Main breaker does NOT turn power to house off I was  looking to turn main breakers off at main box outside.  Flipped switch nothing happened. Power still on.  went and bought new main breakers replaced them and flipped switched off, Nothing happened. Power still on all over house.  The inside breakers do turn off the power to house but I wanted to do the whole house from outside.  Any ideas.

From the small amount of information, I can give you some answers that may be more like starting points.

Quick Answer?  Hire an Electrician.

Long Answer:  If you took out the breaker to replace it, the power should have gone out/off.  If that didn't happen, there are three scenarios I can think of:

1 - Your breakers have been bypassed to send power directly to the house.  Really unsafe as no one can turn out the power to the house.

If the panel was bypassed, you're going to need someone with the proper training and experience to handle it.

If there are other breakers, that may be the reason why the breakers didn't work.

2 - There is, at least, one more panel box.

I have seen older houses with one "breaker" panel inside a closet inside the house.  The interesting part was those were the main circuit breaker.

If the power is from an overhead line, look at it and see where it's coming into the house.  It's harder for underground.

Where it comes into the house, that is normally where the breaker panel is.

If there are other breakers, that may be the reason why the breakers didn't work.

3- There is another panel/circuit box and the breakers you have have been rerouted around this one to the other one.

If this is the case, the outside breaker can be reinstalled, but your going to need to contact your power company and have the power for the entire house switched off while repairs are made.  This will probably be a contractor/electrician's job and may require permits and inspections by the municipality where it's located AND the power company.

Please use caution.  The breaker boxes, at least in California, have a lot of juice and one misstep could cost you your life.  Not knowing how the system is set up could also make wires and circuits have a charge when you don't expect it.

Use a detector to determine if circuits are charged and NEVER assume or guess about these things.

Absent a photo or video, it's difficult to make an exact diagnosis.  Your location will also dictate what the normal practices and codes are for your area.

When in doubt, call a professional to look at it.  Most in the US will give you a free estimate of any repair work they propose.  Main lines are NOT for the average handyman and even many electricians don't want to get into them.

I am a serial DIYer and rennovator and have put in a LOT of circuits, outlets, exterior and interior lines in my houses over the last 30 years.  My Father-in-Law was a contractor and he taught me a lot about household electrical.


Is it dangerous to leave a hose spigot on with a closed nozzle at the end? Here's the setup: I have a drip system for my plants that's run on a timer attached to my outside hose spigot. The spigot is constantly on, but for about 12 hours a day the timer is closed and no water is flowing through.

Is there a danger of pressure buildup from leaving the faucet on with nowhere for it to go? Will my water bill go up astronomically?

As long as the attached timer is shut off and no water is flowing the pressure in the water line will be no different than what it would be when the spigot is turned off.

You water bill will reflect how much water that you actually use. The only way it could go up astronomically would be if the timer broke off the spigot or failed in an open mode where water was allowed to flow freely from the spigot for long periods of time.


Is it ok to have a 15 amp 240v outlet in close proximity to a sink? Our new home has a dedicated shop space.  I'd like to add a utility sink and the best place for it would be on a wall that has a 15a, 240v outlet on it.  The outlet would be below the top of the sink by about 2-1/2' and immediately to the left of the back left leg.  The wall with the outlet is actually shared by a bathroom on the other side & the toilet is right there so there's currently water plumbing in the same area (within about a foot).
Based on where the outlet is, I'm not currently planning to use it.
Is that acceptable to have the 15 amp, 240v outlet in that proximity to the sink (and if not, is it likely that the outlet proximity to the toilet on the other side of the wall is a code violation)?
If it is, I'm thinking it'd be a good idea to use an outdoor cover box over it as a splash guard; agree?
Thanks in advance!

GFCI
If the receptacle was installed many years ago, it might not have GFCI. If so, I highly recommend GFCI protection, even if not strictly required by code. (Code requires GFCI for any receptacles near a sink, but doesn't typically force retrofit if no changes are being made.) GFCI will provide the necessary protection. A weatherproof cover would help, but would not give you the life-safety protection of GFCI.
However, GFCI for 240V is not so easy. Very likely you would have to put GFCI at the panel. As an alternative, you may want to turn this into a generally more useful 120V receptacle (with GFCI). If the existing wiring includes neutral then you could actually turn this into an MWBC and get two separate 120V circuits out of it. If it doesn't have neutral then you can turn it into one 120V circuit.
Plumbing inside the wall and toilet on the other side of the wall should not be an issue at all. The concern about water and electricity isn't that all of a sudden your pipes will leak and get your wires wet. That can happen, but it is relatively rare - and usually part of a much bigger problem. The concern, and the reason for GFCI, is that people using water will touch something electrical and end up (through a combination of events - not every touch of everything electrical when wet is actually a problem) with some electricity flowing through people instead of wires. GFCI detects that very quickly and saves lives.


Can I reset Vanity Top onto particle board with residue caulk? I bought a big box vanity with sink etc already attached. It was 1/4" off from being flush at the back so I decided to reseat it. Knifed and sawed the thing off then scraped the silicone off the sink/counter top.

Problem is, the wood sides are particle board and I can't get the silicone off. Nor can I cut or sand it without ruining the base. The majority of the lumpy caulk was on the sink side, so the remaining caulk on the base is fairly flat.

Is there anything I can use to simply reattach the vanity top with this residue silicone?

If I understand correctly, you've set a countertop onto a vanity cabinet with silicone, then cut it loose. Some silicone remains on the top edges of the cabinet. You're asking whether you can reset the top with some silicone residue on the cabinet.

Sure.

I'd slice as much caulk off the top of the vanity as possible with a fresh utility knife blade, then set the top just as you originally did. The silicone will bond just fine. There's not much stress on it anyway.

If for some reason that doesn't work, screw some 1x2 stock to the inside of the vanity, oriented horizontally and flush on top. (There may be something in the corners already that you can use.) Run 1-1/4" drywall screws through that into the top. That's standard practice for kitchen tops, etc., where a caulk bond isn't needed.


Is this water heater drain configuration safe? I've just replaced my water heater and for the first time my house has a water heater drain pan. The washing machine waste line is nearby and I'd like to connect the water heater drain pan to this line before the trap. The proposed addition is shown in black:

The only pitfall I can think of is that if there's a blockage downstream of the tee, the washing machine water can back up into the black pipe instead of having to build all the way to the top of the green pipe.

Keeping in mind that the picture is not to scale, how can I determine what distances are safe for this configuration? If the trap were ten feet below floor level, would this be considered safe? Are there other issues I'm not considering?

The alternative involves a 12' run to a sump pit. This would crowd my crawlspace with a long, low drain line and might interfere with a future radon mitigation system connected to the sump pit. Please suggest another alternative if you have one.

The configuration you pictured is not really a good idea. Waste water from the washer is going to flood the heater drain pipe, leaving nasty residues that could conceivably siphon back into the heater if connected to the heater drain valve. Not likely, but possible any time two drains are connected at different levels other than directly into the vented out flow pipe. The other problem will be that if the drain is a open pan drain only, washer waste water will back up into the pan. Washers tend to eject water quickly and can partially fill the pipe above the trap.

I would rather see you pump it up to the inlet of the washer drain.


How should I cut through hardwood floor? I want to install steps to my basement.  I need to saw through a hardwood floor.  Is there anything specifically I need to do to the hardwood?

If you are going to salvage your floor, that is, try to set your new stairs with its landing nosing to meet the original floor, you need to make a rough cut with a carbide saw blade say about a 24 tooth blade. This cut is to be made smaller than you need at first to find the limits the stair will fit. After the area is checked for how the framing is in the area and the place is determined where the nosing will stop against the original floor, that cut is made with a new carbide tipped blade, if the other blade found nails. If a nail is found with the new blade, cut through it, then change to a new blade and continue cutting  until another nail is found, then replace the blade again.

If you are going to do a new floor "tie in" and flooring is to be reset anyway, then the final cut does not need to be this critical. If you are getting floor installers to do the tie in, they will cut back, tooth in, all that for you.  Just make sure the landing nose is securely set at the stair.

This is a start, other will factors determine how to cut the floor to make the install of stairs simpler, that would take photos of the area in question. As in, is it a stair well closed on the sides, or a open stair well with the new stairs exposed to the room to start?


Is the blue conduit connected to my sub-panel suitable for a 50A branch circuit? I have to add a 50 amp circuit to the sub panel in my garage.  I found one of the open knockouts in the top of the panel to have a blue flexible conduit looking stuff in it which runs up into the ceiling.  I thought, "cool, this guy planned ahead".  So my plan was to just this to run the cable up into the ceiling then down a wall where I need the receptacle.

Question is, IS this conduit, and can I use it for this purpose?  I'll be running 6-3 cable (romex, I suppose).

Smurf tube.  The name its mom uses to yell at it is "Electric Non-metallic Tubing" or ENT.

You will need to run a separate ground wire since it is not metallic.

You have to watch out for conduit fill, there are fill calculators on the web.

If you plan 4 or more circuits in that conduit, come back and ask us about derating, but you probably won't have space for that.

DIYers must be careful when designing conduit pulls.  Too difficult a pull requires an electrician's truck full of pulling tools, and the owner of that truck typically will only agree to do the whole job.

Most people go straight for multiconductor cable because that's what they know.  Meet THWN-2: it is an individual wire with a special jacket made for pulling. It is typically stranded and much more flexible than cable. Conduit pulling is much easier. But it lacks the armor of cable so it cannot be used outside conduit.

So you have 3 choices: a) cable all the way including through the conduit, b) extend the conduit (using any conduit type) to your destination and use THWN-2 wires, or c) THWN-2 through conduit to a junction box, there splice to a cable. Any of these are a compromise on difficulty.

I would extend the conduit just because that's my better skill.


Does anyone know what this material is in my septic system? These photos are of my sewage system and were taken at an inspection point right outside my house.
I have had this issue for years and I don't know what the material is. I have tried changing dishwasher and washing machine products but it still appears, and there's quite a bit of it as you can see from the photo ... what you see would have appeared over the course of a few months probably.
To describe the material it is like chalky but sticky and oily but still crumbly ... and its fairly white in colour the yellow is only on the outside really.

Only a chemical analysis could tell you for certain. My best guess is that it is dishwasher soap and grease. I had similar substance in my washer/dishwasher field lines a few years back. My system is not connected to septic.


How do you install a slide lock when the door frame isn't level with the door? I need to lock a door without a keyhole from the inside and got recommended to use something like this:

However, my door frame isn't level with the door

If I would just mount it there, the slider would probably just slide over the holding thing. How would I mount it there?

The best solution, of course, would be to fix the door frame, but this would take a lot of work.

It appears that the door jamb is metal, and slightly wider than the part of the lock that accepts the slide? If so, find a piece of filler material (perhaps a layer or two of metal bar stock/billets), that will thicken the door jamb to meet the door. Use some longer sheet metal screws to attach the part to the door jamb. Be sure to drill holes in the filler material so that the screws easily go through the metal stock, so that they can dig into the door jamb itself.

Note that you may need to use fairly large screws to fully secure the lock. If smaller screws are used, one could easily kick open the door as the heads off the screws will easily pop off given reasonable force.


Sealant for external outlet What type of sealant should I use for this?  I'm assuming 100% silicone.

Actually 100% silicone isn't a great caulk in my book. It's hard to get off later and typically isn't UV resistant.

What you want is a solid outdoor oil-based (mineral spirit cleanup) caulk (sometimes called Window/Siding). I really like Quad, but anything made for outdoors will do (even some latex products).

If I were you, I'd also replace the cover. It's looking weathered. Once you've caulked it, you'll be less likely to replace it in the near future. I would highly recommend an in-use (bubble type) cover.


Can an ERV push air through an existing HVAC system I have an existing HVAC system on a 2 story, 2500sq ft house + finished basement in Pennsylvania.  We have radon in the basement, which fluctuates between 1 and 3.5.  It's controlled by a mitigation system, but we'd like to reduce it further.  An ERV was suggested, which would also provide the benefit of passing more fresh air through the house.
An HVAC tech came by and said that we could hook the ERV ventilation into the existing HVAC system, and the ERV would drive fresh air through the house.  However, he later realized that the 150 max CFM wouldn't be sufficient to drive air through our HVAC system.  He suggested one of the follow solutions:

Hook ERV into basement HVAC and leave HVAC fan running all the time.  The HVAC would then drive the fresh air that the ERV pumps in and out of the system.
Keep the ERV as its own isolated system in the basement.  This would circulate the basement air, which is the air w/ most radon.  However, we'd lose the benefit of fresh air in our whole house.

Can someone confirm that home ERVs do need to hook into existing HVAC systems to drive air flow through a house?  And secondly, any recommendations on how you'd proceed in my situation?

As far as an ERV and if it is needed depends on how tight your house is.
How much do you need?
This again depends on your home. A newer home built in the last 20 years with a central heating system they can replace the make up air intake save a little of the outgoing heat pull the excess humidity out and improve over all air quality.
To really do this they need to be on more than the furnace or ac usually runs and on all the time is the normal recommendation. Without the radon concerns I recommend when occupied, with radon concerns 100% run.
A 150 scfm is a lot that is more than many bathroom fans running all the time this will increase your energy cost for both heat and cooling (the erv is not even close to 100% efficient)
this is one area I tell people don’t be over sold. Yes they recover energy but what size make up air do you have on your house now?
It’s easy to measure the duct size vs the wind speed. A simple handheld anemometer can provide the existing flow.
If you don’t have make up air now do you even need 150?
If you don’t have makeup air now and many homes do not going hog wild will increase your utility bills and a smaller system will probably improve the air quality.
The air handler is moving the air through the house not the erv.


False positive from a non-contact voltage tester? I'm replacing a 240-volt split-phase electric baseboard heater.  I've shut the power off at both the thermostat and the breaker box.  Testing the wires with a non-contact voltage tester shows an intermittent "live" indication on the non-switched wire; it shows a continuous "live" indication on the hot side of a nearby outlet.  Testing the wires with a multimeter shows 0V for switched-to-non-switched, switched-to-ground, and non-switched to ground; it shows 120V for hot-to-neutral and hot-to-ground in a nearby outlet.

Which should I believe?  Is the NCV picking up a residual signal from the nearby outlet, or is the multimeter somehow ignoring the high-voltage wires?

Trust the multimeter. No-contact testers should only be used for a preliminary test. If the no-contact indicates power a regular voltage tester or DMM should be used to verify.

A no-contact tester is susceptible to induced currents from wiring running in the same conduit or in close proximity to the wiring being tested.

Safety first though. Make sure circuits are de-energized before working in them.


Is it legal (or green) to have an unswitched bath exhaust fan with nightlight that runs 24/7? I just bought an Opportunity Home - a totally refurbished house that is "green." However, the bathroom exhaust fans - in three bathrooms - all have motion detector nightlights and run 24/7. There are two switches in each bath, one for the vanity light and one for the ceiling light. There are no switches to turn off the fans.

My home inspection missed this, I'm assuming, because this could not be considered green by any measure, could it? Not to mention my electricity bill!

What can I do? I have basic wiring skills from the local community college and tools. Or should I contact the warranty people?

Try to talk to whoever is responsible for the design of the house retrofit/refurbishment. Why houses (at least new or programmtically refurbished ones) don't come with an owner's manual is a constant bafflement - here's this extremely expensive, complex machine - figure it out yourself...?

What you may well have is a very tight (limited air exchange) refitting of the house, and the fans in question being the method used to ensure adequate air exchange for a healthy indoor environment. In a particularly good implementation of this, there may even be an air to air heat exchanger, warming (or cooling, in season) outside fresh air with the exhausted house air. That is more common in more extreme heating locales; it may not be cost-effective elsewhere (the heat exchangers themselves are not cheap.)

A fairly clear explanation of ventilating tight houses.


Can I lay tile over drywall that has torn paper? Can I lay tile over drywall that has had the paper torn from removing tile that was installed wrong when doing new home construction?

Given the cost of tile and the value (or cost) of labor, I'd go with ripping it back to the studs and installing a proper tile backer-board (Durock®, Hardi-Backer® or the like) rather than fuss with a dubious substrate. It will be faster than trying to repair the drywall surface and it's a better surface for attaching tile to.


Timed Light that turns ON every 30 minutes, press button to turn off I actually need this set up for my workplace, but I believe you folks here will have the answer.

We need a light to come on every 30 minutes to alert staff to check something routinely. Newer staff are prone to forget or wait too long, and so a light to indicate a certain time interval has passed will do a lot of good.

Imagine a red LED that comes on every 30 minutes, a person sees it, does their routine check, presses a button which then shuts off the light resets the 30 minute timer.

I've done a lot of looking and I don't seem to see anything online that would do this, so I figure I may have to wire something myself. Everything turns things off after a set interval, but not on.

Any help would be appreciated, what I would need to do this and how I'd need to set it up. If there is anything I could purchase that will do this out-of-box that would be ideal.

Thanks!

Easy peasy.

Get a common, mains-rated 30-minute rundown timer - the kind of thing you see on bathroom fans or heat lamps.

Except look for a special version of this which is either "Normally Closed", "NC" or "SPDT".  You might have to hit up Galco or Grainger for this.

If you get the kind that is mechanical, it wires up like a plain old light switch. And that's exactly what you do; you wire up the switch and light exactly like a light switch circuit.

If you wire it as a "switch loop", I'll admonish you to obey NEC 2011 and provide a neutral wire.  (I.e. Use /3 cable in the switch loop). That is because there are many other ways to solve this problem, and almost all of them will call for a powered device that will require neutral.


Stalling roof turbines to improve air flow? My landlord claims that roof turbine ventilators move more air when they do not spin—e.g. by stalling it using a piece of wire tied through the vent and the brace. His reasoning, roughly, is that when the turbines are spinning, all it is doing is equalizing the pressure, and claims to observe that the air in the attic is still; whereas when the turbines are stalled, he claims to have observed more air, dust, etc. moving around and leaving the attic.

I fail to see how this could be the case. My understanding of pressure equalizing is that it means that air must be flowing from high pressure (in the attic) to low pressure (outside). By allowing the turbine to spin freely, there would be less resistance/reactive force that keeps the air from moving out of the attic; whereas when the turbine is stopped, the air moving out of the attic wants to move the turbine but it can't (i.e. more resistance). And when something (e.g. wind) spins the turbine, then the turbines will pull air out of the attic; immobilizing the turbine means no air will be pulled out.

I will not be able to correct him if he is wrong (he made up his mind 30+ years ago). But in case I run into anyone else actually interested in a response to his argument, I'd like to be able to explain this better. What would be a more intuitive/straightforward/easy-to-understand/etc. way to explain this?

Wow, landlords can really be dummies sometime.  The simplest answer is that the turbine company paid an engineer to design/improve their turbine to be most effective relative to the cost of production.  If stopping the blades were more effective then there would be no bearings for them to spin on and the turbines would cost less to build.  The landlords idea could be improved by taking the turbine off the base and leaving the attic open to the sky.  This, however would allow rain into the attic just as what would happen with a driving rain with stopped blades.  Empirevent.com has a nice website with photos.  You can easily see into the interior when the vent is stopped and that is the path for rain to enter.


Type of paint to buy for paint sprayer I bought a Magnum airless paint sprayer to paint the exterior of a house.  I'll be using latex paint (probably Behr from Home Depot).

I'm wondering which quality of paint would work best in it. Behr paints are available in three quality tiers, and I know from experience that paying a little more for the second or third tier is worth it. The paint is much less runny, which makes it easier to work with when brushing and rolling.

But with the sprayer, I'm wondering if it would actually be better to have a cheaper, runnier paint. It seems like a thicker paint would have a harder time coming through the sprayer.

Thanks in advance for any tips on this.

I use an airless sprayer and all I do is thin out my paint with either water for latex or paint thinner for oil base. I use Glidden paint and have sprayed them all, Oil base, Latex, Acrylic Enamel, and every sheen as well, and really the only difference I have seen is using oil base, I use the thinner because it helps the sprayer not work as hard. I have a Magnum sprayer also and been using it for over 3 years now. Make certain you tear the gun down and clean it thoroughly every time after spraying paint. You'll thank me for this if you keep it clean clean clean......and strain your paint.. that's a must. this will help the internal filter on your sprayer. those things get expensive if you have to keep replacing.


How do I weatherize after removing old deck? Good morning everyone!

Long time reader first post. I hope you all can give me some insight so I can stop worrying about this project. As you can see from the picture I removed a wood deck from the area. You can still see the ledger board which I believe is installed incorrectly. I am going to remove that board and then I want to install vinyl siding to weatherize the area for the winter (next spring I am going to build a patio and then have someone come out to build the steps down to it).
My question is: Do I need to install some sort of vapor barrier before I install the vinyl siding? If so what type of product do I need and where/how do I tie it in with whatever is below the rest of the vinyl siding? I peaked under the siding to the left and it doesn’t look like there is any type of vapor barrier under the places already covered by siding.

Yes I would install a vapor barrier. You can use house wrap such as Tyvek or roof felt paper.  Make sure that the top piece overlaps the bottom piece.  Vinyl siding is easy to remove and replace so you can remove a few pieces, just keep them in order, so you can lap the wrap correctly. There is a tool that helps with removing and replacing the siding.


How to repair integrated window screens from a 1930s house? I'm purchasing a house built in 1937. All the windows and fixtures are original.

A fair number of the windows have an integrated screen that pulls down from the top of the window. The tracks are attached to the window, and I believe there is a roller integrated in the frame. I'm not sure what they are called, but I've attached photos below. Not knowing what they are called makes finding information about them difficult.

Most of the screens are like the one in the picture, and pretty much toast, but the few that still have intact screens work well (or would with some grease/oil). What is this mechanism called? Can it be repaired? Can I add lubricant without breaking the frame?

I had windows with screens similar to yours in my first 1950's house. They were built by" Pella" window and doors. I would contact them 1st. to see if they are their window and ask if they have a solution. If they are not their windows they may be able to direct you to the actual manufacturer.


How can I fix flexible stucco? Around the outside of the house, the concrete base is covered with a layer of styrofoam and a layer of this flexible stucco material. I'm not really sure what exactly is. This sheet looks like stucco with a plastic mesh through it (see images).

I'm trying to fix the damaged parts and I would like to use the same materials or something similar which would be very close to what it already is.

Front of the stucco layer:

Back of the stucco layer:

Undamaged wall:

Damaged wall:

What you have is  a system called EIFS for short. Here is a link to get to the care and repair of this type of finish.

Sto Exterior Insulation and Finish Systems (EIFS) Manuals: StoTherm EIFS Repair and Maintenance Guide


How to correct a twist in a 2x4? I making a work bench surface and after putting the boards together in a rectangle I noticed a twist in one of the 2x4s. The result is that it will not lay flat anymore.

Will adding joists help correct this issue? The boards will act as a support for a piece of plywood that will go on top.

Buy another 2x4 that is straight.  If it is for a workbench top you should be buying the best quality you can find which might cost $2 more.


Power requirements for hot tub (reading from label) I am looking to purchase this hot tub from Craigslist and was trying to make sure I had enough power to feed it.

The label on it is really confusing. From my reading, it looks like it breaks down the amp requirements in terms of voltage and frequency. But the strangest thing is that the amps are lower for 120v than for 240v. There is also a breakdown of 3 wire vs 4 wire 240v installation (I assume to feed 120v components.) It's really strange. Have a look for yourself. The only thing I can come up with is that it states the power  draw for each mode and that I  will need 50a to run at full? I'm located in the US. Thanks

Looks to me like it needs both 120V and 240V.

The 120 is likely for the water pump and controls while the 240 is for the water heater.

Here is a typical wiring diagram for a SPA.

As for what the various current ratings are for on the 240 it is difficult to know without more information. Different heaters for different sized units perhaps, or different heat settings if there are any.


Where do I attach the earth conductor on a plastic fixture? I'm replacing some outdoor lights. The old ones were metal, and the earth wire was connected to a screw on the base. The new fixtures are plastic, and there's no earthing screw. Where should I connect the earthing conductor when installing the new fixtures?

When connecting a fixture in a plastic box, the bare ground (earth) wire is connected to the bare or green conductor of the fixture or a metal screw on the fixture itself. If for some reason you have a very old fixture with no bare or green ground wire, opt for buying a new fixture rather than leaving the source ground wire not connected.


How are grade-level garage slabs typically connected to a basement wall? When you have a basement wall that needs to join up to a garage slab at the top of the basement wall, how are the footings for the garage slab placed, and how does the garage slab attach to the basement wall?

I've done a bit of research into foundations, and understand that footers need to be poured on virgin soil (undisturbed so it is compacted) in order to avoid major problems with settling later.

But if you excavate and pour the basement wall, then back fill behind it, the earth where you would want to put your garage slab footings would be the back-filled earth which you are not supposed to compact.

The IRC defers to ACI 332 for foundation and concrete walls, but I'm not finding anything particularly relevant to the problem. One website mentioned "Jump Footings" also called Discontinuous Footings, but it sounds like the maximum change in elevation can be five feet. It also sounds like this is used in cases where the garage has concrete walls, and the concrete garage walls are joined to a concrete house wall.

I've drawn a picture to illustrate the problem. It's a side view of the house footers with the poured walls, and the garage footers with the slab, and a gap is clearly visible in the problem area.

Is there a standard code-compliant way of dealing with this that doesn't require an engineer? (The county inspector says that if anything is listed in the IRC 2012, no stamp is required).
If an engineer is required, what is the typical approach used?

UPDATE:

For greater clarity, the house does not exist yet, this is new construction. I'm designing the house myself, and want to work through as much as I can first and then just bring the problems to an Engineer all at once (if needed). If there is a standard solution in a code book, then no engineer is required in my area.

Be careful. You are about to change the "structural dynamics" of the basement wall.

When concrete walls are poured, reinforcing steel is placed on the TENSION side of the wall. In your case, the concrete wall is designed as a retaining wall. That is to say, the concrete wall is NOT restrained at the top. Therefore, the reinforcing steel is placed in the outer one-third of the wall, (soil-side of the wall).   (By the way, the floor joists sitting on the wall, parallel or perpendicular, do not count as restraint the top of the wall. The wood will shrink over time and the wall will be a retaining wall.)

If you restrain (connect) the top of the wall to the garage slab, you've changed the wall from a retaining wall to a beam. Now the tension side (and reinforcing steel) is on the inner (room-side) one-third of the wall.

If you connect the garage slab to the top of the wall, you'll have failure (cracks and possibly crumbling) depending on how "wet" your soil is...

Go see an architect or a STRUCTURAL engineer, not a CIVIL engineer.


How do I fix incorrect attic insulation? I have loose fill attic insulation. It seems to have been moved around and become compact. Is it just as easy as getting in there with a broom and 'fluffing' it up and moving it around, or do I need to just buy some new fill? Do I remove the old fill first if so?

I have some in my attic (from a previous owner) and I've found that it's never the same after it's been disturbed.  All that "fluffing" will do is create an enormous amount of dust.

I think you need to install new insulation; you shouldn't need to remove the old insulation if you're adding more of the same type.  The new will just sit on top of the old insulation.  If you do decide to remove some of the old, a shop-vac works well; just be ready for lots of dust.

Personally, I prefer fiberglass batting because you can move it out of the way if you need to, and it will spring back if you compress it.  These days, you can get batts that are sheathed in plastic so that they are clean and easy to install: no fiberglass dust!  Again, they would just sit on top of the existing insulation.


Why is my shower not draining, even though there is no physical blockage? I've recently moved in to a new home. For a while the shower was draining really slow, as there was no access to the pipework (it's all tiled in), I ended up ripping the shower tray out in order to see what the problem was. The trap was badly clogged up with hair and other gunk, I cleaned it out and presumed that would sort the problem.

I put the base back in and ran water through it to test, but the problem still remains, it takes around a minute to drain a litre of water. I read that it may be because of a lack of fall on the pipe, so I raised the pipe dramatically, but it made absolutely no difference.

If I disconnect the trap, and run water through it from the tap, it's absolutely fine (it never fills, just runs straight out), similarly, if I pour water directly in to the waste pipe it drains away so quickly that I can't even see it filling up.

I'm a complete novice and have absolutely no idea what the problem could be. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

The next step is to snake the drain with a plumbing snake:

Or to call a plumber.


How is it possible for pressure to build up in a water heater? Context is North America (Canada). Water heaters are always equipped with a pressure/temperature safety relief valve (no argument that safety precautions are a good thing). My question is: how is it possible for the water heater to build up pressure when any expansion could simply drive the small amount of water backward into the incoming supply? Is there a check valve somewhere to prevent back flow? So far as I know, there is no such thing built into the water heater... am I wrong? Is there one built into the water meter?

Either an actual check valve or something that acts like one (such as a Pressure Reducing Valve) are fairly common on cold water supplies.


Where to connect C wire on older furnace Upgrading to a wifi thermostat and already have extra unused wire from furnace to wall, just not sure where to connect it at the furnace.

I do have central air installed, and assume the blue wire just needs to be added to any existing junction, just not sure which one.

Connect the blue C wire to the junction of the thin white wire and the thick dark wires

If you follow the yellow Y wire from the thermostat to where it goes in your furnance, it goes to a thin red wire.  Since we know this wire is what energizes the coil of your A/C's compressor contactor during cooling, we know that the cable with the red and white wires in it goes off to the A/C, and that the white wire in that cable must connect to C in order for the A/C to work.  From this, we can determine that you can connect your blue C wire for your thermostat to the junction of the thin white wire with the two thick, dark wires; note that you may need to upsize the wirenut at that junction to fit everything into it.


What do I level a 2" slope in my concrete basement floor? I want to finish a 12'x36' part of my basement. The trouble I am having is that it is sloped to a floor drain. I was told that DRIcore and shims would work but the drain is a 2" slope down from the ends and that is way too much to shim. I do have a French drain system going around the exterior walls that drains to this drain so I need to find a way to bring up the floor and not affect the drain. The next trouble is that the floor is painted and I can't seem to remove the paint. Chemicals don't seem to work and a floor grinder didn't either.

I am currently finishing a basement and it almost seems like you are describing mine!  Slope, dimensions, and all.

If money is no object then have this section leveled.  Easy as that.  Will it drain properly.  No.

But if you are working on a budget and want it to look nice then you need to look at what options fit.  So ceramic flooring is out.  Hardwoods, even floating, is out.  So either carpet the floor or put down some rubber backed laminate (completely waterproof).  We are doing a combo of the waterproof laminate (they sell it in-stock at HD - Lowe's doesn't have it) and carpet in mine.  The waterproof laminate comes in like 30 different patterns, looks nice and costs about $3 a sq/f.  If your basement has potentially a lot of water issues I would go with the laminate.

Also a note on laminates... Water-resistant is not waterproof.  I let the HD stuff sit in a bucket of water and it didn't change for three days.  I also got some water-resistant samples (and even some cork-backed "water-proof") samples.  All of the others were mushy or expanded a lot after three days.  I have to think what would happen if I went on vacation and water got in.  Make sure the water-proof stuff is made out of pure "rubber".


What could be the reason for the Microwave door to have burning spots and smell after use? All of sudden my 9 year old microwave produced burning sound and smell just a minute or so into the operation, and after turning it off there are a couple of black spots (size of a penny) on the inside of the microwave door. There was nothing unusual in the microwave at that time, just the type of food that we had reheated many times before. What could possibly be the culprit? Repair is unlikely, but still curious to know what could have caused this ...

For some reason I read past "9 year old microwave"... well here you go:

Bad magnetron

Or this: (Personally, I'd be a little less lax on saying, eh... it's fine)

Sparking and scorch marks in microwave. What's going on here?
It's possible that either the glass or the [frozen food] allowed charge to build up to the point of arcing. It's also possible that there is something wrong with the microwave. Try putting a cup of water in the microwave and running it for about 30 seconds. If there is no arcing then the microwave itself is probably fine. If you continue to have arcing then replace the microwave.

-engineer_comp_geek, straightdope.com

Microwaves don't like ice. -thenakedscientists.com


At what wattage does a pond pump pose a danger to human life? I am building a pond, and notice that pond pumps are available in incremental wattages and GPH. I'd like to choose a wattage that is safe, so in the event their is some electrical problem, no children are hurt touching electrocuted water. Is there a point where the wattage level becomes dangerous? If I keep below a certain wattage amount, does it make for no risk of death?

The rated wattage of the pump won't really make a difference. If there is some sort of fault, it will likely allow whatever the supply has to give to flow. The solution you are looking for would be to make sure the supply you are attaching the pump to is ground-fault protected, by either having:

A GFCI-protected receptacle (GFCI built into the receptacle, or into a down-stream one connected through the LOAD terminals) or
a GFCI-protected circuit breaker

This will make it so that if there is a failure in the pump, the GFCI device will detect the failure and shut the power off.
If you are really worried about it, you may also look into low-voltage pumps. I am not sure if these exist or not, but I think this would be inherently less dangerous. However, GFCI protection is generally accepted to be perfectly safe for these types of uses.


Can I run a gas hot water heater on propane? I have property where I am boon-docking an airstream. I've been looking into a passive solar hot water heater design, For the holding tank I was looking at using an old hot water heater, I found a used gas hot water heater online, and it made me think, is it possible to use propane with a gas hot water heater? Perhaps I could still do the passive solar setup, but also have the ability to heat the hot water with propane.

I have done the conversion many times, in fact if you have the paperwork your water heater came with the orifice to change it over may be in there. On the water heaters, furnaces and ovens/ stove tops I have done all that was needed was a small brass orifice . The orifice is a brass disk with a tiny hole and usually a number or letter stamped on it. The orifice is on the output side of the regulator and changes the amount of gas the pressure was the same with both propane and natural gas. If your’s did not come with the orifice your local plumbing and electric specialty store may have them that’s where I got them several times. I would check with the manufacturer to make sure your water heater can be run on propane but all it has taken in the dozens I have done was the larger orifice.


Easiest way to attach this HDX inline filter to replace my American Plumber WICA inline filter I threw out this American Plimber inline filter:

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It was over a decade old, and yes I can replace it, but I'd rather use this HDX one:

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I have a torch and a hacksaw. I have plenty of slack in my copper line. I have the following collars and fittings:

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Is the best thing to do just to saw off the plastic couplings and then soldier on the metal ones?

I was able to take off the plastic connectors on each end of copper. After that I realized since ther were push to connect then I could use push to connect on copper as well as flex line. At that point I cleaned the copper ends with a green 3m scouring pad, and installed the filter with no soldering and none of the brass parts.


Can replacing LED light bulbs cause electric faults somewhere else in the house? Yesterday I replaced a few old halogen bulbs in the kitchen and the hallway with LED bulbs - B22 and MR16. I was reading that the MR16s could be tricky has they might need an LED driver, I ordered some LED bulbs which had the same voltage as the old bulbs and they worked fine. The B22 worked fine as well apart from some buzzing coming from the dimmer which is probably because of the fact that they were non-dimmable bulbs. Anyway, no apparent issues with both and I have used the lights fine all evening without problems.

This morning I went to the bathroom which is located one floor above and the light switch didn't work. Not sure if the problem is with the switch or somewhere else but electricity in the bathroom seems to be gone - none of the three lights in there nor the extraction fan turns on. It worked fine the day before, even after the bulbs had been changed.

Now I am wondering if I messed this up when replacing the lights the night before. I live in a rental property and have just moved in so I have no knowledge of the electric plan of the house. As I said earlier, the bathroom lights / electricity worked fine the day before after the bulbs had been changed, since I used it before going to bed. This morning the lights in the hallway and kitched still worked fine too.

Or is it just a coincidence and the switch / circuit reached the end of its days?

It was indeed a coincidence, the wall switch was mechanically jammed - a bit for force nudged it back into place. Thanks all.


Deal with stripped washing machine inlet I have a washing machine with a stripped water inlet. Is there an easy solution to fix this?

Despite being a different brand, the outgoing washer used the same inlet valve assembly. I was able to swap the parts, and the stripped inlet is going to the metal recycling center with the old washer.


Is my indirect fired hot water heater hooked up correctly? I have an indirect hot water heater HTP/Superstor SUU-119 and the heating loop looks like this:

I am wondering whether this is correct because it seems weird to me that what appears to be the supply (hot) side of the boiler is going into the middle of the tank. Since the cold water is delivered to the bottom of the tank, I thought the supply from the boiler would go into the bottom.

Yes it's a fairly common setup. As the heated water enters it rises in the tank. The return to the boiler is still quite hot and transfers heat to the cold domestic entering the tank. If the hot from the boiler enters the bottom the heated domestic ends up close to the same temperature as the boiler return and thus is unable to transfer heat. The setup in your picture is called counterflow heat exchange and it is typically the more efficient method. The other method is called parallel heat exchange if you are interested in investigating further.


Bushing OK or need clamp? NM-B 6/3 going into breaker box I am adding a 14-50 outlet in the garage.  Running NM-B 6/3 Romex to existing breaker box. There is room for a 50AMP 240 breaker. I have 200A single phase service. Sheetrock above box.  I can drill a hole in the studs above the breaker box and feed wire into breaker box from attic. Because of the existing sheetrock I don't have access to put on a clamp with a nut on the top of the breaker box (without cutting sheetrock).  Can I use a simple bushing?  I think I need 3/4" or 1" bushing or clamp.  The electrician that helped me gave me a 1" bushing. Is that code?  I also see snap-in clamps.  That would work if I can find one. Do they make 3/4" snap-in clamps? Does code allow the simple nylon/plastic bushing where the wire enters the breaker box? What are my options?

Update: I used the NM95X as suggested in the replies to my question. Here is how it turned out. The 6/3 enters at the top center. I think I did a correct and pretty job. Critiques?

You'll need a 3/4" snap-in NM clamp that can be installed from the inside of the box

You do need a NM clamp (vs a mere bushing) here, first off; a simple bushing does not provide the clamping of the cable jacket required by NEC 312.5(C) for cabinets or 314.17(B)/(C) for boxes.  This NM clamp also needs to be installed from the inside of the cabinet, and that limits your options; in fact, the only product I know of offhand that fits the bill is the 3/4" Arlington NM95X, which maxes out precisely at 6/3.


Outdoor gas appliance quick disconnect incompatible We're having an issue with a quick disconnect coupling for an outdoor gas grill. The owner downsized and moved to a smaller home in the same subdivision. It is a natural gas grill that was connected to the house gas in the old house, but cannot connect at the new house.

Their grill hose has male connector marked ANSI Z21.54 CSA 8.4. Female connector on the old house is marked ANSI Z21.41 CSA 6.9, and has three ball latches. Female connector on the new house is marked ANSI Z21.41 C, and has six ball latches. The hose goes in and bottoms out close, but not enough, for the balls to latch. There's no apparent damage to or blockage of either of the couplings.

In my research I couldn't find a comprehensive table or comparison of different types of connectors, or if there are, indeed, differences. I've seen some city mechanical/building codes specify particular edition of the standard (e.g. ANSI Z21.41-2014), but no descriptions. CSA bit appears to be a reference to Canadian Standards Association, so it's not necessarily helpful.

How do we ensure that we get proper connector, or diagnose the problem with the existing one?

There are purposeful differences in gas line connectors between portable PROPANE systems and NATURAL GAS systems typically found in houses when supplied by gas utilities. The reason they are different is because the GAS is very different and they are NOT interchangeable. ANSI Z21.54 is for PROPANE, ANSI Z21.41 is for NATURAL GAS. They don't match up because they are not SUPPOSED to match up.


How do I drill holes in Aluminum / Aluminium sheet? I have some aluminum / aluminium strips that are about 3 mm thick and about 20 mm wide.

I need to drill some holes in them. The holes will be 3.5 mm.

What type of drill bit do I need?  What speed should I run the drill; fast or medium or slowish?  Should I use a cutting compound or anything similar or just drill dry?

Drill dry. You need a carbide tipped bit that's rated for metal; this will be obvious on the outside of the packaging. I'd drill fast.


Moving 240v disconnect box I have an outdoor 240v disconnect with 6awg cable (red/white/black/green) running from the main breaker to this disconnect box. There's a 110v GFCI-protected branch circuit that goes to some wall sockets. The 240v is for a hot tub about 6' away.
We're building a deck and now want to move the hot tub about 20' further away. I do not wish to buy and pull all new cable from the main breaker to the new location, so my idea is to swap out the disconnect and replace it with what amounts (I guess) to a junction box, except the 4x 6awg cables would be joined inside (no switches). Except I'm struggling to find a suitable box - well, I can find boxes, and I can find butt splices, but I would feel more comfortable with four sets of terminal blocks that I just screw the eight wire ends into, and those terminal blocks be attached to the box.
Any suggestions please?

The cheapest couplers are other things
Generally, couplers are expensive for what they are, and your desire for fixed, attached couplers won't be well supported (not least because wire bending radius rules makes it awkward/complicated).
So the most expedient way to connect four #6 wires to four other #6 wires, with isolation and fixed down in a box, will be to use a disconnect switch.    Which you say you already have, so "that was easy" :)
You glossed over this part pretty fast, so I'm not sure if you are handling this properly, but a 15A receptacle is only allowed downline of a 15A or 20A breaker, you can't tap off a 50A line and bring it out to a common receptacle.  You fix that by using a subpanel at that location.


Should I carpet the stairs or install hardwood flooring first? I will have hardwood on my first floor and carpet on the stairs and 2nd floor.  My question is:  regarding the transition, is it better to carpet the stairs first and then do the hardwood (as to avoid tucking the carpet in and risk making a mistake with the distance of hardwood to the first stair) or the other way around?

Generally carpet is self edging,while hardwood floors are not (they usually gap from the wall a bit and call for a molding over the edge).

Install the floor and leave the gap at the first riser, without a molding, and bring the carpet down the riser and blind edge it.  You can easily undo it in the future.  This would allow you to replace the carpet, as Tester101 says, or to shift back to no carpet. Just add molding.


How deep should drain pipe be buried under an asphalt driveway? I have a 4" PVC drain from a downspout that runs parallel to the garage for about 25' before joining another drain.   This run is about 12" deep and with a very slight grade.   While the driveway is being repaved, I am replacing the thinwall PVC with schedule 40 (the pipe was clogged because the inlet was slightly below grade and had filled with mud and gravel over the years).

Is the 12" (approx) depth adequate?   What should the pitch be (there is room to lower the downstream end as much as 12" if needed)?

In my opinion you should be good as it was for depth, moving to Sch 40 is a good upgrade, that is what the company I worked for always used under slabs and especially driveways.

The main thing is that there are no low areas for water to collect and freeze. Depending on your area, it would be a hard freeze to get ground to freeze at the 12" depth, there would be exceptions as there is always is, but in a hard freeze there should be nothing running off the roof to freeze in the drain.

Although not needed, to increase the fall would be good for heavy rains, but for freezing, the benefit would be marginal.


How does the wiring in this light hookup? I'm trying to install this light in my house, but I don't know how the wiring works for it. The light has a switch on the front of it that controls both bulbs and the switch has two black wires coming out of it.
Two of the wires coming from the bulbs were tied together.
Here's a picture of the wiring on the back of the light. Any ideas?

Time to break out the multi-meter.  You can safely assume the two black wires from the switch are interchangeable.  But the white wires from the lamp sockets are not.  Cut that blog off that connects the two and test each side.  The outer metal ring needs to be the neutral and the center tab the hot.  Use the multi-meter to see which wire has continuance from either the ring or center tab.  Wire both center tabs (of the light socket) to one of the black wires from the switch.

To then wire the light to the wall.  The other black will then be wired to the hot (black) and the two free whites will be wired to the neutral.


Samsung Washer WF218ANS-XAC troubleshooting help needed, smoke in the drum compartment I think that our washer is toasted and I would like to know if it can be fixed before I decide to buy another one

Here is the history of this issue:

Yesterday my wife was doing the laundry and the washer in the basement started making a huge noise , I  was under the impression that the house was coming apart :-) . We both run to the basement, it was the washer that was making noise...it stopped by the time we got there. It was the final minute of the program as the timer was showing (I guess it was high speed squeezing)
We thought something was misplaced in the drum and that made the noise

Today my wife used the washer again and she is telling me that the washer worked for 30 minutes but it was making more than usual noise so she let it work ..at the end when she went back to see what was going on there was water on the floor and it was dripping from the bottom side of the drum window on the floor. The program ended and she tried to get the clothes out of the washer...that was when she noticed smoke coming out for the drum compartment and she called me.

My first move to troubleshoot this was to see if the drum is moving freely and by giving it a quick spin I noticed that the drum is facing some friction. By the sound it is like it is tangent to a rubber piece or something.

I am handy and I can probably take the job to fix it if it is doable. I just wanted to hear from those of you who have experience with this your opinion what could this be and what would be the steps to take to troubleshoot it

Also if you are aware of any place where I can download a service manual it would be greatly appreciated

Update: I have removed the back cover to look at the rotor and springs and I found this part sitting there:

OK I now know what happened. Or at least I guess what happened. The spider shaft assemble cracked and a piece of it was projected into the plastic case of the drum that was perforated ....this is by far a case of poor quality and manufactured defect. Below is a picture of the damaged piece and the damaged case. It is just horrible. I will post another question to find out if it iw worth ordering a new assembly.

Your front loader drum unit will have a slightly different shaft and bearing system than my top loader drum washer. But I have had the bearings go out twice in 12 years in my unit. When the bearings go bad the high speed spin cycle sounds like a freight train is going through our house.

I had to purchase a couple of special tools but replacing the bearings was a fairly straightforward task albeit with many steps. So you may want to debug to see if it is the bearings in your washer that have gone bad.

Note I put your washer model number in to Google and got quite a few hits for manuals and parts lists.


Air conditioner locating c wire on old unit Hi guys I'm trying to figure out I'm using a dual heat and cool thermostat so i decided to get myself a smart thermostat and want to connect both thermostats into 1 but I'm having trouble location the c wire to power my thermostat. As you can tell the white thermostat and red thermostat wires aren't attached to anything.

This wiring could do with a bit of cleaning up

As you pointed out that Cable 3 (the rightmost cable in the photo) at the air handler goes nowhere, we can take it out of the circuit entirely by nutting the red wire from the air handler to the red wire from Cable 1 instead of the red wire from Cable 3.  (This means that the blue wire from Cable 3 is no longer nutted to the red wire from Cable 1, too.)

Once that's done, finding C isn't so hard after all

Now that we have that useless cable removed from the picture, we can find C rather readily, given that we know how the outdoor unit is wired; in particular, green and blue in the cable to the outdoor unit are connected to the contactor, with the other wires left unused.  Since we know that the blue wire in the cable to the outdoor unit is connected to the blue wire in the cable from the thermostat, we can safely presume that this blue wire is the Y wire, leaving the green wire to connect to C on the air handler.

Since we have a good indication that brown is C as well from the scant documentation available for your make of air handlers, we can safely assume that the junction between the thick brown wire and the thin green wire is where you need to connect the white wire in your thermostat cable to use that white wire as C.


How Safe is this 5-way ceiling lighting DIY install I've installed a 5-way ceiling light in a relatives house yesterday and whilst I've been more than careful in all it's prepartion and install, and being over caustious (without big paranoid!) I'm a little concerned and would like some feedback on the job in question.

My primary concern here regarding safety is:

Is the 10amp chocbloc sufficient for the load of 5* 42w halogen lights?

Is the 'manual' twist of 5*neutral 'blue' cabling from each arm safe twisted into a single 10amp chocblok connector?

Can I decrease the risk by double insulating say the single Brown arm    combine to live supply?

Here is what I did. The light in question is very similar in model (Wilko 5 Arm Chandelier Metal Ceiling Light Fitting Cream) to this UK light.

After reading the instructions thoroughly, prep the lighting unit, turning off power, I removed the previous rose etc and prepared the cable wires. All ok.

The lighting unit instructions stated that the neutral (black) 'blue' needed to be twisted together which I did and I cut a chocbloc down to joined 4-units (chocbloc rated at 10amps), and carefully binded/twisted them in, tightened them in with the said screws. I decided to sequence the cables as follows: looking right to left: bloc #1 G/Y earth, #2 Black (marked Red) live switch, #3 left empty, #4 live loop. I purposely kept the live supply to twisted Brown arm cables separate and to the left of the chocbloc (it is insulated with black tape). At this moment in time, I'm remember ting this from memory, I'm to double check this later today and will emend the text here.

My concern is the (if any) risk overtime to fire etc (not that it's left on for hours, it's a landing light. I think I've been over cautious, but would like an opinion.

edit: increase to decrease, typo on my part (-:

Is the 10amp chocbloc sufficient for the load of 5* 42w halogen lights?

Yes, 5 x 42 W = 210 W, 210 W / 240 V = 0.875 A

  Is the 'manual' twist of 5*neutral 'blue' cabling from each arm safe twisted into a single 10amp chocblok connector?

Five is a lot. I'm surprised the fitting didn't provide a better way to unite them. The main issue is ensuring that the connection is tight and that enough of all wires are clamped under the screw. If in doubt you can use multi-way connectors such as Wago push-fit or lever-clamp connectors which have a separate position for each wire.

  Can I increase the risk by double insulating say the single Brown arm combine to live supply?

I'm sure you mean decrease the risk but I don't understand what you mean by double insulating.

For general lighting applications there isn't any need to apply insulating tape so long as everything is done correctly.

The live and neutral wires are adequately insulated and you shouldn't trim more than the minimum insulation needed to fully insert the wires into the connector. After doing so, there should be no exposed copper, the screw heads in the connector are protected by the plastic within which they are recessed, there should be no danger of metal to metal contact.

Any metalwork in the light fitting that can conceivably come into contact with people should be connected to protective earth.


Ground wire from the junction box Background: I am a regular DIYer just starting out. My question is regarding the ground wire while installing a chandelier. I have just moved to a new location in Ontario, Canada. The house was built in 1999.

This is a picture of the previous installation of the fixture onto the junction box.

Observation: The ground coming out of the previous fixture was connected to the green nut on the bracket. However, in the pic above, the ground from the supply is visible in the junction box but isn't connected to the green nut.

I installed the chandelier the same way. It works.

Concerns:

Is it safe to assume that the installation is safely grounded because the fixture ground wire is connected to the green nut on the bracket which in turn is connected to a grounded junction box?
If the junction box is indeed grounded, is it normal for the ground wire to be visible in such a manner?
If the junction box isn't grounded, should I pull down that ground, connect it to the fixture's ground and then connect an external copper piece to the other 2 grounds and finally the external ground to the green nut? Research indicates that the green nut has place for just 1 wire.

Thanks for reading.

The green screw firmly grounds the lamp to the mounting bracket.  You are asking  "How does the mounting bracket ground itself to the steel junction box?  Does only metal-metal contact suffice, or does it need to be wired also?"

Yes, metal-metal contact between parts is acceptable grounding if all these are true:

the mounting bracket is bottomed out "hard" against the metal junction box (not dangling by the screws or floating on drywall ears, as is usually the case with receptacles and switches)
and both are clean bare metal (not contaminated with paint, rust etc.)
and there are no insulators in the way (those little squares that outlets use to capture screws).

Unless there are any of those little screw-capture squares that I can't see, both your old bracket and your new one look like valid grounding paths to me.


Can you have 2 junction boxes on one 12/3 cable run I have s question about junction boxes. Can i have 2 junction boxes on on cable of romex? One box is to give additional length and the second box is to provide power to receptacle. If i can’t i will have to run a new cable from fuse panel, cut out sheet rock, ect. Thanks for the help Dean

That is fine.  However the junction box must be accessible forever, without disassembling any part of the house, and you must be able to reach the junction box's cover without any tools.

You don't need to put anything at all (like a receptacle) in the junction box, but you are allowed to if the circuit is allowed to support it.

Remember -- if you are moving things around, there are certain legal minimum outlets and switches that MUST exist. For instance every point along a wall must be within 6' of a receptacle (along the wall surface, that is).  Every 2' along kitchen counters. Etc.  There must be a switch at certain (expected) locations. Etc.


I modified a nail-in electrical box to use screws instead of nails. Is there some code that prevents that? Ever since I dove into the electrical side of things with my project, I've encountered a bunch of code restrictions.  One thing that wouldn't surprise me if it was a violation of code is what I've done here:

I did this because I have to install five of these things and don't want to disturb my neighbors.  To get the screw to fit without breaking the tabs, I drilled through them with a 3/16" bit.  The screw goes through with just enough snugness to hold on to the plastic with the threads, but not too snug that it bends or breaks the tabs.  I did a test install on a stud and it holds really tight.

I did this because I couldn't find any screw-in receptacles at the hardware store that would allow me to bring the face of the box out 1 1/4" inches from the stud so that it would be flush against a double layer of 5/8" drywall.

Update: Crap.  This is not going to work.  I need to bring it out too far from the stud.  When I go to install the drywall, the drywall is going to run into the mounting assembly.  I need a box with the assembly in the back.  I won't delete this question, though, in case it will help someone else who is not trying to add one million layers of drywall.

Here's another type of adjustable box that you can use.  Just mount the box approximately where you want it and after you find the correct depth you can move it, even after drywall has been installed.

Here's the cut sheet on it.  Here.


lights flicker sometimes in my apartment I live in an apartment building, each unit has a separate electric meter. I have noticed that the incandescent bulbs in the bathroom flicker quite visibly in the morning, but not usually at other times. I am not running anything else except for clocks or possibly the fridge (which cycles itself on and off) or the water heater (ditto). It is winter, so no A/C is running, and we have electric heat (not heat pump).

Why would the lights flicker only at certain times of day? I figure that I only notice it in the bathroom due to it being a small brightly lit room with no windows, not sure if light bulbs flicker elsewhere in the apartment at those times. I sometimes observe a single flicker occasionally in other rooms at night. This did not happen when I lived in houses.

I'd contact the landlord/superintendent/maintenance, and have them investigate.

Electric water heater, electric heater, hair dryer, curling iron, vacuum cleaner. All these devices can draw large amounts of current, which can cause voltage drop leading to flickering lights.  Depending on how the building is supplied, the problem could be caused by your unit, another unit, or a combination.

The problem could also be caused by excess moisture generated by showering, a loose wire, an old dying bulb, a loose light socket, etc.


How to determine if my gas fireplace can burn wood safely? I would like to know if my gas fireplace can burn wood within it safely. It is built into the wall, made of stone, and does not have any metal within it (apart from the pipe leading gas into the firebox). You can see the metal key and valve for starting the gas, and there is no ignition switch, so I light the fire by hand. The logs in the fireplace are decorative. It leads into a chimney.
I noticed here, which seems to have a similar setup, that it seems like a gas log fireplace, but I don't understand where to burn any wood (and it would seem unsafe to burn wood near the gas pipe). Would the gas line need to be capped?

Thank you!

I'm not a Chicken Little type, but there's no way I'd do that, for a couple reasons:

You don't know what's behind the surface masonry. Wood-burning fireplaces have multiple layers of insulating masonry to handle the massive heat that can build up, protecting the wood framing around it.
You don't know that the flue will handle creosote, sparks, etc. Wood fires are messy and produce much more flame and embers than a gas unit.
It's probably not designed to draft a smoky wood fire. You'll have billowing smoke in your room on a regular basis. It's carcinogenic.
You'll almost certainly void your homeowner's insurance (and make yourself legally and morally liable for death and dismemberment of occupants).

The answer to your actual question ("How do I...") is that you have a specialist stop by. They'll be able to see things that you and I can't from here. It's just not a question for the internet.


How do I patch these sections of concrete driveway meeting the house? Where my driveway meets my house there were two sections of loose concrete that were deteriorating and making a mess.  I removed the loose concrete and discovered that those sections were placed on top of other concrete that I am guessing is the footer of those outside walls of the house.   These missing sections go down 2 1/2 - 3 inches.  How would I go about repairing these sections in a manner that would last.  Do I need to tie the new concrete into the existing footer concrete that is there?  What about the joints between the old and new concrete?  I am a noob with any type of concrete work so any help or advice on how to fix this is appreciated.

You could simply add new concrete to it.
There are a few things you need to do:

Clean all dirt and dust from the patch hole.
Use a bonding agent to help new and old concrete bond together
otherwise the new patch just "floats" (you brush this on the old concrete but can also add it to the cement mix as per the product directions to help prevent cracking)
Mix and pour the cement.
Once cured, Seal the edges of the patch

Bonding agent:

Concrete crack sealer:


Good drywall strategies? So I have done a decent amount of drywalling recently and know of a few techniques that can be done when patching holes. I am curious if someone with much more drywall experience can help define a better method?

So far what I know as techniques are:

Just using joint compound to fill the hole
Sticking drywall tape or some other mesh across a hole and then placing joint compound on top of it
Screwing the drywall directly to a stud or other 2x4 support behind it if one is exposed and available, tape around edges, joint compound on top.
Installing an entire 4 x 8 sheet where both sides get plenty of screws, tape on edges, then joint compound on tape
Installing a support behind, anchoring to it, tape, joint compound

So I would assume that:

Technique 1 can be used for very small holes. Probably 1/2 inch or smaller?
Technique 2 can be used for slightly larger holes than technique 1 but at what size does this seem to be ineffective?
Technique 3 and 4 are always a good choice when available but they are not always available as sometimes the hole is not big enough to do these. Is it better to make the hole bigger so one of these can be used?
I have used technique 5 mostly for ceilings where any installed drywall that is too large will simply fall off.

So my question is basically when should you use each technique? Am I missing any or should any I listed not be used?

Just using joint compound to fill the hole... for very small holes

Yes, but there is an (arguably) better, quicker drying alternative called spackle.

  Sticking drywall tape or some other mesh across a hole and then placing joint compound on top of it... for slightly larger holes

Yes, but anything bigger than say, 1 1/2" should have support in the back (there are various easy ways to provide support) and will take several applications due to shrinkage upon drying. Drywall joint compound is not really a "patching" product.

  Screwing the drywall directly to a stud... tape around edges, joint compound on top.

I have found that embedding the tape in joint compound, then applying successive feathered coats of joint compound on top works best.

Your "techniques" 4 & 5 are essentially the same except have the same fatal flaw in that you do not mention screwing or nailing the drywall to supports that span the field; fastening large pieces of drywall at the perimeter is not enough.


Is a 200 amp service adequate for two RVs? I'm running a service to an RV that’s about 300 feet from the sub panel that I’m going to install off of the main panel in the barn.
I plan on having two RV spots about twenty feet from each other with each having its own electrical (pedestal) for them to get their power from.
Would one 200 amp service be enough to carry both RVs? And would #8 AWG be enough or would  it be better to run #1/0?
What would be best? Remember it’s 300’ from the existing supply panel.

The gold standard way to provide power to an RV site is to provide each of these:

50A @ 240V on a 50A breaker supplying a NEMA 14-50 socket
30A @ 120V on a 30A breaker supplying a NEMA "TT30" socket
And typically a 120V/20A recep just for general use at the site.

Because an RV site can only hold one RV, you only have to assume one is in use at a time - the 30A or 50A.  Not both.  So you only need to provision 50A@240V to the site.
Most novices either know nothing about wire metal, or have heard "scary stories" about aluminum.  Those stories do not apply to feeder in the 50A and larger range.  For a 300' run, aluminum is the only correct choice.
There's no money savings to supporting only the smaller capacity, because voltage drop is 4 times worse at half the voltage, so it actually has the need for the largest wire size.
The 300' run: Decide on one main feeder or 2 separate feeders
The advantage to separate feeders is you can wire it straight to commercially available RV "pedestals".  However you pay for it dearly in higher wire cost.  And worse, each RV experiences the worst voltage drop; if only one RV is present, the wire capacity of the other feeder is completely wasted.
The advantage to a single feeder is you only need one cable run.  You either have one subpanel and build your own sockets at the stands; or you simply install two RV pedestals and daisy-chain your feeder from one to the other. See notes at the end.  But more importantly, single feeder will perform extremely well with one RV.
Let's follow the Canadian rules: 3% (ish) at 80% of load.   (so 40A @ 240V or 24A @ 120V).
2 separate feeders:

Large RV: For 40A @ 240V, you get 2.9% voltage drop with #2 aluminum wire. $800.
Small RV: For 24A @ 120V, you get 2.9% voltage drop with #1 aluminum wire. $1200.

Worse, the #1 size is difficult to find; it's not made in MH or URD cable, forcing you into individual XHHW wires in conduit.  Now I happen to recommend conduit, but still.
Single feeder:
And here's where a trick comes in.  NEC allows for the fact that both RVs are unlikely to be maxed out at once.  That's covered in Table 551.73, which gives a 90% derate for two RV stands.   So we don't double it to 80A, quite.  We only compute on 90% of that, or 72A.  With the 120V/30A circuits, we can use a "trick" where we "balance" the two 120V RVs on opposite "legs" of power. It's legal in principle but doesn't work that well in practice, because their A/C units don't cycle at the same time.

For 72A @ 240V, you get 2.9% voltage drop using #2/0 aluminum wire.  $675 of wire.

For the 120V RV, the worst case scenario is one RV at max draw, so 24A @ 120V gives us 1.9% voltage drop on 2/0 aluminum. That's plenty fine.
But again we're following the rules in the People's Republic of Canada.  In the USA we have freedom... Yes, we have to provision 90 amps to these dual 50A RV stands, but that only requires #2 aluminum wire ($400) if we don't mind getting murdered by voltage drop when two RVs are going hot and heavy at the same time.  Freedom isn't free :)
With only one RV, #2 aluminum won't be an issue.  When two 50A RVs are running all A/C packs on full and somebody's doing a dryer load, that's when voltage drop will be apparent.
What I would do
I would definitely run a single feeder to a subpanel out at the RV stands, which then feeds 50A, 30A and 20A receps at each RV stand.    As far as wire size:
In Canada you must use #2/0 cable and you must breaker it at 100A - that's Code there.
In the US I would back it down to exactly what you suggested - #1/0 aluminum ($525).  That more reflects real world usage. Even with both RVs heavily drawing (80A) that will only have 4.16% voltage drop.  5.20% at 100A, but that isn't likely to happen and it's still not terrible.
For 120V RVs, the worst-case of one RV pulling 24A gives 2.5% voltage drop, or at full 30%, 3.1% drop.  That is fine.
For the short feeders from the subpanel to the RV stands, I would run Rigid Metal Conduit (RMC) - hella expensive, but it only needs trenching to 6" cover.  THHN wire can handle 50A with #8 wire (most cables need #6).  #10 for the 30A and #12 for the 20A.  One ground wire for all of them.

ThreePhaseEel's comments on feeding to multiple RVs:

The nifty trick with a single feeder is you can either get a RV pedestal with loop feed lugs, or a back-to-back unit that has two pedestal "heads" fed from the same feed lugs, and not need a separate subpanel to feed both RVs from one feeder as a result...
...(For instance, a Milbank U5220-XL-75 or a Midwest Electric U075CB6010 would take care of all the OP's RV power outlet needs)


Why are my water supply lines deteriorating? Hello
I have an American Standard (home depot brand) kitchen faucet from 2011. The hot and cold water supply line hoses are falling apart. The outside silver/grey layer has turned brown and flakes off. In the attached picture you can see the underneath whitengut of the hose, which looks ready to burst.

I'm trying to figure out what caused that, and I can only think that it was caused by vapors of chemicals stored in that same cabinet. Under the sink we have the usual stuff

Dish detergent,
CLR,
Potatoes and onions in a bin,
Windex

This can't be caused by the water itself; you can see the supply line to the removable faucet is perfectly fine in the picture (silver). Why didnt that one turn brown and peel off?

I have a replacement faucet coming and the supply line to the dishwasher is starting to brown out. Does anyone have any thoughts as to what may have caused hoses 3 years old to look like they are 30 years old?

Might not be, but looks like, effects of sulfur out-gassing from drywall.

See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_drywall or Google 'Knauf Plasterboard Tianjin Co.'.  Drywall commonly emits sulfur gas, however some of the lots from China were apparently really bad.  The bad drywall was widely distributed, including at Home Depot.

Note: A lot of Home Depot Quality 'stainless steel' is not very stainless.  But your picture shows a situation well beyond that.  Everything under that sink looks 50 years old: note the corrosion on the pipes and valves as well.


Garage Door stops and returns to original position Lately my garage door has been stopping when it gets about 2ft from the closed position and then returns to the original position.  Nothing is blocking the sensors and the tracks don't seem to have any bends or anything that would prevent the door from moving freely.  I also tried checking the cycle with the door disengaged (by pulling the emergency handle and letting the door sit in the closed position not connected to the chain), and the chain moves, stops, and returns at the same location as it does when the door is attached.

So, I assume it's something in the actual opening unit.  I haven't tried to adjust the downward force yet, but I'll give that a try when I get home tonight.  Don't think that's the issue though.

Has anyone had this issue before?

There are several possibilities.  First, rule out the obvious stuff:

Watch the electric eye sensors as the door opens and closes - confirm that the sensors remain aligned (the led lights on both remain lit during garage door travel, typically yellow on one, and green on the other); if there is a loose wire or sensor, or if there is excessive vibration or misalignment, the beam may be temporarily broken, causing the door to return to go back up

Confirm that the rails are aligned and straight, the bolts holding them are tight, the wheels on the door sections are tracking smoothly along the rails when the door opens and closes, and the rails are adequately greased to prevent excessive friction or binding during travel; also, ensure there are no other potential obstructions in the way of the garage door mechanism

If you have springs along the upper rail sections (i.e., not a torsion spring set-up), ensure that the tension in the garage door springs on either side is even, and there is similar sag side to side when the door is open; as you observe from the inside, the door should lower evenly (side to side, and in a smooth motion) if the springs are evenly worn, and the spring tension is similar    side to side

Confirm that the chain/cable tension on the garage door opener itself is set correctly (there is a certain amount of "sag" expected - check your owners manual for tolerances and how to adjust)

Finally, ensure the door return force limit isn't set too low (without standing directly under the door or otherwise causing injury, of course)

If all of the above checks out (sensors, rails, wheels, springs, all OK, door goes up and door evenly and smoothly, etc.), increasing the downward force slightly may resolve the issue.

In my experience, problems are often sensor-related or random obstructions (like the corner of a box or trash can getting the way of a garage door bracket).  If the springs are worn or the tension is too low on one side, the door may close unevenly, causing the wheels to bind up in the rails or strike an obstruction in the rails (like a joint or bolt head).


What is this electrical cord for? I found this odd cable while cleaning out the garage of a house I recently bought. It's plugged in to a live outlet but doesn't appear to connect anywhere. It also has some wrapped junction in the middle. Super puzzling to me. Thanks!

That looks like heating tape.

You wrap it round water pipes in the garage or somewhere else cold.  It provides just enough heat to stop the pipes freezing.

I've used this in the past on outside taps.  It is available at most big DIY shops.  It doesn't use much power.


How to prep existing floor for installation of self-adhesive vinyl flooring? Some quick background to preempt some discussion about quality, longevity, rental issues, etc.:  I'm in a rental that is literally "anything goes".  It's a long story, but suffice it to say if it does not require a building permit (or does but you can hide from the inspector), it's good to go.  This is an open layout where the bulk is laminate flooring that I installed myself.  I have an area that's approximately 18' x 8' that's an entrance and kitchen area and a bathroom that's about 6' x 6' where the original floor is still exposed.  The original floor is the old fashioned "linoleum" (asphalt/asbestos 12"x12" tiles) flooring.  It's in OK shape, but looks horrible - there's no cleaning of it at this point - it will never be white again.

My main goal is to put the cheapest vinyl solution on top of this that I can.  A lifespan of 5 years would be beyond what I'm aiming for.  Tearing up the old floor is not an option, nor is any floor prep that involves sanding (I am not wanting to kick up asbestos).  I assume I need some type of stripper, but I'm not finding any good specifics about that online.

My second goal is ease of installation.  I can't see myself doing a good job with a large sheet - the kitchen/entryway is sort of an elongated "U" shape ( |__| ), and the bathroom is small, but I have to go around the toilet and a small vanity.  And having an open floorplan like this, I'd like to avoid stinking the place up with the adhesives required for sheet flooring.  So I'm aiming for the self-stick stuff.

Any recommendations on cheap stick-on that will stick, and probably even more importantly the materials to prep the existing floor are welcome!

I have run into the same situation many times. Let me say first, that I don't condone doing work that requires permits without them, as it often leads to crappy quality or safety issues. I always prefer to do quality work, but occasionally budgets make it necessary to do a quicky fix.
In your case, the most important thing is to strip away all old wax and dirt on the existing tiles.  Tack down any loose tiles, especially around the edges with ring nails or a power stapler.

There are many de-waxing products and can be found at any box or hardware store. An alternative cleaner is ammonia and water. Cheap and effective, but smelly. You can also use a mix of  regular bleach, TSP, and water. (BTW, never mix bleach and ammonia!!!!) Clean the existing tile with one of these products and scrub the surface well with a mesh type pad, like a 3M green scrubbie.  Be sure to rinse the area well with clean water and allow to dry.

You may also consider a tile primer. This product is a bit pricey at over $30 a gal, but when applied over most any hard surface gives an excellent base for any self adhesive tile product.

When you get to the bathroom, remove the toilet and cut your tile around the closet flange, then reinstall the toilet. It is only two bolts, one water connection, and a replacement wax ring.  It will look 100% better and avoid tiles coming up due to the toilet sweating and wetting the edges of tiles cut around the base. Only takes a few extra minutes, but will make a big difference.


What subpanel and number of circuit breakers should I install in a detached garage? I no longer am dealing with my contractor. Long story.  But he ran 2 10-3 wires out to my garage for power.  I think he was planning on putting a 30 amp breaker on the panel in the house for each wire and a sub panel in the garage for each wire.  Is this OK to do?  If so, what kind of sub panel should I get? How many breakers can run on each sub panel?

You or your contractor have gone about this backwards. The first step is to determine your electrical requirements, including a reasonable amount of future expansion. Then you can size the wire & breaker together to meet those requirements.


Toilet won't flush without extra water About 18 months ago I had some plumbing work done and a ton of sediment was loosened in my pipes. Clogged the bathroom sink faucet fully and it had to be removed and cleaned out.

Since then, the American Standard 4019 toilet also hasn't worked well. Initially, the bowl wouldn't fill well, that has gotten better over time. However, it generally requires holding the handle and pouring about 16 ounces of extra water poured down the bowl to get a successful flush.

I've tried cleaning the jets with an allen wrench, no sediment was detectable there. I poured some food coloring/water into the overflow valve and it only came out of the bottom of the toilet, none seeped from the jets, though during a flush, water does come from them.

I've tried using a cheap manual auger, it didn't have any impact on the problem.

I had tried cleaning out the jets at the top of the rim previously, but it hadn't occurred to me to try to clean out the inlet at the bottom of the toilet bowl. It was nearly sealed shut. About 15 minutes of digging at it with a few screwdrivers of different sizes and I have it nice and clear and back to original excellent flushing quality.


Dishwasher drains with drain line detached, but not into the drain line itself I have a Whirlpool dishwasher (model # W10632077A) that has been a problem from the day we moved into this apartment. It's never cleaned dishes properly, and now it's suddenly stopped draining.
The dishwasher drain line is connected to the sink drain through a disposal unit. There is also an air gap installed.
I went through the following steps, making sure to turn off the breaker when working under the dishwasher. After each step I tried to engage the drain pump to see if the dishwasher would drain, manually adding a gallon of water to the bottom of the tub with a jug where necessary:

First I checked the filter and the drain pump inlets inside the
dishwasher. There was debris, but no obvious blockage at any of the
pump inlets/outlets that I could feel. I cleaned what I found and
replaced everything.

I then disconnected the drain line at the disposal. I did not find a
clog in either the disposal end of the drain line or the inlet on the
disposal itself. There is only a trickle of water in the drain line
when disconnected from this side.

I also checked the drain line connection at the drain pump under the
dishwasher. No obvious clog at the outlet of the drain pump or the
inlet of the drain line at this point, but no water inside the line
either (the drain line on this side is transparent flexi-tubing with a soft rubber fitting at the end that goes around a ribbed hose adapter at the pump outlet).

When the drain line is detached water flows freely out of the drain pump with gravity. The impeller inside the pump seems to move freely when manipulated by hand through the drain outlet.
When you manually turn on the drain pump on the dishwasher there's no sound of water flowing, only a brief suction sound somewhere in the sink drain (maybe through the airgap?). It does sound like the pump motor is running, but it's not successfully draining anything. I didn't try to blow on the tube to see if the blockage was further inside; couldn't figure out a good way to do it without having to put my mouth on it (open to suggestions here, esp. if there's a purpose-made tool for this).
What I don't understand is why the water flows freely out of the pump when the drain line is detached, but does not flow into the drain line when it's connected. Could it be that there's a check valve between the pump outlet and the drain line that will only allow water to drain when under pressure, such as when the pump is engaged (and then maybe the issue is the pump after all)? Or does it have something else to do with the anti-siphonage design? I would expect at least some of the water to drain with gravity into the drain line and be visible if it drains freely with the drain line detached.

Turns out it was the air gap. I didn't realize that the drain water always went through the air gap and was the only path to the sink drain - I thought it was a failsafe in case the main path was clogged.
Thanks to some helpful YouTube videos I figured out that the air gap was in the middle of the drain path and when I popped the cap off, lo and behold - pieces of star anise jammed in the top of the inner DW drain hose.
What I didn't know was that removing the blockage in the middle of a cycle would result in water shooting out like Old Faithful. Some lessons don't come cheap!
Running a new cycle now and everything seems to be draining like a charm.
If you're having dishwasher drain issues, check your air gap! Might be an easy fix.


half bath plumbing layout in triplex - fittings I am adding a first floor half bath to 3 units in my triplex.  I want to be sure I am UPC compliant with this plan.

1A is my preferred option, but 1B is an alternative, depending upon the easiest route to get the vent to the attic.

The main question is about the fittings to use (red circles).  I want to be sure I need to use Ys and 45s (or combos) rather than sanitary Ts in each case, and in case 1B, if the LAV to drain connection should be horizontal or turned up 45 degrees.

The 3” main drain is a new drain that will only service the 3 half baths, as the existing drain is only 3”.  I will tie the two 3” drains into a 4” Y before going into the 4” sewer line. The WC is less than 4 ft from  the LAV and less than 6 ft from the main drain.

Both drawings look correct. The areas circiled in both options whoud use the same fittings: wye with 45 elbow (or a combo fitting). Tees are only used when drainig from horizontal to vertical (such as the fitting picking up the LAV's trap arm) or in venting (your LAV vent connecting to the branch vent).


Troubleshooting hooking up ethernet switch in home office I'm a home owner trying to get an ethernet switch running in my basement office. I've run a weatherproof CAT5e cable from my router on my main floor to the basement and I've used a cable tester to confirm that the cable is good.

Trouble is, I've hooked several brands of ethernet switches to the cable and then hooked up devices to it but no signal seems to be coming out. They are all unmanaged switches from several manufacturers, but nothing seems to be working.

As far a s I can tell, I'm doing it in the right order: Internet (cable modem) -> router -> 50 foot weather-proof CAT 5e ethernet cable (tested) -> variety of 5- and 8- port switches = dead end.

So you need to break this down a bit further.
Do the switches blink any lights on the port from the router?
Can you hook up a laptop to the router with a local patch cable?
Can you hook up a laptop to the basement wire from the router?

If not, then you have a problem on that leg, before figuring out the switches.

Test and confirm each connection before adding another.
Many switches also have the concept of an upstream connection, make sure you're using that port for your router wire.


Will I have a code problem attaching a 1.5" grease interceptor to a 4" drain pipe? I want to install a grease interceptor in my house. The problem is that it will not fit under the sink, so I plan to put it in the basement.

The problem is that the sink, laundry and dishwasher all drain into a 4" drain that goes into the basement. I want to put the interceptor in line with this drain, which would mean I would have a 4" pipe connected to the 1.5" interceptor inlet, and then the 1.5" interceptor outlet would connect again to the 4" drain and go on to the rest of the sewer.

Will I have a code problem doing this?

It's a problem, with drains you can never reduce down you must always increase. The the 4"pipe going into the 1 1/2" is a problem.


How to glue wood to smooth exterior concrete? I am planning to put treated wood sleepers (2x4s) over a concrete patio and attach deck boards to the sleepers. This is an exterior area which gets plenty of sun but we're in a wet climate also. I think the wood will dry OK but the concrete will retain moisture.
I will mechanically attach the wood sleepers - but I am also thinking of using adhesive in order to reduce any "bounce" and provide extra holding power.
The concrete surface is in great condition but is very smooth. (So smooth that when wet it almost feels like walking on icy pavement!)
It sounds like polyurethane construction adhesive would be a good choice - is this correct?
Do I need any type of surface preparation - like a primer - before using the adhesive?

FYI - I am planning to use stainless fasteners because I don't trust "coated" for the long haul since they will be in moist (if not wet) concrete all the time. This is one reason to also use adhesive, because the fasteners are a little bit pricey.

I would always aim to "Float" the sleepers on top of the concrete floor.  since concrete is always porous and will retain water (ok, your floor sounds screeded) but even still.. it will have water.
So to Float the sleepers. When you fix them to the surface. use some washers to raise the sleepers -- (if you wanted, you could get some strong rubber and make rubber washers -- however, depending on the mass of the beams, i would say you would have more sound deadening effect by adding some good quality silicon / sikaflex rubber between the sleepers and the deck boards.