How do I put on siding above a slanted roof? We're replacing siding on our two-story house currently. We can do most of it okay, but our two-car garage has a slanted roof, which mean you can't just put a ladder up there. We're thinking about just hiring it done, but it'd be a lot nicer it we could do it ourselves somehow. How could you do this? Could you maybe make some kind of scaffolding? How would you do that? Would buying some step ladder with different length legs work? Here's a pic:

Werner makes ladder leg levelers (say that 5 times fast) that fit their ladders. I'm not sure if it's the safest solution for a pitched roof though. If you did decide to do this, I'd really consider having a temporary stop beneath the bottom foot of the ladder and possibly on the wall you're leaning it against as well.

Another solution would be an articulating ladder that you can set up as a step ladder with two different length sides. I have the Werner 17 ft aluminum ladder, and it's awesome. It does weigh 40 lbs though, so my wife doesn't like to use it very much.


Is the carpet in my condo one solid continuous piece? I ask this question more to satisfy my curiosity than to tend to a pressing need. But looking at the carpet in my condo (two bedroom) I don't notice any cuts in it. Was it installed as one continuous piece?

Carpet is generally sold in 12' wide rolls.

Good carpet installers use a combination of seam tape and a good stiff comb to make seams vanish.

What they do is lay down the "tape" which is actually a 4" wide strip of cloth mesh coated in wax.

They then butt the seams of the carpet up together nice and tight, and run a hot iron under the carpet between the seams (see the label on the pic above) and while the wax is still melted, press the carpet into it.  Then they just comb the carpet together to hide what seam may still show.

Sounds easy but having tried it once - NEVER AGAIN.  I will hire a carpet installer any day of the week.


Forced water base board heater I want to make the front of a forced hot water heater the back and the back the front, this I’d like to take the metal back off and build a new front, does the heater NEED the metal back?  Cabinets will be on the new back (current front). Thanks in advance!

No, other than any support brackets holding the pipe/fin-tube up. The "new front" does need vents below and above the finned tubing to permit airflow for functional reasons.


Where to start when standing oscillating fan motor wont turn on? It is probably not worth fixing but I hate throwing things out when there might be a simple fix. My wife told me that one of our fans was not working. I took apart most of the simple parts and cleaned off all the dust to no avail. When plugged in and turned on nothing happens. No smell or sound that I have noticed. I suppose it could be something simple like the switch itself but I am not sure.

Do I try and bypass the switch to see if that is the issue? What is the unit on the right where the purple cable goes in and out of? Is this too dangerous to play with?

The easiest component to test is the switch, but the most likely to fail is the capacitor, which is that thing on the right with the purple wires. Your motor looks like a simple induction type. Do a web search on "why does my motor have a capacitor" and you'll know as much as I do.

Here are some tests you can try.

Spin the shaft by hand (You've already done this, haven't you?) If the bearings are seized you can probably get it to run by cleaning and lubricating but my experience is that cheap motors never last long after this.
Turn the fan on and spin the shaft by hand. If the motor starts then the capacitor is bad. Replacing this part is dead simple but finding the replacement is an exercise in industrial engineering. It's a great learning experience, especially if you want to continue fixing stuff.

For the following test you'll have to cut some wires.

Isolate the switch and test it for continuity with your ohmmeter. This is great fun with a multi-speed switch because you have to simultaneously find out how it works, and why it doesn't.
Isolate the capacitor and test it with your ohmmeter. The capacitor should first show zero resistance, then quickly go to infinite resistance. Swap the probes to see it again. If it consistently shows zero or infinite then it has failed.
As long as you have it all apart anyway, test the motor wires for continuity. It is very rare for a motor winding to break but you paid for that meter so you might as well get some use out of it.

I think everyone will agree that cheap appliances are not worth the time to fix, unless you enjoy the work and the learning. Personally I have been pulling machinery to pieces for seventy years and I never get tired of it. Sometimes it even works after I fix it.


Fan blower motor of Bryant furnace keeps running after flame is off Fan blower motor keeps running in winder after the room temperature reaches the setting. Occasionally, especially in the case that the outside temperature is very low, the motor stops as expected. But most of the time, it keeps blowing air. However, it functions properly in summer, i.e., when the room temperature cools down to the setting, the motor stops.

The furnace model is Bryant 383KAV. After some online research, I checked that: (1) Fan is set to AUTO in thermostat; (2) Flame rollout limit switch HH18HA452 passes continuity check using multimeter, about 0.7 Ohms; (3) Temperature limit switch HH12ZB170 also passes continuity check using multimeter, about 0.6 Ohms; (4) LED light flashes a few times when the furnace turns on. Then it stays red all the time. I assume no error is detected.

I am confused now what could go wrong. Temperature Limit Switch HH12ZB170 has been replaced recently. Maybe I should manually disconnect each of two limit switches one by one to verify?

Furnace blower fans will continue to run for a bit after the flame shuts off to strip the remaining heat from the heat exchanger and bring it into the rooms the furnace is heating.

Think of it this way - the gas valve (the flame) is controlled by the thermostat, but the blower is controlled by a sensor mounted in the heat exchanger. If the heat exchanger temperature falls within a certain range the blower will run to make use of that heat. You will also notice that the flame will run on its own upon startup without the blower for a short period until the heat exchanger warms up enough to justify running the blower over it and delivering heat.


Replace or supplement very old attic insulation My attic has very old insulation, which I have been told provides very little R-value. I suspect the insulation was from when the house was built in 1909.
Question: Should I remove this old insulation before putting fiberglass batts or just put batts on top of it? (The beams are 6").

That insulation is most likely what  my father-in-law bought for his home in the 1960's. It was called "pouring wool", sold in bags and was very itchy. I was dating his daughter, now my wife of 58 years, and I offered to install it for him. (you can guess why). We did the job in JULY. I wasn't too smart back then. It looks just like that . I would just install batts over top of that insulation. Make sure that you do not cover the soffit vents and do not fill up into the roof joists. They have styrofoam vents that go between the roof sheeting and the insulation. Good luck.


How can I wire a receptacle to a switch? I have an empty double gang box on my patio.  I have a 12/2 wire which is hot coming into it. There's an underground PVC pipe going about 25 ft away, to a single gang box near an outdoor pond.

What I'd like to do, is have a GFCI on the patio, and a switch to control the pump in the single gang box some 25 ft away.

I thought a GFCI to a switch, to a downstream GFCI.

I cannot figure this out for nothing!

I currently have power to the empty box on patio & a GFCI near the pond, that's wired on the line terminals.

Pump for pond works fine when wired directly but won't as soon as I add a switch or GFCI.
Hopefully this makes sense to what I got going, envision & any help at all would be very much appreciated

If the 12/2 at the wall box is 120VAC, black hot, white neutral, green/bare ground, and the pump is 120VAC then...

Being a double gang box, you should be able to connect that wire to the LINE terminals of a GFCI outlet. Brass hot, silver neutral, ground will need connection to several things detailed below.

Then, in the other half of that box, install a switch, connecting the switch to the hot (brass) LOAD side terminal of the GFCI. What's the wire in the pipe? If it's indoor type Romex (odds are too good that it might be) remove it and replace with outdoor rated wire such as THW in black (or red)/white/green, or UF if you really enjoy having a miserable time pulling wire. If it's already THW, XHW, or the like, (even UF) great.

Connect the white wire going to the pump outlet to the neutral (silver) LOAD side screw on the GFCI. Connect the black (or red) wire leading to the pump outlet to the other side of the switch. Connect all the grounds together, and to the ground terminals on the switch, box and GFCI (ie, incoming wire, outgoing wire, a pigtail for switch, a pigtail for GFCI, a pigtail for box if metal box.)

The pump outlet is protected by the GFCI at the patio box, so just use a regular outlet at the far end of the pipe - "Double GFCI" doesn't really gain you anything. Connect the wires coming from the switch and load side of the GFCI to the outlet at the pump location, and connect the ground to the box if the box is metal. Plug in a GFCI outlet tester, verify that GFCI operation works. (A whopping $5 or so expense that should be useful for 20 years or until you lose it.)

Then plug in the pump. If the GFCI trips, either the pump wiring is at fault and needs to be replaced, or the pump is at fault and needs to be replaced.


How to remove broken light protector/cover from inside oven? I bought a 6 year old house, and the Previous Owners did basically zero maintenance.

The oven is a Bosch underbench electric unit, and it looks like the glass cap/protector for the interior light has broken off at some point, so they kept using the oven with the lamp exposed.  The lamp does turn on when in use.  I expect this has been left like this for at least 2 years, maybe up to 6 based on the condition of the rest of the oven.

This leads to a threadded glass ring welded into the fitting by dried/hardened food/oils, and looks like this:

I've got the replacement cover already, and its essentially a very short glass jar with one thread around the top so I know this ring should unscrew conventionally.

I've tried blasting it with conventional oven cleaner to dissolve the shite, but its not getting into the threads.

I've tried some other solvents like "Contact 60" an electrical contact cleaner, and some other household liquid cleaners hoping they'd wick up the threads, but that's made no difference.

There's around 4mm of "neck" exposed so I can grip it with one hand and rotate, but the whole light fitting is loose, and I don't want to overstress whatever mountpoints are there.  The glass is sharp too, so can't put too much pressure on it, even with a teatowel to hold it.

Do I have to open the oven and remove the whole light assembly, then work it on the bench?
Should I try to break the remaining glass with a hammer, or alternating heat and cold like cutting the neck off a beer bottle?  Feels risky.
Or do I give up and get a service wallah out to do it?

Edit : Here's the new fitting, to show what the old one will be like:

Good news - it came off!

A Hot air gun was useless as was a butane torch - I suspect the heat was not softening anything and the adhesives were well and truely burned on.  Perhaps spraying cold water on the hot glass might have helped crack it, but read on.

In the end I used a teatowel in one hand to cup the entire fitting and then pushed an "automatic punch" against the lip, and one piece cracked out on the first try.  Against the other side, it took a dozen hits before breaking the same way, with a vertical crack and a chunk out.

I left the lamp in place to protect the socket from any damage.  Its already got oil burned on the glass.

So then I could simply unscrew the remainder and it fell out in two pieces after one rotation, which I caught in the teatowel.

Not sure if it was the increased grip, or if it was the shock which broke the hold but it turned freely after that.

Despite using a damp catching cloth, there were heaps of tiny glass shards in the bottom of the oven.   Had I attempted to use heat and cold to crack the glass, it could have made a bigger mess.

Careful cleanup is required here - glass fragments are no fun near food.


Shared ground for 3 circuits My septic system requires 3 circuits.  A 10Amp & 2 20Amps. Using schedule 40 conduit in a 80ft run underground to the 3 pole  emergency service disconnect. Can these three circuits share a ground? And if so what size does it need to be?

On sharing ground, that's not a problem, it just needs to be sized for the largest circuit. You are vanishingly unlikely to have a ground fault on 2 circuits at once.   However:
You're up against a NEC 225.30 limit.  You can only run one feeder or circuit to an outside location, unless they are

Different voltages, frequencies, or uses. For example, control of outside lighting...

For instance, you can't run two 120V circuits out there.  You can, however, run two 120V circuits if one of them is switched inside the house.
You can also run, separately, a 120V, 120/240V, and 240V-only circuit.
So that gives you a fair variety.  Two 120V circuits can be accomplished as a 120/240 multi-wire branch circuit.
And then, of course, each circuit controlled differently  is entitled to a circuit - e.g. each section of outside lighting.  So if there's any question of putting the well pressure switch at the head vs at the house, put it at the house - it gives you a free circuit.
In fact, hold on -- won't that well pump be 240V*?  Of course it will.  Your shutoff needs to operate on every hot, so you need 2 blades in your shutoff switch just for the pump. Fortunately, you can have multiple shutoff switches, up to 6.

* By the way, the reason pumps are 240V is voltage drop -- it's not the run from house to well that gets ya, it's the run down the well, which can be hundreds of feet. Well pumps are at the bottom.


How to repair street end of driveway that has loose asphalt? The blacktop at the street end of my driveway is cracking after only 3 years (see photo below).  (I think the repaving was poorly done.)  The rest of the driveway has no cracks but is not perfectly flat.  I have filled in some of the cracks with a sealer that is applied by melting with a blowtorch, but some of the blacktop edge is already loose, not attached to anything.
I am thinking of trying to cut off the last 6 inches of the blacktop and replacing it with cobblestone?  Or with something else?  But I do not know much about asphalt.
Would such a repair work?  Would it save the rest of the driveway or just create more problems? Is making the repair as simple as cutting a straight line with a circular saw and putting in the cobblestone?  Or do I need to protect the cut edge from the weather?
I live in New York State where there are many days above and below freezing.
Thanks.

Asphalt is only as good as the base it's laid on.
The fact that you appear to have vegetation growing out of the cracks implies that the base may be a bit iffy right there.
There's no particular benefit to ripping up 6 feet of driveway and changing to cobblestone if you have a few inches deteriorating - since your picture only shows a small area, and the usual pattern is cracking near the edges, I'm guessing a much smaller area is actually cracked.
Changing to cobblestone does not magically solve anything - cobblestone is also only as good as its base, and is normally a lot more expensive, and it's hard to clear snow from effectively, which is needful in New York State. They can be very slippery and are inherently uneven.
An effective fix in any case will be to remove the damaged area, fix the base so it's solid, and then put (whatever) on top. Whatever could be new asphalt, concrete, or cobblestone. A solid base is excavating down below any traces of topsoil and filling with compacted "road base" - crushed stone including the fine dust, ideally, but that varies somewhat with locale and what's available. Compaction is important. When the base moves, the surface cracks.
One more possible factor is that the asphalt at the edge needs to be laid in "full thickness" - if the base is not cut down at the point where it butts into the road/street surface and you have a thin or tapered layer at the edge, failure is assured.


Is fumigated barn wood safe for indoor use? I have purchased a repurposed piece of barn wood (a beam). It was kiln-dried and fumigated by the company that sold it to me. I mentioned the beam to a friend who is experienced with wood work and living in Europe. He said if the wood was fumigated, it was no longer safe for indoor use and a health hazard. I contacted the seller to see what chemicals were used to fumigate the wood but don't know if I will get that information.

I love the beam and will keep it no matter what, but is it safe to use indoors? How can I find that out? What if I cant get an information about the chemicals used, is there any ways to have it tested?

Most likely it was fumigated with Sulfuryl fluoride

In the United States, most experts performing termite fumigation for residential buildings use a gas with the active ingredient sulfuryl fluoride.
After fumigation, the tent over the treatment area is removed, and the fumigant gases diffuse into the air, rapidly leaving your home. Following six hours of ventilation, your pest management professional will use devices that detect trace amounts of sulfuryl fluoride and chloropicrin in the air. According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), re-entry is not permitted until sulfuryl fluoride levels are 1 part per million or less. (During the fumigation, concentrations may reach 3,850 parts per million or higher.)

According to Cornell university, it quickly breaks down

Sulfuryl fluoride dissipates quickly in the atmosphere and is broken down through hydrolysis and photodegradation.

If it's been some time since the fumigation, it's likely safe enough to use indoors


How to measure replacement windows We had a quote to replace a laundry window (Home Depot - $1,000..!), so I’m going to try to do this myself. The quoted window size is 24 X 36, but seems most of them for sale online is 23.5 X 35.5. Does that 1/2 inch make a difference..?

You have a rough opening size (if you have removed the old window first) and the actual "in the wall" size of the replacement window, which must be smaller than the rough opening size to allow for shimming, out of square, etc. The default is to have it quite a bit smaller to allow for lots of shimming, but if you have checked the actual (.vs. planned in new construction but not yet built) opening you have, and checked that it is square and the sill is level, you can use less generous amounts of slop. i.e. I use "Masonry" rough opening sizes (smallest relative to the actual size) for the window openings in my structural insulated panel walls - they are not made of concrete, but they don't have the slop that studwalls are prone to.
When looking at windows you need to check what size they are claiming in the large print .vs. what the actual size (smaller, usually) is because of this, and the tendency to go for the bigger number for market purposes. There's also a matter of if you are doing the work in a way where you can use a "new construction" window that involves getting the window flashing under the siding, or if you need a "replacement window" that may be fitting into the old window's gutted frame, if the old window's gutted frame is solid, so it can use the old window's flashing and no siding disturbance is needed. Those are always smaller (glass area) than the window they replace, since you now have two frames around the glass.


The strangest 3-way light switches I live in a 2-story house. There is a set of staircase lights that was being controlled by two regular Leviton switches, one upstairs and one downstairs.
The downstairs gang box has only one socket for the switch, upon opening up the box I found that there are only four wires. White, Green, Black, and Red. It's missing the second black wire I usually see in other gang boxes. The WHITE wire is connected to the black screw of the Leviton switch. The red wire is connected to the gold screw above the black screw, the black wire is connected to the other gold screw, and the copper wire is connected to the green screw.
The upstairs gang box is also interesting. For the switch in question, the black screw is connected to a black black wire that's in its own sheath. The gold screw above it is connected to a black wire, which comes out from the same sheath from the red wire that's connected to the other gold screw, and the copper wire is connected to the green screw. The interesting part is that this socket's WHITE wire is twisted together with a cluster of BLACK wires which I think are the LINE wires for the other sockets.
When I was testing for line and load wires, the downstairs black screw was the LINE, but like I said the black screw is connected to the WHITE wire. I suspect the WHITE wire is carrying the LINE power from the upstairs cluster.
How should I install two smart (Brilliant) switches that have a black, red, white, and green wire and control the staircase lights?

This sounds normal:
"/3" cables have 4 wires - black, red, white, bare ground. So the color (except bare ground = green = ground etc.) is almost meaningless. Where in a normal setup, black = hot and white = neutral, with 3-ways you have a common wire (hot or switched-hot, depending on configuration) and two travelers. Since the travelers are "the same", they normally get the two non-white colors: black and red. And that is what you have. From the top:

Power comes in to the upstairs switch box on black, as usual. That is connected to the white wire (common = hot in this case) going down to the downstairs switch.
The white goes down to the downstairs switch and black and red travelers come back from the downstairs switch to the upstairs switch, all in one cable (and they must be all together, can't use a black/white cable + an extra separate wire).
The downstairs switch has white = common (black screw) and black/red = travelers (brass screws)
The upstairs switch gets black/red = travelers (brass screws) and black = switched hot (black screw). Note that the white that is "with" the travelers does not touch this switch.

One piece you didn't mention that is very important: There should be a white wire together with the black switched hot wire. That white wire is a neutral and should be connected to all other whites in the box except for the white that heads to the downstairs switch. If that is correct, then this is a standard setup.
The catch with replacing with smart switches is that most (not all) expect to have hot & neutral available in the same place. You have that possible but not as currently configured. The upstairs switch has travelers and switched hot and has neutral available.  The downstairs switch has travelers and hot but it does not have neutral available.
The solution is to rearrange things a bit. Instead of the downstairs switch being "1" and the upstairs "2", make the upstairs "1" and the downstairs "2".

Disconnect the black wire going to the light from the black screw of the upstairs switch.
Disconnect the white wire from the incoming black hot wire and connect it instead to the black wire going to the light. That white wire becomes switched hot instead of hot.
Connect the incoming black hot wire (you'll need to add a pigtail) to the black screw on the upstairs switch.

Now the upstairs switch is connected to hot + travelers, and neutral is in the same box. That should allow for a "standard" replacement with a smart switch.


How should I run Cat5e cable between rafters? I've got cathedral ceilings with no attic space and 2x8 rafters.  There is no space to run wiring without going through the rafters.  At the moment I've got my eaves open for an unrelated problem and thought this would be a good opportunity to run some CAT5e that I want to get from one end of the house to the other.  I don't want to negatively impact the structural integrity of the rafters.  Is it safe to drill into the rafters?  I've read that drilling in rafters ought to be done in the center of the beam, but wanted to get an opinion from someone who is experienced and familiar with building code.

You should be fine if you're just a tiny bit careful.

You should not notch these, but careful drilling should be perfectly fine.

It's totally okay, for example, to trim the ends off of these--they aren't supporting the roof load, only supporting the overhang itself. (drilling through the trusses on the inside is another matter entirely!)

My first thought was I'd use a bit just large enough to poke the Cat5e cable through, drill exactly in the center of the top chord (the "beam") about 2/3 of the way back from the end.

In general, you don't want to drill too close to the ends of a beam (or you run the risk of it splitting). If you're only drilling a 1/8th (or so) inch hole, back away from the edge, I can't imagine this being a problem.

Or drill two small holes or one slightly larger one and pull 2 cables.

But why not consider using conduit, just for a bit of future proofing? Maybe you decide you want to pull an HDMI cable six months from now, or something else?

Hardly anybody used conduit when they pulled co-ax cable through their walls a couple of decades ago, and now you'd much rather have HDMI running through the walls. With conduit, pulling different or additional cable would be a much easier task.

You could just pull 1/2" or 3/4" EMT, or maybe you could even get away with 1" (3/4" might be just big enough to pull something with pre-attached ends like HDMI). EMT would be the most stable option.

You could run a raceway under the eave, but if it's plastic you might really be surprised at the amount of thermal expansion and contraction it will undergo as the seasons change, and you could end up with it warped and pulling away from the wall.

I would avoid the grey PVC electrical conduit because it expands and contracts to an extent you wouldn't believe and you have to use expansion couplings and leave everything loose enough (bigger holes) that it doesn't bind.

Another option might be ribbed flexible low-voltage PVC conduit (it'll typically be orange or blue).

But the more I think about it, I'd just use 1/2" or 3/4" metal conduit.

You obviously want to pull at least Cat5e, but you might consider pulling Cat6A or even Cat7 just to be future-proof. Cat5e is fine for Gigabit Ethernet (up to 125 Megabytes per second in both directions simultaneously). Cat6A will definitely support 10Gbps Ethernet (over a Gigabyte per second), and presumably future Ethernet enhancements will be able to push even more over Cat7. Cat 6A and Cat 7 are harder to terminate, with all the shielding and the heavier jacket, but you're not talking about doing very many terminations.

What I'm really getting at is that without pulling any additional cables, especially if you pull 2 now, you can use the cable you pull as a trunk link between two Ethernet switches to transparently connect your whole house into one network, and in a home setting you will never suffer any performance problems doing that.

As far as drilling these rafter ends: If you think about a steel I beam, virtually all of the load is carried in the top and bottom plates of the beam, and the material between the plates just serves to keep them apart from each other. That's why the I beam can have all the material removed from both sides instead of being one massive solid beam. In fact the massive beam would be weaker because the top and bottom surfaces aren't really any stronger than in an I beam, but the beam would have to support many times the weight just to hold itself up.

There's less load in that vertical section of the beam the further you get from the edges, and virtually no load in the dead center. Manufactured floor joists operate on the same principle and that's why you'll see surprisingly large holes cut in the middle of those joists without it affecting the integrity of the floor (presuming the holes aren't drilled too close to the ends).

If you cut a notch in the top or bottom plate of the joist, on the other hand, you've compromised it, or ruined it. In the case of manufactured trusses and joists, the manufacturer will have very specific instructions on where you can drill, how big, how many holes, how far apart they have to be, etc.

But here, you're talking about the overhang. The structural load of the roof is resting on the wall and you could cut most of that overhang off without affecting it.


Dowel size versus hole size Should the dowel used be the same size as the hole or a bit bigger? If bigger, by how much? The holes I have are 3/8" in some cheap wooden chairs.

The holes are typically the same size as the dowel. Dowels are usually compressed wood, compressed in such a way that it leave lengthwise grooves in the sides all around. These grooves serve as a relief for the glue when the dowels are inserted, both dowel and hole should be coated. When the glue soaks in the dowel, the dowel will swell the dowel the little bit it was compressed, so it fits even tighter.


How do I remove these fence post spikes? I want to buy these:

To replace my existing ones:

I want to remove the old ones. What is the easiest way to pull them out?

I'd say to use a farm jack.

Use a pry-bar or a 2x4 and a block of wood till you can fit a farm jack under it.
happy jacking.


How to stop bricks pushing out while drilling? I need to add an extractor fan to our utility room so I started drilling a hole using a core drill bit from the inside to outside. Its a standard UK brick cavity wall, so brick > insulation > brick. I got through the inner brick wall no problem, but when I started going through the outer wall, rather than cutting the brick I actually ended up pushing the brick out slightly.

After going outside to check, I realised the mortar had vibrated out while drilling, so I re-pointed up and left it a week to dry. Tried again, being quite light on the pressure and same thing happened again. I'm about a third of the way through the second row of bricks.

What can I do to stop these bricks pushing out while I'm drilling the bore hole for the extractor fan?

I would suggest re-doing the cement for the bricks, allow to dry.

Then once hard I would secure a wood panel (12" or 15" square) over that area to help hold the bricks back.

Then drill gently.


When would a paint-roller be considered "worn out"? I am in the middle of a lengthy project that involved numerous skills, one of which is painting panels of wood. I've got a roller and tray, but this is the first time I have had my own painting equipment to look after. How do experienced painters tell when the roller is better thrown out than washed? I can still get a nap on the roller, but it's difficult to tell what colour it was as I just can't wash all the paint out.

If you can't get all the paint out then that's a good time to think about replacing it.

The problems you might get are some paint flecks from the old paint coming off onto the newly painted surface - which will ruin the finish, or some of the old colour leaking into the new.

I wouldn't worry about the colour of the roller material itself and it is a good sign that you can still get a nap on the roller.


Do I need to do anything special when drilling a hole for a deadbolt in a 2 inch door? I'm trying to install a deadbolt on our front door that currently only has a locking handle. All of the things I've read online are for doors that are up to 1 3/4 inches thick, but my door is 2 inches thick.

Will there be any difference besides possibly needing longer screws to get the two halves to meet?

No, actually, the locking rod is made to snap off at various lengths, to make up for varying door thicknesses.

Make sure to center the bolt itself on the door edge. Disregard the factory template, as it will be based on a different door thickness.


Small bedroom recessed lighting My 10x10 bedroom has one funky light fixture in the center. Can I get away with replacing it with one recessed light?

I wonder if one is enough to light up the whole room with it being recessed and all. You might wanna consider doing more than one.


Moving washer machine 7 feet from trap Can I still use existing drain, p trap & vent that's in place by extending drain pipe from new location to existing trap?

It depends on 1) how high your washing machine pump can eject water and 2) how high your existing drain already is. You have to be especially cautious with upright (non-high efficiency) washers as they dump a lot of water very quickly with each cycle and this can overwhelm a slow drain even if it meets code.

In the worst case scenario, you’ll need a gray water pump to help pump the wastewater out to the drain location. Any plumber should be able to help you with that.

Note that your dryer will also have a maximum distance, height, and number of air ducting bends that its vent motor can handle.


How can I remove excess commercial flooring tile adhesive? I just covered the floor of my small indoor storage room with Armstrong commercial flooring tiles.  I used the proper adhesive for the application that I got in the same department at the big box store as the tiles.  Unfortunately, I messed up a little and some adhesive got squeezed up through the joints when I was setting the tiles, which I tried to wipe with a wet paper towel but did not succeed entirely.

So now, when I walk, my shoes stick to the tiles.  I wonder if there is some cleaning solution that I can use to remove the tacky goo, but that won't leak through the joints and weaken the tiles grip on the floor.

Does the container for the adhesive suggest anything for cleanup? Maybe mineral spirits or acetone? Be careful with those on your tiles though. Maybe "goof off" would work.


Transferring anchor locations from the wall to plywood I need to attach two sheets of plywood to drywall. One in the closet to mount networking equipment and the other one overhead to mount climbing training board. The closet one does not have to be as sturdy, but I intend to use it as a test for the mounting process.

My walls have narrowly spaced steel studs. I plan to use toggler snaptoggle anchors, carefully locate the studs and install anchors right into them.

The next step puzzles me: how do I reliably transfer anchor locations from the wall to the plywood to drill bolt holes?

I was thinking of employing some sort of coordinate transfer method with a ruler, but I’m not sure it will be precise enough (in my execution).

If I didn’t have to choose anchor location carefully, I’d just drill through the plywood & the wall and would get perfectly matching holes. What to do if anchor are pre-installed?

IMO, the most accurate would be to create a template out of a lighter material, maybe builders paper, the thick brown paper that comes in rolls.  Create a piece the exact size of the ply, tape two together if necessary.

Tape it up on the wall, mark the edges and then the stud mounting points.  Move the paper to the ply and drill your pilot holes.  Hold the board up to the wall, match up your marks and then fasten away.

The sequence may not match your fastener type, but I hope you get my point.

I think this is the most surefire way to guard against oddly spaced and non-plumb studs.


Primer not adhering to paint I am priming some walls which have two different paints exposed. The previous painter did not remove the coax cover plate when painting, and that older paint is causing problems for the primer. I'm using kilz2 latex primer.

Any ideas on a cause and a solution?

Sand the problem area to scuff up the surface for better primer adhesion.

If that doesn't work or if it's possible that the underlying paint contains lead (which is not safe to sand) then an oil or shellac-based primer may work better.


Anchors for concrete - what to use on a concrete ceiling? When it comes to concrete, besides metal anchors like lag shield we have the plastic ones being: wall plug, plastic anchor and ribbed anchor. Is there any other (non-metal) anchor that can be used on concrete?
Plastic anchors are by far the most popular. You get them when buying stuff to hang on the wall.
However in my research it seems that wall plugs (below) are better rated (higher weight support).

Source: https://www.rolliers.com/blog/post/helpful-tip--choose-the-fastener-right-for-the-job
While wall plugs are not as or even more popular than plastic anchors if they are better rated? I've never received them in products purchased, it has always been plastic anchors.
Personally, it seems to me they would just slip (especially from the ceiling) as they seem to be smooth outside.
I have a project to hang a wood panel to the (concrete) ceiling. I was checking about non-metal anchors because metal anchors wouldn't allow multiple replacements of this panel and also usually requires big holes/damages. I know Tapcon would be the most recommended, but I wouldn't be able to reuse the hole when replacing the panel so it's a no for me. I found these three types listed above, and also read about one with/made of "lead" (if not mistaken).
So, I'm curious as to why one would use plastic anchors when ribbed anchors look to be better, and why use ribbed anchors when wall plugs are rated for heavier stuff.
Like everything, I know there are specific situations. However I could not find when one would not use a wall plug and instead go with a plastic (non-ribbed) anchor.
For hanging stuff on the ceiling, which non-metallic anchor would be the best?
I appreciate any insight on that!

It is risky ,no matter what you use. A concrete floor/road is basically in compression. The bottom of your ceiling is in tension and concrete is generally considered to have no or poor tensile strength. There should be steel rebar in the ceiling , I would verify the presence and amount of rebar before putting holes in the concrete. Each of those anchors works by putting compressive force on the concrete in the concrete ; this compressive ( expansion ) adds to the tensile stress. I would check with local contractors and find out what they do.


remove sheared screw from electrical outlet box? A previous owner of my house (I swear it was not me :) ) appears to have broken off a screw in the hole (red circle) that allows the bottom of the outlet to attach to the box, leaving only the top hole (yellow circle) free to attach the outlet to.  What's the best way to get the screw out?  I know that one option is described in Removing broken screw from electrical box, but I'd like to preserve the existing threads if possible.  I tried grabbing it with needle-nosed pliers from the front and twisting it out, but it appears stuck either via corrosion or because it's the wrong size (although they did get it in that far).  I was thinking of trying the following approach:

apply WD-40 to the hole in the front and back to loosen up any rust
try grabbing it from behind the hole with curved needle-nosed pliers and see if I can at least move it out a little bit farther
if I can move it with the pliers, either unscrew it all the way, or get it out far enough that I could cut a groove in it to put a flathead screwdriver in

I could just try cutting the groove now, but that seems risky given that it might be stuck in there pretty well if it's the wrong size, and I don't currently have a lot of room for error if I cut it incorrectly.

What do you think?  Thanks in advance for any help!

Corrosion isn't your problem. The screw was too long and it bottomed out on what looks like a cable clamp in the box.   The screw is in compression.  If you get in there with a Dremel with the tiny cutoff wheel, you should be able to saw through it.  Once you do the compression will be gone and you should be able to finger-spin it out.

It looks like his mistake was using extra long screws because of the depth of the plaster there.   And he went extra extra long, and was too long and bottomed out.   Choose length more carefully, or use the feature on your wire stripper to cut bolts.


foam roller vs brush for fiberglass door painting a fiberglass door with semi-gloss latex.  Looking for that smooth glossy finish (yes I know spray would be optimum).  Would it be best to use a foam roller or a brush?
thanks

Use a smooth foam roller, maybe sand and second coat, then buff. But yes spray would be better.


Dangers from intermittent phase issues while experiencing a electrical phase issue (loose/failing service connection causing brief outages on one phase), what dangers is there to things plugged in?  Any actions to take to either eliminate or reduce them?

I have already taken the time to unplug the major electronic items, and I'm sure other things will take the brief outages well enough, but what about 240v appliances and things like the fridge and freezer?

[Ohio, United States]

You may not have trouble with your appliances, but the intermittent connection could be generating an enormous amount of heat and spark an electrical fire. If the intermittent connection is on the utility pole then you probably don't need to feel responsible; if it's in your breaker box or in your wall then you should be extremely concerned.

As a rule of thumb, a loose connection where your lights are either completely on or completely off isn't a concern; it's the times when your lights are half on where that connection can be dissipating an enormous amount of energy. Worst case, the connection could be dissipating on the order of one quarter of the full usual load, so with a 3400W electric dryer you could have almost a kilowatt of power heating up that connection. Could get entertaining fast.


Dimensional treated yellow pine lumber, non-standard widths? I ordered lumber from Lowes for building deck beams, but now I realize after putting up the beam that while they are all level, the boards are of slightly different widths.

Of the 2x10 boards I had for both the ledger and the beams thus far, everything tells me that they should be 9 1/4" actual, when in reality they are mostly 9 1/2" and some of the beam boards are 9 3/8" actual.

Is this normal for weather treated wood to swell a bit after it is planed and cut?  Any ideas on how to get the joists to set evenly on the beams now?  I figured if a beam is slightly too high then I could notch the top of the beam for the joist, but if it is too low by a 1/4" perhaps that I might have to shim it?

This is sort of throwing everything I know for a loop.  When I get dimensional lumber then it should all be of uniform width.  Apparently this is not true anymore.

Reorder the beams so they are installed from shortest to tallest, with same heights together in sequence.  I would place the tallest next to the building.

With a little luck, a board across them will create a straight line.  If it does not, how much variation could there be?  1/16th inch?  1/32nd?  If you are blessed with perfect climate which will not distort the lumber's dimensions, then maybe some sliver shims are called for.  Otherwise, prohibit your guests from laying down and gazing across the decking.


Replacing Exterior Back Door I want to replace my exterior back door with a new model/etc of the same size. What I'm wondering is if I have to replace the frame of the door as well or can I simply just buy the door and bolt it in? The door size is typical/standard back door size.

What should I consider doing? Replace the whole thing or just the door? Any opinions?

It will often cost less to replace the door and frame as a unit. Custom-fitting a door is a fussy process. A pre-hung door and frame as a pre-matched set is a factory-built item. If you can get over the horror of ripping the frame out, it's generally faster to complete the job, as well.

However, if your doorframe is an architecturally significant old thing, replacing just the door may be the better approach - most new doors & frames are best for replacing cookie-cutter ticky-tacky doors and frames as found on many, but not all houses; they will look just the same, in most cases. [pun intended - RIP, Mr. Seeger]


Will 1x4's and 1x6's be enough for an aquarium stand? I'm building an aquarium stand, with only wood and screws. I'm only equipped with a miter saw, a drill, and some hand powered saws and a leveler- this will be my first woodworking project. The goal is to have a stand that will hold a 35-40 gallon aquarium that will weigh at most 500lbs. But I am hoping this stand could hold 900-1000 lbs. (If I were to sell this, it's footprint is able to hold 75-gallon aquarium)

On the interior corners, it will have a 2x4 that spans top to bottom (30in) that the other pieces will screw into. I can use 2x4's and 2x6's for the other lengths as well, but I was hoping to use 1-inch thick common board to keep the weight of the stand down.

The finished product would have 1/4in plywood on all sides and 1/2 on the top. I was also planning on adding two handles on each end (drilled into the internal 2x4) for ease of transport.

...

So here are the bulk of my concerns.

Would using 2x4's and 2x6's instead of 1x4's and 1x6's be a better choice ultimately?

Would this design be able to take lateral pressure?

What alterations should I make to make it safe for 1000lbs?

Will the center piece (The one drawn in dashes) on the face and back be of any benefit? Or can it be left out entirely?

Should I use 1/2inch plywood on all sides instead?

The footprint of my aquarium is smaller than the stand, so it's edges won't be lined up with the frame, is that still safe?
Aquarium is 36x15in and stand is 38x20in

The picture isn't entirely to scale, but it's close enough to get the point across.

Edit
Updated Design - Forgot to add the two "joists" to the top and bottom.

Use 2x material... it's probably cheaper, stronger, and gives you more surface to screw into. (edit: this was based on the original question -- 'use 1x or 2x material?')

1/2" ply would probably be fine, but I'd suggest you upgrade to at least 5/8" ply (or whatever the horrible version of that is in the box stores -- 19/32"?!?) to skin the exterior. Construction adhesive would also be a recommended upgrade. Screws every foot or so.

With a plywood skin on 4 sides and the top, lateral pressure won't be a problem.

Thicker ply and 2x materials should make this adequate for 1000#, but only you can be the judge. (Maybe we need a bounty to decide what the best testing methodology is... I vote that you take it to a big box store and start loading bags of concrete on it.)

For the top, if you aren't sure that your weight will be bearing on the wood, 5/8" ply wouldn't hurt, either. One cross-brace would probably be all you need to keep the top from sagging and help keep the entire unit from wobbling.

Design-wise, you can make your life somewhat easier by double-thicknessing the legs and lapping them. (Can sketch if needed.) The 2x6 at the bottom could be replaced by a 2x4. (edit: this comment was based on an earlier sketch...)

Edit: let's see if I can add a sketch...

(sigh. after 2 attempts, I can't get it to rotate properly. Sorry.)


Wiring 100-amp sub-panel for 1hp pool pump and heater The project is to wire a 125-amp sub-panel from the main, approx. 50 feet away to serve a 220v in-ground 1hp pool pump, heat pump, and 120v LED pool light.

Wondering if the following plan will suffice;

Exit the main panel with a 2 pole 220-volt, 125-amp breaker.
Run 50-feet of #2 aluminum triplex, and #8 insulated ground to the sub-panel location.
Install 125-amp main breaker in sub-panel.
Install 60-amp 2 pole, 220v GFI breaker serving pool pump; #6 wire.
Install 40-amp 2 pole, 220v GFI breaker serving heat pump; #8 wire.
Install 15-amp breaker serving GFI protected 120v for LED pool light; #12 wire.

Specific questions;

Can I direct bury the wire, and then enclose in PVC conduit where it goes above ground to enter the panels?
Will the #2 aluminum triplex, with a #8 insulated ground suffice?
Confirming that in the sub-panel, I DO NOT need to bond the neutral and equipment ground.
Is there likely a better way of going about this?

Update
The following is the proposed wiring:

I will answer your questions in turn, and then add a few notes at the end -- the code for pools is complex, partly because they are bespoke installations for the most part and partly because of how pool electrical safety evolved over time.

You actually cannot do this -- the wire run must be in conduit as per 680.25(A)(1).  You can use Schedule 80 PVC or RTRC-XW for the entire run provided the stub-up is protected from physical damage (i.e. being clobbered with a mower or whatnot -- 4x4 corner posts around the panel should do the trick, as would mounting it in a drained pump room or pit using an outdoor enclosure, provided clear working space is maintained).  Otherwise, you're stuck with RMC or IMC (NOT EMT) -- likely red brass to avoid corrosion.
That 125A number is overkill, requiring a 1/0 or 2/0 triplex in Al.  I'd recommend instead using individual XHHW-2 Al conductors instead of a triplex (with an 8AWG copper THWN-2 or XHHW-2 wire for the EGC, of course) -- this will be easier to get through the conduit than a triplex, and also isn't liable to short the neutral to ground unexpectedly if you're running it in red brass.  (Conductor/subpanel sizing advice is below, if you wish it.)
You are correct -- never bond neutral and ground in a subpanel.
Your overall plan seems sound, provided the subpanel is correctly placed (it cannot be within 5' of the nearest edge of the pool).

Additionally, given the type of pool you are dealing with, there are a few additional points to consider:

You'll need a convenience receptacle somewhere outside 6' but within 20' of the pool -- this can be at the subpanel, attached to the lighting circuit and protected by its GFCI.  (While you don't need GFCI protection on a lighting circuit that's feeding listed low-voltage ground-free luminaires -- it's cheap insurance.)
Your branch circuits will need to be run in conduit as well -- either red brass RMC or IMC, or Schedule 80 PVC or RTRC-XW if you wish to use nonmetallic conduit. In any case, you must run an insulated EGC with the branch circuit.
EQUIPOTENTIAL BOND ALL THE THINGS.  If it is conductive, not a hot or a neutral, and is within 5' of the pool, don't take a chance -- just hook it up to the equipotential grid.  In your case, since your pool is vinyl-lined, you do not need to run the grid under the pool, just as part of the perimeter paving -- 12" O.C. 8AWG bare copper is used for at least 3' beyond the sides of the pool, with cadwelded (i.e. exothermically welded) or otherwise listed connections.  You'll also need to hook this grid up to the pool pump motor's ground wire (which is where it'll tie into the electrical system's equipment grounding system -- for a double-insulated pool pump, just run an EGC down to the pump's j-box as normal and tie the equipotential bond wire to it there), and to an underwater equipotential bonding electrode made from corrosion-resistant materials that has a minimum of 9 in^2 of surface area and can't be damaged by pool activity if there is no bonded metal in contact with the pool water.  Also, I recommend running another bare wire from the grid to the subpanel itself, directly -- this is insurance against the EGC connection at the pump motor getting undone.

As to that forum that told you not to bond the equipotential grid to the house grounding system, whoever was posting that there is full of baloney, to put it extremely mildly.  NEC 680.26(B)(6)(a) explains it most clearly (strong emphasis mine):

  (a) Double-Insulated Water Pump Motors. Where a double-insulated water pump motor is installed under the provisions of this rule, a solid 8 AWG copper conductor of sufficient length to make a bonding connection to a replacement motor shall be extended from the bonding grid to an accessible point in the vicinity of the pool pump motor. Where there is no connection between the swimming pool bonding grid and the equipment grounding system for the premises, this bonding conductor shall be connected to the equipment
  grounding conductor of the motor circuit.

Finally, as to that 125A number, it's hooey -- the pool pump motor is 8FLA@240V as per Table 430.248 and uses a 20A breaker from table 430.52, not the whopping 60A fib that you were told.  In fact, that 60A number that they're giving you just for the pump is enough to leave 1200VA (600 per leg) for lighting and convenience receptacle loads after the 10A max load from the pool pump and the 40A number given for the heat pump -- which is well over three times the 180VA/outlet the Code tells you to allocate to general receptacles and outlets that aren't covered by other loads.

With that information in hand, we can run 4 6AWG THWNs for the feeder, just as you propose, and 14AWG for the pool pump as 430.22 specifies a conductor rating of 125% of FLA, or 10A in your case.  (You can also use 14AWG for the receptacle/lighting circuit -- nothing says it has to be 20A.)


Replacing light fixture from 2 wires and ground to 2 wires only I want to change a chandelier with 2 wires and ground to a small 2 wire with no ground light. Is this safe and possible? It is also on a three way switch..

You've asked the right question with "is this safe".  You can install the two wires and no ground and the fixture will function just fine and probably never have any issues, but the ground is there because of that "probably".

If something is wired incorrectly or a connection comes loose or a wire is damaged that ground becomes very important very quickly.  It can be the difference between getting a dangerous shock from the fixture and having a breaker safely trip when the issue arises.

If this is a new fixture that was designed without a ground wire, it could be what is called "double insulated" (rare in light fixtures from my experience).  Basically that means that even if there is an electrical fault, the outer housing of the device will not electrocute you.  If this is an old fixture, the ground wire has probably come off or it was never designed with one.  A picture of the fixture would help, but the basic rule is that the metal housing of the fixture should be grounded.


How can I subfeed a single pole switch from a 3-way switch to control a fluorescent light? I have an overhead utility room light that is controlled by two 3-way switches.  I have added a light over the washer and dryer that I'd like to control from a single pole switch.  I could only add the single pole switch to the non directly powered 3 way switch box.  I am okay with the light only coming on with the one 3 way switch being powered on.  How do I do this?  The only thing I have found is how to make it power up when the overhead light is turned off by the 3 way I want to feed it.

That's not so clever. The problem is if the washer light is ON, and the utility room light is OFF, then flipping the farther 3-way will turn the washer light OFF and the utility room light ON, necessitating a trip to the other 3-way to put it right.

You need a major reassignment of wire functions in the 3-way circuit.

Ground is ground
White is neutral, always
Black is always-hot, always
Red is a digital control line (or it can be a relay actuation signal line)

The 3-way box that feeds the lamp gets the "master" smart switch (or a 3-way and the relay).  The "remote" smart switch goes in the other 3-way box.  Some smart switches use a data-communication wire, that's what red is for. Others use radio or powerline-induction signaling, in that case red is unused.

Now there's always-hot and neutral in every box regardless of the topology of the 3-way system.   Now you can add the second 1-way switch in the normal fashion for adding a 1-way.


What options are available for gap between interior door frame and wall? There are is gap (approx 0.1cm to 0.4cm) between the interior door frame and wall as shown below. (on the left side is the wall, middle is the gap, right side if the interior wooden door frame)

What are the options available to resolve it and kindly give the pros and cons for each options. Thank you.

For small gaps between wooden trim such as doorframes and plastered walls I use a "Flexible gap filler" - available at any DIY store. Spending a few minutes reading the containers carefully and asking store assistants will get you a product you can try.

Description from a randomly selected product

  This flexible filler achieves a white crack-free fill between two surfaces where movement can occur. Controlled application is ideal for long linear gaps.

  For flexible, crack-free filling between two surfaces where movement can occur.
  Easily controlled application for long linear gaps.
  For indoor and outdoor use.

Another one

  An acrylic filler for draught proofing and filling fine cracks. Can be sanded, overpainted or papered over. Solvent free formulation.

  Interior or Exterior Use: Interior
  Application Method: Knife
  Colour: White
  Size: 310 ml
  Type: Ready Mixed Filler

It is often a good idea to rake out the corner first, to remove loose or weak paint. Then sand as necessary before cleaning and filling.


Do newly lined wood burning fireplace chimneys need to be broken in? About 9 months ago I had my masonry chimney lined with a stainless steel liner. The fireplace has been sealed for 20+ years.  I am hoping to finally be able to use the fireplace over the holidays. Is there any sort of break-in procedure that needs to be followed with a fireplace that has not been used in a long time and a newly lined chimney?

The 20+ years became a non-issue with the relining 9 months ago, assuming that was done properly and inspected when finished by somone qualified to inspect it (presumably the installers, in most cases.)

Always a good idea to burn a small wad of newspaper before getting a full fire going to be sure that no birds opted to nest in there these past 9 months, blocking the re-lined flue. If smoke goes up, go ahead and build a fire.

Responding to comment: correct, no "break in" is needed for a stainless steel liner - install it, use it.


How do I replace a GFCI receptacle in my bathroom? we're remodeling our bathroom and were simply looking to switch out 20 year old light almond outlets and light switches for white.  While I thought this would be easy I've run into a problem with the outlet by the sink.  I'm no electrician, but I do have a physics degree so I can understand diagrams and the basic way electricity works yet now I can fully appreciate how difficult it can be.

The box used to be a 15 amp 120V  60Hz GFCI and a 15 amp 125V non GFCI outlet.  From the store I bought two 20 amp 125v 60Hz GFCI outlets, and I have two 15 amp 125V non GFCI outlets hoping this would be all I needed to get this puzzle figured out (and I heard you needed 20 amp for the bathroom for hairdryers and
such).

Coming into the box (It seems very old, it is metal while the others were more of a blue plastic) are 1 white, 1 black and 1 red wire, then a ground wire.  I've tried to connect just the black and white to the line in the GFCI, then I tried red to hot and that didn't work either.  I was hoping to get the GFCI to work itself before trying any LOAD options for the second outlet. Which, according to code does it have to be another GFCI, or just connected through the GFCI so it offered protection for both?  I'd eventually like to have two connections from this box like there were before, but I also want to keep things  within code (I'm not sure it was before) so while it may take some dry wall fun,  I could convert it to a single box if allowed/only way it will work.

Also from reading some problems, others have had a problem with the breaker being the wrong type?  I looked at the switch and it has a 15 on it (since other switches have 20s on them, I'm assuming this is for the amps) so is it against code to just purchase 15 amp GCFI rather than having to do some wiring I haven't  the slightest idea how to do, or is the 20 amp simply recommended? I don't remember ever having a problem with it before.

Let's see if we can answer this in pictures.  For one feed from the breaker panel, to have each of the outlets on their own GFCI, you want this:

For one feed from the breaker panel to have one GFCI protecting downstream outlets, you want this:

However, you say that you have a red and a black wire in the box, and this complicates things.  You might have a MWBC (multi-wire branch circuit) feeding the outlets, with the red hot on one outlet and the black hot on the other:

Or, you could have something else in this outlet, in which case (espcially if you don't feel confident) you really need to contact an electrician to get it sorted out.


How to measure voltage AC using multi-meter In the process of looking at why my doorbell is not working, I used a multi-meter to check Voltage AC.  (I am very basic at electricals though).

How would you check the voltage AC on a wire?  Where does the black and red leads have to go.  I am told that the black lead needs to go to your earth cable.  Is this so?  If you don't have access to earth, what do you do?  Can black go to a large metal object?

Thank you.

First, make sure you multimeter is set to measuring AC voltage. If your meter has multiple AC voltage range (e.g. 1000, 100V, 10V), use the largest one.

Make sure the black lead goes into the "COM" jack and the red lead into the the jack with a letter "V" (or something like "VΩ", but not "A" or "mA").

When measuring, remember voltage is always measured between the black wire and the red wire. So in your earlier question, you could measure something like "the voltage between (1) and (2)" by touching (1) with red and touching (2) with black. It does not make sense to say "the voltage of (1)" without mentioning a reference.

Of course you can measure the voltage between a point in a circuit and the ground, by sticking the black wire into the ground wire ("earth cable"). But if the circuit itself is not grounded, or the "earth cable" is not actually connected to the ground, that voltage doesn't mean anything.


My ceiling fan light turns off then back on after I replaced the switch from a dimmer to a standard I recently installed a ceiling fan that has a light. It worked perfectly except the motor was very loud and hummed. I read that replacing the  previous dimmer switch with a standard switch helped. It stopped the loud humming, but now occasionally the light turns off, then turns on again. I can’t find anything specific to this dilemma. Any suggestions? Thank you!

If the lights flicker (or just occasionally blink off then on) when the fan is running, it could be that one of the wire connections is loose and vibrating as the fan runs, causing an intermittent disconnect.
Turn off the power and double check that all of your wire nuts are securely tightened. Hold the nut and pull on each wire to ensure it doesn't wiggle at all or worse, just come out.
As a side note, a standard, fully variable dimmer will allow the fan to run at speeds it's not designed to, thus creating the annoying humming/buzzing sound you don't like. If you purchase a 3-position dimmer - usually labeled as a 3-speed fan switch - it will allow the fan to run at the 3 speeds it's designed to, so you can have different settings from the wall.
We've used these on all of our ceiling fans for nearly 30 years and nary a buzz. Once installed, put the wall switch on "high", then pull the fan-speed pull-chain on the fan until the fan is actually on it's highest speed. Now the wall switch will correctly control the fan speed without issue.
You will, though, need some extra wire in the wall to control the lights & fan independently. If you don't have that, then ignore the fan speed controller suggestion, but do double check all your wiring.


How do you push a cable through a standard conduit inside the wall? I want to expand my network and transmit it wired through my home and office (in another floor). I know the IT part kind of well, but don't know how to push the network cable through a conduit (already know where's the entry and exit). Do you need a special tool for this?

You don't push, you pull. If you have an assistant, they can push while you pull.

Rather than waste money on a fish-tape for a job with conduit in place, just connect a vacuum cleaner to one end and feed string from the other end. You can tie a bit of plastic bag to the end of the string to make it vacuum in better, but a bare string will work for short runs.

Check at the vacuum cleaner end and stop when the string is there. If you need more of a pull, use the string to pull in a rope - either way, attach to the cable and pull it through. Braided hollow poly rope is good, but if the pull is not unreasonable a strong string will work. Tie in and tape on well, keeping it smooth.

I have done this rather a lot. The only place I want fish tapes is if I'm trying to hook two of them in a wall without conduit that I can't just rip open for access. Pulling tape is more useful, but likely overkill for a job in your house (it's a flat, flexible tape somewhere between string and rope, often marked so you can measure distance with it, too.)

In most cases if a conduit has other wires in it, you will be better off pulling those out (use them to pull in a rope) adding the new cable, and pulling all of them in at once - adding a cable is considerably more difficult with other cables in place.


Framing on top of brick halfwall I have this wall that I'm wanting to make into a flat wall. I plan to use furring strips with rigid foam insulation on the bottom brick half. Then another wall of 2x4 studs in front of the existing ones, notching them for the PEX, etc.
My question is, how do I go about setting this second wall on the ledge to make it flush? Do I align the bottom plate (which will be sitting on the existing ledge) outwards into the room to account for the foam board that will be on the brick face?
Has anyone done something like this? I'm open to new ideas as well, just been building a bathroom to fit the existing layout.

If it was me I would use 2x2 steel stud in front of the brick ( assuming that gives enough room for required r value). Wood that thin doesn't really hold shape very well it tends to curve and banana. A disadvantage of 2x2 steel would be that it isn't very strong if you need to hang anything off of the wall. If you did need to hang something like a TV then you could frame in a section of three-quarter inch plywood.

In terms of running your pipes ensure that they are on the house side of the insulation. Do not bury water pipes in insulation if your region experiences freezing temperatures.

With this method you have one continuous plumb and flat wall from floor to ceiling. Then you are free to do whatever you want to do in behind it. I would add some ties to aid with lateral movement.


How can I effectively replace sections of 7/8" plaster with drywall? We had to take down several large sections, about 6x4ft sections, in order to run updated electric. The problem is that the 3 layer plaster is 7/8in thick. What is my best solution to put up new even thickness drywall? Most of it will be hidden under our new kitchen cabinets.

Shim out the framing to get the drywall flush. I've often used 5/8" drywall with no shims, depending on the plaster thickness and patch configuration, but otherwise shim it.

1/8" hardboard is cheap and easy to work with. Or rip some scrap lumber to size. Staple it in place and be happy.

Update: After seeing your photo, I suggest re-cutting your edges with a circular saw and abrasive blade set to depth. You really want a nicer shape to work with. Snap or trace straight lines, level and down the center of studs. Use ear, eye, and respiratory protection.


spray foam personal protection I have a closet in the master bedroom of my home that is on an exterior wall. Unfortunately there's no insulation on the back wall of the closet and so a lot of heat escapes. We keep the closet door closed and that helps. The closet is about 6 feet wide and there's drywall on all walls of the closet.

I was thinking about using a spray foam to try to remedy this. I wanted to drill large holes at the top between each pair of studs and drop a little tube via which I could deliver the foam insulation.

My question is, what kind of personal protection equipment is necessary here? I have goggles for sure. I have a cheap mask. Should I use more heavy duty respiratory protection? Also, do I need a protective suit over my clothes? I've seen this on YouTube.

As the foam is curing, I saw a YouTube video that described the reaction as exothermic. Is there ever a fire hazard with deployment of a foam?

There is an expanding foam product made specially for injection into stud wall cavities. I don't think standard "spray foam" insulation is appropriate for injection into an enclosed cavity. Generally spray foam is applied to exposed surfaces. At any rate, in terms of the required personal protective equipment, you should be able to get a hold of a MSDS (material safety data sheet) for the product you are considering, either from the vendor or from the manufacturer. It will list the required personal protective equipment. This may vary from one type of foam to another.

For enclosed walls, you might consider blown-in cellulose insulation. This is a common choice for retrofit applications.


What is 3" (750Pa) wg class? According to Sheet Metal & Air Conditioning
Contractors’ National Association (SMACNA) - leakage test  manual, It is not recommended that duct system constructed to 3" (750Pa) wg class or lower be tested. What is "3" (750Pa) wg class"?

Pa (Pascal) is a unit of pressure (air or hydraulic pressure).  It's a very tiny unit, usually used in the thousands or millions.

"inch" in this context is "inches of water", another unit of pressure.  This one's easy.

Get a glass of water and a clear straw.  Suck on the straw just enough that the water comes up 3".  Or blow hard enough it goes down 3".  You guessed it - that is 3" of pressure (or vacuum).  AKA 750 Pascals.  You can do the same by plumbing a clear plastic hose into your duct and dipping it in a glass of water.

Since that's a pretty small amount of pressure, so I can guess this relates to the strength of a blower in a furnace's air handling system.

Just so you know... you've met "inches of water"... there's another one, "inches of mercury" often used by meterologists.  Same concept, but mercury is 14 times heavier than water.  Also "feet of seawater" for divers, and lots lots more. Clearly, the standards committee was bored.


Toilet too close to wall I have a toilet that is too close to the sidewall. It is a slab foundation. What are my options for fixing this without ripping up the floor?

I thought orginally an offset toilet flange but I need more than two inches. Would a corner toilet work in this scenario?

UPDATE:
Here is another picture

You could possibly use a wall mounted toilet and snake the drain from the base of the wall drain to the floor drain.


How/where to put hydrogen peroxide in water heater I just moved into a house that has 2 water heaters.  The second one was rarely/never used by previous owner and all the hot water that comes from it is smelly.  This came up during the inspections but the inspector said it's because the traps of the drain dried out so now we're smelling sewer gases.  That idea was a bunch of sewer gas, but I digress.

Other relevant information is that the hot water heater in question is relatively new being part of an addition from less than 10 years ago.  All that work was permitted.  The house is on municipal water, not a well.  I've already turned the temperature setting way up and let water run for a little while which seemed to help a little but it didn't solve the problem and the next time the water comes on it's back to the smell we started with.

Getting back to the point, I've read in a few places about changing the anode but also about putting hydrogen peroxide in the hot water heater tank.  I've found guides/videos on flushing the tank.  Unfortunately, I can't find anything about how to get the hydrogen peroxide in the hot water tank.  Surely they don't mean to cut into the cold water intake and then repatch that up later, do they?

To add anything to the water heater you will need to turn the water off and drain the pressure in the lines. After this there are 2 choices; Pull the anode probably the best idea because it may have dissolved. The 2nd choice would be to pull the supply line and add there. I have never had this problem that flushing and replacing the anode did not fix. After this purging the air out and checking for leaks when the water is turned on. Just a note if a tap in the house is turned on with both hot and cold water while the system is open water may come out as the cold pressure flows back through the hot line. Had this happen when I left a system open while going to the store to get a new anode, what a mess.


Are metal anchors or buried posts better for 6 x 6 posts for a pavilion? I'm trying to figure out the best way to set 6 x 6 posts for a pavilion.  I'm considering the two methods below.  I know they both have their good and bad points.  I believe the first will extend the life of the posts but will require extra bracing for lateral movement.  The second will resist lateral movement but it will reduce the life of the posts.

The pier and footing is the best approach.
A structure, even a deck or pavilion should not have to rely upon the posts being anchored in concrete for structural support. The pavilion itself should be planned and supported to be structurally sound in itself regardless of the type of footing used. If properly installed with an anchored metal post base the posts will be stable and serviceable for many years. Otherwise,with a buried post when the posts rot, which they will, and if the structure isn't sound the only way you will know is if the structure starts to lean - which is not a good plan.


How can I prevent water trail stains on bathroom drywall? In an upstairs bathroom, I found these water trail stains on a wall.

There's no plumbing behind the wall so I imagine these are from humidity.

What I'm curious about is whether there's any way to prevent such stains from occurring. Is there a special type of paint, or a water-resistant drywall, that can prevent this?

As Kris said in a comment, the solution is to not let that much moisture accumulate. Run a well-performing bath fan every time you use the shower, even in the dead of winter. Vary run duration accordingly. In my part of the world this means 2-4 hours in summer and at least a quarter of an hour (after the shower ends) in winter.

As I often say, your bathroom isn't a bathtub. It shouldn't be expected to hold water, whether on the floor or the walls.


Clarify light sensor wiring diagram I have 4x 55W florescent tubes in my garage, two per fitting.  Its dark in there, the garage door opener has a uselessly tiny light.

So the plan is to fit an omnidirectional ceiling motion sensor.

Here's what's in the paperwork:

Does this mean the sensor switches the Active line while the Neutral line is simply straight through?  IE

Does that fill in the missing details correctly ?

The instructions say "after switch",  so that's that. The switch may have functions which require this.  Also, you have to obey the labeling and instructions, because the UL listing  (or comparable; CE isn't) is only good for labeled uses.

Some motion sensors need power 24x7 to function reliably.  That is because they need to "remember" the quiescent state of the room, and the ambient light levels that occur in normal light cycles in this location.  If you have a motion sensor that seems to bungle either of those things, try leaving its power on, an see if it adjusts after 48 hours.


What methods for installing light fixture in middle of room, with lathe and plaster ceiling? What options are there for running electrical to the middle of a lathe and plaster ceiling?

My room is about 9' by 9' with a slab floor.  The joists run east-west, and the lathe runs north-south.

All options are awkward, as the ceiling is still in place.

To the south of this room is a walk in unfinished basement area that could be used for access:

Some good info is here, but not specific to lathe ceilings: How can I install a light fixture in the ceiling of a finished room?

There are two options that don't involve drilling hole in joists and fishing wire:

Carefully cut out an entire lathe. Score both sides of the plaster and ever so gently drop the entire strip.  Notch each joist, run the wire, and install metal cover plates.
Same as the first one, except use a 2" hole saw at each joist, and remove only the 2" of plaster and wood.  Notch the joist as above.

Before starting, research the topic of joist notching rules... the middle of a floor joist on the bottom is in tension, and not the best place for a notch.


internal fuse on air handler blows every time it shuts off air handler for air conditioner has worked fine since I moved into the house but this year both times the air conditioner has turned on it has not restarted.  Both times so far the problem has been that the fuse on the inside of the air handler has been blown.  It seems to run fine while it is running.  The fuse doesn't blow while its running and shut it off prematurely.  It just blows after the air conditioning is shut off by the thermostat.

Are you 100% certain that it blows when the thermostat opens the call for cooling circuit to shut it down?  Or, does it run for a good while, shut down, and then you notice that the fuse is blown?  If I were you, before going down that rabbit hole I would put one more fuse in it, run it for 5 minutes or less, shut it down from the tstat yourself, and see if the fuse is blown.

If you do find that the fuse blows as soon as the tstat shuts it down, one reason it would blow after the call for cooling is gone is perhaps there is a blower keepalive timer (common in newer HVAC systems to push the last of the cold air out of the ducts) and that is somehow shorted out, causing it to blow the fuse when that circuit kicks on to run the blower after the tstat tells it to stop.


How do I keep my corner pergola from wobbling? I am planning to build a corner pergola over my deck. Pergola is 8ft long from the corner on either side  forming a triangle on the top. I have used four 4x4 posts (8 ft) attached to the deck headers using three 1/2" carriage bolt per post. How do I reduce wobbling when shear force is applied to simulate wind condition?

Since I am new to the forum, I am unable to post a picture. Imagine it's triangle with two beams parallel to the side of the deck forming a 90 degree angle and the third beam joins these two beams to form a triangle. Third beam has no supporting post. On top of the triangular beam, I have notched joists.

You need to install knee braces every where you can. (The diagonal piece)

Ideally, the ends should be tightly dadoed a small amount into the beam and post to minimize the inevitable play that develops in connections made solely of mechanical fasteners. The bigger the brace the better, within reason. The best bracing would be the grand-daddy of knee braces-- X-bracing.


How much ventilation do I need on a small roof? This small building has a footprint of 10' x 12' with a gable roof (sideways, so the gables are 10' apart). Slope is 4:12, so the peak is only 2' above the walls. My ridge isn't vented, so I'll be using gable venting.

The building is cabin-like, so the ceiling will have drywall, a vapor barrier, and insulation. There will be plenty of water vapor to deal with, and the interior will have its own ventilation. Our climate is very mild (snow dams and summer cooling are rarely a problem), but humidity is high most of the year.

I know it's common to vent at eaves/soffits, but they're easier to construct if I skip venting there. Since my roof is only 10' long, I think the middle of the attic will still get enough airflow with only gable-end vents. Is that correct?

I've read that the basic rule for sizing screened ventilation is attic area / 150, but area / 100 if it's louvered, too. If I only do gable-end venting, then I put 1/2 of that at each end, correct?

Any other tips?

Venting should be 1/300 of insulated ceiling area, distributed uniformly on opposite sides of the building. (1/150 if slope is less than 1 in 6)

So whether you go with your 1/150 number mentioned in your question, or 1/300: using any vent larger than 8" x 8" at each gable end you are already going well above and beyond either requirement, so like sherlock homes mentioned in his comment, don't overthink it.

If you use a 12" round or octagon louvered vent at each end you will be safely above 1/300, 1/150, and 1/100.

  "The recommended ventilation ratio to provide for vented attic assemblies when an air
  barrier is present, is the 1:300 ratio (as specified by most building codes).  This is based
  principally on good historical experience and simple psychrometric analysis
  (Handegord & Giroux, 1984)." - Building Science Digest 102 (2006-10-26) - Understanding Attic Ventilation


Why does my Kenmore washing machine not move out of the wash cycle? While doing laundry this weekend, it seemed like the washer was taking a very long time to get through 1 regular load. I finally went to check on it and found that it never moved from the very first wash cycle. I am able to move the cycle knob manually to go through the rest of the cycles, but it won't move on its own.

I have a Kenmore 500 series washer.

Its probably the timer mechanism itself.  You can enter your model here and get an idea of part cost:


What is the best way to remove rubble (from a demolition) from dirt and grass? We demo'ed a cinder block neighbor fence and now there are small pieces of debris/rubble from the job in our yards. What tools and techniques should I used to remove the debris?

Some are the size of a mug and some are the size of an M&M candy. I think that I will probably give up on the small pieces but I need to clear the bigger pieces. I've already hand picked the bigger pieces.

For what you ask, my go to tool is the garden rake. It will dethatch the lawn while you are at it. so it will take the occasional cleaning to keep it effective. Get a good one, the weight of the broken pieces add up fast and a weak rake will break on you.


What is this tiny ventilation mechanism in my window frame and how do I replace it? I live in a building with wooden double-glazed window frames and have this tiny "ventilation" outlet installed into one of the larger windows in our apartment (see below).

What is its purpose, and most importantly, should it stay in its current position during the cold months of the year? I feel like it defeats the purpose of the insulated glazing, but I am a mere layman when it comes to windows, I am afraid.

Is the ventilation port going to a covered port on the outside wall? If so, the purpose would be to allow ventilation that rain could not get through. In the past it was important to have a route for outside fresh air to get into the living space because natural gas space heaters drew their combustion air from the living space and the combustion gasses were vented into the living space. The fresh air prevented the formation of carbon monoxide.

If the ventilation port is a route into the space between the two panes of the double pane window, then the purpose would be to dry out the space between the two panes. This would prevent fogging between the two panes.

EDIT
Having lower humidity interior air flow through the space between the panes both keeps the window clear from fogging and heats the window. So even on a very cold day it should be comfortable to sit next to the window and not be chilled. This might slightly increase your heating demand, but this is an ingenious feature which shows the designers of your building really thought about making the apartments comfortable for the occupants.

And it could even decrease your heating demand as follows. Consider a person sitting by the window to read, do a crossword, or sew. If the window is cold, the person sitting by the window might turn up the heat in the whole apartment.


Searching for NEC Code reference for service disconnect location I'm looking for the NEC code reference that allows a main panel within a home to contain a main breaker because the meter is directly on the other side of the outside wall, versus installing a meter-main outside.  I remember hearing something to the effect of no more than 5 feet of service cable between the two boxes.

Article 230
  Services

  VI. Service Equipment — Disconnecting Means
  230.70 General

  Means shall be provided to disconnect all conductors in a building or
  other structure from the service-entrance conductors.

  (A) Location.

  The service disconnecting means shall be installed in accordance with
  230.70(A)(1), (A)(2), and (A)(3).

  (1) Readily Accessible Location.

  The service disconnecting means shall be installed at a readily
  accessible location either outside of a building or structure or
  inside nearest the point of entrance of the service conductors.


What to look for in buying laminate flooring We are beginning to look at replacing the floors in our home and are considering laminate flooring. We are wondering if there is a difference in type and quality, especially when pricing is concerned. For example, the flooring at Lowe's is considerable more expensive than at Sam's Club; should I be worried that the lower cost flooring is a lesser quality? Are there other considerations besides price?

Great question! My wife and I were examining laminate flooring a little while ago too. Not all of them are alike -- here are some things to consider.

Check the warranty. Cheaper laminate will usually have a shorter warranty with more conditions (e.g. 10 - 15 years only protecting factory defects).  More expensive laminate will usually cover more conditions for a longer time (e.g. 25 years+ covering factory defect, normal wear and tear, fading, staining, denting and water resistance).  Keep in mind that these are examples -- every manufacturer is different.
Find out details of how a sample is made A lot of laminate flooring is now treated with Aluminum Oxide which protects it against scratching and denting. More expensive laminate may have more coatings.  If you're expecting heavy foot traffic or have animals with nails, you might want to take it into consideration.  For answers to questions like this, you might need to contact the manufacturer directly.
Thickness varies Laminate thickness can vary anywhere from 5mm to 12mm.  The thicker laminate can feel more stable and supposedly be less likely to have problems with humidity changes.
Joint integrity varies Not all laminate flooring interconnects in exactly the same  way.  Some joint connections can withstand weight and water leaks better than others.  Name-brand manufacturers claim to have more experience with this. Be sure to check how the pieces fit together.

-M


Tri-Level Home, 3 Zone Boiler heat, Lower Level is FREEZING, No Heat??? We live in a tri level house in WI. The boiler heats via baseboard on the main and upper floors, but in the lower level the  hot water pipes run through the floor itself, basically giving us a heated floor to warm up the lower.  This winter, our lower is not really heating at all. Last year, it seemed intermittent. Some days it would come on, others not. The thermostat down in the lower, has no on/off switch...nothing. It's just a Honeywell that shows current temp and temp to set it at. Here is a pic of it:

Any ideas why the heat down in the lower will not even engage to turn on? My gut feeling is it is not the thermostat itself, and I'd rather save a trip to the store to attempt to buy the right thermostat then install it, or call in a the heating guy if it is something simple here that I am missing...any comments would be great!

If the bottom floor is radiant in the floor heat then you have a thermostat for that zone only. The thermostat is a Model T87 by Honeywell. Also in this zone there should be a thermostatic valve controlling the water temperature to the slab (floor). I would look for a zone valve for this system. If you can't trouble shoot this your self I would call an HVAC co. to do the work so you don't do something you can't fix.


Max load bearing weight on shelves I installed these shelves:
http://pin.it/1gqQDHD

But they are not in studs simply screwed into the dry wall with the plastic expanders (my building is old and the studs don't match the length everything has to be for the shelves to rest flush).

There isn't a lot of weight on them now, just some photos, my desktop, and a plant. However I want to know if I can put books on the shelves without a risk of them falling. I want to say the longer shelves could potentially hold more weight as they are distributed over more space but I am not a physics expert and could be totally wrong. Does anyone know how to calculate how much weight something like this could hold?

Best place to check would be the with where you purchased the shelves from. Failing that I'd say the length of the screws would be a decent indication of how much weight they can carry from my experience, along with the type of bracket etc.


Drilling Countersink for Acrylic Tub-Shower Surround Fasteners I am planning on installing a Delta 400 Classic Curve Acrylic Tub and matching Surround.

Above, and around, the surround will be Purple drywall or Cement Board. Tile will not be involved.

I would like to put the board directly over the flange, rather than resting it on top and mudding the gap.

The instructions call for Pan or Round Head screws.

I was hoping to use quality weather proof screws like Deckmate Bugle Heads.

In either case, without countersinking, the fasteners will stand proud and deflect the wall board.

I have different options, and I'm trying to understand what the best choice is.

Countersink
Panheads vs Bugles
Backcut wall board
Mud the gap vs overlap
Allow deflection

Etc.

Thanks.

Countersink the heads if you want, use shims where the tub is away from the framing. use weather resistant screws if you want, the screws will never see water. When I was living in Maryland, we always shimmed the wall to let the drywall go over the shower flange. So with that you really don't need to countersink depending on other conditions, like if a door is in the same wall and you do not want to order custom jambs or add something on site to the jamb.

Since I have been on the west coast for a while I have never seen the wall shimmed, unless I am the one who did it. On the other jobs the drywall was ran to the flange, fast set mud filled the leftover and then it was taped and finished. Looked great to me.

And there has been other jobs where the drywall was run over the flange when the flange was set with roofing nails. Made me cringe, and when the wall was finished you could fairly easily pick up on how the wall curves out from the last stud or at the inside corner how the drywall covered the flange. That does not happen in either the shimming or the packing with fast set.


Plumbing: Two control points for shower I'm doing a remodel and I wanted to ask for your advice.

I have a fairly large shower spanning the entire width of the bathroom (see the plan below). I'd like to set up the showerhead at one end of the shower (the furthest point from the 5'6" unmovable glass door) - but I worry that with that plan, I won't be able to turn the shower on without getting wet before the water warms up.

What I would like to do ideally is to have the showerhead where it is on the plan, have the mixer right there, but add a secondary set of flow controls where the red arrow is on the plan. Is that possible? Is it crazy? What kind of equipment would I need to add to make that happen?

Thanks in advance!

Sure I think you could do this.  You'd need another set of supply lines at the other side, and a second valve.  You'd then run the pipe for the shower head to the other side of the shower and T it in with the other shower head pipe.

The only downside I can think of is the cost - a good thermostatic valve is expensive!


Short joist not continuing through kitchen soffit foiling remodel plans My house is a 1960s build and has no gables, every exterior wall has a roof slope to it.
In the kitchen, most rafters are North-South, with the East end being angled down until it meets the garage.  West leads to the rest of the house, continuing North-South rafters.  Joists are 2x6 at 13'7", running East-West.
The [EDIT: single] Southernmost joist, however, is a 2x4 that only runs to a short (32" from outside wall) dividing wall that was at the end of the counter/soffit.  Inside the soffit every-other rafter is tied to the full joist 32" from the exterior wall, to provide support for the over-sink soffit.  ("Tied" being "nailed to the side of the rafter, possibly the top plate, then end-nailed into through the joist.")
I removed the soffits and the dividing wall, and found out the hard way about the short joist.  It's roughly 6" from the first of the perpendicular supports for the former soffit.  I have 4 solid 8' 2x4s from the dividing wall I can use to add new structure.
Is there a way to tie the short joist into the next perpendicular support without tearing out the ceiling and replacing it wholesale?  My initial thought was use screws to laminate 2 12" boards and a 6" board as an extender to reach the support.  Second thought was to use a 2x4 the same way the soffit supports were built, from external wall across the end of the joist, and then nail to the 2x6 joist.
This and a little electrical work are the last bits I have before inspection, so I'm hoping for the miracle of fast, easy, cheap, and right.

Update: For now, I'm using a stud from the wall I removed to replace this 2x4 joist and hang it to the 2x4 soffit support with a joist hanger, then using joist hangers to continue it through where the soffit was for drywall support.
Second Update: I removed the "floating" joist, it was held in on either end by only 1 toenail each, with a small 2x2 block to keep it in place while toenailing on the full wall, and came out very easily.  I'm convinced at this point it was just there to hold up the rock lath, as it had no lateral or upwards hold, just enough tack to keep it from "walking".

Evidently you took out a wall that was used as a bearing wall for the ceiling joists that are turned perpendicular and are not connected to the intersected joist. The few that are tied to the intersecting ones are there just to control the sag of the last one so it does not put a dip in the ceiling right where the wall is that you took out. It was all supported by the missing wall.
It was never intended to be an open space at anytime as you are trying to do. Since the span is 14+' on the joists that are now unsupported, it will need to be redone with a flush beam set in the ceiling and configured by an engineer who needs to know all the particulars about attic space, snow loads, span details and ceiling joist sizes and spacing, some of which you provided, sorta.
The way the ceiling is typically framed for an open ceiling as you desire, is the predominate run of joists are run all the way to the end wall, perhaps as close as the roof rafters allow on the perpendicular roof, sometimes as much as 4' away, not the 14+' you have, which is where some of the problem lies. Then the last joist is doubled to act as a beam to hold the ends of the what would now be very short rafters going the other way. Doubling the beam is a typical detail, it may need to be tripled, depending on the overhang conditions. Hence the engineer. Besides, this is always laid out on the building plans at the time of construction, and designed or approved by an engineer before construction begins


How can I hang ceramic art on drywall? Artist recommends using 4" dry wall screws inserted at an angle to hang his art.  This does not look sturdy.  Any ideas ?  The art is a large ceramic tic tac where 2" of the screw is inserted in one end for hanging purposes.

You are much better off using an anchor that is probably way over engineered for your artwork.  For instance I would get a 150 lb anchor (or even better) like this.  If you go straight into the stud you can really need a thicker screw for a lot of weight or it could sag.  Problem I would foresee is the hole in artwork for screw not being big or deep enough for said screw.