Why are Two Electric Range Burners Not Working? My LG electric double oven range (LDE3037ST)

which is 3 years old made a popping sound accompanied by the smell of burnt electrical parts?/insulation?, and now the 2 right burners don't work. Is it the burner control board? Would a bad relay create a burnt insulation smell? What could the cause be?

UPDATE: Followed wallyk's advice. I traced the wires from the burners back to the PCB and found the fried relay. You can see the faint smoke mark on the black box in the lower right of the pic below. So, I'll have to replace the board. The insulation on the red wire on the right melted and split. If I cut the wire back to where the insulation is intact, can I re-use the wire? Or does that wire need to be replaced as well? Would it be unsafe to re-use the wire?

It could be the controller, but it could also be a burner or a wire to a burner.

Have a look underneath the two right burners—with power shut off to the range.  I expect the cause will be readily apparent with a look.


Is this joint between the foundation and first row of mortar typical Just wondering if this is a normal appearance for the area where the foundation and first row of mortar/brick meet. There are no signs of any structural cracks or anything like that in the area. Is this just cosmetic or should there be some sort of sealing done?

The bricks are attached to the foundation with a layer of mortar. This is not only normal but just about the only way to do it. Are there any other concerns it is hard to craft an answer when things look normal and no specific question. Are you concerned where the forms meet? The slight indent in the foundation?


Central heat doesn't always kick back on I have a York stellar forced hot air natural gas central heat. Many times if the thermostat is set to say 70 it will turn off after reaching that temp but then wont always kick back on when it drops below it. The only way I can get it to turn back on is to lower the thermostat below the room temperature, wait about 10 seconds and then raise the thermostat above the room temp and it usually will kick back on. I have tried 3 different thermostat and all have the same results. I;m now using a nest and its the same, Any idea why this keeps happening?

Your thermostat turns the furnace on and off. Off is easy :-) But sometimes when it turns back on, something doesn't work quite right. It could be a sensor that detects a temperature too high, a sensor that is supposed to detect ignition that doesn't (either due to a sensor problem or because the burner really isn't igniting) or something else. When that happens, the furnace stops trying, because (essentially) it has decided that doing the same thing over and over again will not produce different results. So it is now "locked" in a mode where until something changes it will not try again.
Then you lower the temperature on the thermostat. That tells the furnace "I'm warm again, you can stop trying." It then turns off certain key circuits. When you raise the thermostat temperature again to call for heat, the furnace gives it the old college try and this time it works!
This is not that unusual. It actually could be worse - I had a problem a few months ago where the thermostat trick wasn't enough and I had to cut all power to the furnace - and then it started working again.
If it happens once a month, you can probably ignore it. If it happens every day, get it serviced. The problem may be as simple as too much dust in the wrong places, but it could be a sign of real problems and a possible safety issue.
Safety Reminder - Carbon Monoxide
As my HVAC tech made sure I did the last time I had a big problem with my furnace, anyone with a gas furnace should make sure to have Carbon Monoxide Detectors in the house. Not right next to the furnace (too much of a chance for false positives) but definitely not too far away as the danger is very real - and impossible to detect with your nose. Incomplete combustion can cause a furnace to not always start correctly, and can also lead to deadly levels of carbon monoxide.


Top element is drawing amps but no hot water drawing 19amp I have 240v at the water heater and drawing 19amp at the top element but no hot water after 1 hour

Check to make sure that water's getting to the bottom of the heater
If an electric water heater is drawing nameplate power but not appreciably heating water, then one of two things is wrong.  Either the dip tube in the heater has broken off internally, causing water to "short circuit" past the heating elements, or the heater was plumbed backwards with cold water trying to enter via the exit port and hot water exiting via the dip tube, which will cause similar symptoms as you're then drawing from the coldest water in the tank.


What's the difference between dimmable and non-dimmable LED lamps? I have a large room in my house with 3 light fittings, with a total of ten 40W GU10 bulbs. So, this is using 400W when they're at max output (they're all on dimmer switches).

I'm interested in reducing this by replacing the bulbs with LED's (or some other dimmable low power alternative) as the ones I have fail over time.

So, I'm curious as to why dimmable GU10 LED lamps are so expensive. £20-£25 is the best price I can find.

Most LED bulbs on the market are in fact dimmable, IF you use a CFL/LED dimmer.

Your "standard" dial or track dimmer is either just a big potentiometer or Rheostat that reduces voltage through resistance, or a slightly more efficient design called a TRIAC dimmer, which uses a specialized transistor design to attenuate the line voltage by turning the line on and off based on where the AC is in its "rhythm" or "phase".

These dimmers work just fine for incandescents, but cause problems for CFLs and LEDs. A CFL needs a big power spike to get started, but then as long as it gets enough power (about 13w for a 60W-equivalent) it'll happily produce full light. LEDs are similar, but instead of needing a power spike to get started, they need DC current, produced by first "stepping down" the AC current and then running it through a diode and capacitors to restrict the flow to one-way. This is the same technology used in AC adapter "wall warts". The problem here is that the capacitors, which charge when the power is flowing the "right way" through the diode and discharge when the power is blocked by it, hold plenty of charge to keep the LEDs going when the power is cut off for slightly longer periods, such as by a TRIAC dimmer. In fact, many of these AC/DC converters have some sort of rectifier, like a TRIAC or SRC, built in to attenuate the power (the transformer will exchange voltage for amperage, or vice-versa, so you have to further cut down the current from line level), so the capacitor bank is DESIGNED to handle this type of current.

CFL/LED dimmers reduce power in a different way; they turn the power on, then off for set periods of time (i.e. "on for 10ms, off for 5ms"; as opposed to TRIAC dimmers' "on as long as the phase isn't x degrees or closer to peak power"). This still reduces RMS power over the entire waveform, but it does so in a way that CFLs and LEDs respond to more readily.

You still need special bulbs as well as special dimmers to dim energy-efficient bulbs. CFLs need a ballast that can charge and discharge very quickly (the technology found in "instant-on" CFLs that can "ignite" within just a few milliseconds) in order to turn on and off fast enough to make a difference. LEDs, for their part, react more naturally to the longer "off" periods of a CFL dimmer than a TRAIC, and so most LEDs can be dimmed to some degree, but you don't get a very smooth dimming across the full range. Many newer ones instead use integrated circuitry (yes, there are computers in your freakin' light bulbs now) that will "sense" the on-off pattern and translate it to a more rapid succession of "clock pulses" to "blink" the LEDs. This bypasses any problems with the capacitors keeping the LEDs going and results in more gradual dimming.

Now, there are brand-new LED bulbs that are dimmable with TRIAC dimmers; the IC controller in the bulb is designed not only to correctly distinguish CFL dimmer "on-off" patterns, but TRIAC "on-off" patterns as well, so it can translate both of them into the rapid pulsing used to control LED light levels.


How are joists secured to sill? From what I’ve read on residential construction, the process of building the first floor goes like this:

Foundation of some kind is set
Sill plates are bolted to the foundation
Floor joists are set to bear on the sill plates and are nailed to rim joists

I haven’t seen any information on how the floor or rim joists are subsequently attached to the sill plates.
Is friction and weight expected to keep them in place?
If so, why do the sill plates need to be bolted down?

The floor joists are secured to the sill joists by installing wall sheathing (plywood or OSB board) that laps from the sill plate up the wall to the double top plate. When the sheathing is nailed to the sill plates, rim joists, studs and double top plate, then all the components are secured in place.
The thickness and size and spacing of the nails in each component are determined by the load (we call this load: “shear”) they need to resist. If the walls are extra tall, or have many windows, then extra thick and special increased nailing may be required.
Likewise, if the building is located in a seismic zone or high wind area, then additional nailing AND special steel holddowns may be required at certain locations to resist the shear loads and keep the floor joists aligned with the sill, studs, and double top plate.
The sill transfers the shear loads to the concrete foundation. The size and spacing of the anchor bolts is determined by the shear load that is transferred through the walls to the foundation.


1995 Rheem tripping 40A breaker We have a 1995 Rheem 3-ton unit cooling the upstairs of our recently purchased home. It has been running frequently, averaging about five hours a day in June. Unfortunately, it has now tripped the breaker two days in a row. An HVAC guy came yesterday and said it was drawing only 22A. He also said the R22 level was fine, and he just reset the breaker. The breaker is 40A. I have put the name plate in the image below. Any ideas or things worth checking? Do I need a new unit?

Well, from the name plate the max breaker size is 35 so that is the size breaker it should be on.

It is possible the breaker is going bad. Especially if it only trips occasionally and not immediately every time the compressor starts.

It is also possible the unit is going bad and only occasionally draws more than its rating. When the technician was there it just happened to be acting normally.

The cheapest fix is to try a new 35 amp breaker. If it continues to trip then you need to call the HVAC contractor back out for a more thorough examination.

Good luck!


Stair Illumination: Location of light Before I close this up, is this legit location for light at bottom of stairs? Yes, switch at top and bottom, and light at top as well. Through some quirk of symmetry, this can light (of 12 total), ended up HERE, and lines up with the other cans in a row (not pictured. And yes, that is an emergency light, not required per local code but I be losing power in ice storms. I see a lot about how many candle feet, etc...the stairway has to be illuminated, but nothing about how many inches/feet the light source has to be positioned in relation to the top and bottom. The top one is almost directly over the top step. Bottom one, it does the job. I'd hate to add another can there, it will look odd, but I got final coming up soon else have to pull a new permit under 2017, and I'll take an odd-placed can versus re-permitting as a new build.

The only thing that worries me is odd placements of the lights and switches requires more wires than a typical /3 cable includes, and that invites bad wiring, e.g. using two 12/2 cables where you need a 12/4 cable.

Also, in this day and age, remember the light switches need real neutral at the switch.  2-wire switch loops (3-wire if 3-way) are outlawed in 2011 NEC.


Why does my water smell bad after the water softener? Just bought a house, and I don't really understand how the water softening system is set up. Here's my best guess:

Water from the well is pretty hard, and very iron filled. It smells enough to smell it across the room. But: it does not smell like sulfur.

First the water goes through a water softener with a brine tank. Water at this point smells faintly of iron, but is much softer and still does not smell like sulfur.

After that it goes into another tank that looks like a water softener, (I can even force it to do a backwash) but has no company or product names on it, and no brine tank. I'm guessing that this is an iron filter. (Though I'm not sure why it would be after the water softener, because it seems like the softener is taking the bulk of the iron out.. And can't that foul the resin? I digress.) At this point the iron smell is completely gone, but now the water smells of sulfur.

It seems pretty clear what the problem is: sulfur contamination in the iron filter.. But from everything I can find online, that shouldn't be possible since most iron filters are sulfur filters.

Anyway, how far off am I from what my actual setup is, and how can I clean this tank?

It sounds like it's an activated carbon filter, which takes organics out of the water (like the sulphur smell), and that it needs to be rebedded (this needs to happen typically once every 3 to 5 years, depending on level of contamination). Once the activated carbon is 'used up', it actually becomes a good breeding ground for bacteria and is worse than completely ineffective. (Aside, this is the same reason that jug-style filters like Britta need to be replaced regularly -- and it's better to use nothing than an old one).

There is not really anything called an "iron filter". Softeners can low levels of iron out, and greensand filters can be used for higher levels, but a greensand filter will have a small tank attached with potassium permanganate (dark purple stuff) in it:


How can I test a dishwasher's water inlet valve? Our Bosch dish-washing machine (SGS 6902EU/07) is no longer filling in with water, displaying "F" on the led panel. Opening the side panel I see that no water is flowing in from the water mains. The dishwasher is using an Aquastop 's main water inlet valve: this is located at the water mains location, rather than inside the dishwasher.

To determine whether the problem is associated with the inlet valve or with the dishwasher, I measured the voltage across the inlet valve's terminals and it was 0V. I then considered the possibility that the inlet valve was short circuited, so I also measured the voltage with one terminal disconnected. The the dishwasher was turned on, this rose to 2.4V DC.  I think this is too low; a manufacturer of such valves gives a 12-220V range in its specifications.

Any idea on what the voltage should actually be?  Any suggestions for testing the valve?

Inlet valve's are normally the first to go, so I'd stop testing & order that new valve assembly. Other than that, turn off the circuit breaker or perform a reset & see if it's just a temporary fault that blocked it's operation.


How to open holes in plastic electrical junction box How am I supposed to open the holes for the cables in a junction box like the one shown in the picture below?

I would use a sharp knife, a so called utility knife, if I had one handy, but would try my moderately well sharpened pocket knife if that was all I had.

EDIT It may be that all one has to do is to pierce a "ring" with a knife or even a flat blade screwdriver and then pulling propagates the tear as the inside is pulled out.

EDIT2 The fact that the ring feature is convex suggests that the designers envisioned the removal could be with a slicing action with a blade parallel to the plane of the rings. For a right handed person I could imagine holding the box with the left hand with the inside of the left forearm braced against the chest.

The knife would be held in the right hand (cutting edge toward the thumb) with the right elbow braced against the person's ribs. The cut would be made by pulling the knife so that in the event of a slip the right forearm would contact the chest and stop the movement of the knife. After slicing 90 deg the box would be rotated 90 deg to continue the cut . . .

Alternatively, the box could be held down on a flat surface and the knife held with the cutting edge away from the thumb. The removal would be with a slicing action from above then the box flipped over for slicing the remainder.


How can I remove paint left from an appliance dolly from the front of a washer? My husband was moving our washing machine with a dolly.  He dropped the washing machine and now the front has dents and green paint from the dolly. How do I get the green paint off from the front of the washer?


How can I stop a board from "leaking" sap? I recently assembled a shed and one or two of the board on the wall are "leaking" sap:

I thought it might stop after I removed the first batch but a few days later, it came back. Is there anything I can do to stop this (while still preserving the natural wood look)?

I've already put three coats of polyurethane over the whole interior.

It's a pitch pocket.

Just give it time - "a few days" is not much time in this case - it might ooze for a year before it gets done. You could try heating it (to make it ooze out faster), but that might have detrimental effects such as checking, a.k.a. cracking; or in this case, cracking more.


Where Can I connect my C-wire on A Hot Water (Hydronic) Heating System? I have a hydronic heating system (Lochnivar)that came controlled with an older (dumb) thermostat. I have 5 wires behind the wall and 5 wire in the wire packet going into heating system however only the red and white wires are connected on both sides. The remaining wires (Yellow, Green, Blue) are not connected on either end.
I'm installing a smart thermostat that needs a C-wire, where can I connect that on the circuit board of my system (picture attached)? Any advice appreciated.

Nowhere in there.  that's a DC circuit and a "C" wire is an AC thing.
you'll need to use an auxillary power supply to run your smart thermostat.


How do I properly cut pre-existing kitchen backsplash tile for new low voltage wall plates? I'm doing a little bit of kitchen remodeling, overflow from my home theater remodeling. I'm adding some RCA input ports to a pre-existing low voltage wall plate that previously hosted just Cat5 and RG6. Problem is, when this plate was first installed (before I was here), enough room was made only for the cat5 and RG6 aligned vertically.

Low voltage wall plate cutout:

Current Wallplate:

As you can see from the picture, I rather foolishly thought I could just chisel the tile along the edges and break more off.

My question is somewhat twofold I suppose:

How do I properly cut the pre-existing backsplash tile, and how do I fix the damage I've already caused?

Tile setters use carbide tipped nibblers to trim tiles by small amounts. You would need to have access to the back of the edge you want to trim off so you can grab it with the trimmers. You take small bites, clip clip clip, until you have removed what you need to. There is still the possibility of cracking the tile, but this is your best bet for trimming small amounts off ceramic tile.


How to fix dripping sound coming from toilets? Two toilets doing the same thing: When solids or liquids are added to the bowls, a dripping sound can be heard.  Otherwise, they are silent.

There is no water leaking out of either toilet onto the floor.  Neither toilet flushes on its own.  I completely replaced all the innards of one of the toilets; it made no difference.

What is this dripping sound?  Do I need to fix it?  If so, how?

If the sound is only heard when material is added to the bowl, you can disregard any involvement of the flushing mechanism. This must logically be the case, unless you omitted to mention that you also flushed the toilet afterwards, and/or that the liquid had entered the bowl from the water tank. If the latter is the case, the tank would make a gushing noise while it was refilling itself, and possibly some dripping sounds for a little while afterwards while the flushing mechanism settles down.

If the sound occurs when material is added to the bowl, but no associated flushing takes place, the only possible source of the dripping sound is the overflow from the S-bend when the liquid displaced from the bowl falls or runs down the sewer pipe. If there is no leakage from the toilet when you hear the sound, you can safely disregard it.


What's the difference between LPG and natural gas cooktops? I've seen a lot of cooktops, some rated to be used with LPG (liquid gas or propane) and others with natural gas. Some companies have 2 models of the same design (one for LPG and one for natural gas).

What is the difference between the two? is it just the connector type or is it a different design of the cooktop burner itself? Is it possible to 'convert' an LPG cooktop to natural gas (and vise versa) or is it a completely different design and there is no point in trying to convert?

Both systems operate at different pressures. Depending on the appliance, there could be different orifices, burners, regulators, and fittings.

Depending on the appliance, a conversion kit may be available from the manufacturer. Though some appliances may not be convertible. Even with a conversion kit, it may be cost prohibitive to convert some appliances.


Ground and neutral in single bus bar? i purchased a tiny house as an abandoned project, and the electricity was already roughed in at purchase. I'm not an electrician, but all the work on the house seems pretty sound from my research. All the wiring is 12/2, with a an RV inlet (30 amp, 125 v). The panel confuses me, as it has both the ground and neutral on a single bus bar. The breaker is a square D 15 amp tandem, with only a single bus bar. Does this look correct?

This is a total hack job.

It's super cheap, but not even that; there are places money was spent unnecessarily.  But the workmanship is a punch-drunk disaster.  No one did any research nor asked for any help.  The installation is actually dangerous, and could set the tiny-home on fire from an unrelated electrical problem in the facility it's plugged into, even.

Just to breeze you through what's wrong with the panel: #12 on a 30A circuit, no ground bar, lugs double-tapped, missing entry clamp, double-stuff breaker where AFCI may be required, no provision for solar, way too small panel (cannot meet NEC minimums for circuit count).  And if it's outdoors: indoor box outdoors, NM cable outdoors,  outdoor clamp needed (they don't allow 2 cables), entering a box from the top unnecessarily.

Multi-sourcing and solar

My first thought was that there are four kinds of RV hookups: common 120V/15A (you know the one), trailer TT30 120V/30A, NEMA 14-30 (240V/30A) and NEMA 14-50 (240V/50A) which you see on the big RVs built on bus frames. And then you've got solar on top of that.

And first I thought, "let's get you a line/gen transfer switch".  But then I realized those are quite large. Even one that's integral to the panel (like Siemens') does not switch neutral, which is an absolute requirement here!

So what I want instead is to mount a 14-50 inlet (or 14-30 if you are sure you'll never need more than 30A). Right next to that, a tiny compartment where you can stow a short cable with a 14-50 socket on the end.  To run in solar mode, you unplug from shorepower, open this compartment, and plug the socket into the inlet.  If you're super sharp, you recess all this so you can leave it in while towing.

If your shore power isn't 14-50, you stock a variety of adapters. Most are readily available at RV shops, or a steady hand can make them.

The service panel

That thing actually is a service panel, it's so tiny that it's hard to recognize as one.   It won't do.   It's a $19.99 Home Depot cheapie, and the worst brand they sell (I think).  We're going to spend more like $100 on a proper panel.  Panel size is a factor, so we prefer dense panels in smaller sizes.  That makes Eaton CH or Square D QO contenders (yes, Square D again, but this time their industrial line) since they pack full breaker functionality in 3/4 the space.  (GE Qline goes too far, their 1/2 height breakers can't perform essential functions, other than that it's a fine panel if you use their fullsize breakers.)

As far as spaces, what worries me is that an inspector could come by and require you to have the NEC minimum number of circuits - and also, a few circuits are just a good idea.  The former builder used a "double-stuff" breaker to cram 2 circuits into 1 breaker space. Don't count on that, because that inspector may require you use AFCI or GFCI breakers - and those do not exist in double-stuff.

Using the service panel to separate solar loads

You may want to automatically disconnect non-essential loads while on solar.   And now is the time to be thinking about it, because there's a clever way to do this for free, right now while we are designing the panel.    You see, North American power comes in two 120V "legs".  The legs are normally just for more power.  They aren't normally assigned different tasks, but they could be.   Read my Q&A on double-stuffs, which talks a great deal about how panels are separated into two poles.

So layout your panel so the L1 pole serves loads you do want on solar, and the L2 pole serves loads you don't want on solar.  It's important you don't install any 240V loads at all, and avoid using an archaic wiring method called MWBC aka shared-neutral.

After that, the cable I mentioned? You wire up the inverter as 120V, and only connect L1 in the socket.


Fixing patch in the wall I just moved in to a new apartment and somehow broke small platform near window (where you are supposed to put plants I guess). How can I fix this as I don't want my landlord to keep my deposit :(

Looks like the bracket was attached to the molding (?) with a screw that was too short.

Remove the bracket carefully.  You need to salvage the piece of the trim that the screw pulled out - the part behind the bracket.  Glue the trim back onto the molding, then patch with some wood filler, sand, and paint.

Reattach the bracket using a longer screw that goes through the wood trim, drywall (or plaster), and into the 2x4 that should be below the window itself.  Pre-drill the hole so that you don't split the trim.


Is there a more environmentally-friendly alternative to using oil to heat a house with oil heating installed? I currently live in a house (in the UK) which is too remote to be connected to the mains gas supply, with an oil tank which is used for central heating. This is obviously not great for the environment, in terms of the carbon dioxide emissions produced. I had two questions related to this:

Is there an alternative fuel that can be used in the oil tank, without adapting the existing system, that would be more environmentally friendly than standard heating oil?
Alternatively, what adaptations or replacements, large or small, could potentially be made to the existing system to improve how environmentally friendly it is?

Cost is a slight issue, but I'd like to see what all the options are before determining what's worth doing.

Aside from environmental factors, you are buying the oil from Vladimir Putin or others fond of AK-47's.

Biodiesel

Heating oil, at least if it's anything like what's used in the States, is quite similar to kerosene/diesel fuel. The difference is diesel is more precisely refined, so it's a little more expensive.

So you can use "green" diesel substitutes, notably, biodiesel.

Most product advertised as biodiesel is in fact nasty, toxic petroleum diesel, with some tiny fraction (2-20%) of actual biodiesel, sold as B2 to B20. The reason is engines need a high-lubricity material like biodiesel to lubricate fuel injection pumps (sulfur used to serve that purpose)... and a fraction of biodiesel accomplishes that.

So in purchasing biodiesel, you must be careful to buy "B100" type, which means 100% biodiesel.

Waste Vegetable Oil

Used fryer oil has four significant differences from heating oil or diesel.

Viscosity (thickness). At room temperature, Vegetable oil is thicker than diesel, which can strain pumps.  However, when warmed to about 60C, vegetable oil is thinner and will happily pump like diesel.  Further, oil will "freeze solid" at common UK outdoor temperatures.  Butter is an example of an oil that has frozen. You cannot pump refrigerated butter.  This creates a serious "cold start" problem, if your house were to ever get cold, you would not be able to restart the heater.   You can modify the heater to have a method to preheat, or you can modify the fuel by a process called "transesterification" also known as "making biodiesel".
Particlulates (solids):  bits of fried potato will clog your fuel injectors.  Diesels hate it, but it may be less of a problem on a heater.  This is solved by filtering.
water content - this can rust the insides of equipment, and it's a serious concern on diesel vehicles, particularly as the fuel is constantly stirred by motion. It's solved by letting it rest in a still tank, and draining the water out of the bottom.
Acid content - a side effect of frying. This will corrode equipment.  It is solved by intentionally adding water, stirring the fuel/water, and titrating (adding lye until the acidity is gone), then, separating out the water.  The water is needed to draw out the acidic material, which cannot attach to oil.

There is already a robust business in waste vegetable oil, this is handled by rendering companies who no doubt would sell you waste oil.  I gather you want to process it as little as possible.  Since you're running a heater and not an engine, you may be able to tolerate a great deal more of the above traits than a diesel car can.   If you need to run the full process to remove acidity and thus water, that is most of the work needed to make biodiesel, so you might as well go the rest of the way.

Getting serious: Passive solar design

Using an alternative fuel is just throwing a better carbon at a root problem of atrocious design.   Now I get it; you were raised to believe houses should be built the way houses in your area are built. Due to that design, active fuel heating is absolutely necessary.

However, passive solar design can capture a great deal of energy from the sun, and by that, I mean in winter (in summer, the goal is to get rid of energy). This is hard to toss on as an afterthought to a conventionally built house, it works best when you start with the principles and build a new house around it.  This can also be augmented with active solar heating, where solar thermal panels collect heat from the sun and store it in a tank of fluid. Again, winter.


How to remove old vinyl tiles? I have a layer of old, crumbly and very sticky vinyl tiles that I need to remove to bring the old tile back (see picture). What is the best way of removing these?

Bonus question: How do I get the adhesive off the floor underneath?

Use an iron! It is cheaper and less damaging to your lungs. Let the iron sit on the tile for about 30 seconds and it will pop right off, then move on to the next one. I renovate homes and have done it numerous times. I have well over 14000 sqft under my belt.


Why does Knob and Tube need an air gap? I know that knob and tube wiring needs an air gap to dissipate heat.

I know that modern sheathed cable does not need an air gap.

I know both are made of copper, one is grounded, one not. So why does one need an air gap and one does not?

The air gap isn't primarily about heat. It's about electrical insulation. The fabric mesh that was used as insulation was not reliable, and could allow arcing and short circuits (especially if moisture comes into play). It's sort of the same principle you see in overhead power lines.

One could argue that there is a safety factor in the air gap with respect to heat, but the simple fact is that an electrical overload will heat the wires much faster than air could cool them anyway. This could allow the wires to burn or melt, or ignite combustible materials which they contact.


How to get rid of a stinking wall color - paint over, remove/sanding or use ozone? A friend got a new apartment (5 floor building built in 2008). The walls and ceiling of the apartment were renovated a few months ago.
Unfortunately, the ceiling color (Flügger Flutex 2S) started to smell. The smell is "lying in the air" like vinegar or old socks. Very subtle but noticeable. I assume that either the new color got bad or the new color chemically reacts with the old undercoat.
A repaint was done: Primer and a completely new color applied (Ekocolor Eko 3). This removed the smell by 90 %.
However, a few days later the smell is slowly noticable again!
My guess: The wall absorbed the primer and the new color and now the smell can escape the wall again.
The question: What to do next?
A: Complete removal of the surface? That's a lot of work. There is no wallpaper, so sanding would take place on 50 m² of ceiling.
B: Using an ozone device in the entire apartment for a day. Hoping it destroys the smell particle. But I have read positive and negative things about it.
C: Paint over again - but with isolating paint

I think anti-mould paint could have very good isolationg effects. Example "Anti-mould": https://www.amazon.de/Zentrallager-13401144-Schimmelblocker-Isoliergrund-Schimmel/dp/B0050G8RS6
Or maybe a "Wet blocker". Example: https://www.amazon.de/0-75l-Molto-Feuchtblocker-weiss/dp/B00FSA4P4E

Doing C would be my suggestion. But I don't know which color to choose and also: Should another primer be applied before applying the color?
Can an experienced craftsman/painter can give advice?

I'm willing to bet they used a basic latex primer, which will do little or nothing about the odor. Take the time to buy the primer yourself and make sure it specifically lists "odor" as something it will work against. Most oil-based primers will handle odor (although they themselves contain a strong odor initially). There are also some newer products that are water cleanup that claim oil-based features, including blocking odors (Kilz says this product will do it but I've never used it myself).


Need help identifying a light switch At work we have some light switches that look like this, and I've seen similar ones at school and at other commercial offices. This one is installed in Vancouver, Canada

The lights also have a motion detector installed elsewhere in the room that can turn them on and off.

I'm wondering what type of switch this is, and where I could get one. It looks like some form of low-voltage/networked lighting but none of the major manufacturers have it on their website.

Dollars to donuts, this is an RR7 kind of deal

In this system, you have a relay back at the service panel or control cabinet.   You then run 24V low-voltage power to each switch and motion sensor.

The most common, the RR7, is a latching relay. If you send control power to the relay for 1 second, it "throws the relay over" and it stays there until it's thrown the other way.   Each bank of switches gets a 24V supply wire, and it returns an "on" wire and an "off" wire for each string of lights.  Energizing "on" for a moment throws the relay "on"; "off" does the same.

The neat thing about RR7 is you can have any number of switches controlling a light, and wire it with thermostat wire.  Also, you can have automated systems work very easily with it.  Say you want to turn off the lights at 8 pm, because people always forget to turn them off, the timer just pulses the "off" wire for 1 second at 8 pm.

There are different systems

For instance one system has only one on/off wire, and energizing the wire for 1 second toggles the lights on vs. off.  That works for humans, but a machine (eg. The timer) needs a feedback wire to tell machines if the lights are already on or off, otherwise if they're off, the timer will turn them on at 8:00.  Anyway, that light may be this feedback wire.

These commercial systems are generally hard-wired old-school, because that is reliable and doesn't require a geek to troubleshoot balky software.


How to level an existing wall We are about to replace our countertops in the kitchen & put a new backsplash up. The cabinets will remain. We have found the wall is unleveled. The area from the top of the countertop that is supposed to touch the wall there is a gap. How can I put up a backsplash on the existing Sheetrock without cutting the Sheetrock out.

This answer assumes the countertop doesn't have an integral (pre-formed) back splash.   In order to move the countertop back to have the entire edge touching the wall you will need to scribe a line.  To scribe a cut line you must first get a scribe. This is nothing more than a compass, but one leg has a holder for a pencil ( the other leg is pointed).  To use it first orient the countertop so it is square to the cabinet bottoms. Depending where the gap(s) are located you must now find the space furthest from the back edge. This is the distance to set the compass too (the space between the pencil and the pointed leg). Tighten the nut so it remains at this setting.   Be certain to secure the countertop so it doesn't move (clamps or screws). Next, with the pointed leg against the wall and the penciled leg on the countertop angle the compass slightly(so you are pulling it) and pull it from one side of the countertop to the other. Keep both legs against their respective surface.  If all has gone well you should see a pencil line that tapers when compared to the back edge of the countertop. This is your cut line. Removing it will allow the countertop to fully contact the wall.   Check This First If you have a countertop that has a lip or bull-nosed front edge be sure the amount that you need to remove isn't so much that the lip prevents it from touching the wall.


How do I stop the rubber sweep on my front door from squeaking as it moves against the floor? The main door into my house has rubber at the base of it and it has started to squeak  against the wooden floor when opened.  How do I fix  this problem?

It's the same concept are wiper blades on a car. The rubber is either too far gone and need to be replaced or you can rejuvenate it by wetting it. Rubber, when exposed to the elements, will slowly dry out and lose its oils and become, well, dry. It can become brittle, squeak, and streak. If you can save it, then all you have to do it wet it and let it soak up some liquid just like your wipers working better after a few passes in the rains. You could use water, but it won't work well or for as long. Something like gun oil or any petroleum based oil would work well; however, it's also the first to seep out and cause oil streaks on your floor.

So how do you get a result you're happy with.
If you can rub it while dry and it makes your hand dirty or crumbles, it's probably a goner. Otherwise, if you can find an oil you can stand the smell of (because you'll smell it for a while), soak the rubber in it for a few hours then let dry for another few hours. After that, rinse it thoroughly with hot water to get the extra oil sitting near the surface out.


Is it possible to test a drained central heating system without filling it with water Say there is a house with a just combination (combi) boiler for hot water, but the central heating system has been drained for a couple of years as the house has been uninhabited.

Is it possible to fully test the condition of the central heating system (not the boiler itself, but the hot water infrastructure within the house - i.e. leaks in potentially corroded pipework) without filling the system with water and risk causing said leaks?

If you are just checking for leaks, you can pressurize the system with air, and wait to see if the pressure drops. If it drops, there's a leak somewhere.


Barrier of Plastic sheeting between wood and dirt I'm looking for the way to make the pressure treated wood in my project last the longest possible. I want to put a piece of plastic (black) sheeting to protect the 2x12s being used for a new retainer wall. It will then be backfilled with dirt against the plastic, holding the plastic in place. Will this make the 2x12s last longer, or will it increase the rot time of the PT wood?

I'd go with dimple board instead of the plastic.  The dimpleboard will allow water to drain to the bottom of the retaining wall.

If you just go with plastic, assuming the retaining wall has air on one side, I'd expect it to last longer than without plastic.  I assume the soil being retained is wet more often than dry.


Why does my furnace stop unless we remove and replace the inspection panel? Furnace keeps stopping! What we do to restart is remove inspection panels, the combustion air blower ia always running and feels hot. Anyway we put panels back on and it works till next time. Please help

Sounds like the high limit might be tripping.  There are many causes for this, though faulty limit switch and/or dirty filters are the most common.

removing the access panel likely opens the door switch, so the unit is reset when the panel is put back in place.

Check for dirty filters, blocked/obstructed/closed return air vents, blocked/obstructed/closed registers. If you have the tools and knowledge to do so, inspect the high limit switch.


What are recommended ways to connect fridge ice maker? My new fridge has an ice maker, and I want to connect it to the cold water under the kitchen sink. This is how that pipe looks. Should I

Use a saddle tapping valve to punch a hole in the bottom pipe?
Insert some sort of splitter between the bottom pipe and the shut-off valve that's attached to the mesh hose?
Something else?

Something like this?   (Brass Quick Tee Adapter)

Do not use a saddle valve. In many places they are illegal...for good reason


Replace individual window panes with a single pane I have old double hung windows with 6 panes per section. Can I remove dividers and replace them with a single piece of glass, then install a cosmetic dividers?

Glass was 1/8". Opening approx 24" * 24". Window is painted. Can't seem to add a picture.

No, you cannot remove the wood “dividers” (mullions) and install a single pane, because 1) mullions will leave a gap at sash, 2) “stop” will have gap at sash that will leak, 3) thickness of glass may need to be changed, 4) energy code requires thermal pane windows, 5) glass may need to be tempered.

1) Those mullions are part of the sash. That is to say, the sash has a built-in reveal (at the perimeter of the sash) that creates one side of the stop. When the interior mullions are removed, you can’t just cut them off without leaving a gap. Trying to infill that gap to blend with the existing reveal will be impossible.

2) The “stop” (probably on the exterior side of the window) will leave a gap where the mullions are removed. You’ll need new stops around the entire perimeter of the sash.

3) Your glass is probably 1/8” thick float glass. That’s fine for small panes, but a larger glass opening will require thicker glass...probably 3/16” ...maybe 1/4”, depending where you live (wind loading requirements,etc.)

4) I don’t know where single pane glass is allowed. The energy code will require you to upgrade to double pane. This additional thickness will require a new sash.

5) If your window is within 18” of the floor or within 12” of a door, you’ll need tempered glass. This additional thickness will not fit in the existing glass thickness space.

If your sash has lead weights, they will need to be adjusted for the heavier glass load.

IMHO I think it would be cheaper and better to replace the entire sash.


Opening a dome lighting fixture I have a couple of lighting fixtures in my apartment that look like this:

The metal base goes directly to the ceiling and the posts holding the glass dome, while threaded, do not turn or slide in any direction. I have tried rotating the whole fixture, but it seems to be moving the electrical box in the ceiling without loosening. How might this unit open?

I would think that the white screws that you show in the foreground of 3rd picture can be undone by hand while holding the glass.  This would allow the glass to be removed, and the bulbs and mounting screws to be accessed.


Should I have multiple cable runs for a room, or just one? My girlfriend is finishing up her basement and has set up a good layout for electrical outlets throughout the rooms (family room, bedroom, and office), but she's only accounted for a single coaxial cable run to each room for her ideal furniture arrangement.  I talked her into at least running a phone line along with the cable to match the rest of her house (and at least an ethernet connection as well for when I move in to accommodate my geek projects), but I'm trying to talk her into more than one run per room.  I've rented for several years and most apartments have at least 2 cable/telephone outlets on opposite walls/corners of the room to widen the options for furniture arrangements.  Since she's looking at putting her place on the market in a few years I'm trying to convince her it will be a helpful selling point, but my Google-fu is failing me at finding supporting or negating evidence.  Is there any evidence one way or the other, or are my geeky more-is-better ideas influencing me?

I doubt most buyers will even notice or care if it was pointed out to them.  Today, everyone uses a cordless telephone, wifi for networking, and any cables are just run around the baseboard.  And I say this as a geek that ran conduit through the walls when I redid my basement.  Speaking of which, if you ever remodel (or build) something you plan to stay in, run conduit through the walls.

The key point you need to keep in mind is that it should be possible to get to a majority of the walls along the baseboard from your wall jacks without passing a door or closet.  If a large wall could be used for a TV but requires running the wire over the door, then I'd put a second jack on that side.

My guess for apartment owners is that two jacks results in less wires over carpets or nails holding wires everywhere, so they do this more to reduce damage than to make your life easier.


Probably "orphan" hot lead So I decided to replace the ailing motion sensor light on the garage eave of my nearly 50 year old split-level.

I have replaced motion sensor lights several times in my small barn, but all the wiring there is exposed, the wire colors are all to code (I did the original wiring) and apart from the usual hassles of filth, old stiff insulation and hard rafters, life is good.)

My 1st and fundamental mistake --- I didn't take a picture of the old wiring when I removed the eave light.  I'll never do that again.

After taking off the old light, I discovered two 3-lead cables coming into the box.
Cable #1 had a hot (black) lead with 120v tested against its own ground (bare) and neutral (white).  (Using a voltmeter)

Cable #2 was also black/white/bare ground.  THAT black lead was carrying no voltage when black was tested against its own white and ground.  HOWEVER, if I tested the two blacks, I got 120v.

I was confused.

The line cable was pretty obvious and I figured (oh, silly me) that black/black and white/white made sense.  I know - in retrospect, really stupid.  I connected black/black and white/white and threw the breaker on.  The breaker did NOT activate and the light seemed to work.

However, my wife noticed that the porch light (to the left about 15 feet) went on although the single pole switch controlling it was off.  Whaaa? My wife tried turning the switch to the on position and the breaker blew.  I reset the breaker and then the light stayed on regardless of the switch position without throwing the circuit breaker.

At this point, I disconnected everything at the eave.  Then the porch light and switch worked just fine.

I decided the better part of valor was to cap the 2nd black line and simply connect all the grounds, use the hot black lead from cable #1 to power the eave light and connect all the whites.

Now everything works normally.  I have absolutely no idea where cable #2 goes, but it obviously interacts with the porch light circuit.

Nothing in the house seems to be affected by leaving black on cable #2 capped and unused.

Several questions:
     I tentatively am scheduled to have an electrician come out and look at this mess in 2 days.  Good idea, yes?
     OR given the lack of voltage between the whites, I could simply call it good.
     OR I could disconnect the white lines, cap white #2 and just consider the entire cable to be an orphan.
     Finally, any idea as to how this happens?

Sorry this is wordy, but I figure with spaghetti wiring the more precise the description the better.

TL;DR - I think the Porch & Garage were originally together - either both switched via the Porch switch or both always on via the Garage connection. Separated and working fine. Connecting the black made a mess and tripped the breaker and fried the switch.

Here is my theory:

Originally there was a regular (not motion sensor) light on the garage eave. It was powered from the porch light:

Panel -> Switch -> Porch -> Garage

At some point later on, the previous owner decided to put in a motion sensor light for the garage, but still wanted the porch light switched. It was easier to run power directly to the Garage than to run a new cable to the Porch. New setup:

Panel -> Switch -> Porch -> Garage abandoned
Panel -> Garage Motion

When you connected the wires with the switch off you ended up with:

Panel -> Garage Motion -> Porch

and both lights were on, despite the switch being off.

Then you turned the switch on and you got:

Panel -> Garage Motion -> Porch -> Switch -> Panel

which resulted in a short circuit and tripped the breaker and fried the switch.

Since the switch was now fried, now you are back to: Panel -> Garage Motion -> Porch and both lights are on.

If my theory is correct, then yes, you should cap those wires but then also you will find that the switch is dead - i.e., if you disconnect the wires from it and check continuity you will find that it does not complete a circuit no matter what position it is in.

There are some other possibilities, but the end result (for any scenario I can think of) is that you fried the switch (which is cheap & easy to replace) by joining together two previously separate circuits. Separate them (black & white) and replace the switch and you should be OK. Normally it is "all the white neutrals go together". However, in this case they are two different circuits and you could even some day decide to put the Porch on one breaker and the Garage on a different breaker - and then you absolutely would not be able to combine those whites because they would be different neutrals, so separate them now.

If my theory is correct, then after separating the wires and replacing the switch, you should find 120V on the "abandoned" wires when the switch is on.


electrical work: create "future boxes" - is this to NEC code? I would like to run cable for an in-wall heater but not actually connect to the heater right now, I just want to get the cable run and connected to the sub-panel (along with all the other cables that we are running). That way, I don't have to bring in the electrician again later on. So can I run cable from a sub-panel to a junction box and put wire nuts on the three wires and leave the junction box accessible - covered by a box cover but not covered with dry wall? The work will be in a room that we will be renovating in the next couple of months. Does NEC allow this kind of thing?

Putting a box in at the end of the future run, terminating the wires in nuts, and putting a cover on it is standard practice for a "future expansion" outlet of any sort -- putting a label on the cover indicating what it's intended for is a nice touch, but by no means needed by Code.  In fact, you cannot "bury" the box behind the drywall -- it must remain accessible for later use/servicing.


Patch holes on engineered wood (masonite) siding and mounting security camera I have a camera mounted on a wood plank which in turn is mounted on the siding of the garage. Fortunately, it's under the eaves and I didn't see any water getting to this area in the rain.

The dark wood plank looks ugly to me, so I want to get rid of it and either (1) mount the camera directly to the siding or (2) use some kind of a siding mounting block that is small and paintable.

Unfortunately, behind the wood plank, there are 3 holes, each about 1-inch in diameter. Looks like the installer drilled a hole and hit the stud, so drilled another hole, which also hit the stud, and finally on 3rd try, it went through all the way inside.

My questions are:

Should I mount the camera directly to the siding, or use some kind of a siding mounting block? If I want to upgrade the camera at some point, would it be better to use a mounting block?
What do I do with the 3rd hole (where the wire currently goes through) to make it smaller, less visible, and water proof?
How do I patch the 1st and 2nd holes (which serve no purpose)?
Three screws are currently holding the wood plank. How do I patch 3 screw holes once I get rid of the plank?

I'm very new at this, so I'd appreciate any insight you could provide. Thank you so much!

You could use this Exterior Post Top and either paint or stain it before installation. It already has a hole drilled in the center where you can run the wire through. You can also use the siding groove (where the holes are drilled) as a raceway for the wiring. This will prevent you from pinching the wire when you affix it to the wall. You can fasten this plate with two or three screws in such a way that your camera would cover them. All that would be left is that tiny hole at the top where the screw is. Just caulk that and touch it up with some paint.


Breaker tripping every time I reset it I live in a older trailer and yesterday I had a breaker trip.  It trips after 15 seconds every time I reset it. What is funny is that the breaker works things on the back side of the trailer like the venthood, a light in the kitchen, an outlet in the living room, the ceiling fan in the living room, a outlet in the middle bedroom, and two outlets in the last bedroom.

I looked at the outlets, the wires look fine. Can an outlet go bad? Or could it be the venthood or ceiling fan?

If the circuit breaker trips every time you reset it, then first: stop resetting it! There's almost certainly some sort of overload or short on the circuit, and the breaker is saving your trailer from a fire. If you try hard enough you may convince the breaker to stay on; your reward would be some very cool fireworks and a perhaps-denied insurance claim.

Your next job is to figure out what's tripping the breaker. Unplug or turn off everything on the circuit and try again (once). If the breaker still trips, then you probably have some sort of fault in your wiring.


Why do you have to bond the neutral and the ground wire in the main panel? Why do you have to bond the neutral and the ground wire in the main panel?  Not in separat ？I don't know how that works

The reason the neutral and ground are separate other than at the main panel is to prevent a parallel ground path.
The power received from the power company (in the US is 240VAC)
This is derived from a step down transformer close to you home. At this point the center tap of the transformer is grounded providing 240 v across the transformer or 120v from each end to the center tap. At the house there is another ground usually a #4 or #6 copper wire coming from local grounding electrodes the grounding electrode(s) or the grounding electrodes system is there to provide a path for ground faults not as a neutral. This also provides a ground reference for the center tapped neutral to prevent the system voltage floating above ground and creating an unsafe condition if the supply from the transformer grounding point fails, it may be several hundred feet away from the home where the service grounding electrode system is very close to the service panel.
So the grounding electrode(s) are there to help clear a fault and provide a true ground reference.


Concrete an open hole with water pipes I am looking to fill this hole and was hoping someone can guide me as to where to begin!  these are our underfloor heating pipes and I've bought denzo tape to cover them.  do i need to cover the pipes in anything else?  can i concrete straight on top of it all?
Any advice would be greatly welcomed!

Put a stepped removable wooden grate on top of it, board walk.


When to re-set a brick in a wall? I have a single-family home with brick all around. The home was built in the early 80s. Some of the mortar is starting to crack here and there. I had a tuckpointer come and give me an estimate on repairing it, and he told me something interesting. He said if a horizontal crack is as long as the brick itself, that brick needs to be removed and reset because most likely, the mortar between the brick and its neighbor is most likely broken as well and needs to be replaced. The cracks I have are very thin, they're just long (nearly the length of a brick).

Is what he said true? Thanks,

mj

That is a new one to me. A picture of the crack would be good, but a crack that is only as long as the brick does seem to be a concern at all. If the crack was much longer, (4' and longer) with a bigger gap in the middle and tapers to nothing at the ends, that is room for concern there.

If there are only minor cracks here and there, the tuck-pointing may look worse than the cracks themselves.

If your picture tells a different story, I will update the answer, or somebody else may chime in....


Large rock obstructing addition I potentially have the problem of building an addition to a house where the bedrock comes up alongside the house. So, basically there is a large rock formation obstructing the construction of the basement for the addition.

What are the options? I assume the normal procedure is to blast the rock, but since it is near the house, is it feasible to do blasting?

Bedrock - skip the basement, have the best foundation money can't buy. Remove the dirt, drill holes for pins to anchor your footings to the rock, build a house on it - or a skyscraper.

If you have more of a "fight with nature, rather than work with nature" approach, it's going to be harder, more expensive, and more tedious, and exactly what options you have and how dreadful they will be will depend on the rock - granite is rather more difficult than schist, for a couple typical NE USA bedrocks.


Stripped male connector from dryer I stripped the threads on the male pipe from my dryer. Now I cannot connect the gas line to my dryer. What are my options to fix this problem? Can I replace the pipe coming from my dryer? Or would it be better to try to re-thread the pipe?

It depends on how badly damaged the pipe is, but it can be re-threaded with a pipe die.  I would replace the pipe nipple coming out of the gas valve.  I would look at how the gas valve is mounted to the dryer before trying to remove the damaged nipple.  Some have poor mounting and could damage the gas valve.  You may need to remove the valve before removing the nipple from it.  With either option, I would test for leaks by spraying soapy water on the joints after you turn the gas back on and looking for bubbles.


Which pipe to use to top-up refrigerant in a freezer? My freezer is apparently slowly leaking refrigerant. I sent it in for repairs a few years back, but now it is failing with the exactly the same symptoms: compressor working non-stop, temperature never goes to -18C (it has a digital display), but stays around -11C. It has developed this condition very gradually.

My freezer has two screw-on connections (I think they were added during the repairs): one on the stump pipe going out of the compressor (bottom), and the other on the little stump going out of filter-drier (top):

My plan is to buy an auto air conditioner refill kit (gas can + gauge + tubes), and just add some gas. My freezer uses just 120g (4.2oz) of R-134A, so I know the gas is compatible, but I need to add just a little bit.

My questions:

Which connection to use? The top one or the bottom one?
How can I know I added enough?

I know this is not really a fix without fixing the leak, if it helps for just a few months, I'm good with that.

The filler hose for the small cans only fits on the low pressure side.

The high pressure side should have a different fitting. This is how cars are anyway. So it is impossible to connect the refill can to the high side with the refill kit you buy at the auto store.

The small cans don't have enough pressure to overfill the system. So you can't overfill it. You could put the can in a bucket of warm water whole filling that will help get all of the refrigerant out of it.

Make sure it is running while you are filling it.

Good luck!


What are the effects of using all of the 80% of the power supported by 15A circuit breaker (220 volts, #14AWG wire)? What if I have this case:

15A circuit breaker
220V supply from the power company
#14 AWG wire THHN - 6 or 7 strands
Running 52 50-Watt light bulbs 20 hours per day

Max power supported in this case is 15x220=3,300 Watts
80% of the max power is 2,640 Watts

I am not planning to use 52 light bulbs in my house, I just want to understand the risk of using 52 50-Watt light bulbs in #14 AWG wire in a 15A circuit. If I will do that, even if the 52 50-Watt light bulbs will only use 2,600 Watts,

Will there be any risks such as the wires melting or overheating?
What are the possible hazards?
Will it cause a fire if I keep the 52 light bulbs on for 20 hours per day?

In the US under the NEC (I believe Canada is similar) you can run 80% load on a circuit 24/7. You can run 100% load intermittently, or by accident, or even occasionally if it's not expected, even for three hours or more.
The key is the actual definition of "Continuous Load", not an arm-chair definition, or what an old timer always told you.

Continuous Load.-
A load where the maximum current is expected to continue for 3 hours or more.


Should I suspend a shelf from the ceiling? I have recently installed a new projector onto my back wall in my lounge.
See attached photo.

The problem I am having is weight - the main big board you can see in the picture is screwed into a window frame. Then as you can see I have created a shelf, and then projector hangs from that shelf. What is happening is that there is too much weight on the end of the shelf, which is making the shelf drop. My idea is to somehow attached a couple of strong wires to the shelf that is attached to the projector, and have those wires attach to the ceiling.

Ideally I would like to be able to turn some sort of adjustment that tightens the wire, just so I can get the perfect support.

Is this a good idea?

You COULD do that, [the adjusters-things you want are called turnbuckles] but it might be a lot simpler (no holes in the ceiling) to use better and larger shelf brackets. Better, in having a brace that makes them a triangle. Larger, making a larger, more stable triangle. A pair of good heavy duty brackets in a large size will make a shelf that you can sit on and not deflect - much less a measly projector. I had a clothes dryer mounted on this sort of bracket for years.


What is the best way to handle house wiring cables with short sheathing? I'm replacing a couple switches in a bathroom with smart switches and ran into a problem. The previous owner redid the bathroom and the switch box in question had 5 Romex cables (four 12/2, one 12/3) going into it. Only one of them had any sheath past the integral clamps (my understanding is there should be a minimum of 0.25 inches). When removing the switch box to see why I couldn't get any slack, I found that the rest of them had between 2 and 5 inches unsheathed before the box.

Am I supposed to add a junction box above it in the wall to splice all of the cables to add new cable that is long enough, raise the switch box 6 inches, or something else?

Edit: pictures added for
1.
2.
3.

I would get some white heat shrink slide it over the conductors and make sure it extends inside the box the 1/4” and at least it’s width past where the sheath was removed.

I have skinned the outer sheath several times in the past. The inspector only asked to verify if it was listed and then asked me to change from the black shrink tubing to match the color of the existing outer sheath. Way cheaper than tyco splices. My jurisdiction allows this others may not.


Hybrid Water Heater with Gas Backup? I've recently become aware of the existence of 'hybrid water heaters' which use a heat pump to heat the water in the tank.  The thing that is appealing to me about this is that the water heater also works as a dehumidifier.  That should, at the very least reduce the need to run a dedicated humidifier and are supposedly even cheaper to run than gas heaters (this probably depends on the cost of electricity and gas)

The examples I've seen all use an electric resistance heater as a backup which is really expensive to run.  Are there hybrid water heaters that have gas backup?  I've seen some discussions about using a tankless heater to augment the hybrid heater but even if that works, it's a lot of up front cost.

Do such units exist?  If not, is there a something about this idea that wouldn't work or is it just that there's no demand or perceived demand?

For context, I've been watching the usage on my dehumidifier for the last 65 days and it's used about 170KWH.  This is probably the highest demand period for that, though.

The problem I see is that a gas water heater has a big pipe/flue running through the center of it which takes away a lot of room that the hybrid system probably needs. It also vents very hot gas out of the top which is where the compressor is mounted in a hybrid. The electric backup elements are tiny in comparison and just need to stick into the side of the heater.  People with gas, which is normally cheaper than electric, don't have as compelling of a reason to choose a hybrid heater, so I doubt there is much demand.

So, very complex and low demand...  Probably doesn't exist.  I've never seen one.


Concerns about broken washer found in water supply Today I've notice black particles in the water from a faucet. Upon removing the aerator, I noticed chunks of plastic nearly clogging it. It appears to be from a washer. I don't know where it comes from, but recently I did have to use some shut offs in the water supply line.

Would the part that lost that washer be leaking?

I've noticed a few shut off points (angle stops, water shutoff) that leak when in or near the "OFF" position, but not on the "ON" position. Is this the only effects of a broken washer? Could the "ON" position eventually leak by itself if it is not fixed?

First guess, it's just junk from the pipes: you didn't properly bleed the system after having used a shut-off; remove aerators, run water.

Next, a faucet with a sprayer has a flexible line; each end having a grommet that may have deteriorated (as with all other flexible lines).

Lastly, if the valves are old enough, their packing may have deteriorated to the point of breaking (but that seams unlikely if they still actually shut-off the water). Most likely it's just little bits of the valve's seat that were near pressure-cut through, and finally came lose when you actuated it.

That a valve leaks when 'out-of-normal-position' does not surprise me in the least. Welcome to the world of plumbing: now ya did it. Some valves have a nut or a screw that you use to snug-up the seal. With most modern valves you slightly tighten the entire assembly with two wrenches.

You say the particles are black; that precludes my last guess that it's pieces of your HW tank's dip tube (these should be some shade of white).

Solution:

Remove all aerators in the home. Clean them while you bleed the system for a few minutes from each of those fixtures. If the problem reoccurs, something is deteriorating and ending up in your water. This should be found if you want to eliminate any (IMO, completely negligible) health concerns. If it doesn't, now you know the steps to take when you use a shut-off.


Does the NEC allow for smaller than 15 amp / 14 gauge circuits? While hooking up a series of LED ceiling lights, I was wondering if there is anything in the NEC that would prohibit circuits smaller than the standard 15A lighting circuit found in homes.

This 15A lighting circuit currently feeds 8 ceiling lamps, but I could wire up 20 of these 11W LED lamps and still only use 2 amps which would easily run on a 5A circuit and use 18 or maybe even 20 gauge wire.

I haven't seen any home wiring supplies for anything less than 15A, but I don't know if that's because there's no demand, or if 15A is the smallest lighting circuit allowed by the NEC.

Or is there some burgeoning low voltage, low power standard that is better suited to energy efficient lighting?

It looks like the NEC allows only specific circuit ratings. From the 2014 NEC:

  210.3 Rating
  Branch circuits recognized by this article shall be rated in accordance with the maximum permitted ampere rating or setting of the overcurrent device. The rating for other than individual branch circuits shall be 15, 20, 30, 40, and 50 amperes. Where conductors of higher ampacity are used for any reason, the ampere rating or setting of the specified overcurrent device shall determine the circuit rating.

The exception specified is if the circuit supplies only a specific item, an "individual branch circuit":

  Branch Circuit, Individual. A branch circuit that supplies only one utilization equipment.

There are also some other exceptions that don't apply here, like for motor loads and in industrial settings.


Why does the hot terminal of my extension cord always burn out? Need help on understanding why does the "Black Wire" is always burned/damaged periodically?
It's always being replaced. Is this normal? How can I prevent this from happening.
Thank you!

Firstly when a plug or socket overheats you should replace BOTH the plug and the socket and also cut-back any heat-damaged wire. Heat damage can cause buildup of poorly conductive materials on contacts and it can cause loosening of the springs in socket contacts. This means that mating a heat-damaged connector with a good connector can cause the problem to spread.
Secondly breakers don't trip the instant a circuit is overloaded and US regulations allow 15A outlets to be installed on 20A circuits. So it is quite possible to overload an extension cord without tripping a breaker. You really need to pay attention to what loads are connected to a cord rather than just relying on breakers.
Thirdly normal domestic plugs and sockets aren't suitable for use in wet conditions. If you are going to leave wiring outdoors then it really needs to be done in a more suitable manner.
I suspect the reason that the hot fails first is simply that it in a normal american plug the hot contact is smaller than the neutral contact.


Device to switch between two light with a single wall switch first of all, sorry about to be asking that silly and newby question, I know, it is really lame.

Is there a simple device, that I can build simply, or bought, that can switch between two lights ?

I had a lamp, that has two many lamps, (7, six in a circle, and one central), all parallel, all 220v. Too much light often unused. So I thought to split in two circuits, one with the central lamp, another with the six ones.

I know I could put a commutator after the wall switch, but I do not have place, neither wires, neither looks good.

So I would like that when I turn on (on the wall), either one or six lamps goes ON,  as I turn off, all goes OFF, and as I turn ON again, the opposite lamps go ON.

I can imagine, with a small circuit to remember the state, a relay, a battery, a power supply 220V to 5V, etc...

But maybe there is some short of magic relay that each time it gets 220V, it switch output ?

Again, sorry if this is a lame question ;-)

There probably is a switch out there that can do it - with three states - Off, A, B. Wire A to one light, B to the other lights. But I think a far simpler solution - or at least far more common in terms of inexpensive parts is to use two switches. The first switch would function as On/Off. The second switch would function as A/B. The second switch would be (in US terminology) a 3-way switch, but instead of using it as a 3-way switch, which typically lets you use 2 separate switches to turn a single light On/Off from either location, you would use it to switch two different lights (or groups of lights). In addition, you can get two switches in one box, like this:

You wire the first 3-way as a single switch with one output ("traveler") going to the second switch and the second output not connected at all. You wire the second 3-way switch so that one output goes to one light ("A") and the other output goes to the other light ("B"). Whenever you turn the first switch on, the light status (A or B) will be the same as it was the last time you used it.

No batteries. No relays. No "smart" switches. Just a pair of ordinary switches.


Bathroom AC outlets out All outlets (non-gfci) in both of my bathrooms (at sink level) are dead. I have cycled all service breakers to no avail. Have had no known recent electrical 'disturbance'

As comments disappear over time, and this might be searched in the future, I'll just copy/paste the relevant comments that led to resolution...

  (me) Look for a tripped GFCI in a strange place -- garage, outdoors,
  basement... I regularly see multiple bathrooms fed from a single gfci
  that's nowhere near the rooms. – Aloysius Defenestrate 16 hours ago

  (OP) Thanks AD! Your intelligience knows no bounds!....found mentioned
  tripped gfci in the garage indeed! – Dave 14 hours ago


Proper wiring for GFCI given switched circuit So I've added the 3-prong plug to my garbage disposal, and now I'm on to the GFCI outlet installation. The breaker was not GFCI protected, nor is there a GFCI outlet on the loop. I've gotten to the point where I need to know which is my line, and which is my load given this was a switched box.

Given the following was what I found, I'm pretty certain the LINE is coming off the left and the LOAD heads off to the right. Updated the drawing to reflect the actual situation.

Am I right or should I try each pair on the GFCI as the line on their own before wiring it up as I believe it should?

Just wire the GFCI between the wiring and the disposal so that it's on the switch (often, you would daisy chain the switch off of the GFCI and have the switched device hardwired, but that doesn't solve your problem).  So, in your diagram, the load side is where the current is coming in, the line side goes to the switch, and the disposal is obvious.  What you'll have is:

              Switch (I'm guessing this is "line?" in your diagram)
               | | |
Line           W G B           GFCI   Plug  Disposal
Black ---------+ | +--B------- Black  =----B
Green -----------+----G------- Green  =----G
White ----------------W------- White  =----W

In the switch, the input is the white, even though it's hot in the wiring, and the output of the switch is black, since that's what becomes hot to the next device.  When possible, I like to have my switch connected to a black and red wire, black always being hot, and red being switched.  But that's usually not convenient, so this is the best an electrician can do.


How can I find the loocation of a break in a 240V underground circuit to an outside storage building I have an underground 240V circuit that the two hot legs are both broken, and the neutral is still intact. I have verified this with a meter. I need to find the location of the break (or burnout) so it can be repaired. I don't want to trench for a new cable because there are many other water lines and wires for a irrigation system in this area of yard. I tried a method I saw on youtube which involved using a wire connected to a lawn mower and to the underground wire and picking up signal with a portable AM radio. It works, but even thoug I had it connected to one of the broken wires, the signal bled over into the intact wire and continued to be picked up by the radio. I would like to know if anyone knows if a signal tracer available on Amazon such as the Noyafa NF-816, or something similar, would work, or would the signal bleed over through the intact wire.

You need a cable locator this is very much like a wire tracer but it uses the ground as part of the circuit. You transmit a signal over the cable and the signal returns through the ground to your receiver.

You normally use it to trace where a cable is located but you can use it to find a break in the cable as the sound will drop out suddenly where their is a break in the cable.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PP_-TEKMNXc


What is this door furnishing called? I've been searching for the name of the part at the bottom of this door that's protruding outwards and diagonally on the sides, can anyone shed any light on this? I can't find the right term for it and it's exactly what I need to get

http://imgur.com/iRJUEm3

It is a drip edge, it is usually applied on the outside face of a door that swings out. I have seen them on inswing doors too

There is no specific piece of molding for it in wood, but you can buy a metal door bottom with a sweep that has one integrated in with it. The ones of wood are simply a piece of molding or even flat stock with a sloped top attached to the face of the door at the bottom to direct the rain water over the threshold better


Using white cement + water to mould a part I'm trying to cast a small robotics part for a local college. Its small in size but needs to be heavy. So far I've created one with epoxy resin and it is okay. However, for the same size, I wanted something denser to make it heavier. I was hoping to know if a mix of white cement + water only is strong enough to withstand a few light knocks and if so what ratio would they need to be mixed in? Since its small, using large gravel would not be possible.

How small, how dense ? Maybe a low temperature metal casting should be considered ( lead, tin, zinc, etc.). Otherwise cement + white silica sand will make a very strong part ( after a couple weeks cure). Mixing ratio is very flexible , commonly 20 % cement makes a strong concrete . Plaster of Paris ( calcium sulfate) will cure very quickly but is not very strong.


Use rainwater to partly supply a sprinkler irrigation system? I'd like to start capturing rainwater and using it to help supply the irrigation system I already have. It's a standard Rainbird sprinkler system that runs on full pressure water supplied by the city. From what I've read, I'd probably need a pump to get the rain water pressure to be high enough to use for the sprinklers.

I won't be able to store nearly enough rainwater to run the sprinklers entirely off of rain water. I think I'd be lucky to be able to store enough for one watering.

So what I'm stuck on is: is there anyway to plumb this so that the sprinklers would run on rainwater when it's available, but back-off to the regular domestic water when that runs out?  Or supply it from both sources so that the domestic water continues to provide water after the rainwater runs out?

Is there some sort of Y-fitting that is able to give one supply priority? Or maybe it could be done with some check valves? Or something totally different?

Edit: The answers so far involve building a rainwater only supply system, and then using a float to add utility water to the tank when it's almost empty.  I'd prefer not to do that since it would seem to put more stress on the pump and increase the risk of flood if the float valve fails.

Simplest 100% legal way would be to make it use rain water directly from storage containers, and then a float valve that fills the rain barrel with city water if the water level gets below a certain level. This would also allow you to maintain an airgap between potable and non-potable water sources.

You're losing the free water pressure from the city water, but you already will need a pump large enough to handle the unpressurized rain water so you're using the pump for both water sources.

Also hook up a 24 VAC electric operated water solenoid valve that is controlled by your irrigation controller that shuts off the city water to the float valve to make sure that if the float valve gets stuck open that the water won't flow if the irrigation system is off. Maybe getting a 120 VAC one would be better if you make it operated by the same control that turns your pump on and off, instead of with your irrigation controller zones.

Typically that would be called a master valve in an irrigation system, but this is a little different but mostly the same idea.


How do I repair a wooden door's hinge binding? In a rented flat, I saw the that a door wasn't closing properly, and noticed that the hinge screws were loose and not centered.

So I decided to unscrew them, and set them back in properly.

Sadly, by unscrewing them, the screw bases which were probably already broken just came out in pieces (I think they are called anchors, or dowels, by googling, not sure though).

The door is wooden, and it has a crack along the holes, which was most likely formed after the door was set in place.

Below are 3 images that show exactly what I'm talking about:

How the hinge looks
How the holes look, also, the crack
What I found when I unscrewed the hinge

What should I do?

Q1: What exactly are the plastic things called, the yellow thing in image 3? I'm asking so I know what to ask for in a hardware store.

Q2: Should I just buy and replace the anchors?

Q3: Concerning the crack, it seems pretty stable. I'm sure for long-term it's probably a good idea to replace the door altogether. Meanwhile, while googling I've found there's some clays which I could pour in the crack to stabilize it. Should I consider this as well?

I think it's time for a new door.

The yellow thing is a wall anchor, and it's not intended to be used here.  They're for screwing into plaster or drywall.

The door is cracked through the screw holes, and any attempt to repair it is just going to make the problem worse.

Had the door not been cracked, you could drill out the holes and glue in a dowel.  But in this case, you will split the door further when you screw in again.

You could salvage the door by removing it, gluing and clamping the crack overnight and then re-mounting the hinge at a different location.  But any attempt to reuse that mount point will simply re-split the door.


How do I fill a hole above my shower where cockroaches are coming through? I recently moved into an old brownstone and realized that there is a cockroach issue in the entire building. I'm working on getting rid of them but the other night I noticed some were near the ceiling above my shower.

There is a pipe in the corner of the shower that is a couple inches thick and runs up to the ceiling. Where it connects to the ceiling there is a large gap on all sides. I want to seal it.

Any suggestions? I was told steel wool and expandable foam, but want to know if that is sensible to do right above the shower where it is likely to be humid.

Expanding foam such as Great Stuff would work fine.


Cut a severe taper (70 degrees) using a compound mitre saw I want to cut a few hundred stakes from scrap 2x4 lumber. The stakes would be 4ft long, and have a 70 degree taper at the end.

The most efficient method I can think of for cutting the tapers would be to use a compound mitre saw. However, the most severe angle/taper that can be cut with the compound mitre saws I've seen is 60 degrees.

Unfortunately, 60 degrees is not a severe enough angle for my purposes. The 60 degree taper does not penetrate hard clay soil well enough when pounded with a sledge hammer.
As I mentioned, I'm really hoping that I can use a compound mitre saw for this purpose (rather than a circular saw), because I think the mitre saw would be the most efficient method--in terms of time--by far.
How can I cut a 70 degree taper using a compound mitre saw?

Cut it perpendicularly.

70 degrees from 90 degrees (ie: a right angle) is 20 degrees.

Square the end of your taper and put a mark in the middle.

Set your saw on 20 degrees and place the mark so that the taper makes a T with the cutting rail, cut one side, flip the taper over, cut the other.

If you're concerned about stability - make an L shaped jig which you can put up against the rail and hold the taper against to keep it straight.


For a bathroom pex plumbing should I go with trunk-branch or with a home run manifold plumbing layout? Below is the layout of my bathroom and my starting point are the red/blue vertical copper pipes you see in the picture. The walls you see will be tiled so not sure how much sense would make to have a manifold somewhere.
I will need box behind the shower panel. I am considering running the trunk and lines low near the ground and the dry vent and the drains (green and yellow pipes) at the level of the inflexion point of the shower. I would like to install them up near the ceiling but I don't think that I have enough room behind the two vertical copper pipes (red and blue) to the right of the shower

I home run cold tap water lines 1/2" as close to supply as possible so I can get cold water ground temperature for drinking with the shortest wait possible - assumes your tap water is good quality.  Not sure if you'll be drinking the cold water from the bathroom.
I home run hot water lines as close to the hot water tank as possible so again I wait the minimum amount of time to get the water at the tank temperature.
If I was only re-doing this bathroom I might do the last mile here as if it was homerun plumbing up to your take off point and if/when you redo the rest you could update it.


How to terminate cooker hood ducting I have a probably stupid question about assembling ventilation pipe for a cooker hood.

I want to vent my cooker hood through the eaves rather than go through the roof as I suspect it's cheaper, less effort and less visually disruptive.

This is in a relatively modern extension of a circa 190 year old traditional stone and slate property.

I could core through the bricks, but I thought that was a more difficult job with the most scope for damage.

The hood has max flowrate at 386m^3/h so a bit of research suggests I can get away with 5"/125mm (or equivalent flat channel).

It's a tight squeeze, so I was thinking of using some flat channel to exit the eaves, which look like:

I was looking at the Manrose catalogue and I can't work out what I need to terminate the flat channel? Can you just cut a hole, use one of the grilles and place the flat channel up against it? Not sure how it connects - if indeed it does.

I know there are 'airbricks' that look like a 'connectable' thing, but I don't have much vertical leeway - just 6cm at the outside edge.

A am thinking of using a flexible or 45 degree flat channel connector at the left hand side is what I was thinking, just not sure if it has to go through an airbrick or can just poke into the 2cm wood of the eave (at number 9 above).

Hope that makes sense - I wish I had a selection of parts to 'play' with to see how these could fit together.

I have a toolstation, wickes, b&q and screwfix handy.

Thanks for any pointers!

Trouble is, the air is laden with moisture and will billow up around the outlet (whatever you use). This might cause staining, and even eventual rot.

Some of the roof tile vents are very neat and small these days (making assumptions here re. your tile type!) and run the pipe up to that? Best long term option.

Also, I'd try to run an insulated pipe (or surround the flat pipe with fiberglass) between the ceiling and the vent. Otherwise the hot air can condense on the sides of the cold pipe in the attic and run back.

If you must fit a plastic vent terminal, make sure it's well sealed to the eaves material to stop moisture laden air getting back into the attic (difficult if there are strip vents for the attic in the soffit or fascia board).

You could consider fitting the vent into a square of metal or plastic to protect the eaves material. I've used white perspex for this in the past.

Update
In light of the better photos and your note about being willing to drill a hole. I'll amend my advice. Go for the core drill. It's always preferable to installing in the eaves or the roof for future maintenance reasons. Plus it's usually the shortest distance from the unit to the vent which is best.

Plus, a vent in a plastic pipe fitted through a solid wall is virtually maintenance free by comparison.

You're unlikely to run into a problem drilling a core hole through old brickwork. You'll need to hire a large special drill and corresponding core bit for best results. You can chain stitch a hole using a regular SDS drill bit and then chop out the core but this is likely to damage the wall and/or plasterwork internally.

Core drills form extremely neat holes. But you must have a stable platform to drill from. The drills are large and the large size of the core bit means you need to be able to hold the drill very securely as they can snatch a little, especially if you're not holding it properly.

Pick up your vent parts first, especially the plastic 'drain' pipe which will go through the wall. Core bits come in various close sizes; 100mm 115mm 127mm etc. etc.


Partly blocked PVC pipe Is there any chemical to remove excess solvent that is partly blocking water flow in 3/4 inch PVC pipe ? (the exact location of the restriction/restrictions is not known)

"Shoving " anything solid into a PVC pipe is an almost sure way of breaking it. I have come across a few cases similar and usually found the most economical way is to cut out the area that is blocked and replace with new PVC or PEX. I would recommend this even if it means replacing some wallboard.


Water seeping into a crawl space In 1960, the builder poured a 6 foot foundation to build my parents' home. He then decided to lengthen the home by adding a 4 foot foundation to extend the living room and kitchen area (now under a 4 foot sand crawl space). He left an opening the size of a window between the cellar foundation and the added 4 foot foundation. One can use a step ladder and step on the platform and look at the sand and mud where this added foundation lies.

Then the builder attached a garage to that extension which sits on a slab.  Now we are getting water seeping into the bottom of the 4 foot foundation at the back of the house situated next to the garage. The area (crawl space) has mud puddles when it rains and some of this water flows down onto the cellar floor. The gutter in the back has long extensions to draw off the water; the gutters seem to not leak; a new cement walkway replaced a cement cracked walkway in this area of the back of the house.   I also noticed a stream of water traveling down the perimeter of the cement walkway on the side of the garage which is the side of the house.

Water infiltration can com from surface water or sub-surface water.

Surface water is easier to detect and fix. If you have added onto the length of the house, perhaps the surface water cannot run around the end anymore. That water could puddle and seep into the ground and then eventually seep into the crawl space.

Subsurface water is harder to locate and eliminate. If the ground is so saturated that it can’t flow away from the house, it will flow in the direction of least resistance, which could be into the crawl space...especially if the ground has been disturbed for the new addition. (Water will flow through the disturbed soil before it will flow through the older original excavation.)

The only way to fix subsurface water problems is to install a perforated drainline in drainrock down below your crawl space and extend the drainline to a location where it can discharge or where you can collect it and then pump it out.


Connecting GFCI switch with digital timer switch I moved my old bathroom exhaust fan to shower area, I need to install GFCI switch as per code.
I also want to replace old toggle switch with digital countdown timer switch.
Can I have blank face GFCI receptacle between my digital timer switch and my bathroom fan? Power will first come to my timer switch.
Timer | GFCI

I'd go GFCI->switch->fan if you can, but if not you should be fine. Most GFCIs are made to stay on even if the input power is turned off.
We have a GFCI in our garage on a switch for some lights and over 3 or 4 years it only tripped once or twice.


How to Measure Oven to Buy New One What is considered the correct oven width?

Oven niche width is 22"

Oven width protruding is 24"

Model 700.3047901

The niche width is usually the width of the opening the oven will fit into.  If you have a niche width 22", the oven you purchase would have to be smaller so it fits into the cabinet/space. The oven protruding width = 24" would be the width of the oven door which is usually 2" wider than the oven.

Oven depth is how far the oven will stick out from the wall. A common notation would be: oven depth = 22", protruding depth = 24". The extra two inches is for the handles and knobs that stick out from the front. Hope this helps.


In Wire Gauges Is ga shorthand for awg? Is GA shorthand for AWG (American Wire Gauge)?  Someone seemed to use the terms interchangeably in this question and then never let me know if they were interchangeable terms.

GA is short for gauge.

The approved gauge for electrical conductors in the US is American Wire Gauge.

There are other methods to gauge wire.


Can I add a receptacle from a bath fan switch box? I hope this is simple. I want to add a GFCI receptacle on the wall of my bathroom behind a medicine cabinet. The closest electrical is a switch for my bathroom fan.  Even though we have just one switch, it seems it was wired for separate control, because we have 12/3 wire coming into the switch box. Neutral is capped and red/black are attached to the switch.

Can I tap into this for the GFCI receptacle? I had trouble finding a matching diagram even though I know this is a common configuration (12/2 into fan then 12/3 to switch). How does the circuit work right now before I make changes? I will likely retrofit the bath fan soon and would like to have separate control.

Assuming your fan switch is wired normally, it has the following wires:

Hot (black) - this is coming in and should be connected to power in the fan box (but not connected to the fan)
White (neutral) - this is coming in and is not currently used - but you will use it shortly.
Red (switched hot) - this is going out to the fan.

Trust, but Verify
You should first verify that black and red are wired correctly. We can be fairly certain that white is indeed neutral because it is capped off, which is normal for a modern basic switch installation.

Turn off the breaker.
Open up the switch and disconnect (and pull apart for safety) the wires
Turn on the breaker and check that you have 120V (nominal) on the black wire. You can check with a non-contact tester (should light up next to the black wire but not next to the red or white wire) and with a multimeter (should show 120V between black and white and 0V between red and white). If black and red are swapped then you can still do this installation but it will be more confusing.

Install the new Cable
The new wire should be 12/2. You may only need 15A but since you (a) are installing a dual receptacle so you CAN install it on a 20A circuit and (b) if you changed to 14/2 you would have to replace the 20A breaker that is likely in place (since all the existing wiring is 12), stick with 12 so you don't have to change the breaker.
These instructions assume the black wire is hot.
In the switch box:

Turn off the breaker.
Wire nut together the original black wire, the new black wire, and a short piece of black wire (aka pigtail).
Wire nut together the original white wire and the new white wire.
Wire nut together the original ground (maybe green, probably bare) wire, the new ground and a pigtail (green or bare)
Connect the switch to the black pigtail, the ground pigtail and the red wire.

Run the new cable to the new box. In the new box:

Connect black to the Line hot screw
Connect white to the Line neutral screw
Connect ground to the ground screw

Do not use the Load screws on the GFCI receptacle at this time.
Then turn on the breaker and make sure the switch/fan and new receptacles all work.


How to smooth out vertical concrete I cut out a hole for an egress window but my foundation was hollow block. How would someone fill all this in and make a smooth surface for the window lumber? Can I build a form and kinda dump concrete in there? Thanks!

Barring some of the other issues, like what is holding the hollow block up over the window, and are the bolts through the double ledger going into the core of the hollow block or....I usually smooth out the rough spots with a grinder so all side are flat and reasonably plumb and level. It really needs to be flat. Then I set in place a pressure treated 2X8 cut to go across the bottom and one for the top. For the sides, I cut each side really snug so they need to be driven in with a beater block to help keep from splitting the wood and a hammer. Before hand, most pieces need to be dry fit to make sure they set well to the surfaces, since polyurethane construction adhesive will be smeared, shot, gunned, squeezed over the surfaces that will touch the wood before it is set in its final, permanent position.
Hold the PT material flush to the outside wall, since the inside can be filled with ripped material during the finishing stage. Before the window is set I would use a liquid applied waterproofing membrane to seal the outside from water infiltration. Then set the window, then seal that too. Then the outside can be trimmed out with PVC trim to finish it off, covering all the waterproofing that was applied....neatly.