Is it possible to refinish floors one room at a time? I live in a small townhouse and would like to refinish the floors in the upstairs of my home.

It is very difficult to do all of the rooms at once, but a friend suggested that unless I do this, the transitions between the rooms and the central hallway will not look right.

I understand his point but I am hoping it's possible. Has anyone refinished wooden floors one room at a time?

You could install a thin threshold between each room. That would cover the overlap in finish between the rooms.

If the planks run parallel to the doors, you could cut out one board between the two rooms. That would give a clean line between finishes (and place the one board back at the end.

All that said, you will save a TON in labor if you just do it all at once.


How can I get better HVAC airflow? I recently purchased my house which was a new construction. Several of the vents are getting poor airflow but the installation company simply said it was normal but I suspect otherwise.  I recently realized there is a branch duct coming out of the end of the trunk line and I've read this can reduce airflow.

Does anyone have any suggestions or guidance on how to fix this?  I was considering extending the trunk line another 3-4 feet and moving the end duct to the side like the others.

The fact that one branch duct is at the end doesn't mean much. You could install a damper there to balance flow a bit.

Of bigger concern is that they used flex duct and bent it severely. If the one in the photo is any indication, they didn't do a great job. You shouldn't see such sharp, tight bends. It also doesn't appear that flex duct was necessary there, but was used to save time (and maybe money).


Not seeing a toilet shut off valve for installing bidet I live in an apartment and it seems like every toilet has a connection like this.
To install my bidet I need to shut off the valve, but I'm not seeing one here?
Is there a way to shut off the water to the toilet with this setup or will I need to find the main line.

That's a "PUSHON" toilet supply valve like this:

https://accortechnology.com/pushon-r-series-sink-lavatory-supply-kit-1-2-valve-x-1-2-ips-nut
If you go to their install video here: https://youtu.be/5DRQZuLR9y4 and skip to about 2:55 you'll see that to shut the valve off you pull on the knob and to turn it back on you push the knob back in.


How to secure vinyl post caps? I have a deck with vinyl posts, and 5"x5" vinyl caps on the posts.  I'm looking at how I can affix them to the posts so they don't blow off.  I found a "Vinyl Fence Glue" listed at both Home Depot and Lowe's websites, but they are listed as online-only.  Amazon has something similar but it is not in stock.

Am I just looking for anything labeled as a "vinyl adhesive"?  Since it's going to be outside facing the weather, should I be aware of any qualities to avoid in an adhesive?  Would something like Gorilla Glue work?  Most "vinyl adhesive" searches end up with a bunch of the canned stuff you brush on but I think I'm looking for some sort of tubed type of adhesive.

Use clear silicone caulk, super strong as an adhesive when cured and waterproof.


Dead electrical outlets after replacement So I replaced all my kitchen outlets to white. I put all the wires exactly as I took them off. The wall outlets now will not work and the new GFCI outlet will not go hot. I took all the outlets back out to make sure none of the wire nuts came loose, even put the old GFCI outlet back in to make sure I didn’t have a bad GFCI. I am at a loss as to where to go to fix it?

It sounds like you've reversed the line and load connections. Modern GFCIs ship in a tripped state and will not reset unless the connections are proper

Line - This connects to the previous line in the circuit. In other words, with the circuit breaker on, this will be your live wires
Load - This connects to the next outlets in the series. Anything on this end will be protected by the GFCI

Also, make sure you've not reversed the hot and neutral.


Repair Drywall after electrical work We've had some electrical work done which has resulted in a number of holes in drywall about 8cm in length by 2cm in height similar to below:

I was intending on making small cuts of plasterboard but since the cable doesn't go through the stud this won't be possible. What's my best option for repairing these holes?

That's not cool. Don't know your codes in the UK but that certainly is a fail in Canada and the US. Hanging a picture with a thumb tac can potentially puncture that. Actually no it's not to code, it can't be unless there is literally no code in place. (highly unlikely in the UK it might be code in a third world country)

You need to have it fixed before you conceal it. If this is the only spot that is like this, it could be a apprentice or just a moment of extreme laziness on the part of the worker. Ask the person to fix it to code by at least notching the stud if it's not load bearing and adding a striker plate.

I don't know why guys do stupid things like this. If you have to do a patch it really doesn't matter if it's 12x12" or 6x1" in just make the whole big enough to do your job.

Once the repairs done properly patching the holes will be a lot easier. If you ever did have to patch a hole similar to this it's often easier to just make it bigger anyway so you can add blocking into the back.


Water under shower floor caulk Shower walls and floor are ceramic tile and caulked around bottom. That caulk keeps getting moldy fairly fast, so I removed caulk (this is second time in a few years) and was going to replace. I noticed there is water in the gap on one wall - wicks up with a paper towel- can't see it. Does that mean there is a problem or it that normal? Walls are grouted - there are a few small areas missing grout and I was going to patch that with caulk. Could that be the source or at the drain? Wondering if I need to call a tile guy. No water on adjacent walls. The house has a crawl space foundation. I can keep trying to dry it out, but wonder if I need to address some other problem.  Thanks!

Water will definitely seep into area where the grout is missing and deteriorate the drywall behind the tiles. You need to fix that pronto and check the whole shower for missing or loose grout. Are there any tiles bulging? Hopefully there is no wall damage. Try bleach on the mildew.


Re-purpose 240v wiring from electrical baseboard heat as 120v circuits I purchased a house that had baseboard electrical heating (240 volt baseboard heaters) that were connected to multiple double pole circuit breaker inside the electrical panel.  The electrical heating system was throughout the entire house and it was in good working order. I had a professional even upgrade the panel as the old panel was non-functional.

Shortly after having the panel upgraded/ changed, I converted the whole house to a natural gas baseboard system and all the heating wiring was capped off and left in the walls and the thermostats wiring was capped off with the thermostats were removed from the wall in each room.

I would like to add more 120v circuits within the house and was wondering if I can re-purpose the wiring cables for the baseboard heating to create new 120v circuits without having to running new cable back to the panel. I do have access to the cable bundles from below in several access points. Suggestions?

MWBC
There are two ways to turn a 240V circuit into a 120V circuit:

Downgrade
Use one of the previously-hot wires as hot and use the other previously-hot wire as neutral, or if you already have a separate (3rd) wire for neutral, use one of the hot wires plus neutral. Super easy but you get only get to use 1/2 the circuit - i.e., 1/2 the power.

Multi-Wire Branch Circuit
An MWBC uses 3 wires - 2 hots + neutral - to provide 2 full 120V circuits. This can work provided the hots are on separate poles with common shutoff (which you already have) and you have a 3rd wire for neutral (see below). It saves a wire compared to two separate 120V circuits because the neutral only carries the difference between the current in the two hots instead of adding them together.

I'm not going to try and explain the details of MWBC. Search elsewhere in DIY SE and you can find plenty of information. But a few things to watch out for are AFCI and GFCI - now that you are redoing circuits, one or the other is likely to become a requirement and you can do that in the panel (easy) or elsewhere (gets complicated with MWBC).
Neutral?
The key question is whether you have neutral in the cables or not. 240V heaters do not necessarily need neutral. By comparison, clothes dryers and ovens typically do require neutral in order to provide 120V to controls & lights.
The problem is that neutral must be white or gray. There are certain exceptions (due to the way standard cables are produced) where a white wire can be used as a hot or switched hot but not, as far as I know, the other way around.
There are 4 possibilities:

Wires in conduit
If you actually have wires in conduit instead of cables then this is super simple - just add a white neutral wire (if you don't already have one) and then wire up an MWBC.

Black/White cable
You can't add a 3rd wire (you would have to replace the entire cable), so move the white wire at the breaker to the neutral bar, replace the double breaker with a single breaker (you get the other space back for a new circuit) and you have a standard 120V circuit.

Black/Red/White cable
Black & Red on the two poles of the breaker (as originally installed), white on neutral bar and you have the perfect setup for an MWBC.

Some other cable
If you have two non-white color wires in a cable (e.g., black/red) and no white wire then I believe you are stuck. You can't turn a colored wire into neutral and you can't add another wire without replacing the entire cable. You could use the cable to power many LED lights (they typically have a wide voltage range) but not ordinary 120V receptacles.

Ground
If your existing circuits have ground (either a ground wire or metal conduit) then you are all set. If not then you may or may not be able to reuse the existing wire without retrofitting a ground (basically connecting a ground wire from the new receptacles to some existing ground elsewhere in the building).


What should I do with an abandoned gas line in my kitchen floor? I am currently renovating my house and have just had the kitchen plastered. After removing the cabinets I found this under one and am looking for any advice as to what it may be and options in regard to removal etc.

I'm assuming it's gas so haven't touched it / tried to open as it's quite stiff and don't want to find it won't close if it is.

Edit The house is in the UK, a 1950s 2 bedroom semi detached ex-council house. It is build on a solid concrete foundation so I'm assuming this pipework is an original but have no idea what it is from.

Looking at that, and given the age of the house, I would say it's a bayonet type connector for an old laundry copper.

The 'thumbscrew' on the back is the on/off for the gas supply.

I would strongly suggest getting a Gas Safe engineer in to check if it is still 'live'. If it is, and you are planning to put a unit back over where it is, you could probably get him to cap it a bit lower for you. If you are wanting to reposition your kitchen units completely and this is sticking up in what will be open floor, then you definitely need to get an engineer in. If it's no longer 'live', the engineer can advise whether or not you can just cut it off below the planned finished floor level.

Don't second guess gas - recipe for disaster!


Which terminal to use on my multimeter I have read the manual for my new multimeter but unsure which (red) terminal to use for what. The meter has one VΩmA fused 500 mA max terminal and one Unfused 10A Max terminal. I just want to measure the voltage of a wall outlet. Which terminal do I use? It would be great with some examples of what the 10A terminal is used for as opposed to the VΩmA terminal. I'm not an electrician by any means so the manual is not covering this.

Stay away from the 10A terminal.  That is for amp measurements ONLY, and creates a dead short between the 10A terminal and the common.  This will blow your fuse, burn up your probes, and/or destroy the meter.  Never use that unless/until you know exactly what you are doing.


How many times can you extend NM-B with splices/junction boxes? I have a detached garage that has a single 20A, 120V circuit running to it. My breaker is on the east side of my house, while the garage is on the west side, meaning my 12-2 NM-B cable spans my entire attic.

The problem is that the NM-B currently splices into some UF and comes out the north side of my house, goes around a corner to get on the west side, then goes underground to get to the east side of my garage. I think it would be better if the UF were in PVC (LB coming out of my house, PVC buried ~18", then LB into garage) and if it came out of the west side of my house, rather than coming out the north side and then wrapping around. To do this, I may need a longer run of NM-B cable in my attic so it can reach the west wall, and if so, it'd be easiest to splice it in a junction box in the attic and run it to the west wall.

The current run looks like this:

20A, 120V breaker
-> ~50ft 12-2 NM-B
-> ~25ft 12-2 UF (exits north wall outside, wraps around to west wall, buried until garage)

I'm proposing:

20A, 120V breaker
-> ~50ft 12-2 NM-B
-> ~10ft 12-2 NM-B
-> ~25ft 12-2 UF (exits west wall into LB outside, buried in PVC, LB into garage)

From what you are proposing, you are only lengthening the run by 10 feet. Your circuit is still only 85 feet long.

Short answer: Unless you are really loading this circuit heavily (~16 or more amps) you will be fine. There is no limit to the number of boxes or splices, only a length limit.

In the specifications of most of the commercial and industrial jobs we wire they require an increase in branch circuit wire size if we exceed 100 feet. This is a "rule of thumb" without doing a voltage drop calculation.

The definitive answer comes with that voltage drop calculation. There are many web sites online where you can enter your particular information and get a voltage drop estimate.

Also, If you are running PVC you don't need the UF cable you can use THWN rated wire. If you just want to protect the UF it only needs the PVC where it is exposed as long as you bury the UF to the depth required by the Code.

Good luck and stay safe!


How do I discharge the capacitor of my refrigerator? In order to avoid electric shock, I need to discharge the capacitor of my refrigerator before working on it.  How do I do it, and where can I buy an appropriate power resistor?

Use a light bulb.  Besides being more than capable of dissipating the power, it has the bonus of telling you when the capacitor is empty since the light will go out.

The best way is to use a spare light socket and touch the two wires to the capacitor leads. Lacking a socket, some wire and electrical tape will do the trick if you're careful.


Is this flue dangerous? I had access to a ladder the other day, so naturally I was poking around in the attic of our house where we have lived for about a year. Above the closet where the furnace and water heater are located, I found there was a metal flue that didn't extend all the way through the roof, it just stops in the attic. Is this normal? There was a flue right next to it that did extend through the roof. The house was built in 1999 and we haven't had any problems since living here. I looked in the furnace room closet and couldn't see anything that might be connected to it. The building inspector didn't mention anything about it when we bought the house. Here's some photos:

So, what do you think? Will our house burn down, or will we die of carbon monoxide poisoning?

I am guessing from your pictures that it is an air intake - I don't see any signs of air/moisture above the venting.  It is perfectly acceptable to pull air from your attic for a furnace.  In fact some might presuppose that by pulling the attic air you are increasing airflow in your attic.  As a home owner I would like to see a screen on it so that critters can't get in.

If this is an exhaust, then it needs to go out the roof.  I doubt it is an exhaust though since the exhaust looks to be right next to it and there are no signs of any airflow like I said before.  Your worry % should be very very low.

Also in my area we throw a couple of 90 degree elbows on this so it is pointing down.  That plus the screen makes it super hard to have any unwanted things fall into your furnace intake.


Some advice about reconstructing a design on a kitchen wardrobe Good day everyone!

I am a novice when it comes to home improvement and therefore I am looking for a (cheap )solution for the following problem.

In the house that I rent there are some kitchen wardrobes which have some kind of design engraved on their doors (image 1 and image 2-profile). Some of them have the design intact, while some of them have it destroyed (see image 3).

My question to you is to advice me some kind of method which can help me reconstruct the design to look as good as the doors which have the one intact.

Tried with some woodfiller but it did not yield the expected results.

Thank you in advance:

Files:

Door with intact design: http://i.imgur.com/VpP1us7.jpg

Door with destroyed design: http://i.imgur.com/Sq1b5c1.jpg

Profile drawing:

Good day sir. In my professional career as a remodeling contractor I have made repairs to plaster coved ceilings using a technique that will transfer to your situation.  I just hope I can explain well enough to help you understand.

The idea of using a filler is on track.  Your challenge is to replicate the missing pattern, using a filler, consistently. To overcome this I suggest you create "a filler application tool" (similar to a mud knife that is used to spread compound onto drywall when finishing) that mimics the missing pattern. To make the custome "mud knife" obtain a small piece of 18 g metal.  Lay it perpendicular to the door to allow you to trace the pattern.  Cut the pattern out and you have a customs tool.

I suggest that a filler such as "bondo" is generously applied over the clean, sanded area which requires repair and Then you will use this custom made "mud knife" to drag across the length of the panel, removing the excess filler, leaving the voids filled

It may take a couple coats and I recommend sanding and fine tuning/shaping the detail work between coats. Note; I believe the grooves in the panel will act as a guide for the tool, however if you cannot obtain a straight line, you can secure (clamp or temporarily nail) a jig, such as a 1x4, to the panel that can act as a guide as you drag the tool along it.

Good luck, I hope this made sense and was helpful.


Mounting an outdoor electrical box to a lamp post My home has a couple of lamp posts in the front garden. One of the posts has a 1-gang metal outdoor box mounted to it, with a regular non-GFCI receptacle which I intend to replace with a GFCI so I can power Christmas lights with it (and landscape lighting during the rest of the year).
However on closer inspection of the box, I noticed that it is just screwed in to the body of the post. A Romex cable runs from a knockout in the back of the box through a hole in the post, but there's no sealing whatsoever in that knockout. Obviously this is a handyman job that's not up to code. It could have fooled me though because at first glance it looked like a good, sound installation (except the absence of a GFCI which should have raised a red flag, to be honest).
My first thought was to replace the box and install a new one the proper way, but my question is-- can an electrical box be properly mounted to a lamp post and still be in code? Any suggestions? Thank you.

Misconception: You need a GFCI out in the weather to run your Christmas lights (or whatever.)
More nuanced view from experience: You need GFCI protection for that outlet. You may already have GFCI protection for that outlet that you don't know about. If you spend $3-5 on a plug-in outlet tester with GFCI test button, you can find out if you have GFCI protection on that outlet by plugging it in and pushing the button. If the power turns off, then you get to go looking for where the GFCI protecting it is. They live a lot longer if they are inside the house, out of the weather, with the outside circuit attached to their "Load" terminals.
Misconception: outside outlet boxes must be sealed! Reality: preventing bulk water ingress is good, but all outside conduits are defined as wet locations, and "perfectly sealing" outside boxes tends to mean that condensation does not drain out, rather than that they are dry.
If there's no cable clamp (which might well be sticking out into the lamp-post and require looking carefully from inside the box to notice) and the back of the box is not connected to conduit, that's an issue, but "sealing" is not really an issue, in general. You can stuff conduit openings with "duct seal" to reduce air and water movement, as well as (small) wildlife. That can reduce condensation.
As for mounting a box to a lamp-post, attach it with a couple of screws, drill a hole for the wire access, and either run conduit up to that hole inside the lamppost to run wires in, or use a cable clamp in the back of the box and run cable inside the lamp-post to a junction box with another cable clamp where you transition to wires in conduit, if you have conduit. Many lampposts just have direct buried cables run to them - if they are buried at a sufficient depth and are rated for wet locations and direct burial that meets code, though experience says that running wires in conduit has far less problems in the long run. Edit: actually, the lamp-post itself may qualify as a "conduit" of sorts, so you may not need a conduit inside it to run wires.
However, you have a more extensive problem here - if the cable sheath isn't gray, your cable really is "Romex" or NM/B, and it's not suitable for wet locations - which all exterior conduits are defined to be. The "Romex-like" cable that is suitable for wet locations is UF, and has a gray sheath. So all that cable needs to be replaced back to a point that is inside and dry (if you actually have conduit, you can replace it with THWN wires, rather than cables. Wires are a LOT easier to pull in conduit.)


How would I install hydronic floor heat on top of a rigid foam insulated basement floor? I intend to finish a part of my basement following this guideline from Fine Homebuilding and Building Science. There are two options I could come up with for installing hydronic radiant heat extrusions, and I can't decide which of the two is most ideal.

Option 1 - Route out a pathway into the insulation that would fit the aluminum channel, then cover with the two layers of 1/2" plywood, then cover with flooring

Option 2 - Start with 2" foam, put down 1/2 ply screwed into the concrete, put down aluminum channel on top of 1/2" plywood, cut strips of 3/4 plywood to go between channel, install flooring over 3/4

Option 1 is much easier to build. The foam will have some "give" when fastening the plywood against the aluminum plate, which will ensure contact and allow flatter flooring layers above. I just fear the aluminum on insulation contact, movement and directly heating the insulation. There are adhesives to secure the aluminum to the foam if that's appropriate.

Option 2 provides more "structural" support to the channel to prevent noise, as well as providing more thermal mass and more isolation from the insulation. I'm not sure if the layers of plywood will have enough "give" to encapsulate the aluminum track without causing the surface to bow.

For a ThermoFin U extruded aluminum heat transfer plate installation on concrete, you would build a surface to be able to screw the plates into by first putting down a layer of Atlas Rboard®, recommended 1/2", which you should be able to get from your local building supplier.
A Google search on Atlas Rboard® will bring up their site and the product info.

On top of the Rboard® put down a layer of plywood. The fasteners will hold best if you can use 3/8" plywood. It will work with 1/2" plywood if necessary.

Keep in mind that you want the heat energy to be going into the sleepers and the finish floor, which is why we recommend the Rboard®.

The energy without the layer of insulation will be drawn into the concrete, and the response time would be longer in heating the floor. Heating up the mass of concrete is not necessarily a good thing when you want the entire surface floor to be warmed.

Radiant Engineering aka Radiant Design & Supply has decades of success with ThermoFin U and ThermoFin C installations in North America. Install ThermoFin U with the fins facing down for wood finish flooring. For tile or stone, install with the fins facing up. The sandwich of aluminum and plywood provide an evenly heated surface that is friendly to finish flooring installation. ThermoFin U specs are .050" gauge, width 4", length either 4 ft or 8 ft, tubing channel size either nominal 1/2" or 3/8".


Why is the red (common) wire giving me a shock? I was replace a 3 way switch and noticed when I touch the red ( common ) wire while it's connected to the switch I get a little "buzz" or shock.

I was curious if this is normal.

Obviously while replacing the switch I had the breaker off but when I turned it back on and touched the red wire connector/screw I got the buzz.

I really don't think it is incorrectly wired, it functions as it should and any other wiring pattern would/does make the switch not perform correctly (only turns on light if other switch is on, etc...).

Anyway, I was just curious if the red ( common ) wire should/can provide a little shock or I should be worried something is wrong.

This is perfectly normal. One of the two travelers can be hot at all times if the switches are wired correctly.  Which traveler is hot depends on the orientation of the switches.

That said, you shouldn't touch any wire in a circuit box when the branch is live. If you happened to have provided a better ground path, someone else very well could have been asking if it was normal for the red wire to have killed you when you touched it.


My Canister ceiling light bulbs, LED 65, BR30 burn out too quickly Have kitchen canister fixtures. The bulbs 65 watt BR30 Flood, burn out too quickly - one at a time in about 3 months. Ceiling (attic) heavily insulated

Heavily insulated can lights are a Bad, Bad thing for LED bulbs - LED bulbs are already compromised in their cooling ability by being forced to fit in an envelope that is similar in shape to an incandescent bulb. Stick it in an IC can fixture with no airflow and insulation all around, and it gets hot. Heat kills LEDs and heat also kills LED power supplies (what turns 120/240 VAC into DC current and voltage proper for the LED module itself.)

Given the price of LED bulbs, you are probably not saving money .vs. using incandescent bulbs that can take the heat, or somewhat more efficient halogen bulbs that LOVE the heat if you are killing a bulb avery 3 months.

A non-bulb-shaped LED retrofit module can have somewhat better cooling designed in. One of those might last longer, though I note that ones I have specify a life of 35,000 hours in IC fixtures and 50,000 in ventilated fixtures, so even there it's definitely hurting the life.

Replacing the entire fixture with a designed-from-the-ground-up LED fixture that has effective cooling built in is the best option for long LED life. If you are not going to do that, I'd suggest looking for Halogen incandescent bulbs and not killing any more LED bulbs in these fixtures.


Pipe alignment/height issue I have an issue involving the heights of the pipes under the sink. I recently installed a new deeper sink and the drain is much lower to the point that it is the same height as the pipe leading into the wall. This is causing water to stay in the drain in the sink. Is there any fixes to this issue without cutting a new lower hole in the wall pipe?

Is there any fixes to this issue without cutting a new lower hole in the wall pipe?

reinstate the previous sink.
replace the new sink with a new shallower one.
raise the new sink higher.

The sensible choice may be to insert a new tee fitting lower in the wall pipe and remove or cap the higher one.


How can I take the pop-up stopper out of my sink? I've found a few tutorials online and searched here, but the mechanism on my sink seems to be different from others I've found tutorials for. Here's the general apparatus (credit to this question):

The issue I'm having is where the pivot rod goes into the pipe under the sink. I need to remove the pivot rod in order to get the stopper out, but I can't figure out how to do that. Here's a picture of what it looks like:

There are 2 "slots" across from each other, but I can't fit anything into both because the pivot rod itself is between them. How can I get the pivot rod out of the pipe so I can remove the stopper?

Grip the nut with the 2 'slots' and turn it counter-clockwise until it spins off and you can pull the pivot rod backwards enough to release the plunger. Reverse the process to put it back together.

A plastic setup like that is designed to twist off by hand. If it seems too tight simply use a pair of pliers to grab it and turn it.

Good luck!


What is the maximum number of load bearing studs in a row that can be notched? I'm trying to install a new utility sink and washer hookup in my garage and am trying to plan how I'm going to run the copper supply lines.
The most direct path I can think of is to notch probably 5 or so studs of an exterior wall to reach the existing drain I'm going to use for the sink.
I know that I can't notch a load bearing 2x4 more than 7/8" but I can't find any guidelines as to how many studs in a row I can safely notch. Is this a question for an engineer? I don't want to go notch crazy but I think 5 or so in a row should be ok? I'm also planning on putting stud shoes on the studs i do notch.

There is no specific limit on the number of sequential studs, as the 7/8" limit is intended to reduce the potential stresses, however, given the choice, I would rather drill than notch:
2308.9.11 Bored holes. A hole not greater in diameter than 40 percent of the stud width is permitted to be bored in any wood stud. [...]
and
In no case shall the edge of the bored hole be nearer than 5/8 inch (15.9 mm) to the edge of the stud.
So 40% of 3.5 in gives you ~1 3/8" to use, often much more than you need for supply lines.
My concern though, is that you're thinking of notching for a waste line, and notching 7/8" to add a 1 1/2 or 2" drain line is... I'll just say that I'm with @JohnSmith in that I wouldn't bother, but then I don't know your specific situation.


How do I avoid squeaking with a hardwood floor? We had Brazilian Koa hardwood installed on our 3/4 inch plywood subfloor that was level and solid. The installer used Bellwood's best underlayment and 16gauge nails. Everywhere you step the floor squeaks, every step, almost every board. We're having the installation redone. What shall I be looking for to avoid this problem reoccurring? Should the floor be glued and nailed to avoid the squeaking?

The underlayment being nailed down was the first mistake.  Nails pull, wood slides against the metal, and it squeaks.  Subflooring (all of it) should be screwed down (and glued, preferably).

The bounce is probably a problem with the span of your floor compared to the thickness of your joists.  Was the floor bouncy before the hardwood install?


Could my wall have been damaged while the painters were painting? I recently had my bathroom renovated. Before the renovation I had noticed some minor cracks in the ceiling. The building is 1962 and the walls are plaster. I had semi gloss paint used which I know can highlight imperfections a bit more.

However I did notice an area which I had never noticed before and I have included it in the photo. My questions:

Is it possible that I didn't notice it because of the change from eggshell to semi-gloss?
Is it more likely that something went awry while painting and this caused the problem (improper priming or something like that).
Maybe a better question- how to fix it?

The damaged area could have been the place the shower head pipe may have originally projected out of the wall. When the rain type show head was installed it may have been moved to a lower level.

If this is the case then the damage that you see is just a shoddy hole repair. Fixing it up so that it looks decent will involve scraping, sanding and repainting the area as a minimum. Worst case it may mean removing the old patch and filling in with a replacement patch that was done correctly. Patch technique will depend somewhat on the type of wall it is. You mentioned plaster - is it on lathe or plaster backer board of some type?


Can I sand bamboo floors? I have prefinished bamboo floors in the kitchen and they are not in a good shape. I was wondering if i can sand them. Somebody told me that i can't send prefinished floors (oak or bamboo), somebody else said i can.

It really depends on the floor. Some flooring is very thin layers over particle board, so sanding can easily eat through all the top layer. Other flooring is thicker. If you can, see if you can figure out the manufacturer and type. If not, the best thing to do is find a place where experiments will not be visible and try sanding. In a kitchen, one great option is under the fridge or dishwasher. If those are easy to roll out of the way, you can get a sander and give it a shot.


How to manage mold growing along the bottom vinyl window frame of every window in an R2000 home? We have a lot of windows in this house, for some reason black mold grows along the bottom of each from basement to upper floor. Its and R2000 so we don't pump any moisture into the house and we run with a dehumidifier in the basement. We also have central air and a gas furnace. I'm thinking of wiping it away but concerned it will come right back or my wiping activity will spread it.
Windows are all double pane, likely 15 to 19 years old, and in good condition. They are casement - the type that swings open with a crank.

First, kill the mold with bleach and wipe down the whole area to try to get rid of as many spores as possible.

Next, identify and treat the root cause. Mold at the bottom of the inside would suggest that interior condensation is pooling there. Window condensation is caused by two factors:

Interior glass temperatures below the dew point
Humid enough interior air that there's enough moisture to condense on your cold windows

This suggests two potential solutions: decrease the interior humidity level, or get better windows that aren't as cold inside. Getting another dehumidifier or a bigger one is likely to be much cheaper than replacing all your windows with expensive, high-performance triple-pane units which are what you really need to stop condensation in the cold Canadian climate. Window technology has come a long way in the last 15-19 years, but it doesn't come cheap. I'd go with the dehumidifier now if the windows are otherwise in good condition, and start saving up for those better triple-pane windows. You'll feel the difference, and it will stop your condensation problems, too.


Is this too much strain on a PEX joint? I have some PEX with Sharkbite connectors routed around a joist.  There is some tension where the PEX joins the copper plumbing.  Is it too much?

I say that the installation is well within the capabilities of shark-bite fittings.


Can I install NM cable, junction boxes on attic rafters I'm replacing knob-and-tube wiring, and plan to add blown-in attic insulation afterward.  I figure it would be safer to run NM wire on the underside of the attic rafters than to bury it in insulation, where they might be stepped on or tripped over.  I can't find anything in NEC 320.23 regarding rafters.  Is this allowed?

Further, I figure junction boxes would be considered accessible on the rafters, since they won't be concealed under insulation.  Is this allowed?
 Do all j-boxes in the attic need to be accessible through the ceiling?

The attic is accessible via access hole.

Thanks!

Edit 1:
Here is a sketch of what I have in mind.

The j boxes need to be accessible if you can get in the attic even with a ladder they are accessible. Nailed or screwed down to the rafters is fine I like to run rat boards when traveling perpendicularly to the rafters that way they are supported if stepped on. Running parallel I staple them to the side 1-1/4” down the side. The insulation won’t be a problem.  Note a rat board can be a strip of plywood nailed to the rafters or even 2x4’ rat boards provide a good surface to staple the wires and prevent damage if they are stepped on between rafters.


Projector arm on drywall (possible stud available) I am planning to hang a projector which weighs 8lbs (~3.5kg), on a wall arm.

The arm weighs 4lbs (~1.8kg) and has a load capacity of 44lbs (~19.9kg), and I'll be hanging the projector at the arm's minimum extension (~12").

The fact that the arm is extended away from the wall adds leverage and therefore increases the effective force applied by the weight of the projector so as far as the wall is concerned, it's not just the 8lbs. I'm not savvy enough to calculate this though- perhaps someone can point me in the right direction?

I have (to be confirmed) found a 2" stud with a stud detector in what appears to be 1/2" or 5/8" drywall/plasterboard. I have some molly bolts, various size screws with rawl plugs available.

I am wondering

If I put 2 screws into the stud and 2 molly bolts in the plasterboard would it likely hold?
If it's not a stud, and I use 4 molly bolts, would it likely hold?

Commonly people suggest placing a board behind the arm it seems, but I'm hastened to do this as effectively the questions above still apply.

There's equal leverage, but it increases probability that I would hit 1 or more studs, or enable me to spread the molly bolts around a greater area.

The answer to "how do I mount an articulating arm to drywall" is "you don't". Find a stud. It's not worth taking the chance considering the cost of the projector.

Your best bet is to get this hung off of the stud. To do this effectively, you should firmly attach a piece of plywood or hardwood to the stud, and then attach the arm to the wood. I suggest pre-drilled lag bolts for attaching the plywood to the stud, and T-nuts with bolts and lock washers to attached the arm to the wood.

If you can't find a stud where you need one, then find them on either side, cut a piece of wood to span them, and bolt the arm to that piece of wood.


Is wiring the neutral in a circular path correct? I have a bathroom that was re-wired to add a bathroom fan some years ago. I am wondering if it was wired correctly. Originally, I believe the overhead light was wired in a switch loop to a single wall switch. When the fan was added, two new switches (for the fan, and the fan's light) were added on the wall.

To make this work, the electrician pulled a new wire pair from the switch to the overhead light. The old wire pair is now in parallel with the single circuit from the breaker panel, it provides power to the three wall switches. All of the neutral wires at the light are tied together, and all of the neutral wires in the wall are tied together. Because there are now two wire pairs between the overhead light gang box and the wall switch gang box, this creates a circular neutral path.

In the image, the neutrals are tied together at A and B, and the circle / parallel path for neutral is created by cables 1 and 2. Grounding wires are not shown.

I think you've figured it out, but here it is in diagram form anyway, for future readers who may be more visually oriented:

As you have indicated, you will separate the neutrals at two locations.


Should I be concerned about wearing out the clutch when driving screws with my drill/driver? The clutch on a drill/driver is used to limit the amount of torque applied when driving screws. However, as the clutch is a mechanical part subject to wear especially when it slips, I'm concerned about it wearing out as I use the tool to drive screws.

If I allow the clutch on the drill/driver to slip before stopping, do I risk prematurely wearing out the clutch? How long can I expect the clutch to last before it fails? Is it worth feathering the trigger instead to prevent the clutch from slipping when the screw is nearly driven home? (For reference, I'm using a DeWalt DCD790 compact brushless drill/driver, and I usually have the clutch set around 5-7 out of 15.)

This isn't something I would worry about at all. If you are a typically householder you don't use your driver 8 hours a day 5 days a week year after year after year. If you do, you should be buying a tool designed for professional use (which the DCD790 appears to be, judging by it's price).

I'm just a householder and I find drills last me at least 10 years. I still have all the drills I ever bought and they all still work (to some extent). On one of them I can't turn off the hammer-action after trying brute force removal of chuck (I broke it by severe misuse), but the clutch is fine. I bought a pro-grade replacement drill/driver (Bosch blue) at a similar price I paid 10 years ago for the non-pro one I broke.

The clutch on the driver is essential, I always dial it down to the lowest setting, then turn it up as needed. I'm pretty sure it is designed to be used and shouldn't wear out any faster than the gearbox or motor.


How to choose the correct all purpose screw driver or drill I am a widow and starting out in the world of DIY.   I tried replacing several broken trellis panel fencing last year.  I bought a 7.2V Bosch drill and used 3in screws to hold the panels onto the wooden posts.   The screws did not penetrate all the way and have been left protruding.   I wish to smarten up the unfinished job!

Did I need a stronger Drill?   What type of drill would be advisable for small and larger jobs?

Most low voltage drills are targeted toward hobbiests than anyone else, and a 7.2V drill is likely not going to be much use for driving screws.  It will likely do fine for drilling holes, but there is generally a pretty strong relationship between voltage and torque.

If this is something you'll be doing enough to justify the purchase, I'd look for something 14V and higher from a reputable manufacturer (Bosch, Dewalt, Makita, and Milwaukee spring to mind). Avoid the cheap store brands or cheap imports (I'm looking at you, Harbor Freight), and read some reviews from websites or magazines that are aimed at contractors (I usually start at FineHomebuilding - they do a ton of tool reviews).

Finally, keep in mind that the majority of what you are paying for are the battery packs.  This means that you can generally get better deals on tool combo sets than individual tools because they'll share batteries.

BTW, on your protruding screws you'll want to back them out about a quarter inch before setting them the rest of the way - it's easier if the driver isn't at full torque when you start.


Gaps Between Aluminium Sign board Theming and External Wall Is gypsum board durable to use for gaps between external side of wall and aluminium theme cladding sign board.

I doubt it. You need something that will not swell, rot, wick water, or delaminate even under water exposure. Gypsum board is very susceptible to moisture.


Ecobee 3 - I have 3 Wires I have three wires coming to the existing, very old,  thermostat:

Black, but wired to the "R" terminal of the current thermostat.
White, but wired to the "W" terminal of the current thermostat.
Red, but not wired/connected to anything, just wrapped around the other two wires.

I have multi-meter, is there anyway I can make the Ecobee 3 work with this setup?
EDIT in response to ThreePhaseEel in particular.
Folks thanks for the interest in helping me with this.
The other end of the thermostat wire is complicated, and I didn't mention that the system has two zones (see Picture 1).
I thought all I had to do was find the other end of the existing thermostat wires, for the zone I care about.  That has not been so easy. See the boiler wiring (see Pictures 2, 3, 4).  I can't tell where the end of the thermostat wire for the zone that I'm interested in is. There's a brown wire that I think is typical thermostat wire, but it doesn't have the right wire colors, and originally, I thought it was for the other zone.
I expected that the junction box on the left in Picture 5 would have 120AC as well as two theromstat wires in it, one for each zone, and I would see the red wire there, and I'd just test for continuity. Instead, as seen Picture 6: it has a thermostat wire and a white and black wire.  The black and white wires look like power (120VAC) to me based on the gauge.
My goal was to simply to connect the unused red wire to either an obvious common (does that make sense), or buy a 24VAC transformer and attach that to the red wire. But I can't find the end of the red wire (or the other for that matter).
Any thoughts?  I thought I was starting to "suss it out", but instead, I'm back to square one. I can't even figure out where my existing thermostat wire is coming into the boiler picture.
EDIT in response to ThreePhaseEel in particular: I'm sorry, should have uploaded this already; see wiring diagram below.

Unfortunately, your old thermostat likely did not have power going to it,  just sense lines that closed a circuit when the mercury switch attached to the thermostat closed.  All of the "cool" new thermostats require power and a neutral line (so minimum 4 wires).
Is there any way you can get power to the planned install location? they make 24V plug in transformers to do this, here is one transformer option;  then you can use the existing wires as needed assuming they are get-at-able from both sides.


drawing for electrical work permit I want to install can lights in my living room. I live in NJ and I am allowed to do this work myself. I was told by local township to submit 2 sets of drawings for locations of new lights/switches. My question is how can I draw these diagrams ? I can just draw it my way but I am not sure If there is any standard way for drawing electrical plans which I have to follow. Does it have to be 3D plan ? Is there any free software out there which I can use ?

I Normally draw a rectangular box and provide the room dimensions. Show the location of the door and the light switch.
In the diagram show where the feed is to the existing light or the switch and the location of the existing fixture with wire running from the switch to the fixture.
At each location you draw the cables list the size  and /type and or conduit examples : 12-2WG or 14-2WG for Romex. If conduit 1/2” emt 3 ea #12 thhn or possibly MC 14-2 WG
(Emt electric metal tubing,  MC metal clad,)
I usually change colors and show the new fixtures fed from (the original light fixture box or switch). If any question of box fill I show the Fill calculation for the size and type and box size if only 1 in 1 out I don’t
switch loops fed from the fixture I do unless the box is separate.  the fixtures do not have to be exact locations the wire route is approximate.  I have turned the drawing in on the hamburger wrapper from my lunch in one case but they usually like it on an 8-1/2 x 11 paper your name and address the location of the room in the home with an explanation like “existing feeder 14-3 nmb (Romex) from main panel 15 amp breaker #6 . Addition of 3 ea ic can lights 60w max.
I have never had to  provide more than this and as I said I have laid out a quick job for a guy that caught me in town and I drew it up on a hamburger wrapper it might have been yellow and the inspector told me I better have a burger for him on the inspection.
But approved the drawing and gave me the permit on the spot after copying it.


Neutral pigtails on MWBC I've recently moved into a new home with a few outbuildings.  Due to the property being in rural unincorporated area, no inspections or permitting was required on the outbuildings when they were built last year.
To mitigate the risk my insurance company paid for and completed a comprehensive electrical inspection to check for fire risks.  The inspection report listed a deficiency with all of the outlets in my largest outbuilding.  It was not deemed a fire risk, so I don't need to immediately fix the situation, but I am wondering how important it is to get fixed (For safety reasons).
The report listed the deficiency as:
"Possible MWBC without pig-tailed neutrals in all outlets within building 4"
I've pulled apart one of the outlets as seen below:

I have a total of 60 outlets (30 boxes with 2 outlets each) wired this way, so I'd rather not change if not necessary.
The 3 matching breakers for these outlets are These 2 pole GFCI breakers, additionally if I measure between the red and black at each outlet box, I get 248 volts, so I assume I do have multi-wire branch circuits in use here.
For what it is worth, the building should have been built to NEC 2018.  The lack of conduit will be addressed.
Specific questions:

What is the risk of not using pig-tailed neutrals when connecting MWBC outlets?
How important is it to get fixed (Shut off breakers and don't use until changed, get to it in a month, within next year, don't bother changing).

Multiwire branch circuits (MWBCs) share a neutral.  There is a code rule that prohibits wiring devices, such as receptacles, in a way that the removing the device would open (i. e., disconnect) that shared neutral.  If the device is pigtailed, that rule is satisfied because removing the device doesn't disconnect anything else on the circuit from the neutral.
The prohibition exists for MWBCs because opening the neutral causes major trouble on those circuits.  When the neutral is opened on a MWBC, the voltage at the outlets destabilizes - on a 120V MWBC, you could see anything from 0V to 240V*, causing all kinds of problems.  So if someone removes a device and unwittingly caps the neutral, leaving it open, you can wind up with a very bad situation.
Obviously if you wind up with 240V applied to appliances and etc. intended for 120V, they may by destroyed immediately, especially sensitive electronics, and think how many things around the house have sensitive electronics.  Motors may run way too hard for a short while, then fry.
A device like a space heater, a purely resistive load, may not be destroyed or damaged, but will pull up to double the usual current, overloading the circuit.  Hopefully the breaker is functioning correctly and it will trip quickly before anything is damaged.  But if anything is wrong with that breaker, it could fail to trip and cut power, and the resulting overload can damage wiring and connections, and is a major fire risk.
I wouldn't let this go for long.  The risk is just that someone working on the wiring removes a receptacle and unintentionally leaves the neutral open.  So until it is corrected, I would not allow any other work be done on the wiring.
If everything is nice and neat and roomy like the box in your photo, it's likely a day's work with very little materials required.  Open the box, use the one pigtail that's already there, add a pigtail to the other receptacle, nut the four together, close the box, lather, repeat.
By the way - there is no 2018 NEC.
*With the neutral open, a shared neutral circuit degenerates into a 240V parallel - series circuit, such that the loads (in parallel) on L1 are collectively in series with the loads (also in parallel) on L2.  The voltage on the L1 side and the L2 side will depend on the load on each side.  If there are no loads on L2, the L1 side will see 240V.  If the loads on the L1 and L2 side are the same, the voltages will be the usual 120V on both the L1 and L2 side - until something is turned off.


Is floor paint on concrete purely aesthetic or actually functional? I have a large thatched barn recently (6 months) laid with a concrete floor to replace the original mud floor. The concrete was dusting badly, especially near where a table tennis table sits, so I have now treated it with two coats of diluted (1:5) pva.

My question is whether the addition of floor paint (at some considerable expense and effort) is going to serve any useful purpose or whether it is purely aesthetic. The surface is currently quite rough so I do not need to add any anti-slip coating. All I need is a durable surface that will not powder.

I would have said one reason for painting would be to create a stable surface, but you seem to have that covered by your use of PVA.

The main reasons for painting (that I can think of right now are):

Aesthetics (as you've mentioned), it will tone down the "industrial" nature of concrete flooring and match your colour scheme.
Durability, this covers physical damage such as scuffing etc.
Maintainance, it will be easier to clean up spills etc. from a painted floor and you won't get water stains etc. either.

So you've covered 2 out of the 3 I can think of, though a couple of coats of the appropriate floor paint might be more durable than the PVA. The question then becomes do you need to take care of the 3rd point?


What would be the potential pitfalls in pouring a concrete patio over deck footings and then securing the posts to the slab? I am going to have a 4" concrete patio poured in my backyard, and over that I want to build a 2nd story deck. All of this essentially occupies the same space, meaning the posts either need to be on or through the patio slab.
In the interest of making things look at neat as possible, I wondered about setting sonotube footings to a height that would equal the expected level of the concrete base, so about 4-6" of anticipated gravel base depth.  That would have the footings and the base at the same level.  Then, simply pour a single monolithic slab of concrete over the whole thing.
That would just leave needing to re-locate the footing locations using the same triangulation used to site them in the first place.
I am assuming that frost heave of the footings themselves would not be an issue as they will be done deep enough.  Could the rest of it heave around them and cause a problem?  Could settling of the concrete slab/base material when the footings do not be an issue?
Anything else you can think of?

I think your approach is right on target. Follow FreeMan's suggestion to embed bolts in the footings to attach your base plate for each post. It's unlikely that you'll have serious frost issues as long as you:

Make sure your support piers are below frostline - in my area it's 36".
Be certain to properly lay the patio base with a solid, self-draining material such as sand or fine granite.

If you're particularly concerned about frost heave you might want to consider going to 6" depth on the patio.


How to minimise the amount of concrete needed for a shed foundation? I’m looking to build a 6m by 3m shed in the back garden. It will be jammed in between 3 neighbours’ gardens, so it will have to be less than 2.5m high. Roof will most likely be a low grade pitch with corrugated plastic (so not heavy). My budget for this is very small, so I’d need to recycle old materials as much as possible. I have a good amount of reclaimed bricks, and a friend has an old pre-cast concrete panel garage, which I could potentially have as well. I don’t think it will be large enough, so I might end up using a combination of both. Which is fine for me as any neighbour (incl. me) would only see 1 side anyway.

I am clueless as to what to do with the foundations, so I was hoping for some help. I don’t need planning or building permission, and since it’s only a shed I guess I can do whatever works. Which for me would be whatever is cheapest. Access to the rear garden is limited, and pumping concrete expensive. So that’s a no-go. Mixing concrete in the back garden is not impossible, but will be back breaking. So I’d like to keep the amount of concrete needed down.

I have plenty of hardcore and ideally I’d like to use some of the bricks to do some sort of masonry foundations, covered with a small amount of concrete if needed. Or use some of the pre-cast concrete panels. Or really anything to keep the amount of concrete I would have to use down. Any advice on how I would be able to achieve this would be greatly appreciated!

NOTE: I’d like to stick bricks or a very thin layer of concrete and DPC down on the floor anyway to keep my tools dry.

If you'd like to minimize use of concrete, don't use any. I have 4 sheds that have been sitting for 14 years on sections of pressure treated wood, set on top of the ground - and a 5th that's on 4 pressure treated wood posts set into the ground. No concrete at all. Wooden floors (not pressure treated - only the ground-contact wood is PT.)

Nice and dry.


I have a 2 prong outlet and a surge protector so I have just bought all the parts for a new PC, but am weary to build and use it because I noticed I don't have a grounded outlet at all in my room/house. I have been using a computer on this outlet for the last 3 years without problem by way of an adapter like the one below, and then a sure protector/power strip plugged into that.

But I'm worried this might cause damage down the road because there is no ground that I know of. Could static build up on the computer and eventually damage components? Could I jury rig a wire to the radiator in my room as a ground?

Those adapters are no longer used because it became obvious that even with the center screw used many boxes were still not properly grounded. In such cases if there is a fault to ground dangerous current could flow on exposed metallic parts, or flow through high resistance connections causing heat to build up causing fires.

NO! You cannot simply use an old water pipe, or especially a radiator for a valid and proper electrical ground.

You really need to have a new circuit run. It is possible to find a valid proper ground for an old circuit, but to do so, and do so compliantly, is likely harder than simply running a new circuit.


LED Downlights for workshop I would be very grateful for any advice on the best (most efficient) design for wiring up some LED downlights for my workshop. A picture is attached.

Basically, I'm trying to figure out what is the best way to hook up x10 LED Downlights, 9 Watt, 320mA (20-30V) that each came supplied with one AC to DC transformer (constant current LED dimming driver).

I know basic DC electrical theory and am competent with soldering etc, but I am at a bit of a loss as to where to start with:

1) Best design for wiring these up, in terms of the optimum design for installation, and
2) the correct type of transformer, and
3) the most effective wiring harness, and wire gauge and how to account for current drop.

Ideally, I would like to plug in an AC to DC transformer, but from there I am a bit unsure of how to wire these up in the most efficient manner.

Any advice from you more expert and senior DIY electrician type souls would be much appreciated. I'll post with updates as I go ...

These are constant current LED luminaires which must be matched to a specific driver circuit, which is the thing you call a "transformer" which was bundled with them.  It has the capacity to drive one LED luminaire. That gives you no choice in the matter.  Each luminaire must be used with a matching driver module.

It's as simple as that.

The good news is these luminaires appear to be "dumb" with no electronic components onboard, that's why they need such a particular driver.   Electronics tend to fail not LEDs proper, so you won't have to replace the luminaire, only the driver.

18 AWG intercom/thermostat wire should suffice if you need a longer run between luminaire and driver.  Thinner wire isn't really any cheaper, as this size benefits from economies of scale.

Now, what about using a different LED driver so you don't have 10 driver modules?

Being dumb LED emitters without onboard electronics, their spec is very clear that they must be driven constant-current.   The only sane way to drive multiple loads constant-current is with series wiring.

In series wiring, current is exactly the same through each device, but voltages add.  Current will be 320ma, or 0-320ma if you want to dim them without PWM.   Voltage will be 20-30V x 10, or 200-300V.

Here's the problem. As a practical thing, that's a really goofy spec for a driver. I don't think you'll find one on the market.  I could be wrong.

Also you're dealing with rather high voltages.  THWN or NM cable will suffice, but they no longer qualify as "low voltage" under NEC rules.  You'll need to follow all the formalities of proper Code wiring, and may run afoul of rules pertaining to voltages over 250V.

Also, DC voltage that high is one nasty piece of work.  It is as aggressive as AC power 10 times its voltage, indeed, many switch and relay makers derate 80-90% for DC.   You will not find a switch which will interrupt it without arcing, short of the spring-action "snap switches" used in very old homes (being vestiges of the DC age).  Once it starts to arc, it will not know pity or remorse or fear and will not stop unless killed.  The driver would contain it to 320ma, but you'd want arc fault detection in the driver.   I would at least want to run that in steel conduit.


Do ashes leak out of stone fire pit I plan on building a stone fire pit on top of my paver patio. I also plan on inserting a fire ring and having a snuffer lip to put the fire out but also keep the rain out. I will line the bottom with lava or granite rock and place a layer of paver base sand on top of that. Questions before I get started;

Is it necessary to use adhesive in-between each row of blocks?
If it does rain and the snuffer lid is not in place, will there be a problem of ashes running out all over the pavers... what is the solution?

Thanks

It's not necessary to use adhesive in-between each row of blocks but if you don't it might not be quite as stable. I didn't bother with adhesive and three year later I don't have any issues.


How to fix a deck railing that is falling off? I have an older deck that has a wide (approx 25 feet) unsupported span. The railing on the deck seems to be pulling outward, probably due to planters on it, and general heavy usage. The underside of the deck has fairly good support via two by eights. It appears that the railing is attached via nails only.

I need to figure out how to reattach the railing in a way that won't come out again. My first thought is replace the nails with bolts, but I'm not sure if I need to also replace the railing's wood. Would bolts work? How do I determine if I should replace the wood?

Thanks!

Erick

It appears that the rim joist is pulling away from the joists to which it's nailed due to the outward forces on the railing.

You could screw the rim joist to the joists (where those nails are now), which might give a bit more holding power, but you wouldn't gain a lot.  Using lag bolts in this situation should be avoided because they won't hold well in the end-grain of the joists.

I'd suggest adding angle brackets like these, on both sides of each joist.  Offset them slightly vertically so the screws from either side of the joist don't interfere with each other.  Use an appropriate screw length (2.5 inches would work for double joists).

The 4x4 posts for the railing are connected to the rim joist with bolt(s).  If these 4x4s connect next to one of the joists (ideally it would, and the one shown in your pictures seems to be), then you could add a deck post bracket if there isn't one already which transfers the railing force from the bolt to the joist.  This would replace the aforementioned angle bracket on one side of the joist.


What material is my residence-adjoining common wall made from? My house is a twin built in 1920. Most of the walls are plaster, some are drywall. Knocking on these with my knuckle yields a hollow sound, like tapping a door or window. However the center wall that divides our house is extremely hard, and when I tap on it, there is no sound whatsoever; except for some guitar sounds (mostly low strings) I can't hear a single thing going on next door.
What is this material? It runs down the middle of our entire house. To my eyes it's just a painted white wall!

Duplex/twin - probably a firewall, or "party wall" in the "old-shool, solid masonry" sense. Depending on the locale, sometimes a LOT of solid masonry (like 2 feet/600mm.)


Why one circuit affects other circuits When I use a power tool plugged into one of the 20 amp circuits, it affects two other circuits (the lights in my house in different locations on these two circuits flicker as I use the tool). The lights flicker as I increase and decrease the rpms on my power tool. Why is this happening? Please advise. Thank you. Ty

First of all, are you sure that this 20A circuit is independent of the flickering circuits?  It's not unheard of for someone to wire things in strange ways.
But even if they are different circuits, they still have a common HOT and NEUTRAL back at the panel.  If the power tool creates a heavy load on the circuit that can and often will be "seen" in all other circuits on that leg of the panel.
A couple of suggestions:

Be sure that your outlet, wiring, and circuit breaker connections are all firm and clean.  Loose or corroded connections cause voltage loss and that causes excess current to be drawn by induction or other motor-driven tools.

Check that your tool is in proper working condition.  If it's out of adjustment or needs maintenance, it may be drawing more power than usual.


Why do installers leave a gap between vinyl tiles? I've seen professional installers leave a small gap 2-4mm  between vinyl tiles(Please see pic).

This would expose dried glue which would come into the air space(even if a little) and you could basically see the glue in the gaps.
Why do they do this?  Surely it's better to have the tiles as close together as possible so you can neither see, smell it or let it comes up into your air space?

I have done some reading and it seems these are referred to as seams
1.  Why leave a big gap when u can have them right close together?
2.  How should one fill them up?  Grout, caulk, silicone or some other way?  I’d want to use a method where off gassing chemicals expires sooner.

Thanks

No.   Professional installers do not lay vinyl tile squares like that.   These are literally the easiest tiles in the world to install.   These are butted right next to each other.

The only reason they could be installed like this is the dumb*ss doing the install watched a tile install video and thought it applied to vinyl squares too.

Side note - there is really nothing you can do.   There is nothing that will fill the crack that will stick well and function in a kitchen.   You could poly over the whole floor but that could be creating more of a problem.


3-way switch w/ dimmer I have a 3-way switch in our dining room (just 2 switches) and have replaced the one we use the most with a 3-way w/ dimmer. The light turns on just fine, but will not dim.  I have installed a Lutron- Eco-dim dimmer (3-way)...  Need help as to why it won't dim.

You didn't specify the Lutron Model number of the switch but most of the Lutron Maestro switches are not like conventional 3-way/4-way switches. They require a Lutron companion switch at the other 3-way location in order to operate properly. Check the instructions for multiple location installations. Make sure the circuits off when you change the other one,  hooking them up live can kill them, and they're not cheap.


New GFCI outlet on ungrounded circuit won't trip when tested Added a GFCI in a bathroom that had no previous outlet. For supply I ran new cable from a nearby ungrounded ceiling box. Even though there was no ground in ceiling box I hooked bare ground wire to GFCI green ground screw.

There is power to GFCI but it will not trip when tested. My GFCI tester shows open ground. Should I remove the bare ground from the ground screw? Or could new GFCI be bad?  I would have tried while there but had to let tenant back in and won't get back till next week. Just want to get a jump on it. Thank you

The test button on the GFCI should work it doesn’t use the ground. The tester uses the ground with a resistor to create a ground fault since the ground is not there the test function will not work with the plug in tester. As long as the test function on the receptacle works the receptacle is protected as required by code.

The electronics compare both the hot and neutral, a imbalance of more than ~5mA will cause a trip. This is a legal method of GFCI protection with a 2 wire circuit.

IF you want to run a ground wire back to the panel that feeds this circuit OR if there is a grounded circuit in the area that is fed from the same panel recent code changes allow a new separate ground wire to be installed.
However if the test button on the GFCI works the receptacle is protected.

Just a note, in my jurisdiction a rental requires a licensed electrician to do anything more than replace a device (light, receptacle or switch) for example. I have heard of some that require a license for even those but have not worked in a state that has that strict requirements. I would verify your local regs so you don’t get in trouble.


Tiling over broken fireplace hearth My flat is an old Glasgow tenement flat built around 1900.
When I bought the place, the fireplace had been badly covered.
I now want to do the fireplace up so removed the covering.

I am planning to:

cover over the fireplace recess with a sheet of plasterboard and skim the wall
tile the fireplace hearth with victorian style mosaic tiles
install a victorian cast iron radiator on the hearth and a wooden mantlepiece

I would like a mosaic tile hearth similar to this.
The existing hearth is uneven and has cut outs in the corners. It lies approximately 1cm proud of the wooden floor, and extends back into the fireplace recess.
Should I:

remove the old hearth completely and pour a new base for the tiles
somehow fill and flatten the old hearth and cover with the tiles

Any other suggestions or comments are welcome.

You’ll need to determine the cause of the broken tile, or you’ll need to remove everything down to a solid base.

The broken tiles could be from: 1) settlement, 2) heat expansion, 3) bad original installation, 4) extra heavy load applied, 5) tenant vandalism

BTW, when you add your wall base, mortar, grout, etc., make sure it’s resistant to heat. Otherwise it will sag when heated.


Can I install sheet vinyl flooring in a basement that gets wet on occasion? Our basement is usually dry, but every so often we have torrential rainstorms in the spring and we are downhill from our neighbors.  We get some water overnight in a small stream that we can mop up.  We had carpet with pad, but had to have it taken out this year. Would sheet vinal dry if a puddle of water came up from the concrete under it?  I can mop up the small surface stream that seems to happen every few years, but I'm concerned about the effect of any water that might come up under the vinyl floor.  Would vinyl tiles be better as any puddle that came up through the concrete floor would be able to escape through the cracks between tiles? Would the good vinyl tiles withstand overnight water and dry without damage?

Before you jump too far, you should figure out the exact source of the water. When you're talking about puddles and streams, I'm thinking leaks and cracks, and not moisture coming through the concrete.

To check for moisture in the concrete, tape a large square piece of clear vinyl down using duct tape (at least a foot square) at a time when the floor is very dry. Leave it for a while, and if there is any water or moisture in it, you'll know it's coming through the concrete.

The problem is that if you have any amount of moisture coming through that way, anything you stick to the floor (like vinyl tiles) will be disrupted by it: it will get in the adhesive from the tiles, and they'll eventually all come unstuck.

Another source of water is cracks and leaks around windows, the joint between the floor/walls, etc. On a rainy day, you may be able to see water coming in, and you may just be able to spot these (especially cracks) visually. There are different ways to fix these problems, depending on exactly what it is.

Yet another common source is by an overflowing sump pit, which is just what it sounds like it. If you have a pit, and your pump is not working, or can't keep up, obviously that water has to go somewhere. It's also a very good idea to have a secondary battery-backed pump if you have a basement prone to flooding. Since you didn't mention this in the question, it's probably not the problem.

Assuming you have fixed any all-out leaks, and are just dealing with water wicking through the concrete, a product like Subflor or DeltaFL (available at any big box stores) would probably be the best choice, if you're really intent on having some kind of flooring (eg, using the basement as a finished room). It's basically a plastic membrane with dimples in it, which leaves about 3/8" of an air gap for drying, and also provides some insulation for the floor above. Subflor comes in 2x2' tiles with OSB attached, and DeltaFL comes in rolls, and you put plywood or OSB sheets on top, or you can install hardwood or laminate directly on top (deltaFL also acts as a vapour barrier).


Was my water softener hooked up correctly? This is my third water softener post - I only intended to have one but I just started getting more questions as I was typing them up.

See

What is the white crystals in my water softener? and how to clean properly

Any idea what parts were replaced on my water softener?

I had a local plumber install my water softener in exchange for some computer work instead of having a professional. This was 2-3 years ago. I finally got it running a few days ago.

1) Does it look like it's hooked up correctly? Anything special I need to know about my setup?

2) Am I ok to replace the sheetrock around the huge hole he cut?

3) The manual that my water softener came with says "This manual provides a reference for operation and maintenance of the following WaterMax  water conditioning appliance models: 63MAQ, 63BEQ, 63MDQ, 62AMQ, 62APQ, 62AKQ, and 62AJQ. If you do not see your specific model listed here, your dealer has customized your WaterMax to solve additional water conditioning problems you may and and will be happy to explain an additional special features."

Mine is a Hague WaterMax 63BAQ, which is not listed and means that is has 'an additional special feature' according to the manual. Any idea what this means?

4) Are there any tools one can use to manually test the water? I read in the manual to leave it to the professionals, but I think it would be fun to learn about and have always wanted to test the water in my house, and after looking at all the settings on the digital display ( a lot of them referencing water testing) I am interesting in trying it myself.

5) Lastly, are there any tips, or general knowledge / tips you would like to share about my water softener / any water softeners in general?

I can't tell from the picture which is the inlet and outlet, so I will make the assumption it's not hooked up backwards..

However, there are a few things I see that I don't like:

The hole cut in the drywall is pretty unprofessional
There is a shut-off valve in the wall - which means you need an access panel. If the installer added that there, he's incompetent. If it was there before, he probably should have highly suggested to you he moved it out -- if he also did the plumbing (if he cut the hole as you said, then I suspect so) then this would have not been much extra work.
The overflow on the brine tank doesn't go anywhere (the black barbed elbow coming out the side). I have seen at least two basements who had a couple inches of water (ruining carpet, etc) due to a failed $10 shut-off float valve in the brine tank.

Yes you can fix the drywall, but don't cover the valve (or leave an access panel). The valve has the potential to leak, and doing that in the wall is bad. You may also need to shut it off at some point (eg, to disconnect the softener). The best option would be to replumb the valve so it's not in the wall.
Sorry I don't know enough details about this particular model or brand to answer specific questions about your model. See if you can find the manual, especially the installer's manual. A quick google search turns up some promising results.
You can get hardness test strips to check the hardness before and after. There's actually some fairly complex chemistry involved in "testing water" (which, frankly, most water treatment companies don't fully understand), and I could go on in a lot of detail about fully testing .. but I'm not even sure that's what you're asking about so I won't get into it.

To set up your softener correctly, you basically need to know the hardness of the water. It looks like your softener probably has a flow meter in it so it automatically recharges based on usage; some of the more basic models recharge based on a schedule and so you need to have a rough idea of your average daily usage as well to know how often to recharge them.
Softeners are pretty easy to maintain. Make sure there's salt in the brine tank. Every 10 years, you need to rebed the media in the filter. Make sure nothing is leaking, and that it's recharging (usually it does this during the night, anywhere from every day to once a week, though could be less if you use very little water).


Replacing socket for Cat5 cable My situation:
To start off, I will provide photos at the end of the post.
The Cat5 Internet cable comes through a wall and it ends at a socket which is currently laying on the floor. The output of that socket goes to the modem. However, the connection is supported only by two thin wires, which makes the entire thing really flimsy and it creates problems when connecting to the internet. I would like to make the connection sturdier by using a module (of some sort) and enclosing the entire connection in it. As it stands right now, I don't think it is feasible to connect the socket to the wall as the cable is coming in the room from a different point.
I would appreciate any help.
Entry point of cable in the room:

The old socket opening (before installing the new cable):

Input of the socket (with the two thin cables):

Output of the socket (wire to the modem):

I cannot make out from your low-resolution pictures if there's a strain relief or cable tie point built into the socket. Possibly the silver loops on the right side of the third picture? If so, using a cable tie to tie the cable to that would stabilize it. If not, attaching 4 of the unused conductors to the unused contacts will make a better mechanical connection to the cable. If the terminal strip has holes that go all the way through it, moving the wire connections to the "interior" side of that strip may also be helpful as opposed to making the connection on the "exterior" side as at present. Less interference when poking the assembly into a hole in the wall.
These fittings are normally simply installed in the wall, and once placed in the wall they do not move, so no further "enclosure" is needed. You can get "surface mount" boxes which do have a front and back that snap together, if you would prefer that.
While the 4-pair cable probably is Cat5, it is being used as a telephone cable, and is connected to a telephone jack. The only way it's "an internet cable" is via a modem running on the telephone line connecting to the internet. It is not any form of ethernet, despite sharing a physical layer that is used by ethernet.


Must my new air conditioning unit be 3 feet from the wall (or positioned backward)? My contractor installed this system yesterday, at my property:

"Trane T4TTR6060C1000A RX16 5 TON XR16 A/C 16 SEER rating R410A".

Everything is working fine. I just do not like aesthetically how he put it. He turned the control panel to be at the front and the line set comes from the back to the front and connects from the front to the unit. I imagined the line set is supposed to come and connect from the back of the unit. So, all the pipes stay between the wall and the unit.

My contractor explained me that he cannot do it, because he needs 3 feet of clearance for the service area, and that will require to move the unit to much away from the wall if I want it to be connected from the back of the unit.

Question:
What should be a clearance area between a unit and a wall when a line set is connected from the back of the unit? And is it common practice to connect it from the front?

Here are also the pictures of that installation: https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B7uO-n40pIiESGJBdmhlUnFkbDQ&usp=sharing

According to Trane installation instructions, the technician is correct. They do require 3' of clear space in front of the control box.

As for why the technician chose this orientation, I can only speculate. It looks to me like the access panel is on the corner of the unit, which would mean there has to be 3' clear space at the corner. Obviously the technician could not install the unit in these two orientations.

Since then the building would encroach upon the clear space required. This only left him with two choices.

Given these two choices, I would agree that the technician made the best choice.  If the unit would have been installed in the other orientation, it would have potentially left the line sets in the path of folks moving through the gated area at the corner of the building.

In the end. If you're not happy with the installation, you should contact the company and discuss with them what options are available.


relocating weird angled pipes for bathroom sink I recently wanted to upgrade my bathroom vanity and the new one has drawers, so my pipes need to come straight out from under my sink.  The drawn image is what my old vanity looks like with the original pipes coming out.  How hard do yall think it would be to change it from this weird angle out of the corner of the wall to moving it right under the sink? I'm also very new to this, I have had to replace old pipes, but never relocating anything.  The spare bathroom has the same issue.

This is common, particularly with "new space saving" vanity cabinets from that great big scandinavian furniture retailer. You will either need to get very creative, potentially including cutting pieces out of the back of the vanity cabinet drawers, or you will need to open the wall and reconfigure your drain lines to accommodate.

  How hard do yall think it would be?

This would depend entirely on your knowledge and experience with drains, sinks, and plumbing; and in the worse case, with drywall repair. I did this exact job in my bathroom and it was a lot of work but worth it in the end:


Calculating a main floor load bearing wall for 4 story condo I'm seeking help on calculations of a main flood load bearing wall support for our 4 story (basement and 3 floors) condo. The raw area of the condo is 19'6" wide by 27'6" deep. The full length of the existing wall is 15'6". The wall I am trying to calculate is shown in blue on the floor plan picture I have attached.

Thanks for any help
Brett

If you are thinking of replacing/removing walls in a home that may or may not be load bearing, consult a structural engineer or an architect. You do not want to make a mistake that you can not correct in removing something that should not be removed without the necessary supports. Once a mistake is made it may be too late to correct that mistake. Just my  2 cents.


What type of switch do I need to plug into a gosund outlet to open and close a garage door? I have a Gosund switch that plugs into an outlet. I’d like to plug it into the outlet near my garage door opener and open and close the garage door. What type of switch can I plug into the gosund outlet to then wire to the garage door opener. It’s just a simple momentary switch to open or close the garage door. My security camera will let me see if the garage door is open or closed so I don’t need any logic in the switch. I think I just need a momentary switch that will throw when the outlet changes state. Any ideas if such a switch is available?

The garage door needs safety switches, as well as a reversing switch, a switch to detect end of travel (limit switch) and a switch to detect that correct force has  been applied to keep the door closed. Simply turning the power to the whole door-opener on and off does nothing.

If you want to use the Gosund outlet to bypass the remote control terminals, you'd need to rewire the inside of the Gosund switch, or use an external 120 VAC relay to provide only momentary switched contacts without 120 VAC applied across them. From your question, this appears to beyond your current capabilities, and could lead to shocking results.


Coaxial CATV to power line adapter When I renovated my apartment and redid my electrical wiring, I missed the chance to set up network and tv cable too. While internet is fortunately solved by Wi-Fi, I am not so lucky about TV.
The signal is delivered by the provider via coaxial cables. I noticed there are devices on the market that can pass internet signal over power lines and wondered if there is something similar for TV signal? My searches returned nothing. If this is not possible, is there any other way to pass TV signal without a lot of new wires around the house?

There is not really such a product since power cables are unable to carry the bandwidth needed for broadband signals such as CATV.  The best you might be able to do is a remote video sharing device that is hooked to the CATV tuner.  These devices take HDMI from your video source, transmit it over WiFi, and then turn it back into HDMI at the receiver.
This article offers some options:
HDMI over WiFi
To quote a section:

The Iogear GW3DHDKIT Wireless HDMI Digital Kit is the best HDMI
transmitter for most people. Using WHDI, it delivers the best image
from the lengthiest distances, has two HDMI inputs, and can be powered
via an included AC adapter or your TV’s USB 3.0 connection (cables not
included). It’s also the least expensive dual HDMI unit we tested.

I know nothing about this particular unit but it or something like it may do the job.


Grounding rods and testing I'm looking to install a couple of vertical grounding rods for a friend's property in the middle of nowhere (very country - The earth is mostly clay, rocks and sandstone)

From the limited research I've done I believe the grounding rods should be about 2.5 metres deep and 5 metres laterally separated.

My questions are:

Have I got the depths and spacing correct?
How far from the building/foundation should the rods be?
If I'm to hire an auger that can exhume 2.5m depth, what diameter should the auger be? I intend to use a slurry of ground enhancement material <- still not quite sure what this stuff is but I guess it's a good conductor? How many KG's for a 2.5m deep hole of "x" diamater
How can I test the efficacy of the finished job? Looking at ground resistance testers (clamp style) they run in to the hundreds of dollars. Also, do you need two grounding rods driven and connected in order to use these clamp style testers? Do you clamp it on the connecting wire or individual rods? Can the connecting wire be buried or is a that a big no-no?
Is something like this a complete waste of money?
https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/192390605919
It seems a lot cheaper than the AUD$500 alternatives, probably for a reason.
Any hot tips for what I assume will be an incredibly laborious task? I'm guessing an auger is a better choice than a jackhammer with a macgyver attachment to drive the rods, only because I'm using the ground enhancement material, otherwise a tighter drive from a jackhammer would yield better conductivity I guess.

I know if I'm asking these questions it means I'm probably ill-equipped to be doing the job but I'm making the best of a bad/dangerous situation. I'm installing CB's, RCD's and grounding on an installation that is effectively just hardwired, online and unprotected from ground faults. I figure it's a step in the right direction that simply won't happen if I don't step in. It's a case of a friend thinking his electrical "just works" but he doesn't understand the need for further protection. I hope you guys (and gals) understand where I'm coming from. Many thanks.

This is what the generic "National Electrical Code" calls the Grounding Electrode System.  It is USA-published but widely used, and widely subject to the sincerest form of flattery.  My answer conforms with this Code

1)  2.5M depth is fine.  5m separation is fine, but more is better.  On the other hand, copper wires aren't free so I understand if you don't put them on opposite corners.  By using two rods, you are exempt from the need to test the conductance.

2) It's not critical to be close to the building.  More important is to be far enough away not to strike its foundation or nick utilities.  Closer to the building is somewhat better insofar as protecting the ground wires.  You don't want to be on the far side of the property since you want to equipotential bond to the dirt near your house, on the off chance there is a significant voltage gradient across your property.

3) It's not a telephone pole. You don't need to auger it.  Lots of people have found inventive ways to drive them.  Code doesn't care how you drive it.

Often, a fence post driver and some patience will suffice.
Here's a guy working in clayish soil who does it tool-less, he adds a small amount of water to churn the dirt in the hole into mud.  Works for him.
Some people connect a garden hose to a pipe to drive the hole hydraulically. That's kind of nice because it's less likely to damage to any utilities you might hit.   A few people say this leaves excessive voids around the rod; I don't believe it. The ground does not like having voids in it, and they'll silt up after a few rains.  You could accelerate this process.

4) 5) NEC rules say you only need to test if you are on one ground rod.  If you use two ground rods, you are exempt from needing to test/prove the rods. Professionally around here, most installers just install two and don't look back.  Simply because testing is so laborious and expensive.

All rods need to have a ground wire going back to the panel.  The wire must be continuous without splices.  It must be copper. It can be direct buried. I'm not sure if you can daisy chain from one ground rod to the next, but that creates a single point of failure, so I would not.

If you're that worried about it, install three.

6) Don't overthink it or assume it's laborious. Read up (i.e. watch youtube) on how others do it.  It's not a highly technical project, you are sticking a copper rod in the ground.  Success is when the copper rod is in the ground. Acceptance testing is "there are two rods in the ground".

Ground rods do several things for you.

return natural electricity (ESD and lightning) to their source, which is earth.
keep your electrical conductors within 250V of earth, which is useful if there is transformer miswiring or leakage that might pull it up to thousands of volts.
assure that you are not likely to be bitten getting in or out of the tub
help RCDs by providing an easier fault path

Here's what they do not do:

they do not return human-generated electricity to source. Quite often in the North American 3-phase system, people will wire an outbuilding and go "Hey, don't need a neutral, just drive a ground rod" -- nuh-uh.  Dirt doesn't conduct electricity well enough.
they do not make RCDs work.  RCDs don't use ground.  They observe only current on hot and neutral, and want to see that current be equal.  RCDs are a great option if you don't have grounding, so if there are circuits in the building that are ungrounded, slapping an RCD on them is your best bet.