Can I backfeed a portable generator into my house's electrical system? Is there a safe way to power my house using a portable generator? The power rating for the generator is 6kW, and I want to run my electric water heater (4.5kW) and my refrigerator (0.5kW) and possibly a few lights.

The water heater is the main priority, but it's wired directly to the house so I can't just unplug an outlet and plug it into the generator.

The method I've heard used most often is to backfeed into the dryer outlet after turning off the main breaker. I'm aware that if I don't turn off the main breaker, I could shock a worker or destroy the generator when the power comes pack on. I also know enough that I have to use a power line rated for the Amperage I'll be drawing. Are there any other dangers I need to look out for?

I had a friend suggest that I deactivate one of the heating elements and thereby reduce the amount of power that the water heater will draw. I'm guessing I'd still need 240V rather than 120, but I'm not sure. It would be awesome if I could just use a 12 or 14 gauge extension cord instead of a really expensive 10 gauge, but I don't want to do anything that will catch my house on fire.

Also, can anyone give me a detailed explanation of steps I need to take for this whole process?

(Any advice would be greatly appreciated. It's been eight days since we've been without power, and possibly 3-4 more until it's restored.)

You know what, I'm going to repeat the answer found here to the same question. Here's that answer, short and sweet and to the point:

ABSOLUTELY NOT!! This is NEVER an option.

You MUST use some form of transfer switch or
interlock, along with the proper male inlet.
Also, a male-to-male cord is called a
"suicide cord" for a reason.

A transfer switch/interlock wired into your service panel is the ONLY LEGAL WAY to do this, and the only safe way.

Look, transfer switches.

Just a few expanded reasons not to do this include:

Check out this story, where backfeeding a generator like this started a fire that burned the generator, the neighbor's house, the neighbor's motorhome, the neighbor's race car hauler, a boat, and an SUV. Fun times, huh?
Check out this post, where a retired lineman talks about how many times he's seen broken main breakers that still let current through even when they were OFF. Yikes.
Backfeeding your generator into your dryer outlet is ILLEGAL, possibly criminally so, or at least totally open to civil prosecution. Tell me that an injury caused by you turning on your generator and feeding power back onto a damaged electrical grid where people are working to repair the lines, and into your neighbor's homes during a crisis won't be actionable? The NEC requires a transfer switch (and not for trivial or capricious reasons). That's good enough for me.
the "suicide cord":

Seriously, do you actually WANT a #10 extension cord energized with 240V/30A strung across your floor with energized metal prongs sticking out the end of it? What if it accidentally gets kicked out of the wall socket or something? A million things could go wrong. HORRIBLE idea.

You'll dump power (stepped up to at least 7,200 Volts by the transformer outside, so it'll go for miles and miles) on the power grid and electrocute a lineman doing repairs.

You, or more likely a spouse, visiting relative, or one of your kids, will forget to throw the main breaker before powering on the generator. Or one of your kids' rambunctious friends will fire up your generator when you're not looking, on some sunny July afternoon.
Guaranteed, especially since the generator will be needed seldom enough that nobody will remember the entire power-up checklist when the time comes.
The whole point of the transfer switch being an interlock is that it only physically permits a connection to one power source at a time.

You'll fry your generator and/or anything with electronics in your home:

When you've inevitably forgotten to throw the main breaker before powering up the generator, and you've been lucky enough not to have electrocuted a lineman, when the main power comes back on there's a good possibility it will backfeed into your equipment and cook it in one way or another (the timing of the 60Hz wave will be different, possibly amplifying the power to much higher levels, etc., other interesting possibilities).

If you do this, and none of the bad things happen to you, that's what we call blind dumb luck and you really shouldn't tempt fate like that more than once.  :-)

Don't do this. It's illegal and just a terrible idea--"Redneck" in the most uncomplimentary way.


Washing machine not agitating (very loud) About a week ago, our washer started making a loud klunk when agitating when it switched directions.  This weekend we noticed that stuff wasn't getting clean.  I started it with nothing in it and after it fills, the agitator barely moves.  I drained it and the agitator seems to spin almost completely free (rarely engages the motor/gears when spun by hand).

So I pull off the agitator and I'm guessing the plastic gear teeth on the agitator is stripped and needs replaced ( ).  I just can't tell if the metal part is also stripped or why it stripped (only about 3 years old).

Should I replace the agitator first?  Or is my ignorance of how this works making me miss something?

Maytag MVWX655DW0

I had a similar issue with an LG. If the basket is overloaded too often, the weight stops the agitator spinning and it eventually strips out the plastic teeth inside, especially when it flips back and forth. I'd imagine it's a design decision and saves on repair costs.

The metal teeth still look in good shape from what I can see. It looks like you probably need part W10609480.

When assembling the washer again, clean the bolt with a wire brush or similar and use a little blue Loctite to stop itself working loose.


Overcoming non standard drawer pull (handle) sizes Every drawer pull in my kitchen is 2-7/8" hole center which is certainly not a common size. I found some 3" that I like (thinking mine were actually 3" center) but unfortunately (and ever so obviously) they do not fit. I can't find any handles online in my current size so I'd like to change my cabinets to 3".  The obvious issue with that is that I will have visible holes in my cabinets because the new handles won't cover it up all the way. Is the any inventive way that I can overcome this issue without unnecessarily replacing my cabinet doors?  Also, I'm open to keeping my existing non standard size if I can actually find some.  Right now that seems impossible though.

You can use color matched wood putty to fill the holes. They'll mostly by hidden by the handles, so it may not look as bad as you'd think.

Minwax Colored Wood Putty


Installing Pendant light with gold, silver and bronze coated wiring I bought some used pendant lights that 3 plastic coated wiring in silver, bronze, and either gold or green.  All the wires are silver.  I'm assuming the wiring is done that way because the wires are somewhat visible in the hanging sheath.  Does anyone know which might correspond to the black/white/grounding wire?

Chandeliers hung on chain and in general have what you are talking about since the cable is going to be exposed and the wiring is visible. We know that the bare wire is the ground. During training to become an electrician you are taught that the neutral is always known as the "identified" wire or it must be identified.

If you look closely at the cordage attached to the fixture you will usually find that one side of the cord one wire has lines or ridges on one side or it may be squared or it may even be a different color (silver) than the hot and the ground. Regardless you will find one wire in the cord that is different or identified. This would be the neutral and of course the normal wire is the hot.

So there you have it, connect the bare wire to the green or bare, connect the identified to the white or nuetral, and connect the last wire to the black or switch leg in the box.


Does joint compound or ceiling texture emit a harmful odor? Preface: My grandmother knows little about Home Improvement or Repairing;
please keep answers basic and explain as if she is 10.

My grandmother lives in a new condominium in Canada, built in 2011 that has Popcorn Ceiling or Stucco Ceiling (hereafter SC), that must be repaired because some water leaked from above.

Yesterday, the craftsperson applied some Patching Compound (similar to these pictures in this article) but has not painted, sprayed, sanded anything yet. He said that nothing should smell and that he must return to complete everything his later this week.

Problem: My grandmother can already smell an odor that she finds difficult to describe, but please comment below if you can describe it and I can confirm or supply more details.
Does this odour harm or impinge on health in any degree?

Before reading your question, I would have said that joint compound is completely inert/ non-toxic/ ready-to-serve. (That last one was a joke, btw.)

Looking at a couple of MSDS sheets for common joint compounds, they seem pretty inert. However, there are suggestions on the interwebs (for all that's worth!) that some joint compounds contain traces of vinyl acetate monomer, acetaldehyde and formaldehyde.

My best suggestion is to request the name of the actual products used, and seek out the MSDS sheets for those products. It's possible that she is sensitive to something in the mix. Having said that, though, these things usually off-gas pretty quickly... ventilating will do a world of good.

If a popcorn/stucco touchup is next, there are a few types of product used, but most common are canned (aerosol) wall texture, and premixed/powdered wall texture that are sprayed on with special equipment. If they opt for something in an aerosol can, you might want to specifically request that they use the water-based version, as oil-based ones are smelly. The spray-on ones are probably as inert as the joint compound used for patching.

If there's respiratory sensitivity due to dust, be aware that sanding drywall is messy and it's either that extreme dust containment is needed, or that your grandmother might choose to leave while work is being done.

Same sort of advice for painting: request low VOC paint (which is quite typical these days), ventilate, or vacate.


shower pan inspection When is a shower pan typically inspected? After the PVC membrane is installed and before the mud deck is put on above this, or after the mud deck and drain grate are installed?

It would be tested for leaks before the top layer of mortar was laid up over the PVC membrane.


Why is my new kitchen faucet banging? Just had new kitchen faucet installed.  When water is turned on I get an annoying banging noise and sprayer jumps around.  Seems there is too much pressure in the sprayer - the pressure in the main sink nozzle is fine.  How can I turn down air pressure in the sprayer hose?  Even when water is off and I turn on sprayer there is a 'burst' of air.  Can this be adjusted?

The first time you turn on the water at the faucet and/or sprayer, you'll likely find that the faucet/sprayer spits and bangs. This is normal, and is simply the air being cleared from the supply lines.

Let the water run for a bit, and you should notice the flow return to normal.

Removing the aerators, and/or other obstructions can help clear the air faster.


How to remove very stuck stripped screws? These things are caught in hard wood. I made the dumb mistake of not drilling pilot holes.
Rubber band trick failed
Screw drill and removal bit failed
JB welding a bolt worked for 2/5. Trying again, failed for the remaining three a third time.
Anything tougher to get these out? Any tricks to get more hold on the jb weld?

Locking pliers, which is the generic term for a class of product often called by the name of one registered trademark (Vise Grips® - no particular endorsement implied, but some of the cheaper knock-offs are quite useless. I believe Mole Grips® in the UK)
You need them clamped on hard enough that they actually bite into the screw head. With that presentation, you'll only get a fraction of a turn at a time. And depending on how hard they are stuck, you might break the screw (at which point you drill around the screw with a hollow bit and remove the wood plug and screw carcass together)


Is my bathroom project prohibited due to a low ceiling height? We would like to install a half bath in our finished basement in Colorado. The issue that I seem to have is that the ceilings are short at only 73". My understanding is that code requires the ceilings to be 80" in front of the fixtures. We can't do anything about the ceiling height, so does this mean that a bathroom wouldn't be an option in our basement?

It may be possible to be granted an exception regardless of what code states depending on the flexibility of the Authority Having Jurisdiction.

Ask the Authority Having Jurisdiction. In other words, ask your local building department or whomever has authority to approve permits where you live to see what they require and whether they would permit such an exception.

For example: When I was finishing my basement, I have a point that goes below minimum required ceiling height for my state's building code. My local building department follows my state's building code. My state's building code is generally based on the International Residential Code, but has a few exceptions (one noted difference in my state is the required minimum height for finished ceiling heights and protrusions when finishing pre-existing unfinished basements). My building department granted me the exception I listed in the submitted plans. This example also shows exactly how locale-specific this question is.


How can I soundproof a sliding bedroom door? Does anyone could suggest a way to completely soundproof a bedroom sliding door? I am investigating on car door system, when door is almost close at the end, it will push against door frame to ensure no space would appear so that it could become waterproof and soundproof, but deploy this kind of method is very time consuming and high risk of failure rate as there is no commercial available for this kind of door system. Perhaps someone who have such experience could give me some example?

Sound or Water "Proofing" is very difficult. Cheap & simple peel & stick Weather Stripping will greatly reduce air (the majority of sound transfer) & water intrusion. But, to get anything close to "Proofing" you need to have precision full contact around the entire door perimeter.

Sorry but, Star Trek was only a TV show. I'd suggest that you check with companies like this who are the masters of what you're asking & yes you can buy their stuff off the shelf.


Should I remove, or work around dividing basement walls? The basement of my house is bare concrete floor with bare concrete block walls.  I'm in Canada and would like to (and should) insulate these walls, at least the above-grade portion, which is about 18".  The previous home-owner installed two dividing walls that make contact with the brick but there is no other framing along the perimeter of the basement.

If I'm going to put up insulation against the outer wall, should I remove the existing wall, at least the studs connecting to the brick first to provide a good heat seal, or leave them in place and insulate around them?

For context, the plan is to eventually finish the basement completely but begin with the heat losses.

You might as well just remove the stud and small section of plate that contacts the wall. this will allow you to completely insulate the wall and the stud can be re-installed outside the insulation and screwed into the upper and lower plates if you cut them correctly. This will also come in handy when you go to put walls against the insulated concrete. The existing stud will be here you can corner to it with extra sheathing studs and make a proper corner. Canadian codes are very strict, so do it right the first time.


Scratched the paint off the wall. How to proceed? I accidentally scratched the paint from the wall, chipping it and exposing the white paint below. The wall is slightly yellow and "bumpy", so to say. The scratched area is the size of a coin. I have the fragments of the paint, but I am unsure if they can be useful for something.

My question is: what kind of paint should I get and how can I match the color so that it does not stand out on the wall ? I can provide pics if needed.

There are a couple things to consider.  First, with regards to color, is how old the paint job is.  After the initial cure (during which the color usually darkens slightly), paint will yellow over time, and it also accumulates dirt and debris which further affect its color.  Smoking in the house speeds this up.   What this means is that older paint is harder to match generally.  When it comes to color matching, keep this in mind and if possible, let the store doing the color matching (using the chips you saved) know about the age as they might suggest slightly altering the color.  Working in your favor is the size of the damage - something this small won't be as noticeable as say a large 12"x12" patch.

Next up is texture - it sounds like your paint was applied with a roller originally, so you should be sure to use a roller on your patch.  If you use a brush then the texture difference will be more noticeable.

The above two techniques should help you blend the patch, though it will still be noticeable to some degree.  If you are a perfectionist then the only "right" way to do it is just re-paint the entire wall/section.


Letters on a gas shut off/on valve meaning My question is what do the letters "P" and "L" stand for on a key shut off valve for gas logs?

P is probably "pilot" for a standing pilot light - L is presumably for "Lit" or on. Typically you'll have off, pilot, and on for many gas appliances old enough to have a standing pilot light. Newer ones are prone to use some other sort of ignition for better efficiency when "off".

Depending on other letters or positions not mentioned, L might also be for "light" as in start the full flame from the pilot at this position - if it can turn up from there, you don't want to go past there until it is lit.


Can I fill a drywall hole with something and reuse the hole? I made a mistake with drilling a hole in the drywall.  It's off by about 1/4-1/2 inch.  The new hole will be really close to the old hole, or knowing my poor drilling skills, it will overlap the old hole.

Someone told me I can use joint compound or something to fill the hole and reuse the hole.  However, when I went to OSH, the worker said structurally, we can't refill a hole and reuse it and that the screw/anchor will eventually get loose and fall out.

Is my friend correct that I can reuse the hole or is the worker correct that structurally we can't reuse the hole?

EDIT: I'm trying to drill holes for screw to hold a curtain rod and use anchors in the drywall.  The anchors are the plastic anchors that came with the curtain rod set.  I don't think the rod and curtains weigh that much but the store worker said the filled in drywall won't be as strong as untouched drywall.

I didn't measure the line or drill the hole correctly b/c one of the end brackets holding the rod is like 1/4-1/2 inches too low (stupid me).  I COULD move it out (or in) 1-2 inches to the left or right but then it doesn't look symmetrical, which is why I want to just fill the holes and re-drill a hole 1/2 inch up to line everything up but if the filled in hole won't hold the anchor, then that won't do.

You haven't said how big the hole is or what it's for, but I think I understand your question, how a little filler might not be as strong as untouched drywall. It depends on what it's filled with, but regular drywall filler probably won't be as strong. If you're just hanging a small picture I'm sure filler would be perfect.

If you're hanging something very heavy and you want to make sure it's a strong patch, and if you don't mind a hole at least an inch or two and a little patching & filler & paint you could put a piece of wood behind it and screw it into the "good" drywall on either side:

Then patch it with the larger drywall piece you cut out (if you cut it out  carefully).

Now your "new" drilled hole will be just as strong as the wood behind it is held, probably 4x a single screw in drywall.


New fridge, fridge is warm, freezer is working fine I just bought a new fridge, GE bottom freezer. I had to disassemble it to get it in the kitchen, in 1952 no appliance must have had a dimension greater then 31 inches, So I'm really not in the mood to start the fiasco again.

The freezer works, making ice and the ice is staying frozen. The fridge on the other hand doesn't. When you plug it in, the lights come on and it seems like it's working, but after 10 minutes the light(LED) doesn't come on and the fridge is a balmy 70F hours later. freezer is still at zero F.

It's under warranty, but I'm really not trying to have 2 fridges in a really cramped(11x11) kitchen any longer than I have too. Any ideas?

You might have a loose connection in one of the plugs or the fan isn't blowing or there might be styrofoam stuck in the vent.you might have to take the panel off of the inside to check.


Running board dimensions I need to install a running board on which to attached some cables going perpendicular to joists.  Is there a minimum size that one should use? I'm planning on installing some 6x1"s.

Assuming this is a basement, 14, 12, and I believe 10 cable are required to either be on a running board or drilled through the joists if they are running perpendicular to the joists.  Larger and smaller cable is not required to be on a running board.  I believe this was done because people were using normal cable for receptacles and lighting as clotheslines in the basement.  Keep in mind codes have changed over the years and just because it was legal when the electrician installed ungrounded cable in an asbestos jacket in the 50s doesn't mean it's legal to install it today.  The existing construction can remain, because it was built to the code at the time (assumingly), but if it falls into the scope of your project the only way you're going to pass an inspection for a permit is if you bring it up to code.

Also, if you drill a hole through a joist, make sure you drill in the center of the joist.  This is because the joists are beams supporting a vertical load.  Think of when you see a board with a heavy load, sagging in the middle. This displays compression on top and tension (pulling) on the bottom.  In the very middle, where the board transitions from compression to tension, there is no load, so drilling a hole in the middle will have minimal structural effect.


What should I do with a shallow closet? My guest bedroom has an extra shallow closet (15 inches deep).  This is too narrow for a hanger, so clothes hung on the rod end up being angled, rubbing against the back wall and the door, etc.

What can I do with this thing?  It needs to remain a closet, but I need an alternate method to hang clothes.  I've thought about trying to rotate the rod.  Perhaps I could hang two rods somehow so they go from front-to-back rather than from side-to-side?  But, how could I support the door-side end?  Well, I could hang it from the shelf somehow.  The shelf is fairly sturdy.  Any ideas on how to mount such a rod?  Or other ideas on how to refurb the closet?

I had a closet once that wasn't particularly shallow, but it did have 3 closet bars mounted front-to-back, and I found the multiple bars very convenient for organizing my clothes.

The left and right bar ran between the front and back walls (the closet had a swinging door in the middle, not a full-width sliding door), and the middle bar's front end was suspended from the shelf above by a triangular wooden bracket (perpendicular to the bar). The middle bar was half the depth of the closet, so you could walk in and reach the side bars easily. Note that the shelf was supported by wooden rails fastened to the wall on three sides, not just shelf brackets on the back wall; the whole system felt quite solid.

I think a design like that would work very well for the closet you describe, and all of the parts were wood, so they could easily be made to fit.

If you are interested then I could make a drawing of the design as I remember it, or perhaps even arrange for a photograph.


Are wire splices actually fire hazards? I'm redoing wiring during a remodel and am reading about burying boxes behind drywall, and how it's a fire hazard and not up to code etc.
My question -
Are wire splices actually a fire hazard in and of themselves?

A lot of responses regarding why to not bury a junction box include that it's a fire hazard. Is it really though?
Lots of light fixture, switch boxes, and outlets have the same type of splices with wirenuts going on, but I don't hear these being referred to as hazards?

I understand burying the box is bad (had this discussion in a different thread), but I want to know specifically if burying a junction box with wire splices is a fire hazard and why?
Is it just that if something did go wrong, you wouldn't have visibility to see that it was going wrong, vs a box that you can see?

It's a fire hazard because there are a lot of variables and the code (and remember that the code is the law) errs on the side of safety.

EDIT: Consider this answer to another question that was asked today:  https://diy.stackexchange.com/a/86019/24137

One answer referenced old knob and tube wiring being spliced inside walls and never showing a scorch mark in 100 years of use.

I'll buy that, because the connections were very solid, professional connections.

But also consider that k&t splices are soldered together in addition to being crimped and/or twisted together. Those soldered connections also protect the conductors within the splice itself from corrosion since oxygen is sealed out (both copper and aluminum wire oxidizes), and from movement. As wire changes temperature, it expands and contracts and this can loosen connections.

Also, it's possible that somebody will pull on one end of the cable or the other from a box, and a wirenut connection is more likely to fail than an intact run of wire is in that situation.

Compared to soldered connections, wire nuts are straight pressure connectors and it's far more likely that a wire nut connection will become loose and overheat or start sparking than it is for a soldered connection to do so.

Also, what if somebody does something like connecting a copper and an aluminum wire with a wire nut? Even the purple wire nuts specifically designed for making those bimetallic connections have a notoriously high failure rate (there are clamp-type connections that are better). Copper and aluminum expand and contract at different rates as the temperature changes, and this can really loosen the connection. Additionally, bimetallic connections like that are subject to greater levels of corrosion, and aluminum oxide is an insulator. Forcing current through an insulator generates a lot of heat (fire hazard). If that kind of failure happens inside a junction box, you'll smell it and be able to find and access it much more easily than if it was sealed up inside the wall. Additionally, the electrical box itself has some nominal fire resistance and code says the box has to extend far enough out to the surface of the wall so that no flammable materials are exposed around the edges of the box.

There are more reasons than these, of course.

So it actually is a fire safety issue, as most of the electrical code is.


How to fix a slate floor tile in my kitchen I’m renting my house and one of the slate (it looks like slate rather than the white ceramic type stuff) tiles from the floor has come loose, intact, just come loose.

Rather than go through a tedious process of reporting a fix through the letting company, I figured I’d just try and repair it myself. What’s the worst that can happen?

It looks like it was cemented (for lack of a better word) down, to describe it,  it has stripes of cement like adhesive that held it in place and it’s just come loose.

Question:

Does anyone have any idea what type of adhesive this is and where I can get it from?

Amazon UK URLs/links would be amazing!

Please see this photo I took of the tile.

Looks like slate

It isn't.  Slate, being a natural product, isn't a different color on the back than it is on the top.  What you have there is a ceramic tile that is glazed and textured to look like slate.  That's actually a good thing in this case because slate is fragile and often requires more care in order to get it set level.

What's the worst that can happen?

Well...I don't know how it works in the UK, but if you try to repair it and do a poor job, can the letting company come after you for your deposit?  It might be more hassle later on than it is just to have the landlord get it fixed.

What is this adhesive called?

What you're looking at is called "thin-set mortar", and it is a cementitious adhesive that usually has to be mixed the way you'd mix concrete.  The "stripes" are troweled into the thin-set using a notched trowel and the tile is set in place.  It's not "adhesive" in the sense that it comes in a caulk tube and you can just squeeze it onto the back of the tile and glue it down.


Room dead from light switch I live in a sun home trailer and the light really got on my nerves because when you flip the switch the light takes a minute to kick on and when it kicks on it is dim but it flips back and forth from dim to bright over and over for a while then it stays bright until you turn it off. So I decided to try and fix it myself. Nothing was wrong with the light itself, but I went into the light switch to see what's up and I thought "let me try to connect this weird copper wire (that's connected to nothing, it's just in there) to the screw holding the wire from the side of the switch". I flipped the switch on on and all I heard was a small buzzing sound, the light didn't turn on and the TV cuts off. I instantly cut the switch and disconnected the copper wire and now now nothing in my room works. No outlets or the switch works but everything else in the house works but this room. Help me out - I'm lost. I tried doing the fuse box it didn't work.

I hate to put it this way, but you are in way over your skill level. I highly recommend getting a professional electrician to help at this point.

You connected the ground wire that to the switched hot. When you turned on the switch, you
shorted the circuit. That should have caused a fuse to blow or a breaker to trip. Based on "I tried doing the fuse box it didn't work.", you either have not found the correct fuse or breaker, or some part of the electrical wiring in the room (possibly at the switch, possibly at an outlet) burned up (literally) and broke the circuit.

Hopefully a fuse or breaker did trip - if not then the safety of your fuses/breakers is questionable. But even if you find the fuse (and replace it) or breaker (and reset it), there is definitely a possibility of damage due to arcing in any/all of the devices on that circuit (switch, receptacles, any wire junctions).

Now for the educational part: Most circuits have a hot wire, a neutral wire and a ground wire. Normally (there are exceptions in various situations), the hot wire is black or another color besides white, gray or green; the neutral wire is white or gray; and the ground wire is green or bare copper. There are a number of situations where the ground wire is not connected - particularly switches. In those situations, there still should not be any loose ground wires - they should be connected to each other, to metal boxes or capped - they should not be floating around loose as you found. Simply connecting wires "because it is there" doesn't usually end very well.

As for your specific original problem, my hunch is you have a fluorescent light that needs a new ballast and/or starter and/or bulb.


Flushing upstairs clears a stopped toilet downstairs We have a two story home. When flushed, a downstairs toilet stopped and nearly overflowed, and water backed up into a tub (also downstairs). Plunging didn’t accomplish anything. Upstairs I flushed a toilet, just as a test.  It flushed fine, and the toilet and tub downstairs drained at the same time. Everything appears to be working correctly now.

We think this also happened a week ago but it is not a regular occurrence. We’ve never noticed any bubbling downstairs when things are run or flushed upstairs.

We had our sewer line snaked and camera about a month ago. It is unlikely we have roots or other blockages in the sewer line but it’s possble, I suppose.

Any thoughts on why this could happen?

The hydrostatic head water pressure on the sewer plug from the downstairs toilet is roughly 1 psi. The hydrostatic head from the upstairs toilet/drains puts roughly 6 psi on the plug. That is about 7 pounds force at the plug from downstairs or 42 pounds of force from upstairs ( with a 3" I D sewer pipe).


Will this DeWalt #8 screw countersink bit be good for 1/16" aluminum? I want to screw aluminum to wood. If it was wood to wood, this bit:
Image from zoro.com
makes perfect sense for the pilot and counter sink. However, it makes no mention of if the counter sink part would handle aluminum.
Alternatively, should I use this 1/2" Ryobi countersink:
Image from Home Depot
and a separate drill bit for the pilot hole?

Generally speaking you can use the same tools you'd use for wood to work with aluminum. I've done a number of projects using aluminum bar and angle stock with my woodworking tools, including a miter saw.

However, since the metal is much harder, you'd probably have an easier time doing the drilling and countersinking separately. I'd drill with a standard high-speed bit, and use a countersink like the Ryobi you linked to finish.

On a related note, you'll not have much room for error when countersinking 1/16" stock. You might be better off with pan-head screws.


Why does my shower turn on when I turn on the hot water in the bathroom sink? I'm perplexed by this. Why does my shower turn on when I turn on the hot water  in the bathroom sink? I lose water pressure when I turn on the sink, then the shower turns on. Any ideas?

Sounds like a washerless faucet issue.

Water pressure holds the plate that seals the unit. As the pressure drops, the handle can move, allowing flow. You may have luck replacing the seals--not very difficult. Turn the water both hot and cold off. With most of these type faucets the top section unscrews. Remove the cartridge take the seals to a home store or hardware store and they will usually have replacements (there are different sizes). Reassemble and see if that fixes the problem.

Other than that, a lighter weight handle may be needed if you cannot tighten it up.


Does big current draw make GFCI outlets go bad? About 2 years ago during a kitchen update, I replaced a GFCI outlet with a new one, 20-amp (both pass through and the GFCI outlet itself). Branching downstream from it are two more outlets, one on the other side of the sink, and one right behind it on the outside of the house. It's an up-to-date "lock" GFCI, is wired correctly and has always tested and functioned correctly. Last week having a new roof put on, the roofers plugged a pretty heavy-duty looking air compressor into the outside outlet. After about an hour, the GFCI tripped. Now, plugging just about anything into the outside outlet is causing it to trip after a few minutes' use, for example yesterday, my shop vac. I have used the shop vac in that outlet many times before with no problem. So, my question is, did the current draw by the air compressor damage the GFCI (it still tests fine). If so, I guess I better replace it.

I have noticed that GFCIs seem to be worn out by heavy, prolonged loads.  I can't find any authoritative sources for this effect.  Probably the GFCI manufacturers know all about it.

The bridge circuit which detects the flow imbalance depends on some precision electronics which are heat sensitive.  The heavy current itself does not affect them, but the side effect of that current heating up the components will lead to premature failure.


Is cable marked 14CU 2 CDRS NMD90 two wire or three wire? I have the below cable in my garage and I am not clear if it is a two or a three wire cable. I was convinced it is a two wire but after researching I am now seeing it could be a three.

This is related to this question.

Here is the picture that confirms the presence of the ground wire:

The most common type of cable used in houses is technically known as NMD 90 (Non-Metallic Dry service cable rated at maximum of 90 degrees Celsius). It is usually a plastic white covered cable. This cable comes with two or more conductors and includes a ground wire (bare wire).
Your cable has 2 conductors and a ground.


Can I add a slave to existing thermostat? The bedrooms in my condominium looks something like this:

A common HVAC unit provides heat and air conditioning between bedrooms, with the thermostat being in the Master BR.

Problem:

Bedroom 2 loses heat far faster than the Master, due to having more windows, and this goes undetected by the thermostat.

The current solutions are to either:

Overheat the MBR to keep the 2nd BR livable, or
Put a space heater in the 2nd BR.

Currently we've been doing #2, but it's a kludge and we're looking for something better. Is there a way to add a slave thermostat, preferrably wireless, in the second bedroom so the system knows the room is getting too cold?

Notes:

The unit uses Honeywell T6570 or T8570 thermostats (Datasheet Here). I can't tell
which without detaching one from the wall.
The unit is rented so we cannot make drastic/irreversible changes.

Placing a second parallel thermostat or moving the single thermostat to the colder room will not be an ideal solution for you. The reason being is that the second room will call for more heat and indeed warm up but the master room will get overheated.

The proper way to fix this is to re-balance the heat registers (or duct deflectors if they are present) to allow less warm air to enter the master room and proportionally more to enter the second room.


Reasons why a receptacle would fail A friend has asked for my help to replace a wall receptacle that has stopped working. I asked if it was loose-fitting or otherwise physically worn out. She said that plugs fit tightly and it generally seems OK.

Are there faults that could cause a receptacle to fail that I should check for while replacing it? Other than physically wearing out, I've never experienced a receptacle that simply quit working.

The house is old, possibly nearing 100 years. The receptacle likely does not have a modern ground wire to it. It was used for her computer and unlikely ever needed to supply more than a few amps.

A receptacle is merely a means to connect a device to the power source. It can fail for many reasons.

Short Circuit

If the hot lead directly touches neutral or ground, a short circuit will occur. If the line is protected by a circuit breaker, it will disconnect the outlet and connecting wires from the power source at the main panel and no current will flow. If you have fuses, the fuse from that circuit will blow, also disconnecting the power. If the fuse or circuit breaker failed to work properly (rare), it could result in a fire caused by overheating of the wires.

This type of problem can occur in the body of the receptacle, in the wires in a box, or somewhere along the wire path.

Break in Continuity

If there is a gap in either the hot wire or the neutral wire or its attachments, no current can flow, and the outlet will not work. However, if the break is in the neutral, even though the circuit does not work, there is power in the hot wire and poses a risk if it is touched.

The gap in connection can occur in the the receptacle itself. It can be a break within the body or a movement of the metal leaf that is supposed to contact an inserted plug, but does not. It also can occur in the attachment of the wire to the receptacle itself, in a connection within the box (loose or disconnected) or somewhere along the length of the wire.

The break can also be caused by a circuit breaker, GFCI or AFCI device or fuse tripping based on a detected fault. This can occur because of a short, a high amperage flow, an arc in the circuit, or a ground fault. Reseting the device may restore power, assuming the fault has been cured, but it is important to determine what caused the fault to ensure safety.

Solutions

It is important to test to determine whether there is any power at the outlet itself before starting to fix the problem. This requires a tester and a bit of knowledge about circuits. If you are not familiar with these things, it might be better to call in an electrician or someone with some experience to help.

Cures may involve simply fixing a loose connection or replacing the outlet. But it may require tracing a break or short and solving a more complex circuit problem.


Should I Get My Bathtub Refinished? The bathtub at my new place isn't in horrible condition, but it does have a few patches on the bottom that look a bit grayer than the rest of the tub, and are rougher.  In general the bottom is not as smooth as the sides.  We think it is a cast iron bathtub (at least the bottom is all black when we look through an access panel), but we're not sure.  There's no rust showing through.

Would it be a good idea to get it refinished now to protect the tub from further damage?  Or is a new coat of glazing not significantly protective, in which case maybe we should just wait until we really don't like how it looks before spending the money (especially since the refinished surface won't last that many years either)?

I give mixed reviews to tub refinishing.  I have had many tubs and surrounds refinished as opposed to replacing the units. Even though a good refinishing job is not cheap, usually around $300-$400, it certainly is less expensive than the labor involved in removing, framing and installing a new tub and surround. I have found a good sub-contractor for these jobs and the difference between a good long lasting job and a so-so job is in the prep. One sub I used years back did not take the time to really clean, sand and prep the surfaces before spraying the epoxy finish, had some problems and call backs within 2 years. I have a few jobs out there over 5 years old now, with no problems or complaints that my current sub has done, and done well. So I guess the moral of the story is, a refinish job can be a good long lasting solution if done properly with good materials. Side note: Don't wait until the original finish is worn to the cast iron. When rust is present, it makes refinishing more difficult and expensive.


Cork on _top_ of hardwood floors? I have hardwood floors in a rental unit and I'd like to turn a portion of one room into a 'workspace'. But I'd also like to protect the floors from minor spills, tools falling, etc.

I know that some latex-based rug mats can eventually stain hardwood floors, but what about cork? I also know cork is commonly used under the floors, however in this situation I'm considering laying cork out on top of the floors ... has anyone done this in the past? Yea/Nay?

There is made an interlocking 1/2" deep foam rubber pad made to be use on basement and shop floors for just this purpose.  These pads come in colors for play rooms of in black for work space.  they fit together fairly tightly. They come in 2x2' squares and I believe 2x3' rectangles.  Good Luck


Grohe Ladylux Faucet leaking after 11 years we have had this faucet Grohe Ladylux kitchen Faucet since 2007.
Today we noticed it leaking from under the sink where the 3 lines enter.
Would changing the cartridge end the leak or are “ o” rings the problem?
or # 3 does the whole faucet need replaced?
Since the faucet has been installed there has been no work done on it , and no cartridges replaced.we have a water softener.
It drips out about a tablespoon per hour from down the hoses

I never heard of that brand. But then again I’ve been working with plumbing for just a few years. However your right on your thoughts. Depending on how Grohe Ladylux faucets are built it’ll be either the o ring or the cartidge. Always check o ring first because it is way cheaper to fix than cartidge. But if you need to, take the old one out and go to your closest home improvement store to match the correct size. If that’s not it, also look at their cartidges at the store. If you have no luck there, try and contact Grohe company themselves. If they are like Delta or Moen they have a lifetime warranty and can probably get you a replacement part. If you have no luck with Grohe or the home improvement store(s). Then I’d recommend Danco. Danco makes replacement parts for faucets and they might have the cartidge your looking for. It’s a big hassle because cartridges/stems are very VERY brand specific. Hopefully it won’t cost you a leg and a arm. If the price is around $50 or more, I’d just recommend a new kitchen faucet.


Can a door bell be powered from a receptacle? What's an easy way of installing a traditional door bell? I know there are the wireless, battery operated ones, but I'm tired of changing out batteries. Is there a version of doorbell that could just be plugged into a wall outlet, or better yet, NOT use up and outlet but somehow "tap into" a nearby outlet for power?

There are a small number of battery free doorbells such as these

They work on a signal generated by pressure (piezoelectric?). These are similar to the wireless battery-free switches now showing up for AC fixtures.

 Images and links are for illustration only and not an endorsement of any products or sources


How can I drill my wall if it contains flint? I live in an old victorian house.  Some of the walls seem to have pebbles inside then you get so far and there is flint, the drill won't go any further.  Its a nightmare putting anything on the wall!

Is there anything I can use to drill through this stone?!!  Thanks!

For flint you will need a diamond coated drill bit, SDS plus drill bits on hammer won't cut it. If the item is big try to drill somewhere else where the motar is. Flint is a nightmare!


How to install security cameras on ceilings? I would like to know how to install or mount a camera on the bottom face of this hollow black box above the shop door. The word "Alabsh" is written on the black box as shown in image.

The bottom face of the box is above me so I would consider this as my ceiling. The ceiling is usually made of wood or metal. I know I should use a driller but what if the hole is larger than the screw/bolt?
Another question is, I can't reach the other inner side of the ceiling to use a nut. What is the alternative of using a nut?
Should I use the thing in the following image instead of the nut? But I feel like when press by the screw/bolt upward, this plastic thing will go inside the black box because it is hallow and I won't be able to get it back again. What's the best method to do it?

Since the hole in your "ceiling" is bigger than the anchors you might have wanted to use, your best alternative is to use toggle bolts similar to the one pictured below.


change 240 breaker to 120 I have several spare 240 breakers in my panel box. I'm adding 8 outlets from 2 different rooms.  Can I use half of the 240 breaker instead of replacing with a 120, or should I pull the 240 and replace with a 120? One of the spare 240's has wires coming out but are no longer in use (for old baseboard heat).

You can use either or both halves as separate single pole circuits as long as the amperage rating is correct for the wire size and receptacle type.


How messy to get underlayment off of concrete floor? Because of my cats, the carpet of my dining room is really in horrible shape. I live in a townhome. I replaced carpet on the second floor with bamboo flooring without too much mess since the underlayment there was only stapled to the subfloor. It seems that that in the dining room, it is glued down. I don't mind a little bit of work. But since my family has no other place to stay, I don't want to use anything toxic to get the underlayment off. Can I just use a scraper to get the glue off? My home was built in 1980. I don't know when the carpet was installed. Will asbestos be a concern when I remove the carpet and glue?

Asbestos use in construction in the United States was banned in 1977 so there should be no asbestos in your house. To get the underlayment off, I would recommend using pouring adhesive remover available at any hardware store on the underlayment and using a sharp tool to get it off. Once you get the underlayment off, you can spread some sweeping compound on top of the floor and then use a broom to get the rest of the glue off. It is somewhat of a time consuming process but I do not believe that either of those materials are too toxic, and besides, they will be removed before putting down the new floor anyways.


how to fix leaking shut off valve I have a water shutoff valve that has one end into a plastic pipe that is coming from mains and another end is going into the faucet.

There was never a leakage from this until recently when I had to close and open shutoff valve few times. Probably this was first time it was done in years and therefore this valve started to leak.

In the picture, the shutoff valve is the one on the left tube. The leak is from the nut that is below the white plastic.

The leak is very minute, it is 2 drops per hour may be. It is coming from the lower nut that is attached to the plastic tube. I have tried to tighten the nut but I backed off when i heard a plastic crack sound coming (who uses plastic pipes?).

What can i do short of changing the valve? I am not a diy expert so want to avoid changing the valve completely.

The pipe coming out of the floor is PEX, and its actually expanded and slipped over the brass fitting to form a permanent connection. This kind of fitting shouldn't leak are you sure the drip isn't coming from between the Valve and the Brass?  (The 'white plastic' is Teflon tape wrapped around the brass threads.)  The only way to tighten it is with two wrenches: one to hold the brass and one to turn the valve.


Is it necessary to replace lead gas pipes? I have some lead piping in the cellar where the gas comes into the house. Does this comply to current Gas Safe regulations??

Edit: England

I suspect you actually have two questions:

1) Does it meet current code, and

2) Do I have to do something about it.

My understanding is that in most places you can't do anything new with lead gas pipe, BUT there's no obligation to upgrade old service as long as it's working OK.

My understanding is that most places won't even let you replace lead pipe with more lead pipe - if the pipe goes, you have to replace with something newer. But as long as the pipe is stable, you can leave it there for as long as you like.

Lead gas pipe is somewhat like solid asbestos shingles (which the house I grew up in had as siding) - as long as you don't disturb it, it isn't going to hurt anything, so don't disturb it unless you have to.


How soon can I use my shower that I recently grouted and tiled? Should it cure first? We have been retiling my tub surround area and finished grouting the tile last night. I used non-sanded PolyBlend grout (sold at Home Depot) and added a bottle of Grout Boost Advanced Pro. Everything went okay, especially considering this was my first time tiling or grouting.

My question actually has to do with how soon we will be able to take a shower. I've been finding what I think is mixed information. The Grout Boost Product Data Sheet (pdf link) says:

  Protection

  Protect the finished installation from traffic or impact for at least
  24 hours; from water immersion or freezing for at least 10 days
  or per grout manufacturer’s instructions, whichever is longer. No
  need to seal grout. Clean up spills immediately upon occurrence.
  If a stain remains after initial cleanup, follow the recommended
  cleaning procedures provided at www.groutboost.com

And the Grout Boost FAQ (pdf link) says:

  How long after installation do you need to wait before using
  the area grouted?

  The installation can be walked on at 24 hours.  Grout mixed with
  Grout Boost needs to cure for 10 days after installation before
  exposing it to water from mopping, showers, rain, etc.

I also saw a few comments online in forums saying that getting the grout + Grout Boost wet before the 10 days will only impact the stain resistance, not it's waterproofness.

So, how soon can I get it wet?

It sure looks like you did a beautiful job on your shower, be a crying shame to see all that hard work ruined with stained grout. The glazing agent in the grout needs 8 to 10 days to harden completely. I suggest that you tape up some poly to protect the new grout if you really need to use the shower before the prescribed cure time. A few days of inconvenience is definitely worth not having to scrub and look at stained grout for years to come.


Gas Oven Tripping GFCI Looking for some quick suggestions if the issue I am facing is electrical or oven related.

I have a gas oven (not sure on age, bought house last year) that for the last month has been tripping my GFCI when I use the oven(not when I use the gas burners). It was plugged into it's own outlet and was tripping the GFCI at the outlet to the side of the oven. I plugged the oven directly into this GFCI outlet, still trips. Had an electrician replace the GFCI outlet, still having the issue.

Now here's the thing, if I plug the outlet in across the kitchen(using heavy duty extension cord), no tripping. This leads me to think it's electrical, but the electrician swore if the GFCI didn't fix it, it's an oven issue. Any ideas? Just don't want to have to pay 2 service call fees if I can avoid it.

A combination oven/cooktop will have separate ignition methods for the burners (cooktop) and the oven.

The burners usually have a simple spark ignition. If your cooktop "clicks" when you turn on a burner, that is the spark ignition, which is totally normal.

The oven may use spark ignition but will often use a a glow bar. If the insulation is wearing out (can happen over time in the heat of an oven) or there is a loose connection, then there may be leakage to ground in the oven igniter/glow bar, tripping the GFCI.

The key is that the oven & cooktop are independent. This is different from the old days where a single pilot light would be used to ignite both the cooktop and the oven. Modern ovens don't use pilot lights because they burn gas - and your money - all the time.

If you can find instructions online for your specific oven, you may be able to remove the igniter/glow bar/etc. and replace it. The catch is that damage may not be obvious, and it is also possible the problem is in the controls and not the igniter or glow bar. But the problem is pretty definitely somewhere in the oven.


How to bid a job repairing hidden damage in stages to avoid a "time and materials" job My bathroom has some water damage from a poorly designed tile job.  The window sill is low enough to get wet but is simply tiled rather than a solid shelf.  It's also not properly sloped.  This has allowed water to leak into the wall and has weakened the backing board to the point that the tiled wall gave in when leaned on.

One builder wouldn't even estimate the cost of the job.  Wanted "time and materials" for the repair and a contract to demolish and remodel the bathroom.

I have been burned by "time and materials" jobs before.  Yet I understand that it's difficult to evaluate how big the job is when you can't see all the damage.

Here's my question:  Am I being unreasonable if I insist that the job be done in three stages that are bid separately?

A bid for the demolition to expose the problem

A bid for the repair rather than any "time and material work"

A bid for the remodel for any upgrades to the bathroom.

I could take competing bids at each stage and be sure of what I'm getting into before agreeing.  Builders wouldn't have to agree to any work they haven't had a chance to fully see.

I'd like to know if this kind of plan is unheard of or unreasonable.  Is there any good reason to refuse to work this way?  An alternative way to structure the job? If there is something I simply don't understand please let me know.

My suggestion should make this a whole lot easier all around. Do the demolition on a DIY basis and clear away all the debris. The demolition phase work requires basic skills and simple tools that are not expensive.

This will open up the structure of the whole room back to framing, subfloor and ceiling joists. I would say that then you would be ready to bring in a contractor to bid on repairs and upgrades to the room and structure. Nothing should be hidden at that point.

As you take on the DIY part of the project you are sure to have some questions about that process. This site can be a big help to get answers to the questions that arise.


How to stop the peeling of new paint that's not properly adhered to new drywall due to underlying spackle dust Is there any way to secure new paint over new drywall which is not properly adhered due to a thin layer of spackle dust?

During my whole house renovation, I prepared new drywall by thoroughly sweeping off spackle dust with the head of a broom.  I assumed that using a wet rag or sponge would smear my beautifully smooth spackle, especially at its thin edges.

I primed the walls with Behr 75 tinted primer/sealer, then topcoated with one coat of Behr 7050 Premium Plus "Paint & Primer".  The painted walls look perfect.

A few months later, my builders came to install trim, doors, and more.  Their slightest scrapes against the wall pulled the paint off, as shown in the pictures below.  It seems that the thin layer of spackle dust left behind after my thorough sweeping, which only a damp sponge could remove, prevented the paint from properly adhering to the new drywall.

Is there any way to secure this paint to the wall?  Is there a coating I can apply to make it more robust so scratches won't peel the paint?

Peeling off the paint seems impossible.  I trust I can't remove 100% of it, leaving edges between painted and unpainted surfaces.  It may also ruin the spackle and sheetrock below, especially if I must do any scraping.  Thanks for your help.

After the fact? Sorry, no, the area where the problem is, is UNDER the paint, and adding something to the surface of the paint won't fix it. Scrape, sand or whatever it takes to get any poorly adhered paint off the wall, sand to feather edges, patch if need be, sand more, clean throughly, and repaint.

Or hire a pro painter to fix it...


What is this circuit board and how to I replace it? I have two under counter lights in my kitchen which stopped working at the same time. I assumed some kind of fuse needed changing, and on opening the little box connecting them to the mains I found the following.

I presume this is where my problem is, but what is it? And what do I ask for to get a new one that works?

Of course it is impossible to tell for sure without looking at the circuit in more detail but it looks like a 120V AC to low voltage DC power supply.
A way to troubleshoot it would be the following:

look up the voltage rating on the lights. Using a multimeter, check if this voltage is present at the output of the board. If it is, the problem is with the lights/contacts, etc.
check for a blown fuse on the board (if present). If you find a blown fuse, get a couple of new ones and replace it. It might have been blown in some sort of a fluke but if it keeps breaking there is a problem with a circuit. If no fuse:
Switch the meter to AC Voltage measurement and measure the output of the transformer (large part with green core). If there is no voltage, the transformer is bad. If there is, you would have to redraw the schematic and troubleshoot every component (caps are usually the suspect). At this point it might be cheaper to get a new unit.

As with any high voltage board be very careful when troubleshooting a powered board!

PS: I believe Monso is wrong here - the voltages after step down transformer are typically 5-24 V which is not enough to cause harm (after the board is powered down).


Control switch from neighboring switch on a different circuit I have two lights on two separate circuits connected to separate switches in the same box. The lights control overhead lighting in the same room and there's no reason (code/etc) they shouldn't have been on the same circuit in the first place. I don't want to rewire the ceiling and would like one circuit to be completed only if current is flowing through the other circuit. Is there a type of switch that does this or, alternatively, a type of switch that toggles two circuits simultaneously?
Edit: A simple double pole switch won't work, because one of the two switches is 3 way.

A relay could be added to the circuit so that switch A, the three-way switch, controls the power on the relay's input. The relay's normally open (N/O) and common terminals can connect in place of switch B. When switch A is powered on the relay will close and this will allow current in the second circuit to flow to the lights formerly controlled by switch B.
There's a caveat: you'll need access to the switched output of the 3-way controls to make this work. You'll have to unpack the two switches out of that box to find out whether the A-switched output is available there.
Relays have three important ratings: the control voltage, the load voltage, and the load current. Load voltage and current ratings vary depending on the kind of load: motor, fluorescent lamp, tungsten lamp, etc. You'll have to search for one that meets your requirements. They can sometimes be found as a convenient UL-listed module packaged with pigtail leads like the one below.


Cleaning Mould Away & Inhibition of Future Mould Growth I am an ordinary, non chemistry minded person. Never before have I had to deal with mould growth in a damp house. Now I do.
I had an idea regarding the efficacy of cleaning this mould off the walls in my bathroom and bedroom. A simple solution of sodium hydroxide in water. Will this work?
Furthermore, will the same solution, (a fresh solution though, not the same one used to initially clean the mould away) inhibit future mould growth?
If not, any ideas on what will inhibit future mould growth? Thank you.

Mold requires two things:

Organic matter (i.e. food)
Water

You prevent mold by eliminating one or both of these.  In many cases the food is the building materials themselves, wood, paper, some paints, etc.  So you have to focus on the water or moisture that is allowing the mold to take hold and grow.

A diluted bleach solution is useful for cleaning up but it will not inhibit future growth if the conditions are again favorable. Commercial mold removing products are also available.

In difficult cases you can get paint additives that are designed to inhibit mold and mildew growth.


How do I install a vapor barrier and insulation in an existing floor? I have a large room in my house that is built over a crawl space.  The floor of this room does not have any insulation installed in it.  I live in upstate New York so it is my understanding that I should install a vapor barrier on the interior side of the insulation (the warm side).
It seems like it would be very difficult to get the vapor barrier up against the floor from below.

Should I skip the vapor barrier?  Or is there some other method I could use for this kind of retrofit?

Super late to the discussion, but for those who are still using this as a reference, the important thing to note is that open cell spray foam insulation is not a vapor barrier. Use closed cell foam if you are intending to create a vapor barrier. Another solution that may be more cost effective would be to cut foil-faced EPS and place to underside of substrate (make sure it's a tight fit, foil face down). Tape edges to joist to ensure a seal and then add insulation. This isn't a 100% vapor seal, but better than no barrier at all. You could also look into liquid applied vapor barriers.


Expanding nylon dowel to fix a U shaped rail fails I'm trying to fix a rail and bracket type of shelf this one to be precise.

Having a plasterboard wall, I picked self expanding nylon dowels like this.

My problem is, the rail being U shaped, as soon as I screw, the dowel is pulled out from the wall instead of expanding into it, as expected o_O How should I proceed.

Can you slip a small screwdriver through the slot to hold the expansion piece into place until the screw expands it enough to stay in place on its own?

Otherwise, maybe you can find a small metal spacer to slide on the screw behind the bracket to help hold the expansion piece while you tighten the screw:

(image from TwistedThrottle.com)

A stack of small washers might also work.


How can I wire a switch into an extension cord? i am trying to make a extension cord with a kill switch in the middle thats going to be mounted to my desk, the cord has red(phase), black(neutral) and green(earth) wires, but the light switch has loop, 1, 2 and common holes, what wires go where?

Improper Electrical Wiring constitutes a serious life safety hazard. It can be the source of structural fire and potentially fatal shocks.

I am not saying that you can't splice a common electrical wall switch into an extension cord. I am saying that it is not a good general practice.

Consider Instead

Installing a suitable hardwired outlet and wall mounted switch using techniques suited for permanent installation in the structure.
Alternatively, consider using a listed extension chord with an integral switch such as this or that.


Can I use a 1KW inverter along with a motor starter to power a water pump? For a long time, I have been using a Jinasena N110T/1 water pump. The specs are as follows:

1" x 1"
H max 80ft
1000 gph @ 42ft 0.75 HP
220-240V
0.56KWh

I have heard from many places and other questions on this site that starting the water pump (it is about 30 yrs. old) will take about 3x the current it takes for running. I have also heard with that with something called a "Motor Starter" it can allow me to start the motor on an inverter that is a Bestek 1KW. I found a Motor Starter on eBay AC Contactor Motor Starter Relay CJX2-1801 3 POLE+1NC 220V/380V 18A COIL 4/7.5KW.

I am new to this Motor Starter concept and am wondering whether this will suit my purpose and how it works.

I appreciate any and all replies.

Thanks in advance.

PS:- I hope I have posted this in the right place. I would appreciate it if anyone could inform me if that is the case.

The link is just a standard 4 pole relay it will not help other being an on off device. A motor inverter is a device that takes line voltage and adjust the voltage and frequency.
With a very old motors it is not advisable to use inverters or soft starts because of the harmonics generated will cause the bearings to be destroyed in a matter of months. Pump motors don't do well with soft starts because they slowly ramp the frequency or pulse full power then pause pulse pause until at full speed then a internal contactor locks the line to the load. With each delay in pulses the pump slows down and causes more heating.
Bearing failure was a huge problem in the early days of VFD’s (variable frequency drives). E series high efficency motors solves that problem. Here is a powerflex 40
From e-bay so you understand what a motor inverter or VFD is. With a VFD a relay or contactor is not needed. The Bestek 1KW may not be able to run the motor as these types of inverters usually will not push a pure inductive load like a motor.


How is it that two breaker switches control the same things? Forewarning: I don't know that much about electrical terms, so please excuse any mistakes I've possibly made.

I recently moved the TV in my living room and ran a new line for the electricity to the TV. In doing so, I discovered that I had to turn off TWO breaker switches to kill the power to the area I was working in.  If either breaker is still on, all devices in the area still have power.

On top of that, there is a large and varying array of equipment plugged into these two breakers.

All outlets in living room (TV, stereo receiver, computer, XBOX, Wii)
All recessed lighting in living room
Refrigerator
Microwave
Air compressor in garage
Clothes washer in garage

How is it that these breakers can be connected, and is it OK/safe that all this stuff is connected to a line that is coupled like that? I have been in the house for almost a year and never had any issues with the circuit tripping.

The breakers are both 20A switches. In the picture, they are right below the 100A switch on the top right.

UPDATE: I removed the front panel from the breaker box and took some pictures.

UPDATE 2: found out that the clothes washer is also on this circuit

UPDATE 3: I've checked about half of the outlets and haven't found the break yet. I'll continue tomorrow.

Unraveling this mess may be difficult. Seeing the 30 amp breaker join the two sides indicates that the two hot lines go straight down each side in the back of the panel rather than alternating every other breaker. If it were alternating, then any 220 circuit only needs two vertical slots rather than taking up all the space of both sides as well. What this means is that these two circuits can be joined anywhere since the lines are in phase with each other.

The easy fix is if you have an incorrect connection in that breaker panel, rather than each line going its separate way. If that's the case, you remove the connection and the problem is solved. So as others say, the first step is the open it up and take a photo (with the power off and being careful to avoid the lines feeding the main breaker).

The difficult fix is if the connection is somewhere else in the house. Unless you know how the home is wired, you are left with breaking the connection at various points until you find the location that roughly splits the circuit in half. To do this, you open up an outlet in one of the rooms, disconnect the load side of the outlet (pick a side if you don't know which is which), and see if only half the outlets turn on when you reset one breaker. Try to make the split in the circuit between two rooms.

Once you decide where to split the circuit, you're left with an extra wire from the other circuit in the J box to cap or remove. The proper solution would be to remove it, but doing so will likely require opening up the wall. If you cap it, make sure each wire cannot touch anything else to avoid the risk of a short, and then label the wire so no one hooks it back up in the future. I would also go through the extra effort to find the other side of this connection and disconnect it and label it on both sides.

Edit: Seeing the separate red and black wires makes me wonder if they continue through each outlet with two circuits like mgb suggests. If so you just need to locate where the two lines cross. If the two circuits are separated in the outlets themselves, then it should be obvious when you open an outlet up and see a red and black going to the separated top and bottom. In that case, turn the power off to both circuits, disconnect an outlet, cover the exposed connections, and turn the power on to only one circuit. If you now have two separate circuits, then then crossed connection is in the outlet you disconnected or one of the dead outlets in the home. If the circuits are still joined, then the problem is in one of the live outlets. Use the process of elimination to avoid opening too many outlets.

As always, when working with electricity, ensure the power is off before you risk anything touching a wire. Test ever wire in the outlet before beginning work, especially in your situation. And when you open the panel, the line side of the main breaker is still hot even when that breaker is shutoff. If you feel nervous about doing any of this yourself, then hire an electrician.


Why is water only coming through the handheld hose? I have a hose at my kitchen sink, installed alongside the cold water faucet.  Every once in awhile when I press the hose trigger, it becomes stuck and will not return to the off position automatically, and water will not come out of the faucet. A few clicks of the trigger and it returns to normal.

Yesterday I used the hose ... only now it has not returned to off position. I've unscrewed the nozzle portion and see nothing that is clogged or jammed. With the nozzle head off, water still comes through the hose itself, leading me to believe that there is always water in the hose and that pressing the nozzle releases water that is already there.

Perhaps what is happening is that the nozzle is no longer "holding back" the water?

You are correct in the fact that water is always present in the hose.  When you turn on the faucet water gets sent through a diverter valve, this valve splits the flow of water between the faucet and the hose.  It detects changes in pressure and adapts the flow accordingly.  If water is not flowing through your hose and it does not go back to the faucet then you most likely have an issue with your diverter.


What does code 15 on a pennco gas boiler series 15b mean? I have new pennco gas boiler,series 15b. It reading the code sta 15. I don't understand the explanation for code 15 in book. I think it may have to do with thermostat?

15 - Wait for limit to close - Possible thermostat call for heat; limit switch is open.

The system is waiting for a safety switch to close. You (thermostat) may be calling for heat, but a limit (safety) switch is open; meaning something is becoming to hot during operation or a limit switch has failed and needs to be replaced.

Manuel resetting of the unit is accomplished by turning off/on the circuit breaker. Power cycling the unit, every so often, may provided you with some heat until the problem can be further diagnosed.

If after waiting a while for the unit to cool down and then you power cycle it, and it does not come back on, one of the limits has completely failed and must be replaced.

On a forced-air system, changing the filter may help you ride-out an intermittent failing high-temp limit switch. For either type of system, ensure that the exhaust flue is not blocked; check for leaves, birds nests, ect.

Penco 15b Series II PDF, page 27


backup electrical feed to main panel from inverter's GFCI outlet without ground? I have rigged a 1000watt/120vac inverter to my EV, to use for backup electrical power during short grid outages (the main "traction" battery has 40kwh and the DC-to-DC converter is known to be able to supply 135 amps to the 12v system). The inverter has duplex GFCI outlets.

I could just run extension cords to the few loads I'd like to support (fridge, modem, a few lights), but I'd prefer to feed the main panel (using an interlock, of course).  I'll probably just feed one phase of the panel, and shuffle a couple of breakers if necessary to get the loads I want (though feeding both phases from the 120vac may be possible, see: feeding both sides of load center from 120vac backup source).

The problem is, ground and neutral are (of course) bonded in the main panel.  This will cause the inverter's GFCI outlet to trip - GFCI's typically test for a ground-neutral short (as well as, of course, an imbalance in the hot and neutral currents).

Question: would it be inadvisable to simply connect the GFCI's hot and neutral to the main panel (via an interlocked breaker) and leave the ground disconnected ?   Seems the house would still have a working ground network, and hazards from the inverter are protected by GFCI; the only real hazard would be if the inverter's case became energized.

P.S. Yes, I realize there are other, more complicated, approaches.  A critical-loads sub-panel, which would have to be connected to the main via a breaker that also disconnects neutral.  Or separating the ground and neutral connections onto separate busbars in the main panel, with a ready means of temporarily de-bonding them.

Does the ground terminal on the inverter connect to anything else.. the inverter (and car) chassis, for example? If it does, and if the ground wire from the inverter to the main panel is not connected, then there could be a potential that develops between the body of the car and other nearby metallic structures (overhead garage door track, stair handrails, ???) as a result of the current flowing in the neutral.

Working with round numbers it seems like you could get 10 A (current out of 1000W inverter) * 1.5 milliohm (resistance per foot of 12 AWG) * 100 feet (path length of neutral from car to main panel) = 1.5 volts developed between car body and anything connected to the house grounding system. If that's applied to a 1000 ohm human body it'll experience a 1.5 mA current, which IIRC is pretty close to the level of sensation for most people and is about 25% of GFCI trip threshold.

I don't know whether a GFCI actually tests for a neutral-ground short, but it certainly does detect the condition the moment any current flows because half the current returns on the ground conductor, which dodges around the GFCI's current transformer. So you're right: if you do connect the ground, the inverter's GFCI will trip.

For any generator, in the Installation and Operating Instructions for the Generac 6294 transfer switch kit Generac recommends disabling the ground-neutral bond in a generator (or, in this case, inverter) used to power a main panel. If that cannot be done - impractical, voids the generator warranty, etc - then use a switched neutral kit accessory in the transfer switch. (see a more verbose version of the same I wrote there.)

The "switched neutral kit" is nothing more than an insulated bus bar and a SPDT relay. The neutrals for the circuits that are to be powered from the GFCI-equipped generator/inverter are moved to this insulated bus bar. The relay common also goes to this bus bar. The relay normally closed terminal goes to the panel's regular neutral bar, ie the one bonded with ground. The normally open terminal goes to the neutral of the generator/inverter. The relay is powered from the generator/inverter.

Taken to an extreme in which all neutrals are moved to the insulated bus bar the relay is effectively a switchable ground-neutral bond. This is basically a validation of what was proposed in your final sentence: "separating the ground and neutral connections onto separate busbars in the main panel, with a ready means of temporarily de-bonding them."


How can I make an enamel-on-steel bathtub feel/sound more substantial? I'm installing an enamel on steel bathtub on a concrete slab. Any good ideas for what can I do to make it feel and sound less flimsy and hollow?

Edit: How about lead diving weights as harmonic dampers, attached to underside of tub with structural adhesive, surrounded/supported by Great Stuff foam, on top of a bed of scrap pressure-treated 2x4--I imagine that's a bad idea for some reason(s), but I propose it as a serious question. Why not?

Bed it in plaster (which is very likely what the tub manufacturer recommends - most do.) Foam can work but is not preferred (easier when you have an already installed tub, though.)

Bedding on plaster is literally get ready to go, test fit, dump a pile of plaster on the floor under the middle of where the tub goes, set the tub. Tub ends up solid, you don't have anything that's going to rot in there, and the plaster is easily broken out when the tub eventually needs to be replaced.

As for your cockamaimie scheme, the diving weights alone will cost more than the bag of plaster; and it's an ugly mess and waste of effort .vs. doing it right with plaster.


Bevel a 2x6 long ways I need to make a bevel plate (of 10 degrees) to support wooden I-joists on a single slope (shed) roof assembly. I'm working with 2x6s, and I'd really like to cut the ten degree bevel across the 5.5'' dimension of the board, but I am really struggling to figure out how to do it.
Just to be clear, I need to rip these 2x6 long ways, with a 10 degree bevel going the width of the board to support a wooden I-joist at 10 degree angle.
I thought I could cut the boards on both sides with a circular saw, but unless I have a monster (8'' + inches) circular saw they blade is too short for the cut to meet in the middle.
Any ideas?
Update: Just to follow up for those who want the "problem", I have a single slope roof and I am using wooden I-joists for rafters. I am going to use a birdsmouth cut for the lower bearing wall.
For the higher bearing wall, the office documentation for those I-joists (and all other I-joist documentation I have seen) says I need a "bevel plate" (see 10a in the attached).
I think I will end up just putting a 10 degree cut bevel in a 2x4 and putting that on two top plates as suggested here, but open to hearing more ideas and thank you for taking the time.

Bandsaw, but still tricky.
Reliable solution would be to throw away half the board (not get two usable pieces from each board) and use a router sled to plane off the wood not used. Router sleds are an amazing tool to have in your list of options, and produce great work.
Traditional blended approach and probably good enough for framing is to cut both sides with a tablesaw as far as it reaches (which might be more than halfway for a 10" belt-driven saw, and you are done) and then finish with a handsaw guided by the tablesaw kerfs to complete the cut.
If attempting this with a hand-held circular saw: A: Don't B: check your insurance coverage and have someone looking on to call 911. That is a bad cut to try and do with a hand-held circular saw, in my experienced opinion.
I also agree with the commenters that there is no way you need a full width beveled top plate. Normal rectangular top plate and (easily made) wedges under each joist will be done before you are done setting up to make the thing you don't need but think you do.


Bonding vs grounding a main and sub panel I am in the process of building a new home and of course I'm saving some money by doing all the wiring myself. I do have a decent bit of experience with electrical work, but the main panel is a little above my skill set.

My specific question involves the 200a service panel, which has one main 200a disconnect switch to cut off everything, as well as slots for 6 breakers in addition to the main power feed going onward to my one and only distribution box inside the house. I am currently not planning on using any of the 6 breaker slots to power anything, so there is no technical "breaker" feeding the inside box aside from that main disconnect.

In the main panel there is only the one bus bar serving both the ground and neutral. The panel inside the house has the neutral and ground bonded. Do I need to remove this bond? I'm having trouble finding information since technically the indoor panel is a "sub" panel, but it is directly connected to the main feed.

I know any sub panels fed by a breaker cannot be neutral bonded, but since this one is actually directly fed by the main and not a breaker is that the case? Since the main is already bonded by having the ground and neutral on the same bus bar is having that second box also bonded a safety hazard?

Yes bonding in sub panel should be removed irrespective of the having / not having breaker, you can only bond in main panel(service entry)  and i assume you  run 4 wire (2 line , 1 ground and 1 neutral) from main panel to your sub panel. Bonding in subpanel  is an electrical hazard can  possibly  make  your ground  and  bonded metal enclosure  hot conductor.


How to quickly fix botched latex paint area on exterior door? I need some help here.  We recently primed and painted an exterior wood door.  The second coat of latex paint was still semi-wet and I accidentally touched an area of the door with my fingertips which left some unsightly dips.  We tried painting over that area again but it looks a bit rough. Here's a pic

We'd like to put in the door tomorrow but I'm not sure how to fix this quickly. Right now the area is "sticky" so it's too wet to sand down and too dry to smoothly re-paint over.  Any advice for how to recover here?

Just thinking out loud... could we scrape the goopy area?

I wouldn't try to scrape off the messed up area while it's wet because you'll leave ridges at the edges of the area, which will look even worse.  Leave the area to dry before trying to fix it.

To get it to dry quickly, higher temperatures and low humidity are your friends.  I've used a space heater and an oscillating fan when I needed paint dried quickly: arrange the heater and the fan so that warm air gets blown past the work piece continually.  Leave it running overnight: it looks like you're using a higher-gloss paint, which will form a skin quickly, but underneath will remain wet for a while.

(See here for a technique for removing drip marks.)


Replacing the popup tub drain plug The drain plug I had broke and I decided to change it. The problem is that no matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't remove the broken one. You can even see that I managed to break one part of it using too much force. I tried applying WD-40 and used cobra pliers.
NOTE: The inside part of plug is missing (that part was broken so I took it off and threw it).

Since the piston is stuck, and no way to remove it, I am thinking about buying the new drain as well (If that's the correct name of it - maybe it's called basin waste).
Here are more photos of it:

Does anyone know how that specific model of a drain is called? Also should I apply plumbers putty to it? I found this white thing on photos, so I am not sure if it had plumbers putty applied.

As I recall, it's called a tub shoe or drain assembly. I also believe plumber's putty is no longer recommended for this type of application. A new drain assembly kit should come with everything you need. Just read the box's instructions before leaving the hardware store, or the sales associate should be able to tell you everything you need.


How should I troubleshoot a dishwasher that stops in the last minute of the cycle? I have an LG model # LDS5040ST dishwasher.  I found it displaying an nE error code the other day.  The code description on the LG site says it is thrown due to the vario motor locking.  Today I tore it down to look at the motor.  I found some trash and a chewed up toothpick in the sump by the motor impeller.  I cleaned it all up,  put it back together (because if  I have to order a new motor it won't get here until Mar. 5), and tried to run it.  I watched it run for the whole cycle.  It got to 001 left then it beeped and threw the nE error again.  But I heard the motor running.  What should my next steps in troubleshooting be?  Could it be a control panel issue?

What you might have is a loose wire in the front panel ; this appears to be a common problem with Vario Motor errors on the LG Washers.

Verify that the motor turns and does not have any rough spots or stiff spots, check your sump and impeller areas again to be sure - but you are likely looking at a loose wire in the front panel.
Apparently the cables get stuck on something in the door panel and lose their flexibility and get pulled loose or apart - or wiggle to an internal breakage (this happens when the door is opened and closed).

The other possibility could also be the main board.


How to reset the breaker on this smart dimmer light switch (switched receptacle)? My condo came with these dimmer switches. You push once on up or down to fade the lights in or out fully, or press and hold to fade the lights slowly, releasing to set the light amount. I don't know the brand. The switches always glow green (not only when the light is switched on).

As you'd expect, the top outlet of one room is switched. I brilliantly plugged a kettle into that outlet, which seems to have tripped an internal breaker in the switch. It now flashes red.

In an attempt to reset the breaker, I've tried various patterns of pressing the button, pressing and holding, pressing both up and down. Nothing seems to have worked. I poked at the clear peg at the bottom of the switch, but it doesn't seem like it's an actionable button.

I have had to reset this breaker once before, just tapping up worked.

Any ideas on how I could reset this breaker, assuming it is an internal breaker?

I'd also love a brand name and model, or even a manual reference I can read on my own, if anyone recognizes what this is.

(I removed the kettle and moved it to a non-switched receptacle.)

It was installed illegally.  That's why it failed.

Your plugging a kettle in there was reasonable.

Switched receptacles for lighting are legal.  What's illegal is placing a dimmer on a receptacle, and what happened to you is precisely the reason it is illegal.

Now if you really, really want to dim a socket, you can use a magic, specially keyed receptacle that only accepts special "magic" lamp plugs (which you then put on your lamp).  That's what they should have done.

You don't need to replace with an identical dimmer.  The rectangle shape is called a "Decora cover".  Most dimmers are compatible with it as are many plain switches. You'll need to decide whether to put a plain switch here; or put a dimmer and the above receptacle kit.

Since this is the condo's mess-up, I would ask them to pay for it.


Can regular joint compound be used on blue drywall? I bought a house that was being remodeled.

The bathroom has blue drywall on it.

Can i use regular joint compound on the drywall ?

Yes you can, but it is meant as a backer for plaster veneer.
As a little added info. Green board is used mostly in bathrooms, not blue board. In all of the bathrooms I have seen in homes I worked on, none has ever had anything other than regular mud over the joints. As an added bonus, blue board is supposed to have mildew resistant properties too.


How to clean grout over grout? We are doing over our bathroom.  We have tiled the shower with large white tiles with a gray strip down each side.  After we grouted the white tiles (waited a couple of days) we used gray grout for the strip down the sides.  The gray grout got onto the white grout, we washed some off but still a grayish colour.  My question is how to clean the white grout? I thought about bleach but think it may be too string for new grout.

I seriously doubt that you will remove the dye from the grout using any method. Your best bet is to pick up a grout saw at lowes or home depot for about seven dollars that has a diamond blade on the end. You will be able to use the pointed end to file down the small amount where the gray overlapped( if that's what happened). IF it was too wet and these colors bled, then file down into the grout where it bled, mix your grout a little tacky instead of loose and touch up the edge.


What's wrong with my thermostat (fan / limit control)? I previously asked about wiring the White-Rodgers fan/limit control on my wood stove.

It's now wired and the wood stove is fired up.  I ran the fan wires to the fan (hot) and I capped the limit wires.  Since it's a wood stove I think I don't need the limit circuit.

But the fan control is not working the way I think it should. The stove is hot but the fan is not turning on.

When I open up the thermostat box, the temp dial is not oriented the way I think it should be.  I snipped this from the installation manual for the thing:

I drew the N to show where North is for the dial in its current state.  This seems wrong to me. The stove is pretty hot. I'd guess near 200F on the outside surface. Surely it's higher inside the box. At this level of heat, I'd expect the dial to rotate counterclockwise, to the limit of the temp scale. That would obviously turn on the fan. But that's not happening.

If I manually rotate the dial, it actually does close the circuit and turn on the fan: the microswitch is operating properly.  when I let it go, though, the dial returns to its position as indicated in the drawing.

Right now I have the lever on the control set to "Manual" to override the thermostat and keep the blower running.

What's the deal?  Is this something I can fix or adjust?

Looking at your thermostat specs etc, I assume it is a basic bimetallic rotary spring operated mechanism with manual SPST switching. since you can operate it to "on" and you know the contacts close in manual mode, and when physically turned/twisted, I suggest a couple of tests to verify operation of the bi metal spring. Disconnect the electrical power. Use an air heat gun to blow on the sensor unit and watch to see if actuator moves in the switch housing as you would expect.  Connect an Ohm meter across the load/fan terminals. As the temp rises, the ohms should change from infinite/open to 0 ohms/closed when contacts close at the set limit. Although this is not a calibrated test, it will verify that the spring is responding to temp changes. If this test works properly and you are satisfied the unit is working, I may suggest you look at where you are trying to sense the heat from the wood stove. It may be that the area you have selected to mount the thermostat is not seeing enough heat from the stove. you may have to monitor the temp closer to the flue or at an area that radiates heat better. You may also have to fabricate some type of small plenum directly on the surface of the stove for the sensor to mount into. In that I mean just the spring/temp sensor assembly, not the actual electrical switch assembly.  Good luck.


Is a push-fit end cap a temporary or permanent solution? I am about to cap my water copper pipe with a Sharkbite push fit end cap. Is it a permanent solution? Or will I have to go with a torch?

They are meant to be a permanent solution, at least I hope so, I used them in my master bath renovation to convert from PVC to copper. Real easy solution, follow install guidelines.


Dining Room Table Refinishing We have restained our table and have put the first coat of Helmsman on it and I have lightly sanded to get ready for the second coat.However, we dipped one of the staining pads into the can and the varnish and the stain have now mixed. I have tried to filter the varnish but it is now the stained color. Is the rest of the varnish still good to use or will it cause bubbles, etc.?

If both the varnish and the stain are in the same solvent, then mixing should be fine. (The labels will specify either water or mineral spirits cleanup.)

Don't be tempted to not stir the varnish before use, as there can be flatting agents that collect in the bottom.


How can I connect metal rods together crosswise? I have some stainless steel rods of diameters such a 1/4", 3/8", 1/2" or so, and I want to connect them together in some cases cross-wise to make a lattice. In some cases it might be convenient to connect them at an angle like 45-degrees. How can I do this? The rods will need to be taken apart sometimes, so it cannot be a permanent bond. Also, I don't want to use anything that will leave adhesive on the rods or gum them up.

One obvious idea is to use baling wire and just wrap it around the joint, but it might slip.

After doing some research I found these that cost $12 each, pretty expensive, but am open to better suggestions:


How to Remove a Stuck Kitchen Sink Strainer I have a two basin stainless steel kitchen sink. Whoever installed it did not use or properly apply plumbers putty and both sides leak. I went to replace it with a new strainer but can not get the old one off.

I've tried grasping it with different tools to keep it from spinnig but the nut just will not budge. I believe it's plastic so I've considered trying to just cut into it with a chizel or even a hot knife.

Do I need a special tool to help me remove it without damaging the sink or the trap and other plumbing underneath?

I'm assuming you are referring to the large nut that compresses the drain basket to the sink. Grasp the tailpiece with some pump pliers and use a large wrench or second pair of pliers to turn the nut.  If all else fails, cut the nut off and replace the tail piece and nut assembly..  Be sure to use some plumbers putty around the basket flange before you reinstall it into the basin.  Tighten well so most of the putty squeezes out.


No condensation coming from my ac It's humid out yet there's no condensation coming from my ac. Thermostat set at 78 and that's what temp is inside.

If your unit is producing cool air, the evaporator is probably working. The condensation usually falls into a drip pan located under the evaporator heat exchanger. The drip pan drain can become clogged, which will drop the water into the air handler and from there, gravity takes over. Gravity started it, but once it's out of the pan, it's anywhere.
Start with locating the drip pan and checking the drain. You may have to sop up the condensation from the pan with sponges, towels, absorbent cats, etc. You can check with a stiff wire to see that the drain is clear.
The exit for the drain can become clogged. My drain dripped onto weeds which grew upward into the PVC pipe, allowing slime to grow into the pipe. It became a plug which had to be removed using a shop vac (wet/dry vac). Once removed, I was able to open the top of the entry point and add some diluted chlorine bleach, repeated on a regular schedule.
I also re-configured the drain to enable it to drip into a section of large diameter PVC filled with pea gravel, reducing the growth in the future.
Newcomb and company has a useful set of instructions similar to mine above.


How can I make precise, repeatable cuts in ABS plastic sheet? I need to make a few fairly repeatable and accurate cuts out of a 12" x 12" x 1/8" piece of ABS plastic.
I've tried sawing, scoring with exacto knife followed by breaking off, and of course sanding. The issue with these methods is 1) it's time consuming, but more importantly 2) the pieces aren't 'similar enough', they don't repeat within, say 1/8" (more or less may be sanded, oftentimes not exactly straight, etc).
So one idea I had was to use something like this:
https://www.amazon.ca/X-ACTO-Commercial-12-Inch-Guillotine-26612/dp/B002JGMIA8/
I.e. one of those paper cutter tools. I don't mind if it takes a bit of elbow grease to get the cuts going, my main concern is that I'll get a long, straight-as-possible edge that I can repeat as consistently as possible about a dozen times.
Before I invest in something like this, what do you think, is this a good idea? Is there anything else you'd recommend for my problem? Thanks!

I think the best solution for this job would be to use a table saw. These are obviously not cheap, but you could probably find one that is not too expensive, especially if you have an 1/8" tolerance on your pieces. A used one can also be had reasonably, or you can rent or borrow one.