Ground size for 100 amp sub panel 200ft away I would like to install a 120/240 volt 100 amp sub panel on a detached garage that is about 200 ft away. I have read that one should strive for a voltage drop of less than 3% and from what I can tell this means I need #2 cu or 1/0 al for the two hot and neutral. What I'm having a hard time determining is if the ground wire to the sub panel needs to be the same size or if it can be smaller. I've read that the ground for a 100 amp sub panel needs to be #8 cu or #6 al but don't I need to take the long distance into account?

I really appreciate any help on this!

Edit:
Thank you Harper for pointing out that the 3% rule applies to expected loads, not the supply breaker size. Given my expected use I can probably go with slightly smaller wires for the two hot and nuetral. However I still have the same question about how to size the ground wire.

You start with an 8AWG copper wire...

You are correct that for a 100A feeder, the associated ground wire needs to be an 8AWG copper or 6AWG aluminum wire.  If you are using a four-wire direct burial cable, then just use the ground wire in the cable as it will be quite amply sized for the job it is doing; if you are using PVC conduit, then bare 8AWG copper would be my choice to keep conduit fill down.

...and then upsize from there based on how much upsizing of the other wires you do

When you start upsizing wires for voltage drop control, the size of the ground wire is governed by NEC 250.122(B):

  (B) Increased in Size. Where ungrounded conductors are
  increased in size from the minimum size that has sufficient
  ampacity for the intended installation, wire-type equipment
  grounding conductors, where installed, shall be increased in
  size proportionately, according to the circular mil area of the
  ungrounded conductors.

For instance, using 1/0 aluminum wire for the hots and neutral in your example vs. the 1AWG that is required to meet Code ampacity rules gives us a size ratio of 53.49mm2/42.41mm2 based on the NEC Chapter 9, Table 8 conductor sizes (we can do this math in mm2 since the conversion factors cancel out here) or about 1.26.  Multiplying that by the 8.367mm2 area of an 8AWG copper conductor gives us about 10.55mm2 for the resulting wire.  This isn't a standard conductor size though, so we should use a 6AWG copper conductor (which has 13.30mm2 of area) or a 4AWG aluminum conductor for this ground wire.


A boiler and a hot water tank ... what is this configuration? (UK) I'm a west-coast American living in London.  I've mostly known homes with electric baseboard and central forced air heating, and a single hot water tank for showers and taps.  In the UK hot water fed radiators seem the most common home heating solution, and I'm really not too familiar with how these systems are configured.

I was looking at a small row house recently that had a boiler in the kitchen and a water tank in a separate room (next to a bathroom).  The boiler was gas powered, while the water tank was electric.  I was offered a brief explanation of how the two systems inter-opted, but it didn't really make sense to me.  There definitely was some kind of communication/connection between the two - they weren't two completely independent systems.

My question is, is this a common set up, even for a smaller (relative to US standards) place?  And what would be the advantage to doing this over using just one system over the other?

Yes this is common in the UK.

The boiler will feed hot water into the heating coils in the tank as well as providing the hot water for the radiators.

The electric (or immersion) heater will be there either as back up (in case the boiler fails) or to heat the water on cheaper electricity (Economy 7) overnight.

There'll be a thermostat on the tank which feeds back to the boiler to turn off the heating when the water is hot enough, but other than that there's no direct communication between the immersion heater and the boiler. There might be communication via the timer used to control when each is turned on, but that's not usual.


Transferring water from one sump to another My house has two underground sumps that store water. I was wondering if there was an easy way to transfer water from one of the sumps to the other. Would a small manual suction pipe (like the ones used for draining out an aquarium) work?

p.s.:
The context is this -- It's raining now (after a long time), and only one of the sumps is connected to the pipe that collects the rain water. The other sump is what's connected to the tank that feeds the solar water heater, and it's almost empty now. If I can fill the rain water into the other sump, I can use it for the hot water.

A manual suction pipe (or perhaps a commerial siphon?) will transfer fluid until the fluid level is equivalent (or level). A commercial siphon will operate for a perhaps a couple of hours; a simple pipe or a hose will operate for a 20 or 30 minutes perhaps. But siphons will eventually fail as fluid evaporates and bubbles eventually fill in the siphon's reservoir.

How long the siphon will continue to operate depends on the rate of bubble formation, which depends mostly on the height of the hose (gravity will cause a vacuum at the top) and temperature (cold water will allow a siphon to operate longer than steaming hot water).


Why does only one light burn out constantly I have recessed lights and the light on one of them only lasts around 2-3 weeks all the other lights on the same circuit works just fine

Both of those answers may be correct.
It is most likely that the arcing would be in the socket itself.  Obviously heat generated in the junction box is not as likely to damage the bulb as heat generated between the bulb and the socket.  And if the circuit wiring were involved, other bulbs would be burning out too (from excessive ultra fast "flickering").  In that regard, a common problem is that the "tab" in the middle of the socket can get compressed so that the light bulb is not making good contact with that tab when you screw it in.  Needless to say, screwing the bulb tighter and tighter will, over time, make the situation worse.  Fortunately, it's an easy fix, BUT you must turn off the lights ...and if you are not comfortable with electricity, turn off the breaker.

Turn OFF the light.
Using an insulated (or taped up) flat head screw driver, poke up inside the socket and press against the end of the tab so that it bends slightly outward toward you.

If there is a loose connection that is arcing, that is serious.  If you can't find the problem, install an AFCI circuit breaker and monitor the situation by bypassing different connections to see if one of them trips the AFCI.


Why does flushing a downstairs toilet cause an upstairs toilet to also flush? When we flush the bathroom downstairs, we can hear the toilet upstairs also flush.
When the upstairs toilet is flushed, the shower drain gurgles (in the second floor bathroom).
I know that something is wrong, just don't know what.

This is a classic venting problem. If it has NEVER worked right, someone designed something wrong and it's going to be expensive to fix now because it will entail opening up the walls.

If it WAS working fine and just started acting up, something is blocking your vent pipe. A common cause is a bird nest or dead animal (i.e. rat or squirrel) that crawled down into the pipe and got stuck. There should be a straight pipe coming out of your roof somewhere around the upper floor bathroom, that's your vent pipe. You can run a snake down that pipe to clear any obstruction or, if you don't like the idea of working with sewer pipes, call a plumber / rooter company.

Another possible cause if you live in very cold climates (and it is winter) is that snow has piled up so high that it has blocked the vent pipe. Or people taking long showers results in steam rising through the vent, then it freezes when it gets to the cold air outside. Over time that ice builds up and clogs the vent pipe.

If it is ice in the pipe, you can just pour hot water down the pipe to clear it. Then you have to take measures to prevent it from happening again.


When bleeding radiator why does the same amount of water go out through the overflow? I have a really old central heating system. It was working fine until a plumber bled the whole system to replace a radiator. Since then we have had to replace the pump and the system doesn't seem to be able to hold enough water.

When I bleed the radiators they fill up fine and you can hear new water pouring into the expansion tank but the same amount of water seems to go straight out the overflow at same time.

Any ideas what the problem might be?

It maybe that air got into the system and this is preventing the heating system to fill up properly. You may have to remove the air from the boiler itself, there should be a valve to enable you to do this. Replacing the pump seems to be either coincidental or unecessary. Also, when draing some or all of the radiators down it is advisable to put a chemical in to prevent any corrosive effect from taking place. This may have a minimal bearing on how hot the rads get, clean water in the system can encourage furring to take place and therby reduce the pipe thickness, again preventing enough water through to the rad.
Lastly, if the rad or system is old, you may have some thick sludge which will prevent the pipes and/or rad from getting any hot or cold water at all. depends on how thick the sludge is. The sludge could have been disturbed when the system was drained down.
To remove the sludge you can buy a chemical remover and put it into the rad which is worst effected and turn the heat on, then most suppliers recommend you drain the system and put a chemical in to prevent this again. Finally, I had to hit one rad because it was located in a room where i could not get to the valves. I kept on tapping it with a hammer to encourage the sludge to move on and into the outflow, with patience this did work but it did take 30 -40 minutes of tapping and bleeding.


Ice Maker Not Filling Fully or Dumping Ice - Supply Issue? I have a new Frigidaire Gallery, bottom mount, fridge with a built-in water dispenser and ice maker.

I installed the water line about a month ago, it's only a single water line running to the fridge. So the water dispenser and ice maker run off the same source (one connection on the fridge). I tapped into the kitchen sink's cold water supply.

When I installed it, it immediately began making tiny ice cubes, which I thought was annoying but decided it must be "normal" since it was the first cubes it made. It filled the entire ice compartment with these small cubes (about 0.5" cubes). Then it didn't make any more ice, ever. I didn't notice it stopped making ice because I rarely ever use ice in the early spring, but the buffer ran out and I'm noticing it's not making any.

The cubes it made were not hollow, they were solid little ice cubes. So it is possible that they are the correct size.

There are some frozen cubes up in the tray (I felt in there for them), but it is not releasing them. Perhaps they are too small.

When I use the water dispenser, it seems to be fast, much faster than my old fridge.
So, I don't think there's a problem with my supply line.
...but how to I verify that there's no problem with my supply line?

It takes about 10s to fill a glass, which I thought was pretty good, because it's about as fast as my kitchen sink.

When searching through issues with ice makers I am seeing a lot of problems with slow water supply causing an ice maker to fail. However, honestly, how much water pressure does the ice maker need? Is it a big problem if it takes 10, 20, or even 30 seconds to fill the tray? Do most ice makers meter water based on time? That just seems wrong. What if the tray is filling while I'm using the kitchen sink?

This might seem like a lot of questions, but the bottom line is "How do I verify my supply line is good enough to feed my ice maker?".

The solution to my problem was to "reset the fridge"...

So, apparently there was a power outage or something like that while the ice maker was making ice, so the fridge lost it's marbles.

The solution to this problem was the "reset" the fridge.

Go into the menu, find the "default settings" option, and hold "set" till it beeps.

I have no idea why this performs a reset, we are and always were using the factory default settings, and turning the "make ice" option off, and on again apparently can not cause this reset to happen.

The ice cubes are supposed to be tiny, and apparently even ice makers need to be "reset" every now and then.


Can I connect a 3 Pole on/off switch to 1phase 120v? My scenario:

Installing new VFD (1phase 120v input with 3 phase output), 3 phase motor to Lathe
I want to install a disconnect or on/off switch between the house 120v plug outlet and the VFD input.  So I'll plug the VFD into the 120v wall outlet, but I want a on/off or disconnect switch between plug and VFD so I can shut off power to lathe completely.

I'm looking at switches similar to this and to get over 20A, everything switch seems to be 3 pole.
Katko KU325

I'm going to need to figure out which is neutral in the power cord, right?

How can I make the 3 pole switch work?

The hot (line) from your 120Volt supply will connect to any one of the three poles in your disconnect switch (unless it has guidance for a particular pole for single-pole use in its labeling)

The neutral and ground connections pass through, with the ground connection  bonded to the case, assuming it's a metal-cased switch.

As commented, you may have some issues supplying more than 20 amps of 120V without some custom wiring, and it's often easier (for the many VFDs that will happily take 240VAC input - or swap yours if it's 120VAC-only input) to switch to 240VAC if you are facing custom wiring anyway.

In a standard line cord, neutral is White (or gray) (USA Standard) or Blue (IEC standard, not uncommon on imported equipment even if intended for the USA market.)


Ecuador grounding an ungrounded house Hi so I’m an electrical engineer visiting some family in Ecuador and after some wiring has stopped working In the kitchen I have decided to rip out the 40 plus year old installation and reinstall. This is a bamboo farm house fed with a 2 wire overhead installation to a smart meter and then two 60 amp breakers, one is for the neutral. Both are accessible for a safe disconnect at least. That’s what the utility has provided. The meter is grounded with the ACSR cable from the overhead I assume it’s providing ground. Now the interesting part. After the meter and the two breakers the house is serviced with two tiny #12 gauge wires to a single 50amp breaker and then a whole collection of junction boxes to feed everything in the house. There is no ground wire what so ever after the meter and the third prong on the outlets have just been filled with cement. That is the way here from what I’ve observed. No grounding or bonding and the ground prong removed from appliances that require them.

With that said I will service with larger cable and provide a panel with a neutral and ground bar and run all three wires through the installation. My question is could there be something I’m overlooking grounding this one house while the other houses that are fed from the pole mounted transformer are left ungrounded and with a floating neutral? If the neutral has some electric potential to it on the line, could it be dangerous to connect the neutral in the panel to the ground bar and then to the main water pipe? Any thoughts appreciated thanks!

Ecuador is kind of on the fuzzy edge of 120V/NEC territory, so you might have Euro 230V in places.

The ACSR service drop is providing netural, not ground.  If the neutral wire breaks, it's perfectly normal for neutral to float up at hot voltage.  That's why we insulate it.  The problem with bootlegging ground off neutral is now, all the grounds in the house are also energized.

So you should fit a normal at-the-house Grounding Electrode System, to whichever level of detail you wish to replicate NEC standard practices. I don't think your AHJ is going to stand on two ground rods and AFCI/GFCI for everything.

Although, given the local fetish for removing ground pins, circuit-level GFCI protection is a VERY good idea. While it does nothing to protect equipment from ESD, GFCIs do everything to protect humans from shock, and serves that purpose better than grounding actually. However it is vital that ground not be bootlegged after a GFCI; doing so utterly defeats GFCI protection.

As long as the #12 is on an outdoor pole line, I couldn't care less. That's typical of the downsizing you see on service drops - many a 100A service has #6 aluminums, a comparable downsize.  If it's inside walls in any way, then yes, that's unacceptable and it's time for appropriate sized wire.

Seriously the money spent upsizing the service drop should be spent on GFCIs instead. I trust you know how to use LOAD to protect an entire branch circuit from one device, though, don't protect too much or the cumulative tiny leakage from many devices will cause a nuisance trip.


Can drip edge be affixed using adhesive? I need to replace my drip edge on a low pitch modified bitumen roof. The edge is about 13' long and I had to rip the old one cause it was deformed and not working right. Under it is a sheet of what looks like bitumen sheeting and under that 1x lumber (for roof sheathing before plywood) quite old and not always holding fasteners well cause of decay. I could try to drill pilot holes in both the flashing and roof but in case that doesn't hold too well, can I just glue it using something like Liquid Nails? The drip edge should be 3"x3"x13'.

I found this on a site referencing common roofing mistakes.  It confirms that the flashing can be held in place by adhesives.

Neglecting to install drip edge flashing at the eaves

The missing of drip edge flashings can cause several problems at the bottom of a roof, because these flashings serve a number of purposes:
Drip edge flashings keep insects out of the attic.
They prevent wind-driven rain from entering under the edge of the roof.
They provide a “drip point” for water to drip off from the roof which helps prevent soffit or fascia rot.
They keep shingles from “sagging” as they extend past the edge of the roof.

Solution:

If necessary, pop up roofing nails from the shingles and slide in a metal flashing. Glue the flashing and shingles with bituminous mastic.


What size drain is required for a washing machine? What is the plumbing Code for Washing Machine Drain?
I want to install an extra washer and dryer in my detached two car garage.
This is a picture from a house under construction.
I believe the Drain is 2 inches. Then it appears to be upsized to a 3 inch PVC in the crawlspace.

You're correct, the requirement for washing machine drain is 2".
To determine if you have enough drain capacity for an additional machine, you need to consult the Uniform Plumbing Code's Drainage Fixture Unit values and ensure the total fixtures don't exceed the capacity of the drain for your laundry room (or plan an upgrade.)
These tables should help get you started:

Fixture values https://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/drainage-fixture-unit-values-d_1077.html
Drain capacity per pipe size in stacks & branches https://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/drainage-fixture-units-piping-load-d_1078.html


How to move a junction box? Hi i want to move a junction box that's behind my back splash into a cabinet but so i should be able to access it as needed according to the code but the wires from the top and bottom are exact so i cant move it up or down does anyone have any ideas?

I hesitate to give this information but you can use an approved splice kit in a wall per the requirements of NEC 334.40(B). It looks like this:

The reason I hesitate is because somewhere around 85% of all electrical problems are caused by splices. Every good electrician knows this. That's why we always try to enclose any splice and make it available for maintenance purposes. Also keep in mind that the NEC is a minimum standard and at one time approved Aluminum branch wiring. Meaning they may think it is a bad idea in the future and write it out.

So your best bet would be to find a way to run new conductors to a better location and protect it and make it accessible for maintenance.

By know you have probably guessed that I don't like them. I never had to use them. Granted it is more labor intensive and cost more, but it can be done. FYI if you will google in-line splices you will also find several sites that agree with my dislike.

Good Luck.


Why are “Wire Nuts” not used in the UK? I have never seen a wire nut used in the UK, but they seem to be very common in the USA, why?

In Brief

Twist-on connectors have a bad history in the UK.
The UK traditionally relies on screw-terminal connectors.
UK Electricians are conservative.
UK junction boxes, switches, ceiling-roses etc contain enough built-in connectors that additional loose connectors are not normally needed.
Newer types of lever-action, squeeze-to-open or stab connector blocks are possibly more popular alternatives.

Twist-on connectors

The Wikipedia article on twist-on connectors suggests they were outlawed in the UK 50 years ago. No references are given. It is suggested that 50 years ago the ("Scruit" brand) twist-on connectors were made of ceramic and were liable to crack and expose the wires.

UK Electricians are a conservative group. Vendors of novel products have to go to considerable length to persuade them that their products meet the relevant legislation.

An Ideal Industries Inc. catalogue says

  Conforming to BS EN 60998 Twister® wire connectors fully
  comply with BS 7671:2008 (17th Edition Wiring Regulations).

However, it isn't uncommon to see strenuous efforts on the part of manufacturers to persuade UK electricians that novel products meet regulations. E.g. Wagobox and Ezybond earth fasteners Some of these novel products more or less disappear from the market within a few years, others succeed.

Screw-terminal-blocks

In the UK, electricians almost invariably use screw-terminals.

ruler is marked in cm with mm subdivisions

The white translucent screw-connector block in the foreground is a typical example. This one is rated for 5A. Other sizes are available for different current ratings.

An electrician left behind the other connectors in this picture. I suspect they were used for temporary connections during installation. I've not seen any in a completed installation (but I'm only a householder not an electrician, so have very limited experience)

The "Marr No.1" connectors at back right  look superficially similar to US wire-nuts but are very different. The metal insert is removed and a grub nut is used to clamp the wires, then the plastic insulator is screwed over the connection.

The "Legrand 10mm2" connectors at top left may be for higher current ratings. Note that the plate that presses on the wires is arranged so as not to exert any twisting force on the conductors. Perhaps this avoids damaging stranded conductors. It certainly prevents the conductors being pressed to one side of the screw and therefore not being securely clamped in place.

An obvious advantage of these connectors is that the wires can be removed intact and should usually not need trimming before reconnection. I have the impression that in the US, wire-nut connections are often removed by cutting the wires, which may leave progressively less and less wire available in the junction-box or back-box for remaking connections.

When more than two wires are to be joined, a slightly different type of screw-connector is used:

Switches, junction boxes and ceiling roses often contain sufficient bult in capacity that you don't need additional connectors:

Newer connectors

Easier-to-use connectors are becoming more common:

Some of these are "lighting connectors" used to join solid-core wires to stranded wires. They are all rated at 20A and at least 300V. They all incorporate a test-port and wire-trimming guide.

It may be that UK electricians looking for novel connectors prefer these to twist-on connectors.


How to Stop GFCI tripping when current drops too quickly? I have my entire aquarium running off one GFCI.  My lights are plugged into the top outlet and all of my pumps/etc are plugged into the other.  If everything is running and I cut the switch (on the power strip) off, it occasionally trips the GFCI.  If I do the same thing with the lights off, this never happens.  This is especially annoying since the lights are metal halides and take forever to come back up.

The breaker hasn't tripped since I hooked everything up (a year ago)
The lights pull about 6 amps
The pumps/etc pull about 2 amps

If I put a second GFCI to split the load up, would that fix my problem (I realize that I can't feed the second GFCI from the first)?

I'm up for alternative suggestions short of running another circuit.

You might try a snubber between the power strip and the GFCI, to eliminate any electromagnetic interference produced by suddenly switching off the pumps.

Alternatively, trying a power strip that doesn't have surge protection could solve the problem.  Surge suppressors typically route surges to the grounding conductor, which could cause upstream GFCIs to trip (assuming the surge is large enough).


Do these insulation panels contain asbestos? The landlord said that "it's plastic stock, left from renovation on windows" from another apartment. It doesn't look like plastic to me, but then again I don't know much (very little actually) about construction materials. If it's asbestos can it be harmful just by passing by it while breathing in?

I would 99+% guarantee it is urethane foam . One of the raw material components is cyanide if you want to worry.


Is it acceptable to paint kitchen walls in alkyd? The kitchen has very little revealed wall space, and we were wondering if it is ok to use alkyd paint on the walls (to keep it simple). It would be the same white paint as used on the cabinets.

Sure, if you don't mind the texture being the same as the cabinets, there is no technical reason you can't use it, unless the walls currently have latex based paint.  Alkyd is an oil based product and may lift a latex based product if used as a top coat.


Is a propane supply necessary for a standby generator? (This question is about a small house in the northeastern US.  Power outages are not uncommon, especially in winter, and can occasionally last for more than 24 hours.  We are considering a standby generator that is capable of powering the whole house so that the water pump, electric range, freezer, and fridge can all run in the event of an outage.  Our furnace is forced hot water and heating oil for fuel, so we'd also be relying on the generator to bring power to the furnace to circulate the heat.)
One electrician told me that in order to install a generator, a propane tank would be necessary.  Since we would have to install a rather large propane tank, this increases the project budget significantly.  Another electrician quoted the same project but did not mention the need for propane.  Is the first electrician right?  Is propane the only power source that can work on standby to power a small house?

Let's look at your loads.

Your furnace loads are fairly minimal; you can look at the nameplate data but water is easy to circulate. 600 watts wouldn't surprise me.
Your refrigerator requires about 120 watts when it is running. Overall it needs about 1 kilowatt-hour per day.
Your freezer requires about 120 watts when running.  Overall it uses about 0.7 KWH per day.

So far that's only about 850 watts... won't even make a small Honda generator sweat.

You want a well pump to operate.  Most well pumps are "hard start" meaning they presume an unlimited amount of power available from the utility.  As such, they need a large generator to start.  So you are probably at a 6000W generator just to be able to pick up the well pump without tripping out.   (It's a shame; many wells go in with 3-wire+ground wiring because they put the start capacitor at the top of the well. Those same wires could run 3-phase delta driven from a VFD up top, so soft-start would be easy).

Your electric range requires as much as 6000 watts when it is running.

Holy smoke!  Now we need a generator 8 times larger, +++.  Do you really need to cook Thanksgiving dinner during a power outage?
Yesterday's tech
Psst: Furnace oil is close enough to diesel that an older diesel generator won't care.  The newest diesel generators may have emission controls that will not work with the sulfur in furnace oil.   Do not put it in your diesel car unless you like very hefty fines for evasion of road tax.
The good news for your range is diesel generators tend to be fairly hefty, so no problem with Thanksgiving dinner.
Also, they often tend to be water cooled, and that's free heat you can use!
By the way, fred_dot_u hit on an important limitation of propane.  Propane is stored as liquid, and it must boil to deliver to your generator in gaseous form.  Boiling requires the latent heat of vaporization to be absorbed.  This is why propane bottles get colder when they are in use, and even "frost up".  Look at how the air conditioning cycle works, and you will realize what's needing to happen inside the propane tank.  It's a serious complication during cold snaps.
Tomorrow's tech
Given your small loads other than cooking, a battery system may suffice.   The fridge and freezer need less than 2 KWH per day.  Your furnace if it runs 33% of the time (8 hours out of 24) needs - well, look at its nameplate but 600W x 8 hours = 4800WH or 4.8 KWH per day.
Your well is all about the surge current; once it's running it is more reasonable. And it only runs when a spigot is on.
A big lead-acid battery is about 1 KWH ($150).  A used Tesla Model S module is 6 KWH ($1100).
Size your battery charger so it can take in the full output of a little gas Honda generator such as an Eu2000.  That means the battery doesn't need to make it through the entire outage: you can fire up the Honda at a time of your choosing to top up the batteries.
You want a fairly large, say 4000 watt inverter anyway, so it can handle the startup surge of the refrigerator and freezer (which will sometimes start at the same time).  So it isn't a huge stretch to bump it up to a 6000W unit to handle the well also.  At that point you have some headroom to run the stove under.
If you crunch the numbers, you can see that batteries, inverter, and battery charger are costly, but not as costly as either a diesel generator, or a propane generator + propane tank provisioning.
It simply becomes a matter of your choices of how much you choose to run the various utilities.  If you hunker down in survival mode and do minimal cooking and water running, you won't need as much battery as if  you decide to have long showers and cook Thanksgiving dinner.


"Built-in corrosion inhibition" - Does it work? How? I recently bought a new toolbox to tame the piles of tools I've acquired for general home maintenance in my first year of home ownership. It's the Kobalt 26" hammer box; good size, sturdy enough for a homeowner, has a nice detachable parts case, and it wasn't too expensive. It's only problem is that if I take it outside the house it turns me into a big blue walking advertisement for Kobalt tools (I mean, they're not bad, but I'm not exactly shouting their praises to the hills either).

Anyway, one of the things it advertised on its marketing sticker is the "Zerust" brand corrosion inhibitor built into the plastic of the box. On its face, that sounds great; keep your tools in the toolbox and they don't rust. But, it got me thinking; how exactly would something embedded in the plastic inhibit rust on tools stored in it?

Seems to me that a corrosion inhibitor would either reduce the water vapor in the air inside the box, reduce the oxygen in the air in the box, or release something that sticks to the tools and provides a protective layer. Whatever it does, it would probably run out of "capacity" to do these things fairly quickly.

Thoughts?

The plastic contains Volatile Corrosion Inhibitor (VCI) molecules that are adsorbed onto the metallic surface, protecting the metallic surface by forming a film. The Zerust FAQ claims that the inhibitor “passivate the electron flow between the anodic and cathodic areas on metal surfaces and interrupt the electro-chemical corrosion process.”

Zerust products for storage are advertised as being effective for five years, but I would expect them to be effective for a much shorter time in a toolbox that is frequently opened and used. You may find numbers in the specs for their military products.


What is this in my air duct I started hearing a whistling sound coming out from the return vent for the air conditioner. So   I pulled out the filter to inspect it and noticed there was something odd inside the duct. It looks like trash and wasn’t sure if I should remove it.
The duct goes straight up the package unit on the roof.

It's "trash".   This is exactly why I don't like flexible air ducts lines and I only use them if I absolutely have to.
Couple of things:

this fell between connections.  Connections should be sealed/taped.   That isn't a good sign.
anything in the way of your line will decrease effeciency.
might just be the picture... but your line looks dirty.   I don't often say that but it needs a cleaning.   This is another reason why flex lines aren't as good.  They are dust collectors.


Can I change an outlet circuit to 240V (NEMA 6)? I'm in an American house sitting in a jurisdiction that applies NEC 2014 unaltered. I've got a home office room with all the outlets on one 20A circuit. It is legal to 2014 code in all respects.

Who cares why, maybe I collect European pinball machines, maybe I just need a lot more power in the room, between my server grade PC and window air conditioner.   I decide I want to convert that outlet circuit to 240V and install all NEMA 6-20 outlets.  Pic

It's wired in NM 12/2 but I mark the white wire with red tape at every accessible point.  Ground but no neutral.  I have the requisite AFCI or GFCI breaker if required (whatever the circuit had before).

What code of Code compliance issues am I going to run into?  After all, I do have outlets in all the right places.

Now suppose I also wanted to power a permanently installed light fixture.  I want to use one rated for 240V.  Any code issues there?

No problem.  As long as you install a double pole breaker, make the white wire an ungrounded conductor (including marking as you describe), and change all the receptacles and devices to 240 volt devices.


What kind of wall/ceiling texture is this? Can you please help me identify this wall/ceiling texture and how to achieve it? I recently had to replace a patch and cannot figure out how to duplicate the pattern.

I don't think there's an actual name for this, maybe grade school art.
After doing all your patching and smoothing out the wall, get a 1" knife, putty knife, dip it in some drywall mud and dap it on the wall. Do it a couple of times without redipping to get the thinner, smaller lines. Dap and twist a bit to get the uneven lines. After it partially dries, you can flatten out a few with the knife to get the smashed down look. Experiment a bit and you'll be surprised how close you can match it. You're lucky, this is an easier pattern to match than most.


What could be causing my dishwasher to display a "water Inlet" error? I have a Miele Dishwasher. At times it does not work and the indicator for "Water Inlet" comes on to indicate that there is no water coming in. On checking the pipelines, the water flow is ok. Strangely, the washer started working when I tried it after a few hours. This happens off and on. Sometimes the wait time is a couple of days. So what exactly is wrong ? If the washer does not work at all, I could call a repairman. But in such a case, when he comes and the washer works, he will probably say that it works fine.

Actually it turned out to be a stuck impeller issue. Saw this video on youtube which was very useful. I didnt even have to use a broken fork - just a wire hanger to jiggle the impeller and everything worked fine (till the impeller gets stuck again...:(

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nF_0NRrw9TM


Replacing old switch with 2 red wires Replacing house with Insteon's wifi light switches. Have gotten help on here thankfully but ran into a different issue with two switches that control a chandelier.

So far every old switch we have been replacing has had a black wire, red wire, and ground coming out of it. We removed those and in all other cases hooked up the new insteons which have ground connected to green, black connected to live(s) and red either connected to load or capped off if it's a traveller and attach the previously unused neutral.

For this chandelier it's slightly different. There are two switches that control the chandelier, but the odd part is one of the old switches we are replacing has an extra red wire. That is it has the black live, green ground, but rather than just one red coming out of the old 1000w lutron switch it has 2.

Does anyone know how we hook up the new insteon which only has one red wire coming out of it or why the old one had 2 reds? Thank you.

Conventional Switches

It sounds as if most of the switches you have been replacing are single pole switches. That is, they make (on) or break off) a single connection from one location.

Simple switches use a black (hot) and another wire, usually black, red or blue (switched hot) to make and break the circuit. Basic switches do not need a neutral wire (white), so the neutral in a switch box is sometimes capped.

Smart Switches

Smart switches, like the Insteon, often also require a neutral (white) wire. The ground wires should be present and connected on all modern switch connections.

Conventional 3-way Switches

When a light is controlled from two locations, you need a switch called a 3-way. A basic 3-way switch has a black wire or connector, called a common, and two traveler wires, usually black, red or blue. The two travelers may be the same color or different colors, but the switch itself will usually be marked. It also should have a ground.

The common wire on one of the 3-ways is connected to the incoming hot line. The common on the other switch is connected to the fixture or outlet being controlled. The two travelers are connected to the traveler terminals on the opposite switch.

This setup allows either switch to change the state of the fixture by changing which traveler is connected. When both switches are on the same traveler, the light is on. When the switches are on different travelers, the light is off. A flick of either switch can make or break the connection.

When you want a smart switch, the 3-ways often need to add a neutral (white).  This is always connected to the neutral line of the circuit (other white wires) and not to a hot or a switched hot wire.

WiFi Switches

If you want to control a fixture from two locations with an Insteon type switch, you need 3-way setup. However, these types of switches do not need two travelers, just a single connecting wire. They communicate the change of state (on or off) wirelessly between the switches, and the hub if it uses one.

The wiring directions for a 3-way connection can be found here, at the Insteon site. The following is a picture of the 3-way setup.

You can see that at the switch where the hot line comes in, the line hot,  switch hot, and one of the traveler line (in this illustration black) are all connected. The other traveler (red in the illustration) is not used so it is capped.

In the second box that holds the cable to the fixture, the active traveler from the first box is connected to the black to the second switch, and the red from the second switch is connected to the fixture. The second, unused traveler is also capped.

If your two travelers are both red, you need to figure out which one is the connected one and which one is the unused one. Sometimes the wires have a marking, such as a stripe to help distinguish. If not a simple trial and error approach will work. If you pick the wrong one for the second switch, it simply will not work. you can then swap the traveler wires in the second box and you should be fine.  Be sure to cap the unused wires.


Is framing with screws legal? A friend used trim head screws for ALL of the 2x4 framing (including the outer walls) of his 2400 sq. ft. house. The house uses 8x8s to carry the load; none of the 2x4 framing is load bearing. The inspector did not see a problem with it (but maybe she didn't even see the screws).

Edit- the picture below shows a similar (post and beam) style of building. The original building was a wood/furniture shop (not commercial); it was erected about 20 years ago (±5 years). The old exterior walls were removed (I don't know anything about them); the new walls are 2x4 construction with trim head screws, including the exterior walls. The friend is a maintenance guy... not an engineer.

Is it built to code? Would it be correct to assume that (at least) the outer walls are in danger of windy conditions and earthquakes?

According to Table R602.3(1) of the International residential code (IRC), you have to use two 16d (3 1/2" x 0.135") fasteners to end nail the top or sole plate to a stud. If the studs were toe nailed to the sole plate, then either three 8d (2 1/2" x 0.133") or two 16d (3 1/2" x 0.135") fasteners would be required.

  International Residential Code 2012

  Chapter 6 Wall Construction

  Section R602 Wood Wall Framing

  R602.3 Design and construction. Exterior walls of wood-frame construction shall be designed and constructed in accordance with the provisions of this chapter and Figures R602.3(1) and R602.3(2) or in accordance with AF&PA’s NDS. Components of exterior walls shall be fastened in accordance with Tables R602.3(1) through R602.3(4)...

If by some chance these screws are equivalent to 16d nails, then they should be acceptable. However, I doubt they're equivalent, and therefore should not be used.

There's no specific fastener schedule for interior nonbearing walls, while interior load-bearing walls are required to be framed the same as exterior walls.

  R602.4 Interior load-bearing walls.
  Interior load-bearing walls shall be constructed, framed and fireblocked as specified for exterior walls.

  R602.5 Interior nonbearing walls.
  Interior nonbearing walls shall be permitted to be constructed with 2 inch by 3 inch (51 mm by 76 mm) studs spaced 24 inches (610 mm) on center or, when not part of a braced wall line, 2 inch by 4 inch (51 mm by 102 mm) flat studs spaced at 16 inches (406 mm) on center. Interior nonbearing walls shall be capped with at least a single top plate. Interior nonbearing walls shall be fireblocked in accordance with Section R602.8.


Interior Sliding Door Latch or Snib, openable from both sides I'm looking for a interior sliding door latch or snib that can be released and engaged from boths sides.

I've been unable to find such a piece of hardware, it should not be lockable. Each item I have found has the opening mechanisim on one side only.

Has anyone seen such an item. (Also looking for the Australian term for it if known)

Thanks

After speaking with a few door specialist stores for doors. I had to settle for buying two privacy sets and latch mechanisim to allow for opening/unlatching on both sides of the sliding door.

(Each specialist was perplexed they did'nt actually have a product to cover this situation.)


How do I pour concrete over basement plumbing? I’m pouring concrete over rough plumbing  (as pictured). The plumber attached the shower pan to the drain.  How can I get concrete under the shower pan? Radon is an issue in my area. I would like to seal the floor in some way.

How thick should I pour the new floor? The existing floor is 3’’ to 4’’ depending on the spot. Do I need to prep the sides of the existing concrete to get the new stuff to attach properly?

The pipes are in a 9’ trench going to the ejector pit. Do I need to pour this in sections?

Should I wrap the ejector pit or pipes where they exit the concrete to protect from movement/settling? Should I remove dirt and add sand around the pipes?

the shower drain:

I have reviewed theses posts:

What is the best way to fill a hole in a concrete basement floor?

How do I fill in around waste pipes?

I am perplexed to how the plumber would have glued the drain down before concrete was poured.  If he really do this you need to get a new plumber, seriously.  Let's just say he didn't.  If my plumber was doing a job for me he would leave the pan in the same condition, albeit not glued in - since he is double checking the location, especially for fixed pans.  So try to pull it up (if it is glued and you can pull it up, well it shouldn't).
This is just a comment.  Based on the picture it looks like you could have plumbing traveling uphill, if this isn't for venting that isn't good.
To fill your holes you need sand then aggregate (small gravel) and then you pour your concrete.  You will be pouring a little over existing floor but not much and feather flat.


Why would my Goodman gas furnace start but not stay on for more than 2-3 minutes? I've got a problem with my 15 year old Goodman furnace. It starts w/o problem, inductor begins working, hot surface ignitor lights up and ignites the gas. Then the main blower starts working and the whole thing stays on for 2-3 minutes. Then the flames go off before the thermostat reaches the target temperature. Though it continues to recycle the air. It will restart 20-30 min later with the same effect. Sometimes the flames don't appear at all (I guess gas valve stays off) even though everything else stays on (including HSI).

I checked the termocouple. It looks clean but may be I still should replace it? Could it be a faulty air pressure switch?

There are a couple of things that it might be:
It could be the flame sensor. I have seen them where they look clean but are dirty enough that the DC voltage being generated is not enough for the circuit board to keep the gas valve open. I would pull it out and clean it with some scotch brite or a brillow pad. be care full not to damage the porcelain base. It is generally fairly easy to remove, one or maybe two 1/4 screws holding it in place. Gently pull it out and clean it with the pad like you would if you where sanding a wooden dowel.
The 2nd thing it might be (less likely) could be a roll out switch. If your air filter is dirty it would prevent enough air flow across the heat exchanger to keep it from over heating causing the roll out safety switch to open.
If this is neglected for a long period of time it can cause the ROS to weaken and begin to trip at lower than designed temperature.
ps. there are typically LED lights on a the circuit board that will blink error codes to help in diagnostics. It is best to capture that info and will usually point you in the right direction.


Which parts are missing from this vintage lockset? I'd like to get this lockset back into working order on a vintage 1-3/8" interior door with 2-3/8" backset, but do not know which parts are missing. Here is what I do have:

Also, either the door has twisted, or the walls have leaned.  The door matches the stop fine on the hinge side and on the topside.  There is no threshold.  The bottom of the door on the lockset side stays away from the door-stop by 9/16".  The painted door has a single flat panel in the frame.  I suspect the panel is plywood.  My thoughts for fixing this is to either cut a tapered filler strip to fill the gap between the door and the door stop, or cut one of the corner mortise/tenon joints in the door frame and re-glue with a counter-twist and kerf-filling dutchman, maybe spline the bottom.  Any thoughts?

I too wish you luck.

The parts you show are made from 'pot metal.'

Such parts have a short life in the best of times.

For older hardware on the cheap, I think ebay,

the ReBuilding Center in Portland http://rebuildingcenter.org/

or somewhere from here http://portlandonthecheap.com/homeimprovement.html would likely be your best chance


Proper way to secure a basement post to a metal I-beam A home inspection noted that the center beam in our basement was not secured.

What is required to secure a beam to a column, and is it really required?

The house is in Oakland Co, Michigan, so not a lot of earthquakes there.

Some are welded, by bending those "ears" or "tabs" over, others are bolted with clamps using those tabs.

Check what was specified with the architect / design engineer.

And, YES, it is required, otherwise it could be knocked over...


How can I remove paint from a wood deck so I can stain it? We recently purchased this house and the deck was painted.  It now needs to be repainted, but we want to stain it.  We are in the mountains and can not use a pressure washer since we do not have outside water.   What do you recommend to take off the paint and stain the deck?

Rent a drum sander and run it in line with the boards.  You can take off a large amount of wood in short order depending on the grit of paper you use.  Then use a sanding disc with a backer on a grinder for detail work where the drum will not go.  We used 36 grit to bring some weathered wood back; probably took of over 1/4" off the top in that case!  Total out of pocket should be around $200-$250 for everything.


New CO/ALR vs AlumiConn connectors for outdoor outlet I want to replace an existing outdoor duplex outlet at my house.  The house was built in the 70s and has aluminum wiring.  The outlet is at the end of the circuit run, so the aluminum wires are directly connected to the outlet terminals (no pigtail).  Note that I cannot find weather resistant (WR) CO/ALR outlets.  So, when I replace this outlet, am I better off connecting the aluminum wires to the terminals of a new non-WR CO/ALR outlet, or using a new WR outlet with AlumiConn connectors and copper pigtails?  I've seen other posts on this site that ask a similar question for indoor applications...and the highest rated answer says that CO/ALR is a better solution than AlumiConn.  My application is outdoors, though, so a consideration of my question is weighing the WR vs. non-WR for outdoor use against CO/ALR and non-CO/ALR for aluminum wiring.

Alumiconns wether screw type or wire nut will be safer, and better than going to a non co/alr fixture.
The fixture would need to be a GFCI fixture or protected by a GFCI device upstream
note not to be a pain but this fixture would normally require tamper resistant features most internet electricians don’t keep up on that. There are many listed alumacons most are purple and wire nut or screw type they both do the job converting to copper for a non listed co/alr device.


How do I add a socket to a fused alarm spur? I am in the UK.

I wish to install a socket (possibly a double) in the under stair area of my house. The main consumer unit is based here and also the alarm box. One option would be to get an electrician to put in either a separate circuit (overkill) or split the downstairs ring at the consumer unit to provide a socket there, but I'd like to avoid that if possible.

The other potential option is that the alarm is run off a fused spur. Is it acceptable/legal to run a socket off this fused spur? If so, should it be that I run it between the fused connection unit and the alarm or can I run two cables out of the FCU (basically in parallel)?

The easy option is to install a radial circuit straight off the consumer unit, due to changes to the wiring regulations this circuit will need to be protected by a circuit level RCB device.
As a alteration to the electrical installation it would also need to be undertaken by a suitably qualified person. and  a Minor works certificate issued.

Failure to have a certificate could result in default on your home insurance.

Look for a NICEIC approved electrician who should be able to complete the works within a hour or two.


How to clear an overgrown flower bed and prep for grass I bought my house about two years ago, and some of the flower beds that the original owner had put in the garden are now completely overgrown with weeds.  I would like to remove the weeds and the flower beds entirely, and replace them with grass.

What's the best/most logical order of operations?  Should I dig out the weeds and plant grass seed?  What other steps would be required?  Should I go with sod to prevent the weeds from growing back over the grass?  If I use weed killer (like Roundup), will that prevent the grass from growing in the future?

I had a similar issue in my back yard (the whole thing). It was just weeds. I killed all the weeds with a dose or two of Roundup and had the entire 7000+ sqft tilled up. I then raked it flat and seeded most of it. It now has less weeds than my front lawn which received sod prior to moving in. This was new construction, and the sod was part of the package.

If I had to do just a flowerbed, or the whole yard again, I'd vote for doing it the same way again.

Just be sure to wait a week or two after applying the Roundup so it works it's magic and the weeds are dried up completely. This also aids in tilling it, by hand or machine. The Roundup should not last long on barren soil and will not affect the seed after a couple of weeks.


Roof patch, how long will it last? We've had this since we bought the house. Underneath in the attic it looks as if part of that roof collapsed (probably a foot went throught). Then someone patched it up in a crappy way.

I have no leaks but I wonder how urgent is the repair of this and how much will it cost? I could also attempt to DIY but not sure how many shingles will have to be removed to fix this.

I suggest you plan to sort that within 2 or 3 years, one reason being that those joint lines should not line up...


outside cement wall chipped I have a cement wall that has been chipped a little:

What can happen to this wall over time? Will this deteriorate if left as is?

In short: do you think it's important to fix this ASAP or this can wait?

Also if it's necessary to fix it ASAP, how would one go about it?

Thanks

You can, and should wait until the overnight temperature is above 40. Working with any masonry products in low temperatures brings a bunch of complications you don't need.

If you don't mind a slight color mismatch, like the existing repair above the chipped area you can fix it yourself. If you want an invisible repair you may want to consult a mason.

In the spring start by removing any loose material. The canonical instruction is to use a chisel, but common sense will suffice in your case. Tap around the chipped part and be sure you aren't putting the patch over anything that's going to flake off on its own. Following up with a wire brush to remove any dust and grime would be ideal.

For minor repairs your best bet is a vinyl patch compound, which combines cement and polymers. The best advice is to follow the instructions on the tub, since they come in different brands and materials. Pay particular attention to the maximum thickness, because they're designed for thin coats.

To fix it without a fancy kit you need to come to grips with the fact that Portland cement will not bond to itself. The easiest way around that is using a bonding agent which adheres to the old work and provides a surface for the new work to adhere to. You'd need a bottle of bonding agent and a bad of either parging mix or mortar.

The exact steps depend on the bonding agent and how you use it. (They can be either painted on or mixed in.) The general plan of attack is:

Moisten the old work with a sponge or spray bottle. Concrete absorbs water and will weaken new work by sucking the moisture from it before it cures. beware of direct sunlight for similar reasons.
Apply the bonding agent to the old work. (A chip brush from the paint store works well.) You may need to move this step around depending on how long the bonding agents instructions say to let it stand for.
Mix the mortar using about a third of the water you expect. You really want it to be thick and smooth like peanut butter and it's much simpler to add water while you're mixing than to add more dry mortar. Unless, you know, you want to have an extra 30 lbs of the stuff to get rid of later.
Let the mix sit for about 15 minutes (or whatever the instructions on the bag suggest for prehydrating), again time it with the bonding agent. This will make it a bit easier to work with.
Trowel it on. You do want to compress things so push it, push it real good.
Make it look nice. After things have firmed up a bit you can sharpen the corners, fix the texture, write your name, etc.
Admire your handiwork! Come back every couple of hours and spritz lightly with water. Just damp, no visible drops! Keeping things moist will help prevent cracking while it cures.


How to wire half-switched outlet with two black and two white I had done pretty well rewiring a number of normal outlets in my house. However, I managed to mess up the first switched outlet I tried to do.

The box had one wire coming in on the left (same side as the switch in the room), with one black and one white wire. Another went out the right side of the box, also with one white and one black. The box itself was grounded as all the others had been.

I noticed when I first opened the receptacle that one brass terminal had a white and a black on it. I believe it was the bottom one. There was a single white wire going to the silver terminals. The top outlet was controlled by the switch.

The problem is I dont recall which was paired with which. I havent been able to  find a wiring diagram which matches what I have. Can someone walk me through how to put this back together?

Edit: so the answer was what we needed. However it turned out when we flipped the switch the first time with incorrect wiring we broke something in the ancient switch. A quick trip to Walmart later and we now have a working circuit.

Thank you so much!

It sounds like you're looking to end up with something like this

Notice the white wire that's been repurposed, is marked at both ends with black tape/marker/paint. And that the tab between the top and bottom receptacles, is broken on the "hot" side of the device. Also notice that a pigtail is used, instead of connecting more than one wire to a terminal on the receptacle.

To determine which set of wires goes to the switch...

Turn off the breaker, and make sure power is off.
Set your multimeter or ohmmeter to test continuity or low resistance.
Disconnect all the wires from the switch.
Test between the black and white wire of cable 1.
Test between the black and white wire of cable 2.
Toggle the switch.
Test the wires again

One pair of wires should test positive for continuity, when the switch is in the  on position.  This is the cable going to the switch.

NOTE: This type of installation is no longer code compliant (NEC), because it does not provide a grounded (neutral) conductor at the switch location.

NOTE: Grounding conductors have been omitted from the diagram for simplicity.  Make sure all grounding conductors are properly installed.


Remove screws from Duravit toilet seat My toilet seat hinge busted, so I'm replacing the whole thing. It's a Duravit Starck 3 seat. I'm trying to remove the old hinges, which are screwed into plastic things that are a permanent part of the toilet itself (there's no way to get inside/underneath, new ones were not supplied). The problem is, as I turn the screws on the old hinges, the plastic things just rotate in the holes so I can't unscrew them. What should I do?

It looks like there should be a bolt with a hex-head that you unscrew using a spanner (wrench) to replace the hinge mounting (the hinge itself appears to be integral to the seat).

It's a designer toilet, designers tend to prioritise visuals over practicality.

If you put some pulling force under part 4 (e.g. lever with a screwdriver using a small dowel as a fulcrum) it might create enough friction on the (presumed) captive nut or insert to hold it in place while you unscrew the bolt.


Can a C wire be used for two thermostats? A friend of mine wants to upgrade his thermostats to WiFi thermostats but the thermostat wires ran to the thermostats are missing the C wire. There are 2 thermostat cables running from 2 units to 2 different thermostats. We can run a new 18-5 cable from one of the furnaces to one of the thermostats. But we can't get the other unit open because of the way it was installed. Is it possible to split the common wire down at the thermostats and use it for both new thermostats?

I think NO. The C-wire connects to the transformers on the individual units.  It's not like a common neutral or ground wire. You'll need to get a C-wire to both furnaces as there is no real electrical connection between the two on the low voltage side.  There might be other solutions that the "big three" might be able to come up with, but I think your stuck with getting a C wire to each furnace independently.


Rebuilding interior stairs I've removed the carpet on the stairs from 1st floor to 2nd floor. There is hardwood under but half the boards are cracked all the way across and deflect noticeable when walked on. I'm debating what all to do to them. I'd like it to be safe, look good and not squeak.

The stairs are 34 inches wide and there is no center support. The house was built in 1954, there aren't stringers, only individual blocking nailed on each side for each stair tread. There doesn't appear to be enough room to put a center stringer in between the ceiling below and the underside of the stairs.

I'm leaning towards replacing at least all the treads, maybe the risers too. Can I stiffen them somehow if I can't get other support under them?

The front few inches of one stairs was not attached, that's the only access to look at take photos that I have.

Thanks!

If you see that the treads are what is giving and not the blocks supporting the treads, as isherwood says, there is no need for a center support, precisely for the reason he stated. Many stairs are built without center supports.

When I have my preference as to how I want to build stairs, this sketch illustrates my joining method.

All tongues and grooves are 3/8"X3/8" The groove under the tread since it is thicker 1 1/8", will leave plenty of mass to keep the nose intact. In your old tread, it looked as though the treads were glued up, but that glue joint failed, unless all are made that way... The idea is the groove will allow the treads to be better supported by the risers and when glued will prevent squeaking. The groove under the tread will allow a little give and take in the differences of the some of the risers, treads too, which will typically happen in hand made construction, if not by the differential shrinking of the support members.

If you have access to a table saw, I make the dadoes (grooves) by getting 4 or more blades the same diameter and stack them up on the saw arbor, if the saw has a cast iron arbor, until I get the width of cut I need. This is limited by the size of the cutout in the throat plate, but 3/8" should be attainable. Do not do this with a light weight portable saw.
Clean the original supports so the adhesive can be applied there to so nails will hold everything together until the glue set up. Stay off the stair system if possible until the glue sets go the glue tightens up all the joints. If the joints are moving before the glue sets, it will be a weak joint and may move again.


Can I lay pavers over a concrete patio? I have a concrete patio in my backyard that's in pretty good condition.  We don't like how it looks, so we'd like to cover it up with brick or pavers.  Looking online, it appears that most people install pavers over gravel, so I was wondering if it was a good idea to lay the pavers straight on the concrete patio.  Would drainage be an issue?  What kind of cement would I use to secure the pavers on the concrete?

If you have a drainage issue, or you're likely to have freezing conditions, I'd personally want to lay a small coating of gravel across the concrete first - allow that pent-up water to get out of the way.

If you're building this in, say, Phoenix, though, that may not really matter and laying them directly atop the concrete shouldn't be a problem.

To the 'cement' part of your question: why not go with dry-laid? As long as there is some form of rim to the patio, or you're not driving over them, dry-laying would make both maintenance and modification easier.


Should new septic system be filled with water? I have a brand new septic system and a new 1000 gallon 2 stage cement tank.
This is for a cabin that is only used 4 weeks a year with 2 people. Only a toilet is going to the septic.

It will take me a many many years to get the septic tank just full with fluid at this rate.

Should I fill it with water or let it happen naturally over time? I’ve heard that parts of the cement tank not covered with water will deteriorate quicker from the gasses.  What is your opinion and why?

Yes the system should be filled with water and the installer should have done that. There is a good chance the tanks can float out of the hole if it rains heavy when they are first put in if you do not put water in them. Your second question was valid The average person uses 70 gallons of water per day so if its just you and you only use the house twice a month it will take a very long time for the system to fill up. As for as gases it will be very little do to not much waste entering the system. Also the systems theses days do bot have those issues we precast tanks and have never seen one do this do to gases most break do to a car driving over them or being dropped on installation.


Should the oven heating coil stay on the whol time you are baking? We have a Frigidaire electric stove. Should the oven heating coil stay on the whole time we are cooking? For example, turn the oven to 350 for 30 minutes. Coil turns red, then goes to black, theb back to red or sometimes not back to red unless I raise the temp. a few degrees.

Most likely No. Most electric ovens heat to certain temperatures by turning the heating element on and off with a thermostat, much like your home thermostat will keep your house hot. This is referred to as a 'Duty Cycle'. Basically, the element may come 'on' and start glowing as it heats. Once the inside of the oven reaches the desired temperature, it may turn off and cool as much as 5-15 degrees then cycle on again.


What do I need to do to fix stripped door hinge screw holes? The door to my basement broke. The bottom hinge has three screws; the top and bottom one turn endlessly. You can see the pictures here.

I understand that there's a matchstick/toothpick trick, where you can put glue and matchsticks or toothpicks into the hinge holes to get additional backing.

In my case, it looks like some pieces of the hinge backing are actually missing. There aren't holes in the wall that I can use cleanly and patch up with matchsticks.

What do I need to do to fix the hinge door -- add additional backing? What can I use, other than the obvious choice of real wood (eg. toothpicks, cardboard)?

It is difficult to fully access the problems with the wood behind your door hinge without a picture to see the extent of the damage. None the less let me describe a reasonable repair technique that works well. I would skip the schemes of jamming additional wood sticks or slivers into the existing screw holes because these methods are stop gap measures at best and will not work when the damage is more significant.

One good way to deal with a problem like this is to remove the hinge from the door jamb and then bore out the problem holes with a larger diameter drill so that the sides of the hole are in clean solid wood. You may need to use a drill with a size of 7/16 or 1/2 inch diameter. The best type of drill bit for boring out the hole is one for the following types as they drill the best accurate hole size. These are called auger and brad point drills respectively.

Next you need some round hardwood dowel material that is sized to fit the holes you drilled out in the previous step. Common dowels are made of birch wood and come in 36 inch lengths.

Check the thickness of the door jamb and the space behind the jamb to the stud. Cut lengths of the dowel that are just a bit shorter than this measured length.

Apply yellow carpenter glue to the sides of the dowel and inside the drilled holes in the jamb. Then tap the dowel pegs into the holes so that they are nice and flush with the face of the jamb in the hinge cutout.

Give the glue a good amount of time to dry. Over night would be best. Next fit the hinge back into its position and mark the positions of the hinge holes. Remove the hinge and drill the proper sized pilot holes for the hinge screws. It may be best to use new screws for the hinge if the old ones are chewed up in the slots or the screw threads are not nice and sharp. If the dowel holes were drilled on center to the old screw holes the pilot holes should be going right into the dowel material. It is important to stress that the proper sized pilot holes are essential so that the screws will thread into the pilot holes properly without twisting off the screws.

With careful work and proper selection of the dowel size the finished hinge installation should completely cover up the rework area.

Some door jambs may be made of a material that does not suitably lend itself to gluing in a dowel pin. This would be the case for certain types of particle board and press board types of jambs. This would also be the case for jambs that are made of solid wood but may be splitting so that they cannot hold the dowel glue joint securely. An alternate fix using dowel pins may still be possible for these cases by using a modification of the technique that embeds the dowel into the stud behind the jamb. As long as the studs are made of wood and the existing hinge holes more than about 3/4 inch from the edge of the jamb this technique may work for you.

As seen in the above diagram the dowel pin hole is bored all the way into the wooden framing stud. The dowel diameter should be increased to 5/8" in diameter and careful placement of the hole drilling location done so that the drilled hole is contained entirely within the stud itself and not shaving into the back of the wall board. (Note that you can evaluate the wall board thickness by looking under the cover plate of a nearby electrical outlet or light switch). It may be necessary to offset the drill hole some from the center of the hinge screw hole. This would be OK as long as the later drilled pilot hole still engages into the dowel itself.

Cut the dowel pin slightly shorter than the drilled hole depth. Taper one end of the dowel slightly using sand paper so that it will enter the hole in the stud easily. As before smear glue down into the stud hole, the jamb hole and on the sides of the dowel pin. Pound the dowel into the stud till the end is flush with the face of the hinge cutout. Let fully dry and proceed to remount the hinge by drilling the pilot holes and installing the screws.

This technique takes care of the problem with the empty space behind the jamb. If you use the long screws approach you will find it problematic to tighten the screws securely due to this empty space. Over tightening the long screws will distort the already damaged door jamb and cause additional problems. (There is a technique, as has already been suggested, to fill this empty space using tapered wooden shims that can be purchased at home store but their use requires removal of the door casing so they can be installed). The embedded dowels can hold the hinge securely in place without the distortion of the door jamb.


Do I need a bathroom fan to increase house ventilation? I had an energy audit done recently and one of the recommendations was to air seal and reinsulate the attic which was expected.  What I did not expect was the recommendation to install a bathroom fan which would provide the equivalent of constant 20 CFM air exchange.  In effect the fan would counteract some of the air sealing efforts which feels very counterintuitive, as in the winter it will suck more cold air in.

The house is 1600 sq ft and the blower door test was 2810 CFM50.  The estimate after air sealing is 2248 CFM50.  I understand that houses need to get fresh air but 2248 still seems high.

edit: Thanks for the feedback.  To provide a little more detail, no I don't currently have a bathroom fan.  The fan to be installed would be 110CFM but it would be controlled by a SmartExhaust switch which would be set to run a 20 minutes per hour, as well as come on when the light is on.  It claims to be ASHRAE 62.2 compliant which I believe is the standard they are trying to meet.

I agree with Ed, bathroom fans are turned on intermittently to exhaust MOISTURE not to INTRODUCE fresh air into your house, especially on a continual non-controlled (no thermostat or no humidistat) manner. Even outside air intakes on furnaces only work when the thermostat is calling for heat or air conditioning and it usually has a manual damper that you can adjust for the amount of air desired.


Why am I getting hum and lights dimming with a new electric tankless water heater? So, I just installed an electric water heater and I'm getting a light hum from the water heater and the breaker panel. It's also dimming some lights.. unevenly. It seems to be more noticeable when the hot water is cracked, but it's annoying, because I've checked everything so many times now. I've contacted the power company an an electrician to come out next week, but any other ideas?

200 AMP service.
Murray breaker box.
New Murray breakers (2 x double pole 40 AMP).
8 Guage Stranded Romex (40' run).
Rheem RTEX 18.

All connections good and tight.
Small 600sqft house, 2 people, not much load otherwise.
Cleaned bus bars.
Breakers not hot, not loose.
Set to 110 degrees.

I've tested breakers and power at the WH. Everything appears to be fine.. However, going back to the idea of the problem being apparent with lower water, I checked the heating elements and noticed that when the hot water is on low, one element is on. When it's medium, the second element engages at 120, and at full the second element is at 240. Could the on/off, uneven volts be part of the problem? Is there a way to remedy this?

Any ideas?

18KW is a 75 amp load at 240volts , which is a HUGE addition in draw for a very small house. For comparison, if you replaced a tank type water heater they typically have 2 4,500 watt elements but only one is on at a time for a current draw of just under 20 amps.  You say you ran 8 gauge Romex, I assume that's 2 runs one for each 240volt breaker.

LEDs esp. with dimmers can be very sensitive to voltage changes.  I have some in my home, on the same dimmer that dim at slightly different rates even though they are on the same circuit/dimmer.

Last, I agree with Mazura, your power drop from the POCO may have been adequate before, but now, with that much larger load, isn't anymore.


How can I combine lightbulbs of different types and specifications to accurately simulate medium-intensity daylight in a domestic setting? As doctors we are trying to frame some domestic-level recommendations to simulate medium intensity daylight indoors for patients in bed without proper access to actual sunlight. This is also an important need for us personally since our house lacks natural light during many parts of the day and almost everyone agrees that sunlight is the best light. I am currently using an 85w CFL and find it lacks the proper color sense of sunlight, since such bulbs with 6500k color temperature emphasise the 'blue' end of the spectrum. This creates a 'cold' ambiance which is rather disturbing.  I would appreciate a more natural and balanced color scheme, but 'warm white' bulbs are far too yellow to serve that purpose, so I am considering a combination of white CFL and warm white incandescent bulbs in a 80:20 proportion of light intensity to supply the 'red' end of the spectrum that is lacking with just the CFL.

Practical considerations:

In order to provide both ends of the visual spectrum as also uv rays and infrared, I was thinking of installing one 85 watt spiral CFL side by side with one 100 watt incandescent bulb in a pair of simple open fixtures controlled by a single switch. The color temperature of the CFL is 6500k and it is supposed to output 5000 lumens of light, while the incandescent bulb is 2700k and outputs 1500lm. Voltage = 220v and current = 5amp. Are there any technical or electrical factors that counsel against this arrangement? If anybody has tried something similar, I would like your inputs. All suggested improvements on this setup are most welcome.

Background:

Since regular intermittent exposure to real or simulated sunlight is beneficial for various health purposes including sleep rhythm, mood and vitamin D3 synthesis, our aim is to design a composite artificial light that is near as possible to daylight in visual effect, as also electromagnetic content such as visible spectrum, infrared and uv rays, without possessing the extreme intensity of powerful sunlight or the technological complexity of professional arena/street/stage lighting.

Commonly available domestic lightbulbs including fluorescent tubes, incandescent lamps, CFL and LED would be used in appropriate combinations for this purpose.

Although a color temperature around 5000k is said to be in the 'natural daylight' range, such lights are not readily obtained here in India, where the commonly available options are 3000k ('warm white', an outright yellow light) 4000k (labelled 'neutral white', but really a less-yellow shade of gold) and 6500k ('cool daylight', which appears very artificial and very white). In my personal experience, each of these color temperatures has its own distinctive 'color cast' and each by itself doesn't really simulate the visual effect of a neutral sunlight which has no color cast and basically contains all color temperatures in a graded proportion - a full spectrum lighting.

Although complex machines can indeed simulate sunlight, they are beyond the scope of our project. However, each type of ordinary domestic lamp does represent some important characteristic of an ideal sunlight. For example, compact fluorescent lights produce ultraviolet rays and regular incandescent bulbs provide infrared (heat), while LED can give a strong semi-directional glare: moreover, at least 3 color temperature variants are commonly available. In fact such lamps are actually being combined in multiple ways to stimulate and support plant growth indoors in the form of full-spectrum grow lights.

That's what leads me to seek the advice of the home improvement experts here: what is the best way to combine various household bulbs in appropriate proportions of color temperature and light output to create an accurate simulation of medium intensity neutral daylight?

I have basic knowledge of what we did in a industrial plant to combat SAD so this answer covers what I learned when we changed the lighting to reduce the affects of SAD at our facility.

In our office areas we used 50% 6500k lighting and 50% 4500k lamps were matched with each ballast or 2 lamps at 6500k on 1 side and 2 at 4500k. Matching lamp type extends the life of the pair of lamps and reduced ballast problems.

In walkways we used 6500k lighting 100%

The reason for the difference was when walking the 6500k was closer to true daylight and the affect was similar to exercising out side even though just walking.
The reason for 50/50 split was that 6500k was hard on our eyes when reading so reducing the level and mixing with 4500 ended up being the best over all.

We also had clean room areas that they wanted to get similar results however 6500k has two much blue light and was a problem for photo lithography (the process of making different layers on wafers). Some rooms only have yellow light no blue at all. The 6000k light was the max we could use without affecting the processes and still get some advantage from the light.

The last thing we did was offer some very concentrated UV lights in the bathroom lounges. Designed for short exposure on the neck and shoulders.

The results after several years was an increase in productivity and a reduction in accidents and sick time taken. I was a manager and I saw all the reports I think it was 19% improvement with no other changes attributed except lighting.

We did not work with 2500k-4000k at the plant but occupational Health and Safety recommended that in our homes we use 3500k lamps in areas like bed rooms because the bright white / blue lights affect our Circadian Rhythms and low levels of yellow / orange lights are more natural and if dimmed tell the body it’s time for sleep, where 6500k says its day time get to work.

We were told that the blue / white lights on the back of the neck , shoulders and head was the most effective location for intense light therapy.
This site is in Corvallis Oregon and at one time the site had ~10k personal working on the site. Prior to the rollout of 6500k, 5000k, 5500k & 6000k lighting levels were also tested in different areas of the plant.

I think your plan to have the light to the rear as you mentioned is a good plan from what I had learned, I don’t know if the 3500k is really needed I remember that low levels did not affect the body in a negative way where sleeping was concerned but 6500k may prevent a person from sleeping up to an hour after exposure depending on the intensity.

I would get some additional references material on SAD as there is a ton of info on the web today. The lighting work I am describing was done 25years ago and they still use the same color frequency except in areas close to photo they went to all 4500k as geometry of the components got smaller the light had a larger affect.
Hope this helps.

I just remembered, we had to remove the plastic bezels in the lamps and installed reflective grids , the plastic was absorbing the blue light and we had to have some kind of covers so the reflective metal grids increased the light as measured at desk top level. I do not remember how many foot candles / lumens the target was.


How can I remove a stuck coax cable from a conduit? In my newly-built house, an empty conduit was added into the foundation so that an antenna cable could later be pulled through. The conduit is around 9 meters long and has three 90-degree bends with a radius of around 30cm. The conduit is a corrugated PVC pipe similar to this image with 25mm diameter.

Today, an attempt was made to pull a coax cable. I first pushed a nylon puller through (perhaps the wrong term, but it looks like this) from inside the house to outside (into the garage). That was a little difficult but I got it through. I then attached the coax on the puller; I used a wire to tie them together (I now know that I should have used tape).

Then I pulled it back inside again, but after some meters it came undone, so the puller was completely removed from the conduit while the coax was only about halfway through. I was able to pull the coax some way back out again, but now it's stuck about 3 meters inside the conduit. I measured this by feeding the puller into the conduit alongside the stuck coax until it wouldn't go further. I removed the puller again.

The coax seems to be stuck. I can't push it in and I can't pull it out. I don't dare pull at it too hard because I know that the coax isn't very strong and if it snaps off inside then I have no way to get to it.

The conduit runs underneath the house, it lies in concrete under the flooring, so I can't get to it without tearing half the kitchen apart, tearing up the parquet flooring, tearing up the underfloor heating, and so on. Absolutely not an option. There's no spare conduit either; this is the only one and if I can't use that then I have no idea how to get an antenna signal or sat cable into the house. That would be ... very bad.

Okay -- I've just learned how not to pull coax. Can you now teach me how to get it unstuck?

Unless it is extremely thick co-ax, like RG-35, there should be plenty of room to slide the nylon fish tape from outside along the stuck co-ax.  Probably the wire you wrapped around it for attaching to the fish has formed a barb—how apropos for a fish!  :-)

Push the fish past the end of the co-ax a little bit (or as far in as it will go), and then alternately pull the fish back and then jab it forward in a series of vigorous thrusts intended to make it slide past the end in a random new location each thrust and, if it hits the target, bend the barb out of the way.

If that doesn't do it, get some silicone lubricant or any other non-drying lubricant, blob it liberally on the end of the fish and push it in to the end of the co-ax in an effort to lubricate the area, twist it around a bit, and then withdraw the fish and repeat 6+ times to be sure there is lots of lube in the conduit.  Remove the fish when done.

If the conduit where the obstruction exists is surrounded by concrete, I would try giving the co-ax a sharp, swift, hard pull to see if it can be budged into the lube.  If it is not so well supported, then pull gently at first and gradually build up force allowing the co-ax to stretch:  if it can be made a little thinner, it might let go.

Give that a go.  I have some more half-baked ideas if that doesn't work.


Bonding of neutral and ground I havd a disconnect at meter which supplies a panel about 70 feet inside building.  I upgraded the system based on comments from a previous question.
At the disconnect, when I add the neutral conductor (green wire), I disconnect the wire that ran from the neutral to the case of the disconnect.  So now my question occurred to me as to whether I should bond he neutral and ground at my new panel or reconnect my ground to case at the disconnect??

If you have EMT, IMC or RMC metal conduit run all the way from the disconnect to the subpanel, then you can use that metal conduit itself as the grounding path, and no ground wire is needed.
Otherwise, you need to have run 4-wire cable (or 4 wires).
Sean Connery rule applies.
"There can be only one" bond between neutral and ground.
First, get your colors straight.   Neutral is not ground.
Neutral = white or gray
Ground = green, yellow/green striped, or bare  (that's true 'round the world).
Neutral comes from the utility.  It exists in all places.
Ground is created, by you, at the very first disconnect past the meter.  In that location you:

Establish a Grounding Electrode System (grounding rods)
Have a "ground bar" bonded to the metal frame of the disconnect
Bond neutral to ground, in this one and only place
Carry neutral and ground separately everywhere else.

Since neutral and ground are bonded here in the main disconnect,  you can actually use the same "bar" for both neutral and ground.   It's not my favorite way to do it, though.  I prefer separate, isolated bars, and the fattest wire  you can get as a specific neutral-ground bonding wire.  The reason is, so you can put a clamp ammeter around that wire which is handy for troubleshooting a variety of problems.
As a practical thing, the meter pan itself also gets grounded because you use EMT, IMC or RMC Metal Conduit between meter pan and disconnect. Once had someone try to use PVC... they couldn't find a way to ground the meter pan.  Golly!
Neural and ground are carried as separate wires
At the subpanel, place the white neutral wire on the neutral bar.
Place the green or bare ground wire on the ground bar (or rely on the metal conduit).
Any subpanel must have neutral and ground un-bonded. Can't bond it here; that would be  two bonds!


How to drain a free standing bathtub I have a freestanding bathtub to be installed on a bathroom with concrete floor that will be tilled.

There were no instructions with the bathtub and the company doesn't really care (Brazil has terrible customer service for some stuff). The drain points straight down and is 40mm in diameter.

I can't use a 90° bend because that would press against the floor because the height will be greater than that of the feet.

I can try to drain directly below, but I'm not sure what is the best course of action. Have a standing pipe just a bit larger than the bathtub drain pipe for the bathtub drain to slide into? Making it some what hard fixed into the floor.

Have a shorter standing pipe (some 30 mm above the floor) the same diameter of the bathtub drain and use a rubber union to join then? More flexible, less chance of some breakage.

Have a dry floor drain (100mm diameter and some 50 mm deep) just below the bathtub drain and make it drain to the shower trap? Greater flexibility on positioning, but will it overflow?

What do you suggest in this scenario?

First & foremost you need a Freestanding Tub Drain Kit, no regular piping will work. These drains are extremely tight 90's & will leave space above the floor.

-

-

-

Then, you need either a trap in the floor of the drain you have available in the area where you want the tub. If there's no trap & you'd rather not rip up the floor. Then, you can put the tub on a platform for just the tub or for that whole side of the bathroom. This can also allow you to face the tub in your preferred position.


How should I upgrade or combine sub-panels so I can add another one? I'm building a poultry shed.  The building next to it has power going to it from the pole.  At the pole there are two breakers.  Then it goes into the old building where it looks like the two very old panels in there only have 120 coming from the pole each.
I put a panel in the new shed and buried 8-2, which I'm now thinking I may need to dig up and replace with #6.  The panel in the new shed is a six-spot 120/240 Homeline from Square D.
I have ran the hot to one bus and jumpered it to the other bus.  I have placed the neutral into the top bar and added a grounding bar attached directly to the panel.  I put in a grounding rod and ran a copper cable to the grounding bar in the panel.  I can go get pictures in a bit if needed.
My questions are these:
Am i wiring the panel in the new shed correctly considering the panel I'm coming from is only 120v?  The panel in the old building is probably from the 70's with the push button type breakers and no room available for another breaker.  The other leg of the 4 wire from the pole bypasses this breaker and goes to a breaker with a throw bar.  This just runs the lights in the old building.
Should/Do I need to replace the breaker panel in the old shed?  Should I combine both breaker boxes into a 240v panel?  There are 2 double pole breakers at the utility pole so I'm not sure if the 240 is separated there before going to the old shed.
The new shed has 5 outlets on 2 circuits and 2 lights on it's own circuit.  I'm seeing now that 8-2 only handles 40amps so I'm guessing I need to dig the 8-2 up and replace it with #6.
Do I need a main disconnect in the subpanel and if so how to I wire that in.
If pictures are needed I can get them this afternoon.
Thank you all for your time.
edited to add pics.

Honestly, from the questions you're asking and, the work you've described, I think you should hire an electrician.
If you're running 120 from one location to another, you don't need a sub-panel. Your 220/240 is two-phase. It is split in your service panel, left side breakers are one phase 120/110, and the right is the second phase. You get 220 from a panel by using a 2-gang breaker and providing two legs of 110 on the same phase. Wire rating is as follows:

15A - 14 ga.
20A - 12 ga.
30A - 10 ga.
40A - 8 ga.
55A - 6 ga.


Is this retaining wall failing? The picture below shows a retaining wall. It was hard to take a picture from a good angle, but it looks to me like the wall is showing a "belly" and the seams are opening up. But I'm not sure: perhaps it was built with these bulges. There's a lot of cement in this wall.

This wall in a Philadelphia suburb and it supports a patio on a very steep decline.

But I do hope that the experts here are able to assess from this picture!

The wall may have been built that way but I doubt it, the wall may have shifted over the years and is stable now.

The only way to know is to drop a plumb bob from the upper decking just in front of the wall and measure the gap at top middle and bottom. Mark the spot or leave a nail or screw in that location and Mark the wall at the 3 points so you can measure again at a later date. If the wall is stable you will see no change in the measurements.

I would not expect to see any movement in a year, but probably would recheck a week after a big storm. There looks to be a drain but water may have caused the shift or belly in the past, prior to everything settling, and now the wall is stable.


What type of wall is this? I'm installing blinds that will mount in the ceiling (inside) of the window pane. I initially used wood screws but then thought I'd use drywall screws for greater strength. I tried drilling a hole to push the drywall anchor in and am now confused. Please help!
Edit: Through lot of reading up, this is drywall backed by concrete. The metal strip howing through (bottom of picture) is the corner bead.

Behind the plasterboard (drywall) it looks like it could be the metal of either  an RSJ or a Catnic. Either could have been used to support the brickwork over the window aperature. If it's a Catnic, it'll be possible to drill through, and use self-tappers to secure the blinds. If it's an RSJ, the steel will be quite thick, and will take a long while to drill holes for screws.
A drilled Catnic could have a larger hole through which you could push a drywall fitting - a longer one, so it expanded on the other side of the thin steel.
If it's an RSJ, there's also the possibility of drilling and tapping, so a bolt can be threaded into it. A very strong fixing, but maybe beyond diy.
You may be better off trying to fix into the sides of the reveal - at the very top, which may just be drywall - but needs a different blind fixture.


Do UL-listed product specifications or NEC rules take precedence? An interesting question arose elsewhere.  Suppose you break out a "New, Old Stock" item.  It is UL-approved and has UL-approved instructions.
The instructions say to do X.
However, since the item was UL-approved, NEC has changed.  Doing X is now explicitly forbidden, and you must do Y.
Which one controls?  Are you obliged to follow the instructions?
Are you obliged to follow current NEC?
Are you obliged to throw the item in the trash and get a modern one whose UL-approved instructions are consistent with NEC?

Very simple... 110.3.B states that the manufacturer's instructions shall be followed. That is, of course, for listed equipment.


Concrete caulk vs expanding polyurethane crack sealant I'm starting to finish my basement. First step is sealing up some various places water has come in over the years. I've already fixed grading outside, but also want to seal inside.

I have one crack that I've seen water come through after heavy rains. For that I've purchased an expanding polyurethane product that goes under a layer of epoxy to force it into the crack (http://www.radonseal.com/crack-injection/diy-injection.htm).

I have several other cracks that show no evidence of water intrusion, but I'd like to seal them to be safe. I'm looking at a normal polyurethance concrete caulk (e.g. http://www.loctiteproducts.com/p/pl_seal_cms/overview/Loctite-PL-S10-Polyurethane-Concrete-Crack-&-Masonry-Sealant.htm) for these.

Obviously for the crack I've seen wet I want a good deep fill, but for the others I'd rather pay $0.20/linear foot for the Loctite than $10/linear foot for the expanding one. Will the cheaper option still provide a decent seal, or is it worth $600 to use the expanding one everywhere?

You are really brave to finish a basement with a known moisture issue.  I for one wouldn't spend a penny on finishing my basement until I have seen it go through a wet season without failing.  Not telling you to stop but would warn to slow down.  Get your framing/electric/plumbing/whatever done and let it go through at least 4-5 months before finishing touches.

As for cracks, if it has leaked before then I would suggest that you always go with an epoxy.  There are too many on the market for me to give a recommendation.  I have used at least 10 and was happy with 8 of them.  Concrete caulk is not your answer to seal a leaking crack but can be used on the outside of the house to keep issues at bay.  Also make sure you read the instruction on the epoxy.  You are probably going to have to chisel out the crack to make it larger so the epoxy can fill it.


No electricity going to thermostat Our old thermostat is working but I want to change to a new one (nest thermostat).  I have two exact HVAC unit at home.  I change one it works but when I change the second one it doesn't work because it can't detect power.

How do I fix this problem?  Where can it possibly go wrong?  Do I need to check my furnace?

With certain versions of the nest thermostat they require the C or common wire for operation. The nest thermostat needs 5 wires to accommodate the extra common wire. Check to see that how many wires the thermostat wire is. You may be lucky and have the extra wire tucked in behind the thermostat.

Another possible issue, if you do have 5 wires hooked up at the thermostat is the C wire may be disconnected at the furnace control board as it was not needed for the old thermostat. If this is the case you would have to open the furnace and add the C wire to the C terminal of the control board.