How to replace AC/DC adapter but keep old connector I have an AC/DC adapter I need to replace for my dehumidifier.  The whole system is no longer working, and I am confident the problem is with the adapter.

Finding the correct adapter is easy enough; there are many 12 V, 6 A options out there.  The problem is though that none of them that I have seen have the correct connector to plug in to the dehumidifier.  See pictures below.

How would I go about splicing the current connector in to a new adapter?

Chop and solder. Of course, if the current adapter is dead, it can be difficult to establish correct polarity - but I think I see that labeled nicely on the present adapter (it's not always, though it should be.)

For a tidy job, split the cords and cut the + and - wires at different lengths (so the joints are slightly offset, rather than being at the same point) slip a large heat shrink over the whole cable and one or two smaller heat shrinks over the individual wires, moving them far enough from the joint not to be shrunk when soldering. If the offset is large enough you can skip the inner ones entirely and just have the outer one (the offset keeps the exposed joints from touching each other when held by the outer heat shrink.)


Can I modify a roof truss by removing purlins and kickers? I have an attic space I'd like to make more user friendly.  The rafters are original 2x4's, same goes for the purlins, and the kickers.

The span is approx 12 feet. This particular space is over a bedroom and bathroom, it has been used for storage over the years and the underlying floor joists have been fine.  No sagging, no cracking of ceiling below.

If I were to sandwich each of the 2x4 rafters with 2x6 rafters, glue and screw, would I add enough strength to do away with the purlin and kickers?

The roof itself is shake over felt.  There is no plywood sheathing.

*** editing to add more information:

The attic space is 20 feet wide by 10 deep. The roof pitch is 12-12.  The very old 2 by 4 rafters are 24 inches on center. From the point the rafter meets the top plate of the wall to the center on the attic space is 10 feet. I am determining this 10 feet to be the so called rafter span.

Basically a 10 deep by 20 wide box with a 45 degree roof.  The floor joists, also 2 by 4's, run parallel to the rafters thus I assume the floor joists are tying in the side walls at the eaves.

As this is not my line of work, I have been using some of the rafter calculators. If I am using the calculators correctly, 2 by 4's should not be used to span 10 feet - more like 6 feet.  Thus I assume the original builder bolstered everything with the purlins and the kickers/struts to compensate for the under-sized rafters.  After 80 years, the roof looks fine, no sag.

This same calculator reports that a 2 by 6 can span 10 feet 6 inches.  Thus I was thinking of sistering not one, but two 2 by 6's - one on each side of the existing 2 by 4 rafter. There are six rafters on each side.  Thus when all is said and done I'd have 36 rafters - 18 per side, 3 to a set, 24 inches on center, thickness of each rafter being 2 + 1.5 + 1.5, width being 5.5 inches.

The rafters are 14 feet in length.

For building codes ... this is an old home. Much of the 80 year old home is not code compliant, for example wires are spliced and taped, post/tube wiring, etc.  Due to the age and condition of the home it is highly likely a new buyer will raze it, it seems to be the trend nowadays. Out with the old and put up a McMansion.

Regarding consulting outsiders:  a carpenter friend suggested collar ties only should do the trick.  I did not pursue this.  A structural engineer took a look and suggested I beef up the rafters and I'm done.  He further mentioned the floor should be OK, if the rooms below have lasted this long with people/furniture as a real world load walking and moving above them, they will be no worse off if I convert the space to something like a half bath. However, because lumber is relatively inexpensive, I'd most likely sister 2 by 6's to the floor joists as well as I think it could only help.

I will not take advice from this forum and start building with abandon, I'm just looking for friendly feedback and additional opinions. I got this idea about 6 months ago, and as you can tell, I haven't gotten very far.

No, you shouldn't make structural modifications like this without them being approved by a properly licensed and certified structural engineer.  Although you didn't say where this is, most likely it is against the law to do so anyway.  In most jurisdictions, it will require something like a "building permit" to make modifications like this.  This will trigger inspections, which will likely require drawings signed off by the right kind of engineer.


Road noise reduction in the balcony I am living in an apartment which has a balcony right next to the small road. Even thought the road is quite small, cars are still driving there and it makes a lot of sound if the doors to the balcony are open.

The balcony has no solid vertical wall toward the road, but only iron bars every 20cm. Would that help if I would put on the ground a half of meter height plastic (or other material) board over the length of the whole balcony next to the iron bars?

I don't expect 50% of noise reduction but at least little bit would be good.

To illustrate my point, this is how it looks:

Different sound frequencies have very different characteristics in terms of what you can do and how effective it will be.  The road noise is a mixture of sound frequencies.  There probably is nothing practical you can do about the low frequency noise, but you might be able to muffle the sound a little by reflecting high frequencies and absorbing mid frequencies.

Think in terms of the sound panels used to create cubicles to reduce office noise.  They aren't real effective, but they help a little.  You could even start by experimenting with ones you find in a used office equipment store.  You could also make your own.  Plywood with thick carpet padding glued on, and a protective cover would be a reasonable first test.  But making either of these weatherproof will be a challenge.

For more naturally weatherproof materials, you could look at T1-11, thick, dense styrofoam panels, or even corrugated plastic panels for the backing, and closed-cell foam sheets (the material used for boating applications) for sound absorption.

Of course those would totally block your view.  If you have a lot of money to blow, you could try clear Lexan panels.


Strengthening ceiling above the garage for additional storage I need some help. I am trying to figure out the best way to strengthen my garage ceiling to create storage space up above. The problem is the house was built in 1997 with a 2x4 W truss system. The span is 28'. I can see a break in the truss under one of the joint plates. Would sistering 2x4's in one 12' and two 8' sections all glued and screwed be enough to make it safe for storage? I am adding 3/4" plywood as the floor but also elevating the floor with 2x4 laid on their sides going perpendicular to the trusses. I am also adding an attic ladder for access.

As a broad statement, this is a terrible idea. Why? Your truss system is designed specifically to hold up the roof and, to a lesser degree, tie your walls together.

2x4s spanning 28' with breaks are clearly not up to the task of holding up plywood and sleepers (parenthetically, not sure why sleepers seem like a good idea, but I digress), much less whatever stuff you (and future occupants) load up there. It simply isn't in the design.

What you'd need is something resembling a floor system... sturdy beams running across the 28' dimension with reasonably sturdy lumber running perpendicular to the trusses. (That beam at the front, by the way, is going to interfere with your garage door/opener.) Or some engineered joists running parallel to the trusses, which might or might not be able to simply bear on the top plate. On top of that, we need to ensure that the load on the joists/beams is being carried appropriately to the floor through posts, which then need to be carried adequately on a footing.

So, ask yourself: is all this worth the trouble? You'd lose either headroom in the garage or headroom in the "attic" because of a need for decently sturdy framing lumber. Cost of time and materials isn't trivial. You might need to revisit your garage door opener mechanism. Ensuring adequate bearing for joists or beams isn't going to be simple. You're probably digging new footings in your garage floor.

Storage sheds or offsite storage units start to look pretty good at this point.

So, capsule summary: this can be done. You need actual engineering expertise to do it appropriately. It'll cost a lot.

The alternative is to just chuck some plywood up there; undermine the structure of your garage; then call a contractor in 5 years to fix it all at great expense.

Disclaimer: I'm a professional carpenter, and I'd rather not have to charge people money to fix things like this.


What is "knob and tube wiring"? I assume this is some USA wiring system, am I right?

Knob and tube wiring uses two separate copper conductors, each isolated by cotton cloth or soft rubber.  The conductors are strung tightly through the cavities of your walls and floors, and depend on being separated by air in order to avoid overheating.  When going through joists, the wires pass through porcelain tubes.  In the wall and floor cavities, they are attached intermittently by porcelain knobs.

Knob and tube wiring was commonly used in North America from the 1880s through the 1930s.


what drill bit size to pilot drill hole into stud for 15/64" lag bolt Im trying to install a tv mount that has no instructions.  Using my drill guage plate, 15/64" is the smallest hole these lag bolts can screw into. What size drill bit should I now use for pilot drilling into the wood stud?
thanks

When you're drilling and tapping threads into metal to accept a machine screw, you have to use the precise right size drills and taps.  But you don't need to be real precise with lag screws in framing lumber.  Without a pilot hole or with a too-small pilot hole the wood may split.  If the pilot hole is too large, obviously the fastener won't hold.

Look at the lag screw, observe the diameter inside the threads  (R, the "root diameter") in the illustration below) not the thread diameter (T).  Match up a bit that's slightly smaller than the root.  It sounds like you have 1/4" hardware and a 3/16" bit would be fine.


LED Bulb Blinks on One Setting I replaced the 40W R14 bulbs in my china closet with LED 40W R14 bulbs.  The china closet lighting is touch activated and has three settings. The new LED bulbs work fine on the first and second setting but blink on the third(highest) setting. What would cause this?

Are the bulbs you got made for dimmable applications? Unless the LED explicitly says that it is dimmer compatible, it may not always work at different voltages. The characteristics of each make and model of LED are different, so it's a bit of a crap shoot as to whether they'll work at each voltage put out by the dimmer.


Does this gas range valve need replacing? We are getting a new gas range and we didn't know if the current gas valve should be replaced or not since it is an old valve. It looks like it is outdated and needs to be replaced. Should we get this replaced?

If you're concerned that the valve is ok, call your local gas company. They'll come out to re-light pilots, and will also come out if you have any questions about something you're doing with any gas lines.

They really don't want you to have any problems. They will also do easy simple repairs, but tell you to get a pro to fix something bigger. For example, I called them once about the gas valve to our pool heater was really tight, it seemed to be rusted and I couldn't close it. The gas guy came out, took the nut off the back, pulled it apart and applied some grease and it was like new. It was apart for only about 20 seconds and he didn't even shut off the gas! He also checked the heater that it was working ok.


Safest Steps to turn on water heater that has been off for 5 years My water heater has not been in use for 4.5 years.  The system was winterized in 3 years ago.  What are the steps for filling it and turning it back on to avoid damaging it.

You might want to open the water line only slightly and let it fill slowly so it won’t have a shock of pressure. I would open the lower drain and get rid if any gunk that may have developed, and check that your anode rod is still there and not corroded away (if it was drained the anode would not have continued to corrode).

Once it is flushed and fully pressurized, open the valve all the way, then close 1/2 turn to preserve the packing.


Will a kitchen with porcelain tiles on the last floor of a house add too much weight? My house is more than a 100 years and the kitchen I'm concerned about is on the second floor. I would like to cover my kitchen with porcelain tiles, but I'm thinking that doing so would add too much weight to the house. I mean, I would have to add a lot of cement, wonderboards, and on top of that, the fridge, stove, sink, etc. I'm asking, will the weight be too much for the house?

This might help: http://ci.camarillo.ca.us/docs/bs/Weights%20of%20Building%20Materials.pdf - it says 7.7 pounds per square foot for the tiles and the cement backing board. Which isn't that much. If you're putting new cabinets and appliances in, I'd be more worried about those. They weigh a lot more than the flooring, and the weight is concentrated in a smaller space.

Ultimately, the answer will depend on the house.


What can I do to fix this fireplace? House was built in the 1920's and has a brick fireplace that has been converted to ventless propane gas logs.  The logs work great but I haven't been able to use them because it gets so hot inside the "box" that the brick inner walls are black and outside, the heat goes straight up.  The exterior of the fireplace is wood and you can see that the heat is causing peeling and soot, almost a burned look on the outside.  Any ideas on how to fix this problem without having to put in a new insert?

If you don't mind having a glass screen in front of it, you could do that to prevent some of the heat from reaching the wood. Also cleaning the chimney and flume might help some more smoke escape


How can I fill a wheelbarrow tire when the bead is gapped away from the rim? I have this wheelbarrow with tubeless tire, I had to replace it with the new one, however I don't see how to pump it! The tire is quite stiff, and it was tricky to put it on the rim, but now it looks like the tire isn't well adjusted to the rim. Did I do something wrong? How do people normally pump this type of tires?

Looks like the typical gap one gets when mounting a tubeless tire.  You'll need to get the bead to seat against the rim as you pump air (hopefully quickly) into the tire - a hand pump might not do it.

Sometimes you can jiggle the tire to effect a temporary seal around the bead as your compressor dumps air in.  Using a clip-on tire chuck will help.

Some folks "squeeze" the tire with a strap around the tread area.  I've seen a device called a bead expander, and this guy shows the use of some large tie-wraps to achieve the same thing.


House has no plumbing vent — is this a solution? I've been living in a fixer-upper for a while...  I've been fixing a lot that was previously done wrong.

I've finally gotten around to ripping out our first floor bathroom (two full bathrooms) and I'm noticing some plumbing issues. Mainly that there's what seems to be a vent pipe terminating into my wall. So yeah, there are no proper plumbing vents in this house. Surprisingly I haven't yet had any problems, but now that I've got a bathroom torn out it seems like I should fix it correctly.

I've made a diagram of the existing... situation. The large pipe is 4" PVC, and the smaller pipes are 2" PVC — I don't have wall access into the second floor bathroom at this point, but from what I can tell by the first floor, everything is draining into a single 4" pipe.

Edit: looking at the existing work some more, it just seems better to redo the entire waste line system. Here's my plan. Any red flags here?

I am not a plumber but I think your plan is just fine according to these tables:

http://publicecodes.cyberregs.com/icod/ipc/2012/icod_ipc_2012_7_sec009.htm

http://publicecodes.cyberregs.com/icod/ipc/2012/icod_ipc_2012_7_sec010.htm

A 3" pipe is plenty for the number of DFU's in your stack and horizontal run. The 2" vents on the sinks are probably even oversized and so they should be plenty.

The only issue I see is you can't take sink through the roof as a 1.5". At least not here in the north where it could frost over.

Have you considered tying the kitchen vent into your main vent and avoiding another roof penetration? Just a thought.

The only time plumbers around here use 4" in a single family home is for the main sewer exit from the house, and then only a few feet of the exit itself.

Good luck!


Need to identify an old Zinsco breaker Can anyone identify these old Zinsco breakers?  I need to add one 20 amp breaker to this panel.   thanks!

That is an old Zinsco breaker model called "Magnetrip" and there's more than one style. Yours has a forked bus which requires screw terminals top and bottom.
You will not find these new but there are companies who salvage old breakers and load test them and certify them. You will need to source replacements that way.
Still, there is some risk. You really should strongly consider replacing the panel, there will come a day when you can't get replacements at all.
P.S.- there is usually a (safety related) reason when breakers and panels are discontinued...


How to protect a 60 amp feed running through interior wall I am installing a subpanel in my garage and feeding it from the main box with 6/3 romex.  I ran the cable across the basement ceiling, through the wall into my garage.  I was able to run it up through the wall that separates my house from my garage, into the garage attic, over to the other side of the garage and down the wall to the subpanel.

Inside the wall I used several staples to make sure the cable stayed away from the drywall.  However, now that I have the cable in place, I'm uncomfortable with the unprotected 60 amp feed running through a wall that someone could drive a nail through.  I understand I can't run it through conduit, so what is the best way to protect the cable (hence, PEOPLE) from damage?

The same puncture issue exists with any in-wall wire.  Check local codes, but most require wires to be run along the middle of studs which, for 2x4 studs. is 1 3/4 in from the wall board.  If your feed is 120V, the shock danger is about the same regardless of gauge.  Without being able to get inside the wall, there's not much that can be done.

Alternatively, you could use shielded flexible conduit or rigid conduit.  The first is expensive in your gauge, the second requires wire length access above or below the wall or can be mounted on the wall.  Doesn't look too hot that way.

I started using flex conduit for blind runs long ago because it can be pushed to fish, is easier to fish and location inside the wall doesn't matter much.  Entrance and exit holes have to be centered but it doesn't have to be attached inside.


LED MR16 replacement bulbs: How to evaluate brightness and color temp? The main area of my house uses MR16 exclusively, mostly 50W bulbs.

I have tried a few LED replacements over the years (none for the past 2 years), and have not been happy with brightness (not bright enough) and color temp (narrow spectrum, and cold).

Where can I find truly impartial reviews on bulbs so I can migrate to LED?

You're looking for subjective human-opinion reviews.  However, the questions you are asking about are measurable scientific facts that are labeled on almost every bulb, and certainly any bulb legal to sell in the United States.

Lumens

The useful light output of a bulb is in lumens.  This is a measurement of the light that you can see, and the wedge that it is lighting up.

You must factor for the wedge angle of the bulb.  If you have a 120 degree angle bulb that is the brightness you like, and you want to switch to a 60 degree angle bulb, that will illuminate 1/4 the area, and will land all its lumens in that 1/4 area, So that area will have 4x the lumens hitting it.  That will make it brighter, not 4x brighter since light is a decibel curve.

Color Temperature

Color Temperature is the color of the light, which you call "coldness".  Normal halogens are 3000K.  Office fluorescents are 4100K. The early LEDs that were popular prior to 2015, especially the cheapies, are typically 5000-6000K because those are the cheapest lumens per dollar. LEDs have gotten quite good and you should have no trouble finding 3000K LEDs at sane cost, for most applications.

Read a more detailed examination with illustrations here.


Power bar with manual reset to protect from "flash on" during power outage We have frequent power outage in our area, and the power often glitches on (flashes on) during the black out. This causes problems with our home electronics: TV, router etc.. as some devices, when power is restored, automatically power on in an undefined mode (e.g. standby but unable to come on).
It would be useful to have them on an outlet or power bar that requires a manual reset.
Is there such a thing as a power-fail cutout power bar or outlet with a manual reset?
I don't know if this is an issue for the HVAC or water heater, since they have a start-up process that takes longer than most glitches and they might be designed to handle these glitch-on situations. Needless to say, they'd require plug-through or hardwired in-between-device.
I can make such a device easily with a relay and a power bar or outlet, but I am looking for UL listed devices that accomplish this.
From the offerings on-line it's not clear to me whether the "reset" function -where available- applies only to a surge event or also to power outages. I can imagine most power bars are designed to stay on after an outage, and accomplish the exact opposite of what I am looking for.

You might consider a GFCI cord with a manual reset.  Run a google search for "gfci cord manual reset".  For example, see https://towermfg.com/gfci-in-line/ (not a recommendation).  Per the description "Tower offers models in both Automatic and Manual Reset. An automatic reset turns on upon being plugged in or after a power interruption. A manual reset requires the user to press the reset button after initial plug-in or after a power failure. Both automatic and manual reset GFCI types must be manually reset after a ground fault occurrence."


What's this type of lamp light bulb socket called? I want to buy a replacement, but don't know what to search for.

That is a 2-circuit medium base fixture socket. It is designed to accept a 3-way bulb, which is a dual filament bulb that provides 3 levels of brightness. It has a "turn knob" type switch (or maybe a push switch, it is hard to tell from the picture).

Your picture does not illustrate what type of socket holder it came from. There are various manufacturers and configurations and your picture shows the inner fixture components. You may have to buy a complete fixture socket rather than just those "guts" and be advised they are not all identical.


What paint for a tire swing? I just bought a big used tire and hung it as a tire swing. I pressure washed it, but it still sheds a little black residue. I'd love to seal it/paint it, but am not sure what would stick to a tire and not crack over time in the sun. Any recommendations?

You could try the type of tire dressing like auto detailers use to spruce up the sidewalls of the tires on cars/trucks. You can find this online by searching for "tire dressing" or "tire shine". It should also be available at your local auto parts store.

My experience with products of this type is that they give the rubber of the tire a surface that is glossy look and a smooth feel. Exposure to sun and weather will likely require re-application from time to time but should certainly reduce the amount of "rub off" coming off the tire.


toilet running intermittently My toilet sometimes runs intermittently after the tank has been filled for a few seconds and then stops also there's a terrible smell a gas smell coming from the bathroom.

I think the problem is related to the wax ring around the toilet bowl because the toilet now moves when I sit on it which it did not always do so my thinking is the wax ring needs to be replaced.

The flap may not be seated well at the bottom of the tank.  So the first, and cheapest step is to replace the flap.  However, if you've been adding tablets or chemicals to the tank, those can corrode the PVC fitting (flange) where the flap seals.  In that case you need to replace the PVC flange.

The smell is a second issue.  That has to do with sewer gas getting into the room.  The other answers suggest the wax ring.  That might be right.  Does the commode wiggle when you sit on it?  If it seems steady, it might come from a dry trap elsewhere in the room.  If you have a sink or tub that isn't used much, make sure you periodically pour water down them.  This puts a gas barrier in the trap, without which, gas comes into the room.


Toggle anchor will not pull all the way I am installing two toggle anchors in drywall to hold a heavy mirror. The first one went normally, but this second one will not cinch all the way. No human strength can push the plastic disk farther up the tongue. Do I take it out and try another one? Is there something wrong with my wall? Thanks!

Turns out the hole I drilled was close to a stud which wasn't letting the anchor lay flat against the wall. I sawed off the plastic front bit of the anchor, let the metal anchor fall into the wall, and put up another one but with the wings in a different orientation.


Are there restrictions on having all the lights on one floor on a single circuit breaker? I'm rewiring my house to eliminate knob and tube wiring on my second story.  The panel only has 20 spaces, so I'm trying to be economical.

My upstairs floor plan is a 70 sqft bathroom and 3 bedrooms, total area of the bedrooms is 500 sqft.  Each has a wall sconce and a single outlet per room.  Bathroom already has a ceiling light/vent/heater on its own 20A circuit, professionally installed.

As far as I can tell, NEC 2017 allows all recepticles and light fixtures in the bathroom other than the light/vent/heater to be on one 20A circuit, which in my case is a single recepticle and a vanity light.

I plan to put all 3 bedrooms and the hall light on two 15A circuits, one for all the light fixtures and one for all the recepticles.  That will come out to 4 light fixtures on one 15A circuit and 6 outlets on the other 15A circuit.

Both bedroom breakers will be AFCI and the bathroom breaker will be dual function AFCI/GFCI.

I can't find anything saying otherwise, is it code compliant to wire my upstairs this way, such that all lights except the bathroom light are on one circuit?

That will come out to 4 light fixtures on one 15A circuit and 6 outlets on the other 15A circuit.

I would highly recommend going to 20A on the 6 outlets. It means going from 14 to 12, but you'll be able to run more things off those outlets. You can still install 15A outlets, as they can be used on a 20A circuit. Speaking from experience, you'll regret staying at 15A if you start maxing the circuit out (and it doesn't take much these days)

The lights can all stay on the same circuit at 15A, which will make wiring your switches up cheaper (don't forget to add a neutral in your switches!). Most lights do not draw that much (especially if you go LED).


Why aren't all houses equipped with fire sprinklers? Fire sprinklers are common in office buildings but not so common in people's houses. How come?

I'm thinking of adding such a system to my house but... I don't know... maybe there is a reason for why that is? Might not be a good idea? Too expensive? What?

Why aren't houses equipped with fire sprinklers?

Actually, there are different types of sprinkler systems. In lots of residential homes, a personal protection type system are being installed. These systems use existing water pressure and lower flow heads. The heads are not interconnected and only release water if the temp is high enough at the individual heads. The purpose is not to extinguish the fire, rather give occupants more time to escape a burning building. These are very affordable and becoming quite popular. In fact, they are required in many areas now, especially for new construction and multi-unit rental properties. They are easy to install, especially in new construction as they use standard 1/2 inch PEX tubing and an inexpensive thermo heads.

These differ greatly from the traditional pressurized systems that are designed to trip all the heads if one is activated and supply a deluge of water to extinguish fires. These systems are normally monitored by a security company or local fire dept via phone lines. They use a control board, communications modems, and closed loop water supply systems. The high cost of this type of system is the reason they are rarely used in residential settings.


how do I fix a broken blade lock? the blade lock on my circular saw snapped and I can't loosen the nut enough to get the guard off to fix the broken piece. anybody know a way of loosening the nut without a blade in there or a blade lock?

First, confirm the saw is unplugged. Then hold the guard out of the way with tape. Place a box-end wrench onto the nut. Position everything so you can tap smartly on the wrench with a hammer or metal bar. The inertia/mass of the motor will delay the shaft turning and, with luck, the nut will start to loosen. Remember it is right hand thread.
You could also use a cordless impact driver. Put a 3/8" square adapter into the hex chuck, then an impact socket. Use short bursts of the gun. I have used the tapping technique many times over the years.


How can I affix this wood transition piece? I made a perfect looking transition to go from wood floating floor to tile for a bathroom.  Problem is that this is where the old marble transition was.  Can I set the transition with mortar?  If not what can I use?  Right now there is a one inch deep hole.

New Edit - in picture i have tile to the right, then gap, then floated maple.  In the gap there used to be a marble transition that had about 1.5 inches of mortar under it.  The concrete under this mortar is in very bad shape - probably the reason why the thick bed of mortar.  I scraped some mortar over while tiling - i could remove this easily but not sure it helps.  It is too deep to just adhere wood L transition to the floor.

In view of the new information, I would remove the mortar in the gap.  Seal the edge of the wood floor at the sub floor with a waterproof caulk  and use a funnel and self leveling (cement based) underlayment to make a flat base. Tape both sides of the gap with some blue tape to make any cement spillage an easy cleanup. When setup (24-48 hr) and well cured, attach the transition to the gap, I prefer the polyurethane adhesives (PL) over LN.  (It is stronger, stickier and more flexible, over time).

As noted previously by Tester101 in chat, weight the transition in place overnight.


Can I fill space in junction box wire clamp? After removing some unneeded circuits from a subpanel the wires are not as tightly clamped at the box entry as I would like.

They're not loose, but I would prefer zero wiggles.

Is there an approved way I can fill space in the existing clamp or must I remove everything and replace it with a smaller clamp + reducer?

I'm not 100% clear on cable abandonment code, but I'd fold a short length of the same type of cable over and slip it through the clamp, leaving the cut ends inside the panel box. This leaves you with a tidy flattened loop outside. It could be barely long enough to protrude from the clamp on both sides, rendering it almost invisible.


How do I identify which neutral wire to attach to my GFCI breaker? I want to replace a standard 15A breaker with a GFCI breaker. There are 10-15 circuits coming into the breaker box in conduit, not in NM-B cables.
How do I determine which neutral (of the 10-15) goes with the specific circuit I'm looking to change to GFCI?

First and most importantly:
SHUT OFF THE MAIN BREAKER IN THE PANEL BEFORE YOU START POKING AROUND IN IT!
Then you should trace the HOT wire from the breaker back to where it enters the panel.
Once you have found that you should be able to identify its NEUTRAL and GROUND wires.
Trace those back to where they connect to a bus bar.


How to wire a solid state relay according to code I want to build an outlet that I can control on a timer or through a device like a smartphone. I am planning on using a solid state relay for this job. I'm aware of the electrical code stipulation that all low voltage and high voltage wires must be separated by a permanent barrier, as explained in this question. I was going to use a double gang box from home depot like this one to accomplish this. My question is, with the separator there, how do I connect the relay to the low voltage control?

You can mix Class 2 conductors with power conductors in boxes if the power circuit conductors are introduced solely to connect to the equipment connected to the Class 2 circuit.

Class 2 circuits voltage and current limits are well-defined by National Electrical Code (NEC.) Also, NEC defines spacing between the class 2 conductors and power inductors.

See NEC article 725 for more.


How to remove this plastic pipe connector? How do I remove this kind of white plastic connector attached to the metal pipe?

On the other side of the cube at the top of the white part is a clip that fits inside the cube. Pull that out and the white part will come off the brass part.


Washer Does Not Drain Water Before First Spin Cycle Begins My Maytag Atlantis 2005 washer begins the first spin cycle as soon as the first wash cycle ends. So, the spinning starts with a full load of soapy water. Isn't it supposed to drain all the way down before the first spin cycle starts?

Is it draining at all, but just not fully? Does it eventually pump the water out, or is the water just sitting there at the same level no matter what?

Washing machines have a pump under the tub that pumps the dirty water out. These pumps often have a little mesh filter in front of them, sometimes there's also a filter on the outlet where the drain hose connects on the back of the machine. If these screens get plugged, the pump will be very slow and may not have enough time to clear the water out between cycles. So, if the pump seems to be pumping, just not quickly enough, check for these filters and/or check the pump itself for obstruction.

If the pump isn't turning on at all and the machine is just sitting full of water, google your machine for a troubleshooting diagram or parts diagram. Often, the pump circuit will have sensors or switches in it, that prevent the pump from turning on unless certain conditions are met. For instance, some machines will not turn the pump on unless they can detect that the lid is latched shut. Other times there will be a water level sensor or other sensor that the pump relies on. Troubleshooting guides provided by manufacturers (or just detailed troubleshooting info on appliance repair forums or blogs) will usually point these out and tell you how to check them.


What is the most efficient method for heating of rooms on working days? It is to decide between two possibilities for heating of rooms during the absence in the building:

heating constantly to 20 °C (68 °F) or
heating 1 hour before coming home with 25 °C (77 °F) with the same effect that the room temperature is 20 °C (68 °F) at 5 p.m.

The following conditions has the example:
No people are at home 9 hours in the time between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m.
The outside temperature is 0 °C (32 °F).
The normal inside temperature shall be 22 °C (72 °F).
The building has a medium insulation, so that the room temperature decrease from 22 °C (72 °F) to 18 °C (65 °F) after 4 hours.

Which method of heating is the best to achieve low energy costs?

The engineering theory is that a greater differential in temperature causes a faster loss of energy, so maintaining a constant temperature is more costly.

This theory was proven by tests of Twin Homes by The Canadian Centre for Housing Technology. Several papers have been written about studies at these homes, here is a rather thorough one https://www.healthyheating.com/downloads/Thermostats/nrcc48361.pdf


I replaced a surge arrestor for our home -- did I miss anything? We're selling our home, and one of the things on our inspection was a "popped" surge arrestor - I don't have much experience at all with electrical work, but the process seemed pretty straightforward, so I saw no point in paying $280 for someone to come out and do what I could handle for $50.

Since I do have relatively little experience with electrical work though, even as easy as this appeared to be I still thought it'd be best to ask if someone could take a peak and see if there's anything immediately noticeable that I've missed?

edit: I should note that when the power is turned back on, the light is glowing green.

From what I can see it looks like a direct buss connection these usually require a circuit breaker because when they fail it is a direct short to ground. It looks like you have unused double pole breakers that the device could be wired to that would be be better but usually they are rated 20-30 amps but not at the same as the main feeding the panel.


How to stop whole house water hammer? I am in a newly built house (completed in 2020).  For the first 8 months or so, the plumbing worked great.  We had a toilet gasket warp and so the tank would slowly leak, and I started noticing a persistent thunking every time that tank refilled.
Well, I changed the gasket to stop the toilet tank issue but I started noticing that thunking occurs anytime ANY water in the house is run.  I believe this to be water hammer as I can't think of anything else it could be.
We had a plumber come from the company that built the house.  He suggested installing water hammer arrestors on the washing machine... So he did that and it didn't change a thing.
I'm assuming for a water hammer arrestor to work it'd need to be on the main line where the water hammer is actually happening?
It seems to be difficult to pinpoint the exact location, as the hammering happens with any faucet in the house that's used (sink, shower, tub, toilet, appliances...)
The one last-ditch attempt I made at a fix was replacing the PRV on the mainline.  That also has done nothing...
Anyone have any ideas as to what could be causing this and any possible solutions for a whole home issue like this?
EDIT: I just want to clarify.  It seems to me like hammer arrestors should be part of the code or something... I wouldn't expect this to be happening in brand new plumbing, so is it possible the plumbers messed up by not including hammer arrestors in the original plumbing?

Water hammer happens when there is too much pressure in the line when the valve shuts.  Ironically, it is a problem when the water supply doesn't have enough air, not water.  Since water can't be compressed, all of the pressure is transmitted to the pipe as mechanical force when the valve is closed, causing it to knock and rattle.  Reducing the water pressure can avoid the noise and may even go unnoticed with today's eco-friendly fixtures, but it is better to add arrestors so it can compress shock.
To reduce the water hammer effect, there needs to be a different place for the pressure to go.  Water hammer arrestors work by creating a compressible gap of air that can absorb the shock of the water hitting the suddenly closed valve.  They are usually installed at each fixture above the valve so that there is the least amount of shock on the line; however, a whole house water arrestor can work too as long as it can absorb excess water pressure.  An arrestor placed on the highest fixtures in the system can have the best effect as long as there is a path from each fixture to the air gap.
If it is new construction, there may be a PEX manifold which makes life easy.  But if not, to find the best place(s) to add a local arrestor:

Turn the water off and open every faucet to drain the system.
Close all the faucets and turn the water back on.
Turn on one faucet at a time, from the top floors down, until only water comes out, not air.  Pay attention to how long the air takes to come out and make sure to do both hot and cold.
The fixtures that take the longest to flush air have the longest path and need the arrestor.  If lower floors also spit air after upper floors are flushed, there is probably a siphon and they need arrestors too.

If the walls are closed on both sides, a quick test would be to add an external arrestor at the problem.  One like this mini arrestor can attach past the shutoff valve at the fixture.
My home was built in the 60's with all copper plumbing (even the sewer!) and we had water hammer that would shake the whole house.  I had local arrestors on the washer and a few toilets that helped, but the tub and shower were still loud.  When we renovated the upstairs bathrooms I added 6" buffers to both and the problem has now completely gone away.


Should I be worried about these v-shaped cracks in my newly poured foundation? The foundation company just took the forms off, and when I went to take a look, I noticed three sides had this v-shaded crack on them that's visible both inside and outside the foundation wall.

This is for a garage, the location is New England. If water gets in those cracks and freezes, isn't that going to be a problem?

Those cracks look like the contractors partially filled the forms with concrete and then allowed it to set up too much before coming back to fill the forms the rest of the way. It is probably not a really great problem as long as:

The wall has plenty of rebar embedded in it.
The outside faces of the foundation walls are treated with the appropriate type of water proofing.


How to finish cedar deck chairs I'm building Adirondack chairs out of cedar that I'll use on my front porch. I want to keep the natural cedar color, but also protect them from the elements and prevent them from getting gray and rough.

I was thinking about doing a coat of clear Thompson's WaterSeal Waterproofing Wood Protector on the cedar boards. Do I need to do anything else like polyurethane or something?

Nope.  Don't use Water Seal.   The main issue is that cedar is a pretty soft wood, and it wears.  No matter what you put on it, the wood beneath will wear, and it will look like a leper with a sunburn.

What you want to use is an oil.  @Jeremy above suggested Australian Timber Oil, which is as good a solution as any.  The idea is that oils will penetrate the wood, and when the outer surface wears off, it doesn't take the finish with it.

Of course, you'll have to freshen it every few years, but with care, an oil finish is going to last the longest.


How can I add a new light fixture off of a ceiling fan wired to two switches? I have an existing ceiling fan rough in that is wired with 3 conductor wire to two switches, allowing the light and fan to be controlled independently.

The fan that I installed however uses a wireless controller for the fan and light control, and therefore only uses a single hot wire(one switch), the other conductor for the unused switch is just capped in the ceiling fan box.

I would like to add a separate ceiling light fixture in this room.  It has occurred to me that I have a switch that is not being used because the fan can only be controlled by a single switch.

Can I simply tap into the existing neutral, and unused hot in the ceiling fan to run to my new fixture?  This would save me from having to add a new switch.

In other words, I would run 14/2 from the ceiling fan fixture to the new light location.  I would tie the new hot to the unused hot in the ceiling fan fixture, tie neutral to neutral, and ground to ground.

This seems to be pretty straightforward, but I wanted to see if there was any reason this wouldn't be an acceptable approach.

So long as you will not overload the circuit (figure out what all is on the circuit), you should be fine.


Can I pull 120v outlets from a 220v box with no neutral? I want to run a couple of 110 volt plugs from a box that has 220 volts.  Both the black and white wires are 110 volt and there is only a ground wire with them.  Can I tie into one of the hot wires and just connect the neutral wire to ground?

NO!

That would be a National Electrical Code violation and a dangerous practice.

That would energize the the ground wire and someone could be electrocuted from a wire they can normally expect to be safe.


Fast set joint compound taking DAYS to dry? This seems very unusual? Fast set joint compound, in my experience, will even set (on the inside anyway) under water, as my buckets have proven.
Yet I needed a hearty amount to plug a deep hole, and it's literally been 4 days and the surface is still wet to touch, and visually you can tell it's still wet (though the dry part is slowly growing day by day).
What could be causing this? (Should I be worried about effects later on. E.G. after priming & painting)
UPDATE, it dried after 1 week, I had a dehumidifer on but didn't get a chance to put in a fan/heater yet. the day it dried it was raining a lot ironically

Two possibilities:

There is too much humidity in your building.  This can often be the case with new construction in humid areas.  It can take many days for the HVAC system to remove enough humidity.  In existing construction you still may have excess humidity depending on the location, such as a bathroom.  You might find a dehumidifier helpful.

The compound is old.  In this case it may never dry.  If you don't know its "vintage" scrape it off and get some new compound from a sealed container.


Flush the toilet and I hear gurgling in my shower When I flush the toilet the shower gurgles. Could this be because the shower hasn't been used in about 2 years? Also I hear it when I flush my toilet at the other end of the house in the same shower.

it means that your shower is plumbed up with an absent vent line or a vent that is blocked or plugged.  if it just showed up recently, i would look for an ice cap on a roof vent pipe.  if its an ongoing thing, then i would suspect an absent vent pipe.  you can quick fix it with a rubber drain cover.

http://www.amazon.com/Do-it-Rubber-Sink-Stopper/dp/B000DZD3QA/ref=sr_1_1?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1457233324&sr=1-1&keywords=rubber+drain+cover


run nmb cable in conduit I've decided to run a new 60 amp sub panel in my garage using 6/3 NMB. Can I run it 35' through 1" pvc conduit from main panel to sub panel without stripping off the outer sheathing?

Stripping the sheath is prohibited

The wires you use have to be identified, i.e. have markings on them.  Interior wire in NM cable is not marked.

You have to pig-wrestle the entire NM cable through, sheath and all.  Good luck.

The correct wires are THWN or XHHW

If you want the flexibility of individual wires, you want THWN or XHHW type. You need a #10Cu green or bare ground and three #6Cu wires, one neutral white or gray, and two hots any other color.  They can be the same color.

If you don't like the price of #6Cu try #4Al.

If you run #3Cu instead, you can run 100A on that wire.  You will need to bump the ground wire to #8Cu and it will need to be bare. This will be a harder pull, though.


Why did my locked door open by itself? Why would our front door have opened by itself? It was locked. It has an entrance set - a latched, not deadbolt, knob handled, keyed on the outside and turnsnib on the inside style lock. We have had a 40 degree Celsius day and the aircon had been on all evening and there is a bit of wind outside. The door opens inwards.

Because although it was locked, the latch was not fully engaged. If it was very cool inside and very hot outside, especially if there was any humidity, I'm not surprised to hear that the latch didn't click into place the last time it was closed.


For phone jack, which terminals are used by modem? I have a new telephone jack to replace the old on the wall outlet. The new jack is confusing and I'm new to this. I think I may have messed with the wiring, and I don't understand which wire should go to which terminal. The purpose of the jack is so it can only connect to a ADSL modem and not for any phone. The telephone cable, is made up of two wires, blue and white. Heres how I connected to the new telephone jack:

As you can see, blue and white wire. And 4 terminals. On the jack itself, they are just numbered from 1 to 4. Im gonna guess these are L1, L2, TS, TX? Or does it mean something else? Each terminal has two holes. What i did was just connect to 1 and 2, because i didnt know what else to do. Was it supposed to be 1 and 3? or 1 and 4? The internet works after wired it, but the upstream is lower than before, 50% lower. Should I just leave it as is, as it probably doesnt matter which wire goes where?

Also side note, Ive shortened the thin wires I have because telephone jack screw system bends and nicks it. Should I not shorten it everytime I rewire? I now have a very short wire as a result and makes things difficult.

edit: heres a manual for the type of phone jack im using, look to the right of first page: http://e-catalogue.legrand.ru/upload/files/LE07456AB.pdf

and here is a video of someone installing exact same: https://youtu.be/m8ffHiIOzw0?t=87

You need to connect to the center two wires in RJ-11. Since RJ-11 is usually 6 pins, these are pins 3 and 4. If yours has only 4 pins, these should be pins 2 and 3. Leave the other pins unconnected.

Now, with regards to the colors (and correct polarity), this is country-dependent. Check this chart for reference. But, you can also try one way, and if it doesn't work, switch the wires.


Replacing pressure switch for my water pump I have to drain the pressure tank when I replace the pressure switch. When I do this can I install a shut off valve just below the pressure switch? This would allow me to change it in future years and avoid draining the tank.

Here is the down side.  The pressure switch, generally speaking has a very long life, many, many years.  So they have to be renewed relatively seldom.  And if you put an isolation valve between the switch and the main water line and it accidentally get turned off you really mess things up and cost yourself $1000's.  Better to have to drain the tank down.


Practical advice needed on house with no earth/ground I've just bought a 4th floor apartment in an old (1820) building in Spain. Neither my apartment, nor the building as a whole, has any earth circuit.

I'm looking for practical, technical advice on what steps I can take to minimise risks of injury or equipment damage caused by this arrangement. Longer term, can anybody suggest what installing a building ground circuit would entail? My apartment backs onto a small service courtyard (called a "patio" here), so for example, it's relatively easy for me to run a cable to ground level.

update...

The service input goes to an old Siemens schutzschalter which is labelled as 30mA. The output of the Siemens goes to a single 20A circuit breaker which then feeds all of the lights and sockets in the apartment.

Pressing the Test button on the Siemens has no effect, so I'm guessing that's not giving me a whole bunch of protection. Since it's wired directly to the supply, it will take time to organise the electricity company to intervene. Therefore, is it reasonable for me to add a second RCB (https://www.bricodepot.es/productos/electricidad/proteccion-electrica/proteccion-modular/diferencial-bipolar), alongside the breaker to provide the RCB protection? There is ample space in the consumer unit for it.

I should also explain that the whole apartment is scheduled for renovation, including rewiring. Thus I'm looking for what I can do quickly to address any safety issues for the interim.

Existing

mains ===> Siemens ===> 20a breaker ====> lights and sockets

Proposed

  mains ===> Siemens ===> New RCB ===> 20a breaker ====> lights and
  sockets

RCDs. Done.

An RCD detects ground faults, which includes "electrical shocks to humans".

In Europe, there are several types of RCD in general use - whole house and individual-circuit.  RCDs which protect humans should trip at around 8 milliamps, give or take.  RCDs designed to protect the house (not the humans) are rated higher, at 35 milliamps give or take.  This means a ground fault in that range (8-35 milliamps) would nonetheless continue to shock the human, could stun the human, and in rare instances can kill - especially if the stun causes secondary effects (drowning or falling).

Grounds have several purposes, but the raison d'être was to try to solve the electrocution problem. Grounds provide an auxiliary path back to source, to help the ground fault flow enough current to trip the breaker.  If that seems like a round-about way to solve the problem, you are right, but that was all they had at the time.

RCDs are arguably a better way to solve that problem, since they more directly act on any ground fault, even one too small to cause an over-current trip of the breaker.  Grounds have their usefulness, but I wouldn't lose any sleep in an ungrounded house with good RCD protection.


Will I trap moisture in the concrete of basement walls and floors if I seal them with epoxy? I'm thinking about painting my basement's walls with some concrete sealer (before finishing the basement) and floor with epoxy paint. Many people are doing that, but I'm concerned about moisture in the concrete. The outside of the walls are covered with some black stuff which is a moisture barrier. If I paint the inside of the walls, I will lock moisture inside the concrete for ever - will it affect concrete in any way? What about mold in the concrete? I heard something about concrete breathing - does it apply here?

Would moisture be trapped? To some extent.
Is it bad? No, once concrete has been mixed and started to cure, keeping it moist helps it get stronger and this effect can go on for a long time. In no case will it ever make the concrete weaker. See the graph at the end of this URL:

http://wgbis.ces.iisc.ernet.in/energy/water/paper/drinkingwater/wellsconstruction/appendix4.html

There are some who say the concrete in the Hoover Dam is still curing.

There is no need for concrete to breath from the point of view of the strength of the material. There will be moisture retained from the original mix and it is possible some are confused about the chemistry of concrete and think it needs to dry, but the truth is the complete opposite of that.


Damage when drilling a mirror — normal or not? I've just had a bespoke mirrored bathroom cabinet installed. The mirrors have had holes drilled for the knobs, and one of the holes has a white mark around it and generally doesn't look very clean. The mark is visible even when the knobs are in place.

The cabinet maker tells me "such a white mark around the cut out in the mirror is normal. It's very difficult to cut through the mirror with a very clean cut".

Is my cabinet maker correct, or should I ask for a new mirror?

See pictures:

.

Is my cabinet maker correct

They are right that drilling clean holes in glass is more difficult than in wood or steel.

In my opinion, they are not right to say that visible cracking around the hole is normal.

They are a professional and part of the price they charge is for having the skill, experience and tools to do the job better and quicker than you can. The hole on the right suggests they can get an acceptable result at least 50% of the time. In my opinion, they should have factored into their price the cost of wastage in redoing work where needed.

  should I ask for a new mirror?

That's up to you. If you are going to stare unhappily at that defect every time you use that cabinet then you should get it fixed now.

How you do this is a matter of negotiation - because you probably don't have a written contract that specifies explicitly what constitutes an acceptable hole in the mirror.


How to repair large drywall section? I had to remove a relatively large section of the drywall, approximately 24x24 inches. There are two metal studs at the sides.

Should I try to cut out so both the existing and the new drywall will touch half of the metal stud on each side? And put in screws on both sides? Or there is a more clever way to fix this?

Should I try to cut out so both the existing and the new drywall will
  touch half of the metal stud on each side? And put in screws on both
  sides?

Yes that is an effective way to do it.

Another way is to add a board, 1"x4" boards work great, as structure to screw to.

Clean up your hole so the cuts are straight and at 90 degrees to each other so you can use a nice square or rectangle piece as a patch.  Place the boards so that half of it is behind the old sheet rock, length wise along the cut,  and half is sticking out so you have something to screw the new piece to. Screw the board in place through the old existing sheet rock, make sure your screw heads are counter sunk.

Now you can cut a piece to fit the hole and screw it in place. Tape and mud the seams. Sand and mud, sand and mud and sand, prime and paint.

Floating a but joint with mud is an acquired skill.
Watch some YouTube video's and practice on a mock up of a but joint.


How much should you expect a painter to scrape off exterior of historic house? Hundred year old house with wrap around porch and the porch ceiling was painted.
The porch ceiling was scraped, but only in certain areas. I am assuming these were the areas with loose or peeling paint. The problem is some parts of the ceiling look smooth and nicely painted and others look rough and uneven where the paint was not scraped because it wasnt peeling or loose. Some of the wood on the ceiling is much older and more blemished than other areas. I wasnt expecting perfection but the ceiling really only looks good in the areas where the wood is newer and where they scraped. Am I expecting too much of the painting contractor for them to have scraped and prepared the surface better?

At 100 years old, if you want all the paint removed it may become expensive due to the older paint probably contains lead...

It also depends on what you and the contractor agreed - they will usually say something like "remove loose and flaking paint" and paint...


How can I prevent spillage from my bathtub? Let's set the scene:

The horizontal surfaces of the bathtub in my apartment are flat. We have a double shower curtain (with the waterproof bit that hangs on the inside of the tub and the fabric bit that hangs on the outside of the tub) and are careful not to splash too much, but the flat top bits of the tub still get water on them when you reach for stuff. The floor in the bathroom is very slightly slanted, so the open side of the bathtub is slightly lower than the wall side of the bathtub. This means that any water that gets dripped onto the short end of the tub (the side with the showerhead) drips down to the floor, and then slowly flows across the bathroom floor to the opposite wall.

Not ideal.

We rent this apartment, so replacing or making major upgrades to the tub is not really an option. (We will have trouble convincing the management company that a few drops of water on the floor merit remodeling the bathroom, since there's no actual leak involved here.)

I need a way to catch the water that wants to drip off the edge of the bathtub and redirect it back down into the tub. (My current plan is to use some foam tubing and rubber sheeting to create a sort of ramp... thing... around the corner of the tub, but I bet this community can generate some ideas that will both look and work much better.)

Additional info: Turns out I'm sort of a natural at drawing bathtubs. A diagram, in case you're confused by my description:

You can buy bathtub splash guards such as the ones found here.

You should be able to find similar ones at your local hardware store. Most versions install in seconds, using easy peel and stick adhesive backings. No tools, no mess, and usually no waiting for caulks and/or glues to dry.


Is there any reason (code or otherwise) to not vent one room into another? I have a closet in my office that I'm using as a server room in my house. As I add more equipment in there, it generates a significant amount of heat, which is contributed to by the office itself (which has two computers).

My living room, on the other hand, with a seldom-used fireplace and large older window (both issues I plan to address in the future), tends to get very cold in the winter (US/Massachusetts).

It seems to me the obvious solution would be to put a small fan in the ceiling of the closet (where convection will naturally carry most of the heat), and put a duct in the attic crawlspace that exhausts into the living room. It may not contribute a whole lot of heat to the (much larger) living room, but if I can drop the office temperature by 2-3 degrees and raise the living room temperature even half a degree or so, it'd reduce the temperature gradient just a wee bit and maybe said gradient wouldn't be quite so noticeable when I leave the office and go into the living room.

Is there any reason I shouldn't do this? Please note that my primary concern is eliminating heat from the closet (as we all hopefully know, electronics don't really like getting too hot). Reducing temperature in the office would just be a happy side effect, and I figure dumping the heat into the living room is more efficient than just dumping it outside since I've already paid for the electricity that produced it.

EDITED for diagram and additional info:

Below is a diagram of the relevant areas. I'd like to avoid having the air blow on the armchair area (there are actually two along that wall)... I would like to vent the hot air more or less into the center of the room
so it's not blowing on anyone who's seated. I was thinking a louvered vent above the sofa's front edge (about 2-3 feet in from the wall), pointing inward to the room, would dump the heat into the living room without creating drafts for anyone in the seating areas.

There is no code against ventilating your closet into the other room.  There are all kinds of crazy things I have seen to take a room that has great ventilation and move it to another room.   If you go in the south of France you will see fans between the living space that has outdoor access in the connecting rooms.

The only issue becomes if you had toxic fumes (which you wouldn't in another interior room) and this is common with a work area or garage (cars).

As far as going through the attic well attic fans exhaust attic air into your living space and attic air probably isn't as clean as the other air you are breathing as attics often have mold, dirt, and open insulation.  You are just tunneling through using appropriate piping which should be metal ducting or PVC.

Let me tell you why what you are doing is a good idea - since we should all look to make our houses energy optimal - but very flawed at the same time.  It is flawed because during the periods of the year that are cold and you want the next room warm you will be going through a cold attic.  The output of whatever your server generate is no way a furnace, the ducts will get cold and you will end up spitting out cold attic temperature air to the next room.  The fact is the fan plus cold air will cost you energy money.

Really you want to just vent right to the attic when it is warm out.  When it is cold out you want to vent right to the other room.  You could do this with decorative grating/cover between the rooms and possibly the use of a fan in the grate itself.  There are probably a lot of unique ways to create airflow between the rooms, with pipe/duct being an option but not an efficient one as it will not necessarily capture all of the heat and if it does will require a lot of power from a fan.  Nothing wrong with using a fan but it shouldn't need to be on all the time and shouldn't need to require that much force.


Dropped Ceiling Configuration and Main Runner Splicing I'm planning on installing a dropped ceiling and have a couple questions. For reference, the room in question is 12' 5" x 14' 10" and I'm going to use 2'x2' tiles.

Question 1

I've plugged these dimensions into Armstrong's calculator and it suggests only using 3 main beams:

When I was planning it out, I came out with 4 main beams:

What considerations should I be aware of between the two (besides the counts)?

------------------------------------
|   Type        | Armstrong | Self |
------------------------------------
| Main 12'      | 4         | 5    |
| 4' Cross Tees | 24        | 18   |
| 2' Cross Tees | 28        | 33   |
------------------------------------

Question 2

I have not been able to find a good guide or video which demonstrates how to splice together main runners. For the 5" that I am short, are there any other creative/simple options? Here are the ends of the main runner I've purchased:

The advantage of going with 3 main tees is it will get the mains away from the wall farther, using cut 4' tees. this way if the main is above or below the wall angle, the resulting skew the cut 4' tee will have will be no where as bad as the main being 2' closer, using a cut 2' tee.

The main tees simply snap together

Your issue with the 5" shortness, you will need to buy 5 mains total, so you can add the 5" needed. 5" off one end to finish one full run, and 5" off the other end to add to the other end of the next main tee. This one you would turn around so the cuts are in the same side of the room. The second extra piece would be cut for the 3rd main tee that goes in place. You will have a lot of scrap left, but that is the way it goes. I tried recently to use a regular tee to add a few feet to a main, but the connectors are slightly different, so it does not work.

One more tip. You should not necessarily add simply 5" to complete a run. If you want a professional look, calculate the spacing of the slots for the intersecting tees so when assembled in place you will have an even cut tile on opposite side of the room. This means your added cut piece will not be 5", but perhaps 14 1/2" instead. while cutting off 9 1/2" on the other end so the border would be 14 1/2" along those 2 walls. Do the same for the other direction. This is important for setting the screw eyes that hold the support wires, getting them reasonably close over the location of the main tees.

If my math is off, please understand the concept, not relying on what I may have calculated in my head, it hurt a lot.... smoke was coming out my ears....


Can I use a GFI main breaker in series with individual QO AFCI breakers? I'd like to install a subpanel using a 2-pole Square D QO GFCI breaker in the main panel and then installing individual QO CAFCI breakers in the subpanel where needed for the dual protection.  It seems more cost effective than buying 12 new dual GFCI/CAFCI breakers for each circuit.  Anybody try this?

Yes, a GFCI sub-panel with AFCI breakers sounds like an excellent way to do that.  It avoids the European problem of having the whole house GFCI (RCBO) trip and ruin a refrigerator full of food and freeze pipes (though some European furnaces don't require electricity).

I don't see a problem daisy-chaining since they are different protections.  I also like having the arc-fault protection more local than the ground-fault.  The GFCI doesn't care, but the AFCI does, because it is literally listening to electrical noise, and it's easier to "hear" when fewer things are talking.

The only thing you need to watch is that your large, full-panel GFCI has the sensitivity that is legally required for bathroom and kitchen circuits.  Some of the Euro-style whole-house RCBOs have 20-30ma thresholds, which is not sensitive enough by far.


How to (portably) mount warped plywood artwork on apartment drywall? I have a 4' x 4' piece of plywood artwork (acrylic painting) that has become warped. It used to be mounted to drywall using velcro strips, but now the outward force of the warp is strong enough that "peels" off and cannot stay on the wall.

I've tried undoing the warp by wetting the concave side and flattening with weights, which only seems to work temporarily — the warp returns after a few days.

Is there a way to permanently undo the warp, so that the velcro mounting system is viable? Or is there another way to mount this that would be non-destructive to the art and reasonably portable?

One answer in Is there a way to remove the warp in plywood recommends nailing or screwing the plywood to something, but that sounds destructive and non-portable. (Another suggests leaving the plywood in the sun, but sadly I don't have a place to do that near my apartment.)

Plywood is a lamination of several layers of wood set with the grain rotating with each layer.  This actually helps resist warping, but does not eliminate it (as you can see). This happens because of some flexibility in the glue that allows a gradual creep.

The usual solution is as you suspect - laminate the plywood to something else.  This could be a metal bar, either aluminum or steel. Perhaps the most effective would be angle stock (metal forming an "L" in cross section). A flat edge of the angle is screwed to the back. The perpendicular edge then acts as a brace.

If you do this, you need to first flatten the piece as much as possible. I would recommend placing it face down on a flat surface, possibly with a sheet below it to protect the art surface. Then weigh down the corners with very heavy weights, such as full paint cans or barbell discs. Lay an angled bar across the full width near the top and another across the bottom. Place screws every 6 inches. The screw length should be long enough to go through the angle stock and 3/4 of the way through the plywood.

You can then rehang the piece using a wire threaded through holes at the ends of the angle stock.  If you really need to use velcro, you could attach wooden filler strips to the upright edge of the angle stock, and attach the velcro to the back of these strips.

An alternative bracing can .be done with strips of plywood, al teast 3 inches wide and 3/4 inches thick.  These can be glued and screwed to the flattened panel instead of the angle stock.  If you use a strong wood glue, such as Titebond Ultimate, this will help prevent creep, as will the screws.

The advantage the angle stock method is that it is reversible (no glue).


Drain hose of washing machine too low? I just bought a front load washing machine and installed it. The plumbers in our bldg. installed the incoming water hose and the drain hose to the wall. Problem is that when the washing machine drains, the water overflows or comes out of the hole where the drain hose is inserted. Do I really need a high drainage pipe to connect my drain hose into?

This is the instruction I got from the internet for my washer's brand.

And here is the wall that has the drain hole in my kitchen and also my hose inserted into it.
You can see how low the hole in the wall is and the bending of my hose.

I tried inserting the hose as much as i could into the hole but still overflows or water comes back out and floods my kitchen.

I'm going to assume that there's not a trap inside the wall, but if I'm wrong please correct me.

You're going to want to build a standpipe.  Start by installing a P-trap into that pipe in the wall.  It's hard to tell from the picture what type of pipe it is, but you'll want to use something compatible to make the connection between pipe and trap.

From the other end of the P-trap, you'll want a 2" diameter pipe going straight up 18"-42" long.

You'll then put the washer drain into the top of the standpipe, as described in the manufacturer's installation instructions.

When you're done, it should look something like this.


Bathroom Light Fixture with no stud or box I uninstalled my old bathroom light fixture to replace it with a nicer light but found that there is no stud and no wall box behind the sheet rock. The old light fixture is very light but the new one is not. Is it safe to attach the new light fixture without studs or wall box to attach it to? Would it be safe to just use wall anchors or do I need to hire a professional for this job?

I found almost that exact same image behind a bathroom vanity light fixture that I took down to replace. Needless to say I was flabbergasted that such garbage workmanship would be hidden behind a fixture.

You should look very closely at what is just behind the place where the romex cable is coming out one hole and reentering the wall cavity at the slot on the right.

Mine looked exactly like that and there was a stud right behind that cable loop.

I opened up a hole to the right of the stud for a suitable metal electrical box. I then drilled a hole through the center line of the stud from side to side and worked the wire through the hole. I then mounted the electrical box to the side of the stud and brought the electrical cable into the box and secured it with the box clamp at the rear of the box. Now it is properly wired but I had to work at finding the proper lighting fixture that would cover up the messy slot in the drywall. (I would have patched and painted it but decided to wait till I give this bathroom a facelift remodel in the near future.


What is a media guard? I am building a simple aquaponic system by learning from this video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lqe3IqPisns

at 1:24, we will a media guard is implemented; which is basically fat tube with lots of holes drilled through.

I think it functions as a filter to keep objects that is larger than the holes from being drained to the lower level.
I am not sure if I interpreted its purpose correctly.

I think it functions as a filter to keep the growing media from making its way to the lower level.
The holes would be smaller then the media, the holes allow the water to drain out but not the media. (the "media" in this case are  the small clay balls that hold the roots of the plants in suspension facilitating an oxygenated water  environment.)


How can I patch this ceiling hole my new light fixture does not fully cover? I recently had a new ceiling light fitted which replaced a standard plastic ceiling rose. The new fitting is quite slim and the old fitting was hiding a larger than expected cutout in the plasterboard.
What would be the best way to fill in these gaps around the edge of the new fitting? My current skills in this area extend to Polyfilla but I don't think that will work in this situation, at least not without some type of reinforcement. The fitting can be accessed from above.

You could install a circular ceiling medallion over the hole and run the light fixture through the middle of it. This would avoid having to match the paint of the surrounding ceiling.

Or here's an even simpler, 10", white trim piece.


Is it safe to use 1/4 inch tempered glass for dining table top? I am planning to buy a tempered glass. it is 66*36*1/4 inch thick. I am planning to put it on a 0.25 inch thick*48 inch*36 inch  metal table that I have. The table is 36 inch high. There wont be any center support.

I have added image of my table. As you can see it has a metal rectangle frame that is 0.25 inch thick

Do you think it is a safe design?

Definitely not! Unsupported ends & center is a big no-no. Support means that it won't bend AT ALL. Why? Because glass doesn't bend...for long.


4 King studs or 4 Jack studs I have a 78 inch opening between two studs to install exterior French doors in a load bearing wall.  I have a 72 inch door on order (actual size is 71 1/2 inch)  To get to the 72 inch opening, I was thinking of either installing 2 king studs to the existing king studs with 2 jack studs or installing 4 jack studs.  So which would be better, 4 king studs or 4 jack studs.

1 king and one jack per side, assuming it's not an unusual load above. If your header has space above, make the jack continue up to the plate.

Only caution is that even though the 6" fill looks good on paper, the slightest fatness in your framing materials coupled with a tiny bit of "out of plumb", might mean your door is a tight fit. Buy the dryest 2x material you can find.


How do you get rid of brush marks when repainting I'm going to be repainting the interior walls of my house and all of the interior walls have brush marks on them.
Will the normal sanding between coats cover up the brush marks or will I have to sand the wall smooth before painting?

Are the brush marks from the previous painting very deep? Sanding might be an option if they are very heavy brush strokes.

Another possible solution is to use a heavier nap roller. This will help fill in tiny gaps and is meant to provide better coverage for walls that have a textured surface. But keep in min that the heavier the nap you use on a flat wall the more you will create the orange peel effect. I personally don't mind that but just wanted to point that out.

Be careful that the paint you're sanding isn't old lead-based paint. You don't want to get that in air and breathe that in.

Any way to provide a photo so we can see what you're working with?


Depressurized pressure tank - how to pressurize again We have a freshwater bore and I recently replaced the very old pump with a 1hp Pentax pump and Trevoli 18 litre pressure tank system.  For reasons I won't go into, the pressure tank has lost its precharge (nominally 2bar/30psi), and I want to recharge it.  The system runs as it is, but due to micro-leaks in the system, the pump runs for 6sec or so every minute.

I want to recharge the tank to minimize the pump cycling, and I'm worried that the diaphragm in the tank is being stressed somehow without the tank air pressure to contain it as the water enters the tank.

I have a digital pressure gauge and the tank has a standard bike/car tire valve fitting on top, so I'm assuming this will be OK to check the pressure.  The pressure gauge indicates sensible values on the car's tires.

I have a couple of problems:

I have tried putting air in with a cheap cigarette lighter adapter 12v air pump, but the pressure gauge fitted to the air pump shows the pressure ramping up very quickly towards the 150 psi tank maximum (I always turn the electric pump off way before it gets there !).  In fact, it's almost as if no air is getting into the tank.  Pressing down on the center bit of the valve doesn't result in the usual "pffft" and the hand-held pressure gauge doesn't show any pressure - it's almost as if the air pump is trying to pump into a dead-end.  My assumption is that the valve on the tank should open and let the burst of air from the pump into the tank.  The air fitting on the end of the pump has a lever-operated clamp instead of a threaded attachment:  and I'm wondering if this isn't allowing the valve to open (the fitting completely covers the shank of the air valve - the air fitting has a center protuberance which is supposed to depress the corresponding centre bit in the valve and I don't think the fitting can get far enough over the valve in order for this to happen and open the valve).  Any comments?
Instructions I have read say I should 1) turn off the pump.  2) open a faucet and wait for the water to stop flowing.  3)  Put air in to 2 bar / 30 psi.  4)  Close the faucet.  5) turn on the pump.  Should I expect the pressure tank to be empty of water after step 2 (it doesn't seem to be)?

UPDATE

I had some success with the following:

turned the power off to the pump
undid the hose from the pressure tank outlet and let the pressure tank empty out.
tried various methods to get air into the tank, none of which seemed to be doing anything.  I couldn't get an air pressure reading off the tank.
connected up the hose to the outlet.
switched on the pump.

Remarkably, it is behaving much more like I would expect it should.  Before (this is with no taps open), it was running for a few seconds every minute, now it runs for 20-30 secs every 30 mins or so, and the tank now holds an appreciable charge, i.e. it supplies water for a good length of time before the pump starts again.

The tank should be empty but with no air in the bladder the water may not have been pushed out. It sounds like your compressors not properly seating on the Schrader valve, I have filled pressure tanks with bicycle pumps in the past it takes a while but any pump should do the job if it has a standard valve stem adapter. Your observation that there is no pffft makes me think the supply side of that valve is not opening when attached to the tank.


Moen shower faucet - Leak I have a Moen shower faucet with a 1222 positemp cartridge. The handle adapter broke so I ordered a new unit but I didn't replace the cartridge since I was unable to remove it and I wasn't even able to put the cartridge clip back on since it was so tight. Several weeks after I replaced the handle adapter a big leak emerged below into the ceiling in the kitchen.  It filled half a bucket in just a few minutes. the leak is right below the toilet but I know it is coming from the shower. I tried dropping water in the shower drain but no water leaked so I know it is when I turn on the shower.  Could this leak be caused by the cartridge needing to be replaced or is it because the clip was not installed or could it be a bigger problem with the pipes?

Could this leak be caused by the cartridge needing to be replaced or is it because the clip was not installed or could it be a bigger problem with the pipes?

It could be any of those, but I'd start by installing the cartridge clip.


Transformers Wiring To outlet cord Can I wire a transformer to an outlet cord rather than hard wiring into hvac system. Adding a GPS to air handler and it requires its own transforme. Any suggestions??

No problem, only question is how good you want it to look

Doorbell transformer, made to order has connector to go into an electrical junction box.

Head to home depot, or lowes - find an electrical box you like, plastic, weatherproof, metal and a cover plate for it

Add a doorbell transformer

A small pack of romex connectors (nmb might be the name on them)

a couple of wire nuts, yellow

A round extension cord that appeals to you.

Cut off the female end of the cord, and assemble as it appeals


Test gauge plug on domestic gas system I am in the U.S. I know that it is a good idea to have a capped or plugged nipple outlet somewhere on your interior gas pipe system where you can mount a test gauge that can be pumpted to a certain pressure to see if it leaks overtime.

My question is: Is having such an outlet mandated by the law/code?

You are typically going to have a sediment trap required by code that has a nipple which could probably serve both purposes.  The sediment trap is required by code.

http://www.inspect2code.com/residential-code-requirement-for-sediment-trap/

In order to pressurize your gas lines you'd need to disconnect from your gas meter so having the nipple outlet after your house is hooked to the gas meter doesn't seem like something that would be a requirement.  If after you've hooked to your gas line and modifications are made and you need to pressure test again you'd probably just disconnect from the meter and mount the pressure testing device at that location but again you'd have to go to each of your gas appliances and ensure everything is capped/shut off.

Plumbing works the same way, you pressurize your water supply pipes with air or water before any is connected up to fixtures but there is no requirement to keep some kind of access area where you could do this after it has passed this stage of testing.


Plumbing water heater with manifold system I'm switching my trunk and branch plumbing system.over to manifolds with 3/4 inlet and 1/2 outlets.

Would it be better to Tee the line off to the hot water heater before the cold water manifold (and thus using a 3/4 input line to hot water heater)?  Or better to use one of the cold waters 1/2 outlets to feed into hot water heater?  If I use the 1/2 inlet to hot water heater, can I still output with 3/4 or would I have to use a 1/2 line coming out of hot water heater into hot water manifold (with appropriate sized adapters)?

On manifold systems, I have never seen the hot water taken after the cold manifold. It has always been a tee off the main line. If you are running dedicated lines to each fixture in all locations, 1/2" lines will work in all cases. If you are going to branch off to other fixtures using one line to do multiple fixtures, say one line to do a bath, another to do the kitchen and another to do a hall bath, you need to start with 3/4" lines from the manifold, then reduce to 1/2" after a few fixtures have been fed.


What's with the different FHR ratings of these hot water tanks? We're replacing our tank with a more efficient one and we can't go tankless given the cold input temperatures in Canada and the amount of output we need (for a triplex with 7 people).
So I've been researching tanks. Both Rheem and Bradford White seem to offer the most efficient, high quality tanks. I've determined from my calculations that we could get away with something in the 100-120FHR range to serve the peak shower time in the morning for the household.
One thing I'm completely confused by though is the Bradford White high performance energy saver 25gallon tank. Every tank we've seen is around 50-75 gallons with an FHR ranging from 80-120. This 25 gallon tank says it has an FHR of 155 gallons (200 gallons FHR for the 50 gallon tank). I'm wondering first how is this possible, and second, why this listing would say it's intended for a 1 person household.
What one person would ever use 155 gallons of hot water in an hour? I'm positive that our house, with 3 showers and low flow heads at 10 minutes a shower with 90 degree rise would use about 105 gallons of hot water. What am I missing with this particular tank? It seems too good to be true that a 25gallon tank could serve us and its even more confusing to say that 155gallon FHR is only good for one person.
Any thoughts?
edit
I've realized what's wrong with my assumptions that 150FHR would serve our house. If I assume we need 105 gallons for a a worst case scenario of 3 simultaneous 10 minute showers, repeated twice (ie 6 showers over 20 minutes) then that's 105 gallons in 20 minutes, not an hour. So I need to take the recover of the tank for an hour, divide by 3 and add it to the capacity. So its recovery is 82gal/hr which means in the first 20 minutes we'd only get 45 gallons (approx) of water.

The power output of the water heaters is the crucial point. The "high performance" heater is 76 kBTU/Hr, while most water heaters only are around 30-40 kBTU/hour. This larger burner allowed the smaller tank to be able to "keep up with the demand" for quite a while. Another reason is because it maybe would be configured to heat to a much higher temperature, and then use the mixing valve that in includes to reduce the temperature to the reasonable level. I'd consider this "cheating" if it is what they are doing, though it is allowed by the government.

I'm guessing that the listing says one person because it is a small tank, and not based on the FHR (which they should have paid more attention to).

I don't think that you are missing anything based on the specs on FHR. But, you do need to pay attention to the size of your natural gas line. You'll need a higher flow rate with this model since it's usage rate is much higher. You also might need to provide more "leaks" in your house (and room containing the water heater) to allow for it to get sufficient air for combustion. This particular model uses air from its surroundings, instead of having a pipe to bring air in from the outside. Insufficient fresh air will generate CO (very bad for living things) and will decrease the water heater's efficiency. Make sure that you have a CO detector installed near the unit, whatever your choice ends up being.

The first hour rate is an odd metric. It measures the number of gallons that can be supplied at above 110 F, with an initial temperature of 135 F. This is very difficult to use in calculations.

I'd approach the calculations as an energy conservation problem. Use the recovery rate to calculate the burner output (1080 kJ/min in this case). Then (ignoring that entropy is gained in the mixing valve and the heat capacity and density of water depends on  temperature), decide on what temperature shower you want, and what temperature water you want in the tank. Use the heat capacity of water to calculate the amount of energy stored in the water heater, the energy usage rate (power out), and the burner energy rate (power in). Assuming use of 6 gpm, input water at 7 C, the tank at 75 C, and using water at 38 C, I calculate that you would have about eight minutes of water. With the 55 gallon tank, you'd have about 18 minutes using these assumptions.

Just by looking at the 90F recovery rate, you get about 80 gallons/hour. So, you could use 80/60=1.33 gpm indefinitely (with a rise of 90 F). But, you probably only need a rise from 45 to 100 F for your shower. In this case (55 F rise), you could use about 2.2 gpm indefinitely with this particular burner.


Can I level floorboards with metal or rubber washers? I am levelling some floorboards, with a view to painting them afterward and having a wooden floor. Previously there was a lot of scrap wood shims under there. Because these are only thin cheap wood many have been split when the nail passed through so I don't think I can reuse them.

As I am replacing the nails with screws, I had the idea of using rubber, plastic or metal washers for the levelling (if I can find a big bag of thick ones), so I can stack 1, 2 or 3. Rubber might even help make the boards quieter.

Is this a stupid idea or does anyone have a tried & tested way of doing levelling?

Shimming a floor is the wrong way to get it level, it creates lots of pressure points that will result in cracking and more leveling problems in the future.

If the joists are unlevel, you need to sister on a new joists to the side that is level. It should extend well past the unlevel section or to the next load bearing structure.

If the subfloor isn't level, then you need to put down a self leveling compound (you'll find it with the cement in the big box stores) Take care to mark the location of your joists before putting this down, and make sure any holes are patched or blocked off ahead of time since this will flow right through them.

Also note that this will make a surface level, not flat, so it may not be the best solution if the entire floor is out of level. If you need a flat surface on an unlevel floor, you want something thicker than the self leveling compound (possibly thin set, though I have no personal experience) and a long straight edge to spread it evenly between any high points.


Hanging a large ceramic plate I have a large ceramic plate that I wanted to hang in my kitchen.  It is 22" in diameter and it's circular.  It weighs almost 15 lbs.  Is this a possibility?  I don't see any plate hangers out on the internet that can accommodate the circumference and handle the weight.  Any suggestions?

Get drywall anchors that are the plastic kind that screw into the drywall.  Home Depot sells these.  Then when the anchor is in thread in a wood screw and hang the plate off that.  Twist-n-lock for example is one of that style.  Google "Brass Plate Hanger Displays Plates on Wall Size 5 to image" off etsy for what you need for the plate itself.


Partial Power Outage No Breakers Flipped Reading other similar posts, I called an electrician friend (doing a favor, not on the clock), who checked the main breaker, it was fine; he checked GCFI's, one wouldn't reset but he said it wasn't the problem.  He said there must be another panel (or something) in the attic, but didn't have time to look for it.  I asked what I should be looking for, but all he said was that it was octagon shaped.  What exactly should I be looking for?

There's only one thing in electrical that is octagon shaped: a stop sign.  No just kidding; an octagon box.

This is a special type of box with a single purpose: mounting lamps in ceilings.  Your electrician clearly expects it to be a ceiling box, then; or, has seen evidence that the installer loved using octagon boxes for junction boxes.

The box is trying to resemble round, but still be made by the same machines that make drawn steel boxes.  A 4" box is 4" on the diagonal (what it would be if it were round), somewhat less on flats.  This is confusing because "somewhat less" is actually 3.5" and 3.5" octagon boxes also exist.  Measure the diagonal.


What makes single handle mixer faucet's cartridge become stiff? What causes single handle mixer faucet's cartridge to become stiff
during the years?

Thanks.

There are "o" rings and rubber bushing inside the cartridge that will deteriorate  over time with age and water treatment chemicals. They will expand and become brittle and can tighten the operation of the cartridge. You can usually get a repair kit for a cartridge that includes the rubber parts and some plumber's grease and fix it yourself. You can also just take the cartridge to a plumbing / home store and get a new one.

Ceramic discs are a different animal. They don't have replaceable seals but they do have seals inside.  there is a pivot point in the handle that can get wore and might stiffen the movement up. The faucets usually have a lifetime warranty  so get with them and they might send you a new cartridge


Automate pumping water off a flat roof I have a 1950s home with a flat roof. The drainage is not great, so we use a water pump (currently a Wayne WaterBug Multi-Flo) with a hose for the output, to pump the water off the roof and away from the house.
The great thing about the WaterBug Multi-Flo is that it can pump down to 1/16" of water; and it can be activated with only 3/8" of water. Our roof ponds mostly in one place, and we don't like to have much standing water up there, so the 3/8" -> 1/16" is ideal.
We have two difficulties: automatically turning it off, and automatically turning it on.
We've had a couple pumps wear out from running dry, when we weren't able to manually turn it off in good time. And if we ever go out of town it would be really nice to know that it can turn itself on when appropriate, as well.
There are numerous products on the market that do have auto on/off capabilities, but everything we've found won't activate until around 1-3/4" of water or more; we'd really like something that will activate with 1/2" of water. (For example the Wayne WaterBug Auto pumps from 1-5/8" down to 1/2")
I see there is a new "WaterBug Glow" unit that has an auto-off capability. However it appears to work through thermal detection -- it takes 10 minutes to switch off at 70 degrees F, and longer for lower temperatures. In the Seattle area where we live, it's typically 40-45 degrees when raining in the winter, so I'm concerned about burning out the motor waiting for the auto-off to engage in the low temperature.
What I'd really like to find is: some kind of water flow meter, that can be configured to cut power when the flow falls below a certain amount. Would some kind of leak detection work? I'm not sure. I definitely don't want an alarm though. And then how to reactivate? I don't want to have to climb up on the roof to reactivate it.
If the WaterBug Glow works reasonably well for auto-off, perhaps I can put the thing on a timer, so it turns itself off and on once every 6 hours?
Interested to hear any ideas -- maybe there's a perfect pump sump pump out there with the features we need? Or some other devices I can pair together and configure for a good solution? We've spent quite a bit of time researching and are currently stumped. Thanks for your help!
EDIT: yes, the correct solution will be to redesign + replace our roof and drain system. A flat roof could work with good drainage but the drains are not good-- flooding water right next to the house rather than some ways away. And they are very difficult to keep unclogged. So we are looking for a short-term solution to serve us until we can afford to replace the roof and drainage system.

You may be trying to do something that could lead to a major failure by overloading the roof structure with the weight of the standing water if the pump does not operate properly AND violates the Building Code by allowing too much standing water to accumulate on the roof.
There are many circumstances where a pump could fail, but is even more dangerous with an automatically controlled pump.
In addition, the Building Code does not allow more than 2” standing water on a roof before it can self drain through a roof scupper. (See ICC R903.4.1)
Standing water is not a good design idea. If the roofing develops a pinhole leak, the entire roof will drain through that hole. It’s better to change the design of the “flat” roof to a sloping roof.
I’d spend my time and money eliminating the low spot and forget finding an automatic pump.


What length bracket is required to hold 1.25" thick wood shelving with 11" depth? I have heavy wood shelves about 1.25" thick and extend 11" from the wall, with differing lengths ranging from 34" to 100". I've noticed that even shelf brackets that are even 5-6"L have a high weight capacity but are much cheaper than 10-11"L brackets. These are for the kitchen so will be holding dishes.
Are there any fast rules for how close in size the bracket and shelf should be?
If not, what is the shortest bracket length that is acceptable or should I not worry about length and just look at weight capacity?

The problem isn't weight capacity (that is important, but usually not the problem). The problem is balancing. If you have a bracket goes the full depth of the shelf then it supports the entire shelf. If it only goes halfway (e.g., 6" on an 11" shelf) then if the center of gravity is anywhere in the front half of the shelf, you will have big problems. In addition, a shelf supported under its entire depth (or the majority of the depth) does not necessarily have to be securely fastened to supports, it can just rest on top of the supports. But if the last support is near the center then even just a little weight could easily tip the shelf unless it is securely fastened to the supports.
I would not trust short supports for dishes or books.