Can I paint the electrical panel? I am painting the room in our basement that contains the electrical panel. I think it would look a lot better to paint the panel the same color as the wall, instead of the plain grey-green metal. I've heard that it's against code (USA) to paint the electrical panels, but I wasn't sure why. It's my own house and we don't rent it out, so I'm not too worried about the code violation.

Is there any reason why I shouldn't paint the electrical panel, and are there any problems I should watch for when painting it? The panel is brand new with no rust, so I will likely need to roughen the surface with sandpaper first.

What you "heard" is incorrect, but Harper's advice is wise just the same.

You can paint the outer cover of the panel as long as you don't obscure any critical labels. Use a good primer and several thin topcoats to prevent runs and avoid filling stamped text. I'd probably remove the plastic latch, mask the opening from behind, and reinstall it later for a more professional appearance (or simply mask it in place).


Need to find out if this is a load bearing wall on my second floor I have a desire to open up my second floor to make one big room (it's my bedroom and want a king size bed and closet). The room is currently split about 65/35 by a wall that does not appear to be load bearing but I want to be sure. It's a house built in 1892 so plans are not easy to come by. The County clerk, city clerk doesn't have any records.

I've already ripped down to the 2x4's all the plaster and slats.

Here's the wall in all its glory. The 2x4's are rotated so the wall was only 3 inches thick instead of 5 inches thick.

The wall joists run from floor slightly up into the ceiling. Here is the top of the joists:

This is definitely attached at the top to that ceiling joist but the ceiling is not directly resting on the wall. The roof trusses run parallel to the wall.

There is nothing on the first floor underneath this wall or in the room underneath period. It's one big open room like I want to make this room. The floor joists for the second story I believe are running parallel to the wall (and therefore the same direction as the roof joists), as the hardwood floor boards are running perpendicular to the wall. If it matters, the first floor joists are running parallel to the wall on the second floor as well.

Thank you for any assistance you can provide. I'd rather not take this wall down only to find myself sleeping in my attic during the next big storm.

Probably not load bearing because:

This wall runs parallel to the ceiling joists (doubt they are trusses in an 1892 house), and
it doesn't seem to have load-bearing structure below (though it's possible there's a bearing beam underneath, inside the floor/ceiling).

Of course, if you want to be sure you should have it inspected in person by a builder or engineer. They will want to confirm that any load above this wall is adequately supported by other structure. They may also do some less scientific testing like attempting to wiggle the wall studs. Both forms of inspection are helpful because in old houses, sometimes things are modified or settle such that even members not originally designed to be load-bearing end up carrying some load.

Even if all signs point to the wall not bearing significant load, be careful when starting to demolish it. If your saw binds up while cutting through a stud, that's a sign there is compression load on that stud and you should stop and shore up the structure before continuing demolition.


Is cork an effective solution to reverberation problems? I own a small English language academy in Spain. After a rebuild last summer I find that problems with reverberation persist. This is at its worst when less people are present but I'm looking for a permanent once and for all solution that hopefully doesn't involve sticking ugly panels or carpets to the walls.

I am thinking about putting down an 8 mm thick, glue down tiled cork floor. Also 8 mm cork panels on the walls, perhaps a 150cm strip around three walls of the classrooms' circumference. This hopefully would cut reverberation to 0.5 seconds or less.

Does anyone have experience of such an undertaking with regard to reverberation?

No, not by itself. You're dealing with a spectrum of sound, cork will only partially absorb a portion of the spectrum. It will certainly improve things, depending on the existing wall surface. Also, don't forget the ceiling contributes more to reverberation than the floor.

Absorbent materials is one way to control reverberation. Another is altering the surface angles to eliminate parallel surfaces. This is why many concert halls have those odd zig-zag wall surfaces. This is also why heavy draperies are effective, besides significant absorption, what sound is reflected is done at random angles. It's certainly debatable whether these treatments are attractive or not.

You would be best served by using a variety of strategies to better address the full sound spectrum. Do not rely on one material, use a variety on every surface. Anywhere you can, even if in only a few spots, disrupt the straight walls with something with different surface angles.

Corners are also strong reflectors. Placing tall architectural or sculptural elements in corners would be beneficial. Also consider the wall/ceiling corners. Certain indirect lighting or sizable crown molding in this area will also help. While you wouldn't want a totally random hodge podge of materials for aesthetic reasons, a tasteful variety would be more attractive than every surface covered in cork, IMO. I like cork too, but not on everything! :)


My radon manometer has a red reading, what should I do? We purchased a home a few years ago and it has a radon mitigation system. I just happened to go downstairs and look at it and noticed this reading. What should I check? Should I be alarmed?

EDIT

Thank you for the link to the manual. The fan is on a pipe coming out of the house and is plugged in to the outlet on the side of the house. I can't tell (tried both listening and feeling for vibration) if it's running and I checked to ensure that the breaker hadn't been flipped.

As for checking the oil - I haven't quite been able to figure out how to do that.

To check if the fan is working, you can put a plastic bag over the end of the exhaust pipe and see if it inflates.

Gauge oil is just the orange fluid that goes in the manometer (pressure meter) tube that indicates the pressure difference being driven by the fan. If it is missing or low, then it could give the negative reading. It should go to zero when the fan if off (as long as the wind isn't blowing too hard).

Even if the bag inflates, it may not be creating a strong enough pressure difference, so you should make sure there is the proper amount of gauge oil in the manometer.


Max load on a 30Amp Sub Panel 1st post so go easy :-) and hoping someone can help.  I am currently investigating the feasibility of this and whether to approach an electrician on it (i.e. is it even possible without massive rework).
I have a 100Amp main panel which has a 30Amp breaker connected to a sub panel in another part of the basement.  Wiring etc. all looks good and right gauge.
The sub panel used to power a small workshop but I want to add a laundry room in the basement.  Additionally there is no dedicated oven circuit and as this sub panel is closest to the kitchen (underneath) I would like to run an oven circuit.  All in then this equates to:

Lights: 15A
Outlets: 15A
Washing Machine and Dryer: 20A (it's a gas dryer currently but I would like to add future support for an electric dryer (30A)
Oven: 30/40/50(?)A
Electric Dryer (Optional!): 30A

From what I've researched this would be too much for the sub panel (if all items where on at once) as it's only a 30 amp panel.  Is this right?
I my pretty sure the sub panel lights and outlets (which service a small area of the basement only) can be wired to the existing basement lights and outlet circuits which could reduce it by 2 x 15A (I think this small section was wired this way to prevent ceiling tracking.  Would this make it more feasible?)
Photos (click to enlarge):
Current Sub Panel

Main Panel

Small Extension Panel beside Main panel

The plot thickens lol (im ditching the oven circuit for now for ease of understanding but will likely look at full upgrade anyway)
So turns out in the sub panel off the main panel there is a cable for the dishwasher and washing machine already!  So i figured as the washing machine one goes over the same area of the basement i want to move the laundry room too i could pull it down and use it but now it gets odd.  It seems like (from my research) this is wired as a split phase shared neutral (as per here: Term to describe two circuits run through one /3 cable) and in the receptacle i can see an entry and exit wire so i assume the exit wire goes off to the dishwasher.  The wiring in the panel is odd.  There seems to be 2 double pole breakers, one is 15A/15A the other is 15A/20A!  The wires are split between them.  Is there any easy way these can be split back to single dedicated lines? (excuse my horrific diagram)

Well we don’t add breakers for the total. Your example a 30 amp feed with a 30/40/50 amp oven and a dryer would exceed the load calculations for a 30 amp feeder this is true a 50 amp oven alone would trip the 30 amp breaker if both elements were on.
But I could put 5ea 20 amp 120v  circuits  and be fine even with the total being 100 amps of 120, how could this be?
The actual load is what is used in the calculation and don’t forget 30 amps at 240 is 60 amps at 120.
Now to see if you can use some of your existing gear to do what you want.
Check the size of existing sub panel if it is 60 amp or greater it is likely you can upsize the wire and breaker from the main (I would keep the gas dryer).
if you go with a oven at 40a or smaller a 60 amp sub could do this with what you have listed with the gas dryer.
Where you could run into problems is the 100 amp main with gas heat dryer and oven 100 amps is a no brainer.
But convert these gas over to electric and your service will need to be upgraded here is an example of the ovens I have measured they run ~38 amps, dryers 24 amps and both of these are 240v loads so right there you are at 62 amps of true load, add another 13 for lighting and outlets (13 amps each leg) in this “small area” and you are up to 75 amps of load at that level most electricians would be adding a 100 amp sub.  Is the rest of your house only drawing only 25 amps? So with all you want sure it could be done and if you want to learn and your state allows it you can add the sub.
Many states allow you to even set your main panel. With code updates a new main panel that turns your existing main into a sub may be the best route, then pull from the new main or old main to feed the new area sub. Or sub of a sub.
Your question is quite broad and I tried to give you the info needed to decide if you can do it or hire it out


How can I quiet down a clothes dryer? Our clothes dryer is currently working; it gets up to and maintains heat, no shuddering, dries clothes, etc. However, it is louder than it used to be. It is an older unit (Whirlpool Dryer LER4624DQ0), bought second (or third?) hand. The noise is a squeaky kind of maybe-rubbing (?) noise. Here is a site with exploded diagrams of the model.

Short of disassembling the dryer, what can I do to help quiet down the unit? Is there any maintenance I should be doing that might help it be quieter?

I found one answer, that it may be the main bearing on the on the drum or one of the roller guide wheels of the drum. It didn't speciy how to oil them though, if that might be the case, what should I use? Another suggestion was to soap the serpentine belt, but I am having difficulty figuring out if they mean undoing the entire back assembly behind the bulkhead.

I think your earlier info about main bearing or roller guide wheels sounds good. Let me recommend RepairClinic.com, they have a section there on repair help, common problems, and specifically noisy dryer. They typically recommend replacing guide wheels, etc, for noise issues. Let me recommend AGAINST soaping the belt. That sounds like a bad idea. If the belt is what transfers motor power to the drum, to spin the drum, soaping it (which would reduce the friction) sounds very bad indeed.
Hope this helps.


What wire and conduit is required for an attached-garage subpanel? To make my garage more usable as a workshop, I'm planning to add a subpanel which can feed a number of additional outlets. 60 amps would be plenty for my current needs, but I'd like to go with 100 so I have the option to add an electric heater, or possibly a welder.

My garage is attached and I've found a path for the feeders that is about 40' long. What I've found so far leads me to believe I need #3 copper THHN wires, plus a #8 ground. Does that sound right?

I've also gleaned that these need to be enclosed in conduit, but I'm having a harder time nailing down the specifics for that. I'm thinking plastic conduit would be easiest for me to work with, but do I need a specific type? Also, it will be routed out through the rim joist into the exterior garage wall built with 2x4s, so max hole size is 1.4".

I love that you're putting a subpanel in your garage.

When you go to buy wire, check the price of aluminum. Last time I did this, I went looking for #8 copper, and got #2 aluminum at 1/2 the price. That was a bundle of 2-2-2-4 SER (service entrance) rated for direct burial, but I put it in conduit anyway.

Your finding that #3 copper will carry 100A looks right to me.

The conduit you want is schedule 40 gray. You'll also need a male adapter at the main panel + a lockwasher + a plastic bushing.

1.4" will allow a max 1" nominal conduit. Big wires are stiff, so bigger conduit is better. You might be able to run one size larger conduit + conduit bodies, and then drop the size just at the garage wall.


Drain trap leaking at compression joint After finally resolving a leak at the connection of the wall tube to the stub out (see the brass waste adapter), I installed a new p-trap to resolve a leak connecting the j-bend to the wall tube. However, the new PVC p-trap leaks at this same spot (see below) as well. I've tried "resetting" it several times. The threads are not crossed. There is no washer (it's built in), but again, it's a p-trap so it should be in good shape.

What am I doing wrong? The leak is very slow. There will be only one or two drops after and hour or so but it seems no matter what I do, I can never get a complete water tight seal. I've only hand tightened, but I've tightened it pretty damn hard for hand tight. Should I take a pipe wrench to it? Is the trap just junk? I realize the flexible traps are frowned upon in the plumbing community but after installing the waste adapter, the rigid trap no longer aligned well with the sink tail pipe.

Try loosening the chrome nut at the wall and then reset the trap and tighten it up. I know "they" say to hand tighten but if the two pieces don't line up perfectly, then a little help is needed. Give it an extra eighth of a turn with a pair of Chanellocks, making sure you're not cross threaded and then tighten the chrome nut at the wall.


How to wire a 220V to 12V transformer I hope here I'll find an answer I'm looking for. Today I bought transformer from 220V to 12V, but the problem is that I have no Idea how to attached wires. Can somebody help me? here's the picture of device:

Unscrew the cover and you'll see 2 sets of connectors/terminals. One set for primary, one set for secondary. Connect 230V to terminals marked as primary (at the top of the picture), and the second set of terminals is for 12V AC output.


How can I coat a garage apron slab to make it smoother? I'd like to smooth out a square concrete slab at the front of the garage. This concrete serves as a part of a driveway. The floor coating needs to cover the gaps and offer a smooth surface for rollerblading.

I was thinking using some type of Epoxy coating but I'm not sure if Epoxy is the right solution for rollerblading. What would be the best coating to use that can withstand cars driving over it and also offer smooth treatment for rollerblading?

There is a product called "concrete resurfacer" which I would vaguely equate to "the concrete version of asphalt driveway sealer" - don't use asphalt driveway sealer on concrete...

You first patch any actual damage, then mix up the resurfacer into a slurry of specified consistency, and squeegee it onto the dampened slab to fill in the minor imperfections. You can give it a finish from troweled smooth to brushed non-slip.

These products should not be used to fill expansion joints - those can be filled with flexible rubber caulking compounds made for the job, if filling them is required.


Is a bathroom required by code to have a window or exhaust fan? The Fort Lauderdale, Florida unit is on the top floor and there is a duct for the unit's central air in the bathroom, but it doesn't have a window or exhaust fan. Is this not to code? What are my options if an exhaust duct isn't available or the association doesn't allow installing one? The condo has been completely remodeled and I'm afraid the bathroom (or the rest of the unit if I have to leave the door open) will get ruined in no time without a proper exhaust for steam, since the weather here is already constantly humid.

Codes differ between areas and across time. The International Residential Code requires SOME form of venting, either a fan exhausting to the outside with at least 50CFM or a window with at least 1-1/2 sq. ft. of opening area. Whether or not your locality adopted those standards at the time your condo was built is not something we can help with. But code or no code, an un-vented bathroom (with a bath or shower) is a bad idea and ESPECIALLY in a humid part of the world.
"Ventless" bathroom fans are only for fart control by blowing the air through a carbon filter, they have zero effect on humidity and the likelihood of mold and mildew formation.


How important is EZSteer feature in a Snow Thrower? I am in process of purchasing a snow remover/thrower. I have a 2 car driveway, about 1.5 car in length. I am in northeast region and looking at last few years stats, we get 12-14 inches of snow at least 5 times a year. For cleaning my driveway and curb, I am looking to purchase a Sears Craftsman snow remover/thrower. I wanted to know how important is the EZSteer feature provided in some higher model snow throwers as compared to ones that do not have. The snow removers with EZSteer feature are about $200-250 more expensive.

Based on the answers I got so far, I think big snow blower is a relative word. I was talking about a 24 inch  vs 26 inch with EZSteer snow throwers.

A big snowblower can be a lot to horse around in the snow, with slippery conditions underfoot. Remember, you will be turning the thing around at the end of each pass. So much depends on how strong are you, and how heavy is the snowblower.

Even with my little 24 inch Toro, at times it can take some effort to drag it around after I've done 150 feet of driveway, plus a turn around area, plus my neighbor's driveway. Admittedly, I only use the snowblower when the snow is too deep/heavy for the tractor to push, so when I do need to use the snowblower, it is a heavy day for snow.

Is it worth the extra money? That depends on you, the depth of your pockets, etc. I definitely suggest trying it out. Can you turn it easily enough? Don't forget that you will need to do so outside in the blowing snow, multiple times. A little exercise is a good thing of course.


Troubleshooting of lamp which refuses to work after bulb change The lamp on the ceiling of my living room consists of two bulbs. One of them recently got broke, so I removed it, checked it, and bought a similar one (60 W all of them). I fixed the new one, and now both of them refuse to work, even the existing one. Also removing the new one again doesn't help.

The fuse is fine. How can I troubleshoot this problem?

Edit: I found it's actually a circuit breaker, not a fuse. Just in case this makes a difference.

Grab your non-contact voltage tester (you do have a non-contact voltage tester, don't you?).
Turn on the switch.
Move the tester near the sockets (don't jam it in the socket, it's non-contact, remember).

If there is voltage at the fixture, inspect the sockets to make sure the contacts are in the proper position, and clear of debris (remember to turn off the breaker, Before sticking your fingers in the socket).  Sometimes the contact inside the socket can get bent, and prevents the bulb from properly making contact when screwed into the socket.
If no bells and whistles go off.

Turn off the breaker.
Carefully remove the fixture from the ceiling.
Insure that all connections are secure, and properly connected.
Inspect the fixture for signs of arcing, or other damage.
Turn the breaker and switch on.
Move the non-contact tester near the wires feeding the fixture.

If bells and whistles go off, replace the fixture (or have it done by an electrician, if you are not comfortable doing it yourself).  If there are still no bells and whistles, you'll have to move to the switch to make sure it is functioning properly.

Turn off the breaker.
Carefully remove the switch from the wall.
Insure that all connections are secure, and properly connected.
Inspect the switch for signs of arcing, or other damage.
Turn the breaker on, and the switch off.
Move the non-contact tester near the wires attached to the switch.
Turn the switch on.
Move the non-contact tester near the wires attached to the switch.

If there is voltage coming into the switch, but not going out of the switch (when it's on).  Replace the switch (or have it done by an electrician, if you are not comfortable doing it yourself). If there is no voltage at the switch in either position, call an electrician to trace the circuit further.
WARNING
If at anytime during the procedure you see sparks, the breaker will not reset, or you just don't feel comfortable doing any of the steps, please contact an electrician.


How long you can keep gas furnance heater bypassing thermostat Thermostat is broken but needed to heat the house. I decided to jump R and W wires to get some heat this cold night. The question is for how long I can run the heater (gas)? Is it Ok to leave it on for couple hours running? Is it OK to leave it burning gas over night?

The furnace will be safe running for any extended period of time as long as the only problem is the thermostat. The only question is how much heat and temperature can you take, since the living space will get very hot with nothing controlling the temperature. If it were me, I would get the house warm and shut it off and go to sleep. If it gets cold overnight you can get up and reheat the house.


Can you rout plywood? I have some applewood 13 ply 3/4" plywood that I'm using for a desk top.  I was wondering if I took a router to the edges if it would turnout ok.

ApplePly is a brand name for an all-hardwood veneer plywood that is higher quality than your typical construction or cheap hardwood plywoods.  (You may want to confirm that your "applewood" plywood is truly ApplePly).  ApplePly should be similar in quality to baltic birch plywoods and like baltic birch it is not supposed to contain voids.  You can find these higher quality sheet goods at a large lumberyard or cabinet supplier.
A router will work fine on the edges of either ApplyPly or baltic birch.  The glue in the plywood may dull the router bit slightly more quickly than solid wood but if you are only doing one desktop this is not really a factor.
From an aesthetic standpoint, you will be able to see the veneer layers on the edges.  Depending on the piece of furniture this may be what you desire, or not.
additional info and clarifications based on the comments:
As several have mentioned it's a good idea to take several shallow passes rather than try to get it done in a single pass.  This will help give cleaner cut.  What 'shallow' means kind of depends on what the profile and thickness is, but start with about 1/16" and increase from there. Use a carbide bit rather than a cheaper high speed steel one.  Make sure that you understand where the bearing of the bit will be riding, especially if you are profiling both sides.  You should test all of these by working on the scrap edges of the sheet (or other scrap of the same material) before you cut it to final size.  Secure the sheet with multiple clamps if at all possible.  This is for safety and it will also give you more control and a better quality cut.
The direction that you move the router when working is important.  If you are working on the outside edge of a plywood sheet with a handheld router the correct direction is counterclockwise- start on the right and push the router leftwards.  This keeps the cutter rotating against the wood- you will actually have to push the router where you want it to go.  If the router is pulling you along, you are making a climb cut which is useful in some situations but not really recommended for beginners because much more effort is required to maintain control of the router.


GFCI not working, but circuit reads fine? In my kitchen, I installed a GFCI but it will not work if I put one receptacle on its Load. I press reset and see the lights come on, but it immediately trips. If I put the wires in Line only, or remove the receptacle wiring, the GFCI works (so does the other receptacle if it's in Line). I have tried two new GFCIs and they do the same thing. The multimeter shows 120V, and the receptacle tester shows green for both outlets

Here's the set up: Breaker -- GFCI -- Receptacle

What's the deal?

The best way to see if your circuit to your receptacle is bad is to get a piece of romex and a receptacle and make up a test circuit. If you do this make sure all bare screws and wires are insulated and there is no exposure for electric shock.
Anyway connect the new circuit you just made to your GFCI. If the GFCI tripped then you are making it up wrong. If the GFCI resets then you have a wiring problem in your circuit. It may not cure the problem but at least it will point you in the right direction to look for the problem.


Chargers for NI-CD versus NI-MH batteries Is it safe to use an original DeWalt 9 volt battery charger (DW9118) made for NI-CD batteries on a non-OEM NI-MH type 9 volt battery made for DeWalt products?

There is a small, but non-zero, risk of overcharging NiMH batteries when using a NiCd charger.
The charge profiles of NiCd vs NiMH are very similar but not quite the same, since the 'peak' in the NiMH profile is less pronounced than for NiCd.
It's possible that a NiCd charger will miss it and carry on trying to charge a NiMH which is already full.


Is it OK to Pressure Wash Brick I have a brick house and the bricks have what looks like mortar and paint marks on the brick.  I believe they call this a messy mortar look.

I do not like this, but I am wondering if I can have the bricks pressure washed without damaging the mortar.  I had a pressure washing company do a very small area to show that they could get the marks off, but I'm not sure if it would be OK to do this on the whole house.

Does pressure washing brick damage the mortar, or are they better ways to get rid of the paint and mortar marks?

As long as the mortar is not loose or crumbling, it will be fine to pressure wash.

If it is loose and the face of the mortar gets washed out, you might consider re-pointing after the pressure washing.


Can I use spackling paste to "rebuild" part of the wall? I'm on a DIY half bathroom renovation. At first I was thinking about putting tiles on the wall. It's a drywall, which I'm not familiar with, it's painted and I would need to do some preparations to install the tiles.

I decided to sand it, but turns out it seems to have to many patches / joints because I could reach the fiberglass tape in different areas of the wall. So instead of tiles we decided to just repair the wall and paint it.

(Please, advice me if there is any chance that we can install wall to it)

My question at this point is:

Can I use spackling paste to repair part of the wall where it's uneven?
It would be on this area where there are some holes as well.

Thanks!

Joint compound (not "spacking paste") is designed for exactly that purpose. Your repair isn't that different from a typical taping job. One doesn't normally sand that much from a wall.

Use a large knife or trowel (12" or bigger) and taper it out at least that far.


Should I replace ALL the fuses in plugs? In certain countries (for example the UK), plugs have fuses in them.
In most cases, this is a stand 13 A fuse.

My question:

If I know that a device (to which the plug is attached) won't draw even a single Amp of power (or maybe 2amps but definitely less than 3):

Shall I replace the fuse inside the plug with a lesser one? for example: a 3 amp fuse.

Originally, in the UK after BS1363 was introduced, there were 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 10, and 13A fuses but nowadays mostly 3,5 and 13 are used/available.

The plug fuse is to protect the wire between plug and appliance, it is not primarily intended to protect the appliance (which can have it's own fuse or other protections).

So the choice of fuse principally depends on the diameter of the wires between plug and appliance.

However there is nothing wrong with choosing a lower fuse capacity that will also protect the appliance to some degree.


Fence Post Replacement Recipe What tools and materials do I need to replace a fence post?  What steps should I follow?

For example, a fence post in the middle of a 6-foot tall wood privacy fence.  Each panel has two 2" x 4" (nominal = 1½" x 3½" actual) rails.  The ground is topsoil over a mix of sand, silt, and rocks.

Tools:

Safety equipment

Eye protection (such as wrap-around sunglasses)
Hearing protection (such as ear plugs or ear muffs)
Dust mask

Facilities

Dry, well-ventilated work area (for working with wood preservative and/or caulk)
Sink (for cleanup)

Measuring tools

Level (such as a meter-long spirit level)
Tape measure or carpenter's rule
Long string or twine (a couple feet longer than needed to stretch between the nearest good fence posts)
Pencil

Containers

3 five-gallon buckets, with lids (for holding crushed rock and waste concrete)
Tarp(s)
Caulk gun (The Spruce explains two types of caulk guns.)
Reusable cap for caulk tube

Digging tools

Narrow tamper / digging bar (such as a 16-pound Collins Axe tamper / post hole digger)
Shovel
Trowel (such as a bulb planter)

Fastener adders and removers

Claw hammer (such as a 16-ounce claw hammer)
Miniature crow bar (such as a 14-inch Estwing nail puller)
Phillips-head screw driver (if any Phillips-head screws need to be removed from the fence)
Flat-head screw driver (if any flat-head screws need to be removed from the fence)

Cutting tools

Scissors
Knife (such as a carpenter's knife, snap-blade knife, or Exacto knife)
Saw (such as a hacksaw)

Disposable tools

2 Disposable work surfaces (such as corrugated cardboard boxes)
Disposable paint brush (if your fence post was cut after being pressure treated)
Disposable finger bowl (such as a cut-down yogurt cup, for handling the edible mineral oil)
2 Disposable pairs of gloves

Materials that do not become part of the fence

Lava soap
Dish soap
Edible mineral oil
Paper towels
Small plastic bag (for disposing of trash)
Painter's tape (such as 1 7/8" painter's tape)
Refreshments (such as water and/or Gatorade)

Materials

4" x 4" (nominal = 3½" x 3½" actual) pressure-treated fence post rated for ground contact, approximately 40% longer than the above-ground height of the fence post.  (Many lumber yards carry fence posts in 2-foot increments, such as 6', 8', 10', and 12' long, and will shorten the posts if requested by the customer.)  For example:

above     total       hole
ground    length      depth
8'6"   -> 12' long    3'10"
7'     -> 10' long    3'4"
6'     ->  8'8" long  3' (8'8" is often cut down from 10' long)
5'     ->  7' long    2'4"
4'     ->  6' long    2'4"

Liquid wood preservative (if your fence post was cut after being pressure treated, such as Copper Green Brown)
1 pair of Fence Fins
30" Small diameter rubber tubing (such as 5/32" ID windshield wiper vacuum hose)
Adhesive for bonding rubber to metal (such as butyl rubber caulk)
36 1½"-long galvanized nails (such as heavily galvanized #8 nails)
8 small metal angle brackets (such as Simpson Strong Tie part A21.  Use another 8 if you need to apply angle brackets to the other ends of the fence panels.)
5 - 15 gallons of 5/8" minus crushed rock (exact amount depends on how much concrete is removed from the fence post hole and discarded)
The dirt that you will remove from the fence post hole.
0 - 2 gallons of extra topsoil, if needed.  (For example, a Special Garden Mix.)

Steps

If required by state or local law, Call Before You Dig, at least two full business days ahead of time.  In many U.S. jurisdictions, this phone number is just 8-1-1:  as a free service, the local utility companies will graffiti your yard near where they think their underground utility lines are buried.  (You can request that they use flags instead of spray paint, but they will probably spray paint anyway.  Eventually the spray paint will wear off.)

(Steps 2-5 make sure that all surfaces of the lumber are preserved.)

Wear a disposable pair of gloves when handling the wood preservative.  The wood preservative is toxic, and hard to clean off.
If your lumber was cut after it was pressure-treated, apply wood preservative to the cut surfaces of the lumber.  Follow the word preservative manufacturer's instructions.  In particular, perform the work in a dry well-ventilated area, and use a temporary work surface to catch any drips.  Use the disposable paint brush.  Copper Green Brown is toxic, smells nasty, and creates stains.  The items treated with Copper Green Brown will smell nasty for weeks (but eventually the smell fades away), and the brown color is not necessarily permanent.
If you applied wood preservative, allow the preservative to soak in (per the manufacturer's instructions) before installation.  Copper Green Brown needs at least 48 hours to dry.
Paper towels, Lava Soap, edible mineral oil, and dish soap can help you clean up after working with the wood preservative.

(Steps 6-19 "glue" rubber strips onto the exposed top edges of the Fence Fins.  This reduces the chances of someone cutting themselves on the Fence Fins after the post is installed.)

Apply two short pieces of painter's tape to each Fence Fin.  Each piece should be on the part of the Fin that has the holes, along the top edge, touching the gentle bend that marks the edge of the part with the holes.  The purpose of the these pieces of tape is to avoid getting caulk on the part of the Fence Fin that will be nailed to the fence.
Use the scissors to cut the small-diameter rubber tubing into four pieces, each 7½" long.  (Each piece should be slightly shorter than the distance from a Fence Fin's sharp bend to the Fence Fin's gentle bend.)
Unroll the small-diameter rubber tubing, so that it is approximately straight.  If it has a residual curl, let the ends point upward.
Working on the other disposable work surface, slice through one side of the rubber tubing.  Make the cuts be straight lines, preferably on the shorter side of each tube's curl.
Wear the other disposable pair of rubber gloves while working with the butyl rubber caulk.  (Butyl rubber caulk is very hard to clean off of one's hands.)
Follow the butyl rubber caulk manufacturer's instructions to open the caulk.  (Typically, this requires using the knife to cut off the tip of the caulk tube, using the caulk gun's rotatable needle to prick the inside of the caulk tube, cleaning the needle with a paper towel, rotating the needle out of the way, and mounting the caulk in the caulk gun.)
Fill the inside of a piece of rubber tubing with the caulk.
Press the rubber tubing onto the top edge of the Fence Fin, between the sharp bend and the gentle bend.  The slit in the tubing should face the edge of the Fence Fin.
Apply a bead of caulk to each side of the tubing.  Use a gloved finger to "tool" (smear) the caulk along the line where the tubing meets the metal.
Use short strips of painter's tape to strap the tubing down to the Fence Fin.  The strips should go at curved parts of the top edge of the Fence Fin, a couple inches in from the ends of the tubing.
Repeat steps 12-15 to apply the other three pieces of tubing to the other three long top edges of the pair of Fence Fins.
When done, remove the caulk tube from the caulk gun, and apply a reusable caulk tube cap to the caulk tube.
Butyl rubber caulk will remain sticky for a long time.  Be careful when handling the Fence Fins.
Paper towels, Lava Soap, edible mineral oil, and dish soap can help you clean up after working with the butyl rubber caulk.

(Steps 20-23 record where the fence post was installed, so that you can put the new post in the same place.)

Tie the string to the tops of the nearest good fence posts.  Pull it tight, and make sure you know where the string is at the top of each post.  (This will help you put it in the same place later.)
Use the pencil to mark where the string crosses the fence post to be removed.
Use short pieces of the painter's tape to mark the edges of where the fence panels's slats and 2x4s touch the fence post.
Take down the string.

(Steps 24-29 dismantle the old fence post.)

Wear eye protection and hearing protection when bashing or pulling things with hammers and/or crow bars.
Use the claw hammer, miniature crow bar, and/or screwdriver(s) to remove the nails and/or screws that attach the fence panels to the fence post.
If you need to replace the fence post because it is rotten and/or leaning, the fence post may fall over once the panels are detached.  If not, try pulling out the fence post.
Use the trowel and/or shovel to peel the lawn back from the fence post, to reveal any concrete that the fence post was set in.
Use the tarp(s) to protect the lawn around the fence post.
If the fence post was set in concrete, repeatedly slam the sharp end of the digging bar into the post and concrete to break them up.  (This may make sparks.)  Alternate shattering the concrete with prying and digging out the concrete shards.  Put the buried fence post pieces in a pile on the tarp.  Put the concrete pieces in another pile on the tarp.

(Steps 30-43 install the new fence post, but do not attach it to the fence panels.)

Install the Fence Fins on the fence post.

Place the Fence Fins so that their tops will be about 4 inches below ground.
Before nailing, verify the position of the Fence Fins.  For example, an 8'8" fence post that will be 6' high should have the Fence Fins between 1'8" and 2'4" from the bottom end.
Before nailing, verify that both Fence Fins have the tubing on the top side.
Follow the manufacturer's instructions in other respects.
This will use 16 nails, because not all of the holes should be filled in.

Dig out the hole, so that it is about three times the diameter of the fence post, and about 4" deeper than the bottom of the fence post.  (It needs to be wide enough that the dull end of the digging bar will fit between the fence post and the side of the hole.)
Extend the hole along the line of the fence so that the Fence Fins will fit.  These triangular extensions of the hole will need to be about 12" deep.
Fill the bottom 4" of the hole with the crushed rock.
Use the dull end of the digging bar to compact the crushed rock.  (Basically, beat on the rock until the rock stops settling.)
Reinstall the string, in the same place as before.
Place the fence post in the hole.
Adjust the fence post's height, so that its top is the desired height relative to the string.  (This might require adding crushed rock beneath the post, or removing crushed rock from beneath the post.)
Squeeze the fence post between the adjacent panels, to make sure that the post is in the right place horizontally.
Use the level to make sure that the fence is vertical.
Add another 4" of crushed rock at the bottom of the hole.  Compact the rock.  Repeat steps 36-38.
6" at a time, repeat steps 36-39 until you have added enough crushed rock to make up for the concrete you removed.
6" at a time, add the dirt you removed.  Try to put the dirt you got from the bottom near the bottom, and the dirt you got from the top near the top.  Repeat the compacting and measurements every 6".
If you need extra material, use the extra topsoil.

(Steps 44-49 attach the fence panels.)

Use the claw hammer, miniature crow bar, and/or screwdriver(s) to remove one fence panel slat from each panel.  Remove the slat that is next to the fence post.
For each fence rail, align two angle brackets on the fence post.  Align the angle brackets so that one is just below the top edge of the rail, and the other is just above the bottom edge of the rail.  Leave a gap between the brackets that is big enough that you can easily nail in the slat.  Put the long side of the angle bracket between the rail and the (missing) slat.  Put the short side of the angle bracket between the post and the end of the rail.
Remove the string and painter's tape that you used to help align the fence panels.
Attach the angle brackets to the fence post.  (This will use 2 nails per angle bracket, for a total of 8 nails.)
It is possible that one panel's rails will need to be slightly shortened.  (Perhaps the new fence post is not in exactly the same spot as the old one, or perhaps it is rotated slightly differently, or perhaps the fence post is slightly wider, or perhaps the extra thickness of the angle brackets does not quite fit between the rails and the post.)  If needed, use the saw to shorten the rails, so that they fit.
Attach the fence panels to the angle brackets.  (This will use another 2 nails per angle bracket, or another 8 nails.)
Reattach the two end fence slats to the fence panels.  (This will use another 4 nails.)

(Step 51 is a finishing touch.)

If the old fence post had a cap, remove it from the old fence post and put it on the new fence post.  If the cap is in poor shape, replace it.


use 2 pole circuit breaker for both basement light and plug I am doing my basement partitions from scratch and i am doing also the electrical wiring. I have check in the electrical panel board and they have put 2 pole breaker in the plug in the basement. Can i use it other for my lights in the basement?

Depends what you mean by "2-pole".  There's real 2-pole breakers, and then there's double-stuffs (twin, duplex, tandem).  Not the same at all.

It's always OK to run 2 simple circuits -- i.e. each circuit has its own cable and the cable contains its own dedicated neutral.

However, if the 2 circuits are in 1 cable and share the neutral, it must be a 2-pole - a double-stuff will overload the neutral and potentially shock installers.

If the breaker is a true 2-pole, then they will common trip, meaning if one overloads it will trip the other.  There's nothing wrong with that, but it might be a nuisance.

If the 2 circuits do share the neutral, that is called a multi-wire branch circuit.  Common trip isn't required, but common maintenance shutoff is... and a 2-pole breaker does provide that.  In fact, that's what we recommend for this type of circuit, because a 2-pole breaker is the easiest way to do it!   Further, this is the only way to do GFCI on this type of circuit.


Weird transient leaking faucet/tap I have this mixer tap which has recently developed strange symptoms:

It leaks for a little while after every time we use it, with a kind of gurgly emptying noise. What's strange is that it will also do this when someone upstairs or downstairs (we're in an apartment block) turns their water on. On top of that, it doesn't seem to make much difference whether it's the hot or cold which is turned on.

I've tried having a look inside to see if I could replace the washers, but I can't actually work out how to get much further in. Taking the C-clip out doesn't seem to make the cartridge release, and the brass fitting looks/feels like it is welded (originally or by age?) to the body.
Any ideas on possible causes and possible solutions?
(NB: not in the US)

This was the culprit.
It had a leak in, and for some reason was effectively syphoning all of the water out of the spout. Which explained the gurgling.

Before discovering this, I did change the washers. As @JimStewart said in his comments, the whole of the brass thing unscrewed and the washer/plunger was underneath.


tandem breakers with shared neutral please I hear that shared-neutral or multi-wire branch circuits (MWBC) can have issues when used with tandem breakers (also called duplex, twin, cheater or double-stuff breakers). my breakers shown in pic have a shared neutral ?

Tandem breakers in the photo sharing a neutral is a code violation! But may not have been when installed. A quad or double tandem is the only one that can share a breaker if handle tied as the quad breaker bridges 2 poles.
With your current setup the neutral is not doubled as is common because at least the circuits were split, but they are not handle tied. And this has been code for a while.
My jurisdiction has required handle ties for ~20 years. I think the NEC has only required them for ~8 years so if your home is older there is nothing unsafe with the install with regard to overloading the neutral.
The issue with your configuration is if you turn off the top breaker to work on that circuit and the bottom circuit has a load you can get shocked from the neutral.
So you don’t have a fire hazard as is common with tandems but they don’t meet current code because of the lack of handle ties.
I do not know if there are ties for duplex to turn them into quads I have only done the center pair not the outer pair but I know quads are sold just not sure about a quad 15 with ties.


What's with this weird kitchen 120V circuit with 240V on it? Duplex outlet with 2 hot blacks, one hot white, a neutral and a ground. Oh yeah, connected to two breakers too. Can anyone help me unravel this mess?
I was planning to switch out this kitchen outlet to a GFCI when I found this mess. Two hot blacks, and two whites (one of them hot) spliced and then connected to the neutral side. I'm not sure what to do, but I'd like to have a GFCI on this outlet.
Upon testing with a multimeter, I got the following readings:
Ground to Black 1: 121.5
Ground to Black 2: 115
Ground to Hot White (which it was spliced to): 119.6
Ground to Neutral: 0
Black 1 to Black 2: 236
Black 1 to Hot White: 240
Black 2 to Hot White: 2.8
When I turn off breaker 2, and leave breaker 1 on, I get the following readings:
Black 1 to Ground: 0
Black 2 to Ground: 115
Hot White to Ground: 119
When I turn off breaker 1 and leave breaker 2 on, I get the following readings:
Black 1 to Ground: 121
Black 2 to Ground: 0
Hot White to Ground: 0
In addition to all this, when I had the wires disconnected from the duplex, all the other outlets in the kitchen (with the exception of one) had a reading of "HOT/GRD REV" on my outlet tester. When the mystery outlet is wired as it was before, all the same outlets read CORRECT.
I'd love to get a GFCI outlet installed, and to also know that my house is correctly and safely wired, especially as we have an infant.
Does anyone know what the heck is going on with this outlet?
Here are some photos:

https://photos.google.com/u/1/share/AF1QipN3m5nqBURWY4oN9h7K5CfYLqIIR7ZYJ9MdddSmTmQtP23KN95ig_qnJNaj8L8nBA?pli=1&key=X2FTblhZbzJWRW5XR2JTenJEc09VUU0zMkEtTFB3

It's a Multi-Wire Branch Circuit (MWBC)
Which is a thing that is new to you, and you'll probably need to do some learning about it.  To cut to the chase: To hook up a GFCI outlet here,

note the warning tape on the GFCI that says "Do Not Use. For Wizards Only."  Do not remove that tape. In fact it will be important that you follow that rule anywhere on this or any MWBC.
Most GFCI receps have a mechanism for accepting 2 wires on the LINE screws.  Both black wires go on LINE brass.  The white pigtail (after you put all that back together) goes on the LINE silver. Don't even think about using the "2 wires under a screw" feature to attach the 2 white wires and skip the pigtail. That's a safety issue!
Ground wire of course.
Button it up and you're done.

More on this "Multi-wire branch circuit"
A MWBC is a setup with 2 hots wires sharing a neutral.  The neutral carries only differential current, which can never be larger than the max current on a hot wire.  Thus the circuit breaker is able to protect the neutral.   Certain rules must be followed for safety:

The neutral wire, where shared, must be pigtailed. That way a device can be removed without severing the neutral wire for the other half of the circuit.  As you saw, when you do that, things got wackadoodle.
The two breakers MUST be phased opposite, so there is 240V between them.  That means breakers must be very carefully placed, especially if double-stuff breakers are involved.
The two breakers need to be handle-tied so that turning them off together is compulsory.  You can buy special handle-ties for those breakers, but a far better plan, especially for a novice, is to use a 2-pole breaker.  This has a factory built-in handle-tie, and better yet, it mechanically enforces the correct opposite phasing.
Because neutral is shared, the LOAD terminals can never be used on GFCI receps.  (and novices should not be using them anyway unless they know exactly what they do, and I don't mean "give me a place to land these other 2 wires" :)

You know how many GFCI receps you have to install, and how much they cost.  If you use a GFCI 2-pole breaker, ka-zam! you GFCI protect the entire circuit (both sides) in one step. Not only is this safe, it can also be more economical if you have 4+ receps to replace, depending on the obsolescence of your panel.
Those measurements
The measurements you took were 100% consistent with a MWBC in which an appliance on the other circuit had been switched on.  The red wire is 240V away from the black; imagine there's a resistor between red and "Hot White" (really downline white).  With zero current flow (since you interrupted it), the "hot white" is being pulled up to the red wire's voltage.
I suspect this circuit also has a 240V load somewhere on it; that would act like a resistor connecting red and black.  That explains why supply-side black was 240V away from downline black.   Given that a 240V load is present, you cannot use a handle-tied breaker, and must use a 2-pole breaker. Although a GFCI 2-pole will be just fine.


Can this ceiling box support a 12 lbs ceiling fan? I live in a house that was built in 1999, this outlet currently mounts a light fixture. I want to replace the lights with a ceiling fan but I am not sure if the current outlet box will support the fan.

Sorry, but this junction box is not rated, won't support a ceiling fan. You will have to investigate further to determine how the box is mounted and replace it with a box rated for a ceiling. If you have attic access to this box, replacing it will be easier. If not, it will be more difficult and you might have to remove some of the ceiling around the box to cut it out.


Do I need ductwork for a through-wall exhaust fan? We have a small wine fridge beneath our counter that was having temperature problems because there was no ventilation to allow the heat to exhaust. The other side of the wall behind the fridge is a half bath, so our solution was to cut a hole in the wall and mount a fan which would blow the hot air out into the bathroom (pictures attached) - so far it seems to be working great! My one hesitancy is that in the 5 inches between the fan and the vent, there's no duct work, just open wall, so there's a good chance some hot air is just going into the wall. Is this a problem?

Other than the electrical issues I would not be worried about duct work two much you are pulling the heat out of the fridge so that should if anything pull air through if you are concerned a 2x 4 or 2x6 wedged in the cavity would stop almost all the air flow. I have used listed window fans for air movement through living spaces but never a fan not in an enclosure that is plugged in.


Can deterioration of chipboard damaged by steam be arrested? I have a built-in dishwasher, just below a kitchen worksurface made of Melamine Faced Chipboard.

Steam released when opening the dishwasher at the end of a cycle has started to cause the chipboard to delaminate.

There is an aluminium protection strip, put there by the original professional installer.  This has protected the surface for the past six years.

If the board were soaked and swollen, then it would clearly be a write-off.  However, the damage is slight and, as it is the only bit of damage in the entire kitchen, I would rather not have to replace it if it can be avoided.

Could I glue a protective strip to the underside of the worksurface?  Is so, what material and what adhesive would provide the best protection?

As an aside, in the meantime, we have stopped using the dishwasher.  This will allow the chipboard to become fully dry before any work is attempted.

Once the chipboard has dried out a sealing paint can be used to encapsulate the wood fiber. Once the Melamine starts buckling it is tough to seal unless removed and a new strip installed after sanding filling then sealing.It may be tough to get a close match on the color but this method should provide another 5+ years. You could even use a different color to make a accent strip. standard counter top adhesive contact cement like this will hold the new strip in place if well prepared.


Soundproofing a floor: How about cement backer board w/ Green Glue and mass-loaded vinyl? I've been researching soundproof underlayments for floors, but the selection seems to be very paltry.  It appears that you're pretty much stuck with mass-loaded vinyl (MLV), QuietWood, and a few other sheet-type materials.  The bad part is that these are not as effective as materials used for soundproofing walls and are certainly no good at blocking lower frequencies, so I came across an idea:  What about MLV on my subfloor, followed by Green Glue (GG) then cement backer board (BB)?

I think this would be a very effective solution.  Putting the MLV down first would put a protective layer over the subfloor so I don't get it all gooey with GG.  Instead, the GG would go between the MVL and BB.  After I seal all the BB seams with accoustical caulk and tape, I would then lay my carpet over that.

If BB is too over-the-top, what if I replaced that with simple 1/4" plywood?

The reason the floor materials aren't as effective is because this problem is best solved with an air-gap and a flexible connection spanning that air-gap. But you have a hard time supporting a floor with that air-gap. Therefore, solving this problem via the ceiling below this floor is better, using resilient or sound attenuation channel there.

That said, on your floor, carpeting over Homasote, QuietWood, or some other material will be as good as you'll get on the floor. Since I don't have experience with MLV or GG, I'll defer to others on that. However, the cement backer board seems like the weak link here since that will transmit sound rather than absorb it.


Mounting an electrical box to screws drilled into the ceiling A plastic box junction box shall be mounted to a drywall industrial ceiling with two screws.  The box will be filled with many low voltage wires before it is brought to the worksite (making it very difficult, if not impossible, to screw down from the inside).

Is there a clever method to first screw-in the screws to the ceiling, then mount the box to screws, which are protruding from the ceiling?

You pull the wiring out of the box enough to allow you to attach the screws safely without nicking a wire.  It really helps to hand-drive the screw with care, not just smash it in with a power-driver.

If you don't like all that care, then you use a type of junction box that has ears on the outside, like this.

Or a metal box which, while you do not see any ears, they come in the accessory kit and you can attach them one of several ways.


What's a better option: Half Rounded or k-style gutters? I've been going back and forth about gutters, what size, style and cover I should buy. I recently saw rounded gutters and loved the look. But are they better?

I'm sure you can get extremely specific to how much water each holds, if that is a concern, but that also brings the size of the gutter into play, which can be changed to accommodate your needs.

They're both installed similar ways, easy to work with, so neither is better in any way, it is certainly only a matter of what you think looks better for your application.


Stained Plaster - Waterproof primer before or after patching I have a water stained plaster ceiling. The leak has been fixed. A lot of the old paint has peeled off and needs to be patched. I've noticed a few other patch jobs in this old house that are bubbling up.

I think this is due to moisture. Should I put something like Kilz over the water stain, and then patch and paint? Or should I patch, paint with Kilz and then paint. It seems like if I don't get something between the water stained plaster and my patch compound, it's going to bubble up.

There's no reason to prime in between layers of plaster and patching compound. Just remove any peeling paint or loose plaster and patch with new joint compound. Once the new stuff dries fully, sand it smooth, clean, prime, and paint. A decent stain-blocking primer like Kilz will do fine with an old water stain, but if you have more insidious stains (e.g. oil, knotty wood) you can use a shellac-based stain blocker.

If other patched areas are bubbling, those are signs of recent leaks or moisture. To stop those, you need to resolve the moisture issue. Until that's fixed your walls will continue to fail (and you'll be at risk of more severe damage in your wall structure, electrical, etc.).


Should I be concerned that my sump pail is regularly half full? We moved into a 1960 split-level house in central New Jersey about a year and a half ago and since then I've noticed we seem to have a high water table.  In the sump pit the water level is always about 12" to 18" below the surface of basement floor (always more than half full).  We do have some minor moisture issues seeping through the first few inches of the cinder block walls near the floor (French drain around the perimeter of basement but no weep holes).

The houses on our block do sit at a higher elevation than the rest of the surrounding area and all our back yards have a modest slope downward away from the homes.  There is a sizeable tributary a few blocks from our house, but given our elevation relative to that and the rest of the neighborhood, I don't see how that could be a factor.  Yesterday I talked to my neighbor next door (same style house and age) who said he does not have a high water table and his sump pit is usually empty.  The house on the other side is vacant so I can't get info there.

Is this normal?  Something to be concerned about?  Trying to do my homework now and get an understanding as we'll likely want to properly finish the basement in another 3-4 years.

My last home a daylight basement had a similar issue when we purchased it. A deep French drain in front of the house with drain legs going down the side of the home completely solved our problem along with epoxy coating the entire floor of the lower level. The drain legs down the side of the house were dug 2 ‘ below the foundation level at the bottom and extended a few feet until the slope left the drain open. Perf pipe in a sock and back filled with rock the lower area was always green even in late summer +jhw20.  so I think we had a small spring  or the drain was just very efficient at collecting the rain water as that home is on a very steep hill.
I have had good luck epoxy sealing slabs but not cinder block walls.  Creating a French drain that ties in with the rock under the slab and or foundation and extends below the dump level below the house may eliminate your standing water issue. In my last place I was not sure if we had a spring but the runoff from up the hill was washing out a paved lower driveway and I was adding a new circular one so I added the drain to divert any water around the home and then continued down the hill several feet away from the house but at the bottom corners worked back until hitting the rock. Make sure if you rent a ditch witch on a steep hill to get insurance when you rent , let’s say they will roll down a hill if the bar is not in the trench Oops.


Plumbing not draining after reassembly My sink seal came loose and so I replaced it last night. Before taking it apart to replace, it was draining fine. After putting it back together, it doesn't drain at all, one side of the sink slightly does. With some heavy plunging, some of the water will go down.

What could I have done wrong in assembling it that would make it not drain?

Typically if drain plumbing is not done right, it will drain perfectly fine...  onto your floor.  For it not to drain, means you have a blockage.  Take the parts you fixed apart and do an inspection for any clogs.  If they are free, assume the blockage is farther down the line.  If that is the case, use a hand snake and snake out the drain before you put it back together again (make it easier).  Reassemble and see if it drains.  If it doesn't drain, try snaking again.  Typically the cost of a hand snake is cheaper than calling out a plumber.


What is this strange, linear light bulb? Thanks to previous occupants of my house, one of the bathrooms is lit with a pair of lights that are unlike anything I've seen. The bulb is a narrow cylinder, about 3 inches long and maybe 1/4 inch in diameter, with contacts on either end. The middle is filled with some dark material, and there is a tiny, clear protuberance in the center. It is marked "PHILIPS CHINA," and "130V 2E 150." Below are pictures of it in place and out.

What is this fixture/bulb called?

Why would anyone install one instead of a normal fixture?

Specifically that is a 78mm T3 halogen lamp.

I have one in my bathroom as well and love it because:

The bulbs are pretty cheap.  Usually a couple dollars.  I bought 10 on ebay for $20.
They are BRIGHT.  Much brighter than LED bulbs, and some fixtures can take 200 or 250W bulbs.  For a light over a mirror thats only on a few minutes a day, I dont care about power efficiency, I just want something bright.  A 100W halogen is much brighter than a 100W incandescent or any LED bulb.
The bulbs last for ages.  I have had to replace it once in the last 3 years.
The color of light is better than most LED or florescent bulbs.

There are LED versions available, but most would be too large a diameter to fit in that fixture by the looks of it.

The downside of them is that they get quite hot.  The heat is actually essential to their long life.  Be sure to check for a sticker on the fixture stating the max wattage and not go over that with a replacement bulb.


How to seal a water tap This old water tap leaks a lot, at the area pointed at by the little red arrow.

It does not leak from the spout, but from where the lever enters the housing (sorry, I'm not native english, I hope I'm using the words correctly...).

It leaks only when turned on; when the water is off, it is completely dry. In the past, this did not matter to me, but I would like to use an automatic system with it now, which means that it will be open all the time.

So what do I do? I guess I unscrew the nut where the arrow points, and will then be able to take out the assembly, clean it up etc., but then what? Is it enough to wrap it in hemp and screw it in again?

You may be able to just snug up the packing nut half a turn and be done with it. Otherwise take the old packing washer to your local hardware store and find a replacement.


How to protect non-metallic cable parallel to face of joist in attic? I would like to run non-metallic cable (Romex) along the sides of the floor joists in my attic.  Code (NEC 300.4(D)) says that wires need to be 1.25" from the top or bottom of the framing member.  With my 2x4 joists, this gets me one cable on a face.  What are my options to run more than one cable on a side (i.e. protect the cable because I cannot maintain the 1.25" requirement)?  Code mentions steel plates, sleeves, "or equivalent," but I don't know what I'm supposed to look for.  AC cable doesn't seem to provide the adequate protection that Code requires, either (correct?).  Are there exceptions for attics?  I'm going to fill the attic (eventually) with about 16-18" of blown insulation, and there won't be decking where I'm running my cables.


Does my vanity's sink need to be offset from the bottom-exit drain pipe? I am installing a new sink/vanity in a older house. The drain pipe for the sink is down through the floor (as is the water supply lines) and not in the wall. When I position the new vanity, do I need to offset the sink drain from the floor drain pipe to connect a "P" trap or is there a way to line up the drain and use some sort of special P trap that is designed for floor draining?

Before installing your vanities, have a plumber rule out that you have a functional (or not) drum trap under your floor.  Drum traps are no longer to Code but that's because they can clog; not because they're a safety issue.  No, it does not have to be replaced unless pipe connected to it is replaced.

If you do have a functional (clean and clear of debris) drum vent no offset is required and you don't have to worry about the following:

The maximum distance of a tail piece (vertical drop from drain hole) before reaching P-trap is 24" per IRC 3201.6.

Also, you need to determine how this drain line is vented and where that vent is in relationship to the drain hole.  The issue is velocity of the water and the total length of the drain before the potential of a vacuum is relieved via venting.


Outlets and lighting on covered patio - 240V to 120V I have installed a covered patio and would like to add lights and a couple of outlets.
The current set up is a breaker out there that was set up for a potential AC hookup; it is fed by a 10gauge wire with black and white both having a load of 120V from the main breaker box, which has a 30Amp Double breaker.
My plan is to get rid of the breaker, and use the 10 gauge wire as a regular 10/2 to feed all my electrical needs out there. On the main breaker I would switch out the 30 Amp double breaker for a regular 20 Amp single breaker.
Outside, I would then continue with 12/2 wire that feeds a GFCI outlet, then another GFCI outlet, then a couple of switches. One would go to a regular outlet to feed string lights (or i could just hard-wire the lights) and the other would feed a chandelier.
Main questions:
1; is it ok to go from 10/2 to 12/2 to feed everything?
2; can I install a regular (not a AFCI) breaker for everything since I will use GFCI outlets?
3; can I go from a GFCI outlet to lights without problems?

The fact that you want to connect a GFCI recep downline of another GFCI recep, and you have concerns about feeding a light from a GFCI recep, suggests to me you are unfamiliar with how GFCI "Downline Protection" works.
A GFCI is a device, not a receptacle.  You've been buying combo devices that provide both.  A GFCI device is perfectly capable of protecting anything wired downstream of it (i.e. fed from it).  The GFCI receptacle protects its own sockets, obviously... however it can also protect downstream loads.
You choose that protection (or not) by placing the hot and neutral wires on the GFCI's "Load" terminals (or not).
"But what else would I do?"
If you don't want the downstream to have GFCI protection, stick its hot and neutral on the "Line" terminals also.  (they take 2).
Details:
It's true, traditional receptacles have 2 screws on each side, and they are hardwired to each other (if you don't break off the tabs, that is).  They were intended to be used as a convenient splicing device - supply on one screw, downstream on the other screw, easy peasy.
Somebody does that a lot, then they meet a GFCI.  Two screws on each side, supply gets one, downstream gets the other, just another convenient splicing device, right? Why do they even waste money putting tape on two of them? Does it have writing on it? I didn't look.  Actually, those screws have totally different functions.  The "Line" screw is meant to be both supply and onward connection - it has a feature that lets it take 2 wires.
The "Load" screw is specifically reserved for protecting downstream loads that you want to give GFCI protection to.  It should never be used for anything else.
In fact it is illegal to simply throw all downstream wires onto it.  Why? Because that would result in plain outlets being GFCI protected, and that's fine but they must be labeled with a "GFCI Protected" sticker or it's a Code violation.  You would also be doing yourself a favor to make your own labels that also state where the reset is to be found.
So you should make careful choices with each hot/neutral pair you add.


How do I wire a GE oven that requires 110v + 220v in a 220v-only home? I have GE oven (JB680SP3SS), purchased in 2011. It requires 220v + 110v.

The place I was living in had 110 and 220.

Last year I moved to another city and the place I live it only have 220v.

I brought a handyman and he installed the oven. I did not know why only the burners were working, whereas the control panel buttons don’t work and the clock is just black.

So, I called a local maintenance store and they told me that my oven is an older model that doesn’t have a built-in transformer like the new ones. So, they installed a transformer (10 months ago).

2 days ago, the control panel went black again. I opened the back plate and discovered that the transformer blew up!

I’m thankful that it did not burn my house.

I have a couple of questions, because I don’t know what to do.

Is it true that the new ovens have transformers built-in?

How do I know which transformer to get for safe installation?

P.S. I don’t trust electricians here, as they’re not certified.

This sounds like a case of North American appliances being exported to somewhere they do not belong.

All ovens are 230V-ish devices.  The sticking point for ovens is use of local indigenous incandescent bulbs. Incandescents love heat and are happy inside ovens.  LEDs and CFLs cannot abide heat and cannot work as an oven light.  Incandescents burn out, meaning replacement bulbs must be readily available, and they can use the common household light bulb stock.  Generally there are two styles of oven wiring in the world:

European 230V single-phase.  1 hot and neutral only.  Often a range/oven combo will have 3 hot wires to allow even distribution on 3-phase power. But every load in the oven is 230V; there are no 120V loads.
North American 240V split-phase:  2 hots with a neutral in the middle, giving 120V per "leg".  The oven/range doesn't need 120V. But common hardware store light bulbs are 120V, which means the ovens need to tap 120V for the bulb.  Since they're doing that anyway, why not take advantage of it to use readily available clock mechanisms, electronics power supplies, etc.?  Seems logical.
North Ameri-Euro 240V-only fancy dancy certified organic rich people's ovens/ranges: These are set up 240V only to allow one SKU to operate worldwide.  I have no idea what they do with the oven light.
Common/cheap North American ovens/ranges factory-modified for sale in the Philippines: The Philippines are an anchor of East Asia but have lots of weird shadows of North America.  Half their country has Euro-power, but the other half (the USA-developed older areas) have 120/240V split phase with neutral deleted, because Independence(tm).  But the deal in the Philippines is the oven light wants to be 220V, because that's what home stores there sell.  So when they factory configure an oven for Philippines, they will cross-wire the oven light to run on 230V, then install a transformer to power the clock and digital controls.  Once so wired, the oven will work fine on a) real North American power, b) Phillipine no-neutral power, or c) Euro style power.

"Hacking" an oven as you have, is an idea which I am warm to.  However, the oven light is a real "gotcha".  That transformer appears perfectly large enough for electronic controls.  But it looks too small for an oven light.

Remember if the oven light is 60 watts, you don't need a 60 VA transformer. You need a 120 VA  transformer because all the current is flowing through half the transformer.  Or to be more precise you need a 0.5A transformer; a 60 VA transformer @ 230V is only good for 0.25A.  That is my hunch as to what happened.

The better plan is to rewire the oven light to use indigenous voltage.


Water always coming out of my perimeter drain around my house I have a brand new energy efficient home that was built in 2019 as a part of a new development and of course it has a perimeter drain system with a pipe coming out to the edge of the street.

I just noticed that water never stops coming out of my perimeter drain. All the new houses around me does not have that issue. My house is the only one with water constantly coming out and the builder said there's no issue and in fact it's a good thing that water is always coming out as it's a sign the system is working great.

I'm not convinced since no other houses have the water coming out like mine.
Also when the propane company comes to fill my underground propane tank, they told me the water around the opening is higher than usual.

What could be the issue and how to fix it? My house still within the 1 year warranty so i want to fix any potential problem.

Thank you in advance

There is water in the ground, and the drain is moving the water to the gutter at the curbside. Your builder is correct, the drain is working.

The real question is: where is the groundwater coming from? Have you had a lot of rain lately? Are your neighbors running their sprinklers in the winter? It's also possible that your (or your neighbor's) potable water main is leaking. You also could be the lucky owner of a home that is built on or near a natural spring.

Did your builder do any sort of percolation test or evaluation of the ground water situation?


How can I keep lizards away from my room? How can I keep lizards away from my room? I live in a hostel and I do not want to kill them. Is there a drug that can just repel them?

Get a cat

Get them jobs
I've heard they tend to enjoy selling insurance.

Mothballs?
Mothballs seem to be a popular recommendation.

Garlic: Not just for Dracula anymore.
Ever since Twilight, garlic has lost popularity as a vampire deterrent. Give it new life as a lizard repellent.

Onions
They keep my boss away, maybe they'll keep lizards away too.

Call Captain Kirk


How can I locate the water main entry point to my house? I live in a single story all side brick ranch home in Austin, TX built in 1997.
I am planning to put a whole house water filter to the the main water supply line coming into the house from the water meter. Does anyone know where to look for? I have a suspicion that it might be coming in from the concrete slab, if this is true I do not have access to it. I might have to put the water filter at the cold line going into water heater, so only hot water is filtered. But I am surprised how a builder can build a property without giving a direct access to main water line for future enhancements like installing a water softener or a filter. Just wanted to double check if I am missing something here. Is it better to just hire a plumber if I need to dig into the slab for access to water line?

Update:
I am planning to dig along the exterior wall where I have the outside garden hose spigot, to look for the water line, if I find it then I will drill through the brick wall and bring the line to connect the filters.

Is there a water shut off at the street? Should be a small manhole, maybe 6" wide. You should be able to follow that in a straight line to your house. From that point, inside or outside of your house, you should be able to find a copper pipe and a ball valve. Maybe the copper surfaces above the slab for an indoor shutoff, and you could attach the filter there.


How do I prepare an interior cement floor for painting? I have an enclosed carport that serves as 4th bedroom/den in a 30 year old house. This room has long been used as storage, etc, and is in fairly bad shape.  I'm rehabbing it to serve as a home office, but so that it can still be advertised as a bedroom when I sell the house.  The floor is cement (the house is on a slab foundation), and is fairly well stained with traces of adhesive where the carpet padding was glued(!) down, some stains from dogs (yeah, both), and various other irregularities.  However, the slab itself is in good shape with no cracks, and a few divots from carpet tacks have been filled in and smoothed.

I live in Arizona, and painted or stained cement floors are common, and don't really have any problems regarding resale, so I would like to paint this floor rather than add flooring or carpet. Leaving the slab uninsulated helps with moderating the temperature as well. I think stain would not cover the irregularities well enough.

I've heard conflicting stories about how to prep the floor, etch or don't etch, prime or don't prime, etc.  I'd like to know what the best way of A) cleaning the stains as much as possible, even if they cannot be removed completely (the paint should cover light blemishes), and B) prepping the floor for long-term adhesion of primer and/or paint to avoid peeling or cracking in the future.  This is an interior room, so treatments like epoxy that are appropriate to garages and patios may not be appropriate here.

In case it matters, the room is about 12 X 15, with one expansion joint in the slab, about centered.  There is little to no issue with freezing, and thermal expansion and contraction is less of an issue because of that and the fact that it is an interior room.  This is also a room that sometimes in unusual circumstances gets small amounts of water seeping under the walls from outside (it's Arizona, inside vs outside is a much more fuzzy concept here), and though I am working to cut that off, it may not be entirely possible.

About a year ago, I prepared my concrete floors to be covered first with an overlay and then stained. My situation was a bit different, but I bet the prep needs to be about the same. You can read my blog post about the preparation we did on lauramakes.com.

For your situation, you will want to use a floor scraper to remove anything loose on the floor, like paint chips and the glue, or you won't get your paint or overlay to stick well. I found that wetting down the floor made the scraping go much faster.

You will definitely need to get the carpet glue up. I was interested in non-toxic products, so I looked into two soy based strippers. I tested Soy It, and it definitely worked for paint and is supposedly good for adhesives too.

After you get up the glue, you will need to take care of the grease stains. If you don't, it may show through your paint. The Eco Safety Products support person recommended that we use a floor buffer that you can rent to clean the floor first with orange degreaser and then water. Our grease stains didn't come completely out, but I don't think we found a heavy enough buffer to rent.

I can't really answer much about etching because I decided early on that the process was too toxic for us because we would be living in the house with our pets at the same time as we were prepping the floors.

Anyhow, I hope that helps a bit and let me know if I can elaborate on anything.


structure for DIY float tank I have built float tanks before with wood and fibreglass.
Now I'm living in another country and want to have a tank again, the option I want to build is like the zen float tank.
So I want to know if is possible to build the structure with galvanized tubes?
(I think the float tent has stainless steel)
will this kind of joints will hold?
how are they securing the structure? this needs to be super strong as it will be holding more than a ton of water...
Here link showing float tank design, footprint, etc...
page with info
Tank footprint
Now my question is, can I use just galvanized tubing? do I need to solder some parts? (hopefully easy to disassemble as I'm renting).

The frame is not supporting the weight of the water, but is used to provide a form for the canvas/vinyl that contains the water. Standard galvanized piping threaded into pipe fitting would be quite strong.  You could use fittings like you linked to or standard threaded pipe fitting.  You would need to add more vertical side braces on the sides and ends than in the Zen Design to support the vinyl water bed.  Their design is made with waterproof canvas.
To provide better support for the sides of your water “pond” or bed, I would line the ends and sides of the pipe frame with plywood.  This would provide better side support for your vinyl bed. A sheet of plywood on the bottom would also provide protection to your bottom of your float tank.
With the use of pipe fitting, no "soldering" would be involved.  You would have to use some pipe “union” fitting to complete some of the joints if using standard pipe connectors.  With the connector you linked to, No unions would be required, as those are slip joints, held by set-screws.
Edited to add Additional Notes: Notice that you stated "tubing", and I was thinking about galvanized pipes.  Galvanized conduit used for electrical work could also be used.  The fitting for electrical conduit uses set screws which are similar to the type the Zen used in their assembly and the ones you linked to.  This would be adequate for a float tank with 10” of water.  You would NOT use this type of frame assembly to make a deep spa or a deeper float tank.  Ten inches of water would most likely be your maximum depth.


How to fix a torn steel cable A tree fell on my fence made of horizontal steel cable and tore one. What's an economical way of fixing it that's not too ugly?

If the solution is to replace the entire cable, what is the end piece called and how is it crimped onto the cable?

You are looking at a swaged cable end, specifically a threaded tensioning type of end. Special tools are needed to perform the swaging, especially if the part is stainless. I've used hand swaging tools for aircraft cable, but the fittings are far more malleable than stainless.
But you're in luck, as my searches found swageless cable components specifically made for cable railings, or as in your case, cable fencing.
From the above linked site:

The one thing all of these Swageless Wire Rope Fittings have in common
is that there is no crimping. The swageless fittings that you’ll find
on this page are designed for cable railings. There’s two reasons for
that, one is that they’re Type 316 SS and the other is they’re
designed for normal working load limits needed to tension cable
railing. The push-lock and pull-lock designs are the fastest to
install because you insert the cable and it self-locks with the
internal springs. The other designs utilize a plug (sometimes called a
cone or wedge) which must be manually placed on to the center wire(s)
prior to securing the outer fitting housing. These swageless wire
fittings designed for wire rope fittings are field installed.

You may get away with using a joiner:

or any number of various terminators, including the quick attach stud version:

All images from the linked site.


Plumbing. Compression fitting Shower valve to 3/4" threaded female. Ideas needed Okay, dumb situtaion I got myself into. I'm living in Germany where the pipes for the shower in the wall are 3/4" female. Bought myself a nice shower from England a year ago and went to install and discovered the shower valve is expecting to be attached with a compression fitting over bare 15mm copper pipe. .... And there seems to be no such adapter here. (It would surpise me if there were such a thing).

So, after a great suggestion from the local hardware store I (or rather the missus) soldered up two adapters: 3/4" male on one end, 15mm copper pipe on the other.

The adapters worked great, until I noticed a trickle of water in the basement and realized what had happened. Looking at the wall, the adapter screws in clockwise, but (again looking at the wall) the nut (over the compression fitting) screws onto the shower valve counterclockwise.
Presumably in my effort to make sure that everything was nice and tight, I'd loosened the adapter going into the wall. The adapters we made are solid - the wife knows what she's doing.
(I've attached a sketch just in case my explanation isn't clear).

So right now I'm just looking for ideas:

Maybe there IS some special fitting for this situation?
Maybe using something like Loctite Threadlocker (the liquid stuff, not the teflon thread) so that I don't unscrew the adapter in the wall when I tighten the valve?
Maybe some other metal glue? (I'd like it not to be permanent, just in case I have to remove it someday)
Maybe simply using teflon tape/thread or - as they use a lot in Germany - hemp would give enough extra grip?
Maybe just not tightening so much?
Maybe something I've haven't thought of?

I'd really like to use this shower head. The manufacturer doesn't have a threaded version of the valve. I've searched high and low in the internet and haven't come across a solution - or anyone who had this problem - so I'd be open to any ideas.

Thanks a lot, Angus.

Edit: Forgot to say that the setup makes it next to impossible for me to get behind the valve to hold my adapter with a wrench while I tighten the nut on the valve.

Edit: The pipes in the wall are plastic (not sure the type here in Germany) with brass threaded ends.

I'm no plumber, but here's a thought...

Compress a copper nipple onto the shower valve.  Now instead of the adapter you made, install one of these into the wall:

http://www.screwfix.com/p/male-coupler-15mm-x/82086

Now, place the other end of the nipple (already attached to the shower valve) into the compressed end of that fitting, and to lock down the nipple you will be tightening in the same direction as the threads going into the wall.  So basically you end up with a compression fitting on both ends of the nipple.


Turning on GFCI breaker on subpanel trips main breaker I have a subpanel feeding off a 50 amp breaker. The subpanel contains a GFCI 50 amp breaker which is connected to a new 32amp spa heater. When I flip the GFCI breaker on for the heater, it immediately trips the main 50. Nothing else is connected to the subpanel and the GFCI itself doesn’t trip. I have pulled 40amps from this subpanel while charging my EV.
The spa heater is a Balboa VS501Z.
Any thoughts on what I can check?

Check to make sure your spa heater is configured correctly for 240V operation
The Balboa VS501Z uses a solid-state control board that is configurable for 120V or 240V operation; however, when in 120V mode, it requires a hardwire jumper from neutral to a L2 (red) connection on the board to configure it, as per the manual.  If that jumper is present on a VS501Z connected to a 240V supply, your breaker will trip immediately due to the jumper being a dead short from L2 to N, as you are observing.  (If you're wondering why the breaker in the main panel trips but the breaker in the spa box doesn't trip, that's because what you have is basically a race condition between the two breakers, and whichever wins is determined by factors that are beyond our effective control.)


How do I convert from 3-way switches to dimmers? I'm hoping you can provide me with some guidance on where I'm going wrong with my wiring of my new dimmer switches that I'm using to replace a pair of three-way switches. I've gotten everything wired up, hit the breaker, and nothing happened. No noise, no light, no change when I hit either switch.

Here are some quick, general facts:

Home was built in 2009
Replacing two, standard switches on three-way circuit with dimmer switches
Switches control four incandescent, can lights with 60W bulbs

Here are the manuals for the primary and auxiliary dimmer switches I bought to replace my standard switches:

Switch #1 (Primary) - GE 12724 (link removed)

Switch #2 (Auxiliary) - GE 12723 (link removed)

Here is the wiring diagram showing how the switches are supposed to be set up:

Click for larger view

Here is an album of images showing the wiring for my two outlet panels and the two switches I'm using:

Click for larger view

And here is a description of the numbers/letters in that album:

Outlet #1

Neutral wiring bundle (?) where jumper wire is tied in (one white, one beige - originally capped with wire nut)
Jumper wire included with dimmer switch
Traveler wire to outlet #2 (white - pulled out of original switch)
Line wire to breaker box (black - pulled out of original switch, tested 120V with multimeter)
Ground (bare copper - originally bundled and capped with wire nut)
Unknown - three black wires, unused
Unknown - one black and one beige wire, unused
Traveler wire to outlet #2 (red - pulled out of original switch)

Outlet #2

Traveler wire to outlet #1 (white - pulled out of original switch)
Load wire to light fixtures (black - pulled out of original switch)
Ground (bare copper - originally bundled and capped with wire nut)
Jumper wire included with dimmer switch
Neutral wiring bundle (?) where jumper wire is tied in (one white, two black - originally capped with wire nut)
Traveler wire to outlet #1 (red - pulled out of original switch)

Finally, here is a description of how I had it wired when it didn't work:

Outlet #1 (Setup)

A > 8

B > 2

C > 5

D > 3

E > 4

Outlet #2 (Setup)

X > 16

Y > 14

Z > 13

11 > 12

If I can clarify any of the above or if I need to provide more info, please let me know. Any input you can provide on what I should check or change would be greatly appreciated.

Here's the original switch configuration using the numbers from my original post:

Switch #1 (hot)

3 Traveler #1 (white wire) - brass terminal
4 Common (black wire, 120 V) - black terminal
8 Traveler #2 (red wire) - brass terminal

Switch #2 (load)

11 Traveler #1 (white wire) - brass terminal
12 Common (black wire) - black terminal
16 Traveler #2 (red wire) - brass terminal

Since the existing install is using black wires as grounded (neutral) conductors, you should start by rewiring the original circuit to be code compliant.

Then you'll wire the new dimmers in like this.

With the dimmers installed, you'll have something like this.

You'll notice that T2, that runs from F to DD is not labeled. This is because I'm not sure which wire it is in your photos.


Painting on drywall that has been stripped of wallpaper? We stripped wallpaper off our bathroom wall and found that the builder did not size up the wall first, he papered directly onto the drywall.  We have sanded the drywall best we could to try to smooth out the parts where the drywall paper came off with the wall paper.   I am trying to paint it with flat paint that has a primer in it.  First of all the color is a lot darker than what is in the can and secondly it won't adhere to the trim areas around the cabinets.  There appears to be some sort of spray on the wall.  They also caulked around all the cabinets.  Any advice?

I think you missed a really important step in the process. Anytime I have to remove paper from walls that were not treated with a release sizing before the paper was applied, the drywall paper is usually damaged or lots of glue residue is left behind. I have found that a skim coat of drywall compound needs be be applied, sanded and sealed with PVA primer before painting can be done.

In most cases, a self priming paint is only effective on previously painted walls, but never on new or bare sheetrock. The primer in those paints is designed for hiding old color, not sealing new sheetrock. New rock, skim coated rock, etc., need to be sealed with a quick drying sealer like PVA primer. This type of primer seals the porous surfaces and prevents the moisture in regular paints and primers to soak into the drywall.

The skim coat is actually the key step you missed. do not use untreated regular drywall compound for this job. Modify the mud with a bit of water and some Ivory dish liquid. A gallon of mud with an ounce or two of water and a couple of tablespoons of Ivory is a good formula. Mix well. It will be loose, almost runny. You will find it flows on very smooth without a lot of bubbles with a 8 to 12 knife or trowel. After it dries (8 to 12 hours), sand lightly with a 220 grit sanding sponge. Touch up any areas that still need attention, dry and sand. Clean off all dust with a slightly damp sponge, let dry then seal with PVA primer. You can usually paint in about 2 hours after PVA.

As for the caulking you mentioned, remove as much as you can with a stiff one inch putty knife. Mineral spirits will usually remove remaining residue from the wood cabinets. Remove all of the caulking from the drywall with your knife, even if it takes some of the drywall paper with it. You can repair the divots in the rock with the skim coat as described above.


What is this pressure release drain funnel? In a new construction home, there's some plumbing that I'm not familiar with. It looked like a funnel drain to me. The builder described it as a "pressure release and condensation drain for the furnace and tankless water heater". What I find particularly odd is it looks like there's open space between the white pipe and the black funnel beneath it. Is this normal/appropriate?

It is a Tundish drain which allows the liquid to continue while preventing any reverse contamination through use of an air gap.


Coat interior brick work We have an interior brick wall that we want for seal to stop brick dust.

What is the best way to do this or what product do I need to use?

Depends on the look you want.  If you want to preserve the natural brick use a clear acrylic sealer. Or you can paint it the color of your choice.  Either way, you'll need to clean it well (and let it dry for a while) and follow product application instructions (paint may require a primer) - there are lots of product options available.  Acrylic sealer is a nice look.


Combining polyiso and mineral wool for class A fire rating You aren't supposed to install Polyiso in your house without putting something like drywall in front of it in order to meet fire code, unless you're using something like Dow Thermax which meets fire code by itself.  Generally speaking, could I put mineral wool over the rigid foam board instead of drywall?

It’s complicated. Actually, the Code says “foam plastic insulation” must meet a flame spread index of 75 and a smoke development index of 450. (ICC R316.3) However, there’s an exception for loose fill insulation and insulation more than 4” thick.

So, if the product you are using exceeds these values, you can cover it with various materials, including 1 1/2” min. thickness of mineral fiber insulation. (See ICC R316.4.3)


Hardwired Smoke Detectors, go with sealed battery units or unlocked with lithium 10 year batteries Not sure if this is the right place to discuss and can't find an exact answer in the other discussions.
My smoke detectors were manufactured in 2009 so its time to replace. They are hardwired and linked together which I am planning on keeping so the battery is just a backup.
My question is around the backup battery, does a normal backup battery last longer in these units since they are not supplying power directly such that I could use a 9V lithium for a few years at a time? I'm aware of the discharge curve of these batteries such that once they reach end of life they need to be replaced immediately but I see the risk as relatively low since it is a backup power source.
I know the recommendation is for replacement yearly in both wired and battery powered units, but these sealed units have a supposed 10 year life without needing replacement which I would assume is similar to a normal 9v lithium. Some people say they fail after only a few years so I was thinking by purchasing the models with battery compartments I could easily swap the batteries if need if they fail early but get the same benefit of extended life with lithiums? Does anyone else do the same and how long are they getting out of the batteries?

Looking at the amazon reviews for the Kidde i9010, I do see a fair amount that say it didn't last the ten years.  I also see a comment from 2015 that says the battery configuration was changed from 3 to a single which is apparently more reliable.
For the $20-30 I'd risk going with the manufactured one.  The comments also seem to say that the support is good and free replacements have been sent out where it didn't last the ten years.  I'd hope that whatever the problem was that it has been fixed and they do last ten years.  Since it sounds like there was a problem with the smoke detectors meeting the ten year design it will likely be a while before the old stock is gone and bad reviews stop appearing.  I don't see any reviews newer than 2018 that comment on the battery life.


How to hide AC lines up against brick siding I had this AC system installed, and didn't realize when asked about what location i'd prefer the compressor that it would look so ugly having it off the corner of the building instead of in the middle (due to the AC lines). The return line and electrical conduit are rather large and look rather unsightly as you can see. There was no option of making the lines exit the building right behind the unit without doing A LOT of drywall and interior reconstruction. My front steps are about 5ft to the right of the picture. So this ended up being an eyesore.

Suggestions as to how I make this not look so hideous? The AC installer suggested I get some tin roof gutter and afix it sideways so to cover this. Seems like that would be just as ugly.

Give the ivy a few more weeks, and some compost to help it along.

Wrap the bundle in a mesh to give the ivy more purchase. or put a short section of trellis in front of the bundle/wall for it to grab onto. Disappearing bundle, like magic.

Shrubs if you feel you must, but given the ivy is already working the area, let it work.


3 wire cooktop, 4 wire stove, 4 wire supply - what to do about neutral and ground? The supply has black, red, white and ground. So does the stove. The cooktop only has black, red and ground. What do I do with the white wire from the stove? Connect it to the white on the supply, or combine it with the ground?

Thanks,

Frank

In this case, you connect like to like.

The cooktop does not have a neutral (white) wire.

This is perfectly fine. The cooktop has no 120Volt loads, so it does not NEED a white wire.

[ The concerning case is when an old device has black, red, & white, but no ground (green or bare) ]