texts:
I have a phone riser in my apartment (25 copper pair, originally but only 18 left going past my floor) carrying Verizon phone service.

I have to move it over 3' to a different wall, so that means splicing in a new segment, a "bridge", which goes under the floor to a different wall up that wall into the ceiling and back to the place in the ceiling where the riser exits.  Verizon won't be doing this work because they want $6000 to do it (and even at that price it will take 8 to 10 weeks to get done).

I have a 25 pair 22 awg plenum and I'm going to get some 3G UR2 to make each of the 72 connections.  (18 pair x 2 wire x 2 splice locations).

I have a few questions (is that allowed)?

1) I can't tell if the existing wiring (probably installed at lest 30 years ago) is 22 AWG or 24 AWG.  Will there be any problem if I use 22 AWG and the existing wire is 24?  Some tenants above me may be using DSL of course.

2) If I use the UR2, I have to cut each conductor and then crimp the two connections - this means the circuit will be dead momentarily.  Alternatively, I could use a double run/tap connector and connect the entire "bridge" section first then cut the middle out.  So there are two questions here:
  a) Is this kind of connection "as good" as the UR2 which has the gel inside? I really don't want to cause service problems and have Verizon poking around. and b) once I complete the bridge but before I cut the short piece out there will be two "paths" for each conductor.  Will this cause problems while the job is in progress?


texts: I just replaced my electric panel box ; my light are working but I can’t get my dryer; washer machine or garbage disposal to power up


texts: Can't turn off security light permenantly

texts:
I've just moved into a house which has a secuirty light. It's off during the day and it comes on frequently during the night even when there's seemingly no motion outside.

I'd like to be able to disable it, but the switch which controls it only seems to have two settings: constantly on, and sensor triggered. I want to know how to set it into a mode where it stays off until I turn it on with the switch.

Edit: Apologies for not being more clear about the switch. It's just a wall switch inside the house. There's two switches on it, but one controls a light inside the house. The other is simple an on/off type switch you'd normally use to control a normal light in the house. In the down position, the light is permanently on. In the up position, the light is in sensor mode.


texts:
First time owning a house with a roof that can be raked,  It is a shingled roof.
The question is - Should I be doing it?
We live in Northeast (it's snowing as we speak) and icicles do form on the roof in several places. I assumed I need to rake the roof and bought a rake. However, recently a contractor who did a the new roof on this house last year stopped by, and when I asked him about it - he said not to rake it! His reasoning was that I would just push up a potential ice dam higher on the roof to the location where it doesn't have a protection and I would only potentially cause a bigger problem. In other words, trading off a small ice dam near the roof edge to for a larger ice dam higher up the roof.
Is this legit or he's just looking to spread bad advise and get more roofing business? (kidding. I hope.)


texts: Why are shaver outlets standardised worldwide, but regular electrical outlets aren't?

texts:
Wherever I go in the world, the electrical outlets I plug my shaver in to seem to be the same. However, depending on where I am the regular power outlets will be different: some have three pins, some have two; some have an earth pin, some don't; some have flat pins, some have round pins, some have square pins.

I'm not sure if this is right place to ask this, but I can't find anywhere better (please let me know if I should move my question!): how is it that the electrical industry got its act together sufficiently to standardise shaver outlets, but not regular power outlets?


texts: Are toilets supposed to be caulked to the floor?

texts: I've heard that in some cases toilets are supposed to be caulked to the floor. I replaced both toilets in the condo I moved into last week, and one was calked to the floor, and one was not. One difference was that toilet where caulk was present is on a relatively uneven tile floor, and the one where caulk was not present was on a flat linoleum floor. The instructions the toilet came with made no mention of this.


texts: How can I make this stair rail less slippery?

texts:
I recently replaced the handrail on my staircase.  I had just painted the moulding with a gloss white paint, and decided to paint the handrail the same color.  It looks great!  It's also very smooth and low-friction.

Is there any kind of coating, treatment, or something else I can do to it to make it high-friction?  I'm imagining some sort of polyeurethane, rubberized gloss, or something like that.


texts: How do I fix gutter nails that are coming out?

texts:
Many houses in my neighborhood are about 5 years old and are experiencing similar problems with their gutters.  The nails holding them up are pulling out little by little.  A couple homeowners had their's fall off.  I took a look at mine and saw a few nails sticking out.  What's the correct way to fix this?

Just hammer them back in and hope for the best?
Fill hole with adhesive (Liquid Nails?) and hammer back in?
Hammer in a different kind of nail?


texts:
My illuminated light switch flickers when off. I've had it a long time and never noticed it flickering before. I recently had an electrician replace the 3 mini hanging lights I had that were a disaster. They took light bulbs with mini bases, the spiral kind. They were difficult to remove, some replacements wouldn't fit, I broke one that I couldn't remove. Finally had the fixture  replaced with the hanging lights that took bulbs with the normal size base.  I believe the bulbs are called CFL and have the spiral inside a regular looking bulb.
I read on this site about the bulbs flickering when there's an illuminated switch. My situation is that the bulbs don't flicker but the switch does. It's not a dimmer, just the flip kind. I'm concerned about the possibility that the flickering light switch could wear out wires and cause a fire. Bay City, Mi


texts: What to do about a damaged stipple ceiling?

texts:
We have a stipple ceiling in our master bedroom, it appears to be lining paper over lathe & plaster with stipple/textured paint over that. We are concerned that it may have asbestos in it (we are getting it tested) and want to work out our options for it.

There are sections of the stipple that have been ripped off a little bit, and another section that has had some water damage from a dodgy flashing around a chimney which has been plastered over very roughly.

Should we cover this completely with plaster board, plaster it over completely to be smooth, or is there another option?

Edit: asbestos test results came back fine, no worries. Strip stipple, skim coat/plaster and paint?


texts: How can I attach a handrail to the wall so that it will be easily removable?

texts: I need a handrail on the wall of a narrow stairway that can be removed easily to transport furniture up or down the steps. Are there brackets that can be racheted off the wall instead of screws? Or 2 piece ones with flat base profile removing rail and sticking out part? Won't help  if brackets stick out after rail is removed. Don't want to unscrew from wall or wood compromising stability.


texts:
We are evaluating what size flexible chimney liner to use for a new fireplace (masonry heater). The liner will pass through an existing concrete flue.

The flue is constructed out of 16" square concrete blocks which have an interior of 8 1/4" - 8 1/2". The measurement varies a little depending where we measure.

The flue is not perfectly straight but was constructed with some gradual bends in a few places, I assume to avoid house framing and the roof ridge.

So the question is whether an 8" stainless flexible liner would be able to fit into a flue like this, or would it be too close a fit? The chimney is about 30' long (2 story house).

The next size down seems to be 6" which seems like it would be acceptable but might not draft quite as well, although its substantially cheaper.

Thanks


texts:
The smooth one is coax. I'm asking about the braided ones.

They're power, running from a metal junction box in my basement ceiling up to an outlet just above the pictured floor boards.

It's an old house, with lots of knob and tube. The box where this originates is fed by EMT.


texts: Is this sort of "wrapped" eave a reasonable eave detail?

texts:
So, I've been pondering some thoughts on where walls meet roofs in the vein of Joe Lstiburek's "Perfect Wall" work and how to replicate that in a context that favors "house-shaped" forms i.e. those with gabled or hipped roofs and eaves instead of a flat roof surrounded by a parapet.
Based on the "connect the layers" principles, the use of continuous rigid insulation on the outside of the wall to supplement the native R-value of whatever wall system is used, and the use of rainscreen techniques for the fascia and wall claddings, I have come up with the following so far for an eave detail (disregard the lack of decking directly under the roof, I have some questions about how precisely standing seam roofing over rigid insulation works but they're separate from this):

However, what I have come up with raises a few questions in my own mind.  First and foremost: what should I do with the airspace under the soffit board, given that this is very much a "hot roof" construction?  Should I leave it vacant, fill it with more rigid insulation (mineral wool is my preference as far as rigid insulations go), or slope the soffit board to match the pitch of the roof?
Furthermore, is having a fascia that's as tall as the roof slab + twice the continuous insulation thickness going to be a problem in some way or another I'm not foreseeing?  Finally, is there anything else majorly wrong with this detail that you see?


texts: Sump pump size and reliabilty for crawlspace

texts: Still trying to sort out the different advice from crawlspace drainage vendors. The least expensive fellow insists a single 1/3 HP pump pumps out plenty of volume, and that only a single pump is needed (w/battery backup) because they're so reliable. He also said he stopped using sock filters because he found the socks themselves were much more likely to clog up than the perf pipe. The other, far more expensive operations, are pushing for a 3-pump system and insist a sock is mandatory. Hard to know who to believe. Thanks.


texts: Best cost efficient plug-in heating devices / radiators

texts:
We moved to a 2-bedroom apartment that has baseboard heating devices installed. Our first electricity bill was huge (around $400) and we only used 3 of them and not all day long.

Here is a pic of the baseboard heaters we have installed:

We would like to buy some plug-in radiator that are good for heating a 1070 sq feet apartment but as cost/energy efficient as possible. What are the recommended solutions?


texts: How does a shower valve get installed backwards?

texts:
I have stayed in hotels on a few occasions where the shower is controlled by two knobs (hot/cold), and one of them turns backwards (clockwise for "on", counter-clockwise for "off").

Now I've moved into a new house, and the shower there also has one knob backwards.

My question is:  How is this even possible??  The valves I've seen in the hardware store come in one direction, and I've seen no way to mess them up, even if you install them upside down, turn them around, etc...

Apparently it is a relatively easy and common mistake, but I don't understand how it happens.

When I go to install shower valves myself, what should I do to avoid this mistake?


texts: What should I know before trying to make a larger deadbolt hole?

texts:
I had a locksmith come over and check this out, but he ended up refusing the job. It seems pretty simple to me, but before I wanted to go give it a "try" I figure I would ask just so I have a better idea of options, what can go wrong, and maybe why an expert would refuse this job. I've already asked him about it and the answer was very vague and I don't want to bother him again.

I think I would need to drill a larger diameter hole for the new deadbolt, but the problem might be that the metallic strip doesn't leave enough room for a larger diameter hole.

Is my best solution to remove the metal strip drill the hole and repaint?


texts: Can I install a sink that drains into this floor drain?

texts:
I would like to install a sink in my basement but the only drain that is close to it is being used for the HVAC. Can I use this existing drain for the sink as well?

This is roughly how the drain is currently setup/used.


texts: Connect cold faucet to washing machine's hot inlet to test internal connectivity?

texts:
In the absence of a working water heater, is it okay to connect a cold water faucet to a modern H-E washing machine's hot inlet to test the machine's internal tubing for leaks by running a warm or hot full wash cycle? If so, can I use a Y-connector to split the cold faucet to both cold and hot inlets?

Will it cause any damages or malfunction?


texts: Draining sediment out of my hot water heater

texts:
Trying to improve the odor of our well water, I’ve installed a whole house filter and a UV sterilizer (adding it to an existing water softener).  Now, the cold water (still with a lot of iron) smells OK, but the hot water actually stinks a bit worse.

I want to shock my water system with bleach, following instructions I’ve found here, and I’m told I should drain sediment out of the hot water heater first.  So, I did, and the 1st five seconds’ flow was an opaque brown.  But then the water suddenly turned quite clear, and stayed that way for a couple of minutes.  I closed the drain, and a few minutes later, reopened it: the water quickly turned a light cloudy brown, and an hour later (after several opening and closing of the drain) the water remains cloudy.  (The hot water from the taps is clear.)

So, what should I do?  Keep draining until it runs clear again?  Leave it for a day, and try again?


texts: i have 2 3 way switches in the kitchen. One has black, black, black and red wires. WTF. don't even know where to start except the red goes on a brass colored screw?


texts: Air conditioning unit sitting on the ground

texts: We've lived in our house 11 years.  Our air conditioning (condenser) unit, the big boxy thing sitting outside, is not sitting on a concrete slab.  It's just sitting on the ground and we noticed this spring that water was pooling and it was actually sitting in several inches of water.  Them more I think about it, the angrier I get that the inspector didn't catch this 11 years ago.  I've read that mounting it on the house is the best solution but that's not an option.  What do I need to do (get a concrete slab poured for it to sit on and check yearly that it's level?) and who do I call to help (an electrician?) I obviously don't know what I'm doing so any help is appreciated.


texts: Tiling over the bathtub lip vs up to the lip

texts:
I am renovating the bathroom and everything I see online says to tile over the lip. This creates one obvious problem - to replace the bathtub one would have to remove the tile, and since style and trends change all the time, you won't find the same tile again.
It would seem logical to tile up to the bathtub, so it can be removed if needed. Why is everyone tiling over the lip? Still have to use silicone between the tile and bathtub surface. I am almost at the stage of tiling and trying to finalize the plan.
The reason I started to doubt the tile over the lip technique is because I know someone who did tiling up to the lip and had no water problems for 15 years, at which stage they remodeled and all walls were dry.


texts: Why is my third floor hot water pressure so low?

texts:
The hot water pressure in our 3rd floor shower is very low.  The 2nd floor shower however, has very good pressure. The problem is not the shower head, which actually produces great pressure when turned onto cold.

I've also lived in other houses with 3rd floor showers where the pressure was fine. Could it be clogged? How could I clear a clog if there is one? Are there ways to optimize or boost the pressure?


texts:
I have a chandelier that was bought in Europe in early 1990s, and I would like to hang it in my house in the US on a standard 120V AC circuit. There is nothing in the box or in the manual stating that the wiring is appropriate for the US, the wires follow European coloring scheme and "250V" is prominently stamped on the inside of the ceiling canopy, so I assume that the safest option is to rewire it. Below is my plan, and I appreciate if you could point out any obvious safety or code compliance issues and answer the questions at the end.

The chandelier has 8 arms, each labelled "40W". I plan to replace the European socket in each arm with a candelabra socket. The ones I consider buying are rated up to 75W, so the max total wattage of the chandelier would be 75W * 8 = 600W (*)
Replace the black/blue wires in each arm with 18/2 SVT or SJT stranded lamp cord and connect it to the new sockets
Replace the black/blue/green-yellow wires in the rod with 18/3 SVT or SJT stranded lamp cord. Connect the ground wire of the new 18/3 lamp cord to the original grounding screw at the bottom of the rod.
Connect the hot and neutral wire in each arm to the hot and neutral wires in the rod, respectively

My questions are:

Is 18 AWG wire appropriate for this load (600W) or do I need a heavier gauge?
Is SVT or SJT wire type important here?
In the last step, I need to connect nine wires together (one from each arm + the main one). Is there a wire connector that is designed to handle 9 18 AWG wires? Could the red wire nut handle it? If there is no single connector that can handle all 9, what would be the best option to minimize pigtails, and what connectors should I use? For example, I could connect 4 wires from arms + 1 pigtail and then connect the two resulting pigtails to the main wire. Which wire connectors should I use in that case?

(*) In reality, I will probably use LED candelabra bulbs equivalent to either 25W or 40W, but I do not see any significant cost or time savings in cutting corners here in terms of max wattage, even if safety is not an issue.


texts: Small Wifi double switches/SSR's behind sockets ( Home automation - lights)

texts:
i'd like to create a map of my house on which i can control the lights.
( Currently there are no extra cables etc to enable domotica in the house).

Meaning that behind each light switch button i'll need some IOT which connects to my "main" pannel which i'm thinking to go for a raspberry pi.

Currently i was thinking about putting up a relay with a ESP8266 Wifi-module + a transfo to convert 220v to 3v3v.

ex: Relay: https://www.reichelt.com/be/nl/ontwikkelaarsboard-relais-module-2-kanaals-5-v-debo-relais-2ch-p242810.html?&trstct=lsbght_sldr::239148

Wifi-Module: https://www.reichelt.com/be/nl/experimenteerbord-esp8266-wifi-module-soldeerbaar-debo-esp8266-12f-p236022.html?&trstct=pos_5
Ofcourse i want it to be as small as possible to be able to get it after the light switch.

ex. transfo: https://www.banggood.com/AC-DC-Isolated-AC-110V-220V-To-DC-3_3V-800mA-Constant-Voltage-Switch-Power-Supply-Converter-Module-p-1114202.html?rmmds=buy&cur_warehouse=CN

My main purpose is to program the whole project (MQTT protocol) and in time expand it to see costs of electricity etc. as this has no time limit i do not mind asking an electrician to help me out installing the electric components to be sure nothing goes wrong on the hardware side.

This will be tested with a external lamp/switch first of course.

As my knowledge is limited about the recommended hardware i'm not sure that above componnents are the best way to go?

I know best case scenario everything is controlled with PCL's but i do not think we have a neutral cable running to each switch ( i'll check this this evening and update this thread).


texts: Mount horizontal 6" metal exhaust pipe to wall economically?

texts:
I'm trying to add more ventilation to the back room of my garage. The only available outside air exit location is 25' horizontally along the front room of the garage's wall.

I have 6" 30ga sheet metal vent pipe like this for the ducting:

How would I go about securing it to the wall? All of the hangers and clamps I've seen are either nuts expensive or designed to support the pipe from above (ceiling), not from the wall.

I can't support it from the ceiling as it would interfere with the garage door mechanism.


texts: NEST thermostat for hydronic floor heating: the three wire setup

texts:
I'm trying to install a 2nd generation Nest thermostat for my hydronic floors. So it's only meant for heating and not for cooling.

Someone else removed the old thermostat a long time ago so I don't know what the setup used to be.

I see three wires: Red, Green, White.  (Red-White shows 30V AC.)

I'm thinking:
Red   -> Rh
Green -> G
White -> C

Does that sound right?

Many thanks in advance!


texts:
This is in Germany, brand new flat.

The wall socket is:

The device has the following sticker:

But the blue and grey wires are linked:

Should I:

separate the blue and grey and connect them with their respective colors in the socket
connect them both in the blue
connect them both in the grey

I am thinking they should both go in blue (neutral) as there are only 2 phases. Is that correct?

The panel has a 400V 63A breaker for this:


texts: What are best practices to run wires from outside in?

texts:
I am installing my own security cameras.  My house is pretty stretched out. So I may need about 5-6 cameras in different spots.  I am still researching, identify tools I need, different security cameras, etc.

The question is, what are the best practices, and tools I need, for running  wires from the outside to the inside?

I would assume that all wires should gather to one common spot.  Do you have better wire management suggestions?

What kind of bushing should I get that can accomodate wires from 6 cameras? I would assume it would be at least an inch or two.  Something like this?

(source: mavromatic.com)

My walls are stucco, any specific drill bits I need to be aware of?


texts: What would cause a terminal to explode like that on a circuit breaker switch?

texts:
My landlord was having his fun turning on and off my stove and hot water to get me to move out instead of fixing broken windows.
As soon as the police got involved and my lawyer sent a notice, he had to make it look like something was actually wrong.
When my stove and hot water went off, I was sleeping. Nothing was on. Not the stove. I wasn't running water. I didnt even have the tv on. I was awoken my landlord at the door in the morning and when he left thats when I learned the stove was off and the water got cold the following day.
He sent me these pictures. Is there anything tell tale?
Also note that he only changed the water heater switch but the oven was off too.
Look at the discoloration of the old switch on the wall and the one on the counter.  The one on the counter is black and not discolored. I dont even think that switch belonged to this house


texts: how to setup bathtub spout and shower head in separate locations

texts:
I am installing a new bathtub that is big enough for two people. with one person leaning against each end of the tub.   So I want to have the shower head in the usual position at the end of the tub, but the tub-filling spout in the center of the long side of the tub.

I'm thinking I can I just use one valve/faucet set with a diverter, like the usual setup.   I'm thinking the valve/faucet should be closer to the spout. So then, the only difference (than the usual arrangement) is that the pipe from the valve to the shower will be quite a bit longer. The issue is, would the pressure drop to the shower head be such that the flow is too low ? If I understand, shower flow is limited mostly by the shower head, so if I installed a high-flow shower head, maybe I'd be ok.

But if not, if the shower flow would be too low that way, I'd consider installing two completely separate valves/faucets, one for the shower and one for the tub spout.  It'd cost a bit more, but it wouldn't be that much trouble, because there are already pipes coming up along the long side of the tub, because the washing machine is on the other side of the wall.


texts:
I want to refinish my basement walls, as they look really bad.  I tore down some wood paneling that was starting to warp, and behind that was some styrofoam insulation.  Behind styrofoam is 3 mil plastic.  Behind that is the concrete which is crumbling to the touch, about 1/8" to 1/4" into the concrete around the frost line.  It looks like someone at some point in time put a waterproofing coat on it and this caused the moisture to deteriorate the concrete.

My question is, should I be worried about releasing asbestos in the air from any of the concrete/waterproofing that was done?  I've tested linoleum tile, old adhesives, and everything so far has been negative.  I'm wondering if all of this crumbling is going to be hazardous.

The house was built in the 1920's.  I can provide pictures if necessary.


texts: Shower curb: Fill in holes in cement blocks before tiling?

texts: I am putting a curb in my shower using small cinder blocks. Do I need to fill the holes with cement before tiling?


texts: We were exploring the attic and found several posts with indented parts covered with some type of black substance. Anyone know what this could be. Thanks!


texts: Ways to dry out space in wall or ceiling

texts:
I am installing recessed lighting into our living room.

The ceiling of the room is topped with a flat roof.

At one point, there were a handful of leaks in this roof that have since been repaired. However, the space in the ceiling is damp.

I noticed this dampness after putting six inch holes into the ceiling for the recessed light cans.

What are some good ways to dry out these spaces?

I don't want to rip open the ceiling any further, if possible. I have six six-inch holes, plus ten 3-inch holes from where I opened the ceiling to pull wiring through the joists. (After also drilling holes in the joists, obviously)

I was considering throwing several pounds of Fresh Step Crystals, a silica-gel based cat litter, or just get bulk quantities of proper silica gel. I'm not sure how to easily inject the tiny sand-like pellets of silica gel into the ceiling, though. If there's a good way to shoot sand-sized pellets into a ceiling space, I'd love to hear it.

I'm open to suggestions.


texts:
I have a set of Christmas lights in trying to untangle. One of the issues I'm facing is that, in some places, the wires have come untwisted, which makes them more prone to tangle. Is there any way to fix that? A trick to weaving them back together?
The bit above is actually one of the areas where they aren't as bad, but in a few places, there's a few inches of basically three separate wires.


texts:
I've just finished wall up the store room under the stair area of my new house. The walls of the pocket door are mounted right from the floor.

I need to protect these plywood walls from damp mops when my wife mopping the floor.
My plan is to install skirting on the plywood using ceramic tiles matching the other existing walls.

I need to do this also on the plywood walls meeting the stairs.

My question is how to attach the ceramic tiles on wooden surface reliably so that they won't drop off after few months.

Even if this is successfully done, i still unsure how to protect the plywood edge near the floor.

All advices highly appreciated.


texts: How can I diffuse the light coming out of recessed LED lamps?

texts:
I live in a US condo building which has standard recessed lights, looking somewhat like this:

I find the light to be too harsh and would like to have a way to diffuse it. Is there some sort of a diffusing lens I can install on top of the lights to make them pleasant to the eyes? Or should I just install a different lamp type if I want that effect?


texts:
I have a flush mount ceiling light fixture with 2 bulbs, also has included 2 sets of black and white wires for each light bulb.
This is where I am having trouble the little box in the ceiling has 4 separate cables all coming into it; so 4 sets of black and white.
One is to the breaker, second is to the light switch, the third is to another light, and the fourth I have no clue where it goes somewhere into the main floor.

When I took the original light fixture off, it was a pull string light for starters with the brass screws, but with all those wires in the box they had a white wire twisted together with a bunch of blacks? I didn't think that was normal but I didn't make note of which wire it was unfortunately.
I also managed at one point when I was attempting to install the new light fixture (with the 4 wires), I had 1 light on the switch hadn't been turned on yet? The other light in the fixture however wouldn't turn on even if the switch was one.
The other light in series I could turn on.
Any ideas?


texts:
My Kenmore full fridge intermittently turns off, and the only way to turn it back on is to bang it on its side.

When it is off, unplugging it and plugging it back in doesn't help, neither does turning the thermostat help.

Also, when in it's "off state" the fridge light still goes on.

Any idea of what is causing this to happen?


texts: How do I replace an old ladder's anti-scratch strip?

texts:
An acquaintance of mine an old aluminum ladder, sort of like this one:

The ladder used to have some kind of rubbery strip at the forward edge of its top platform, to prevent it from scratching the wall when it's leaning against it. But - that strip is all worn out.

My question: What should I replace it with? I mean, obviously, some other kind of rubbery strip which adheres to aluminum, but - there's lots of kind of rubbers and adhesive strips. Is there some combination of materials, or category of these things which I should look for?

Also - should I look for something which comes with adhesive, or should I use use my own glue/bonding agent to attach the strip to the ladder?


texts: Our refrigerator has two little nubs built into the door that holds the butter door on.  One of the two nubs cracked off, exposing the insulating foam underneath.  I was going to use a super glue variant on it until I read the package which states not to use it on foam.  Which glue is best to use in this situation?


texts: How do I fix this wiring to properly run LED lights? (More details/products added)

texts:
The people that lived in the house before me did something odd. They evidently intended on putting in under cabinet lighting in the kitchen, so when they tiled the back wall all around the area, they put in a wall switch that ends in two wires that are currently connected to an extension but going nowhere.

Here are the pics of the items:

Picture of the rocker switch (Taped in the off position):

Picture of the wall (Note the tile goes directly up to the cabinet):

Up close of where the cord comes out from the base of the cabinet:

I would like to run LED lights for under cabinet lighting, and I've been looking at some of the linkable 6" and 12" strips.

I would like to correctly wire LED lighting to this switch. The runs of light strips that I would need come out to 142" (Cabinet lengths are 36", 2 @ 31", 28" and 16"), with a total of 87" of junction runs between lights (There is an in cabinet microwave that I would need to run around, which accounts for 75" of that run.)

How can I correctly fix and wire the LED lights without causing major damage to the current tiling? (For reference, I was looking at these power supplies combined with these light strips, if there is a better solution I would appreciate those suggestions as well).

Update: I used the online chat support on the site I was considering ordering the lights from, and they recommended these lights with this power supply and the appropriate connectors.

When I asked about the current wiring in the wall, he sent me this picture:

So, I am guessing that I need to run the 3 wire segment from the light switch to the transformer junction, but what do I do with the ground wire? Just add a screw in the cabinet for it, or how does that need to be grounded?


texts: How do I replace this cast iron toilet flange?

texts:
I have a big old gawd awful cast iron (at least I think it's cast iron, the house was built in 1940) toilet flange that is in sorry shape.

See?

There will never be a better time to replace it - as we have the floor above and ceiling below it open, and it desperately needs it, obviously.

I have never done anything with cast iron before, however, and do not know how I should proceed.  Should I break the pipe back on the long straight stretch and connect to pvc using a rubber connector like this?

Or should I focus on just trying to replace the flange (which seems much more difficult to me...)

I know cast iron is hard to cut - is a grinder going to be more effective at cutting this stuff?  (Huge mess for the kitchen below :( - but I can hang trash bags or something underneath I suppose...)

UPDATE 5 Nov 2012

The end result:


texts: Securement requirements for ENT conduit: Is this a code violation?

texts:
I'm building out a homelab and got permission from my Electrician to install a bunch of ENT "smurf tubes" everywhere for low voltage applications. Some lines running to the front of the house for possible future Fiber to the Door, and some running to low voltage wall plates for cameras or Access Points. I memorized Article 362 of the NEC and much of the other relevant chapters just to be sure I was doing it right.
I followed section 362.20 to a T, and secured it every 3 feet.
While I was out today the electrician came by and told a family member that some of installations where in violation of code. Something about how I didn't secure my conduit enough, it can't be attached to the sheathing, and has to be secured within 1 foot a junction box. Annoyingly no one wrote down what he said, no one can remember what he actually said, he isn't answering is phone and neither is his company. I tried calling the electrical inspectors office to ask them some questions but they aren't picking up either.
It's practically the weekend, so I'd like to get this fixed and learn what my code violations are if any.

The other low voltage wires are secured independently. The hole will be filled with fire blocking. Does the conduit need to be secured closer to the hole in the top plate?

Ignore the Coax cables, they are just temporarily placed for now. Does this conduit need to be secured closer to the Structured Media Center?

Can this conduit be secured to the cross-member of the rafter?

Can conduit be secured to the sheathing of an exterior wall?

I'm most interested in learning the NEC, If you could could quote me the section number of any violations I have I would be most interested. If I'm just violating a best practice and not necessarily the NEC, let me know.


texts:
I have been putting in some TV aerial co-ax cable into my house (in the UK). Before I put the floor down, I would like to test it to make sure I've connected it well enough. Due to the routing required, I've bough TV co-ax cable, routed it, and then put on standard connections on to the wires. So it's all done by me, by hand, so it is open to issues.

I know having a TV aerial wire is a bit old school, but it has been requested, and its easier and tidier to do now rather than after all the decoration and so forth.

Is there any easy way to test this for signal integrity? So far my ideas have been continuity testing (which will only check DC connection, so might be too poor to give a good TV signal), connect aerial and TVs (which is cumbersome) or get hold of RF generator and receiver and perform a proper RF test (very expensive).


texts: How to measure and cut square tiles to make a herringbone pattern?

texts:
I have 18x18 inch square travertine tiles. I would like to know if it is feasible to cut each tile in half and make a herringbone pattern for our bathroom floor. I was planning on using 1/8" grout lines and I'm not sure how to make everything fit nicely together with the awkward measurements, spacings, and cuts.

Any tips or tricks for doing this or should I just resort to a diamond pattern instead?

PS: I love diagrams


texts: I recently brought a new stove, with auto-electric ignition. It works well, except for the fact that whenever I turn any knob(it's a 3-burner) ,the sparkers on ALL the burners go off. I don't know if that's by design or not, so if anyone can comment on this, that would be really helpful.


texts: If pipe has been frozen for a week, should I call a plumber?

texts:
I noticed my cold water lines to the upstairs bathroom were frozen last Monday. After leaving the heat cranked high, the toilet and the sink thawed. But the cold water line to the tub is still frozen.

I've had the heat on almost 24/7 for the last week, I've left the hot water to the tub dripping, and I've put a space heater right by the visible cold water pipe, along with the hair dryer tip and it still as not thawed.

Today is the first day since Monday that it has been above 32 degrees, currently it is 45 degrees,so I'm hoping it will finally thaw today. I have noticed that the cold water does drip, and I might be imagining it but I feel like the dripping is speeding up. So I don't think the pipe is completely blocked, which is hopefully a good thing.

But tomorrow is going to be below freezing again, and it will stay that way for the next week.

If I can't get it to thaw today, should I call a plumber? The longer it stays frozen, the more nervous I become about it. But my mom told me that there is nothing a plumber can do until it bursts. Is that true?

Of course, maybe it's not frozen. Maybe it's an air pocket. If that's the case, can a plumber fix it without putting holes in the walls/floors? Because ideally I would like to avoid that.

Thanks for any help!


texts: What is the best way to semi-permanently seal and waterproof a pipe containing two cables?

texts:
So I have an outdoor water fountain and there are two cables that go from inside the water fountain through a 1" PVC pipe to a dry junction box outside.  The cables are for a submersible DC pump for the water fountain and for lighting.

Inside the dry junction box is an AC/DC adaptor for the pump and a high voltage to low voltage AC transformer for the lights, both of which shouldn't get wet.  Unfortunately the junction box is below the water level of the fountain, so any leak in the pipe will be problematic.

I did a test run with one cable and a conical shaped rubber stopper which I drilled a hole in to run the single cable.  I also applied some silicone to the outside of the stopped and the hole running through it.  I used one stopper on each end of the pipe (so inside the fountain submerged and also in the junction box).  This worked fine.

However, trying to use the same solution with two cables didn't work well at all.  The rubber stubbed didn't really "close" or compress around the two cables well.  Especially since they are slightly different shapes and sizes.  One is round and the other is flat.

So can anyone suggest a good, reliable solution, that would be semi-permanent?  That is my other concern: I want something 100% reliable but I don't want a 100% permanent solution.  I could just fill the whole pipe with a waterproof epoxy, if I wanted to take things to an extreme, but I'm worried about some future where I might need to do some repairs and maintenance and I might need to remove or replace the cables.

I thought about using just silicone, but I'm not sure it would resist the water pressure - remember that the pipe is below the water level of the fountain, so there would be a significant amount of downward force on whatever sealing method I use.  That's why I liked the conical rubber stoppers.  The downward force just just wedges the stopper further into the pipe and increases the strength of the seal.

Are there, perhaps, rubber stoppers that would work with two different-sized cables?

I also thought about some kind of putty.  Would plumber's putty do the trick?  Or is there another kind of putty that would be better suited?

I also thought about something like a sprayable waterproof rubber or something?  For example, I have used sprayable plasti-dip before and that dries like into a custom rubber coating.  Is there perhaps a similar product that would spray out a little thicker and with more volume, almost like an expanding rubber foam, that would then dry into basically a custom, "perfect-fit" rubber stopper that I could later remove or cut through without much difficulty?

Or perhaps you have some other idea that is even better?


texts: How do I replace oven insulation that has been soiled by mice and smells bad?

texts:
We've had mice work their way into the oven insulation of our standalone range and now it stinks when we turn the oven on.

Looking around on the web suggests that replacing the oven is the most common solution, but that seems extreme!  Any suggestions?

(In this case the oven is a "Viking Professional" (bottom of the line) 4 burner + oven freestanding range. I haven't yet been able to pull it out enough to check if it has removable panels or been able to find a manual online.)

I'm guessing the answer will be something like:

locate the manual for your appliance
remove access panels
remove insulation while being careful about ??
remove insulation that is "stuck" by doing ??
replace with new insulation from ??
put it all back together and test as follows
in general be careful of ??

And, perhaps this is too specific to the brand of appliance? It would be useful to know which brands are more amenable to DIY repairs of this type than others.


texts: Shed with gaps at the top, wasp nest come back every year

texts:
I have a nice shed in the backyard but every year wasp nests reappear in there. the shed has these 2x4 sized gaps between the roof and the side walls on the sides of the shed.

I saw a recommendation of using screen mesh, but what should I use to adhere the screen mesh to the shed?


texts: How can I remove a moisture mark from a wooden table?

texts:
I have a white mark on my wooden dining table that was caused by a potted plant sitting there for too long without a saucer.  Attempts to clean it off have been futile because it seems not to be a mark on the surface, but a mark in the wood probably due to moisture.

I thought it would disappear by itself after a few days but it has remained for over a week now.  Is there a tried and true method to remove such marks?


texts: Carrier furnace blower doesn't kick up to high

texts: I have two Carrier furnaces in my home.  One is 100btu the other is 80btu  they use the same the mother board. I have an outdoor wood boiler that heats our house and the furnaces are only use for back upbeat mainly used as blowers to distribute the heat.  In this situation i want the blower fan to be on High speed to get the heat distributed. Both boards toggle switches are set identical for high speed fan  - one  works perfect the other blows on low only.  so for a test i switched the boards and now the other one works on high and the one that was working only blows on low.  Ok so I ordered a used board on eBay put it in anti only runs only - what are the chances of having two boards with the same problem.  What am I missing?


texts: So I have a rectangular hole in a laminate countertop that is very slightly too small for what I want to set into it. This is an extra kitchen that I'm not too concerned about but I'd like to be able to shave something off one edge of the hole without making a mess if possible. My question is, can I just sand this? It's particle board with the laminate surface. I just need to cut off about 1/8 inch maximum and I'd prefer to just sand it because it's such a small amount I don't think I can use a saw. Any suggestions?


texts: How to splice 220 line to use for multiple uses

texts:
I have a 50A 220v box outside for use during a power outage to feed the breaker box on both bars. Since this is very rarely used, i'd like to use it to install a 'dryer plug' for a new shop heater. The shop heater requires 30A 220v service.

What's the best way to splice into the 50A line to feed the 30A plug for the heater?


texts: Bosch Fridge is making a high-pitched whining sound, generally when the compressor is on

texts:
Here is a video of the sound:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1o9Vkfu2lYcc8RDnxAjh2p4LYazjSTRDn/view?usp=sharing
800 Series French Door Bottom Mount Refrigerator 36'' Easy clean stainless steel
Model Number (E-Nr):  B21CT80SNS/02
A Bosch technician came, couldn't reproduce the sound, and assumed it was the fan and said he'd come back to replace it
But I think the sound is too constant to be coming from a fan? Not sure.  It's a new fridge


texts: If you run a 20 amp circuit (12/2) with shared lights AND receptacles, can you use a 15amp switches? Its my understanding that the switch is rated for the load its carrying (lights), but what about the load of the whole circuit? Lets say you have a room on one 20 amp circuit supplying outlets(15amp rec) and lights(15amp switch)you plug in a vacuum cleaner, have mini fridge running, and a fan plus lights, you pull more than 15 amps on the circuit. The breaker won't flip, but will the light switches rated for 15amp be ok?


texts: French drain issue and best way to correct it

texts:
I bought a house with a french drain already installed but it seemed to get a couple wet spots around the house especially after a heavy rain.

I dug up a portion of the slab and saw that there werent any weep holes and the slab was almost cemented to the footer. See pictures. I redid sections of 2-3 feet wide to allow drainage and spaced it 5-7 feet apart to minimize the excavation volume. I drilled weep holes as far down as possible all around.

This was a remodel house where all the walls are new except an old front wall. Most of the places nothing comes out of the weep holes except the old front wall where some water is draining with every rainstorm.

Does anyone think I need to redo the whole thing?


texts: Can a HVAC be split between bonus room and garage, but with return and Tstat in bonus room?

texts: I have an insulated garage and bonus room above it. Can a HVAC feed both the bonus room and garage, but the bonus room have the air return and Tstat? The bonus room is accessible from inside the house, so there would be no "flow through" between the garage and bonus room. I'm not too concerned about the garage being at different temperatures than the bonus room, but want to insure there is not some issue with having two rooms with no shared air space, but the return in only one room.


texts:
I need to repaint my aluminum garage door but want to use the right paint / process to do it.

Will an oil based paint like rustoleum work?
Is there a special primer that I need to get this done the right way?

I don't want the paint flaking off.

My garage door got a bit messed up when I sealed the driveway a few years ago - splattered tar on it. I tried using "oil-flo" solvent to clean the tar off and it seemed to work... also stripped some of the paint off.

The best bet now is just to repaint the whole thing!


texts: How do I Re-Light My 1995 Magic Chef free stand stove Model# 3110PRW & the pilot Light for the Oven also needs Lit?

texts: It’s my vacation home ,It was working until I removed burner plates, to clean stove top. Next day it wouldnt turn on, even with a match,  The pilot light for the oven , off also ? Do they work off one pilot? Thank you, for any help you can give( I’m a senior, alone & staying in- Social distancing ..coronavirus )


texts:
I was able to straighten a slightly warped 10-foot piece of pressure-treated wood with clamps.

Will it warp again? If so, is there anything I can do so that it doesn’t warp?

This 2x4 is being used in a fence and it has two vertical 4x4 pieces of wood on each side.


texts: Backed up kitchen sink drain that gets worse when I run garbage disposal

texts:
I have a kitchen sink that is recently backing up when I run the sink.  I ran the garbage disposal thinking this would solve the problem but once I turn off water (lots) bubbled up into the sink.  If I just leave it, the water does drain out.  And in fact I thought the problem was fixed because I rapidly poured a whole kettle of boiling water down the sink and it all quickly flowed down the drain.   I reheated kettle and repeated 5 times. We even ran the dishwasher over night and as far as I can tell, it got the dishes clean and didn't back up (no water in dishwasher).  But when I turned on the sink and the garbage disposal in the morning, same problem.  Water comes gurgling up.

I'd like to know

Why do things seem worse when using garbage disposal?
What's going on and how do I fix it?

I did see this article:
Water backs up in adjacent sink only when garbage disposal is used

and maybe that addresses my problem?  But note that I just have a single drain not a double one.

Thanks!
Dave

Update.  Photo shows plumbing under sink.  Notice I was able to undo bottom connection of trap but NOT top connection.  I unscrewed the fastener.  Should it just pull down now?  For the life of me, I can't budge it.  AND I may have caused leak from pulling/twisting.  Seemed like water was coming out when I ran garbage disposal right now metal fattener on outside of disposal (connector to tube) Adding photos as requested:


texts: Breaker stuck in ON position after faulty dimmer installation

texts: I installed a dimmer, and obviously messed up the connections because when I turned on the corresponding breaker in the main (GE) panel I heard a relatively loud buzzing noise, and then a pop. But here is the strange thing: instead of been in the tripped position (or even in the OFF position), the breaker is stuck in the ON position (despite the fact that none of the corresponding fixtures is working). I disconnected the dimmer and none of the cables are touching each other, yet the breaker is still stuck. Any suggestion?


texts: Help wiring "smart" light switch in existing space

texts:
I would like to replace 2 conventional light switches in a 2-gang box, with 2 "smart" light switches, but I'm confused about how to wire them.
The circuit has 3 wires coming in from the top conduit: orange, white, and black. And 4 wires in the bottom conduit: yellow, red, white, and black.
The smart switches want red (load), black (hot), white (neutral), green (ground).
My questions are, where is the green ground wire? (This is new construction within the past 3 years in the US.) And, based on how the existing switches are wired, how should I connect the wires to the 2 new smart switches?


texts: How can I repair rust damage on a steel shed?

texts:
I have a shed in my backyard that came with the house.  It's made out of what I presume is steel sheet metal.  Overall it's in good shape, but there is some rust damage on one side that is getting worse, to the point where the sprinklers and rain are getting water inside the shed.

What's the best way to go about patching this?  Would I do it in the same way you would repair rust damage on a car (grind out the dust, tape/bondo the hole, prime and paint)?  Or is there some other approach that would make more sense?


texts: How are insulation R-values calculated for wall cavities of inconsistent thickness?

texts:
I'm designing a house which will have unconventional wall construction that varies in thickness. The wall cavities will be filled with dense-packed cellulose, rated at R-3.7 per inch. I want to understand how to be sure that I'll meet IECC/IRC code requirements for minimum R value for the wall insulation.
I know that it's typical, for example, for the ubiquitous 2x4 framed exterior wall with studs 16" OC to meet the minimum of R-13 if the stud bays are filled with fiberglass batts. Clearly, though, the wall's actual average R-value will be less than R-13 due to the studs themselves, which have a much lower R value than the fiberglass.
So, what exactly is the method used to evaluate a wall's insulation design against code? Is it:

the R-value of the insulation material at its minimum thickness, ignoring studs?
the R-value of the insulation material at its average thickness, ignoring studs?
something else?

As a more concrete example, the illustration below depicts top-down views of wall cross sections, where light gray represents 2x4 studs (vertical) and sheathing (horizontal) and dark gray represents insulation fill. My understanding is that examples A and B would be rated equally at R-13. At what R-value would a wall like example C be rated?


texts: How to hang a TV on a drywall with no studs and no room for toggle bolts?

texts:
I am hanging a TV in a narrow wall space that has no studs behind it.  I have verified there are no studs behind the drywall by using two different stud finders (a cheaper and a more expensive model).  Both devices did go off once, but only in a small area in the middle of the wall, not along the whole height, so it's definitely not a stud.

This TV mount requires 4 screws.  The original plan was to use 4 toggle bolts (a.k.a. drywall screws).  However, after pre-drilling the holes, I found that there is another hard surface that begins about 1.5 inches after the drywall.  There is no room for the "butterfly" part of the toggle bolt to open up.  I don't know what the hard surface is.  When I give it a knock with a screwdriver, it sounds like either metal or brick.  This is an apartment building over 100 years old.  There is another person's apartment behind the wall.  A few questions:

1) Should I do additional testing to find out if that surface is brick or metal?  If so, how?

2) If not, should I assume it's brick and proceed with trying to put the screws into the brick, either directly or with anchors?  What kind of additional gear would this require?  Special screws, drill bits, anchors?

3) Alternatively, should I stick with the toggle bolt method, which would require drilling large openings in the second surface to allow for sufficient clearance for the toggle bolts to open?  Not sure how easy this would be.

Thanks!


texts:
I have a dual switch in my bathroom with two separate controls -- one for the fan and one for the light. It has the following four contacts:

Ground (duh!)
Two "common" ones, which seem short-circuited together -- only one is currently wired.
Connector for device A (fan)
Connector for device B (light)

I want to upgrade that to a switch smart enough to turn the fan on and off automatically, depending on humidity. All such switches are marked with "Neutral Wire Required" -- but I thought, I have it, because our wiring is only 7 years old.

The new switch has 6 connectors:

Green for ground (duh!)
Black "hot"
Blue "hot" -- to be tied together with the black and to the "hot" wire
Red -- for the light
Brown -- for the fan
White -- for neutral

Do I have any chance of wiring this device instead of what I currently have? For example, in the same 4-gang box, there is also a power-outlet, which does have a neutral wire. But it is on a separate circuit (because lights are separate from outlets) -- so I can not use it, can I?

Is there anything else I can do, other than to return the new switch?


texts:
I have an outdoor Rheem water heater that I want to flush/descale (run vinegar through it).
Problem is, the two flush valves (hot and cold) are so close to each other that I can’t fit my hose to connect it to them.
Is there any kind of solution that can get me around this and able to connect hoses?
I’m attaching a couple of pictures here to show this.


texts: Hanging a garden hose holder and need information on framing under a window

texts: How far apart are the studs underneath a large picture window?  I am testing for studs about 1 1/2 ft up from the base.


texts: Dishwasher: Can my ground wire be exposed?

texts:
I just replaced my dishwasher, and noticed that the old unit had two wire connections: black-to-black wire and white-to-white wire.  The ground wire from the home was exposed and wrapped around a screw on the unit.

Now, my new unit has a green wire for ground.  Is it okay to simply connect the exposed ground wire to the green wire on the unit?  The alternative would be to re-strip all of the wires so that the ground is not exposed (but, I'd rather not).

Thanks!


texts: Safe to put insulation around recessed light cans after convert to LED?

texts:
I have a ranch home, in the kitchen there are recessed lights. I want to replace them with these LED ones that home depot sells:

I took a look at the insulation around the recessed light cans from the attic, and there is none. The cans have holes in them, so my precious warm air is leaking right out of these areas.

After I convert to the LED kits, is it safe to insulate around the cans? I currently have fiberglass bats in the rest of the attic, can I seal the cans with silver tape, then put bats on top?

Thanks


texts: What should I do if the plastic waterline connection on my dishwasher is stripped?

texts:
I'm a first-time homeowner and just bought a new dishwasher. I've repaired my car in the past using manuals just fine so thought I'd give home device installation a try.

Things were going great until I tried to connect the waterline to the dishwasher. The waterline connection on the dishwasher has plastic threads, and it did not like the metal waterline very much. It got stripped pretty badly when I tried to screw them together, and I no longer can get the damn thing on straight. It's a lost cause.

I'm worried I damaged that part to the dishwasher and more or less defected the whole dishwasher. But maybe I can cut off the stripped screw lines on the plastic end and use some of the fresh threads above it? What exactly am I supposed to do? Should I just let a plumber fix this?

The connection that got stripped is the blue thing below, and the waterline is dripping into a bowl (not sure if that is a good thing, might need to replace stop valve)


texts: Manufacturer pairs 6 ft tall vinyl fence with 8 ft posts - should I find 9 ft posts?

texts:
My research has shown that fence posts should be dug to a depth of at least 1/3 of the height of the post—for a six foot fence, the post depth would be 3 feet.

I purchased a 6 foot vinyl privacy fence from Lowe's, and the manufacturer's recommended post was a 5"x5"x8' post, an entire foot short of what I would have expected. Indeed, Lowe's doesn't even appear to sell a 9 foot fence post (without routed holes). Should I return the 8 foot posts and find something longer? Or is there some way to approximate a longer post (e.g. concrete+rebar going deeper or something?)?

My soil is extremely rocky (on a mountain in Utah County), but otherwise loamy.
It's not usually windy, 40 mph sustained winds with 60 mph gusts would be the strongest wind you might see in a year. Most of the length of the fence will separate my house and the neighbors, about 20 feet away from either house, which I'm hoping should should act as a windbreak.
The frost line here is 36 inches
I'm planning on using concrete to set the posts.


texts: Can I break up stones and overlay soil to grow lawn?

texts:
Ideally I would like to have this an all-grass yard. I am looking out a window of the house and can't add soil on top or the grade would point towards the foundation. All these rocks are 3-6 feet from the house.

I was wondering if I could fix it by breaking up the first 4 inches of all the rocks and cover with soil. Would I need more than 4 inches, less? I would drill into them using masonry bits and drop in some of that expanding foam stuff and remove the excess slowly over time. There are about 10 more rocks not shown. Could this be done DIY over the course of a spring/summer/fall? Would it even work? Better options?


texts: How can I fix dark floor stain absorption without starting over?

texts: I stained red ok floor in 1935 house with jacobean. There were swirls in an area so thought I would orbital sand them away and just restain. Now it is very obvious ...i have sanded back with belt sander grit 80 but the wood is not absorbing the stain evenly as it did first application. The blond area is bare sanded and the 2 tone is where I am trying to get stain to absorb but is much lighter.  I am trying to prevent starting all over. Thank you for any suggestions. :)


texts: What could cause a "smelly sock" smell seeping into our living room from the crawlspace?

texts:
Our living room floor is wooden so there is a gap between the footings and the floor. In late fall, we get a horrible smell in that room. It smells like smelly socks but worse.

I thought it was because of rain in winter since it seems to start around November or December. It lasts for about a month but then seems to disappear. We do not get it in summer even if we get loads of rain at that time. then so not sure nut really nasty and nothing takes the smell away.

What could be causing the smell at this time, and how can we prevent it?


texts:
I called 811 to ask them to mark my utility lines on a Monday and told them I'd be doing work that Friday. They didn't show up until the Monday after I planned to work.

What should I do? What recourse do I have?


texts: Multiple pull chain light fixtures discovered to not be working

texts:
I have four pull chain fixtures for light bulbs that do not work. I have other pull chain fixures that do work. I checked the light bulbs and circuit breakers and they are fine. Three of the pull chain fixtures were add on's on our second floor and installed after we bought this house about 15 years ago. I assume these three are connected in some manner and suspicious that something went wrong based on the installation. However, that may not explain the fourth fixture that does not work that is in our basement. Any troubleshooting or other suggestions are appreciated.
Thank you.


texts: Fixing cracks in mortar shower pan before tiling

texts:
I am refinishing a shower and poured the shower pan using CustomFloat Bedding Mortar several days ago. I mixed it according to the directions (3 Gallons of water per 50Lb bag).

Everything looked fine, however when walked on the pan yesterday the mortar cracked from the wall to the drain in a few places. No additional cracks seem to be developing but I don't think I should tile without first addressing the cracks. Is there anything I can do to repair the mortar before tiling or do I need to rip it out and try again?

-- EDIT --
Added picture


texts:
I want to add a zipline to my backyard. I'd like to anchor one end to the house itself. The other end will probably anchor to a tree in the back end of the yard. There is a lot of information for how to anchor with trees as both endpoints, but I'm not finding anything for if I want to set a safe anchor on the house. I haven't moved in yet, so I can't get too specific with what kind of material we'll be working with, but here's a view of the back of the house:

Ideally, the anchor would be accessible from the deck you see on the left side of the photo (where there is stucco).


texts: How to measure electricity used by hot water heater

texts:
I am debating the effort to save on electricity costs with my electric water heater.  Solar water panel heater, hybrid water heater, etc.  Before I go down that path, I want to track the cost of the existing setup by measuring the amount of electricity used by the tank over the next several months.  How can I do that?  I read I can have a sub meter/panel I, but then what?

I have a 70 gallon electric hot water heater, 5 years old.  The sticker says avg annual cost is about $550. The heater sits in an enclosed closet adjacent to the outside of the house, and it's shaded. Being in Arizona, closet temp is about 100F or higher in the summer and about 75F in the winter.

I have a hot water loop and circulator that runs 7am to 1am.


texts:
I'm trying to plan out a free-standing deck in an irregular-shaped garden. It currently has railway sleepers marking a garden bed around the west, north and east edges and the missus would like to keep them there. The deck will sit just below the height of the bed. I've done a sketchup model to help me figure out materials and make sure it's properly supported.

Looking at joists from B&Q: http://www.diy.com/rooms/softwood-deck-joist-l2400mm-pack-of-3/666416_BQ.prd I've allowed for a 400mm gap between centres and planned out 7 modules. There are 2 'holes' in the frame to allow for existing trees. I'd appreciate 2 bits of advice please:

Does the layout look ok, i.e. anything obviously silly about it??
Where should I be placing concrete supports? (edit - the current garden has grass laid on it)

Many thanks in advance


texts: Post-less combination window & door system

texts:
We are planning a remodel and are considering a post-less combination folding window & door system similar to what is shown at:

http://www.nanawall.com/applications/belvedere-kitchen
http://user-73717428386.publ.com/LaCantina-Doors-32-page-Catalog#22

I attached a tentative floor plan showing the doors in red and the windows in green and wanted to get a sense if someone has done something like this or if this would be geometrically feasible given the 120 deg corner.


texts: I have a Bathroom sink overflow that has been clogged for over 20 years! I realized I need it to have it working properly so I have been trying to "Open It up" I have tried using CLR and the sharp end of a coat hanger wire but no go. Is there a small snake or tool that can be attached to a drill to bore out the clog?   I don't know what other chemicals I could use. Thanks


texts: Can I use a segmented abrasive blade in my circular saw for cutting drywall?

texts:
Is it o.k. to substitute a 41/2" dia. segmented cutting wheel in my 43/8" dia. 14.4V saw? No one makes blades anymore, since B&D/dewalt abandoned
the line.

I use my saw to cut drywall, and install the blocking for the cabinets that the carpenters 'forgot'. Or do I need one of those 'diamond-encrusted' blades?


texts: Rebar cutter and bender's and the relative grade range of steel

texts:
I'm comparing two budget rebar bender and cutter products (Crescent or HIT Tools), not sure the grade of steel Crescent is able to handle other than "soft or mild steel", HIT mentions up to grade 60.
Is there a relative grade range that is considered soft or mild? The most common grades available seems to be 40, 60, 75, 80, and 100.


texts: What can I do about softened polyurethane finish?

texts:
I have a (bed) headboard that was refinished about 25 years ago.  The original finish was a white French Provincial.  The refinish consisted of white latex paint covered with a glaze. A protective top coat of oil based polyurethane was applied.

I frequently read in bed, so the back of my head contacts the headboard. That spot has become softened and sticky.  I've tried cleaning it with Fantastic, to no avail.

Can you offer any suggestions for me to solve this problem?


texts: Why is wheel oil provided with a Montolit tile cutter?

texts:
I am thinking to buy a Montolit tile cutter for a diy project, thinking that it will be useful in the future too. According to this site The P3 version introduces an oil bottle to lubricate the cutting wheel.

I do not have any experience with tile cutters. Does this mean that other tile cutters do not necessarily use oil on the wheel? What if they stop producing this replacement bottles with oil, or change its size etc., can I still use the cutter without oil?


texts: [Amazon] sells a kit that claims to replace the rusted-in-place, brittle, plastic insert in this hosebib. However, there's no shutoff in my house except the whole house, so if I try to chip/pry out the old one, and can't install the new one, I'm got to call a plumber as an emergency to cut a hole in a wall to replace the whole thing. What are my chances of success?


texts: Leak in basement - should I be concerned?

texts:
I recently moved into a brand new apartment building. I have a ground floor duplex (downstairs is below ground) and shortly after moving in I noticed there was something leaking into the wall downstairs. It seemed to happen only after heavy rains so after some investigation they determined that they needed to replace the water drainage system outside the building. They finished that and now are replacing the drywall & insulation downstairs - basically tearing up drywall a couple feet at a time and feeling the insulation and if it's wet they're tearing it out and replacing.

My question is: how concerned should I be about this? They assured me there's no reason to worry about mold because of the materials used (something about special drywall for basements) but obviously it's in their interest to do as little as possible. I also noticed some water damage (brown edges) on the floor (flat tile or maybe it's a tile-looking laminate?) right where it meets the wall - should I be concerned that the floor (or baseboards I suppose) I'm walking on is deteriorating? I'm out of my element and I'm not sure I can trust what management says because there's a bit of a conflict of interest.


texts: Move heat out of living room with fireplace

texts:
I have a sort of rectangular house with a 25 m2 living room at one corner, and the master bedroom at the opposite long corner of the house.  All of the bedrooms are up another level from the living room by 4 steps.

I installed a wood burner in the living room a couple of years ago, and I was assured it could heat the whole house up, but of course it's not doing so.  When I have the fireplace going, it could be 28 deg C in the room with the ceiling temperature at 32 dec C.  But the heat is not circulating and is being blocked by the wall above the living room doors.  The bedrooms would be at 12 deg C.

I had a builder create a transom window above the doors and that helps only a little.

I don't have a ceiling cavity to install heat transfer ducting.

But I do have a play room under the living room, and I could put a grill in the floor of the living room and duct it to the 4 bedrooms though I have no idea how well that would work pulling hot air at floor level rather than ceiling level.

Is this a practical solution? Or, is there something better?  Should I be pulling cold air from the bedrooms and push it to the living room instead?


texts: How could I insulate a thin hot roof and bring it to current Southern CA code?

texts:
So we started an exterior remodel today, and found that our roof construction is way more mickey mouse than I thought it was.
Our house has vaulted 2nd floor ceilings through most of the 2nd floor with only a small ventilated attic space, but the majority of the 2nd floor is tongue and groove vaulted ceilings with no attic space above.
I learned today that our roof is simply layers of comp shingle laid on top of the tongue and groove one inch panels.  There is no OSB.   No air cavity.   No insulation.   The rafters are BELOW the tongue and groove panels as the rafters are visible from inside (painted).  We have already contracted to replace the siding and roof but now I'd like to do a better job.  We live in SoCal so we have mind weather but our insulation is horrible and I assume this is a big reason why.
Whats the right way to do this?   My contractor suggested laying down OSB first, then polyiso (just one inch?) and then weather barrier and tiles.
If I do this, and the roof then becomes insulated, I should change to an unvented attic at that point?
Also does anyone know what code is likely to require for insulation?  I'm reading R25 but that would require 5 layers of polyiso stacked on top of each other and that cant be right?  Given each panel is only R5


texts: Can a termite inspection report declare a house irreparable?

texts:
(This question assumes a reputable pest control company.)

If a home termite report finds issues in need of repair, is it safe to assume the integrity of the house is intact after those repairs are completed (at least as far as termite damage is concerned)?

How would we know from a termite report if termites have "totaled" a house?


texts: What would be the proper connectors to use to enter the box?

texts: Running 1 1/2 PVC with 2-2-2-4 inside to an 8x8x4 PVC J box to connect to 2-2-2-4 SER cable inside box.


texts: How should I go about replacing a cracked sanitary tee in a sink drain?

texts:
so I found a leak from my drain pipe inside the wall and the source of the leak is from a broken sanitary tee that connects the 2" vent from up top, horizontal 1.5" drain pipe from sink, and 2" drain going underground. How would I go about fixing this? Make 3 cuts to remove tee and cut small sections of pipe and use couplers to join with new tee ?
Thank you guys for all the tips and suggestions. I was able to get most of the fittings/pipe dry fitted. I bored out that hole in the stud just a smidge so there's some play between the T and the horizontal pipe. Just need to make a connection to the vent. Might have to use a flexible coupling. Few questions I have does the pipe have to be pushed all the way into the coupling until it reaches the little stop? I can get it in maybe 5/8 of the way and I measured it's about 7/8 to get to the stop. Also do I need to get this inspected once I'm done?


texts: Is it more important for your baseboards to have a consistent reveal (height) or for them to be level?

texts:
This may seem like a no-brainer but I just wanted to confirm my thought process. I'm finishing our basement and reached the point where I need to install the baseboards. While the slab is relatively level (±3/8" across the whole foundation), I am curious if it is more important to have the baseboards level or to have them follow the variances in the slab (resulting in trim that is the same height overall)?
My assumption is to have them level at the top and cut any variance in the slope of the slab off the bottom to allow for my carpet to still be tucked underneath, but figure I would get the opinion of the masses.
Thanks in advance for any input you may have.


texts: How can I hang something on an exterior wall with vinyl siding?

texts: My house has vinyl siding.  If I want to hang something on an exterior wall, can I just attach it with screws drilled through the siding?  Or do I need to do anything to prevent water from seeping in around the screws?


texts: How can I add a button for a garage door opener?

texts:
I have the following scheme for my garage door opener:

and I want to add a push button to this.

Is it enough to connect a push button just as any other button: GND to scheme's GND and PB to the other pin of the button?

(source: zwave.com.au)


texts: Just bought a Zeny 50 plasma cutter and I've never used one before. I will be using it outside in a paved area. Where should I ground the big alligator cable? Should I stick a copper pipe into the ground and clip it to that?


texts:
Just came across a neat product at the local hardware store, but I wonder if they are up to code and safe to use.  They are a wire nut that allows you to simply push the wires in, instead of twisting on a traditional wire nut.

They cost slightly more, and you have to keep a wider variety of connectors on hand since they vary by the number of wires that can be connected.

they accept 12-22 AWG solid and 12-22 AWG stranded wire, and are rated at 600 VAC.  They come in a variety of sizes from 2 - 8 'ports', so they should be up to any job.

Has anybody ever used these, and are they code compliant in the United States?  Is there any danger of the wires slipping out over time?

electricalbasics.com

Found some standards information:
(Ideal Industries IN-SURE(TM) PUSH-IN CONNECTORS)

  UL 486C, UL 467 GROUNDING CSA
  C22.2 #188 IEC 998-2-2 CE
  CERTIFIED RoHS COMPLIANT UL
  94V-2 FLAME RATING US PATENT
  7,507,106 US & FOREIGN PATENTS
  PENDING

UPDATE:

I finally got my hands on some of these things, and I'll tell you what. If you can pull the wires out through normal means once they're locked in, you deserve some type of prize.  I did find a way to pull the wires out, but I doubt they'll ever see enough movement while in use to allow the wires to slip out.  If you spin the wires back and forth while you pull, they will eventually work their way out (this is the official way to remove wires according to an IDEAL spokesperson).  Doing this chews the wire up pretty bad, leaving a bunch of nicks along the length of the wire.

They say not to reuse them, and I can see why. Removing the wire can leave fairly deep gouges in the wire. If you ever have to remove them, you'll likely have to trim the wire back and restrip it. However, Even after torturing them (including taking them apart), they still held the wire when it was reinserted.

So as long as your wiring is not subjected to constant twisting and pulling, you should have no problems with wires pulling out of these things.

UPDATE:

I think I finally found the relevant section in the code that would apply to these devices.

  National Electrical Code 2014

  Article 110 - Requirements for Electrical Installations

  I. General

  110.14 Electrical Connections.

  (B) Splices. Conductors shall be spliced or joined with splicing devices identiﬁed for the use or by brazing, welding,
  or soldering with a fusible metal or alloy. Soldered splices shall
  ﬁrst be spliced or joined so as to be mechanically and electrically
  secure without solder and then be soldered. All splices and joints
  and the free ends of conductors shall be covered with an insulation
  equivalent to that of the conductors or with an identified insulating device.

  Wire connectors or splicing means
  installed on conductors for direct burial shall be listed for such
  use.

I would say these devices fit both criteria. They are identified for the use, and they provide insulation equivalent to the conductors.


texts: Can I use a perfume sprayer to spray bleach solution?

texts:
I am looking for a way to spray a moderate bleach solution up under the rim of my toilet. One idea I had was to use a "perfume sprayer"-type thing with the bulb that you squeeze. Would this work? Would the flow rate be too low? Would the bleach damage the sprayer? Are there better alternatives I am missing?

Thanks!


texts: What is this connector part called and where can I buy one?

texts: I am trying to find a replacement for this connecting part on a ballet barre. It's kind of like a long tee clamp but internal. The poles it connects to are aluminium. Essentially 2 of the key locking mechanisms have jammed so I can't tighten them and I've bent 2 allen keys trying to lock them. Thanks in advance!


texts: How many lumens needed to light up a lawn using floodlights?

texts:
I'd like to add floodlights mounted to my house to light up my yard at night and I'm trying to figure out how bright a fixture I should buy. I've Googled a ton and found plenty of calculators to do the math, i.e. how high I'm mounting them and how much yard I'm trying to cover which results in this many foot-candles or lux. But those don't tell me anything about whether the results would make my lawn look dimly lit or like daylight.

Is there a set of rough guidelines or rules of thumb? I don't need to light it up like a night game at an athletic field but I want it brighter than just a security light. I need to be able to walk around with my dog and clearly see everything. I'd like to err on the side of more light, not less.

The lawn I'm trying to cover is 65x80 feet (about 20x25 meters) and I'd mount the lights about 20 feet high.


texts: Ok for garage door chain to sag on one side when door is closed?

texts:
I noticed today that the chain on my garage door seems to droop a bit on one side when the door is closed. I feel like I would have noticed if it was always like this (new unit, about 1.5 years old).
Is this okay/normal? If not, is there a process to tighten it? Seems like it's been nosier lately!


texts:
(An update is below the pictures.)

We just moved to our house in November and had to buy a new dishwasher. We had installers install it for us. A couple of months ago, we started noticing a bad odor around the kitchen sink area, and we couldn't pinpoint what was causing it. A couple of weeks ago we noticed the smell was triggered when we started running the dishwasher but not all the time.

The other day, I placed a cup of vinegar in the dishwasher and ran it, and there was no smell during that cycle. It returned when we filled it with dishes and ran it later that day.

I have noticed the smell at times when I walk into the house after going out. I have also noticed it at our laundry closet, which on the other side of the room of the kitchen. We did have a plumber come out once before we figured out a trigger for it, but he didn't find anything. Of course, the smell wasn't triggered, either.

We're on the city water lines and sewer. I'm attaching pictures of our kitchen sink drainage system. I really want to know how to get rid of this odor once and for all. Apparently, the house has a very potent smell at this moment but I'm not there right now, and the dishwasher is not running.

Update

One of the answers below suggested that the action of the dishwasher draining would siphon the water from the other P-traps. After conducting a test, I concluded that this was not happening. After running the dishwasher, I double-checked the two other P-traps. They were full of water, so I accepted that even though the configuration is not standard, it still does work.

I found out that if I run the furnace fan, it triggers the odor, and there is a vent opening directly under the kitchen sink, which you cannot see in the pictures above because it under the cabinetry. It is a concrete slab foundation.

I contacted a plumber for assistance. He suspected a busted sewer line, so we contacted a sewage cleaning company. They came and discovered a lot of roots in the sewer drain, so they cleaned it out. There was immediate relief from the odor. The roots were causing a blockage, but nothing was actually coming out of the drains. You'll find out why in a minute. After a week, we could still trigger the odor, so we knew something else was going on. We contacted the sewer guys again to stick a camera in the duct work under the sink. They found sitting water. Egads! They ran the water on the kitchen sink and discovered flowing water (not even a drip, but a major flow) into the duct work sourced somewhere close to the kitchen sink. Conclusion: there is a leaky drain pipe in the concrete slab that is just above the duct work to cause it to fill with water.

Because it was drain pipe leak, I contacted my warranty company. We bought the house in October, and it came with a 1-yr warranty. They gave the name of their technician indicating there was a $75 deductible. Fine. He got there, and I explained the situation to him. Apparently, plumbers don't have cameras to use. We spent an hour just explaining and describing the situation. He told me to call back in a week if I hadn't heard from him. I called him today; he said he'd call me back after lunch; that he had just left a message to the warranty company. The warranty company called me back this morning:
"We don't cover leaky pipes in the concrete slab."
Boom!


texts: Is a plug adapter considered an "extension cord" under the NEC?

texts:
Is an adapter from a plug (say a NEMA 14-50) to a different socket (say a NEMA 6-20 or L14-20, or even a NEMA 6-50 for that matter) considered an extension cord by the 2014 NEC? If it isn't, then what type of device would it be, and would it matter if it was a listed assembly vs. a field-fabricated assembly?

As to the use of "extension cord" in the NEC, see 240.5(B)(3)/(4) for an example:

  (3) Extension Cord Sets. Flexible cord used in listed extension cord sets shall be considered to be protected when
  applied within the extension cord listing requirements.

  (4) Field Assembled Extension Cord Sets. Flexible cord
  used in extension cords made with separately listed and
  installed components shall be permitted to be supplied by a
  branch circuit in accordance with the following:

  20-ampere circuits - 16 AWG and larger


texts: The other day I was on my front porch painting my shutters and I was painting the one next to my Ring doorbell. After about 10 minutes of standing in front the Ring, my doorbell began ringing over and over. I disconnect one of the wires from the doorbell inside my house. Why doe this happening?


texts:
My wife and I would like to remove the older oil heat from our home and replace it with a heat pump. We currently have an Amana central air conditioning unit (3 ton), and an oil furnace in the basement. From what I can tell, it looks like the furnace is doing all the air moving (upflow), blowing air through a Goodman CAPF Cased Indoor Coil, which is of course connected to the outside unit.

Since the furnace is doing all the air moving right now, but the coil is working great, can the furnace be removed, and in its place install a modular blower? (Like Goodman's MBR, for example).


texts: Should I expect a whole-home humidifier to provide consistent humidity throughout a 3-story townhouse?

texts: I'm looking to install a whole-home humidifier in my 3-story townhouse in northern Virginia. I already have trouble keeping a consistent temperature throughout the 3 stories - should I expect similar trouble keeping the humidity consistent? If so, will the humidity tend to be higher on the lower floor or upper floor, and will that result in humidity that's too high on one floor in order to get it comfortable on another?


texts: What is the function of this controller and what does different settings do?

texts:
I moved into a new house last week and I cant seem to understand what the function of this controller in my fuse box is, it says heating controller on the box but there is no details.
Also note that the heating is under floor and each room has its own thermostat to control heating.

Can you please explain what are the different settings on it and how to set it up?

Heating controller 750 E1 E6


texts: How to spec buried wiring to a garden workshop

texts:
In the next few weeks, I'm installing a wooden garden workshop, 25 metres from the house at the bottom of the garden. I will need an electricity supply to it, and I'm trying to figure out exactly what I need to ask an electrician for.

There's currently a supply to an existing shed with Steel Wire Armoured (SWA) cable, but I don't expect I'll be able to extend from this down the rest of the garden.

I expect, in the future, I might be using "hobbyist versions" of a table saw, wood lathe, band saw, etc. By which I mean relatively low-powered machinery.

How can I calculate the power requirements and then relate that to circuits needed, cable required, conduit???, voltage drops, etc...


texts: How should I fasten strips of 15mm plywood to a sheet of the same?

texts:
I've got a sheet of 15mm plywood which I need to build a door out of. Basically I want to cut the door in one sheet and use the leftover for reinforcing the edges by adding a layer on each side.

Will this work?

How should I affix the frame? Screws or glue, or both.


texts: (How) Can I match new 3/4" T&G oak flooring with old 7/8" flooring?

texts:
I've got two air return vent holes in my floor that I'm patching, and I made the classic mistake of mis-measuring the flooring (the guy at the flooring store did, too, so I don't feel too bad) before purchasing a small bundle of 3/4" solid oak flooring planks (tongue & groove). Come to find out, our flooring (1951 home; it's the original flooring) is actually 7/8" thick, not 3/4". I was more than a little surprised to find that 7/8" thickness was even a thing... I've seen 1" thick stuff before, but only in novelty situations like This Old House episodes. Searching online doesn't seem to give any results for 7/8" thick flooring of any kind... I've only found one website that even mentions it as a possible thickness.
Even if I used two layers of felt underlayment, the new flooring would still sit below the height of the existing flooring, and if we stick with what we've got, we'll likely have to cut off the tongues and bottom groove of each new piece to even fit it in, let alone get it to sit flush/level with the existing flooring. I certainly don't want to sand down ~1/8" of the old floor of an entire room just to get it to sit level with two 2sqft patches...
The current idea (I've thought through several) is gluing 1/8" strips of wood to the bottom of each piece after it's been cut to length, and the tongue & bottom groove cut away as well, so that each board can be placed in flush with the existing flooring.
Is this matching project possible/feasible? Or should I just try to find 7/8" solid red oak T&G flooring somewhere?
Here are some photos for comparison; Old flooring:

New:

Side-by-side:

Unfortunately I don't have any closets or inconspicuous areas I could steal old flooring from to patch these holes with matching/original stuff.


texts: Should I leave faced fiberglass in my basement energy walls or replace it with rigid foam?

texts:
I bought a house a few months ago and the basement was basically finished.  So I am redoing the bathroom and so I rip out some drywall along the exterior block foundation wall.  And noticed the 2 x 4 framing is basically up against the foundation wall, and it has faced insulation between the studs.

All I have read is to put the foam board on the foundation wall then frame etc.  Well this wasn't done that way.  And I had no plans of ripping everything out and starting from scratch and basically I can not at all afford to do it.

I haven't had any moisture problems, ran a few tests and they came back negative.  The foundation wall is painted so maybe that's acting as somewhat of a moisture barrier and then the tabs on the paper backed insulation are acting as a vapor barrier?  is that possible?

I guess I am curious what my options are, short of ripping everything out?  I did notice the paper on the insulation was a tad dark, either from just time or maybe there is a little moisture.  but the insulation itself looked good.  Do I have options, I may even go as far as ripping the drywall off if I have options.  Any advice would be great, and thanks in advance

I am in Nebraska, USA


texts: Window film affixed to the wall around a window?

texts:
Useful related questions: here, here.
I live in an apartment with a window that I want to insulate during the winter. I am currently using one of those shrink film kits and it seems to be working. However, I think there's a chance that there are drafts coming in around the window framing. If so, I may be able to seal the offending gaps myself and/or get my landlord to do it. However, I am wondering whether the following would be a reasonable alternative:
Would it be effective for me to stick the window film to the wall surrounding the window, effectively sealing off a larger area than just the window itself?
I can anticipate three major potential weaknesses of this approach, but I could obviously be totally wrong:

The tape could have trouble sticking to the wall (maybe I could use stronger tape) or making a good seal (maybe I could use some additional insulation around the borders).
The large insulated cavity might allow for more convection to go on inside of it.
My wall might be better than my window frame at losing (conducting? is that the right term?) heat. As a result, now heat can leave my apartment through the route wall outside cavity -> wall inside cavity -> air, instead of wall outside cavity -> window frame -> air. (Maybe I could fix this by using multiple layers of film, one applied to the window frame and one to the wall?)


texts: Tighten steel wire across several wood posts

texts:
I have several 4" x4" wood posts, with one single piece of steel wire going through each post.

Something like this:

Is there anything I can use to tighten and secure the wire in each post?

The first and last post will have a regular hook for the wire.


texts: Connecting a remote controlled ceiling fan to 3 way switch

texts:
I recently bought a remote controlled ceiling fan that I am trying to install.
The bedroom where I'm installing it has two light switches and two ceiling fans currently.
I have removed one of the ceiling fans.
There are two cables entering the box. One cable has a black, red and white wire, the other has a black and white.
(It's an old house. Neither have a ground wire.)

The 2 black wires were paired, the red and white were paired and a single white wire.

What's confusing me is why the red and white wires are paired. I know they are linked to the light switch but I'm unsure of why they were paired.

What am I looking for is a way to have constant power for the fan but have the light controllable from the wall switch as well as the remote.


texts:
An older home has a strung electrical main. The main connects with exposed lugs on the roof above the deck. Not only is the height and location unsafe, while working on the roof today I noticed that the insulation on the main electrical lines is deteriorated. This is before the meter and my main breaker.

Here you can see the exposed main lugs. This is about 8.5' from the deck surface. Somebody carrying a tall object such as a pole or a ladder or a piece of pipe could easily hit these.

I am in the process of re-locating the main for the home to a different, safer location. At that time I will need the power company to handle and relocate this main line. However, I am quite concerned above the safety of this line as-is. You can clearly see the deteriorated insulation in one of the legs of the wire. The neutral is completely exposed and the red conductor is significantly worn.

Is there anything I can do to address this until the utility company can relocate the line? I was considering a spray-on electrical insulator. I am not properly equipped to actually be in contact with this wire to apply tapes or paint-on insulation.


texts: Is it safe to daisy-chain power bars (power strips)?

texts: So, is it safe to plug a power bar in to another power bar that is connected to a power source? I don't really want to try it, as if it is unsafe, then I don't really want to try it.


texts: Condenser dual capacitors - run or start?

texts:
I understand the purpose of a run capacitor.  And I understand the purpose of a start capacitor.  I understand the concept of a dual capacitor.

With respect to HVAC condenser unit dual capacitors which are labeled "HERM" "COM" and "FAN":  Is the purpose of the HERM capacitor for run or for start?  Also, is the purpose of the FAN capacitor for run or for start?


texts: What type of subfloor will stand up to water in a bathroom?

texts:
I'm remodeling our bathroom because of some issues we're having with our floor. The kids weren't shutting the shower curtain when they decided to take a 30 minute shower. They would have a pile of wet clothes in the corner which made the bathroom floor sag. The edge by the tub is actually breaking in due to it being wet.

My question is, what type of wood should I use for a bathroom sub floor, and should I coat it with waterproof sealer?

Also I'm not sure what the best bathroom flooring options are to withstand water and moisture. We don't like the thought of tile.


texts: Help identify 12” spigot internals replacement

texts: I need to identify the spigot so I can replace the internal stem system. Previous home owner did not make it easy to remove the spigot all together so I’m looking to replace the internal parts only. Once I know the make and model I can buy it and fit it for the internals. The big problem here is previous owner cemented the hell out of it and the vinyl is stuck. Idk how I’ll get to it without making a mess of the vinyl siding.


texts: Do joints in adjustable duct elbows need to be taped?

texts: Do the joints in adjustable duct elbows need to be taped as well once they're adjusted or are they considered air-tight?


texts: 3 cables leading to a three way switch box

texts: My outdoor light is not working (never was, just purchased this townhouse) I asked the neighbors where their switch is for the light and they said it’s in the garage. I saw mine was covered up with a plastic plate, so I opened it and all the independent wire colors were twisted together. I bought a 3 way switch and tried every combination possible and looking online how to wire it. I end up tripping the breaker most of the time or the light just won’t work.. how do I wire this?


texts: How do I safely extend electrical wiring without replacing it entirely?

texts:
I'm in the process of replacing a light fixture with a ceiling fan. I replaced the old mount with a pan ceiling support box. The wiring is old (1920s) and inside armored cable coming through the stud. I brought the cable into the box using a duplex clamp and am left with wiring that is too short.

What is the best and safest way to extend this wiring without having to go into the attic replace it completely? I assume I will need to purchase new wire, splice and attach with a wire nut. But which wiring do I buy? And does it matter which wire nut I use?


texts:
What would be a good way to make sure a 1/8" plastic tube doesn't come off a barbed fitting? (It's under pressure from a water tank.)

I was thinking of a clamp with a tightening screw, but they don't seem to come in such small size. Is there a better alternative?


texts: Is it a residential building requirement to caulk between a bathroom tile floor and a wood base? I live in Snohomish County, WA.


texts: Hard wiring Undercabinet kitchen lights made to plug in

texts:
So I have undercabinet lights for my kitchen. They are 120v led in a plastic case and no place to put in a romex, just a 120v cord. I'd like to hardwire these in so I don't Have an ugly wire hanging down, plugged in.

I thought about running the extension cord through the wall and hardwiring into the nearby receptacle box but that has got to be against code. Then I thought about running romex through the wall and using wire nuts to connect the two, but I imagine then I'd need a box under the cabinet. Any ideas?