Should hot water pressure be reduced after hot water is used? I'm noticing reduced hot water pressure (on all faucets/shower) after significant hot water use (2 long showers, 2 loads of HE (High Efficiency) laundry, and using a sink for about 5 minutes).  Cold water pressure is normal.

Is this hot water reduced pressure normal, or indicative of a problem?

Note that this reduced hot water pressure is a new thing.  It was not an issue in the past.

The water heater is a Rheem natural gas tank-type storage water heater, with a capacity of 40 gallons.

UPDATE #1: I visually inspected the exterior of the water heater, and there are no visual defects.  There is no water around it, either.

UPDATE #2: When I looked at the water heater, it has not two, but three pipes attached to the top.  I found this QA, but I'm not sure if the answer applies.  One of the three pipes is not insulated, so I'll assume that's the cold water intake.  Both of the other pipes have insulation on them, so I'm guessing hot water is coming out of them.  But I don't know why there are two of those pipes.  There is no solar (I wish), reservoir, or instant-on hot water.  If it helps, the hot water heater is a Rheem PowerVent 2.

UPDATE #3: I'm hoping (and thinking) this is irrelevant, but I figure the more information I include, the better you can help me.  When I visually inspected the exterior of the water heater, I heard what I thought was a dripping sound that began about 10 seconds after the unit turned on.  I diligently searched for water, but I found none.  If my ears were working correctly, it seemed that the sound was coming from the horizontal CO vent pipe that leads outside.  I don't recall it ever making such a sound, but I never stood around and listened so intently.  I don't know if this means anything, and I don't want to divert attention to a red herring, but I thought it was worth mentioning.

UPDATE #4:  The hot water pressure has been different since this event took place.

Sometimes, it is normal: I can put any faucet on full-hot and the water comes out with normal strong force.
Other times it starts off with a strong force and then, after running for 5-10 seconds, the pressure decreases to about 30%.  It then stays at that pressure while I let it run.  If I turn off the sink, and then turn it back on, the same thing happens (full pressure followed by a reduction in pressure).

Note that these things happen regardless of which faucet I use, and do not seem to be dependent on water use before the test.

New Answer Derived From Exhausting Initial Answer & more:

It's your Water Heater, here are some things to try in determining whether or not there's actually a problem.

1 - Drain & clean the tank properly. ONLY do it when the pressure's good. Turn off the Hot & Cold Water & WH, open the T&P valve & drain the tank (see manual) to somewhere that contents can be seen. Blast on the cold water when you can start to "slightly" rock the tank to stir & break things up & periodically continue this until it's empty. Operate the hose bib handle to crush any big particles or Poke into your fully open hose bib if the hose flow drops. Then, when empty blast on the cold water & let drain & repeat until nothing comes out. Then, do just a 2-minute fill & drain & blast again to get all remnants out.

2- Check your status lights to your manual for detected problems.

3- Status Lights will also indicate a problem with the heater's Gas Control valve. But, this could also be a Gas Meter response to a run-away or leak detector, improbable since flow-rate wouldn't have changed.

4 - This is a pretty cutting edge unit you have & everything's interconnected. The fan & burner won't outrun each other & there may even be a Water Exit Regulator involved to turn the heater, sort of, into a Tankless Water Heater.

-

Original / Initial Wrong Answer: If you have a Hot Water Recirculating Pump somewhere else, you're driving its thermostat batty & it's only now showing signs of needing attention. It would be stealing pressure until it's reading hot water again. You may have noticed the pressure returns after 10 to 30-minutes, when the Water Heater has recovered enough or recovered fully.


How does a water mains booster pump work? Isn't the flow rate solely determined by what reaches the property in the first place? When getting quotes for a boiler replacement, we've been recommended to install a mains booster pump (e.g., Salamander HomeBoost). We live in a 3rd story UK flat and currently get a dismal 5 l/min flow rate, so the prospect of improving our flow rate/pressure is an appealing one, but I'm struggling to understand how a pump can increase the flow of water arriving to our flat in the first place. Is anyone able to explain the mechanism by which these systems work to somehow draw more water from the incoming system?
Thanks very much for any help!

The assumption is that there is a restriction in the pipe and higher pressure differential across that restriction will lead to more flow.
If the restriction is downstream from the pump (a semi clogged valve for example) the operation is obvious.
If the restriction is upstream then the pump will draw a partial vacuum between it and the restriction which will increase pressure difference across the restriction up to some limit.


Is it ok to twist THHN together before installing in conduit? Is it ok (code compliant and not otherwise inadvisable) to twist two or more THHN conductors together (before running in conduit) ?

Issues I can imagine:

EM fields cancel out.   Not a bad thing.
Twisting stresses the insulation jacket.  Seems like you'd have to twist REAL tight.
Causes excessive heat buildup - this one seems like it could actually be a concern.

I want to twist a couple of neutral-hot pairs together, to keep distinct within one conduit.   Easy to do by chucking the two ends together in a drill.    Should give a nice clean look.

Electricians never purposely twist wires together before installing them. As a matter of fact, we attempt to keep large conductors separate as they are pulled into the conduit so they do not twist around each other.

First, it is completely unnecessary for identification we just number the neutrals or tag them with some colored tape to indicate which phase conductor they go with.

Second, by twisting the conductors you are filling up more of the conduit and you are shortening the conductor. Using more wire to accomplish your purpose without a clear advantage is wasteful.

Third, the EM fields cancel out anyway without twisting. The reason Cat 6 cable is twisted is to reduce external signal transfer to the wire pairs not for EM cancellation between the pair.

Focus your time on something more productive.

Good luck and stay safe!


While flipping breakers on and off, I had my hand shocked Going through breakers on my panel my hand got shocked.  Went to the off position and felt hot current go thru my hand.  Nothing too bad, but made me jump.  My panel is unlabeled, so I'm not sure what the breaker is wired to.  Was flipping breakers to see what what was being powered.  Should I be concerned?

Yes, absolutely. Call an electrician and make sure nobody touches the board. There might be 2 problems: operating circuit breakers must never result in getting an electric shock. That could be  caused by one or two  metal parts near the switch with different potential. Or the switch and board is very dirty inside and outside, which caused a surface current to the hand. This is the first issue to be corrected. Probably there is a second problem, i.e. a missing RCD = residual current device which is upstream of a circuit breaker and interrupts when current is flowing through the body.  But a RCD does only interrupt if a ground current is involved. If the hand was touching a phase and neutral and the rest of the body was well insulated from ground ( dry weather, insulating soles, dry skin, dry clothes, etc.), a RCD does not prevent a shock.


How do you replace a couple tiles? So I finished laying wood plank ceramic tile using large format medium bed mortar. I used the Lash system and did this over three days, half on day one, one day off, then finished tonight. Some lessons learned included making sure to half the Lash pliers at the beginning, and more importantly NOT leaving in lash clips on the border stopping point. The clips bonded to the cured mortar and this created some lippage, most noticeable in a couple spots.

Question: what is the best way to remove a tile or two and replace them before I grout? I back buttered every tile and used a 1/2 inch trowel. Substrate is 3/4 plywood plus 1/4 backerboard plus layer of Hydro Ban.

Use a ceramic drill bit to add a series of holes within the tile you want to remove, then use a tile chisel or cold chisel to remove the pieces. Be patient.

TOH has a good article:
https://www.thisoldhouse.com/how-to/how-to-replace-broken-tile


How would I go about adding more receptacles to a garage? Looking for help in trying to get more electrical outlets installed in my woefully under-receptacled garage. I have one GFCI 20A outlet at the door going into the garage, one single ceiling outlet for the garage door opener, and one single outlet on the opposite wall that is powering my sprinkler system. I don't like the Clark Griswold approach I've got now at my workbench-an extension cord from the GFCI that connects to a power strip to handle all of my tool needs. I would rather wire outlets properly. My question is how many standard outlets can be strung in series from the GFCI? The outlet hasn't tripped with as many as 8 items running simultaneously (mostly LED bench lights mind you), so I was thinking of installing two 4-outlet boxes or perhaps a switch at my bench to power these outlets. Would these be simply run in a chain from the GFCI to each outlet (or switch)? Are the number of outlets added simply dependent on the load? Any advice would be appreciated.

I would rather do something even more efficient like adding a new circuit or two to the panel, but that may be outside of my skill set. Any tips you can provide will be appreciated.

Step one - determine (or tell us) if these are all one circuit (and are there garage lights other than the opener and your bench lights, and are those on the same circuit as any/all the outlets, or not?)

Step two - there are rules of thumb, though they can be adapted to actual use-cases, such as your low-draw LED lights. Following them won't keep things happy if too many heavy-duty things are all running at once. Exceeding them won't make the circuit blow if 27 outlets each have a 10 watt LED light plugged in. 8 (duplex) receptacles on a 15 amp and 10 on a 20 amp circuit is one such RoT - I've also seen 7 suggested. As such your plan to add 4 duplex would fit within nearly every RoT on a 20 amp circuit with 3 outlets now. Also, you are running the same stuff now on the same circuit without trouble, which is a good sign, until you add more stuff running at the same time, or open the garage door while running a power saw and sprinkling the lawn.

If you have a panel/sub-panel in the garage, running a new circuit is probably worthwhile - if it needs to come from the house main panel, that may be more work and expense than you want to go to for a setup that works now from extension cords.

The wires for your outlets would run from the LOAD side of the GFCI (there may already be wires connected there if it's all one circuit in the garage) and then run to the first outlet, from the first to the second, etc.


Painting Vinyl siding? Has anyone had success or tried painting vinyl siding?  Apparently Benjamin Moore
 claims that it is possible but I wanted to know if anyone has done this? Were there any pitfalls or learning?

The reason to want to do this should be pretty obvious as replacing all the siding on a house purely because of color is a lot of money. Basically I have a yellow house, the siding is in good condition, but quite ugly so was hoping there is an effective way to change its color other than buying new.

Yes, the link you posted is for the Regal Select Exterior Revive. This product is made specifically for Vinyl Siding. It is designed to be buckle-resistant and no primer is needed. I painted houses professionally for 11 years and all I used were Benjamin Moore products. I have used this on vinyl shutters and it works exceptionally well. Benjamin Moore is expensive, but it covers well and lasts for many years. I would note that yellow is one of the hardest colors to cover in a single coat. You will probably have to double coat it.


Toilet float adjustment screw is stuck - how can I fix this? I was adjusting the water level in my toilet and I think I opened the float adjustment screw too far. It seems to have come disconnected from something. Now the float falls as far as it will go and the toilet runs indefinitely after a flush even though the float is low. The screw twists but does not move up and down. There is some plastic dust around it - I think from the internal threads, they're likely damaged. For the time being I've wedged something under it and remove it when I need to flush.
I'm at a total loss as to what to do long term. Ordinarily in this type of situation I would try to nudge the screw out or at worst extract it with some pliers. But I'm not sure it actually makes sense to remove the screw in this case.

If you opened the screw two far or unscrewed it lift up on the ball and tighten the screw. To me it sounds and looks like you backed the screw out of the actuator.
Fill valve kits that replace the valve and float in my area or only 12-12$ fill master and they come with the needed seals and instructions.
I would lift on the ball and try to tighten the screw to see if you can get it to go back into the plastic actuator.


Can I plug my new LG-LW2217IVSM A/C nema 6-15P into a 6-20R with a 20A-240V CB? The user manual says to use a nema 6-15R with a 15A two pole Circuit breaker(240V). But my existing setup is a nema 6-20R with a 20A two pole CB(240V). I realize a 6-15P plug will fit into a 6-20R receptacle but I am worried about over-loading the new A/C. Does anyone know if this new A/C has built in "Overcurrent protection"? Also this A/C is the new "Dual inverter technology". This unit draws 10.5/11.6 amps.I read the NEC article Table 210.21(B)(2) that says the maximum load on a given circuit is 80% of the receptacle rating and circuit rating. The maximum load on a 20A OCPD is 16A. Is this OK to do? I don't want to damage my A/C or house?LG-LW2217IVSM       ]3

The basic answer is: You should be OK.

You are looking at the numbers "backwards". A 20A receptacle/breaker/etc. (assuming everything is installed correctly) can safely supply up to 20A total, and up to 16A continuous load. A 15A receptacle/breaker/etc. can safely supply up to 15A total, and up to 12A continuous load.

While generally speaking an appliance and the circuit should be carefully matched, there is an exception for 15A & 20A circuits. This is actually in two ways:

A 20A circuit can have 15A receptacles. That's plural - you can't have a 20A circuit that has exactly one 15A receptacle. This allows you to have multiple devices on the circuit that together pull more than 15A (or more than 12A continuous) without having nuisance trips, while still providing protection at a reasonable level - if there is a current draw > 20A.
20A receptacles are designed to accept both 15A and 20A plugs. This allows you to install, for example, 20A receptacles on a 20A circuit in a workshop in order to use heavy-duty power tools that actually need 20A circuits and use the same receptacles for much smaller devices (15A tools on down to < 1A cell phone chargers, etc.)

These issues are far more common with 120V circuits, but apply to 240V circuits (your situation) as well.

This is all by design. End result: a 15A device can be plugged in to a 20A receptacle. In normal usage it will not overload the circuit - in fact it will be well under the capacity of the circuit, which is perfectly fine. If there is a real overload situation, it will likely be far greater than 20A and will trip the breaker. No different from plugging a cell phone charger that uses a small fraction of 1A into a 15A circuit - the device (unless there is a failure) will use only the electricity it needs.

This is not the case with larger - e.g., 30A, 40A, 50A circuits. Each of those has a particular receptacle designed to match exactly (there are some small exceptions, but not like the "universal" 15A/20A rules).


How do I cut drywall on the ceiling accurately? I want to cut the drywall on the ceiling accurately. The thing is that the drywall is thick and it is on the top. I have to stand on the ladder; one hand use utility knife and the other hand hold the drywall.

The expected shape is supposed to be rectangle. Cut drywall on the ground is easy, but it is on the garage ceiling(below unfinished attic).
It is tough, any tips?

Utility Knife

Position a 2'- 4' level (or other straight edge) along the line you'd like to cut.
With the straight edge in place, gently draw the utility knife along the line. You don't have to press too hard, just enough to cut through the paper on the face of the drywall.
Draw the utility knife repeatedly through the groove you scored in the previous step.
Increase the pressure slightly with each pass.
Continue until the knife has cut through the drywall.

Once you score a line in the drywall, the utility knife will tend to follow the groove. So you'll only need to hold the straight edge in place for the first scoring pass.
Drywall Saw
You should be able to pick up a drywall saw at any hardware or home improvement store, for just a couple bucks.  These saws have a sharp pointy tip, which makes plunging through the drywall easy.  They also have coarse teeth, which make cutting the drywall easy.

They are often known as "jab saws", because you use them by jabbing them through the drywall to start your cut.

Place the tip of the blade where you want to begin your cut.
Smack the hilt of the saw hard, to force the tip through the drywall.
Carefully make your cut using a back and forth sawing motion.

Power Tools
You could also use a rotary saw, or oscillating Multi-tool to quickly and easily cut drywall.

WARNING:
Always be aware of what is behind the drywall, to avoid cutting into wiring, plumbing, or other hidden dangers.


Concrete mix too much Sand? Hi Knowledgeable people,

I've just dug up old fence concrete bases etc as fence blew down. Re done concrete bases, put posts up etc.

And now I am looking at the concrete and am worried I've added too much SAND! Panic!!

I looked up the ratio online: aggregate, sand, cement, 4, 2 ,1 I think and bought ballast, sand and cement.

I followed the ratio, with 4 ballast, 2 sand, 1 cement etc. However, I'm worried that the ballast having various size clippings in down to sand, meant I didnt need to add the sand?

Will my concrete last?

Fence-post bedding is a non-challenging job and on that basis, don't stress about it too much.

Your mixture sounds perfectly good - the usual place folks go wrong is adding too much water, but see the first sentence of this answer.


How can I replace a sliding glass door with a broken seal? I have a sliding glass door and the glass is etched around side; the seal broke and dust has come in and I don't know how to fix it.

If repairing the glass as RQDQ suggests does not pan out, you have three options:

Order replacement glass.   Typically a company that specializes in glass replacement would measure the panel, order replacement glass, and install it in the fixed or moving panel from your door.  Manufacture and shipping of the custom dual-pane glass panel may take from one to several weeks.
Order a replacement panel from your door's manufacturer.   This may or may not cost more than replacing the glass, but you will be able to replace the panel with basic DIY tools and skills.   This may not be possible if you cannot locate the original manufacturer or if an exact match is no longer available.
Replace the entire door unit.  This may be appropriate if the original door is not high quality, you want to upgrade, or perhaps if you want to change finishes (from metal-clad to wood or vinyl-clad, for example).   This will require more skill, as you will need to remove and replace trim inside and outside the door, and possibly will involve removing and replacing siding in the vicinity of the door.

In either of the last two cases, it is more than a 1-person job; be sure to have help to safely handle the removal and replacement of the panel or door unit.


Is it possible to add a branch to existing fireplace blower? My fireplace has two blowers behind grates in the brick. Fans behind these lower grates mix air with heated air from behind the firebox and kick out a serious amount of heat into the room. The heated air is forced out of the upper grates on each side of the fireplace.

I have created a golf simulator in my garage and am looking at heating options. Is having a mason create another tunnel/branch terminating in the garage, though the cinder block possible? The garage is located immediately behind the fireplace.

Depending on the skill of the mason, local building codes, the configuration of the fireplace ducts and the cost I'm sure a new duct is feasible.   What you may want to consider is it worth the price and disruption to the household. Also would it make more economical sense to have a separate heating unit for the garage?   A gas fired ceiling hung 50000 BTU furnace can be purchased new for under $500. It might be worth it depending on the cost for the mason th reroute the fireplace duct.


Mystery circuit breaker discovered in QO panel I have part ownership of a house and acreage these days in rural southern Missouri.  The house was built before the AHJ (county) adopted the NEC, so there are some quirks in the electrical system, one of them being the electrical panel (located in the master bath).  Thankfully, the panel itself is a Square D QOC-16D Series L1 (and not some terrible piece of fire-protection-eliminating trash), but of course, it's underdocumented and stuffed to the gills with double-stuff breakers, including the two in the photo below in slots 11 and 15 in the panel that are of a style I have never seen before:

Did Square-D ever make a double-stuff QO with the handles in the configuration depicted, and if so, when? If not, who the heck made them?  Are these oddly configured breakers obsolete in some way, compared to their more conventional double-stuff brethren (as exemplified by the QO2020 in slot 13 seen between them)?

I have both styles of these breakers. If you look on the left side you will see the square D logo embossed in the case.
The ones I have came out of an older panel. They work fine but I needed to upgrade from the 15,20 to 20,20 like you have. So the answer is yes square D made these or this style.


Can I replace a toilet tank, only? what do I need to know regarding tank size to match to existing bowl? I have to replace a toilet tank that has cracked down the entire side.  What dimensions, and capacities to I need to know when finding a tank to fit the existing bowl?

It is possible to buy just the tank which matches your toilet.  I have done just that when I smashed my tank trying to move the toilet to fix the seal.  The model number was printed inside the tank and a little internet searching found the tank, with all the hardware in it, could be shipped to the hardware store right beside my house for about $80, which was about 1/3 of the price of the new toilet.  Since the hardware was included, the repair was incredibly simple.

Try searching for any identifying information inside or outside the tank or bowl.  If you can find something, don't be afraid to spend 20 minutes looking, you could save a bit of money.


How to fill in bonding at the bottom of a wall before skimming? I'm skimming some old plaster walls and in the process found that the original bonding stops too far up the wall for the new (shorter) skirting board. Also it's coming away a little so I've gone back to the brick a bit further up in places too.
Photo shows some of the state of it, Ignore the radiator.
I'm not keen to chip off and redo the entire wall  so I plan to fill in new bonding at the bottom before skimming the whole lot.
My question   specifically is:
Should  I add bonding flush with the old surface
or
Should I   add a layer of finishing/patching plaster on top of that to match the old top coat, then skim the lot?
All tips appreciated for this kind of job.

Since you do have the Thistle Hard Wall and not needing to use another substitute like thinset for tile work, do add a scratch coat of the Thistle Hard Wall. That is, place a 8-10mm layer over the brick, pressing it into place solidly to insure its grab onto the brick. While wet draw lines into the surface (scratches) so the next layer of the same material will grab onto the rough surface that you made in the first coat. When the second coat is added, this one can be brought flush to the surface. Allow to set or cure the recommended time before adding the skim coat and sanded if desired.
Typically plastering is done in stages to get the desired thickness. If too much is added to the wall at one time the material will slump off the wall and cause great problems. On reading the recommendations for install, the Hard Wall can be applied 8-11mm thick in one application. Your plaster will be or should be much thicker than that, therefore requiring 2 coats to fill the area. The install specs also suggested that is is good for the finish as well, so it can be filled to the adjacent surfaces, making it easier to finish, then adding a skim coat will make it easier to sand smooth.
I did not read the specs thoroughly so I may have missed a minor detail, but this should get you on your way.


Do I need to use two wire types for an indoor/outdoor run to a garage? I need to install a 14-50 outlet in my garage to charge my car.  I have a 200 amp breaker panel on the back of the house.  It is approximately a 40' run on the outside of the house to where it would turn into the garage and then another 20' inside the garage to the outlet location.  I would prefer to have both the outlet and all of the wire surface mounted and in conduit as it would be very difficult to run inside the wall of the garage.
Do I need to use 2 different wire types for the outdoor and indoor sections?  What type of 6/3 wire would I need and what size conduit?

Put it in conduit, use THWN, done. Most THHN is also marked THWN or THWN-2 (and MTW, and perhaps a few other listings.)
Because part of the conduit is outside, the wire used must be wet rated (W) but there's no need to change wire type where it goes inside the building.
Using 6/3 cable in conduit is a right royal pain in the behind you don't need or want. Use individual wires when using conduit - they pull easier and they typically allow you to use smaller conduit per the way the fill rules treat cables .vs. wires.
If you use continuous metallic conduit, that is your ground, you don't need a grounding wire, and you can use 3/4" conduit (minimum.) If you use PVC conduit you need a grounding wire and you'll need 1 inch schedule 80 minimum (which most "home centers" will not stock, but any electrical supply will have tons of) because it sounds like most of the run is going to be below 8 feet and thus considered "subject to damage" so it needs the additional protection of the heavier wall of schedule 80. Don't use Sch 40 becasue it's all you can find at the home center. Go find the electrical supply. The wire may cost less there too...


Is it possible to convert a switched light into an unswitched outlet? I am installing an overhead automatic garage door opener. My only power source close to where I will be hanging the motor is an overhead light socket that is operated by a switch on the wall next to the house entry door.

I wanted to know if it is possible to rewire the light socket with a standard electrical plug outlet AND to remove the switch & wire it to provide constant power to the new outlet. The overhead light is on my 15A garage GFI circuit & the opener lists 120V/6A as its power requirements.

I live in the US.

Yes, absolutely!.  You can do this by pulling out the switch, and splicing together the two wires that formerly went to the switch.  Then put a blank cover plate over that switch's electrical box.

You should know however, that you don't have to have a constant power outlet for a garage door opener.  You can have a garage door opener on a switched outlet just fine.  And you can use that switch as a lightweight form of security lockout.

I would recommend instead you put a switch guard like this over it, and just keep that switch on forever.  It's less work and easier to undo.  It also would let you cut power to your opener if you wanted to without getting up on a ladder.

Put a descriptive label on it "Garage door, do not turn off" if you want.

You can also get adapters that give you two outlets and a light socket with a pullchain, into which you can plug your garage door.

This way you can keep the light in place and also avoid having to do any wiring in the ceiling.  However, you should shop around and make sure it can supply the amperage you want.  Use LED bulbs to conserve amperage and stand up to the vibration of the opener better.

If you cant find a double-outlet-plus-pullchain-light adapter (above) that satisfies your amperage need, then consider one of the single-outlet adapters:

Lastly, if none of those do what you like, you should replace the light fixture with one that has its own built in outlet, so that you don't lose the overhead light capability.  This is rated for the full 15A of a normal outlet, and accepts a grounded plug without the cheater adapter you would otherwise need for the light-socket-to-outlet adapters above.

You can get all of these parts at any common home center.  Have fun!


Why do I have house flies in my carport? I bought my home in early September 2012. I noticed that flies were flocking around a light in my open air carport whether it was on or off. I tried a few products like fly tape, spray and a fly trap. Still no results. This continued through fall until temps dropped. This Spring I thought I would take preventive measures and cleaned my entire carport with Lysol including my garbage cans which are new. But still flies are flocking around this light. Its strange, they don't land on it that much as if there were some food source. They just fly around it all day until the sun goes down and even then there are a few stragglers. I would say at peak during the day there are about 150 to 200 flies. Why are they attracted to this area and What do I do to get rid of them?

Is it possible that these are not your regular house flies but instead something called a cluster fly?

I've seen these flies make a nuisance of themselves in the ceiling of one house of a friend.  He had to get it fumigated.  After that, no problems.

Is your carport right next to your house?  is the light attached to the carport or to the house?  Could there be a little nest in there somewhere?


What to do if the wall has too many repairs? Joint compound fixes the look of the wall, but it is not hard enough to hold another hole, correct?
Underneath the compound the support is gone (concrete, wood, etc.)
If a wall already had too many repairs (compound filling holes) and I drill one more that is right by a hidden former hole, what to do? This won't be secure enough to hold items to the wall.
So the main question is: A wall that has had too many repairs, what to do since it seems unreliable to hold new fixtures?
Can this actually  lead to damages in the structures, if two/three owners along the years drill too many holes?
Is there a code, standard for it? Because people simply go and put joint compound to visually hide the hole. But the hole in the underlying structure is still there.

If i understand your question you just want to know if many patched holes compromise the structural integrity of the wall.
No the structure would not be compromised by many holes.
The wall itself may not have the integrity to hold photos or things hung on it but the wall is not going to fall over.
It is theoretically possible that if there were many holes very near each other and if someone pushed on that spot that it could give way resulting in a large hole, but the structure of the wall would still not be compromised.

Underneath the compound the support is gone (concrete, wood, etc.)

Drilling many holes anywhere in drywall does not mean the "supports"  holding it are gone, or compromised.
If your question is about trying to hang things where there are many holes then you need to EDIT your question to be clear on that point.


How to childproof small table intentionally away from wall? I have a small table next to a rocking chair in my child’s nursery. Once my child starts crawling and walking, I want everything in the nursery to be childproofed, including the table. While I could fasten the tab to the wall, that moves it away from the rocker, thereby defeating its purpose.

Is there any way to childproof a small table that’s away from walls?

According to your question, I assume your "childproof" means to fasten the table down so that it cannot be moved or tipped over, rather than to cover the sharp edges.

If both the table and your floor allow you to put in some fasteners, the simple solution would be use a corner brace like this to fasten your table to the floor:


3 wire service to panel... neutral and ground wires on the same bar? I'm getting two conflicting reports and was wondering if anyone can help me. I was told that on the distribution panel, grounded conductors (neutral) and ground wires need to be separated in the distribution panel. The point of disconnect is at the meter and the neutral and ground wires, apparently, have to be separated downstream of the point of disconnect for proper grounding system. Is this true? I got a second opinion and was told that on a 3 wire service to panel, neutral and ground wires are allowed to be terminated on the same bar. Any help would be really appreciated. Thank you all!!

Whoever told you the meter was the point of disconnect was dead wrong.
The main panel or disconnect is the first means of overcurrent or disconnect. THIS is where your neutral bond must happen.

  2011 NEC

  Article 250 Grounding and Bonding

  II. System Grounding

  250.24 Grounding Service-Supplied Alternating-Current Systems

  (B) Main Bonding Jumper.

  For a grounded system, an unspliced main bonding jumper shall be used
  to connect the equipment grounding conductor(s) and the
  service-disconnect enclosure to the grounded conductor within the
  enclosure for each service disconnect in accordance with 250.28.*


Tapping into the external tankless water heater for outdoor shower I have an external tankless water heater on the back wall of my home. 20 feet directly to the left is where we want to put our outdoor shower. We currently also have a cold water spigot in the same area. My original plan was to put a hot water spigot next to the cold water spigot and then just run some washing machine hoses over to the outdoor shower. Instead of having to crawl under the house and drill through the band joist to install the spigot I was wondering if it was okay to just put a T in the hot water output of the water heater. Then I could put a ball valve on it and run a hose off of it.

Thoughts?

Thank you!

I would say it is fine. ( code issues aside )

If you do not want to drill new holes in the side of your house then I would suggest to not use your hose bib.

If you are going to be plumbing a new line anyway you might as well plumb the cold as well and save your hose bib for alternative uses. Presumably you have an accessible cold water supply to the water heater and plenty of water pressure, T off the cold going into the WH for the cold and T into the hot coming out of the WH. Run both lines ( copper or pex ) to a shower mixing valve, put 1/4 turn valves in line so you can service/shut it off.

I would build some sort of cover/housing to put over the supply lines to the mixing valve to protect them and for aesthetics.

As to freezing. Keep in mind the planet will (more then likely) experience another ice age. South Carolina will freeze/thaw many time before a full ice age ensues but humans will probably be long gone. ( Either through self destruction or leaving this planet to find another planet to  ---abuse for profit?  . )

The planet will survive long after any parasites render their host uninhabitable.  ( alter its climate to the point of not being able to support the life that has evolved to exist within its specific climate parameters. )

But I digress.

I think you should ( PROBABLY ) be good for the near future.


Calculating subpanel breaker size I'm building out a shop (within the same building as the main panel) and I'm considering adding a sub panel to make running circuits easier, and to make any future expansion easier.
I'm unsure how to calculate the load for the sub's breaker in the main panel.
I've got the following in mind (120V except where specified):

40A shop heater (240V, 7500W)
20A circuit for outlets
20A circuit for outlets (2nd)
20A "outside" circuit for outdoor outlet and eventual extension to outbuildings
20A circuit for dust collection
20A "large tool" circuit (240V, ~16A max)

Those wouldn't all be at capacity all the time, but I could certainly envision the heater, dust collection, large tool, and an outlet all generating significant load (~100A).
Do I size the breaker and the subpanel feed for what I think I would need (100A) or for the maximum possible capacity (140A+)?  Or is there a accepted formula or scaling factor I should use?
Thanks!
(This is in Washington state in the US in case that's relevant for code compliance).

Feeder sizing isn't so simple
The minimum rules for service and feeder capacity planning are found in NEC Article 220; while they don't account completely for your usecase, we can use a modified version of those procedures here.  We start with the 550sf you gave, and multiply it by 3 to get the lighting and general receptacle load as-if this was part of its parent dwelling unit, giving us 1650VA (volt-amps, similar to watts).  We then multiply this by the .35 demand factor for dwelling unit general loads over 3000VA before adding 3000VA to account for the heavy tools circuit and 7500W/VA for the heater as per NEC 220.51.  Note that while the demand factor and the heater are both computed as per NEC Article 220 rules, the 3000VA for the tools circuit is an allowance (similar to a pair of Small Appliance Branch Circuits) for the heavy tools circuit due to the unavailability of details about the actual loads found there.
This gives us 11078VA, to which we add the dust collector load.  Since we are dealing with a UL listed appliance here, we start with the 20A nameplate amp rating instead of using the tables to look it up, although it doesn't matter in this case anyway since Table 430.248 gives us 20A for the full load current of a 2HP, 115VAC motor.  From there, we multiply by 1.25, per NEC 430.24 and 220.50, to get us 25A, which when multiplied by 115VAC gives us 2875VA, for a total load of 13953VA.  We then divide this by 240V, giving us a 58A minimum for our feeder ampacity.
While it's possible to wire this using 6AWG THHNs in a conduit or a 6-6-6-6 copper SER cable, that gives us 65A, leaving us little margin for an outbuilding. In NM, we'd have to use 4/3, giving us a 70A feeder instead, but neither NM nor copper SER are cost-effective ways to wire the circuit, at $3.5 to >$4/ft vs the $2.5/ft of materials that using 6AWG THHNs with a 10AWG ground in 3/4" ENT achieves.  Nonetheless, we can do better than that by going to aluminum.  A 1-1-1-3 aluminum SER cable goes for a mere $1.67/ft or so, and gives us 100A to the shop panel; we can upgrade this to a 1/0-1/0-1/0-2 SER cable to give us a 120A feeder (using a 125A breaker) for just under $2/ft.  If that's still too much cost, we can go with a 4-4-4-6 aluminum SER cable for just under $1/ft, but that puts us back at that 65A figure (with a 70A feeder breaker) from the 6AWG THHNs in conduit or 6-6-6-6 copper SER cable mentioned above.
GO BIG OR GO HOME
Now that we've decided on the size of our feeder, we need to figure out what size subpanel to put in, and this is where folks tend to get penny-wise and pound-foolish.  You see, ripping out a panel to replace it with a larger one is a big pain in the rear end, and far costlier than what you'd save by using a smaller panel.
Since this is in the same structure, we don't need to worry about a main cutoff (main breaker), nor a second set of ground rods, but we do need a set of separate grounding bars fitted to the panel to land equipment grounding conductors on.  Many main lug panels come with these factory fitted, but if yours doesn't, you'll need to buy the correct bars and add them yourself.  In either case, you'll want a large panel: a 24-space or 30-space, 125A panel is not at all out of place here, and if you feel like splurging, you can upgrade to a 40-space or 42-space, 200A panel for not that much more.  Just make sure that your panel's bonding screw or strap gets pulled out when you install it!
Sidebar: that dust collector may need a bigger breaker
There's one other issue with your setup, and that's your choice of a 20A breaker for the dust collector.  You see, motors draw a significant inrush current on startup; for a 2HP, 115VAC, single phase motor, the breaker will have to handle up to 144A for a short period of time.  So, there's a decent chance that your 20A breaker will trip on overload when you start the dust collector.
Fortunately, the NEC authors are familiar with this issue, and provide an "out" in 430.52(C), which permits you to size inverse-time (read: regular) breakers protecting a single motor load at up to 250% of the full-load current, or up to 45A for a 20A motor load, provided that the motor has its own overload protection.  You probably won't have to go up that high, but having a 25A single-pole breaker for your choice of subpanel handy in case the dust collector won't start on a 20A breaker would be wise (it's the largest value permitted for a 20A motor if the motor doesn't have a built-in overload protector).


Is a 60A sub-panel adequate for my workshop/garage? I am upgrading the service to the garage. The old needs total replacement.
In the garage i will be using

50A welder
small compressor
lighting for 400 square foot garage
6 20A receptacles

Would a 60A service be okay?

Total run From main 150A service is 65 feet to  detached garage

Typically you use 6 AWG copper wire for a 60A run, and 1 AWG Aluminum wire for a 100A run.  Between the two, #1 aluminum is actually cheaper, though it requires more expensive conduit if you use conduit.   (using conduit can be a convenience; Rigid conduit only needs to be trenched 6" of cover instead of 24" for buried cable, and Rigid provides a valid ground path, so no need for a ground wire).

The welder could surge 50A, and if the compressor is running at that time, these could peak the circuit past 60A.  This will not immediately trip the breaker, but it could cause minor voltage drop.  Rather than be in a situation where the circuit is straining at limits during welding, I'd advise erring on "large".  It certainly does no harm.

Speaking of "large", we recommend large service panels.  The welder will need 2 spaces, as will any 240V load.  If you put together a respectable 240V workshop, you start blasting through spaces 2 at a time.  Dealing with an over-full panel is much more expensive than just buying a bigger panel in the first place, so we recommend a biggie. And it's perfectly OK for the panel amp rating to be larger than the feed breaker.  Some people think if the breakers are equal size, the one in the shop will trip first - doesn't work that way.

And by the way, you don't need a main breaker in the subpanel.  However you do need a shutoff switch if the subpanel is in an outbuilding, and getting a panel with a main breaker is the cheapest way to do that.

Also, because it is an outbuilding, you need two ground rods at least 6' apart.  You can do it with one ground rod if you do an impedance test, but setting two ground rods is easier.  Despite the ground rods, you still need the ground wire back to the main panel (or Rigid conduit will substitute). They have different purposes, both important.


Drywall bad joints rough edges My husband kept cutting off the beveled edges to make easier measurements. I suggested only cutting one edge where possible. Also he was cutting the off side (brown) and leaving roygh paper edges. I also suggested cutting good side.  Maybe I should've been a little more forceful with my suggestions in the first place. Can two rough edges be joined without an obvious bump under mud?

Yes, but it depends on the skill of the taper. (Some drywall hangers only cut one side of the sheet and literally break the other paper face with a violent snap.) Slightly ragged cuts are not a concern, as they'll be moistened when joint compound is applied and flattened when paper tape is pressed on.

If you're truly concerned about certain areas, take a utility knife with a new blade and slide it along the joint at a 45 degree angle, shaving off the edge of the paper along the cut.


How can I choose the best lag screw / lag bolt? I will be fastening Unistrut vertically along studs to facilitate garage storage, and want some guidance on choosing the "best" lag bolts to use.

I want them large enough to handle hundreds of pounds of shear and tensile load, but small enough that I don't significantly weaken the 2x4 itself.

2x4's are only 1.5 inches wide.  And mine are hidden behind drywall on both sides, so I'm not confident that I can hit them exactly centered.  I could be off a bit if the wood has knots or the 2x4's are less than perfect.

e.g. If I was a half inch inch off from center, and drive a half inch bolt, it probably would pop out the side of the stud, right?

What's the maximum percent of a structural member's profile you'd want to drill out to install a bolt before you'd worry about reducing the strength of the member?  For instance, I'm sure it would be self defeating to install a 1.25 inch diameter lag bolt in a 1.5 inch wide stud, even dead center, because the remaining wood would be so weak you could sneeze it in half.

UPDATE:  I went on to test four options:

4" 'Traditional' lag bolts hex head
4" SPAX Lag bolts hex head
4" SPAX Pan-head Torx drive
4" GRK RSS Pan-head Torx drive

I made four test jigs out of 2x4's.  I assembled them perpendicularly to form a t-beam, but with a 5/8 inch spacer between to create a gap in which I could measure deflection.  I pre-drilled the 1.5 inch thick top beam so that it woud not grep any of the threads.  I also used the same 5/8" washers with all bolts.  The perpendicular 3.5 inch beam was only pre-drilled for the traditional lag bolt, as the other three did not require it.  This perpendicular bean gives the threads the full thickness of a stud to screw into as it would in a residential wall.

My results were as follows:

Traditional lag bolt easily stripped out the stud and lost traction.  I was not impressed and it at no point felt "tight".
SPAX Lag got tighter, but still stripped out the wood it was drilling into quickly.
SPAX Lag drove itself in SO tight, that it sunk that 5/8" washer 3/4 inch deep into the top stud before I backed off.
GRK RSS sunk into the top stud about 1/4 inch before starting to strip, but it was starting to strip the base stud with enough "notice" for me to stop.

I chose the SPAX Lag as hands down the best choice.  I will be using 7 along each piece of unistrut to firmly anchor each to the vertical studs, and also to the sole plates and double plates.  I am confident that because of the relatively small diameter of the shaft of the SPAX Lags they will not meaningfully degrade the strength of the studs.  And between their strength and the strength of the unistrut, the entire wall will be reinforced.

At this point my greatest concern is that I don't tighten them down so much that it pile drives the unistrut right through the drywall like its playdough.  The SPAX lags have enough pulling force I wouldn't put it past them at this point to just crush the drywall in their way.

The GRK RSS were very stout feeling as well.  I got the impression they would be better served in harder woods, or into concrete.  GRK RSS felt substantially beefier than SPAX panheads.  But the SPAX Panhead lags just worked out better in pine framing 2x4's.

The bigger question is how many vertical supports and how long are they?  1/4" lags 2” into the 2x4 has 510lb pull out strength (255lb/inch) put 2 or 3 in each piece of strut and each one can handle hundreds of pounds.
5/16” lags 266lb/inch; 3/8"lags 305lbs/inch.  You don’t need a very big lag bolt when using multiples. My examples have a small safety factor added in and these won’t degrade the strength of the 2x4. I usually drill pilot holes,
But not all brands of screws need pilot holes. The depth into the wood is the threaded part that provides the pull out strength over ½" sheetrock I would make sure to have at least ¾" -1” smooth shank that provides the sheer strength as the weak point is the start of the threads.


How do I change an old 3 round pin socket to a square pin socket in a newer house? I live in a relatively newly built house (15-20 years old), yet the last owner fitted old 3 round pin sockets in the lounge, possible for old fashioned table lamps.

Can I safely replace the round pin sockets with new square ones, just to use for one lamp (i.e. not overload with adapters and multiple devices)?

The plug on the lamp will of course contain a 13 amp fuse.

Most likely the sockets in question are on the lighting circuit.

Nothing explicitly forbids putting 13A sockets on a lighting circuit. However it is widely seen as bad practice because future users of the installation may plug larger loads into the socket and trip out the lights.

Better to change the plug on the lamp or to buy or make an adapter.


mitigate mold concerns from humidity in sauna in PNW I'm building a sauna into a house in the Pacific Northwest.  One wall is external, three walls are internal, and there is an attic overtop where I can vent to the outside.

All walls and ceiling of the sauna will have insulation covered by aluminum vapor barrier with tape that ought to implement a complete seal.  This reflects moisture and heat back into the sauna.

I've heard that you want permeability between the outside of a structure and the inside so water vapor (not droplets) can pass through, and that humidity is always trying to get to the less humid side.

Based on these principles and the fact that there will generally be moisture on the inside of the room and on the outside of the house, what practical steps can I take to make sure humidity doesn't damage the walls?

If you're building a proper sauna (Finnish sauna) and using it correctly, there should be no moisture problem in it. The air you feed it initially has the same humidity as the surrounding air, then the stove raises the air temperature leading to a decrease in relative humidity (same water content by weight + higher temperature = lower relative humidity, RH%).

The only two things that can add water vapor to the air in your sauna are 1. multiple people sweating in there for a while and 2. somebody pouring unnecessary amounts of water over the heated rocks, thinking a sauna should look like the steam baths (Turkish baths) they've seen in the movies, where people can barely see eachother through the thick clouds of vapor.

People in a sauna still need oxygen replenishment, so you should build it with a fresh air intake under the stove or somewhere close and low, and an air exhaust on the opposite wall and at half height or higher (sometimes it's a small sliding wooden window on the ceiling). This should deal with the humidity from sweat just fine.
Stop it. A sauna is not a steam bath. The air in there should be (very) dry. The only time you pour 1-2 ladles of water over the rocks is maybe if you want to "kickstart" your sweat response by generating a sudden wave of extra heat, or if you're looking for the supposed antioxidant or other benefits of löyly. Other than that, adding too much water just makes the high heat unbearable, shortens your sauna session to way under the normal 15 minutes, plus it introduces unecessary risks of germ growth, which is normally inhibited in a sauna by both the very high temperature and the dry air.


Do I need a neutral wire when connecting a 240V device? So this is still not very clear to me: I am trying to get 240V to an appliance that does not need a plug (direct wiring), I won't need a neutral wire, is this right? In fact there is nowhere to connect it on the appliance, right? I just need the two hot wires wired to the L1 and L2 lines and it will work. Additionally, I can wire the ground to the ground line, for safety (not doing this would be crazy), but no current would go through this during normal operation, right? I might be completely wrong here, just trying to understand.

I started from this thread: Why Do 240V Circuits Not Require Neutral?

Depends partly on the device. Some electric ranges/cooktops/driers have electronic controls which run on 120V even though they're controlling 240V; they get that 120V by connecting between one leg of the 240V supply and neutral. In that case, obviously, without neutral those controls don't run.


50 amp RV outlet installation So, I'm planning the installation of both a 50A RV outlet and an adjacent 20A GFCI 110v outlet on the back wall of my residence.  I have separate 50A and 20A breakers and will use 6/3 and 12/2 romex respectively.  Running the wire completely indoors to the intended location appears to be next to impossible so I want to poke the wires out of the dwelling and run the last 10' or so outside.  I have obtained 3/4" non-metallic flexible conduit for the purpose and have the appropriate weather resistant 1 & 2 gang boxes and in-use covers for outlet installation.  My question is this: can I run the two conductors together in the conduit to their respective receptacles as-is or must I strip their outer insulation for the balance of the run that is within the conduit?

Romex can't go outside

You would have to use cable rated for outdoor use, such as UF type.

Alternately, while you are in conduit, you could simply use the correct single-conductor wire, i.e. the very common THWN-2.

This is really pushing the limits of 3/4 conduit

3/4 conduit, supporting THWN single conductors, can support four 6 gauge conductors, fullstop.   No more room for anything else.

Couple pieces of good news though.  You only need a 10 gauge ground, and it can and better be bare for space, and you can share the ground with the 20A circuit.   So you need three #6, two #12 and one #10 bare. Someone more code-geeky than I will have to tell you if that's legal in 3/4 conduit, but it's really pushing it.

The trouble with "pushing it" with conduit is it makes the pulls really hard. It can either become a miserable afternoon, or force you to hire an electrician for the pull. And he won't touch it with a 10 foot stick of EMT unless everything you're doing is code perfect.  Because he has to sign off on all of it.

Ease of pulling is a big deal for the DIY'er, and that is why I usually oversize my conduit by quite a bit. Conduit is cheap.

Can't use wires without the cable sheath

They lose their physical protection, and they also lose their markings.  You can't use random unmarked wire.  It loses the weather resistance of UF.  You also can't pull shucked Romex or UF through a conduit, the insulation isn't tough enough to survive the trip. When you see THWN wire this will make sense.

You would be unable to pull 6/3 UF through 3/4" conduit, let alone with another cable too!

Wires through a hole in your house must be protected

There needs to be some sort of appropriate protection, like a conduit or cable which is rated for this use (and remember it needs to be outdoor cable too).

If it were me...

I would use a short non-flexible conduit as a liner, with a junction box on both inside and outside.  The inside junction box would be a fairly large one, the outside could be a simple conduit body.

At the inside junction box, I would transition from Romex (Indoor rated NM) to THWN-2 wires.  Outdoors I'd travel in ahem 1” or 1-1/2" rigid conduit, which looks pro and needs far fewer attachment points to the building. And since I have plenty of space, I'd give each circuit its own ground wire.  That would be me.


Why are hanging icicles on my home yellow? The icicles hanging on the front of my house are yellow on the tips. I also noticed a yellow line in the snow beneath the icicles. We moved into this home recently and I know they had the roof replaced due to hail damage. Any idea what would cause the yellow? Is this glue from the overhanging shingles?

Most likely the water is absorbing stain from the new shingles.

This will change over time as the new shingles weather.


Install interior camera on an exterior wall. I am installing a Camera system, 2 story house, However I need to install one of the cameras on an exterior wall on the inside of the house. I have no way to gain access to the attic space at the wall. My question is, is there a way to mount this camera any way and fish the wire up to the attic without removing sheetrock or will I need to drill all the way through the outside of the house and go up through the eaves that way. By the way the location of the camera is on a one story side of the house. So there is attic space above wall.

What you can do is cheat and drill a hole through both the interior and exterior walls. You'll need an extra long drill bit and make sure there's no electrical in the way (i.e. identify where the studs are and where the outlets are).

Be sure to caulk the outside hole with an exterior grade caulk


Fill gap on slope with horizontal fence I have built a horizontal fence on a slope. There is a 6" or so gap between the bottom of the fence and the ground on the downhill side. What easy solutions are there for this problem? I have considered: (1) putting some fence wire along the bottom, (2) trying to put in a angle-cut board, (3) putting up some decorative fixture (e.g., small garden edging fence). I'm looking for the easiest solution given what's already done.

Just put another row(s) of boards in. You can scribe & rip the boards to follow the ground, keeping them off the ground by 1/4". Or, you can dig out the ground for full height boards, take the dirt from the left & put it on the right for a foot on both sides of the fence.

Assuming the boards can't be bent enough to slip them in the channels. Cut the boards in half or wherever you find most appealing & least obvious. Half-lapping the cut zone would be best, but you can also just screw the boards back together with a board scrap.

Really Nice job by the way. I'd prefer to keep that color contrast as long as possible. I'm on a One Time Wood Protector kick, if both sides or just your side gets a few hours of Sun a day it's the only way to go. If the fence is wet in the picture One Time's Natural will keep that. Not a promo, I just find that no-one knows about the stuff & they just keep ruining their lives with poly's.


Can I repaint and seal a window sill that has fungus growing out of it? I have a long-neglected window sill that now has fungus (not mold) growing out of it.  We are pretty sure that the wood is not rotten, as the wood feels firm to the touch.

Can I still salvage the sill by scraping away the old paint, killing the fungus, and painting and sealing it?  Or is it too late?  If it's not too late, what's the best way forward?

The wood may give the impression of feeling firm but could very well be beyond recovery. You should try probing the wood with a narrow pointed tool such a flat blade screwdriver. If you can push the tool into the wood any amount then it is a pretty good indication that this needs replacement.

Replacement of the outside window trim can involve a lot of issues depending upon the type of siding and whether the siding goes under the trim or butts up to the trim. A few more pictures showing the trim installation would help for giving further advice.

Another thing that will need looking into is to see of the compromised wood extends beyond just the trim. Is the sill and/or frame of the window also starting to go bad? If so this could be an indication for replacement of the whole window.


Is this mold in my bathroom? Moved into a new house and the bathroom has a foul odour and i suspect it has something to do with he black stuff all over the place. Could it be mold?

I am pretty sure that is mold. I would start with a bleach solution to clean it up. Rental? If so, I would have the landlord look at it and get it taken care of. Cleaning, painting with Kilz or Bullseye or something similar. Then monitor it for a few months.


How To Remove Decorative Logs From Stucco Exterior What are some options for removing these decorative log ends on the exterior of my house? The stucco is traditional (real) stucco. There is a possibility that the logs may penetrate the sheathing and be secured to the framing somehow. However, they also appear to be located right around where the top plate in the wall framing would be, so I'm not sure how that would work. That would also be a lot of extra work for the sheathing guys, so maybe I am wrong on that.

The house is in Florida.

I am looking for advice on how to:

Remove the logs in the easiest and least destructive way
possible. Possibly flush cut somehow?
Repair the sheathing if necessary and ensure proper waterproofing.
Install a new horizontal trim board where the logs are now, and
install cement board shakes in the gables on top of the existing
stucco if that is feasible. Similar to the shakes in the example
below.

Example of the shakes I'd like to install:

I have removed similar but square beams using a hatchet and a hammer, with quite a few the split right at the anchor and I was able to remove the anchor with vice grips. There were a few that I had to split several times both horizontally and verticly until I found the anchor. The beams were embedded. Over the tar paper but the metal mesh had been cut I am guessing so they would be tight. We did restucco prior to painting and it looked fine but your slate shake/ cement board will look very nice and you wouldn't need to fill the holes.


Eaton Cutler-Hammer Plug-On Neutral (differences) 1. Introduction

I have an Eaton CH Plug-On-Neutral Panel (CH42BPN200K).

I need a 20 AFCI/GFCI Breaker.

I found two or more part numbers that are for an Eaton CH 20 AFCI/GFCI breaker.

CHFAFGF120PN (Eaton Catalog - City Electric Supply)
CHFPAFGF120CS / CHFP120DF (Home Depot / Lowes)

There may be more part numbers that I just have not found yet.

(Note: I wish I could figure out how to make the following images smaller).

2. Questions

Are the following two parts the same or different even though they look almost identical?

Is one part better than the other?

3. CHFAFGF120PN - Eaton Catalog / City Electrical Supply

Eaton Brochure and catalogs show the part number as CHFAFGF120PN (Single-pole 10kAIC 20 Amps - AF/GF plug-on neutral). I went by the the local Electrical Supply House and purchase this:

4. CHFPAFGF120CS - Home Depot / Lowes - $56.95

The Home Depot (and Lowes) appears to carry a CH Plug-On-Neutral breaker, but the part number is CHFPAFGF120CS (All-In-One Breaker). The part number on the device (CHFP120DF) is different than the part number on the box (CHFPAFGF120CS).

5. Eaton Brochure

6. Eaton Catalog

7. Reference and Sources

Eaton - Plug-on neutral loadcenter
http://www.eaton.com/ecm/groups/public/@pub/@electrical/documents/content/br00301006e.pdf

Eaton - Loadcenters and Circuit Breakers
https://www.eaton.com/ecm/groups/public/@pub/@electrical/documents/content/vol01_tab01.pdf

Eaton - Catalog numbers still to come

I found this, not sure where though. The last page has "March 2019".

Example:

New plug-on neutral catalog number is:

CHFP120DF

Similar previous design catalog numbers:

CHFAFGF120PN
CHFAFG120

Now if I could only find these two AFCI Plug-On Neutral breakers:

CHFP115AF (AFCI 15 Amp)
CHFP120AF (AFCI 20 Amp)


Installing a low voltage pump to drain condensed water from a window air conditioner I don't know much about electricity, calling all experienced electricians out there!
My goal is to merge the max 6V small water pump to my air conditioner. I'm trying to connect a small submarine pump with my air standard 115V window conditioner. I need a solution on how to properly and safely get this to work.
Essentially I want to power on the air conditioner and also have the small water pump power on automatically. I don't want to damage anything or cause a fire, so please let me know what I can do to get this to work.
P.S. If there are important steps required, please list them in laymen's terms.
Thank you!
Below here are links to the small water pump and air conditioner:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/DC-3V-5V-6V-small-Micro-Submersible-Mini-Water-Pump-Fish-Tank-Fountain-Aquarium-/254406810014
https://www.bestbuy.com/site/ge-700-sq-ft-14000-btu-smart-window-air-conditioner-white/6390678.p?skuId=6390678

Mixing AC mains and low voltage involves some very complicated rules, and it may be prohibitive to do this as an electronics design exercise, especially if (as you say) you don't really have the chops.
One option is don't even detect the air conditioner running. Detect water rising above a certain level in a reservoir.  Then, the project becomes a simple "float switch": if water present, run pump.  Doing this allows you to build your entire project using 5 volt power only, and therefore the harsh rules on mixing AC power with low voltage will not come into play.
Note that having your common everyday "wall wart" convert AC power into 5 volts is perfectly legit, since the vast majority of such wall-warts are UL-Listed as safe in that application.
Another that comes to mind is a "smart power strip" used for controlling "dust collectors" in wood shops.  (when they see current flowing to the table saw, they turn on the dust collector socket).  You plug the air conditioner into the "table saw" socket, and the 5V wall-wart power supply into the "dust collector" socket.
They make the same kind of thing for PCs (when the PC turns on, turn on the monitor, USB hub, printer, etc.)  However, the "wood shop" units are actually rated for the heavy current of an air conditioner.


Can a modern washing machine pump high enough to reach a sewer line that's 43" above the ground? Our sewer line is 43" above the ground. Today, the washing machine drains into a washbasin, into an ejector pump, and into the sewer. I would like the washing machine to drain directly into the sewer line, bypassing the washbasin and pump. Can modern washers pump the water high enough to allow for a trap above the 43"?

No.  Well maybe it can, but it shouldn't.
RTFM
If you check the documentation that came with the washer, it should contain the maximum drain height.  Generally, the maximum height is around 39" (99 cm).

Newer washers often have a drain hose permanently attached, which is designed to make drain installation fool proof. The supplied drain hose shows you exactly how high the washer can discharge.
Raise the washer
Depending on the machine, and whether or not you're already using a pedestal.  You may be able to raise the whole machine up, to accomplish what you want.  The maximum height is not height above sea level, it's height above the bottom of the washer. So if it's possible to do so, raising the machine up a few inches (safely) might be the solution.
If it's a front loading washer; and you're not already using a pedestal, you may be able to purchase (or build) a pedestal to raise the machine up.  If not, you may want to think about building a raised floor to raise the whole area up.
Keep it up to code
International Residential Code (IRC) says.

International Residential Code (IRC) 2012
Chapter 27 - Plumbing Fixtures
SECTION P2706 WASTE RECEPTORS
P2706.2 Standpipes. Standpipes shall extend a minimum of 18 inches (457 mm) and a maximum of 42 inches (1067 mm) above the trap weir. Access shall be provided to all standpipe traps and drains for rodding.

Which means if you connect the drain hose to a standpipe, the standpipe has to be at least 18" above the point at which water will begin to flow from the trap. So your 43" height, could quickly become 61".


What would cause a Klein ET300 to Identify multiple breakers for the same outlet? Environment : There are 2, 200 amp residential services coming into the house. Each has it's own breaker box. The home has had extensive remodeling over the years. I have found 2 different outlets that when the transmitter is plugged in, the receiver after multiple passes over both breaker boxes identifies multiple breakers.  In one case, the breaker that actually kills the power to the outlet being tested is in one breaker box but the ET300 also consistently identifies two separate breakers in the other breaker box.  The outlet is located in a kitchen island with other outlets, garbage disposal, two dishwashers, .... etc that all appear to each be on different breakers spread across both of the two main panels.  He ideas as to how I should proceed?

I have had trouble with the automatic modules like this in the same panel even with repeated checks as needed by the unit to identify the correct breaker the signal must be the same value on both breakers. The only way to be 100% sure is with very expensive meters +500$ like the greenlee CS8000. There is a trick I learned before getting an expensive scanner, installing an old fashion light flasher in a fixture (the small blue button that went under the lamp) and then look with an amp clamp for the circuit that was pulsing. This worked on circuits that could not be powered down. I haven't seen the little button flashers for a few years I am not sure if they are still sold. Also it takes a large wattage lamp an LED probably would hard to detect because the current draw is so small.


What are effective ways to frame a return air duct? Consider an in-floor return air duct that is 32" x 22".
A standard air filter that closest fits the register is 30" x 20".
What materials should I use to frame the duct so it will snugly hold the filter? Would non-treated lumber cut to size suffice?

Non PT wood will be fine.

I would build a 32x22" frame out of 2x4's but I would put a 3/4" square notch around the inside diameter of the frame and set the filter into that notch.  That will give you a nice seal for the filter but prevent it from falling through.  If necessary, add one or two cross braces across the inside of the frame cut to the depth of the notch so the filter has extra support.


How to prepare for 1 3/4" to 4" concrete overlay: rebar vs wire mesh vs fiberglass My house currently has a 3rd car garage that I would like to convert and extend my family room. The biggest question is how to raise and level the garage floor with cement (preferably). I spoke with the city and the fact that there is no vapor barrier is not an issue. However, the thin 1 3/4 inch pour at the shallow-end seems to be an issue. It sounds like my options are:

1) Place rebar in the stem walls (and adjacent foundation) at 16" on center and use standard concrete. From what I read the pour is too shallow already and adding rebar to the shallow part could risk cracking.

2) Use wire mesh instead of rebar to reinforce the concrete (I am not sure if this is acceptable in the CA building code or if the strength is all the matters?)

3) Use some sort of cement/fiberglass mixture. This was a contractor suggestion but I don't have any details.

4) Use a polymer concrete that is designed for this depth. The only problem with this is it will be more expensive and I can't find any mixtures specific to my depth.

I have done the exact same thing using concrete with pea gravel as the rock and fiberglass. Rebar is two thick and will cause problems, mesh might work but in the thin area I think it will still cause cracking.the concrete company can add the chopped fiberglass strands and these hold overlays together quite well, even when it cracks the fiberglass is like micro rebar pieces holding everything together. I also use finer rock but not all the way down to mortar but use pea gravel , some also call Turkey grit. This is stronger than mortar and won't crack as bad as a standard concrete batch at the thin area. If memory serves the fiberglass cost about 15$ per yard, the only negative I have found with the fiberglass is it can end up with some of the fibers sticking up a very slight amount and for bare feet (this was around a pool on a different job) I needed to put down an epoxy coating . other than that I love the fiberglass and use it especially on pours with irregular shapes and thin pours.


Open up a loadbearing wall I need some help on sizing a header. My house is 19ft wide about 24ft long  2story with a small loft attic. House was build in 1915 so its balloon framing. The wall I want to open up is 12ft long on the first floor . I want to open it up about 7ft maybe 8ft. the main girder that run almost under this wall is a 4x 9 3/4. My floor joist are 2x8. The wall on the second floor runs almost inline with this wall. There's no support wall in center of the attic. The roof runs down to the 2 outside walls of the house. I talked to someone a while back on another forum.  The person told me they were a engineer. They asked me a bunch of measurements and info on the rooms above this wall. There's a small 5x7 bathroom and a 10x10 bedroom and part of a hallway. The person I talked to came up with this   For a full 10' span I need a 3.5"x11.25" 2.0E LvL. If I do a 8' span I can go with a triple 2x12. My fist question is does this sound right? My second question is if I do a 8' span with a LvL can use something closer to 8" to recesses it into my floor joist? Thanks for any Help

You need an engineer's advice. This is not something free web advice should be trusted for; the consequences of getting it wrong could be severe and the answer may involve much more than that one beam to properly transfer the forces to the frame and foundation. I had something similar done and had to have a floor joist sistered with steel c-beam and specific arrangements of cripple studs...


Trimmed too deep on door side, can I save this edge? On the long side of my door, I was trimming using a saw (I know, I now own a planer) and my angle was too deep.  I realized it and stopped, so now I have a cut with the outside piece still attached at one end.

I was wondering if just wood glue or gorilla glue would be enough to rejoin the sides?  After it sets, I could plane it to try to get it a bit more even.

You really have nothing to lose by trying. Cut the remaining web so the sliver is completely off, then re-glue. Clamp well. Fill the cracks after everything dries.

If you haven't already, consider painting the door, as that will hide the filler.


Can you help save re-staining project please So, I embarked on this re-staining project a while ago and I made certain to Sand, Pre-condition, stain, wait for first coat to try, before applying second coat. Problem is it came out a disaster. I want to fix it but I have no idea what to do at this stage of the project. Please see a picture of the mess I made.

Here is another picture of the problem

The image below is a close up showing how uneven the staining came out. Even with 2 coats.

Here is another

The purpose of the solvent is to not remove but redistribute the stain that is already applied, although it will remove some of it. It will not remove what has penetrated into the grain of the wood, but it will lighten it. The solvent may even push it deeper into the grain, and that is ok too.

You can sand your project at this point, the scratches will still most likely be holding stain so you can see how far you need to go on your sanding. If you remove more stain by sanding, that should not be a problem. Presumably the lacquer thinner has evaporated before you sand, and the rest of the areas have been cleared of "excess" stain, that is, stain that has built up excessively on the surface, and all the surface has, for the most part uniform coloration throughout, before you sand.

As I mentioned in my comment earlier you can sand before the lacquer thinner, but your sandpaper will readily clog. Then you could use solvent to re-disperse the stain over the freshly sanded surface too and let it dry, Then apply the second coat of stain, rubbing it out after a few minutes, again, a VERY important step.

Which ever way you choose, the idea is to get rid of the cross scratches, disperse the heavy deposits of stain using solvent, let it dry thoroughly, and recoat with fresh stain, and rub it out after a few minutes. Rubbing out the stain removes the heavy pigments off the surface, so the clear coat you choose to use will adhere. If you do not rub it out, what you lay on as a finish will peel off in time. probably in sheets.

One last thing, if the stain still looks lighter in places than others, you can still add another coat of stain, the places that are dark will not take as much, and the lighter places will take in more stain, essentially evening out the color. After all, wood can only take on only so much pigment. You can even try localizing your added stain, only adding it to the panel or just a rail or a stile, following the joinery in the doors.


Do I need an air space between insulation and flooring in the attic? As part of a local council grant, I am getting my attic floor insulation (2 inch thick fibreglass) replaced with 4 inch thick insulation. It will lie between the joists, on top of the plasterboard which forms the ceiling of the rooms below.

I then plan on flooring the attic - not as a living space, but for storage.

As the joists are 2x4's, this means there will be no air space between the insulation and the flooring. From various articles I am unsure as to whether this is a problem, so my question is a 2 part one:

Do I need an air space between insulation and flooring in the attic? And if so, would adding joists on top of, and at 90 degrees to the existing ones and placing flooring on them be a practical solution?

I have read this question and I don't think it covers off my lack of knowledge in this area.

4 inch thick insulation is thicker than a 2x4 (only 3.5" thick), which means you'll be compressing the insulation and decreasing the R value. Instead, I'd suggest laying the new insulation on top of the old (no need to throw out the old unless it's turned moldy), without a vapor barrier on the new (you only want one vapor barrier, against the ceiling), and going perpendicular (to the old to reduce the air gaps).

With 2x4 joists, I'd suggest that they are not load bearing and I'd recommend against putting any further load on top of them.


How should I support upright posts on a slab with no footer? We are wanting to use a structural ridge beam to put a new roof on our house. I have been talking with an engineer who said that we need to determine how big the footer is under our slab. However, when I dug out under the slab I discovered that there is not footer - it is a floating slab. We need some way to reinforce the slab to support the weight of the upright posts and roof, but we can't just pour piers that would go below the frost line because it would move separately from the rest of the slab. Is there any other way to reinforce the slab to hold the weight of the roof?

-EDIT-

Apparently I used incorrect terminology. What we have is a slab that appears to have no footer whatsoever. I thought that was called a "floating slab" but apparently a floating slab still has a footer. It appears that we just have a 4-6 inch slab of concrete sitting on top of hard clay. There is no footer at all visible at the perimeter of the slab. I dug down 2 feet and dug 1 foot under the edge and there is nothing there.

First of all, the ground directly under the center of your house is unlikely to freeze, because the house is sitting on top of it protecting it from direct exposure to the cold.  Freezing under the foundation is mainly a concern at the perimeter.

In order to support the ridge beam of your roof, which means the weight of the entire roof, you definitely need to carry that load all the way from the beam down to a footer.

So - directly below where you want the support to connect to the beam, using a plum line mark the foundation.  Cut through the foundation and down to a depth of at least 2 feet (whatever code requires).  Install a new footer in the ground and level the new concrete with the level of the slab.


How prevent water drainage from neighbor's yard? Most of our back/side yard is 3'-5' lower than our neighbors'.During winter rainstorms water drains under the fence from their barely landscaped yard  and stands in low spots AND at our house slab. A newly installed 75 gal sump which we pump out doesn't solve the problem, especially  since we removed a large Monterey Pine on the fence line at their request.
Think there's now a CA law requiring residents to keep water originating on their property to on that property. I'll try again to talk to them, but I would prefer to hire a professional with drainage experience to write a report or talk to them about it? Sugggestions besides engineer? Rainy season won't go on forever! GThanks a million

Can you pass the buck elsewhere?

Water needs to go to a lower place - storm drain or elsewhere. Typically you'd connect low spots with a drainage conduit (french drain [buried channel of gravel/pebbles], or plastic drainage pipes) and connect that to an even lower area like a storm drain or sewer. If you can't connect low spots, you can protect them by placing drainage conduits across the path water would likely run.

You might also use pumps to help the process along if gravity is inadequate.

You could also install a dry well, which is basically an underground tank for the water to collect. It's perforated to eventually drain, so permeability of surrounding soil needs consideration.

I know the law says water on a property should be contained, but what if that's the natural state of the land? E.g. If a creek flows between properties, very little can be done to stop it short of redirecting the creek elsewhere.


Can I replace a valve's round knob with a lever? I have a water shutoff valve with a round handle. I am installing an automatic shutoff system but it requires a straight handle. Can I replace just the round valve handle with a straight lever?

Probably. It's hard to say with the almost nothing you've told us about the valve.

You could also mount a bar right to the round knob if that suits your shutoff mechanism. It could be spaced off a bit to present the exact size and shape expected by the device.


Garage roof eaves missing closure strips So my garage roof is missing closer strips under the eaves, which I believe is letting some amount of moisture into the garage, as well as allowing tons of bugs and spiders to get in.

I would like to put some closure strips in under the eaves, but am unsure of how to go about this for an existing garage roof. I have read one recommendation that says to take the screws off the eaves of the garage roof, if possible, to fit closure strips under; which sounds like would be the best way to do it.

Hoping someone can give some advice on this. Attached are some pictures of the garage roof from the inside and outside.

If you can get the exact size as your corrugated panels, removing the screws and inserting the strips would be the best way to do it and give you the best results. If you can't get the exact size, then you could cut them to fit or you could use Great Stuff expanding foam. Again, getting the right ones would be your best bet.


What is the correct way to connect two adjacent panels? I am going to be installing three panels next to each other.  Two of them will by side-by-side, and a third one will be vertically above the one on the left.  (To clarify, it will be a load center on the right, an AC disconnect on the left, and a meter socket above the disconnect).  This will be outside my house.  I have confused myself looking at the different ways I can connect these panels together.
For the two horizontal panels, I seem to have these options:

A rigid nipple and two locknuts.  Doesn't seem to be watertight since there's nothing pressing against the panel on the outside to form a seal.
A close rigid nipple and two watertight conduit hubs.
A rigid coupling and two chase nipples on the inside.  Seems to be a nice watertight option, but unclear if the chase nipples have the "teeth" that bite into the panels to form the ground connection.
Two PVC male adapters, a short PVC conduit section, locknuts and bushing.  Will probably require a ground wire to be run to keep the ground connection.
Rigid Offset nipple with locknuts and bushings.  These seem to have a flange that presses against the panels on the outside.

As for the two vertical panels, I have a threaded hub on top of the disconnect.  I was going to use a rigid nipple between the two, but it seems the same problem as above -- the nipple doesn't have anything to press against the bottom of the meter base on the outside to form a watertight seal.  Is the right thing to use here a rigid nipple and then a water-tight conduit hub into the meter base?
A similar question -- for the side-by-side case, what's the normal way to make this connection when indoors? I have previously used a conduit between both panels and just a locknut on the inside of either panel.  The tightness of the locknuts on either side press the nuts against the inside of both panels. Is that a code violation or is it OK?

Exterior panels are not normally hermetically sealed, and other than a top entry, no major attempt to seal them is required.
For the meter bottom entry, two locknuts (one inside the panel, one outside the panel) should be sufficient. You actually don't want the bottom of the box to be watertight - any water that gets in or condenses should be able to drain out, though in most boxes it can do that via the open side with the cover anyway.
Same for your question about side to side panels indoors - you don't just leave the conduit floating between locknuts in different panels - or you use one of the cast nipples (with no offset) or offsets that do have a shoulder for the locknut to press against. I would probably use the cast option (offset or not) for the exterior case, but I would not kid myself that it was waterproof, or that it needed to be, but it would keep the size of any water entry from rain hitting it and running sideways down to a minimum.


Can you use plywood as roofing? I've seen buildings where plywood was used as both wall sheathing and siding. T-111 is commonly used this way, for example.

Would it work to do the same thing on a roof?

I assume it wouldn't last decades, but maybe its lifespan is enough for certain short-lived projects.

I guess seams would be difficult, so it may be limited to a single sheet, so only very small roofs.

I also suspect that a steeper slope might be important, so it sheds debris and water easily. And maybe facing the sun, so it dries out faster.

With all that in mind, maybe we're only talking about a small woodshed or a place to store tools. Still, it seems like it could be useful within all these constraints.

Would marine plywood make a difference?

Plywood absorbs water and is not a sealing material, period. You can use it as base for ruberoid roof, but not as the layer exposed to the rain.

When exposed to rain, wind and sun plywood will cycle through absorbing water and drying out and this will wear out the most outer layer in no time so that it cracks and the damage then proceeds to the next layer of plywood.

In case you want a cheap roof for a tools storage you can cover the plywood with one layer of ruberoid - it will last something like 5-10 years and the plywood can then be reused.


installation of portable ac unit in garage with a gas water heater The propane gas water heater vents the combustion exhaust vi a flute. The portable ac vents the hot air. If i only run the portable ac unit occasionally do I risk carbon monoxide poisoning from the negative pressure in the room created by the portable ac unit? I am going to die of a self inflicted wound if I don't get ac in this garage so please offer a work around for this. Should I just get a CO alarm and test the draft hood operation that way?

You definitely want a CO alarm anywhere there are people.

It is best to keep them away from appliances that can trigger false alarms.

Yes, you will get negative pressure while running the A/C, but probably not much, yet it could pull exhaust from the water heater into the room.

Portable AC units offer lots of ways to run out their vents.  I'd suggest the best workaround is to place the AC unit across the room from the water heater, with yourself and the CO alarm in the middle.

Above all, think safety first.


Is an interior laundry room without an HVAC vent a code violation? Currently looking at a home which has a nice 2nd floor laundry.  Vented dryer, nice rack for hanging clothes, etc.

However, it's in the center of the home and does not contain an HVAC (central air) vent. It does have a vent for the dryer. Is this a "code" problem or just poor design?  I'm concerned that clothes may not dry properly without air circulation when hanging...and also in the dryer for that matter.

Although most are based on the National Building Code, code should always be assumed to be local. Pretty much every local regulating body has their own alterations. If you really do care about being in compliance, check with your local Building Inspector or appropriate department.

The Internet is NEVER the place for the correct answer to "is this code-compliant?", unless you include your municipal web site.


Taking power from a single pole switch I have a 2-gang box with a single pole switch and i took power from there to a dimmer next to it. Can i take power a second time from the original switch to install another switch?

You need to make sure the circuit is not overloaded. For residential  there is no limit to the number of devices by the NEC so you can add,  but your total load needs to be at 80% of the circuit to prevent overloading.
The one limit you may run into is box fill where the number of wires devices is limited.


Fiberglass or reflective roll insulation for duct work? I have some exposed duct work in my garage.  I am looking to insulate it and was looking at the types of insulation.  Is is better to use fiberglass or "bubble wrap" reflective roll insulation? I live in western Pennsylvania.

I prefer bubble wrap as it generally looks nicer and is easier to clean if looks are important. However the R value for single ply with no air gap is generally about R-4. To achieve R-6 you would need to provide an air gap by first cutting strips and then go over the strips with the bubble wrap. R-6 is generally considered the minimum. 2” faced fiberglass is generally R-6 as well.


Wet smell, finished basement, aggravates when it rains -how do I find the source? I have a light wet smell in my basement and I am trying to find the source of it ...not much luck so far.
The basement is finished (by the previous owner) and as far as I could see behind the finished walls where the water meter is or under the stairs, it was done using expanded polystyrene, some plastic sheeting which I believe it is the vapor barrier. I am not sure if batt insulation was used or not.

Anyway, in short, I don't want (if possible) to open all the walls to find out what is going on.
Is there any way to find out where the leak is without removing the drywall ?

thanks

Update: I have spoken with a civil engineer who explained me that the humidity circulates along gradient lines from wet do dry. The smell seems to originate from the furnace room. I had an old furnace that I just changed. The furnace room had a large opening outside, direct unobstructed opening for the old furnace to take in air. No pipe running from the old furnace to the opening. Now that opening is closed, they used that for the exhaust and air intake pipes for the new furnace. There were a couple of openings in the insulation so I guess the more humid air trapped between drywall/insulation/vapor barrier was getting out because the room was dryers hence the smell.
I am not sure why the smell stopped as soon as the weather got colder and it diminished to a hardly detectable smell after the furnace was replaced. I am now watching to see what is next :-) If you have questions post a comment here and I will get back with details. I am still trying to understand why a weather change and blocking that opening changed the situation. It is also possible that the high efficiency furnace  is able to better dry the air ...

Having vapor barriers in most basement environments is a really bad idea.  Really these only are a good idea in extremely cold environments or when a basement is truly a "basement" - meaning it is completely below ground level.

It is highly likely that water is saturating your foundation and then not drying quickly because of the vapor barrier.  But there are just a ton of reasons:

Given you have carpet the moisture could be seeping in from the floor and staying in the carpet a bit.  You may not even notice this but the carpet becoming constantly a little damp will make it smell.
It could be just water trapped in the walls because of the vapor barrier or trapped in the insulation itself.  This will not be totally fixed unless you tear down all the drywall - or enough to take vapor barrier and bottom insulation out.  See people 10 years ago and even now thought that insulating your basement walls top to bottom with batts fiberglass was the best way to do it.  Well it traps water and causes mold growth and provides no cost savings in most regions.
You could have a leak.  Basically you will probably need to untack carpet or flooring around the perimeter to see if water is leaking in.  I doubt that you have a real leak and not see any moisture at all underneath your walls.

Dehumidifiers are for very small constant humidity problems.  When you have a "smell" problem the dehumidifiers are hardly ever going to fix the issue.  You either need to seal your basement better from the inside or outside, remove the vapor barrier (that is probably just amplifying a bigger issue), and the easiest and most helpful thing is to increase airflow.  If you have windows trying to keep them open a lot.  If you have stairs that are near an outside door trying to get the airflow circulating.  I have even seen people run fan to their attic to recycle air in basements.


HVAC fan on compressor not coming on I noticed today that the button on the thermostat isn't turning the fan on by itself.  I tried today just to turn on the fan couldn't get it turn on.

Tonight we turn on the AC couldn't get cold air. Fan is blowing through the vents so I go outside to check the AC and the AC fan outside is not turning  on compressor is working. Could it be the thermostat capacitor or the fan motor? I turned the fan it turns I didn't reset it I took the breaker out from outside I think I should hit the reset button. I don't know how long thermostat hasn't been letting u turning on the fan by itself A.C.

The AC was working fine last night until today when I tried to turn on the fan something happen and it still won't let me just turn on the fan without the AC

The most common reason for something like this is the capacitor on the compressor (the outside part) has gone out. You can do this yourself, you just need to be extra careful if you decide to do so.
Cut off the power to the compressor
You should have a power disconnect switch feeding your compressor. Turn it off. Use a tester to confirm it's off. You'd be amazed how often disconnects have been bypassed after the fact.
Remove the cover to the side where the capacitor is
You should have one corner that is separated from the open area in the middle. Remove the cover and you should see the capacitor inside (almost always a round cylinder with wires attached). Be aware that the capacitor is still charged even with the power off.
Discharge the capacitor
You probably have a C/Common, a F/fan and a Herm(compressor) terminal. Discharge is recommended. I would suggest using a 100 ohm resistor (not recommended to use a screwdriver here). Touch the common to the herm for a few seconds, then do the same for the fan side.
Remove the capacitor
Take a picture of the wires and then remove the capacitor. The connectors push on to tabs. There's typically a strap to hold the capacitor.
Install the new capacitor
If you can't wait for an online delivery, contact a local HVAC company to see if they'll sell you a capacitor directly. Put the wires back on, scrap it back in and turn the power on.
Your compressor should now work. If not, you might need to consult an HVAC company on what else could be wrong.


How to easily fix/replace central vacuum wall mount bracket? I noticed one of my central vacuum plates was loose so I unscrewed it and took it off and found that both screw holes were broken. (see attached circled in red.)
Are there any easy tricks or ways to fix these?
I’ve found a replacement bracket online, but the problem is that these are cement glued in so I’d have to go to the basement, find the tube, cut it, re-glue, etc.

I would use some 5 minute epoxy to glue in two little pieces of plastic or wood.
You  may need to carefully  clean up or remove the old remaining parts of the screw hole tabs with a small hacksaw blade or an oscillating saw. Careful not to cut the wire.
Once the epoxy is set then you will need to drill the appropriate size hole for the  old or new screws. The dill bit should be as wide as the body of screw but narrower then the threads. This is so the threads will grab the wood/plastic but not split it.