New bathroom fan has a 2 prong plug. Old fan was straight wired. How do I convert? My new exhaust fan has a 2 prong plug, my old fan was straight wired so I don't have a receiver. How do I convert to straight wire?

I looked up your fan and this is a picture of it...

It sounds like you just have some romex wire hanging from the ceiling and no outlet to plug the fan into. The wire you see is called romex. This is a large white cable with three wires inside it, Black, white and a naked copper ground wire. These wires should already be stripped but you might want to cut off about 6 more inches of the romex casing to give you some extra room for the ground wire. You can clip off and re-strip the black and white wires, as they will be too long. Cut off the existing plug on the new fan. You will need to strip the wires back. Attach the two wires from the fan to the black and the neutral wires of the romex using wire nuts. That is an Supco SM55OP2 motor equivalent, so both blades on the plug will be the same size. Polarity doesn't matter on these. Finally, attach the ground wire to the frame of the fan with a screw in the provided screw hole. You can also use a self-tapping screw if you have one. Here is a diagram to help you...


Electrical - fuse blowing temporarily after replacing light switch I recently replaced a light switch. I had a very hard time getting this switch to work because when I would put the switch in the wall, it would no longer work. I later traced this down to the wire moving slightly off the screw holding it in the switch. I made a circle out of the wire and screwed the wire onto the switch. Since the wire is now in a circle, it can’t move around off of the screw. When I put the switch in the wall and went to go turn the breaker back on, it tripped about 10 times in a row. Finally the breaker stayed put and the light switch seems to be working.

What would cause the breaker to trip so many times in a row and then finally stop ‘breaking’?  Should I be worried?

Shepherd's hooks

Putting a shepherd's hook on the wire, fitting it, squeezing it so it tightly wraps around the screw about 200 degrees (preferably clockwise so it doesn't spread), and tightening the screw to spec -- is the only proper way to use a screw terminal on a receptacle or switch.  (unless the device's written instructions specifically give another method, e.g. breaker lugs or Leviton's screw-and-clamp system). Backstabs are legal, but unreliable, and properly done shepherd's hooks are the way to go.

The fastest way is use the lonely hole on your wire stripper, that's what it's for, and the pliers on the end of it to squeeze the hook once it's on the screw.  You can get pretty fast at it.

Wires are held to the screw both by being wrapped around the screw and tightened to spec.  It's a very solid connection that will resist tugging, twisting, and being shoved back into the box with stiff #12 wire.  You can't pull it off like you can a backstab.  If it doesn't feel solid to you, it is wrong.

If it's not working for you, feel free to ask a question for us to review your technique.  Some edge cases can be tricky.

Watch out for ground wires touching screws or metal box

Often trouble happens when you stuff it back in the box and a ground wire touches a hot screw.  Blam, breaker trip!   But it is also bad if a ground wire touches a neutral screw - that will cause GFCI and AFCI trips.  Manage ground wires carefully and if necessary, wrap the receptacle/switch with tape to cover the screws (In the only direction that makes sense).  3 loops is sufficient.

The same issue can occur touching the side of a metal box, especially if there is a bit of a drywall gap, which can let the device tilt compared to the box.

Don't reset breakers 10 times

When a breaker trips once, review your previous work and fix it.  Do not keep resetting the breaker!   The service panel will never dispense a food pellet!

What you actually did was set the wire on fire, causing arcing damage to the wire until the arc damage removed enough copper for it to no longer short.  Or, you broke the breaker.  Both are still dangerous.  Find the root problem (the scorch and sputter damage will be apparent) and replace the breaker.

A breaker's thermal trip mode (the slower trip)  is designed to trip before the wire gets hot enough to start a fire.  Once power is removed, breakers cool down faster than wires, so repeatedly resetting them defeats their thermal protection.  If it trips other than instantly, give the wires 10 minutes (3 songs) to cool before resetting.

But here's the thing.  You are probably making lots of other mistakes we'll never know about. Mains wiring is lethal and brns down houses, usually later.   If you own this house, and plan to sell it, the home inspection will find bad homeowner work, and likely force you to pay an electrician to take apart everything, check and fix it.  Take your time, let yourself learn, do it perfect.


Uninstal this shower tub valve I need to do some work behind the shower tub valve buthadno idea how to remove this one. I only found two screws one the back panel but the panel is still blockedby the handle. I can't find anyway to remove the handle. I didn't find any screws for the handle. And twist g the handle itself won't loose it either. Any input is deeply appreciated.

Figured it out from a similar product manual. The little cap on the top can come off. The screw is hidden inside...


Guidance needed for cutting rabbet As in this question about making box shelves, I am looking at making some shelves and need some help.  I've found this site describing how to make the shelves but need some pointers on what tools I need to be able to make the rabbet along the 2.5 meter shelf.

I was thinking of getting this router and these router bits with a rabbet bit but have some questions:

are these items up to the job?

if so, how would I change the size of the hole cut by the rabbet bit?

do I need any more items to be able to cut the rabbet?
do I need a work bench?

As you can see, I'm a complete novice so please assume I know nothing.  I don't really have a clue of what I'm doing, but I want to learn how to do this properly.

Any hints, tips or concrete pointers would be greatly appreciated.

Looking at the page you linked to, it looks like it will do the job for you.  It has a 1/4" shank which might limit you down the road if you decide you like building things and start doing it all the time.

A rabbet bit goes against the work piece like this:

The dimension B is determined by the size of the bit; you can make it smaller by putting something between the workpiece and the bit; you could use another bit to cut out more, but that makes the whole job a lot trickier because you won't have the bearing on the bit to help guide the router.  You have control of dimension A; you make the cut deeper by running the bit over the workpiece multiple times, cutting a little bit more each time.

Other items you'll need are safety glasses, a vacuum cleaner to collect sawdust (it's a carcinogen so  don't want to be breathing it) and clamps to hold the work piece.

You need clamps because operating a router is a two-handed job: plunging the router with both hands means that you have even pressure on each side of the bit thus more control if it kicks and it keeps your hands out of the way of the fast-moving machinery.

If you don't already have something sturdy to clamp the workpiece to, you should probably think about getting a workbench.  A dedicated routing table is another option, but probably more than you need right now (I'm just now getting to the point where I'm thinking I'd like to have one so can't advise you there).


Accidentally Touching One Lead Of A Multimeter While Other Is In Electrical Outlet If I have a multimeter, and I put one lead in the hot slot of an electrical outlet, will accidentally touching the other lead complete a circuit and electrocute me?

Likewise, if instead I put one lead in the neutral slot of an electrical outlet, will accidentally touching the other lead complete a circuit and electrocute me?

If the multimeter is set to read voltage, it will have a very high-resistance, so if everything is working correctly touching the other lead will not shock you.

If it's set to read current, it will have almost 0-resistance, so touching the other lead would be equivalent to touching the bare wire.  Thus, having the multimeter plugged into the hot-slot and touching the other lead will shock you (but, having it plugged into the neutral won't)


Which side of a two-wire cable should be used for "hot"? I bought a custom length of a 16/2 cable (two 16-gauge stranded wires, individually insulated).  The two wires have identical colors and insulation; the only thing to tell them apart is that along one, there's printed specs of the wire, such as 600V and max temp.

I plan to use this wire for a ceiling light, and there's a chance that someone else will have to deal with this light if I move out and leave it installed.

Of course, it's possible for someone else to figure out how the lamp is wired either by looking at the lamp's own color-coded wiring or by tracing an individual wire from the power receptacle.  But is there a good way to label the two wires of my cable, to make it clearer which is the hot?

Is there already a standard like, "the cable's side with the printed specs is the hot one"?

NEC 2008 400.22(E & F) For lamp cord, the following conventions are followed:

Polarized solid black, white or brown insulation
Ribbed, grooved or striped side is grounded (neutral), smooth side is ungrounded (hot).

Clear insulation lamp cord
Silver conductor is grounded (neutral), copper conductor is ungrounded (hot).

Grounded (neutral) goes to the threaded shell of the lamp and is wired direct without break to the wide blade of a polarized 2 prong plug or in the case of a suspended lamp, to the grounded (neutral) white wire. Switching goes in the ungrounded (hot) side. You never want the thread shell to be hot (switch in off position in the neutral side with intact filament).

If the conductors are both the same color, the insulation is a single color and the printing is on one conductor's insulation only without rib (feel it with your fingers) or stripe, then that will be your continuous marker and grounded (neutral) indicator. The whole idea on zipcord is that you have some definite identifier as to what is grounded (neutral) to keep a continuous connection and wire properly to the lamp socket and wall plug.

  National Electrical Code

  ARTICLE 400 Flexible Cords and Cables

  II. Construction Specifications

  400.22 Grounded-Conductor Identification. One conductor of flexible cords that is intended to be used as a grounded circuit conductor shall have a continuous marker that readily distinguishes it from the other conductor or conductors. The identification shall consist of one of the methods indicated in 400.22(A) through (F).

  (E) Tinned Conductors.
  One conductor having the individual strands tinned and the other conductor or conductors having the individual strands untinned for cords having insulation on the individual conductors integral with the jacket.

  (F) Surface Marking.
  One or more ridges, grooves, or white stripes located on the exterior of the cord so as to identify one conductor for cords having insulation on the individual conductors integral with the jacket.

Note: National Electrical Code (NEC) is the US standard and quoting it defines this answer as being for US electrical power. If your country differs, feel free to post your own answer with your country or jurisdiction identified.


How to connect power inverter to standard lighting circuit I'm interested in installing a solar power system in my garage and am wondering how to connect the three-prong receptacle output of the power inverter to a NM-B lighting circuit that was previously hooked into a switch in an electric box receiving power from the main panel.

Here's the inverter, in case it helps.

I'm comfortable with basic electric work like rewiring receptacles, installing GFCIs, etc., but I haven't done this before and want to be sure I'm not under- or over-thinking this.

Note that these days the best answer for solar, if you aren't determined to go completely off-grid and if your electric company supports it, may be to get inverters that support line synchronization and ask the electric company to set you up for net metering.

In this setup the inverters and line feed the house in parallel. If you're producing less power than you need, you buy the remainder from the power company; if you're producing more than you need, you sell the excess back to the power company. Much simpler than trying to maintain local batteries for extra or nighttime power, ensures that all power generated deducts from your electric costs, and in some cases you may be able to sell carbon-reduction credits as well.

I've been quite happy with this setup. I have a relatively small solar setup (8 "standard" panels), but my electricity use is relatively low too, and in the summer I usually do have one or two months of negative net usage. I haven't yet gone negative enough to actually have a negative bill, due to the utility's $6 account fee, but I've come close.

Note: The one disadvantage of a newer metering system is that, to keep your system from electrocuting linemen who expected a cable to be unpowered, net-metering systems are designed explicitly not to run in "island mode"; if the network goes dead, they shut down for safety. That does mean you have to make other plans for dealing with blackouts. As I said, if being able to go completely off-grid is important to you this may not be the best solution.

If it sounds interesting, ask your solar supplier/contractor for details. Anyone competent should be able to explain it in detail, and run numbers to tell you how long it would take for the system to pay back it's purchase cost after figuring in any currently available rebates and carbon credits (though the latter will be a best-guess, since these are sold via an auction mechanism and prices may change depending on supply and demand).


What is a recommended height for tile edging? I'm trying to put up a tiled mosaic back splash and I'm trying to figure out the profile height for the edging. My tiles are 1/4" (6mm) thick.

Should I be getting an edge where the profile height matches my tiles or should I get one slightly thicker to account for the thinset?

With larger tile that may span irregularities, I would advise 1/16 higher to end up flush.

With mosaics, I would go for the same height.  Too much thinset with mosaics makes a grout line mess, oozing up and needing extra cleaning.

If you are using unbacked glass mosaics, be sure to skim coat the whole field with a white thinset before pulling.a notched trowel for the final setting bed. Then flatten the ridges for a smooth, void free bed that won't show variations through the glass


Why douuble pole switch must be used for water heater? I read from some notes stating that 1 way double-pole switch must be used for fixed heating appliance where heating element can be touched.
What is the rational behind that?

Most water heaters are 240v, this voltage is created by using 2 hot legs, for a local disconnect or breaker both hots need to be disconnected. If a single pole was used as the local disconnect the water heater would not heat but there would still be 120v at the control to the elements and this creates a hazard to someone working on the water heater (like when time to change the elements). If it is a 120v water heater a single pole is acceptable (these are usually smaller under sink type where only a small amount of water is needed at a remote location from the main water heater).


Why is my aircon increasing relative humidity? My HVAC unit in the bedroom seems to increase humidity when turned on. I live in the tropics so humidity is 50-80% on average. Even if its 55% outside turning aircon on it seems to reach a level around 70% and stay there. We don't lower the temp that much. from 30C down to 26C.
The unit is oversized but my understanding is that might make it ineffective at dehumidifying but shouldn't increase humidity right?
The unit does have a cool mode vs a dry mode. Cool mode the fan doesn't turn off even if the fan is set too low. Dry mode can reduce humidity < 60% but it reduced the temp to 22C regardless of the temp setting which is too cold for us.
The outside compressor is 10M+ from the bedroom so I worry the pipes aren't sealed as they are old. The compressor and aircon are new though.
I did recently buy a seperate dehumidifier (rated at 15L). When the dehumidifier is turned on when the aircon is it will produce a lot of water (about 5L from 9pm-7am) but the humidity doesn't go much below 70. In fact it might start at 60 and end up at 70 in the morning.
We also have a air-filter which is effective at removing outside PM2.5 during the night at a low airflow setting which makes me think the room is reasonably sealed from the outside. We do have an ensuite bathroom but we've blocked the ventilation holes between in the door inbetween.
Whats going on? Is there anything I can fix on the aircon unit, for example is it problems with leaks in the pipes?

For an A/C unit to reduce the % of relative humidity in your home a properly sized A/C unit coupled with a dehumidifier must run a long time to decrease that humidity. When the A/C unit is first turned on, it begins to cool the room temperature which may actually increase the relative humidity. Just because the room temperature is reduced does not mean that the humidity has also been reduced. It usually takes a long time to reduce the % of relative humidity, that is why you should set the temperature and let the unit run 24/7. Remember, every thing in that room is at the same approximate relative humidity and temperature, (floor surfaces, furniture, etc).If you look up or search for the explanation of relative humidity you will get a good understanding of the term and how it is derived. After the units have run a couple days the % of relative humidity is still excessive then I would look for sources of the excessive humidity, say a leaking pipe, a wall opening, or a source of moisture.


How to put main breaker in Square D Hom612L100 breaker panel? This panel (Square D Hom612L100) has 4 slots.  Is it possible to make one of them serve as the main breaker?

You can do this, but it burns up two panel spaces in the process

While the HOM612L100 is a Main Lug Only panel and thus cannot accept a QOM main frame breaker, it can be fitted with a main breaker.  How?  By backfeeding the panel's busses via a two-pole Homeline branch breaker that is held down with a HOM1RK hold-down kit, as required by NEC 408.36.  As a result, the incoming hot wires go onto the lugs of this held-down breaker, and the main lugs can be left unused, or used as feed-through lugs in case expansion is called for.

Note that this requires the main breaker to be a regular (or triplex/quadruplex) Homeline branch breaker, not a GFCI or AFCI (they cannot be backfed as it would damage their electronics), and also costs two panel spaces in what is already a tiny panel; depending on your application, moving up to say a 12-space panel that accepts a main frame breaker may be a better solution as a result.


Do any ultra quiet ceiling fans that have no motor hum exist? I am in the market to buy two large ceiling fans to cycle air within and potentially cool my master bedroom. The room is about 16x27 feet, and it gets pretty hot during spring, summer, and early fall. I have wired both mounts into the ceiling, and tried out a single 52" Harbor Breeze fan in one of them. The fan produced a very audible motor hum, similar to that described in this question, however strait off of my native power. Cranking the fan up to high speed would drown out the sound of the hum, but then I have the fan noise itself to deal with. I've had an electrician come out and check the wiring, and everything is solid according to him.

From a wiring standpoint, I used a Harbor Breeze remote control with the fan, which was nicely designed to fit within and work perfectly with the Harbor Breeze fan itself. Wiring the remote control receiver was a no brainer...every connection was color coded. I did notice, however, that the wires from the fan itself were solid core, where as the wires from the remote receiver were stranded aluminum. I am not sure if this might cause a problem, and introduce motor hum? Having a remote is important (see background below for why.)

I did some searching, and there seem to be a variety of complaints about Harbor Breeze fans and motor hum (and an even broader search indicates that motor hum is not an infrequent problem.) Do ceiling fans of high enough quality, with large enough motors to run the fan silently, actually exist? Is it possible to get a ceiling fan that works with a remote without motor hum?

Background

I have severe sleep issues, one of them being high sensitivity to noise. When its hot, I have even more trouble sleeping, and I expend a considerable amount of money running my air conditioner to keep my home cool during the summer. I am close to desperate to find a way to cool my room without the need to run my air conditioner as much, and ceiling fans seem to be the ideal solution. I've lived in apartments in the past that had truly silent ceiling fans, and I was able to sleep well with them. I'm largely just lacking information and knowledge about what brands I should be looking at, what price point I should be looking at (I think I spent about $200 on the one 52" Harbor Breeze before, from Lowes, but I'm willing to spend twice that or more per fan if it gets me a quiet one without motor hum.)

Given my sleeping issues, I need to be able to turn the fan on or off without getting out of bed. Generally speaking, if I get up once I've finally started to fall asleep, my night is over...I don't sleep at all. I used a remote with the Harbor Breeze, however I think that may have made the motor hum worse...as the wiring of the receiver was really cheap. Are there any known high quality remote receivers that use proper wiring and support the right kind of electric load for a large ceiling fan?

You might look into ceiling fans with DC motors.  While I have not seen a manufacturer talk about quietness, some reviews I've read talk about quietness.  The biggest attraction to DC motors is the efficiency of the motors, getting more air movement with less power.

My suggestion would be find a local fan / light showroom that has some of these on display that you can try.

Also, fan speed controls have a lot to do with the fan noise.  A fully variable wallbox style speed control can cause motor noise, but the fan speed controls that have preset "clicks" that you feel when adjusting are made for quiet operation.  I don't know if the remote set you got was matched by the manufacturer or just off the shelf, but that could make a difference.

You also have to remember that some people leave their fans on for a "white noise" effect, which helps them (me) sleep.  My wife insists that we keep a floor fan on for the noise.  Because of this, when it comes to trouble shooting a loud motor then you might not get as much help as you think you would get.

Again, try a fan specialty shop.  The salespeople will know which are quieter and should know more about them than a box store.


How to predict when the electrical infrastructure on my 1950s rental is going throw a breaker? I live in an old house; it has old electrical infrastructure.  Last night it was really hot, and we were running an external dishwasher on the same circuit as the TV and a fan and a ceiling fan.  Only the TV is connected with an extension cord because there just isn't a three prong outlet in that room, but sadly it's still on the same circuit.  The TV is an older flat screen from maybe 2003 or so, the dish washer is brand new.

When it was hot last night the breaker kept switching off, and I had to unplug everything from that circuit and reset the breaker.

Is there any way to calculate how much a breaker is likely to be able to handle, so I don't have to keep running up and down the stairs to fix this?

I do have things running in other parts of the house as well, but they aren't on the same circuit.  They only blew once or twice; the one in question blew like 4 or 5 times last night.

A breaker will trip according to its trip curve, at 40°C (104°F). In this condition, it should be able to carry 100% of the rated load. So if you have a 20 ampere breaker, at 40°C it should be able to carry 20 amperes. It's often recommended (and sometimes required), to only load a circuit to 80% its capacity.

In most cases, devices are listed by the amount of watts they use, rather than the amount of current they draw. Luckily it's fairly easy to convert back and forth, as long as you know the system voltage.

Watts = Volts * Amperes, Amperes = Watts / Volts.

So a 20 ampere breaker on a 120 volt system, should be able to supply 2400 watts.  Applying the 80% safety margin, that's 1920 watts.  A 15 ampere breaker can supply 1800 watts at 100%, or 1440 watts at 80%.

To estimate how much power you're using, add the wattage rating of all the devices on the circuit.


How to make room for a taller electrical panel with a vent pipe underneath In Seattle in the US, I currently have a 24" tall split bus 200A electrical panel and I'd like to upgrade to a 36" panel for more capacity and to get main breaker. Unfortunately the laundry sink (you can see the lip of the sink in my photo) vent pipe runs below the panel and can't be lowered much since it's barely 6" above the flood line. What's my best option here?

Edit: removed the table

Edit 2: here's the current panel

Things I've considered:

Let the electrician take off the existing panel and frame a one stud-wide wall in front of the panel. Not sure if I need to insulate or add a moisture barrier behind it.
Let the electrician take off the existing panel and nail some 2x5s or 2x6s to the sill and a sheet of plywood on top of that to mount the panel, which just hangs in front of the vent pipe.
Move the service to another location. This sounds expensive and requires exterior work too.
Move the laundry sink/washer/dryer elsewhere. This also is expensive and requires exterior work to move the dryer duct.
Some other creative solution.

Thanks for the advice!

I would go with option 5 and maybe combined with option 2. First I would get rid of the split bus panel (They are no longer legal for a reason). Second I would install a two or even three section panel. This are not sub-panels the first panel has an MCB and then the other panels are lugged from bus to bus with a full size conductor.

You will be able to find these from a wholesaler as they are not a stock item.

Good Luck.


How to avoid overtightening flexible water supply hose connectors Concerning standardised water supply hoses such as the 15mm braided hose below.

I've come across two schools of thought on how tight the hex nut connectors should be:

Hand-tighten only.
Hand-tighten then apply spanner for quarter-turn to half-turn.

In the absence of instructions specific to manufacturer/model, what would you advise?

Option 2, with caveat...

These water supply hoses undergo cycles of temperature change and are subjected to vibration due to flow. For me to be confident that the connections won't loosen and leak over time, I always give them a "snug-up" with a wrench. I don't strictly adhere to either a 1/4 turn or 1/2 turn... I hand tighten then give just a bit of a snug, by feel. They will leak if over-tightened.


Lighting design for kitchen 10' x 11' I want to only have two 6" recessed lights for the general lighting for my kitchen. Ceiling is 100" high.

I will have five 4" recessed tasks light: above the sink, and above countertops in appropriate places.

Do you think the 6" lights as general lighting is enough?
How much wattage should I get for the 6" and the 4" cans?  (I plan to have all of them on dimmers but I want to know what the general wattage should be)

I think there are a few things to consider.

The Ceiling Height Rule Of Thumb.

To determine how far apart to space your recessed lights, divide the height of the ceiling by two. If a room has an 8 foot ceiling, you should space your recessed lights approximately 4 feet apart.

If the ceiling is 10 feet, you'll want the lights approximately 5 feet apart.

That being said, what one person considers too bright others do not consider bright enough.

The thing with recessed lighting is, it is more or less, a spotlight, which can be good or bad based on preference and if you intend to highlight focal points.

What I have seen: It is common for people to regret spacing lights too far apart and/or not getting larger lights

Larger Lighting Canisters:

Pros

In CA there are more hot days than cold days, and the canisters do
heat up, so larger canisters do better with withstanding the heat.
Extra 2' width means the lighting spreads out more.

Cons:

More power consumption (your dimmer can cross cancel this)

  Do you think the 6" lights as general lighting is enough?

Its close enough at 8' high ceilings and better if it's 10' ceilings.

  How much wattage should I get for the 6" and the 4" cans?

That's dependent on the maximum wattage allowed for the lighting canisters and what you like.

Colors in flooring and countertops, and cabinetry make a huge difference in terms of reflecting light or absorbing light.

I made a few examples for you to see. With some variations for you to see how colors effect lighting.

Note: Keep in mind, that with recessed lighting, you have almost no lighting on the ceiling itself.


Standing on a glass desk top I have to put pictures on a wall over my glass desk top.  It is 19" wide(front to back) 42 1/2 "long(left to right) and 3/16" thick and 40 1/2" between the inside edges of the supports left to right, and 11 3/4" front to back.  I weight 195 lbs.  Can I stand on this desk?

I would not even suggest taking the chance that it could hold you up to stand on it. Think of the possible serious injury that could result if it were to break and give way when you were standing on it.

You would do well to just move the desk out away from the wall and use a step ladder or stool of some sort to get up to the area where you intend to hang the pictures.


Is it better to shim behind hinge leaves against the door or the frame? I'm trying to adjust a small door and needed to make adjustments. Does it matter if I shim the hinge connected to the door or the hinge connected to the frame?  Are the two essentially equivalent when making such an adjustment?

This is entirely a matter of aesthetics. In one case the hinge pin (the center of pivot) moves, and in the other it doesn't, but the move is small enough that it's unlikely to cause binding. Just keep that point in mind.

Otherwise, do what will result in the shim being least conspicuous. This isn't the ideal way to rectify door alignment, but it is often the quickest and easiest. If you have the option and the will, pull casing from the hinge jamb and do your shimming there, where it's hidden.


trouble shoot air conditioning thermostat my compressor outside is not kicking in.  Here's the sequence of events:

I came home and the thermostat - a Honeywell LCD - was no more numbers and the battery indicator was flashing.
replaced the batteries and no change in that
bought a new basic thermostat and hooked up the wires correctly - note there is a Green, White, Red and Yellow wire and the hookup locations are very obvious
installed the thermostat face, and all controls behave as expected, and the cooling shows as being on - but the compressor outside is not kicking in.

It's possible I crossed some wires? but I don't think so.  I know years ago someone replaced a capacitor on my compressor but I've had no problems since then.  How would I troubleshoot this?

Test the thermostat

There's a couple ways to do this, the "professional" way, or the "caveman" way.

Label and remove the wire connected to the Y terminal on the thermostat.
Set your multimeter to test continuity, or resistance.
Set the thermostat to cooling, and reduce the set temperature until the unit starts to call for cooling (may hear a click, and the unit should indicate that it's calling for cooling).
Touch one of the meter probes to the R terminal on the thermostat.
Touch the other probe to the Y terminal on the thermostat.

The meter should show continuity, and/or a low resistance. If not, the thermostat is bad, or not configured properly.

If the thermostat checked out, reinstall it and move to the next test.

Alternatively, a caveman would simply touch the "yellow" wire (the wire connected to the Y terminal) to the "red" wire (the wire connected to the R terminal).

This should turn on the A/C. If not, continue to the next test.

Test the wiring

WARNING: This test requires you to open up the furnace/air handler, and work on live equipment.  If you do not feel comfortable, contact a local licensed HVAC technician.
Next, you'll want to make sure the signal is getting to the furnace/air handler.

Carefully open the furnace/air handler, to expose the control wiring.
Set your meter to test AC volts.
Touch one probe to the R terminal.
Touch the other probe to the Y terminal.
Have a partner turn the thermostat to cooling mode, and reduce the set temperature until the unit starts to call for cooling.

Initially; when the thermostat is not calling for cooling, you should read about 24 volts.  When the thermostat calls for cooling, that should drop to 0 (or very near 0, depending on how sensitive the meter is).

If this checks okay, move to the next test.

Test the contactor

WARNING: This test requires you to open up the condensing unit, and work on live equipment.  If you do not feel comfortable, contact a local licensed HVAC technician.

Open the condensing unit to expose the contactor.

Using a nonconductive implement (broom handle, etc.), push the contactor closed.

If the unit does not come on, it's likely time to contact a local licensed HVAC technician.

If it does come on, move to the next step.

Test the contactor control wiring

For these tests, you can pull the disconnect for the condensing unit.

Label and remove the control wires from the contactor.
Set the meter to measure AC volts.
Touch one probe to each of the wires you just disconnected.
Have a partner turn the thermostat to cooling mode, and reduce the set temperature until the unit starts to call for cooling.

Initially you should read 0 volts. When the thermostat calls for cool, that should jump to about 24 volts.

If everything to this point tested okay, it's time to contact a local licensed HVAC technician.


Can stove grates be repainted? I did a very dumb thing and put my cast iron gas stove grates in the oven during a short (2 hour) self-cleaning cycle. Not only did I melt off the rubber feet but the iron is now gray and ashy looking which won't come off with a scrubby. I tried to purchase new ones but the cost is prohibitive. (I did buy replacement rubber feet which were ridiculously priced too). Has anyone had luck with painting grates with high temp paint?  Any other suggestions? Thanks!

UPDATE 5/22 Before attempting to paint the grates, my husband rubbed them vigorously with fine steel wool, which removed the white ashy film. Although the tops are still a bit worn from daily use, at least the white film and greasy spots are gone and the grates look almost new.  I also replaced the rubber feet.  Thank you to those who responded.

You will need to use something other than your box store hi temp paints if you want really good results. They are more like Hi-temp Coatings than they are paints. Before Painting you will need to do a really thorough cleaning of them. Your preparation work is the HARDEST PART and the MOST important part of a good durable paint job. Anybody can squeeze a spray can - the prep work makes all the difference.  Take your time in the cleaning and PREP and you will have results as good as or better than a 'professional'.
A couple suggestions I have for you is to purchase something meant for hi-temperatures 500 to 1500 degrees
http://www.stovepaint.com/ .. although this says their paint is not for cooking surfaces or direct flame contact.
https://www.kbs-coatings.com/XTC.html


Why does my roof heater consistently trip the circuit breaker? I have two roof heaters, each on its own circuit. It's been about a month since I used them, but the last time they were switched on they both worked well.

This morning I switched them both on when it started snowing. One of them stayed on, but the other now immediately tripped the circuit breaker. That's happened intermittently in the past, and was resolved by resetting the circuit breaker. This time resetting the circuit breaker doesn't work. I reset the circuit breaker 5 times, and each time as soon as I turned the roof heater back on it tripped the circuit breaker.

Any idea how I can find out why this is happening, and how to fix it?

The breaker stays on before you switch it on, so the fault is in the heater.

These things can be damaged in a number of ways - squirrels may snack on them, ice may drag them around and cut them on a gutter, old age and sunshine may damage the insulation. I suspect the only reliable cure will be replacement, but you could (after snowmageddon 2017 is over - or what we used to call a nice normal snowstorm) look for any obvious faults (with the breaker off, please) if you are comfortable getting up to the roof, when you can do so safely.


How to cut already installed fiberglass insulation to add new recessed lights My basement has R-11 Kraft-faced installation already installed in the ceiling joists, stapled to the inside edge.  I'm planning to install a 6 of 5" or 6" recessed lights.

What would be the best way to cut out the insulation in order to make room for the can/housing?  The insulation is not as thick as the space is deep, so too much pressure will likely tear the paper or rip it out of the staples.

My top two thoughts are to try and carve out a circle with a standard knife and slide the can in with the brackets on the outside of the paper (would probably need to pre-wire before installing), or just try to cut out a section and then back-fill insulation after the lights are installed.  Not sure if there's an easier trick that I'm not thinking of.

If the basement is conditioned space, and what's above is conditioned space, the insulation is not doing much other than some possible sound reduction. (though if you don't cover it with drywall the paper may well play the role of fire hazard...)

If the fixtures ARE IC (insulation contact) rated, you can cut a hole that just fits. If they are NOT IC rated,you need to cut  considerably larger hole in the insulation and remove it, not "backfill" it. You can also do that just to simplify your life if there's no significant temperature difference between the basement and the space above it.


Is this product suitable as a solvent cement for abs pipes? I have this at home:
Glue

and I need to solvent-weld these abs drain piping:

pipe and elbow

Can I avoid purchasing solvent cement?
Or would that present some problem?

Thanks.

According to the marking on the tube it's rated for both EN14680 (Adhesives for non-pressure thermoplastics piping systems) as well as EN14814 (Adhesives for thermoplastic piping systems for fluids under pressure).
The product datasheet I found says:

  Tangit PVC-U is suitable for producing tensile stress resistant
  connections between pipes (e.g. drinking water and gas pipes) and
  fittings made of PVC-U* in compliance with the recommendations of the
  German Plastic Pipe Association.
  *PVC-U = rigid PVC

But - on page 2 it says:

  The recommended product for pipes made of ABS is Tangit ABS

My best guess is that it'll probably work sorta-kinda-ok-ish, but I wouldn't use your PVC-U on ABS pipes except as a last resort in a non-demanding application.


How can I remove the service cover on my refrigerator when the process stub is in the way? I would like to replace the power cord of an Electrolux refrigerator. Besides the compressor (HTK70AA) there is a small black plastic cover that needs to be removed to access the electrical connections (see page 2 of the linked datasheet, it is simply labeled as "Cover"). The cover needs to be slid out of its place, but unfortunately the process stub (the small sealed 3rd tube protruding out of the compressor) is in the way. I think the cover cannot be removed in any other way without breaking.

How can I bend the stub out of its place? I do not want to crush or break it. It appears to be made of steel and copper welded together, and the end of the copper part clamped.

I guess if I would start bending it at the copper part, the steel part wouldn't move much because it's harder, and I would only end up breaking the weld.
Bending at the steel part could work, but then I would have to either grab it with pliers (and risk crushing it), or start hammering it from the downside to bend it upwards (which again can crush or break the tube).
Maybe I could just grab the steel part with my fingers and try bending, but again I was afraid on ruining the tube and thus the compressor.

EDIT: The refrigerator is an Electrolux ERF2404FOW. Here is a photo about the situation:

Okay so the process stub is the location of where vacuum is pulled and the refrigerant is pumped in. The stub is then pinched off tight enough to seal it and then the line is cut and brazed. The copper is very flexible. The braze is stronger than the copper. The weak point is the steel-copper joint.

If you must bend it, do so at the copper portion. I personally would cut around it depending on what the condition of the joints looked like and the age of the unit. Copper work-hardens and the vibration of compressor and pressure changes from cycling is enough to harden the copper.

With all that in mind bending it and kinking it is not a concern because it no longer has any use.

Edit

Guangdong

As you can see here the stub is intact on replacement compressors. What happens is the suction and discharge lines are connected and the stub is used to pull vacuum, leak check and charge the system. It's then pinched off very tightly, the line is cut and pinched again at the tip and welded shut using silver phosphorus (SilFos). At that point it's a totally useless vestigial appendage. As long as it doesn't crack open, you could bend it over out of the way. Again the weak point is the connection at the compressor where the copper is fused to the steel. Disturbing any part of the refrigeration system is ill advised but as a last resort it is acceptable. It could result in a leak at which point you buy a new refrigerator because repairs on a refrigerator compressor are stupid expensive and likely to fail prematurely.


Can I use existing heater wiring to supply a sub-panel for two circuits? I'm converting an existing sauna room to infrared. It currently has one 240/30A circuit. I have two heaters and one power supply/controller. Before purchasing I believed the power supply would handle powering both heaters from one on input side, but now I know two circuits are needed (PS has 4 inputs/4 outputs)
Each heater is 13A. Rather than run a 2nd circuit from the subpanel (would be difficult), I am hoping to add a small sub panel to split the 30A into two 15A circuits. The 30A is already coming from a subpanel but I wouldn't be making any changes there.
Is this approach ok or do I need to run a 2nd circuit?

So L1/N1 - L4/N4 on input side, L10/N10 - L40/N40 on output side
240v/30A coming in. I'm getting from this conversation that I'll need to replace the feed side 30A breaker with a 40A or 50A?

If the owners manual/installation instructions say two 240v 15A circuits are required then you are good to go if you mount a new subpanel with two 240v 15A breakers. Those instructions are part of the NRTL Listing and override general NEC provisions.
If the instructions don't specify then IR saunas are normally considered "fixed electric space heating" which NEC 424.3 designates as continuous load, so circuits are calculated at 125% of nameplate. So the branch circuit from a new subpanel would need to be 20A.
For the feeder calculation there is a little, but very little, wiggle room, for the feeder for the new subpanel. Then general rule in 220.51 says the feeder is to be calculated at 100%, but then there is an exception that allows an authority having jurisdiction to allow reduction under cycling conditions. I doubt many local inspector would grant this permission.
Edit: Now seeing the nameplate says 10.4A, not 13A. Then 10.4 x 125% = 13A. It appears the 13A is the circuit requirement, not the actual heater draw. So two 15A receptacles on separate 15A breakers being fed by a 30 feeder should be fine.


Leak in wall behind push/pull bathtub faucet Have a push/pull faucet for our upstairs bathtub/shower, and it recently started leaking behind the shower wall and onto the ceiling below.

It appears to only leak when the faucet isn't pushed completely closed. Any idea how I can fix this? See images below.

I think it is leaking around that main escutcheon. Re-caulk around this escutcheon.  leave a weep hole at the bottom.


Toilet valve black rubber seal disintegrating I have an older Gerber brand toilet. The black rubber seal that looks like a Mason jar lid is crumbling and turning into black goo when touched. Is it easy to replace this? What is the purpose of this part? Will an American Standard one fit on a Gerber? Is there a way to keep these from disintegrating? Any help with information on this part would be appreciated. Thanks.

It's unclear exactly where this seal is without pictures, but in general they are all replaceable, ease of replacement varies (sometimes you have to take the tank off the toilet to replace seals), and you had better try to find one made for your specific brand/model of toilet, as between manufacturers there are often incompatibilities. An actual plumbing supply may have a better selection of parts than a big box store.

Some replacement seals are offered in a "chlorine resistant" rubber formulation (often red) but in general, rubber at 30-50 years old does simply tend to fail from old age. If you are one of those people that puts an extra-chlorine "toilet cleaner" in your tank, you might expect to have faster aging of rubber and plastic parts as a result. Even if you do not add extra chlorine, they do not last forever.


Water rising in my second sump pit but not the first We have lived in our home for over 3 years. We have 2 sump pits, each with a pump. The second pit is operated with a battery back up in case of power failures. Recently, we have found that the back up pump is going off every 3 hours or so. The primary operates only sporadically. I know we have water entering the pits normally during periods of no rain due to the water table but I am confused why this would suddenly start happening in the second pit.

Any insights?

water under a foundation is entirely unpredictable.  its governed by rainfall, tmemperature, soil moisture level, slope, etc.  there is absolutely no reason to worry if the pumps are running properly and doing there job, as there is no way to solve the problem (if there is indeed one) without just randomly trying different changes to any of the above.  this is all predicated on the fact that both pumps have been checked and are working fine.  if not, start there.


How do I choose a Home Inspector and Inspection? I'm purchasing my first house, and I'm researching into the inspection process.

I'd like to ensure a good inspection/inspector:

Reading reviews could be valuable, but given that defects may not reveal themselves until years later, reviews may just be based on how good their customer service was
Some sort of certification would be great, but my state (Utah) doesn't require any, and I have no idea if there is some sort of "standard certification"
There appear to be different types of inspection (I've heard of "general", "visual", or various topical ones like "mold" or "electrical").

How should I select a good inspector?  Does this matter, or are most inspectors pretty reliable?  Is there anything I should avoid?

I've recently been through this process, and here are a few things to look for.

Some home inspectors will use some more high tech equipment such as IR/Heat cameras and provide additional services like foundation level checking.  I saw some inspectors that offered free (short term) home warranty's with their inspection which can be a good added value.

Ask about additional services like Wood Destroying Insect inspection.  Some inspectors are licensed to do this work themselves, and some will have to call in a partner company to do that work.  Depending on the house and financing type this could either be a good idea, or a hard requirement.  If the home has a pool or detached building, these will be extra costs, and some inspectors may not be very good at pool inspection.  If this is a concern, find someone that claims to have experience with pools or whatever other unusual feature your home has.

I had an inspector say they couldn't inspect the roof because their ladder wouldn't reach...  They knew it was a two story house beforehand, so I was disappointed, but at that point I didn't really have any recourse or time to schedule another inspection.  Ask if they will be able to reach the roof or the attic or the crawlspace before you schedule them.

Finally, know that once you get your report, there will be quite a bit of stuff that they list based on their checklist that may not really be that important.  Know going into it that the report is going to be long and point out a lot of "technical" issues that may or may not be a big deal.  Their job is to point out all the small stuff, then you decide how much you care.  For instance, one inspector found a window that was a few inches too high based on todays code, but not the code when it was built.  I guess that's nice to know, but it really doesn't matter, and the whole "window" section of the report has a "deficient" mark on it for that one thing.


Electric water heater on water off 6 months will water heater be ok? Electric water heater is on but water main is off will this damage water heater if water is off 6months ?

Not having fresh water flowing through it won't cause any particular harm since the water will deposit all of its salts/metals early on and just sit the rest of the time, so long as water stays in the system.  However the right thing to do since the dwelling will be unoccupied (the only reason it's allowable to disconnect water service) would be to turn off the unit (use the breaker or fuse panel to do this) since leaving it on risks that the water will drain somehow (overpressure valve opens, etc) resulting in a fire hazard. Even better, turn off and then drain the unit, which should be a simple process for modern installations since a drain is nearby (per code) and the water heater will have an easy to use drain spigot.


Goldline/Aquarite Chlorinator electrical problem--what went wrong? I'm installing a Aquarite chlorinator, and something went terribly wrong!

As instructed by the manual for 110V installations, I removed the jumpers from terminals 2/3 and moved them to terminals 1/2 and 3/4. This is connected to the Load side of my 110V timer. The load side is also connected to the pool pump. I also ensured that the bonding wire on the bottom of the cabinet was connected to the bonding terminal on the back of the pump.

But when I flipper the timer manual switch to ON, I immediately got a loud BANG from the Aquarite cabinet, and it flipped the 60A breaker dedicated to the pump/timer/chlorinator as well as the 60A breaker behind it in the main panel.

The timer and pump appear unscathed by the ordeal, but the main circuit board of the Aquarite shows significant damage to at least the two red MOVs on either side of the terminal block (you can see the pieces and smoke in the photo below).

So, what did I do wrong? As far as I know, the circuit is 110V, not 220, and the instructions explicitly told me to connect the controller to the load side of the timer so it would not be running while the pump is off.

In the photo below, I wired red to hot (timer load), and black to neutral (unswitched). The corresponding wires in the breaker box are black and white, respectively.

UPDATE: Idiot electrician did not label the breaker as 220V. Idiot me assumed it was 110V. So that was the problem. Just confirmed with voltmeter.

Shot of electrical connections http://home.tallent.us/postedphotos/web-2011-03-26-152002.jpg.

You've already sorted this out, but the lesson here is simple: Don't ever assume anything.

Determining 220 vs 110 at the panel is fairly simple. You have a phase A and B in your house, which come from each side of the transformer. The transformer is center-tapped to ground, and this is your neutral wire.

"Voltage" is really just a measurement of potential difference between two points, and so if you think of it that way, the voltage between A and B is 220V, and the difference between A and neutral or B and neutral is 110V.

In your breaker panel, every other row of breakers is a different phase.

To get 110V power, you need a neutral wire, and a hot wire from either phase A or B (it doesn't matter which). So any single breaker, like #3, is only supplying 110V power.

To get 220V, you need one hot on phase A, and one on phase B, like the 220V breaker at the bottom right (#4/#5).

This picture also includes some tandem breakers (the one currently being installed is a tandem), in which case both circuits are on the same phase. That is, both #1 and #2 are on phase A. If you measure the voltage (potential difference) between #1 and #2, you'll get 0V.

Voltage between #1 and #4 is 0V, and between #3 and #5 is also 0V.

Voltage between #3 and #4 is 220V, since they're on different phases.

Note though, it's against code to use single circuit breakers to run a 220V circuit, since if the power trips, you want all the power to trip, not just one side (since that would leave 110V hot).

The other huge tip-off at the circuit is the wire colors (though again, never assume, always test). There aren't a ton of requirements for wire colors, other than two: white means neutral, green (or bare) means ground. If you use a white wire for something other than neutral (common in a light switch, for example), it must be indicated on both sides, usually by wrapping a piece of red or black tape around it. Black is hot.

The next most common color is red, which has two very typical meanings:
 * switched, which you'll commonly see in duplex receptacles where one is constant, and one is controlled by a switch
 * hot for 220V, which is the case here, where red is the opposite phase from black, to provide 220V.

To sum up:

In the panel, a double-sized breaker on the circuit means 220V
At the branch, not having a white neutral wire means you can't get 110V.


What is this technique for matching cabinet veneers called? Check out this picture of a kitchen cabinet:

Notice how the veneers of the cabinets match up perfectly! What's this technique called? My architect said we should just specify "book-matched veneers" but that doesn't quite capture what I'm seeing here where the individual cabinet and drawer faces appear to be cut out of a single piece of wood.

Those veneers are without doubt book-matched, but I would say in a very specific method, "Architectural end matching" (End or Butt Matching):

Matching between leaves

P.S. That is some top quality veneering, the attention to detail is almost pure art (the cabinet maker that did that work is an artisan).

This morning on twitter, I asked a few woodworking experts (at least I consider them experts) to take a look at your question:

My initial tweet
@WoodWhisperer initial reply
@MBWPodcast reply
@WoodWhisperer follow on reply
@RenaissanceWW reply


Wisconsin Basement Finishing questions Last year I decided to let my brother-in-law finish my basement.  After he finished the framing he moved away.  Now I have wood framing complete and nothing else.  He claimed he knew what he was doing, but after doing a lot of research I am finding that he may have been premature putting up the framing.  I've decided I'm going to finish the job myself but I have a few questions.

The previous owner put in a new basement about 20 years ago with metal support framing and all.  The foundation walls are block and covered with a few coats of Drylock.  In the 15 years I have lived there I have never seen water.

I'm starting to think foam insulation should have been put up on the inside of the foundation walls; between the framing and foundation.  I should be able to sneak the insulation in there since my brother did leave an inch of space.  Should I do this?  Is there any special type of insulation and/or adhesive I should use?

Am I right in thinking Foundation Wall->Foam Insulation->Gap->Framing->Sheet Rock?  Should I use moisture resistant sheet rock?  IS any other type of insulation necessary in there?  Is plastic vapor barrier necessary?

My brother-in-law also used green treated lumber where ever the framing touches floor.  Will that be sufficient against moisture?

Thanks for your help!!

There are no red flags that I see in your question.  I don't like drylocking walls that will be covered in basements for the simple fact that if water hits concrete I would rather it go through the concrete than sit in the concrete (where if it freezes then expands will help promote larger cracks).  But you have 15 years there and nothing so good for you and with that track record I wouldn't worry about it.

I would personally run roxul in joists and then down a good foot or two below grade, with no vapor barrier (you already have drylock).  So what you have is insulation that does well in basements with drylock on one side and probably a decent air gap on the other and below.  Would spray foam be better... maybe.  It might insulate slightly better but then it is a mess if you do have a problem getting electric/plumbing out of the foam.

Moisture resistant sheet rock?  It doesn't matter unless you are having a lot of water gun fights in your basement.  The greenboard protects moisture from getting in the front (a little).  Any long-term moisture from the rear will effect it like it would regular drywall.

Treated lumber?  Perfect.  He could have used treated lumber for everything but not required.

You sound like you are off to a good start.  If you have more questions let us know.


Poor quality suspended ceiling installation My home has a poorly installed suspended ceiling in my basement using 2'x 4' tiles with many tiles sagging and not attractive. I am not a fan of suspended ceilings. Is there a better ceiling choice that I should consider instead? Or should I invest in replacement tiles to improve the appearance? Many of the tiles sag or are discolored. I suspect they were probably installed in the mid' 70's.

Yes, there are several alternate ceilings that could be installed: 1) suspended ceiling with decorative panels, 2) gypsum board on suspended metal runners, 3) gypsum board applied directly to floor supports,

First, if the existing tiles have water stains (which turn brown) and sag, it could be due to a leak. You’ll need to find and fix the leak before installing a new ceiling.

1) There are many decorative suspended ceiling options. Here’s some options:  https://www.decorativeceilingtiles.net/suspended-drop-ceiling-tiles/

Or:  https://www.proceilingtiles.com/

2) Because your existing ceiling is suspended and you like a standard gypsum board ceiling (to match the rest of your house), you may need to suspended it on metal runners. Like this:
http://web.nwcb.org/CWT/External/WCPages/WCWebContent/WebContentPage.aspx?ContentID=98

3) The most common (and probably cheapest) is gypsum board applied directly to the bottom of the floor supports. However, if you have heating ducts, electrical wiring, etc. under the floor supports, then moving all that will be expensive.


What is the name of this tool that is used to clamp a piece of wood for drilling? What is the name of this tool in the picture?

It seems that the tool is used to clamp a piece of wood to a furniture to avoid cracking it when drilling holes? What precisely does it do?

It's a G-Clamp (or C-Clamp, or F-Clamp, or whatever other kind of clamp works) with a piece of scrap wood.
The clamp clamps the scrap wood to the back of your workpiece so that, when the drill bit pops through, it doesn't break the back of the workpiece but instead drills a neat exit hole.


Holes in drywall slightly too wide for screws I drilled with 3/8" still bit as instructed, but the holes seem too large for the screws. I'm wondering what the best fix for this would be. Fill the holes up with wood glue and toothpicks and screw into that, or widen the holes to place anchors in and screw in there? Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Putting screws directly into drywall, particularly the type shown in your photo, will rarely (if ever) work. The drywall is not strong or firm enough to hold screws without hollow-wall anchors of some sort.

You need to tell us more, however; if you want advice as to what sort of anchoring system you need. What is the reason you need to put screws in the wall?


Portable Air Filter Possibly Creating Black Dirt Everywhere UPDATED:
Hopefully this is a good place to put this. I figured someone might have an issue similar from project prep or HVAC issues. I have a Honeywell AirGenius 5 portable tower air filter. It has a washable filter and optional odor-reducing pre-filter (HRF-K2, installed). Apparently this is activated charcoal but never says on the product site or box.

My issue is there is this hardly visible layer of charcoal dust everywhere. But it is weird. It doesn't show up usually until I touch it. For example, pictured is my white dresser. It looked fine until I saw the very light and even tint of the dust on it. I took a wet paper towel and wiped it and results are pictured. If I were to rub my hand across it, it will leave black marks as if my hands were dirty but I assure they're clean. Is this charcoal lumping with skin oil? If I move furniture or items, there are outlines of black where items weren't.

Now I've had this since May. I never noticed any issue. I've washed the filter sets twice which just includes running it under water. Here's one thing I can think of. The pre-filter, I was under the assumption that it is also washable (my mistake) under water but instructions don't mention that at all. It does not mention not-washing it. The thing is, the dirt feels like it's pretty much stuck on there. I've tried household cleaners, dish soap, harder chemicals, and it's not moving. It ruined my one wall so I have to repaint it. This dresser is something i just got and now I might have to do major work on it. Even if it were say, charcoal dust, I feel like it shouldn't be acting like this. I've contacted Honeywell for assistance to no avail.

Does it make sense that this air filter may be doing it? I'm pretty sure it is it because I had it in one room and the dust was all over a nearby wall and furniture. And then moved it to the current room, and now this dirt has appeared there where it wasn't before. This is a recent problem. The first time I wash the filters was probably back in July and I didn't noticed the dirt until a week ago, when I moved it to the other room and the dirt appeared 5 days later. My next step would be contacting my apartment management to have my air filters checked. Could it be something else? I burn candles but they burn cleanly. I also burn incense but I haven't burned any for a while. Any advice on what to possibly try to remove this stubborn residue would be helpful too.

So my questions are:

Would washing an alleged charcoal filter cause the filter to deteriorate, dispersing charcoal particles everywhere?
Why would this charcoal be so hard to clean off? (I imagine dry dust wiping away easily)

I understand it may be bonding with skin oils but that still seems ridiculous
I will try a degreaser however

Anyone have a suggestion for cleaning the residue?

I am going to dispose of the current pre-filter and either use the replacement or not use it as it's optional.

Edit: I tried using a block eraser on the dirt and seems to have kind of worked, although not it's not ideal. I'll try more tomorrow. This dresser is made of wood with some sort of gloss finish like polyurethane. It's an Ikea Hemmes if I remember correctly. The drywall however, doesn't seem to have any luck so I'll repaint that. I have a Rubbermaid trash can that got the dirt on it and a simple paper towel and water took it right off.

So I was in contact with Helen of Troy, who manufactured the air filter under the Honeywell brand. Sent the unit in for testing and it turns out it was an ionization unit, which I look through multiple product pages in the manual and nothing in it ever mentioned that technology. So the test results concluded that certain particles in the air, but my guess is from burning Yankee Candles, would pass through the ionizer and then the dirt particles would stick to the candle soot and attach itself to surfaces. So if you like to burn things, don't use a portable air filter with ionization technology. Use one with replaceable HEPA filters.


Wood suitable for routing I recently took down undesired sliding doors (solid wood, of some variety) to put up bi-fold doors in their place. In looking at new bi-fold doors it occured to me that I might be able to put the detailing I am seeing in the new options, into the old doors and just buy the appropriate sliding hardware. This is preferrable for environmental reasons. However I am unsure whether there is wood that cannot be used with a router, similar to how manufactured wood is hard to reshape out of the form of it's manufacture.

Can anyone advise:

1) How one can determine wood type?

2) Any wood types that are probably best not to have DIY detailing put into them?

The first part of your question was addressed well over on woodworking.SE, at this link.

For the second part, there are a few reasons that I might not want to do a decorative detail on a piece of wood- 1. The wood and/or project isn't worth the effort, 2. The wood is hard on tools, or 3. The wood is hard on the wood worker.

Routing decorative detail can be a time-consuming process. I might need to create jigs or fixtures to guide the router. I might have to make a profile with multiple bits, each requiring set-up time. If the wood is especially hard, I might have to make a cut in multiple passes, sneaking up on the desired depth a little at a time.

Regarding #2- some woods (Teak, Cumaru e.g.) contain silica, and will quickly dull router bits that are used on them. I might limit the profile carved, or use an old bit that I don't mind sacrificing.

Regarding #3- some woods produce dust that can cause allergic reactions, and others (pressure treated, e.g.) contain chemicals that are harmful to people without proper protection.


what's the minimum depth of a wire channel in a concrete ceiling? I would like to install fans and and ceiling lights at different locations on a concrete ceiling and not have the wire or the conduit visible. I've seen previous posts recommending a trench as a solution and like this idea. Is there a minimum depth to the trench? (I also tried to find out if the OP of a similar question had successfully pursued any of the solutions offered but that query was deleted for some reason).

If you cut a "trench" in a concrete ceiling, you potentially weaken the strength of the structure. Not a good idea. Better to use already available surface mount wiring channel (trade name "Wiremold" for reference only) and if it bothers you, change your attitude about it. Or hide it beneath some architecturally unnecessary structure, like a faux beam made of stryrofoam and painted to look like the concrete (people sell this for that exact reason). Compromising safety for aesthetics is never a great plan.


scratch resistant matt black paint spray for chrome taps I would like to spray paint some chrome taps and other bathroom fittings matt black. I have seen matt black stove and bbq spray that I have heard is pretty tough and has the matt black effect I want. stoves online mentions this spray may need to be heat cured. Are there any other tips, or any other products or approaches that would be better?

The two approaches that might actually work (both rather expensive) are to replace the taps and fittings with factory black ones, or to send the ones you have now out for replating with a black nickel process.

Paint on chrome is a failure that usually does not wait to happen.

I guess there is the option of "Plasti-Dip" - a rubbery spray coating that is commonly used by auto enthusiasts to recolor and/or protect chrome parts - in a somewhat reversible manner (it can be peeled off.) Being rubbery it does not chip, and reports are that it holds up pretty well until deliberately peeled off. Here's a link (no association and I'm not really a fan of the stuff, despite being aware of it.)

http://www.eastwood.com/blog/tech-articles/plasti-dip-faqs-frequently-asked-questions-about-dipping-cars/


Sizing grounding conductor for multiple circuits in conduit If I have two sets of conductors (two unbalanced 120V circuits) in a conduit, can they share a ground wire and if so, is the ground wire sized by the minimum ground wire sizes for the sum of the ungrounded conductor areas?

For example, if I have two 20A circuits (12AWG UF) with both hots and neutrals in the same conduit, can they share a ground wire (10AWG, if my calculations are correct)?

Yes, and no.

The Equipment Ground Conductor for multiple circuits is sized for the largest circuit in the raceway. Sized from table 250.122 for the largest OCPD.

  250.122 (C) Multiple Circuits. Where a single equipment ground-ing conductor is run with multiple circuits in the same raceway, cable, or cable tray, it shall be sized for the largest overcurrent device protecting conductors in the raceway, cable, or cable tray. Equipment grounding conductors installed in cable trays shall meet the minimum requirements of 392.10(B)(1)©.

Additionally, the Code allows you to use the raceway, if it is metallic, as the EGC and save your money.

  250.118 Types of Equipment Grounding Conductors.
  The equipment grounding conductor run with or enclosing
  the circuit conductors shall be one or more or a combina- tion of the following:

  (1) A copper, aluminum, or copper-clad aluminum conductor. This conductor shall be solid or stranded; insulated, covered, or bare; and in the form of a wire or a busbar of any shape.

  (2) Rigid metal conduit.

  (3) Intermediate metal conduit.

  (4) Electrical metallic tubing.

  etc.

Lastly, if you have UF cable you don't need a raceway unless it is exposed to damage and it should already have an equipment ground wire in the cable.

Good luck with your project!


Free standing shed with single plane roof My shed/summerhouse build will be around 3m by 4m give or take. if I build it with a single plane roof, or shed roof. Will this put considerable load on the lower wall holding up the roof. The shed will have treated wood base on concrete slabs. Will the structure hold up the roof and hold it all together? it will be 2.5m high, I'm just worried as it won't be dug into the ground so then I assume the structure will need to be self supporting. And I don't know how to be sure that it is.

Do i need to do anything to make it more solid, or will it be fine?

The roof loading transmits straight down, so the shorter wall and the taller wall will be bearing exactly the same roof load. Shed roofs can leave the structure a bit more prone to racking, which is basically the tendency of a square to deform into a trapezoid:

You'll be fine if you do a couple of things.  First, sheath the walls with 4' x 8' sheet material (i.e. OSB) and not long boards.  This is the best anti-racking measure. Second, secure the bottom plate of your walls to the concrete slab with concrete anchors. The ones I like to use for existing concrete are wedge anchors or hammer-drive pin anchors. Finally, given your dimensions you will probably want to put in rafter ties that run level from the shorter wall to the taller wall to give a structural triangle:


Does thining wood filler make it crack when drying? I'm wrapping my structural beam and posts with 1"x "white wood" cut at a 45 deg and butted together to make my corners. well the problem is my crappy table saw and not so good table saw skills, Its not real bad but there are some areas that needed wood filler and most of them where pretty tight so I diluted the "plastic wood" (I think) putty with acetone. Every time I wait for it to dry and come back to it cracked and falling out, like its shrinking maybe?

Any help getting these gaps filled would be much appreciated!

For trim work that will be painted, use paintable caulk instead of wood filler. It does not crack and it is very tolerant of shifts in the pieces, both due to structural movement and seasonal swelling and shrinkage.

Wood filler is better suited to holes and divots fully contained within a single piece of wood.


Simple switch wiring Apologies if this is a stupid question, but I can't figure out a simple wiring setup. I have two simple switches controlling two separate lights, all on the same circuit, all in one electrical box.

There are three cables coming into the box. Left to right: First cable is WHITE & BLACK wires. Second is WHITE, BLACK, RED. Third is WHITE, BLACK. First two cables' black is joined together in a wire nut and then pigtailed into both switches (wirenut crimps 4 wires total). Red wire goes into switch one. All white wires are crimped together and are not connected to any switch.

See diagram below (note - I colored white wires in yellow so they could be seen on the drawing). Ground wires not shown.

My guess is that

white wires must be neutral rather than hot/switch legs as they are just wired together and don't go into any of the switches.
First cable with B,W wires is power in, as it is shared between two switches, and both switches operate independently (and control two separate lights).
Middle cable and cable on right (two and three) are load cables to lights.

So far run of the mill light switch setup, except for... WHAT IS THE BLACK WIRE IN THE MIDDLE CABLE? I would have expected the middle cable to only have two wires, with red wire being colored black.

My question is - do my assumption 1-3 look good to you guys, and 2) what is this third wire in middle cable that's connected to what I believe is HOT/LINE directly? Can recess lights be wired with LINE, SWITCH LEG, NEUTRAL?

Thank you!

If you are correct about where power is coming in at (a bit more likely than not, but you'll need to test it or open up the box the middle cable goes to if you want to be sure), then the black wire in the middle cable carries power onward to some other thing that is not switched (like another set of light switches, or some receptacle or outlet somewhere, maybe a smoke detector?).  If power is indeed coming in on the black wire in the middle cable (somewhat less likely), then the left cable is going off to another non-switched thing.


Accidental plumbing leak. How bad is this? What should I have my contractor do? I'm remodeling my 2nd floor bathroom and we are in the demolition phase. My contractor's plumber accidentally turned the main water on without checking the bathroom hot/cold lines. They were not capped. Water flooded into the floor  and started spilling out of the ceiling light fixtures on the 1st floor. I would say the water was on for about 60 seconds full blast. It appears there is water coming out of multiple places on the first floor.

Video

The above video was taken about 5 minutes after the water had been turned off. I have another video showing the leak right as it happened and it shows much more water flow.

I'm assuming we should take down the drywall in any wet areas to let it dry. The plumber said it wasn't a big deal and it will dry on its own. What should I do? How bad is this?

I'd give the contractor a chance to fix things. Your house isn't going to collapse into mold and mush over one event, but you do want to be sure that things are thoroughly dry and that there's no sagging of the drywall or severe warping of lumber.

I'd expect the contractor to have fans going in several places, especially in the ceiling joist cavities. I'd expect them to express real concern and a desire to rectify the situation.


What type and size plywood is appropriate to reinforce a box spring for 425 lb user? My boxspring is crumpled in pretty bad in one section and its causing back issues but i can't afford a new bed. i was told by the physical therapist to get plywood to stick between the mattress and box spring but i have zero clue what kind to buy. it needs to support the weight of the mattress but also me (425lbs) its a full size standard mattress and box spring on a regular metal frame where its open underneath.

Where is the damage in the box spring (middle/side edge/corner) and how much of it needs reinforcing?  If the damage is in the mattress with seemingly good supports all around, just about any plywood half inch or thicker is going to work fine for this purpose.  Since its going to be 100% non-visible, buy the cheap stuff.  If its on the edge or corner, half inch would probably still be fine but I would probably buy something thicker just for added durability.

As an alternative, and since this is a DIY forum, I feel I must mention that box springs are pretty simple structures and it would likely be pretty easy to just repair your current one.  They are mostly exactly what the name implies (a wooden box full of uncompressed springs covered with fabric).  I would encourage you to take the back covering off (its held on by staples most likely so its easy to re-attach) and assess the real damage.  Post pics of what you find here asking for advice if necessary but you are probably just looking at replacing a couple of broken 1x2.  Take a piece of the broken ones to the lumber yard with you to make sure you get the same kind of wood (or something with similar strength) and replace the full length of the broken piece (don't try to replace just a section of it).  If re-breaking is a concern, you can reinforce as necessary after the repair is completed or you could always add the plywood between the mattresses as well just for added assurance.


Electrical Service Run to 100A Sub-panel I have 2 x 240V 150A main panels next to each other in my house.

I want to install a 40A 120V breaker in each panel to feed a 240V sub-panel so I would have a total of 80A feeding into a 240V sub-panel.

Do I run a Neutral wire from each main panel and tie into the new sub-panel bus bar?

Do I run a bare copper wire from each main panel and tie it into the neutral bus bar?

You absolutely, positively cannot do that. Period.

Both hots and the neutral must all come from the same panel and one, only one, 2-pole breaker.

If you think you have a balancing problem, you could move some circuits around - but honestly, you'll want to get some help with that.  Seriously.


Contact surface between subfloor and joists I had to remove portions of the existing subfloor chipboard panels (18mm depth), which now I need to replace (I already bought a new P5 panel).

The problem is that one edge of the hole is irregular, and I'm worried that parts of the new chipboard won't have sufficient resting contact with the joists to provide enough support.
Particularly around the lower-right corner in the pics, where the exposed joist surface is really thin.

What is a good strategy in these situations? I would really want to avoid removing the surrounding subfloor.
Thanks]1

Just add (nail, screw, and/or glue) additional framing material to the side face of the joist to provide more bearing area for the subfloor.


Bosch cordless drill with burned MOSFET My Bosch PSR 14.4V cordless drill doesn't work properly. It always run on full speed, it's not possible to control the speed by adjusting the pressure on the power button. This means it can only be used as drill, not a screw driver. The battery indicator LEDs which normally show the battery level are flashing. It's probably an error code or something.

I have dissambled the drill and found what appears to be a burned MOSFET, see these photos:

https://goo.gl/photos/w3ETVzq6xG9LtnLy9

The first photo shows the burned component, the other one shows a close up of what appears to be a similar component with the text 95 48 04NG.

My questions:

I believe it is a 04NG MOSFET, but what does the other numbers mean?
Is it likely that the burned component is identical to the one in photo #2?
Should this MOSFET from Ebay be okay?
It it likely that other components are dead too?

The good (at least not burned part) MOSFET in your pictures I take it is the 04NG which is an N-channel MOSFET.  The added numbers on this parts markings have to do with various information like manufacture, location of manufacture, date or production line numbers.

As far as it being identical, I would suspect that not to be this case.  If they both were connected to the same location for the heavy sink buss terminal of that part then more likely they would be, but as seen they are connected to two different locations.  If you trace the blue wire and the white wire they likely go to opposite polarities on the battery.  This could be one is used forward and one reverse.

The one on EBAY could possibly replace the one that does not look burnt.  If the burnt one is the same yes it could work if it is instead the P-Channel version then no it will need the P-Channel version of 04NG.   The issue I see is parts sources like Mouser list 04NG as 40V but most are shown as 120amp units.  The EBAY unit is listed it as 30amp.  I would look for at least a 120A version for replacing.

There is always a chance other parts were damaged, it is a roll of the dice after a tech inspects for obvious parts and replaces those.  Before buying and replacing the obvious components check and see if there is a chance to buy the whole board cheaply.  If the board is close to the part only price you then can reduce the worry on some of the other parts on the board being bad.


Help me retrofit a closet in this room Here is the floorplan of our master bedroom:

Being a 1940s house, the closet [lower left] is woefully small at 3' x 2'. I'm thinking about a way to expand it. The obvious answer is to build it out along the length of the left wall, but there are some considerations:

The room dimensions are fixed - the notches in the corners match the
exterior walls.
The existing closet framing/walls cannot be altered - the room has the original wood floors, so the walls [also originaly plaster] have to remain in place as the floors don't extend underneath.
There is a retrofitted 10" x 4" duct along the left wall. It's not possible to move it, BUT I could extend to route somewhere else
Along the top kickout (the wall labeled 1' 3 1/4"), there is an electical outlet. There are no outlets on the left wall or in the existing closet. This can be tied into for closet lighting
All doors and windows have 4x1 trim around them (I drew these on the plan, though they're tough to see) (along top wall and right wall)
It would be nice (but not neccessary) to allow for some kind of built-in desk/vanity in the room, potentially along this wall.

So my initial thought was to remove the existing closet door and trim on the right side, and build a straight wall across the room (the dotted line). However, you can see that this comes too close to the front window. With the depth of framing and drywall, it would be too much. The minimum closet depth is 24". Shifting this wall back to 24" would allow it to clear the window just slightly, but would require patching over the existing door opening.

My alternate plan would be to build the wall out approximately to the end of the vent, then build a 45 degree wall to the kickout vertex. Im worried that this will be an obvious hack/retrofit.

Thoughts?

Why not build your closet wall along the dotted line, but end it at the inset near the window. Build a short return wall to the edge of the inset.

Then on the short wall to the left of the window, build in a bookshelf ceiling to floor that is slightly less deep than the closet wall (inset about 2-3") and just short of the window trim.  You could also build a companion bookshelf on the right side of the window to make it look symmetrical.

The small step back from the edge of the closet to the bookcase would likely look planned rather than makeshift. You also could have the edge of the closet rounded as it moves back to the bookshelves.  There are pre-made curved edges, called bullnoses, available for plasterboard that would make it fairly simple.


Do I need ledger board when expand deck? I have a deck like below and I want to expand the direction where the arrow shows (sorry for an ugly photo).

Do I need to put a ledger board right on the trim joist, or can I just hang the new joists right on the same trim joist?

The purpose of a ledger board is to give you surface onto which you can nail/attach the rest of the deck (and flashing to keep water out of a house- usually). Your question is, do you need it for attaching two decks.

I think the answer to this is a decision for personal convenience, tools, or need. I personally don't undersand the use of a ledger board here (as far as straight forward construction goes). Suppose you add a ledger board, then what? How would you attach the deck? How does it help you to build this deck? I think it would help you to write the steps out.

What if you didn't use a ledger board? Would you want to offset the new joists, so that you can nail through the old rim joist or will joist hangers be enough to hold the weight? Where are the new joists being supported? If you don't offset the joists, will the nails from the new hangers run into existing nails from the old hangers or joists?

Or if you build the new deck a few feet away, how difficult would it be then join the two rim joists (join two whole deck frames)? What would be required? An extra rim joist board (of course), some lag bolts, jacks, maybe a come along, pinch bar, and some large hammers. Is this a feasible option? Is it easier? At that point you might look at the second rim joist, and call it a ledger board... although I don't know if it's right to call it that.

You could also consider removing the old rim joist, lapping/sistering the old and new joists, and cutting the old rim joist into blocks. This would allow you to set the new joists on the old support beam. I know the picture from your question is not your deck, but essentially, you need support under the new joists, and adding another support beam (probably) not far from the old one isn't exactly elegant.


how do i buy a replacement hinge? I am trying to replace a broken hidden furniture hinge and cannot find a hinge that matches. How does one find a specific atypical hinge?
The following pictures are of a not yet broken hinge.

I think your best bet is to look into woodworking stores. Machinery, specialty cutters/blades/etc are what they are known for, and many even deal in furniture hardware. Maybe checking a place like Rockler should be able to point you in the right direction if they cannot help you out directly. A simple Google search for woodworking stores and hidden hinges should also give you a pretty good start.


Selecting wood decking for stairs When purchasing wood for a deck, what is are the questions / process used to properly select wood for stairs and the landing area:

The photo shows new planks installed with older planks, weathered by the Florida sun.  The details (paint / stain / etc) of the older planks are unknown.  The new planks were cut to match the old planks.
When all is said and done, a decision must be made at Home Depot (or the like) and decide which plank of wood to be purchased.  I would think  dimensions are set, however, any guidance regarding any other decision points are appreciated.  Thank you

Durability.
Appearance.

The end. :)
I suspect that you're asking what to use in your particular case. That looks like painted pressure-treated SPF (spruce/pine/fir) in 5/4x6 (five quarter by six inches--about 1" by 5-1/2" actual). It's very common. Be sure to let it dry adequately before painting.
Some brands call that "solid color stain", but to me anything that doesn't penetrate the wood and peels like that is just glorified paint. Anyway, look for that type of product to match what you have. If you're replacing it all consider the pre-stained "cedar tone" variety.


Off Grid PV System Grounding Question Hi I am installing an off grid solar system form my orchard and shed. Basically there are some pumps, lightning and some household appliances like refrigerator etc.

I have read many articles about grounding/earthing, I know what is EGC and GEC are but I cannot figure out the proper way of grounding my equipment.

I have attached a very crude drawing (sorry for my paint skills). From what I understand I have to connect all bare metal parts together with a copper conductor and connect that to Neutral Line (this is EGC). Also I have to connect the neutral to the earth through an electrode (this is GEC).

It puzzles me since if a lightning strikes to the metal frame of the pv array, all the EGC since all metal parts of all appliances plus the neutral line will be momentarily raised to the voltage of the lightning strike ?

Also if a lightning strikes to a conducting cable like the cable going to the motor the SPD will close and again the EGC voltage will be raised to lightning potential ?

If someone could point out the following questions I will be grateful.

1)There are 8 grounding points in the drawing. Which of them should be bond together ?
2) How many grounding rods I need ?
3) Where should I connect the Neutral Line to the Grounding Rod ?

First off you should tell us where you are on the planet in order to get accurate answers.

1)There are 8 grounding points in the drawing. Which of them should be bond together?

All of them should be bonded so that they are at the same potential.

2) How many grounding rods I need?

There should be a minimum of one ground rod per location and possibly two. If all this equipment is in the same location two should suffice. If it is spread out over a large piece of property then I would judiciously add more rods. There is no exact answer here.

3) Where should I connect the Neutral Line to the Grounding Rod?

As close to the main service panel as possible.

Good luck!


How do I repair this soffit flashing thing? So I just bought a house. Woo. But I know nothing about handy man stuff. Boo.

Below the roof soffit is a metal strip that had fallen or been wild-animal-peeled off which I knew from the inspection. Haven't rushed on it because frankly I don't know what to do and figured a few weeks won't hurt.

So, my question; it doesn't look like flashing to me because my understanding is flashing has a lip underneath something and a lip outside, this I believe just was placed in the corner of the soffit running along the wall/soffit crease to seal that crease from intrusion.

How do I place this back on; is it by nailing into studs? Screwing into studs? Taccing onto the siding? Caulking into place?

If it's not flashing, what is this strip called? Am I rambling nonsense to which that strip might be several different things and it's not clear from my description what it is?

Its just trim molding, to hide the cut edge of the soffit where it abuts the wall.

It should be re-attached for both appearance and critter protection.  You can add some foam insulation, which will help seal the edge.

A bead of exterior caulk, then the molding, then another bead if there are any gaps in the molding-to-wall or molding-to-soffit,

Use 1" to 1 1/2" hot-dipped galvanized 4d finishing nails and try to hit structure underneath.  If you are a tool hound, this would be a good time to get a small air compressor and an 18 ga finish nailer.  Tell your wife you can inflate her tires and the kids basketballs/footballs.  I've expanded from 18ga nailer to 15 ga nailer, crown stapler, 16d framing nailer and strip flooring nailer, all with the same pancake compressor.


GFCI not tripped, but no current downstream I have an outside shed with a non-GFCI outlet and a light fixture. Only the light is controlled by a switch. The shed is wired off of an outside GCFI outlet. Everything, including the outlet, was installed about 3 years ago.

In the last few weeks, turning on the light switch in the shed gives light for about a second, then both the light and the outlet inside the shed are dead. The switch and light are both downstream from the outlet, which also loses power. However, the GFCI is not tripped. Anything plugged into it continues to receive power and testing/reseting it works normally, except the shed often remains without power. Sometimes waiting a while and then testing & reseting the GFCI outlet will return power to the shed. When the GFCI is tripped, there is never power to the shed, so I think it is wired correctly.

Is it likely the GFCI that is to blame (and should I try replacing it?) or some other issue with the wiring?

You're going to have to inspect each junction and device in the circuit, starting with the first know bad device.  It sounds like you have a GFCI in the house, which feeds a receptacle in the shed, which in turn feeds a switched light in the shed.  Since the receptacle in the shed is the first know bad device, you'll want to start there.

Turn off the power at the circuit breaker. Pull the receptacle out of the box, leaving the wires connected. Inspect the wiring for loose connections, and fix any found.  If there where no loose connections, you'll want to determine which wires entering the box feed the receptacle.  If this is not obvious, you'll have to do some testing.  For this you'll need a multimeter with a continuity function.  Disconnect one of the neutral (White) wires from the receptacle, set the multimeter to test continuity, touch one probe to the equipment ground, touch the other to the disconnected neutral, then to the still connected neutral.  If one tests positive (audible tone, or reading on display), that is the feed line.  If neither or both test positive, you'll have to do testing with the power on (which I won't cover here since it is unsafe, and you should call an Electrician at this point).

Now that you've found your line wires, reconnect the neutral to the receptacle.  Leave the receptacle out of the box; making sure nothing is in contact with the edge of the box, then turn the power back on.  Turn the light on in the shed. If it goes out, use a non-contact voltage tester to test for voltage. If you have voltage on the line but not the load, replace the receptacle.  If you have voltage at neither point, run similar tests on the GFCI receptacle.

If you have voltage on the load side of the GFCI, but no voltage on the line side of the receptacle in the shed. You'll have to inspect the wires connecting the two devices. Start by shutting off the power, at the breaker. Next disconnect the load wires from the GFCI, and the line wires at the receptacle.  Run a continuity test between all combinations of the wires, none should test positive.  Finally connect one pair of wires at one end (so in the shed, twist the black and white wires together), do a continuity test on the other end to make sure the circuit is not open.

If all of this has been done, and the problem persists, you'll want to contact an Electrician.

As always, if you don't have the proper tools, or you don't feel comfortable doing any of the work mentioned. Do not hesitate to contact a local licensed Electrician.


Load Beam Sizing/Calculator Help I would really appreciate some help with determining the size of beam needed for a new project and would prefer to keep a lumber yard out of it for now as they'll almost always price you up.
I can't seem to dial in these load beam calculators and don't want to assume that I have it right. I currently have 2 2x8 pine ready for the project as this is what was referred by a contractor friend.
Might anyone be able to help me determine the size of the beam(s) needed for this space?

The beam would need to span 11' 3"
This is an interior wall that divided two rooms, opened up to make one big room
Lead bearing wall with joists spliced above where the beam would be placed
Center bearing roof with no trusses
This is on the second level, attic with storage, roof and 20-25psf snow load
Will 2 2x8 pine suffice, or 3 ply 2x8, or an even larger dimension?

Thank you in advance!

You’ve given most of the required information in order to size the beam. I’ll assume some dimensions and you tell me if I’m wrong.
This beam is on the second floor and only supports the roof. The roof load is comprised of Live Loads (snow load and attic storage load) plus Dead Loads (joists plus ceiling finish, plus insulation plus light fixtures, etc.)
You have indicated the snow load is about 20-25 lbs. per square foot (psf). I’ll use 25 psf. You didn’t give the span of the roof joists that rest on this wall, but I’ll estimate 12’ each side. Therefore, if half the span rests on the outside walls, then the remainder rests on the wall. So, 6’ on one side + 6’ on other side of beam = 12’. Then multiply by 25 psf snow load = 300 lbs. per linear foot (plf) snow load on beam.
The required Live Load is 10 psf in attic.  So, 10psf x 12’ = 120 plf live load on beam.
You also indicated that the roof structure rests on this wall and it’s not a truss. The Dead Load of roof framing AND ceiling framing is about 20 psf. Therefore, 20 psf x 12’ = 240 plf on the beam.
So, the Total load is 300 plf + 120 plf + 240 plf = 660 plf on beam (assuming the roof joists and ceiling joists span about 12’ each side on the beam).
So, in order to span about 11’-3”, you’ll need 6-2x8’s or 3-2x10’s or 2-2x12’s. All are pine (per your direction) with a grade of No.1 or better.
If you use Doug. Fir, then you can reduce it to 5-2x8’s with a grade of No.2 and better.
Use two trimmers at each end and make sure there’s a support (something that equals 2 trimmers) under each end all the way down to the footing.
Sizing the footing is another issue. You’ll need to make that a separate question.
If the wall does not have plywood on it to connect the beam to the trimmers, I’d use a metal post cap connector like Simpson ACE series and a metal post base connector.