Does a copper pipe need to be perfectly smooth to install a compression valve? I had to remove the compression valve for the toilet during my bathroom floor install.  When I started out I did not know how compression valves worked and ended up putting a lot of power into tightening the nut when I was intending to loosen it :-P Once I finally got the valve off the correct way, I found that my misguided efforts had resulted in a noticeable impression/dent in the copper pipe where the collar (ferrule?) of the valve had sat.  The dent is small, I'd say about on the level of the creases at the joints on your fingers when you hold them straight (I didn't get a picture with the valve off, but including one before I finally got the collar off to give a sense of how I kind of banged it up).
I decided to have a go at simply re-installing a new valve to see if it would work - that was 3 weeks ago and there is just a verrrrrry small amount of moisture below the valve now to suggest that there is just a verrrrry small leak.
Now I'm trying to decide if:

I should remove the valve I installed and cut the pipe so that I have a PERFECTLY smooth surface for the new valve to seal against the pipe.  I've got a pipe cutting tool but am somewhat concerned that I won't have much pipe left protruding once its cut.  I can pull the pipe up a bit with very little force so this doesn't seem like a HUGE issue.

If I do cut the pipe, do I need to cut it all the way down to where that dent is, about an inch, or just enough so that the spot where the collar of the new valve will go will be clean pipe? that i think would require cutting at most 1/2 of the pipe

Can I re-use this "new" collar that I installed 3 weeks ago over the somewhat dented pipe, or should I start afresh with a new one?  I guess I might as well just go new since they're not expensive and that's just a bit of extra insurance for a successful seal.

Any advice is much appreciated, thanks!!

I have done four things with this second-hand olive issue:

wrap with 4 or 5 layers of ptfe then tighten normally. Usually is fine.

use a sealer such as plumbers mate or equivalent and that has also worked.

replace the olive but as you have compressed the pipe so much you may have to cut the pipe back. To do that you may have to get more pipe and pulling it may not be sufficient so you will have to get behind.

use a solder joint to put a fresh bit of pipe and push it back into the cavity but does depend on the cavity...


How to add deck gate with offset 4x4's? I'm looking to add a gate at the top of deck stairs, where the gate swings inward and the hinges are towards the yard side of deck. There are two issues.

The 4x4 posts are offset

What would be the best way to make the gate line up on both sides without a lot of added work?
I was thinking adding a 4x4 to the inner post to bring it out more, and just cut a new topper?
I'm not sure of water will collect under the post and rot it out.

The hand rail goes up and anchors to the outward side 4x4 post.

What should I do with this?
Should I cut the hand rail lower? If so, how would I anchor it.
Given the current set up, is it better to leave the hand rail, and design the gate to fit around it?

It looks to me like the offset is minor. I would hinge a gate underneath the existing grippable rail, mounting the hinges toward the stairs, and swing it to the post in the foreground. A standard gate latch should mount up and work just fine. If necessary, block out the latch as needed.

                  ____
     []  []  []  |    |  []  []
                 |____|
                  | |   <-- hinge location
                  | |
                  | |
                  | |
                  | |
                  | |
                  | |
                  | |
                  | |
                  | |
                  | |
                  | |
             ____ | |
[]  []  []  |    ||_|
            |____|***  <-- latch location


Resolving two 3-Way Switches for two separate lights on one Combination Switch I am now attempting to wire two existing three way toggle switches to a Leviton 5643 three way combination switch for two 3-way lights on the same circuit - Pictures included.
Box 1 is what I term the “main box” because it is next to the remote for the fan.
It is important to know that the fan needs continual power so the remote will work.
We can turn the fan/light on and off with both three way switches located at box 1 and 2
Box 1 holds one three way switch
2 gang Box 2 holds two three way switches
In Box 2 - Switch 1 (left switch) works with the fan/light
In Box 2 - Switch 2 (right switch) works with the foyer light
After much work and testing I found the following.
Box 1 is providing the power to the ceiling fan/light.
Box 2 is providing the power to box 1.
I ran a new wire to the 2 gang Box 2 to handle the recessed lighting.
I will leave the wiring for box 1 as is for the ceiling fan/light.
I will be adding a new 15a Leviton Decora 3-way combination switch to handle the power to and from the ceiling fan/light and foyer light.
TOTALLY LOSING MY MIND NOW!
I attempted to wire things as instructed by the combination three way switch and it tripped the breaker. I un wired everything just to see what is happening and found it odd that I was getting power from the Foyer three way wires when I have everything unconnected.
Below is Box 2 showing all of the unconnected wires except for the neutrals.
This box held two three way toggles. I added a new 14/2 wire for the dimmer.

Below is box 1 with 3-way toggle.

Below is the inside of box 1 showing two wires (one 14/3 and one 14/2).
The 3 way wire goes over to box 2 and the 14/2 wire goes to the ceiling fan/light.

Below shows the old wiring for Box 2

Below shows the old wiring with the two 3 way toggles in place. Not sure why the black wires are wrapped around the two sets of travelers?

Below is the wiring image I used to illustrate my situation. Obviously the wiring shown may not reflect what I have because the box 2 on the right only reflects one 3 way toggle switch.

Two gang box from inside the closet.

Check your box fill
Your plan to feed the recessed lighting from and mount its dimmer at the existing two-gang where power comes in is a good one, save for one issue: box fill.  You see, the NEC allocates a given amount of space for wires and devices in boxes to avoid overcrowding and its consequent issues with wire-bending and overheating.  In particular, you have 18 wires in that box, consisting of 12 current carrying wires, 2 wires' worth of grounds (1 for every 4 grounds), and 4 wires' worth of devices (2 wires per gang * 2 gangs).  For 14AWG wire, this yields 36in³, which is a bit more than your average two gang plastic box holds, as those cube out at 32in³.  So, you'll need to check the fill capacity printed on the inside of your existing two-gang box, and replace it with an extra-large box if it comes up short.


How do I cut an arc in a pine board? How can I cut the arc as shown in the photo?
I have a circular saw.  I have a jig saw.
I thought I might calculate the center of the arcs circle and (using a line tied to my circular saw) cut the curve on a clamped down 1 x 4.
I don't have a very steady hand when it comes to using my jigsaw so I don't want to draw an arc and then cut it.
How do professionals cut arcs?
The arc I want to cut looks like this:

Source

Whenever I want an arc that accurate I use my 3hp router (a smaller rated router will do too, just for smaller scale work) screwed to a shop made pivot (trammel) and make repeated passes, next pass deeper than the last to complete the cut.
A circular saw may make that tight of a curve if you set the saw shallow enough to just cut through the material. It will be quite rough, not recommended for finish work
Here is the formula to figure the radius of a given arc.


How do I repair damage to this ‘paneling’? just hoping for some advice on how to repair this?

Not sure what the material even is but is paneling of some sort on the stairs. Was drunk and stumbled down my elbow few out and went through rather easily.

I have no DIY knowledge or experience so fingers crossed for some hep!! Thanks.

If that is a painted surface, one approach would be

Cleanly cut out the damaged area using a utility knife, jab-saw or similar tools.
Clean up the edges. Perhaps using sandpaper.
Fill the void using expanding foam.
Cut-off the excess foam using something like a filling knife.
Apply a surface filler and allow to harden.
Sand absolutely flat.
Paint.

If that isn't a painted surface you'll probably never get an invisible repair without replacing the whole panel.


JA8 certified light source We live in San Francisco, CA.  We're attempting to replace overhead lighting in our kitchen area of our condo.

I'm trying to understand this piece of the lighting code:

According to http://energycodeace.com/site/custom/public/reference-ace-2013/index.html#!Documents/appendixja8qualificationrequirementsforresidentialluminairesusin.htm

There's this:

(e)  An LED light engine shall be capable of being installed in luminaire housing without using any type of base or socket used for incandescent lamps; it may include a GU-24 or modular quick connect, but shall not include screw base sockets or adaptors of type and size E12 through E39.

This seems to indicate that we can't use an LED light engine that has a screw base of size E12 to E39.  Which seems counter intuitive.

I'm seeking some clarification on this.

Thanks.

You're not allowed to use fixtures where some fool could remove the LEDs and install incandescents.  Hence if you use swappable "bulbs", the lamp socket must be a unique type made exclusively for efficient lighting. This is done for two reasons:

efficiency, as it defeats the purpose of efficient mandates/incentives if some flat-earther can just screw in inefficient bulbs.
safety, as these odd-socket or no- socket fixtures may not be rated for the 60-100W heat of an incandescent.  (Or to be more precise, efficiency rules enable lamp designs that don't need to dispose of incandescent heat, freeing designers to innovate).


Can I use a 1/4 turn valve in place of multi turn valve for toilet? Can a quarter turn valve like this...

be used in place of the traditional toilet valves like this?

I ask because I recently replace the later with the former and it makes this strange "hissing" noise every time the toilet fills up. I suspect it is due to the very small outlet hole inside the "top" of the 1/4 turn valve that literally sprays water into the braided tube that connects to the toilet. Any ideas?

(pictures from the respective HD web pages)

Yeah nothing wrong. You could use either or. Only difference between quarter turn and multi turn is the actual turn method. Quarter turns require to go a “quarter of the way of a full turn”. Multi turns requires continuous turns. Depending on what type of pipe you have coming up is the most important. Not all shut off valves will work for each other. And most sizes are 1/2x3/8. But there is also 1/2x1/2


Possible to have more than one wire connected to "G" terminal in furnace? I have a 25 year old gas furnace without A/C. I had a 2 wire basic thermostat that I have replaced the wiring with 5 wires and also a new Nest 3rd generation thermostat. On the wall beside the thermostat is a humidifier control to run the fan that connects to terminal "G" in furnace. The new thermostat also requires terminal "G" for the furnace... Is it possible to have both the nest and humidifier control connected to the "G" terminal in the furnace or will something go up in smoke? The nest does not automatically run the fan when humidity increases, it only has a setting for a timed control.

As long as both thermostats are also using the same R wire, that should be fine.  Internally, the only thing the thermostat does is connect R to G with a switch.  Have you looked at all the documentation for the Nest?  There may be a different, "best practice" way to connect the humidifier control.


What is an alternative to a cement truck that would allow more working time? I'd like to know if there is an alternative to a cement truck.
I'm planning to build a sports court which requires me to build a concrete foundation.

I asked the cement company and they said the truck can stay max. up to 2 hours at my place. That's not enough time for me since I don't have any help.

I'm going to need roughly 10 cubic yards of concrete. When I worked in the UK, they used silos. But it was meant for commercial projects only so I'm not sure if they have something for residentials too now here in Ohio, USA.

Small cement silo 5 cubic yards left in my backyard for a day would be great. This way I could do it at my own pace.

The time from when the cement, water, sand and particulate are mixed till the time the mix should be in your forms is limited. That is a primary reason that a delivery truck can only stay at your lot for a max time (they have a secondary consideration of keeping the truck on the road delivering other jobs but many companies may stay longer for an overtime charge).

Since you need a lot more time and 10 yards is an awful large amount of material for one person to handle all at once you are left with two choices.
1. Order raw materials and rent a mixer and perform small batch mixes on site.
2. Prepare all your forms and rebar ahead of time and then prepare to have a crew available to get the job laid down in the time that a truck can be there.

Note that if you are doing something in small batch mixing this is not the best approach when there is slab work and continuous foundation that you would like to all bond together. There is also the issue of getting a slab surface finished right when it is poured over too long of time in small pieces.


Using a flap sand disc to remove the finish from a closet door This is related to something that I am working on, described here:
How should I refinish vintage wooden closet doors?

Is it possible to remove the existing finish with a flap sand disk like  the one below ?

I have tried my chance with a sander but no luck. I am afraid to test it with the belt sander.

Q: Is there a version of the below disk that can be attached to a drill ?

I wouldn't recommend that no.  As mentioned in the other post, the layer that gives the doors their wood grain appearance is likely very thin (unless they are solid wood doors, which I doubt).

So the main drawbacks of this method are:

The disc sander will leave a spiral pattern in whatever you sand with it.  I would never recommend this for wood (metal yes)
Unless you are very very careful, you will likely gouge the wood to the point the top layer is no longer nice at all.

What do you intend to do after you remove the finish?  Stain/Seal, Paint?

Edit: You can attempt to utilize a gel stripper to remove the finish.  Now this would have to be done very carefully.

One or two layers should eat through the finish pretty quickly.  Do NOT let it sit for very long on veneer as it can penetrate and eat through the glue meaning...no more veneer.  (I would like to put this disclaimer up front:  If not done carefully and correctly (and potentially even then) this can cause veneer to peel off.

If you go this route don't leave the stripper on long...30 seconds to a minute tops, then scrape it off and wipe off any remainder.  If you can get through the finish, you can use sanding sponges and get the stain layer off by hand easily enough,


How do I use hidden deck fasteners without compromising the integrity of the flashing? I am using hidden deck fasteners which screw in to the joist and then hold the board via a notch in the side of the board, pretty standard I think.  This fastener will sit on the ledger to hold the first board (closest to the house), but to do this it will need to screw through the flashing which sits on top of the ledger.  Can I just put some silicon caulk over and around the screw to prevent water from getting in there, or am I doing something completely wrong?

Aluminum flashing can not be in contact with pressure treated wood(it will eat away over time)  I use ice and water shield or a window wrap in between flashing and PT ledger board  this will seal around screw and not leak.
To be honest though the amount of water that will make its way under the clip and through the hole and back towards the house is soo little,if any, it will not do any damage.


How to GFCI protect bathroom lighting circuit I have an old house with 3 bathrooms all on the same circuit. Each has a light with a receptacle above the sink controlled by a wall switch. (See image below.) I want to GFCI protect the entire circuit from the first bathroom switch in the circuit. There is 14/3 wire from that switch box to the light, so the switch feeds the light with the red wire. My question: how do I wire a GFCI/Switch combo to protect everything past it in the circuit, including the light fixture?

Based on the description you've provided in your comment. You should be able to install a combination GFCI switch device in the first bathroom (electrically closest to the breaker box), which will provide GFCI protection to the light and the rest of the circuit. Install the GFCI switch combo as follows:

All grounding conductors left off for simplicity. Make sure all devices are properly grounded.

Connect the grounded "neutral" (white) conductor from the feeding cable, to the silver LINE terminal of the GFCI.
Connect the ungrounded "hot" (black) conductor from the feeding cable, to the brass LINE terminal of the GFCI.
Connect the grounded "neutral" (white) conductor from the cable going to the light, to the silver LOAD terminal of the GFCI.
Connect the switched (red) conductor from the cable going to the light, to one of the switch wires of the GFCI using a twist-on wire connector.
Using a twist-on wire connector, connect the other switch lead from the GFCI to the ungrounded "hot" (black) conductor from the cable leading to the light, and a short bit of black wire.
Connect the other end of the short bit of black wire (from the previous step), to the brass LOAD terminal on the GFCI.
Appropriately connect all grounding conductors.


lead in concrete stains I live in an old lake house built about 1938 to 1940 and the entire slab is concrete and stained red, I was told that lead was used in the concrete when the slab was poured.  Is this true and how do I cover it up and seal in the lead

Is it true? Try a lead testing kit, commonly available at hardware stores - while primarily intended to test paint, I'd have to think it would give some indication. For a more definitive test you can probably send a sample to a lab. Red Lead was a common pigment, yes. Whether or not that was what was used on your slab, only testing will tell.

Whether you even need to seal in the hypothetical lead is debatable - the primary concerns with lead paint are children eating flaking paint or dust - if the slab does have lead but is not crumbling away and being eaten or inhaled, there isn't a pathway for the hypothetical lead to get into you.


Why is there white crust on my dishes after they are washed in the dish washer? Recently my dishes have been coming out of the dish-washer with a lot of white powdery-crust all over them. It's extremely hard to scrub off and often the only way to remove it is to soak them in vinegar.

What could be causing this and how do I fix it? My dishwasher is less than 6 months old.

I have tried jet-dry and have been using the little two-pack tablet things that dissolve in the dishwasher (seems to give me the best of all the bad outcomes).

It sounds like the detergent not completely disolving.  Is your water hot enough (it is hooked to the hot water, right)? Does it take a long time for your hot water to reach it? Try running it in the sink before starting the washer and see if that helps. You could also turn up the water temp (be careful though if you have small kids). Switching to a detergent that disolves better might help, or use a little less. Try liquids vs solids. As a last ditch, it could be your water is hard and you need a softener installed.


repairing concrete damaged by anchors I was trying to mount something to a concrete wall and completely botched it. I had 4 drop-in anchors, so I took a hammer drill and some bits that were, by eye, pretty close to the diameter of the anchor, and made some holes for it.
Well eyeballing it turned out to be a HUGE mistake, the hole diameters were just slightly too small and  it cause the anchors to leak their lead (which, as I understand, is supposed to get pushed out by pressure to fill the irregularities in the concrete) into their own threaded screw holes. edit: actually that was just the inside of the anchors that didn't get pushed down far enough by the installation tool.

Now I've got 4 anchors stuck in the wall (one of them is still poking out a bit) that can't be removed, and the concrete has also become pitted from the attempts to insert them.

1) How do I fix this? I'm thinking of using a metal saw to take off the parts of the anchors that are poking out past the wall face, then spackling over or something. Seems simple enough but right now I don't trust my own judgement and want a second opinion.

2) How do I finish this? I was thinking of trying again a few inches further up, but the mounting is gonna have to support maybe up to 500lbs and I'm worried about the damage I may have done to the concrete below.

The anchors are 3/8" diameter and about 1" long.

edit: here's a pic of the damage

Those black pen marks are where I want to try again. It might be better to try again to the left but the concrete is thinner. I don't know if that matters. Any advice would be appreciated.

The concrete looks fine, other than a little surface damage (and obviously the holes themselves). I would drill them out, then fill the holes and damaged area with hydraulic cement.

Make sure you use the drill bit specified by the anchor manufacturer next time. These shouldn't be that difficult to insert into holes.


Biscuit, dowel or simple braces for making unit top with inset lid and slim sides? I've had 5 pieces of iroko machined for creating a top to my DIY TV lift, complete with a lid for the TV to pop up through:

The dimensions are based on the pre-existing cabinet, and the lid size needed for the TV to rise up. I was originally taking my cue from this YouTube video wherein he joins his (very long) pieces with biscuits; however now I have my pieces I'm concerned that:

The two sides are too slim to really hold the whole thing together with any strength (as I imagine I could only use one biscuit on each side);
The boards may be relatively slim (20mm) and as such need small biscuits or dowels, compounding point 1.

Bearing in mind that a) I'm a total novice, and b) I don't own a biscuit-cutter, I was wondering whether a far easier solution might be to use one or two 'braces' (apologies if this is not the correct term) running on the underside of the lid, on either side, joining the front and back pieces and spanning the shorter side pieces. These would be hidden inside the unit once the lid is in place, so it shouldn't affect the look.

Although the top isn't structural, it should still be solid and sound, and most likely need to at least bear the weight of a graceless cat who will hurl his body at any piece of furniture like a sack of potatoes.

TL;DR Illustrations

Biscuits:

Braces:

Part of it depends on what material you're using for the top. If it's hardwood or plywood, a good quality wood glue and biscuits / dowels / pocket screws will likely hold it together just fine.

If it's something like MDF or OSB, then I'd want some additional joining mechanism such as dog bone fasteners.

Braces below are fine, as long as they don't interfere with the attachment of the top to the cabinet. Rather than thin braces, though, you could do wide flat ones, and glue, preferably with nails and/or screws. That would give you lots of surface area for the glue to adhere to.

I'm a belt and suspenders kind of guy, I typically glue + screw or glue + pin nail things together.


Is it safe to re-use drill holes in a wall? I've just mounted a 42" TV with a new wall mount that uses 3/16" bolts into some studs on the wall.  I now want to use an articulating one, which means I'll need to replace the old mount.  The new mount also uses the same size bolts.  Is it safe to re-use the holes from the old mount with the new mount, or should I drill new ones?

If you didn't strip the holes when removing the old bolts, then you PROBABLY should be able to re-use the same holes, but to be safe, I would inject a little Elmer's wood glue (just a few drops) into each hole before you insert the bolts.  This is just to reinforce the wood in the hole and help ensure it stays locked in place.

But honestly, I think you'd be wise to drill new pilot holes 1" above or below the old ones, and fill the old ones in with wood putty capped w/ a little dab of plaster (or toothpaste).  The old holes will end up hidden by the mounting plate anyway, and better safe than sorry.


Wiring for 2-stage thermostat and 2-stage furnace with single stage cooling I got my furnace and A/C unit replaced last summer. The new furnace has 2-stage heating, the A/C unit is single stage. The installers put in a single stage thermostat, so as far as I could tell it was running as a single stage. I saw that the original wiring consisted of 4 wires, and wanting to make use of the 2 stages of heating, I ran a 5 wire cable, so I have 9 wires total.
For the thermostat, I have an Energate Foundation. It supports up to 2-stage heating and 2-stage cooling. Here are my connections:

This is the diagram pretty much as it is in the installation manual. (Edit: from the furnace installation manual)
The furnace is Carrier 59TP6A. A/C unit is also Carrier.
Then I go to test the system and when the thermostat calls for cooling, the blower comes on but on low speed. The A/C unit does not come on.
I am aware of the DIP switch to allow use of a 2-stage thermostat, so I switched that to ON. I did not touch the ACRDJ jumper, it is only to be removed if 2-stage cooling is present, at least that's how I understand it. (As an aside, I tried with and without and it didn't make any difference)
The A/C unit and furnace themselves are working fine, they were on a single stage thermostat just the other day, and worked. They are mechanically sound. To make sure my new wiring was ok, I removed the thermostat from the wall, and connected (jumped) R to G and Y/Y2, and everything worked as expected, ie the fan was on at full speed and the A/C unit came on. For some reason, the thermostat isn't energizing its Y/Y2 terminal which would turn on the A/C unit.
Since this is a smart thermostat, I did go through the software menu, and changed the settings so that it is aware that the equipment consists of 2-stage heating and 1-stage cooling.
Anyone familiar with the Energate Foundation thermostats and why it's behaving this way?

Ok so I figured it out. I probed the pins on the back of the thermostat to see which pins were being energized when it was calling for cooling. Turns out it energizes Y1, not Y2. Makes sense since it does support 2 stages for both heating and cooling. So I have my "cooling" wire at the Y1 terminal at the thermostat and Y/Y2 at the furnace. This wiring allows the cooling to work at the required high flow. Works as expected now. Final revised wiring diagram below.


Should I wax or polyurethane an old pine floor? I found another question that sort of asks this, but the answers don't provide any detail.

We bought a 1918 house in somewhat rough shape.  The second floor (with two bedrooms and a nursery when we're done with it) has (we're told original) pine floors that were treated years ago with some kind of polyurethane.  Much of it is peeling (or has peeled) leaving exposed wood.

Treatment options I'm considering are polyurethane and Rubio Monocoat, which is a wax finish.  The Rubio product claims 0% VOC, and comes with a number of stain colours.  Multiple people we've talked to say that wax is the "better" choice for a century old pine floor, but can provide no concrete reasons as to why.

So my question is ... Why?

Is the amount of work and extra expense for a wax finish really worth it?  What does a wax finish get me that I'd lose out on with polyurethane?

And finally...  Has anyone got an opinion of Rubio Monocoat?  Aside from the colour options, is it really that much better than basic tung or linseed oil?

I realize that if I sand things down and apply poly, there's no going back.  I just don't think I know enough to make the right decision.

You already answered why; the poly that was put down is peeling off! My parents tried to use poly on a new pine floor when I was a child. It peeled and chipped and wore off in areas after about 2 years. I suspect (now) that the difference in rigidity was the primary reason for the separation of varnish (hard) and pine (soft). Surface finishes like varnish dry on top of the wood. I'm afraid I don't know why varnish would be worse on an old pine floor. Actually I would be inclined to believe the opposite because old pine should be harder; but it's really just a question of which is worse new or old pine?

I believe that Rubio Monocoat is probably derived from tung or linseed oil; it contains a drying accelerator (aka siccative); perhaps they use a manganese salt like manganese acetate. I'm not familiar with Rubio Monocoat so I can't say anything about their quality (sounds interesting... might work). There are many possibilities for what this material could be, but it's not wax.

Modern floor waxes are actually not true wax either; they are (typically) acrylic polymers. But that doesn't really matter, the point is that floor wax does work on pine, or at least it won't peel off.


What is the difference between mold in air duct and mold that grows in crawl space? Specifically, are they both dangerous to human health?

There are thousands of species of mold known to Science, with different species being found in different parts of the world.  There isn't any one "crawlspace" mold or "air duct" mold, it's just whatever spores of whatever species happened to take a foothold there.  Which one is more dangerous will depend on the particular species of mold and the sensitivity of the people that are exposed to it.

In general, though, you're better off not having them growing in your home because even if you don't have a really dangerous one growing now, you obviously have the right conditions for mold so a dangerous one could start growing too.

For more information, have a look at this Wikipedia article on Mold health issues


Plastic push-fit vs.compression joints I want to know the use scenario of both, I have a 40 mm drain pipe in the ground and 40 mm shower trap pipe so I want to connect them both. I guess for my use scenario it might not matter much due to low pressure, however that raised the question if I should nearly always choose compression instead of push-fits?

Also why do compression joints sometimes come with the additional hard/flat washer along side the coned rubber one, sometimes they don't?

(this answer has a UK perspective)

As I understand it the main advantage of compression waste fittings is that they are not too fussy about the exact size and material of the pipe. This means they can be used with both the pipe designed for solvent-weld fittings and the pipe designed for pushfit fittings. They also have more wiggle room during assembly which is handy when trying to insert a new fitting into an existing pipe run.

The downside is they are bulkier and cost more than push fit fittings.


How can I prevent water from running off a patio to my foundation? My house has an abandoned concrete patio  at ground level. Previous owner built a 12'x 12' wood deck 14" above the concrete patio. I have rain water getting in my basement where the concrete deck meets the house block wall. I have built a roof over the deck and fixes all gutter issues. I plan to remove a few decking boards, which are parallel to the house and repair the joint between the old concrete deck and the house concrete blocks. My alternatives are:

Place mortar between the blocks and concrete deck
Place mortar and lay a row of brick between the blocks and concrete deck
Clean, apply silicone caulking between the blocks and concrete deck and put bricks on the caulking
Clean, apply silicone caulking between the blocks and concrete deck and put vinyl siding angle between the blocks and ....This angle is 1.5" by 1.5" with a 90 degree angle that is rounded (radius).

Sealing that joint is a low-percentage game. The patio probably moves with seasonal changes in ground temperature, and most products will let go after a few years, leaving you in the same position.

I'd do this:

Remove some decking to make access to the patio.
Using a rented diamond saw (chain saw style) or jackhammer, cut 2-3' off the foundation side of the old patio.
Re-grade with suitable soil and slope between the remaining patio and the foundation. The new slope probably wouldn't need to land above the patio if there's a suitable side outlet path.
Reassemble the deck and be happy.


Choosing correct dimmer for halogen bulbs Apartment I moved into has a light with 5 halogen bulbs - rated 20W, 12V each.

I'd like to replace the current on/off switch for all of them, with a dimmer, but concerned there might be issues to be aware of.

Would something like this be safe?

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00XB0MQ44/ref=psdc_1938304031_t5_B001B0CD58

240V 10 Amp Single 1 Gang Light Dimmer Switch
Push On/Off with Rotary Dimming 400W/400VA
Max. Load: 400W. Min. Load: 60W. Leading edge type. Derating required with mains halogen lamps.
2 Way Switching - can be used as 1 Way
Suitable for mains/low voltage lighting in 1 or 2 way circuits

If it has a min load of 60W, what would happen if 3 of the bulbs blew - drawing just 40W.  Is this unsafe?

Many thanks.

Is a min-60W dimmer safe with a 40W load

It will be safe - it won't catch fire. But it probably won't dim reliably - it won't predictably control the brightness.

More importantly, it probably won't work well when you inevitably replace the halogen bulbs with LED bulbs.


Solar powered routers and security cameras I would like to put a web cam at the end of my driveway, but don't want to run any new wire (plus it is at least a hundred yards). I know that there are solar powered security cameras, but I don't have any experience with them and my wifi doesn't reliably reach that far.

I was thinking of getting a solar powered wifi router/repeater and connecting through that.

Does anybody have any experience doing this and if so what should I look out for?

Edit: I live in NC, and I can put the wifi router in a space that won't be in the shade until shortly before sundown.

There are a few issues you will have to overcome here, and most are solved much more easily by running cable.

Solar power has limitations. For example, in Scotland I would need a pretty big solar panel to power the camera, wireless router, and charge a battery (for night time) and for many days of the year I wouldn't be able to get any charge (sunshine at 57 degrees north is minimal in winter!) but if you live in California or Arizona etc you may have much better luck with this.
Wifi extenders are cheap and convenient these days, and again, you can power them from solar panels, with the same caveat as before.
Directional antennas are a much better idea than a wifi extender, however. They will easily increase your wifi range, and have the added benefit of suffering less interference from any signal off the main lobe, and potentially increase security, as an attacker will need to be much closer if they aren't on that lobe direction.

I used to build a lot of setups with directional antennas for anything from a couple of hundred feet to a mile or so. Even at 100mW transmit strength, directional Huber-Suhner patch antennas gave me sufficient signal strength.

I'd still suggest a cable for the job you describe, though, possibly just run PoE (Power over Ethernet) so only one cable set needed.


How to finish 1" gap between tub and tile We just tiled above a new tub--our first time. We started the bottom row 1/4" above the vertical flange on the tub. This left us with 1+" of gap between the flat tub surface and the bottom of the tile.
How should we have done it instead? We thought we were following instructions that would allow the tub to expand and contract without screwing up the tile, but aesthetically, something ain't right. Is there a clever way to fix it?

What you should have done instead is leave a 1/4 inch gap between the backerboard and the vertical flange, and let the tiles hang down past the vertical flange to 1/4 from the horizontal tub deck surface. That keeps everything nicely separated while allowing water to flow down past the flange.

At this point you need to remove the bottom row of tile. If you can find the same style tile in a rectangular shape that will come down far enough, go for it. Other options would be a completely different (but complementary) tile for the bottom row, or a thin decorative row between the second-last row and the fixed (lower) bottom row.


How can I install ceiling mounted recessed occupancy sensors? I am looking to replace my current lighting circuit with a motion detector and wondering what is the best way to do this?

I currently have 6 spot lights, controlled by 2 switches on either side of the hallway.
All I want to do is exchange these switches for a ceiling mounted recessed occupancy detector. Can somebody give me details on the safest effective way for this to be done.

There are switches that have motion sensors in them.

There are also Light fixtures that have sensors in them, you would need all new fixtures.
If by spot lights you mean recessed lights this may not work.

We had the switch type in a rental once. I may put them in a hall but never in a main room as every few minutes you had to wave your arms to turn the lights back on. I dont remember how far the sensor could see.

One of these will be the easiest way to add motion sensors, if none of these suits you more info will need to be given about the wiring you wish to change i think.

Do you have a link to the type of device you want to install?


French drain - emitter or other water dispersal method? I am building a french drain about 20 feet long that is only needed during very heavy storms, sloped correctly, that will terminate at the spot I want a few inches below the ground surface. Will the flowing pipe water be strong enough to make the short upward turn to utilize an emitter, or should I end the drain with some other method like a box, etc?

Ending the perf pipe slightly below grade will cause the water to back up and not drain.

I like placing large rocks (2” - 6”) around the pipe outlet. This allows the water to flow out and is dispersed out on the surface without eroding the ground. (I try not to use small rocks, because they get “washed” out in heavy rain.)


Wiring a 5 ton rooftop unit and a 220 plug Can I run 3-#8(2 pole 40amp) breaker and 4-#10(2 pole 30amp breaker) in the same pipe

Yeah, that's fine but you have to follow the rules.

The fill rules

All wires count.  (In switch loops, neutrals also count even if they're not even present).

There are various conduit fill calculators around the Web and on smartphone apps.

The derate rules

Grounds don't count.
If there are 2 or 3 hot wires, neutrals don't count because they only carry differential current
This means in 120/240V single or split phase, 1 circuit always counts as 2 wires.
You have 4 wires
NEC 310.15(B)(2) calls for an 80% derate. But wait.
The derate is off the 90C column in 310.15(B)(16), or to be more precise the highest column allowed by the wire type; so for instance THWN (not THWN-2) uses the 75C column.  There is a special rule that NM uses the 90C column even though it is 60C wire, but NM better not be outside.  I presume your wire is THWN***-2***, which is 90C, so here we go:

THWN-2 #8 gets 55A@90C, it derates 80% to 44 amps.
THWN-2 #10 gets 40A@90C, it derates 80% to 32 amps.

Well, that's not so bad.  You are still capped at the 30A and 40A limits, so this doesn't really limit you.

3 circuits (6 wires) uses the same derate.

4 circuits uses a 70% derate, which will bite you on #10 and #8, (28A and 38.5A), however you get to round up to the next available breaker size, so you dodge a bullet.


What is the optimal screw drive hole shape to get the maximum torque for a steel screw? What is the optimal screw drive shape (such as philips, internal hex socket, or slot) that will allow the maximum amount of torque to be applied without having the drive hole stripped? The torque can be applied to the drive hole like in a philips head or to the head itself such has a hex head bolt. The screw in question would be made of heat-treated steel. The screw would be inserted into a threaded hole but it would be nice to know about a screw that is self tapping.

Currently i mostly use philips head or hex head screws for drywall, wood, metal and plastic (abs). Of coarse my drill starts cam out and occasionally starts to strip my screw. Recently i used a square holed screw and the bit was so secure that the drill started to twist violently. This was not something i was used to as iv mostly used philips. So i was wondering based on the material strength what hole size would be optimal for high torque situation?

I would say the optimal screw hole shape that will allow the maximum amount of torque to be applied, would be no hole.

Removing material from the head of the screw; no matter what shape, will weaken the screw slightly. The only way to maintain the full strength of the screw; and therefore achieve maximum torque, is to not remove any material. So a hex head screw (not to be confused with a hex drive screw), would allow for maximum torque.


Tools necessary for an efficient demo Due to some water damage sustained last February caused by an ice dam induced roof leak, I have to remove and replace the 100 year old plaster in my dining room, kitchen, and bathroom. That, combined with having to replace a section of my roof, adds up to an expensive project that my insurance company won't cover.

I am trying to reduce the cost of this forced remodel (we had wanted to remodel the bathroom, but not for another 5 years for financial reasons) by doing the demolition myself.

I have a prybar, sledgehammer, and the usual hand and power tools (drill, circular saw, jig saw, dremel, to name a few that might be needed). I have contractor bags, canvas drop cloths and plastic sheeting, and tape to attach said plastic to the wall to keep the dust (somewhat) contained.

I think I need a reciprocating saw (really! Not just making excuses to buy new tools!) is there anything else I may need? I have a full time job, three little children, and attend night school, so I want this demo to go quickly. And, maybe more importantly, I don't want to ruin anything (by doing it wrong, using the wrong tool) in the process and cost myself the money I'm attempting to save fixing a mistake.

I'd also gladly accept any pointers anyone may have on the demo itself too.

Afterthought: I thought I'd add that I've arranged for a dumpster (local trash pickup forbids construction debris)  and I have a wheelbarrow and trash barrels with wheels to use to get it all out there.  So, I think I've got disposal covered.

Assuming you plan to live in the house while this is going on, you should seriously look at the plastic "curtain" products which can be used to isolate the construction zone. They can tremendously reduce how much dust gets into the rest of the house.

Speaking of dust, a serious dust mask (one that achieves a good seal against the face rather than the cheap "nuisance dust" paper things) is a good investment, and surprisingly affordable. You only get one pair of lungs; it's worth protecting them.

Given that you've got kids in the house, you may want to think about whether any of the layers you're removing might contain lead. If so, you may want to test first... and if you find lead, you probably want to hire someone who knows how to properly control it and clean up afterward rather than going DIY.


Can I run constant power and a three-way switch with three conductors? Picture this>

I want to run power from a house to a garage.
I want power at the garage at all times
I want a three way switch with one switch in the
house and one in the garage to activate the outside light on the
garage.

Here is the problem.  I believe I made a big mistake.  I ran four wires.  (black, white, Red, GreenGround) through PVC.  Unless I am missing something I don't think there is any way to wire this the way I wanted without one more wire to run to the garage making a total of 5 wires.  Am I right?  or, is there a way?

There is a way but it is no longer acceptable by code. The reason is the method used will constantly flip the polarity of the hot and neutral lines to the light making either wire and lamp socket parts hot depending on the switches. Edit: This method is dangerous for this reason. The lamp socket shell, which is always supposed to be neutral, can become hot creating a shock or electrocution hazard.

If you can, run a fourth wire. It can be any color save for green and white. I'd go with blue. Make the red and blue the three way leads and let the black stay live the whole time.

Or, Consider a motion detector and leave the red wire disconnected.

Or, Use the red wire for a light only controlled from the house.


Flashing /waterproof for wires going through roof gable I am in the process of replacing my siding and found an odd (read: wtf) spot where wires are coming through the roof to a porch below. It looks like they just put a hole through the roof/shingles but it’s at an interesting spot where I’m not sure how to best seal it and waterproof. It’s about 5” from the adjoining wall of the second story of the colonial.
Debating using something like flashing for vent pipe/conduit but don’t really see a solid solution.

Yuck... Given you have the siding off can you relocate the wires into the wall behind the siding?


Aluminum Service Entrance Cable path alongside exterior wall I am in the process of finishing a load center installation upgraded to 200amps. From the weather head above is a straight shot through a conduit with 200 amps SE cable (there is no meter as of now though) which then enters the meter socket box and connect to its lug. The short 200 amps SE cable (to which the neutral is the outer jacket of the cable) can not follow the contour of the exterior wall due to its rigidity, as shown below:

It seems that  NEC 338.10 (B)(4) requires that when SE cable is installed as interior wiring it has to comply with the requirements of Part II of NEC Articles 334, except for Section 334.80. But mine is not an interior wire situation.

It was fairly easy mold the contour of a 100amps cable to the path alongside the wall, but for a 200amps it is close to impossible to do so, and parts of the cable are sort of hanging in the air. I was wondering that the setup is acceptable or ok as far as code is concerned

Pictured added to showcase other side where cable enters the interior right in the back of the load center.

Handsome marine plywood cabinet

built to keep the telephone splicebox out of the weather.   It is on the same wall as the meter, and its bottom is just above the point where the SE cable enters the building.  The diagonal run of SE cable is fastened to its bottom.  Good thing that cabinet was there, otherwise the SE cable would be dangling in space!

The conduit method

You come through the wall with the minimum size conduit able to handle your wires.  Then you have an upsize fitting up to 3" conduit at least, so pulling is easier.  Picture a clock projected on the slat wall where the hole is.   You can't go out toward 9:00 because a 3" conduit body won't fit.   So you go out at 11:00.  Where are you aiming for? Note the unused knockout on the left side bottom of the meter housing. There's one on the other side.  Imagine a conduit going straight out from that toward the wall.   You can try a 90 bend, or just use another conduit body where they meet.

Don't wrestle that SE cable, now that you're in conduit, go back to the store and get some THWN-2. Stay with Al if you can, but if you feel you just can't bend it, then go Cu.  Install one wire at a time, so the workload is easier.  That's why the conduit is oversize!

You'll need to either lower the phone PNI, or add some spacers for it to sit on, as the conduit will go right through its space.


How do I diagnose fluorescent light flicker? We have 2x4 troffer fluorescent  lighting throughout the building. These are consistently flickering and it is annoying. Nearly every light in the building flickers, including in my room. (This includes lights on different circuit breakers.)

How shall I attribute the problem between power source, wiring, ballast or bulbs with minimum effort and wasted resources?

Flickering and buzzing where bigger problems with magnetic ballasts and cheaper type T12 Fluorescents. These are becoming obsolete, if you have these types of lamps and ballasts you can retrofit them out to the newer High Power Factor electronic ballasts and type T8 lamps, or LED tubes.

T8 fluorescent lamps are about $3.00 each and A ballast is about $17.00. LED tubes are about $8.00 a tube but you still have to retrofit the fixture.

Good luck.


How to attach a wood moulding trim around a backsplash I'm installing a backsplash and trying to hide the ugly edges at the countertop ends. My wife and I decided on a wood moulding type trim, but I'm stuck on the best way to attach it to the drywall around the tiles.

The trim itself is 11/16" wide and 5/16" deep and would be cut to a maximum length of about 19". Should I use a glue like Liquid Nails since it's so small, or would a more "permanent" solution like tiny finishing nails do better?

Construction adhesive would certainly do the job, but it would destroy the drywall when you remove it.

I'd use silicone caulk as both the adhesive and the caulk to the countertop. It'll be rock solid, and if you ever need to remove it you may be able to do so without ripping paper off the drywall. Just put 2 or 3 quarter-sized dabs along the back. They'll flatten out to create nice wide attachment pads.

Be sure to completely paint or seal the trim, front and back, before attaching. Water is a tough nemesis for wood.


Locating CAT3 wire with Transmitter and Receiver We are looking to convert the phone lines in our house over to network connections. The house is wired with CAT3 for both phone and DSL. The problem we are faced with is locating the end of the wire where it terminates at the patch panel. When I connect a transmitter to one of the phone jacks and use the receiver to locate the end of the wire, the receiver will beep on more than one wire. From my understanding, it should only beep on the one wire that has the transmitter connected to the end.

Can anyone explain what I’m doing wrong? Thank you.

Well, if they are wired as for phone wiring still, they would all be tied together.

If you have undone that wiring already, they may be having "cross talk" from the RF signal getting picked up by adjacent wires - CAT3 is not as good at rejecting this as CAT5, 6 or 7. You might be able to note a change in volume of the "beep" in that case, but really, if you are not hunting for wires behind the wall, you're  probably using the wrong tool.

I'd pull out either a pair tester (since I own a couple, as a "network guy" - they are pretty cheap) and plug it in, where you will either see lights or not, depending on a DC connection that's not subject to crosstalk...

...Or else grab a simple meter (volt or ohm) and either attach a 9V battery to a certain pair and look for voltage, or short a certain pair and look for low-ohms (or continuity) - this might require hacking up a patch cable to make the connections.

Here's a simple, cheap pair tester (under $10 - similar to what I have but mine are too old to have examples for sale now - no affiliation)

You can find things with the same name that cost a lot more, as they add fancier functions you don't need for the simple tests.


How do I keep a triple sat dish stable after directing towards the satellites? I have a triple sat dish to receive tv channels broadcasted through three satellites. .

It is a very convenient dish, it is small making it easier to install out of sight and allows us to watch a interesting wide variety of channels. Ranging from Thailand to Latin America.
The disadvantage of such a dish is that directing it towards the satellites requires quite some precision. When the ideal direction is found it always is a tedious task to tie the bolts in such a way that the dish doesn't move. 1 mm off and you don't have reception.
A tuning process that also needs to be repeated after storms or a change of season.

I am just wondering if there is tightening mechanism that would allow precise directing while not needing tightening the bolts afterwards. Something like a winch that remains stable on every given position.

My strategy with satellite dishes was to get the dish aimed close to the final alignment, and then hand tighten the bolts.  After this, I used light taps to change the alignment. Once aligned, tighten the bolts the rest of the way. Because the bolts are already snug, I never had problems with the dish moving further.


Can I get away with 5/4" cedar decking across a 24" span in a children's play structure? I am currently in the process of designing/building a play structure for my son.  The structure will include a 5' high elevated deck, that is 6'x4'.  The supports for the decking will be 24" center-to-center.

Reading through load tables, it is recommended to use 2x4 or 2x6 stock as the decking, if one is spanning 24".  To use 5/4" decking, requires 16" or smaller spans.

The plan for this play structure is, it is for kids, with the occasional "mom or dad wants to play too!"  So, in this case, would using 5/4" decking be appropriate?  The 2x6 decking seems to be a bit overkill for a kids play set, and the trap-door/ladder I am planning to incorporate would get quite heavy for little guys to manipulate.

It is not officially recommended, and any chart you will find will list 16" as max span (I've even seen a couple that said 12").

As far as safety goes, it would feel a little "bouncy" to an adult but I'd like to sit back with a beer and watch you try to break it.


What is the difference between Moen Moentrol 3510/3520 and 3550/3570? I'm trying to pick out a new valve for my shower, and I'm pretty set on a Moentrol.  Moen produces four differnet models:

Two 1/2" IPS Models: 3510 and 3550
Two 1/2" CC Models: 3520 and 3570

Their spec sheets are available at:

3510 and 3520
3550 and 3570

The only differences that I see in the specs are "integral checks" compared to "integral check stops"

Can someone please enlighten me on the differences between the 3510/3520 line and the 3550/3570 line?

3570 has shut off valves on the valve itself. Allows you to swap out 1225 cartridge without shutting off water to house


A good way to tighten nuts in very close quarters? Over time, the hexagonal nuts in my bed frame have loosened.  I'd like to tighten them, but the routed access is much too small for a socket head, crescent wrench or even needle-nosed pliers -- not that they would provide enough torque to actually turn the nut:

The opening is ~1-5/8" in both axes.

Has anyone found a good way to tighten nuts in such close quarters?

Note in particular that the bed came without washers as a stand-off, so these particular nuts tighten against the raw oak surface, which was routed with the curve shown.

The other end of the bolt seems to be sealed in the leg of the bed -- here's a photo showing the 1-5/8" bolt recess with what seems to be a decorative end cap glued in place:

I'd bet money they used a box wrench to tighten this; you can see where it damaged the wood ever so slightly to the left and right of the nut (and the scrape it made in the center while on its way onto it).

Try using a twelve point box wrench. You might also need a hammer ;) ... and you might have to disassemble the headboard to get it out of the way. It looks to me like that lightly colored piece of plywood is an add-on, and that's why you can't get in there.

That supposed piece of plywood was the bed, so there's your access.

It needs to be an offset box wrench, or you won't have room to turn it, and you may need to seat it with a hammer for the first few turns. And as the other answer suggests, grinding down the outer edge of the tool is an option.

(source)


Half wall supporting 18" overhanging counter -- can this be done? As part of an upcoming kitchen remodel we plan on knocking down a (non-load bearing) wall between the dining room and kitchen. We are thinking of converting a portion of the existing wall to a half wall and placing an overhanging quartz countertop on it to create a peninsula. See attached Sketchup screenshot. This layout was suggested to us by a professional designer and my question is whether it makes sense structurally. Normally there would be a row of cabinets on the other side of the half wall, and the total amount of overhang would be ~1/3rd the overall width of the slab. Unfortunately there is no room for this in our 1950's-era, 10'x10' kitchen so the entire piece would need to be supported by the 4" half wall. I could perhaps see this working with enough reinforcing but I wanted to see whether anyone else has attempted such a feat and what the outcome was.

For countertops, 3 cm is fine  but that's thin for something free-hanging. To avoid the stone breaking, the slab needs even support in a lot of places.  You don't want a long unsupported area that people will lean on or that might have something dropped on it.  You can do it with a lot of full-width supports, like Eli Iser links to in a comment.  But you need support near all of the edges and at regular intervals in between.

An easier way to accomplish that is to have the slab sit on a solid top (like 3/4" plywood), which also provides a place for fastening all of the support.  It should be as big, or almost as big, as the slab.  You can cover the edge for appearance.  That would also serve as the top surface of the half wall.

To avoid torsion forces, you need to support the free corners.  At the back wall, you can fasten a horizontal support board to the wall that the top rests on.

For the outer corner, That's a lot of weight and a lot of leverage.  I wouldn't trust hidden braces fastened to the half wall, or even the half wall attachment to the floor or the half wall framing staying square and plumb.  Use a leg that rests on the floor.  It should also be fastened to the floor, perhaps with a tie-back to the half wall.  You could even make the half wall an "L", creating a cubby hole under the overhang.  If that would eat too much of the length, you could use something like a wrought iron railing that would provide support but only consume a few inches (instead of a leg).

That will still leave a very heavy 4' span that needs support.  Put some type of brace in the middle that fastens to the half wall (ensure there's a stud in that location when the wall is built) and provides support to a point most of the way to the outside edge of the overhang.  You can avoid knee interference with a right-angle or curved brace.  But it should be something that is seriously strong and rigid, not something like the utility brackets used to put up garage shelving that sag under load.

Keep in mind that the issue isn't so much that the half wall will fall over. The issue is any part of the slab support structure sagging or twisting even a little.  If that happens, you're still holding the slab off the floor, but some part of it won't be supported.  Then it doesn't take much for the slab to break.


What could cause frequent toilet clogs? It is not the usual suspects We just moved into a new house. The upstairs toilet clogs a couple times per week and the downstairs toilet often takes two flushes. (Our plumber thinks the downstairs problem is just because the toilet is very old, so likely unrelated.)

Other factors:
-Our plumber already ran an auger and confirmed there is no clog in the line
-The offending toilet was replaced (it was a poor model with a small hole so we thought that might be the issue)
-Both before and after replacement, plunging has caused water to drip down the pipe into our downstairs bathroom.
-Before we bought the house, all the pipes were replaced. We think they have thought there was a leak due to the plunging issue-- we only figured out it was not a leak because the drywall was not yet put back in the ceiling where it drips out.
-There are no back-ups in any drain, so our plumber does not think it is the vent pipe since that would affect our sinks and tub as well.

I am not very confident in our plumber at this point-- we have been dealing with the son in a father/son business and he has to talk to his father for advice since he has no clue what is causing this.

Any suggestions of next steps? Everything I can find on Google does not really apply since we've had no issues at all except for the clogging and leaking while plunging. Everything I can find is either fixed by steps already taken, or has other problems not present.

Since you have already replaced the toilet, we know its not that. Just because the sinks and tub don't have a visible problem, doesn't mean it's not a vent issue. The water flow rate is significantly lower on those, so the potential to pull a vacuum because of POOR air flow through the vent is not there. But the big rush of water from a toilet flush needs a big slug of replacement air from the vent to avoid pulling a vacuum and if there is a bird or rat nest in the vent pipe that restricts that flow, but doesn't totally block it, that will only show up after the toilet flushes.


What is the name of this metal bar with holes at the ends? I need to find a metal part that looks a bit like this:

     hole for bolt                strong metal
      |                            |
   ___|____________________________v_______
  /   v                                    \
 (   (_)                              (_)   ) <--round end
  \________________________________________/

This looks like a common part from a Meccano set, but with just two holes at either end for bolts. Two of these can go around a 2x4, then bolts run through the holes.

    /__\                             /__\<--end of bolt
 ____________________________________________<--the part
     __                               __
     __                               __
     __                               __
     __                               __ <---bolt
     __                               __
     __                               __
     __                               __
 ____________________________________________<--the part
    [==]                             [==]<---nut

I am searching for a name so that I can find these to buy. Is there a common application where these appear? Are they commonly used by a particular contractor for a particular type of job? What is the name of this kind of part?

(so far, other answers don't show something I'd use on a 2x4, hence this answer)

  Two of these can go around a 2x4, then bolts run through the holes ... Is there a common application where these appear?

"Straight Timber Connector" - for non-structural connections such as landscaping.

Smaller versions are usually called mending plates in my part of the world.

For structural applications involving vertical shear loads - like splicing joists - in buildings, you'd typically use something very different to that illustrated above. E.g. a "splice plate" or "nail plate".

As Isherwood noted, there are likely to be a variety of names for these types of connector.


Can I run heating duct work through the attic? Problem...

(in Buffalo NY)

We just about finished remodeling our master bedroom. Everything insulated, drywalled and we're living in it.

Now that the winter is upon us, we're already finding this room to be colder then the rest of the bed rooms upstairs.

I have a clear shot from the basement to the attic via a old clothing chute that's being closed off. In the basement, the opening for the chute is just feet from the furnace.

Can I run a new duct from the basement, up the cavity, into and across the attic and down through the ceiling of this room?

Can I put a vent in the ceiling of the bedroom or must it be in the wall / baseboard ?

We're talking 20 feet max through the floors into the attic and another 20 feet across the attic into the bed room. Will I have a lot of heat loss at that distance?

I should mention its a brand new 97% efficient Lennox furnace sized properly for the house.

I can't think of any reason not to run the duct through any open path. If the duct goes into any uninsulated space, you'll need to have the duct itself insulated. And on a vertical run between floors, I like to have a fire block between the floors, but that may not be code in a single family dwelling. Be sure to block any drafts, run a vapor barrier, and insulate where the line goes from an interior wall into the attic space.


Add new lighting before previous lighting doesn't work This is my current switch, light and power source and it works fine

(Red circle is wire nut for better visualization to the real scene)

I tried to add a new light BEFORE the power source but it doesn't work. In fact, there is no power at all

But if I "jump" from the Light 1 to Light 3, it works

This last scenario is not idea as I have to drill holes through joists.

What I tried to understand is why Light 2 does not work above?

"It works" is not a measure of quality.  The first problem I see is that someone has confused black and white coming from the power source and they go the opposite places from where they should!  Exchange them.

Power supplies deliver Always-Hot and Neutral.
Switches require Always-Hot and deliver Switched-Hot.
Lamps require Switched-Hot and Neutral.

If you are wondering "What is the difference between hot and neutral? This is AC Power" that's beyond the scope of this answer, but it has a real answer.

Now you notice all cables come in black, white and safety ground. Yet we already have named 3 wire functions - how do we get 3 wire functions on 2 colors of wire?  If any random wire can have any random function, this rapidly becomes exactly the dizzying nightmare you are dealing with. Anyone would lose their mind!  The way to regain it is something not required by Code (much):

Now let's see what our wiring looks like.   Now, white = Neutral, black = Always-Hot, red = Switched-Hot.  We will tape wires as-needed.  Wires marked with tape are now that color.

This is legal/correct.  I fixed the crisscrossed supply wires.   Note how white is remarked black when there's already a black there, that satisfies two Code requirements.  (Actually, since 2008, Code requires real neutral also be supplied in switch loops.)

Marking the Switched-Hot wires red is not Code mandatory, but boy, does it make this diagram clearer!

Now let's do that to your second diagram and see if it gives us any clues.

Well there's your trouble!  Lamps don't take Hot and Switched-Hot!  This can't work. Lamp needs neutral, and it has to go get it from somewhere.

Perhaps it's time to modernize the switch-loop wiring to the /3 cable which provides real neutral also. E.G.


Does this CMU block wall on pool need rebar? So I'm in the process of remodeling my backyard. One of the things I wanted to do was build a wall similar to the first picture I included (with the stacked stone). The red arrows point at the wall.

I had someone come out and build the small wall (it's 28" high from where the pool already ended (where the the white ends in the pictures below and it's 18 feet long) and will be putting stacked stone on it (real stone, so it's heavy). The stacked stone will go from just above the water level where the red tile ends in the pictures below and cover the whole front and sides of the wall.

My question is, should this small wall have rebar in it? I'm not sure the guy who built it put any reinforcement into the wall and it is a very long wall. Should he have drilled into the part of the pool already there and put rebar into it? (or is that dangerous/could cause leaks in the pool and crack the side) Or is rebar in just the new sections fine? Or does it not need rebar? The wall is obviously not very tall, but my concern is the stacked stone is super heavy and it's all on the front part of the wall, could it topple over without rebar? Should I tear it down and start all over again?

Or am I fine because it's so short? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

I live in the Phoenix metro area in AZ.

Do you need rebar? Yes. Concrete and masonry do not withstand tension. Tension is absorbed by reinforcing. Think of a diving board. When you stand on it, it bends. Same with your wall. When there is a stress put on your wall, it bends. On one side it’s in compression, which is taken by the masonry. On the other side it is in tension and needs rebar.

There are many stresses on your wall, 1) A person (or persons) leaning against the wall, 2) seismic activity, 3) wind loads.

1) You’ve created a “Guard” as defined by the ICC Code. Guards are required to withstand 200 lbs. applied to the top of the wall.

Your wall is only 26” high and you’ve designed “an attractive nuisance “. Who doesn’t want to jump off the wall into the pool?  That force on the wall when you jump forward could push the wall over.

2) Arizona is seismically active. (Northern Arizona is really bad, but Phoenix is active.) Heavy materials are harder to control in earthquakes.

3) Wind is probably not the governing factor.

I wouldn’t have any beer parties where a bunch of drunken friends start jumping off the wall or where they could be “horsing around” and stumble into the wall, until it’s checked out.

Btw, not all walls need rebar. Mass or gravity walls resist stress by shear weight. That’s possible, but highly unlikely and are usually battered (thicker at the bottom than at the top).

You may need buttresses every 4’ to 6’ on center along the length of wall for added support.


Can someone explain how this makes sense electrically? The wiring in my house is... odd. Nearly every pair of outlets has one of the outlets connected to a light switch. Sometimes that switch is quite far from the outlet even when there are other closer switches that seem to control nothing at all. Sometimes that switch also controls overhead lighting, which makes no sense to me from a design standpoint. Sometimes that switch is a dimmer switch, which is a really horrible idea as if you plug anything other than a light bulb into it, like some electronics, the dimmer switch could do them a lot of damage. One such dimmer switch is also connected to a ceiling fan, and setting the switch to anything less than full does not change the speed of the fan, it just makes it a lot noisier (AC induction motor, obviously).

There are light fixtures that don't seem to have any power to them and aren't controlled by any switch, though I could believe the switch might just be hiding somewhere. There are also switches that seem to control absolutely nothing, though I could believe I just haven't found what they're connected to.

The oddest thing I have found though has to do with the circuit breakers around overhead lighting. I have a chandelier in my dining room that is connected to a dimmer switch. When I moved in, all of the bulbs were incandescents, and I wanted to be more energy efficient, so I replaced them all with dimmable LED bulbs. Now however, I could not turn the chandelier fully off, with the dimmer switch all the way down, the lights still dimly shone. This had never been an issue before, but I thought it probably meant the dimmer switch was faulty, and it was just the different voltage response curves of the incandescents versus the LEDs that meant it had never been noticed before, so I set out to replace the switch.

Now there are two circuit breakers that are relevant to this chandelier. One is labeled "dining room," the other is labeled "lights." As far as I can tell, the dining room breaker controls all of the outlets in the dining room area, while the lights breaker controls all of the overhead lighting in the house.

Here's where the odd part comes in. If I turn off the dining room breaker, the lights stay lit. I have turn off the lights breaker to switch off the lights. However, if I only turn off the lights breaker, and go into the switch panel with my voltmeter, I am still detecting 100V AC across the switch (with it off), even though the lights stay off when I turn the switch on. In order to remove the power I was detecting, I have to also turn off the dining room breaker, even though the lights were staying on when I switched that off.

This conforms to no type of electrical theory with which I am familiar, though there might be some peculiarity of household wiring I don't know about that explains this. Can anyone tell me what might be going on?

Update 3/24/19: After replacing the dining room dimmer switch with one specifically designed for LEDs, those lights are now working quite well. Based on several people's advice in this question, I have now set out to replace the bedroom dimmer switches that are connected to outlets with toggle switches. Have run into additional issues detailed here.

However, if I only turn off the lights breaker, and go into the switch panel with my voltmeter, I am still detecting 100V AC across the switch (with it off), even though the lights stay off when I turn the switch on. … Can anyone tell me what might be going on?

Coupling between wires (inductance and capacitance in parallel wires).

You say you have strange long runs between outlets and switches — if any of these extra lengths run in parallel, this is a great environment for the voltage from one to be induced in the other if it's disconnected.

If you try putting a load, like a small light bulb, across that 100 V, it will vanish (read 0 V), because there is no significant current capacity in this coupling. It might even go away if you were to attach an analog voltmeter (which is more of a load because current from the line to move the needle) instead of a digital one (which typically has a 1 MΩ input impedance that presents almost no load).


Is Switching the Neutral OK? What’s the worst that can happen if i put a switch in the neutral instead of the phase?

I just found out that 3 light bulbs sockets in my home  are connected this way, it first came to my mind to fix it but then I recalled the flow of current from positive to negative is just a convention since the electrons are charged negatively and they actually flow from N to L so i cant really find an solid excuse to mess with the wiring for the next 2 hrs

No, you don't want to switch the neutral.

If those light bulb sockets are a fixed installation in your house (such as a ceiling light as opposed to a table lamp), then that's not good and quite likely not to code.  We can't know for sure because you haven't said where this is nor filled in your profile (remember, your profile is a courtesey for us, not really for you).  The wiring in your house not being to code is not only potentially unsafe, but can open you up to various liability issues, especially if you ever sell or rent out your house.

The hot wire is the one with significant potential on it with respect to ground.  Many things are tied to ground, so you can be easily connected to ground depending on what you're touching, like a radiator, water faucet, sink, computer chassis, and other things you might not realize are grounded.  The hot wire is therefore dangerous.

The neutral wire is connected to ground at the breaker box, which is connected to physical ground nearby.  If you switch the hot line and leave the neutral, then the whole device will be at neutral potential.  That's OK.  If you switch the neutral, then the whole device will be at hot potential.  In theory that's OK since all of that is supposed to be insulated.  However, stuff happens, and by switching neutral instead of hot you have removed one layer of safety.  That is not a good idea.


Cold water intake corroded on hot water heater Our hot water heater is just over a year old. I am sure it is under warranty, but I'd like to get ideas why this happened. It is currently dry, but you tell water was leaking. We didn't notice this because the heater is behind a screwed in piece of drywall.

We are on a well.

That kind of corrosion on a one-year-old tank? WOW. Like Ed Beal noted, it looks like a leak at the connection. The installer likely did a poor job of taping the connection (with teflon tape) or failed to tighten it adequately.

However, the excessive rust is curious...I suspect that your well water is rather salty. When salty water evaporates from a surface, it leaves behind salts which contribute to rusting on metal surfaces by attracting moisture from humid air. It doesn't take a lot of salt to do this. Just the thinnest film is enough to constantly keep it somewhat wet enough such that underlying metal can be constantly corroded. I suggest tightening the union, scraping off the rust, and painting over with a water-based sealing compound. And take that sheetrock cover off!


What is this metal pipe between the motor and tank on my upright air compressor, and why is it HOT? So, I have an upright compressor (pictured below) that has a metal pipe leading from the motor to the tank. I had my compressor running and an air line was resting up against this tube and it has heated up the plastic enough to stink up my garage (It didn't melt it thankfully). I touched it and it burned my fingers like touching cookware. I assume it's normal operation, and I assume (But could be wrong) that that tube is how compressed air gets into the tank, but I don't understand why it's so hot. An explanation would be greatly appreciated.

  Unfortunately, I couldn't find a picture of the compressor from the
  backside showing the tube, but this is the compressor. The tube leads
  from the rear of the plastic housing to the top of the tank.

Compressing gas makes it hotter.  This is the principle exploited by fire pistons to set fire to things. It is also used in a Diesel engine to ignite the fuel.

CCASA 3.0 Chocolateoak

For an ideal gas P V ∝ T. As you increase pressure (P) the volume (V) reduces, however air is not perfectly compressible, so when you double the pressure, the volume is reduced by less than half, therefore temperature (T) must increase.

Another way to look at this is that your compressor is doing work on the air. Work is energy, some of that energy ends up in the form of heat.

Also, any kind of motor (electric or other) produces heat.

Pipes made of metal are good at conducting heat into adjacent hoses and fingers.

The opposite is also true, the reason that CO2 fire extinguishers have a plastic guard or handle on the nozzle is to prevent your hands freezing onto the outlet pipe as you discharge the gas - allowing it's pressure to decrease as it leaves the container.


Is it more important for your baseboards to have a consistent reveal (height) or for them to be level? This may seem like a no-brainer but I just wanted to confirm my thought process. I'm finishing our basement and reached the point where I need to install the baseboards. While the slab is relatively level (±3/8" across the whole foundation), I am curious if it is more important to have the baseboards level or to have them follow the variances in the slab (resulting in trim that is the same height overall)?
My assumption is to have them level at the top and cut any variance in the slope of the slab off the bottom to allow for my carpet to still be tucked underneath, but figure I would get the opinion of the masses.
Thanks in advance for any input you may have.

When putting a narrow item on a wall hang it level. When putting a wide/long item on the wall hang it parallel to the floor or ceiling, whichever is nearer. The eye can see a picture frame askew because it just doesn't "look right." But something long like a 10 foot long dry erase board, a wide painting.. or trim work like baseboard or crown molding.. will be judged by its parallelism with the adjacent floor or ceiling. Nobody can tell whether the floor or the ceiling is actually level; we all just assume that it is.
Likewise, don't adjust the width of a baseboard so that the lower edge can track the floor and the upper edge remains level. The resulting wedge-shape baseboard will stick out like a sore thumb. Choose some spacer stock (scraps of 1/2" drywall, scraps of the baseboard itself, etc), support the section of baseboard on several spacers to keep consistent distance off the floor, and nail it in place.


Hot water suddenly stopped working at kitchen faucet I was cleaning the dishes and suddenly the hot water abruptly stopped flowing and was left with only cold water flowing.  I checked the hot water supply line and it still worked.  I took apart the lever with the cartridge and hot water wasn't flowing up to that point either so I assume the issue is in the supply line for the faucet?  The brand is Grohe, model # 30213DCO.

This is a link to the manual:
https://cdn.cloud.grohe.com/tpi/1000/1900/1950/1956/1956824/original/1956824.pdf?_ga=2.225100888.378557502.1525614592-455172165.1525614592

Is there any way to fix this??

Turn off the hot water valve under the sink and remove the hot water hose to the faucet.  Put the end of the water hose into a pail and turn on the valve slowly.  If the water flows freely, then the problem is within the faucet.  If it doesn't then you have a blockage in the water hose.  Either try to clear it or purchase a new hose.  If it flows freely, then you should disassemble the faucet in accordance with the diagrams in the manual and look for some kind of blockage or a damaged part.


Finding circuits on breakers I have 5 circuits that I cannot identify on my breaker box. I have included every known end-point including furnaces, outdoor outlets, garage, etc. I was wondering if there was any way to disconnect the breaker in question and use a signal source at that end and some type of signal sensor to walk around the house looking for the signal. I do know in which direction the cables exit the breaker box; to the crawl space or up to the ceiling/second floor.

"Breaker Finder" (mentioned above) or "Circuit Breaker Detector" is a must-have tool as well as a label maker IMO. I bought an inexpensive detector from Harbor Freight for under $20 thinking that it was a one-time use. Two houses and countless labels later, it's still there when I need it. Also, you might want to grab a lightbulb socket to outlet adapter for ~$1.00 and use the detector's receiver in that.

Another suggestion is to see if there are multiple wires into the back of a breaker. It's an illegal practice and potential safety hazard (although some people may debate this.) It can screw up readings from breaker detectors as well as leave you confused why other areas of you home might are affected.

Also, panels are not allowed to have completely empty slots (holes.) instead of a metal slot cover, someone might've stuck an unused breaker in there to fill in a void.

Last but not least, someone might've left a breaker in but terminated/capped off the wiring. If so, hopefully it's at least in an accessible junction box.


Replacing thermostat on Sanyo mini split I have an old Sanyo KMH 0922 mini split.  The air conditioning seems to work OK.   Last winter on heat it  was either on or off the thermostat wouldn't control the temperature correctly.

This winter initially the thermostat seemed to work correctly for a few weeks. It would cycle the unit on and off at what seemed to be the correct temperature. Now the unit isn't coming on and the standby light on the thermostat is staying on.

I think that the thermostat is bad and I'm wondering if I could replace it with just a standard thermostat. Could I take the wires out of the old thermostat and plug them into a new normal thermostat? Are the wiring color codes the same?  I've replaced a few thermostats for furnaces and HVAC units.

I have a second mini split that shares the same outdoor unit.   It works fine.

This unit is quite old and Sanyo is gone from this market (bought by Panasonic) so new thermostats are no.longer available.

Mini-splits, sadly, do their own thing

Most mini-splits do not use a standard thermostat -- instead, they use a remote-control module that communicates with the processor on the control board.  This allows for advanced modulating control, but has the downside that once either the remote or the control board starts to fail, you're SOL if spare parts are no longer available for your model.


Can vent plumbing be behind a double wye? I am trying to figure out how to lay out my basement plumbing, and I wanted to use a double wye to connect my shower, toilet, and sink to the existing waste system in the house.

My question is, am I allowed to have the vent plumbing be behind a double wye since all 3 fixtures combine at this one point? Or am I required to have each fixture individually vented and then join the vents later into one common vent?

All of this work will be under the concrete slab. I am connecting to the existing waste system that runs under the concrete slab.

The existing waste system is connected to all the fixtures on the 1st floor (toilet, tub, sink, kitchen sink) of the house and then travels down into the basement, under the slab, and out to the road. This system is vented through the ceiling.

I should probably also ask if I even need to vent this new basement bathroom separately, or if the current venting system would be sufficient.

Around here the answer would be no. Our plumbing inspectors won't pass drain installations where a connection to a common drain line comes before the vent. The one exception would be the toilet, which can be wet vented to another fixture.  The problem is that the air admittance valve is too small to vent the toilet, and the height of the toilet trap is above the height of the shower drain.

Keep in mind that local mileage on this stuff varies wildly, so I'd run it by your local inspector. Also, don't know if this is just a mistake in the diagram, but the wye connection to the cast iron pipe is upside down.


Electrical Bonding of Service Panel After PEX Replacement of Galvanized Pipes My house was built in 1929 and has gone through many rounds of plumbing/electrical upgrades over the years. I am replacing the galvanized pipes with PEX and I'm confident that I have planned appropriately for the plumbing part but I'd appreciate help with the electrical part.

Existing situation: the galvanized is bonded to the stub of original water main into the house because the water main in was replaced with CPVC at some point. (I've marked connection between the galvanized and the stub in red in the photo). The 200amp service panel is also bonded to the galvanized pipe as well as a grounding electrode (see photos below). Both wires seem undersized for a 200 amp panel and based on the age of the wire to the galvanized pipes is probably a remnant of the old service panel.

My question: when I install the PEX do I need to run a new wire from the service panel to the old water main stub to create a secondary path to ground? Or was bonding the galvanized pipes to the service panel a secondary path to ground in case the pipes became energized? (I apologize if I am not using the right terminology, I'm trying my best)

Photos of bonding of pipes to old water main stub.

Photos of service panel bonding to pipes and service panel bonding to grounding conductor.

You will actually need a second driven rod to be safe with the metal pipe to the house being replaced. NEC 250.66(A) allows for #6 copper. Also, that rod is not fully driven.  My jurisdiction requires the rod to be driven the full 8’. If you leave the old galvanized in the ground and it is in contact with earth for 10’, then you would not need the second driven rod.


Pest proofing turbine vent I installed this turbine vent but noticed that small animals like rats, small birds or even small squirrels can get through the rotor gills when it is not spinning.
I was thinking of putting a metal screen (how about wire lathe or stucco netting?) from inside the attic so that, even if an animal does get in through the rotor gills, it can't get in the attic. The rotor can be easily taken off to remove animal carcasses if they don't find their way out of the enclosure and die trapped.
Is this a good approach to pest proofing?
I am also curious why the manufacturer didn't include it.

I would staple up some Wire soffit screen to the underside of the roof decking. No screwing thru the roof membrane required.
It unlikely the critter will die in there, if they can not pass thru then they will exit the same way the got in if they get hungry enough.


Fix wooden wall paint I had mould in a wooden wall, so I had to clean it with the special cleaning solution.

But after that I don't know what I should do to fix the wall painting.

It's like a plastic or some sort of paper, I tried a lot to search what is this, but I couldn't find, please if you can guide me how to fix it.

Hard to tell from the photo but it could be latex paint over wallpaper. The fix is easy.

Using 80 or 100 grit sandpaper, gently sand the edges of existing paint and exposed surface. Remove dust and debris with mild solution of trisodium phosphate dissolved in warm water. Let dry.

Apply thin skimcoat of joint compound or sparkle , feathering the edges to existing paint. After dry, lightly sand.

To match existing wall texture (which looks like medium orange peel), using a small, disposable paint roller and thinned joint compound, apply texture. Let dry, light sand. Remove sanding dust and paint.


Is this humidifier properly installed? Has anyone seen a humidifier installed this way: humidifier installed  to side of air handling unit (hole drilled into side of AHU and discharging humidified air directly into the AHU). Always thought humidifier was to be attached to either intake or output ducts?

A steam type humidifier is installed is this fashion.  The steam does not need the extra air flow.  The water type will only work marginally without the duct work.


Nail gun leaking air What can I do if my nail gun leaks air through the chamber directly opposite from where it shoots nails? The gray part in the picture. Can it be dangerous?

Not dangerous, but you'll eventually stop shooting nails. Chances are it's just a couple of o-rings that need replacing. Look for something like a 'cylinder rebuild kit'... should be well under 20 bucks.


Goodman furnace not lighting After a few power outages and some very cold weather, the Goodman (GMSS960803BNAA) propane furnace at our cabin is not heating.

The thermostat is new/replaced (Nest) and I've checked voltages for the thermostat wires.

When turned on, the furnace attempts to light (see video) but for whatever reason does not end up lighting.

After three attempts, the solid red status light turns to a single blink (system lockout).  No other blink statuses during ignition.

Other propane appliances in the house (stove, water heater) seem to be working fine.

I am not familiar with furnaces so any specific suggestions appreciated.  I'd call an expert in to help but the cabin is not easily accessible in the winter.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/WZ8Qan3Hhertzj3X7

The two leads going into the gas valve should read 24 volts for about half a second just before it shuts off again if that's the case then your gas valve is no good. If you don't get 24 volts for half a second or so just before the igniter shuts off then the problem is Upstream. Possibly a pressure sensing device attached to the gas pipe doesn't allow the gas valve to open if the propane pressure is too low I don't think Goodman and uses that set up for propane conversions) you may have an issue with your circuit board. Often grounding will be the first thing people jump to, but in most cases a grounding issue causes trouble with sensing the flame. What would happen is the flame would light and then go out that's not the case here.


Transition between uneven floor; reducer is wobbly sorry if it's a stupid question. I self-installed some laminate and the flooring manufacturer provided some reducer transitions. I have two doorways where the new floor meets vinyl plank tile I am installing. There is about a 3 mm height difference, but the reducer is meant for a greater difference, and the height difference is also too great for a T transition. Any suggestions of what to do here?

TL;DR, floors are too uneven for T transition, not uneven enough for reducer.

Additional info: I am not equipped with the tools to manufacture my own custom transition, so if that's your solution please advise where I can get someone to do this for me! Thanks!

It just doesn't fit! I would suggest you measure every dimension of that transition very carefully, and make a rough profile drawing (pretty much exactly like your picture) to record what you measure. Take your drawing to some of the big box stores and possibly some specialty flooring places too, and see if you can match anything up (a caliper might be helpful). Those transitions are really tricky to deal with, so you might need to get creative.

You could try something like this:

this will span the gap and handle the reduction, but you'll need some sort of shim to support it. For that, it might be possible to get a wood strip that fits in the gap area, or you could look for some sort of rigid, dense foam that you can cut with a knife.

The best solution is to find something that you like and that is close to fitting (what you have pictured would work perfectly) and cut it to size using either a table saw or a routing table. Of course, you'll either need to own the tool or have access to one somewhere. Both will require some feather boards and guides to get a clean and safe cut, but this way you are guaranteed a good fit.


How to choose between chrome-coated and oxidation-treated tools? How do I choose between a chrome-coated (nice and shiny) and an oxidation-treated (dark oxidized surface) tool, all else being equal - same steel, same design, same handles, just one has its metal parts chrome-coated and the other has its metal parts oxidized.

How do I make a choice?

IN MY EXPERIENCE:
Chrome resists rust better.  But does sometimes chip, and is vulnerable to rust at those points.  Chrome is generally easier to read the markings.  Polished chrome can be slipperier when greasy. (Not matte chrome)

Black oxide resists rust generally fine for my purposes.  It looks better when it's greasy, (It doesn't show the grease as bad, since grease is almost black).  It can occasionally be a challenge to read the markings, depending on the circumstances.  It's not as slippery as polished chrome.

As the user, you pick which benefits/problems you'd rather have.

I personally don't really care that much.  I have some of each.  All things being equal, I'd choose matte chrome, then black oxide. Polished chrome last.


Can I hang shelves on painted walls without using penetrating fasteners? I live in a 40 m2 apartment with 2 cats.

I was thinking maybe I can add shelves to the walls without drilling anything. Do you think that sticking shelves can whitsand the weight of a 6kg and 4 kg cats? Have you done that before? I want to go as high as 2 meters.

The bond will fail at the weakest point in the layers between your shelf and the actual structure of the wall.
Many people fail to account for the fact that paint really isn't intended to be subject to those kinds of forces and are surprised when it all peels off.

I predict that you'll end up with shelves fallen to the floor with the paint peeled off the wall and still stuck to the back of the shelves.

It's far easier to repair the holes from a few neat screws than it would be to repair the unknown level of damage which may occur when your shelves start pulling layers off the wall in unexpected ways.

Having more than a handful of cats myself, I know how active the little fur-balls can be - and those shelves will end up seeing dynamic loads far in excess of the 4-6kg the beasties actually weigh.


Powerline adapter to connect 2 apartments in one building? Let’s say a have a friend of mine living in the same building just say 20 meters away from me. And he has home internet but wlan is to week to reach my apartment is there a easy way to connect to his internet? Using powerrline adapter I heard it has to be on the same circuit but I don’t think the 2 apartment have same circuit ? So what is a good way to connect to his internet? Thanks

All legal arguments against doing this aside, I doubt that a powerline adapter is what you want here.

You will probably have better results with a "Wifi Range Extender" or a Wifi Repeater.  There are many suitable products on the market and some simple searching or a trip to a local electronics/computer products store should net you one.

In extreme cases, you might consider a directional-gain antenna that, in some cases, can extend the range from a few dozen meters to a km or more depending on terrain and conditions.


How to properly insulate a bathroom with 2 walls been concrete blocks? We are remodeling our bathroom and are in the process of framing/insulating.

We need to insulate 2 concrete block walls but don't want to eat the already small space we have. Which solution could work?

Currently, the wall has 1x3 furring strips and we were thinking about using them to hold 2 inches insulation board—leaving some air pockets—then installing the thinner 1/4 inch Hardiebacker board and then Redgard the hell out of it for waterproofing.

My concern is the furring strips won't hold the backer board and the ceramic. Other option we thought of was using the Schluter Kerdi board and forget about insulation altogether, so Kerdi board attached to 1x3 furring and then titling.

Is there any other option that you can think of? Will any of the above ideas make sense? Thanks for asking. We are in DC (U.S.) area so summers are really hot but winters are mild.

I'm about 2 hours south of you. Cut 1/2" styrofoam between those strips, use a wide flashing tape to cover the furring strips and lap over onto each piece of stryofoam to the left & right of the furring strip.

Then, Keep gettin up. Put you some good 1/2" material on the wall, for the sake of your tile. I suggest cement board, but you'll do what you prefer.

The difference between what I just suggested, and 2" of foam, will make no difference in perceived heat loss, or electric bill increase.