texts: Can I splice a ground wire from old wiring to a GFCI outlet?

texts: After pulling out the old medicine cabinet in my bathroom, I found that the "new" GFCI outlet that was installed in the bathroom is not actually grounded.  The ground wire was just hanging loose.  Can I splice a ground wire from the ground wire in the existing wiring to the ground wire on the GFCI?  Or should I even worry about that and just leave the ground wire as is and not attached to anything else?


texts:
My wife was home today during a follow-up visit from the sump pump replacement we had as a result of my sump pump issue. After solving the problem, the plumber opened a the release valve from the water heater to drain into the pit, in order to test. Once it shut, it began dripping at a medium pace (not a slow drip that has to build up, but nothing even near a trickle). My wife tells me that the plumber attempted briefly attempted to hammer it fully closed. She thought the dripping would stop, but now, 4 hours later, it is still dripping. The heater has never dripped before.

Is the dripping something we should worry about? Will it eventually stop on its own? Will it cause problems?


texts: can a dishwasher be installed 17 feet from sink?

texts:
Due to the issues with my kitchen cabinet layout, I can't have my Bosch dishwasher installed next to the sink. The only place where the dishwasher can fit into is the cabinet that's 17 feet away from the sink, but Bosch said the drain hose can be extended up to 12 feet.
Is 17 ft too far in this case? How damaging it could be if the dishwasher is installed too far from the sink?


texts: Why does a single radiator need regular bleeding?

texts:
Almost all of the radiators (forced water) in my house heat up fine. However, a single radiator needs regular bleeding (~1/day) in order to heat. Note, this radiator is not at the highest point in the house (it's a split level; I'd say it's around 3/4 of the way up), and radiators higher up are plenty hot.

Also, there no obvious water/corrosion stains around this radiator.

What might be causing this problem, and how do I fix it?


texts: Why does my Goodman a/c blower motor randomly not work?

texts: My blower motor stops working almost every night! I have no issues during the day. If the motor kicks on it works fine but when the thermostat reaches temperature and shuts the unit off it’s a 50/50 chance if the blower will work in the next cycle after dark. The condenser will kick on but the blower will not so I have to turn the unit off. The next morning I can turn the unit back on and it works fine. It also does this with the heat. It’s a gas unit. I have had the board changed and thermostat wires replaced with no luck. I am out of ideas in this one. My ac guy can’t figure it out either


texts: European Bulb E14 base 15w 110 volt dimmable bulb for Himalayan Salt Lamp

texts:
The E14 base is European, as is the 110 voltage.  The bulb in question is a 15 watt bulb with dimmer control and is UL listed.

Is there any danger in using this rather than a bulb and dimmer specified for the US 120 volt?  Is the bulb in fact incandescent?

In addition, are there any known fire dangers?

Thanks in advance for your time and effort.

Kimisky Himalayan Salt Lamp New Designs Giraffe Family Salt Lamp Night Light, UL-Certified New Dimmer Switch, 15W, Himalayan Himalayan Pink Salt Rock Lamps, 3 Bulbs SP-147 (Giraffe)


texts: I am getting shocked on an outlet whose power is isolated at the breaker!

texts: I have added an extension to my home recently and wired everything onto the garage circuit with everything working properly as it should except for one outlet i keep getting a tingle from the ground wire while trying to put it in the wall. The weird part is there is no power supplied to this outlet. I have isolated the breaker. Through all of the remodel I have only used one circuit so no crossed from another breaker. everything is properly grounded. any inputs?


texts: Why does an LED in a Can Light go out after Several Minutes?

texts:
I looked at this question which seemed to be the closest to resemble my situation, but it's just not a close enough case.

I have a bunch of ceiling lights that are MR16 20W Halogens. I've replaced two of them with 6W (power) 50W (equivalent lumens) bulbs. They're fine for thirty minutes or so. Then they go dark. I haven't watched to see if they go out simultaneously. But by the time I return to the kitchen to check, they're both out. Turning off the switch, waiting a second or two and turning them back on and they're lit again.

What is causing this and how do I fix it?


texts: Will shutting down my main water line inlet and draining my lines in preparation for a freeze damage my gas water heaters?


texts: I'm finishing out a small room in my basement.  The house is built on the top of a hill, most of the basement is below grade made out of cinder block, but there is a garage door on one end that leads to the carport.  I'm in NJ, the basement stays about 65 in winter, 68 (degrees) in summer, absolutely no humidity problems year round.  Most of what I read about ventilating a basement is to get rid of humidity, I don't have that problem.  Just stale air.  There is an adjoining crawl space to the basement, that crawl space has a small fixed window just above grade.  I could put an exhaust fan there, I just don't want to introduce any humidity to the basement.  I assume an exhaust fan would pull air from the temp controlled upstairs, but I'm just not sure that will solve my problem.  Its hard to stay in the basement for any period of time, I don't know if its allergies or what, but I get a slight headache and semi-nauseous feeling.  My plan regarding the building out of the basement is to close off a 11x20 area from the rest of the basement, it would open up to the main floor of the house.  Is installing an exhaust fan in the crawl space the thing to do?  As I said, I don't want to introduce any more humidity or adversely effect the cool temperature of the basement.  Thanks


texts: How can I keep my southern facing bedroom cool in the Arizona Heat?

texts:
Our MB is on the South side of our house in AZ. It stays warmer than the rest of the house. I am considering installing and 8" in-line booster fan at the 'T' where the supply duct (flexible) where it branches off to the 2 supply registers.
Two questions:

Would this be the proper alternative?

Can I tap off of the 110 VAC to the blower motor so that the booster fan would only run when the blower runs?

So, I guess there is really a third question: Will it matter if the booster fan runs when the supply fan is off?
Please let me know your thoughts. Thank you.


texts: Can I remove the sheathing from cable just where it passes through conduit?

texts:
I am adding an outlet in my unfinished basement from a cable that will run from the ceiling down a corner of the room. I was going to just attach the cable to the studs but I would like to protect the wire due to the location.

I've read that I should not run the cable through conduit, but was wondering if there's a way I can use the same cable, but take the sheathing off when it's just inside the conduit (and use some type of clamp). That way I don't have to use a junction box where the wire meets the conduit and I still am not having the heat issue of cable through conduit.

I was planning on using PVC conduit and outlet rated for outdoors since it's in the basement where it gets cold in the winter.

Thank you!


texts: What is the effective difference between an inline air separator vs a air vent at the high point in a recirculating water system?

texts:
My tankless water heater manual suggested the recirculating set up shown here:

It appears there are 2 air vents, but one is attached to an air separator.

Do I need both an air vent upstream of my pump and and and air
separator with air vent after the recirculation pump? Why?
Should my boiler have a similar setup?


texts: What kind of drill bit can I use for a small hole on Silestone countertop?

texts:
I need to drill 2 small holes on the underside of my Silestone countertop to secure a new dishwasher. What kind of drill bit can I use?

AFAIK Silestone is some kind of artificial quartz, but I wonder if it's too hard for normal masonry bit.


texts: How do I choose a recessed alarm contact switch?

texts:
With so many window and door recessed contact switches, how does one decide the best one for the application?

I was leaning towards Ademco 3/8" Diameter Miniature Press Fit Magnetic Contact, for both windows and doors mainly because it provides (in a "stubby" profile):

  1-1/4" the largest gap of any mini 3/8" contact

I'm assuming this would help in preventing false alarms due to minor gaps between the contacts.

However, here is just a short example of the additional recessed contacts options available:

Stubby with Rare Earth Magnet

Short/Stubby

Standard or Long

When would I choose one over another?


texts: Why does my kitchen faucet suddenly have too much water pressure?

texts: I have a single lever Kohler kitchen faucet. The water comes out with so much pressure that if I am trying to rinse anything it makes water spray everywhere.  The faucet has not always done this. Is there any way to make the water come out with less pressure other than to adjust the lever every time I turn it on?


texts: Does a deck band board go over or replace wall sheathing?

texts:
I can't find an existing question that completely addresses my question, so here goes.

My outside deck was recently rebuilt by contractors selected by my HOA. The deck is effectively on the second level, one story above grade level. When the new deck was put in, there was no sheathing or house wrap between the bandboard (I'm not entirely sure if that's the correct term, my apologies if not) and the wall stud 2x4's. Is this normal, or should there have been sheathing / wrap put back first? There are existing problems with the sheathing - a chunk is missing that's allowing water to get inside my walls when it rains, so the contractor is already coming back to fix that, but I'd like to know if I should push to have the deck taken down entirely and rebuilt against sheathing, and if so, how hard to push.


texts: Water pressure when changing pipe diameter

texts: The water inlet pipe is 2 inch copper.  The water supply is municipal.  I want to install a leak detector that requires only a one inch pipe.  I plan to cut the two inch copper pipe and install one foot of one inch copper pipe and then return to the 2 inch pipe. This will be done in line. The two inch pipe supplies a house and farm. What effect on will this have my water pressure and flow rate?


texts: Do the quick connectors in my new bathroom fan need to be in a junction box?

texts:
I recently replaced a bathroom extractor fan. The new model uses "quick connect" electrical connectors, where I stick the house wiring into this little plastic device, and apparently that's all! The previous extractor fan used wire nuts in a metal-enclosed space similar to a junction box, but for this new model the wires just dangle out of the extractor fan module, and there's nothing in the instructions about a junction box.

Leaving the wires dangling next to the insulation in the ceiling kinda freaks me out. Is that really what I'm supposed to do, or are the connections supposed to be enclosed in something?


texts: Why is dirty water coming out of the air gap when I run my dishwasher?

texts: Please see the picture. I have no clue why this happens. It did not happen last month. I checked the filter inside the dishwasher was clear.


texts: Should I replace nails in a plywood subfloor with screws to the joists?

texts:
As you may know I asked a few questions to this end already and just wanted to know if I should remove the nails and replace them with screws to hold the 1/2" plywood sub floor securely to the joists so that I will not get noise in the new floor?

Or is that overkill and adding a screw near each nail is good enough?

Once the flooring goes down I don't get a re-try so I would rather get it right the 1st time.


texts: Replace insulation in a Trane HVAC? (TWE030C140B0)

texts:
I found a little mold on the foil covering the insulation in my TWE030C140B0 air handler/ AC/Heater.  I am 95% sure I have the moisture problem resolved and now I need to replace the insulation.

Does anyone have any advice for this?  It looks like the whole thing, blower and coils and all, has to come out to get to some of it.

I'm in a bit of a financial pickle, and if this can be DIY'd at all, it'd really save my bacon.


texts: Are spindles strong enough on a balcony to keep a toddler safe?

texts: How do I reinforce (or cover) the spindles on my balcony stairs) to prevent a toddler from pushing against them and possibly having them collapse? I also want to discourage swinging from top rail.  Would sheets of plexiglass work?


texts: my house has old warped joists. Is joist blocking safe?

texts:
I purchased a house built in 1960 and like other people have mentioned the terrible bounce, I got the same exact situation.
I'm thinking of installing blocking to strengthen the floor.
The 7 joists are spaced 14½
However, since they're all buckled at the lower part of the joist, ranging from 14⅛ - 14⅞
I wanted to know if it's safe to wedge between 14½ blocks forcing them to move back that extra space.
(see below picture)
I also so wanted to know if this load sharing would cause to much weight on other parts of  floor beams.


texts: How can I fix a small puncture hole in vinyl flooring?

texts:
When I was installing mini blinds in my new house, a pair of needle nose pliers fell out of my tool belt and landed nose first into the vinyl floor below.  It left a very small pin sized hole in the floor, you would only notice it if you were looking for it.

Normally I would ignore something like this but my wife is rather upset about it and wants me to fix it if possible.

If there were some kind of plasticized shiny brown goo that I could just dab there then it would completely disappear, but I am unaware of such a material that would be appropriate (the floor is multiple shades of brown).

I don't think replacing a whole square section of vinyl is an appropriate fix for such a small area of damage either and the patch will probably be more noticeable than the hole.  Do you guys have any ideas on how I can McGuyver this floor repair?


texts: How can I mount a desk on a wall with L-brackets?

texts:
I'm currently planning a new wall-mounted computer desk and intend to use something similar to this as the top:

However, my end goal is for a wall-mounted desk, using L-Bracket mounts. I've never built a wall-mounted anything. So some of my questions are:

Using 2 x 10 dimensional lumber, I'm going to have a 27.75" deep desk. However, I can't seem to find an L-Bracket above 22". I feel that this is a huge overhang given the top isn't a solid sheet, but I'm not sure.
Is mounting the L-brackets at every other stud sufficient?
Do I need to run a support between the brackets (mounted 1 x 6 or equivalent)?

If anyone has a suggestion that I seem to be completely missing, I'm all ears :).

EDIT: Forgot to mention that the ends of each desk will not have a wall for support, so the entire weight will be supported by the L-brackets themselves. Overall I expect the length of the desk to be around 5' in each direction from the corner.


texts: Any special precautions when turning off water to a property?

texts:
When turning off incoming pressurized fresh water to a property for a few hours during non-freezing conditions, are there any special precautions that need to be taken?
Specifically, is there anything that needs to be done to protect a tank-based water heater?
Also, what about when the water is turned back on?


texts: I have a Leviton 5628-2W with a pilot light that indicates when the switch is in the on position.  I use the switch to control a light that is some distance away and out of site from the switch location.  Can I wire the switch in a way that will indicate that the light is actually on and not just that the switch is in the on position?


texts: Reverse osmosis water saddle doesn't fit waste pipe

texts:
The reverse osmosis filters waste clamp (40mm) doesnt fit on my waste pipe (50mm)
I ordered a 6mm compression fitting to use an npt taper
The compression fitting took 3 weeks to arrive and I'm trying to measure the male end its maybe 9mm
In inches this comes at 0.35
I cannot find an npt taper size for this
I cannot find a 50mm waste clamp
Please help, what can I do?
Edit:

As you can see the original U bend is 40mm but too short with no space for the clamp
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/6mm-28mm-Brass-Compression-Fittings-Straight-Elbow-tee-plumbing-copper-pipe-/233205545815?_trksid=p2349624.m46890.l49292
This is the 6mm elbow compression fitting I have
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BSF-Taper-Plug-3-16-1-2-Carbon-Steel-Thread-Cutter-British-Standard-Fine-/123818093525?_trksid=p2349624.m46890.l49292
I ordered this because I feel 3/8inch is the closest to the size of the compression fittings thread size
Should I order "pvc cement" incase it is a bit loose?


texts: How to seal gym floor mats along the edges to protect your floors with knobbles facing downward?

texts:
My partner and I are about to furnish a large room with gym equipment. We recently moved into our new home and had the entire first floor tiled in porcelain 2x2 square feet tiles and love it. In the room we're going to turn into our gym we want to protect the newly tiled floors with rubber stall mats we purchased from Factory Supply. They have round circular knobbles. Some people keep them facing up and some place them on the floor with the knobbles facing the floor. I was hoping to keep them facing up but then my partner reminded me that we squat in socks and that this won't feel good on feet with socks on only. Had I kept the knobbles facing up I would have used Gorilla tape to tape the seams underneath. This is why I want to do this. But with the knobbles facing the floor I don't see how I can use tape to create an impenetrable seal. Here is what our mats look like:
https://www.greatmats.com/rubber-stall-mats/washbay-rubber-stall-mats-button-top-4x6x12h.php
Ever notice mats placed on a floor and at the seams where debris, dirt and gunk fall between the seams that there is permanent discoloration or marks after several years? I was hoping to avoid this by using tape but since I will more than likely keep the knobbles facing downward I am not sure how to create a seal to prevent debris from falling between the seams. We plan to have this gym set up indefinitely. I'm only concerned that when we move and sell in the future that if the floor has damage or is stained or altered along all the seams of the mats that it will work to our disadvantage when we sell. Plus, I wouldn't want to damage our newly tiled floors in the first place.
We also live in the desert and it's very windy here. The dirt is pretty much sand based and we're always sweeping away sand that gets in the house ALL THE TIME. So I could only image what sand seeping through the seams of the rubber mats would eventually do over time. I could see the grains of sand grinding away at the floor causing marks or discoloration along all the seam lines over the years.
What would help protect my floor over the long haul?


texts: What's going on with this lightswitch (two wires to bottom connect, not connected on top)

texts:
My parents inherited a house and I'm just kind of cleaning it up.  It's old -- Edison fuses and other things that I have to puzzle over.

Replacing a damaged beige four-outlet thing in a bathroom, one of the switches is weird.  Beyond the already seemingly unreasonable gauge of wire being used (that can barely fit in the screws without popping out), the switch for the fan has two wires connected to the bottom.  And the other wire goes into a hole at the top instead of the screw:

What... is this about?  The nice new white switches to match the new ceramic faceplate do not have the hole at the top; just the screws.


texts: What is the difference between fire cement and fire concrete?

texts:
I am trying to build a foundry. The Youtube video refers to 4:1 Perlite:Fire Cement. But the shop also offers Fire Concrete. I don't know what's the difference.

Could someone please explain the difference?

Link to the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tTPdybtO-a0


texts: In my kitchen there are 3 adjacent electric outlets that have not been working for a few months.  Next to them is a GFCI outlet and that works. I checked the circuit breaker and all GFCIs to see any of them tripped - they all seem to be fine.  I opened all non working outlets and also the GFCI working outlet to see if any of them have a loose connection or burnt wire.  I could not find any. All the non-working outlets are on the same circuit - I can see the wiring being terminated in one of the non-working outlet Anything else I can do, before I can call the electrician?


texts: I have a Rheem hot water tank. When I hold down on the pilot light button & push the igniter,  the pilot light lights but when I let up on it so I can turn on the burner .. it goes out. It's driving me nuts! I already replaced the thermocouple, purged the tank, cleaned all the contacts inside. The lines aren't clogged with any debris.. That glass/oil safety shut off seems to be fine.  I can't seem to figure out the problem. There are no lights on the tank like other tanks have that may give ma a hint as to the problem. I don't know what else to do?


texts: Bathroom smells bad after new toilet install

texts: Recently we noticed a bad smell coming from our downstairs bathroom.  When we investigated it further it seem that there was some leakage from base of the toilet. So had a plumber come out, took out the toilet, and informed us that the wax ring had failed.  So he replaced new wax ring and reinstalled the toilet.  The smell never went away and it actually got very bad.  The smell gets especially bad when the temperature outside gets very hot.  The smell is like a sewer like smell and its very bad.  The whole bathroom smells bad and we can pinpoint it coming from base of toilet since we are unable to smell it from sink or bathtub.  This bathroom does not have a fan, just a HVAC vent and window. What could the issue be here? Is it some sort of blocked pipe? blocked vent?


texts: I've moved into a new apartment for a while. Is this mold? Is it safe to continue live here?

texts:
I've moved into a new apartment for a while. Lately, I found these molds on my things.  Is it safe to continue living here? Do you think a dehumidifier will solve this problem? I don't want all of my clothes and shoes to get ruined like these...
Thank you for your help!


texts: Is this a condensation problem or. A roof leak problem?

texts:
Noticed a water spot on my unused bathroom ceiling.

Crawled into the attic And found this is right below the sewer vent.

In my kitchen there is another similar stain right around another drain pipe vent but I haven't Crawled into that side of the attic yet.

We have had some decent rain recently bit it seems odd that both wold start leak g at the same time if it's a roof problem so my gut says condensation.


texts: The 3/4" water feed in a slab has a leak.  A proposed bypass includes a  1/2 inch PEX, run through the ceiling.  Why should a 1/2 inch PEX be used to bypass and not a 3/4 inch?  Assume that the slab pipe and the PEX pipe are the same length.


texts: How to properly seal/cover an unused chimney?

texts:
We recently replaced an ancient chimney-vented boiler with a direct-vented one. This boiler was the only thing using our chimney. The chimney is brick and sits in the center of our 120-year-old house. On top, it has an old, rusted rain cap (now closer to a funnel than a cap).

The heating contractor sealed the old exhaust opening in the basement using a metal plug and concrete patching compound. (There is also a cleanout in good condition in the basement.)

What's the right thing to do to seal or cover the top? Masonry cap, cover with sheet metal, regular chimney cap, or something else?


texts: Why is my new high efficiency furnace blowing cold air sometimes?

texts: Why does my new furnace high efficient Payne furnace blow cold air,not constantly but at least 3 different times in a day, my thermastat is set on auto but when the weather is cold outside it will still blow  cold air thru out the house how do I turn this off ,is there an option ? Or do I need to buy a new thermastat that has an off switch for the fan instead of what I have  an / on/auto switch Only


texts: I've taken apart the trap n cleaned it and also snaked the drain but still no water goes down! I noticed that the overflow is completely clogged..would this stop the drain from emptying? The overflow n sink r one complete Unit. ..how am I suppose to clear out the overflow when I can't get to it??


texts: What debuzzing coil should I use to get rid of lamp hum?

texts:
I have two lamps which use these big 300W bulbs that I am dimming with Insteon LampLink modules.  They buzz quite a bit, and I previously asked a question about reducing the buzz which led me to switch to these large, rough service bulbs.  However, the buzz is even louder now!

I've read (here and here and elsewhere) that I can wire a Lamp Debuzzing Coil (LDC) in series with the load (on the hot wire between the lamp and the dimmer) in order to smooth the onset of current during the switching (i.e.: waveform mutilation) and reduce the hum.

Will this work?

What product should I use? Is there something suitable at Digikey?


texts: Are all switches in a 4-way circuit the same?

texts:
I have a four way switch in the house (I assume that is the correct term, 4 switches all controling the same light; flipping any one of them toggles the light; no other lights are affected).

I am looking at the wiring diagram (this is an EU one for Belgium) and I see the following symbol for one of the switches:

But other switches have this symbol:

It would seem to me that on an n-way circuit all of the switches would have the same symbol since they all connected to the same number of other switches.

Is this true? Or is there something I don't understand?

If all the switches are the same, on the schematic (that is, the diagram not relating to the physical location of the switches, but just what is on each circuit), is it necessary to repeat the symbol or can you just write "x4"?


texts: What to be done about cut I-joists? Cut is in lower flange above load bearing point

texts:
I am a first time homebuyer in the due diligence phase with this house. We identified in the crawlspace that a few of the I-joists had been cut, looks like with a reciprocating saw, for unknown reasons.  Directly above this point, the fireplace has begun to separate from the wall (1/4-3/8th inch on one side).  Our home inspection report acknowledges the issue, and we have asked the sellers to hire an engineer to approve or fix this before we will proceed.

Any idea why the builders would have done this?
Does this strike you as a significant risk to us in the short or long term?
What would it require (and cost) to fix three of these permanently, assuming the sellers are unwilling to work with us?
What's worst case scenario?

There are three joists like this in a row, one is pictured below. The home was built in 2013. It's in North Carolina, if climate is of concern.


texts: Can I replace round ducts with rectangular ducts in a basement renovation?

texts:
I'm renovating my basement and the big round 7" ducts that cross under the ceiling joists are in the way. I'd like to convert them to 3.25" by 12" flat rectangular ducts, so that the ceiling can be higher.

Is this likely to pass permit inspection?


texts: Which insulation for gap between plasterboard and subfloor?

texts:
I have a room built under the roof on top of the garage, so eaves are directly behind the side walls. I removed the skirting boards to install the a new flooring and realized that there is a sizeable gap (up to 4 cm / 1.5") between some of the wall plasterboards and subfloor.

I'd love to put some insulation in there as these gaps would definitely allow the transit of cold air from eaves into the room. I would prefer the insulation to be removable if needed, so expanding foam is probably out of the question. What else could I use?


texts: How to extract heavily corroded anode rod?

texts:
I obviously waited too long to replace the anode rod in my water heater, because after finally (with much cussing) getting the rod unthreaded, I found that it was so heavily corroded that it won't fit through the opening in the tank.
I can pull it up about an inch, and see the rod is there, hanging by a cable down its center. But the corrosion has expanded it to a larger diameter than the threaded opening, so I can't pull it any further out.
Is there any way to extract the rod at this point, or am I now just waiting for the tank to fail and buying a new heater?
Or would it be better to cut the old rod loose and let it rust in the bottom of the tank, and install a new rod?
Additional information in response to comments:

I don't have a record of when exactly I installed the heater, but it is marked with a manufacturing date of 2006. I haven't changed the anode since it was installed.

My water is fairly hard and I don't have a softener (Thinking this might affect how long the anode lasts)


texts: Should I use 12/3 NM cable for a 240 volt 40 amp electric cooktop?

texts:
I am installing a 240 volt 40 amp electric cooktop. Will 12/3 NM cable suffice for this?

Secondly, I know I need a double-pole breaker because 240 volts is delivered using two out-of-phase 120 volt circuits. My question is, is a double-pole breaker labeled "20 amps" really two 20-amp circuits that together can supply 40 amps @ 240 volts?  Or do I need a double-pole breaker labeled "40 amps"?


texts:
I have a window that desperately needs cleaning

I believe it is a single hung window as it appears there’s no way to open the upper part. The window doesn’t appear to tilt in any way. I checked around the window it doesn’t appear to have a manufacturer name or model name that I could look up.
I don’t know how to reach the part that needs cleaning. On both side, there are this string going up:

On one side, I noticed a screw:

Other than that I didn’t find any trigger or any hardware that appear to be “interact-able”
How should I go about this?


texts: When should I worry about icicles on my gutters?

texts:
I've lived in my house for 9.5 years, and originally had cheap mesh screens on the gutters. I would see maybe one or two icicles on the roof after a bad storm, but nothing serious.

A few years ago the screens collapsed from the weight of the leaves, so we replaced them with Gutterglove guards. We haven't had any major snowfall until this past week. Yesterday I noticed probably 2 dozen small (finger-sized) icicles on my roofline (it's a townhouse, so about a 20 foot wide section). My neighbors (with no guards or cheap guards similar to what I used to have) had 2-5 icicles.

My icicles were on the front lip of the gutter (away from my house). My neighbor without any guards had icicles between the house and the gutter, and my neighbor with guards hand them on the front lip (like mine).

Should I worry about ice dams with this number of icicles? Should I call the installation company?


texts:
Hello,

I am currently working on running a new water system from the city water to my house. I have several concerns:

Is PEX with sand a good method of running water from city to house? Will it withstand water pressure and not burst?

Which side is the homeowners responsibility? Or rather, which side am I changing the pipe on? If I cut the wrong side, we know amiss things happen. More information is described in the above image.

Also, given a 5/8" meter, what pipe size would be used for connecting the pipe from meter to house?

I probably shouldn't be asking more than 1 question in one thread, but the answer as to which side the homeowner is responsible is probably the most important.

Thanks in advance


texts: I am removing a switch from a gang box. What is the appropriate way to cap the circuit?

texts: In my new house I have a couple rooms where the wall switch controls the outlets. I would like to remove the switch and cap the wires and then install a blank wall plate. What is the proper way to cap the wires? I have not opened the box yet but I would gather that the switch has two blacks and a ground.


texts: Relay in Thermostat: current capability \ rating

texts:
When designing a thermostat, a relay must swtich a 24V AC signal to call for cooling / heat / fan etc.

Industry standard thermostat wire color code used for most systems:

White. The white wire connects to your heat.
Yellow. The yellow wire connects to your compressor.
Green. The green wire connects to the fan.
Orange. This wire connects to your heat pump (if applicable).
Red (C). The Rc wire connects to the cooling system.
Red (H). The Rh wire connects to the heating system. This wire may be red without an “H” attached, in some cases.
Blue. The blue wire on the thermostat is the Common or “C” wire.

Is there a rule of thumb to determine the minimum current rating of a  thermostat relay?  I see many relays for raspberry pi that can accommodate 10 Amperes and would like to know if currents are typically under 1A.


texts: Can I move a joist a few inches left without the ceiling falling on my head?

texts:
The ceiling above the stairs in my house (1950s, Minnesota) is too low.
I want to remove the offending joist (the one that's vertical in the picture), cut back the adjacent joists (horizontal) a few inches, then move the joist over and reinstall it.
The stairs go up to the right of the picture. The wall on the left is exterior, as is the wall in the background (obviously, since it has a window).
If I do this work without putting up structural supports, just letting the studs "float" for the hour or two while I reinstall the beam, will the ceiling fall on my head?

Edit: The floor above is a walk-in closet. Directly above the double joist is the front edge of the "box" that forms the bottom of this little shelving alcove in the closet. The floor above that is the attic which is unused/unfinished, just insulation, and is accessed through a trapdoor on the opposite side of the house.


texts: Is it safe to use a wedge expansion bolt in concrete blocks?

texts:
I want to hang a Rogue P-4 pull-up bar from a wall. The wall is concrete block with .5" of strapping on it, and 1" drywall over that. The pull-up bar is made with 1" steel tube. Concrete block walls are 1.5" wide on average, so I'm at 4" of depth and then I put on the bolt. So I'm looking at 5" long wedge compression bolts.
The pull-up bar has 1/2" holes in it. However, my sense is that using 1/2" bolts will require perfect alignment. According to websites, 3/8" concrete expansion bolts have pull-out strength of roughly 1000 lbs. Only the top four will have pull-out loads (the arrangement is two holes on the top of each of the two brackets and one hole on the bottom). So that's 4000 pounds. A 300 pound person jumping up and grabbing on the bar may pull 2g, so that's 600 pounds of force, and double it for the 30" cantilever, so 3/8" concrete expansion bolts should be fine.
Here is my concern: On this website for the bolks I'm thinking of using, the website says "Do not use in brick or blocks." So my question is this: are all wedge expansion bolts contraindicated for all concrete blocks, or just the ones that I'm looking at? If they are all contraindicated, then how do I mount the thing?
EDIT: I am in a townhouse and we do not know if there is a single row of blocks between the units or two. We also do not know if they are filled or not. There is good but not perfect sound isolation between the townhouses and this is an adjoining wall.  Here is a picture of what it looks like:


texts: Best practices for disposing of waste that is diluted in water? (paint, finishes/membranes, cement, dust/particles from wet saw, etc)

texts:
Usually I let waste dry up in the case of cement/paint, then throw away.

But often times waste is diluted in water. Should I bag these up and then throw away?

I do not want to put it down the sink, or bury it in dirt, or make a mess in a trash bin.

What's the best thing to do here?


texts: Messed up the wiring in a 3 speed box fan, how can I fix this?

texts:
I am trying to convert a 3 speed box fan into an air cleaner. I took it apart, and accidentally pulled wires out of their wingnuts, and don't know how to fix them.

I tried my best to draw the diagram of what I have, but let me put it in words as well:

My fan motor has three wires coming out of it: orange, red and grey.
All those of those go to the speed switch.
I also have a CBB61 capacitor with two black wires coming out of it.
Finally, the wall plug itself with a silver wire and a copper wire.

There are three wing nuts, but I have no idea how to reconnect everything together. I'd appreciate any help, and here's the diagram.


texts: How should I level the ground for my above ground pool?

texts:
In my area we get about 3.5 seasons hot enough to swim and I have a limited budget. What I have been doing is setting up an inflatable ring pool (14' x 3.5') to cool off in. The problem is my yard has a slope. My strategy is good I think. I place a board in the middle on a 2.5' bolt and try to work around with a level, digging the high areas and building the low areas and adding lots of play sand. See the images for examples.

My problem is the far side (where the wall is) always compresses and the pool leans as you can see in the third image. I am constantly afraid a kid will kick against that wall after the water is high and the whole thing will just roll down the hill.

What should I do that could solve this issue for less than $100?


texts: Ceiling light junction box multiple wire detection

texts: I have tried to change a ceiling light and am confused as to why there are so many cables jammed into the box and some of them are burnt. I need some advise as to what to do. I have attached the best image i can. Thanks in advance.


texts: AAC (aka Aircrete, Thermalite) wall + IKEA ALGOT shelf weight load capacity

texts:
I got some IKEA Algot shelves tall uprights. The PDF manual can be found here.

The installation instructions say:

  Hang the wall uprights from the mounting rail, correctly space them and then secure them to the wall. Use roundheaded screws with a 4–4.5 mm diameter (screw head max. 9 mm). You will need:

3 screws for the 56 cm (22″)
4 screws for the 84 cm (33⅛″)
8 screws for the 196 cm (77⅛″) high wall upright.

And these are the weight ratings per shelf:

  40 cm (15¾″) width

38 cm (15”) depth 15 kg (33 lbs)
58 cm (22⅞") depth 23 kg (50 lbs)

  60 cm (23⅝") width

38 cm (15") depth 22 kg (49 lbs)
58 cm (22⅞") depth 34 kg (75 lbs)

  80 cm (31½") width

38 cm (15") depth 30 kg (66 lbs)
58 cm (22⅞") depth 46 kg (101 lbs)

I live in a block built with beams so inner walls are not structural. All internal walls are 10cm AAC (autoclaved aerated concrete aka aircrete or thermalite). How does one estimate the load capacity of a shelf and also multiple shelves put on 2 uprights or 2 sets of shelves put on 3 uprights? Is there a way to calculate an estimated weight support.

I'll use AAC Wall Plugs (1st) or universal Fischer Duopower (2nd).

So we have:

10cm AAC 2.5m tall wall
wall plugs 4mm diam, 30-50mm deep (I assume this affects load capacity)
uprights with 8 screws (196cm)
2 uprights with a 6 shelf max (16 plugs)
3 uprights with a 12 shelf max (24 plugs)
60cm spacing between uprights (shelf size)
shelf weight capacity is available above

Is there any way to factor this in and get some load capacity estimates? I want to put some books on some shelves and they're not eBooks. :)


texts: Is aluminum wiring the cause of this strange electrical activity?

texts:
My house is old and built in the 50’s so the house was made with aluminum wiring. we’ve had a few houses catch in the neighborhood and lately we’ve been having weird stuff happening. First the stove and the microwave cant go at the same time without tripping the breaker.

Then the ceiling fan in the living room started to making this humming clicking noise and then one day it started to smell like it was burning so we dismantled it.

Now we come back after being gone for 3 days and we turn the power on and only after a few hours the breaker is very warm and I definitely smelled something burning until I turned it off.

What’s going on??


texts: Fill Count For 14/3 G NM With 'Unused' Red

texts:
I have 3 hall luminaires controlled by a 4-way switching system. The electrician elected to run 14-3/G NM too all the fixtures. The most distant one is mounted on a round 4 inch x 1/2 inch pancake box. The capacity is marked 6 cu in. The red lead is in the box, but it is capped with a wire nut and not otherwise used. Does it count for 2 cu in like the black and white leads or does it count for 1 cu in like the ground because it is 'dead.'

The manufacturer suggests that the luminaire can be installed using only the central 1/8" IPT hole in the crossbar as long as the 1/8" nipple carries a lock washer and nut to fix it to the crossbar and a lock washer and nut secure the fixture to the nipple. Clearly the electrician had difficulty using the matching round head machine screws that can be installed in the threaded hole in the crossbar and the matching hole diagonally opposite it. Getting all 3 supports to line up is challenging.

Can I use only the nipple and meet code?

Are the missing knockouts a violation?


texts: How much closed cell expanding foam insulation do I need?

texts:
I am considering insulating my van using closed cell expanding foam cans.

The product I like the look of and reviews is Soudafoam B2 Gun Grade 750ml Can.

Is 50mm all round, good enough to keep me warm in the winter in the UK? Could I get away with less or do I need more?


texts: Converting a garage into a living space using sawn pine walls for battan board look.  Want to leave the natural look but not sure what will happen to the wood. Do I have to use a water based urethane with a spray or can I leave it natural.  I have approx 500 sq ft. Any suggestions including urethane (not to amber) would be appreciated.


texts: Should I reinforce these joists at the central beam? If so, how?

texts:
Vaguely similar questions have been asked, but I believe this situation is unique enough that I’m looking for some specific advice. I have a floor that is framed with 2x8s, 16 O.C., spanning roughly 11 feet between a central built-up beam and the outer sill plate.  The joists “rest” on a standard (code minimum, blech) 2x2 ledger strip. The hardwood floors are a bit bouncy and it bugs me, so I plan to stiffen the floors by adding some sisters, or (more likely) gluing and screwing a bottom flange to the joists (to avoid removing tons of mechanicals and solid blocking).

However, before I do that I want to address the fact that the joists seem very shoddily connected to the beam. In addition to the ledger strip, about half of them are toe-nailed (see first pic, ok, that seems fine), but the other half are not (see second pic). This strikes me as very sketchy. There are a few end nails into each joist from the built up beam, and on some of the joists these seem to be carrying the whole load.

I thought about pounding some joist hangers in and then prying off the ledger strips, but my thinking is that the fact that half the joists are already toe-nailed to the beam means that adding joist hangers to these might cause splitting and I don’t want to raise inspection red flags by having a weird mix-and-match setup of hangers and ledger strip. Some of the non-toe-nailed joists have small gaps between joist and beam, and some aren’t even fully resting on the ledger (see pic 3, !). I do believe this was probably sloppy cuts rather than separation after the fact.

How can I improve these joist-beam connections? Should I just add some 45 degree toenails and call it good? The joists are fundamentally in good shape and if possible I'm looking for something DIY-able.

Edit: As I suspected, I was able to confirm that there are 3-4 end nails driven into the joists that are not toe-nailed at least (confirmed by feeling in the gap between joist and beam with a shim). Not sure if this changes anything.


texts: Why does this toilet fill valve leak around the top?

texts:
I have a pretty new dual-flush toilet whose fill valve suddenly started leaking for no reason. A picture of the toilet is below:

Basically, the toilet flushes normally once the button is pressed. Water flows from the tank into the bowl. However, there is a problem with the fill valve. While water is supposed to refill the tank from the bottom, it instead leaks out through the gaps in the fill valve. (Picture below)

As you can see, water is coming out from the top of the valve and leaking out into the toilet. If I pull the lever up, the leak stops, but once I release the water starts leaking again. For whatever reason the tank never fills and the water keeps leaking forever.

Now, if I turn off the main valve and turn it back on again, the tank fills normally through the bottom. No water leaks through the fill valve. Of coure, the problem repeats if I flush again.

The problem with these new toilets is that there's no information online on how to fix them. Does anyone here know how to stop this leak and make the water go in through the bottom again?


texts:
Exterior light: what do I do with the bare wires after I connect them? Do I connect it to the screw going into the housing on the wall? Or do I just put a wire nut on it the way I did the other two?

This is the switch that goes to the exterior light (I was asking what I do with the bare wire). After I fix the switch, I still need to know what to do with the bare wire.


texts: Installing subfloor and hardwood on top of concrete (2nd story)

texts:
I bought a condo in a triplex where I have all of the 2nd floor. Most rooms are on hardwood, while the rest is on laminate with a serious height difference of an inch and a half (hardwood being highest). This being a shared structure, beneath it all is a solid layer of maybe 6 inches of concrete.

I'm renovating a room and intend to level it with the rest and set it on hardwood. I've read other questions about hardwood in basements, but would the considerations need to be similar for a 2nd story floor? Would I need something like DRIcore?

And what about sound? What special considerations do I need to take, if any, to ensure I isolate my neighbour below against sound from walking around on hardwood? (I can make that a separate question if this gets too complex to answer).

SUPPLEMENTAL:

The hardwood is already bought. Oak, non-engineered, 3/4" thick.


texts: How can I know the 'capacity' of an electric socket?

texts:
I bought an electric oven, and the safety instructions say that it should be plugged to an electric socket with "capacity at least 10 Ampere".

How can I tell the capacity of my electric sockets?

I looked at the fuses in the electric control box outside the house. There are 5 fuses with "6 kA" written near them, and the main fuse with "10 kA". But the safety instructions talk about the capacity of the socket, not the fuse.


texts: What should I do to level an uneven floor with a potential load bearing wall above?

texts:
I'm trying to level the first floor in my 90 year old house.

The floor joists are held up by a wooden beam composed of 5 2x8s, which is held up by two steel columns.  In the middle of the wooden beam is a wall that I think is a load bearing wall.  This wall probably holds up the floor joists of the second floor.  There is a third floor/attic above this too (the second floor wall and first floor walls don't line up exactly....the second floor wall is a few feet offset from, but is parallel to, the first floor wall shown below).

The first floor has a very noticeable sag that seems to be worst at one side of an entryway cut into the first floor wall (indicated in the images below).  There aren't any cracks in the walls, but some stone tiles near the front door and near the fireplace, which happen to be near the point where the floor starts to sag, have cracks.  In addition, the second floor bathroom/bathtub is right above this entryway and many of the tiles there have cracked.

I am thinking that I can add a support column to the middle of the beam in the basement.  In fact, there's an imprint in the wood from where a previous owner put a jack there.  Do you think that would solve the problem?  Or, do you think there should be another column underneath the point of maximum sag?

I've had a structural engineer come look at this.  He said that there's nothing to worry about, but recommended that I don't place heavy items near this area of the house.  I'd rather have peace of mind and a flat floor...

I also want to get someone in to retile the bathroom.  Should I get this straightened out (hehe) first?


texts: Adding 3 way dimmer when two circuits exist

texts:
I have 3 switches controlling ceiling cans.  I wish to replace one switch with a 3 way dimmer.  The box has 4 wires.  2 black. 2 red.  One black completes a circuit with one of the red wires.  The other black completes a circuit with the other red wire.
How do I connect a dimmer with one black and 2 red wires?
Thanks


texts: Can my LED fan light that's hardwired to a dimmer switch also be controlled, ON/OFF, by the remote it came with?

texts:
I have two switches set up for our LED remote fan.

1st switch: to power on the unit, which still allows me to change the speed settings on the remote.

2nd dimmer switch: to power the lights, but, the remote doesn't turn my fan light ON / OFF, even when the dimmer switch is on at its lowest setting.


texts: Is this a ground wire in my ceiling light canopy?

texts:
I just installed a ceiling light fixture, which has a feature I've never seen before. The fixture has the traditional white, black, and green wires. I attached the white and black fixture wires to the corresponding black and white source wires, and the green fixture wire to the bare copper source wire.

The unfamiliar feature is that the canopy has a twisted copper wire attached to it, on the inside. I included this wire with the bare copper and green wire connection, assuming it was another ground wire. Now I'm not sure about it. Should I have just left it unattached?


texts: I removed this non-load bearing wall in the corner of my basement, now 2 doors upstairs rub on their frames. Why is this?

texts:
In the image below, notice where the small 1x1 bits are, running perpendicular to the ceiling joists. These was used by the previous homeowner to lower the ceiling in one room, so if you can imagine, the wall he built next to them would run next to that last one on the right.

This wall has been removed for about 2 months now, and in the last week, 2 doors within a 8 foot radius directly vertical of that jack post have started rubbing on their frames. One had shifted at least 1/4", the other about 7/16"

I got worried and figured obviously that's sinking. So I went out and got that post, installed it and cranked it up - the doors upstairs started to line up better, but they still rub. I can only assume if I tighten it more they'll go back to normal, but I'm not sure it's on the right joist.

In the original house floor plan, that wall was not there, so I'm very sketched out - the wall really did not appear to have any load on it! However, I'm worried that when the previous homeowner did the basement, he might have weakened the joists substantially and conveniently made up for it with that wall - see, he notched all the joists about 3/4" to fit heater pipes under the ceiling.

I am also suspicious that I may have caused the metal post on that main beam to sink, where you see the new PVC pipes sitting and waiting to be put into a wall, I jackhammered on 3 sides of it to make room for the pipe. I barely touched the concrete support for that post, I took off a 4"x4"x16" chunk from one side though. Could the vibration have pushed the post down?

Anyways, I'm going to be gone for 2 weeks and I don't want my house to collapse or all the tiles to crack while I'm gone. What do you guys think could have caused this sagging, and what should I do to prevent it from getting worse?


texts:
We have a single garage door with an opener and two remotes. We get extremely inconsistent results with both remotes (a change of batteries does not fix). When we leave in the morning and we're right outside the door and want it to close, the remote barely works. We sometimes have to put 20-30 times for it to finally close. However, when I'm arriving at home the remote seems to work from 2-3 houses away.

This morning the remote wouldn't work at all when I tried to close it. I actually walked into the garage with the remote and put it right next to the opener and it did not close. When I arrived back home a half hour later, it worked perfectly.

We've had no other problems with this garage door. The wired switch inside the garage works as well as the security keypad on the outside. I read that I should make sure the antenna is wired in correctly but it doesn't seem like that would be the culprit if it works again a half hour later.

Do I just need to get 2 new remotes?

Edit: It's a Chamberlain Whisper Drive Plus, 3/4 HPS. No idea how old it is, but it seems fairly new.


texts: How can I remove a retaining wall made of vertical landscape timber?

texts:
I have VERTICAL landscape timbers in the hard soil in the back yard and I want to remove them.

What is the best way to remove this retaining wall?


texts: Suggestions for a kitchen layout for my house?

texts:
We have just started to renovate our newly bought apartment. It is part of a very nice old building located in the center of Granada Spain.

The apartment is approx 120m2 and we are in the process of a major renovation (tear down walls, build new, new floor with radiation, new doors, new windows, new bathrooms, new kitchen etc.).

The apartment will look like this when walls have been removed and reconstructed:

At the moment the kitchen (large room in center of 3D illustration above) layout are giving us some problems. We are a family with three young children at the age of 2, 0 and 0 (the last two are twins). We wish for the kitchen to be the "social" room where we will spend the most of our time when we are together. We do not wish that the family is split up while one is working in the kitchen. This also goes when we have guests, i.e. we would like to have a “bar” where the guests can hang out while we are preparing the dinner for example.

The room has one window and also gets light from the salon/dining room (we plan to put a glass door between the dining room and kitchen) so it is a quite light room. The ceiling is high (approx 3100cm). We want a large fridge and a stand-up freezer. The oven and microwave should preferable be in “chest” height. We also prefer lots of working and storage space, and we want it to be a open room (not a “cramped” feeling).

At the moment we have this idea:

Can also be seen here: floorplanner view

On the back wall, over the table in 1800cm height, we plan to place closets.

Some pictures of the apartment with other design ideas for the kitchen which we are discussing can be seen here (last six pictures for ideas for kitchen):
Google album

Any input would be very appreciated as we need to take decisions latest this week...

P.s. Sorry for my english, am obviously not a native english speaker - I do better in danish and spanish ;o)


texts: Electricity consumption of a disconnected electricity socket

texts:
When I put a radiation-tester near an electricity socket, with nothing connected to it, it shows a large amount of electric radiation - about 800 V/m (it starts beeping and saying that the radiation is "harmful" already at 40 V/m).

When I plug in a simple 4x multi-socket (again with nothing connected to it) the radiation grows beyond 2000 V/m, which is the maximum of the radiation-tester. Moreover, even at the wall about 1 meter above the multi-socket, there is about 1000 V/m radiation; 1 meter to the right there is 100 V/m radiation (in the other directions there is no radiation at this distance).

My questions are:

Why is the radiation so large if nothing is connected to the socket?
Does it waste electricity, and if so, how much?


texts: how to remove this faucet aerator? it just slips

texts:
I have the following type of faucet aerator:

I tried to "unscrew" this one, but it seems not screwed at all; it just spins. Is there any way to remove this? As it is a separate part, there must be a way to remove it. Please help.


texts: We have a Coleman Maax Spa,  about 20 years old.   It is showing "Hot" on the display and the buttons don't do anything.    I turned power off for a while then back on and nothing changed.    From what I've found,  this code should go away when the water cools.   The water is very cold right now and the code still shows.   Any idea?   Thanks


texts: Have kwikset deadbolt with interior knob with setscrew is not coming off after setscrew has been removed why?

texts: Kwikset deadbolt interior knob with set screw removed yet knob will not come off, what else can I do to remove the knob?


texts: Is 150 CFM ventilation fan right choice for bathroom in my older condo?

texts:
My bathroom ventilation fan broke up and I am shopping for a new better one. I noticed the newer fans are higher CFM through-put and are quieter, I have narrowed down my choice to this one.

My question is that my condo was built in 1980 so its older, will this fan still do a good job and be quiter? I have read in some product reviews/youtube installation that high CFM fans require bigger ducts. I live in 3 floor condo building. I only have access to the bathroom and nothing outside.

Will this 150 CFM be still a good option for me or I just need to go with the lower ranking basic fan?

The bathroom size is 7 ft by 5 ft. I have no idea of about the ducts size.

Update

I end up asking my condo management and I am told the duct is 6 inches which is great. Now I am gonna go with 150 CFM and I am buying this from Amazon which is way cheaper than others but I worry if this will fit? I took my current one dimensions (from outside) and is 12 by 10.5 inches. The one at amazon shows bigger but I think all new ones will be standard sizes. Should I be worrying about physical dimensions? Thanks!


texts:
I have a staircase from which I ripped up the old carpet. I’m trying to figure out how to refinish, seems I have four options:

Refacing with a veneer tread cover and riser. This was my original plan but will involve a lot of precision cutting to make it work, especially on the turn.
ripping out existing treads and risers and replacing with pine lumber. The existing treads seem to be pine 2 x10’s. I would then stain the pine. Not sure if this is a good idea.
sand down existing stairs and paint or stain, maybe carpet down the middle. There are about a thousand nail holes to fill but this would not involve any cutting.
carpet. These are basement stairs so I’d rather not do this


texts: Pool liner loose after hard rainfall - wait for it to re-seat itself?

texts: Hi my pool liner went loose bc of excessive rainfall. In the past it re-seats itself. This time it’s pretty bad so I didn’t know if I needed to proactively push it back down.


texts:
At 3:30 am a couple days ago, the smoke detectors went off. Not the 'low battery' noise, but full alarm triggering the others to sound off as well. I checked around, and with no actual issue, pulled them all off. 6:00 visit to Home Depot. Turned off the breaker, took my meter to verify dead wires, and started replacing them, 6 total. The alarms came with wiring adaptors which were mostly fine. In 2 cases, there was already such a rat nest of wiring that I had to just use the actual wire and skip the adaptor to save space.

In this box, there was more than just connectors. And my question. Can anyone identify this? I have 3 floors, basement/first/second, and this was in the box on the first floor with a 4th connector. Other boxes had a lot of wire, but it looked pretty standard, in/out, and alarm. (And yes, crappy installation, that box is loose, but tight after putting mounting plate on.)


texts: There was a heating oil leak in my basement, which I soaked up with spill absorber. It worked like a charm, but then I made the mistake of trying to clean up the mess with the shop vac. The oil-soaked spill absorber was too heavy and too slimy for the shop vac, so it just lined the inside of the hose and clogged everything up. Now I have to clean out all the hose and tube segments. My question: What is the best way to do so? I thought about just filling a big tub with water and dish detergent and soaking everything, but do I need something stronger?


texts: Trouble removing vinyl tile and underlayment from wood flooring

texts:
I'm in the middle of remodeling my half bathroom and have run into a sticky situation with the existing flooring. My goal is to remove it and refinish the flooring beneath, much like has been done for the rest of the house.

The old flooring is made up of a few layers. From top to bottom:

9" x 9" vinyl tiles
black mastic/glue
9" x 9" wood/mdf/plywood-like squares. These are about as thin as the vinyl tiles.
Putty colored clay-like material. Seems like it may act as both an adhesive and a leveler.
Fir flooring

I began removing layers 1-4 and found that they were particularly easy to pull up around the perimeter of the room. Using a heavy-duty angled paint stripper and a hammer, I was able to pull everything up within the span of a few minutes.

The middle section is another story however. It's hard to even get an edge under the wood squares. The construction and layering looks similar to that of the edges, though the edges may have had a different kind of adhesive for the 4th layer (it looks a little darker).

This 4th layer material may be somewhat water soluble (with hot water at least), but it's hard to get the water underneath the wood-like layer. I've tried flooding the wood layer with hot water but it isn't particular effective.

The flooring was installed in 1949, which is a little before asbestos was heavily used. There's still a reasonable chance of it existing in the vinyl tiles and the first layer of mastic (layer 2) so precautions are being taken (approved respirator, eye protection, disposable clothing, dampening of everything to keep the dust level down, proper disposal of materials, etc). That being said, I consider sanding to be out of the question at this point, though the top vinyl layer and mastic could be fairly easily removed first if need be.

How might I more effectively remove this flooring?

Update

I'm beginning to think that the 4th layer might actually be extremely old vinyl tiles, meaning that the mastic between them and the wood flooring is what's tripping me up.


texts: How to fill a gap between wall and ceiling?

texts:
I'm planning to convert an office to a bedroom but need to fill a gap above the door.

Any ideas how I might do this in a way which minimizes sound transfer from living room to inside room, and vice versa?

Looking into office (Click images for larger views):

Looking out of office:


texts: Best method to ensure scratch coat (render) adheres to brickwork

texts:
I am a plasterer by trade and we have an exterior rendering job coming.

The exterior face of the house is red brick and has to be scratched, then dry dashed over it. I have heard some horror stories about the scratch not bonding to the brick and I was just wondering if anyone has any help or advice on what mix, additive, to use?


texts: I've recently purchased a house with several cat5 cables running through the attic.  I'm trying to hook one of them up to an access point on the ceiling that is positioned in a place that is about mid-cable.  How do I identify which cable is which without cutting them in the middle?  Is there a tool that can detect a signal in a cable non-destructively?


texts: Two 20A circuits in a single kitchen receptacle - what size box do I need?

texts:
I am wiring up my kitchen receptacles to have the top outlet on circuit A and the bottom outlet on circuit B. I found this question, which was helpful, but I was flipping through the 2017 Ugly's Residential wiring guide and I saw a section on Box Fill Calculations and I'm really doubting the boxes I'm using are big enough.
My best guess is that I need at least 22.5 cubic inch receptacle boxes, but I'm currently using 18 cubic inch boxes with Wago connectors and pig tails. I do plan to add a receptacle extender to these boxes, since I will be tiling the backsplash, but I don't think that will be enough.
| Item                   | Unit Volume     | Total Volume |
| ---------------------- | --------------- | ------------ |
| 8 conductors           |    2.25 ci each | 18.0 ci      |
| ? clamp                |    2.25 ci each |    ?         |
| 1 device               | 2x 2.25 ci each |  4.5 ci      |
| ? grounding conductors |    2.25 ci each |    ?         |
| ---------------------- | --------------- | ------------ |
| Total                  |                 | 22.5+ ci     |

I don't think I have a grounding conductor since I'm using PVC boxes, but I'm thinking the Wagos are considered clamps, in which case I'm using 5, so that would be another 11.25 cubic inches, 33.75 ci total. Is that the correct minimum box size required for two 20-amp circuits going to a single duplex outlet? Any suggestions for how to go about this?
Below is a picture of a test box I wired up for reference:


texts:
I am planning to build a stepping stone walkway with little gravels filling the rest of the path. I read several instructions but still have some questions unanswered.

a) I understand that about 4" of gravel base is first poured and compacted and then about 1" of the leveling sand is used before the stepping stones are put. Should the leveling sand be also compacted?

b) What is the role of the leveling sand exactly? My guess is that it plays a role of a kind of buffer such that the top of the stepping stones are aligned. I also read that it prevents stepping stones from moving laterally. I just want to understand its intended role..

c) After the stepping stones are put, should I do something between the stepping stones before pouring the gravel fillers? Some articles say that additional leveling sand or polymeric sand should be poured between the stepping stones. Then, should I first fill the gaps between the stepping stones with sand and then the little gravels? Or, would it be ok to fill the gaps only with the gravels?


texts:
I am a college student living in a cheap rental. I have a window in my bedroom that leaks a lot of cold air. I live in a northern climate, and during this recent cold snap my heater can't keep up. The window is in a recess and I currently have a thin curtain covering the window. The window looks only on the side of a neighbor's wall.

Would it be a stupid idea to buy insulation to stuff into the recess and prevent cold air from leaking, and would it be effective? I've been researching and others have suggested thin plastic window covering but this doesn't seem like it would greatly improve the situation. A few drawbacks I can see to my idea is that it would obstruct the view which I don't care about and would not let any sun in which might effect my sleep.


texts:
I have flickering lights intermittently for a week or so. A flickering episode can last an hour. My DVM measures a fluctuating 92, to 100, 112. When flickering stops it reads 119 +-1 volt. I've called Southern California Edison but have no idea how long it will take for them to come and, of course, my intermittent symptom may be not showing itself when they are on site. I looked at my semi-smart meter and see a sequence I have video'd in case it provides a hint.
I see, cycling -

Sync nEt

888 888888

Pld 151

001  74218

082 001.83

(not 100% sure I see the "." in the last reading)

EDIT

My UPS starts beeping, unsurprisingly.

Photo of meter

Does any of this point to something helpful in diagnosing?


texts: How do I connect light fixture’s ground to supply wires?

texts:
Location: US

While not exactly a novice in regards to electrical, I’m a little confused here. Replacing ceiling fan+light combo controlled by two switches with light fixture (removing one switch/taking it out of operation/capping wires, etc etc etc.) I know the proper wire connections/which ones need to be capped off in each location and so forth. My ceiling box has the pigtails ready to go that need to be connected to the fixture (switch loop configuration and also feeds other items) - no problem there.

That said, my supply’s ground has a pigtail ready to be connected to the fixture’s ground wire. The fixture’s ground wire lead is where I’m confused. The fixture has the standard black for hot, white for neutral, green for ground. The ground wire is in the cable with the hot and neutral (as expected) but then terminates under the ground screw on the fixture’s mounting strap via a ring terminal. There’s not a second ground wire in the fixture’s cable to hook to my supply grounds.

This normally wouldn’t be a problem. I would just take the fixture’s ground wire, tie it in with my supply ground and use a pigtail off of that to attach to the ground screw on the fixture’s mounting strap. The problem is that since the only ground in the fixture’s cable has a ring terminal on the end, I’m unable to tie it into the grounds in the box. Furthermore, if I had a metal box, this wouldn’t be an issue. But alas, the ceiling box is plastic.

What am I missing here? I’m assuming the fixture is set up for installation to a metal box. How am I supposed to connect the supply ground to the fixture? Should I remove the pigtail lead from the ground screw on the mounting strap, cut off the ring terminal end and strip the wire to tie into my supply ground, then add a pigtail to the bundle of grounds to attach to the ground screw on the mounting strap? Or can the ground screw on the mounting strap have both the ring terminal and a solid wire wrapped on it? I know the one-solid-wire-per-screw rule. I also know that more than one ring terminal can be on a screw, but not sure what this falls under considering it’s a mix of the two. I’ve googled to the end of the internet and haven’t found anything that matches my situation.

I apologize in advance for what is probably a seemingly simple solution but I often tend to overthink which leads either to overlooking the obvious or over-engineering things.

Unfortunately, the installation instructions that came with the fixture don’t conform with reality, either.


texts: How to remove Tile levelling clips (T-type) that have partially broken off?

texts:
After laying my tile, some of the T-levelling clips broke off above the tile.

Unfortunately as a result I have small clip bits poking up above the tile. Any ideas on how to remove them before I grout?


texts: Will security system wiring cause interference in data cables?

texts: Is it acceptable to run 22/4 security wire along side Cat6 and Coax cables, or is there any possibility for interference?


texts: Delta Bathtub Faucet - Unaligned handle stopper

texts:
I have a newly installed delta bathtub faucet, however, the person who did the job was a bit sloppy. Now the handle is not aligned.

I tried to take the screw off the handle, however, the handle installation piece looks like it has some sort of dummy prevention pattern that only allows the handle to be installed a specific way.

Is there any way to repair this? I can probably take the bonnet nut (Part RP60352) off and try to adjust the Valve assembly (Part RP60400)?

A documentation on the faucet: Delta Faucet

Thanks


texts: Can I keep my existing ductwork when replacing a furnace with a heat pump and air handler?

texts:
I currently have an over-sized furnace for my home square footage. I'm happy with the duct's performance, they are quiet.

The furnace is 27 yo and I'd like to replace it with a heat pump and air handler. To keep the project cost down, I would prefer to keep my existing ducts.

I would step down to a 2.5 ton system from the 4 ton furnace - what would I expect to happen if I keep the ducts?


texts: How to use LED lighting strip on ceiling?

texts:
In our living room, we have a single ceiling rose in the centre of the ceiling with a boring light fitting on it.  I'd love to replace this with 4 led strips (about 2m each) running from the centre to the corners, ideally of the colour-changing sort.

My question is how can I fit this in a way that looks ok and is safe?  I'd ideally like a circular thingy where the light fitting is, that contains the transformer and colour controller, and has the light strips coming out of it, but I can't find any such thing on the internet.  Is my quest doomed to failure?


texts: Why does my shower run out of hot water quickly?

texts:
My shower runs out of hot water quickly. Initially the water is perfectly hot, then it starts cooling after a minute or so and we need to adjust the lever to maintain the temperature. Somewhere around 10mins (give or take) you're pretty much out of hot water.
I've tested this in our other shower as well, same issue.

To troubleshoot, we bought a new Rheem 50 Gal Gas WH as the previous was 12yrs old. Its only my wife and I in the house and we never shower at the same time in different showers.

There is no mixing valve in my setup as far as I can see, I've traced the hot water pipe from the WH to where it exits the basement.

To troubleshoot, I've been in the shower, waited for the water to start cooling, then ran downstairs to run the kitchen sink hot water and the water was noticeably cooler as well, similar to what I was getting in the shower.

Any ideas? New WH(same issue present w/ old WH), no mixing valve, water heater is set to a notch (or 2) above the default setting.

I have an HVAC friend as well as an HVAC uncle whos been in business for a while and he doesnt have a definitive answer either.

The basement is heated, so its usually about 68F-70F.


texts: Purpose of mercury switch in old doorbell

texts:
I moved recently and the new house has a vintage doorbell. It's by Friedland, but there's no other identifying information that would help me find a manual. All the wires had been disconnected by the previous owners, and I'm trying to get it working again.

The thing is pretty standard except for the fact that it has a mercury switch attached to the striker arm (see green vial in picture below; no I'm not going to leave the wires like that). If I ignore the switch and wire things the normal way it works fine, but I assume it's there for a reason. My expectation was if I put it in series with the button and the solenoid, it would cut the current before the striker reached the bell on the right, resulting in a "dong" on the backstroke instead of the full "ding dong." That way you could wire one button through the switch and one around it and be able to tell the two apart. But, this isn't what happens. The only difference the switch makes is that if you hold the button down, the bell ding-dongs repeatedly until you let go (otherwise it dings when you push and dongs when you release). So what's the point? Am I misunderstanding how this is supposed to work, or is the switch just calibrated wrong after all these decades and not cutting off fast enough?

The red wire comes from the button via one terminal on the transformer, the white wire goes back to the other terminal on the transformer, the blue wire comes from a second button that I haven't hooked up yet.

Switch/arm detail:


texts: Is my pool cracking due to sitting empty during freeze-thaw cycles?

texts:
I have a rental property with an in-ground pool. Last year my tenants failed to let me know that water was leaking out of the pool.  They kept filling it up and once the pool was closed in the fall it all drained out.  It wasn't until the following spring I found out there was no water in the pool upon opening.

I have a pool company that opens and closes the pool each season. They were able to find the holes in the liner, patch, and slowly fill the pool back up.  Now I just found out that the foundation of the pool is shifting and I wonder if this problem is due to the pool sitting empty for so long.

Also want to mention we live in Canada where the ground freezes over the winter and the pool sat empty during the long cold winter.  I've attached photos of the pool. Can someone tell me if this could be the reason for this issue?


texts: Why am I not getting hot water from my tankless hot water heater?

texts:
I just bought my house last year.  The previous owner had just replaced the boiler before I closed.  I had oil delivered the day that I moved in.  I had problems with the hot water right away as it would only get hot when I turned the heat all the way up.  I had a plumber come, and he said during the installation they crossed two wires.  He was only downstairs few minutes and it was fixed and that didn't make sense to me, but I didn't ask questions because it was working.

Now it's a year later and it's happening again. I checked to make sure the water level was okay, which it was.  I've bled the water and filled it again to make sure there was no air.  That made it normal and hot again, but it only lasted for two days.  It seems to be something very small that I am missing here because if it was wires they would not have crossed again.  Now, I don't know if it was just coincidence that this happened on the same day that I had oil added again when it was very low.  Should I bleed the oil line?  Is there an adjustment valve or something that I am missing here? Please if any could help me it would be greatly appreciated.


texts: I am struggling to efficiently add blocking to 16" stud bays when I can't end nail through the other side of the stud. I have a full-size nailer, a palm nailer, and a hammer or two--but not a lot of experience with any of these. What are your tricks?


texts: I have a split entry home that on the lower level 5 outlets in the family room only have gone out. One inside on stair wall to front plugs and 3 on end fireplace wall. We had an electrician doing the checking and 5 hours with no solution. We have taken out all plugs and tested all of them, checked circuit panel and plus on other rooms as well.


texts:
We are cleaning up our back yard from the previous owners. Found this today and I don’t know what it is. Is it our ground for the electric box? Kinda close to that. The previous owners also have a circuit breaker in the shed, also close to that. I feel Ike I should put dirt on it, but I want to know what it is first.

Picture of the thing and it’s relation to the electric box and the shed attached.

[1

I carefully dug around it, trying not to touch the red part because I was worried it might be a live wire. I found a second smaller wire and followed that to another round thing. Noticed that the red wire went back around to the other round thing. It was pointed in the direction of the well so I was thinking it might be a pressure sensor for the well. Pulled up a clump of grass near it and the whole thing came out. It’s a bow


texts: How do I run an Ethernet cable through a doorway in a Mexican house built with brick and mortar?

texts:
I want to run an Ethernet cable from my DSL gateway to my room. My desk is about 10 meters away from the DSL gateway, and I need a way to run the cable through my room's doorway.

But here's the catch: I live in Mexico, and like most Mexican houses mine is built with brick and mortar, specialized DIY solutions are rather hard to find (if you can't find it at Home Depot you're pretty much toast), and my doorframes are a tiny, little, contemporary and minimalistic strip of wood affixed to the doorframe's structure. Googling in English turns up results that assume I live in an American house made out of wood and drywall with standard doorframes; googling in Spanish turns up nothing.

I am also pretty bad at handling cables. So much, that this was literally the reason why I got fired from my first job.

Any ideas on how to pass a cable through a doorway?


texts: My split A/C unit doesn't drain much water

texts: My split A/C unit used to drain much water when it was new. Now, the unit drains much less water than before. I checked the drain line and it isn't clogged. Also, the cooling efficiency is slightly lower than before.


texts: LED bulbs or dimmer switch causing buzzing?

texts:
I installed a light fixture that contains 4 dimmable GU10 LED lightbulbs.  I also installed a dimmer switch (Feit Electric Model 72200) for the fixture.

When I dim the bulbs to 50-85% on, I hear a distinct buzzing sound coming from the bulbs.

Can the buzzing be caused by a defective dimmer switch, or is it simply a case of poor quality LED bulbs?

Will buying different bulbs likely fix the issue?


texts: Can a threaded rod in my foundation wall (in both wall anchors and support beams) that is leaking be made water tight?

texts: Work was done on our foundation walls in 2003. We bought the house in 2016 and are now experiencing water leaking at the threaded rods coming in our house in both wall anchor plates and support beams. Work has been done on all points already and there is still water coming in those spots at the threaded rods.  Will a drain tile system with a vapor barrier be a good enough solution?


texts: What is the small blue wire in my 240V air conditioner cord?

texts:
I'm looking to replace the plug on a window air conditioner unit that uses a 6-20 240v plug. However, in addition to the cord having two hots and ground, there's a small blue cable that I'm not sure what it's hooked up for. Is it for the circuit breaker (leakage current sensor, or LCDI; it's similar to a GFCI receptacle with the test & reset buttons but apparently for a different use) built into the plug, and if so can I bypass it? And if not, what is it for, and how do I account for it on the new plug, which just takes hot, neutral, and ground? I realize the risks of just bypassing it, but I'm desperate.

The air conditioner probably around 15 years old, give or take. At least 13 years. It's a Whirlpool, the model is ACQ244XR2.

The longer story, I'm hoping this will fix the air conditioner. It simply does not turn on anymore; there's no display, and the controls don't work (it's all digital). The test/reset breaker on the plug actually still seems to work okay, but of course, there's no power. I've tested the plug with a multimeter and everything tests okay (there's the occasional jump to 1000 when I wiggle the lead connected to a hot but I'm assuming that's user error or from it being a cheap multimeter). All in all, I can't afford to replace it or hire an electrician so I'm hoping this is the only issue. Any help at all would be greatly appreciated.


texts: Turn Lights On/Off Without Having to Hit 3 Switches in One Room

texts:
I just moved into a new place and I'm having an interesting lighting problem in one of my rooms. I've looked at a few things on the internet, but my lack of experience in this matter makes me feel intimidated by potential solutions.

There are multiple ceiling lights throughout the room and there's a single switch at the entrance, another at a wall, and yet another at a different wall. If I want to turn all of the lights on or off in this particular room, I need to walk around the whole room and flick each switch. I am anticipating getting very annoyed with this.

What I would like to do is have ONE panel at the entrance that will allow me to turn ALL of the lights on or off at once; no walking around the room.

I'm about to buy new light fixtures/bulbs to replace the old ones in the ceiling. Any solution to my issue could potentially involve some sort of smart fixture as well. However, I'm looking for a solution that is relatively inexpensive but still elegant.

Please see my diagrams below to help you understand what the current situation is versus what I would like it to be.

This is the current setup:

This is what I would like it to be:

Ideally, I'd like a solution that allows me to control each light or light "section/circuit" individually. I think being able to dim the different portions of the room would be great. Additionally, being able to remotely control the different sections would be useful. However, I could live with control from one panel and nothing fancy.

Your suggestions and expertise are greatly appreciated.


texts: I purchase a new home and in the basement I'm finding a section of cracked/split joists where the nail was nailed into the wood sill plate.  After investigating, this one wall was not leveled with the joist end from the other side.   I can tell because the builder did put some shims underneath some but not all so I'm seeing about a 1/4 gap between some of the joist and sill.    What would be the best way to correct this if it needs to be repaired.  I've attached a picture of one.


texts: Should I upgrade to 3/4" pipe all the way to my new pex manifold?

texts:
I have a water meter with a 3/4" supply line that is fitted to an adaptor which then runs 1/2" to all the pipes in my house.  I'm in the process of installing a PEX manifold system for some new connections and I'm wondering if there's any reason I shouldn't remove the old adaptor and just run 3/4" from the main supply to my manifold.  It seems silly to leave it as is while I'm doing the other work.

The manifold has a 3/4" PEX input with 1/2" outbound PEX connectors on valves.

For what its worth, the plan is to then run one of the outputs from the manifold to the existing 1/2" copper pipe to supply the lines that aren't being added.  All pipes in question are exposed and easy to access in the basement.


texts: How to fix water leak coming from pressure gauge/valve on water tank?

texts: The pressure gauge connected to my well water tank is dripping very slowly. Maybe few drops per day. I am guessing this based on the accumulated water in the container underneath. It seems that liquid is overflowing from top of the pressure gauge. At the top, there is a hole, function of which is not clear to me. Could someone tell me why there is hole at the top? And why water is coming from the top. It could be total coincidence but I observed this first time when outside temperature became very cold below -5˚F last week, and it’s dripping since. Is this something I can change myself or should I call a plumber? And how soon I should fix it. Thank you.


texts: Densheild tile backer board use advise needed

texts:
I'm in the process of doing my bathtub walls and I'm thinking of using Denshield™ boards. My total area is 55 sq ft. I found 4'x8' Denshield™ sheets so I will need to buy two sheets to cover my area (32+32=64 sq ft).
I will end up with having two seams at the top of the shower that will later be covered by the tile (see image).

The manufacturer says that there is no need to use a liquid membrane (like Redgard). Instead, I just screw them down with corrosion resistant screws, tape and thin set the seams, then use 100% water-proof silicon caulk in the corner seams. They said that it's guaranteed to last for a long time.

My concern:

Are Denshield™ boards better than cement boards?
Is it a good plan to have only one seam in the middle area at the height of 4' from the tub deck and one seam in the right area also at the height of 4'?


texts:
I am doing a big renovation, got the blueprint done by an engineer more then a year ago, but it took a while to get the permit and i just learn today that the delay to have the big LVL beam (44') will take up to august.
If I switch to a Paralam of the same size, should this be okay?


texts: How aggressive should one be with replacing aged steel pipes in a Norfolk VA brick house?

texts:
I'm house-sitting my son's house that he just bought. It is at least middle aged and I'm concerned that it is a hidden cost. The exterior is red brick and the plumbing, as far as I can tell, is all steel pipe under the house and all behind brick walls.

I'm concerned that he has or will have a rusted through pipe under there and there is no way to get to it except removing the brick walls. Even if it isn't leaking, I'm sure the pipes are compromised and if one rusts through no one will know about it.

What should he do? Remove enough brick to get under the house and replace it all with PEX?


texts: single radiator whistling and whirring on and off (hot water system)

texts:
As the question stated, I have a single radiator whistling and whirring on and off and I am trying to understand the cause, so I can stop it. It is a fairly high pitched whistle/whirr/squealing sound. The sound often increases in frequency and loudness, or decreases, and sometimes goes away altogether albeit for a short time. The change in sound and volume is all occurring as the circulating pump is running, so with the pump on sometimes it whistles, sometimes it does not.

Occasionally some of the other radiators make a little noise of squeal, but nowhere near as badly as this single radiator. The radiator in question has been bled and does not have air. Also, since it is on the lower level of my home, it never really accumulates air at all.

What have I tried? I have tried bleeding that radiator as well as all the other radiators in the house. I have tried banging on the radiator out of anger and frustration. Incidentally, I drained the entire boiler(hydronic) system of water the other day, so that I could install an automatic bleeder valve on a problem radiator upstairs. I had the problem before doing that procedure and I have the problem after. I only mention having done that to say... I have already cleared water from the system and then refilled.

My guess is some sort of turbulence inside the pipe, but I have nothing to substantiate that.


texts: Can a PVC sprinkler pipe that is encased in concrete have restricted preasure due to the concrete?

texts:
A metal post was installed  in concrete for a fence. There is an existing PVC pipe that controls the sprinkler  that is now in-cased in the concrete that was poured for the post.
Can the concrete that was poured cause a restriction in the flow of water?
If so what can be used to prevent that from happening? What could have happened if I had full pressure before the concrete was poured and now I have very little after it was poured?


texts: What can I do to make my new bathroom vanity more stable?

texts:
Note: Feel free to edit the title of this question if you know of a better way to put it.

I got a new bathroom vanity (cabinet and sink top).  In spite of its high price, the quality is not so good.  It's rectangular in width and depth, but it skews like in the picture below when any kind of pressure is applied to any of the sides.

I would like to lock it into shape somehow so that it doesn't move.  Even with the sink top on, it still moves.  I can tell because the edge of the sink top squeaks against the wall behind it.  Rather than fix the symptom by putting something like a rubber strip along the back, I would rather tackle the actual problem.  I imagine there is some kind of sturdy metal brace that I can screw in to each of the corners.


texts: Join two 2x4" so that screws are not visible?

texts: How can I join two 2'x4' pieces of treated wood like in the picture so that the screws are not visible? Or maybe it's possible not to use screws?


texts: What can I do about roofing and framing nail 'shiners' under eaves?

texts:
I had new roof decking installed the installers missed the rafters under the eaves, in many places.  So I have these like 3" nails sticking down visibly under the eaves.  In the attached photo looking up at the eave, fascia on the left, house on the right, I'm pretty sure these exposed nails were meant for the framing member/rafter:

What can I do to improve the appearance here?
Some of my ideas are:

Hit them flat? (would hinder pulling them out later but the plywood is likely to stay on for awhile)
Clip them? Would that encourage the nails to lift out? I'm in Southern California so not too much weather expansion to worry about.
Grind down and bondo? (I read this somewhere, would make them flush).

I'd like to just clean it up so I can paint it.


texts: 3-prong to 4-prong conversion - EXTRA MISLABELLED WIRES - Dryer cable upgrade and installation

texts:
Samsung dryer, model DV422EWHDWR/AA

My Dryer has a 3-prong cable, I need to upgrade to 4-prong.

I have TWO GREEN wires here, which is something I cannot find mentioned anywhere else.  I reckon that one of these corresponds to the usual solid metal tab connecting the terminal assembly to the dryer’s metal body, and the other corresponds to the (usually white) connection that “pseudo-grounds” from the neutral connection, but I‘m uncertain, don’t want to die, and don’t want to destroy the dryer or the house.

I think I’m supposed to remove the smaller green wire, and connect both the white and the thicker green wire to the center connection on the terminal assembly.

Can anyone offer me wisdom in this matter?  If this question is a duplicate, I cannot find any similar question especially regarding the ostensibly mislabelled and extra green wires.

(The image descriptions didn’t appear in the post like I thought - the first image is a picture of how the dryer cable was arranged before I did anything, the second image is of my preliminary tinkering, now I believe that thick green wire should connect to the center terminal with the white cable.)


texts: What Good and Affordable Alternative Power Source Would You Recommend?

texts:
I am woking on a startup (read: using my computer always). 80% of the time, I generate my own electricity with a petrol/gas generator.

On new years day, the Nigerian government increased the price of petrol/gas by 120%, instantly doubling the cost of my electricity in addition to other costs. Therefore, making it really hard to afford working with my computer as often.

What is needed

I would love suggestions on affordable alternatives for generating reliable renewable electricity. I am told solar is expensive, but I understand that is if you are trying to generate serious power.

Of course I could Google, but I wanted something that has actually been used by a member of this community. It will spare me the cost on taking gambles on what I see online.


texts: Hooking aftermarket drain hose to Frigidaire dishwasher

texts:
I would like to replace the 8' factory drain hose that came with my Frigidaire dishwasher (model FMB330RGC0) with a 6' hose to save space under the sink. I ordered a replacement hose, which needs to have a right angle fitting on the dishwasher side. However, once I unplugged the old hose, I noticed that, even though the diameter of the hose fitting is the same, the factory one has some ribbing:

to match the stub on the dishwasher:

The aftermarket 6' hose has a plain fitting with no ribbing:

I thought Frigidaire purposely did this to proprietarize and prevent the aftermarket products from being used on their appliances so I called to see if I can order theirs in 6' but they didn't have it and the lady I talked to didn't know any more technical details.

Based on the pictures, can you tell if I can somehow adapt the new plain hose to go over the stub that has ribbing?


texts: Dealing with an outdoor grill with a bad gas line

texts:
I had my backyard done about 6 years ago. I put in lawn and a large patio of pavers. I also had an island built that has a built-in grill and sink, and storage underneath. The island was built of cinder block, finished with a stone veneer, with a tile counter top. There is a natural gas line and electric power. Concrete was poured into the bottom of the island to make a "floor."

The guys who did this didn't use the correct pipe for the gas line, so it began to leak. I'm lucky I caught before it became a catastrophic event, and needless to say, I shut off the gas and the whole thing has sat unused for a couple of years.

The guy who did the work is long gone, so there is no remedy there. But now I'm thinking about selling the house. I'd rather deal with this in some way than leave it for the next owner, because it's a safety issue and a red flag for potential buyers. Plus, it's not even useful anymore.

I'm curious as to how you would handle this. I've come up with a few options:

Run a new gas line. This seems like the most logical choice, except that the gas line would have to run under much of the patio, which is pavers on top of a base of mortar. But the biggest obstacle is the concrete "floor" in the base of the island. I don't know how I would get through that. A small child could get inside the island, but that's about it.
Knock it down. Pull out the grill and sink. Demo the island and the concrete floor. Cap the electrical line. Fill in the hole with pavers to make it look like it was never there. This would be a lot of work doing the demo and hauling it away, then finding replacement pavers, which might only be available by the pallet.
Convert the grill from natural gas to propane. That would make it fully functional again with a refillable propane tank. This is theoretically possible, because the grill manufacturer makes the same model in natural gas and propane variants. I have a parts list for the model, so I know what parts I need, but I can't seem to figure out where to order the parts or what they cost. It's a Turbo Elite grill which is sold only by Barbeques Galore. I went back to the store and asked about doing a conversion and was told that is a subject they cannot discuss for some reason. Then they did a kind of wink, wink, nudge, nudge thing and slipped me the card of a plumber who could supposedly do the conversion. I actually lost the card, so I never talked to the plumber.

I'm curious if anyone has any other advice, suggestions or comments.


texts: repair hole in hardwood floor near garage door

texts:
One weekend after a gathering, I noticed that there was a hole in my hardwood floor. The hole is about half an inch in  depth and about the size of penny, maybe a bit larger. I know sometimes hardwood has pin knots, but this looks to be caused by a heavy step of a woman's high-heeled shoe.

What's the best way to fix this without having to tear up the floor?