How deep to place a deadman anchor for a slackline? I want to place a permanent anchor for a slackline in my parents' backyard. I looked around at the different options, but I don't have access to some of them (e.g. no duckbill anchors), so I think I will go for the deadman anchor option as in this video.

I also found a diagram for what it should look like, but I am taken aback at the suggested trench depth of 3-4 foot.

I will be digging with a hoe and my own two hands. The soil where we live gets quickly into compacted clay, after maybe only 2 feet of something more humuslike - my father tells me he once rented an excavator to make a posthole and it needed over half an hour for that hole (operated by somebody experienced, not by my father).

So, I wonder if the diagram I found is not overly sturdy, and if I could get away with a shallower trench. Especially since this diagram also foresees getting concrete poured into the ground, and the person in that video gets away with just a buried length of pipe.

I found a slackline calculator and it says that the normal load will be in the 7-8 kN range, and possibly up to 11 kN under some circumstances (e.g. if it gets tightened a lot and somebody heavy tries to walk on it). So let's say I want the whole line to hold up to 15-17 kN just in case (that's breaking load, not nominal load). There is a tree to hold one side up. For the second side, if I bury a 3 feet long pipe with maybe 2 inches diameter, what depth should I choose?

It’s based on the 1) angle of repose, and 2) weight of soil, and 3) length of deadman.

7-8kn equals about 1500 - 1,800 lbs.

If the angle of repose is about 45 degrees and your soil weighs about 80 lbs. per cubic foot, then you’ll need about 2,000 lbs. (safety factor) resisting.

Therefore, you need to bury your deadman about 3’ deep if the deadman is 3’ long. (I’d compact all material in the ground.)

I’d worry about a 2” diameter deadman getting pulled through the soil and compacting the soil immediately adjacent to the deadman. You’ll need a wider diameter deadman, such as a 12” wide x 3’ long steel plate welded onto your 2” pipe.

Adjust accordingly for your 15-17kn.


Bathroom exhaust fan and light wiring question I have one wire run into my bathroom ceiling and I want to replace an existing fan with a light/fan combo. I only have 2 weeks wires, one black and one white. My new light/fan combo requires 3 but it would be very difficult to run another wire. Can I splice my current hot wire into 2 and use one for the fan and one for the light?

Yes.
Or, probably a better solution, you can simply join the fan, power, and light wires all together in a single wire nut (3 nuts: black, white, green/bare copper). To be clear: this will result in your light and your fan always being on or off together.
However, if you can possibly run another set of wires (typically a set of 12/2 or 14/2 "Romex" - a black, a white, and a bare copper wire bundled into a plastic sheath) from the switch to the junction box for the fan/light, I would encourage you to do so. They sell duplex switches that will put two switches into a one-gang box, so you can separately control the lights and the fan.


How do I ensure my first row of hardwood flooring is straight? Still preparing to install Bruce 3/4" pre-finished nail down Hickory hardwood flooring. I'm a little tentative (overly cautious according to the wife) about getting started.  I've done a lot of research, and watched a ton of YouTube clips.  I'm still not confident in how I make sure my first row is "straight".

Most sources simply say to measure out from the wall the thickness of a plank + the expansion gap + 1/8" for the tongue, and snap a chalk line.  However, since I know there are no straight walls, and that no walls are ever square to each other. How can I be sure this will lead to a good straight installation?

My major concerns are that I'll be installing the flooring in a dining room, and continuing into an adjoining living room. I want to make sure I have a straight line at the threshold of the dining/living room, and that I'm straight when I reach the far living room wall.

Am I overthinking this?  Are there tricks to ensure I'll start/stay straight through the whole floor?

Figure 1

Figure 1 shows the floor plan, and the direction the planks will be installed.

I'd like to write an answer on the overall methodology on how to pick where to align a floor, but I don't have the chops for that. But in your case, I do have a suggestion.

One of the principles of flooring installation is that it's more important to look straight than to actually be straight. For example, you have that architectural detail separating the two rooms. I think it would look more odd if the flooring did not line up with that detail than if you had a wedge shaped piece against a wall. Snap a chalk line down the middle, measure from that line to within a few inches of the starting wall, and snap a second line parallel to the first. Align your first piece with the second line. Then every couple of rows, measure to make sure you are still parallel with the first chalk line.

An alternative would be to snap the first chalk like as I described above and start from the middle of the room(s) and work your way out. Depending on the type of tongue and groove and nailing method, this may not be possible.


I have one outlet that gets power, but does not work I have an electrical outlet that stopped working.  I replaced the outlet, still not working.  I tested the outlet for power using my sperry meter and I have power.  Why would it still not work?

There are several reasons you can read a voltage and have an outlet not work. The most common is failed backstabs in the outlet that is dead or the one prior to it.  It could be a problem with the hot or the neutral causing the outlet not to power something that draws even a small amount of current but a high impedance meter draws almost no current and a slight carbon path or capacitive coupling can provide enough potential to register the voltage.

The second can be the same kind of failure where the wire has no connection of any kind or a tripped circuit breaker, but is running parallel to and many times in contact with a live circuit. The live cable induces a voltage on the dead one because there is no load your meter can measure the voltage, add a light or power supply it won't work and any voltage reading taken before is almost gone this is where the term phantom voltage comes from. Transformers use the same thing to do there job but there are hundreds of wraps of insulated wire in close proximity.

Now to fix the problem. Most of the time I have found the wires pushed into the back of the outlets to be loose if not the outlet go to the first working outlet and check the wires on that one the feed to the next outlet has failed. It is possible that one of the wires have broken or come out of a wirenut but backstabs are the cause for 98% of these failures in my experience. Make sure to turn the breaker off when pulling the devices and good luck.


How do I correctly change hard wired antique wall sconces to plug In with the toggle box I have 2 antique sconces (candelabras) that I used for years hard wired in one of my previous homes. I would like to switch them to plug ins because of several factors that I won’t detail unless asked.

The sconces arms each have green wires with copper looking threads. (No markings or ridges to tell the difference between them). Below these is a small black box with two black cords - silver wiring. Both of the black cords says 600v. (There is no grounding wire that I’m seeing?) The black box wires. are to power the little toggle to turn the light off and on.

I played around and had one of them lit using an extension cord with female end cut off, etc. It worked perfect until I tried to show my husband and then it sparked when I tried to plug it in. My husband (whom I thought understood electricity), played around with them for awhile and got frustrated when he could get them lit but not the toggle to turn off and on.

I feel pretty certain I can get these working again, but I don’t like to just play with wiring (as my husband was doing). That does not seem safe to me to not understand what and why I’m doing something.

I’m providing pics and if anyone could help me I would be grateful. If it’s outside my range I’m happy to use an electrician, but with pandemic and at risk household members that won’t happen soon and home improvement is really the only thing keeping me sane currently.

Assuming USA, the cord-end plug you are using (technically called the "cap") should have a wide prong (which correlates with the neutral conductor) and a narrower prong (which correlates with the "hot" conductor).

The switch needs to be wired to only "make-or-break" the hot conductor. In other words, follow the wire from the narrow-prong side of your cord-end plug and connect that to one (either one) of the wires/terminals on the switch. The other wire/terminal on the switch should be connected to one of the wires/terminals on the light socket. The correct socket wire/terminal to connect to is (generally speaking, there are a wide variety of socket designs...) the one that leads to the contact in the bottom/center of the socket where the tip of the bulb-base would contact.

The other (neutral) wire from the cord-end plug would connect directly to the other socket wire/terminal. That socket wire/terminal leads to where the bulb contacts the socket "shell" contact surface.

If this does not make sense to you, you probably should stop. Be aware that converting a manufactured fixture by changing the wiring is fine unless there is a problem and your house burns down because of it. Your fire insurance company will wag their finger; worse, they will likely not cover any losses.


Broken screw head door hinge My door is missing the strike plate and its keep opening up when there is a slight draft. So if I align the door it goes into the strike plate without any issues. I believe its a loose screw. So, I tried to remove the screws and reinsert them.

When I did that I have one struck screw and two broken screw heads in a door hinge. 1 I was able to extract.  :-(

I tried to extract it with "Tack Life damaged screw extractor".

I am not sure what my other options are

That looks like a mobile home door. I would drill that screw head off and simply move the hinge up or down a bit. You would only be able to see one screw hole and the door will still close fine. You could put some colored wood putty in the hole if it's unsightly to you. I've done that many times in the past.


Is it possible to run a water-heater on a undersized breaker for years? We have an Whirlpool 50 gal 240v water heater (4500watt elements) that was installed by a plumbing company in 2016. We had zero problems with it until last week when it started tripping the breaker.
After flushing and inspecting the tank (it looks good) I replaced both heating elements and thermostats.
The breaker still continued to trip.
I tested the wire for continuity and visually inspected what I could reach including in the attic, it seems fine.
But the breaker for the water heater is only 15amps, which I thought seemed low for a water heater this size. So, not wanting to change anything I replaced the breaker with an identical new 15amp breaker.
The breaker still continued to trip.
Not random, not immediately, but after the heater had been operating to reheat water, like after a shower.
Some online research leads me to think the correct breaker should be 25amps (stated in manf install guide for 240v 4500w).
So for a test I swapped the 15amp breaker with a 20amp I had on hand (this is in a 100amp sub panel that can support this increase) and ran a temporary 10ga wire (in wall wire is 12ga) to the heater.
The breaker has not tripped since. It does not get warm, nor does the wire. The water heater is working  fine.
After investigating all possibilities it seems the most likely issue is an undersized breaker. So my question is:
Is there another possibility at this point?
Could it be we were somehow skating by all this time on an undersized breaker?
Is it possible the old elements somehow stayed under 15amp but then failed causing the breaker issue and the new elements pulled just enough more to continue tripping the undersized breaker?

TL;DR 25A is the right size
First of all, your hunch is correct. 4500W/240V = 18.75A. That should be on a 25A breaker because it is a continuous load - if you pulled water out at a rate that the water heater could not keep up with (or barely keep up with) then the elements would stay on "forever".
You also did the right thing changing the wire. 12 AWG is fine for 20A, but since you really need 25A here, 10 AWG is the right size. It is a good thing you did not have 14 AWG previously (to match a standard 15A circuit) because that would have been undersized considering what was actually happening - an 18.75A load.
So why didn't it trip? Breakers are not some magic device that trips at exactly the stated max. current. In fact, you wouldn't want that because an appliance that needs a little extra power at startup would frequently trip the breaker. So a 15A breaker might not trip on an 18.75A load for an hour. Another 15A breaker might trip on that same load in 1/2 hour due to manufacturing differences. But any 15A breaker will trip very quickly if it gets a 50A load. All of this is factored into the electrical code. For example, a 12 AWG wire is rated for 20A, but in reality it can carry much more for short periods of time, so a 20A circuit with 25A for a little while isn't going to suddenly burn up the 12 AWG wire.
My guess is that your breakers were just barely tolerant of the 18.75A current flow but gradually became more and sensitive and tripped sooner. Then you replaced it with another 15A breaker, which was probably closer to the 15A specification than the original and it (correctly) would trip after a little while but not immediately. Then you replace with a 20A breaker which can handled 18.75A "forever" but which is still undersized (but would be correct for 12 AWG wire) and 10 AWG wire (which is the right size).
So put in the 25A breaker and permanently switch to 10 AWG wire and you're all set.
I would check anything else done by that plumbing company for safe & correct installation. While a plumber is not an electrician, the crew putting in a water heater should know what to do and what size breakers & wire to use. If the 15A breaker and 12 AWG wire were from the previous water heater, the installers should have told you it was not correct and either swapped it at the time or stopped work until you got an electrician to switch to 25A/10 AWG. But they likely didn't because they wanted to get in, get out, get paid. So I'd worry about other "shortcuts".


How do I tell if an electrician is "qualified" in the UK? (All of this is with regard to living in England, UK).

My wife and I bought a house recently, and it clearly needs a bit of work on the electrics and a number of other jobs which would affect existing electrics.

How am I meant to know what a "qualified electrician" means? How do I even find out what my legal obligations are when it comes to owning a home and electrics? Reading this thread from the IET didn't help one bit and left me more confused than ever.

We recently had a small job done by someone who I assumed was a competent and qualified electrician. When I asked for a certificate for the job done he said it would cost £60. Surely, a certificate for the work done is part and parcel of getting the work done, or why else would I bother to pay for an electrician? If I wanted a hack job that I had no evidence of it being done properly I could just do that myself. I assumed there was an obvious logic of "paying an electrician == do it properly".

So I went looking and found the IET's Minor Electrical Installation Works Certificate (MEIWC) but again, this doesn't seem like the whole story. And I still don't know what relevance "Part P" has.

In short, my question is, how the hell is anyone meant to stay legal in the UK when it comes to electrical works?

Gov.UK : New website helps people steer clear of rogue electricians

  The Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) authorises bodies to operate schemes under which their members are deemed competent to self-certify that their work complies with the building regulations for England. A similar scheme is authorised by the Welsh government.

At a minimum, you should expect an electrician to be registered under one of the "competent person schemes". For example Stroma, NICEIC. You can ask an electrician for their registration number and registration body's name then check them on that body's website.


Condensation on window frame in basement Freaking out here. Just had a second coat of mud put on the seams in the basement drywall. Went down to close up some of the vents because my guy is going to sand tomorrow and noticed a bunch of condensation on the windows frames.

I had vents added right in front of each window to properly heat the basement. Not sure if that is the cause. Or if it is just because of all the moisture from the mud added to the walls.

Any ideas on why? Or how to fix this?

You are probably seeing condensation of moisture from the drying of the drywall mud. Give it a few days before sounding the alarm bells.

If you are concerned about the short term humidity increase in that area you could consider running a dehumidifier in the room for a few days.


Can a maxitrol function as a cut-off valve? All the natural gas plumbing in my home was replaced a year ago.  I recently tried to find the gas cutoffs for my stove top and oven (separate appliances) but all I found was maxitrols.  Can maxitrols substitute for cutoff valves?  Thank you.

No, that is a gas pressure REGULATOR not a shutoff valve.  There should be a shut off valve in the line somewhere, did you check near the meter?

Maxitrol Regulator Diagram


Adjusting tankless water heater temperature without factory controls? I have an older Noritz N-069M tankless water heater without a "remote control" or display. I think I am not using enough hot water to consistently keep the heater running while showering (water goes completely cold for a minute--never happens to my wife, who takes hotter showers). According to the installation manual online, the only way to adjust the set temperature is by temporarily plugging in a remote control.

Are there any other options? The only visible adjustments are for the gas manifold pressure. A similar model apparently has removable jumper connectors, but this one does not.

If you cant find a remote try turning on the hot water in the sink to add additional hot water demand, This will waste some water but may not take much to keep you from getting the cold surprise.


How to add an extra light to an existing light I have a question that I think is really simple for you experts (naturally I'm a novice) so hopefully someone can help me out. I want to add an additional light to an existing light already installed in my basement about 10 feet away. At the existing fixture location, there is a 2-wire cable and 3-wire cable as shown in the attachment, and wired the same way. How is the proper way to connect a new light to the existing fixture. Is it as simple as me installing new 14-2 wire cable from a new light, and attaching to the neutral, hot (red), and ground wire at the existing fixture?  Any advise or confirmation is greatly appreciated. Thank you.

Great job for a first post!  Excellent diagram.
Yes, you can easily add another fixture in the manner you described, assuming it's a 15 amp circuit (which is likely), if a 20 amp circuit, you'd need 12/2. You got it right.


Screw Size for Bookcase I have lost screws for a bookcase that looks like the IKEA Billy Bookcase?  The hardware store and big box stores don't have anything like it and say the screw I have is foreign.  I know it is 1.5" in length with a blunt end.  Does anyone know what kind of screw is needed?

If you are close to an IKEA I know that have all hardware for all there merchandise at the customer service desk for people in your situation, and it's free


Are four gang plastic boxes stackable in a wall? I would even be willing to go side by side but I would like to stay with the four gang sizes.

I am hoping this would pass code and would prefer to stack so if there is someone that knows if it is okay or if it is okay with workarounds - I would love the input.

My family and I are putting in electric boxes in SIP walls and that is no fun to begin with much less start down the wrong path, scoop out and have to put foam back in.

I don't see why it wouldn't be allowed under code, but any question like this can only be answered by your permitting authority. My experience is that inspectors are happy to answer such questions.


Painting on top of clear topcoat I'm going to repaint a ceiling that has a faux finish and a clear topcoat on it. The faux finish is some kind of yellow smear and the topcoat a rather low sheen, I would say satin. Is it necessary to prime with something like INSL-X Stix because of the clear coat, or can I get away with using ceiling paint directly on top?

As for the paint compatibility, the standard advice is to either paint an innocuous area and try it, or do a crosshatch test.

The low sheen is caused by the paint being intentionally "bumpy". That tends to produce good binding to the next coat, so I would expect reasonable results.

The other reason we use primer is as a "barrier coat" to assure chemical compatibility (that the paints don't react to each other or fail to stick).  Again a paint or crosshatch test will reveal that.


Should this 3 ply LVL bear on a single 2x4? My engineer has designed a 6'6" beam to carry my load and this would consist of 3 LVL glued and screwed together. 7 1/2" LVL. Like most LVL, a single ply is 1 3/4" deep. So, as he has it specified 3 of those will be put together and that'll be 5 1/4" deep. However he has specified this will go inside / span the bearing wall, which is a 2x4 wall. In this case, he has also specified that each end of the beam will bear on only one 2x4. I don't doubt his design necessarily but would like more explanation on how/why it is legitimate to bear the 5 1/4" beam on a 2x4 ( 3 1/2" actual depth). I've attached a sketch below for clarity looking at the side of the 2x4

link to engineer doc https://drive.google.com/file/d/1vlIXbt2FQ_YYJN9PjOkHpAx7pcumKWch/view?usp=sharing

None of us can really answer this with confidence, not having all necessary information (or, in my case, an engineering degree). I will offer a few assumptions and suggestions based on the engineer's drawing:

A tripled, relatively squat beam is probably being used to maximize head clearance. More typically this would be a doubled 9-7/8" beam, which rests more comfortably on a single trimmer stud and fits within a 2x4 wall. You might consider whether that's a more desirable option than having a beam that exceeds the width of the current wall.
A single trimmer stud is apparently adequate for the load on the beam (though it wouldn't hurt to ask the engineer rather than us), and the attached full-height (king) stud provides the stiffness that I was concerned about in my comment above.
On second thought, this looks like a "flush beam" situation, whereby the beam is at and above ceiling line. Concerns about beam width in relation to wall width are probably moot, and the beam will rest on doubled studs per spec.
Otherwise, you could always double the trimmer studs to alleviate concern. This is a low-cost solution that may bring peace of mind.


Fire Extinguisher Selection for Multiple Use Ill start by saying that I found this question, which is extremely similar to my line of thought: Can a class A fire be extinguished with a class BC fire extinguisher?

I am trying to consider the right mix of extinguishers for my home and detached garage.  While the ABC dry chemical seems to be a good base extinguisher that is ubiquitous, it appears that they can make a big, acidic mess, and other options may be better.

So my curiosity is that many places say DO NOT USE an extinguisher on a fire other than what the extinguisher is rated for.  Sensible for a type A water extinguisher on a flammable liquid or on an electric fire.  In a garage or basement, where a solvent or fuel fire may be the principal consideration, other items may get engulfed (vehicle interior, lumber stored nearby, building structure, etc) it makes the question more relevant.  You want the best agent for the actual risk at hand (say, stored flammable organic liquids), but need to know the effect if the extinguisher is applied to other materials.  This is not defined anywhere that I know of!

But what would happen if one used a different dry chemical, say a standard BC or purple K extinguisher on a Class B fire that also had some wood or other Class A materials in the mix.  Ive not seen any real data on the efficiacy of this, though I have to imagine there is some.

I get it that some types must NEVER mix.  Im not asking that for the dumb, obvious ones.  Instead, for how dry chemical applications overlap.

Thanks!

This is a layman's view, but with some logic behind it as well as experience.

Choose an extinguisher for the major threat first. A second extinguisher might be nice to have but as residual smouldering of things like wood is probably the most likely secondary threat, a ready supply of water should be sufficient backup. If you've still got a fire after using an extinguisher, you should be well on the way out of the door by that point.

The experience I mentioned: we had a small electrical fire, by the time we got the CO2 on it there was paper/card burning nicely and a wooden bench getting going. Once the fire was out and the power off it became obvious that the bench wasn't completely out. CO2 isn't much use on smouldering wood but less than a litre of water dealt with that. For liquid fuels this may not translate directly, but then it's even more important to keep your exit clear and/or use the extinguisher to help you get out, as the spread may not be what you expect.


Why is the ph of my hot water 2 points higher than my cold water? I noticed in late February that even immediately after washing my hair, it felt and looked greasy and that my bath water felt as though it had a bit of bath oil in it.  The town water department thought that it might have to do with my water heater.

Before I got around to having it flushed,  I noticed that it was leaking from the bottom.  I had it replaced on March 17, but the problem persists.

The town tested my water on March 30.  Yesterday they told me that all was normal, except that the hot water was a few points higher in Ph level.  The cold water is 7.something, while the hot is 9.something.

I can't figure out what would be causing this, and it's a nuisance!  So, I'm trying to find out what would cause the ph level to be higher and what can be done about it.  Thanks!

Water testing is affected by temperature so if they tested the water hot and did not adjust for the temp the measurement was off. When I worked in a clean room the water was tested at 72 degrees if the temp was +- a couple of degrees we had to adjust the values so that is probably the reason for such a high level. But I think it went down on hot measurements, the only thing in your tank that could affect the PH is the anode , flushing the tank and or replacing the rod would be all that you can do.


Pex Connections As Unions? I've noticed that in a properly (I assume) crimped Pex connection the tubing will rotate around the fitting it is crimped to - so that you have, in effect, a union.
So, I'm wondering:

Is that how it should be? And,
Can the connection be treated as a union? In other words, can you use the rotating property to use, say, make a PEX to NPT transition which might have to come apart without needing to install a union?

Should PEX connections rotate?

Yes, this is normal, and true of both crimp and cinch style connectors. It's also a useful property of PEX during installation, as it makes it even easier to dry-fit and pre-assemble sections and then fit them into place.

Can the connection be used as a union?

A union is designed to come apart, and in copper or PVC plumbing are typically used in two situations:

To make a part accessible for removal for servicing/replacement (such as an in-line filter)
In a tricky installation where there's no other option for the final connection to be made

In the first case, a simple PEX connection obviously doesn't satisfy the need since it doesn't come apart, and so you'll need an actual union.

In the second case, the flexibility of PEX and fact that the connections can rotate does allow installations that aren't possible with copper or PVC. I've installed dozens of water treatment systems (typically involving complex turns and tight spaces) and cannot think of a situation where an actual union was needed because of the install. But if this is what you mean, then I'd say yes, you can avoid using a union and just rotate the PEX.

Rotary union

If you are trying to do something that involves regular rotation, where you'd normally use a rotary union, I'd say no -- you should just use a rotary union. The fittings aren't designed with rotation in mind, it's just a property of the style of connection. I'd expect if used this way, it's going to wear out the pipe and/or connector itself and the connection will eventually fail.


galvanized or stainless turnbuckles for exterior wire rope fence? I'm working on a wire rope fence that looks like this. The difference is that we live fairly close to the ocean, which means lots of salty air.

I've bought 1/8" galvanized steel with plastic coating and stainless screw eyes attached to the posts. What's missing are the turnbuckles.

Ideally, I would like to buy stainless turnbuckles. The issue is that they don't sell them locally, and amazon is the only store that ships to my country and has a good selection of rather inexpensive stainless turnbuckles, like these.

On the other hand, I can find good galvanized steel turnbuckles like these anywhere. Those are the two options.

It seems that the galvanized steel turnbuckles are stronger. The problem is that I don't know how long they'll last being so close to the ocean. I can buy the stainless steel turnbuckles, but most of the ones sold in amazon say "light duty" and are being sold by questionable sellers.

Would it be a mistake to buy galvanized steel? Just to give you an idea of how bad the corrosion here is: I bought these pliers, and they had shallow rust spots one week later.

The age-old question of whether or not to use alloy materials is subjective.

cost vs. longevity
consequence/cost of failure

Rest assured that the galvanized components will fail. You will then be unable to adjust the tension of the cables. If the consequences of the failure outweigh the initial investment for alloy materials, you should buy stainless (this includes the cable itself as well).

For decades and decades the oil industry resisted the use of alloys in piping and vessel construction due to cost; it was just easier and cheaper to replace carbon steel components at their earlier end-of-life. Now, the safety and environmental costs of failure are beginning to outweigh the cost of investment for alloy materials, hence they are now "alloying up".


How should I mount a rework box if it has to go through an MDF/wood panel and drywall? I need to install a combination power and low voltage box in the ceiling of my finished basement for my home theater projector. I can't bolt the projector mount directly to the studs because of alignment issues so I have to first install a 3/4" MDF or wood panel across the joists on top of the drywall. The projector mount will then be attached to the panel which will have plenty of space available for me to add the required rework box.

My question is, should the rework box be installed through the panel and the drywall or should it be attached to the drywall with a simple cutout through the panel? I believe code says that the box can be no deeper than 1/4" from the surface so I may already have my answer. I'm in Canada so I'm not sure if code is different here. Also, I'm not sure if there is an issue installing the box in MDF to begin with. I can always go with a piece of oak or pine.

Any guidance would be appreciated! Thanks!

Why does it need to mount in the MDF? Just put box outside the perimeter of the MDF.

But if you insist:

From my experience, the simplest and cleanest way to do this is to mount the box in the drywall. You can either put a box extender in the MDF, or cut a hole big enough to clear the whole faceplate. I typically prefer cutting a big hole for the faceplate because it results in a cleaner look by helping to hide the connectors.

First cut your MDF to size. Then cut a hole for the box in the MDF. You can either make the hole the right size to fit the extender, or you can make the hole big enough to fit the faceplate.

Hold the MDF in place or temporarily mount it to your ceiling. Trace the cutout in the MDF on to the ceiling. Remove the MDF, cut the drywall, and install your box.


Solar air conditioning What are your thoughts on this Rube Goldberg system I may try this spring in Wilmington, NC.

A shallow well about 15 feet to the well point; static water at 10 feet.

Water temp at 58-60 degrees out of the ground.

Solar powered magnetic water pump drawing water from this well and pushing it about 20 feet through an insulated pex line that connects to stacked finned copper tubing encased in a 3'x2' frame, with 4 (?) large desktop computer fans blowing across it continuously while the sun shines.  The fans are also solar powered, from the same 100 watt (?) panel driving the pump.  Water cycles through the tubing and exits to a PVC waste water line under the house. The goal is to cool one room about 300 sq ft by 8 feet height (2400 cubic feet.)

Someone with an engineering background can do the math. But keep in mind that, in general, air conditioning is based on a large temperature difference and a lot of air being forced through. Typical (I think - just a quick search) is ~ 40 degrees for the refrigerant, which would be on the order of 30 degrees difference from the desired temperature. So right away you are at a disadvantage because the difference will be much less. The second problem is the fan speed. A quick search found one window unit with 570 CFM. On that front, you may have a chance - I found computer fans anywhere from 30 - 200 CFM, though most are on the lower end of things. But the biggest problem is that an air conditioner works by expansion/compression to transfer heat. You don't have that here. What you have is simply cool (not "cold") water and trying to cool the air passing over the pipes.

Can't tell for sure without doing the math, but I am very pessimistic.


How can I repair the cool deck around the pool? In places around the pool the cool deck has flaked off and I can see the bare concrete. The previous owner tried to patch it in places but it looks horrible because the texture AND color don't match.

Is there some kind of cool deck spary texture, like the kind of texture you can get for drywall? Also, can I paint all of the cool deck and will it last more than a year?

To repair cool deck flaking (not cracks in concrete):

Step One:
All of the flaking or cracked texture needs to be removed. This is accomplished by using a scraper in conjunction with a high pressure washer. If the flaking is excessive and severe it may not be necessary to use the pressure washer. Bottom line is the old patch needs to be removed to expose the underlying cement. The cement also needs to be cleaned and all loose dirt or sand needs to be removed. On areas where the patch is solid and sticks firmly to the cement the sides of those areas should be smoothed at 90 degree angle to prepare for the new cool deck coating.

Step Two:
After the removal of the old texture, wash off the exposed concrete and make sure all loose material is also removed. Using a mixture of half muriatic acid and half water, scrub the exposed cement to "score" the cement and also to clean off contaminants. After 3 or 4 minutes completely rinse off concrete and scrub with a hard brush to ensure all acid is removed. Again, a high pressure washer is always recommended for the best removal of all acid and residue. I let the concrete dry completely before moving on to the next step. I've found that any moisture remaining in the concrete will cause the new decking to flake and peel within a few years.

Step Three:
Several products exist on the market for cool decking. The easiest is a product I've found is by a company by the name of E-Z Patch. My best advise is to use the internet to find a store that carries the product. The coating product is applied directly to the concrete with a roller. Two coats are typically required. Dry time is normally 3 to 4 hours depending on the day.


Do solid core doors reduce sound more than hollow-core doors? I need to replace a bedroom door.  I would like to find the option that is best at dampening noise. I'm trying to decide between an MDF door like Jeld-Wen Molded Composite MDF Interior Door Slab  or a solid core door like Masonite solid core door.  Being that I'm mostly concerned with noise, which would be the best option.  Is there anything else I should consider when choosing, and am I overlooking a better option?
Thanks

From my experience solid core doors will block sound much better than hollow core. Solid core is also a heavier door which can be a plus although sometimes makes it a little more difficult to install.
Also, you want to make sure the door is pre-drilled for your hardware and pre-hung. The Jeld-Wen door you sited is a slab door and is not pre-hung. Slab doors need to have the hinges mortised and require more labor and knowledge to fit and hang correctly. So whichever type of door you go with (solid-core or hollow) make sure it's pre-hung.


Do I need a permit to renovate a porch in NYC? I want to renovate my 2nd floor porch, but I don't know if NYC requires a permit. My house was built in 1901, and I believe a CO is not needed because of the grandfather clause. But if I make any alterations, will it be an issue if I want to sell my house and don't have a CO?

Does changing the size of the porch also require an engineer or architect be involved? If I kept it the same size, but made slight improvements, would that help me circumvent needing the city's approval?

I've never been through the process of applying for a permit, and I don't know what it all entails. Any help is appreciated.

At the point where someone wonders,  "Is a building permit required?" the answer is usually, Yes.

The only definitive answer will come from the local building department.


How can I check for drywall behind wood panelling? What's the best way for me to know whether there is drywall behind wood panelling walls?

The wood panelling looks inexpensive, and it's in a big room (a converted garage).

If there are electrical outlets, remove one and look. otherwise you need to remove a section of panelling or drill a hole and observe what comes out. Odds are pretty good it's just panelling, speaking to typical practices in garage remodels.


why my dimmer in the kithen also dims lights in another room I have two lights in one room that are turned on with a dimmer switch in that room. I also have a light in the kitchen that is turned on with a dimmer switch in that room. My problem is the dimmer switch in the kitchen also turns on and dims the lights in the other room. The other room was an add on and wired to the existing wiring from the kitchen. How can I make the dimmer in the kitchen work only for the kitchen, while the dimmer in the other room works only those two lights?

Sounds as though the feed for your other room is simply connected to the wrong side of the kitchen dimmer switch.  The kitchen dimmer is in series with the other room dimmer.  This was presumably deliberate at the time.

Move the connections that feed the other room to the other side of the kitchen dimmer.  This will take the kitchen dimmer out of the other room's circuit.


What could cause a mobile home furnace not to light? Our furnace won't lite.  Mobile home pre 80. There is no name that we can see. The pilot light piece looks to be changed. Pilot light won't light. We don't hear or smell gas. It has settings last, 2, r, pilot & set.  Fan still works.

Does the pilot light and stay lit when you hold in the control knob in the "pilot" position?

If yes, you may need a new thermocouple, it is the little tube looking thing next to the pilot flame area. When it gets heated it sends an electrical signal to the gas valve which allows the gas to flow and the pilot to stay lit (and burner to light).

If no, you have a different problem. Check to ensure the gas supply is not obstructed or turned off; make sure you are closely following the lighting instructions. You may need a new gas control valve. Call your gas supply utility, tell them you need help and they will send someone out (usually for free) who will be able to diagnose simple problems and sometimes fix them. You may have to call an HVAC professional if nothing else works.


What is the best method for painting a door I'm planning to repaint a closet door to match a newly painted room. Would it be better to use spray paint or just use a brush and the same paint I'm using on the walls?

Neither!  Your door should be painted the same color as the trim, which is usually in a glossier finish than the walls. Semi gloss or gloss is typical for trim and doors.

The best finish is achieved when you remove the door, lay it flat and paint it with a good soft bristle brush. If it is a raised panel style door, start by painting the inner most details first, inner stiles second and finish with the outer stiles. Finish with long strokes going in the same direction as the grain.  Painting the door while laying flat will help eleminate runs and sags in detail corners.  Good Luck.


Could a wall dimmer switch be connected as part of the power cord for a table lamp (UK I'm not very experienced with wiring/electrics and wondering if I could use a wall dimmer switch to control a table lamp?

I'm using UK 3 core wiring and 40W bulb.

I would like to install the dimmer inline as part of the power cord, not use it installed in the wall.

Thanks.

There are two different options here. Including both, as the question was initially unclear, but question now refers specifically to the first option:
Installed as part of the power cord
There are two issues here - safety & code compliance. I can't speak directly to code compliance in general on this, even more so for the UK. But as far as safety goes:
A regular wall dimmer switch is technically perfectly capable of handling a table lamp. Hot, neutral, ground go in & out, some power runs the dimmer, the dimmer passes power on to the lamp. However, there are a few things to keep in mind:

As I think is indicated by "UK 3 core wiring", you should make sure that you have hot, neutral and ground from the dimmer to the plug and from the dimmer to the lamp. In the US, table lamp cords often do not have ground. The dimmer switch may require ground, and if it does then you should make sure it is connected properly.

A dimmer switch (actually, any wall switch) is normally installed in a junction box. While it is quite likely that it is designed such that there are no exposed conductors, I would not consider it safe (and I am pretty sure it is not code compliant) to have a dimmer switch sitting "open" in the middle of a power cord. That would expose screw terminals and possibly some of the internal components of the timer to contact with pets, children and falling objects. The dimmer should be installed in a junction box, as if it were installed in the wall. The cords (one to a plug, one to the lamp) should exit the box with proper strain relief so that they can't be easily pulled out and mess up the connections to the dimmer.

Installed in the wall
There are two ways to use a dimmer switch in the wall for use with a light fixture:

Hardwired light fixture

This is the usual way. The dimmer controls one or more light fixtures which are permanently connected. The problem is that a table lamp normally plugs into an outlet. So to use it hardwired, you would have to essentially take the table lamp and permanently attach it to the house wiring. That seems a bit unusual and you would need to make sure the exposed wiring can't be accidentally tripped over, since it will not disconnect (at least not safely).

Control an outlet

Ordinary switches are often configured to control a wall outlet. It would be easy, technically speaking, to replace a regular switch controlling a wall outlet with a dimmer. However, dimmers are normally compatible only with lighting. If you connected a dimmer to an outlet and then plugged in another device (e.g., a toaster or a vacuum cleaner or a radio) you would get mixed results depending on the nature of the device (resistive load, motor or electronics), but in all cases (except lighting designed to be dimmer-compatible) the results would likely be less than ideal, and could in some cases even damage the device. Not recommended, unless you can clearly set aside an outlet EXCLUSIVELY for lighting.


Vacuum Cleaner Trips Breaker I have a brand new vacuum (dyson) that trips my breaker. Never happened before this except once when I ran 2 other vacuums at the same time

There are several common problems with high performance vacuums and circuit breakers. First a vacuum may be drawing close to the maximum amperage on a circuit but with most circuits there may be a few other items that push the total current being used over the trip limit (very common on 15 amp circuits and even happens on 20 amp circuits). The second cause that I have seen in the last few years is AFCI or arc fault breakers, they can not tell in many cases the difference between a dangerous arc that could start a fire and a motor's brushes arcing so they trip. The last case is GFCI breakers, I usually see these trip on start or stop with motor loads because of how they start using capacitors to create a phase shift that can create a small amount of leakage in the ground path causing a trip.
Of course it could be a real fault in your new vacuum but in my experiance this is rare but should not be ignored. Try a different outlet that is on a different circuit breaker, if it works there great if not see the 3 possible problems above or call Dyson since 2 circuits having trouble may point to a problem with the vacuum.


Arc fault circuit with voltage bleed to neutral I have 83 volts hot to neutral 120 volts hot to ground and 26 volts neutral to ground on an existing arc fault breaker circuit.

You probably have a loose neutral somewhere, or have misidentified a switched hot as a neutral.

Breakers, including arc fault, ground fault, and just standard ones, are either open or closed. They have negligible impact on the circuit, and unless they trip, can be treated as just not there.


Make then break electrical switch? I need to install a 30 amp breaker for an electric washer dryer that requires 230 volts in a 40 amp modern fuse panel box for a apartment. The box is fused with a 40 amp main breaker within an apartment house in the NY area serviced by Con Edison. One existing breaker is a dedicated 20 amp circuit for the 220 Air conditioner.  I am hoping that I can mount a dial switch on the wall beside the panel (with a licensed electrician) that will allow only one unit to operate at a time with the correct amperage breaker for each unit to make sure safe conditions are maintained. I do not want to use any kind of knife switch or a generator transfer switch if at all possible. Thank you for your help.

I am a bit confused by the question - I think you're saying there's a 40 amp panel with a 20 amp two pole breaker for an air conditioner you want to add a 30 amp breaker for a washer dryer unit, and you want to make sure the washer breaker and the air conditioner breaker don't go on at the same time.  (Also, are you thinking break before make, and have it reversed in the question's title?)

Would it work to use a 30 amp DPDT switch on a 30 amp breaker, one throw going to the washer dryer, the other going to a disconnect with a 20 amp breaker feeding the existing air conditioner?  For example this one

Hubbell 1388

looks at a glance like it would be adequate.

The AC and it's existing wiring probably has to be on a 20 amp breaker, so you couldn't just connect it to the switch. I think you could find a 20 amp disconnect to go between the AC throw of the switch and the existing wiring.

Is there another panel for the apartment?  With all this on 40 amp main I'd see a lot of trips.


Is there a reason I should NOT install a ceiling fan in my kitchen? We need to install a new ceiling light in the kitchen. We do not have any kind of exhaust fan in the kitchen, and it would be nice to be able to move the air around on the occasion that something gets burned/overcooked. Additionally, the room is very cold during the winter and too warm in the summer. I'd like to install a ceiling fan with a light fixture. I haven't seen something like this done in any kitchen catalogues or renovation idea boards. When I was speaking with the person in the lighting department of my local home improvement store, I mentioned that I wanted to install a ceiling fan with light in the kitchen. He gave me a weird look, chuckled and said, "Okay, if you want to do that, the fans are over there."
So. A couple of things to to note:

We have a gas range, but no range hood.
We do have CO detectors in every room in the basement and on the first floor (where the kitchen is).

Is there any reason not to install a ceiling fan in the kitchen? If so, what is that reason?

It can be done, but the fan blades will need cleaned more often from any smoke/oil/residue from cooking in the kitchen as compared to elsewhere in the house.  That may result in increased wear and tear, so you may end up replacing the unit sooner than if it were somewhere else in the house.


How do I connect touch panel 3 gang switch? I’m confusing about line2 from wall has 4 wires instead of 3? Line 1 and Line3 has only 3 wires. Line 2 is not 3-ways switch. What I know is only 3-way switch has 4 wires. My question is how do I connect to smart touch panel switch? That switch is different than regular switch. It combines all the live wires and go into L. Neutral wires go into L1, L2 and L3. I don’t know what to do the red wire from Line 2. Please help me solve my issue.

Added..

Thank you all for suggestion. I decided not to use it. Is there any switch out there I can turn on and off by remote control or something? because that switch is behind something, it’s very hard to reach. That why I bought this item which I can use by remote control.

I bought the smart switchs. I’m going to use instead of previous one. But I’m facing another issue. Those smart switch has 4 wires including red wire. I’m going to install 3 smart switches for 3 lights. I tested the line wires. Only one of the line wire (black)from middle circuit has power. The other 2 have no power. Also only middle circuit has red wire. The other 2 have no red wire. How do I connect?

Be VERY Careful What You Install
With plugged in items, if there is a problem it is usually quite obvious and, very importantly, very easy to resolve quickly - just unplug it.
With hardwired items, including smart switches, timers, touch switches (like this one), motion sensors, etc., if there are problems they may manifest themselves by simply dying (annoying but no big deal) but occasionally a little more dramatically, like burning your house down or killing you.
You should always make sure that hardwired mains-voltage (120 or 240) items are appropriately UL Listed or similar. There are other labs that provide real-world useful certification. CE is not one of them - it is just a mark that anyone can print. Fortunately, actual fraudulent UL Listing marks are much more unusual, though it would be nice if there was an end-user easy & reliable way to double-check UL Listing - if there is, I don't know about it.
In addition, the Chinglish wording (I count 5 problems in a quick read) and a number of other design "features" point to this being a cheap and non-certified device that is very risky to install in your house. It is possible that the internals were designed by a good engineer and manufactured to acceptable tolerances. It is also possible that any or all of the following could be present:

Insufficient insulation or design such that the "touch" part of things is designed in a way that could result in current going through the user in a wet environment.
Components incapable of handing a full load (800W per section, 2000W total) - which may be OK when used with a smaller load (e.g., 50W per section of LED lighting). In fact, I think that is extremely likely as the typical incandescent max. load is 600W per section and a 15A device (the usual design) is typically limited to 1440W by code. 2000W as a maximum would almost certainly not pass even the most basic certification for a consumer light control in the US.

and I could think of more things if I took the time. But just don't do it. If you ever have a problem, your insurance company will take one look at it and determine that it was not installed according to code and likely refuse to pay. You can't argue "but residential straight switch replacements by the homeowner are OK" because while in most areas that is OK, it is premised upon the materials and workmanship being up to code. In this case, the materials would definitely not be up to code.


I have 10/3 wire. Can I replace my 3 prong outlet with 4 prong for a dryer? In my house there was a 3-prong outlet for the dryer and when I opened it I saw that there is 4 wires and the ground and neutral are on the same terminal. Can I change the outlet to a 4 prong? The hot wires and neutral are 10 gauge, but the ground is 12.

Is this OK for the dryer?

First, separate neutral and ground at the receptacle, that should never have been done.  Paralleling neutral is not allowed.

Second, go back to the service panel and make sure the neutral is on the neutral bus... And the ground is on the ground bus.   Inside a main panel ("service equipment" as NEC describes it in RME's post above) don't be surprised if they use the same bar for neutral and ground.  That is wrong to do in a subpanel.

Now install the new receptacle in the normal way.   Hats off to the last guy for fitting the right cable.


How can I locate and deal with mold between floors? About 9 months ago, my wife and I replaced a toilet that had a broken wax ring.  We got some water leaking down to the ceiling on the first floor.  Now I'm having what seem to be mold symptoms -- I get runny eyes, have trouble breathing, and feel nauseous when I go into the bathroom.  (I'm pretty sensitive to mold; my wife feels nothing).

I think that we probably have mold growing from the original leak, so I've opened a small hold in the celing underneath.  What I see through the grate are some planks.  They look like they were soaked through at one point but aren't wet right now.  I'll try to get a picture and post it later.  I don't see any mold at this point.

Anyone have any tips on how to procede?  It's just a small hole right now, should I widen it?  Should I cut through the mesh to get a better look?  I'm going to hire someone to put the ceiling back on (time constraint).  I assume it'll be a lot more expensive if they have to deal the mesh  as well?

Any easy ways to tell if there's still some kind of leak going on?  Any advise greatly appreciated!  I do have a professional coming out, but he can't get here until next Wednesday and I'd like to resolve as much as I can quickly.

Here's an update:

I think I'm seeing some black wood in there (need a better flashlight!).

Assuming I am, I guess my questions change to:

Is it o.k. to kill the mold by blasting ozone through a hole in the ceiling?  I know this is generally not the recommended way to clean up mold; but I would do it by blasting for a limited time with no one in the house.  I don't think there's anything between the floors I would need to worry about damaging?
I need to figure out if there's still a leak or some kind of humidity problem.  Is it safe to assume that because the problem got worse there is?  Should I try to find the pipes and see if they're leaking?
I would still like to hire someone to fix the plaster ceiling.  Is it going to cost a huge amount extra if I cut through the mesh and they have to replace some of it?  Does area make a massive difference in price for that kind of job?  For what it's worth, I'm fine having drywall put up instead of plaster.

Mold goes away when the water goes away, so unless your toilet is leaking again, you have some other source of water or leak on the upper floor. This could be any number of things, even things not plumbing related, like water getting behind the siding, or a leaking roof with water running down the inside walls. As far as killing the mold that is there, I wouldn't waste my time. If you don't correct the water problem then the mold will return very shortly.

  I need to figure out if there's still a leak or some kind of humidity problem. Is it safe to assume that because the problem got worse there is? Should I try to find the pipes and see if they're leaking?

Since you have had issues with the toilet in the past that would be the first area I would check.  If the drain pipes for your upper floor are leaking then I would expect to see discoloration bleeding through the paint on the ceiling and the walls.  If this turns up nothing then in the hole you have already cut, I would get a professional moisture detector device like the one a plumber would use.

These can help detect moisture and humidity in the air which can give you clues if you found the potential problem areas.  Don't buy a cheap one because they don't work very well, I would instead see if a rental place will lend you a good one.

  I think I'm seeing some black wood in there (need a better flashlight!).

This doesn't necessarily mean anything, it could be discoloration from previous water damage.

  I would still like to hire someone to fix the plaster ceiling. Is it going to cost a huge amount extra if I cut through the mesh and they have to replace some of it? Does area make a massive difference in price for that kind of job? For what it's worth, I'm fine having drywall put up instead of plaster.

How big is the hole that you had cut?  You can sometimes repair a hole by cutting a small piece of drywall and fitting that back in place, then using some thinset or spackle around the edges.  Sand and repeat thinset or spackle two or three times until you have a smooth paintable surface.


Is a flexible coupling okay to use on an ABS furnace exhaust pipe? I want to use a Fernco coupling for 2 inch furnace exhaust is it okay? The venting is ABS and runs low across a doorway. I want to be able to bring stuff by and replace the pipe 2 times a year.

The short answer is that you'll have to consult your manufacturer's installation specifications.

Some furnace manufacturers specify only Schedule 40 PVC. However, some water heaters ship with couplings intended for use on the exhaust duct, so it's probably not accurate to say that flex couplings can never be used.

If you find that they're allowed, I'd probably use a shielded (metal-wrapped) coupling, especially since this is a horizontal application. You don't want the rubber carrying any load.


How can I prevent clogs in a section of pipe with reverse slope due to soil settling? A plumber stopped my basement from flooding by clearing the outdoor drain, but he said that the outdoor trap was tilted, presumably because the ground settled. This means the water has to flow uphill, and solid waste gets stuck and clogs the drain. How long until it clogs again? Also, is there anything I can do to avoid clogs while I arrange to have the trap leveled? Is it feasible to follow WikiHow's suggestion of using a drain rod?

The best solution here is prevention.  Determine where the debris that is clogging your drain is coming from and stop it from getting into the pipe to begin with.


How can I stop a draft from an attic hatch lid? During the colder months there is a cold draft at the bottom of the stairs and I had a new drop down loft hatch installed 18 months ago as I was convinced that was the cause. It had become warped. But the draft remains with all windows shut! The loft is fully insulated and I have put rubber insulating tape around the edges although there is a small gap in places where it has warped very slightly but I can't feel a draft. There is no heating on the landing. Is there anything flat I could stick over the loft hatch joins as a seal?

If you can't feel a leak then there probably isn't one, at least not there. It could be that your loft hatch (attic door for the US crowd) is leaking a load of heat. Is the door itself cold? Loft hatches are typically made of very thin wood, which doesn't have much in the way of insulating properties. I've always found it helps to pull a layer of insulation over the loft opening before closing the door to help prevent loss of heat.

One thing about home improvements is that sometimes when you fix something you notice something else that was covered up before. You insulate your loft and your upstairs is much warmer, so now you notice the leak that was always there but was covered up by the massive heat loss from your loft. You'll fix that leak and then notice another one, and another. Then after fixing all those leaks you'll have to re-balance your radiators because people are getting heat stroke in the study. So it may be that the loft hatch isn't the problem in which case you need to have a hunt for the real culprit. I use the back of my hand and fingers to search for leaks, which could come from badly sealed windows, light fixtures leaking air through the ceiling, a hole for a waste pipe in the bathroom, etc.


what is the woodworking technique used to build this piece? I'm interested in building a side table similar to the one shown in this link. The woodwork technique looks complicated for an inexperienced builder (like me). How was this piece built?

This is a box joint. Some might call it a finger joint. Here I've cut out a small piece of one of the blow ups on the site.

Note the straight sides. The idea is the pieces mate together, indeed like the fingers of two hands, set to cross alternately. Without glue of course, the joint would have no strength at all. By the way, in my opinion it is a relatively poor example of a box joint. See that there are voids along those joints, that were then filled, probably with a wood filler.

A dovetail joint would have angled sides on the mating pieces, looking something like this (from Wikipedia):

You can see the difference is in the angled faces.

How was the table built? It appears as if this was done by hand work, or if a table saw was used, measurements were not done with perfect accuracy. Were I to do this, I'd use a router table, with incredibly precise bit placement, enabled by a good router fence, like an Incra-fence. A table saw would not leave flat bottoms between the fingers (UNLESS you have a good dado blade. Cheap dado blades will not do that.) The cuts CAN be done by hand work with a saw and chisels, but to do that with sufficient accuracy, it would require a fair deal of skill with those hand tools. IF you were to try this by hand, start out with some practice pieces of wood. Make a dozen joints first, only then would I trust your skill with the tools. Practice joints are a good idea anyway, with any tools.

You might check out some videos about making box joints. Youtube has lots to be found, like this one, where a table saw with a dado blade is used. Or this one, where you can see it done by hand.

Can you do this better? The fact is, the table you would get from this joint will not be terribly strong. A far better choice would be to use dovetails, which will resist torsion better using the physical shape of the dovetails, as well as glue. See that the fingers here mate along faces that can resist the torsion ONLY by means of glue. A dovetail joint is clearly stronger.

If you cannot manage a dovetail joint (I assume this is to be by by hand work, so using only saws, chisels, etc.) then I would strongly suggest that a stronger joint will be found by having MORE glue surface. The fingers in such a joint are plenty strong enough. If a box joint like this will fail due to torsion, then it will fail along those glue joints. So I'd suggest at the very least, using more glue surface here. That is, instead of having fingers that are 2 inches wide, make fingers that are about 1/2 inch side, thus creating very much more surface to be glued because there will be more fingers. Yeah, I know, it will make for more work. Do you want it to last? Really, best would still be accurately cut dovetails.

It does not appear as if any dowels were used here. BUT, to be honest, were I to build this table, I'd consider finding a way to insert small dowels, hidden inside each joint so they cannot be seen. This is easily doable. Again, the idea is to build the joint so that it resists torsion by more than simply glue surface.

Finally, as people will state, a well made glue joint is stronger than the wood it joins. HOWEVER, the glue joints I see in the picture above are not that terribly well made. There are clear voids. The mating faces are not that tightly mating. If this joint fails, which can easily happen, it will be by the fibers of those fingers tearing in shear, but it will happen along those glue joints. You can see joint failure happening in this video. Essentially the fibers right next to the glue joint will be seen to delaminate.


My ceiling light won't turn off, how do I wire it up correctly? (UK) My living room has two ceiling lights controlled by one (dimmer) switch.  I've removed the old fixture, disconnected the wiring and unfortunately forgot to take a picture of how the black / blue / red / etc wires were wired up before I disconnected.

I tried wiring it up to my new light fitting with what I thought made sense but that resulted in the light remaining on all the time even after attempting to turn it off using the wall switch.  The second ceiling light which I haven't touched doesn't turn on at all.

Based on reading other posts similar to this I've clearly gone wrong by neglecting to use the wire for the switch as well as the wires for the next ceiling light.  Knowing this I've reviewed diagrams online and I think I know what to do but there is one wire which is throwing me off which has prompted this post - the blue wire (labeled 3):

Here is what I think each wire is and how they should be connected, please correct me if I'm wrong:

Wire 1:  Live
Wire 2:  Switch-live
Wire 3:  I'm guessing neutral?
Wire 4:  Live
Wire 5:  Live
Wire 6:  Earth coming from A, B and C
Wire 7:  Neutral?
Wire 8:  Live

So based on some assumptions (I haven't tried this yet as I'm a bit paranoid) I think the correct way to wire this is as follows:

Connect 1, 4, 5 and 8 together
Use wire 2 to connect to the 'live' wire of the new light fitting.
Connect 3 and 7 together and use it to connect to the 'neutral' wire from the new light fitting.
Then of-course connect the earth wires all together.

I've also used the second ceiling light (which I haven't disconnected yet) as a guide to work out how I should connect these wires up, here is a pic of the wiring of that second ceiling light:

Please do let me know if I've got this wrong.  All the diagrams I've seen online don't have a blue wire coming out from either A, B or C.

What's also confusing is I've read online that black for neutral is the old colour style and that neutral blue is the new colour style - yet I have both blue and black which I think are both neutral based on how the second ceiling light is wired up?

Also, wire 2 I've assumed is switch-live based on the red sleeve covering the yellow wire but what's confusing me is I've read online that a switch-live is normally a neutral wire that's been turned into a live wire (and then given a sleeve to indicate this) but based on how the second ceiling light is wired yellow appears to be live already?  Is it standard practice to simply use a live wire and give it a sleeve to indicate that it's the live wire coming from the switch?

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks!

PS:  I intend on using these wire connectors from Screwfix to do the above:  https://www.screwfix.com/p/ideal-2-port-lever-wire-connectors-pack-of-40/3526g

It seems apparent from your second-light picture that the light carries both switched-hot for the lamp (on yellow) and onward always-hot power for onward points (on red-hot and blue-neutral).  So that tells us you are correct about cable A.

Between cable B and C, one of them is more likely than not a switch loop.  I note B is a twin-and-earth using red+red conductors.  Use of specially color coded cable for switch loops is a British thing. That notable lack of color coding makes it only useful in switch loops, so that's cable B.  You can double-check by opening up your switch and checking the colors there.

That leaves cable C.  Since the cable to the other lamp is accounted for, cable C can only be onward power to other points of use.

When I say "onward power" in both boxes, one or both of those could be going to supply. I don't really care which one is supply and which one is onward to loads. It makes no difference here; the point is those cables are intended to have always-on power.

So all neutrals should be joined together, including the neutral wire from this here lamp.
All always-hots should be joined together, and if B is a switch loop, one of the two wires in B must be always-hot. - Then all switched-hots are joined together, in this case it'll be 3 wires: 1 wire from the switch loop, one to the other lamp, and the hot from this lamp.


How to safely cap a wire coming from a wall I'm in the UK. I have taken two electric radiators off the wall, one behind where my fridge goes, and one behind a set of shelves. Each radiator has a standard (live/neutral/earth) wire coming out of the wall, and I have them taped up with electrical tape.

I would like to safely cap them, in a way which doesn't stop me pushing the fridge/shelves up against the wall. What do I need for this?

Thanks!

I would terminate the wires in a terminal block, coil the cable up inside the backbox and fit a blanking cover.

If there isn't a backbox fit I'd one or fit a surface pattress.

I believe it is required that the routing of cable through walls be made visually evident by the presence of visible surface fittings. If you intend to remove the visible surface fittings, you must completely extract the hidden unused cables from within the walls.


Can cracks in a wood-burning fireplace be repaired with a concrete product? Upon inspection, minor cracks were found on the floor & back of wood burning fireplace.  Can't these cracks be filled with some type of concrete repair kit?  If so, what is recommended for the heat?  It is a grouted brick in grey.

Refractory cement is usually used to repair the the joints of the fire brick. If the old cement is cracking it may be a good idea to remove all the loose material and repoint or fill the damaged areas. There is also fire clay but this not normally used above the fire box area that takes the most abuse from the fire (I have seen fire clay used many times but believe refractory cement is better).


How do I prop-up or fix a wall that is slowly moving? In the image, the single stack of breeze blocks on the right hand side has been slowly moving away from the wall over the last 4 years. The gate latch (also on the right hand side) is now rubbing against the breeze blocks and it's almost impossible to close the gate.

What are my options for fixing this problem?

One thing that I had thought of is getting one of those pull-up bars that you put between doorways for pull-ups (exercise) and expanding it between the two walls and pushing the walls apart again and leave it like that for a few months in the hope that they will re-settle as they were.

One of my friends suggested filing down the part of the latch that is rubbing but I don't want to do that because it's just delaying the problem as the blocks will probably continue to move.

More than likely, the column of blocks has settled slightly causing your problem. I can't see from your picture, but has the gap between the top blocks and wall also opened slightly? If it has, then your blocks have shifted. Usually the weight of a large gate, such as you have, causes this problem on a fairly new install, especially since you only have a one block column.

My suggestion would be to add some "L" bracket supports or other mounting directly to the wall and column. Use your imagination and I'm sure you can find or make something that would look nice with the finish of the wall and blocks. Whatever you use, be sure to mount it to the block first, flush to the finished edge. Then screw or lag it into a good solid point of the wall (stud or plate) in order to use the mechanical advantage to pull the column, close the gap and restore the column to the original plumb-line, or at least stop any additional settling and tilting. Mounting the brackets to the same block the gate hinges are mounted to would help support the weight of the gate and not stress the mortar joints of the rest of the column. Be sure to consider sealing any devices you may have to install in the wall to prevent any water from entering. If you end up needing to use some ugly but strong utility type brackets, you could build a nice looking small valance box covering and stucco it to match.  Lots of decorating alternatives.

The bottom line is to devise a way to attach the sides or top of the column firmly to the building and stop the settling from getting worse and making your nice gate inoperative.


How can I diagnose an intermittent furnace ignition failure? I have been researching how to diagnose this intermittent lighting issue with my furnace but the common issues do not seem to apply.

Blower turns on
Ignition coil turns cherry red
Sound of gas blower starts
No ignition, ignition coil dims, and blower remains on

I've uploaded a video as well: https://youtu.be/Y9umhFh6_gc

I am trying to figure out a strategy for determining what part I may need to order and replace.

Ended up having a technician come out in fear of the intermittent failure becoming permanent in this cold winter.

Issue with this old furnace turned out to be that the gas valves were dirty blocking gas flow to some degree. The technician disassembled and cleaned the valves and went on his merry way.

I learned this is a good yearly maintenance for old furnaces like this.


receptacle not working in kitchen House built in 1997 a receptacle in the kitchen that the coffee brewer has always been plugged into suddenly stopped working. I checked the gfi's in that room none of them tripped, checked the other receptacles and they all work. This one receptacle is the only one not working. I took the old receptacle out it only had 2 wires and a ground. the white wire where the connection was on the screw looked like it was slightly melted. I replaced that receptacle with a new one just like the old one, attached it just like it was removed, and it still don't work. what could my problem be?

Since you only have three conductors in your junction box, it means you are at the end of that circuit. The burning of the insulation is a concern and probably indicates that you have had an overheating problem and that has probably caused your failure. You need to trace back to the preceding box and check it for loose connections or some other failure. Just because the preceding receptacle is working does not mean that there is not a problem in that box. (forgive the double negative). I have attached a rough drawing to let you know what you are looking at.

If you can't find the problem in that box the you have damaged your wiring and you will need to ring out the circuit to find the problem.

Good luck


Bathroom, dryer and central vac - Can any of the exhausts be combined, and can any use the same penetration? I have these three units within 5 feet of eachother. The place where the bathroom vents to is the only place within reach to have a penetration to outside.

My options are to stack these three exhausts, or up the size, add some backflow preventers, combine them, or something else that you guys might know.

Also, I'm concerned the dryer vent may form a vapor trap or some sort, but I don't know enough about it to figure that out.

If you have a gas dryer, that would be a no for the dryer, no question. For electric dryer and the other devices, it feels to be against code to me, though I can't find a specific citation on a quick look. In any case, there is a risk for one device to back feed another device unless all devices have effective backdraft dampers on the device itself. I doubt dryers and vacs have such devices, and for the ones I've seen on bathroom fans, I would not deem them "effective".

It's not a good idea. Is there any way to get enough room by transitioning into equivalent rectangular ducts ganged together? It may take a custom built fitting, but you need to exhaust through a combined equivalent area of all 3 ducts added together whether combined or not. So if there's not enough room for this, it's not going to work anyway.


How to support freestanding trellis with 2x4 legs I'm getting married soon. One of the decorations is a custom built arbor 7.5 ft tall, 7 ft wide, and 2 ft deep, made with 2x4 legs. After the wedding we want to install it in our garden as a rose trellis. The location we're planning on has about a 1.5 ft drop over the 7 ft width with a shallow drainage swale down the middle of it, although it's more like a yard because it rarely has running water. The ground is hard packed clay with grass over it. How can I install the arbor so it's free standing?

Since the legs are only 7 ft long, I don't want to bury 2 ft in the ground.  I'm also not sure if the wood is ground contact rated. It's stained with oil based deck stain (2 coats) but likely isn't pressure treated.

If it were a deck or similar wide structure I could put it on blocks but at 7. 5ft high and only 2ft deep it would be top heavy and fall over in high wind.

I've seen ground stakes for 4x4 posts, but not for 2x4's.

Other than cementing 4x4 posts in the ground, with the low side longer for leveling, then screwing the 2x4 legs to them, how could I install this arbor?

I'm not sure if this will work for your exact situation, but you could use 2 or 4 "deck blocks" to anchor the trellis in place.

These are made to hold a 2x board in the cross or a 4x4 in the "socket".  You could connect your side legs of the trellis with a length of pressure treated 2x4 and place this block in the center.  Then use concrete screws to attach the 2x4 to the deck block.  The idea would be to bury the deck block so the 2x4 sets on the ground to stop it from rocking.

If you think you needed it to be more stable, you could get a block for each corner and use galvanized brackets and concrete anchors to attach them to your feet.  Totally or partially bury them to level the trellis.

The advantage is that you get a pre-cast concrete footing without the need to manually mix and pour concrete and it's relatively easy to move if you ever needed to (easier than a typical post concreted into a hole in the ground).

But, that said, getting a single pressure treated 4x4, cutting it into 2' sections and concreteing those into the ground doesn't sound like a terrible option either.

I'd worry about stakes or something similar being pulled out by the wind.  With a free standing structure, the mass/stability of the footings is the only thing that can hold it in place.


Kickplate or grout first? I have small, decorative tiles just in front of my kitchen cabinets. However, my cabinets sit on a 2x4 platform to raise them and I need to put in a kickplate to cover the wood. Should I grout first or install the kickplate first? Please help me create a tag that would cover the kickplate.

Always grout first, clean up, then install the kickboard.


How can I fill a small tapered gap between my pavers and a step? The sidewalk project needs few finishing touches.

I need to fill the gap between the house and the pavers to lock them before going over with vibrating plate.

The gap is 1.5", but the steps at the entrance don't have straight angle and the gap there goes up  to 3.5"

I don't think putting slivers of pavers in it will make it look better.

What are my options? I was thinking about pebbles but don't feel like they will prevent pavers from traveling. Should I use concrete? And maybe cover the it with pebbles?

You just lay the carpet or rubber sheet on the pavers (not attached) and use the vibrator.

As for the sidewalk being lower than the dirt by about 4-5 inches, you could put in a retaining wall/edge, or make a box planter into an edge (a french drain may be helpful, here), or shape the soil so that it diverts/drains away into a swale (aka a ditch).

To help keep pavers put (because you're worried about pea gravel in the sliver), use paving edger:

For the concrete idea, here's a couple of videos: Pebble inlay in concrete and Stone pebble mosaic ideas. Another method involves simply exposing aggregate by basically washing off the surface of the concrete.


Plugging a hole in the ceiling We had an electrician install a light in our ceiling.  In the process he had to move the fitting about 10 centimeters which left a hole roughly three centimeters in diameter.

He tried to pug it using filler which is a disaster.

What's the best way for a hack like myself to plug this hole?

patching a hole in the ceiling is the same as patching one in the wall (only your arms usually get more tired from being above your head), see this question:

What is the best method to patch a large hole (2-3 inches) in drywall?

Excerpt:

  Correct way to do it is as instructed on 'Canada's worst Handyman'


Need to know if this is mold or not This may be an obvious answer to some but I know next to nothing about molds / fungus etc. Is this mold, or black mold? I've been finding it throughout my house, usually by window sills, and am hoping to find out what it is, and how to treat it. Any info would be appreciated, thanks

Yes, it's mold. This happened in my apartment after an extended stay away from home during the summer. I used plain old soap and water and it has worked for me. I had no problems doing it this way. There is no way to indefinitely get rid of all the mold (you will inevitably leave some mold spores behind) as long as there is enough moisture in the air.

There are many ways to prevent mold growth. I bought a dehumidifier and it seems to have done the trick. I have not had any mold since. No mold will grow without moisture. Get rid of the moisture and you will get rid of the mold.

Update
I found an article that does a good job explaining how to get rid of mold.


Two switches, one turns both lights on, the other just one of them I have two separate lights in a room. And two separate switches (actually one switch and one motion sensor). I want one switch to turn both lights on, and one switch to turn just one of the lights on.

As a truth table:

Switch 1   Switch 2   Light A   Light B
0          0          0         0
1          0          1         1
0          1          1         0
1          1          1         1

My trouble is: Since Switch 1 has to turn on both lights, the "inputs" of both lights have to be connected. So if Switch 2 the sends power to Light A, Light B will also turn on since they are connected.

Is there an easy way to do this?

This isn't as hard as it seems at first

From your truth table, Light A is an OR of Switch 1 and Switch 2 (aka the motion sensor), while Light B is controlled by Switch 1 alone.

Since power is coming in at Switch 1, we can simply run a 5-core cable between the two switches as you have already done, then standard 3-core (twin&earth) to each light from the second switch location.  At the first switch, the incoming live is connected to both poles of the switch as well as to the live wire in the 5-core cable going onwards, while the two switched wires go to the two poles of the switch.  All the neutrals connect to each other, and all the grounds connect to each other as well, of course.

At the second switch aka the motion sensor, the motion sensor's line side connection goes to the incoming live, while the motion sensor's load side connection connects to both the live feed to Light A and to one of the switched wires from the first switch.  The other switched wire from the first switch then is hooked to the live feed to Light B, while the neutrals connect to each other and the grounds connect to each other as usual.

If you are feeding Light B from Light A, by the way, you'll need a four-core cable to carry the two switched lives from the second switch to Light A, of course.


How to repair buckled duct work inside wall? Update

I think the duct is actually fine. The duct connects to a register that is shared by two rooms. When heating, one room is gets hot, while the other is cool (not too cold). I think the problem is either insulation or windows. The hot room has 1 window, the cool room has 3 windows. I've put film over the widows, but it's still cold. Next I'll try blankets.

Background

My house was built in the 1930s, I assume these ducts were installed when the home was built. This duct goes from the supply plenum in the basement to the 2nd floor master bedroom. The best I can measure, it's 10" x 4" .

If you look in the photo below, the duct work is comprised of several small sections of metal. They look to be about a foot long each, with some overlap between sections. Note: the light source is a ribbon of LEDs that I lowered down the duct.

My concern is that the metal is buckled in several spots and is coming away from the wall, and I'm concerned that it's leaking air pressure. Presumably, the outside of the duct is the wall studs and lath and plaster.

Question

Should I actually be concerned about the buckling metal? Is there really that much air pressure being lost?
Is there anything I can do to repair this?

Repair Ideas

I had a couple of ideas of some repairs.

I could try to reattach the metal to the walls with sheet metal screws from the inside. This would require drill extensions and an 90 degree adapter ... and it would probably be pretty difficult to do.
I could try to drill through the walls on the outside of the ducts and secure the metal with toggle bolts.
I could try to fill the gaps with spray foam gap filler, but that could backfire if it expands and pushed the ducts out further.
I could try to run flex ducts inside the old duct work, or maybe duct board since there aren't any rectangular duct products.

As has been well stated in the comments thread above, your solution may stem more from tuning the HVAC system and your home than repairing this minor obstruction. Chances are you won't see much benefit from a time-consuming repair.

The suggestions given are good:

Examine the overall airflow paths for the space. Close heat supplies and returns to force more heat to the cooler areas and draw more air from them.
Consider the passive effect of open doorways, etc., and make adjustments to how you use them.
Consider a duct booster fan to pull more return air through the existing upstairs return. This can probably be installed in an accessible location near the furnace.

Any home needs seasonal tuning. You may need to reverse these changes for the heating and cooling seasons.


How do I achieve this texture? I need to make some wall repairs in our house (lath and plaster). After making the repairs, I'll need to add texture over the repairs. After doing a bit of research, it looks like this is a so-called "knockdown" texture. I know that you can apply an initial texture in many different ways before doing the knockdown. Any thoughts on how to achieve this result?

Expect to experiment to obtain the finer points.  You can do that on the actual repair surface.  If an attempt doesn't come out well, wipe it off immediately while it is still wet and workable.  Then let the wall dry (10-30 minutes depending on ambient temperature and humidity) and repeat.

Start with the wall clean, free of dust and dirt.  Depending on the project, you might prime the surface first to better match the old work.

Prepare the mud to be fairly soupy—perhaps 10% wetter than mud is usually worked for joints.  Load a trowel lightly with mud, spread it across the trowel evenly, and spatter it by throwing at the wall in such a way that it spreads out as it travels (as with an exaggerated flourish).  Professionals don't throw it, but spread it on the wall very rapidly.  (I find it easier to throw.)  Don't worry about leveling the applied thickness at this stage.  If you make a mistake or otherwise don't like the layout, scrape it off with the trowel, then a damp cloth, and let it dry somewhat before trying again in that area.

Once you like the texture layout, let it set for awhile:  usually 10 to 20 minutes under typical ambient conditions.  Then knock it down by running the trowel edge lightly over it (scraping off excess) to make the correct thickness.


AFCI trips when adjacent breaker is switched on I added 2 separate circuits to a small space on the first floor.
Both circuits were AFCI/GFI protected in the breaker panel.
Both circuit home runs ran to one junction box before splitting.
1st circuit was 20A single gang outlet, nothing else.
2nd circuit was 15A for direct wired radiant heater (line thermostat controlled) that would draw max 6A.
All grounds were connected in the junction box.
After consultation with the heater/thermostat company I learned that AFCI/GFI breaker cannot be used with the thermostat.  It requires a conventional breaker.
Conventional 15A breaker installed for the 2nd circuit.
Problem
circuit 1 trips immediately when circuit 2 breaker is switched on.
Circuit 1 does not trip with circuit 2 breaker off and vice versa.  (Btw before switching from AFCI to conventional style 2nd breaker only worked if 1st breaker off and vice versa)
Heater (2nd circuit) works fine as long as other breaker is off.
Outlet (1st circuit) works fine as long as other breaker is off.
Eaton breaker panel and Eaton br115 and Eaton All-in-one 20A breakers.
I’m open to all suggestions to resolve.
Thanks very much

Neutrals were crossed in the breaker panel.  AFCI is happy now.
Many many thanks  to everyone who took a few seconds from their busy day to help me.


Insulation type to use on a hinged metal attic door In this question, I asked about the best type of insulation to use on a hinged metal attic door, when one is also concerned about heat entering around the edges of the door when closed.

The answer I received is a good one (and provides an answer to that question as it was asked), but adds an extra step to entering the attic.  If I may, I would also like to ask the separate question of when one is not concerned about the edges of the door, but just concerned about the lack of insulation of the door itself.  So...

What is the best type of insulation to use on a hinged metal attic door (no integrated ladder)?

Only concerned about heat entry through the door when closed.

Would like something that does not cause a mess when the door is opened, and does not add extra steps to entering the attic.  I'm thinking along the lines of something added to the metal door itself.  There are a number of choices, and I'm wondering what type of product is best.

One recommendation is to use rigid foam insulation attached with caulking, liquid nails, or silicone.


Is there a reasonably priced dog door that allows dogs through but stops cats? I have two dogs and two cats. The cats are indoor only and I want the dogs to be able to come and go at will. I've researched online and found electronically keyed very expensive Star Trek style dog doors that are $500+, which is too pricey for me. Does anyone have an alternative or DIY method for achieving this?

A search for "electronic dog door" and/or "selective dog door" turns up several products ranging from $80 to $200 (though they are others that go up to $500), depending on size you need, for example:

PetSafe SmartDoor
Dog Mate Electromagnetic Dog Door - Has settings for locked, in/out, in-only, and out-only. Up to 14" shoulder height.

There's lots of small selective cat doors, they do seem to get much more expensive as you go bigger.

As far as DIY, there are several ways to do this, and the complexity will really depend on exactly what you do, and how much experience you have doing electronics and embedded programming. An instructable on an RFID cat door may get you started.

Effectively, you just need to buy/build the actual door, which is capable of being locked by some mechanism (I would suggest not using one of the flexible flap ones).

Then you need a lock mechanism that can be controlled electronically, such as a solenoid, linear actuator, or servomotor.

Finally, you need the sensor and control circuitry. An Arduino is probably a good staring place for the controller. For the sensor, RFID has a lot of benefits, but as some of the off-the-shelf products show, you could also use infrared and/or magnetic sensors. I would think those would be more finicky to get working reliably, whereas RFID is pretty simple: just mount the antenna so it can pick up the tag attached to the dog's collar when close to the door.

Here's another instructable on interfacing RFID to the Ardunio. All that needs is an output hooked up to the lock mechanism you build, and the software to hold the lock open for a few seconds after detecting a valid RFID tag.

Note that the hardware to do this DIY isn't necessarily cheap, and in fact, probably approaches the $100-200 price tag on some of the off-the-shelf doors. Great learning experience but don't expect to save much cash DIY here.


Help with strange type of bolt I'm hoping someone can help me identify what type of bolt(if it is even a bolt) this is, what it is used for and most importantly how to remove it.

This is used to attached a boat engine to a transom, there are three other normal bolts (one in the bottom of one of the pictures).

My guess would be a carriage bolt, but it's impossible to tell for sure.  Take the nut off the inside, hit the bolt with a mallet and see what happens.

Edit based on addition of interior photo...

I wonder if that big black cylinder is some type of damper intended absorb shock and vibration.  Maybe the one on the other side failed and they replaced it with a regular bolt.  You might try a channellock pliers or such to take it off (if that's your goal).  Or post this to a boat forum and see if anybody has a better answer.


Solar panel installation on a old vintage roof We are in a 106 year old home with an old vintage roof. My wife believes that the old roof with vintage wood is precious and that the holes that are to be drilled in to the wood (especially the sturdy old wood which is rare) is probably not a good idea.
But once the panels are installed, the holes will always be covered by panels, so I don't see any concerns. How difficult or problematic would it be to fix the holes if we were to remove the panels in the future? Is this a common concern among other homeowners with older roofs?

Well it depends, many old roofs of this age had 1x boards nailed to the rafters some were later overlaid with plywood But in either case I would feel better about mounting solar on a old roof than one with OSB especially if a coastal area or desert where you get high winds regularly through the year.
There are those that only look at the size of the rafters and think because they only used 2x6 and today we use 2x8 that the roof needs to be built up, this is not true the old lumber prior to the 60’s had ring counts required (ring counts were taken out of grade books in the late 60 early 70’s) what is the difference.
In your old structures especially Victorians the lumber used had 3-5x the rings and was clear no nots or possibly small ones and no wane or bark today it takes a larger rafter to hold the same load.  So your roof would be a better candidate in my opinion. Will it hurt the wood to anchor the panels, if the lags are pre drilled and not oversized then properly sealed even your old roof will be fine.
That old tight grain has more holding power than what we call lumber today, I currently work in a mill and have photos of #2 4x4 with a swirl 5 branches in other words a Christmas tree made into lumber when they used to use 150+ year old trees. I believe your roof will be fine.


Gap between 6" dia wall thimble & 6" hvac pipe I bought a 6" dia aluminum wall thimble to vent my 6" dia hvac steel exhaust pipe through to the outside. However, the diameter of the 6" thimble is actually 6 3/4". How do I effectively insulate the gap?
Thanks

B-vent is what should be used for exhausting gas appliances and most likely why you have a gap in a 6" escussion with a 6" pipe in it. Notice the ID and OD for B-vent. If its just an air handler for a bath fan use a flapper vent.

AMPG's PDF

Now you can fill the new 1/8~1/4" gap with an approved high temp caulk.


How can I make this tile floor smoother? I just had a shower built using 12x12 sheets of 2x2 mosaic tiles. The edges of the tile have hard edges. I didn't notice this until a couple of days after the install.  What can be done to make these grout line more flush or possibly round the edges of the tile?  I was thinking I could maybe regrout it but have read that the new grout wouldn't bond with the old.

Pictures:

Rounding the edges of all the tiles is out of the question. Though, you might want to try to file down some of the worst offenders.

Ad hoc grout is likely to crack. At the very least, scarify the entire surface of the grout first.

Re-grouting it, it isn't going to be much different but it could be a little better. You don't have to get it all out, just make enough room for a solid bead to fit. Aim to achieve at least a 1/4" trough, and take what can you get. The deeper you go, the longer it will last.

See here, grout removers:

Tools and procedures for re-grouting a shower

 Less than helpful comments:

Don't use 1/4" grout lines on cut stone tile.

Don't use 2" tile on a floor. Use true mosaic or normal sized tile.

No matter what you do (aside from installing different tile), I doubt it will ever be fun to stand on with bare feet. Slap some temporary grout over the existing and see if it's worth doing a full, meticulously attended, re-grout.