Can polyethylene backer rod be used to caulk (silicone) a ceramic tile shower wall to an acrylic base I have to use some backing in order to caulk between tile walls and a shower base where the gap to be filled is 5/8 inch wide and 1 inch deep.   Is polyethylene backer rod appropriate for use in a shower application?   What type backer rod works best with silicone calk (open cell or closed cell)?

A 5/8 inch gap is an awfully wide one to try to bridge with silicone caulk. Even with some type of filler I think you are unlikely to get a result that you would be happy with. At least I know I would not be happy.

Silicone caulk needs to be applied all at once to get a nice installation. First off it will not be reasonably possible to squirt out a 5/8 inch bead from a typical caulking tube spigot. Next consider that silicone material applied as a secondary application will not bond and adhere to previously applied bead that has cured.

If I had your issue I would be investigating filling up a majority of the gap area with a tile setting cement that is compatible with the backer materials behind your existing tile installation. I would then cut narrow pieces of tile (you could even band with a contrasting color) that you would set into additional tile setting cement such that it was flush with the existing tile surface. Once these strips were in place grout the spaces between the tiles and strips. Finally finish off with a neat narrow bead of the silicone material in the corner around the tub surface.


How can I level a sagging concrete floor in a condo building? I am purchasing a second floor condo that has a huge sag in a corner of one of the  bedrooms. There is approximately a 1 foot drop in the corner. The issue has been resolved in the basement footings but the building itself is off in many areas. I am on the second floor of a 5 story building. My biggest concern in trying to level the corner is the weight of any type of leveler pushing on the common wall of my neighbor next door.

Don't try it; run the other way with your money in hand instead.  The building is seriously defective beyond your control as a prospective condo purchaser, as Fiasco Labs very correctly points out in his comment.  Besides, if they're rotten enough to "fix" a footing while leaving the superstructure unrepaired, what else will they have in store?


How do I wire an old house with Cat6? I have a older home (build in the 50's) with 1/2" dry wall and then plaster on top.

I would like to run Cat6 cable through most of the house (living room, kitchen, entertainment room,etc).

So, I'm looking for pointers on how to do this.

At first glance, I could make a fairly long 'horizontal trench' in the wall, through the plaster and dry wall and then run the cable through the studs (they are wood and I would have to drill a hole).

But I'm really hoping their is a better way.

edit

I also have a finished basement (except for the furnace area).

Go big or go home. If you're going through all the trouble to pull wires through existing walls, don't pull just one. It's only slightly more work to pull two wires than to pull one. Doing the project a second time in a few years is twice as much work, though!

Think about everything you might want (IP networking, surveillance cameras, cable or satellite TV, telephone, speaker wires, home automation control signalling). Then add a bunch of extras. Cat-6 is a good choice, because it can carry most things you might want.

Consider a single conduit. During a major bathroom remodel & replumbing job, I had the plumber put conduit from the attic to the "wiring closet". He went a little nuts, putting two 4" conduits in - one for high voltage, one for low voltage. This makes it relatively easy to add a new service anywhere. Unfortunately, this was after I had finished running structured wiring.

Since a small part of your basement is unfinished, you might want to run conduit from there to your attic, and make that your "wiring closet". Then you can pull from each outlet to the attic, and easily run it down the conduit.

Star topology. Pull everything to a central location, and patch them together there. I used the space under the stairs.

How to pull up to an attic: In your attic, drill a large hole in the sill plate. It should be big enough to fit all the wires you want through it, but small enough to keep the strength of the sill plate. Avoid the wall studs below.

Cut a hole in the wall below, for the outlet.

Push a fish tape down from the attic. Have a helper watch the hole for the tape, and grab it with a bent coat hanger. They attach the wire bundle, and you pull it back up.

To push/pull from attic to basement, you can cut a hole on the floor in between, and do it in two steps. Or you can fish from both ends at the same time, using fish tapes that have hooks on the end. When they hook each other, pull the attic tape up to retrieve the basement tape. In the attic, tie on the wire bundle, then pull it down to the basement.

To pull between finished floors you need to cut a hole in the wall to drill a hole in the sill plate & fish between the floors.

See also my answer on how to pull wire to a basement or crawlspace: How do I run ethernet, speaker wire, and coax through a wall into a crawlspace?

The more holes you cut, the easier it is to pull wires, and the more fixup work you have to do.


How often to change Aprilaire AC Filter I have a AprilAire #2210 Air Filtration system connected to my central AC unit in the attic (https://www.aprilaire.com/whole-house-products/air-purifiers/model-2210). I am trying to figure out how often I should change its chunky filter. Recommendation is 9-12 months, but is it 9-12 months of use? I only use this filter for AC and not for heating, so 9-12 months would be at least two summers of AC use - or 2 years. Or does this mean 9-12 months regardless of use, in which case I'd need to replace it before the summer since I installed it last June.

Lastly - the current filter has been there since last June (almost 1 year ago, but only used in AC season) and when I look at it now it looks very clean. Is that an indication of anything?

Thanks for bearing with me on this.

9-12 months is a recommendation. The only way to check a filter accurately is with a dual port manometer

Amazon
Nobody is going to buy one of these just to check the filter. Visual and auditory cues are usually enough. If the pleats on the filter are starting to deform it's probably due for a change.
Also keep in mind that ceiling returns tend to pull in less dirt, thus increasing the life expectancy of your attic mounted filter.
All things considered I wouldn't be surprised if you get 3 - 4 years out of the filter. It's dependent on usage and you'll need to monitor it. But don't hesitate to leave a clean and functional filter in because it's old.


How to install this ceiling lamp I bought this ceiling lamp on Amazon and I am trying to fit it. Usually the wires coming from the ceiling are connected to the base of the bulb through some sort of connecting block, where each wire is pinched by a small screw so it can't get away.

But incredibly in this lamp there is nothing like that, just holes and nothing to block the wires!

Does anybody have any clue about how to properly attach electric wires to this thing?

Pictures available below. Full-screen picture of the relevant part here: picture

Procedure

Turn off power to the lighting circuit
Test that power is off using a non-contact voltage detector (NCV) and/or Cat-II multimeter.
If necessary to prevent cable chafing, fit a cable grommet to the backplate cable opening. (since the backplate may be heated by the lamp, you may need to look for a grommet that can be used in hot conditions)
Strip the insulation from the ends of the live and neutral wires.
To the screw attach an earth wire (bare or green/yellow in UK)
In the hole above the embossed "L" push the live wire (brown in UK).
In the hole above the embossed "N" push the neutral wire (blue in UK).

Notes

The push-fit connections are unusual in UK fittings and are intended for solid-core wires (not stranded)
The holes connected to the metal strip are not for powering the light.
The fitting appears to be designed for use with a separate junction box fitted in the ceiling.
Live wires from a light-switch sometimes have the wrong colour insulation but are marked with red tape (indicating switched-live).
Typical wiring for a ceiling lighting fitting in the UK is as shown below

Note that this image does not show the strain relief that must be present on the hanging cable. Fittings with exposed metal parts will need a protective earth connection. The one you have looks like it particularly needs this!


Can I connect my generator transfer switch to a subpanel instead of to the main panel? My house has a generator transfer switch (ProTran 30310B) attached to circuits in the main panel (see photo).

I added an attached garage to the house. I want to add a subpanel in the garage, connecting it via 6-3 cable to a 60 amp breaker in the main panel. I will isolate the neutral bar as usual for a subpanel.

Once I do that, can I migrate my transfer switch and the corresponding circuits from the main panel to the subpanel? The goal is to plug my generator in near the subpanel in the garage and to enable some of the new garage circuits to go onto generator power.

You could simply pull a properly sized cable from the transfer switch, out to the garage. Then install a generator input receptacle in the garage.

There's likely a knockout in the bottom of the transfer switch to allow for this. If not, you may be able to add your own (check with the manufacturer).

Moving the transfer switch, and migrating circuits is is likely going to be a huge headache.  It's much simpler to pull a single new cable.


Toilet will not flush and has Air Bubbles Toilet will not drain when flushed.  If I use a plunger for 5 min I can get the water to drain to normal level in the bowl.  If I turn on the water to the bathtub and sink both sandwiching the toilet air bubbles begin coming up in the bowl.  There are two other full baths in the home working fine.

Will the bath keep draining? It sounds like the pipe below the toilet,sink & tub are plugged. The other bathrooms are probably closer to the tank / city sewer so they work fine. A snake would probably clear the drain. I would go in at the sink trap as these are easy to remove unless there is a clean out close by.


In my sink pop-up stopper, the tip of the pivot rod is broken, how do I fix it? In my bathroom, the tip of the pivot rod which is connected to the stopper is broken. When the stopper goes down, it has no rod to hook to. Is it possible to re-use and re-adjust the existing pivot rod?

If not, should I get a new one?  Which name should I use to describe the hardware that I need when I go to the hardware store?

If you have actually snapped the rod but have enough length to spare you should be able to move it forwards, however are you sure this has happened?

The reason I ask is that I had similar symptoms, but all that had happened is that the rod had slipped back through the clevis strap so it no longer connected with the stopper. The clip holding it to the strap made it look like it was just broken, but I eventually figured it out.

Admittedly, on mine there is no hook holding the rod to the stopper, it simply pushes the stopper up, and gravity lets it fall again when you pull the plunger up.


Can't use in ground pool anymore, how do I maintain it? Health problems and up keep costs have led to the decision not to use in ground pool.  What do I need to do to keep the pool mosquito free while not having to pay the pool service company and the costs associated with running the pump and filter?

Difficult.

You may be able to drain it, but it doesn't take much standing water for mosquitoes to breed so that's an ongoing issue unless you fill it in.

If your don't drain it, you can keep it chlorinated/brominated/ozonated to kill the mosquitoes. That may require running the filter system. If you can keep the pool covered, you can reduce the amount of organic material drifting into the water, which shold make maintaining the chemistry easier. But any standing water on top of the cover risks becoming a skeeter colony again; see above. And you may face Attractive Nuisance legal risks.

You could try turning it into a fishpond, stocking it with enough fish to eat most of the skeeter larvae. Your county extension office, or the equivalent agricultural advisory service in other countries, might be able to tell you whether this would be at all workable. Converting it back into a usable pool might not be easy, though, and the fishpond might still be considered an Attractive Nuisance.

I believe the way most folks solve this is by selling the house to a family who wants the pool and using the proceeds to buy an equivalent or better house, or by selling the land the pool is on (either makes it someone else's problem) or by accepting that it has outlived its usefulness and filling it in.


Attaching Suspended Ceiling Angle to Drywall Only? I'm finishing my basement, and made a mistake.

The wall in some portions was only framed in up to 84". I'm matching the height of my suspended ceiling to the bottom of a steel I-beam the crosses the whole basement at a height of - you guessed it - 85".

I've already insulated, drywalled, primed and painted.

I'm looking for a way to affix the angle to the drywall. It'll be 100ish inches long on the offending wall, bearing half the weight of four-ish half-tiles, so not terribly much. I'm wondering if drywall anchors should be stout enough.

I know the proper answer is to frame up behind the drywall, but I'm not gonna. There are reasons.

If I'm understanding correctly, the drywall extends 1" past the top of the framing, and that's where you want to attach the angle for the suspended ceiling?

I would normally suggest screw-in type anchors for this (much stronger than the push-in kind), but I'd be worried that installing one will cause damage the top edge of the drywall, and make the anchor useless. If you want to go that way, try it in a piece of scrap first.

Given that it's not a lot of weight, you'd probably be okay with push-in anchors (where you drill a hole then push them in). Just be careful during drilling and don't hammer them too hard. The tiles aren't heavy nor are they subject to dynamic loads. I'd put an anchor in every 16 or maybe 24".

A better bet would be a "Toggler": they push in through a hole (minimizing potential to damage the drywall) but flatten out and have much more strength than the typical push-in anchors.

You'll have to hold the angle up, mark the holes, then pre-drill and install the anchors before you can actually mount it, of course. Bit of a pain but not as much as taking down and then refinishing drywall.


How can I finish the edge of a mirrored wall? I am having a full wall in my foyer covered with mirror, and I am curious to know how to finish the end of a fully mirrored wall?  The wall ends at a corner that leads into the sitting room. So from the sitting room, the edge of the mirror will be visible. I hope this makes sense?

In other words the foyer wall to the right of the entrance wall will be mirrored.  That wall is about 8 feet long.  When the wall ends, you turn a corner to enter the sitting room.  It is that corner that I am referring to; I want to be sure that the edge of mirror is finished correctly and also that visually it looks good from the sitting room.

I think in this case the best solution is to use a timber profile - L shape trim. You stick it on the edge with some liquid nails glue and so it covers the wall from one side and goes over a mirror edge on the other
the ones in the middle in the picture


200 amp panel box with some circuits not working I have a 200 amp breaker box in a mobile home. The power just suddenly goes out on all but two breakers/circuits. Each functional circuit is on opposite sides of the panel; the left side is one breaker down, while the right one is one up from the last. The functional circuits on the left side go up to the ceiling, so do the non-functional ones. The right is the same, except those go down under the floor.

There was no sound when it happened, no flickers, just suddenly out except these two. No breakers flipped, and there is no smell of burnt wiring.

I have flipped all breakers back and forth several times including the main and disconnect outside.

I am just perplexed as to cause. It is raining a lot but no more than usual. The inside of the box appears dry.

Do you have any idea what to look for?

Wow! You got some mobile home with a 200 amp service.
The code says:

II. Mobile and Manufactured Homes
550.10 Power Supply.
(A) Feeder. The power supply to the mobile home shall be a feeder assembly consisting of not more than one listed 50-ampere mobile home power-supply cord or a permanently installed feeder.

Maybe you have a modular home?
I agree with BMitch though sounds like you lost a leg on the utility feed. You should call your utility. Might be a tree limb took out one wire of your service.


What is the minimum required distance from a shower to an electrical outlet? In Fairfax County Virginia, what is the minimum distance that an outlet must be from a shower in the bathroom?  Does the minimum distance change if it is GFI outlet?

It must be GFCI (2009 residential codes, chapter 29):

  E3902.1 Bathroom receptacles. All
  125-volt, single-phase, 15- and
  20-ampere receptacles installed in
  bathrooms shall have ground-fault
  circuit-interrupter protection for
  personnel.

VA building codes are online: http://www.ecodes.biz/ecodes_support/Free_Resources/Virginia2009/09Residential/09Residential_main.html


Can I use a 20 amp breaker in the situation of having 15 amp wire connected to a 20 amp main wire? Can I use a 20 amp breaker in the situation of having 15 amp wire connected to a 20 amp main wire?

If I can't would using a 15 amp breaker be ok?

No, in a situation like this absolutely not. The breaker in this case would need to be 15A.

Question is, WHY? Why use #14 wire when the circuit is already #12? Stick with what is there and keep the breaker 20A. In some cases, such as in a kitchen, laundry or bath, you'd be creating a violation doing it like you show in that diagram.

And don't be confused by the receptacles being "15A rated". They are FINE on a 20A circuit and are 20A feed-thru rated as well.


Can Canadian panels be used in the USA? Here's a slick Canadian subpanel with a "generator interlock".   It is a normal 2-pole panel, just like common USA panels, and it's Square D QO, which is common as dirt in the USA.  However for the generator interlock, it uses 3-pole breakers (this series of panel is also made in a 3-phase version, so the 3-pole breakers are also common).  The third pole switches neutral.

We often have applications here in the US where someone needs a generator interlock/transfer switch, and there are loads of things like this on the US market, but they are only 2-pole (no neutral).  That won't cut it, because they are coming off an inlet from a portable generator, and most portable generators have neutral-ground bonds, which means neutral must be switched. (the consumer can't be counted on to install and remove the N-G bond every time he uses the generator).

This thing is both CSA and UL listed (CSA is a US Nationally Recognized Testing Lab) and actually made in the USA.  So could I just pop across the Friendship Bridge, buy one in Home Depot.CA, and use it in Virginia?  Or is that statutorially disallowed, and if so, by which Code cite?

In your specific case, no, because the labeling is wrong (or you just can't get what you want)

Looking at the photos on HD.ca, it is clear enough that the panel is not labeled for service in the US, as it would either need a cCSAus mark, or a UL mark alongside the CSA mark, in order to be usable in the US as well as Canada.

Generally speaking? I'm not sure

I am not certain if one could make a binational loadcenter assembly that was listed and labeled cULus or cCSAus; it depends on how harmonized UL 67 (the UL standard for panelboards) is with its Canadian counterpart.

As it turns out, there is an easy way to do this after all, so you can get what you need

Fortunately for us, there is a way out of this while staying within the QO loadcenter line.  The split-bus QO generator loadcenter (aka the QO122X26M200PC) has its backfed/interlocked breakers about halfway down the panel, which isn't compatible with the traditional QO backfeed retainers that attach to the main interior mounting screw located just above the branch stabs.  So, Square-D had to develop a different retainer kit for that panel, the QOCGKX, which attaches to the accessory mount points on the right side of the interior (one screw, one clip).  Fortunately for us, while the accessory mount point configuration on QO loadcenter interiors varies, there are other QO interiors that provide a configuration compatible with the QOCGKX, with a screw and clip combination open on the right side of the loadcenter.

For this approach, you'll need:

A QO124L125PGC loadcenter (if you need more spaces for standby circuits, you can use a 42- or 54-space, 225A, main lug loadcenter instead)
A QO350SWN breaker for the utility feed into the panel
A QO1xx to serve as a mechanical adapter (the amp rating doesn't matter)
A QO330SWN or QO350SWN (depending on the size of your generator/inlet/wiring) for the generator feed into the panel
A QOCGKX interlock/retainer kit (you'll need to order this from a supply house that stocks Square-D parts)
Some white wire of the appropriate size and matching wirenuts or crimp (compression) splices to extend neutral pigtails with
And a QO3HT handle tie

The trick here is that the retainer mounts to the bottom right accessory mount points in the QO124L125PG's interior.  Since the standard QO2DTI interlock requires a single pole breaker on the left in order to interlock with a 3 pole breaker on the right, we have to mount the breakers with one of the QO3xxSWN breakers in the far bottom right 3 spaces, followed by the QO1xx directly above it, and finally the other QO3xxSWN directly above the QO1xx.  Once this is done, the interlock piece can go on the upper QO3xxSWN breaker so that it interlocks that breaker with the single pole breaker below it.  That single pole breaker is then handle tied to the lower QO3xxSWN breaker using the QO3HT tie, allowing the interlock to operate on the combination of the lower QO3xxSWN and the QO1xx as if they were a single breaker with a single handle in the appropriate position.  Next, the QOCGKX's retainer is mounted in the lower right accessory position, as per the instructions provided with it.  This makes sure you can't pull the backfed breakers out (or the mechanical adapter-breaker for that matter).

Now that all the mechanical details are taken care of, we can handle wiring this setup.  The neutral pigtails on the QO3xxSWN breakers are extended (if necessary) using splices and appropriately sized white wires, then landed on branch neutral terminals in the panel interior while the main lugs on this panel are left open to be used as expansion subfeeds.  From there, this is wired as a normal subpanel with the utility hots and neutral going into one QO3xxSWN, the generator hots and neutral going into the other QO3xxSWN, and branch circuits wired as you would from any other subpanel; you can even use QO plug-on neutral breakers here if you wish, as the panel supports them.  The grounds, of course, land on separate ground bars; the QO124L125PGC is supplied with a ground bar, but it may still have to be field-fitted.

If you can't get a QOCGKX...

The good news is that it's possible to do this, even if you can't get a QOCGKX; the bad news is that you need to use unit mount breakers (and a few jumper wires) to do this in that case because QO loadcenter interiors do not support retaining backfed breakers in arbitrary positions (even the QOCGKX is quite limited both in positioning and compatibility).

In this case, you'll need:

Two QOU3xx breakers (you can go up to 70A for the generator and up to 125A for the utility, wire bending space permitting)
A QOU1xx breaker to serve as a "dummy" pole (if the utility breaker is 70A or less)
A QO3HT handle tie (if the QOU1xx is necessary)
A QO2DTILA interlock kit
QOUMFS1 threaded mounting feet, two per breaker pole
8-32x3/8" mounting screws, two per breaker pole
Insulated three-port mechanical splice connectors (three) and suitably sized jumper wires (six) to connect the load-side hots and neutrals together
And a box to wrap this all up in (the box and trim from a QO816L100xx loadcenter should do the trick quite beautifully, just yank out the loadcenter interior, take care of the twistouts, drill some holes in the trim for the 8-32 breaker mounting screws, and fit a ground bar to the box)

What you want to do here is flush mount the breakers to the enclosure cover (trim) in a 3-1-3 configuration (or 3-3 with the utility on the left if using a >60A breaker on the utility side), then mount the QO2DTILA to the left side of the rightmost breaker.  Finally, if the dummy breaker is being used, it needs to be handle-tied to the leftmost breaker in this configuration.

Wiring-wise, one side of one 3-pole breaker goes to the utility (hots + neutral), while that side of the other 3-pole breaker goes to the generator.  The opposite side of the 3-pole breakers gets wired in parallel using suitably sized jumper wires and splice connectors, and then that can get wired onward to another enclosure (or a loadcenter interior in that enclosure if you're doing more extensive enclosure modifications) to distribute standby power to wherever it needs to go.

As to the 1-pole breaker, if present? It simply is left unwired; its sole purpose in life is to serve as a mechanical adapter between the handle-tie going onward to the left-hand 3-pole breaker and the QO2DTILA interlock as the interlock may slide under a handle-tie space that doesn't have a handle behind it.


What is like a door, but with a groove and two holes? I want to identify the following object left in the house from the previous owners. It looks like a door, but has a long groove, and two round holes. Furthermore, it has half-bullnose edge, and rounded corners. On the back there is a label, which says

Colour: F26
Run & N.C. Prog: 26A4-8 CNC
Slot Location:
C/O: 135016.075
Instance: SPR300720
License Plate: 135016.075
Cut Width: 29.000
Cut Length: 71.938
Smoke Developed Index Over 450

Inspections:
Routing op
Almex/Fritz
Final inspection

According to my measurement the width and length are indeed 29in and 72in respectively, and depth is 1in. I would like to note that our house is in the United States, but the spelling on the label says "colour", British spelling.

The pictures are below:

Speculation: I'm going to go with it is the panel just behind the drivers seat in a RV that makes a bed and covers the battery and the generator, as it has a fire coating applied by either Almex or Fritz Industries for a recreational vehicle probably manufactured in Canada.


Why does half the house go out when a single breaker trips? The breaker box at my brother's house is well marked and balanced except when a breaker is tripped half the house goes out. I'm currently living on the third floor of his house. When I turned on a small fridge the room went out as well as the stairwell, hall light,  kitchen (including a separately breaker-ed microwave) and basement lights.  Could all of these be on one breaker?

My brother swears it wasn't always like that and that since an ugly divorce things have been done to the house. I always thought he was paranoid but I have seen a couple of things that make me wonder.

I have traced back and nothing jumps out at me, no Uh-Oh's. Reading before about neutrals being bundled together made sense.

Any additional guidance, direction would be greatly appreciated.

Panel-ology, Selective (Dis)Coordination, and You

What you are seeing (multiple circuits being knocked offline by an overload on a single circuit) is a not-uncommon phenomenon in some types of residental setups; however, understanding it requires some knowledge of how electrical panels are set up.

Panel-ology (or how electrical panels are configured)

Every structure that receives an electrical service from the utility, or from a separately derived system (such as a generator), must have some readily accessible means of disconnecting the electrical service from the building wiring with no more than six hand motions, as per NEC 230.70 and 230.71.  Furthermore, 230.90, 230.91, and 230.94 mean that this means must also provide overload (overcurrent) protection.  In practice, the only devices that are listed and used for this task are electrical panelboards (fuse or circuit breaker boxes/panels, in the vernacular) that are fitted with overcurrent protection devices (fuses, breakers); this provides service and branch-circuit protection in a single, convenient package.

The first panels used fuses, and only provided a few 120V circuits for lights and the occasional appliance, as well as a main cartridge fuse and service disconnecting means.  As more and higher-draw electrical appliances became popular, additional  120V circuits were added to this basic design, as well as cartridge-fused 240V branches for water heaters and electric cooking equipment.

Then, in the post-WWII building boom, circuit breakers began to become popular in new construction, providing convenience and improved safety.  No longer did you have to run down to the hardware store to grab a spare fuse when the lights went out because your kid plugged one too many things into the bedroom outlets, and it was also no longer possible to overfuse or bypass fuses, something that was done all too often in the fuse era.

Also, as buildings became larger, and needed more circuits, sometimes a single panel would no longer provide enough room; furthermore, the electrical code had a 42 circuit limit on panels, which was easily exceeded in large buildings.  This meant that more than one electrical panel was necessary -- one panel with the service entrance coming into it would have a small number of high-amperage breakers or cartridge fuse pullouts in it, and then the wires coming from it were connected to more electrical panels in the building.  These subpanels, as they are commonly called, do not need to have a main circuit breaker or main disconnect; they simply are loaded with smaller circuit breakers or fuses that usually feed branch circuits, but can also feed other subpanels as well, although it is rare to see "nested subpanels" like this in a residential building, unless you live in a high-rise.

Another development, this time on the low end of the housing market, was the "split bus" panel.  Main circuit breakers are large (100A or more), bulky, and costly; also, some circuit breaker manufacturers did not make, or rarely made, circuit breakers upwards of 60 or 100A in size.  However, house electrical services continued to grow, from the early 30A services, to 60A, then 100A and more, onto today's 200A residential electrical services.  In a split bus panel, there are two sets of breaker "hot" buses: the upper set is fed from the electrical service and contains not more than six two-pole circuit breakers for heavy loads such as dryers, electric cooking equipment, air conditioners/heat pumps, and water heaters.  The lower set of busbars is fed from a two-pole breaker in the upper set and contains the single-pole breakers for 120VAC circuits.  This design was, and still is, allowed by the electrical code (230.71's Rule of Six); however, it fell out of favor in the 1980s and later partly due to the consolidation of the circuit breaker market -- many of the "bottom of the barrel" circuit breaker manufacturers went out of business or were acquired by established names in the circuit protection business, all of which had no trouble making high-amperage main circuit breakers due to their experience manufacturing circuit breakers for heavy commercial and industrial applications, and thus had no need for split-bus panels in their product lines.

Selective (Dis)Coordination

In most electrical configurations, there will be at least two breakers in series protecting any given 120V branch circuit, and sometimes more.  However, the properties of breakers in series are complex to predict: sometimes the lower amperage breaker trips first, but at other times a higher amperage breaker will trip instead on a bolted fault (dead short).  This is caused by variations in the time-to-arc-initiation and dynamic arc impedance during the breaker tripping process, as it takes a short period of time (roughly one half cycle for a well-designed circuit breaker) for the breaker to react to and clear the fault in the case of a short circuit.  For overload situations, different breakers have different thermal trip time constants due to manufacturing variations, but the effect is the same: which breaker will trip on the overload cannot be predicted in advance.

In some systems (emergency power or continuous industrial processing, for instance), this property is undesirable.  Hence, the major commercial/industrial circuit breaker makers publish tables that an engineer can use to select a set of compatible (same make and series) breakers so that the furthest-downstream breaker is guaranteed to trip first on a short circuit, leaving the other circuits powered and running while an electrician fixes the faulty circuit.  This is called selective coordination.

However, it's generally considered impractical to selectively coordinate residential circuit breakers -- less is known about the fault currents present in a residential system or the trip characteristics of residential circuit breaker types, and the engineering effort required to selectively coordinate circuit breakers is significant compared to the impact of a feeder or main breaker tripping on a branch circuit fault -- i.e. a mere nuisance in a residential setup vs. a hazard to safety in a hospital's emergency power where you don't want lights and machines turning off mid-surgery or in a continuous industrial process where a disorderly shutdown could send chemicals spilling all over the plant floor.

...and You

This means that your only hope is to put the fridge on a less-loaded circuit so that it doesn't trip any breakers to begin with; either that, or your fridge is on the fritz (pulling too much inrush current on compressor start) and will need help (or a trip to the Dumpster) soon...

As to why it wasn't always this way?  Circuit breakers, like all other things, wear over time -- they can become more trip-prone due to this wear (say due to changes in the microstructure of the thermal element, or biasing of the core in the magnetic trip coil), and if this happens to a feeder or split bus breaker over the course of repeated tripping, this phenomenon (one overload taking out several branch circuits instead of just one) will happen without regard to any divorce paperwork that was filed.


How can I locate a short in a 24V central A/C circuit? My A/C is not working. I checked the panel and the LED light code told me that there was a fuse blown or a short in the circuit. I checked and confirmed that the fuse had blown. If the fuse blows again, how do I check for a short or broken wire in the circuit between the panel and the thermostat?

Here is the layout:

Control Panel:
   White   Red/Blue   White   Yellow   Orange   Green   (Wires)
     0       0         0        0        0        0
    Hum      Com       W        Y        R        G     (Terminals)
Thermostat:
   Green     Blue     Red     Yellow   White            (Wires)
     0         0       0        0        0
     G        Rc       Rh       Y        W

Use a Network Cable Tester
To find short- and open-circuit conductors in any low-voltage multi conductor cable, I recommend

isolating the cable from all devices (i.e. disconnect it from the furnace/heatpump/AC and thermostat), and

using a network cable electrical tester and RJ45 breakout adapters to test it.

RJ45 Breakout Adapter
You need two of these.  One for each end of the cable.
This is one style:

Here is another:

Network Cable Electrical Tester
You need one of these 2-part devices.  They are very simple and cost about $10.

Making the Connections
Attach an adapter to each end of the cable under test (CUT).  Decide on a mapping between CUT wire colors and pins 1 to 8 marked on the adapter.  The mapping can be arbitrary, but you should use the same mapping at both ends.
Connect one part of the tester to the adapter at each end of the CUT.  Depending on the adapters and tester, you may need some short network patch cables to do this.  If you do use patch cables, make sure they are straight through and not crossover cables.
Performing the Test
To perform the test, you just switch on the tester and confirm that its lights flash according to the expected pattern.  You will need to read your tester's manual to determine the expected pattern and interpret what a deviation from that pattern means in terms of short- and open-circuits.  This video shows one of these testers in use including the flash pattern for that particular tester.
Limitations
There are, of course, limitations to this method.  Here are the ones I can think of off the top of my head:

Limited to 8 conductors at a time
will not detect shorts to ground via other cabling
can be confused by even very low voltages applied to conductors by shorts to energized circuits (although you'll probably still learn that there's something awry)


How much can you do as a homeowner in Texas without requiring a permit/inspections? Backstory: we recently added some furniture to a previously-unused room to make it a quickie guest bedroom for some upcoming family visits. On a whim, I got my electrical tester and plugged it in to a bedside outlet to make sure it worked properly. "Open Ground". Goodie. Since I had to open the boxes up anyway, I decided to bite the bullet and replace the outlets in the room with TR.

The first outlet (the one with the ground issue) had very little slack, but other than that the wires (including the ground) were all present and seemed to be in good condition. Then I opened up the second box (which got the line from the service panel and daisy-chained a runner out to the one with the ground issue), and found, to my horror, that whomever had last wired this outlet had not only disconnected the ground on the runner to the other outlet, but had cut it off at the jacket. HUUUUUGE no-no. Luckily, they'd made another more minor boo-boo, and there was roughly two inches of outer insulation on the wire in the box (from what I remember of HoH, electricians are supposed to leave a max of only 1/4" of outer insulation in a wallbox), so I was able to cut the jacket back and expose enough bare wire to get a couple good twists around the ground on the service side, making the electrical in the room safe to use.

I figure this hack job can't have been done by the original homebuilders; a lot of things in this house have been worked on by the son of the original homeowners, and virtually all of them have had pretty obvious defects in the workmanship. The wiring problems, at least, I can clean up as I find them, but this guy has renovated bathrooms, framed out a loft space into an enclosed room, installed a spa, and has probably touched more of this house than I know. My questions to the board are:

Would this guy, not being the homeowner himself, be required to be licensed in Texas and to pull permits for this kind of electrical work (running subpanels, fishing new wire, installing wallboxes)? I know in the legal world, you can represent yourself, but if you don't then the person who represents you must be a member of the bar. I wonder if the same applies to home construction.
In a similar vein, would the guy have been required to get the work inspected?
If something defective in the house causes a real problem before I catch it, do I have any recourse against him, or against the original homeowners who let this hack work on their house?

For questions one and two:

Legally, it's up to local code. I'm not up on code in Texas. But where I've lived, it's generally acceptable for homeowners to do most work themselves. If it's a structural change (new walls, new foundation, new electrical circuits etc.) It typically requires a permit and inspection.

Granted, just because something requires a permit, it doesn't mean one was pulled. This is common--even if you hire a contractor. Alas, just because you hire a contractor does not mean that a) they will pull permits voluntarily or b) actually do things right anyways.

I've done work as a homeowner with and without permits and I'm still on the fence about it. I appreciate what permits are supposed to do, but have also had to deal with some very backwards and out of date inspectors. I can see why people skip the permit step at times. Sometimes it's to cut corners, but, ironically, I think sometimes it's so they can be left alone to do the job right rather than what the inspector wants to see. ;)

As for question 3, you'll have to seek out a lawyer for that.


Is it okay to store laminate flooring in a dry garage for a couple weeks? I have purchased some flooring that I won't be able to install for a couple weeks.  I live in Canada and the winter is on its way, so the temperature is beginning to reach freezing. Is it okay to store the flooring in my garage if I'm sure the floor won't be wet?

It is fine to temporarily store the flooring in a cool dry place, However, You will need to bring it into the  climate in which it will be installed for a few days so that it will acclimate to the conditions before installation.


Installing an outdoor inlet for a portable generator I've purchased a portable generator that I'm planning to use in case of an outage.  I'm not wanting to wire this to my house wiring; I'm just planning to install an outdoor inlet wired to a dedicated outlet in the house, and connect a power strip to some items during an outage.  What do I need to be aware of in this kind of setup?  Do I need to install a separate ground line for this outlet?  Would I be violating any kind of code with this install?  Any help would be appreciated.  Thanks.

If you want this to look decent, and be safe. You want to have something like this:

Circuit Protection
This setup assumes that the generator provides overcurrent, short-circuit,  overload, and ground-fault protection. Likely via a circuit breaker, and a GFCI receptacle.  If this is not the case, you'll want to provide that protection within your wiring.
If the generator output does not have short-circuit, overcurrent, and overload protection, you'll want to install a circuit breaker somewhere (likely between the inlet and the receptacle). If the generator does not provide ground-fault protection, you'll want to have that somewhere as well (likely via GFCI receptacle, or GFCI circuit breaker).
Shock Hazard Protection
You'll notice in the above diagram, that an inlet is used, and that the female end of the gen. cord plugs into the inlet. To understand why this is important, let's take this example.
The power goes out. You go out and start up the generator. You plug one end of a double male ended cord into the generator, and drag the other end over to the "input receptacle". As you do so, you touch the exposed prongs at the end of the cord. ZAP! You dead.
If the generator does not accept a male plug connection, you'll want to make up a double female cord. That way you'll plug a female end into the generator, and a female end into the inlet. You don't ever want to have exposed energized parts, as they are a serious shock hazard.
Sizing
Make sure all wiring and devices are sized properly. If you're working with a 20 ampere 125 volt output from the generator. That would mean 20 ampere devices, and at least 12 AWG copper wires.
Grounding
As this setup is basically an extension cord, there's no need to bond it to the electrical system of the house.  The neutral-ground bond on the generator should be left in place.
NEC 702.11 says that the generator has to be grounded to a grounding electrode in accordance with 250.30.
Signage
According to NEC 702.7(C), there should sign near the inlet that reads:

WARNING:
FOR CONNECTION OF A SEPARATELY DERIVED (BONDED NEUTRAL) SYSTEM ONLY


How to make a Priming Manifold on top of my pool pump lid I have been thinking about making something like this for a while to help me prime the pool pump at the beginning of the season. Today I found a picture of exactly what I am thinking about.

Can you help me identify what parts are used in this picture or what parts I can use to make something similar?

What is the best way to  seal the metal pipe to the plastic cover to avoid any leaks?

I would use a brass bulkhead fitting with Orings. like this photo shows. Add your threaded shutoff valve and hose adapter and you will be good to go. Be careful when cutting the hole if using a standard drill bit they grab and want to break the plastic. A hole saw would be a better way to reduce the chance of breaking. For a 1/2" pipe a 7/8" hole saw for 3/4"pipe 1-1/8" hole saw are the standard sizes.


How do I fix a gap in my refrigerator door gasket seal? Today I noticed that the gasket seal surrounding the refrigerator door has a bit of a gap along the lower quarter of the door. The photo below shows my refrigerator door - notice how the white gasket is flush with the refrigerator from the top down to about six inches below the bottom of the door handle, but then there is a gap that starts to grow and runs down to the end of the door.

How would I go about fixing this gap? Do I need to buy a new strip of the door gasket and replace the existing one?

Measure the space between the door and refrigerator on all sides/corners to see if something is out of alignment. One of the steps in replacing most gaskets is to fix the alignment of the door before tightening the screws. To fix the alignment, you would loosen the gasket screws, push or pull the top and bottom corners of the door until it's properly aligned, and retighten the gasket screws.

See these instructions on the steps to replace a gasket to get a better idea of the steps involved.


Easiest/affordable way to monitor what's using power in your home? My electric bill seems to be unusually high.

I'm trying to figure out if there is an issue somewhere (faulty wiring, someone stealing power etc) or if one of my devices is a power hog.

Does anyone know of an easier way to monitor the use of their electric?

I use a "Kill-A-Watt" like this one here for plug-in devices.

For hard-wired device you would have to connect an attachment plug to the device and plug it in to the Kill-A-Watt.

You could also take amprobe and voltage readings of your equipment to verify it's power draw.

Good luck!


Sound of Running Water After Faucet is closed In addition to a "whooshing" sound when water is running through our pipes, I've noticed recently that after we turn off a faucet the sound of running water continues for about 5 seconds. What would cause this?
I recently replaced the main shutoff valve since it was leaking. I don't think there is air in the system. All of the faucets and showers have been used extensively since then. Could the whooshing water sound and the delayed shutoff be related? They both started after I replaced the main shutoff.

I've heard this before, in a single story house where the water main entered the building near the bathroom, but because there was a hallway with a solid floor between there and the kitchen, the  hot and cold pipes ran up through the attic, then back down to the sink and dishwasher. All was fine for years until some work was done in the bathroom, moving a sink, then the exact same issues started that you describe. What happened was that there was air in the inverted U in the pipes, and even with the kitchen sink on full blast, there wasn't enough flow to push the air through the pipes, so each time the water ran, it would push the air over to the downward leg, then the water would fall through the air and feed the faucet, and once the faucet was shut off, the water would continue to fall through the air until the air was back at the top of the U.

I fixed this temporarily by removing the hose to the dishwasher, the flow was then high enough to force most of the air out, but a more permanent fix was to reposition the pipes so that the air gravitated back to a bleed point I installed.

I'd suggest you look at the pipe routes to see if there is anywhere that the air introduced while replacing the shutoff can be accumulating that it can't easily get out from.


How do I design and build a simple, sturdy, and affordable table? Table Design

I'd like to build two tables at custom proportions to display my LEGO model city. I've already designed the layout consisting of two tables aligned into an L shape:

The two freestanding tables should fit in the corner of a room in an outbuilding, each table will be separate and must be at the same level.
The table should stand 30cm from the ground.
I'd like the design to be simple, study and affordable.

My Problem

I don't have any experience building a bespoke table and I'd like to know; how would you approach the task of designing and building the rest of the structure? What kind of wood would be appropriate for the surface and frame?

Once you decide on the weight load and the aesthetic aspects of your table, you can determine the distance between supports using the "Sagulator" (online Shelf Sag Calculator) located at http://www.woodbin.com/calcs/sagulator.htm.

Legos (being plastic) are generally pretty light, so unless you have an incredible amount of them, probably most hardwoods or edge-banded plywoods are going to do just fine for you.  I like to have supports underneath a table at least every 2 feet, even for light loads, since some woods will sag under their own weight over distances much longer than that.  But again, give the Sagulator a try if you really want to be sure without buying a bunch of expensive wood and trying it yourself.

As far as affordable, Pine or Fir is probably going to be one of the cheapest things you can find, but it's soft, so it's not the strongest if you have a lot of weight and wide spans.  Poplar is relatively inexpensive for a hardwood, and does pretty well for shelving, tables, cabinets, and quite a few other applications.

The easiest option is probably plywood or some other relatively light composite material.  Any kind of plywood should be a good bet since it's dimensionally stable, comes in a few standard sizes, and you can rely on its factory edge as a straightedge if you don't have a ton of experience or tools to verify angles yourself.  It's also easily cut with a circular saw (which I'll assume you have if you're planning on building a table).  It can also be veneered with various laminates for a smooth surface or stained if you want the wood to show.

You might also be interested in watching videos on building tables so you can get some of the basics down.  There are some designs out there already that are pretty widely accepted for expanses similar to what your plans indicate.  While you won't need all the detail of either of these, they should help you understand more about stretchers, aprons, and supports, including where they're located and how they're reinforced.

http://www.finewoodworking.com/arts-and-crafts-coffee-table-video-preview/

http://www.thewoodwhisperer.com/videos/trestle-table-pt-1/

I also find it helpful when designing a piece of furniture to do a few image searches for something that resembles the style I want.  This way you can pick out things you like from various designs that have already worked for someone and incorporate them into your own.  Here are some things I found for bespoke tables:

http://www.google.com/search?q=bespoke+table&hl=en&prmd=imvns&source=lnms&tbm=isch&ei=RBKqT7aZO-bW2gW_qY2mAg&sa=X&oi=mode_link&ct=mode&cd=2&ved=0CEYQ_AUoAQ&biw=1680&bih=926

http://www.bespoke-tables.co.uk/


Do I need vents to devices in the primary waste line? Assuming the system below (solid is waste, dotted is vent).

Do I need vents for the Sink C, Toilet C and Toilet B? They are connected to the primary waste line which is vented at the end of it.

Sink C and Toilet C are in the first floor, all the rest in the second floor.

The distance between the toilet C and the junction with the main vertical waste is less than a 1 meter. Here is a top view from the system:

I'm answering my own question since I changed the design based those comments here and on some other research (code and recommendation).

Sink C now has it's own pathway to the "junction box". The vent on Sink C joins the main vent stack above all and acts as a wet vent to the junction box too.

Toilet B doesn't need a vent due to distance to the main stack.

Toilet C is of a little concern because it is "wet vented" by the main stack, but since the piping there is 4 in I doubt that it could create enough back pressure to break the Toilet C trap.


LED light needs replacing every few weeks I have two GU5.3 bulbs in my bathroom - one of them went off a month or so ago so I bought the following 3 pack: https://www.wilko.com/en-uk/wilko-3-pack-gu53-led-345-lumens-spotlight-bulb/p/0437672

I've gone through 2 of the new bulbs in the space of weeks. I have never seen the bulbs fade out while being on, it's only when we turn the light switch on that they don't come back on (like this morning, I was first in the bathroom and the bulb was off again). No fuses blown or any indication of tripping.

How should I approach this?

Unlike incandescent (in some cases) and fluorescent (in many cases), you will hardly ever see "fading" with LEDs before failure. That's because the failure is generally in the driver circuit and not the LEDs themselves. The enemy of these circuits, like most electronics, is heat. In fact, some large LED lights even have fans to remove the heat. While incandescent bulbs generate far more heat, they are not as sensitive to heat - in fact the only part that "does" anything is the filament that heats up in order to produce light - if it doesn't heat up enough, no light! As a result, an enclosed fixture (which includes a recessed can or similar fixture that is only open in one direction) needs to be designed to dissipate enough heat from the base of the light, where the driver circuits reside, to prevent shortening the life of the light.

Combine that with a cheap/poorly designed driver circuit and you end up with a recipe for failure.

A few things to look for that will help if the problem is a good-enough fixture but poor design/poor quality lights:

DLC certification This sets certain minimum standards and lights designed & manufactured to DLC specs should do well.
A good manufacturer's warranty. In a quick search on 1000 Bulbs, I found quite a range in prices on GU5.3 LED lights, with the more expensive ones generally having much longer warranties. A warranty is not necessarily all that useful due to shipping costs and other factors, but a reputable manufacturer will build things that are unlikely to fail during the warranty period as every warranty replacement costs them money.
Consider purchasing from a local store. The big stores (in the US that's Home Depot & Lowes) and many small stores that cater to the trade will have very good return policies - bring in the broken item (preferably with a receipt) during the warranty and they either refund your money or swap it for a new one.


How can I stop my handheld shower head from leaking? I have a Waterpik hand held shower head (that looks like this) that leaks a significant amount of water down the hose when I first direct the water up to the shower head. It's not leaking from where the pivot ball connects to the pipe. It's leaking from the end of the hose that connects to the pivot-ball bracket.

It seems to be related to water pressure. Our water pressure fluctuates some (due to the pressure tank below the house refilling from the well pump when the pressure drops too low). When I first divert water from the tub faucet to the shower head, water comes running down the shower head's hose for several seconds, some of it often making it out to the bathroom floor. Eventually, something reaches some threshold, and suddenly the water switches to all coming out the shower head. I believe this happens when the water pressure gets high enough, because when the pressure drops (such as when a toilet flushes), it can start coming down the hose again.

I have checked/wiped-off the seal between the hose and the bracket, and I don't think that's what's leaking. My guess is that the vacuum breaker in that end of the shower head hose has enough debris/silt in it that it takes more water pressure than it's supposed to in order for the seal to close and the water to therefore be directed out the shower head. (Our water is somewhat silty, despite having a house filter between the well and the pressure tank).

If that is the cause, is there a way to clean/fix the hose, or am I out of luck and will need to simply buy a replacement?

I found the problem. Debris from a ruptured water filter (for the entire house) had come through the pipe and partially blocked a small filter between the pipe and the plastic T that holds the pivot ball. When I completely remove the shower head (so that I just had a pipe coming out of the wall in the shower), I could see a small screen filter in the plastic T of the shower head, and it had some junk partially blocking it. When I remove that and re-attached the shower head, the problem went away.


How do I build a basement that does not leak when I have a high water level? How do I insure a basement will not leak when the site has a high water level?

There are a few different ways I've seen this done.

The best way is to trench around the outside of the foundation down to the footer, seal the outside of the wall, and install a drainage system (gravel and pipes) at the footer to redirect the water to a sump pit where it can be pumped out.

Next best way is to do basicly the same thing, but on the inside of the house.  You bust up the concrete floor of the basement along the walls and install gravel and PVC pipe under the floor to drain the water to a sump pit where it can be pumped out.

Both those options are going to be pretty expensive, and probably not something you would want to tackle on your own.  Which is why many people opt to simply seal the inside of the walls with a product like Drylok as Scott mentions.  It's pretty effective if you only have minor moisture problems, but if you regularly get lots of water in the basement, it's probably not going to solve your problem.


Why Aren't These LED Bulbs Lighting? I have a dimmable floor light with 6 G4 bulbs. I ordered a bunch of dimmable LED bulbs and now that they've arrived after weeks, they don't light up at all. If I take one bulb off and place a halogen one instead, they would light up and dim (even though they're flicking), but as soon as I take off the halogen bulb, the whole light turns off. The requirements for the light is 10W max for the bulbs, and what I've got is obviously less than that, maybe too low?

Another thing I notice is that the light is 230-240V as we'd expect but the bulbs are AC/DC12V,180LM.

Any idea if I could fix this without having to return the bulbs? Or what LED bulbs should I be looking for?

Please see the video of the issue, and here’s the link to the purchased bulbs.

With LEDs, 12V dimming works differently from mains dimming.

The pictures of these LEDs show they are set up just like 12 volt LED strips - 3 LEDs in series with a resistor, repeated as needed.  They also havea bridge rectifier, the angled devices in the photos, to assure they work in either polarity or on AC.

AC Mains dimmers for incandescents typically use trailing-edge triac dimming, which manipulates the AC sinewave.  Mains AC LEDs "dim" the same way. Actually they are immune to dimming, but they have some intelligence that reverse-engineers  what the triac dimmer  is trying to do, and they dim to match.

Your LEDs are not capable of this.  That doesn't make them unfit for dimming, but rather, unfit for mains style triac dimming.

In the low voltage world it is quite different.  In incandescent, there are several ways to dim, including reducing the voltage, or triac dimming again.   However, LEDs use a technique called PWM, which turns the power on and off thousands of times a second (not 100 times a second like triac dimming).

These LEDs are built to be compatible with PWM dimming. They might work somewhat with triac dimming, but I'd expect them to be shimmery since they turn instantly on/off. The seller didn't mention this because they are simply hawkers of cheap Cheese junk off Alibaba, which is direct shipped from China (or Amazon's fulfillment warehouses) to circumvent your country's quality and safety standards.  That said, those LEDs are so simple that they should work electrically even if they do fill your house with carcinogenic smoke at the first power spike.

This luminaire's dimmer is not only a triac dimmer, but is the old style that connects in series with incandescent lights. To work, it must flow a certain amount of current through the incandescent whether it's on or off, and your LEDs + 1 incandescent aren't capable of that. You could try inserting more incandescents, but that would ... defeat the purpose ...

The smarter play is to rework the luminaire to use PWM dimming.


Can I reuse anchor bolt sleeves? A bracket for mounting a TV was attached to my brick fireplace by the previous home owner.  All that remains now are four little metal tubes, which I think are leftover parts of some kind of anchor bolts.  There are no threads in these tubes.

I would like to reuse the existing holes to mount my TV.  Is there a fastener that would be compatible with and safe to use in these tubes?  Should I try to remove the tubes, or am I better off drilling new holes?

I think what you have are similar to these, sleeve and taper nut anchor bolts:

source

If you're real lucky, the nuts are still properly positioned and you can screw bolts back into them. I wouldn't bother though, my preferred masonry screws are Tapcons. I thought this question was going to be about lead wedge anchors, which if not totally deformed, you could use again. These I wouldn't reuse even if I got 'lucky'. Tap the sleeves in with a hammer or grind them off if they don't budge (you don't want to crack the wall).

If you don't have a grinder, you could fold the sleeve in on itself using a hammer and a flat head, working your way around in a circle.

You might be able to remove the sleeves with alligator tipped 'locking pliers' (aka, needle nosed vise grips) and a hammer, to reuse the holes for the same type of fasteners. Make sure you get all the parts of the old fastener out.

Remove or sink those sleeves. Use Tapcons.


Replacing interior wall sconce in old house - how to mount I have an old house with black metal boxes on which there were old wall scones.  All of the boxes have a threaded nipple in them which held the previous sconces.  I am able to use a hickey to attach the new sconce via a threaded rod which works but there is nothing to counter rotation of the sconce around the thread.  I could probably screw in some small "anchor" screws to help secure it better but I was wondering if these old style boxes have any kind of mounting holes that a universal mounting plate might work with.  Thank you.

In answer to your question and looking at this picture. I don't think so. You're probably better off doing as little as possible with the wiring in this house. Be very careful. The only thing that I see here that is younger than me (including the method of installation) are the yellow wire nuts and the black pigtail.


Chimney flue repair before installing liner for wood burning insert Planning on installing a wood burning insert in exsisting fireplace, the top of the flue at the chimney is spalling and was wondering if/options of repairing? the wood burning insert will use a stainless liner and its cap will be sealed to the top of the existing clay flue. Pictures included:

In my area a liner is required for a wood or pellet stove even if the flu is serviceable. I would have the cap made to protect what is left and the new liner will reduce any heat damage to those areas by being centered in the flu. Make sure to use solid or double wall if required, never use the flex pipe (looks like heavy dryer vent). that stuff really traps the creosote and there is no real way to clean it a standard brush just pokes them full of holes. I have heard stores in my area state that the flex line is legal but it is not here so even if the store offers flex at a couple of hundred dollars savings don’t use it unless you want a chimney fire.


Can i use air filter that is one inch smaller Currently, i have a 16x25x1 filter in my furnace/ac duct (probably a better term out there).

I am at the local store and they seem to be all sold of all brands of 16x25x1. They do however have an extensive selection of 16x24x1.

Would using the 1 inch smaller be ok or could this be detrimental to my furnace/health? Thank you

Filters only work if the air has to go through them. The filter has air resistance and a gap doesn't, so if you leave a 1" gap, a disproportionate amount of air will flow through the hole, effectively making the situation even worse.

If it is a choice of a smaller filter or nothing, at least do something like glue or tape a cardboard filler piece to the filter to make up the right size. The smaller filter area will behave like a filter that is already partially dirty, but you could use it temporarily.


Wall leaks due to rotten wood in footer! My home was built in 1979, and I have a small leak in the basement. It appears to me that the water is coming from a piece of 1x4 that is embedded in the footer, presumably this wood goes all the way thru to the outside and is now rotten and leaking. As this is the wet season, I'm trying "radonseal" to stop the leak for now, then a more proper fix this summer.  I'm thinking I can just dig out the rotten wood and patch with new concrete once things dry out.  My question is, why is this piece of wood sticking thru a basement wall in the first place?  Maybe it was intended as interior wall then they changed plan? Basement leak

In the photo there is evidence of two different concrete work. The original is the curb with the 1 x 4 projecting from it and a more recent mix just above it. There is also a visible seam line on the wall which may indicate the wall was opened for some reason. In either case the board was most likely part of the concrete form that was constructed when and if the wall was repaired. My only doubt about it being form work is that it wasn't or couldn't be removed. Unless it was by the previous owner DIY-ing a wall repair.  But I'd agree with your plan to remove it and plug up the opening. If you use hydraulic cement patch you would not need to wait for the opening to dry. In fact hydraulic patch preforms better when the surrounding concrete is slightly wet. It will expand slightly so that it fills voids fairly completely.


How can I test a three prong dryer receptacle for open neutral/ground? I have a dryer that recently stopped working. After speaking with more than one appliance repair person, and trying more than one dryer, I'm sure the dryer is fine and some electrical fault is to blame.

The receptacle has voltage. A multi-meter reads 110 from each hot to neutral and 220 across both hot wires. I suspect an open neutral but my landlord is adamant that my dryer must be broken because there is power to the receptacle.

I would like to somehow show him a fault so he will stop blaming my dryer (and the second dryer I tried that also didn't work). I see that for normal outlets I can buy an inexpensive tester that plugs in and shows off a variety of faults using three colored lights. I can't find one anywhere that is designed to test the dryer plug. I believe it's a 1030 R. I've included a picture below in case I'm wrong.

Where can I get a circuit tester for this type of outlet? If that isn't really an option how can I use a multi-meter to test for the same things?

The dryer itself is the only load that is needed. Open the panel where the cord connects to the dryer and try to turn it on and measure the voltages from both legs to the ground/neutral and across the hot leads if the voltage drops out you will be able to pinpoint the loss with any meter. You may need to have someone push the start button while taking the measurements.


Correct way to rewire for a ceiling fan + light from a switched outlet I want to know if this is the correct way to do this.

There is a switch that controls a single receptacle in a double receptacle outlet across the room. Power comes into the switch box via 3-wire (black/white/ground). There is a 4-wire (black/white/red/ground) going to the switch via the attic. The whites and grounds are nutted together respectively. The blacks are also nutted together and pigtailed to the black screw on the switch. The red is connected to the other side of the switch. Over at the outlet, the red wire is connected to the top (switched) receptacle, and the black to the bottom (and the white is connected to both of course and it is grounded).

I want to install a ceiling fan with a light fixture on separate switches. The switch is on an interior wall but the outlet is on an exterior wall. The 4-wire passes right overhead (in the attic) of where I the ceiling fan will mount. What I want to do is cut the 4-wire near where the fan will go, route the 4-wire into the fan box, and replace the single switch with two switches that switch the black AND red wires that now go to the fan and light. Then, run a new 3-wire up from the switch box, with has constant power, to a new junction box and jumper the new 3-wire to the old 4-wire, leaving the red unconnected. Then, I will replace the outlet such that both receptacles are powered from the black only and leave the red disconnected.

Being an electrical engineer, I know that this will work from a power-distribution standpoint, but are there code violations or better ways to do this?

Yes, this should work. A few things you may have already considered:

Each time your cable goes into or out of a junction box you should plan to lose 6" in length.
So tying into and out of the ceiling box for the fan would require 12" of slack on the existing 4-wire cable. Your plan to add a separate junction box is a better approach. The trick is to put it at least 6" closer to the dual-wired receptacle and run 3-wire the longer distance to this box. When you tie into the 4-wire here you will have extra 4-wire to use in the ceiling fan box.

Don't disconnect the red wire going to the duplex receptacle.
Just tie red and black to the un-switched black in your junction box. This puts half the load on each wire and you don't have to rewire the receptacle in the wall.

Get a deep 2-gang switch box to fit all those connectors
and dissipate the heat any dimmers you use to control fan speed or dim the fan lights. You're looking at needing at more than 29 cubic inches not counting extra for dimmers. And you always want to leave room for future expansion.

Get a ceiling box designed to hold a fan and mount it securely to a joist.


Can I use a hollow-wall anchor in between two nearby holes from previous anchors? Sorry for my OCD, but "it is what it is": I hung a 22 lb. clock with a plastic toggle (drywall), then saw it was too high. I put a new toggle anchor in about 1-1/16"   lower (in other words, very very slightly more than an inch, certainly not less-- but very close to an exact inch).

I was shocked that moving it a mere inch lower had such an extreme effect, normally I hang things casually and am satisfied. But the clock gets a very different look from a small change.

As you guessed, I would love to hang it exactly in the middle, but naturally worry about all these holes, drywall not being steel -or even wood.

Can I somehow (using a drill, large bit, brute force, but carefully to minimize collateral impact) remove the old toggles, fill with drydex (or some form of epoxy), and start from scratch with a new hole (and anchor) exactly in the middle where I want it? Or would leaving the toggles in place be structurally stronger for the wall than attempting that "surgery"?

Or is it just a bad idea, too risky, to try to put a new hole/anchor exactly between my earlier attempts that are only an inch apart?

Is there a solution such as trying to reinforce the wall in that area somehow (thin metal plate, eg, which will be invisible anyway)? Or by using an extra hanger placed above, to take on some of the load from an unstressed section, about two inches higher).

Thanks for any tips, clarifying a bit how strong or weak that drywall is, and what it can stand (and weight it can safely hold) in such a situation.

Thanks again,
Andrew

I'd advise against even trying. 22 lbs. is quite a lot for a single anchor, and the drywall between the two previous attempts is compromised. I'd not be surprised if it tore right out of a third hole.

Gypsum wallboard is fairly strong until 1) the paper facing is compromised, and 2) the gypsum material inside is disintegrated. After that, it's mush.

At this point you have some options, which I'd try in this order:

Ignore it for three days, then decide whether it's actually a problem.
Adjust or modify the mount on the clock to move its position instead.
Use anchors to mount a thin plate over and below the existing holes. Use an anchor through both the plate and the drywall.
Open the wall, install a horizontal backer block between studs, and repair the drywall and paint.


Concerns about replacing a worn out light switch Our home is about 3 years old.  New construction.  New parts.  The main lights in the kitchen are a 4-way circuit (3 switches, + lights).  Since we primarily come into the room from one side, one switch sees most of the use.  All in all, it's probably the most popular switch in the house.

As a recent development, sometimes flipping that switch doesn't turn on the lights.  Yes, the switch flips, properly and completely.  If we wiggle it, the lights will come on, and so far stay on.  Sometimes there will be brief bits of arcing sound come from inside the switch, either when we flip it, or when we're wiggling it to get the lights to work.

So I'm thinking I need to replace the switch.  If nothing else, the arcing seems very NOT SAFE.  And this is where I run into some concerns...

First, I've been around lots of light switches in my life.  I've never seen a switch fail.  Certainly not in 3 years.  So I want to know why this happened, and how to prevent it.  Is it a cheap switch (seems unlikely, considering the attitude and work quality of the electricians)?  Is it a random fault, and just something I need to shrug off?  Is the circuit overloaded slightly (10 bulbs), or is there some other situational thing I should check?

Next, is this likely to happen to other switches?  This seems more likely if the concept of "cheap switches" is valid somehow, but should I anticipate spending the next 10 years replacing all our switches in the order of frequency of use?  And more particularly, should I replace the other switches for this fixture now?

Finally, is there something I should be looking for (or avoiding) when shopping for a replacement switch?  Honestly, I didn't think "light switch" was something that came in significant quality grades.  It feels a bit like asking for models of hammers appropriate for hitting things.  But, now I worry.  I don't like arcing in my walls, and want my switches to last.  So, how do I avoid doing this again in 3 years?

Big box stores definitely carry different grades of light switches ("standard duty", "heavy duty", "commercial grade", "medical grade"...), but I can't attest to their relative endurance. For what it's worth, I've seen several light switches fail, so it's not like this is some freakish event. 3 years seems a little quick to me but of course these things are somewhat random and "the plural of 'anecdote' is not 'data'".

I would tape the switch off so that nobody uses it until you can replace it. Once you get it out of the box you may be able to see what the problem is... could be faulty wiring / a loose wire nut. If that's the case, you might want to give your electrician a call to scold them. Otherwise I would just write it off as an earlier-than-expected failure.


Child’s swing going sideways My sons metal A-Frame swing has started twisting to the point that  instead of swinging in the usual pendulum 12 to 6 motion, he ends up going at 10 to 4 (if that makes sense). I’ve tried moving the legs further apart, and closer together and levelling into out the brackets at the top that the rope hangs on but nothing I do seems to change anything.

Any help would be much appreciated, it was the one activity that kept him quiet during lockdown!

I built a large swing for my grand children what I learned having the A frame legs wider at the base about a 15 degree angle and then having the swing supports , chain, or rope a similar spread did the trick.

Originally I had the supports the same width as the seat and they would end up swinging at an angle, I went and measured several swing’s at our local park and found that they were wider at top, after moving the brackets out the swings now swing true.

I had tried all kinds of things changing from chains to ropes changing the length I had even tried taking the base out of level (this was a dumb thing and a lot of work)

After everything the wider at the top did the trick it kind of makes sense but I thought the swing needed to go straight up after measuring 2 different swings at the park I tried it and what a difference , it doesn’t affect their ability to get going or no one ever noticed but it did stabilize the travel.


How can I remove a stuck bath stopper assembly? The drain in our tub is slow and I'd like to snake it. I was planning on going through the overflow / drain stopper toggle plate:

But I can't remove the stopper and link from the overflow pipe. It seems stuck—there's maybe 1/2" of vertical travel and I can't pull it up any more. I've tried a moderate amount of force, but I don't want to break anything and be in a worse spot.
Is there some trick to this? Should I just pull hard? Or does it require disassembly from behind the wall?
EDIT: Sorry for not being more specific about the fixture: the tub does not have a pop-up stopper in the tub floor. The drain fixture is just a grate (can't get a snake through). I assume that the stopper is suspended in the overflow pipe, like Tester101's second image.
EDIT 2: After fiddling with the lever more I was still unable to get the stopper out. I'm also unable to close the drain plug.
However, somehow in my jiggling I must've loosened the clog, since the tub is now draining well. Oh well, problem solved, I guess! I don't take baths so am not concerned about not being able to close it.

First, make sure that the clog is accessible via the overflow.  Try this test...  While the tub is draining slowly, pour water down the overflow through a funnel.  If that drains fast, then the clog is in the horizontal arm and no clearing through the overflow will help you.

What works for me is to use a wet cloth to seal off the overflow (replace it first to make as small an opening as possible).  With the tub 1/2 full of water and holding the wet cloth over the overflow vent, a plunger should then be able to clear the clog because it will force water down the drain (horizontal or vertical) rather than pushing water up the overflow pipe (or pulling air down it).  Should that fail, use draino or physically pry off the grate for an auger.

The plunger should pull some amount of gunk back up into the tub while you're using it, even through the grate.  If that doesn't happen and the drainage does not improve, then you may have a clogged vent.  You need air behind water for it to drain quickly otherwise it's like water draining from an upside-down bottle.  Cleaning the vent means going up on the roof and clearing the clog from there -- a hose at full blast will usually do this.

As for fully removing the overflow and parts...  I don't know.


Can I use a toggle bolt if there's no space behind the drywall? While trying to install a 14lb metal shelf to the wall, I had learned from a previous installation mishap to upgrade from plastic anchors to something stronger. I picked up a few toggle bots (3/16" w 3" bolts).

When I started drilling the 1/2" hole, I realized my bit wouldn't go much further than an inch in. It was a hard stop. After the 1" of drywall immediately behind it is what looks like concrete. There is NO space between the drywall and the concrete.

I live in a new condo and the wall happens to be one that I share with my neighbour. I'm not sure what material it's made of, or if these toggle bolts will work.

Does anyone have any advise on how I can get these heavy shelf installed, toggle or no toggle.

I don't suppose you have a hammer drill? Tapcons! (my favorite concrete screws, you need 2", maybe 2.25") bushed out with 1" worth of washers. Make sure they're not home first ;) If you fall into a void after drilling into the 'concrete' they're probably cinder-blocks. If you then can't get the screws to bite, make the hole even bigger and use really long toggle bolts. If this is the case be prepared for having to do it both ways as some holes will be into the meat of the block and others into the voids.


GFCI breaker tripping to pool pump I have an in ground swimming pool.  There is an outdoor sub panel with a 20amp GFCI breaker is connected to the pump.  Today we had a bad rain storm...water coming down cats and dogs in every direction.

After the storm, I noticed my pool pump wasn't working.  The breaker had tripped.  I tried to turn it on, and it went off immediately.

So, I swapped out the breaker and the same thing happened....so it's not the breaker.  Tomorrow, I am going to disconnect and wirenut the wires from the pump (disconnect the pump).  If the breaker doesn't trip after that I will conclude there is a short in the wires running through the conduit...right?

Because it will be a pain to pull the wires and replace....which I am ok to run (temporarily, just to make sure it will work) the wires directly from the panel to the pump without putting them in the conduit right away.  When I say "not right away" I mean long enough to make sure the breaker doesn't trip.  If it doesn't trip then I would pull all the old wires and snake the new ones through.

I figured I would run this concept by the people here and get some feedback on this plan.

Thanks

So here is the end of the story.   After a week of hot dry weather the breaker didn't trip anymore.  On Friday morning I tired to turn it on and it stayed on.  So wherever the moisture was......was gone.  At this point not sure of this is a temporary fix or log term.  I put some electrical tape around a few of the areas that should already be water tight.  I guess I will find out if temp or perm fix next time we have a bad rain storm.  Cancelled the warrantee repair because I am sure they will fix something this is t broken when they arrive.  Thanks for all the help and advice.


question about a gas furnace having to light repeatedly I am new to this forum, but I will do my best to answer any questions I can (I am a general contractor with a background in engineering and residential construction and machine design)

so, here is my very first question:

how many times should a regular residential gas furnace (not a high efficiency furnace) attempt to light the burners?  mine is cycling through the start process (pre-light, ignitor energize, combustion, and burn for a few moments but then go out) four or five times before its achieving stable constant gas burn.  the ignitor works fine (new last year), the temperature probe is clean and must be working (as it can actually achieve steady burn), and I am not getting any error lights or codes on the control board.  interior of the gas chamber and everything in general is clean and in good repair.  and yes, the power is on and the filter is clean.

its never been a problem, I always have heat, but it seems like it should light and maintain on the first cycle.  otherwise, you are decreasing lifetime of all the ignition parts.

anybody have any ideas why its doing this or whether or not its normal?

thanks in advance

I consult to most all warm air furnace OEMs.  The best answer is it lights the first time, every time.  There are of course things that can prevent that...low gas pressure switches, low air pressure switches, limits not being made (door switch, air switch, fan speed proving, condensate switches, etc.).  That being said...EVERYTHING good...GAS supply...AIR supply...SUFFICIENT spark/ignition source (all three parts of the fire triangle), begin to look at the flame sensing.  Very early systems were single rod...hot surface ignitor glows & lights flame...then switches to sensing.  This system works well..for about a year and degrades and will not sense well.  Junk them.  The two rod system has an HSI to ignite, and a flamerod to sense.  These are great.  HSI must get fully to temp to light.  If it actually "lights" the flame everytime..it is good.  The flamerod sends the signal to the flamesafeguard...which powers the gas valve and monitors all the limit switches.  Good signal..keeps valve open...heats the house.  There are specific meters to check flamesignal (DC microAmps)...but they may be difficult to read if the signal is manipulated by the flamesafeguard manufacturer (also must be read in series).  Easy fix, take a piece of very fine emory paper and clean the oxidation from the flamerod.  It will give a higher signal.  A flamerod light two or three times will help warm it up and boost the signal...hence what you have.  Oxidation will kill the signal.  There is some science to flamerods & grounding area ratios.  Typically 1:4..but your OEM figures that out for you.  Make sure your green ground screw is actually grounded...this will boost your signal.  There is one somewhere near the actual burner...and one on the cabinet.  If the clean flamerod (properly located & installed) fixes your problem...get a spare.  Cleaning them causes micro grooves...more surface area to oxidize.  Nobody wants to clean a $7 widget everytime the house gets cold.  Best Wishes.


My toilet won't flush when it's windy I have a septic tank. When it's windy it won't flush. The bowl fills up and will slowly go down, but no complete flush.

It sounds like you have inadequate venting for your toilet.

In theory, all drains have a trap to prevent sewer gasses from entering your house. In order to drain properly, however, and prevent a trap from fully siphoning every time you drain the fixture (excluding how the toilet is special because I don't think it's relevant here), it needs ventilation.

This picture shows where vents are necessary.

The vent prevents the rushing water from pulling a vacuum and making it harder to flush or drain the fixture.

Now, you mention this is only a problem when it's windy out. Air moving over a pipe can create a lower static pressure in the pipe, and the vents often go out through the roof.

This may make it harder to flush since less air pressure is available to prevent the draining water from pulling the vacuum I mentioned before, so it will appear to back up slightly.

I haven't tried this before, but putting an angled piece of pipe on top of your roof vent may help solve the problem.

This is what I mean:

The red piece going over the existing vent could help prevent the wind from lowering the pressure in the pipe as much.


Dishwasher supply line leaking when attached to unit I'm attempting to install a new dishwasher, a Bosch 500 series. The water supply line itself is fine, as in there are no leaks along the line itself. However, I can't get the connection to the dishwasher itself to play nice.

I've given it a handful of attempts myself at varying levels of tightness, all leaking the moment I turn the water back on. My attempts were just with the bare connection, without the teflon tape in the pictures.

I had a handyman help me out, and he used teflon tape and also put an extra rubber ring on the inside of the elbow joint. That was stable with the water turned back on, but later when I tried to actually run the cycle the supply line burst clean off the unit.

What should I do from here? Get a new elbow joint? Is it a threading issue? I really hope I haven't somehow permanently damaged the connection to the unit?

Teflon tape will likely make this problem worse.

Threaded fittings for fluids basically come in two types - thread sealed, or gasket sealed.

Fittings made to be sealed by the threads have threads designed to draw themselves together as you tighten them - the fittings are slightly tapered, so as you tighten the threads, the tolerance between the threaded surfaces decreases to the point of being near-zero. The fittings slowly get harder and harder to turn until the threads are basically binding together. These fittings need a sealant to take up the last tiny amount of space and to account for manufacturing tolerances. This is what teflon tape or liquid "pipe dope" sealants are made for.

Other fittings use straight threads, similar to the threads on nuts and bolts. These threads are designed with a specific tolerance between the parts that allows them to thread fully on without any interference. Threads in this style of fitting are not designed to seal and will do a poor job, at best, of sealing the liquid passing through the fitting. Instead of the threads providing a seal, there is typically a gasket (or a flared surface acting as a gasket) inside the fitting. The threads are there to provide clamping pressure to hold that gasket snug between the mating surfaces inside the fitting. In order to do this, the threads need to be free to allow you to tighten the parts together properly. You don't want the threads to bind as they get tighter, because that could mean you're not able to actually snug the gasket down, or it could mean that you incorrectly think the gasket is snug before it is. The threads need to turn freely until the fitting is snug against the gasket. While a fitting with tapered threads will slowly get tighter as you turn it, a fitting with a gasket will spin freely until it's bottomed out against the gasket - it'll feel more like spinning a nut down a bolt until it's bottomed out.

Putting teflon tape on such a fitting is an easy way to screw it up. If you only put a small amount of tape on, it may provide enough lubrication that it makes it easy to accidentally over-tighten the fitting, which can either deform the gasket, or crack one of the two parts. If you put a lot of tape on, it will make it impossible to engage the threads deeply enough to actually clamp the gasket down between the two surfaces. Either way, the tape has created a problem. Even if you magically manage to put just enough tape on that neither of those situations occurs, using tape to seal the threads will not actually seal the fitting itself, unless the gasket is operating properly - you can see by looking at the female fitting of the elbow you have that if the gasket wasn't there, water could leak around the base of those threads and out the "top" of the fitting even if the threads were sealed. The tape hasn't actually solved the problem, even if it's not causing problems. You still need the gasket to do the sealing.

So - tape is the wrong idea here. Take the tape off, inspect both sides of the fitting to make sure there is no damage. The plastic threads on the male side are very easy to strip and you may have already stripped or cracked them in your earlier attempts. If the part is damaged, contact the manufacturer to get a replacement. Usually that plastic fitting is on a removable plate that's gasketed to the machine, so you can replace it easily.

If the parts aren't damaged, go ahead and attempt to put the fitting in place again. Make sure there's no strain introduced by the flex line on the other end of the elbow - make sure the threads are going on straight, and the fitting is tightened down to the point that the gasket is clamped in place.

If it still leaks, then you may need to contact the manufacturer for replacement parts anyways. And next time, be careful as you thread it on so as to not damage the threads, and don't use tape!

Also, find a new handyman...


What kind of pump control switch can I use to detect the presence of water pressure? I have a water pump that fills up water tank on roof top. I have to turn on water pump manually every time the water supply is on and then have to turn it off when supply is off to prevent dry running pump.

I want a switch that can turn on/off the pump automatically sensing water supply. What that kind of automatic controller switch is called and how to use it ?

Edit: I think I misread your question, your only water pressure is from gravity? I assumed your water supply was pressurized. You want something to sense the water level in the tank to cycle the pump, not pressure or flow related.

Sensing water flow is more complicated than just sensing water pressure. A SPDT water pressure switch can be installed at the water pump inlet to power the pump when it senses water pressure at the pump, and cuts power if it doesn't sense water pressure. This way the pump always runs when the water supply is on, and never runs when the water supply is off.

Ideally you'd have an electric circuit that opens a solenoid water valve for your supply and powers the pump at the same time, being activated by a water level float or sensor in your tank.

I use the same switch for my reverse osmosis water filter. I have an AquaTec SPDT pressure switch that prevents the booster pump from running if there is less than 20 psi supply water pressure. That way it never runs if there is a problem with the supply, because it would run nonstop and eventually burn out the booster. Technically it wouldn't run dry, because air would have to be introduced into the system first which would be unlikely.


Precautions necessary when removing toilet and sink for extended period of time? I'm in the process of remodeling one of the bathrooms. The remodel includes removing tile from walls, installing a new shower, toilet and sink, refinishing the walls, new linoleum, etc. I would like to take the toilet and sink out now to make the tile removal easier (and to give more room for when I bring the new shower in). Thus, the toilet and sink will probably be out of the bathroom for some time (a few weeks as I'm doing this almost exculsively on weekends).

What precautions should I take to ensure safety, etc? For example, I've heard I should plug up the sewer line to the toilet so sewer gases don't come into the bathroom. How do I do this? Is there a similar concern with the sink?

If you remove the P-Trap (the S shaped pipe) from the drain of the sink, then yes, you need to plug that pipe up as well.

The toilet drain has no trap - the toilet itself is the trap, and so it will need to be plugged regardless.

For the drain to the sink, its often easiest to simply affix a permanent cap on the drain pipe and then cut that off when ready to work again, but you need enough of a drain pipe to be able to cut a few inches off later and still work.

For the toilet, you can pick up a toilet drain plug which you can insert into the toilet drain and tighten to form a seal.


Is there such a thing as an arc-fault breaker in 1/2” size for GE? The panel is loaded but not to capacity. To bring the current sub-panel up to the imminent adoption of the 2017 code, half-sized AFCI or combination breakers would be great.

Is there such a thing as THQP1120AF or THQP1120AF2?

(15A versions too)

I found GE’s residential circuitbreaker page. Given that it’s correct and complete, GE doesn’t sell a 1/2” QP line AFCI or AFCI/GFCI combo breaker. I think they would be good sellers.

GE’s Residential Circuitbreaker site


How do I attach a new Rain Sensor to my ancient Hydrotek sprinkler timer? I am attaching a Toro RainSensor which has 1 red and 1 black wire to an old Hydrotek system.  I am not sure where to put the wires.  In the photos, the wires coming into the box from the left go to my electric, and the wires going out to the bottom right from the transformer go to the water switch.

I suspect I have to put the sensor between the currently connected blue /  white wires on the right (I am assuming the white wire is the "common" wire and the black wire is the "hot" wire - United States).  And yes, I will flip the breaker switch off before attempting any of this (and did so for the photos).

Photos (click for full-size image)

Two instructions from the RainSensor instruction booklet

Instructions from the Hydrotek

3 images of the current box wiring interior

I pulled apart the blue-to-white from the transformer to the water on/off switch, and put sensor's black to transformer's blue, and sensor's red to switch's white.

Then I flipped the power on and turned the system on.  It ran fine.  I pressed the manual test sensor switch while it was running, and the system stopped.  Installation complete.


How should I prepare drywall for wallpaper? If I am posting wallpaper, is it still necessary to apply joint compound?  I though that corner could be cut because the surface won't be exposed especially if i cut all the beveled edges off and achieve a uniformly thick surface.  i thought that wallpaper adhesive would fill the little holes.

Yes you should still mud, tape and sand all of the drywall joints especially if your drywall has beveled edges. Ideally you would also apply a coat of primer before you apply the wall paper as this makes removing it easier down the road, and if you do ever decide to paint it, at least all you'll need to do is remove the wall paper and paint and not have to deal with mudding the joints.