What adhesive can I use to reattach and seal these fractured tile pieces to my fireplace? I noticed one of the tiles above my gas fireplace had cracked and two large pieces were about to fall off, so I carefully removed them.  This fireplace has not been used in several years so the cracks most likely developed/propagated due to wind or vibrations. We got a lot of wind here and now I can feel cold air coming in from behind the tile.

My questions:

What type of adhesive does it look like was previously used here to attach the tiles to the metal enclosure of this gas fireplace?

After scraping off the previous dried adhesive, what type of adhesive should I use to reattach these pieces?
I see recommendations here for "thin set with an admix", "moose milk" and refractory cement", but I'm not sure which to pursue. Ideally I'd like to be able to buy a small quantity of something (rather than a large bucket) online (and avoid having to go to a store).

After the pieces have been reattached and have settled, if the cracks between the pieces are still visible and/or have air coming through, what could I use to apply into the crevice to ensure a seal? Preferably something clear or black to match the color of the tile.

I've had a similar situation and I found Liquid Nails for Marble and granite to work very well. It's also rated for use on metal. You can purchase it in single tubes and it's great for spot repairs on tile and granite. Just make sure the surface is cleaned and follow directions. Be sure to secure the tile in place until it dries.
I couldn't tell if there is grout between your tiles. Grout is prone to crack with vibration but I'm sure you'll want to match whatever is there. If you change what's between the tiles it may not match. If there is a gap, be sure to use spacers for a uniform gap on each side before you grout. Then all you do is match the grout color.
You can also use the Liquid Nails to join the pieces of tile before you mount them but if they are large pieces and the surface you're mounting it to is even you may not have to do that. Good luck.


How should this light fixture be connected? Replacing kitchen light, house wiring to box: 2 white twisted together (neutral), 1 red (hot when switch is on), no ground. Fixture: 1 D shaped ridged wire, 1 smooth (round) wire, 1 ground wire. My guess on connections, D shaped fixture wire to white house wires, smooth (round) fixture wire to red house wire, fixture ground wire to metal fixture box? Is this right?

When a light fixture has two wires of the same color it usually means that polarity isn't important. However, the ridges/ribs may indicate a neutral. Go with your plan.


How should I splice the very short wires for this LED shop light into my 12/2 NM-B? I'm installing 3 LED shop lights in my basement workshop. I've already run new 12/2 NM-B wire to a few junctions and switches, per light. The attached picture is an example of the final splice I need to make.

The cables that come out of the product (both need powered) are quite short and so don't lend themselves to being pulled into a junction box. It may look like there's just enough slack to mount a junction box right on the joist in the picture,  but not all of the lights are mounted such that their wires are that close to a joist.

The fluorescent shop lights I'm replacing simply pulled the 12/2 directly into the light enclosure, but these LED lights have no room for that.

Would this be an acceptable place to use the (Tyco, etc.) NM cable splices mentioned in the top answer here? If not, what's the best solution?

Thanks,
== Matt

More pictures by request:

Full fixture without the diffuser/cover:

Where the wiring exits the fixture:

Instructions assume flush mounted junction box:

What you want is a ceiling box that uses an old-work brace

If you have ever been in a hardware/home-improvement store and wondered why some of the boxes had what looked like a long metal brace attached to them, like so (picture for illustration only):

wonder no further.  That brace is meant to go between adjacent ceiling joists and support both the box and a fixture attached to the box, and the box can be adjusted to position it in the joist bay.  The fixture itself then acts as the cover for the box, as per NEC 314.25 and 410.22.

(Trying to support a box using a lighting fixture would likely be seen as a NEC 314.23 violation -- there is no subsection of 314.23 that allows for that.)


What are some permanent shower shelf options? I have found shower caddies and suction cup add-ons, but I want to add shelves to my shower surround that are permanent.  I haven't had much lucking finding anything.  What are my options, and where do I get them?

Buy/find/scrape up a small piece of corian. I'll bet you might find something online, or even better, go to a countertop maker in your area. They will surely have some scraps that you can take off their hands for a small fee. A square foot piece is scrap to them, so they might as well make a few dollars extra from it.

Cut into a triangular shape, to fit into a corner of the shower. You might also choose a quarter quadrant of a circle as the shape. The nice thing about corian is it works well with saws, routers, hand saws, files, etc. And you can sand the edges smooth, even to a glossy finish. Make a pair of blocks from the same corian, 1 inch high, and as long as the edges of your triangular shape. These will be supports for the shelf.

Now, glue the supports to the wall of the stall, using a high quality silicon as an adhesive. Angle the shelf just slightly down, so that any water on it will drain properly, but not enough so that something placed on it will freely slide off. Glue down the shelf with the same silicon to the supports and to the wall.


Does turning the air conditioning on and skipping its "fan" setting damage the air conditioner? Air conditioning units nowadays allow you to switch it from "off" to various levels of "cool" without requiring you to "fan" setting first.

Is there any reason to use "fan" setting (such as for example, to increase lifespan)? And why is it normally situated between "off" and "cool"? Is the purpose similar to idling a car, so to speak?

Typically the blower motor or fan on a forced air AC or HVAC system only run when the AC is running (this is also referred to as the "auto" mode). Turning the fan to the on position only runs the fan, but not necessarily the AC itself, giving you some air circulation, without the extra power required to run the AC compressor.

With a window unit, you also have the option to allow outside air in with the fan, which can cool a warm room if it's cooler outside, without running the AC at all. The fan is also useful for homes where some rooms get especially hot between the AC cycles, so you can constantly run the fan instead of lowering the temperature on the thermostat, but if you do this for extended periods, I'd suspect it actually increases power consumption rather than decreases it.

As for whether you would damage an AC by skipping the fan setting, that would be highly unlikely since the fan automatically turns on when the AC is running. What you can do to damage an AC is rapidly turn it on and back off, since this can result in a pressure differential in the coolant lines that could prevent the compressor from starting normally, burning out the motor, and it could be in a state where the lubricating oils in the coolant are not at the compressor motor where it's needed (this is also why you don't turn a refrigerator on immediately after it's been tilted from shipping).

As for why the fan setting is found between off and cool on some thermostats, this is likely for convenience. It's either off, you want fresh air, or you want fresh air and cooling.


Concrete Floor for 400 Gallon Water Tank I am planning to build a concrete slab on a soil surface to hold a 400 gallon water tank (Shown Below). I want to make it 7' x 7'. It should hold about 3,500 lbs.

Would I need to put in rebar? I've done much smaller slabs with 80 lbs bags of Quikrete Concrete ready mix. How many bags would I need?

My typical answer to these questions is talk to a Licensed Engineer because there are a lot of considerations that are needed. I firmly stand behind that.

On this project make sure you're using the correct information.

Water ~3,300 pounds

Tank ~ 180 pounds,

Concrete (4in thick without reinforcement) ~2,400 pounds

Piping ? other accessories?

Thats only part of the weight that the ground below your tank will support; how sure are you that the ground will hold that? Typically those tanks don't overflow at their rated capacity, they have 5-15% excess capacity, this needs to be designed to passively let the excess overflow or designed for the tank to be filled the overflow level.


Very low water pressure in house I have a single stored house with an overhead tank and a one inch pipe running down.
In bath rooms this one inch pipe is reduced to half inch as all our bath room fittings come with .5 inch gauge.

I am not sure whether increasing the pipe size from one inch to two inch will increase the pressure, as its more affordable than buying a pressure booster pump.

for a 15 L bucket, its taking about 10 mins to fill it. having a shower with current pressure is a dream. I need to fix this at the earliest as its becoming more frustrating with out water pressure.

please let me know your thoughts and comments.

Thanks
Subbu

Pressure

In a system fed from a header-tank, the pressure depends only on the height of the tank. To increase pressure you have only two or three options:

Raise the tank higher.
Install an electric pump (these are often used for showers)

If your header-tank is filled from a high-pressure municipal supply, you would probably get better pressure from that directly but in most places this would be a large job involving extensive knowledge of plumbing and local laws or codes. Your existing pipework and fittings might not be suitable for high-pressure.

Flow rate

The rate of flow is affected by

pressure
diameter of pipe
length of pipe

Half-inch pipe is usually adequate for sinks, basins, showers etc.


What is a typical lifespan for a sump pump? I am a new home owner and do not know what is "typical" for how often a sump pump should run.
The goal is flood prevention and failure preparation.  Finding a straight answer is proving annoyingly difficult.

Obviously,

it depends on location and
it depends on weather conditions

I know that running every minutes is probably too often.  Some people claim theirs runs 5 times a day.  Mine runs about every 20-45 minutes.  That's as much as 72 times per day.  I have no reference for how to interpret that information.

What is a "safe" operating frequency for a sump pump?
How many cycles is a sump pump good for?

The life span of a pump is hard to evaluate, yes constant cycling can shorten the life but it’s usually the float switch that fails.
The quality of the pump is a major factor in life span a quality brass housing with sealed bearings is going to outlast a plastic housed pump in most cases but not all. The water being pumped is the next thing is it clear? Dirty or even muddy. Clear water with a normal ph will be the easiest on a pump, with muddy water eroding the impeller and housing.
What is the “head” the pump needs to pump, how many feet is the water being raised the higher the head pressure the harder the pump has to work.
The size of the sump pit and flow needed to keep the basement dry
If you have a 10 gallon pit the pump will cycle more often than a 55 gallon pit even with a small pit if your pump is cycling two often a better choice can be a smaller pump that runs longer (you always want a cycle or on a heavy day the pit will over flow) I know of several homes that have 2 pumps a smaller one for most of the time then a large one for the heavy days with the large pump being set to cycle above the small ones set points so it cycles less often and prevents flooding if the small pump is not keeping up this method extends the pumps life and reduces energy costs in homes that have more than winter high water issues.

So there are many reasons it is hard to find an answer perfect sizing and setup may last ~8-10 years +-. Most pumps last a few years, keeping the pit clean of sediment and adjusting the cycle time with a properly sized pump will give the longest life. This is in my area that when we need them they are used most of the year.


How to fix an uneven (curved) upper window box to install blinds? The top of my window frame is curved, probably as a fail in construction. Just noticed it when I was trying to install new blinds.
You can see it in the picture below that it is uneven by the center of the frame.

Now when I try to install the blinds I need like another quarter inch for the edge to latch into the holder:

Is there any simple solution? I can think in adding spacers (which I just did temporarily, but looks quite ugly), or to do some sanding in the center to remove the extra material in the curved part and then repainting.
Edit: Forgot to add that the frame is vinyl.
Thanks a lot!

I would insert the spacer as you suggest, and then re-trim the front. Sanding 1/4in is a lot of work.
It seems that the casing trim is straight, but the window box is curved. You can get small trims (e.g. pine stop molding) which you could mount to the front face of the box, butting it against the existing casing and against or even in front of the top of the blind frame.


Touch up Plaster/White Cement My windows contractor replaced my windows casement. Once they install the new one, they patch up the wall/plaster it with white cement.

However, I'm not satisfied with the work, they are so uneven and unsightly (see picture).

What's the best way to fix it?

I managed to trim them with 240 grit paper + orbital sander. :)


Extending Framing Studs From 8' to 9' Well, I feel about as dumb as I possibly can right now, but I measured the ceiling height from the wrong point and purchased studs thinking the basement had an 8 foot ceiling, only to realize afterwards it's actually a 9 foot ceiling. Now I have a pile of studs I cannot return and I'm not sure what the best option is to move forward.
I've done some searches and I found a video describing a technique I believe would work that essentially builds another section of framing on top of an existing frame, then attaches the two sections together using strapping. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=baMgw2NuJ6o&t=118s

I think the above example would work, but what will happen during the drywall process? The straps are going to create an uneven surface.
Are there any alternative ideas than the ones suggested in the video? If the strapping idea is considered the best option, what suggestions do you have to handle the uneven surfaces created by the strapping?

In a non-load bearing wall the studs are really just nailing edges for the drywall.
You could just scab pieces to the side of the 8' to make 9' studs.  So take the 8' get a 1' piece and then get a piece that is 16" and use it to join the 1' and 8' together, 8" on either side of the splice.


What should I do if my vacuum trips my AFCI device? I have a vacuum that trips the AFCI device of the circuit that services my bedroom.

The vacuum has some age on it, and there is some wear on the motor's commutator.  This wear causes electrical arcing which, to the AFCI device, looks to be approaching an unsafe condition.  It is not an unsafe condition, however, because the arching is internal to the motor and the wear is part of the motor's design.  This knowledge, along with the fact that it sucks dirt really well, leads me to the conclusion that the vacuum is functioning properly.

The AFCI device has been engineered to detect the type of arcing caused by electric motors.  Although it occasionally trips when my older vacuum is in use, it does not trip when my neighbor's new vacuum is plugged into the bedroom circuit.  The device trips when it senses a potentially dangerous (although not dangerous) arc in my older vacuum, but also is able to distinguish the arc caused by by my neighbor's vacuum as from a motor and not dangerous.  This information leads me to beleive that the AFCI device is functioning properly.

Should I get rid of the vacuum?  I don't want to do this, because it sucks up dirt really well.  Also, if I get a new one, it will wear in a year or two and cause the same problem.  Should I get rid of the AFCI device?  I don't want to do that, because I want protection from fires and it is required by NEC.

Plugging the vacuum into a surge suppressor with EMI filtering, should prevent the vacuum from tripping the breaker. However, if the vacuum is overloading the circuit, no filter will help.

When I run my vacuum sweeper / paper shredder / treadmill / etc. it trips my AFCI.
Eaton’s AFCI has been designed to work with devices with motors that are within the FCC standard for noise. Even though these devices have been manufactured to the FCC’s standards, after frequent use wear within the motor can create noise which trips the AFCI. To mitigate the noise generated by these devices, you may use a surge plug or surge strip

From Eaton AFCI frequently asked questions (pdf)


Air Seal recessed cans without attic access I recently discovered moisture in my attic and the mold inspector recommended sealing all the canned lights in our house. We have about 30 in vaulted ceilings where there is no attic access.

Any tips on how to seal the fans from below?

For reference. House in in Seattle, built in 2008. Canned lights are IC air tite halo models. I was surprised that they leak air as they are air tite. But I can imagine given its not sealed like our bathroom recessed lights and closet recessed lights that have a glass cover and gasket.

If I take the baffle off the unit is metal and there are some screws and such.

Do I just caulk the can to the Sheetrock around the opening and then form or tape the crevices using duct tape?

Your best option is to caulk the can's rim to the ceiling drywall and then replace the bulb with a drop-in LED replacement. These things are self-contained units that seal off the air leakage paths themselves, and you can caulk them to the housing too for extra assurance.


Top center of garage door bumping opener rail as it closes. Does anyone know the fix for this? After 10 years of normal operation, my garage door started bumping the center opener rail just as the last edge of the door passes the very front the rail before it closes.  This causes it to pop back open.  If I apply a slight bit of pull on the door with my hand during this point it will close without hitting.  I figure some bolt got loose or something.  If anyone knows how to troubleshoot this, I would greatly appreciate advice.  Thanks.

In your 3rd 4th and 5th picture you see the top roller which is adjustable. Check them on each side of the door to see if the adjustment bolts have become loose. And then as others have said check all the other nuts and bolts to see if any have loosened. If any have make sure it's not adjustable before you tighten it. In fact I see a loose bolt in one of the photos that's probably causing the problem.


Remove painted over glow in the dark stars? I moved into a new home where the owner painted over some of those glow in the dark stickers on the ceiling. Because they're painted over, I can't simply scrape them off and they still glow through the paint. Any ideas on how to get rid of these things? I'd prefer to get rid of them (or at least make it look like they're gone) than just keep adding coats of paint.

Sounds like you're going to have to complicated-ly scrape those stars off! Seriously, though, you're right: it would take a fair amount of paint to stop the glowing, and even more paint to build up enough height to bury the stars completely.

The paint entombing the stars is most likely to be of the latex variety. This stuff is somewhat stretchy and rubbery, so to minimize peeling the paint away from the ceiling it'll be important to cut the paint around the star. Use a small and sharp hobby/craft knife to trace the outline of every star. Use light pressure -- you only need to cut through the paint film that's actually over the star, and it'll really be best if you can avoid damaging the paper facing of the drywall behind all the layers of paint.

With the perimeter of the stars cut free the next step is to lift them off the surface. You'll need some kind of prying tool. If the stars are just thin stickers then the knife itself may be adequate. If the stars are the thicker rigid plastic type then another tool may be better: a chisel, a putty knife, or some kind of scraping tool.

After the stars are gone you may want to make repairs. If the over-coat paint was thin and if the stars peeled away nicely then you might get away with just another coat of paint. On the other hand, if there's much of a step in the paint film or if there's damage to the underlying surface then you may need to use a filler like drywall joint compound or topping to smooth things. As in all drywall repair if you use a filler then you'll need to also use a primer before progressing to the new finish coat.


Replacing Carpet with Hardwood floor - contractor issues on base board cutting We new to home improvements. We are getting carpet area on upperfloor hallway replaced with hardwood. The contractor cut the baseboard to fit the hardwoods in, on one part we saw 2 hardwoood atleast 3-4 inches extra inside the wall. This wall is just opposite to stairs so we could see it. He says the shoe molding covers it all but I am afraid he damaged our drywall. Is it the common way the hardwood gets installed? or we have been fooled by contractor.
There is broken base board and wall behind this shoe molding. Also having edges of hardwood inside the wall. I am so disheartened. Is there solution to fix this problem? Or leave it alone with shoe molding covering it up?

If your baseboard goes down to the subfloor then I would be very surprised that the installer took the time to cut into it so that hardwood would go under it. If the contractor has a specialty tool for this which makes the endeavor take seconds instead of using an oscillating multi-tool then that would be cool.
Anyways, the baseboard was probably cut unevenly so brand new shoe molding is designed explicitly to hide the imperfections where your floor meets the baseboard; regardless of whether the floor goes under the baseboard or butts up right against it.
What exactly is the issue if hidden drywall was damaged a little bit?
In your mind what exactly would make things right or better? Based on your worries "making it right" is going to be expensive.
Overall, the install looks fairly proper. Patch the holes and add a fresh coat of paint on your baseboard and shoe molding and it will look great.


Non-Permanent Plastic Pipe Sealant or Join Improvement? Brief: Looking for recommendations on a product to improve the seal of 2 joined plastic pipes (narrower pipe wedged into wider one) that is non-permanent + water and hot/cold resistant?

Details: I have two plastic pipes (similar to PVC pipe) which is part of an Enersol solar pool heating panel that fit together, one into the other with a locking pin to hold them together. The fit is too loose and they leak constantly (we have had endless problems with these).

As far as I can tell they are not damaged, just that the pipes don't fit snug enough. I want to make the seal better, but it can't be permenantly cemented together because if one panel needs to be replaced they have to come apart.

I was about to try a wrap of teflon-tape around the inner pipe and try that, but it occurred to me that there might be a product meant specifically for this. Needs to be waterproof, and fairly heat/cold resistant. It is on the roof.

Disclaimer: we are not handy at all.

Thank you kindly.

It appears to me that since it is on the roof, subject to extremes, that the joint needs to withstand the expansion and contraction of the PVC pipe. That joint you are referring to is just that, it is a slip joint that allows the pipe to grow and shrink in length and presumably still not leak, since is a closed system, or supposed to be. There should be a rubber or neoprene "O" ring that allows it to seal with movement. It should just need replacement and reassembled using a silicone lubricant.


Should smoke detectors be on AFCI/GFCI breakers? I've heard conflicting advice whether smoke detectors should be on a simple over-current breaker or a AFCI/GFCI breaker. On one hand you want the circuit to be as reliable as possible and since there will be nothing additional plugged into the circuit a simple over-current breaker makes sense.   On the other hand the 2017 code requires just about all 120 volt circuits to be protected at the panel (new construction) with at least AFCI. 2020 code seems to require everything from the doorbell on up to the range to be GFCI protected and most 120 v circuits to be AFCI protected as well.
I'm really curious because I just installed the smokes for my sons new house and the instructions said they should not be on a GFCI/AFCI protected circuit.   It passed final electrical inspection today and the smokes were on an AFCI breaker.
Thoughts from others here?

AFCI is required, but not GFCI, modulo local amendments
Assuming that your jurisdiction doesn't amend this, the requirements for smoke detectors/alarms in bedrooms (NFPA 72, NFPA 101, IRC/IBC) overlap with the AFCI requirement for bedroom outlets (both receptacles and lighting outlets) to force the smoke alarms onto an AFCI protected circuit under all recent NEC editions.
There are two ways I've seen to deal with this: either you can put in a residential alarm system with system smoke/CO detectors (and get the brains of a burglar alarm from the deal), which means you get to take advantage of the 760.41(B) requirement that fire alarm panels not be on AFCI or GFCI, or you put the smokes on the same circuit as frequently used lighting loads, so that breaker trips are troubleshot promptly.
As an aside, NFPA 72 29.9.4 point 5 requires smoke alarms that are AFCI or GFCI protected to have battery backup power.  If the 7 days of standby + 4 minutes of alarm backup power requirement given for dual-powered smoke alarms is insufficient, such as if you're dealing with a "snowbird" situation in Florida, then it's best to go to an alarm panel.  (You'd probably want the alarm panel anyway, as local smoke alarms are going to do you no good when it's July and the house is vacant and neighborless to begin with!)


Just patch a leaking crack in the basement wall, or do more? During a remarkably heavy rainstorm last week, a small puddle formed in our basement. We could see that the water entered the basement through a fingernail-sized crack in the interior concrete wall. Is it enough to patch the concrete, or are we inviting more serious trouble down the road if we don't investigate the state of the outside foundation wall (at least until there's a recurrence)?

Conventional wisdom is that you deal with the issue from the outside in.

Is there something causing water to stay in that area? Downspouts dumping water there? Ponding that can be solved by grading the surface? Drainage patterns that can only be mitigated by something like a french drain?

Deal with the exterior "why", and you might not have to worry about a crack.

But if you want to work on the crack, do it from the outside. There's no greater waste of time imho than patching the interior. Hydraulic cement is usually the weapon of choice, here.


How to fill a narrow crevice around my toilet waste pipe with concrete? When I replaced a toilet, I discovered that my toilet flange was not actually secured to my concrete subfloor at all and had come out of level, causing a leak between the bowl and the floor on the side that sunk beneath the finished floor. I removed the old flange and discovered that the original builder likely used too much padding around my 4" PVC waste pipe when they poured the slab, leaving approximately 3/4" distance between the waste pipe and the slab. The gap is much wider than that at the top of the pipe where the flange would be secured, but then narrows considerably. Any flange won't be able to rest on surrounding subfloor without pouring new concrete down there.

I plan to wrap the pipe to prevent anything from entering, then pour some sand as backfill down there and ultimately finish it with at least 4-6" of concrete at the top to bring it level with the finished floor (like these videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Szlhjn1Hfe0, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XKxYSOoiGe8, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LzPmmN6DAZY)

The problem I see is that the crevice is deeper than in those vids and it becomes so narrow, that if my concrete mix is at its ideal consistency, it's doubtful that I'll be able to work it into the crevice without significant air pockets. Ideally, I'd like something relatively soupy that can just be poured down there, but I realize that a soupy/pourable consistency may compromise the integrity of the mounting surface.

Quikrete makes a product (see vid here) that can be dry poured, which I think may be a good option, but I'm concerned that it could expand while curing and crack my waste pipe.

Whatever I use, I plan to then secure the new flange to the surface using Tapcons.

What's the best way to fill in a gap like this?

Anchoring cement is designed to be pourable and, while not a great finished surface with respect to wear durability, should secure your plumbing with excellence and aplomb.


Vent kitchen hood vent to roof turbine vent? I had a contractor install a hood vent.  He ran a foil pipe up towards the roof and tie it @ 6 in below the turbine vent (whirley birds).
Is this adequate for all the fumes to escape out?  Is this ok?
He told me to run it out through the roof it would cost more money.

TL;DR:

It is explicitly not to code to exhaust into the attic or to use foil pipe
It's a bad idea anyway because it puts smoke, grease and warm humid air into your attic which can cause mold growth

2015 International Residential Code, Chapter 15:

  M1501.1 Outdoor discharge.

  The air removed by every mechanical exhaust system shall be discharged to the
  outdoors in accordance with Section M1506.3. Air shall not be exhausted into an
  attic, soffit, ridge vent or crawl space.

Foil pipe is also not allowed:

  M1503.2 Duct material.
  Ducts serving range hoods shall be constructed of galvanized steel, stainless
  steel or copper.

I'd also say aside from the material, foil pipes don't meed the requirement of having a "smooth interior surface":

  SECTION M1503 RANGE HOODS

  M1503.1 General.

  Range hoods shall discharge to the outdoors through a duct. The duct serving the
  hood shall have a smooth interior surface, shall be air tight, shall be equipped
  with a back-draft damper and shall be independent of all other exhaust systems.
  Ducts serving range hoods shall not terminate in an attic or crawl space or
  areas inside the building.

Also note that range hoods are very explicitly not allowed to exhaust into an attic, though there is an exception for hoods that are specifically built to exhaust elsewhere:

  M1503.1 Exception: Where installed in accordance with the manufacturer’s
  instructions, and where mechanical or natural ventilation is otherwise
  provided, listed and labeled ductless range hoods shall not be
  required to discharge to the outdoors.

This of course can vary by jurisdiction (eg: your jurisdiction may follow a different version of IRC, have their own amendments, or not follow it at all), and the final call is up to the AHJ (Authority Having Jurisdiction, aka inspector). You can likely call your local building permits department to be sure.


How do I fix a warped kitchen cabinet? The side wall of the cabinet is slightly warped after I used the high temperature self-clean feature on the oven. This cabinet has three large drawers in it and now they won't close.  The wall of the cabinet is warping in slightly (a few millimeters) and is squeezing the drawers enough that they scrape against the side of the cabinet.

How should I repair this cabinet?

I decided to try to install a cross brace inside the cabinet to spread the walls enough so the drawers would fit.

I made a trip to the hardware store and picked up:

A 1x6 pine board
Angle brackets with screws

Then I:

measured the front opening of the cabinet.
cut a piece off the pine board 2mm longer than the cabinet is wide.
used a rubber mallet to tap the board into place as a cross brace just underneath the top drawer.
tested the drawers to make sure they opened and closed with the cross brace in place
permanently attached the cross brace with the angle brackets.

It works perfectly.  I was prepared to add a second cross brace underneath the middle drawer, but all the drawers are working well without it.

Here is a picture of the repair with a red circle around the board that I added.


Are dishwasher overfill protection floats adjustable? Dishwasher leaks. It is practically level but slopes 1 degree toward the door. Owner's manual labels overfill protection float in the diagram but does not mention how to use it. Are these floats adjustable? If so, is it possible to use it to regulate water level?

The float is likely not adjustable.  However, the diswasher has leveling feet and an excellent first step is to use them. Then clean the float area and all the folds and cracks of the rubber door seal.


(How) Can I reuse this PVC 4-way Some contractors broke my irrigation system and I'm in the process of repairing it. One of the connections to a PVC 4-way junction had a piece of schedule-40 PVC broken off inside it. As luck would have it, this is the inlet from the source.

As near as I can tell, there is no way to reuse the junction and it must be cut out of all the other splices and reconnected in those branches as well. Am I wrong, can it be reused? And if so, how?

You can try filing the broken piece out with a Dremel tool with a sanding drum attachment but I've had little luck doing that. You're better off just cutting out the junction and installing a new one with three repair sleeves. Good luck.


Is it possible to mount a countertop microwave under a cabinet? Is it possible to mount a countertop microwave under a cabinet similar to how an over the range microwave is installed ?

There are floating shelf brackets that appear to allow this.

Is there a better way to do this ?

There are 2 issues here:

1) Top clearance. Countertop ovens usually have vents on top and the manual states the minimum clearances - from top, back and sides. Countertops generally need space around them.

2) The physical mount. You're showing a floating shelf bracket, but there is no shelf. Countertop appliances have wide-spaced legs and they are designed to stand on those legs to be stable. If you plan to put it on the bare bracket, that's not a good idea. First, it won't be stable enough and could tip to the side and slide away. Second, "the belly" may be just a heatshield and only the legs are structurally strong enough to hold the weight of the oven. Third, bottoms of countertops are usually exceptionally ugly and you're exposing it to anyone who bends over.

I believe you should just build a dedicated shelf for the oven. Take the minimum distances into account. Make it at least as big as the legs. Add small side fences or mount rings into which the legs will sit to prevent the oven from being easily knocked off it.


Is plunging a toilet without a plunger a good tip or a horrible idea? Read this elsewhere and personally, I thought it was a bad bad bad idea, but I wanted to put this out there to see if I might be mistaken:

  I learned a quick tip from a handyman on how to create a plunger
  without using a plunger. take a bucket of water and pour it from
  approx waist high into the toilet. This forces the water down and
  simulates the same effect as a plunger.

What do you think?  Good tip?  Or potentially horrible one?

Ok all dirty humor aside, that sounds like a terrible idea.  OMG, what a mess that could make.  First off, the idea is to never plunge the jam further down the pipe, instead the best solution is to suck the jam back up the pipe first, allow any vacuum to ease then send it down the pipe. How this is done is to submerge your plunger into the water allowing the cup to fill with water. GENTLY push it down over the drain opening slowly  forcing the water out and compressing the plunger cup. Now you will created a good seal and a vacuum. Quickly PULL the plunger out. repeat this process a few times before attempting to plunge down. The idea here is to pull the blockage back a bit and open a path.  Once you see the water receding a bit, vigorously plunge up and down. Trust me, this works in most cases and will be a lot less messy than High altitude bombing!


Installing a "key cylinder" to open and close the garage door I have a Chamberlain LiftMaster Professional Garage Door opener (June 2007) with a wireless keypad to open the door but does not open consistently in cold weather. I would like to install a hardwired "key" solution so that the garage door opens consistently in all weather. Can this be done? Is there a specific cylinder I need to purchase for this task?

thanks

Assuming your opener has the terminals for doing so, to hardwire this you would want either a double-momentary keyswitch, or a housing that takes a lock cylinder and uses its tailpiece to actuate a pair of momentary switches, plus appropriate mounting hardware and wires. The latter gives you more flexibility in picking a cylinder that matches, e.g., your house keys.

I agree that if the battery is good, and is appropriate for that weather, and there isn't an unreasonable amount of radio frequency interference (RFI) with the signal, a decent quality numeric pad should work. You may want to spend more time checking why it doesn't before investing in the wired switch.


Cutting 4" hole on Rim Joist Would it be advisable to cut a 4" hole on the basement rim joist to install a bathroom fan. The joist size is 8" and is supported by a basement wall.

Sure, you can drill a large hole in a rim joist, provided there isn’t a large post directly above the hole.

Loads will be “transferred” around the opening, whether the rim joist is parallel or perpendicular to the joists.


Attaching drywall to cracked/sagging plaster ceiling? I have a plaster & lath ceiling in a bedroom that is in need of repair - it's intact for the most part, but it's pretty unsightly. Since the entire ceiling is full of cracks, I'd rather simply cover it with a layer of 1/2" sheet rock.

Would the drywall be sufficient to clamp the sagging parts to the lath/studs, or should I use plaster washers and then attach the drywall? I know furring strips and then drywall would probably be the safest bet, but I'd rather try to keep as much ceiling height as possible.

Thanks

The plaster is sagging probably due to issues with some of the lathe boards above it.   Those need to be repaired.

If you have access above this you could just knock these totally out and reframe with 2x4s.   This would probably be the quickest way.

As far as mess...   You are thinking about this wrong.   Demoing might be a mess.   Sanding the mud for the new drywall will be 10 times worse for your house.

My advice is knock out the ceiling.  (this will take minutes)   Then reframe and then add drywall.   This space will have to be totally emptied out.   If you are quick you can get drywall up with first coat of mud in day 1.   Day 2 you can add second - final set of mud (if you are really good).   This will take at least two days to dry.   Day 4 you are sanding.   That is best case scenario.   Room will have to be emptied and doorways will have to be tarped off from rest of the house.


Hand tools for cutting glued boards to size? I'm a complete novice to woodworking - I have a few plans in mind (tables and such like) that involve gluing boards to make tops, sides and so forth.

My idea is to glue boards to make panels larger than I actually need them to be and then shape them to size afterwards... but I don't have a table saw, nor anywhere to put one should I buy one (without commandeering the dining room).

So my question is - what's the best combination of hand (power) tools to achieve this? I have a plunge router, so I was thinking of grabbing a circular saw, using that to trim the panels to roughly the right size and then using the router with a fence to square everything off.

What other options do I have?

I;ve used the rough cut then router many times. works great.


Alternatives to knobs for kitchen cabinets? I have very old oak kitchen cabinets that I just can’t see replacing because they are in beautiful condition yet we never had any kind of knobs or hardware to open and close them with. Now that we are older and arthritis is setting in we need the extra help that the knobs would provide but the doors and drawers are just too thick and we suspect that is why the builder never even bothered with the hardware to begin with. Any ideas on maybe some kind of over the door pull system etc that may help us? Thanks

Using a “hook-type” cabinet knob
Like this: https://www.build.com/top-knobs-tk500-cabinet-pull/s973468

seems like a “red-neck” way to solve this issue.

Taking the time (and effort) to drill a hole through the cabinet door, finding longer screws at a hardware store and installing each knob seems much better.

Like one of these: https://www.houzz.com/photos/cabinet-and-drawer-knobs/

Or you could install a surface mount pull like this
No need to drill through the door or drawer just  drill a small pilot hole and use 1/2-3/4 inch screws that usually come with the pulls .


How can I isolate my bedroom from refrigerator noise? I want to close out noise from my fridge/freezer. The walls are very thick, but I have a a free passage which needs isolating. I'm thinking some isolating material perhaps that I can hang in direct contact with the wall, that entirely covers the free passage. Below is a drawing of my room.

Anyone has ideas for isolating materials or methods for how to isolate my bedroom from the noise?

.I assume that you will need to be able to use that passage and the walls as you said are soundproof enough.
Then you need something like a door or a hanging curtain.
To stop the sound you would need some mass and you can also add some absorption into your room.
I suggest you start with the following:
1 - place the refrigerator on a rubber mat - that will decouple it from the floor and cut sound transmission this way;
2 - hang a heavy curtain. you can use mass loaded vinyl  http://www.vocalboothtogo.com/acoustic-and-soundproofing-products-vocal-booths/soundproofing-materials/limp-mass-barrier-mass-loaded-vinyl-for-vocal-booth/6-17

or a Mass Loaded Vinyl with Acoustic foam (fire retardant) :   http://www.vocalboothtogo.com/acoustic-and-soundproofing-products-vocal-booths/soundproofing-materials/advanced-soundproofing-and-sound-absorption-panels/6-18

3 - when you hang the curtains you can hang them from BOTH sides of the passage wall this will have two-side effect - it will double the sound blocking mass and it will create layered barrier with layers of different density.
4 - make sure that your curtain overlaps the opening and creates a tight (as much as you can) seal around the edges. if you can see a light through your cover - the sound will leak through it.

5 - and lastly I am not sure looking at your drawings if the refrigerator  sits just in one corner of the room, but is you can you can enclose the refrigerator itself (just on the side facing your room with sound absorbing or sound blocking materials.  Do not enclose the whole refrigerator – in needs air exchange to function  But if you put another barrier in the direction of your room – it will help.

Good luck.
Jeff.


How to prep a ceiling for knockdown I have a 25 y.o. ceiling that had popcorn, which has been removed and smoothed. I would like to apply knockdown mud so that it looks like this:

Is it necessary to prep the ceiling?  Is it enough to broom clean the ceiling?

After removing popcorn I usually find areas that need some topping mud to make a nice even base. After that a damp rag wipe down or a kitchen sponge mop to remove any heavy dust and shoot the mud. Texture is normally put on bare sheetrock no prep work other than filling voids from screws and tape to hide seams is all that is needed.


Samsung dishwasher dispenser doesn't open until partway through rinse cycle We have a Samsung DMR57LFB dishwasher that is about 6 years old. The past two weeks or so we noticed a new problem -- soap on the glasses after the dishwasher was finished. So I watched during the 2 hour 14 minute complete cycle. During the 1 hour 30 minute wash the soap dispenser stayed closed. It then opened about 5 minutes into the rinse, with 40 minutes remaining in the complete cycle. That left unrinsed soap on the dishes.

My understanding is that when a dishwasher starts a complete cycle it first rinses the dishes, drains,and then starts to wash, at which point the soap dispenser opens. I guess we could manually open the dispenser at that point but I'd like to fix this if I could. The soap dispenser seems to operate fine, but just get the control signal late.

Any suggestions on what to try to find and fix the problem? I'll try pulling the plug on the dishwasher to see if that resets the control board.

It would be helpful to know if this is a new problem or a new unit. The first thing that comes to mind is "Are you sure you are putting the dish washing soap in the right dispenser"?

I looked up the manual to your particular model here:

Samsung Manual

You can see on page 18 and 19 it differentiates between the two dispensers. The behavior your are describing is what I would expect from the rinse aid dispenser.

I also once had issue with dishes blocking the latch from opening completely. For instance, placing a sheet pan parallel to the door. The door would open slightly and the dishwasher tab would not dissolve properly until the rinse cycle.


Seal basement floor before tiling My basement is prone to getting water in it after big rains.  I know that we definitely have a leak in the wall on one side of the basement so we're having a contractor come in and demo the whole basement and excavating the exterior in hopes of finding said leak.  They are pretty confident they can find it easily and patch it up. Then I think we'll DRYLOK the whole thing as an added safety measure.

The other day when I was down there, I noticed several small piles of white dust scattered throughout the basement floor.  I've researched this and I think what I've found are calcium deposits which I understand appear as water and moisture come through the concrete. (Am I right so far?)

I'd like to ultimately porcelain tile the basement floor (right now it has linoleum tiles) but I'd like to seal the floor somehow first.  I read that DRYLOKing it will cause the thinset to not bond properly when laying the tiles.  Are there other options out there?

Unless you truly fix the water intrusion, sealing the floor will not work. I would do a moisture transmission test in your 'wet season', after the repairs are done:
secure a foot square of plastic to the floor in several locations.  You should review the information here: Basement floor with lots of moisture.

A moisture meter (this one has a masonry setting) for before, during and after readings, will give you a lot of information.

Porcelain tile will, in effect, seal the floor, since porcelain tile is impervious to water (<= 0.5% water absorption).  Be sure to use portland cement based thinset (the dry kind, NOT a premixed mastic "thinset").


How to get a granite counter top with sink off a wooden bathroom vanity I have a standard 37" x 22" granite top with sink on top of a typical bathroom vanity. The sink is cracked and a corner on the top is knocked off. I've found many tops with sink available that will fit perfectly, but I do not know how to get the old top off. I have of course tried to pull up but it's stuck on there so that didn't work. There are no screws or bolts holding it either. Since i want to preserve the vanity I can't just pry it off with some sort of crowbar.  Anyone got good ideas in this regard or do I have to replace the vanity also?

Use a long sharp knife, like a carpet/flooring knife, to slice through the caulking or construction adhesive that was used on the top of the vanity when the sink was set onto it. Then yes, use a lifting/prying strategy that minimizes potential for damage to the cabinet. You may need to slice, lift a little, slice some more, lift a little more, slice...


Using Water Supply Pipe to Connect the Earth Wire In the past, it was common to connect the earth wire (green/yellow wire) of an appliance to the water pipe. But now we were told to connect it to the earth pin of the power plug, instead.  But, why can't we use the water pipe anymore?

Currently, I am installing a new electric heater but have to reuse an old power cord that runs through the wall that has only 2 wires (line and neutral) without the earth wire.  So, it is impossible for me to connect the heater's earth wire to the earth pin of the plug.  I am thinking of using the old method of using the water pipe to earth my heater.  Is it a valid method? Another possibility is to connect my heater's earth to the earth of another appliance nearby.  Does it make any difference?

We are following the UK electric wiring standards although strict adherence to the standard is not my concern.

Many homes do not have a waterpipe that would provide an adequate ground. The water supply line is now often plastic. Even if you have copper pipes inside your house they may not be grounded if they are attached to a plastic pipe that runs underground.


Ceiling fan light went off completely and now it blinks one short blink and comes on okay Ceiling light went out completely and I turned off at the wall and it did it again.  I changed the bulbs (4) 60 watts.  Now it blinks one short blink when I turn the unit on at the wall and comes on okay.

You are overloading it.  It is probably listed for 40W bulbs.  Switch some of the bulbs to LEDs.

It may be best to keep one incandescent; some electronic modules do not like it when they are all LEDs.

Since you just bought incandescents, I assume you have been put off by the ugly, dazzling blue of the early LED attempts. You and everyone else. They are much better now.  While it's always possible to buy cheap junk, any reasonable quality of LED allows your choice of color temperature from 5000K LED dazzle-blue, clear down to 2700K traditional incandescent.

What they're selling you now as "incandescents" are in fact halogens, which still incandescent but with a trick for efficiency (not much).  It is also bluer (not much) so its light is 3000K - keep that in mind if matching.

Cheapie LEDs tend to be 5000k because it's cheaper to make. Cheapies also tend to have terrible CRI, meaning the various colors are all lop-sided - too much blue, no green, etc.  If CRI is specified, aim for 80% or above. If it's not specified, lookout!   Actually 5000K does have its uses (it matches daylight) but nobody wants bad CRI.


Why pump will not shut off? What I got: old Sears hyddopeumatic water tank, just bought a new Drummond 1 horse owner pump, the pump was set at 30/50 psi. But the pump will not shut off after even the pressure gauge reads at 55 or close to 60. (The tank has a cap on the air tap into the tank?)

Please note, the outlet of the rank has a shut off valve so no water was released into the house pipe. No leaks finding either.

Run a few times and saw the water enter into pressure gauge screen.

Check your pressure switch. Sometimes when you open the system up you get some debris in the line which can plug the switch and keep it from registering the pressure and shutting off. Also check that the contacts in the switch haven't "welded" themselves together.


What kind of hinges? I'm want to hange a privacy lattice in my carport. Dimensions are 8x8 feet, not including the 2x4's. The structure will be pretty heavy. Load will be supported from top by hinges in a 4x4. What's the cheapest/best option?

Use heavy screw eyes or eye bolts, screwed into the 2x4 frame of the lattice panel, and screw hooks or screw bolts into the 4x4.


Will painted wood that has been buffed to a polished finish remain so with daily use, i.e. a desk? I'm looking to repaint & resurface a wooden desk in our house that is currently untreated. My desire is to bring the desk surface to a polished/reflective gloss white finish using a combination of acrylic high-gloss paint, and buffing/wet-sanding up to 3000 with a random orbital sander to bring out a shine.

My expectation—from the research I've done—is that this should bring out a reflective and clean finish on the surface.

My one cause for concern is that this desk is also in a fairly high use area, and gets used multiple times per day. For example, it's not uncommon for this desk to be used as a workspace, so you can imagine keyboard/elbows/arms/hot drinks are all sitting on its surface.

What sort of expectations should I be setting with respect to this finish lasting over time? Will the reflectivity dull over time? If so, what precautions and steps can I take to ensure this is either mitigated or doesn't occur?

With the type of prep and finish you are describing it sounds like the desk our Dad made for his masters project. It still is in use today by my little brother in his home office, the only difference is you have to know how to open the secret drawers and those can be hard to find , never made it to that level because I went into the sparky world , any time a good sanding and many coats of quality finish is used it can last generations. I love DA or dual action sanders I have found to make high end quality finishes a very fine paper is used , dad taught me to use up to 1200 wet paper for custom jobs with varathane on oak & walnut that looks like glass 20 years later.


We built a pergola, is it safe? We found a pergola design that we loved and copied the design but now that it's (mostly) up we are questioning its stability and safety.  The 2x6 beams are notched 3" to fit together, which I have read makes them equivalent to 2x3's.  We love this design and want to make it sturdy and safe.  We plan to put diagonal supports from the posts to beams, but wanted to seek advice before we proceed.  The louver boards (see the second picture, they will be built in each of the 8 openings) have added a load.  We want to make this stable.

Well, it seems totally safe to me, it's not going to fall on you unprovoked. You won't be able to drive a truck into it, but you can sit under it. You can't land an aircraft on it, but it should be able to handle the rain and snow. It's not really load bearing, and it looks beautiful.

However, if you're afraid, grab a Kreg joint kit and screw them together at the notches. Do it from the sides, 1/3rd of the way from the edge to the notch. You can put a dowel in the hole, cut it off, sand it down and you'll barely be able to tell anything's there.


Electric looking thing found in ground We are cleaning up our back yard from the previous owners. Found this today and I don’t know what it is. Is it our ground for the electric box? Kinda close to that. The previous owners also have a circuit breaker in the shed, also close to that. I feel Ike I should put dirt on it, but I want to know what it is first.

Picture of the thing and it’s relation to the electric box and the shed attached.

[1

I carefully dug around it, trying not to touch the red part because I was worried it might be a live wire. I found a second smaller wire and followed that to another round thing. Noticed that the red wire went back around to the other round thing. It was pointed in the direction of the well so I was thinking it might be a pressure sensor for the well. Pulled up a clump of grass near it and the whole thing came out. It’s a bow

That is a child’s compound bow at first I thought you were using it to point at something but it is quite clear that is what it is. We have a couple for the kids as one of my sons is a bow hunter he likes the challenge.


Drilling in drywall, hit copper pipe with high pressure air? I was drilling in my drywall to install a drywall screw, all of a sudden high-pressure air starts coming out, after awhile it stopped.

When I looked inside I could see copper pipe with the hole I just drilled.. What did I hit?  I'm thinking it has something to do with my A/C as there was no water, just high-pressure air.

How would I go about fixing something like this?

Unless you have a home workshop with an air compressor (and I'm quite sure you don't) you have punctured your air conditioner refrigerant line and drained the system.

The "air" was actually refrigerant. While not toxic it's certainly not healthy and your room now has several pounds of it floating around at floor level.

You will want to do the following, more-or-less immediately:

remove any pets or children to upper floors or (better) somewhere else.
open windows
ventilate the room / floor. Rent an industrial fan with a large duct, put the fan in the room and the duct leading outside. Any rental place will have one. Tell them what happened or you will probably get a carpet-drying fan. We need to remove air, not move it around.

In the near future, you will be cutting open that part of the wall. Call an air conditioner serviceman with the make and model of your unit and tell him you punctured the line and drained the system. He will fix the line and refill it with new refrigerant. Don't try fixing the pipe yourself - the joint has to be gastight with the proper parts or it will leak again. The parts & labour for fixing the pipe will be less than the sales tax on the refrigerant, and the guy just might do it for no extra charge (sympathy for the $1000+ you're paying for new gas).


Bathroom GFCI trips when I plug into different outlet on separate breaker, but in same bathroom My GFCI in my bathroom trips when I plug anything into another standard outlet across the room. They are on separate breakers. If I turn off the breaker that powers the GFCI, the other outlet works fine. If I turn off the breaker that powers the outlet, I get 12 volts between hot and neutral.

The neutral on the other circuit is somehow cross-connected to this neutral.  Possibly via bootlegging grounds. Possibly via a miswired light or fan.

All this miswiring is related to the LOAD terminals on the GFCI. Those are shipped with a piece of tape on them that says "Do Not Use.  For Wizards Only."  But lots of people don't read the tape.  Especially selling homeowners trying to pass inspection with GFCIs in all the right places.

The usual mistake is replacing a plain receptacle (which has 4 screws, meant for splicing) with a GFCI (2 screws, plus 2 special Load screws not for splicing). They just force it, and it causes things like this.

So the answer is:

search all boxes in the bathroom and remove any bootlegged grounds. If they are GFCI protected they are allowed to be 3-prong sockets and have no ground, but they need a sticker that says "No Equipment Ground".
remove all the wires from the GFCI Load terminals, and place them on the GFCI Line terminals.  Use any splicing method that is legal, e.g. wire nuts and pigtails.
understand your wiring.  If you know of any particular loads that you want GFCI protected, move their hot and neutral to the Load terminals.  Do this symmetrically, don't move hot while you get neutral from somewhere else.


Can chipboard shelves be varnished? Note: including a lot of details to avoid XY problem.

Background
I have been dealing with a minor pest (psocids, in case you're wondering, but I don't want the conversation to become about that), mainly in a kitchen cupboard and the surrounding area. I've already taken a few appropriate steps, and the next step is to try to close various gaps that the bugs use to go through, such as the ones in the picture below at the back of the cupboard (I think they've nested somewhere behind there). I will be doing that with silicone sealant.

Problem
These bugs crawled everywhere, including the holes in the chipboard of the cupboard, which they seem to like. One such place where the chipboard is exposed, is the side of the shelves inside the cupboard.

I want to seal these sides to stop bugs from hiding in there and kill any bugs or eggs that are possibly still alive inside. I don't care much about appearance since these sides are out of sight, but a clear or white layer would be better.

I tried spreading a thin layer of silicone on one shelf, but this makes the shelf a bit "sticky" on the sides of the cupboard. This is not a huge problem since the shelves don't move regularly, but the silicone is coming off easily due to this "friction".

I thought to use some varnish instead, but then I saw a guy on Youtube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FV-bLLVrakM) claiming that if I put plain varnish, I risk ruining the shelf by causing it to swell. He suggests "semi-transparent" (i.e., one that includes some paint), which I could not find on Screwfix or other places (UK). His interchangeable use of "varnish" and "stain" does not help either.

So, is it true that I should not use a varnish directly on the chipboard? If so, could I use a coat of paint directly and then varnish on top (since I can't find a mixed product)?

By Googling for "chipboard sealant" I found a UK vendor of "work top edge sealer" that seems to be designed for that sort of job.

  Seals & Waterproofs Sawn Or Drilled Edges, Joints, Sink Cut Outs etc.
  Excellent sealing and waterproofing properties.
  Ideal for use on MDF, Chipboard, Timber etc.
  Prevents water ingress into sawn edges.
  Easy to use and fast drying.


How can I control 2 lights with 2 switches so that both lights can't be on at the same time? My bathroom has 2 lights, each with its own switch.

I want to know if it is possible to make it so both lights cannot be on at the same time either by rewiring my current setup or replacing the switches with something else.

If it helps, I'm in Virginia, USA.

with a normal and a 3-way switche you can do this so you have a on/off (SW2) switch and a selector (SW1) switch.


What size wire gauge for 1000ft service run? Want to run wire 1000 feet under ground from pole to house. Will be using 100 amp service single phase. Would like to know what size gauge of wire should I use.

Traditional, aka "nobody ever got fired for recommending this"

1000 feet underground, split phase 120/240V service, 3 wires, this is the main service to the house (so we get a favorable 83% derate on NEC 310.15b7, so calculating for 83 amps).   Your choices are

  250 kcmil aluminum at 6.84% voltage drop,  $3,300
  400 kcmil aluminum at 4.88% voltage drop,  $5,400
 1000 kcmil aluminum at 2.80% voltage drop, $11,000
   3/0 AWG  copper   at 6.06% voltage drop,  $9,000
  250 kcmil copper   at 4.48% voltage drop, $12,000
  500 kcmil copper   at 2.86% voltage drop, $24,000

Some people are really hung up on 3% voltage drop.  Other people are really hung up on using aluminum nowhere ever, and ignoring the actual facts.  Start a Kickstarter and let those people pay the cost differential!

All these wires will also accept 200A service.  However voltage drop will be higher.  Voltage drop is proportional to actual current being flowed at the moment and has nothing to do with nameplate ratings.

Transform the problem

Now, we can ease the pain by stepping up the voltage for the long haul.  We will use two transformers back to back.  These transformers are about $1,000 each for ones ample to your current draw.

In between the transformers, voltage is stepped up, which means current steps down by the same proportion, so volts x amps still yields the same.  If we double from 240V to 480V, current halves from 100A to 50A.  240V to 600V (the max for common wires) drops current to 40A. We still get to derate 83%, giving 32.75 amps.  So...

   4 AWG aluminum at 5.05% voltage drop, $  500
   6 AWG copper   at 4.89% voltage drop, $1,100
   1 AWG aluminum at 2.68% voltage drop, $1,000
   3 AWG copper   at 2.60% voltage drop, $2,000

WOW, that savings on wire is huge, and way more than pays for the transformers in all cases.  Here, it seems like the winner is #1 aluminum if you intend to fit 200A service in the future, otherwise #4 Al.

I wasn't able to find any wires in the 6-7% voltage drop range, because the next smaller wire was giving 8-10% voltage drop.

This is priced based on only 2 wires.  There is no point running a ground wire 1000 feet, even if this wasn't a double-isolated, doubly separately derived service, which it certainly is.   There is no value whatsoever to grounding your house to a point 1000 feet away.  This will be its own full and proper service, and it will absolutely depend on local grounding at the house, but that was already required.

Theft

There are two ways to go: direct burial, or conduit.  Direct burial must be trenched 27" to allow 24" cover.  Conduit can be covered 18" (plastic or EMT) or merely 6" (rigid or IMC conduit).

If you work in conduit, it is a foregone conclusion that some hick will break into your remote service panel, cut your leads, tie 'em to his truck's ball hitch, drive away with your 1000’, and spend the month trading chunks of it for meth.  Or worse, just cut the wire in a failed attempt to do that, and leave you 6 inches short on a 1000' run.

For this reason, I would definitely bring the conduit to a wiring trunk a short distance from the house and remote site, bind the wire in some way so it can't be pulled out (or so the short bit pulls out), and then bury and hide the trunk.  This also helps you if your distance proves to be a little more than 1000', position the trunks a little less than 1000' apart so you can just buy full spools.


Are these integrated diagonal wall braces structurally important? I was helping a friend expand the width of a closet door, and when we pulled the drywall off the interior wall frame, we noticed some 45-degree wall braces in the interior wall.

I am pretty sure they are just for convenience during construction (e.g. a bother to remove once the frames are fully built or just there for drywall to be nailed into).

However, I am not an expert, so I wasn't sure if these were structural (maybe some type of shear wall support?) or not. In case it matters, the house was built in 1951 and is in western Georgia. All the wooden beams, including the angled ones, are held in place with 4inch nails.

Are these angle braces safe to remove and leave out? The entire cutaway area (sans drywall) would be a closet door with a frame of two 2x4s above and a vertical 2x4 on either side.

Sometimes framing of a short internal wall that TEE's into an exterior wall is braced that way if the exterior wall is:

The exterior wall extends a long distance on either side of the TEE
And the exterior wall is parallel to ceiling joists and floor joists
And has a high gable end wall above this area.

Intention was to eliminate a lot of flex in the exterior wall both during construction and when there is possibility of large gusty wind loads on the wall. You will see less of this with much construction moving toward 2x6 studding for exterior walls. Metal X banding nailed to the face of the studs is also a better way to achieve this result.

Repeating from Isherwood. Make sure to put double stud at the left and right side of your opening. A single 2x4 is just not stiff enough and you will really appreciate it being there when you come to install door casing or trim.


Help with hot/neutral outlet - false reading? I recently bought an older house and on one of the circuits every outlet (7 outlets spread out over two rooms) gives a "hot/neutral reverse" reading when I use a circuit tester. I looked at each outlet and each one has the correct wiring colors (black to brass, white to silver, and copper to green). Then I measured the voltages using a DMM, and I get the following results (on every outlet): hot to neutral: 120V, hot to ground: 0V (!) and neutral to ground: 120V (!). Then lastly I used a non-contact voltage reader and on every outlet it lights up on BOTH the ground and the hot wires, but not on the neutral wires. Why would the ground wires be live?

Update: thanks for all your responses so far. I used a circuit analyzer and found some more details 1) analyzer also says it's a hot neutral reverse 2) ground to neutral shows 33.5 volts rms 3) ground to hot shows 121V RMS 4) ELL (estimated line load) is weirdly high, 20 amps when there's nothing plugged into any of the outlets (no fans or anything similar on the circuit either). 5) voltage drop is higher than it should be, highest reading was 11% drop for 20 amps 6) impedance is high too, hot reading impedance was 0.67 ohms.

I scheduled an appointment with a professional electrician since the knowledge from my college circuits course and some googling is feeling tapped out. I'll update this post with whatever the pro finds.

Find the breaker for those outlets and check that the  neutral live and ground are correctly connected in the panel.

Then find every other device on that breaker and check the wiring there.

the bad connection could be behind a light switch or in a ceiling box.


What does "class 2 input only" mean in my LED desk lamp? What does "class 2 input only" means in my LED desk lamp? Is it the power supply? And is it the same as class II (can I use a power supply that is class II)?

You're correct that "input" means the power source. "Class 2" and "Class II" are different, however. The former refers to wire size and other specifications, and the latter refers to the insulation (shock protection) standard of the device.
More on that


How can I improve the directional flow of my furnace exhaust pipe? This one's for the creative folks. I'm in a condo on the top floor and I have a side neighbor. Both our furnaces exhaust out the back, under a four-foot roof section overhang (sticks out about a foot with a gutter). They're really close to each other (2-3 ft away) and our bedroom windows (3 ft down and maybe 3 ft. to the side, mine is on the left side of the photo). Here's my issue: The wind almost constantly blows from west to east there, creating a wind tunnel and always blowing the exhaust past my windows – I’d say 90% of the time they are gusting past my condo.

Is there a way to create a wind break, possibly by placing some barrier, plexi or something, vertically under that eave and down between the exhausts to lessen the down draft of these furnaces? Thanks in advance.

I am open to other ideas too, besides a windbreak. Thanks.

Extending the exhausts (to the roof or around the corner) seems the only reasonable solution to me.

Check the installer's manual to see if it needs to be in 3" for the new distance length.


Can I replace this Airwell thermostat? I am in market to replace my simple A/C control unit with one that integrates with home my z-wave based home automation system. However, before I make the splash and buy a compatible thermostat, I would like to figure out how to actually get it connected.

My current thermostat consists of two parts - a remote control and a wall unit.

I was expecting to find something like this when opening up the unit:

RH - This wire comes from the 24VAC transformer on the heating system.
RC - This wire comes from the 24VAC transformer on the air-conditioning system.
W - This wire comes from the relay that turns on the heating system.
Y - This wire comes from the relay that turns on the cooling system.
G - This wire comes from the relay that turns on the fan.

However, not only the terminal in the A/C unit are marked differently (Gd, Gn, Bk, Bn, P, Y, O, R) but none of them are connected used, instead a single cable is connected to the unit. (see image).

My assumption is that the cable is simply somehow simplifying the connection but is this a standard? Will I be able to use a generic controller with this system?

The manufacturer is Airwell, the remote control says RC-5 on its body. I am not sure what the main unit model is but I can get on a roof if it helps. The air is guided to individual rooms via air ducts near ceiling and there is one big vent in the middle of the flat taking back to the A/C unit.

You really need the manual for your air conditioner system.  There isn't one set standard and things vary quite a bit.  Further I have no idea how standard things are outside the US.

The base plate you show appears to be designed for a Heat Pump.  Do you have one?  (Provides heat in the winter, and cooling in the summer)  If so the aftermarket thermostat will also need to be designed for Heat pump use.  The one you have may not be adequate to handle the emergency heat and changeover valve signals used in a heat pump.

This is the best reference I've found over the years for thermostat wiring: http://wiki.xtronics.com/index.php/Thermostat_signals_and_wiring

My wild guess (not responsible if you damage the unit) is that the terminals labeled Gd (ground?) and R (red) are the hot and common of the 24VAC transformer.  If you have an AC voltmeter I recommend measuring them.

The rest of the signals are just abbreviations for colors.  You will need to look at the link to figure out what they do.  Gn (Green) should turn on the fan.  The Bk/Br lines are a mystery, one of them is probably heating call. P (Pink) might be the emergency/aux heat (usually electric heat strips), Y (Yellow) is probably cooling, and O (Orange) sets the changeover valve to Cool.

Again, there is almost no way to be certain without the installation manual for the AC unit.


Reverse osmosis unit drain clogs occasionally I have had an RO unit for many years. Once in a while the drain stops working and my maintenance man said to back flush the little fitting on the drain line. Is that merely a check valve? If not, what is it? Is so, how does back flushing a check valve have any effect? Shouldn't it just not flush backward?

Most likely you have a plugged flow restrictor.  The flow restrictor regulates the flow of waste water away from the membrane.  If it is plugged for very long, the membrane can become fouled so you might need to replace the membrane and also clean/replace the flow restrictor to restore production.

From the Watts Premier WP-4v manual:

The procedure might be somewhat different if you have a slightly different model.

Regarding the handyman, I have no idea what he thought could be back flushed.


How to install a house number plaque on vinyl siding? I need to install house numbers on my house. I have obtained an aluminium plaque with the numbers and I'm now wondering the best way to install it onto the house.

The house has vinyl siding, and underneath the siding is ZIP system sheathing.

From some googling around, it would seem that I have two options:

Drill screws through the siding, into the sheathing, to secure the plaque.
Obtain some sort of vinyl siding hook, and use it to hang the plaque on top of the siding.

Which of these approaches would be best to take? My concern with screw approach is, of course, the fact that moisture may be able to get behind the siding. The ZIP system serving as a moisture barrier may additionally complicate this; I'm not sure.

The siding hook seems like a nice and simple approach, but I don't know how permanent the installation will be and if it is difficult to find hooks compatible with siding.

The plaque comes with screws and is clearly intended to be screwed in, as described in the instructions. I would just follow the directions exactly but they do not mention vinyl siding or dealing with exposure to water, something that I've been warned to be concerned about.

I would just use silicone, as you can you can just rub it off after it is done (I would expect a small bit of damage but nothing that destroys integrity).  You might need to tape it until the silicone is dry if the numbers are heavy.


The main electric switch jumps randomly The electric distribution board of our apartment looks approximately like
this.

It has one main switch and 5 sub-switches. Every several hours, the main switch randomly 'jumps' and our entire apartment is disconnected.

We thought one of our devices might be the cause, so we disconnected almost all devices except the refrigerator and the freezer, but it still jumps randomly. We don't want to disconnect the refrigerator and freezer, because  since the 'jump' occurs randomly, we do not know how much time we will have to keep them powered off.

We still don't know if it's one of the devices, or maybe there is another problem. How can we find out?

There may be an overload, First off make sure all the other breakers are a lower value than the main. If one is higher than its likely overloading the Main.

On each breaker there should be a value. In the US they are on the end of the switch. In that picture you posted they seem to be on the body prefixed with a "C". Those values are the number of amps a circuit will handle before the breaker trip. If the Main is higher then a branch then the branch will not trip because the main is tripping first.

If thats not it then the main may be defective and would need to be replaced.


Changing 240V plug type I have a device (a popcorn popper) that has an L14-20P plug.
I would like to use it with my stove's 14-50R receptacle.
Since the device is rated for 20 Amp, and the receptacle for 50, this should be ok, or am I overlooking something?
And if it is ok, would the following be the correct wiring:

Your wiring does match up the ground, neutral, and phases, so it would supply power, and since it is a 50 amp circuit it has more than enough juice for a 20 amp appliance, but it isn't really safe.  The appliance and its cord etc. are designed to be safe with a breaker that trips at 20 amps, not 50.


3 Switch Wall plate to 1 Wall Plate Ceiling Fan This is for U.S. based electrical in a house built in 2001.

Current State

I have a ceiling fan with a light that I am going to replace. With this new fan I want to change the 3 switch configuration down to just one.

I no longer will need two switches (Switch 1 and 2 in image below) as the one switch from the fan's manufacturer will handle all necessary functions.

I also no longer need Switch 3 as I do not want a light switch controlling power to these outlets (but the outlets still need to have power).

Future State

How am I to hook up the wiring so that I get a black and white wire connected to my new fan (it does not have a connection for the red wire), while still having constant power from Cable A (source) to Cable B (outlet), and allowing for Switch 2 to control the power to Cable C/D?

My Assumption

Leave all Whites connected (A, B, and C)
Cable C Red to Cable B Red
Cable A Black and Cable B Black to Switch 2 Port B
Cable C Black to Switch 2 Port A
Cable D Black and Cable D Red to Fan Black
Cable D White to Fan White

Splice all grounds.  Pigtail a ground to the fan-control smart switch.
Splice all whites
Splice black A, black B, red B, and a pigtail.
"LINE" side of your fan-control smart switch to the pigtail.
"LOAD" side of your fan-control smart switch to Black C.
Cap Red C.  Do not cut it off! You must cap it and you might want it later.
Cap Red D.  Ditto.
Black and white D to fan.


Torn drywall surface from tile removal Our home had a wall with stuck on tiled 12 inch mirrors. In removing the mirrors almost all of the underlying drywall surfaces were torn to some degree. I have very little experience with drywall and wondered if those types of surface problems are repairable with compound or do I just need to go ahead and replace all the drywall.

Depending on the extent of the damage (how large an area) and what time you can invest, either way will work.   If the drywall damage is an area of more than 2-3 , 4 x 8 foot panels it would be less costly and faster to install new drywall (depending on how the wall is situated and it's location). If the wall has no natural transitions or "breaks" you will need to install panels so all of the wall is covered.   If the damage is not extensive than patching is a fairly straight-forward process. It involves cutting loose flaps of drywall paper off the wall face, filling deep gouges with joint compound, covering any broken or severely damaged drywall with joint tape (or replacing small pieces with drywall) and than sanding the dried patched sections and applying a second coat.


Open electrical circuits? Old house. Some wiring is knob-and-tube. All connections to circuit box is Romex.  Here is what I can't figure out. I'd like advice on what it might be and how to fix it.

I shut off the breaker to Circuit 8.  Voltage tester tests off. Plug in a light, it won't light at any outlet. HOWEVER, if I take a non-contact voltage tester (chirper) and hold it right up to light switch, whether switched on or off, it tests for current right next to the box. Additionally, I get a positive for current next to an uncapped neutral on the same circuit.   If I shut off Circuit 18, which in no way looks to be tied to Circuit 8, then I get no current on 8.

Also, in another part of house, ceiling lights constantly burn out.

Thanks for any help and ideas.

OK, First a "chirper" measures the magnetic force around an ac current carrying conductor, but it does not identify the strength or the amount of power of that conductor. So you may be picking up trace voltages. Since you mention knob and tube also romex, I am assuming that it is an extremely old system and it has been modified probably more than once.  Knob and tube and some older romex systems do not have grounding systems. It also means you may have a switched neutral which was legal many years ago (like 75 years).

I suspect that you are getting a certain amount of feedback power through the neutral from circuit 8 and circuit 18.
When you add the comment that ceiling lights are constantly burning out it may be confirming that you are experiencing "floating" power and the variations of the power is not good for the life of any lights or equipment. For example, if your lights are dimming in the kitchen when you turn on a hair dryer in another room, that would also indicate a "floating neutral". The only other reason you would be burning out lights is that you're buying cheap lights.
If you are not experienced in electrical power I would suggest professional help. If you want to try and labor through it USE EXTREME CAUTION.

The first thing they teach in electrical apprenticeship training is to always treat everything as if it were hot unless you are absolutely sure it is dead. In your case turn off the entire panel.


How to tell if my smoke detector is hardwired or battery powered? I have a smoke alarm that keeps beeping every 30 minutes or so even after I replaced the battery. I'm thinking it's probably time to replace it.

I'm trying to figure out if it's hardwired or battery powered. How do i tell?

There is a 9v battery that needs to be replaced, but I think both hardwired and battery smoke alarms both have 9v battery for backup power.

If it is hardwired then there will be a cable going to each smoke detector. It is usually pretty obvious. If you don't see anything then see if you can remove the smoke detector from the ceiling. If you can remove it easily (typically by twisting it slightly and then pulling away from screws and/or a mounting bracket) and it comes off (except possibly for a small mounting bracket) then it is battery powered. If you try to remove it and find it is hanging by a cable the it is hardwired.

If all that doesn't make sense, post a picture of it and we'll see what we can figure out.


Circuit tester trips new GFCI I replaced a non-protected receptacle with a GFCI type and now my circuit tester trips the GFCI as soon as it is plugged in.  The receptacle tested fine before replacement, ground, neutral, hot, etc.  I've double checked the hot/neutral/ground connections.  I've also tried it with the downstream load disconnected.

The GFCI trips the moment I plug in my circuit tester (before pushing the test button).  Otherwise things check out OK.  I can plug in a power tool without it tripping.  Also, the integrated test/reset button work correctly.

I've read that the integrated test button is the only one that truly matters. Is this correct or should I be concerned? I'm sure a home inspector will red flag this if their tester has the same result.

Update

My tester is by "Commercial Electric".  The tester is one of the palm sized three prong type with three leds to indicate the condition of the circuit and a button on top to test GFCI. It's new from the local box store.

As well it should.

Normally, loads are connected between hot and neutral.  Appliances are not supposed to connect hot or neutral to ground; ground is only a shield.

The GFCI compares current on the hot and neutral wires.  They should be the same.  If they are not, current has found another route, possibly through the grounding system (which isn't supposed to happen) and potentially through some poor human.

Circuit testers are trying to test whether ground is connected... cheaply.  They mis-use "hot" as a power source, by connecting a light bulb between hot and ground.  If ground is connected correctly, this will light.

In other words, it intentionally creates a hot-ground fault (by sticking a light bulb there).  This is exactly the condition GFCIs are designed to detect.

I'm not talking about any ground-fault-test the tester may also have.

So why do testers often work?  With a perfect GFCI, they wouldn't work.   I suspect it is because GFCI's have detection thresholds above zero, and that is often enough for these testers to "get away with it".  I even think there may be a tacit agreement among manufacturers for this, but obviously, lower sensitivity impinges safety.  Remember a shock which only stuns you can kill you with secondary effects like falling or drowning.

So either your GFCI is pretty good, or your tester is pretty bad.


Power Source of outside outlets I have two outside outlets that don't work.  One on the front other on the back.  Nothing is labeled for them in the breaker box, I don't know what to turn off to replace them.  How do I find the power source?  The house is 8 years old and they haven't worked for about 3 years.

One possibility to consider is that it is the outlets themselves that have failed and that there is still live mains wiring in the electrical box behind the outlet. One scheme would be to attempt to see if a non-contact electrical tester probe can detect the live wire in the box. If so you can use a process of elimination to see which circuit breaker removes the live connection from the electrical box. You may need to do this process separately for each of the outlets as they may very well be on separate circuits.

The outlets may have failed for any number of reasons. The first likely candidate is that they were connected to the wiring using the back stab holes on the outlet. These are a known failure point and in your case the temperature cycling that occurs over time may have contributed to the back stab failure. When you replace such outlets it is highly recommended to not use the back stab style of connection and instead connect the wires using the screw terminals on side.

Another failure possibility could be similar to something I personally experienced. In my case an exterior outlet quit working and there was no detectable live wire in the electrical box. Obviously the process of elimination as described above did not work to determine the circuit breaker. It was not until months later that I discovered that the outlet was wired into the load side of a GFCI type outlet located in an obscure part of my garage. That GFCI had tripped for some unknown reason and resetting it restored operation to my external outlet!!


When should I round over the edges leading to a miter joint? I'm going to be joining 2 1x6" pieces of wood at a simple miter joint.

However, I want the top edges to be rounded over. I'm planning to use my router and a round over bit to soften the edges, the only problem is I'm not sure if I should...

Route the pieces, cut the miter, then assemble.
Cut the miter, route the pieces, then assemble.
Cut the miter, assemble, then route the piece.

If I was only rounding over the outside edge of the piece, I'd probably route it after assembling it. Since I want to round over both top edges, I'm concerned the inside corner will not come out right if I assemble the piece before routing.

Route the pieces, cut the miter, then assemble. I believe that will give the best look. You could just practice all three on some scrap to see which you like.


How can I patch a rotting wood door? I have a small rotting spot at the bottom of my back door and it's almost to the point where I could put my finger through it.  I don't have the cash to replace the door right now, but what would you suggest I patch it with before painting it?  I have seen interior/exterior wood filler by Elmer's and others.  Someone suggested Bondo like the kind used in auto body shops.  Any prep steps you suggest as well?

Dig out any rotted wood that you can get to.  Soak the wood with wood hardener around the patch area to stabilize the rotted/deteriorated wood that you couldn't get to.  Fill with bondo or wood filler in 1/4" layers until slightly bulging from the patch area.  Chisel/file/sand down when the final layer is almost completely dry with a sanding block.  Prime and paint.  The patch should outlast the rest of your door!


Why would a short cause the main breaker to trip instead of the branch circuit breaker? In our home, we have two electrical panels. One main panel (in the basement) and a sub panel on the first floor. The lights to the kitchen on the first floor run to a breaker in this sub panel.

We installed a dimmer incorrectly and accidentally tripped the breaker in the sub panel. However, at the same time, the main panel in the basement shutoff and the entire electrical system shut down.

It was our understanding that when you cause a short, it would cause only the one breaker to trip, but not the entire system.

This has made us wonder if our main/sub panel setup is functioning correctly, or if there is an issue that requires further investigation. The installation of the sub/main panel was done by certified electricians.

I don't think this indicates a problem.

Circuit breakers have at least 2 different triggers for cutting the power:

Thermal mechanism for small over-current protection, e.g. trying to draw 20 amps from a 15 amp circuit. This may take several seconds or even more than a minute, depending on how much over the rated capacity you are.
Magnetic mechanism for short-circuit protection, which should kick in around 20x the rated ampacity. This should trip the breaker virtually instantly.

You can look up the time-current curve for your breakers if you're curious how long it takes them to trip under different conditions.

(There may be additional features that cause the breaker to trip, such as arcing or ground fault detection.)

If your circuit had tripped because of a slight over current, such as too many appliances running at the same time, only the breaker for that individual circuit should have tripped.

However, for a short-circuit condition (which I assume you had with your dimmer), either one could go. It's a little surprising that both tripped, but there is a  slight delay in response time so it's not inconceivable.

(Actually, you could have had 3 different breakers trip: the breaker for the circuit, the breaker for the sub panel feed, and the main breaker).


Doorbell transformer has two black wires and one green. How can i tell which one is hot? Doorbell transformer has two black wires and one green. Which one is hot

There are multiple possibilities here.
Black to black will be the maximum output voltage (24v example).
Some transformers have a 1 and a 2 or A & B on the wires when connected to #1 terminal to green there is 1 voltage (16v example).
#2 Terminal to green is a different voltage (8v example).
The 2 different voltages add to the maximum voltage in some cases the voltage is the same 12 & 12 and again the total is 24v
So it depends on the type of transformer secondary but black is hot in all 3 cases.
How can both be hot? A transformer creates a separate derived source of power in code speak and until a ground point is created we don’t know so we need to know the type of transformer first. A center tapped transformer the center tap is normally grounded. A black to black on the secondary the green is usually not needed and wire nutted either side at that point can be grounded.


How to remove dry water based urethane varnish from mirror? I recently varnished an hardwood frame for a mirror with a water based urethane varnish. My painter's tape did protect most of the mirror's edges, but it failed for one or two spots. The varnish found it's way under the tape. I want to get rid of the spots without scratching my mirror. I tried to use soap and water as suggested on my varnish's label, but that's clearly for when the varnish is not dry.  So, I'm wondering what's a good way to remove dry varnish from a mirror. Obviously, my top priority is not to scratch the mirror itself.

Razor scrapper would work best with a little mineral spirits.


Fixing a curtain rail to old brick wall I am trying to fix a curtain rail in a dormer window.  The problem is that the internal wall is brick with lime mortar.  Many of the bricks are very poor quality and crumble when drilled.  Occasionally I do find a good brick but most of the time they crumble.  Is there a way to effectively fill the holes to give them strength.  I am planning to use a wooden batten on the wall and fix the curtain rail to that.

If you're using a hammer drill, try using a regular drill (or turn hammer mode off) and the masonry bit. Spin fast, push slow. Oversize the holes and use plastic plug anchors to provide some cushion.

Once you do get a few solid connections, use some construction adhesive or silicone on your batten for additional support.


Should base trim have a gap between it and laminate flooring? Is it correct that when adding baseboard trim on the laminate floor, it is recommended to have a 1-2mm gap between the trim and the laminate planks? So that it should not be tight to it.

I thought that the space must be maintained only at the perimeter of room.

Thanks.

I've never encountered a flooring that recommended that, and if one did I wouldn't install it (or I'd deny that request). It would look odd.


Ok to add cellulose over blown fiberglass insulation? I have an attic with blown in fiberglass insulation, probably original and 27 years old. The attic appears to have had some moisture issues in the past (bathroom vents being vented out of the soffit vents, which have been corrected) and the insulation is a little clumpy and a little dirty, but not terrible.

I want to add more insulation, but I'm not sure whether or not to use more blown in fiberglass or cellulose on top of it.  I've read cellulose is the superior product.  But I've read and saw videos of cellulose just being blown in on top of the fiberglass.  I've read conflicting articles that says it's fine to do that and others say the cellulose will compact the fiberglass which isn't good for the existing fiberglass.

What should I do?  Thanks!

Here is a pic of my current attic insulation:

Add the cellulose right on top, I have seen folks remove the old but this is crazy both materials are insulation and combined the provide a higher R value. I would caution if all the moisture issues are not taken care of cellulose will pick up moisture and hold it longer than fiberglass.


Securing rubber mats to garage floor I'm renting a house in which I have some gym equipment in the garage. I'm anticipating buying some 3'x4'x3/4" rubber stall mats to protect the floor and deaden noise from dropped weights.

I would be lying the mats side by side in a tiling fashion but I have some concern about the mats slipping on the bare concrete.

What would be the best way to safely secure these rubber mats in an impermanent way?

Once the concrete is cleaned of all dust and oils, the rubber mats should stay in place, especially once you get a few of them down.  If you want a little extra help, I'd offer two options:

"Carpet tape" is a thin, double sided tape that's usually about 1.5" to 2" wide and can be placed on the floor under the mats.  It's will be easier to remove than other adhesive options, but it will only provide a little extra grip.

If you find you need more holding power, you might want to install some type of perimeter strip around the mats (assuming they are laid in a rectangular pattern) to make a "frame" that holds it all together.  Holding the mats from sliding out from the edges means there will be less to remove when you are done.  Rather than adhesive under the whole mats, you could glue or screw down strips of wood along the edges.  Screws might leave divots in the floor, which could be unacceptable.