Does this violate electrical code? (UF run plugged into GFCI to use smart outlet) I built a deck on the back of my house last year and installed a new breaker and a handful of outdoor electrical outlets. I wanted one outdoor outlet to be switchable via a smart outlet, but my smart outlets aren't waterproof so it had to be inside the house.

As a solution, I installed a GFCI next to my breaker panel. I have my unswitched outlets coming off the load side of the GFCI so they are protected. For the switched outlet, I installed a plug onto the end of the UF wire run so I could plug it into my smart outlet.

This is the part that seems iffy. I think I'm good on bend radius and wire support, it's not subject to continuous flexing and it's relatively protected from damage due to the remote location of the panel (although I could protect it further). It just doesn't quite feel right to have a permanently-installed circuit plugged into an outlet, despite being a clever solution to my problem.

I'm using a 15A non-AFCI/GFCI breaker and 12 AWG UF wire. I ran 12 in case I ever wanted to upgrade the circuit to 20A, but my smart outlet is only rated for 15A anyway.

Is there anything in the NEC that prohibits this? I have access to a full copy of NFPA-70 2014 and would like specific references.

I'm willing to change whatever I need to be code-compliant, but I still want to be able to be able to switch my outdoor outlet via some sort of smart-home device.

It does violate the NEC (assuming that you are in the US and the NEC applies to you). UF cable is not designed to connect to portable cord devices, portable cord devices are not designed to accept UF cable. Article 110.3(B) states: "Listed or labeled equipment
shall be installed and used in accordance with any instructions included in the listing or labeling." You will not find any instructions with the listing or labeling saying you can do this, ergo you cannot.


How many 14/2 romex cables can I put in a 1/2 pvc conduit? How many 14/2 romex cables can I, according to NEC (or safely), put in a 1/2 pvc conduit? For background: the conduit will be buried until surfacing in a junction box; using burial-rated "romex"black but want the additional security of conduit.

Use individual THWNs here instead, or else prepare to face the full wrath of the fill rules (and the electrician that comes over to rescue your pull job!)

A 1/2" schedule 80 PVC conduit has 56mm2 of usable fill for individual wires, or 75mm2 of usable fill for a single wire or cable.  A 14AWG THWN takes up about 6.3mm2 of fill; however, a multiconductor cable's fill is computed as if it were a round wire with a diameter equal to the major diameter (long dimension) of the cable (Note 9 from chapter 9 of the NEC):

  (9) A multiconductor cable, optical fiber cable, or flexible
  cord of two or more conductors shall be treated as a
  single conductor for calculating percentage conduit fill
  area. For cables that have elliptical cross sections, the
  cross-sectional area calculation shall be based on using
  the major diameter of the ellipse as a circle diameter.

As a result of this, given that a 14/2 UF cable has dimensions of 0.185" by 0.385", as per Encore Wire's specsheet, or 4.7mm by 9.8mm in handier units, we then get an effective fill area for a single 14/2 UF cable of just over 75mm2!

Given that a single 14AWG bare copper conductor for the EGC counts for 2.1mm2 of fill, you can get 4 hots and 4 neutrals (i.e. 4 circuits) + 1 EGC (which all 4 circuits can share) into your conduit without busting the 56mm2 fill limit and allowing the conductors to carry their full permitted 15A still due to the way the derate rules work.  Compare that to the 75mm2 UF cable not quite fitting down the conduit by Code, making you emit profanity all the way through the pull, while only providing a single circuit to wherever this is going.

(Of course, this conduit will let you run a bigger feeder there if you want multiple circuits at the destination, too -- you could get 3 10AWG THWNs + a bare 10AWG ground down there and power your 4 15A circuits from a subpanel that way, instead of stuffing more 14AWG wires down the conduit.)


Can I wire a water heater and tanning bed on the same 220V circuit? Can I wire a water heater and a tanning bed on the same 220V breaker. I live in Ohio.

The 2014 NEC is adopted in Ohio.

You need a dedicated circuit for these appliances:
Refrigerator, Freezer, Electric range, Microwave, Water heater, Washer, Dryer, Dishwasher/garbage disposal, Furnace, Heat pump, Air conditioner (central and window), Sump pump, Hot tub/Sauna/Jacuzzi

A furnace requires a dedicated circuit.[422.12]

Dwelling units require at least one receptacle outlet for the laundry area. [210-52(f)] Laundry receptacle outlets in dwelling units must be fed from a 20-ampere branch circuit. Receptacle outlets outside of the laundry area are not permitted on the laundry circuit. [210-11(c)(2)]

If an appliance is a chord and plug type and it exceeds 80% of the branch circuit rating then a dedicated outlet is required. If the appliance is fastened in place and is rated for more than 50% of the branch circuit then that circuit must be dedicated. [210-23(a)]

Here is a terrible reference, but:
http://electrical.about.com/od/appliances/qt/DedicatedCircuit.htm makes a good point, "A good rule of thumb is that if it has a motor, it needs its own circuit."


Scraping paint globs off textured drywall So I am not a pro painter and when I rolled my newly drywalled and orange peel textured ceiling I didn't go in a pattern.  I just rolled straight across.

There are areas where there a globs from excess paint on the side of the roller.  Needless to say, I'm going to do another coat (this will make 3) in the opposite direction in more of a pattern (I.e. No straight lines).

My question is:  how can I remove those globs without making it completely obvious that there were globs there and still preserve the orange peel (as best I can)?

There are solvents that will remove dried latex paint. I don't like recommending them as they are smelly and volatile but I do not think anything else will work for you. If you try to scrape them off or spackle over them you will just make a bunch of extra work.

Use a light touch with a rag to smear and blend down the globs and be prepared to apply additional coat(s) in those areas.


Rectangular electrical box doesn't fit. How can I install receptacle? I'm trying to install a duplex receptacle. The problem is that the hole in the wall doesn't have the threads for the screws that hold the receptacle to the wall.

I purchased a regular rectangular steel electrical box, but it doesn't fit in the wall; it's too big.

What options do I have?

Thanks.

Is this already an existing box (just with damaged threads) if so then you can use some 1" #10 wood screws instead of the mounting screws that come with the outlet, this I a common problem I run in to on service calls (I am a apprentice electrician).

The other thing is that box you purchased is not a typical wall box instead you may want to try an 1104 box like this

And if you are mounting it to the drywall instead of the stud (common when drywall is already up) use some f-clips to support it it is hard to describe the installation in text so try this simple youtube video or you can use a rework box such as this as they are much easier to use but a bit more expensive (still under $10)

I hope this helps


is there maximum of live wires allowed in one conduit I have a light switch panel that has multiple switches to control different lights for a big area. The panel is located not in the most comfortable place, therefore I am planning to move 6 switches to different location around 5 meters away from original panel.

My plan is to use 3/4" EMT to put all the wire inside.
I would use the same 12AWG wire as it is in the original panel.
EMT will be connected to 6 metal cases with the switches I'm going to move.
EMT conduit will be connected to the ground bar in the breaker box (it is next to the original panel)

In the end there will be 6 live wires going towards the new switches and 6 back to the original panel from where wires are distributed in the walls of the building. Light fixtures are all LED with maximum of 150w load per switch.

My question is, is there any safety concern? For example can that many wires in one place overheat or create dangerous magnetic fields, or conduit grounding is not enough?

Thank you in advance for all the answers :)

There are two conduit factors:

Thermal derate

Yes, overheating is an issue, but the limitations don't really start to pinch until you have more than four circuits.

Generally in a split-phase system, the rule of thumb is 2 wires per circuit (a circuit being something powered from one breaker where all handle(s) throw together) ... unless for some reason current is making 2 round trips down the pipe.

More precisely, you count the number of "wires" with some exceptions.  Grounds are not counted. In residential split-phase, neutrals in MWBCs or 120/240V circuits are not counted, because current flow on them means less current is flowing on another wire.

Broadly, wires which split current from the same breaker are counted as one.   In a fan+lamp circuit where one hot feeds two switched-hots, the two switched-hots count as one wire.  Something to think about if you don't actually have 6 breakers feeding this.

If your adjusted wire count in a single pipe <= 9, no de-rate is necessary for 15-30A branch circuits provided you are using 90C rated wire (THHN or THWN-2 or XHHW-2 or several others).

If you have 10-20 active wires, you must de-rate the wires as follows:

wires on a 15A breaker must be #12
wires on a 20A breaker must be #10
wires on a 30A breaker must be #8 Cu or #6 aluminum.

In turn, the larger wires require larger pipe.

Conduit fill

For this, you can use any common web calculator.  You appear to be fine for 12 wires in 3/4” EMT up to #10 wire.


Fitted Cupboard With Angles - How To Prevent Tops Of Doors Catching When Opening? I designed a fitted cupboard to fit into my roof space and without any prior experience to building a cupboard with complex geometry (and not very square and level walls/floors) I've run into a major issue when trying to hang the doors.

I'm using concealed cupboard hinges such as these.

I originally planned to have the doors open out from centre on each cupboard pair but not considering the roof would impede this I'm having to open left to right.

Problem I now have is the very top corner (top right) of each door is catching on the upper frame.

I can't use butt hinges as the doors aren't recessed in to the cupboard.

I did think about squaring off the high peaks but not 100% sure if this would help and it would ruin the look I was going for...Wanted that 'false wall' look.

I could also trim the doors down, but this would leave a very noticeable line/gap around the doors.

Any help and advice greatly appreciated. Having difficulty finding the right guidance...Need to speak to an expert that understands the problem...main problem...should have paid someone to do it :D

Main structure:

With Doors:

Current Real WIP:

Closed Current Tolerance:

Where/how it is catching:

Internal view of hinge:

Is the problem that the rear corner or rear face of the door collides with the face (or the front edge) of the cabinet box?

Concealed hinges are adjustable for the gap between the door and the cabinet box/face when the door is closed. People like the gap to be as narrow as possible, but some minimum amount of gap is needed so that the door can rotate about the hinge without hitting the cabinet box. Maybe you have the gap adjusted too tight. With that style of hinge one of the screws adjusts the door right and left (when closed) and the other screw allows adjustment of the gap. To me it appears the rear screw adjusts the gap.

Those look like very heavy/wide doors. By that I mean they'll apply a lot of leverage against the hinges. It might be worthwhile to again consider using two doors. Instead of putting one hinge on the left and the other on the right as originally conceived, install the hinges on the right-hand edge of both doors.


Removing silicone caulk from counter I have a granite counter top, and a small granite backsplash that sits on the counter and goes up about 3 inches.  There's about a 1/8" gap between the two that had silicone caulk which I am trying to remove so that I can replace it.

Most of it is out. However the upper side of the gap is almost impossible to get perfect.  Wondering if there is a tool, material, or technique that I could use that I just don't know about.

A utility knife works pretty well for me.

If it truly is granite, it is difficult to damage with steel blades, except by repeated slashing.

Of course you won't be able to remove every shred of the old caulk, but as long as there is significant clean and bare edge in the gap, it is good enough to hold a new application.

A powerful shop vacuum mated to a crevice tool slowly run along the gap should do great job of getting all the dust and crud out and maybe remove some loose old caulk unreachable with the knife..


Does a GFCI-protected bath light/fan unit need separate neutrals? I hope there is an electrician on this forum who would know the answer to this. I am in the US and must have permits in my area and install per NEC.

This is new construction. Installing a fan/light unit over a shower. I ran 12-3 Romex to them. They are being fed from a load side of a GFCI circuit. They will be sharing the white neutral wire.

Are there any issues with shared neutral when you have a GFI? or must they have separate neutrals?

Any issues with the GFCI not functioning as designed doing it this way?

Any issues with the NEC codes?

Anything else I should know?

see picture of how I have it wired.....

Generally speaking, you don't want to have a fan/light - or more specifically, a light - on GFCI because if the GFCI trips due to something else on the circuit then you are in the dark. As I understand it (I am not an electrician, but I have seen other questions on this topic and I heard this from my own electrician years ago when he installed heat/fan/light for me in a bathroom), if the fixture is not above a tub or shower then it does not need GFCI. However, sometimes that is either necessary (no other reasonable location) or desired, and in such cases, yes you would connect it to the LOAD side of a GFCI receptacle.

The key is that all hots must go to the same place and all neutrals must go to the same place. Plus all hots and neutrals for any given use must be together in the same cable. In the case of a combination fan/light, that means one of two things:

Two separate pairs of hot neutral, each pair must be together and both pairs connect to the same LOAD side of the same GFCI receptacle.
Three wires - 2 hot, 1 neutral, all must be together and all connect to the same LOAD side of the same GFCI receptacle. This is your situation as described.

Of course, there will be switches in between. If you use 2 separate switches (so you can have fan or light or both) then your setup will actually be:

LOAD hot -> pigtail -> both switch hots (This could also be without a pigtail if the switch is a double switch with a common screw to use for hot)
LOAD neutral -> neutral on switch if you need it via a pigtail -> neutral (white) from fan/light
Switched Hot 1 -> hot 1 (typically black) from fan/light
Switched Hot 2 -> hot 2 (typically red) from fan/light

If your fan/light actually has two separate neutral connections, connect them both to the white wire of your 12/3 using a pigtail.


What to use a 90 and when to two 45s in copper piping? I'm replacing the tubing for an outdoor hose and in the wall I found what you see in the picture below. Why did they use two 45s and not one 90? Is there a general guideline for when to avoid 90s in favor of 2x45?
And what is that ugly coupling in the picture? It looks like they took a coupling and bent it into a 45. (To be it looks like they didn't have a 90 and improvised.)

When to use a pair of 45° versus one 90°? Most in the construction trades work according to these guiding principles:

Use as few parts as possible, because handling more parts takes more time
Get the job done with whatever I have on the truck, because trips to the supply house and back to the job site waste time

With that philosophy in mind one would use a pair of 45° elbows only if using a single 90° is impossible given building constraints, or if a 90° isn't on hand.
As for the mangled fitting: that's not a coupler. It's much too long; there's no way a person could bend a coupler without kinking/crimping it shut. This looks like a 45° elbow that has been twisted about half a turn. Perhaps the faucet was installed upside down and somebody, working from the outside and assuming that faucets are always connected with a threaded adapter, decided to just twist it around to fix the orientation.


Will running out of fuel oil damage my tank? My home heating oil is very low. I have 2 questions: 1. If I run out of heating oil can my tank/ furnace become damaged? 2. Can I use diesel fuel until I am ready to fill my tank?

If you run out of fuel, your burner will shut down, as there is a safety system that disables it if there is no flame when the burner is running.   You are likely to clog your filter, so plan on replacing it if you do run out (it may be good to proactively replace it if you run very low, even if you don't run completely out).   After replacing the filter, you'll need to press the reset button, and there may be a procedure to bleed air out of the line (I've seen the service tech do this on ours after the system shut down due to extreme cold clogging the filter with gelled fuel).

In other words, you'll need a service call after you run out, unless you are comfortable maintaining your system yourself.

My understanding is that diesel fuel has additives that are not needed for an oil burner, but will do no harm to the system.   You are paying road taxes that will increase the cost, but in an emergency, that's probably not an issue (I keep a couple six gallon plastic Jerry cans exactly for this contingency because we have a driveway that is sometimes not passable with an oil truck in the winter).

Edit: a web search on "difference between fuel oil and diesel" seems to suggest that they are mostly interchangeable, with some minor exceptions -- a cetane additive may (or may not) be added to road diesel in some circumstances, but should not affect your oil burner negatively.   Kerosene may be added to fuel oil (not sure why), but often isn't, so diesel would again be an OK substitute.

Here's one of the sites I read:
What is the difference between home heating oil / fuel oil and diesel?


recessed lights not working after outage, and problems removing housing clips The day we had a power outage, we also noticed that one bank of recessed lights stopped working.  (Assuming they are related, but can't be 100% sure.)  The lights are on a dimmer switch.  I confirmed power at the switch, and that the switch is working (by swapping in another switch).

My next thought was to check the power and connections at the light closest to the switch.  Assuming that makes sense, I can't figure out how to undo the clips that would allow me to slide the housing and junction box out (photo below).  I've watched plenty of videos on how to engage the clips, but not undo them.  I've tried using needle nosed pliers in the circular hole and pulling with quite a bit of force down and in, but so far it's just bent the black clip and silver housing.  In case it's useful, the lights are L7XR Lithonia.  These lights are between floors, so I have no access from above.

Thoughts are appreciated!

UPDATE: As one more last-ditch test, I swapped out the dimmer for a simple switch, and lo and behold, the lights turned on!  The mystery is that I know the dimmer is fine because it works on a separate set of lights (and before that it was functioning fine for 3+ years on the lights in question).  I'm okay with just using the simple switch, but I am curious about what could be the cause of what I'm seeing.  Any more thoughts?

If the joints were made up properly in the junction box then there is nothing much to do by removing the fixture. If the fixtures have been working for years is not very likely a wire joint has suddenly failed.

More likely you have a bad connection on the switch or need to recheck your wiring coming to the switch.

Check for power coming to and leaving the switch and power at the light.


Wire Size for Long Run I am building an RV campsite at the bottom of my property to live in while our house is under construction. The RV requires a 50 amp service. I want to install a 100 amp sub-panel down there to give power to my RV, and future gate opener for our driveway entrance. The run from the main panel is about 350'. I will need single phase power, a ground, and a neutral down there. What size copper wire do I need for 60 Celsius since it is under 100 amps, and that length of run?

This isn't a shopping channel, but unless money is no object, money will rear its ugly head. So I will heavily price the options, based on prices from random USA big-box stores.  (and these are "by-the-foot" prices for the wire, a whole 500' spool may be cheaper.)

How deep do you want to bury this thing?

This is a factor. The expensive rigid conduit only needs 6" deep burial, the cheap PVC conduit needs 18".  You can (in some sizes) buy direct-burial wire that must be buried 24".  That's a lot of trenching for 350', consider the cost difference there.  The cost of conduit also interlocks with the thickness of wire, as smaller wires need smaller conduit.  As some examples of cost for conduit alone:

$300 -- 2" PVC conduit legal to bury 18" deep
$1400 -- 2" RMC conduit legal to bury 6" deep
$1200 -- 1-1/2" RMC conduit legal for 6" deep (barely worth the savings)
$500 -- 3/4" RMC conduit legal for 6" deep

Before you rush to use the minimum size conduit, price the next larger size.  This will make wire pulling a lot easier, which means you are less likely to get stuck and need to call an electrician for the pull.

Do you really need copper?  How big a deal is voltage drop?

People often go to copper by default, or because of "problems they hear about". That was never an issue for large cables like this.  The fact is, large-wire lugs are made of aluminum.  The cost of copper is insane, and nobody buys direct burial cable in it, anyone splurging for Cu also splurges for conduit.  I'll price both ways and add conduit to the Cu pricing.

Voltage drop: Realistically your RV will rarely use 30A and almost never use 50A.  The "conventional wisdom" is to size for 3% voltage drop of your realistic usage (30-50A).  However some people nonetheless spec wire for 3% voltage at absolute max current capacity (100A). Your call.  Assuming the latter:

$3600 -- copper 2/0 conductors (#1 ground) in 2" PVC conduit (buried 18")
$1340 -- aluminum 4/0-4/0-4/0-2/0  MH feeder cable (direct buried 24")
$1700 -- aluminum 4/0 conductors (2/0 ground) in 2" PVC conduit (buried 18")
add $1100 if you'd rather bury rigid conduit 6".

Size voltage drop for actual use

Now if you want to size for 3% at 50 amps, and 6% at absolute max 100A - so a 7V drop on a 120V circuit - you can save some coin.  Unfortunately I could not find direct burial cable in these sizes, they would expect you to bump up to the above sizes, or use conduit.  So we shall.

$2750 -- copper #1 (#3 ground) in 2" PVC conduit (18" burial)
$1400 -- aluminum #1/0 (#1 ground) in 2" PVC conduit (18" burial)
add $900 if you want to use Rigid conduit buried 6" deep.

Transformers

When you increase voltage, transmission losses drop dramatically.  Just for chuckles, let's look at using transformers to kick up the long-haul transmission voltage to 480V.   Now you want 240V at 100A, which is 24,000 watts, or 24 KVA.  24 KVA is 50 amps at 480 volts.  To contain voltage drop within 3.3 percent, you'd use

$560 -- #6 copper direct-burial UF-B cable (buried 24")
$500 -- two copper #6 wires in 3/4" PVC conduit (buried 18")
add $500 for rigid conduit buried 6".

25 KVA is a common transformer size.  With aggressive shopping/deal-hunting, you can find 25 KVA 480V transformers for $300-400 each.  With two of those, the total bumps to $1100-1800.  Much as I love to throw this option in, this one is a wobbler - is the slightly lower cost worth the added complexity?  On the other hand, it sure makes the wires and conduit small!

Keep in mind you are not running neutral or ground, in fact, your two 480V wires are entirely isolated from the electrical system at both ends. This isolation causes your remote site to be separately derived service, thus a *main service" and the panel there will be a main panel.


Washing machine drain into 4" cast waste stack Can I drain my washing machine into a 4" diameter cast iron stack?
I want to take my washing machine out of the basement and reinstall it in kitchen above.
I would like to drill into the stack to take  1 1/2" pvc drain pipe. The washer drain is 8 feet from the stack. It's currently using trap, and back up valve.

I think you are going to have more difficulty drilling into the cast iron stack, than routing a new pipe. Follow the route of the stack down with your 2 1/2 pipe, and then feed it into your waste water system, using the correct fitting


Extension cord out of electric box for toilet seat bidet I'm buying a new apartment and I cannot easily modify the walls to add an additional electrical box. There's only one outlet and it's by the mirror over the vanity.

I want to install an electric toilet seat bidet but I don't want the aesthetic of the cord or loss of use of one of 2 outlets for this semi-permanent installation.

Is there a way to wire up a narrow extension cord to come out of the electrical box and straight down to the ground where I can plug in the bidet?

EDIT:
Would it be a bad idea to build another GFCI box and route the cords together down the wall to this box?

You cannot simply use a flexible cord wherever you please (Code NEC 400.8)  particularly where fixed wiring in the walls would normally be used.

However, one type of allowable fixed wiring is a surface conduit such as Legrand Wiremold.

The "starter" box sits on the surface over your existing receptacle, and the surface conduit extends off its side, down the wall to wherever you need to go for the other outlet.

If you also want more receptacles, add that to the surface conduit system. You can go 3" to another receptacle before you head to wherever you're going.

You will absolutely need GFCI protection on something like a bidet, and the "starter" box will give you lots of room to mount a GFCI+receptacle combo device.   You can feed the bidet any other outlets from the GFCI+receptacle module, so they will also be GFCI protected.


Unswitched hot in Fixture Junction Box A comment on an answer to this question seems to be saying that its illegal for an unswitched hot to run through a light fixture junction box, even though its not connected to the fixture at that point. (The light fixture would be receiving switched hot on a taped-white return from a switch).

Is this true and if so, could anyone give a pointer to where I should look in the NEC for that? I'm planning a little electrical work in the near future and I'm not aware of this restriction.

I am aware of the 2011 NEC rule which specifies that neutral must now be available at the switch to allow for new electronic lighting controls, which I imagine in many cases could result in the installation being wired differently such that the unswitched hot and neutral run to the switch directly rather than via the fixture.
But I can't see why in an older installation that it would be illegal or dangerous for unswitched hot to be routed via the fixture junction box.

Clarification: I think that there was a miscommunication in the post that you are referencing. It would be illegal for a neutral wire to be shut off (disengaging a light or device by breaking the neutral conductor). brhans didn't mean the fixture was hot (breaking neutral). brhans was saying the hot passes through the BOX and goes to the switch, and CarlWitthoft was confused, saying that a hot wire connected to the fixture would be illegal (meaning the switch was breaking neutral).

It is legal for (hot) wires to pass through a junction box. NEC Chart 314.16.A says how many wires (sizes) are allowed in various (sized) boxes.


Why is the small white box near my fridge's compressor making an incessant clicking sound? I have a small Frigidaire (model FRT045GB) ~9 months old (but shockingly outside of warranty) which recently started clicking. Actually it almost sounds like a small water pump?

I have been able to determine that the noise is related to the fridge (not the freezer). When I turn the fridge temp down the noise will stop for a while, but start again when the cooling system starts up again.

It seems to be coming from this white box near the compressor. When I touch it I can feel the vibration. The white box has a recycle symbol and 'ABS' on the front. It also has Y-shaped notch in the screws which hold it on so taking it apart will be a pain.

Anyone know what this box is for, what would make that noise, or how I might fix it?

The fridge is still working, just making noise. maybe ~4 clicks/second? not too loud but I am sure it is not normal.

I have the same problem. Brand new fridge (Frigidaire). The same sound coming from a white box attached with ABS stamped on it. I unplugged the fridge and removed the box to examine the components. It appears to be a thermostat of some sort? It also has a little red adjustment screw in the center of the component. I am making my best guess and thinking that it regulates when the pump kicks on according to the ambient temperature?

Best guess 2, some sort of power regulator, maybe for different types of electricity? But the housing is cylindrical and the red dial is dead center leading me to believe that it is a coil inside. The dial is to tighten or loosen the spring to optimize efficiency for different climates or elevations?

Either way, I left the box off and plugged the fridge back in to see if it would keep making the sound. The sound stopped. This tells me that it is a poor design, allowing vibrations to be amplified by the housing. A little cardboard between the housing and the metal cylinder and the sound is gone forever. I do not recommend doing this unless you have some basic knowledge in electricity, and insurance on your house..


What inspections/maintenance should be done before first air conditioning of summer? I'm a typically handy guy who knows his limits.  I recently moved into a new house so am unfamiliar with the history of the equipment.

Before I switch the thermostat to A/C for the first time this year, I'd like to do visual inspection/maintenance on my A/C unit.  What is a list of things an HVAC company would check/do on a system with no apparent issues?

I would not check refrigerant levels myself because that's illegal here, but I would still like stuff like that included in an answer.

The pan tablets are to prevent gunkies from growing. You do not want to be checking freon levels unless your system has a site glass. Then watching for bubbles in the glass, some fully charged systems will have bubbles. The reason you don't want to check pressures that requires opening the system and a small amount of freon is lost. HVAC techs use special sealing compounds on the threads and instruments to verify there are no leaks at the end of a service (I and the guys I have worked with do anyway). There are special gauges used for testing the high and low side pressure, the type of freon and temperature are all used to determine if the system is properly charged.
Really the only thing you can or should do is; Clean the outside condenser coil. Clean the inside evaporator coil. Verify the insulation is in good shape. Possibly add a few drops of oil to the fan motors. Install fresh air filters and keep the condensing coil drip pan clean.


Question about this DIY light fixture and grounding http://www.mysimplysimple.com/lighting-diy-office/

I was looking into the above light fixture project, and I noticed that it has no ground wire. Most of the videos I have looked into about replacing a chandelier specifically mention a ground wire, and the chandelier that I currently have installed definitely has one.

Is this DIY fixture a hazard if it doesn't have a ground wire? It seems like the entire body would already be connected to the ground wire because they both screw into the same bar.

In my opinion, nearly all DIY light fixtures are hazards. However, since ceiling fixtures are rarely touched, they're not so bad.

If you want to add a grounding conductor, it shouldn't be too difficult.  First find a point on the fixture that will hidden within the canopy, and that is metallic.  Figure out a way to attach a grounding wire to that point.  Using a multimeter or ohmmeter, test the resistance between the end of the grounding wire you've attached, and the point on the fixture where you attached it.  You should have a very low resistance, otherwise you've selected a bad location.

Once you have a solid ground. Leave one probe from your meter attached to the grounding wire, and use the other probe to check the resistance to other exposed metallic parts of the fixture.  If you have a low resistance path to all the exposed metallic points on the fixture, you're done.  If not, you'll have to bridge high resistance sections with wire. For example. If the swivel fittings are nonconductive, you'd have to use a pieces of conductive material as a bridge between the two pipe sections.

Now that you have a low resistance path from the grounding conductor, to all exposed metal parts. You'll simply connect the grounding conductor from the fixture, to the grounding conductor from the ceiling.


Can Kerdi board be painted instead of tiled? can Kerdi board be painted? I want to use it on the walls in my bathroom instead of sheet rock.

Yes you can paint over Kerdi board but you will need to give it a light coat of joint compound and do a little sanding.


What can I use to fill gap between unpainted wood trim and wood sill? The gap is due to paneling install over drywall and I am re-installing trim around windows and door.  The trim only has clear coat, so painting caulking does not appear to be a solution here.

Most silicone caulk manufacturers make caulks in a handful of tan colors:

If none of those colors match well enough, you could try looking for some wood putty. Some putty dries hard; some doesn't. Here's one possibility.


Are cap staples eventually visible under asphalt roof shingles? I am going to replace the roof on my barn using synthetic underlayment and asphalt shingles.

I plan to use 1" cap staples on the underlayment as the manufacturer suggests.

My question is: Once the sun has a chance to soften up the shingles will those caps cause any kind of visible bulge in the shingles?

thank you

Probably. I wouldn't do that. Modern fiberglass shingles are fairly thin compared to the organic (paper) mat ones of the old days, and you will likely see the bulges after a few hot days.

The manufacturer probably only recommends using cap staples under the assumption that it will sit exposed for some period of time and needs to hold up to the wind. It's completely pointless otherwise, as a million shingle nails eventually hold it down anyway.


What should I use to seal/coat interior of stone foundation wall? I have a stone foundation in my basement which was re-pointed about 4 years ago.

While slight, the mortar crumbles a little bit over time.  As a result, it causes a bit of a mess with the dust at the edge of the flooring.

I would like to seal or coat the stones and mortar so that crumbling stops.  I don't want to paint the stones, just seal or coat them with something clear.  Any suggestions on what kind of product to use to do this?

I was thinking of using something like this:  http://www.homedepot.com/p/Seal-Krete-1-gal-Original-Waterproofing-Sealer-100001/100144884

However, I am unsure if that would be effective or cause any problems with the stone and mortar wall.  In addition, I am located in Canada and the Home Depot in Canada does not seem to carry this product.

Thanks!

I'd recommend using pure sodium silicate or potassium silicate for this. These chemicals will form a waterproof seal that is breathable, preventing moisture from becoming trapped and deteriorating the mortar over time. In addition, they will chemically bond to the mortar and actually strengthen it by introducing soluble silica, sealing the micro-pores in the mortar and reducing alkali-silica reactions and efflorescence. Highly recommended. Here's an example product that you can get on Amazon (no affiliation): http://smile.amazon.com/Rutland-146-Cement-Sealer-Fireplace/dp/B004YEDQOK


Patching drywall seams I am trying to patch this drywall cutout.
I secured drywall piece with furring strips and applied first coat of joint compound. I am struggling with hiding these brown fibers from drywall paper.
It keeps coming up when I try to apply mud with my drywall knife.
Am I doing it wrong ?

Am I doing it wrong ?

Yes, there is no tape over the seam.
When two pieces of drywall meet it necessary to cover the seam with tape and mud, not just mud. If you do not tape it then the mud will crack eventually.  There is paper tape and fiberglass mesh tape.
The paper requires that  you to put down a layer of mud and then press the paper tape into it and flatten it out with your drywall knife.
The fiberglass has a stick back to it, you stick in place and then apply mud over it.
You then let that first coat dry and then you need to add mud and feather it out and away on both sides of the seam. It uses a lot more mud then you may think as you have to feather it out quite a ways to  make the raised seam blend in with the wall.
This is but-joint, there are many tutorials on YouTube on how to mud and tape joints and how to mud but-joints .
YouTube search for  "How to mud and tape a drywall patch"
YouTube search for "How to mud and tape a but-joint"


How do I fix bare spots on my table after applying polyurethane? I polyurethaned my table and when it dried, it had spots. That is the best way to explain it.  It looks like the eraser-sized spots are bare wood, almost like something made the polyurethane push away from the wood as it dried, leaving 100 spots on the table. I lightly sanded it and it just looks like the spots are lower than the smooth polyurethane. Almost like the wood just repelled the polyurethane. So I lightly sanded and then re-applied another coat and as it dried, what do you know... the spots came right back like the polyurethane did not want to stick to the wood in those eraser-sized spots.

So for those experienced wood workers out there, please help me with this baffling issue to try to get a smooth application.

Most likely you have spots of contamination such as oil or wax impregnated into the wood. As much as you may not want to hear this, I fear you may need to strip the table top again and sand the surface more completely. When the surface is clean and sanded, you can mist the surface with a little water to see if any areas repel the water. Don't let the water stand on the wood, dry it quickly after your test. This may help you determine if more sanding or degreasing is necessary to remove the contaminated areas.


What to do if average gas usage increased by 30x but they say there is no leak? Not sure if this is the right place, but figured you guys may have some answers/suggestion of what to do?

My average hourly gas usage has increased by 30x suddenly and the company said they will send someone to check the meter in a few days...they don't consider it an emergency because I don't smell gas or see a damaged pipe.

My appliance usage has remained the same. We have only a fireplace which has only had the pilot on since the winter and never turned the actual fire on.. And a water heater that has had the temp set the same and we haven't used additional hot water over the norm.

Here is the chart of their readings/estimates and the readings I started taking last night after looking at the bill.

If you're worried about a gas leak, and the gas company cannot come out fast enough. The local fire department should have the equipment to detect a leak, and should be more than happy to come out and take some readings. Preventing a gas explosion, is much easier than dealing with the aftermath.


Is the wall between a home and an attached garage built as an "exterior wall"? I have an attached garage.  There is an exterior-rated door between the garage and the living space.

Should the entire wall be built as an exterior wall, as far as sheathing, width, etc?  Is there a code standard that defines this?

I'm in Oregon, USA, but am looking for a general answer.

No, the wall between the home and garage is designed and built as an interior wall. HOWEVER, it is a fire wall. Your code in Oregon requires 1) fire rated door between the spaces, and 2) fire rated wall "assembly", and 3) insulation.

1) The door needs to be fire rated door and frame, which can be a solid core door and a solid wood frame (not a frame with an applied stop). (See R302.5.)

2) The wall needs one layer of 1/2" gypsum board on the GARAGE side of the wall...other side of wall doesn't matter and 5/8" gypsum board on the ceiling of the garage if habitable rooms are located above the garage. (The building department is worried about a fire starting in the garage, not vise verses. They're protecting the house.) (See Table 302.6.)

3) Insulation is required for the building envelope.

No other Code items are required for this wall, including shear wall, structural wall, etc. HOWEVER, remember that the garage cannot open directly into a sleeping room (bedroom).


hanging multiple picture frames of different sizes in line and with equal spacing Im putting up a picture wall of multiple picture frames of varying sizes.
The first picture below gives a very rough idea of what im trying to achieve, all in line at top where two are inline.
I didnt consider a few complications that are making this more difficult than expected.

the frames are deep and only have a sawtooth hanger so i will have to use string.(Was thinking of just putting a loop of string around the sawtooth and hooking that onto the hook.)
the sawtooth is different distances from the top of the frame on the different sizes of frame(2nd picture below).

This means i need to ensure the string is the right length for each frame to keep the tops of the frames in line and judging this is a nightmare.
The hooks i am using are these(3rd picture below), as its a sheetrock stud wall.
I feel like im making a mountain out of this.
Appreciate any advice on how to achieve my end goal, but few frames missing.

Rough estimation of end goal

varying heights of sawtooth hangers

hooks

Forget the sawtooths. Buy some picture wire and small screws. I like short #6 panheads for most pictures. Maybe #8 for large pictures.
Attach the screws about 1/3 from the top on each side. Drill pilot holes so you don't split the wood. Don't screw them all the way in, leave room to wrap the wire.
Attach the picture wire so the hook will be inside the frame recess. Wrap around each screw and twist the wire on itself.
Buy or make a picture hanging tool. To make one, start with a stick about a foot long. Put a hook on one end and a cabinet knob on the other end. You can substitute many things for the knob, you just need something that will allow you to hold the stick while the picture is attached. The hook will be down and the knob will be up. Measure up 8 inches from the hook and put a mark.
https://www.amazon.com/Picture-Hanging-Level-Hanger-Yellow/dp/B083J75P7F
https://www.bobvila.com/articles/picture-hanging-tips/ (see tip number 4)
Hang the picture on the tool and position it on the wall. Put a small mark on the wall at the mark on the stick.
Measure 8 inches down from the mark on the wall and nail in the hook to the wall.


Repair Hole in Cinder Block Foundation I had a geothermal furnace put in recently, and with that, the old heat pump was removed. The electric from the heat pump was run through a hole through the foundation to the panel. The hole is about 3 inches in diameter. The foundation is cinder block, there is a gap between the exterior and interior portion of the block. How do I patch this hole?
If I use the hydraulic cement or spray foam, won't it just fall into the cinder block gap? Do I get some wire mesh and slather concrete over it?
I like to pretend to be a DIY person, but really I don't really know what I'm doing most of the time. So any resources/products/ideas would be greatly appreciated!

Option one - toss enough mortar or hydrualic cement in the hole to fill up the core. Tedious, and annoying, but it works.
However, option 2 also works and takes a lot less material. Cut 4 strips of wire mesh or stiff screen about as wide as the widest part of the hole but longer than the hole. Tie long wires to the middle of these in pairs, arranged so that when pulled tight each pair of strips is at angles to each other. i.e. they make an X
Slack off the wires so the strips can be stacked on top of each other and slid through the hole while holding the wires. Once the strips are all the way in, pull the wires tight and tie to something outside the wall. Pack in some hydraulic cement or mortar and wait. Once that has set, you can cut off the wires and finish patching the hole. Do this from both sides (which is why you made 4 strips in sets of 2 - one set for each side.)


How to fix kitchen sink faucet? There are quite a few things wrong with this faucet.

There is a lot of dried up minerals that make it impossible to rotate the faucet. If rotated, the faucet rotates at the base instead of the mid section. The mechanism seems jammed. How do I clean this part so it rotates smoothly once again?

The base used to have some sealant which came off so I used some soft silicon gel to seal it at the base. As you can see the it has separated from the faucet's metal base but is still adhered to the granite (?). What is the right product to seal this properly?

In an effort to fix #1, I have tried going under the sink and tightening the bolt but no matter how much I tighten it, the whole faucet seems to move mainly due to the aforementioned mechanism being jammed.

Do I need to bite the bullet and replace the faucet or is this fixable?
We seem to live in an area where water is excessively hard (320PPM) so I am guessing this will recur. Is there a way to prevent it?

Remove it from the bench and soak it in lime remover (white vinegar, dilute muriatic acid, etc)
Disassemble it, and clean the parts.
lubricate it with Vaseline (or other petroleum jelly)
Replace any worn seal found, reinstall it
There should probably be some sort of circular gasket or o-ring between the base and the benchtop.


What sort of wire should I use to run an overhead line to a subpanel? The property is in northern michigan and the ground is extremely rocky making burying the wire very difficult. I want to run the wire overhead approx. 12 feet above the ground on poles. The run will be appropriately 125 feet in total.  Curious to know the type of wire I should purchase and any suggestions the group may have.

You'll need more than 12' of pole and mast for a 12' clearance

The NEC requirement for wires over residential property at less than 300V to ground is a 12' clearance to the ground from the wire's lowest point.  This means you'll need taller poles than 12' to get the wire up high enough.  How much taller? Well, you'll have to consult a sag and tension chart for the cable you're running to determine how much extra pole height you need to meet that 12' mark, or run the calculations yourself (see PDF pages 33-35 of this Southwire install manual for details).

(As a FYI: I was able to get workable tensions in a Hackney/XLP (4AWG Al, quadruplex, XLPE insulation) for a 125' span with 42" of worst case sag, which would mean that you could make the run point-to-point (no intermediate poles) with 16' masts if the path was not obstructed, and still have a few inches of clearance margin left over.)

You may need more clearance yet still

Depending on how your property is categorized by the AHJ, it may be considered logging or farmland rather than residential property, which boosts the NEC clearance requirement for overhead lines to 18' from 12'.  (Basically, it depends on whether the AHJ expects trucks to be driving around on it or not.)

As to the cable itself...

What you are describing (your very own overhead cable run) is termed messenger supported wiring in the NEC, and can be done using a separate messenger and field lashed/bridled cable (such as for a communications cable), or with a multiplex cable designed for overhead distribution service -- really, the same cables that are used for overhead utility service drops.

You will want a quadruplex cable in order to provide a full four-wire feeder -- these cables consist of two hots, an insulated neutral, and a bare ground/integral messenger.  Note that these cables also are generally only available with AA-1350/EC aluminum conductors, so you'll need Al9Cu insulated, outdoor/wet rated connectors (Burndy AGSKIT2 or equivalent) and an inch-pound torque wrench to terminate them properly.

Furthermore, there is no such thing as 8AWG quadruplex cable -- the smallest size it comes in is 6AWG, and since you're feeding a dwelling unit, I'd recommend a 4AWG aluminum/XLP quadruplex instead, which can handle a  100A feeder to the bunkhouse.  This is going to be less costly and time-consuming to handle than trying to wrangle a SE-cable alligator onto a separate messenger, and get you more ampacity for your money as well.

Terminations matter

Overhead cable runs like this one terminate at each end in a conduit mast and weatherhead, just like a service would.  I'd recommend 2" RMC masts -- these provide plenty of space for 2AWG aluminum or 3AWG copper XHHW-2 conductors in the masts for the hots and neutral, and also provide the grounding conductor as well as upgrade space to allow 200A to be provisioned without replacing the masts and poles, just the cabling.

The grounding conductor connections between the messenger wire and the masts at each will need to be made using a jumper (6AWG bare copper is fine), an Al9Cu split bolt, and an Al/Cu grounding clamp (Ilsco AGC-2 or equivalent) -- this setup may seem awkward, but it saves the need to pull a redundant ground wire through a metal mast.

You will also need to ensure that the masts are guyed properly, and that drip loops are provided at the cable ends so that water does not run down the cable and into the mast.

Other notes

You'll need to provide a structure disconnecting means (this can be a main breaker in the subpanel) and a grounding electrode system (given your rocky conditions, you may need to employ a concrete-encased, or "Ufer", grounding electrode -- check with your AHJ for details) at the bunkhouse.  You'll also need to ensure that the bonding screw or strap is removed from the panel in the bunkhouse, as neutral and ground are only allowed to meet at the main service entrance.

If you want to go underground...

This is where things get ugly.  Normally, I'd recommend Schedule 80 PVC, possibly with metal sweeps and stub-ups (you could even go to PVC coated GRC for these for such short lengths; if you don't, you definitely want to tape a metal stub-up due to oxic conditions in the first few inches of topsoil promoting corrosion), for a buried wiring run; however, your extreme soil conditions are not kind to the notion of needing a 21-22" deep trench to get 18" of cover.  Rigid metal conduit lets you get away with a much shallower trench, 9" deep for 6" of cover in your case, but galvanized conduit, while legal for burial, may not be the wisest thing to bury, depending on soil conditions.  Corrosion-wise, the best choice would be PVC-coated galvanized conduit, but it's a rather expensive beast for a 125' run, especially considering you'll want fat conduit for this job -- I would run 2" conduit, myself, as that leaves enough room for a future upgrade to 200A.  Given the cost of PVC-coated conduit, and the shallow trench depths, I would at least use a polymeric tape wrap designed for corrosionproofing over the conduit as it was being laid in the trench.

In any case, you'll definitely want to rent a mini-excavator with both bucket and breaker attachments for the trenching job -- the former is for digging up soil and broken-up rock, while you can use the latter to break up the limestone bedrock so you can dig it out.  Once the trenching and conduit are done, you'll want to pull 3 1AWG aluminum XHHW-2 conductors for your hots and neutral, and a bare or insulated 8AWG copper ground wire if you aren't using supplemental corrosionproofing on the conduit itself.


Should I get a condensing boiler or atmospheric boiler for cast iron radiator system I am looking to replace the boiler as part of a basement reno. The house was built in 1903 and has cast iron hot water radiators but we've done a fair amount of work to it, added insulation and have all new windows.
The current system is an old boiler from the 50s with hot a water tank. We have big old pipes in the basement which we are removing, which I've been told was because the system originally operated using gravity but has since had pumps added.
I have been given different opinions from different plumbers. One plumber thinks we should stick completely to the atmospheric system with hot water tank and would not put anything else. Another said we could using a wall hung condensing boiler with 4 zones, one for each floor including basement. This would be a little more expensive but means we could relocate the boiler away from the chimney because its side vented.
I'm not really worried about the cost, but want to choose the right setup for our house. Is there any reason to stick with the atmospheric over the higher efficiency condensing boiler?

The ONLY argument in favor of the inefficient boiler would be IF it's so basic that it will run with the power out, and thus might help prevent the house from freezing in a long winter power outage (though that would be a limited level with no power for the circulator pumps.)
Otherwise, efficiency favors the condensing boiler. If long winter power outages are a thing in your area, a gas-powered (the same sort your boiler presumably uses, not gasoline) backup generator sufficient to keep the boiler and pumps and fridge and freezer operating would be a solution that does not require throwing a bunch of heat up the chimney, and has more side benefits in the form of the fridge and freezer still working, as well as some lights.
If the chimney is suitable (it may not be) you can get the "not freeze house" and "operates with no power" functions from a wood-stove attached to the chimney for use when the power goes out for a long time in the winter.


What kind of sensor will detect a car outside the end of my driveway? Seeing a car loitering off the end of our driveway, on a shared gravel driveway.  I want to put in a security light to discourage this.

PIR sensors will not work well because they use heat, and a car body may be pretty much at ambient temperature.  I have often driven up to our garage, which has one, and it doesn't trigger until I get out of the car (showing my warm face and body).

I want all of the equipment to be on our property.

I think hall effect sensors may work (like those used to synch. traffic lights), laser/IR gates (such as 'garage-door' stop-close sensors) or a computer vision based 'car-detection' system, but just a background-suppression system will work.

If you're good at programming, computer vision system may be better and most-effective (you can get easy notifications and also add a 'people detector' at little effort). Only things you need are: low-end computer (for simple BS), IR webcam and IR lamp.

But PIR may also do this job (it has to be adjusted) and is absolutely the cheaper.

... But if you like twitter notifications go for CV [Computer Vision].


How can I get a broken bolt out of the bathtub overflow drain? I am in quite a pickle with my bathtub overflow drain. What I thought would be an easy leak fix quickly turned into a nightmare when one of the bolts for the drain cover snapped off.

So far I've tried drill bits (regular and left-handed) but I cannot bite into the bolt to get a hole for an extractor. My next thought is trying to remove the pipe from below, but I'm not sure how hard that would be, or if I could just end up causing more damage. Any suggestions?

Here's the drain with the broken bolt:

And here's what's accessible from below:

Look at you lower photo.  See the pipe nut that is at the highest point in the photo?  That is a compression nut; there's a packing below this.

Loosen up that nut.  The tub overflow pipe (the thing you broke) telescopes inside that lower pipe.  The tub overflow pipe should now be able to go straight up until it comes out of the pipe, then you can wangle it down through the hole (or enlarge the hole).

Myself, I just open a cabinet door, (giving access like in this blog here), and there you can see an example of what you're looking at.  Mine is in the Victorian style, a tasteful cabinet with a latch and hinges, and tall enough for easy access to the tub faucet. Great place to hide WiFi routers, personal stash, etc. Makes very short work of tub faucet and drain repairs. I recommend the upgrade!


How to add 30A 240V circuit to an almost full panel I'm looking to add a 30A 240V circuit for solar.. but my main panel is almost full (pix below).  Is there any way to add the circuit without adding a subpanel?

Aside from the general "overfull panel" problem as already noted by others in comments, there is a much bigger concern. Adding 30A @ 240V for solar power is not the same as adding an electric dryer or other 30A @ 240V appliance. In one sense it is much easier - this is something supplying power rather than consuming power. But in fact there can be a bunch of other issues that really complicate the situation. Similar to (but not quite the same) the way that adding a generator is not as simple as adding a feed from the generator and remembering to turn off the utility power before turning on the generator (and vice versa). For example, if there is a utility power outage, what prevents the solar power from backfeeding into the utility feed and zapping the linemen?
I recommend discussing this with the technical department of the solar power company, and possibly with your regular utility as well. There may be a number of different things to be done, beside simply provisioning a 30A 240V circuit in the panel, to make sure that the solar installation will be both safe & effective.


Neutral and ground wires for ceiling fan wall control I am replacing a light fixture with a Craftmade ceiling fan (https://www.amazon.com/Craftmade-TMPH44W5-Tempo-Ceiling-Remote/dp/B01D679HMA), operated by a wired remote control

I'm installing their wall remote control unit where the light fixture switch used to be. As per their diagram, I'm connecting the two black wires on the wall control unit to the two black wires in the box (one going to power supply, one to the fan).

Questions:

What to do with the two white neutral wires in the box (one from power supply and one leading to the fan) - do I connect them to each other or terminate both?
It appears that neither the outlet box in the ceiling nor the switch box are grounded (there is no third wire and nothing behind the box except wood and drywall, it's a pre-war building). If that's the case, should i still connect the ground wires from the fan motor and the wall unit to the boxes or would that actually make it even less safe?

Thank you in advance!

First off, the two neutral wires in the back of the box provide the path back to the source for the current that powers your fan, so they need to stay nutted together or else the fan won't work.

The ground wires should be terminated to the box, though.  Some boxes are functionally grounded (via conduit or cable armor) even if there is no ground wire present, and I can't tell if yours are that way or not from here.


How do I check if this furnace switch the blower to second speed My furnace is overheating and I suspect that the blower motor does not go into high speed. Can anybody say what is the cause or how can I check if it indeed switches to high speed?

Here is the wiring diagram

and here are the specs. This sticker shows that it has a second speed. I suspect that switching to that second speed is not happening

the furnace is hotter in the areas marked on this picture. I suspect it might be either the blower at reduced speed or the heat exchanger that is cracked

Most furnaces; yours included it appears, do not change the speed of the motor during normal operation. The motor typically has three or more speeds (high, medium, and low), and is hard wired to use different speeds based on what mode the furnace is in.

For example, in heating mode most blowers run at low or medium speed. While in fan or A/C mode, they run at high speed.

If your furnace is overheating, the first thing to do is to make sure the filter(s) are clean. Also make sure all the registers and returns are fully open, and unobstructed.

If you haven't checked already, check the temperature of the furnace when the limit trips. You could have a bad limit, that is tripping when the furnace is not actually overheated.


Replacement thermostat wiring for new Honeywell Wifi model I moved into a home recently and found the old thermostat temperature controls to be inaccurate at turning on and turning off A/C as set so I purchased a Honeywell RTH6580WF thermostat as a replacement. The current thermostat is an old Honeywell round mercury bulb model. In attempting to replace the current thermostat I found that I need a C wire for the new thermostat to work correctly, although my old thermostat only had G, Y, W, and R wired up. I read more into this issue and found that I should be able to take the G wire and move it to the C on the new thermostat as well as at the furnace, and then place a jumper from Y to G at the furnace and that should take care of it.

The problem I run into is that the Y slot on the furnace is empty and I have a wire in the C slot on the furnace even though there wasn't one at the old thermostat. I've since discovered that the A/C compressor is wired in at the furnace as well, with the Y from the thermostat and the Red cable from the A/C compressor twisted together with a wire nut, and the white cable from the A/C compressor going to the C slot on the furnace. I spoke with Honeywell support on the phone and they said I'd need to have an HVAC contractor come out to resolve this issue, saying I would not be able to use the new thermostat with the current wiring situation. (I've included a diagram of the current wiring setup.

My idea is that I can run new 18/5 thermostat wire (current installed wire has only 4 wires) and then wire up the new thermostat from thermostat to furnace as R-R, W-W, Y-Y, G-G, C-C and then instead of twisting the Y from thermostat with the red wire from the A/C compressor I can just put two wires on the Y on the furnace and also have two wires on the C on the furnace, with the second of each coming from the A/C compressor. I've included a diagram of this hopeful configuration.  I'm not sure if this is the proper method and I haven't been able to find anyone with the exact same setup to verify so I thought I'd ask for anyone's assistance on this. Does that sound like the best solution? I appreciate any guidance with this. Thank you very much for your time.


Is there a standardized way of calculating load bearing of beams with connections notching the beam? I would like to figure out how to estimate the impact on load bearing of different solid structure wood (german Konstruktionsvollholz/KVH norm) beam connections. Assume I have a connection like this with 100mm x 100mm posts and main beam (pink) and 50mm x 50 mm side post and connected beam (green) and want to put unrealistic heavy plants on the beams: How would the connection of the green beam influence the load bearing of the pink beam? How can this be applied to a series of connections (up to 8 green beams connected to the pink one)?

I found

an expert book (François Colling, Holzbau Grundlagen, Bemessungshilfen, 2., überarbeitete Auflage, Vieweg +Teubner | GWV Fachverlage GmbH, Wiesbaden 2008) stating that removing parts of a beam does't influence it's load bearing capacities as long as the removed part is filled with and equally strong or stronger material, but I'm not sure if that accounts for more than some mm screw holes
Is it safe to drill small holes in load-bearing concrete beams for expansion bolts? stating that you can drill "surprising large holes" in beams which isn't overly precise and doesn't account for the fact that I want to fill the cut out space with another beams end and
What is the maximum number of load bearing studs in a row that can be notched? gives reference to useful recommendation about notching and drilling parts of beams, but judging from the other references it matters whether the whole is filled with material or not.

Can the two diy.SE questions be applied to wood beams? Can someone clarify, please?! I'm building everything from scratch, so there's nothing previously calculated where I could rely.

All loads on beams / columns matter. So, if you are adding beams (loads) to existing beams, you are right to worry about its affect. However, there are three things in your favor: 1) everything is designed with a "safety factor", 2) residential design is way-over designed, and 3) beams are designed to fail in tension.

1) Structural design has "Working Stress" and "Ultimate Stress". Ultimate stress (failure) is about 150-180% more than working stress (what we design beams, columns, etc. to).

2) Residential design is largely done by non-professionals (architects and structural engineers). So, "what is commonly used" in residential construction is grossly over sized.

3) Beams are designed (design formulas used) to fail in tension. That way, we'll see cracks and presumably investigate, rather than fail by compression, which will fail with a bang...and have a disaster.

So, back to your question, yes, there is a way to determine how much weight can be added to a beam, how big holes (and how many holes) can safely be drilled into a beam, etc.  However, unless you're "doubling the load" or excessively drilling an existing beam (1 connector is not excessive), then I think your safe.

You can destroy a concrete beam quicker than steel or wood beams. When drilling the concrete beam, you'll know quickly if it's a poured-in-place beam or a steel beam encased in concrete. In fact, you may not be able to drill through the steel/concrete beam. So, rather than "mess with the concrete beam", why not design a "saddle" to fit over the beam and support your new added beam and lights.

If you decide to proceed with drilling the concrete beam, I'd recommend you contact an architect or structural engineer (not a CIVIL engineer.)


How do I draft proof a “drop down” loft hatch I am trying to draft proof our drop down loft hatch, however I can't see how to get a good seal as its “push to release” click does not hold it tightly enough against the draft proofing strips.

Are there any good solutions?

I've seen solutions that go over top of the drop down-stairs.  You can find them by searching for 'attic stair insulation kit'.

If you were to go completely home-made, you can get sheets of rigid styrofoam, then make a box that you can drop over the hole before you put the stairs back up.  If the floor is flat and smooth, that might be enough on its own, otherwise you can put down some weather stripping and find a way to secure it down.  (maybe eye hooks?)


Do wooden fence posts require concrete? I plan to install a wooden fence using 8-foot 4x4 posts connected to wooden panels. All of the lumber is pressure-treated.

My plan is to set the posts in holes that are about 3 feet deep (below the frost line where I live).

My question is: Do I need to pour concrete into the holes when I install the posts, or can I simply set them in the soil? And if I use concrete, should I pour the concrete into the bottom of the post hole first, let it set and then install the posts on top of it? Or do I pour the concrete around the post within the hole?

I can't find a clear answer anywhere about whether you actually need concrete in post holes.

It's really a matter of preference. Concrete is much stronger and will defend better against the elements. Here is a Home Depot link on how to properly install fencing.


Correct orientation for t-shaped shelf bracket to minimize stress on anchor bolts I have a t-shaped shelf bracket that looks like this:

      | <- screw hole here
      |  <shelf>
      |-----------
<wall>|
      |
      |
      | <- screw hole here

This is a custom made bracket so there are no instructions. The wall side of the brackets can be oriented so there is 2" going up above the shelf and 4" down or the opposite where there's 4" above the shelf and 2" below.

What is the best orientation to minimize stress on the bolts?

Whether the 2" side up or the 4" side up, it doesn't matter in terms of the stress on the bolt.

We can do a simple analysis as below. In the figure below your T-shaped bracket in drawn in blue while the two bolts are drawn in red. For simplicity we assume that the bracket only contacts the wall via the two bolts at the very top and very bottom end. W is the total gravitational force of your bracket, shelf and its load. The forces on the two bolts are decomposed into perpendicular directions f1~f4.

Basic physics tells us that:

Therefore, the axial (horizontal) forces on the two bolts (f1 and f2) are equal and determined by the ratio of (2+4)/d, which is irrelevant to whether 2" or 4" is up or down. The vertical forces (f3 and f4) will add up to the total weight W, but their exact values are under-determined (but irrelevant to which side is up).

I am responding to Jim's questions in the comment.

(1) In my figure I clearly shows that f1 and f2 point in the opposite direction, therefore f1=f2. If you insist "use a consistent coordinate system" and "to the right is positive", then f1=-f2, but it doesn't change anything.

(2) Equation 3 is correct. Here we are calculating torque of W using bolt 1 as the origin (fulcrum). We are not calculating momentum or angular momentum. The torque of W is calculated as  and obviously . That how to get equation 3. Or more generally,

BTW this is also why Willk's analysis based on "the longer the distance from fulcrum to end of the lever, the more the force is amplified" is wrong. Willk forgets about the angle between the force and lever arm.


Running conduit from an old rectangular 2 x 3 exterior box? I have an old 2” x 3” rectangular recessed electrical box recessed in aluminum siding,  which was standard back in 1972 when my home was built.

I am trying to figure out how I can use this box as a source to run conduit from it to a new outdoor light receptacle  several feet above it.

Is there an extension box made for these smaller old boxes that I could attach to it to run the conduit to the new box 2 feet above?

If not how would you recommend accomplishing what I’m trying to do ??
Thanks for your help

Unscrew the light fixture on the cover of the box.

Screw in your conduit fitting.


Replace fan/light/nightlight and go from 3 separate switches to 2 - 1 for night light and 1 combined for light /fan At the fan I have a plug in for the fan (1 black/1 white) and a plug in for the light/nightlight (2 blacks and 1 ground). At the switch plate I have 3 separate switches (fan, light, night light). I want to combine the light and fan into 1 switch and keep the nightlight separate. In the ceiling, 2 cables exist: One 2-wire (black/white) cable and One 3-wire (black(light)/white/red(fan)).

At the switch box many of the hot black wires are tied together and many of the neutral wires are also tied together. To affect my change should I wire the hot fan/light leads to the hot red and black ones from the switches below and then at the switch box combine the two blacks from the switch that I intend to remove and add those to the single switch?

I tried to upload photos and the site does not accept even the smallest one. There are 3 wires in the ceiling and 5 wires for the fan/light/nightlight. I have wired up the fan/light/nightlight based on 3 separate switches (I am not convinced that I am not experiencing a voltage drop - based on using a circuit tester), but each switch operates separately. If I try to go to a common switch for the light and fan (this is my goal) then all 3 (fan/light/nightlight) are energized at once ( I do not want to connect the new fan until I resolve this). All 3 switches have a black line in and out. At the 3 gang box, all the neutrals are tied together and all the black wires are tied together. Thoughts?

Thanks here is the link to photos: http://imgur.com/WEgPY3z and here is the link with all the photos http://imgur.com/a/vzfJJ

Success! I pulled the junction box switches and found there were 5 black wires tied together and 4 white ones tied together. I left the white ones alone and when I explored the 3 switches, I had the normal hot into the switch and switched hot leading up to the ceiling. One switch was wired the opposite way (switched hot in) and hot out - I cannot explain this. After I disconnected all the black wires, I found only 1 of the 5 was hot (one was for another circuit (not switched at the box)). To go to two switches, I eliminated one of the black wires and the middle switch. The nightlight was wired correctly (hot in; switched hot out), so I left it as is. For the combined fan/light switch, I used the last of the 4 black wires (hot) into the switch and then combined the fan/light wires out the other side of the switch, up to the ceiling and the fan unit. I also added the ground from the removed middle switch to the fan/light switch. At the fan, I left it wired as it had been in the photos I shared. Circuit testing verified that I could use the switches as intended and the correct response occurred at the fan.


Tightening a bathroom faucet The faucet assembly in my bathroom is loose and shakes when I turn on and turn off the faucet. Any idea on how this faucet works and can be tightened?  See pictures of the top and underside.

I have no experience with this type of faucet, but from the picture it appears it is held in place only in the center. There are several possible ways the hinged clamp in the center may work. Is the hinged clamp in fact holding the body of the faucet or is this just a connection to the drain plug?

It may be that you pull down on the rod and press up on the clamp. It may be that you have to pinch the side tabs together to move the clamp up or it may be that the tabs are to be pressed only to remove the clamp.

It may be that you twist the clamp with or without pinching the tabs together.


Can I connect a 120V outlet to a 240v well house supply? My well house is 300 plus feet away from our house. The pump is 240 and when we built the house the electrician ran a 3-wire from the main panel to the well house. This is the only power source in the well house. It has been getting very cold and I would like to add some sort of heat lamp or heat tape to keep it from freezing. Looking on line it seems adding a sub-panel would not work with 3-wire. Would it be safe to add a 240 range outlet and buy a cord designed to reduce 240 to 120? Seems to be used a bunch when someone goes from an electric range to a gas range. Any other options? Any help is appreciated.Thanks!

You are thinking of a tap rule and that would not be safe in this case because you only have 3 wire no neutral. There are 220v heaters but I would suggest good insulation on the pipes and letting a faucet trickle so the pump kicks on every 5 minutes or so, I have done this in several homes and not had frozen pipes even in the low single digits and -f  but I did loose some plumbing in the barn that now has heat tape luckily we had water in the house and could shut the feed to the barn off until we got the pipes fixed.


How do I mitre exterior trim when the pieces are canted? I am ripping my hair out trying to figure out the angles on a piece of crown on an 8  pitch rake turning the corner to a horizontal attitude. the crown has a 38 degree spring. Can you help me ?

It is not possible to have crown molding on the rake and eve that are identical in both size and profile if the spring for both is stipulated to be identical. It is geometrically impossible.

The simplest example is zero spring and 1x stock.  It is impossible to use, say, 1x6 for both the rake and the eve without leaving a triangular cheek of the rake board hanging below the eve (which is typically removed with a horizontal saw cut)

That is one of the issues solved by 'returns', as in the following sketch:

The spring on the rake and on the eve necessarily must differ if the crown moldings (even 1x) are to be the same size and profile.

Try this thought experiment.  Install crown moulding in a room that has an 'outside' corner.  Convince yourself that if all the crown moulding has the same size and profile, then the spring must necessarily be the same on all walls.  Now take down the two lengths of moulding that meet at the outside corner, then reattach them at the mitre into there previous 90 degree L configuration.  Now hold that assembly up as if one length were the rake and the other length were the eve.  You'll see that the spring on the rake is the same as it was in the room, and spring on the eve is much greater.  No way around it.

The thought experiment shows how to figure out the angles for rake and eve crown moulding: do it the same way as if your were trimming a room.  When installed, the spring of the eve will equal the spring of the rake plus the pitch of the roof.

Given that, here is a method of obtaining the correct mitre angles that does not require any 'figuring out'.

choose a spring angle for the rake, say 38 degrees
from 3/4" plywood, cut a couple of small triangles to have that angle
attach the triangles to a scrap of 1x4 by screwing through the 1x
mount the assembly in a chop saw  with the triangles bearing against the backrest
swing the chopsaw to make a standard 45 degree cut
if it is a compound chopsaw, set the vertical angle to 90 degrees
cut the end off the 1x
detach the triangles from the 1x
measure the angles, or simply adjust the setup using the 1x as a template

Note that using a 1x4 works even if the actual crown moulding has a radically different size or shape.

An minor alternative is to subtract the spring angle from 90, then cut the small triangles to that angle, then mount the assemble on a chopsaw with the triangles bearing on the bed as opposed to the backrest.  If you made right-triangles, they are one-in-the-same.


Fuse Switchbox for furnace I live in an older home I bought 2 years ago. It was built in 1924. While becoming familiar with the electrical system I discovered the circuit powering the heating furnace, from a 20 amp CB in the main box. As I traced the conduit to the gas furnace I found "power switch" box that contained 2 olde-fashion fuses.

When I opened the fuse/switchbox I found 2 fuses. A 30amp & a 15amp. Is this correct? Seems to me the fuses should be the same rating, right? Is 2 30amp fuses correct considering that the CB Box breaker is rated at 20 amps? Thanks! Dave

Here's the CB in the box. 20amp 120v.
Here is the fusebox with door closed. Not sure what the text means. Is it possible that prior to the currently installed gas furnace there was a 240v electric furnace that was protected by this fusebox? And then when it was changed to gas they used the previous 240v wire for the 120v line needed?
Here's the furnace name plate.
Here's the Gas Furnace Manual title page with the model number, etc.
I found this wiring diagram.
Here's another diagram.
Here's the 3rd diagram.

Background:
The 20A fuse is a Type S, meaning it is a "time delay" type fuse that allows things with motors to get to speed without making the fuse blow. The 30A fuse is a Type W with is not time delay, it is a "fast acting" type of fuse.
Best guess...
The furnace originally had Type S 20A fuses, but something was wrong so fuses kept blowing and after getting frustrated (but not finding out why), someone just put a larger Type W fuse in there so that it would not blow. Totally the wrong thing to do and is one of the biggest problems with fuses, which is why they are not used in houses any more.
Some time later your house was upgraded to using circuit breakers (circuit breakers would not have been used in 1924) and the installer wisely put a 20A breaker on that circuit, rendering the fuses irrelevant (assuming the wire is 12ga or larger).
But... here's another potential problem. Your drawing seems to imply that there is a 1 pole 20A breaker on the one wire feeding this, then the photo seems to show that there is a fuse (the 30A) on the white wire, which would be typically indicating the neutral circuit. It is illegal and DANGEROUS to have a fuse on the neutral circuit! If the breaker is 2 pole and this is a 240V circuit going to the furnace, then it's fine, other than the use of a white wire (white is only to be used for neutral circuits).
If none of this makes sense to you, I suggest getting a qualified electrician to look at it and, if possible, just remove those fuses.


Removing a load bearing wall We're remodeling our bathroom and I would like to remove a wall that appears to be there for looks because of the style in the late 60s. I'm wondering if there is any possibility that this wall is a load bearing wall or if I'll have any issues when I remove it. It appears to be more of a decorative wall to me but I would like a second opinion. The wall runs perpendicular to the ceiling joists but there isn't anything bearing down on it when I go in the attic and the exterior wall which I know is load bearing is only about 5ft away. There are 3 or 4 ceiling joist that cross the wall and I plan to replace 1 (maybe more) of the ceiling joist because we found some termite damage when we pulled off the drywall. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

I have attached 2 pictures of the wall I am referring to and I can go into the attic to take more picture if that would help to see what's up there.

EDIT:

Here are pictures of the attic above the wall. In the first image the wall I'd like to remove is just on the other side of the duct work. Second image is for a reference on how far away the duct work is from the wall. Third image is of the top of the wall (looking down onto it from the attic) with the insulation moved out of the way.

[![Wall location in attic][1]][1] [1]: https://i.stack.imgur.com/vcUBh.png

[![Wall distance from vent][2]][2]  [2]: https://i.stack.imgur.com/kvi9h.png

[![Top of wall from attic][1]][1]  [1]: https://i.stack.imgur.com/QMMmn.png

The presence of the header and the double top plate suggests to me  that it might be load bearing. I would not remove the header or the jack studs on which it rests. The small decorative center post* in the living space can be removed. Presumably any partition below what we can see in the picture can be removed as long as the jack studs (and king studs) were not compromised.

EDIT

*By the small center post I mean the decorative post in the living space. I don't mean the small "cripple" in the space between the header and the top plate.

EDIT

Disclaimer: I am not really knowledgeable about framing.


Remotely tracking room temperature with smartphone, tablet or laptop I need a way to remotely monitor the temperature of my room. It is very important to know (for health reasons) the temperature of a specific room in my home. In the future I will also look for a way to adjust the thermostat of the room or turn A/C on/off depending on the situation but now I am looking for a way to simply track the temperature of a room remotely using smartphone, tablet or laptop. Any of the three would suffice.

For DIY you could use a RaspberryPi with a RaZberry (z-wave module for the Pi).

RaZberry comes with a web-app and mobile apps. But you have to bring your controlling web-app into the net and care about the security!

This way you can use standard z-wave products. In this case a radiator thermostat.


Second LED bulb in each fixture burns out, what should I replace? We have a number of inexpensive light fixtures in our house, each of which takes two bulbs.  Most, but not all of these, are on newer dimmer switches (two with sliders, one with remote).  We're having a consistent problem where one (but only one) of the bulbs in each of at least 4 different fixtures fails every 1 to 4 months.  The other bulb will continue working, at least for the 2 years since we installed them.

Since LED bulbs are supposed to last for 5-10 years, and are difficult to dispose of, this bulb burnout is kind of a problem.  So we're looking for advice on what is most likely to be the problem, and what I need to fix/replace to stop burning out bulbs.

Here's what the bulbs & fixtures have in common:

The fixtures are all inexpensive "home depot" models.
Because of their shallow profile, the fixtures are effectively fully enclosed (do LED bulbs overheat?).
All bulbs are supposed to be dimmable
The LED bulbs are on the more inexpensive end, most having been purchased from CostCo.
Bulbs are from 9.5W to 13W
Dimming works fine, up until the bulbs fail
The electrical wiring in the house is mostly from the late 1980's, but some of it may date back to the 50's.

Here's what they don't have in common:

The two slider dimmers are older (made for incandescents), but the dimmer with the remote is new and supposedly LED-compatible
The one in the dining room tends to flicker for a while before it dies, but in other fixtures the bulb just burns out.
Burnout (again, one bulb only) has also happened in one fixture that does not have a dimmer.
There are two different designs/models of fixture involved.
The dead bulbs did not show any strong evidence of damage from arcing, as (presumably) they would if not making contact was an issue.

So, ideas/suggestions?  What is the most likely cause of this one-of-two bulb burnout, and what's the first thing to try replacing?

Older dimmer switches are not necessarily compatible with "dimmable" LED lamps. Replace the dimmers with those designed for LED's, or replace with a standard wall switch, and use remotely-controlled lamps.

BTW, there is no problem disposing of "dead" LED lamps -- most should comply with RoHS and contain little or no hazardous material. While the emitters may contain tiny amounts of arsenides, they're well sealed in plastic. Perhaps you're confusing LED's with fluorescent lamps, which have small amounts of metallic mercury.


When can insulation against external walls be done for new construction? Picture a new construction house where wood framing is complete and a roof has been added. How soon can insulation against external walls be added? Are there other steps that must be completed prior to insulating?

If you pulled a permit for this work, you should not proceed until you have your framing, rough electrical, and rough plumbing inspections signed off. Depending on the work, there may be more inspections you should wait for (i.e. rafter tie-down straps, rough mechanical...) your building permit likely has these listed in order on the signoff card, or just call and ask the building official.

If you did not pull a permit, I'm sure you would prefer to get it in ASAP before the temps drop.


Is a reduced neutral conductor acceptable on a cord for use with a generator? I purchased a 12,500 watt portable generator, a 50 amp inlet box and the corresponding 50 amp plug to power a friend's residence.  I also purchased a 10’ long 50 amp range cord to connect the generator to the house via the inlet box.  The cord was labeled for 50 amp service with #6/4 wiring.  When I received the cord it came as a 50 amp service with #6/2 & #8/2 wiring.

My question is:
Is it acceptable to use this cord, with the reduced size neutral wire, to connect the generator to the inlet box?  Any help would be appreciated.  Thank you

Take that range cord back and get the correct cord for the job

50A generator inlet boxes, as well as many generators with 50A outputs, do not use anything resembling the NEMA 14-50 that is certainly on the end of your range cord.  Instead, they use locking type connectors; unfortunately, there is no such thing as a NEMA L14-50, so California had to step in and set their own standard for this, the CS6365C/CS6375 family.  Furthermore, the type SRD cordage that is used for range cords is not rated for wet locations or hard/extra-hard usage, making it utterly unsuitable for use outdoors, even if your generator uses a NEMA 14-50R for its 50A receptacle.

As a result, you're better off taking all your stuff back and getting the proper generator cord for your generator.  This will have a CS6364C cord-connector on it to mate with what is almost certainly a CS6375 inlet on the generator inlet box, and be made from extra-hard usage, wet-rated cordage such as type SOOW, with a 6/4 wire configuration, and either a NEMA 14-50P or a CS6365C plug on the other end, depending on what your generator uses.


Do I need a permit to open a wall up for a kitchen passthrough? I'm interested in opening the wall between the kitchen and the "Dining Room" in an apartment that I'm renting. Before I pitch this to the landlord, do I need a permit for making that kind of modification in a non load-bearing wall? realistically I would only be cutting through one 2x4 and building a header in for the span.

Assuming you are in the US, you generally don't need a permit for cosmetic changes. Everything else you do. To find out for sure contact your local government building department.


Diagnosing a non-starting chainsaw [Makita EA7300P / Dolmar DCS7301] I have a chainsaw that won't start and I'm not particularly good at diagnosing the problem.  I had something happen like this about four months ago.  I drained the tank, put in fresh gas and it was fine.  This time, I've put in fresh gas, changed the sparkplug, cleaned the carburator and replaced all the gaskets and still it does not start.  Rarely do I ever hear a spark catch.  Usually the chainsaw sounds like this:

Google drive audio link of non-starting saw

The cylinder does get flooded with gas after a few start attempts so I doubt it's a primary fuel filter problem.  Have some filters on order and will try changing them in the future. But I did take the filter out and it seems to pass fuel just fine.

Generally this is a lightly-used chainsaw.  There's roughly only two times a year I put this saw to use, otherwise it sits idle much of the time. It's almost three years old and this is the first time I've had real trouble getting it to start.

The saw.

Air filter appears reasonably clean.

Carburator in the saw.

Carburator out of the saw.

Sparkplug out of the saw.

Topside of opened carburator. The fine filter appears clean.

Bottomside of opened carburator.

New gaskets.

The plug does spark, although the spark appears a bit weak.  I will quantify this soon.

The muffler / exhaust mesh is clean.

So I'm starting to run out of ideas.  When I cleaned the carburator I sprayed them with an aerosol carburator cleaner, then used compressed air.  There's a few tiny holes in the carburator [see the three brass items on the bottomside picture] and it's difficult for me to see if they are clear or not.  Perhaps I need to soak the carburator in cleaner for a longer period of time -- complete submersion?   Other than that, and the fuel filter, I'm at a loss.   Would I be having this problem if I put a bit too much oil in the fuel mixture?  A 50:1 ratio is hard to get precise in these small quantities.  Somehow I doubt that's the problem.

edit: When I try to start it, then quickly take out the sparkplug I find a fine mist in the ignition chamber.  So it looks like the carburator is doing it's job.  The sparks produced are quite faint and weak looking. If I increase the gap on the sparkplug it continues to throw a spark, but it remains very faint.  Are the ignition coils servicable on these things?

It appears not.  I've put in an order for a PET 4000EC spark tester so I should be able to test the spark thrown vs. a healthy (similar) chainsaw soon.  Not quite certain how to test the coil.

Aha! The Bailey's website has the service manual for this saw.  The direct link does not look very stable -- I found it by googling "Dolmar service manual".

Getting the chainsaw to this point isn't much work.

Removing the flywheel appears to be the most technical part here.  Not certain if I won't mess this up -- the manual refers to special parts and precise spacing.

Wasn't certain how to get the flywheel off.  What I did is suspend the chainsaw (by the flywheel) by making a little "net" of string for it to hang off.   I loosened the bolt, then whacked the bolt with a hammer.   From there I could undo the bolt and pull off the flywheel.

The coil came out fairly easily after that.

I have a replacement coil on order, so I should be able to compare this coil with the new one.  I hope it's the coil that's the problem or I'll feel pretty silly for going to this length of work.

Yes, it turned out to be a faulty coil.  The replacement coil came with its own flywheel, so perhaps there was a design flaw in the original.

It took some work to insert the new coil. Setting the gap between the flywheel and coil (0.3mm) was a little fussy.  Had some automotive feeler gauges lying around that helped with that.  And getting the little spark plug cap/insulator properly on the coil was a bit of a pain.

After buttoning it up, it started on the first pull.  So I'm fairly certain it was the coil.


AC Plywood for Subfloor Is 3/4" AC Plywood on 16" joists suitable for subfloor?

I am remodeling and the original subfloor is 3/4" plywood (not tongue and groove) and I want to match up with this, AC (6 ply) is all I could find. On top of this will go tile underlayment and then tile.

It seems modern building has gone to 23/32" tongue and groove plywood or OSB

Yes, but over-kill for 2 reasons: 1) 5/8" C-D plywood is fine for 16" on center supports. If you look at the grade stamp on the plywood, you'll see "48/24". This indicates it's suitable for spacings up to 48" on roofs and 24" on floors. You can use 5/8 with a grade stamp of 24/16. Yes, the industry has gone to T&G because builders are using the minimum thickness and the plywood will flex and rub edge-to-edge. This causes noise (and sometimes squeaks). The 3/4" plywood will be so stiff it won't flex and won't squeak. (However, glue and nail it down anyway.) And 2) The A-C designation indicates the A side is patched so it's smooth (and maybe even touch-sanded.) This is used as an underlayment, where the finish floor is to be installed directly to it. (Most vinyls can't be installed on particleboard in wet locations.) C-D is cheaper and doesn't matter in your case, because you're adding an underlayment for the "finish flooring."


How can I solder/braze thin stainless steel wire? I've been attempting to practice torch brazing/soldering and am currently attempting to join a ring of stainless steel wire shut like a wrist sized 'o'.

Unfortunately the results have been pretty bad. The silver solder I'm using just does not want to stick, it keeps dripping off in globs. And when I heat the wire up it gets red hot pretty quick and then as soon as it cools down its coated in a layer of char which makes it not want to stick even further.

I've tried using this propane torch and this MAPP torch but neither seem to get the job done and seem to heat it to rapidly. I combat this by pulling it back a bunch and 'wafting' the heat over the target area which seems to help but things still go black.  Furthermore I'm using this silver bearing solder and this flux paste which I suspect are more likely the issue. The solder is considerably thicker than the wire I'm trying to join and I'm not even 100% sure its the right kind for the job.

The wire I'm using is stainless steel (type 302/304), soft tempered and is 0.032" diameter.

I've come across a few tutorials on youtube but most seem to be for copper plumbing pipe work or a few seem to be jewellery (and using exotic metals).
Can anyone suggest good tutorials to learn how to do this type of brazing/soldering?

Does anyone have any suggestions around where I'm going wrong?

Edit: In case it is somehow relevant, this is a high voltage electrical project and I'll be linking several of these 'o' rings in a sphere shape. Its not a simple matter to bolt them together and I must weld them.

Successful soldering (you're not welding, and you have the wrong torch if you want to weld) requires that the work be physically clean (scrub it) and chemically clean (flux) - you need a very aggressive flux for stainless, because the reason it IS "stainless" is that it forms a strong oxide layer which protects it from most corrosion. Kester is not going to regard stainless as electrical work, for one thing, so don't bark up that tree too long.

With thin stainless, the other problem you almost certainly have (stainless conducts heat poorly, which makes it very easy to overheat) is overheating the work - once work has been overheated, you have to return to physically cleaning it and refluxing before you have a hope in heck of getting solder on it. You also need to stay out of the "oxidizing cone" of the torch flame - ideally, switch to an oxy-acetlyene torch, make the flame rich, and only use the feather - but you can get there with propane if you're careful. The thickness of the solder does not matter much - you heat the wires, and melt the solder on the wires - don't heat the solder.

You could also move up to brazing, which is a process similar to soldering but at higher temperatures, using different filler metals. When most folks refer to silver soldering, what they actually mean is silver brazing (the rod has some silver, but not a huge amount.) The solder you linked to is a low-temperature solder that has silver in it, from the "lead free" change in "soft solders."

What this is doing on a DIY home improvement site is another question. High voltage electrical projects are not exactly the bread and butter of DIY. Another approach in a lab setting would be to do the whole job in a glovebox full of nitrogen or argon. You could also TIG weld it, if you were good at TIG welding. Spot welding might be another approach, but that will also work better on stainless in an oxygen-free atmosphere (glovebox, etc.)