texts: How can I remove the stench from a p-trap?

texts:
In my shower room, there's a hole that's always filled with disgusting, slimy water.

What I've tried

I've sponged it out a few times to clean, but that didn't really help.
I've poured bleach-containing laundry detergent in.  Didn't help.
I've poured vinegar in.  Didn't help.

My questions

Is it safe to put a chlorine pill in there? I've already done this.  The smell hasn't improved.  I'm worried about the fumes.
Should I put a cap over it?  Or is there another way to make it smell better?
I've heard there's a connected vent outside that may be clogged.  How do I find this?  What does it look like (add a photo if possible)?


texts: We painted new drywall before it was primed. Now I am painting a few years later and some of that paint peeled off. How do I fix this?

texts:
A few years ago we painted some drywall without priming it. Currently we are redoing the room with different colors. I am a novice painter so I put masking tape on that wall to have a clean Edge on the adjacent wall. When I pulled the tape off a lot of that paint on unprimed drywall came off. Are there any options besides removing all of the old paint? I have scraped some of it and got it to a point where it's on a little better. It seems to be the worst at top of wall.

Additionally, as I scrape the paint off the drywall have noticed that the drywall seems to be powdery. The guy that did the drywall is extremely anal about dust so I don't think it's from when it was originally done. Soft maybe a better way to describe it. My scraper easily digs into the drywall.


texts: My radon manometer has a red reading, what should I do?

texts:
We purchased a home a few years ago and it has a radon mitigation system. I just happened to go downstairs and look at it and noticed this reading. What should I check? Should I be alarmed?

EDIT

Thank you for the link to the manual. The fan is on a pipe coming out of the house and is plugged in to the outlet on the side of the house. I can't tell (tried both listening and feeling for vibration) if it's running and I checked to ensure that the breaker hadn't been flipped.

As for checking the oil - I haven't quite been able to figure out how to do that.


texts: Rough estimate of tile cutter wheel durability

texts: Can somebody give a rough estimate about the lifetime of a tile cutter wheel? I own a Sigma 3b4  which works with the 14A wheel.


texts: Connect 4" Dryer Vent Duct to 4" Exhaust Pipe

texts:
I just had a new dryer installed.

The installer said I needed to buy a pipe reducer because the dryer vent duct and the exhaust pipe are both 4". He cut some holes in the dryer vent duct to fan it out and taped around it but said it will leak air and lint until a reducer is added.

Will this reducer work?

https://www.homedepot.com/p/100149942

Or should I buy something else? Thank you.


texts:
Not sure how often a sump should cycle. I have a battery backup installed in case of a failure and it has adequate flow to keep up. The pump runs for 10-15 seconds about every minute after a rain. In the picture you can see how much water is flowing in to the pit id say the rate is equivalent to a sink facuet at 1/2 to 3/4 open.

I did replace the check valve as i read that could cause it but the water isnt coming back in from the discharge pipe.

Is this to frequent? Where should i start looking?


texts: Can I partially suspend an angled climbing wall from my garage trusses?

texts:
I'm planning on building a home climbing wall in my garage. I'm wondering about the structural integrity of attaching it to the trusses. They are 2x4s, 24" apart, and span about 30 feet.

This image shows basically how I would build the wall (the left one):

My wall will be 8' wide by 12' tall at a 45 degree angle (I have 9ft ceilings). Since this is a bit of an aggressive angle I'm concerned about attaching that much weight to my trusses.

I would also be adding some support from the middle/upper area of the climbing wall back to the garage wall, similar to this image:

If that doesn't seem like it would be alright, how can I modify it to work? I was thinking I could add some 4x4 posts to the each side of the top plate, but I would prefer less intrusive options.

Would I need to reinforce the garage wall too? I can double up the studs if that's necessary

One last question, that original image is using 2x6s for the climbing wall frame, would 2x4s be alright as well? I've seen a bit of both on the internet.

Thanks for any advice.

Edit:
Here are some pictures of the attic I took a while ago, I tried to add an outline for where the wall will go (roughly).

Here's an image to help visualize what I'm hoping the wall to be:

EDIT: Current Plan

Per most recommendations I shouldn't attach much weight to the trusses. My current plan is to anchor the climbing wall heavily to the garage wall with joists at an angle (like the second picture but beefier).

For attaching the top of the climbing wall to the trusses I'm going to lay a 2x6 across about 6 trusses on top from within the attic and then bolt a 2x6 from within a garage to that one (so the trusses are sandwiched in between), that way I don't need to drill/bolt into the bottom chords at all.

I'll be doing the same thing about halfway between the top of the climbing wall and the garage wall and attach the climbing wall there as well. In that way whatever load is on the bottom chords will be spread out across a larger area.


texts: Why is the neutral tab broken with only one neutral wire?

texts:
I'm replacing 15 amp outlet receptacles in my home and I came across an outlet that had me confused.

The receptacle has two hot wires (a black wire and red wire) with the hot tab broken.  The receptacle has one neutral wire with the neutral tab broken.

What has me concerned is that the neutral tab is broken and there's only one neutral wire.  What scenario would call for that wiring configuration?


texts: I live in the Northeast area of the US, and my emergency heat on my furnace/ac is broken. Can I get thru the winter months without fixing it?


texts: I'm trying to replace a light switch with a new light switch (zwave lightswitch) that requires a 3 wire set up. When I took the old light switch off it was connected with two wires, a black wire and a red wire. There were also two white wires that were just connected to each-other (is that the 3rd wire I need?). This light switch junction seems to be powering an electrical outlet in my room because it is no longer working after I disconnected the light switch. (Could those white wires be what was connecting the outlet?) Does anyone have any ideas as to what I did wrong?


texts: Creaking / Clicking noise coming from wood / cardboard

texts:
Feel like I'm starting to lose my mind with this one.

I'm regularly hearing a noise in at least two rooms of the house, which I can best describe as a creaking or clicking. I've listened to recordings of deathwatch beetles and it's definitely not that. It sounds almost exactly like a door creaking gently except very faint.

When present, this noise repeats in intervals of about 5 seconds. It's barely audible, just on the edge of hearing - so much so that it's almost impossible to pinpoint it to one place. I've tracked it down to above one of the cupboards in the kitchen, behind a set of shelves in the study (possibly IN the shelf) and bizarrely, an old box of tea bags.

That last one is what really throws me, but I'm 100% sure. The box was on the counter, and I was able to put my ear right up to it, and the sound was very pronounced. I was sure it was some kind of audible woodworm or something, but now that I've found it in a tea bag box I'm unsure. I emptied that tea bag box and found no bugs or insects.

The sound appears to be organic in nature, because if I make a disturbance in the area, the sound stops. In the case of the cupboard and shelves a sharp bang or shake, in the case of the tea bags I just lifted the box.

I have quite sensitive hearing and my wife can't hear the noise. She's starting to look at me funny when I talk about it. The only recording equipment I have is my phone, and that's not sensitive enough to pick it up.

I'm going to see if I can find an old laptop with a mic port and record it next time I hear it, but until then has anyone got any ideas what this could be?

NOTE:

It's definitely NOT a mouse. I know what a mouse sounds like, and there was no mouse in my box of tea-bags. This is something much, much smaller. Something small enough to live inside cardboard.

Update

finally managed to capture the noise on my phone. apologies for the low sound quality. There's a lot of background noise from just the electronics in the phone. The house was completely silent last night.

https://soundcloud.com/roryok/weird-noise

You'll hear it four times in all. I've edited the track to reduce the waiting time, but the sounds were about 20-30 seconds apart

Update 2

I've since found out the bugs are called "paper-lice" and are quite fond of eating cardboard / paper (hence the name). No idea how to get rid of the little buggers but at least I know I'm not going crazy.

Here are two photos of the bugs in question:

The two giant yellow things are popcorn kernels!

zoomed out slightly, so you can see the scale properly. These guys are tiny


texts: Safe heater options for small cabin with no electric

texts:
I'm trying to set up a safe heater for an 8'x20' cabin. The cabin is based on a standard steel container. I want one that doesn't require electric, and exhausts any fumes to the outside. I'm in the process of insulating at R9. This is in Missouri to give you an idea of the temperatures involved. It was 16F this morning, but I probably wouldn't be using the cabin if it were much colder.

I have access to a wood stove, but that's really too big and hot. I have a catalytic heater, but that requires leaving a window open because of the use of oxygen.

An ideal soluton, if I could find it, would be a very small kerosene heater that would install on one wall, or better yet, like a window air conditioning unit. The heat would go inside, but the fumes outside. I haven't yet seen anything like that. I have seen a larger kerosene heater in an old Maine house that sat on the floor and exhausted through the wall, so a smaller, wall-mounted version of that is what I'm envisioning.

I want to avoid fire hazards and fumes. It could be kerosene, or some alternative.


texts:
Recently, I was replacing a fan switch at the ceiling fan on an older ceiling fan. While I had the power off, I decided to try to correct some wiring at the wall switches. The light switch at wall worked fine. The fan switch is one of those round ones where you turn it to the right or left to adjust fan speed and turn to the left to turn off.  What was happening here was the fan speed was not being changed, but the light would brighten/dim and then cut off when you turned the knob a certain direction.  The fan and light switches are in separate boxes. The fan switch has 4 wires coming in (from House, to ceiling fan, to light switch, blue wire from ceiling fan to control light.  Based on the behavior of fan switch, I believe the wiring was as follows
1. Black Home wire, Black wire from fan switch, Black Fan wired together
2. Black Light and Black Wire from fan switch wired together.
3. White Home and Blue wire wired together.
4. White to fan and and White Light wired together
5. Grounds wired together. This is an older switch, so no ground from fan switch itself.

To correct and make fans switch work properly, shouldn't the black Fan wire from #1 been swapped with Black Light wire from #2?


texts: Why wont my AC turn on after adding new Honeywell wifi thermostat?

texts: Bare with me here i literally know nothing about wiring besides wiring a car stereo system. Here are some pics of how my system was setup prior to me substituting my g for my c wire on the new thermostat. I then jumped the y and g wire on the main board. this is supposed to only disable the circulate function which I'm okay with. The fan turns on with the new thermostat and heat blows just fine, but nothing for the AC function. You can see that there is a seperate 2 wire (red & white) connected to the y and c terminals. I think the lead out towards the AC unit itself not the thermostat. Im not sure what to reconnect those to??? That has to be why my AC isnt turning on. Please someone help me! ☺


texts: How to tell if breaker box can handle another tandem breaker?

texts:
Our home has a Square D breaker box Cat. No. QO 30HW Series E6 (based on the sticker inside the panel).

It has 30 physical spaces, and the bottom 4 (27-30) have tandem breakers on them.
I am looking to add another tandem breaker which as I understand it is acceptable based on info provided in this article provided the box will accept it.

What I do not know is whether my box will accept another tandem switch.
Based on this article, the diagram should indicate whether it will accept tandem switches.

That article has this diagram as an example of a box that will not accept any tandem switches:

Looking at the diagram inside my box, it looks pretty similar to me:

However as mentioned, 27-30 already have tandem switches on them, and they work (work = I can independently turn off each switch and only impact that switch).

I cannot seem to find any literature on the box (probably because I don't know what to actually search for).
Also, if it will accept another tandem switch, I don't know if it has to be the kind with clips on top and bottom, or if it will take the hook style. Again this might be answered with some literature about the box.

Does the diagram indicate where tandems are acceptable?

EDIT:
This is another picture of the diagram in my box. It's about as good as I can get without pulling out the breakers on that side.


texts:
I have just had a knock-through done and was wondering about boxing-in the gap ready for plastering.

I know the process for boxing in the steel beam, but where the hole was made there is now an uneven part of the wall one brick thick. I'm not sure dot and dab will work, as the wall is thin.

I was wondering how people go about attaching plaster-board/tidying this up.

Thanks!


texts: Is PEX water piping allowed in San Francisco?

texts: I’m sorry if this is inappropriate to ask so specifically for San Francisco dwellers, but I couldn’t find the answer this online.  Does anyone know if PEX plumbing is allowed for water piping solutions?


texts: Hard wire into a recessed fluorescent can

texts:
Can I /or how can I hard wire a new ceiling hanging pendant into the existing fluorescent can in my dining room. I live in a building and have no access above.
Upgrade Time


texts: Is it ok to sister a joist to burnt joist?

texts: I am about to purchase a house that was damaged in a fire and sitting for 4 years. The fire was mostly contained to a small area, but some joists were burned quite badly, while other just had some discoloration. I'm going to be putting in new joists, but I wanted to see if it was best just to sister up to the existing badly burned joists or if would be be better to remove them altogether? There is no smoke smell from anything since it's been sitting for so long, and I couldn't think of any way that the burned joists could damage the new joists, and I figured that as long as they didn't cause any damage to the new joists, they just provide some extra strength so it seemed better to leave them, but wanted to check my logic.


texts:
I'm working on building a table, and I'm trying to find some lumber to use for the legs. I've found some 3" x 3" x 3' lumber nearby, which is more or less exactly what I need, however it's relatively expensive.

By that I mean, it's about twice as expensive (per board foot) compared to buying several 1" x 3" boards.

My question is, is there some method of joining three 1" x 3" boards together (I am aware that this will give me a 2.25" x 2.5" result, instead of the 2.5" x 2.5" or a nominally 3" x 3" piece of lumber, but this is acceptable) such that they will be sufficiently strong for the legs of a table (assuming I am going to taper them)?

Or, should I just go ahead and buy the more expensive solid pieces of wood?


texts: How can I fix a toilet that flushes incompletely?

texts:
The toilet in one of our bathrooms routinely flushes incompletely. It does not clog or back up, but it takes several fill/flush cycles to get all the "material" to go down. It just seems to be weak overall, like the flush volume is too low. I suspect that this is the original toilet that was installed when the house was built (early 1970s).

Short of replacing the toilet, is there anything I can do?


texts: I have 200 amp service. I want a subpanel to handle my garage outlets hot tub and a small welder. besides normal power tools such as a miter saw table saw and ets. I have 3/4 inch pipe ran to my garage already. What are your recmondations. is 60amp #6 wire enough. Can I bulk up the wire such as a #4 run 3 runs in 3/4inch pipe even though its over kill?


texts: Pressure relief valve stuck - leave alone or force it?

texts: Have a Rheem "Everkleen" 50gal water tank.  Water is heating fine, but fear ive let it go too long. Have not drained it since the house was built in 2008, yet another thing Ive discovered that needs maintenance around a house. Tried to test the pressure relief value and it wouldnt budge.  There is pretty heavy mineral content to the water here, especially chlorine.  Should I leave it alone or use a little "extra" with a tap from a pair of pliers etc?  Last thing I want to happen is start it to leak.


texts: Is it safe to use old wood lath from demolition as firewood?

texts: I removed  two room's worth of walls and ceiling horsehair plaster and wood lath from a home built in 1890. Would the plaster or paint used in those days cause the wood to release any toxins when burned? I'm wondering if the material can safely be used for firewood.


texts: I'm a computer programmer so this isn't my field, however I am a new home owner... Our new house has vinyl siding, one of the corner prices has what appears to be a 6inch or so gap near the roof exposing the wood beneath. Is there an easy way to push this price back in to place, it seems to have slid down, there is a similarly lengthened surplus at the bottom, also I'm left to wonder if it is standard to not have some method to nail or otherwise pin the piece in to place so it wouldn't slip.


texts: Advice on adding a LPG Gas Boiler on Central Heating System with a Hot Water Storage Tank heated with Solar Panels

texts:
I am from Kathmandu, Nepal, and presently trying to install a central heating system in my house using Solar Water Heater.
Background:
Winter days in Kathmandu lasts about 130 days a year. Minimum temperature during the night is 0°C and during the day time is 18°C. Out of 130 winter days, 120 days are sunny days (6 to 7 hours every day).
Solar hot water heating systems for domestic hot water are very popular and have been successfully used for more than 2 decades already.
Plan:
I am going to use the similar system to heat the water and store it in a storage tank to circulate it through radiators throughout the winter. This new system will be used solely for heating purpose and NOT for domestic hot water.
After careful calculation of heat requirements and radiator planning for every room, I have decided to have a 1000 liter hot water storage tank and 5 solar panels to heat the water on my roof top (I have ample of space on my roof for this).
Water temperature is easily heated to 70-80°C solely by solar panels. This water will circulate in the radiators and back to storage tank. In my calculation the 1000 liter tank will keep my house warm until approximately 3 am, then the water temperature will go down, as there is no sun during the night and also during cloudy days. From that point, I wanted to install a LPG Gas Boiler to heat the water.
Question:
I have some confusion on where to install the Boiler:

Shall I install it bypassing the storage tank thus boiler needs to heat only the volume circulation in the radiators and not the whole 1000 liter tank?
Shall I install it to heat the water inside the storage tank and heat the whole water?
Water from storage tank flows through boiler then to radiators. The boiler is controlled by the room thermostat. But I'm not sure if the water can still flow when the boiler is not running. (Diagram Attached)

I have 2 thermostats in the room as a reference of temperature. One thermostat to stop the circulating pump if room temperature is more than 24°C. The other thermostat is to start the gas boiler if the room temperature falls below 16°C.
The problem I am facing if I choose Option 1: the Boiler will start when temperature drops below 16°. Then I do not need to run the circulating pump - how do I turn it off. And vise versa?
I am attaching a diagram for the reference on what I am planning to do. Any help and if anyone had an experience with similar installation would be a really great help.
Presently during winter days, we are using fireplace in the sitting room and everyone gathers around it in the evening, while the remaining house is gets as low as 9°C.


texts: Why does my electric fence arcing cause my LED lights to flicker?

texts:
Barn.  Electric fence.  Electric fence drifted a little too close to the non-electric fence and it started arc'ing between them with every pulse.  Very small arc, across about 1mm.

No big deal - happens once in a while and is easy to fix.

BUT, this time, I happened to walk into the barn with all of the lights off while this was happening and I just happened to see all of my 100W LED flood lights pulse the very slightest of light ... with ... every ... single ... arc.

Why is this happening ?  I do think these LED flood lights are on the same circuit breaker as the electric fence energizer, but of course they are also on a lightswitch and that lightswitch was OFF.

So how do my LED floods get a tiny little flash of electricity to produce a tiny little glow every single time the electric fence pulse makes an arc ?

No, this does not happen during normal (non arc-ing) operation.

Thanks.


texts: How can I mitigate copper naphthenate (copper green) smell indoors?

texts:
Our contractor treated the edge of some plywood and the bottom of some studs with copper naphthenate. The goal was to treat yummy wood at the concrete interface, which is a good thing since termites love our house.

But the smell!

I can't stand it, especially in the small one stall bathroom.  Various other people who have walked into the space have noticed and commented on the smell... and right now the area is perpetually open and has been for weeks.

And I know the smell lasts forever. Yet here the wood in question will mostly be covered by drywall.  Is there anything can I do to mitigate the copper green smell? Has anyone else been successful in containing such a smell?

The product was:
Cuprolignum Standard Green No. 300, by Rudd Paint & Varnish Company

Copper naphthenate 34.5%
Chloroorthophenylphenol 2.5%
Petroleum Solvent 63%

Slogan "Where there is Cuprolignum there is no rot"


texts:
This pipe under my sink just recently started leaking at a very slow drip. The knob doesn't budge either way, at least not with my hand.

Best way to address it? I was thinking I could simply get some plumbers tape and maybe a cap to just close it up? Or is that not good practice?

If a cap would work, can anyone eyeball what size that it is so I can find it online or ask for it at the store?

Thanks.


texts: Replacing existing and working 3way with smart switch

texts:
I m trying to replace my old 3way switch with new one, Zooz Z-Wave Plus On Off Wall Switch ZEN21 (White) VER. 2.0

Here is how my wiring looks, the color of the wires is wrong(my guess as traveller should be red):

That's why assumed what every wire is. This is how the other side of the 3way looks like :

I don't have the photo of the switch I m trying to replace but it looked exactly like the opposite side switch. Neutral was connected on one side, and line and load on the other. Assuming I was correct that white wire is Neutral.

This is the back of my new switch :

This is how I wired it now, put traveler in traveler, and neutral in neutral, as well as line and load on the other side. Again this is assuming my assumptions were correct in the first image :

I hope it does not matter in which hole I put the wires in, upper or lower ones on the backside of my new switch. As every type(neutral, traveler, line and load) has 2 holes to put the wire in

The LED light on the new switch turns on when the other side of the switch is turned off, indicating that something is not wired right :

Also turn on/off on the new switch does nothing. What am I doing wrong here? What can I try to wire this right. I mean the old simple switch worked just fine, did I buy something I can't really use on its own, or I messed up the wiring?

Edit 1:
The old switch did not make use of the 'traveler' wire, and it worked. Again provided that my guess about traveler wire is actually accurate in image 1.

Edit 2:

The light is now constantly on in this scenario, and I can turn it off and on from the other switch (black wires are touching). That would probably mean one of the black ones is traveler wire right? I think I m really close here, any ideas?

Edit 3:

Since Harper pointed to me earlier in comments guessing isn't productive. So I watched this short video to figure out configuration of my switches, there are two. I managed to have these both switches working after watching the video using 'old' switches :

1) Switch A with hot wire, and two travelers. I used exact same steps as explained in video. I do not have any red wires like in video, but person in the video said 'once you disconnect both switches and you find a switch where there is house current, thats a hot one, others are travelers'
2) Switch B(I m trying to replace this switch) with load wire, and two travelers. This is my current setup :

Two travelers into two traveler sockets, neutral from the wall into neutral, load into load. I really don't get why is this working especially because I managed to get the old switch to old switch re-wired and working. Its just how to 'map' existing working wire configuration into this new fancy switch with different labels. For example there is no socket called common, here is a photo again:

https://i.stack.imgur.com/D17GF.jpg


texts:
The aerator on my bathroom faucet gets dirty, so I've been cleaning it out now and again by rubbing a paper towel around the bottom. I think I did this with too much force, because the plastic interior snapped right off.

Apparently you can unscrew an aerator and replace it, but this is my landlord's sink, so I just want to be sure what part to unscrew. I've attached images of the sink and the piece of the aerator that snapped off. Any ideas?


texts: Wood stain is not tacky but still leaves residue on cloth

texts:
I built a wooden table using Pine. I sanded and stained the whole thing, wiping off the excess. It is in my garage and temperatures have been in the upper 40s - low 50s so I was expecting longer drying times.
Now, about 7 days later, the stain feels dry to the touch and is not tacky but when I wipe it with a white cloth (like an old t-shirt) I see stain residue coming off on the cloth. This will not do for a table that will be in the house and leaned on (and probably climbed on) by small children.
Is this because the stain hasn't fully dried or is this a product of some other factor? Do I need to attempt to strip/sand and re-stain it?


texts: What NEC code limits circuit breaker selection?

texts:
I'm looking for a citation of the section of code that states more or less "You may only use breakers in a breaker panel that said panel lists as approved for use therein.".

What is the section number and actual verbiage as of the 2014 NEC?


texts: Wiring 240v where 12/2 wire using a 20 amp circuit breaker is present

texts:
I have a 20 amp breaker that is providing juice to the new outlets I installed in my basement. I would like to put a space heater in the three rooms.
The space heater allows for (1000/1500/1600W, 120/208/240V) but I am concerned that 1000/120v will not be enough. Will I have to run separate wire for 240 or can I change out the circuit breaker with a 220? Will that impact what I can use with all of the outlets that are currently wired to the 20 amp breaker?


texts: Can I use a twisted-pair cable for ADSL and phone?

texts:
I want to connect my home phone line network to my ISP box and my ISP box directly to the France Telecom line using twisted pair cable.

Initially, room 1 was connected directly to the FT line, so I disconnected it in the FT box, connected the two wires coming from the room and the two wires from the FT line to the twisted pair cable. At the other end, I connected two phones socket, where I plugged the ISP box.

Now it looks like this:

The problem is that since I did that, my noise margin dropped from 7,2dB to 5dB, CRC errors started to appear, and the download bandwidth dropped from 7,8Mbps to 5,8Mbps. If I disconnect the phone from the ISP box, it's back to normal. Also, using a phone filter on the phone socket connected to the ISP box improves the bandwidth up to 6,8Mbps.

I think there's some interferences between the phone and the ADSL line. How do I solve that?

I'm using cat6a FTP cable, do I need to connect the shielding to the ground?

Do the two wires from the phone line have to be connected on the same pair or separate pairs? Is their a norm on connecting those? (like ADSL on blue/whiteblue wires and phone on green/whitegreen wires for example)

Would I need to have two separate cables for the ADSL and phone?


texts: Should I use a wire or soft sponge to clean a solder tip?

texts:
I will be buying something to clean my soldering tip.

I think my choices are either bronze looking metal wire sponges or yellow soft sponges.

Which one is the right tool to clean soldering iron tips?
Which one should be used when?

Currently I'm soldering:

63/37 tin (various diameters)
Wires (various diameters)
40w 60w iron


texts: Can I clean a second story dryer vent that goes out the roof from the inside?

texts: My dryer vent goes from the second story to the roof.  The problem is that I can't reach the roof.  I bought one of those dryer vent cleaners that you can put on your drill and spin it up the vent.  Currently it goes 8 feet.  Could I buy another one and go up 16 feet and just push or pull the excess lint all the way from the roof top or is it better to have someone do it from the roof.  Also, are there other things a professional will do besides use a long brush?


texts: I have a contractor who gave me a quote to replace a 72' outdoor gas line to a 400K BTU pool/spa. The previous line was 3/4" IPS and that is also the current line size that is coming from the Meter. His quote states 1" PE IPS gas pipe. The meter is an AC-630 and the pressure regulator is an 1813C, both from American Meter company. I'm assuming the pressure is 2 PSIG since 3/4" pipe was previously used and the spa heater worked fine, but I haven't had a pressure test done. I'm looking for feedback whether he is ok in going from 3/4 IPS to 1" PE IPS pipe or if he should have quoted 3/4" PE IPS pipe. I asked him about whether it was the proper size, but he didn't respond back. I would like your feedback before I qet a new quote. Thanks.


texts: How to protect stone masonry wall from weather

texts:
My external walls are made from natural stone and they were built in 1900. The weather has stripped the paint off and is causing wear to the wall. The current paint used on the wall is a matt black which has faded.

For the window seals I applied PVA glue as a protector and to leave a natural look. Only problem is the glue returns to normal state when freezing outside.

I would like to protect my external wall from the weather, how can I do this?. I would preferably like it to be a natural look. Is there a glue that works during freezing? Should I just buy a black masonry paint which will stand out? Or does anyone have any other ideas?

I have searched online but still unsure. Thanks.


texts: What's the fastest way to strip paint off of a piece of installed trim/moulding?

texts: Let's say you have some detailed moulding around several interior doors and you want to strip the paint off with the least amount of labor (time-wise)? How would you go about it? Heat gun, chemicals, removing the trim and reinstalling, etc are all options.


texts: Is Duck/Duct tape safe to use to insulate mains wires?

texts: Question says it all really. Based in the UK so mains is 240v and 20 amps. It's a lighting circuit.


texts: Extend AC hose and install an additional fan

texts:
I have an AC in my dorm which works great. During summer I connect the AC via a fitting to the window to cool the room. Due to restructuring of my chamber I want to move the AC in one of the corners of my room. However the hose is not long enough and I suspect the power of the integrated fan is not either.

Can I install an additional fan which sucks air "through" the AC? Intuitively I would say the additional fan has to be as large as such that the volume flow is the same as if the AC is placed directly near the window?
Is this consideration correct?
And how is it best realized?


texts: Mitsubishi Hyper Heat Models Capacity Weirdness

texts:
Why do some of the h2i models not have 100% capacity at 5 degrees like advertised.
These models, in fact, don't even list a 5 degree sizing, but drop off at their 17 degree like traditional heat pumps.

I'm concerned that the performance might also suffer at the lower temperatures if the capacity is.  I'm in NH and hoping to use it as primary with supplemental wood heat, but I was hoping to do a pair of units to make line runs shorter and it seems like only the larger units match the promises of the brochure.

Source Data:
Marketing Brochure
Spec sheet


texts: Can Cat 5 cable be run in metal conduit?

texts: I want to run Cat 5 cable along the side of my home in 1/2 in. EMT Conduit.  I was considering actually pulling to Cat 5 cable in that conduit.  Will this cause any problems on a 100Mbps connection between a video camera and my GB switch?


texts: Underlay for saddle roof? Does side matter?

texts:
I am renovating my attic. Because the house is about 150y old there is no underlay. I installed an underlay from the inside by stapling an underlay to the bars which hold the roof. The underlay should guarantee that the water can drain to the outside. Now the problem is that I used the printed side facing inside, whereas in most videos I have watched so far the printed side always faces outside. Will the underlay still be waterproof?
I am using this product
Underlay for roof
EDIT: The technical documentation states: (translated)
3-layered, functional layer protected by PP fleece on both sides


texts: Is there a trick to getting round HVAC duct pieces to fit together

texts: I have been doing some basic HVAC duct work as part of a remodeling project and I can never get the pieces to fit together without massive amounts of elbow grease and mangling the ends. Is there some kind of trick that I am missing that makes it easier? I am working with 6 inch, and 7 inch sheet metal duct and vent boots as well as some flex duct.


texts: What is this plastic insert inside of copper pipe?

texts: I found this plastic piece inside of a 3/4" copper pipe.  Is it a random discovery, or a leftover  from the manufacturer, or some type of water reducer?


texts: My ceiling fan keeps running at a very low speed although the power switch is turned off at the wall switch and by the pull cord. Is there any danger, and what is happening?


texts: How to attach a bolt down post support to a fast set concrete post built with

texts:
What is the procedure to attach a bolt down post support to a fast set concrete base post? WHat type of bolts and what size should I use to attach this? One of the posts will support a 39" wide gate, the other two will support a 8.5' wide horizontal fence
http://www.quikrete.com/ProductLines/QuikTubeBuildingForm.asp   -this is the tube

http://www.homedepot.ca/product/bolt-down-in-khaki-4-in-x-4-in/971849 -this is the post support

The final result should be something like below but at ground level. BTW, the one home auger seem to have bits shorter that 3' which is how deep I need to dig here in Toronto to put a post in the ground. I am not sure if this is valid for this type of post

Here is the picture I am referring to in my answer


texts: I have hired a contractor to build a patio style concrete roof for my hotel. He is in the middle of construction but when it starts to rain, I can see water starting to leak through the ceiling. What is the reason for this? Is the contractor using cheap material or not building it properly?


texts: What is the ideal lumen output and temperature range for my computer room?

texts:
I have replaced an older 100W incandescent light bulb with an led 3000K 1400 lumen light bulb but it seems very bright so I wonder if the lumen output is too high. How can I calculate the correct lumen output needed for my space?

What is an ideal lightbulb temperature for computer room/use? The 3000K led is a lot whiter than the old incandescent, perhaps easier on the eyes but too bright in my case.

Room Diagram:


texts: How can I trim off the corner of this stud?

texts:
As I was preparing to install a 3-gang old-work box I discovered a random cripple stud whose only purpose for existing is screwing up this project for me:

In the bottom right is the corner of a 2x6 which is flush against the back drywall and against a stud to its right and extends all the way down to the sole plate. Using an inspection mirror I determined that there is nothing attached to it or passing through it anywhere along its length, and there's nothing on the other side of the wall either (not even any sign of drywall patching).

How can I trim off the corner of this stud so that I can install my old-work box? (The actual area of interference is about 1" high and 1/2" wide.)


texts: Is a NIOSH mask advised when sanding a fully dried hardwood floor?

texts:
I understand that a NIOSH mask is necessary if one is applying an oil-based polyurethane.

Is a NIOSH mask needed or advised if one is sanding a hardwood floor with a polyurethane of unknown type, but one that has dried many years ago?

On the (very possible) case that the polyurethane used was an oil-based one, will organic fumes be released again when sanding a perfectly dried such hardwood floor?

Update

If an NIOSH-approved mask is recommended, Should I use an N95, N99, ... ?


texts: Toilet water level lowers when other toilet flushes

texts:
I finally have 2 upstairs toilets working after a lengthy bathroom remodel. What I noticed is when one toilet is flushed, the other toilet water level goes down, almost all the way. The lower level toilet is not affected.

Both toilets flush fine and there are no clogs. After flushing sometimes the water level floats up and down a bit.

From what I've gathered so far this is related to improper venting. I got on the roof and can't see any obstructions in the vent. I read about a technique for flushing by using a garden hose, but snow is preventing trying that now. Also I in the basement it looks like I can unscrew a cap on the pvc pipe to see if there's a clog.

This past year my basement flooded about 6", so perhaps that is related. Also had a new roof installed, so not sure if they dropped anything down the vent.


texts: Where are the flies in my Toronto condo coming from?

texts:
My new 2-bedroom condominium, built in 2010, lies on the 9th floor and near Eglinton TTC station. I got no plants. My kitchen sink has no garbage disposal.  I keep all food or produce in the refrigerator, and nothing left in the open.
Now, and even in winter, I see around 1 fly at least once a week in my unit. But I can't figure out why! I identified 5 possible sources:
Doubtful Sources. It can't be the:

Garbage can. I empty the garbage every day, and  I don't see flies in the garbage can that I sanitize every week.

Balcony door and windows.  I never open them, especially in winter!!! It's shut and locked. Anyways, all my windows have insect mesh screens.

Front Door. I asked my condo's superintendent if the flies are flying from outside thru the building`s corridor and public area ventilation, then sneaking past the gaps at the side of my front doors. But he said all corridor air must pass a MERV 12 filter.

Condo's air vents. My condo has just 1 air intake — see picture underneath. Management arranges the air filter to be replaced every 6 months — no flies!

Possible Sources

Bathrooms ceiling fans? Perhaps the flies flew inside thru the bathroom ceiling fans, from the outside? But then why would there be flies outside in Toronto's frosty winters?

Kitchen Exhaust Fan? Same difficulty as 3.


texts: How to wire black and white wires from new light to existing wiring

texts: while installing a new light to replace the existing i found that there was only the black wire that was being used from the box. both the red and white wire in the box ran straight thru the box and were not being used. how can i hook up the new light that has black and white wires?


texts: How can I further diagnose my central air conditioning compressor fan motor and capacitor?

texts:
I have a 15 year old Bryant Central Air unit in my house.  Yesterday it stopped working.  Here is what I have checked.

The breaker in the basement is not tripped.
The furnace works fine from the thermostat.
The blower downstairs by the furnace runs when AC is on and blows room temp air into the house, but the fan on the compressor is not spinning.  The fan on the compressor does spin freely when I manually spin it with a stick.
Checked for fuses in the outside box.  There are no fuses outside, only an on/off pull thingy with two metal plates that you have to turn upside down to turn off.
The capacitor is not flat on top, but far less rounded then any of the examples of blown AC dual capacitors I've seen on youtube.
I get 220v in on the contactor.
I get 220v out on the contactor.
I get 24v from the thermostat.
When the air is on at the thermostat the contactor solenoid is in, when the air is off it is out.
When the air is on at the thermostat I hear a buzz coming from the outside compressor but I can't tell what the source of the buzz is.
If I push the solenoid in when the AC is off, the compressor does not start up and the fan does not spin, I just hear the buzz.
If I wait by the compressor outside for a few seconds while the AC is on there's another buzz sound that goes off for about 3 seconds then stops.  From listening to the AC when it was working this is the buzz sound that goes off before the compressor and fan usually kick in.
After leaving the non-functioning unit on for a few minutes while I diagnosed I noticed that the metal on top of the compressor fan motor was VERY hot to the touch.  It cooled after I turned the AC off.

I'm thinking the fan motor on the compressor is dead or the capacitor is bad.  Is there a way to check the capacitor and the fan motor while they're still in the unit?  With the power off of course.  Does anyone think it's something else?  Do I have to buy the overpriced ($485 for the manufacturer fan motor and $200 for the dual capacitor) replacement part from the manufacturer or can I use a third party manufacturer?  Any other help would be appreciated.  As much as I'd love to bring an HVAC guy in here I just can't afford it.  Either I go without AC, or I fix it myself.

EDIT:  With the AC on I manually spun up the fan on the compressor and the fan started spinning and the AC unit fired up.


texts: Loose wire caused significant blackening in plug. How much do I need to inspect/replace?

texts:
The cable coming out of my dishwasher ends in an L5 plug of the type that has screw terminals inside for attaching wires. In my continuing quest to inspect all the accessible electrical connections in my new house due to the number of problems I've found, I opened this plug up. Upon doing so, I discovered that the neutral wire was loose and blackened, and that the entire screw terminal was rusty-looking and surrounded by an area of charring (probably someone who didn't understand that you need to rotate an L5 plug to disconnect it yanked too hard). The external neutral prong was blackened as well, but the blackening was so uniform that it looked intentional from the outside, like they just made one prong a different color.

Obviously the plug needs to be replaced, and the burned wire will need to be trimmed back at least a few inches. And even though it looks ok, given that the prong got hot enough to turn black, I should probably replace the receptacle it was plugged into as well (I think I will actually ditch the plug/receptacle entirely and direct-wire the thing; the manual says that's fine). Is this enough, or should I replace the entire burned wire and/or go through the whole circuit looking for other areas that might have overheated? And is it possible there is damage to the dishwasher itself (it's been running fine, as far as I can tell)?

In case it's significant, I should mention that this is a multi-wire branch circuit where the previous owner/my nemesis had connected both hot wires to the same leg inside the panel. This has been corrected, but the neutral could have been overloaded in the meantime. However, my intuition says if that's what was behind the charring, I'd be seeing it all over instead of at just one connection. Plus, based on their documented wattages, the two appliances on the circuit (disposal and dishwasher) shouldn't exceed 15 amps even when both run at the same time.


texts: How to frame corner of staircase header for a stairwell opening? Do you use a hanger here?

texts:
I'm designing a staircase and was a little curious on how to frame out the stairwell opening where the header meats the existing joists. There will be a double 1.75"(x2) LVL header joined up against an existing joists that have been sister-ed up on the opposite side.

The question is, do I put a joist hanger here or what other standard methods can be used that are structurally sound? The engineering drawings call out a double handger here but wont the hanger flange interfere with my steel staircase stringers. Are there any other connection methods available?

I'm just wondering what other options exist out there that could be IRC code compliant. How do house framers usually do this? I feel like I've seen many a stairwell opening without a single joist hanger.

Floor Live Load: 40psf
Hanger: Ddouble 2x8 Hanger U28-2


texts: Why is my ceramic tile popping out of the floor?

texts: I have old wood floor. My contractor installs a wire to the floor and then install the ceramic tile over the top. When they dry, the tiles do not stick with the floor. What should I do with these? What steps my contractor did wrong?


texts: Will GFCI outlet protect downstream outlets with ground connected to neutral?

texts: Recently in our rental house we replaced the old two conductor outlets with three conductor outlets plus a GFCI outlet at the beginning of the series. Power from the panel is connected to the 'line' side and downstream outlets are connected to the 'load' side of the outlet. Since there is no ground wire in the boxes and the boxes themselves aren't grounded we added a wire connecting the ground screw back to the neutral post. Our testers look good at each outlet and everything appears to work fine with one exception: the GFCI test button on the tester only trips the GFCI at the actual GFCI outlet. At any outlet downstream from the GFCI, the tester doesn't cause the GFCI to trip. My understanding (from this question) is that the initial GFCI outlet should also protect all the downstream outlets. This question also seems to apply but I'm not getting the same results, possibly because of the "ground to neutral" connection. Am I misunderstanding? Or have I done something wrong?


texts: Is it acceptable to use multiple PVC couplings when routing a drain through joists?

texts:
I'm deciding whether to repair or replace my ancient cast iron DWV plumbing while the walls and ceilings are open.

The 1.5" steel shower/tub drain is currently notched through joists for a run of about five feet, incorporating a long trap, through three joists.  I neither want to drill more holes in the joists nor use a drop ceiling, nor remove the beautiful marble floor above.  The replacement will be in place.

My question concerns threading 1.5" PVC through the existing holes: I'm assuming I'll have to assemble from sections.  Is it terrible to introduce couplings to a PVC drain, or is this very common and I shouldn't worry?

Would there be any benefit to using copper?  Or some other material?

I might prefer to keep the steel if rodding would get it all the way clean--it's close to solid crud inside--any relevant experiences helpful here.


texts: Are my cabling and bonding plans correct for a new subpanel?

texts:
I want to make sure I have this right, as it will be inspected and I'd rather not have to redo anything.

Current service: 150A, panel is in an interior hallway and the main disconnect breaker is outside. Currently ~1150sf, 3BR, 2BA, gas appliances. Adding an in-law suite - ~768sf with an additional bath and kitchenette (gas appliances there, too).

Rather than running the new circuits all the way back to the current panel (an additional 40' of cable for each run), I'd like to install a subpanel in the new laundry room adjacent to the addition. It would service 4-6 20A breakers.

This is what I'm thinking:

New double pole 60A (type QP) from the house panel to something like the attached in the new laundry room
6/3 stranded copper Romex (<50')
Remove tie bar between ground and neutral in the new subpanel

Does that sound right? As mentioned, I'm pulling permits for all the work, so if there's something anyone thinks I should be aware of, feel free to let me know.

BTW: The existing panel is a Siemens, fwiw.

Thanks in advance!


texts:
I'm following these plans for a rain barrel platform: http://www.diynetwork.com/how-to/outdoors/structures/how-to-build-a-rainbarrel-platform

There is a step "bolster the legs" where they suggest a horizontal piece of 2x4 across each leg.  Why this configuration (good image here:  ) and not triangular braces in the corners?


texts: Laying new paving slabs on existing paving base

texts:
I've moved into a new-build house that already has some concrete paving slabs/flagstones laid in the back garden that I'd like to replace with slate paving. After lifting some of the existing slabs and checking out the base, it appears to be a 6 inch thick layer of (what would have been) dry mix.

The new slate slabs are quite a bit thinner than the existing slabs, although they do vary in thickness.

My question is, do I need to excavate the existing base and lay a new foundation for the slate, or could I just take up the current slabs and lay down a thin foundation over the existing base?

Edit

For clarity, the existing bed is now a solid mass of what seems to be sharp sand and cement. I'd say it's not concrete but has definitely solidified and requires a pickaxe and some fairly hefty blows to break it up.


texts: Indicator light flickering on combination switch/outlet

texts: I've looked at 3 furnaces plugged into combination switch/outlets that have indicator lights, but no GFCI switches. On just one switch, the indicator light is flickering unevenly. Is it trying to tell me something?


texts: What type of lag bolts should I use for a deck?

texts:
I am looking at galvanized lag bolts (for the ledger) and carriage bolts (for attaching the beam to the post) for a deck. I can't find "hot-dipped galvanized" bolts/lag screws only galvanized. Is there any difference between "hot-dipped galvanized" and products labeled "galvanized finish" or can I use "galvanized finish" bolts on my deck? Should I instead get the stainless steel variety?

Here is what I was looking at:

1/2 in. x 6-1/2 in. Galvanized Carriage Bolt

1/2 in. x 4 in. Galvanized Hex-Head Lag Screw


texts: What type/thickness of drywall should be used in water heater closet?

texts: I have a rental house built in the 70's that had severe water damage in the small room (4x5 feet) that houses the hot water heater. The room is off of the garage. I've had the water heater replaced and removed the dry wall. I'm getting ready to replace the drywall, but I'm concerned about what is the proper product to put back on my walls. Is 1/2 inch drywall adequate or should I put heavier dry wall back up?


texts:
I have a thin piece of plastic (1mm thick) to be attached onto a metal cabinet door, in which a screw hole will be drilled. I'm hoping to use a small screw for this (~3-4mm long). Is M3 adequate for the job? Any M3? I thought about using PC screws, but they're a bit chunky.

Any help will be appreciated.


texts: Why do my 7W LED ground lights flicker even though they're on a transformer

texts:
I bought:
Check this out at Amazon.com
LEONLITE 7W In-Ground Landscape Lighting, IP67 Waterproof LED Outdoor Well Light, UL Listed Linkable Pathway Lights, 12-24V, 3000K Warm White, for Yard, Garden, Patio, Pack of 6 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07MB1N6Q2/ref=cm_sw_r_other_apa_i_PgLLEb8NT16EG


texts:
I'm looking to add a powder room and laundry to the ground floor of our home. Most of the plumbing runs through the central wall on our side split and the W/C & lav will be on this wall too, making the draining/venting a bit simpler. However the laundry will not be on this wall so I'm hoping to use a cheater vent here so I don't need to drill half the joists in this room or open upper-floor walls to get a vent out the roof.

I've attached some diagrams of my plans and was hoping someone could give me some feedback / review things in general. Additionally, I have a couple more specific questions:

Is it better to connect the powder room and laundry both directly to the stack or am I okay joining them. I'm trying to avoid cutting too much of the copper out.
Is it possible to install back-to-back sinks that share a wall like the laundry/garage sinks in my diagram? If so what kind of fitting would work?

*NOTE: Stuff in blue is being added


texts:
I just moved into an old flat which has old and weathered down sash windows which let a lot of cold air in. As Scotland does get very cold at times I would like to insulate them in a cheap and efficient way. If it lasts for only a winter that would be fine, longer would be better of course.

My windows look like this more or less:

just that i only have 4 glass tiles (2 in the upper sash and two in the lower).


texts: Can I wire a water heater and tanning bed on the same 220V circuit?

texts: Can I wire a water heater and a tanning bed on the same 220V breaker. I live in Ohio.


texts:
It's a whirlpool gas oven, model number SF315PEPB1. The burners work fine, the oven always preheats and works most of the time.

The problem is that sometimes once the oven preheats, it wont stay on. I'm assuming it turns off when it gets to the right temperature and then for some reason either doesn't sense that it needs to reignite or fails to reignite.

I notice that when this happens, if I ignite the burners the oven will also reignite. As a work-around I've been just clicking the burners every 5-10 minutes to make sure the oven stays hot.

What could be causing this, and what could I do to make it work correctly again?


texts: How can I connect a bath wall spout intended for copper to a brass water supply outlet?

texts:
I'm in the process of remodeling a bathroom and am getting ready to tile the walls surround the tub/shower.  I'm stumped on how to connect the bath spout.

The spout looks like this:

As you can see, it's all one piece and from what I can dig up online, it's intended to slip over 1/2" copper pipe.

The problem? I don't have a copper pipe extending out.

Here's what my shower valve side looks like:

About 4-5 inches inside, is a screw-on outlet (sorry - that likely isn't the right terminology).  Here's a picture:

So my question comes down to this:  How can I connect that spout to that outlet with minimal intrusion to the wall (so I don't have to reapply the whole hardie board slab)?  Is there some sort of adapter for connecting copper to brass?


texts: Is it safe to remove the bottom chords of a series of garage roof trusses?

texts:
See attached picture. Looks like an 8x10 cut-out. He wants to lift cars up so he can walk under them.
Is this safe? Doesn't removing the joists affect structural integrity?


texts: Should I sand my frame or buy a custom storm door for an opening that's 1/8" too short?

texts: I'd like a full view storm door in front of my front door. The left side of the opening is 80" and the right seems to be about 79 7/8". The frame is some kind of wood. I'm a complete novice, so I'm not sure if sanding it makes a lick of sense, or if it's better to find someone that makes a slightly smaller storm door (and if so, where to look).


texts: How can I thaw a frozen washing machine pipe limited access semi-exterior wall?

texts: The pipes for our washer have frozen. I believe they froze in the section that runs through the wall facing an enclosed, uninsulated porch. I currently have the heat cranked in the laundry room and have a space heater running facing the wall on the porch where the pipes run. Is there anything else we can do?


texts: Reverse osmosis unit drain clogs occasionally

texts: I have had an RO unit for many years. Once in a while the drain stops working and my maintenance man said to back flush the little fitting on the drain line. Is that merely a check valve? If not, what is it? Is so, how does back flushing a check valve have any effect? Shouldn't it just not flush backward?


texts: Landscape lighting system only puts out one volt

texts:
I've installed low-voltage (12V AC) lighting systems in my front and back yard. They're set up separately, but both use the same model of transformer and lights. I set this up in May 2017, so it's been working fine for about 18 months.

After setting up Halloween decorations last week, including one set of string lights, I saw that the lights in the front yard weren't turning on. The wires are tucked out of the way before they go underground, but it's possible I or my daughter snagged a wire and knocked something loose. But I haven't found any physical problems.

The outdoor GFCI outlet seems fine because the string lights still work, on both plugs.

Since the transformers are the same, I swapped them, and the transformer from the front yard works fine in the back yard. However, the transformer from the back yard doesn't work in the front yard. So it seems the wiring and not the transformer is the problem.

Then I put a multimeter on the transformer leads and found that it was only putting out one volt. Testing further, I found that that's what the transformers do when the power cords to the lights aren't connected. So in the back yard, I get the full 12 volts when everything is connected and 1 volt if I disconnect the lights, while in the front yard I get 1 volt no matter what.

I went around to some of the lights, pulled the bulbs and put the multimeter prongs into the bulb sockets and measured the same 1 volt at each location. So the circuit doesn't seem to be broken -- the power is getting to all the lights. It's just not the full power.

Does anyone know what would cause this behavior?

Update

Based on @Tyson's suggestion, I disconnected the wiring from the transformer and tested the resistance through the circuit. It was about .8 ohms, so neither a short nor an open circuit. I pulled out one of the bulbs and measured the resistance of the bulb itself and it was 1 ohm -- I would expect that to be about the same or a little less, but it's a little more. Perhaps one of the other bulbs is different and has less resistance. To be sure I didn't have a broken circuit combined with a short through moisture in the soil, I stuck the leads of the multimeter into the soil, but the resistance there was about 60 ohms.


texts: How would I remove a concrete shelf with possible reinforcements

texts:
I've had a brick-walled cupboard removed from my kitchen, but the concrete shelf that was in it had to be left because of the gas piping around it.

The piping will be removed for 2 days soon while a new boiler is fitted and I'd like to remove the shelf with minimal damage to the walls supporting it.

I was considering an angle grinder with a concrete cutting blade, but was worried about how it would cope with the wire reinforcement? Other than that, what options do I have?


texts: Button Cover for Part 103 Without Full PCB Assembly

texts:
So, I asked this question over on iFixit three days ago, and haven't gotten anything back from them; so I'm bringing it over here mostly as-is because Stack Exchange at least responds. Hopefully I have the right community for this; nothing else seemed close enough.

We have a GE Microwave, model PVM9195DF1WW, at our old house, and the timer button has broken; it gets stuck under the outer panel when pressed. After taking apart the panel casing, we found that the problem stemmed from a broken spring; each button on this component has two plastic bars that function as springs to pop the button back up after it's pressed, and one of the springs had broken. The specific part is seen in front of Part 103 in this diagram; this site lists the part as a SWITCH PCB, ASM. The "ASM" part seems to mean assembly, which as I understand it means both the circuit board with the actual buttons and the plastic cover with the button faces. I only want the plastic cover, because presumably it would be less expensive, and I also wouldn't end up with a loose electrical component that I don't need. Is there any way to get only the plastic piece?


texts:
I want to build a pergola similar to the one below and was wondering what to use to connect the posts to the ground (notice how they are at an angle to the vertical)

Also, what is the connector/connection type used for the top angle, so that there are no visible fasteners?


texts: Can I build a French drain with old concrete and brick instead of rock?

texts:
Can I use old pieces of concrete (broken up cinder block) and old brick instead of rocks in the construction of a French drain?

I'm thinking of building a French drain that leads to a dry well to drain a small kitchen sink I'll be adding to a backyard studio.

If these materials are OK to use instead of rock, I assume they should be broken up nearly as small as rocks?


texts: Options for interior brick walls damaged by rotary hammer

texts:
I recently removed some very deteriorated plaster from an interior brick wall. I used a rotary hammer and a traditional hammer and chisel. After having removed about half the plaster I stopped because I realized that both methods do a tremendous amount of damage to the brick underneith. Here are some photos:

Here is the exterior. The window here is the same window. There are a few minor cracks in the mortar, but there are no cracks in the bricks like there are on the interior wall.

Both methods are removing a fair amount of the brick's face. Compounding this is the fact that the motor is basically sand at this point.

This is the interior side of an exterior wall. IE, it is the inner layer of the brick. The exterior layer of brick was inspected and is in good shape.

I am wondering what my options are. Originally I was intending to expose the brick wall, but that seems like a crazy task at this point as all the mortar needs to be repointed. But can I just replaster over this mess or will that also come back to haunt me? What are my options for addressing this and how big of a problem is it?

Overall I am not sure what to do with the wall. I wanted to have a nice exposed brick wall along the entire north side of the house, but given the condition I am no longer sure what to do.


texts: What type of exterior coating will allow water vapor to pass through cinder block?

texts: I was asked to paint an exterior of a cinder block chimney and need to find out what type of exterior coating will allow water vapor pass through the block so that it doesn't ruin it from the inside out.


texts: Tips on how to install laminate over existing flooring

texts:
Currently I'm at the point where my laminate reaches the stair nosing and I'm unsure what to do.

[![enter image description here][2]][2]

I have a stair nosing piece but I'm finding that it's awkward looking.

Any tips would be greatly appreciated

Picture with nosing

[2]: https://i.stack.imgur.com/K8LJt.jpg


texts:
Pretty handy man and have built plenty of walls in preexisting structures but I’m wanting to build a man-cave/poker room inside of my shop.
The shop is 16' tall and room will have standard 8' walls. The dimensions of the room I’m wanting to build are roughly 28'x15'.
I have all of the wall framing and such figured out but not exactly sure how to do the ceiling.
Since it's inside of my shop I obviously won't be putting a roof or anything like that on it, just need to have something to hang Sheetrock from and won’t sag over time or from lights/fans.
I will add that I would like to end up using the space above it to store Christmas lights and such but nothing with a whole lot of weight.


texts: Correct way to support a pipe run parallel to floor joists

texts:
I would like to install pipe parallel to the floor joists in my basement, and then conceal it behind drywall.

I need to do this with both gas (black iron) and domestic water (copper) pipe.

I'm tempted to use simple copper straps to affix the pipes to the joists themselves.  Is this code-compliant?  (The fact that this answer is so hard to find online suggests that it may be this simple.)

I've also seen pipes suspended between joists with a wood support--is it better to hang the pipe from a wooden support which is attached to the joist, to prevent rust from contact with the wood?  (I've seen this elsewhere in my 100-year-old house.)

What is the standard, code-compliant way to support a pipe run parallel to floor joists?


texts:
My house is Colonial rectangle. I have opened up one load-bearing wall that runs about 2/5 of the length between the den and the living room. With help and excellent advise, I put in a 90" header for a 6'8" opening (after putting up temporary braces on both sides to support the joists above). I feel confident about its integrity. Now I want to remove a wall that runs parallel with the joists and is 90 degrees to this wall. From all of my research, I am thinking that it is not a load-bearing wall. The roof is symmetrically consistent with the rectangular design. Being a newbie here - I'm casting a line out for opinions.

House is about 36' long and 25' wide rectangular. The wall is approx 14' with a 6' opening. Hoping to double the opening to 12' with 2' walls on each side. The wall is parallel with 16" centered joists above and below. I have already opened up a detected load-bearing wall with a 6'8" opening between Living Room and Den perpendicular to this wall. I have attached jpg images and a pdf sketch.

I just saw this when I cut away a spot of the drywall. 2x8 header is above the current opening. Does this indicate load-bearing?


texts: A/B switch for Two 240V connections into Electrical Panel

texts:
I have 125amps coming into my house from PGE and my panel is 125amps and has a few  free breaker slots. Currently I have a 240v oven, 24v clothes drier, 240v floor heating and 240v EV car charger (plus the usual 110 appliances: laundry, dishwasher, garbage disposal etc). Now I want to add an AC unit which they tell me will require 30amps. Now based on some load calculation table that the city permit folks want me to fill it seems I will go over the 125amps. They give you demand-factor reduction, take into account that you will not use AC and floor heating at same time etc - but taking all that into account and I still go over 125 amps by a little - the total is 135amps.
One solution is to use a DPDT switch that switches between  either my EV car charger or my AC. Note I am okay with using 2 breakers in my main panel - one for AC and one for EV car.  Alternatively I can use a  generator interlock to solve my problem  - I don't fully get how that works and would need some guidance.
Would either of the above two solutions pass code?
Can EV charging 24v outlet into which I plug my car  go through a DPDT switch? Or is there a rule against it like needing a dedicated circuit?
If legal could someone please draw a diagram for the DPDT switch and also for the generator interlock + subpanel. The DPDT switch seems simpler.


texts: What kind of caulk should I use to seal up spalling separating from steel porch ceiling

texts:
I'd like to do some temporary quick patches to prevent worsening rust and separation of spalling/stucco ceiling underneath a steel outdoor porch/deck.  One on the first floor is kinda bad so will require it to come down and be replaced, but the 2nd floor is still small and can perhaps be patched.  What kind of caulk can I use to waterproof seal and optionally to help glue the corner up and prevent the rest of it from sagging further?

Here's pictures of the first floor and the 2nd floor

Additionally, what kind of contractor should I be looking for if I want the first floor ceiling to come down and be replaced?  What is a reasonsable price to remove ceiling, scrub rust and either leave with rust proof bare steel or new concrete like ceiling?


texts: What's the best way to fix heavily stained white Ikea furniture?

texts:
My daughter's white Ikea desk has many marker pen stains which I can't remove by scrubbing with sponge and soap. Is there a magic cleaning product out there that could do the trick?

Otherwise, I'm thinking of repainting it. In this case, I have very limited budget so I would sand it then apply two coats of my wall paint (this one). Would that look decent? If not, how could I make it better without spending too much? (the main, top part of the desk where we write should look and feel perfectly smooth as before)


texts: Attaching plywood to laminated particle board

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I am connecting a piece of laminated particle board to a piece of plywood. Both 5/8” and 2 x 5’. One piece will go on top of the other piece.

In addition to a whole bunch of screws driven through the plywood into the particle board, I’m thinking glue is a good addition. But I’m not sure what sort of glue would be a good candidate.

Because of where I live (Thailand), options can be limited so perhaps you can think of an alternative in case the ideal options doesn’t exist.

Thanks for the help!

Added clarification: I’m building the top of a workbench, where I’m using the top laminated particle board to match the look of my computer desk and add the plywood layer for strength. I have support on the two outsides with two drawer blocks a foot wide, and a 3’ span of the bench where there is no support. The bench will be used for soldering, Dremel-type work, etc.

Added clarification: the particle board in question is laminated on two sides, so there is no ‘wood to wood’ adhesion possible.


texts: Multiple return air vents in single framing cavity

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I am building a smaller 2 story home. Upstairs in one bedroom the return air drops into a joist space, then in the next bedroom another cold air drops into the same space. It then goes over a couple spaces via holes in the joists and then down between 2 studs where there is a 3rd return then into the trunk line in the basement.

My concern is will it pull from the top 2 bedrooms?


texts: What type of glass allows UV-B radiation to pass for laundry sanitizing?

texts:
I want to know if there's a type of glass that doesn't filter UVB?
I live in tropical region, and my real objective is for my laundry. I want to hang them out in the sun, for quicker drying, but most importantly, to kill germs. the thing is, I really dislike running all the way from first floor to third floor when it rains, so it would be nice to have some sort of material to "shelter" my laundry from rain, but not from UV rays essential for killing germs.
as far as I know, UV A does penetrate glass, but does a really poor job killing germs. UV B on the other hand, very effective in killing germs, but gets filtered by glass.
thanks


texts: Is my water heater connected to GFCI and is it affected after short circuit?

texts:
I am an absolute n00b when it comes to home electrical systems. Please do forgive me if this is a repeat question since I wouldn't know what to search for.

I am in France and I have 230V supply at 50Hz.
A couple of hours ago, I had a short circuit that "tripped" the electricity.

The short circuit occurred in a wall point:

The circuit breaker (I assume that is what it is) had tripped (the switch was at '0') and I reset it by turning the switch to '1' as shown:

Now after this, I noticed that none of the plug points in the room that the short circuit had occurred are working! None of them are functional. However, the lights are working in this room.

I also have a water heater in the room that the short circuit occurred. I know that I can wait for a while to find this out but is the heating element of the water heater also non-functional now? AKA: will I not have hot water tomorrow?

I read somewhere that such a problem is caused by a GFI thingy and I was not sure if my water heater was hooked to this GFI thing.

The water heater label is as shown:

I request and appreciate some patience with your answers or comments. Since I know nothing about these matters, it would be appreciated if you could explain it to me like you would to a three year old.

I have read online that major appliances like water heaters and refrigerators need to have a dedicated circuit. I don't know if this is a US rule or a Europe rule. Nevertheless, my microwave didn't have a dedicated circuit as I plugged it into a wall. Does my water heater have a it's own dedicated circuit? Why are the lights working in my house? They count as "major appliance"?

**

Edit:

**

Is it relevant that power points are not working but the lights are? Does something need to be "tested" or switched OFF and then ON again on this:


texts: In an outside wall at an entrance door the bottom plate and studs for the door frame, sheathing and possibly the wall studs have rotted from water leaking in from a space between the aluminum siding and concrete porch.  I planned on putting in a pressure treated bottom plate and caulking the gap outside.  Should I attach a small sister studs or build up the bottom plate to meet the existing studs?


texts: Is a transition from 1/2" tubing to 1/4" and back causing low pressure?

texts:
I installed my RO system this weekend and I'm pretty excited.  The water pressure seems low though.  Not unbearably slow but much slower than before the system was put in.  The system is 6 stage and has a dedicated faucet, a 3 gallon tank, and is all 1/4 plex tubing.
I have a conditioned crawlspace that stays within 5-10 degrees of my house.  I put the unit in the crawlspace so i would still have room under my sink.  (It's about 1.5-2 feet below the floor)
I installed in by cutting into a 1/2 pex (or cvpc?) pipe and using an adapter to change to the 1/4 inch pex.  At the far end of the RO system I used a 2nd adapter to change back to the 1/2 inch to travel to the sink (it's about 4.5 feet).  After it goes through the floor i used a 3rd adapter to change it one more time to 1/4 pex to match the faucet pipe.
The reason I kept the bigger pipe was in hopes that it could be considered as an additional "storage tank" in that that long run would hold more water than using a 1/4 pipe.
The question I have is do you think this transition back and forth is causing a lower water pressure?


texts: How can I improve the water pressure in my shower?

texts: I recently purchased my first home. It has two bathrooms and the water pressure in both is less than ideal. What are some steps I can take to increase the pressure?


texts:
So I'm trying to design a stair railing and I have to have the spaces between the bars to be 4". I just can't think of the way to do the math that would tell me how wide the bars would have to be.

My bars are more like panels.

Railing length: 15' 7 3/16" Design wants: I want one of the ends of the railing to end with a bar/panel. I would like the panels to have a min width of 2".

discussion architecture


texts: Can structural bricks be used as pavers for a patio?

texts:
I've seen a few Q & A'a on here concerning using structural bricks but there really hasn't been a clear consensus. I am planning on putting them on their side and not using any sand or mortar for the joints. My question is what potential issues will I see in doing so? I have a huge surplus of reclaimed bricks so if some bricks break I can just pull them and pop another in. This is the general idea.

Edit: When I say structural, I mean the bricks with holed cores.


texts: Can I use a rheostat as a potentiometer?

texts: Is it possible to safely use a rheostat as a potentiometer to control an incandescent ceiling light? I have replaced a ceiling fan with a light fixture and would like to use the existing rheostat as a potentiometer.


texts: How can I put an IKEA "Expedit" shelf 75 cm above the floor?

texts:
I have a 4x4 IKEA expedit shelf (which is ~150cm x ~150cm in size) and want to put it 75cm above the floor, so that it lines up with the head-side of a bed. Its back would face the wall, like this:

+-+
|/|
+-+
|/|     <- Shelf
+-+
|/|
+-+
|/|
+-+
   #
   #
   #\
   #===========================\     <- Bed
   #            #             #|

 ^- What to put here, below the shelf?

On the ASCII-art picture, the shelf is midair. What could I put below the shelf so that it's fixed and won't break up if it is charged with books and stuff?

The wall is labile and I guess it can't secure the shelf all by itself.


texts: Best way to remove excess solder from sweat fittings for re-use?

texts:
I’m disassembling and reconfiguring part of my hydronic heating system and I want to re-use several high quality 1” brass sweat-connected ball valves that would cost about $30 each to replace. (I have more time than money.) The heating system is about 15 years old but the valves are in good shape. They were originally assembled with lead solder.
I’ve already reclaimed one of them after removal by reheating the cup till the solder melts, then wiping inside the cup with a wad of fine steel wool, which seems to attract excess solder pretty well and leaves a smooth surface that will accept a piece of new pipe without interference. I’m protecting the valve body from overheating with wet rags.
Is there a better way? Something that works better than steel wool? Add a little flux? Any tips would be appreciated.


texts: Need help disassembling Groehe shower thermostat

texts:
I have what I think is a Grohe 19624 Shower thermostat like this the one shown here: http://www.guillens.com/index.jsp?path=product&part=392046.

It is leaking and I need to get it apart to replace some o-rings. But, I can't for the life of me figure out how you get the handle off. There is no visible set screw anywhere. Does anyone have any idea how to get the handle off so I can get to the innards?

This is about a 16 year old part that is now discontinued so extensive internet searches have not turned up any installation or maintenance documentation. Also, because it's discontinued, I don't want to take any risk of damaging the part in trying to disassemble it either.

The exploded diagram in the above link implies that the cap would come off the end, but no amount of persuasion indicates that the cap would come off without breaking something.

Here's a picture:


texts: How do I run ethernet and speaker cabling in 2 story home?

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My home is 1988 built and I put my modem and router upstairs. I want to have a music system around house and also want to run Ethernet cable to my tv downstairs.

How can I do that?

I do not want to open walls for this if possible :-(

I am running tv on wireless but it sucks.

Any help is appreciated.

Edit0: I do not have a crawlspace, its a concrete base. And not sure if attic would also be of any help based on what I need.

The comcast cable that I have enters my home from a hole upstairs. Right in the room where I have my cable modem. Can I run an ethernet cable in reverse direction and then wrap it around my home and reach my tv? I have a previous dish networks cable hole on a wall near my tv. Question is, is it a good idea to run Ethernet cable aournd the house? Would whether do anything nasty to it?


texts:
I am confused about what voltage to use to calculate current for cable size of transformer.
for example, single phase given load 140kva 120/240.
if  I=140/120v= 1166 A  and if  140/240v=583A
I know for fact, we use I=kva/1.73 x V. But for single phase i am not able to find correct solution.
Thank you for your help.


texts:
The doors were installed at the same time as the paneling.  Now, however, there is 1/2" drywall, and if I try to install the trim around the doors, there's a huge gap between the door frame and the trim (see photo).

All the doors are similar in disposition; they all will have about a 1/2" gap (some nominally less, but still significant).  I'm trying to get away with not having to pull out the door frames, but rather just filling the gap somehow.  Any ideas or guidance are very much appreciated.


texts: Removing mini wideset handles without set screws or mounting nuts

texts:
I want to remove a 1960s era mini wideset faucet that does not have any set screws or mounting bolts underneath to remove the faucet components.  My faucet appears to be similar to another StackExchange post (How to take apart this Pfister faucet?) although I can't confirm the make or model of mine.  I wasn't able to comment there so I'm opening a new post looking for help.

Here's a picture of the hot faucet handle.  I've tried prying off the top of the faucet handle, and I've tried turning the bottom of the faucet handle; those just spin around without unscrewing anything.

I'm not sure about the other posting, but on my faucet I've found that there's a brass mixing valve underneath the sink.  I believe that this mixing valve may be keeping everything in place.  But I can't figure out if I need to remove the faucet handles first, or try removing the mixing valve first.

There looks to be two nuts on the threaded supply line pipes on either side, but I can't pry them loose.  Maybe they're stuck (or maybe they're not nuts after all?).  Also there's a metal bracket right up against the underside of the sink; there's a screw between this bracket and the mixing valve (hidden, behind the faucet spout supply).  There is no nut or anything on that screw to deal with that right now.

Any thoughts?  Thank you!

Update 1: after some more attempts as the faucet handles, I looked at the spout instead.  When I pulled out the drain stop handle I looked down at the remaining hole and voila - a hex screw.  I opened my toolbox and I had two Allen wrenches.  I tried the larger one and sure enough it fit (I measured 3/16ths).  After a few dozen turns the spout popped off, leaving the following behind:

I was able to push the drain spout pipe out to the bottom, leaving the supply line to the drain spout, and the threaded bolt that was hidden in the picture above.  That also had a hex screw hole, so I pulled out the other Allen wrench I had.  Sure enough that one fit too (both were from Ikea assemblies, go figure).  The size on this one appears to be 3/32nds.

After a few dozen turns, the metal plate securing the mixer valve to the underside of the sink was loose.  The faucet handles are still connected to the mixer valve; this is where I'm stuck now.


texts: Which qualities should I look for in a driveway sealer for new asphalt?

texts:
Two years ago, the blacktop on my driveway was replaced.  It has never been sealed. The local hardware and paint stores sell various driveway sealers.

What features should I look for when I buy sealer?

Thanks.


texts: What was the purpose of this diagonal 2x2 along wall?

texts: Local inspector passed me through insulation and I'm preparing to do the drywall.  When I pulled the insulation wrap on the yellow insulation part, I noticed this 2x2 sticking out diagonally.  For what purpose do builders typically do this?  Just to hold in the insulation or is it somehow structural?  Figured with a 2x2 it's probably not the latter, but just curious.


texts: Is bottom support required for an aquarium stand?

texts:
Building a low fish tank cabinet like picture. The width and length is 60*60cm with height around 20cm. It's for fish tank of size 60*60*70cm (roughly around 250kg).

so, the question is whether required to have the bottom horizontal support?

I understand that the top horizontal support is required to spread the load.


texts: How should I handle bare wooden posts in a wet area?

texts:
In a post-and-beam house (built from Douglas Fir), I will have a bathtub right next to a couple of the posts.

Should I be worried about the effect of water on the longevity of the wood?

The other posts in the house are bare (unfinished). Is it necessary to put a protective finish on these wet-area posts?


texts: Less than 24 volts on the thermostat C wire

texts:
We have a brand new air handler at work, but the thermostat is mounted on a wall next to a server/computer room which is always warmer than the rest of the office.  I want to install a thermostat that allows for the use of a remote sensor.

The C wire is hooked up at the air handler, but is snipped short at the thermostat.  There is plenty of slack for me to add more wire.

The voltage between R and C is only 15-16 volts.  The air conditioner and gas furnace work perfectly fine.  Is this lower amount of voltage alright for use with a modern thermostat that requires the 24 volts flow on the C wire back to the air handler board?

Update:

Model: N8MSN0701716A
Supply Voltage: 18 to 30 Vac or 750 mV

I don't think the thermostat will work with the current wiring setup.

I have 28 volts between the R and Y terminals, but 15 between R and C; at the thermostat.  I don't see a splice of any sort with the C wire, but who knows in the walls or in the drop ceiling between floors.  The Y terminal is spliced at the air handler before it enters the Y terminal on the board.  I would have expected the voltage drop to be between R and Y, not R and C.


texts: How can I prevent curtain rings from catching on the joint between rod sections?

texts:
I have a plastic curtain pole (unlike that one). The spot where the extension starts creates a bigger edge than on the pic, and curtain rings always bump into it. It's really, really annoying.

Because the window is so wide I need to use such extendable pole. So there's no alternative, at least within my budget.

Is there any solution to prevent curtain rings from bumping so much against the edge?


texts: Bad ground??? Service panel updated!! Dim lights

texts: I'm having a issue,when I open tmy fridge it's dim,when I open my oven the clock goes dim,had this issue before but it was the ground bar and wire, new service panel but it's still happening,I've checked all my grounds everything is tight,I'm at a standstill


texts: Get rid of hornets: The nest has been removed, but the hornets keep rebuilding

texts:
I have what I think is a hornets' nest on the soffit of my house (I'm not sure exactly what kind of bee or insect it is).

The nest has been removed since the photo was taken, however, the hornets keep rebuilding. They seem to build a new portion of nest about the size of a soda can each day. I remove the nest each day, but they are undeterred, and continue to rebuild.

Also, they have started to swarm the sewer vent pipe on the roof (not shown in photo). This is quite concerning; I don't want these things in my house. The pipe is about 2ft to the left of the nest, on the roof of the dormer.

Most people I've talked to recommend spraying the nest with hornet-specific insecticide. I can do this, but it's occurred to me that there isn't really much to spray.

How can I get rid of the hornets?


texts: Drain to a reservior when water height is higher then the drainage

texts: I have a reservior made from a 220litre plastic drum which is about 1.2 meters tall. i have a sump to irrigate my garden in the drum and it pumps out the top through a pipe to my garden tray which sits at around 300mm from the ground. it then drains out the bottom via a 19mm hole in the bottom of the tray. is there a way to return the drainage to the reserviour without using another drainage bucket and pump? If not then what would be a suitable setup here?


texts: Cheap way of attaching canning jars to a concrete wall?

texts:
Is there a cheap way of securely attaching a small glass Mason jar (like the one below) filled with water to a concrete wall? The jar doesn't have a top and it doesn't have a handle.

I'll be using it to decorate the wall: I'll fill the jar with water, put some plant or some flower in it, and just "stick" it to the wall.


texts: Does arcing occur if nothing is plugged into the outlet?

texts:
Lets say you've installed a new wall outlet, and the hot or neutral, or both wires, inside the outlet are loosely connected.
Will arcing occur all the time, or only when an appliance is plugged in?


texts: Do we have to worry about liquid leveler being too heavy?

texts:
We're having flooring installed soon and our current floors have a decent slope to them and aren't level. The installer is going to use a liquid leveler. Do we have to worry about it being too heavy if it's used over the entire floor, especially when some spots are an inch (or more) higher than others?

Edit: The initial floor installer said liquid leveler would be too heavy. They got busy and we had another installer assigned to us. This second installer said liquid leveler is just fine and not too heavy.


texts: We are living in a rentl property and there are some blinds in the windows that I would like to replace for the time we are here. They are roman blinds that have a bar along the top and are just clipped into a metal clip attached to the top of the window frame. I can easily unclip them and in theory should be able to buy some new blinds to clip back into their place. But I don't know how to find this type of blind, what to enter into a Google search. Can anyone help?


texts: Is it normal for a 1" Lawn Sprinkler repair to leak only under pressure?

texts:
Using 4 steel radiator like bands, I replaced a section of underground lawn sprinkler black plastic pipe that runs over a septic drain field.    Repair couplers do not leak until i press my foot down on one of four running sprinkler heads.  Is that normal?  Would the leak have been due to the hair dryer i used to make the plastic pipe more pliable?

Hoping someone has tried the same stress test and would share their experience.  I understand the physics of increasing the pressure by closing off an end.   Hoping to get the perspective of lawn sprinkler experts as to whether these radiator hose couplings almost always leak a little when pressurized?  I want to keep unnecessary water from getting into the septic drain field.

Water pressure where I live is 85psi, but noticed most water garden hose accessories sold locally are rated to only 60psi.


texts: How do I properly lay a tongue and groove plywood subfloor remodel when joist layout is not always 16" oc?

texts:
I'm working on a remodel of a room that spans two different areas of a house.

Each area has joists 16" OC but where they come together there is a "short" bay; one where it is not a full 16" between joists:

16"
16"
16"
16"
16"
9"
16"
16"
16"
16"
16"

The short bay (9") basically in the center of the room.

Should stay with full sheets and have to install blocking for one-half of the project (which will be a pain since the bays are full of mechanicals and lighting for the floor below) or should I shorten one of the sheets to maintain the OC spacing for each side?

If I shorten the sheet, do I recreate the T&G on the cut edge for that joist or is there another method I should be using?

Note that the finished surface will be tiles on top of Ditra Heat.


texts: Wanting to run power to my storage building. The building is about 100' from the power pole and main breaker box. I am using 10-2 wire on a 30 amp breaker to get power from the box to the building, and then 12-2 wire to wire up the outlets and light. Can 12-2 wire be connected to the 10-2 wire in a junction box?


texts: What type of aluminium to use for decorative trim?

texts:
I am looking to add some 1/2" strips of metal to a new fireplace surround (to be made out of MDF and red oak) as an accent. I thought that aluminium sheet would be good for this since it is easily workable for a DIYer and not cost prohibitive. The decorative trim will not be particularly close to the fire.

After reading about some different types online, I'm unsure what the best type is to order. Has anyone had experience in this? What would you recommend?

Update: I am looking to create something similar to http://www.chesneys.co.uk/products/fireplaces/designer-collection/eric-cohler-collection/ealing - replacing the marble with painted MDF. I was intending to get some aluminium sheet cut down into strips (may be spray-painted dark), which are to be used instead of the blackened steel seen in the photos.

Update 2: See image below for the current situation. The fireplace is a prefabricated wood burning unit that was installed at time of construction (1983). The unpainted drywall shows the position of the original surround that was made of wood and was highly out of date w.r.t. style. The surround idea that I have will only go over the existing drywall, maintaining the current clearances with the firebox.


texts:
What is considered the correct oven width?

Oven niche width is 22"

Oven width protruding is 24"

Model 700.3047901


texts: I have a 3/4 inch PVC line that is draining from my water heater pan through an exterior wall. I want to add some bug screen to it so that no roaches or other unwanted pests crawl up it. From what I have seen online, I have to buy a massive amount of bug screen and figure out how to attach it. Is there any other way to insect proof a PVC pipe besides having to buy so much bug screen? If not, what is the best way to attach bug screen to an exterior PVC pipe?


texts: Is it ok for a water heater pressure relief valve to be moved away from the tank with a short pipe?

texts:
I had the PT relief valve replaced on a RUUD gas water heater, due to several drain releases throughout the day. Since then releases continue but at lesser frequency and amounts. I noticed the plumber had installed a galvanized pipe coupler/splice between the new PT valve and the gas heater nipple inside the heater. This pushed the new PT valve out by 1 1/2" from the older valve position. Is this acceptable? Since the new valve is out further due to the pipe section, could valve temperature and pressure readings by off?
Thanks


texts: Updating a valve assembly: can a PVB have multiple downstream valves?

texts:
So I have this hose bib setup in my backyard that the pool company setup. It consists of a hose bib and then an ABV teeing off from that and feeding into two quarter-turn valves. One valve feeds an automated water-leveler for my pool, and the other feeds all of my irrigation valves. I'm looking to replace this masterpiece due to the fact that the PVC quarter-turn valves are already leaking and because I'm pretty sure this setup is not to code. I had a few questions to help drive some of my decisions going forward, and some just out of curiosity.

It's my understanding that there should be zero downstream valves from an ABV, be them manual or automatic. Is that correct? Is it valid to have a valve between the ABV and the leveler? I'm pretty sure I'm supposed to have ABVs after EACH of my irrigation valves if I'm using ABVs.

The plumber insisted that there be a hose bib by the ABV, and I've definitely seen this type of setup before. But is that actually a requirement? I can find nothing anywhere stating as much, and I've seen setups without hose bibs.

My current plan is to replace this whole setup with copper and use a PVB. with a PVB, it is permitted to have downstream valves, correct? So I can have one PVB feeding my whole system? And I don't need a hose bib in that setup do I? There's one literally 3 feet away and this one seems redundant.

Thanks in advance!


texts: Craters by screws where ceiling plaster has broken?

texts:
I have some craters around screws in the ceiling. The screws themselves are not lose, so I am just wondering if filler will fix this issue. If I remove the flakes around the craters and add filler, specifically this one; https://www.screwfix.com/p/ronseal-big-hole-ready-mixed-wall-filler-grey-1-2ltr/95289
Will it do the trick?
Thank you very much!


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My new apartment has a wooden floor laid in it, but there are a number of places where the larger knots have been filled in with some kind of filler that is black. The timber is tallowwood (quite pale) so these are pretty eye-catching. Luckily there are only a handful of planks with knots in, so it's not all over the floor.

Is it possible to change this filler to something lighter or replace these particular planks without having to replace the entire floor? Want to know how big a job this is.

Thanks in advance


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When is it appropriate to use tape, dope, or nothing at all when connecting pipe fittings?  Several advised not to use any product when I posed this question.  What is the purpose of each product, and what problems would they solve or could they cause?

To preempt duplicate question flags, this question is focused on tape vs. dope, and doesn't ask about case where neither is recommended.


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I have windows that were poorly installed -- the outer frame isn't square and therefore there are some uneven gaps where a cold draft comes in. I live in New England, so this is a problem for us. I've read about many solutions, such as using foam, but that will be too wide, I think.

I'm posting a photo that shows the gap -- you can see a small gap, about 1/8", to the right of the fuzzy material. Whatever I put in there needs with withstand the rubbing of the window going up and down. I want to find a solution that fills that gap as opposed to using a film over the entire window.

Please let me know if there are products that could solve this draft issue.