How many ceiling fans and switches can I put on one breaker I have a person that wants to wire in four light boxes and four ceiling fans with switches and I need to know if I can run all four of them safely from one breaker and if so what kind of breaker? This question may be absurd but I just don't know the answer to it. I do home improvement work for a living at least I have the good sense ask a question before I even attempt something I don't know about. needless to say I have not done a lot of extensive wiring. I have put up plenty of ceiling fans and even ran one circuit very short distance in a garage from a breaker panel and I knew to have the proper testing equipment and to take my time and to ask questions if necessary and also most importantly to have the proper tools and some basic knowledge of how to use them. Also, do I have to run the wire through conduit in the attic?

There should be no problem running 4 ceiling fans on a single 15 ampere circuit, though it will depend on what else is on the circuit.

Say a 52" fan is 90-100 watts (at high speed), plus three 60 watt bulbs. That puts each fixture at 280 watts or so. Which means four of them, would be 1120 watts.

A 120 volt 15 ampere circuit, can supply 1880 watts (120 volts x 15 amperes = 1880 watts). Some folks will argue that you should only load the circuit to 80%, so that would be 1440 watts for a 120 volt 15 ampere circuit. Which even so, is still enough to supply the fixtures.

Note: the values used in the answer are an estimate, for example purposes only.  Check the listed wattage for the devices you'll actually be using.


Replacing lighting in a 3 way switched hallway with motion detected lights I have a hallway that makes a 90` turn and there is a wall switch at each end of the hallway.  There are 2 ceiling lights, one in each section of the hallway.  They are not visible from each other.  The existing lights are controlled by 2 3-way switches.  I want to replace the 2 lights with motion activated lighting.  Once installed, I rarely would use the actual wall switches and just let the MA lights do the work.  What options do I have to do this and what issues could I encounter?  Would the existing wiring work if I don't plan to alter the switches once installed?   Thanks.

Have you considered swapping out the 3 way switches with motion activated 3 way switches? Maybe you want to replace the fixtures bc they are ugly or outdated, but if not, this might be a viable alternative.   Some do not require a neutral so should work in most cases.


Bath and sink connected on same pipe - bath gurgling when sink emptied The bath and sink are connected to the same pipe as shown on schematic below - pipe has a gradient downwards towards the main pipe (yes, I have found some people fit it with an upward gradient!).

When I empty a bucket into the sink or empty a full sink, the bath starts gurgling or burping, sending water through the waste outlet into the bath. Note there are no blockages anywhere in the system.

Is there anything that can be done to prevent this without connecting all bath components directly to the main pipe?
Can multiple bathroom sinks, baths, showers etc. share a common drain pipe and if so, are there any rules?

UPDATED SCHEMATIC after posting to show toilet - this works fine and does not cause any problems to the sink or bath when flushing.

1:Can multiple bathroom sinks, baths, showers ect share a common drain pipe ?
Yes they can and do all the time.

If so are there any rules? of course there are the International Plumbers Code being one of them - and depending on what other rules your locality has adopted.

Now on to your issue :

Did this problem just start (on previously working system)?
Is any of it new construction ?

Potential Causes:

Your drain from sink to drainage pipe is partially blocked!
Your vent is is either blocked or partially blocked!

Solutions:

Run a plumbing snake down the pipe towards the sewage drain.


Attaching a ledger board - only partial rim joist Last year I removed the rotting deck that was on the back of my house and this year I am replacing it.  The previous ledger board was bolted directly against the shingles in the position indicated by the red lines.  I was intending to place the new one in the same location.

Today I planned to attach the flashing and ledger board.  I removed a double-layer of cedar shingles, the tar paper beneath them and the fiber board under that - and was surprised to discover I was looking into my house.  I moved further and found a rim joist that covers part of the floor joists, although it doesn't look particularly sturdy and is between the joists rather than capping them.

Any thoughts on how I should proceed?

I can remove further shingles, but I didn't want to make the hole bigger until I had a better understanding of what to do.

The way I see it, you have two options to make things correct:

put blocking between them and a header joist over them to tie it together (It would be the equivalent of a 1-1/2 inch cantilever).  But you'd have to deal with siding over the little bump-out
cut back the joists 1.5 inches and put in a rim joist and splice it to the other joist with a tie plate.  Cutting back the joists will be a real pain.

I'd be tempted to just put in the blocking and sheet over it with something pretty good like half inch laminate, however I'm pretty sure that wouldn't pass an inspection.


How can I find a sink that will fit where an old sink was? We wish to rid ourselves of an 'American Standard Americast' kitchen sink and go with an over-the-counter sink.  We have a granite counter top that cannot be changed and therein lays an issue as the current opening is "set in stone."  The current sink, 'Americast' model number 7145, has become scarred and ugly in appearance even after being treated with a paint to recover its original look.
The sink has two unequally sized bowls; the left side being the 'deep end' and the right side being the 'shallow end.'  The current opening measures 29.5 inches wide, 18.5 inches on the 'deep side' height, 16 inches on the 'shallow side' height, with rounded corners, and the bend of the granite top centered at 21 inches in the transfer from shallow to deep.  There are four openings for the faucet, water control, soap, and spray attachments that are 2.25 inches back from the shallow-end edge.  Measuring from the left, the openings are at the 10.5, 14.625, 18.875, and 22.875 inch marks.
Question is "where do I find a replacement overmount sink without having to order a customized sink from a manufacturer?

"Farm Sink" solution to your problem is to replace sink with a Farm Sink or get your old sink refinished at a used appliance store


AC "Dirty Sock Syndrome" smell went away, is it actually fine? My AC has started to turn on with the warm weather and with that I've been smelling a gross musty sour smell coming from the vents (only when it cools and not when heater is on). I last changed the air filter in January and had gotten all my AC ducts cleaned last fall. However, I had an AC Duct Cleaning company come today to inspect and the AC didn't smell anymore! That's so weird because it had been smelling bad the last 3 times it ran!
He said that if there is no smell anymore, then it isn't mold and was likely the smell of the condensation dripping from the piping so I don't need to do anything. He didn't even inspect anything because he said there'd be no point with no smell. He told me to not run the heater tonight and run the AC again tomorrow to see if there's a smell. If no smell, it's fine and if there is a smell, then they'd go in to clean it.
I wanted to get a second opinion on whether it's fine to just leave it if the smell magically disappeared or if I NEED to get the coils cleaned? I've called several AC companies and I get such different answers from each of them it's hard to know what is the "right" thing to do. One said to install an iWay filter into my unit, another said that I'd need my whole AC unit replaced.
Has anyone else encountered the musty smell going away on its own?

It is a simple case of dirt in your evaporator getting wet.
You now know more than either of the idiots you had come out and check your system. This should have been done on the first call!!!
You can go to most home stores and get aerosol cans of coil cleaner to spray on the coils (the ones inside close to the air handler. The coil usually has a access panel just for this reason.
While you are at the store pick up some condensate pan sanitizer tablets or strips to put in the pan these also help to prevent mold in the pan.
The smell comes from dust and mold collecting on the coils and fins. When the ac is running these get cold and condense moisture out of the air , dirt, mold and water with air blowing over it. Very commonly said to smell like dirty socks. Search this site and you will find a few additional references.
Get new HVAC guys and if you decide to fix it and have success call the company and complain then the BBB as this is really simple.


How do I fix window jams that are not even with drywall? We recently bought a house that was in the midst of a remodel. The PO had replaced 80% of the windows but had not gotten to the trim. The issue I have is the jam does not match with the drywall. In some places it is even but mostly it is 1/4-1/2" below the drywall grade. I can build and install jam extensions but on 1/2" of the windows, the grade varies from being even to 1/2 below from top-to-bottom of the window.

Do any contractors have any tricks to fixing this? What would you do?

A buddy of mine does trim work for a living.  In the place we re-modeled, he did much of our trim work, and like the OP, we had many jams that were not parallel nor flush with the walls.  What he ended up doing is to extend the jam in order to split the difference (i.e.- at maximum the jam was 1/8" past the DW, at minimum, 1/8" behind).  Then he had a few tricks to get the trim installed-

For areas where the jam was slightly short, he would take a razor blade, and score the drywall about 1/4" in from the edge of where the trim would sit, then take a hammer, and punch down the DW even with the jam.  So the outside edge of the trim would be on intact DW, but under the bulk of the trim the DW was smashed down.

In areas where the jam was sticking out too far, he would do one of two things- in most of our rooms we were painting the trim, so he would use a paintable caulk behind the trim to seal it against the wall, then use a piece of square wood dipped in some soapy water to make the caulk flush with the trim.  After painting over it, you can't see where the trim stops and caulk starts.

For the one room with stained maple trim, he shimmed behind the trim when cutting the miters, and played with the thickness of shim until the trim would "rock back" against the drywall but still meet up with the trim it was mitered against.  This seemed much more an art than a science.

Overall, the process is not easy, and I doubt I would be able to duplicate the quality of his joints, for the exposed wood trim with jams extending past the drywall.


Water pressure low due to small pipes - any options? I bought a house and found out too late that it appears the entire upper floor is supplied from one small pipe. So if you flush the toilet or wash your hands while someone is in the shower, they get burnt (cold water pressure drops, only hot water is left coming).

I know nothing about plumbing, but I was wondering if I have any options to fix this. Replacing the piping seems out of the question as it would require opening walls, floors, the lot.

My main concern is the shower. If the sink flows slightly less, or the toilet needs longer to fill back up - that's fine with me. But I'd like to take a shower without warning everyone not to use the toilet.

But what, exactly, are my options?

Edit: Additional information:
I'm on city water. The house is about 5 years old, so pipes aren't old. The previous owners simply put in too small pipes.

It sounds like your shower valve does not have an anti-scald valve installed to protect people from this problem.

You could replace the shower valve with an anti-scald valve.
You could add an anti-scale valve in the lines going to the upstairs.

These solutions will not bring more water to the bathroom though. When someone flushes the toilet you will still get low flow to the shower. To solve that you need bigger pipes or raise the existing water pressure in the system. So...

You could replace the main lines feeding the upstairs with larger pipes. The small pipes in the walls feeding each fixture could be skipped. It is the main supply that is mostly restricting your flow. Especially if it is old corroded galvanized pipe. The corrosion could seriously restrict the flow.
You could increase the pressure if you are on a well. (This brings with it the hazard of creating leaks where there were none before) If you are on city water then you don't have this option.
You could do a combination of some of the above to achieve your goal.

I would recommend adding the anti-scald valve in a convenient location. Adding it to the shower may require removing a tile wall if you don't have an access panel, this would be very expensive. In that case I would add an in-line valve in the supply lines. I would also increase the size of the supply lines to increase your supply flow. After both of these, your problem should be nearly eliminated.

Good luck!


What brand is this 3-handle tub faucet set it? I'm looking to replace the current tub & shower faucets but need to know the right brand!

If you are, indeed, replacing the entire faucet, it does not matter what brand they are - only the spacing matters assuming you need to match the existing holes in the wall. If you are repairing the wall, you may simply replace them without concern for the current brand or spacing.

If you are replacing internal parts (only) then it might matter.


Reducing a 3/4" Male Flare to a 1/2" Male Flare I currently have 1/2" hose and female flare fittings that I need to connect to a larger 3/4" flare. I went to a local plumbing supply store and the set of parts they gave me seems a little excessive and over-complicated (see pics below)-- most importantly it's more prone to leaks.

Is there a better way to go about this? I feel like there has to be some kind of "3/4" to 1/2" reducing adapter".

You've got the 3/4" flare x 1/2" NPT hex nipple, round backwards. The flare end should go in the swivel nut on the far right of the first photo, while the National Pipe Thread (NPT) end should go in the coupler between the two flare hex nipples.

From left to right, it should go 1/2" flare x 1/2" NPT hex nipple -> 1/2" NPT coupler -> 1/2" NPT x 3/4" flare hex nipple -> 3/4" flare swivel nut.

To do this in one fitting, you'd need a 1/2" flare x 3/4" flare hex nipple. But I don't think they make those.

Just make sure you use pipe dope on the NPT threads, you tighten all the connection enough but not too much, and you pressure test all the connections.


What to do with wires from old outdoor light? I'm permanently removing an old stair light from a porch.  I've disconnected the fixture but the wires come from the house through a hole in the wall.  So now I have about 2 feet of wire hanging from the wall under the porch. I've put wire nuts on the end but that doesn't seem like a permanent solution. What should I do with it?

There's two "proper" solutions. First, you could install a box rated for the location (dry, damp, wet). Terminate the wires in the box, and install an appropriate blank cover.

The other option is to find where the wires originate, and disconnect them. Then you can either tuck the wires back into the hole in the wall, or if possible remove the wires altogether.


Low Height Deck Joist Support Options on Concrete I'm looking to add a wood/composite deck over an existing concrete slab that has heaved/cracked and looks unsightly. We've only owned the house for a year so I don't have the full history but we have resolved some drainage issues that I assume caused the cracked slab in the first place. Now we'd like to create a more visually appealing back patio.

Some quick info:

Slab size = 12' x 14'
Slab thickness = 4"
Slab is covered by overhanging shingled roof with eaves
Vertical clearance to sliding door threshold  = ~2-1/2"
Slab heave = 3/4" ~ 1" at the center of the slab

Option 1:

I've considered floating deck tiles directly on top of the slab but I'm concerned about the slab not being level enough for this, and also about how well the floating tiles will hold up over an Ontario winter.

Option 2:

The second option is to lay down some 2x2 joists (16" OC) and put cedar/composite decking on those. This is my preferred method but I'm not sure what the best way to support the joists is. I'm thinking of using plastic shims to level & support the joists and some steel angle brackets to secure joists to slab.

I haven't seen any information on how much unevenness can be tolerated by floating tiles, so if anyone has experience with this that would be great. Otherwise, I'm mostly looking for suggestions on how to best support the 2x2 joists that the decking will sit on.

You are going to building a series of joists that presumably terminal at rim joists and then shim this floor assembly level.  Are you putting plywood on top of it so that your tiles sit on the plywood?

If you make a 12'x 14' floor assembly out of 2x2 joists with rim joists and this is for the most part sitting on the ground, you could shim with composite shim or make your own from decking offcuts.  Another option is you could use a non-shrink structural grout in any space between the joist and the slab and use get a mortar bag to apply it.  If the heave in the slab is making the assembly not level chip/grind it out.

Your deck is covered, the concrete base is porous, assuming water is not pooling under the deck in a storm I don't think you have to worry too much about drainage.  If the water has previous pooled on the concrete then you might want to worry more about it.

To keep the shims in place you could either use the grout or use an adhesive (PL Premium).  Direct contact between the PT 2x2 and the concrete is fine assuming there is no puddling of water.


What is considered "servicing" for NEC 225.30? I previously asked a question (Grounding subpanels located ~100ft from main breaker) where I was informed of NEC 225.30, which states that a building

  [...] shall be supplied by only one feeder or branch circuit [...]

It sounds like this code exists to ensure that each building has a single breaker or disconnect method that disconnects the entire building.

How does this relate to a building which has a main breaker panel that feeds multiple subpanels? For example, if I have a 200A main panel with two 100A breakers, each feeding a 125A subpanel (with no main breaker, only branch circuit breakers), do the main panel and subpanels all need to be on the same building, or can the main breaker panel be located close to the meter (on a separate building) with the subpanels on a different building?

Functionally, there is no difference between the two setups, except physical location of the panels. In both cases, there is a single breaker that will disconnect both subpanels.

Running two feeders to one building for electricity is silly -- you can get the job done with one.

There is basically no reason in this day and age to run multiple feeders to a building in the fashion you are describing.  Even if you are using multiple subpanels, you can have all of them fed from a single feeder using the feeder tap rules in 240.21(B) -- both (B)(1) and (B)(5) apply to your proposed application.

In a typical setup for this, the feeder conduit runs up to an auxiliary gutter (if you can't find an aux gutter, it's really another name for a wireway -- think fiddle vs. violin). This gutter runs over the top of the panels physically and contains the tap splices (think screw lug terminals), while the tap conductors run through conduits down to their respective subpanels.  You do need a sub-main in each subpanel to do this though, but consider it a small price to pay for only having to pull once.

As to wire size -- the taps can be sized to match the sub-main overcurrent protection devices provided they're more than 10% of the size of the feeder being tapped, while the feeder itself should be sized to provide the needed ampacity to both subpanels.

Also, the panels need to be next to each other as this setup technically falls under the "rule of six" in 225.33 (this is 225.34).

Don't tear out the other pipe if it's already there, though

However, if you already have the second conduit trenched in, leave it there!  It's handy as a convenient place to stuff phone, network, CATV, or other sorts of low voltage wiring, and you can simply reroute its ends to go wherever they need to with some conduit work.


Putting PT Piers in Ground I'm building an attached deck and have already buried precast piers in the ground.  Unfortunately, I had to dig so deep that the tops of the piers are below finished ground level.  I'd rather not bury the 6x6 posts.  The tops of the piers are 8"x8". Should I use sonotubes and pour concrete on top of the piers (assuming I can jury rig round sonotubes on top of a square pier top) to bring the piers above ground level?  How about putting a post sleeve around the post to keep it away from the soil?  I know metal and today's PT lumber aren't friendly with each other, so could I use plastic sleeves?

Without seeing the plans and what kind of precast piers you have - I would say that I'd pour more concrete, with some rebar drilled and epoxied into the precast piers and the new concrete poured over to join them both.

Then set stand-off post bases into the new concrete for the PT posts.


Plumbing/Electric in same sleeve Can a plumbing drain and an electric wire be run in the same 4" sleeve between floors. Not sure of code requirements.

I don't know of a requirement to separate them & haven't had an Inspector ever say anything, they always cross paths & run the same path somewhere. Of course, separate would be best for everything.

The only possible Code that might be violated is a floor penetration that isn't fire blocked & sealed. Depends if it was done prior to that part of The Code.

You can stuff (tightly pack) it with Rockwool or Mineral-Wool Insulation to address that for big gaps. Fire Caulk burns, but The Code has it as it's blocking of choice for small gaps or an overall smear seal of everything...the thicker the better with that stuff.


How to reduce ear splitting intercom noise? My landlord replaced our fancy intercom system to a cheap one, I am guessing because of maintenance. The new one does not have any controls and I am trying to reduce the noise of the buzzing or, if possibly, replace it with a compatible one that allow for reducing the volume. The pics below show the model and the wiring:

The quick-and-dirty solution: place tape over the speaker grille. The 2" wide clear tape used for packaging/boxes provides a nice balance of muffling the sound while remaining visually unnoticeable on excessively loud childrens' toys; it'll probably do well here too.
The electrical solution: add some resistance to the speaker circuit. This could be done with a resistor added between the terminals right on the speaker, or with a resistor added in series with the speaker.
It's a bit hard to tell in the photo but I think I see the red wire from the speaker soldered to the top-left corner of the circuit board and a trace going from that point to the terminal marked 1. If that's correct then the easiest electrical hack is probably to disconnect the green wire and insert a resistor there.
The resistor could be a variable type ("potentiometer") like this 200 ohm Bourns 3386X-1-221LF

or it could be a through-hole fixed-value type that looks similar to this

The potentiometer is nice because you can adjust its resistance (and therefore the speaker volume) by turning the dial. You'll almost certainly have to solder wires to attach to those leads though. The through-hole resistor would be easy to install (no soldering) but you'll have to experiment to find the right value. Fortunately resistor kits with a variety of values can be had at low cost. Something in the range of 20-150 ohms will probably put the speaker volume where you'd like it.
If you find that this hack makes the voices in the intercom inaudible then you could add a momentary normally open push-button switch. The switch would be wired across the resistor so that when pushed the resistor is bypassed and the speaker goes to full/normal volume.


Is polystyrene sun/heat/frost-resistant? I'd like to put my weather station into the polystyrene hermetic case but my concerns are around whether it is going to survive in the sun, heat and frost. The vendor says it is not intended to be used in such conditions and this is probably where I should finish with PS case but I have some of those and want to spend no extra money.

Currently I am testing such case for a week or so and it seems it can stand being frozen to ~-18 deg C., then getting heated to room temperature, wet and then frozen again and again. No cracks, no deformations. What do you think?

It will die in the sun. It may take a few months, but it will die. Listen to the vendor.


Future proofing for 240V outlet I currently have a 12A EVSE that takes either 120V or 240V and uses a normal three-prong (NEMA 5-15) plug. I am looking to install a 240V outlet on a 50A circuit breaker to use with this EVSE, but I'm wondering which receptacle to use with this new outlet. I've ruled out a NEMA 5-15/5-20 receptacle, so I will need an adapter to use my current EVSE for any outlet I install. Would it make more sense to install a 14-50R receptacle, a 6-50 receptacle, or some other type?

NEMA 6-15 and you're done

Outlets aren't that expensive.  Simply fit the correct one.

The third one.

If your wiring is 12 AWG or larger copper and your breaker is 20A, you can fit a NEMA 6-20 instead.

Now, noting this thing is dual voltage, the right way to deal with that is have it have a removable inlet (the way a PC does) that takes an IEC connector.  Then you simply change the cord to what you're plugging into.  However you can make a NEMA 5-15R to 6-15P cheater cord if you really want to. If someone finds a 6" long cord with a funny plug on it, that's a big fat hint to be careful what they plug in.

If you are thinking of wiring up a universal future adapter socket, you can't.  What you can do is run 6/3 cable (or #8 THHN in conduit) to a large 4-11/16" square junction box.    The large 4-11/16" square box gives you the room for big wires and splices.  At this point you can install any of these pairs:

NEMA 6-15 receptacle with a 15A or 20A breaker
NEMA 6-20 receptacle with a 20A breaker
NEMA 6-30 or 14-30 with a 30A breaker
NEMA 6-50 or 14-50 with a 50A breaker

Note that except for a 15A receptacle on a 20A breaker, the receptacle size must always match the breaker size.   And of course you can't exceed wire maximums.


Where can I find a replacement bathroom fan with this uncommon electrical plug? I’m replacing my bathroom exhaust fan. I planned to do this myself and watched a few how-tos. It looked easy. You basically just plug the new one in. The thing is that our bathroom fan seems to have a different kind of electrical plug than what is common. In the how-tos I’ve watched all the fans have a “normal” two prong plug. Looks a lot like a lamp plug. However, my plug has 3 holes and looks like this:
This plug fits nicely into the similar looking “outlet” in the ceiling.
Where can I find a replacement fan with this type of plug? OR - is there a way to get a common two prong plug to work with my existing outlet?
Edit: I’ve now discovered this is called a molex connector!
Based on that info I found this similar post on a different stack exchange site: similar post

You shouldn't be seeking out that connector.
The problem is, you have not removed the fan. You've removed only part of the fan assembly.  The thing that plugs into is more parts of the fan assembly. Remove it too.
That particular fan is designed to break into halves: there's the half that mounts in the ceiling (first) and then half that latches into it once it's installed.  The two halves interconnect using that "proprietary" connector (meaning: it's peculiar to that make/model of fan; fans generally do not use that connector; it's not a standard.)
Just take the rest of the fan out of the ceiling until you are looking at a Romex cable and/or a junction box.


I want to install generic capability for future car charging. What 240v outlet on the outside of the house is acceptable? I am wiring an old house with new wires and want to have an outlet outside for charging a potential electric car. There is no carport or roof overhang, so weather resistance is important. The wall is still fully open to studs and I have full access to inside and outside of the wall. I was considering a stove or dryer outlet. The house has 100 amp service, but everything inside is on propane, so I would never draw more than 30 amps during normal home use.

In my humble opinion, I'd run #6-3 w/ground from the panel to a outlet box accessible from the outside and just cover it with a water tight cover. Wait until you get your car and then get the breaker and outlet according to the specs for your car. If you're running conduit, run a 1" conduit from panel to outlet box and pull the wire later on when you know the specs.


Advice for swapping out my gas dryer myself My (rather old) washer blew up on me a few weeks ago (Apparently it's been unbalanced for a while. Came with the place and I never thought too much of the vibration until it was too late.) and am getting a brand new set delivered on my new set (Washer HERE, GAS Dryer HERE) from Sears on Thursday.

They wanted about $80 plus parts to install them (I forget if it was each or for both) and I declined having just disconnected everything myself, I figured it would be easy enough to set up the new ones. I'm not particularly handy but I'm at about replace-my-own-ceiling-fan, remove-and-reinstall-my-own-garbage-disposal level.

I'm not overly concerned about the washer, but I was reviewing the manual for the dryer online and it's got me a little nervous. It talks about needing to purge the gas line of air twice, using teflon tape (I didn't see any evidence of that on the old install), etc.

So I wanted to pose the question- is this something that someone at my level can handle myself or are there enough gotchas that I should cough up the money?

EDIT: I succeeded today thanks in large part to the answer here- thank you.

I wound up buying 'yellow' gas-approved teflon tape and a new flexible gas line (to be safe... It was $30 though!). And a new dryer vent hose (also pricey) since apparently I needed a metal one and the existing one was foil.

It was about as easy as I hoped.

To recap:

I connected the (new) exhaust vent hose using the pressure coupling rings (not sure the correct term) that came with it on both sides- wall and appliance. The manual demanded not to use a foil vent, so I used a metal one. (Unfortunately, the most flexible metal one I found pushes the dryer out too far from the wall for my needs- I can't close the door to my laundry cabinet now!... Subject of another post I guess. I'm going to try a "periscope" dryer vent.)
I connected the new gas line to the valve on the wall, using a layer of yellow teflon tape on the threads (although the Home Depot guy seemed to think I'd only need it on the appliance side)
I connected one of the removable couplings from the gas line to the back of the dryer (again, used tape even though perhaps not necessary)
Turned on the gas for a moment to purge the line
Loosely threaded the gas line into this coupling, also using tape as recommended; purged again
Tightened with a (newly purchased) pipe wrench.
Turned on the gas and listened & smelled for gas at both connections - silent and odorless :)

Took maybe 30 minutes, most of that time was spent wrestling the pressure couplings and trying to get the threads to take- was trying to be very gentle.

Dryer started right up no problems and it (and we!) survived two test loads.

So, went well, I found it relatively easy and would do it again. Thanks for helping me build my skillset!

(Adding the requested photo here although it's a bit late. Note that I covered the hard-gas-line's opening with painter's tape and stuck it on/around the valve so you can't see it, but it's there. Wanted to protect it from all the lint and dust floating around down there.)

Turn off gas to dryer.
Disconnect old line.
Take off teflon on old line.
Add new teflon.  (some will tell you to use a new connector but that is your choice depending the crimping of the old one and shape it is in)
Connect to dryer.
Turn on gas.
Check for gas leaks.
Run dryer and verify the gas working via flames on bottom burners.


Outlet box has voltage when a device is plugged in on another circuit Our house was built in 1964 and I wanted to replace some of the electrical outlets. However, there's something bothering me.

When I turn off the circuit for an outlet, my low range non-contact voltage tester picks something up on the metal outlet box. After some testing, there's a few outlets that have this issue. What's strange is that the beeping on the tester increases in frequency in some situations. For example:

I plug in something in another outlet on another circuit.
I turn on or off or dim lights on another circuit.

I don't have a proper tool to measure the voltage. I'm considering a multi-meter, but I am getting into uncomfortable territory.

An outlet tester indicated that all outlets are wired correctly, except for two that had an open ground. I was able to correct one (the original copper wire broke) but the other one looked fine. I am not sure if this could be related. I will be hiring an electrician, but I'm looking to understand whether or not it is normal for the metal box to have some amount of voltage.

Additional Information: We did identify two receptacles that are "hot/neutral reversed". They were originally unnoticed because they were both upside-down. I am not sure if this could contribute to anything. We'll be hiring an electrician in a few weeks and I'll update the question once I have a response.

This very much sounds like a case of what is called Open Neutral.  This can be a very serious condition, depending on where it is.  Where you plug something in that results in a voltage somewhere else, do plugged in equipment or lights operate properly?

An Open Neutral is when the neutral wire of a circuit is disconnected or not making proper contact.  The result is the one or more receptacles are in series with a different group of on or more receptacles and 240 volts is being applied.  If the loads are unequal, one load will get a higher voltage (more than 120 volts) than the other.  Where more than one load is in a group, shutting of or unplugging one thing can raise the voltage on others in that same group.

This condition requires a licensed electrician to resolve.  The only action you should consider, in the mean time, is shutting off the main breaker or main disconnect or pulling the main fuse block.


Is the Thermostat Wiring Correct When I moved in to the house the first thing I changed was the old mercury style T-stat to a digital one, I went wire for wire, and it has works (knocks on wood) so far. Now that I have been reading questions about WiFi T-stat and started looking at all of the different kinds that are out there, man now I want one. From what I found am going to have to run a new 6 wire T-stat wire to add the constant 24V and I have to match the rest of the wires but that is where I am confused

LET THE FUN BEGIN

I first I opened up the T-stat and from what I have read it doesn't look right. Next opened the indoor unit and found all of the wires from the T-stat and I am now really confused.

From the T-stat I have five wires.

Green wire terminates to a Yellow with Red Dash wire, which goes to what I think is a contactor (Yellow/Red Dash wire on the right of Pic 2) = Fan motor
Yellow wire terminates to a White wire, which goes to the outside unit = compresses
Blue wire terminates to a Blue wire (It is hard to read but I think the wire marker says 2M= Heat or Cool contactor
Red wire terminates to White wire that goes to one side of a low volt X-former= Control Voltage for T-stat
White wire terminates to a Purple wire, which goes to what I think is a contactor= Heat or Cool contactor

Now at the T-stat I have this...

So why is the blue and white wire together, what am I missing?

Update,
Traced the Blue wire out to another contactor. Its the Blue wire on top.

My second stab at answering this:

Since this is not a heat pump, I now see more clearly you have a photo that shows your blue wire connected to the coil of a contactor in the unit that is separate from the contactor controlled by the white wire but also with heavy supply wires coming into it.  Judging from the large size of the wires fed into this contactor, I believe this was originally meant to be control for stage 2 electric heat.  However, given the small gauge white wire that is connected to the load side now, I cannot say what has been connected in place of stage 2.  I can say that unless that small white wire coming off that contactor is separately fused, then it is probably a fire hazard.  I also see in the same photo that you have a lot of bare wire exposed on that heavy conductor.


Ceiling fan with 2 switches with remote Where are the wires I have, I am confuse to where the red from the ceiling goes, nothing in the manuals talk about a red wire.

Right now we have 1 switch controlling the light, and 1 controlling the fan.
We want just one switch controlling both so we can just use the remote for function.

From ceiling: Red, Black, White

From fan: Black, White, Green/Yellow, Blue

From remote module: Yellow, Blue, Black, White

The remote switches the light and fan off using just a single power source. It doesn't rely on 2 like you had. You don't have any use for the red wire any more nor the switch.


How do I remove painted knockdown texture? We scraped our popcorn ceilings and had somebody do knockdown texture in the whole house. Problem is, that when the guy went to prime over the texture, some of the texture started peeling off on the roller in the master bedroom and living room. There may have then several issues that caused this... Including mixing The Home Depot Tuf-Tex bag incorrectly, possibly the ceiling still had some popcorn dust on it, we're because we're in Florida, the humidity may have gotten to it.

I really believe the problem lies in the mixture or application... Because the guy inspected the ceiling, said we did a really good job, and even though we're in Florida by the water, the temperature has been low and relatively dry during this whole process. he tried to blame it on everything else but himself, but it didn't add up.

Anyhow, he went back and patched the parts that peeled off, but when we went to go paint over it with a sprayer using a pretty light coat, with in just a couple of hours it started spider cracking everywhere. All this is besides the point though...

I really fear just patching again because it could crack in other areas after we did the next layer of paint... And besides, especially in the living room, the cracking is bad all over the place... So we're considering taking it all down, and redoing everything from scratch, possibly using somebody else, and possibly priming prior to texturing.

At any rate... The texture comes off fairly easily on about 30% of this 14x22 ft ceiling. The issue is the other 70%, where removal seems fairly difficult even with water.

What I'm considering doing he is using a sander with a back attachment or something to try to at least get through some of the paint and primer before trying to wet scrape again. I've read about skim coating... But the ceiling, being 14 X 22, seems like a huge job to tackle that way properly.

Can anyone please recommend a decent sander to use? Hopefully one thats affordable since we've already spent so much money on this remodel.

Either that, or please offer an alternate method or tips to tackle this issue.

Please note that hanging new drywall underneath the old drywall is probably not an option because some of the walls have mirrors going all the way up to the ceiling and other trim that gets in the way. We could possibly replace the ceiling all together, if that seems like a huge daunting task... Let alone expensive.

Thanks in advance for any advice given!

I don't know that replacing the drywall for that little a space wouldn't be the best route.  Seems the cleanest.  Removing trim isn't hard.  I don't know about the mirrors, though. Renting a drywall jack is cheap and makes it a ton easier to hang.  A bit of demo and hanging a new ceiling sounds easier than messing around with something that isn't working out.

Beyond that, I don't know about knockdown texture, but sanding down a ceiling without a drywall sander sounds like it sucks and trying to water/scrape it sounds like it sucks and is super messy.  Demoing drywall is quick.

No expert here.  I'd just replace it.  Seems the surest, which is the direction I like to steer.


Are 15A receptacles acceptable on a 20A circuit? I have a 20 amp breaker for my dedicated man cave home theater. It's a rental unit. Recently I had a few loose-fitting plugs on some of the receptacles so I just went downstairs and found the breaker and saw it was 20 amps.

So I went and bought 20 amp receptacles. Only a few fit loosely so I chose to only replace the loose ones. After the install I noticed that the other 2 receptacles were in fact 15 amp receptacles. Is it ok to leave it like it is with both 15 and 20 amp receptacles in that room on the 20 amp breaker and if so what's the max amps i can pull through that circuit?

I think the 15 amp receptacles are on each end of the rooms circuit and the 20's are in the middle. Will that matter in any way? Right now i am pulling around 11-12 amps from that room but most is on a better quality power strip rated at 15 amps. Thanks in advance for the help.

There is an exception in Code which permits the common 15A receptacle on 20A circuits if there are two or more sockets on the circuit. (NEC 210.21B3). The common double receptacle is two sockets. Mirroring that, there is a UL requirement that all 15A receptacles must have an internal capacity of 20A - only the socket itself is 15A.

All the wire in a 20A circuit must be 12 AWG or larger. (Table 310.15(B)(16)).  If any of the wire is 14 AWG, then it is a 15A circuit with the wrong breaker on it.  12 AWG wire will not fit in the "backstabs" of 15A receptacles (NEC 110.3b), so if backstabs are in use, a Code violation is definitely present.  As a general rule it's best to avoid backstabs altogether, they are the #1 source of arcing failures.  (Code won't tell you that, but it does require AFCI breakers to compensate for backstab failures).

Assuming the circuit is correctly breakered, then the maximum load is 125% of the continuous loads (i.e. a 12A continuous load counts as 15A) plus 100% of the non-continuous loads.  This total should not exceed the breaker rating.  (NEC 210.20).

A continuous load is expected to be on for 3 hours or more (NEC 100).  If all the loads are continuous, a 20A breaker can support 16A, and a 15A breaker can support 12A.  Otherwise break out the calculator.


How would one plumb two bathrooms from one rough-in? I am in the planning stage to finish my basement. There is a rough-in with drain for toilet and shower. My plan is to add at least two bedrooms with one being a master. Thankfully the rough-in is located in the middle-ish of a long wall.
Is it possible to add a half bath immediately adjacent to the master bath in such a way that the toilets share a 4" drain without tearing into the cement?
If necessary I don't mind raising the floor to create a 1/4"-per-foot downward slope. Assume that the drain and main stack are equidistant between the two toilets on either side of a common wall.
Are there any problems with this in terms of flow or venting? How would one go about it?

You are "f'ing" crazy if you think that raising part of your floor is easier than doing some very very minor concrete work.   There are all these gotchas for raising a floor and then finishing it so it doesn't look ghetto.
Now for doing it right there is breaking concrete, creating a bed for pipe, laying pipe, backfilling, and then adding in quickmix concrete.   It is 8 hours of work.   You will spend days trying to figure out how to put a toilet on an elevated box that looks OK.
Just do it right.   The elevated floors should be a last case emergency thing.   I have finished hmmmmm maybe 50+ basements never have I raised the floor to tie into the stack.
Also from a DIYer perspective, when you are breaking the concrete and filling... there is nothing anyone can see.   You can mess something up or have a half assed finish and no one sees it.   You raise floors and every carpentry thing sticks out like a sore thumb, every edge, every finish.    You may be scared to break the sledgehammer out on the floor but in reality you are creating 5-10 times the work for yourself AND IT WILL LOOK WORSE EVEN IF YOU FINISH IT GOOD.
Note:  The hardest part of breaking up a basement floor is carrying buckets of concrete out (assume 20) and disposing them.   Everything else is really easy.  I did want to mention this because it is a workout.


What causes HVAC blower motors to go bad? My Lennox HVAC system started working intermittently as of a couple of months ago and over that period progressively worsened. It just wouldn't blow air. I determined that the issue was not with the compressor but the actual blower motor. The thermostat (Nest) reports that everything works fine, the compressor outside is blowing but the blower motor is not working. That causes the coils indoors to frost as the blower is not blowing to dissipate it.
The way I tested was using the two connectors to the motor, high and low voltage. They are both fine and the manual says if that is the case, that means the motor is dead. The manual suggests to replace the motor.
I have not taken the motor out yet but I am curious, as this unit is only about 5 years old, what causes a motor to go bad? And can it be fixed, since I am not sure if mine is still covered under the warranty? It's a single speed motor and the model number of the handler is CBX27UH. I have been researching online and some posts indicate it may be due to a bad capacitor but I don't think mine uses a capacitor unless it is inside the motor itself.

HVAC blower motors, which are almost always of the INDUCTION motor type, fail for a variety of reasons.  I'll list what are common reasons:

A winding failure, usually an open.  These can be caused by a manufacturing defect or just as a result of thermal cycling.  Shorts between windings can also occur often due to conductors rubbing on each other or against the pole material.
Bearings can fail often due to foreign material that collects.
The rotor laminations can rust and cause binding.

As noted in the comments, these often have a starter circuit with a capacitor which can fail.  This generally leaves the motor operational but it cannot be started.
Usually the first thing to check is the starter circuit and capacitor.


Soundproofing casement windows I have three casement windows facing a busy street in an urban area and noise does get into the room. I noticed that the window panels (moving parts) meet the frame directly, meaning there is no gasket of any type.
Do you think applying 1/8" foam weatherstripping tape along the perimeter of the frame where the window forms a seal will reduce the noise coming in?

It might help, if that is where most of the sound is coming through. Newer windows have varying sound-transmission ratings (the more you spend, the better they are at blocking noise, generally). If you have old single-pane windows... it might not help much because the sound is coming through the whole thing.
I had a room where I needed to sleep in the day but the windows were old single-pane units. I had to place thick foam panels against them, tightly, when I was sleeping.


What is an ideal angle for a seat back piece? I'm building an outdoor couch and want to put an angle on the back piece. What is a generally acceptable angle for the back piece? In the photos below, I've rotated the back pieced to 15°, but is just a guess.

I am sure there are some "standards" but note that there are individual preferences. Take car seats for instance with their range of adjustability. However rear car seats in a sedan or those in many pickup trucks are not adjustable and you may be able to use that as a guide.

Note that comfort in seating often has the seat bottom sloped down toward the back some too. Case in point would be for you to look at some plans for deck chairs or lawn chairs. The rear sloped seat bottom is especially pronounced in Adirondack style chairs.

Another thing to think about. If the seat base is too long front to back the seat back slope can be extremely awkward for persons with shorter legs. Your pictures give the impression of seat bottoms that may be too deep from front to back for generally comfortable seating.

It may be worth a half day trip to a furniture store and to a home center where deck furniture and lawn chairs are sold. You can learn a lot first hand from what you find comfortable to sit in rather than guessing while drawing away in a CAD program.


How can I remove humidity from a room without a dehumidifier? I've noticed a problem in my apartment that returns every winter - I get mold around the windows. This year the cold weather came earlier than usual and the mold appeared quickly in great amounts, so I am looking for a way to at least reduce the thickness of it.
My guess that the molds cause is the humid air would be the fact that very often I can see a condensation on the window, and, since the windows are plastic ones, I guess they don't "breathe" like the wooden ones would.
I've heard about putting bowls of salt around by the windows that would attract the moisture, but some suggest other substances like silica gel since they absorb the moisture better. Problems I see with getting silica gel are that I'm not sure where to get it for starters, am not sure about the price - whether it wouldn't be too pricy and, since I own a cat, I don't want the little adventurer to try out new things to eat - how would I store it so it would do it's job and not harm my pet.

I mentioned "without a dehumidifier" in my question title because buying one just isn't in my budget at the moment, so I'm looking for some temporary solutions right now.
Any tips gladly appreciated.

You can purhcase products such as DampRid. It is availabe in various size packages and will work to passively dehumidify a space.

You do not want to use a fan or any active air mover to attempt to dry the window space. This can enable the mold to spread to other areas.

Mold is dangerous to your health and this issue should be handled soon. One point of concern is that the mold may be in the drywall surrounding the window. The mold issue should be brought up to your building manager. If they do not take corrective actions, you should speak to the local public health department.


GFCI outlet won't come on I have a couple recently installed (By a professional licensed electrician) GFCI outlets outside a barn, both on their own circuit.

Both have water trough heaters plugged into them - 1500 watts each.

These have been running for about 2 months now without any problems until last night; we got a hard freeze (around 10°F) and everything had frost on it this morning (if that makes any difference) and now one of the GFCI outlets isn't working.

I looked at the circuit breaker and the circuit the outlet is on was tripped, so I reset the breaker and the outlet still won't come on.

I've tried unsuccessfully to push the reset button as well as the test button, but neither click (I believe the test button should click when it's pushed far enough and it shuts the circuit off).

So at this point, I'm wondering what could be the issue and what are the possible issues and the best ways to track down the problem.

Could the circuit breaker be dead? If so, is there a way for me to test it?
Could the GFCI outlet be dead? Or maybe there's some frost frozen in there that I might have to thaw out to see if that does the trick?

Not an uncommon problem. I have had a lot of problems with GFI's the last few years myself. There are a few likely causes:

A fault still exists and will not allow the GFI to reset.
The GFI tripped due to an overload and the differential circuit was damaged, thus the outlet is now toast.  This seems to be a common complaint with standard 15 amp GFIC's. they don't take current spikes well.  In your case 1500 watts on 120VAC is pulling around 12.5 amps, which is getting close to max capacity. Sometimes the initial current draw is much higher as the resistive load needs to heat up a bit before  it reaches its operating impedance. A "cold" load can offer a much lower impedence and cause a short duration, but large spike of current to flow at turn on. Very common on motor loads, but not uncommon with filament heating or lighting.
Sometimes if you turn off the power to this GFI at the breaker, then push the test and reset buttons, then turn the power back on again, the GFI will default to the tripped condition, but will reset.
Disconnect any wires connected to the "Load" side of the GFI. Unplug all loads from the GFI itself, and give it a try.
If none of the above items work for you, you will probably need to replace the GFI. Find one with a 20 amp rating instead of 15 amps, assuming that 15 amp is what you have now.


Does a bedroom have to have a closet? I'm finishing my basement (actually its the second basement I've finished).  And I've built what I think is a bedroom in the basement.  I had the ELECTRICAL inspector in here the other day and as he's going through the inspection he says: "So this isn't going to be a 'legal' bedroom, because it has no closet?"  It's always been my understanding that a bedroom does NOT require a closet.

Does a bedroom have to have a closet?

I was curious so I just did some googling around and it seems that, if anything, some lenders might require a closet for a room to be included in the bedroom count for the house. I imagine this might be to help ensure consistency in home valuations. Check the first few results here for more info.

Code does require a bedroom have an egress window however.  Also if your house is on a septic system it will be approved for a certain number of bedrooms and you may run into issues when selling the house if you've represented the new room as a bedroom but your septic system isn't rated for it.


How does this sink faucet handle come off? (no visible screws) I've tried pulling up (to the point where I was afraid something would break) and am not getting any movement.  There are no holes or screws.  I considered prying but I'm afraid I'll damage the chrome ring underneath.  It is one solid piece except for that ring at the very bottom, which does not move.  Any alternative ideas?  Could applying heat hurt?


Light Switch Terminals I am replacing a light switch and found three black wires going to it. Two go to the screw terminals and one goes to the push terminal:

I verified with a multimeter that the central and bottom terminals are always live, and the top terminal is live if the switch is in the up/on position. Is it safe to just pigtail the bottom two wires together when replacing the switch? The new one only has one hot wire.

Yes, the correct way to deal with this is to wirenut (or otherwise join in a listed manner) those two wires and a short pigtail together, then connect the pigtail to the new switch.


How do I repaint old wooden doors? I would like to repaint old wooden doors, which were painted in white many years ago. The paint starts to fall off, and underneath there comes out unpainted wood, but otherwise the paint still sticks to the wood.

I suppose that I have to remove the old paint completely before I try to paint the doors in white again. What is the best way to do that?

If the present paint on the doors is indeed sticking very well and the surface finish is conducive to overcoating then I would recommend a process to fill in the peeled out areas with a spackle or drywall mud. Apply one of these materials with a putty knife, let it dry and then lightly sand to get a smooth even surface. Sometimes it is necessary to apply a second coat of the filler.

You can perform some tests of how well the existing paint is adhering to the wood. Near the existing chipped out areas look to see if the nearby edges of paint would easily pop off if picked at with a knife point or other sharp object. You can also use an aggressive tape such as Gorilla Tape and see if a quick removal of the tape would peel away additional paint. If peeling is apparent then you will have to remove the old paint.

If it turns out that you would have to remove the paint completely from the old doors you would likely want to consider the use of paint stripper. This is a jelly like liquid that you apply to the paint with a brush. It will soften the paint so that it can be easily scraped off. It may require several applications of the paint stripper to get all the paint off - especially if there had been multiple coats previously applied. Steel wool can be used to remove softened paint on edges, corners and curved areas where a scraper does not work very well.

Paint stripper is pretty noxious stuff so use in well ventilated area and wear applicable protective gear to keep yourself safe. Stripper can burn your skin and be very harmful to eyes so make sure that the gear includes good rubber gloves and face shield.

Sanding is another method to remove old paint - however if the paint on theses doors is very very old there is a possibility that it is lead bearing paint. If this is the case it is not recommended that you sand the paint at all and consider other alternatives to provide for containment of the lead based paint.


Wire that was stripped inline and loops over the side screw I found a light switch that has a wire that was stripped inline and then loops over the side screw. The same wire is also connected to a second switch.

Is this allowed? I thought that normally, it would be pigtailed.

I don't know of any code violation that says you can't do it, just so long as you can make a good mechanical and electrical connection. I have seen this before and it is usually done to save room in the boxes. I haven't seen it in newer installations since the newer codes want at least 6" tail for all devices and 2 wires stretched out to 6" is counterproductive.


How to project basement level of humidity before building? Assume I am considering buying a lot and building a house in it.  Is it possible and how would I project what the humidity level will be in its basement?  Say the basement is built using concrete blocks.  Some factors that come to mind are the precipitation table, gradient of the lot, position relative to nearby streams etc.

But are there well established heuristics for gauging the level of moisture penetration I can expect?

If you have to account for water penetrating the basement, then you likely don't want to be building a basement there.

If you're building from scratch, you'll ideally build a basement that is properly waterproofed and insulated from the outside and is set up to handle any drainage issues.

At that point, the humidity you have to deal with will be airborne. That humidity comes from the air...so for instance, if you live in MN in the summer, you'll note that it's incredibly humid. The basement tends to be cooler, allowing some of that humidity to condense, and basements tend to not have much air flow, so it can build up.

The solution to that problem is to include the basement as part of your conditioned space. Ideally it would have AC and Heat, but, barring that, you'll want to have a dehumidifier running.


Can 6x6 Glue Lamm Post be installed on the exterior and be exposed to the weather? Can I use a 6x6 glue lamm post as a support post for an upper deck and can this type of post be exposed to the outside elements (rain, snow, etc..)

It must be an exterior/wet use rated beam, like this one from Boise  If you are going to bury one end of it, it must meet one of the exterior ground contact categories.  You should discuss this with your inspector and list it on your permit submission drawing, so there are no surprises during inspection.

The AWPA rates wood by its usage category, you should pick a glulam assembly that will meet one or more of the various EXTERIOR categories:

  Use Category  Brief Description

UC1    Interior Dry
UC2    Interior Damp
UC3A   Exterior Above Ground, Coated with Rapid Water Runoff
UC3B   Exterior Above Ground, Uncoated or Poor Water Runoff
UC4A   Ground Contact, General Use
UC4B   Ground Contact, Heavy Duty
UC4C   Ground Contact, Extreme Duty
UC5A   Marine Use, Northern Waters (Salt or Brackish Water)
UC5B   Marine Use, Central Waters (Salt or Brackish Water)
UC5C   Marine Use, Southern Waters (Salt or Brackish Water)
UCFA   Interior Above Ground Fire Protection
UCFB   Exterior Above Ground Fire Protection


Repainting damaged acrylic coating on my shower tray. Help! I was cleaning something in the shower tray and I used a chemical which was petroleum based (which I didnt know), which caused the acrylic coating (I think its acrylic coating) dissolve.

I did a bit of research about repairing bathtubs/shower trays and it seems like nobody is able to achieve quality results by painting it, this usually involves using some kind of epoxy mixture, which cures for a very long time.

However, I have a different idea which nobody seems to be trying out...
What I want to do is:

Use coarse sandpaper to the damaged area
Apply filler (what filer?) to level the work area
Use sandpaper again (medium)
Paint white (spray)
Apply acrylic clear coats (spray)
wet sandpaper medium>fine>extra fine
Buff it with a cutting compound to get the gloss on

Questions:

Is there any problems with my approach (if any)?

Is there a better way of doing it?

Images of the damage:

Is there any problems with my approach...?

Use coarse sandpaper to prepare the damaged area- GOOD
Apply epoxy repair filler to level the work area- GOOD
Use sandpaper again (medium)- GOOD
Paint white (spray)- NO
Apply acrylic clear coats (spray)- NO
wet sandpaper medium>fine>extra fine- GOOD
Buff it with a cutting compound to get the gloss on- NO

Rather than using spray paint, use a 2-part brush-on epoxy paint specifically designed for wet service, such as this. Repaint the whole shower pan. Note that this is fine for acrylic, but not for flexible plastic shower bases. This kind of coating can be made non-slip by adding an aggregate additive and can be tinted almost any color. And it is exremely tough/durable.


Is it safe to wire a plug-in sconce directly to the junction box? There is a wall sconce that I would like to buy, but it is a plug-in variety and there is no power outlet nearby (only an existing light fixture).  Is it safe to cut off the plug and wire it directly to the junction box where the existing fixture is? How would I ground it?

If it's not safe / advisable, why not?

FWIW I live in a high-rise apartment in New York City.

Not safe, not advisable.

It would not pass an electrical inspection, because the wire is likely exposed for some distance (before it enters the box), and the wire composition (jacket) may not be rated for in-wall use.  Another problem is the mechanical fastening (clamping) of a 2 wire cord into a junction box.  Romex cable has a sheath, with wires that are identifiable as hot, neutral and ground wire, your configuration will not.   You could easily connect the hot wire to the threaded part of the socket.


What is a "locus" when referring to house plumbing pipes? What is a "locus"? The term was used to describe how a wooden house is set up. They used "locus pipes".

Thanks for your help.

The only thing that comes to mind (and it's not related to wooden house construction at all) when thinking of pipes and the word locus is that in German, "Lokus" is a term used for a toilet (perhaps it's a little nicer to say than toilet). That would fit your description of "locus pipes" - the waste pipes (and maybe supply) for the toilets.

Source: I'm a native German speaker. Also see the German Wikipedia entry for "Toilette"


Is this smoke detector safely connected? I recently bought this house (built in 2000), so it went through inspection. I assumed everything was fine. I realized the smoke detector in one of the rooms was not showing the green light that the others were showing. I pressed the "test" button and it beeped just like the others, so I thought it may be okay.

More recently I decided to actually take a look at it, and figured out the black wire is completely disconnected. Googling what that wire means gave me different results, but most of the results suggeste the detector would not be connected to the power, which would mean its battery would end very quickly, but I don't see the detector complaining about the battery (it's been a few months since we moved in).

Now I'm completely confused and have no idea if this is actually safe (especially since the home inspector was supposed to have checked this).

Am I safe? Would it be easy to fix this in case there's a problem? The other detectors in the house are not connected like this one.

Thanks!

This is a Firex 4618, interconnected smoke alarm with backup battery. Here is the manual which explains Green Light means its operating on A/C (hardwired) power.  Otherwise, its running off the backup battery.  It can run on the backup for several years like a battery operated smoke alarm, but the manual states a standard battery should last for 1 year, then when it drops under voltage it will chirp at you.

The black wire (hot) can be connected to a black wire up in the box to run on A/C power again.  Often it can pop off especially if someone removed the smoke detector that strained the wires.  Those stranded core wires and cheap wire nuts that come with the smoke detector often don't result in a very strong connection.

The fix is to first switch off the power.  Hard wired smoke alarms usually share the lighting circuit.  Then you can reconnect the black wire on the pigtail to the black wire in the box.  When you power it back on, there will be a green light like the others.


Making a template for fabricating a pipe boot from sheet metal It has been quite a long time since I did any rotation of geometric shapes or mechanical drawing, and I need a refresher to jog my memory.

The goal is to make a template from construction paper which can be used as a guide when cutting sheet metal to make a pipe boot that sits over the ventilation pipe on the roof. The boot consists of a flat rectangular base (with a centered cutout for the pipe) and the cylinder that fits over the pipe. The two are soldered together.

For the sake of simplicity, assume the pipe on the roof has a 100mm O.D.

The roof pitch is 28 degrees.

The cutout hole for the pipe must be adjusted for that angle of rotation.

The flat sheet which gets formed into the cylinder must be curved on the bottom, so that it will have an oval-shaped base. Where to position the stationary leg of a drawing compass to form that oval curve?

You have to make the round vertical piece with the angle cut on it's end first. Get that cut nicely so that it meets your needs even if it takes a couple of iterations to get the correct angle and the shape when it sits on a flat work surface.

The next step is to position the angle cut part on the flat sheet in the center area. Use a felt tip permanent marker to trace around the outside of the tube piece onto the flat base piece. Cut out the oval shaped hole along the inside edge of the marker trace line. After cutting the residual marker can be removed with rubbing alcohol.

If you decide to have bend up tabs to rivet and solder to the vertical piece you will have to arrange for those before you set out to cut out the oval hole.


What is this cement structure under ground? I had a fence. It was destroyed in a hurricane. I thought I just would need to put new posts in an existing 2 feet hole. But the holes there were not 2 feet. So I started digging holes around where the posts were. And I noticed cement structures going deep into the ground. Could this really be quick set concrete? It is stronger than a rock. I can not get these structures out of ground (they go real deep). Right now I am just digging holes around the concrete, which will make the fence uneven.

I attached pictures here.

It looks like a standard 4×4 post with concrete poured around it. The square in the middle should have some wood left to be sure. The hole may go 36-48" down depending on local code even deeper. I usually use a tractor and a chain to pop old fence post out when on a job but on my place I just shifted the fence post several feet and left them in the ground.


Why don't we just use combination AFCI/GFCI breakers for every circuit in a home? With pretty much every circuit in a home needing one of the two types of protection (AFCI or GFCI), why don't all new homes have combination breakers installed just to be safe? Would it hurt anything using both types of protections for every breaker? I know that based on code we technically don't NEED both types of protection, but is it necessarily a bad thing to have?

Of course this wouldn't apply to circuits that have exemptions such as dedicated circuits for an appliance.

Sure, go for it

There's no basic problem with what you propose.  Feel free to put CAFCIs in all breaker positions.

You may have a problem finding AFCIs larger than 20/30 amps, and you may have trouble finding 2-pole AFCIs in some cases.  In this instance, for equivalent protection where AFCI is not mandated, simply run those circuits in metal conduit, e.g. EMT/THHN wire.  This will protect the wire, not the appliances.


Help identifying pieces in ambiguous wall anchor kit I’m a newbie at installing things into the studs / drywall, and I need some help identifying how to use what is included in this wall rack mount kit.

Three yellow pieces (anchors?)
Three long screws
Two gray drywall screws
Two long thin screw
Three screw caps

Am I supposed to use the yellow pieces if installing into a stud?
I’m thinking I should forego the yellow pieces and simply use the screw into the wood. It seems like the yellow sheath wouldn’t let the screw threads hold into the wood as well.

Also, I have no idea how the drywall screws are supposed to work given the mount screw holes are much thinner. Do i screw a second screw into the gray screws if mounting in the drywall?

OK, the yellow anchors do not go into the studs. They can be used in drywall, brick, masonry, etc when the proper size hole is drilled. Those big threaded anchors are for drywall. They have a sharp point and you screw them into the wall with a Phillips screwdriver and tighten them up so they indent a little into the drywall. Then one of your smaller silver screws get screwed into the center of the anchor. If you locate the stud, you can screw some of the silver screws directly into the studs after drilling a small pilot hole. The black caps just go over the installed screws to cover the heads for appearance.


How should I store between 30 and 50 sheets of QuietRock ES? I will spare the details of why I am buying this much QuietRock.  For now, let's just assume it makes sense and move on to my question.

As I said, I am buying a large quantity of QuietRock ES to soundproof several rooms and ceilings of my condo (trust me, I found it for a very good price).  I am going to need 30 for my initial job, but will be doing several walls downstairs a few months from now.
QuietRock ES weighs in at 2.6 lbs per sq ft, so that's a hair over 83 lbs per 4x8 sheet.  This maths out to 2,500 lbs for 30 sheets and 4,160 lbs for 50 sheets.  I need to find a way to store this!

I could use my garage, but drywall needs to be stored flat in a dry place.  I could use my upstairs guest room, but I am questioning the floor's weight capacity.  Assuming I get 50 sheets and use half, that's still 2000+ lbs that I will need to store.  That's a ton of weight.  (See what I did there?)

So what are my options are far as storing this heavy QuietRock?  If I can't, I guess I will just have the dealer ship it to me in smaller quantities as I consume it and just lose out on the bulk rate and pay even more in freight costs =.

Use the garage if you're worried about the floor's capacity. Place the drywall blocks on the floor first (the truck delivering the drywall usually has a bunch of these to protect the drywall and to make it easier to get the lift under the stack). On top of the blocks, put some plastic if you're worried about moisture in the floor. The drywall goes on top of this, so it's off of the ground. And on top of the drywall, you can put more plastic or tarp if the garage isn't weather proof.


fixing sagging insulation I have a two story 1970s home that has basically storage rooms upstairs off the bedrooms where the roof angles down.  Inside these rooms is the studs and insulation facing the exterior roof.  Since they are angled the bat insulation keeps falling out.  It was originally stapled, but has not held up. These rooms are pretty large and we use them for storage.  There is an additional attic above the bedrooms.

What is the best way to fix this sagging without completely re-doing the insulation?

It can't be stapled as that has failed and the paper is in bad shape.  Could I put foam board over the top and nail it to the studs holding it in place?  This would probably leave gaps at the bottom and top due to the angle.

You have several issues: 1) hold the insulation in place, 2) vapor barrier, 3) vent space above the insulation

1) I’ve seen string installed across the joists to keep the insulation from falling down. They usually install it about 6” apart at the ends of the batts and about 12” - 16” apart elsewhere. You can staple the string to the bottom of the joists.

2) Using string will not provide a vapor barrier. If you use poly sheeting stapled on the bottom of the joists, it will provide a vapor barrier. Depending on where you live, you may not want a vapor barrier.

3) The Code requires a 1” air space above the insulation. That is to say, you must maintain a 1” air space between the bottom of the roof sheathing and the top of the insulation so air can circulate. (You’ll need to verify that attic vents are installed so you don’t get condensation in the attic.)


Replacing a 20A 250V outlet We are trying to replace a 20A 250V single outlet that was installed in 1975. We have tried replacing it with a 15A 120V double outlet. When checking our completed work, the outlet tester read that the wires were reversed. We changed the wiring, and the outlet tester still read that the wires were reversed.

I'm going to risk posting my comment as an answer.  If the original outlet was truly a 240 volt outlet (probably a cable of 2 wire and a ground) and you didn't change the wiring in the main panel by moving the white wire (of the circuit) to the neutral bussbar making it a 120 volt circuit, your still going to get 240 v on your new outlet.   The outlet has no way of changing 240 to 120, that's the role of the breaker panel connections. That assumes, Ed's comments about a MWBC dont' apply Hope this helps.


Garden swing hardware I have a garden swing that has broken due to high winds. The part that broke is the part that attaches the canopy to the frame. It looks like this:

The broken part is where it screws into the canopy on the upper left. The plastic cracked around the screw holes, so it is unlikely that the screws are going to hold. I tried contacting the manufacturer, but apparently there is just no possible way to contact them.

So my question is, is there any way to find some similar type of hardware that could do the same job? The piece on the right inserts into the metal tube of the frame and then those teeth mesh together so you can adjust the angle. And the piece on the left them wraps around the smaller metal tube around the canopy.

Any ideas? Or should I just look to toss the whole swing?

The image below does not match the fitting you seek and you may not find exactly that type of fitting, but you may find something that works as well. It may be stronger, as most I found are made of metal:

Search for "pipe railing fittings" and examine the many options. The image search from the Google returned so many varieties, I selected one that was close.


is this Asbestos? or anything dangerous? In my garage there are some water pipes I believe that have a wrap around them and in some places its expanded and opened. Now I am worried if its asbestos. Its yellow and looks puffy. I near a water pipe i use for gardening. What should I do?

Thank you.

I've never seen asbestos wrapped pipes that look like that before. In my experience asbestos typically is a little more like a "plaster wrap". I would agree with the others who said that if you really need to know get it checked, but from the images it looks to be fiberglass or rock wool. Test kits aren't terribly expensive nor difficult - if you are truly worried run the test.


Connecting a 4 wire 240+120 volt hot tub to a 3 wire 240 volt circuit I am hooking up a hot tub, which is 4 wire 240+120 volt, using an old ac line which is 3 wire 240 volt and adding a GFCI breaker as required by the state.

How do I wire that together?

If the hot tub is a 4 wire hookup it apparently needs a neutral for the controls to operate at 120 volts while the heater uses 240 volts.

So the short answer is: You don't hook it up to that wire.

You will need to run another wire if it is in conduit. White in color, the same size as the hot legs.

If it is a cable, then you will need to replace the cable unless the ground wire of the cable is insulated. Is the ground wire insulated?

Good luck!


Propane appliances throwing orange flames suddenly and generator's back firing So here's the deal: about 1.5 to 2 weeks ago, our generator started backfiring like crazy and our cookstove, water heater and heater are throwing yellow orange flames intermittently as well as producing soot blackening the ceiling and range hood.

We did call the propane company, and they have been out 3 times and changed both regulators, which didn't fix anything.

The symptoms appear to happen about 10 to 15 minutes after running each appliance. They start up fine and run fine until about this point.

The propane company now wants to do warranty work on each of my appliances and have me call the appliance company to get them fixed under warranty. They also told me that they think the generator is a separate issue. The problem I am having is that all four malfunction at the same time.

I'm really frustrated and have not broken down and called the appliance companies, since I feel it's unfair and not an issue with any individual unit.

Any recommendations on what I should look at? We're avid DIYers living off the grid.

The heater is approximately 3.5 months old
The cookstove is approximately 3 months old
The water heater is probably 20 years old but was serviced only 3 months ago and working fine
The generator is 18 years old but has been recently serviced as well and working fine up until the day everything started malfunctioning.

We rely on our generator for water and showers and run it once a day for one hour.  During this time we fill up all our water, take showers, do laundry and do dishes as well as charge our batteries.

I'm generally not an online / forum type person but I am at my wit's end!

Thanks!

Here's a quick photo of the stove burners.  Also it may be helpful to know we're running on a 500 gallon propane tank which is showing 70%.

Kris' comment is likely a good reference. Consider to perform a test by operating only one device. If the duration of normal operation increases, or normal operation continues throughout the test, it's an indication of too-low temperatures preventing the tank from allowing evaporation.

The backfire of the generator is another indication of insufficient evaporation. A generator takes a substantial amount of propane compared to other devices, increasing the cooling on the remaining liquid.

If you can operate appliances other than the generator, you may discover the evaporation level to be sufficient to continue.

Pouring warm or hot water over the tank will improve conditions inside the tank, but I don't have the math to determine how much heat has to be applied to accomplish continuous running of the generator and other devices.

Because the propane gets colder as it evaporates during use, the amount of heat you can apply will improve the circumstances of operation. If you can manage really hot water, you'll come out even farther ahead.

I can envision a "camp fire" environment, with a kettle of water. A hose running from a water source to a set of coils inside the water kettle will create hotter water for the propane tank. One does not really need the kettle, if one constructs the coil directly in the fire but hat may raise the temperature too high for safety's sake.

Using water as a means of increasing the tank temperature reduces the risk of overheating the tank to an overpressure release.

The mention of ice freezing on the tank shows you how cold the propane is (and of course low ambient temperature doesn't help!) One very good reference mentions that 60°C (140°F) water is used to assist vaporization of the propane in cold conditions. We used to keep our hot tub at 100-110°F and it was pretty darn toasty, so you won't likely overheat the tanks.

According to the article on the linked site, propane boils at -42°C/-44°F, which tells you that the evaporation during use is causing the propane to chill itself below those temperatures!


Best way to cover bedroom doorway that has no door? I have recently moved to a new 'two room' apartment which I guess was formerly a one room apartment that was that was split in two by a wall whose stability I cannot really vouch  for. The main problem is that this wall features a doorway. This doorway connects the living room which has a very large window that lets in a lot of light to the bedroom. We have not intention to cover the living room window because we love the light there, but we want to darken the bedroom for sleep. This, which is our main concern, I guess could be solved by a curtain.
Is there any we could also put something that attenuates sound a bit? How complicated is it to install a door?

Any alternatives, either helping with the sound or not, are highly welcome.

A heavy or multi-layered or heavy multi-layered curtain would attenuate sound as well as many doors, and seems about right for this "wall" as described. Sandwich a blanket (or more than one) between more decorative surface layers.


Is it necessary to replace a jamb when replacing a door? I have a standard 36" steel exterior door that rusted through along the bottom . It was new construction 23 years ago. The jamb looks good ; can I just put in the door only ? The brick -mold on one side has a couple inches of dry-rot that I plan to make a custom piece to fill in ( The local yards do not have the same style brick-mold ).

It is not worth it.   Based on a ton of factors the hinge position is very very unlikely to line up right.   External doors are all over the place on this and you don't want to be chiseling/routing your jamb and if going steel this isn't an option on the door.

This doesn't even get into a 34" door is sometime 33 7/8" or that the door is a hair wider or whatever - even if you took measurements and everything lined up on paper I would give you a less than 1 in 5 chance of having a door that fit really good and thats if you can find that.

It just doesn't make sense to use the old one as the new one will assure a perfect fit.   You don't want to have gaps or have a janky exterior door.   The other factor is yes the jambs will take 20-30 mins to put in but dealing with hinge mortises out of position is a complete nightmare - especially when they are just a little out of position.  Sure you can get this to work but will it look good and hold up.

Exterior doors are night and day in regards to replace.   There is a good reason you seldomly see an exterior door sold without a jamb kit.

(And I have a very good answer on replacing interior doors - which does not require jamb replacement and is doable in bulk)


Causes for fireplace insert not heating house I am trying to understand what options I have. It doesn't feel like the fireplace insert in my house is doing much good. My theories are that it is a POS or too small for the space.

The house is about 2600 sq ft over two stories and 10 years old. The main floor is open and has the fireplace on the South wall. The second floor is bedrooms and hallway. Typically I close the doors to the bedrooms during a daytime burn. The stairs are about midroom on the main floor. Each floor has it own furnace zone and thermostat.

The insert is 19.5x28 inches. 40k BTU/hr. 1300 sq ft. Even with the bedroom doors closed, it is clearly smaller than the actual footage.

I only burn oak that has been stacked for a couple years. The chimney is standard brick clearing the top of the roofline.

During a day long burn, the thermostat on the unit will say anywhere between 150 and 300 depending on the positions I move it and if the door is open/closed. Clearly it is putting heat into the room.

Throughout all of last winter, the thermostats on each of the floors did move. Not even a degree. It may be a small unit for the space, but I would have expected at least to make a dent at some point.

Long story short, I am trying to understand what I might do. As it stands, we don't have a heat source if the power goes out (baseboard forced water normally). My first goal is to figure out what the issue might be with this unit - the house, its layout, or the unit itself. I also don't want to go get a new unit if it wouldn't fix anything because of some other variable.

Fireplaces (insert or not, though insert is typically better than not) are usually a poor choice for heating a building, and are generally not intended for that purpose, but rather as an entertainment device.

As for the thermostats, they will simply stop circulating hot water if the fireplace is helping - making a dent in alternate fuel use - the temperature will only rise if the fireplace is supplying more heat than the building needs, which might require a very mild day and a hot fire, depending on the construction and insulation of the building.

As a rule, a woodstove is generally a far more effective heater than a fireplace of any sort. Some with a good window setup can still be pyrotechnic entertainment as well.


Why is this in my dryer? Can/Should I remove it? 2 year old Kenmore 600 series dryer; 1st time maintenance.
Is this supposed to be here?
It is glued to the side, which makes me think yes. It also came loose and clearly burned which is troubling.

It looks like you have a gas dryer, and if it is insulation that is, or was glued in, it needs to stay. Most likely the insulation is non flammable and it keeps other flammable items from catching fire.


Ceiling electrical box wires -trying to install a light fixture I have recently rented a condo in a new building in Toronto (2020) where they didnt have lights installed in the Living room. I went to homedepot today and I am trying to install a light fixture that i got. Here are the wires coming out of it. It has 3 bulbs:

I opened the box in the ceiling and I saw more wires than I expected. I expected just a green, black and a white wire.

Also, good thing I bought a voltage tester, because if I didnt I might have been dead right now.
I found out that the yellow wire that had a tag saying "for light" is always hot and the switch doesn't cut the power from it. (Same for the black wires)

Now, I dont know how to connect all three bulbs to which wires, Any help would be appreciated

Update 1: Here is the wiring of the switch, there is no other switch except that one which should control the ceiling wires

Update 2: Here is the entire Switch Box The first switch on the left control the hallway light. This light also is controlled by another standalone switch...

The Middle switch is the Kitchen light... and the switch on the right is the one I think controls the ceiling wires because it is the only one which does nothing.

The ceiling didn't have anything connected, it was just a white cap.

Also, I have disconnected the yellow wire from the switch and it still shows a positive charge with the voltage tester.

Update 3: Connecting all the black wires of the fixture to the yellow wire from the ceiling has worked with the switch with no issues. Fitting all the white wires together was a hassle, so if you have a similar setup, make an electrical Pigtail as suggested by the answer.

Don't sweat the 3 blacks and 3 whites in the fixture.  Those are so you have the option to power multiple bulbs off different circuits... say you have some circuits on a generator, you can put 1 of the bulbs on the generator-side panel.  All the fixture blacks go together (in fact I would pigtail them on the bench before installing).  All the fixture whites go together (again pigtail those on the bench).

First, DO NOT split up any of the black and white bundles in this setup.  A few months ago we saw someone in almost your identical situation take apart ALL those wires, spread them out, shoot a photo and post it here... and unfortunately this was an older building with cloth covered wires, and colors were indistinguishable.  The poor person knocked out power to a neighbor's flat, and had to fork out $300 to hire the landlord's electrician to put it all back right.

Your building is wired in conduit, and so the electrician was able to do something they usually are unable to do: actually color-coded the wires by function. In your case (only), black is always-hot, white is neutral, and single yellow is switched-hot for the lamp.

Your voltage tester is giving you a bad reading because of "phantom voltage" and a quirk of how voltage testers work.  We can see plain as day that the yellow wire is correctly wired to a switch.  If you install the light and it's really on 24x7, then the only possibility is a defective switch.

I agree with Jasen that you will need to add a white wire to the existing white wires - that's why I say pigtail the lamp whites, so you're only adding 1 wire instead of trying to cram 3 little wires into a nut that already has 3 big ones (not legal and not gonna happen).  Even for 4 wires you will need the larger "red or tan" wire nuts.

Crank down wire nuts Very Hard, and pull test them without tape. If you need tape, don't - that is a bad connection that will start a fire.  Fix your technique.


Feeders wires to sub panel in garage with generator wires to main breaker box in the house in same conduit I want to run feeder wires from the main breaker in the house to the sub panel in my garage, also at the same time I want to run another pair of wires from my generator located in the garage to back feed the main breaker box when the power goes off. I already have an interlock kit installed and just want to see what the codes are the in and outs of doing it this way.
I already know that you can have a branch circuit in the same conduit as the feeders, but can I put the genny's wires in the same conduit as the sub panel feeder's or do I need to run seperate conduit for the genny or not.
Also I am aware of derating and conduit fill but want to know if derating can be offset by going to the next larger wire size.
The genny will require 60 amp breaker and #6 wire

Sounds like you're doing everything right and side-stepping the usual mistakes we see in this arena.

Well, I can tell you the derating part.  You'll have 4 live conductors (neutrals and grounds don't count for derate purposes). There are 3 columns in Table 310.15(B)(16).  You must use the lowest temperature that both the wire itself and the terminations (connections) can bear.  For instance if you have a 75C lug on the breaker and THWN-2 wire good for 90C, but your generator inlet is 60C rated it drags you down to the 60C column for your practical load (e.g. for #6Cu 55A rounding up to 60A).

However, when you derate, you derate based on the highest temperature the wire is possibly allowed.  So that's 90C for THWN-2, for #6Cu that is 75A.

With 4-6 wires (that count) in the pipe, you derate to 80% (but off the max the wire is allowed).  80% of 75A is 60A.

Why don't you derate off the 55A number since you are terminating on a 60C lug?  Because the 60C lug is not inside the conduit.

NM-B and UF-B cables have an exception.  They are 60C wire through and through. But  you are allowed to derate of the 90C column anyway.


How To Run Thermostat Cable Without Going Crazy? I've read a hundred questions on this, and most of the answers come down to solutions I've tried that don't work, hiring an electrician, or doing some very messy work. I'm hoping there's some way to simplify things.
Here's what I'm dealing with:

A 3-zone heating system: Basement, Ground Floor, and Second Floor. Gas boiler is in the basement. Zones each have their own thermostat. Baseboard hydronic heating.
2 wires controlling each t-stat. No C Wire. :-(
Ground Floor has an older Nest, with enough battery backup it hasn't run into issues
Basement and Second Floor have basic cheap t-stats
I bought two Ecobee 3s before I understood all of this, months ago. Now, after months of learning, I'm not seeing an easy solution, just a bunch of messy ones.
I can buy Nest 2020 t-stats, but they're unreliable without a C Wire, and have lousy battery backups. I want to get a C Wire, do this right. I'm not leaving this house until I die.
Basement wiring is loose. I can pull the cable right through and hook up a 3 or 5 wire setup, easy. I've found where the C wire would connect to. All good.

The Second Floor is where all the problems are happening. The cable is not loose. Based on what I've read, it's likely stapled to the studs or to something somewhere. :-( Fishing isn't an option here. Every answer I've read says I'm not going to be able to successfully pull those staples out.
I don't have ductwork I could run it through. The ducts come from the attic and go everywhere except the basement :-(
The basement has a finished ceiling, not a drop ceiling. :-( The attic is mostly finished, and I don't see any wiring up there that would provide a guide on how to get down 3 floors, but I'm exploring.
So, what haven't I thought of? I could rip off the baseboards, make a clean hole to get from Floor 2 to Floor 1, but that won't get the wire across the basement ceiling. I could pull up the hardwood floor on Floor 1 to get across, but that sounds messy. I could try running cable up to the attic and look for a straight shot down from there, but I doubt it exists. I could borrow/rent a thermal camera, look for where things are running in the walls, and try to find the cleanest route to run things before I start making holes, and, if I'm lucky, find a simple shot.
Anything I'm not considering? I see a relay that lets you connect a 5-wire t-stat to a 2 wire boiler by sitting in between and handling the messy stuff, but, of course, that's not what I need. If there were a relay that could stand between the t-stat and the boiler, sending power on one line and signal on another, and then send the proper two wires from itself, that would be great, but I'm not seeing such a product.
This is driving me nuts. I'm really trying to avoid driving the wife nuts by breaking up walls and/or floors everywhere, or spending hundreds just to run a wire, but I'm not seeing a third option.

assuming you can't sneak the wire in beside a flue or a drain/vent stack. and don't want to install a new wire on the outside of your house.
Install a 24V transformer near where you need to power the thermostat and run bell wire  from the transformer to the thermostats R/Rh and C terminals.
it could be a hard-wired doorbell transformer, or a plug in one.


How worried should I be about mold/mildew in my water softener tank? My wife and I moved into a home that had been rented for a while. Looks like lots of maintenance has been deferred to us, including the water softening system.

We noticed some mold in the tank during inspection. The inspector did not seem too concerned with it. Is this something that will be harmful if left untreated? How aggressive should I be getting about cleaning the tank? Will household cleaning solution (e.g. bleach) be worse for us than the mold if it enters the tank?

This is the salt water brine tank that is used to let salt set in the water to make brine which is then flushed through the resin in the softener before being rinsed to the drain.
So a bunch of things are good to keep in mind as this is not a hazard.
Most molds, especially those which form in water are not hazardous, only a few which we might breathe the spores.
This is not what you drink directly but only what is used to reset the ion exchange.
Salt is, in itself, used to delay bacteria, as in treating meats like ham or salt pork.
The chlorine in the water used to make the brine will kill most harmful bacteria as it does in the normal water treatment.
I would suggest cleaning as a way to make it "feel" better, even though it is mostly just dirt, possibly from using less clean salt like perhaps blocks of stock salt.
Then the barrel should be topped off with salt to allow it to make brine as at the current level, the softener is not going to have enough brine to operate. To avoid doing it more often, I like to nearly fill the barrel.