Was this part of roof and eaves done right? Look in pictures below. This section of roof was open before and we asked if it could be covered.  We are getting a new roof and roofer said no problem and this was his solution.  However, his roofers made the eaves uneven, they don't match up.  I don't know how this is going to work with the gutters we are having installed next.  It has taken the company a full week, even the weekend, to do this roofing job. Was it done right?  Would you be happy with this?  Is it normal to have an eave hang lower? How would you fix this and would you pay this guy?  My husband thinks it's fine, but he has found other problems with the roof as well.  I think it's shoddy work.  Should I make a complaint to bbb?  Contractor only came first day of work to see roofers working. Thank you for any input.

The height of the fascia (the vertical face at the edge of the roof) depends on 3 parameters: Overhang depth, truss (rafter) heel height, and roof pitch (slope).

If any of these things vary from one plane to another, at least one of the other parameters must be adjusted to accommodate. It's often simplest to have a slight variation in overhang depth. It's hard to say what impact that would have on your home from the photos provided. Judging by the fairly low slope you'd lose 6-12" of overhang to bring the fascias into alignment.

If you didn't work those things out with your contractor beforehand you may not have much recourse at this point. There is no violation of contract, and it's merely an aesthetic issue. If you're on good terms, discuss making a change and split the cost if the contractor doesn't agree that it was a mistake.


How do I install an occupancy sensor at a switch with only two wires? How do I install a Lutron occupancy sensing switch on a switch box with two wires?

Also, what do I do with the green ground wire?

If you mean there are only two wires at the switch then you cannot use a typical occupancy sensor at this location.

This type of switching is called a switch loop. The hot is brought down on the white and the switched black goes up to turn on the light. There is NO neutral wire in a two-wire switch loop.

This is why new codes require a neutral wire at a switch box location, even with a switch loop.

The ground should be connected to the ground wires in the box. If none exist, or the box is metallic and grounded, then just fold the ground wire into the box behind the switch.
You should definitely check the instructions to see if the ground is absolutely required. Switches in existing applications that are non-grounding can be replaced with new, but some electronic switches require a valid grounding conductor.


PVC threaded fitting broken off. How can I remove? showing broken fittting that is stuck... the white fitting is the new replacement.. you see threaded end is same as piece stuck in the pool filter

There are also internal pipe wrenches available just for this situation:


How can I get a galvanized pipe that was threaded at the hardware store to screw into the fitting? I had 1" galvanized pipe cut to size and threaded at a large hardware store but they still won't screw all the way into the fittings.  When I compare them to the pre-threaded pipes I bought, the pre-threaded appear to taper slightly all the way down the threads and screw in just fine about a 1/2" but the store threaded pipes only screw in about 1/4" or less.  I've tried WD-40, Vaseline and I even filed the ends down a little to remove any burrs.  They don't need to be leak proof because I'm using them to building a closet organizer but they do need to fit together.  Any suggestions?

I use to run a pipe threader at Home Depot, and my cuts always fit just like the pre-threaded pipe.  Their machine could have been out of adjustment.  If the threads don't look the same as a pre-threaded pipe, and they don't fit the same, something is wrong.

For what you're doing, 1/4" of pipe thread might not provide the strength you need even though it doesn't have to be water tight.  Take it back and show them the problem.


What are the RAL colors of "de Stijl"? What are the (best matching) RAL codes of "de Stijl" many people know from Mondriaan?

I might have a few colors for now (but might be incorrect). Based on

+--------+------+
| Color  | RAL  |
+--------+------+
| white  | 9010 |
| black  | ?    |
| blue   | 5010 |
| yellow | 1003 |
| red    | ?    |
+--------+------+

I plan on making something like this:

Don't count on it

RAL has a very, very small color space. Further, RAL is not an "analog" system - there's no way to pick RAL 1049.33185 if you need a shade in between.  So forget it; no RAL color will match Mondriaan's choice, unless he picked from RAL in the first place.*

The eye can distinguish millions of colors; a thousand in the color space isn't nearly enough.

Honestly, RAL is just another Pantone.   A system entirely intended to be trendy, and be used for new designs, and never intended to be a tool for historical matching.  Of course they want you to believe that all past colors should be defined in terms of their system, and sadly, they sometimes succeed. However, your interest is as an historian means RAL and Pantone swatch books are ideal for leveling tables.

A critical limitation of Pantone is that it is defined in terms of ink ratios of Pantone inks; whose mixes are proprietary. In fact Pantone is trying to deprecate many of the something like 26 inks a Pantone printer must stock, so many original colors are being obsoleted.  Yeah, that's just what we want in a color system.

For a proper match, you need an absolute color space such as CIE or Munsell.  Munsell is an odd hybrid, it's a private company who makes a swatch book, but Munsell numbers are derived from absolute physical characteristics; for instance 7.5 BG 8/4 describes

BG (Blue-Green) is a range of hues, and there are 10 such ranges in the circle
7.5 (0-10) indicates the specific hue within BG
8 (0-10) lightness (reflectivity) indicates fairly light; 0 is black 10 is white
4 (0-10 nominal) indicates level of color saturation.

This is in absolute terms, which means the max number can range wildly based on amount of saturation that is possible at that hue and lightness. This varies by hue (reds saturate far more) and lightness (pastels can't saturate much at all).

Munsell makes a swatch book with 40 hues x 8 lightnesses x 2-10 even numbered saturations.  These are numbered linearly and are designed to be interpolated.  So you can nail down a Munsell number for any reflectable color, like 8.1 BG 7.16/3.34.

One difference, CIE to Munsell, is that the Munsell company survives (part of XRite, who owns Pantone). They stock sheets of each standard swatch-book color. For fractional colors, they will formulate you you custom sheets for about $300.  I'm sure in 1953 those custom sheets were loaded with chromium and lead; today they're organic.  No dependency on ink formulas here!

There are also mail-order paint shops that collect color books, including Munsell and whatever books may exist for CIE, and will cheerfully mix you a sampler latex paint tin of any color out of that book for a few dollars.  You can then thoroughly paint a piece of wood (3-4 coats to be sure of no print through) and take that to your local paint shop. They can then scan it and match up.

Don't even try to match off screens

Reflective/paint colorspace works so violently differently from additive/video display colorspace, that there simply is no comparing.  I've tried to use digital photos and Photoshop to interpolate between two Munsell chips (i.e. reddish chip - exemplar - purplish chip) -- it totally does not work at all.  It's as if the computer cannot even see the color; like it's seeing something else and it's just wrong.  Anything you do to color-match via the computer, e.g. dropping a Jpeg of the art into Photoshop, will wildly mislead you. Don't even bother trying.

Contact the gallery

I would talk to the gallery.  At some point in the history of time, I am sure somebody stuck a color scanner on Mondriaan's painting and lifted off the CIE or Munsell numbers.

* Which has happened. I was doing some industrial archaeology and was resolving Munsell colors, expecting a fraction and a $300 "send off to Munsell for custom sheets" sort of deal.  I found the number not only to be an integer, but actually in the standard swatch book - dead nuts.  Then I checked another.  Again integer; again in the swatch book. It was perfectly clear the company had specced their colors out the Munsell book. That meant all the usual "wobble" from aged or sun-bleached pigment samples, ambient light color, you name it, just went away. It was ridiculously easy.


Why little holes/dots when I apply joint compound? I can't find answer anywhere, can somebody tell me why and how to avoid these little dots/holes when I spackle.

I also including the pic of the compound I'm using.

There have got to be many ways to minimize the bubbles.  These kind of problems you deal with when finishing drywall require a certain amount of skill that, for me, comes only with experience.  That said, I have a few ideas:

Add a little bit of water.  The further along in the finishing process, the thinner the compound should be.
Mix well, even if you add no water.
"Work" your mud with a knife in your pan (or on your hawk) for a few seconds.
It's hard to tell from the pictures, but it looks like your application could use fine tuning.  a. Apply the mud to the wall as you have done.  b. Remove mud from the knife and, putting pressure on the left side of the knife, go back over application. c. Do the same for the right side. d. With light pressure in the center, go over again.  This will help to better feather out our edges.


Cutting into footing for plumbing? I am adding a bathroom in my basement on an exterior wall. After cutting out the floor, I can see that the footing extends about 8" in to the space I had planned on putting my vents. Is it OK to remove small parts of the footing to facilitate my vent pipes, or should I change my wall size accordingly so I can still run my vents without disturbing the original footing?

After consulting with a plumber, he advised to leave the footing alone. The first reason was it could potentially lead to foundation cracks in the future, or compromise the wall itself. The second reason is the concrete is so old, it would be a huge undertaking to try and remove any of it.

I opted to move my wall towards the center of the house by 6", which makes the bathroom smaller but negates the need to mess with the footing.


Help! Condensate pump is so loud and working when minisplit is off Help! New homeowner here. We have a carrier minisplit in our bedroom, which works well. We live in a rowhouse (so two brick walls on the side), so a condensate pump is used to pump water onto the roof and to the back of the house. The problem is that the pump makes a loud buzzing sound every 1-2 minutes. Is that frequency normal?
The annoying part is that it does this even when the unit is turned off. I'm very new to this HVAC stuff but after doing some research, it seems like there's an issue with the float switch. What should I do? Get a new pump? The HVAC tech didn't seem like could help with this but I'm pretty useless with this level of DIY. I can't sleep with it buzzing constantly -- help!

I can see the pump turning on a couple of times after being in cooling mode but it should not have a lot of water to pump once the unit warms up.
if the pump is pushing water I would be concerned about the amount of ice in the head.
Is the filter being cleaned low air flow can cause icing.
Don’t run the ac when the outside temps are below 65F this can cause icing.
If there is ice on the evaporator coil it may take several hours to melt and your pump is doing it’s job.
I would be concerned about that much ice, floats usually stick closed and won’t turn off or fail to close and turn the pump on.
I have not seen a float cycle unless it has to lift the water and then a long horizontal run. What happens in some cases the water is syphoned back into the pump.
A simple check valve close to the pump is needed in this case this theory is easy to check by watching the water level in the pump tray.


How can I fasten nuts in narrow places when installing a faucet? Recently I replaced a faucet in the kitchen, but there is not enough room to fasten two nuts. These are not the nuts on the end of the supply lines; they thread onto studs to hold the faucet down. They're too close to the supply lines to be able to grab.
I tried with a wrench and a rib joint pliers, unsuccessfully.
How can I fasten nuts without calling a plumber? Is there a specific tool to achieve this or something else?
UPDATE:
I added some pictures to explain my case better.
Pic #1: These are the nuts. At the moment, they have been tightened just by hand:

Pic #2: As I said before, there is really not so much room to tighten due to sinks and pipes. As for pipes, they are almost attached to the nuts, hence a basin wrench is not the best option, in my opinion:

Pic #3: This is a detail from the faucet assembly instructions that shows a better perspective.

What you're after is a tool called a basin wrench:

It can reach up behind the sink and tighten those nuts.


Why would plastic anchors pull out of the wall? What is going wrong?  To install plastic anchors I was taught to drill a small hole (exact size of anchor or slightly smaller.... lightly tap in anchor until fully recessed and face is flush with drywall... screw the screw into anchor slowly so it bites.  Isn't this correct??  A large percentage of my anchors pull out (screw and anchor together)... Is there any reason this might be happening?

The Hole is too big:

It could be that your pilot holes are too big.  When the screw is inserted, the anchor does not expand enough to bite into the surrounding hole.  Keep in mind that most plastic anchors are tapered, so you want them to fit tightly in the hole.  If you can push them in too easily, then the hole is too big.  Some plastic anchors have a slight lip (collar) at the end, to prevent the anchor from slipping into the wall.  When drilling the pilot hole, it must be smaller than this collar. So the anchor will not sit perfectly flush with the wall, when it's pushed into the hole.

Material is not stable enough:

Another common problem is that the material you are putting the anchor into, is not stable enough to hold the anchor in place.  This can be particularly problematic with older plaster.  You install the anchor, then when you insert the screw the expansion of the anchor crumbles the surrounding plaster.  This causes the anchor to fall out, since it's essentially being held in place by dust.

Items are too heavy:

It could be that you are hanging too much weight on the anchors.  Drywall and plaster are not designed to carry loads, so applying too much weight to a single point will cause the anchor to come loose.

Items are too thick"

You may also run into trouble if the item you are attaching to the wall is too thick. If the screw does not penetrate the anchor deep enough, the anchor will not expand enough to hold it in the hole.

Material is too hard:

You can even run into trouble if the material you are putting the anchor in is too solid. If you put the anchor in a material that is too solid (2" steel plate), when you put the screw in the anchor may actually not be able to expand.  This can cause the anchor to deform and break, and again fall out of the hole.

Wrong size screw: (Thanks Joe).

If the screw is too small, it will not expand the anchor enough to bite into the wall. If the screw is too large, it can damage the anchor and/or surrounding material causing the anchor to fail.

The screw is too long:

If there is a solid surface behind the anchor, using a screw that's too long could cause the anchor to pull out of the hole as you tighten down the screw.  You'll have to remove the screw and anchor, then drill the hole deeper to fix this.


Does the ground pigtail to the jbox need to match the largest circuit? In California, I have a metal jbox and, in it, there is a junction for a 10/2 NM and a 14/2.
These have different size ground conductors.

Does the code require a specific size ground conductor to pigtail to the metal box?

It stands to reason in my mind that I would use the largest circuit ground conductor size but I am looking any code specifics.

It needs to match the circuit grounding conductors in size, basically

The clearest indication of the minimum size a box grounding jumper needs to be comes from NEC 250.146 (emphasis mine):

  250.146 Connecting Receptacle Grounding Terminal to Box.
  An equipment bonding jumper shall be used to connect the
  grounding terminal of a grounding-type receptacle to a grounded box unless grounded as in 250.146(A) through (D). The
  equipment bonding jumper shall be sized in accordance with
  Table 250.122 based on the rating of the overcurrent device
  protecting the circuit conductors.

This basically requires the box grounding jumper to be at least as large as the minimum size ground conductor permitted for a circuit of that amp rating.  Further support for the OP's position, where the grounding jumper to the box must be the size of the largest ground wire coming into the box even if that ground wire is oversized as per NEC 250.122(B), comes from the precise text of NEC 250.148(C):

  (C) Metal Boxes. A connection shall be made between the
  one or more equipment grounding conductors and a metal
  box by means of a grounding screw that shall be used for no
  other purpose, equipment listed for grounding, or a listed
  grounding device.

In particular, since it basically implies that the jumper between the grounding screw and the equipment grounding conductors coming into the box is an equipment grounding conductor, it means that this jumper must comply with all the equipment grounding conductor sizing rules in NEC 250.122 in order to conform with this section of the NEC.


Rain Water enters through tracks of sliding glass windows I have sliding glass windows on Aluminium tracks and when it rains heavily (especially when it is windy) the rain water comes in on the window sill & wets the wall underneath.

The water seems to be filling the window tracks & then entering. Any thoughts on how to fix this?

Edit:

I am adding a photo of the window tracks. The weep holes seem present and unblocked? There's a trio of aligned holes on the track rails. This is a three panel horizontal sliding window.

For approx. a 6 ft horizontal span of window there seem to be three sets of holes laterally. Do I need more holes? Larger holes?

What else could be the problem? The water influx seems to only happen when it rains heavily and on windy days. Being in a subtropical climate the thunderstorms can be quite severe.

The lower track of a window frame normally is supposed to have small holes at its lower edge toward the outside that allows water in the track to drain out. These are commonly called weep holes.

It is a common problem that over years dirt can collect on the bottom of the track and clog up these holes so the track will no longer drain. Look to see if yours are clogged and clean if necessary.


What fittings to use for floating box shelves I'm trying to fit some box shelves but cannot find the type of fittings to use so that the screws are not visible.
The thickness of the shelves of about 1cm. This is the fitting of the back of the shelves:

Which means that when hung using screws and rawl-plugs the screws are far too visible.

Now the only thing I can think of that would be small enough not to show either above or below the shelf are nails - but they won't support the shelves if I put anything on them heavier than a curry takeaway menu.
I believe my walls are brick and plaster (1960's British house) so things like Super Hooks are unlikely to work as the walls are too solid.
What should I use to hang these shelves?

Unfortunately the MDF board is too thin for true "invisible shelves" I really hate those fittings, they just seem so un-secure!

You cannot raise the connector, since the board is too thing. but what you could do, is run a beading across the bottom edge.  Thats about all I could think of.

that would also help with the secure-ness of the fitting since the screw heads would not fall out the grapple holders.


Galvanized fasteners into exterior concrete - good enough for 20+ years? Or stainless? Planning to attach pressure treated wood sleepers to a concrete patio and put deck boards over them.
I'm trying to decide on what fastener material is best to attach the sleepers to the concrete.
This is a wet exterior location. The concrete is bound to hold moisture pretty much all the time. (Using treated lumber means I have to use at least galvanized fasteners anyway.)
But I'm concerned that galvanized steel will rust out before the treated wood fails which would seem like a real waste. (Won't driving fasteners into concrete scratch off some of the coating?)
Is this concern unfounded?  Will galvanized be OK or should I just go for stainless?
Stainless is more expensive. If its worth it, that's OK. But I don't want to waste $$$ either.

Note - I've not yet decided on what type of fastener - e.g., tapcons vs. wedge anchors vs. nail-set hammer drive anchors... etc.

My first deck, years and years ago, I used galvanized lag bolts and they corroded after about 7 years. My next one I used the best deck screws available, guaranteed for the life of the deck, etc. When I had to replace a plank after 4 years, the screws were rusted and snapped off when I tried to remove them. The corrosion in both cases really hastened the rotting of the wood. My next deck I used all stainless steel screws and they have held up great. I replaced a plank after 5 years due to warping and when I removed the screws, they looked like new. There was no rotting around the screw holes either. I'd use stainless screws for the wood to wood and stainless lag screws and lag shields for the wood to concrete. Make sure you get lumber that's meant to be in contact with the ground or concrete.


Can I use a 50 Hz device in a 60 Hz power frequency? My mother in law just returned from Europe and brought me an espresso machine. It's rated 220v - 50 Hz (as written in the label), but the power system here is 220v - 60 Hz. Funny thing is that in the manufacturer website it says the model is actually 220v - 50/60 Hz.

Question is: can I use it here? By searching the internet I found some people saying it wouldn't work, others saying it would work but damage the machine eventually, and even others saying that the frequency difference only affects clocks/timers. So I'm kinda confused.

Should I try to use it?

The 60 Hz represents the frequency at which the voltage in the wire oscillates. Heating elements don't care about this, and neither do most electronic components as they turn this alternating current (AC) into constant (DC) direct current anyway.

If this is an all-singing, all-dancing, computer controlled extra-fancy espresso machine then I'd steer clear, though, as there's a remote chance you've one of the few devices where the cycles-per-second makes a difference. If it just uses power to heat an element you should be fine.

Disclaimer: operating the device outside of the region it's designed for will certainly void the warranty, and coffee in excess isn't good for you anyway.


Ceiling light/fan remote problem I have a ceiling light/fan controlled by remote only - no light switch or pull cables. Now the remote receiver is broken and the company doesn't make the replacement part anymore.
So in buying a new ceiling fan, do I have to buy one powered by remote? Or will a light switch need to be installed if I want one controlled by light switch? Is there a chance my current fan receiver is bypassing the light switch that should control it?
I'm in the dark here. DIY beginner.
Thanks everyone

Some fan manufacturers make after-market remote controls that can be attached to non-remote-controlled fans. (I have 2 installed.) Here is a link to one made by Progress Lighting. https://www.progresslightingexperts.com/lighting/7-196-826-0-220446/Progress_Air-Pro---Fan-Light-Remote-Control-P2618-01.htm. While my fan was also switched (just on/off), it's light and speed were controlled by pull cords. I put the remotes in to allow control by remote instead of pull cord. Just make sure there is room in the fan for the receiver.


How can I block off scorching sunlight from coming through my windows? Somehow, the window of my room faces directly at the scorching beams of the sun all year long. The local weather here is humid, and the heat from the sun coming in from the windows makes the room almost unbearable to live in during mid-afternoons.

I could roll down the blinds, shut the windows and turn up the fans, but the heat still gets radiated through the walls into the room. And rolling down the blinds and closing the windows make the room dark and stuffy. The heat is really bad, so bad that often, low-quality rubbery textured materials in my room could sometimes feel sticky, like they were turning molten under the influence of the intense room temperature.

What are some techniques people use in their rooms to shade windows from scotching sunlight and to keep the room temperature cool without turning on an air-conditional the whole day?

First, try to prevent the sun from hitting the building in the first place. Shade trees, large overhangs, louvers can all do this. There may be micro louver screens available that appear to be heavy duty insect screens but are actually very small louvers. You can easily see through the louvers, but they prevent the sun from hitting the glass.

Second, reduce the impact of what sun does hit the building by reflecting it away. Transparent reflective film on the window and light colored wall finish will work for this measure.

Third, reduce conducted heat. Insulate the wall so the hot outer surface cannot easily heat the inner surface. Use dual glazing the same way, the hot outer pane cannot easily heat the inner pane.

Fourth, prevent the hot inner surfaces from heating the room's air. Typically drapery or similar treatments. Not just the window, the wall too. Even sheer drapes you can see through are better than nothing. They trap air between the glass and the fabric, creating additional insulating value to keep the heat out of the room, and reduce the transmitted light that would have further heated the room interior.

I've covered how to reduce heat gain through the various modes of how it gets into the room, but I've only scratched the surface of ways to do this. Be creative. Figure out ways to achieve what I've outlined with materials that are readily available to you.


Natural ways to keep the ceiling cool during summer I live in the single floor independent house in South India with the ceiling exposed to sun.  In summer it gets really hot.

I am not an expert but was wondering if there is a traditional/natural way of cooling the ceiling. Sometimes, inside the house, we feel like living inside the furnace.

Would be glad if you have some ideas in natural cooling techniques.

I assume you mean the roof is exposed to the sun...and that in turn is heating your ceiling?

If so, options:

make sure the roof is reflective (white/metallic) rather than a dark color (which absorbs heat)
make sure the roof is insulated
If the roof can support a green/planted roof, consider that.
plant trees to shade the roof (obviously may take a few decades to fully work)
create a cold roof (some form of secondary roof to shade the one below...in many climates this would be an attic type constructions...but almost anything could work...a covered roof deck, for instance--or even just a vented second layer such as standing seam metal panels on top of spacers to allow for airflow underneath.)

Once the ceiling is warm, it means the heat had already entered the living space. Can't really cool the ceiling at that point without getting the heat out of the living space. Exhaust fans could help...along with perhaps a ceiling fan. Cross ventilation with windows/vents. Etc.


GFCI rating for Bathroom and Kitchen An electrician came over today for an inspection, and pointed out that the GFCI's we have in the bathroom, kitchen and garage are only 15Amp; they claim that code requires 20Amp GFCIs in these locations. Is this correct (for a house built in 1971)?

All rooms are serviced by their own 20Amp circuits.

I'm fine with replacing them if required by code, but if he's just trying to get money out of me, I'd rather leave them (he wanted just over $900 to change 6)

15A refers to the receptacles on the front, not the terminals on the back

All 15A receptacles (including xFCI types) made today (and in recent history) are required to support a feed-through rating of 20A -- this means that they can support 20A from one set of screws (LINE for an xFCI) to the other set of screws (LOAD for an xFCI).  As a result, having 15A duplex receptacles on a 20A circuit is A-OK -- you have more than one receptacle there, and pulling a combination of 20A from the two 15A receptacles is OK due to the feed-through rating, so Code permits this.


Roof leak where chimney meets roof We have a roof leak which seems to be "mystifying" our roofer. 6 months after our roof was reshingled and about 2 years after a total chimney rebuild, we are still dealing with a roof leak along where the chimney meets the roof of the house - leaking inside and running down wall above fireplace. When our roofer and a friend who is an inspector went up there to inspect 2 days ago, they found underside of shingles, and underlayment all dry. Underneath those layers,  however, there was an area of plywood about 2 feet by 3 feet all wet and moldy. When that plywood was cut out, our inspector reached up under the step flashing and counterflashing in between that and the chimney. The brick chimney was soaking wet under there! Our roofer proceeeded then to replace the plywood and shingles and claim that the chimney is where the problem lies.The only wet area found was under the counterflashing and an area of plywood roof that rests against the chimney. Our mason is coming out in a few days to inspect and possibly redo our chimney crown even though we don't get any water inside the chimney or the fireplace and no significant cracks were seen in chimney. Our roofer denies that the leak could be due to their work since the shingles and underlayment were dry and he does not want to take off or reflash the chimney. He did caulk around the flashing to seal it. He inserted the counterflashing into a cut he made in the brick (not the mortar joint). The counterflashing is one continuous piece of copper running up ward on an angle following the angle of the chimney. I would be interested in opinions on whether this is a roof/flashing issue or a chimney problem. Thanks for reading!

Honestly I can't see this being the chimney.   I know it looks nice and tight but this is exactly why I wouldn't suggest putting the chimney flashing under the shingles.   You now have a seem that is guarded by caulk and not gravity or a harder material like the nice copper flashing.

So my guess is that the rain came down roof, hit chimney and then entered a hole in the caulking.   Gravity tells it to go to that hole.  Now if flashing is on the outside/over the shingles then the rain has go under the flashing and then over - which is against the laws of nature.   In this scenario a small hole in caulking can go unnoticed for years.


Painting central heating radiator I would like to repaint a standard UK tired looking central heating radiator to a copper looking colour. My question is how to strip the current white paint really? Please see the photo attached. I don't know what sort of metal is radiator made of or what kind of paint is it currently. Do I just sandpaper it?

After the paint is removed, what kind of paint do I need? Is it a bucket and the brush I need or something else, spray paint? I wouldn't mind the paint being more distressed looking than on the example photo below. It would be amazing to apply the same paint to various exposed pipes around the room as well, all currently painted white, do I use the same approach?

The radiator is probably steel. To remove the paint, you can sandpaper it.

Optimally, you should dismount it, so you're able to get to the back of it as well. If you dismount it, you can also take it to a workshop and have it sandblasted. That's the quick way to strip the paint.

As for painting: If you get down to bare steel, apply a primer that is suitable for steel, and a coat of a paint that is compatible with your primer to give it color. This can be spray paint, which will give it a uniform surface, or you can brush it on - which will probably give a thicker, less uniform coat.

For the pipes, the same approach should work. Be careful with the amount of stress you impart on them, as this may lead to leaks further down the road.


240 Volts - No Neutral Required - How does Power Return to Earth? I think this question is appropriate here in order to help DIYers (me) to understand why a neutral isn't needed on a 240 volt outlet.
I understand that two 120 volt power sources that are 180 degrees out of phase can be combined to provide 240 volts and I believe they accomplish this by using each others off phase to complete the circuit.
My Question
If all AC electrical power completes its circuit by returning to earth, how is that accomplished in a 240 volt circuit with no neutral?

Power doesn't want to return to earth.  It wants to return to source.

For natural power, ESD and lightning, yeah, source is earth.  However, for human power, source is the transformer or battery.  So hot wants to get back to neutral or the other hot.

As it happens, there's an equipotential bond to keep the three voltages (240V and neutral in the middle) from getting too high compared to earth.  This bonds neutral to earth. As such, wayward current can work its way through the grounding system, the neutral-ground equipotential bond and back to neutral. But power would prefer neutral or the other hot.


Diagnosing noisy power lines We have a number of devices in our house that communicate via power lines (such as power line networking devices and some solar/electric metering equipment), and we've had persistent problems getting a good signal.  I've tried the steps outlined in this question, but I haven't had much success in locating the problem.

Are any tools available that would help quantify the nature of the problem...that aren't going to set me back hundreds of dollars?  I would love to have some hard data to work with, rather than the rather vague "it's just not working" that I've got right now.

For power line communication devices to operate correctly they should be on the same leg of the power lines coming into the house. Your house has two power legs and a neutral leg. Voltage from each leg to neutral is nominally 120 volts AC. Voltage from leg 1 to leg 2 is nominally 220 volts. The power line modules work best when all devices are connected to the same leg. If one device is connected to leg 1 and the other device is connected to leg 2, the signal could have to return to the utility transformer (on the pole and could be blocks away) before reaching the other leg.

The quick fix, if you can, is to swap breakers in your main panel so that all power line modules are on the same leg. If you can not do that,this bridge may help. Although this is designed for the "X10" system, they all work pretty much the same and could work as well for your system.

The breakers alternate from leg 1 to leg 2 as shown.


Why does my thermostat show code 'PF' after running the fan or A/C? After running either just the central HVAC fan, or the central HVAC AC for just a few minutes, the Bryant thermostat (Model TSTATBBPB101, C Wire attached) screen momentarily shows "PF", and then goes blank (it normally shows the current and target temperatures).

1 minute later (if running just the fan), or 5 minutes later (if running the AC), the thermostat's screen comes back on, and everything looks good.

The fan (or AC) will then turn on, and work fine, until the above cycle repeats after just a few minutes.

I then installed a new LUX TX9600TSa thermostat, and the problem persists.  Without batteries, but with C wire connected, the thermostat will show "Low/Battery Low" after running the AC for 5 minutes, and then go blank.  With batteries installed, and the C wire still connected, the fan (or AC, if it is selected) will simply stop after a few minutes, even though the fan is still turned on (or in the case of the AC, the target temperature has not been reached).

1 minute later (if just running the fan), or 5 minutes later (if running the AC), everything will reset and look fine, but the problem persists: I can no longer get the HVAC fan or AC to run for more than a few minutes at a time.

Just to ensure it's not a clogged filter, I put a brand new MERV 16 filter into the HVAC system, but the results did not change.

What is likely the problem, and is this something I can fix myself?

HVAC is losing power.

Cause 1 overflow shutoff switch.
Cause 2 bad transformer.

My first inclination is that you have a condensate shutoff switch activated, due to a full pan due to over condensation and/or a clogged overflow pipe. If you had a really nasty old filter, or no filter for some time, then this is even more likely.


How can I make a copy of a door key without a matching blank? We have an old numbered key, that looks like a regular key, but it seems it is numbered, so the locksmith refuses to copy it without our landlord coming with the original.

Our landlord would obviously not want us to have more than one person live in the apartment, so he would not cooperate.

So the question is: how to copy a regular key (no fancy double cylinder or more) for which, however, there is no key blank available?

I assume it would be sufficient to thin a thicker blank, and then engrave the sides properly, in addition to replicate the teeth. Do locksmiths offer such service?

update:

I discovered that there exist some key blanks that are matching multiple key types.
These blanks typically look very skinny in the middle, so that they would pass through different keyways (still belonging to the same producer) .
I eventually managed to use one of these key blanks, but of course their cutting requires a locksmith with a minimum amount of skills.
Thanks for the advices!

If the key is for a high-security lock like Medeco or Mul-t-lock, only the locksmith who originally cut the key will be able to cut a new key as each locksmith is assigned a unique keyway.  These keys are actually not copied but cut from a specification.  Stores who cut keys but are not lock smiths might try to copy these but the results will be unsuccessful.

If the key is not a high-security key then the locksmith who said no without the original is doing his moral duty to not copy such keys since the numbering is a form of audit and access control.

The blank is not the issue - there are a ton of different types of blanks and a locksmith will know which one to use. They will not grind down other blanks normally, though I suppose if you were legitimately trying to create a copy of a very unique key (say something antique) then they might resort to other methods to copy it.

Your options are:

Find a locksmith who will copy it for you
Either replace the lock cylinder or the entire lock assembly with a new one, after which you will hold the original key and be able to make as many copies as you want. Usually you would just provide the landlord with a copy of the key so that they can enter but definitely check with your landlord to see if this is allowed.
Have at a blank with a dremel or other type of grinding tool.  Depending on the quality of the lock, this may or may not be successful.

Of course maybe the best thing to do would just be to ask your landlord!  Not to suggest you should lie to your landlord, but if you think multiple dwellers is a sticking point then maybe just say you want a copy so someone can come clean your apartment regularly - I think you'd be hard pressed to find a landlord who would actively discourage you from keeping the apartment clean.


Why is it good practice to remove sheathing from NM wire when going through conduit? I've been discussing specifics of an electrical job with a licensed electrician and he mentioned that in my area, it's acceptable/recommended to feed 12 gauge NM wire through an outdoor conduit but that the PVC sheathing SHOULD be removed if the wiring is going to travel through more than 6 feet of conduit.

This doesn't make sense to me. How/why would that be better than keeping sheathing on through the conduit run? Condensation?

There is a widespread belief that the NEC does not allow NM-cable in conduit, but does allow THHN (the individual wires).  This belief is incorrect.

However, it is for some reason lesser-known that NM-cable cannot be used in outdoor conduit at all, stripped or otherwise.

So, the answer to your question is:  stripping is a common but misguided (unnecessary) practice when using NM-cable in indoor-conduit.  And it is not allowed at all when going through outdoor conduit, like in your case.


Concrete slabs and block paving - painting I have concrete block paving and concrete slabs that I would like to paint to reuse, renovate, rejuvenate.  Any suggestions whether painting would do the trick?  The block paving is in the driveway taking a car, slabs are for foot traffic.

Inside, the painting would work & should last 10-years before needing to be scraped of bubbles, peels & cracks before a repainting. But, down the long road it'll need to be completely stripped off & re-done, which is a huge pain. But outdoors, no, I haven't seen a paint or paint re-surfacer last very long at all & they fail miserably.

You'd probably be much better off with something like this that actually soaks into the surface to become part of the surface. Scroll down to just above Reviews & to the right side in order to check out the numerous real world pictures.

The garage floor & its driveway apron I did at my old place came out like veiny leather & looked amazing. The real benefit is you just keep re-applying clear sealer, every 5 or more years for me (I only did an early 2nd time for re-sale), so there's no color matching & the stain beneath doesn't lighten nor deteriorate.


Trying to identify gray crumbly filler material This stuff was used at some point to fill gaps around a threshold in our house. Could it be asbestos?

Looks like concrete fill (a gypsum fiberglass product).  As Ecnerwal stated you can't really be sure without sending it to the lab.  Usually affordable ~$50 to test a sample.  Bag it, drop it off and wait for the results for piece of mind.


How can I repair or replace this rusty leaking bathroom sink handle? Here's what it looks like:

Should I replace the whole thing or just something inside the metal part?

How do I take it apart?

If I buy a whole new handle unit how do I know what size to buy?

You probably have a leak in the supply line or the valve stem itself.

It is possible that the supply line is loose and water is leaking and pooling under the faucet.  If that is the case, tightening the supply line, or resetting the conector with new teflon tape  may solve it.

It is also possible that the faucet is seriously damaged. If so, you will probably need to replace at least this faucet section. Becaue faucets are sold as sets. it may be more practical to replace the whole set.

The first thing you need to do is turn off the supply valve sending water to this side of the faucet.

The faucet handle should have a cap a the very top that can be pried off with a thin blade, such as a butter knife or a utility knife.  Under the cap should be a screw that should be loosened that will allow the removal of the handle itself.

After that, you can get access to the valve stem itself. If you turn on the supply valve briefly, you may see water leaking from some part of the stem.

This section of the faucet can usually be removed by loosening a nut under the sink, after the supply valve is turned off and the supply line is disconnected. You may need a special wrench called a basin wrench.

If you are unfamiar with changing faucets, you may want to consult a plumber or a more experienced friend.


Awning materials for deck under dirty trees Our second-story deck is underneath some weeping Cherry trees and Birch trees, which drop cherries, pollen, twigs and junk 3/4 of the year it seems. I want to put an awning over the deck (there is already a frame) to keep the junk off the deck and reduce cleaning. My wife thought of aluminum door/window screen, but I know that will become caked with junk and require scrubbing with a brush. I think that standard canvas will become stained with black cherry juice, which has already stained our newly repainted deck after just 1 season.

What kind of material is available in order to:

-be easy to wash debris off with a hose

-not become stained from cherries

-allow some ambient light (ie white?)

Is there some kind of tyvek-like awning material available?

You will probably find that the best material to use is Translucent Corrugated Fiberglass Panels. These are available at building supply and some big-box stores, along with accessories and fittings needed to make a sloping roof.

According to product reviews: stay away from PVC because it it too brittle, and avoid polycarbonate because it is too expensive.


Help with pine stairs Moved into a house with a pine staircase, it appears that the previous owners were in the middle of finishing/refinishing the steps (some stairs appear to have a clear coat and others appear to be just sanded.) We would like to save the steps(stain),but unsure how to proceed. Any and all help/advise would be appreciated.

I would sand all of these steps and give one same finish for all. That would give them same look that You could choose by Yourself. With proper equipement and little time it can be done in few hours plus time for hardening for any finish.
I lack proper English vocabulary, so I will not go into specific terms. I bet anyone from some big store will help You to choose proper materials/equipement.


How do I repair splits in a wood cabinet going with the grain? How do I fix 2 narrow splits on a wooden clock cabinet?  The splits are following the grain pattern. I want to fill them in and not notice them.

Should I use a colored wax stick?

Colored wax is very minimally disturbing (to the existing finish) and easily reversible, should you want to redo the repair.  Buff it with soft cloth to match sheens and you can even overcoat the whole piece with a good paste wax, afterwards.

For wood grains that have a range of colors, I like to blend (rub in) several colors along the crack.  That way, the repair is less monochromatic and therefore more natural looking.


Water pressure high when first opening kitchen faucet then reduces dramatically when fully opening faucet This just started happening today out of nowhere. When I open the kitchen faucet halfway the water pressure is ok. When I open the faucet fully the water pressure drops dramatically. Any ideas as to what the problem would be and would I be able to fix it myself or do I need to call a plumber? I’ve attached a video of me opening the faucet halfway and then fully, and also another video of the under side of the sink while opening the faucet halfway then fully. Thanks so much in advance for any help.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/104Kf85aCJbXBn5SX5iu36YNshZfWnE2u/view
https://drive.google.com/file/d/198V0anKpRrYU45lnHd4lbshA0EIWV-6Z/view

You have a problem with the faucet valve. Those single-handle faucets have a  valve that incrementally increases flow whilst also mixing hot and cold, depending on handle position.
There are various types of mechanisms to accomplish this, but a common one is the use of a hollow or solid ball with holes/ports that line up with the incoming water ports to varying degree, and lead to the spout (I mention this because your looks like that type, common manufacturer is Delta). Nevertheless, you need to turn off the water supply, remove the handle, and do some investigating. it could be as simple as a blockage that needs to be cleared, could be a new valve assembly, or could be a new faucet. We will need to see the guts...


Can I attach wall studs directly to sleepers on the ceiling joists for an angled climbing wall? I'm building a climbing wall in my basement and am currently working on the design of the angled portion.  The idea is to have an 8' x 8' section (i.e. two 4' x 8' plywood sheets) at about a 30 degree angle using 2x6s.  Since the 2x10 ceiling joists are 92" from the floor, I'll have a few inches of vertical section underneath the angled section.
Metolius has a very detailed instruction (How to Build a Home Bouldering Wall) that suggests attaching sleepers to the ceiling joists if they're parallel to the wall like mine are, adding a header joist, and then attaching the wall joists to the header with joist hangers:

Question:  Can't I just attach the wall joists to the sleepers?  Seems like the joist hangers are only needed because of the header joist, which seems redundant to me.
Similarly, I have yet to frame the wall behind the angled section, so I can space the studs such that I won't need the bottom header joist, either (and can screw in the wall joists to the studs).  Will this suffice, too?

You can attach the joists (studs) directly to the sleepers. The point of using a top plate (not actually a header) in the design you shared is probably to...

Reduce the number of sleepers required
Distribute load more effectively
Provide top edge backing for the wall sheathing

Regarding your second question, you could probably screw the angled studs directly to the vertical studs, but you'd lose any load-bearing benefit from joist hangers, and you'd lose the load-distributing quality in the horizontal ledger/plate. You also eliminate the possibility of putting drywall or sheathing behind your climbing wall without dealing with all those framing penetrations.


How to change ceiling light on a flush flat light fixture My ceiling light fixture looks like this. I can't seem to be able to remove it no matter which way I try. Any suggestions?

Grab the edges carefully and pull down. Should slide down on metal spring catches on two sides. Once down about an inch, you'll see them. Sqeeze together, like tongs, and pull down and out of the slot in the recessed frame. Some have coil springs but if it's difficult to pull down, it's probably the sqeeze style.


Disable dimmer switch I have a strange setup in one room of a house I bought. I'm not there at the moment so I can't provide photos so I will describe as well as I can.
On one side of the room there are two switches, one that turns the room light on and off, the other turns an outside light on and off.
On the other side of the room there is a dimmer switch that can also turn the room light off.
I never use this dimmer switch and would like to disable it.
When I use the light switch, the lights flicker a couple of times and then slowly come up to 100% brightness.
This flickering, I believe, is causing issues with Smart lights as they keep resetting.
To be clear, I can turn off the lights from both switches, but the dimmer switch will override the main light switch if it is turned off. If the main switch is off the dimmer switch will not turn the lights on. If the main switch is on, the dimmer switch can turn the lights off.
How would I disable the dimmer switch to give full control of the lights over to the single on off switch on the other side of the room?

A key question, as noted in the comments, is whether this is a real 3-way setup, where either switch can be used at any time to turn the light on or off, or some sort of "crazy thing" (like in the dining room I grew up with - timer replaced one 3-way switch and we had to always remember to leave the other switch "on").
Assuming this is a proper 3-way switch, with one of the switches being the dimmer:

Turn off power at the breaker
Open up the dimmer switch. You should find 3 wires (plus possibly a green or bare ground wire).
Determine which wire is common (which may be hot or switched hot, but doesn't actually matter much) and which two wires are travellers. How you do that will vary depending on the setup. If the wires attach to screws on the dimmer then usually two screws will be one color and the 3rd screw will be a different color. The screws with the same color should be the travellers. Or the wires may actually be labelled on the dimmer. But color (except green for ground) is no guarantee of anything (unless wires are part of the dimmer and labelled on the dimmer). If it isn't 100% clear, upload pictures before disconnecting any wires.
Remove the dimmer and install a simple 3-way switch (you can get regular or Decora, plus get a face plate to match). The new switch will come with instructions that should make it very clear which wires or screws are for the travellers.
Put everything back together and turn on the power.


Need longer line behind dishwasher Can I pig tail off a #14 wire, to short when I pull out dishwasher, and tie in a #12 wire to make line longer.?

You can make wire connections in approved accessible junction boxes. Using 12AWG wire is not necessary if the circuit is protected by a 15A breaker -- 14AWG will do.


replacing old line voltage thermostat My old 4 wire 240V mechanical line voltage thermostat stopped working. I want to replace it with a digital thermostat. Problem is I don't know the amp rating of the old thermostat. I checked with maker and they have no info...too old. Is there a way to check amp rating of old thermostat? A very good electrician installed the two 8 foot baseboard heaters, thermostat, 2-pole 20 amp circuit breaker and all wiring about 25 years but he is nolonger around.

20 amp circuit, so 20 amps (or more, but not less) for the thermostat.


Toilet sewer gas smell We have a sewer gas smell coming from the toilet. The smell is only present when the seat is up, hence it must be coming from inside the toilet bowl. There is a vent stack, and when other fixtures run -- the water level inside the toilet does not get sucked down so that leads me to believe venting is not the issue. The only thing I could think of is perhaps the bowl isn't filling with enough water to begin with? Any ideas? The bathroom has a washing machine, two sinks, and a bath-shower. Also, the vent stack is about 6 inches in diameter, possibly too large?

I had that problem too, we found it was the wax gasket under the toilet, the smell travels, we checked everything else and after I fixed it the smell lingered for a few days and went away the toilet was rocking that was the problem.
Good luck


How do I change a bulb in flush mounted light fixture? My bedroom has a very nice looking flush mounted ceiling light with a glass dome. However, the bulb has gone out and I cannot get the glass out to replace it. I have tried rotating the whole thing but it barely moves!! Is there another way I should be approaching this?

Some fixtures are "spring" loaded pulling straight down may release or let the cover be lowered enough to change the bulb.  If it is this type after changing the bulb push straight up and it will snap back in place.


Fridge and freezer on 15amp circuit break via 14-2 wiring I got a new freezer and fridge, each drawing 0.8 amp and 1.2 amps respectively.
I'm going to use 14-2 NM-B wire and put them both on a 15amp circuit breaker.

Together they're drawing just 2 amps and sounds like they should be fine, but I wonder about start time current. I could not find anything in their manual, but some googling said the start time current can be up to 10 to 12 percent of working current. So here are my questions:
- Is my choice of wire and circuit breaker going to make any issue for my appliances?
- If so, should I go for a different type of wire and higher rated circuit breaker or just put them on separate breakers?

UPDATE:
Here is an update after almost a year! I used the above-mentioned circuit breaker and wire for my set up and after about a year, there has not been any issue and both appliances are still working fine!

You will be fine on the same breaker.

Starting current for refrigerators and freezers is not as bad as you think. Especially, new appliances. They are very efficient and will rarely at exactly the same time.

Good luck!


What type of adapter do I need to connect my water supply lines? My last faucet started to leak, so I just bought a new Moen one.  I just about got it installed, but when I tried to hook up the water lines, I have two female connectors that don't seem to like each other.

The faucet I was replacing (also a Moen), had a metal pipe with a male connector.  However, the new one has a supply line hose with a female connector at the end.  The water line is a pex plastic tube with a female connector at the end.

Do I need some sort of adapter?

Faucets are usually 3/8, so you would need a 3/8 brass nipple

If not, they sell many different size brass nipples.


Can an electronic ballast be used for a G23 lamp? I have a Rayton R3 UVB lamp for phototherapy. It consists of a this PL-S 9W/01/2P bulb with a G23 base, and the ballast is magnetic 120v/60hz.

I would like to swap the ballast for a 240v/50hz ballast, and all I've found is a universal electronic ballast (here) but Wikipedia and others say that two pin lamps are designed for conventional (magnetic) ballasts. Does that mean that an electronic ballast should not be used? Can you tell me if the linked ballast is compatible?

The given phototherapy tube is a glow start tube with filaments. The glow starter is built into the base. Glow start tubes are usually driven with conventional magnetic ballasts. There might be also electronic ballasts for 2 pin tubes with built in glow starters, but usually electronic ballasts need access to all 4 pins of the tube.

The given listing for "universal electronic ballast" is lacking in details (input voltage/frequency ranges, tube current etc.) to give any recommendation for it's suitability.

I'd recommend replacing the existing ballast with an European model. For example:
http://www.lighting.philips.com/main/prof/lighting-electronics/fluorescent/fluorescent-electromagnetic/bpl-em-ballasts-for-cfl-pl-t-pl-s-and-pl-c-lamps/913710122350_EU/product or https://www.helvar.com/en/products/L11D240V50Hz/ or any other magnetic ballast with correct frequency, voltage and lamp power. Also when converting the wires might need also upgrading for the higher mains voltage. Consult a local lamp repair shop for advice.

Added, since unable to comment:
Suitable search terms to try on your favorite online platform: "magnetic ballast 9w" "Helvar L11D" "pl-s ballast".


Which varnish to choose for a first time job (desk)? I am building desks for my children: a wooden slab on a standing desk frame.
The wooden slab is 160 x 80 x 2 cm and is made of smaller pieces of oak (probably) glued together. They form a nice flat and smooth surface (I can swipe my hand on it slightly, there may be very small shards)

I want to varnish it but this is the first time I am going to do it. So my constraints are:

the work will be done on-site in the room where the desk will stand afterwards
I am an unexperienced DIY-selfer (but willing to learn). This is to say that I am looking for more forgiving solutions
this is intended to be a desk for teenagers, so for books, copybooks, writing, computer etc. → it does not need to be industrial-grade resistant but smooth and still relatively protected

I am now faced with the choice of the varnish. When reading about them, I see that there are three categories of finish : brilliant, satin, mat. It seems that brilliant is the most resistant one.
There is also the problem of the solvants: water and white-spirit based - this is what I saw in France. This OldHouse video (US) mentions another one based off polyurethane. This video (linked to the moment where this is presented) also mentions "lacquer" - whihc does not translate to anything I saw in France.
My main problem is that all these information are complete (even over-complete) but do not address my context: a working desk (or a dinner table - the kind of table where you do everyday things)
EDIT: I also saw that everyone uses a brush, while in the shop I went to a roll is suggested all the time.
FINAL EDIT (for those who may have the same concerns as I had)
I went for a water-based varnish. It has a pseudoplastic behaviour which frankly is more annoying in that case than anything else. It may be useful when varnishing a ceiling (I am not sure this exists at all, but anyway).
I used a 11 cm foam roll. I was at the limit of slipping (as opposed to rolling) so if the surface was smaller (as it was on the edges) I would have had a problem.
I made three layers, grinding first with a 200 paper (I am not sure if this is universal - it is a fine-grained paper, but you still feel the grains). The last two layers were ground with a 500 paper (it feel rather smooth). This includes the last layer - I was wondering whether to leave it as it or to work the sandpaper on it and I finally did. That was the right decision, the surface is very smooth now.
Final effect below, if my children do not get excellent marks this year I would really not understand why :)

Since you'll be finishing the pieces in the building, lacquer is out.  It stinks to high Heaven and unless you use a pre-catalized lacquer, it is prone to water stains such as condensation from a cold glass of water.
I used to prefer oil based Polyurethane but that can have a strong odor too and that odor can last a while.  For simple, tough, (not fancy) finishes I now prefer a water based Polyurethane such as MINWAX (I know, not supposed to do product recommendations).  It's envrionmentally friendly, easy to clean up brushes, etc. after applying.  It does have some odor, but it usually goes away pretty quick.  It also dries quickly.  It will "raise the grain" a bit on the first coat, so you'll need to sand lightly to knock that back down. Second coat should dry very smooth.  Since this will probably get fairly heavy use I'd go three coats.   No sanding needed between 2nd and 3rd coats unless there are rough spots.
Edit:  Adding that you can use a high quality brush and it will level out pretty well.  Again, don't worry if the first coat ends up a bit rough, that's normal.  Just sand lightly and remove all the dust before 2nd coat.


Can anybody idtentify what this drain vent is for? I am trying to identify the reason for a drain vent in an area of my house with no other plumbing. The house only has 1 bathroom and a kitchen sink. The kitchen sink drains into a grease trap and has a 1.5" vent. The bathroom has a separate drain that meet somewhere in the backyard and has a 2" vent. Then there is a third vent that enters the foundation in an area where there is no other plumbing. Here is a photo of the vent and where it is located in the house:

I have spent the past few days ripping all the rotten drywall out of the house and can say with confidence that nobody ever updated the plumbing in this house with any kind of long term view. Any help is greatly appreciated.

Given the "cast iron transitions to plastic" (or at least "new and older piping connect") it would appear that the toilet was moved, and the vent was preserved.


What kind of bathroom tile is this, and what kind of drill bit does it require? I believe ceramic and porcelain tiles are the most common, but this looks like it might be some kind of polished stone. Will a carbide bit work on this tile, or does it require a diamond-tipped bit?

I still don't know entirely what type of stone this is, but a 1/4" carbide-tipped hammer drill bit went through it with no problem, and no cracking. I didn't end up using a hammer drill, just an impact driver. The main challenge is that the bit wanders at the beginning, but I think that is a general challenge of drilling in tile.


How do I shut off the water to my apartment? I live in a unit in Sydney Australia, I am trying to figure out how to turn off my water so that I can replace the washers on the taps in the basin. Is this possible so that I don't disturb my neighbours? I have looked everywhere inside my unit for a tap which turns off the water but can't find it...

1) Have a look under the kitchen sink. If OZ practice follows UK practice, this is the place in a home where you expect to find the main stopcock (regardless of whether it's the point in a home nearest the road etc). It's usually hidden behind a bottle of bleach you'd forgotten you have.

Whenever I change taps I install an isolating valve under the basin (builders leave them out to save money) so that I can subsequently work on a basin without emptying the cupboard under the sink and warning the family to cross their legs for a while.

2) Ask a neighbour


For German code, what is the correct fuse amperage, per phase, for a 3-phase service line? This website provides convenient tables for fused amperage given conductor cross-section area (mm^2), number of conductors, and temperature.

The cable in question is a 5 conductor (L1,L2,L3,N,PE) 10 mm^2.  20 meters long, connecting the main panel to a secondary panel.  It is currently using 16 A fuses (Hager FS MBN116A).  It is installed "in the air", i.e. in the walls but not buried in concrete or plaster.

I want to upgrade it's fuses with an appropriate amperage rating.  Considering this is a domestic residence, and the subpanel will feed yet another subpanel in the garage, which is expected to run large amperage single-phase power tools occasionally.

From the first table, first column, I get 10 mm^2 -> 73 A.

From the second table, given normal ambient temperature of 30 C -> 1.0 factor -> 73 A.

From the third table, 5 conductors -> 0.75 factor -> 54.75 A.

The remaining tables seem not applicable.

I have very little background knowledge on this topic.  Is 54.5 A per phase a reasonable value?  I plan on fusing each phase 32 A (Hager MBN332A).

Thank you.

A similar, simpler table here

I suggest you not to use fuses on 3-phase, just go for a magnato-termic breaker (L1,L2,L3 + N). Fuses have to be in fixture that if a single phase breaks, all 4 wires have to go out of power (if you have PE separated from neutral = both green-yellow and blue), or onlt 2 wires if you have a single PEN conductor.

Note that in tables usually they consider only 'active' conductors -> 5 wire cable is '4 poles' wire as PE isn't an 'active' conductor

PE = green yellow
N = blue
PEN = usually blue marked with green-yellow tape at ends and in accessible boxes


What type of aluminium to use for decorative trim? I am looking to add some 1/2" strips of metal to a new fireplace surround (to be made out of MDF and red oak) as an accent. I thought that aluminium sheet would be good for this since it is easily workable for a DIYer and not cost prohibitive. The decorative trim will not be particularly close to the fire.

After reading about some different types online, I'm unsure what the best type is to order. Has anyone had experience in this? What would you recommend?

Update: I am looking to create something similar to http://www.chesneys.co.uk/products/fireplaces/designer-collection/eric-cohler-collection/ealing - replacing the marble with painted MDF. I was intending to get some aluminium sheet cut down into strips (may be spray-painted dark), which are to be used instead of the blackened steel seen in the photos.

Update 2: See image below for the current situation. The fireplace is a prefabricated wood burning unit that was installed at time of construction (1983). The unpainted drywall shows the position of the original surround that was made of wood and was highly out of date w.r.t. style. The surround idea that I have will only go over the existing drywall, maintaining the current clearances with the firebox.

1/2" by 1/2" by X (long) aluminum angle with an eased outside edge if you can find it, and countersunk by you or held in with adhesive.

If it's going to look exactly like that picture, you cannot use MDF there.

  ... combustible materials shall not be in contact with the masonry or concrete walls less than 12 inches (305 mm)from the inside surface of the nearest firebox lining. –What is a fireplace facing and what is it used for?

E.g., (even in this picture they're cutting corners)

"The decorative trim will not be particularly close to the fire." - don't care. The trim needs to be a certain distance away from the opening.

Keep combustibles (drywall, MDF, etc.) one foot from the opening in every direction. For applicable exceptions, see the linked question.

See also, How much clearance is needed on a gas fireplace?


Is the discoloration on my bed frame rails mold? So the wood panels lay on top of the metal beams, it's a bed frame but I noticed these spots on the metal and rubbed them off and smelt like rotten eggs please let me know

This was already answered hours ago by another one of our more experienced users, when you asked this under a different username:

Is this mold? Black? White?

Honestly, it appears to be simple iron staining. Appears black on wood, white on zinc coatings. Simple reaction of carbons in the metal and tannins in the wood. Although it is activated by moisture, it is not a mold, nor harmful.


How to use a gas fireplace and a furnace together? So here's my setup:

Living room has both a thermostat for the gas fireplace (dumb on/off thermostat) and a thermostat for the whole house (smart/Nest thermostat) on the wall together.
Living room has the gas fireplace on the same wall as the thermostats
Furnace runs for basement/upstairs.

What is the best way to use these together?

We tried running them at the same temp, but the fireplace always keep that room (a pretty sunny room too) so warm that the rest of the house doesn't stay anywhere near a comfortable temperature.

Last winter we tried running the fireplace during the day (@ 74) then in the afternoon we'd turn on the furnace(@ 72), and it was just never good enough.

Thanks!

I have a similar set up and find it just as annoying as you do.  The best solution that I've found is to set the Fireplace at your desired temperature +2 degrees, and set the furnace to your desired temperature as well as setting it to "fan always on" mode.  This will help distribute some of the heat from the fireplace but isn't a perfect solution.


What can I do about a dead Delta 62-043 table saw motor? I bought a used Delta 62-043 table saw for $200 about a year ago. It sat in my shed for a while, and I just now turned it on to start a project.

There was some black smoke. I'm embarrassed; I thought it was the wood smoking, because it was a tough cut. But apparently it was the motor, because it just suddenly stopped dead, and won't turn back on.

Any ideas? The only replacement motor I can find is $600+ -- more than the original table saw. Is this fixable?

You could see if it can be repaired by a local motor shop. They are not inexpensive though.
You can look on Craigslist for any electric motor with the same specs as yours, the most important being HP, RPM, voltage and frame type. Northern Equipment does offer a replacement that matches your motor specs for $300.
Verify that the smoke was not just the drive belt. With the belt removed see if the blade spins freely. If something is binding and you can remedy it you may have burned the belt, damaged the motor but not killed it.
Check the sides and end of the motor for a thermal safety switch: a button, usually red or black, that resets when pushed in.


Changing Trane Baystat240a to another thermostat I want to change my current thermostat to a programmable electric one (no batteries). Could someone verify if it does have a common wire and if all wiring could fit modern thermostats?

Looking at the schematics I can see that there is a common wire present but I want to make sure.

--UPDATE--
If I were to go with Honeywell Touch Wifi (RTH9580) would the following wiring work? I am still missing T and F.

Honeywell touch

B -> C

R -> R

O -> W-O/B

Y -> Y

G -> G

W and X2 (both on)-> W2-Aux/e

T = ?

F = ?

Trane units all use Blue as their 24 volt Common for their control circuits, Common is called this because all the 24 volt circuits return to Common to complete the 24 volt circuits.


What to do with broken outdoor lights that left the bulbs exposed? A hail storm has broken the outer casing of our outdoor lights, exposing the bulb.

What should I do?  Can I leave just the bulb exposed to the elements?

Exterior light fixtures are designed so that the casing protects the electrical components inside them from the elements. Without an intact case, hail could break the bulb itself in the next storm, or rainwater could get in to short out the electric circuit.

Your options are:

find the manufacturer's name on the light fixture, and look them up to see if you can buy replacement covers either directly from them, or they may list retailers.
buy a new light fixture and replace the broken one. They are often so inexpensive that this might be the cheapest for you.


Big table with both height and angle adjustable? I need a table for using laptop computer with external display and also working on graphic design on paper and computer, and handheld devices. I'm thinking I need a reasonable large table with both the height and the angle of the table top adjustable.

I've found this product:
https://www.amazon.com/Monoprice-Sit-Stand-Tilting-Adjustable-Angle/dp/B07PZKFFB3

But it is too small to also sometimes have my paper draft laid out.

Any suggestion?

Look for a "drafting table". I happen to like the vintage ones, but there are more functional varieties with shelves, drawers etc. as well.

Just a suggestion to help the planet: LOTs of people have been giving these things away for free or dirt cheap because companies don't do mechanical drafting any more and they take up a lot of space, so check out your favorite on-line resources (like Craigslist, Nextdoor etc.) before shelling out a lot of money.


When should I use caulk? As a new goal, I am looking to pick up DIY projects around my house. I am new to DIY projects and am trying to make our food pantry look better. There are 1/10th to 1/4th in gaps between the shelves and the wall. Unsure of what to do, I just decided to buy Loctite Polyseamseal All Purpose Caulk.

After watching a few caulking videos, I cut the caulk tip at 45' angle, and starting using a razor blade to 'even out' the caulk. But then switched to a wet rag to smooth, but i'm just not satisfied with the results. My current system always ends up leaving a little 'U' in the caulk (see picture) where the edges are higher then the middle.

My questions are:

1) Is caulking the correct approach to fixing the gaps? Why/Why not?

2) If so, is there a proper way to caulk the gaps? I'm sure just like most things it's an art form... maybe I just need practice.

3) Is there a general of when to use caulk? Is there alternatives?

My goal from this is to fix the gaps in in the pantry AND hopefully next time be able to identify what needs to be done without asking any questions :) Thanks

I have come to steal a technique I learned from Mike Holmes, because though I have done plenty of caulking I have to admit that I'm just not very good at it freehand.... I tape the edges of my caulk line.

Then I use a caulking tool for a good uniform shape... The "U" shape is what you're after (more like a hyperbola, though).

Afterwards I pull the tape and have a nice straight caulk line.


Proofing Heating Pipe Passage Way I am living in a multi-family house which happens to be an old building. The person living under my room is a chain smoker. Unfortunately, the smoke is smellable in my room, even if I close the window and the doors. The only direct connection beween our flats is the heating pipe passage way.

Now the passage way was proofed with silicone. I wanted to renew the silicon because I thought this might help.

This is how it looked with silicone:

This is how it looks after removing it:

What is this stuff inside that looks like loose wool? Should I replace it with something before I put silicone on it? Any ideas how can improve the proofing so that almost no smoke will pass through?

Edit: Heres a requested picture of the floor:

It will very hard to prevent the odor of tobacco smoke from getting into your flat. I would not attempt to renew with that seal, you could make it worse.
That wool could be anything from steel wool to copper wool to other fibers that you definitely don't want to do anything to. You don't want to disrupt it.

You could put some duct tape over the existing seal, but even that could cause problems. If any tape you placed there were later pulled off, it could pull apart the existing seal.


What are the legal considerations of installing a new light in my own house in the UK? I don't have any electrical qualifications, but have rewired plugs, plug sockets and switches and seen someone qualified wire in a new light and understand the principles and safety precautions.

Are there any legal considerations to uninstall a florescent strip and install a pendant lamp in my loft myself, or do I need to hire someone qualified?

If, for any reason, damage to the property or (worse) to a person should be caused by the electrical work you performed you could be held liable (at least here in the States). Having to go before a magistrate to defend your actions or paying for others injuries is stressful and a serious issue. If you are naturally adept in home repair and astute with the electrical problem then chances are your work will be sound and safe. It would be wise to not only familiarize yourself with the work to be performed (through books and videos), but to have it inspected by someone more knowledgeable.


adding 15 amp device to 50 amp circuit: is this wiring going to work and be safe? All devices are 240V, United States.
I want to add the "NEW" device and NEW wiring.  Both devices will never be used at the same time, for they would draw up to 65 Amps which will trip the 50 Amp breaker.
The NEW device has this "current device" in the plug, but I don't think this is the same as a circuit breaker, so I would need to add an inline 15 Amp breaker  ??
Is this going to work and be safe?  (It seems to me it will work:  I am an experienced engineer and I think I understand physics of electricity, but I am not a licensed electrician.)
Added after discussion: Thank you everybody!  I learnt a lot.  From all the comments, and reading lots of stuff online, I need 20Amp cable and breaker, not 15, and a subpanel with just one feeder cable from the main panel
, easily accessible.

Do you really need that large a unit?
Based on your friend's report, it sounds like, if anything, your unit will be too large.  You're doing it for medical reasons not comfort, so you say.
Given the ever-rising SEER numbers (efficiency) we're seeing from consumer tier units, you may be better off simply seeking a 120V unit.
Those SEER numbers reflect how much you will be paying for electricity so it's a very big deal.
Definitely do not take a "hand-me-down" unit without looking closely at SEER numbers.  Many "gift / side-of-road / hand-me-down" A/C units are older, and did not benefit from the very rapid gains in A/C efficiency made in recent years.  A typical 8000+ BTU unit these days only needs about 5 amps @ 120V. You'd have no trouble running 2 on a single 120V/20A circuit.
240V units are largely gone by the wayside; they don't need the energy anymore... the ones that remain mostly support 240V because they are needed for installations already wired for 240V.
Lastly, if you consider a "portable" air conditioner (the kind with a hose that goes out a window, it's very important that you consider a 2-hose one.  2 hoses seems like an anti-feature until you learn how they work.

From a comment in chat:

I know the whole thing is arithmetically wrong, I have 50 coming in, and I want 50+20 out, so that is why I don't want to run both devices at the same time, at least not at capacity

... and that's the biggest worry you have?  Not
the comical cavalcade of Code violations...
It seems like you want to "freestyle" safety based on your lay impressions of electrical safety.  The entire point of Code is to pass down the paid-for-in-blood experience of a century of electrical use, so you don't have to pay in blood for a lesson already learned.
That is especially relevant in a condo, when your electrical fire could kill innocents in other units.  I guarantee there's a city ordinance, or HOA rule, that says you must use a licensed electrician for work in the unit.  Weren't we just talking about new-air-conditioner finances, and "good money after bad"?
The use of a circuit breaker is a good sentiment, but you can't just use some random loose circuit breaker in some random enclosure.  You must use approved equipment and enclosures (NEC 110.2) and install it according to its instructions (NEC 110.3) in a neat and workmanlike manner (NEC 110.12) and with appropriate working space (NEC 110.26).  And this is just the first few pages of NEC.
The oven/range circuit must be dedicated to oven/range.  You are only allowed to have one load/outlet on a 50A breaker (NEC 210.23) unless it's one of the listed exceptions (ranges/ovens covered in NEC 210.23(C)).  An air conditioner is not cooking equipment and is not allowed under the NEC 210.23(C) exception.
Further, your range is already too large for a 50A circuit.  It's only on one because of a Code exception (NEC 220.55) which factors for the fact that not all burners are at 100% duty cycle all the time.  When you add non-range equipment to the circuit, you void that discount and now your circuit is way too small.
Your logic, "all my burners are not 100% all the time" is correct but Code has already factored for that - there's no headroom there.
A 50A circuit can only have 50A receptacles on it. NEC 210.21(B)(3).  So there's no such thing as tapping a 50A circuit to a 15/20A receptacle.
Even when you're in industrial spaces where you can use the tap rules to full effect, you're still talking about hardwired loads.
And I haven't even started into Article 440, which is the section applicable to air conditioners. I'm sure plenty of violations are there too, but no point beating a dead horse.
You're gonna spend more on Polaris connectors than a subpanel would cost!
So it's simple enough.  Use a subpanel.
You currently have a 50A branch circuit from main panel to range.  Route that to a subpanel, at which point it is a 50A feeder.  You then install 2 breakers on the subpanel, a 50A and a 15A.
Now we sidestep all the above Code violations, because we're no longer torturing a branch circuit.
We now have 2 individual branch circuits, each following its own rules - the range keeps its favorable derate, and the 15A A/C circuit is definitely allowed a 15A receptacle.
As far as the "50A+15A > 50A" concern you have, the 50A feeder supply breaker will take care of that.
Do you really need a 50A breaker in the panel when the panel is fed from a 50A breaker?  Yes.  The supply line is feeder.  You can't put loads on a feeder, and a breaker is ten bucks, so who cares?
Now we just need to work out the Article 110 issues about approved equipment and working space.  Use the smallest subpanel you can find - a 2-space panel will suffice with a 15/50 quadplex breaker in it. Run of the mill Eaton, Siemens etc. stuff from the hardware store will satisfy NEC 110.2.  Install it competently, and we tick off 110.3(B).
The real nut is the working space - you need 30" wide x 36" deep x 78" high working space in front of the panel.   Surely there are either kitchen cabinets next to this oven.  I would hack a kitchen cabinet's shelves so there is room for the subpanel to sit right at the front of the cabinet facing outward. It will block some of the cabinet's space, making it inconvenient to put things on the shelves, but this is the best we can do.  So you open the cabinet door and voilà, there is the face of the subpanel right there.  Presumably you walk around that area a lot, so there is 30x36 working space floor to ceiling, should be all set.
The panel might be inset maybe an inch from the face of the cabinet doors... an inspector might flag that, but I doubt it. Putting subpanels behind cabinet doors for aesthetics is perfectly common.


Can a large hole be reliably drilled in a table _by hand_? The Ikea Fixa 5-piece hole saw set can be used to drill a hole in a tabletop. I intend to use the smallest in this set. The table is too big and even though the monitor arm is quite long, it is not usable when attached at the perimeter of the table.

Ikea claims through a picture that one can drill such a hole by hand.

(0)  I only need the smallest in this set. What is this actually called at a hardware store? (In my experience it's better to buy just what one needs and in a higher quality, than to accumulate a set—sets are invaribly of lower build quality.)
(1) Is it actually realistic for an amateur (with steady enough hands, but who uses a drill only once in a blue moon) to expect to lower a drill and the FIXA attachment, and get a clean hole? Is a drill arm lowered by machine (whatever these are called) necessary to get a clean job done?
(2) If I drill the hole by hand, can I expect to get a clean enough cylinder from the table so that a few months/years down the road when/if I no longer care for the monitor arm, I could reattach the cylinder with a bit of glue and recover a decent enough tabletop? It's understood that there is no way to make the result look like the original, but putting the cylinder back would be much nicer than fitting a piece of plastic cover right in the middle of the desk.

My main question is (1) above. If you can also comment on (0) and (2), please do.

Update

I'm guessing that the "key advice" under this answer applies. One must first practice on a scrap tabletop.

Drill type saws that use a center pilot bit and an outer toothed ring attachment is called a hole saw. They come in a variety of types and qualities, the best being those with three parts - cup-like outer saws, center bits, and mandrels that hold them together and attach to a drill.

It is also important to get the type of saw proper for the material being cut. Some are wood only, some are suitable for laminates and other hard surfaces, and some are suited for metal. A few will work on multiple materials. Go to a well equipped hardware store and look at the choices. I agree one simple good set is a better value than a cheap multi-purpose set that may not be used.

It is totally possible to drill a hole with a hole saw by hand. The key is starting the pilot drill perpendicular to the surface. You can find small plastic guides that help get a drill started on the right angle. Then stop the drill, remove the guide and continue with the wider cut. You can be comfortable that the drill is perpendicular if it appears to be just starting to cut all around the outer drill cup.

Go slowly. I also find that taping over the surface before drilling reduces tearout (splintering). You are likely to get some tearout on the far side of the hole unless you clamp a scrap board under the area where the drill will emerge.

Question 2: A drill press is a machine that holds and very precisely lowers a drill bit (or hole saw) toward the workpiece held on a platform. If you have one, great. But most have a limited distance that they can reach from the edge of the piece. And they are fairly expensive.

Q3: You can save the plug cut with the hole saw. There is usually a slot in the cup to help removal. The plug will have a small center hole from the pilot drill. It could be reattached with a strong thick glue, but I would recommend adding a support block under the table that is glued or screwed into the underside to support the plug. Any remaining side gap and the center hole could be filled with wood filler, epoxy or other strong filler.

Whether that is aesthetically acceptable is a personal issue.

Illustrations and links are illustrative only, not an endorsement of goods or sources.


Air Conditioner Compressor Inoperative My home air conditioning / heat only blows ambient temperature air through the vents, there is no temperature change through the unit.  Inspecting it, the condensor fan is spinning, as is the evaporator fan (since I feel the air from the vents).  I'm hearing a strange noise from what I assume is the compressor, and the lights in my house dim when the noise is occurring.

Here is a video of it happening: https://photos.app.goo.gl/ZQc6V8ojNN4qEFAW2 .  The lights dim when the "hum" occurs.

I don't have the tools to check the refrigerant pressures, but I am comfortable with electrical.  Is it worth trying to inspect the capacitor, or do I likely have other issues?

I have a Goodman Packaged Unit/RTU Model PHKJ042-1.  No breakers are tripped, cycling them has no effect.

I am suspecting that you do not have the correct power and possibly a capacitor is out as well.

I am going to state a couple observation about your video so read closely.

I am looking at your video post and watching the SLOW moving Condenser Fan and I also heard the BUZZ.

As for the condenser fan it seems like your RUN circuit is not powered up - this can be one of a couple things depending on how that motor is wired - and if it is 220V. Run Capacitor could be bad. However I suspect that you have a BAD phase feeding the AC unit.  The reason being is that your compressor is not running either.

Please Check your power coming off of your Circuit Breakers - check it at the Terminals of the Condenser Unit . You should have L1 and L2, check L1 - N(115V), L2 -N(115V), L1-G (115V), L2-G (115V) , L1- L2 (230V). I am suspecting a Circuit Breaker has high resistance and either not supplying power or supplying very little power - when measuring at the condenser watch which line (L1 or L2) DROPS when you start the unit up. That will tell you which side of the breaker is bad or possibly your contactor, You will need to measure on both sides of your contactor while doing this check (contactor only pulls in when compressor is told to run) Contactor T1 and Neutral , T2 and Neutral - you will need to verify both sides to know whether you have a bad contactor or a bad circuit breaker.

If you can post a picture of the wiring diagram found inside the panel cover that will help tremendously. Then I will know how that motor is configured for start winding or not.

When checking your capacitor (always be careful to discharge them before handling as you can get electrocuted [aka Killed] or shocked. To discharge them using a screw driver between Common and Herm or Fan (only handling the insulated part of the screw driver).

If your meter does not check Farads you can test the capacitor in the unit while the unit is "running" - well in your case on.

Measure the current (amps) of the motor start winding coming off of the capacitor (herm lead and also for the Fan lead) and multiply it times 2652 [in USA 60Hz numbers] then divide that number by the voltage you measure across the capacitor. This will tell the Farads of the capacitor and it should match the capacitor or be with in say 5% , sometimes 10% could be ok depending on the quality of the capacitor.

With the measurements you made; if you were to assume your capacitor was working you would find what current you should expect across those winding's Herm (yellow according to your diagram) and Fan (Brown according to your diagram).

From your Measurements on the Fan, I used a pseudo value of 1 amp on the winding  using that number your Fan capacitor is at 106 UF but the 5 UF capacitor is a typical proper sizing for a Fan motor. (1 AMP * 2652 ) / 25VAC = 106 UF you can see the amperage I have used is about 21 times too high so 1/21 = .0476 - I am sure that is too low of a current draw to start that motor - so I suspect Capacitor is bad.

Using the same Formula on the HERM (Compressor Side) your measurement was 240V
So just assuming a low Amperage of 1 AMP (1 AMP * 2652 ) / 240VAC = 11.5 UF your capacitor is supposed to be 50UF or about 4.7 times greater than what our pseudo value gives us. So if you measured with an Amp Meter that the compressor was drawing roughly 4.5 ~ 5.0 Amps on that winding (yellow wire going from Capacitor to compressor) the capacitor for that side would be working.

Given the capacitor is bulging I suspect at least the capacitor has failed especially given your measurements - I know the fan side can't be working if that was truly the fan side you measured.

Now a suspicion I have about the readings you gave me .. If perhaps you mixed them up and got them backwards.. ~25V was on the HERM side and 240V was on the fan side the fan side would be working and the compressor side would not be working. Bad Capacitor.

50UF should be your compressor side and 5UF should be the AC Fan side. Your part number if my search was correct should be this: PPS550440RD ; However a capacitor that is a Dual 50UF & 5UF rated for 440 VAC will work fine. While your capacitor in the image is 370V , the higher voltage 440VAC has a little more headroom and your situation requires it .. 370V is typical in a 220V circuit here is the formula  1.56 * 220V = 343 VAC, However you have measured 240V which 1.56 * 240 V = 374 VAC and that is OVER the rating of your capacitor and therefore it probably went BULGE no worky after a while. So get one rated at 440CVAC or even 470 VAC.


What steps should I take to figure out which alarm model I have and how to go about installing a missing sensor? My home has a central alarm system with keypad and every door and window set up with a sensor except for 1.

This 1 sensor was removed when the previous owners replaced the frame, and it keeps the entire system from being able to work.

I asked a local company for a quote and it was a few hundred dollars because they claimed they would have to replace the keypad and some other things. (they also claimed I had to buy monitoring, which seemed very odd, and sketchy)

I looked at the main circuits and could not find a brand name, so I am at a loss for which it is, which makes this task even harder.

So my question is:

What steps should I take to figure out which alarm model I have how to go about installing the sensor?

It's surprising not to have a brand name visible, either on keypads or the main system. I will say it is possible that your system is very outdated, and so the alarm company basically doesn't want to touch it (rightfully so), they just want to put in something modern which they know they can support if it breaks.

You should have a control system somewhere. Often these are a metal box that opens and has a circuit board inside. There should be a model number or name on that, and if not, posting a picture would help.

If there is a circuit board like this, it is possible the model/name is printed on the reverse side, as they actually sell the box separately from the circuit board -- the installer mounts it at install time. You'd have to remove the circuit board in order to check this (cut the power, and be careful not to damage the board -- including being careful of static).

Aside from that, there are three general ways to go about fixing the problem.

Install the missing door sensor

Installing the sensor may or may not be easy. If you have another door sensor, you can verify that you're getting the same thing (usually just a NC magnetic contact sensor, like these):

Short out the door sensor wire

You may be able to short out the door sensor. There is a very small chance that this won't work, if it requires a resistor to terminate, but that is not common on door circuits. Of course, this door won't be alarmed if you do that. It also means you need to find that wire, somewhere. You could do it at the panel, as well.

Remove the door sensor circuit

This means re-programming the system to not use this circuit. It definitely requires finding the model, and then figuring out how to program the system. Sometimes this can be done through (at best) cryptic button sequences, other times it needs PC software and a (sometimes special) cable.


Crack spanning several tiles I've got several tiles in my dining room that have a diagonal crack running across them. Since it's a pretty straight line across several tiles, I'm guessing it's a foundation issue. The room is at the corner of the house, and the crack runs diagonally so that it "cuts off" the corner. If I replace the tiles, is it likely to crack again? Is there any way I can remedy this?

Depends on how old your house is.  If it's at least 5-10 years old or so, it's probably finished settling and installing new tiles would likely fix the problem permanently.


Anti-Siphon Sillcock Handle I just moved into a new home and the anti siphon sillcock on the outside of the house is leaking from behind the knob.  I tried to remove the handle via the center screw but it was rusted so badly it broke.  The handle still wont come off.  Any thoughts on how I can do this?  I assume I just need to replace the seal behind the handle...

The fastest solution will be to replace the whole thing. That is what a plumber will recommend.