Is this surge protector defective? I have purchased a high quality surge protector of a known brand in my country featuring six outlets. However, when I plug the adapter of my laptop into it or the surge protector or plug the surge protector into the wall after I have plugged in the adapter of my laptop to it, I usually get a pop sound and a spark. In addition to that I have noticed that I get occasional electric shocks from the metal casing of my laptop when I have it plugged in this particular surge protector outlet and the adapter makes a humming noise when the laptop goes idle. What may be the reason behind this strange problem?

By the way I have two of these surge protectors and the electrical shock is still persisting even though I have replaced the surge protector with a normal power strip. How can I understand if it is related with the particular model of the brand or the particular product I am using(manufacturing defect)?I would also like to mention that this situation is pertinent to my home in Ankara (I also have a family home in Istanbul and none of the described issues occur there). Thus I suspect the grounding of the wall outlets. I also noticed a decrease in the life of the battery of my notebook after I have moved into this house.

If you notice none of the described symptoms when you plug the laptop adapter directly into the wall outlet then you should consider discontinuing the use of this surge protector / plug strip. This seems to me to be a serious safety issue that needs to be addressed immediately.

Once you get back to a safe usage scenario you should do some checking of the laptop adapter for safety issues as well. Remove the adapter from the wall power and from the laptop. Now using a digital multimeter in the resistance (ohms) measuring mode check for any low resistance readings (less than 10 megohms level) between any of the AC power leads and any of the contacts at the laptop charger plug end. If you find any low resistance connections from the AC to DC side of the adapter then you should replace that as well.

(Note that all of the numerous laptop adapters I have encountered are supposed to be 100% isolated from input to output. I.e. NO input to output electrical connection).

Now back to your surge protector. Some surge protectors may have installed components such as MOVs or high voltage capacitors between the AC lines (hot and neutral) and the earth ground connection of the AC wiring coming into the protector. If they are wired this way it is possible for some people to feel a slight shock when touching any grounded metal parts of equipment that is plugged into the downwind power jacks of the surge protector. In my electrical engineering opinion I do not think this type of surge protection wiring is the best idea. Now at the same time some manufacturer of a surge protector may boast that their unit is superior (and thus way more costly) if it has MOVs attached line-neutral, line-earth, and neutral-earth. This can lead to low level leakage currents from the AC line to the earth ground connection. If your "high end" unit is like this you should consider not using it!

If your laptop adapter has a connection from its input AC leads to DC output side and it is used in conjunction with a surge protector that has multi-MOVs causing leakage currents to flow then this can lead to the slight shocks that you feel when touching metal parts of the laptop.

My recommendation - safety first when dealing with anything electrical attached to the AC power lines. At first indication that there is something amiss discontinue use immediately.


How to drill larger holes in cabinets for larger ice maker tubing but leave something to snake with? My plastic ice maker water hose broke and I decided to switch it to a stainless braided hose. The stainless braided hose needs a larger hole to pass through. While I have access to drill larger holes through the cabinets the tubing also passes behind a dishwasher and range. I'd rather not have to pull the dishwasher out so how can I drill a larger hole while still leaving something I can use to snake the new water line through?

As I was typing my question I had a thought so I'm answering my own question.

My plan is to make a hole at the end of the tubing and tie some cable pulling line (polypropylene string) and snake that through the original holes by pulling out the old tubing.

Next I'll tape or hold down the string so it's away from the hole and drill a hole next to the original hole that's the right size, slightly overlapping the old hole. That will allow me to pass the string from the small hole to the larger one but keep the string far enough away from the drill to keep it from snagging on the bit.

Then I can tie the end of the stainless braided tubing to the line and pull it through.


Is it safe to not have a safety cutoff on an immersion heater? I'm having some serious trouble with the immersion heater in my apartment. I believe the set up is similar to the one described in this answer, however there is no thermostat to turn the immersion heater off when the water tank gets hot enough.

Consequently, turning the immersion heater on heats the water non-stop, and ultimately leads to an overflow which causes hot water to come out of the cold taps, and for the toilets to fill with hot water also. Finally, water begins to leak from underneath the boiler. Is this a safe setup?

My landlord has blamed me for the leak, saying that I left the immersion heater on for too long (it was on for a little over an hour). He's now saying that I will be held liable for any future leaks.

Can this problem be put down to misuse of the equipment, or does it indicate a flaw in the system?

Hot water coming out of your taps is a serious safety issue as an unsuspecting person could scald themselves. It could cause damage, so an emphatic yes, this is an issue that needs resolution.

There are 2 problems I see here:

No Thermostat: every heater should have a thermostat, or a control of some kind to prevent overheating. It's not just for safety, overheating reduces the life of the heater
Hot water getting into the cold supply. This shouldn't happen, an overheat should lead to some sort of pressure relief which dumps the hot water safely

This system is unsafe and I'd be surprised if it was up to code. Your landlord should fix it.


What are some reasons that my 240V clothes dryer connection (outlet) suddently only has 18V per side? My clothes dryer suddenly stopped working and I wasn't sure if it was my (new) dryer or the power outlet.
Things I Tried
I checked the circuit breaker and reset it but the dryer still didn't work.
I then unplugged the clothes dryer and used an auto-ranging meter to measure the AC voltage on the actual house connector (where I plug the dryer in).  It looks like the following:

From other sources I've learned that from ground (L shaped port) to each of the other terminal ports I should get around 120V.  However, I only get about 18V now.
I double-checked my meter too by plugging it into one of the other househould sockets and I got a proper 120V as expected.
What Are Possible Reasons?  What Should I Check Next?
What might be some reasons that this circuit suddenly only has 18V on each side?
I could understand if there was no voltage, but it seems odd that there is 18V per side?
Is this a common thing to happen with the circuit breaker itself?
Does this indicate a loose wire possibly?  What else might this indicate?
Or is it just completely unknown?  Just curious if it indicates a starting point?
EDIT / UPDATE
When the electrician arrived he plugged the dryer back into the receptacle but didn't quite push the prongs all the way into the socket.  He then connected a meter probe on each of the exposed prongs* (two at a time) and measured voltage that way.
Doing this, he determined that there was power on the socket but the dryer was malfunctioning.
*This seemed dangerous to me and I stayed out of the way.

History of that dangerous socket
When they started grounding things in the 1960s, the appliance industry asked for a "pass" on dryers and ranges connecting via NEMA 10 receps (hot-hot-neutral).  They were afraid a compulsory conversion to the modern NEMA 14 series (hot-hot-neutral-ground) would result in customer confusion and lost appliance sales.    So they haggled with the NFPA, saying "let us 'ground' the appliance chassis to the neutral wire. Yes, that will electrify the chassis in the event of a neutral wire failure, but those are rare, because that wiring is rarely disturbed". NFPA accepted that, provided the appliance makers start designing ranges and dryers to be able to connect to both NEMA 10 and NEMA 14.
Code historically required NEMA 10 dryer and range circuits either use /3 cable (which has a white insulated neutral) or SE cable (which has a bare meshed neutral wrapped around the other conductors).  /3 cable started being made with a ground wire, which was awesome, because even though many sockets were going in as NEMA 10, ground was present in the box and the homeowner could convert to NEMA 14 at leisure. However, some installers illegally used /2 cable, abusing the ground wire as neutral.  This bad work is not grandfathered because it was illegal at time of installation, and must be removed on sight.
In 1990-ish, NFPA finally outlawed NEMA 10, requiring NEMA 14 going forward.  By this time the appliance industry had gotten appliances "ready" for both styles of connections, either properly grounding, or doing the "sanctioned bootleg" as described in the installation instructions.
The problem
The symptom you describe is very typical of a neutral wire (that wire is neutral) that has been disconnected at both ends.  The dryer is unplugged, and either at the socket or the panel, the wire is loose and has "opened", possibly with some arcing and sparking first. Since it was heard locally at the dryer, it may be in the socket.  Ideally you should read 0 volts to that wire, however due to "capacitive coupling" you read a little bit of voltage.  And that phantom voltage sort of "follows the meter around", which is why you get 16V from hot L1 and 16V from hot L2 (which should be impossible, right?)
Very high impedance DVMs (read: most cheap meters) are particularly prone to picking up "phantom voltage". There is voltage there, but possible current is so tiny that it's incapable of even moving the meter movement on an analog meter.
That lines up with the fact that you had the panel changed.  A problem at the panel would make sense.
While you're in here, deal with that socket
Modern society isn't safe by accident. A lot of work was done to make society safer.  But that's only true if things have been modernized! NEMA 10 has not.
So, there are several paths to getting rid of the NEMA 10 socket and convert to NEMA 14.

If the wire is illegal (solid bare neutral), replace the entire cable run.

See if there's already a ground wire or metal conduit.  Often that is lurking unused behind the NEMA 10.

Retrofit a ground wire.  That ground wire needs to be #10 and needn't go back to the panel; it can go to any other junction box that has a #10 back to the panel (air conditioner; water heater), or to any box with metal conduit back to the panel, or to any part of the Grounding Electrode System (the bare copper wires going from panel to water pipe or ground rods).

Just don't hook up ground.  Mark the cover plate GFCI Protected. No Equipment Ground.  Then, fit a GFCI breaker in the panel.


outlet not working but grounding screw is hot I've got a non-working outlet that I can't seem to fix.

It's got two black wires, two white wires, and no ground wire.

I bought a new outlet (shown) and attached the black wires to the screws on the right, and the white ones to the screws on the left. (I didn't understand why there were two of each kind of wire, but read on this board that that's not uncommon. I still don't understand why there is no ground wire.)

When I turn the circuit back on, the outlet does not work, and I detect no current in either the hot side or the neutral side. BUT the ground screw IS hot. Yet as i say there is no ground wire to attach.

This is a weird circuit, tied in to a dishwasher and another light. The light works when the circuit is on, but the outlet and dishwasher do not. An appliance guy said he was getting current on the hot wire on the dishwasher, but not the neutral wire, and thought replacing this broken outlet would fix things. But I can't make the outlet work.

Advice?

The original outlet. It was installed upside down; I shifted the black and white wires in order to install the new one in the normal orientation. (Maybe that matters?)

I learned the outlet was hot by accident. Assuming it was all dead (having tested the black and neutral wires and screws with a two-pronged voltage detector, and since the outlet wasn't functional), I started to screw it in before seeking help here or from an electrician. There was a significant spark. I then used the voltage tester on the ground screw, and the light went on.

Despite the tile, this is nowhere near water; it's decorative tile on the opposite side of the kitchen from the sink.

Original box, showing the two black and two white wires. AS mentioned, the previous outlet was installed upside down, with black on the left and white on the right. No evident ground wire.

Rewrite

It's not metal conduit, those are Romex clamps.

The first problem is that you have power on the receptacle somewhere when you expect not to.  So keep using that voltage tester.  There are lots of ways to use a voltage tester wrong, but this for sure: it should never light up on a dead circuit. if you have turned the circuit off, and it is not dead, it is now very important to find out which other breaker you must turn off to make it actually dead.  It's likely these two breakers together form a multi-wire branch circuit, which share a neutral in an engineered way which works. However there are certain rules MWBCs must follow, and if they do not, they become nightmares, with symptoms like these.   We need to know if 2 breakers feed that circuit so we can work that issue... if it's an issue.

Looking at that melted neutral, it would also matter to know exactly where in the service panel those two breakers are.   That super matters.

It would also be good to know if this installer was habitually using white for hot and black for neutral. (Maybe he was British?)

It would also be good to get a length of wire so you can get a reliable ground from some place like a sink, spigot, water pipe etc.

Aside from that,  screws shorting against the metal box could contribute to the problem.  Wrap the receptacle with tape edgewise to stop that from happening.


How do I install a 2 gang low voltage bracket? Purchased varying 1 gang and 2 gang low voltage screw-in type brackets as seen here.

Upon inspection they appeared to simply sit in the wall with the the screws being screwed into the side of the dry wall; however that seems incorrect as now having seen this image.

Confusion has surfaced as the end goal is to install this and since this is an existing installation my concern is that I might have purchased a bracket geared towards a new install.

So...how do I install these brackets in an exiting drywall installation without having to use a stud or should I use a different type of brackets?

If somebody wants to add a bracket tag and re-tag the question that would be great.

EDIT:

Looks like this is what I should have purchased; will await confirmation from the experts.

I think you've answered your own question.

The first type of mount is for screwing into a stud, the second is for drywall/plasterboard.

You can still use the first type though.

Cut the hole for the switch in the drywall and then cut a length of batten just longer that the hole. Then fix this to one side of the hole inside the cavity. This is the tricky bit as you might end up having to screw into the batten through the drywall, which is going to leave you with a couple of screw heads to cover. If you can use an adhesive that should work as the bracket and light switch aren't very heavy.

Once the batten is firmly secured, fix the batten as illustrated on the web page.

However, I would first see if you can arrange an exchange.


How bad is it for my A/C unit if I cut the power while it's working? I have a rental apartment with two a/c units.

I installed magnetic contacts on the windows of each room and a small module (a sonoff basic flashed with tasmota firmware) that shuts off the a/c relay (25A) whenever a window is open.

It was a proof of concept project which turned out to be a success and it's working great. Now I'm thinking of installing similar modules to another apartments.

My concern is, what will be the effect of that (probably frequent) shut offs to my a/c unit.
I understand that it's not good for any device to shut its power off while it's working but what's the case with a/c units.
I ve seen several similar applications in hotel rooms, are they doing it differently?
What would be the correct way to achieve this result if any?

Thanks in advance.

You will need to protect against short cycling the air conditioner

When you turn an air conditioner compressor off, the pressure in the system does not equalize instantly -- instead, it takes a few minutes for the pressure built up on the high side of the refrigerant circuit to equalize with the pressure on the low side.

If you turn the compressor back on before then, this is a problem because now the compressor is trying to pump refrigerant into a zone that's already at high pressure, which puts quite a bit of stress on the compressor.

As a result, your device will need to delay a few minutes (3-5 is typical) before allowing the air conditioner to turn back on after it shuts it off.


Priming new wall before wallpaper Simple question:  Should a new wall be primed before applying wallpaper?  Or can I just do it over finished drywall.

Please yes!  I am literally 90% done doing a complete remodel of my house.  Other than the aluminum wiring that I have replaced the #1 biggest stupid thing I have dealt with is the 20 (no exaggeration) different types of wallpaper put on the house in 1967 during the custom build.  Out of the 20 only 3-4 types (2 specific rooms) had primer.  Those two rooms took like 20 mins a piece to get the wallpaper down with very little repairing.

In the rooms without primer, I often looked back and thought it might have been easier to rip drywall out and start over - it was that bad.  So please prime first.  If not for you in a few years, for the next home owners.


Will water vapour travel through lime and feed mould? I have some deep holes such as those in the pics and want to fill them up.  I’m sensitive to smells and vocs etc so I prefer to use lime.  I ha e heard that lime is breathable and could let water vapour through which could feed any mould inside the wall.

assuming the source of the mould cause has been removed.  If u filled these holes with lime could mold spores/gasses travel through the lime?

conversely could water vapours travel through lime and feed mould on the inside?

I’m not sure what my existing walls are made of, however I assume they have some level of breath ability, perhaps from the pics you can work out what they’re made off.  If I remember correctly there is solid brick inside and It may be covered in cement but I’m not sure.  Somebody told me your walls would have to be breathable otherwise damp and mold would have to develop. Is it fair to say that whatever my walls are made off using lime would make no difference the rest of the wall is probably as breathable as lime therefore I may aswell use lime?

When you say "lime" I assume that you mean some sort of mortar or plaster.
I see the brick or stone in the wall and some kind of material that has been troweled in around the drain pipe.
To answer your questions :

Gasses could move through unsealed mortar very slowly, but mold spores would not.

Water vapor would not travel through the mortar by osmosis, but it could wick standing water farther up into the wall. Seal the patch if it does.

If you don't introduce moisture through your patch, there's no problem with it being the most permeable spot in your wall. A mortar based patch is probably ideal.


What is the safest way to cut up an old kerosene storage tank? Folks,
   I need to remove an old kerosene storage tank (for central heating) from my in-laws back garden. The tank is moulded plastic, and has a 1,000 litre capacity.

The access point it was originally brought through is gone.

The tank has been empty for 10 years or so, the easiest way to remove it is to cut it up, and the easiest way to cut it up would be with an Angle Grinder.

There is a small amount of liquid in the tank, which is (mostly) water, I'm assured the tank was emptied by professionals.

Obviously I'm worried that there may be residual fuel/fumes that the Angle Grinder could ignite.

Is there any way to quantify the ignition risk, or some anti-philostogen agent (i.e. fire retardant) I can add to the tank that will completely negate the ignition risk?

Kerosene is not terribly flammable, so it probably is not a problem anyway. I'd pick a windy day, or even simpler, maybe have a fan blowing across where you are working, to keep any fumes away from the motor.

I'd also use a reciprocating saw, not an angle grinder, at least if I had the choice. Even if you have a carbide blade for the grinder, a reciprocating saw may still cut as fast or faster than a grinder, and it will generate less heat when cutting a plastic tank body.

If you are still worried, I'll bet that a good sharp (hand powered) pruning saw, the type that cuts on the pull stroke, will cut up a plastic tank at least as easily as would an angle grinder.


Can a Solartube be installed in a garden shed? Can a Solar tube be installed in a "Tuff Shed" , used as a workshop? There is no drywall ceiling- just a plywood roof covered with shingles, tar paper, etc. The height of the shed is about 10 ft.

Yes, you could do that (by cutting the tube or having it project like a smoke stack) but why buy an expensive, long solar tube when, for a fraction of the cost, one could get a shed skylight that would sit flush with the ceiling and have the added benefit of the integrated vents such things can have?


Identifying the hot and neutral wires of an antique lamp I'm trying to rewire a couple of identical antique lamps. Unfortunately, I don't have a clear idea of which wire is which. The lamp has been rewired in the past, but it seems it was a long time ago.
There are two wires, which are copper with a clear, yellow-ish rubber insulation. They're exactly the same except for one difference: One wire has a rounded side, while the other is squarish. There is no ridging, and there is no way for me (an amateur) to tell the difference. They have absolutely no other markings aside from what I've described above.
Any help would be appreciated.
Edit: I've managed to identify which wire is which.

I assume the lamp has a screw socket for the bulb. In this case, the hot wire connects to the contact at the bottom of the socket and the neutral connects to the screw shell.
You may be able to examine the socket to see which connects where. Otherwise, you’ll need a way to determine electrical continuity (ohm meter, continuity tester, battery and flashlight bulb, etc.) to determine which wire connects to the bottom and is therefore hot.


GFCI receptacle works partially when switch is turned off; not at all when on I had an electrician install an outdoor receptacle recently, and it's not working as expected. Before the receptacle was installed, the only thing I'm aware of that was on this circuit was a single outdoor light fixture controlled by a switch. I swapped out the simple switch for a Honeywell RPLS540A (one of those no-neutral timer switches, as the switch box did not have a neutral available).

I was under the impression that the new receptacle was not hooked up downstream of the switch, and so it should operate at all times, independent of the switch.

Here's what actually happens (edited to reflect new information per DoxyLover's suggested diagnostic test):

With the switch turned on, the receptacle is completely dead. The outdoor lights go on fully, but there are no signs of life at the receptacle. The green LED turns off, and nothing lights up on an outlet tester. The GFCI doesn't seem to be tripped here, as it doesn't actually need to be reset. If you turn the switch back off, the lights go off, and the receptacle goes to the state described below.
With the switch turned off, the receptacle seems to get partial power and shows a dimly lit hot/neutral reverse with an outlet tester. The green LED light is on, and there is some power. Plugging in a 100-watt lamp, for example, results in partial power in the lamp plugged into the receptacle and partial power in the lights that are supposed to be switched off.

I'm confused as to why all this would be. It seems apparent that things are wired incorrectly, but what would cause this behavior? Part of what I'm after here is the issue of who screwed up: me in the installation of the switch or the electrician in the installation of the receptacle? (He should arguably have tested the receptacle a bit better, although I'd hardly rule out errors on my part.)

Second Update: I just went back to inspect my work in the timer switch, and it does appear to be installed according to the instructions given in the manual. Three wires come into the box: black (I assume line), white (I assume load), and a bare ground wire. The line and 3-way wires from the switch are wire-nutted to the black wire in the box, the load wire from the switch is wire-nutted to the white wire in the box, and the ground wire is wire-nutted to the bare wire. In other words, it's just like the diagram below (from the manual), except that the ground is connected to the bare wire instead of a screw in the box. I'm not 100% clear on how the receptacle is wired in relation to this.

You have confirmed my suspicion that, with the switch off, the outlet and the light are in series. That is the reason that both light dim when a 100 watt light is plugged in.

The fact that the outlet shows hot/neutral reversed when the switch is off tells me exactly what the "electrician" did. The outlet must be wired as follows:

the hot side of the outlet (small prong) must be connected to the white wire between the lamp and the switch.
the neutral side of the outlet (large prong) must be connected to some hot wire (probably black).

This way, when the switch is on, it is shorting out the outlet (hot-to-hot). When the switch is off, you have a full path from hot into the neutral side of the outlet, from the hot side of the outlet to the hot side of the lamp, and from the neutral side of the lamp to neutral.

Bottom line - the switch and lamp seem to be wired correctly. The outlet is miswired. Frankly, the wiring of the outlet is so screwed up, I wouldn't let the same "electrician" back in your house. Find a real pro to straighten it out.


Laying Tile Over Asbestos Floor Tile In my laundry room, I've got asbestos floor tile. (The house was built in 1967.) The tile is laid on the concrete slab. Is it possible to lay ceramic penny tile over the asbestos tile if I put down cement backerboard first? I'd like to avoid pulling up the asbestos tile.

Don't disturb the asbestos if you can avoid it.

Check with your town to see if there are special rules, but in general the process will be: clean the existing tiles thoroughly, with something that will remove grease and dirt. If any old tiles are loose, nail them in place with 6D nails, then use a nail set to countersink the nail heads. Use a thin coat of floor leveler on the old tile to fill the seams between tiles and level off any dents and depressions that have formed over time. When it cures, lay down plywood as a new subfloor.

Check the directions for the new tile to see what they recommend for thickness and type of subfloor, as well as the recommended gap between sheets of plywood, and the number and type of fasteners to use to attach the subfloor. Be sure your fasteners are long enough to get all the way into the original subfloor, under the asbestos floor (unless you're really fond of squeaky floors and popped tiles).

Sweep the subfloor, then use a thin coat of floor leveler to fill the gaps between the plywood sheets as well as the dimples created by the fasteners. When it cures, clean the subfloor thoroughly, then lay your new floor. If you leveled things well, and fastened the new subfloor properly, your new floor should be fine.

I think most people picture ceramic tiles with curved edges when you say "tiled floor" rather than flat linoleum tile, which is what I'm guessing is actually there. Trying to put a new floor over ceramic tile would be a recipe for failure, but putting it over linoleum would be fine.


Can I use a 1/8 water supply line for a dryer with steam refresh option? I have a whirlpool steam refresh dryer that is not next to the washer or a water pipe. Can I use a 1/8" flexible pipe tapped into a pipe and then increase to fit on the dryer?

In the plumbing world this is fine.  However it might not be fine with your dryer.  You will need to read the manual or call the manufacturer to get an answer.

I don't foresee a dryer using a steaming feature needing more than a 1/8" line but who knows if there is some sort of pressure rating needed.  It is probable that the manufacturer doesn't use 1/8" because it just isn't a commonly used size anymore and you can get screw hoses from big box for larger sizes.


what is the temperature rating for typical wire nuts? What is the temperature rating for normal wire nuts, not specialized high-temp ones?

You have to look at the manufacturer's specifications for the exact make an model in question, but many are rated for 105°C (221°F).


Will this screwdriver set fit into my corded Bosch GSB 450? I've this drill. My aim is to drive screws using this driver (not really worried about the drill bits, those are just bonus)
I've seen numerous videos on YouTube but all use the holder end (screenshot below) on cordless drill machines.

This makes me wonder if I can make that part (circled above) fit into my corded machine.

You absolutely can. In the professional world that's the standard, in fact.
Your drill can accept any round or hexagonal bit or driver up to 10mm in diameter. It's not fussy. Chucks don't vary between corded and cordless tools, generally speaking.


Using Outdoor pavers stone for fireplace We are redoing our fireplace and I'm throwing the idea of using stone from the outdoor garden section for the floor base of the fireplace (approximately 12 sq ft worth). Any reasons it is a poor idea? What are the better stones for this ie ones that may not chip as easily?

The characteristics and composition of firebrick also called refractory brick make it suitable for high heat applications. Conventional pavers will fail quickly when exposed to heat. I can't testify about pavers but I have had concrete explosively spall (small pieces of concrete shrapnel) while cutting steel anchors with a torch. So you really need bricks that are designed for use in a fireplace.


How harmful are trace amounts of the product inside large-ant capsules for miniature humans? I guess with the gardening season in full bloom, and during the little time we keep windows and doors open to get a bit of natural air inside, it's also ant season.

These come in two varieties, small and large. For the small ones, I read on one of the tougher laundry powders that it contains borax, and so I mixed a bit of that powder with an equal volume of powdered sugar. It seems to have worked. The good news is that apparently the sugar lures them, and the borax kills them slowly, out of sight. The very good news is that they have time to carry the mixture back to their colony.

The best part is that this mixture is safe. If a child accidentally touches it, it's not too harmful for humans (a stomach ache, perhaps? Luckily I have no empirical results).

There doesn't seem to be a home recipe for the larger ants, and so I'm heading out to buy the brand ("a" "b" "g") that's advertising these days. No opinion whatsoever about it. Just that they seem to have a reputation to be concerned about.

My question is this: Suppose, just suppose, an ant enters these capsules and subsequently wanders walking onto an apple in the kitchen. And suppose, just suppose, that a child nonchalantly grabs this apple without the adults around getting alarmed. Now suppose that trace amounts of the product inside these capsules makes it through the skin of the apple into the digestive system of a child. Is the product they use in these capsules harmful in trace amounts to miniature homo-sapiens?

A pesticide would not be sold for home use if it were harmful to children in trace amounts.  They are generally safe if used correctly. Take for example Maxforce FC Ant Killer Bait Gel, the bait that I often use to control ants.  It uses Fipronil at a concentration of 0.001%.  When I first started using this bait, I was a little freaked out, because I had to order the stuff online.  They didn't sell it in the stores.  Then one day I happened to look at the label of the Frontline Plus flea treatment that I apply liberally to my dog each month. Turns out that it contains 10% Fipronil!  I did some research, and found out that Fipronil is selectivly harmful to insects (I still don't want it on me though).

Other insecticides are similar.  When applied as instructed, they will not be harmful to humans. The best news is that you don't have to take anyone's word for it.  Each of these insecticides have a Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS), which will tell you how and in what concentrations the chemicals are harmful to humans.  Just search for the product you are using and "MSDS".


Is this a correct installation for a doorbell transformer Transformer originally installed by builder 20 years ago behind the chime box. I'm installing a 16v 30va transformer for a Eufy video doorbell. Can I just replace the transformer as is or do I need a different installation? This is a tap in between a ceiling light and a light switch.  Not much wire to work with. Thanks for any help.

The transformer is in a box so it’s not horrible but normally a doorbell transformer is mounted outside the box , the 120v connections made inside and the low voltage connections made outside the box.
In this case both high and low voltage are in the same compartment , that would not fly in my jurisdiction with out a non conductive shield (plastic insulator dividing the hv / lv. Unless the MFG instructions directed it done that way.


Can an RV exceed the "50% fixed load" rule? Suppose you have an RV.  It has a number of fixed, factory installed onboard loads - lights, heating, hot plate, etc.    It also has some NEMA 5-15 receptacles.

The RV is wired with an "inlet" or a cord, which goes into a receptacle at the home or RV park or campsite.

Normally, if a circuit has receptacles, the fixed loads on that circuit can't be more than 50% of circuit capacity.

Is that also true for RVs?   That is to say: Does the presence of a 120V/30A plug/inlet imply that the fixed loads in the RV only draw 15A max?

IMO no. What is plugged in is the load, ie: the RV. The RV itself falls under a different set of codes, and IMO is not in and of itself a fixed load.

To be honest I have no idea how load calculations are done for the internal wiring of an RV. Interesting question though.


Will These Electrical Panels Support Hot Tub? I’m trying to have a hot tub installed that requires a 50amp breaker.
My main panel is a quad-throw 200amp service see photo #1  This main panel feeds 2 other sub panels - one to the garage and one to the basement.  I’m wanting to have the hot tub 50amp breaker installed from the garage sub pane - picture #2.  I’m worried that since the main panel appears to be feeding 125amps mac to the garage panel and 50amps of that is going to be used by the hot tub that there won’t be enough amps left in that sub panel (125 total) and things will start tripping.
Am I over concerned?

I assume the 2nd pic is the sub-panel in your garage?     If so, you should be fine installing the breaker for the hot-tub in the garage, since it has a 125 amp feed.  That is unless you have lots of other simultaneous heavy loads, which I don't see breakers for. Just because the amperage of the breakers adds up 170 amps in that panel isn't a problem.  Panels are over-subscribed all the time.
Using the capacity of every breaker at the same time, is a virtual impossibility.
The heating element size in common hot-tubs is 4 - 5.5 KW which is 16.6 amps and 23 amps respectively. And it will not nearly be on all the time.  Additional draws will come when you use it and start running pumps.  But the total draw will be less than 50 amps.
Again, just because you have the circuit capacity doesn't mean you are using it.  If you were using all the capacity of every circuit in your house (ignoring the fact the main breaker would trip), you'd need a very large loan to pay your electric bill!


Is there any benefit to upsizing to 3/4" pipe off a 1/2" main supply? I have a half inch main supply coming from the street (house built in 1954). Is there any benefit if I run 3/4 PEX from the water meter to the various feeds and then branch off 1/2" PEX to the faucets? Does it increase the flow or will it reduce it? will it improve pressure?

Flow resistance, like electrical resistance, increases with conductor length. If you are going a long way (say, over 50 meters) you will get better flow by running a larger pipe. The volume is a non-issue - (static) pressure won't go down even if you install one of those giant green gas storage containers in the yard.

In no case will you get more flow than what the incoming pipe can provide, larger pipes just mean you will not lose part of this flow to resistance.

In a standard house you don't have enough piping (or demand) to make a difference.


Is it okay to drill a ground rod through pavement? All the sides of my house are paved, and I need to drive a new ground rod for an antenna.

Would it be against code (NEC) to drill a hole in the concrete to pound in a ground rod?

Bonus question: How big should the hole be, and is it okay to leave several inches of the rod above the pavement for accessibility?

It is fine to drill a hole in pavement to drive the rod.

How do you attach clamps and wire if it is driven flush? My city inspector wanted to be able to see the manufacturer's stampings on the end of the rod to prove that I had not cut it off short (providing less than required soil contact), I was specifically required to leave several inches exposed.


How does one clean these filters after 6 months? There's a great project on This Old House that uses 4x MERV 13 filters to purify the air on your house (even against covid-19 they say)
Question; When it has been running in your house for 6 months, how do you clean it out safely?

You don't. You just remove the fan and build a new 4 filter base. You could remove the bottom and vacuum all the filters to remove some of the dirt but but just replacing would be better. Don't count on this stopping COVID-19.


What could be causing my garage door to randomly open and close? A few mornings ago, my wife and I noticed that our garage door started opening and closing with no discernible pattern.  It would stay closed for some period of time, open suddenly, and sometimes reverse direction.  We located all the garage door openers, relocated the remotes far from radio range, are fairly certain that somebody isn't playing a cruel joke on us.

Our working theory on the root cause is an electrical outage that occurred two nights earlier had fried the circuitry.  The safety sensors that stop the door appear to be untouched, and the system generally seems unchanged from before the electrical outage.  Pressing the remotes or the hardwired controllers appear to normally operate the garage door.

Before we go ahead and replace the garage door opener, what other steps would you recommend we take to diagnose further?

UPDATE [3/30]: Thanks for everyone's help!  I didn't have a chance to try out everyone's suggestions until a few days ago.  In the meantime, I unplugged the garage opener and manually operated the door.  I didn't expect the door to reattach to the garage opener, and unfortunately, the only entrance to my detached garage is through the garage door.  Luckily, one of the windows to the garage was unlocked, so my wife and I hilariously broke into our own garage!  In any case, I detached the low voltage and control lines, plugged the opener back in, and left the garage door closed for an hour.

As far as I can tell, the garage door remained closed.  I plugged in the low voltage and control lines, and the garage opener continues to operate normally.  Perhaps, keeping the power off for an extended time helped?  I'm officially stumped.

UPDATE [4/21]: I disconnected the low voltage/control wires from the connector at the opener, and the garage door opener hasn't randomly opened.  I can still open and close the door with the remote, so isolating which of the two hardwired control lines is randomly triggering the opener.

First rule of electricial/electronics is cycle power to see if that solves the problem. Unplug it - give it a few minutes and then plug it back in. If the random openings stop, the unit just needed a hard reset.

Next Up - Disconnect the low voltage/control wires from the connector at the opener. If the door still opens randomly then the problem is in the opener itself.

If the random openings stop, hook the low voltage cables back up to the opener.

If the random openings start again, the problem is in the control side of things.

Remove and replace as needed.


GE smart switch neutral power requirement How many neutral watts are required for most smart switches? I'm unable to get any juice from unit even though there is a neutral wire. I.e. https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0035YRCR2/ref=pd_aw_lpo_60_bs_img_2?ie=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=D0MQ8RV3FMBAGS4GNRE1

There was should have been a little Grey wire that came with your switch.

The NEUTRALS that are tucked away in the back of that receptacle need to have that grey wire attached - so undo the wire nut that has the whites all together and add the grey wire - place the wire nut back on.

Connect the Grey wire to the neutral connection on your new switch.
That connection is probably located in the Lower Right corner across from the Line connection and has the writing Neutral on it - there is a brass screw on the side but also there are two holes on the back side to insert two wires.


What is best way to wire a ceiling receptacle in this situation? I was trying to rewire this garage door opener where in current situation it is not code compliant to where it is. The picture above shows where a porcelain light socket was  wired. I had hoped to use it for receptacle but the cover is too big for the box and the one that does fit is too recessed in ceiling. Behind the middle of box in picture is cross piece that is mounted between two ceiling joists. I had thought of keeping light and make another hole in ceiling for receptacle box. How close could the porcelain light fixture and receptacle be to each other to be code compliant? Using Led bulb in socket and both are on same circuit.

They make lampholders that have an outlet built in. Solves the problem of mounting this to that octagon box.


Can I add outlets using #14 wire on a circuit with #12 wire and a 60 amp breaker? I started to remodel one of my rooms and I have had to look into the wiring, now that I'm adding outlets and switches.

I checked a wire in a room early on and it was 14/2. That's what I decided to go with for the rest of the wiring. After wiring all the new outlets and routing them to their respective existing outlets, I found that they're all 12/2. Not sure why they're all different.

The most unusual issue, the breaker they go to is a 60 amp. Yep, 60. Whole room ties into the furnace.

My question is, can I continue to run the 14/2 wiring into the 12/2 existing outlets, all on a 60 amp breaker? More surprises to come with the house. Thanks!

Breakers have to protect the wiring. Normally that means:

14 AWG wire must be on 15A breakers (or smaller, but that's the normal size in the US)
12 AWG wire must be on 20A breakers (or smaller)

If you put 14 AWG or 12 AWG wire on a 60A breaker then you run the risk of an overload of the wire - e.g., 40A - having no chance of tripping the breaker before the wires overheat and your house burns down.

The minimal fix is to replace the 60A breaker with a 15A breaker. But that will severely limit your power usage. The better fix is to split the circuits onto multiple 15A (for circuits that include at least some 14 AWG wire) or 20A (for circuits that only have 12 AWG wire) breakers. If you have space in your panel then that's easy. But if you don't have space - which may be why everything was combined onto one 60A breaker in the first place, then the long-term solution is likely a new main panel. But the short-term solution may be to use the 60A breaker to feed a new subpanel. The subpanel can then split up the circuits among several 15A and/or 20A breakers. Depending on the condition of the main panel, it may make sense to install a panel that is large enough to become a new main panel. You can then move additional circuits from the main panel to the subpanel until everything is transferred and then move the service feed to the new panel, toss the original panel and bond neutral to ground in the new main panel (as a subpanel you would not bond neutral to ground).


Total Possible Amperage of Sub-Breaker Box I've been trying to find more information on how cheaters work but could never come to a definite decision on how many total amps they might pull.

Basically my question comes down to this:

In the image above, the sub unit is supplied with a max of 125 Amps. Does the two pole 20 Amp "cheater" supply a maximum of 20 Amps or 40 Amps?

a) If it supplies a maximum of 40 amps, then wouldn't that mean the total possible Amperage that it could try to pull would be 130 Amps, and thus could try to overdraw power, and would pop the main breaker?
b) If it supplies a maximum of 20 amps, could I safely swap out one of the 15 amp breakers for a 20 amp breaker, provided the cables used are 12 Gauge?

40 Amps.  I've never heard those called "cheater" before - I think space saving is the term I've heard.
The total amps of all breakers in a panel often exceed the overall rating of the main breaker in the panel.  The reality is that not all circuits are pulling anywhere close to 100% of their rating 100% of the time.  Yes you can trip the main breaker.
The electrical service 125 Amps in your case is sized based on various factors.  It isn't sized based on the breakers (though the breakers would be associated with the applicances/devices used to size the service).  Here is an example online calculator that can help size the service.
http://www.douglashelmer.com/calculators/electrical/residential-service/index.htm


What safety equipment is best for live multimeter testing on 240v? If you need to test a circuit breaker with a multimeter and you're working in a live breaker box with 240v, what is the best safety equipment to use (eg: gloves, shoes, shield, etc)?  It doesn't seem right working with those small multimeter lead handles with bare hands, but most contractors seem to have no trouble doing this.  I am being overly paranoid, or is there a better way?

Most important equipment is the right multimeter.
If you're working on your panel you want CAT III or higher.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Measurement_category
These will typically come with anti-slip probes which will help your confidence some.


How to connect multiple light fixtures to one switch? I am remodeling my basement, currently I have 5 light fixtures and each one has its own switch.  I would like to make it so when I turn on the switch at the bottom of the stairs all the lights turn on.  I would also like to add several more light fixtures.  I am new to electrical work.  I have a solid background with framing and drywall.  The basement is not finished so I have great access to all ceiling joints and current fixtures.  I have been reading online about 2 wire nm.  I am curious though how you run wire to one fixture, hook it up, and then run the wire to the next fixture.

Basically, you want to start with a switch.  You run a black and white wire in from the bottom  of the switch box (from the panel).  This will take the form of 12/2 or 14/2 cable. You run another 12/2 or 14/2 cable from the top of the switch box to the first light. You connect the black wire to the switch.  You connect the 2 white wires together, and then connect the other terminal on the switch to the black wire of the cable leaving this junction box towards the first light.  The ground wire should also be connected together in this manner, but to the ground terminal on the switch.  Each light will have a cable "entering" (from the switch) and "exiting" (away from the switch).  At each light you'll connect the entering and exiting black wires together, as well as 1 terminal on the light.  Do the same with the white wires.  If there is a ground terminal on the light, do that as well, otherwise just connect the incoming and outgoing ground wires together.  At the last light, just connect the incoming black wire to 1 terminal on the light, and then connect the white wire to the other one.  This method is called wiring in parallel, so if one light blows, the current can still continue to the other lights to light them up.

Some other things to be aware of:

Most home wiring is either 12 or 14 gauge, corresponding to either a 20 amp or a 15 amp circuit, respectively.  The maximum "design capacity" is 80% of that.  Let's say you're using a 20 amp breaker with 12 gauge wire.  This circuit should run at no more than 16 amps.  Let's assume you're using 100 watt bulbs at 120 volts.  Using watts/volts = amps, for 600 watts/120 volts = 5 amps.  So this would work fine on a 15 amp breaker, depending on what else is on that circuit.  http://www.thecircuitdetective.com/ is also a superb reference for novice electricians to get an idea of how things work.

Something like this is what you're looking for the end result to be:


Can a low voltage light switch be located in a closet as opposed to outside the closet? Okay you guys I have next question.  And like all good questions this one begins with a story.

I was reading the post about a nick in a wire and read a couple of you mention that light switch in a closet is not to code.  What's up with that?  Why not?    When I open a closet and it seems dark, I always reach for the nearest wall which is INSIDE the closet, find no switch, get frustrated, close closet door, find switch, flip switch, re-open closet door, stare blankly because after all that I forgotten what I was in there for.

My logic would tend to install a switch in a closet.

I have plans to install closet lighting in my wife's closet.  I was considering LED source.  The future is LED, and the fixtures are starting to get really good.  Not only is the installation and fit and finish nice, but the design of the lights.

So here's the question;  What if the fixture is low voltage?  Can I locate a low voltage light switch in a closet?  My source is 12v.  I would like to locate the transformer in the attic and run low voltage down to the switch and the the lighting fixture.  Would this scenario be up to code?  would it be safe?  ( I sleep perfectly soundly knowing my work is SAFE even if I know it doesn't meed code. )   I would probably use 14/2 romex to wire this all up.  I was planning to indicate with a label that this is 12v.  Is there code for labeling low voltage stuff?  ( I would probably write '12V' on white E tape somewhere on the wire )

Does the tranny need to be in an enclosure?  Or can I screw it to a joist?  I know that I have to put a J box next to the tranny for all the connections.

What do you guys think?

I was not able to find any sections in NEC that prohibit switches from being installed in closets, so until somebody can point to a specific section I'd say it's not a problem. There may be adaptations to the code in your local area, so you'll have to check with the local Electrical Inspector to be absolutely sure.

The NEC does, however, have a section on luminaires in clothes closets.

  NEC 2011

  410.16 Luminaires in Clothes Closets.

  (A) Luminaire Types Permitted. Listed luminaires of the following types shall be permitted to be installed in a closet:

  (1) A surface-mounted or recessed incandescent luminaire with a
  completely enclosed lamp

  (2) A surface-mounted or recessed fluorescent luminaire

  (3) Surface-mounted fluorescent or LED luminaires identified as
  suitable for installation within the storage area

  (B) Luminaire Types Not Permitted. Incandescent luminaires with
  open or partially enclosed lamps and pendant luminaires or lampholders
  shall not be permitted.

  (C) Location. The minimum clearance between luminaires installed in clothes closets and the nearest point of a storage space shall be
  as follows:

  (1) 300 mm (12 in.) for surface-mounted incandescent or LED luminaires
  with a completely enclosed light source installed on the wall above
  the door or on the ceiling

  (2) 150 mm (6 in.) for surface-mounted ﬂuorescent luminaires installed
  on the wall above the door or on the ceiling

  (3) 150 mm (6 in.) for recessed incandescent or LED luminaires with a
  completely enclosed light source installed in the wall or the ceiling

  (4) 150 mm (6 in.) for recessed ﬂuorescent luminaires installed in the
  wall or the ceiling

  (5) Surface-mounted ﬂuorescent or LED luminaires shall be permitted to
  be installed within the storage space where identiﬁed for this use.


Should I remove limbs before felling a tree? I'm going to fell a 75' pine in my yard. Should I cut limbs before felling the tree even if they are balanced?

I've seen mixed advice. On one hand removing limbs makes the fell more predictable and lighter. On the other,limbs will help a felled tree stay in one place when it lands.

I would prefer trimming as many as are convenient.

Leaving them on means the tree will preload those on the bottom, sometimes making for pinching or sideloaded cuts.

Since pines typically grow limbs to the ground, lower limbs might spin the tree during the fall, a potentially dangerous situation.


What's going on with my running toilet? I have two toilets on my second floor. One will run occasionally after it is flushed until the second toilet is flushed. When the second toilet is flushed, the first stops running as soon as the valve is opened.

flushing the second toilet causes a sudden dip in supply pressure that allows the first to seal and once sealed there is no flow holding the valve open.

It sounds like the float valve needs a new button.


Weird humming noise at home So there's a weird humming noise in my apartment that pops out for a few hours a day and would keep me awake. I was hoping you guys might have heard of it and can tell me what the hell is causing this. My oscilloscope tells me it's 120Hz so I recreated this audio that my flatmate and I agree is pretty spot on:

https://soundcloud.com/user-898083128/humming-noise-re-creation

This has been driving me crazy for months so thanks in advance for your help!

edit: I live in Boston, MA, and the AC is 60Hz if that's relevant at all

I have found this a few times with incandescent lights and dimmers, most dimmers are SCR so they are turning on and off each cycle, the noise was actually coming from the element in the light, I did not quite believe it the first time I found this but figured it was because of the fancy shape of the chandelier lamps. A few years later I had it happen on some long life lamps the ones made to last 10 years with heavy filaments. And the last time was on a standard 60w clear lamp, all of these were on a dimmer and were quite noisy (I have poor hearing and could clearly hear them). So I would look at the lights as they may be the cause, change the level or turn off to see if it changes the noise.


How much load can a (wood) board support, if it is supported only at the ends? How much load can a board support, if it is supported only at the ends?

At the moment my specific problem is hanging a tire swing between two trees, and depending on which trees I choose they could be 10, 12, or 14 feet apart (center to center).  If I securely attach a 2x4 to the trees and hang the swing from the middle, would it be at risk of breaking from 2 children playing on it (so I'd guess around 300lbs max with them bouncing and jumping onto it)

But my bigger question is the general case: how do you calculate (or where do you look up) what kind of loads can be supported by the wood in question?  (other examples would be a 1x10 shelf with supports 24" apart, or 1/2" plywood on a 2' x 4' frame).  I'm not an engineer (well, software, but that doesn't count here), but I can do simple math (linear algebra, trig, calculus) and have a basic understanding of physics.

I'd go with @Aarthi's load bearing table resource for a general idea of what's reasonable.

If you're looking for equations though, you can start with these:

Beam Deflection Formulas

Beam Deflection and Stress Calculator

Area Moments of Inertia

Using the Parallel Axis Theorem

Wood Material Properties (Modulus of Elasticity (E) found in Table 4-3a)

For the dynamic loading, you'll want to do something similar to the fun I had on this question.

...and you may want to consult a good Mechanics of Materials book. (cheaper paperback international edition on Ebay)

As @Ian points out, the problem is not a simple one and is best solved by simply using what's worked for other people in the past. Go take a look at the swings at your local park and use the same size of beam, provided the span is comparable.

Also, if you're really worried, you could always make the rope into a 'Y' to eliminate bending stress on the beam, leaving it solely in shear. This way, the beam is bearing the compression load from the lateral tension on the 'Y', which will keep the trees from bowing toward each other.

Diagram:

|      |______________________|      |
|      |  |                 | |      |
| tree |  |                 | | tree |
|      |__|_________________|_|      |
|      |   \               /  |      |
|      |    \             /   |      |
|      |     \           /    |      |
|      |      \         /     |      |
|      |       \       /      |      |
|      |        \     /       |      |
|      |         \   /        |      |
|      |          \ /         |      |
|      |           Y          |      |
|      |           |          |      |
|      |           |          |      |
|      |           |          |      |
      ...more rope and trees...
|      |           |          |      |
|      |           |          |      |
|      |         -----        |      |
|      |       /  ___  \      |      |
|      |      |  /   \  |     |      |
|      |      |  \___/  |     |      |
|      |       \       /      |      |
|      |         -----        |      |


What's the deal with propane fittings? I'm going to be removing the regulator off a grill to use with my RV since the port the gas will be coming from is already low pressure.  As I search for fittings, will any brass-like fitting be sufficient?

For example, https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003OYJF32/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_2?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER ..

It's lead free brass with NPT threads (which I'm guessing is better?) Anything I should stay away from? Anything I should seek out?  I think what gave me pause about this particular fitting is it has a rougher brass appearance and doesn't specifically say anything about what kind of pipe it should be used on (some of the other fittings say gas, etc)

As long as the fittings are brass and don't leak, do I have anything to be overly concerned about?

Short answer, no.

From my personal experience with replacing the gas line for my water heater:

Don't buy on Amazon. Go to your local store if possible because if you buy the wrong thing (which you'll inevitably do if you don't know exactly what you're doing), returning it is a pain. Besides that, some plumbing products on Amazon seem to be more expensive for some reason.
All pipe should have NPT threads. Lead free brass is only useful when you're dealing with potable water. Gas applications shouldn't matter
I just used black steel because it's significantly cheaper than brass and since there's no water running through it to rust it, it'll work just fine.
Make sure you use a teflon type tape that is rated for gas lines.


Suggestions on tile edging We recently tiled out bathroom and when installing a bath tube ledge the trim we installed wasn’t cut at a 45 angle. A little unsure as to how best to finish this end piece of tile

First image is current situation

Second image is if I add trim leaving a small gap at the end. Thought about filling it, sanding and painting this gap

Check if the place you bought the trim from has end caps which are common also


Using steel conduit as a ground intermitantly. Any problems with this? Small back story:
This is a Philly row home, so the long wall are solid brick.  original outlets were non-existant or embedded in baseboards.  While most of the home is being wired with romex, I am chiseling out boxes and conduit paths for switches and boxes which need to be in these walls.  I have much less experience with conduit.

One of these is a three gang box, with 1 1/2" piece of conduit extending through the floor to the basement and a second to interstitial space between floors.  My concern is not overloading the conduit.  My supplier couldn't get three gangs with 3/4" so it was the best I could do.

The three circuits are two lights and a 3-way switch.  They are on the same leg coming from the floor.  So far I have been running grounds in the conduit.  I'm pretty sure I do not have to but I was just being cautious.  With this setup, I would have 10 wires (14 ga) going through a piece of 1/2 If I didn't omit the grounding wires.

What is the best way to do this?  Can I just bond everything to the boxes in the floor and ceiling and omit the grounds?

First, EMT or other non-flexible metal conduit is totally valid as a grounding path, as long as you are using the fittings correctly. (conduit nuts on the boxes, coupler clamp screws or sleeves tightened).  You do not need a ground wire also, unless you're really into belt-and-suspenders.

Second, multiple circuits in a conduit can share 1 ground wire. So even if you were in plastic conduit, 1 ground wire big enough for the biggest circuit will do it.  But don't do this with neutrals, ever!!! Neutrals can't ever be shared (except in an MWBC, that is designed to do that).

As a sidebar... Current flows in loops, and neutral is the return half of the loop.  It's completely unlike ground, which is only a safety shield.  So even though we seem to treat neutrals and grounds equally (no breakers or switches, bars tied at the panel), neutral is actually an equal partner to hot. We don't breaker it because it can't overload since it's only returning current for its partner hot(s)... but that requires getting it right.

When you transition from Romex/NM/UF to metal conduit wiring, look for (or make) a ground hole tapped for a #10-32 screw in the back of the metal junction box.  You can attach a ground wire to that and pigtail it to your Romex/NM/UF grounds.

Conduit fill limits.  You are only allowed so many wires in a conduit due to physical space, but Ecnerwal has that covered.

Conduit circuit limits.  You are only allowed, short version: 4 circuits in 1 conduit.  The gory details are 9 wires. However, that only counts for wires that are able to carry the full circuit current if all loads drew max amperage.  So for instance if you have two 3-way travelers, only 1 is hot at a time, so those 2 count as 1 wire.  A neutral in a 120/240V split-phase circuit doesn't count, because X amps on neutral means X fewer amps on a hot.

But for instance, say you carry hot+neutral up a pipe to a GFCI recep, and then carry protected hot and neutral back down the pipe to protect other outlets.  That counts as 4 wires/2 circuits because the downline could be maxed out.

Mandatory marking. When putting multiple circuits in a conduit, you MUST mark them in some way to distinguish which wires are with which.  It may seem like "ehh, 3 white wires all to the neutral bar, and 3 black wires all to 15A breakers who cares", but that's a codevio and you'll pay for it later with difficulty maintaining that circuit.  I recommend using colored tape, which is sold in 5-packs for $5 at the home store.  In conduit, if you tag a white wire with colored tape, that does NOT make it a hot wire (as it would in cable).

So for instance you could have "Blue Circuit", with both hot and neutral marked with colored tape near both ends.  You could even have "Green Circuit", since you're not allowed to remark wires to be ground wires (anywhere in >=6 AWG wire), so a green tape marking doesn't make them grounds.

You use THWN individual wires, readily available in 11 colors.  Here, native green must be ground. Native white and gray must be neutral.  All other colors are usable for hot.  I own 11 colors of THWN wires for that very purpose.  (don't have pink, but do have blue/red stripe).

For much easier handling, you can use stranded wire.  However you can't use backstabs, and it is difficult for novices to terminate on a screw terminal (socket or switch). They make "Screw-and-clamp" sockets and switches that make this easy.


Over-enthusiastic smoke detector The hard-wired smoke detectors in my house all were well beyond their rated expiration. So I replaced them all. I now need to keep a broom handy whenever I use my oven or broiler -- the smoke detector nearest the kitchen area nearly always goes off and must be silenced. I intend to look into getting a more enthusiastic vent hood, but until then, do I have any options? It's not as if I have a cloud of visible smoke billowing out of the stove.

Edit:

14 feet from stove to detector
New model: first alert 9120b
Previous model: long gone in trash

From the First Alert web page FAQ for this model:

  Q: What is the proper placement of smoke alarms?

  A: It is important that you have the proper placement for your smoke alarms. Install your alarms at least 20 feet from appliances like furnaces and ovens, which produce combustion particles. Alarms should be at least 10 feet from high humidity areas like showers and laundry rooms, and at least 3 feet from heat/AC vents. Be sure to install a smoke alarm in each bedroom, one at the top of each stairwell, and one on every level.

Sticking with the same brand for compatibility of hardwired devices (I have no connection to First Alert), you might want to replace that particular device (only the one near the kitchen) with:

First Alert BRK Brands Hardwired 120-Volt AC/DC Heat Alarm with Battery Backup - HD6135FB

  This First Alert HD6135FB Hardwired Heat Alarm is a great add-on for crawl spaces, laundry rooms, garages, bathrooms, kitchens, or other applications not suitable for smoke alarm installations. This heat alarm features advanced rate-of-rise sensing technology. The alarm sounds if either the temperature reaches 135 degrees Fahrenheit or if the temperature rises more than 15 degrees Fahrenheit in one minute.

This type of device would not be suitable for replacement of the alarms near bedrooms, as there you really need a smoke alarm (smoke itself can be dangerous, plus you need that extra warning where people might be sleeping). But for a kitchen area this is ideal as it will activate from heat if you have a real fire situation while avoiding nuisance trips from frying, etc.


Can I extend icemaker line by joining two braided lines? I am moving fridge further from the current water source (sink). The existing line is a compression fitted copper.
I bought a 25’ braided line but it is a bit short for comfort. I am thinking of securing the end of that 25’ line to the wall behind new fridge location and attaching a short braided line to hook up to the fridge. Now that’s two more connections that would potentially fail but Would you do it the same way or would you go copper?
I have never run a cooper line but I think I am capable. Guessing I’d just have to buy copper line, proper cooper tubing cutters, nuts and brass compression rings.
Another reason I am considering copper is that the reviews on braided line are mixed to awful taste/smell of harden hose to no taste and smell, and from what I gather this could be due to the type of water treatment a water district gets. I also run a cheap clear plastic tubing as a backup for this very reason.
What is the recommended route here?
Thanks!

"Would you do it the same way or would you go copper?"

I would run 1/4" copper tubing from the shut-off valve at the water source all the way to the wall behind the refrigerator; that line I would then consider a permanent install. This is especially appropriate if the line runs through/behind cabinets or other semi-inaccessible areas.
At the wall behind the refrigerator I would install an inline valve (to provide a quick local shut off capability) and transition to braided stainless-steel jacketed hose.
NOTES:

copper tubing compression fittings are pretty reliable
any hose (braided line is just a hose...) should be used only in areas where a leak could be easily noticed and the hose easily replaced
valves are often the weak point; do not use a "saddle valve" at the water source, and expect to replace any in-line valves, especially needle-valves.


Is a multi wire shared neutral circuit a 220 volt circuit I am wondering if a multi wire shared neutral circuit is considered a 240v circuit.

I ask because in the code it says that AFCI breakers are not required on 240v circuits.  A 240 20amp breaker costs 16 dollars, a 240v 20amp afci costs 216 dollars. Is a 220 breaker safe on a multi wire circuit, will it trip as quickly as two single breakers?

I would just add a new wire and split the circuits (my first choice) but my attic is full of insulation and I can't see how I can remove enough to put a raceway on the rafter tops.  The problem is I have a 4 in 12 roof and have added insulation 4 times over the years to keep up with new standards so I have insulation batts going two directions and one layer of blown in insulation. Does anyone have any tricks on how to work around the insulation?

Would I have to de rate the wires in conduit in the attic?

You could use a subpanel.

I'm assuming you have a series of 120V receptacles on this circuit, at 20A or 15A.

You would keep the 20A 2-pole breaker on the main panel, and the 12/3+G cable.

At the other end, put a very small load center. You can use a "main lug" type, 2-circuit, 4-space. They're under $20. For example: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000BPOROY/

Then you can put AFCI breakers in this subpanel to branch out as needed.

I haven't gotten a reliable answer as to whether 20A subpanels are allowed in code (30A may be a minimum), but the electrical theory is sound.


Furnace keeps cycling on and off until it's up to set Temp I have a Philco 80,000 btu two stage with variable speed blower, high efficiency furnace with a two wire thermostat, on/off. The furnace 6.5 years old and when the thermostat calls for heat the furnace cycles normally but only for 5 minutes then it shuts down and starts the whole process over again until the thermostat is satisfied. I have bypassed all the sensors except the pressure sensors as they are a little harder to bypass. I have wired across the thermostat wires too.
 I have checked the flame sensor by pulling the wire off and it still senses a flame for about 2 seconds then shuts off.I have tried the fan on different speeds and even run the furnace with the lower door off. It's an updraft model. I think it has been like this from new as I thought it was the way a 2 stage worked but then I talked to a few people and they said no it should keep running until it reaches set temp. LED green/red/yellow.  Green and red led never flicker   So there you have it.
 I hope some one can help me fix this thing as next would be the circuit board and more money, for now it will just keep on cycling.
Thank You for any help.
Paul

this could be caused by a few things. Does the main gas valve loose power for that time that it cycles off.  If it continues to receiver 24-volts during the entire cycle, the problem is in the main control valve. I has to be renewed.  If the power is interrupted, some thing is breaking the signal.  The transformer could be overheating and opening a coil momentarily. Jumper the red to the white on the board then find out where you are loosing the signal by jumpering across every component with the meter on a low ohms scale.  I have seen boards that will open intermittently.  A tarnished flame sensor will do this.  buff it good with scratchy pad of fine sand paper.   Good Luck.


What cause the Garbage disposal wire damage showed in the picture? I just wondering what cause the wire damage, shortage, burning, or cut? The garbage disposal stopped working, but not sure it is the wire caused the disposal jammed up, or the jammed disposal damaged the wire?

That does look like heat damage. It's possible that if the disposal jammed and the cord was pressed against something that the current draw heated the wiring enough to melt the housing like that.
UNPLUG THE DISPOSAL AND DON'T USE IT UNTIL THE CORD HAS BEEN REPLACED
Under your sink, in a wet location, having exposed wires is very dangerous. Your disposal may have a replaceable cord-set, which means that you can unscrew this old one from the disposal and install a new one by screwing it in, or, if it doesn't you might get away with cutting off the damaged piece and installing a replacement plug. Worst case, you may have to replace the whole disposal.


Wiring for 2 plugs to replace a 2-in-1 Good day, all.

Could you please help me with a wiring question?

A 2-in-1 plug panel on wall but it’s damaged. I only have 2 separate plugs so planning to replace it.

There are 3 wires I found behind. What I am thinking is, if I can separate each of them (by using separator & extra small string of wires) and connect them individually into the separate plugs.

It shall be look like the picture.

Would it work?

And once connected, if the switches will work? What I am worrying is, either switch will not function, i.e. switch 1 but turn 2 off something like that.

Thanks.

what I have done was directly connect the 3, to A (needless to say colours matched with colours). then use another 3 additional short strings of wires (from the connectors A which accepts the inputs) to connect A and B.

it's been weeks and both working fine.


problem with hot water tank My hot water tank has a lot of corrosion on both hot and cold water connections on the top of the tank. Also, it looks like the water is causing the top of the tank near an inlet it looks like the tank is breaking down from the corrosion.Some of this corrosion is blue. Also, every time I was my hair I get intensive itching to the point where it really gets to me. I can't stand to have my hair even touch my skin because it immediately itches. I have been to the doctor where he hadn't been able to determine why I have this itching.
Could there be something in my water that is causing these problems? What could it be? Can it be fixed?

Typical water heaters/tanks do rust out over time, especially if the sacrificial anode isn't replaced periodically. If yours is failing, get it replaced. You'll probably get better fuel efficiently from the new one too -- and you can almost certainly improve efficiency if you want to spend more and switch technologies. (I switched to a highly-insulated, stainless-steel "indirectly heated" tank which is warmed by a loop from my high-efficiency boiler; NOT a cheap investment but unlike typical water heaters it comes pretty close to being a one-time cost and it does reduce gas usage.)

Whether that has anything to do with your itching, gods only know. Medical diagnosis is out of scope for this discussion.


Why did this device blow the main fuse? I bought a small ceiling spotlight fixture that I meant to convert into an outlet-powered desk lamp. It has three wires (brown, blue, yellow-green) coming from it, e.g. it has a grounding wire because the fixture is of a metallic material. I'm in Finland, the lamp is from Germany.

Because I plan to use it for a smart LED bulb that is commanded by software (electricity to device always on), I thought that I probably wouldn't need to get an on-off switch to the wire; Also, I found it very difficult to find desk lamp switches with three instead of two wire terminals.
So I bought a regular mains cable that has exactly the same color coded three wires in it. I connected them to the lamp's wires by fastening them to the kind of screw terminal that you usually use for ceiling fixture installations. A very simple installation, and technically not one that I hadn't done many times before.
But because I had tampered with the wire myself and I was about to switch this fixture on for the first time ever, I hesitated to do so by having to be so near; So instead of plugging the device directly to the mains outlet, between them I put a remote controlled plug adapter so I could switch it on from a remote control. I use them all the time, to switch on/off some of the hard to reach devices around the house. But when I switched it on, this new lamp blew the fuse in that part of the house! At the moment when that happened, the fixture base lied on heavy wooden material, no contact with metals. The bulb that was connected to the fixture has not been damaged, it lights up when tested with another fixture. It's a GU10.

I re-checked my connections and detached the fixture's socket to investigate. I found no visible flaws or imperfections. I got a multimeter but the instructions are of absolutely no help to someone who doesn't already know everything. But I think that I have now ruled out that the main circuit doesn't short: By setting the meter dial to Ω2000➜├  and touching each prong with the measuring pins, the meter reads "1". I have not measured ground.

As a complete amateur I can only come to think of a few things:

Should I have just skipped the remote controlled plug adapter and
plugged the device directly to the outlet? On the other hand, I
don't understand how the adapter could've been the problem: I use
them all the time, also on devices with a grounded wire, and the
adapter has metallic contacts for receiving the ground signal from
the plug.
Or is it the actual mains outlet's fault? I live in an old
house with outlets so old that they don't have the ground contacts,
outlets with ground contacts are only found in the kitchen and the
bathroom, likely a more recent addition. But then again, I'm using
devices with grounded plugs here all the time and I've heard that it
shouldn't be a problem.
Or did I just happen to have too many devices on at the same time and that was the last straw? It does seem a bit odd though, after all, we're talking about switching on a single LED bulb – hardly a heavy strain.

I haven't attempted to plug the device in since.
Did I create something dangerous, is some part of the system malfunctioning, or was this a one-off to ignore and simply retry? What should I test or attempt to do next?

You don't need a 3-wire switch.   You only need 2 wires, the switch interrupts the "hot" wire, the other two wires run through.   Bonus points if you get a 2-pole switch which also interrupts neutral.  That solves the problem if someone plugs the plug in upside-down, many European plug types make it possible to reverse polarity to the lamp by accident.  This is why we New Worlders revised NEMA 1 and 5 to add polarizatin.

Get comfortable with your ohmmeter

Ohms are a simple thing:  Ohms = Volts / Amps.   If you have a 230V heater that draws 2.3 amps, it will be 230/2.3  = 100 ohms.

Holding the probes apart should be infinity ohms.  Holdong them together should be 0 ohms (it will read a little higher).

Use your ohmmeter on other stuff that you expect to work, don't try to learn it on something you are troubleshooting.

Is your main "fuse" an RCD?

One big thing over there is having the main house overcurrent protection (OCD or ”breaker") be also a ground-fault or residual current detector.  Ideally this device should have an indicator that tells whether it tripped for overcurrent, or residual current.

A residual-current aka grounda-fault trip is rather unlikely if there are only 2 wires actually reaching the device and it's not connected to any viable grounding path.   By definition a ground fault requires a third current path.

There is also a new thing called arc-fault protection.  This puts a tiny computer in the circuit breaker which listens to the power line for the telltale sound of arcing (you know the sound if you've ever fidgeted with a headphone jack or speaker hookup).  It is especially valuable in older homes (or newer, cheaply made homes) where wiring might fail by arcing and start a fire.  A sloppy wiring job could result in this trip.

Divide and conquer

What you do is disassemble it , and add one thing at a time until the overcurrent device trips again.  Start with nothing plugged in.   Then plug in the remote switch, but no lamp in it.  Then disassemble the lamp until it's just the line cord (no connection block).  Then add the connection block (nothing  on the lamp side).  Then add the lamp wiring.  Then assemble the lamp.  Then add the bulb.

Very likely at some step in there, blammo, and there's the problem.  My bet is the junction block isn't wired internally like you think it is.


Wiring connections for cooktop range I have a power source with black, white and bare wires.  My cook top has black, white, green and red wires.  After connecting black to black and white to white, not sure what to do with the bare wire coming from the power source and the green and red wires on the cook top.  Any help would be appreciated.

If the feed only has two wires (not including ground), it's possible that it's only 120 volts (hot, neutral, ground) or 240 volts (hot, hot, ground). If there's only a single pole breaker, then it's probably 120 volts. If there's a double pole breaker, it's probably 240 volts. You can measure it of course, if you have a volt/multimeter.

Since the new cooktop has an additional wire, I'd suspect that it requires a 120/240 volt feed (hot, hot, neutral, ground). This means that you're going to have to pull a new three wire with ground cable, or an additional wire if it's wired through conduit.

If the feed is 240 volts (hot, hot, ground), and you've connected the new cooktop as described (black to black, white to white). You've potentially connected an ungrounded (hot) conductor from the feed, to the grounded (neutral) conductor of the cooktop. This is very bad, and could kill somebody.

Contact a local licensed Electrician, or do some more research before continuing with this project.


Does a bad screw require changing the tap itself? The guardian doesn't quite show the internals of a traditional tap, and the plumber I usually call, couldn't come today. The new plumber says that since the drive of the screw on the tap is ruined, I'd require to buy a new tap (pic below).

I didn't believe him, and would like to confirm if the entire tap really needs to be replaced or just some washers or spindle inside? Basically, if I turn the tap in any direction, water keeps flowing. The only way to stop it is to press it hard from above and wrap insulation tape around the tap while keeping it pressed.

ps: Dad says he suspects the tap is a washerless type which might have to be replaced completely.

The tap:

The reason why the plumber says this is that the cost to replace just the screw (for him) would be greater than the cost to replace the whole handle and valve assembly. This is because he can replace the whole handle assembly in 10 minutes, but it would probably take him at least 30-45 minutes minimum to find and install a perfect replacement screw.

If you value your time less, feel free to look for a replacement screw. Note that the screw will have to be a certain length and thread pitch and diameter etc.

If the internals of the valve are cleaned up, resurfaced and washers replaced, the valve should operate correctly. The screw is for the handle and is not part of the valve.

Getting that screw out, by the way, will be annoying. The way to do it (not involving high temperature processes) is to use a sleeve bushing around the screw, a drill bushing inside the sleeve, then drill a hole for a screw extractor.


Move water heater to location with smaller diameter pipes My current tankless, instantaneous gas water heater is placed in a location where pipes in and out of it are 3/4''.
I was planning to remove it and install an electrical, tanked water heater, in a different location, where a shower used to be. When starting the work, I actually realized that the pipes there were 1/2 ''.
Is that likely an issue in terms of having enough hot water at the other end of the house for showers? The distance between this electrical water heater and the furthest shower would be about 15 meters (49 feet).

Whether the 1/2" dia pipe will provide sufficient flow depends on your requirements. Personally I would use it. The flow would supply any ordinary single shower head. I would recommend a hand holdable, low flow shower head with a flexible hose rated at say 1.5 gal/min (5 to 6 L/min). This would save energy and water while giving a fully adequate shower.
The 1/2" dia pipe will mean that hot water from the heater will arrive at the shower quicker than with 3/4" pipe. There will also be less water wasted and less hot water wasted by abandonment in the line.


Do all permanent lighting fixtures need to be switched, per NEC? I just have a quick question about code-compliance and permanent lighting fixtures. At one of the residences I maintain, we have some rather lengthy hallways which are located in the center of the 2nd floor, a lot of this upper floor is an addition built on to a very old house, no natural lighting source at all. There are 3 light fixtures along the ceiling, all separately switched. Some of the residents we have here have mobility issues and other impairments, and while the ends of the hallways tend to stay lit adequately, the middle length of the hallway is pitch-dark when the light is off which usually frustrates me because I don't want anyone falling or otherwise injuring themselves because of the dark.

My question here, is can I just remove the switch and cap the wires together in the box, so long as it is properly grounded? I know all bedrooms, baths and common areas require permanent, switched lighting fixtures, but do I have any leeway with a hallway that is dependent on light fixtures? I don't particularly ever like the idea of any live circuit that can't be quickly and manually opened but I also don't like the possibility someone could fall if they have poor eyesight.

Also just to clarify, this is in regards to North American electrical code.

The problem comes in with the type of fixture, a ballast requires a switch or local disconnecting means in the fixture depending on the type of construction.  an Edison lamp (screw in) would be ok. Having a light on all the time actually is ok by code but some fixtures like fluorescents that have ballasts require a way to disconnect the power locally . I would not be concerned in any occupancy to do this but label the blank plate where the switch was what it used to control. My personal preference would to be to add an occupancy sensor up at the lamp. Any movement turns the light on from 1 to 20 minutes on the models I use.saves power and I support several hundred in my plant and only have 1 or 2 a year fail in really nasty conditions.


Can I take power from the hot line on another switch in a multi-gang box? I have been working on wiring a Z-Wave 3 way dimmer.  In my current three way configuration, I only have line, ground, and 2 travelers in the remote box.

In the primary box, I have 2 travelers, ground, load, and neutral.

It seems that in nearly every configuration (that supports LEDs and Fluorescents), both boxes need a neutral wire.

I could achieve this if I could use one of the traveler wires to get neutral to the remote box.  To do this, I'd need to take power from another hot wire in the same box as my dimmer.

The dimmer is in a 2 gang box with the switch for my outdoor lights.  Both the outdoor lights and the indoor light (that's on the dimmer) are on the same breaker.

My concern was that if I took too much power on the hot wire for the outdoor lights that it could be a fire hazard; however, it seems like if they're on the same breaker, that both of those loads are going into the breaker box on one wire at some point anyhow so they must have a high enough ampacity for both loads.

Is it safe to use the hot line from another switch like this?

EDIT

Forgive me; these are my first wiring diagrams

Here are the current switch configurations

And what I think the current diagram would look like

This is what I'm proposing as an interim until I understand more about 3-way Z-wave switches

What I'm hoping to accomplish someday if I can get a better understanding of inductive coupling:

Yes, as long as you return power on the same neutral that's partnered with the "hot".  (Why is that? Because if hot wires are protected by breakers, but neutrals are not - so if a neutral carries more than its load, that will not be detected.)

If you are converting to smart-switches, you should be able to convert the hot+2 messengers into hot, neutral, signal for the smart switches.


Should I solder stranded wires when connecting them to a plug? I'm about to perform a few electrical changes in my house in order to be able to control lighting fixtures (230V, 30 to 200 mA) from a PC. I have some doubts about the way stranded wires should be connected to the plugs.

For instance, I suppose the way of connecting the wires shown on the next photo is dangerous, because the connection can easily become loose, is it? It seems that pulling the plug a few times by the wire instead of the plug itself would have disastrous effects on the connection.

If yes, should I solder stranded wire to make it solid? If so, what should I take care of, aside using a rosin-core solder? Once I solder it, how am I supposed to connect it to the metallic parts of the plug?

One should never apply lead alloy solder to stranded wires (often called "tinning") that are to be tightened under a screw. Eventually, the solder will cold-flow under the pressure and the screw connection will become loose.

This doesn't happen overnight; it can take months or years. I have personally seen this happen on several occasions.

It can be okay to just tin the very tip, to help keep the twisted wire strands together while tightening the screw. However, it is preferable just to leave some extra wire sticking out, and cut that off flush after tightening the screw.


Basement Floor Feels Uneven I recently purchased a home with a full finished basement. The home was built in 1988. No foundation or structural concerns were noted during the home inspection. There is carpet in the basement. The few visible locations of bare concrete (exterior, mechanical room) show no signs of distress.
However, when I walk around the carpet in the basement without shoes on, I feel a few places where it’s uneven: a ridge, a bump, etc.
Is this a cause for concern? Should I pull up the carpet to check for cracks?
Update,
I pulled a piece of carpet over one of the offending areas and this is what I found. There is a crack, and also what looks like a purposeful control joint. This isn’t the entirety of the areas I was worried about. However, for discussions sake, if all of the unevenness in my basement is due to features like this, should I be concerned?

A deeper inspection of visible, vertical concrete surfaces continues to indicate no cracks in the foundation walls. All windows and doors in the home function properly.

Two things here:

If a basement is poured right it will all slope to the floor drain.  This sometimes is noticeable because not all guys pouring a basement floor are artists, so their flow to the drain might not be as even as you would want (being nice).   Maybe sometimes the exterior walls will slope in if there is an extensive weeping system - that flows to sump pit(s).

Very normal for a basement to have 1 major heave line.   This is basically the concrete buckling on itself.   This has nothing to do with your foundation is in essence cosmetic.   To fix these there are a number of products but basically you chisel out the line (in reality hammer but giving you a visual) and then install some sort of flexible substance (you can just use caulk on smaller heaves) and then reseal it with concrete.   It is basically the same way you fix drywall that has seasonal heaves with just slightly different materials.

If you are alarmed pull up the carpet, take some pictures and post them on here.   You really can't tell with carpet there.   My gut reaction is that you are probably just fine.   Sometimes these heaves are caused by once in a lifetime events (a summer of 100 degree days 40 days in a row without rain - happened to two of my properties that summer) or that's just what the basement was going to do no matter what (not enough stress reliefs during pour).   Either way this is usually not a big deal or a big risk to home owner unless you are feeling the unevenness next to walls which could effect footings.
Note based on added picture:  Your basement has heaved right at the joint control - which is by design.   It looks like the joint cut was slightly small for the amount of movement.   This is neither a problem or even a tad alarming.   If you don't like it, grind down the ridge flat.   You could even chisel a "V" in that ridge and fill with something more pliable than concrete.   On the scale of being an issue this is a .5 out of 10.
Also the crack is because the heave point pushed out.  Again not a big deal.  Given the house was built 35 years ago, it is probably settled in.   So it is basically as bad as it is going to get.   Remember basement floors almost have nothing to do with the foundation of your house (except in rare cases which I don't think yours is).


Fiberous Material White Material below Plaster - Asbestos? I am stripping off wallpaper from an old Scottish building. Some of the walls have damage, and some of the plaster has a white hairlike fiberous material below. I found this before it was in a whitey orange sheet that was exposed where a doorhandle had hit the wall too hard and exposed the fibers below the plaster, I didn't think twice about it, I plastered over it.

Today I came across it again, and it suddenly occurred to me that this could be asbestos. Has anyone seen anything like this before? Note this is a very small section, so it is largely undisturbed.

Does this look like abestos, and if it is, for small sections like this, is it safe to plaster over it?

I clipped off part of it with a scissors and took it outside. Then at arms length I set fire to it with a lighter holding it with tweezers with a mask on. It fizzled. It didn't melt, nor did it catch fire, but the strands disappeared very quickly.

I then took a small sample of fibers and brushed them with tweezers bending them to see if they broke off, they did not, the fibers were springy and no amount of bending them caused the fibers to snap off.

I then inspected the fibers carefully and saw that all the fibers were of the same thickness. I tried to tug at the fibers using two tweezers and there was a very high tensile strength - the fibres didn't break under strain.

Has anyone see this stuff before? Does it look like asbestos? Is it safe to plaster over?

I am almost certain that it is  horse hair.  It was added to plaster as a binder in the old days
This site gives a history of its use and answers a ton of questions you might have about it.

For starters :

  Horsehair plaster, also known as lath and plaster, is typically found in older homes and homes of significant historical value. This practice is not commonly used today. In fact, drywall began replacing the process in the 1950s. However, you can still find a lot of homes with horsehair plaster.
  If you’ve never heard of horsehair plaster before, then you’re probably pretty confused. So, what is horsehair plaster? Why is it called horsehair plaster?
  Although there are different variations, the most common type of horsehair plaster is a mixture of lime, sand, plaster, and horsehair. Yeah, that’s right, horsehair. The horsehair that was used was from the mane and the tail of the horse. Horse hairs are long, strong, and when they’re mixed with plaster, they offer a lot of structural strength.

Still if you want to be positive it is not asbestos have it tested.

And if you need something else to worry about there is a possibility of  anthrax contamination in old horse hair plaster!

Yikes!


How can I reduce whistling due to wind across a gas fireplace vent? We have a gas fireplace venting through the roof of our attic bedroom; there's a cap on a chimney up there. Double-wall construction, such that it pulls combustion air in from outside.

When the wind blows, the vent whistles loudly.

How can I reduce this noise?

The first thing I would check, is to make sure there are no blockages in the vent. If there is debris restricting the flow of air, it could produce noise.

Another cause of this could be that the wind is blowing just rught across the top of the pipe causing it to vibrate, similar to blowing across the top of a bottle to produce sound.  To prevent this, you could try cutting small V shaped notches around the perimeter of the end of the pipe.

Cutting the end of the pipe at a slight angle (2-5° < 90°), may also prevent the wind from crossing the end of the pipe in a way that produces noise.