Venting by gas meter We're looking at installing a natural gas tankless water heater, but the vent option with it (that would be easiest to install through our solid poured walls) would come out about a foot away from the gas meter. The gas company's rule is that the vent can't be within 3' of the meter, so that it doesn't mess with the regulator and such. However, we've seen and heard of the option of coming out there still, but then running the vent up 3' or so with an extension to clear the meter. Is this a working solution or does the vent pipe as well have to be 3' away?

We're not looking to do the gas work ourselves, but I'm still trying to find a plumber who will or has time to. The only one who has looked at it mentioned needing the extension, but said he'd prefer to relocate the vent and told us to figure something out ourselves.

I called the gas company (I wasn't able to originally when posting the question as it was Saturday) and they said that the 3' is from any side of the meter - so essentially a bubble around it. As long as the vent itself clears this, it'll be fine.

I'd also called the tankless water heater manufacturer located in the US, but they said that this could vary by gas supplier. So although my gas company allows a 3' bubble, others might be more like the Canadian code and require 3' on either side up to 15' above.

Just for reference as well, the gas company was also able to look up the BTU output of my meter from within their system to tell me how much I could load it down with.


Trying to understand how to lay cork underlayment mats with duck tape. based on discussions In this answer, user user2264997 suggested.

  You can staple it down - not as messy and fairly quick. I've used something like this on a remodel. It was 3/8" cork over plywood subfloor, then bamboo on top.

and user DMoore commented

  I wouldn't staple cork. Cork is brittle. Cork expands a bit, especially if it gets a little damp. If it expands and contracts enough the staples will tear and then you will have nothing keeping it together 4 years later. Probably why manufacturer says to glue. Taping the seams with something that handles moisture well is the best solution.

Could someone explain this recommendation "around the perimeter you are taping your cork to the subfloor directly along the outside edge"?

Here is how I understood it. Let's assume we work with 2'x3' cork mats. Lets start from a corner. One places duck tape sticky side down for 3' on the subfloor, along the perimeter of one wall starting from the corner, then folds the tape back onto itself to expose sticky face for cork piece #1. Since are in a corner one places another fold back tape for 2 feet along the other perpendicular wall.

Cork piece #1 in the middle of long side parallel to short sides has a folding back duck tape to expose sticky side to subfloor. Then #1 get attached to subfloor along its middle andd along its outside edges parallel to walls, 1/4 inch spaced from walls to allow expansion? We could prep #2 so it has a middle sticky side do tape exposed. It will bump against the wall on its outside short edge. so a fold-back tape along wall could be prepped? Now we lay #2 next to #1 along their long side. Attach its bottom short edge 1/4 in from wall. Now along their long edges they are touching place a tape to join them. Did I get it?

As mentioned in the comments of my answer most quality underlayment (minus cork) now comes with one taped side.  To install the manufacturers recommend laying out the taped side in the same direction much like you will lay out the wood on your floors - for example if you have to make cuts on a row stagger them.

Let's imagine a small room.  It is 12 feet by 12 feet.  Your underlayment is 3 feet wide and comes in a big rolls of 50 feet long.  You cut your first row at 12 feet and put it down on one side.  You would at a minimum tape the three outside edges (I know this isn't easy to tape sometimes).  Also the tape that DA01 used in his install - Gorilla duct tape -  is high quality and not spongy like "normal" duct tape.

Now for normal underlayment I would wait until my next row was put in to tape the inside seam but for cork I will tape that to the floor too.  Basically half the tape on and half the tape on the subfloor.  So now all four sides are taped down.

Next row.  Start with matching up the two rows and taping the pieces of cork together.  Then tape your top and bottom (2 feet each).   Then tape the side exposed to subfloor.

Keeping going like this.  If you have cork underlayment that does not span the entire row then simple make sure that at least two sides have tape attaching it to subfloor and also taped to next pieces.  And as I said you want to stagger these like your wood if you have to cut small pieces.  Should never have seams within a foot.

Really it is hard to mess this up.  Tape everything and match up pieces.  Make sure your tape is pushed flat so your don't form ridges where your underlayment meets.  If you will have a ridge (shit happens) then simply space your underlayment out from area 1/4-1/2".

Also cork is a little different because you can lay the whole room out from the get go.  A big room is only an hour or two.  With padded underlayment you really want to only put down the area you are at because it moves/rips/tears/messes up easier.


Is it a bad idea to drill a hole through this door frame to pass wires? I want to pass my ethernet, speaker and sub wires into my newly built media/bar cabinet, but I hate having to pass them under the door, so I'd like to drill a hole as shown by the green circle in the image.

Bad idea?

Not a bad idea what so ever. However, let me clarify on the posted answer... A hole saw can be used to cut clean perfect holes, but are limited in cut depth. You'll most likely need to use the hole saw on both sides of the jamb.

A hole hog, as another commenter mentioned, is also known as an auger bit. It has a pointed threaded tip that will pull the bit thru whatever material you're trying to drill thru until the tip can't pull anymore. From there you'll need a little extra force to get the bit to finish it's cut.

Both are feasible tools for what you're looking to do.


Heatpump Wiring Color Convention A heatpump thermostat is to be upgraded.   I am unsure of:

Which color wire is the Common (thought to be BLUE)
Where should the brown wire be connected?  (B node?)
Is the 'B' node in the photo associated with a color (BLUE?  BROWN?)

I would like to be certain that I have connected the BLUE and BROWN wires correctly

This looks right to me as long as you have a two transformer system; separate power supplied for both heating and cooling.  The common for this system must use the common from the cooling transformer.  You clearly have the brown wire connected to the B terminal and the blue to the C.  This is correct.  The C terminal supplies power for the operation of the thermostat.  The brown wire will be used to carry the signal in the event that the changeover valve is energized in the heating mode and the orange if in the cooling mode.


Storing ladder below subfloor in kitchen My kitchen height is 9 feet. To maximize storage, I am planning to have cabinets all the way upto ceiling.

To avoid lugging in a ladder all the time, I am planning to build storage under subfloor. The ladder will be accessible by having a lid in the floor.

However, once the lid is opened, the ladder should be able to rest between floor joists - once the space between the floor joist has been reinforced to support upto 300 lb.

For clarity - see attached diagram.

Does anybody have experience in such a project. The image shows what I am planning.

Wow, +1 for originality, but -1 for practicality.

Usually big things (like 12’ ladders) are stored outside or in a garage. Storing it indoors will create some issues: 1) creating a solid lid that doesn’t move/warp, 2) insulation around the storage space, 3) flooring that doesn’t break when trap door flexes upon opening, 4) sealing the space when you drop the milk bottle,

Btw, when you lean a 12’ ladder up on a wall, you’ll need a ceiling height of more than 9’ or it will be too much of a angle to lean properly around counters, etc.


Replacing metal halide bulb I have a Castaldi Lighting D06K/MH150G-AL industrial lamp. It is fitted with an Osram Powerball HCI-T 150W bulb that has a flux of around 15,000 lumen. I find this to be too much and I would like to replace the bulb with something producing less intense light.

Doing a bit of research I have discovered that metal halide lamps are more complicated than the usual household lamps I am used to where a bulb replacement mostly involves figuring out the socket being used. Here is a photo of the label on the circuit inside the lamp:

Is it possible for me to replace the bulb with a similar bulb with a lower power rating (e.g. 70W or even 50W)?

As an alternative, is it possible for me to replace the bulb with a LED bulb? I have seen these being manufactured and sold in China. However, I have no idea what specs to look for to ensure that they will work with my lamp. If the LED bulb requires 230V AC I can bypass the circuit in the lamp. However, a casual search only seems to produce LED bulbs rated at around 1,000 lumen which may be too little.

You cannot just replace the lamp, you also had to replace the coil so it matches the power of the lamp. Sometimes you had to replace even the starter with a matching type.

LED lamps available in shops typically don't have more than a few thousand lumen but you could look for LED retrofit lamps for street lighting on the net. They are available for E27, E40 and other sockets, too. Of course you had to remove the coil and the starter from the lamp fixture then.


Air conditioned made a sound while running and stopped working Air conditioned made a sound while running and stopped working,I guess its probably short circuited.How can I repair it by myself?

What all tools do I need?

I'd strongly consider getting a technician to have a look at it and repair it unless you are at least somewhat familiar with electrical work.


What Wire Should be Used for a 40A 240V Circuit? Given a 240V 40A circuit is there an official wire type that should be used? I assume there is a building code standard for this somewhere, but I don't really know where to look. I'd love if I could get some sort of official source.

For clarity, it would be helpful if the size could be given for copper and for aluminum, just so I'm not guessing at the material type of the answer.

Since the entire route is conduit, you need 8 AWG THWN-2 copper. This will be individual wires, not a cable in a sheath.

You can also use 6 AWG Aluminum, but you won't find it.  You might find it if you shopped at a proper electrical supply house, but you'd get funny looks and an "are you sure".  In fact, Just don't use aluminum - installation is more sensitive to proper procedure, and at these small sizes, is really for wizards only.

If both panel and charger have steel chassis and the conduit is non-flexible and metallic, then you do not need a ground wire.  If you do need a ground wire, follow instructions but 10AWG Cu should suffice, in bare wire, green, or green/yellow.  These are the only permissible colors for grounds, and vice versa.  Bare aluminum grounds are illegal.

If neutral is needed (check instructions), use the same size wire as the main conductors, unless the instructions permit a smaller size.  Neutrals must be white or gray.  And vice versa.

Hot wires may be any other color(s) and your two hots may be the same color, feel free to be fanciful.  There really isn't any value in distinguishing them here.


What size posts for elevated Kids play house? I'm building an elevated kid's play house. The raised platform will be 6' - 8' off the ground. The platform will be 8' x 10', the house will take up half of the platform and maybe less. I'm planning on using 48" 2x6 braces at each corner angled 45 degrees from the platform to the support posts. Can I use 4x4 posts in each corner to support this structure? Do I need more than 4 posts? Should I be using 6x6 posts?

The current plan calls for using 2 x 10s for the joists. The end joists will be 96" 2x10s. These will be spanned by seven side + common joists which will be 117" 2x10s spaced 16" apart. I've been reviewing load tables for the joists and may reduce those to 2x8s if possible. However, I haven't been able to find similar information for the support post requirements.

EDIT 12/9/15 Platform size increased to 10' x 12', with beams running the 10' span and joists resting on the beams the 12' (technically the joist span 11' 9"). All the decking code I've seen supports using 2x8s for the 12' joists (pressure treated #1 SYP). Thanks for the answers and comments.

Decks made for people are to be supported by 6x6's. That being said, my 4' x 8' childhood treehouse was supported by 4x4's, until we tore it down 30 years later, still in serviceable condition.

I'd be more concerned that you do the footings right, then if you skimped out and used 4x4's.


Snowblower blades hitting sides One side of my snow-blower got caught in a rope and snapped both shear pins (for that side).
I found two spare pins that came with it and installed them.
But when I turned the machine back on the blades on that side started hitting the side of the machine. I'm afraid to use it in this state I think I might break it more. Is there an easy way to fix this?
Now that I'm looking at this picture I can see that the blade is bent. What can I use to bend it back?

I have had good luck using a crescent wrench when needing to bend “thin metal” close the jaws tight then the cresent wrench gives some leverage. The larger the wrench the more leverage large water pipe adjustable pliers would be another tool I would use


Is it possible to reduce a 1" thick board to 1"/N boards? I have some project plans. Most of the project calls for using 1/2" parts. I bought 1" thick wood, which actually only ends up being 7/8" when I measure it (I have heard this is normal).

Anyway, there are some parts of the plan that call for 1/4" wood. Is it reasonable to further cut my 7/8" inch thick board to at least get two 1/4" thick boards out of them (with planing). Is this done? Is this safe? If it is done, how do you do it?

I figure maybe with the band saw and a really big jig that keeps the board perpendicular to the band saw base I could split the 7/8" down to 2 3/8", and then plane each of them down to 1/4". This seems theoretically doable, but I want to know if the theoretical translates into the the reasonable.

Theoretically, yes. Reasonably? That depends. You're describing what's termed "resawing", for obvious reasons. And you're absolutely correct on the basics: a properly tuned bandsaw with enough room for the width of the board you're resawing, the right blade, and typically the saw's fence (or a homemade jig) to keep the board properly on it's edge, at 90 degrees to the table.

So in practice, especially when you first start learning this skill, what happens a lot is that the blade will start cutting off to one side or the other. So you're constantly trying to steer the blade and the workpiece to bring the cut back to center. You end up turning one 1" board into 2 boards that range from 1/4" in some spots to 3/4" in other spots. Then you run these wavy-surfaced boards through the thickness planer a few times, and you end up with two 1/4" boards and a whole lot of sawdust.

If you're trying to build your skills, then I don't mean to discourage you. It's an important skill to have if you're gonna do some advanced projects (Google "bookmatching" for example). But if this is a one-off project for you, I'd recommend repurposing the already purchased wood and buying the actual thicknesses you need from a local hardwood dealer (i.e. not HD or Lowe's). Or as another response above mentioned, you could at least thickness plane this wood down and use it for your 1/2" needs. Good luck!


Adding a sill to a Marvin Integrity window *I'm sorry about the lengthy description. I'm photographically challenged at the moment.

I went about installing a two side by side, double hung Marvin integrity windows. After doing that, my dad said, "wouldn't it be nice to have a large window sill on the inside?". I went to look at some recent construction. The carpenter had put in window sills on all the windows. At a glance I thought that he removed the entire bottom jam of the premade windows, replacing it with a larger piece of wood. I can't do that now.

These Marvin integrities have a strip of wood about 3/4 of an inch high which conceals the bottom of the window sash. My best guess right now is that I pull these off and put the window sill on that same plane, right up to where they butted to. I pulled one off and noticed that there was a vinyl barrier in front of it, and a foam strip inbetween them that I sort of ripped. So, maybe it would need a silicone bead there.

I want to clarify with you that this is the best way to do it. The other thing is whether I cut the vertical jam out to a bit to slip the sill into, which would look better than profiling the sill to fit it. I'd like the sill to be 1 inch thick, but that would make the bottom of the sash look shorter. I feel like its not quite proper, like maybe I missed the opportunity when I installed it. The alternative would be to stick it on the front, level with the jam, but then you would a seam.

These windows have the same strip of wood concealing the bottom of the sash. If I remove it, there is a nice flat surface.

I happen to have a shop built with Marvin Integrity windows. As far as I know, the customary/expected way to provide an interior sill/trim is that it either butts up to or slips behind the wood frame provided with the window. Yes, there's a visible seam - it's not a big deal.

Your photographically-challegened-ness makes it difficult to determine if you already have the most minimal form of this installed, or not. Mine are currently sitting with no interior trim, waiting for my "tuit" to get "round."


What finish can I put on my pallet floor to fill cracks? What finish can I put on my pallet floor to fill in cracks and have an even, thick top coating?

If you built a floor out of pallet boards I would expect that the floor would be uneven, have cracks between boards and rough surfaces. That style is pretty much what you get with this type of material!!

There is not much that you could do with it except to rip it out and go with something more conventional. You may be able to cover it with a floor leveling material if all the pallet boards are solidly nailed in but then you are still looking at having to install some new floor surface over that.


How can I stop cracking/squeaking sounds while leveling this floor? I am reconditioning a wooden floor; I pulled up the carpet and am repairing, levelling and then painting the so-so boards I found. I already tried replacing the nails with screws but found that the boards are pretty noisy. Not so much squeaky as cracking sounds if you know what I mean.

There's a lot of wood added to the original joists because the house is very old - both alongside the joists and as 'noggings' (been looking at this guide). It's cheap ply and I think this is causing it.

As I have to level it anyway I can put some material between the two layers (there was a load of scrap wood slivers there currently). I read you can use cardboard or plastic too. As I want to maximise the quietness I had the brainwave of using a layer of thick carpet underfelt - not the foamy stuff but wool or felt.

What do you think of this idea and does anyone know the best material for levelling to reduce noise?

Most any material that keeps the wood to wood contact to a minimum should work. The most common material used is red rosin paper, but asphalt paper used to be an old favorite. I would avoid any thick absorbent materials like untreated felt or open cell foam, as they can absorb moisture or water and become moldy.
Use screws whenever possible instead of nails, as nails will squeak as they become loose as wood shrinks around them.  If you have to use nails, be sure to use threaded/ring nails to minimize this potential problem.


My basement kitchen has this circuit (20AMPs or 40AMPS-not sure) , can I run power tools on it? The breakers of my basement kitchen show like below (the 40 ones). The plug is close top my garage where I might need more power. Since that kitchen is not used, can I use a extender power cord to bring power to my garage (under 5m distance) and use power tools on this circuit? I need to run a dust collector rated at 20AMPs peak power. I run it dry just fine on the existing circuit but I am afraid that when I attached to the DC system and when I run the table saw (Ridgid 3650) I might overload the garage circuit

What you're looking at is a 40A circuit at 240V.

It's possible to split a 240V circuit into dual 120V circuits, but then, it's the amperage on the breaker -- i.e. this splits into two 40A circuits, not into two 20A.

So a 40A breaker is absolutely useless for creating 20A circuits.

If you want 20A circuits, the breaker must be 20A.

This 40A breaker is certainly for an electric range.  Another problem you have is that electric ranges of this era were wired without a ground wire.  Trying to run equipment in a garage without a ground wire would be nuts.   It would take a great deal of re-work to try to turn this wiring into a usable circuit that could feed a subpanel, or be down-breakered to directly serve 20A circuits.  The breakers are cheap enough; it's the cost of retrofitting a ground.

However, a kitchen will certainly have ordinary kitchen countertop receptacles. It's supposed to have two 20A circuits. That should be plenty for saw and dust collector.

And you are correct, saw + dust collector on the same circuit is not likely to work.


Are top and bottom plates required for a furring strip wall? I'm going to be framing out a wall in my basement by using 2x2 furring strips, attaching them with Tapcon screws to the masonry block so that I can hang the drywall onto and also give me a little room for foam insulation.

I can't use 2x4 because it would run into my vents and I don't want to add repositioning the vents to this project.

Since I’m just framing this to hang a few sheets of drywall, can I get away without having to use a top and bottom plate or is that asking for drywall cracks down the road?

Put the furring strips on the top and bottom so you have something to nail the drywall to otherwise it is going to warp. It cannot span 4 feet with no support.


Two way door lock for thin door I'm converting one of the rooms in my 1840 house into an office. The thing is I have 5 kids and need to be able to lock the door so I can have some level of quiet. I also don't want the kids tinkering around in there when I'm not there. (Sharp tools and stuff)

The kicker is I want it to a lock that can be opened on both sides given a key or code. The door is only about 1-1.25 inch thick of solid wood with only an iron latch.

I've been googling and have not found anything that fits the bill. I think I'm looking for a sliding bolt style lock that can be opened from either side. I'm open to other ideas too if they fit the need.

Why not consider a rim lock. This is a surface mounted lock and door latch that was typical in 19th century houses.

It is mounted on the inside surface and requires only two small holes drilled through the door - one for the knob spindle and one for the key.

There are old ones around, but you can find reproductions that work the same way.

Images and links are illustrative only, not an endorsement of goods or sources


Ceiling Fan Installation - Nonstandard setup for Downrod Fan The original ceiling fan in the master bedroom broke. When it was removed, what I found appears to be a nonstandard connection.

I'm assuming the absence of an electrical box means this is not the correct installation setup for a ceiling fan?

You have to install an electrical box. What you have now is not only incorrect but it could be dangerous.

You could, depending on the access to the attic, box out a small section of the ceiling and put a regular ceiling fan box. The other option is an angled electrical box, not sure they have one that will match your ceiling slope but search for "cathedral ceiling fan box" or something similar.

Either option will require you to secure it correctly to the framing to support a ceiling fan.

Ultimately this is what you are trying to get to:


How to fill the cavity in a recessed door panel I'm restoring the door to my dumb waiter. The door is 1" thick, plywood core, tin exterior (1/32"); the door is original and dates back to 1939. I want to make the door completely flat, then paint it, but I'm not sure how to fill in the recessed panel such that is does'nt warp or crack later. The panel is 36" x 7", 7/8" deep.
My first thought was to use something solid, like MDF, to fill in most of the space, then use fiberglass or metal-reinforced bondo to fill in whatever space remained; apply another coat of fiberglass/bondo on the entire face of the door, sand, paint, done. Is that a good solution?

UPDATE 11/02/2020
I never filled the recessed panel. I left the door as-is and just refinished it. Sanded down to bare metal, filled holes with metal-reinforced Bondo, and cut-out a section to installed a recessed pull. Before priming, I cleaned the metal with Klean-Strip Prep-All, then primed with SEM High Build Primer Surfacer. Lightly sanded primer before spraying with Rustoluem Metallic Bronze and Metallic Rust (the recessed panel is Rust). Waited two days to cure, then sanded very lightly, removed dust with tack cloth, then sprayed clear coat using USC Spraymax Matte Clearcoat 3680065. It's a two-part clear coat that you mix in the can before using. I've had issues using Rustoleum Crystal Clear Enamel as it tends to lift the color coat if too much is applied. Spraymax does not have that issue.
The finished door with surrounding aluminum/pine molding and trim for a completely finished and professional look.

Something to keep in mind with this dumb waiter door is that because of the vertical shaft and what terrible things vertical shafts can do with fire;  that is why the metal door is installed there, to forestall the spread of fire.

You could over-lay this door with good quality 1/8" or 3/16" plywood, say Baltic Birch or Mahogany.  Install ribs in the void to fill; or you could use a filler panel the right size.  No need for bondo, the plywood can easily span an inch.
Use the proper adhesive compatible with the substrates. Weight the whole thing for 24-hours for the glue to set.  You will need to adjust your hinges slightly to accommodate the difference in depth.  Then paint to you hearts content.


Resealing around a bath I have never resealed a bath before. I'm confident on what I need to do except for one thing...
A lot of the sealant is still in great condition. It's only the sealant behind the taps that has gone black. Do I still need to remove ALL of it in order to get a smooth continuous finish around the whole bath? Or can I just replace the bit behind the taps and it still look like the sealant runs smoothly around the entire bath?

Remove, clean, recaulk. Leave a small uncaulked spot on the bottom of the taps. Also, use a wet sponge to wet your finger, then drag along your fresh caulk, rewet, drag another section, etc., this will work caulk into crevice, smooth out the finished surface, and give a professional look. Just rinse your sponge out before caulk dries in it.


Why does my light switch have 2 wires on the top? I went to change my light switch to a new touch light switch I ordered and for some reason it has 2 wires on top. I googled this and searched for awhile but nothing came up about this topic and all I saw was people having 2 wires on bottom instead.

Usually this is because one wire is supplying the power and the other wire is tied into  it in order to take the power on to be used elsewhere.

Another way this is accomplished is that the two wires, plus a third "a pig tail" are all tied together with a wire nut and the pig tail goes to the switch.


Does leaving ceiling fans on improve A/C effeciency? Let me start with saying I know ceiling fans don't cool the air. My question though, is do ceiling fans help circulate the cool air from the handler in such a way that it would trigger the thermostat to less frequently turn the system on?

When we leave the house, we have the thermostat set on about 80. We live in Florida though, so the house has no issues hitting 80 and staying there basically 24 hours if we allow it; point being, the air is going to kick on throughout the day, regardless. I'm curious if ceiling fans will help it to kick on less frequently.

I guess the best option would be to set the thermostat at 82 instead of 80. But even then the question remains, do ceiling fans help lessen the time the unit is actually on?

A fan won't improve efficiency, rather the opposite (more circulation means more loss to the outside).

But it might improve comfort.  Increased comfort can result in the occupants raising the temperature, and thus reducing cost.


Can I use a shop-vac for dust collection in a workshop? I have a small workshop with a palm sander and a table saw. Both have dust collection ports and I'd like to take advantage of that. I've only seen short glimpses of dust collection systems on woodworking shows and I see (what I would assume to be) expensive, large, quiet, filtering vacuums. I'm a weekend woodworker at best so I don't need anything very elaborate but I'd like to keep the majority of the dust contained.

Can I just hook a shop-vac to the dust "output" on those devices or could that damage the equipment? Maybe the shop-vac and this?

Yep. You can use shop vacs for this (albeit you might need some adapter hoses). A neat thing to get is a power switch that can switch on another appliance one the first is turned on. The idea is you plug your saw and your shopvac into it, and when you power on the saw, the shopvac powers on at the same time:

http://www.amazon.com/Smart-Strip-SCG5-Autoswitching-Technology/dp/B000L9FQUO


Green residue on the joints of copper water pipes I was renovating my house and have to open up the ceiling. Once the ceiling was opened up I see that our copper water piping has some green residue only on the joints. I was doing some research online and seem that the conclusion is mixed, some say not to concern while other think that it needs to be fixed.
There is one or two drops of water on the joint where there is green. Do I need to worry and replace the pipe with PEX and copper fittings? If I were to do something now is the time as the ceiling is open up. I have attached a picture for reference.

The connection is leaking.  What more do you need?
There is water on the outside of the pipe.  It has been leaking for possibly decades and evaporating as quickly as it leaks.  The moisture, along with the solder and possibly flux, has corroded the outside of the pipe, leaving the characteristic green-blue color of dissolved copper.
More importantly, the leakage flow is verrry gradually eroding the sides of the small opening.  The opening is growing, the flow is growing, and eventually, it will start dripping and then pouring on everything below...
I've seen this in a pinhole leak in a copper 90 degree elbow.  The elbow had been installed for at least 30 years in the ceiling over the entrance hall.  The first visible symptom was water dripping from the ceiling light fixture.  When we opened the ceiling, there was an extremely fine mist coming from the pinhole.  All the nails and screws in the joist space were rusted out...


Small bathroom - feasible layout? With a tiny (5' by 6') bathroom we never have enough space. Current layout is like this:

Is the following feasible? Particularly in terms of drainage from the shower?

Currently the bath "waste" is directly by the window (where the waste for the toilet etc goes to outside) so there isn't any need to take it across/under the floor. I don't think there is any pipework "under" the floor currently.

Is it an option to have pipes above floor level but boxed in - would be happy with that.

I don't have a great deal of wall space as one wall is windows the whole width of the room (about 12" above the level of the sink/cistern).

Is there another layout (in general terms) you would recommend? My aim is really just to have a sense of more space and to have enough storage, (we're not concerned with keeping the bath) I realise it's a really small space.

Is it an option to have pipes above floor level but boxed in

Yes.

But if the hot and cold water supply pipes in and are metal (copper) and have supplementary equipotential bonding - I think you need to make sure the bonding clamps are easily accessible without tools. Ditto for isolating valves (for when you want to replace taps).

You don't need much slope on the horizontal runs of the waste pipe (and too much slope is bad) I read 1 in 40 to 1 in 110 somewhere.

I've boxed in pipework minimally but if I did it again I'd try to make more of a feature of it - cupboards with useful storage space as well as access to pipes.


Gas to propane conversion in old stove How do I go about converting this antique gas stove to run on propane? Is it possible?

Depending on how the gas valve or the burners are designed it may be possible to convert to propane fuel. Most conversions are as simple as changing the burner orifices. The orifice is the component that has a miniscule opening that emits the gas just before it ignites. The size of the orifice opening is dependent on the gas being used and how many Btu's are required. Natural gas will have a different sized orifice than propane. One Should not be used with the other.  Look around the gas lines for a small spud like this orifice spud. Some spuds come with no openings and can be drilled to a custom opening.


Removing a wall to the ceiling / roof Edit 2: I called an engineer and paid for his evaluation of the wall. It's not load bearing. Realized that I left out some basics about the house.

This house is built on a raised foundation with cripple walls attaching the floor joists to the foundation. The metal post is attached to the fireplace foundation (which is independent of the houses foundation). There is no foundation (just 3 feet of empty air) underneath the wall I want to remove. The header is just oddly sized.

The header does not connect to the beam.

Edit 1: I decided to punch a hole above the door frame. The header is a 4x6, but the cripple studs do not attach to the Beam(which is load bearing). I was able to get into the "attic" and look at the top plate of the wall. It's a 2x4, nailed to the side of the 2x8 rafter.

I followed the link below for how to identify if your wall is load bearing:
Are there ways to determine if a wall is load bearing?

If there is a load bearing wall or beam directly above or below this wall, it is likely load bearing. There is a load bearing beam above the wall, it's supported by it's own metal pole directly to the foundation.

If there's a single top plate, the wall most likely isn't load bearing. I found what looks like a single top plate, nailed to the side of a rafter. There is a gap between the top plate and the roof.

Expose the wall over a doorway or pass-through. If it's a solid 2x6 or greater turned vertically going from the jack stud on one side to the other, there's a good chance the wall is load bearing. If there are only cripple studs on a flat 2x4 to give you something to attach the drywall, it likely isn't load bearing. It's a 4x6, which seems very beefy for the location. However, there is nothing under the king / jack studs but a single 2x4. They aren't tied directly to the foundation.

So, overall pretty confused.

Original post
I have a wall in my house I would like to eventually remove completely. But, in the mean time I am just trying to make the opening to the kitchen bigger.

I am trying to figure out if I should stop where I am at, or keep going up, so that the ceiling is continuous between then kitchen and living room.

I don’t think the wall is load bearing, I have access to the crawl space and the wall is not built directly on the foundation. There is a beam that runs the length of the house which I don’t think is supported by the wall because there is metal pole that supports the beam in the living room (see picture).

There was a pocket door in the wall, and I just finished removing that and cutting back all the drywall, but I want to keep going up to the cathedral ceiling…however, I don’t know if the door frame is providing any support for the roof/ ceiling or the beam.

The door frame seems to be two 2x4s, and the header seems to be three 2x4s (as measured with a stud finder) there seems to be one stud going from the beam to the header. According to the stud finder the two 2x4s may go all the way to the roof (past the header)

If I pull off the drywall what do I need to look for to know if I can remove the header and continue opening the wall to the ceiling/roof?

Few pictures

I called an engineer and paid for his evaluation of the wall. It's not load bearing. Realized that I left out some basics about the house.

This house is built on a raised foundation with cripple walls attaching the floor joists to the foundation. The metal post is attached to the fireplace foundation (which is independent of the houses foundation). There is no foundation (just 3 feet of empty air) underneath the wall I want to remove. The header is just oddly sized.

The header does not connect to the beam.

From a sheer wall perspective he was not too concerned, given that the total amount of wall I want to remove is pretty minimal compared to the rest of the house.


I replaced my fluorescent light ballast but the bulbs turn off immediately I changed the ballast on the florescent lights in the laundry room yesterday. Now this morning when I throw the switch they turn on then off immediately.

Is this a loose wire connection? Should I go back and tighten up the the wires? Or do they need new bulbs?

I check the lamps first prior to changing the ballast because lamps fail more often than ballasts. If the ballast is bad, I usually replace the tubes with ballast bypass LED lamps. Good quality lamps are around 10-11 bucks. Look for DLC certification. The lamps that are not DLC certified do not tend to last in my experience.

I like double-ended LEDs because these will work with shunted tombstones (the part that holds the lamp); with single-ended tombstones you will need to replace them if shunted. To tell if the tombstones are shunted, with the power off use an ohm meter and measure the resistance from the 2 contacts. If reading zero or very low ohms, they are shunted.

Last, purchase from a vendor that has a long warranty - 5 years is my target. Some companies have good no-hassle warranties where you take a photo of the fixture with a working and failed light and they give you a credit or refund. Some companies require you to ship the lamps back as they no one will pay almost as much to return a lamp - those are sham warranties in my opinion.

To install a ballast bypass set of lights double-ended, 1 wire from each tombstone at 1 end can be wire butted together with the hot and the other end and 1 wire from each tombstone nutted to the neutral. The ballast can be left in the fixture but the wires should be cut or removed from the ballast and capped, cutting close to the ballast provides all the wire needed in hundreds of fixtures I have upgraded. Ballast bypass lamps usually come with a sticker that states the fixture was rewired and not to use fluorescent bulbs.

Earlier I used the term DLC certified. This stands for Design Lights Consortium. With this certification, you know that your lamps are efficient (not all LEDs are created equal) and meet the quality standards. Most power companies that provide rebates for upgrades require the new lamps to be DLC certified to get the rebates if available. In my area it is close to 70% of the cost of the lamp so this can bring your final cost to that of  quality fluorescents and now you are saving $ on your power bill and they have longer expected life.

Since you have already replaced the ballast try some new lamps. If the ends of the lamps are black or dark the lamp electrodes are probably gone, this is assuming you installed the proper ballast type for the lamps in the fixture. Universal ballast refers to the input voltage only usually 100-277v. Not long ago a friend installed a universal ballast in a 4 tube t8 lamp fixture, the lights did not work because the ballast was for 2' fluorescents.

I hope this information helps you troubleshoot your problem and or upgrade your lights.


What would happen if I went over the wattage limit specified by my path lights? I have a set of path lights that specify 5 watt maximum for replacement.  What happens if I put a higher wattage bulb in there?  Can it burn my system up or cause a fire?

Yes and Yes. The maximum wattage is probably to prevent buildup of heat, and using a value over the limit could cause issues: melting the fixture, burning the bulb out, or potentially causing a fire. You will also cause a higher current to be flowing through the wiring, which could be an issue.

Note that the only important value is the actual wattage of the bulb, not the "watt-equivalent". E.g. if you switch to an LED bulb you may be able to get much more light while staying under 5 watts.


Is it okay to 'sandwich' rigid foam insulation between old and new sheet siding? I am putting new LP Smart Siding (4'x 8' and 3//8" thick) onto my house, which will overlay old T1-11 siding. I would like to put R-MAX 1/2" rigid foam insulation under the new siding.  Is this okay?

In theory, that's fine. However, 1/2" is nowhere near enough insulation, and may actually create more problems than it solves, especially if you live in a cold area and your wall studs are deeper than 2x4. Thin foam like what you're proposing can cause wintertime condensation on the inside of whatever's right behind it. I would recommend at least a full inch, and more is better. Obviously this will complicate the trim around windows and doors, but you can easily install jamb extensions to handle that. 4 inches is not overkill, and if the depth is a problem, you could just remove the T1-11 siding first.

Another thing to mention: you have a perfect opportunity to add a radiant barrier, which will make a big difference if you live where it gets hot and sunny. Choose a foil-faced insulation board and face the foil outwards. Then fasten 1" thick vertical furring strips over the foam to create an air gap, and fasten your new siding to the furring strips. It will make a big difference.


Two switch with three black wires Hello I have a two switch with three black wires all connected on one side. The three black wires are all connected on the side with the three screws (two gold and one black). Pictures are below. I’ve seen two black wires on a single switch and a similar scenario (for an outside light) and understand why both the wires are black there, but this involves two separate lights. I haven’t seen a switch quite like this either although I imagine it’s an older version of a single pole? Any idea what’s going on here?

Its just two separate switches in a single yoke.

Also, the supply wire is common to both switches, because the switch is configured that way.  The black screw is the common.

Note that there is another black screw on the other side of the switch... If for some reason you needed each switch to have a separate/different supply, the other black screw would come into play.  Right now both black screws are internally jumpered to each other, but that jumper could be removed if you needed each switch to have a separate supply.  So if you see anything weird on that switch that looks removable, don't remove it.   That's the jumper.


How can I have the output from hot/cold water handles go to two different spigots? I am doing a renovation that will add a laundry sink to the basement and also allow an additional spigot on the exterior of the house. The new spigot will be in a convenient location for washing the car so I would like to be able to deliver warm water to this spigot.
Is there a way to hook up the laundry sink, so I can adjust the temperature at the sink and then flip a lever and the water to the faucet will turn off and go instead to the outdoor spigot? So, it would work a little bit like a bath where you can direct the water to the tub or to the shower.

I am sure such a thing exists. But it would be quite inconvenient: Set water temperature, flip diverter, go outside, decide it is too hot/cold, run back inside to adjust. Ugh!
Instead, run both hot & cold to the outside, using something like this:


Where is the best place to store firewood outdoors relative to your house? Is it true I should avoid storing firewood near my home (due to concern about termites)? Or is it perfectly fine to store firewood in a convenient spot just outside the door?

Storing your firewood on an elevated rack should alleviate most insect problems.  The wood should not be in direct contact with the ground or with a structure.  Leave enough of a gap to promote air flow around the stack.

Rotate your firewood from season to season (do not stack new firewood on top of old).

If you live in a termite prone area (the southeast or California), you may want to keep your stack further away from buildings, in case they do get a hold of the wood.


EMT Conduit Capacity with Mixed Gauge I want to pull two circuits through 1/2" EMT. Three of the wires would be 12AWG and other three 10AWG. I've found a couple of tables that say I can run 5 10AWG or 9 12AWG. Is my mixed gauge set safe?

I'm having a hard time finding solid 10AWG by the foot. The stores and sites I've found only sell stranded or solid in 500 feet lengths. I only need 35. I understand stranded wire to be larger in diameter than its solid equivalent. Is this a factor in capacity calculations?

The three 12AWG are two loads and a neutral for a NEMA 6-20 receptacle for a 2HP planer (15 amps) and a 3HP shaper (20 amps). The three 10AWG are two loads and a neutral for a 14-30 receptacle for a 5HP bandsaw. The bandsaw doesn't require the neutral. I want to make the receptacle more versatile by adding the ground to it. I'm using the conduit as the ground.

Solid vs stranded

A lot of people who work 99% in Romex find themselves gravitating toward solid wire because "it's the devil they know", they have no idea the difference, and they fret about terminations.

I work 99% in conduit and stranded is the only way to go.  When you have a solid wire in the bundle (I'm cheap, I reuse wire). you know it and it's a fighter.  As far as terminations, they're a little more finicky sometimes, but it's not a big deal.  If one is out of your comfort zone,  pigtail a bit of solid wire (wire nut splices solid-stranded are just fine).   You want to be in stranded.  Seriously.

#10 is the breakover above which all wire must be stranded.  As such, #10 solid is a black swan - nobody who does conduit for a living wants to pull it, and so it is relegated to a specialty item.  What's more, every termination meant to take #10 (eg NEMA x-30 receptacles) is designed for stranded wire.

We generally advise  people to underfill conduit to keep the effort of pulling easy.  That's why we'd tell you to use 2" conduit for three #2’s.  Otherwise you could run out of swear words and have to call the guy with a truck full of pulling tools, and he probably won't want to come in for just the pull.  Since you are near conduit fill limits, you should expect a challenging pull.  If you attempt this with solid wire, you should expect a very, very challenging pull.

You may be tempted to dismantle the conduit and reassemble it around the pulled wire.  That is not allowed, and will work particularly badly with solid wire.

Conduit fill

RME describes the gory details and the source material.  I just google "conduit fill calculator" and pick one I like.  One that lets me state # of wires of each size, and does the lookups for me.

For conduit fill (NOT derate), neutrals and grounds count, as do for instance fiber optic lines or Class II wiring, since they all take space.

Solid vs stranded doesn't matter, the slightly larger size of stranded is a "gimme".  There are a lot of gimme's in fill calcs, wait til you get into junction boxes!

You're fine, but you are also essentially full.

Conduit wire derate

This won't affect you because you are full.

Too many wires in one conduit will get too hot (you're a long way from this problem).  In residential/split phase, each circuit can only have 2 conductors because like I said, neutrals and grounds don't count.  But even if you were doing something odd (lopsided hot/neutral on 3rd circuit? Two 3-phase delta circuits?) it matters not: 4-6 wires have the same derate.  310.15(b)(7).

Look up any wire ampacity chart [called 310.15(b)(16)] and note the top row, which calls out which wires each column applies to.  THHN and THWN-2 use the 90C column.  If you happen to have an odd duck called THWN (obsoleted by THWN-2), that uses the 75C column.  Follow those down to your wire size.  That is the point we derate from: example is 40A for #10 copper THHN.

With 4-6 wires we derate 80%. So #10 THHN derates to 32A.  #12 THHN derates to 24A.  That puts you in the clear with both wire sizes, since you are already capped at 30A and 20A respectively due to other Codes (240.4).

Generally you can have 3 single/split phase circuits in 15, 20 or 30A without even thinking about it, and 4 if they are all 15-20A.  Larger than that, you have to break out the sharp pencil, as above.


Can I use a transfer panel with something other than a generator? What I am trying to do is use a transfer panel to power some 15-amp sockets with ether a dimmer pack, or from the main. (trying to set up a theater space so when there's not a show going on you can plug sensitive things into the walls) Can you do this with a transfer panel?

More info: There are 4 sets of 3 outlets (set A, set B, set C). Each set has 2 circuits, and each circuit is rated for 20 amps. (some of the outlets are tied together, it's a bit confusing due to the fact that the space was built in the 40's, how long does it take for the plastic/rubber shell on wires to get go bad?) I want each circuit to be switchable, able to run off the main panel, or run off dimmers that run off the main panel (theses are the big dmx controlled dimmers you would use for theater or djing, they give out 4800 watts @120V spred across 6 channels). Everything would run a at 120V although I can get 240V. Even though its inside a building we get main lines (L1, L2, and a neutral, just like you would get from the street pole), this comes from a sub breaker room, that comes from a transformer, that then finally comes from the street. I'm pretty flexible as in to what the plan is in the end. Sorry if Im just repeating myself, felt that the first Q. was not adequately expanded upon, so I just restated it.

Edit2: Well at least I think its from the 40's but it probably din't go in at that time, there was also some retrofitting in the 80's so any sockets and switches were replaced, the sockets I want to power are ground level, there are no sockets on the ceiling, power goes straight from the light board, through the walls (brick and morder), to "junction boxes" on a grid on the ceiling of the stage. If you can identify the model of the light board I'm planning to take out, that would help me a lot. All I know is that its a Zinsco. And yes, it is used without problems, although it does give out dirty power (have not checked with an oscilloscope, only know by experience). I most likely am going to have to hire an electrician, but I would still like to have a solid plan. Also, as far as I know, and I have searched high and low, any electrical floor plans for the stage do not exist.

This thing also acts as the main panel for half of the building.

You can but that takes some work, re-routing wires.  I don't know how many breakers you are talking about, but if it's just 2 or 4 you can and you have room in your panel you can use a breaker interlock switch.

The silver bar mounted on the breaker handles does not allow both breakers to be on at the same time.

To answer your question, yes, you can use a transfer switch.  But from the picture you can see the advantages of using the interlock.  No extra wiring, no subpanel to install.  No more breakers to buy.  Not many electrical distributors will stock this, and the brand does matter.  These usually don't work with breakers / panels from different brands.  They are not permanent so they can be removed easily.

EDIT - This is why all information would be great to have. A xfer switch is made to move power from 1 panel to another panel.  You can't switch some of the breakers of the panel.  So basically the way I see it is that you will need two sub panels, 1 for one task and another for another task.  Probably a couple of j-boxes to do some of the wire make-up because some of the wires won't be long enough.  Lets say that totals to 30 or 50 amps (just guessing because you have not told anyone that.)  Then instead of buying the more expensive xfer switch you can use the interlock, switching the breakers feeding each sub panel.

It really would help if you gave more info, like how many circuits (poles and amps) for one task and the same for the second task.

There are other items you can use for simple things, like breaker handle locks that screw on;

or breaker lock outs.

Either can be used to lock on or off.  The breaker will still trip even when locked.  I would prefer the one without the padlock.

You should also check local code to make sure there is no problem having the receptacles out of use, even if it is for part time.


sprinkler pressure issues One zone of my sprinkler system comes on at times and not at other times. We have 70 PSI at the meter coming to the house which drops to 20 PSI when the zone comes on. If the heads come up, the pressure rises quickly to 35-40 PSI. If the heasd just gurgle and squirt, then the pressure remains at 20 PSI. We have had the backflow checked as well as the water meter replaced. I don't know where to turn as they come on sometimes and not others. Any ideas what would be causing this?

Reason

A sprinkler head's pop-up mechanism seals and becomes water tight when fully raised/extended. This only happens after being supplied with sufficient water.

A sprinkler that is not fully extended will allow more water to exit than the same sprinkler that is fully extended. The high water pressure actually creates its own water tight seal, and only allows water to escape through the spray head. Low pressure water will escape from around the pop-up mechanism and the spray head.

The catch-22 is that with too low of pressure, the system can't self seal and build up pressure. It will do what you're seeing and just continue to never seal.

A way to test that I'm correct is to get a small group of people and have one person stand over each sprinkler head and pull it up while the system is showing these symptoms. Fully extending all of the sprinklers manually and holding them there will seal the system and make it start working on it's own. They could all now walk away and the system will continue to work until it is shut off.

After my explanation, it may seem like I'm saying that your problem is low pressure. Your problem is actually low flow. Water pressure only exists because of a restriction to flow. If you cut off the end of your water main after your water meter and let the water freely shoot towards the sky, you'd have 10 gallons per minute of water going everywhere, but your water pressure would actually be at 0 psi. Water pressure doesn't mean much without knowing the amount of flow as well.

It's confusing because your sprinklers seal from both flow and pressure in a way. They seal when the restriction to flow is great enough to raise the heads and make them stay there. If you don't have enough flow, you'll never build up enough pressure to overcome the leaks around the pop-up mechanism for it to self seal.

If we can increase the flow at startup to this zone, it will make the sprinklers seal. Or if we can decrease the number of sprinkler heads on this zone, we can reduce the flow required to make the the sprinklers seal.

Solution

The solution requires you to find out why this one zone is different from the others. Does this zone have more sprinkler heads than the others? Reduce the number of sprinklers on that zone.

Is this zone at the end of a long run of a copper pipe that's too small of diameter, or a galvanized steel pipe that's corroded and restricts flow inside? Install a larger diameter pipe from your main to your valve.

Is your sprinkler solenoid valve only 3/4"? Increasing it to 1" might be all you need to do. The sprinkler solenoid valve is typically the largest bottleneck in the entire system.

Splitting your misbehaving zone into two zones is an option, as that will cut the flow required to self seal in half.

If you can't do anything significant like that, your final option is to replace your sprinklers with low flow sprinklers with the same coverage. You'll need to water for a longer duration, but it'll reduce the flow required to self seal the system at startup.

Conclusion

Anything that will increase flow to this zone and removes bottlenecks, or that reduces the amount of sprinkler heads or the sprinkler head flow will be how you fix this problem.


Tying additional lights to entryway light -- does that violate any codes? My front door opens directly into the living room (no formal entryway) and there's a single potlight directly over the door with a dedicated switch. I'd like to add three more cans to the living room and tie them into the same switch, but I wasn't sure if that violated any codes requiring an independent entryway light?

I'm located in Arizona if that alters the code requirements any. Here's a diagram of what I'm looking to do:

All is good safety wise and I would say common sense code wise you are good as well.  However, you have now altered that circuit and technically speaking the code says the you, because you have altered this circuit, now you have to bring the entire circuit up to code. Which means you have to replace the circuit breaker in the panel that feeds that circuit with an ark fault breaker; $40 to $50.


Converting a KitchenAid KOSC504ESS 4 Prong to 3 Prong I just received a KitchenAid convection oven, and it has a 4 wire power cord. The outlet I have is a 3 prong (NEMA 10-50R), and I even bought a 3 prong plug (NEMA 10-50P). When I put the plug onto the power cable, can I just leave one of the wires off?

The wires from the oven are white, black, red and the copper ground.

If I can just leave off either the black or red when putting on the plug and then cap it, that would be great.

Figure out what the appliance requires I strongly suggest reading the installation instructions to avoid fire and electrical shock hazards. If the instructions were not included with the oven they are available on the manufacturer's website. The instructions will direct you to read the model/serial/rating plate which will specify the voltage requirements, rated wattage, and required amperage of the appliance. The required amperage can range from 20A to 50A. The KitchenAid website specifies 30A for model KOSC504ESS but you should verify on the plate that is attached to your appliance.

Figure out if you can re-use the existing branch circuit. Find the circuit breaker that controls the existing outlet and read the rated amperage. (If the wire is exposed it's not a bad idea to confirm the wire sizes are consistent with the circuit breaker: 10 AWG for 30A, 8 AWG for 40A, 6 AWG for 50A.) If the existing amperage is below the appliance requirements you will need to run a new circuit. Sometimes a wall oven shares a circuit with a cooktop or built-in microwave. Consider the combined load when deciding whether the circuit will need an upgrade.

If a new branch circuit is required it will need to be 4-wire and provide a separate equipment grounding conductor. At this point you will likely call in an electrician to do the work.

About the wires you describe.
On the appliance the black/red wires are ungrounded (240V), the white wire is grounded (neutral), and the bare copper wire is the grounding wire tied to the appliance frame. Under normal conditions the ungrounded wires carry most of the current for cooking. Some functions such as the controls and timer run on 120V (e.g., between the black and white wires) in which case the white grounded wire carries current. In the case of an electrical short to the metal frame of the oven the bare grounding wire must provide a low resistance path back to the service neutral so that the circuit breakers on the ungrounded wires blow.

If you are re-using the existing 3-wire circuit you must tie the appliance white and bare wires. Do not leave any of the 4 wires disconnected. NEC 250.140 requires that the frame of the oven be grounded to a separate equipment grounding conductor. However, the code allows an exception where there is an existing 3-wire 120/240V branch circuit of the type you describe.

If you go this route, you need to tie the appliance white and bare wires to the branch grounded neutral wire (may be white, gray, or bare wire), tie the appliance black wire to one of the ungrounded wires, and tie the appliance red wire to the other ungrounded wire. If you are hard-wiring into a junction box that's all there is to it. (If the box is metal it must be grounded as well.) The manufacturer's installation instructions show images of how to tie this together for a 3-wire and 4-wire configuration.

If feasible you would be better off converting the obsolete 3-wire socket to a 4-wire socket. This can often be done by retrofitting a ground wire. The problem with 3-wire connections is there is no separate ground. If that neutral wire breaks it will put line voltage on the oven chassis. Which is metal.

From the 2011 NEC edition:

  250.140 Frames of Ranges and Clothes Dryers.
  Frames of electric ranges, wall-mounted ovens, counter-mounted cooking units, clothes dryers, and outlet or junction boxes that are
  part of the circuit for these appliances shall be connected to the
  equipment grounding conductor in the manner specified by 250.134 or
  250.138.

  Exception: For existing branch-circuit installations only where an equipment grounding conductor is not present in the outlet or junction box, the frames of electric ranges, wall-mounted ovens, counter-mounted cooking units, clothes dryers, and outlet or junction boxes that are part of the circuit for these appliances shall be permitted to be connected to the grounded circuit conductor if all the following conditions are met.

  (1) The supply circuit is 120/240-volt, single-phase, 3-wire; or 208Y/120-volt derived from a 3-phase, 4-wire, wye-connected system.

  (2) The grounded conductor is not smaller than 10 AWG copper or 8 AWG aluminum.

  (3) The grounded conductor is insulated, or the grounded conductor is uninsulated and part of a Type SE service-entrance cable and the branch circuit originates at the service equipment.

  (4) Grounding contacts of receptacles furnished as part of the equipment are bonded to the equipment.

A plug/receptacle adds some complication. You mentioned purchasing a 3-wire plug. The grounding terminals on a 3-wire plug are probably not listed to connect to two wires at once (white plus bare Cu). I suspect you will need to remove the existing 4-wire flexible cable from the oven and replace with a 3-wire cable with plug. Search for "3-wire range cord" and you will find several one-piece units with screw terminals. Make sure it meets the amperage rating of your appliance. Remove the existing cable first to see how it is attached to the oven. You should see a terminal block like the image below. You will need to tie green and white wires together on the appliance side. Often there is a strap included to do this.

All of this terminology can sound rather intimidating. At the end of the day we are talking about tightening a few screws in the back of the oven. Still, do it wrong and someone dies or your house goes up in flames. So if you feel lost there is no shame in asking one of your more handy friends to come over and guide you through it. Or failing that hire a professional to do the install. If you purchased from a local store the install is often less than $50 in labor.


Is building your own house/addition documented step-by-step anywhere? I have a lot of experience with remodeling and hiring subs. I have observed the build process multiple times, so I know what is involved in it.

I am wanting to do an addition to my house, and so far the only quote I have received has been in the ballpark of $165/sqft. I really don't want to receive quotes where we are taking finishes into account and the few GC I spoke to don't even want to discuss that. I can either do most of the finish work myself, or I am VERY comfortable hiring out subs for that portion as I have done that probably hundreds of times.

I am thinking I might just want to GC it myself at this point, but would like to know good books/resources for going through what is involved step by step. Being an addition, it would be nice to read up on how to attach to the current structure, and handle the new roof, etc.. and every step along the way so I can be prepared for what is involved.

Any resources or experience shared would be helpful.

There isn't any easy advice for this.  I am sure there are books and resources that cover this but it is highly regional and highly dependent on the type of addition that you want to do.

For instance the most common things I have done is chop the roof on and add another level - works for ranch houses with no one living in them for 2 months - and the most common is convert garage to the house and add on another garage.

We can add a garage for 25K most of the time because of how cookie cutter the experience is.  There are several companies and my area that will drop off everything that you need to frame your garage with architect's drawings.

As for quotes I wouldn't even pay attention to people that quote per sq/ft.  What the hell does that mean?  $165 sq/ft - great I will take gold trim.  As a home owner before you go to a GC I would:

Have rough drawings of addition
How the addition's roofline will integrate with home
I do not suggest hitting an architect yet - unless the home in question is rather expensive or very architectual (I know that isn't a word but you know what I mean).
Get the list of things you need done.  Foundation, framing, roofline/trusses, intgration, housewrap, insulation, siding, whatever.   Have a complete list.
Take this to your local building inspector.  Make sure this jives.  You could even leave these as planning papers as you pull your permit.  The local inspector if helpful might give you pointers on foundation requirements, if the city will allow certain things, and so on.  This discovery phase will allow you to skip a lot of bullshit with the GC you hire.  Basically he can't bullshit you and you cannot ask him to do dumb stuff if this is done right.
When the inspector OK's the idea with caveat of proper plans/drawings then you go to your GC.  If your GCs don't have a "system" in place to handle your type of addition, then get another one or at the very least go to the architect and get drawings done before bids.  If your GCs have a system in place they might have prefabbed designs and maybe if you alter yours just a bit it can be the difference between 5-10k.
With the list of things you want done get a contract with the GC stating what and when things will be done with payment plan.  Also discuss if trades will be paid directly or by GC.  Same thing for materials providers.
Let me tell you something GC make the most money off of the finishing touches especially if they have a good crew.  I have 2 drywall guys that can drywall a 3 bedroom apartment (ceilings too) in one day and a half day to sand.  I could pay them $600 for that and charge you $1500 or more.  For big things like concrete work, foundation stuff, materials, roofing and so on there isn't as much room for a GC to make money.  Hence he will be working with reputable companies to do these things that you could also contract out (the cheap drywall guys that do a great job - you don't know them or they aren't allowed to work without GC involved).
So my advice is have a detailed list, drawings, and everything.  See what the GCs in your area want for the job.  Call some concrete/foundation companies, plumbers, electricians, and roofers and see what you think your costs will be.  Also be flexible on letting GC do finishing touches - just don't value those when negotiating.  If you say I don't want you to finish the job it might turn a lot of GC off.  But after they write a bid and you say that is too much, what can we leave out since I will be out of money?  Well they will react different to that.
With a GC you are paying someone for organization, person that has connections to the right people/trades, person to catch issues before they are problems, and a person to manage others that you may never trust.  If something goes wrong you blame him.  Now if you do it yourself know that you will be working from home a lot, you will be organizing a lot, and your project will probably come together slower - since you have to have a buffer for things to get done.  Also note that the smaller trades may not perform as well for you as they would GC as you are a one time deal and the GC will throw them more work.  So even if you have the same people, more managing to do.


How can I build a table into an alcove? I have this weird portion of a second bedroom where about 4 foot of it is 2 feet deeper than the rest of the wall.

What I want to do is fix a butcher block in that space to use as a desk.
What is the best way to mount this? I would be mounting it to drywall fronted studs / fire barrier. Will anchoring it in the studs and fire barrier at multiple points.

Is this a good plan or should I be looking into other procedures? I'd rather not buy desk legs if I can mount it to the wall.

I would just buy a 1x4 or similar material that would go with your butcher block and use them as a ledger board on the three sides.  Simply measure the height you want, attach ledger board to wall all the way around (3 easy cuts) and attach them to the studs.

Then just slide on your butcher block.  To attach to ledger you can use screws but a little silicone is probably more than enough for a tight space to keep it from moving.


How many splices can a junction box contain? Im passing 2 circuits and a ground from LB to junction for backyard  outside circuits. So two neutral, two hot, and one ground 10 awg.

The LB box screw fell into the vertical pvc conduit last minute, and I have a few feet of wire pulled out of LB. I tried getting it but cannot. I would rather not pull the wire anymore to not damage it.  I was thinking of just splitting the wire at the junction box to continue my run to the breaker box.

How many splices can a junction box contain? This is a 4 inch box.

As many as the box fill will let you have

The limit on box fill is set in term of the number of wires entering the box -- splices don't count against it.  That said, it's time to jump right into the box fill calculations.

You have 9 10AWG box fill units there (1 for each hot and neutral entering, and 1 for all the grounds taken together).  A quick glance at NEC Table 314.16(A) says that a 100x54mm (4" by 2.125" deep) square box has room for 12 10AWG fill units in it, so you're good to go.  If there was an internal clamp, this raises your fill to 10 units (the clamps taken together count as 1 unit as per 314.16(B)(2)), but that's still within the 12-unit limit for 10AWG.

Note that this simplified method relies on all the wires coming into the box being the same size.  If you have different sizes of wire involved, you'll have to use the cubic-inches method with Table 314.16(B).

One last thing -- perhaps you could use a magnet on the end of some fishtape to fish the screw out of the conduit?


GFCI breaker trips after 5 or 6 minutes with nothing plugged in The problem circuit has 4 bathroom sockets, a front porch socket, and a back porch socket. Nothing is plugged into any of the sockets. A month ago, when I first became aware of the problem, the GFCI breaker would trip after 60 to 90 minutes. I looked into all of the sockets and replaced the front porch socket which was cracked. Lately, the circuit is tripping after 5 or 6 minutes, again with nothing plugged into any of the sockets. This problem has appeared suddenly after 21 years in the house. There has been no construction done, no humidity issues, no issues with weather or rain, or water leakage, and no new appliances. I am stumped.  Any suggestions appreciated.

Change the GFCI breaker. These do have a lifetime.

EDIT

The other possibility is that a receptacle  (less likely a switch) on the circuit has gotten wet and is leaking to ground. Recently I had a roof leak into an exterior wall leak onto an external receptacle and trip the GFCI. Going off half cocked I replaced the GFCI breaker with another I had on hand. No effect. Only then did I remember that there was one never-used exterior receptacle on the circuit. I went out to examine it I saw water running down the wall from a leak around a plumbing vent.

I needed the circuit in operation immediately so I removed the receptacle and wired nutted the hots and neutrals and put a cover plate on the box. This stopped the tripping. I repaired the roof leak later.

If you think you have this problem, remove the cover plate on a suspected receptacle and direct a hair dryer into the box to see if the tripping stops.


How to stop the vibrations/sound produced by glass inside a room while playing a speaker system? My room has a sealed glass (like window glass but we can can't open and close; its fixed to the frame). Whenever I play music in my 5.1 speakers, the glass starts vibrating making a "errrrrr/grrrrr" sound. It stops when I put my hand on the glass.

Any ideas to prevent the vibration sound, so that I could take my hands off the glass and enjoy the music?

Sometimes rope caulk

applied along the edges of the glass will keep it from vibrating.  You might have to apply it on both sides to get it to work.  This might not do the trick, but it's cheap easy and easily undoable if it doesn't work.  Hopefully you can go back to dancing around with both hands.


What is the best way to remove pet odor from concrete? The concrete floor in my garage had been home to a large dog for several years.  There is a visible stain and strong smell in one area of the garage floor.  The concrete does not appear to be sealed or painted.  What is the best way to remove the odor?

Let me save you some time.  Forget the pet store products, just go to Home Depot or Lowe's and get yourself a can of primer/sealer, I think Kilz brand is the best.

I had a really bad cat urine odor problem in my townhome many years ago (from previous owners).  Like you, I went to the Internet and I tried a lot of suggestions I found there.  NONE of those specialty pet odor removal products worked.  They just temporarily covered up the smell and during hot weather it came back.  Big waste of money and time.

Finally someone suggested the Kilz brand primer/sealer and it worked.  The smell never ever came back, and there was a clean "new home" smell.  I used it on drywall but I'm sure they have stuff for concrete as well.


How can I remove a jammed, broken key from a lock? I have a key to an apartment mailbox that was almost impossible to get the key in and out of to unlock, and in trying, my roommate broke the key off in it. From looking in with a light, it seems that all of the key except the outermost pin is in the lock, but the lock won't turn even when putting the head back in.

I've generously lubricated the lock, tried hooking a small scroll saw blade in the teeth, and used a lockpick set with various hooks to try dragging the key out, but it's pretty firmly stuck. So my question is: with this being an entire row of mailboxes and me unable to just remove the lock, how would you recommend either getting the key out, or replacing the lock?

The key sounds like a lost cause. The lock will probably need to be changed.

The mail carrier has access to the box, usually through a large panel at the top (above the doors you open). It is likely that access to the lock is possible when that large panel is open.

You probably need to coordinate with her or him and the superintendent of your building to remove and replace the lock.


An entire room lost power So last night I was plugging a power strip into a wall socket in my son's room. As soon as the prongs touched the socket the whole room went dead. Being a bedroom is should not be affected by GFCI outlets but I checked them all anyway. I also checked the breaker box even though the other room that is on that circuit is still live and with power.

In the room in question I have 4 outlets and one light switch. All are dead. I do not have a colt meter so I commenced to changing the outlet that I originally tried to plug something in.  While I had the outlet out I noticed it was at the end of the line with only having one hot and one white. I went ahead with the replacement because my son wanted an outlet with built in USB power spots.

So now I am literally going outlet by outlet replacing them and turning the power back on and testing it. Nothing seems to be working. I have replaced 3 of the 4 outlets and am still getting no power to the room.

Before I replace them I am checking the brass tabs on the sides and also changing them all from backstab to screws. Nothing has made a difference.  Am I missing something or am I stuck doing this over and over until I find the broken one?

Chances are one of your breakers is in fact tripped, but the handle does not appear to be tripped.  Try turning them all off, then back on one by one.  Knowing which breaker really goes where is handy -- a breaker finder tool may be available at a local tool lending library.

If it's really the wire between outlets, then look in the "live" room.  One of those outlets will have a feed wire, another will have the daisy chain wire to your "dead" room.  Perhaps that backstab has failed.

A voltmeter is a good investment.


How can I run power to my shed from my pool electrical panel I have a single 15 amp breaker available in my pool electrical panel.  I would like to run power from there to my shed for a handful of outlets and a pair of light fixtures.  I plan to bury metal conduit 6" deep, but beyond that I'm unsure what is required.  Do I need a subpanel or disconnect in the shed?  What size and quantity of wires would be required in the conduit?  The shed is about 45 ft from the pool panel.  Do I need a grounding electrode at the shed?  This is in the state of Georgia, USA.

Go ahead, but make sure to get the details right

Since you are pulling 25A (out of the 40A total available) on the pool feeder right now, you can route a single 20A/120V circuit (using 12/2 W/G UF or 12AWG THWN hot/neutral/ground in the conduit) from the pool subpanel's spare breaker to a disconnect at the shed (any standard A/C disconnect box will do the job happily), then you can wire the shed lights and receptacles to the disconnect box as they won't consume but a fraction of the remaining 15A normally.

You won't need a full subpanel at the shed since you're feeding it with a single branch circuit, nor will you need a grounding electrode as you are installing a disconnect for a single circuit, not a feeder and subpanel. (This is per the exception to 250.32(A).)


20A GFCI questions regarding LOAD terminal Is a standard receptacle connected to the LOAD terminals of a GFCI protected up to 15 or 20 amps?

If it is protected up to 20 amps and I connect a standard 20A receptacle on the LOAD terminals with 12/2 wire. Then plug in an appliance with a current rating of 18 amps for example. Will the GFCI trip or will the 14/2 wire before the GFCI overheat and potentially cause a fire?

I don't understand the purpose of a 20A LOAD terminal on a 15A GFCI which is meant for 15A circuit.

First, a GFCI outlet (or the GFCI portion of a GFCI breaker) does not limit current. That's the job of the breaker.

The functional portion of the receptacle itself is rated 15A (doesn't have the crossbar on the neutral blade slot), but the passthrough is rated for 20A. This is because you can actually use it on a 20A circuit since any device requiring 20A should have a plug that prevents it from being used in a 15A receptacle.

Here's a 20A receptacle:


How can I live in a large house and not have high utility bills? I would like to buy a five bedroom house in Illinois, mainly because I love the property. I wish the house was smaller, because I would be the only one living there. My plan would be to live in only a small portion of it, but how could the utility bills be low? It would need to be weatherized, but is there a way to heat just a small portion of the house without the pipes bursting in the winter?

Good insulation, double glazing, air conditioning used with care (-8°C difference from outside is enough in summer, 20°C is ok in winter), class A++ electric appliance, gas tankless water heater, led lighting.


Green Glue with wall tiles for soundproofing? Wall Tiles
https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B016UPADF0/

I'm thinking of adding soundproofing to my home's bedroom using these tiles and Green Glue. There is only 1 shared wall + door between this bedroom and the rest of the house.

My hope is the soundproofing comes from the Green Glue (not the tiles) which is supposed to adsorb sound and exchange it for heat: https://www.greengluecompany.com/
The tiles are only there to support the Green Glue, and for aesthetics.

Would that work? Any risks? Would you say I still need to add extra soundproofing behind the drywall?

The goal is to keep sounds inside the bedroom. So, for example, it won't travel to other bedrooms and wake people up. Sounds I'm trying to damper are TV or.. erm.. being with the wife.

I'm skeptical that these panels will help with soundproofing. I didn't see anything in the description of the material that called out it's soundproofing characteristics and it does not seem to be thick enough to do much.
Per the questions section at the URL you posted for Amazon:

Question:
 How thick are these?
Answer:
  Hi Steve. The panels are only 2-3 mm on the flat areas of the panel and hollow in the back. The embossed areas come out about half inch.
Thank you

You need to assess where the sound you are hearing is coming from and determine the best way to block or absorb that sound.

Here is an article that covers tips on soundproofing.
The article makes the point that most of the sound coming into your room will be from the windows and offers suggestions.


Run a fluorescent fixture with fewer lamps? I have some 3-lamp recessed fluorescent fixtures that are too bright. Can I remove one of the tubes and run them just with two lamps? Will that hurt the ballast or the remaining tubes? These are T8 electronic ballasts, not the old magnetic ones, if that matters.

Newer electronic ballasts run fine with lamps removed. Many replacement ballasts can be wired for several combinations of lamps, such that a 4-lamp ballast can be wired to a 3 or 2 lamp fixture. This will be shown right on the label and wiring diagram.


Can sewage smell penetrate indoors because of inadequate venting? I have a basement toilet that is connected to a 4" buried sewer pipe but its vent that goes three stories up to the roof is only 2". The toilet seems to have a permanent smell of urine which starts even very soon after I clean it with Ajax and before anyone has used it. I understand the toilet has its own P or S trapping module intended to prevent backflow of gases from the pipe but could it be that the vent inadequately forces air out and some of it is finding its way indoors through the 1-2 sec period of flushing?

This is a hypothesis and I have no other explanation. My other toilets that are right next to a different, 4" vent stack don't smell and it has nothing to do with the cleaning or sanitation treatment. Moreover, I have a sewer access point (for snaking and cleanouts) above the toilet behind the wall and when I open the plug, it has the same smell as what collects inside the bowl.

I would say NO, the vent is not the problem. A more likely culprit is a bad wax seal. I have found toilets with no water leakage and big gaps in the seal were someone tried to use silicone to seal the flange. No leakage and constant sewer smell. I pulled the toilet and was amazed. Cleaned probably a full tube of calking (calking gun size) out installed a .99$ was ring and the smell was gone.

Any residual smell may be from urine in the flooring and there are chemical treatments that can fix this.

Last if there is a floor drain it may be the cause of the smell, pour some water in the floor drain then add a cup of cooking oil this will keep the water in the trap from evaporating.
A clear vent even in a 3 story would not cause the smell you describe.


How to stop sink from dripping/leaking? I was trying to put in the plug mechanism for the bathroom sink.  I actually turned the entire plumbing underneath the sink and I think I broke the seal between the drain hole and the sink.

Now there is a slow leak...just drops.  You can see it in the picture.

What is the best way to stop the leak?  (I think we can fix the drain hole and sink connection/interface)

Plumbers putty. Remove the drain and apply a new string of plumbers putty.


How can I straighten pipes behind a wall? The original builders did a shoddy job when they installed the plumbing in the bathroom, causing the taps/faucets to come out of the tiled plasterboard wall at a slight angle - about 5 degrees - so the flanges aren't flush against the wall. Any ideas on straightning the pipes without breaking the wall; I don't have any spare tiles and am unlikely to find any.

Can you cut the wall on the other side of the pipes? That might let you get at them without breaking the tile.

Be aware, however, that if you do, it may not help - if the pipes are at an angle, and you straighten them out, you're going to end up with the pipes wanting to come out at a position slightly to the side of where they are now. In other words, the holes in the wall and tile may no longer be in the right position. You may be able to flex things to make this work, but not necessarily.


How can I reduce the vibration noise in new corrugated tubing connected to my sump pump? My sump pump recently went bad and while replacing it, I also decided to replace the plastic corrugated tubing that was connected to it.

When I turned on the new pump, the amount of noise it was making sounded like there was an elephant in the basement.  Best I could tell, that noise came from the corrugated tubing getting into some resonating vibration.  After wiggling things here and there, I removed the new tubing and put the old one back in and now the pump is as quiet as a mouse.

As far as I know, this is a standard corrugated tubing for use with sump pumps that I bought from the local hardware store. But it appears to be made of a slightly harder plastic than the old tubing and I think that is partially why vibration noise is so much higher.

Is there anything that can be done to eliminate the noise besides having to use really old tubing which I would like to replace at some point?

You might try insulating a section of the pipe with foam insulation.Then try to mount that to something solid like a section of 2x4.


Why is there tar leaking into my attic? I was doing my own home inspection today to keep up on maintenance, and I found something pretty unusual in the attic.  On one of the boards in the roof a tar-like substance is leaking through the board.  It doesn't look to be wet or getting a lot worse, but what is this?  Any ideas?

Looks like the sap is coming out of a board from the heat of the attic.


How to seal brick and siding corner? On the exterior of my house, there is a corner where one wall is brick and the other is cedar shingles.
There is a some space between the two where cold air gets in and the interior wall that is near there gets quite frigid.
Should I insulate this wall? If so, should I just use caulk or some expanding foam?
If caulk, which kind should I use?

I normally would suggest a water based caulk, but for this since it is brick on one side, and would need to be taped to keep the brick neat, I would use a one part polyurethane caulk for this. The application would have to be done so there is not a whole lot of excess over the area since clean up is done with mineral spirits or paint thinner.
It is available in colors, so you can find something that will blend in. It is also paintable, and is very flexible.
I would go the extra mile and tape the cedar siding too. This will allow you to wipe off all the excess, pushing the caulk well into the gap at the same time, and touch up where needed, cleaning that excess up too. I would use my finger to do so and wipe it clean with a rag or paper towel dampened with thinner. After all the excess is cleaned and smoothed out down to the tape on both sides, remove the tape and spray the joint that is filled with a soapy water solution. This will allow you, with soapy fingers, smooth out any last flaws in the caulk.


Hardwood flooring nails showing through plywood from underneath Hello 8 years ago we installed hardwood floors throughout our entire condo. At that time we had asked our association if that was something we could do. We weren't sure if the foundation or the condo would sustain all the hardwood. They said it was okay.

I was in our basement--it's unfinished--and I noticed that the nails are sticking through the plywood I also noticed wood particles on the floor. Which leads me to believe that the plywood is coming apart. Perhaps also there's a crack in the plywood. I know nothing about this type of stuff. Could any professionals let me know if this is normal? I am starting to question if it was okay to install these hardwoods to begin with. Thank you kindly!

Most of the time, anything that's fastened to plywood is required to have the nails penetrate beyond flush with the lower/back face of the plywood. This is to give maximum grab to the nail shank. What you're seeing is perfectly normal and expected. Other examples are roofing shingles and vinyl siding.

The wood debris on the floor is a result of normal vibration causing slivers to drop over time. It's not cause for alarm, and to prevent it in the future do some brooming or otherwise rub down the underside of the subfloor to knock the slivers off all at once.


combo tee vs. tee wye I saw on wikipedia a mention of "combo tee" and "tee wye" is there a difference or are they the same?

I've also heard of something called a "sweep" or "long sweep" is that related here?

The combo tee has a longer sweep. Long sweeps are easier to run a snake through and drain better as the water path is gradually changed (if you have the space to use them).

45 wye

Combination wye & 1/8


Replacing a stuck stopcock - what could possibly go wrong? The main water feed is a lead pipe. The stopcock has apparently been replaced at some point but is now stuck. I managed to turn it off once before but it required more force that I think is wise. So I'd like to replace it before I start some other plumbing maintenance that will require me to actually close the stopcock. Also it's not exactly useful for emergencies as it currently is.  It looks like I should just be able to unscrew it and fit a replacement. But is there anything else I should be aware of?

You'll need some way to shut off the water when replacing the valve - that may require calling your water supplier, depending on local rules (if there's an outside shutoff that they own, they may not want you operating it - varies.)
In the case that there is no outside shutoff, there are fancy units that will freeze a short section of pipe to plug it, but you'd probably need to call a plumber who owns one - not a practical DIY tool for realistic budgets.
The valve you have may only need service (cleaning and lubrication), but if you are going to the bother of getting the water shut off to service it, I would replace it with a 1/4 turn ball valve, as I have much less trouble with those for shutoff service (they tolerate sitting idle for years without becoming impossible to operate, since they have a very simple mechanism with few parts to corrode and get stuck.) If you have the sort of valve you show, operating it on a regular schedule (like once a month) is the best bet for it being able to operate when it's needed.


Wall Anchor for shower door slider I am going to be installing a 3/8in glass frameless shower door system in my new project. I have the opportunity to screw into a stud on one side, but not the other.

I would have added a stud in the location before I had closed up the wall, but the plan was to install something different before this point.

So one side may have a stud, or I can install one. The other side just has the 1/2 cement board and tile on it. Is there an anchor out there that could hold this weight for me? I believe the weight of the track system and one sliding door is about 140lbs.

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Vigo-Elan-68-in-x-74-in-Frameless-Sliding-Shower-Door-in-Chrome-with-Clear-Glass-VG6041CHCL6874/205759376?keyword=VG6041CHCL6874

I think a conventional toggle bolt is your best bet here (and hopefully 2). You need something that doesn't rely on threads grabbing cementboard material, and something that spreads the load a bit.

I'd also use some construction adhesive around the bolt once it's in place to help fill the gap and provide stability.


What should I check when troubleshooting a doorbell? Our doorbell stopped working a while ago and my wife finally bugged me enough to fix it.

First, I found a diagram on another site when I googled this. It is wired like the right box:

I started by measuring the voltage coming out of the transformer which is attached to a junction box in the basement. There is a small amount of power coming out of the transformer, which itself appears to be new relative to everything else in the house. Just to be sure, I turned off the breaker and checked the connections inside the junction box. Same results after.

The doorbell ringer is in the kitchen. When I take off the cover and measure the voltage it matches what I see in the basement. However, when I press either doorbell it does not ring: if I short circuit the screws for a doorbell using a wire, nothing happens: unless I am wrong this should make it ring since it is making a complete circuit and essentially removing the switch/button.

Two other possibly relevant pieces of information. First, one of the doorbell buttons is damaged, it is smashed beyond repair: I have to replace this anyway. Second, my wife swears this all started when my brother (an electrician) replaced the load center a while ago. Since the transformer is 30 feet from the load center and everything else on that circuit works fine, I am doubtful that is the cause. So these are probably red herrings but I have to tell my wife I tried.

My educated guess is that the doorbell unit itself is faulty and needs to be replaced.

My question is this: should I check anything else before spending the money to replace it?

UPDATE: I disconnected the wires from the transformer at the doorbell ringer. I connected it to an AC outlet using one of those adjustable wall-warts. It only goes up to 12V (transformer is 16V) but it rang when I shorted it to one of the switch wires. So I think this is the transformer.

Are these transformers fixable (I do hobby electronics and have rewired rooms in my house)? Or should I buy a new one?

UPDATE 2: I just learned there are two black wires coming out of the transformer, and one of them (does not matter which) needs to be wired to neutral. When this broke, I had replaced the ancient junction box the transformer was attached to with one twice as deep and added conduit to go to an outlet in that under-stairs closet. Everything else worked so I did not think much of it. I am still not sure why one of the wires would not be white since that would make sense, but oh well. I just wired it correctly and it works fine. I will accept BMitch's answer since it is close and helpful.

Also, the erratic results on my multimeter were likely due to both wires being hot. I knew something was not right but should have spent time figuring that out instead of looking elsewhere. Oh well, live and and learn. Thank you all for the feedback.

From the description of odd voltage readings, and the fact that you shorted the connection and still couldn't get the bell to ring, I'm guessing the transformer failed. It wouldn't be the door bell button or that wiring since you eliminated that with the shorting. And since you later tested with another power source and verified that the door bell chimes work, that's also eliminated as a possible failure. The only other thing except for the transformer it could be is the wiring from the transformer to your door bell chimes, but that can be a lot more difficult to repair, depending on how far apart the transformer and chimes are. You can double check the wiring by disconnecting it, shorting one side, and checking the ohm reading with your multi-meter on the other side.

You can pick one up relatively inexpensively from the home improvement store, so I'd start there. Make sure to turn the breaker off before touching anything that's connected to the house wiring, and always test the wires for voltage before touching them. I wouldn't bother with repairing the transformer, they're easy and cheap to replace, but hard to repair.


How do you seal travertine floors? I moved into a house with travertine floors. They appear to have been sealed and polished. I recently learned that travertine is highly porous. I recently noticed this tile where the seal appears to have worn away and the stone is "powdering." (No idea if that's the correct term.) What do I use to repair and/or seal this?

Travertine can have many impurities, and being a sedimentary rock, could have a nugget of softer material.

In any case, use a stiff nylon brush and remove the chalky area.

Rinse the area and note if water absorbs in the nugget area..
If so, good; grout and/or sealer will attach securely.

I would recommend a bit of matching grout in the divot, followed by a penetrating stone sealer.(I prefer Miracle products, but others are fine).