How to wire a 3 way switch that was a light fan and now only a light. Way to many may wires in one box, not sure how to connect I know how to wire a normal 3 way switch but this one has be baffled.  One of the boxes is basic red/black/white but the other one has TWO red/black/white wires coming in and a black/white wire coming in the bottom.  I assume the black/white bottom wires are the source and that I should connect that black to the dark screw.  I have not idea how to connect the remaining combination of wires.  Do I piggy back?  Help?

Let's get some colored tape, okay?  A 5-pack variety pack is $4-5.
Now, on the lamp, mark the black wire RED. Red is the preferred color for switched-hot, and presumably you want the lamp to be switched.
BLACK is preferred for always-hot.   YELLOW is Harper's preferred color for travelers.
These "preferred" colors are not Code requirements, but holy cow, they make life easier - especially next time you are in the box!
Up at the lamp, cap off the black wire with a small (orange) wire nut - won't be needing it.  Attach lamp white to ceiling white with a wire nut.  Attach lamp red (former black) to ceiling red with a wire nut.  Attach grounds and we're done there.
Now, you have no earthly idea which of the /3 cables goes to the 3-way vs ceiling, do you?   OK.

On the remote 3-way switch, cap off all 3 wires individually. Stuff is about to start getting hot.
Pick ONE of the 3-wire cables in the main switch box. Wire nut its white wire to the "supply" white.  Wire-nut its red wire to "supply" black.   Go turn the breaker back on.
Does the lamp light up?  We got the right cable, woot! We're done.
If not, turn power back off, unhook, and try the last step  with the other 3-wire cable.

Now you have identified the /3 cable going to the ceiling.  In the main box, cap off its black wire, you won't be using it until you sell the house.
Also disconnect the black from red wire that you temporarily nutted for testing.
The remaining /3 cable is the 3-way branch.  On both ends, use yellow tape to re-mark the black and white wires to yellow.  These are travelers and will go on the brass screws of both switches (brass = yellow, get it? :)
Back in the busy switch box, the two red wires are nutted together. These are switched-hot, thus, red.
At this point, in each box, only 1 wire remains unattached.  And the black screw of each 3-way is empty.  Do the obvious. And yer done.


Can I replace a shower door that has one edge joining with another glass pane? I had a shower door that wouldn't close anymore and the hinges were generally rotting and it was falling apart. The original construction was shoddy.

The shower consists of a door with one edge of the frame against the tile/wall, and the other partially on a standalone wall piece, and the other half against a piece of glass that covers the rear of the shower. I apologize for describing this terribly but I don't know the correct terms for these types of showers (or anything home related). It is best seen in the pictures below.

My question is, is there any hope of just replacing the door part without also tearing out the other piece of glass? The frame at the top that looks seamless does break apart. If not, can you buy combination door/side glass piece sets at Home Depot or something?

I have never seen replacement doors at a place like Home Depot. Your situation looks like a custom made unit.  You probably will have to have it looked at by a local glass contractor/supplier to see if they can make a replacement door or hinge set up for ya. Unless you can actually find the make and model of what you have now, I doubt you will find a simple off the shelf replacement.


Testing generator output I'm having trouble getting a 6kw generator to power a sub panel that was installed by a licensed electrician.  I would like to be able to test the generator's output.  How do I do that?

I know this is late responding but a 100 watt light is just that, 100 watts so you can plug in 60 100 watt light bulbs or try a combination of easier things like a 1500 watt hair dryer and a 1500 watt toaster over etc.  Thinks that have heating elemets are the biggest and most accurate.


Can I use a regular electric box for a control panel? I am currently planning an industrial-style automated workbench and I need to have some 22mm controls mounted. I want to use a regular metal enclosure. (Specific model here) My entire electrical system mainly runs on 12v or 24v DC. Is this okay to do? Or do I need to buy a proper industrial control box?

Not sure what locale you are in, but in the US, at least, you can pretty well do what you like, enclosure-wise, at 24V or even 48V, at least from a code perspective. i.e. you could use an old gutted PC computer case, it it floated your boat and fit your needs.
From a common sense perspective be sure that your enclosure protects the contents from the environment they are in adequately. i.e. NEMA 4 provides better "blowing" dust protection than NEMA 3, which is often important in many shop controls where the shop process makes dust that gets blown around, rather than just "falling" dirt/dust (which NEMA 3 is rated for.)
Not particularly familiar with "22mm" controls, most industrial controls I'm familiar with are mounted to DIN rail (35mm standard size, 32mm and 15mm smaller sizes, modules come in many widths along the rail.)


Could this trap be siphoning? I've attached a picture of the trap for my washer. The closet that this is in smells like septic tank gas so I assume it is leaking out of the standpipe. I haven't seen this type of trap before and I'm wondering if perhaps the unusual trap design is to blame.  From the top of the elbow in the top of the picture the standpipe rises 22". from the top of the exit of the trap is 28". The vent does connect through the ceiling to the main part of the vent stack.

stand pipe is on the left. vent on the right

close up view of vent stack

I would say the overflow or whatever is on the sill plate would be more likely to cause a problem it looks like you have enough area for a trap but the angle could be deceiving. If there is enough water to trap the gas the next thing to look at that may be pulling water out of a trap is a plugged vent. I have seen plugged vents pull water out of several traps when a toilet was flushed.

Added per op photo:
Ok wow the leak looks to be from a no hub or fernco coupler. That may be the source of the smell, in a case like this I like to run some bleach water prior to working on it even in my own home. 2 reason it flushes nastys down ant if you can smell the bleach the fernco is leaking.
If this is leaking it would be best to purchase a new one I like the metal reenforced like you have they keep the rubber from bulging.
These are a rubber sleeve with pipe clamps at top and bottom, the plastic pipe on top and cast below both fit and this is the seal.
Tips use a wire brush on the cast to clean it up. Wipe down the plastic pipe.
I put a coating of silicone calking in a few of the ribs inside the rubber this helps to seal especially on the rusty cast not a lot barely fill 2-3 ribs or a light film if no ribs.
Get it in place and tighten the hose clamps. , I don’t think your trap is bad but when a toilet flushes if your vent above is not clear it may pull the water out but the design looks ok.


Framing around PVC pipe I'd like to frame a wall around a 3 inch PVC pipe in my basement and would like to lose as little interior space as possible. The picture shows what I'd like the framing to look like and the dimensions. It's not load bearing, it will just have drywall on it. The top section "A" is build with 2x4s sideways, sort of like a soffit/bulkhead ladder that's why the thickness is shown as 1 1/2".
Is there a way to make this rigid/stable without tying section "C" into concrete with tapcons through the insulation? Flat corner braces between A&B and B&C? Screws instead of nails? In g
Thanks in advance for any advice.

Your pictures are perfect, except you need a Beta before the "A" - which is just a header to go across joists or blocking.   This will give you the stability.
For extra stability you can add a parallel header (Zeta) at the top on the same line as "C" and block Beta and Zeta - don't need a lot of blocking.   That's it.
And because I want you to do it right... I need to know your location... as the cavity for the PVC is more useful in some locations than others.
Based on last picture:

Bottom of top section 2x4 down slightly to fully align with blocking.
Flip top plate so flat part attaches.
Add a parallel 2x4 to top plate against wall.
Add a few blocks between two top plates.

This is about as sturdy as you can get.


Should I turn power to the leaking water heater off along with the water? Water heater is leaking so we turned off the water to it. Should we shut off the power too until it's fixed?

The heater is leaking.

Therefore, it does not hold water.

Water heater electric heating elements die a short, nasty death if they are powered up in air, rather than in water. Gas water heaters will burn out the bottom if the flame comes on with no water in the heater.

You should shut off the electricity or gas BEFORE you shut off the water, or very, very shortly thereafter, both to reduce damage to the heater (which may not matter much if it's leaking in a way that means it needs to be entirely replaced) and also to reduce risk of fire when heat is applied to a water heater not full of water.

If you are in a place where your water heater might freeze you should STILL turn off the heat source (electric or gas), and then drain all the water from the tank (and consider what a bad idea it is to locate your water heater where it can freeze in the first place, but that's an opinion...)

For most repairs and any replacement you'll want to drain any remaining water (amount depending on the location of the leak) anyway, but that's easier if you wait until it's cooled down some.


Best way to fit this dishwasher under the kitchen counter? This dishwasher is about a half inch too tall. Cutting a slot into the underside of the counter would solve the problem, and the lip of the washer would hide the cut, but I don't know the best way to actually cut the rectangular chunk out of the material? Hacksaw? Jigsaw? Rotary tool?

Note that the spring and metal brackets on top can both be removed with no ill effects.

EDIT - to address some questions in the comments:

this is a very old home that an acquaintance has just moved into
this is a second-hand dishwasher from the acquaintance's previous residence
obviously we want to make a few changes to the countertop and flooring as possible to get it slid into place

It should have level adjustments on the feet , run them in all the way. Maybe the adjusters can be removed. A rasp or float file can be use to remove limited spots on the bottom of the counter.


Could a power outlet be ruining hair straighteners? I'm not sure if this is the right place to ask this. We've gone through 3 hair straighteners in the past 2 months. 3 different models, 2 different brands.

The outlet is a normal outlet (No GFI) and one of the straighteners had a GFI plug.

Other things like hair dryers and curling irons seem to be working fine, and holding up.

I find it hard to believe that we've just happened to find 3 faulty products. What should I be testing for to see if the outlet could be causing the problem?

Voltage on the outlet is right around 124v

124V is on the high side of "normal" for a U.S. outlet. Most appliances should be able to handle that voltage, but some will not, at least not long-term. It's not so much voltage as amperage; the current flowing through a wire will create heat (the "toaster effect"). However, voltage determines amperage: I=V/R, so as V increases and R (resistance) stays constant through a circuit, I (current) will also increase.

There are voltage regulators you can buy for your entire house's wiring. These regulators are basically a smaller version of the big grey can transformer on the power pole outside (or the big green box down the street or in someone's back yard); they will "step down" the power from the incoming line just that little bit more to put it between 110 and 120V, which is the "butter zone" for U.S. electrical.

When shopping for your next hair-straightener, look for one that is rated for 125V, or at least 120V. Appliances are commonly rated for 110V, which is the low side of U.S service voltage and may not handle a "hotter" electrical region.


When I turn the bathroom light off it doesn't always go off The light always comes on but I often have to switch it 2 or 3 times to get it to go off.

Try replacing the switch, it sounds very much like the one you have isn't working correctly.


Replace toilet flange in a sanitary tee I had a toilet that stank, pulled it to figure out what was going on. Looks like the flange had been broken in the past and repaired, subfloor all around the flange was rotten. Tried getting the old flange out, but I think it was installed with primer. Cut out the rotten sub floor, can now see that the flange went directly into what I think is called a sanitary tee.

I can't seem to get the old flange out (already cracked part of the tee it attaches too) so now aren't sure what to do. A bunch of google results tell me you're not even supposed to use a sanitary tee horizontally like this.

What is the best approach here? Somehow try to get the remainder of the flange out of the tee then put a new one in? Cut out that tee and put something else in? One issue is that 'upstream' (I think to vent?) of the tee there isn't a lot of room to couple new pipe there.

Here's the (broken) tee with the partially removed flange

side view of the Tee

Upstream view:

Downstream view

I would recommend replacing all of the affected pipe. The PVC already looks pretty roughed up, and you don't want to invite more problems in by using a rubber gasket fix!

Start by making sure no one is going to flush any toilets, use any sinks, or run any water. Otherwise, things might get messy.
Measure the distance between the 22.5° pipe and the T joint.
Cut the upstream pipe between your T joint and the 22.5° joint. Leave about 1/2 inch of pipe before the 22.5° pipe, and make sure to be careful for the copper pipe running under you!

Now cut your pipe downstream and remove the cut section! Try to make the cut as perfect as you can. If the cut is too cattywompus, you won't get a good seal later and things will get messy. Once you are done, sand the edges so you don't have any rough spots, and then stuff some rags and bags in the hole to keep it from gassing you out.

Get some gloves and paper towels. You will need to clean the outside of the downstream pipe. Clean back about 6 inches. The reason for this is because we are going to put a fresh coupler on it later and need it to be clean, so that it can get a good water tight seal. While you have the cleaning supplies out, you can clean up the subfloor a bit as well :-)
If you have one of those handy dandy pipe driller contraptions that @BMitch talked about, use that to gently drill the upstream pipe that we first cut out of the 22.5° coupler. Image shamelessly stolen. (Thanks @BMitch!)

If you don't have one of those, then you can use a dremel to cut the pipe inside the joint (but not the joint!) and then snap it out.
I drew a few pictures showing what I mean...

When you dremel out the pipe, be careful! We don't want to damage the 22.5° joint!

After you are done dremeling, you should have little tabs remaining that you can break off. Then clean out the inside of the joint with some towels and you are ready for step 7!

Remember the distance I had you measure in step 2? Get a 4" PVC pipe and cut it to that length, PLUS the amount it will need to fit inside the 22.5° bend AND the end of the T joint. Cement the newly cut pipe into the T joint using purple primer and then PVC Cement.
Cut another segment of 4" PVC Pipe. This should butt up to the cut we made on our downstream pipe (with a 1/4" gap). Cement this section to the bottom of your T joint (towards sewer).

I have drawn a picture of what steps 7 and 8 should look like. The 4" PVC pipe you are cutting is shown in red. Please check the measurements, mine are just guesses! Notice how there is a 1/4" gap between the sewer line and the pipe we just cut. Get that gap as close to 1/4in as you can!

Once you have gotten this far, you need a 4" PVC Repair coupler. A normal coupler has a "Stop" half way through it, to make sure that the pipes are in the correct distance.

However, a repair coupler does not have a stop in it. Here is where things get tricky...
Get your PVC Coupler, and slide it up several inches so that it is near the bottom of the T joint. See picture. After you slide the coupler on, prime all your pipe ends, as well as the downstream pipe and the upstream joint.

Next, put PVC Cement on all your primed areas. So that would be in your 22.5° joint, on both of the red ends of the pipe in the previous photo, and on the downstream pipe end.
Twist and slide the top of your pipe into the upstream segment of pipe so that it is attached there. Then quickly slide and twist your coupler piece down so that it neatly joins the end of your pipe with the downstream pipe. See pictures:

All done!


How do you remove and re-install Register Duct Boot? Is it possible to remove and replace this register duct boot without screwing up the dry wall around it?

Large Images: https://imgur.com/a/lh9HIt2

It should just pull out unless it is screwed to the connecting duct or nailed in place. If it is screwed or nailed then those have to be removed. Since I do not see any nails it is probably screwed to the next piece of duct


To rewire or not to rewire I got two electricians to come out and look at my 1939 house. I wanted to see if the wiring needed upgrading.

One person opened up a receptacle and said I had cloth insulated wires and that I need to rewire the house...including bringing everything up to code. This includes adding outlets to walls that don't have it. It includes adding hardwired smoke and CO2 detectors. It also includes re-wiring all the light fixtures too. Cost ~14k

Another contractor went up to the attic with me and saw old metal conduits and said that it was actually in good shape. He said that as long as the wires are inside the conduit it would be fine. He also saw that in the house there were some receptacles that are not grounded, have ground and neutral reversed, no neutral or ground... I asked him about cloth wire and he didn't seem to think that was an issue. As long as it is in conduit it was okay. Cost: ~$800 to make sure receptacles are grounded and properly wired.

Who should I listen too?

update

picture of conduit

This is the type of conduit in the attic. It may be BX (armored cable) as mentioned by by @ThreePhaseEel.

Here's a picture in our kitchen. Old junction box and metal conduit. One goes to the floor the other goes to a hardwired garbage disposal.

updated 9/16

The house has 3 bedrooms, one bathroom, a small dining room, a living room and a kitchen (total ~ 1400 sq/ft). Some outlets are actually grounded (at least that's what my tester tells me).

Update 9/21/16

The outside of the wire actually feels a little tacky...almost rubber-like.

The old wiring in your house appears to be old-style AC (BX) with cloth insulated wires in a paper overall wrap under the spiral armor (no bonding tape).  Its fault current capability in the event of a ground fault is limited -- the armor in this early BX, while grounded, is not up to current standards for an EGC (equipment grounding conductor).  I would check the newer wiring to make sure that the EGCs are continuous to the main panel, and fix all the miswired outlets for that matter (i.e. reversed wiring on outlets).

You could replace the ungrounded outlets on the BX circuits with what are known as self-grounding outlets if you wanted some sort of ground connection on them instead of none whatsoever, but I'm not sure that's essential with modern levels of GFCI and AFCI protection.


Could this pipe be part of a french drain or something else related to a sump? I excavated a wall in the corner of my basement and found what I'm assuming is a drain pipe, but the location has me baffled.  It's literally in the corner of my basement.  The placement doesn't seem ideal for a shower, sink, or toilet and there is a bathroom just 15 feet away.

Oddly, there's a 20 amp duplex outlet installed in conduit right next to a 15 amp outlet that was just nailed to a stud.

Could this be part of a french drain or something else related to a sump?  I don't see any signs of a post pour addition of a french drain.

If the picture I'm attaching works, it's either a 4 or 5 inch pipe that's capped.

Additional:

I noticed a crack in the pvc, so I started excavating to repair it, whatever it is.  Inside is a smaller piece of corrugated pipe, maybe 2 inches across.  It looks like it's wet.  The part of the elbow that's under the concrete doesn't seem to have any pvc leading from it.

Does this help identify what I have here?

New picture:

It actually isn't that bad of a place.

Most basement bathrooms I do end up being in a corner.
Builder planning on actual drain location is basically useless because they can't get in your head on what you will want in 5 years.
Remember that what you are currently seeing will be covered.
The corner location allows you to easily connect your sink drain without busting up more concrete for that.  So you will bust up the concrete around this and connect your toilet and shower to a point where you have an acceptable pitch for each.  Toilet will need to be relatively close and shower can be further away.  Given that it is in the corner I can throw an adapter on the top of this and run the venting and the drain from sink through the walls.  If this was in the middle of the room you would have an extra line that you would have to connect below grade for sure.
Given this configuration and a "normalish" bathroom you could bust up concrete with just sledge hammer and have toilet, shower, and sink lines completed in a couple hours.  After it gets inspected you could have this concreted the same day if you can line up your inspector right and if he trusts that you will have it completed (you would have cut the top off and framed beforehand if you want it done quicker).

So really if I am doing a bathroom this is a great place.

Edit:  Since the OP added that they are installing a french drain on the perimeter my advice would to leave this in tact and work around it.  There is no reason this should really affect a french drain system.


How do I keep runoff rain from flooding my carport? Once the drain and ditches fill up in front of my property, water comes all the way down carport and leaves approx.a 2 inch water line around foundation and steps. City tells me it's a county problem,county tells me it's the city's. Driveway sits low so all rain comes in like a river.

Assuming you can't get the political problem solved (letters to the editor time, perhaps), you need to address the part where "driveway sits low so all the rain comes in like a river" (though you might also take the practical citizen approach and see if there's anything blocking the ditches and drains that you can, as concerned citizen, remove on your own.)

You'd be looking to build a smooth, drive-over-able, dam across your driveway. You may need to extend it with smooth, mow-able wings onto your lawn/yard. Alternatively, you make a wide smooth ditch that you can drive through, again extending of into the yard so the water has somewhere to go. In either case the aim is not to "just stop" the water (that is a game you almost always will lose at eventually) but rather to divert the water around your house/carport to somewhere less problematic.


How to repair torn vinyl flooring Here is the problem:

I'm renting the apartment and the tear wouldn't have happened if the flooring had been installed properly to begin with, so I'm not looking for perfection here. I just want my security deposit back when the time comes. I've read to warm the area with a hair dyer, smush it together as well as I can, use some kind of adhesive, then weight it for a day or so. Is there anything you'd like to add to that or dispute? Is there a particular grout or adhesive you'd recommend, particularly one likely to be available at Ace Hardware or Lowes?

First off that appears to be cheap PVC (Vinyl) sheet, not linoleum (linoleum is a natural product made from flax seed).  And the term 'grout' may set someone on the wrong path helping you.

Your faceless home store will have a variety of vinyl sheet goods glues and seam sealers for this purpose.  The seam sealer is probably the best bet as it comes in the smallest sizes, and you need just a tiny amount.

Dry it out first.  Open the windows, and get some heavy objects to keep it flat while the glue out-gasses and dries.  Use saran wrap to protect the heavy objects.


Broken clay drainage pipe Have a broken clay drainage pipe that just takes water away from the house.  It is near the wye on the bigger clay drainage pipe that where the difficulty is.  So any ideas how to fix it?

E we

With rain water only it is much easier. I am guessing that is 4” inside diameter clay pipe, I would excavate a bit more and cut the bell on the left or dig back to the next section. With both ends open purchase some flexible drainage pipe (commonly used for a French drain). Split the flex and put it over the clay and then cover the end where it is split with plastic. Then backfill and it will be fine for as long as the clay holds up. This is a small job and a heavy duty garbage bag wrapped around the split at rack end will work to keep dirt out. So you cut the end of the flex put it over the clay at each end then cover with the plastic trash wrapping snug at each end or opening. Backfilling with gravel is best but the dirt that was removed can be used for backfill,

If this was for sewer my answer would be much different but rain water it could be even something solid over the break then plastic to keep the dirt out , I have had patches like this last for quite a few years when another section failed and I replaced the entire line.


Additional support for closet rod My wife put some heavy clothes on this closet rod and it broke. It's not really a standard closet rod that goes the length of the closet opening. It's one of those 'half' ones that allow you shelves in the middle.

I need to add some support to this closet rod. The weakness mainly stems from the fact that the shelf side is very thin wood (Fake wood at that), and the bracket uses very short screws.

In my pictures, I'm thinking the red dots are where I need to add some wood support and use a longer screw in the bracket.

I have two main questions:

1) Is this the best way to go about the solution?

2) Should I use fake (Like this whole closet insert) or real wood?

One simple thing to try that would not be too much work would be to re-mount the plastic bracket in nearly the same place on the center divider panel as before. Instead of the short screws use some bolts like these:

Select the bolt diameter that will work with the mounting holes in the bracket. Select bolt length sufficient to protrude through the bracket plus the thickness of the shelf side panel plus enough extra to engage the nut.

Drill suitable holes all the way through the side panel of the shelves at the location that you would re-mount the bracket. Clamp on a scrap piece of wood against the opposite side where the drill will come through to prevent chip out of the side panel on that side. Then mount the bracket with the bolts through the holes. On the opposite side apply some flat washers as pictured below on the bolts and then spin on the nuts. Tighten the nuts using a screw driver and wrench or pliers to hold the nuts.


Tile and grout installation Does anyone know anything about the newer more durable grouts reacting with stone sealers?  I just had Luxor gold stone tiles patched into my bathroom wall and it looks terrible.  The new tile matched the old perfectly before grouting, but after grouting the surface took on a gray hue, caused the tile surface to appear mottled, and  all porosities took in the grout.  My installer showed me the color of grout he used and it matched perfectly, but appeared a shade or two darker on the completed wall.  He said it had something to do with the newer improved grout reacting with the sealer he used. He used nanoscrub to try to make it look better and that helped but it is still unsatisfactory.

"Newer more durable grouts" is kind of vague.  I assuming that the grout was a two-part epoxy, urethane based, acrylic plus silicone, or some other non-cement based grout from you have said.

In my experience these don't react with sealers and most don't need sealing.  They are however not so easy to apply correctly.  Cement based grouts leave a haze that can taken of with cheese cloth or more commonly now a scotch-brite type pad.  The non-cement products have to be cleaned very well from the face of the tile before they cure. Some products, like Custom's Fusion Pro (with is a pre-mixed acrylic and silicon resin combination) will dry quickly and cleaning water (if it is water cleanup, epoxies I've used are not)  has to be changed regularly.  The haze will stay stuck in porous materials and even with a stripper can be tough to get rid of.  Depending on what the stone surface is, and Luxor Gold is a honed finish natural limestone if I recall correctly, it can be "rehoned" with a polisher and appropriate grit to match the existing hone, this is essentially mechan.  It makes a mess to do it.  If the surface isn't too porous then a stripper can be used (if the grout has a chemical stripper that will work, most epoxies do not) to clean the grout residue from the tile.  But since it has a sealer on it, the sealer has to be removed also and natural stone needs to be sealed, after the grout has fully cured, even when many of these modern grouts don't need to be sealed themselves.

To troubleshoot what went wrong, you may take some left over tile and grout and the sealer and do some experiments to see if the problem can be replicated and what the recipe is to replicate it.  Then try methods to fix it on the test tiles to see what works best.

TL;DR  It is my guess a product like Custom's Fusion Pro was used and was not cleaned well from the surface of the tile before it dried.  The fine haze of products like these tend to off from the grout color and usually look pretty bad a day or two after grouted.  These hazes have to be either mechanically abraded off or removed with chemical strippers.  Some epoxy products do not have chemical strippers and have to be mechanically stripped. Test any attempt to mitigate the problem in an inconspicuous place if possible or preferably some left over test tiles.


How to fix a crack in laminate countertop I just finished installing mitered Formica counter-tops for the first time.  After I was all finished I realized I must have cracked the laminate when I was hammering to make things flush where the two mitered counter-tops are joined together.  The crack is about 3 inches long towards the back.  It's not extremely noticeable but it's driving me nuts.  Can this be fixed with some type of seam filler?  I'll upload a picture tomorrow if need be.

Thanks in advance!

There is a seam filler to hide a seam not sure if this will work well on a crack. The other thing I have used are solvents acetone and MEK. The problem with solvents is they can really make a mess (I have only tried a few times to use solvents acetone gave the best results but the seam filler gell did work the best for me.

I have never hammered laminate. After fitting a pieces and pre-gluing, I use window blind slats they allow the pre glued sheet to be put in place then I pull the slat closest to a Seam and make sure it fits then pull the slats and use a roller to push the top down into the glue. The filler gell I have used is designed to seal but it comes in colors to match as the gel has a little volume I don’t know if it will work for a crack in the material but I would check it out. Acetone may help but I have not had results that looked as good as the filler /sealer made by the laminate manufacturer. If you use a solvent a syringe or eye dropper will help control the amount put a drop in the crack and it will run down the crack (I understand this is horizontal) don’t add two much or it will make a mess as I did in the past.

Use a couple of small scraps to practice I got to where I could hide a seam but not as well as the filler that matched. Two much will pull the contact cement / glue up and that’s when it has to be redone.


Does a General Electric washing machine have an automatic shut down function in cold environment? I was using a General Electric washing machine when it suddenly stopped working.

I thought of everything and the most logical explanation was the factor of cold temperature, so I used a heater to blow hot air towards the washer. After a while it started working.

Does anyone know if a General Electric washing machine would have an automatic shut down function to shut the machine off in the event of the temperature being so low that water could freeze in the machine ?

Installing a washing machine in a location that freezes is extremely risky, even if the machine is disconnected and in storage.

There are many and plastic parts in the machine, that will crack easily in freezing conditions.  Some of them have water in them at all times, e.g. bottom of drain hoses.  Some have pressurized water, such as the water inlet valves: a crack here will dump thousands of gallons of water.

Your main stack is physics.se, so I'm sure I don't have to explain the behavior of freezing water and why it destroys equipment.  Allowing this equipment to be exposed to freezing temps is a foreseeable mistake.

Preparing a washing machine to be stored outdoors/in freezing conditions is called winterizing.  To be clear, the washing machine does not have any functionality that would auto-winterize the washing machine, even if it could detect ambient temp, which it could not.  It would certainly do nothing for the hoses from the wall or the plumbing in the wall.  Those, you would have to remove and disconnect yourself.

Most likely what happened is the hoses to the washer, or the pipes in the wall, froze just solid enough to block them but not enough to crack. That blocked water flow, so the machine never filled, so the timer could not advance.  You thawed those pipes in the nick of time.  I would say "you got lucky" - don't push your luck.


Is it necessary to shut off the water supply to a radiator in order to replace a radiator valve? There are barely any instructions in the manual. Do I need more than a spanner to do replacement?

Is it necessary to shut off the water supply to the radiator in order to replace the radiator valve?

You need to drain the water from the heating system, effect the remove and replace, then refill the heating system.

Some circulating-water heating systems are filled with tap water from the home's water supply, while others are isolated from the water supply plumbing and are filled with some other liquid. My experience is entirely with the most common tap water type, so I cannot tell you how to empty and refill an isolated system.

If you have a tap water connected system, you need to find three connections on your heating system, one where the water is admitted, one where it can be drained, and one where air can bled from the system.

The water will be admitted into your heating system from your home's cold water pipes, at a connection with a valve, pressure regulator, and probably a backflow preventer. Look for a pipe from the house plumbing into the furnace or into the pipes near the furnace. Look for a pipe interrupted by a valve and one or two other fittings.

The water can be drained from your heating system via a faucet or similar valve near the bottom of your furnace. It will have threads on its spout to accept a garden hose. Attach a hose to this faucet and place the other end of the hose outside your house, at a point lower than the bottom of the furnace.

The air bleed valve is usually found at the top of each radiator. These rarely have a handle attached; you are supposed to open it with a small spanner or a special key.

To empty the heating system: turn the furnace off, close the admitting valve, open the drain faucet, and open the highest air bleed valve in the house. Wait until water stops flowing from the end of the hose.

Use two spanners to remove the broken thermostat valve, and to install the new one.

To refill the heating system: close the drain faucet, open the admitting valve, and wait by the air bleed valve with a pan or bucket until water comes out, then close the air bleed valve. Now visit every radiator in the house, open its air bleed valve, wait with your bucket to catch the water that comes out, and close the valve.

If you have trouble confidently locating these places on your heating system, take some photos and post them here. Include a picture of one of your radiators, so you can get specific pointers from someone who has experience with your make and model.


can a plasterboard ceiling hold a 4 kg projector i want to mount a 4 kg projector in a plasterboard ceiling but can't find the joint so it will have to go in the plasterboard, i wanted to know if it will hold and what kind of things i'll need.
also if it will hold a 100" projector screen that is about 12 kg
really need help with this.

While I hate mounting things in ceilings without reaching joists (or other framing members), some modern toggle type anchors can hold loads of over 100 kg each in 1/2 inch drywall per anchor (many jurisdictions require 5/8 or thicker drywall in ceilings).

The load on ceiling mounted items is tensile and the use of several mounting anchors should give you lots of room. This link shows the load ratings of one brand of toggle anchors. Brand to brand ratings may vary slightly.

I strongly prefer the rotating bar type toggles over the old spring-wing types. They allow installation and removal without losing the interior component, and the load seems to be better spread over the drywall surface.

While two or more toggle anchors are theoretically more than enough for a 12 kg screen, the ratings are for static tensile use. If the screen is being moved up and down, either mechanically or by hand, that is a dynamic load that multiplies the strain on the fitting.

There still should be enough room for normal use, but understand that someone pulling down with their whole weight on a screen is more than any such mounting bracket can sustain.

Finally, things falling from the ceiling can do serious harm. Make sure that the projector, and especially the screen, do not pose a risk to humans (we can live with broken ceilings and devices).

  Images and links are illustrative only, not an endorsement of goods or sources


Fire safety for room on interior of home I’m looking at a house that has a room on the interior (highlighted in red below) with no window/door to the outside of the area. Knowing that this isn’t fire code compliant to be considered a bedroom, what could be done to make it safer? I’m thinking about condo fire code and having a sprinkler system in the home or would it require fire extinguishers?

Swap the lower-left office and the center "bedroom"
The easiest fix for this will likely be to swap the office space in the lower-left of your picture with the "bedroom" in the middle, as the former is large enough to be used as a bedroom and conforms otherwise as well.
As to other approaches...
The problem with the alternative you've floated of using sprinklers to make up for the deficiency you have noted is that the governing Codes that are in use in various jurisdictions disagree about their validity.  In your case, your jurisdiction uses a code (an amended version of the California Residential Code) that is based off the International Residential Code (IRC), which in R310, requires that basements, habitable attics, and sleeping rooms have an operable "emergency escape and rescue opening", normally implemented as an operable window of a specified minimum size, and only exempts sprinklered dwellings from that requirement if you're talking about a basement bedroom in a basement that either overall has such an opening in addition to a standard egress means, or two full means of egress (the latter would come into play in a walkout basement, for instance).
However, not all jurisdictions adopt the IRC or a code based on it.  Instead, they adopt the NFPA's Life Safety Code alongside a local or national building code; it is even possible for a jurisdiction to adopt both the IRC and the LSC, although such a jurisdiction will likely use local amendments to cross-correlate the two.  Under the LSC (NFPA 101) regime, what you describe would be permitted, as while the LSC requires a secondary "means of escape" (again, an operable window or door of a certain minimum size) from all living and sleeping spaces in 24.2.2.1.1 (which'd include your office), it exempts sprinklered dwellings from that provision altogether in 24.2.2.1.2, provided the sprinklers conform with NFPA standards.
Nonetheless, I have no qualms about recommending a fire sprinkler retrofit anyway; California has required fire sprinklers in new residential construction for years now, so you don't have to worry about dealing with daft water utilities or contractors who won't give you the time of day.  Your primary challenge will be the probable need to upsize your water service line from the street to provide 15-30GPM at sufficient residual pressure for the system to operate properly, as many residential water services are only 5/8" or 3/4" in diameter and thus lose too much pressure if you try to make them flow that much water; a more practical minimum is 1", with 1.25" preferred, although this does not mean your meter has to be that large, as fire sprinkler water is not metered in most jurisdictions.


How do I remove wet latex paint from carpet? I have just stepped into latex paint and walked onto the carpet by accident. I haven't done anything yet it just happened.

How do I remove the paint from my carpet?

You will be OK, it's only latex paint and you have time on your side.

Use a dry paper towel to suck up any wet paint.
Pour a bit of water on the dry paint to reactivate it.
Use a dry towel to dab the paint spot unit it goes away.

If the paint has been there awhile and has started to setup or if dabbing isn't doing the trick, you will have to scrub it. You can try warm water and a mild dish soap too.

Warning: Some people may advise rubbing alcohol or other solvents, be careful as these may strip the color or even melt the carpet depending on what your product is.

Still no luck? Try a professional carpet cleaner machine; the hot water and brushes will help scrape the paint out.

Edit: found a nice video for you.


Repairing cracks on deck joists This year, being a beginner in handyman skills I decided to replace the deck boards and railings of my deck. When I bought the home about 1.5 years ago the professional who checked the house for me told me that the underlying structure is in good shape.

So, I started the demolition couple of days ago. One thing that's concerning me is after I removed the deck boards, I see the cracks on top of the joists especially where the previous screws went in with older deck boards. Rest of the joist looks good to me.

Now, do I replace the whole joist or can I do anything else to strengthen the structure ?

Note: My house is 17 years old. I'm assuming the current deck is at least 15 years old.

None of that is concerning. It's called "checking" and it's what happens when wood dries out. Look at the logs next time you're in a cabin. The screws tend to direct it and mildly exacerbate it, but it's not really a problem.

You could use flashing to protect the joists from water going forward, but for every joist you cover there's an unprotected connection or cut end or other vulnerable spot that will rot out eventually anyway. I'd install your new decking and railing and plan on another 10-15 years of service from the deck. Then it'll be time for a rebuild.


What are these copper pipes and do I need to do anything to them before covering them with a wall? Home was built in the 1950s, and this is where there was originally a shop in the back of a basement garage. We just tore out the wall that had been put up here (sometime in the 80s?) and were surprised by all of the loose ends that hadn't been properly closed/sealed by whoever remodeled.
There is a fireplace on the floor above this and the pink insulation on the left is where the ash/soot clean-out door was for that. We recently installed a gas insert (you can just barely see the hole for the gas line at the very top of the picture), so we don't really need to collect ashes anymore.
The cereal box taped over the bricks is covering a flue that I just removed some black stove pipe from (you can see through the large round hole on the right the terra cotta flue that the stove pipe went up into from the bottom; I don't understand why that round hole is there since there is no way to get into the terra cotta flue, which I assume is original). I do not know what the stove pipe was originally for, but it might be related to the copper pipes.
The concrete wall is about a foot behind the cinder block wall. I tried to stick my phone in the hole and get an image of the pipes from inside, but there are some old soda cans and mortar in the bottom, so I couldn't get an image of the copper pipes from inside the wall. I tried sticking my shop-vac hose back there, but couldn't loosen it enough.
The bigger copper pipe is connected to the smaller copper pipe on the left. I put compressed air in the smaller one, and got about 2 quarts of water out the big one. The water seemed to have lots of tiny metals shavings. Putting compressed air in the smaller pipe on the right didn't do anything, but when I released it, I could hear water sloshing as the air rushed back out to equalize.
From what I can tell, all three pipes gradually bend downward, but I'm not sure. I tried pushing a straightened wire hanger into the bigger pipe, and could only get it about 3 feet in. This was before using compressed air, and the wire hanger came out completely dry.
What were these pipes for, and what should I do before covering them with a stud wall and drywall, etc.?

What are these copper pipes and do I need to do anything to them
before covering them with a wall?

Since they have been open behind a wall for nearly 40 years without an issue i think is is safe to assume there is no problem.
If you do not want to try and figure out where they come from and re-purpose them then just  solder caps on them and build your wall.


Sample water for lead On many websites, they recommend sampling your water after at least 8 hours of no usage.  Some recommend sampling immediately after this period and others recommend flushing the water for 5-15 minutes.  I'm almost sure there are lead connections in the plumbing system because the apartment building was built in the 1930s.  And the city says the water meets lead standards at the source (in other words, the 5-15 minute flush seems unnecessary). Does it make sense to just flush for 30 seconds before sampling because 30 seconds is how long I plan to flush before using the water for cooking, washing, bathing etc?

(Actually I'm testing for more than just lead)

In the 30's they still used lead quite a bit, lead solder was used into the 70's for copper pipe. In my early years I had removed lead pipes and drains most of these homes were a bit earlier Victorians but there have been a few cabins that we remodeled that were from the late 20's early 30's and most was on a 2nd or 3rd remodel and mostly the drains were lead but we did find a few lead pipes on drinking water pipes in angels camp California. Running the water for a few seconds similar to normal ussage is a good idea to get a idea what is in the water because even copper pipe from the early 70's may have lead solder joints, if the water is run for a short time the lead levels will be much lower.


What are some computer interfacing electric energy meters on the market? Does computer interfacing electric energy meters exist? With possibilities to get/log current power usage and monthly used kilowatt hours. With ethernet/rs232 etc interface. I am looking for this for European current 3phase, 230V. Looking for affordable options.

Google Power Meter is one good place to start: AlertMe makes a product for the UK market specifically.

It's also possible to DIY. For 3 phase power, you'd need 3 current transformers, and then something to interface them to (an arduino may fit the bill). Note, be sure you actually have 3-phase: most residential buildings use split-phase (in which case you only need 2 transformers). On top of the hardware, you'd have to write all the software for logging and viewing the data, or interface into the Google Powermeter API.

There's several projects to look at as well:

DIY Interent-connected whole house power monitor
Not so tiny power meter
Arduino Kilowatt meter


Is this dimmer switch wiring correct? I live in a rented flat filled with dimmer switches. One day we knocked a rack of halogen lights connected to a dimmer and blew a fuse. I reset the fuse but the circuit with the rack of halogen lights never worked again... We tried changing the bulbs, but it appeared that the dimmer switch itself has blown.

When I opened it up, however, I found this:

I can't quite fathom how two live wires can go into the same dimmer. What's going on here? Could it just be a wrong coloured wire?

The hot goes through a switch, including a dimmer switch.  So it's always a hot feed in and a switched hot out on a simple spst switch.


how to fix a 1/4 inch gap between the tub spout and the wall I have an issue with the tub spout not being flush with the tile wall. I've attached a picture that shows the problem. The spout is a slip on with a hex nut for tightening. The copper pipe coming out of the wall is 2 7/8 inches so I don't think it needs to be shortened. I've tried a different spout, but still have the gap. Also tried using a collar and spout, but still have the gap. Can anyone offer a suggestion, aside from a whole lot of caulk?

Thanks]1
[]2

It looks like your pipe is not coming out of the wall perpendicular to the wall. Since this is copper you may be able to square the nipple so it will not hit on the bottom like it is doing now.


Recommended pine dimensions for desk/shelf unit I'm looking to make a desk/shelf unit like in the image below. For the vertical pieces of wood (to make the two A-frames) what dimension of wood is advisable?

I would like it to appear skinny rather than chunky so considering using 18 x 65mm pine. Does this look suitable?

If using this 18mm x 65mm wood how could I attach the horizontal supports between the A-frame vertical sections? To use screws from each end the screws would need to be 65mm (through vertical sections) then ?25mm into horizontal support. This would require very long screws and a long drill bit. Does this sound reasonable? Is there a better way to attach the supports?

Thank you

A simple Butt joint like this will avoid any visible screws :

https://www.1001pallets.com/common-wood-joints/

Those pins, having a larger diameter, and glued, will be stronger than screws as the smaller diameter of the screws will likely "rip out" of the end grain.

Or you could countersink the screws and fit covering plugs.


Will an area rug cause the carpet beneath to wear out? Is it true that an area rug (for wiping feet) which is lying on top of carpet will actually cause the carpet to wear out even faster?

If anything, I would expect the opposite problem: the area under the rug would wear less, and be noticeable when you take up the rug for that reason (if at all)!

Assuming the rug is color-fast, of course.


What is the maximum load for EACH of the standard US 120V electrical outlets? I've searched the answer which seems to be 1800W (120V x 15a) but it's not clear to me whether the rating is for each of the two outlets or the pair together.

So I would like to know: what is the maximum for each outlet and what is the maximum if both are in use simultaneously?

No single plug-connected item is permitted to draw more than 80% of the rating of the circuit. That would be 12 amps for a 15 amp circuit and 16 amps for a 20 amp circuit. You will not find item sold with a 15 amp plug that draws more than 12 amps or an item with a 20 amp plug that draws more than 16 amps. However, there is nothing to prevent 15 or 20 amps of load from being connected through a power strip. Also, 15 amp outlets are permitted to be used on a 20 amp circuit. That would indicate that each individual 15 amp outlet or pair would need to be capable of 20 amps.

Edit:
What is permitted is stated in the National Electrical Code, article 210. The use of 15 amp receptacles on a 20 amp circuit covered by Table 210.21(B)(1) and the 80% limitation is covered by paragraph 210.23(A)(1).

Re answer by Bryce
The main answer is direct and to the point, but the last part is not true.


New electrical install problem. Low Current? Was sent here by the electrical engineers so credit to them for not being known it all types, they said electrician hang out here. Heres my problem below, will get a socket monitor thingy tomorrow and test draw on the socket.
So we've been renovating (virtually new everything) a 1930s semi that hasn't been modernised since it was built and hadnt been lived in since the 70s. Naturally a full rewire was high on the agenda which is 90% complete now, but my suspicion began when the 3000W fan heater I bought seemed not to be chucking out much heat. At first I thought nothing of it putting it down to a poor quality appliance. But when a new kettle I tried took around 7minutes to boil, I started pondering if there was a fault somewhere causing a limit to max power these appliances were generating/drawing. I had the plugs tested and they are producing 230v but before researching ohms law, I suspected a resistance issue. To double check, I took the heater home and plugged it in and hey presto, belting hot heat. I am awaiting an updated fuse board from Northern Power, which I'm sure will fix the issue but, I wanted to rule out any problem with my installation before I sign off with the sparky ideally.
The only other info I have is the original power was a shared supply to ours and next door and I wondered if some sort of phase drop was present grid side of our board. Is my next logical step testing resistance between board and consumer unit? Can you do that with a normal multimeter? My electrician who looks to have done a fantastic installation seems to be brushing it off like there's no problem but the house will be electrically heated and rented out so I can't have 2k worth of underperforming rads getting overworked.
All ideas, practical and theoretical appreciated. Sorry for essay.

You need to perform measurements while the loads are applied. There are plenty of power test devices that are pass-through: one end plugs into the outlet, and the device itself has an outlet you plug the load into. It'll display the real power, the mains voltage, etc. If you worry about any voltage drops/sags, you'll want one of those. One brand (with some copies) is Kill-A-Watt. It appeared first on the US market, but you can find very similarly looking devices for the UK market. One of them is called Hopi, as used by bigclivedotcom.


Insulating a finished basement We recently purchased a home with a fully finished daylight basement. First winter here and all our bathroom pipes froze. They run along an exterior wall that has concrete exterior drywall and finished interior and nothing in between. I hired an insullation specialist who said to blow in cellulose but I have read that's a bad idea against concrete. We have to do something or pipes will continue to freeze. I have no construction skills myself so will have to hire out. I am looking for a fix that will stop the freezing without trickling water five months of the year and without mold growth. Any ideas?

Blowing in insulation would make matters worse along a concrete basement wall.  First, cellulose absorbs moisture and there is probably no moisture barrier in the wall.  Second, I would never put cellulose in a basement wall because of moisture issues.  Third, insulating will prevent enough heat getting inside the wall to keep the pipes warm.

Short of moving the pipes away from the exterior wall (and I mean nowhere near the wall) and reconstructing the wall without the pipes within it, there is not much you can do except remove the drywall and keep the room above freezing temperature.

I lived in a house like this for a while.  Everything was finished except the wall that had the pipes on it.  It got cold in the winter and really wasn't much use.  And on really cold days I couldn't even close it off or for sure the pipes would freeze.  If you could not finish the wall with the pipes and insulate the pipes themselves, that might at least keep the pipes from freezing.

They sell electrical heating cable to keep pipes from freezing, but if someone sells that idea to you make sure your fire insurance is paid up.  Not what you wanted to hear, but that's the best I have.


Mystery current on neutral wires coming into outlet box In reworking outlets and switches in our 1960's California home to use AlumiConn connectors + copper pigtails where needed (instead of older wire nuts + Noalox), I came across a duplex wall box in the kitchen that includes incoming and outgoing wires on a circuit that's completely separate from the other wiring in the box.  That particular separate circuit only includes outlets, and the wall box is upstream of anything else on the circuit.  Disconnecting the wires in that wall box should have left no power whatsoever going to the rest of the circuit ... or so I thought.

After turning off the breaker for the circuit, I started disconnecting the wire nuts connecting this pair of incoming and outgoing wires, and that's when I saw unexpected sparking between the two neutral wires.  Nothing was plugged in to the outlets at the time.  At first I thought I made a mistake identifying the breakers, but to the best of my abilities, I am certain that the rest of what's in the box is unrelated and separate.  I finally proceeded to open up every downstream outlet on that circuit, disconnect all the wires, then test and retest using both a twin-lead tester (kind of like this one) and a continuity tester.  All the outlets (superficially at least) appear to be wired in an ordinary manner, with incoming and an outgoing wires and pigtails to the receptacles, much like figure B in this diagram.  However, testing reveals that when a certain other breaker in the house (operating lights elsewhere) is turned on, two of the wall boxes on my problem circuit exhibit the following behavior: there is current flowing in one of the neutrals going into the box.  My twin-lead tester lights up when I connect it to the neutral and the ground, but not between neutral and hot, and not between hot and ground.  Turning off the "other" breaker stops this behavior.

Researching this kind of thing leads me to conclude that the most likely cause is a shared neutral between my problem circuit and another circuit in the house.  My best guess is that the wires feeding the two outlet boxes are coming from a junction elsewhere (in other words, that the wiring is not strictly from outlet to outlet as I expected, but that there's unidentified joint somehere), and in that junction, someone connected a neutral from the other circuit to the neutral(s) feeding those outlet boxes.  I went into the attic to investigate, but the attic uses loose-fill insulation (so I basically can't see the wiring) and is not easy to navigate safely, so I gave up for now.

Questions: are my conclusions reasonable?  What are other possible causes of this behavior?

(More info: there are 2 other things in that wall box, a switch and an outlet, each on separate breakers.  The circuit with the outlets is a 3rd one.  I am 99.9% certain there are no connections or dependencies between these 3 circuits. Testing was done with all 3 breakers off.  The circuit that unexpectedly allows current on the neutrals mentioned above uses a 4th breaker.)

First, there is such a thing as a multi-wire branch circuit (MWBC), in which two hots intentionally and consensually shate a neutral.  They are placed on opposite poles of service, which means only differential current flows through the neutral.  This works for 2 hots in single (split) phase service, and up to 3 hots in 3-phase (208V) service which you will only find commercially or in NYC.

Neutrals must be carefully wired to be monogamous to its partner hot(s), to assure that the neutral carries no more current than its partner hot(s).  After all, neutrals don't have breakers.  If a neutral carried current for more than its intended hots, it could overload, and nothing would detect this.  Borrowing a neutral is not allowed.

Another rule is that currents must be equal in every cable or conduit. This means no loops, wiring routes must be a strict "tree" topology. It also means the neutral will always be in the same cable with its partner hot, or hots in MWBC.

And that means MWBCs will be readily apparent in the service panel, because they will enter the box in a red-black-white cable.  (or in the same conduit).  When you see that, place both red and black gots on a 2-pole breaker, so that when you switch off one side, the other is also switched off.  That satisfies a basic rule of MWBC.

At this point, shutting off that breaker must arrest all current flow in the neutral.

If it does not, then you have a "promiscuous neutral" problem that you should aggressively eliminate.

Grounds, on the other hand, are allowed to be promiscuous, since current only flows on them during fault conditions.


Delta Faucet: Maximum Gallons Per Minute with New Aerator If I bought a 1.5GPM new replacement aerator, would the faucet emit 1.2GPM or would it increase to 1.5GPM ? I see a lot of delta faucets like this

https://www.deltafaucet.com/bathroom/product/B2596LF

This faucet comes from the factory with the Delta RP61340 aerator which is a 1.5 gpm aerator.

This would mean that the faucet's internal valve and/or water delivery configuration is what limits GPM delivery to 1.2. So... NO, replacing the aerator won't help you because it comes with a 1.5 but is certified at 1.2


What kind of conduit should I use with UF-B to reduce depth of burial? I currently have a 50' length of 14/2 UF-B. I only need to dig a 40' trench, but I know it should be buried 24" deep. That seems like it will be a lot of work to bury it that deep. It seems like it would be a good idea to run it through some form of conduit so that I don't have to dig so deep. There's also the added benefit of being able to run a different size cable in the future. I'm not sure if there are different requirements with running UF-B through conduit, so I'd like some advice on which conduit I should use, or how I should dig this trench more easily.
I assume that the 14/2 UF-B is still the cheapest cable option. I looked into renting a trencher, but the cheapest I could find was $150 for 4 hours. since it's a 40' trench, it didn't seem worth the price if I could just use a shovel. PVC conduit is pretty cheap, but as far as I can tell, it still needs to be buried to a depth of 18". As far as I know, the only other option is IMC, which only requires a depth of 6". Looks like I can buy 10' lengths of IMC for $16 (so $64 for 40'). I don't know if there are any other options. I found 50' length of flexible PVC conduit for $35, which is cheaper, but I'm not sure how deep it needs to be buried.

I'd use conduit with THHNs in it and save the UF for wiring the office-shed
One thing most people don't realize about UF is that it can be used as a substitute for NM with the same makeup; the NEC permits this in NEC 340.10 point 4, and while it's usually uneconomical, it's a good way to use up spare lengths of UF.  This is because while it's legal to use UF in conduit, it's a waste of conduit fill compared to using individual wires, and also much harder to pull through the conduit compared to individual THHN conductors.
I'd use a 1.5" and a 1" PVC conduit at 18" to top of conduit (20-24" deep trench) in your situation; if you don't need anything else, you can use the 1" conduit for 3 (1 circuit) or 4 (1 MWBC = 2 circuits) 12AWG THHNs to a 60A non-fusible AC disconnect box on the outside of the office-shed.  You can then run your branch circuit(s) from that box, and just provision a 15A feeder breaker at the panel you're running this from, with the 1.5" conduit left as a spare for future provisions of more power, or fiber Ethernet to the shed for that matter.
If trenching that is out of reach, you could use rigid or intermediate metallic conduit in the same sizes in an 8-9" deep trench, but keep in mind that that conduit is going to pose an obstacle to landscapers and others going digging in the yard in a way a 24" deep PVC conduit won't.  You'll also need to use metal (RMC) expansion fittings in the riser at each end instead of the much cheaper PVC versions, in addition to the conduit being considerably costlier than PVC, and occasionally requiring either compression (threadless) couplings or a threading machine.
So, it's either more work trenching, or more work hauling, cutting, and threading conduit, with the latter creating a hidden annoyance for landscapers as well.  Pick your poison.


How do I replace a leaky secondary water valve? Outside I have a leaky secondary water valve that seems to overfill whenever my secondary water is turned off. I don't have the slightest clue of how to replace this and would rather learn how to do it myself instead of hiring a landscaper to do a few hours of work.

Can somebody recommend the best way for approaching this?

Without seeing the actual valve type and piping arrangement it will be very difficult for anyone to tell you what you are in for.

One thing I know for sure: step #1 is digging it up! Once it is exposed you (and our on-line community) will have a much better idea of needed repair work, if you add pictures to your post.

Questions:
1) Is it a continual leak that keeps the area flooded like in the picture? If so, you will need to effect a positive shut off upstream and let the water soak in or dry up before excavating. You will likely need to do this anyway to proceed with the repair or replacement.

Judging by the type of handle I see in your picture, I suspect it might be a valve like this:

If it is a brass valve like this, they are usually fairly simple to repair. replacement is not always as easy.


Do I need to install a local ground point for a secondary consumer unit in my shed? I've just installed outdoor sockets on the side of my brick shed, where previously we just had a double socket inside the shed itself. The original socket in the shed is on a spur from the ring main for the downstairs sockets. This is hooked up to a breaker in the main consumer unit in our basement.

Instead of just splicing that spur into two for the shed socket and outdoor socket, I installed a secondary consumer unit in the socket's old location and ran the shed socket and outdoor socket from that, on separate breakers.

The new consumer unit has an external screw terminal for attaching a ground point. The manual mentions that it is an optional feature. I do have a clad copper water pipe going through my shed, to which I could potentially attach a grounding strap, but I'd rather avoid doing so if possible because it's not really near the consumer unit (it's about 4ft away) and the area around the pipe is currently inhabited by an annoyingly large and confident spider. I'm pretty sure she's been eating the others and I am not a fan.

Everything currently works. I've verified ground continuity all the way from the incoming feed to the outdoor sockets. I'm just not sure if I need the additional ground connection. Must I face the spider, or can I shy away from battle?

From your reference to "socket ring", I assume you are in the UK.  I shall use UK terms.

From the additional information you have provided in the comments, you have the easy case.  There is no long run from house to shed, so you don't have to worry about resistance in the cable reducing the short-circuit current (either live to neutral or live to earth) to the point where the fuse in the consumer unit doesn't blow.

Just use the earth wire in the cable, and export the earth from the house.  Do not attach another earth in the secondary consumer unit in the shed.

Do make sure that there is an RCD in the circuit - either in the secondary consumer unit, or at the point where the spur comes off the ring-main.  (Personally I think where the spur comes off the ring main is best, but in the shed is certainly "good enough".)

Do make sure that the spur to the shed is adequately protected by a fuse.  Note that ring mains can go up to 32A, despite the fact that they are wired in 20A cable - this is because they are only rated for 32A on the assumption that it is reasonably evenly divided over the ring - so each leg of the ring shouldn't go above 20A.  With a spur there is only one leg, so you can't rely on that - you need to limit it to 20A.  There really ought to be a 20A fuse in the FCU where the spur comes off the ring, but if the spur doesn't come off the mains in an FCU and it's difficult to install one, bunging a 20A fuse as the master fuse in the secondary consumer unit won't be strictly according to the regs, but it will get you most of the protection.


All bathroom outlets are dead We have a house built in 1995; I'm told it was built by a house builder as his own house.

All the bathroom outlets in the house aren't working.

Some are GFCI outlets and some are not.  The presence of non-GFCI outlets suggests to me that there must be another GFCI somewhere although the breaker box doesn't have any other GFCI breakers.

I checked the output side of every circuit breaker in the house and all are working.

All the outside outlets are working too.

At each outlet, I confirmed no voltage from line-to-ground and neutral-to-ground.

I have found that they're all connected together since I used an extension cord and confirmed a connection Line-to-Line and Neutral-to-Neutral between bathrooms at opposite ends of the house.

All this suggests to me that they are all controlled by a single GFCI; perhaps a GFCI breaker.

All the outlets having the GFCI feature are not tripped and also not receiving power.

Unfortunately:

the house isn't empty
the plans stored at the city don't include any wiring information
there is no known property inspection document which may have described a possibly now-hidden breaker box.
Garage has shelving throughout.
Basement has a renter.

Any guesses where to look or what special thing I should look for?  I have a background in electronics but so far, I haven't found what I need!

Thank you for any clues you can provide!

Perhaps you can rent, or borrow at a tool library, a proper de-energized circuit tracer.  Unfortunately the inexpensive "circuit breaker finders" only work on energized circuits, though you could use one of those in a process of elimination, and to build up a circuit map.

The Ideal Suretrace is the market leader in this category, a basic kit seems to run about $1000.  With that kit you can follow all the wires through walls and even under slabs.

You do know you only need one GFCI per room, right?  Only the most upstream outlet should have the GFCI, the rest get stickers indicating they are also protected.


Double-pole breaker connected to two receptacles/outlets on same column/post We have a double-pole breaker that seemingly is connected to two outlets in the same column/post in a room. 3-Light tester reads all three lights, multimeter reads around 240 volts in each outlet. With four wires per outlet, I assumed the person that wired these simply forgot to break the tabs, thus causing the 240. I broke the HOT (black) tabs, measured something low like 12v from three plugs and 240 from the fourth... Broke the other tabs, and now it's 240 on one plug and 0 on the other three...

I'm not sure what to think now, about how this was ever left wired up like this.

Outlet 1, Top measures 0.02 V, Bottom measures 238 V, slightly fluctuates.

Outlet 2, Both measure 0.02 V.

Background information: It's the same support beam behind each, just different sides. When we bought the house a month or so ago, this was the only outlet the inspector must have missed. After realizing something was wrong, the easiest thing to do was attempt to replace the old-looking outlets. On the old outlets, the tabs were all still intact but they were connected via the push holes instead of the screws.

 26,28 breaker

 Outlet 1, Left Side

 Outlet 1, Right Side

 Outlet 1, Rear

 Outlet 2, Left Side

 Outlet 2, Right Side

 Outlet 2, Rear

OK.  Based on the information you gave, it appears the last person wired this as a plain 240V circuit "NEMA 6" style.  He did not change the receptacles to NEMA 6-15 or 6-20 as Code requires.  Perhaps he didn't know that was possible, or didn't want to spend the money on sockets and cords.  I suspect he had some large loads that worked on dual-voltage 120V/240V. We're seeing a lot of this sort of wack-a-dack work being done by Bitcoin miners etc.

The circuit also stops at these receptacles and goes onward to somewhere else.  It is possible that "somewhere else" is a hardwired 240V load.  Look out for something that suddenly stops working.

Anyway, the answer is to convert it back to a 120V circuit, and this is very easy.

First you will need to rollback the experimentation you did with the socket breakaway tabs - either pigtail a wire to each screw, or just get new receptacles. The tabs should not be broken.

Then, you'll need to open up the service panel, which is a hazardous work location because parts are energized even with all breakers off.  That 2-pole breaker will have a black and a white wire going to it. (if it has black and red, STOP and ask us about that!) Remove the white from the breaker and place it on the neutral bar. Done.

(yes, this means that half the 2-pole breaker will be dangling, doing nothing.  I don't care if you don't.  If you ever need more space in the panel, you can swap that 2-pole for a 1-pole CH120, but it's simply not a priority.  Or if  you add another 1-pole 120V 20A circuit, you can tack it on the unused half of that breaker, though it will have common trip with this circuit.)

While you're in the panel, some of the breakers appear to be setting "skewed" from where they belong. It may be a mis-fitting panel cover.   I can tell from the color that it is a CH panel, and the breakers are CH, so they should fit properly. Do not use the cover screws as jacks to force the cover to close. If the cover won't lay down correctly, look for things getting in the way, like wires where they should not be.  Feel free to neaten up the wire lays, but don't cut wires short.  Every hot and its partner neutral should be able to reach any breaker in the panel.


Which wood fence boards will last longer, pressure-treated-lumber or non-treated lumber that has a treatment applied after the fence is built? I just heard of the capability to build a fence with untreated lumber and to apply a disodium octaborate tetrahydrate solution after installation.

The alternatives I have been considering are AWPA UC3A pressure treated lumber (PTL) or cedar.  My understanding is that both the PTL and the cedar require the application on an initial and periodic (every 3 years) wood preservative (not a stain).

I am looking for the best long-term wood fence solution and prefer to pay higher up-front costs to avoid maintenance and repair in the future.

(The decisions to use wood for the panels and metal for the posts have already been made. The wood panels will be 2 inches above grade and have no ground contact.  The wood panels will have a cap on the top so that the grain ends of the boards are not exposed to the weather.)

Pressure-treated lumber should last longer. Any preservative applied to untreated wood would only affect the surface to a few mm inside, so would have to be reapplied more frequently.


NEMA 10-30 to European 220V? I have recently relocated to the US and brought European 220V appliances with me. I planed to use power transformers from 110 to 220, but learned that I have NEMA 10-30 outlet in my home, which, from what I understood, is 220V (but with 110V volts on the ground pin?!).

Anyhow, is there (or can I assemble) and adapter from NEMA 10-30 to European 220V and will it work?

A NEMA 10-30 is 2 hots and a grounded neutral conductor, with 110V H1-N and H2-N and 240V H1-H2, all at 60Hz.  Whether an European appliance will accept it depends on the type of appliance:

Appliances with fractional HP motors, or especially AC synchronous (timing) motors, will likely not run correctly due to the frequency difference as motor synchronous RPMs will change as a result.
Grounded (IEC Class I, look for the ground symbol) appliances cannot be safely connected to a NEMA 10 outlet due to the lack of an equipment grounding conductor.  (They can be connected to a NEMA 14 or NEMA 6 outlet with the correct adapter, though, provided that mains frequency is not an issue.)
Some older Class 0 appliances rely on plug polarization and the grounding of the neutral to be safe -- this is common in old consumer audio gear.  These appliances also cannot be safely connected to a US 240V outlet of any type (whether it be a NEMA 6, a NEMA 10, or a NEMA 14) due to the lack of a grounded reference conductor in the 240V section of the circuit.  I'd junk them anyway.
Doubly insulated (IEC Class II, look for the square within a square symbol) appliances (that do not have an AC motor in them) and Class II power supplies (wall warts, laptop bricks, etal) don't care about how the mains is presented to them, and thus can safely be hooked up to a pair of opposite leg hots, even if they are 240V only.  The internal transformer will be built more robustly for 50Hz operation than it needs to be for 60Hz, so the frequency change is a non-issue.
Older instruments and some other types of (older) electronic equipment intended for worldwide circulation will have a jumper link, back-panel switch (the infamous little red switch), or other documented means to change over from 120 to 240V -- this covers older computer power supplies, for instance.  The presence of an IEC-type inlet and detachable (computer type) power cord, instead of a fixed power cord, is a good (albeit not universal) sign to look for a 120-240V changeover function.  Again, the frequency change is not an issue in an all-electronic device.
Newer Class II power supplies and electronic equipment/instrumentation have "universal inputs", and are capable of 120, 208, or 220/240VAC operation without any twiddling -- this capability will be marked on the device's safety label.


Circuit breaker adjustment Two of the guest bedrooms in my house are under the same circuit breaker trip switch. I just found out that I can't have a 1500W room heater plugged inside each of those bedrooms at the same time, as the circuit breaker trips when I do that. This is inconvenient as we use room heaters at night in the bedrooms we use to save on electric bill. Is there a way I can easily & safely "adjust" the circuit breaker so raise the "trip threshold" just enough so that it does not trip with the 2 heaters on? Or is this a job that will require rewiring the 2 rooms?

Conventional residential circuit breakers are safety devices that are not subject to adjustment. They are sized based on what the wires to the outlets can safely handle.

As you surmised, if you want to draw more power to that area, you need more wiring.


Alternatives to pig-tailing ground wires in outlet box? I have an old house and there are ungrounded outlets set in the baseboards. I am currently working on rewiring them and was wondering what the best way to tie the ground wires to each other and the ground screw is. From looking online, it seems to be using a pig tail, but these boxes are very shallow and I don't think I can fit a deeper one in there. So are there any safe alternatives?

I would use a crimp sleeve to save space.  Hold the ends of the ground wires together side by side so that one's about an inch longer than the other and crimp the sleeve on at the end of the shorter wire.  Loop the end, land it on the ground terminal, and you're all set.

Follow the instructions on the package of the crimp sleeves.  Most people use linemans pliers with a crimp lug to crimp sleeves.


What's the purpose of 5.5mm concrete drill bits? In (continental) Europe, all the plugs I've seen are either 5 or 6mm. So what's the point of 5.5mm drill bits, most commonly found in SDS-plus version? Is it to drill in crappy material and/or with a crappy drill/rotohammer where the 6mm hole would end up larger than expected if drilled with a 6mm drill?

I'm probably correct since some "economy" plugs, e.g. those with EAN 7332418018425, have a suggested drill hole of 5.5mm or 6mm or both (depending where you find them).

The 5.5mm might be UK-centric thing, since Bosch heavily sell sets which include that size in the UK (e.g. Bosch p/n 2607010546 has 160 reviews on amazon.uk) but it's barely sold in Germany (on Amazon, where in only has 16 reviews); instead the equivalent set with two 6mm bits is sold in Germany a lot more (Bosch p/n 2607010543 has 192 reviews on amazon.de... and a single one on amazon.uk). The former [UK-popular] Bosch set also includes a 7mm bit, for which I can find plugs on screwfix, but I've never seen them used [the 7mm plugs] in continental EU.

Simply, they're for 5.5mm plugs.

Red screw plugs are normally either 5.5 or 6mm, it's not the case that the manufacturer is advising a smaller drill size to account for poor quality.
5.5mm tend to be a little cheaper though as they're normally made by companies that sell only to tradespeople in boxes of 1000 without spending on packaging or marketing.
Fwiw, 5.5mm plugs in a 6mm hole will do quite a good job...which is good because 5.5mm bits are relatively rare.

It's a bit of a discrepancy in (uk) standards...in that there really isn't a standard. The UK isn't very good at adopting standards in the construction trade.

Want some blue plugs? The 8mm or 10mm ones?
Want 7mm plugs? Brown or grey?
Want some 40mm waste pipe? Sure, how big is it? 41mm, we wouldn't want to be the same as the other guys.
Want to wire a house? Can I interest you in a ring main?

Incidentally, 7mm are pretty common but not nearly as popular as 6 or 8mm.


What can cause a sink's pivot rod connector to leak water? Background: When running water in my bathroom sink, I'm seeing a small water leak (about a drop per minute). I traced the source to the bottom of the pivot rod connector - see the red circle in the attached picture.

Questions: Given that the leak doesn't appear to come from where the connector itself is screwed in, what might the cause be? Can water still be reaching the pivot rod itself?

what might the cause be?

The connector isn't tight, so the pivot assembly is loose, so water can work past the seals.
It was assembled with dirt in the seals
A seal has failed or is damaged
Something else.

  Can water still be reaching the pivot rod itself?

Yes.

I would disassemble, clean and inspect. replace any worn or damaged parts - especially rubber/plastic seals around or in the pivot assembly. Reassemble and test.

Example from Grohe:

8.4 45265 Nut and bushings


How can I monitor water usage for just my portion of a shared property? I live at a property of 4 bungalows. We are all on 1 water meter. We have all been told by the property owner that our monthly charge for water is going up because of higher use. My neighbors and I believe it to be the fault of one bungalow's occupant. Is there something on the market that we can attach to the main coming into our homes that will monitor how much we are using?

You will want to be very careful about installing and changing things on the property since you are not the property owner. If it comes down to needing to have individual water meters at each unit the best thing would be to work out an agreement with the owner to switch over to actual usage billing.

Part of the negotiation process could be agreement that the various tenants will chip for part of the cost of the meters.


How can I get this pump casing off the motor? I have a Monarch MJC-50 shallow well jet pump (1/2 hp) and I want to tear the pump portion down to clean, inspect, and rebuild as it isn't delivering the pressure it used to (and I have ruled out all other causes).

I am unable to get the pump housing/casing to come apart from the motor, and I am reluctant to use more force.

The manual doesn't help, as it simply says "remove casing" :) I am basically stuck on the 2nd part of step 5. Do I just need to use more force?

Here is the diagram of the pump. I can't seem to get piece #1 away from the motor portion.

I figured it out.

It turns out that part 16 (gasket) and 17 (cast-iron seal plate) (which to me, looked like part of the casing (part 1) came apart to allow the casing to slide off. I didn't realize they were separate from the casing as they were flush with it and painted the same blue color all over. The two pieces popped apart fairly effortlessly at the gasket.


How to check my house for termites? I may just be paranoid so I don't want to call out an exterminator, or buy a bunch of stuff I don't need.

How to I tell if I have termites?
Are there preventative measures I should take even if I don't have them?
If I do have them can I kill them myself or do I need to hire and exterminator?

Here's another post with good tips: Any words of advice on dealing with termites?

In terms of prevention, you can pickup a package of traps at the local hardware store and install them yourself. You should also avoid the ground coming into contact with surfaces that termites can infest.  That means you should keep mulch well below any siding and fences, keep wood piles away from the building, and make sure that bushes and trees are trimmed back.


splitting 3 phase from phase converter to three machines I have a metal lathe, mill and grinder, all run on three phase. I have a three phase converter and want to know the best way to split the three phase from the converter to each machine. I looked for a three phase Junction box, but cant seem to find any information on this.

Any junction box will work most industrial sites use Hoffman boxes the size of the box depends on the conduit size and number of conduits entering. For a small setup like this a 12×12×6 box would probably be more than enough for a terminal block or splices.


Must a 4 ton variable speed air handler use a 4 ton heat pump? This is an air conditioning question:

Must a 4 ton variable speed air handler use a 4 ton heat pump or can a 3.5 ton heat pump  or smaller size heat pump be used instead?

The question you ask about a "4-ton air-handler" is that you can expect the air-handler to produce enough air supply to support a 4 ton A/C unit requiring about 1600 cfm. The actual air flow is dependent upon the total resistance to air flow in the whole system. Since the motor supplied is a variable speed or more probably a 4 speed motor, then you could utilize a lower speed for a reduced air flow. The actual air flow needed to support an A/C unit is not an exact science but is an approximation of the air flow needed. So, to answer your question "yes", you can use that air-handler on an  A/C unit smaller than 4 ton. The 4-ton is the maximum size A/C you should use


How do I troubleshoot a washing machine that uses hot water on cold settings? We recently moved a 5 year old washer to a new home, connecting hot to hot and cold to cold. After a wash cycle completes, the clothes are hot.  I verified teh hose connections. By opening/closing the shutoff valves, I found that the washer pulls from both hot and cold regardless of the temperature settings.

How do I troubleshoot this?  I'm worried about shrinking clothes and bleeding reds with unwanted hot water.

Sounds like a stuck hot water solenoid (stuck open) or a bad timer mechanism (its a giant multipole rotary switch driven by a timer.

The solenoid is easy to get to and test by carefully disconnecting wires, measuring resistance:  low, ~1000 ohms, but not zero or infinite.


What is this part on my dishwasher, and why is it leaking? I noticed our dishwasher was leaking last night.  Below is a stock picture of the pump assembly, part #wpw10195599 which would actually be positioned upside down from what you see in the picture.  The water appeared to be coming from the round hole that is circuled in red.
I can only find the entire assmble for sale, but would like to try to fix the actuall part that's defective first.

Does anyone know what the white part is that's circled?

Does it make sense that that's where water could be leaking from?

If so, is there anything I can do besides replace the entire assembly?

OK. I was able to find out that it's called the "diverter motor".  It spins the wash arm.  It seems that its leeking through a grommet seal where the white hole is.
So, I was able to order a new "diverter motor" and grommet seal.  Hopefully that will fix it?
Thanks


Importance of Following Procedure I'm an amateur at woodworking/masonry/anything home-improvement related.

I'm building a bench, and the following (parts 7c and 7d) forms part of the bench's building procedure. I can't visualize nor understand those parts. Could someone exlplain why they're needed and maybe reference a visual?

http://www.amalgamatedstuff.com/bsatroop475/Docs/Troop475-bench-plans.pdf

Match each post with a specific seat 2 x 6 support brace
a. Due to shrinkage, not all pieces will be the same size
b. Use the specific seat brace to measure and cut the
notch in the 6 x 6 so that it fits the seat brace
c. Use a circular saw set to the proper depth to create
the cut for the shoulder that the brace will rest upon
d. Use a plunge router to remove the remaining notch
material. Make 2 passes.

IN any other context, steps c and d would make sense. I'm unsure why they're needed for building the particular bench (

Those instructions aren't very clear!  I read step #7 this way:

7: Cut notches in the seat posts. Here's hints on how to do it:
   a) Don't assume both braces are the same size.
   b) Use the seat brace itself to mark the area to be cut out.
   c) After you've marked it, start the notch by making a cut with a circular saw.
   d) Now that you have a nice cut, use a router to hog away the rest.

This is the notch they are talking about:

Does this help?


How to repair small depression in a wall? I would appreciate any help and guidance on repairing a small portion of a wall, which gave in a bit due to a telescopic pull-up bar.
Not sure how to explain what type of wall it is and the fact that the damage is minimal.
]1

That looks like you compressed the Sheetrock a bit , these are really hard to hide. What I have done is use a backpack sprayer with water and a squirt of jet dry (the stuff for dishwashers) wet the area down , put down some plastic and use a putty knife to scrape the area. Note if your home is older than 1985 that material may have asbestos in it. (Most of the time I will take the entire ceiling off , patch the depression and reshoot the ceiling with an orange peal or large splatter texture.
If you just clear a small area and fill it there are some can textures that I have had ok luck with but I can see the difference after painting, some may not notice.
Wetting the texture with the jet dry helps it to become wet and it scrapes right off.
Then I roll up the plastic and put it in a bag then into the trash. (With asbestos This is legal in my location if going to the dump not a transfer station).
If trying a small area after filling the hole start spraying in the center and go slow as you hit the point where you did not scrape quickly fan out this leave a heavy texture in the center but blends with the outside. You may have to wait a few minutes but try to do it with at least 8 strokes , north, south, east, west , for the first 4 then in between for the next 4. This has worked but looked best when I pulled all the old stuff down and gave it a quick orange peal texture.


How can I get my thermostat C wire connected? I have an older furnace, on the switch block I have Y,C.W,R and an unlabeled screw that connects to the shut off it looks like. I need to hook up a thermostat that needs the C wire. I have a spare wire, in the bundle which I hooked up to the c terminal downstairs, from these videos that I've seen it tells me to then bridge the Y and G together, I do not have a G on the block, what do I need to do to get the neutral wire set up

You have a C wire, so use it - you don't have to bridge as that is only necessary if you don't have a spare wire.


getting home heat treated for bedbugs - what could be damaged? So I was thinking about getting my home heat treated for bed bugs. That involves bringing the temperature up to 125 degrees per https://www.abchomeandcommercial.com/austin/pest-control/bed-bugs . My question is...  what can be damaged at that temperature?

Should I be worried about my electronic devices? What about stuff like protein powder or cereal or what not?

In terms of what can be damaged, let's hope the bed bugs, for starters...  ;-)

125 F is pretty warm, but it does fall short of, say, actual food cooking temperatures. That's a painfully sunny summer afternoon in Phoenix or Death Valley, but it isn't Dante's Inferno.

I can't imagine it harming cereal (unless it was also humid). But I couldn't vouch for every possible perishable product you might have on your shelves. Canned goods will be fine. They were canned at much higher temperatures than that. Things like bread should be perfectly fine. Oils like coconut oil and butter will most definitely melt into liquid at that temperature, but it isn't hot enough to change those oils chemically. I believe even olive oil should still be stable at 125 degrees and won't be altered into saturated oil.

Electronic devices should also be fine if you turn them off, then let them cool before turning them back on. Parts of most of those devices internally probably match or exceed 125 degrees during normal operation. Plastic parts aren't going to melt at that temperature. The maximum safe operating temperature for most hard drives is up around 122 degrees F (50 C). CPU's will run hot enough to cook eggs (or burn fingers).  If that kind of equipment is shut off during the procedure, then you let everything cool off before turning it back on, you shouldn't have problems.

What you don't want to do is remove anything that bed bugs might be hiding in, to protect it from the heat, then take it back in the house without fumigating it to kill any stragglers, or you could up back at square one.

How long does the interior have to stay that warm to make the bed bugs expire? I presume it has to be long enough for the temperature to normalize all the way through things like mattresses and piles of bedding and such?


How to install casings on 5/8" drywall and 1/2" window/door jambs I have a room framed with windows and door with jambs sized for 1/2 drywall. I would like to install 3/4" X 3 1/2" casing, see illustration, around them.
I would also like to install 5/8" drywall rather than 1/2" for various reasons.
With this setup, drywall will be sticking 1/8" above the jamb. Is there an easy way to work around it?
Will the casing with profile in the illustration   work or do I need to scrape some drywall under it?
.

You have a few options:

Place the casing over the drywall and jamb as usual, and let it tilt a bit due to the 1/8in difference.

When you apply the caulking to the seams, the difference will not be noticeable.
The bevel joints at the jamb corners will be slightly dipped, and you can minimize the visual distraction by applying some drywall compound and sanding it.
The drywall panel and the jamb are rarely ever perfectly flush anyway.

If however you require more precise results, you can add a 1/8 filler such as strips of "door skin" at the jamb so that the casing fits flat over the drywall.

Then apply caulking to fill the 1/8 gap at the jamb.
You can also combine the two and fill with only 1/16in. This makes the gap smaller but leaves a bit of a tilt.

with a table saw, trim off 1/8 thickness from the bottom of the casing, along its length, but only for about 1/2 of the casing's width.

If your jamb is 1in thick, and you want the casing half-on (1/2in on jamb), and you have 1/2-in shim spacing, you'll have 1in that needs full casing thickness, and the remainder will be over drywall and will need to be trimmed. For 2in wide casing that's half its width, for 2.5in wide casing (most populat) that's 1.5in of the width that needs its thickness trimmed etc...
This will provide a snug and level fit on both the jamb and the drywall. You need to set the blad height to half the width of the casing, and the fence at 1/8 (almost at the blade) and feed the casing on its side.
Which one you choose is a matter of aesthetics, tools and time.