Roxul Comfortbatt steel vs wood studs What's the difference between Roxul Comfortbatt for wood studs versus the one for metal studs.

Can I use Comfortbatt for metal studs on walls with wood studs? I'm finishing my basement and my local hardware store only have available the metal stud version...

Thanks

Steel studs for interior partitions are C shaped and very thin material (see picture below). This means that 16" metal studs on-center actually have room to fit ~16" of material where wood members spaced 16" on-center have space for pretty close to ~14.5" of material in between.

Per the dimensions on the Roxul site in your link, the difference between the wood stud and metal stud versions are exactly for that reason. The metal studs versions are an extra inch wider. Comparing products for 16" on-center spacing: 15.25" for wood studs, 16.25" for metal studs.

You could probably make the metal stud version work for wood studs, but you would need to either:

Compress it by one inch to get it to fit. Compressing insulation reduces its effectiveness, so you will no longer get quite the same advertised R-value.
Cut one inch off of one side along the whole vertical length of every batt. If its faced insulation and you opt for the cutting route, make sure to leave the facing intact so you can still use the facing to secure it to the studs. I haven't seen the metal stud version in person, but I would imagine that the insulation extends all the way to the edge of the facing one one side to fill the void on one side of the steel stud, so this would be the side to cut off insulation.

Personally, I would try to get the right material for the type of framing to make installation easier and/or get closer to the advertised R-value.


How can I unscrew this old bathtub faucet stem? I'm trying to fix a leaking bathtub faucet, but I can't unscrew these old stem at all...it's stuck. Do i need to open the back side of the wall?

That part should move, try tapping it lightly with a small hammer, and maybe use a bigger wrench.

Also try tuning it the other direction the stem appears to have a left-hand thread so the valve body may also.


How should I repair a burned outlet? The wall outlet is burned out after using a 120v heater. I was able to pull the orange cord out of it. The outlet is blackened, and the smell of burned odor has stopped . What is required to get this fixed?

First, let's address the cause of the problem for safety. Something was drawing too much power for the wiring, but not enough to trip the breaker. This means that there was a weak link somewhere. I suspect either a bad cord end or a faulty outlet. If the outlet was old, it probably had a weak grasp on the cord prongs.

The outlet must be replaced. It has been damaged and is a further safety risk. It's an inexpensive fix, but one that requires a basic understanding of house wiring and connection techniques. Many tutorials can be had online, but the details of your repair depend on some things you haven't shared, such as the age of the home and the outlet type.


How effective are outdoor foam faucet covers to prevent freezing? Everyone seems to suggest using those styrofoam faucet covers to help prevent the pipes associated with the fixture from freezing.

They're cheap so I have them anyway (plus I'm not in a hard freeze area), but I'm skeptical about how much protection those things provide.

I'm wondering if anyone has some actual numbers?

I live in Canada and there are only two ways to stop your spigot from freezing in the winter.   The first is to have a cut off inside your house, lower then the spigot and it has to have a relief valve on the exterior side to drain the water away from the wall.   The other way is a frost spigot that extends about 20" into the warm zone on the inside of the wall.   This actually has the shut-off all the way into the house.   These have to be installed with a slope towards the faucet end so when you close it the water drains out the spigot.

Those are the only two ways to truly and confidently stop your hose spigots from freezing.


What is the best way to prepare walls, windows and baseboard for re-painting I would like to repaint our appartment that haven't been paintined for over 7 years.  I have a question on how to prepare for the new paint.
The walls have chipped paint a little should i use spackle to even it out?

The biggest thing is the window.  The paint is really coming off there.  I scrapped the paint where i could.  I don't really want to scrape everything off.  What should i do next?  Do I need use spackle to fill the parts where i took of the paint?  Can i use DAP fast 'n final light weight spackle?

Also i have the same problem with the baseboard.  The paint is chipping and it is not even. Should i also chip off the paint and use spackle before priming?

Thank you!

Update!

Here are more pictures of the wall and windows where i took off some paint.  Also the paint on the radiator is pilling off.

Painting is easy - preparing for a new coat of paint so it will last is the hard work.

You should scrape off all loose or peeling paint - otherwise the new paint will simply peel right off there. Only after that should you move to spackle and sanding to prepare the base for new paint. On wood items "putty" is preferred over "spackle" which is more of a drywall/plaster repair item, though it's somewhat irrelevant when it's being painted over.

The window looks like you should investigate for and fix a leak. If it gets that wet, new paint won't stick either.

The dark spot in the second picture is in the same place on all the pictures so it's a camera defect, I guess - at first it looked like mold.

The blisters in the third - more leakage? Or pitch bubbling out of the wood?


Rewiring A Ceiling Fan - Add Wall Switch I have ceiling fans in four rooms all with lights. The fans are hardwired to the breaker box, but the lights are on switches. I'd like to add another switch to control the fan, either on/off, or a 3-speed switch. It is an older house, and most of the wiring is 2-wire no ground. What is going to be the best way to go about doing this?

The simplist solution is to replace the fan/light combinations with modern units that have wireless remote controls for both light and fan, and include multispeed settings for the fan.

Your current setup probably has a direct hot connection to the fan with a single pair of hot wires going to the switch for the light. This switch could be converted to turn the fan and light on or off together, but not separately without running additional wires.

You could snake new wires in to have separare controls for fan and light (a cable with three wires would do with a double switch), but this is requires routing cables through the walls and patching the plaster/wallboard after installation.

This also would not give you three speed controls at the wall.  The three speed switches in most fans (those that use pull chains instead of a wireless remotes) cannot easily be controlled by a wall switch without a significant change in internal wiring, not a job for a novice.

A retro conversion could be done, but a replacement may be easier and maybe even cheaper than hiring an electrician to do the rewiring (remote fan/light combos can be had for less than $100).


Safe, sensible to turn off BRANCH circuit breaker for range, every day when house is empty? After one oven turned itself on middle night, everyone in my family is now scared stiff silly of ranges!!! We always turn off all Branch Circuit Breakers ("BCB") except for fridge, before we leave condo to vacation. We livein  Toronto Canada. Certified ON technician found nothing wrong.

Still we want turn off BCB for range EVERY TIME WE LEAVE HOUSE – ALMOST EVERY DAY – this is how much we distrust ovens! But this website discourages it.

  golden23 Mar 2017

  You are right, katiekate. They are not for regular flipping. A switch installed by an electrician would be better or remove all the knobs before you leave the house.

  Katiekate Mar 2017

  I would not be flipping the circuit breaker off and on. They are not designed to act like a light switch...they will not stand up to the wear involved.

As you request I picture my Circuit Breakers and range details.

I can’t quite make out the brand of breaker or the age. If you are using the circuit breaker like a switch it should be switch rated “SWD”  stamped on the breaker or the breaker is listed for switch duty. Many modern breakers are listed for switch duty but not stamped.
The one advantage you have is the oven s not on when you throw the breaker off or on, this helps but constantly flipping the breaker not rated for switch duty damages the hammers and can cause early failure.


Double demountable hinge won't close I'm replacing the hinges on my cabinet and this hinge won't allow the cabinet door to close tight. It appears the hinge is rocking on the cabinet face when I try to push the door tight. I've tried a couple different hinges without luck.

Hinge gif

It looks rather like the door is interfering (touching) with the frame somewhere. Watch the door carefully as you close it and see if it touches anywhere. Even a slight interference can cause that issue.

This can sometimes be corrected by adjusting the hinges. If that does not work you may need to add a spacer behind the hinge, maybe a couple of washers, to offset the door a little from the frame on the hinge side. That should provide enough clearance for the door without being overly noticeable.


Will a 1" thick granite countertop span 22 inches? I want a makeup vanity but have only enough space for one 18" base. I have granite and a base of drawers 22" deep by 18" wide. If I affix the granite atop the base and extend it to reach the wall, leaving about 22" empty space for a chair, will it be stable (assuming the granite is secured to the wall)?

The granite should span this without any problems.  But there are a lot of variables, including how thick the granite is, as well as what loads might be applied, and whether the granite is truly free of invisible cracks.

If the granite is easy and inexpensive to replace, I would "go for it".  On the other hand, if you want to play it safe, a good underlayment or some support ribs would strengthen it.  The most important thing is it needs to be evenly supported everywhere it is supported.  Just a speck on a support that prevents it from evenly seating can cause it to crack when a load it placed on it.  So it needs full contact on all supports to prevent this.

Granite is usually placed over plywood or particle board.  Many people prefer plywood, claiming it is stronger.  That is partially true, but the fact is particle board is stiffer, and makes a better underlayment.  People will argue this all day long, but I have seen it demonstrated.  MDF is puported to be stonger, but it is less stiff.  The demonstration was a simple apparatus that measured how many pounds of force are required to flex a board to a small deflection, and the particle board was the most stiff.  The particle board will eventually fail in ways plywood won't, but to support granite, the less flex the more effective the underlayment.


How to solve a miswiring of neutral and ground An Outlet in the dining room which had a microwave plugged into it stopped working. I found 120+ volts from hot to ground and 96+ from hot to neutral. Also at one point my "three light tester" showed hot-ground reversed at one point, but also good at another point.

After researching on-line I believed the problem to be an open neutral, possibly in a back stabbed outlet or loose neutral wire nut connection. I started by checking all connections on that particular circuit once I isolated it in the breaker box. I replaced both outlets,connecting to the screws not the backstabs. I also rewired light switches by disconnecting the backstabs and re-attaching to the screws although this step, in hindsight, was probably unnecessary.

Eventually I found a two wire (hot and neutral only) ceiling light fixture in an adjacent laundry room (same breaker in panel box). The plastic fixture box has four Neutral wires plus the neutral light fixture and a ground wire all in a single wire nut. When I removed the ground from the connection of five neutrals (four rolex and one light) the light stopped working and I now have 120V from hot to ground but only 16V hot to neutral at the outlet.

I really don't think I want to rewire the ground back into the neutrals and I am thinking I should continue by checking the neutral set screws on the neutral bar in the panel, but I'm a little stumped about the ground that I disconnected and re-attached to the green nut on the light mounting bracket that spans the plastic ceiling box.

The ground conductors were probably functioning as your neutral return (just not very well) until you disconnected it at the light.  So not only do you have an open (or high resistance) neutral wire, but you also have too much resistance in a ground wire.  If you've checked all the boxes and terminals for loose connections, you may have a damaged wire in the structure somewhere.  The high resistance will cause heat (and risk of fire) if you continue to use the circuit.  I would probably contact someone who has access to test equipment that can diagnose the actual in-wall wiring.  (like maybe an infrared thermometer to detect a hot spot, or a voltage detector to trace wires in the walls, or at least an ohmmeter)


Are these bathroom vents? I was looking at a house and the bathrooms appear to have no exhaust fans. It does have these little things that look like they might be vents of some sort. Could they be sufficient for ventilation to remove moisture, with no apparent fans? The house is from the 80s. There are no windows in the bathrooms.

Sure, could be an exhaust fan...but it could be a supply fan too.

To check, tape a piece of paper over about half the vent opening and wait for the fan to come on. Does it blow or suck?

Btw, look under the toe kick of the cabinet to see if there’s another vent.


Can I remove the sheathing from cable just where it passes through conduit? I am adding an outlet in my unfinished basement from a cable that will run from the ceiling down a corner of the room. I was going to just attach the cable to the studs but I would like to protect the wire due to the location.

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

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

Thank you!

Romex is just a brand name. I assume you are referring to NMC 14-2 wire non metallic coating(house wiring). It can be run down the stud no problem about the cold. Conduit is not required just be sure that the wire is fastened to the stud within 12 inches of the box and no more than four and a half feet apart.


Does lowering the blower speed of a forced-air furnace lower its efficiency? My gas furnace has two options for the blower speed: MED, and MED-HI. It had been set on the higher speed, but that was too harsh, so I lowered it to the slower speed. Does that have any impact on the efficiency of the unit?

Empirical Engineering Answers:

Yes: you will save electricity costs by running your blower on low.

No: you will not save on gas/oil costs by running your blower on low.  Because the slower air velocity over the heat element is transferring fewer BTU units into the circulated air and they simply go up the exhaust pipe.

The NET difference of the above two figures is your savings or cost.

I am currently heavily invested in studying and learning the subject as I commit myself to reducing my winter energy costs this year.

With heating oil at $4.50/gal I can assure you without measuring anything that running my blower on low is NOT more efficient from a $$ perspective.  I'm in the process of re-wiring my blower to run on high with the furnace.  In support of this: I found the mfr owner's manual for my furnace and in it, it states, "if you have an air-conditioning coil installed, you should switch the furnace blower speed to high to accommodate the decreased air-flow caused by the cooling coil in the plenum."

I have also measured that on low speed my furnace requires AT-LEAST 1 hour of constant running to raise my home temp by 6 deg F.  On high speed it takes 30-40 min.  With a one-gallon-per-hour burner nozzle that saves me AT-LEAST 30% on fuel oil plus another 20-30 min of blower run time or at least 30-50% run time savings.  Now, I haven't done the measurement to learn how much electricity my blower uses on low vs high.  But I'm reasonably sure it uses less to run on high vs low then it uses to run on low vs OFF.  I do know that my entire furnace runs safely on a 15amp breaker with the blower on high, the burner running, the humidifier running, and the water pump to empty the humidifier running.  Thus, my blower can't be using that much electricity on high.

So clearly, running your furnace blower on low is only more efficient IF-and-ONLY-IF the cost of the heating fuel is much much less then the cost of the electricity to run the blower that little bit faster.


How do I loosen latex paint to remove it? I have a wall with (a very rubbery) latex paint topcoat over a painted surface on drywall that it is only marginally adhering to. Trying to sand or even rub on it removes it slowly and not very efficiently. I'm afraid to paint over it, so I want to remove it. Is there any mild chemical or other process that will loosen it enough to remove it, so we can patch, re-prime, and repaint over it?

If it's not well adhered to the wall, the first thing I'd try would be heat - get a heat gun (sorry, your wife's hairdryer won't work) and a scraper and try that approach before resorting to any chemicals.


Fix single hung window glass that is cracked My question is somewhat similar to this question - How can I fix a window with cracked glass?. The difference is that my window is single hung. The windows are double pane and the inside pane has a big crack. I've attached two pictures. One shows part of the crack. The other shows what the space between the two panes looks like, it's pretty rough. Is there a way for me to fix the window? Or is it at the point where I'd be better off just replacing the whole thing? Given what I have read elsewhere I'm not sure it's possible to remove the top sash, which means I might have to replace the entire window?

Thanks for any info, I really appreciate it.

I see in the bottom picture, the bottom is a tilt in sash, easy to remove. The top sash CAN be made a tilt in, it is missing the ballasts that keep it from dropping. It is now held in place by a metal or plastic clip that holds it in place. Find these, remove them and the sash will drop, and therefore, able to be removed. I see a screw visible near the tilt latch that may be one of the few to remove in order to drop the upper sash. Then again, that one may do nothing, I would expect to find the screws to lower the sash, under the upper sash, hidden by the lower sash. Remove the lower sash first the rest should go from there.

Most tilt in windows work the same, raise it a little, pull the clips in toward the center, lower the top so the plane of the window is perpendicular to it normal position, and lift one edge up, either the left or right, does not matter.

The rest is the same as the other answer, it will cost a little more maybe since you have the bars between the glass, then again....


Soundproofing a room from outside traffic noise and vibrations I need to soundproof a room to prevent traffic noise (not honks, but engines etc). How can I approach this?

With difficulty. If you really mean "soundproof", you're essentially talking about the equivalent of building a sound studio, so I'd suggest websearching for discussions of building a home studio to learn the tricks and techniques. Depending on exactly how much sound you need to block, at what frequencies, there are different techniques. Don't forget floor and ceiling as possible paths, especially for low frequencies.

Discussed some of this with a friend who was building a fairly serious studio. Walls with offset studs (drywall on each side attaches only to every other stud, never both to the same stud) so there isn't a direct mechanical path from outside to inside; that cuts down bass leakage. Fill those walls with sand (yes, that's a lot of weight, and a maintenance hassle should you ever have to do anything to those walls; this was in his basement) to cut down treble leakage. Install an acoustic ceiling, suspended from elastic fittings, to reduce noise coming from above. (Which required that he increase headroom, which required that he sister joists with iron C-beam so he could cut back the wood and gain a few inches.) I think he had some specific design for the floor as well, but I don't remember what the plan was there.

Even so, he was mostly planning on recording at hours when there was minimal traffic in the area, and (I believe) he was assuming he'd have to turn off his heating system while recording to keep its noise from coming through.

And he didn't have to worry about windows. Or the door, since the studio door would open to the control room which was similarly soundproofed and would provide some isolation.

If you're willing to settle for just reducing the noise, there are less expensive things you can do.


Is it safe to mount a surge protector strip behind a wall-mounted television? To make my television mount look clean I ran a new extension cord, the tv plug and the cable wire through a wire management system that sticks on the wall. The extension cord is plugged into a 2 foot surge protector which is taped to the back of the tv as is the cable box ( it's very small). The only thing plugged into the surge is the cable box.

Is this safe? Nothing is run through the wall.

Technically, this is not okay. Wiremold® and other similar products are not typically listed for use with power-supply cords, cordsets, or other similar cables.  They're designed to contain data, communications, and audio video cables. See this answer for more details.

Check the manufacturer's documentation, to determine exactly what types of cables are allowed in the specific product you're using.

As for plugging the surge strip into the extension cord, that's definitely not allowed. There should be a label on the strip, or in the documentation included with the strip that says not to plug it into another strip of extension cord.

  UL White Book 2013

  Relocatable Power Taps (XBYS)

  ...Relocatable power taps are intended to be directly connected to a permanently installed branch circuit receptacle. Relocatable power taps are not intended to be series connected (daisy chained) to other relocatable power taps or to extension cords.

The common solution to this problem, is to use a kit designed for this, like the one described in this answer. Though with a system like this, you'll have to cut holes in the wall.

If the wire management channel is a listed raceway, then you shouldn't be running power and communications cables through it together. Unless the raceway is divided for the entire length.

  National Electrical Code 2014

  Chapter 8 Communications Systems

  Article 800 Communications Circuits

  800.133 Installation of Communications Wires, Cables,
  and Equipment.

  (A) Separation from Other Conductors.

  (1) In Raceways, Cable Trays, Boxes, Cables, Enclosures and Cable Routing Assemblies.

  (d) Electric Light, Power, Class 1, Non–Power-Limited
  Fire Alarm, and Medium-Power Network-Powered Broadband
  Communications Circuits in Raceways, Compartments,
  and Boxes. Communications conductors shall not be placed in
  any raceway, compartment, outlet box, junction box, or similar
  fitting with conductors of electric light, power, Class 1, non–
  power-limited fire alarm, or medium-power network-powered
  broadband communications circuits.

  Exception No. 1: Where all of the conductors of electric
  light, power, Class 1, non–power-limited fire alarm, and
  medium-power network-powered broadband communications
  circuits are separated from all of the conductors of communications
  circuits by a permanent barrier or listed divider.


Does reverse-cycle airconditioning in heating mode dry the air? I understand that when cooling, an AC unit condenses water vapour from the room, and results in dehumidified or drier air than outside. When in heating mode, I would expect this not to happen, as the cooler coils should be on the outside, so it would be attempting to dehumidify the outside world, not the room. Is this correct (in theory or in practice)?

Yes, that is correct. A closed-loop heat pump work by circulating a refrigerant in a loop, where there are two heat exchangers separated on one side by a compressor and on the other by a valve. Your expectation is correct: In heating mode, the inside heat exchanger does not cause condensation and therefore does not dry out the air.

Having said that, there is one factor to mention. Humidity is often expressed as relative humidity, which is the percentage of water vapor in the air expressed as a percentage of the saturated amount. Raising the temperature of the air inside your house will increase that saturation amount of water vapor. But the actual amount of water vapor in terms of mass is essentially the same, so the net effect is that you lower the relative humidity, even though you don't take any water out of the air. (The dew point stays constant too.)


Using a second thermostat as a remote temp sensor I’m using Honeywell WiFi enabled  thermostats to control heating and cooling at home and cottage. I would like to add another thermostat of the same type simply so that I can remotely read the temperature in the basement of the cottage, not to control the furnace.  Should I be able to simply attach ground and C wires to that 2nd thermostat?

Thx ... Dave.

No, the stat needs 24vac for the wifi, which is supplied by the furnace from the R and C terminals. You can easily find on Amazon or other retail sites a "24vac C wire adapter" and you can install the thermostat anywhere near a 120v receptacle.


Small branch stuck in electric wire A few weeks ago a small branch became stuck in the telephone and cable wires leading to our house. I hoped it would blow out, but the latest snow storm has put it in it's current position.

Is this a concern? Could it mess up our electricity or anything? If so should the power company take care of it since it's before the meter? This is in Ohio if that matters.

Absolutely do not try to remove this yourself. You have no way of safely disconnecting the power or being 100% sure you have protected yourself from electrocution or arc flash.   The power company is typically responsible for the wire from the pole to your house. I would contact them about having it removed. I am sure they would rather remove the stick than have to replace the cable in the event it came down.


What do you call the attach-y things on the business end of adjustable shelf brackets? See this here?  I am trying to find something like it so that I can create wall riser extensions for my cubicle at work.  I'd cut some lengths of 3/16"-thick board, attach to them these brackets, and then mount them on the inserts (or whatever those are called).  The thing is that I don't know what the end pieces of these brackets are called.  If I knew, I could execute a proper Google search to find more of them, but I don't, so I can't.

A medium duty, standard single slot, blade bracket?

Source: beta.lvmannequins.com

Another option might be removing the plastic caps off the uprights and slide something down there; put 'legs' on the board and slip it in. Isn't that how some partitions with glass tops work?


How can I repaint an antique piece of furniture that was varnished? I want to repaint/varnish a piece of furniture, but have no idea if I can use a similar paint color, or if I need to find the exact type of varnish used. Is there a big difference in varnish vs paint?

You can paint over varnish, but you will need to thoroughly sand and degloss the existing finish first.

I use medium grit sandpaper followed by fine, then wipe with solvent to remove all dust, dirt etc., then paint with high quality oil-based paint using the very best paint brush I can afford. Just finished some old varnished cabinets and they look great now, mirror smooth like glass.


How can I protect pine from yellowing? I have read that pine can begin to yellow very quickly.  I am wanting to use pine as an office desk top and want to prevent this yellowing from occurring.

Would a oil- or water-based sealant be the answer here?
Would a stain help in "masking" the yellowing effect?
What kind of protection is best? I don't know much except that there are different types: polyurethane, shellac and varnish.

The wood will change color eventually no matter what you do. However, you can do two things to slow down that process.

Use a water-based polyurethane finish. All other finishes are either slightly yellow going on, or themselves yellow with age.
Keep the sun off the wood. Sunlight hastens the darkening process.
A dark stain will mask the effect. The darker the better.


Can hail-damaged shingles be repaired, or should they be replaced? We had a nasty hail storm recently and while none of the shingles are pierced or broken there is extensive damage to the top layer but so far we had no indication that the roof is leaking. Based on the attached images of typical damage:

Could this type of damage result in leaks?
Should all the damaged shingles be replaced?
Is there a possibility of repairing the damaged top layer?

The ceramic granules are the protective layer of the shingle. They're not merely aesthetic. They offer UV, impact, and corrosion protection, and the shingle is vulnerable when they're removed.

The roof probably will not leak now, or in a few weeks, or a few months, but eventually the shingles will deteriorate badly enough that water gets through above the top edge of the underlying shingle, and then it can reach the deck and the attic. They need to be replaced.

While you could feasibly get some high-grade roofing adhesive and some ceramic sand and individually repair each divot, the result will not likely last as long as the original shingle would have. It'll also tend to show from the ground, either as color variation or bumps.


How can I get the maximum light while avoiding heat from a window? I have a west facing window. How can I get max light while avoid any heat coming from it?

To reduce heat gain from the sun, you need a window with a good "low e" rating (also called low emissivity). You can get similar results on an existing window by adding a film that reflects IR.

You also want multi-layer windows to block heat transmission (a lower U value is better, it's the inverse measurement of an R value you see on insulation). And finally, you should make sure that the window has good weather stripping to block any drafts, causing a direct heat loss/gain to your home.

Here's an article that describes this in more detail.


What are the differences between pneumatic nail types like "smooth" and "ring" for house framing? I'm getting my material list together to frame a house and am a bit confused by all the similar looking pneumatic nails which all have a slightly different wording/features and different prices, sometimes subtle and sometimes not.

On the takeoff a lumber yard created for me, there are several types of nails listed. They are:

Pneu-Fast PF SP12D 3-1/4" x 0.131" NA
Pneu-Fast SP8D 2-3/8" x 113 2.5M RS Ring Shank Bright
HITACHI HI13367 2 1/4X092 RG HDG
GGNC15 1-1/4X120W PS GV 7.2M

I believe the last two are for siding and roofing respectively. But when are SP12D nails used vs SP8D when framing?

Second, when I look these nails up, there are actually several flavors and options for the same size nail:

Ring Hot Galvanized
Smooth Brite Ring
Brite Ring
Hot Galvanized
Smooth Hot Galvanized

What do these terms mean, and when should I use a certain type?

Definitions

Hot galvanized: Dipped in molten zinc as an anti-corrosion measure. The alternative is electro-plating, which results in a smoother but thinner coating.
Brite: Not galvanized. Usually not cement-coated.
Smooth: An untextured shank. Regular nails. Often coated with yellow or magenta "cement", a bonding agent that noticeably increases pullout resistance.
Ring: Ring-textured shanks for improved pullout resistance.

Usage

You'll use 12d (twelve penny, 3 or 3-1/4") smooth nails for most framing. We actually refer to those as 16d as they're the functional equivalent of 16d sinkers. They may be cement coated. Nails used with the current crop of pressure-treated wood often need to be galvanized or stainless to prevent accelerated corrosion.

You'll use 8d (eight penny, 2, 2-1/4", or 2-3/8") ring-shank nails for subflooring if not using screws.


Is long waste pipe OK for food waste disposer? I am interested in food waste disposer, the model is InSinkErator Evolution 200 premium food waste disposer.

What concerns me is that in the kitchen we have a long horizontal waste pipe under the floor (see the attached picture). So my question is if such pipe could couse problems? F.i. grinded food keeps in the horizontal pipe.

Thanks!

With 1/4" per foot (a normal drain line) you should be fine. If the pipe is totally horizontal it may not work well over time as oils , grease soap scum and just normal organic matter will cause backups. 10' with the drop from the disposal may not be a problem even if close to horizontal. Make sure to run water for a little while after the disposal is clear to flush the material down the drain. If greasy stuff use Hot water and you will probably be fine.


Sealing existing vinyl tile One small bathroom in a 1920s house. A cheap remodel was done what looks like about 20 years ago. We moved in recently and noticed water dripping through the ceiling below the bathroom after using the bath/shower. There appears to be a damaged gasket at the bath drain which I will replace. However, it seems that any water getting onto the bathroom floor is finding its way through and into the ceiling below, even small amounts when exiting/entering the shower.

I'm up to my eyeballs in other projects right now, and although I do plan on gutting this bathroom and starting new, that's likely not going to be for 2-3 years. In the meantime, I'm looking for a cheap and easy fix. Is there any kind of transparent sealer I can apply over the top of the existing vinyl to keep it watertight for the next few years?

Unless there are holes in the vinyl flooring it is probably getting through where the vinyl meets the tub or the wall. Just use a clear or white 100% silicone bath caulk to seal those junctions.

Make sure it is rated for resistance to mold/mildew.


Extend a wire that i had to splice to sister my floor joist is too short now I had a rotten floor joist on the ground floor , i fixed it by sistering a brand new floor joist right beside it in the basement
 But when i wanted to instal the beam , i had to cut the wire running through the old joist in order to place the new joist beside the old one Now the wire is too too short ,about 4 inches distance between the tips of the cut wires. And unfortunately no slack in the wire .
I thought about using two junction boxes to extend the wires in the ceiling .
Is there any better way to do this??
If not, once i put the junction boxes, can I use the cover plate on them and keep it behind a REMOVABLE drywall( i mean a drywall panel that has exposed screws that can easily be removed to expose the junction boxes in the ceiling.
Appreciate any thoughts
Thanks

2 junction boxes is there best approach. But instead of a removable panel, just get blank covers for the boxes and mount the boxes to the drywall. You also don't have to keep the wires in the same place they are now. You could cut more off and put the boxes farther apart, if that makes disguising the boxes easier.


How do I get started with dovetail joints? I've never made a dovetail joint before, and I'd like to do things right for my next project.  I have the router and table and all that - but I don't have a dovetail jig.  The prices vary from $40 to well over $400.  Do I need to buy a special jig, or is there a way I can just buy the router bit for $10 and make my own template somehow?

Here's a good tutorial on hand-cut dovetails.  There are two schools of thought - pins first and tails first.  It doesn't really matter, it's more about how you were taught.  This one is pins first.

How I Make Hand-Cut Dovetails


How can I figure out why my garage door opener won't close the door? I detached the the door arm from the carriage to see if the opener would work properly, but it did not. The carriage goes down a half an inch and then goes all the way back up. I also adjusted the safety reverse to all possible configurations and that made no difference.

The opener is a Genie Screw Drive - Series G

The sensors (the "eyes" that are on both sides of the door opening) are probably "out of whack".  If the sensors are not aligned properly, the doors won't operate.   They could of been kicked by accident.


Doors to uninsulated walk-in spaces I have two 32" doors in my house that lead to uninsulated storage rooms. I'm concerned about my utility bills, and I'm wondering if these doors are appropriately insulated. What kind of door should these be? And how can I tell what kind they are? Is it likely to be worthwhile to replace or otherwise insulate the doors?

To insulate a hollow door - I guess you could try to fill it with insulating material.  You might be able to drill holes in the attic side and fill it with expanding foam.  You might also just make a mess and wreck the door.  Depending how it's made and how patient you are, you might be able to fill it with cellulose insulation.
I have seen attic doors insulated by affixing insulation to the attic side of the door.  One place that was insulated a long time ago, they basically built a 3" deep box out of Masonite or hardy board and filled it with cellulose insulation.  Another I think they just glued a thick sheet of foam insulation to the door.
The old one, the attic door opened into the stairwell but there was enough room between the stairwell wall and the back of the door that the box of insulation didn't interfere with opening the door.  The newer one, if I remember right, the attic door opened into the 2nd floor hallway so interference was not an issue.
If you had an interference issue, you might be able to fix something that's not solid like a bat of fiberglass or rock wool, that would compress when you opened the door and hopefully spring back when you shut the door.
And of course in any case you can't go wrong weatherstripping the door to eliminate drafts.


How to remove things from drywall? How do I remove the little round plates that are back of a stud in drywall?

I get a flat screw driver and tap them with a hammer until it is about 1/8" inside drywall.  Then just a bit of spackle over the indention.


How to have a free-standing bathtub resurfaced I have a nice free-standing claw-foot tub.  It was re-finished poorly by a previous homeowner and now we're getting white flakes in the water.  There are also rust spots in a couple of places.

There seem to be several techniques for refinishing tubs but I'd like to do it right.  What should I be looking for as I shop for contractors to do the job?  What questions do I need to be asking?

Best thing you can do is ask for references.  Call some people who had their tub refinished several years ago and see how it's holding up.

I've had this done a few times and it's a bit of a black art.  They have to be really meticulous with their prep work or the new finish won't last.

Also, you need to be careful what you clean it with after they refinish it!  Abrasive cleaners will destroy the finish.


Strengthen repaired cable? The other day, I accidentally cut the power cable on my lawnmower (you can guess how).

I later repaired the cable by stripping off the cable coating and wrapping the relevant wires around one another. I then "bandaged" it back up using electrical tape.

Problem is: If you put strain on the cable by extending it to its full length, the electrical tape loosens and the wires unwrap, causing it to break.

What can I do to strengthen the cable? Is there something I can do to make sure that the two cable parts stay together?

The usual official blessed method here is to replace the whole cable. Odds are excellent that your mower manual says that. So, officially and for maximum safety, that is what you should do.

If you are going to do otherwise, you need both a better repair method and to isolate the functions of the repair - part one being the strain relief or physical end to end strength, part two being the electrical connections.

Staying close to your current methodology, you could overlap the cords by roughly 24 inches and tape the center 12" firmly together (that being the physical strength connection) then loop the free ends back to make the electrical connection using wire nuts of a size appropriate for the conductors in the cord, or a soldered connection, or a crimp connection, and then tape that whole mess up. Twisting and taping is not really a sufficient splice method.

Practically speaking, if you need the full length of the cord (the problem raised in your question suggests that you do), you won't have it anymore - so that takes you back to "replace it."

One reason that this sort of repair/splice is officially frowned upon (other than potential poor workmanship exposing connections) is that the cord does not cool as well where it's bundled together, so it can overheat, especially if (as is too common) it's rather near its limits when in good repair.

A more involved repair can be done by using hollow braided rope as the physical strength connection. Yellow polypropylene seems to to be the most common form of this seen in the wild. If you push on it, it gets larger in diameter, and can be slipped over a cable, and with a bit of help from something like a pen or pencil you can expand the holes in the mesh enough to slip the cut end of the cable through the side. If you use something like a 4 foot section of rope and slip the cables in 18-22 inches before poking them out the side, you can get a nice long grip on the cable , and make your electrical splice in the sections that are outside the rope - while the rope will provide the end-to-end strength. Once in place, smooth the rope down to stretch it to maximum length on the cables, then tape it firmly in place.

A final alternative is to put a plug on the cut end of the cord attached to the mower, and a receptacle on the one attached to the plug. Use twist-locks, or use normal extension cord strain relief methods.


What to keep on the wooden table to make the surface heat resistant? Oven manual says - keep it on a heat resistant surface.

I have a wooden table. What should I keep on the wooden table to make the surface heat resistant, so that the oven can placed on the top of it?

Paper sheets won't work? Thick cloth?

When we had a wooden table as a child for every day use, we kept a layer of tempered glass that sat up on silicone feet so there was a thin air gap between the table and the glass. The glass covered the entire surface of the table, so there was no risk of spills or hot items damaging the actual wood surface of the table.

I would look into something that definitely had an air gap below it. A stone, ceramic, or glass cutting board (or a tile tray) with feet would work.


Want to cover up nail points in attic ceiling I'm in the attic every so often to store empty boxes and I'm planning to do some wiring (non electrical) so I'm afraid that I might stand up and have nails through my head.

My plan isn't to cover the whole attic ceiling, just a small section of the attic ceiling. Any ideas on what I can do to cover the nail points?

I tried using a hammer to try to bend it but the nails are way too strong to do that.

Leave a hardhat or bump helmet (lighter version of a hardhat) by the attic hatch. Put it on when you enter; take it off when you leave.


Does open stairs between basement and main living cost extra electricity bill? Does with No door or open stairs between basement and main living lead extra electricity bill, specially in winter, even though entire basement is finished and well insulated ?
We want to have open stairs for basement and no door.
Thanks

It depends if your "heating bill" already includes heating the basement.  If you have forced air heating or cooling with the basement on the same zone as the living area, it should make no difference because the air is already circulating and mixing.
If you heat your basement and it's on a separate zone, your bill might go up as the zones will not work as efficiently.  If you do not currently heat your basement, your bill for the upstairs might go up. Or, it might go down if your basement is naturally warm (say, that's where the furnace is) and the new arrangement allows warm air to rise upstairs more efficiently.
You didn't ask about cooling but if you have cooling upstairs but not downstairs and your basement is not naturally cool in summer, your cooling bill will go up, possibly a lot as the cool air generated for upstairs will have to fill the basement before it can begin cooling the living area.


Basement rough-in PVC drain pipe is not centered with stud Our basement rough-in PVC drain pipe is not centered with the wall studs. It is not a load bearing wall since it's a newly framed wall (wall can no longer be moved). We now have to extend the drain to the vanity sink which is 3 ft out with two studs in between.
Can I angle a 3 ft long 1.5 inch pipe slightly to fit through the next two studs as centered as possible?
What are my options?

You can use a pair of 11.25, 15 or 22.5 degree bends back to back to offset the pipe.


Can I skim coat a painted interior concrete block wall? If so, with what & how? Can I skim coat a painted interior concrete block wall?  If so:

What can I use to prepare the wall?
What material should I use (joint compound, plaster, other)?

All DIY so simpler the better.

Is the wall dry? is the paint in good condition? If it is dry you could use joint compound. If the paint is pealing it would need to be scraped first. I like using mortar on block walls because it holds up to moisture better than joint compound but have not used on painted block. Some don't like mortar because the sand is very rough even after painting.


Question About Wiring - Hooking up New Thermostat Replacing this:

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With this Honeywell Mable thermostat.

Regarding the wiring, it doesn't exactly match up, can someone help clarify how to wire the the thermostat?

The old wires are hooked up like this:

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The new terminal looks like this:

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The G, Y, and W wires are pretty self explanatory, however I'm not sure about the red wire that goes into RH and the black wire that goes from RH to RC.

Based on the new instructions, if there is only one R wire, it goes to the new R terminal, so I would assume the red wire goes to R on the new terminal but techincally there's two R wires since the black wire is there as well.  Should I run both the red wire and the black into the new R terminal and the other end of the black wire into the new Rc terminal?

The black wire can be ignored

The black wire is what's termed a jumper between Rh and Rc. Some old thermostats required it since they weren't smart enough on the inside to deal with both one-transformer and two-transformer systems without such help.  You need to ignore the jumper with your new thermostat, and simply attach the red wire to the R terminal on your new thermostat, as it provides its own jumper in the form of the slider tab.


What is the procedure for restarting a drilled well? Drilled well hasn't been used in 15 years. I turned pump on 2 years ago by mistake and a bit of water came out of the black PE pipe. I figure at least the water in the well is stale and I should drain a few times.

Well is 138 feet from top of casing, 128.76 Gal of water in well, pump is 10 feet from bottom of well and water is 50 feet from top of casing.  Put in 1998, stopped use 2004.

Pump it out for a while. If the pump controller does not have a "low pressure cutoff" pay attention so you don't leave the pump on if you manage to pump it dry.

Common to "shock treat" (chorinate, recirculate, let sit, then flush out) on general principles. If the cap has been in place these 15 years there really isn't anything that should have gotten in, but general principles...

Depending what you are doing (such as drinking the water) might also be advisable to test the water (generally after flushing out quite thorughly and over several days, if you did shock-treat it), to be sure there are no issues with water safety from bacteria or other contaminants.

If your state (or other local authority) has a registration program you may be able to find data about your well from them (as well as, or instead of your well driller) - check to see if there's a plate or something with a registration number for the well on it.


Laminate floor boards cut too short my contractor cut the laminate boards too short leaving about 1/8" gap in some places and installed them. Any way to make them looking good?

When you say two short are the mop boards or trim in place? If it can be seen with the trim make the contractor repair , longer flooring or thicker trim. The reason you hire a pro is for it to look good not diy. If the contractor gives you a hard time forward copies of the contract and pictures of the gaps to the BBB and contractors board.


Can I use diaphragm accumulators to maintain consistent water pressure? This is needed for a place where there's a high pressure water but not always available.

Normal domestic water diaphragm accumulators (usually bladder accumulators are used) would not be feasible as they are used with a pump that cuts off when max tank pressure is reached. When you say "use them as a water source" please give an idea of estimated capacity needed at what pressure.  Perhaps you should be using a simple raised atmospheric accumulator (water tower) that relies on gravity to supply pressure when your "high pressure water" is not available. 8 to 10 meters height should give enough usable pressure, higher = more pressure.


Can I use Wago 221 and 2273 connectors outdoors? Are Wago connectors of the type 221 and 2273 safe to use outdoors where there will be a summer/winter heat cycle of say -10 to +30 degrees Celsius?

Also how do the Wago connectors hold up against oxidation of the copper wire? in the long term?

The Wagobox capsule junction box for those connectors is IP68 rated - waterproof to 4m. Not sure if it is UL listed or allowed in US codes though.

However, those connectors should be ok in any junction box rated for exterior use..


Prefereable air intake temperature for condensor-typed tumble dryer I have one of those tumble dryers with a condensor - it sucks air from the room with a fan, passes the air through the inside of a 'radiator' like apparatus (as to 'cool' it), and then straight into the drum chamber. from the drum chamber the (warm) air with moist passes through the external side of the radiator, and then condensation occurs.

As the air (from the room) intake is responsible for the 'cooling' of the radiator, would it be better if the room temperature will be a bit cool, as to increase the cooling effect of the radiator?
As a result of the tumble dryers work, The room gets very warm, which causes the air intake temperature to increase greatly.

On the downside, cooling the outside air means the tumble dryer will have to invest more energy in warming it again.

So what would be better:

1) Leave everything as is - let the tumble dryer suck the warm air from the room, thus making it use less energy for heating up the air, but more time to work as condensation is less efficient

2) Turn on the air conditioner in the room - let the tumble dryer suck the cooler air from the room, thus making it more efficient (condensation wise), but make it use more energy to heat up the air

From the way I understand them, condenser type dryers recycle the air rather than using a continuous supply of ambient air.

The air in the drum is passed across the heat exchanger to dehumidify it, then it is routed back into the drum. The heat exchanger is not used as an intake air pre-heater, it is solely for the purpose of dehumidification. Heat is transferred from the recycled hot air to the atmosphere, moisture is collected or drained.

If your's works differently and uses ambient air as a continuous source of "drying air", and the dehumidified exhaust is directed to the outside space (your living quarters), then the benefit of cooling it to provide for more efficient dehumidification would likely be outweighed by the need to heat it more for effective drying, since you did not complain about excess humidity conditions in your living space.

Either way, it is likely that significant engineering was involved in the design of the unit and the operating manual likely gives parameters for optimal performance conditions. I would say that unless directed to otherwise in the manual, any endeavours to alter the temperature of ambient air would provide minimal if any tangible benefit.


Can structural bricks be used as pavers for a patio? I've seen a few Q & A'a on here concerning using structural bricks but there really hasn't been a clear consensus. I am planning on putting them on their side and not using any sand or mortar for the joints. My question is what potential issues will I see in doing so? I have a huge surplus of reclaimed bricks so if some bricks break I can just pull them and pop another in. This is the general idea.

Edit: When I say structural, I mean the bricks with holed cores.

For brick driveways the most important part is a solid compacted base--crushed quarry rock or shale, not crushed river rock. Sand is normally used, not mortar.

For a “green” drive, place the holes vertical and fill with dirt and then grass seed. I have done this and if kept moist with drought resistant grass it works well (but I live in the grass dead capitol of the world). Keeping it trimmed is a chore as a lawn mower is too tall and a weed eater inconsistent. I purchased a Toro fly mow from a friend and that really works well (lawn mower with no wheels floats on a cushion of air). I think they are for golf greens but not sure.

If you don’t want grass turn sideways and use poly sand to fill the cracks. Poly sand really helps prevent grass with pavers. As long as you have a solid base the bricks will hold up. If the base is not solid you will have ruts in short order.


How can I attach Velcro to a fly screen? I bought some screens and some velcro strips (which came already with adhesive) and set up some fly screens. But after some time the screens started to unglue from the velcro, the adhesive was not strong enough or there was not enough surface to it to hold,

I want any suggestion to fix the screen to the velcro, some kind of glue/adhesive. I tried super glue and hot glue but neither worked. I'm almost considering sewing it or putting it in a frame (which was not the original idea)

Here's the screen I have:

What about velcroing through the screen, then sticking another piece on the back, basically making a velcro frame around the screen? This is hard to explain, here's a diagram:

AAAAAAAAAA
LLLLLLLLLL
SSSSSSSSSS
HHHHHHHHHH
AAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAA
LLLLLLLLLL

HHHHHHHHHH
AAAAAAAAAA
FFFFFFFFFF

The first 2 rows (AL) are one piece of velcro, loop side, with the adhesive away from the screen (leave the backing on this adhesive).

Next row is the screen (S)

Next 2 rows (HA) are another piece of velcro, hook side, again with adhesive away from the screen (backing removed from this piece).

Next 2 rows (AL) are another piece, loop side, adhesive against the previous piece so they stick back-to-back

Everything above here is on the screen (removable). Everything below is fixed to the wall.

The next 2 rows (HA) are the velcro stuck to the frame, and finally the F is the frame.


Help me understand the advantage of insulating the attic roof? If the attic floor is well insulated, help me to understand why there's an additional advantage in terms of reducing loss of heat exchange in the main room area.  Why would my unit likely run less frequently in such a scenario (assuming the thermostat was in the same room)

Assume in my case a room similar in style to this with vaulted ceilings.

First, since you have ducts, and an attic-floor-to-rafters room(!) in your attic, it's practically impossible to meet the conditions needed for a vented attic to work in your case.

Since I see you are in the eastern 3/4ths of NC, where ground snow loads can be guaranteed to be below 50lbs/ft^2 and in fact don't exceed half of that as per IRC Figure R301.2(5), a compact over-roof is how I'd solve your problem, instead.

Why a compact roof?

There are two conditions needed to make a vented roof work.  The first is that there must be a barrier plane at the ceiling capable of keeping heat and hot (or moist) air from entering the attic and warming the roof deck (or condensing out on the bottom of the cold roof deck -- hygric buoyancy is a thing).  This barrier must be as good thermally as the wall is directly over the exterior wall's top plate (i.e. R-30 over the top plate for a R-30 wall) and it must be airtight to the point where heated air can't get into the attic and spoil all your ventilation work.  How airtight?  Well, I'd be using air barrier tape to seal the ceiling drywall if I were building a vented attic.

However, with ducts in the attic, and a conditioned room in the attic as well that extends to the rafters at some points, the challenge of building a thermal and air barrier between the conditioned space and the unconditioned attic/roof deck just went from merely "hard" to "ARE YOU KIDDING ME?"  Ducts leak, despite all the work you do to mastic every last joint (that only gets your leakage down to a few percent).  Worse yet, the existing drywall isn't air barrier sealed I bet -- even with sealed and insulated ducts, a drywall joint that has not been taped specially to serve as an air barrier will still leak air.  Never mind that door to the unconditioned attic (err...storage space)!

Second, the underside of the roof deck needs to be vented to the outside air.  This is how the roof deck is kept at the outside temperature, no matter how much snow is piled atop it.  In practice, this usually translates to venting the whole attic, although it is possible to use an a rigid board insulation (foamboard or rockwool) sandwiched between the rafters and a layer of drywall attached with long screws into the rafters and air barrier taped, effectively creating a vent space while conditioning the attic.

Furthermore, vented attics need copious quantities of attic ventilation as ventilation's a lousy way to dispose of heat -- if I were building a vented attic, I would strongly consider using deep/wide enough trusses for the roof that the requisite top plate insulation does not come up to the bottom of the rafters, along with the "insulation wind baffle" from the illustration below (taken from BSI-046):

Given that the eastern 3/4ths of NC doesn't get enough snow loading for the R-value of snow to be a factor in ice damming, the commercial-style compact roof makes more sense in this application as it moves the attic into the conditioned space instead of trying to build a conditioned, air-sealed room within a vented-to-outside-air attic.

How do I actually do this?

Implementing this isn't hard, provided the details are minded.  I would strip the existing roof down to the deck (which can stay provided it is in good condition), then apply an air barrier layer i.e. a fully adhered product or a liquid applied product, as sheet products get rips and holes in them that make them poor air barriers.  Atop that, I would put in at least two layers of rigid insulation board (rockwool or foam) with a total R-value of R-50 or better and the joints staggered both horizontally and vertically to control airflow (otherwise, weird, complicated airflow networks make life hard).  Finally, I would attach an overdeck or nail-base to the rafters with long screws as the insulation will resist the bending moments of the screws, then put down whatever actual roofing system I like for the application as everything's taken care of below it.  See the illustration below, taken from the first link above (i.e. BSI-046), for a graphical view.

And oh, last but not least, once I fixed the roof, I'd remove the insulation from the attic floor -- it'd be superfluous once I installed the compact roof, as the attic is then properly part of the conditioned space.


Replaced Blower Motor, but A/C won't stay on unless power button is held down My HVAC has an electric furnace blower motor for both heating and cooling. I called a repair guy out who explained that the capacitor was good, I just needed a new motor because it had gone out. I opted not to pay the $700 for a new OEM motor and picked up one off Amazon for $100 and installed it myself. Installation seemed relatively straight forward, all the wires were the same, hooked it up to the control board pretty simply, etc.

I then flipped the switch and hit the power button. The control board blinked once and nothing happened. Tried it a couple times, always the same deal. It certainly appears the control board doesn't have power.

Then I tried holding down the power switch. After about 3-4 seconds, the blower came on and everything was good. Then I let go of the power switch and it immediately shut off.

Gave the system 5 minutes to reset, then tried it again... held the power down for a minute or two so my wife could verify that yes, cold air was blowing throughout the house and everything was good. Then I accidentally brushed my finger against the blower housing (Edit: I am not positive it was the blower housing... possible it was an interconnect, the capacitor or something else) and gave myself a hell of a shock, forcing me to let go of the power button and everything shut off again. Control board wasn't showing any errors (just a slow LED blinking which it says means that it's not heating), but again as soon as I let go of the power button, the control board LED goes off.

Anyone have any ideas? I'm incredibly concerned about why the outside of the blower housing would be electrified (Edit: On further reflection I'm not sure it was), but the motor did have a ground to the motor mount, which I reattached before attaching it to the blower.

There's no spark from the capacitor when I short it out before touching anything, so I'm wondering if it's charging correctly... but again, not sure what that would have to do with the power issues.

This is the power button I'm referring to:

I don’t think that is a power switch. That is a safety switch that is depressed by the cabinet panels when you put everything back together. It should not work unless it is depressed. You should be good.
Not sure how you got shocked though.


How urgent is it to resolve two-prong problems? I have read How do I use three-prong appliances when my outlets are mostly two-prong?.

I have recently moved into a house that has some two-prong and some three-prong outlets.

The place in the kitchen where the refrigerator fits has a two-prong outlet.  The house had no refrigerator in it when we moved in.  When the new refrigerator was delivered, the delivery person said to go to the DIY store and buy a little adapter.  The first couple of days, I ran a heavy duty extension cord over to a three-prong outlet, but when I had time to go buy some adapters, I switched to that method, because I was concerned about the cord being a tripping hazard, as it had to cross the kitchen floor right where the door to the basement and garage opens.

We also have a microwave oven, a chest freezer, and a computer running on adapters.  They are all on different circuits except the microwave and the fridge which share a circuit.  I know this because yesterday we mapped the circuits by turning on all the lights and then flipping the circuits one at a time and observing the results.

We are planning to resolve the problem at some point.  How quickly should we do that?  Within one week or one month?

For older appliances and such, pre-electronics, it's only a safety issue and even then, only under the worst case scenarios. The National Electric Code is all about those worst case scenarios however, hence the requirement. I'm not minimizing the safety aspect, I'm just saying that people survived for a LONG time with 2 prong outlets.

That said, the OTHER issue (which was not really an issue when the change was made) is that electronics, or more specifically anything that uses a "Switch Mode Power Supply" (SMPS), needs to have a solid reference to ground so that it can deal with what's called "Common Mode Noise" created by the power supply itself. Now virtually EVERYTHING you see with any sort of electronics in is has a little SMPS, all of them creating CM noise on the line. With no reference to ground, that noise builds up, potentially degrading the life of your electronics. So the longer you wait to fix it, the shorter the life of your computers, TVs, phones, "smart" appliances etc.

But per that other thread, in a lot of cases, older houses were wired with what's called "BX" cable; flexible metal covered conductors, and that was grounded, then the outlet and switch boxes were steel as well, all connected together. So if that's what you have, AND you have a metal screw (not plastic as they are now) holding the cover plate on, you WILL get a ground connection by using those adapters and attaching them via that metal screw.

Here is a better thread illustrating this concept.

What is the purpose of the "grounding" tab/wire on a 3-prong to 2-prong adapter?


Is plastering a job best left to the professionals? We have moved into an older house which needs re-wiring - the plaster is also in poor condition so a fair amount of plastering is going to be required over the next few months.

We are trying to save cash and I'm generally a "have a go at most things myself" sort of person. From looking at videos on YouTube plastering doesn't seem too difficult, doesn't require any particularly expensive equipment, and if I make a mess of it I can either sand it down or re-do it.

That said, a couple of people have recommended to me that a good plasterer can get a lot done quickly for not too much money, and that if I get it wrong bad things can happen (like the plaster blowing in a few months time because I've not mixed it properly).  Is plastering a low-risk job that I can have a go at myself, or am I likely to waste time and cause myself problems later?

The house is brick masonry with a small lath and plaster internal wall (which contains several small holes).  The problems include several large-ish (1m x 1m) areas of blown plaster, cracks, screw holes and a generally poor old finish.

If you have failing plaster and lathe interior walls, the process is a bit more complicated than just troweling on some new top coat plaster. The scratch coat, or first coat that bonds with "keys" through the lathe. When these keys fail or break off behind the lathe, portions of the plaster will become loose and often fall off the wall.  The correct fix is to remove all the compromised material exposing the lathe and apply a new scratch coat creating new keys between and behind the lathes.  After that coat cures, then the finish coat is applied. The materials used are completely different for each step. Although it is not a very difficult job, like anything else that is very visible, the quality of the bond and finish are important to the structural soundness and visual appeal.

True plastering is becoming a lost art in a world dominated by sheetrock. Plastering is one of those jobs that takes a long time and lots of practice to become proficient at. I certainly wouldn't discourage you from trying, but don't expect perfection on your first attempt. Even though the finish coat is what you see, pay special attention to the scratch coat as that is what holds the surface to the lathe. If the scratch coat fails, a perfect finish coat is worthless.  If your project is fairly small, go for it, but if you are looking at a whole room or rooms, it might be worth your time to get an estimate from a pro. With all the time and money you will spend doing a large project yourself and suffering through the learning curve, you may decide your time is better spent on doing something else.


Are there advantages to flex duct over sheet metal for bathroom fan (other than ease of installation)? Working on the bathroom in a currently unfinished basement and installing a fan. I have 4" sheet metal duct to use, but I know it would be a lot easier to install flex duct. I have a straight shot of 30' out the back of the house (really tempted to go 5' out the front of the house, but it wouldn't look as good). Given a 30' straight shot, is there any reason I shouldn't use the metal duct (other than ease of installation)?

If you have the metal duct, there's no reason not to use it. Yes, flex duct would be easier but it would be more expensive, especially since you've got the metal duct already. There's also less resistance in the metal duct so your fan will do a better job.


Switching 3-phase power between two appliances using a 3-phase switch In my garage I have an electrical 3-phase dryer.  I want to add a new 3-phase  air-conditioner. I want to be able to switch between the two of them, by using a 3-phase switch. This way, only one of these two appliances, can work at any given time.  In the market, such switches, for residential use are already available for purchase.

I was told by two electricians that I am not allowed to install the switch, because such installation is a violation of the building code. My questions are:

Is my proposed installation of a 3-phase switch a violation of the building code?
If the answer is a 'YES', then why is it so?
If I cannot use this switch, what are my legitimate options to make the dryer and the air conditioner able to only work one at a time?

I really don't know why you couldn't. If the switch is made for residential use for that purpose I don't see why not. They said it was against the building code? Not the electrical code? I could not see why the carpenters would care what the electricians did (building code versus electrical code).


How do I change which half of a receptacle is controlled by a wall switch? I have a switched outlet in a bedroom. The top receptacle is controlled by a wall switch while the bottom is always hot. Can I make it so the top is always hot and the bottom is switched by just moving the hot wire to the top and the red(switch) wire to the bottom?

Yes, that's exactly what you should do.

As a safety measure, while you've got the wiring exposed, double check that the hot (black and red) wires are connected to the brass-colored screw on the receptacle, the neutral (white) is connected to the silver-colored screw, and the ground is connected to the green screw.


Is it OK to apply a coat of one brand of paint over a coat of another brand? I was wondering if it makes much different to use two different brands of paint (of the same color and sheen) when painting two coats.  For example, if I have some Behr in semi-gloss left and it is enough for one coat and then buy more of Glidden, also semi-gloss, because it is cheaper, to do the second coat.

On the face of it, that's not a bad idea.

I would only be worried about a few things, though:

One, is about the actual sheen that each brand presents. You really want to try both out on a scrap or hidden wall and make sure the brand you want to have show up on top is carefully selected.

Two, is about how easy will these varying coats be, for patch repairs as life happens.

Three, you generally don't double-coat your cut-ins. For example corners, around trimwork, etc., are mostly just a single coat (and you would roll as close to edges as possible), and doing two separate brands' coats on the entire wall surface will take a lot of (possibly thankless) work.


I have a general question about learning woodworking for a still somewhat beginner! So I am a college student and my major is woodworking, I enjoy it but I haven't really learned the simple things, I know a lot about table saw, routers, band saw, etc, but when it comes out to simple things like knowing when to use certain screws and which wood fits best with my project.
Now I'm the only girl in my major, and I get along with all the guys well but I hate to always have to ask them every time silly questions like these. They are more experienced than I am and I would love to learn more about basics I guess. My question is, how can I learn more about things like this? I don't want to just google each time, are there good sites or books that have mostly everything all summed up? anything you guys recommend?

Practice, practice, practice is the best way of learning and retaining knowledge. The more time you actually do a task the more adept you become. Start a project at home and build on when you have free time. There are many publications available on wood working (Fine Woodworking by Tauton Press is one). Reading and doing should be your mantra.


Tiling on greenboards? I'm planning on tiling all of the walls in my master bath.  I'll be using cement backerboards for the shower and surrounds, can I use greenboard for the rest and just tile onto the greenboard directly?  I've not been able to found a clear answer on this.  Thanks.

You haven't found a clear answer because it's a matter of opinion and personal standards.

There's nothing wrong with doing so, if you're willing to accept that drywall is much less durable when moisture is involved, and has much less impact resistance than cementboard.

It's really that simple. I've seen entire commercial kitchens done with white drywall and 4" tile. Except for the areas behind sinks and where carts tend to bump it regularly, it works out fine.


What is the unit dead load of concrete? I have a question about what the unit dead load is. For structural concrete, the unit weight is 145 pounds per cubic food. Is the Unit Dead load 145 pounds?

I am going out on a limb here, but I think I understand what it means.

A cubic foot of concrete weighs 145 lbs. Therefore its deadload is the same, as part of a component of a building that an engineer needs to consider how strong a particular part may need to be to hold up over time.
In this case, for concrete, the unit of measure is cubic feet. If the material was 2X framing, then the unit of measure for the deadload would be by the foot for each dimension of lumber, 2X4, or 2X6 or 2X8 and so forth. With plywood, the unit of measure would be square feet. It would also be adjusted for the various thickness of each plywood thickness available.
So in a nutshell, each building component or part has its own unit of measure, therefore, its own unit of dead weight.


How to get squirrels out of inaccessible attic before plugging their entry hole? I have a low pitch roof that has an attic between it and the ceiling which is low enough to be useless for storage and access.  I have had a problem with squirrels entering for a while and I finally found the hole they are using to enter.  I would like to plug the hole but would not like to leave any squirrels inside to either try to dig another way out or go crazy while waiting for inevitable and slow, awful death.

Is there any way to lure them out before I plug the hole?  They can be heard moving in the ceiling sometimes but an absence of the noise does not guarantee they are not inside.

To supplement the other answers that recommend a one-way pest exit door based on the comments that the current hole size and location will not accommodate such a door: You can always patch the current hole, create a new one for the door (preferably in an inconspicuous location if possible), and then either remove and patch up the new hole after you are sure all pests are gone or leave it in place should pests find a new entryway in the future.


Floor joist splices appear inadequately reinforced The following picture shows that the floor joists in this house are butt-spliced where they rest on top of a large beam.  These joists are 2" x 6" Douglas Fir, and the end of each floor joist is toenailed to the beam.  A pair of 1" x 4" x 24" Douglas fir cleats are nailed to span across the splice, one on each face of the joists, to reinforce it.  Four 10d nails are used per cleat (2 on each side of the splice).

This next photo shows the end of one cleat with a split where the nail was too close to the edge.

My concern is that these 1" x 4" cleats, even in pairs, are inadequate to ensure the joists remain connected during an earthquake (this is in California - Seismic Design Category D, I believe).  I've never heard of using 1" X for structural reinforcement like this.  Were the original builders in error, and if so what would be an adequate remedy?

Holding everything together is just part of the problem. Keeping both of the 2x6’s on the beam is also extremely important.

During an earthquake, the house is moving in one direction and the foundation, footings, beams etc. are moving in another direction. (Those toe-nails into the beam is just about worthless.) You need to add metal connectors from the joists to the beam so your house “stays together”. (I like Simpson A35 n clips at each joist.)

Likewise, that beam should be secured to a post and the post to the footing. (If it’s a square independent footing, I’d find a way of securing it to the main perimeter footings too.)

Oh, and to answer your question, the double 1x4 splices are fine. They’re not doing much. The plywood subfloor is nailed into each joist, so they’re anchored together pretty good.


What's the current input from each leg of a portable generator into my main panel? I am connecting a portable generator to my electric sub-panel in my garage.  My generator is a 6kw running watt unit with a 30amp 220 volt output.  I will be using this connection (L14-30) to a box outside my garage.  This box will be connected to a shut-off panel inside the garage.  This shut-off panel will be connected to the sub-panel, via a 30 amp double pole breaker (220 volt).  I would like to measure each leg for volts, amps and watts.  Am I correct in that I can measure each (2)"hot" wire for volts, and amps, or do I need to include the "common" wire and add the amps from that for my total?  I also want to keep an eye on the total running watts from each leg to keep from overloading the generator.  I may need to remove some devices as they start, because of their starting current.
I am not using an automatic transfer switch, so I will be shutting off the Main breaker before I start the generator.  I will then shut off ALL breakers, before I switch the shut-off switch to ON.  I will then switch individual breakers to feed certain areas of my house, during a power outage.

No. You can't do that.
You have to have an interlock in the main panel.
Your idea is clever, and you think "Why not a checklist"?  The answer is people got hurt doing it that way, often enough that they changed the Electrical Code to stop the carnage.
In a crisis people do not "rise to the occasion". They descend to the level of their training, and if they aren't well trained, the result is chaos.  Code requires your system be built to endure through that.  Simple as that.
Since your inlet equipment must be at the main house anyway (you can trench a separate cable to send it to the garage if you really want to), you can simply select commercially available inlets that include amp meters.  You are interested in amp meters; there's no need to monitor voltage (plus, it's pretty easy to do with other devices such as a Kill-a-Watt).


Single handle shower faucet from the 80s making loud noises In my guest bathroom, there is a single handle shower faucet, likely an early Delta or American Standard scald-free ('monitor') that occasionally screams/whistles when being operated.

It doesn't leak, and I believe the scald-proof temperature control works adequately. Anyone have any experience with this issue? Do I need to replace it, or try a seal/spring kit?

High velocity flow through a restricted opening connected to a resonance chamber causes whistling.  Things you might try other than modifying the valve:

Install a flow restrictor at the shower head.  It only needs to restrict the water a little to change the dynamics of the flow through the valve.  If you start with one that restricts the flow so much it is annoying, you can usually enlarge the opening in it with a drill.  Of course, if you enlarge the restriction too much then you will be back where you started.
Check system water pressure.  If it is above 60psi, then consider installing a pressure reducing valve on the system.


Using an 18.3 AMP appliance over 14 gauge wiring I recently purchased an indoor infrared sauna that pulls 18.3 amps
I read that the max capacity for 14 gauge wiring is 17 amp on a 110 volt service
Can I safely use a 20 AMP breaker with 14 gauge wiring for an appliance pulling 18.3 amps?

No. No no no no no.

The sole purpose of the breaker is to protect the wiring from overheating. It's not just there to be a buzzkill. If you use a breaker that is too high for the wire you will lose that protection and there is a very real possibility of overheating and starting a fire.

An 18.3 amp device needs to be on a 20 amp circuit, meaning the receptacle, wiring, and breaker all need to be rated for 20 amps. (That would mean 12 gauge wire or bigger.) By the way, is your sauna really 120V? I thought most of them were 240V, which of course is a whole new thing.


Using a HRV/ERV Fan without mounting it on a wall/window? DIYers,

I'm considering various options for home improvement and improving the home economy and resource/climate efficiency. One area of focus is the fact that I live in Denmark and it can get quite cold, and so HRV and ERV fans seem like appealing options, especially the single-room ones, as adding an entire ventilation system is expensive.

The point is to ventilate the area while retaining the heat generated from indoor heating in winter, as airing out using the windows (the only other ventilation source) runs the issue of heat loss and inefficient air exhaust if I'm not generating a draft from another room, causing heat loss.

Before that, however, I am a tenant, even if the rules are a bit different where I live from the usual private situation (effectively a form of state-regulated, yet non-government public housing organization called "Almen boligforening").

I'm not very experienced in DIY work, but I'm also not the only one I know nearby capable of contributing to a project like this in terms of carpentry/electric engineering capacity. I would like to ask here first for reference, though.

I am highly uncertain whether or not I would be allowed to make any large-scale home improvements, especially those that can be seen on the outside as a permanent modification to the aesthetic, as the local organization really values the "rustic" aesthetic.

It is also worth noting, as I update this post, to note that this is not the first action I would want to take for home improvement, noting things like weatherization and consumption optimization, but those seem to be a lot easier to have answered through Google than what I'm asking, as anything I ask just comes up with more generic "How to install a HRV fan" videos.

And so, with that as context for an answer, I ask the following:

Is it, from your views, practically feasible/efficient, in terms of cost-savings as a result, among others, of the less-airtight seal of a dismountable wall? for me to make some sort of heavily insulated wall that can be dismounted from a window in a jiffy, with one of the single-room heat/energy-recovery fans in them, plugged to an outlet, easily removable if I receive complaints?

I'm not sure I'd be allowed to glue it on, and so I'm not sure if there's much of an easily-removable adhestive option that would give me a tight seal to maximize efficiency, yet also allowing me to dismount the construct following complaints.

If there's something like this already offered in the market, I'd probably want to know as well. It would likely take DIY work, but would reduce it, and would probably be a more efficient product than what I would expect to make by hand.

Thanks for the answers in advance.

The question is rather broad as asking mostly "is this feasible", and therefore maybe off topic, but it's an interesting question and here's what comes to mind...

I picture a panel, either hinged to the interior of the wall or to be mounted on shelf brackets or similar and with some sort of clamp to press it against the window casing. This panel would be a sandwich of plywood or other sheathing panel and extruded foam sheet. Your ERV unit would be mounted to it appropriately, and foam tape around the edge would provide an airtight seal.

Now, one has to consider the real-world ecological payoff of such a thing. Every component, down to the screws and adhesives, has an ecological cost associated with its manufacture, shipping, and implementation. Is that really worth doing? What's the payoff time when compared to the pollution and energy savings offered by the ERV? Are there other low-hanging fruits that would make more sense, such as reducing hot water consumption and sealing leaks in the building envelope?

I admit that I'm not the type to have an interest in detailed investigation of that question, but it's worth considering at a high level. Good luck.


Speed Queen washing machine stopped working mid-cycle I have a Speed Queen washing machine model AWN432SP111TW01, serial 1110013649.

It's been working fine for years and we had never had any trouble with it, but today it stopped mid-cycle, and won't turn back on.

I tested another device in the same electrical socket and it worked fine. I ran an extension cord from an electrical socket in another room which was working fine and connected the washer to it, but still nothing.

I looked in the user guide troubleshooting section under "Won't Start". I have tried everything there. One of the suggestions there is to give it a few minutes for the motor overload protector to reset; I have given it hours.

The user guide does not mention a fuse in the washer.

I opened up the control panel area of the washer and looked for a fuse but did not find one. There was a sheet in there with a schematic. I scoured it for a fuse but it did not mention one.

I looked all over in there for anything that looked burned or otherwise damaged, or loose, etc. Everything looks as good as new and all connections seem tight.

Any suggestions on what I can try?

Take a look at the lid switch. On some machines, the lid switch only interrupts the spin cycle. But it may be required to be closed for everything on this machine. The lid switch can fail with little or no warning and should, ideally, fail open rather than closed.


Repurpose old compressor I recently came across someone who was throwing away an old craftsman air-tank and compressor. They claimed the compressor did now work anymore as it would never build pressure.
I had an old compressor laying around from project involving an airhorn. I understand that the compressor I have is not necessarily made for the purpose I intend but I had it laying around and thought I could simply remove the old compressor, replace it with mine, rewire it and call it a day.
The compressor for the airhorn has only a power and ground while the 3-prong has white, black and green. From the compressor I ran red (power) to the black on the 3 prong, capped off the white (neutral) and connected both grounds (green on the 3 prong and black on the compressor) to a bracket I had to attach to the tank. Plugged it in and nothing works. The compressor worked before I pulled it off the truck.
Any advice? Did I wire this correctly?

No, and the dead giveaway is the colors of wire on the former compressor.
Red and black are colors used for low voltage wiring on vehicles.  Black is the normal current return path.  And because vehicle 12V/24V is not particularly dangerous, they just use the vehicle chassis as the current return path.   There is no safety ground on vehicle wiring. The thing you call "ground" is in fact the current return (negative usually).
Black and white are colors used in AC "mains" 120V power.  Black is "hot" and white is "neutral".  Neutral is a concept new to you: It is the normal current return path, but it is separately wired, insulated, and treated same as a hot conductor. Because 120V is dangerous.
Then there's a totally separate safety ground, which handles ONLY fault currents.  Nothing should ever be electrically connected to this; it only handles current during emergencies.
So because of the way the term "ground" is used in different environments, you got different things confused.
However, the big mistake was connecting a 12V or 24V compressor to 120V and expecting the electricity elves to take care of making that work.
That compressor is fried.  It's a goner.


GFI reset is behind refrigerator, need to remove refrigerator from circuit and relocate GFI I am looking at purchasing a home in Florida, built in 2005.

Our home inspector was not the smartest cookie in the jar, but accidently discovered some strange things.  So far, this is what I have figured out:

All of the kitchen outlets and exterior outlets are wired into one GFI circuit, and the reset is the actual refrigerator outlet, located, of course, behind the refrigerator.

First, is there a code requirement that could help me have the seller fix this problem?  I am thinking that there are probably 8 outlets wired together, and one of the has the fridge load.  Seems like a pretty high number?

Second, what is the simplest way to rewire this?  I don't know which side of the fridge is load, but in this case am assuming it is in line since is it located between the kitchen outlets and the exterior outlets.  If I can find the outlet directly upstream, and the next one downstream, can I rewire to put GFI protection on either side of the fridge but remove it from the fridge itself?

Thank you

Find the next outlet downstream from the GFCI behind the refrigerator.  Then (with the power off) swap the receptacle devices between those boxes, taking care to be sure the GFCI now in the "2nd box on the circuit" is correctly wired.  The refrigerator will NOT be GFCI protected this way.

You can find which outlets are downstream of the refrigerator outlet simply by test tripping that GFCI.  This won't tell you which is the next one, but it most likely is the closest one.  Once you have the GFCI in the new box, test it to be sure it does shut off the others on the same circuit.  There should be two circuits with GFCI.  Test the other one for correct operation, too.  With both GFCIs tripped, every kitchen outlet should be off, except the dedicated one.

You should have the refrigerator (and other heavy load devices like a microwave oven) on dedicated circuits (this is the point to negotiate with the seller).  The refrigerator can share with a freezer (as long as it is not in a garage).  They do not need to be on GFCI unless the kitchen has a wet material floor (like concrete, or in a garage).


How can I convert a shadow box fence to a solid fence? I currently have a shadow box style fence around the backyard of the new house I purchased. As there is a pool in the backyard, I prefer more privacy than the shadow box fence provides.  In addition, the shadow box appears to not have been maintained well as several surfaces aren't easily accessible.

That being said, is it possible to convert it to a solid fence using the existing boards?  Any information on how to do it or tips/tricks are greatly appreciated.

fence types. My fence is similar to the picture labeled as Shadow Box.

The feasibility depends on a couple of things:

If you can remove the existing boards without breaking them. My guess is probably, but you would need to do it carefully. I would use a short 2x6 and a light sledge to tap on the board from the backside.
What the spacing is on the boards. If you can just take the boards off one side and put them on the other, that makes things easier. If the spacing is wrong for that, you would need to pull the boards off both sides and then redo them.
Whether you are willing to do the work yourself. If you are paying somebody, it may be cheaper to have them tear down the old ones and put up new ones than to carefully remove the old ones and reinstall them.


Using liquid sandpaper (deglosser) with polyurethane varnish Revarnishing kitchen cabinets, using polyurethane (oil base) over existing varnish.  Can I use liquid sandpaper to degloss the old varnish?  What about in between coats of the new?  Thanks!

Yes, after sanding you can use the liquid deglosser for a final wipe down and cleaning prior to applying fresh coats of varnish. Using it alone in lieu of sanding is not a good idea IMO.

Do not use it between coats, just give a real quick fine sanding (or steel wool) and wipe down with a damp cloth or tack cloth.

Use outdoors or with good ventilation as that stuff is a volatile solvent.