Care and maintenance of wood fence that is rotting because of damp leaves on the other side I have a wooden fence around my garden. I share parts of the fence with my neighbour, who has a shed close to the fence on his side. Between the fence and the shed on my neighbour's side, leaves accumulate in autumn and winter and cause moisture and decay. The same thing happens on the other side, where an acclivity prevents removal of the leaves and decaying material and presumably collects moisture as well. The fence has turned black where it is moist.
Questions: What can I do to prevent this, other than asking my neighbour to remove his shed and clean up the leaves? Is there any fortifying paint that can be applied? Will I need to replace the fence with more durable material than wood at some point? How long do I have until the fence rots away and holes are left there?
More Questions: More generally, what care instructions will I need to follow to keep the fence in good shape for longer? Any paint or anything else I should apply? I have no clue about these things and have never owned property before recently buying this one. Thanks.

Here is a close-up view of the fence where it is not rotting:

Wood and water don't mix. If you want to make wood last, you have to keep it dry. So no good answers unless you can convince your neighbor to remove the rotting debris. Assuming you and the neighbor share the cost of maintenance and replacement  of the fence would entice them to take care of this.
Regarding preventative treatments, there are some do's and dont's:  Don't use a solid surface covering like Varathane or Ureathane:  Outdoors that finish will crack, chip, peel and look terrible. Paint might be an option.  My preference would be a penetrating oil with additives to prevent mold, mildew and rot. Whether paint or oil:  You'd have to use a wood brightener (it's like a bleach) on it first, then pressure wash, wait until very dry and apply the oil.   The tough thing is for this to be effective, it needs to be to BOTH SIDES of the fence, which may be at least impractical or impossible in your case.
Depending upon where you are, bare wood outside isn't the best option...here in western Washington State, I would never install a wood deck or fence again. It just doesn't last.


Convert this can to a "standard" light socket? We've built a new home and the electrician put this fancy schmancy LED recessed lights in that should last like a decade or something. Which is great...except in my office I want to be all futuristic and use Philips Hue bulbs instead.

How would I convert these cans in to a standard can that takes a normal bulb?

Clipped to the roof of the cans are standard bulb sockets, which would normally have been installed in your choice of trim ring. Because those LED rings don't use standard bulb bases, an adapter is screwed into the bulb sockets. You'd just unclip those and snap them into your new trim rings, like shown here:

Unscrew and discard the adapter plug that's threaded into them.


Removing 4x4" wood from base? I bought these 4x4 simpson ez bases and I inserted a 4x4 pt wood post. Now it's so snug that I can't remove it from the base.

I tried wd40 but that didn't help. I even tried hammering it from the bottom Of the base to push it out, but it didn't even move.

What else can I do?

As you have access to the bottom of the post, consider to use a wood bit and drill a series of large diameter (1") as close to the perimeter as possible without striking the metal. Go as deep as the metal bracket, which will weaken the wall of the post.

Obviously if you intend to re-use the post, it will be less well suited at the full length. As such, you can also cut off the post above the bracket and perform the drilling all the way through, creating an even weaker bond with the bracket.

Inertial is important in this type of removal. If you can cut a hole in a sturdy plank that is exactly the size of the post, but not as large as the bracket, brace the plank and drive the post through the hole with it's own weight. When the bracket reaches the hole, it will budge. It may take a few shots to break it free.


Adjacent doors hitting each other I have two doors at a 90-degree angle to one another and the doors hit each other when they are opened the full way.
I guess I could mount a door stop on one of the doors, but it seems kind of weird to put a doorstop on a door.
Another option might be to remount both the doors to either/both change the handedness or swing direction, but that would be a lot more work.
How can I keep these doors from hitting when opened?

Another solution: Make one of them close to avoid clashing.

I reversed my kitchen door so it opens into the hallway instead of into the room.  That means it can clash with the cloakroom door if that's left half open.  I solved it by fitting a (very gentle, in fact modified with a weaker spring) automatic closer to the cloakroom door, so it doesn't stop half open.

Rehanging a door can be tricky but is perfectly doable with reasonable DIY skills.  It's one of the simplest tasks for which you need a decent set of chisels (in fact it's the main reason I even have chisels).  The job needs proper planning: when I did mine there was enough space on the new side of the frame to make it simple but had it been on a different (non-structural) wall it would have been much harder.


Dimmer switch not connected to ground I know just the basics of electricity and am trying to replace an older dimmer switch that broke with a new very similar switch.

The old switch is not connected to ground. The new switch has the green ground wire. I also see a couple of additional connections inside the junction box but can't tell what they are for.

I would appreciate help with (see pictures below):
1. Any idea what the other connections are for (black is for the switch, what are the white and copper colored ones for)?
2. Do I need to connect the ground wire to anything? If yes, to what?

Thanks!

Old connections:

New switch:

The bare copper wires are the ground (grounds are either green or bare wires). You need to add the green wire from the dimmer to this bundle in the wirenut.

The white wires are probably the neutral, providing a return from the lamp to your electrical panel. If you had a smart switch that needed a neutral connection, you would connect there.

Note: this comments assume you are in North America. Different countries use different insulation color conventions. Thanks, @Clonkex, for the reminder.


Is an Ionizer Air Purifier effective against birch pollen? I spot an Ionizer Air Purifier Air Cleaner Air Ionizer and I want to understand whether it could help to alleviate symptoms due to birch pollen particles such as itching, tiredness and shortness of breath.

Is a negative air ionizer effective against birch pollen particles?

It's hard to tell from the product page, but it looks like this is just an ionizer, with no fan or filter. If so, then all it does is emit ions; it doesn't remove anything. The theory is that it will charge particles (e.g. birch pollen), which will then attach itself to nearby surfaces, thereby cleaning the air. Unfortunately, these are more effective at generating ozone than actually cleaning air, and ozone, whilst very helpful high in the atmosphere, is very bad at ground level and in the vicinity of people (e.g. lung damage).

This is different from a true electrostatic precipitator, which emits ions into a fan-driven air stream, but immediately collects them (and any ionized particles) on plates parallel to the air stream. These work very well, but are larger and more expensive than simple ionizers, and emit some ozone as well.

I found an article on Effectiveness of Home Air Cleaners in Reducing Indoor Levels of Particles, sponsored by Health Canada. It compares various ways of improving indoor air quality. Another useful article is a Consumer Reports overview of air filter types. Based on these, a standard HEPA filter (thousands of models available), or perhaps a portable electrostatic precipitator (I couldn't find any) would better meet your needs.


Securing wiring around the electrical panel - NEC 2017 appropriate? Trying to make sure I am up to code for securing some the AC/BX wiring coming out of my QO main svc panel (QO142M200PCAFVP).  Not a lot of room to work with, the joists run a bit over a foot above the panel.  I have secured the main feed wire (red) and the main grounding wire (green) to the joist, 4 of the AC/BX circuit wires to the panel board (purple), and the water pipe bond wire to the panel (lime green).
Question 1) Are those secured ok the way they are? I suppose I could staple the green grounding wire to the panel backboard, is it necessary because of the 12" rule?  Not sure what else can be done about the red main service feed wire - it wasn't even secured to the joist when the old box was there.
Question 2) I can’t secure the yellow circled AC/BX wire to the panel backboard without taking up one of the ¾ knockouts, all of which I will need for a bigger 6/3 wire (big black one in the background and others to be installed).  But as you can see, the yellow AC/BX is secured up at the joist.  Is that enough or do I need to figure out a way to secure it on the panel back board?  I feel like the requirement of having to staple it “within 12 in. of boxes with cable clamps” may not be followed here.

Killing two birds with one stone
Dealing with attaching the green and yellow cables to the backboard is simpler than it looks, using stackable MC straps such as the Arlington NM310.  Note that the NM310 fastens using a screw instead of being driven in directly or nailed to the surface it's attached to.
And yes, you do need a staple or strap for that SE cable
You do, however, need a staple or stap for the SE Style U cable to meet NEC 230.51(A) securement requirements (aka within 12" of the box).  Problem is, generic SE Style U straps and staples are designed to secure the cable flat to a surface, and the 90° twist required to do that in your case makes securing the cable flat to the backerboard impractical without excessively twisting/straining the cable.  One could try using a SE Style R staple to attach the cable to the backerboard instead, but sizing may be an issue with that approach.


Using a window air conditioner outside and redirecting the cold air into room with ducts So I plan on using two ducts, one to take air from my room and move it to the cooling coils of the air conditioner, and another duct to redirect the cold air from the window air conditioner back into my room. The window air conditioner will be located outdoors next to my room. I might use fans to help with air flow if the air conditioner's fan is not strong enough. Can someone tell me why this is a bad idea and how to go about constructing it well?

I saw this set up you are thinking about doing in 1968 at a donut shop in Pittsburgh, Pa. and it worked okay. (wow how time flies) They did a lot of stupid things then to save a few dollars. The duct work was oversized to reduce friction loss for both the supply air and the return air. Servicing this unit was extremely hard and very expensive since the duct had to be disassembled every service call. After a few years and many very expensive service calls they made the correct decision and installed a different system. Sometimes cheap ideas are just cheap and dumb ideas.  "My 2 cents".


How can I stop the humming produced by my water heater blower motor? Plumber installed a new Bradford White 75 gallon gas water heater with power vent. The first blower motor started a high-pitched whine/squeal (bad bearing?) approx 6 months after install. Motor was replaced, and it was fine for a month. New motor started loud HUMMING noise (not squealing, as before) a week later. Replaced that one, too. Third motor is now in place and also humming immediately after install.

I suspect the humming, which can be heard on the second floor, is similar to what a previous poster mentioned (harmonic resonance hum in PVC). The PVC vibrates, and I'm wondering if it is transferring this noise through the floor (which is our living room) joists. The plumber had also exchanged metal straps for plastic j-hooks because he thought that might help the vibration noise, but that made the humming worse. Any ideas on how to deal with this? It's not just an annoyance; you can feel the vibration through the living room floor.

Everything is within code in terms of distance and diameter of PVC venting. Plumber doesn't know what else to do....help!

If you think it is harmonic resonance, changing the length or diameter of the PVC pipe can help stop it. Refer to this prior question for more details: How do I prevent harmonic resonance hum in PVC vent of newly installed hot water heater?


Can I add an additional outlet using an existing outlet that has no ground wire? I am looking to add new receptacles (15A) behind my TV by running a 12/2 romex (20A circuit/breaker) from a nearby existing receptacles (15A). The problem is, the existing receptacle has no ground wire. House is old (1960s), I see the that the receptacle is grounded to the metal box (tested this by running a voltage meter touching the hot prong and the metal box).

After doing some research, I came across the possible solution of just getting 15A GCFI receptacles (over buying 2 prong receptacles) for the new outlet and only connecting the hot and neutral wires. This seems to be the "relatively safest" method without rewiring from the breaker.

Is this the best and easy option? Or are better ones out there (again, without having to rewire from the breaker)?

All suggestions are welcomed! thank you for your guys/gals time!

There are ground wires there, they're just buried in the back

In your photos, I can see some bare copper wires in the back of the box. These are the ground wires you are looking for, and you'll need to get them pulled out as far as they can go, then nut them to a box grounding pigtail screwed to the box and to another pigtail that goes off to the receptacle.


Can Old wiring be safe to run high currents through? The electrical wiring in my house has two ages. Half the house has wiring from back in 1963 and the other half has wiring from 1986. Conveniently, my room runs on the older wiring. It's due for change but I'm gonna have to convince some people to allow me to get it done. My room runs on a 20A amp breaker and currently I have about 5-9A in use. I'm gonna be adding some equipment to the room which would bring the current usage up to 15A running 24/7. Would it be safe to say that this old af wiring would handle it or should I get an electrician to change my wiring one time?

If the wiring was done properly in 1963, it should be fine carrying 20A in 2020.
1963 is hardly the dark ages, electrically. A 12Ga copper circuit from that era, IF properly constructed (tight connections, etc.) does not need the wire changed from old age. If anything is likely to need to be changed from aging, it would be the receptacles, and that's not a "must do" but "if they appear to be loose or otherwise making poor connections, show any signs of soot, have broken plastic, or are abnormally warm in use, then change them." And if you change them, use quality receptacles and use the screw terminals to connect the wires.
Receptacle springs can and do age to the point where the receptacle contacts make poor connections to the plug contacts.
Backstabs (push-in backwire connections on outlets) are not rated for 12Ga wire (at least any I've seen) and in any case are a terrible system that should never have been approved. There are quality screw-clamped connections that appear similar to a backstab if you don't know the difference, but they are screwed to clamp, not poked in and held by a spring. Normal side screw connections with the wires curled around them (clockwise, please) are also fine.
If you happen to have 10 Ga Aluminum wire, check back, as there are some things to deal with differently there, and more concern if you don't, but your house is from a couple of years before that was common, so you probably have 12Ga copper, unless something was done wrong with wiring your 20A circuit.
As for the load level, you can run up to 80% of the breaker trip as a continuous (more than 3 hours at a time) load, so 16A on a 20A breaker. which means 15A continuous is fine.
Now, the other part that "might need changed" depending on what it is, specifically, 57 years on, would be the breaker panel. Certain panels are notorious for performing poorly, causing fires, or having breakers that fail to trip in an overload (and then cause fires.) Federal Pacific and Zinsco are two that spring to mind commonly, there may be others. Those are not so much "because you are planning to run a 15A continuous load" but "you are simply lucky that they have not burned your house down, yet" and every day is another opportunity for that to change. Other 57 year old panels and breakers may well be fine for another 50 years


Portable AC not getting ride of condensate I have a portable AC (LG lp1015wnr) which does not evaporate the condensate. It doesn't matter if it is in Dry or Cool mode. In both modes the water is drained from the drain pipe at the same rate.

------------Edit (Further explanation)---------

The AC has two drains, on in the middle and one on the bottom. Also two modes of working.

Dry mode: Also know as dehumidifier mode. When the AC works in this mode, the condensate should be drained from the middle drain pipe (Which is a normal way of getting the water out).

Cool mode: In this mode, the AC vaporizes the condensate, so there should not be any water coming out of the middle drain. Only when the humidity level is high, the left over condensate which is not vaporized, goes down to the pan, which can be drained from the bottom of the AC.

When my AC is working in the cool mode, I see a lot of water running from the middle drain and I have to put a bucket under it. I expect the AC to vaporize that water and have the left over on the bottom pan, but as I explain, it is not happening. The question is why is this happening? Do I have to block the middle drain?

In cool or dehumidifier mode if you don’t have a pump you will have to dump the condensate based on your humidity, it is a basic function of cooling that there will be moisture to get rid of.
Don’t believe me put a glass full of ice water on a table with enough ice to last 15 minutes, now look at the ring of water at the base of the glass. If you want the system to cool there WILL be water to get rid of times a hundred or even 10 thousand depending on the size or amount of cooling and humidity. In a high humidity zone the amount of condensate or water you need to get rid of can be the same. It is normal and expected with cooling or dehumidification.


How do I avoid taking off the finish at the corners when sanding between coats? I just refinished a dresser with a tinted poly finish to roughly match the other wood tones in its new room. I didn't do the greatest job in many aspects - it was my first experience with poly and I don't really have the patience required for mirror-like finish work on furniture - but the end result is passable.

One of the things that kept me pulling my hair out was the ease with which the finish came off at the corners when smoothing between coats (I was brushing it on instead of spraying, and so I was also forever smoothing out brush strokes between coats). It didn't matter if I was using the ROS or hand-sanding, what grit or material I was using (I usually started with a light pass of 320 grit with the power sander, followed by detail work with 4-0 steel wool by hand and a finish pass with a Scotch-Brite style pad on the ROS), or how many coats had been applied (lost count; the goal was to get dark to match the espresso/black cherry finishes of other pieces, so the piece got at least three full coats plus touch-ups), all it took was one pass too many, too close to an edge or corner of a panel, and a line of bright bare wood shone through the dark red-mahogany finish, forcing me to apply more touch-ups and then sand the brush marks smooth again, potentially undoing the touch-up or uncovering another edge elsewhere.

Given the total time the project took to look halfway presentable, I could have sanded the whole thing down to raw wood, stained it nice and deep, then finished in three or four coats of clear poly; this product was supposed to be easier than all that to change the tone of an already-finished piece, but nothing doing. That was probably mistake number one; going for a quick fix over doing the job "right". However, even doing that with my sanding technique (or lack thereof) would have left the corners unfinished, the only difference being that it would be harder to tell if a corner was still raw, as the stain will still show fairly dark, but there'd be no poly protecting the wood.

I understand the physics; the pressure of the sanding media on an edge or corner, in pounds per square inch terms, is infinitely more than when sanding a flat surface as the edge ideally has zero surface area. That means it's much easier to burn right through any layers of finish you've managed to build up over that edge.

The question is, how to overcome the physics and preserve your corners, without just rounding them off? It can't be as simple as "don't power-sand your finishes" as even when I worked by hand it was ridiculously easy to remove finish along the edges (easier, in fact, as with hand-sanding the paper or pad wraps around corners more easily).

A shop I worked at called this "burning the edge".  I was the noob and they never stopped smiling when it happened to me.  I was using toned lacquer, which was even more fragile.

Short Answer:

Sand near the edges by hand. Use a hard sanding block. Affix the sandpaper firmly. Go slow.  The flat level pressure should smooth the top plane without touching the side plane.

Long Answer:

You say you want to avoid rounding off your corners, but that's exactly what the surface tension of the finish is doing.  You always have a thinner coat at the edge of the corner.  Sanding off the same amount of material at the edge as the top will always result in a bald pinstripe and much hair pulling.  Sanding flat and level with a fine grit will smooth the top plane without touching the (inperceptively) round edge and make it appear sharper.

Try This Suggestion:

You're getting brush marks that you want to remove.  Have you tried thinning the finish before applying?  Use whatever thinner the product recommends and brush on thin coats.  Thin coats make thin brush marks and require only a light sanding before reapplying.  Always allow more drying time after each subsequent coat.

Good Luck!  You're not alone with this frustration.


Control fanlight with both remote and switch I would like to control my fan using remote and the light on the fan using both remote and switch. Is that possible.

I have 1 black wire, 1 red wire for light, neutral and ground wire coming from the ceiling. I have capped the red wire and connected the black wire to the remote receiver. I am able to control the fan using remote. I connected the black wire to single pole switch to control the power to the fan.

I heard using external relay, we can achieve the above functionality. Don't know how to implement. Could someone please guide me ?

The receiver for the remote needs power to work, so you can't fully control it with the switch and the remote.  When the switch is off, the receiver will not have any power so it can't turn anything on. So, at a minimum, the switch can turn the light off, but in order to use the remote, you would have to turn the switch on.

Another possibility is to not use the included remote and instead power the fan with some "smart" switches that can be controlled with their own remote.  Doing it that way means the switch on the wall "is" the remote, so you can control the fan and light two ways.


Can I connect a dishwasher and an outdoor outlet on the same circuit? I bought a "fixer upper" and I'm remolding the kitchen.

The previous "hack & wack" investor added a dishwasher but to power the DW they installed an outlet box and powered that box by cutting the power cable to the outside outlet and left that outlet unconnected.

My question is it ok or a bad idea to power that outside outlet by "tapping" back into the DW box?

Thanks,
Mitch

The 2014 NEC now requires the dishwasher to be on GFCI.

The 2014 NEC does not require the dishwasher to be on an individual circuit (it never has). So, you could feed either receptacle on the load side of the other with a GFCI. Or you could put the whole circuit on a GFCI breaker.

If your locality is still on the 2011 NEC the GFCI requirement was not in there for the dishwasher then but it was for the outside receptacle. So, as Isherwood points out, you could feed the outside from the DW receptacle as long as it is a GFCI receptacle.

Additionally, all residential receptacles have to be tamper resistant. Outdoor receptacles have to be TR and weather resistant with an in-use cover that is rated "extra duty".

Gets complicated eh?

Good luck!


Human-powered lawnmower with horizontal blade? I really like my "old-fashioned" reel mower.  It does a pretty good job, and I like getting more exercise.  Not buying gasoline is also nice.

But, it is slightly less efficient at getting taller plants, as they just lay down in front of it and pop back up behind it.

Is there such a thing as a horizontal blade driven from the wheels?  And if so, how do I find one?  (Or what is it called so I can do a web search?)

Driven by wheels - No. People powered horizontal blade for taller plants, Yes indeed.

Ignoring the request for wheels, what you want is a scythe.

Having used both, I'm fond of the "European" pattern (nearly straight-snath) type rather than the heavy, very curvy "American" pattern

Owning both, I find my scythe a heck of a lot nicer to use than my big gas string trimmer. I can cut at a similar rate of speed, in quiet, and not end up covered in green goo from head to toe. It's rather like a relaxing martial art or dance.

You will need more than just a scythe, to use a scythe effectively you also need a kit to peen (hammer-shape) the blade and a stone to sharpen it - a scythe does not work well at all when dull, but it's no more hassle really than keeping string trimmer string loaded and feeding correctly.


Change Bulb Socket in Light Fixture? I have a lighting fixture that uses CF13DT bulbs. How can I replace just the socket to use Edison screw in bulbs or the bi-pin GU24 bulbs?

That fluorescent socket is driven by a ballast, so we’re talking more than just a socket replacement.
Regardless, as Ed Beal says, do not put an Edison socket there, or some fool will put an incandescent in it and start a fire. The fixture is not insulated for that much heat.  Use a proprietary LED only socket like Gu10.
Also, building codes probably required non-Edison fixtures at construction time. You’d need to roll it back on resale.


Sizing HVAC: 3 vs 2.5 ton AC, 60k vs 40k BTU furnace for 1200sqft? I'm adding a HVAC system to my single-storey SFH (1200sqft in climate zone 2, San Jose, CA) and the contractor picked out the following system:

Furnace: 60k BTU @ 80% Efficiency
AC: 3 Ton @ 14 SEER

Got me wondering if it's overkill for 1200sqft? General sqft-to-BTU load calculators indicate I would be enough served by going a bit smaller. Let's say insulation is medium in terms of quality and installation. Would it then be better to go for a size down?

Furnace: 40k BTU @ 96% efficiency
AC: 2.5 Ton @ 16 SEER

Edit: Did a Manual J calc from loadcalc.net myself. Input R11 insulation in ceiling, and walls, floor tile no insulation, stucco, and double pane windows. Based on the wall dimensions and directions, it came back with only 20k and 17k BTUs for heating and cooling! Not sure if I missed something big here, any advice or is this pretty realistic?

What was the previous size of the AC?  It's typically encoded in the model number, and there are online decoders for your manufacturer.
The size of your AC is based on the heat leakage for your home; but, many AC contractors believe that adding an extra 1/2 ton doesn't hurt.  It is generally a safe practice if it is only done once; but, if it's already been done, over cooling a home can have some pretty nasty consequences,  Humidity build up (like the water on the outside of a cold soda can) can collect within the home due to air temperature being dropped to rapidly.  This typically occurs behind the sheet rock, where it won't be immediately visible.  In addition, your unit will run for very short periods as it cycles, likely leading leading to more wear on the installed system.
In any case, the home hasn't moved, the insulation hasn't changed, and unless you had a bad system before, the new one shouldn't require a new tonnage rating unless it was mis-rated previously, or you intend to maintain the home at a lower temperature than before.
Should you believe the home was mis-rated, pay a company to have a "Manual J Load Calculation" done on the home.  If it is possible to have this done without installing an AC at the same time, you'll have a better confidence it isn't influenced by the impending sell.


Why does the pilot light keep going out on my natural gas boiler? The boiler lit and ran the other day, but now the pilot light was out. I could hear a hum at the control. I lit the pilot light, but when I no longer pressed on the valve, the pilot light went out right away. Is it a dirty sensor? What can I do to find out what is wrong?

Most pilot light devices have a sensor that detects that the pilot light is lit, and will shut off the pilot gas if it doesn't detect the lit flame.

This sensor must heat up in order to detect the flame, so after you light your pilot light, keep the pilot valve depressed for 30 seconds in order to ensure the sensor heats up.  After 30 seconds, release the valve.  If the light still goes off, repeat 1 or 2 more times.

Once the light stays lit, turn the valve to the ON or OPEN position and the pilot light will stay lit.

If the light refuses to stay lit even after several minutes of hot flame hitting it, then yes, you may have a defective sensor or other part.


Is sawdust really that bad for my vacuum cleaner? My mother (who tends to be right about this stuff) says that using my non-shop-vac to cleanup sawdust will ruin the motor.

I recently bought a new, fancy, expensive vacuum cleaner that was really expensive and I definitely don't want to ruin the motor.

I live in an apartment and so it is kind of a pill for me to take projects down to the courtyard -- can't leave tools lying around, etc. That means that for small projects I sometimes make a couple of cuts inside, and I need to be able to vacuum up the sawdust. I kept my 15 year old Hoover canister for occasional sawdust cleanup, but I'm wondering (my apartment is big, but not that big) if the sawdust is really going to ruin my Meile's motor.

So what should I do? Use the fancy vacuum for occasional sawdust? Or keep the crappy tank around for project cleanup?

I can't really see why saw dust is any different than the dust you find around your house (mostly made up of dead skin cells).  The only real difference is that you tend to clean-up a lot of saw dust at any one time, whereas it takes a long time to fill a vacuum bag with typical around-the-house cleaning.

The dust should never come in contact with the motor.  I think you're more likely to damage the motor by running it with a clogged filter (most vacuums since people tend to never clean them) then you are cleaning up saw dust with a clean filter.


Efflorescence in crawl space My house has a daylight basement along with some areas that is finished crawl space. Basically instead of dirt there is slab in the crawl space. I bought the house a few months ago and the crawl space looked super clean. The inspector did call out was one small area about 2-3 feet where there was some moisture and efflorescence. See below

Last year my area had the highest rains in years and hence, the seller believed that there was moisture. He mentioned that it had never happened earlier and there were no other indications in the crawl space. The seller put hydraulic cement in that area (in the internal part of crawl space). I bought the house thinking that it may not be a problem again. However i have been concerned and hence have been keeping an eye on the area especially after the recent heavy rains. Lo and behold one day i see the hydraulic cememt darker in a couple of very small areas. I did not see water but the dark areas indicates moisture. Now that those areas are becoming dryer i think i see efflorescence.
It seems like the hydraulic cement is not helping. Also seems like i may have to get a professional but I am not sure i can afford any work now.
My questions are:

If the problem remains contained in that small area or repeats at a much lower frequency (1-2 times a year), do i need to resolve this problem immediately? I understand that if this spreads or keeps on happening than i need to get it solved. How worried should i be if it remains in that small area or happens very infrequently?

Can I do anything from inside. like applying another material to prevent water from seeping? The hydraulic cement is not 100% as can be seen above.

It seems like the proper way to fix this is to get a contractor, who will dig from outside and build a solution to keep the water away from the foundation? What is the approximate cost I am looking at here. Talking to a friend at work, he said it could be easily 5K.

Any other thoughts or help ideas?
EDIT:
I posted the inspectors picture in the my post above. Here is the latest picture after the hydraulic cement and efflorescence i saw few days ago. Is this minimal. This is about a 2.5-3 ft

Effervescence of concrete of your type is a reaction of the added concrete.  It is generally found in acidic compounds.  I recommend using some ammonia over the entire concrete surface with no added water.  Use a mask please!  The ammonia will neutralize the acid and in many cases solve the issues.  I see this on my acid stain projects and that Is how we mitigate it.  Now if the ammonia comes in contact with any metal surface it will cause rust so avoid electrical and metal surface...AND WEAR A MASK!


How can I repair a poor drywall taping job? For my first-ever drywall taping attempt, I (predictably) messed up. Taped the walls (three coats), then added primer (two coats) and semi-gloss Behr paint (two coats). Reinstalled my lighting and decided everything looks terrible.

I've been told I should either sand the paint/drywall down or put more mud over the whole thing. I don't know what I'm doing, but I do want this to look good. Are there good techniques/approaches to get me out of my mess?

More pictures here

The whole wall doesn't need a skim coat. That patch just needs touch-up spackle, sanded correctly.

The picture does a good job highlighting what you failed to do: bevel any divots or ridges with a sanding sponge during the final sanding. This is not something you can do easily with a pole sander; it'd be easier with just the paper in your hand if you've no sanding sponge. Use a swirling motion to reduce any deviation to a nominal profile. Fudge it.

It doesn't have to be flat, it just has to not have any ridges that will catch light and show the imperfection. Keep this in mind when sanding the extra coat you're going to put on, to fill these giant voids, that are next to the ridges that are covered in paint and are at this point basically unsandable.

Mudding an optically flat wall is beyond most people's abilities (if not, the general realm of possibility). The closet you're going to get (or ever really need to) is 'looks' flat: nominal.

If you can feel a 'catch' with your fingers, you're not done sanding yet.


Green board with water proof membrane I live in north Atlanta, GA.
The boards behind the tile at my bathtub are wet and need replacement.
The old construction used a green board on top of the drywall (both are wet and in bad condition).
I'm going to remove both and use only one level of boards.
Is it OK to use a green board with Redgard (as a water proofing membrane) instead of cement backer board?
What kind of Adhesive/cement should I use. At Lowes, they gave me MAPEI Type 1 to use but the Floor and Decor department told me not to use it as it will allow the tile drop after a while because of the water.
I'm not looking for a life time solution.
My reasons for using green board:

Easier to use,to cut and handle for me.
I already have the mesh drywall tape and the dry wall screws.
cheaper.
the James Hardi backer is 0.42" which will not level with drywall in the sides (0.5")

Your reasons for using green board are valid.   They are along the same lines of reasons for not going to the gym and staying in shape.

Driving to the gym takes time.
I have more fun on the couch.
I sweat and have to do more laundry.

These are lies we tell ourselves so that we feel better doing the wrong thing.

I understand that you don't want to take care of the issue correctly.  I get it.   You don't care about your shower, most don't.   But it isn't about doing this perfectly, it is about how much time you are going to spend doing something wrong multiple times.

Put the green board up, coat it with redgard, stick on your tiles.   The water will just wick to the other areas not covered in redgard or get behind the green board and leak somewhere else.   You will be doing versions of the same thing over and over, you will have mold issues, tiles will fall off.

First there really is no difference between greenboard and drywall.   They are basically the same material and both should not be used in wet areas.   Your question infers that you are using green board (mold resistant) drywall as some sort logical precautionary material.   When in fact it is just a marketing ploy.

The biggest issues that your tub surround has are - it has no moisture barrier and the tiles were not the right fit to go over drywall (you have to basically have to do a perfect job for this to last, grout has to be thin, and grout/tiles waterproof).

You are going to saving yourself a TON of time just ripping these out and starting over.   I have a good answer on here that shows different tub wall installations.   The one I would suggest for you is 1/4" drywall, plastic sheet, 1/4" hardieboard.  It really is that easy and the thinner hardieboard is super easy to work with.   You can do your demo and have your new wall up in about 3 hours.  The tiles depends on the install method and type of tiles.


How is the alternating current in your home a complete circuit? Here's what I'm asking: if the electricity flows from the hot wire to device X, then to the neutral wire which ultimately carries the signal to ground/earth at the panel then how does electricity "get back to" hot?  Like, what "bridges the gap" between ground at the end of the circuit and hot at the beginning of the circuit?

The gap is bridged by the power company driving the current through your wires.

You can think of it as a remote generator pushing the current through your house, but in actuality there are several transformers isolating the current between generation and your house.  So the current itself recirculates at the transformer near your house, and that current is driven by current in the transformer's primary coils.

If all is working properly (and nominally), there is no current to earth.  That connection is there only to guarantee that each loop—including your house current loop—never has a potential voltage to ground greater than 120 volts.  If a loop were not grounded, that portion could conceivably float to any voltage through static effects or other processes.


What order do I do projects on my kitchen remodel I am refinishing cabinets, replacing counters, replacing back splash, floors and appliances.  What order should I do the jobs in?

Floors, cabinets, counters, backsplash, appliances. Cabinets could also be done first, especially if you're not refinishing them in place.

The idea is to do projects earlier which do not depend on anything else, or when those dependencies have already been completed. Backsplash depends on the counters, so the counters must be done first. Counters depend on having cabinets in place on which to install the counter, so the cabinets must be done first. Appliances are finishes, so are done last.


Hanging a wooden venetian blind in a square bay I have recently purchased some custom fit wooden blinds to fit to a square (or box) bay window. I followed the measuring guide diligently, and now the blinds have arrived it is time to fit them. What the measuring guide and fitting guide neglected to mention is what to mount the fitting brackets to. This is also something I should have thought about before purchasing them.
The blinds are to be fitted in the following arrangement:

The question is: What do I mount them to?
The ceiling of the bay is (I'm 95% sure) plasterboard. The largest of the three blinds is pretty heavy. I'm not convinced that the plaster board will support the weight of the blind even with a heavy duty plasterboard fixing.
Another option I've read about, is screwing a batten to the joists and mounting the blind to that. I believe the joists run towards the back blind. This shouldn't be a problem for the back blind, but might be a problem when mounting the side blinds as I'm not sure if there'll be anything to screw the batten to.
Mounting the blinds to the window frames is not an option as the windows have protruding handles.
I can't be the only person to have this problem, but there's a surprising lack of information on the internet.
Any help or guidance would be extremely appreciated.

TL;DR: You're over thinking this. The manufacturer has already made the calculations necessary and has determined that the brackets, screws and anchors (if provided, or purchased separately as specified in the instructions) are sufficient for holding up the blinds in any of the mounting situations specified in the instructions. If they hadn't, they'd be getting lots of returns and/or lawsuits (especially in America - we like our lawsuits...).
If you're mounting it outside the bounds of what's specified in the instructions, you're a bit on your own, but still don't have much to worry about as you'll see if you read on...

The manufacturer knows the weight of the blinds you purchased and the brackets for installing it should be sufficient in number (2 or 3 brackets -or more- depending on the width of the blind) and construction (plastic, thin metal, or heavier metal) to support the weight of the blind.
The use of the provided wall anchors (usually I've found they provide them) in the spacing specified in the instructions and the holes specified in the brackets (they usually have different holes for different installation situations) should be sufficient. If they don't provide anchors, pick some up at your local hardware store/home improvement center.
Drywall/plaster board anchors are really pretty darn sturdy and will support a fair amount of weight, but if you're really concerned about the provided anchors, go get some that are rated for higher weights. You will probably find anchors that are each rated to support the full weight of your blinds. When multiples are used (one for each appropriate hole in the multiple brackets necessary to mount the blind) you'll have far more holding power than you need.
Consider that if the larger blind weighs 40 pounds and requires 8 screws (4 in each of 2 brackets as I've commonly found), each screw/anchor combo only has to support five pounds. Sure, there's some extra weight from tugging it up and down, but you'd be hard pressed to find a drywall anchor only rated at a mere 5 pounds.


LED in Hood fan won't turn off I've just moved into a new place, and the hood fan in the kitchen takes Par 20 bulbs. I had some left over LED Par 20s from my last place, so when one burned out, I installed it, and then I replaced the other one with an LED while I was at it.

Once I did that, the light would no longer turn off. There are three brightness settings on the switch, but when I turn it off, it just gets slightly dimmer.

I suppose I could just put back the regular Par 20 bulb, but I'd prefer to save the 56 watts if I can. Any ideas on how to resolve this?

Because somewhere in your system is a powered switch that relies on leaking small amounts of current through the (incandescent) light bulb. When they are not lit, incandescent bulbs are effectively dead shorts.  LEDs are not.  The small amount of current being leaked is too little to glow an incandescent.  However it's plenty enough to glow an LED.

This posting talks about the problem, and one solution, and links to a "gory details" discussion.


What does it mean when my dryer's 240V supply is 110V? My electric clothes dryer recently stopped providing any heat. Today a service-technician arrived and diagnosed two problems: that the heating-coil was broken (3 months after warranty) and that the electrical supply was only 110V instead of 240V and said I should replace the breaker. He didn't speak English very well and I didn't press him for details, but he did say that both issues would need to be corrected in order for the dryer to work again. He replaced the heating element in the dryer but did not say what was wrong with it, this leaves me with just the breaker:

My dryer is connected using a NEMA 14-30 connection and my breaker-box has a two-pole 30-amp circuit breaker, currently the reset switch is in the On position and indeed, my dryer produces no heat - only moving cold air around.

My understanding of electrical systems is limited, but I understand the dryer's 240V (is it 230, 240 or 250?) has two 120V AC supplies that are 180deg phase-separated, giving a total potential of 240V.

The technician did not go into detail about the electrical problems, I don't know if he meant that both phase supplies were both giving only 65V (unlikely, but possible?), or if one phase was not delivering any power at all, and if so, which connector wasn't delivering power.

Surely the circuit-breaker would indicate if there was a fault and perhaps enter some kind of failure-state or at least trip.

I'm about to head out to my hardware store to buy a replacement breaker and see if replacing it fixes it, but this doesn't seem right.

I'd hate to call out an electrician for this - I got a $350 quotation just to replace the breaker, hence why I'm doing it by myself.

The voltage measurement needs to be from 1 hot leg to the other hot leg the voltage should be ~240 (the flat connections). To identify the bad leg measure hot to ground or neutral each hot should have 120v.
Since your coil failed I would suspect the wiring at the receptacle or breaker. With the power off pull the receptacle and look at the connections. My guess there was a not so good connection when the coil failed it may have ended up burning the wire off. I see this regularly in receptacles not very often in the breaker box. It could be the breaker but that is rare.


Adapter to convert a 45-degree angle wall electrical plug into a straight plug This is a recurring problem I have: Instead of a traditional, straight plug, I have devices with a three-prong plug that lays flush against a wall and angled at 45 degrees. I find these types of plugs quite annoying because they only work if the electrical socket is in exactly the right orientation.
So, I need a way "straighten" out the plug. What would be perfect is something that rotates 360 degrees, similar to these extension cords, but without the cord: https://www.amazon.com/Nekteck-Listed-Extension-Degree-Rotating/dp/B071KSM5DQ
Any ideas?

Simplest and most reliable option (no sliding contacts required) is a 1 foot extension cord (or a longer one, but 1 foot will get the desired degree of freedom.)


Disassemble ikea sofa - screws issue Does anyone know how to eject these types of screws from ikea sofas? I can loosen the screw, but not the hook.

A pair of nuts matching the existing thread can be threaded on the free end of the bolt. Use a pair of wrenches to tighten the nuts securely against each other. After loosening the nut against the frame, you can hammer against the paired nuts with a smaller risk to the bolt. If the bolt has to be turned, the paired nuts will provide a surface on which the wrench can act.


determining floor type for dealing with squeaks Just received my anti-squeak kit in the mail. The instructions for using the joist-finding screw are different for "hardwood floors"...

...each plank in a hardwood floor has nails in it... you need to drive the anti-squeak screws down into the plank that is visibly moving or where the noise is coming from, not necessarily into the joist.
On plywood, or chipboard floors, the nails are drive into the joist to hold the floor down. Over time, the nails loosen... On this type of floor we use the Joist Finder, find the joist, and fasten the floor to the joist.

...and "softwood floors".
Question: based on the attached photo of my flooring (it's a multi-apartment 3-storey building in North America, constructed in the 1980s) will I have more luck eliminating the squeaks by driving the screws into the joist or directly into the area that squeaks?

if that is old hard wood a screw would most likely split the wood i would use a good deck adhesive then predrill small holes if you can without them being noticable use finish nails and always try to hit a joist if u can  most are 16"or 24"on center or apart from each other


How do I install a wood stove as an auxiliary heat source? I have a house with a forced air electric furnace.

We've also got a wood-burning stove adjacent to the furnace.  I didn't have it installed, and I want to understand if it's been done properly, and how to use it properly.  The house is on a big plot of land and there's plenty of hardwood available for use in the stove.

Right now the hot air duct out of the wood stove is connected to the return air duct that leads IN to the electric furnace.
Q1: Does this sound right?

Q2: is it possible for me to use the wall thermostat in the house to effectively control the heat?  how?  How would I wire it?

The problem is, there's no on/off switch for a wood stove.  If I stoke the fire, it will stay on and hot for hours.  Assuming the blower in the wood stove blows while it is hot (I have a separate question on that), and the warmed air is going directly into the electric furnace, will the electric furnace now detect that there is warm air in its plenum, and turn on its blower?

In that case, should I expect the fan in the electric furnace to run more or less for the entire time the wood inside the stove is burning?

What's the appropriate way to modulate the heat, in this case?  open a window?

For modulating heat in a wood stove in general, you probably have air controls that should control the fire. You should be able to get some good coals going, put on a fresh log or two, and damp down the air flow considerably. Then it should burn relatively slowly, and not release so much heat.


How do I fix a sprinkler valve that leaks instead of popping up the sprinkler heads? When this particular valve (Champion Classic 3/4" As Max PSI 150 466 Max Temp 110o) turns on, a lot of water starts coming out of the the bottom part of the valve which I've highlighted in the image. I can see the sprinkler heads get a little wet, but they don't "pop". Can somebody tell me what that spot on the valve is for and what I could do fix the problem?

The longer version in case it's helpful: A short while ago, my wife flipped out because the sprinkler made a sound of being on, but water wasn't coming out of the sprinkler heads. I turned off the controller (which is located in an inconvenient spot) that night, so I could revisit it the following weekend. When I looked at it, I saw the main sprinkler valve was mostly shut (my three year old at work, no doubt). So I turned it back on, and the following sprinkler schedule had the same problem. I turned the controller off again. The following weekend, I experimented with the system and the first zone was the only one with the problem outlined above. I can't find anything similar on the internet, and hoping somebody has some guidance.

First we need a Manufacturer and possibly if you can find it, a model number. Irrigation control valves like this have two parts, a diaphragm operated water control valve and a vacuum breaker. Typical Rainbird system shown here.

The control valve uses an electrically controlled needle valve that operates the main diaphram valve through servo action (small force controls large force). Cross section to give an idea how this works. When the needle is seated, full water pressure operates on the upper side of the diaphragm, shutting water flow off. When the needle opens, the pinhole in the diaphragm is smaller than the needle opening, pressure dumps and the diaphragm opens.

Where your leak is occurring is in the vacuum breaker (right hand side below). This device operates to prevent water siphoning back into the water line through the control valve if water pressure drops. It is essentially a check valve with one side open to the atmosphere that closes under pressure and if the parts are damaged through wear, foreign object stuck in the seat, corroded in place, etc. becomes as you've found, a large volume leak under pressure.

This is where having all that manufacturing information is important as most of these can be repaired if you can find the repair kits. Otherwise, it's complete replacement time.

Exploded diagram of the above example Rainbird unit less the solenoid control.

Champion Classic Brass 3/4" Automatic Actuator and Anti-Siphon with Union

Manufacturer is Arrowhead-Champion http://www.championirrigation.com

I've used Irrigation Direct for other product, their replacement parts page. There are other businesses listed. If you have a large irrigation supply anywhere near, they probably carry the product. Arrowhead is a well known manufacturer of brass plumbing fittings.

The Champion product has been around in manual systems since the 1930's. To get the Vacuum Breaker loose, you might need gentle heat on the body. Keep it on the breaker side.

Breakdown of the original Manual Valve and Anti-Siphon with Union

And the bits in the Anti-Siphon Valve that are giving you grief


Putting plywood between layers of attic insulation Sorry if this is a silly question, but I've searched an haven't been able to come up with anything helpful.

I'm planning on wiring my house for Ethernet, and I'm going up to the attic to do some cable drops.  My attic has blown fibreglass insulation which rises well above the top of the joists.  All the advice I've read says I should carefully rake the insulation away from where I plan to walk, and lay down some plywood planks to make sure I don't accidentally step through the ceiling, and to rake the insulation back when I'm done.  That's all well and good, but, I expect I'm going to complete this project over a couple of weekends, which makes me wonder, if I leave the plywood in place and rake the insulation back on top of it, effectively giving me a layer of insulation above and below my walkway, will the effectiveness of the insulation decrease?

Thanks in advance for any help.

Yep, that's fine. It won't degrade the insulation's performance at all. You can even make a permanent walkway consisting of plywood on top of rigid foam insulation where it would penetrate the layer of blown fiberglass.


Sealing seams between outdoor composite decking To make the space under my deck more usable when it rains, I've installed rubber screen spline between the seams on my composite deck and  also installed gutters at the low ends to channel rain water away...The deck is built with a small slope, away from where it attaches to the main building...I can see that rain water does flow down the 'sealed' seams and into the gutters.

This has reduced the amount of water that flows between the deck seams to the lower 'porch' area by 98%...but there are still some areas where water will penetrate through the seams (small drips) instead of being directed away.

So I'd like to know what type of additional sealer (see picture below) -  either a paint or a self-leveling  fluid caulk I could apply into the seams (on top of the spline) to eliminate the small leaks that still occur in places where there are very small gaps between the deck boards and spline.

(Note - the screen spline was rolled into each seam and it sits about 1/4 inch below the deck surface. The seams are about 1/8 inch wide. Each deck board is one piece, 7/8" x 6" x 11 foot)
Ideally I'd like to apply some kind of sealer that is about as viscus as water so it would flow down the slope of the seams and into the small gaps that are currently allowing rain water drips...

I'm thinking a thinned house paint or a semi-harding, enameled deck sealer might do the job - - setting up somewhat flexible to allow for expansion and contraction...I understand that I would probably need to redo this every couple years...I really don't want to use regular caulk if I can avoid it.

Sooner or later the splining will deteriorate, and whatever sealant you put in may as well. Also, you are creating little pools in the gaps that may be breeding grounds for mosquitos in wet weather.

Have you considered a waterproof underlayer instead of sealing the seams?
You could use any of various roof panels, such as pvc, polycarbonate, asphalt composition or even metal.  These would only need to be sealed at their edges, a relatively few linear feet that are easily accessible from underneath. And many of them are relatively cheap.

This layer can be easily sloped and you could direct drips in whatever direction you choose.


What could be causing this drop in water pressure? I have a deep drilled well with supply lines split to feed the house and livestock watering respectively. The flow to the livestock line remains constant regardless of water usage in the house. But with everything turned off in the house except one faucet, when a toilet is flushed the flow from the faucet reduces to a trickle. Pressure at the well remains at 45 to 50 lbs. What's up? Also, whenever lightning strikes nearby, I get mud in house water. I'm perplexed.

My guess is there is a restriction in the line going to the house, with only enough getting through to feed one thing, either the toilet or the faucet. And since the toilet is probably drawing the water first before the faucet, it goes there.

I agree that it is more likely just heavy rain that is causing mud in your water. However, surface water getting into your water supply is bad news. You should consider adding filters to clean up the water supplied to the house. I'd guess a chlorine injector to kill any bacteria in the water, a tank to give the chlorine some time to do its job and let mud settle out, coupled with a filter that can take the remaining mud and chlorine out.


Can I pull a common wire off an evaporative cooler transformer relay? I have a Nest thermostat currently controlling a LP furnace. The old thermostat didn't have a common wire connected, but there was a an extra wire in the bundle and a common terminal on the furnace control board, so I hooked it up so the Nest would work properly.

I'm getting an evaporative cooler installed soon, and I'd like to be able to control it through my Nest. From some research, it looks like I'll at least need an evaporative cooler transformer relay. One limitation is that this doesn't provide a common wire. I know I currently have a common wire coming from my furnace, but I've read reports that Nest expects it to come from the cooling system and will throw an error if not.

@Tester101 answer about adding a common wire cleared up a lot of things for me, but my question is a little more specific. Since the evaporative cooler transformer relay (see wiring diagram below) does not provide a common wire, I'm wondering if I can pull one off the diode bridge where all the relays connect?

I'm concerned about @ThreePhaseEel's comment on how the Nest will respond to the switching 24VDC that the diode bridge will provide. Although I'm confident that would be an appropriate location to pull a common wire from, I'm going to construct my own circuit from more standard parts.


Toilet, sink and shower blocked I live in a block of flats in China. I had a lot of friends over a couple of days ago and since the toilet, sink and shower are all blocked.

The water on all those items does go down, but really, really slowly. The day after, the water was going down faster, but as of today, it the water is going down slower.

I have just put an auger all the way down the toilet - about 2 meters, but it doesn't seem to have made a difference. I'm going to try putting it down the shower drain as I fear this could be a drain blockage.

When the water from the sink or shower is going down, the toilet water bubbles.

Is this likely to be a drain issue? Is there anything I should keep in mind?

I am assuming Chinese plumbing works the same as most other.  In such case, the only place in common to the sink, shower, and toilet is somewhere past the last one.

You might check with neighbors to see if they are having any problem.  If they started having trouble when you did, the block is downstream of them too, in which case a longer auger is called for.

The toilet has the largest diameter pipe of all of them, so that should provide the best route into the pipe, unless there is a convenient cleanout port.

If the toilet's trap is tight, it may well be expedient to temporarily remove the toilet:  there are only two bolts holding it to the floor, a wax ring (which should be replaced before re-installation), and the water supply connection.

The pipe beneath the toilet should be at least 3 inch inside diameter, so a more stout auger (1/2 inch or larger diameter) is better than a light duty one (1/4 or 3/8 inch) as the light ones tend to curl up inside the pipe and resist being fed (their place is less than 2 inch pipe).


Smell from vent in wall? I have an air vent in a wall in one of my downstairs rooms. Behind the vent is a Studor vent. On the other side of the wall is a small bathroom.

About a year ago this room started having a smell like the one that occurs if no one has been living in a house for sometime, but more acute. I've tracked it with my nose to this vent.

Any ideas what it might be? I don't think it smells musty... It's like someone ground up drywall.

This looks like an air admittance valve.  While not common, these can fail in an open state.  You could be smelling sewer gasses escaping from the stuck open valve.

When I had one of these stuck open, it was very obvious that sewer gasses were escaping, and I could temporary close the valve by "tapping" on it with the back of a screwdriver.  This was only a short term solution, and the valve was replaced to prevent it from happening again.


How can I protect books in my study from rats/mice? I've discovered that rats/mice are living in my home. At night they come into my study and chew any books they can find, so I had planned to exterminate them by
placing rat poison in the study. However, I'm worried that they could eat it and die in my study somewhere that I can't find them. What are the steps to take or alternative extermination methods?

From a book protection, and not extermination standpoint, you could always build shelving that had doors on it -- like the ones used in law libraries, where a door drops down from the top to close things up.

(typically, they're glass or other clear doors, so you can see what's in there easily.)


What issues should I be aware of when buying a 60's house that hasn't had anything done to it since it was built? The house was built in 1964.  Walking into it is like walking into a 60's film set;  nothing has been done to it since it was built.

It looks to be in good condition, but we're concerned about potential asbestos lined air ducts (it has warm air heating), and maybe it needs a whole rewire (it still has the massive 60's mains fuses).

What other things should I be wary of?

As much as I'd like to think I know what I'm doing when buying new properties, I ALWAYS hire a home inspector.  If you are concerned about Asbestos, you aren't going to be able to negotiate on price or to get it fixed unless you have a home inspector come in.  The added bonus of hiring an inspector is that if they miss something that should of been caught during the inspection, like termites, they are insured to cover it for you.

Further, if you suspect Asbestos, you should work testing for that into your P&S contract. The tile floors and ceiling plaster are just as likely to be asbestos.

Moreover, an untouched house from that era is likely to have a leaky roof, and a leaky roof means you have mold (another reason to have an inspector).  The air ducts may / may not be full of dust. The intake plumbing may be made out of led. The cast iron waste lines may be rotting and depending on water quality you may even need to verify the that the copper piping doesn't look like it has any pitting. At this point, the the foundation likely has a few cracks and you'll wanna test for Radon if you are in an area prone to in.

I just noticed Jasper posted while I was writing this. While I agree with him, you'll likely want to update your windows. The electrical capacity probably isn't as much of an issue as it would have been a decade or two ago now that people are moving to LED bulbs and laptops. Similarly, if your appliances either work or they don't - This isn't a 60s specific thing. Moreover, I'd argue appliances were better built and easier to repair back then, so if they are in good shape may even outlast a modern one.

TLDR; Don't do it your self. get an inspection!


3-Wire 30A needs to be 4-wire 30A for new oven, can I run a ground from wall outlet? I'm replacing an oven that was wired with 240V 3-wire 30A (Black, White, Red) and the new oven is 240V 4-wire 30A.  Can I run a copper ground wire from a 15A grounded outlet two feet away?

No, you can't.  That ground wire isn't nearly big enough!

You are allowed to retrofit just a ground, however it has to go

back to the panel
to non-flexible metal conduit or AC cable  that goes all the way back to the panel
to another appliance whose ground wire is at least 10AWG all the way back to the panel
to the Grounding Electrode system of that panel, i.e. The copper wire that connects the panel with the ground rods/water pipe.  You cannot use the water pipe.
To some combination of the above

There is no need for the retrofit ground to be routed with  the conductors, since it does not carry current except during fault conditions.  Use any feasible route.


Barrel/"Paris" hinge pivot orientation I've seen some doors in Europe with mixed barrel hinge (Fr. "paumelle de Paris") orientation. Unusually these have the pivot pointing up, but occasionally I've seen a door with one of hinges mounted the other way around, i.e. with the pivot pointing down. Is there a reason for this?

For outdoor use I understand this is a bad idea because a barrel hinge will gather water when mounted upside down. The ones I saw upside down were all inside doors. Also, it wasn't done because of the lack of proper parts (left vs right hinge). They simply rotated the hinge completely with the pivot installed on the door rather than the jamb. I don't get it why anyone would do this.

These hinges, when both are mounted with the pin facing up with pin side mounted to the door jamb OR when both are mounted with the pin facing down with the pin side secured to the door - it allows the door to be easily removed.
When one hinge is flipped the opposite direction with one pin pointing up and the other one pointing down it prevents the removal of the door. Pretty simple actually.


Is there any risk of running both the fan and furnace at the same time? I am attempting to build my own thermostat using an arduino and a few relays and have been trying to map the appropriate wires so I don't damage my furnace/AC unit.

This is a picture of my thermostat, a Honeywell Focuspro 6000.

When I select Fan to on Rh and G are closed.
When I select Cooling, Rh, Y, and G are closed.
When I select Heating, R and W are closed.

What I am finding strange is when the heating kicks on, it turns on separately of the fan. However I can still turn the Fan on while the furnace is running. Is the secondary fan the blower motor for the furnace and is there any risk of running both the Fan and Furnace at the same time.

The furnace is a N9MSB (B Series)

Looks like you have a gas furnace. If so the furnace will fire and preheat the chamber before the fan engages. This help dissipate any cold air in the ductwork before it blows into the conditioned space.
On page 22, Note #12 of your schematics there is a 25 second delay for heating. For cooling there is only two seconds delay.
For heating, this would be CPU controlled once the proving switches are engaged. See drawings on page 22 look for LPS, LGPS and HPS. Sound like you are on the right track, just wait for the fan to cycle on.


Can I glue poly supply line to a connector? I just bought a new house. The PVC connection to the foundation watering drip line snapped off because of ground movement. I bought several 1/2" parts (black) and connected the PVC back up to the existing drip line (brown). However, the connectors seemed to go on too easy and now they are leaking some.

Can I glue these connectors in place? Or use a repair clamp?

Edit: I found another part of the brown drip line with netafim stamped on it. All their parts are sized in mm, so this confirms my suspicions that the sizes don't match exactly.

I used stainless steel pipe clamps and that fixed the leaks. Next time I will order the appropriate metric pieces from the original vendor.


How do I remove these closet sliding doors I want to take these closet doors off but I’ve tried everything and they won’t come off. There’s no space to lift it up or angle and take the bottom track out first. i’ve also tried to take out the bottom track but it’s attached to the wood.
Bottom track:

Top track:

Sliding closet doors that are mounted to rollers and suspended from a track are meant to be removed by pushing the door bottom into the closet space while lifting the rollers from the track. Be sure that the floor guide (if any) has been removed first.
If there are two doors (one in front and the other behind) you will need to remove the rearward door first and than the front one.


Footing required for a low garden wall? Location is Northern New Jersey.
I'm looking to build a low garden wall; approx. 18 inches high. Current plan is cinder block faced with thin brick and capped with real brick.
It isn't a true retaining wall as the grade is flat and behind it will be a garden bed (inspiration below).
Does something like this require a true footing below frost?
Or: Can it be built on grade similar to a paver driveway/patio.

How fast would you like it to crack?
Drystack walls without mortared joints are somewhat tolerant of frost movement. Many landscaping wall block systems intended to perform that wall function are out there, as well as actual drystone walls from natural stone.
Mortared joints will break unless sitting on a solid foundation that does not move.
That does not need to be solid concrete, there are other foundation systems such as the "rubble trench" that Frank Lloyd Wright (somewhat) popularized (also seen under virtually every railroad track) - that does require good drainage so that the rubble drains, rather than being full of water.


How should I connect a new outlet cable to a box with two existing cables? I have a outlet that supplies a garage door opener. It has two black wires and two white wires. One black is hot. I want to use this outlet as a power source to install outdoor spotlight. I ran new wire to outlet but not sure how to connect wires.

Also when I unplug opener and plug it into another working outlet opener would not come on. It only will work on outlet I want to use as a power source.

Assuming that one cable is the incoming power and one goes out to more outlets or lights, just keep everything connected by color--blacks together and whites together.

I'm a little concerned that you're doing electrical work without the skills to trace a simple circuit, though. Please be sure that you have an understanding of proper connection techniques, wire size requirements, and other best practices. A little reading of a house wiring guide would be wise. You don't want to burn your house down.


What causes burn marks on the air handler in the attic? What caused these burn marks?

Phoenix Arizona suburb.  House was construction complete about 6 months ago.

The tape and insulating foam around the bigger tube was cut.  I assume the AC tech that came out to investigate the bad fish smell (see below) did the cutting, but I don't know for certain.

(Un?) Related Info:

Bad Fish Smell

A couple weeks/months after moving in we would noticed a strong body odor / fish smell in one area of the house, but nowhere else.  It was sporadic.  Sometimes we could smell it every night for a few days and sometimes we wouldn't smell it for a week or two.  When it was there it would smell that way for hours.  We usually only smelled it after dark.  I had a theory that it was moisture making mold a day or so after rain, but it wasn't consistent.  I replaced the air filters.  No change.  Google said it could be burning plastic and to call a pro.  I called the builder and they sent an AC tech to investigate.  The AC tech said they found nothing.  We did smell it after they investigated, but we haven't smelled it in weeks/months.  Maybe the heater was kicking on and making the smell and it hasn't kicked on since spring, so that's why we don't smell it anymore?  Except, I don't think it was cold enough to kick on the heater.

Burning Plastic Smell

Occasionally we smelled a strong burning plastic smell.  The odor was in the kitchen and every time we smelled it the gas stove was on, but we did not smell it every time the stove was on.  I looked all around the stove and saw nothing abnormal.  I couldn't pin the smell to the stove either.  My wife thinks it was a specific pot.  That pot never made the smell before we moved into this house and I was unable to replicate using that pot.  We haven't smelled this odor in weeks/months.

The burn marks on the air conditioner air handler are from the torch the installer used to solder the copper pipes to the unit. The pipes then go the compressor located outside the unit.

Most installers can do this job without scorching the unit.


What glue to bond metal and plastic in cold weather? I have a small plastic torch (flashlight) with a magnet on the back.  I use it to provide light in a small metal trailer.  Recently I pulled the torch off the metal wall, and the magnet came away from the torch.

I've fixed this problem before, but the glue I used seems to fail in cold weather.  (I'm in the UK, so by "cold", probably I mean 3°C down to -5°C.)  Can someone recommend some suitable glue?

Some sort of 2 part epoxy should hold up pretty well. Araldite is a common brand in the UK. For best results, try to remove the old glue so the bond is to the plastic itself, scuff both surfaces with sandpaper, then clean with something like alcohol to ensure the best bond. Allow to dry before applying epoxy. It's important to use the specified proportions of resin and hardener (usually 50:50) and that the two are well mixed. The epoxy should cure at room temperature or as specified, but once fully cured it will hold up under fairly extreme temperatures. It is also waterproof and resistant to most chemicals.

Be sure it is only applied to surfaces intended or materials disposable. It usually is impossible to remove once cured except by grinding away.

Besides epoxies, polyurethane based adhesives work well also. The two part versions are stronger but the more common one part formulas work quite well too and are more convenient to use. Such adhesives can be found in sizes anywhere from small craft quantities up to large tubes of construction adhesive by the case. Note that not all construction adhesives are polyurethane based.


Does OTR Microwave need to be flush against upper cabinet? Installing an OTR cabinet and have run into an issue. The upper cabinet has a lip that runs around the whole thing. This will cause the top of the microwave to not be flush against the bottom of the upper cabinet, as the microwave will come in contact with the lip/trim first.

There will be about an inch gap. Is this still safe to install this way? It looks like even with the gap the bolts will be able to go about an inch an d a half into the microwave.

Yes there is normally a gap between the OTR and the cabinet above it.  If you review the install instructions usually the gap is 1".

The gap is almost required and the typically U shaped metal mount on the back wall requires that the OTR be tilted in to be installed.  The tilting then requires that both the air output and the electrical cord coming out of the top of the unit thread into receiving holes in the bottom of the upper cabinet.  When tilting if you were to make it flush you'd need a trench type hole to allow the electrical cord to feed up into the upper cabinet.  I've done it flush before but it was quite a bit more difficult and the lower shelf of the cabinet above had to be butchered.


How to protect aluminum fence posts from weed trimmer? I assumed the manufacturers of the fencing would sell an optional sleeve to protect the power-coating on the posts from the repeated scraping of the trimmer cord, but they do not?  Does anyone have any ideas?  Is this even needed?

Get a piece of approprietly sized PVC pipe or corragated plastic drain pipe.For a 4 inch post use pipe with at least a 4 inch inside diameter Cut it into 6-9 inchs long pieces. Slice the pieces so you have 1/2 of a piece of pipe. Bury the pipe about 3-6 inches into the ground  so it covers the base of the post. Fill the space between the pipe and the post with crushed stone.


How should I cut these speaker stands down to size? Any recommends on what tool I should use and how I can go about not ruining the finish?

Here's a close up of the top:

And here's the finished product - thanks for all the help! I used a pipe cutter and it worked great.

The bases of the stand look as if the pole is welded to it. Unless you have welding skills, cutting at the base probably will not work.

The top appears to consist of a thinner pole that the speaker is attached to, inserted into a slightly larger pole that is attached to the base. In addition, there is a locking knob that seems to go through a threaded hole in the outer pipe, which probably presses on the inner pipe, allowing the speakers to be raised higher.

You probably need to cut down the outer pipe the same amount that you want the speakers to drop. This will eliminate the adjustable mechanism, but you may not care. If you need adjustable, you could drill and tap (thread) the outer pipe lower down, but that is a hard job needing specialized tools. You could solve it by drilling a series of small holes in the inner pipe and using a small rod (even a large nail) put through one of the holes and resting on the top of the outer pipe.

Depending on how long the inner pipe is, it may not allow the speaker to drop to the newely lowered outer pipe level.  In that case, you need to cut a section off the bottom of the inner pipe.

Several other answers address how to cut the pipe. Many of them will work, depending on the tools you have.

Once you insert the inner pipe into the shortened outer pipe, you may have some rattling since you have eliminated the locking knob.  This can be cured by wedging a small sliver of plastic between the inner and outer pipes (sometimes even cardboard will do). You also could create an alternative locking system by working out a clamp at the top of the outer pipe, but if you are not adjusting, that may be too much trouble and would not look as neat.

SUPPLEMENT: Based on the additional picture, you have a plastic grommet that tops the outside pipe. Once this is inserted in the cut down pipe, it will probably eliminate any rattling. If it does not, you still can wedge a small wire or plastic piece between the inner pipe and the grommet to tighten it up.


How can I fix a ceiling above the shower that was damaged by water? Our pipe coming out of the wall was leaking a very fine stream of water. We haven't had time to fix it. I don't know what that bumpy stuff on the ceiling is called but it's all peeling off. I know the pipe needs to be fixed first, but how should we fix the ceiling? Is it possible to apply it back on the ceiling? None of it has actually fallen off yet.

What's up there depends on the age of the home and how much the contractor cared when they spec'ed it. Most likely, the ceiling is some form of gypsum board that is then plastered, textured and painted. The result of water leakage on gypsum board is usually that the entire board starts to sag under its own weight; alternately, the outer layer of paper, along with any spackle, texture and paint, will peel away with the damp.

Unfortunately, drywall repair == drywall replacement. You have to cut away the damaged portion, fit and screw a new piece of drywall into that hole (using rust-resistant screws as this area already has a reputation for moisture), then tape, spackle, seal, texture, prime and paint.

On top of that, many types of ceiling texture such as "popcorn" ceilings are simply impossible to blend in with when you do a repair like this; tiny differences in the application of the texture along with the sudden stop/start to the old texture around the patch will make repairs obvious. To really do the job right, you have to re-texture the entire ceiling by scraping off the old stuff, smoothing the surface with sandpaper or plaster, then reapplying texture, priming and painting.

If you're going to do all this anyway, I would recommend replacing the entire piece of drywall that has been leaked on with a more water-tolerant product like backer board (DuRock, Hardee-Backer, etc). This product is normally used in areas where water and/or heat can be a problem, and are durable enough to get soaked without crumbling apart unlike gypsum board. These products are generally a different thickness than drywall so you'll need to level the ceiling with lath strips of the proper supplemental thickness on the joists. After that, installation should proceed much like with drywall (you may need to smooth the surface with more plaster; backer board is commonly used as underlayment for tile and so often has a mesh that grips thinset).


How do I remove stick on tile residue from a plywood subfloor? I pulled up old stick on tile from a plywood subfloor which is now so sticky it pulls my shoes off.  I need to get this surface ready to install vinyl planking which needs to be able to "float" on the surface. This is a small poorly-ventilated room, so chemicals are out.  I see some have tried corn starch or baking soda.....any helpful input for me?

The sticky residue shouldn't be an issue once you have laid your underlayment. After that point the installation process will have the desired floating affect.
Side note: The sticky subfloor might actually aid in keeping the underlayment in place while your vinyl flooring is installed.


What is this tiny plastic insert in my sliding window sash? With the recent cold weather, I've been trying to best insulate my house and keep it warm while not using too much energy. While applying weather stripping to my windows, I noticed that some of the windows have these tiny plastic inserts between the sliding window sash and the frame. See photo. I can move them a bit if I poke at them but they appear to move fairly smoothly with the window when opening an closing.

I see them at all four corners of the windows that have them and my BEST GUESS is that they are used to ensure the rubber weather stripping is pressing as tightly to the frame as possible and making a proper seal.
My question is what are these tiny inserts called, where can I get them? I have several of my windows that don't have them (presumably fallen out/gone missing) and I have noticed those windows don't sit as tightly into the frame as the others. I've looked up every variation of "plastic" + "insert" + "sliding" + "window" that I can think of and haven't gotten anywhere. Poked around my local big box store's window section and didn't find anything.
Appreciate any help!

By looking at the space between the window frame and the sash (approximately 1/4 inch ?) I believe those shims are installed to keep the sash straight and from rattling around when it is opened and closed.
Or they could be part of the spring assisted lift system of the window. The piece that is in view may be attached to a mechanism on the edge of the window which compromises the spring lift mechanism.
I'd say some sort of shim, though.
It may be easier to find the manufacturer of your window and get the shims from their site.


How much weight can mild steel square tubing support? I am looking to purchase a length of steel tubing with the following dimensions 1800mm x 25mm x 25mm with a wall thickness of 3mm. How much weight will be able to support at mid point if supported at both ends? I am looking to use it for a long desk.

Thanks in advance

The tubing that you suggested 1800mm x 25mm x 25mm with wall thickness of 3mm can be converted to an approximate dimension of 72" long, 1"x1" square outside size and a wall thickness of 0.118". The deflection calculator at this site suggests that such tubing supported at the very ends would experience a deflection of almost a half an inch with a 100 pound load applied right at the center of its length.

I would not consider this piece of tubing to be at all suitable for supporting a table or desk that was 1800mm from end to end and only supported at the ends. You would be far better off to use rectangular tubing that was 25mm x 50mm with the 50mm deployed in the vertical direction. You could also consider the use of 50mm x 50mm square tubing with a wall thickness of 5mm and achieve much better results.


How to repair a shower corner bench We noticed recently that the corner bench in our shower had a sizable crack in the sealant along one edge of the support wall.  Our first thought was to simply reseal the crack, but as I examined it a couple concerns crossed my mind.  And I wanted to get better opinions.

Is this structural, and does it need to be rebuilt to keep the seat stable?  I don't know what typically goes behind these kinds of seats to hold them up, but it seems that corner is pulling forward.  This makes me think it might continue to slide forward, which means both that this problem will return (soon), and the seat will eventually fall.
Do I need to chase moisture out of there, before sealing?  Because of the way water typically runs off the seat, it is VERY possible for water to run straight into that crack.  And being very limited in airflow it's never going to dry.  Sealing in moisture for years seems BAD.

In theory, I'm okay with the idea of taking this apart and rebuilding it (again, I've no idea what's likely to be back there, and am assuming it's just several sheets of marble held together with sealant).  I also accept that could be over my head, or not needed.  Is this safe to just seal over, or reasonably straightforward to take apart and rebuild?  What's the best method of repair?

EDIT

Some additional pictures in case they help.

It does not appear structural, as the seat itself is still flush to the wall.  If the seat were failing the seat top would be pulling away as well.

My guess is that the panel in question was installed with a slight angle there - poor cut or something - and that the caulk used has just given up, as caulk does.  However, more camera angles showing the seat would help confirm that suspicion.

As for do you need to dry it - as long as there is only marble back there, no, water won't hurt marble.  The problem is, you can't actually tell without pulling it apart.  If there is any wood there, however, I'll be very surprised.


well pressure switch in barn, pressure tank in house My well control setup is in the unheated barn. I tried to keep the pump room heated for a few years but am tired of replacing pressure tanks that freeze up over the winter due to electricity being lost.  I'm wondering what would be wrong with keeping the pressure switch where it's at (easier to drain in fall) and putting the pressure/bladder tank in the house. What do you think?

Without knowing the whole circumstance of what you want to do or the complete set-up of piping & control, allow me to say that the location of the bladder tank does not matter as long as you can control the operation of the well pump. I think that the best answer would be to bury the water line between the barn and house deep enough to prevent it from freezing and to move the tank and pressure switch to he house.  You could dig a trench and put the water line and any wiring in that trench. This way nothing will freeze.


Oven heating element receives power when off? I don't usually pay much attention to this when cleaning the oven, but the instructions for the cleaner say not to spray on the heating element. So today before cleaning, I decided to remove the heating element.

I guess that was a dumb idea, but the oven was off. When I was pulling out the element, it arced between the electrical connection and the oven frame. I turned off the circuit breaker and when I got back upstairs the element was hot.

Why is there still power going to the element when the oven is turned off? If this is a common design, it does not seem very idiot proof (as proven by me deciding to remove the element while it is plugged in).

To me it is like the difference between a properly wired light switch, where it is connected to the hot wire, vs improper, where it is on the neutral.

Probably because it's a 240V oven, and the oven thermostatic switch only switches one side of the 240V.

American power is 240V, but wired with a center-tap on the transformer, with neutral attached at the center-tap and ground bonded there.   This gives 120V from either "hot" wire to the neutral, which is how most of your receptacles are wired.  Your oven uses both "hot" legs, with 240V between them.  It is also grounded to the center.  If the thermostat switch only switches one leg, that is adequate for controlling the oven, but it means the other leg is always connected to the heating element, so it is 120V above the grounded oven chassis.


Pressure washer will not start after replacing carburetor and cylinder head I have a Simpson PS3835 pressure washer with a Honda GX270 engine.
Background
When I was replacing the spark plug for the first time, the threads stripped out of the cylinder head as I was removing the spark plug. (Yup.) And I didn't use the pressure washer often during the winter, and the fuel stagnated. So, I replaced the cylinder head, carburetor, and all associated gaskets.
Problem
When I replaced the cylinder head, I adjusted the valve clearance to spec. I used the Honda service (not owner's) manual for the GX270 engine while I repaired it. I also used to be a Honda (automotive) mechanic, so I'm relatively comfortable repairing/rebuilding engines. All new gaskets everywhere for the cylinder head and carburetor.
Nevertheless, I cannot get this engine to start. I nearly ripped my shoulder out of socket, too. Ugh. So, I'm following the standard start up procedure as listed on the pressure washer. Gas valve set to ON, engine set to full choke. Fresh gas in fuel tank. Fresh oil change. Bleeding air out of all water hoses.
When I pull the starter cord, the engine is, for the most part, difficult to turn over. I know there are a lot of variables, but could there be something simple I am missing? Should I bleed air out of the fuel system at the carburetor? I don't know.
Update on 4/6/2020
So, I removed the cylinder head and then the valves. I pressed on the valves/valve springs to simulate them being opened, and it appeared that one of the valves was hanging. Hard to describe. Anyway, I removed, re-installed, adjusted valve clearance, re-assembled the cylinder head and carb. Now when I try to crank, it's like it was before this problem occurred. Much smoother, less resistance. I don't have time to hook up the pressure washer to test it out. I'll do that on Thursday. Update in a few days.
Update on 4/9/2020
I cranked the pressure washer today and it started up on the first pull. The problem was valve-related. I just had to remove and re-install the valves, valve spring retainers, and valve springs, ensuring that both valve assemblies moved freely. One of the valves was hanging up on the retainer, I believe.

Since this is a pressure washer and no one has mentioned it - when I have a hard time starting one, I will hold the trigger of the spray wand while starting so the pump can't build any pressure. Unless the engine is in perfect "start on the first pull" condition, this is a requirement because the pump will build pressure and make it harder for the engine to turn.

You used to be a mechanic, so I'm not going to talk about checking for fuel, spark and air - I assume you've done all that, so we are left with why the engine is hard to pull start and for me, its normally the compressor.


How can I stop my doors from leaking at each corner? We have a new addition with one metal door with no glass, and French doors with glass.

I have had 3 different people try and fix them but they still leak. It used to leak the length of the floor from the doors. Now it leaks at each corner of the door and the French doors leak at their corners and the middle on our floor. The only thing we haven't done is cut everything out and start over. Before we do that what could be the problem. I have caulked twice since and now it leaks less but leaks all the same. Everything was new.

Usually†, an external door has a weatherboard with a drip-channel and a sealing system. I'd check that this is intact. On a badly fitted door, the door can sag and cause the flexible sealing strips to be torn off.

There's usually also a sealing strip in the frame at sides and top, but this is mostly for draughtproofing.

If water is pooling outside during heavy rain, I'd install better drainage. Normal doors are not an effective flood barrier.

† in the UK. Doors differ elsewhere.


Replacing a thermal store - hot water cylinder? Any help would be appreciated, I have done several minor diy plumbing jobs previously but nothing to this extent!

I am replacing a PulsaCoil 3 thermal store that has a leak on the internal cylinder, in our two bedroom flat. I have purchased a Telford Tristor

The pipework connections look straight forward:
1, Cold in
2, Hot out
3, 2 Connections to the feed and expansion tank.

Then the wiring to the two immersions heaters which look as simple as wiring a plug.

My concerns are about draining it down, is it as simple as shutting off my mains water and opening all the taps?

I am looking to tackle the job over this weekend so any help would be appreciated.

Just opening the taps will not drain the cistern, as the supply piping only runs through a heat exchanger inside the unit.  Disconnect the power supply long enough ahead of time that the water cools down before attempting anything - per the manufacturer the water in the cistern will be around 55°C, which is hot enough to cause scalding.

With the exception of the cistern, disconnecting this will be similar to disconnecting a tankless hot water heater here in the States. Turn off the cold water supply first, then put something to catch water under the connection for the hot water outlet.  If there's a cut-off on the hot water side, close it.  If not, make sure all your taps are closed while you disconnect the hot water supply from the unit.  This will be kind of like holding your thumb over the top of a straw - it keeps gravity and atmospheric pressure from draining all of the pipes in a torrent as soon as you disconnect it.  After you have the pipe open, have someone go around and open taps one by one to allow the supply side to drain out while you catch the water.

I can't tell from the documentation I could find if there's a drain for the cistern or not, but I'd be surprised if there wasn't.  Look for one at the bottom of the unit (you can see the drain on the bottom of the new model you linked to).  If there isn't one, you may have to resort to sucking the water out through the cistern fill port with a wet-dry vac.


300 ft Ethernet run parallel to 120v circuit There is a boardwalk through a wooded marsh approximately 250ft long with no line of sight between the ends. Along one side of that boardwalk is an electrical circuit.
I need to establish an Ethernet connection between both ends of said boardwalk to transmit video feeds.

If I were to run an Ethernet cable on the opposite side of the boardwalk, might there be appreciable interference from the 120v 60 Hz AC circuit running in parallel for that 250ft with approximately 3ft of separation?

Would Cat 5e vs Cat 6 make much difference?

Since the electrical wire is in metal conduit, I would have no fear of interference. Just do not attach the ethernet to the metal conduit, as you are not allowed to use electrical conduit as a hanger for anything.

Another factor:  Most plastics do not like UV light, which the sun emits in great quantity.  This could be a serious problem for the sheath on your ethernet cable, depending on placement. Cable rated for outdoors or for UV exposure will last longer, but will still fail in direct sunlight.

(I think, due to your concerns about interference, you wouldn't think to put the ethernet inside conduit carrying 120/240/480V power cables.  But just for reference, that is not allowed unless you use transformers to step down the AC voltage significantly, which would not work unless your loads were quite small.)