How should I rebase a clothesline post on sloped property? I live in Toronto, Canada. Our old clothesline was affixed atop a 14' post attached to the vehicle shed (the shed is too low, dug into the side of a slope), the bottom of the post was eventually cemented around as part of a pavement initiative in the back alley, before we bought the house.

And the second end of the clothesline is attached to the house - that's not a problem. (However because the back of the house is highest point, the base of the porch is about 5ft up, and then the clothesline about an additional 6ft above that for easy reach when standing on the porch, for a total of ~11ft.)

The old post itself has rotted out at top and bottom and has broken off at the bottom in the cement. It's also bolted to the side of the shed to be sturdy. I don't want to deal with recementing near the bottom of the post and/or breaking up cement that's there because I can't see how to easily stick another one there.

I'm  considering options (but the slant of the property is not necessarily condusive to using just the shed by itself for a point to affix the clothesline).

I'm entertinaing bringing putting a post in the back yard but don't know how its base should be placed in the lawn to stay sturdy.

Update 1 (slant of land, very low shed)
(this info also has also been worked into the above description).

The way the land slopes (house higher and vehicle shed lower) the side of the vehicle shed facing the house is only about 5.5 ft high -slightly dug into a slope. A clothesline affixed to the shed would either be very slanted or close to the ground. The post was there before to get the needed height.

Update: Diagram of situation (apologies for my "drawing skills")

Looking for ideas.

You said that one end is attached to the house, and the other end is attached to a post which is attached to a vehicle shed.

Is there any reason why you need a post on the vehicle shed end?  Could you attach the line directly to the shed (e.g. with an eye-bolt)?  That would seem like the simplest solution.

ETA:  Given the slope of the land, maybe a metal post attached to the side of the shed would be a good option?  Something similar to what you might use for a lamp post?


Sliding bathroom barn door covering cadet heater This was a design decision I made a month ago and now after things putting together, I have a "duh" moment.

This is my bathroom door which will have a barn door sliding to the left:

Note that there is a cadet heater which has the cover 1" thick.

The barn door assembly will cover it if the bathroom door opens. I am able to make the sliding assembly to "stick out" 1" to prevent the door hitting the cadet cover.

However, is this configuration OK? Meaning, in order to get heat, the bathroom door has to be closed. If opened, the door will be 1/2" in front of the cadet heater. Is that bad?

Alternatively I can move the cadet heater to the left a bit and have a junction box where it is now. What do you think?

Do not cover that heater and a 1/2” gap is not sufficient either.

You will have to move it or re-design your door.


Is there a length limit on grounding conductor to ground rod? My service panel is over a concrete patio, it was improperly grounded  in the crawlspace. I cannot drive a proper ground rod in the crawlspace so I would like to drive one into the earth on the side of the house. This would place the rod about 20' away.

Is there a limit to the length of the ground conductor from the panel to the rod?

This answer is mostly based on the United States electrical system, and the answer may vary depending on where you are.

The NEC code specifies that a solid copper wire used to connect to a ground rod must be at least either #6 or #8 gauge (depending on the size of your electrical service cable). #6 cable cable will always satisfy the sizing requirement, though in some cases larger is desirable. The NEC doesn't specify a limit as to the maximum length. Of course, shorter is better.

Aluminum cable is permissible with larger minimum sizes, though I'd avoid it due its corrosion properties.

The grounding system serves a few different purposes:

Make the voltage of the land around your house be at approximately the same voltage as your power line neutral. This means that you can't shock yourself by holding an appliance in one hand and touching the earth with your feet.
A fault path during lightning storms. When lightning strikes near your house, it energizes your electrical lines. Surge suppressors will try to shunt the voltage to the neutral or ground line. Having a good ground will maximize the power transfer out of your house.
Safety. If the neutral going to your house is disconnected and you don't have a ground to neutral bond in your main panel, both prongs of each electric outlet in your house will have the full line voltage on it. Older appliances will connect their chassis to neutral, causing their chassis to hold 120V. With the grounding system properly connected, the ground will pull the neutral closer to 0 V, reducing the risk of shock.
Radio antenna. Many radio antennas use the ground to help transmit their signals.
Noise reduction. The power lines have a lot of "noise" on them. Having a good ground connection will reduce the noise that your equipment has to deal with.

So, what resistance to ground should you want? The smaller, the better. The electrical code states that with one ground rod, it must have a maximum resistance of 25 ohms to the earth.  According to a Fluke brochure, you should try to have a ground to earth resistance of less than 25 ohms, or less than 5 ohms for sensitive electrical equipment.

#6 gauge solid copper is approx 0.4 ohm/thousand feet, so having a run of thirty feet will add minimal extra resistance (about 0.008 ohm). But, it will somewhat reduce the effectiveness of your system during a lightning storm. For the best lightning protection, your grounding wires should not have any sharp bends. This is because lightning is a very high frequency signal, and the wire's impedance increases with frequency. The 0.4 ohm/thousand feet figure is only valid at DC (zero frequency). While sharp bends do not increase the DC resistance, it does increase the high frequency impedance.

As far as a suggestion, for a "normal" house, I'd use solid #4 copper to two 8 foot long copper-plated ground rods which are placed 16 feet apart, and driven so that they are completely underground. Welding your ground wire to your ground rods is best (for example, with a product such as CadWeld's One Shot), but "Acorn" clamps are acceptable to use. The welded connection is more corrosion resistant than the mechanical clamp conection. Also, ensure that your water pipes are also attached to your grounding system. Your neutral should connect to the grounding system at the service entrance (generally the main breaker panel), and in no other location.

There is a limit on the length of the wire connecting a cable TV co-ax shield to your house's grounding system. It must be no more than 20 ft long, unless there is an additional ground rod (see NEC 220.100 for details), though I'm not sure if this would be the distance to your main panel, or to your ground rod.

There are many other rules that I have not mentioned (read the NEC book (NFPA 70) or your local code for details). As always, use caution when working around electrical systems.


66 inch tub in a 68 inch alcove? Technically it's not an alcove, it's the back end of the bathroom, and I want to put a tub across that back wall. It's 68" across, and the closest tubs that I can find are 66". Seems like I should build out a little 2" projection of one wall, 32" wide ... or build out a little shoulder "wall" that projects out 2" and is 32" deep and 16" high and then tile horizontally across its top. The former seems more straightforward, but is there a standard/correct way to handle this; ways to make it look less kludgey? Either way it seems that tiling that 2" projection could get a little fiddly. Well, at least if I were going to do it, but I'm not; I'll hire a professional for tile installation.

Build a filler shelf or projection. Nicely done it can be storage for bath gel etc

Or you can use it for candles for added ambience...

And had to do a shelf like that for an 8" gap due to the size of the bathroom and the cast iron bath that needed to be retro-fitted. Some nice stained wood and tight edges with sealer and it is not a problem. Also had a tiny slope from back to the front edge so that any splashed water does not sit at the back edge.


Clearing out Small Diameter Pipe I have an A/C condensation drain line that's blocked, and I'm having trouble using a snake to get to the blockage. The pipe is 3/4" PVC with many 90 degree elbows.

I tried using a regular drain snake (1/4") but I can't get it past one of the 90 degree elbows (and there are several more). I did see this post about replacing the elbows with more friendly corners, but there are a couple elbows that would require opening a wall to access.

Am I using my snake incorrectly? Is there a better way to clear the line?

A combination of a solution of bleach water at the A/C end and a shop vac at the outlet may be useful. I had a similar clog in the drain with two elbows instead of sweeps (inside the slab) and the snake only goes so far. The snake helped open a bit of travel for the chlorine water, which takes some time to be effective, but the shop vac (wet/dry vac) really made the difference. If you duct tape the vac hose to the outlet end of the drain, you can be assured of maximum power, but even holding your hand around the end helps.


What's the proper way to go about replacing this faucet fixture? Is it always replace every part at once or can I mix and match if I like part of it? So I really like the handles of this sink fixture but I want to change the spigot to something that has a sprayer you can pull out to rinse the hard to reach corners of the sink.

The part where the red arrow is unscrews and comes out. Do hardware stores like home depot sell just this part of the fixture or do I have to replace the entire thing? If I have to replace the entire thing I assume it means I have to find one that will fit the same footprint of this one? Are these generally a standard width apart?

Unfortunately, Pull-Outs work very differently and can't just screw-on to the old faucet...anywhere in your case. Their sprayer's quite long hose must nest down into the sink cabinet or the wall's void.

Although, if you can remove the handle caps and unscrew the handles to take them to the store, then you may find a new faucet setup that lets you use the old handles on the new faucet.

Lastly, you may also keep the perfectly fine faucet and plumb-in a separate sprayer installed in the wall next to your faucet or on the countertop. This is a bit involved and a sprayer and hose intended/rated for constant pressure is needed...like a Pot-Filler's separate setup.

A Plumber would be best to use for that last bit and they can renew washers and whatnot in the old faucet to ensure a decade or more of continued admiration.


Furnace cold air return serving up crawlspace air My house has a partial basement and a crawlspace. The forced air furnace is in the basement, and ducts run through the crawlspace to distribute air to the house.  In the summer, when we don't use the furnace, our living room, where the cold air return is, starts to smell like dirt. Like the crawlspace.  I think the issue is that certain atmospheric conditions will cause a pressure or temperature differential that makes air flow up and out of the crawlspace via the cold air return.

This must be an issue for other houses with crawlspace duct work. Is there a standard way that HVAC pros mitigate this? Would it help to add more ventilation to my crawlspace (it has very poor ventilation currently)?

The easiest solution would be to block off the cold air return when it's not in use, but I'm the kind of moron who would probably forget about it and turn on the furnace while it's still blocked.

Fact: ducts leak

Just about all ductwork leaks to some extent; in fact, without specialized installation techniques, leakages of around 20% can be expected.  Combine that with the fact that the furnace is sucking on the return ducts, and you get a recipe for air infiltration from the crawlspace.

Venting the crawlspace might help, but sealing the ducts is better all-around, and rerouting them is even better yet

As far as the smell goes, venting the crawlspace might help, but a better bet is to have the ducts in the crawlspace redone in a sealed fashion -- it's possible to get the leakage down to a few % this way.  Of course, it's even better to reroute the ductwork so it's in the conditioned space instead, but not all houses lend themselves to that approach.


Fix broken Vacuum body I have a 10+ year old Dyson Vacuum cleaner. The top piece broke off. I'm looking for hints/pointers/do's/don'ts on how to repair the broken plastic.

Everything else works - it's only the plastic part that's broken.

I'm thinking Plastic Epoxy to bond the two parts and some sort of "Braces" on the two sides - with care to not affect the switch portion and any types of screws would need to be mindful of the wiring...

I just haven't seen anything that really addresses this type of repair in my searches. Plenty of hose repairs and day to day maintenance. The vacuum is top notch otherwise and I'd hate to have to replace it because of this..

I find plastic solvents like Weldon 4 work better for plastics the cements take a long time to cure and in my opinion weeken the plastic. On some acrylic work straight methline chloride works the best. Place the 2 pieces together then a few drops at the seams wait a few minutes and make sure the solvent enters the crack all the way around, depending on how tight the pieces fit together it may be usable in 10 minutes. If the pieces do not fit well cement may be needed but in some cases it takes a day or more to fully cure.  Added weldon4 is an acrylic solvent , I have made many plastic projects with this and straight methline chloride.


How far can #12 wire be run without voltage drop becoming a problem? I want to run some 12/2 wire nm-b to my shed in some conduit about 25ft long to some 20a receptacles with a 20a light switch, I know about the switch being 20a but I like it to meet the wire specifications

My question comes down to, how long can I run 12/2 wire without it losing current through distance. I'm running a medium 28 gallon compressor and a table saw, miter saw, etc., not all at the same time but you know what I'm thinking.

25 feet is no big deal for voltage drop.  We start worrying about 70-100'.

You don't need a 20A switch unless you're switching 20A of lights.  For a common household light, a regular switch will do.

You're speaking precisely about wire type, i.e. NM-B, but that's absolutely the wrong wire for that job.  NM-B can't go outside.   I say "wire" instead of "cable" because you are better off using actual wires in conduit, which is to say THWN-2.  If you want to staple cable to walls at the ends of the conduit run, have the conduit end in a junction box, then use the junction box to splice between your NM (outside conduit) and THWN-2 (in conduit).

You can get multiconductor cable similar to NM that is rated for outside, but it's more expensive than THWN and it will be much harder to cram down a conduit.

Make sure you bury deep enough, 6" for rigid conduit, 18" for other conduit.


How do you connect one generator to two separate boxes? I have two separate 200 amp breaker boxes side by side and want to back feed a generator through the panel . Is there a way to feed both panels at once ? I would be using an interlock .

From whence are they fed? Where will you put your interlock?

I happen to have a superficially (since I know no details of yours, yet) similar setup - mine is fed from one meter that feeds both panels. I dread to think what it would cost to put a transfer switch on that feed line, so each panel has an interlock and generator input. My reasoning is that I want to be able to power any circuit without any unsafe power outage creative wiring, but not all at the same time (that would be a BIG generator and the cost of that is also outrageous.)

Most of the time only one panel (in my setup) will need a generator attached to it, but the input is there on the other panel in case I wanted to power one of its circuits in the event of an outage - to avoid unsafe power outage creative wiring. Unless I got crazy and got two generators, I'd expect to power down the one panel and move the generator cord to the other one, rather than trying to power things on both panels at the same time. The "primary" panel in that sense is the one with the well pump and most lighting circuits on it. Refrigeration will also end up there, by design. Load control is by hand, but it's much nicer to be able to have well water (and turn the fridge and some lights off while getting it) than to haul water in a bucket from a stream.

I'm dubious about trying to feed from one generator into both panels at the same time, but if you have a large enough generator (and enough output breakers switched off) and sufficient hardware it should be possible, it's just not something that I personally looked into in any detail, as I had the thought in mind that I'd land loads I might want on a generator mostly on the one panel, but spend the small amount on an interlock for the other panel as well. I don't know if you'd have to have a sub-panel from the generator input to split to the interlock inputs, or if you could just depend on the generator output breaker at one end and each interlock breaker at the other end, with no more hardware needed in-between. Given how interlocks work, I can't see any unsafe condition arising from two interlocks on the two panels (i.e. you don't appear to be asking about "backfeeding from a sub-panel" which you cannot do.)

Depending what your reasoning (and scale of generator) is, you could possibly move circuits you expect to need to power from a generator all to one panel.


GFCI randomly trips (very infrequently)- can I replace it with a regular outlet? I have a GFCI outlet in a bedroom that I use as an office that randomly trips.  This is very infrequent, maybe once a month and doesn't seem to be connected to electricity usage on the circuit (computer off, lights off, only the internet box running is the most often situation).  It's behind a bookcase and it's a pain when it shuts off and we are trying to use the internet elsewhere in the house.
I'm assuming that the current GFCI is faulty due to the infrequent random nature of the issue, and I feel comfortable replacing the outlet, but I don't see a reason that it should be a GFCI. As stated, it's in a bedroom with no running water or water of any kind. There are a couple of floor mounted outlets in the room so I wondered if that was the reason for the GFCI but that's the only thing I could think of. There is a bathroom on the other side of the wall which I believe may be on the same circuit, but the only outlet in that room is a GFCI, and it never has issues.

Are you sure it is a GFCI or could it be an AFCI (Arc Fault Circuit Interrupter) outlet? They look the same on the outside, although some responsible mfrs do put the letters "AFCI" or "AFCI/GFCI" on the face so that you know. GFCIs have no place in a bedroom, but starting with the 1999 code (2002 in Canada), AFCIs are now required in all bedroom outlets. Most of the time this is being done with AFCI breakers, but if your house was older and someone had to bring it up to code because of a renovation, it may have been simpler and cheaper to use AFCI outlets, especially if it's just the first outlet in a string.
One of the potential drawbacks of early AFCIs has been a tendency for them to falsely trip when electronic devices are plugged into them (which is now virtually everything). More recent releases have addressed these issues and are a lot more reliable, so replacing it with a newer AFCI receptacle may be something to consider.


What lag bolts to use when mounting 65" TV to drywall using plywood? I've seen this question asked before, but didn't see what hardware to use in putting up the plywood.

I'm looking to mount my 65" TV above the fireplace using an articulating mount that mounts across 2 studs 16" apart. The problem: there is a stud in the center of the fireplace, leaving my TV off center when mounting.

Mount + TV weight: 74 lbs.

I've read you should use 3/4" plywood between 3 studs (16" apart) that is 3" more than the height of the mount and then put up the mount anywhere along the plywood. PLEASE CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG.

If that mounting method is viable, what type of lag bolts do I use to mount up the plywood? I see so many different sizes that are available.

Also, once the plywood is up, do I use the lag bolts provided by the TV mount to mount the mount to the plywood? (that sounds weird lol) Lag bolts provided with the mount are listed as M8x55 Lag Bolts.

The plywood plan sounds fine.

The lag bolts through the plywood into the studs need to be long enough to go through the plywood, through the drywall, and engage about 1-1/4" to 1-1/2" into the stud proper - not any further or you risk hitting electrical gear.  For best results, pre-drill a hole into the stud somewhat smaller than the minor diameter (all-solid diameter) of the lag bolt.

It would also help to drill the plywood out to the major diameter (edge of thread) of the lag bolts.  You don't want the threads engaging to the plywood, but rather, the stud.  Worst case if the threads engage the plywood, it can end up causing the plywood to push away and then stand off from the wall, putting the screw entirely in shear, not its best strength. You want the plywood to be somewhat in compression against the drywall, the drywall's best strength (and tension is the screw's best strength).

The screws from the TV mount into the plywood need to engage into the plywood, all else is wasted. Since you will only have 3/4" of engagement, use lots of extra screws.  They should also be snug.


Sealing a stained cutting board I recently built a stovetop cover or "noodle board" using a hardwood so it can be used as a cutting surface. I stained it with minwax gel stain and from what i understand it should be food safe once it has cured properly. What i want to know is if it can be sealed with oil or wax once it has been stained.

Yes. The extent to which that is "sealed" is debatable, but there's certainly no issue with finishing over cured stain - it's done all the time.
Just stay food safe (and be sure to check with your guests about nut allergies if using something like walnut oil, which is a good food-safe hardening oil, but not great if you have a guest with tree-nut allergies at a very sensitive level...)


Why shouldn't I use duct tape for home improvement? Revised question- Since duct tape cannot be legally used for fixing duct (in many places), and the quality (in general) of tape for making repairs is not as good as alternative methods, duct tape seems to have been relegated to emergency use only.

Duct tape has the benefit of being useful for temporarily fixing almost anything, but are there any uses where duct tape is the most suitable material for long term repair? Can anyone offer an example of where duct tape is the best choice or the permanent solution for a home improvement (the rationale may be required)?

Yes this question should be closed, but in the meantime, the quite-serious answer is:  don't use Duc[k][t] tape for anything. Ever.  It's only partially a joke that the only thing duck tape sticks to is itself.  It ages very fast, with the cloth backing falling off and only a difficult-to-remove dried layer of goo remaining on whatever you thought was being held together.

Basically, duck tape is useful for very short-term emergency use only.

(For those who care, the original name was "duck," not "duct," as it was named for the class of sailcloth used to manufacture the tape.)

Edit:  Johnson&Johnson's own history page says the original duck tape used duck cloth.


Should the neutral and ground bars in my panel be bonded? This is an older homes main panel. Question: I believe neutrals and grounds can not be on the same lug but can they be on the same bar? In addition, should i add a bonding screw on the top right?
Thanks!!

Since this is a main panel, neutral and ground can go on the same bar

The reason why you see neutrals and grounds commingled here is because when wiring a main panel, many electricians who wire mostly main panels (vs. wiring subpanels for the most part) find it quicker and simpler to simply slobber all the neutral and ground wires onto whatever bonded bar is handy.  They can get away with this because your main panel is the one and only point in your system where neutral and ground are allowed to meet -- they must be kept separate everywhere else.

So, you can simply sort out any spots where neutral and ground have been landed on the same hole, and call it good.

As to that ground screw?

As to the apparently-missing ground screw -- I'd try a Square-D 4028345850K since this appears to be a 100/125A loadcenter.  If it doesn't fit into the empty hole on the top right, post back with clear photos of the label on the inside left of the loadcenter cabinet.


Repair holes in copper pipe The drain pipe under my sink is made of copper and has a couple of small holes just before it goes into the wall (and eventually leads out to a greywater tank).  The picture below is taken from beneath the pipe showing it entering the wall which I had slightly broken into during my investigation.

The copper feels thin.

Since the water isn't under much pressure, is there an easy way to repair the holes?  It's a pain working under the sink, and I'd rather not break any further into the wall if I can avoid it.

As Ryan said you can solder it (either with soft solder or silver solder use flux will make your life easier to) or you can just use a rubber repair on it either buying a propritory type or just making it your self out of a piece of rubber and a couple of hose clamps.

This is a plumb-quik from Fernco

Keep in mind that you don't have to use the whole thing you can cut it open so it is easy to slide over the pipe and put the cut at the top of the copper pipe then put your hose clamps on and tighten it up . I've used this technique to repair a 6" stormwater pipe that was cracked and was a pressurized pipe with no problem.

Another easy way is to use Ferropre or similar a two part epoxy that sets like a rock and sticks to pretty much anything

If you are going to use Ferropre put on disposable gloves, get a bucket of water and mix the two parts together in the water it makes it much easier to handle as it doesn't stick to your gloves as much then once mixed just smear it over the holes in the pipe.


How far from the wall should I put the toilet flange? I'm installing a new toilet and I'd like to know how far from the back wall I should install the flange.  I think that 12" is recommended, but I see that lot are installed closer. Sometimes as close as 9".

If you're installing a whole new flange, use the standard rough-in distance of 12" and get a toilet with a 12" rough-in. If the flange is already there and it's less than 12" away from the wall and you don't want to move it, use whatever toilet will fit or install an offset flange.


Why is there insulation in the common wall between housing units? I need to run electrical and network cables (cat6) from the third floor of my house down to the basement where there are different breakers and different computers.
So I did a relative measurement in both places that I hope lines up so I can drop the cables down.
From the basement there is a hole that looks like this going up inside the wall in the house:

Upstairs I tried drilling a hole in the wall (and it's an inner wall between my and the neighbors side of the house) but oddly I found a sheet of insulation blocking my way (see below):

Since the insulation is in an interior wall (see below),

I don't know why it is there.  What I do know is that when my neighbor hangs things on the wall on the interior wall the screws come through the other side, so I was very careful not to drill through her side of the wall, which is how I found the insulation.
I don't know why it's there, but it's preventing me from getting my cables run.
Does anyone know why it's there or what I can do about it?

The first 3 comments are all correct answers.
Comment #1 by ThreePhaseEel regarding a code required fire wall is correct, but it’s for fire rated draftstops between living units.
Comment #2 by Isherwood regarding sound control is also correct. The code requires a minimum STC rating between units and insulation can fill the voids and help with that requirement.
Comment #3 by whatsisname regarding a thermal barrier is also a code requirement. The requirement is for the envelope around a unit...there is no exception for common party walls.
Do not remove the insulation just to extend some cables from your attic to the other floors.


Convert Full Switched Receptacle to Half Switched I have a switch that controls both halves of an outlet. I want to convert it so that it only controls half the outlet, leaving the other one hot all the time I found a diagram online, does it look right?

It's probably not possible with your configuration. The incoming hot is switched, and there's likely no constant hot source present (unless it was wired as a split initially and someone modified it). You can certainly explore the situation to find out for sure. We can't say from here.


Solve washer/dryer closet outlet issue. Lacks 110v outlet, need to know my options I have a washer/dryer closet with a SINGLE 220V outlet serving a SINGLE laundry-center type machine. I need to make another 110V outlet available in this closet space so I can upgrade to a SEPARATE washer and dryer unit, where my dryer will connect to the existing 220V outlet, while the washer will need to connect to the new 110v outlet. I do not have any other open outlets. The only other electrical outlet I notice is a closed plate in the roof of the closet, which seems to carry a 220V line (measured using a non contact voltage tester) and is likely serving the existing 220V outlet in the closet. Is this solvable? The circuit breakers are in a different room and there is no other outlets near this closet. I reached out to electricians near my home - some say it is possible to do it, splice a 110 off the 220 and it should be good. While others say it is not possible to do it and advise against any splicing. Help?

[edit]This is in California, USA. existing receptacle supports a 4 prong 30A cord.

[edit] - bringing in a new 20 A 120 V circuit for the washer has different challenges in my scenario and I would like to solve this without going that way.

[edit] - I came across this, NEMA 14-30P 4-Prong Dryer Plug to (4) Household Outlets with 20 Amp Breaker, and I wonder if I can use this in some way to solve my problem. Either by creating another 220v outlet from the wiring I mentioned in the roof, or by using a "Parkworld 886603 NEMA 14-30 Splitter, Dryer 14-30P Male Plug to (2) 14-30R Female Receptacle, Dryer 4-Prong 30 AMP 14-30 Y Adapter Cord (3 feet)" in the existing outlet.

What to watch for in replacing washer/dryers in developments

The typical home washer-dryer set needs SEVEN utilities plumbed to it:   120VAC, 240/120VAC (both dedicated circuits), cold water, hot water, dryer vent, sanitary sewer, and gas line.   Needless to say, in large multi-unit installations, the builders commit some brain cells to reducing that number to three: 240V power, cold water and sewer.   How do they do this?

They eliminate gas by requiring electric dryers.
They eliminate dryer vent by using condensing dryers.
They eliminate hot water by using washing machines that heat their own water.
They eliminate 120V one of two ways:

They use a single-unit "combo" appliance that figures out internally how not to overload the circuit.
They use separates (because buyers like the sight of separates), but the dryer is extremely special, and provides a 120V outlet for the washer, and somehow has internal controls e.g. that draw less current from the washer's leg, to assure no breaker trips.

You have to be an educated buyer

Here's where such apartment dwellers get into trouble: They prance over to the appliance store and decide "I can get anything I want!" and just go "One of those, and one of those, whee!"

And of course they get them home and discover no hot water, no dryer vent and/or no 120V.  Whoopsadaisy!

So you will need to start this enterprise by either consulting with management or doing a careful survey of exactly which utilities you do have.  And then you will need to make a decision as to whether to ante up the hi-3/low-4 digit cost of getting those utilities plumbed in (dryer vent, expect a whole lot more; gas ain't gonna happen) ... or to go back to the appliance store with a list of the utilities  you do have, and narrow the list of options accordingly.

I suspect there'll be a few local appliance stores who are very familiar with your particular development and know exactly what you need.

Hork-a-dork adapters aren't going to cut it

Right off the bat, they'll trip your breaker when you try to run both appliances at once.  Further, the choice of adapters is a lot more limited than you realize, as I'll discuss below.  And lastly, it's good money thrown after bad - you're spending fine hard-earned coin so you can force a bad choice of cheaper unit into a place it simply doesn't belong.  You could be $300 down the "cheap splitter" rabbit hole before you find stuff that actually works for you, and even then, your performance will be degraded.  You'd have been wiser to put the $300 toward provisioning a proper circuit or buying the correct appliances.

There's also a huge supply problem with those cheaters.

And by the way, the dual 240V splitter is not necessary; it is already legal to fit 2 proper NEMA 14-30 receps on the same circuit permanently installed in or on the wall.  An electrician can do that easily.  Might not like the idea too much, but is legally able.

Just say no

Finally, don't let anything touch mains AC wires that doesn't have a UL listing.  That's a UL in circle.  You may also substitute any of the NRTLs: CSA and ETL are the ones you're likely to encounter.  Here is what is not an NRTL: CE (China Export really), CCC (China's attempt to locally sanction a fake mark), RoHS (lead-free solder etc.), and FCC (won't jam out radio stations).

Note that your Parkworld cable does NOT have a UL listing.  They say a lot of lies about how they use UL parts (not good enough) and built it to UL spec (where's the stamp then?) but no. The fact that they would deceive about this is even more horrifying. This is why they're selling on Amazon's junk shop, even Home Depot wouldn't let this in the store!
Generally buying mains electrical parts on Amazon is a terrible idea. Avoid!  Even if you sidestep the Amazon Marketplace flea market, you're running the risk of getting counterfeits due to "Commingling".

The Home Depot splitter you found is less alarming because Home Depot generally insists on UL-approved items - they're a retailer not a "platform", so they do have liability for what they sell.


How can I remove this piece of metal from my garbage disposal? Our garbage disposal was turned on with something that shouldn't be in it in there.  It all got destroyed and ground up except for this metal piece, which got wedged under the "teeth" of the disposal.  I've removed the disposal from the sink and turned it upside down to crank the thing around with the hex nut on the bottom, and everything fell out except for this metal piece which is wedged in there.  I've tried getting pliers in there but I just can't budge it.  If I put a sturdy flathead screwdriver on it and smack it with a hammer, it moves a little but doesn't dislodge.  I could probably hit it harder but I'm worried about damaging the disposal. Would it be safe to use some silicone lubricant or something else in here to help remove the piece?  When I turn the thing around, the metal piece scrapes in three places around the edge.

(newbie, so can't comment)

It is unclear whether you can turn the "tooth" with respect to the rotor--it seems like you can turn the rotor around with the hex nut on the bottom.  Instead of whacking them with a hammer, I'd try holding the rotor with a wrench on the hex bolt and trying to rotate the 'tooth' with respect to the rotor with a wooden bar or something that can fit between the wings of the tooth. Think of holding the hex bolt in a vice while using a crowbar-end as an extra-big screwdriver to rotate the tooth. On my old disposal we used to use an old 4' long broom handle chunk to pry things around in situ.

Silicone should be OK, but if you are worried, normal cooking oil should do the same job and be compatible with anything in the garbage disposal can normally choke down.


Do hardwood floors need to get glued to subfloor? I've spoken with four different hardwood installers. Two promise to glue and nail the hardwood floor into the sub-floor. The other two promise to only nail the hardwood floor, and use nail and glue on the boundaries.

The guys who only use nails say that hardwood floors need to be able to shift during winter and that using glue would cause them to crack.

Who is right? Should hardwood floors be glued and nailed or only nailed?

The best answer is one that will apply to your situation no matter what your region: Follow the manufacturer's installation instructions for that specific floor.  Should you have an installation related issue which side of right would you want to be?  The variables are your subfloor (wood or concrete), the wood flooring ((engineered or solid), and the regional characteristic circumstances associated with installation on, above, or below grade aka ground level.


Use a sump pump for a low spot on driveway during El Nino? I live in Los Angeles, where generally we don't get much rain, but maybe a good rain storm once or twice a year.  (Usually a short one, under 30 minutes.)

We purchased a house a few years ago & found there's a low spot where water will pool (to an inch or two) during a good storm.  It's half on the driveway, half on the yard.

It's not a huge problem as typically the yard is able to absorb it after a few hours.

However, this year's El Nino is supposed to bring us a lot of rain.

I was considering getting a sump pump that I could just put on the driveway in the low spot area & run a house to the back of the yard.

So stupid question time:

1) Is this a stupid idea for some reason?

2) Do sump pump typically run only when they detect water?  Or am I likely to burn the motor out if I just leave it raining?  (Or do I have to be out there, turning it on & off as needed?)

A sump pump normally runs only when there's enough water to lift a float switch, meaning at least several inches. The sump is then allowed to fill until it hits that depth again, at which point the cycle repeats.

If the low area is only 2 inches deep, a better solution might be to fill it in. Or fill in enough that you can walk past it and not worry about the rest.


What is the likelihood of asbestos in this plaster? The plaster in the following images is from 1958.
What is the likelihood of it containing asbestos?

if its from the 50's the chances are very high. however, it is region specific often.  if you are located in the eastern us or canada, there is a very good chance of it.  if you are worried about it, you can remove a small sample and take it to a local health lab or college chemistry lab and have it tested.


How is a pre-existing condition evaluated by home warranty companies I've been looking around for home warranty, and many of the plans say that pre-existing conditions are not covered. This makes me a little weary because I imagine that once anything breaks it could fall under the pre-existing conditions clause and the warranty wouldn't kick in. So my question is: without an initial inspection (which none of these companies mention) how can you prove that a condition was not pre-existing at the time you signed up for the warranty?

In my experience, they will rely on the evaluation of the service person that comes out to perform the work. In most cases it's pretty obvious that something was a pre-existing condition or now.

If you read the conditions more carefully, it probably says something along the lines of the problem must be apparent to a regular user in the course of normal operation. So a slow water leak that has no symptoms for weeks but actually predates the warranty should be covered.


How deep should I embed a 30-foot light post? I am installing a 30 Foot Round Straight Steel Light Pole, 5 Inch Diameter that I am purchasing from LightMart.
I live in the outside of Las Vegas, NV near the mountains where sometimes its very windy, gusts around 50mph.
I am installing just one light on top of the pole. I was researching what dept do I have to go and how wide. I've read that for width I would have to go 3 times the pole size 5" so 15" inches wide and for dept about 4ft to 5ft. To use a lot of rebar and a good strength concrete. What do you guys recommend?

5” cover around the steel pole is not enough.

Most electrical contractors have augurs in the 12”, 18”, 24” diameter. I’d go with the 24” diameter for four reasons: 1) it will give you 9 1/2” cover (if the pole ends up EXACTLY in the middle...doubtful), 2) the 24” width will help resist overturning, if it’s windy like you say, and 3) the rebar needs to be 3” from the outside edge and this leaves you plenty of room between the rebar and pole, and 4) the weight of the concrete base will help overturning.

For depth, I’d go 4’ in the sandy soil where you’re located. At 24” diameter and 4’ deep, that gives you about 630 lbs of concrete resisting overturning.

A light and bar at the top of the pole will have about 8” x 12” =96 sq. In. / 144 = .66 sq. ft. X 30’ pole = 20 ft. lbs. (not counting the pole).  Wind equals about 25 psf x 20 = 500 lbs.

Therefore, the concrete footing has more resistance than the wind on the light at the top of a 30’ pole...and the pole will break before it rotates.


Cold water frozen, hot drips but does not improve Very cold weather and a mobile home; last week both shower supply lines froze, then thawed a few days later. Since that time we've run a light drip (cold water only, unfortunately) and every few hours run the hot water on full for a minute or so.

Last night at 4 AM or so I ran the hot water for a minute with normal pressure (hot and cold behaved properly). I then cut it down to a drip and went back to bed. At 6:30 (and zero with a windchill to -15 or so) I had no cold water and the hot water was merely dripping at full throttle. I assume that I must have positioned the handle just a bit too far towards 'off' so as to have no drip at all, and that the cold water supply line fully froze and the hot water line partially froze.

I let the hot water run, thinking that it was NEARLY frozen and running it would melt the partial blockage. It remained at the same drip for over an hour. Cold water still does not work.

Should I assume a sediment problem in the controller at this point? We have had pump work done recently and had some dirt in the lines at one point. I will disassemble the controller this evening, but would appreciate a judgment call from someone who knows what they're talking about. Thanks in advance.

If the cold water supply to the water heater is frozen, there's not going to be much/any pressure to push water through. Typical mobile home freezup is the supply line to the mobile home, not as much the pipes inside the mobile home. The three feet or so between the floor and the ground is a prime area for freezing and usually requires insulation and heat tapes to be reliable in winter.


Burnt sheathing behind outlet I heard buzzing and popping noises behind this kitchen outlet so I opened it up and it looks like this:

What might've caused this? And to repair this, do I have to cut up the drywall and replace the wires/sheathing? Or just wrap whatever is in the box with black tape?

The best thing to do is set yourself about 2 hours of free time, turn off the power to any wire near that box (use one of those electric sensors), make sure you have a flash light, around.

First, pull as much of the wires free as you can, restrip everything and get new caps and tape everything new.  If you think or even suspect another shitty splice is outside the box then yes, break through the drywall and make sure you tape and replace any splices there as well.

edit: ha, just saw that's not drywall...well tile is not as easy to fix, but honestly it's not that bad either...just a bigger project.

edit: am I seeing water damage (the green on the copper and debris in the box?)  Just make sure there's no water leaking in your wall....

source: own several very old houses - I do this everytime I change a ceiling light - they are just masses of cloth tape and garbage...


Can condensing furnace experience too much condensate and cause repeated short cycles? I have a Carrier 59SC2B. I think it is single stage.

I have had the unit for 3 winters now and this is the first winter that I am experiencing alot of problems. What is happening is: (the LED light is continuous throughout the whole process and never lights any error code. Flame sensor has been cleaned)

Furnace gets a call for heat from thermostat
The Inducer blower motor then starts
The igniter lights up bright orange
the igniter shuts off without any flame
inducer continues to run
igniter lights up again and then dims without any flames
heavy water gurgling, or bubbling sounds from condensate trap
after some time (~1 hour), if without any intervention, the flames start and indoor blower fan starts.

a. If I go into the unit and pull out the interior condensate drain pipe, wiggle/jiggle the water out, plug it back in, the flames start on the next igniter light. (Is this pipe supposed to be pitched downward toward the PVC drain? It looks 100% flat/horizontal)

Is it the condensate drain? I took the condensate trap out to clean it already, its fairly good. Is it because somehow this winter I am experiencing abnormal levels of condensate and the furnace is simply doing what its supposed to?

Thanks

EDIT (1/26): It is taking 1 hour again and I have called a HVAC tech to come in but I am worried he probably won't find anything because given enough time, the furnace starts to work. I've made a video of what is happening, perhaps someone has seen this before. It is recorded as soon as I restart the furnace and the induction motor kicks in.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aH7Dtx3Ht5U

The pressure switch was faulty (sticking)

Normal operation should not be more than 5 minutes to start the flames.


How to replace non IC-rated recessed lights in ceiling with IC-rated LED lights? About 10 years ago I had six recessed halogen lights installed in a second story room with an attic above. This is the product they installed:

I would like to replace each of these these with an IC rated fixture housing an LED light, such as this from the Feit website LED Retrofit Kits. My reason for doing this is to have better heat insulation in the ceiling above the lights. So my questions are

Can I remove the current HALO fixture from within the room without
going up into the attic?
What do I need to put in to replace it? Some kind of IC rated
fixture I suppose but what?
What else should I be aware of in attempting this project? I am
familiar with simple electrical work but don't want to get up into
the attic!

Thanks!

If the fixtures were installed prior to the drywall ceiling install, they are going to be 'new work' type. Which means they have an apparatus which is nailed onto the sides of the rafters above the ceiling.  Without crawling around up there in the attic and removing them from there, it could be challenging to remove them from below without damaging the ceiling drywall..

Get you a piece of 2x4' piece of 3/4" thick plywood and lay it across the top of the joists so that you can snuggle over close to the lights, to work on them, without having to perform trapeze belly balancing.

If the cans are 'old work' cans, meaning they were added after the ceiling was already in place, then they would be a lot easier to remove and YES could be removed from below.  Remove your trim rings and pull the light bulb shroud down.  Do you see four black clips in the inside of the can, equidistance apart?  If so, you have an 'old work' can and those clips can be tapped out of their locking positions, to allow the can to be removed from the hole.

If you don't see those black apparatuses and your'e looking a just a slick walled, aluminum cylinder...you have 'new work' cans and a trip to the attic is in store.


Oven won't light unless it's hot -- but it can clean! I'm troubleshooting a problem with my oven, an electric ignition gas oven. It's an old model, Whirlpool SF375BEP N2. I'm in a financial bind and replacing it is not an option at the moment.

I noticed that, although it was not working, the broiler would turn on. This made me think the problem was with the ignitor, so I replaced that. At first it seemed to work fine -- the oven turned on when I tested it, and it could even run a cleaning cycle.

But after that it wouldn't turn on, and I had to scramble to improvise for Thanksgiving. After some experimentation I found that I could just light the broiler (at the top of the inside of the oven), and after a while I was able to turn the oven on and it worked normally. But after a while even the broiler wouldn't light. I found that the same trick worked if I set the oven to a self-cleaning cycle, where it would light just fine and eventually the oven could be turned on (though if I took too long it would get too hot to slide the oven lock back and I'd have to wait).

For as long as I've had the oven it has taken a while to light the stove. The range/burners light instantly, but the oven and broiler would take maybe 15-45 seconds to light. In researching to post this question I found Why is my gas stove taking 30+ seconds to light? which (although it concerned the rangetop rather than oven below it) seemed similar enough to my underlying situation that I wonder if my problem is similar: gas feed, regulator, etc. I don't know much about working with gas -- the most I've done is to install a water heater -- so I thought I should ask here before going too far, either on my own or with a professional. (In the latter case I'd want to be sure I had the problem figured out to avoid spending the cost of a replacement on repairs.)

As others have suggested, the first thing to check is that all your valves are fully open.

However, since you don't seem to be having trouble getting up to temperature, it seems less like a supply or regulator problem and more likely to be about location of the pilot / ignition source.  Either it's not clean, or position relative to the gas is off (could be not enough gas, or not enough supply air).  Make sure your stove is level. If that doesn't help, see if you can clean/replace or adjust it.

A good generic step by step troubleshooting guide can be found here, which lists the order of trouble shooting for a milivolt ignition (the kind of pilot you hear clicks) with as:

The gas valve
The thermostat
Cleaning the pilot orifice and pilot generator
Adjusting the pilot generator height
Replacing the pilot generator and safety valve


How do I insulate a strip foundation from below? While building a strip foundation (a concrete wall starting several feet below ground) I have to insulate it from moisture because otherwise moisture will get into the foundation and into the basement. Insulating the sides is relatively easy - once the wall is there I can glue some stuff like ruberoid onto the wall or paint it with resin.

What about the foundation wall bottom? I cannot paint the wall bottom or glue anything to the wall bottom before the wall is there and once the wall is there it's pressed hard onto the ground and I cannot do anything with its bottom. This is kind of chicken-and-egg problem.

How is moisture insulation done for the strip foundation bottom side?

I have doubts that you are expressing yourself clearly or if, so , that you grasp the concept that concrete does not mind water a bit (if you are just building a wall, not a foundation that encloses a buried space as normal for a building, where is the water going to go that causes you a problem, down in the ground?)

In any case, you can lay a sheet of plastic on the base before pouring concrete. But I seriously doubt you need to do that or any other waterproofing, if you are just putting in a foundation for a free-standing wall. If that's not what you are doing, have another try at explaining what you are doing, please (edit your question) since that appears to be what you are describing with "strip foundation"

If you are building a normal, space-enclosing foundation wall, you can also lay plastic or EDPM rubber under the entire floor area, but the main thing is to lay drainage pipe outside the foundation, slightly below the floor level to remove water from the foundation area - depending on films or coatings alone is prone to failure against high water pressure - removing the bulk of the water is the most effective method to prevent water in the basement.


How can I monitor the temperature in a hot water heater? When my hot, water heater runs out of hot water, I have to wait a while until it's hot again. I'd like a way to check the temperature without running water to the faucet every 10 minutes.

Is it possible to put a temperature probe in the heater, and a display unit elsewhere?

(This specific unit is a propane-fired RV unit, with a 6 gallon tank, hence the running out. But I invite answers for regular house units as well.)

I don't see why not. In fact, all heaters I've seen are sold with a temperature probe on the inside and a display on the outside. I don't know why yours isn't. The problem is, of course, that you need to somehow get the probe on the inside - you must find a way, we don't know the construction of the heater.

The easiest thing to use (provided you can think of a way to insert the probe) would be a digital roasting thermometer.

The probe is stainless steel, so it won't rust in the water. It has a flexible connection to the processor/display unit. It has a limited temperature range, but 15°C to 100°C should be covered. The price is in the 20 - 30 Eur range. Maybe you can even put the "alarm when a temperature has been reached" into use, or get one of the radio models - they display the temperature on a second wireless display within a limited range, probably strong enough for another room. I don't know what the drain on the batteries will be during constant use, it might be a drawback. So try to get a mignon powered one instead of button cells.


Why did my tub drain start running slowly after going unused for a little while? I recently moved into a new apartment and quickly found that the tub drain ran pretty slowly. I wasn't able to fix it myself, so eventually a plumber came in and fixed things up — the drain ran great for a couple of weeks. (I was out when the plumber came so I don't know what exactly s/he did.)

But then I went out of town for a week. When I got back, the drain had become slow again, though not as bad as before. Is there something about not using a drain that might make it slow down? Is there a home remedy (plunging, chemicals, etc.) that might to help even if it didn't before?

I'm guessing that the soap scum hardened. It's initially soft and can get partly flushed out with regular use. Now that it's hard, you'll need chemical and/or mechanical means to clear it. You can try the usual home remedies, they might get it flowing adequately for a low flow shower. You might as well invest in a plumbing snake. I'm sure that's all your plumber did. A minimal length manual snake is cheaper than a plumber and it's available 24/7 at no additional cost.

All a snake often does is clear a narrow channel through the gunk. Unless the clog is held together with hair, a good part of it will remain, meaning the drain will eventually clog again. Tub drains are essentially clogs waiting to happen. Unless all the parts are accessible and able to be disassembled, there's little you can do but keep a narrow channel reamed out. To use the snake, remove the lever at the overflow assembly along with the attached parts. Feed the snake down through the overflow and into and through the trap below the floor. The short horizontal bit between the drain and overflow is accessed through the drain itself. You usually need to remove some parts here as well to gain access.


making converted attic into full height (roof tear off) Bought a house 5 years ago. Brick construction, single story with full basement (concrete walls). The attic was converted to living space (with permit) before I bought it, but it has 43-inch knee walls and only 6 ft headroom for about 8 feet of width. Virtually no closet space

the fact it was converted with permit presumably means that the foundations are strong enough to support true second floor. Was going to dormer it entire length, but exterior material costs are only about $5K more to replace roof and build 8 foot walls all round. So it seems like a no-brainer. I built my own 22 x 24ft garage with truss roof (had to register as GC to get permits), so it's pretty much same thing but 40-foot long and 12 feet higher :-)

Anyway, I know the architect/structural engineer will provide all this detail, but that's gonna take some time, so would like to get an idea sooner about 2 things I'm puzzled about.

The trusses need to be 24-inch on center. When i built garage I put extra studs under truss locations to carry load to slab. I'm not opening up first floor walls, so should I just space trusses at 16-inch so they are over the studs?
Normally, in 2-story framing, the floor joists for 2nd floor are square at the ends like diagram below. But as my roof goes all the way to the floor level on second floor (and it's 12/12 pitch), the joists are cut at 45-degrees.

So how would I support the new 2nd floor walls?

Can I just put blocking between the joists that gives me a continuous area (except the 45-degree cutout) for the new bottom plate

Can  cut a 90-degree notch wide enough for a 2x4 bottom plate?

Can I offset the new studs by to be next to the joist?. Or can I bring the 2nd floor wall in a little? (load would be cantilevered). Have 3/5 inches to make up

Thanks
Mark

There are lots of questions, I'm not sure if I got them all

1: your first level studs will be fine. It's good practice to align joists and 2nd level studs over the first level but is usually not necessary

2: There will be block that will need to be installed between the floor joists and the floor sheathing will be nailed over that. This is installed for several reasons including for a load path between the floors for the lateral forces, and to stop the joists from 'rolling' over. There is no requirement that the blocking be at the exterior face of the wall, and in this case I would put it at the interior face so that more of the floor joist depth is engaged to resist the rolling

3: there should be no cutting to fit the bottom plate. The second level sheathing is placed over the joists and blocking to the exterior face of the exterior wall studs. Your wall is built in this 'deck' just as your first level walls

Other items to consider:

you might have height restrictions which will not allow you to do this remodel
you will need to decide how to deal with the new upper walls and the brick below. Brick is heavy, and while your foundation may be adequate for the upper level, it might not be for another level of brick
For a change such as this, there will be a requirement to bring your lateral system up to code. This may, and is likely, to require work in the first level walls. Which means, opening them up...


GFIC Breaker keeps tripping unless another breaker is off I am trying to find out why my outlet in the upstairs bathroom doesn't work. It seems to be the only load on a GFIC breaker in my panel. It will re-trip immediately. However if I switch off the breaker that controls the lights in that bathroom and another room, the GFIC breaker will hold and the outlet works fine. I've tried having everything off and it's the same result. I'm not an electrician but I am pretty handy. Would this be possible because of a failed device or does it mean I have a short somewhere?

Hunting those wascally cross-wired neutral wabbits

What you have here is a case of "crossed neutrals", where either:

Something on the lighting circuit is wired using a neutral from the GFCI circuit, or
The lighting circuit and the GFCI circuit have their neutrals connected (nutted) together directly.

The former requires a load on the lighting circuit though, so as long as there isn't a hidden hardwired load on it somewhere, I think we can rule it out.  The latter can happen on an unloaded GFCI due to the grounded neutral detector circuit kicking in, though, as it impresses a small signal on the hot and neutral lines that the N-G fault then disturbs.

I'd check every junction box the GFCI breakered circuit uses looking closely at how the neutrals are joined in them.  The lighting neutral needs to remain separate from the GFCI neutral in all places, or else you'll get a trip.


Garage door goes up, but won't go down This is a strange question, but for the last four years, my garage door only goes up, but not down. The strange part is it works fine if the temperature is above 45º. Does track lubricant get too sticky and not 'liquidy' and makes the motor 'bind' and it then goes into the emergency mode and automatically go back up?

I have to get out of my vehichle when I go and return and hold down the button in my garage before it will go down.

Never operate a broken door.  A garage door has a great deal of preload tension on it, between the weight of the door and the counterweight (which is typically a spring). The door is always loaded with energy, and that energy can explode, and kill or maim.

The counterweight also means that a healthy door can be operated easily by hand. I have 30 year old 12x14 industrial doors, I throw them open by hand every day. The doors are so old I don't trust them on openers.

Here's what happens with an opener.  Roller starts rumbling in the track due to dirt. Easily fixed, but the operator doesn't know or care because the door opened and "therefore it's not broken".  Dirt and rust in the roller bearings follow, making the door stiffer.  That eats the bearings and the wheels get wobbly. They start crabbing up the track, gouging the track, hanging up on track bolts and bending the hinges.  "But it's all good, because the door still opens".

It's a death spiral: every spot of new damage makes the door grind against itself more, taking more damage. Eventually the roller and track take enough damage, or the counterweight cables take a hit, and the door drops violently.

With hand operation, you notice binding immediately and do whatever trivial thing is needed to fix it.  With motor operation, the damage just stacks and stacks, you may not know until the door falls on you.

It would suffice to unhitch it from mechanical operation and work the door manually a couple times a year, as routine maintenance.

Now what about that door?

First, you don't lubricate tracks.  Doors use this ingenious invention called the "wheel" to roll down the tracks. Putting any sort of wet or sticky grease on a track Turns into into a dirt magnet which is the last thing you want.  The only part of a track to even think about lubricating with graphite paint, is the upper edge, which the roller does not conventionally run on, and is nothing more than a guard to keep the roller from falling of the track. Don't drip lube on the working part of the track.

The roller wheel bearings need lubricant such as silicon lube for garage doors. The bearing shafts also need lubricant since they need to slide freely in and out to match any small deviations in the door track, if they bind, it can cause cascade failures.  The hinges also need lube.

Give everything a once-over, including wobbling each of the rollers to make sure they are stiff. A wobbly roller will cause a lot of problems.

Make sure the counterweight cables are both equally taut, and the door lands evenly. Sometimes a cable drum slips on the shaft, causing the door to tram and bind badly.

Get experienced help with door repairs or do your research, particularly about the dangers of working around doors and springs.

If, unhitched from the motor, the door operates freely with one hand, then your repair work on the door is done, it's an opener or control problem.


I have just reset furnace due to a trouble code, what should I monitor or re-do over the next few days? My furnace was throwing a trouble code. The code was 31 and for my manufacturer (Bryant) and others thats is a pressure switch code. I was able to resolve this code and get my heat back on simply by working through the troubleshooting steps not by changing or replacing parts or removing blockages.

Steps I took to find the problem:

Smelled and felt for gas leaks FIRST
Took off furnace cover and observed blinking-light trouble code, 3 short 1 long, sticker on the cover says thats a pressure switch
Power cycled furnace
Replaced filter
Checked outside vent and intake for blockage, felt good airflow through both
Checked drain hoses and pipes for kinks and blockage, flexible pipes inside furnace were bent around a bit but not kinked
Observed burner through observation window, saw pilot ignite, saw main burner fire up

Through the course of trying to discover the problem the furnace came back on normally. I do not like "it just started working again" fixes, something was wrong and may still be wrong and I want it properly fixed not luckily fixed!

What should I monitor over the next few hours or days to ensure that the problem stays fixed?

Are there any parts I should replace as preventative maintenance for this trouble code?

Any actions I should take as preventative maintenance for this trouble code?

Are there any tests or measurements I can take? Voltages? Pressures in the exhaust/intakes?

There are a lot of scenarios that can cause a pressure switch to report an error. As an example, one that I have seen that is actually "self-healing", I have seen really cold days where there are ice crystals in the air and as the air is pulled into the air intake it can create an 'ice dam' and thus restrict the air flow enough that the pressure switch does not close. This can melt if the outside temp gets warm enough and it can also be dislodged simply by shaking the intake pipe. I have also seen birds nests and various debris block the air flow. One time I am pretty sure that the wind was strong enough and blowing in just the right direction that it was preventing the switch form staying closed. (I made this assumption because of the homeowners description of his trying to fix it and their location at the mouth of a canyon and the strong winds we had had.
You mentioned power cycling the unit. That would reset the error and allow for it to try to come on again. If it is running again it should be good the switch is open and will not run unless all is well.

As far as preventative maintenance, you have done most of what can be. I have seen a pressure switch that had water in it because one of the hoses was kinked. But there is not much else that can be done.


What is this kind of timer called? Years ago I worked at a farm that had an outside light on an adjustable timer. You turned a dial to set the desired period required for the light to remain on. On leaving the building the switch was pressed and the light came on and remained on for 30 seconds to 30 minutes, as set. I would like to install one as there is too much wildlife for a motion sensor activated light.

You're probably looking for either a spring-wound timer:

or a (digital) countdown timer:

As @Harper mentioned, you can get them in various time ranges.

Products shown are not an endorsement or recommendation, just examples


Wire gauge for subpanel We are putting a 100 amp sub panel in a building with an eye toward making it a small apartment.  We will need to run 160 feet of wire from the 200 amp main. We have been told to use 12/2 gauge and 14/2 gauge for wall plugs and lights. What gauge do we need to run between the two boxes?  Thanks.

lizabet

Here is a link to south wire voltage drop calculator your voltage drop should be less than 3%. I entered 240v 160' and 80 amp load since you did not give a value. The calculator provided #3 copper. You would want to use UF cable for direct burial. If you are putting it in conduit you would want to use THWN. Schedule 80 PVC conduit would need to be 1-1/4" for 3 wire or 1-1/2 for 4 wire.
In your sub Panel the ground and neutral needs to be isolated many times they are tied together at the factory with a large copper wire connecting the 2 grounded / grounding buss bars. Other than that you should bury this a minimum of 18".


How to level my front porch? My front porch, which is concrete, is leaning to one side. How can I fix it? I had a contractor look at it and he wanted to pour another porch on top of it, but I read somewhere that the preferred approach would be to jack it up somehow? Wondering what the best approach is and ballparks on expected cost would be great. I have a picture but I guess I need more reputation to post it :(

The techniques used are all similar but seems to have regional names.It is called slab lifting,mudpumping,etc.The method is to pump a slurry under the pad and lift it.I would check for a foundation repair company that has good local references.I have no idea of cost.I'm sure it varies based on the size of the slab,amount of lift.


how To Silence a Loud PTAC AC Unit? I moved into an apartment with a loud (and somewhat not so cooling) PTAC in-wall AC unit. Each room has its own, a total of 3. The land lord is super cheap and only replaced the 8+ year old unit in the bedroom. That bedroom unit is relatively quiet and very efficiently cooling the room. The living room one is loud and does not cool so well.
What can I do to reduce the noise?

It is possible the coils are full of dirt on the outside coil. They can be hosed down. Don’t use high pressure water that will fold the fins over and make it worse. Also when flushing make sure the water is coming out the drain. I put several gallons of water on my sister-in-law's floor cleaning her window type unit, but it worked better after that (or she was so hot from mopping just the fan felt cool). Also verify the inside filter is clean and dust free.


What should I use to patch this gap between brick siding and top of foundation I have a small gap between the top of our foundation and the start of the brick siding in one isolated area and was wondering what the best material would be to fill this area.

Take and angle grinder and cut out the metal as much as you can.   The part sticking out isn't doing anything.
Use an epoxy concrete kit to fill in the gap.
Skim on a layer of concrete patch - to even out the corner and cover epoxy.

I would not just fill this with a concrete patch.   It will even pop out of that gap.  The skim layer may eventually fail too but it will have no bearing on water getting in and can be repaired in minutes.


What is the proper preparation to re-apply silicone caulk? We have a Swan Stone shower surround that consists of 3 solid surface panels caulked at the corners with a corner molding them applied and caulked.

The previous owners weren't great at things like caulking so it's a mess and I've pulled off the corner mouldings and scrapped off all the existing caulk to get it ready to re-apply.

I was about to wipe it all down with mineral spirits to remove any remaining caulk residue, but then notice in the product literature is specifically says NOT to use mineral spirits as it will prevent the caulk from adhering and that I should instead use denatured alcohol to prep the surface.

So now I'm confused. Should I used mineral spirits to clean off the old caulk, then denatured alcohol to clean off the mineral spirits? Is there some other product I should be using?

By all means, use denatured or isopropyl alcohol to remove all mineral spirits. Go over the entire area a few times with the alcohol on a clean micro fiber cloth, turning the cloth each time to be sure no spirits are being reintroduced to the surface. The surface should be squeaky clean.


How low could kitchen sink sewage inlet go? A plumbing book I have says a kitchen sink sewage inlet should be at 16" above floor. I would like to set it a little lower (e.g. 12") in order to make more room around water stubouts for plumbing as well as provide more vertical clearance for a deep sink with a garbage disposal.

Are there any disadvantage to setting it lower?

No problem and you can go very much lower. It's done everyday for garbage disposals attached to deep sinks and even laundry tubs. I've even seen traps resting on the room's floor with the cabinet bottom greatly notched out for servicing and replacement (plain ugly)...the sink drained exactly like it should and I had no problems washing my tools and buckets.

Additionally, the sink's tailpiece that goes into the trap assembly can be up to a maximum of 24" long. Initially, I couldn't find a public Code Reference, but there is 1 here https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/24/3280.606 to substantiate this very rarely seen setup.

Your situation seems to be a basement or on-grade slab. Though, if there were a readily accessible crawlspace or garage below the deep sink and its garbage disposal, an up-to 24" tailpiece could place the trap in those areas and not in the sink's cabinet or room at all. In operation and regulation, there's little difference between a sink, shower or laundry standpipe trap.

Side with immediate and easy access in all cases. Not seeing a P-trap in the sink's cabinet will have most Home Inspectors and Newbie Building Code Inspectors hyperventilating and clutching for their red pen. Although, these idiots will still happily approve all illegal horizontal drywall installations, amazingly.


What exactly is doorskin? I've used it in a boat-building workshop, but I'm not clear on what "doorskin" is. Is it just plywood made of a single ply? What is its intended purpose? Is it sold at building supply stores that have plywood?

The one suggestion I've seen for DIY house work is to use it when building a ripping guide for a circular saw. You attach a reliable straightedge (like a factory-edged strip of plywood) to a piece of doorskin, then cut the doorskin with a saw. The reason for using doorskin is that you don't lose much of the cutting depth of the saw blade.

I tried Google, Wikipedia, homedepot.com, and lowes.com, and couldn't find it. Maybe my google-fu is weak today.

I would imagine that it is luan sheets. Luan is used to 'skin' hollow core doors. It can also be used in other applications as a 'skin' when trying to create a light rigid platform with an internal skeleton of framework(much like a hollow core door or assembly table)


How can I seal the grout on kitchen wall tiles to give lasting stain and mold protection? I have 1.5mm of white grout between rectified white tiles on my kitchen walls as a splashback (or backsplash in North America*) behind the sink and cooktop and I'm concerned about stains from food and mould.

I've read on the web I'm supposed to seal the grout using a soak-in sealant in what sounds like a very time-consuming prcoess that has to be repeated every year, forever.

Is there a more long-lasting way to do this?

Surely just using that new "no-mould-for-five-years" white silicone sealant would be better than that?

.

.

((* this is hilarious - I'm imagining some dopey kitchen contractor who says it wrong migrating from the US to Australia or vice versa and everyone picking up the wrong term))

You want to apply a penetrating grout sealer. This one says that it last up to 5 years depending on conditions.

The key for the sealer to last as long as possible on a backsplash is to avoid cleaning it with "harsh cleaners" like bleach and antibacterial sprays.  You want to use something that is not going to remove the grout sealer when cleaning the backsplash.  They sell specific cleaners that are easy on the grout at the tile shops, but I have read that just using diluted white vinegar works.


Is it safe for dryer vent ducts to overlap in different directions? Hard to describe this in the title. What I'm referring to is how segments of duct overlap each other where they are connected. Ideally, as with plumbing, the tube the flow enters should be overlapped outside of the tube that flow enters.

Maybe some ASCII art can help:

   CASE 1: THE CORRECT WAY TO DO IT
   -------------------
--------------
-->-->FLOW-->-->
--------------
    ------------------

The two ducts are close to the same diameter. I understand the overlap should be as it is in that ASCII art so that flow does not come up against the seam of the overlap, as it would in the opposite case:

   CASE 2: THE WRONG WAY TO DO IT
---X----------
 --> X------------------
-->-->FLOW-->-->
 --> X-----------------
---X----------

In case 2, flow (lint, for dryer ducts) can get stuck on the inner overlap as it comes up against it. If the overlap were as it is in case 1, the flow of lint has no seams to get stuck on.

So, I think I got all that right. Thing is, doing a dryer install I find that some existing ductwork is fit together such that the joint going to the outside vent connects with a rigid piece with the overlap shown in case 2. I tried changing that, but I think I'd need to replace the part, as the rigid smooth piece just does not fit within the knurled end of the joint it flows into. There is also one other part of the duct extension that's going in, where the pieces fit together in such a way that it's much easier to use case 2 than case 1.

Thus my question: it is not ideal, but is it reasonably safe for case 2 to exist in a ~8' dryer duct? Wherever possible connections would be done with case 1 overlaps. Just trying to get an idea of if case 2 is an absolute no-no, or just not a best practice.

As an aside, I had a similar situation as case 2 with a drain hose for something, and with some plumbers tape (and a tray underneath to catch drips if they did occur) the connection has remained leak free for a while (months, not years). So again, while it isn't ideal, in some cases it isn't a big deal.

You basically answered your own question.

No one here should answer you and say "it's safe" and even if they did, would you blindly trust that as the final answer?

Is it safe to walk over Niagara Falls on a tight rope? If you are Nik Wallenda, yes. Should he do it? That's debatable, but he did - and indeed, many safety precautions were taken.

Dryer vents are NEVER EVER EVER "Install and forget." All families drying clothes are different sizes, and the clothing they own are different materials, and qualities. Even the dryer itself has a YMMV (Your Mileage May Vary) effect on the amount of lint passing into the tube. Eventually, the tube will have to be cleaned.

Technically speaking, at any given point in time a dryer tube with lint in it could catch fire (think cause and effect/affect; intentional pun). So anything you do that negatively impacts the desired laws of physics (as you have correctly described their relevance in your pictures above) increases the mathematical likelihood of an eventual fire by some factor.

The real point is that you should install it the right way. Regardless of if you follow through with installing it the right way, you should develop a schedule of checking it and cleaning it at regular intervals.

I do not sell nor necessarily advocate this product, but products like this are made that are supposed to give you feedback on when it might be time to clean your duct work. I bought this device and in about 6 months will be checking my recent duct work install to see how clean it is and probably clean it for good measure.

Whatever you choose to do, I recommend you go with what gives you peace of mind and just be sure to check it at a regular interval regardless.


How to fix hardwood floor moisture damage We have hardwood floors in our kitchen, and had a floor mat at the sink area that turned out not be be waterproof.  It often got wet, and held the moisture against the hardwood.  The moisture soaked into the joints, expanding the wood and causing swollen ridges along the joint lines:

Roughly the top 1/3 of the picture (2 horizontal joints), and the bottom 1/4 (1 horizontal joint), show undamaged areas.  The planks are completely flat and the only way to see the joints is via the differences in wood grain.  The damage in the middle of the picture was hard to capture in a photo, but you can see light reflections off the raised joints and small gaps along the joints.

I expect that the wood will dry out over time, but it isn't clear whether the swelling will ever completely return to normal.  If I sand it smooth and then the swelling reduces, the joints will look like chamfered edges.

So I'm looking for how to approach fixing this.

Is there a way to speed drying, especially that allows the wood to shrink rather than locking the distortion in place?
Is there a way to know when all the shrinkage that will happen is done happening?
Is drying, sanding, and finish repair the standard solution?

If you protect the raised edges and let it dry out over the next 2 weeks to a month, it should go back on its own. There is no discoloration from the dampness. As long as the raised edges do not get cracked before it goes back down...


Shower Plumbing or Concrete pan We were having a frequent drip show up on our stairs from the master shower above.  The tiled floor of the shower (over concrete pan) had mildew in the corner, so I cleaned out the corner and found water between the tile and shower pan membrane.  So, I pulled out the lower rows of tile and water came out.  I also took up the showers tile floor.  We've been just ignoring the shower fix for awhile, but today, I realize that if I hold a bucket under the shower and run it, a dark damp patch appears and grows on the concrete.  I also opened a hole in the wall of the bedroom and the vertical pipes are not leaking.  Did I mention that I poured water down the drain to see if that caused a leak.  It didn't.  SO what is happening?  It's obviously with a pipe, but what pipe?  Do I have to take out this concrete shower pan?  Thanks.

I think the fact that a "dark damp patch appears on the concrete" when you open the shower valve(s) yet catch the water in a bucket points directly to a leak from the plumbing. You need to open the wall from behind to gain a view of the shower valve body, and also remove all trim on the inside. Use the handles to open the valves and find the leak source. Water may be running down the interior of the enclosure wall. The fact that you have a plumbing leak does not mean that your shower pan is in good shape; if it is old, since you have removed the tile, this is an appropriate time to break out the concrete and have the pan refurbished (hot-mop, vinyl liner, fiberglass pan, etc...)


How to Snub Voltage Spike Created by Appliance? I have a dehumidifier in my basement that creates a voltage spike when it comes on.  That voltage spike wreaks havoc with a bunch of other devices on the circuit.  Outfitting the other devices with surge suppressors is not practical.  Is there an alternative solution, such as some device I could connect the dehumidifier into so that the voltage spike it creates does not propagate to the rest of the branch circuit?

If it's a spike, a surge suppressor on the dehumidifier should fix it. Surge suppressors are non-directional.

If it's a drop, that won't help. A drop could be from a poor connection with high resistance that is more noticeable when the large load of the dehumidifier starting is applied, or it could just be that the circuit is heavily loaded.


Mini Split condensate pump to condensate drain I'm working out the details of my Mini split.

I know by code I have to have it connected to a 3/4" condensate line going outside.  The Mini Split's air handler is located on an inside room where I'm forced to use a condensate pump.  I currently have the condensate pump pushing out water directly via a clear hose 3/8ic hose and it's fine for now, but I want it to code.

My initial idea is to have a PVC with an elbow inside the attic to outside, and put a 3/8" bib on the end closest to the air handler and let it pump away and make sure there is a downward incline in the hose to make sure the water runs out of the house.  Is this the best way? do I need a tee fitting like my whole home AC unit (  straight pipe with some sort of T fitting with no pipe on the top, and it continues out the house )?

I'm looking at doing something similar to this: https://youtu.be/HJwFgi3D-6g?t=58  at the 58 second mark

Just trying to get an idea of what I need to do.  Seems straight forward, but I know that nothing is ever what it seems when you don't know what you don't know.

I don't know about code, but I don't see anything wrong with what's shown in the video. You need a 3/4" MPT threaded to 3/8" barb fitting with a small hose clamp, or a 3/4" slip x 3/8" barb fitting to connect the PVC to your hose. The T on your house A/C is probably there to provide an overflow in case the exit on the outside gets obstructed, either by dirt or by ice. Obviously you want it in a place that minimizes damage should it overflow there...


Can electrical wires break? For starters I know nothing about electrical stuff, please keep that in mind.
We had a very strange occurrence where (no breaker was tripped) one of our electrical lines behind one of the breakers no longer receives electricity. This happened at the very same time as our stove top stopped working, which is on its own line.
I took the stove top apart and took a look, measured electrical flow. Our house doesn't seem to have a Phase 3, because that cable is just cut, so it uses L1 and L2 in its cable, however when I measure the presence at the end of the cable (which is connected straight to the stove top), only one of the veins actually carries a current (It was either L1 or L2)
Now I'm thinking that somehow the cable broke. Aren't they both supposed to carry a current? The connection on the stove top surely assumes that they should.

So what actually happened was that one of the main fuses tripped in the main electricity line. When I got a hold of an electrician via phone, their recommendation was to check those, along with a description of what they actually were and looked like.
Also an important thing I wanted to share that I hadn't seen here that those main breakers can often be replaced with different/wrong fuses, which can be a fire hazard. So I made sure to replace them with the same specs.


How can I extend this waste drain for new bathroom sink? I'm looking to extend this pvc waste pipe coming out of the wall to accommodate my new bathroom sink.  It's too short as it is and doesn't quite reach the new p-trap placement.  Does anyone know how this is connected?  Is it glued or cemented in?  How do I remove and replace it with a longer piece and ensure I won't have a leak?
Appears like a galvanized steel connection in the wall.
UPDATE: I was able to twist and turn and get the drain pipe out far enough to make a decent connection (fully extended about 7.5" out).  The pipe wasn't threaded, just jammed in there.  Not sure how much of the pipe is left inside though, may be a concern.
Is it OK to use this extended pipe for my connection?
Do I need to glue or seal anything?  Or should I take completely out and install a new pipe?

Caveat: I see now that your steel hub is very small, which is probably why things are set up as they are. My solution may not work. You may need to open the wall and enlarge the hub or replace a section of pipe with PVC and a sanitary tee.

My guess is that you have a threaded pipe hub there, into which the plastic trap component has simply been inserted. If that's the case:

Clean up the threads and extend with a threaded pipe nipple of the appropriate size, using thread compound as a sealant

Add a female PVC adapter for 1-1/2" pipe

Install a pipe stub and a slip-joint adapter

Insert the outlet of your trap assembly into that fitting and snug up the compression nut


Small amounts of moss on asphalt shingles? What's the best way to remove moss from asphalt shingles?

Moss is there for a reason. It grows because there is moisture. Typically overhanging tree limbs and shade are the problem. You want to cut back the branches over the house so that your roof will get sufficient sunlight and airflow to dry out.
Once you do that, a good stiff push broom should be sufficient to scrub off the moss from those shingles.
Check for roof damage. That moisture is a killer. It is possible that you will need to replace shingles, or even the wood underneath. You may also have venting problems, preventing the roof from properly drying out.
Finally, once you ensure that the roof can dry out, and remove the moss which helps to keep it moist, and replace/repair any problems, you can then add zinc strips to the top of your roof to help retard moss from returning. The zinc leaches out gradually with rain, retarding new moss or algae from growing on your shingles.
Nothing will work unless you dry out the roof and keep it dry though.


Options for adding a timer on heated towel rail socket in UK toilet I live in the UK - my downstairs toilet consists of just a small sink and a toilet.
Next to the sink is a heated towel rail which is wired straight into the socket, and is controlled by a switch.
I would like to add a timer to control when it comes on and off as it is not connected to the central heating.
I have seen socket adaptors with timers on them (see picture), but this would mean installing a standard plug socket and rewiring the towel rail to have a plug.

As far as I can tell this is allowed under UK building regs as it is not within 3 metres of a shower or bath, but I am still worried about the proximity to the sink.
Would this be a viable solution or are my concerns founded?
Any advice would be much appreciated!

Allowed, but there are lots of timeswitched fused connection units available if you'd prefer not to have a plug/socket.
Selection here:
https://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Main_Index/Timers_Index/Immersion_Heater_Timers_1/index.html
Edit to add: all sockets must now be RCD protected. If the existing circuit is not RCD protected you must not change the fused connection unit to a socket.


Sweat 3" Copper With Mapp Gas Torch? I need to remove a section of 3" copper, and replace it. Has anyone ever done this with a single Mapp gas torch? I'm not sure if its going to have enough heat to get it done. I probably could get it out without too much of a fuss, I just want to have a bit more confidence I can sweat the new one back in without making a mess.

I'd think it could be done with a pair of Mapp torches, but its probably generally done with acetylene?

You might have luck using two brazing torches, like these. My concerns usually aren't about making a mess; it's getting it to work without burning holes in it and physically getting it back together after a de-solder. I'd start over, but it's worth a shot on a $20 fitting. I'd say my re-solder success rate is 50\50 without doing more work than just using new, clean fittings. I've never done 3" and I wouldn't without a wrap-around torch head for an acetylene kit.

These brazing heads really are nice and make quick work out of plan old soldering.

Source: refrigerationbest.blogspot.com


Is there any value in using higher interrupting current rating breakers in a residential loadcenter? Current production residential/light commercial breaker lines are available in multiple interrupting capacity ratings -- this rating is how much current the breaker can safely interrupt without blowing itself to bits from the effects of the arc inside.  For instance, the Siemens breakers come in 10kA, 22kA, and 65kA, while Eaton BRs come in 10kA, 22kA, and 42kA with a few available in 65kA as well.

This is useful in commercial work, where larger services and feeders can deliver higher fault currents than the 10kA typically standard for residential and light commercial services.  However, would installing more robust (i.e. higher interrupting rating) breakers deliver an advantage in longevity even if a 10kA breaker could handle the maximum prospective fault currents available from the service?  Or should I simply get 10kAIC branch breakers as the higher ratings are more cost without any benefit if you don't need them?

The interrupt current rating is only for the purpose of a high current fault like a ground fault or short circuit. (This is also sometimes referred to as a withstand current.) As long as the breaker can interrupt the fault safely it can be used in that application.

This is nothing you didn't already know.

The robustness of the product for a higher interrupt rating will not add any value in a lower rated installation. Since a residential installation will never exceed 10,000 amps short circuit current there is no need for a higher rating.

The higher cost of a higher rated breaker has no payoff in a lower rated system since it will never be realized in the lifetime of the product. If the product reaches its end of life without ever having used the extra robustness, where is the added value?

I had my well driller tell me to use #12 wire and a 20 amp circuit to feed the well pump when the manual specified a 15 amp circuit with #14 wire. His justification was "bigger is always better". That is unless you are the one paying for it. I elected for the smaller circuit. The extra cost is wasted since it is never used.

I am an overbuilder myself but I try to resist the temptation to spend money on things that will never pay off.

Good luck!


Hammering a rebar into the ground without bending it I want to hammer a rebar into semi-hard ground (about 2 feet in). What options do I have in order to hammer it in straight, without bending it in the process?

EDIT: This is a 3/8″ diameter rebar.

Tools I'm currently thinking of:

Sledge Hammer - worried that there are better chances of the rebar bending in the process.
Rotary Hammer - haven't used a tool like this before. What are the pros/cons? (other than the higher price, compared to a sledge hammer)

Any other options I'm missing here?

Thanks

Depending on the size, you could see about renting a demolition hammer and a ground rod drive bit.

You might also want to bevel the tip of the rod, so it's not just a blunt end.


Bottom plate 2" wide, but need 4x4 post I have torn out the ceiling in my guest room with the intention of converting to a cathedral ceiling by replacing the ridge board with a ridge beam + posts. Structural engineer says I need 4x4 posts, which is all fine. However, AFTER that, I tore the wall open and discovered that the bottom plate is a 2x4 on its side instead of lying flat and the studs are flat side, too, so the wall is 1.5" thick instead of 3.5". Can I just attach another 2x4 to 2x4 bottom plate to make it 4x4 and land the 4x4 post on it as planned?

You say, changing the ceiling in your "guest room". For such a small span (1 room) for the new proposed beam, I doubt if a 2x4 post would be a structural problem. However, there are many factors that could affect your decision: 1) Bearing load: The 2x4 post needs sufficient area to bear on. The end grain of the post will accept about 3 times the load of what the side grain of the
Beam or plate will accept, so your structural engineer would need to calculate that for you, 2) Bending of new post: A post can fail by having too much load causing it to bend. This is a factor of width (skinniest direction) of post and length of post. This is called "slenderness ratio", and your structural engineer needs to calculate this, 3) Connectors: The beam needs to be connected to the post AND the post to the plate(s). Using 2 plates on edge, will move the nailing pattern into the plates out of standard position, and your structural engineer will need to calculate distance nails to edge of plate, etc. and your structural engineer will need to calculate that, (see where I'm going with this...)

There are other factors too, like over turning (rotation) of plates on edge, hold down of plate to floor, etc. it's just not practical to calculate all the variables, that's why your structural engineer used the standard 4x4 post, connectors, etc.

So, why try to "hide" the post in the wall? Why not "expose" the post by letting it extend beyond the face of the wall and stain (or paint) it the same as the beam? This will create a "feature" to your room. You can then use the standard 4x4 posts, connectors, etc. (You may need to change the base connector to fit around the base plate, but that's easy...there's about 10 gazillion standard connectors to choose from.)

Remember, that 4x4 post has a load that needs to transfer all the way down to a footing, (or beam/joists). It can't just sit on the subfloor. Make sure you look under the 2x4 plate to make sure something will support the new 4x4 post.


safely de-energizing a junction box so that I can permanently cover it up I have a junction box in my ceiling that is controlled by a single light switch. I no longer want to use the junction box or have it exposed and I'd like to cover with drywall-- much preferable to a plastic cap or painted blank. I know typically this isn't legal or safe but I was wondering if it would be OK to do if I disconnected and capped the wires leading into the relevant light switch from my circuit--effectively de-energizing the junction box (there is nothing downstream of the junction box using those wires, they terminate in the box). The light switch would remain so anyone could access the wires there and also anyone could easily re-attach them to make use of the junction box in future. Thank you!

Either remove the wires entirely, or if it is impossible to do so, remove as much of the cables at most ends obliterate the cables at both ends so they are entirely orphaned in the wall.  Don't get your cables mixed up!

Then, remove the old junction box entirely.  Gone.