of lifting floors and floorboards to see how extensive the problem is.  Would one have to lift floorboards to confirm there are damp toxins coming into the air or could I diagnose it without lifting floorboards.  If so how?  How would a surveyor do it?

Thanks.


texts: Can I drill smaller holes in granite? I want to install aluminum shelves on a vertical backsplash behind the stove. I will need to drill 7 holes for screws and or mollies. If I can ascertain the studs I can use screws.  Would there be an advantage of drilling a smaller hole in granite say 1/8" to 1/4"?  Meaning less stress and risk of fracture?  Could I use carbide or do I need diamond tip?  I do have scrap to practice on.


texts: Is there a required or recommended minimum distance of an HVAC duct from an exterior wall?

texts:
I am removing an interior non-load bearing wall and need to move an HVAC duct a few studs over. I am leaving a short wall near the exterior to accommodate the duct as well as to serve as an endpoint to some 24” deep kitchen cabinetry.
Ideally, Id like the duct as close to the exterior wall as possible. The upper section connects in the attic space so I don’t want to move it so far as to make the installation difficult (attic section will be insulated). Is there a minimum distance I need to preserve from the exterior wall to the ductwork or can it go pretty much anywhere on the inside, e.g right against the exterior wall in the last stud Space on the left, pictured? Thanks


texts: How enthusiastically should I strip a flaking deck before staining?

texts:
A summer vacation home I use in Maine has an open 12' x 24' wood porch with multiple layers of Cabot solid color oil deck stain, and I'm planning on re-staining it. The stain is cracking and flaking near the edge of the porch, probably where it's covered in snow for much of the winter:

However, the majority of the porch (away from the rail) looks just fine (yeah, could use cleaning):

I've gone at the loose areas with a hand-held scraper; some of it comes up easy, some comes up hard, and some not at all:

I'd like to know: how far should I go in getting the old stain up? Should I instead be renting a sander? The priority is for the results to be durable, although it would be nice for it to look good.


texts: How can I increase water pressure after installing dual-head shower?

texts:
I recently installed a 2-headed shower system in my master bathroom (2 shower heads coming from one pipe).  Afterwards, the problem I suspected occurred.

Having the "gate", if you will, set to direct all water flow to one head works great.  However, if I try to make it so both outputs have a stream of water, the pressure in both is too low to be of much use.

Is there any way I can increase the water pressure for this shower?  All the other faucets and such are fine, so I'm not sure if increasing pressure to the entire house is what I am looking for.

This may not be it exactly, but the system basically this:

Excuse me if I used improper terminology, but hopefully this is understandable.


texts: Will a 4x8 swingset beam with 4x6 notches at either end support a 16 foot span?

texts:
Non-engineer here, I'm trying to adapt a typical "A-frame swingset design" (like this https://www.instructables.com/id/Free-standing-A-Frame-Swing-Set/)
to be a small set of traveling rings for the kids (inspired by these: https://travelingrings.org/).
To that end, I'd like to make an A-frame swingset that is relatively high (10 or 11 feet to the bottom of the swing beam, as opposed to the usual 7-8 feet), and relatively long (16 feet swing beam without a supporting A-frame in the middle). The reason why the lack of middle support is important is because of the large amount of clearance that traveling rings require.
This readily available swingset bracket (https://www.amazon.com/Frame-Brackets-Complete-Mounting-Hardware/dp/B01M28VV0N/ ) supports a 4x6 beam , and I've seen comments from people successful supporting 12 foot spans with this type of bracket, even though the manufacturer recommends a 10 foot span.
My question is three fold:

Would a 4x6 beam safely support a 16 foot span for this type of application? (assuming standard treated lumber like redwood or pine, not glulam or lvl)
This question was somewhat addressed here:
Is this swing beam safe?
And my conclusion is that a 4x6 is iffy.

My primary question, assuming the that a 4x6 is a risk, is the following:

If not, would a 4x8 beam which was notched at both ends to fit the 4x6 bracket support a 16 foot span? (with the same assumption  around non-engineered lumber)
If no to both #1 and #2, would a 4x8 beam on a different type of bracket be able to support this span?

My main concern is deflection & buckling from force applied in the center. The largest kid currently weighs 70lbs, and there could be as many as three kids on the set at a time, swinging vigorously and possibly in sync.
Final followup question:

In the A-frame design from instructables that I linked to above, the a-frames are supported by a cross beam. Would it compromise the integrity of the design if the cross beam were moved lower to the ground? I'd like to keep the center of the A-frames open if possible, in case the kids swing through them. My intuition is that it actually strengthens the design if the cross beams are lowered, but just wanted to get a sanity check on that.

Thank you in advance for any help you can offer to vet the safety of this design.


texts: The hot water baseboard in my apartment stays warm when the heat is off. It is working but does not completely turn off. The head on the zone valve has been replaced. Is this normal or should the base board  shut off  completely.


texts:
I'm using a blue wire as a c-wire, however when I went to connect the blue wire at the furnace, it already had a white wire ( not from a thermostat) corrected to the c-terminal. Can / wires be connected to c terminal? If not, what do I do with the white wire?

Thanks


texts:
The 1917 craftsman home (East Bay, California) that I'm closing on has a large 20"x16" opening in the basement/crawl space wall to the outside.

Right now it has chicken wire over it but it's been pushed in and there's rodent debris near by. What's the best way to secure it against rodents? Is 24 gauge 1/4" expanded steel mesh sufficient?

I don't need the opening for access t the crawl space so I could also close it.


texts: Fixing (at least temporarily) roof damaged wooden beam (rafter?) in an outbuilding

texts:
Outside my house there is an outbuilding. I am not sure of the roofing terms in English, but trying.

On of the roof beams, the center one on this picture (a rafter?) is heavily damaged at its base, as well as the supporting transversal beam (a topplate?) along the wall. A little touch on the roof rafter beam makes me believe it is on the verge of collapsing. However, it has been in this situation for about   one year, when I bought the house. Apparently, the tiles show some bending with respect to the neighboring tiles, as can be seen from the light roof beam in the middle of the picture (a roof batten?)

A close-up shows that the rafter is not supported by the wall anymore, but apparently the other rafters, as well as the topplate below them, are OK.

A last close-up shows the damage with details. Apparently, it has already been fixed, but the damage is extending.

One day, I plan to have the full roof repaired, but I do not have the money right now. I was thinking about fixing a piece of metal, like the following one, but larger along the topplate, and wider to provide some support to the damaged rafter.

Would that be a sound idea? Better suggestions welcome.


texts: Rewiring A Ceiling Fan - Add Wall Switch

texts: I have ceiling fans in four rooms all with lights. The fans are hardwired to the breaker box, but the lights are on switches. I'd like to add another switch to control the fan, either on/off, or a 3-speed switch. It is an older house, and most of the wiring is 2-wire no ground. What is going to be the best way to go about doing this?


texts: Why would the documentation say to wire a pole of the 3-way occupancy switch to ground?

texts:
I'm currently wiring up an occupancy sensor to a 3-way switch, I'm leaving one of the mechanical switches in place, and here is the wiring instructions.

according to the instructions I need to wire one of the poles on the second switch to ground (fig 5). I've never seen this before, is it safe to do? Do I wire that pole and the ground nut together to go to ground?


texts: Why is a white electrical wire connected to 2 black wires?

texts:
I just opened my ceiling light to replace it with another mount. I see a white wire connected to 2 black wires, is that right?

The middle switch controls this ceiling light.


texts: Efficient whole house heating on a budget. Electric baseboard?

texts:
Here's the question, read below for the back story and details.

1100SF row home shell.  LNG and 200A Electric service but at the moment leaning towards all electric. Considering upfront capital, long term efficiency and long term maintenance, I'm looking for the best heating solution and could use some insight.

A little back story here.  I'm flipping a row home which will be primarily for student housing.  While this is not my first flip.  It is my first flip for student housing and also, my first flip where I am hiring a contractor.  The goal here is a cost-effective flip given the intended tenants,  not cheap. My budget is 80K for a 1100SF home.

Also, this home is in an old area of the city where natural gas headers are at best an unknown variable but in some cases filled with sediment and sometimes collapsed.  The contractor proposed going all electric since we are redoing the electric anyway. I'm not married to this idea, but not opposed to it if it is necessary, or I can get incentives from the electrical company.

I'm concerned about heating. The home appears to have had forced air in some of the home at some point.  However, it doesn't appear to be balanced and is in really bad shape. This is a clean slate, even some of the sub-floors are being replaced.  The contractor seems to think that each students room should have its own heating control, and suggests electric baseboard heating.  I do like the fact that there would be less maintenance involved but the independent controls seem a little superfluous, and I was under the impression that electric baseboard heat is horribly inefficient.  Since there is not a fluid medium with any heat capacity to speak of, if it is not running, it is not heating.  I'll be putting in new R13 and brand new windows which will help, but I'm still not sure. I'd like to know what my other options are.  Most homes I've worked in had an existing Hydoionic system to work off of.  So the decision of what type of heating to use for both long term efficiency and reasonable (not minimal) upfront capital expenses somewhat eludes me.


texts: Replacement water shut off valve stem is too short to protrude past the wall board

texts: In my condo, I replaced my old, crusty, main shutoff gate valve with a brand new ball valve.  The only problem is that the distance from the base of the gate valve to the end of its stem is about two inches longer than the distance from the base of the ball valve to the tip of its stem.  So, while the gate valve's stem protruded through the sheet rock wall that covers it, the tip of the stem on the new ball valve is below the sheet rock's surface.  I've seen some valve extenders on-line but they appear to be for a specific brand of valve--I got mine at Lowes, it's an "Everbilt"--and I cannot tell if the one on-line will fit my valve.  Does anyone have a solution?


texts: How to remove a cast iron pipe plug that has been soldered with lead

texts:
I'm adding a utility sink in my basement.  I'd like to drain it into a cast iron pipe junction, but I'm having trouble removing the old plug.  It appears to have been sealed with lead solder.

I'm reluctant to heat this with a propane torch; I understand that would cause the lead in the solder and paint to vaporize and create a health hazard.

My other idea is to cut the cast iron pipe on the opposite side, which drains a washing machine, and replace that section with ABS.

Is there a good way to remove this plug?  Or should I just cut the opposite pipe?

Thanks!


texts: Is it possible to reuse a copper pipe's compression fitting?

texts:
I removed what I didn't realize was a compression fitting on a copper pipe for my kitchen cold water supply.  Is it possible to reuse the compression fitting or do I need to buy a new one to replace it?

It looks like it's some kind of plastic.  It took a tremendous amount of force to loosen, and a fairly cursory attempt at re-tightening resulted in a leak.  Also, I assume I should wrap everything in teflon tape when replacing the connectors?


texts:
I'm installing a new bathroom fan in an old house, it has a fancy switch that requires it's own neutral wire.  The problem is that I am having no luck figuring out how to get a wire from the attic into that wall where the switch is located.  I've drilled in a few spots directly above the wall but not able to get through to the empty space.

Any ideas or tricks of the trade to solve this problem?


texts: Help Determine the cause of Cupping Floors

texts:
The wood floors in my 1926 Craftsman style bungalow started cupping this year. In some places it is subtle, in some places it is really extreme. Ideas on what is causing it and what could fix it?

Notes:

I had the floors refinished last year, by two
separate people, and both areas are now  cupping.
I am in Austin, and it has been a very humid and rainy year, compared to the normally dry climate
I have had a high humidity problem in my house. Had an AC installed a year agonizing my attic and it has never cooled or dehumidified properly.

Suggestions I have received:

change out all of your ceiling vents (I did It)
change them all back
get a radiant barrier and insulate the attic
insulate the floor  - there is no insulation down there.:

I have bought a stand alone dehumidifier which I empty twice a day. I think it's helping


texts: I have a client with a Uberhaus shower column. No model number to share. Can't find parts. 4-way diverter single handle


texts: Can I run my hydronic circulator off an appliance cord in order to use it to purge air?

texts:
I have a hydronic heating system with a relatively powerful B & G circulator pump.  This pump has a relay that is controlled by the furnace electronics; if there is no power to the furnace, there's no power to the pump.

This makes it tricky to purge air from the system via the technique of using the city water filler, a circulator, and the drain, thus bypassing the boiler.

I would like to be able to use the circulator when the furnace is off. I thought that the best way to do this would be to install a junction box with a UL listed DPDT switch (e.g. a Leviton 1286) that switched the circulator's feed from the normal furnace wiring to an electrically isolated hard-wired appliance cord of sufficient gauge that I would plug into a different circuit.

Can anyone think of problems with this?
Is this against the electrical code, or will it not apply so long as the appliance cord is not plugged into the different circuit.

Thanks!


texts: How do I wire a GFCI switch/outlet receptacle?

texts: I'm replacing a switch with a switch/outlet (GFCI) in my bathroom.  The switch will control the bathroom exhaust fan.  Currently I only have two wires to work with (hot & neutral...no ground).  The GFCI switch/outlet receptacle I bought has a line and load side plus two black wires that I assume control the switch.  I don't know what to do with the two black wires that control the switch.  I'm assuming I do nothing with the load side considering that I am only working with two wires that were connected to the old switch.


texts: The rough openings for my doors are a just barely too small

texts:
I'm ordering some prehung doors to replacing the doors in my home.  I tried to measure quite precisely and I found that several of my rough openings are a bit smaller than the sizes available.  For example, they are 31 3/4, 25 3/4, and 29 5/8 instead of 32", 26", and 30".  The manufacturer I'm using can't adjust the width.

The slabs are 30, 24, and 28", and various places on the internet suggest that the jamb are probably 3/4", so it seems like there should be room, but I'm still nervous.

How much work is it going to be to make doors and 32", 26", and 30" work?  Is it going to require a bunch of planing etc. ?


texts:
My partner and I have finally just bought our first house together and it is a 'period' house built in the 1930's. One drawback is there is no cupboard space in the kitchen and so at present the cutlery is just in a box.

I'm in the UK, anybody got any solutions? I was wondering if there is a way you can fit a draw to the 'roof' or inside the cupboard that you could just pull out when you have opened the cupboard door.

Bear in mind I don't want to 'bastardise' the kitchen and really a cupboard that has a 'push out' drawer would be ideal to keep with the feel.

Cheers!


texts: How can I cut a hole through metal siding to open up a doorway or window?

texts:
There is an outbuilding on the property I'm buying that appears to be made of cinderblock. at some point in the recent past, it looks like somebody attached a bunch of metal siding to the outside, and in the process they closed off a bunch of doors and windows.
I'd like to turn those back into doors and windows.
Clearly I'll have to remove some of the metal siding to do so. However, I'm unclear on how to do this. For example:

What kind of hand or power tools will I need to use to cut doorway holes and window holes out of the siding?
What processes or specific steps will I undertake to use those tools to cut those holes?
Will I need to take the siding off of the building before cutting it, or can I cut it while it's attached to the building?
Will I approach the cuts from the interior, or the exterior?

If from the interior, what do I do about the windows where there is glass between the interior and the siding?

There appear to be bits of wood stuck between the siding and cinderblock. Do those require special attention? Are they structural? Can they simply be cut through using the same tools and processes as the metal siding?
After I cut a hole through the metal siding, is there anything I need to add around the edges of the hole for aesthetics, for safety (in case the metal is sharp), for water retardation, or for air sealing?

Pictured below: a shot of one of the closed-off doorways from the interior, and a shot of one of the left-open doorways from the exterior.


texts: How important is circuit breaker breaking capacity?

texts:
All else being equal circuit breakers can have different "breaking capacity" - it's the maximum current which the breaker can disconnect and it's typically several thousand amperes. The idea is that after that the electric arc can start inside the breaker and it will continue conducting current even with contacts moved apart.

Now how important is the actual value? Suppose I'm shopping for a 20 amperes breaker for my apartment. The retailer offers models with breaking capacities of 1,3 kiloamperes, 3,5 kiloamperes and 5 kiloamperes and higher breaking capacity comes for higher price. Do I always choose the highest breaking capacity? How do I make my choice?


texts: Are either of these tools suitable for tightening the pipe union nut underneath a bath?

texts:
I'm having trouble tightening the pipe union nuts on some new bath taps I've fitted at my mum's house. I got everything out OK, and (because the previous plumber had put the hot tap on the right rather than the left) I used flexible pipes to connect the taps to the pipes so I could cross them over to put the hot on the left. I chose push fit connectors for this part because of the limited access and those connections went on with out a hitch.

In case I've got the terminology wrong the above is a diagram of a typical tap installation with the offending nut highlighted.

The union nuts at the tap are causing me problems because of the restricted access and limited space. I can't get enough purchase to tighten them using any of the wrenches I already own.

Do I need a "Jaw dropper plumbing wrench":

The description reads:

  For tightening taps without isolating the water supply. Adjustable jaws allow for access to both the pipe union nut and the tap back nut with the same spanner.

Or a "Telescopic basin wrench":

I think that it is the jaw dropper wrench but I've never heard of those before. I have heard of a basin wrench but always assumed that they were for tightening or loosening the nuts on the plug hole. So before I buy something I really only need for one job I ought to make sure I get the right tool.


texts: How to get water in my basement to flow to the floor drain

texts:
I'm in an old house that occasionally gets water in the basement. The basement isn't finished so it isn't a big deal if some water comes in right now. The problem right now is that there's a drain in the poured concrete floor, but the floor isn't perfectly level and the drain seems to be at the highest point in the floor. So the water flows everywhere except for the drain.

How can I get the water that comes in to flow towards the drain? I've considered cutting channels in the floor for water to flow, but I'm wondering if there's an easier and less drastic solution.

Right now, I'm just looking for a stop-gap. I've done all the little things I can to improve drainage from my house and stop water from coming in. Sealing the foundation and fixing the poorly-designed window wells isn't a job I can tackle right now.


texts: We had our floors refinished and there are still separations between the boards. The company claims that it's due to the original installation of the floor and are not fixing it any further. Is it possible to fill the holes with something that doesn't need to be finished or sanded? The guy recommended painters putty, does anyone have experience with that? Other solutions?


texts: Building a Wire Mesh Basket for Under a Table

texts:
I'm looking into the possibility of DIYing the table in the picture below (taken from here):

I've found many great tutorials for a rough approximation of the legs (although mine will be four straight legs - I don't think I could DIY the curves in those legs, could I?) and the top. However, I am unsure whether I can replicate the wire mesh basket. What materials would I need for the mesh and the frame that lines the mesh? How would I connect the mesh and frame, the basket and the table? And if it isn't something I can easily DIY, would there be a kind of professional I could seek out who could build the basket? If so, who should I be looking for?


texts: How to fix water leaking past toilet bolt?

texts:
I've recently applied yoga mat as an interior barrier for my toilet tank that has a lot of condensation issues. I used silicon adhesive to prevent the separation between the yoga mat and the tank's walls.

However, I've noticed after turning the water back on that water is dripping from a bolt.

I've tried to tighten the bolt and it slowed the drip rate to nearly no drips, but I'm finding a small puddle forming at the foot on my toilet tank on the left side regardless.

I placed a small plastic container to catch the drips, but I noticed the container isn't getting filled and a puddle of water was forming beneath it.

Does anyone know why this happening and how I can remedy this problem? My guess is that it is caused by condensation from the tank since the my yoga mat cutouts aren't perfect, but the weird thing is the right side of the tank isn't having this problem.


texts: Where do I connect the ground wire of a transfer switch being connected to a sub-panel?

texts:
I would like to add a gen-tran manual transfer switch to my electric panel but I live in a condo where the main panel is in an external meter room and my only interior panel I assume is a subpanel.

The bond screw in my panel has been removed which tells me that it is in fact a subpanel.

Now, the manual transfer switch has a ground cable but I do not know if it needs to be connected to the neutral bar or if I should connect it to a screw directly on the metal case.

Which is the safe and correct mounting point for that ground cable?
Thanks


texts:
I want to replace an old fire place surround with a new fire place surround with a back plate and a hearth.

Having removed the old fire surround it appears that it has an old fire behind it, which has a lintel and concrete walls, that stand a little proud of the wall.

I purchase a new fireplace it will not sit flush.

Is there anything I can do to fix the gap?


texts: Bradford White water heater: burner making loud noise towards the end of the heating cycle

texts:
I have a Bradford White gas water heater. By coincidence, we noticed that the burner flame pops all of a sudden and a big flame starts up in the unit (see video for location).

I sat for an hour in the garage to observe. The burner came on as we used hot water, everything was normal. After 5 - 10 minutes, there was a big pop sound as if a burst gas was supplied and a big flame came on as can be seen in the video. I then moved the temperature knob to low and the flame died down.

See attached video. Any idea why this would happen? Recommendation?

Video updated on March 15th at approximately 3:30 pm ET.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/cfi95sw371rls14/Video%20Mar%2015%2C%2010%2054%2014%20AM.mov?dl=0


texts: How do I mount curtain rods securely into crumbling plasterboard?

texts:
I am trying to hang curtains and am using a medium weight wall plug which screws directly into the plaster.  I live in an old Victorian mansion block, and every time I try and screw the plug into the wall, the plaster just crumbles around it and the plug falls out.

What am I doing wrong and what do I need to do to fix it securely?


texts: How do I fix a condensate drain line that froze in my split electric system with heat pump?

texts: I have a split electric system with a heat pump.  It looks like my condensate drain line is frozen.  I switched to supplemental heat which does not use the heat pump.  Is this enough for now?  Our hard freeze will be over in 2 days and we will be back to temps in the 50s


texts: What parts should I replace for a rusty facuet head?

texts:
I have a faucet with two levers on both sides in my bathroom. The tip of the faucet where the water comes out is brown and discolored, but the water that comes out is clear.

Do I have to replace the entire sink? Or is there just one part I need to replace?


texts: What are the three copper connections to my water heater?

texts: Why do I have 3 copper pipes in my gas water heater?  It seems two are cold and one is hot. All videos I see online show only two pipes; one for cold coming in, one for hot going out.


texts: Why did part of my wall not absorb my paint?

texts:
I’m trying to paint an existing wall with a “lime wash” technique.  It’s in an old building that had walls that were probably painted many times.

Before we painted we tested several colors and methods on the wall, let it dry, and then covered the sample area with a white paint.  A friend of mine who was helping added “binder” to the paint because he thought it would help cover the samples better.  We didn't use any primer, which I think might have been the problem.

The next day we started with our first layer.  We added a lot of water to the paint to start with a light color.  We wanted to add subsequent layers to give it a darker effect.

On the outer edges of the wall, we saw the effect that we expected.  When we got to the center part of the wall, where we did the samples, the paint layer would barely stick.

Obviously there was something about the white paint we used that caused it not to absorb.  We don’t know, though, if this is something that was caused by the “binder” that my friend added?  Or was it because the paint in the middle is newer compared to the paint on the outside?

And the biggest question: How do we fix this?  Use a layer or two of primer for the entire wall?

I would love for the entire wall to have the same absorbability as the edges.


texts: Is there any reason to be wary of vinyl windows?

texts:
Consumer reports "buying guide" for replacement windows recommends fiberglass or wood windows over vinyl. I've also heard from various sources that some vinyl windows can warp with expansion and contraction over time.

I'm wondering if I should avoid vinyl replacement windows in general? Do people's bad experiences with vinyl stem from the cheaper end of the spectrum? Do quality brands of vinyl windows exist?

There seems to be a lot of potential propaganda/fear-mongering/crazyness about vinyl windows on the Interwebs. For example here. These websites make my bs detector go off... It seems hard to find a non biased opinion on the subject.


texts: How easy is it to expand a door's rough opening?

texts:
My handyman said that my door's rough opening is 30x80. The problem is that none of the doors that I want are in this size.

How hard is it to expand a door's rough opening to ... say ... 32x80 or 36x80, I'd have considerably more choices. And I might save a few hundred dollars since those doors are cheaper.

My handyman didn't seem happy with this suggestion but I'm not sure if it's beyond his capacity or not.

My house is a 1917 Craftsman with stucco. This would be the rear entry door.


texts: I have a 6" insulated duct what size t should I use?

texts: I would like to know ,do I use a 6" insulated duct to a 6" register?


texts: Does a light circuit in a garage need GFCI protection?

texts:
We are in the process of building a new garage. I am putting 4 rows of light on separate light switches, they will be on separate circuits so if a breaker would trip I won't be in the dark.
From what I have read since the lights are plug in they need to be GFCI protected. I was going to come off the panel box to the switch then to an outlet in the ceiling. But once again from what I was reading a GFCI outlet is not allowed in the ceiling.
So my question is does the light switch also need to be after the GFCI outlet or can it be before the GFCI outlet where the light are plugged in?
Also can the GFCI outlet be at the top of the wall just not on the ceiling or can it only be so high off the floor? I don't really want to have 4 outlets right beside my switches.


texts: How feasible is is it to build a house structure from different sources of free timber?

texts:
In my area in Europe there are regularly classified ads for free building materials, like old wood from roofs, which looks like this:

Would it be feasible to gather my wood from multiple such sources and build the basis of a home with it? End result should look something like this:

For reference, in Germany this type of wood would cost about 400 EUR/m³, so if this approach is doable, I should be able to save a ton of money, which is my goal here.


texts:
A previous owner of our house installed a front deck over the top of the two concrete steps leading up to the front door. Unfortunately they did not raise the front porch light and doorbell.

So many people have hit their head on the porch light, which currently sits right at head height at the top of the stairs, that it's starting to break the base... and the doorbell is about 24" off the deck, making it a little hard to reach for an adult.

I've looked behind both of them, and both have reasonable cutouts in the siding, that if I moved them up a few feet would be pretty obvious. I'd like to move these to an appropriate height without leaving behind holes in my wood siding.

Thoughts on how to proceed?


texts: How can I control two ceiling fans and lights with one single pole switch?

texts:
I have two ceiling fans with two aftermarket light kits installed, all controlled from one single pole switch. So when switch is flipped, both fans and lights turn on or off at the same time. Only way to individually control each ceililng fan is to manually pull the chains. Is it possible to control the lights and fans separately using one single pole switch (switch that has fan/light controls)?

FYI - There is currently only a single black wire going from the breaker, to the switch, to the ceiling fans. I'm guessing some sort of canopy module would be needed? Is it possible to control the lights via the switch, but the ceiling fans via a remote system?


texts: What is the name of this combination of screw and rotating metal piece that locks it?

texts:
I recently self assembled a wooden furniture and had to use these parts:

They are used to connect boards at 90 degrees to each other. The screw is screwed into one board and the lock is embedded in the other board. The head of the screw goes in a hole and into the lock area which is then rotated to hold it in place.


texts: Building a deck - can I extend the side wall vent of my propane furnace underneath it?

texts:
I'm building a low deck outside of my house, and the vent wouldn't have a 1ft clearance. Deck extends about 7ft out from the house. Would it cause any problems if I were to extend the vent's 2inch piping out that 7ft to the end of the deck, and through holes in the deck's siding?

Thanks for your help, let me know if you need further details!


texts: How can I fill a narrow gap in the countertop along the back of my new glass cooktop?

texts:
I had to replace my glass cooktop. I checked the specs on a replacement, and ordered the one I thought would fit.  When I dropped it in the new stove top, I had a 7/8" gap.  The specs online were wrong.  The company I ordered it from said too bad, I should have measured it when the truck delivered, and refused delivery!
Now I have this huge gap.  And, since it is 29" long, no gap filler is long enough.  What can I do to hide this gap?


texts: Is there any way to test the water pressure at a structure, and if necessary from a specific output (hose bib)?

texts: Reading about irrigation sprinklers (example product), I see a certain recommended PSI. With interest in powering an existing irrigation zone from the hose bib attached to the property, it seems prudent to know the PSI available at the hose bib. How can I test this? Is there a DIY option, or an inexpensive tool? (If possible, it would be nice if this tool could be reusable for other applications too, as most of us DIY folk would likely be more amenable to purchasing a tool if it were reusable for other procedures.)


texts: How should I connect these two yellow wires?

texts: I don't know what this cap is... is it ok to cut it off and splice the two yellow wires together as I have been with the previous splices.


texts: Should I use uncoupling membrane for tile on concrete floor?

texts:
One flooring company said they would install an uncoupling membrane when installing tile over my 100-year-old basement laundry room's concrete floor.  OIs there a good reason to do use a membrane?

It strikes me as overkill. There are no cracks in the concrete, and I believe the concrete has been there for a long time.  Our floor is painted, and we have zero moisture escaping from below per the plastic bag test.  There are control joints through the room and they are uneven height, though not cracked.  They'll be using a paste (not a true leveling compound) to even out and flatten the area.


texts: How do I remove carpet tape from a painted wall?

texts:
How to remove carpet tape from painted wall without damaging the paint?

This article suggests using warm cooking oil, but I am afraid the oil will irreversibly damage the paint.

Should I try some adhesive remover or is there an easier way?

EDIT:
The wall paint is regular water based color.


texts: Do I need to upgrade to a 400A panel with solar?

texts:
I'm getting solar installed with some powerwalls. As it stands I'm going to have my entire house backed up.

However, I plan to add two EV chargers in the future and I don't want these backed up.

The solar contractor told me this:

  Main has to have no other breaker except Gateway supply breaker and main breaker  to comply with 705.12.(D)(2)(3)(c)

After doing my own research, that makes sense to me.

They told me I would have to upgrade to a 400A main panel so I can feed the existing 200A gateway/sub and then a second 200A sub for my EV chargers.

After running some numbers (and just looking at what is here today) I don't think I need anywhere near 400A of power for my property. That's A LOT of power.

It's not a massive 4000sqft mansion with 10 AC units, it's 2000 sqft with a single 5ton AC and a pool and a few gas applicances.

We currently have a main with a 100A breaker and all of our loads work fine.

Even if we do decide to add 2 EV chargers we would be at 180A max, but we wouldn't have everything on while the 2 EV chargers are in use.

In my mind 200A should be just fine, am I missing something?

This was quoted as an additional $2-3k

It may even just be cheaper to just get a second meter installed for just the cars, the SCE site estimates that at $1500.

My question is, do I need to upgrade to 400A service to add my EV chargers?

I'm located in Southern California on SCE.

Link to proposed electrical plans


texts: Can a dishwasher be installed 8 feet from sink

texts:
I bought a new dishwasher, and the installer said they would not recommend installing it away from the sink (next to a lazy Susan 8 feet from sink pipes) because the pump is not strong enough to pump water away.

Do you agree that 8 feet is too far away from the drains to install a dishwasher?


texts: Emerson Liebert Air Conditioner Fan Runs Abnormal

texts:
We have 2 Emerson Liebert air conditioners inside a datacenter. Issue is not a home issue but devices are all same and I supposed finding some expert here. Here is the thing:

This 2 devices are designed to work together, communicating via network cables over ethernet switch. Both has Hiross compressors, one has an additional unit named Siemens Poly Cool Superheat (I am not sure but it might be something like Variable Frequency Drives). Our mechanic said its compressor is also different than other's.

This device was broken for over a year. We have had a mechanic fixed the device today. Everything seemed normal while the mechanic was at ours. Later, I have noticed something weird. Condenser's fan runs at a very high rpm than interrupts in 2 or 3 seconds. Then, just it is almost stopped, runs again at a high rpm. It continues like so. Even room temperature was over than set value, it runs like so.

Is there anyone knows about Hiross or Siemens Poly Cool module or Emerson Liebert air conditioners?


texts: My water main broke from the 45 degree angle elbow it has on it going down in my yard. The fitting just blows off when I reattached it. It's 40 degrees outside and the glue has had 6 hours of cure time. The main issue is the angle it is just slightly off. We are about to try a 22-1/2 degree angle fitting. Do I need to dig it completely out to do this or just reattempt it with a better angle? What would a pro do?


texts: Baseboard was not removed when new drywall installed. How to fix

texts: The drywall in my living room only goes up to the baseboard and is extremely uneven. It is cracking at the point of the baseboards. Can I remove the baseboards and patch in new drywall some how? Any suggestions?


texts:
I've recently moved to a new place and I wanted to clean a couple of superficial wall stains like I always did: using a clean cloth and a few drops of water. But apparently this wall paint is different (non-washable?) than in my previous apartment and I was left with this permanent damage:

Any idea what is the problem? And how to fix it decently without having to repaint the entire wall - I'm thinking spray paint or something?


texts: How can I hide the wires to a self-made ceiling light fixture?

texts:
I have a simple self-made ceiling light fixture, but it currently lacks two things:

some kind of a pipe to hide the wire.
a cover to hide the ceiling junction box.

I'd like to use something similar to what's used on this fixture to hide the wires in the ceiling, but I'm not sure what it's called or where I should look for it.

I also need to figure out how to hide the wires between the ceiling and the fixture itself.

What types of ready-made products should I use for this type of project?


texts: Do I need to do more prep work on this cement floor before putting in new tile?

texts:
In my basement i have a poured concrete floor, and we're re-doing the bathroom down there. It used to have Vinyl flooring, and we ripped it all up. The top vinyl part came up easily, but it left a bit of the paper backing glued to the floor. I've scraped as much as i can, but there's still a thin layer remaining. I'm wondering if I need do anything more, or if it will be ok to put down tile over top of that?

Any thoughts or suggestions?

Edit: Would it be worthwhile to throw a coat of paint over it to clean things up a bit? Just thinking out loud....


texts: My front steps are crumbling on the top. I wondered what I could do to fix this? Thanks in advance all!


texts: Outlets worked intermittently with voltage fluctuations and are now dead entirely

texts:
Just bought a home built in the 1920's, the knob-and-tube was updated a couple times at different eras but there is still fabric wrapped ungrounded wiring (FWUW) in many rooms.  The living room (and crawlspace/storage beneath it) is all FWUW on one circuit, two outlets on the circuit work six outlets (and two lights) don't.  They didn't stop working all of a sudden, it was a gradual decline which I hope can help lead to the solution:

2 weeks ago the 6 outlets and 2 lights just stopped working one night, the next day I tried the lights again and they came on for about 1 minute and then died again
The next day I measured the voltage on several of the outlets and they read ~1v across hot-neutral
The next day, investigating further, I measured them again and now they read ~60v across hot-neutral
A couple days later I plugged in a light into one of the outlets (forgetting they were dead) and the light worked for about 5 minutes and then died.
Now all dead outlets read ~1v.
The two working outlets read ~125v and have continuity across hot-neutral, the dead outlets read ~1v and have no continuity across hot-neutral.

Its an old house with lathe and plaster so its difficult to trace wires but I can't find an obvious junction box to investigate for bad connections, there are no GFCIs on the circuit and none of the outlets I found have pigtails w/bad connections.

Is there a particular issue I should be looking for and what technique(s) can I use to track it down?  Looking around here and elsewhere it could be a loose wire (haven't found one yet), a GFCI (none on the circuit) or a faulty 'shared neutral'?


texts:
I have a length of two Ethernet cables running upwards from a socket.
I vaguely know where they are (+-10cm), and I want to fix a Vesa mount to the wall near their route, so i need to trace exactly where they are, so I won't drill through them.
What would be the best way to find them?
Cables are run under plaster, on a brick wall, and since it's freshly finished,I really want to avoid digging them up.
I thought of connecting 230V to them, and use normal wire detector, but there has to be a safer way to do this.


texts: I finish off oak piece and finish feels like sand is in it - I used a fine oil brush and made sure the surface was sanded at 600 grit - wipe down with tack rag and still have a sand paper feel- so what gives?


texts: Strange sink behavior -- sink fills partially then drains at a normal pace

texts:
Our bathroom has two sinks of the type where the entire basin sits above the countertop level.  For several months (at least) now, the sink I normally use has filled up to about 2/3rds or so of its level when I first use it in the morning -- once it reaches that fill level though, it starts to drain normally and continues to drain normally for the rest of the day.  I looked under the sink, and it is P-trapped; also, other drains behave relatively normally in comparison, save for the adjacent sink, which also drains slowly at the same time as the sink I normally use.

Why is this going on? I'm stumped -- the only theory I can think of is a venting issue, but that wouldn't explain why it only occurs for these two sinks, but not the bathroom tub (which simply is sluggish to drain), or the washer immediately on the other side of the wall (if water couldn't get through the trap there, I'd expect it to go up the standpipe and start spilling out the top, and it hasn't).


texts: Does my toilet have a manufacturing defect?

texts: I purchased a Kohler toilet about 6 months ago for my bath remodel. I finally got the bath finished after a sequence of delays. The toilet is about 1/8" off level in the rear (see photo) and rocks significantly. BTW, this was not a cheap toilet so I'm a bit miffed. Before I try to exchanged it, I wanted to check if it's reasonable to do so. I know I can shim it but I feel like this is a manufacturing defect that shouldn't have left the factory. It's a Kohler Cimarron from HD.


texts:
I rent an apartment in Anchorage, Alaska. In my 15 years in this state I have never even considered air conditioning, but this apartment gets beastly hot in the summer. It has huge windows facing south and slightly west that just bake the place. Even with fans on high in front of all windows that open, it easily gets over 90F (32C), even though the outside temperature rarely gets over 75F (24C). Dammit! I didn't move to Alaska to be hot! My apartment complex requires that their blinds be visible from the outside, making blackout curtains problematic. We are allowed window AC units, but I'm not finding any that are powerful enough for my main living area that will also fit into the obvious window.

I'm definitely looking for the least expensive effective option. While environmental issues are always a concern, I don't pay my own electric, so electric usage is less of a concern than it would otherwise be. I can get a small unit now that will fit in the small window early in the season and add another later if that will help.

Window 1 is 16" wide. The opening is about 3 feet above the floor, and it is unobstructed by furniture. I wish I could find a 9,000 BTU unit that would fit there, but this 5,000 BTU unit is the only one I can find: Small AC Unit on Amazon. It says it is 16" wide, which is exactly how wide my window is (with perhaps 2mm of wiggle room). I will call the manufacturer before I purchase it to make sure that it will actually fit.

Windows 2 and 3 are 19" wide. They open about 1 foot from the floor. Flow from them will be blocked by the recliner, but I can pull it out to about 3 feet from the windows during the hot season.

The ceiling is level and of "average" height.

I might be able to squeeze this 10,000 BTU unit into window 2 or 3, but it will be close. I have less than 2mm of wiggle room. This 8,000 BTU unit will definitely fit. My biggest concern with units in either of those windows is that they will only be a foot from the floor.

So, if it will fit, can I get away with just the 10,000 BTU unit in window 2 or 3? Will just the 5,000 BTU unit help at all? Should I prepare to need the 5,000 BTU unit and the 8,000 BTU unit a month later (and hotter)? Is either window 2 or 3 a better option? I'm open also to any other advice you may have.


texts: Can I install recessed lighting in vaulted ceiling with 6" rafters?

texts: I would like to install recessed lighting in my vaulted ceiling.  One contractor I spoke with suggested not doing that because the rafters are shallow (only 6 inches), which does not leave much room for the light housing and not much room for insulation and a channel for moisture to escape.  Basically it will compromise the insulation of the roof. I already have ice dams that build up when there is heavy snow, so I don't want to add to the insulation problems. Any ideas as to if this can be done safely with 6" of roof to work with?  I would be using insulated lighting (ICAT).


texts: How can I extend this waste drain for new bathroom sink?

texts:
I'm looking to extend this pvc waste pipe coming out of the wall to accommodate my new bathroom sink.  It's too short as it is and doesn't quite reach the new p-trap placement.  Does anyone know how this is connected?  Is it glued or cemented in?  How do I remove and replace it with a longer piece and ensure I won't have a leak?
Appears like a galvanized steel connection in the wall.
UPDATE: I was able to twist and turn and get the drain pipe out far enough to make a decent connection (fully extended about 7.5" out).  The pipe wasn't threaded, just jammed in there.  Not sure how much of the pipe is left inside though, may be a concern.
Is it OK to use this extended pipe for my connection?
Do I need to glue or seal anything?  Or should I take completely out and install a new pipe?


texts: How can I go back to a gas water heater?

texts:
I recently got a condo unit (low rise condo) on the 4th (top) floor. The unit previously had a gas water heater but was replaced with an electric unit after the gas one broke down I suppose. This was before I got it.

I didn't realize the issues I'd be facing. The electric bills are too high. I thought of going back to gas water heater and asked the heater vendor to do an analysis. But, they refused saying that vent has a black pipe which needs to be changed to White PVC pipe and vent cannot be run through the unit.

Now, I am not sure what to do and the management is not willing to fix it for me. What can I do?

Thanks Jimmy, Zhentar and Comintern for your answers,

The hot water tank is also used to heat the unit during the winter times, this is what raising the electricity bills. And one more thing hurting is the Gas cost is covered by the maintenance bill and i am not using gas in this unit as the water heater is electricity, so i end up paying both the gas bill and electricity. And the other units in the building are having gas water heater.


texts: I have crawlspace with an earth floor. it is approx. 24" from the ground to the floor joist. I have  6 mil poly on the ground. I have vents that will be opened in the summer and closed during the winter. There are no heating or a/c ductwork in the crawlspace and the water lines are insulated to keep condensation from being a problem. What is the thought on installing insulation between the joist and if so what is the best type of insulation to use to keep it from keep insulation from hanging down over a period of time.


texts: Can an addition be attached to a post and pillar foundation

texts: I am looking to buy a home that has a post and pillar foundation. It is a one bedroom, so one of the requirements for the future is that it be able to be expanded to at least 2 bedroom. It is in the Seattle Greenlake area. My question is whether or not it is possible to build on an addition (one or two story) to the house and connect it to the existing post and pillar foundation?


texts: Understanding and repairing kitchen shelf door based on a gas spring

texts:
From my understanding, a gas spring has more or less unlimited life. However, in our kitchen (1) which is by now more than 10 years old, a kitchen shelf door using two 250N gas springs seems to get old: the springs can't hold the door and it slides down back.

Now please tell me if in the following construction it could be possible to remove and exchange the gas spring which is sold separately or I need to replace the "whole thing"(2) because of the rivets.

(1) the kitchen is of an unknown vendor

(2) I will add the image with the flip side to show the rivets but maybe there is a name for this type of the appliance "metal-frame-with-two-springs" so that I could google for its availability as well.


texts: How to best tap into this black steel gas line

texts:
I need to add a 3/4” line into this line.  I plan to swap out the 2 bushings and elbow with a tee (and a close nipple) that has one 1/2” for the existing line that goes to a dryer and the accommodate the new 3/4” on the other side. The main pipe is 1.25”.

I am hoping that I can just unwind the bushings without the need to cut and thread.

Will that work and any tips on doing so?


texts: What could cause frequent toilet clogs? It is not the usual suspects

texts:
We just moved into a new house. The upstairs toilet clogs a couple times per week and the downstairs toilet often takes two flushes. (Our plumber thinks the downstairs problem is just because the toilet is very old, so likely unrelated.)

Other factors:
-Our plumber already ran an auger and confirmed there is no clog in the line
-The offending toilet was replaced (it was a poor model with a small hole so we thought that might be the issue)
-Both before and after replacement, plunging has caused water to drip down the pipe into our downstairs bathroom.
-Before we bought the house, all the pipes were replaced. We think they have thought there was a leak due to the plunging issue-- we only figured out it was not a leak because the drywall was not yet put back in the ceiling where it drips out.
-There are no back-ups in any drain, so our plumber does not think it is the vent pipe since that would affect our sinks and tub as well.

I am not very confident in our plumber at this point-- we have been dealing with the son in a father/son business and he has to talk to his father for advice since he has no clue what is causing this.

Any suggestions of next steps? Everything I can find on Google does not really apply since we've had no issues at all except for the clogging and leaking while plunging. Everything I can find is either fixed by steps already taken, or has other problems not present.


texts: Can I replace a GFCI plug with a regular duplex?

texts: I need to replace a gfci plug that won't reset. That is with nothing plugged into it. It has a regular duplex about 8 feet away that won't work because the gfci is bad. I had this circuit added about 7 yrs ago to plug in my freezer and other items on a temp basis, like an extension cord or drill and so on. Can I just replace the gfci plug with a duplex and just make both regular plugs. If so , do I just put reg. plug in or do I need to wire it different.


texts:
My townhouse has some outdoor stairs built out of 6" x 8" lumber (i.e., the first step is comprised of two pieces of lumber (with no "nosing")). A couple of the steps are rotten and I need to change the lumber. There is a metal railing along the stairs, which is held down with screws in the lumber. I will need to remove that railing when changing the lumber. When comes time to re-install the railing, will I be able to reuse the same holes for screwing the railing back in place? I don't want to leave some visible holes (in the steps that did not need to be replaced) if I need to use different holes?

edit: The reason for me saying the railing needs to be removed is that (I believe) there is a nail underneath the railing metal plate on the first stair. I cannot confirm without removing the darn railing. After I asked the question about reusing the same screw holes to one of my neighbors (who is no more handy than I am), he suggested that I cut the step off near the nail and slide out the lumber (instead of taking off the railing). I am not sure how I would cut off the lumber in the first place, let alone cutting it close enough to the nail under the metal railing. Based on the (somewhat comforting!) answers below, am I correct in saying that using the same holes, with possibly longer lag bolts, would maintain a safe railing and be much easier than trying to cut off the lumber near the spikes?


texts: Causes of a framing nailer driver stuck in down position?

texts:
I have an Hitachi NR90AC5. It's oiled and has adequate pressure. There's something that's gone wrong with it recently, where it sometimes double fires (in single fire mode) and then the piston gets stuck down. I cannot push the piston back up by hand with the air disconnected).

I took it to a place, and they said it just needed cleaning and they cleaned it. But after I got it back it nailed off two more boards then stopped working again- same issue with the piston getting stuck down. I have an identical gun that works fine, so it's not the "cold" weather. (It's in the 40's-50's).

This gun was purchased in April. I'm just framing my own house, so it's not used that heavily.

I've repaired my finish nailer before, but I need to know what part to replace and where on the gun you open to fix it. It's not always obvious that a "bad" part is bad when looking at it. On my finish nailer, the bad part looked just fine. But after replacing the part, the gun worked correctly.

Does anyone know what part or parts to replace on this framing nailer that causes the symptom of a hard stuck down piston (sometimes preceded by double firing)?