Help changing direct hard-wire to outlet for new dishwasher I am swapping out an old dishwasher that was hard-wired to a new dishwasher that requires an outlet. As you can see in the picture, the original unit was connected to a cable that goes into the wall.

I was thinking of converting the cable to an outlet by...

Strapping the cable to the wall (using a hole strap) and feeding it behind the cabinet to underneath the sink.
Connect the cable to a 20 amp outlet (do I need a GFCI?).
Housing the outlet in a raised ground electrical box and mount it to the wall underneath the sink.

I would love to get your feedback if this is the proper way to do it and if you may have other suggestions. Thank you!

Edit: The new dishwasher make and model is Beko DDS25842X. I am wondering if it just easier to hard-wire this? I couldn't find any information online if this is possible for this model.

I think your methodology is sound. You want to make sure the plug and outlet is accessible so putting it under the sink is the way to go. When you mount it be sure to secure it to a stud and away from anywhere that could be exposed to water. This means away from the shutoff valves and not directly under the sink supply connections. Cable straps will hold the metallic cable in place. Make sure that you use enough straps that the cable is secure to the wall studs under the sink and not loose or attached to the flooring. Based on your picture you can probably do this without trimming the cable.
Take out the appropriate knockout and using the connector to secure the cable run the cable and wires into the box. Secure the connector with the locknut. Connect the hot (black) wire to the brass screw and the white to the silver. Green goes to the ground.
You shouldn't need a GFCI on this but check codes.

Edit
Many dishwashers that come with a wall plug also have alternate instructions for hardwiring. The Beko installation manual doesn't offer that as an option but you might want to contact the manufacturer to see if it is recommended.


How to fix drill hole in metal desk I ordered this desk here but one of the sides' holes in one of the legs won't allow any of the screws to screw in.
What are my options? It's definitely the screw the directions are saying to use but I guess the hole itself isn't threaded or something?
Or could these holes be a different size? And I just need to go to Lowe's to look for smaller screws? I'm really lost here and returning the desk isn't an option sadly.

Just bring that original screw to a hardware store (I would say for you NOT to go to a "big-box" store because it might be helpful for you to speak to a human for assistance) and ask for a *sheet metal screw" that is approximately the same diameter. A sheet metal screw will be a threaded screw not unlike your original, but will be pointed and is designed to carve its own thread into the metal as you drive it in. Sheet metal screws will not "tap" new threads which would allow you to use a machine screw like your original, but it should drive in and hold just fine.


What problems might a single ground rod above 25 ohms resistance cause? The Electrical Code (USA) requires that a single ground rod have a maximum resistance to ground of 25 ohms (NEC 250.53(A.2)). If this isn't met, an additional ground rod is required, but no resistance test is required. Where does the value of 25 ohms come from?

From my reading of various sources on the internet, the test for ground resistance is infrequently done for residential installs. What kind of issues might I experience if my resistance to ground is above this value with a single ground rod?

This article has a seemingly informative title, but lacks actual details: Who Cares About 25 Ohms or less?

The basis for this question is that my ~30 year old house only has a single ground rod. I am willing to install a second one in lieu of an official test if there is a reasonable possibility that it will help in any way. At this point, I can't find any information that would point me to specific issues that might be solved.

Well it is the National Electrical Code that requires 25 Ohms or less. Notice the exception after #5.
Here:

250.53(A)(2) Supplemental Electrode Required. A single rod, pipe, or plate electrode shall be supplemented by an additional electrode of a type specified in 250.52(A)(2) through (A)(8). The supplemental electrode shall be permitted to be bonded to one of the following:
(1) Rod, pipe, or plate electrode
(2) Grounding electrode conductor
(3) Grounded service-entrance conductor
(4) Nonflexible grounded service raceway
(5) Any grounded service enclosure
Exception: If a single rod, pipe, or plate grounding electrode has a resistance to earth of 25 ohms or less, the supplemental electrode shall not be required.
(3) Supplemental Electrode. If multiple rod, pipe, or plate electrodes are installed to meet the requirements of this section, they shall not be less than 1.8 m (6 ft) apart.
Informational Note: The paralleling efficiency of rods is increased by spacing them twice the length of the longest rod.
(B) Electrode Spacing. Where more than one of the elec-trodes of the type specified in 250.52(A)(5) or (A)(7) are used, each electrode of one grounding system (including that used for strike termination devices) shall not be less than 1.83 m (6 ft) from any other electrode of another grounding system. Two or more grounding electrodes that are bonded together shall be considered a single grounding electrode system.

The reason contractors elect to install a second ground rod is that it is cheaper than paying for the ground resistance testing.
The advantage to a low resistance is during a lightning strike or large ground fault even a small resistance creates a large voltage differential. This could be dangerous for persons in contact with grounded parts of the system at that moment. Hence the reason for the requirement.
Otherwise, during normal operation there isn't a noticeable advantage to consumers.
For an older home you may already have a grounded metal water pipe exiting the building so you already have a supplemental electrode. If not adding an extra rod may help protect you and your valuable electronic equipment during a lightning strike or large voltage transient on the line.
Good luck!


Running electrical for bookcase LED lighting (choose a scenario) I will be installing built-in bookcases to the right and left of the fireplace pictured below.

LED strip lighting will be installed in the bookcase.

I'm having trouble deciding the best/easiest way to run electrical to both sides of the bookcase.

Option 1) The blue lines in the photo. I could try to pull power from the can lights near the fireplace and feed wire to make a receptacle on both sides of the bookcase. This option would require cutting holes through several ceiling joists ... yuck.

Option 2) I could pull power from the outlet that is currently near the fireplace. The orange lines in the photo show this option. I would have to cut holes through 2x4's and a corner. Then I would have to figure out how to get it to the other side of the fireplace.

Any suggestions? I could use it.

Use low voltage as your secret weapon

LED strip lights are more readily available in low voltage anyway, and low voltage not only makes it a lot safer, but sidesteps most of the Electrical Code.  Now you don't need to think so hard about how to get power from A to B using Class 1 wiring methods!

At that point I would probably have a DC power supply plugged into the "orange" receptacle, then come straight over laterally to the bookcase, then conceal the remaining wiring in the bookcase.  As far as getting across to the other bookcase, you could tuck a small cable in the lip above the brick.   You have a lot of freedom in low voltage.


No power at outlets but breaker isn't tripped. What do I troubleshoot next? My "Family Room Receptacles" have lost power.  6 total that I believe are all on the same breaker.  I can not locate a GFCI anywhere.  I have reset the breaker which also did not restore power.  What should my next steps be in troubleshooting?  Is it possible the breaker has gone bad? The house was built in 2001.

1/9/17 - Update: I've found two more receptacles on the exterior of my house that have also lost power.  One of them is a GFCI and I am not able to reset it.  Given the location of this socket, it appears that it may be the 1st in the chain of receptacles going through my living room that have lost power.  What are the chances that 2 exterior outlets are wired in with 6 interior outlets?  I can not locate a breaker in the box for the exterior outlets so I can only assume they are wired in with one of the interior lines.  I only have a glow stick but can get the one suggested and begin checking for power from there.

Outside gfci's do go bad replace the one that won't reset with a weather resistant model it should have WR stamped on the face the electronics are coated so they last longer. While you are getting the new WR GFCI outlet pick up a extra heavy duty cover (sometimes called an in use cover) this will protect the outlet from the elements and the WR rating protects from fog and dew that wipes out the non rated gfci's over time.


Is the ground wire connection grounding all switches in this box? I am installing a Z-wave switch (I have done others), but this one is different.  There are three switches in this junction box.  However, only one switch is grounded (not one I am installing), and the switch I am adding needs to be grounded.

The switch that is grounded appears to go into a 6 slot wire port with other copper wires.  Does anyone know if this is grounding the entire box?  The other wires are painted, but if scratched they are copper.

Worst case scenario I can jump the ground over to make switch work, but was hoping to understand the wiring a bit more if possible.  Here is picture (top left is the ground coming from switch.

Hopefully this is enough info, but if not please let me know.

Thank You

Looks like the left switch is grounded, the middle switch is not grounded but should be and the right switch may be grounded (can't tell from the pictures). Since the box is plastic, there is no way that they are all grounded. Run a wire to pigtail the middle switch (and possibly right switch) to the ground wire.


How to wire a light with two sets of wires How do I wire a light fixture here? There is a junction box above the bathroom vanity. I want to add a vanity light here. There are two sets of wires in the j-box: One which has black and white, and the other has black, white, and red.

The bathroom has 3 switches: One controls the overhead light above the vanity (which I would like to tie this new fixture into), one controls the light above the shower, and one for the fan. When the switch (for the overhead light) is off, I get 0 V between red and white, 125 V between red and black, and 125 V between black and white. When the switch is on, I get 125 V between red and white, 0 V between red and black, and 125 V between black and white.

I believe I would wire the two wires from the fixture into the red and white, but just want to get some confirmation. Thanks!

Based on your description and the picture (thank you) the red wire is the hot switched loop to control your light. Connect your black wire from the light to the red wire in the box, the white to the white and the green from the light to the bare ground I see lurking in the back of the box.
You should be good to go.


Checking light switch for grounding problems I have a light switch in my building that frequently gives me a "shock" when I push it.  The shock seems to come from the two mounting screws.  It has a photoelectric sensor that turns the light off when I'm not in the room - I don't know if that's important.

Using home inspection tools readily available, is there a way to determine if this is a grounding problem?
If it is a real problem, what resource should I consult to figure out a way of repairing the problem?
If I can not find a grounding problem, are there other reasons besides grounding that might cause this phenomenon? What professional resource should I utilize for a diagnosis if the problem does not appear to be grounding related?

Typically the metal screws in the face plate/trim of a home electrical device (outlet, light switch, etc.) attach to the electrical device itself. This, in turn, should be grounded.

To address your question in general (the spirit of what you're after):

If it only shocks you one time, which is to say if you touch it and it shocks you, but subsequent touches without moving don't continue to shock you, then I would say that you are getting a static electricity shock because the screws in the trim plate are grounded and you are not. This would be more likely if you have carpet, the air is dry, and/or you are wearing clothes that are wooly and/or you don't use dryer sheets.

If you get shocked (badly - shocks from 110 HURT!), and every time you touch the screw you get shocked (badly!), then you have a serious problem and should contact an electrician.

Most likely, though, you're just experiencing drier air because Winter's coming and the dew point is dropping while your interior temperatures are staying relatively constant. Every winter every outlet in my house shocks the **** out of me. But only the first touch. Subsequent touches don't do anything because I discharged my static buildup.

To answer your numbered questions:

Turn off the breaker to the offending outlet, remove the trim screw, remove the retaining screws that hold the device into the wall box, then pull the device out. Check for problems with the insulation - you may find these where the cable enters the junction box - and for bare wire ends touching the junction box. If you have a multimeter (not sure if most people would consider this a common household tool, though it should be!), then you can try turning the breaker on and measuring voltage between the ground wire in that device to ground in another outlet.
If there is a real problem, contact a licensed, bonded electrician. You may need new wiring pulled to the offending device if the insulation is frayed/nicked where it enters the wall box.
Yes, other things can cause you getting shocked - primarily the fact that the outlet is grounded correctly. Though I suppose maybe if your building has a ground wire that isn't grounded, and the thing that's shocking you is a doorbell or something else outside, and you're standing in a puddle, and that is when you get shocked, that maybe you're getting shocked by some piece of deranged (damaged and/or improperly grounded) piece of equipment somewhere else in your building that is powering the ground wire. But, in this case, the ground wire would have to go nowhere, else the deranged equipment would be safely handled, which is the point of the ground wire.

Anyways, like I said, ultimately the shocks are (annoying but) one-time events that don't hurt that bad and are nothing to worry about, or they happen repeatedly and hurt very bad and you should contact an electrician.


Installing pull chain ceiling fan w/ light fixture. Two brown wires, two black wires, one red at the ceiling junction Any ideas how to install?
Just moved into an older home (built 1950s). Owner planned to install a new ceiling fan, but didn't get to it. Wondering which wires should attach to which...and if any wires should be left out and just capped off. Thanks for the direction and guidance.

Truly,

I'm guessing you will want the fan to operate by the pull chain and the light to operate by the switch. For clarity, those are black wires and white wires out of the ceiling. The black wire from the fan will get wire nutted to the two black wires from the ceiling. The white wire from the fan will get wire nutted to the two white wires from the ceiling and the red wire from the ceiling gets wire nutted to the blue wire from the fan.

Now the bad news. The pancake box in the ceiling is not rated for a ceiling fan. You will have to replace it with a ceiling fan rated pancake box. you can get them at many home stores or electrical supply stores.


Two 3 way switches, only one works I have 3 way switches at the top and bottom of the stairs operating two cans in the ceiling.  For 20 years, they've never worked right.  Either switch would turn the lights on or off, like a single pole switch, but neither would turn the lights off if the other switch had turned them on. In other words, flipping either switch up would turn the lights on, but both had to be down to turn them off. That's the history.  Now I find the bottom switch does nothing at all, while the upper switch will turn the lights on and off. I disconnected both switches and tested the wires in each box for voltage.  Both switch boxes have one romex bundle going into the box, BWRGnd, and nothing else.  In both boxes I found 120 volts on the white wire when testing it to ground.  No voltage on the other colors.  I went ahead and replaced the lower switch, thinking it may have gone bad.  I wired the white to the common terminal in both boxes, and the black and red to the travelers.  Still, the upper switch works, the lower one does nothing.  I've spent many hours scouring the internet for this problem and found nothing quite like it.  Can someone advise me?


Why do some spaces in my electrical panel not provide any power? I am experiencing an electrical issue with my 200 amp 42 space Eaton panel. There seem to be 7 random "dead spaces" where no power is being supplied to the breaker resulting in dead circuits. I have eliminated bad breakers or faulty wiring. Replaced old breakers with known working breakers, still nothing. Swapped circuits (breakers stay in place, only swapping hot wire) and still no power from the dead space, but previously dead circuit now functional showing 124 volts connected to a different breaker in a different space.

These 7 "dead space" show between 6-7 volts when breaker is flipped on and nothing when breaker is off.

Did not detect any open grounds or neutrals.

I do not believe I have lost a leg as the "dead spaces" are random and not isolated to one side.

No physical damage observed to hot bus bar.

Anyone have any ideas? This ones got me stumped!

You should verify the voltage across the mains this sounds like a bad leg. every other breaker on each side is fed from 1 leg so it could look to be random. Example breaker 1, 5 & 9 all being fed from L1 then 2, 6 & 10 on the other side being fed from L1. It may look random at first but a bad leg is more probable than anything else based on your question.


Recommended floor protection when assembling Ikea furniture? I'm completely new to DIY home assembly, but I'm planning to buy some Ikea furniture to furnish an apartment I just rented.

I've read online that I should protect the floor (hardwood) when assembling the furniture, and although some recommend using the boxes it came with, I'd like to ensure I'm using proper protection.

I've searched around a bit and read What should I use to protect and cover my floors during construction?, and it looks like Ram Board is a pretty good option, but I'd like to hear about any other alternatives.

Since this is temporary and I'm just assembling a bed, table and drawers, I am looking for a cheaper option while still providing adequate protection.

Kudos for being such a diligent renter. The cardboard they come in is totally adequate. Depending on what you've got, you might even have a nice double layer workspace.


Retrofitting Rusted Deck Standoff I have a very rusted 4 x 4 deck standoff:
Is it possible to retrofit this post without having to move the entire post? I was hoping I could jack up the deck and cut the bolt off and then make new holes (securing the standoff to the concrete with 1/2" sleeve anchors) without having to move anything.
I found this
product, but it appears to be specifically for fences. Does something like this exist for decks? I want to make sure everything is up to code.
link to full size image

There are several versions of that type of bracket available.
It is called a post base bracket.
My local home improvement centers carry them.
Here is one
It is fastened to the concrete with nut and bolt.
You may have problem when you remove yours as the nut and bolt are probably rusted like the bracket.
I would spray them with PB Blaster several times over a couple of days, heat it with a torch and wack the top of it with a hammer before you try to remove the nut.
If you break the bolt off you have a problem dealing with a steel bolt in the exact spot you need to drill for installing a new bolt/anchor. It may be easier to relocate the post if that happens.
You will need a temporary post to support the structure while you remove the old post and replace the bracket.


Zero power after new Gfci installed While using hairdryer power went out. Nothing was tripped in the breaker panel. The gfci switch would not reset. Bought new gfci switch and replaced it for old one. Still no power in master bathroom, hall bath outlet does not work either as well as a few other outlets in different rooms. Is this possibly a burnt wire? Electrician came in and tested breaker box and all light switches and outlets in the home. All was fine except the original issue which still read at 0. He was unable to diagnose the problem. He suggest running new wire from gfci outlet to the panel..... is this safe if it is a faulty or burnt wire? Since the wire was not found.. just worried is all I don’t need a bigger problem on top of what I already have. Any advice???

I would expect this to be a wiring problem, but there is a 99% chance the problem is at one of the ends of wires, i.e. Where they connect to a device like an outlet, switch or splice.

Code requires that all junction points be accessible in junction boxes.  Almost all junction boxes are behind switches, outlets, lamps, or other points of use.

So I would shut off the breaker and note what things have lost power.  It is likely a wire connection problem at one of them.

It almost has to be at the last one which is working or the first one that failed, but that depends on the idea of them being in a "string" one to the next to the next, and it is often difficult to guess where those are.

The #1 type of wire connection problem is called a "backstab".  We have a lot of Q&A about those.


How can this pool heater gas line be disconnected? This is a picture of the natural gas connection going into a pool heater. The heater no longer works. I just want to remove the heater and cap the gas line.

Please see the picture. I'm not sure what the different parts are here. Can someone direct me where I should clamp my first wrench and which fitting to loosen based on the picture?

You are looking at a union, with an elbow to the left and a valve to the right.

Put one wrench on the biggest "nut". Put the other wrench on the smaller "nut" immediately to the right of it - you'll notice both of them are more worn than the other ones.

Hold the smaller one still while unscrewing the larger one.

Here's a cutaway view, if this image link works. From Grainger, no affiliation nor endorsement implied. Down on this image would be right on your image.


Damage to the sub floor while scraping tile I have a question about a hardi backer sub floor.  I installed tile 8 years ago and my wife decided she wanted a diferent tile. The sub floor was laid over linoleum with a 1/4 in backer board that was installed with the house build.  So feasibly I have 1/2 inch down to the original floor.  I tore up the existing tile and it pulled a top layer of the hardi backer off in abouyt 40 % of the area in a small bathroom.  It's kind of knarled and pieces of the top layer are loose but not severely damaged to cause the backer to come from the floor.  I have screws every 8 inches so it is secured pretty well.  I have gotten advice to skim it with mortar and level it all out and then lay the tile.  I'm a little nervous about this, I don't want to do it twice.  Also, I saw Schuleter ditra product, can I just lay that down and then commence with tiling.  I think I can remove the screws and pull the whole thing with a little work but don't want to, Ha.  Any advice ?

If the damage is not significant (you mention the approximate area affected but not how deep the damage is) you could just tile right over it.

If the missing layer(s) of backer-board are significant enough so as to cause the tile to not lay level and flat, you will need to do something:

best option would be to remove and replace the damaged backer-board
the Ditra product works well but also requires a flat level surface below, so again it would depend on the nature and extent of the damage.
I have had decent luck troweling a smooth skim coat over rough surfaces and letting it cure prior to tile application, and would probably choose this method because it is the simplest/easiest, but this is a skill. Well mixed mortar with the right consistency along with careful trowel work are needed.


How to diagnose and fix apartment AC that makes intermittent whooshing noise My AC recently (I think, it's pretty new, possible I just didn't notice before) started making a whooshing noise. It sounds kind of like a sudden gust of wind, but it repeats every few seconds. Another way I can think of to describe it: imagine a PC cooler running relatively silent, but still being able to hear it. Now imagine it increasing its RPM noticeably for just around a second. Now imagine it doing this continuously.

It's a Whirlpool split type 12k BTU.

It also doesn't result in air being blown faster but, when you can hear it, if you stand in front of the indoor unit, air stops coming out for like half a second on just one side of the unit. Like the unit "chokes".

Things I've noticed and done:

efficiency doesn't seem to be affected, it still cools very well, but the sound is annoying.
it only seems to happen on higher temperatures. For example at 24 and 25 C. Any lower and my unit will start blowing out more air as well, which seems to result in a steady stream of air uninterrupted by whooshings.
if I lift the front panel, revealing the filters, the phenomenon stops! I thought something might be pushing on the filters, or that it's not closing properly, but I can't see any issues...
also, if I remove remove the filter on the offending side, it doesn't happen even with the front panel closed.
it doesn't always happen. Sometimes I run it for hours with no annoying sound, other times it starts a few minutes after turning on the AC. Sometimes it stops for a while.

Any ideas? I tried recording the sound but my phone doesn't really allow you to notice it when it occurs. I can try again if you think a recording would help.

"If I remove remove the filter on the offending side, it doesn't
  happen."

This tells us that it is an Airflow Issue and the culprit is in the filter mechanics.

I am guessing you recently changed filters - perhaps to a new brand or type. Is the filter installed in the correct direction of Airflow - an Arrow on the side should point the way..

I am thinking your filters are the wrong type. The filter is not allowing enough flow (apparently a tight fit) and as the suction (vacuum) builds up the filter moves and eventually it is in a position to allow more air flow and you get the whooshing sound of air passing either around the filter or surprisingly through it.

You can verify the filter brand and type recommendations of your unit - or compare to non offending side - perhaps non-offending side fits loosely and offending side fits more tightly in the filter slots..??


Interior LED stops working Built a new house a year ago and installed all LED lights. Everything working as it should. Had a power outage and one LED fixture wouldn’t come on. I replaced it with a new fixture that takes bulbs, works fine. Had another power outage today and the wife calls and says 2 LED fixtures won’t work.

Why is this happening? Can I fix a LED fixture?

If your LED is an integrated package, rather than a series of sockets into which you insert bulbs, it would indicate that the electronics of the device has failed due to the surge-like return of the power. LED illuminator devices at the board level are quite reliable and resistant, but the power circuits, especially on the lower cost devices are not quite so reliable.

I have a number of bulb-type lamps, all with LED units. A storm in the not-too-distant past caused quite a few power flickers and I had to replace too many of the bulbs. I disassembled a few and found that the LED portion worked fine when fed with an external DC power supply, which left the un-repairable power circuitry as the culprit.


two circuits on a single pole GFCI breaker? I think I may have found an instance of "hill-billy" wiring in my circuit box.

I have a 15A GFCI breaker.  Strangely, it is hooked up to the up stairs bathroom AND the outdoor outlets.  Recently it has started to perform poorly.  It either trips easily or doesn't work after reseting the breaker.

I opened up the panel and was surprised to see what looks like two circuits wired into the breaker.  That is, you have a two pairs of black/white (hot & neutral I presume).  The hot lines are going into the breaker together (on the top) and the same with the neutrals (on the bottom).

Is there any valid reason for this? It seems like the installer was lazy and because there isn't much room left on the panel they wired these two circuits into one breaker.

UPDATE:
This is a Bryant circuit breaker box from the late 80's.  The GFCI breaker was a 15 amp Sylvania which raised a bunch of eye brows when I brought it into the electrical supply place. Now it sounds like everyone makes "BR" compatible breakers including Eaton.

I ended up getting an Eaton breaker from Home Depot and only wiring in one pair of wires (the wiring to the outside sockets).  Seems to work fine.  I am going to buy another breaker and put it in one of the open spots in the box.

My guess is that whomever was last in this box didn't want to spring $40 for a second GFCI breaker.

UPDATE 2:

Thanks for the comments!  Giving that the house was built in 1986 it seems like it was standard to use one GFCI for multiple outlets.  In my case - this certainly caused problems over time and I am replacing with multiple GFCI breakers.

If it's on one breaker, it's one circuit.

It's true that you often see circuits wired as daisy chains, one linear thing, like a vine. Actually, we wire in "tree" topology, a vine is just one kind of tree.  You are welcome to have as many branches as you please.  What's more, there's nothing wrong with those branches splitting right at the service panel.

Can you land two wires on one breaker? Maybe. It all depends on whether the breaker is listed (UL tested) for two wires, and this must be in the instructions or labeling.  For instance, Pushmatic breakers are indeed listed for 2 wires, it's one of their charms I will miss.  If the breaker is not listed for two wires, then you have a 6" pigtail to a wire-nut.

Yes, you are allowed to wire-nut inside a service panel.


How do you paint touch-up spots on drywall? I have a few spots that need to be touched-up (after having a drywall anchor removed, being gouged while moving furniture, etc).

I filled them with putty, sanded smooth, then painted a single coat with a small foam brush, but:

The texture looks different from the rest of the wall
The color looks a bit off, though maybe this is just because of the texture.

Any tips on how to handle these spots so they don't stick out?

A couple of things could cause this:

the original surface was primed, and you didn't use any primer on the patches.  Primer seals the surface, so changes how the surface absorbs paint.
the original surface was rolled, and you used a paintbrush.  Rollers leave a slight orange-peel texture, whereas a paintbrush -- even the brush you used -- will leave a flat to slightly rippled texture.

More coats of paint will help too, but prime it first.


1 circuit 2 switches? I am currently finishing my basement and my wife asked me to wire a reading light over an area we will have a recliner.  He's my question - I have three way switches at the top of the stairs and the bottom that controls the entire bank of can lights.  Is there a way I could "4 way" only that single can light by adding a switch right next to the recliner?  I want the switch right next to the recliner to only switch that one light on and off but also have the three way switches at the top and bottom of the stairs control it's on and off.  Hopefully this makes sense thank you!!

You can branch off the 3-way switched circuit of the can lights to the a new single pole switch that then in turn switches the reading light can. However in this scenario the reading light can light will always be OFF when the rest of the can lights are OFF.

There will not be a straightforward way to mix the two 3-ways with a 1-way to control the added can light so that the the added one can be ON when all the other can lights are OFF. The simplest is probably going to be to tap into a live circuit power source and then just independently control the reading light with that one way switch.

There are some types of smart switch setups that can be configured to get the can lights to work somewhat together and still allow independent control of the reading light but you would have to carefully research the various technologies and find the one suitable for your application. Be prepared to spend a fair amount of cash as the typical smart switches cost upwards from 8 to 10 times what a common manual switch would cost.


Water heater noises when my neighbor's sprinklers are active Hello I recently (few months ago) installed a tankless water heater following a failure of the old 55gal gas heater.

Performance has been fantastic, it actually resolved a number of problems, but I also noticed an increase in water hammer, most likely due to the fact that there is no tank to damped the water movement. I installed a couple of anti-hammer devices in strategic points and now that problem has been resolved too.

However, sometimes I still had noises coming out of the water heater itself, especially late at night. With the recent warm weather, I started leaving the windows open at night, and the other day I realized that those noises coincided exactly with my neighbor's sprinkler system becoming active. The noise repeated again 9 minutes later when the sprinkler changed zone.

The water meter of our houses shares the same location near the road, about 100ft from my house. I measured water pressure in my house while my neighbor's sprinklers are active and when they are not and it's similar at about 75PSI.

Two questions: should I suspect maybe his sprinklers, for some odd reasons, are connected to my own water lines? Pretty unlikely also given his house is much closer to the road than mine.
Also, how do I fix the noise in the water heater? Note the noise comes from within the heater, not from the pipes.

As far as I know, my house does NOT have a pressure regulator, nor an expansion tank.

Also, I have never heard any noise from the heater during the day, and as I worked from home pretty often recently, I had plenty of times to stay in a very quiet house during the day.

Oops tried to edit and deleted.
To me it sounds like you are hearing the pressure changes when his system kicks on your main pressure may drop, as you said no tank you hear more and it could even be the controls in the tankless that tanked water heaters do not have. You might want to add a regulator or pressure reducing valve on your main incoming line and reduce your pressure 5-10 psi this should be enough to prevent noise caused from main pressure fluctuations, if you think he has tapped your line when his sprinklers start go out and shut off your main to the house at the meter. If his sprinklers keep going it is just the pressure change. I doubt you need an expansion tank with a tankless as all the ones I have installed require a flow to heat, a regulator set at 70psi should eliminate the noise caused by pressure shift since the pressure is 75 when he is running the sprinklers.

Added because comment was two long , have you ever had the water temp in the shower change when someone flushed or turned on the water? A regulator on the supply lines to the shower valve(s) can eliminate this it’s the same principal the regulator set below the minimum pressure eliminates the change. I think a flow in your main supply is causing a pressure fluctuation that you can hear because of the type of water heater you now have has controls that are pressure sensitive flow or static. Eliminate the changing pressure and no more noise.


Why does this junction box cover have an "under side"? This junction box cover is labeled "under side" on the side that is supposed to go inside the box.  Why?  What is different about this side?

Here, for comparison, is the other side.

EDIT: In light of the accepted answer, here are close ups of the respective edges.  It's really very subtle, but perhaps there are random instances where there is more to it.

You will notice the cover is stamped and this keeps the rough. Sharper edge on the correct side.  This is what I was told by a factory rep even though the rough/sharp side is down (he said it actually helps hold the cover in place)


How should I tidy up loose speaker wires? I have surround sound speakers with the speaker wires going up through the wall. The wire is fixed and doesn't slide in and out the wall.

Now it's time to tidy it up!

How much loose wire should I leave?
How can I tidy up the loose wire?

Click for larger view

My first concern here is safety and code compliance.  Ordinary speaker wire is not in-wall-rated.

You need to use CL2 or better, CMR rated cable for in wall use..

CL2R is short for Class 2 Riser  Site detailing low voltage cable options

  Link to speaker wire

As far as neatness goes, installing a termination panel or a "brush" wall plate would help

Decora style insert which would mount to a low voltage old work ring


Connect a lamp wire to one wire or three A lamp fell off the ceiling and is hanging from one wire. Which wire connector to reconnect it to? There are four wires coming from the ceiling, three of which go into one wire connector and one to the other (see picture). The wire connector with three wires has one wire going out to the lamp. The wire connector with one wire from the ceiling is disconnected from anything. Should I take the wire connector off the three wires and reconnect the one loose wire from the lamp to one of these, or connect the loose wire from the lamp to the single loose wire from the ceiling?

The connector with 3 white wires, one of which goes to your lamp, is neutral. That is fine as is. The black wire from your lamp is the hot wire for the lamp and goes to a switched hot, which logically should be the The wire connector with one wire from the ceiling is disconnected from anything. So connect the black wire from the lamp to that one lonely wire from the ceiling.

In case you didn't do so already, the safe way to do this is to turn off the breaker for the circuit before reconnecting the wires. Then turn on the breaker and turn on the switch. If anything goes wrong, the worst that will happen is you will trip the breaker. If you do this while the breaker is on - i.e., circuit possibly live (switches can fail) - then you might be just fine, might get a little spark, but might - if all goes wrong - have quite a shocking experience before the breaker trips.


why does the hot water boiler used for heat, open up and release water then close back up? hot water boiler, occasionally opens and closes releasing water to floor. just started doing this (cold weather) does the relief valve need replaced? or is this a common action?

The relief valve is working as it should,likely the expansion tank has gone bad. The expansion tank has a air filled ballon inside that expands and contracts with the different temperatures of the water. Without it the boiler will fill up to the proper pressure then when the water gets hot the water pressure increases and then makes the relief valve go off and then the hole cycle starts again.


What can I do about a jammed tub drain plug? We have an older home with a parallel bar tub drain plug that is internal to the P trap. Similar to that of a Bathroom sink. Lift the lever up, to bring the plug inside the p-trap to position to plug the tub.

Works fine one day, now it wont budge, stuck open.

I have removed the t screws on the lever plate and the linkage in sight appears fine. Inside the P trap not much to see, but there is no blockage.

We only have one tub in the house and this makes kid baths go fast. Plugging the drain with a washcloth to slow it down. Still drains in about 10 minutes.

What now? Am i stuck?

There may just be a bit of gravel or something wedged in the mechanism. Water will drain, but the mechanism doesn't work. Ensure the area is fully clear. If the linkage has failed outside of the drain, it may require removal of finish material either below or behind the tub drain to access and repair/replace the mechanism. If you're lucky, there's a removable panel somewhere.

It may be easier remove the current stopper and use an old fashioned rubber plug. If the current stopper isn't easily removed, and it's of a low enough profile, a 'universal' stopper may work. It's just a flat piece of rubber that seals against the tub floor. This will also work if there's some sort of fixed strainer preventing the use a conventional plug.


how to protect first stair riser from water? The stair in my garage is very ugly and it's off-gassing bad particle board smell. Especially the first riser is rotted.

So I am going to make a new stair by replacing current treads and risers with plywood or oak hardwood. But I have no idea how to protect the first riser. When it's raining or snowing, there will be quite a bit of water from the car.

Untreated plywood and oak will rot if heavily exposed to water. You need to switch your thinking to how an outdoor staircase is built. They use rot resistant wood, treated wood, or composite materials.

Marine plywood is a popular idea for water resistance but, due to its chemical composition, it isn't a healthy wood to use in a house. If children spend a lot of time playing on marine wood, they are risking actual poisoning. The symptoms start with mild chemical rashes and get worse from there.

Of your choices composite deck material will last the longest. And there is actual composite stair treads. But I've also built stairs using normal composite deck boards. As long as the under support isn't too far apart two 5ish inch composite boards work very well. See what you have locally. Treated and cedar lumber also works quite well, it just doesn't last as long. Purposed lumber like external stair treads are usually textured for traction.

Also check your local codes, some do not want any treated wood indoors. You may be limited to composite and natural rot resistant wood.

The riser covering the entire opening isn't strictly necessary. Check your local codes, but openings to the rise is often limited to a max opening of less than 4 inches. The purpose of that is to prevent a child from sticking their head in the opening. http://www.co.stevens.wa.us/landservices/documents/STAIRWAYSECTION.pdf

While riser boards provide extra strength to the tread, a 2x12 stair tread doesn't usually need the support. That does depend on the stair design. The riser board is there more for looks, and safety, than strength. If you wish to leave small gaps for drainage, it won't harm the structure of the stairs.


How to avoid wires when drilling into the wall? I have to anchor a bookcase to a wall to prevent it from tipping over.

When drilling into the wall, how do I make sure I can avoid drilling into the wires behind the wall?

I have bought a Stud finder which says it can detect wires, but I am not sure if it's that's the only thing I should rely on.

One of the Anchors will be on a stud, and the other will be on just dry wall.

Thanks.

This is something that you have minimal control over.  Most electrical runs going horizontally are about 2 feet off the floor or very close to the ceiling.  There are lots of reasons for this but one of the obvious ones is it limits the areas of concerns when drilling.

Also for horizontal runs there should be a little slack where an anchor would just push the wire out of the way.  For vertical runs these are stapled to studs on one side or the other.  So just hit the middle of the stud.

Really two things that help me investigate walls if I am worried are monkey hooks and my magnetic stud finder.  With the monkey hooks you can prick a wall for a good two inches plus while causing almost no damage.  You can easily "feel" something if you hit plumbing, electrical, insulation, whatever.

With the magnetic stud finder you can use the drywall screws to find your on center of your framing members.  With a spare yardstick or 2x4 and a couple of screw points you can find the center of a stud the drywall is attached to.  From there you can assume that there is a 1-2 inch "don't screw" zone on each side.  As usually the only issues you will have with anchors is screwing into something tightly stapled.  Even screwing into a wire ran through a bored hole would be hard because unless the hole is really small or there are a lot of wires the screw will push the wire out of the way.

Note:  For a heavy bookcase I would rely on an L bracket using toggle anchors - pictured below - in the wall.  My reasoning for toggle anchors is that other anchors could effectively strip or lose binding but in effect stay in place because the shelf hasn't moved enough.  You don't want to find out that your anchor has stripped when you climb up to get something off a top shelf.  The toggle anchor won't give you a snug connection but you don't need it to be hardcore snug, you need it to work.  (also note that the toggle anchors usually don't have a sharp tip, therefore making it ultra hard to damage wiring)

+++ This answer was meant for anyone dealing with wood/metal framed walls.  This would include most people in USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, parts of Mexico, parts of Asia, most dividers in large apartment buildings.  The safe zones for drilling are usually the same no matter the country but the depth of the wiring and how it is secured is not.  As for safety I would still offer that a prick test is better than any voltage meter I have ever used.  If I was afraid of the prick going through the electrical conduit after going through a cinder block I would simply cover the tip (rubber, plastic, chewing gum).


What's the maximum recommended temperature for your house while away? I live in Florida, so I'm not really concerned at all about the coolness of the home in the winter. However, I'd obviously like to save as much energy as possible while gone for the day during the Spring/Summer by setting out Nest thermostat to the maximum safe temperature while away at work -- unfortunately, I'm having a hard time finding what this is.

I say safe because Florida is notoriously humid - I want to save money, but not at the expense of harboring mold behind the walls or something.

I think you're asking a question that's analogous to "how do I measure the length of these pieces of wood, which have varying widths and densities, using these kitchen scales". Length and mass are related, but they're not the same thing.

You've asked about managing relative humidity by using measurements of temperature.

Don't.  Temperature and relative humidity are related, but they're not the same thing.

Manage relative humidity by using measurements of relative humidity. Use your dehumidifier, heating and cooling, to keep the relative humidity below 70% or so. And when the property is occupied, keep it in the range 45-55%. That will be the most comfortable and healthy range, minimising the hazards from dry irritable air, dust mites, mould, and so on.

If you find particular spots that are susceptible to mould (these will be spots that are colder than the rest of the property), put the relative-humidity sensors there - you need to keep these spots well below 80% relative humidity: 80% is where you start to run the risk of condensation, and thus mould.


electrical connection for fan/light enter image description hereinstalling fan and light kit  Issue: have 2 white wires and 2 black wires in ceiling box .Both black wires always have power Neither white wire has power whether the wall switch is on or off . The wall switch has white wires on both terminals and looks like black wires pigtailed behind, cannot get light to work from switch  only will work with pull chain, fan works fine.

OK, the switch in the wall is just sloppy work someone pigtailed the switch and they just used white instead of a correct color.

That gets us to the fan junction box. If you don't know, you need to find the black wire that is controlled by the switch. simply turn off the switch and put you meter on the black wires, at least one of them should show no power. Verify by turning on the switch and it should now read 120V. Mark that wire as your switch leg. If the other black wire is continually on just leave it alone. The white wires are your neutral. Kill all power to the junction box.

Your fan should have four wires green (ground), White (neutral), Black and it should be labeled "fan", and blue or red and should be labeled "light". Of course you need to mount your hanger. Then connect your green wire first to the other ground wires or a ground screw. Then connect your white to your other white wires. Then connect your blue and black wire from the fan to the switch leg and button up the junction box making sure no wire are pinched and hang you fan motor.

When you attach your light kit to you fan you will see a multiple pin connector coming down from the fan. When you look at your light kit you will find a matching pin connector. Plug those connectors together and make sure they are locked in place. All you have to do know is hook up you light kit to the fan.

The switch in the wall should power up both the fan and the light kit. Both the fan and the light kit can be controlled by the pull switches on both devices.

Whew. Good luck


What would cause a ceiling fan to stop while the light still works? Installed a new fan/light today.  Wiring appeared to be identical to old fan we removed.

green ground to green ground on mounting bracket.
white to white.
black and blue to black.

Turned it on and all worked well for about 10 minutes at which time the fan blades stopped turning.  Waited about an hour and again it worked well for about 10-15 minutes before fan stopped.  I reviewed the manual and can't see anything indicating I did something incorrectly.  The light continues to work normally.

I would exchange the fan.  It sounds like it is either over heating and there is a safety feature that cuts it out or there is a problem with the motor winding and when it heats up it causes a bad coil wire or a bad connection to open.


Hot water gets into cold water Kitchen area tank uses hot water from a/c water recovery. When breaker for tank is turned on, hot water comes thru cold line. Never had this happen before until last year. I changed thermostat on tank, but it's still a problem.

One thing that can cause this problem is the old single handle Moen faucets that used the old 1225 cartridge. If you have a Moen faucet in the vicinity that either pulls straight up or straight out, you may have one of these faucets.  Replace the brass cartridge with the new plastic one. Problem solved.


Can I steal neutral from fixture for 3-way switch device with no neutral? my 3-way switch is wired this way, because i am unlucky:

so i have neutral in the line box, no neutral in the load box. i want to use a leviton smart switch that requires neutral in both boxes. if i were crafty enough, could i pigtail a new line off the neutral line in the fixture to run down to the load box? i am super green at this, so forgive me for asking a stupid question. there's also some information out there saying i can use one of the travelers as neutral, which i'll try first... i'm just playing 'worst case scenario'.

It appears pretty clear to me that you can't run the neutral separate from the existing cable, it would be prohibited by NEC 300.3(B) that requires all conductors of a circuit to be contained in the same cable raceway, cable or cord.

We don't know the configuration required for the specific smart switch you are using, at least one model I have used only required one "traveler" between switches, so I was able un-reidentify the white for use as a neutral.


How do you determine if a door is Right Handed (RH) or Left Handed (LH)? I am replacing a few interior doors and I need to know if the existing door is Right Handed or Left Handed so I have them drilled correctly.  Sounds like the acronyms for this are RH and LH.  This also would apply for new pre-hung doors as well I assume as they are all marked that way at the mega home improvement stores.

Not only besides RH or LH, you need to determine swing direction. Trust me, this needs to be agreed upon. When I built the additional room onto my house, I thought 84 Lumber understood the direction of door swing and they didn't. There is left inswing, right inswing, left outswing, and right outswing.

The door handle on my exterior door is on the right-hand side, but it is considered a left-hand outswing. Whereas my front door swings in, and the handle is on the right hand side so it is considered a right-hand inswing. Make sure you know what you are buying before you spend the money!


How can I DIY this fireplace refurbishing project? My fireplace box is 21" x 29", 8" deep. This is what it looks like now:

The previous owners bolted a sheet of metal to it and stuck a heater in front. I pulled out the heater after turning off the gas and started peeking behind the metal, to find (what I think is) a metal flue within. It's rectangular and about the size of a gutter downspout.

It is not connected to any other units in the building using a gas fireplace. Can I cut this part off so I can have a clear box for setting in a rack of electric powered "logs" after paint the brick inside? And how do I cut this metal more cleanly or remove the bolted on and painted over steel bit?

It sounds like your original setup was a gas log, maybe some heat but mostly  decorative. All the electric models I know of are zero clearance so you should have no problems installing an electric model in that space.
I would probably seal it off so no heat was lost up the stack as you won’t need a vent with all electric. But follow the manufacturers instructions and it will be fine.


LG oven -- power cord burning I purchased new LG oven 2 weeks ago and smelled burning last night.
Come next morning, the oven doesn't turn on.
I checked on back of power cord section and opened the cover.
Inside, 3  of the wires (black, white, and red) were not secured at all, instead hanging from the bolt with no nut. The red wire was completely burned..

Is this normal???

I first want to comment that you are extremely fortunate to have discovered this before issue before it became a full scale fire in your dwelling.

Having no nuts on the studs to secure the lugs of the supply cord is a serious safety situation. Someone that installed the cord assembly screwed up royally.

If you received the LG oven with the cord already installed from the store or warehouse I would be recommending that you take it back and demand that they give you a replacement that is wired properly.

There is a possibility that the oven is OK and that acquiring a new cord assembly and installing it properly will be the cure to the problem. BUT... be aware that the red wire melted because the connection was high resistance and created a tremendous heat to melt the insulation like that. You will need to very carefully check the red wire from the oven internals that also connects to that stud. If it is in any way melted or discolored then you should seriously look at getting a replacement.


CFL bulbs using more watts then rated When I run my CFL bulbs off the generator they use reduced watts. But when I switch them over to my dc-ac solar converter they use many times the watts they're suppose to according to my inline watt meter. Will getting a modified or pure sine wave converter reduce the watts to what they should use?

Yes, that will have a big effect on it.  If you're familiar with the difference between Watts and VA... that.

Watts and VA normally differ when the load has poor power factor, but it could also be when the output is not sinewave and the load wants sinewave (e.g. a motor).

Perhaps it is drawing the correct wattage (or VA) but your tester is misreporting due to not knowing how to handle non-sinewave supply.


What can I do to fix the dispenser in the front of my fridge? My ice maker works (so the fridge is connected to water) but when I try to get water or ice from the door on the fridge nothing happens. Is there a fuse or something that could be blown?  I know there is a switch that turns it off when the door is open but how do I take that apart? There are no visible screws or anything.

I don't want to call someone out as it'll probably cost over $200 just to get someone to come over and that's 20% of the cost of the fridge in the first place!

When you push the levers in to dispense water/ice, do you hear the motor running (but nothing comes out)?  If so, then it's probably a supply problem (iced up line, etc).  If not, then it's likely an electrical problem.  Most likely a fuse or a bad relay.

To get into the unit, you would (usually) need to remove the whole plastic panel on the inside of the door.  The screws are usually hidden underneath the seal that runs around the edge of the door.  Your user manual might have some useful information as well.


How to fix a large hole in drywall My girlfriend knocked a chair over when she tripped and it made a large hole approximately 6 inches by 6 inches in a triangle shape. How do I fix this as fast and as cheap as possible ?

There are hole patch kits that can be purchased at most hardware stores. If that's not an option (maybe the hole is too big?) you can take a small square of drywall that's bigger than the hole and hold it up over the hole, mark around the piece with a pencil and then cut the hole out to the outside of the line. Then take two slats of 1x3 and use screws to attach them through the wall on either side of the hole creating a backing for the patch. Once that's done apply the patch to the backers and proceed to mud and tape the seams. Here's a diagram:

If you need help with the mudding/taping process there are other q/a's on this site that cover it better than I can so I won't go into it.


Does an 8" round to 10x3.25" elbow exist? I have open space above cabinets and wife does not want a chimney on our range hood.

SO I am looking for an elbow that will take the 8" round vertical exhaust and go 90 degrees into a 10x3.25"  (we have ~4" of molding above cabinets)

I found this online, but it's not quite the right size.  Anyone know if there is a proper term for this I can search, or if I could get one to meet my specs?

I would take a piece of 10x3.25 duct, cap off one end and cut an 8" hole in one side and add a flange to connect the 8" duct to.  These should be common parts that are easier to source than some exactly sized elbow that still might need modification.


AC condensation line dripping from attic drain and splashing onto drywall During the summer when it gets 90+ degrees outside my ac creates a lot of drainage from the attic. The drain line was made to just drip onto the garage floor by the homebuilder. Well the water, especially on 90+ days, is splashing onto the drywall. There were a couple mold spots I treated with bleach and now have plexiglass in front of..

Is this a normal installation? What's the best way to fix this issue because my current set up obviously isn't a good long term fix. I'm a complete newbie so I apologize for my ignorance about this.

Thanks so much.

An AC unit will produce condensate all the time, not just when its over a certain temp outside.

Check your AC Unit in the attic.  The Primary AC condensate drain is normally drained to either the main house drain or to the outside via a PVC pipe about the same size as the on draining into the garage.

There is a secondary drain, think an emergency notification that the Primary Drain is clogged.  or not working.  The drain you are seeing in the garage is most likely hooked to the drip pan hanging under the AC unit to catch any leaks not handled by the main drain, or the AC Air Handler sweating in the heat of the attic.   In most areas the drip pan is supposed to be an electrical float system to shut off the AC unit is there is too much condensate in it, as that means there is something going on with the AC unit.

Use the attic access in the garage right next the drain pipe and see if that is the drain attached to the Air Handler itself or the emergency drain attached to the drip pan.

If you see another PVC pipe connected to the Air Handler itself,  follow it in the attic to see where it goes.  If it leads outside, it normally will be draining somewhere near the AC Compressor outside, but might be somewhere else.
If you find it outside, a quick fix is to clear it out using a wet vac.

Long and short Pics of the AC unit in the attic will help diagnose the issues, but most certainly a call to the AC Service Company is most likely a good thing if they have not been out to Service the AC system this year!


Can I connect copper wire to aluminum wire? I'm installing additional light bulbs in my basement. I have an older house with aluminum wiring.

Can I do this:

[new light bulbs]<--copper-->[old light bulb junction box]<--aluminum-->[main circuit]

Is it safe / does it comply to code ?

Ignoring expensive crimpers, Ideal Twister Al/Cu (purple) wirenuts are NEC compliant. (Your jurisdiction might vary.) They are not for use on aluminum to aluminum connections (which is a little baffling to me, but I digress). You can find some controversy on the net about the safety of these, so read up and decide if they're appropriate for you.

Another compliant option is the King AlumiConn, which can connect both aluminum to copper and aluminum to aluminum. These require a precise torquing of the screw connectors.

Depending on the wire going to your light, you might have to pigtail copper to aluminum in the above manner and then wirenut the new copper to the light.

I've heard people say that a squirt of no-alox in a standard wirenut is fine, but it is not code compliant in my neighborhood. (And probably nowhere.) And it should go without saying that a normal wirenut is absolutely not compliant anywhere.


Wire switches so fan comes on with lights My bathroom has a light, an exaust fan, and two switches.  Someone before me rewired it so one switch controls the lights and fan together, the other does nothing.

I know how to switch it back to one switch each, but what I really want to do is set it up so:

Switch A turns on the light and fan.
Switch B just turns on the fan.

That way we could leave the exaust fan running when needed without having to leave the lights on, but nobody could forget to turn it in when they take a shower (unless they shower in the dark).

Is there some way I can wire it to do that?

wire a double pole switch pole A connected to fan and pole
B connected to light
have a regular single pole switch (pole A) connected to fan


Wiring a ceiling pendant UK wiring I've done this before, but maybe because I'm  replacing a ceiling fan with a pendant light the wiring is different.

I have 3 brown wires, with one live
1 Earth (No neutral wire.)
This is the end of the loop. Nothing I can find is dependent on this.

When the switch is on, the power L going to the pendant is 240. When the switch is off there is no power.

I'm just a bit stumped:(

Thanks

Artistic impression of my set up that's not working

One of the brown wires was acting as a neutral, I switched one of the wires into the neutral spot and the light switch is working fine now.

If anyone knows why there is 3 brown wires please let me know. (old wiring?)


Just moved into a new house, what is this tube in the ground outside my wall? It looks like there was some kind of a cheese cloth placed on top of it before, but at this point it's been broken.  I can't see the bottom of it, and I have no idea why it's there.  Does anybody have an idea?  I was going to go to the store to get another cheese cloth to place on top of it, but if I can just close it up I'd prefer doing that.  But again, no idea what that is.  It goes down in front of my house, and in my basement it looks like it goes to my pum[ pump?  But it's hard to tell, because while there's a tube coming up from my sump pump, it seems to go up and east of my house.  While the tube pictured above is going down on the south side of my house.  So there would be have to be some bends and perhaps forks in the tubing for that to make sense.

Other than that, I have no idea what is beneath there.  Has anybody seen this before?

What diameter?

From here it looks like a vent for a drywell or French drain. If it's about 4" (10cm) diameter, that'd add to my suspicion.


How can I reduce the size of a bore in steel to accommodate screw threads? I want to somehow get an M5 insert into a 7.5mm diameter hole in solid steel. (The hole has already been drilled with 7.5mm DeWalt cobalt-tipped drill bit.)
Is there such a thing as a threaded insert that is suitably constructed to be able to go into solid steel? Some have external threads, some have that rough/raised diamond pattern on the exterior instead. I'm not sure what might work. How about something I could hammer in, if the insert's diameter is finely tuned to be just above 7.5mm?
Here are some threaded inserts "for metal and plastic". I have no idea if something like this may work, or how to insert it properly.
Any advice is much appreciated. Thanks

Sounds like you're asking for a drop-in solution for an existing hole and screw size. That's a tall order. I doubt you'll find it, but if you can stand a bit of DIY here are a few options...

A Helicoil (repair coil) normally requires existing threads, but you could epoxy it into place. I'm not sure an M5 will fit your hole, though. You'd want to run your screw in and out before the epoxy sets to clear any squeeze-out.

A threaded sleeve or bushing could work, but again you'll probably need to epoxy it and possibly drill larger.

Tap it for a larger screw. You haven't said what you're mounting, but it may accommodate a thicker screw with or without slight modification. An M8 might work well with the existing hole.


What could cause a circuit breaker to trip when an exhaust fan is turned off? In my bathroom, I have a switch for the light and a switch for the exhaust fan.  It seems that on occasion, not all the time, the power will trip when I turn the fan off, not on.  It also seems to be independent on whether or not the light is on.

Where is the most likely source of the problem, the switch, the breaker, or buried in the wall somewhere?

Interesting. I can think of a couple scenarios.

First, the switch may be causing a small arc as the contacts separate, and that is tripping a GFCI/AFCI breaker in the panel. The switch may also be worn to the point where it can cause a short from hot to ground; this would be unlikely to trip a breaker, but it could happen. Lastly, there may be exposed wiring in the switch box, coupled with a loosened mounting of the switch int the box, causing a short between wires when the switch is flipped.

In all cases, the most likely culprit is the switch. Single-pole 120V15A switches are a buck-fifty a pop, so it can't hurt to just replace it. Make sure there's no bare wire that can short against a ground; I've found it helpful to give the switch or outlet I'm installing a wrap of electrical tape, which covers the terminals and other energized metal around the switch body and helps prevent shorts. Make sure no bare metal can touch any other bare metal when you put the new switch back in the box.

If that doesn't solve the problem then the next likely culprit is a GFCI or AFCI panel breaker, which is tripping in response to arcing at the point where the contacts in the switch disengage. This is normal; a very small arc will occur when the contacts are very close together right when the switch turns on and off. AFCI breakers are sometimes prone to "false positives" like this; you can trip an AFCI breaker plugging in an appliance that's already turned on, for instance. You do not need an AFCI breaker on bathroom circuits; only bedroom circuits built or last renovated after 1999. So, as long as your bedroom and bathroom are on separate panel circuits (and they should be), you can use a normal breaker. You DO need GFCI protection for outlets on bathroom circuits, meaning if you remove the AFCI breaker and replace it (or, more accurately, if you have a licensed electrician do it for you), you will need to replace the most "upstream" outlet on that circuit with a GFCI outlet, and you will need to make sure all outlets in the "wet" areas (within 4 feet of a sink, tub, shower or toilet) are protected by that GFCI.

It may also be caused by a GFCI breaker protecting the switch and fan, that is detecting current being driven through the neutral side (which remains closed when the switch is turned off) by the rotating fan motor as it winds down. A motor is basically just a generator in reverse, after all. With the big flywheel of the fan keeping it rotating after the power is cut, it can induce voltage, causing an imbalance between the hot and neutral that trips the breaker. Again, in this case you can solve the problem by replacing the panel breaker with a normal "slow-trip" breaker, and just protecting the outlets with a GFCI receptacle instead of the whole circuit.

I find it hard to believe the fan could be causing a tripped breaker if the breaker isn't a GFCI, but if you still haven't found the cause by this point the fan would be the last thing to check. Ensure the motor is securely mounted in its housing, and that all wiring is properly insulated with no possibility of a short. Make sure the motor itself is in good repair; there may be a worn bearing or bushing that is causing the armature to contact the shell during a sudden change in stress (like when the electomagnetic force that spins it goes away). I can't think of much that would cause the fan to trip a normal breaker when turned off, that wouldn't be causing far worse problems when turned on.


What is this thing in the entryway of some houses? What is this thing, made of wood, in the entrance of this house in front of the mirror and under the light switch? What is it called? What is it for? Is it there for people to put their keys on?

Yep. Just a key/purse/phone shelf. You'd rest your items there while you pull on your coat and galoshes.


How can I prove my kitchen exhaust vent egress The 2-storey ten year old house that I bought last year has a non-venting range hood over the gas stove.  I want to replace this with a venting range hood.  In in the cabinet directly above where the range hood is mounted there seems to be a properly installed vent that goes straight up (and yes, the range hood end of the 90 degree elbow is taped off!)

My problem is proving that there is a genuine egress of this vent on the roof.  There are two vents on the roof and one is definitely the vent from the natural gas heated water and house heating.  I assume that the other vent is for the kitchen range hood, but I am struggling to prove this and don't want to start venting cooking fumes into a closed off duct.
In this pic of the roof, the heating duct is the one on the right and what I am assuming is the kitchen duct is on the left.  Note that from measurements, the kitchen vent needs to take a 5 foot dogleg in order to get to that close to the heating vent.

So far I have tried:

Feeling for a breeze through the kitchen duct with an external door both open and closed.  Did not feel any breeze.
Sticking camera up the kitchen duct s far as I could, but couldn't see any light coming down.
Set my phone to play loud music in the kitchen duct and listen for sounds on the roof, and couldn't hear anything.

Things I am considering are:

Setting a fan at the entrance to the kitchen duct and blowing some smoke like substance into the duct and hoping to see it form the roof - but I don't know what sort of smoke would be suitable.
Paying someone to "clean" the kitchen duct and tell me where it actually goes!

So what are my best options to prove the egress of the kitchen vent duct on the roof?

I now know where the vent leaves the house!
I finally proved the vent using the method suggested by @jasen.  However I am still shaking my head about where the vent exits the house.
I rigged up my electric leaf blower and sealed off the ducting with a cardboard baffle:

I was up on the roof when my assistant started the blower, and nothing was coming out of any vents on the roof.  But I heard the sound of the blower coming from somewhere!  And eventually I located the egress on the side wall furthest away from the kitchen, and not on the roof!

It seems that the duct work for the range hood goes up until it meets the ceiling and turns 90 degrees horizontal and then travels between the ceiling and floor above, over the top of the garage until it hits the exterior wall:

The only explanation I can have for this layout is that it places the egress on the leeward side of the house as far away as possible from the prevailing winds.  I assume that if the vent had been on the roof then a difference in wind speed between the roof and the ground could have forced fumes back into the house.  But if that was the case, why isn't an issue for the other vents?

Now my only problem is that I have no idea what the other vent on my roof actually is for!

You can rent a "fog machine" or "smoke (not really smoke) generator" at a rental place that caters to "party supplies" - you can also rent a portable ventilation fan with a flexible duct. Set the fan to blow in the suspect duct and run the fog machine at its intake.
If you have smoke alarms, be aware that the smoke/fog may set them off.
Beware of using actual smoke, more than one fire has started from "intentionally trying to make smoke" getting out of control.


How to prevent rebar from rusting in the ground? I am building a wall with rebar, cinder blocks, and rebar, as I've seen in many YouTube videos.
 ________||_ ___________ ___________ _____
|        || |           |           |     | <--cinder blocks
|________||_|___________|___________|_____|
|     |  ||       |           |           |
|_____|__||_______|___________|___________|````````````` <-- ground
         ||
         || <-- rebar
         ||

The rebar should stop horizontal movement, as part of the wall acts as a retaining wall.
I heard some people warn if I run the rebar into the ground, it will rust and become useless. How can I stop this from happening?

Bore a 4" hole and pour it full of concrete, so the rebar has 2" concrete cover.


Symmons shower isn't producing hot water A shower in one of our bathrooms isn't producing any hot water (but every other sink/tub in the house is).  I tried to fix this by loosening the limit screw so the handle would go a bit farther and warm/slightly hot water started to come out, but only as a light trickle.
From everything that I've read online, it sounds like I may have to replace the valve/cartridge (are these terms interchangeable?), but I'm unsure how to do so.
Below is a picture of what I'm dealing with.  The shower hardware brand is Symmons and the valve/cartridge below isn't what I've been seeing in any of the DIY YouTube videos.
If I wanted to replace this, how would I take it apart?
I can't tell if this is one piece or if I can take it apart piece by piece.  I've gotten some estimates from a couple plumbers and they're saying this is going to be a $300-350 fix for just labor, so I'm trying to see if this is something I can do myself.
Any advice and suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

I does sound like your cartridge has gone.
It's hard to see from the photo, but It looks like this is your valve:

It looks like you can actually just replace the spindle:

You should just be able to unscrew it from the main body if you get an adjustable wrench on the flats on the front of the threaded section just behind the splined part.
Notes:

Don't forget to shut off both supplies up-stream!
Even with the water shut off, you will likely still get some coming out when you remove the cartridge. I tuck a sheet of plastic around the bottom, and as far behind as I can go to try and catch this, so it doesn't go into the wall cavity.


How do I determine what size the outlet should be on a new shut off valve? I'm going to be replacing several shut off valves throughout my home.  They are a very old type where the supply line is part of the shut off valve, not it's own separate entity.

I've done this once before for a toilet with great success.  Thankfully, the supply line included with the new toilet told me what the outlet size should be on the new shut off valve.

The shut off valves I'm going to be replacing are under bathroom sinks.  What is the traditional shut off valve outlet size for that?  1/2" 3/8" 1/4"?  Does it really matter?

About 95% of all faucet and toilet stops are 3/8 compression on the outlet. Of course the input depends on your piping in the house, but usually use half inch IPS


What can these bits work on? I wonder on what kinds of things the second, third and fourth bits from the left can work?

What kinds of things can the fifth and sixth bits from the left work?

Picture not really clear, but I will take a shot. From left to right:

socket adapter
looks like torx bit - specialty (newer version of Phillips)
looks like torx bit - specialty
looks like torx bit - specialty
#2 Pozidriv - deck screws
#1 Pozidriv - smaller screws (curtain rods, cabinets)
#2 Phillips - Most common
#1 Phillips - Most common
#2 slotted - most common
#1 slotted - smaller slotted screws


How close should a french drain be to a foundation? I am preparing to install a perimeter drain in my crawlspace.  I will be using NDS-EZ drain pipe.  My question is Where is the proper place to dig the trench?  Next to the foundation or 1 foot away from it?   I was planning on digging right down next to the foundation, which in this area is only 18" max but I have since read where it should be 1 foot away from the foundation.  If this is correct, why?

Typically a perimeter drain system is installed within 12 inches of the foundation wall. The gravel backfill then rests against the foundation and the pipe is 6 inches or so out from the wall.

In your case, I don't think it would make much difference in the performance of your drain. Not sure exactly what you meant by 18" max. Is the foundation only 18" deep or your drain to be installed no more than 18" deep?  You definitely don't want to dig deeper or too close to a shallow foundation so as not to undermine it.  Good luck.


How to remove paint and refinish metal fan housing front plate I have an old exhaust fan from the 50s in my kitchen; the kind where you let a bead chain loose and it opens a hatch and the fan engages.  Anyways, the fan has a metal faceplate, and a stainless steel grill in front.  I cleaned the grill up and it's shining nice now, but the metal faceplate (which also holds the fan attached to it and the whole thing is then screwed into the housing) is covered in probably 15 layers of paint over the years.  There's some pink, then green, and yellow over that, and then white, and probably plenty of other layers I can't make out.  What's the best way to remove all that paint?  I want to strip it down to bare metal (it can be submersed in something if need be), and then I will either try to finish the metal (don't know where to start there), or I will just paint it again to match my refinished kitchen.

So the meat of this question is, how to strip 60 years worth of layered paint from a metal faceplate so it's down to bare metal again, and if I were to finish the metal, what are the options there (i think it's steel)?

If you can remove the entire face plate use regular paint stripper. When you get it down to bare metal you can polish the surface with scotchbrite pads or steelwool. You might find something to attach to your drill to make this part easier. Once you get the finish you are looking for cover it with clear enamal to protect it. If you can't get an acceptable finish for a clear coat look at some of the metal finish spray paints like hammered bronze or antique copper etc. I would avoid the spray chrome as I haven't found one yet that yields decent results.


Replacing a gas stove I have an older gas stove in my kitchen. On the left of it is a wood shelf but on the right and behind it are drywall panels. The gap between back of stove and back wall is around 5 inches. The problem I have is that when the oven is turned on it also heats the back drywall to the point where it becomes bendable.
I went to the local Home Depot, looked at some of the stoves and talked to a salesman there about the heating situation. He told me that the newer stoves are build better so that the heat does not go in the back but comes through air ducks out of the front of the stove (I did see the air ducts).
My question is, how do I go about double checking this before I actually spend 400 dollars on a new stove. I probably wont be able to return it if I still have the same reason, but even if I can, I will have to have them put the old stove back in and there is going to cost more $$$.
I do want to believe that newer stoves insulate the hear better, but how should I go about double checking this before making a purchase?

As far as increasing the gap between the stove and the back wall, it is the last resort, because I do not want to stove sticking out in front of the side shelves

Go the stove manufacturers' websites and read the installation manuals for the stoves, checking particularly for installation clearances.

You could also replace the drywall behind the stove with 5/8 or 1/2" (depending what the surrounding drywall is) tile-backer (cement-board) and/or cover it with 1/4, 1/2 or 5/8" spaced off the wall surface by 1/2" to 1" (look up "woodstove wall-protectors" for the idea) and cover with aluminum foil if going for the last bit of effect. Aluminum sheet (flashing material) spaced off the wall has a similar effect (radiant barrier.)

You may well have damaged (or missing) insulation in the back of your current stove if it's heating the wall that strongly.


Can I make the contractor redo a roofing job because he didn't replace delaminated plywood? My wife and I recently moved into our first home.  It's a raised ranch in CT that was built in 1967.  I've been doing a lot of "refreshing" myself inside; however, I hired a roofing contractor to replace our end-of-life roof.  It was a two-layer job, so we had to go with the rip-and-replace method.  The contractor I hired is local and well established (32 years).  He gave us a quote for the full rip and replace including new drip edge, vent boots, tar paper and 6 feet of ice blocker.  He also had as a line item an additional cost for any plywood that would need to be replaced.

The roof has what I assume to be its original 3/8" plywood sheathing and two layers of shingles (sounds about right: if you figure each roof lasted twenty years or so, the math works).  Regardless, we purchased new GAF Timberline shingles and he went to work.  The whole job took him (and his crew of two others) two days to complete.  He told me that all the plywood looked great, there was no rot, and nothing had to be replaced.  "Great", I thought.

That brings us to tonight. I went up into the attic to put some stuff up there and started looking around. It's fairly obvious to my untrained eye that the plywood is delaminated in some areas. I would've gladly paid the extra money to have the plywood replaced (even all of it if need be) to have a solid roof that would last 30–40 more years. I now fear we have great new roofing shingles over old crappy plywood that won't last. Our biggest fear is that if we eventually sell the house the inspector will say that the roof sheathing is no good and needs to be replaced.

I immediately placed a call to the contractor when I noticed this, however it was already 10pm tonight so I was unable to reach him. I assume he'll call me back, but I'm looking here for advice and guidance if anyone has experienced anything like this in the past.  I'm not sure what I should or could expect from him at this point in the game.

I did realize that I had never noticed the delamination in the attic before. I'm thinking that the driving of all the new nails through it, plus the foot traffic on the roof made it much more noticeable. It's not horrible (there aren't pieces of the outside laminate falling off), but there are definite spots where the nails have ripped chunks out, and there are areas you can press on and just feel the spaces between. It's also very flexible and spongy between the rafters, so much that you can deflect it with you hand pressing outwards fairly easily.

I wouldn't worry too much about it.  The plywood is not typically supporting a load of more than the paper and asphalt shingles that were placed, even more so if you have a considerable pitch on your roof to where it would be difficult or impossible for a person to walk on.  It basically serves so that you have something to nail the shingles down securely.

Most newer homes use plywood, I have an older home that used what looks like rough cut deck planks and those are mostly still original.  The last time I had my roof replaced, they had to change out a few boards that were terribly dry rotted and some that were badly damaged from previous water damage by the oh-so responsible homeowners who had the home before me.  Other older boards look noticeably damaged by the most recent nails but they continue to hold down the shingles and I would still feel safe to stand on my roof.

As long as the shingles are doing their job then the plywood will not be exposed to any water, and as long as your attic has good ventilation during the summer time then you should have nothing to worry about for the next 15-20 years at least.


How to better isolate a floor with carpet? I am going to put a carpet on a room. This room is on a ground floor and it's actualy cold (I can feel the cold on the ground).

Is there some material that I can put between the carpet and  the floor to provide better isolation?

When you install carpet you're first supposed to put down a carpet padding. This is available in a number of different materials including urethane foam and rubber though most commonly these days I see a recycled urethane product. It's main purpose is to prolong the life of the carpet by absorbing some of the shock of being walked on. It also provides a softer feel underfoot as well as some insulation.

If you want to increase the R value of the carpet padding, choose the densest and thickest padding recommended by the manufacturer for the carpet you're buying.

The Carpet Cushion Council (apparently it's a thing) has some example R-values for carpet padding listed on its website.


I have a curious problem with my home electrical system that may come from the on-switching of my refrigirator or my freezer For the last few weeks, from time to time, the line voltage as measured with a good AC-voltmeter, would drop suddenly from about 127vac to 105vac, and would stay there for few seconds and then would get back to about 127vac again, or would go to 110vac and stay there for a long minute or so before going back up to 127vac or staying there a few minutes longer. When this happens, if I use a 1100-W microwave oven, the oven would light up and turn the tray, but the food to be heated would not be heated at all.

It happened that something interesting was chanced upon: If during a moment of this voltage sagging that made the room lights dimmer, I turned on a cloth dryer in a distance away or a resistance little oven nearby, the lights got bright again as normally observed before the trouble. At that time, if the microwave oven is used, it performs perfectly OK. I took time out to measure the line voltage of that OK moment and saw the 127vac level being there until the end of the on-time of the cloth dryer or the resistance oven.

I have been playing with home AC circuits, electronics and computers since the age of 12, and have a BS, MS and PhD in power generation, distribution, conversion, industrial and communication electronics and computer hardware design and software, and owner of 8 US Patents. Yet, I cannot have an instant answer to this problem.

Can anyone have the same problem with solution or have some good idea be kind enough to let me learn from you to deal with this problem in a neat and safe manner. My house was built in 1914, but the central circuit box apparently was updated sometime in the past 60 or 70 years before with many of the outlets in the 3-prong configuration, with practically zero-volt measurement between neutral and ground connections. All circuit breakers at the central box look like standard 20A or more breakers, without any modern-looking appearance of Ground-Fault-CI or Spark-Fault-CI. Thank you in advance for your advice.

CALL YOUR UTILITY ON THEIR EMERGENCY NUMBER NOW

This has all the appearances of a failing service neutral.  If left unabated, this situation can roast gadgets and even burn your house down, so call your utility on their emergency number ASAP and tell them that your power is failing (because it is).


Is there a proper name for this kind of toothed disk? I'm building a piece of furniture with an adjustable part and would like to use a toothed disk similar in concept to the examples show below. Before having it custom made, I am searching for a manufacturer, maybe buy something off-the-shelf. Problem is, I'm not even sure what this would be called... Can you tell me a proper/generic name for this?

A web search for "toothed disk" turns up a lot of cogs and wheels, however only one of those hits is for something similar to what I am looking for (and is discontinued):

The concept is that 2 of these disks are fastened to the opposing pieces. Pulling the 2 pieces together with e.g. a bolt causes the teeth to engage, and so the 2 pieces are fastened to each other at a fixed angle, which can be adjusted to suit needs.

Other real life examples that I have seen this used in:

Height adjustable piano stand:
Adjustable press arm:

What we have here is a Hirth Joint.

  A Hirth joint or Hirth coupling is a type of mechanical connection named after its developer Albert Hirth. It is used to connect two pieces of a shaft together and is characterized by tapered teeth that mesh together on the end faces of each half shaft.


Direct stove/kitchen exhaust into kitchen sink drain I live in an apartment that has terrible or zero ventilation for kitchen smells generated while cooking. The exhaust under the Microwave just removes oil from the fumes and circulates the air within the kitchen.

Can I hook a 4inch vent pipe with an inline exhaust fan and direct the exhaust into the kitchen sink drain? That way kitchen smells dont linger for too long, and the hall/dining area, and the rest of the apartment doesn't smell like food I just cooked.

Trying to google it, I don't see anything that addresses my need. But I'm wondering if it'll lead to any issues with the kitchen sink drainage, or the dishwasher that is connected to it. (There's no garbage disposal / insinkerator in this kitchen)

Any advise or suggestion is welcome!

No.

Your traps need to have water in them to prevent sewer gasses from getting into your home. If your vent "seal" was strong enough, you could "clear" the trap allowing gas into the home. Flammable, stinky, potentially deadly gas into the home.

So no. Don't do it.


How can I get new sections of fencing to match the existing fencing? I have a lot of Fencing. half of the fence has previously been Galvanized, I have also created a few new fence sections.

My problem is that when the new fence gets galvanized, it will look too clean and polished and will stick out. I know that the oxidation that happens on the fence is the protective layer that you actually dont want to clean, however in my case, I would like to make the entire fence look the same.
so the choices are to either clean the old fence in some solution (which is cheap and readily available)  or to make the new fence oxidise quicker.
From experience, I know that the new fence will take a few months to start looking like the existing fence.

Any Ideas here?

The original galvanizing of the fence was in a bath of molten tin (hot dip galvanizing).

Since this is not practical for the old fence, there are cold galvanizing compounds.  They are zinc rich paints.

They will not stop rust that has broken through the original coating.  Rust must be removed, then coat the bare steel.

The aerosol versions would be very expensive for painting fence, but the compound is available in a brush on version.  Search "Cold Galvanizing Compound for Corrosion Control" and look for liquid brush on versions.


Conduit to run ethernet and coax from basement to attic My basement has a couple Ethernet and coax cables (thin black and white cables) running from the basement to the attic. The opening also has a gas line, white PVC drain line from the attic HVAC, HVAC power cable (thick black cable), and a power line (yellow cable).
I was thinking about buying this 2 inch PVC conduit to run the Ethernet and coax cables through this opening. I can't fit a 10 foot PVC pipe in my car, so I'm planning on cutting it down to about six feet in the store. The conduit wouldn't run all the way from the basement to the attic, but it would at least clear this opening and separate the Ethernet and coax cables from the other lines. The opening in the attic is at an angle from this opening in the basement (not a straight shot).
Is there a better way to do this? Should I get flexible conduit instead? Or should I just forget about the conduit since I can't run it all the way to the attic.
Problems I'm trying to solve

Separating the Ethernet cables from the power cables to avoid network interference
Make it easier to run new network and coax cable in the future
Prepare this opening for air sealing in the future

Thank you.

That hole is a firecode violation.  It should be air sealed around the penetrations - as it stands it is a chimney for a fire.
As far as conduit to separate the low voltage wires from the line voltage - are you pulling one end back to get the conduit onto them?  a staple and a zip tie to keep the wires to one side of the hole would probably work just as well.


Cracked bathroom tile - runs almost entire length of the wall Have lived in this house 8 years.  Finally redoing  (full gut) bathroom this July.  Just recently we have noticed horizontal cracks in the bathroom tile. Runs almost the entire width of the shower/tub enclosure back wall.  We have had issues with crown molding separating ever since we installed a new HVAC system and we are considering adding a humidifier to the system.  It appears that the material in the house may be drying out.

The discoloration in the grout is because it was wet.  I've never seen grout like this until I moved here. We also have some separation of the back shower wall from the sides.  But now that summer is here, and it is more humid, the cracks and separations are less noticeable.

I'm just concerned that this may be an issue with the new bathroom.  Any thoughts?

I had a similar problem in my house, and after considerable whining from my SO, I started digging out and replacing the cracked tiles.  That turned out to be rather tedious, as the tiles were well attached to the wall and there was much collateral damage.
Ultimately my diagnosis was as Aloysius Defenestrate hints at in the comments.  The cracks were along a seam between two backer boards.  In my case concrete board below, green board above.  The boards where not obviously taped at the seams or supported by any horizontal lath boards between the studs.  Either one might have mitigated the problem.  Inevitably I ruined the underlying backerboard removing the cracked tiles, but I could see the underlying structure.
My repairs involved pre-drilling and toe-screwing some lath boards as support. and layering up new backer, thinset and tiles.


How to wire new outlet? (US)4 sets of wires Last night I had an outlet short out. From opening it and seeing the type, I can see why. I've installed and changed outlets, motors, etc before, but this one has me a bit stumped. There are two sets of wires to the top, and two to the bottom of the outlet, not just your typical line and load which you would pigtail. How would I go about wiring this to your typical household outlet? There's no gcfi.

Group all like wires together, so the 4 white, the 4 black, the 4 ground, each color separate from the others. Add a pigtail (short length of wire) of the same color to each group of wires, and wire nut them together. Connect the pigtail to the appropriate spot on the outlet