Why did my electric range wiring burn out at the terminal block? Turned on our 2 year old stove (Whirlpool Gold) and heard fizzing noises, then smelled electrical burning. Went downstairs and shut off the breaker (40 amp). That was the only way to get it to stop "fizzing". (6 gauge wire by the way). The range is 240 volt electric 3 wire hooked up to a 40 amp breaker (6 gauge wire). When I took the back panel off the stove I saw exactly where the problem occurred. The black wire was burned, the terminal block was melted, and the inside of the back metal panel that I removed was pitch black in the spot that was facing that area before removal. I removed the stove top and inspected all wires and other electronic components. No problems at all.

So my questions are:

Why did the black wire only, at the terminator block, start burning?
Why did the breaker not pop off?
Is it safe to just replace the terminator block or is this an indicator of a much larger problem?
Is 6 gauge the correct gauge for a 40 amp breaker?

This is a fairly "common" issue, that typically occurs due to high resistance at the terminal.  The high resistance can be caused by corrosion, or a loose connection. The high resistance causes heating, which causes higher resistance, which leads to more heating. Eventually the insulation on the wire starts to melt, and/or burn.  Usually the heat will transfer through the terminal block, and into the smaller wiring in the stove.  When the heat becomes too much, the smaller appliance wiring will fail and open the circuit.
In most cases this is not a super dangerous event, as the wiring is contained within the stove.  However, there is a chance that this can lead to a fire in the house, especially if the cover is not properly installed.
Causes
Corrosion
Corrosion is more commonly a problem if the wiring is aluminium, though can still be a problem with copper wiring.  Because stoves/cooktops/ranges draw large amounts of current, there is typically some heating of the wiring during operation. The constant heating and cooling cycles of the wiring can lead to corrosion, and/or hardening of the wiring over time. This corrosion and/or hardening increases the resistance of the wiring, which cause the heating to be worse.
Solution
Occasional inspection of the terminal block and wiring, can prevent the corrosion/hardening from getting too bad.  If you notice any discoloration or corrosion, have the cord replaced. There are also conductive pastes available, that can be applied to the wiring and terminals to help prevent corrosion.  While this should always be used with aluminium wiring, it may also be applied to copper wiring.
Loose Connections
This can be caused initially by not tightening the terminals to the proper torque (usually specified by the manufacturer), or over time by heating/cooling cycles.  Loose or bad connections can cause arcing and/or higher resistance. As discussed before, high resistance leads to heat.
Solution
Make sure all terminals are tightened to the manufacturers specifications.  It's also a good idea to tighten the terminals after a few hours of operation. As stated before, occasional inspection can also prevent this situation.
Why didn't the breaker trip?
The heating was localized to the stove\cooktop\range, so the thermal protection in the breaker would not trip.  Since stoves\cooktops\ranges draw large amounts of current during normal operation, the current during the event likely didn't go high enough to cause heating in the breaker to trigger the thermal protection.  It could also be that the breaker is faulty, so it should be inspected.
Is the stove scrap?
The stove may be salvageable, though you'll want to thoroughly inspect all the wiring to insure it is not damaged.  Replace any damaged wiring with equivalent parts (cooking appliances use high heat resistant wiring).
If the stove is still under warranty, you'll want to contact the manufacturer to discuss your options.


Running 240V wire under mobile home I bought a Chevy Volt and would like to charge it. My driveway does not have any sort of power so I need to run a new line.

I live in a manufactured home ( trailer house ) which is raised off the ground. I am going to hire an electrician to inspect my work and run it through the floor and into the breaker panel. But I want to run the cable my self and save a little money.

What is the proper way to run a cable like this? Do I need conduit? If I do can I run it on the ground or does it need to be raised off the ground?

If I go in a straight line it is around 50 feet but if I go around the perimeter of the house it is like 75 feet.

I will be running 15 amps from the cable.

Thanks in advance for the advice!

I assume by your question you want to run a 120 volt line and use the Level 1 charger that comes with the car.

If you are going to the trouble and expense of adding a receptacle circuit I would highly recommend a 20 amp circuit not a 15. The cost difference is small and takes the same amount of work to install.

At a later date it could be easily converted to a 20 amp 240 volt circuit to accommodate a Level 2 charger that will charge your car in 4 hours or so.

The smallest dedicated EV charger for a Chevy Volt will need a 20 amp circuit not a 15.

On the Clipper Creek web site you can choose your vehicle and it shows you the recommended chargers.

Normally, the larger the charger (higher amperage and voltage) the higher the cost but the faster it charges.

All that said, to answer your question, under the trailer and outside you should run PVC conduit to protect your wiring and survive the elements. Also, PVC is the easiest for a novice to install. NM cable can not be used in a wet or damp location so you will need to run THWN rated wire from the breaker box to the new receptacle in an approved conduit like PVC. You should run #12 gauge wire for a 20 amp circuit pulling 3 wires colored black, white, and green.

If you are going to hire an electrician to assist it may be just a few dollars more to have them do the whole job. Consider this.

Good luck and stay safe!


Oven has power, preheat light is off, but no heat Question

If my oven has electricity and is set to bake, but the preheat light is off and there is absolutely no heat, what is the likely cause, and how do I find out without buying new parts one by one?

Details

I have a Hotpoint Hallmark electric two-oven range, circa 1973. The model number, listed as CATALOG NO. on the inside of the bottom oven door, is R HV757002WH. The closest I have found online is RHV757 or RHV757*02. It has a small oven on top, a four-burner cooktop in the middle, and a large oven on the bottom. All together, the unit is about 5'10" tall. All the controls for both ovens and the cooktop are on the top oven, which tells me that it must have come as a single unit. My question concerns the bottom oven; the top oven has issues too, which I will describe for completeness, but this question focuses on the bottom oven.

Bottom oven

Yesterday we discovered that the bottom oven does not heat at all. It worked fine as recently as three days ago. The bake heating element looks fine.

Though there is never any heat, the preheat light only turns on for certain dial settings:

Off: light off, no heat
Halfway between Off and Bake: light on, no heat
Bake: light off, no heat
Time Bake: light on, no heat
Clean (with shield up and latch closed and time dials set appropriately): light off, no heat
Broil: light on dimly, no heat

By the way, the broiler in the bottom oven stopped working a while ago, and I have not done anything about it yet. I got this mixed up with the top oven. The broiler in the bottom oven stopped working when the bake element stopped working in the last day or two. It now produces no heat, just like the bake element, though they both worked fine three days ago.

Top oven

The top oven has started doing two undesirable things:

It is cooking about 130 degrees too hot.
The bake element is making little points of light, almost like sparks.

I don't know if this is related to the bottom oven not heating at all. I realize that the sparks mean I should probably replace the bake element, which I will when a new one arrives.

By the way, the broiler in the top oven stopped working a while ago, and I have not done anything about it yet.

Stove

All four stove burners work as expected.

What have I tried?

I attempted to remove the temperature sensor so I could test it with a multimeter. I couldn't get it out. One of the wires must be wrapped around something back in the oven. I can see and even touch the plastic socket, but I can't get it through the hole because the wire goes back into the oven instead of directly out the hole. (I should have taken photos...sorry.) So I would need to pull out the whole unit, and I'm not sure how to do it.

Electric ovens use heating elements to create heat.  These are prone to "wear out" over a long period of time.  The typical way that these fail is by going open (meaning no heat produced).  This website (https://www.partselect.com/Range-Stove-Oven+Baking-Element-Testing+repair.htm) has good information on how to test and replace the element(s).

I suspect the problem with your top broiler might be a wore out element as well.  Might as well check them both while you are looking at it.


Proper way to route new wire through existing exterior wall I plan on modifying a switch to control a set of new recessed lights instead of an outlet.  The switch is on an outside wall and I planned on routing the wiring up through the top plate, and between ceiling joists.  I expect there to be insulation in that wall (the kind with a paper face, fluffy inside, and stapled).

What's the proper way to route new Romex through an exterior wall containing insulation?

Does it go behind the insulation?  In front of?  Does it go through the insulation?

If I were you, I'd invest in a fiberglass rod or wall-fish tape. The process to get the wire down is that you will cut a hole for your drywall box and then use the rod/tape to push the wire down inside the wall (use electrical tape to lash the wire to the tape/rod). The hole should provide you enough room to get your hand inside and grab the wire. Then disconnect the wire, pull your tape/rod out, put the wire into your box, attach the box to the drywall and you're set.

The kraft paper on your insulation should be on the exterior wall so it shouldn't be an issue on an inside wall. The wire will be inside the insulation and loose.


How do i connect multiple ground wires? There are 3 green and 1 bare wire on my light fixture Fixture has 3 hanging lights, each light has 1 green, 1 white and 1 black wire.  There is also a bare copper wire on the base of the new fixture. How do i properly attach the green ground wires and the bare wire?

You can wire them the same way you'd wire the white wires together and the black wires together. If there's a green or bare wire coming out of the ceiling connect it to the group of ground wires too. Use standard wire nuts or something similar to the below illustration if in the U.K.


How would you attach an interior wooden wall to a metal building? Didn't see this question from my searches but I'm unsure if I have my terminology incorrect.  I've been looking to add some finished, air controlled, rooms to a metal building with beams upon my research I've seen multiple ways to attach a wood frame on the inside:

from: 2x4 Wall Framing and Questions on Interior wall treatment that seems to place walls in between the beams and www.WilsonworksConstruction.com - Wall Framing (which is a bad video) so:

from: Frame up of New Office in metal building showing the framing from outside of the beam.  If I plan to run electrical and insulation which process is correct and how would you properly fasten the wooden interior walls to the metal beams?  Is there a special way to do this?  I'm familiar with installing interior walls in a basement and to concrete floor with a Ramset Gun but I don't know if this is the same process.

I would not choose the path in your first photo unless you verified with the company that engineered the steel building that the additional dead load from the wood framing, drywall and what ever you might use the wall to support is adequate.  I would think it was not engineered for the load and could cause problems later.

So, second photo, the wall dead load is supported by the floor.  Hopefully the slab is not really thin and poorly reinforced.  In that photo from the height of the building, I am guessing the floor was reinforced poured with the intent for light-industrial taking place in there.   If you are doing free standing walls, avoid powder actuated fasteners, they have very poor pull-out resistance.  Use a wedge anchor or a sleeve anchor.

To fasten the walls to the steel posts of the metal building use a #3 point, washer hex head, self-drilling screws. You can find them at Fastenal.  Space them 1-1/4" from the stud edges and in an alternating pattern every 15"-18".  I personally also like to use extra-thick fender washers, sometimes called heavy washers to increase the pull-through resistance.  A premium poly-urethane construction adhesive would increase the holding power considerably.

I would insulate the steel wall first with rigid foam insulation panels to fill the depth.  I would then use fiberglass batt in the studs. If this is commercial or industrial, your electrical might be required to be in conduit or MC cable, Codes are not the same everywhere. MC can be run though holes board in the studs similar to NM cable.


How do I dismantle a Saniflo Compact to clean it? I have a Saniflo Compact that has stopped flushing. The motor runs but no flush. I used Zep descaling solution first, and a whole bunch a junk came loose. Took the back of the inflow and outtake hoses off and cleaned out as much as I could. But I can't see or get to the macerator section? Do I have to take the whole toilet apart? and how do I do that? I am not a plumber, but a good handygirl, don't wanna break anything. Thanks for any help. And I did go buy the expensive Saniflo descaler,, let it sit all night,, and nothing, Motor still running, no flush. I believe it needs a good cleaning, since it's over 5 years now, and i've just discovered this issue!

There is a good Utube video that explains how to clean the macerator and explains how they get plugged with things like expensive toilet paper and dental floss on occasion moving the pump impeller with a screw driver can break things loose. There were several videos to watch.


Kenmore Dryer Won't Heat I have a Kenmore dryer that won't heat.  Here's what I know:

240 voltage comes into dryer.  Checked wires inside where power connects.

Thermostat, high limit thermostat, heating element, and fuses all have continuity

Lint tubes all clean.

Motor switch has continuity

WHAT COULD THIS BE?  Maybe the control board? (although doesn't look damaged or have any black marks from a surge and dryer buttons work fine)

look for an thermal fuse on the heating element. If the coil over heated these thermal links pop cost from 5-15$ (as long as the heat coil is good) This may be the cause.. usually held in with screws easy to change.


Need help identifying function of odd looking switch/connection/??? mounted to 2nd story Fascia This photo is zoomed in on a gang box that is mounted to the 2nd story exterior Fascia of my buddy's log cabin.  We are trying to figure out what this is for as neither of us have seen this before.  Its not an easy spot to get to so I am hopeful someone recognizes this thing and can provide a clue as to what it might be for.

It’s a photocell, to turn something on at dusk off at dawn.

Pictured here is Intermatics product several companies make look a alike.


Large gap between foundation wall and patio What is the best way to full this gap which is between the foundation wall and front patio?

Use wood to cover the end of the gap, mix cement and pour it in.


Do I have to wrap the wire around the outlet screw? Trying to install this wall receptacle and can't tell by instructions if I have to wrap wire around the screw or can I just use the holes?

The way this picture looks is perfect.

The ground screw is all out there naked so a straight wire would slip out.

The electrical contacts have that plate and an obvious round molded place to put the wire in - it is made to sandwich straight wires.

Good job!


How often should "self clean" and "allergen clean" functions be used in an air conditioner? Some air conditioners, for example Mitsubishi heavy industries SRK20ZJ-S have "self clean" and "allergen clean" functions. First takes 2 hours to complete, latter 1.5 hours.

How often should they be used? I understand this depends, but roughly - once per day/week/month?

In lieu of any manufacture recommendations, I would suggest that you use the self-clean method whenever you notice a smell coming from the unit.  As a related tip, if you ever notice the A/C in your car smelling bad, run it on max cool and max fan for 20minutes as this kills most of the mold and bacteria that is causing the smell; my guess is that this 2hour cycle does something similar.

I'm really not sure what the allergen clean might do but maybe run if a couple times a year.

It's probably worth noting that most A/C units don't have these functions and work fine for many years; it might be more of a marketing gimmick than anything else.


Unscrew stuck shower head with circular section <rant>
Why are shower heads made with a circular outer section that's nigh impossible to unscrew once they get stuck with years' worth of deposits,

PS: pardon my frustration and inadequate vocabulary; coming from Belgium, I'm somewhat disappointed with construction and fixture quality in California.

instead of having a few flat faces so regular adjustable wrenches can be used?

</rant>

Anyway, what are alternatives to Vise Grip pliers or pipe wrenches for unscrewing the regular stuck round shower head pipe from the shower arm? I've tried pliers and adjustable wrenches, but obviously they slip (the ridges are a joke and the picture shows how weak the metal is). WD-40 didn't help.

WD40 may not be the best solvent for the job.  A solvent that's made mainly to loosen screws, like Liquid Wrench or B'Laster, may work better, but they also might not work too well against the residues that build up on plumbing.

Soaking the head in a cleaner made to dissolve calcium, lime, and rust, like CLR, or vinegar, with this trick (saw it on Lifehacker)

may loosen things that the others don't.  You fill a bag with cleaner and tape it onto the showerhead to let it soak.

You can grab the pipe with whatever wrench is handy, but the right wrench will grab more securely.  A pipe wrench

will grab it for sure, but it will bite into the metal and leave a visible mark.

A strap wrench

will grab without marring, but the surface needs to be dry and clean - any wd40 residue would need to be cleaned off.

There are some cheap rubber strap wrenches available

Both types, strap wrenches and pipe wrenches only work in one direction - you'll figure out which way, just be aware of that.


What to look for in a new/replacement toilet? I have a slow/weak flushing toilet and it's not the tank or flapper, etc. Shirlock says in an answer to a related question, that it's "time to spring and spend 200 bucks for a new Class 5 toilet. Which toilet to buy is a whole new topic."

Well, then this is it: A whole new topic.

When looking at toilets, they range in price from $100 to $300 at the hardware store, and I'm sure I could find some fancy $10K units if I looked long enough. Obviously there are "round" and "oval" shapes, different heights, different water usage amounts, one vs two pieces, etc.

I am mostly confused by what a "Class 5" or "Class 6" toilet is. Attempting to search for this I wound up with an awful lot of "potty training" results!

I want to replace the faulty toilet with one that will freaking work. I am not opposed to spending a little more for quality and longevity, but I am tired of flushing 2-3 times, period. What do I need to look for to get a dependable, powerful one, without necessarily wasting a ton of water?

There are some articles that speak to the minor differences between a class 5 and 6 toilet. The most important thing to know is that a class 5 toilet has a larger diameter trapway and the interior of the trapway is polished like the inside of the bowl is.  They also use a faster low water volume flush system.  The common complaint is that solids can leave 'skid marks" on the bowl as there is not a large volume of water in the bowl after flushing. the class 6 uses the same flush technology, but has more rim water action to wash the sides of the bowl better. Most reviews I've read say there really isn't much difference at all.

The better units are the Toto Drake series, the Kohler Cimmeron and American Standard Cadet series. They all can be purchased for between 200 to 300 dollars. Round bowl standard height is cheapest, elongated bowl comfort height being about 30 to 40 dollars more.

Even though we aren't suppose to endorse brand names, I will say, I have installed a couple dozen Kohler Cimmerons in private homes and in my apartment buildings. I have had a few complaints about the "skid marks", lol, but have never had a call about a clogged toilet. These things flush like a tidal wave.

The other feature I really like is that the tank always is at least half full.  With average use, the water comes up to room temp and a flush only introduces 1.3 gals of new colder water.  The result is no condensation on the tank during the hot humid months of summer or when the bathroom becomes a sauna after a long hot shower.

I have also installed the more expensive (under $400) Kohler Cimmeron one piece, elongated, comfort height in my own home. Looks good and works great if your looking for that low tank modern style.


Copper Water Pipes used as Electrical Ground I am replacing a section of copper water pipe that burst behind tiled shower wall. Since the pipe run is along an exterior wall subject to winter temperatures, I'm considering replacing this section with PEX given it is less prone to freezing. But in this house (built 1959) copper water pipes are used as electrical grounds in multiple above ground locations, i.e., where 2prong receptacles were replaced w/3prong receptacles w/the addition of a copper wire (green/insulated)-1 end wound under green ground screw on receptacle, other end bound by a grounding clamp to a nearby cold water pipe. Splicing in PEX will interrupt the "continuous ground". Is PEX therefore  contraindicated or is there a way around this?

You'll want to consult a licensed electrician in your area, but you can probably simply bond a 12 or 14 gauge bare copper wire to the copper pipe on either side of the section you replace with PEX to maintain the preexisting continuous ground.

Pay more attention to the first part of this answer than the second part.


Connecting 1/2 copper to 1/8 pex? Water line to fridge had a saddle valve, saddle valve started leaking so took it out and repaired pipe. Now trying to figure out how to reconnect fridge line. I have 1/2 inch copper under the sink and the pex line at the fridge says 1/8 on it. I can't find any adapters that go from 1/2 to 1/8,or even 1/4 to 1/8. Any help would be appreciated, thanks!

If you want to tee off the 1/2" copper line, then you can start with something like this.

Once you get down to 1/4" copper tube, you can reduce further to 1/8" tube as follows.

If you want to tee off after the sink shutoff valve, we'll need to know what size the outlet is on the valve.


Why does my kitchen sink not drain properly after I don't use it for a while? I can't figure out why my kitchen sink drain keeps clogging.  I've bought several bottles of Draino type stuff and they work for a day or two.  But if I don't use my sink much in 2 or 3 days and then finally get around to hand washing my dishes (since I don't have a dishwasher) I find my sink won't drain again.  Why is it clogging when it's not being used?

Although it's rare, it could be that the Kitchen Vent pipe is clogged, thus causing slow draingage, or now drainage.  Could be that leaves have collected there, or bugs have built a next.  Google "Kitchen Vent Pipe Clogged" and see if the articles there are helpful.


How do I stop water from wicking into the wall? I just bought a new home, and water is getting into one corner of the house. The drywall on the inside of the pictured corner is soft and there was mold under the baseboard, but no water marks are visible from the inside. The bad drywall only extends about 6 inches up from the floor. Our realtor said the previous owners poured a new step at the front entrance, and thought it was likely that the step was trapping water against the trim, and water was wicking up into the interior of the wall.

Question 1: What should I check to find out if this really is the source of the water?

This is the outside wall:

The affected drywall is inside the corner with the gutter and along the wall by the step. I see no evidence that the gutter or downspout are leaking.

When it rains, water pools in the slot by the step.

A closer view:

As you can see, the trim extends several inches below the step. The siding is LP (circa 1990, so not good stuff), but the trim is wood. The trim appears undamaged.

Question 2: If this is the source of the water, how can stop water from infiltrating into the house?

One suggestion I've gotten is to cut the trim above the step and install metal flashing. I'm not sure what I should expect to find behind the trim, nor where/how to attach the flashing. The house foundation probably extends some distance up behind the trim, but I would also expect there to be some form of vapor barrier back there which I would rather not damage. What can be done to enable proper drainage of the slot next to the step?

Location is the Seattle area, so lots of low intensity rain and dampness. The house was built in 1990, and it is in good shape but the build quality isn't the highest.

To answer both questions will require to have the concrete step removed entirely.
The water is somehow migrating up to the floor through capillary action I suppose.

To check it and fix it is still the same remedy. The step needs to be removed, downspout, as well as the siding and the corner boards. There are joints in the corner boards that will make it a bit easier to do so. No need to remove the complete corner board. Remove all the trim and siding below the door sill and in the corner that the concrete covered.

Since I have been in WA state, I have seen, typically how siding is installed under doors and steps, and this appears to be no different. In MD, it was never a good idea to place concrete directly against the wood siding, or any siding for that matter. This invited rot and insects due to harbored moisture by the concrete. I don't understand why it is done this way a lot over here, but it seems the norm. Perhaps it the condition of the trade everywhere, but i only seen it here.

Back at the matter. Under the siding there should some continuous barrier, galvanized metal is used a lot out this way, with a lot of nails holding it in place. which is the problem, holes in the face of the metal. This is what will need to be replaced. Even if it is not galvanized metal, this is the part that is failing, exacerbated by the steps.

The replacement should be a "peel and stick", self sealing membrane that covers the whole run of siding and trim that the stairs covered. It needs to go higher than the floor level on the inside, at least by a few inches, and around the corner to meet the siding under where the downspout goes back on and seal the end with caulk to the siding and place the corner board while the caulk is still wet, to bond it all together. The trick will be the door sill, sealing that. Typically the membrane is in place before the door is set and the bottom is sealed with caulk as the door is set in place. The steps can be re-poured, but they really should be kept away from the siding to keep the trapped water problem from reoccurring.


How do I provide heating to a room without existing plumbing? I have a house in the Republic of Ireland which has 2 rooms without heating. One is a Kitchen and the other is planned to be a 'breakfast' room.

(all rooms are approx 5m x 3m)

As can be (hopefully) deciphered from the sketch, there is a radiator on the other side of the concrete floored hallway, a fireplace in the breakfast room, and the main house boiler on an adjoining wall.

The Kitchen floors are tiled and I would prefer not to remove/damage them so am trying to figure out how best to heat the rooms.

(Please do ask in comments if you need more/better detail on anything. I'm trying to keep the question concise)

Just go up. The 2 ceilings get a moderate slit for a lot of drilling & short sections of piping with a wall & ceiling corner chunk-out to drop down for the new rads.

And, if the current piping is old then tie in the existing rad to avoid any near-future failures. That piping would be parallel to the joists & you'd just need a chunk-out at the bearing wall & above the existing rad.

Tedious, but gets it done & the ceilings are the easiest to repair compared to everything else.


Should porch roof pitch always match house roof pitch? This is question about design standards.

I want to build a small patio roof over a side door to our house, which happens to be the main door we use.

I wanted a gabled roof but realized it would only be able to be 8-9 ft wide or less if I were to match the house roof pitch, so I switched to a lean-to style design. That would give me the 12ft wide by 10-12 ft extension that I want, but I would need to go with a 0.5/12 pitch in order to avoid blocking too much of the view.

Now I'm back to considering a gabled roof but at a different pitch from the main house roof. That way I can get even more coverage, 14-16 ft and extend out as far as I want, say 12-14ft. This way I get both the coverage and the visibility I want.

Question: Is this an extremely non-standard design?

See Diagram below.

In NE Arkansas. We do get snow, but it usually melts away within a day or so, as 3 storms of 3-4 inches each. Plenty of rain though.

I think a lower pitch would look fine, and is in fact seems to be a common design choice for a porch. I think the grey metal roof would work better on a low slope roof than asphalt shingles, but won't be cheap.

We have a 3-in-12 pitch roof and have used good quality asphalt shingles. Perhaps I didn't demand the proper underlayment treatment and our house does have inferior roof decking at 3/8" thick plywood, but we have had problems with leaks.  The slightest dip or discontinuity in the roof decking has led to leaks.


PEX instead of good ol'copper pipe for fresh water in residential house? New Construction.  Last time I built a house (2001) I used copper water lines through the foundation for eadh location. Now I am told by a plumber that's too old school.  They now use something called PEX where only one fresh water pipe enters the the house through the foundation and the rest is plumbed (hot/cold) through the walls.  Is this a modern solution to weather freezing water lines?  Can I assume it's more expensive?

The reason this is done is because Copper costs tons more money. Otherwise the 'greatness' of it would not be a challenge to copper as copper has antimicrobial properties and is very durable.

The PEX is run through the house to keep it repairable and simple - I do not think there has been any issue with doing this.

I have heard they can run it under the slab for in house water supply.
They do run PEX in the slab for in SLAB heating.

BTW: I like the OLD SCHOOL Copper - works great in the water supply and it works great for Air Conditioning units, and definitely works great for electricity .. next thing you know the Power Lines in the house will be plastic..


Can I 'glue and screw' 1/2" and 3/8" plywood sheets to substitute for 7/8"? Replacing damaged parts of a plank floor that is 7/8" thick. Need a level surface to lay another 1/2" plywood subfloor layer. Can I 'glue and screw' a two thinner pieces of plywood (1/2" and 3/8"), or do I need to source 7/8" plywood? I would use pl premium and screws for compression between the layers. My other idea was to add 1/8" hardboard strips on top of the joists in those sections and just using 3/4" instead. Any help would be appreciated.

I wouldn’t try to laminate two pieces of plywood together.

Group 1 type plywood is rated for various spans. Using 1/2” plywood to span 16” will span the distance without failing, but will have too much defection. That is to say, it will be springy. It’s designed for 2 span installations. If it’s a one span situation, it will be noticeable.

Adding additional plywood layers does very little to decrease the deflection problem and if the adhesive is not installed correctly (and cured correctly) it could create other problems, like 1) bulging, 2) warping, 3) delaminating, etc.

I’d use 3/4” plywood with the wood strips you suggest. 3/4” plywood will be stiff enough that you could use in a single span situation and still be acceptable for ceramic tile floor, etc.

Also, remember to install with the face grain perpendicular to the joists. (Screw and glue...adhesive... to insure no squeaks.)

Also, this is for “subfloor” only. You still need an underlayment. Check with the manufacturer of your finish floor material to see what they require for an underlayment. (It’s different for ceramic tile, vinyl, etc.)


Can I use Wago connectors to extend a ring main? I need to extend a 32Amp ring-main. Can I use Wago connectors to tap and extend the existing ring?

Yes, but a few points need to be observed to make sure it complies with BS7671  IET 17th Edition.
Firstly, the terminals must be installed in a Wagobox (when breaking into existing ring wiring). This needs to be UK sourced to ensure you get ones that are stamped with [MF], meaning that it's classed as BS 5733 Maintenance Free box.
To comply with the IET regulations, each Wagobox is limited to 50Amps in total. The compatible terminals, 773(solid) and 222 (lever), are also derated to 20Amps.
Therefore, for a regular 32Amp ring main, you will need to use two Wagoboxes - one at the start and one at the end of the extension. As the load from any socket is shared in both directions of the ring (albeit unevenly), the derated 20Amp terminals are sufficient.
Before:
                         +---------+
     L                   |         |
    +--------------------+  |   |  +-----------+
    |                    | - - - - |           |
    |                    |         |           |
+---+---------+          +---------+           |
|             |                                |
|  Consumer   |                                |
|  Unit       |                                |
|             |                                |
|             |                                |
+---+---------+          +---------+           |
    |                    |         |           |
    +--------------------+  |   |  +-----------+
     L                   | - - - - |
                         |         |
                         +---------+

After:
                         +---------+           +-----------+
     L                   |         |           |           |
    +--------------------+  |   |  +-----------+  Wagobox  +--------+
    |                    | - - - - |           +-----------+        |
    |                    |         |                           +----+----+
+---+---------+          +---------+                           |         |
|             |                                                |  |   |  |
|  Consumer   |                                                | - - - - |
|  Unit       |                                                |         |
|             |                                                +----+----+
|             |                                                     |
+---+---------+          +---------+           +-----------+        |
    |                    |         |           |           |        |
    +--------------------+  |   |  +-----------+  Wagobox  +--------+
     L                   | - - - - |           +-----------+
                         |         |
                         +---------+


Can you tile on finished plaster wall in a shower? My house was built in 1925, it has plaster walls. The area around the bathtub/shower is only tiled halfway up the wall. We recently hired someone to finish the tiling up to the showerhead, and he placed the tiles directly on the wall. I'd assumed he would cut out the wall and put in cement board or something. It appeared that he did no waterproofing before adhering the tiles. Is this ok? Is it ok to install tile directly on plaster walls in a shower? He also cut a hole into the wall to build a box for shampoo and whatnot, and he did this with wood. I am worried about having moisture problems as a result of this. I hired this tiler in a hurry, and did not do much research. I'm not sure what I was thinking.

I have repaired tile jobs that were over 20 years old that the tile was applied directly to regular sheetrock and plaster walls. This was back in the 80's. It used to be very common to put tile up on whatever the wall was and seal the the tile. More recently I have seen some contractors still put tile up with out a backer board to save $ for the owner especially for flipping a property. Is it the best way? NO. Will it work? Yes. Maybe several decades if well sealed. All the frame work around showers and tubs I have installed has been wood, again if sealed it will last for quite a while if there is a slight angle to prevent water from pooling on the ledge or box. You should have received a quote prior to the start of work that you agreed to (the law in my state) it should define the scope of work and materials. For what it is worth if cement backer is not included the contractor may be matching the existing tile job.


Adding more water for longer working time for 5 minute joint compound? Ideally one would use the joint compound with the desired setting time, together with the recommended amount of water for mixing. However, a few times I added more water when mixing products like SheetRock Easy Sand 5 Lightweight Setting-Type Joint Compound to gain longer working time, the result turned out fine. I added enough water until it is almost runny. The mix probably remained usable for 20-30 mins. I'm curious what may be the downsides to this practice.

Most of the compounds I've used usually say you can a little more or less water depending on what the application is for. Like Stove Top Stuffing: add a little more water for more moist stuffing or less for dryer stuffing. If you add too much water to your compounds, then you'll end up with compound soup and it just won't stick to the wall.


What is the first step in fitting a switch to existing wiring? Below is an image of cables previously connected to a double light switch at a building in the UK. The occupant wanted to know why there was an additional white cable and how to go about fitting a new switch.

What would be the first step, and what should be done with the additional cable if it cannot be identified?

It may be necessary and almost certainly will be safer to hire a qualified electrician.

The first step in diagnosing this problem is to identify the conductors.

You have a multimeter, but you should check that your leads, probes, and the meter itself are rated for mains voltage. Switch off the entire electrical supply at the consumer unit or main isolator switch. Use a voltage tester or--at a minimum--a neon test screwdriver, to verify that each conductor in the back box and at light fittings is dead. Do not conduct the following test on a live installation. Turn off all circuits.

One way of identifying conductors is to connect the live and earth and/or neutral and earth wires of a single cable together using a terminal block or similar at one end, then at the other end, test continuity between the L+E or N+E with your multimeter. You can discount the possibility of an existing short by testing continuity between the conductors before connecting them together at one end.

In your case, you need to know which of your red and black wires go to/from light fixtures, and which are live or neutral feeds. Given the age of the installation, it is unlikely you will have a neutral at the switch.

You may not be able to identify the additional white-sheathed twin and earth cable in the back box, so strip it back and terminate each conductor. Do not connect them together, do not tape them, and do not leave it unterminated. If you can identify it, and find that it is dead, you may be able to cut it back or remove it completely, thus avoiding future confusion.

Once you have identified the conductors, you will be able to connect a switch according to the manufacturer's instructions.


GU10 socket re-wiring Does anyone know if it is possible to rewire GU10 light bulb socket? When I was changing the bulb last time one wire got disconnected (see attached).

If you were to go to an online retailer such as Amazon looking for a replacement GU10 Porcelain socket you will quickly learn a few points:

They are not particularly expensive. Often batches of then are showing for 8 to 12 USD. Individual sockets for in the 3 to 4 USD range.
Virtually all of them come with two short pigtail wires that are crimp connected to the socket. (Unless the unit is a socket type adapter to regular Edison bulb base).
There are two general styles. One is the plain porcelain socket and the other has a metal bracket on the rear to attach it to a threaded tube type mount.

For your replacement get the appropriate type of unit with its pigtail leads. Then:

Demount the light fixture shroud from the ceiling and disconnect the old lamp wires from the permanent wiring in the electrical junction box. (These old wires would be connected with wire nuts or other type of wire coupling depending upon your region).
Clean up the fixture shroud and mount the new socket to the shroud with the pigtail wires sticking out the back.
Connect the new pigtail wires to the permanent wiring in the electrical box. Use new wiring couplers or wire nuts if needed.
Remount the light fixture shroud up to the ceiling.


Which valves should I close when blowing out my sprinklers for the winter? I was thinking of blowing out my own sprinklers this year because it seemed pretty straight forward and I am handy enough to do it. I get the basics: shut off main water, connect air compressor to system, open one zone at a time. Here is a picture of my backflow system. From what I would assume, I would turn off the valve to the right (probably the main shutoff), keep the valve on the left open and make an air compressor fitting for the pipe coming off of it that is capped currently. Does this seem correct? This is the box the sprinkler people go to for spring and winter maintenance.

Your plan seems reasonable.
Some things to note:

The four little stubs sticking off the bottom are valves - probably ball valves. They could have water trapped inside the ball, so you'll want to blow those out and/or leave them open when you're finished to prevent the valve itself freezing.
The main valve is also a ball and will have water inside it too. There should be another valve somewhere in a freeze-proof location -- either inside the house or a few feet below ground out in the yard. It's find to close the right-hand valve here while doing the blow-out, but you'll want to leave the upstream valve closed and this one open when the job is finished.


Installing new toilet. Does the wax ring have to fit snug around the hole in the underside of the toilet? I got a new toilet complete with installation kit.  The illustrations on the directions appear to say to apply the wax ring around the drain opening beneath the toilet then set the toilet down on the floor over the pipe and apply equal pressure on each side.  The illustrations are also drawn in such a way that it appears the wax ring fits perfectly snug around the toilet's drain opening, but the center of wax ring that came with mine is far larger than the opening under the new toilet.

Does it have to fit snug or will it even out and expand once I set the toilet down and apply pressure as instructed?

The wax ring should seat so that no waste material can get out from around the drain when the toilet is seated on it.  When in place, it should look like this:

Now you may have purchased a wax ring that did not have the gasket built in, like such:

If so, and you get the sense that leaks are likely to happen, you should go ahead and clean that out and get the flanged kind.

Also, yes, when you apply pressure, it will smoosh out some, to create a seal, but the seal is intended to be between the floor and the toilet - it will not fill in gaps in the drain itself - that's the purpose of the flange.

Hope that helps!


Something in my home is making my family sick. How do I determine what it is? My wife and I moved into a new rental house two months ago. Our small dog, my wife, and myself have all started experiencing symptoms such as headaches, runny nose, constant congestion, cold-like swelling in the sinuses, neck, and throat, general head-cold-like symptoms, and allergies (dog sneezing included); the dog had exhibited very strange and constant anxiety, lack of appetite, and an erratic bathroom and feeding schedule (all of which were previously extremely predictable). All three of us have also experienced extremely erratic and poor-quality sleep.

We had not considered that the house was to blame until we left for a week-long vacation. The dog stayed with my parents; all of our problems were alleviated by the third day of being away from the home, and all of our problems returned within two days of being back in the home. This is what made us suspect the home or something inside it was the cause. Being sick or having symptoms of illness for nearly two solid months except the time we were away from our home for a period of days. My wife and I get sick very irregularly (my wife, for example, only twice in the last six years she has lived in this city), and none of us have any allergies, seasonal or otherwise.

Needless to say, it's quite frustrating and worrying.

I do not know what it is about the house that is causing these problems, but I would like to work with my property management company to get it fixed or to work out an exit from our lease and find a new place to live. How do I determine the problem? I called a general home inspector and their only suggestion was a mold and termite inspector. If it is not mold, what other possibilities are there, and is there a certain type of inspector or inspection I should look for to diagnose the cause of our health problems?

There could be several factors that may be contributing to the situation. It sounds like an air quality problem. This could be caused by airborne mold spores, chemical contamination from bad paint or flooring adhesives (VOC's) etc. , CO from a malfunctioning heating or A/C unit or something from outside getting in. I have had to address this problem with some customers in the past. We contracted an air quality testing from a local environmental testing lab. In your case, I would first consult with the management of the property. Explain the situation, confirm your conversations in writing, (document, document, document) and see if they will contract this service. If they won't for some reason, then I would have it done privately. Depending on the results and plan for mitigation, these costs should be reimbursed by the landlord. At minimum, it would give just cause to break the lease. If the results are bad and the management won't work with you, share the results with your local code enforcement office as they may help you and require the management to fix the problem.
Once the type of irritant is identified, then the cause will be much easier to find.  Good Luck.


Can I run a #12 outlet branch and a #14 light branch off a 30A breaker? Was wondering if i can feed an entire room with one 30 amp breaker, 10/2 to an attic junction box, then break out 12/2 for outlet daisy chain (four 15 amp-type outlets) and 14/2 for a light circuit.

If you really want that, you can use an MWBC
It sounds like you want to throw more than 20A into a room. That can be done.  But you really, really need to bone up on the particulars of Code, because this is easy to dangerously botch.
You can use a multi-wire branch circuit, which uses a /3 cable to provide 2 hots and a common neutral.  You are able to then fork this circuit, and either split it into two separate 120V circuits at its first stop, or carry it along for awhile as a dual circuit, serving each socket on alternating hot/neutrals.  (don't split sockets; that used to be clever, but it doesn't work with GFCI receptacles, USB, smart receptacles etc.  So you paint the next guy into a corner if you do that.)
The MWBC can be 15A with #14 wire, or 20A with #12 wire.  Dual 20A in a bedroom is certainly going to take care of both the high-end gaming PC and the window A/C unit you'll need to remove the heat. Dual 15A is a cheap way to get that 30A.
There are some special rules for MWBC.

Must be a 2-pole breaker (or handle-tied breaker configured as a 2-pole, to guarantee opposite poles: 240V between the hots).  240V between hots is a good thing and vitally important to not overloading the shared neutral.
Neutral wires must be pigtailed at each outlet or switch, anywhere both sides are present -- you cannot use a device as a splice because if you removed the device, you'd sever neutral.   Like using the 2 screws on a receptacle; that's right out.

Now, the 2-pole breaker requirement may have a funny intersection with Code.  Nevada is the lone holdout still on 2011 NEC, probably because they don't like the "GFCI/AFCI on darn near everything" requirements of 2014 NEC.  So here you go

210.12 Arc-Fault Circuit-Interrupter Protection.
(A) Dwelling Units. All 120-volt, single phase, 15- and 20-ampere branch circuits supplying outlets installed in dwelling unit family rooms, dining rooms, living rooms, parlors, libraries, dens, bedrooms,           sunrooms, recreation rooms, closets, hallways, or similar rooms or areas shall be protected by a listed arc-fault circuit interrupter [AFCI breaker], combination-type, installed to provide protection of the branch circuit.

I pulled this off a forum post from 9/21/11, so I definitely didn't give  you NEC 2014 by mistake.
So this requires a 2-pole breaker that is also AFCI, or some panel makers implement this as two handle-tied* breakers which are AFCI.
I hate stiff wire
If you don't mind some light pipefitting, there's a cure for that.  It's called EMT conduit.  Outside of a special bender, all you need is a hacksaw and some patience.  Then you get to run individual wires (which are individually not nearly as stiff) -- and you also get to use stranded wire, which is not stiff at all, and a sheer pleasure to use. It's difficult to attach to screws, but simply pigtail those with solid wire - easy.
You can transition from Romex to EMT at any junction box.  Simply enter the Romex into the junction box with a listed cable clamp, and splice it onto the EMT wires.
By literal Code, if the run between the service panel and the first outlet is metal conduit, you can use AFCI receptacles which are much cheaper than AFCI breakers.  From there you can use /2 Romex.  Because it's MWBC, you'd want a 2-gang junction box and put both AFCIs there.  (I recommend a 4-11/16" square box with an offset mud-ring, since it has enough space for AFCI/GFCI, and the right face to mount AFCI/GFCI devices).

210.12(A) Exception No. 1: If RMC, IMC, EMT, Type MC, or steel armored Type AC cables meeting the requirements of 250.118 and metal outlet and junction boxes are installed for the portion of the branch circuit between the branch circuit overcurrent device and the first outlet, it shall be permitted to install an outlet branch-circuit type AFCI at the first outlet to provide protection for the remaining portion of the branch circuit.

Oh, but I really want to run 30A+
Subpanel.  You run the feed size of your choice to a subpanel (in an allowable location), then branch off all the 15A/#14 circuits you please.

* Literally, it says that a pair of breakers with handle-ties listed by the manufacturer will also suffice, but you must make sure this puts the breakers' outputs on opposite poles so there is 240V between the hots.
By the way, a 2-pole breaker is much more than two 1-poles with a factory assembled handle tie.  It also has an internal mechanism to ensure common trip.  That is not required for MWBCs.


How can I get all the water to go down the drain in this sink? I have this sink, which is sort of inclined to the back, causing water to build up on the back part. Here's a picture

The sink can't be replaced easily as it is cast along with the kitchen counter. Is there any way I can get all the water to go into the drain?

Hard to tell from that picture, but you may be able to shim the cabinets to make the sink and countertop more level.

If not, you can (if the sink bottom is not too thin) grind it (diamond will take on anything, but silicon carbide is a lot cheaper, so try that first) to fix the slope - but it looks like you'll also have to remove and reseat the drain - the strainer appears to sit up from the sink bottom, where it should sit down into it for proper drainage.


Could I move a piano ALONE this way? To move a piano from a first floor to another first floor, using a pickup truck, it seems like a ramp, a strong rope and some pulleys, and a furniture dolly would suffice. Plus a basketball and pump (as seen on youtube) and a few boards.

Place the deflated basketball under the end of the piano (an upright) and pump it up till the end is higher than the dolly. Slide a log or stack of board underneath and deflate the ball. Raise the other end and slide the dolly underneath. Remove ball and log and strap piano to dolly.

Roll piano to door of house and use a 12' ramp to go down porch steps. (Only if a few feet, not intended for long stairway. ) First Rig a rope through 3 pulleys: one attached to the dolly, two attached by a rope to a board spanning the doorway. The free end of the rope is held while walking alongside the piano.  Start the piano down the ramp and slowly let out the rope. The ramp will cut the force to 1/3 or 1/4 the weight of the piano while the 3:1 mechanical advantage of the block and tackle arrangement will cut it by 1/9 again. A 500 lb. upright requires only  55 lbs. of force. If the rope length runs out partway down the ramp, chock the wheels of the dolly and adjust the position of the pulleys.

Roll piano to truck, set up ramp and block & tackle again and pull piano up onto truck bed. Strap down piano securely. At new location ramp up front steps and roll to desired room. Remove dolly using basketball again as before.

Seems like this could be a one man job, am I forgetting something?

No.

The only time you should be moving a piano alone is if you can pick it up.

Whatever you're thinking about doing with a basketball is absolutely bat crazy.... I kinda stopped reading after that.


Minor cracks on my dry wall baseboard I purchased a 2008 built home 6 months ago and now I am seeing some cracks throughout the house. I been using chalk to cover up but don’t know what’s causing this. I have my heat set to 66-70 degrees Fahrenheit during winter. I noticed this during winter including bathroom on main level, living room, basement.
Any help would be appreciated. I am little freaking out.
[![enter image description here][1]][1]
[1]: https://i.stack.imgur.com/J2Fu5.jpg![enter image description here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/PtHby.jpg)

It is not unusual to have some shrinkage of wood in the winter, and also over time.  Both the cold temperature and the dry winter air will cause materials, especially materials that hold water like wood, to shrink.  Framing lumber will react this way, as well as your base board itself, especially if they were not at a low moisture level when they were installed.
If you had much larger gaps, I might begin to wonder if something more serious is at fault, but your picture doesn't concern me in the least.  It is just one of those things that houses go through.
I wouldn't use chalk to fill the gap however, unless that was a typo. "Caulk", or rather a paint-able latex sealant is the way to go.  Use painters tape on both sides of the crack (to avoid cleanup), and press the sealant down into gap a bit, wipe it flush.  Touch up with paint if necessary, but with a white baseboard and masking off the sides during install, you may not need to.


How do I get rid of these bees/wasps in my sunroom? Found this in my sunroom this morning:

It's hard to see (I didn't want too get too close) but the bees are really strange looking - very long almost like 2 bees connected in a row.

I know there's Wasp Killer, Hornet Killer, General Bee Killer, etc. Want to make sure I use the right product that kills them dead.

That is a very small nest. Since the sunroom is indoors, I would not recommend using wasp spray, especially if the label on the can recommends against indoor use.

1) They'll be back if you do not plug their entry way into your sunroom.

2) Insecticide spray is not necessary.  Just knock the nest down with a broom handle or similar, then leave the sunroom, closing the door behind you.  The few that might be in the nest will calm down and may exit the sunroom to the outdoors.  If not, they can killed with a flyswatter or kitchen towel.


Element wattage for electric radiators I'm looking for clarity about electric towel rails/radiators and wattages. Hope you can help.
I want to connect a heated electric only towel rail into a circuit that has a smart home 'puck' switch rated for a maximum of 400 watts.
Our bathroom requires roughly 1700 BTU (500W), according to online calculators, for a short period. There is a limited amount of underfloor heating so I'm keen to meet as much of this as I can with a towel rail, balanced against size and style.
I've read about how the delta rating affects the stated heat output of radiators in BTUs. The BTU figure is then often converted into watts. The products I'm looking at range from 1503-1649 (439-482W).
However this isn't the required input wattage, that is clearly governed by the element inside.
I've learned that the appropriate element is given by diving the (delta50) output wattage by 1.81 https://www.designerradiatorshowroom.co.uk/product-category/accessories/elements/
https://www.onlyradiators.co.uk/blog/buying-guides/dual-fuel-towel-rail-buying-guide
My question is basically is this right, why, how is it possible?! It seems bizarre to me to use a 250W element to meet a 500W heating need. Presumably the radiator never gets close to it output rating? I guess the only way it does this is by being on twice as long? What am I missing?
Or, to look at it another way how does a 250W element product over 482W of heat?
I presume this has something to do with BTU (energy) and W (power) and time but I'm baffled.
Will my 400W switch be ok?
Please can someone explain?
Writing to the radiator vendors and makers has so far not gotten me an answer!
Thanks in advance for any thoughts you have.

A supplier has told me

"The Delta/BTU only relate to a radiator that is on central heating
and wouldn't apply to an electric radiator. A 400w would simply build
up too much pressure and put your radiator at risk of blowing. The
element won't change the heat that is generated in the radiator. The
watt of the element is due to it being a closed system and nowhere for
the excess pressure to be released. The element will produce the heat
output that is determined by the rad surface area, not on the size of
the element. It will build temperature to the maximum without causing
to much pressure and resulting in the radiator leaking or even worse
bursting!  A 150W element is recommended for this electric only radiator."

I'm still baffled by this logic and would really like to understand it.

These are dual-fuel radiators.  Meaning they actually can use heat from two different sources, which is why the numbers aren't adding up the way you expect.
In their standard mode of operation, they work just like a traditional radiator on a hot water heating system -- water is heated in a central boiler, then pumped through radiators throughout the building.  This is what the output heat spec is referring to -- if you run near-boiling water through this radiator, it'll output that much heat (482W in your example).  In this mode, electricity is not used at all.
Where the electric element comes into play is when the central boiler is shut off -- in the summer, for example, you may not need or want nearly as much heat as the central boiler creates, but you may still want some.  So for this use case, an electric heating element is turned on.  This element could theoretically be any size, but since the use case for electric is for when only a little heat is needed, the manufacturer decided to use elements 1.8x smaller than the radiator's output when using hot water.  So, when using electricity only, your example heater will only put out 250W.  And since the electric mode only uses 250W, your 400W rated smart switch should work fine.


Is there a recessed floor box for a water supply? You know how they have those floor boxes that set in concrete with a  flush cover, and when you open it there's electrical outlets inside, but when closed it's flat like the floor and not in the way? (like this)

Do they make something like that for water? Something that can go in the floor of the garage or utility room with a metal cover on top that can get walked on but not tripped over... but if you want a hose, you can flip the cover up and screw a hose into it?

I'm fairly certain I've seen something like this in a commercial setting before, but have no idea what it's called, and Google is returning garbage as usual. Do they make these? What are they called?

My immediate thought for this is a quick connect valve that you normally see in commercial irrigation for remote hose connections.  These are seen outside where a water hose needs to be connected temporarily.  There are two parts - a quick connect valve, and a brass pipe that locks into the valve.  They are sold in the irrigation/automatic sprinkler section of home stores.

Link to valve, Link to key

This could be installed in the floor inside of any kind of standard floor box.  These are cheap, and it has few moving parts so it should be pretty maintenance free.  You can connect the hose to the end of the pipe (key), so you don't have to get down on your hands and knees to screw on a hose.  The quick connect only takes a second (literally) to snap in, and you're ready to use your hose.

If its not clear, you lift the black plastic hood of the valve.  The valve is spring loaded.  The key portion inserts into the valve a few inches and you turn in 90 degrees to lock it in place.


I'm thinking of upgrading to a 200 amp service I have a 60 amp main breaker with the following breakers in the panel.

One 50 amp for range
One 30 amp for water heater
One 30 amp breaker for clothes dryer
Eight 20 amp breakers for appliances
Five 15 amp for lights.

What size panel do I need?  And does the eletric company have to change the street line, or just the meter?

If you are in the USA, the National Electrical Code is used in most areas as the standard for electrical installations. The NEC requires a minimum of 100 amps for a dwelling service.

From there, it only goes higher with the default for most medium to large homes being 200 amps. Without doing a full load calculation most homeowners choose the 200 amp panel that will be almost the same price as a 125 to 175 amp panel.

In most areas, the utility is responsible for the wire to the service drop, or meter socket if it is underground, but the homeowner is responsible for the meter socket on into the house. So, if they decide to upgrade their wiring it is up to the utility. In my area, the utility provides meter sockets for free but the homeowner or contractor must install it.

Good luck!


Cleaning Up Matted Down Foliage In Tight Space This is my bulkhead area after the winter. I didn't really get a chance to get in there and clean out all the leaves before the snow came in, so I'm stuck with all the compressed dead leaves and debris you can see in the picture below. I eventually want to fill this area with small stone or something, but that's a project for another day.

This area's too tight for me to get in with a rake and a leafblower would be completely ineffective since a lot of the debris is so wet and stuck down.

Suggestions for how to clean this mess?

A "stirrup hoe" or one of the ones with a very narrow blade tapering to a point could work.

I've got a tool that I generally call my "grub hoe" because it looks somewhat like the ones used by forest fire crews. It has a narrow hoe blade on one side, almost like an adze (except I wouldn't use it for shaping logs), and a three-tine rake on the other side.

It's kinda handy. I can look for a brand name on it, if you want to know more.


Current state of the art foundation waterproofing I'm getting ready to dig up my yard and expose my foundation to waterproof it. What is the current state of the art for foundation waterproofing? I don't mean the stuff in a bucket that is typically spread on with a brush, but a true waterproofing system I know will work. I am also going to put in a drain tile below the footer. What have you done or had done to your house? What systems require a contractor? (hot tar?)

Second question: When I go to back fill, do I put gravel right up against the foundation, up to near the surface? How much gravel?

Current state of the art is a dimpled drainage mat applied against the foundation and lapped over the footing, with a drainage pipe at the bottom to carry off water. The pipes can drain to daylight if there's enough slope on your lot, to a sump pit, or to the sewer/waste plumbing if that's legal in your location. The whole thing looks like this:


very confused on the wiring for recessed lighting Trying to retrofit LED can lights by bypassing the ballast. First light I retrofitted had 1 white, 1 black, and one green ground wire in the junction box, along with 2 red and 2 blue leading to the fixture. wired 1 blue and 1 red to the black and white and the light worked perfectly!!!

Next light however, was a problem. the 2 lines coming into the junction box had 2 lines coming out of each; both black AND white. The black from one line was connected to the white of the other and vise versa.

At first I connected both whites together and both blacks, but when I turned the breaker back on it immediately tripped.

Then I connected 1 black and one white from each similar to how it looked before I started messing with it and the breaker still tripped. So I separated all lines and capped them off so I could use the rest of the lights in the kitchen and the breaker works fine. I have no idea what to do, and I don't really know anything about electrical work.

Any ideas?

Oh, why on earth did you do that?

Wires are not color coded for the benefit of novice installers.  They are color coded because cables only come one way: with black and white wires.   Those wires serve a wide variety of functions, but they are always black and white because cables are; they are not color coded by function unless you do this yourself with colored tape. (Which I in fact do).

You took apart wires you did not need to take apart.  You saw a black wire from the ceiling connected to only a white wire from the ceiling: it was not connected to the ballast in any way whatsoever, yet you felt you just had to dismantle it anyway.

I call this "trying to learn electrical by dismantling your house".  Seems pretty silly when I put it that way, but it made sense at the time, I'm sure.

Another thing that often bites novices is the sense that the guy who did this work previously is an idiot.  Maybe, but you certainly are in no position to judge.

Unfortunately, reversing this mistake is hard.  It may be time to call an electrician in.

If you really, really want to press forward, then identify the two cables in this box.  Select one cable and identify the white and black from that one cable.  Connect the lamp's hot and neutral to those two wires  alone, leaving the others capped off.  If that doesn't bring it to life, try the other cable.

In the future

Pay close attention to how things were wired before, and only touch the things you actually have to.

In this particular case, you should be unhooking all the wires coming out of the ballast, and coiling then up and wrapping them with tape to get them out of the way, so they are out of sight and out of mind.  I don't like cutting wires on functioning ballasts. At that point, when you exclude those wires, there should 2 places that the black and white from the ballast went to. Those are the only 2 places you are concerned with, keep your schnozz out of everything else.

Oh, and know the other thing that will save you an electrician call.   When replacing receptacles, check to see if the tabs are broken off.


Plywood plate for mounting to wall I would like to attach a projector arm to my drywall, but the mounting plate of the arm is a bit wider than a wall stud.

http://www.amazon.com/Pyle-PRJWM8-Universal-Telescoping-Adjustment/dp/B00LP3E4JO

Thus, I would like to create an intermediate plywood mounting plate that I can screw into the wall at a stud, and then mount the projector arm to that intermediate plate.

I am looking for advice about what hardware to use for each step of the process: what kind of screws or bolts should I use to attach the plywood plate to my wall? How long should they be? Should I pre-drill holes?

And then how should I screw the actual  projector arm mounting plate  into that plywood plate? Should I pre-drill holes? Should I use the drywall anchors that came with the projector mounting kit?

The best situation here would be to make the plywood plate large enough so that it spans across at least two studs. This will determine the horizontal span of the plywood. The vertical span should be not less than about 0.75 times the horizontal span.

The plywood material needs to be hefty enough to be able to take the fasteners needed for the arm assembly. I would use a minimum thickness of 3/4" for the plywood and use a type that has more layers than less. Select something that is going to be solid without internal gaps that some cheap stuff has. Here is a picture of what could be considered a decent grade of plywood.

You would anchor the plywood to the studs in at least six places. That would be three per stud. Assuming that the studs are wood you would use wood screws for this attachment. Flat head wood screws of the #10 or #12 size are what is called for here. The screws should be long enough so that they penetrate into the stud material itself two inches. Do not forget to add the thickness of the wall covering (drywall) to the length of the screws. You do want to pre-drill a clearance hole through the plywood for the body size of the wood screws. Also countersink the head side of the hole just enough so that the heads will draw down to just below the surface of the plywood so that you can later fill over the heads and paint the surface to look nice. There should also be pilot drill sized holes sunk into the studs where the screws will be installed. The size is determined by the minor diameter of the screw at the base of its threads.

For mounting the arm bracket I would suggest that you not try to screw into the plywood plate. Instead I would suggest that you pre-install fasteners for the bracket from the back side of the plywood before mounting it to the wall. There are two types of fastener applicable here. One is to use a T-Nut that pounds into a clearance hole from the back side. Sharp tines on the T-Nut secure it to the plywood and keep it from turning. The other approach would be to use carriage bolts. These have a shallow round head and a square section under the head that is pounded into the hole to keep the bolt from turning when applying nuts and washers from the other end. I would recommend 5/16" sized T-Nut or carriage bolt. Here are images of a T-Nut and a carriage bolt.

The bracket fasterners need to be secured to the plywood before the plywood is mounted to the wall. T-Nuts would give a better finished look as you would be using short 5/16" bolts and flat washers to attach the bracket to the plywood plate. On the otherhand the bracket attachment to the carriage bolts would be done with nuts and flat washers.

The short bolts that are used with T-Nuts would look similar to the following picture. The length of the threaded portion of the bolt would be about the thickness of the plywood so that it does not bottom out and dig into the wall surface under the plywood.

For both the fastener applications that I suggested you want to make sure to use a sturdy flat washer that will span across the holes on the bracket.


GFCI breaker has no power? When I place GFCI breaker into panel and turn the power on, there is no power that I can measure on the hot leg. I measure it between white wire (neutral) and the hot leg. Yes, the pigtail white wire is connected to neutral. Tried 3 different GFCI, none of them worked. Regular one has power and measures around 130V. Disconnected everything from panel, took all breakers (3) out and just tested old breaker, and they used 2 more that I bought. Same result.

Background: This is a sub-panel by the pool, that is connected to main panel in the garage via 6AWG wires to a double pole 50 amp breaker. Wires are all in conduit, connections glued. About 30 feet is underground. There are 4 wires, green, white, red, black, rated underground. This has worked without any issues for 2 years, no changes, no digging, no drilling nothing. Just one day, double pole breaker outputs no electricity. I tried resetting it several times, and sometimes it stays engaged, sometimes it does not. Testing works, pressing test button reset is (when it initially stays up). Single pole GFCI breaker will not even stay engaged. I measured voltage between hot legs and neutral at the entrance to subpanel, both have power, 130V.

I disconnected green (ground) and white (neutral) and measured resistance and it shows 0 Ohms. Does this mean that there is short between white and green? Is there a way to confirm this?

UPDATE
Well, I feel stupid now, and I apologize to all of you who wasted your time trying to help me. So, here is what happened, my daughter tripped the GFCI breaker in the panel manually, she thought it was a light switch. So, after spending some time yesterday disconnecting everything it dawned on me that in my foolishness I never put the breaker all the way down to reset it. Bahhhh, live and learn. Mind you that I built the whole pool, wiring, plumbing, deck .. everything with my own 2 hands, and then I waste 4 hours of my life on something so stupid.

Uh-oh. Your voltage (hot to neutral) should not be 130V anywhere except a few countries where 127V is common.

Start by measuring across the two hot "legs" in your panel.  This value should be 220-240V, tending toward the latter, e.g. 238V.

Now measure each leg to neutral, these should be very close to half that, and very close to each other, e.g. 118-120V.

If they are not, but the two values add up to the first number, you have a very dangerous condition called a "lost neutral": the two "hots" are good, so 240V machines are happy.   But the "neutral" is floating, and voltage on each leg is going to vary all over the map as the loads change, e.g. 171V and 67V, which will cause your appliances to catch fire.  If you have this, shut off the main breaker now and unplug everything 120V or 120/240 until you fix it for good.

In light of your dryer error, a more likely possibility is that you have lost a leg of "hot".  In this case, all the 120V circuits on that leg will be out, while the ones on the other leg work fine.  240V-only appliances will not work.  120/240 appliance controls may work, but the heaters won't.  This is not an emergency in the same way as a lost neutral.

You may be having this problem with your entire house, it may have only appeared first at the pool.  I gather your dryer is not at poolside.

The answer for any kind of "lost" wire is to give the panel a thorough take-apart and inspection.  Look for loose screws (prticularly on heavy-wire lugs), corroded or arced contacts on breakers, burnt busbar, etc.

If you have a smart meter, good chance the power company can turn it off remotely using their SCADA system with a phone call.

White to green: In a properly wired house to code, with the main breaker off, resistance between neutral and ground should be as close to zero as your meter can detect.  Voltage should be zero obviously.  However, if any circuit is on, all bets are off. Voltage may be somewhat more than zero (but not more than 6 volts), which will make it impossible to measure resistance.


Why is electricity turning off as soon as fixture is connected I have an older home where the vanity light fixture wires came out of the wall (with no box). I've decided to change the fixture and have also added an electrical box. Now When I turn the switch on, the pen tester gives me the beeping, so I must have electricity coming in. The problem is as soon as soon as I connect the wires for the light fixture, for some reason the electricity is gone (I put the tester on the hot wire and nothing). What might be causing this?

In the interest of full disclosure:

No breakers are tripping (I don't have to reset anything, as soon as I remove the fixture the wire is hot again).
The wires are not crossed
The fixture is working fine (I've connected it elsewhere and it works).

Thanks in advance for all your help.. I know I've likely made a silly mistake, and really appreciate your help.

In layman's terms: "Pen testers" will detect an induced voltage in a conductor. Similar to a static voltage. As soon as you put a load on that conductor the voltage does not have any power behind it so it disappears. (Imagine trying to use a 9 volt battery to start your car. There is voltage there, but very little power.) If you have a solenoid meter (wiggy) or a digital multimeter you will get a more accurate reading. Which apparently is zero, since when you connect the fixture the voltage disappears.

Recheck your wiring. If you added an electrical box I would suspect that first. Caution, a white wire running to a switch is NOT a neutral wire. It is used to supply the switch with power and the black returns from the switch. The white should be re-identified with tape as black.

Good luck!


Can I use a chest freezer in an unconditioned garage which often gets very hot and humid? Do I have to do anything special to use a chest freezer in a garage in Florida which often gets very hot and humid?

No you don't need to do anything special. People have freezers in houses that are not air conditioned after all.

Obviously keeping it powered and the door closed as much as possible will help keep a stable temperature.


How to seal a hole in a plastic bottle properly? I have to pass a 6mm diameter metal tube through a hole in a plastic bottle (common PET coke bottle) and seal it very well. I have a bottle with a 6mm hole that I did with a Proxxon FBS 240/E and a Grinding bit and the metal tube is thigh passing through the tube.

My question is: What is the best way to seal this hole against water and oil? Relative pressure from inside to outside is expected to be something not really big.

The iron tube is not expected to move but it can happen often, so it will be good to have some mechanical resistance in this, if possible (only if possible).

Every suggestion is welcome :)

PETE is hard to bond to.  It does contract if you melt it, so here's an experiment to try (it may take several attempts to get the feel of how the plastic behaves at the melting point, but at least for the bottles, you have an endless supply):

In the area of the tube that will be next to the bottle wall, wrap a strip cut from another bottle many times tightly around the tube (the layers directly on top of each other), and hold it in place temporarily by wrapping a piece of wire around it or using a soldering iron to melt the end to the next layer.  Melt the windings with a heat gun until the layers flow together into a solid collar and let it cool.  See if it becomes mechanically tight enough that you would expect it to be water tight (if it can't be moved).

If so, slide the tube into the bottle from the inside so the collar is against the bottle.  Wrap another strip around the tube on the outside, against the bottle, and repeat the process.  Use the heat conducted by the tube to remelt the first collar and the wall of the bottle to fuse everything together, but not so much that it falls apart.

If you can't pass the tube through from the inside of the bottle, try this just fusing the wall of the bottle to the first collar on the outside.  You can experiment with adding a PETE washer cut from another bottle on the inside to provide additional wall material in the melting area.  It also might help to stick a metal washer on the tube on inside, against the wall, to help evenly heat the wall material to fuse it to the collar.  If the bottle's neck is still in place, working on the inside may not be practical, but you could still add the PETE washer on the outside for extra wall material.
If the first approach doesn't pan out, I would stick the tube through the bottle and seal it on the inside like this (if the bottle's neck is still in place and you can't access the wall inside at the tube, you could do this on the outside, but it wouldn't be nearly as effective):

Put a fairly thick band of silicone rubber (RTV or silicone caulk), on the bottle wall around the tube, getting it onto the tube.  Put a loose-fitting metal washer on the tube and press it against the rubber, hard enough to spread the silicone flat behind the washer and squeeze a little rim of silicone out around the washer's edge.  Silicone should also fill the washer's hole around the tube.  Add a little more silicone to seal the tube to the washer.

If you do this on the inside, any pressure will enhance the seal.  If you have to do it on the outside, you're relying on the bond between the silicone and the PETE, and that may not be great, especially if the tube might be moved.
Still another approach is to not use the bottle's wall; use the cap, instead.  You can pass the tube through the cap (or even multiple things through the cap, and then orient them as needed inside the bottle.  The cap seals water- (and pressure-) tight.  If the bottle is vertical, you may not even need to worry about how water-tight the tube is in the cap.  Otherwise, use silicone rubber to seal the tube to the cap on the inside of the cap (so any pressure enhances the seal).

If you also need mechanical strain relief, the plastic caps can be welded together by fusing them with heat.  Weld two caps back to back and drill through the joined tops for the tubing and whatever else.  One cap gets sealed with silicone as described above and is screwed onto the bottle.  The other cap can be filled with hot-melt glue or epoxy to provide mechanical support to the tube.


How to make lights turn on one at a time? So we've all seen this scene dozens of times in movies: a character flips a switch and lights turn on, one at time, down a long tunnel, or throughout a giant garage, or something like that.

I'd like to mimic the effect in my garage and patio, so that all the lights don't come on at once and blind you.  But how would I make this effect?  From my (limited)research, I can't really find a legitimate electrical or mechanical reason for lights to turn on this way.

The easiest thing for you (still requires DIY though) is to buy these - or something similar. They are time delay relays - now you get several versions/modes.

Something like this  (PDF)

On/Off Cycle  - is what you are looking for i guess.
You also get, Interval,Delay-On-Make, Re-Triggerable Single-Shot, etc

Then say you got 5 lights you set and mark each relay from 1-5 setting the delay
1sec,2sec,3sec,4sec,5sec.

Then you attach each of the relays in the order you want the lights to be on (you will know the order because you marked the relay with a number, yea ;) )

Otherwise

you will be left to build your own relays, circuits and logics... to much work.

Which of course you can find all the info (here)

C1  1   See Notes (at link)

R1  1   See Notes (at link)

D1  1   1N914 Diode

U1  1   4011 CMOS NAND Gate IC

K1  1   6V Relay

S1  1   Normally Open Push Button Switch

MISC    1   Board, Wire, Socket For U1

-EDIT AFTER ACCEPT

I found this on EBAY- a guy in Poland, near my home town actaully.. wierd.. buildts theses babies! Solid State Relays controlled via USB - if you meassage him i am sure he will tweak and build you something to your needs :)

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/USB-16-RELAY-CARD-OPTOISOLATION-SOFTWARE-/260752751134?_trksid=p4340.m8&_trkparms=algo%3DMW%26its%3DC%26itu%3DUCC%26otn%3D6%26ps%3D63%26clkid%3D1356110490087333626#ht_3077wt_1140

AND another here..


What length of Tapcon/ramset nail for base plate? I'm wavering back and forth between installing a my baseplate to my basement floor with either tapcons or ramset.

Tapcon Pros:

Can use existing impact driver and only need to buy Impact bit set which I could maybe reuse for other stuff down the road
Fairly safe
Can take them out if I need to for some weird reason

Cons:

Takes much longer than a ramset
MANY MANY complaints about stripping/breaking screws and bits

Ramset Pros:

WAY faster, easier (and more fun)

Cons:

Have to buy $90 tool (I'm not getting the hammer style, don't want to buy used, and will be building my walls so slow that I can't really rent)
Need to figure out how to dispose of unused cartridges
Potentially more dangerous (though I'm also using a framing nailer, so not that concerned)
Small chance for cracking/chipping concrete
The wife factor

I've tried finding info as to what the optimal size is for each for attaching the PT 2x4 to the floor, but haven't found anything concrete (pun intended).  From the best I've found, the recomendation is to go at least 1" into the concrete, and for tapcons, people tend to recomend the 1/4 vs 3/16".  Looking around it seems like my options are either 1/4" x 2-3/4" Tapcons, or 2.5"/3" Ramset nails.  2.5" on the ramset nails would be just cutting it on the 1" minimum, so I was thinking maybe the 3"?  Does it matter if it's the version that has the washer vs not?

One thing to think about is; how old is the cement? A very old cement breaks up with a ramset. Tapcon screws with the washer are a very good choice if you might be moving things.
Make sure to use the correct size drill bit (some boxes come with the right bit). Don’t over torque with the screw in the cement it will break or pull out as you have read.
On new construction I use a ramset, on something older than ~10 years I use Tapcon and have had much better success.


Water Noise When Radon Fan is On I've got a radon fan installed in my basement, but no sump pump.  Starting a few days ago, I've started hearing a constant gurgling or bubbling sound from a basement wall that is 15 feet from where the radon fan is.

This has me worried we might have standing water under our foundation.  In trying to diagnose what's going on here, this is what I know at the moment:

The sound is definitely related to the radon fan.  When we turn off the radon fan, the sound stops
The sound can only be heard in the wall 15 feet from the radon fan.  Right next to the radon fan, the sound can't be heard
We've verified we don't have any leaking pipes inside or outside by watching the water meter
We haven't gotten much rain this past week, so I'm relatively certain it's not natural water running into the house

A few more pieces of information that might be useful:

The sound is a constant gurgling/bubbling sound.  It hasn't stopped at all in the past 5 days.  I don't remember hearing this sound before in the past couple of years.
The wall we are hearing this from is the same wall where our main water line from the meter is.
We have a sprinkler system outside with a pipe maybe 5 feet away from where we are hearing the sound.

Any ideas on why we might be hearing this sound?  Or how to diagnose?  Is it possible that we aren't hearing water, but something that sounds like it?

Thanks for any help!

We had the same thing happen to our system.  During the winter, water accumulated under the concrete where the radon pipes went into the basement slab and totally blocked the air flow causing our radon levels to go up. We have a 24/7 radon alarm that showed the higher levels.  We ordered a new fan but that was not the problem.  We cut the pipe near the basement floor and installed a "y" with a clean out cap and used this to pump out the water with a small pump.  The pump had to be primed first but after removing 15 gallons, the radon pipes no longer gurgle. Be sure to put the clean out cap back on!


How to replace carpet with tile in entryway We have an 18 year old cat who unrinates on or near doors that lead outside. I'm looking for solutions to make it easier to clean up/eliminate the odor. We do eventually plan on replacing the carpeting the room he's targeting right now, but not until he crosses the rainbow bridge. One thought I had was to install tile in front of the door, to provide an impermeable surface we can easily clean (especially if we put a rug right there that's machine washable, much easier to wash a rug than carpet).
Below are pictures of the space, including a paint outline of where the tile would go.

My questions are as follows:

Is this a good idea?
Is there a specific phrase to describe what we're trying to do that I can Google for information?
Assuming the floor beneath is level (and there isn't wood under the carpet), my plan was to cut the carpet away from where we intend to install the tile, then treat the subfloor directly with cleaners before sealing the area with stain-blocking primer. Would you recommend installing or treating with anything else prior to following instructions for installing tile? Removing the tainted subfloor would probably be better, right?
Is there a better idea for how to turn this pee zone into something I can clean up after?
What would be the best way to handle the curved transition zone?

My husband and I are moderately experienced DIY'ers but we haven't done tile before.
And as is required on the Internet, cat tax. The jerk in question. His face isn't blurred for his protection, it's because he was mid-meow asking why I was taking pictures.

It's not clear whether you'd like to keep the hard floor after your friend departs, but you might consider vinyl plank flooring. It would be much quicker and simpler and can be quite beautiful. You'd simply remove the carpet, install 1/4" underlayment plywood, and stick down the vinyl.
Modern vinyl plank flooring is quite durable and attractive. Don't let the name make you think it'll look cheap.  Select a product that's self-sealing at the joints. You can cut it with a knife (straight single cuts) or a jigsaw (curved or compound cuts) and it doesn't require grouting.
If you do want to use ceramic or porcelain tile you'll probably need to add at least 1/2" to your subfloor. You need a minimum of 1-1/4" to prevent cracking of grout joints and the tile itself.
Also, I'd consider a full rectangle. You'll find that your carpet suffers less wear and soiling if you have enough room to enter and remove footwear before making contact. This is a common strategy in snowy climates. You could also do a clipped corner if it protrudes into your space too far. That would still be easier than cutting curves and fitting your carpeting to it.


Filling hollow blocks one level at a time I live in an area where basic building materials are available but expensive - there are not many places to rent tools and things are done slowly by hand. It is also an earthquake zone.

I am thinking of building a basement/foundation out of hollow blocks, filled with cement and using rebar inside. Is it a bad idea to allow the builders to fill the cores of the hollow blocks with cement one layer at a time? I've seen back home that they wait till the entire wall is built then pour down each cavity and fill, but it's not possible to get a cement truck at the location, and I have just 2 guys to do the work.

Any advice appreciated.

What's the phrase? "The perfect is the enemy of the good."

Or something like that?

Is it better to pour them in one go? Sure. Is it enough better to make it worth a huge effort? Perhaps not, particularly if that's the way it's usually done by your laborers. The less time between pours, the better (i.e. one per day is far better than getting to it a month later.)

I would strongly encourage having "bond beams" (horizontal reinforcement) as well as vertical reinforcement. Depending on just how expensive concrete is in your area, it might be worth doing the reinforcement as a "post and beam" rather than filling every core hole. That does require blocking off the bottom of each bond beam where it runs over empty cores below. It gets you a strong framework with less material.


Installing ceiling fan light kit if switch housing cover plate has no hole I have had a ceiling fan for some time in my front room, but no light installed.  To combat darkness during the winter, I am ready to try to make it happen by buying a ceiling fan light kit.

The tutorials I have watched thus far involve removing the switch housing cover plate and then at some point feeding the wires through the hole in that cover plate, however the plate that was on mine has no such hole.  It has the notch on the side to line up with the switch for the fan and it has three screws about 120 degrees apart from each other on the sides, but other than that it is solid.

So before buying a light kit, I want to make sure that I can actually complete the installation.  Is this lack of hole going to be a problem, and if so, what can I do to resolve the situation?

EDIT

Well, the fan was installed already when I moved in, so I did not do it myself.  It is a Hampton Bay and by using the mirror and a flashlight and reading upside down writing on the top of the fan, I think the model is CD-5201.  It has some sort of moon pattern on each of the 5 blades, but I am sure that does not help.

But here are the requested pictures:

EDIT

Fast-forwarding in time, I used flashlight and smartphone to capture the information.

UPC = 759590966714
Vendor = 23827 - Aloha Breeze after talking with Hampton Bay customer service
Date = 9711

I am guessing that it 1997?  Oh, brother!  The fan works perfectly though.

The light kit might just replace this cover. So you'll take off this cover plate, and install the light kit in its place.


6-1/2" over 7-1/4" circular saw Why would anyone get a 6-1/2" over a 7-1/4" circular saw? Is there something a 6-1/2" can do that a 7-1/4" cannot?

The 6-1/2" circular saw is great for working due to its smaller size and weight over the larger saw. But you are limited to depth of cut that can be achieved. For example some saws this size will not cut all the way through a 1.5" thick lumber with the blade angled at  45 degrees. The lighter saw can be a real benefit for jobs such as cutting sheet goods on a roof job.

The 7-1/4" saw will support a deeper cut which is particularly useful when making certain types of cuts. For example the Dewalt DW364 saw is capable of a cut depth of 2-7/16" when set with the blade in the normal 90 degree position. At a 45 degree angle this saw can cut 1-7/8" deep which is needed when cutting things like rafters that require cutting though conventional 1-1/2" thick framing lumber.


Quartz countertop seam strength I have a 108" section of 26" deep counters. From left to right, starting at the 39" mark, there is a 48" gap for a wine fridge and bar fridge. Then there is a 21" cabinet on the right side.

Had quartz countertops installed and they used two pieces. Problem is the seam is over the 48" gap. 1st section of counter is about 85" and 2nd section is 23". So the seam is floating in the far right side of the 48" gap instead of spanning the gap. Installers said they should have had the 23" section on the left side instead to avoid this. They said it will work the way it is and there won't be any strength issues.

There is a 1x6 running the back wall of the 48" gap for extra support so it's not completely floating. Structurally, do you think this will indeed be fine?

I'm holding a pen where the seam is.

Absolutely not! Although the seam has been sealed with an adhesive and coloring compound, it provides little flexural strength. Despite the back support, and with little to support the span between the left and right side of the countertop, it will easily break, probably with little more than body weight. Again, the "adhesive" is just a waterproof binding agent for colorant to fill the seam and is definitely NOT something to rely on to keep your countertop from breaking! I would at least add support from below using low-profile 4"X 6" angle steel on both sides: bolted to your cabinets and glued to "quartz".