What is the most effective method for getting rid of carpet moths? I vacuum regularly, I put out and replace pheromone sticky strips, I use an insect fogger wherever I see part of the carpet that has been eaten, I have a hand held battery powered vacuum that I use to kill them whenever I see them but...they keep resurfacing.

I have poor respiratory health so I would rather not use harsh treatments but any recommendations will help.

So, I seem to have had some success (after two months of seeing around 6 a day, I'm now seeing about 4 a week).
Tools (my rating out of 5)
5. Sticky pheromone traps - make sure to get them designed specifically for carpet moths.  Put two traps in each room & replace with a new one after a couple of months or if the stickyness is reduced.  Be very careful not to step on them or flip them over because that will ruin their stickyness.
4. Small handheld wireless vacuum cleaner - it is difficult to kill the moths, especially when they are on a wall, without making a huge mess of your walls.  The moths are quite delicate and make a dirty mark when squashed.  The moths don't fly away quickly either so it is really easy to catch them like this.  Even when they are flying, I have found this to be the most effective means of getting rid of them.  When you see one new one, look out for more as there could be a new hatching or possibly the conditions are right for mating.
3. Isolate outbreak! - close the windows and doors to the room so they don't spread to other rooms.  Apparently they stay close to where the lava is and breed there so it is quite feasible to keep them contained.  Keeping your windows shut will stop them going through one of your windows and into another room that way.  Also, I believe the pheromone traps could help attract new moths from outside but I guess they should just get stuck to the trap so maybe not so much of a concern.
3. Vacuum the room often and thoroughly with a powerful vacuum  I vacuum once every two weeks normally but, it takes a while.  I think this is very effective but I give it a 3 because it is time consuming and a good powerful vacuum costs about £300 however in terms of effectiveness this is good.  I did consider one of the automated vacuum cleaners but I have a lot of stairs where they are not very effective.
2. Mark location of sightings - to make it easier to know where to look next time.  I use post it notes on the wall.  It helped me work out where to keep an eye out.
1. Fly swatter - sometimes you see them flying around.  I bought a pack of 10 for £10 and left one in every room, in the hallways etc.  When flying they are really difficult to hit and I found the vacuum cleaner more effective, although when you're relaxing of an evening it is nicer just to not run upstairs to get the vacuum cleaner!
0. Bug spray - I sprayed one room a lot.  It didn't get rid of them, it may have lessened the numbers but seemed to affect my skin and my breathing when in that room for a couple of weeks afterwards.  If you need to use that room, have asthma, pets or children I don't think this is a good option.
Good luck, I do think it may be a few more months before I'm completely rid of them and quite possibly I will always have to keep an eye open (apparently the neighbours have them and they are a particular problem in my city so new seeds for infestation could quite easily occur.


How to unscrew screws that are barely accessible? I need to remove the face of a fake drawer that is screwed from behind. Unfortunately, a kitchen sink is preventing me from using a screwdriver. There is approximatively 4cm of space. The screw head is a PZ2. Is there a tool can could help me remove this screw ?

You can use a ratchet handle with a screwdriver bit attachment, like this:


Constant humming noise in house I'm looking for ideas on what might cause the very deep hum I hear in my house when it's quiet. It's been present 24/7 for many years. When I'm alone in the house and nothing is turned on it's actually loud enough to be annoying, but it's not loud enough to record on my phone.

I live in a semi-rural residential neighborhood with no industry within miles. I can turn off my main breaker and the noise still present, so I assume it's not coming from inside my house. I'm 2 to 3 miles from an Interstate highway. Most of the time when I'm outside I cannot hear road noise from the highway. We have county water but no natural gas or sewer. It's slightly louder in my basement. It's not louder near where the water pipe enters the house.

It could be the transformer for your house. Do you know where it is?  On a pole?  In a box on the ground?  The noise should be distinctly louder as you get closer.


Custom pocket door with insulation, water pipes and tile! So I have a little house and would love to use pocket doors all over it. It seems the Johnson hardware 1500 series doors with the ball bearing rollers have great reviews and slide like butter. So I'm going for those. I'm thinking of just buying the hardware though to frame out my own 2x6 walls.

A few concerns I have are noise, the ability to run shower plumbing, and tile in the bathroom against the door and having a wobbly wall.

I'm thinking of constructing the doors as in attached image. There is a 2x6 top plate and 2x2 bottom plates on each side of the door. 2x4 (or maybe 2x2 if it would be solid enough to allow for more insulation) studs on each side of the wall. 1" rigid fiberglass boards between studs on each side for sound control. 1/4" underlayment backing on each side in the door cavity. This leaves me with 3/16" of space on either side of a 1.375" solid core heavy door.  Where needed I should be able to run the plumbing between the insulation for the shower. My thinking is this should control the sound and be very sturdy as not do break/crack a tile installation.

What do you guys think? Am I missing anything here?

3/16" is an awfully fine clearance for a pocket door.  Unless the door is moisture-proof, the door is going to bow (and therefore jam when moved) whenever there is a humidity difference across it such as when there is a shower in use.

That is a completely unacceptable place to run plumbing.  Heck, getting 3/4 inch galvanized pipe crossing each other inside a 2x4 wall is a challenge and not something a mechanical inspector wants to see unless the circumstances are truly difficult.


Problems with ceiling light About 2 years ago, I replaced all incandescent bulbs in my house with CFLs. One light in particular worked fine for a while but later began behaving strangely. Over the past year or so, the light would show normal intensity for the first couple of minutes and then suddenly step down to a lower intensity, where it would remain. Since the light was still bright enough, I ignored it. Last night, I noticed that the light no longer works. When I turn the wall switch on, the light will sometimes go on for about 15-30 seconds, but then the light goes off and remains off. Other times, when I turn the wall switch on, the light does not go on at all.

Is this issue likely related to the CFL bulb, the bulb wattage, or the wiring? Or is there likely another, more serious problem? Should I go back to an incandescent bulb? Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.

CFL and LED bulbs differ from the classic incandescent bulbs because they both have electronics inside them to make them work.  If they behave odd at all, those electronics should be the first thing to suspect.  Just replace the bulb and see if the problem goes away - no need to jump to conclusions of faulty wiring.

I've had CFL bulbs die in a few days, and I've also had them last years (still working now!).


15-year-old fridge goes "clunk" at end of cycle Started happening a few years ago, unclear whether it has gotten any louder or whether there's anything that makes it better or worse. I don't think it was this bad when new, though.

Functionally, fridge still seems fine. It was off-the-scale efficient when I bought it in 2000; it's probably average or below by today's standards.

I've gotten used to this clunk/thunk/thud noise and mostly don't notice it. I've assumed that it's the compressor being pushed back a bit as power is removed, or something like that. But it occurs to me that one of you might know what it is and whether it can be quieted at all; I now have a guest bedroom next to the kitchen and I'm sure visitors would appreciate not having to hear it hiccup quite so loudly.

Sounds like a broken  or worn-out "vibration damping mount.the inertia of the internal moving parts at shutdown will cause the hole compressor to rotate up off  of the mounting  and slam back as gravity and the rubber nounts return it to its normal position. Common caus of the noise you describe.
Fix find a similar mount to replace the broken one. At a used appliances store,or appliances disposal site for free,or order from the manufacturer.
  Gumby stay flexible.


Is this switch wired correctly? I'm trying to figure out why my hallway was wired in such as strange fashion:

I have two hallway lights and three switches.  Switches 1 and 2 appear to be 3-way switches; if they are both ON or OFF, light 1 is on.

Switch 3 appears to control Light 2  if and only if Light 1 is ON, otherwise it has no effect.

The wires in the junction box for Switch 3 are illustrated below.

When Light 1 is on:
When Switch 3 is OFF,  Terminal 2 = 120V, T1=0v.
When Switch 3 is ON, T2= 120V, T2=120v

Things get confusing when light 1 is off:
When Switch 3 is off, the voltage at Terminal 2 is about 12 (not 120), and when Switch 3 is on, it is about 2.

My guess is that the bottom of Switch 3 leads to Light 2, and that the top left of the box for Switch 3 is the return, while top right goes to Light 2.

Is this plausible? Correct? Common?

It sounds like the original intent was that Switch 1 and Switch 2 were supposed to be 3-way hookups to allow Light 1 to be controlled from two locations. It sounds like this part is working just fine.

My guess is that Light 2 was meant to be operated by Switch 3 from a single location. Whoever wired in Switch 3 thought they could tap into the power circuit someplace related to the Light 1 setup. In the process they did not get the power tap correctly connected from an always connected power source and instead either connected it to the Light 1 load side or into one of the travelers that connect the two 3-way switches.

It is difficult to fully visualize just how this may be miss wired without knowing which other boxes the switch 3 actually feeds from and what the configuration of the wiring there is in each of the Switch 1, Switch 2, Light 1 and Light 2 boxes. It will be important to ascertain just which of the boxes of the 3-way light circuit has the power feed to it. And then if the Switch 3 is not directly wired into that same box it may be necessary to re-wire the Switch 3 box to a valid power feed source.


Improperly installed or nonexistent brick ties in a wall Is there as easy way to repair a brick wall that isn't properly attached to the wall behind it?  There are no cracks inside the house but there is a large vertical gap between the corner brick - these come out further than the wall - and the wall brick.  The brick wall will move slightly when you push against it.  When the house was being bricked I noticed one day that there were no brick ties on the wall.  I called the builder extremely upset and when I came by the house later brick ties were being used.  I don't have any idea how much of the work had been done before I saw they were not using the ties.  All the brick work done is terrible!  My dad was a stone mason so I might be overly picky, but there is mortar falling out in a number of places, patio Colima are not straight, fireplace brick inside has some joints that are more than an inch wide!  If I could afford it I would have it all taken down and redone . . .  The house was built after the original house was destroyed by a tornado.  Lots of shoddy work was done in the area at the time.  Looking back I should never allowed myself to be pressured into accepting such poor quality of workmanship.  Any help will be greatly appreciated!!

Obviously the ideal solution if the birckwork is generally poor is to rebuild the wall.

In this case this doens't seem to be an option. To replace existing ties that have problems or sections of the wall where ties are missing you can get drill and fix wall ties. I believe you can get this type of system from Helifix in the UK but I'm sure similar systems exist around the world. You can get systems that rely on some fairly unattractive face plates but other systems do not rely on this but have a resin bond to the brickwork. You will probably need specialist advice on what the right system for you is and to identify if there are any other issues associated with the poorly constructed wall other than the lack of ties.


Choosing a grout color for a large brick patio I am install a large brick patio, about 500 sq. ft.   We are planning to use a sand grout but want to get a sand color rather than a grey color.  Is this possible and, if so, how?

Outdoor brick patio's do not use grout, they use polymeric sand and typically it only comes two colors, grey and tan.

You could do some research to see if it is possible to dye it but not sure how it would hold up to the rain washing through it.


What's the best way to remove dead weeds from cracks in concrete? I just sprayed 'natural' weed killer and now I'm left with dead weeds. How do I go about removing them?

Do I used a gardening knife or something? It's hard to get into the cracks.

If this was my home, I would do the following to remove the eyesore and minimize the repeat of it happening in the future:

Remove what I could with a weed trimmer tipping it to get into the crack as much as possible.
Use a power washer or maybe a garden hose with a tight nozzle to clean out the cracks as much as possible.
After it has dried out, follow the methods listed in the following web page to open up the cracks some and fill with a concrete crack filler product.

https://www.quikrete.com/athome/video-repairing-sealing-cracks.asp


How do I prevent mobile home flexible water lines from freezing? I have a 2009 mobile home. It has a flexible water feed line going to the toilet that freezes in very cold temps. I have been told these lines won't break if they freeze. They will just expand and when the temp goes up they will thaw out with no problems. First, is this true? Also is there anything I can do to avoid the problem? I have already added more fiberglass insulation but it still freezes.

If the line is PEX, then yes, it can generally withstand freezing. Thawing is pretty easy with a hair dryer. It doesn't take much to thaw PEX.

If the toilet shares a line with another fixture such as a sink, a simple solution would be to just open the tap and let it dribble when it's freezing out.

But if freezing is the norm for you, then you might need a bit of heat tape. Just make absolutely sure you know what kind of tubing you have before you buy and install the tape. Only a few specific varieties of heat tape are designed to work on PEX. And those that are usually have special instructions on how to install it.


Is Behr primer compatible with Sherwin Williams paint? Can I prime walls using Behr primer then paint over the primer using Sherwin Williams paint?

The brand name on the can doesn't really matter, as long as the products are compatible. Read the labels, if your paint says that it cleans up with soap and water you should be able to use it over any type of primer.


Which patio door should the lock be installed in? We are having some patio doors fitted and they are rebated.

The doors open outwards
The left-hand door opens first

We would like to fit a narrowstile lock with a roller (rather than a catch) and I do not know the answer to the following:

Which door should the lock be set into?
Rebate kits for locks come in left-handed and right-handed form. Given that I have a roller lock, do I care about whether I need a left- or right-hand rebate kit?

The roller doesn't affect how you select and install the lock. Think of it as of a latch of weird form.

The conventional way would be to install the lock onto the door that opens first such that when you are in front of the door and the door that bears the lock has hinges on the right you have to rotate the key clockwise to unlock and counter-clockwise to lock and if the door has hinges on the left you rotate the key clockwise to lock and counter-clockwise to unlock.

This answer has great pictures for door opening directions.

The latter is all about "right-handed" v "left-handed" - with the lock selected correctly you will have it behave conventionally. You can of course install the lock with "wrong" rotation direction (right-handed where a left-handed should go or vice versa) - then it will work okay, but you will have to rotate the key opposite to convention which is a bit annoying. That's the only issue you might have - it has nothing to do with the roller.


How would I fix drooping ceiling tiles? Long story short some of the ceiling tiles in my bedroom are sagging. No idea why, it was like that when I bought the house.

How would I fix this:

once moisture has set into the tile it is basically ruined.  Your photo appears as thought the support wire above the ceiling has come unattached from the grid.  Check your support first.


Reattaching Drain Rod to Trip Lever The trip lever on my bathtub drain has broken.  The small loop on the back of the trip lever drain broke off (see picture) and thus can't connect to the rod anymore.  Now when I went to purchase a new trip lever I found that the connecting loop on the new trip lever was too small to fit into the end of the curved rod (see picture).  Also, my existing trip lever is a Gerber.

Here are my questions:

Do I need a specific kind of trip lever to fit that rod?
If the loop on the trip lever is of a standard size, then how do I connect the loop of the rod to the loop on the back of a new trip lever?

I'd also like to not have to buy a new rod mechanism, but rather just replace the trip lever if possible.

Thanks for your time!

By design,the Gerber brand bucket and wire assembly uses a direct connection between the upper wire and the hole in the trip lever, by simply feeding the wire loop through the hole.

Other brands commonly use a threaded yoke (for height adjustment) and cotter pin at that connection.

You will need to find a Gerber brand trip plate and lever (they are out there) or one designed for Gerber, or fix up a creative work-around with the one you bought.


Bathroom leak / door trim rotten Hope someone can help me with this; as you can see in the pic, one of my door trim situated near my shower was starting to rot at the bottom
Removed the panel and now left with this...
Was thinking of redoing the silicone Inside the shower screen and putting some silcone between the tile and the wall. You can see the membrane under the tile, which stops at the trim, should I continu this membrane before putting trim in place ?
You can see in above pic that the silcone is not done Under the shower screen.
Hopefully someone can advise the best way to fix without having to redo the tile and membrane.

Cheers

The tiles should be ok, except for mold (which is easy to clean). 100% I'd apply silicone under the shower screen (external and internal if possible). Replace the door trim if possible (depending of your budget) if not and if you have a multitool remove the lower part and try your best covering it. Before anything, clean everything and apply an anti mold solution, since probably you already have some dots (based on the extent of the pictures)


GFCI sometimes trips when light switched, or just randomly Every now and then, a bathroom GFCI (nothing plugged in) randomly trips, and also sometimes (<5% of the time) when I turn on the light switch in that bathroom. The bathroom has a GFCI in one box, and two switches (in one box) for light and exhaust fan (not above shower). I assume the light and exhaust fan are not downstream from the GFCI since they remain on when the GFCI has tripped. I also assume all components are around 17 years old.

That GFCI seems to have a downstream connection to another GFCI in another bathroom. I assume that second GFCI just needs to be a regular receptacle, but that is another question :). A GFCI tester indicates correct wiring for both GFCIs.

You need to map the circuit more carefully. Slapping in a tester doesn't really tell you if it's wired correctly.  Noting what goes out when it trips is an incomplete mapping effort.

A GFCI+receptacle combo can be tripped by any of the following:

A device plugged into one of its sockets, which has a ground fault.  Presumably either this device has a 3-prong cord, or energy is leaking to something grounded (e.g. the apocryphal dropping the hair dryer in a sink of water).
Something wired into the LOAD terminals has a ground fault, and the GFCI is correctly detecting it.
The GFCI device itself is malfunctioning.

Nothing is plugged in, so we can check that off the list.  You have no idea what is attached to the LOAD terminals, so that's a big fuzzy question mark.  Then of course the GFCI device itself could be failing.

Now you say you think the LOAD terminals feed another GFCI device. Ohhhhh...kay.  You can do that, but you're basically playing a "Yo dawg" joke on yourself.  The protection is entirely redundant.  The downline GFCI adds no additional protection.  Further, if there is a ground fault downline of both GFCIs, both of them will trip.  Some GFCIs can be "peculiar" about the sequence they are reset in.  This can drive you nuts.  I would eliminate that arrangement if it's feasible to do so.

All receptacles protected by an upstream GFCI should have a "GFCI Protected" sticker or label.

Some people have a big problem with the idea of simply removing a load from the LOAD terminals without knowing exactly what it is.  I somewhat agree, but I would say that if you didn't know it was protected (and there was no label), where's the loss?  If you really want to, you can get a GFCI tester and do an exhaustive search of every outlet that loses power when that breaker is turned off, and see whether it loses GFCI protection if you remove it from the LOAD terminals.


What kind of cylinder do I need for this type of lock? I have a Fleetwood Archetype door lock for sliding doors that I want to improve by adding an external locking mechanism. It looks as following:

The lock is described in more detail in its patent application (US 8186189B2). I need some sort of a cylinder attachment that would let me rotate the T-shaped slot - is there a generic product on the market that would let me do that?
I've tried emailing the manufacturer about this, but didn't get a response yet so I was hoping to solve the problem on my own.

You can use a standard mortise cylinder, but it needs the correct tailpiece fitted
Based on the patent you linked (good find!), your lockset does work with a standard mortise cylinder (item 30 in Figure 2).  However, different mortise cylinders accept different styles of tailpieces to interface with different locksets.  While you appear to have the roller (item 36 in Figure 2) that mates with the T-slot (item 63 in Figure 3) in your lockset, the tailpiece (called "cam" by the patent, item 32 in Figure 2) that interfaces with that roller is missing.  Fleetwood may be able to sell you a spare tailpiece if you ask nicely (using the term "tailpiece" for what you're after should help, as tailpieces are commonly needed spare parts in the locksmithing world); if not, you'll have to have one fabricated (it doesn't look like a terribly hard machine-shop job to me, at least, though).  Once you have the correct part, you can simply attach it to the back of the mortise cylinder's core, provided you have a mortise cylinder that accepts two-screw tailpieces (some use a different style).


What Transformer for Smart video Doorbell I’m wiring a new smart doorbell camera (Eufy brand) It’s intended to replace an existing doorbell, but I don’t have one, so I will be wiring it from scratch. The manual says “make sure the transformer is delivering 16-24V, 30VA of power.”

The doorbell transformers for sale in my local hardware store show slightly different specs. And of course I don’t fully understand them.  I see why we need electricians! But I’m wondering if you can tell me which transformer would be compatible with my doorbell cam so I can buy the right one.

There are 2 doorbell transformers for sale at Home Hardware (in Ontario, Canada)

Transformer #1 reads = 8/16/24 Trivolt Doorbell Transformer
* Primary: 120 VAC
* Secondary: 8 VAC/10 Watts, 16 VAC/10 Watts, 24 VAC/20 Watts

Transformer #2 reads: 16 Volt 10 Watt Doorbell Transformer
* For use with wired doorbells
* Transformer-16V/10W
* Primary: 120 VAC
* Secondary: 16 VAC, 10 Watts

I just don’t see the ‘30VA’ on the package of either of these, and I don’t know how to get that out of the specs provided.  I also read an article here:

https://medium.com/@johndavidback/a-lesson-about-doorbell-installation-e5a3b8ba01c9

where the guy tried hooking his doorbell up on his own and ended up frying it after 2 weeks. These fancy gadgets aren’t cheap so I want to do it right.

OK, you need a transformer that delivers 16-24 volts and 30 VA. The 30 VA is equal to 30 watts. The first transformer you're looking at have windings that will give you three different voltages, depending on what voltage you need. None of the configurations deliver 30 watts or 30 VA. The second transformer gives one voltage, 16 Volts and 10 watts or 10 VA.  Keep looking for a transformer that will deliver what your specifications call for. the smart video systems require more power than the old hard wired ones.


cement cracked around mailbox I cemented my mailbox to hold it steady but the cement cracked and now it is wobbly.  Does anyone know why that happened?  I probably need to dig the concrete out and replace it with new concrete and gravel. I didn't put in gravel the first time. But,of course,I am looking for an easier way.
I need to shore it up. Any ideas?

To determine why the footing broke some more information on the footing such as hole depth, diameter, climate as well as what your cement mix was would be helpful.

My best guess as to why the cement cracked would be that it was not mixed correctly, or simply not enough cement to hold the mail box.

I would not recommend trying to shore it up, in my experience that is always more trouble than it is worth. Your best bet is likely to dig it out and put in new concrete. You said you are looking for a simply solution so take a look at Quikrete or something similar depending on where you are and what you can get. The premixed Quikrete stuff is dead easy just add water and fill the hole.

I like to overbuild so I would make sure the hole is 3+ feet deep, minimum 8 inches diameter and I would set a 4x4 to hold the mail box.


Can I install a ridge vent on simple truss shed roof (no ridge beam)? I am building an 8x12 shed and leaning toward a ridge vent/soffit vents for my ventilation. The gable vents won't really work with the aesthetic on the sides.
I'm building simple trusses using 2x4s and gusset plates. This means that my roof peak is "sharp" (it's going to be 6/12, so I think that means my roof peak angle is 60º).
All of the videos I see for ridge vent installs are on roofs with ridge boards running down the peak. All of these ridge vents appear to be resting on a much "flatter" peak, as the ridge board rounds out the peak a bit.
Will I have any issues installing the ridge vent in this application? I realize I'll be cutting back 1" on each side of the peak for the ventilation, but the rafters will still create a sharp peak every 24".
Or is this just not the way to go for this type of simple shed build?

Your plan to cut back the roof sheathing back 1" on either side of the ridge is the way it is done whether the roof is truss or conventional, framed with a ridge pole.
I have seen formed aluminum ridge caps used over this cutout or the fiber mat that allows the regular shingles used for the caps to cover over the matting. The angle of the roof will accommodate either.
When you cut back the sheathing, it really wont be sharp anymore, there will be 3 peaks, 2 of the plywood, 1 of the framing. The only sharp part will be at the ends, if you choose to leave 1' of the sheathing intact for weather proofing at the ends.


What kind of window is this (and how do I fix it)? I have a single hung (vinyl?) window in one room that is different from all the rest of the windows.  The balance mechanism just failed and I'd like to repair it.  Can someone tell me a name for this window (or even better, a guide for repairing one)?

Instead of a spiral balance or a counterweight, it appears to have a mechanism that is entirely contained within the stile of the window and moves up and down with it (I'd never noticed it before).  One of the sides has failed and the window now sags down on that side when raised.  The balance mechanism has dropped down from the window itself so it can be seen.  It has a metal track and a cord (that I assume is broken).

If possible, I'd like to find a guide on how to attack this thing.  I'm not sure how to properly remove/replace it.  Right now, I can still close the window.  I'd rather not just fiddle and make that part not work.

My internet searching hasn't worked well, so I suspect there's a term for this window that I don't know.  Any pointers appreciated.

I had never seen these before, but I was finally able to track down some information and replace them.  My windows bear a "Viking" name, but I didn't find anyone selling parts under that name.

However, the useful term for these are "channel balance" or "block and tackle balance" windows.  With that term, it's possible to find replacement parts and even some youtube videos showing the process of replacement.


Island under-the-counter refrigerator We recently bought a house that has a free-standing wine fridge placed in a space in the kitchen island (I hesitate to say installed).  We also bought this place knowing full well that unit did not work but with an allowance to replace it.

After hitting up a home improvement store, we learned that the appropriate fridge for our needs would be a "built-in" model that vents in the front.  The problem is that we can only find these styles in 15" or 24" models and the space we have is 20" (apparently the typical size for a "free standing" wine fridge).

We really like the beverage center concept but we don't want to waste 5" nor do we want to redo the cabinets for this.

What should we do with the space?

You can get the smaller refrigerator, and use the extra space to create shelves for bootles. this way you could have refrigerated wine and not refrigerator next to each other.

The shelves would be made to hold individual bottles.

Like this:


Can I stud out a wall without removing the plaster I'm in the process of re-doing my kitchen.  One of the issues I have to deal with is that the original construction is double brick, furred out with 1 inch strips, then plaster over gypsum.  This means that I don't really have enough depth to install electrical boxes, and there is no insulation in place.

Detail:

What I considered doing was removing the plaster and gypsum, screwing steel studs to the furring strips, insulate and drywall.  I realize that this is probably the proper solution.

But, I really don't want to deal with all the mess and disposal issues that removing the gypsum and plaster would entail.

What is the advisability of simply putting a steel stud wall up right in front of the existing wall?

Freestanding steel studs are fine (assuming they are anchored to a sill and top plate). Steel studs anchored to the furring strips are fine. Why wouldn't steel studs anchored to the furring strips, plaster and lath be fine? The only limitation would be if the lath and plaster had significant bowing or hollowing in spots that the new studs came in contact with (minor hollowing would not make much difference).

Also, as you install, you want to make sure that crumbling plaster does not get wedged in a way that prevents the studs from creating a smooth planar surface.

While plaster is not much of an insulator, you still have a bit of air trapped between the plaster and the brick in the furring strip troughs. Add high density batts or rigid foam between the steel studs to improve the R value.

If you are very concerned about insulation, wood studs are poorer transmitters of heat and should be considered. Also, creating a real thermal break by not having the inner wall directly abutting the outer wall would improve the situation. But this approach does eat up interior space.


3 Phase Delta - Wiring a New Machine I have old-school delta 3 phase (no neutral 240v) service to my shop that has 60 amp fuses on the main. I'd like to hard wire a new machine (max 30amp) about 40 feet away by running #6 wire in conduit to a non-fused 60 amp safety switch that would sit next to the machine. Would this be a proper approach or Should I consider a 60 amp safety switch installed with 30 amp fuses? Should I do something else entirely? Is #6 AWG the correct size wire for this run? I need a little bit of voltage drop because this is a 220v machine with a top end limit of 242v and im measuring 243v at the panel. I'd rather not have to add a buck boost transformer for barely being over voltage limits on the machine.
Thanks,
Max

Edit:
It's high leg delta with no neutral (this property is a 100 year old egg ranch). Machine is 220V / 60 Hz 3 Phase / 15 KVA (7.5hp). A disconnect would be nice because I'd like to leave it disconnected when not in use to protect the electronics. I'd also like it in case something happens with the machine and I can't stop the machine at the control panel

OK at 220V your RLA (run load amperage) is 39.2A, NEC Table 430.250 says you can calculate 22A for a 7.5 hp @ 230V. You are saying that the new machine would run on 30A so that would fit the RLA for a 7.5 HP motor. Using that as our guide your minimum circuit amps would be 27.5A. If you machine is actually 15KW then your RLA is 39.2 and your minimum circuit amps would be 49A.

So you either need a circuit that can be fused at 30A (7.5HP) or 60A (15KVA). Your #6 conductors would work just fine. Running a quick voltage drop calculation you are under 3% but you will drop a volt or two. Besides most motors prefer to run a little hot (higher voltage)rather than under voltage.

Because of the discrepancy of the information, I would install a 60A disconnect for the machine, since you can always fuse down, while fusing up could be a problem. Also your machine disconnect must be within line of site, maximum 50' away in an unobstructed pathway and lockable. Whether you want to fuse it at your disconnect is up to you, but never fuse it higher than the main or any upstream over current protection.

Also pay particular protection to @ThreePhaseEel. If it's a 100 year old facility it could very well be a corner grounded delta. You might verify that with a local professional before proceeding.

Stay safe and good luck.


Crawl Space Insulation in Montreal I have the ground floor apartment in a 100 year old triplex on the plateau in Montreal.  It's an 800 sq foot apartment with baseboard electric heaters and I'm currently using over 110kwH per day to heat the house.  Having compared the bills from the previous 2 years which I got from the last owner I can see this is not just down to how the heating is being used.  The 2 apartments above me have significantly cheaper heating bills.

In the 18 inch crawl space under my floor I can see there are 3 baseboard heaters.  I have turned the thermostats on them down but having researched online it seems the recommendation is that the crawl space should be insulated.

The ground is rough and unfinished and last year we had a new moisture barrier installed.  There are water pipes in the crawl space but no machinery.  I have looked at options for insulating and it seems people are saying it's better to insulate the crawl space rather than just the floor.

To insulate the crawl space I am thinking I need to use rigid foam insulation on the walls, and on the floor above the membrane.  Does that sound right?  Is it ok to use rigid foam over the membrane/vapour-moisture barrier?  Is it reasonable to crawl on the rigid foam without it compressing too much?

I can't find much information about insulating the ground but as it will always be below room temperature it seems like it is necessary.  Interested to hear any thoughts about how to go about this and what thickness of rigid foam I should be looking for.

Thanks

I would insulate the outside walls with the rigid foam board insulation like you described first, but do not do the floor at this point in time. Then see what kind of improvement that provides.

I'm not sure what I would do about the existing vapor barrier that's on the walls.  If you leave it in place and put the foam board on top of it, then it's possible that the moisture in the air in the crawl space will permeate through the foam board and condense on the vapor barrier that's against the cold, outside wall.  So you might want to consider putting the foam board behind the vapor barrier, right against the wall, then the vapor barrier.

When insulating walls to crawlspace and/or basement, I have not found a definitive answer as to where a vapor barrier should go.  I have even read some recommendations as to not use a vapor barrier at all; use foam board insulation that has some amount of permeability and just let the wall breath.

I would like to hear from others what their thought are and experiences have been.


Mold in tub caulking I have mold/mould in the caulk/grout of my tub. Before I go about re-caulking it, I want to try killing it.
I've seen sources say to use vinegar or bleach but are these sources correct? I've also seen sources state that some mold will not be killed by bleach (they will be bleached instead).
What is the proper way?

I have used vinegar many times to kill mold. Spray it on the area where mold appears and let is sit for 15 minutes, then rinse off. Bleach kills surface mold but doesn't penetrate below the surface to kill the "root".
You'll want to remove all the old caulking and then clean the area. Fortunately, vinegar works to remove old caulk, so does alcohol. After the area has completely dried, get a quality silicone caulk and apply it to the seam. let it fully cure, about 24 hours.


Why are some light switches giving shocks? Some of our light switches are giving  light shocks and sometimes you can see a spark. What

Could be static - kinda depends on the nature of the shock/spark. Not uncommon in the winter (dry inside the house) to get a static discharge to the grounded screws - try touching a doorknob or some other metal thing before touching the switch - if the other metal thing has the shock then, and the switch does not, that might be it. If you still get a shock from the switch, move on to:

If it's more than just static, call an electrician ASAP...


Do I really need a small fan inside my fridge? I have a three years old fridge without "no-frost" or anything similar to avoid ice build up. Yet there's a fan in the main compartment - about 90 millimeters in diameter and running simultaneously with the fridge compressor. The salesperson couldn't explain why it is needed.

Now that fan started to produce knocking noise which made my almost silent fridge rather noisy. I detached the fan cover, found a neat connector and unplugged the fan and the noise went away.

Now I have two options - either I fix/replace the fan or just leave it disconnected (or maybe remove it).

Do I really need that fan for the fridge operation or is it just useless and can be left out?

It is a pretty strange design to have that fan inside the fridge. But it is needed to circulate the cold air properly within the compartments it self.. it helps avoid mould growth, humidity build up and other horrible things.

-- Fans go out sooner or later.. but they usually start to make horrible noises after 12 months.. I would suggest finding a replacement.. and order 2 or 3 because it will do it after 2-3 years again. That is just how it is

--You could try and source the same dimension fan and voltage from another supplier that is more expensive.. because they put real bearings in that should last 10 years... but it will be a mission.

I am sorry that there is no other real alternative unless you start to go into real DIY and start rearrange everything in the fridge.


Ademco Alarm — identify these things on the wall? Purchased a home built in 1999 and it has several of these things on the wall that are part of an ADEMCO-made security system.

Can you identify what the purpose of these devices?   The yellow light appears to blink when any one of doors in the room opens or shuts.

This is a glass impact/break sensor. It is wall mounted and hard wired back to the control panel. It detects impact and actual glass breaking up to about 30 feet.

Per @Menace, clap your hands near them and they should light up.


Grounding Rod in basement? I purchased an older house and when running some electronics i got a hum. Did some research and trial and error to figure out why What I came to realize its a ground problem in the old house. I have a new electrical panel so I'm up to code but the ground looks like its nothing more than a the copper line hooked up to the water pipes in the basement.
My question 1...Could I knock a small  hole in my basement floor and put in a grounding rod and switch the copper ground to use it?
Question 2 ...would I need to cut the power to the house to safely do that?
Thanks!!

If you get hum in audio electronics, it's almost certainly not the result of a poor electrical system ground. In fact, if your electrical system grounding conductors were all well-bonded but not grounded at all, your stereo would still be perfectly happy.

There are several much more likely potential sources for hum, mostly due to defective power supply filtering capacitors or power supply decoupling capacitors, "ground loops", capacitive, inductive, or common impedance coupling. Unfortunately, isolating the cause and curing it can be an adventure in debugging and diagnosis.

Older audio gear may have electrolytic or tantalum capacitors that have aged and dried out, or they may simply have failed, which reduces their capacitance and increases 60 Hz or 120Hz ripple in an audio component's power supply, causing increased hum. If your power amplifier or receiver creates hum in your speakers all by itself with no inputs attached or the input selector on an unused input, this can be the cause.

Ground loops are created when there is more than one ground path from device A to device B. The multiple paths form a loop, topologically speaking, hence the name. A ground loop is like a 1-turn transformer, and can couple stray magnetic fields from power conductors (or power transformers) at the 60Hz AC power frequency, which then results in a 60Hz current and voltage induced around the ground loop, which can impress itself on the "ground" of the unbalanced signal inputs in one of the devices, which you hear as hum. Ground loops can be difficult to deal with. Unplugging audio cables until the hum ceases, then replugging them one by one can point to a culprit ground loop.

Inductive (or magnetic field) coupling can occur between the magnetic fields of large power transformers (usually found in high power amplifiers) and sensitive magnetic devices like phonograph cartridges, magnetic tape heads, etc. This is why expensive audio gear will often have toroidal power transformers, which result in less stray magnetic fields and less likelihood of magnetic coupling.

Capacitive (or electric field) coupling can occur between high voltage waveforms (like 120V power line) and high impedance signal nodes (like the inputs of preamplifiers and even power amplifiers).

Capacitive and magnetic coupling is the reason quality electronics is packaged in metallic packages: a metallic conductive enclosure will act to prevent electric and magnetic fields from entering the enclosure (the Faraday effect)  causing undesired coupling to sensitive signals. You can easily diagnose electric and magnetic coupling by physically separating audio components. The hum will decrease with increased separation.

Common impedance coupling occurs when an interfering signal (like AC power currents) flow in an impedance shared with another signal circuit, perhaps because of a small-gauge or poorly manufactured powerbar power cord shared by a large power amplifier and a preamplifier. Connecting large power amplifiers on their own circuit, or with their own large-gauge power cord into a different receptacle on the same circuit can benefit an audio installation suffering from common impedance coupling. Making sure the receptacle powering your audio equipment is the first on a circuit run from the electrical panel, and that the run is as short as possible, and no other appliances are on this circuit can also help.

Finally, making sure that the audio cables connecting your audio components are high quality, with good ground shield coverage, can minimize inductive and capacitive coupling to the signal conductors. Make sure that the connectors make good "ground" contact and are not oxidized or corroded (that's why the better ones are gold plated), so that the cable shields can be effective.

Whew. That's a long answer, and my fingers are cramping up. Hope it helps.


How to remove shower handle? I have this handle attached to the shower wall (as a kit):

I frankly cannot figure out how to remove the while plastic piece and the metal piece outside of it in order to pull the large round cover.

Here is what in the back of the shower wall:

Or should I use a saw and cut right at that plastic piece? I am not sure if there is metal in the middle. My saw is not good enough.

Any idea?

Thanks.

There was a screw inside right in the middle. It is hard to see but once removed, the handle is out.


16' Tall Load Bearing Wall I am planning to build a 12'x12' cabin. I cannot go bigger than 12x12, but there are no height restrictions so I'd like to incorporate a loft. I'm thinking front wall at 16' tall and rear wall at 12' feet tall with shed roof. Loft floor will be 12'x10' and tie into side(non roof load) walls at ~8', leaving a 2' gap between the loft floor and front 16' wall. Question is, can I frame these tall(12' & 16') load bearing walls with 2x4's? I will use blocking, and exterior sheathing will be glued and nailed. Thoughts?

Yes. This is called balloon framing: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Framing_(construction)#Balloon_framing

The catch in 2015 is that it might not be all that easy to find 16' 2x4s that are all that straight.

I'd personally go with 2x6's in this case for added rigidity, load bearing abilities, increased insulation space (important on that high wall) and just plain easier to deal with in terms of getting straighter walls.

Unsolicited suggestions:

have you considered leaving the gap along the side wall? That will allow you the maximum head space up in the loft area towards the front (tall) wall.
I'd consider going with a 3' gap rather than 2' just to make it that much easier to get stuff up into the loft (namely furniture).


Is there an advantage to a heater with a ceramic heating body? My supermarket sells two heating-fans that look similar, but one of them costs twice as much as the other. The only difference I noticed is that the more expensive one says it has a "ceramic heating body".
What advantage, if any, does such a heater have? (I need it for heating a home in a standard apartment).

According to the Wiki post regarding ceramic heaters, the heating element in this type of device has a positive temperature coefficient (PTC). This means that as the device gets hotter, the power it accepts is reduced, making this a self-regulating heater.

Resistance heaters using nichrome wire or other high-resistance wire are also PTC but according to the same post, the level of temperature required is much higher.

The ceramic heater would have a greater perceived level of safety, although most of these devices have safety features for tip-over protection.

It's possible (but not researched) that ceramic heaters have a higher production cost. It's also possible that these heaters enjoy a perceived high-tech aspect, as resistance (hot-wire) heaters have been around for decades.


How can I determine what is causing these electrical problems? My kitchen lights are having electrical issues that I am trying to identify probable causes for. When I bought the house, there was an overhead light in the kitchen and several plug-in light fixtures over the sink and stove, all working fine. The overhead light has two switches, one of which is a dimmer. The overhead fixtures are just on a wall socket, and have their own power switches on the devices.

I recently removed the overhead light and replaced it with a fan & light combination. It has both the light and the fan connected on a single regular 110V circuit, both to the same live & neutral connections. For about a week after the installation, the new fixture was working just fine. After about a week, the fan would continue to work, but the lights would not come on. I discovered that if I leave the lights set to "on", but repeatedly toggle the fan's directional switch (if left in the middle, the fan is "off"), the lights will eventually come on and will work simultaneously with the fan. Sometimes the lights will come on while the fan is not moving (switch for fan in the middle) and will go off again when the fan's direction switches. Turning off the fan altogether does not seem to coax the lights into working by itself. If the dimmer on the light is accidentally turned almost slightly, the lights will go out again, and the process has to be repeated after turning the dimmer back up. The fan itself continues to operate just fine no matter what we seem to do.

Shortly after moving in, the overhead plug-in light fixtures I mentioned earlier stopped working altogether. Replacing the bulbs in them seemed to have no effect. They are unfortunately installed behind the cabinets and I have been unable to reasonably test the lights on other circuits. I might just have to unplug them and cut the wall plug off just to remove them.

The two problems combined make me wonder if the circuit might just be overloaded and trying to draw too much power; otherwise I would just presume that the fan is defective.

I don't have the experience to diagnose what is going on, so when I found a DIY stack exchange forum, I decided to ask the question here. What does this situation sound like to you guys? I don't currently have a diagram of what the circuit looks like.

The problem with the light in the new fan/light combo is almost certainly an intermittent connection in the fan unit.

Often these units come with two sets of wires (one for light and one for fan) that you join together at the fixture for operation from a single switch. Your first point of investigation will be to lower the fixture and check that the wire(s) attachments are done properly and securely with good quality wire nuts.

There is also the less likely chance that the intermittent light connection could be in the light part of the fixture itself. This will require careful inspection of all the wiring up to the light socket itself. For some models of fixtures this may require some minor disassembly of the fixture.


How to properly extend the TPR Pipe on a water heater Home inspection revealed that our TPR Pipe on the hot water heater was too short as it stops 18 inches above the floor. We need to fix it so that it is within 6 inches of the floor. I am hoping I can fix it by adding more copper pipe cut to length attached with shark bite push to connect fitting. Is that an acceptable fix? We are trying to avoid cost of hiring a plumber if possible.

Please note, the pipe originally comes out of the top of the water heater, so a straight tube replacement will not work unfortunately. Thanks!

You can buy a replacement TPR drain tube for about $5 at any home improvement store.  Simply unscrew the old drain line, measure and cut the new line, then screw the new line in place.  You'll need two wrenches, and some PTFE tape (or whatever your preferred pipe dope is).

Place one wrench on the TPR valve, to prevent the valve from moving (a pipe wrench works well).
Place the other wrench on the drain tube.
Use the first wrench to hold the TPR in place, when you use the other to unscrew the drain pipe.
Cut the new pipe to length.
Apply PTFE tape (or your preferred pipe dope) to the threads of the pipe.
Use the two wrenches to install the new pipe.

NOTE: This answer assumes a side discharge, threaded TPR valve.

Technically, you cannot use SharkBite® connectors on the temperature relief valve drain. Temperature relief valves can be set as high as 210°F, while SharkBite® connectors are only certified to 200°F. However, your local building department may allow it, so check with them to see if it's acceptable.


What size breaker and wire do I need to run 2 GFCI receptacles and a flood light on exterior of my house? Is it OK to use a 15amp breaker and a 14ga wire (14/2 copper) to run 2 GFCI receptacles and a flood light on the exterior of my home? The voltage is 120.

The 2 receptacles are rated at 15amps and won't be carrying a continuous load very often. Might plug a George foreman grill into it every now and then, maybe some party lights. And an occasional power tool (hedge trimmers, weed eater, etc.). I believe the flood lights are 75w a piece.

Should I go with a 20amp/12ga wire instead?

Update**

It is a new circuit so I think I will go with the 20A/12ga just to be safe and I will check the code requirements for having receptacles on the same circuits as lights!

Lets just it is OK to have both receptacles and lights on the same circuit. Is this an acceptable way to wire it? Using a junction box to divert wire towards the outlets and a separate wire to control the flood light with a switch on the same circuit? Pardon my drawing!

There's no problem with anything you've suggested.  You can use a 15 ampere breaker to protect 14 AWG copper conductors, without a problem. If you feel that 15 amperes is not enough for the receptacles, there is no problem installing 12 AWG wire with a 20 ampere breaker. It's completely up to you what you think is best. If the cost difference is not prohibitive, it may be worth installing #12 on a 20A breaker. Especially if you think you might plug in multiple higher load items at the same time (George Foreman and electric mower for example), or may consider adding additional receptacles in the future.

There is also no problem using a junction box to provide power to different devices. As long as the box is properly installed, accessible, sized appropriately, and adequately sealed.

Nothing in electrical code says that lights and receptacles cannot be on the same circuit. It's more of a guideline than a rule. The general idea is that if the vacuum trips the breaker, you don't want to be left standing in the dark.

The only problem I see, is with the GFCI receptacles in your drawing.  You will not need two GFCI receptacles. You'll simply feed the second receptacle, from the load side of the GFCI receptacle. When wired this way, the GFCI receptacle provides protection to the downstream receptacle.


Painting Tape Application - One Foot Sections I have read that one should apply painter's tape in single, one-foot sections instead of a long strip. The reason given is that when it is applied in one, long strip, the tape is stretched and won’t lay flat or stick properly, resulting in paint bleeding underneath the tape.

I just taped 70% of a 14' x 22' foot room with long strips. Is it worth re-taping?

I'd argue it's not worth taping in the first place. Learn to 'cut in' with a brush and you'll save yourself all sorts of headaches in the future.

As for the advice, I have a hunch they don't mean literally tear off 1' sections of tapes, but apply it as-you-go foot by foot. Meaning, expose a foot of tape, rub it down good, expose more tape, rub that section down, repeat.


How can I cut the face flange (no nail fin) off my replacement window to make it a box window for my masonry install? I purchased windows with the face flange but they are too large.  If I cut the face flange off they will be perfect.  What do I use to cut the 5/8" flange off each side?

Vinyl windows for "new construction" can usually have the nail fin cut off with a knife or saw. Then you install the window using the replacement or upgrade instructions. Usually consisting of screws in the sides, insulation and shims.


What is the best way to uncover weeping holes? We just bought a house where an old man lived for 27years.  When he built the place, I doubt that he had any idea that the voids in the brick were weeping holes.  I would like to fix them, but I'm not sure the best way to do it without hurting the bricks.

Use a Plugging Chisel.

  A plugging chisel has a tapered edge
  for cleaning out hardened mortar. The
  chisel is held with one hand and
  struck with a hammer. The direction of
  the taper in the blade determines if
  the chisel cuts deep or runs shallow
  along the joint.


Removing a room stat from central heating (in order to fit Hive) I'm about to fit a Hive wireless thermostat to my central heating system and have a couple of questions.

I need to disconnect the existing room stat - a Horstmann Centaurstat 7 - as this will be being replaced by the Hive wireless stat.

In case you are not aware, a Hive installation also involves replacing the programmer with the Hive programmer replacement that they call a receiver (I have a Honeywell 6400C programmer and it looks like the Hive receiver is a direct wiring swap).

I believe, from looking at the installation docs for the old/existing programmer and stat, that the room stat is wired back to a central wiring point where it effectively sits between the programmer and either the pump or the three way valve.

(To complicate matters we've just had some building work done and I'm not sure I can access this central wiring point any more - which is a whole other nightmare if it is the case)

I want to approach the Hive installation in two stages:

Install Hive with the old room stat temporarily bypassed rather than removed (just in case it doesn't work out for us).
When/if we are happy with the Hive system I will properly isolate the old room stat wiring at both ends so that it is properly unused but can be reinstated without having to run new cabling (the cable run is a nightmare between the wiring centre and the stat location).

So, to the first step.

My understanding is that the Hive receiver talks directly to the room stat and turns the heating on only when both the timer programme and the wireless stat indicate a call for heat (so rather than effectively having the programmer and stat in series in a traditional system, the Hive receiver is the one switch point for the heating).

I am guessing, then, that in order to bypass the room stat and still allow the Hive receiver unit to turn the heating on and off I need to connect the common and call wires at the stat end together (i.e. the wires that are currently connected to these terminals in the room stat).

Are my assumptions here correct?

(I can probably experiment my way through this, but my better half is likely to be a bit unhappy with me having the heating switched off for an extended period while I work this out on a cold November weekend! Therefore I'm trying to do the research beforehand).

Now to the second step.

Assuming that permanently connecting the common and call wires is the right approach at the room stat end, when I come to remove that stat properly and want to disconnect the stat cable from the wiring centre (a terminal block if I remember correctly - and assuming I can still access this terminal block after the building work!) I will also need to bypass the stat wiring as just disconnecting will leave me with a break in the wiring to the pump/valve.

I'm thinking that the simplest 'fix' for this is to replace the room stat cable with a short loop at the wiring centre end and identify it appropriately in case I should ever need to reconnect the wired room stat for some reason.

Once again, I feel I'm making some assumptions here so a second opinion would leave me feeling more confident about tackling this on a cold weekend when we'll probably want the heating off for as short a time as possible.

(BTW, turning off the mains to the central heating system and working safely ensuring nothing is live before disconnecting etc is a given here).

Tackled this at the weekend and my assumptions were correct.

The Centaurstat even has a 'parking' terminal inside (basically a position on the terminal block that doesn't connect to anything) so I moved both the incoming live common and the switched call for heat wires into that parking terminal and all is good.

(Note that the sticker below the terminal block shows that terminal 4 is unused)

When I come to remove the room stat permanently I will need to bridge the corresponding position at the central wiring block.

All good.


Can't get bathroom light cover off! We have tried twisting both ways, pulling etc. No screws visiable. Sorry for awful photo, it's pitch black in the bathroom now!

I see what appears to be threads at the top of the cover/diffuser. A counter-clockwise turn should remove it. I also see paint and drywall mud that MAY be preventing you from turning the diffuser.


How can I build a long-lasting composite deck that’s exactly flush with the ground? I love the look and feel of high-quality composite decking but I want it flush/level with the ground. In other words, I don’t want to step down off the deck. I particularly don’t want my small children tripping/falling off the edge of the deck, and I don’t want railings since I have a small backyard in the city.

Contractors all want me to build it above-ground for airflow, or they say I can dig down 8” or so and build the foundation there. But they caution me that the reduced airflow will cause the treated lumber foundation to rot over time. I don’t want that.

Please be creative with your answers. Could we perhaps pour concrete first and then put composite on top of something made of plastic?

Use the composite planks as supports.

Create a void where you would have your deck.  Make it two plank thicknesses deep.  If your ground is soggy you might want to go deeper and level up with chip-to-dust and a vibrator.

lay a weed suppressant membrane.

lay your supports.  These are the same as your boards but spaced out  at 14" centers.  You might want to drive 6" nails into these at either end to locate them horizontally.

Lay you boards over the top with deck screws.  Job's a good'un.


Window unit AC get outlet and plug hot How come when I use an extension cord to run my ac the outlet and the plug of the extension cord gets hot it's on a 15 AMP breaker and the AC states it is pull 12 Amps and there is nothing else running on that breaker

Most AC units say specifically NOT to use extension cords.  The reason for overheating is voltage drop caused by the possible smaller gauge of wire and length of the extension cord.  An appliance rated at 12amps probably has a 14 or 12 gauge cord. If your extension is a smaller gauge, it may be too small for the current and heating up like an old fashion fuse.


Simple shower tile replacement A tile on the floor of our shower stall has come loose. However, in a few months (not much earlier for logistical reasons) we’re having the whole bathroom redone, including a complete replacement of the shower. What I’d like to do is replace the tile quickly and easily and without really caring if it’s a long-term solution or not, so we can keep using the shower until it’s ripped out and replaced.

If it's going to be for a short period of time I'd get some silicone adhesive and use that to put the tile back in. Don't bother grouting either, just use the same adhesive for that too. Just make sure the area is totally dry before sealing in the tile and let the adhesive cure for the recommended time before using the shower.


Condensation on all windows We have air vents in all our rooms. We haven't had the heating on yet (it is 20 degrees C in here). We are in a flat of 4; the other units don't have this problem. The window sills run with water if you touch the windows. We tried leaving top window open a bit in each room, had our check for winter done, but still no luck.

Showers without venting, a clothes dryer that is not connected to a vent or cooking can all cause the windows to sweat. When my wife is canning even our double pane windows start sweating. A dehumidifier can really help reduce the moisture in the home and Eliminate the window condensation or sweating.


What can I do about slow running water in my Whirlpool refrigerator? We have a Whirlpool refrigerator that's 2 years old which has always had slow running water since new. I noticed that when we remove the water filter water runs nice and fast, but with a filter installed, even a new filter, water runs slow. We discovered that some friends of ours actually have the same fridge and it suffers from the same problem. What can I do?

The filter will definitely restrict the flow, but it might be made worse if there is already a flow issue present.

Many DIY waterline install kits come with self-piercing saddle valves.  Compared to the 1/2" pipe they are fitted on (and even the 1/4" supply line), the hole they make is relatively small which reduces water flow to the fridge.

Your best bet is to not use these types of valves at all and instead solder in a tee fitting with a new 1/4 turn ball valve.  If you can't do this, an alternative is to remove the saddle valve and carefully drill a larger hole in the pipe, and then re-install the valve.


Lighted bookcase with capacitive touch hinge A while ago I saw a lighted bookcase at a furniture store whereby you could turn its lights on and off (actually dim them by a couple of levels), just by touching one of the hinges on one of the cupboard doors.

Does anyone know if there are pre-packaged components for such a thing, or what would be involved in setting up my own for a bookcase I want to build?

Yes, there are prepackaged touch switch modules whose input wire can be attached to any convenient piece of metal.


Dishwasher mid-cycle manual fill - possible? I tried a serach but couldn't find a suitable answer, hoping someone here can help.
So, in short our dishwasher was put on last night without the water supply on, noticed it after maybe 5 minutes, so immediately turned it off.  Trying to resolve this, I've pushed some buttons, but can't change the cycle or select a new cycle, to start a fresh wash (with the water supply on this time!).
So, it's stuck mid-cycle, can I just put water in the front/main door and then leet it carry on with it's cycle?
It's an older model, about 12 years old and is a Diplomat ACA 9202, so not a very well known or expennsive brand.

Most dishwashers have a "cancel" option to end the current cycle and start over. Consult the manual, perhaps? Unfortunately what I've been able to find for "online" manuals for this model appear to be from very sketchy sites that don't load, perhaps you have a paper version that's 12 years old?

If no luck there:

Try turning the circuit breaker feeding it off for a minute or more.


How can I replace a missing IKEA drawer slide? I am missing one part of the drawer runner on one of my pieces of ikea furniture. It's the leftmost one in this picture, the part of the runner that attaches to the drawer itself:

Are drawer runners standardized to a degree that I can find a matching replacement part that wasn't specifically made for this piece of IKEA furniture? Or should I remove both parts of the runner from that one side of the drawer and replace with a new runner?

I would purchase a complete drawer slide from IKEA.

They're not expensive and then there won't be any questions as to whether they have changed the mechanics of the device or not.


What is the life expectancy / MTBF of a 60 gal. water heater? Specs:

Capacity: 60 gal.
Power: 4500W
Voltage: 240V
Warranty: 6 years

I have never heard the term "mean time between failure" used for water heaters. Love it.  I can tell you, that on my inspection reports, I advise that the average expected life span of an electric water heater is 10 to 15 years.  If you have very hard water, don't drain it annually to remove sludge, or check/replace the sacrificial rods every 3 yrs, you may not see the maximum life capability. I have seen them last up to 20 years, but that is rare.


garden network and power cables I'm trying to bury cables for my garden. The requirements are to have 12v power for a water pump 30-40 watt (2.5 amp), network connectivity for sensors and a webcam. I want 4 stations at opposite corners - the maximum distance is about 600 feet to the house from a station. From what I've read maximum distance for ethernet is 100m or about 300ft.

I've also been reading about lightning surges and grounding cables. Fiber seems less susceptible to interference and lightning strikes and no 100m distance limitation like ethernet. I know once power and network connectivity is there the camera can plug into that. I'll need another cable for power to drive a water pump.

One person said use flexible PVC conduit so there are no joints underground - should I even use conduit or just buy direct bury cables?

Should I consider some hybrid network system like RS485 or something or just go with fiber?

I've read dual separate conduit if power and data but if fiber and power together in the same conduit this should be OK?

What type of wire would you use for 600 feet 12v 30-40w?

Any other suggestions as to how to achieve what I'm trying to do?

You will want to limit the voltage drop in your DC distribution wiring to 5% or less of the 12V. That would be equivalent to a 0.6V drop. An online wire size calculator suggests that for 600 feet at 3A that you would need to use 1 AWG copper wire.

Cost of that size wire suggests that you may want to consider distributing the AC mains voltage instead and converting to 12VDC at the load points. The reason being is that the amount of voltage drop in the wiring follows the amount of current through the wire. 30-40W at a line level voltage results in less than 0.5A down the wire and 5% voltage drop at 120VACrms makes room for a larger allowable voltage drop than the 0.6V at 12V. The net result is that a much more reasonable wire size can be utilized.

If you use optical fiber cables they could be in the same conduit as DC cables. You may want to separate them from AC mains cabling just because it seems like a good idea to keep AC mains by itself.


Is there a way to mount a crystal ball on a stair post finial? I would like to make my own design finials for the bottom and top posts that hold my stair banister.  I found 4-1/2" crystal balls that I would like to mount on top of a wooden plate that goes on top of the post and the plate is just a little wider than the post.

Is there any way to attach the crystal ball to the post?  Can I somehow drill a hole in it and stick a dowel of some sort in it whose other end would go into the wood?

i've actually done this myself and love the way it looks.  can't tell you how many compliments i receive on it.
but i think the compliments are because i took it a step further and ran some battery powered lights to them, so they double as night lights.
i just glued them in place with an epoxy and they've been holding for 9 years and counting.
i've included a photo of the ball and also tried to cover it up with a blanket to take one in the dark with the light on.
the house is over 100 years old, so i don't mind it not being perfect. if anything, the glue looks like a bit of dust in there.
i just noticed that the first photo also shows the one at the bottom of the stairs...

 :)


Should I cut control joints into a 10' by 12' shed slab? I'm building a 10'x12' shed on a new concrete slab. The plans call for a 4" slab (thicker at the edge).

My question is about control joints. It seems that 10'x12' is right on the edge of what should be done as a single piece. What do you all think? Should I cut a few so that I have 4 5'x6' areas?

Thanks in advance!

This is largely a matter of opinion, but in my experience a 10x12 slab will almost certainly crack. There's no question but that I'd cross-cut it, at least. I might even go so far as to split the length into thirds. Clean, straight lines are preferable to jagged ones, and you can always fill your cuts with caulk to keep the floor surface intact.

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What is this screw's name / type? Seems that recently Ikea and many other menufacturers are using the screw you see in picture (classic 1.5 multi power plug, nothing fancy).

I have never seen anything similar and searching online didn't help much.

Can you please suggest its name so that I can buy a specific tool to unscrew it?

That is one version of a security screw, there are several types.

Used to try to make items not easily opened by the masses so you have to buy another instead of fixing something simple...

Depending on how deep they are I have used needle nose pliers or made a "socket" for them - I see those as a challenge and have boxes of "ordinary" screws to replace them.


How to prevent tree stump from decaying Not sure if this is the right place to ask this question.  I have a very large eucaliptos tree.  I have recently been told by at least two tree surgeons that the tree is dying and should be taken down.

Its a beautiful tree and very large and does present a safety risk.  I can see that part of the base of the trunk is crumbling, however above the crumbling area it all looks good.  We have decided to have the tree removed leaving about 12 foot of the stump.

The question is, is there anything I can treat the crumbling area with to harden it and stop it crumbling further?  I'm not looking to save the tree, but I would like to carve the trunk into something but would need to harden it first.

Where I live there are a lot of old trees (often landmarks) protected by laws as natural monuments. Rotting of tree bases is a common phenomenon while the living parts are saved by a multitude of measures.

Bases are prone to rotting due to moisture and work of fungus and insects. The dead wood is often removed as a measure, so the remaining trunk is hollow. This reduces the overall weight of the trunk, but it has to be stabilized afterwards. This is sometimes done by steel cables connected to ground anchors.

If that is not sufficient, sometimes the hollow trunk is filled with concrete after applying protective substances onto the remaining wood. Additional water draining systems have to be used to prevent further rotting.

All these measures usually can only delay the decay for some time.


What could be causing a dripping sound inside the wall? We have the problem with the dripping sound. Whenever we turn on the hot or cold water on in bathroom on the first or second floor, we can hear the dripping sound behind the wall. Usually lasts 5 min after we turn off the water. We checked all walls. Couldn't find anything. Not sure if should we spend money for plumbing inspection. What could the reason be for this dripping sound?

Often this isn' t a drip at all, but pipes moving due to thermal expansion and slipping in their supports. If it doesn't happen when you run COLD water, that's almost certain.


Install window alone I have recently added 6 new windows to my house (new holes in the walls). I have also purchased 13 additional new construction windows to replace the old wooden ones. I know the process of replacing them; however, up to this point I have always had an extra set of hands with me. I will have a large chunk of time this weekend to install at least a few windows, but the guys are all unavailable (coincidence?). I would like to at least take a shot at doing the smaller ground level windows.

Question: Are there any techniques or processes that could help me in my endeavor to install these new construction windows by myself? My main thoughts are around centering and maintaining appropriate gaps (specifically top and bottom) without having someone on the inside.

I know, silly question, but hoping someone has a tip or two.

Personally, I'd never do this because of the risk of damaging an expensive window, but if someone forced me, I'd place the window from the outside, loosely fix it in place (in other words, prevent if from falling outwards) with a 2x4 across it (you'll probably need some spacers), then go inside and fiddle with the fit.


Damaged Microwave? Plate with metal ring placed inside for 5 seconds I was attempting to warm up some food recently and completely didn't notice that there was a small/thin ring of metal running around a plate I own.

So I put the plate in the microwave to warm up food for 30 seconds and during 5 seconds of warmup, I saw a few sparks.

I quickly stopped the microwave, opened the door and took the plate out.

I have 2 related questions:

Has my microwave been rendered useless because of this?
If microwave is not broken, will any future food warmed up in it be toxic because of the sparks?

Nope, everything's fine. I don't know of & haven't heard of any damage nor hazard unless & until there is physical damage to the microwave itself.


Sub panel install issue I had a sub panel installed recently. The plan was that i will be installing my own breakers.  The sub is running off of the main about 25 feet away in my garage.  I understand that the ground and neutral cannot run on the same bars so why did they install it this way?  Below is the pic of the sub panel!  Can i just remove the bonding screw and attach the ground to a separate bus? Im getting mixed answers from people.

I'd be seriously tempted to email that picture to the licensing board...
I assume from your question that this was installed, incorrectly, by licensed electricians.
Buy a ground bar to fit your panel, note the pre-threaded holes in the back of the panel for the ground bar, move the ground wire to it, and remove the bonding screw. Or call up your "licensed electricians" and have them come correct their error without charging you extra, because it was a blatant error.
You will need a torque screwdriver (or low-value inch-pound torque wrench) for the connections to the ground bar, and your breakers, and perhaps you need to check the torque on the screws installed by your "licensed electricians" as well.


Why is it bad to flush baby wipes? I've always heard that you shouldn't flush baby wipes because

They don't dissolve in your septic system
They can clog old pipes.

I currently live in a modern, multi-story apartment building. There is no septic system and only a few inches of pipe between the toilet bowl and the main sewage line. In what ways can wipes possibly damage this system?

The problems don't stop at your system/pipes.

Just as they don't dissolve in your septic system (should you have one), they don't dissolve in the water company's septic system and can clog the equipment in the local sewage works that isn't designed to handle such "solid" waste.

While one or two wipes from one person probably won't do too much damage, if everyone did it it would cause major problems.

As for problems to your system there's a good chance that the baby wipes will get caught up in any bends - specifically the U-bend in the toilet itself.


Will this switch work for a lamp? I'm building a custom desk lamp and was thinking of doing something "different" or "fun" for the switch.  The lamp will look something like this with a few tweaks.

The lamp will be used in the US.  Will this switch work?  If not, is there an alternative?

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005TX3OEC/ref=s9_simh_gw_p60_d0_i2?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=desktop-1&pf_rd_r=06ZT7A1CPWT1V09TM7YN&pf_rd_t=36701&pf_rd_p=1970559082&pf_rd_i=desktop

One of the Commenters says: "it's made to stick bare wire in hole then screw down to clamp wire in place. 18-22 guage wire is about the largest size you can fit."

18-22 Gauge is not rated for lighting circuits.

Also its Momentary, so you would need some Latching relay to keep the circuit on.


Is the electrical setup of my (rental) house safe? I’ve recently moved into a partially refurbished rental house in Nottinghamshire, England. I’m mostly just wanting to check that it’s generally safe.
The meter is a new (smart) meter, installed in 2018:

The fuse box is not new, and looks like this:

The labels are from my own experimentation. My first concern would be the mixture of circuit breakers and fuses. The circuit breakers are for the electrically heated shower and the downstairs lights. The “B6” breaker has this on the back:

And the “B32” has this:

The second concern is that the circuit breakers prevent the fuse box cover from fitting over the fuses.
An image of the whole setup:

And closeups of the armoured boxes:

DANGER. You MUST switch off the main switch before handling fuses or MCBs on that type of fuseboard.
It's generally safe, but with some reservations.

The use of mixed MCBs and fuses is not in itself a problem. Wylex make retro-fit MCBs and bases to fit in place of the old fuse carriers and bases.

The retro-fit MCBs have a lower ability to clear high current faults (rupture capacity) than the fuses they replace, so may not be suitable in all installations and the electrician should have checked this.

The cover that goes over the fuses/MCBs must have an aperture cut to fit round the MCBs. Without the cover, the gap round the MCBs/fuses may not be finger-proof with the potential to touch live parts. Fuseboxes of this age usually have unguarded live busbars within. Also, the cover is required to contain any molten metal or arc that is emitted if a fuse blows. Without the cover, there is a risk of fire or arc burns.

The black service fuse terminations look okay, but I can't see the top edges which must not have any unblocked holes for cables.

However, the installation does not comply with the current (18th Edition, as Amended) Wiring Regulations, because:

no RCD on circuits
questionable ingress protection (touch safe) on fusebox at front with cover removed, on top side of fusebox where cables enter
non-metallic fusebox may not be combustion-resistant

In general, there is no requirement to upgrade an electrical installation, but there is in rental property.
The law (if you are in England) is the Electrical Safety Standards in the Private Rented Sector (England) Regulations 2020

The regulations came into force on 1 June 2020, they apply to new
tenancies from 1 July 2020 and existing tenancies from 1 April 2021.
The standards that should be met are set out in the 18th edition of
the Wiring Regulations.
The Regulations state that a landlord must ensure that electrical
safety standards are met, and that investigative or remedial work is
carried out if the report requires this.
The electrical installation should be safe for continued use. In
practice, if the report does not require investigative or remedial
work, the landlord will not be required to carry out any further work.
Landlords must obtain a report (usually an Electrical Installation Condition Report or EICR) from the person conducting the inspection
and test which explains its outcomes and any investigative or remedial
work required.
Landlords must then supply a copy of this report to the tenant within 28 days of the inspection and test, to a new tenant before they
occupy the premises, and to any prospective tenant within 28 days of
receiving a request for the report.

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/electrical-safety-standards-in-the-private-rented-sector-guidance-for-landlords-tenants-and-local-authorities/guide-for-landlords-electrical-safety-standards-in-the-private-rented-sector
The lack of RCD on circuits would usually be coded C3 - Improvement required, but if there was also no supplementary bonding in the bathroom, or the sockets might be used for equipment outdoors, or there are other conditions applying, that warrants a C2 - Potentially dangerous and that will require remedial work that must be done.
https://www.electriciansforums.net/threads/eicr-and-rcds-is-it-a-c2-or-c3.172686/
and
https://professional-electrician.com/technical/napit-codebreakers-14/


I left a pound of ice to melt in my shower. Two hours later my downstairs neighbor reported a leak from their shower light fixture Our 4-unit building has identically laid out apartments with a guest shower.  I was clearing some ice from a broken freezer, and left about a pound or less of ice near the drain of the shower to melt away.

Two hours or so later, our downstairs neighbor reported that there was a very small but 'steady stream' of water coming out of theirlight fixture, which looks exactly like this. Since the incident, their light fixture hasn't functioned.

Could the melting ice water have caused a permanent leak to have developed?  In the past, we have taken very very long showers in this shower with no hint of a leak, but hadn't used this bathroom in a week leading up to this incident.

could be the cold has shrunk something, maybe rubber isolation, and the water was able to go around it (something like that caused the challenger explosion)
could be the cold has cooled down the neighbours ceiling and the moisture in the room condensed there, like when you use air conditioning


Refinishing stained wooden doors A little while ago I had a contractor doing building and decoration work.  As part of the decoration, they managed to apply the wrong colour wood stain to door frames, doors and skirting boards.  There are 4 doors and about 20 meters (66 feet) of skirting board. They messed up a few things beyond that as well - and the contractor was fired without getting paid for the work.
I can't afford (money nor time/effort) to replace all the frames, doors and skirting boards, so have to get them to the right colour in some other way.   The wood was stained with very "transparent natural pine wood stain" (as written on the can) instead of using a more opaque version of natural oak.  I would be happy with a darker oak as well.
All of the material is pine. Obviously, I can't simply stain over the existing stain. The very first option is to sand the existing stain down to the natural wood.  This would be quite a bit of work, considering all uneven shaped panels on the doors and curves on skirting boards.
I have considered using a solvent-based paint and then applying wood grain effect (that is something like this product, but it's discontinued).  There are some third-party "wood grain effect rollers or rubbers", but reviews aren't very positive.
The other options is Woodsheen - but I can't find any information on what "suitable preparation" of the surface means.  Do I need to sand the existing stain?
Any other ideas how to re-colour the doors/frames/skirting?

Obviously, I can't simply stain over the existing stain

I dunno why not. The simple solution to making the wood a darker stain is to add more coats and/or use a darker stain. It's quite common to apply more than one coat, mix stains to get the color you're after or apply different colors in sequence. Most of the wood trim in my house has multiple coats in multiple colors, and some has been applied with many years between the trim being applied, so the color match was simply done by eye.
If you have some scraps, do some testing on those as follows:

Apply one coat of the same stain, using the same technique as was used on the existing woodwork. This will give you a baseline that's as close as possible to what you currently have.
Apply a second coat of the same stuff to a small portion of your sample.
Apply a heavy second coat of the same stuff to a small portion of your sample.
Apply a slightly darker stain to another small portion.
Apply a much darker stain to yet another small portion.

Rinse. Lather. Repeat. Until you have the color you're after. Replicate those steps on the rest of the trim to replicate the results.
You may end up having to buy 3 or 4 different color of stains to try things out until you finally wind up with what you want. Just make sure you keep detailed notes on each sample section so you know exactly what you did so you can reproduce it when you find what you're after.


CSA Approval for use in New York State sufficient? After extensive research, I'm interested in using a specific product for roof ventilation (http://www.ventilation-maximum.com/English/product-model303.html). All conditions for installation as per the manufacturer's installation requirements are satisfied.

The manufacturer is based in Canada and the description says it is CSA approved. Now my question is if that CSA approval is enough so that I can use it here in New York state.

A CSA certified device will have the CSA mark on it (obviously).
But below the stylized CSA you may see some other letters, like this one has:

If your device is certified for use in the USA, then it will have the US in the lower-right corner or directly below.
No letters below means that it is only certified for use in Canada.
See CSA Marks & Labels for North America for further detail.


Tub drains very slow I've been trying to fix a extremely slow draining bath tub for awhile, but still can't get it right. Here is the work that's been done:

Ran 25 feet of cable from a power snake (drill powered) 3x's. Results: some black gunk on about the first 12 inches of line and a few strands of hair. No change.
Plugged the overflow valve and plunged the hell out of it. Results: (this is interesting) removed 2 handfuls of acorns that the local Woodpeckers deposited down the roof vent! I continued until no more could be removed. No change.
Pushed an expanding pulse bladder down the roof stack about 7-8 feet and ran it for 5-10 minutes. Results: no water backed up from any other drains. Opening the nearby clean out I could hear water running! But still No change.

The sink that is in the shared bathroom drains perfectly. There's a clean-out 5 ft. outside the window. I've opened the wall were the drain is located, but it takes a direct 90 into the slab. One of my guesses is the drain stopper used to plug the drain for a bath some how broke off from the lever. It's an unbelievable plumbing problem that has me completely stumped.

It may be time to call in a professional with a piping inspection camera system or rent such unit yourself and do an inspection of the drain line from the tub down into the sewer. This would clear up any concern that there may be a blockage or loose article that has entered the drain system.

The report that you had already removed a bunch of acorns from the roof vent line leads to concern that this vent is still clogged to the extent that free air movement below the tub trap is not being allowed and that the tub drain ends up with an air lock and thus cannot drain properly. It may be well to also scope out this line down from the roof with the piping inspection camera. (Do also make sure to install a screen on the vent pipe to prevent insertion of more acorns).

Since you already made attempts to clear the roof vent line is it somewhat possible that the vent was never installed correctly from the original construction and that this tub never drained properly. If that is the case then it may become necessary to install an additional vent pipe. The need for this of course could be eliminated if it was known of this particular bath tub did drain properly in the past. That could come from your own experience or consulting with previous owners.


How can I reconvert a natural gas fire from propane back to natural gas? A friend gave me a Napoleon B36DFN gas fire, and had it converted to propane and there is a tag on the fire that states the conversion happened using #54 connection. I now wish to convert it back to natural gas, and for the life of me I can't get an answer from the manufacturer Napoleon. I guess its a liability thing! I live in Canada.

I googled 'Napoleon B36DFN LP conversion' and the very first hit is for page 17 of the user manual for that fireplace.  See here:   http://bit.ly/1HHpEP5

It states in relevant part:  "To convert from Propane to Natural Gas order conversion kit # W175-023"

Googling for 'W175-023 conversion kit' yields a link to the kit on Amazon...  $42.  http://amzn.to/1Dgwzie

If I were you, however, I'd certainly do a bit more detective work to make sure it will work for you.  Good luck.


Do I need jack studs for a [remodel] closet header that is perpendicular to ceiling joists? Closets used to have full 8ft sliding doors.  Converting to bifolds that are 6'8'' tall.

So I need to put in a header and frame it out to standard size.

The ceiling joists run perpendicular to the closet doorway.

Can I nail the header to the joists and call it good (since the header will only be bearing the weight of itself and the doors)

Or should I put in jack studs to help transfer weight to the foundation?

I'd build a stub wall using construction screws (for better pullout strength), and I'd double the bottom plate. I'd then screw (not nail) to the joists through the top plate, and to the king studs through the ends. You wouldn't need to remove drywall on the ceiling if you use at least 3" screws.

This will carry drywall and trim just fine and will be laterally rigid enough for your purposes. Bifold doors don't normally hang on the header these days.

Note: If the ceiling drywall is mounted to something other than the ceiling joists, such as to sheet metal angles attached to the wall plates, this is to deal with seasonal truss lift. In that case you shouldn't hang your header from the ceiling joists as it'll possibly move on a seasonal basis, tearing up the drywall with it. You'd want to rest it on the wall using a conventional trimmer setup, and it'll need to be robust enough to span the opening without sagging.


How to add indicator on a light switch to indicate the outdoor 3-way light is on? Have some carriage lights outside my garage that can be turned on from inside the house. It's common that the switch will get flipped and the lights will stay on when they're not wanted.

Is there some way I can add an indicator to the light switch so I can know if the light is on?

Note: the carriage lights are on a 3 way switch.

You need one or two 3-way switches with pilot lights. These are also called 3-way switches, illuminated ON. Some have an illuminated toggle, some are decorative style and some have a separate light. These are examples (not that none of the ones shown below are actually 3 way switches)

These switches generally need a neutral wire at both switches. Conventional unlighted switches do not need a neutral. They also need three wires (other than neutral) running between the switches.

If you only want the pilot light in one location, you still need two 3-way switches, but only the lit one needs a neutral.


De-airing / venting central heating (Bear with me, I'm a non-native English speaker from a non-English speaking country, so my terms may be a bit off.  If anything is unclear, please inform me of this and I'll attempt to clarify.)

I've currently moved into a new house and I have some issues with my heating.  My heating system works with water, and at first, I figured it was just there not being enough pressure - as there wasn't - so I decided to raise the bar - if you'll pardon the pun - and it works fine for most of my rooms.

Unfortunately, the bedroom is still cold.  I can sense almost no heat coming from it and it makes loud ticking noises from time to time, so I was told to vent the air from the heating system, as likely this would resolve the issue.

Having done some research, however, I run into contradicting information on how to proceed.

1) Is it okay to vent just one room?

2) If not, where do I start?  Everything online says 'start at the bottom', but several friends have had repairmen over at their places, claiming the workmen instructed to start at the top of the building in the future.

In a bowl of water, the air goes up, so I guess I can see how that'd work, but their advise obviously clashes with everything I've found online so far.

Could anyone explain this to me?

In the UK, the term I'd associate is "bleeding the radiators", and there will be a little valve at the top of each radiator to release trapped air, something a little like:

These are typically operated with a "bleed key" (the brass object resting on the fins of that radiator), or sometimes the valves are also slotted for use with a screwdriver - they typically require less than a quarter turn to operate, and you'll either hear the air hissing out, or see water dribbling through - Always have a cloth or rag held close and tight to the radiator as water will come out once the air has gone.

With regards to picking an order, every system is different, and you'll come to learn which radiator tends to fill with air first (so in my case, it's the one on my upstairs landing, next to the hot water cylinder cupboard, but in my parents house, it's the one in their downstairs hallway). As the system is new to you, it may just be a case of doing each in turn.

You should check the pressure after bleeding, especially if there was a significant amount of air trapped.


Converting can light to pendant fixture I currently have 6 can lights in my kitchen. I would like to convert one of them to a pendant light. I know there are kits to do that but my question pertains to how to get the pendant light to go on and off separately from the remaining can lights? I would rather not tear out drywall to add a new line if possible. Also, the can lights are currently run by two different switches (at each end of the room, which may complicate matters. Thanks for any advice!

If all of the can lights are on you can install a pendant light that has an independant pull switch. However, this will only work if power is going to all lights currently wired together. If you have a junction box in the ceiling near the can light you are converting: You could bypass that particular can light in the circuit and run new wiring to the new pendant light that has a pull switch.