texts: Are cedar planks from a home center store suitable for a sauna?

texts:
When I look-up cedar boards on various home center web sites, I see many choices, but I'm not sure which most closely matches the typical sauna prefab and pre-cut kits.  My situation is such that a standard kit would not fit, and it seems custom kits are not being shipped quickly, I want to get started quickly, so I don't want to buy a kit.  Some sauna stores offer just the planks, but those are the same stores that are not offering quick shipping, so I thought I'd look at large home center stores that are able to ship within a day or two of ordering.

Wood available at the home center stores include 1"x6"x8'six pack of "siding", but that looks rough (not planed), and I think the standard sauna cedar is smooth.  Then there is 1/4" x 3 1/2" x 8' generic "cedar", "v-plank", but I wonder if that's thick enough.  There's also 1/4" x 3 3/4 x 48 "eastern red cedar" "planking", which looks really nice, and most like the wood in the kits, but is only 1/4 inch.

From a kit description:

  Tongue & Groove Western Red Cedar Boards are knot-free Grade A and Better, Vertical Grain and kiln dried.  This 1/2 thick (nominal 7/16") by 4" material has a 3 3/16" face (actual wall coverage).

The kits also might use even thicker boards:

  3/4" thick (nominal 11/16")


texts: Can I run a new ground wire from junction box in attic down the wall to replace 2 prong outlet

texts:
I have an older home where some of the house has updated electrical and some doesn't.

In a few rooms I still have several of the 2 prong outlets with no ground wire in the box and I want to replace them with 3 prong tamper proof outlets with proper grounding.

If I had an easy way to run a new line from the panel I would not be wasting your time, but I live in a split level home and several of these rooms have their lines fed from below, in-between floors, so I don't have any way to run a new line easily.

I know I can add GFCI outlets for some human protection but I want to do better.

I need to know if it is safe and/or legal to run a ground wire from a junction box in my attic (there are several) down the wall to use as ground when I replace the 2 prong with a 3 prong.  The junction box likely leads back to a different circuit but it is all originating from the same panel (I only have 1)


texts: Is it ok to turn off the fridge for a few hours for defrosting?

texts:
I havent been able to locate a seperate off switch for the freezer compartment, I dont think there is one. So the only solution would be to turn off the whole freezer+fridge combination.

Would it be safe for the food inside the fridge for the whole thing to be off for a few hours so I can defrost the freezer?

I tried placing hot water inside the freezer while it was still on, wasnt very effective.


texts: How should I seal a butt joint in a tight space?

texts:
My water heater blew while I was on vacation and left my equipment room under an inch of water for several days.  Needless to say, the drywall got moldy and I had to tear it out.  Now I'm trying to replace the drywall behind the HVAC blower, but it's a super tight space (see picture).

If drywall tape were adheasive on my own I could align the tape from either side of the HVAC unit, but sadly it's not.  so I'm wondering, how should I fill this butt joint?

I was considering using duct or masking tape, or even spray foam, but assume that would just make a huge mess.

Thanks!


texts: Should I mop or sanitize subfloor prior to flooring install?

texts:
During the past few months of renovation I tore up a bunch of laminate flooring to address various issues and I am finally circling back to installing the new floating floor. I'm realizing after doing a thorough vacuuming with the shop vac that there is still a lot of dirt and dust on the osb/plywood(mixed around the house). I'll be laying underlayment down (Quietwalk) but want to make sure I'm not trapping a lot of organic matter(dirt, drywall dust, sawdust etc) that may lead to mold etc. if there was ever moisture trapped.
Wondering if I should mop and let it dry? Apply TSP or concrobium or bleach? Or seal it all in with primer just to be sure(BIN 123 or something)
Or am I just overthinking this?


texts: When freezing a copper pipe with a refrigerant, how does one know when the pipe has enough ice to "cork" the pipe and halt water flow?   Is there an indicator or a rule of thumb?


texts: Rotary hammers, how many joules to hammer through concrete slab?

texts:
I'm in need to buy a rotary hammer to make some holes in a slab about 12 cm thick of armed concrete. The holes will be between 5 and 10 cm in diameter, so I will have to hammer a round opening instead of drilling through (or drill lots of holes in a circle).

The rotary hammers in the market goes from 2,5 to 30J. I have no idea of how much energy I need to this task and I wasn't able to find it anywhere. The price goes up really high (and so is the weight of the tool).

The smaller models (about 2,7J) like Bosch GBH 2-24 costs about 7 days of rental of a bigger model (about 10J), so I'm inclined to buy one if it will work.


texts:
I'm redoing our master bedroom closet and the original doors were 1970 type sliding doors. The rough opening is 65.5". All the bedrooms already had a face-lift with wheat oak bi-fold doors and I would like to stick to the same trim and bi-fold door look.

The problem I have is the opening in the master bedroom is too wide or too narrow for bi-fold doors of the style we have. We can either get 30" doors which leaves 2 inches to make up with 2x4's or something else. The 36" doors are too wide.

So my question is what can I do to make the 30" bi-fold doors work? The trim going around the doors are 2.25" wide which would not cover the 2" space I need to make up and at least 1/2" of the jamb.


texts: What should I use to protect and cover my floors during construction?

texts: We are building a new house and I'm installing the laminate wood flooring.  The builder suggested I cover the flooring after I'm done to protect it during the last few weeks of construction and with moving in.  What would you suggest I use?  Rosin paper, Kraft paper, or something more?


texts: Mounting a microwave w/o the upper cabinet

texts: I'm working on a kitchen remodel and the designer has asked that the over the stove microwave be mounted under a floating shelf! The shelf has a capacity of 50lb and the microwave weighs 63 lbs. Is there any way I can mount this using perhaps some other support? Is there a way it can be supported solely by the wall bracket? Any suggestions appreciated. Thanks


texts:
I recently purchased a new thermostat. My old thermostat worked for heat (no AC either) but the fan wouldn't go on when I turned to "On" (in hopes to move some cool air from the basement up during the summer).

Same thing appears to be happening on the new one but having trouble with my wires in general. I have 2 red wires, 2 black and 1 green. The thermostat is looking for a G,Y,W,RC,RH.

I put one black to the G and W connectors and the G to RH. Where would the 2 red go?

Any insight would be much appreciated!

Thanks in advance.


texts: Installing a fixture with no ground, no ceiling box

texts:
I recently bought some nice track lighting to brighten a room who's only light source was buried in a corner.  I removed the old fixture and found (to my horror) this:

Two wires, no ground, no box (and some alarming burn mark looking things).

I've done a bit of reading on this, and it seems that the boxes have three purposes:

Provide structural support to help heavier fixtures hang
Create a safety zone for sparks, preventing them from setting fire to your walls.
(In the case of metal boxes) provide an easy ground

I'm not horribly worried about points 1 and 2.  All of the connections for this light can actually be stashed inside of the fixture itself (see below) between a metal plate, and the exterior plastic box, and since these are track lights, there's not a lot of weight on the fixture point itself.

The ground, however, is a little more worrying.  Peering up into the hole, the only bit of groundable metal I can find is a small conduit, about 8-10 inches above my ceiling.

I could get a small length of copper, wrap it around the conduit, and attach that to the ground, but I'd rather not cut a hole in my ceiling large enough to get two hands that far in.

So, my questions are:

Given that I've been living without one, could I maybe just this once get away without a ground?
Are my assumptions about not needing a box validated by the sort of exterior box I've rigged up here?
Assuming your answer to (1) was "Of course not, what are you, crazy?" could I safely use the conduit as a ground?


texts: Metal tubes stuck together: drilled a hole in one. How to get leverage?

texts:
I have an aluminum bicycle seat tube stuck in a steel frame. I have been using penetrating oils and heat and hammering and such to loosen the corrosion. Now I drilled a hole in the seat post, and can insert a metal rod.
How do I grip the rod with good leverage to turn out the seat post? Thanks for any advice. I don't have a socket extension, so I'm showing the image below with a screwdriver. I have an adjustable end wrench (25cm), but nothing bigger. I could rent something if necessary. So far, I can't turn it. Thanks for any advice!


texts: Half-Hot powering the rest of the room's receptacles

texts:
Here's the situation.
Master Bedroom
Receptacles on 1 Circuit: 7 Receptacles and Master Bathroom (small, only light, fan and 1 other receptacle that is included in the 7)
Over the weekend, I plugged in a laptop charger and heard crackling in another outlet (oops that's not good); immediately unplug the laptop and was going to deal with it in the morning.
Sure enough the outlet was burnt and was shorting (see picture) and I am glad I caught it before any more real damage happens.

The old receptacle was set-up that 1 of the outlets was hot and had power the entire time, the other controlled by a switch.
I am replacing the receptacle with a similar type, 125 volt-15 amp. The wires I have are 2 Black (hot), 2 White (neutral), a bare/ground, and 1 Red (hot switch).
When I replaced the old, burnt one receptacle with the new one it is that the red wire/switch is controlling the rest of the room and bathrooms receptacle/power (I don't want that) while the other outlet is either Hot or not depending on which black wire I attached to the Red one. Tried both blacks to the red.

Goal is to have only 1 half of the receptacle be controlled by the switch and then the rest hot and powering the rest of the room/bathroom


texts:
I've been experiencing interesting problem recently. When the power goes down, there is roughly 50:50 chance that a circuitbreaker for my plugs trips after the power comes back on.  Flipping it back manually solves the issue and it has never been tripped by normal load - only after a power cut when the power comes back on

It's a 16A breaker (230V here in Spain) and connected to it are a few computers + TV screens - most of them are behind a UPS. Is there any way to remove the spike when the power comes back on? Is there anything I can plug the machines into to make sure they come back on properly?

It would be a major hassle to change the breaker for larger value as I would need to involve the apartment owner etc.

Update:

Here is the breaker in question:


texts:
-- updated --
I want to plug my pool heater 50000 btu Jaccuzi JA50 ( on manual it says  AC208,230/60 1PH , circruit braker 20 A )
it has connection for
----power AC---
slot 1 L1 (red)
slot 2 L2 (black)
slot 3 ground
---- to pump --
slot 4 P1 (bleu)
slot 5 P2 (black) (which is connected to L2)
and I have an 230v nearby oultet which has 2 wires black + white and the ground , this outlet is plugged to 60A breaker (2x30) in the eletrical switchboard, the wall outlet model is NEMA 6-15 250v
my question :
I understand so I can wire directly my heater to this outlet (adding male connector) which I connect L1 to white and L2 to black ( I guess it doesn't matter )
is it correct this wiring and is it ok to use 50A breaker even if the heater says 20A ?
shall I use 30A cable as well ?
Thanks in advance
Joe
pictures :
https://ibb.co/8mmKvqX
https://ibb.co/Dp5Vztq
https://ibb.co/j6F3sqq
https://ibb.co/y4S6tKV
https://ibb.co/WKSYjPP
https://ibb.co/FVrhvN4
https://ibb.co/5Mb3NpZ
https://ibb.co/KXfMYDF


texts: What is the significance that "no blade is involved" in threading pipe?

texts:
Lowe's (a big US chain home improvement store) offers black iron pipe cutting and threading services to customers. Basically they sell the pipe & will alter it for you.

From their website in the "We Cut It" section says that they offer:

  ... pipe threading and cutting for any size
  galvanized or black iron pipe. The process involves a machine-based
  cutting operation with a metal wheel that creates threads in the ends
  of pipes. This service is specifically designed to both thread and cut
  pipes. No blade is involved in the process.

I italicized the last part of this statement - what is the significance that no blade is involved? I assume it is important or why would they even bother to mention it?

I'm no expert but do have a little experience cutting threads (manual taps & dies) and from what I'd seen I thought pipe threading was essentially the same thing. But this makes me think I'm missing something?

I need to do some pipework projects soon and mainly I just want to make sure I'm educated well enough to do it right!  Thanks

Note - there is a "learn more" link on their website, but it doesn't offer information about this.


texts: Can a sun tunnel be installed with a 15 to 20 degree angle in it? If so, how would it affect the amount of light it transfers into the room?


texts: Upgrading to smart light switches but have only one neutral wire in the box

texts:
I am working on upgrading some of the light switches to smart light switches for lighting automation.

I bought this GE Enbrighten Z-Wave Plus. This requires a neutral wire.

When I opened the light switch box, there was only one switch with the neutral wire connected and the other one had only two black wire (load and line) without any neutral.

I replaced the light switch that already had a neutral connected with the new smart light switch and it is working fine. How I can replace the other light switch? Can I just extend the existing neutral wire and run it to the other light switch?  Is one neutral wire enough for both light switches?

I do see a white wire in the back with yellow cap, can I use that one?


texts: How do you wire multiple outlets between three way switches?

texts:
I am trying to put my basement lights onto a three way circuit and can not find any examples of how to wire the circuit correctly.  I have power (12/2) coming into a box with a three way switch, then a 14/3 line going to an outlet, then another 3 outlets until finally going to a box with the other three way switch.

How do I wire the outlets correctly?


texts: How thick of shims can I use to bring new wood floor up to tile height?

texts:
I am going to be installing hardwood flooring (Oak) on place of carpet. The wood will mate up with a schluter (sp?) strip with tile on other side.

After I remove the carpeting I see they have shims for the carpeting to match the tile height.
Is it an accepted / recommended practice to shim the wood floor to reach the height of the tile ?

Would the ~1/4" shims create any problem for the wood floor long term ?
Or should I install 1/4" plywood over entire floor to raise height?
(I'm talking about 13 sheets single layer across entire floor)

I am not a big fan of transition pieces as they create a tripping hazard, but I do recognize that to be a solution.


texts: Removing counter tiles to reveal concrete base

texts:
I am looking to revamp my kitchen. I have very dated tiles on my counters at the moment. From what I can see the tiles are on a very solid concrete counter top. I would like to remove the tiles then smooth (and treat?) the concrete leaving 'raw' concrete counter tops.

Think this is doable?

I am not looking to keep the tiles.


texts: How many soil stacks should a house have?

texts:
We recently bought a new home. The house used to be a two family home. Somewhere around 2000 the second floor was renovated and the house converted to a single family home.

After a recent roof leak I realized that the house has two soil stacks. After some investigation I found that one soil stack services two toilets, two bathtubs and one sink. The second soil stack only services one second floor sink.

Both soil stacks are 4 inch cast iron pipe and go from the roof all the way into the basement and disappear into the concrete floor. They are about 10 feet apart.

Can the soil stack that is only servicing the one sink be cut back into the house and capped with the hole in the roof repaired?


texts: Why do the rotating brushes on my Hoover vacuum only work when it's in the upright position?

texts:
I have the blue Hoover pet cyclonic vacuum.  It worked fine for a few months, but now when I push the foot lever to lower the handle when I vacuum, the brushes stop spinning on any carpet level setting.  Once the vacuum is locked into an upright position, they spin perfectly.

Why is this happening and how can I fix this?


texts: I moved into a house with a GE PowerMark Plus Load Center. I'm trying to add some AFCI and GFCI breakers. The label on the inside of the door states that the following GE breakers can be used: THQP, THHQP, THQL, THHQL, TQDL, THQDL, or TXQL. I know that THQL is wider than THQP, but other than that I'm not sure what the rest mean. Which one would I use for AFCI, GFCI, or combo breakers? I included a picture of the label.


texts: How should this microwave shelf be stabilized?

texts:
My first post here.

I've spent some time making a little shelf for my microwave oven. I'd estimate that it weighs around 15 Kgs.

I made a plywood shelf with 4 wall brackets supporting it. The edge brackets have cross members and the middle brackets are plain L clamps. Here are two pictures.

The screws which fit the whole thing onto the wall are 2" masonry screws fixed with fischer wall plugs. Each clamp has two screws that fix it onto the wall and two screws that hold it to the body of the shelf. These are 1" self boring screws.

Since the whole thing is like a cantilever arrangement, there is a bit of play when I open and close the microwave. Apart from that, it feels stable. Also, I initially used 1" screws to fix the thing onto the wall and it wasn't enough. Because of this, I'm still not totally confident about it.

I'd appreciate any comments on how I can strengthen it and how I can check whether it'll be strong enough.

My kitchen is quite small so putting something like this gives me valuable space.


texts:
I am interconnecting some strip lights in a closet.  They are linkable LED fixtures which each come with a connector cable to link, optionally, to additional fixtures.  The connector cables are a bit short for what I have in mind, but I need to use their ends because they have special connectors to link the fixtures and maintain correct polarity.

The connector cables are 18-2 SPT-2 lamp cord.  I have a spool of the same type of cable.  I am planning to cut the connector cable in the middle and insert an appropriate extension length from my spool.  My plan is to splice them using some 22-18 butt splices, then heat shrink them with 3/4" tubing.  I will ensure the splices are solid and the polarity is correct.  Beyond this, what should I do to make sure this setup is safe?

None of this will be behind a wall.  The strips will be against the wall, on their mounting brackets, and the cabling can be secured however.  If nothing else, I'll just be using cable staples.  I could also run all or some of the cabling through conduits, bracketed against the wall.  Or I could simple put the spliced areas within junction boxes.  Any suggestions for the safest way to do this are welcome.

I realize there may not be a code-approved way of doing this.  The cables will not be in a place where they can be routinely touched, and if I were to move out of the house, I would take all of this stuff down, except for the first of the linkable fixtures which was installed with a junction box by an electrician (it is controlled by a light switch).

If you believe there is no way this can be done without a moderate risk of fire, it would be very helpful to hear why you think so.

Update: This particular line of products now has longer lengths of linking cords available.  As a result, no splicing needs to be attempted.

EDIT: This is obviously NOT a duplicate question as erroneously suggested as "What size heat shrink tube is required?" and "How can I safely do something?" are completely different questions.


texts: Some tile grout residue has ended up in my kitchen sink and dishwasher. How can I safely remove it? It is making all the wire baskets almost impossible to move along their runners. I am also wondering if the grout will be effecting the inside workings of the dishwasher. My sink plug hole is now grainy and it's difficult to get the plug to go in smoothly. Both are only two years old.


texts: Hot water valve in the basement (how do I turn it off?)

texts:
My tub faucet is leaking.  I know how to fix it,  But the shut off valve is in the center of basement ceiling and  of course it's stuck.
But that's not the question.  I can approach this valve from any angle.
What should I look for to determine the point from where I should turn it?  (N S E W?)   Any ideas?


texts: Leveling options for bumpy basement floor

texts: I have a 125 year old townhouse with a large (700 sq ft) basement. We had waterproofing done (vapor barrier, perimeter drains, sump pumps) last year that dried everything out and made the space usable. We would like to finish the basement by adding walls and a floor. The problem is the relatively thin concrete slab that has a few spots where it swelled up, and other spots that go down, mostly in the range of 1-2 inches. I was able to knock down the highest spots with a sledge hammer, and can patch those as necessary. But I’d like to put down a vinyl plank floor and don’t know what the best way is to level everything. Self leveling concrete seems like it would work, but it would be expensive. A full subfloor with shims is an option, but that seems excessive too. I don't really care about it being actually level - I just need it flat enough for a vapor barrier of some sort, thin underlayment and vinyl plank. What’s the best option for topping old concrete in as needed between 1/2 to 2 inches? The floor right now seems stable - most of the issues were moisture related.


texts: Trying to reset a whirlpool washing machine wwdc 6400/1 (front loading)

texts: My washing machine start button broke and my neighbour popped in to have a look and fix it (the day after I had come back home from an emergency operation so I was very out of it) he has replaced and fixed the button but in taking the washing machine apart he removed the control unit, it has all been wired back correctly but various lights are flashing including the service light. Looking online it seems that the Control Unit needs a rest but I can't work out how to do that, any suggestions?


texts:
My shower diverter valve has gotten all gunked up due to the very high mineral content of our water, to the point where it won't turn unless you put all your weight into it, and I'm trying to fix it because a) my wife can't turn it, and b) I'm worried that it's going to break.

I am hoping that it's a simple cartridge replacement, but I can't identify the manufacturer and model. It doesn't help that the rest of the shower (main handle, shower head, and hand-held shower head -- the diverter switches between those two) are several different brands (American Standard, Grohe) but none of the pictures of diverter valves made by those brands look like mine.

Here are pictures:

Handle (on stem, and back view)

Escutcheon and handle mounting nut (Handle locks into groove on nut, which has adjustable depth by turning)

Valve stem itself is splined all the way down and has an E-clip near the end, but the e-clip doesn't seem to actually be holding anything in place

(I suspect that the e-clip acts as a stop for the depth adjustment of the handle, but I am not totally sure.)

I suspect that the visible hex "nut" (which actually goes way back and flares out -- just visible in the picture) is the valve packing nut, and that I should be able to remove it, but I can't get it to turn and I have no idea where the threads would be.

Any ideas?

Alternatively, any way to remove the mineral scale inside the valve without taking it apart?


texts: What is the soundproofing performance difference between ultralight 5/8 drywall and regular 5/8 drywall?

texts:
Home depot does not have anything but ultralight drywall. I wanted to know what the difference in performance in soundproofing. There is another local supplier who can get the regular drywall.

I am using it to create another wall for soundproofing. I will also probably put 2 sheets with green glue or an alternative in between.

The ultralight will be fine if it performs at or about the same as the regular, but if it does not then I want to make sure to get the regular and NOT the ultralight.


texts: Filling hole after removing medicine cabinet

texts:
I have a mirror that is larger than the hole left from removing a medicine cabinet in our bathroom, and I plan to mount it so it covers the hole entirely. I don't want to just leave the empty hole there, though.

I'd prefer not to seal up the hole with drywall as I believe at some point we may put another medicine cabinet in that room. I would like to put some insulation in there and I need something to hold that insulation in place.

Any recommendations? Would some sort of plastic be OK to cover the hole and hold in the insulation?


texts: 3 way switch doesn't work with ceiling fan

texts: This is my 3-way switch arrangement with a ceiling fan+light in my living room. The 3-way switches do not turn on/off the ceiling fan at all. The switches themselves seems fine, and there is 120 voltage coming up the white neutral wire, so I don't know what's going on. I should note that the 3-way switch and the ceiling fan have separate circuit breakers. Hence currently I can turn on/off the ceiling fan/light using the chains on it. Even if the 3-way switch themselves have current turned off in the breaker box. Any help would be appreciated thanks.


texts: Electrical engineering background, can I do electrical work on my house

texts:
OK Folks, some introduction. I wasn't born in the US, I come from the underdeveloped world, where due to lack of resources it was usual to have a pair of bare wires acting as a light switch (seriously!) and there was no such thing as formal codes, NM-B wires, GFCI outlets and so forth. However, I studied electrical engineering early in my career (now I'm a software engineer), I am pretty familiar with US electrical codes (although not so involved in deep details, don't have time to read the full NEC book...).

The question is:

Can I do electrical work in my own house? I'm planning to install some lights in the attic, and I know for sure that I am not going to cause a fire hazard. I know how to install junction and switch boxes, run NM-B wiring, ground everything properly, following hot/neutral color codes, secure wires with staples, and so forth. I plan to run power out from an existing outlet in the existing circuit that powers that outlet and the typical attic light bulb. I plan to add 3 or 4 more lights and a new switch.

Am I supposed to ask for an electrical permit? If so, let's say that I don't ask for a permit and do the work? What problems could this imply if anyway, nobody knows what's inside my attic?

Just trying to save some bucks, since I feel pretty hesitant to hire an electrician and spend 100+ bucks for doing something so trivial to me. I would feel like an idiot, throwing away money, when I have seen poor electrical work done by supposedly "licensed contractors". Any ideas?


texts: The following light was removed from my outside front porch because the bulb had burned out.  Only problem is I didn't remove it and now I need to put the thing back up, but I'm not sure how the connection should be.  Is this something I should even be doing at this point?


texts: How do I go about filling a hole that's all the way through wood, for a new nut?

texts: How do I go about filling the holes up so I can reset the nuts inplace for the handle. Also my tv cabinet, has two small holes but only one lines up, the other is right next to where I want to drill a new hole. How do I go about this so it doesn't collapse. The holes go all the way through the wood.


texts: Will my refrigerator be damaged by pump operation on the same circuit?

texts: I have a Samsung inverter fridge connected on the same circuit on automatic water pump that turns on and off to keep pressure in the pipes. Will it damage my fridge in the long term?


texts: Temporary Stoppage in Condo Common Sewage Pipe

texts:
I live in a multi-unit condo on the first floor.  There is one common sewage pipe that connects all of our toilets.

One night, my toilet (only one) won't flush.  A little bit of water
began to seep out of the base. Water starting to back up as in my
bathtub as well.

I asked my neighbor and she said he was having problems flushing
the toilet as well.

So I called the plumber.  He came and proceeded to the outlet where
he could ran a snake through the pipes. But after he opened the
cap, the stoppage cleared and we could flush our toilets!
He didn't do anything! He just opened up the cap!

What could cause this temporary stoppage? Air back pressure?
But shouldn't the air outlets on top of the roof handle that?

Thank you in advance for any insight.

EDIT:

These stoppages have been occurring on and off for several years. What can the HOA do besides running a snake and jetting the pipes to prevent these sudden stoppages?


texts:
I'd like to screw a headphone jack receptacle to the front of my desk, and have the female adapter of the extension in my laptop (which is hidden in one of the drawers).

I'm unsure what exactly to even Google to find the part(s) that I need to secure the extension to the desk. Any tips?


texts: Should I use screws or nails to hang 19/32" thick t1-11 panels indoors?

texts:
I'm installing 19/32" thick T1-11 panels as interior walls against wood studs. I'm unsure whether it would be easier/better to use ring shank nails in a nail gun, or screws. Some of my concerns:

The panels are a bit wavy, so I figured screws would make it easier to ensure the panels are snug against the studs
Would like to avoid buying an air compressor and framing nail gun if I can help it. Renting those would end up running about the same cost since I have to spread out installation over many days due to time constraints.
A nail gun would surely be faster, but since the panels are wavy I'd have to ensure the panel is pressed against the stud before nailing

What sort of screw should I use? Is there risk that a screw might tear up the shiplap edge?


texts:
I'm planning to buy 3D Printer that can only print with ABS (Zortrax). I have a small child (3 months old) at my flat so I'm afraid that fumes can have negative impact on her health.

What should I buy or make to absorb fumes produced by 3d Printer?
Are there any solutions tailored specially for 3d Printing ?
What kind of filters should be used ?


texts: What does this lever do near my gas heater?

texts:
I am not entirely sure what this big duct work is for.
Its not the exhaust, because im sure the exhaust is the smaller duct on the gar left side (exiting form the enter image description heretop). The big duct as a lever, which i know is to open/close the valve inside the duct.

The question is, what is this duct for?
And should i be keeping the valve opened or closed?

This is the valve lever:


texts: Some advice on building decking for a hot tub

texts:
I am building decking 310 by 330 to support an inflatable hot tub and a gazebo. the ground slopes away from the house by roughly 10 cm/meter so will need to raise the decking about 30-40 cm at the end furthest from the house.

I have had one builder round to have a look but was also considering doing it myself as I am pretty good at DIY around the house and looking online I had figured that I could do it myself

However the Builder who has been to see about the job insists that, for the amount of weight I will be having with the hot tub I have a brick wall built on 3 of the 4 sides instead of just using posts.

Is he correct, or can I just use properly foundationed posts into the ground (700mm deep is what I have read). If I do just use wodden posts how many shuould a deck of this size and carrying this weight use?


texts: issues wiring ceiling fan with remote and 2 switches

texts:
I've done some basic wiring but seem to be in over my head on figuring this one out. We have a solarium the had a ceiling light fixture and a switch at each end of the room. I removed the light and all there was is two wires feeding it. One white and one yellow. I hooked up the remote receiver by matching the colors on the fan side. That was easy because they match. On the feed side I hooked the white to white and then black to yellow. I have grounded the fixture to a screw in the outlet box. Firstly being a novice I was surprised the feed doesn't have a ground and also to see a yellow wire along with the white. Not sure where I'm going wrong but it definitely isn't working. I'll also add it's a challenge to stuff that remote box into the outlet box, barely fits. btw the fan is a Canarm "Perry" model 48 inch with remote. Thanks in advance !
Cheers,
Bruce


texts:
I have this kitchen sink mixer tap, which is leaking from where the neck meets the main body, whenever it's turned on, (either hot or cold).

So what I'm trying to do is remove the neck so that I can get at the inside, to possibly replace an O-ring or something. However, I can't seem to find any way of removing it.

I found a small screw at the back, which I removed, however this didn't make any difference. The neck can swivel around 360 degrees no problem, but when I tried to wiggle it or pull it loose (as described by many online tutorials), it wouldn't budge.

Are there any other things that might need to be done to take this off?


texts: How should I prepare a wall painted with sandpaint and construction adhesive?

texts:
I have a section of wall that was painted with sand paint.  It also had paneling halfway up the wall that was adhered with construction adhesive.  My goal is to have a smooth, flat wall, and paint it.  I also want to move an electrical switch and add an electrical outlet.

How can I best prepare the wall?


texts: Wall of smaller drywall sheet pieces - tape or replace?

texts:
I pulled off some original paneling on two walls, hoping to find decent drywall underneath. There is unfinished drywall, but it's not 4x8 sheets. It's pieced together with as many as three sheets from floor to ceiling.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of taping the gaps between the existing sheets versus pulling them off and putting up mostly full-size sheets?


texts: How to connect multi-strand sheathed wire?

texts:
We are trying to move our electric stove to another room. However, that room does not have a power outlet that matches the stove. Therefore we want to extend the current stove cable. We want to cut the current cable in halves, and connect a new section of cable in between.

This is the cable that we want to install (AWG 8, 7 strands), what would be a good way to connect two cables of this type together?


texts: Must I remove asbestos from my heating vents?

texts: I've got an old house with some asbestos tape on the heating vents, and some old floor tiles which are asbestos suspects as well; duct cleaning firms won't do cleaning on the vents with the tape present. Do I really need to call in the space suit guys to get rid of it? If I just cover it with new foil tape, will that encapsulate it safely?  Should I just rip it off myself?


texts:
Recently, we've started using the AC less for cost and environmental reasons. When it gets below 82 degrees (F)  at night, we open the windows. My understanding is that the cool air from outside should eventually replace the warm air in the house.

This generally has worked ok the past few months, but recently, it seems to be less effective. Last night, it got down to 76 degrees around 9 PM, 73 degrees when I woke up at 7 AM, but the temperature in the house didn't drop at all from 80 degrees according to our thermostat, which was set to circ with the AC completely turned off. All windows in the house were open. The thermostat is in the front part of the house, a 1,200 sq foot ranch. (This part of the house is an open kitchen/living area with eight windows, so there should be plenty of airflow.) We do not have an attic above that part of the house, but we do have an attic through the rest of the house.

We live in a suburb of Philadelphia, for climate information. It has been pretty hot lately. Is this due to hotter weather recently, a thermal mass problem, airflow problem, inaccurate thermostat, something else? I'm new to passive cooling, but I feel like with a 7 degree difference between outside and inside, the temp should have dropped at least a degree or two. Not sure what to make of this exactly. Any insight would be great.


texts: Does lengthy refrigerant line between indoor and outdoor unit affect AC performance and result in higher utility bill?

texts:
As part of basement renovation, I am moving the HVAC indoor unit for about 30 feet, which means the refrigerant line has to be extended by same length concealed within basement ceiling.
Now, I have the option of moving the outdoor unit as well to place it closer to the indoor unit's new location. But, this involves additional cost. Am trying to find out if this additional cost is worth moving the outdoor unit.
Would having a lengthy refrigerant line affect AC performance? Would I incur higher utility bill compared to keeping the outdoor unit closer to indoor unit?
My guess is since the coolant travels longer distance, there could be more energy loss, resulting in less cooling in the house causing the AC unit to work harder.


texts: Double water inlet from kitchen sink (to install a dishwasher)

texts:
There is only one water inlet in my kitchen — well, 2, one for hot water and one for cold, but they are both connected to my sink. I have no idea of how to hack one of those to allow for a dishwasher to function normally. I assume that with the right piece, it should be easy, but cannot find anything online. Am I missing something?

I assume the same would have to be done for the drain.


texts: Do tiles need to be cut to fit area between back wall and the edge of the bathtub?

texts: I am in the process of remodeling a bathroom and I am putting in a new tub and plan to tile the walls. It seems most tubs are standard depths of 30 or 32 inches, ours is 32". Now the new tub is attached right to the 2x framing then the backer board comes over the lip of the tub. When you do this you make a 32" tub 31-1/2" to the front of the tub. Now my tile is gonna be 1/2" past the front of the tub. I am using 2"x2" tiles. Do I have to cut the back row down by 1/2" to make them match the front of the tub or am I missing something?


texts:
In my dinning room, I have this:

There is a wire run going up through the floor from the basement. It then goes outside the wall, around a stud (or studs, I'm can't tell there is more than one), back into the wall, and down to the switch. It then runs up to a ceiling fixture, and then up to the 2nd floor where it powers one light fixture and one outlet.

It looks like the previous owner did this because there is an air duct directly below the switch and they wanted to avoid it. There was a drop ceiling in this room, so that wire was hidden above the ceiling.

Directly on the other side of this wall, very close to that switch is a switch on another circuit. That circuit powers the kitchen light (a small, 2 bulb affair), a gas stove, and one outlet near the counter.

Not evident in this picture is the fact that my baseboards are a good 6" wide. Also, the walls are plaster. Obviously I have a few holes to patch no matter what, but I want to be absolutely sure of my plan before any other holes are made.

To me, it looks like there are a few options, and I'm not sure what is the best one:

Move the run over a few feet, which would it stick it beside the air duct (I think there's about 1/2" between the duct and the adjacent stud. Is it safe for them to be so close?)
Leave the run as is, move Lord Duckington from his throne, cut away the plaster between the two hole, drill holes in the studs and feed said wire through it, fix mess (I think this wall is load bearing, so this might be a bad idea).
Re-wire so that this run is getting its power from the circuit on the wall behind it. They don't have much on them, so I think combining them is probably safe. In this case, would it be safe to have a few inches of romex going from one box to the next and just connect everything with wire nuts?
Pull off the baseboards, drill a new hole in the floor, and move the box a 6 inches to the left (not sure if the lath is behind the baseboards or not).
Move

As a novice to electrical work, how should I approach this problem?

EDIT: I have completed this project. I ended up pulling off the baseboard and drilling a hole through the floor, then patching those holes. This was surprisingly less difficult than I thought it would be. The responses were a big help, both in information and getting the confidence to actually complete it!


texts: Solar panel to DC heating element to pre-heat water before on demand water heater

texts: I'm looking to possibly buy an Craigslist water heater($120), replace the heating element with a DC unit(12V), and power it with a 100 watt solar panel (12V).  On an 40 to 80 gallon insulated tank should I be able to get the water warmed enough in 4 hours of sunlight, during the day, store until nighttime, to cut the use of draw from an electric on demand system?  Thoughts?


texts: How to lay last row of Hardwood Flooring under an undercut the Baseboard?

texts:
I've (almost) decided to undercut my baseboards before installing a hardwood floor.  For the last row of planks, how do I get them under the undercut baseboard, i.e. won't the second to last row interfere due to the height? What's the trick?

Edit: This is not a floating floor.


texts:
Trying to identify what is what.  I originally thought the 3.5" by the wall was Toilet, but i don't think 5" away from "unfinished" wall is enough space. So the other 3.5" (2) must be the toilet?  What is the other 3.5"(1) then.  My guess on the others are (3) Shower and (4) vanity?

-Thanks for any advice.


texts: How can I put in a screw in a concrete ceiling without power tools?

texts: I want to hang my plant but my ceiling is concrete. I don't have a drill. I have a hammer and screwdriver.


texts: Should I cancel our appointment with the repair tech for our washing machine?

texts:
I have a 6 1/2 months old washing machine. Last week, we started having issues it. It would drain some of the water out, but not all of it. It also made a horrible racket all the way through the cycle. It was a continuous fast clicking sound. We unplugged it and did not use it for a whole week. The repair tech is supposed to come today, so, I tried plugging it back in and testing it last night.

I don't know what happened while it was unplugged, but the thing drained all of the water out, so that part of it seems to have corrected itself. What I am still worried about is that even though it is not pronounced, I can still hear a continuous fast clicking noise as it goes through its cycle, especially in the spin cycle, and it shakes and shimmies while it is going through the spin cycle despite being self balancing.

Should we keep our appointment with the repair tech or is there something we can do to repair it? Or is it normal for it to be shaking and shimmying like it is?


texts: What is third tube on Insinkerator Instant Hot water dispenser for?

texts:
This is the inside of an Insinkerator SST-FLTR instant hot water dispenser.

The dispenser feeds depressurized water into the left nozzle, and the tank pushes hot water up the center nozzle.  A third 1/8" tube runs from the dispenser to the nozzle circled on the right, but I can't figure out what that tube does.  The dispenser works without it, and I can't detect any pressure or suction on either the tube or the nozzle when running water through the tank.

So what does the right nozzle and tube do?


texts: Garage door hard-wired wall button doesn't work after adding wireless controller dongle in parallel

texts:
I have a standard garage door controller (Chamberlain HD900D) with a wired button inside the garage, and wireless clickers that all work properly.

I purchased a GoControl/Linear GD00Z-4 ZWave Garage Door Opener so that I can control the garage with some automation.

The hard-wired wall button has two wires that run to the Garage Door opener.  The ZWave controller also has two wires that run to the Garage Door opener.  The installation manual says that the ZWave controller wires should just go into the exact same place as the wall-button wires.  So after installing I end up with something like this:

When everything is wired up, the ZWave controller and the wireless clickers can open and close the door without issue.  However the wall button no longer functions.  Removing either one of the wires running to the ZWav controller fixes the issues.  I removed and re-added the wire multiple times and everything was connected using wire nuts.  Either connected on their own work, so it's only when they're BOTH connected that the wall switch doesn't work.

The symbols in the diagram are simplified.  I don't know whether or not the switches are open or closed at rest.  What could possibly cause the wall switch to fail in this configuration?


texts: Why is the second condensation drain on my central air unit active all of a sudden?

texts:
The largest of my three central air units in the attic has two drip condensation pipes coming out of the evaporator coil box (not one that had an overflow opening that drips into the overflow pan). It has two drip lines coming out of the unit. One goes to the standard pvc drain that goes to a bathroom drain. The second drip pipe goes directly to the overflow drip pan and drains out to the eave of my house.

This year (after 10 years of use), the 2nd drip pipe (the one that goes directly to the overflow pan) is getting used and there is a constant drip out the front of the house from that emergency overflow pan.

Why is that 2nd drip line from the A/C getting used this year? Thanks.


texts: I need to replace a leaking hot water faucet in my basement laundry sink. To do this I need to shut of the hot water going into that faucet. The only option I see is to turn off the cold water intake to the water heater and then let one or more hot water taps drain the hot water from the tank. So when I do this (shut off the cold water to the water heater) - Do I need to shut off the gas to my water heater, when I shut off the cold water intake to fix a leaking hot water faucet in my basement sink?


texts: Can I run multiple wires through conduit for a hot tub and an outlet?

texts: Can I run two sets of wiring through one PVC conduit?  One of the wiring will be for a hot tub and one would be for a 110 volt GCFI


texts: Refinishing table, Water-Based Polyurethane Dries Fast and Leaves Blush after Sand. What to do?

texts:
Here are the facts:

Pine table
I applied a wood conditioner at the beginning.
I stained in the garage with the garage door open.
Super high humidity now.
The water-based polyurethane dries super fast.
I used a water-based polyurethane on it and when it dries, it looks nice and glassy but when i lightly sand, it leaves white spots (I think this is called "blushing").
I can apply the water-based polyurethane again and the spots disappear, however because of defects like a bubble, I have to sand it and I get the blushing all over again.
With one application, I tried applying very slowly to minimize bubbles and it worked, however I would get brush marks because of the quick drying.
I sanded w/ 220 grit with my orbital sander on the slowest speed to try to even it out as much as possible. I'm still going to sand a little tonight since some poly drops showed up. I don't want to pierce the polyurethane.
I was at a paint store and I don't think the guys knew what they were talking about, however some old guy that was a customer there told me that if there was a gentle breeze that could contribute to my problems.

I want this to look amazing at the end: nice, smooth, and glassy. What should I do about the white fogginess?


texts: What is this pipe - should I be worried?

texts:
We found it behind a wall, it is a bit more than 10 inches wide it has about an 3/4 inch of concrete between metal.

It was jaggedly broke off on the bottom in the basement ceiling.
It is also jaggedly broken off in the attic, it looks like it used go through the roof, because there is patch there. It does not seem to be supported by anything.  it is almost in the middle of the house. It is not near much plumbing or anything.

It seems really heavy duty and does not seem to have any connections.  What was it for? Could this be a problem in the future? Could it fall? Could someone have messed with the structural integrity of the house?


texts:
So I had an old panel and subpanel replaced with a single new panel. The guys reused the old breakers, and the breakers wobble in the panel like loose teeth. With the old panel, they didn't wobble at all.

Is this because the breakers don't fit the new panel, or were they just not tightened down enough?

The breakers are GE type THQL, 1 pole units. The panel is a GE PowerMark Gold Load Center, type 1 indoor enclosure, model 6.


texts: is AFCI required for 220v CA residential?

texts:
As I understand it CA now requires AFCI protection for practically all residential outlets.

I'm setting up my theater room and it calls for a 50A 220V NEMA 6-50 outlet for the subwoofer I want but I'm having trouble finding an AFCI breaker in this size.

I know this isn't the right place for product recommendations; I guess I'm more fishing to see if there are exceptions I'm missing?


texts: Can I use this hose with my air compressor?

texts:
I have the below compressor, and would like to use it for pumping my bike.

Does the below hose and gun work with it?

And what is the metal button at the end of the gun for?


texts: Repair pressure washer around area where hose attaches to machine

texts:
I have a pressure washer that I can no longer use because the area around where I attach my pressure washer hose is broken. I don't know much about pressure washers so I can't be any more helpful but I've attached some pictures of the area that is the issue. It is a Greenworks GPW 2000-1

What options do I have to fix something like this? Weld? Replace part? Epoxy?


texts:
Hi I reference these books a lot since and for probably way too long. Are they still up to code
B&d guide to home wiring - copyright 2005
Tauton’s by Rex cauldwell - copyright 2002


texts: How do I detach the wires from this lamp ceiling socket?

texts:
This is a very stupid question, but I just cannot figure out how to detach the wires from this lamp ceiling socket.

I know these wire connectors usually have a screw or some sort of lever to tighten and loosen the wires, but I've tried for an hour and just cannot detach the wires so I can install the lamp that doesn't need the socket but connects directly to the wires from the ceiling.


texts: How do I repair laminate damage on a kitchen drawer?

texts: The heat from our oven has caused significant damage to the laminate coating on a drawer and a cupboard door, is there a way to repair this type of damage or do i just have to replace it?


texts: Can't disconnect interlock switch terminals from connectors

texts: I am trying to remove the interlock door switch in a GE microwave model JEB1860SM2SS. I was able to unhook it from the frame, but I can't pull the connecters off the terminals. The plastic that covers the connections will not budge. Is there a trick to sliding it off or do I have to break it and get a new one?


texts: Germany - wire 3 core garage to 4 core mains

texts:
We have an external garage and a 4 core (brown, blue, green/yellow, black,) cable is supplied from the main property. The garage is supplied with an electric door opener, wall sockets and an internal light. The cable in the garage is a 3 core (brown, blue, green/yellow) cable that needs connecting.

I assume (need to measure) the black wire is connected to a switch in the main property. As I will not use this, I'm wondering the best way to handle the black. Should I just connect this to a connector block and leave it at that?

Thanks for any pointers


texts: Dimmer dims the lights about once a second

texts:
I have a dimmer (Richmond/Zano GRID500) that, when turned up to full brightness, dims the lights on and off at a rate of about 1 Hz.

Turning the brightness down just a bit makes the blinking stop.

The switch did this with 6x 50W halogen bulbs, and is continuing to do this with 6x 5W LED bulbs.

Since the blinking looks deliberate, I am wondering if the switch is trying to tell me something? I found some manufacturer's literature, but there's nothing relevant there.

Any ideas?


texts: How do I open windows that are painted closed?

texts: About a month ago I painted my windows and windowsills.  The paint dried and I was able to open and close the windows at will for about a week or so after they were painted.  Then the weather got hot, we closed the windows, turned on the air conditioning for about a month.  Now the weather has cooled down and we want to open the windows again but cannot open most of them.  If it helps I painted with an exterior latex semi-gloss.


texts: Wiring diagram to split one circuit for ceiling lights in multiple rooms?

texts:
I would like to replace some Knob & Tube wiring in my attic.

Currently, the ceiling lights in most of our rooms are all on a single circuit and are branched using many knob & tube soldered junctions.

When I replace this lighting with NM cable, I would like to run a single cable into a junction box and then branch into three cables running to the lights in three different rooms. The junction box would be large enough to accommodate wires comfortably. The cable would be standard NM-cable 2 or 3 conductor with ground, and every light and switch box would contain a hot, neutral & ground.

Does code allow multiple lights to be wired onto the same circuit, in a "star" type of topology? To illustrate what I mean, here is a crude wiring diagram.

(This diagram is by no means complete-- It doesn't list all the switches, etc. I'm just trying to illustrate my question.)

I don't see any problems with this, and I would think this is done all the time. However I've checked 8 different home electrical books and I've looked online, and I still cannot find any example wiring diagrams showing this layout.


texts: How to install ceiling light where there previously was none?

texts:
I want to install ceiling lights in two upstairs bedrooms in my house.  There is a light-switch on the wall that turns power on and off to one of the electrical outlets.  I would be perfectly happy to re-use this switch and no longer switch the outlet on and off.

I believe that there is a small attic or crawl space above.

It sounds like I need to do three things:

1) Run wire from the light-switch to where the ceiling light is to be installed.

2) Install some sort of mounting bracket to hang the light from.

3) Mount the light on the bracket.

(3) seems very straight-forward, but I've never attempted to do anything with home electrical wiring beyond replacing a light-switch.


texts: Grounded outlet with load for ungrounded outlet

texts:
Moved into a place, nearly every outlet is ungrounded with the exception of a couple GFCI in the kitchen and bath. Needed three prong for the fridge (and really didn't want the new appliance completely unprotected) so grabbed a GFCI and went to install it in the appropriate place.

There's a ground wire attached to the box, it's part of the two-wire line back to the panel. I am able to identify this line into the panel. Looks like about half a dozen or so grounds run into the panel in total.

This outlet also has a load. The two-wire cable for the load does not have a ground wire.

The house is a bit older (80s) and I expected no grounds at all given the outlets. I've only ever seen all grounded or all not (I'm not exactly an electrician but I'm fairly handy) and I'm wondering, before I throw a grounded outlet in here, is one grounded outlet with load connected ungrounded outlets okay?

There's no chance I'm going to be running grounds to the subsequent outlets if they're not already run.


texts: Wall light switch in pantry, moving to cabinet side

texts:
I have a pantry enclosed on two sides by standard partition walls faced with cabinet wood, then two short sides open to the kitchen on the outside made from cabinet wood, then the door is mounted at 45 degrees on the two short sides - like !http://www.modabakeshop.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/turkeydraw1.png where the red line is the door. The light switch (actually a 3-position off/sensor/on) is awkwardly located under the bottom shelf at the back of one of the full walls.

What I want to do is to turn the existing receptacle into a junction box (blank plate cover for access) and then move the switch to a chest level switch, still on the inside, but mounted on the short cabinet wall right next to the door. This means it would have to be a receptacle box that sticks out from the wall - something like this I guess: !http://www.homedepot.com/catalog/productImages/400/f8/f80e4798-4436-4ccb-aa86-50777d412598_400.jpg

Wiring would come out of the existing receptacle somehow (blank faceplate but with a gromitted hole?!), then run in plastic trunking around the wall then up to the new receptacle.

Firstly, is this acceptable in terms of installation? I know there are local variations to code so I'm talking generally.

Secondly, when extending wiring from the existing receptacle to the new, can I just run the switched core? In other words, use a single 3-core cable (1 ground) and run the hot up one core, via the switch, and back down the other core? I believe in other localities that is allowed as long as the "wrong" core is taped to show it is live rather than neutral.

Thanks - it's hard searching for the right way of doing it when I can't get the right terminology for what I want to do! Location: southern California.


texts:
This is my first post.
I  need to cut 1' pieces of pvc sewer pipe for a few projects. The pipe will range from 4" to 15" diameter high density sewage (and perhaps fire-rated industrial pipe). I've researched at length all options from grinders, jigsaws, circulars, and reciprocating. I have a table saw for precision finishing at home, but I need a BATTERY POWERED option to simply chop 20-foot pipes into 1 foot cylinders to transport them from the factory yard to my house (I don't have a truck). So clean lines aren't crucial, but a tool with good battery economy and ease of use is preferable. Any input would be greatly appreciated, as I am relatively new to tools, but will be using them for this project a great deal. I would ideally like a tool that could also be used for lengthwise cuts of these 1-foot pvc cylinders, as I will need to cut all pieces into half-pipes, lengthwise. Tonight I bought this black & decker 20v lithium combo kit for $229.00 at Rona (circular saw, and reciprocating saw, with drill, two batteries, charger, work light, one circle blade, and one recip blade).
Am I on the right track? I've heard mounting the circular blade backwards is better for pvc. Oh, and don't say use a hacksaw; I would be there for hours, and I only have 20 minutes in the pipe manufacturing yard, as they are kind enough to give me industrial scraps for free.
THANK YOU!!!


texts:
Thanks in advance for anyone providing insight for me. I apologize if answers for my situation can be found in another post that I've missed.

I have a shed outside my home that currently has no power. I'd like to run power to it and install a 60A subpanel to support a couple of circuits. Currently, I have 200A service coming to the house. The panel inside the home is about 50 feet away so there's a 200A service disconnect with room for 4 breakers at the meter. The shed is about 5 feet from the service entrance.

What I'm planning is to install a 60A breaker in the panel at the service entrance and run 6 AWG copper underground to the subpanel in the shed. I plan to use metal conduit because no one wants to be digging a couple of feet down. I'm comfortable with the requirements for the circuits inside the shed.

Pennsylvania uses the 2014 NFC. Do I have the correct wire for the circuit? Is my approach with the breaker in the service entrance valid? Lastly, do I need a separate grounding rod for the shed? It seems silly to add another grounding rod a couple of feet from an existing one.

Lastly, a (really) crude drawing of it all. Black is existing. Red is proposed.


texts: Supporting a fan in second (fake) ceiling

texts:
I purchased a ceiling fan (this model) to install in my house's top-floor bedroom. I assumed that all I would need is a fan-rated retrofit brace and ceiling box (example) to replace the inevitable builder-grade box.

Once I got around to removing the existing ceiling box and peeking inside, things got a bit more interesting. Instead of attic joists and insulation, I found myself looking into an empty space, about 8 inches tall, with a second ceiling above it. My house underwent a full remodel under previous owners in 2005; I think they decided to install a second drop ceiling rather than deal with asbestos remediation in the existing popcorn ceiling. So my actual ceiling structure looks like this:

Through my limited vantage point (sticking a cell phone into the box hole and peeking around), I can see thin metal beams running across the ceiling. The visible ceiling drywall is screwed to these beams. The beams are about 2 inches tall, and are not structural - I can push on them with my hand and feel a bit of flex. The old ceiling box was hung from these beams using a metal brace, and that was OK for a 10 lb cheap light fixture that was previously in place, but I don't think this is appropriate for a ceiling fan.

I am now wondering how to best go about installing appropriate support for the fan, without tearing up the visible ceiling or extensively messing with (presumably asbestos-laden) old popcorn ceiling. I found one product that is designed for a tiled drop ceiling that may also work here (link) - the idea being to go into the attic, nail a brace across two ceiling joists, and hang the box from that brace, while also expanding the side struts to make contact with the drywall support beams for lateral stability.

My questions are:

Is this an appropriate product for my fan installation? Are there others I should look at?
Any tips for actually installing something like this, and aligning the ceiling box, the hole I will need to make in the old ceiling, and the brace, and getting the box to be at the right height? I am concerned that the product I referenced assumes that for it to be adjusted to the installation site, a whole ceiling tile can be removed, creating lots of working space. I don't have that luxury - all I have is a drywall hole that is large enough for an octagonal box.

Many thanks!


texts: What can I use as a guide for my circular saw if I need to rip an 8' segment out of a sheet of plywood?

texts: I need to cut some plywood down to size and it will require that I take it down from a 4'-wide sheet to 30" wide.  This means I will need to find a saw guide that will support a steady, 8' rip from end to end.  I am not finding any 8'-long guides and am wondering if I am going to have to make one out of scrap plywood.  The thing is, I can't be 100% sure that it would be completely straight.  It would be much better to find a guide that is built for longer rips.


texts: We have a broken banister spindle (see pics). What's the best way to fix this? Do I have to take it apart? Or is there a trick to this that I'm not aware of?


texts: What size wire do I need to run for 10 100 amp Rv hookup with individual breakers off a 400 amp service at 420 feet to the last pole?

texts:
400 amp service
10 RV breakered 100 amp pedestals
20 ft apart
420 feet to last pedestal
What size wire?


texts: Is there any way to replace drill batteries?

texts: We have a great (Porter and Cable) cordless drill but the batteries are no longer commercially available. Amazon has a listing but it's been sold out for the last five years. Do we have any other recourse? I'm kind of loathe to throw out a perfectly good drill, but to complete any project we have to charge both batteries completely. It would be nice if one battery would last just a touch longer.


texts: The previous owner of my house hung a hose reel with screws through vinyl siding. The reel came down and the holes are so stripped that even a sizeable lag has nothing to grip. I think I have to move a few inches to find a stud. But how can I hide the holes? I'm thinking of filling with paintable putty and touching up with paint mixed to match. Any better ideas?


texts: Will a high efficiency furnace vent etch the brick on my house?

texts: My neighbour just informed me that they had to change the vent on their high efficiency furnace. The furnace vents between our two houses and it used to have an elbow on it directing it along the walkway but she said the elbow was icing up and they had to change it. It is now directed straight at the brick on our house. She wants to lean a sheet of plastic, the type that's used as roofing material on decks, against our house to protect it. My question is, will the emissions cause damage to our brick over time? We are about four feet away. I don't want to have a sheet of plastic leaning there.


texts:
Fairly new to using solar. I have been reading up on volts vs. amps in terms of what makes the most efficient system. I am considering a 24v battery bank with 4 12v batteries connected together. These are the Kirkland 115a starting/marine batteries. I am also considering a Victron 100/50 MPPT charger. This is the math I have so far.

Mobil RA 220-8B solar panels
1991

rated at:
230w. 10.55volts. 30.48 amps.

kirkland batteries=
115 amp hours * 4 quantity * 24 volts = 11,040 watt hours to charge %100

6 ra-220 panels in parallel = 54v * 30a Isc = 1620w

11040w / 1620w = ~7 hours of full sun to charge from 0% to 100%   *keeping in mind partial current from shade

is this math correct? Will this charger work well with this setup? Do you see a better way to set it up?


texts: What should I do about a screw jammed in my deadbolt?

texts: So, I recently purchased a new house and went about changing the locks. The doorknob worked well, but not so much on the deadbolt. Installed everything but one screw which wouldn't budge. I ended up stripping it, but was able to remove it. Since it was the same model as the old deadbolt, I figure the screws on the old one would work. I ended up jamming the screw and now even a stripped screw extractor bit can't move it. Any help would be appreciated.


texts: Which way should a door between the garage and basement swing?

texts:
Looked everywhere for proper answer.  We have a 2 car garage attached to the basement.  This house is old, built in 1968, we purchased this 2 years ago and were renovating here/there.  We just finished got the wall replaced (fire-rated) also vents removed, electricals/plumbing rerouted/fixed.  Now all we got left is the door.

All over the place says one thing and another, we're not sure who is right based on building code in the USA (Kansas to be specific).

From the garage walking into the basement, should the door swing in or out?  opening INTO the basement or opening INTO the garage?  We know about which kind of door we need, but not sure of the inswing or outswing.


texts: The "meat thermometer" oven probe in our GE JB970SB1SS home range doesn't seem to be working. Ohming out the probe, it appears to be a thermistor with a resistance of around 57 kOhms at room temperature. Is there any way to find specs for this probe to determine whether it is the defective component? I think the probe is part number WB20T10024 but I'm not sure.


texts: Is it really energy economy to use movement sensor for turn lights on?

texts:
I want to install those movement sensors in my house in replacement for the old light switch. I want to use those from elevator halls which has a 3 way switch to leave on,  leave off and leave monitoring.

The thing is: is the sensor energy consumption lower than a 15w to 25w white cold lamp in the hours that I simply leave it on when nobody is around?

These sensors are still expensive in my country. So I will install them only if it's worth the energy economy on long terms.

Edit1:

This is the kind of sensor I am speaking of:

And this is the bulb I am speaking of:


texts:
What should I be looking for when I choose laminate flooring? I am building a smallish house, I plan to put in laminate flooring in it. But I heard some horror stories about how some laminate flooring started peeling after a couple of months use.

I am looking for something durable for it's a rental property and the people living in it might not look after it, and hopefully moisture resistant because I definitely do not want peeling floors.

So what should I be looking for in choosing laminate flooring or if there are some kind of tests I should be using to test the quality of the floors panels?


texts:
Several years ago, I wired coax cable connections to the main unit of my house and the basement apartment. The cable company ran two cables from an alley pole to the entry point on the house and I took it from there. Inside the house on the other side from where the outside box is to which the alley cables go is a receptacle box in which the inside two cables are connected to what is outside.

Since no one lives in the basement, I didn't get an extra service. The main unit service works fine going through all the same checkpoints (receptacle boxes and entry points). Since I am getting ready to finish the basement, I wanted to test that the basement connection from the inside receptacle still works and that some 30' of cable that runs from the entry point to the basement media box still works, particularly that it hasn't been cut by accident or rodents chewing, before I seal it with drywall.

So I disconnected the main unit connection to the active cable coming in (vs. the one that will be activated once someone actually lives there). However, the modem on the other end of that cable (basement) could not connect. The modem does connect when I take it upstairs and connect it directly to the splitter. When I did this first, several years ago, I performed the same test and it worked. Now it doesn't. It's as though the cable has been cut off somewhere on the way.

Are there alternative ways to test two ends of a coax cable? Like running some current through. I have an organic intolerance for visible wire/cable so I did a lot of remodeling just to hide it, which means my cable is buried behind the wall -- while aesthetically appealing, it makes it a hell of a lot harder to troubleshoot and repair. I am trying to make darn sure the cable is cut before I tear down drywall and reinstall.


texts: How far can you safely drill into 100mm thick brick for expansion plugs

texts: I'm mounting a rafter support for a lean-to at the side of my house (45mm x 120mm wood beam). I know that the bricks are 100mm thick, so I'm wondering what length of expansion plugs (rawl plugs) I can use. I don't want to drill right through the brick obviously but am wondering how far I can go?


texts:
I live in an old house that was barn framed, mortise and tenon joints. One of my weight bearing beams
has split on one side where the beam was mortised and the side of the beam wasn't. the side that was mortised split horizontaly through all the mortises. what is my best approach to solve this problem?


texts:
We just got a lovely new vinyl bathroom floor put in.  The edges (wall, tub) are nicely caulked but not the base of the toilet.

I did read What kind of caulk to use in order to caulk the toilet to the floor? where everybody said "don't caulk," but I'm concerned because the toilet sits three feet away from a washing machine.  The floor isn't perfectly horizontal.  It slopes slightly down toward the toilet.  The washing machine might leak, or someone might pull something wet out of the washer and drip water on the floor.  Also, another three feet in a perpendicular direction and we are looking at a bathtub with shower curtain.  More opportunities for spills.  I don't want spilled water to get under the toilet.  This was a problem previously with the washing machine I used to have (was just replaced a week ago).

At that linked question, I read that if you caulk, then you should leave a gap in the caulk around the base of the toilet.  I guess I could pick a segment that is at a maximum distance from both the washer and the tub.  Is a one inch gap enough?

Underneath the vinyl flooring (that was cut from a long roll at Home Depot) is plywood subflooring.  Under that is a primitive cellar.


texts: Can I repair hairline cracks in a solid wood exterior door with clear silicone caulk?

texts: My front doors have several small hairline cracks around the door panels. I would like to seal them. Can I use clear silicone caulking without damage to the stained surface? Do I need to clean or prep the wood surface for better adhesion?


texts: How do I move the strike plate on my bedroom door down by 1 cm?

texts:
My bedroom door in my apartment won't stay shut. It seems the strike plate is about 1 cm too high. I will need to lower it. If I lower it, I will need to drill 2 new holes. I think if I do so, the holes will be too close together and they might become one hole when I put the screws in the new holes.

Am I wrong about this? Is there a solution I can use?


texts: Why is noise coming from our hot water radiator even when it is off?

texts: I own a condo and the heating is from a hot water radiator. We have a hot water radiator at the living room and there is quite a noise (some clanking but mostly like water running on a pipe) coming from it even though the main valve is all the way off. The one in the bath and bedroom make no noise on or off. Any tips appreciated.


texts: Get electricity to outlet behind wall mounted TV

texts:
I want to install a recessed outlet behind my TV but I am not sure how to get electricity to the outlet. There is an outlet at the bottom of the wall, below the TV.

Can I run a Romex 14/2 wire from that outlet up the wall to the newly installed outlet behind the TV?

I ordered a Arlington Industries Inc. TVBR255KGC-1 but after taking it out of the box I realized how big it is and does not fit in the middle opening of my wall mount hardware. I could put it below, or above the hardware, if I have to. But it's big and ugly.

EDIT: My breaker box is in a tight spot but I was able to get my camera in there and take some pictures. It's a 15 amp break that controls the outlet at the bottom of the wall.

Picture of the breaker where you can see (barely) that's a 15 amp breaker (third one down from the top):

Picture of left side of receptacle:

Picture of right side of receptacle:

The wires attached to the receptacle are not color coated, but the screws are. Which is white, and which is black?

Can I attach my 14/2 wire to those screws and run it up the wall to the outlet I install behind the TV?


texts: Attaching OSB sheathing to 2x4 purlins over 12" OC rafters

texts:
I'm building a small (65 sq ft. over-engineered) shed using metal roofing. I've designed it using 2x8 rafters spaced 12" OC, then I plan to put 2x4 purlins on top spaced 16", 7/16" structural sheathing on top of that with an ice/water shield and finally the roof. I designed it this way for two reasons: 1) To give the field screw spacing required by the metal roof and 2) To give a place for a subfascia to be nailed into the purlins.
I have two questions:

What would be the appropriate nail size for going through the sheating and purlins in the field - planning to hit the rafters? I'm thinking 1.5" + 7/16" - call it 2" then a 10d ring shank should be sufficient with a 1" penetration into the rafter?

I am waivering on the best way to attach the purlins. One way would be 2 nails per connection. The other would be using one headlok 4-1/2" structural fastener at every purlin/rafter intersection. Any recommendations?

Thank you in advance.


texts: Two black cords coming from light fixture.

texts: I am installing a new light fixture but both of the wires coming from it are the same colour. I read that sometimes the neutral wire will have ridges on one side. I’ve attached some pictures, I’m wondering if these are the ridges to denote natural?


texts: What could cause banging in the hot water tap?

texts:
I have erratic hot water from my tap in the bathroom sink, when I turn on the hot water it runs for about 30 seconds and then bangs and the water stops. After a few seconds the water returns with a force and we have a constant banging like a machine gun, from the tap.

What could cause this, and how can I fix it?


texts: Can you put a matte polyurethane over a semi-gloss polyurethane to make it a matte finish?

texts:
I have a piece of furniture that my mom has painted and she put on a semi-gloss polyurethane finish.  It is way too shiny for the type of painting.

Can we put a matte polyurethane finish over the semi-gloss one to make it more of a matte or satin finish?


texts: Why do air conditioners have thermostats, not humidistats?

texts:
I've noticed it over the years in various living quarters: an inside A/C temperature setting that's appropriate and comfortable for a given outside temperature is quite unbearable when the outside temperature changes (to result in a different number of A/C runs).

One may think this due to the positioning of the thermostat, but I think the problem is elsewhere — humidity.

As such, I'm curious why is it so common that air conditioning control units only have a thermostat, which so often requires such frequent adjusting when the outside temperature changes? Wouldn't it make more sense to have some sort of a humidistat instead, which would be set at a given point, and would, supposedly, require no further adjustment?

Is there any solution to this effect?

Maybe a control unit that lets you set a cooling value based on humidex, instead of °C / °F?  I'd much rather set my HVAC to 27 humidex for the whole cooling season, than keep adjusting it between 21°C and 27°C, up and down, all the time.


texts:
I am looking to put my home on the market in the next few months (in Ohio). Which home improvement projects produce the highest return on investment when selling?

Should I invest in exotic landscaping? A modernized bathroom? Granite counter-tops?

My home is only about 9 years old to begin with.


texts: How can I safely remove stick-on tiles that are on top of asbestos tiles?

texts:
I have an issue when I started renovating my basement.  When I bought my house 3 years ago, the basement had 12" stick tiles through-out.  I removed a bar, a built in cabinet and a few other things and those stick tiles were never put down and now that particular tile is obsolete/not sold anymore.

I am thinking about "re"-sticky tiling the basement and want to pull up the newer sticky tiles and reapply over the old lower layer 9" ones they were applied on.  Since my house was building 1953, more than likely the lower layer tiles under the sticky tiles are Asbestos and I don't want to damage/crack/disturb them while pulling up the top tiles for obvious health reasons.

Is there a way to remove these stick tiles without disturbing/breaking/chipping the old asbestos ones?  A Chemical that dissolves the newer adhesive without messing with the asbestos tile adhesive?

Thanks,
Scott


texts:
I have a 1 car garage shed with gutters around the roof. There are two downspouts, both on the same side of the structure (there is an alley on one side so both drain into the alley). I was up on the roof with a hose trying to find a roof leak when I noticed that the water was just accumulating (probably 3/4" or so) in the gutters but not flowing to the back of the shed to the downspouts.

Is this ok/normal? Presumably with enough water it would make its way back to the downspouts? Is it possible to increase the pitch of the side gutters so that the water flows toward the back even with a little bit of water in the gutter?

------EDIT------

The gutter seem to be sensibly straight/in good shape. The standing water is in the gutter shown, and the downspouts are on the side of the shed to the right of this picture:

Here is the water:

Can I bend the brackets near the opposite corner a bit to make the gutter slope toward the downspouts?


texts:
So I just bought a 1800mm by 1200mm whiteboard for my study and what never occurred to me (stupidly enough) is how to mount this thing to a drywall.

It has obviously came with x8 raw plugs and x8 screws (2 each corner).

I am not sure how thick the drywall is, but the house is 20 years old and there is no holes anywhere (and 2 kids were brought up here).

What are my options here?


texts: Can I use my old shower pan instead of a mortar base layer?

texts: I am replacing my old leaking mortar shower pan. This article tells me i need to have a mortar base layer.  Can I skip demolition and laying down the base layer (the old shower pan will be treated as a base layer), and just start with the shower liner and the mortar top layer?


texts: How can I combine a tv signal from the wall to an amplified antenna into my digital TV?

texts:
I am having a very difficult time receiving OTA DTV signals and want to combine a few different antennas. I purchased a splitter that actually combines different signals, and it works, but this is where my problem begins.

For whatever reason, i can't receive ABC using any antenna I've been able to connect. There's a coaxial connection that goes into the walls that I decided to scan out of desperation and for whatever reason, I can receive ABC on this connection. I have no idea what's on the other side of this connection, all i know is that ABC comes in perfectly without any signal fluctuation.

So, that's where the combiner comes in. I connected one end to wall coax connection, and the other end to my antenna. This all works fine.

The problem is that the antenna is powered. And without the power, the antenna is 1/10th as useful. With the power, ABC becomes completely distorted.

So my question is how do i stop my powered antenna from affecting the signal that gives me ABC without pulling the power from the antenna which effectively renders it useless?


texts: How can I attach a sink drain to a drain that is higher than the sink?

texts:
My home is pre-plumbed for a water softener -- whole house water filter.  Meaning I have a main water pipe that comes out of the wall, makes a u-turn, and goes back into the wall.  Just below the water pipe is a drain point for connecting the softener/filter drain hose.
My question is this:  The drain point is located 36" above the floor.  I am considering installing a utility sink in the garage and I'm wondering if there is a way to utilize this drain point for the sink?  Of course the bottom of the sink and p-trap would be considerably lower than the drain point which is up higher on the wall.  I do not believe water from the sink would ever drain properly and would most likely just back up in the sink.  Would this be the case?  Any suggestions on how to get around this?


texts:
Does an undersized grounding is cause for concern about improper / unsafe condition(s) that I noted at the house’ s electrical sub panel.
The House that was built in late 1950’s, Southern California, However, The original main panel was replaced with 125A, which supply central HVAC / 50A and sub panel / 60A.  All branch wiring, including 30A sub, is fed into the aforementioned 60A sub panel. Grounding to the main panel is done via rod and connection to a water-supply metal piping.
The concerns are;
Undersized ground conduit from the main to the sub panel, not #6.
The lack of proper ground from the 60A sub panel to the 30A sub, laundry.
House’ s receptacles are a combination of 2 and 3 prongs.
Do I need to upgrade the ground’ s conduit from the main panel to the sub panel / 60A?  Is the 30A sub panel wiring of concern?


texts:
Recently (in the last few days) the drain of my bath has started to 'bubble' occasionally.  This mainly seems to happen at night when we are in bed and no one or nothing is moving in the house.  The bubbling is a single bubble every 5 - 10 secs for about a minute.  Then it stops.  Its not happened that we've noticed during the day, though did once happen when I flushed the toilet.

I have 2 bathrooms that share a wall and both baths and both sinks in the bathrooms all have drain pipes that lead to a common 'junction box' drain thing in the corner of one bathroom.  I live in a basement flat (if that matters).

I suspected that it might be due to a blocked pipe, and poured drain cleaner down the plug holes of both baths.  This, strangely, resulted in a definite blockage in the other bathroom.  A go with the snake and some more powerful drain cleaner later and the blockages seem to have been cleared and this bath now drains much more quickly than it did before.  However the 'bubbling' was still present.

What else might be the cause of the bubbling?

Is it something I should worry about? (I'm about to rent out my flat for 6 months and don't want my tenants to have a problem whilst I'm away.)

What else can I try?  I thought it might be to do with vents, but I can't see anything that looks like a vent...

EDIT
Turns out it was the main drain from the house, which had become blocked and was backing up.  Managed to catch it just in time, the 5 foot deep drain hole was only a couple of inches from the top and both the drain at the front and the back of the house were close to overflowing.  The water had risen so high that it had covered the entrance hole for the vent pipe into the system.  So the bubbling was indeed caused by the lack of vent, it was just 'blocked' by the high water level due to the other blockages.


texts: How can I remove this toilet shutoff valve?

texts:
This valve has a slow leak, and I am trying to replace it.  Problem is I can't get the thing off.  I am trying to twist the compression nut (the bronze one closest to the white pipe) clockwise while holding the valve in place.  Am I doing this wrong?

Here's a picture of the valve:


texts: How can I finish a plumbing cleanout in my basement floor?

texts: I am looking for some advice on what do with the main line cleanout in my basement. Currently, we have a hole in basement floor where the mainline and cleanout run. We plan on cleaning out the main line and then put down carpet to cover some tiles. However looking for ideas on what to do with the clean out pipe and hole.


texts: How can I mount a television with wiring in the wall behind?

texts: My husband and I are mounting a tv. The stud finder shows some type of electrical wires by the stud we need to drill into. How can we safely drill into this stud without nicking any wires? Or should we just avoid the area in general?


texts:
I am moving a friend of mine into their new apartment and we need to put up a new light fixture into the bathroom. The bathroom has nothing but a light... 'hole'. There are no wall sockets or anything, and I believe this room has its own separate breaker (we cut off the power to the entire apartment when working on electricals). But the lamp has a LED strip inside so it needs a ground wire.
The problem is, there isn't a loose wire hanging in the ceiling.

This is a 3D recreation so please bear with me.

This is pretty much what it looks like. (yes the wires do actually come out of the walls)

How can I still ground the lamp by cutting the green wire without breaking the loop? Is there a splitter piece or something?

Thank you for helping.

PS: The light fixture does not have a green screw or anything. A wire has to be screwed into the connector.


texts: I’m looking for a little help.  I’m fairly handy but have run into some strange electrical issues.  My wife blew one kitchen outlet last week when plugging in air fryer.  I checked and no breakers were tripped.  We have what seems to be 3 outlets and 2 kitchen lights on the circuit; all not working.  All Gfci’s in house(kitchen, garage, bathrooms and outside) are good.  I went ahead and reset all of them just to be clear.  I have flipped the main panel off and flipped each individual breaker on/off 3 or 4 times now.  All breakers are showing 120 plus volts from my multi-meter but no power is showing at the outlets or lights.  I actually changed out 2 breakers that had a little corrosion around the wires but that didn’t help at all. There is no obvious damage to the outlets or lights or any loose wires. I’ve actually gone room to room and checked each and every outlet and they are all wired correctly. I am at a loss of where to go from here.  We never had issue with this outlet/a prior or the lights on the same circuit.  Please HELP!


texts: Will a cement mixer extend the working life of mortar?

texts: I'm going to do some brickwork on my own.  Last time it was quite the job to mix up mortar and get it laid before it started to go off (I know, working in pairs would be helpful!).  I know I can extend the working life of mortar a bit by making a looser slurry (at the expense of some strength), can I also keep my mortar workable for longer by continually agitating it in a cement mixer?  If so, how much longer is it likely to remain workable - just a couple of minutes, or indefinitely?


texts:
I'm a student renting a room on the 2nd floor of a small apartment. When i got back from the holidays i found out our next door neighbors extended their house and built a shed. The roof of their extended house+shed is now almost touching the outer wall of my rented room. Now, that roof is probably reflecting the heat to my wall and is heating up the place.

Anyway i could cool down this wall in a cheap way? I really like this room as its convenient and it fits right into my budget.


texts: Should I make space for a new 50A breaker in a full panel or install a sub-panel?

texts:
I'll start by saying we just bought a fixer-upper house.

I searched the topic of adding sub panels and a lot of the answers are a bit over my head so I need some advice.

My house was built in the 20's.  At some point in the last several years, someone updated the electrical stuff to a familiar breaker system.  The wiring looks modern and insulated and it also looks like things are grounded as far as I can tell.

What I want to do is install an electric stove which requires a 50 amp circuit in place of the deathtrap gas oven (it was old, the line to it had leaks, and I like cooking on induction.)

What I have, I think, is 100 amp service in the breaker box.  The breaker box is full, no slots to add a 50 amp breaker.

So what do I do?  Should I add a sub-panel?  Should I yank the existing panel and put in one with more slots?

In my mind I would think I would put the heavy current circuits like A/C, Oven, and clothes dryer on the sub-panel.  That's how it was in my last house.

Anything I do, I'll spend the money to have a licensed electrician to make sure it's up to code, but I want to do the actual work myself.

The house is a single family.  Two stories for about 1200 sq ft and an unfinished basement.  No outbuildings, garages, wells, etc. Gas Heat, Gas Water Heater.  Central A/C.  electric clothes washer and electric dryer.  I want to install a 50 amp electric range as cheaply and safely as possible, but I want to do it right, and of course the wife wants it done right now :)  I'll add pictures tomorrow, probably.  Current idea is to double check the gauge of the wire that runs to the clothes dryer to make sure it's heavy enough to handle the stove and then beef up the breaker and receptacle, just to get it done fast.  If we do that, we will be able to cook, but not dry clothes, so I'll be in the same place in a month or two.

Some additional information.  The breaker box is a Challenger brand SLB12 (12-24)CT.  125 amp max.  The Main breaker in there is 100 amps.  There is already one doubled up breaker in there.  I was incorrect, there is one available slot in it.  Will add pics soon (they are too big for SE and I need to edit them).


texts: What is this green pipe with an open end sticking out of the ground?

texts: I'm looking at an REO property, and I cam across something and have no idea what it is. it appears to be a green pipe pipe in the ground that is open on top. It's on the side of the house, and there is a slight impression in the ground near the pipe .... There is relatively new fuel oil tank in the basement, so perhaps it's where they removed the old one? i really have no idea, but it seems strange and I was just wondering if anyone has an idea


texts:
I need to replace a faulty lightbulb but it's not one I've come across before. It's being used in a light fixture in my washroom above the vanity. Can anyone here identify it? I'm hoping I can order one from Amazon or my local Home Depot.
(Loonie for scale)


texts: Installing a sub panel solely for outdoor Christmas lights/decorations. I will need approximately 120 amps now, with more to be added later. My current main panel does not have enough open slots for this since each circuit will be limited to 20 amps because of the outlet and switch ratings. Running a sub panel off of a 100 amp double pole breaker will not give me enough amps at the sub panel. Would it be better to connect two sub panels with lower amps to each, or does any one make a double pole breaker that will allow 150 amps through it? Already looking at #2 wire run inside conduit from the main to the sub. The circuits will all be on at the same time, for a few hours every night if that matters. Main service is 200 amps. Distance from main to sub will be approximately 50 feet. Thanks. Will be converting to LED lights in the future.


texts: How should this circuit be properly grounded?

texts:
I am hiring an electrician to do the work so my question is more for my education and helping me ask the proper questions to the perspective contractors.

Purchased a condo recently and want to put in some recessed lights.  The condo has a subpanel in the laundry room with the main service panel in a common area on the main floor.  All the current wiring is run in metal conduit, I presume that it's THHN wiring. The subpanel has a neutral bar that's not bonded to the panel.  The panel is grounded via a grounding wire that I would presume runs to the main service panel.  There is no ground bus within the service panel.

So, my question.  For the new recessed lights (6" LEDs), can one run nonmetallic sheathed cable (NM cable) not in conduit?  Or must this be THHN in conduit.  If one runs NM cable (again, not in conduit) would you install a ground bar in the sub panel to bond the romNM cable ground to it, or can the NM cable ground be bonded to the metal electrical gang box (ground clip?) that the switch will be in?  In this case the switch for the new lights could go into an existing metal gang box (where there is currently a switch for a ceiling fan).  This box has metal conduit back to the sub panel.  So from the panel, NM cable to the existing switch box, from there NM cable to the recessed lights.  I am wondering if this is possible, would one / should one install a ground bus in the panel or bond ground to the existing switch box.

I hope this makes sense and I just didn't completely confuse everyone.


texts: Green striped wire placement when changing from 3 prong to 4 on dryer

texts: I recently moved into a new house which accepts a 4 prong dryer cord.  My dryer, a Kenmore 110.66922501, is currently wired for 3.  As wired for 3 prong, the neutral connection on the dryer has an additional green (with yellow stripe) wire attached.  This green striped wire appears to terminate at a point on the chassis. When changing to the 4 prong cord, should the green striped wire be moved to the chassis to be connected with the cord’s green wire?


texts: Ground-level electrical wiring to shed outdoors possible?

texts:
I was telling an uncle about the concern of digging a conduit trench in my heavily planted garden (trying not to disturb the plants) to run electricity from the house to the shed about 35 feet away.

He said that you could run conduit on the ground (or barely cover it with mulch); no need to dig a trench and bury it. I am highly skeptical as I've never heard of this before nor can I find anything on it. He's done habitat houses.

Can you? I live in the US, Nebraska. It gets very hot and cold here seasonally.
Any tips on making a trench with a tight space?


texts: Why does this bench design call for bevels on legs?

texts:
I'm making a bench from the Family Handyman web site.  Here is the link: http://www.familyhandyman.com/woodworking/projects/build-a-painting-bench/view-all
They said " Cut parallel 5-degree bevels on the top and bottom of the legs". I don't understand why cutting the legs with a bevel? How is the bench seat is going to fit on the legs if they are cut with the bevel?

I'm a beginner, I which there was a woodworking club close to where I live !!
thank you for the answer
Carole


texts: Is it ok to splice wall sheathing partway up a wall?

texts: I am building a workshop and I have 7 vertical feet to sheathe to reach the tip of the roof.  I have 4x8 sheets but they're too heavy for me to lift to the top by myself.  I'm considering cutting them in half so it would be one 4 foot section and then a 3 foot section on top of that.  Are there any severe disadvantages to doing this?